Thank You, Dear Husband

Since posting my first entry for Challenge #1 of Project Food Blog, The Wild Ride of a Blogger, Baker, Tradition Maker, I’ve been in a kind of daze. A daze trying to catch up on all those things I pushed aside last week while trying to get my entry in on time.

I’m not usually a procrastinator, but it seemed as if I was this time around. I probably wrote and trashed a few thousand words before I decided on the focus of my entry. But, I guess that is me. I have a track record of writing, rewriting, trying again and again until I get down on paper exactly what I want to say. I’m the same way when it comes to cooking and baking. If I don’t succeed, I’ll try again.

That’s what happened last week, in the middle of my “I-have-to-think-of-a-focus-for-my-post” flurry, I made Galette Vieux Perouges – or, Lemon Sugar Bread. The cookbook had been sitting on the counter for several days now, and I had to break away from writing and get some frustration out in the kitchen. Unfortunately, it just added to my frustration.
From the start, the dough just didn’t feel right. Even after letting it sit to rise, it remained just a lump of dough. Still, I continued through with the recipe not wanting to dump the whole thing in the garbage. I flattened it out, zested the lemon and sprinkled sugar on top. Then, in true multitasking talent, I went to the office to catch up on emails and look over Greg’s shoulders as he sat toiling away on editing my video for my blog entry. You see, Greg is the master of the video. (He was also the master of frayed “I shouldn’t have decided to do this,” nerves of his hyper wife.)
While I was standing, staring over my husband’s shoulders, hoping my presence would make things go a bit faster, I totally forgot the bread.
 “Sh**!,” I yelled, and sped off, hurdling over one of the kids who was sitting on the floor, and headed for the kitchen. Burned crust, I was despondent. Mumbling a few words to myself, so as not to teach my children such vulgarities, I tossed it on the stovetop and walked away.
Shoulder’s slumped, I walked back to the office where my hard-at-work husband assured me it would all come together. But he had not yet seen the burnt lemon sugar bread.
I had to go for a walk. When I returned, the entire family was chomping away, happily, at the less-than-perfect lemon bread. I felt a bit better, as they all begged for more.
“Really?” I asked, wondering why they would even attempt to taste something so unappealing. Love, I guess – or hunger, as it was nearing dinnertime.
As the evening progressed, things got better. Greg continued to plug away at the video, compressing then uploading to YouTube, three separate times (because each time I’d see something I’d want to change).
Saturday evening as I went to bed, I was exhausted but assured that he would make that one last spelling change on the video and upload it for the third time. He was also in the middle of baking bread for the family-- something he miraculously found the time to do.

The next morning, there sat 4 loaves of beautiful bread on the counter.
A smile came to my face, and I realized that all of this support – help in getting the video together, help in calming my nerves, help in calming my frustration over the burnt bread, help in making bread for the family – that he needed to be treated to one of his favorite meal.
That evening it was grilled cheese. Yes, I said, grilled cheese. But this just isn’t any grilled cheese, it’s the Tyler Florence variety made with smoked mozzarella and pesto and accompanied by my oven baked sweet potato fries with maple syrup/barbecue sauce dip. He was very happy and grateful for the meal.
Then, as a treat for the entire family – myself included – it was a delicious Chocolate Pear Tart made with pears from our own backyard.
What a great ending to a hectic week.

Thanks, Greg, for all your support.
[And, if I make it to the next round, all that I will ask of him is to eat my Classics creation – of course, with a smile on his face. If I don’t make it to the next round, he gets to join me in the kitchen, as we continue to attempt the challenges on our own.]

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Chocolate Pear Tart

Serves: 8

Make pâte brisée
1 ½ cups flour
1 egg yolk
3 tbsp sugar
¾ tsp salt
7 tbsp unsalted butter


Sift flour onto a work surface and make a large well in the center. Pound the butter with a rolling pin to soften it. Put the butter, egg yolk, sugar and salt in the well. Work together with your fingertips until partly mixed. Gradually draw in the flour with a pastry scraper, pulling the dough into large crumbs using the fingertips of both hands. If the crumbs are dry, sprinkle with a tablespoon of water. Press the dough together. It should be soft, but not sticky. Work small portions of dough, pushing away from you on the work surface with the heel of your hand, then gathering it up with a scraper. Continue until the dough is smooth and pliable. Press the dough into a ball, wrap it and chill for 30 minutes or until firm. Can be refrigerated overnight, or frozen.

4 ounces semisweet chocolate
3 ripe dessert pears (about 1 lb)
2-3 tbsp sugar (for sprinkling)

For the custard
1 egg
1 egg yolk
½ cup light cream
½ tsp vanilla, or tsp kirsch


10-11 inch tart pan

Butter the tart generously, then sprinkle with sugar. Make the pâte brisée and chill it for 30 minutes. Roll out the dough to 1/8 inch thick and line the tart pan.

For the custard, beat the egg, egg yolk, cream, and vanilla until thoroughly mixed.

Heat the oven to 400 degrees F. Sprinkle the bottom of the tart with the chopped chocolate. Peel and thinly slice the pears crosswise; flatten the slices lightly. Arrange them in a flower petal design on the chocolate so that slices overlap. Spoon the custard so the surface of the pears is coated. Note: The custard should be visible between the pear slices. Sprinkle the pears with sugar.

Bake the tart well down near the base of the oven so the bottom cooks, 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to 350 degrees F and bake until the crust is brown and the custard set, 15-20 minutes longer. If the pears are not caramelized, brown them under a hot broiler for 2-3 minutes.