Wednesday Desserts
It's the middle of the week. If we made it this far, we can make it to the weekend.
In the meantime, here are six yummy desserts to help you through the day, including Lemon Cheesecake Tart and Guinness Brownies. Enjoy!
RUGELACH
This is from Cathy Barrow on The Spruce Eats. Cathy wrote, "In Yiddish, rugelach means “little twist”, referencing the crescent-shaped cookie made with tender dough coiled around a nutty filling.
"Rugelach are believed to be closely related to an 18th century Austrian pastry, and similar crescent-shaped pastries can be found in many bakeries across the world. Originally made with a yeasted dough, this cream cheese version became ubiquitous in the last century.
"Filled with nuts, spices, and dried fruit, the flaky pastry is well caramelized on the bottom and bronzed on the top. Crispy, sweet, small, and rich, they’re perfect with a cup of coffee or tea. Rugelach will stay fresh for weeks in a cookie tin and make a lovely addition to cookie gift boxes."
To view this online, go to https://www.thespruceeats.com/rugelach-recipe-6745431.
Ingredients
For the Dough:
4 ounces cold cream cheese, cubed
4 ounces (1/2 cup) cold unsalted butter, cubed
1 cup all-purpose flour, more for the work surface
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
For the Filling:
1/4 cup finely chopped toasted walnuts
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon honey
1/4 cup (35 grams) dried currants
For the Egg Wash:
1 large egg, beaten with 1 teaspoon water and a pinch of salt
Directions
Gather the ingredients.
Add the cream cheese, butter, flour, and salt to the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until combined and pebbly, then run the machine continuously until the dough forms a ball, about 1 minute. Alternatively, cut the cream cheese and butter into the flour with a pastry cutter or two knives until crumbly. Use your hands to gather the mixture into a cohesive dough.
Form a 6-inch disk, then wrap the dough. Use a rolling pin across the wrap’s surface to flatten and smooth the top. Tap the edges around the disk to form a 1-inch edge. This will keep the dough from crumbling at the edges when rolled out. Refrigerate the dough disk for at least 4 hours or overnight.
Stir together the walnuts, sugar, and cinnamon in a small bowl.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator and allow it to warm slightly until a fingertip can be slightly pressed into the surface without cracking, about 5 minutes.
Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
Lightly flour the work surface. Roll the dough into a circle about 10-inches in diameter, and about 1/4-inch thick. For the tidiest, prettiest cookies, trim to size using a fluted pastry cutter or a pizza wheel.
Use a pastry brush to lightly brush the honey over the surface of the dough leaving a 1/2-inch border.
Spread the nut mixture across the surface of the dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border.
Scatter the currants evenly over the nut mixture and press down gently into the dough.
Use the fluted wheel or pizza cutter to divide the circle into 16 even triangular wedges. It's OK if the sugary mixture moves around.
Use an offset spatula, as needed, to loosen one section at a time from the work surface. Working from the wide end of each triangle, roll the crescent up to the pointed end, pressing to seal. It's OK if some of the filling falls out and ends up on the outside of the cookie.
Place the cookie, seam side down, on the baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining pieces. Freeze for at least 1 hour.
Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 375 F. Stack another baking sheet under the one holding the cookies. Brush the egg wash lightly on the top of each cookie. Bake for 22 to 25 minutes until the cookies are deeply bronzed and the filling is bubbling.
Remove the baking sheet to a rack to cool the cookies completely before storing.
Recipe Tips
The recipe may be doubled. Make 2 disks, 16 cookies each.
Finely chopping the nuts makes it easier to roll the crescent tightly.
Use full fat, block cream cheese (not whipped) and the very best butter.
Currants can be hard to find. Substitute any dried fruit and chop very finely.
Avoid the temptation to increase the filling. It will be messy, contribute to burning, and will not benefit the cookie.
The cookies keep their shape best when frozen before baking.
Double the baking sheets to avoid burning. Caramelized is lovely. Burned is not.
Make Ahead
The dough may be made up to 3 days in advance or frozen up to 3 months in advance. Defrost overnight in the refrigerator.
