Blueberry Crumb Muffins

As much as I buy huge containers of summer blueberries to enjoy the health benefits of eating fresh blueberries out of hand, I eventually break down and end up making what people really want: blueberry muffins.

All of my close-up muffin glamour shots came out fuzzy, but trust me here folks, they were good. This recipe is from Nick Malgieri's The Modern Baker. His recipe says it makes 12, but I had enough for 18 regular sized muffins.

Blueberry Crumb Muffins

Crumb Topping

1 c. flour

1/2 t. baking powder

1/3 t. cinnamon

6 T. unsalted butter

1/2 c. brown sugar

Muffin Batter

2 1/2 c. flour

2 t. baking powder

1/4 t. salt

1/4 t. freshly grated nutmeg

8 T. (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

3/4 c. sugar

1/2 c. brown sugar

2 lg. eggs

1/2 c. milk

1 pint blueberries, rinsed, drained, and picked over

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees (Note: if I were to do these again, I'd cook them at 350 - my muffin tops got a little too dark.)

2. For the crumb topping, combine the flour, baking powder and cinnamon in a medium mixing bowl and stir well to mix. Melt the butter in a small pan. remove from the heat, then add the brown sugar to the pan of melted butter and use a small heatproof rubber spatula to stir them together. Scrape the butter and sugar mixture into  the flour mixture, stirring it in  until the flour is evenly moistened. Set aside while preparing the muffin batter.

3. Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg in a mixing bowl and stir well to mix.

4. Combine the butter and sugars in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed for about 1 minute, or until well mixed and a little lightened in color. Beat in the eggs one at a time, beating smooth after each.

5. Decrease the mixer speed to low and beat in  1/2 the flour mixture. Stop the mixer and use a large rubber spatula to scrape down the bowl and the beater.

6. On low speed, beat in the milk. After the batter has absorbed the milk, beat in the remaining flour mixture. Stop and scrape down the bowl and beater again. Gently fold in the blueberries.

7. Remove bowl from mixer and give the mixture a final stir with a spatula to ensure everything is incorporated.

9. Divide batter in the lined muffin tins (I got about 18 muffins) and sprinkle topping evenly over tops of muffins. Bake 20-30 minutes, until muffins are well risen and feel firm to the touch. Cool the muffins in the pan on a rack.

Panzanella

Our great neighbors Jeff & Kerry (a.k.a. "the boys") have an annual neighborhood fish fry. Yes, we're landlocked, and yet somehow, between the early summer thunderstorms and the boys' lush backyard garden, we got a little taste of Seattle in suburban Salt Lake City.

Everyone brought a dish to share: rich, creamy clam chowder, green apple slaw, coleslaw, green salad with avocados, crostini with spinach dip, herbed oven fries, some sort of amazing bean salad, fresh cut fruit. And the desserts! Brenda's lovely trifle with lemon pound cake, lime cheesecake, and texas sheet cake with walnut frosting. Walnut frosting!

Ed usually leaves the cooking to me, but for this occasion, he gently suggested: "make that bread salad that's freaking awesome." Okay, Ed! 

This salad is inspired from Ina Garten's delicious Panzanella. The main technique that sets Ina's apart above other recipes is the extra step of crisping up the bread in some olive oil before adding it to the salad. The result is a savory, chewy, crispy bread that is really well seasoned and doesn't fall apart in the salad. Also be sure to use a nice Italian bread and not the cottony French bread you usually find in your store bakery.

The great thing about this salad is that you can adapt the ingredients to your tastes, as long as you have the basics of the bread and the vinaigrette.

