Sunny Cove Chef
  • Home
  • Blog
  • Recipes
    • Appetizers
    • Cakes
    • Cookies
    • Desserts
    • German Food
    • Holiday Cooking
    • Ice Cream
    • Jam
    • Main Dish
    • Miscellaneous
    • Party Favorites
    • Pasta
    • Salad
    • Sauces
    • Seafood
    • Seasonal Cooking
    • Side Dishes
    • Soup
    • Vegan
    • Vegetables
    • Vegetarian
  • Food Philosophy
    • About
  • Wanderlust
    • Austria
    • Canada
    • France
    • Germany
    • Italy
    • Morocco
    • Sweden
    • Switzerland
    • USA

An Ode to Purple Plums and Marian Burros' Recipe for Plum Torte

9/27/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
Fall has arrived  and I have been happily cooking away in my kitchen with my new-found treasure Zwetchgen, a small unassuming purple plum that is called Italian plum in this country. In their natural state these plums have very little flavor and taste bland—but once  baked, they transform into a treat , perfumed, tart, and sweet. I made several batches of my plum butter and I am thrilled to have them in my pantry (garage). The flavor is amazing, rich and earthy. But I also made several cakes. ​
Every September, from 1983-1989 the New York Times printed Marian Burros’ recipe for plum torte. Here is a link to the recipe (and I love reading all the comments). I have made this cake twice now, and have adjusted the recipe to my taste. I also baked a tart with a custard that my Swiss friend made for me in Switzerland. It was delicious and I hope to post it one of these days. My French girlfriend made a tarte aux quetsches, unfortunately I didn't get to taste it.  Zwetschgenkuchen in Germany is usually baked with a lot of plums and a yeast-based sheet cake. Marian Burros’ Plum Torte recipe is a no-fuss, easy-to-make dessert. It is similar to other cake recipes with fruit that I have made many times. My tasters approved, but my fussy husband thought it was a little dry.
Picture
I also like using plums for my galette. Click for the recipe here.
Picture
The original recipe called for a cup of sugar. I only used ½ cup, but to make up for the lack of sweetness, I sprinkled the top with 4 tablespoons of turbinado sugar that gave the cake a crunchy crust. Apparently, this cake freezes well when double-wrapped in foil and placed in a plastic bag. But I have not tried this. If you want to be fancy, you can grind the lemon zest with the sugar in a food processor.
Print Recipe
Ingredients:

½ cup white sugar 
½ cup softened butter
1 cup unbleached flour
1tsp baking powder
2 eggs (room temperature) 
a pinch of salt
½ tsp vanilla
1 tsp lemon zest
2 heaping TBS of Greek yogurt
10-12  pitted purple plums 
3 TBS turbindino sugar
​lemon juice

​​
Directions:

​Butter a 9 or 10-inch pan with a removable bottom 
Wash the plums, then pit them and halve them 
Heat the oven to 350 degrees
 

Sift the flour with the baking powder
Cream the butter in a bowl until fluffy. Add one egg at a time, then add the lemon zest (if you didn’t grind it with the sugar), and the vanilla. Mix until well combined. Add the baking powder mixture and yogurt, then mix until blended.
Scrape the batter into a springform pan. Place the plums skin-side up on top of the cake. Sprinkle generously with turbinado sugar and sprinkle with some lemon juice. 

Bake the cake for approximately one hour on the bottom shelf of your stove. The cake is done when a toothpick comes out clean from the center of the cake. 

Let the cake cool and enjoy.

Recipe from Marian Burros New York Times recipe
adapted by © sunnycovechef.com
0 Comments

Zwetschgenmus  or Spiced Plum Butter

9/13/2018

2 Comments

 
When I was a child, we had several plum trees in our garden. One variety was called Zwetschgen, similar to the prune. Our Zwetschgen tree would overflow with fruit and our family would make Zwetschgenmus  (aka spiced plum butter) in a huge copper kettle that was heated by a piece of burning wood from underneath. We would have big glass canning jars with rubber rings in our pantry filled with delicious plum butter. ​
Picture
As children we could not get enough of this sweet, rich and gooey plum butter spread on country bread and topped with schmand. The best way to describe schmand is a fresh cream that is similar to Créme Fraîche or whipping cream. I used greek yogurt on my sandwich . 
In this country we call Zwetschgen Italian plums and they are seldom available where I live .  You can imagine how happy I was when I found them in a  local food stand. I bought all they had and made two different batches of Zwetschgenmus  and baked two different cakes.
Picture
My Zwetschegenmus is a tartly rich and earthy-tasting fruit butter with a slight taste of cinnamon and allspice. These sour little plums (without much juice or flavor) once baked turn into an amazingly flavorful treat. It’s like the frog that turns into a prince. For the Zwetschgenmus, I chose a recipe from Louisa Weiss’s Classic German Baking book. I have to say it turned out just as good as Helga Papas,’ my village neighbor who has made it for decades in Germany and always shared some with my family. My brother is especially fond of it and I will keep a jar for him to eat when he comes to visit me this year. If you see this little unpretentious plum in a store next to their juicy voluptuous cousins, don’t pass them by. You will not regret it when you have a spoonful of Zwetschgenmus.
Picture
The plums are baked in a heavy cast iron pot until they turn into a sticky mass and are completely broken down. Make sure you use a four-quart cast iron pot. I used a smaller one in my first batch, and it took twice as long to bake them the next day. The second time, I used a four-quart pot and baked it in 2.5 hours instead of 4. Luisa Weiss says that the recipe is easily doubled, but unfortunately I ran out of plums.
Print Recipe
Ingredients:

