Red, White & Blue Ricotta Cake

I found this on a YouTube video, in metric measures. It incorporates much of what I like in baked goods: not too sweet, fruit added -- in this case, cranberry and blueberry, an uncommon combo -- and lemon zest. I suspected the large amount of ricotta plus the yogurt or sour cream would give it the taste of a Danish, and yum. I was right!

Bake one larger, flatter cake in a spring form, and one smaller. A bundt pan would be fine, too. The picture is the mini-cake I baked for Eyal and Nadav. When I come to take care of Noa, I make sure there's a treat for the boys when they get home from school. You can't see the blueberries, which are the lower layer.

2 eggs

1/2 c sugar

Lemon zest to taste

1/2 c natural yogurt or sour cream

1/3 c neutral oil

1 1/2 c flour (can be half whole wheat)

1/2 t. salt

Scant T baking powder - seems like a lot, but it came out fine

1//4 c. cranberries, currants, or raspberries

 

Topping: 

1 c. ricotta - 8 oz

1 t. vanilla 

1/4 c sugar 

1 egg

1 T coconut

1/2 c blueberries, dusted with flour or cornstarch

Optional- Powdered sugar when you serve it.

 

350 / 35 min.

In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, sugar, and lemon zest. 

Add and whisk the yogurt, oil, flour(s) and baking powder.

Pour it in the greased baking pans, and drop the red berries on top. No need to mix, as they sink.

Mix the topping ingredients, except the blueberries. Place dollops of the ricotta mixture on the surface. Add the blueberries across the top.

Bake about 30-40 minutes until golden brown and the ricotta topping is solid. Dust with powdered sugar when you serve it.

This is a nice breakfast cake. Not very desserty.

 

Eyal particularly loves this cake. He inhales it!

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6l8IiRxkr8Y

Blueberry Sour Ceam Lemon Bundt

 This is similar to the cake I baked for Sender's bris. It is richer, and easier - no weird ingredients. I bake this in two cake pans, and it's a showstopper. So delicious. It's straight from the internet, by Nellie Bellie. You will need lots of lemons!

1 3/4 c flour

1 c whole wheat flour
1 1/2 t baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 c butter
2 c sugar
4 large eggs
3  T lemon juice (about 2 large lemons)
2 T lemon zest (about 2 large lemons)
1 t vanilla
1 c sour cream (8 oz)
3 c blueberries, mixed with T flour. (1 and 1/2 pints) 

Icing

1 1/2 T butter, melted
2 c powdered sugar
1/3 c lemon juice
pinch salt

1 T lemon zest

Thin sliced almonds (thin, oval shape, not matchsticks)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Grease and flour two cake pans, bundt and/or tube pans.

In sufficient size bowl, mix together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. (You will add this to the bigger bowl.)
In a large bowl, or stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar on medium-high for about 3 minutes.
Add your eggs 1 at a time, beating after each addition.
Continue beating, adding a bit of the flour mixture to the egg mixture in intervals, a little at a time.
Add the lemon juice, zest, vanilla, and sour cream. Gently stir these into the batter with a spatula or wooden spoon.
Gently fold in the blueberries.
Spread the batter into the prepared bundt/tube pans.

 
Bake for 55 minutes, check for doneness. If a toothpick in the center doesn't come back clean, put the cake back in for another 10-15 minutes.

Icing

Beat the powdered sugar, lemon juice, salt, and zest together.
Slowly beat in the melted butter into the sugar and lemon combo. Beat until combined well. If it's too thin, add more powdered sugar.
Let cool a bit until the desired consistency for pouring.
Pour over your cake, sprinkle the almond slices, and let cool.

Claudia Roden's Yogurt Cake

A 7" cake. It puffs and settles.

Here is Claudia Roden's Yogurt Cake. It's the same idea except adding yogurt gives it more heft. Eyal and Nadav love it! They call it yogurt muffins, for mysterious reasons. Note it has flour. Probably you could sub almond flour if you wanted to do this on Pesach, or make it gluten free. It's much lighter than cheese cake, but similar.

4 large eggs, separated, at room temperature - put the yolks in the larger bowl

½ cup granulated sugar
3 T [try doubling this for a denser cake] all-purpose flour (can be whole wheat)
1 ⅔ cups whole-milk Greek yogurt, or strain regular yogurt in a coffee filter for an hour or two.
1 lemon, zested and juiced

Optional: 1/2 c blueberries
Pinch of salt (optional), cinnamon to taste

Heat oven to 350 degrees and butter an 8- or 9-inch springform pan, or two smaller (A 7" and 5" works well).

