Melissa Clark: Creamy Peach Pie Bars

I knew I was making these bars as soon as I saw their picture pop up on Facebook.  What could be better on a hot summer day than cold cheesecake and peach bars?  Not much, that's for sure.  And they really weren't even that hard to pull together.  They aren't super sweet, instead relying on much of the natural sweetness of the peaches, and while I was definitely a sugar monster as a kid, I appreciate this subtlety.

Note: I always seem to have trouble finding good peaches; they're either hard as a rock or rotten.  So I substituted two 10-ounce bags of frozen organic peach slices, and it worked just fine.

Creamy Peach Pie Bars
From Melissa Clark, as seen at NY Times Cooking

For the crust:

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus more for greasing the pan
1½ cups graham cracker crumbs (cinnamon flavor or regular)
⅓ cup pecans
Pinch of salt

For the filling:

2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
¾ cup heavy cream, at room temperature
½ cup granulated sugar, plus more as needed
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon or lime zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
3 cups sliced peaches, peeled or unpeeled as desired (20 ounces or 3 to 4 peaches)
2 teaspoons fresh lemon or lime juice

Prepare the crust: Heat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x13-inch baking dish, and line with parchment paper so that there is a 2-inch overhang on the two long sides.

In a food processor, pulse graham crackers, pecans, butter, and salt until the mixture feels damp and sandy. Pour into the prepared pan and press down into an even layer. Bake until firm and slightly darker in color, 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer to a rack and reduce the oven temperature to 325°F. You can bake the crust up to 6 hours ahead, or use it while it’s still hot.

Make the filling: Wipe out the food processor, then add cream cheese, cream, and ½ cup sugar, and process until very smooth. Add eggs, lemon zest, vanilla and salt, and process until well combined. Pour the cream cheese mixture onto the crust.

Put the peaches into a medium pot and taste one. If it’s very sweet, add 1 tablespoon sugar. If it’s on the tart side, add 2 tablespoons sugar. Add lemon juice and bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring once or twice, until the sugar dissolves, 2 to 3 minutes. Spoon peaches and their liquid gently over the cream filling.

Bake until set and firm, 40 to 50 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely, then chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before cutting and serving. Bars can be made up to 1 day in advance, and will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for a few days. Serve directly from the fridge.

Makes 24 bars

Allrecipes: Broiled Grouper Parmesan

I don't know about anyone else, but a lot of my grocery decisions are now made based on what is on sale for the week.  And this beautiful slab of fish was definitely on sale.  I didn't want to try and freeze it for later, as fresh fish is always best, so I found this recipe that uses the cheese-mayonnaise topping that works so well with fish.  I had to watch it pretty closely to make sure it didn't burn, but it was a fast supper for a nice piece of fish.

Broiled Grouper Parmesan
From Allrecipes

2 pounds fresh grouper fillets
2 tablespoons lemon juice
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
¼ cup unsalted butter, softened
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 dash hot pepper sauce, such as Tabasco
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Set an oven rack about 6 inches from the heat source and preheat the oven's broiler. Lightly grease a baking pan.

Place grouper fillets on the prepared baking pan; brush with lemon juice. Combine Parmesan cheese, butter, mayonnaise, hot pepper sauce, salt, and pepper in a small bowl; set aside.

Broil fillets in preheated oven until fish flakes easily with a fork, about 4 to 6 minutes; remove the pan from the oven and spread cheese mixture on top of fillets. Return to the broiler for an additional 30 seconds, or until topping is browned and bubbly.

Makes 4 servings

I Am Homesteader: Cheesy Potato Casserole (a.k.a. Funeral Potatoes)

Sometimes you're just in the mood for potatoes.  Even if those potatoes are commonly served at...funerals.  Now, I haven't been to a ton of funerals, and I've never seen these served, but I think they really are a fantastic side dish for a large group.  They're not that hard to make, are really cheesy and delicious, and I have never been angry about a buttery cornflake topping.  I think these would also work at Thanksgiving if you're sick of mashed potatoes.

Cheesy Potato Casserole (a.k.a. Funeral Potatoes)
Adapted from I Am Homesteader blog

¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, divided use

½ medium onion, chopped
2 teaspoons minced garlic
¼ cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon dried mustard
½ cup chicken broth
1 cup whole milk

2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1½ cups sour cream

1 (32-ounce) bag frozen cubed/diced hash browns, thawed
3 cups corn flakes

Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with nonstick spray.

