Pumpkin-Chocolate Chip Ring

On Sunday, D and I are hosting thirty-ish people for a housewarming. Our freezer is full to the top spinach-feta filo pies, tartlets and muffins, all shaped like my one tartlet pan. I'm making a meringue pavlova tomorrow, but I wanted another dessert, and I can't make any more tartlet-shaped things or my house will become one big tartlet. Enter David Lebovitz -- acclaimed chef, lucky Parisian, and expert food blogger. His pumpkin-chocolate chip ring recipe looked tasty, but I had no applesauce or orange juice in my fridge. I did, however, have some homemade yogurt (thanks to my new Salton yogurt maker). So I took David's recipe and messed around with it a little, substituting yogurt for the applesauce and orange juice, altering some other proportions slightly, and doubling the recipe. I also added some toffee bits, which practically melt into the cake while it bakes. The result is an incredibly light yet moist cake that tastes rich with pumpkin and chocolate but won't break your calorie bank. I'll most definitely be making this again.

Here's my one confession about the recipe: David Lebovitz is a professional. He used to be the pastry chef at The French Laundry, an acclaimed restaurant, and has written several fantastic cookbooks (including The Perfect Scoop, which has the best ice cream recipes EVER.) The point is, being a pastry chef means that he's very precise in his instructions, and I'm sure he's right that following those instructions will yield a better, lighter cake. having said that, I didn't follow any of his instructions (see all my asterisked notes throughout) and my cake came out fine. Do as you please....but I'm telling you, my "wrong" way works, too. Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Ring adapted from David Lebovitz. serves 10-12

2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour 1 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp. nutmeg 1/3 cup chocolate chips

1 1/3 cups canned pumpkin 2 cups plain yogurt or sour cream 2/3 cup brown sugar 2 large eggs 1/4 cup vegetable oil 1 teaspoons vanilla

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. 2. Mix together dry ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside. 3. In another bowl, mix together the wet ingredients and blend with a mixer on high until frothy, 1-2 minutes.* 4. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the wet ingredients. Stir together JUST UNTIL MIXED and add the chocolate chips. DO NOT OVERMIX.** 5. Grease a non-stick ring pan. If using a regular ring pan, grease and flour to ensure that the cake comes out cleanly. Spread the batter into the pan (and as usual, other pans will work -- the ring does look pretty, though.) David says "spread using a gentle touch." 6. Bake until top of the cake springs back when touched, about 40-42 minutes depending on your oven. DO NOT OVERBAKE. 7. Let cool on a wire cake rack, then invert. Let cool completely, then sprinkle with powdered sugar. *I didn't use a hand mixer -- I just whisked the wet ingredients with a fork for a minute or two, until well mixed and light. ** I committed the sin of adding dry to wet -- and my cake still came out light and fluffy.

**Note: I've gotten a couple questions about how to make this pareve (non-dairy). The answer: subsitute David Lebovitz's wet ingredients for mine:

1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon canned pumpkin
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
grated zest of 1 orange
1/4 cup fresh orange juice or water
3 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar
1 large egg 1
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

The instructions in this recipe are the same for a pareve version of this cake, as they're mostly taken from Monsieur Lebovitz himself.

Not Derby Pie Recipe

One Friday night many years ago, this dish landed on my dining room table. Being the ever-obnoxious 9-year-old that I was, I immediately spat, "what's that?"
"Not Derby Pie."
"Not Derby Pie?"
"yep."
"Well if it's not Derby Pie, then what is it?" and, after a moment's hesitation, "what is Derby Pie, anyway?"
My mother laughed, as she often does -- then told me to just try it already.

The backstory: Derby Pie® is the exclusive product (and name) of Kern's Kitchen. According to their website, "Derby Pie® was born nearly a half century ago as the specialty pastry of the Melrose Inn, at Prospect, Kentucky. Once developed, a proper name had to be given. Because each family member had a favorite, the name DERBY-PIE® was actually pulled from a hat." While I've never had the original, the concept of the pie is genius. A deep-dish pie shell is sprinkled generously with chocolate chips, then loaded to the top with nutty nougat filling and baked just until set. What more can a pie-lover want?

In 1982, in an article by Phyllis Richman profiling Kern's Kitchen, The Washington Post featured a recipe for Not Derby Pie. My mom took hold of this recipe and never let go -- she made it very often and it was an instant hit among friends. Admittedly, I was a nut-hater at the time, and the pie didn't much strike my fancy. I did, however, manage to eat the entire bottom layer of two slices and pick through the nougat a bit before calling it quits. Once I discovered how fantastic nuts are, this pie quickly climbed high on my favorites list. It's one of my go-to recipes for Friday night dinner parties, and an unfailing success.

Not Derby Pie (adapted from the Washington Post)
serves 8-10.

1 pie crust or graham cracker crust
1 stick margarine or butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2/3 cup flour
1 cup chopped or ground walnuts
1 cup chocolate chips

1. Combine sugar, eggs, vanilla, and flour; mix until ingredients are incorporated.

2. Melt butter, and allow it to cool a bit; pour butter into mixed ingredients very slowly. Mix to combine. Add nuts and stir just until incorporated.

3. Sprinkle chips into the bottom of the pie crust. Pour mixture over.

Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour.

...really, that's it.

