Blue Cayenne

Dorie Greenspan is an American treasure.

She is a James Beard award-winner. Juliet Child selected her to write Baking with Julia for The New York Times. She has written numerous cookbooks including Baking Chez Moi from which this apple custard cake recipe was adapted. Her blog, www. doriegreenspan.com is among the best in the world.

I want to be Dorie Greenspan when I grow up.

The link to the original recipe appears at the bottom of this post along with a great how-to video showing the step-by-step preparation of this dish. Greenspan calls this recipe a “back pocket recipe”–a delightful recipe she can make quickly and reliably when the occasion arises. In her cookbook, she says that this recipe also can be made with pears or mangoes. I haven’t tried that, but those variations sound wonderful.

Recipe: Apple Custard Cake

3 Medium juicy, sweet apples (Fuji or Gal are good choices), peeled and cored
1/2 C. all-purpose flour
1 t. baking powder
2 large eggs (room temperature)
1/3 C. sugar
Pinch of fine sea salt
2 t. pure vanilla extract
6 T. whole milk (at room temperature)
2 T. unsalted butter (melted and cooled)
Powdered sugar for dusting

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Line a buttered 8×8 inch pan with parchment paper.

Slice apples about 1/16 inch thick, using a mandoline or a sharp knife.

Using a whisk, mix flour and baking powder in a small bowl.

Whisk eggs, sugar and salt in a large bowl for about two minutes. Sugar should be  well-dissolved and eggs should be a pale yellow when you have properly whisked the ingredients. Whisk in vanilla, milk and melted butter. Add flour and mix until batter is smooth. Add sliced apples and turn gently until apples are coated with batter.

Pour batter into the prepared pan. Smooth the top of the apple batter as much as possible.

Bake until golden brown, about 40-50 minutes. The tart is done when a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. (In my oven, the cake is done at about 40 minutes.)

Cool on a rack for 15-20 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the cake to loosen the edges from the pan.

Invert the cake on a serving plate, peel off the parchment and invert again until you have the sliced apples showing on top of the cake.

Dust with powdered sugar and cut into squares for serving. I also dusted my cake with a bit of cinnamon.

Cook’s Notes: I found that this cake is best eaten the day it is prepared. The crust gets a bit soft by the second day. Not to worry, though. I popped it back into the oven at 400 degrees F and crisped it up in a few minutes. There is a bonus to that, too. There is nothing better than warm apples and cinnamon.

Here is a link to the original recipe and a video showing how to prepare this cake:

Dorie Greenspan’s Custardy Apple Cake

Have you ever found that the cheese that comes bagged and pre-shredded in your supermarket performs differently in your recipes than cheese you’ve grated yourself?

I have.

According to articles I’ve  read (including the KCET link below), pre-shredded cheese frequently contains additives that are not found in block cheese–potato starch to deter the shreds from clumping, cellulose for thickening and stabilizing, to add fiber, and to enhance mouthfeel, and natamycin to prevent mold.

Many cooks believe that these additives alter the performance of cheese as an ingredient in the foods they prepare. That has been my experience, too. While I don’t use it often, when pressed for time I have on occasion used pre-shredded cheese on a Mexican nacho dish I enjoy and on pizzas. I have been disappointed that the cheese layer on my foods lacked the creamy mouth-feel that I get when I use freshly-grated quality cheese.

Interestingly, the cellulose additive commonly used in pre-shredded cheese is obtained from wood pulp via a chemical process that breaks down the wood fiber into edible form.  When used in limited quantities, cellulose from wood is considered a safe food additive by The USDA and The Center for Science in the Public Interest. This form of cellulose also is frequently used in a number of other low-fat products including ice cream, sour cream, yogurt and non-dairy creamers.

The call on whether to use pre-shredded cheese is, of course, up to you. I’ve eliminated it from my kitchen.

Here is a short and interesting article from KCET that addresses the issue.

What is in pre-shredded cheese?

When you get yourself in a pickle, do you stay cool as a cucumber?

Food is such a critical part of our lives that it is no wonder that we pepper (sorry) our language with food references. It looks like we can’t keep up with the French, though.

Here is a link to an interesting and enjoyable read about French idiomatic food expressions.

French Food Idioms