Triple oat pancakes

These pancakes are triple oat because they have oat milk, oat meal – homemade oat flour; rolled oats coarsely ground in a food processor, and rolled oats. They’re a companion to Grancakes. Equally healthy and hearty but they do contain dairy and eggs.

Makes 9-12 large pancakes.

1 ½ cups oat milk
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 cup oat meal – make the oat meal by grinding the rolled oats in a food processor
½ cup rolled oats
2 large eggs
¼ cup yogurt, your choice of flavor but plain or vanilla recommended
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup unbleached flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
a good pinch of kosher salt
butter for frying and serving
maple syrup and fried apples or apple sauce for serving

The night before you want to eat the pancakes, combine the oat milk, apple cider vinegar, oat meal, and rolled oats in a large bowl. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

In the morning add the eggs, yogurt, maple syrup, and vanilla and mix well. Then add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and mix again. Let the batter sit for 5-10 minutes.

Heat a 9 or 10 inch non-stick and butter lightly. I recommend cooking the pancakes one at a time. When the pan is hot ladle in about 1/4 cup of the batter right in the center and cook until there are a lot of bubbles and the edges look set before flipping. Keep the pancakes warm in a low oven until you have enough for all your guests.

Rhubarb scones

This one is taking a lot of tries to get right! I began by trying this Food52 recipe, Naughty Rhubarb Scones. Lots of butter and cream, and they tasted good, but a little too flat.

Next I tried reducing the butter, adding an egg, and using buttermilk instead of heavy cream. That resulted in rhubarb muffin tops, OK but a bit bland.

Next, I tried even less butter, not tossing the rhubarb with sugar before adding it to the scones – on the theory that drew out too much moisture from the rhubarb – and using an egg, plain whole milk yogurt, and a little bit of milk for the liquid. Best of the three, but could maybe still have a little more butter. Or whatever it takes to get a slightly better texture. Maybe more butter and no egg.

So, we’re going with take 3; take 4 updates added. They’re still a bit too cake-y, but taste pretty good! Pic of take 4 below.

1 3/4 cups rhubarb, rinsed, trimmed and cut into 1-inch slices, about 3 stalks
2 1/2 cups unbleached white flour
5 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 good pinches kosher salt
4 6 tablespoons butter
1 large egg 2 egg yolks
2 tablespoons plain whole milk yogurt
1 teaspoon vanilla
3-4 tablespoons whole milk
1 additional tablespoon of sugar for sprinkling, or use coarse sugar

First prep the rhubarb, and set aside.

Combine the flour, 5 tablespoons sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Slice in the butter and pulse to combine. Add the rhubarb and pulse 9 times. Transfer the mixture to a bowl. If you don’t have a food processor, combine the dry ingredients in a bowl, and then either cut in or grate the butter. Give the rhubarb and extra chop to get the pieces slightly smaller, then proceed as below.

Place the egg yolks in a spouted measuring cup and add the yogurt and vanilla. Add 3 tablespoons of the milk to get the liquid up to 2/3 1/2 cup. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the liquid. Mix with a fork until the dough starts to come together, then use your hands to combine into a dough, adding the additional tablespoon of milk if there continues to be lots of dry flour around the edges. Turn out on to a lightly floured surface and knead a few times until fairly smooth. Divide the dough in half, and cut each half into 6 wedges. Arrange the wedges on a parchment lined baking sheet and place in the freezer for at least 15 minutes while you heat the oven to 425°. You can also cover the pan and refrigerate the scones overnight.

Sprinkle the chilled scones with sugar and place in the oven. Reduce the heat to 400° and bake for 18-20 minutes until firm and golden brown.

Cream scones

Americans like our scones with all kinds of flavors, like blueberry, pumpkin, chocolate chips, apricot & white chocolate …  but traditional British scones are plainer, and are a vehicle for jam and cream. This cream scone recipe is plainer, and is perfect for conveying large amounts of jam and cream to the eater’s mouth. The picture shows scones made with some whole wheat flour. Since real British clotted cream is hard to get in the US, I recommend spreading plain scones with ricotta (homemade or purchased) or strained or Greek yogurt, or crème fraîche (homemade or purchased) and of course your favorite jam. The British method of eating scones is to break off parts of scone, and cream and jam the pieces individually rather than spreading the entire surface of a halved scone, as an American might.

