Baker's Theory

How to assemble a charcuterie board

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For Thanksgiving, my family has begun requesting charcuterie as the sole appetizer. It’s great for noshing, and everyone gathers around it to chat and admire the lovely colors and textures of the board. 

There’s also a little something for everyone on a charcuterie board: fresh fruit, dried fruit, nuts, pickles, olives, crackers, meat, and cheese. It’s quite filling if you like all of those things, and in that case, I would not recommend serving it right before a massive meal! But it goes perfectly with wine or a casual party serving drinks and apps. It’s arguably even part of the decoration. 

A classmate in school taught me how to arrange a charcuterie board and I’ve been hooked ever since. She had a perfect ratio of meats to cheese to fruit, etc. per guest. I have to admit I don’t remember much of that since I like to measure by feel and appearance, so if you don’t mind the philosophy of winging it, stick with me. 

The main thing is to make it look pretty. I know, in life, looks are not what matters, but I promise it’s going to taste good if you have good ingredients. You’re not cooking anything, for pete’s sake. You have a party to throw!

Take some creative liberties in the appearance of your board. Fold the salami into a fun triangle. Cut the fruit with a serrated knife for a zigzag pattern. Take out your pretty little bowls that will literally hold nothing except a hard boiled egg, and stuff it so it’s overflowing with cornichon pickles. Bust out that fancy cheese cutting knife you never use. Then put on pretentious classical music and get ready to make sexy French hors d’oeuvres. 

 

What you will need to assemble the charcuterie board

1 large wood or marble cutting board (around 12″ x 18″) (for display)
1 regular cutting board (for actually cutting your fruits and cheeses)
2-3 small bowls for holding pickles and/or olives
Toothpicks (if desired)
2-3 small appetizer forks 

Ingredients for your charcuterie board (for 4 people)

Meat 
4 oz thin sliced Salami
3 oz thin sliced Prosciutto 
4 oz Summer Sausage sliced into 1/4″ thick coins

Cheese (pick 3 cheeses total, one from each category)
4 oz soft cheese (brie, camembert, goat)
4 oz semi-hard cheese (cheddar, Swiss, gruyere, gouda, edam)
4 oz hard cheese (Parmesan, manchego)

Pickles/Sour Elements (pick 2)
2/3 cup pickled red onions (recipe here)
2/3 cup kalamata olives
2/3 cup cornichon pickles
1/2 cup raspberry jam

Fruit (pick 2-3)
1 1/2 cups grapes, on the vine, cut into branches of 3-6 grapes per branch
1/2 apple, sliced thin
1 persimmon, cut into eighths 
10 whole strawberries
6 oz raspberries
1 pear, sliced thin

Dry Goods
1/4 cup dried apricots (optional)
1/2 cup nuts (cashews, almonds, walnuts)
24 neutral tasting crackers (Club Crackers, water crackers)

 

Put it all together now!

Tip: Do all of your cheese and fruit cutting on the regular cutting board and then transfer it over to the nice cutting board for display.

1. Cut the cheese! 
Soft cheese are a pain to slice because they are so sticky. Use a sharp knife and wipe it it after each slice if you need to get a clean cut. I’ll cut brie or camembert into small wedges. Note: you don’t have to cut off the rind of these French cheeses. However, they do contain penicillin mold, so ask about allergies before serving them! 

Semi-hard cheeses are the easiest to cut and you can get creative in how you cut them. Cubes, slices, sticks, triangles, all work. Or use a small cutout and make hearts, stars, or circles. 

Hard cheese like Parmesan can be difficult to cut because it will start to crumble. Stick with an easier cut like cubes, slices, or triangles. Manchego is a bit softer, but still be careful not to lose precious cheese pieces to cutting it too small. 

Now transfer the cheeses to three evenly spaced apart spots on your cutting board.

Mmm. Cheese.

2. Arrange the meat.
Roll the prosciutto into a scroll. Then slice it into thirds. Place it between two of your cheeses. 

Fold your salami into triangles, overlapping them on top of each other in a staggered display. Place it between two of the cheeses.