The easiest cake ever

Many thanks to Elena, who gave this recipe to my mom, who practically forced me to make it. This cake is deceiving: its ingredient list and instructions are so short and sweet, you could make it blindfolded. But don't let the ease deceive you; this cake is definitely better than the sum of its parts. Throw the ingredients in a bowl, mix (by hand!), chop the fruit, throw it all into a springform (or regular pan), bake, and voila, a perfect dessert is yours.

Make sure your fruit are ripe; this will really add to the overall flavor and moistness of the cake. Also, as this recipe is so darn basic, feel free to improvise! Here are my favorite variations:

-pears, lots and lots of pears
-plums and peaches
-blueberries and pears
-raspberries
-raspberries and peaches

You get the drift -- do whatever you like. One last note: I tend to arrange sliced fruit on the bottom of the springform, so that when I turn the cooled cake onto a serving platter, the bottom (now the top) looks pretty. This is entirely optional. In fact, I didn't do it this time because my pears were very ripe, and too delicate to mess around with. If you're using a regular, non-springform pan, you can do as my mother does, and arrange fruit on top of the batter. They will sink in a little as the cake bakes, but you'll still be able to see them.

The Easiest Cake Ever
serves 8-12.

1 cup flour
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup canola oil
1 tspoon baking powder
1 tspoon vanilla
zest of 1 lemon
3 cups of fruit, any variety, but soft and juicy!

Combine all the above ingredients, reserving 1 cup of the sliced fruit.

Grease and flour a 9" round or rectangular baking pan or springform pan.

At this point, EITHER:
1) pour in batter and add the last cup of fruit on top OR
2) arrange the remaining sliced fruit in spiral design in the springform, and pour batter overtop.

I sometimes sprinkle a bit of sugar ontop for a crunchy crust.

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

I often serve this cake with a fruit sauce or reduction; it's pictured here with quince sauce, and I'll post that recipe soon.

Strawberry Rhubarb Tart with Almond Streusel

Rhubarb is finally, finally in season ... it's about time.

It has the perfect sweet-tart flavor that complements the summer's last strawberries and pairs perfectly with many fall foods. If you can't spot rhubarb in a crowd, think "sweet, red celery." That's what rhubarb looks like. It's incredibly versatile; I use it most frequently to make sauce, jam, cake, crumble, and pie.

When I got my CSA box this past week, I was pleasantly surprised to find rhubarb among the contents. I later realized that this was because I had ordered rhubarb, then forgotten about it...but still, what a pleasant surprise! I'm entertaining this weekend, and rhubarb is a great place to start.

I promise to post more rhubarb recipes as more of it pops up in my CSA box. For now, this tart is a riff on my usual strawberry rhubarb pie recipe. Unlike pie crust, tart crust is sweet and less crumbly. While my pies usually have a lattice or crumble top, this tart is open-faced, garnished with a simple almond streusel. I do enjoy a good lattice crust, but this tart is an opportunity to show off your fruit-arranging skills. What? Yes, your fruit-arranging skills.

Strawberry Rhubarb Tart with Almond Streusel
serves 8.

Tart Crust: taken from Tartelette

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1 stick plus 1 Tbsp unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
• 1 egg yolk

Blend dry ingredients with a hand or stand mixer. Add butter and blend until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add egg yolk; blend until dough comes together. Wrap in plastic, and refrigerate while preparing ingredients for the tart.

After about half and hour, the tart dough should be just chilled enough that it rolls nicely. Place dough between two sheets of plastic wrap and roll out into a circle slightly larger than the size of your tart pan. (I use a round fluted tart pan, but any shallow baking pan will do.) Peel off the top layer of plastic wrap. Hold the dough from the layer of plastic wrap beneath, and carefully turn onto your pan. Once your dough is on the pan, remove the top layer of plastic and start fitting your dough to your pan, pushing it delicately into the crevaces and corners without changing the thickness of the dough too much. trim the ends, and make a decorative outer lip if you desire.

"Dock" your dough to the pan by spearing it with a fork in several spots, and bake for 10-15 minutes at 350. This will ensure that the crust holding the (liquidy) ingredients will still taste flaky, and not mushy.

Filling:

• 3 stalks rhubarb, cleaned and cut into 4-inch-long slices
• 1 piece of the rhubarb thinly sliced (for the tart's center)
• about 12 nice strawberries, cleaned
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar, more for dusting
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• grated zest of one orange
• powdered sugar for dusting, optional

Mix sugar, zest, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Set aside.

Put your rhubarb into the bottom of the pre-baked tart crust as spokes of a wheel, with their tips touching at the center. You'll find that the center will have an empty circle, where all the tips of the rhubarb slices meet. I usually fill this with thinly sliced rhubarb and sugar, as in the pic below.

Slice strawberries one at a time, and arrange, fanned out, between the rhubarb slices. Sprinkle the whole thing with the sugar mixture.

Streusel:

• 1 cup sliced almonds (I prefer toasted but raw is fine too)
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• pinch salt
• half a stick of butter
• 1-2 Tbsp. flour

Bring butter to a simmer in a small sauce pan until it melts and starts to turn golden. Add sugar and let it dissolve completely. When mixture has no remaining sugar granules, add almonds, make sure heat is on low-med, and stir. When almonds are fully coated, add 1 tbsp. of the flour and stir. the mixture should turn cloudy, and thicken. if mixture isn't thick and goopy, add the second Tbsp. Stir. When mixture starts to clump, remove from the heat and allow to cool. When it's cool, break it up with your fingers and sprinkle it on top of the tart.

Bake the tart at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, or until rhubarb is soft and has released some of its natural juices.