Irish Soda Bread Pancakes

Last month I set out to make Irish Soda Bread for St. Patrick's Day, like I always do. (I also made a Chocolate Stout Cake, but this blog has seen more than its fair share of cakes.) I was eager to try Fallon & Byrne's soda bread recipe touted in Bon Appetit, and in the course of looking up the recipe I stumbled across a fantastic idea: cooking the dough on a griddle, a la English muffins or crumpets. So I doubled the recipe and made both baked and griddled versions. Wouldn't you know it, the griddled bread was better than the loaf. Since then I've been playing with the recipe to make it a bit less dense while at the same time more oat-y. And pancake-y. And a touch savory, thanks to the addition of fresh rosemary.

The batter is hearty and nutty thanks to whole wheat graham flour, raw wheat germ and both old fashioned and steel cut oats.

It's also a touch sweet thanks to brown sugar.

Buttermilk imparts a slight tang -- and rise -- to the batter. 

You'll want to add the optional chopped fresh rosemary. Trust me. (This from a girl who isn't mad about rosemary.)

Drizzle the pancakes with honey or, better yet, Lyle's Golden Syrup.

Top with berries and you've got a winning breakfast that just so happens to be perfect pre-run fuel in case you, like me, are getting back into running.

Oh, and don't forget a generous pat of Kerrygold Pure Irish Butter.



Irish Soda Bread Pancakes

Makes 10, 4-inch pancakes

Adapted from Fallon & Byrne Soda Bread, Bon Appetit, March 2010

3/4 cup all purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat graham flour (or whole wheat pastry flour)

1/2 cup old fashioned oats

1/4 cup raw wheat germ

2 tablespoons steel-cut oats

2 tablespoons (packed) brown sugar

2 teaspoons baking soda

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary (optional)

2 cups buttermilk

Nonstick cooking spray

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together all of the ingredients except the buttermilk and cooking spray. Add the buttermilk and stir until the mixture forms a uniform batter.

2. Heat a griddle or cast iron skillet over medium-low heat. Coat with cooking spray and spoon about 1/4 cup of batter onto the griddle for each pancake. The batter is thick, so you'll have to press and spread it around with your finger or a spoon. Cook until golden brown, about 3-4 minutes, then flip and cook for another 3 minutes on the other side. Note: Between batches, wipe the griddle with a cloth or paper towel and re-spray with cooking spray.

Mary's Currant Scones

In the past I've written about my mom's scones and how she'd bake them on Sundays while my dad spun reggae records on the living room turntable. It's one of my most treasured childhood memories and a tradition I hope to continue with my own children someday. (Though I suppose Laird and I will have to sort out whether we'll make Nana's or my mom's scones. Maybe we'll alternate?)

Light, buttery and studded with Zante currants, mom's scones weren't the dry, heavy sugar bombs you find these days at Starbucks. I've encountered scones like hers only once: at afternoon tea on The Veranda at the Moana Surfrider Waikiki. I enjoyed them so much, the hotel sent me home with a little box of them (but not the recipe). 

I don't have my mom's recipe, either, but with some experimentation I've come up with a close approximation. They're not quite the same, but if I put on some reggae, I can almost imagine she's here with me.

Mary's Currant Scones

Makes about 8

As with any scone or biscuit, the key here is to use a very light touch. Mix the ingredients and handle the dough as little as possible.

3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons sugar, plus more for sanding

1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt

3 tablespoons baking powder

3/4 cup Zante currants (Use raisins if you can't find Zante currants, but avoid the more widely available golden currants.)

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, very cold, cut into 1/4-inch pieces

1 1/4 cups whole milk, very cold

Half and half OR 1 egg yolk, whisked

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, 2 tablespoons sugar, salt and baking powder. Add the currants and toss to coat with the flour mixture. Rub in the cold butter with your fingertips, working quickly so as not to warm the butter. The mixture should resemble very coarse cornmeal with large pea sized lumps of butter throughout. Add the milk all at once and gently stir until the dough just begins to come together. Turn it a few times in the bowl to pick up the dry flour bits at the bottom.

3. Transfer the dough to the prepared baking sheet and quickly shape it into a rectangle about 1 1/4 inch thick. Cut the rectangle on the diagonal to form 8 wedges (see below). Brush with half and half or whisked egg yolk, and sprinkle with sugar. 

4.  Bake for 18-25 minutes, rotating pan halfway through, until scones are golden brown on top and sound hollow when tapped. Cool on a rack for 5 minutes, break into wedges, and serve with butter and jam.

Scones are best served warm, on the day they're made. However, I've had success freezing and then reheating them in a 350 degree F oven.

Caramelized Stuffed French Toast CHALLAnge

Once upon a time my friends Jake and Reagan went to Philadelphia to run a half marathon. But before they got to racing, they got to eating -- my kind of people. On the pre-race menu: Stuffed Caramelized Challah French Toast at Sabrina's Cafe. And then they (quite sportingly) CHALLAnged me to recreate it. (Reagan came up with the awesome name.)

It was a long time coming, but yesterday I finally got it together and threw down for the challenge. I honestly had no idea what I was doing -- I haven't tasted Sabrina's French toast, nor any other stuffed French toast -- but Reagan was kind enough to give me a hint: the cream cheese was whipped and flavored with cinnamon. The rest was just a matter of mixing up some ingredients I thought went well together.

I flavored reduced fat whipped cream cheese with maple syrup, cinnamon and orange zest, and spiked the egg custard with the same, plus nutmeg.

