Apple Galette

A very lovely day is behind us.

It was my first day this year at our weekend house. Finally.

The weather is still a bit chilly, and it has rained in the past days, but we got really lucky today. It was sunny and windy, yet comfortable. Initially, we planned to go tomorrow but someone saw a forecast saying it might rain, so we quickly packed up, managing to leave while it is still officially morning.

I was very happy to walk away from my computer for a while. By the time we arrived, most of the family was already there, working hard on the land, cleaning, planting... I settled quickly into a warm kitchen, helped peel some potatoes for lunch, and stepped out for a walk.


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Divan dan je iza mene.

Prvi dan na vikendici ove godine. Napokon.

Vrijeme je još uvijek svježe, zadnjih dana je padala i kiša, ali smo danas baš imali sreće. Bilo je sunčano, čak i vjetrovito, ali jako ugodno. Planirali smo ići sutra, u nedjelju, ali je neko negdje vidio da je za sutra najavljena kiša, pa smo se jutros brže-bolje spremili i uspjeli izaći dok je još uvijek zvanično bilo jutro.

Jedva sam dočekala da pobjegnem od kompjutera, bar nakratko. Kad smo stigli, ostatak rodbine je već vrijedno radio na imanju, čisteći zemlju i sadeći povrće. Ugrijala sam se u toploj kuhinji, pomogla oguliti krompir i izašla u šetnju.

I could feel the spring in the air. The winter was very rough so most of the land was hard and broken. Here and there I could find a colorful flower or an herb peeking out. I greeted it with a smile.

M. was working on cleaning some stray branches off the land. I am so excited about all the planting we are planning to do. The orchard is already planted - new trees of apple, pear, cherry... Next week we will work on the strawberries and some herbs. I went back in and made him a sandwich. Doing something simple like that for him when he is working hard makes me feel all warm on the inside.

After lunch I worked on the galette - a light French country dessert that worked perfectly with the ambiance. All the women were excited to help, and before we knew it, we were enjoying the aroma of cinnamon sprinkled apples.


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Proljeće je definitivno stiglo. Zima je bila sa puno snijega, što se odrazilo na zemlju - tvrda je i izlomljena. Ponegdje sam naišla na šareni cvijet ili biljku, i dočekivala sam ih sa osmijehom. 

M. je čistio zalutalo šiblje sa zemlje na kojoj će se saditi. Zaista se radujem svemu što planiramo da posadimo ovog proljeća. Voćnjak je već gotovo spreman - jabuke, kruške, trešnje... Iduće sedmice sadimo jagode, a ja ću se posvetiti i nekim biljnim začinima. Ušla sam u kuću i napravila mu sendvič. Baš volim da uradim nešto tako pažljivo i jednostavno kad on naporno radi. Znam da ću ga obradovati, a i ja budem sretna.

Nakon ručka sam pripremila galette - lagani francuski seoski desert koji se savršeno uklopio u ambijent. Sve žene u kući su mi rado pomogle, i dok smo trepnuli okom već smo uživali u aromi jabuke posute cimetom.

Apple Galette (makes 2)

Crust:

1 1/4 cup white flour
1/4 cup buckwheat flour
1 1/2 tsp sugar
1/8 tsp salt
140 g cold unsalted butter, cut into little pieces
1/3 cup ice water

Topping:

5 small apples 
1 lemon, juiced
2 tbsp vanilla sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp butter

Combine the flour with sugar, salt and butter and mix until crumbles form. This is easily done in a food processor, but I used a dough hook mixer, and allowed it to mix until butter is blended with the dry ingredients. Now and then I 'helped' a bit by pressing the butter with a fork. Sprinkle the cold water on top and watch the dough come together.

Remove the dough from the mixer bowl. Press it into a flat disc, wrap in foil and refrigerate for an hour (you can bake right away too).

Preheat the oven to 200 C.

Roll the dough on a flowered working surface into a 30 mm circle (cut it out if necessary). Slice the apples and combine them with lemon juice, vanilla sugar and cinnamon. Arrange the apples in the middle of the pastry, leaving about 6 mm border on the sides. Fold the edges to create a galette. Drizzle with honey and bits of butter. Bake for about half an hour on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper and serve warm or cold, with or without whipped heavy cream.