Slice your summer sausage into 1/4″ coins and stack them into little columns between the last of the cheeses. 

Your meats should form a hexagon with the cheeses.

3. Filling it in!
Get your pickles and sour elements into small dishes and put those on the board near the meats and cheeses, inside the hexagon.
Place your fruits and crackers everywhere you see exposed cutting board. 
Scatter the dried apricots and nuts to fill in the little holes where the cutting board is still exposed. 
Get your fancy, tiny appetizer forks and put them in the pickle dishes. 
Enjoy!

How to Decorate a Cookie

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I love decorating sugar cookies. It’s like my grownup version of coloring. And Christmas time gives me the perfect excuse to bake a lot of cookies. I am amazed at the power of some icing and a toothpick. You can come up with some really beautiful designs! 

The icing recipe I use is pretty basic. You don’t even need the corn syrup, really. It’ll dry fast anyway. For food coloring, I use Wilton’s food coloring gels. 

Sugar Cookie Icing by Baker’s Theory
3 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup milk or water
1/4 cup corn syrup (optional–if you don’t use it, use more milk or water)
1 tsp vanilla or almond extract

Salvaging Sweets: How to Address a Dessert Disaster!

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It happens to all of us. The souffle falls, the cookies turn out too dry, or the cake didn’t rise. The flavor is fine, it’s just not attractive or the right texture or how it looked on Pinterest. You could scrap it all and start all over. No shame in that. I’ve been there. Or you could heroically try to salvage the sinking middle, the dry crumbs, or the raw batter. Maybe it’ll work out? Maybe it’ll be tastier than the original recipe? This is what I do when I’ve got a molten chocolate meltdown. 

The Bread Trick

Cookies too dry? Or hard?

My parents use this trick even when the cookies aren’t dry. 

Put a slice of bread in with the container holding your cookies. The moisture from the bread will diffuse into the cookies giving them a chewy texture! 

Use a neutral tasting bread like oat, white, or wheat and avoid sourdough and rye unless you want Gardetto’s flavored chocolate chip cookies. I know from personal experience.  

Give it about 30 minutes to let the water molecules mosey on down from the bread to the cookies and work their magic. Then consume your treats post haste!!

Truffle Conversion

Maybe the dessert just turned out ugly. No amount of bread will fix ugly cookies. It’s fine! Take a deep breath. 

Put the cookies or cakes in the food processor and grind them up. (Let it cool if it has chocolate in it.) Using a stand mixer or your hands, combine the crumbs with an 8 oz. block of cream cheese. You’ll get a thick mixture that can be rolled into balls. Voila. You now have the filling of a truffle. Or a cake pop. Whatever you like! 

Dunk those little revitalized globes into melted chocolate (chocolate chips, white chocolate, Baker’s chocolate…whatever you have) and set them on a cookie sheet lined with wax or parchment paper. Top them with sprinkles or drizzle a contrasting color on top in zig zags. 

Pop them in the freezer so the chocolate dries and hardens. Now you have truffles filled with your ugly dessert. Not so ugly now, eh! CRISIS AVERTED. 

Quick Fix Icebox Bar

Because whipped cream fixes everything

Well, what if you don’t have melted chocolate on hand?? Or you didn’t make cookies, you made cake, and it’s still ugly?? 

Okay! Take your ugly dessert du jour and throw them (feel free to take out your frustrations here) into a large bowl. Grab a masher and turn those ugly cookies or cakes into mush. 

Then take a 9 x 13 or an 8 x 8 baking pan (or if you have a cute dish you really like) and press that mush into a flat layer in the pan. 

Cut them into elegant squares and dish them up on a plate. 

Top it with ice cream or whipped cream (or both…) and a syrupy drizzle of raspberry jam, chocolate or fruit. 

‘Tis Merely a Trifle

The souffle didn’t rise. The cake didn’t bake all the way through. Everything is going to be okay, I promise. 

