Fall food: Cranberry oatmeal bars

Fall has finally found its way to North Carolina and I'm baking accordingly. I see some pumpkin- and apple-based foods in my future.

My first fall treat: oatmeal cranberry bars. They contain--wait for it--both oatmeal and cranberry, as you may have guessed, and they've got a subtle orange flavor, too, thanks to a little zest and fresh juice.

This is a recipe from Cooking Light, which means it's not as bad for you as, say, caramel hot fudge peanut sundaes, but I've found that Cooking Light keeps the calorie counts down by recommending tiny portions. For instance, recipe is made in an 11x7-inch pan and is supposed to make 24 servings. You'd better just give me four right now.

Oatmeal Cranberry Bars

Crust:

• 4.5 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1 cup)
• 1 cup quick-cooking oats
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 6 tablespoons butter, melted
• 3 tablespoons orange juice
• Cooking spray

Filling:

• 1 1/3 cups dried cranberries (about 6 ounces)
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon grated orange rind
• 1 large egg white, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 325°. To prepare crust, spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour and next 5 ingredients (through cinnamon) in a medium bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Drizzle butter and juice over flour mixture, stirring until moistened (mixture will be crumbly). Reserve 1/2 cup oat mixture. Press remaining oat mixture into the bottom of an 11 x 7–inch baking dish coated with cooking spray.

To prepare filling, combine cranberries, sour cream, granulated sugar, and remaining ingredients in a medium bowl, stirring well. Spread cranberry mixture over prepared crust; sprinkle reserved oat mixture evenly over filling. Bake at 325° for 40 minutes or until edges are golden. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack.

The food: Oatmeal Cranberry Bars
The verdict: Wilford Brimley says you should eat them

Stretching Summer: Strawberry Tart

It might be fall, but I'm still getting summer recipes out of my system. Including this swell strawberry tart, adapted from Gourmet Magazine. (Yes, I know, Gourmet has been out of print for a year. I'm a recipe hoarder.)

If you've got a few summer strawberries left in your neck of the woods, I suggest you put them to work in this gem, which also features a creamy mascarpone cheese layer.

Strawberry Mascarpone Tart

For tart shell

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
• Rounded 1/4 tsp salt
• 7 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons cold water

For filling

• 1 1/2 lb strawberries (about 1 1/2 qt), trimmed and halved lengthwise
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 lb mascarpone (about 2 cups)
• 1/4 cup confectioners sugar
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
• 3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Pulse together in a food processor the flour, sugar, salt and butter until the mixture looks like coarse meal. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolk, vanilla, lemon juice and water, then drizzle over the flour mixture and pulse.

With floured hands, knead the dough a few times, then shape into a 5-inch disk. Place it in the center of a 10-inch tart pan. Cover with plastic wrap and push the dough to evenly cover bottom and side of pan. Prick with a fork all over and place in the freezer for about 10 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line tart shell with foil and fill with rice or pie weights. Bake until the side is set, about 20 minutes (the edge will be pale golden). Remove foil and rice and continue to bake until shell is deep golden all over, about 20 minutes more. Cool in pan, about 45 minutes.

While the tart shell bakes and cools, mix the strawberries and sugar and let stand about 30 minutes. Strain the berry juice into a small sauce pan and cook until thickened and reduced. Allow to cool.

Whisk together mascarpone, confectioners sugar, lemon juice, zest, vanilla, and a pinch of salt until stiff.

When tart shell is cool, spread mascarpone mixture evenly in cooled tart shell, then top with strawberries. Drizzle with strawberry glaze.




Okay, that's my last summer recipe for a while. I promise next time I'll have some fall-appropriate eats. I'll also have in the near future a kitchen equipment review, with a to-be-determined gadget courtesy of CSN Stores. They've got a wide selection of kitchen essentials, from dining tables to souffle dishes. Needless to say, I'm looking forward to testing out a new toy.

The food: Cheesy strawberry tart
The verdict: Worth postponing fall for

Tango with Mango: Fresh Salsa

This Monday marked the first official day of summer, so I'm celebrating with summer's official food: salsa.

I love salsa like some people love their immediate families. My absolute favorite salsa is Newman's Own mango. Paul Newman knew what he was doing for sure. A few months ago, I wrote to the good people at Newman's Own and informed them that if I wasn't already married to Ben, I would probably propose to their salsa. A customer service representative emailed me back and said she hoped Ben wasn't the jealous type because she was sending me the coupons. Ben managed not to be too threatened.

And while salsa in the jar is good, fresh salsa is better. Here's my version. I went light on the tomato because I didn't want to overwhelm the other fruits, but experiment and see what tickles the old taste buds.

Fresh Mango Salsa

• 1 medium mango, peeled and diced
• 1 to 2 cups fresh pineapple, diced
• 1/2 cup onion, diced
• 4 T. scallions, thinly sliced
• 1 to 2 T. fresh ginger, grated
• 1 to 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 to 3 T. rice vinegar
• 1 T. honey
• 1 c. black beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 tomatoes, chopped

Mix it all together. Give it an hour in the fridge. Procure some chips. And that's it.

The food: Fresh mango salsa
The verdict: Makes Paul proud. Does not make Ben jealous.

What Did You Put in This? The Black-and-White Brownie

When our small group Bible study got together for a cookout earlier this month, I needed some non-fussy desserts.  I ended up making Karly's eclair cake (easy! tasty!) and a batch of black-and-white brownies.  They're basically blondies with melted and cooled white chocolate creamed into the butter and sugar mixture.

It was an interesting idea, but I can't say I've become a fan.  The white chocolate taste was kind of faint -- just enough to make you say, "Huh, what's that?"  But not really in a good way.

If you'd like to experience the "what is going on here?" brownie, you can find the recipe, courtesy of King Arthur Flour, here.