• Using an electric hand mixer, beat egg whites until they're stiff peaks
• Using the same mixer, combine yolks and sugar (no need to wash beaters after the egg white). Beat on medium-high until the mixture is very pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. 
• Mix in flour, yogurt, lemon zest and juice, and salt until fully incorporated.
• Gently fold half of the egg whites into the yolk-yogurt mixture until only a few streaks remain. 
• Fold in the remaining whites, scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl, until the batter is evenly mixed, light and smooth.
• If you add blueberries, add a little flower to coat them. Take about 2/3 of the blueberries and mix in the batter. Save the rest for the top.
• Scrape the batter into prepared pan(s) and smooth into an even layer. Set the balance of the berries on top of the cake/s. These will not sink.
• Bake until the top is speckled with golden brown and puffed, 35 to 55 minutes. ( This burns if you don't watch it! You can cover with tin foil if it's browning too fast.
• Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cake cool before cutting. Serve warm or cold.

Lemon Cream Cheese Tarts

This recipe came from Susan Schuman, a Schechter mom wtih a son was named Eric. These are very rich, but since you make them as individual little tarts, they are perfect. Nice for Shavuot. Since COVID, people are doing more individual baked goods, and they're also just right for a tea. Be sure to allow for the hour to chill the dough.

8 oz cream cheese - softened at room temperature
2 sticks of butter - softened at room temperature
1 c. flour
2 T sugar
salt to taste
1/2 t cinnamon
optional: grated lemon zest to taste

1 can of lemon pie filling (or another flavor if you prefer)

1 pint raspberries or small strawberries (like from the Strawberry Lady of Broadneck Road!)

Add the butter and cream cheese to a large mixing bowl. Mix with a pastry blender (a hand tool.) Slowly add flour, sugar, salt, cinnamon and optional lemon zest. Knead til smooth, by hand. Refrigerate for one hour.

Heat oven to 375 degrees.

Pinch 1" balls of dough and place in silicon muffin cups. Press into place making saucer shapes, with dough creating sides.Fill each with a spoonfullof pie filling.

Bake for 35-45 minutes until browned, checking they aren't burning.

Cool in the pans. Eventually pop them out and cool on racks. Refrigerate before serving. Add rasperries or strawberries for decoration. A few blueberries each would be pretty too.

Makes about 30.

Cinnamon Star Coffee Cake/Challah (or Pesto Star)

This is a King Arthur recipe - It's a lot of steps but fun. I baked one with Shula and Amira for our New Years Eve 2022/Shabbat Dinner. Obviously dairy. In this case the filling ran a bit, so a better seal matters. There are lots of videos to review the cut/twist steps.

The dough would be easy to double. It's such an impressive bread.

To do a six-pointed star, assumedly you can cut each quarter into thirds, and have six points instead of eight.

Dough
2 c (240g) Flour
1/2 cup (46g) dried potato flakes
1/4 cup (28g) nonfat dry milk powder
3/4 cup + 2 to 4 tablespoons (198g to 227g) lukewarm water, enough to make a soft, smooth dough
4 T (57g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 t vanilla extract (omit if you're baking a savory star, like with pesto)
2 t instant yeast
2 T (25g) granulated sugar (cut to 1 T. for Savory Star)
1 t (6g) salt

Filling
1 large egg, beaten
1/2 c (99g) granulated sugar
1 T cinnamon

    or

Pesto (1/2 cup)

Combine all of the dough ingredients and mix and knead — by hand, mixer, or bread machine — to make a soft, smooth dough. It is a rich dough and doesn't need a lot of working. Starting with a mixer and finishing by hand, in the bowl, seems to work fine.

Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover, and let it rise for 60 minutes, until it's nearly doubled in bulk.

To shape the loaf: Divide the dough into four equal pieces. Shape each piece into a ball, cover the balls, and allow them to rest for 15 minutes.

On a lightly greased or floured work surface, roll one piece of dough into a 10" circle. Place the circle on a piece of parchment, brush a thin coat of beaten egg on the surface, then evenly sprinkle with 1/3 of the cinnamon sugar (or pesto), leaving 1/4" of bare dough around the perimeter.

Roll out a second circle the same size as the first, and place it on top of the filling-covered circle. Repeat the layering process — egg, cinnamon sugar, dough circle — leaving the top circle bare. [Pinch the perimeter so the filling doesn't burst out as much.]