If the cake is still raw, scoop it out of its pan and spread the scoops onto a jelly roll pan, or any pan bigger than your original dessert pan. Bake it until it’s cooked all the way through and let it cool. Then mentally divide your pieces into thirds. Take the first third and spread it out in a trifle bowl. (Don’t have a trifle bowl? Use a glass bowl. Don’t have that either? Use wine glasses and make individual servings.) 

Spread some pudding (easy microwavable chocolate pudding recipe here) over it. Then some whipped cream. Now you’re grooving. Do it again. Cake, pudding, whipped cream. Repeat until you run out of ingredients. There. Isn’t that pretty? 

Now, if the souffle didn’t rise, or it did, but then it fell back down, it’s probably because the air you whipped into it got pushed out when you folded the batter with egg whites. Also fine. Folding is hard! But what you have left is a dense cake. Great! What’s a nice contrast to dense cake? Tart and sweet fruit (like raspberry or strawberry jam) and an airy, lightly sweetened whipped cream. Get those going. 

Now scoop a bit (a third) of the souffle into a trifle dish or glass bowl. Then the whipped cream. Now the jam. (That order is important because you want the bright red jam to show up against the white whipped cream.) Repeat until you run out of ingredients! Always top with whipped cream. It gives a clean looking finishing touch. Beautiful. Now go grab some cabernet and enjoy yourself. 

Chicken Pot Pie

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With the cold Midwestern weather we’ve been having lately, I don’t think it gets better than chicken pot pie. A buttery crust sandwiching sweet carrots and corn, savory onions and celery, and weeknight chicken in a creamy bechamel sauce…I could watch the snow fall outside the window with a bowl (okay, or a pan) of this in my lap. 

Jim and Joe often pack this for their lunch during the week. This is a great recipe for meal prep, especially if you have a 9 x 13 pan. You can also halve the recipe and make it in an actual pie dish. 

PRO TIP: The crust is probably the most tedious part, but a good trick I use is dividing the dough in half, throwing some parchment paper in the pan, and pressing the dough into the pan. Then you just lift the parchment paper out and that’s the top part of your crust! After you’ve put in the filling, just flip the parchment paper back over and peel it back to reveal your perfectly rectangular crust!

This would be a pretty good soup, too… Maybe top it with a flaky biscuit? Oh, gosh. Yum. 

Chicken Pot Pie Recipe

Serves: 8-12
Prep time: 45 minutes
Bake time: 30 minutes

Nutrition: 375 calories per serving (when making 12 servings)

Ingredients

For the dough:
1 cup butter
1 cup water
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
3 cups flour

For the filling:
1 15 oz container mirepoix (from Trader Joe’s!)
1 cup corn (frozen or canned is fine)
3 tbsp butter
1 tbsp flour
2 1/2 cups whole milk
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tsp Better than Bullion chicken base
2 cups shredded Weeknight Chicken

Instructions

For the dough
1. In a medium pot, melt butter in water. Use a rubber spatula to swirl it around to encourage melting.
2. Add the salt and baking powder, stirring until they dissolve. 
3. Remove from heat. 
4. Add flour one cup at a time, incorporating the wet and dry ingredients together. You should have a sticky ball of dough once incorporated. 
5. Put in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. 

For the filling
1. In a large pot on medium heat, saute mirepoix and corn in butter until onions are translucent. 
2. Sprinkle flour over the vegetables and stir to coat.
3. Add in milk, cream, and chicken base. It will thicken! 
4. Bring to a simmer but do not boil. Then add the shredded chicken. 

Put it all together
1. Divide dough in half. Line a 9 x 13 baking pan with parchment paper so some of the paper is hanging over the sides of the pan. 
2. Press half of the dough into the bottom of the pan in an even layer. Remove the dough from the pan by lifting with the parchment paper on the sides. Set aside. 
3. Take the other half of the dough and press it directly into the bottom of the pan. 
4. Pour filling over the dough. Then take the parchment paper dough and invert it over the filling. Peel away the parchment paper. 
5. Bake at 350 F for 30 minutes. 

