Orzo you thought

Bowl Dust was gone forever. Orzo you thought. But with a spontaneous spurt of culinary energy, here it is again. Held back as I was by a surprising bout of happiness (!) combined with summer (stovetop + AC do not mix), and a move to a rather minuscule studio "kitchen," all things requiring slicing and stirring came to a halt. But never fear: fall—as in fall face-first onto your bed each night in anticipation of the brutal, gloomy months ahead—fast approacheth. Cooking, then, will soon be back in season.

For now, and for all those living in fewer than 300 square feet, or who are simply lacking in counter space and/or the wherewithal to wash heaps of dishes, here's a simple warm orzo salad that's so confoundedly velvety and rich you won't mind eating it day after day, for the rest of the week, until you've used up every ounce of the produce you purchased on Sunday (as they say, waste not, wallow less). Living in grimy, tiny Brooklyn apartments certainly isn't glamorous, but here—at least you can eat something delicious. 

Easy Tomato Basil Orzo

• 1 tbsp olive oil 
• 1 cup uncooked orzo 
• ½ tsp onion powder 
• 1 ¼ cup chicken or vegetable broth 
• 2 medium heirloom tomatoes, cut into small wedges
• 12 fresh basil leaves, chopped 
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Heat oil over medium in a 2-quart saucepan. Add orzo and onion powder, stir, and cook for one minute. Add broth and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 10-12 minutes, or just until all of the liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat.

Toss tomatoes and basil into the orzo. Stir in the balsamic vinegar and pepper and serve while still warm. This is also great one day later after said orzo has been exposed to several hours of refrigeration. 

Orange is the new blackberry

I'd like to say that the sun is the sole reason for my hiatus. That's mostly true, although laziness, exhaustion, and vacation have also been factors in my inability to bake things.

But I'm back for another season — literally. Summer has essentially settled in and despite higher levels of vitamin D, my outlook isn't really any less grim. Though, I'm also avoiding the purchase of an air conditioner at all costs, so turning on the oven isn't really an option...

We'll see how this plays out. 

Blackberry + Orange Tart 

For the shell: 

• 1 stick butter, softened 
• 1/3 cup brown sugar 
• 1/4 tsp vanilla 
• 1 pinch salt 
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup rye flour
• 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup rolled oats 
• 1/4 cup chopped pecans

For the filling: 

• 3 cups fresh blackberries, rinsed
• 2 tbsp cornstarch
• grated zest of 1 small orange
• 2 tbsp fresh orange juice 
• 2 tbsp brown sugar 

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter, sugar, salt, cinnamon, and vanilla. Stir in the flours (note: you can also use all-purpose flour in place of the others to simplify the recipe, I just happened to have these on hand), along with the oats and nuts until well combined. Press mixture into a 9-inch tart pan and place in the freezer for 20 minutes. 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In your mixing bowl, combine the mixed berries, cornstarch, sugar, zest, and juice and mix well, bruising the berries slightly in the process. Set mixture aside. 

Remove tart shell from the freezer and press a piece of tinfoil firmly into the bottom of the shell. Bake for 7 minutes, remove the tinfoil, and return to the oven for another 8 minutes. Allow the shell to cool, pressing the bottom (which will have bubbled up) back into the pan. 

Once the shell has cooled slightly, place it on top of a baking sheet. Pour the berry mixture into the shell, spread the berries evenly, and bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes. Allow it to cool completely, then serve with vanilla ice cream (optional: garnish with curled orange peel). 

Bitter about butter

Butter makes everything better. Too bad it's killing us all, particularly those of us who are lactose intolerant. Ahem. I recall an article that our eleventh-grade Spanish teacher had us read about a study about olive oil vs. butter. Countries that cooked primarily with the former were healthier, overall, or had longer lifespans, or something. 

But the thing is, butter tastes good. For instance, I previously posted about a dairy-free, gluten-free banana bread, but while delicious and earthy with its corn-flour grit, it couldn't hold a candle to this...

Brown Butter Banana Bread 

• 3-4 overripe bananas
• 1/3 cup salted butter
• 1 egg 
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup light brown sugar 
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 pinch salt 
• 1 tsp cinnamon 
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1 pinch ground cloves
• 1 1/2 cups flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees with rack in the middle. Grease a 9x5 loaf pan.

Brown butter over medium-high heat in a saucepan until amber in color and effusing the best nutty aroma of all. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl, mash the bananas. Pour in the browned butter and mix. Add the egg and vanilla and mix well, then add the sugar. Sprinkle the baking soda and salt over the mixture and stir in. Sprinkle in the spices and after combining, add the flour. Stir until just combined. Pour into greased loaf pan and bake for 50 minutes to an hour, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow to cool completely before removing from pan.

Imaginary pie

While in a whiskey cocktail haze this weekend, a friend attempted to convince another that "strappleberries," a hybrid between an apple and a strawberry, actually exist. He reminisced about the strappleberry pies of his youth, waxing poetic about their tart-yet-sweet filling paired with a cinnamon crust — a nice touch, I thought. 

On Sunday, his bleary ramblings came drifting back to me, and I decided to make his silly notion into a pastry reality. Behold, the "Strappleberry Pie." Max, this asymmetrical-lattice-topped pie is for you, pal.

Strawberry + Apple Pie w/ Cinnamon Crust

For the crust:

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 2 sticks unsalted butter, cold & cubed
• 1 cup water, very cold

For the filling:

• 2 large Johnny Red apples, peeled and diced
• 1 lb. fresh strawberries, sliced
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 tbsp flour
• 1 tbsp cornstarch 
• 1 tbsp chia seeds (optional)
• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 egg, beaten

Start by making the dough for the crust. In a large bowl, mix flour, 1 tbsp sugar, and salt with a fork. Using a pastry blender or two forks, cut the pieces of butter into the flour mixture until crumbly, with pieces the size of small peas. Add a 1/2 cup of the cold water and blend until the mixture starts to come together. If necessary, add more water a little at a time until the dough comes together into a ball. Divide in half, and shape each piece into a disc before wrapping in plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 1 hour. 

Meanwhile, wash and slice the fruit and combine with the remaining ingredients. Set aside. 

When it's time to roll out the crust, preheat the oven to 425 degrees and cover your work surface and rolling pin (or wine bottle) with flour. Unwrap the first disc and pat out slightly (it should be cold, and not super flexible). Start rolling out your crust and form a large circle. Fold the circle in half, then in half again and transfer to your pie plate. Unfold. Roll out the second crust in the same fashion, and slice the circle into strips for your lattice top. 

Pour the filling into the bottom crust, then form your lattice on top. Place pie plate on top of a rimmed baking sheet, to catch the juices. Brush with beaten egg and sprinkle with sugar before placing on the middle oven rack. 

Bake pie for 25 minutes until the top is golden, then reduce the temperature to 375 and bake for 30-40 minutes more, until juices are bubbling and apples are tender when pierced with a fork. 

Allow the pie to cool completely and rest for four hours or overnight before serving.