Place a 2 1/2" to 3" round cutter in the center of the dough circle as a guide. With a sharp knife, cut the circle into 16 equal strips, from the cutter to the edge, through all the layers.

Using two hands, pick up two adjacent strips, pull up & out and twist them away from each other twice so that the top side is facing up again. Repeat with the remaining strips of dough so that you end up with eight pairs of strips.

Pinch the pairs of strips together to create a star-like shape with eight points.

Transfer the star on the parchment to a baking sheet. Cover the star and let it rise until it becomes noticeably puffy, about 45 minutes.


While the star is rising, preheat the oven to 400°F.


Brush the star with a thin coat of the beaten egg. Bake it for 12 to 15 minutes, until it's nicely golden with dark brown cinnamon streaks; the center should register 200°F on a digital thermometer.


Remove the loaf from the oven and allow it to cool for about 10 minutes before serving. Dust with confectioners' sugar and serve warm or at room temperature.

Irish Soda Bread / Bundt

This is 2 c. of flour, in a cast iron pan

This recipe is from a book I picked up from a Little Free Library, The Cast Iron Skillet Cookbook by Sharon Kramis. I have modified it for a 10" skillet, using 2 cups of flour.

1 egg

1 c. buttermilk

2 c mixed flour (can include wheat germ, flax seed, etc)

1/2 t. baking soda 

1 t  baking powder 

4 oz butter, softened 

1/2 c raisins 

9/7, 2022 - New Yonim at ECP

1/4 c sugar

Pinch salt

Heat oven at 350.

Olive oil or butter a 10" cast iron skillet. 

In large bowl, mix flours, baking soda, baking powder, sugar, currants, and salt. To break up any lumps, I now use a small sieve instead of a sifter. Add soft butter and work it in.

In a smaller bowl, whisk eggs and buttermilk. Make a well in the flour, adding the butter (cut it into small pieces in winter when room temperature butter is colder) and the buttermilk/egg. Stir with a spoon until it comes together, incorporating the flour from the periphery.

Knead right in the bowl (really not much different than stirring) until it's a shaggy dough that holds together. It's quite sticky.

Place the dough in the skillet and spread into the pan. Score a large X, going the full depth, and separating the sections if possible. (This allows the baking to reach the center.) Take a knife and tap each quadrant to let the fairies out. (I saw that on YouTube!)

Bake about 32-35 minutes, covering with tin foil if it browns too quickly (the norm if you bake in the Breville). Test with a toothpick. 

Grandmother Kramis's Irish Soda Bread (3 cup recipe) from the cookbook

Grease/Flour a bundt pan (baker's spray) - my adaptation

1½ c. regular flour
1½ c. whole wheat flour (my change to the recipe) - a small portion can be wheat germ and flax seed
¾ t. baking soda
1½ t. baking powder
⅜ c. sugar (you could decrease this)
⅜ c. currants or ¾ c. raisins
Pinch salt
6 oz unsalted butter, melted 
2 eggs
1½ c. buttermilk (powdered works OK)

In large bowl, mix flours, baking soda, baking powder, sugar, currants, and salt. To break up any lumps, I now use a small sieve instead of a sifter.

In a smaller bowl, whisk eggs and buttermilk. Make a well in the flour, adding the butter and the buttermilk/egg. Stir with a spoon until it comes together, incorporating the flour from the periphery.

Knead right in the bowl (really not much different than stirring) until it's a shaggy dough that holds together. It's quite sticky.

Place the dough in the bundt pan. 

Bake about 32-35 minutes, covering with tin foil if it browns too quickly Test with a toothpick. 

Yum!

Here is an old version from the NYTimes that was posted on the Coronobake FB Group. It has no sugar or butter but more raisins:

Diane Casteel

2 C all purpose flour

1 1/2 t baking powder

1/4 t baking soda

1/4 t salt

1 t caraway seeds

1/2 C raisins

1 C buttermilk

Sift dry ingredients together. Add the rest. Knead on floured board for 5 min [or in the bowl]. Shape into rounded loaf. Cut an "X" in the top of the loaf, half an inch deep. Place on greased baking sheet. Preheat oven to 375°. After placing baking sheet with loaf in the oven, turn the oven down to 350°. Bake 45-50 minutes. Enjoy!

 

Cranberry Pistachio Icebox Cookies

These are based on a Martha Stewart recipe for Cranberry Noels. They are easy to make and swapping pistachios for her original pecans, really colorful.

