Wild Blueberry Margarita on the Rocks

Every summer I seem to have one cocktail that I lean towards. Last summer it was many variations of the mojito. This summer it has been margarita time. This isn't anything unusual, I have been a lifelong (adult life anyway) margarita fan. The salt is key. I'm also a big fan of salt. Next to my stove I have three jars of various sea salt. A few weeks ago Laurie Constantino tweeted about Alaska Pure Sea Salt. I promptly checked out the Alaska Pure Sea Salt web page. As soon as I saw wild blueberry salt I knew I had to have some. Some people might wonder what to do with blueberry salt, but not me. I knew immediately that it would be reserved for margaritas. Then it was just a matter of waiting for the blueberries to ripen.
In the meantime I had been enjoying the margarita recipe that was posted on White on Rice Couple's blog earlier this year. Instead of Triple Sec, Cointreu, or Grand Marnier it uses orange bitters. I have always found the balance to be a a bit off in the traditional version on the rocks. This Margarita is very smooth.
When it finally came time to make blueberry margaritas I originally thought the only way to go would be a blended version with blueberry puree. I knew it would look pretty, but I wasn't sold on it as my blueberry drink of choice. Then in a simple aha moment I thought why not adjust my new favorite recipe to include blueberry simple syrup? It was perfect the first time around. I'll warn you that the orange bitters are not cheap ($9 a bottle in Fairbanks at Gavora's), but they are a whole lot cheaper than a bottle of Triple Sec. One small bottle of bitters has lasted through a Cinco de Mayo party and a whole summer of Margarita drinking.
Also, if you don't have a cocktail shaker you can use a Mason jar. I have been doing this for years, but I recently supported a Kickstarter campaign to turn my canning jar into a fancy cocktail shaker. The campaign has been very successful and you still have a few days if you want to get your very own Mason Jar Cocktail Shaker.
I just picked up some lavender from the Farmer's Market today. I'm thinking about whipping up a batch of blueberry lavender simple syrup for the next round. Cheers.

Wild Blueberry Cupcakes

When I worked as a guide in Denali National Park I didn’t own a single pair of pants that didn’t have a blueberry stain on them somewhere. It probably didn’t help that two of my favorite activities were berry picking and the tundra nap. I always though it would be great to use the blueberries to make a dye for yarn and t-shirts. The color is just beautiful, I just never had enough willpower not to eat them all instead. These cupcakes made with blueberry puree allow you to enjoy the beautiful color of the squashed berries without sacrificing the eating part. You will have to tell people that they are all natural, the color is quite dramatic as is the intense blueberry flavor. These really are cupcakes, soft and smooth, not resembling a blueberry muffin at all (in a good way).  I was thrilled with the results and can’t wait to make them again.

Lemon Ice Cream Sandwiches with Wild Blueberry Swirl

When I saw these ice cream sandwiches on the cover of Gourmet Magazine this month I knew I had to make them. The wild blueberries are already at their peak for the season. I even took out some of the Meyer Lemon zest and juice from the freezer that I had squirreled away. If I were to make them again, I would spread out the blueberry puree a little better. The bigger chunks iced up more than I would have liked. I also had a really hard time spreading the cookie batter in the pans. Eventually I greased a piece of wax paper and just set the other pan on top and just smashed the dough down to a thin layer. That seemed to work pretty well.

Lemon Ice Cream Sandwiches with Wild Blueberry Swirl

adapted from Gourmet Magazine
FOR BLUEBERRY COMPOTE
2 cups blueberries (10 ounces)
1/4 cup sugar
2 (3- by 21/2-inch) strips lemon zest
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons cornstarch
FOR SANDWICH LAYERS
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

FOR LEMON ICE CREAM
2 pints premium vanilla ice cream, or one batch of homemade vanilla ice cream
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

