Baking – Crystal Rivera

a polenta pie crust for your next galette

July 25, 2022July 27, 2022by Crystal Rivera1 Comment

Today I wanted a pie with texture. Polenta being the key ingredient here for a crumbly, cookie-like crust. The one other food that comes to mind is when we have use semolina for Syrian muenster-filled sambousaks. There’s that buttery, grainy bite that made me fall in love with them to begin with. In fact, I’m going to try that next for a pie dough, and maybe I’ll even top it with muenster!? Make it like a sambousak galette without the time spent on making individual pastries. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind the work during colder months, but ’tis not the season for someone who is doing it solo in a tiny UES kitchen.

I used the juiciest heirloom tomato ever and thought the crust would not handle this well, but it actually stood up to the juices far better than an all-flour dough has for me. No leaks, splatters, bubbling over. I didn’t let mom in on the addition of polenta, but she was obsessed with it and said “whatever changes I made, I should continue making pies this way.” As you all know, she’s hella picky and praise is music to my ears coming from her.

I topped this galette with Parmesan and a lot of sliced Korean peppers. They were shockingly mild in heat so any pepper will do if you feel like making something similar. I recommend shishitos which seem to be easier to find these days. I was lucky enough to be gifted a lot of garden goods from a new friend, whose parents are growing a variety of Korean vegetables. But don’t want to use tomatoes? Use whatever’s in season! Stone fruit, berries – this pie crust will taste wonderful with any sweet or savory filling.

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Course Main Course, Side Dish

Servings 1 pie crust

Ingredients

for the pie crust

1 cup AP flour or GF AP flour
1/2 cup polenta
1 tsp sugar optional
1/4 tsp salt if not using salted butter
8 tbsp butter chilled, cubed
1/3 cup iced water plus more if needed
egg beaten, for egg wash

for the filling

1 large heirloom tomato sliced
drizzle of olive oil
couple of pinches of flaky sea salt
1/4 cup grated parmesan optional
peppers sliced, optional

Instructions

for the pie crust

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, polenta, salt and sugar. Gently toss in the cubes of butter til well coated, then quickly break them up into smaller pieces, recoating them with the flour as you go. If you have warm hands, a pastry cutter or food processor might wise.
Create a well in the center for your iced water, and pour it in. Very gently knead ingredients into each other til a dough forms. Do not over do it. If it appears dry, hydrate it about 1 tbsp at a time. Pat dough into a disc and wrap it with plastic wrap. Allow it to chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes before using. It can stay there up to 3 days.

for baking

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Roll out the pie crust on a lightly floured surface and transfer to a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. It does not need to be perfectly round, as this is the joy of making galettes.
Place slices of tomato in the center, drizzle with good quality olive oil, and add salt to taste. Fold in the edges and brush them with egg wash. Bake for about 40-45 minutes. During the last 10, add your cheese and peppers, if using.

Caramelized Cabbage, Comfort Food, Seasonal

Caramelized Cabbage & Herbed Farmer Cheese Galette

September 22, 2021September 21, 2021by Crystal RiveraLeave a Comment

I’d say it’s time to create a category here strictly dedicated to caramelized cabbage because it’s all the rage on this blog. This time around, I’m pairing the sweet caramelized bits with a layer of rich herbed farmer cheese that I got from Lifeway, a cheese my mom and I are loving due to it’s probiotic benefits, which is then held all snug by a nice golden pie crust. I give you full permission to use store-bought pie dough for this or any of my galette recipes. I do offer a recipe for one below, just in case.

caramelized cabbage galette with herbed farmers cheese

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Prep Time 10

Cook Time 1 30

Course Appetizer, Main Course, Side Dish

Servings 1 galette

Ingredients

for the pie crust

1 1/4 cup All Purpose flour
salt
1 stick unsalted butter frozen
1/4 cup iced water

for the cabbage

1/3 cup vegetable oil
6 cup green cabbage chopped
1 cup sweet onion diced
1 tbsp Hungarian sweet paprika or any kind you like
1/2 tbsp kosher salt

for the herbed farmers cheese

3/4 cup farmers cheese
1 tbsp fresh thyme chopped
pinch of salt

Instructions

for the crust

In a medium bowl, whisk together your flour and salt.
Using the larger holes of a box grater, grate your stick of frozen butter and gently toss it into the flour until every bit of it is coated in flour.
Add in water and mix with your hands just enough til a dough forms. Wrap it in plastic wrap and leave it in the fridge as you work on the cabbage.

for the farmers cheese and cabbage

In a small bowl, mix the farmers cheese, thyme, and salt together. Return it to the fridge til ready to use.
In a deep sauté pan, heat the vegetable oil on low and add in the cabbage, onion, paprika and salt. Stir occasionally, every 10 minutes or so, for about 50 minutes. You'll want the cabbage and onion to brown up but not too much because it will continue to caramelize in the oven.
Allow it to come to room temp before using. To quicken the process just pop it in the fridge for about 10 minutes.

for the galette

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Roll out your pie crust on parchment paper for an easy transfer to a large sheet pan. It doesn't have to be rolled out perfectly, that is the ultimate joy of the galette.
Add a layer of farmers cheese at the center of the crust, leaving an inch of the edges naked.
Add a layer of the caramelized cabbage. Fold in the edges of the crust and brush them with egg wash. Feel free to press thyme onto the crust. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until golden brown all over!

