Our orchard is in full bloom, greenhouse experiments have run amok, and my oven is humming away on weekend mornings, with no other purpose than to take the chill out of the air before the sun comes up and we head out to plunge our hands into the dirt.

The one thing I stop doing by winter’s end is bake my own bread – my co-op holds fresh baked wheat-free boules for me twice a week, a luxury I look forward to when the days grow long and I spend every waking moment outdoors.  As a baking addict, though, I still need a quick fix – biscuits.

I’m a firm believer that a combination of shortening and butter are better than all of one or the other; that everything – this includes your mixing bowl and baking sheet, not just the ingredients – should be very very cold; and that there is room for both drop and cut biscuits, sometimes in the same day.

As a wheat-allergic vegan living in a fairly non-vegan friendly town, I’m also a firm believer that flexibility is essential if I want to continue feeding my family.  Which is why I didn’t hesitate to make biscuits when neither shortening nor butter were on hand.

Coconut cream drop biscuits

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These biscuits have an incredibly soft crumb, perfect for soaking up butter or preserves, and will be the building block of many a strawberry shortcake this summer.  The sprinkling of sugar is not necessary, but brings out the otherwise barely perceptible coconut flavor from the cream.  As mentioned above, you’ll want to chill all of your ingredients, your mixing bowl, and your baking sheet ahead of time.  For the bowl and baking sheet, just pop them into the freezer for a couple of minutes and you should be good to go.  If you’d rather not use parchment paper (I do so because wheat items are baked on the same trays and no amount of dishwashing makes me feel safe), there is no need to oil your baking tray.

§ § §

2 cups white spelt flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
1/4 cup solid coconut cream
3/4 cup unsweetened plant milk (I always use almond)
Large pinch of natural cane sugar

Preheat the oven to 400F/200C and position a rack in the center.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place in the refrigerator or freezer to chill while you mix up the dough.

Sift the dry ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl. Quickly rub the cream into the flour with your fingers until the pieces are the size of small pebbles; don’t worry if they aren’t uniform in size. Add the milk and stir until just incorporated; the dough will be sticky. Place the dough in the refrigerator to chill for at least 10 minutes, or longer if your oven is not yet preheated. Once the oven is ready, divide the dough into six portions, dropping them at least one inch apart on the baking sheet. Sprinkle the top of each biscuit lightly with sugar. Bake for 20 minutes, or until just beginning to brown around the edges and golden on top.

Yield: 6 biscuits

Prep time: 5 minutes | Cook time: 20 minutes

In preparation, I baked off and on for an entire day; meaning, I began around 8:30 in the morning and finished up as Saturday Night Live came to a close, a mere 17 hours later.

There were, of course, breaks: for floppy hat adjusting, turtle scouting, Goblin chasing.

Between bites of cookie, Nina recorded a turtle in her field journal with the seriousness of a National Geographic reporter. Our resident Goblin was introduced to said turtle; she was unimpressed.

{Our grumpy-faced Goblin is neither grumpy, nor a goblin. Discuss.}

Clover fields. Floppy hats. Turtles. Diligent and completely necessary does-this-taste-gluten-free? treat sampling. Meyer lemon sugar cookies with orange blossom icing. Tartlets. Spiced apple hand pies. Jammy dodgers.

Being ladies of leisure suits us just fine.

Coconut almond tartlets with chocolate mousse

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This crust recipe makes approximately 30-35 mini tartlets, by way of mini muffin tins.  If you want to make one large tart, there is enough crust for an 8×11-inch rectangular, or 9-inch round tart pan.  If you’re making one large crust, be sure to poke a few holes in the bottom of the crust with a fork.  The baking time will not change.  If you’re making the minis, there will be leftover mousse.  You’re welcome.  If you’re making one large tart, you’ll end up using most/all of the mousse.

§ § §

Crust:
1/2 cup sweet sorghum flour
1/2 cup finely shredded unsweetened coconut
1 cup almond meal
2/3 cup natural cane sugar
Small pinch fine grain sea salt
2 tablespoons unsweetened almond milk
4 – 6 tablespoons coconut oil, melted

Preheat oven to 350F/180C with racks in the top and bottom thirds. If your mini muffin trays are not non-stick, lightly oil them.

