um... where is this year going? tomorrow is MARCH? how? 

this year is flying by and it is about to get crazier. somehow i managed to pick businesses that all get busy at the same time. now, i am not complaining. in fact, it feels amazing to see my calendar start to fill in after a solid year of struggle. but man, i need more hours in the day.

and easier, but equally delicious dishes to fit in when i have a moment. with ease and speed in mind, i've been cooking up some galettes with all the beautiful stone fruit popping up in stores. the beauty of a galette (basically a french, free formed cake) is that it requires few ingredients and is very easy to make. it's relative the pie takes additional time and precision. 

stone fruit galette serves: 8 prep time: 10 minutes bake time: 30-40 minutes total time: 50 minutes ingredients: 1.5 lbs stone fruit (i've used plums and pluots, but you could use your favorite or what you have on hand), sliced 1/2 inch thick. 1/3 cup sugar. 2 tbs corn starch. 1/2 tsp salt. 1 tsp blood orange (or other citrus juice). 1 tsp blood orange zest (or other citrus). 1 pie crust sheet (i used a store bought to save time). 1 egg, whisked. pastry brush. baking sheet. parchment paper. whipped cream or ice cream for serving.

preheat your oven to 425 f. 

in a bowl, combine the stone fruit, sugar, corn starch, salt, zest and juice and stir well to combine.

line a baking sheet with parchment paper and lay out your pie crust on the parchment. 

gently roll or press out your pie crust till it is in a rectangular shape and about 1/8 inch thick. 

pour your stone fruit mixture into the center of the crust and spread it into an even layer leaving an inch or two of space from the fruit to the edges of the crust. 

gently, fold the edges of your pie crust over the fruit working your way around the edge of the gallette until it is all tucked in. 

brush the crust with your whisked egg.

bake for 30-40 minutes until the crust is golden and the fruit is tender. remove from the oven and
place the parchment and gallette on a cooling rack. 

allow to cool a bit and serve warm or at room temp. 

stone fruit galette
serves: 8
prep time: 10 minutes
bake time: 30-40 minutes
total time: 50 minutes
ingredients: 1.5 lbs stone fruit, sliced 1/2 inch thick. 1/3 cup sugar. 2 tbs corn starch. 1/2 tsp salt. 1 tsp blood orange (or other citrus juice). 1 tsp blood orange zest (or other citrus). 1 pie crust sheet (i used a store bought to save time). 1 egg, whisked. pastry brush. baking sheet. parchment paper. whipped cream or ice cream for serving.
reheat your oven to 425 f. in a bowl, combine the stone fruit, sugar, corn starch, salt, zest and juice and stir well to combine. line a baking sheet with parchment paper and lay out your pie crust on the parchment. gently roll or press out your pie crust till it is in a rectangular shape and about 1/8 inch thick. pour your stone fruit mixture into the center of the crust and spread it into an even layer leaving an inch or two of space from the fruit to the edges of the crust. gently, fold the edges of your pie crust over the fruit working your way around the edge of the gallette until it is all tucked in. brush the crust with your whisked egg. bake for 30-40 minutes until the crust is golden and the fruit is tender. remove from the oven and place the parchment and gallette on a cooling rack. allow to cool a bit and serve warm or at room temp. 

while i like to think of myself as cautiously optimistic, i most definitely have a sunny disposition when it comes to life. so i'm sure it won't come to a shock to you that i LOVE valentine's day.

yeah yeah, it's hallmark manufactured holiday designed to sell candy and flowers, blah blah. you could look at it that way. or, you could look at it as a special day to be a little extra grateful for the love in your life. your parents, your kids, your besties, your pets. they all love you. celebrate it!

this morning i celebrated with my sixteen students, zee, the front desk girl who works with me in the mornings on tuesdays and thursdays, and this amazing sponge cake. 

