Rhubarb Ginger Scones

Since I hardly ever use rhubarb, it feels special to me whenever I do. So when I saw that rhubarb was looking good at the store and it was also my husband's birthday coming up, I thought this would make a nice breakfast treat. I decided to add a little ginger for a very subtle kick and it was just right - a little tart and a little sweet (not too much). I'm sure it would be lovely with tea. Of course I'll never know because I don't really like tea. That's right, I'm the freak who doesn't like tea. (You're questioning my taste in everything now, aren't you?)

RHUBARB-GINGER SCONES

Makes 12-16

3 stalks rhubarb, sliced ¼-inch thick

1/2 cup vanilla sugar

2 1/2 cups flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

2/3 to 3/4 cup heavy cream

2 tablespoons finely chopped crystallized ginger (or more to taste)

1.      Preheat oven to 425º F.

2.      Toss the sliced rhubarb with 3 tablespoons of the sugar.

3.      Sift flour, baking powder and salt together in large bowl or bowl of food processor.

4.      Cut butter into flour mixture by hand (or pulse with food processor) until butter is the size of small peas.

5.      Blend in 1/4 cup of the sugar.

6.      Blend in the ginger and sliced rhubarb. (If using the food processor, just pulse — you want the slices left mostly intact.)

7.      Blend in cream until a soft dough forms. (Note: you may need to add more than 2/3 cup depending on the weather, etc.)

8.      Transfer dough to floured surface and divide in half. To make triangular scones, flatten into 6-inch disks and cut each circle into 6-8 scones. Sprinkle with remaining sugar.

9.      Arrange on ungreased cookie sheet and bake about 20 minutes or until reddish-brown on top.

barely adapted from food52.com (submitted by Midge)

rhubarb

vanilla sugar

To make vanilla sugar, just scrape the seeds from a few
vanilla beans into some sugar (I don't use exact amounts,
maybe 3 beans to 2 cups sugar). Then add the pods too. Cover
and let sit for at least a month (shake every once in a while).

crystallized ginger

rhubarb and vanilla sugar

adding butter to the flour mixture

adding vanilla sugar (the mixing will
separate those little clumps of vanilla seeds)

adding the ginger and rhubarb

pouring in the cream

dough mixed

2 dough circles

cut into triangles

raw

sprinkled with vanilla sugar

rhubarb-ginger scones

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Pumpkin Roulade with Ginger Buttercream

I could blame the lopsided swirl on my uneven oven (it hasn't been level ever since we had the kitchen floor replaced). Or I could pin it on my daughter - who walked up to the cake while it was rolled in the towel and gave it a good squeeze (which was followed by a little talk about never squeezing anything unless you know what it is and you're sure it wants to be squeezed). But regardless, this cake is awesome. I've had pumpkin rolls before, usually with cream cheese filling. And I thought that's how I liked them best. But man am I glad I tried this because the ginger mascarpone filling is (at the risk of quoting Guy Fieri), off the hook. I couldn't help it...it just is.

PUMPKIN ROULADE WITH GINGER BUTTERCREAM

Yield: 8 servings

cake:

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

3 extra-large eggs, at room temperature

1 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup canned pumpkin (not pie filling)

1/4 cup confectioners' sugar, plus extra for dusting

filling:

12 ounces Italian mascarpone cheese

1 1/4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar

2 tablespoons heavy cream

1/4 cup minced dried crystallized ginger (not in syrup)

pinch kosher salt

_____________________________________________________________________

1.      Preheat the oven to 375º F. Grease a 13- x 18- x 1-inch sheet pan. Line the pan with parchment paper and grease and flour the paper.

2.      In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt and stir to combine. Place the eggs and granulated sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium-high speed for 3 minutes, until light yellow and thickened. With the mixer on low, add the pumpkin, then slowly add the flour mixture, mixing just until incorporated. Finish mixing the batter by hand with a rubber spatula. Pour into the prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake the cake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the top springs back when gently touched.

3.      While the cake is baking, lay out a clean, thin cotton dish towel on a flat surface and sift the entire 1/4 cup of confectioners' sugar evenly over it. (This will prevent the cake from sticking to the towel.) As soon as you remove the cake from the oven, loosen it around the edges and invert it squarely onto the prepared towel. Peel away the parchment paper. With a light touch, roll the warm cake and the towel together (don't press!) starting at the short end of the cake. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

4.      Meanwhile, make the filling. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the mascarpone, confectioners' sugar, and cream together for about a minute, until light and fluffy. Stir in the crystallized ginger, and salt.

5.      To assemble, carefully unroll the cake onto a board with the towel underneath. Spread the cake evenly with the filling. Reroll the cake in a spiral using the towel as a guide. Remove the towel and trim the ends to make a neat edge. Dust with confectioners' sugar and serve sliced.

from Ina Garten

flour and spices

eggs and sugar

eggs thickened; adding pumpkin

adding flour mixture

batter mixed

batter spread in pan

baked pumpkin cake

peeling off the parchment

rolling the cake

I was pretty nervous right about now, but it was easy.

cake rolled and wrapped; cooling

I couldn't be too mad at my daughter for
squeezing it. She didn't know what it was.
I probably would have squeezed it too.

mascarpone, cream and sugar

adding chopped crystallized ginger and salt

I highly recommend Reed's
crystallized ginger (my favorite)

ginger "buttercream"

I'm not sure why Ina calls this a
buttercream (clearly there's no butter in it).

cake unrolled; spreading the filling

filling spread

rolling the cake again

cake rolled
 
At this point, I wrapped it in the towel again and
put it in the fridge overnight. I'm sure plastic wrap
would have been fine, but the towel was already
there and I knew it wouldn't stick.