In a large bowl, sift all of the dry ingredients together. Add the almond milk and 4 tablespoons of the melted coconut oil, stirring until the dough is crumbly and holds together when pinched. If the dough is too dry, add the remaining coconut oil one tablespoon at a time. Scoop out a scant two teaspoons’ worth of dough and press into one of the mini muffin molds, completely covering the bottom and all sides. When all of your dough has been used, pre-bake the crusts for 12-14 minutes, until just barely golden. Set aside to cool while you prepare the mousse.

Chocolate mousse:
1 1/3 cups best quality semisweet chocolate chips
1/3 cup coconut cream
12 ounces silken tofu
1 teaspoon almond extract

Using a double boiler over low heat, melt the chips, stirring continuously. When the chips are almost completely melted, add the coconut cream. Continue stirring until the chips and coconut cream are fully incorporated. Remove from heat. In a food processor or blender, puree the silken tofu, chocolate mixture and almond extract until completely smooth.

Add a large dollop of mousse to each crust, and refrigerate overnight. The remaining mousse will keep in an airtight container for several days.

Yield: 30-35 mini tartlets (with leftover mousse), one 8×11-inch tart, or one 9-inch round tart

Prep time: 60 minutes | Cook time: 14 minutes | Refrigeration time: overnight/6+ hours

Before Sunset, #1: Celine singing A Waltz for Tonight, and Jesse realizing that it’s about him.
Before Sunset, #2:The last two lines of the movie:
…”Baby, you are gonna miss that plane.”
…”I know.”
Reading about my hometown in the Time Traveler’s Wife.
Singles; Roger Dodger; Big Night; basically, Campbell Scott.
Coconut lattes.
“Cause she’s the cheese and I’m the macaroni.”
The cinematic boys of my youth: Troy Dyer; Lloyd Dobler; Ronald Miller.
Taylor Kitsch in Friday Night Lights.

This cake.

The inspiration for this recipe comes from Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid’s HomeBaking: The Artful Mix of Flour and Tradition around the World.  I’ve tweaked it a bit to suit my family’s tastes, subbing olive oil and yogurt for the butter and reducing the sugar.  The result is a rich loaf cake that tastes divine straight out of the pan, or sliced thick and lightly toasted.

Coconut rum banana cake

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The trick to this loaf cake, I believe, is to purée – not mash – the banana. No rustic lumps and bumps for this batter; a smooth slurry makes all the difference. A dark, large grain sugar is preferable for sprinkling on top but not necessary. The demerara this recipe calls for will fill all the nooks and crannies of your batter, giving the top of this bread a nice bit of caramel-y, sugary crunch. A fine grain natural sugar tends to melt along the edges and crisp up down the center of the bread and tastes just as good. I suspect sucanat would be too dry. Lastly, frozen bananas are fantastic in this recipe.

§ § §

3 large, overripe bananas
2 cups spelt flour (I use 1 cup each of whole and white spelt)
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Pinch of fine grain salt
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup plain, unsweetened yogurt
3/4 cup natural cane sugar
1/8 teaspoon apple cider or distilled white vinegar
1 1/2 tablespoon rum (dark or light, your preference)
1/2 cup dried shredded unsweetened coconut
1 tablespoon demerara or turbinado sugar

Preheat the oven to 350F / 180C with a rack in the center. Line a standard-size loaf pan with parchment paper or lightly oil.

In a blender or food processor, purée the bananas and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, nutmeg, and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer), beat together the oil, yogurt and sugar until fluffy. Add the vinegar and rum, and beat to mix well. Add the banana purée and the flour mixture alternately, about 1 cup at a time, beginning with the banana and beating to just incorporate. Use a spatula to fold in any flour that has not been absorbed, and stir in the coconut. Do not overmix.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Smooth the top, and sprinkle evenly with the demerara sugar. Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until the top is nicely browned and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool on a wire rack for about 20 minutes; then turn the loaf out of the pan and allow it to cool completely.

I suspect this loaf will keep, wrapped well, for a few days; however it never lasts more than 36 hours in our house. I find it best the second day, cut thick, lightly toasted and dotted with homemade vegan banana butter.

Yield: 1 loaf

Prep time: 15 minutes | Cook time: 60 minutes

Green garlic, kale and pumpkin seed pesto

1 stalk green garlic, roots trimmed off
2-3 kale leaves, center stem removed
1-2 tablespoons raw, hulled pumpkin seeds
splash of olive oil
salt and white pepper to taste

cooked quinoa
spring onion, thinly sliced

Whir the garlic, kale, pumpkin seeds and olive oil together in a food processor – or better yet, pound it out with a mortar and pestle – and season to taste with salt and pepper.  Toss with steamed quinoa.  Top with sliced spring onions.  Resist the urge to devour immediately, and savor: the hint of grass inherent to quinoa as it pops between your teeth, mingling with the subtle sweetness of the green garlic and the sharpness of the spring onions.