MAKE BLUEBERRY COMPOTE:
Cook blueberries, sugar, and zest in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat, thoroughly crushing blueberries with a potato masher, until juices are released and sugar has dissolved, about 2 minutes.
Stir together lemon juice and cornstarch, then stir into blueberry mixture. Boil, stirring, 1 minute (mixture will thicken).
Transfer blueberry compote to a bowl and chill until cold, about 1 hour. Discard lemon zest.
MAKE SANDWICH LAYERS WHILE COMPOTE CHILLS:
Preheat oven to 375°F with rack in middle. Butter two 8x8 inch baking pans and line with foil, leaving a 1-inch overhang on each side, then butter foil.
Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl. Beat together butter and brown sugar in another bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in egg and vanilla. At low speed, add flour mixture in 2 batches, mixing until just combined.
Divide batter between baking pans and spread into thin, even layers with offset spatula. Bake until golden-brown but still tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Cool completely in pans, about 30 minutes.
MAKE LEMON ICE CREAM:
Let ice cream soften slightly and stir in lemon zest and juice. You can also make homemade vanilla ice cream and add the lemon juice and zest to the bowl towards the end of the churning process.
ASSEMBLE SANDWICHES:
Spoon all of softened ice cream over 1 sandwich layer (in pan) and spread evenly using clean offset spatula. If ice cream becomes too soft and runny, you can return to freezer for a bit. Dollop tablespoons of blueberry compote all over ice cream, then swirl it gently through ice cream with a spoon, use caution not to cut through cookie. Invert second sandwich layer over ice cream, pressing gently to form an even sandwich. Wrap baking pan in plastic wrap and freeze until firm, at least 2 hours.
Transfer sandwich to a cutting board using overhang. Trim edges if desired, then cut into 8 pieces.

Lemon Butter Cake with Blueberry Ginger Preserves

This cake could be for a wedding, birthday, or even an anniversary. Today it is all three. I made this cake a few weeks ago for a friend's wedding. It goes without saying that the cake was sublime. I want to make another one because I only had the slightest sliver of this one thinking I would go and get more if it was good. Well, it was very good and very gone in about 3 minutes flat!
This was my first Alaska wedding and I loved it. What a beautiful day. The bride and groom looked relaxed and happy with all of their guests at their home. All of their friends brought good food to share. There was plenty of smoked fish and goodies from everyone's gardens. It reminds me of the weddings I went to growing up in Northern Michigan.  So many of the weddings I have attended these days are in some fancy (sterile) hotel. The bride and groom pay way too much for a plate of bland fish and overcooked vegetables and most of the guests are gone shortly after the cake has been cut. Although I didn't stay late enough to see these lanterns lit, I guarantee that many of the guests did and the band(s) played well into the night (if not the next morning). Congratulations to the bride and groom, you really deserved this beautiful day!

Today is also the two year birthday (or anniversary) of the blog. I felt bad that I didn't have a cake to share on the blogs birthday last year, so I saved this one to share today. 

Blueberry and Meyer Lemon Glazed Donuts

Tomorrow is one of my favorite days of the year. Fat Tuesday, a day dedicated to eating donuts. What's not to like?
There was a time a few years ago when I had regular food truck fantasies. For a while I thought I wanted a gourmet donut truck. Did I write up a business plan, or research purchasing equipment? No, of course not. My research consisted of visiting gourmet donut shops when I traveled. One of my stops was Dynamo Donuts in San Francisco. My favorite donut was Meyer Lemon and Huckleberry. When I returned from San Francisco I wrote a post about my trip and someone suggested I needed to make those donuts and post the recipe. I have been thinking about it for the last couple of years and every time Fat Tuesday rolls around I think about posting them, but then something like French Crullers, or Buttermilk Beignets storms to the top of the list. This year I knew it was time. I replaced the Huckleberry with some Alaska wild blueberries that I had in my freezer. Keep in mind if you use store bought blueberries, you won't get this intense color. They will be more of a blue-grey color instead. The base of the donut is a traditional yeast, raised donut. I thought about adding either blueberry or lemon to the actual donut, but I thought I might like to have a few of the donuts with a more traditional vanilla glaze. One I dipped my finger into the blueberry glaze, I changed my mind pretty quick and made all of them blueberry. You can feel free to mix thing up if you like and experiment with your own flavors of glaze. This recipe is pretty adaptable, so feel free to go with chocolate, plain vanilla,  or how about maple? What's your favorite donut? How will you celebrate Fat Tuesday?