In a large bowl, combine the potatoes, butter, shredded cheese, and sour cream. Mix well and set aside.

In a medium skillet over medium heat, melt ¼ cup (½ stick) butter.  Add onion and cook until translucent, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for one more minute.  Add flour, salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, and dry mustard. Cook another minute.  Slowly add milk, whisking until smooth.  Slowly add chicken broth, whisking until thickened.  Reduce heat to low, then add in another ¼ cup (½ stick) butter, the shredded cheese, and the sour cream.  Continue to stir the mixture until the butter is completely melted and incorporated.  Add the potatoes and mix just to combine.  Pour the sauce and potato mixture into the prepared baking dish.

In a large, microwave-safe bowl, melt the remaining ¼ cup (½ stick) butter.  Add corn flakes and toss to coat, crushing large chips.  Sprinkle the cornflakes mixture on top of the potatoes in the baking dish.

Bake 40 to 50 minutes, or until golden brown and bubbly.  Remove from oven. Let it rest a few minutes before serving.

Makes 12 servings

Cuisine at Home: Pellet Smoked Chicken with Bourbon-Pepper Glaze

Okay, I was originally going to smoke this chicken on my pellet grill, but it's over 105°F here, so that's not happening.  This means that you can absolutely make a pretty good knock-off in your oven, just make sure you add some liquid smoke in with the rub ingredients.  And maybe also with the pepper jelly glaze ingredients if you really want it smoky.  Very easy to throw together for dinner, and the sweet/spicy glaze just works.

Pellet Smoked Chicken with Bourbon-Pepper Glaze
From Cuisine at Home

1 (3½- to 4-pound) whole chicken
¼ cup olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
¾ cup red pepper jelly
3 tablespoons smoked bourbon
1 tablespoon chili garlic sauce

Preheat pellet grill to 275-300°F.

Halve chicken by cutting along both sides of the backbone with kitchen shears; remove and discard backbone. Cut chicken along one side of the breastbone to separate the two halves. Rinse chicken halves; pat dry with paper towels.

Combine oil, lemon juice, rosemary, and garlic.

Rub chicken with oil mixture; season with salt and pepper.

Smoke chicken, skin-side up, covered, until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of thigh and breast, without touching bone, registers 165°F, about 1½ hours, rotating chicken every 20 minutes.

While chicken is smoking, whisk jelly, bourbon, and chili garlic sauce in a saucepan over medium heat until jelly melts, 4 to 5 minutes; reserve ½ cup for serving and ¼ cup for basting.  Baste cooked chicken; smoke 2 to 3 minutes more.

Transfer chicken to a cutting board; let rest 15 minutes before carving and serving with remaining ½ cup glaze.

Makes 6 servings

Bon Appétit: Miso and Maple Pecan-Butter Mochi Cake

I feel like this cake doesn't photograph very well.  I can definitely attest that it was much more delicious than it looks in this picture.  I wasn't sure how the miso was going to work with everything, but it just added a kind of salty umami kick that accentuated the nuts.  Add I absolutely love mochi, so the texture was spot on.  This is a good option for a less sugary Asian dessert.

Note: Be careful to watch the top of the cake - my pecans started to burn before the middle was done.  You might want to put some aluminum foil on top once the pecans are browned to your liking.

Miso and Maple Pecan-Butter Mochi Cake
From Bon Appétit, August 2023 issue

Pecans
Vegetable oil
8 ounces raw pecans, coarsely chopped (about 2 cups)
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
2 teaspoons white or yellow miso

Cake
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, slightly cooled, plus more for pan
2 large eggs
1¼ cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 (13½-ounce) can unsweetened coconut milk, well shaken, heated slightly if fat is solid
2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
1⅔ cups mochiko (sweet rice flour)
1 teaspoon baking powder
Vanilla ice cream, for serving

Place a rack in the middle of the oven; preheat to 350°F. Lightly oil a rimmed baking sheet. Using your hands, toss pecans, maple syrup, sugar, and miso in a medium bowl until well coated. Spread out on prepared baking sheet; bake until fragrant and matte looking, 6 to 8 minutes (nuts won't be fully toasted). Let cool.

Lightly butter a 9-inch diameter cake pan and line bottom with a parchment paper round. Vigorously whisk eggs, sugar, and salt in a large bowl until smooth. Add coconut milk, vanilla bean paste, and melted butter and whisk well. Add mochiko and baking powder; whisk vigorously until combined and batter is smooth and thick. Scrape butter into prepared pan.

Toss pecans to break up any clumps and scatter evenly over batter, going all the way to the edges (it may seem like a lot). Bake cake until sides start to pull away from pan, top is golden brown, and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean (some pecans will sink), 50 to 55 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cake cool in pan 15 minutes. Turn cake out onto rack; peel away parchment and discard. Carefully turn cake right side up and let cool completely (at least 1 hour).

To serve, slice cake and top with scoops of ice cream.

Makes 10 to 12 servings

King Arthur Baking: Farmhouse Buttermilk Cake

What do you do with a big bottle of buttermilk that is rapidly moving towards expiration?  You google for recipes with desperation, that's what.  Luckily King Arthur saved my butt and had this gem of a cake posted.  It seems super simple, but it was so darn delicious, I may have even eaten it for breakfast.  If you've got some buttermilk to use up, you could do much worse.

Note: I used buttermilk in the topping also.

Farmhouse Buttermilk Cake

From King Arthur Baking

Cake
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
2 cups buttermilk, at room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3 cups all-purpose flour

Topping

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 cup packed light brown sugar
¼ cup whole milk
⅛ teaspoon kosher salt
⅔ to 1 cup pecans, diced

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9x13-inch cake pan.

Beat the butter and brown sugar together till smooth.  Add the eggs, beating till smooth.  Stir in the buttermilk and vanilla extract.  Add the baking soda, salt, and flour to the wet ingredients, beating until thoroughly combined.  Pour the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake the cake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the top feels set. The cake will be golden brown and just beginning to pull away from the edges of the pan. Towards the end of the baking time, prepare the topping.

Stir the butter and the sugar together. Add the milk, salt, and pecans. The glaze will be thick but pourable.

Top the baked cake with the topping and gently spread it in an even layer across the entire surface. Return to the oven for another 10 minutes.

Remove the cake from the oven. The topping will look very runny. You can eat the cake hot, with the glaze still gooey; or let the cake sit at room temperature for a few hours, by which time the glaze will have set.

Andy (soundsyum_): Korean Pork Belly Bowl

I don't know about you, but it seems hard to find a good, meaty piece of pork belly.  Most of the slabs I see in the butcher case are 75% fat.  Now, I'm all about some bacon fat, but I definitely don't want to feel like I'm just chewing rubber.  Luckily I was able to find a piece with a better meat to fat ratio, which meant it immediately needed to be the star of the show.  I saw this little number on Instagram and knew it needed to be in my mouth.  A super fast and tasty dinner.

Korean Pork Belly Bowl

Adapted from Andy (soundsyum_) on Instagram

1 pound pork belly, sliced thickly and then cut into 2-inch squares
6 cloves garlic, minced
4 tablespoons honey
4 tablespoons gochujang
2 tablespoon soy sauce
2 tablespoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons peanut oil
Cooked white sushi rice
Furikake

Mix together the garlic, honey, gochujang, soy sauce and sesame oil. Put half of the sauce into a bowl with the pork belly, and stir until all pieces of pork belly are coated. Set aside the other half of the sauce to use as a topping, if desired.

Heat a frying pan over medium heat and when hot, add peanut oil. Add pork belly slices, without crowding the pan, and cook until browned lightly on both sides. Don't let it burn! Set aside cooked pieces in a warm place until all pork belly is done.

In a serving bowl, add white rice, then lay pork belly slices over the top. Drizzle with sauce and sprinkle with furikake. You can also make musubi, substituting the pork belly for the usual Spam.

Makes 4 servings

Kitchen Konfidence: Warm Corn Salad with Bacon and Ramps

Moving on to another delicious ramp recipe - figured I'd throw them in with some other beautiful produce coming out of the summer fields.  The first beautiful corn and some multi-color cherry tomatoes.  The whole thing was so bright and fresh.  I would definitely make this again next season.