For more tea party recipes see this document.

3 cups flour, all unbleached white or up to 1 cup whole wheat
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon table salt
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/3 to 1 1/2 cups heavy cream, plus a little extra for brushing

Combine the flour(s), baking powder, salt, and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Make a well in the center and pour in the smaller amount of cream and the vanilla. Stir with a fork until you have a cohesive dough, adding more cream if necessary.

Libe a baking sheet with parchment. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and divide it in half, and shape each half into a disk. Cut each disk into 6 wedges. Place the baking sheet in the freezer while you heat the oven to 425°.

Remove the scones from the freezer and brush the tops with some cream, if desired. Bake the scones for about 15 minutes until browned and there’s no wet dough in the center. Serve warm with butter and jam and any other creamy toppings you like.

To keep the scones for longer, when frozen remove them from the baking sheet to a bag or container. Bake from frozen for 20-25 minutes. Baked and cooled scone can also be frozen for longer storage.

Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffins

I had some whey from making ricotta, and made these muffins trying to use it up. The muffins can also be made with buttermilk or sour milk. This recipe is based on King Arthur Baking 100% Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffins. I used less sugar and an egg, and part unbleached white flour. See also my streusel-topped blueberry muffins for another variation.

3/4 cup light or dark brown sugar
1 1/2 cups whey or buttermilk or sour milk*
1 egg
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla Extract
2 cups unbleached white flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour (feel free to adjust the flour proportion to your liking!)
3/4 teaspoon table salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen
cinnamon sugar or coarse sugar (note that the coarse sugar usually melts after a couple of days!), for topping, optional

Heat the oven to 400°. Line a 12-well muffin pan with paper liners, or grease the wells.

Measure the sugar into a large mixing bowl, and add the whey or buttermilk, and egg. Mix with a whisk, and then pour in the oil in a steady stream, whisking until smooth and emulsified. Switch to a spatula and add the vanilla, making sure it’s evenly distributed. Measure in the flours, salt, baking powder and baking soda, and cinnamon. Mix with the spatula until there’s almost no dry flour left, then fold in the blueberries.

Scoop the batter into the muffin pan, and sprinkle with your desired topping – or not.

Bake for about 25 minutes until the tops are cracked and the muffins are firm.

*to make sour milk, pour a tablespoon plus a teaspoon of vinegar or lemon juice into the bottom of a spouted 2-cup measure. Pour in the milk of your choice – this does work with non-dairy milks, especially oat. Let stand for about 5 minutes to sour, then proceed with your recipe.

Grancakes

These are Grandma Linda, Emma’s mom’s, whole grain pancakes. They’re from a newsletter/website/cookbook called Forks Over Knives. This is sort of it. I also put the photos of the original recipe that Linda sent me at the bottom of this post.

I made them a little less healthy than the original. I didn’t have whole wheat pastry flour, so I used 1 cup of unbleached and 1/2 cup regular whole wheat. I used homemade applesauce that was lightly sweetened and I fry them in butter. Just a little.

1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 cup cornmeal
1/4 cup rolled oats
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon fine salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg (I left this out and put in more cinnamon)
1 3/4 cups unsweetened plant-based milk (I used oat milk)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

1 cup berries for serving – optional
apple butter for serving – optional
more maple syrup for serving – not optional

    1. Combine the dry ingredients, the first seven, in a large bowl.
    2. Pour the milk into a spouted 2-cup measuring pitcher, and add the vanilla and maple syrup. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the milk mixture. Add the applesauce and mix well. A few lumps is OK.
    3. I think it works best if you let the batter sit for about 30 minutes before cooking to let the grains soak up the liquid. You can also refrigerate the batter overnight, or for a few days.
    4. Heat a large non-stick skillet or griddle over medium high heat until a drop of water sizzles. Optionally, melt a small pat of butter in the skillet. Ladle 1/4-1/3 cup dollops of batter and let cook until bubbling and the edges looks dry, before flipping to cook the other side.