Recipe Variations
Crescent shape got you down? Roll the dough into a 9 by 12 inch rectangle. Spread the filling across the dough and tightly roll into a tidy cylinder from the 12 inch edge. Cut the dough into 1 inch segments and freeze the unbaked cookies, as above. Proceed with the recipe.
Swap out the dried fruit and use 2 tablespoons of any jam instead (if it’s chunky, finely chop the fruit). Spread the jam thinly across the dough, in place of the honey, and proceed. Try raspberry jam and chopped pecans. Plum jam and almonds. Cherry jam and pistachios. Nutella and chopped peanuts.
Go savory. Brush olive oil lightly across the dough. Sprinkle with za’atar, dried barberries, salted pistachios, a pinch of smoked paprika, and 2 tablespoons crumbled feta. Or try onion jam and grated parmesan cheese.
How to Store or Freeze
Rugelach store beautifully. Keep the cooled cookies between layers of wax paper in a tightly covered container where they will be delicious for up to 3 weeks.
Freeze the baked cookies for up to 3 months.
Freeze the unbaked cookies for up to 3 months and bake them straight from the freezer for the same amount of time.
THE CAKE
This recipe was given to my mom by a friend, who worked as a lawyer for years. She was married to an Episcopal priest; both were involved in the civil rights movement.
This is one of the recipes from Off The Wall Cooking.
Ingredients
1 package (18 oz.) yellow cake mix
1 egg, unbeaten
3/4 C oil
1 package (small) vanilla pudding
3/4 C sherry
Directions
Preheat oven at 350 degrees. Put ingredients in bowl. Beat for 5 minutes. Pour into greased tube cake pan or mold. Bake for 45 minutes.
MAPLE SUGAR PIE
This is from Baking at Home. Prep Time: 15 minutes + crust; Cook Time: 1 hour; Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes; Yield: 6-8 slices
To view this online, go to https://bakingathome.com/recipe/maple-sugar-pie/.
Ingredients
1 pie crust, placed in a 9” pie pan
1 C. Maple Grove Farms® Pure Maple Syrup
1 C. brown sugar
3 eggs
2 tsp. Spice Islands® Pure Vanilla Extract
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. Spice Islands® Ground Nutmeg
1/8 tsp. Spice Islands® Ground Saigon Cinnamon
1/3 C. butter
2/3 C. whipping cream
1 Tbsp. Clabber Girl® Corn Starch
Directions
Preheat oven to 375°.
Place pie crust in the freezer while preparing the filling.
In a bowl, whisk together the syrup, sugar, eggs, vanilla, nutmeg and cinnamon.
In a saucepan, heat the butter, whipping cream and corn starch until the butter is melted and the mixture starts to boil. Stir continuously and allow to gently boil for 1 minute.
Remove from the heat and use the mixture to temper the egg mixture (very slowly pour the cream into the eggs while gently whisking).
Pour into the chilled pie crust and bake for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350°F and bake an additional 35-45 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the center is set. Cover the crust with foil if it is getting too dark during baking.
GUINNESS BROWNIES
This is from Emily Weinberger on the Food Network. The recipe begins, "Guinness® stout is a very dark beer that boasts notes of coffee and caramel, two ingredients that pair naturally well with chocolate. For this recipe, the Guinness is reduced to a syrup to intensify the flavors and really make the chocolate stand out. The brownies are a nice marriage of fudgy and cakey and are intensely chocolatey, thanks to the bittersweet chocolate and cocoa powder."
Active Time: 30 minutes; Total Time: 2 hours (includes cooling time); Yield: 16 brownies; Level: Easy
To view this online, go to https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/guinness-brownies-12348094.
Ingredients
Nonstick cooking spray, for greasing the pan
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tablespoon instant espresso powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
One 11.2-ounce bottle stout beer, such as Guinness® Extra Stout
1-1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1-1/2 cups granulated sugar
5 large eggs
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
2 teaspoons flaky sea salt, for garnish
1 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar, for garnish
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9-by-9-inch baking pan with cooking spray and line the bottom with parchment, leaving a 2-inch overhang on 2 of the sides. Spray the parchment with cooking spray.
Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder and kosher salt in a medium bowl until combined.
Slowly pour the Guinness into a medium saucepan, trying to make as little foam as possible. (Hold the pot at an angle and press the lip of the bottle to the side of the pot and slowly pour. This should help eliminate foam.) Bring the beer to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until thickened and reduced to 1/3 cup, 12 to 13 minutes (you may need to pour the beer into a liquid measuring cup a few times to make sure it is reduced enough). Add the butter and whisk constantly until melted, about 1 minute. Add the bittersweet chocolate and whisk constantly until melted and smooth, about 2 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the granulated sugar until combined. Whisk in the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla extract until just combined. Add the flour mixture and stir slowly until combined, taking care that none of the flour spills out of the pot. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan.
Bake until set on top, the brownies have slightly pulled away from the sides and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with just a few moist crumbs, 30 to 35 minutes. Sprinkle the flaky sea salt on top.
Let cool in the pan for 30 minutes, then use the parchment overhang to remove the brownies from the pan to a cutting board and let cool completely, about 30 minutes.
Use a fine-mesh sieve to sprinkle the confectioners’ sugar on top of the brownies and slice into 16 squares.
RICE PUDDING WITH GOLDEN RAISINS
This is from Melissa Clark in The New York Times cooking enewsletter. Melissa wrote, "Forget egg yolks and water baths. This is a simple and superb rice pudding that uses only milk, sugar, cream, rice, salt and your choice of flavorings: rum, almond extract, vanilla, orange zest, cardamom, nutmeg, anything else you can dream up. Add the raisins at the end so they don’t get too mushy as the pudding cooks."
Time: 50 minutes; Yield: 6 to 8 servings
This was featured in "In Praise of Pale Food", and can be viewed online at https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1014636-rice-pudding-with-golden-raisins.
Note: I found the article that goes with this ("In Praise of Pale Food") interesting, and hope you do, too. (Also, if you're not subscribed to The New York Times and/or The New York Times cooking enewsletter, I highly recommend both.)
One last link: Check out Tejal Raos' guide "How to Make Rice."
Ingredients
3-1/2 cups whole milk
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup long-grain white rice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 vanilla bean, split
1 cinnamon stick or 4 cardamom pods
1 strip orange peel, 1-inch wide
1/3 cup golden raisins
Crème fraîche, for serving (optional)
Preparation
In a medium heavy-bottom pot, combine milk, cream, sugar, rice and salt. Scrape in seeds from vanilla bean and drop them in along with the pod. Stir in cinnamon and orange peel. Bring mixture to a simmer; cook over medium-low heat, stirring frequently until rice is tender and mixture is slightly thickened, 30 to 40 minutes. Do not let mixture come to a boil and don’t let it get too thick, because it will thicken as it cools. Stir in raisins and let pudding rest for 5 minutes to soften them.
Serve pudding warm, room temperature or chilled, with dollops of crème fraîche, if desired.
LEMON CHEESECAKE TART
This is from Yossy Arefi in The New York Times cooking enewsletter. For this recipe, Yossy wrote, "With a simple, pat-in-the-pan crust and a thin layer of light, lemon-scented cream cheese, this cheesecake tart is a lot easier to make than you might imagine. The base can be baked right away, with no chilling required, and the custardy filling relies upon little more than tangy cream cheese, lemon zest and juice, sugar and eggs. It’s the perfect dessert for a winter or early spring gathering, when there might not be much fresh fruit around but you’re in the mood for a bright dessert."
Time: 1-1/4 hours, plus cooling; Yield: 1 (9-inch) tart
To view this online, go to https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1023858-lemon-cheesecake-tart.
Ingredients
For the Crust
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
1/2 teaspoon fine salt
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
10 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes, plus more for greasing the pan
1 egg yolk
For the Filling
16 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
Finely grated zest of 2 lemons plus 1/4 cup freshly squeezed juice
Pinch fine salt
2 large eggs
Preparation
Heat oven to 375 degrees.
