Category: Dessert

No. 566Recipe Card Posted on by — Leave a comment

Demerara Roasted Blueberry No Churn Ice Cream

No Churn Blueberry Ice Cream| Bijouxs Little Jewels

A creamy, smooth & rich sweetie of a no-churn ice cream, just brimming with roasted blueberries-Demerara Roasted Blueberry No Churn Ice Cream, a new Little Jewel from the Membership Collection.

NO CHURN ICE CREAM

How easy is this recipe?  Very easy. it’s a take on no-churn ice cream made special with the addition of Mascarpone cheese. A creamy dream that goes together quickly and is placed in the freezer. Once the ice cream base is the consistency of soft frozen ice cream you add the good stuff. No churn ice cream is new to me, but there are some common threads in most recipes: whipping cream with sweetened condensed milk, then adding in extras. There are organic options for the sweetened condensed milk.

Demerara Roasted Blueberry No Churn Ice Cream | Bijouxs Little Jewels

DEMERARA ROASTED BLUEBERRIES

Here are little jewels that you swirl in the almost-set ice cream. Blueberries are roasted with crunchy Demerara sugar and a dash of balsamic vinegar to create the sweet swirls for the ice cream. These blueberries are not just for this ice cream. I have used these blueberries as a sweet topping with morning yogurt, wonderful along side roasted chicken, or blended into your favorite smoothie. A versatile recipe in the kitchen.

Demerara Roasted Blueberry No Churn Ice Cream | Bijouxs Little Jewels

CREAMY NO-CHURN RECIPE

This a a very soft ice cream. It never really freezes completely solid due to the richness of the ingredients. However, it is truly wonderful, even  if it melts in a minute. Just be ready to roll when you remove it from the freezer. Scoop and serve immediately. The sugar roasted berries add a delightful sweetness. Place the ice cream in the freezer proof container. (I used a silicone loaf pan which gave enough depth to be able to scoop the ice cream). If you happen to have ice cream freezer container, that will work the best. There are lots to choose from here.

Demerara Roasted Blueberry No Churn Ice Cream | Bijouxs Little Jewels

 

Bottom line this is ice cream about as easy and delicious as it gets.

No. 562Recipe Card Posted on by — Leave a comment

Lemon-Glazed Persimmon Bars

Lemon-Glazed Persimmon Bars | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Autumn is here and with the season arrive persimmons, a perennial favorite in the Bijouxs Kitchen here with a new recipe. Lemon-Glazed Persimmon Bars made with a little gleaning, always a little jewel in the kitchen.

GLEANING FRUITS & VEGETABLES

Let’s start with the gleaning of the persimmons. Gleaning is new term to me, defined as the act of collecting leftover crops from farmers’ fields after they have been commercially harvested or on fields where it is not economically profitable to harvest. Turns out I have been gleaning for years.

Lemon-Glazed Persimmon Bars | Bijouxs Little Jewels

 

Along my neighborhood walks I find crops of fruit and vegetables that have fallen to the ground, soon to be food for the critters. I’m careful not to encroach, but lemons, avocados, and persimmons which all thrive in the beach-influenced climate fall off the tree, often sitting for a days are perfect candidates for gleaning. I know my neighbors and they have give me clear reign to collect fallen fruit.

PERSIMMONS IN FALL

Persimmons have a storied place in my blog. Some of my very first posts way back in 2012, with my recipe for Persimmon Pudding, which is the crown jewel recipe for the season. I also have made wonderful cookies which were shared by a dear friend.  I only had a small gleaning of 4 persimmons which I had used in a “punk ikebana” floral workshop with the amazing Ojai artist Louesa Roebuck. I love her works are her books are amazing, so beautiful check them out here.

PERSIMMON BARS

I was seeking a new way to use persimmons, and with only four I had some limits. It is a natural jump from cookies to bars, which is where my mind went, sort of a persimmon bar like a brownie. Seems there are a plethera of persimmon bar recipes, so I had some choices. This recipe is one of the minimalist recipes, close to a cookie but thicker and softer with a crackling lemon glaze.

Now, my four ‘gleaned’ persimmons may appear a bit sad, however, I ripened them in a paper bag along with an apple. Although they had not visually changed they were soft and ripe, perfect to cook with.

This bar recipe is very easy. I used my stand mixer to complete the final mix of the batter, but you can do it by hand. I found that if the baked bars are covered, they are even better the next day, with the crackling lemon glaze.

Lemon-Glazed Persimmon Bars |Bijouxs Little Jewels

Lemon-Glazed Persimmon Bars | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Lemon-Glazed Persimmon Bars | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Lemon-Glazed Persimmon Bars | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Persimmons are fall’s little jewels.

 

 

No. 561Recipe Card Posted on by — Leave a comment

Italian Prune Plum Torte

Italian Prune Plum Torte | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Italian Prune Plums are in season, but savor them now in this classic Italian Prune Plum Torte, the newest Little Jewel from the Bijouxs Collection.