Blueberry Lavender Ice Cream

Over the years I have waited tables at more restaurants than I would care to admit. My last experience, I am happy to report was nearly three years ago. I was between jobs and it was the end of the season at Lake Crescent Lodge in Olympic National Park. They needed someone to work with for a couple of months, housing was included. Perfect. The only problem was I was in the middle of a terrible relationship and the other person worked there as a server as well...

The kitchen was a totally professional operation. Jamie, the head chef really cared about the meals he was sending out from the kitchen. He was pretty tough on the wait staff, but I worked hard and actually wanted to a good job. We weren't buddies, but we didn't have any issues either. Jamie NEVER let anything leave his kitchen for free. Unlike other restaurants where the employees always had their fingers in the dessert, and free cups of soup were the norm. We got our free staff meal, but everything else we paid for.

One night while previously mentioned ex-boyfriend and I were working together on a fairly busy shift, he decided he was going to walk out. This had become a nightly occurrence. He always thought that he was being screwed over by the management. It didn't matter what section this guy got, he always thought it was the worst one, he was always most miserable on the nights when he perceived my section to be better than his. On this night when he said he was leaving, as always I ignored him until later when our hostess asked where he was. Huh? He's gone, really? He actually left? A few minutes later, Jamie came to me and asked if I was ok? Then he asked me to come into his office. Then I thought, "Is he going to fire me too"? Jamie informed me that they would like to fire this guy, but they didn't want me to quit. I almost laughed out loud.

To say the least, it was one of my best nights at the restaurant. Not only did I feel a huge weight had been lifted, but I also had the best night financially because I ended up taking a bunch of extra tables as we were then one server short!

At the end of the night Jamie brought me a dish of Blackberry Lavender ice cream. It was one of my favorite desserts at the restaurant. Making this Blueberry Lavender ice cream reminded me of that night and Jamie who inspired my own Alaska version of lavender ice cream. I made mine with local honey, lavender, and wild blueberries.

Blueberry Lavender Ice Cream

Inspired by Jamison Brandt, David Lebovitz, and Lindsey Shere

1/2 cup honey

1/4 cup fresh lavender flowers

1 1/2 cups whole milk

1/4 cup sugar

pinch of salt 1 1/2 cups heavy cream

5 large egg yolks

3/4 cup blueberry puree (recipe follows)

Warm honey and lavender flowers in a small saucepan over medium heat. Once warm and runny remove from heat and let steep for at least one hour.

Heat the milk, sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan. In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm milk mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed yolks back into the saucepan. Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom until the mixture thickens and coats the back of the spatula. Remove from heat and stir in the honey and lavender mixture.

Fill a large bowl half way with ice and about one cup of water and place (do not immerse) a medium size bowl on top. Pour the cream into the medium bowl and set a fine mesh strainer on top. Pour the milk and honey mixture through the strainer and into the cream. Stir until cool over the ice bath. Chill the mixture overnight in the refrigerator. The next day freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions. After five minutes or when the mixture has just started to freeze up slowly add the blueberry puree. Finish mixing and eat right away or store in freezer for up to three days.

To Make Blueberry Puree:

Place 2 cups of blueberries and 1/2 cup of sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir until blueberries begin to release their juices and then mash with a potato masher or mix with an immersion blender. Place in refrigerator overnight.

