Flashback Friday - Chocolate Linzer Tart

I love this tart.

--Kathy

This post was originally published on March 11, 2007.
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Chocolate Linzer Tart

My friend Amy mentioned making Linzer cookies during her holiday baking, and that reminded me of an old favorite recipe that I haven't made in a while: chocolate linzer tart.

Years ago, I used to have annual chocolate parties which involved myriad chocolate desserts served to an all-female crowd. At first I made everything myself, but then I realized that I could share some of the back-breaking work by having my guests supply favorite chocolate dishes. Despite the many new varieties of fabulous cocoa-laden desserts that arrived each year, it didn't feel right unless I made this tart.

It's been about fifteen years since I first made this, so I have no idea where the recipe came from originally. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Chocolate Linzer Tart
1 1/2 cups ground blanched almonds
1 1/3 cups chocolate Teddy Grahams, pulsed in the food processor until they are fine crumbs
1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
3/4 cups granulated sugar
1/4 t ground cinnamon
2 T cocoa powder
2 sticks unsalted butter, cut into bits
1 whole egg
1 jar Polaner All-Fruit seedless raspberry jam
1/4 cup sliced almonds

Place ground almonds, cookie crumbs, flour, sugar, cinnamon and cocoa into a large bowl and mix well. Distribute the butter over the mixture and add the egg. Work the dough with your fingertips, rubbing in the butter and making a smooth dough. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Lightly butter a 9" tart pan with removable bottom. Pat about 3/4 of the dough into the bottom of the pans, forming a bottom crust.

Spread the jam thickly over the crust but not quite to the edges.

Roll pieces of the remaining dough into strips and arrange on jam in a lattice pattern. Sprinkle on the chopped almonds.

Bake for 35 minutes. Let the pastry cool in the pan before cutting into thin wedges.
Serves 12 - 15



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Munk Pack Oatmeal Fruit Squeeze

Since the Fancy Food Show, we've been getting lots of tasty products to review. One of my favorites is Munk Pack Oatmeal Fruit Squeeze. Part cereal, part smoothie, completely delicious, Munk Pack is a great snack to throw in your bag and take with you to eat at work or on the road.

There are three flavors: raspberry coconut, blueberry acai flax, and apple quinoa cinnamon. My favorite is the raspberry coconut, which definitely tastes of raspberry, but also has banana and apple in it. (All three flavors have apple, the Blueberry Acai Flax has banana, too.) It's hard to describe the texture of the stuff....it's not thick and gloppy like oatmeal, nor is it runny like applesauce, but perhaps somewhere in between. Mostly smooth, with bits of grain. And bits of coconut in the raspberry flavor. It's really quite tasty, and at 100 calories or less, a lot better for you than a candy bar (but, I understand, not chocolate).

Munk Pack products hit all the right buzzwords du jour: gluten-free, non-gmo, kosher, vegan. The products have no added sugar, 3-4g of fiber, and are packed in a BPA-free pouch that lets you squeeze every drop of goodness right into your gullet.

You can purchase Munk Pack Oatmeal Fruit Squeezes at Eddies on Charles Street and on Roland Ave and at Wegman's. Or at Amazon, which of course has everything.

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Muesli

Although my Dad is not a particularly adventurous eater, he is usually willing to try something new if it doesn't involve sour cream, lamb, or sea critters. One day in the 70s, he brought home a box of cereal called Familia. Familia was a muesli, a breakfast or light supper dish comprising fruit, nuts, and raw grains like rolled oats. It was developed around 1900 by Swiss physician Maximilian Bircher-Benner as part of a nutritious diet for his patients.

I was never a fan of hot oatmeal because I hated its gummy quality, but muesli I quite liked. Because Familia was so expensive, we didn't buy it very often. Eventually I started making my own version at home with standard quick rolled oats and whatever dried fruits and nuts that were on hand.

One of my favorite variations involves chopped pecans, dried Montmorency cherries, and fresh raspberries, blueberries, or blackberries. And if there's almond milk in the house, all the better!

Muesli is best when it's left to soak overnight, making a thick porridge-like concoction, but sometimes I eat it right away, when it's still soupy.