pumpkin roulade with ginger buttercream
(sprinkling with confectioners' sugar)

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Cranberry, Apple and Fresh Ginger Chutney

When I first saw the title of this recipe, I was immediately drawn to the apple and fresh ginger. Then as I scanned down, I noticed some onion and celery snuck in there. I couldn't help but think the author should have led with that. It was sort of like telling a friend about the nasty paper cut that's been bothering you, but not mentioning you're having open heart surgery in the morning. Okay, it's nothing like that, but it's definitely a weird omission. Anyway, I had to make it and see if there was any way this could work. So I did. But I did make back up. Two in fact, because I'm both obsessive and indecisive. Then I had my Thanksgiving guests do a taste test. And the shocker...this cranberry sauce won. And just in case you're wondering, the other ones were good. So it's not like this was the least horrible of the three. I liked it...it tastes kind of like someone accidentally got a little stuffing in your cranberry sauce.

CRANBERRY, APPLE, AND FRESH GINGER CHUTNEY

Makes 8 servings

4 cups fresh cranberries

1 cup raisins

1/2 cup white sugar

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger root

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1 cup water

1/2 cup minced onion

1/2 cup chopped Granny Smith apple

1/2 cup finely chopped celery 

_____________________________________________________________________

1.      Combine the cranberries, raisins, white sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then simmer over low heat until berries start to pop, about 5 minutes.

2.      Add the onion, apple, and celery; continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture begins to thicken, 5 to 10 more minutes. Transfer to a container and cool slightly.

3.      Refrigerate overnight to allow the flavors to blossom.

from allrecipes.com (submitted by foodelicious)

ginger, onion, apple, celery and cranberries

cranberries

cranberries, raisin, sugars, spices and water

mixed

cranberries starting to pop

adding onions, celery and apple

Next time I might cook the onion and celery a little
first to soften them (although my friends remarked
that they kind of liked the texture this way).

mixed

thickened

cranberry, apple and fresh ginger chutney

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Ginger Ice Cream with Honey-Sesame Brittle

As I mentioned in my last post, I recently made an Ethiopian dinner for friends. While I was planning the meal, I realized I couldn't think of any classic Ethiopian desserts to make because there are none. Ethiopians traditionally don't eat dessert. But I knew my table full of robust Americans (I can say that because I was the most robust of them all), would enjoy a little something sweet. So I thought maybe an ice cream using one of the flavors from the meal would be complimentary. It was right on the money. My guests really enjoyed the assertive kick of the ginger with the sweet, crunchy sesame brittle. It's probably not going to win over the kids, but that's why we keep chocolate ice cream in the freezer (yea, that's right, for the kids).

 GINGER ICE CREAM WITH HONEY-SESAME BRITTLE

Yield: 1 quart

Ginger Ice Cream:

3 1/2 oz. unpeeled ginger root, cut into long strips

2 cups whole milk

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon tapioca starch (or cornstarch)

1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

2/3 cups sugar

2 tablespoons honey

Honey-Sesame Brittle:

2 tablespoons honey

3/4 cup sesame seeds

zest of 1/2 orange

1.      Place ginger strips in small saucepan. Add just enough water to cover the ginger and bring to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes and remove from heat. Drain the water.

2.      Mix tapioca starch with 1/4 cup of the heavy cream to make a smooth slurry. Add the salt and mix. Set aside.

3.      Combine ginger, milk, remaining 1 1/4 cups cream, sugar, and honey in 4 qt. saucepan. Bring to a rolling boil at medium high heat and boil for 4 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in tapioca starch slurry.

4.      Return mixture to a boil and cook, stirring until the mixture is slightly thickened, about 1 minute. Remove from heat.

5.      Pour the mixture into a 1-gallon Ziploc bag or 1-quart container and store in fridge for at least 12 hours. If you like a stronger ginger flavor, let it sit longer.

6.      Make the brittle: Preheat oven to 350º F. Line a baking sheet with silicone mat or aluminum foil. Pour honey into a small saucepan and warm, just until liquid. Remove from heat. Add orange zest and stir. Add sesame seeds and mix together until seeds are well coated. Pour mixture into pan and spread to about 1/4 inch thick. Bake for about 20 to 25 minutes, checking after 15 minutes (you want the seeds to turn golden brown). Take care to not over cook or the bottom will be dark (and not taste as good). Let brittle cool. Break into small, pea-sized pieces while ice cream is churning, ready to add to ice cream. (I use about 3/4 cup for the ice cream, but use more or less depending on your preference.)

7.      When ready to churn ice cream, pour the ice cream base through a fine sieve to strain out the ginger. Churn ice cream until thick and creamy. Add in small pieces of the brittle while putting finished ice cream into storage container. Freeze ice cream in the coldest part of your freezer for at least 4 hours.

barely adapted from food52 (by Jef)

ginger knob

sliced ginger in boiling water

ginger, milk, cream, sugar and honey

mixing tapioca starch slurry

whisking in the slurry

cooled ginger custard in a ziploc

Do yourself a favor and steady your ziploc in
a bowl before you start pouring (you just
know I learned that lesson the hard way).

orange zest

honey

heating the honey and orange zest

stirring in the sesame seeds

raw sesame brittle spread out

baked sesame brittle

breaking up the sesame brittle

I made it the day before and
stored it in a ziploc bag in the freezer.

straining the ginger custard the next day

ginger custard before churning

ginger ice cream

stirring in some sesame brittle

ginger ice cream with honey-sesame brittle

on a spoon
(white on white - great idea for a photo)

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