Who Doesn't Love Nutella?

Every Wednesday I go to a class called The Healer's Art. It is a program developed by Dr. Rachel Remen, MD who is a professor of Family and Community Medicine at UCSF School of Medicine. The program is implemented in hundreds of medical schools around the world and really helps to create better and more well-rounded physicians. The group I have been with is great, so I thought I would make a little snack for our session tonight.

I wanted something quick and easy. We had an early morning being "inter-professional" meaning I was up before the sun rose. I must admit, the videos and panel this morning were more interesting that I expected, but nonetheless, it was still a very very early morning. I combed through my brain and tried to come up with something that would be easy to make since I only had the afternoon to prepare it. I couldn't make anything that needed to set, had a long baking time, required lots of ingredients, or had a long assembly time. I settled on pastry cups with a nutella custard and fruit. It seems brilliant. Who doesn't love some buttery, flaky puff pastry filled with creamy nutella topped with fresh ripe fruit? Doesn't that sound amazing? It is. These turned out so cute and really tasty. And they were SO easy to make. These will make you look like a pro-pastry chef.

Fruit and Nutella Cups

• 1 package puff pastry shells/cups (the one I bought came with six medium sized cups. You could easily use the mini ones too)
• 1 small package instant vanilla pudding
• 1 c.cold milk
• 4 Tbsp nutella (more or less to taste)
• Fresh fruit
• Powdered sugar for dusting

Bake the pastry cups according to the package directions. In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the pudding mix, milk and nutella. Allow to chill in the fridge while the puff pastry finishes baking. When the pastry cups are done, allow to cool for 5-10 minutes on a wire rack. Fill each cup with some of the nutella custard and top with fresh fruit. Dust with powdered sugar and serve on a cute dish.

**Special Tip: Want a super easy way to dust powdered sugar? Rather than using a big sifter, I like to use my tea leaf strainer. It is a little scooper to hold your loose tea leaves, but it doubles as the perfect powdered sugar sifter. It is perfect and holds just about a tablespoon of sugar to create a beautiful sprinkle. It's so easy to clean up and you don't waste excess sugar. You can pick these up at any specialty cooking supply store or your favorite tea shop (mine is Seven Cups). Here is mine (with a friend in the background):

Ode To Chef Keller

I must say, the weather in Tucson is absolutely superbly perfect right now. We are expecting sunny days in the mid-70s all week long. Today started with a lazy morning at the dog park, dim sum lunch, an afternoon lounging around the house and tidying up, and this evening I made a delicious butternut squash lasagna and an absolutely fantastic dessert. A friend was in a down mood, so I decided to whip up a pineapple upside-down cake. I've never made one before, but after tasting this one and realizing how incredibly easy it is, there might be one coming out of my kitchen at least once a week! This is a wonderful recipe (not to mention incredibly simple) that uses ingredients almost everyone has in their kitchen. The cake is so light and buttery and not too sweet. It's a beautiful soft, fluffy cake that works perfectly with the topping. The schmear is so gooey and sweet and creates a wonderful marriage with the pineapple. I must admit, I ended up using canned pineapple rings since I hate cutting up fresh pineapple. I'm sure it would taste amazing with fresh fruit, but the canned pineapple still tasted great (I probably wouldn't be able to tell the difference). Also, the recipe calls for a bit of rum. Rum and I are not friends, so we don't have any in the house. Fortunately, I did have some imitation rum extract which worked great (have this on hand for any sort of tropical dessert so you don't have to have a bottle of the captain around). This is not your grandma's pineapple upside-down cake. It doesn't have those little red balls of sugary yuck stuck in between rings of pineapple. The quartered pineapple rings layered in circles are so pretty. This is probably one of the best desserts I have ever made, all thanks to the amazing Chef Keller.

Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

adapted from "Ad Hoc at Home" by Thomas Keller 

Pan Schmear

• 8 tablespoons (1 stick; 4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 1/2 tablespoons honey
• 1/2 teaspoon dark rum (or imitation rum extract)
• 1 cup packed dark brown sugar*
• 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• Kosher salt
• 1 1/2 cans pineapple rings, cut in quarters

Cake 

• 1 1/2 cups cake flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick; 4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon milk

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Combine the butter, honey, rum, brown sugar, and vanilla and beat until smooth and well blended. Spread 1/3 cup of the schmear over the bottom of a greased 9-inch baking pan. Sprinkle lightly with salt. (The remaining schmear can be refrigerated for up to 2 weeks or frozen for up to 1 month; bring to room temperature before using.)
3. Beginning at the perimeter of the pan, make an overlapping ring of pineapple slices with the curved side facing out. Make a second ring inside the first one, overlapping the slices in the opposite direction, working toward the center of the pan. Reserve any extra pineapple for another use.
4. Sift the flour and baking powder together; set aside.
5. Combine the butter and sugar then beat on medium speed for about 3 minutes, until light and creamy, stopping to scrape down the sides as necessary. Mix in the vanilla. Add the eggs one at a time, beating until the first one is incorporated before adding the second and scraping down the sides as necessary. Beat in the milk. Add the flour mixture in 3 batches, beating until just combined.
6. Pour the batter into the pan and spread over the pineapple. Bake for 15 minutes. Rotate the pan for even browning and bake for another 20 to 25 minutes, until a cake tester or wooden skewer inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool the cake in the pan on a cooling rack for 20 to 30 minutes.
7. Run a knife around the edges of the cake, invert onto a serving platter, and serve warm. (Leftover cake can be stored at room temperature for up to 2 days.)

*I hate how dark brown sugar turns rock hard. Here is my easy-peasy way of how to soften it. Place some pebbles of dark brown sugar in a microwave safe bowl and cover with a damp paper towel. Microwave for 30 second increments until it softens up. Voila!

Good Morning!

We had an eventful morning at the college of medicine today. Luckily, I brought some delicious treats for my CBI group so we were able to all mellow down a bit. Yes, my sticky buns saved the day (or so I'd like to think). I think the paper plates were actually used more than my baked goods, we drew a hormone time chart, feedback regulation, and a graafian follicle on them.

These sticky buns are incredibly easy to make and create a product which seems like you spent hours on it. I woke up at 8am this morning and these were ready to go by 9. That's how quick and easy they are. I modified the recipe by Ina a bit. I cut down the butter some (shocking, I know!) and substituted chopped dates for the raisins. I don't really like raisins (except for those cute golden ones), and I had dates on hand, so that's why I threw those in. You could substitute anything you'd like. I'm sure it would taste great with some dried apples or cranberries or with nothing at all. Also, I completely forgot to add cinnamon and they turned out great, but I think they would be even better with cinnamon.  The secret to these little bites of joy are puff pastry. They are absolutely perfect for sticky buns because they are so light, flaky, and buttery. The perfect combo with some sweet sugary glaze, dates, and pecans. Have a package on hand in the freezer for those surprise overnight guests or when you feel like creating something amazing in the morning.

Sticky Buns
adapted from Easy Sticky Buns by Ina Garten

• 1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/3 c. packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 c. chopped pecans
• 1 package (2 sheets) frozen puff pastry, defrosted

For the filling

• 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
• 2/3 c. packed brown sugar
• 3 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 c. chopped dates

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Spray a 12-cup standard muffin tin with non-stick spray and place on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper.

Combine 1 stick of butter with 1/3 c. brown sugar. Place 1 rounded tablespoon of the mixture in each of the 12 muffin cups. Distribute the pecans evenly among the 12 muffin cups on top of the butter and sugar mixture.

Lightly flour a wooden board. Unfold 1 sheet of puff pastry and brush the whole sheet with the melted butter. Leaving a 1-inch border on the puff pastry, sprinkle each sheet with 1/3 c. of the brown sugar, 1 1/2 tsp of the cinnamon, and 1/4 c. of the chopped dates. Starting with the end nearest you, roll the pastry up snugly like a jelly roll around the filling, finished the roll with the seam side down. Slice the roll into 6 equal pieces and place each piece, spiral side up, in 6 of the muffin cups. Repeat with the second sheet of puff pastry to make a total of 12 sticky buns. 

Bake for 25-30 mins, until the sticky buns are golden brown on top and firm to touch. Allow to cool for 5 minutes only then scoop out with a spoon and invert. Scoop up the extra sugary sauce and pecans and spoon on top.