Although challah is braided, I was only able to find a traditional loaf shape.
And I see now that I should have made Mickey Mouse French toast.

 

How did it turn out? In a word: perfect.

This would be just the thing to whip up for house guests or a special occasion. The effort and time involved (about 20 minutes start to finish) are deceptively minimal for such an impressive result. Everyone will think you slaved over it, to which you can honestly respond: it was no trouble at all.
Caramelized Stuffed Challah French Toast
Serves two (recipe can be multiplied)

For the cream cheese filling:
1/4 cup cream cheese (I used a reduced fat whipped variety, which was too salty for my taste. I suggest you go with full fat Philadelphia cream cheese which is more creamy and less salty.)
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup (Laird didn't think the cream cheese filling was sweet enough, so you might consider increasing the maple syrup or adding honey or sugar.)
1 teaspoon orange zest
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

For the toast:
Four slices challah bread, sliced one inch thick (You could substitute another rich bread such as brioche loaf.)
2 large eggs
1/2 cup whole milk
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon orange zest
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

For serving:
One banana, sliced
Pure maple syrup
Powdered sugar

1. In a small bowl, stir together the cream cheese filling ingredients until thoroughly combined. Spread a generous tablespoon (each) on two pieces of bread. Spread the filling to about 1/2-inch from the crusts so that it doesn't ooze out the sides during cooking. Place the plain bread slices on top of the slices with cream cheese filling, sandwich-like.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, maple syrup, vanilla, orange zest, cinnamon and nutmeg. Transfer the mixture to a shallow baking dish and place one cream cheese "sandwich" in the mixture. Press down gently to ensure it absorbs lots of custard. Turn over and repeat on the other side.

3. Meanwhile, lightly coat a griddle or skillet with cooking spray and heat it to medium. Transfer the custard-soaked "sandwich" to the griddle and cook for about 3-5 minutes on each side, until brown and caramelized. Slice in half and arrange on a plate with sliced bananas. Drizzle generously with pure maple syrup, dust with powdered sugar, and serve. Repeat steps 2 and 3 with remaining "sandwich."

Jake and Reag, it was super fun cooking for you.

Sourdough English Muffins

If you're anything like me, you might have done the pretzel exercise in Bar Method class the other night and subsequently searched the Internet for the perfect sourdough pretzel recipe. You might have stumbled across Smitten Kitchen's English muffins post along the way, and found the idea of making a sourdough variation irresistible. Because you might have once been a bit obsessed with Thomas's sourdough English muffins, the rare and coveted breakfast treat your grandparents served by the plateful when you visited them during school breaks. Your grandparents might have slathered them in butter for fear you were going hungry and needed the extra calories, because your parents chose to raise you on a macrobiotic diet.

So... If you're anything like me, you might have spent your Saturday night making a batch of muffins and "sampling" more than your fair share of their tangy, pillowy goodness -- hot off the griddle and drenched in butter. You might have told yourself it was okay; that you were carbing it up for a long run the following day. But you might now be feeling more than a little guilty because this morning you went to Bar Method and tweaked your knee and worry you won't be able to run on it later.

But you might also be thinking it's worth it see the smile on your husband's face when you present him with a homemade egg and cheese muffin sandwich. And the delight with which your dog licks the runny egg left on the plate. Yep, if you're anything like me, you might be thinking, What a perfect Sunday morning. And... Why isn't my husband a hand model?

Sourdough English Muffins

Adapted from Ruth Reichl and Alton Brown via Smitten Kitchen

Makes about a dozen

Note: You will need a few metal baking rings for cooking these muffins. If you don't have or can't find baking rings, an empty tuna can with the top and bottom removed is purported to make an excellent substitute.

1 2/3 cup whole milk

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 cup sourdough starter*

1 egg

1 teaspoon kosher salt

5 cups all purpose flour, divided

1. In a small saucepan, heat the milk and butter over very low heat until the butter is just melted. Remove from heat.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the milk-butter mixture, sourdough starter, egg and salt. Add 2 1/2 cups flour and mix on medium-low speed until dough is smooth, about 5 minutes. [Note: a mixer makes this endeavor easier, but it's by no means necessary; hand mixing with a wooden spoon will work just fine]

3. Stop the mixer and add the remaining 2 1/2 cups flour. Mix for another 3-5 minutes, stopping the mixer and scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed, until the flour is incorporated and a wet, shaggy dough forms. Remove bowl from mixer stand, cover and let rise for 1 hour.

4. Heat a griddle to 300 degrees F, or heat a skillet or griddle pan over a medium flame. Lightly coat the griddle and the insides of your baking rings with cooking spray. Fill each ring halfway with dough. (The dough is quite sticky and thick, making this a potentially frustrating process, so take a deep breath and  tell yourself it's worth it, because it is.) Cover with a cookie sheet and cook for 5-6 minutes. Remove the cookie sheet, flip the muffins in their rings with a spatula and tongs, re-cover and cook for another 5-6 minutes. Remove to a cooling rack and repeat with the remaining dough. Split with a fork and serve, or place in an airtight container and refrigerate for later.

*Sourdough Starter

Note: Allow two full days for the starter to develop before using.

1 cup warm water
2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon active dry yeast

2 cups flour

In a large bowl, dissolve the sugar and yeast in the warm water. Stir in the flour. Cover tightly and store in a warm place for two days. Stir thoroughly before using.