Simply Pearfect!

Sometimes we all get caught up in elaborate recipes designed to impress, but sometimes less is more. For instance, take the classic combination of pears and cheese. Delicious! To make a truly perfect salad, take a ripe juicy pear, a generous sprinkle of good quality blue cheese, a healthy drizzle of balsamic vinaigrette, and a grind of black pepper, and you have an amazing, beautiful, and healthy salad in minutes. It also makes a lovely fruit/cheese course after the main course. I LOVE it!

Pear and Blue Cheese Salad

Serves 4

Ingredients:

4 ripe, juicy pears 

4 ounces blue cheese, crumbled (Roquefort, Stilton, or Gorgonzola)

1 tablespoon good quality balsamic vinegar (preferably from Modena)

2 tablespoons good quality extra virgin olive oil

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Toasted chopped walnuts, optional

Directions:

Cut the pears into quarters and remove the cores. Cut each quarter in half and arrange on individual salad plates. Sprinkle each plate with 1 ounce of the cheese. Mix the oil and vinegar and drizzle evenly over each plate. Season with a generous grind of black pepper and serve. Enjoy!

Czech Please!

The first Czech immigrants arrived in Texas in 1850 seeking land and camaraderie along side the German immigrant populations. In fact, according to the 1920 census of foreign born population, Mexican immigrants comprised the largest percentage at 69.2%, Germans at 8.6%, and Czechs third at 3.6%. Even today, Texas is home to the largest population of Czech descendants in the US. The Czech influence can still be felt today with Czech speaking radio broadcasts, the eternal popularity of polkas and accordions (which spurred the creation of conjunto music in south Texas that crossed into northern Mexico creating the norteno sound), and kolaches! 

Kolaches (ko-lah-chees) are a sweet yeast bread with fillings of poppy seed, apricot, cottage cheese, or prune being the most traditional. However, crafty Czexans have created new sweet flavors like raspberry, blueberry, pineapple, and strawberry, as well as savory versions like jalapeno sausage and cheese, barbecue beef, and even sauerkraut! So what's my favorite flavor? Cream cheese with crumb topping! Yum! This recipe (adapted from Texas Monthly/April 2014 from Sweet on Texas) makes very delicious kolaches! You will need to allow about 3 hours to complete, but it is well worth the effort! So plan a leisurely afternoon in the kitchen and perhaps a little polka!

Cream Cheese Kolaches

Makes about 27

Ingredients:

For the Dough

1 1/2 teaspoons + 1/4 cup sugar

2 teaspoons active dry yeast

1 cup warm water (110-115 degrees F)

1 cup whole milk

1 cup shortening

1 1/2 teaspoons Kosher salt

1 egg yolk, lightly beaten

4 1/4 cup bread flour

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

For the Cream Cheese Filling

8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

1/4 cup sugar

3 tablespoons flour

1 egg yolk

1/2 teaspoon lemon zest

For the Crumb Topping

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, at room temperature

Directions:

For the Dough

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar, yeast, and warm water. Set aside until the yeast starts to bubble, about 5 minutes.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, warm the milk until it just begins to simmer. Stir in the shortening and stir until just melted. Remove from the heat and let cool 5 minutes. Add the salt, egg yolk, and remaining 1/4 cup sugar and whisk well.

Add the milk/egg mixture to the yeast mixture and stir to combine. With the dough hook, on low speed, add one cup at a time of the flour until incorporated. Turn the mixer speed to medium and mix until a soft, moist, glossy dough forms (about the time it begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl).

Cover the bowl with a tea towel and let the dough rise in a warm, draft-free area until doubled in size, about 45 minutes to 1 hour. After the dough has risen, punch it down to remove any air in the dough. 

Lightly flour a work surface. Using a spoon, remove small portions of the dough and drop them onto the flour surface, rolling them into egg-size pieces with the palms of your hands. Place them on a parchment or silpat-lined baking pan in rows about 1" apart, about 16 per pan. Brush the dough balls with the melted butter. Cover with a tea towel and place them back in a warm, draft-free area to rise another 20 minutes.

For the Cream Cheese Filling

Beat sugar and cream cheese until light and fluffy. Mix in the remaining ingredients. Set aside at room temperature.

For the Crumb Topping

Combine the flour, sugar, and butter in a food processor and pulse until crumbly. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Finishing the Kolaches

Make a deep, round impression (I use the back of a tablespoon and swirl it around) in the center of each ball of dough and fill it with a tablespoon of the filling. (Don't press through the bottom of the dough or filling will ooze out!)

Let the kolaches rise again, uncovered, for another 45 minutes to 1 hour. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Sprinkle the kolaches with the desired amount of crumb topping. Bake until lightly browned, 20-30 minutes.

Hatch, Hatch, Hooray!

Hatch chiles have just hit the market! Yippee! These amazing chiles are only available for a short period of time, so you better run out and get some! Every year I load up, roast and freeze them to hopefully last me all year. See Roasting and Freezing Hatch Chiles. I also make Green Chile Sauce, that I freeze in ice cube trays, which I adore with scrambled eggs. The first meal I make is always my amazing Green Chile Cheeseburgers! Delicious! In fact, I'm making them tonight! I can't wait! Other fabulous recipes from my site that make the most of these addictive chiles are Chiles Rellenos, Green Chile Chicken Lasagna with Goat Cheese, and Hatch Chile Macque Choux. I highly recommend any of those!

However, I have a new recipe for you to try this year! How does "Hatch Chile and Cheddar Corn Pudding" sound? Chiles and cheese - my favorite! It's the perfect side dish with grilled or roasted meats. It would also make a fine meal on it's own with a nice green salad. If you like chiles, you'll love this recipe!

Hatch Chile and Cheddar Corn Pudding

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

2 large hatch chiles, roasted, peeled, and chopped (See Techniques for more information on how to roast a chile.) (Can subtitute 1, 4oz can of hatch chiles, if necessary.)

4 cups frozen corn kernels, thawed and drained

1 1/2 teaspoons Kosher salt

3 scallions, thinly sliced

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 cups grated cheddar cheese, preferably freshly grated

5 large eggs, at room temperature

2/3 cup heavy cream

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Puree 3 cups of the corn in a food processor or blender. Transfer to a large bowl, and stir in the remaining 1 cup corn, salt, scallions, chiles, flour, and 1 cup of the cheese. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs and cream until combined. Stir into the corn mixture.

Place butter in a 8" square baking dish (I used a 2 quart souffle dish), and place in oven until butter is melted, about 10 minutes. (Don't let the butter burn!) Pour batter into the hot baking dish and sprinkle the top with the remaining cheese. Place a baking sheet on lower rack to catch any drips, and bake until puffed and bubbling and cheese is golden brown, 45-50 minutes. (I had no issues with any drips.) Let cool 30 minutes before serving.

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart.