Blueberry Hill Pancakes
Last summer, I found a cookbook from the original owner, Elsie, of Blueberry Hill Inn in Vermont.
Her signature pancake recipe from 1959 has become a staple in our home. They’re thin like Swedish pancakes and best cooked on a good griddle.
Ingredients
Blueberry Hill Pancakes
360 g of flour
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 eggs
470 ml milk
57 g melted butter
Sour milk or Buttermilk, to thin
Blueberries (fresh or frozen)
Method
01 PREP
Sift, then mix 360 g of flour, 1 tsp of baking powder, and 1 tsp salt in a large bowl.
Beat 2 eggs, then add 470 ml milk and 57 g melted and cooled butter in a smaller bowl.
02 COMBINE
Add all the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Slowly add and mix the sour milk (I use buttermilk) until the batter becomes a smooth, honey-like consistency.
03 BAKE
Heat the (iron or magnesium) griddle medium-high until water dances on it like mercury (if it sizzles, it's not ready). Before baking, add some blueberries to your mixture. Elsie likes to have 5 or 6 blueberries in each pancake. Turn them over when there are quite a few bubbles in them. They will fluff up a little bit.
Serve with maple syrup and butter.
Warm Pear and Apple Cake
Ingredients
Pear & Apple Cake
makes 10-12 pieces
256 g all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
250 g unsalted butter, room temperature
227 g granulated sugar
176 g eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp milk
2 baking apples, peeled, cored and cut into cubes (Golden Delicious)
2 pears, peeled, cored and cut into cubes (Conference)
method
01 prep
Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F).
Grease a 12-inch cake pan with butter or line it with parchment paper. Chop your pears and apples into small chunks. I like them to be of different sizes.
02 Make the batter
Whisk together the 256 g flour, 1 tsp of cinnamon, 2 tsp baking powder, and a pinch of salt in a small bowl.
Whisk together butter and granulated sugar in a large bowl for about 5 minutes. Next, add your 176 g of eggs one at a time. Beat in the 1 tsp of vanilla and 1 tbsp milk.
Slowly sift in your dry ingredients. Then, use a spatula to fold in your apples and pears.
03 bake
Pour the batter into the prepped cake pan. Bake for about one hour, or until the cake is golden on top and passes the toothpick test. Let it cool for about 20 minutes.
Serve warm with a cup of coffee or tea. :)
Raspberry Chocolate Torte with Earl Grey
Valentine’s Day is just around the corner and whether you’re spending it with Yourself, your family or a significant other, the holiday calls for some indulgence.
Having just finished the boxes of chocolate I brought back from Paris, I was left to rely on my memories to bring me back to my days there. After some sulking I decided to make a cake to help ease my withdrawals.
I came across quite a few incredible chocolateries while in the city, but let me tell you about the one that helped inspire this torte.
On my second day, I walked into Le Cacaotier and my world changed. Hubert Masse, who started the company, worked in La Maison du Chocolat's laboratory and as a pastry chef in Le Bristol. His chocolates are full-flavoured and the combinations are as unique as ever. His bergamot ganache was the best I’ve had to date — and I’m a sucker for earl grey, so I’ve had a lot.
Going back a little, I’ve had my eye on this chocolate cake recipe I saw on Jerne’s Kitchen and with a few changes I knew it’d be the cake of my dreams. With a few modifications and an earl grey infusion inspired by Mr. Masse, it became that dream cake.
Not only did this torte bring me back to the steps of Le Cacaotier, but it also reminded me of the Eastern European tendency of sweetening your tea with a spoonful of jam — resurfacing even older memories from my childhood. I think you’ll like this recipe.
Ingredients
RASPBERRY CHOCOLATE TORTE & EARL GREY
75 g butter
150 g chocolate (60% cacao)
1 tbsp loose leaf Earl Grey tea (Rishi Earl Grey Supreme)
85 g whipping cream
4 eggs, yolks separated
100 g sugar
20 g flour
15 g cacao powder, unsweetened
20 g ground nut mix (almond, hazelnut, and walnut)
200 g fresh raspberries
Dollop of mascarpone
“Again and again, even though we know love’s landscape
and the little churchyard with its lamenting names
and the terrible reticent gorge in which the others
end: again and again the two of us walk out together
under the ancient trees, lay ourselves down again and again
among the flowers, and look up into the sky.”
Rainer Maria Rilke, 1875 - 1926
METHOD
01 PREPARATION
Preheat your oven to 175 °C (350 °F). Coat the sides of your cake pan with butter and sprinkle with some flour.
I used a 30 cm (14-inch) cake pan, but if you prefer a thicker cake go down to 7-inches.
[*Note: If you use a smaller pan, make sure you add extra baking time accordingly.]
02 melt chocolate & infuse with earl grey
Put your chocolate, butter, early grey, and whipping cream in a glass bowl. Place it on top of a pot that’s filled with water and warm over medium heat. Slowly melt this mixture, while stirring. Once all the chocolate has melted, take it off the heat and let it cool.
03 CHOCOLATE CAKE BATTER
Separate the egg yolks from egg whites. In a small bowl, beat your egg whites until they’re fluffy and glossy. In a larger bowl whisk your egg yolks and sugar until it is evenly mixed. Add the chocolate mixture to the egg yolk mixture, whisking until it is evenly distributed.
Sift in some of the flour, cocoa powder, and ground nuts into a bowl and stir to combine. Then add some of the egg whites. Alternate between adding the wet and dry ingredients until its completely incorporated into the chocolate batter.
04 BAKE AND SERVE
Pour the batter into your cake pan. Top it with a handful of fresh raspberries, and then bake for about 20-25 minutes.
After baking, let the cake cool for about 25 minutes before removing it from the pan.
05 Top & Serve
Top your cake off with the remaining raspberries, mascarpone, and earl grey. Slice and serve.
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Plum Cake (Szilvás Lepény)
On the small farm I grew up on in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, August through to September were the months we spent harvesting. Some years we had fields of strawberries, patches of pumpkins and even watermelons — but what I loved most were our plums.
Some days we’d sit beneath the plum trees on our fold up chairs and I’d watch my mama and tata sip coffee.
However, what I remember most are the afternoons that mama and I would walk between the rows of trees with Bodri, our dog. I’d try to reach for plums, but my height would lead me to resort to picking up the ones that had fallen around the trees. To be honest, those were the ones that were the most delicious.
As plum season began in Prague, all the cafés started to fill with delicious plum desserts. As all these good memories flew back into my mind, I knew I had to go to the market and make something myself. Here’s something I think you will love.
Ingredients (Servings 9-12)
3 eggs, room temperature
1 cup (220 g) butter, softened
3/4 cup (170 g) sugar
3 tbs (15 ml) honey
1 tbs (4.8 g) baking powder
2 1/4 cups (450 g) baking flour
1/2 pack (6 g) vanilla sugar
2 tsp (4.6 g) cinnamon
8-10 plums
Steps
Halve your plums (it’s easiest to follow the natural ridge that runs along them) and remove their seeds. Facing up, sprinkle them with cinnamon and vanilla sugar, then put them aside.
Next, beat your eggs until they are fluffy and then mix them with the butter, sugar, and honey.
Combine the flour with the baking powder and sift small portions while mixing into the wet mixture.
Preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F).
Coat your baking tray (I also used ~30x40cm) with butter, and then fill it with the batter, and place your plums with their flesh facing down on top.
Bake for about 35-40 minutes.
Note: The cake gets softer as it sits out, so don’t worry if the top is hard right when it comes out of the oven.
Recipe adapted from Here.
