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By Helen S. Fletcher, on December 26th, 2011%
 This particular recipe came as quite a surprise to me. After we had photographed the Chocolate Cherry Boule blog, it was late and we weren’t in the mood to eat anything else for the evening. I wrapped it and put it on the counter where, for some unknown reason, it was forgotten. About five days later, I saw it sitting there. A whole loaf! It was unthinkable to throw it away so I let it sit there a few more days while I figured out what to do.
Often, after sleeping on a problem the answer is there in the morning, waiting like a gift. And so it was when I thought of this. I love bread pudding and although I think they have been overdone in restaurants, along with crème brulee, (I joke about writing a book titled 560 Bread Puddings and 780 Creme Brulees) I make one every so often as a treat. Continue reading Chocolate Cherry Bread Pudding
By Helen S. Fletcher, on December 20th, 2011%
I will be posting next week’s blog CHOCOLATE CHERRY BREAD PUDDING ON MONDAY, DECEMBER 26TH as I think it makes a great New Year’s Eve dessert and needs some prep ahead of time. It accidentally went up today by mistake before the error was caught. I hope this didn’t cause too much confusion.
 I have come to the conclusion that Beef Strogonoff is one of my favorite beef dishes. I have done it in a crepe, in a Portobello mushroom and now in a soup. This soup takes all the components of this entrée and turns them into a delicious, easy to make soup.
As the beef tenderloin used in the entrée would be a waste in the soup, I have substituted beef stew meat, well trimmed. The mushrooms and onions are here as well as the brandy. Each person stirs in their own sour cream.
My husband cheered every time I made this. He will eat anything I make and always tells me it’s good – even if I have reservations. Keep in mind not everything works perfectly the first time – so re-do’s are necessary. However, he was really vocal and enthusiastic about this soup going back to get seconds. Continue reading Beef Strogonoff Soup with Wine and Cheese Baguette
By Helen S. Fletcher, on December 15th, 2011%
 I love bread – any kind of bread. It goes way back to my childhood when I came home from school. Walking from the gate to the back yard up the steps to the screened in door, I could smell the fresh baked bread my mother made. She would cut thick slices and sprinkle it with sugar (sugar made everything better – so much for bacon!!) and we would sit together and eat it. As the pickiest of eaters, Mom was happy to get anything down me – hence the sugar! While I no longer put sugar on my bread, I now love making bread.
My first recollection of Chocolate Cherry Bread was from the Corner Bakery in Chicago. A bakery client of mine wanted to back me to expand into bread baking. I visited the Corner Bakery, Buckhead Bakery in Atlanta where I worked in the kitchen and La Brea Bakery in Los Angeles where I spent some time talking with Nancy Silverton as she was putting bread on the map! All of this only increased my fascination with bread. Although I eventually felt this project would interfere too much with my main focus of supplying upscale desserts to hotels, restaurants and caterers, my interest in bread never peaked. In the ensuing blogs, you will see more breads coming your way.
I never understood the lack of confidence people have when it comes to bread. It is the easiest of bakery items to make, taking little time to assemble and mix the ingredients and it is one of the few baked items that can be adjusted or “fixed”. If the dough is too dry – add a bit more liquid, too wet – add a bit more flour. Very accommodating! There is a wait as the bread rises and then a little time shaping the bread, more time rising, then into the oven while you wait for your house to smell unbelievably wonderful. The hardest part is waiting for it to cool! Tips on how to speed it up or slow it down are given when appropriate. However, remember the taste of the bread is significantly improved with slow rises as opposed to forced rises. However, my kitchen in the winter can be quite cold so I often use my improvised proofer (aka, my oven) to ensure a proper rise. Continue reading Chocolate Cherry Boule
By Helen S. Fletcher, on December 8th, 2011%
 In an earlier post, I mentioned my love affair with cranberries. Here is another example to keep them in my life all year long. Canning is a time honored method of putting aside food for months when it isn’t available fresh. It is an easy process, not particularly difficult, but it is important to follow the steps.
Many fruits require pectin because they don’t have enough on their own to jell the mixture. Cranberries are full of pectin and quite easily jell on their own. The addition of strawberries cuts the natural tartness of the cranberries and deepens the flavor. Continue reading Cranberry Strawberry Jam
By Helen S. Fletcher, on December 1st, 2011%
 What would the holidays be without cookies? I can’t imagine. While I no longer make the huge variety I used to, we have to have some. While I love to make cookies to hang on the tree (see European Holiday Cookies 1 and European Holiday Cookies 2 for more cookies), these bites are among my favorite for enjoying and giving. Because there are only two of us now (that is not a complaint!), I sometimes make a smaller amount so we don’t end up rolling into the New Year. I have included the ingredients for an 8×8 inch square pan and a 9×13 inch pan of the Apricot Streusel Triangles.
Apricots are one of my favorite flavors for desserts and these never fail to satisfy. The apricots I used in this recipe are definitely dried apricots as opposed to the ones I suggested for the Wild Rice stuffing for the Rock Cornish Hens a few weeks ago. Those are very plump and not very dry and they are also rather expensive. This recipe was originally made with dried apricots and I have maintained that ingredient. When plumping the apricots it is important to leave the lid off pan. This will allow the sulfur used in the drying process to evaporate so there is a cleaner apricot taste to the finished cookie. The use of two flours in the Streusel makes a more tender crumb. If you follow the order in which I wrote this, you won’t have to wash the processor in between. That in itself is worth the recipe!
The almond paste called for in the Almond Macaroons can be found in the baking aisle of most grocery stores. These can be served half dipped in chocolate or plain and were a customer favorite. The number of cookies you get out of a recipe is determined by how large you pipe the cookies. We used to make them very small and sandwich two together with chocolate – we also made them rather large and half dipped them as shown. Anything in between works well too. The baking time may need to be adjusted if you change the size – you want them to be a golden brown when finished. That will yield a crisp outside and soft inside.
Both of these cookies are easy to prepare and have tremendous flavor to them. They would make perfect gifts to some lucky recipients. So join me in the kitchen for some holiday cookies that won’t stress you out and may just become new traditions. Continue reading Holiday Cookies for 2011
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This particular recipe came as quite a surprise to me. After we had photographed the Chocolate Cherry Boule blog, it was late and we weren’t in the mood to eat anything else for the evening. I wrapped it and put it on the counter where, for some unknown reason, it was forgotten. About five days later, I saw it sitting there. A whole loaf! It was unthinkable to throw it away so I let it sit there a few more days while I figured out what to do.
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