Blueberry Muffins

I wanted to bake a cake, but blueberry muffins will have to do. Summers in Alaska are so crazy, I now understand why I didn't start this blog until September 3rd last year. Yes, today is the one year anniversary of Arctic Garden Studio. Well, the first post anyway. Despite the slow posting lately I have not given up on it. A while ago someone asked how I manage to keep going with my two blogs. How it works for me is that I don't give myself any requirements or deadlines. I post when I want to and try not to stress out about it too much. There are times when the food and creativity flows and I post every day. Other times I am just too busy, so I let it go. I am thankful for all the wonderful folks I have met through the blog, but I try not to concern myself too much with my readership numbers. I try to think of you all like good friends who wouldn't hang up on me if I hadn't called you for a month. You are certainly the reason I continue to post.
With that said, there have been many changes in my life this summer. It seems like only yesterday the summer was just beginning with my trip to Yukon Flats. It was during that trip that I realized I needed to make some serious changes in my life. I really started pounding the pavement to look for a new job. There is a time when you realize that things are never going to change and it is time to go. So I cashed in my flexible schedule, bringing my dog to work, and daily walks at Creamer's Field for a good retirement plan and medical benefits with the University of Alaska Fairbanks. It feels good to look forward to going to work every day and know that I will have a paycheck every two weeks.
I wish that my job search had not consumed the majority of our too short summer. Somehow I still managed to put away several gallons of rhubarb, blueberries, and last night I picked my first half gallon of lingonberries. So, in the quite winter months I will have plenty a time to bake of some delicious goodies. To celebrate this special day, I couldn't think of anything more Alaskan than a fresh blueberry muffin. Happy Birthday little blog!
Blueberry Muffins
Adapted from Fine Cooking

Crumble:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
Scant 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 ounces (1/4 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Muffins:
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cake flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. grated or ground nutmeg
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1-1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup fresh blueberries

Set an oven rack to the middle of the oven. Heat the oven to 350°F. Make the crumble: In a medium bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Add the butter and work it in with your fingertips until you have a uniform, moist crumble. Cover with plastic wrap.
Make the muffins: Butter and flour 12 regular (1/2-cup) or 6 large (1-cup) muffin tins or line them with paper liners. In a small bowl, sift together both flours, the baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Using a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with the paddle, cream the butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape the sides of the bowl and beat in the vanilla. On low speed, add the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with the buttermilk in two additions, beginning and ending with the flour. Gently fold in the berries by hand. Spoon the batter into the muffin cups to almost full.
Scatter a generous amount of the crumble over the batter in each muffin cup (there may be some leftover).
Bake until the tops are golden and spring back when touched lightly and a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes for regular muffins, 30 to 35 minutes for large. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Serve warm.

Blueberry Corn Cookies

I have made two of Christina Tosi's recipes prior to this one, crack pie and caramelized cornflake cookies. There were a few common denominators between the two recipes. The first thing I have noticed is that Christina loves her salt. This sweet and salty combo leads to a highly addictive quality to her baked goods. Finally, I vowed never to make either of the two previous recipes again for the fact that I could not be trusted alone with an entire recipe for either of them. They were both too good and yet oh so very bad. The good thing about those two recipes is that you needed to commit a fair amount of time to each of them, therefore discouraging repeat offenses into the world of the very unhealthy.
These corn cookies, while not too difficult to make do involve sourcing some specialty ingredients. I would imagine that corn flour may be difficult for a lot of people to find, but the freeze dried corn is going to be difficult for just about everyone. I ordered both of these ingredients online from a company called "nuts.com". They do sell more than nuts by the way.
As with the other recipes I mentioned, these cookies were oddly addictive. Possibly more odd than the others. On first bite these cookies reminded me of the Cheetos they used to sell without the cheese on them. I don't think they sell them anymore. Do you know what I am talking about? As a kid I remember these, they were weird, salty corn puffs. Some people would make caramel corn out of them.
When I was getting ready to make the recipe I couldn't decide if I should make them as is, or change things up a bit. The regular corn cookies have been posted 100 times over on other sites, so I wouldn't exactly be introducing anything new. I couldn't help thinking about a blueberry cobbler I had last summer with a cornmeal crust. That blueberry and corn flavor was amazing. So, I decided to go for it and add blueberries. I'm so glad I did. I loved the contrast of the sweet dried blueberries and the salty corn flavor. This is the first Christina Tosi recipe I could see myself making again. I mean, with blueberries they are almost healthy. The best part is that they turn out a pretty impressive looking cookie. When David came home that night he asked, "Where did you buy the cookies"? They did look like real bakery cookies.
Have you tried any of Christina Tosi's recipes from her Milk bar cookbook? What did you think?