Make the crust: Combine the flour, confectioners' sugar, salt and lemon zest in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade; pulse a few times to combine. Scatter the cubed butter on top, then pulse until the butter is almost completely incorporated and the mixture is sandy. Add the egg yolk and pulse until incorporated. The dough should hold together easily. If not, pulse in up to 3 teaspoons of cold water, 1 teaspoon at a time. Alternatively, you can mix the dough in a large bowl, using your fingers or a pastry blender to mix the butter into the flour.
Lightly butter a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom and press the dough mixture evenly on the bottom and up the sides of the pan using a lightly floured straight-sided measuring cup to help press the dough into the corners of the pan. (If you need to trim extra dough to make it level with the edge of the pan, reserve it to repair any cracks after the shell has baked.)
Line the tart shell with a piece of aluminum foil, making sure to tuck it into the corners and over the edges. Set the tart shell on a baking sheet and bake the shell for 25 to 30 minutes or until the dough appears dry and lightly golden. If the dough puffs up while baking, gently press it back into the pan with an offset spatula or similar tool. Turn the oven down to 350 degrees. If necessary, repair any cracks with the remaining raw dough before filling.
While the shell cools slightly, make the filling: Add the cream cheese, granulated sugar, lemon zest and salt to a large bowl. Use an electric mixer to whip the cream cheese mixture until smooth and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing until completely incorporated before adding the next, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, if needed. Add the lemon juice and mix until smooth. Tap the bowl on the counter a few times then stir a few times with a rubber spatula to release any large air bubbles.
Pour the mixture into the warm crust, smooth the top and carefully transfer the pan, still on the baking sheet, into the oven. Bake until just set around the edges and slightly wiggly in the center, 15 to 20 minutes.
Let the tart cool to room temperature, then transfer to the refrigerator to cool completely. Remove the outer ring and slice with a warm knife, wiping the knife with a towel in between cuts for the tidiest slices. Serve cold or at room temperature. This keeps well in the fridge, covered for a few days.
In the meantime, here are six yummy desserts to help you through the day, including Lemon Cheesecake Tart and Guinness Brownies. Enjoy!
RUGELACH
This is from Cathy Barrow on The Spruce Eats. Cathy wrote, "In Yiddish, rugelach means “little twist”, referencing the crescent-shaped cookie made with tender dough coiled around a nutty filling.
"Rugelach are believed to be closely related to an 18th century Austrian pastry, and similar crescent-shaped pastries can be found in many bakeries across the world. Originally made with a yeasted dough, this cream cheese version became ubiquitous in the last century.
"Filled with nuts, spices, and dried fruit, the flaky pastry is well caramelized on the bottom and bronzed on the top. Crispy, sweet, small, and rich, they’re perfect with a cup of coffee or tea. Rugelach will stay fresh for weeks in a cookie tin and make a lovely addition to cookie gift boxes."
To view this online, go to https://www.thespruceeats.com/rugelach-recipe-6745431.
Ingredients
For the Dough:
4 ounces cold cream cheese, cubed
4 ounces (1/2 cup) cold unsalted butter, cubed
1 cup all-purpose flour, more for the work surface
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
For the Filling:
1/4 cup finely chopped toasted walnuts
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon honey
1/4 cup (35 grams) dried currants
For the Egg Wash:
1 large egg, beaten with 1 teaspoon water and a pinch of salt
Directions
Gather the ingredients.
Add the cream cheese, butter, flour, and salt to the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until combined and pebbly, then run the machine continuously until the dough forms a ball, about 1 minute. Alternatively, cut the cream cheese and butter into the flour with a pastry cutter or two knives until crumbly. Use your hands to gather the mixture into a cohesive dough.
Form a 6-inch disk, then wrap the dough. Use a rolling pin across the wrap’s surface to flatten and smooth the top. Tap the edges around the disk to form a 1-inch edge. This will keep the dough from crumbling at the edges when rolled out. Refrigerate the dough disk for at least 4 hours or overnight.
