Tag: Almonds

Orange Currant Bread

This yeasted bread is lightly spiced and not too sweet.

Orange Currant Bread

Ingredients

For the Bread

  • 1 c. half and half, scalded
  • 3 tbs. maple syrup
  • 2 1/4 tsp. (1 package) instant yeast
  • 1 tbs. orange zest
  • 1/4 c. orange juice
  • 1/4 c. salted butter, melted
  • 1 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
  • 1 tbsp.ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp. ground cardamom
  • 1/8 tsp. ground tumeric
  • 3 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
  • 1 c. dried currants
  • 1/2 c. slivered, blanched almonds

For the Egg Wash

  • 1 large egg yolk
  • 1 tbs. half and half
  • 1 tbs. maple syrup
  • pinch of kosher salt
Orange Currant Bread

Stir together the half and half, maple syrup, and yeast. Let sit for ten minutes, or until frothy. Whisk together the egg, orange zest, orange juice, and butter. Add to the yeast mixture and stir to combine.

Add the salt, cinnamon, cardamom, tumeric, and flour. Mix to form dough. Add the currants and almonds. Knead the dough until a smooth, elastic dough forms, about 8-10 minutes.

Cover the dough with greased plastic wrap and let rise for 45-50 minutes.

Orange Currant Bread Dough

Gently punch down the dough, then place into a greased loaf pan. (I used a Rehrücken pan.) Cover with greased plastic wrap and let rise another 45-50 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Whisk together the egg yolk, half and half, maple syrup, and salt. Brush the dough with the egg wash. Bake for 45-50 minutes until golden brown and the bread sounds hollow when tapped.

Orange Currant Bread

Stollen Cookies

These cookies have the flavors of stollen bread. Marzipan is mixed into the dough and is stuffed full of almonds and dried fruit.

Stollen Cookies

Ingredients

  • 1/2 c. salted butter, softened
  • 1 c. granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/4 tsp. almond extract
  • 1/2 c. marzipan
  • 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
  • 2 c. all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 c. almonds, blanched and slivered
  • 1/2 c. dried apricots, diced
  • 1/2 c. dried tart cherries
  • 1/4 c. currants

Yields Approximately 3 Dozen Cookies

Stollen Cookies Dough

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Scrape the bowl, then add the eggs and mix until combined. Add the vanilla extract, almond extract, and marzipan. Beat until the marzipan is fully incorporated into the mixture.

In a bowl, sift together the salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and flour. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients in two additions, scraping after each addition. Add the almonds, apricots, cherries, and currants. Mix until just combined.

Using tablespoon-sized scoops of dough, place onto parchment paper-lined baking sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes until lightly browned on the bottoms of the cookies.

Graham Cracker Toffee Bark

Those recipe is a family favorite that always gets made for the holidays.

Graham Cracker Toffee Bark

Ingredients

  • 14.4 oz. box graham crackers
  • 1/2 c. salted butter
  • 1/2 c. margarine
  • 1/2 c. granulated sugar
  • 1/2 c. dark brown sugar, packed
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 2 c. milk chocolate chips
  • 3/4 c. slivered almonds

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Place graham crackers onto tinfoil-lined baking sheets In a saucepan, melt together the butter, margarine, and sugars. Bring mixture to a boil. Allow to boil for 3 minutes. Remove from heat and add vanilla extract. Pour the mixture over the graham crackers and spread with a spatula to cover all the crackers.

Bake for 5-6 minutes. Remove from the oven, then sprinkle chocolate chips over crackers. After 5 minutes, use a spatula to spread the chocolate over the crackers. Sprinkle with almonds. Chill in fridge until chocolate hardens. Break into pieces to serve.

Peach Crisp+Pecans+Almonds

This features juicy peaches and marzipan mixed into the filling

Peach Crisp+Pecans+Almonds

Ingredients

For the Peach Filling

  • 4 lbs. peaches, peeled and sliced
  • 2 tbs. lemon juice
  • 1/4 c. dark brown sugar, packed
  • 1 tbs. cornstarch
  • 1/4 c. marzipan
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/8 tsp. almond extract

For the Crisp Topping

  • 1/2 c. salted butter, cut into cubes
  • 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 c. dark brown sugar, packed
  • 1/2 c. rolled oats
  • 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
  • 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
  • 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
  • 1/2 c. chopped pecans
  • 1/2 c. chopped almonds
Peach Crisp +Pecans+Almonds

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

In a bowl, toss the peaches with the lemon juice, dark brown sugar, marzipan, vanilla extract, almond extract, and cornstarch. The marizpan will start to dissolve over time. Give it the occasional stir to fully incorporate the marzipan. Set aside for at least 20 minutes.

In a bowl stir together the flour, rolled oats, kosher salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, dark brown sugar, pecans, and almonds. Cut in the butter using a pastry blender or your hands, mixing until everything is well combined. Break the bits of mixture into smaller pieces for topping.

Pour the peach filling into a greased 9×13 baking dish. Spread the crisp topping over the peaches. Bake for 35-40 minutes, until the filling is bubbly and the crisp topping is browned

Cherry Cake +Almond Whipped Cream

This tart cherry cake is paired with an almond paste whipped cream.

