Peach Nectarine and Blueberry Pie

One of the grand epiphanies I had when I started cooking and baking was that I never needed to be a slave to my cravings anymore. That is not to say I never had to give in to them, oh no. On the contrary, it meant I never had to be worried that my cravings would go unfulfilled (unless we are talking about a craving for chanterelle mushrooms, fresh figs, or Le Pain Quotidien's hazelnut praline spread, then I may just be out of luck). It's actually quite liberating, for someone who had never felt the joy of creating one's own sustenance before, to feel that all of a sudden so much gustatory satiation was within your grasp. The possibilities were, and still are, endless.

To this day, it never fails to thrill me when I feel like having something, say Dutch oliebollen or a particular salad I had at a restaurant, and I think -- "maybe I can try making it...". And then I do. And then I realize that nothing (well, almost nothing) will ever be a restaurant or a plane ticket away. That my friends, in my book at least, is a very compelling reason to get into the kitchen and start cooking!

So when the weather turned gloomy over here, and I had a sudden yearning for some nice, warm, bursting with fruits pie, satisfaction was not long in coming.

Peach Nectarine and Blueberry Pie

• 1 1/2 quantity of this pie dough
• 2 peaches, pitted and sliced into eighths
• 4 nectarines, pitted and sliced into eights
• 100 grams blueberries
• 2 tablespoons + 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1/3 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar
• juice from half a lemon
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 egg slightly beaten
• 2 tablespoons demerara sugar

- Roll out the dough between two sheets of parchment paper. When rolling, turn dough over frequently and lift the parchment so it doesn’t form creases. When about 1/8 inch thick place in the fridge to chill for about 20-30 minutes.

- Mix all the fruit in a bowl with the 2 tablespoons cornstarch, 1/3 cup sugar, and the lemon juice. Set aside.

- Mix the 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch with the 2 tablespoons sugar and set aside.

- After the pie dough has chilled, place in a 9-inch pie pan. Trim the edges. Return to the fridge.

- Gather the rest of the dough and roll our once more. Using a 2-inch diameter round cookie cutter cut the rest of the dough into circles**.

- Take the pie pan out of the fridge. Sprinkle the cornstarch/sugar mixture on the base of the crust and arrange the fruit on top of this. Dot fruit with the butter. Line the border of the pie with the dough circles, overlapping them as you go. Press edges to seal.

- Brush the pastry with the egg and sprinkle demerara sugar evenly over both the dough and fruit.

- Place the pie pan on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake in a 400F over for 40-45 minutes or until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbling.

Blueberries are not something commonly grown in these parts but I had found these local blueberries (grown in our mountain region) in the market before. They are not as sweet as the bigger blueberries grown in the Western world and I sometimes suspect that they are a strain of wild berries and not actual blueberries as we know them. In any case, they added a nice tartness to the pie that I liked.

There is something about fruit pie -- the fragrance it gives your home while it's baking, the warm fruit, the buttery-flaky crust, the whole domestic goddess feeling you get while taking it to the table -- that just sets you in a circle of comfort and home-and-hearth good spirits. Most welcome at any time of the year, but most especially when the weather is glum.

So if you, like me not too long ago, are a bit apprehensive in the kitchen, why don't you give it a go? I promise it's not too hard, and can actually be loads of fun. And one day soon fulfilling you cravings will be as easy as, pardon the horrible pun, pie!

**You may have extra pastry circles. You can use them to make jam tarts -- just place a but of jam in the center of the circle, fold over, and press edges together with the tines of a fork to seal. Bake until the crust is golden. If you won't use them immediately, just stack them with parchment in between the circles, seal in a ziplock bag, and freeze. Then you can have fresh jam tarts anytime you have a craving ;)

Ginger Chili Fish Fillets

I have the worst technology/computer luck. Ever. My computers have gone through more crashes that all the world's stock markets combined. And it's not just hardware...the simplest of programs have mysteriously refused to work under my incapable hands. I have committed that horrible act of spilling coffee (with milk and sugar) on my laptop (no, it doesn't only happen in movies). My technician is on the top of my Christmas list. I have endured too many computer meltdowns to count. To think I spend all of my working and a big chunk of my "playing" time on a computer! To think I'm a blogger from whose fingertips computer skills are expected to spew magically forth like fairy dust. Not so.

Just because I live and work on a computer online most of the time does not mean technology has taken kindly to me. It's a bit on a tainted love we have -- me and technology. Case in point, I am fresh (although that would be the last word I would use to describe how I feel) from my work computer's major crash (hello 500++ emails queued up in 2 days) and now stare helplessly at my laptop that has decided to join in the fun. Black screen with a little white cursor glowing menacingly at me. Fie on you.