Stir together the walnuts, sugar, and cinnamon in a small bowl.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator and allow it to warm slightly until a fingertip can be slightly pressed into the surface without cracking, about 5 minutes.
Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
Lightly flour the work surface. Roll the dough into a circle about 10-inches in diameter, and about 1/4-inch thick. For the tidiest, prettiest cookies, trim to size using a fluted pastry cutter or a pizza wheel.
Use a pastry brush to lightly brush the honey over the surface of the dough leaving a 1/2-inch border.
Spread the nut mixture across the surface of the dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border.
Scatter the currants evenly over the nut mixture and press down gently into the dough.
Use the fluted wheel or pizza cutter to divide the circle into 16 even triangular wedges. It's OK if the sugary mixture moves around.
Use an offset spatula, as needed, to loosen one section at a time from the work surface. Working from the wide end of each triangle, roll the crescent up to the pointed end, pressing to seal. It's OK if some of the filling falls out and ends up on the outside of the cookie.
Place the cookie, seam side down, on the baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining pieces. Freeze for at least 1 hour.
Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 375 F. Stack another baking sheet under the one holding the cookies. Brush the egg wash lightly on the top of each cookie. Bake for 22 to 25 minutes until the cookies are deeply bronzed and the filling is bubbling.
Remove the baking sheet to a rack to cool the cookies completely before storing.
Recipe Tips
The recipe may be doubled. Make 2 disks, 16 cookies each.
Finely chopping the nuts makes it easier to roll the crescent tightly.
Use full fat, block cream cheese (not whipped) and the very best butter.
Currants can be hard to find. Substitute any dried fruit and chop very finely.
Avoid the temptation to increase the filling. It will be messy, contribute to burning, and will not benefit the cookie.
The cookies keep their shape best when frozen before baking.
Double the baking sheets to avoid burning. Caramelized is lovely. Burned is not.
Make Ahead
The dough may be made up to 3 days in advance or frozen up to 3 months in advance. Defrost overnight in the refrigerator.
Recipe Variations
Crescent shape got you down? Roll the dough into a 9 by 12 inch rectangle. Spread the filling across the dough and tightly roll into a tidy cylinder from the 12 inch edge. Cut the dough into 1 inch segments and freeze the unbaked cookies, as above. Proceed with the recipe.
Swap out the dried fruit and use 2 tablespoons of any jam instead (if it’s chunky, finely chop the fruit). Spread the jam thinly across the dough, in place of the honey, and proceed. Try raspberry jam and chopped pecans. Plum jam and almonds. Cherry jam and pistachios. Nutella and chopped peanuts.
Go savory. Brush olive oil lightly across the dough. Sprinkle with za’atar, dried barberries, salted pistachios, a pinch of smoked paprika, and 2 tablespoons crumbled feta. Or try onion jam and grated parmesan cheese.
How to Store or Freeze
Rugelach store beautifully. Keep the cooled cookies between layers of wax paper in a tightly covered container where they will be delicious for up to 3 weeks.
Freeze the baked cookies for up to 3 months.
Freeze the unbaked cookies for up to 3 months and bake them straight from the freezer for the same amount of time.
THE CAKE
This recipe was given to my mom by a friend, who worked as a lawyer for years. She was married to an Episcopal priest; both were involved in the civil rights movement.
This is one of the recipes from Off The Wall Cooking.
Ingredients
1 package (18 oz.) yellow cake mix
1 egg, unbeaten
3/4 C oil
1 package (small) vanilla pudding
3/4 C sherry
Directions
Preheat oven at 350 degrees. Put ingredients in bowl. Beat for 5 minutes. Pour into greased tube cake pan or mold. Bake for 45 minutes.
MAPLE SUGAR PIE
This is from Baking at Home. Prep Time: 15 minutes + crust; Cook Time: 1 hour; Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes; Yield: 6-8 slices
To view this online, go to https://bakingathome.com/recipe/maple-sugar-pie/.
