Mom's Cheese Ball

This has been a holiday standard of my mother's for as long as I can remember.  We thought it was important that it be protected into perpetuity, so on the blog it goes.

Mom's Cheese Ball

16 ounces cream cheese
6 ounces sharp cheddar (Tillamook or Dubliner), grated
3 ounces blue cheese, crumbled
2-3 cups of walnuts

In the food processor pulse walnuts to a fine or medium fine consistentcy.  Put into a shallow bowl or pie pan.  This can optionally roasted, but mom never does.

Wash out the food processor.  Add cheese and pulse and mix until smooth.  Scrape out the processor bowl into a medium bowl and chill about 45 minutes.  Lay out two pieces of plastic wrap in a "X" on the counter.  When workable, form the ball the cheese into a ball and roll in the walnuts.  Re-shape and re-roll in walnuts until its no longer sticky and holds together.

Put into center of the plastic wrap "X" and bring sides together on top and twist.  Add a ribbon or a tie.  Let set at least overnight for flavor to blend.  Serve with Breton crackers.

Zucchini Pineapple Muffins

Mom made these, and then I made these again three or four times right after Liana was born.  It was my favorite middle of the night snack when she was a newborn, but really they are great anytime.  They are moist and delicious, and keep for several days in tupperware.  Or they can be baked, frozen and thawed out in small batches.  Sometimes I'd have them cold, or sometimes in the microwave for 15 seconds or so.  Usually with butter and a glass of milk.   It's a great use for all the abundant zucchini this time of year, and is a nice variation from standard zucchini bread.   

Zucchini Pineapple Muffins

3 c. flour
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
3/4 c. chopped pecans or walnuts
1 c. melted butter
2 c sugar (can be reduced a bit)
3 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2 c. grated zucchini
1 large (20 oz)  can crushed pineapple, drained (original recipe called for a small can, but we like more)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and nuts and set aside. Combine melted butter and sugar.  Add the eggs, one at a time, whisking after each addition.  Stir in zucchini, pineapple and vanilla.  Add dry ingredients, stir to combine. Spoon into well greased muffin tins or muffin tins prepared with cupcake liners.  I usually use an ice cream scoop to transfer the batter to the pans. Bake 20 minutes. Makes 24 muffins.

Katharine Hepburn Brownies (Adapted)

There isn't really a reason to make any other brownie, because these are basically amazing.  I adapted it from Katharine Hepburn's family brownie recipe--reducing the sugar a bit, using chocolate chips instead of unsweetened baking chocolate and adding in unsweetened cocoa powder. 

One of my most favorite things on this magnificent earth is one of these warm brownies with a scoop of vanilla ice cream drizzled with hot fudge. Seriously delicious.   

I usually make the batter in a two or four cup glass measuring cup since it can go in the microwave. This recipe is for an 8 x 8 pan, but can easily be doubled for a 9 x 13 pan.

Katharine Hepburn Brownies (Adapted)
9 brownies

1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup butter
4 teaspoon cocoa powder
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup walnuts or pecans (optional)

Preheat oven 325 degrees. Place butter and chocolate chips in a 2-4 cup glass measuring cup, and melt in the microwave (30-90 seconds depending on your microwave).  This can be done in a double boiler if preferred. Stir to ensure all the chocolate has evenly melted.  Stir in cocoa powder and sugar.  Add 2 eggs, whisking after each addition.  Stir in vanilla.  Sprinkle the flour and salt over the batter, whisk in until smooth.  Add the optional nuts.  Pour batter into an un-greased 8 x8 pan. Bake 40 minutes at 325 degrees.

Hazelnut Torte

(Photo credit: Chava)

Another classic recipe, and a favorite of many.  This recipe isn't too sweet and has plenty of protein. 

Hazelnut Torte

Serves 8-12

2 1/2 cup hazelnuts

1 slice bread

8 eggs, separated

1/2 cup sugar plus 1/2 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

Frosting

2 cup heavy whipping cream

Powdered sugar

Raspberry jam

Preheat oven 300 degrees.  Prepare three 9 inch round cake pans: grease lightly with butter and dust with flour; cut out rounds of parchment paper to fit the bottom of the pans.  (The parchment may not be necessary depending on your pan).  

Pour the hazelnuts onto a baking sheet with raised edges.  Roast hazelnuts in the oven until the skins begin to loosen.  Remove from oven, cool to touch and rub between your hands to remove as much skin as possible.  Set aside 13 nuts for decoration.  Grind the hazelnuts in a food processor.  Set aside 1/2 cup of the ground nuts for decoration.  Transfer remaining hazelnuts to a bowl.  Grind the slice of bread in a food processor and transfer to the bowl of hazelnuts.  Add the egg yolks, 1/2 cup sugar and vanilla to the bowl.  In a separate bowl add the egg whites and beat until soft peaks form.  Gradually add the other 1/2 cup sugar to the egg whites and continue beating until stiff peaks form.  Fold the egg whites into the hazelnut mixture.  Divide the batter between the three prepared cake pans.  Bake 20 minutes at 300 degrees.  Cool and remove from pans.

