Cherry Coconut Popsicles

I left home at a young age when I moved to Singapore, a whole different continent and culture away from my family to complete high school. It was the hardest thing I'd ever had to do and making it away from home would have been impossible without the immediate support of some amazing girlfriends.

Girlfriends are just the best and having them (far or near) is necessary. I was extremely lucky last year to have eight wonderful girls stand up with me as I was getting hitched. They traveled from Virginia, California, the Netherlands, Minnesota, Indiana, Sierra Leone and of course NY. So lucky to have them in my life!!

And this is why I am so happy to be heading out of town today to stand by my adopted 'baby sister' as she gets married this weekend! My girlfriend's sister is tying the knot and I'm super excited to be a part of her special day. It's also the first wedding in which I'm a bridesmaid. Remember the bridal shower we hosted? And I baked some cupcakes? Eeeep, tomorrow is our spa day with the bride and Friday is time for some last minute decoration prep, rehearsal and Saturday is the big day. Can't wait!

Ok these popsicles, I guess we should talk about them right? We had a heat wave a few weeks ago, hitting record heat in Central NY and in my need to cool down these popsicles happened. Twice. I didn't want to share them because the pictures are not that great...not a fan of popsicle picture-taking but the recipe is so simple and amazing I had to get over myself and share with you!!

If you don't already know this, I have a thing for coconut. Coconut flakes, coconut water and coconut milk are a staple in my pantry. It's not my fault, I was born in the tropics (at least, that's my reasoning). These popsicles are made with fresh cherries, the new Chobani coconut greek yogurt flavor and toasted coconut flakes (for added pizzazz).

They are simply creamy and refreshing! You have to try them before the summer is over. Cherries and coconut pair very well together and I am surprised this is my first encounter of their union.

As you can see I made these twice using the same ingredients. In one, I pureed the yogurt and cherries and in the other I kept them separate. Both taste amazing so do as you please!

Cherry Coconut Popsicles
Makes 4 popsicles

Ingredients:
1 cup fresh cherries, pitted
1 tablespoon granulated sugar (or to taste)
2 (6 ounces each) 2% Chobani Coconut Greek yogurt
3 tablespoons sweetened coconut flakes, toasted

Directions:
A)
Place the cherries in the bowl of a food processor (or blender) and puree until smooth. Add the rest of the ingredients and blend for another minute.

Pour the cherry puree into each popsicle mold. Insert a popsicle stick in the middle or top with popsicle mold cover if available. Freeze for at least 6-8 hours, preferably overnight. Enjoy!

B)
Puree the cherries and sugar in a food processor until smooth. In a separate small bowl, mix the yogurt and coconut flakes until combined.

Spoon the cherry puree into the bottom of each popsicle mold. Top with dollops of yogurt blend. Insert a popsicle stick and freeze for at least 6-8 hours.

Cherry Hand Pies

Hello friends!! I made pie crust again and filled it with cherries to make these scrumptious cherry hand pies :)

Remember how I said I was scared of making pie crusts? My first two attempts last year were total disasters so I've stayed away from pies since. But after this strawberry tart, I decided to give it another try. This time around, I went with hand pies because they transport easily and the hubby and I were planning on a picnic at the lake.

If you are looking for a great pie crust recipe, I found the one. I love this recipe because it's only four ingredients; flour, sugar, salt and butter and it makes a flaky buttery crust each time. What is key in the process is keeping your butter chilled and using iced cold water. I used a food processor to pulse the flour and butter, but you don't need to use one. Joy the Baker has a great recipe here in which all you need are your two hands. I love using the food processor and it has made this daunting task manageable for me.

For the dough, you pulse your flour, sugar and salt together, then add your chilled cube sized butter to the mixture and pulse a few more times until the mixture is coarse and corn meal looking. Be very careful not to over work the mixture because you will warm up the butter. If you do, chill for a few minutes. Add ice cold water and pulse for a few more rounds until the dough comes together. And there you go, you have dough that would make a flaky pie crust once chilled and baked!