Meyer Lemon and Blueberry Scones

Another try for the perfect scones...

These are the first scones I have made that called for an egg. They are Orange-Current Scones in the Zuni Cafe Cookbook. No, I did not buy a new cookbook. I couldn't take it any longer and checked a few out from the library! I will call it research for my next purchase. I switched the Oranges and Currents for Meyer Lemon and Dried Blueberries. I prefer the Meyer Lemon Blueberry Scones from Bon Appetit that I have made many times. As with all the other scones these also seemed to disappear quickly.

Meyer Lemon and Dried Blueberry Scones

adapted from Zuni Cafe Cookbook

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup sugar

4 teaspoons baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/2 pound (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter

1/2 cup dried blueberries

1 tablespoon Meyer Lemon zest

1 large egg

1/2 cup whole milk

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl and mix well. Cut in the butter until it is the size of small peas. Add the blueberries and lemon zest and toss well.

Whisk together the eggs and milk. Add the dry ingredients and mix and fold until the dough masses and the flour is absorbed. Don't worry if the dough is a little streaky.

Divide the dough in half and shape into 2 balls. Pat each one into a 6 to 7 inch circle on a lightly floured surface. Roll about 1 inch thick and cut like a pie into 6 wedges each.

Bake until golden brown and firm to the touch, about 25 to 30 minutes. These are best served warm from the oven.

Carrot and Blueberry Salad

It is getting close to that time of year again.  The time of year when people stand in line at the opening of the farmers' market, waiting. Waiting for what you ask? Carrots, yes really carrots. Fairbanks is home to the best carrots I have every tasted. Not only are they sweet, but they are plentiful too. I started collecting carrot recipes early last spring for this years harvest.
So, at one point I found myself googling carrots and blueberries and doing a recipe search to see what I might come up with. At the top of the search was this simple carrot and blueberry salad. It reminds me of a salad that was popular in the 1980's that was made with raisins, it seemed like it made an appearance at every potluck. This is a fresher, updated version of that salad.

Blueberry Breakfast Biscuits

Our blueberries are so plentiful this year I was able to pull over on the side of the road on the way home last night to pick a cup for breakfast. I better start making some room in the freezer!

I will admit that the original recipe called these scones. I have been waiting to make them for nearly two months. It was originally in Bon Appetite's Cooking Life column by Molly Wizenberg. I love Molly's other scone recipe in her book A Homemade Life. I knew I had to try these ones as well, especially since the recipe originated from Standard Baking Company in Portland, Maine. David assured me that this place is good, but if you are expecting a scone, you will be disappointed. Now, let me assure you these are a delightful breakfast treat, they just are not a scone. They are some of the lightest, flakiest biscuits I have ever eaten. Full of buttery goodness, oats, and wild blueberries. Also, some of the largest scones (sorry, biscuits) I have ever seen in my life! I made them half the size the original recipe recommends. So, if you are looking for a delicious blueberry breakfast biscuit, this is the one!