These days, I am beyond the hair-pulling, head-spinning dramatics these breakdowns would once trigger. I've long learned that shaking fists and sobbing buckets do not sway cold-hearted hard drives. Instead I brew some tea and remind myself that as far as calamities go my little technological hiccups are just small fry in the grander scheme of things. I think of the many other areas at which I am much luckier, and hunker down with some of life's more tangible pleasures --- like food magazines :)

Ginger Chili Fish Fillets

(adapted from Yummy Magazine, July 2010 issue)

• 300 grams white fish fillet, cut into 2-inch portions
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons oil, divided
• 1 1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and sliced thinly
• 1 green finger chili, sliced on the diagonal
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped lemongrass
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce, separated
• 1 teaspoon fish sauce
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon Chinese black vinegar
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar
• 400 grams bokchoy, leaves separated
• 1-2 tablespoons sliced spring onion/green onion, to garnish

- Mix cornstarch and salt in a medium bowl. Add fish and toss to coat. Shake of the excess.

- Mix 1 tablespoon soy sauce, fish sauce, sesame oil, black vinegar, and brown sugar in a small bowl. Set aside.

- Heat half the oil in a wok on high. When hot, stir-fry ginger and chili for 1-2 minutes. Remove from wok and set aside.

- In the same wok heat the rest of the oil. Fry fish for about 2 minutes on each side. Add ginger/chili mixture and the soy sauce mixture. Let this bubble for a few seconds then toss until the fish is coated on all sides. Remove from the wok and set aside.

- In the same wok add the bokchoy with the remaining tablespoon of soy sauce. Cover and let cook for about 30 seconds. Uncover, toss, cover and cook for another 30 seconds, then take off the heat. You want the bokchoy to be just cooked.

- Arrange the bokchoy on a serving plate. Lay the fish on top of the vegetables. Top with a sprinkling of green onion.

- Serves two.

Although I love trawling the net for food inspiration, especially among other food blogs, nothing can quite replace the satisfaction of pages in your hand, something you can hold and scribble notes on and take with you to bed on a rainy night. This recipe was taken from Yummy magazine -- one of my favorite local food magazines for its unfussy and upbeat appeal, simple yet flavorful recipes, and interesting features. I've amended the recipe to add more greens (as we do love our greens over here!) and a touch of sesame and black vinegar to the sauce as I feel these flavors complement the soy perfectly. A bowl of steaming white rice is not required but highly recommended.

It's amazing how computers, and the internet, and technology in general, have gone and, in what seems to be the blink of an eye, made themselves indispensable to our lives -- or at least that's what they like us to believe. Despite my bad luck though, I am still a fan, after all here I am right? Plugging away in my little corner of this cyber-world :)

That being said, I think these little disasters are opportunities for us to also defrag and reboot and perhaps even reformat. To stop and take stock...even if it is only to take stock of a to-cook list from one of your favorite food magazines :)

Brown Butter Pear Crumble Cake

Oh boy, that's a mouthful. I've mentioned before that I am not the best recipe namer on the block, and if you didn't believe me then, I suppose you do now. Instead of cleverly coming up with that all-descriptive yet succinct title that will perfectly describe a certain dish, I more often than not let myself ramble on with a name that reads like a list of ingredients. I know, there goes my career in editing.

Thankfully, I don't aspire to be an editor, and truth be told, don't know if I even aspire to be a writer either. Or am I already a writer just because I, um, write? It seems to me that one needs to reach some sort of pinnacle of writer-hood, some summit of eloquence, to be called a WRITER. Right? right?

I may check in here every so often (not as often as I'd like though...sigh). I may even string a few words together over here. But in reality I am a pencil pushing, keyboard clicking, cog in the machine. Maybe, maybe, in some alternate universe all this, this blog, this writing, this obsession with all things gastronomic, is actually my life. In this universe though, it is just my hobby. A hobby I LOVE yes, but a hobby nonetheless. And perhaps because it is just a hobby, food and writing and I will forever be on honeymoon, never to fall into the grittiness of reality. Or perhaps our relationship, never having the chance to plunge in to that very grit of the everyday, will never have anything more deep than a surface sparkle.

Or maybe I'm just a girl who thinks too much.

Or maybe I'm just a girl who loves cake...even if I can't quite get the knack of naming them :)

Brown Butter Pear Crumble Cake

(cake adapted from here and the crumble from here)

For the cake:

• 125 grams butter
• 150 grams sugar
• 2 eggs
• 70 grams flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 cups chopped pears

For the crumble:

• 50 grams flour
• 30 grams butter, chilled and cubed
• 50 grams dark brown sugar
• 60 grams walnuts, chopped

- Melt the butter in a skillet until browned (not burned!), with a warm nutty aroma. You can find a fantastic tutorial on browning butter over at Simply Recipes. Strain and set aside to cool.