5 one-pint size jars with lids and bands

4 pounds purple pitted plums (around 5 pounds with pits)
2 cups (200 g) granulated white sugar
1 cinnamon stick
2 whole clove
Instructions:

Wash, pit and quarter the plums. Discard those with dark spots inside. Put the plums, the sugar and the spices in a large bowl. Stir and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Luisa puts her fruit in the same pot she uses for baking. Let the pot or bowl stand covered overnight until the sugar is dissolved in the juice of the fruit.

Heat the oven to 350ºF/180 Celsius. Pour the fruit into the pot, making sure you scrape every little bit of juice and sugar into the pot. Bake uncovered for 2 ½ hours, stirring occasionally. In the meantime, sterilize 5 one-pint containers. I run my jars and rings through the dishwasher and put my lids in a pot with hot water. Do not boil the lids
​.
When the plums have broken down and the liquid in the pot has become syrupy, the Pflaumenmus is ready. Remove the pot from the oven. I put mine in the kitchen sink to prevent splattering. Remove the cinnamon stick, and if you see the allspice, remove that also (I didn’t see mine). Pureé the Zwetschgenmus with an immersion blender until  smooth. I leave a few chunks of fruit in it. Fill the still warm jars with the plum butter. I have a wide funnel that really helps. Screw on the lid and turn the jar upside down. You will know your jars are sealed when the lid doesn’t move or pop when you press on it. To be totally safe, follow the manufacturer’s instructions that come with the jars. 

Guten Appetit
recipe from Luisa Weiss in her Classic German Baking Book
by©sunnycovechef.com
​​
2 Comments

Five days in Paris

9/5/2018

0 Comments

 
 “A walk about Paris will provide lessons in history, beauty, and in the point of life.” Thomas Jefferson
Picture
Paris is all about walking and finding new treasures. There is so much to see and learn. I enjoyed reading The Most Beautiful Walk in The World by John Baxter, an Australian who used to give historic walking tours. It is a wonderful book, even if you don’t go to Paris.
But my trip was almost over before it had begun. We had taken a taxi from the airport to the hotel. The taxi happened to be a mini-van, and as I got out, I twisted one foot on the cobblestone. As I was falling down, the taxi driver scooped me up like a bird and saved me from injury. I’m glad I had given him a good tip. From then on, I wore tennis shoes instead of sandals. Traveling isn’t for the faint of heart, but the kindness of strangers can make it easier.
Picture
On my last night in Paris, I was strolling through the small streets of Saint Germaine back to my hotel  and I felt like I was in a Woody Allen movie. People were sitting outside enjoying the warm summer night, and the store windows were full of beautiful tasteful displays. I didn’t want this to be my last night in Paris. I wanted to stay just a little bit longer listening to the saxophone player, keeping this feeling of serene beauty and ambience of the City of Lights.
Picture
It had been hot the four days we were in Paris, but not as hot as in previous visits. And our hotel had air conditioning, which made all the difference in the world. Our hotel was in the middle of Saint-Germain-des-Prés, one of my favorite neighborhoods in Paris. This Bohemian part of Paris used to be home to many artists and intellectuals. It is so easy to get off the beaten track and end up in hidden lanes admiring 17th-century architecture. Just when you think you’ve seen it all, you end up in a charming secret passage and don’t want to leave, or continue to the Latin Quarter or Notre Dame. There is always something that makes me feel like I belong there.
Picture
Our hotel was right around the corner from the Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés, which is being restored at this time. There are many famous cafés within walking distance, so you can pretend to be Hemingway, Jean Paul Sartre or Simone de Beauvoir sipping a pastîs, an anise-flavored drink which is also one of my favorites.
Picture
Our four days went by so fast. On a hot Saturday morning, we decided to visit the Musée Jaquemart-André. This hidden gem of a museum is a treasure, located on the boulevard Haussmann. It is home to a huge collection of art, furnishings and sculptures collected by banking heir, Edouard André, and his artist wife, Nélie Jaquemart. During their lifetime, they transformed this beautiful mansion into a museum housing their extensive art collection. We enjoyed the visit very much as we didn’t have to fight the enormous crowds at the D’Orsay or the Louvre. But I regret not having tea at the café.
Picture
Picture
French parents introducing their children to art.
We also signed up for the Opéra Garnier tour, which was over-crowded and too hot. But nevertheless, I got  to set foot into this beautiful building. Maybe one day, I will get to see a performance. It’s a stunningly beautiful building and I recommend the tour.
Picture
Do to the heat, we preferred our restaurants to have outdoor seating, since most places don’t have air conditioning.
Picture
Years ago, we ate with a young friend at Le Procope, a legendary restaurant in the 6th arrondissement open since 1686.  We decided to revisit this restaurant and had a delightful lunch. But it was hot and had no air conditioning— but neither did Thomas Jefferson when he ate here over 200 years ago. 
Picture
Picture
We also had another delightful lunch with friends from the States  at Le Grand Colbert, which everybody loved for the fantastic food — and air conditioning. The architecture and design of this place is as great as the food and ambiance. Click here to read more about the Grand Colbert on a previous post.
Picture
Picture
We left on a Sunday morning on a train to Zürich and and returned to Paris the following week to catch our flight back to San Francisco the next day. When we arrived at the train station from Zürich, we had our last meal at the LeTrain Bleu, an iconic restaurant in the Gare de Lyon. The restaurant is decorated in a sumptuous art nouveau style. The food is excellent and the surroundings are spectacular—and authentically French. If you go, have the Rum Baba for dessert.
Picture
I hope I get another opportunity to visit Paris again, and enjoy it as much as I did this time. Click on the buttons below and read about my other trips to Paris.
WE'LL ALWAYS HAVE PARIS
WALKING AND EATING IN PARIS AND VERSAILLES
PARIS IN SUMMER
0 Comments