Blueberry Breakfast Biscuits

adapted from Bon Appetite

Ingredients
3 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
11 tablespoons (1 stick plus 3 tablespoons) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 cup plus 3 tablespoons old-fashioned oats
1 cup fresh wild blueberries
1 3/4 cups chilled half and half
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
5 teaspoons raw sugar

Position 1 rack in top third and 1 rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 350°F. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
Combine flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and coarse salt in processor; blend 5 seconds. Add butter. Using on/off turns, blend until mixture resembles coarse meal. Transfer mixture to large bowl. Add 1 cup oats and blueberries; stir to blend evenly.
Stir half and half and vanilla in small bowl. Gradually add to flour mixture, tossing until dough just comes together to form a very moist dough.
Using 1/4-cup measuring cup for each scone, drop dough in mounds onto prepared baking sheets, spacing 3 inches apart. Sprinkle tops with remaining 3 tablespoons oats, then raw sugar.
Bake 15 minutes. Reverse sheets and continue baking until scones are golden and tester inserted into center from side comes out clean, about 12 minutes longer. (I found these took much longer to get a nice golden brown, possibly an extra 5 minutes) Transfer scones to rack and cool slightly. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Meyer Lemon and Dried Blueberry Scones

If you have been reading for a while you will know that I am the quest to find the perfect scone. Many have fallen by the wayside and although it is not my perfect scone, it is the one I keep coming back to when I want a really good scone. Just because this is not an exact replica of the Black Cat scones in Ashland, Wisconsin does not mean it is not good. I have made these at least a dozen times and David once said they were the best scones he has ever eaten. Whenever I find meyer lemons in my kitchen these are always at the top of the "to bake" list.

Meyer Lemon and Dried Blueberry Scones
from Bon Appetit
3 cups self-rising flour
1/2 cup plus 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
3/4 cup (11/2 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 1/2 cups dried wild blueberries (about 10 ounces)
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon buttermilk
1 1/2 tablespoons finely grated Meyer lemon peel or regular lemon peel

Position rack in top third of oven and preheat to 425°F. Line large baking sheet with parchment paper. Whisk self-rising flour and 1/2 cup sugar in large bowl. Using fingertips, rub in chilled butter until pieces are size of small peas. Add dried wild blueberries and toss to coat. Mix 1 cup buttermilk and finely grated lemon peel in glass measuring cup. Pour buttermilk mixture into dry ingredients and stir until dough begins to form (some of flour will not be incorporated). Transfer dough to lightly floured work surface and gather together. Knead dough briefly, about 5 turns. Divide dough in half. Form each dough half into ball and flatten into 1-inch-thick disk. Cut each disk into 6 wedges.
Transfer scones to prepared baking sheet, spacing 1 inch apart. Brush tops with remaining 1 tablespoon buttermilk and sprinkle with remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar. Bake until scones are golden brown on top and toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, about 25 minutes

Berry Simple Syrups

It's been a pretty cold and gloomy summer in Fairbanks until recently. It's only when the weather gets really warm and the mosquitos start to die down that I enjoy sitting out on my deck with a cocktail. Last summer I went through several batches of rhubarb simple syrup and the drink of choice was the rhubarb mojito. With only about a cup or so of berries and a vacation just around the corner, I decided to make a couple quick batches of berry simple syrup for future cocktails. You can swap out your berry simple syrups for any regular simple syrup in a cocktail recipe. Just imagine the next time a friend comes over you can offer them their favorite cocktail in blueberry, cloudberry, or rhubarb! You can also add an ounce or so of simple syrup to plain soda water for a delicious wild berry soda. Pretty much any kind of berries will work in this recipe. I'm looking forward to trying a raspberry version soon. If you only have a small bit of several different berries you could also try a mixed berry version that I bet would be quite delicious. Later this week I will also share my favorite blueberry margarita recipe of this summer.

Bring on the Berries...

I need a vacation from my vacation. It was so great to see old friends and family, but I got back on the plane wanting more. I wish I had planned a longer stay.  I had forgotten how beautiful those Keweenaw summers really are. Although the Keweenaw days are long, they are much longer here in Alaska. There is no sleep to be had during the Alaska Summers,  there are berries waiting for me.  As they say, "Make Hay while the Sun Shines". I can't think of anywhere that saying is more fitting.