vanilla + citrus sponge cake
serves: 8
prep time: 25 minutes
bake time: 40 minutes
cool time: 10 minutes
total time: 1 hour 15 minutes.
ingredients: 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted. .5 cup all purpose flour. .25 cup cake flour. .75 tsp baking powder. .5 tsp fine salt. 1 tbs honey. 1 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped (or you can sub .5 tsp vanilla extract). 3 large egg yolks. 7 egg whites. 1 cup granulated sugar. 1 blood orange zested and sliced thin. 1 small grapefruit zested and sliced thin. 1 9x4 loaf pan. rubber spatula. mixer or hand blender. bakings pray. 

start by preheating your oven to 375 degrees f. sift together the flours, baking powder and salt and set it aside. if you like, you can take the extra time to cut hearts or other fun shapes with your grapefruit and blood orange slices. it's your loaf. go wild. 

in the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment or with a hand blender, combine the egg yolks and half the sugar. 

blend on high until pale yellow and thick. about 5 minutes.

pour the egg and sugar mixture into medium bowl land set it aside. clean the bowl and whisk. 

add in the egg whites and whip on high until soft peaks form. about 2-4 minutes.

with the mixer on high, pour in the remaining sugar and continue whipping until stiff peaks form. about 3-5 minutes more. you will know they are ready when you can flip your bowl upside down and nothing moves. 

while your eggs are whipping, combine your butter, honey, zest and vanilla beans in a small bowl. mix well. 

then, using your rubber spatula, fold a large scoop of the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture so it becomes light. 

then add the egg yolk mixture into the egg whites and fold it all together. just till it is no longer streaky.

fold in your flour mixture. 

fold in your butter, honey mixture. spray your loaf pan with baking spray.

pour your batter into the loaf pan and bake for 15 minutes, until the to begins to set. 

pull the loaf out, place your grapefruit and blood oranges slices as you like and pop it back in the oven for 20-30 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

the top should be golden brown. 

remove the loaf pan onto a raised cooling rack (you don't want the bottom to steam) and allow it to cool for 10 minutes. remove the sponge from the pan, slice and serve. you can store it in an airtight container for a few days. 

xo, a

vanilla + citrus sponge cake serves: 8 prep time: 25 minutes bake time: 40 minutes
cool time: 10 minutes
total time: 1 hour 15 minutes.
ingredients: 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted. .5 cup all purpose flour. .25 cup cake flour. .75 tsp baking powder. .5 tsp fine salt. 1 tbs honey. 1 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped (or you can sub .5 tsp vanilla extract). 3 large egg yolks. 7 egg whites. 1 cup granulated sugar. 1 blood orange zested and sliced thin. 1 small grapefruit zested and sliced thin. 1 9x4 loaf pan. rubber spatula. mixer or hand blender. baking spray.
start by preheating your oven to 375 degrees f. sift together the flours, baking powder and salt and set it aside. if you like, you can take the extra time to cut hearts or other fun shapes with your grapefruit and blood orange slices. it's your loaf. go wild.
in the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment or with a hand blender, combine the egg yolks and half the sugar.
blend on high until pale yellow and thick. about 5 minutes. pour the egg and sugar mixture into medium bowl land set it aside.
clean the bowl and whisk.
add in the egg whites and whip on high until soft peaks form. about 2-4 minutes.
with the mixer on high, pour in the remaining sugar and continue whipping until stiff peaks form. about 3-5 minutes more. you will know they are ready when you can flip your bowl upside down and nothing moves.
while your eggs are whipping, combine your butter, honey, zest and vanilla beans in a small bowl. mix well.
then, using your rubber spatula, fold a large scoop of the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture so it becomes light.
then add the egg yolk mixture into the egg whites and fold it all together. just till it is no longer streaky. fold in your flour mixture. fold in your butter, honey mixture. spray your loaf pan with baking spray.
pour your batter into the loaf pan and bake for 15 minutes, until the to begins to set. pull the loaf out, place your grapefruit and blood oranges slices as you like and pop it back in the oven for 20-30 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. the top should be golden brown.
remove the loaf pan onto a raised cooling rack (you don't want the bottom to steam) and allow it to cool for 10 minutes. remove the sponge from the pan, slice and serve. you can store it in an airtight container for a few days.