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Galette od jabuke (za dvije galette)

Kora:

1 1/4 čaše bijelog brašna
1/4 čaše heljdinog brašna
1 1/2 kašičice šećera
1/8 kašičice soli
140 g hladnog, neslanog maslaca, u manjim komadićima
1/3 čaše ledene vode

Topping:

5 manjih jabuka
1 limun, iscijeđen
2 kašika vanilin šećera
1 kašičica cimeta
1 kašika meda
1 kašika maslaca

Pomiješajte brašno sa šećerom, solju i maslacom i miksajte dok se ne formiraju mrvice. Procesor za hranu je najpogodniji, a obzirom da ga ja nemam, koristila sam mikser sa nastavkom za tijesto. S vremena na vrijeme ugniječila bih pokoji komadić maslaca viljuškom. Pred kraj lagano pospite hladnu vodu po vrhu i nakon nekoliko sekundi tijesto će početi da se formira.

Rukama oblikujte tijesto u pljosnati disk, zamotajte ga u plastičnu foliju i stavite u frižider na 1 sat (možete ga i odmah peći).

Zagrijte pećnicu na 200 C.

Razvijte tijesto na pobrašnjenoj površini i isijecite krug prečnika 30 mm. Narežite jabuke na tanke listiće i izmiješajte ih sa limunovim sokom, cimetom i šećerom. Aranžirajte jabuke na sredini tijesta, ostavivši oko 6 mm slobodnog tijesta sa svih strana. Savijte ivice prema unutra. Pospite jabuke medom i komadićima maslaca. Pecite oko pola sata na plehu za pečenje prekrivenim pek papirom. Poslužite toplo ili hladno, sa ili bez šlag kreme.

We plan to go next weekend and I am already excited. But now it's off to bed for a well-earned night of sleep.

Happy spring.


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Sa radošću očekujem naredni vikend, ali sad sam spremna za dubok san i zaslužen odmor.

Happy spring.

Carrot cake cupcakes with cream cheese and vanilla frosting

What a lovely recipe I've discovered!

I haven't heard of a carrot cake until I moved to Chicago. Bosnian cooking is sometimes a bit conservative about vegetables in sweets, so I was part-curious part-suspicious. Little did I know that this cake will become one of my favorites.

Google-ing 'carrot cake' returns with countless recipes, but this one lived up to my expectations. Instead of the cake I decided to use the same batter to make cupcakes - it was a practical decision: I was visiting my great-aunt and wanted to bring her some, and it was easier to carry the cupcakes than the cake.


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Za tortu sa mrkvom nisam čula dok nisam odselila u Chicago. Naša bosanska kuhinja (ili možda samo naši bosanski roditelji, muževi...) nekad pokazuje otpor prema receptima za slatko koji u sebi sadrže povrće, sir, ili bilo šta pored šećera i jaja. Kao pravoj Bosanki i meni je bilo sumnjiva 'mrkva u kolaču'. Ali sa svojih 17 godina bila sam dovoljno znatiželjna da je probam. Tad nisam znala da će ovaj sočni kolač postati jedan od mojih omiljenih.

Ako google-ate pojam 'torta od mrkve' dobit ćete dugačak spisak varijacija na temu. Ja sam izdvojila ovaj recept koji je sasvim zadovoljio, možda i prevazišao, moja očekivanja. Umjesto tortu, odlučila sam praviti cupcakes, možda najviše iz praktičnih razloga: išla sam kod stare tetke i htjela sam joj ponijeti nešto slatko, pa su cupcakes bile jednostavnije za nositi od torte.

The cupcakes were perfectly fluffy and perfectly moist. M. helped me by peeling the pineapple (cupcakes are his sweet spot). We had them warm. 

My favorite moment while chewing is when I 'discover' a piece of walnut inside. Breaking it under your teeth releases an aroma that, well, makes me want to go back in the kitchen and make some more!