Warm Corn Salad with Bacon and Ramps
From Kitchen Konfidence blog

4 thick-cut slices bacon, chopped
4 ears corn, husks and silks removed
4 ramps, root ends trimmed, white and green parts separated
Kosher salt
¾ cup halved cherry tomatoes
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
Freshly ground black pepper

Fresh lime juice, optional

Add bacon to a large pan and cook over medium heat until just crispy, about 12 to 15 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer bacon to a paper towel-lined plate. While the bacon is cooking, cut the corn off the cob into a large bowl. Also, slice the white part of the ramps and chop up the greens; you should have a scant ½ cup chopped greens.

Drain off all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the pan. Return pan to medium-high heat, then add the corn, the white bulb part of the sliced ramps, and a few pinches of salt. Cook, stirring every 2 minutes, until the corn starts to turn golden brown (about 8 minutes total). Try not to move the corn around too much; let it cook undisturbed for 2 minutes, then stir.

Take the pan off the heat, then stir in chopped green leafy part of the ramps, tomatoes, reserved bacon, and chopped parsley. Season to taste with salt and pepper and sprinkle with lime juice, if desired. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Makes 4 servings

Bon Appétit: Ramp and Buttermilk Biscuits with Cracked Coriander

This posting shouldn't be a surprise, since I grab a bag full of ramps every time I see them pop up in the late spring/early summer.  They only show up for maybe one week, but I probably buy most of the stock.  And every year I try something new.  This time I wanted to make something southern-ish with my precious bag of goodies, and these biscuits did not disappoint.  I froze the extras just so I could continue to savor them over the next couple of weeks.

Note: I had to use about double the coriander (1 teaspoon) to get enough to even see it on the tops of the biscuits.

Ramp and Buttermilk Biscuits with Cracked Coriander
From Bon Appétit

¾ cup chilled buttermilk
¾ cup thinly sliced trimmed ramps (bulbs, stems, and green tops)
1½ cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder
¾ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
6 tablespoons (¾ stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces

1 large egg, beaten to blend (for glaze)
½ teaspoon coriander seeds, cracked

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Mix buttermilk and ramps in small bowl. Mix flour, baking powder, salt, and pepper in processor. Add chilled butter to processor; using on/off turns, cut in butter until fine meal forms. Transfer flour mixture to medium bowl. Add buttermilk mixture; stir until dough forms.

Turn dough out onto lightly floured work surface and press out to 7-inch round, about ½-inch thick. Using 2-inch-diameter biscuit cutter dipped in flour, cut out rounds. Gather dough scraps; press out to ½-inch thickness and cut out additional rounds. Transfer dough rounds to baking sheet. Brush biscuit tops with some of egg glaze. Sprinkle with cracked coriander seeds. Bake biscuits until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Cool on rack. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature.

Makes about 12 biscuits

Old Fashioned Carrot Cake

First of all, I can't believe I haven't posted this recipe yet; shame on me!  Second, I have no clue where this recipe came from, but it has been in my mom's recipe cards since I can remember.  I have done research to try and track down its origins (Wesson oil ad? some old cookbook?), but unfortunately I have come up empty-handed.  Regardless, this cake is fantastic, and I've been happily eating it my entire life.  Nothing fancy, no raisins or pineapple or coconut, just carrots and spices with a cream cheese frosting.

Note: You can use walnuts instead of pecans, but seeing as this is the South, it's always pecans in my kitchen.

Old Fashioned Carrot Cake

1 cup canola oil
2 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 cups finely grated carrots
Cream Cheese Frosting
1½ cups chopped pecans

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease well two 9-inch round cake pans.

Beat together the oil, sugar, salt, eggs, and spices. Mix the flour with the baking soda, and stir in. Add the carrots, and mix until just blended. Pour into the prepared pans.

Bake the cakes for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, or with a few moist crumbs clinging to it. Remove the layers from the pans after about 15 minutes, and place them on a rack to cool. Allow the cakes to cool completely before frosting.

Mix chopped pecans into Cream Cheese Frosting, frost the top of one layer, top with the second layer, and frost the top and sides of the cake.

Makes 16 servings

Cream Cheese Frosting

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 (1-pound) box powdered sugar (about 3½ cups)
Milk or cream to adjust consistency of frosting, if necessary

Beat the butter and cream cheese together until smooth. Add the salt and vanilla. Beat in the sugar. Add a teaspoon of milk or cream if the frosting is too stiff to spread; add additional sugar if it's too thin.