Original recipe (PDF)

Blueberry corn muffins

A mildly sweet corn muffin accented with blueberries

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup white or brown sugar or honey
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup milk or buttermilk, plus a little extra if needed
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries – if using frozen do not thaw

Heat the oven to 375°. Line the wells of the 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners, or grease.

Melt the butter in a microwave safe bowl. Cool slightly then add the sugar or honey and whisk until smooth. Add the eggs, and whisk again until smooth and emulsified.

Add the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt, and baking soda, then add the sour cream and milk. Switch to a silicone spatula and fold together just until there are no dry spots. You should have a smooth, thick batter. Add the extra milk if necessary, then gently fold in the blueberries.

Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin tin, and bake for about 20 minutes until firm and browned.

Rhubarb Crumble Muffins


This is based on a BBC Good Food recipe – I trust the Brits to know what to do with rhubarb.

Muffins:

3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups chopped rhubarb
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
2/3 cups buttermilk or sour milk*
1 1/2 cups unbleached white flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2  teaspoon fine salt

Crumble:

1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup rolled oats
1 teaspoon cinnamon
4 tablespoons of cold butter, salted or un-
pinch of salt if you use un-salted butter

  1. Heat oven to 375° and line a 12-hole muffin tin with muffin papers.
  2. Stir the sugar and rhubarb together in a bowl, and set aside while you make the crumble topping.
  3. For crumble, mix the brown sugar with the flour, oats, and cinnamon, then slice the butter into small pieces on top, and mix with your fingers or a fork until clumpy.
  4. Stir the oil, egg, vanilla, and buttermilk into the sugary rhubarb.
  5. Combine the flour, baking powder, and baking soda in another large bowl, add the rhubarb mixture, and fold together until there are no visible dry bits of flour.
  6. Spoon or scoop into the muffin pan, and top each with a thick layer of the crumble mixture.
  7. Bake for 18-20 mins. until golden and firm.

*If you don’t have buttermilk, to make enough sour milk for this recipe, put 2 teaspoons of vinegar or lemon juice in the bottom of a spouted measuring cup. Pour in milk up to the 2/3 cup mark, and let stand about 10 minutes. Proceed with the recipe.

Orange-scented Ricotta Chocolate Chip Muffins

On a Monday morning, I was musing on what kind of muffin to make, using up various things that I had in the fridge and kitchen; banana? No, we’ll probably want to eat the bananas. Buckwheat flour? No, I made some buckwheat-date muffins recently, the ones I always make after Passover to use up the charoset. Ricotta? Yes! These are based on Yossi Arefi’s Black- and Blueberry Ricotta cake. I only have frozen blueberries right now, so was considering, and when I saw her suggestion of chocolate chips, that did it.

Ingredients:

1 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar
3 large eggs
3/4 cup unflavored oil, such as safflower or canola
1 1/2 to scant 2 cups ricotta (16-oz. container with like a spoonful out)
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon kosher salt
grated zest of one organic orange
1 3/4 cups + 2 tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 3/4 cups mini chocolate chips
coarse sugar for sprinkling on top

Grease or line the wells of a 12-cup muffin tin with papers. You might need one extra muffin cup or ramekin – I got 13 muffins, baker’s dozen. Heat the oven to 375°

Break the eggs into a large mixing bowl, and add the sugar. Beat with a whisk until it’s looking a bit lightened – about 3 minutes. Pour in the oil and whisk until it’s nicely emulsified. Beat in the ricotta, breaking up the lumps until smooth. Add the vanilla and salt, grate in the orange zest, and stir. Switch from the whisk to a silicone spatula, and mix in the flour, the baking powder and soda, then fold in the chocolate chips.

Scoop the batter into the muffin tin, and sprinkle with sugar.

Bake for about 25 minutes until nicely browned and firm.

Definitive Buttermilk Cimmy Buns – 2022 Update

See original recipe here, makes about 2 dozen buns; updates based on this Bon Appetit recipe, April 2020.

