Nothing-in-the-House at Keep DC Safe 2012

My friend Kate works for DC Safe, a wonderful non-profit organization that provides support for victims of domestic violence in Washington, D.C. A few months ago she was hard at work planning their annual benefit party and asked if Nothing-in-the-House Baking Co. would be interested in donating baked goods for the event. She promised a lovely party of food, drink, and live music on a beautiful roof deck on U St. and of course support of an important civil rights organization in our community. Count me in.

 I opted for simple, autumnal offerings--miniature rustic apple tarts (following this recipe) and pumpkin doughnuts, some with a buttermilk glaze and some with cinnamon and sugar. After baking all day, Kate, Mary, and I made our way to the Room & Board for a lovely October evening on the roof deck. We played cornhole and drank apple cider sangria, took in views of the city, and celebrated the hard work of DC Safe, its staff and volunteers. And by the end, there was literally, nothing in the house.

Thanks very much to Kate and DC Safe for having me. You can find more pictures of the event here.

Apple Pickin' Recipes in Luri & Wilma

Ah....October at last. In my opinion, it's the best month of the year-- for woods walks in sweaters 'n' boots, Brit folk on the stereo, and a huge pot of apple butter cooking down on the stove (oh, also Halloween, duh!). But it takes a lot of apples to make all those jars of preserves, so you'd better make your way to your nearest orchard and pick yourself a bushel or two.

Growing up, we took a yearly visit to Eberly's Orchard, a place I've often mentioned and documented here. Since then, I've always tried to keep that annual tradition alive, finding a nearby apple orchard wherever I may be. Sometimes it's required convincing friends to spend a whole day in the car, and no orchard quite measures up to the one of my childhood, but I still consider it a necessary autumn ritual.

For Luri and Wilma's Fall Issue, I wrote a little piece about that tradition, and what to do with your apple pickin' haul i.e. make apple tarts, apple cider doughnuts, and apple butter! Above and below are pages from that story, and you can find my rustic apple tart recipe here, but for the full scoop, check out the issue online. Then gather up some friends, lace up your boots, and head out for the apple trees!

A Rustic Cottage and a Rustic Tart (with Wine-Soaked Figs)

Zenobia!

A few weekends ago, I ventured north, up to the Catskills, where I met my friends Diane, Becky, and Ryan in this rustic cottage, aka Zenobia, for an artists' retreat/non-NELP NELP (we have all taught there together, but not this year). The other three were staying for the week, but having just started a new job in D.C., I could only be there for le weekend.

Me, spreading pyllo for spanakopita, Becky at the stove

On Saturday night, Becky and I took on dinner-- a pie night, of sorts-- with spanakopita and roasted asparagus and butternut squash with pecans on the savory side of things, and a rustic tart-- to go with our rustic cabin-- for dessert.

Alice Bradley was the principal of Fannie Farmer's School of Cookery

Initially I just set out to make a strawberry-rhubarb rustic tart, but as Becky and I were chopping vegetables, Ryan read to us from this book-- The Alice Bradley Menu Cookbook, from 1937. Alice organized her cookbook into menus for 3-meals a day for an entire year!

As Ryan read over a menu that included a fig tart, we got to thinking...we had some dried figs in the house, and thought they'd make a nice addition to the strawberry and rhubarb. Since we were in the woods, sans internet, I had to approximate a recipe, but here is basically what I did...

Strawberry-Rhubarb and Wine-Soaked Fig Rustic Tart

Ingredients
Nothing-in-the-House pie crust, halved
2 c. strawberries, hulled and sliced
2 c. rhubarb, chopped
2 c. (or approximately 6-8) dried figs
1/2-1c. red wine
1 c. sugar
3 Tblsp. cornstarch (can use arrowroot)
1 egg, beaten
1-2 Tblsp. Turbinado sugar (for dusting)

Directions
1. Soak figs in 1/2- 1c. red wine for at least one hour. Meanwhile, prepare half of the Nothing-in-the-House pie crust as per the directions. Chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour.

2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. When figs are adequately soaked, chop them, and combine with chopped rhubarb and sliced strawberries in a medium bowl. Stir in 1 c. sugar and 3 Tblsp. cornstarch. 

3. Roll out pie crust into a 10-11-inch circle on a cookie sheet. Scoop filling onto the center of the pie crust. Spread, leaving a 2-in. border. Fold edges of pie crust over filling. Brush and seal with an egg wash. Sprinkle Turbinado sugar over the entire tart. 

4. Place in oven for 10 minutes at 425, then lower heat to 375 and let bake for approximately 30 minutes longer, or until crust is golden brown and filling starts to bubble. Serve with vanilla ice cream or homemade whipped cream.

Play Bananagrams while you wait for the tart to bake!

The finished tart was incredibly delicious, particularly with the addition of the seeded figs. I'd call it a new favorite. More importantly, it was so nice to be back in the kitchen, reading books, and making jokes again with these three smarty pants.

Rustic Blood Orange Tart with Cream Cheese Crust

Spring is in full glory here in Chapel Hill, which brings with it a few things...terrible allergies and a desire to eat fruit, among them. My fruit kick has included a lot of blood oranges recently. They're so vibrant and variegated in color, have a tart little kick, and are delicious with sweet or savory accompaniment. I've been eating them a lot in salads with mixed greens, avocado, goat cheese, almonds, and maple syrup vinaigrette.

While browsing recipes on Smitten Kitchen a few weeks ago, this recipe for a "flaky blood orange tart" caught my eye. I like tart recipes like this that are very simple and really showcase the fruit, without the need for much added spice or sweetener.

