Oatmeal Brûlée

"...now and then a giggling trail of mermaids appeared in our wake. We fed them oatmeal."― Tove Jansson, Moominpappa's Memoirs

Oatmeal is simple. Sometimes too simple to give it much notice.

However simple, there is a lot to like about oatmeal. There's the beta-glucan. And the complex carbohydrates and water-soluble fibre. Loads of B vitamins. Our very own FDA has said it is A-Okay for companies selling oatmeal to claim that it may reduce the risk of heart disease when combined with a low-fat diet. Loaded with more calories than most other types of porridge, oatmeal also encourages slow digestion and stabilizes blood-glucose levels.

And it tastes pretty darn good. 

Oh, oatmeal and oats have detractors, certainly.

Samuel Johnson was no fan. In his dictionary definition for oats he wrote: "A grain, which in England is generally given to horses, but in Scotland supports the people."

In response, Lord Elibank retorted, "Yes, and where else will you see such horses and such men?"

Touché, Mr. Murray. Touché.

The simple, underrated, and oft-unappreciated oatmeal can be a bit more gourmet with just a scant bit of effort. It's easy, with just a little nudge, to give it a bit more je ne sais quoi.

And why not?

If you are going to make oatmeal you might as well go fancy. And so here, for your enjoyment and epicurean enlightenment, is the deceptively easy Oatmeal Brûlée. No blowtorch required.

(If you feel so inclined and want to impress, you can certainly call this Flocons D'avoine Brûlée. But keep in mind that's just fancy-speak for Burnt Oat Flakes. Sometimes less is more.)

Oatmeal Brûlée
1½ Cups water

1 Cup milk
1½ Cup oatmeal (either Old Fashioned or quick cooking)

1 large egg
3 Tbs brown sugar
1/2 Cup heavy cream
Fruit for topping (strawberries, raspberries, blueberries)
Powdered sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 350º F. Generously butter four small ramekins.

In a medium sauce pan, bring the water and milk and one tablespoon of the brown sugar to boil. Add the oatmeal and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook oatmeal for approximately five minutes until desired texture is reached.

While the oatmeal is cooking, mix the egg with the remaining two tablespoons of brown sugar and the cream. Beat well with a whisk.

When the oatmeal is cooked, spoon equal amounts into each of the prepared dishes, leaving enough room to add the egg mixture on top of each.

Top off each ramekin with the prepared egg mixture.

Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes. Sprinkle the top of each dish with powdered sugar. Continue to bake for 15 minutes more or until liquid is set and the top is slightly browned. 

Garnish with fruit of your choice and dust with more powdered sugar.

Serve warm.

Bon Appétit.

Cinnamon Roll Apple Pie

"The natural term of an apple-pie is but twelve hours. It reaches its highest state about one hour after it comes from the oven, and just before its natural heat has quite departed. But every hour afterward is a declension. And after it is one day old, it is thence-forward but the ghastly corpse of apple-pie."
~Henry Ward Beecher

We had guests coming over for dinner. The dinner part was easy, pork ribs. Lots of them. Smothered in a spicy sauce. But I also wanted to make a dessert. I have this nostalgic feeling about summer fare and apple pie, even though I don't particularly like apple pie. But I figured the pie would go well with the ribs. So I bought apples. Gorgeous, golden-green apples.

And then the doubt set in.

Should I really make something I don't like?

Maybe not.

I like cinnamon rolls. A lot. One of my favourite desserts. 

I decided I would make cinnamon rolls.

And again, the doubt set in.

Is it lame to make a dessert like cinnamon rolls - a very breakfast-esque pastry - to follow up a hearty meal like ribs?

Maybe.

So what to do..?

The thing I do not like about apple pie, and pies in general, is the crust. I am just not a fan of pie crust. I feel that the best pie crust, as flaky and tender as can be imagined, is still too...something. It is not a something I can readily put my finger on. But I don't enjoy it. I usually end up eating the filling and leaving behind a hollow shell. Like the corpse of a Tauntaun. Yes, I think it is that gross.

I do love cinnamon rolls though. So...why not do the You-Got-Your-Apple-Pie-In-My-Cinnamon-Rolls thing? No reason not to try.

I was uncertain what the outcome would be with this. I'm certain someone somewhere has done this before, but I like my kitchen experiments to be mine and so did not go searching for already-done recipes. I just combined my cinnamon roll recipe and my apple pie recipe and crossed my fingers. I think it turned out fabulous.

Cinnamon Rolls

2 to 2 1/4 cups flour
1 1/8 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 cup milk
1/8 cup sugar
1/8 cup butter
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
3 Tbsp butter, softened
1/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1 tsp ground cinnamon

In a large bowl combine 3/4 cup of the flour and the yeast. Heat the milk, granulated sugar, the 1/8 cup butter and salt just until mixture is warm (about 120º to 130º degrees) and the butter is almost melted, stirring constantly.