Ingredients
1 pie crust, placed in a 9” pie pan
1 C. Maple Grove Farms® Pure Maple Syrup
1 C. brown sugar
3 eggs
2 tsp. Spice Islands® Pure Vanilla Extract
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. Spice Islands® Ground Nutmeg
1/8 tsp. Spice Islands® Ground Saigon Cinnamon
1/3 C. butter
2/3 C. whipping cream
1 Tbsp. Clabber Girl® Corn Starch
Directions
Preheat oven to 375°.
Place pie crust in the freezer while preparing the filling.
In a bowl, whisk together the syrup, sugar, eggs, vanilla, nutmeg and cinnamon.
In a saucepan, heat the butter, whipping cream and corn starch until the butter is melted and the mixture starts to boil. Stir continuously and allow to gently boil for 1 minute.
Remove from the heat and use the mixture to temper the egg mixture (very slowly pour the cream into the eggs while gently whisking).
Pour into the chilled pie crust and bake for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350°F and bake an additional 35-45 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the center is set. Cover the crust with foil if it is getting too dark during baking.
GUINNESS BROWNIES
This is from Emily Weinberger on the Food Network. The recipe begins, "Guinness® stout is a very dark beer that boasts notes of coffee and caramel, two ingredients that pair naturally well with chocolate. For this recipe, the Guinness is reduced to a syrup to intensify the flavors and really make the chocolate stand out. The brownies are a nice marriage of fudgy and cakey and are intensely chocolatey, thanks to the bittersweet chocolate and cocoa powder."
Active Time: 30 minutes; Total Time: 2 hours (includes cooling time); Yield: 16 brownies; Level: Easy
To view this online, go to https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/guinness-brownies-12348094.
Ingredients
Nonstick cooking spray, for greasing the pan
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tablespoon instant espresso powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
One 11.2-ounce bottle stout beer, such as Guinness® Extra Stout
1-1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1-1/2 cups granulated sugar
5 large eggs
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
2 teaspoons flaky sea salt, for garnish
1 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar, for garnish
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9-by-9-inch baking pan with cooking spray and line the bottom with parchment, leaving a 2-inch overhang on 2 of the sides. Spray the parchment with cooking spray.
Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder and kosher salt in a medium bowl until combined.
Slowly pour the Guinness into a medium saucepan, trying to make as little foam as possible. (Hold the pot at an angle and press the lip of the bottle to the side of the pot and slowly pour. This should help eliminate foam.) Bring the beer to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until thickened and reduced to 1/3 cup, 12 to 13 minutes (you may need to pour the beer into a liquid measuring cup a few times to make sure it is reduced enough). Add the butter and whisk constantly until melted, about 1 minute. Add the bittersweet chocolate and whisk constantly until melted and smooth, about 2 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the granulated sugar until combined. Whisk in the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla extract until just combined. Add the flour mixture and stir slowly until combined, taking care that none of the flour spills out of the pot. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan.
Bake until set on top, the brownies have slightly pulled away from the sides and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with just a few moist crumbs, 30 to 35 minutes. Sprinkle the flaky sea salt on top.
Let cool in the pan for 30 minutes, then use the parchment overhang to remove the brownies from the pan to a cutting board and let cool completely, about 30 minutes.
Use a fine-mesh sieve to sprinkle the confectioners’ sugar on top of the brownies and slice into 16 squares.
RICE PUDDING WITH GOLDEN RAISINS
This is from Melissa Clark in The New York Times cooking enewsletter. Melissa wrote, "Forget egg yolks and water baths. This is a simple and superb rice pudding that uses only milk, sugar, cream, rice, salt and your choice of flavorings: rum, almond extract, vanilla, orange zest, cardamom, nutmeg, anything else you can dream up. Add the raisins at the end so they don’t get too mushy as the pudding cooks."
Time: 50 minutes; Yield: 6 to 8 servings
This was featured in "In Praise of Pale Food", and can be viewed online at https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1014636-rice-pudding-with-golden-raisins.
Note: I found the article that goes with this ("In Praise of Pale Food") interesting, and hope you do, too. (Also, if you're not subscribed to The New York Times and/or The New York Times cooking enewsletter, I highly recommend both.)