Muesli

1/4 cup rolled oats

1 teaspoon wheat germ or flax seed or whatever extra nutritional stuff turns you on

1 tablespoon chopped nuts

1 tablespoon dried fruit (raisins, cherries, cranberries)

1 teaspoon honey, maple syrup, or agave nectar

1/2 cup almond milk

dash of cinnamon, if desired

Combine all ingredients in a lidded container. Refrigerate overnight. Serves 1.

Posted by theminx on Minxeats.com.

Minxeats in Baltimore Magazine

One page from the article, featuring photos
of my empanadas and bruschetta.

I'm excited to announce that Minxeats is in the November issue of Baltimore Magazine, as one of three local bloggers (along with Kit of Mango & Ginger and Dara of Dining Dish) who contributed dishes for a feature on Potluck Dinners.

In the article, which starts on page 226, you can find photos of my Chocolate Linzer Tart, BLT Bruschetta with Bacon Jam, arugula, and cherry tomatoes, and Sweet Potato Empanadas, which are based on a casserole recipe I concocted last Thanksgiving. The tart and bacon jam recipes are linked above, and here's the recipe for my sweet potato empanadas, which I thought were nice and Fall-ish. To make them even more appropriate for the coming season, one could add some chopped cooked turkey meat and perhaps a cranberry-based dipping sauce.

Sweet Potato Empanadas

2 large sweet potatoes

2 tablespoons diced onion*

olive oil

1/4 heavy cream
1 teaspoon chipotle powder
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon chopped scallion
2 slices of bacon, crumbled*
2 packages Goya empanada shells "discos"
1 egg

Scrub sweet potatoes and prick all over with a knife or fork. Place on microwave safe plate and microwave on high for 15 minutes until the potatoes are very soft. Remove from microwave and set aside to cool.

Sauté onion in olive oil until softened.

When potatoes are cool enough to handle, scoop flesh into a bowl. Add cream, chipotle, brown sugar, and cinnamon, stirring well to combine. Stir in scallions, cooked onion, and bacon. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Preheat oven to 350F. Remove discos from packaging. Place a scant tablespoon of sweet potato filling in the center of each. Fold ends over to form a half-moon, and crimp closed with the tines of a fork. Place empanadas on a nonstick cookie sheet.

Beat egg with a teaspoon of water and brush onto tops of pastries.

Bake for 25 minutes, or until golden brown. Makes 20.

* 2 tablespoons of bacon jam may be substituted for the onion and bacon

Chocolate Linzer Tart

My friend Amy mentioned making Linzer cookies during her holiday baking, and that reminded me of an old favorite recipe that I haven't made in a while: chocolate linzer tart.

Years ago, I used to have annual chocolate parties which involved myriad chocolate desserts served to an all-female crowd. At first I made everything myself, but then I realized that I could share some of the back-breaking work by having my guests supply favorite chocolate dishes. Despite the many new varieties of fabulous cocoa-laden desserts that arrived each year, it didn't feel right unless I made this tart.

It's been about fifteen years since I first made this, so I have no idea where the recipe came from originally. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Chocolate Linzer Tart
1 1/2 cups ground blanched almonds
1 1/3 cups chocolate Teddy Grahams, pulsed in the food processor until they are fine crumbs
1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
3/4 cups granulated sugar
1/4 t ground cinnamon
2 T cocoa powder
2 sticks unsalted butter, cut into bits
1 whole egg
1 jar Polaner All-Fruit seedless raspberry jam
1/4 cup sliced almonds

Place ground almonds, cookie crumbs, flour, sugar, cinnamon and cocoa into a large bowl and mix well. Distribute the butter over the mixture and add the egg. Work the dough with your fingertips, rubbing in the butter and making a smooth dough. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Lightly butter a 9" tart pan with removable bottom. Pat about 3/4 of the dough into the bottom of the pans, forming a bottom crust.

Spread the jam thickly over the crust but not quite to the edges.

Roll pieces of the remaining dough into strips and arrange on jam in a lattice pattern. Sprinkle on the chopped almonds.

Bake for 35 minutes. Let the pastry cool in the pan before cutting into thin wedges.
Serves 12 - 15