Our friend Christine was there signing people up for the 2013 Vegan Pledge. Naturally, Nina wanted to help out.

This past weekend was also an occasion, a wonderful three-day laze-about-the-house affair. There were board games, hot cocoa, cast iron skillet Chicago style pizzas, and an accidental galette. Apple cinnamon, with a flaky rye-spelt crust. I had every intention of sleeping in that morning, but it was not to be. Instead, Nina found out firsthand what happens when you wake me up before sunrise on an otherwise lazy Sunday; you get to roll out pastry dough.

Apple cinnamon galette with flaky rye-spelt crust
Rustic rye dough adapted from Good to the Grain, by Kim Boyce
Filling adapted the teensiest bit from Oh, Ladycakes

This dough recipe makes enough for two 9-inch galettes; the filling is for just one.

Rustic Rye Dough

3/4 cup ice water

Dry Mix:
1 cup dark rye flour
1/2 cup dark spelt flour
1/2 cup light spelt flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt

Wet Mix:
6 ounces (1 1/2 sticks) cold unsalted vegan butter (coconut oil will not work)
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

Sift the dry ingredients into a large bowl, adding back any bits of grain or other ingredients that may remain in the sifter. Cut the butter into 1/2-inch pieces and add them to the dry mixture.

Rub the butter between your fingers, breaking it into smaller bits. Continue rubbing it until the butter is in sizes ranging from peas to hazelnuts. The more quickly you do this, the more the butter will stay solid, which is important for the success of the recipe.

Add the vinegar and 8 tablespoons of ice water to the flour mixture. Working from the outer edge of the flour, mix the ingredients with your hands just to moisten the flour. The dough needs to come together as mostly one lump, with a few shaggy pieces. Squeeze the dough together to see if a ball forms. If it is too dry to come together, add additional ice water 1 tablespoon at a time.

Pile the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap, sprinkle a few drops of water over the top, wrap tightly, and chill for a minimum of 1 hour or overnight.

Unwrap the dough onto a floured surface. Pat the dough into a square, then use a rolling pin to roll it into a rectangle about 8 1/2 by 11 inches. The dough will be crumbly and rough around the edges, but don’t add more flour or water, as it will come together during the rolling.

For the first turn, fold the dough into thirds like a letter. The seam should be on the left side. Turn the dough so that the seam is at the top and parallel to your body.

For the second turn, again roll the dough into an 8 1/2 x 11-inch rectangle and repeat the previous step.

For the third turn, repeat the previous step, then wrap the dough in plastic and chill for 1 hour or up to 3 days before using.

Apple cinnamon filling

4-5 apples (a mix of varieties is best), peeled and sliced into 1/4-1/2-inch pieces
2 tablespoons coconut oil
1/4 cup + 2 teaspoons turbinado sugar, divided
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

In a deep pot over medium heat, melt the coconut oil. Stir in 1/4 cup of sugar and the cinnamon; continue stirring until the mixture has thickened to syrup consistency, about 4-5 minutes. Add the apples and stir an additional 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool while you prepare the dough.

Assembling the galette

Cut the chilled rye dough into two pieces; wrap the piece you will not be using in plastic and return to the refrigerator to chill.

On a lightly floured surface, shape the remaining portion of dough into a rough circle about 15 inches in diameter. Transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Or, if your dough is being rolled out by a six-year old, perhaps consider rolling it directly on the parchment paper (lightly floured, of course). Transfer the parchment and circle of dough, together, to the baking sheet.

Using a slotted spoon, heap the apple pieces onto the middle of the dough circle. Fold an edge of the dough up toward the center to cover the fruit; about 3 inches of crust should be showing. Continue folding the edge of the dough toward the apples and over, creating folds; lightly pinch to seal as you go. Drizzle the syrup over the apple filling. (Unused syrup is fantastic on steel cut oats or ice cream.) Transfer the galette to the freezer for a minimum of 1 hour. At this point you could wrap the galette well and freeze for up to a month. If making more than one galette at a time, transfer this one to the freezer to chill while you prepare the next one.

