Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Tuesdays With Dorie….MY choice!

 

I have been trying to write this post for over two weeks.  Seriously, two weeks.  And I had hoped to have something clever, something inspiring, but alas….my writer’s block continues.  I was hoping to get my mojo back once Jason got back from Iraq.  Having him home on vacation this past month has sent me into a bit of a tizzie….my routine was pretty much turned upside down.  Not that I am complaining (well, maybe a little), we are SUPER happy to have him home.  It has been nice to have someone to cook for, and to bake for….especially breakfast treats on the weekend, which brings me to this week’s Tuesday With Dorie goody….Devilish Shortcakes! 

I was perusing the TWD website the other month looking for my name to see when I would be making my choice and noticed that my name was NOT on the list.  I tweeted Mrs. Laurie lickity split and she quickly rectified the situation and let me know that my turn would be in November!  WHOO HOO….then came the challenge of choosing the right recipe, a daunting task.  And after choosing a couple of recipes that had already been done (before my time, and coming up the next week – duh) I chose the amazing, chocolatey goodness of the DEVILISH SHORTCAKES!

These shortcakes are fantastic.  They are light and airy, and have JUST the right amount of chocolate in them….enough to call it a dessert….but not too much that you can’t indulge and have them for breakfast – which is what we did.  I whipped up some cream, defrosted some mixed berries….and voila…breakfast.  All three of my “boys” were delighted.  They were quite the treat.

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Thank you Dorie for providing me with a recipe that I can use as a weekend indulgence!

Devilish Shortcakes, from Baking; From My House to Yours  by Dorie Greenspan

For the Biscuits:

1 1/3 cups Whole Milk

1 1/2 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract

1 Large Egg

3 1/3 cups All-Purpose Flour

2/3 cups Cocoa

2 tablespoons Baking Powder

1/2 tsp Baking Soda

1/2 tsp Salt

1/2 cup Sugar

1 1/2 Sticks (12 tablespoons) Cold Unsalted Butter, cut into small pieces

Directions:

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone mat.

To Make the Biscuits:

Whisk the milk, vanilla and egg together.

Sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and sugar into a large bowl.  Drop in the butter and, using your fingers, toss to coat the pieces of butter with flour.  Quickly, working with your fingertips (Dorie’s favorite method), or a pastry blender, cut and rub the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture is pebbly.  You’ll have pea-size pieces, pieces the size of oatmeal flakes, and pieces in between – and that’s just right.

Pour the milk mixture over the dry ingredients and toss and gently turn the ingredients with a fork until you’ve got a very soft dough.  When the dough comes together, you’ll probably still have dry ingredients at the bottom of the bowl – just use a spatula or your hands to mix and knead the dough until it’s evenly blended. Don’t overdo it; it’s better to have a few dry spots than an overworked dough. Even with all the flour mixed in, the dough will be soft and sticky.

Spoon out about 1/3 cup of dough for each shortcake onto the baking sheet, leaving about 3 inches of space between the mounds. Pat each mound down until it is between 3/4 and 1 inch high. (The shortcakes can be made to this point and frozen on the baking sheet, then wrapped airtight and kept in the freezer for up to 2 months. Bake without defrosting – just add at least 5 more minutes to the oven time.)

Bake for 15 – 18 minutes, rotating the sheet from front to back at the midway point, until the shortcakes are puffed and give just a bit when prodded.  Pull the sheet from the oven and transfer the shortcakes to a cooling rack.

Then you can do with them what you please….we chose to cut them open and fill them with mixed berries and LOTS of whipped cream….see?  like this:

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They are light, airy and oh so delicious.  Plain and simple.  We ate them later in the day plain, with large glasses of milk.  Thumbs up from the WHOLE family.

I hope you all enjoyed making them.  Everyone needs to check out all the others on the Tuesdays with Dorie Blogroll

Thank you all for your patience.  I will be doing my best to get back my blogging mojo….and have fun things starting in the new year.  2011 is going to be MY year.  I can feel it.  Do you have anything planned for 2011?  Tell me…maybe we can inspire each other.

18 comments:

Nancy/n.o.e said...

The shortcakes were a fun treat around my place, too. Good pick, Tania. I know how easy it is to get out of the blogging habit, but I hope you get back in the swing!

Lisa said...

Shortcake is such a simple dessert but you've really made it into something special. I love that it's chocolate.

Unknown said...

These look really delish Tania. Love your photos too :) You're making my mouth water.

chocolatechic said...

Beautiful shortcakes.

I didn't bake along with you this week, but in the summer, I'll absolutely be making this.

Jodie said...

Thanks for the great pick! I love this recipe!

Unknown said...

Your shortcakes look wonderful Tania! Thanks for hosting - these were a fun treat for my guy too :)

Valerie Gamine said...

Your shortcakes look so good, I'll definitely have to make these sometime soon!

steph- whisk/spoon said...

thanks for an unusual pick! breakfast shortcakes--that's a good idea!

Cakelaw said...

Your shortcakes look devine with all of those juicy berries. Thanks for hosting us this week.

PheMom said...

Didn't get to make these yet (hubs had his tonsils out day after Thanksgiving - ugh!) but I wanted to stop by and tell you I love that you chose them. :) I can't wait to try them out - yours are gorgeous lady! I think of you all often and hope you are doing well. Hugs!

Elin Chia said...

I saw this on Piggy's blog and I have to come by to see yours...gosh it is mouth-watering and yours look great too. Thanks for sharing the recipe here :)

Have a nice day,
Cheers,
Elin

Jules Someone said...

Yours looks just delicious! Thanks for picking such a yummy treat!

Leslie said...

This was the perfect pick for a busy week. I'm glad your hubs is home and you're settling back in to blogging!

Stephanie said...

I messed this recipe up. Ugh! Your shortcakes have convinced me to make this recipe again.

Katrina said...

Great fun, different pick for this time of year. We had fun with it!

Lisa said...

Just to let you know, I'm holding a giveaway on my blog for Orglamix Organic makeup and you're welcome to come by and enter. http://sweet-as-sugar-cookies.blogspot.com/2010/12/orglamix-organic-mineral-makeup-review.html

Unknown said...

Congrats on having your pick finally!! The shortcakes look delicious :) See you next year <3

Jacque said...

We really enjoyed these. Yours look indulgent and perfect for a special morning. Thanks!