Bake Like a Beekman is Moving

After much thought, Bake Like a Beekman will be moving to a Facebook only group.  By moving to Facebook, it allows our bakers to post their own photos without having to submit them via email.  We believe this will allow for greater interaction between group members. 

If you're interested in keeping up with our bi-weekly recipe selection, join us on Facebook at
https://www.facebook.com/groups/558084024245499/

We hope to see you there! 

You Chose... You Made!

It's always a pleasure to see what our Beekman Bakers decide to make when we do a readers choice recipe.  Have you found your favorite? 

 

Sue from NJ selected the Strawberry Shortcake with Balsamic Syrup.  "What an amazing dessert to serve to my family after dinner on a beautiful Sunday evening.  I was able to bake and assemble dessert easily after dinner using strawberries I picked earlier in the day at a local farm allowing 'pick your own.'  Another awesome recipe!" 

It's Your Choice

Back by popular request, it's your turn to bake/make your favorite recipe from the Heirloom Dessert cookbook.  Submit your creation for inclusion on the blog and you'll be entered to win an a Beekman 1802 t shirt autographed by Brent and Josh!  Deadline for submission is Saturday, June 14. 
Happy baking/making!

Going Green - Mint Green That Is!

Refreshingly sweet with a color that can't be beat, our Mint Bar selection is having Bake Like A Beekman members seeing green!

 

John from MI

 

John decided to pair his mint bar creation with a grasshopper cocktail.  He couldn't resist!

 

 

Sue from NJ

 

Sue is having a great time baking and making all the recipes from the Heirloom Dessert cookbook.  These mint bars are definitely a hit with her family!

Step Aside Girl Scouts... Mint Bars!!

Mint is starting to pop up in the gardens and inspired the recipe selection this week.  If you thought Thin Mint cookies from the Girl Scouts were addicting.. just wait until you try these!

Baking Like a Madman! John Catches Up

One of our regular contributors fell a bit behind with our baking selections but played catch-up recently and submitted these photos.  There was a lot of 'good eating' at John's house! 

 

Chocolate Éclair Cake

 

Lemon Poppy Seed Pound Cake

 

Olive Oil Cake

 

Pancake Cake

Going Bananas!

Our recipe for this two week time frame was a throwback to childhood:  Banana Pudding with Vanilla Wafers.  I remember my Mom making this family favorite and it was oh, so good!  Let's see what our Beekman Bakers did with this classic:

 

Sue from NJ

 

When Sue submitted her photo, the banana pudding was in the fridge chilling. 

"I can't wait to try this later!  It's in the fridge chilling.  Taste tests on the vanilla wafers indicate it will be a hit!" 

Bernie is Catching Up!

 

Bernie from GA

 

Bernie, a regular contributor to Bake Like a Beekman sent in this photograph of his creations as he took advantage of "Catch up" week.  He's so talented!!

Banana Pudding with Vanilla Wafers

A classic to bring back those childhood memories. Effective this week, we'll be running recipes for TWO WEEKS. I've received some feedback that trying to do a recipe a week was a bit difficult (on the budget, the waistline, as well as on the schedule.)

How creative can YOU get with banana pudding? 

The Pancake is Not Just for Breakfast Anymore!

 

Maria from IL

 

" The pancake cake was a recipe I'd been wanting to try for a while since it was the one pictured on the cover.  It was super easy to make the pancakes, but I was nervous about flipping them.  I managed to get five 8-9" pancakes out of the recipe and assembled the cake the next day.  My kids loved the 6" extra pancake by itself and I think I will use this recipe for regular pancakes from now on!  I think for the filling though, I may use a sweet filling versus the more cheese/yogurt flavored filling, which was good especially with the maple syrup on top, but I think it was a bit too powerful.  Love this dessert though!" 

Cake for Breakfast?

This week, we'll take one look at the book cover for our recipe inspiration.  How will you shake up this recipe and make it your own?

Playing Catch Up

We all have busy lives and sometimes you 'want' to bake, but your schedule just allow you the time to do so.  This is your make-up week.  Select one of the recipes you missed (or if you haven't missed a week... make your favorite again) to make and share! 