At this point, position a rack in the center and preheat oven to 350 F / 180 C.

Once the galette is chilled from the freezer and the oven is hot, brush water around the edge of the dough and sprinkle liberally with the remaining 2 turbinado sugar. Bake for about 50-60 minutes, turning the pan halfway through. The galette is ready when the crust is golden brown. Serve warm from the oven if possible; tastes best eaten the same day it is made.

When I received a complimentary packet of Vegg in the mail a few months ago, I was excited to test out this new product. It smelled like egg! The fingertip dip test revealed that it tasted like egg! But … what if it actually resembled egg yolk? My enthusiasm was waning.

So. I could take the easy way out and hide Vegg in something like egg noodles, brioche, crème brûlée . . . or I could give myself over to the magic of kitchen alchemy and see what happened. The challenge I put to myself: make a traditional dish that features egg yolks prominently, but my former self still would have eaten. I am not exaggerating when I say it took me a month; runny egg yolks were the stuff of childhood nightmares.

I’m so glad I held out, though.

I turned to my culinary confidante regarding all things Italian, Marcella Hazan, and her recipe for this failproof dish. It’s carbonara in its simplest form – no messing about with distracting add-ins like peas, mint or cream. Just spaghetti, salt, pepper, pancetta, grated cheese, parsley and egg yolks. Or in my case: fake pancetta, cheese, and egg yolks. Even with vegan ingredients, though, my (non vegan) Italian husband said this was the best carbonara he’s had in ages.

Spaghetti alla carbonara + vegan parmesan
Adapted from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking, by Marcella Hazan

serves 3-4 

1/2 pound best quality spaghetti
1 1/2 teaspoons Vegg powder + 6 tablespoons water
4 slices bacon substitute – I’ve been playing around with this recipe
a few generous pinches of vegan parmesan (scroll down for recipe)
salt and pepper to taste
a few sprigs of parsley, minced

Put on a large, deep pot of liberally salted water to boil. Get your skillet ready to heat up your bacon, be it tempeh, tofu, or the adzuki bean/buckwheat version I’ve fallen in love with. Mince your parsley and grind your parm, then set both aside for later.

Make your Vegg: It’s very important to blend the powder and water well for several seconds, with an actual blender of some sort. Whisking will not suffice! I used my immersion blender, on high for about 30 seconds. If you don’t have an immersion blender, there are directions on the package for mixing up the entire packet in a stand blender, as well as how to store it.

Make your veg bacon: Time this so that your bacon is finished cooking right before you drain the pasta. Cut each strip of cooked bacon into half-inch pieces and leave in the skillet to stay warm.

Compose your dish: Drain your pasta and immediately transfer to a large bowl (if using gluten free pasta, rinse with hot water first so that it does not stick). Drizzle with Vegg and toss to coat evenly. Add some vegan parm, salt, and a few generous turns of the pepper mill; toss again. Taste and season as needed. Add the bacon and gently toss one more time. Plate out the individual portions and top each with an additional pinch of vegan parm and minced parsley.

Vegan parmesan

There are myriad vegan parmesan recipes floating around the ether, and I suspect many of them came into being as mine did — based on what was in the pantry. This is my contribution: simple, protein-packed, and quite satisfying.

Use this simple ratio and make as much – or as little – as you want.

1 part pine nuts : 2 parts hemp hearts : 2 parts nutritional yeast + 1 large pinch Himalayan (or another large grain) sea salt

Put all of the ingredients in your grinder or food processor, pulse briefly a few times, and sprinkle liberally on anything that could use a bit of umami.

I have no idea what took me so long, but I’m glad I finally participated! The idea behind the swap is to be paired up with someone in a different part of the country, get to know one another, and then send each other care packages.  Sort of like a Secret Santa, except you receive a gift you like. It happened to land within the Vegan Month of Food, which was a very nice touch. My care package swap partner was Tanya, and the box of goodies she sent was so good that Nina took off with half of it.

A mug, an owl, and a box of maple sugar candies are now the personal effects of my daughter. A box of maple sugar candies, you ask? Why yes, of course, they’re tucked under the owl’s wing. They’re the Tootsie Pop of the new millennium.