Keyword Baked, Cabbage, caramelized, Farmers Cheese, Galette, Pie, Thyme

For other Lifeway recipes by me, head on over to my Instagram. A couple of weeks ago I turned my grilled spicy corn chowder into a DIP using their organic whole milk kefir and you are going to love it! Corn season is still going strong.

Bread, Fusion Cuisine

sofrito pirozkhi

June 30, 2021September 22, 2021by Crystal RiveraLeave a Comment

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My favorite Russian pirozhki couldn’t be more simple. I take a whole onion, couple of garlic cloves, a handful of dill, and blend them together til they reach a puréed consistency. I simmer ground beef with a bay leaf, the onion and dill mixture, generously adding salt and pepper. That’s it. That’s the flavor of them I recall from my grandmother’s kitchen. It didn’t take long for me to make the sofrito connection, which has the onion and garlic, but also sweet peppers, cilantro instead of dill, and spices. Grab the recipe for mom’s small batch sofrito and make these fluffy baked buns.

I was thinking about making a full-on pastelillo filling, but decided on the Russian’s less-is-more seasoned beef. But by all means, add some chopped pimiento-stuffed olives, small diced potato, raisins, more tomato paste or sauce, etc! You’ll just need less meat than this recipe calls for.

You may also fry them in batches, which is the only way I enjoyed them at Brighton Beach many moons ago, with the most fantastic oil dripping onto my bathing suit. Pero, nothing wrong with baked, either. Less standing by the pan, less oil-burns, less oil.

Note: this dough can be used for many other fillings, both savory and sweet. It can also be doubled (no need to double the yeast, just everything else). I’ll have dessert options posted soon. And meatless options!

Sofrito Pirozkhi

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Prep Time 15

Cook Time 30

Proofing Time 2 30

Total Time 3 15

Course Appetizer, Bread, Main Course

Cuisine Caribbean, Fusion, Puerto Rican, Russian

Servings 10 buns

Ingredients

milk and yeast dough

1/4 oz active dry yeast
1/2 cup whole milk lukewarm
1/2 tbsp sugar or honey
4 tbsp unsalted butter softened
2 egg yolks room temp
1 tsp fine sea salt
2 cups AP flour sifted
1 egg lightly whisked, for egg wash

ground beef filling

2 tbsp olive oil
1 lb ground beef
1/4 cup sofrito see recipe link in intro
3 tbsp tomato paste
1/2 tbsp sazón organic, not Goya
1 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp cumin
3/4 cup water
salt & pepper to taste
1/4 cup cilantro chopped

Instructions

ground beef filling

In a deep pan, heat olive oil. Add your beef, breaking it up with a slotted spoon while adding in your spices.
Move some of the browned beef aside so that a little of the oil pools to the corner. Directly into the oil, stir in the tomato paste and allow it to caramelize for a minute or so before mixing it into the beef. This will enhance the flavor.
Stir in sofrito. After a few minutes, pour in the water and let it simmer til most of the liquid evaporates, occasionally giving it a stir.
Add in the cilantro and let the meat cool to room temp before using.

yeasted dough

In a small bowl, sift your flour along with the salt and set aside.
In a large bowl, gently whisk together your milk, sugar, dry yeast and let stand for 10-15 minutes, or until very active.
Whisk in the butter and egg yolks, then slowly add in your flour, kneading as you go along for about 10 minutes. The dough is so supple and soft within a couple of minutes but I like to continue kneading for good measure.
Cover the bowl and allow it to double in size, about 2 hours.
Divide the dough into 2 oz pieces, about 8-10. Roll each into a disc and add 2-2 1/2 tbsp of the filling. Pinch the discs closed. On a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, place the buns seam-side down next to each other, giving them a tiny bit of room between each other.
Cover them with a clean tea towel and let them prove for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Brush the beaten egg on each and bake for 20-30 minutes, til they've browned.

Keyword Baked, Dough, Sazon, Snack, Sofrito

Uncategorized

za’atar caramelized cabbage and onion buns

April 17, 2020April 17, 2020by Crystal RiveraLeave a Comment

Mom really enjoyed the Hungarian caramelized cabbage buns (káposztás pogácsa) that I made from Jewish Soul Food the other day, but as she was eating them, I heard a lot of “but” this and “but” that. You know what buts make me do? Spend a few hours in the kitchen recipe developing for the sake of not hearing that word again. I mean, you gotta do what you gotta do when you’re in quaritine together.

These are inspired by those same, beautiful buns, without mom’s but. (I’m laughing every time I say that). I scaled down the recipe since there’s only 3 of us, and I used more parmesan, and some different spices I tend to use often. Oh! And za’atar. These are freaking addicting. Almost like a biscuit, if you’re into that. I omitted the caraway seeds from the original recipe, only because mom doesn’t like them.