 

Weeknight Chicken

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Yummy!
Rated 5 out of 5

Weeknight Chicken

Serves: 6 (Makes 3 cups shredded)
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 4 hours

Nutrition: 230 calories per serving
11 g Fat
2 g Carbs
32 g Protein

Ingredients

2 lbs raw chicken breasts
1 cup 2% milk
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
4 cloves garlic, scored
1 sprig rosemary (optional)
3 sprigs thyme (optional)
2 tbsp Weber Grill Garlic & Herb seasoning (any all-purpose seasoning will work)

Instructions

1. Combine all the ingredients except the chicken in a gallon-sized freezer Ziploc bag, and shake to mix. 
2. Score the chicken breasts and place in the bag. Seal. 
3. Allow to marinade for 4 hours in the refrigerator.
4. Empty the entire contents of the bag into a dutch oven. Bring to a boil on high heat.
5. Cover and simmer on low heat for 4 hours

Jimmy’s S’more Bars

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If you’re like me, s’mores are a bit too messy. I end up breaking the graham cracker with the first bite and crumbs go flying everywhere, and inevitably I inhale a crumb and start choking because I’m a colossal dope who can’t breathe properly. In other words, I hate graham crackers. Cookies are better. Give me a cookie any day! 

Jim, on the other hand, loves s’mores. Chocolate and marshmallow are his kind of dessert. So I took our combined needs and came up with a treat that exchanges graham cracker with cookie crust and has chocolate and marshmallow! And peanut butter! 

Here in the Midwest, bars are a big part of dessert culture. We go beyond brownies. I hope you enjoy these s’more bars, and look out for more bar recipes soon! 

Uh, yum!
Rated 5 out of 5

Jimmy’s S’more Bars

Serves: 50
Prep time: 20 minutes
Bake time: 20 minutes



Nutrition: 90 calories per serving
4 g fat
14 g carbs
0.5 g protein

Ingredients

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 stick of butter
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking powder dissolved in 1 tsp water
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
5 oz Jet-Puffed Mini Marshmallows (half a bag!)
1/4 cup peanut butter

 

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.  

2. Cream butter and sugars until soft and fluffy. (Either a hand mixer or a standing mixer are fine!)
3. Add egg, vanilla, baking powder dissolved in water, and salt. Beat on low, slowly adding the flour until the dough forms.
4. Line an 8 x 8 baking pan with parchment paper. Split dough in half and spread one half in an even, flat layer on the parchment paper in the pan. 
5. Lift the spread dough out of the pan and set it aside. This will be the top layer of the bar.
6. Repeat step 4 with the other half of the dough. 
7. Toss chocolate chips on top of the dough in the pan. 
8. Add the marshmallows on top of the chocolate chips.
9. Spread an even layer of peanut butter on the dough that was set aside. 
10. Flip the dough onto the marshmallow layer and peel off the parchment paper. 
11. Bake for 20 minutes. Cool completely (chill, even!) before cutting. 

Chocolate Pudding

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This chocolate pudding is a family favorite. I like it hot. Jim likes it chilled. We both like it with some whipped cream on top! Bananas or berries make a great topping, too. 

And I’m serious when I say it takes ten minutes to make. IN THE MICROWAVE. Yeah!!!! If you’re in a pinch and you have to supply dessert, this is the fastest dessert recipe that doesn’t taste like processed snack food! 

I made this video at my dad’s house and he didn’t have any custard dishes, so I had a little fun getting creative with the presentation. Serving pudding in a wine glass makes it extra fancy looking. No one would ever suspect it took ten minutes to make! 

Oh, yum!
Rated 5 out of 5

Chocolate Pudding Recipe

Serves: 6-8
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 5 minutes



Nutrition: 160 calories per serving (when serving 8)
6 g Fat
22 g Carbs
3 g Protein

