Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Oregon blueberries are the best!


7/17/13 Cook’s Corner
Betty Kaiser

Oregon’s produce season is just coming into full swing and it looks like both fruits and vegetables are going to be early this year. Our zucchini have already surprised us by growing to ridiculous lengths while lurking in the foliage. Usually, at this time of year tiny tomatoes are just starting to form on our bushes but right now, large green tomatoes are already hiding under the vines.

So far, the big disappointment of the season has been our blueberry crop. In late June, large and luscious berries were flourishing under protective netting. One day Chuck said, “Tomorrow, I’ll be picking berries.” The next morning, they were gone! Overnight, our crafty neighborhood crows discovered they could sit on the netting; collapse it and gobble up all those delicious berries. There were none left for us. We, the people, who had nourished and protected them from the neighborhood marauders, were forced to buy berries!

Fortunately, there has been a bumper crop of blueberries all across the Willamette Valley this year. Oregon blueberries flourish in our frosty, wet winters and our early dry summer has grown some very amazing fruit. So we’ve still been enjoying one of Oregon’s finest crops and our freezer is stuffed to the gills waiting to brighten up winter meals.

Searching for blueberry recipes I came across “Dungeness Crabs & Blackberry Cobbler,” a cookbook by Janie Hibler. Somehow the book has been hiding unnoticed in a corner of my bookshelf for several years! It offers recipes ranging from sour dough starter to trout stuffed with smoked salmon and of course, berry cobblers.

The author also offers some Oregon blueberry history: In the 1930s, 95-year old Beatrice Crawford Drury, a native of Salem, introduced Commercial blueberries to Oregon. She and her husband obtained two Rubel blueberry bushes from New Jersey. Originally wild blueberries, they had been crossbred by a USDA breeder for commercial purposes. Eventually, Mrs. Drury sold the berries to Union Pacific dining cars from Portland to Chicago where they survived on ice an entire round trip. Thus an industry was born.

In the book, a recipe for a  “Willamette Valley Blueberry Tart” reached out and grabbed me. The rich tart has a filling that combines the intense flavor of cooked blueberries with the juicy natural sweetness of fresh berries. This is a great strategy to use in pies and cobblers. Paired with a rich, short crust (that can be made in a food processor), it’s perfect for company on a warm summer night. 

Today’s next blueberry recipe was a second place winner in an Oregon Blueberry Commission recipe contest. Preparation is very similar to making lemon bars. First you bake a crust in a 9x13x1-inch pan. Then you pour the filling over and pop it back in the oven. Sprinkle with sifted powdered sugar. Cool, slice and enjoy!

FAVORITE TART RECIPE
(Makes one 11-inch pastry shell)

2 cups flour
1 cup chilled butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 egg
1 tablespoon heavy cream
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 375° F.

Cream four and butter. Add remaining ingredients and mix well.

Place the dough on a floured surface and roll out to a 12-inch circle, 1/8 inch thick. Carefully fold the dough over the rolling pin and transfer to the tart pan. Push the dough into the corners with your fingers. Trim off the excess dough by running the rolling pin over the top of the tart pan. Prick the bottom and sides of the pastry with a fork and bake it for 8-10 min. Cool on rack.

WILLAMETTE VALLEY BLUEBERRY TART

3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup water
3 cups fresh blueberries, rinsed, stems removed
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 baked tart shell
4 nasturtium flowers, stems removed
1/2 pint heavy cream (1 cup)
2-3 tablespoons powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Stir the sugar, cornstarch and salt together in a medium pan and whisk in the water. Add 1 cup berries and bring to a boil. Boil for 1 in., stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens.

Remove pan from the heat and stir in the remaining 2 cups berries, the butter and lemon juice. Pour the blueberry filling into the cooked tart shell and chill until set, about 2 hours.

Arrange the nasturtium flowers in the center of the tart. Whip the cream with the powdered sugar and vanilla until it thickens and serve it in a bowl to accompany the tart. Serves 8.

Note: Flowers are optional!

(Lorely French of Forest Grove, Oregon)

Crust:
2¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup powdered sugar
1 cup (½ lb.) butter
Filling:
4 large eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 cups Oregon blueberries, rinsed, stems removed
Garnish: Powdered sugar

Crust:
Preheat oven to 350° F.

Mix flour and ½ cup powdered sugar until blended. Mix in butter, cut into small pieces with a large fork until dough holds together when squeezed. Press evenly over the bottom of a 9x13-inch pan. Bake in oven until crust is golden brown, usually 20-25 minutes.

Filling:
While the crust is baking, whisk eggs together with granulated sugar, lemon peel, lemon juice and baking powder. Stir in Oregon blueberries. Pour egg and fruit mixture over warm, baked crust. Return to the oven and bake until the filling is firm and does not move when gently shaken, usually 20-25 minutes. Sprinkle with sifted powdered sugar and let cool at least 15 minutes. Serve warm or cool.

