Surprise! Quince-Chevre Crostata for Lauren

Tara of Tara's Multicultural Table wanted to organize a surprise baby shower for Lauren of Sew You Think You Can Cook. What fun!

To be honest, I'm not a huge fan of baby showers. It's not that I don't think it's a milestone worth honoring - it is! - I just despise playing those baby shower games. In fact, when one of my best friends hosted my baby shower, I said 'no games!' Or maybe that was for my bridal shower. I don't remember.

In any case, I agreed to participate for Lauren because it didn't involve any games and it did involve creating a recipe. Congratulations, Lauren!

Candied Walnuts by Love and Confections

Carmelized Pear Upside Down Cake by A Day in the Life on the Farm

Hasselback Sweet Potatoes by Curious Cuisiniere

Maple Scones by Life on Food

No Bake Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake by Caleigh's Kitchen

Party Pecan Pie by Food Lust People Love

Pecan Pie by Tara's Multicultural Table

Pumpkin Spice Skillet Cinnamon Roll with Maple Browned Butter Glaze by Cooking with Carlee

Quince-Chevre Crostata by Culinary Adventures with Camilla

Stuffed Mushrooms by I am a Honey Bee

Quince-Chevre Crostata

I decided to share a recipe that can be either an appetizer or a dessert, depending on your palate. And it's fairly hands off since you're using a pre-made puff pastry. One of these days I'll make my own puff pastry; today is not that day. But I will share the flowers that my boys picked for me this afternoon!

Ingredients

2 quince
puff pastry
8 ounces chevre
1 egg
1/2 C raw honey + 1 T
1 T organic raw sugar

Procedure

Roasted Quince

Do this the day ahead of when you need to make the crostata. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Wash and dry the quince. Place the quince in a baking dish and cover with foil. Roast for 60 to 90 minutes, until the quince is soft. It depends on the size; mine too about 75 minutes. Let cool and set aside.

Crostata

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lay your puff pastry on a baking stone.

In a medium mixing bowl, whip together the chevre, egg, and 1/2 C honey. Spoon that into the middle of your puff pastry.

Core the quince and slice into thin wedges. Arrange the quince slices in an overlapping pattern. Then bring up the edges of the puff pastry over the cheese mixture and the quince.

Drizzle 1 T of honey over the top and sprinkle with 1 T of raw sugar. Bake for 20 minutes. The puff pastry will be browned and the chevre custard will be set. Let cool for 10 to 15 minutes before slicing.

Quick Pickled Red Onions and Radishes

If you've been reading my blog for even a short amount of time, you probably know how much I love to pickle things. I was just telling a friend you can pickle - with vinegar - or you can ferment - with salt - for similar delicious effect. The latter has digestive benefits and I love to do that, but when I need that pop of sour flavor quickly, I whip up quick pickles that are ready in as little as a day or two. I've Pickled Blueberries , Pickled Asparagus , Pickled Cranberries , Pickled Pumpkin , and even Pickled Chard Stems ! This I did last night for an upcoming recipe challenge that requires I include radishes. Ummmm...of course I'm pickling them! Ingredients makes 1 quart jar radishes, trimmed and sliced organic red onions, peeled and thinly sliced (I used a mandolin slicer) 3/4 C vinegar (I used white distilled vinegar) 3/4 C water 3 T organic granulated sugar 1 T salt (I used some grey sea salt) 6 to 8 grinds of black pepper Proce

Aloo Tiki {Pakistan}

To start off our Pakistani culinary adventure, I started us off with aloo tiki - potato cutlets. I'm always game for tasty street food. I found a couple of different recipes and incorporated those together for this version. Ingredients 6-8 small red potatoes, scrubbed 1 T cumin seeds 1 T fresh chopped parsley 1/2 t ground coriander 1 t minced garlic Procedure Boil the potatoes until they are tender. Drain and let cool. Mash the potatoes. Traditionally they are mashed without their skins. I left the skins on. In a small pan, toast the cumin seeds on high heat until the begin to give off an aroma and begin to darken. Remove from heat and transfer to a plate to keep them from cooking any more. Blend all of the spices into the mashed potatoes, then shape into small patties. If you wet your hands, the potato mixture won't stick to them. Heat a splash of oil in a large, flat-bottom pan. Dip each patty into beaten egg and carefully place in the oil. P

Meyer Lemon Custard-Filled Matcha Turtles #BreadBakers

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. You can see all our of lovely bread by following our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated after each event on the Bread Bakers home page . We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient. This month Stacy of Food Lust People Love is hosting and she wrote: "Your bread can be large, as in one big animal, or small - animal-shaped rolls. Use your imagination! Points for flavor and shape!" If you are a food blogger and would like to join us, just send an email with your blog URL to Stacy at foodlustpeoplelove@gmail.com. Here's the animal-shaped bread basket from the #BreadBakers... Beef and Sweet Onion Dim Sum Pandas from Karen's Kitchen Stories Bird Bread Rolls from Ambrosia Easter Bunny Buns from Cook with Renu Ham and Cheese Elephant Rolls from Food Lust People Love Hedgehog Bread from Making Mir

CarleeOctober 14, 2015 at 7:32 AM
That looks delicious! I am not sure I have ever had a quince, now I have something new for my must try list!
TaraOctober 14, 2015 at 7:36 AM
Such a beautiful result from minimal work! I still haven't made my own puff pastry either. It is on my list. Thanks so much for joining me in celebrating Lauren!
EmilyOctober 14, 2015 at 8:13 AM
Haha, I don't like the games either. Food is a much better way to celebrate. This looks beautiful. And I don't bother with my own puff pastry. Its not worth the effort in my opinion.
A Day in the Life on the FarmOctober 14, 2015 at 1:01 PM
Who wants to play games when we could be eating this delicious crostata?
UnknownOctober 14, 2015 at 2:44 PM
Haha! The games always create awkward moments and I tend to avoid awkward. Thank you for coming to this party, though! :)
Sarah | Curious CuisiniereOctober 14, 2015 at 5:58 PM
I'm with you on the shower games. Not my favorite. But your crostata, now that's a reason to go to a shower!

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