Ingredients

1/3 cup cocoa
1 cup sugar
3 tbsp cornstarch
1 cup half & half
1 cup milk
2 egg yolks
1 tbsp butter
2 oz Baker’s Semi-Sweet Chocolate (optional)
1 tsp almond extract or vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Whisk together cocoa, sugar, and cornstarch in a microwave safe bowl. 
2. Slowly add in the half & half and milk, whisking to get rid of lumps.
3. Microwave on high for 2-3 minutes. 
4. Take out and stir. The pudding should start to form. Put back in microwave for 2 minutes.
5. Take out and stir. It should be thick now and very hot.
6. Take out a small amount of the pudding in a small dish and slowly add the egg yolks, whisking gently until egg yolks and pudding are incorporated. Add back into the main pudding bowl and continue whisking.
7. Add butter, almond or vanilla extract, and Baker’s chocolate, if using. The Baker’s chocolate will make it thicker and more chocolatey, but it’s not necessary. 
8. Serve!*

*You can microwave it again for another 1-2 minutes after if you’re nervous about the egg yolks. I don’t, but it’s up to your preference. Just take care not to burn the pudding! The more you microwave it, the thicker it will get. If you do microwave it after adding the egg yolks, wait to add the vanilla or almond extract until after your last microwaving. 

Sweet Pea Risotto

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Risotto is one of those fancy foods. It requires a lot of attention when you’re making it, but the reward is delicious! This sweet pea risotto has a beautiful green color and is impressive as an entree or a side dish. It’s perfect for a cool, rainy spring day or for passing around the Easter table to go with your ham. Leftovers (if you have any!) can be rolled into little arancini bites. 

I really like having flavors balance and this risotto accomplishes just that. The peas and corn provide a little sweetness. The white wine gives a slight acidity to the rice. The Parmesan and prosciutto lend a salty savoriness. It’s perfect. 

Wow!
Rated 5 out of 5

Sweet Pea Risotto Recipe

Serves: 6-8
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes

Nutrition: 340 calories per serving (when serving 8)
11 g Fat
48 g Carbs
11 g Protein

Ingredients

For the puree
10 oz shelled English peas
1/2 onion, chopped 
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp Better than Bullion chicken base
3/4 cup water

For the rice
2 tbsp butter
1/2 onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups jasmine rice
2 tsp Better than Bullion chicken base
1 cup dry white wine
3 cups water
1 cup sweet corn (frozen or canned)
1/2 cup cream
2/3 cup Parmesan cheese
Salt to taste

Toppings
Broiled prosciutto or truffle oil

 

Instructions

For the puree
1. Sautee garlic and onion in butter on medium heat in a medium-sized pan until onions are translucent. 
2. Add peas and incorporate into onion-garlic mixture.
3. Spoon in chicken base and pour in water. (If you have chicken stock, you can use 3/4 – 1 cup of this instead.) 
4. Remove from heat after the peas have cooked in the water, 1-2 minutes. Do not overcook.
5. Puree in a food processor and set aside.

For the rice
1. Sautee onion in butter until onions on medium heat in a medium-sized pan until onions are translucent.
2. Add dry jasmine rice and continue stirring until glossy. You want to toast the rice a bit in the pan. 
3. Spoon in chicken base and 1 cup of wine. Stir quickly so the rice does not stick to the pan.
4. Lower the heat to medium-low and stir until the rice absorbs the liquid from the wine.
5. Adding 1 cup of water at a time, stir rice until the liquid is absorbed before adding the next cup of water. This part takes some babysitting! 
6. Once all the water has been added, stir in your sweet corn and remove from heat.
7. Add the puree, cream, and cheese to the rice, combining until completely mixed. Salt if desired.
8. Top with broiled prosciutto or truffle oil.
9. Enjoy!

Butternut Squash Tart

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On my first trip to Paris, I went to a little café for breakfast and ordered Quiche Poireau because the waiter might have recommended it in French and I just nodded anxiously. When I asked what a poireau was, he struggled to describe it, and I ended up picturing some kind of squash. 

Eventually I found out that “poireau” means “leek,” and Quiche Poireau is a delicate breakfast pastry of egg and chopped leeks in a golden crust. It is a perfect little slice of heaven. And if you haven’t had leeks before, they’re like a milder onion, but their skin is very thin and they fry up quickly.

However, when I came back to the U.S., I had squash quiche on the brain and came up with this recipe after a couple attempts. Rosemary and butternut squash are a great pair of bitter and sweet fragrance. A little feta cheese adds some tang and the eggs and Parmesan give it a creamy, savory element. It’s a lot of flavor.