Panzanella

For the croutons:

1 chewy Italian baguette, cubed

2-3 T. olive oil (extra virgin, can use a garlic flavored oil if you have it)

1/2 t. salt

1/4 t. pepper

1 garlic clove, smashed (optional)

For the salad:

1/2 red onion, thinly sliced

1/2 to 1 English cucumber, cubed

1 yellow pepper, cubed (can also use red or orange)

3-4 tomatoes, cubed

20 fresh basil leaves, torn

handful fresh parsley, chopped (optional)

a few shavings of parmesan cheese (optional)

For the vinaigrette:

1 teaspoon finely minced garlic

1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1/2 cup good olive oil

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

pinch of sugar

Heat the oil in a large saute pan. Add the bread, salt, and pepper, and smashed garlic clove, if using; cook over low to medium heat, tossing frequently, for 10 minutes, or until nicely browned. Add more oil as needed. Remove garlic. (You may have to do this in two batches.)

For the vinaigrette, whisk all the ingredients together.

In a large bowl, mix the tomatoes, cucumber, yellow pepper, red onion, basil, and parsley. 

This is where I get carried away with the camera. All of the vegetables looked so beautiful, starting with the onions.

No, they didn't fall on the cutting board like that, but I couldn't help myself.

Adding more vegetables...
Almost done...

Add the bread cubes and toss with the vinaigrette. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Finish with a few shavings of parmesan cheese. Serve, or allow the salad to sit for about half an hour for the flavors to blend.

Tilapia Fish Tacos with White Sauce

Time for My Favorite Taco, hands down.

For the toppings, I prepared

-shredded cabbage

-avocado slices

-pico de gallo (chopped onion, tomato, jalapeno, cilantro, lime juice, seasonings)

-white sauce (1/2 c. or so mayo, lime juice to taste, finely minced jalapeno, salt, pepper, pinch of cayenne)

-cheese, if you must

-Corn tortillas (while not as sturdy as flour tortillas) are the best match for the tacos, I think.

You can cook the fish any way you like, but I especially like frying as it lends a nice crunchy texture to the tacos. For the fish:

1. Set up a breading station: 1 bowl with 2 beaten eggs and a pinch of salt, 1 bowl with flour, and 1 bowl with panko bread crumbs.
   
   Pan fry in a about 1/2-inch canola oil.
   
2. Heat some oil (about 1/2-inch high) in a cast iron pan or dutch oven.
   
3. Pat dry 3-4 tilapia filets and cut into strips. Dip in flour, then egg, then panko.
   
4. When oil is shimmering, add breaded fish and cook a couple of minutes on each side, depending on size of fish. I also hedged my bets by frying a few chicken tenders, just in case the kids revolted. Happily for me, they liked them both.
   

I have no words.

I... I just really don't know what to say about this, other than that it might just be the most disgusting things I've ever seen. And I've seen some disgusting things.

I stole this from This is Why You're Fat. It is, apparently, the Domino’s Three Cheese Mac-N-Cheese Pasta Bread Bowl.

Imagine lifting the cardboard lid to find this. It's exactly the stuff they squeeze out of blocked arteries. The plastic fork is a nice touch. Good luck with that, my friend.

Any comments must include alternative carb-on-carb suggestions for Dominoes. Oh, I know: what about scraping some fake mashed potatoes in a bowl and topping it with congealed gravy, fried chicken, cheese, and corn! Oh, wait... that's already been done.

Okay Dominoes, what about a cheese fry pizza with fry dipping sauce? (With cheese-stuffed crust, of course.) Take that!

Pavlova, Baby!

In my pathetic quest to find New and Interesting Desserts, I came across this lovely looking pavlova in Gourmet magazine.

Pavlova with Lemon Curd and Berries

I had to make it. Here's how mine turned out. 

Note the absence of blueberries. I'm not paying $3.99 for a pint of blueberries. Despite my fiscal snobbery, it turned out delicious. I love how the meringue is crispy on the outside and marshmallowy on the inside. How the lemon curd, lightened with cream, was still tart. It's really easy to make, and I can imagine all sorts of variations with this summer's fruit. 

I can also imagine myself eating this with Alan Rickman in 17-century garb on the grand lawn of an English country manor while our dashing children frolic in the shrubberies. 

So if you're feeling a little refined and want a change of pace from brownies, make this. You might just start talking with an accent.