Cherry Cake+Almond Whipped Cream

Ingredients

For the Cake

  • 1/2 c. salted butter, softened
  • 1 1/2 c. granulated sugar
  • 4 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1/2 c. smooth almond butter
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/8 tsp. almond extract
  • 1 tsp. kosher salt
  • 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
  • 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
  • 3 c. all-purpose flour
  • 2 c. heavy cream
  • 1 c. frozen tart cherries, defrosted

For the Almond Whipped Cream

  • 2 c. heavy whipping cream
  • 1/4 c. almond paste or marzipan
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/8 tsp. almond extract
  • 1/4 tsp. kosher salt
  • 1/2 c. sliced almonds for topping

Yields Approximately 24 servings

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and beat until mixture is slightly lighter in color and aerated. Scrape the bowl, then add the almond butter, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Mix to combine.

In a bowl, sift together the salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and flour together. In alternating additions, add the flour mixture and the heavy cream, scraping the bowl after each addition. Fold in the tart cherries.

Pour batter into a greased 9×13 pan and bake for 55-60 minutes until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Allow cake to co while making the almond whipped cream.

In a bowl, combine all the ingredients. Gently break up the almond paste with a spatula so it starts to dissolve in the wet ingredients. Whip the ingredients until soft peaks form. Spread whipped cream over the cake and top with the sliced almonds.

Cherry Cake+Almond Whipped Cream

Meyer Lemon Muffins with Almonds+Dried Cherries

These meyer lemon-flavored muffins are filled with slivered almonds and tart dried cherries.

Meyer Lemon Muffins with Almonds+Dried Cherries

Ingredients

  • 1/2 c. salted butter, softened
  • 3/4 c. granulated sugar
  • 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
  • 1 tbs. meyer lemon zest
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1/2 c. sour cream, room temperature
  • 1/3 c. meyer lemon juice
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/8 tsp. almond extract
  • 1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
  • 1 tbs. cornstarch
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/2 c. slivered almonds
  • 1/2 c. tart dried cherries
  • pearl sugar or course sanding sugar for topping
  • cupcake liners

Yields Approximately 1 Dozen Muffins

Meyer Lemon Muffins with Almonds+Dried Cherries

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Cream the butter, sugar, kosher salt, and meyer lemon zest until light and fluffy. Scrape the bowl, then add the eggs and beat until combined and lighter in color. Scrape the bowl. Add the sour cream and mix to combine. Scrape the bowl, then add the meyer lemon juice, vanilla extract, and almond extract.

In a bowl, sift together the all-purpose flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and baking soda. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined. Scrape the bowl, then add the slivered almonds and tart dried cherries and mix until just combined.

In a cupcake-wrapper-lined muffin tin, scoop about two tablespoons of batter into each liner. Sprinkle each muffin with pearl sugar or course sanding sugar. Bake the muffins for 20-24 minutes, until the a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.

Ruby Chocolate+Cherry Madelines

These madelines have ruby chocolate, dried cherries, and almonds mixed into the batter.

Ruby Chocolate+Cherry Madelines

Ingredients

  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1/2 c. light brown sugar, packed
  • 6 tbs. salted butter, melted +1 tbs. butter, melted for greasing pan
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/8 tsp. almond extract
  • 3/4 c. All-Purpose flour
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp. Kosher salt
  • 1/2 c. chopped almonds
  • 1/3 c. tart dried cherries
  • 1/3 c. ruby chocolate chips
  • About 1-2 tbs. granulated sugar for dusting pan

Yields Approximately 12 Madelines

Beat together the eggs and brown sugar until the mixture is fluffy and lighter in color. Add the vanilla and almond extract, and mix to combine. Sift together the all-purpose flour, baking powder, and kosher salt. Add to egg mixture and mix until just combined. Add melted butter and mix to combine. Finally, add the almonds, dried cherries, and ruby chocolate, mixing until just combined. Chill the batter for at least two hours.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Brush the Madelines pan with melted butter and the sprinkle the pan cavaties with granulated sugar and tip out any excess sugar. Spoon about a tablespoon of dough into each of the cavities. Bake 10-13minutes until the Madelines spring back if lightly pressed. Let Madelines cool for a minute before tipping them out so they don’t stick.

Ruby Chocolate+Cherry Madelines

Povlorones

These are a lightly sweet almond cookie that have a hint of cinnamon.

Povlorones

Ingredients

  • 1/2 c. salted butter, softened
  • 1/2 c. granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/8 tsp. almond extract
  • 1 tsp. lemon zest
  • 4 oz. blanched almonds (About 2/3 c.)
  • 2 c. All-Purpose flour
  • 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp. Kosher salt
  • Additional almonds for topping

Yields Approximately 2 1/2 dozen cookies using tablespoon-sized scoops of dough.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

To blanch almonds:

Bring a cup of water to a boil and add the almonds to the water. Let the almonds boil for 60 seconds then remove from heat. Run the almonds under cold water to cool them enough to touch. Gently squeeze the almonds out of their shells and pat the almonds dry.

In a food processor or blender, place the blanched almonds and 2 tbs. of the flour inside and pulse until the almonds are ground finely. Over-processing can turn this into paste, so take it slowly. In a bowl, combine the ground almond mixture with the remaining flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

Cream the butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and beat to combine. Scrape the bowl, then add the vanilla extract, almond extract, and the lemon zest and mix to combine. Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients, scraping the bowl after each addition.

Scoop and lightly flatten the dough in you hand and then place onto parchment paper-lined baking sheets. Place an almond in the center of each cookie.

Bake for 10-12 minutes until the cookies are lightly firm to the touch and lightly browned.