Category: Desserts

Shortbread is delicious. Shortbread with cardamom and a little chocolate is warm and heavenly!

½ cup butter, room temperature

1/3 cup sugar

1 cup white unbleached flour

¼ cup stone ground whole wheat flour

1 ½ teaspoons fresh ground cardamom (pre-ground is fine)

1 quality chocolate bar, 3 oz. (I prefer Theo’s 85% dark chocolate)

In a mixing bowl of an electric mixer whip the butter for about 1 minute. Add the sugar and beat until creamy.

Add the flours, and cardamom. Blend until the mixture crumbly. To get it all to combine, mix with your hands. Form it into a ball, seal it in a small container or plastic wrap, and refrigerate until firm. If it is already firm, then go ahead and roll it out.

Preheat oven to 350^oF.

On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough ¼” thick. Cut in desired shapes. It is best to use cutters no larger than 2 to 3 inches across. Transfer the shapes to an ungreased or parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the bottoms of the cookies are slightly brown.

When cookies are cool, melt the chocolate in a double boiler. Dip the bottoms or one edge of the cookies in the chocolate. Lay them on a wax paper lined tray. To set the chocolate, place the tray in the refrigerator for a few minutes.

Store in an air tight container. Do not freeze these once the chocolate is on them, as it will ruin the chocolate. The naked shortbread cookies can be stored in the freezer, and then dipped in chocolate when you are ready for them.

Recipe by Jane Blaisdell, 2020.

Cinnamon spiced berries in a lemony pastry, topped with sweetened sour cream. Need I say more?

Pastry

• 6 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 small egg, lightly beaten (about 2 tablespoons)
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ cup whole wheat pastry flour
• ½ cup, plus 2 tablespoons white flour
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 to 2 teaspoons finely grated fresh lemon zest

Beat the butter and sugar together, until pale and fluffy. Beat the egg into the mixture. Add vanilla and beat it well. Add the flour, salt and zest, and mix in at a low speed, just until the mixture forms a dough.

Form the dough into a 5 to 6 inch disc. Seal the dough into an airtight container, and chill for at least 30 minutes.

Roll the dough out between two pieces of wax paper, until it is large enough to fit your baking pan (I used an 11 inch tart pan). Remove the top sheet of paper, and carefully fit the dough into the baking pan. Remove the other piece of paper, and work the dough into the corners of the pan. Trim the excess dough level with the pan. Prick the bottom of the pastry with a fork to keep it from puffing, and bake for about 15 minutes, at 375^oF, or until lightly brown. Allow it to cool.

Filling

• 4 cups fresh blueberries, divided
• ¾ cups sugar
• 2 tablespoons arrowroot starch
• 2 tablespoons water
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Fill the baked tart shell with 2 cups of berries.

In a medium sauce pan, mix together the sugar and starch. Add the water, lemon juice, cinnamon, and remaining 2 cups of berries.

Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture bubbles and thickens. Spread the cooked berries over the fresh berries, and chill the tart for at least 1 hour.

Topping

• 16 ounces sour cream
• 3 tablespoons sugar

Mix together the sour cream and sugar. Carefully spread the mixture over the cooled tart. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, at 350^oF, or until slightly set.

Cool and serve. This can be garnished with additional berries.

Recipe by Jane Blaisdell, 2019.

Fresh peppermint can transform this simple ice cream recipe to amazing!

• 2 cups whole milk
• 1 cup loosely packed fresh Peppermint leaves
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch or arrowroot starch
• 1/3 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup half-and half

Heat the milk in a saucepan until almost simmering (about 200 degrees F). Remove from the heat, add the mint leaves, cover and let steep for 2 hours.

In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, starch, and salt. Stir until well combined.

Strain the milk to remove the mint leaves.

Whisk in the mint steeped milk and eggs until well blended.

Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and coats the back of a spoon (nappé).

Cover the pan, or transfer to another covered dish and refrigerate until cooled (about 2 hours).

When cooled, mix in the half-and-half, and transfer to an ice-cream freezer. Process until thick.

Transfer the ice cream to a freezer safe container and let it harden in the freezer for at least 2 hours.

Note: this recipe is the perfect quantity for the frozen canister style of ice cream freezers. There are hand crank and electric varieties.

Recipe adapted by Jane Blaisdell. Original recipe from The Good Housekeeping Cookbook, 1973.

These delicious and spicy brownies are made without wheat flour. If you don’t care for spice with your chocolate, the cayenne pepper can be omitted, or traded for cinnamon. 

• 1/3 cup almond meal
• 2 cups black beans (cooked)
• ½ cup cocoa powder
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ cup cayenne pepper, optional
  • or ½ teaspoon cinnamon, optional
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup peanut butter (other nut butters can be substituted; almond or soy butter)
• ¼ cup cocoa nibs
• ½ cup chocolate chips

Combine all ingredients, except the cocoa nibs and chocolate chips, in a food processor. Blend until smooth. Remove the blade and mix in the nibs and chips by hand.

Pour batter into a buttered 9” x 9” pan.

Bake at 350^o F for 25 – 30 minutes.

Allow the brownies to cool before cutting into squares and removing from the pan.

 

Recipe modified by Jane Blaisdell. Original recipe by Laurie Ann March, Another Fork in the Trail, 2011.

These delicious sandwiches have several steps: First, you need to make some chocolate cookies, then the banana ice cream. You will then be ready to assemble.

Chocolate Cookies

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup soft butter
• 1/2 cup honey or brown rice syrup
• 1/4 cup water
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1. In a medium bowl, cream the butter and sugar, then add the honey or brown rice syrup. Mix these together well. Mix in the water.
2. In a separate bowl, mix together the salt, baking powder, cocoa powder and flour.
3. Add the flour mixture to the sugar and butter mixture, and mix well.
4. Cover the dough and refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours.
5. Heat the oven to 375° F.
6. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough to a little less than 1/4″ thick. Cut with a cookie cutter – you choose the size.
7. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Allow these to cool before using.

Banana Ice Cream

Freeze several ripe bananas, peels removed. You can slice them first so they will freeze quicker. The quantity depends on how much ice cream you need.

Place the frozen bananas into the bowl of a food processor. Process the bananas until they are completely blended. You may need to add some milk to help them to mix.

To use the ice cream for the sandwiches, spread it on a cookie sheet so it is about one inch thick. Place the cookie sheet in the freezer for about an hour, or until the ice cream is fairly firm.

Assembling the banana ice cream sandwiches

For each sandwich, spread a nut butter (peanut butter, almond butter, soy butter…) on one cookie. Remove the ice cream from the freezer and cut out a piece of it using the same cookie cutter used for the chocolate cookies. Place this piece of banana ice cream on top of the nut butter, then place another cookie on top of the ice cream. One ice cream sandwich made! Repeat this process for each sandwich.

Keep reforming the leftover ice cream until you have been able to cut it all into shapes for the sandwiches.

Keep the sandwiches in the freezer, in an airtight container.