Baking in Burien: Strawberry Rhubarb Frozen Yogurt
Each month Joanna Damey contributes, Baking in Burien, a column about using locally available goods to bake the season’s most delicious foods.
This last week of beautiful weather has got me looking forward to summer! Last Thursday, in Burien’s sunny weather, was the first Farmer’s Market of the season! Looking at the fresh cut flowers, veggie & fruit stands, smelling the kettle corn, and enjoying friendly neighbors also made me very excited for summer.
I was thrilled to find fresh rhubarb that we are going to use for a recipe today.
When I was thinking through different ways I could use this ingredient, Strawberry Rhubarb Pie was the first thing that came to mind. I decided to take this traditional recipe and create a new way to enjoy it.
Strawberry Rhubarb Frozen Yogurt with Crumb Topping! Lets see how this turns out :) (more…)
Baking In Burien : Easter Scones with Lemon Curd
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Each month Joanna Damey contributes, Baking in Burien, a column about using locally available goods to bake the season’s most delicious foods.
Springtime is such an exciting time! Flowers have started to bloom, the sun is out just a little bit longer, and we get to start making fresh, light, fruit-filled baked goods. My first spring endeavor is Easter breakfast: Scones with Lemon Curd. This is an easy recipe to share with your family on Easter morning.
Easter Scones
3 cups Flour
1/3 cup Granulated Sugar
4 1/2 teaspoons Baking Powder
3/4 teaspoon Salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) Unsalted Butter, cold and cut into cubes
1 cup + 2 tablespoons Heavy Cream
1 Large Egg
1 Large Egg Yolk
1 Large Egg White + 1 tablespoon Cold Water
Crystal Sugar
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
Start by combining the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a standup mixer. Add the pieces of butter, one at a time. Mix until pea-size pieces form, approximately 2-3 minutes.
Whisk together heavy cream, egg, and egg yolk in a small bowl. Add this to the flour and butter mixture. Mix with a rubber spatula until it forms a dough.
Sprinkle flour onto a flat, clean counter space and turn dough out onto it. Knead the dough 6 or 7 times to finish mixing.
Flatten the dough out into a 12″ circle. Cut it into fourths and each of fourth into thirds; you will end up with 12 triangles.
Place them on an ungreased baking sheet and brush the beaten egg white and water on each scone.
Bake for 16-20 minutes. Let the scones cool on the pan for 5 minutes before serving.
When baking, always start with the shortest time (16 minutes) and add time from there, if needed.
Lemon Curd
2 Large Lemons
6 Large Egg Yolks
12 tablespoons Granulated Sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) Unsalted Butter, cold and cut into pieces
Start by zesting one of your lemons into a medium saucepan. Next, squeeze both lemons into a measuring cup (you need around a 1/2 cup of juice). Add the juice to the pan. Next, whisk sugar and egg yolks in a small bowl. Strain it into the saucepan.
Set stove to medium heat and cook mixture, while stirring constantly. Cook until it has thickened enough to stick to a spoon.
Remove the pan from heat and add pieces of butter one at a time, mixing all the while. Mix until all butter has melted and the texture is smooth.
Pour it into a bowl or canning jar before serving.
Enjoy your scones warm, with lemon curd and fresh fruit for your Easter breakfast.
Happy Spring!
Joanna Damey is a life long Highline local and is married to Corry Damey, who works in Burien as a graphic designer. Joanna works as a baker at Le Panier, located in Pike Place Market in downtown Seattle.
Eating Well : Living Well | Is Stress Making You Fat?
If you’re anything like the typical American, you are running from here to there all day long or cramming as much as possible into your day. It can be stressful! Most everyone knows that stress is bad for us. But did you know that stress can be making you fat? It’s true! Particularly around the middle, that dreaded “belly fat”. You may have known that stress is linked to high blood pressure, and heart disease. But stress can also make you fat. It has to do with a hormone called Cortisol.
When the body feels stress or anxiety, the adrenal system releases cortisol, which, coupled with adrenaline, is great for the “fight or flight” response in an emergency situation. The problem is that in our high-stress culture, our daily emergencies (“Mom! I can’t find my shin guards and I have to leave for the game now!”) add up to no down-time for the adrenal system. And when cortisol levels remain high and are not allowed to return to a normal level, there can be negative effects on our health. (more…)
Eating Well Living Well: Want to Lose Weight? Here are 10 Tips for Healthy Weight Loss
My approach to weight loss is a little different. I don’t believe in diets. I don’t believe in counting things (points, carbs, grams, calories). I believe in eating healthy, wholesome, nutritious food that is right for your unique body and having your life be in balance. If you do these two things consistently, I believe strongly that your body will naturally start to shed the excess weight that it is carrying. This is because your body will start to heal the inflammation and the other health issues that are causing it to be hanging onto that extra weight. Sounds simple, right? Well, I know as well as you do, that eating the right foods for your body can be challenging! But with a little education and a lot of support, anyone can do it!
