Cherry-Almond Crisp

I always struggle to bake or cook my way through all the recipes I flag, particularly in my monthly Cooking Light magazines. One of my hopes for my early retirement (a.k.a. shifting to a full-time mom role) is that I'll be able to try more new recipes. Given my struggles, I was quite proud to put into practice one recipe from my Cooking Light  that I received just last week.

When my husband and I were digging through our chest freezer last night, I saw bags of frozen tart cherries and remembered a dessert that called for tart cherries. So I was able to accomplish two positives: using something from my freezer and trying a delicious recipe! Although it takes a while to bake, the hands-on time for this recipe ins minimal.

Cherry-Almond Crisp
3 lbs. pitted tart cherries (can use fresh or thawed frozen)
2/3 cup sugar
3 Tbsp. flour (Note: I added about 3 Tbsp. cornstarch due to all the liquid from my frozen cherries)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
3/4 cup flour
3/4 cup oats
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1/2 tsp. salt
5 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
1/4 tsp. almond extract

Preheat oven to 375ºF. Combine cherries, sugar, 3 Tbsp. flour, vanilla and cinnamon in a large bowl. Pour cherry mixture into greased 9 x 13 pan. Bake 40 minutes until thick and bubbly.

Meanwhile, combine remaining flour, oats, brown sugar, almonds and salt together. When cherry mixture is nearly done baking, combine melted butter and almond extract. Stir the butter mixture into the dry ingredients, combining to moistened the dry ingredients.

Remove cherry mixture from oven, and cover evenly with streusel topping. Place back into the oven, and bake for another 20 minutes until topping is browned. Serve warm or room temperature, topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream if desired. Serves 12.

Vegetable Marinade

We enjoyed a relaxing evening with friends and a grill FULL of food this evening. We tried a new marinade for vegetables, which turned out well.

Vegetable Marinade
2/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup minced onion (omitted due to having onions in vegetable mixture)
1 Tbsp. garlic
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 Tbsp. fresh basil

Combine all marinade ingredients together. Pour over vegetables, and toss vegetables to coat. Stir occasionally prior to grilling. Marinate several hours or preferably overnight. Grill until vegetables are desired consistency. (We used this on summer squash, onions, green peppers, sweet peppers, mushrooms and new potatoes. We didn't add the new potatoes or mushrooms until shortly before grilling.)

Dried Fig and Walnut Bread

This is another bread that required an atypical ingredient: dried figs. I feel fortunate that I had two days at home this weekend where I was able to make bread both days.

Dried Fig and Walnut Bread
2 tsp. yeast
1 1/3 cups water
1 1/2 Tbsp. honey
1 1/2 Tbsp. softened butter
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups wheat flour
2 cups bread flour
1/3 cup dried figs, chopped
1/2 cup toasted walnuts

Heat the water until warm, between 105ºF and 115ºF. Pour into warmed mixing bowl, and add yeast. Let stand 5 minutes.

Add honey, butter, salt, wheat flour and half the bread flour. Beat well. Cover, and let stand 15 minutes.

Add remaining bread flour. Knead the dough until soft and springy but soft to the touch. Knead in dried figs and walnuts. Remove the dough hook, cover the bowl and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.

Turn dough onto lightly greased or floured surface, and punch dough down. Divide dough into two pieces, and shape each into a round loaf. Place on prepared baking sheet. Cover, and let rise until doubled, about 45 to 60 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375ºF. Bake 35 to 45 minutes, until golden.Cool on a wire rack.

Orange Cranberry Cornmeal Bread

This is one of my favorite breads of recent times. It is delicious lightly toasted and smeared with butter. The orange flavor really comes through when toasted, and the cranberries make a really pretty loaf.

Orange Cranberry Cornmeal Bread
2 tsp. yeast
1 1/3 cups water
3 Tbsp. sugar
1/2 cup cornmeal
3 Tbsp. softened butter
1 Tbsp. grated orange zest
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup wheat flour
3 cups bread flour
1 cup dried cranberries
Glaze
1 egg
1 Tbsp. water or milk

Heat the water until warm, between 105ºF and 115ºF. Pour into warmed mixing bowl, and add yeast. Let stand 5 minutes.

Add sugar, cornmeal, butter, orange zest, salt, wheat flour and half the bread flour. Beat well. Cover, and let stand 15 minutes.

Add remaining bread flour. Knead the dough until soft and springy but soft to the touch. Knead in the cranberries. Remove the dough hook, cover the bowl and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.

Turn dough onto lightly greased or floured surface, and punch dough down. Shape dough into a loaf, and place in greased 9 x 5 bread pan.  Cover, and let rise until doubled, about 45 to 60 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375ºF. Combine egg and water/milk for glaze, and brush over top of dough. Bake 30 to 40 minutes, until golden.Cool on a wire rack.