"Perhaps the most impressive of all the cookbook blogs are the three devoted to the 2004 edition of Gourmet magazine's "The Gourmet Cookbook" -- all 5¼ pounds and 1,300-odd recipes of it. Befitting this culinary Everest, all three writers are overachievers in their professional lives."

--Lee Gomes, The Wall Street Journal, May 28, 2008
"I should have told you before how much I've been enjoying reading your thoughts. You seem like such a great cook."

--Ruth Reichl, Editor-in-Chief of Gourmet Magazine, June 8 2008, comment on "Chocolate Velvet Ice Cream".

Saturday, April 9, 2011

Prune and Walnut Turnovers


When most people think of tasty fillings for pastries, prune probably isn't very high on the list, but I don't understand that. Why are prunes so different from raisins, or any other dried fruit? They're dried plums! Plums are awesome! I think it's because, in our minds, prunes = old people and if you're eating prunes it's to get a little locomotion going in, uh, the digestive regions.

Well, guess what. All Prune and Walnut Turnovers will do is make you fat, and that's a serious risk because they're so delicious you'll want to eat as many as you can. So make them for a group--otherwise don't blame me if you gain 5 lbs.

What makes them so delicious? Let's start with the crust, which is made with butter AND cream cheese...which makes for moist, flaky and ever-so-slightly tangy crust.

The filling is delicious because a) the walnuts are toasted b) there's cinnamon sugar in it c) there's sherry in it. Win-win-win.

It's not a quick recipe--there's chilling of dough and rolling it out (and filling and sealing) but if you're in the mood for a baking project this is a gratifying one. A food processor is key--if you don't have one, why don't you? Ask the Easter Bunny to bring you one.

I made these for my book group and one of the guys thought it was blueberry filling (mmm so delicious) and almost spit it out when I said it was prune. I'm glad you didn't tell me that BEFORE I ate them, he said. I never would have tried it!

Come on, it's not like I ground up OLD PEOPLE and put them in there (would that make it mincemeat?) OK, gross, time to stop.

Seriously, these are good. I am 5 lbs. fatter. Nobody to blame but myself.


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