ELUSIVE ITALIAN PRUNE PLUMS

I wait every year for this time, scouring the markets for the elusive Italian prune plums. Then one day on a walk through the market, there they are. Usually they set off to the side in smaller crates alongside the other plums. I grab my shopping bag and purchase a generous amount enough for the torte and a small batch of jam.

Italian Prune Plum Tart | Bijouxs Little JewelsItalian Prune Plum Torte | Bijouxs Little Jewels

TORTE VS TART

So, what is the difference between a torte and a tart? A torte, from the Italian word torta means “cake.” So, a torte has a batter base, more like a cake. A tart like this one is baked on a crust like this one on my classic Plum Tart. Once you look at them both the difference becomes apparent.

ITALIAN PLUM TORTE

This cake or torte is very easy to prepare. This recipe originated from Marion Burros. 40 years ago and The New York Times published Marian Burros’s recipe for this Plum Torte every September from 1983 until 1995. A very iconic recipe.

A simple batter is topped with the plum halves, sprinkled with sugar and baked until the plums are bursting.

Italian Prune Plum Torte | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Italian Prune Plum Torte \ Bijouxs Little Jewels

My grandmother had an extensive garden and grew this variety of plums, as well as a couple others. She mainly ‘put up’ jam and preserves with the stone fruits.

I have been baking this torte since 2012 since I first became aware of Prune Plums for my original Plum Tart post. So moved, I posted my favorite poem from Reflections on a Gift of Watermelon Pickle, “This is Just to Say” by William Carlos Williams. This is just to say…

No. 558Recipe Card Posted on by — Leave a comment

Plum Tart

Plum Tart| Bijouxs Little Jewels

THIS IS JUST TO SAY…Plum Tart is a taste treat recreated from my past, a humble childhood treat originally fashioned from scraps of leftover pastry sprinkled with sugar, baked crisp and topped while still hot from the oven with a spoonful of homemade plum preserves. Close your eyes, take a bite of Plum Tart – a grown up version of little jewel from the kitchen. From the archives my beloved Plum Tart, a true little Jewel.

THIS IS JUST TO SAY
I have eaten
the plums
that were in
the icebox

and which
you were probably
saving
for breakfast

Forgive me
they were delicious
so sweet
and so cold
William Carlos Williams

Plums, the most delicious fruit celebrated in this poem from the familiar favorite childhood book Reflections on a Gift of Watermelon Pickle, were abundant in my Grandmother’s garden – so abundant that jars and jars of plum preserves could be produced without any notice of the many ripe plums I would snatch from the trees, either by climbing on a stool or using a stick to dislodge the luscious fruit for my avail. Bijouxs Plum Tart is a recreation of a taste from the past, simple and humble, yet as delicious as the fruit itself.

The recipe, if I dare call it one, involves a simple slab of pie dough rolled into a large, rough edged circle, topped with cut ripe plums, then folding the edges of the dough in wide pleats over the filled tart with a sprinkle of sugar and baked until golden brown and crisp. But to fully recreate the aforementioned childhood treat, the baked tart is brushed with an ample dose warmed red currant jelly, which replicates the fresh plum preserves that topped the pastry scraps.

Enjoy the summer!

No. 557Recipe Card Posted on by — Leave a comment

Blueberry Lemon Ricotta Cake

Blueberry Lemon Ricotta Cake | Bijouxs Little Jewels

A cake to love-Blueberry Lemon Ricotta Cake, a simple cake for anytime snacking.

LEMONS & BLUEBERRIES

Two of my all-time favorites of the summer season join forces to create a cake that will always be appreciated. Living up in the Central Coast citrus and fruits abound. The lemons go rampent this time of year, so many on the trees it’s hard to use them all. My neighbors supply me with even more lemons that I can use so I freeze the juice in ice cubes tray to brighten up the not-so-sunny winter gloom of days to arrive soon.

Blueberry Lemon Ricotta Cake| Bijouxs Little Jewels

 

RICOTTA CHEESE

The magic of this cake is the whole milk ricotta cheese which adds a dense, creamy texture-the cake will keep for a few days making it a favorite mid-day grab with an espresso.

Blueberry Lemon Ricotta Cake | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Blueberry Lemon Ricotta Cake | Bijouxs Little Jewels

 

BAKING THE CAKE

As I has previosuly reported, my move up the coast has placed me is a new home, with an old wall oven that always burns the edges of everything! I have tried many tactics, nothing left but to pray to replace the oven soon. Your cake will not have  the dark brown crust on the edges, but in case you are destined with an old oven, not to worry the crust does not distract from the tender texture of the cake.

Blueberry Lemon Ricotta Cake | Bijouxs Little Jewels

 

BEAUTIFUL FOOD BY DESIGN

I finally have completed my 4th cookbook Belle du Jour (beauty of the day). It has over 120 pages, lots of new recipes and has been a labor of love. I produce all parts of the book myself (call me crazy) from recipe preparation, photography, and book design, and publication. I offer the book, like my others, in digtial interactive format and print copy, both will be on my website shop just like my other cookbooks.

My next cookbook is already in my mind. That you for you support!

 

 

Still Hungry?