Add the milk mixture to the flour mixture. Add the egg. Beat with an electric mixer on low for 30 seconds, scraping the sides of bowl. Beat on high for another 3 minutes. Using a spoon, stir in as much of the remaining flour as you can to make a very soft dough.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead in enough of the remaining flour to make a moderately soft dough (3 to 5 minutes total). Shape the dough into a ball.

Place dough in a lightly greased bowl. Cover and let rise in a warm place until double (about 1 to 1 1/2 hours).

Punch the dough down and shape into a smooth ball. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes.

Roll the dough into a rectangle 12-inches by 8-inches. 

Spread with 3 Tbsp softened butter. Combine the brown sugar and the cinnamon and sprinkle it over the rectangle.

Roll the rectangle up from a short side. Seal the long edge.

Start slicing the dough roll into 1/2-inch pieces. As you cut each slice, place it in the greased pie pan, squashing the roll flat, arranging them first along the edges and then to fill in at the bottom of the pan.

You want to make certain you leave enough of the roll to make a top for the pie as well.

Preheat oven to 425°F.

Apple Filling
1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup flour

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/8 tsp salt

8 cups sliced, cored and peeled tart apples (8 medium)

2 Tbsp butter

In large bowl, mix sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Stir in apples until well mixed.

Spoon into the cinnamon roll-lined pie pan. Cut the butter into small pieces and sprinkle over filling.

Take the remaining cinnamon roll roll and continue slicing it into 1/2-inch thick slices. Squash the slices flat and start forming the crust on top of the apple filling, placing them close together to form a solid shell.

(The pie bird is not necessary, but if you've got one, by all means use it; they are beautiful and will vent steam from the filling lowering the chance of filling boil-over.)

Cover the pie with foil to prevent excessive browning. Bake 40 to 50 minutes or until crust is brown, removing foil for last 15 minutes of baking. 

Serve warm.

And enjoy!

And in case you were curious, the pie was a hit at dinner. The guests loved it.

Gingerbread Waffles

Come sit at my table and share with me
Warm gingerbread cookies and cinnamon tea

There is something spectacularly Christmas-y about gingerbread. From the treacly spice cake of English gingerbread to the crunchy yet delicate Piparkakut of Finnish gingerbread to the Lebkuchen houses of German gingerbread, the smell of ginger and cinnamon and nutmeg and molasses baking together summons up memories of Christmases from childhood. 

Brought to Europe in 992 by an Armenian monk by the name of Gregory of Nicopolis, gingerbread has enjoyed lasting popularity in its many forms throughout Europe and in America and is especially treasured at Christmastime when the weather turns colder.

This is a breakfast version of the beloved treat and has the same heavenly aroma as you bake it. The rich, spicy flavour goes very well with the delicate vanilla of homemade whipped cream.

Vanilla Bean Whipped Cream

2 cups heavy cream
1 vanilla bean
1/4 cup powdered sugar

Place the cream in a medium bowl. Cut the vanilla bean in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. Add the vanilla seeds to the cream and whisk gently to combine. Cover the mixture and refrigerate for one hour.

Beat the cream at medium speed with an electric mixer or use a wire whisk until soft peaks form. Slowly add the sugar and continue to beat just until stiff peaks form. Do not over whip.

Cover and refrigerate until your waffles are ready to be served.

Gingerbread Waffles
3 cups all-purpose flour
4 tsp baking powder
2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
4 large eggs
2/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 16-ounce canned pumpkin puree
1 cup milk
1/2 cup molasses
1/2 cup (1 stick) melted butter

Preheat the waffle iron.

In a large bowl combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt.

In a medium bowl, beat the eggs and brown sugar until fluffy, then beat in the pumpkin, milk, molasses and melted butter.

Stir the wet ingredients into dry ingredients until just moist. Do not over-stir.

Brush the waffle iron with a little melted butter. Add batter according to the waffle iron manufacturer's directions.

My waffle iron takes just under a cup of batter.

Bake until a rich, golden brown and slightly crisp.

Serve immediately, topped with the fresh vanilla whipped cream.

This makes about 8 to 10 large waffles.

If you don't have a waffle iron, no need to miss out on the yumminess. It is easy to convert a waffle batter into a pancake batter. With waffles, you are going for crisp on the outside and light and fluffy on the inside; but with pancakes you want a moist, cake-like texture throughout.

Eliminate the melted butter. Reduce the baking powder to 3 tsp. Once the batter is mixed up, if it seems too thick, add a little bit of extra milk. You don't want the pancakes to be too thick as they will remain uncooked in the middle. Pour 1/3 cup of batter at a time on a medium heat pan or griddle. Flip the pancake when you begin to see plenty of bubbles at the top of the batter.