Creamy Chocolatey Goodness!

 

Maria from IL

 

"This was quite a challenging recipe for me to do mostly because I had to make the vanilla pastry cream for the filling.  After two tries,  the first forgetting to put sour cream and whipping cream into it.  I was successful! Instead of making one large 9x13 pan, I separated it into six mini chocolate éclair pies.  It turned out great!  I used graham cracker crumbs instead of whole crackers.  Suffice to say, it will be different next time!  It's a yummy and rich dessert.  I love it!"

 

 

 

Sue from NJ

 

"Chocolate Éclair Pie.  It's one of those moments when mine doesn't look like the photo in the cookbook.. but yummy it is!!  I can see how it can only get better looking the more I try it and I most definitely will.  I used boxed crackers,  but will attempt making the ones in the book in the future.  I let the glaze cool too much before spreading and I believe my cream could use more practice... but it tastes great!  I'm still having fun trying new recipes..thanks!" 

Chocolate Eclair Pie

This week, we'll honor Brent's Grandmother with one of her family classics, the Chocolate Éclair Pie.  The recipe is found on page 121, although, you'll need to refer to page 117 for the pastry cream recipe.  Pie is great any time of year!

Bake or No Bake? You Made Your Decision!

This week, our Beekman Bakers had a choice of a baking recipe or a no-bake recipe.  Let's see what they decided...

 

Liz from CA

 

"I was excited to try olive oil poundcake and make good use of an impulse purchase - Tunisian olive oil from Trader Joe's.  My oven is having some trouble, and the cake ended up a little brown.  I had reservations about photographing the cake and posting it, but then drew inspiration from Julia Child and decided to "never apologize!"  I trimmed the sides and ends off the cake, iced it, and served it up.  Oh, the no-bake cookies were simple and fun." 

 

Missy from MA

 

"My olive oil pound cake may not be the prettiest thing but it was delicious!  The citrus combination was perfect and the cake's texture is quite light and airy compared to a typical butter pound cake.  This recipe FILLED my loaf pan and nearly oozed over while baking but I think I stopped short of whipping the egg portion of the mix enough.  It deflated once I removed it from the oven.  Also, I had to bake my cake around 12 minutes longer than the recipe suggests.  The tart and sweet glaze was the perfect topping.  We took it to a dinner party last night and everyone love it!"

 

Reynaul from VA

 

"These cookies were so easy to make, my 2 1/2 year old loved helping me stir these up.  I didn't have crunchy peanut butter on hand, but they came out yummy all the same!  They don't make a whole lot which is great and you can make so may different variations with the nuts, dried fruits, adding chocolate chips, etc.  This will definitely stay in the rotation!" 

 

Maria from IL

 

"The AITC No-Bake Cookies were SUPER EASY!  I even had my daughter help.  She loved it!  We used Peanut Butter and Company's Cinnamon Raisin Swirl Peanut Butter instead of the crunchy peanut butter and we also added about 1/3 of a cup of chocolate chips.  They came out great!  We scooped the cookies and formed them into balls for easier consumption.  I put them in the fridge to have them set a bit more solid.  Definitely making these on a regular basis!" 

 

Maria from IL

 

Note:  Maria was super ambitious this week and made both selections!  Good for you, Maria! 

 

"The Olive Oil Pound Cake was super easy too!  I decided to do what I did with the lemon-Toasted Poppy Seed Cake and bake these into mini-loaves for easier sharing.  I was able to mostly fill about 3/4 full 10 loaves and 6 half full loaves.  Suffice to say, the 3/4 loaves were the way to go!  They baked for about 29 minutes with the less filled pound cakes being a bit browner than the others.  The icing came out a bit thick and I needed more to spread them on the rest of the mini loaves.  They turned out great!"