They barely spread so you can get a lot on a tin - but the do spread some. Don't bake too long or the bottoms burn. They are lovely with white icing drizzled over them.

1 c (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature -              this is challenging if it's a cold day!
3/4 cup sugar
2 T milk
1 t  pure vanilla extract or orange or lemon zest
2  c all-purpose flour

1/4 c whole wheat
1/2 t salt
3/4 c dried, chopped cranberries
1/2 c chopped pistachios

In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. [Unless the butter is soft, this doesn't work!]

Add milk and vanilla or zest. Beat until just combined. 

With mixer on low, gradually add flour, salt, cranberries, and pistachios; continue beating until fully combined.

Turn dough out onto a clean work surface, and divide into 2 equal pieces. Shape each piece into  8-inch square or rectangular logs, about 2 inches in diameter. No need to cover. Refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Using a sharp knife, cut logs into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Transfer to oil-sprayed baking sheets, fairly close together, but leave some space. Bake until edges are golden, 16 to 18 minutes, rotating baking sheets halfway through. They crisp as they dry, so resist the temptation to overbake.

When cooled, compact them on a cookie tin and drizzle royal icing. The fancy way to make it is with meringue powder but you can just use powdered sugar, some vanilla, and a little milk. Use a heavy ziplock. The hard part is transfering the icing into the ziplock. Put a pinhole in the tip of the ziplock, and squeeze & drizzle. One cup of powdered sugar with as little liquid as you need is plenty. Add the liquid 1/2 t at a time. 

Or, drip with a spoon. I am still working on this. The icing glops from the spoon and then flows smoother....

I brought these to Frieda Naumburg's bat mitzvah, mostly in a tent in Judy and Chayim's backyard as it was still COVID. These were a big hit with Chayim, David, and Zach.

One Bowl Blueberry, Strawberry Rhubarb, or Cranberry Crumble Bars

I saw these online and had a real craving for them - I knew they would be similar to the datebars of my youth, but way easier. It's a quick recipe and perfect when blueberries are abundant.   In 2022 when we gathered in Chestertown for Thanksgiving, Zach and Becca brought several quarts of CSA cranberries that people had failed to pick up, or left behind. We experimented making Cranberry Crumble bars (fun to say!) and they were such a hit I made a second batch. Super easy, and so pretty.

You make the same dough for the bottom layer as the streusel topping - super easy. I cut the sugar, as my first version seemed sweeter than needed.

Crust and Crumble Topping
1/2 c (1 stick) butter, melted (microwave on low power, in a big bowl that you then use to mix the dough). For vegans, use parve margarine.
1 c flour (half WW, half regular, as I always do)
3/4 c old-fashioned whole-rolled oats
1/4 c granulated sugar
1/4 c light brown sugar, packed

salt to taste

Blueberry (or Cranberry) Layer
1 pint washed blueberries or 12 oz. cranberries (1 1/2 c)
1/3 c granulated sugar
For blueberries: 2 T lemon juice (1 lemon's worth) - omit for cranberries
2 t cornstarch

• Preheat oven to 350. 
• Line an 8 or 9-inch square pan with a parchment paper sling.
• Altrnatively, to make individual tarts (as I just did during COVID), spray a silicone muffin tin. I made 12. You could make 16, just use 2 trays and leave 8 empty. It's a little more work but a dozen big wows! Wait until cooled to remove, by popping them out from the bottom of the tray.
• In a large, microwave-safe bowl melt the butter.
• Add the flour, oats, sugars, optional salt, and stir to combine. Mixture will be dry and sandy with some larger, well-formed crumble pieces.
• Set aside 1 heaping cup mixture for the top crumble layer.
• Transfer remaining mixture to prepared pan, and using wet fingers, pack the mixture to create an even, smooth, flat crust; set aside.
• In the large mixing bowl (same one!), add blueberries, lemon juice (not for cranberries!), sugar, and cornstarch, stirring to combine. If sugar hasn’t dissolved fully that’s okay because it liquifies while baking.
• Evenly distribute blueberry mixture over the crust.
• Sprinkle with the reserved heaping 1 cup crumble topping mixture. squeezing the mixture to shape bigger crumble pieces.
• Bake for about 45 minutes (in the Breville), or until edges are set and center has just set. Crumble topping should appear set and very pale golden. 
• Place pan on a wire rack and allow bars to cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving. If you try to slice bars before they’ve cooled completely, they’ll be extremely messy and could fall apart. 
• To cut when cooled, pull out with the sling onto a flat cutting board. Cut 4 x 5 or even 5 x 5 with a pizza cutting wheel or sharp, wet knife. These are messy-ish, so small bite-size bars are great.

another scrumptious, spring version: Strawberry Rhubarb

Same recipe, but a pint of strawberries and about two stalks of rhubarb, both finely chopped. Include sugar. It is DELICIOUS. Very distinct flavor profile.