Keep it simple and keep it seasonal! 
Betty Kaiser’s Cook’s Corner is dedicated to sharing a variety of recipes 
that are delicious, family oriented and easy to prepare.


Fourth of July Pie


7/3/13 Cook’s Corner
Betty Kaiser

The Fourth of July brings out the decorator in me! It’s time to hang the flag and everything red, white and blue to go with dinner. Patriotic holidays are easy because I’ve got that red, white and blue thing going all year. I even collect flags! You, however, may be into it like I am. So here are some decorating suggestions.

Of course, you should invest in a nice 3 ft. X 5 ft. flag to hang near the front of the house. Hang it prominently so it can be seen. It will really set the tone for the day. Your favorite red flowers planted around the house also help the color scheme. Pot some red, white and blue varieties in containers near your other favorite cut flowers.

Then check your holiday inventory. Search your cupboards for anything colorful. If you have a set of blue drinking glasses or collect blue bottles you’ve got the foundation for your 4th of July theme. Fill them with red roses carnations, peonies or flags and arrange them on a red or white runner on your serving table. Add some white serving dishes and Voila! you’re decorated.

Outside, you’ve already got your flag up. Look in the garage for old lanterns and buckets (for silverware, napkins, etc.) that can be spiffed up (i.e. painted or covered in paper) in red, silver or blue and put them out on the deck. Decorate a rustic wreath with small flags. And if you don’t have any of the above, run down to the Dollar Store and see what bright, easy and affordable décor they offer.

This is also a great time of the year for the food to be decorative. Fortunately, this is one holiday meal that many of us serve on colorful paper plates. Even a hamburger and potato salad look patriotic! Currently, local cherries and blueberries are ripe and delicious. So today we’ll look at how to put together a brightly colored and tasty pie.

I make more combination fruit pies that I do single. For example, if I’m making an apple pie, I usually throw in a few blueberries. If I’m making a rhubarb pie, I add strawberries. You get the idea. In my kitchen, variety is the spice of life. And quite frankly, I don’t use a recipe for either of the above. So today, while I was trying to find my actual recipe for a cherry and blueberry pie, I came upon another recipe that has an added twist—it combines sour and sweet cherries with the blueberries.

The recipe also calls for a lattice crust. But some people have trouble not only making pie crust but adding the lattice topping. (I have no trouble making pie crust. Yeast breads are my nemesis!)  I think it is one of the easiest and most attractive pie crusts you can serve. Here are a few Betty K. amended tips for lattice topping your pie from my favorite 1950s Betty Crocker Cook Book.

First, make your favorite two-crust pie recipe. For some of you that will mean a Pillsbury crust from the market! If you do, they will make a skimpy crust. i.e. you won’t have enough. Here’s your options: Make an 8-inch pie and roll out the crusts ever so slightly OR buy two packages, use three single shells and freeze one of the crusts.

Line pie pan with 1 crust or half of pastry. Trim, leaving a one-inch overhang. Roll rest of pastry and cut into 1/2” strips. Moisten edge of bottom pastry with water. Lay half of pastry strips across filling one-inch apart.

Remaining strips: Weave first cross strip through center (over and under middle pastry strip). Add another cross strip, first folding back every other strip going the other way. Continue weaving until lattice is complete. Fold lower crust over pastry strips. Press firmly around edge to seal strips to the rim. Flute edge. There, wasn’t that simple?

The following recipe is for a 9-inch pie pan. Personally, I like a generous filling, I think that you can easily add another cup of fruit. Or, you can double the whole thing and make a cobbler! And if worse comes to worse and you don’t have time to make a pie, serve vanilla ice cream topped with fresh strawberries. That and strawberry shortcakes topped with whipped cream are win-win desserts. Enjoy!


FOURTH of JULY PIE

Filling:
1 cup fresh, canned or frozen sour cherries, pitted
2 cups fresh sweet cherries, pitted
1 cup fresh blueberries
1-2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon lemon zest

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400° F.

Wash, drain and combine fruit, lemon juice, zest and sugar; stir in cornstarch and let stand while rolling out crust. Pour filling into bottom crust and piece by piece, arrange the lattice pattern over top. Brush lattice with beaten egg white and sprinkle with sugar.

Place pie on a baking pan (i.e. cookie sheet) and bake on top rack of oven 20 min. Check and see if crust is browning too rapidly. If so, tent edge of crust with foil (or a commercial shield) and bake an additional 20-30 min. Lattice will be golden. Remove to a cooling rack and cool to room temperature. Liquid will set for serving.

Decorate with tiny American flags. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.


Keep it simple and keep it seasonal!
Betty Kaiser’s Cook’s Corner is dedicated to sharing a variety of recipes 
that are delicious, family oriented and easy to prepare.