- Make your crumble: Rub flour and butter together with your fingers, or with a pastry cutter, until it forms coarse crumbs. Mix in the sugar and nuts. Set aside in the refrigerator until ready to use.

- Butter a 8-inch cake pan and lay your pear cubes at the bottom of the pan.

- Mix the sugar with the egg. Whisk your flour and baking powder together, then add to the egg mixture. Add the (cooled) brown butter. Pour the batter over the pears.

- Get your crumble mixture and sprinkle over the top of the batter until fully covered. You may not use it all**.

- Bake in a 180C (350F) oven for 40-50 minutes or until a pick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean.

- Let the cake rest in its pan for about 5-10 minutes. Turn out into a plate, and then turn over onto another plate so the pears are on the bottom and the crumble on top.

C's mom gifted us with a bunch of pears that sat prettily on our dining room table until I finally came around to using them. I was thinking more in the lines of pie until this recipe, and my desire to make something with brown butter, serendipitously collided. I'm so happy they did. This cake is all Clotilde promised it to be -- golden, moist, light -- and the additional step of browning the butter lends it a deep nuttiness that I think works marvelously with the pears' sandy sweetness. The crisp crumble topping is the perfect contrast to the cake's yielding softness. Served warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, or straight out of the fridge for breakfast, this cake can do no wrong...and I hope I haven't done it a sore disservice with the long-winded name.

Hobby or not, I love food -- its making and its consumption. I love this blog. And I especially love all of you who have kept on reading through low times and high.

And to my fellow cogs (in a machine) out there -- find a hobby you love! Until alternate universes become a reality, it will make all the difference :)

**If you don't use all your crumble mixture, keep it in the fridge. The next morning cube some fruit into a oven-safe dish, top with the crumble, and pop in the oven until the crumble is crisp and the fruit is soft and juices bubbling. Top with yogurt. Breakfast!

Magnolia Bakery Vanilla Cupcakes

I have never been very good at blog events. That is not to say that I don't enjoy them...I do! Let's just say that I can be less than expert when it comes to deadlines. A line that, unfortunately, am just at the wrong side of as I hurriedly type. But I just can't miss this event, even if I am a little bit tardy...

A Taste Of Yellow is a blog event started by the brave and beautiful Barbara of Winos And Foodies. It's an event she created to support LiveSTRONG Day and raise cancer awareness. Barbara has been hosting this event since 2007 and it gets such wonderful and encouraging response every year. Almost all lives today have been touch by cancer one way or the other and a Taste Of Yellow gives us a chance to lend a hand in a way that we, as food bloggers, love...through food. Yellow food to be exact. Sunny, bright, hopeful, yellow food!

This year she adds a new theme. She asks us to incorporate a heart into entry, which I think is a fantastic idea! After all, the warm comforting blanket of love can sometimes be the best medicine of all.

For this round I decided to try a recipe that had been sitting in my to-bake files for ages. The Magnolia Bakery Vanilla Cupcakes. I love the sunshiney personality of vanilla cupcakes, despite being a chocolate person, and can never have enough of them.

Magnolia Bakery Vanilla Cupcakes

• 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter
• 2 cups sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 1 ½ cups self raising flour
• 1 ¼ cups all purpose flour
• 1 cup milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

- Preheat oven to 350F.
- Line two 12 cup muffin tins with cupcake papers.
- Cream butter at medium speed in large bowl.
- Add sugar gradually and beat until fluffy. Then add eggs.
- Combine flours. Add to butter mixture in four parts, alternating with the milk and vanilla extract.
- Spoon the batter into cups so they are ¾ full.
- Bake until the tops spring back when touched, about 20 minutes.

Vanilla Buttercream Icing

• 2 sticks unsalted butter
• 8 cups confectioners’ sugar
• ½ cup milk
• 2 tsp vanilla extract

- Place butter, milk, vanilla extract and 4 cups of sugar in a large mixing bowl and beat until smooth and creamy.
- Gradually add the remaining sugar, once cup at a time until thick.
- Add a few drops of food coloring if desired and mix thoroughly.
- Spread icing on cooled cupcakes.

I have never actually been to the Magnolia Bakery so I can't compare how these measure up to the originals. That being said, they were, as I'd hoped, cheery and delicious, with a light crumb and a warming vanilla scent. The icing I found to be a little bit runny but that could just be our hot weather taking it's toll on my poor buttercream! I found the heart sprinkles in a terrific baking supplies store I had recently visited for the first time. And yes, I did pick out all the yellow ones for the first two cupcakes...it's the least I could do for being late, don't you think?

Thank you Barbara for hosting another round of A Taste Of Yellow and for being such an inspiration and a great blogger friend to boot! I hope you like my heart as much as I admire yours :)