Strawberry Cheesecake Hamantaschen

Yep, you heard me. Strawberry, cheesecake, hamantaschen. Head in to the kitchen right now and make them. You won't regret it. A buttery crisp shell with a rich filling of strawberry jam, cheesecake and a sprinkle of graham cracker (or Lotus cookie) crumbs - these are just one perfect bite. So what are you waiting for?

Trio Cookies

Yes, I have about 50 cookbooks lining my living room wall. No, I don't cook from them all. At least a dozen of them I've never made one recipe from. But I love flipping through them, taking one idea from here, another from there, taking inspiration from a chicken dish and turning it into one with turkey or tofu. But there are some cookbooks that inspire devotion - some that when I turn the page, and see a photo, and say "I must make that" - I mean it. Which is what happened when I got the Gourmet Cookie Book - and found the recipe for these adorable jam trio cookies.

 

Mini Jam Pockets

It's winter. How do I know? Well I sleep in socks, I wear a scarf outside every day and I have about 3 hours of sunlight during which to take photos of food. I can see my breath form little clouds as I stand at the bus stop late at night. I go in to stores just for a few-minute respite from the cold on my way to places. It's winter.

"Jammers" - Giant Streusel Jam Cookies

Sometimes I'll see a recipe in a magazine and it will inspire me to create a certain dish. Sometimes I'll flip through a cookbook looking for inspiration. Often I come across recipes on other food blogs that I either follow or modify for my needs. But for this recipe, all I needed was one photo to convince me to make them. I spotted one image of these cookies, and I was sold.

Fruity Pillow Cookies

A cookie inside a cookie? Yes please! I didn't say no before, and I certainly wouldn't say no now. Plus these are delightfully colorful, and oh-so fruity. The last time I made cookies with "pillow" in the title was quite an adventure, so I figure these would be the same.

Classic Linzer Torte

This picture makes me happy. Is this not an incredibly photogenic dessert? Perhaps that is not what you all look for in baked goods, but it surely makes my day. Lucky for you, this happens to be one of my favorite desserts I've made in months. One of. And it's really quite simple. 

Honey Almond Financiers

If you've been around here a few days, you'll know that I don't like nuts. But the truth is - I don't like whole or chopped nuts - it's a texture thing - but I'm perfectly happy to use ground nuts. And I did just that in these financiers. That's a French word that I can't really pronounce correctly. All you need to know is that in this instance, it means small cake. 

These mini tea cakes - which I made in my mini muffin pan - apparently get their name from the fact that they are traditionally baked in small rectangular pans, resembling bars of gold.

Peanut Butter, Jelly and Chocolate Bars

Since it's been well-documented here that I like to eat with my hands, it should come as no surprise that I'm a big fan of the sandwich. Endlessly adaptable, the sandwich has an infinite variation - but there is one that has attained almost iconic status. Yes, I'm talking about the peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

Easy Jam Tart?

I really don't like to follow instructions. I always read them, and then choose to follow or ignore them at will. When it comes to recipes, it generally concerns what ingredients/tools/pans I have on hand. Which, depending on where I'm baking, can be quite limited. That's how I've ended up using a Pam lid for a cookie cutter, dropping my cake, and having not-really-lime-tasting lime cookies.

It's also how I ended up with this slightly deformed David Lebovitz Jam Tart.
The original recipe calls for a tart pan or springform pan, neither of which I had on hand. The closest thing I had was a 9-inch foil pie pan. So of course I went on with the recipe.
I think the pan substitute doomed me in ways I hadn't forseen. The slant of the sides of the pan produced a much too thick crust - as did the too-small pan. That wouldn't be so bad with a standard pie crust, but this cornmeal version was a little heavy with the added bulk.
Then there was the topping - I love the idea of topping a tart with discs of crust, but for a recipe labeled "easy jam tart," this was a little labor intensive. I found cutting the discs quite difficult even when frozen - though again, this was likely due to my lack of even a remotely decent knife.

Anyway, while I didn't love this dessert my friends certainly seemed to, most even going for seconds, so there was obviously some redeeming factors. I'd be happy to experiment with the formula again with some tweaks and changes - plus a real pan!

Tip of the Day: A sharp, thin-bladed serrated knife like this one works best for cutting slices off a log, like in this recipe or most standard icebox-cookie recipes.

Recipe: (from David Lebovitz)

9 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1/8 teaspoon almond extract
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup stone-ground cornmeal
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 3/4 cups apricot, raspberry or other jam

Beat together butter and sugar until well-combined. Mix in the egg, egg yolk and almond extract.
Gradually add in the flour, cornmeal, salt and baking powder, just until combined.
Divide the dough into 2/3 and 1/3. Press the 2/3 into a disc and refrigerate, and roll the remaining dough into a 2-inch log and freeze it.
After a 1/2 hour press the refrigerated dough into a 9 or 10-inch tart pan.
Spread the jam evenly on top.
Slice discs from the frozen log and lay on top of the jam. Sprinkle with sugar - coarse is best.
Bake at 375 F for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.

Jam Cake

Summer is upon us, or so says the humidity frizzing my hair, the bug bites on my legs and the decadent smell of Manhattan above 14th Street.
But, in fact, summer brings us good things - like outdoor weddings, barbecues with friends, tanning on the beach...and fruit! Delicious things like cherries and peaches and plums and berries. Now granted, this recipe doesn't call for any fresh fruit per se, but you can get fresh jam at your local farmer's market or even make your own if you are feeling adventurous. And then there's always trusty Smucker's....
Either way, this cake is equal parts simple and interesting, a winning combination. The batter is classic and moist, and you can use whichever and how ever many jams you would like for a tasty blend.
Then the simple topping adds another dimension - the original recipe also called for chopped nuts which you can include if you're so inclined.

Tip of the Day: Because this cake is topped with jam, it may appear to not be set even though the cake itself is - so be careful not to overbake.

Recipe: (Adapted from Framed)
Cake:
2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup (5 1/3 tbsps) butter or margarine
1 egg
3/4 cup milk
1 cup jam of any variety, or mixed

Topping:
1/3 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
2 tbsps flour
2 tbsps butter

Stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
With a pastry cutter or a fork, cut in the butter until crumbly. Or use a food processor.
Stir in the egg and milk until combined.
Spread the batter evenly in a greased 9 inch square pan.
Dollops spoonfuls of jam on top and swirl it into the batter.

With a pastry cutter or the tips of your fingers mix the topping ingredients and sprinkle over the cake.
Bake at 400 F for 20 to 30 minutes.