The hot water crust is an old family recipe from my future mother-in-law who got the recipe from her mother-in-law. I like my crusts thick, but you can halve the recipe for a thinner, more delicate tart crust, which I think most people prefer.

This is a good recipe for week day meal prep for breakfast because you get about eight slices out of the tart. It is also a good side dish for Thanksgiving, or if you have a mini muffin tin, a very cute hors d’oeuvre.

 

You can call it a tart or a quiche. Have it for breakfast or offer it as a vegetable side dish on Thanksgiving or Christmas. Pass it around for brunch. It looks pretty and has all the flavors of fall and winter, namely squash, rosemary, and cream. Overall, it’s a little sweet, a little creamy, and mostly savory. Plus it has squash, so it’s healthy-ish…    

Uh, yum!
Rated 5 out of 5

Butternut Squash Tart Recipe

Serves: 8
Prep time: 45 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes


Nutrition: 100 calories per serving
5 g Fat
8 g Carbs
6 g Protein

Ingredients

3 sprigs of fresh rosemary, leaves removed from the stem and finely chopped
1-2 cloves of garlic
1 leek, chopped
12 oz cubed butternut squash (I use the Trader Joe’s kind)
1 tsp salt, divided
2 tbsp olive oil
1/4 cup raw pine nuts (optional)
5-6 eggs (up to you–eggs come in all sizes!)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (an additional 1/4 cup of feta cheese give this a nice, tangy flavor)
1/2 cup half and half
1 hot water crust (Pillsbury works fine, too!)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 F. 
2. Combine rosemary, garlic, leek, squash, 1/2 tsp of salt, oil, and pine nuts (if using) in a bowl. Mix until oil is evenly spread over squash. 
3. Spread mixture out onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake for 30 minutes. 
4. Once squash is done baking, transfer to a bowl and add 5-6 eggs to the mixture. Add half and half, Parmesan, and remaining 1/2 tsp of salt. 
5. Lower the oven temperature to 350 F.
6. Blend the mixture with a hand blender, food processor, or any other mixing appliance that will give a rough puree. 
7. Press Jane’s Hot Water Crust into a pie dish (or any ready-made pie crust).
8. Pour squash-egg mixture onto the crust.
9. Bake for 45-50 minutes. Tart will be a golden brown.
10. Allow to cool slightly before slicing.

A fun variation of this recipe is to make mini tartlets using a mini muffin tin. Press small tablespoons of the Hot Water Crust into a mini muffin tin. Spoon in 1 tbsp of pureed squash-egg mixture. Bake for 15 minutes. 

Jane’s Hot Water Crust

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This is the perfect crust for savory filled pastries, pies, and tarts. My future mother-in-law got the recipe from her mother-in-law. It’s very easy to work with–you don’t even need a rolling pin! I use it for chicken pot pie and quiches. Double the recipe if you want your pastry to have a top and bottom crust. 

Super!
Rated 5 out of 5

Jane’s Hot Water Crust Recipe

Serves: 8
Prep time: 10 minutes
Inactive time: 30 minutes
Bake time: 20-25 minutes


Nutrition: 185 calories per serving
12 g Fat
17 g Carbs
3 g Protein

Ingredients

1/2 cup of butter
1/2 cup water
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Instructions

1. Melt butter in a medium sauce pan with water.
2. Turn off heat.
3. Add flour, baking powder, and salt, stirring until a sticky dough forms. Shape into a ball.
4. Let the dough cool for about 30 minutes in the refrigerator. 
5. Press into a pie pan. Add filling and bake at 350 for at least 20 minutes.

*If doubling recipe, split dough in half. Line a 9″ x 13″ baking dish with parchment paper. Press first half of dough into the bottom of the pan until evenly spread. Lift the dough out of the pan with the parchment paper and set aside. Press the second half of dough into the bottom of the pan until evenly spread. Add filling. Place the first half of the dough that is on parchment paper dough side down on top of the filling and peel the parchment paper off. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.