These cherry hand pies have a flaky, buttery crust on the outside and a sweet cherry filling on the inside. You can control how sweet the filling is by increasing or decreasing the amount of sugar. I used less than recommended (~1/3 cup) because I like things to be less sweet and it was perfect for me.

Making pie crust is getting easier and I am taking baby steps towards a full blown pie. You just might see one pretty soon :)


Cherry Hand Pies
Adapted from bon appetit
Makes 1 pie crust or about 6 hand pies 
 
Ingredients
For Pie Crust
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces

For filling:
1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 cups fresh cherries, stemmed and pitted
2/3 cup dried cherries
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 large egg white, lightly beaten
1 1/2 teaspoons raw sugar

Directions:
To prepare dough:
Prepare 1/4 cup ice cold water and keep in fridge. In a food processor, pulse flour, sugar and salt.  Add in half of the butter and pulse for 30 seconds. Add in the rest of butter and pulse until the mixture looks like coarse meal. Add 1/4 cup water (one tablespoon at a time) and pulse until dough comes together in clumps. If dry, add a little bit more water (1 teaspoon at a time). Remove dough from processor and form into a square. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill until firm, at least 2 hours. The dough can be made up to 3 days ahead. Keep chilled.

Let stand at room temperature 15-30 minutes before rolling out. 

To prepare filling:
In a small bowl, stir the cornstarch and 1 1/2 tablespoons cold water until dissolved. In a large saucepan set over medium heat, combine the cherries, sugar, vanilla extract and salt. Cook stirring occasionally for 5 minutes until the juices are released from the cherries. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. You will have more filling than you need for the pies.

Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to a large rectangle (about 18 x 15'). Use a sharp knife and cut out 6x5" rectangles; about 6 to 7.

Assembly:
Whisk egg white and 1 tablespoon of water in a small bowl. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Working with one rectangle at a time, brush the edges with egg wash and fill with 2-3 tablespoons of cherry filling on one side. Fold dough over filling making sure the edges meet. Use a fork to crimp the edges and seal the pie. Cut a few slits on top of pie to vent. Place on the prepared baking sheet.
Repeat with the remaining dough and filling.

Brush the top of pies with egg wash and then sprinkle with raw sugar. Chill the pies for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Bake the pies until the tops and bottoms are lightly browned, about 30-40 minutes. Allow to cool completely on baking sheet. Enjoy. Store leftovers at room temperature.

End Of Year Reflections and New Year Cake

It is that time of the year to reflect on the past 365 days that have gone by. This year was a year of milestones for me. A year of firsts, a year of reunions, a year of dreams come true and an end to an era. It was a blessed year and I am beyond grateful for all that I received and experienced!

There was a first baking experience in February and the launch of a baking addiction. There was a wedding to plan, a dress to be bought and a dream shoe that showed up at my door step in July for the occasion. Friends from afar and near planned a wonderful bridal shower in May and reunions with college buddies! The biggest reunion of all was to see my sister, mom and my high school bestie . And of course there was a groundbreaking event, that ended the era of the single gyal...the wedding to the man beyond my dreams in September! I pray 2013 is filled with as many experiences!

For the new year eve celebrations, I attempted to bake a cake for the evening. I started with no decoration vision (first bad mistake) and didn't start looking until after the cake and layers turned out so good. A frosted cake and some frantic Pinterest searches lead to this mess.

I almost didn't share this picture but since this is my memoir of baking adventures, the failures need to be acknowledged. Second mistake was messing up the writing on cake and attempting to scrape it off (you see the patches on top?). But hey...that's what adventures are for. To learn from the mistakes.

The cake was cherry vanilla from Annie's Eats and I followed her recipe to the dot. It tasted great too!

Happy new year!!! I hope 2013 brings us all more happiness and love!!! I look forward to growing as a baker in this new year :))