Everything else in the box seems to be perfectly timed with my upcoming race. The coffee will be cold brewed for my race day breakfast smoothie; the granola and multigrain hot cereal are breakfast staples; the wasabi nori has brought my bowls of miso-sesame sticky rice to new heights; the raw vegan protein powder worked so well in a recovery smoothie that I’ve picked up more packets to take with me on the road; and best of all, the chocolate almond butter packets are the perfect size for adding to the aforementioned race day breakfast smoothie.

Thank you, Tanya!

Marathon smoothie

For any runners out there who are wondering the how’s and when’s of this smoothie, here goes: if I’m running less than six miles, I drink only this smoothie, about 40 minutes before my run; if I’m running six or more miles, I pair it with a small pot of yogurt and fruit, two slices of this French toast, and two tablespoons of preserves, about 120 minutes before my run.

2 small bananas, cut into chunks and frozen
2 ounces cold brewed coffee concentrate
8 ounces almond milk
1/4 cup rolled oats
1 packet (1.15 oz) Justin’s Chocolate Amond Butter Spread

Blend everything until smooth, adding additional almond milk if needed. Drink immediately.

My fig tree finally started fruiting last month, and my kitchen garden has turned into a forest.

It’s not entirely unusual; but at the same time, my plants are producing longer and larger yields than in years past.  If I think about it too long, it’s a little unnerving.  I have row covers and cloches ready for the eventual cold snap.  I’m trying to convince all of our outdoor fauna that it will be getting colder.

For now, we’re just enjoying the greenness of everything.

I wonder if the same thing is happening elsewhere.  Specifically, wherever avocado harvests are taking place.  They’ve been on sale for the past six weeks or so, and the novelty of being able to buy affordable (!) organic avocados has yet to wear off.  Which means I’m buying them twice a week on my scheduled market runs.  In an effort to justify buying those knobbly, brown speckled beauties in such quantity, I decided to incorporate them into my family’s favorite muffin recipe.

Avocado Banana Chocolate Chunk Muffins

Dry ingredients:
3/4 cup sorghum or brown rice flour
1/2 cup quinoa or millet flour
1/2 cup potato starch
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon fine grained sea salt

Slurry:
2 tablespoons chia or flax seeds, ground to a powder (measure before grinding)
3 tablespoons boiling water

Wet ingredients:
2 medium-sized, ripe bananas
1 medium or large ripe avocado
2/3 cup maple syrup
1/3 cup softened coconut oil, or sunflower or olive oil (plus extra if using to coat pan)

Very important final ingredient:
1 small dark chocolate bar (1.5-1.75 oz), coarsely chopped

Preheat oven to 375 F / 190 C. Prepare muffin tray(s) with liners or a light coating of oil.

In a medium bowl, whisk together dry ingredients.  In a large bowl, mash up wet ingredients: bananas, avocado (a potato masher + the elbow grease of a small child get the job done best), syrup, and oil.

Put the ground chia or flax seeds into a small bowl, add the boiling water, and whisk vigorously.  Your slurry will thicken instantly.  Add the slurry to the wet ingredients and stir to combine thoroughly.  Add the dry ingredients and stir just until all flour is absorbed. Take a taste!  That’s right, go on now.  No fear of salmonella happening on my watch.  Sweeten a bit more if you’d like (we all have our own preferences).  And most importantly - fold in the chocolate.

Portion the batter into muffin tray(s) 3/4 of the way full, and bake: 25 minutes for regular sized / 15 minutes for minis, or until the tops are starting to brown.

If you don’t have an avocado, use two more small or medium bananas and your muffins will look like this:

Yield: 15 regular or 40 mini muffins

During the development/testing phase, I cull my favorites for easy access into a clearly marked folder with every intention of sharing them when the time is right. It’s a thick folder, the spine wearing thin and papers trying to burst from the confines of the industrial strength rubber band holding it all together. It’s an ignored folder, one that is added to often, pulled down when I want to make a favorite recipe, and then re-shelved on my kitchen bookshelf where it melts back into obscurity.

All that is to say that I’m going to make an effort to share more with you from my recipe testing archive, recipes I’ve made so many times that I usually don’t even need to reach for my disintegrating folder, let alone the actual cookbook.

It’s pumpkin season around here, and since winter squash is one of the few things I don’t actually grow on my own little farm, we get very excited about making the rounds to pumpkin patches, the farmers’ market, our co-op, the farm across the road, and my in-laws garden. That’s a lot of squash, folks. And a lot of squash seeds. And thanks to Dynise, I know exactly what to do with them.

