browned butter berry bars {in the sweet kitchen}

this weekend past

we took a long drive

with no real agenda

except to explore

as we drove north

i began to obsess

a cookbook was given to me about a year ago

called

big sur bakery

while getting lost in its pages

i fell in love with the place

and began imagining each bite

while big sur is coastal

and

 we were on an inland route

a little jot west, wasn't too far off course

{it wasn't like we had anywhere to be}

so

an hour, and ten white knuckles later

we arrived in big sur

unfortunately

the bakery was hosting a wedding

which meant

it was closed

double dip dang-nabbit ugh

instead

we stopped at a half bad restaurant

for nourishment

not enjoyment

planning our return

and

when we got home

promptly made these

which are a variation of the brown butter rhubarb bars

from

the big sur bakery cookbook

using

berries we picked that morning

brown butter berry bars

(adapted from the big sur bakery cookbook)

 jam

2 cups blackberries and mulberries {or berries of your choice}

juice of 1/2 lemon

1 cup sugar

place all ingredients in a heavy bottomed saucepan.  cook on low heat until it begins to bubble and thicken.  watch closely and cook until it is thick and jammy. set aside to cool

crust

1 cup unsalted butter--melted

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1 1/2 cups flour{whole wheat or all-purpose}

whisk together the flour, powdered sugar and salt.  stir in butter.  press into a 9"x 13" pan.  bake in a 375^ oven until it just begins to brown(15-18 minutes).  remove from oven and allow to cool.

brown butter filling

3 large eggs

 1 1/4 cup sugar

1/2 tsp salt

grated zest of 1 lemon

juice of 1/2 lemon

1/2 cup + 2 Tbs unsalted butter

3/4 cup + 2 Tbs flour {whole wheat or all purpose}

1 teaspoon vanilla

place the butter in a saucepan and cook on low heat until it becomes brown and nutty, careful not to burn.  whisk together the eggs, sugar, salt, lemon zest, lemon juice, flour and vanilla.  carefully stir in the browned butter.

to assemble

spread about half of the browned butter mixture on the prepared crust.  dollop about 3/4 of the jam on top.  spread the remaining browned butter filling and then dollop the remaining jam.  bake for about 25 to 30 minutes, until the edges just begin to turn brown.  do not overbake, (allowing the filling to souffle). allow to cool before cutting into bars. 

delicious room temperature or directly from refrigerator.

strawberry crumb cake

strawberries are ripe, ripe, ripe

in my neck of the woods

every farm stand along my tuesday evening route

touts the sweetest and freshest

organic berries

i can't resist

particularly because i make a really great strawberry-rhubarb jam

that disappears faster than anything else in the pantry

i grab loads of the juicy red fruit

whenever i find it

which now

is a lot

being as we spend most days at the ranch now

finding ourselves at days end

counting idle minutes on one hand

it feels less guilty to indulge in a bit of sweet

at day's close

when i have a moment

i bake a cake

like this one

a simple twist on a classic crumb cake

using the sweet ripe fruit of the season

in its crumb

strawberry crumb cake

cake

1 1/4 cup cake flour (sifted, then measured)

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp kosher salt

3/4 cup unsalted butter (room temperature--cut into cubes)

1 large egg

1 large egg yolk

1 tsp vanilla

1/3 cup buttermilk

4 tsp of your favorite strawberry (or strawberry-rhubarb) jam

place the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt in a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment.  quickly give it a few turns to incorporate everything together.  add the butter. *the butter should be softened, but not warm and creamy.  you want it to mix into the flour mixture making more of a clumpy sand consistency, then a creamed.  mix the ingredients until the butter is finely incorporated into the flour mixture.  meanwhile, combine the buttermilk and vanilla.  add the whole egg and the egg yolk to the flour mixture and mix until incorporated.  use a spatula to scrape down the sides and bottom of bowl to ensure there are no dry spots.  with the mixer on low speed, add the buttermilk/vanilla mixture and mix until just incorporated. do not over mix  pour into a 8x8 buttered square cake pan.  strategically plop the 4 tsp of jam (you can add a bit more if you like) in the batter.  run the back of a butter knife through the cake batter to swirl the jam through evenly.  set aside while you prepare the crumble.

crumble

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 tsp kosher salt

2 cups all purpose flour

10 Tbs unsalted butter--fairly cold--cut into 1/2" pieces

1 cup fresh ripe strawberries--cut into 1/4" dice

mix together the sugar, salt and flour by hand in a large bowl.  drop in butter and either work in by hand, or use pastry knives/fork/blender to make fairly large crumble.  tip in the strawberries and work in by hand, using a bit of a firm hand, to get them mixed up well in the flour mixture.  don't squeeze and knead, you do not want to warm the butter, but allow the strawberries to fully incorporate into the crumb.  gently pile on top of the cake. *some of the crumbs will sink into the cake as it bakes, which is why i make SO MUCH CRUMB! 

bake in a 375F oven for about 35-45 minutes.  Check after 30 minutes and keep an eye on it.  the cake is moist, so it can tolerate a bit of over baking, but don't forget to keep an eye on it.  check  by using a toothpick or wooden skewer to see if it is done baking. allow to cool completely before eating

triple berry dessert sauce

we grow strawberries in our garden

and each june

joyfully harvest them

we also grow

raspberries

blackberries

and

boysenberries

only evident

by the bare vines

choking our fences

those sweet berries 

are harvested by

the local fauna

which possess

ripeness gauges

to rival a seasoned gardener

i buy most of our berries

at the local farmer's market

this week

i found gorgeous raspberries

perfectly ripe

and 

brightly colored

at

 four bucks a punnet

here i was

mulling my decision to buy

when

a woman beside me said

"they would make the most delicous coulis"

"do you know what a coulis is?"

i sweetly smiled (which is a bit of a feat)

and said

"yes i do" and "yes they would"

but what i was thinking was

lady

you are either crazy or rich

because 

four dollars a handful is not a bargain

furthermore

 if i planned to whirl these in a blender 

with some sugar

i might as well buy frozen ones

for

 half .the. price.

 at the grocery

this going through my mind

as i handed over my eight dollars

and chose

the ripest berries

in the most full containers

i brought them home

and they sat

then i moved them to the fridge

where they sat

some more

today

i am reminded of that woman at the market

with her clarvoyant premonition

as i 

simmer these over ripe berries

into a sauce

not a coulis

but a sauce

just 

the

same

triple berry dessert sauce

(printable recipe)

1 pint raspberries

1 pint blackberries

1 lb strawberries--hulled and cut in half

juice of 1 lime

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 oz cassis

place all ingredients in a saucepan and simmer on low until the berries are soft and the sugar is melted.  the strawberries may take a bit longer to soften than the raspberries or blackberries. if you find this happening, just turn the burner off and allow the berries to sit in the warm juice for 10 minutes or so, the strawberries will continue to soften from the residual heat.

allow to cool to warm. spoon over ice cream or a slab of shortcake. refrigerate whats left. will keep about 5 days.