To finish beat the whipping cream and add powdered sugar to taste.  It should be stiff enough to spread, but not so stiff that it is lumpy.  Place a layer of cake down on your serving platter and spread the cake with a generous layer of raspberry jam.  Spread a layer of whipping cream.  Repeat with the other two layers of cake--spreading first with jam, then whipping cream.  Frost the top and the sides of the cake with whipping cream.  Pat the reserved ground nuts around the sides of the cake--it should stick to the whipping cream.  Decorate the top with edible flowers and the 13 reserved whole hazelnuts.  Keep refrigerated until ready to serve. 

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies

Welcome to the new (free) home of thesugaredpeach blog.  I've moved all the recipes and photos over from the old blog.  I've decided to upload more recipes with or without photos...just so that we have them available.  I will add photos organically as it becomes convenient, but honestly it's been a barrier to posting new recipes.  I would love to crowd source some of the photography, so if any of you take any great pics of the recipes, please email, text or instagram them and I will add them to the blog entry...

Here is the recipe for another one of my go to delicious cookies.  The recipe hails from my time in The South...like the type of cookie you might eat on a covered porch with cool glass of lemonade. But it's just as good in Sequim with a glass of milk...

You can make a lot of delicious variations to this recipe.  Additions might include chocolate chips, milk chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, shredded coconut, walnuts, pecans, dried cherries, dried cranberries or almonds.  The classic combination is semi sweet chocolate chips and pecan, but I also really enjoy sour dried cherries and chocolate, as well as coconut, pecan & chocolate.   Keep the additions around 3 cups total, but I've certainly done closer to 4 cups at times.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Pecan Cookies

4 dozen

1 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups rolled oats
2 cups chocolate chips
1 cups pecans or walnuts

Preheat oven 350 degrees. Cream butter, brown sugar and white sugar with a hand mixer or in a stand mixer.  Beat in eggs and vanilla.  Sift flour with salt and baking soda.  Add sifted dry ingredients and oats to the butter mixture.  Mix on medium speed for about 30 seconds.  Add the chocolate chips, pecans and/or any other additions, mix on medium for another 10 seconds.  Drop cookie dough in generous tablespoons onto an ungreased baking sheet.  Bake at 350 degrees for 11-12 minutes.  Store in an airtight container.

Mount St. Helen's Pancake

Here is one for the siblings–one of our childhood breakfast recipes, named by our mother for the 1981 erupting volcano because of it’s puffiness.  It’s not quite a dutch baby or a German pancake, and is definitely different than the Blueberry Pear Oven Pancake I’ve previously posted…more buttery, no fruit and usually served with maple syrup.  It’s super quick and easy, and is more of a weekday affair than a company brunch recipe.

I’m back from another posting hiatus–this one due primarily to the three month hyperemesis gravidarum apocalypse that was my first/second trimester.  But I’ve been feeling great for the past month or two, and still found myself with barriers to posting.  So I’ve also decided to try taking photos on my phone, since borrowing the fancy camera and editing in LightRoom has proved too be too much of a barrier.   The phone really limits my ability to edit and crop properly, hence the wonky cropping in the above two.  Not quite up to my standard perhaps, but probably better than not posting at all… I’ll keep experimenting with photo editing apps, but in the meantime…

Mount Saint Helen’s Pancake

One of my mother’s recipes

Makes 9x 13 pan, serves 4-6 depending on appetite

4-5 eggs

2 cups milk

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup melted butter

1 cup flour

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Whisk all ingredients together, pour batter into a 9 x13 pan.  Bake for 15 minutes.  Serves hot with maple syrup.  You can cut the recipe in half ( use either 2 -3 eggs instead) and bake for the same amount of time, at the same temperature in an 8×8 or 9×9 pan.

Moroccan Chermoula Sauce over Pan Fried Fish Fillet

You may have noticed the paucity of seafood recipes on this blog–mainly owing to the fact that I’m not a fan.  I wouldn’t eat anything “fishy” for the first two decades of my life, and have only recently found a few recipes I can tolerate.  This traditional Moroccan sauce is pungent and citrusy, and adequately covers any trace of fishiness.

And though I haven’t tried it yet, I expect I would like actually prefer it on a chicken, thus avoiding the fish altogether.  The recipe is from The New Book of Middle Eastern Food by Claudia Roden.  She shares that every town and every family has its own special variation of chermoula.  I’ve included my favorite below, but it is definitely a recipe that can be further adjusted to taste.

Moroccan Chermoula Sauce with Pan Fried Fish Fillet

Serves 4

For the sauce:

1/2 cup cilantro

1/2 cup flat leaf parsley

3 large garlic cloves, crushed

1/2 to 1 teaspoon ground cumin (I prefer less)

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1 1/2 teaspoons paprika

1/4 teaspoon ground chili pepper

Juice of 1 lemon

1/3 cup olive oil

Put all the sauce ingredients into a food processor and blend until there are no large chunks.  Salt to taste. Set aside and prepare the fish.

For the fish:

2 pounds white fish fillets such as turbot, hake, cod, etc

At this point you can either marinate the fish in half of the chermoula sauce for 20-30 minutes, or you can dredge it in flour.  I attempted to marinate it and then dredge in flour once, and it got a little messy– though still tasty.  The photos show fish that has been dredged in flour and not marinated.  In any case, heat a large (nonstick) skillet with olive oil over medium heat.  Cook, turning fillets once, for 3-8 minutes total, or until the fish begins to flake.  Serve with the remaining chermoula poured over top.