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Dobila sam negdje oko 24 velike i 24 male cupcakes. Bile su savršeno mekane i savršeno sočne. M. mi je pomogao tako što je ogulio i izrezao ananas (i on je slab na cupcakes). Jeli smo ih tople jer je čitava kuća  mirisala na njih i nismo mogli odoljeti. 

Najdraže mi je kad naiđem na komadić prženog oraha u cupcakeu. Njegova aroma se ne miješa sa aromom ostatka kolača dok se ne zagrize. Njih sam pravila prošli vikend, ali sad kad pišem o tome poželim napraviti još jednu turu.

Carrot cupcakes

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup grated carrots (around two large carrots) - use this conversion table if you want to have more precise measurements

1 cup crushed fresh pineapple

1 cup toasted and roughly chopped walnuts

2 cups flour

1 1/2 cup brown sugar

1 tsp salt

2 tsp baking soda (always fresh!)

3/4 cup oil

1 vanilla bean

2 tsp powder cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp nutmeg

Heat your oven to 180 C. Distribute the walnuts evenly on a baking sheet and toast them for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. There is a thin line between toasting and burning them, so be careful.

In the meantime, combine eggs, oil and vanilla, and whisk until blended. In a different bowl, mix together flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg. Always mix the dry ingredients before adding the wet ones, to distribute all ingredients evenly in the batter. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir lightly until just combined. Add carrot, pineapple and nuts, and mix everything together.

Fill 2/3 full of a baking cup (if making cupcakes), and bake for about 30 minutes at 180 C or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Serve dusted with sugar or with a creamy frosting (recipe below).

Cream cheese and vanilla frosting

Ingredients

280 gr (10 oz) cream cheese 

140 gr (5 oz) mascarpone cheese

2 tbsp powdered sugar

1/2 vanilla bean

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Combine the cream cheese and mascarpone, and add sugar and spices until well-combined. Decorate your cupcakes and enjoy!


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Cupcakes sa mrkvom

Sastojci

1 1/2 čaša rendane mrkve (otprilike dvije veće mrkve) - za mjere u gramima koristite ovu skalu

1 čaša svježeg ananasa (ja sam ga umutila štap mikserom)

1 čaša prženih i grubo nasjeckanih oraha

2 čaše brašna

1 1/2 čaša smeđeg šećera

1 kašičica soli

2 kašičica sode bikarbone (uvijek svježe!)

3/4 čaše ulja

1 vanilin štapić

2 kašičice cimeta

1/2 kašičice rendanog đumbira

1/2 kašičice muškatnog oraha

Ugrijte rernu na 180 C. Raširite orahe na pleh za pečenje i pecite ih oko 10 minuta, uz povremeno mješanje. Vrlo će lako izgoriti (tada postanu gorki i neupotrebljivi) te stoga budite pažljivi.

U međuvremenu, pomiješajte jaja, ulje i vanilu, te ih umutite dok se ne sjedine. U drugoj zdjeli, pomiješajte brašno, šećer, sodu bikarbonu, sol, cimet, đumbir i muškatni orah. Uvijek prvo pomiješajte same suhe sastojke, kako bi se ravnomjerno rasporedili u smjesi. Dodajte suhe sastojke vlažnima i lagano umutite. Dodajte mrkvu, ananas i nasjeckane orahe, i sve pomiješajte.

Napunite mjerice za cupcakes do 2/3 i pecite ih oko 30 minuta na 180 C. Možete provjeriti da li su pečene tako što ćete u sredinu ubaciti suhu čačkalicu - ako ona ostane suha kad je izvučete, cupcakes su spremne. Poslužiti posute šećerom u prahu ili glazurom od krem sira (recept ispod).

Glazura od krem sira i vanile 

Sastojci

280 gr (10 oz) krem sira/vajkrema 

140 gr (5 oz) mascarpone sira

2 kašike šećera u prahu

1/2 vanilin štapića

1/2 kašičice cimeta

Pomiješajte krem sir i mascarpone, i dodajte smjesi šećer, vanilu i cimet. Lagano umutite i ukrasite cupcakes.