Candied squash seeds
Adapted from Celabrate Vegan by Dynise Balcavage

Seeds from butternut and other winter squash can be used in place of pumpkin seeds, if you have them. This recipe is easily be doubled or tripled, just be sure that your pan is big enough to accommodate the increased volume.

1 cup fresh pumpkin seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted
1/2 cup muscovado sugar
2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary
2 teaspoons minced fresh oregano
¼ teaspoon fine grain salt
1 tablespoon coconut oil

Preheat the oven to 350 F / 175 C. Clean the seeds and pat them dry. Spread them out in a single layer on a parchment-lined or lightly oiled baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes, until lightly toasted and golden.

While the pumpkin seeds are cooling, toast the cumin seeds over medium heat in a dry skillet until fragrant, about five minutes. Grind the seeds. In a small bowl, sift together the sugar, ground cumin, minced herbs and salt.

In a deep pot, heat the coconut oil over medium heat. Add the sugar mixture and pumpkin seeds and stir to combine – it will be clumpy. Increase the heat to medium/high and stir often. Over the next five to seven minutes, the sugar mixture will first take on a sandy appearance, then caramelize, clinging to the seeds. As soon as this happens, turn off the heat and transfer the seeds back to the baking sheet. The candied seeds will harden as they cool.

Yield: One heaping cup

I had planned to make scones, those dense, sweet biscuits that take all but a minute to whip up. I had a monster of a long run planned that was going to keep me away from home for hours. Scones would both feed my family and make me feel productive at the same time. But then – a torrential downpour combined with a 20-degree drop in temperature made me reconsider. What was supposed to be a short, no nonsense pre-dawn stint before heading out for an 18-miler turned into a long, languorous morning/afternoon in the kitchen.

If the thought of making croissants sounds intimidating, just make them any shape other than a crescent, and voilà! – you have yourself a danish. Same dough, easier to pronounce name. Even better than the name is Kim Boyce’s technique for getting butter into the dough. I see a lot of not-croissants in my future.

Buckwheat cherry danish
Adapted from Good to the Grain by Kim Boyce

Dry mix:
1/2 cup buckwheat flour
1 cup white spelt flour
3 tablespoons sugar
3/4 teaspoons kosher salt

3 ounces unsalted vegan butter, frozen

Wet mix:
1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon almond or soy milk, warmed to 100 F / 38 C

Filling:
1/4 – 1/2 cup filling
Use less for preserves, more for a fruit butter or paste

Sift the dry ingredients together in a bowl. Using the large holes of a box grater, quickly grate the frozen butter into the dry mixture. Briefly toss with your hands to stir the butter into the mix, then place in the refrigerator to chill while you continue with the recipe.

Combine the warm milk and yeast in a small bowl and allow to bloom, anywhere from 2 to 5 minutes. Scrape the yeast mixture into the dry and stir just until the flour is moistened. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least two hours. This dough can be chilled overnight.

Once the dough has chilled for at least 2 hours, transfer it from the bowl to a well-floured surface. Flour the top of the dough and use your hands to press it into a rough square. The dough will have a rough texture at first, but comes together quickly. Use a rolling pin to roll it out into a long rectangle (9-by-15-inches or so), and position the longer side parallel to your body. Fold the dough into thirds, like a letter. You’ll need to use a bench scraper when making the folds. Turn the dough to the right, so that the seam is a the top and the longer side is once again parallel to your body. This is your first turn. Flour the top of the dough, roll out into a large rectangle, and repeat two more times (for a total of three turns). As you do the turns, the dough will become more cohesive and streaks of butter will begin to show throughout. The dough will also soften as the butter warms and the yeast begins to react. After your third turn, shape the dough into a 12-by-8-inch rectangle. Place the dough back into the refrigerator for 10 minutes or so to chill briefly.

After the dough has chilled, spread the filling out over the entire rectangle. With the shorter edge parallel to your body, roll up the dough into a tight spiral. Cut into 6 even slices and arrange them, spiral side up, on a parchment-lined or buttered baking sheet. Cover loosely with plastic wrap or a towel and leave in a warm area to proof for two hours.  The spirals will swell somewhat, but will not double in size.

Preheat the oven to 425 F / 218 C. Bake for 15-18 minutes, rotating the sheet halfway through. The pastries are finished when their tops are golden brown. Best eaten the same day they are made.

Yield: six pastries