I hadn’t held out much hope for Cloudberries this year. In previous years we have had tons of flowers, but very few berries. This year I thought I would probably be away on vacation when they finally showed up. Somehow, this year everything aligned and I made it back just in time. I’ll be getting back to real cooking soon, in the meantime I’ll be out berry picking, and digging out the canning jars, and turning these beauties into jam.

At first I had them tied to one tree, but Arrluk managed to pull the whole thing down and come running down the boardwalk with Brody still attached. During blueberry and cranberry picking I let them roam free to eat berries. Cloudberries are too few and far between to have them eaten and stomped on by the dogs.
They forgave me after they got a big swim on the way out.

Kale Chips

Last night I woke up in the middle of the night. I had a funny feeling someone was watching me, my face felt warm, and what was that smell? I slowly opened one eye…and was greeted by a wet sloppy dog tongue. Arrluk waits patiently at the edge of the bed until he detects the slightest movement and then gets incredibly excited that someone is finally going to let him out. He is now big enough that his head is at perfect height for breathing in my face.
When I went to let him out I noticed something else, for the first time the upstairs hallway was dark. Not black, but dark enough that I debated turning on the light. This paired with the fact that I made my first batch of jam last week (cloudberry vanilla bean), and have a serious date with a blueberry patch this weekend makes me feel as though my summer is already coming to a close. I’m already looking at recipes for hearty fall soups and have grown tired of summer salad greens. I was happy to finally find some darker, beefier greens at the Farmer’s Market last week. I have been waiting for nearly a year to make Kale Chips and finally had my chance. I know I am a little late on the bandwagon, but if you still haven’t tried Kale Chips I recommend you give them a try soon. I used regular Kale, but next time I will try the heartier Dinosaur Kale. They almost seemed too delicate. I like a little heartier chip.

Maple Walnut Muffins

What makes a cookbook kitchen worthy? I have been thinking about this a lot lately. You see, I have a very small shelf in my kitchen where I keep all the cookbooks that I actually use regularly. It is what you see at the bottom of this page. Those are not all the cookbooks I own. The shelves in the living room are  filling up as well. In order to grant a cookbook precious space in the kitchen, another one must be sent around the corner to the living room. I usually don't buy a cookbook unless I think it is going to be worthy of the kitchen space, but looking in the living room you will see I have made a lot mistakes. This is not to say that I have not had great joy from those cookbooks, many were great reads. There are so many that I marked up to 50 recipes, yet somehow never got around to making one. Then there is what I call cookbook sudden death. I am totally excited about a new cookbook and then the first recipe I make doesn't turn out. It doesn't matter if it is totally my fault, or I had some bad ingredients, or my new crock pot made the dish taste like plastic. This is an automatic move to the living room.
As soon as I looked inside Sarabeth's Bakery, I knew it had potential. I liked the photos. They provide good instruction in the places you need it, but it is not step-by-step which can be overkill. She includes tons of tips. The recipes are so well written, explaining the areas that might be confusing. The thing I like the most is that unlike many cookbooks, the recipes are all different. Many cookbooks have ten muffins recipes that are all the same, just one has blueberries and the other banana. After making these maple walnut muffins, I also made the blueberry ones. They were equally good, but very different. The direction and the clarity the recipes provide make me feel as though it could be possible to cook every recipe successfully, even the croissants. These muffins turned out just as described, nice and brown on the outside and full of maple goodness on the inside. This book is definitely kitchen worthy. Now to decide which one is moving to the living room.

My 10 Favorites of 2010

Thank you all for visiting my site in 2010. Here are some of my favorites from this past year, the items that have been made many times and will find their way to our table again in 2011. Happy New Year!

