Baking: Recipes and more

Fruit Tart

This recipe for fruit tarts came some many years ago from a local community paper by a Christopher Kimball, who called himself the Kitchen Detective. I looked forward to his column because he uses a quasi-scientific approach to try variants of a recipe to find an optimum version. 

The original recipe was for a plum tart (with Italian/purple/prune plums), but I've adapted and used it for a number of other fruit tarts, such as apple, blueberry and rhubarb, and even some non-fruit fillings. I found that a somewhat greater proportion of butter to shortening than in the original recipe made for a tastier crust. 

The tart requires a tart pan, the kind with a flat detachable bottom. I got the first one in Paris in the 1980s, when they were not yet well-known or available here. 

Update (March 5, 2006):  Added a new recipe for a red-plum tart, one that's my own creation, and quite a good one. 

Master recipe for Fruit Tart (pdf)

Back to Favorite Recipes Top

Breakfeast Crepes

Called "dessert crepes" in the book where the recipe originates, these are a treat for breakfast. They should be served immediately, and taste great with some preserves spread on them; blueberry preserves are especially good, as well as apricot and raspberry. I prefer them rolled up like palacinka. 

The recipe for Breakfast Crepes (pdf)

Back to Favorite Recipes Top

Cookies

It's been my tradition to have lots of cookies around the house at Christmastime, as well as Stollen. The two of us make 4-5 kinds of cookies each - the ones below are my favorite contributions. 

Removing hazelnut skins: A number of recipes below include chopped hazelnuts. The old-fashioned way to remove the skins by toasting the nuts is labor-intensive and not as effective as one might like (a recent recommendation is to oven-roast them, something I'll try next time). 

For a time- and labor-saving method that works well, one can drop them in boiling water with some added baking soda, but ... 

... the quandary is that the toasting method takes more effort but leaves the hazelnuts more flavorful and also dry, so that they can be ground into a fine meal in a small coffee grinder. Several batches of cookies told me that it's worth the extra work.

Hazelnut (or Almond) Crescents

Another Christmas favorite. The original recipe is for almond crescents, which are also very good, but I have a great liking for hazelnuts, so that's what this recipe uses. Modified 12/13/2016. 

Recipe for Hazelnut Crescents  (pdf)

Back to Favorite Recipes Top

Hazelnut Balls

Had been another Christmas cookie favorite, but have not made it for a few years.

Recipe for  Hazelnut Balls  (pdf)

Back to Favorite Recipes Top

Marmalade Drop Cookies

These cookies are very easy to make. I prefer Keiller's Dundee Orange Marmalade (or equivalent) for its flavor and thick consistency; it's also less sweet than others.  The addition of chopped dried cranberries is my own tasty modification. 

Recipe for Marmalade Drop Cookies (pdf)

Back to Favorite Recipes Top

Spitzbuben (Sandwich Cookies)

And a recipe for yet another Christmas cookie favorite.

The name means "rascals" in German, probably for the charmingly seductive combination of butter, vanilla and preserves. The original recipe did not use an egg, but I found the dough impossible to work with. A little more research showed that there seem to be two kinds of recipes, ones with flour and an egg, others with ground nut meal and no egg. 

As filling, I prefer seeded raspberry preserves rather than raspberry jam, as well as apricot (but avoiding the lumps). As instructions often say, "some assembly required", but well worth the effort. 

Recipe for Spitzbuben (pdf)

Back to Favorite Recipes Top

Updated Nov. 28, 2025