Cooler weather (though really, it has still been summery) makes me want to bake more bread. Most of the time, when I want a multigrain, I go to my standard Dakota bread, but I wanted to see if I could make a decent No Knead, bake in a Dutch Oven style. This didn’t disappoint. I happen to have some King Arthur Artisan Bread Topping, but you can also mix your own with a combo of seeds (sesame, sunflower, poppy, even pumpkin) or mix in some flax or even oatmeal. Turned out really nice for a first attempt. While it does look dense, it is actually lovely and light on the inside.
Nope, we did not just fast forward to Christmas. These are *not* Christmas Cookies, though I guess they could be. They are “summer flavored” (with lemon and lingonberries) and while that does look like *snow*, it’s just powdered sugar. It is, after all, still a little too early for Christmas (tell that to the shops though!). At any rate, summertime Linzers, delicious any time of year.
So all of my “more unique” (or “heirloom”) tomatoes happen to ripen at the same time, so I found myself with an overload of tomatoes today. Combine that with a zucchini from the last time I was at my parents and a whole lot of basil, I had half a meal right there. Add some onions (shallots), garlic and cod fillets, and there is a meal and then some. While you could just eat it without anything else, or with some crusty bread, I decided to make some pasta. And there we go.
Here’s another idea for a picnic, potluck, biergarten meetup or a quick dinner that will feed — well, I’m guessing this will easily feed 10 people as a snack, maybe 4-5 for dinner. I made a cheater version of this stomboli because I bought the pizza dough at Trader Joes, though it’s not actually difficult to make pizza dough. If you do cheat, this stromboli will be ready in under an hour. Can be eaten hot or at room temperature and can be made a day or two in advance, if needed. Easy-peasy!
Pluots, apriums, apriplums, and plumcots … all these “new fangled” fruits that are hybrids of plums and apricots. Or something like that. I have to say that many of them are yummy just as eating fruit, but even better when baked as they are juicy and tart — which I really like in a pie. The variety that I used here are “Honeybunch Pluots”, which were very much like firm, dark red all the way through plums, but with a bit of a fuzzy exterior like an apricot. I added sugar and cinnamon, and then more sugar on the crust to make it a little crunchy — textural variety! This same pie can be make with any plum or hybrid variety, and if you make one with apricots, lower your sugar level somewhat. Overall, a nice little pie, if I do say so myself!