Lemon Pull Apart Loaf 

 Chicken and Broccoli Braid

 Risotto Style Pasta

 Wild Blueberry Cupcakes

 Fresh Tomato Salad

 Rustic Rhubarb and Rose Petal Tarts

 Maple Walnut Scones

 Carrot Ginger Dressing

 Italian Wedding Soup

Green Apple and Shallot Raita

Peppermint Ice Cream

All this time off from work has given me a lot more time to linger in the kitchen. It also allows me to take photos during those precious three hours of sunlight we now have (the days are getting longer).

I have always loved peppermint ice cream. I distinctly remember being in an ice cream shop when I was a kid and being thrilled to find peppermint ice cream in July. I always favored the ones that had bits of green candies too. I also remember once being seduced by the same pink color in bubble gum ice cream, when peppermint wasn't available. Even as a kid a remember thinking that it just didn't work. How was I supposed to chew and obscene amount of gum and eat ice cream at the same time? There is something about those partially melted bits of peppermint candy that I just can't resist. I am not normally a peppermint fan, so that says something. I don't even use peppermint toothpaste!

I found this recipe last summer when I was busy whipping up seasonal specialties like Blueberry Lavender and Cranberry Sorbet. I knew I would have to make this one once Christmas rolled around. I crushed my candy canes in a food processor to the point that some of them turned to powder, this also turned the ice cream a lovely shade of pink.
Peppermint Ice Cream from Simply Recipes

Blueberry Almond Scones (the quest for the perfect scone part 2)

As I warned you last week, I am on a quest for the perfect scone. This is not it! I replaced the cherries with dried blueberries and cut them into triangles rather than circles. Other than that, not too many changes. These were not bad, just not what I was looking for in texture or flavor. David and everyone at work seemed to like them. I will keep trying. Here is the original recipe...
Cherry Almond Scones
from Macrina Bakery and Cafe Cookbook
1/2 cup dried cherries
1/2 cup whole almonds
3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled
1 egg
1/4 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract
Egg wash made with 1 egg and 1 tsp water
1/4 cup coarse raw sugar
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.Place dried cherries in a small bowl and cover with warm water. Let soak for 10 minutes. Drain the plumped cherries, coarsely chop and set aside.Place almonds on a rimmed baking sheet and toast for appromimately 15 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool, then coarsely chop and set aside.Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.Sift flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and baking soda into a medium bowl and toss with your hands to combine.Divide chilled butter into 1/4 inch pieces and drop into bowl of dry ingredients. Using a pastry cutter or fork, cut butter into mixture until texture is coarse and crumbly. Add the chopped cherries and almonds and mix with a wooden spoon. Combine egg, buttermilk, vanilla extract, and almond extract in a small bowl and mixt with a whisk. Add to dry ingredients and mix gently with a wooden spoon just until dough comes together. Take care not to overmix the dough. Coat your hands with flour and pull dough from bowl onto a floured surface. Knead the dough for a few minutes, folding and flattening it several times, until dough becomes moldable. Dust the work surface with a little more flour and roll dough out to 1 inch thick. Using a round biscuit cutter (about 3 inches), cut 8-10 scones from the dough. Place scones on the prepared baking sheet, bursh with egg wash, and sprinkle coarse raw sugar over the tops. Bake on center rack of oven for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown. Let scones cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes before serving.

Sugared Raspberries

Despite how things may appear, I actually don't do a lot of canning. That's not to say that I don't put away a lot of our summer bounty. It is mostly berries that I put up, and I freeze them. I use them in baked goods all winter long. There is nothing better than blueberry muffins in January. A sweet taste of summer. That is why I enjoy freezing my berries, they retain that taste of summer flavor you just don't get from jams, syrups, or liquors. I like those things too, but there is nothing better than the bright flavor of summer berries.
That is precisely why I like the sugar method of preserving raspberries. Although it uses a lot of sugar, the berries are not cooked. Using this method they retain their bright summer flavor. You can use these preserved berries as an ice cream topping, a cake or pie filling, or spoon a little over your oatmeal. I have to confess once December rolls around you will most likely catch me with the fridge door open, my spoon in the jar trying to capture just a little bit (or bite) of summer.