Make double like I did here!!

Lactation Bars

Gifts for Asia and Donya, 2021.

These make enough for a half-sheet pan. If you're using a 1/4 sheet, either bake it in two shifts, or bake a half recipe.

A 1/4 sheet pan is enough to fill a jar.

Most lactation bars feature Brewers yeast, flax seed, oats, and other nutritious ingredients like wheat germ. I modified this by baking the dough in the Breville in a 1/4 sheet pan, which works well.

It's easy to slice into even portions. They're a nice gift to a new mama!

It makes about 5 dozen bars or cookies. 

Recipe By:kfwarden

2 T flax seed meal
¼ cup water
1 c butter, softened
1 c white sugar
½ cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1½ t pure vanilla extract
2 c all-purpose flour (can be half whole wheat)
¼ cup brewers' yeast
1 T wheat germ
1 t baking soda
½ t salt
½ t cream of tartar
2 ½ cups old-fashioned oats
1 c chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350.

Mix flaxseed with water in small bowl and let soak for 5 minutes.

Beat butter, white sugar, and brown sugar together in a large mixing bowl until creamy.

Add eggs and vanilla extract; beat to incorporate. Stir flax seed mixture into the butter mixture.

Mix flour, brewer's yeast, wheat germ, baking soda, salt, and cream of tartar in a separate bowl; add to butter mixture and stir until just combined. Fold oats and chocolate chips into the dough.

Press half the dough into the greased 1/4 sheet pan, using wet hands to spread the dough evenly. (Or bake the whole batch in a large jelly roll tin.)

Bake until lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Cool and slice. Repeat.

Presentation is important if you're baking these as a gift. I was pleased to find glass jars which are perfect and something, of course, that can be reused.

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2. RVED © 2019 Allrecipes.com

Lemon Blueberry Pound Cake

Sender's birthday, July 26th, is smack dab in blueberry season. I baked this cake for his brit/naming, instead of the spurned Kichel of yesteryear. Seems like I am the only one in the family who really likes kichel, but everyone loved this cake. I will try to bake him one every birthday!

It is from CookingLight, slightly modified.

Pre-Sender, holding Newspaper.
Note Aunt Vivi's toes!

It makes a nice big cake - very heimish presentation.

Abba and Grandpa David at the Brit

2 c granulated sugar

1/2 cup butter (4 oz, one stick)
1/2 lb (8-oz) low-fat cream cheese or neufchatel, softened
3 large eggs
1 large egg white
3 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1 pint blueberries
1 t baking powder
1/2 t  baking soda
1/2 t  salt
1 (8-ounce) carton lemon low-fat yogurt (hard to find - you can use plain yogurt and add 1 T. lemon zest)
2 t vanilla extract
Cooking spray

1/2 cup powdered sugar
4 t lemon juice

lemon zest (thank you, Microplane!)

1. Spray a 10" tube or bundt pan well

    In 2020, I am into little cakes. I baked 12 mini-muffins, a mini-bundt, and a small     bundt. This cake rises a lot - with 4 eggs + the baking soda and baking powder.

2. Preheat oven to 350

3. Beat butter, cream cheese, and sugar at medium speed of a mixer until well-blended (about five minutes). 

4. Add eggs and egg white, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.
5. Lightly spoon flour into medium bowl (not the mixer bowl!)
6. Take out 2 T flour and combine with the blueberries in a small bowl, and toss well.
7. Add the baking powder, baking soda, and salt to the remaining flour.
8. Add flour mixture to sugar mixture alternately with yogurt, beginning and ending with flour mixture.
9. Fold in blueberry mixture and vanilla.
10. Pour cake batter into a 10-inch tube pan (or a combination of smaller pans) . Bake at 350° for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

Cool cake in pan 15 minutes; remove from pan. This cake is heavy! Combine powdered sugar and lemon juice in a small bowl; drizzle over warm cake. Sprinkle with as much zest as you like, the more the better!