|
Selected
Recipes
Chilled Summer Melon Soup with Champagne
INGREDIENTS
2
medium cantaloupes
1/2 honeydew
grated zest of 1 orange
1/4 cup honey
1 split of champagne
Garnish: fresh mint
PROCEDURE
1. Skin, seed and rough chop melons. Place in a large bowl.
Add orange zest, honey and champagne.
Chill the fruit and champagne for a few hours to macerate the
flavors.
2. Puree in a blender or food processor.
3. Serve in chilled cups (or hollowed out melon halves!) and
garnish with a mint sprig. Serves four
Smoked Turkey Tea Sandwiches with Arugula
Mayonnaise
INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup
mayonnaise
1/3 cup (packed) coarsely chopped arugula leaves plus 30
whole arugula leaves (about 4 large bunches total)
1 tablespoon minced shallot
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel
12 thin slices firm white sandwich bread, crusts trimmed
10 ounces thinly sliced smoked turkey
PROCEDURE
1. Mix
mayonnaise, chopped arugula, shallot, parsley and lemon peel
in small bowl. Season with salt and pepper.
2.
Place bread
slices on work surface. Spread mayonnaise mixture on each
slice, dividing equally.
3.
Top 6 bread
slices with turkey, dividing equally. Place 5 arugula leaves
atop turkey on each.
4.
Top with
remaining 6 bread slices, mayonnaise side down, pressing to
adhere. Cut each sandwich diagonally into quarters.
Goldenrod
Tea Sandwiches
Recipe courtesy of
"A
Tea
for
All
Seasons"
by
Shelley and Bruce
Richardson
INGREDIENTS
Thinly sliced white bread and whole-wheat bread
For the
Pimento cheese spread:
1/2-pound very sharp
cheddar cheese, grated
1/2-pound processed
American cheese
1/4-cup light mayonnaise
5 tablespoons sweet pickle
juice
2 dashes cayenne pepper
For the Apricot filling:
1-cup dried apricots
2 cups water
1/2-cup sugar
8-ounces cream cheese
dash of salt
PROCEDURE
1. Mix the ingredients for
the pimento cheese spread in a food processor until blended.
Mixture should be slightly lumpy. Refrigerate.
2. Add water to the apricots and cook over medium heat until
softened. Add sugar and continue to cook until some of the
apricots begin to dissolve. Cool.
3. In a food processor, mix
cream cheese, apricots and a dash of salt. Refrigerate.
4. To assemble sandwiches,
take 2 pieces of white bread and spread one with apricot
filling; spread pimento cheese on the other. Place a slice
of whole wheat bread between the two fillings.
5. Trim the crust and slice into 3 rectangle sandwiches.
Yield: 24 Sandwiches
Sunflower Whole Wheat
Scones
Recipe courtesy of
"A
Tea for All Seasons" by Shelley and Bruce Richardson
INGREDIENTS
1-3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon sunflower seeds, roasted
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 egg
1 egg white, beaten
PROCEDURE
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly grease a
circle in the middle of a baking pan.
2. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, cream of
tartar, baking soda and salt. Cut in the butter and mix
until batter resembles coarse crumbs.
3. Add 1/2 cup sunflower seeds and stir.
4. In a small bowl, mix together the buttermilk and egg. Add
this mixture to the flour mix, combining just enough to
moisten the flour.
5. Scrape the dough out onto a floured surface and shape
into a round loaf * about 16" in diameter. Score with a
knife, making 8 triangles. Brush the top area with egg white
and sprinkle remaining sunflower seeds.
6. Place the loaf on the prepared baking sheet and bake for
15 minutes or until top is browned and a toothpick inserted
in center comes out clean.
7. Serve warm with peach preserves and butter.
*Individual round scones can be made from this recipe by
rolling out the dough about 3/4" thick and cutting circles
with a cookie cutter.
Lavender-Lemon
Tea Cake
INGREDIENTS:
3 cups
unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup almonds
1 1/2 cups sugar
Finely grated zest and juice of 2 lemons (1/3 to 1/2 cup
juice)
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
6 eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons dried lavender flowers
PROCEDURE:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and
flour two 8 by 3 3/4 by 2 1/2-inch disposable aluminum loaf
pans.
2. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt onto a
piece of waxed paper. Set aside.
3. In a food processor, grind the almonds with 2 tablespoons
of the sugar. Set aside.
4. Combine the remaining sugar and the lemon zest in a
mixing bowl. With your hands, rub the lemon zest into the
sugar. Add the butter. With a wooden spoon or electric mixer
set on medium-high speed, beat for about 3 minutes, or until
very light and fluffy.
5. Add the eggs one at a time, beating for about 30 seconds
after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl
as necessary. Beat in the lemon juice. Add half of the flour
and beat in on low speed. Add all of the buttermilk, and
then the remaining flour, beating on low speed after each
addition just until the ingredients are blended.
6. Finally, add the ground almonds and lavender flowers,
again mixing just until combined.
Spoon the batter into the prepared pans and smooth the tops
with the back of a spoon.
7. Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, until the top is golden brown
and a toothpick inserted into the center of a loaf comes out
clean. Remove from the oven, let cool in the pans on a rack
for 10 minutes, then turn the cakes out onto the rack to
cool.
8. Glaze with a lemon glaze or dust with powdered sugar and
sprinkle lavender buds on top. May be served with Lemon Curd
if you wish. Makes: two (2) loaf cakes.
Note: Wrapped in plastic or aluminum foil, the cakes will
keep for 2 to 3 days at room temperature and for up to 3
months in the freezer.
Nectarine Darjeeling Sorbet
INGREDIENTS:
3-4 ripe nectarines
1 cup sugar
2 cups brewed Darjeeling tea
Mint sprigs
PROCEDURE:
1. Make a simple syrup by mixing the sugar and tea
together and heat until sugar is dissolved.
2. Peel and chop the nectarines and remove the seeds.
3. Process the nectarines and simple syrup in a blender at high speed.
4. Pour the mixture into a bowl and place in freezer. Stir
twice at 30 minute intervals. Freeze completely. Scoop out
into individual footed glass dishes and garnish with sprigs
of mint. Serves: 6
|