Somehow, even though the days are still warm, it feels like the inevitable march toward autumn has begum. I am not complaining as I love autumn; it’s my favorite season by far. With it come late summer and autumn foods. Apple picking has started (!!!) and other stone-fruits are plentiful. Enter dark red, tart and sweet plums. I decided to make some jam to preserve their flavor a little longer, and I think that it turned into one of my best jams in a good long while.
Sometimes when I am in Maine, I can be found in the woods, foraging for things, be it blackberries or mushrooms. I have been foraging for chanterelle mushrooms since I was a young child, so please don’t follow my lead on doing this activity unless you know what you are doing. Then again, making these turnovers is highly recommended. They are delicious with all sorts of mushrooms, including ones that you find at the shops or farmers markets. I made them with the intent to be appetizers, but they’d also be great as lunch, a light dinner, or even a breakfast or brunch item. They are buttery and savory and a little bit bacony — all good things for me!
Who wants breakfast? Recently, I filled my freezer with wild Maine blueberries — it is the season after all — Copeland Hill blueberries from family friends, The Warrens. And because I can’t just let an entire freeze of blueberries just sit there and tempt me, I made these “cinnamon roll” style blueberry swirls? And why “Milleswirlie”? Well, mille is thousand in Italian, and there are lots and lots of swirls — thus lots and lots of blueberries.
Blueberry Milleswirlie = Mille happy taste buds!
(PS: There is a little bit of store-bought blueberry jam in this recipe. It’s actually optional, but if you have ever baked with wild blueberries before, they can remain somewhat runny — in a gloriously delicious kind of way, but nevertheless a bit annoying when trying to roll the rolls. While I did use a corn starch slurry to help with binding, the pectin that is in the jam also helps.)
Turnovers… I’m never quite sure if they are meant as breakfast items (yum), dessert with ice cream (also definitely yum) or just a snack with tea or coffee (certainly a yummy option). These were a last minute afterthought as I had some frozen blueberries and some jarred tart cherries taking up room in the fridge, so I went with cherry blueberry, but really any filling works — raspberry or apple also come to mind. Ready in under an hour (that is if you remember to thaw the puff pastry!). Can be re-frozen for a few months or kept in the fridge and reheated for about a week.
Rainy day catch-up date here in greater Boston. I had company in for the weekend, and made a bunch of things to eat; got around to photographing then, but it took until today for me to write out the recipes and edit the photos. First up, these Raisin Brioche. I know: raisins are controversial, but everyone eating them here loves them. Light and airy and sweet, these are great for breakfast with a bit of European butter.