So here are my 10 Tips for Healthy Weight Loss. Follow these to the letter and you will lose weight more quickly. Follow a few and not others and your progress will be slower. It’s up to you, but I suggest taking these guidelines on and playing full out! (more…)
Baking In Burien: Roasted Sugar Pumpkin Pie
Each month Joanna Damey contributes, Baking in Burien, a column about using locally available goods to bake the season’s most delicious foods.
Autumn is here! Leaves are turning, scarves are being worn, and everyone is thinking about fall foods.
This is my favorite time of year, and I will admit, a lot of my reasoning is the food.
Roasting your own sugar pumpkin for puree is very simple and makes the biggest of difference in taste.
The smaller your pumpkin is, the tastier it will be (do not use a carving pumpkin, only a small sugar pumpkin).
I personally received the pumpkin I roasted from my friend’s garden! Next year, when you plant your garden in the spring, consider planting sugar pumpkins. (more…)
A Life Unprocessed: Fresh Roasted Homemade Peanut Butter
Each month Mellow DeTray contributes, A Life Unprocessed, a column about living a frugal and sustainable life in Burien.
The secret, we discovered, is giving the peanuts a very long time in a food processor. If you blend for just a couple of minutes, you will have a crumbly, dry nut butter that will barely stick to itself and be difficult to spread. Give it a few minutes more of your time and attention, and it will transform into a spreadable, creamy, perfectly textured nut butter. (more…)
Baking in Burien: Nashi Pear Brioche Bread Pudding
Each month Joanna Damey contributes, Baking in Burien, a column about using locally available goods to bake the season’s most delicious foods.
I recently picked some Nashi Pears (Asian Pears) from my friend’s tree. If you have a tree or know someone with one, bread pudding is a great way to use a few.
Bread puddings are very simple to make. You can add and change ingredients to accommodate to your taste or craving. Chocolate or different fruit could be added to this recipe.
What you’ll need:
Bowl, whisk, 2-quart baking dish, medium saucepan.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
To begin, thinly slice your Nashi pears. Slice the brioche loaf. With each slice, diagonally cut into fourths (so you have four triangles). You can pick up a loaf of brioche at Grand Central Bakery on 152nd Street in Burien.
In a bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, heavy cream, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.
Generously butter your baking dish. Lay half of your brioche pieces on bottom of dish. Next, layer half of your pear slices. Then repeat with the rest of brioche and pears. With last layer of pears, I placed them in a spiral pattern. Feel free to arrange them anyway you would like.
Pour egg mixture evenly over the layers.
Bake for 60-70 minutes, the brioche should be puffy and the egg mixture, just set.
Let cool before serving.
While your bread pudding is baking, you can make the sauce.
In a saucepan, over medium heat, bring the heavy cream to light boil. Add the brown sugar and stir until sugar is disolved and texture is smooth, about 3 minutes.
Remove from heat and stir in butter, brandy, and vanilla.
Serve with caramel drizzled over each serving of warm bread pudding.
Nashi Pear Brioche Bread Pudding
2 Nashi Pears
7 ounces Brioche
3 Whole Eggs
3 Yolks
1 1/2 cup Whole Milk
1 1/4 cup Heavy Cream
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons Cinnamon
1 teaspoon Nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon Salt
Caramel Brandy Sauce
1 cup Heavy Cream
1 1/2 cup Brown Sugar
3 tablespoons Butter
2 tablespoons Brandy
1 teaspoon Vanilla
Joanna Damey is a life long Highline local and is married to Corry Damey, who graduated from The Art Institute of Seattle and works in Burien as a graphic designer. Joanna works as a baker at Le Panier, located in Pike Place Market in downtown Seattle.
A Life Unprocessed: Drink Your Veggies
Each month Mellow DeTray contributes, A Life Unprocessed, a column about living a frugal and sustainable life in Burien.
Most people cringe when they imagine putting all this in a smoothie. I will say, it helps to have a high speed blender if you’re going to blend vegetables. For years we drank a somewhat chunky green smoothie, which our kids especially found unpalatable, but we finally invested in a 3 horsepower
So anyway, a high speed blender will make your vegetables into a smooth drink, but what about taste? I’m not going to drink something every day that tastes nasty and I don’t think you would want to either. While carrots have a natural sweetness that goes down easy, the huge amount of greens I add to smoothies would be pretty bitter without some fruit. The sweetness of a couple of ripe bananas really helps, especially in a kale smoothie, which can have a very strong taste. Mango is another great one to blend with greens and other vegetables. Pineapple orange banana is a good combination with greens. When I want to make something really sweet, or if I find myself out of fresh fruit, I’ll soak a few pitted dates in some water, then add the dates and their soak water to the smoothie.Blendtec blender, which can blend anything to a smooth cream.
Way worth the investment. However, if you’re using a standard blender, just give your vegetables extra time in there before adding softer fruits. I personally don’t think it’s the end of the world if my smoothie has to be chewed a little, but I completely understand it’s not for everyone. The flax seeds and ginger blend up quite nicely as well, though I don’t think I would use them in a standard blender. (more…)