My dad was passing through town and requested some pie, the monthly Old Time Jam I coordinate was coming up, and I had a bunch of individually wrapped butter and cream cheese packets leftover from the North Carolina Folklore Society Annual Meeting-- All good indications that it was time to try out this blood orange tart, with some variations. Here's the approximate recipe I used:

Rustic Blood Orange Tart with a Cream Cheese Crust 
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Ingredients 
1 cup flour, plus more for dusting
1/4 cup plus 2 Tblsp. raw Turbinado sugar
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
5 Tblsp. salted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces and chilled
4 Tblsp. cream cheese
3 Tblsp. ice water
8 to 10 blood oranges (I only needed 6)
1 large egg yolk mixed with 2 Tblsp. of water

Directions
1. Whisk 1 cup of flour with 2 Tblsp. sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the 4 Tblsp. of cold butter in sliced pieces and cream cheese and cut into flour mixture with a knife and fork or pastry cutter. Sprinkle the dough with the ice water and combine until pastry can be formed into a disk. Wrap pastry in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.

2. On a floured work surface, roll out pastry to an 11-in. round, about 1/4 inch thick. Transfer the pastry to a parchment paper–lined flat cookie sheet and refrigerate for 15 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, peel the blood oranges, removing all of the bitter white pith with a knife. Thinly slice 2 of the oranges crosswise and remove the pits. Transfer the orange slices to a plate. Cut in between the membranes of the remaining oranges, along section lines. You will need 1 cup of sections.

4. Arrange the orange sections on the pastry, leaving a 2-inch border all around. Sprinkle 2 Tblsp. of sugar over the oranges. Thinly slice the remaining 1 Tblsp. of butter over the oranges. Fold up the pastry over the oranges, leaving most of the oranges uncovered. Brush the pastry with the egg wash and sprinkle lightly with 1 Tblsp. of the sugar. Arrange the orange slices on top, leaving a 1-in. border of pastry all around. Sprinkle the remaining 1 Tblsp. of sugar on top. Freeze the tart until solid, at least 4 hours or preferably overnight.

5. Preheat the oven to 375° and position a rack in the center. Place a baking sheet on the rack below to catch any drips. Bake the tart directly from the freezer for 1 hour and 15 minutes, until the fruit is bubbling and the pastry is deeply browned. Let the tart cool completely. Serve with salted butter caramel sauce, if so desired. Recipe here.

I brought the tart to the Old Time Jam at Nightlight and shared it with friends there. Unfortunately my dad couldn't make the jam, but I did save him a slice and handed it off to him at lunch the next day.

NELPie Cart ChaCha Line

All was quiet in the dining hall. The 6 tables were set with 9 places each and laid with a letterpressed menu for the evening's banquet, which foretold of savory wholesome dishes and good nutrition. Through the paned windows, the western light cast its glint from across the lake, which was serene and glassed at this hour. The only sound was the faint din of the breeze upon the hinged door, for all the students were bathing in their last moments on the docks and cliffs of Wohelo. When suddenly, HARK! a clamor of tin and aluminum, foot and floor, wheel and ball-bearing, erupted from the kitchen, an uproar that could only be that of chaotic celebration and fruity and heavily-sweetened concoctions! Whatever could this disturbance be, but none other than...THE NELPie CART CHACHA LINE!!!!

Sure to spoil savory suppers everywhere by pairing provocative dancing with provocative dessert, the NELPie Cart and its chacha devotees boasted 11 fresh (made that day) and homemade pies:

Crustless Coconut Cream (Obama family recipe) Pie
Banana Cream Pie
Sweet Potato Pie (rectangular!)
Mixed Berry pie
2 Wild Maine Blueberry Pie (Blueberries from Stoneset Farm)
2 Mixed Berry Rustic Tarts
Mixed Berry Pie
Raspberry-Blueberry Ginger Pie
Chocolate Pudding Pie
and a Vegan Avocado Pie

The Vegan Avocado Pie (also raw) has been a favorite of mine for the past year for its lightness, flavor, and ease. I've made it a lot but have yet to blog it. The recipe is as follows:

Vegan Avocado Pie

Ingredients
1 packet graham crackers
1/2 c. Earth Balance (for vegan), unsalted butter (for non-vegan), melted
Cream from 2 cans coconut milk
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. lime juice
1 ripe avocado, mashed
1/4 c. confectioner's sugar

Directions
1. In a food processor, place the graham crackers, and pulse until crumbs form. Add the melted butter through the feeding tube and mix to combine. Press into the bottom of a 9-inch pie plate.

2. Meanwhile put 1 can coconut milk into the fridge. After 1 hour, open, and spoon the cream from the coconut water.

3. Add sugar, lime juice, and 1 ripe mashed avocado to the coconut cream. Mix until incorporated and pour into graham cracker crust.

4. Refridgerate one hour until set. Top with mango/kiwi for decoration. If desired, mix another can of coconut cream with 1/4 c. powdered sugar to use as "whipped cream." Enjoy!!! Crust can be made with crushed pistachio, if desired. Agave nectar can replace sugar, for a healthier sweetness.


After the NELPie Cart Dancers wove their kickline through the tables, summoning all NELPers from their cabins and beehives, tempting them from their whole sprouted grains and and beta carotene, they lined up their wares on the table, and served them with a devilish dollop of whipped cream. Just what it did to those NELPers...well, the photographs (by J. Budd and Laura L.) speak for themselves...


Watch out! The NELPie Cart may be coming to ravage a dining hall and ruin an appetite near you!