Paris in July and Eiskaffe

9/4/2018

0 Comments

 
I have an everlasting love for Paris. I discover something new every time I go there and fall in love with it all over again. Click over to my wanderlust blog and read about my last trip to Paris. (Sorry for any inconvenience, but my Wanderlust blog doesn’t send emails to notify you of new blog entries.)
Picture
As a treat, I will give you an iced coffee drink that was my absolute favorite when I was a young student. This was long before the era of Starbucks & today’s coffee culture. In those days, Europe had café-bakeries. A good cup of coffee was considered a luxury, so many people drank fake coffee (chicory) because the real stuff wasn’t available, especially in East Germany. Giving someone a pound of good coffee was a great gift. At that time, I wasn’t much of a coffee drinker, but I always loved to have an Eiskaffee (cold coffee with ice cream). As a young student, I was living mostly on french fries with mayonnaise (I switched to ketchup when I came to this country) which was sold from stands on every corner. You could also get currywurst, a sausage topped with ketchup and sprinkled with curry and paprika. However, when I had some extra money, I would treat myself to an Eiskaffee in a fancy coffee house. Whenever I am in Germany in the summertime, I revive memories by having this delicious drink. On my last trip to Europe,  my friends from Switzerland took us to Lake Konstanze, which borders Switzerland and Germany. We had a lovely outdoor lunch with a view of the lake, and for dessert we ordered Eiskaffee. What a fun afternoon with good food and good friends. I know the hot weather is mostly over, but enjoy this treat anyway with a friend or loved one. It’s a great way to use up leftover cold coffee. Think of it as a coffee milkshake, only better. ​
Picture
All you need is :

a tall glass
1  scoop vanilla ice cream
1 cup or cold coffee 
½ cup or less whipped cream 
1 tube-shaped wafer cookie (Trader Joe’s has some good ones).

​Scoop the vanilla ice cream into a tall glass.
Poor the cold 
coffee over the ice cream.
Top with whipped cream and a cookie. 

 You can sweeten your whipped cream or coffee and add some shaved chocolate to garnish.

Guten Appetit, my friends 
recipe by ©sunnycovechef.com
Click here to read about my latest trip to Paris.
0 Comments
    Picture

    WELCOME TO SUNNY COVE CHEF

    Thank you for visiting my blog.  My two passions are cooking and traveling. Traveling exposes me to a wide variety of food and experiences. I walk around cities looking for markets, restaurants, bakeries, shops, you name it, and if it is related to food you will find me there, tasting, smelling, talking to vendors, and having a great time.

    ​
    If you  have tried any of my recipes, snap a photo and tag me @sunnycovechef I'd love to see your creations!​


      ​STAY UPDATED!

      Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.
    Subscribe

    Categories

    All
    Appetizers
    Austria
    Cakes
    Canada
    Cookies
    Desserts
    France
    German Food
    Germany
    Holiday Cooking
    Ice Cream
    Italy
    Jam
    Main Dish
    Miscellaneous
    Morrocco
    Party Favorites
    Pasta
    Salad
    Sauces
    Seafoods
    Seasonal Cooking
    Soup
    Stories
    Sweden
    Switzerland
    USA
    Vegan
    Vegetables
    Vegetarian
    Wanderlust

    RSS Feed

    Archives

    August 2022
    July 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    April 2013

     
  • Home
  • Blog
  • Recipes
    • Appetizers
    • Cakes
    • Cookies
    • Desserts
    • German Food
    • Holiday Cooking
    • Ice Cream
    • Jam
    • Main Dish
    • Miscellaneous
    • Party Favorites
    • Pasta
    • Salad
    • Sauces
    • Seafood
    • Seasonal Cooking
    • Side Dishes
    • Soup
    • Vegan
    • Vegetables
    • Vegetarian
  • Food Philosophy
    • About
  • Wanderlust
    • Austria
    • Canada
    • France
    • Germany
    • Italy
    • Morocco
    • Sweden
    • Switzerland
    • USA