Serves 10, or up to 14 if you use leftover and roll them out again.

You will need:

for the cabbage and onion

-260g (a heaping 1.5 cup) green cabbage, very finely chopped
-tsp salt, to sweat out the cabbage
-100g (2/3 cup) onion, finely chopped
-1 tbs butter
-1 tbs olive oil
-1 tsp sugar
-1/2 tbs sweet paprika
-few pinches of allspice and pepper

for the dough

-375g (3 cups) all purpose flour
-45g finely grated parmesan (1/2 cup)
-1/2 tbs active dry yeast dissolved in 1/4 c warm water plus 1 tsp sugar or other sweetener, wait 5-10 min, til it gets nice and bubbly.
-30 ml milk (about 2 tbs)
-1 egg yolk
-1/3 c yogurt or sour cream, a little over 5 tbs
-1 stick salted butter, 8 tbs, softened (if using unsalted, add salt)
-1 heaping tsp garlic powder
-1 heaping tsp Aleppo pepper or other, add more if you like heat
-egg yolk for the glaze
-za’atar, to sprinkle on top

1. In a mesh colander that is sitting on top of a bowl or cup, add your cabbage and toss them with salt. Let it sit for about 45 minutes. The salt will draw moisture out from the cabbage. Use a paper towel to dry out the rest once 45 minutes are up.

2. Under low heat, slowly cook down the cabbage and onion in butter and olive oil. Add sugar, sweet paprika, and allspice. Saute every 5 minutes. They should caramelize within 30 minutes. Set aside.

3. Using a stand mixer with a dough hook attached, mix together your flour, parmesan, spices in it’s bowl. Then, on slow speed, gradually add the yeast, milk, yolk and knead for about 5 minutes. Add butter and knead for another 5 minutes. Then add in the cabbage, kneading another minute or so. When all seems combined, I like to flour a surface and knead by hand before letting it rest for 2 hours in an oiled bowl. Keep it at room temp, covered.

4. Roll out the dough on a floured surface. It should be 1 inches thick. Use a cup, cookie cutter, or biscuit cutter and arrange rounds on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Brush egg yolk on each. Use a sharp knife or toothpick to make a pattern on the glaze. I did thunderbolts for mine, but the traditional way is a crisscross pattern. Sprinkle za’atar on each and let rise for 30 minutes.

5. Preheat oven to 400. When ready, bake for about 20-25 minutes. Check in on them. They should be golden.

Serve same day, or freeze them.

When I made them the first time, I served them with a tomato and cucumber salad, and braised, spiced chickpeas.

Last night my mom had a few with her spaghetti and meatballs. And today I’m doing brunch with a lox grazing board. Pics to come later this afternoon, if you have Instagram or Facebook! Happy baking.

Food Talk, Tomatoes

Miss-You-Summer Galette with Blood Orange Z’hug

April 18, 2019April 17, 2019by Crystal RiveraLeave a Comment

There’s a farmstand by me that has been showing off tomatoes these last couple of months like they were just-dug-up rubies. It was startling to see such glorious red globes in February, and so many of them, too. Tory and I had just been flipping through Ottolenghi’s Simple, professing our love to the summer tomato on the page. We miss ’em bad and I know you do, too.

But let’s be real. It is simply not tomato season yet. These beauties tasted identical to the beefsteak tomatoes that are sittin’ bland at the grocery store today, and I know they aren’t the sort of farm that grows them indoors. I *just* recently learned about this kind of farm in NJ, and this is what their tomatoes look like on the farmstand today:

I am pretty disappointed in myself for not visiting the Union Square Greenmarket throughout all of 2018. I think I spent that entire year living a very sad lie. I could’ve had beautiful tomatoes in January! February! All year long. But this post isn’t about those tomatoes. It’s about what I’ve been doing all this time with store-bought ones.

The only way I’ve coped with the lack of summer tomatoes is to purchase a sweeter variety and roast them (usually the smaller varieties). This galette got me all teary eye’d. It was the closest thing to summer I’ve had to date.

Top it with your favorite cheese and greens. I used feta and radish microgreens. Even better: serve it with my Blood Orange Z’hug to turn up the green and the heat. (Seriously, do that!) Have it with yolky eggs in the morning. I know I did. Maybe don’t forget the olives.

Miss-You-Summer Galette

– 1 9″ pie dough (homemade or storebought)
– about 1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
– drizzle of good quality olive oil
– sprig of thyme or oregano, leaves only, tender stems are okay
– salt and pepper, to taste
– favorite cheese
– blood orange z’hug (<-click for recipe)
– microgreens (optional)
– olives (optional)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a small bowl, gently toss tomatoes in olive oil, salt, pepper, thyme. Center them cut-side up on your pie dough (which should be on a baking sheet) and fold in the edges. Brush edges with milk or eggwash, and if you want, season them with flaky salt and/or other spices. Bake for about 40 minutes, til some tomatoes are browned and the dough looks golden.

You’ll want to make this even when tomatoes ARE in season. 2 1/2 more months? Or, you know, head on over to your local indoor farm. Or Union Sq Greenmarket if you’re around.