 

Sue from NJ

 

"I was so happy that my selection, the Olive Oil Pound Cake was one of the selections this week.  I actually had attempted this cake in the fall.. a huge disaster back then.  I am so happy I was able to be successful this time... how flavorful and moist!  I did extend the amount of time the eggs and sugar were mixed this time and the cake could have used a couple more minutes for the center/top to fully bake (so close!), but overall, a moist cake!  My husband mentioned it would be awesome to grill the slices and add fresh fruit in the spring/summer.  As always, I'm enjoying my baking experiences with the Beekman's!  Thanks!"

To Bake or Not to Bake.. That is the Question...

There are so many great recipes to choose from, and at the suggestion of some of our more active members, we're offering up two choice this week.  If you're tired of baking, we've got you covered.  If you can't get enough cake.. there is a choice for you too!

A Taste of Spring.. Lemon Poppy Seed Cake

When you think of spring, you can't help but think of lemons with their fresh clean taste on the ever warming days.  Here are the creations for the Lemon Poppy seed Cake..

 

Sue from NJ

 

"My house always smells fantastic when I Bake Like a Beekman --- spring is in the air (although it's still way too cold near me!)  Lemony fresh!"

 

Maria from IL

 

"I love lemons and poppy seeds!  While I have had my share of lemon poppy seed muffins, this was the first recipe for this yummy dessert that I have tried!  Let me say it was interesting to say the least!  Especially with the toasting of the poppy seeds and then the butter and greek yogurt.  Made for interesting mixing for sure!  Sadly, my kids are not fans of lemon, but they tried small pieces anyway.  I followed the recipe exactly, but with one change... I broke out the mini loaf pans and loaf liners to make mini cakes!  They turned out great and they are easy to share too!" 

Your Favorite Series: Tita Patty's Famous Filipino Fruit Salad

Maria from IL

My Tita (Aunt) would make this fruit salad for every Christmas Eve party and any other family gatherings we've had.  I loved it as a kid and I love it now! 

At Filipino gatherings, it is a 'requirement' for you to make WAY MORE food than you would as there is a term called 'baon' or 'leftovers' that most Filipinos expect after a gathering

You are expected to bring some food with you.. enough food for future meals for the next few days! 

Tita Patty's Famous Filipino Fruit Salad

Ingredients:

1 30oz Can of Fruit Cocktail , drained
 3oz Cream Cheese
1/2 C Sour Cream
1/2 C Sweetened condensed milk
1/2 C Young coconut strings (macapuno)
1 Medium red apple, chopped (optional, I used Gala)

Mix all the above ingredients together and refrigerate

Welcome Spring! Lemon-Toasted Poppy Seed Cake

It's time to usher in spring with the delicious taste of lemon and poppy seeds. 

Your Favorite Series: Lemon Bars or Tart, You Choose...

Bernie from GA

One of our favorite recipes is lemon bars, a recipe from my bubby Raleigh's grandmother Olive Batten. 

Raleigh's mom shared the recipe with us a few years ago and it's been my 'go-to' recipe whenever I need to whip up something really delicious quickly.  Over the years, the recipe has morphed into a tart.  It started when I could not find my brownie pan one day. 

It can be easily dressed up with some whipped cream and berries. 

Lemon Tart*

*tweaked from original recipe of lemon squares by Olive W. Batten (Raleigh's grandmother)

Preheat oven to 350 F

Pulse in food processor till combined:
1 cup flour
½ cup butter
¼ cup powdered sugar
½ teaspoon salt
Press mixture into and up sides of an 8 ½ inch fluted tart pan* with removable bottom.
Bake for 15 minutes (till lightly browned)

Meanwhile, combine in a large bowl:
Zest of 1 lemon
1 cup granulated sugar (brown or turbinado sugar can be used to bake “brown sugar lemon tart”)
2 tablespoons flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt

When tart crust is ready, remove from oven, set aside and add to the sugar mixture:
2 eggs
Juice of 1 lemon
Whisk to combine fully (mixture will fizzle a little) and pour into hot crust.
Return to 350F oven and bake for 20 to 30 minutes till set
Cool on wire rack till lukewarm. Remove from tart pan and cool completely on wire rack before slicing. Dust with powdered sugar and serve

*can be made in a regular square brownie pan