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The Basics: Pear Crisp

partysugar — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 04:00:13 -0800

A crisp is a deep-dish fruit dessert that's topped with a crumbly oat, butter, and flour mixture. It's a fabulously easy and versatile finish to any home-cooked meal. Once you know the basic topping ingredients, you can use whatever fruit is in season. Apple crisp is my dad's favorite, but when I made this, I decided to use pears. As the crisp bakes, the topping browns and the fruit caramelizes. Crisps are best enjoyed warm out of the oven and are especially wonderful when paired with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. This old-fashioned and comforting dessert is always a crowd pleaser, so learn how to make it and read more.

Pear Crisp
From Ina Garten

Ingredients

4 pounds ripe Bosc pears (8-10 pears)
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
For the topping:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup old-fashioned oatmeal
1/2 pound (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, diced

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Peel, core, and cut the pears and apples into large chunks. Place the fruit in a large bowl and add the zests, juices, sugar, flour, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Pour into a 9 by 12 by 2-inch oval baking dish.
For the topping: Combine the flour, sugars, salt, oatmeal, and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.
Mix on low speed for 1 minute, until the mixture is in large crumbles. Sprinkle evenly over the fruit, covering the fruit completely.
Place the baking dish on a sheet pan and bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour, until the top is brown and the fruit is bubbly. Serve warm.

Serves 8.

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Coming Soon: Apples That Don't Rot?

YumSugar — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 04:00:03 -0800

Can you imagine leaving a piece of fruit in the crisper and being able to take a bite out of it after four months? That's the idea behind a new variety of apple that's being tweaked by researchers at Queensland Primary Industries. The RS103-130, as it's called, can stay fresh for at least 14 days without refrigeration, and keep in a refrigerator for four months.

Scientists are touting many benefits behind the fruit's longevity, which comes from incorporating a gene from a black-spot resistant apple. For one, the RS103-130 requires less fungicides; it would also need less cold storage, cutting down on energy costs.

As far as the most important factor - taste - is concerned, developers say the fruit is very sweet, and has come out on top in preliminary taste tests. Does the RS103-130 apple sound convenient, creepy, or both?

In Season: Figs

YumSugar — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 13:00:10 -0700

Fig season is like pre-Fall in the fashion world, a tasty little teaser that helps bridge the gap between Summer and Autumn. Perhaps it's partly because the season is so fleeting that this fruit tastes so sweet, but when figs are just right, they taste downright sinful. When people tell me they don't like figs, I say, they just haven't had a good one yet.

This soft, fleshy fruit with a thick but edible skin comes in many colors and forms. In North America, the most common types are Mission figs, Brown Turkey, and Brunswick, which have dark skin and a pink-purple middle; Calimyrna, the green-and-pink beauties like the fig pictured above; and Kadota, another green-skinned variety. Learn how to select fresh figs, and how to prepare them when you read more.

When buying figs, choose fruits that are firm but not hard, with a slight amount of give. Pick figs that feel juicy and rich, rather than dry, and be sure to handle them gingerly until you're ready to eat them, as they bruise easily. They are delicious on their own, but figs also play nicely against salty cheeses and cured meats. Here are some recipes to try:

Wrap them in prosciutto for figs in a blanket hors d'oeuvres.
Poach them for an elegant but simple dessert.
Smash them into panini with nut butter and banana.
Use them as a sweet topper for a salty pizza.
Bake them in a fig and goat cheese scone.

How do you plan to cook with figs this season?

Is It a Tomato or Squash?

partysugar — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 05:50:28 -0700

In terms of produce, the end of September is a time that straddles Summer and Fall. Late-season heirloom tomatoes are juicy and plump, while early-season butternut squash are way too tempting. To celebrate the plethora of produce that can be found in markets, I've put together this fun quiz. I'll list a variety of tomato or squash and you tell me which it is. Ready, set, go!

Source: Flickr User nim

Take the quiz

Would You Rather Eat Red or Green Grapes?

partysugar — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 01:30:56 -0700

Come Party With Me: Gossip Girl Premiere - Dessert

partysugar — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 11:30:47 -0700

Gossip Girl premieres next week and to celebrate I've invited over some friends to enjoy dinner and watch the show with me. It's a Monday night, so the menu is minimal but delicious and filling. Since Gossip Girl takes place in New York, all the recipes I'm using were crafted by acclaimed NYC chefs. This dessert, a simple raspberry clafouti, is Eric Ripert's recipe. Although the French name makes it seem like the dessert is complicated, it requires nothing more than a wire whisk and can be assembled in minutes. I'll put the clafouti in the oven when the episode starts and half way through we'll be savoring the fruity pastry piping hot. For Ripert's recipe, read more.

Raspberry Clafouti
From Eric Ripert

Ingredients

1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup sugar (and a little more for ramekin)
1 large egg
6 tablespoons half and half
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup raspberries
Vanilla ice cream (or a flavor of your choice)

Directions

Heat toaster oven to 400 degrees. Butter two 5 1/2-inch oval gratin dishes and dust with sugar.
Whisk egg until frothy and add sugar, half and half, and vanilla extract; mix to combine.
Add the all-purpose flour and whisk very well.
Divide the raspberries into the baking dishes and pour the batter over the berries.
Bake for 20 to 30 minutes until golden brown and the middle is set.
Serve with a scoop of ice cream.

Serves 2.

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Are Rejected Melons the Next Form of Renewable Energy?

YumSugar — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 14:00:03 -0700

A colossal food fight is one way to use up the season's supply of subpar produce. But scientists have discovered another: convert rejected fruits into biofuel. The study, conducted by USDA researchers and published in the journal Biotechnology For Biofuels, found that the 360,000 tons of fruit rejected by US retailers each year could be converted into roughly two million gallons of biofuel. Research team leader Wayne Fish said that 50 percent of the fruit, which is typically left in the fields and not sold due to cosmetic imperfections, is fermentable into ethanol, which can be used as fuel, “We’ve shown that the juice of these melons is a source of readily fermentable sugars, representing a heretofore untapped feedstock for ethanol biofuel production." I'd never considered that fruit could be a viable source of renewable energy - but I find it refreshing (although perhaps not as refreshing as, say, an In-Sandíary).

Are you surprised to hear that watermelon could have potential past the typical Summer barbecue?

Would You Rather Eat Cantaloupe or Honeydew Melon?

YumSugar — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 01:30:24 -0700

Source: Flicker Users laihiu and Shootingsnow

A Sweet (and Sour) Taste of Tayberries

YumSugar — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 03:30:36 -0700

I grew up in a fruit-forward household, so I'm intrigued whenever I come across a variety I don't recognize. So when I found an article about mythical-sounding fruits called tayberries, I knew I needed to try them for myself. A cross between the Aurora blackberry and a European raspberry variety, this relatively young berry breed was developed at the Scottish Horticultural Research Institute, and named after the country's River Tay. It's been said to resemble the tart loganberry - a fruit I've never had the pleasure of trying - but with a sweeter finish. Follow me on my search to locate tayberries and see my comparison photos after the jump.

Fast & Easy Dinner: Gingery Salmon With Peaches

partysugar — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 07:50:48 -0700

When it comes to Summer's stone fruits, don't be afraid to think beyond sweet preparations. In this recipe, ripe peaches are thrown on the grill and served alongside salmon and red onions.

As the peaches cook, they become juicy and caramelized. The final dish is drizzled with a gingery vinaigrette.

For the perfect midweek pick-me-up, serve this sophisticated Summer meal with a chilled glass of white wine. Check out the recipe.