One last link: Check out Tejal Raos' guide "How to Make Rice."
Ingredients
3-1/2 cups whole milk
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup long-grain white rice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 vanilla bean, split
1 cinnamon stick or 4 cardamom pods
1 strip orange peel, 1-inch wide
1/3 cup golden raisins
Crème fraîche, for serving (optional)
Preparation
In a medium heavy-bottom pot, combine milk, cream, sugar, rice and salt. Scrape in seeds from vanilla bean and drop them in along with the pod. Stir in cinnamon and orange peel. Bring mixture to a simmer; cook over medium-low heat, stirring frequently until rice is tender and mixture is slightly thickened, 30 to 40 minutes. Do not let mixture come to a boil and don’t let it get too thick, because it will thicken as it cools. Stir in raisins and let pudding rest for 5 minutes to soften them.
Serve pudding warm, room temperature or chilled, with dollops of crème fraîche, if desired.
LEMON CHEESECAKE TART
This is from Yossy Arefi in The New York Times cooking enewsletter. For this recipe, Yossy wrote, "With a simple, pat-in-the-pan crust and a thin layer of light, lemon-scented cream cheese, this cheesecake tart is a lot easier to make than you might imagine. The base can be baked right away, with no chilling required, and the custardy filling relies upon little more than tangy cream cheese, lemon zest and juice, sugar and eggs. It’s the perfect dessert for a winter or early spring gathering, when there might not be much fresh fruit around but you’re in the mood for a bright dessert."
Time: 1-1/4 hours, plus cooling; Yield: 1 (9-inch) tart
To view this online, go to https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1023858-lemon-cheesecake-tart.
Ingredients
For the Crust
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
1/2 teaspoon fine salt
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
10 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes, plus more for greasing the pan
1 egg yolk
For the Filling
16 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
Finely grated zest of 2 lemons plus 1/4 cup freshly squeezed juice
Pinch fine salt
2 large eggs
Preparation
Heat oven to 375 degrees.
Make the crust: Combine the flour, confectioners' sugar, salt and lemon zest in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade; pulse a few times to combine. Scatter the cubed butter on top, then pulse until the butter is almost completely incorporated and the mixture is sandy. Add the egg yolk and pulse until incorporated. The dough should hold together easily. If not, pulse in up to 3 teaspoons of cold water, 1 teaspoon at a time. Alternatively, you can mix the dough in a large bowl, using your fingers or a pastry blender to mix the butter into the flour.
Lightly butter a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom and press the dough mixture evenly on the bottom and up the sides of the pan using a lightly floured straight-sided measuring cup to help press the dough into the corners of the pan. (If you need to trim extra dough to make it level with the edge of the pan, reserve it to repair any cracks after the shell has baked.)
Line the tart shell with a piece of aluminum foil, making sure to tuck it into the corners and over the edges. Set the tart shell on a baking sheet and bake the shell for 25 to 30 minutes or until the dough appears dry and lightly golden. If the dough puffs up while baking, gently press it back into the pan with an offset spatula or similar tool. Turn the oven down to 350 degrees. If necessary, repair any cracks with the remaining raw dough before filling.
While the shell cools slightly, make the filling: Add the cream cheese, granulated sugar, lemon zest and salt to a large bowl. Use an electric mixer to whip the cream cheese mixture until smooth and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing until completely incorporated before adding the next, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, if needed. Add the lemon juice and mix until smooth. Tap the bowl on the counter a few times then stir a few times with a rubber spatula to release any large air bubbles.
Pour the mixture into the warm crust, smooth the top and carefully transfer the pan, still on the baking sheet, into the oven. Bake until just set around the edges and slightly wiggly in the center, 15 to 20 minutes.
Let the tart cool to room temperature, then transfer to the refrigerator to cool completely. Remove the outer ring and slice with a warm knife, wiping the knife with a towel in between cuts for the tidiest slices. Serve cold or at room temperature. This keeps well in the fridge, covered for a few days.
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