Makes 9 large buns

For the dough:
1/4 cup  water
2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast (1 packet)
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 cup buttermilk or whole milk yogurt at room temperature
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
2 teaspoons salt (or just a pinch if you use salted butter)
3 cups unbleached white flour

For the filling:
3/4 cup King Arthur Baker’s Cinnamon Filling, and 2 – 3 tablespoons water
OR
Use this filling
OR
Date filling:
1 lightly packed cup of pitted and chopped dates, preferably Medjool
!/4 cup dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
pinch of kosher salt

For the glaze:
2 tablespoons cream cheese, softened – microwave for about 10 seconds if you forget to leave it out
1 lightly packed cup powdered sugar
1-2 tablespoons milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Make the dough: Pour the 1/4 cup water into the bowl of a stand mixer. Sprinkle in the yeast, and let it soften. Add the sugar and buttermilk or yogurt. With the paddle beater, mix in the salt and a cup or two of flour. Start adding the butter by tablespoons. Add enough of the rest of the flour to make a very soft dough. Mix/knead on medium speed for five minutes. Form the dough into a ball and transfer to a plastic container with room to let it rise. 2 quarts is a good size if you have one, otherwise cover the mixing bowl airtight. Refrigerate the dough for 8 hours or up to 24.

Make the filling: Place the dates in a heat proof bowl and pour in 1 cup boiling water. Let stand to soften, 10 minutes or more. Drain the dates, and puree in a food processor with the sugar, oil, and salt. You can refrigerate the filling while the dough rises in the fridge. Let it come to room temperature before assembling the buns or it wil be difficult to spread.

Assemble and bake the buns: Grease a 10-12″ cast-iron skillet or 9-10″ cake pan with vegetable oil or butter. Remove the dough from the fridge, and scrape out onto a very lightly floured surface. I like to use a pastry cloth (sometimes called a frame); it’s a piece of heavy cotton printed with a ruler and circles for rolling out the dough. Roll the dough out to an 8″ square. Fold in half into an 8 x 4″ rectangle, then fold rectangle over itself to form a 4″ square. If the dough resists, let it rest about 5 minutes to relax and try again. After the second folding, roll out the dough to a 10 x 12″ rectangle. Dollop the cinnamon filling of your choice onto the sough and spread it, leaving about a 1-inch border on one of the long sides, and going right up to the edge on the short sides.

Roll the dough up tightly and pinch closed. Cut the roll into 9 slices with a chef’s knife or (unflavored!) dental floss and place them in the pan. Cover the pan with a domed lid if you have one, or greased foil if not. Let the covered buns rise until puffy, 1 to 1 1/2 hours depending on how warm your kitchen is.

Heat the oven to 350° and bake the still-covered buns for about 20 minutes, until they are risen and firm but not browned. Remove the lid, and continue to bake another 15-25 minutes until nicely browned.

Finish: While the buns are baking, mix up the glaze. Put the cream cheese in a bowl and whisk in the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla.

When the buns are done, remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes. Drizzle the glaze over and serve warm!

Pumpkin (or winter squash) Scones with Maple Glaze

pumpkin scones
Make 12 scones
Takes about 45 minutes

3 cups flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg, freshly grated
1/2 teaspoon ginger, or 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
OR omit the other spices and use to 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
3 tablespoon butter
1 cup pumpkin or winter squash puree (approximately the yield of one roasted squash!)
1 egg
3 tablespoons honey
2-3 tablespoons milk, if necessary
Optional: up to 1 cup chopped dates, cinnamon chips, nuts, dried cranberries

Icing
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
3 tablespoons maple syrup

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Combine flour, sugar, spices, and baking powder in a bowl. Slice butter on top, and cut in with a pastry blender until the mixture has a meal-like consistency. Mix the pumpkin, egg, and honey, and add to the flour mixture, mixing and kneading until you have a soft dough, adding optional milk if necessary.

Divide the dough in half and on a floured surface, roll or pat it into two 8-9 inch circles, and cut each into 6 wedges. Place on a parchment lined, or un-greased baking sheet, and bake in the oven until browned and firm.

Combine the icing ingredients while the scones bake. Drizzle the icing over the scones after they have cooled for about 10 minutes.

Summer 2021 CSA box recipes