RBP 2012 Collection and Suculents (at Elawa Farm)
It feels like every season is the busiest time of year for Rare Bird, but when October hits, we have lots to do to capture all the fall fruits and prepare for the holiday season. Never the less, we keep making time for our Black Label jams. We are so proud to present the 4th edition of our Black Label Series - Quince Maple Raisin. This jam is the brain child of assistant Krystal, yet another French Pastry School graduate assisting Rare Bird. She has a love for and a keen sense of balancing fall flavors. We were all excited by her idea of experimenting with Quince. Quince is a hard, astringent and sour fruit (our blisters from chopping tell the tale), but high in natural pectin. When added with sugar, this time maple sugar, it transforms into a beautiful, complex and fragrant jam. Krystal’s desire to incorporate dried fruit and raisins in particular, led us to complement this preserves texture with golden raisins. This jam is wonderful paired with warm steel cut oats in the morning or pork or duck in the evening. Quince Raisin Maple Preserve is limited, and available on our web store and at upcoming markets this weekend Williams Sonoma Oak Brook on Saturday and our last Logan Square Market this Sunday.
Sweet and Savory with Fig Earl Grey Preserves
With the rapidly approaching fall season, and the abundance of figs, we have been busy making our popular Fig Earl Grey preserves. Chopping, scaling, mixing, macerating, heating, steeping, stirring, skimming, pouring, and jarring our heads off! Although we work intensely, we try not to miss a few calm, relaxed moments of a communal meal. During this time we can share creative ideas and recipes that our jams inspire us to make.
Recently we experimented with two recipes which incorporate the Fig Earl Grey jam in different ways. One from veteran jam maker and newly appointed Kitchen Manager, Amy. Amy was inspired by this delicious way to incorporate fig preserves into an open-faced sandwich while looking through Real Simple magazine. We bought a fresh baguette and a small block of Gruyere from a local farmer’s market. Elizabeth had some fresh arugula from a recent trip to Michigan. We assembled and toasted the sandwiches for our staff lunch and they were a tasty hit!
The second recipe was contributed by the newest addition to our staff. Madeline is a graduate of the French Pastry School, and recently completed their internship program. She has a special interest in making traditional, as well as gluten-free pastries. Madeline whipped up all the components for her tarts at home and assembled them for us as a treat after lunch. Her seasonal Mascarpone Frangipane Tart topped with RBP Fig Earl Grey is the perfect accompaniment to a warm cup of tea on crisp, fall day.
Give these simple recipes a try and enjoy!
Real Simple recipe for Fig Jam and Gruyere Sandwiches
Recipe for Mascarpone Frangipane Tarts topped with Fig Earl Grey Preserves:
Follow this simple Pate Sucree recipe via Martha Stewart - Sweet Tart Dough or see below for Gluten-Free tart dough recipe.
Frangipane Filling:
7 Tbs unsalted butter
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 Tbs All Purpose Flour
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3/4 cup ground almonds
Mascarpone Cream topping:
2 oz. heavy cream
4 oz. Mascarpone cheese
1 tsp. honey
1 Tbs. vanilla extract
Other Ingredients:
1pint Fresh, Sliced figs
1 jar RBP Fig Earl Grey Preserves
Directions:
Follow the instructions for Sweet Dough or Gluten-free dough. Let the dough rest for up to 8 hours in the refrigerator. Roll out and shape to desired tart sizes.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Frangipane Filling:
In a stand or hand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until very pale. Add eggs slowly, to incorporate into sugar/butter mixture. Add flour, vanilla, and ground almonds. Beat until smooth. Fill the bottoms of unbaked tart shells with the almond filling. Distribute the fresh, sliced figs evenly among the centers of the tart shells.
Bake for 35 minutes, or until pastry is crisp and frangipane filling is golden. Set aside to cool.
Mascarpone Cream topping:
Whip cream, mascarpone, vanilla, and honey until light and fluffy. Chill until ready to serve.
Assembly:
When ready to serve, spoon Mascarpone cream topping onto cooled tarts and smooth edges. Follow with a generous dollup of RBP Fig Earl Grey on top. (+ any fresh sliced figs you have left over) Gorgeous!
****Alternative Gluten Free Tart Dough
Ingredients:
2/3 c. rice flour
1/3 c. cornstarch
3 Tbs. cornmeal
1 Tbs. sweet rice flour
1/8 tsp. Salt
1 stock, cold unsalted butter
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg yolk
Directions:
Combine all dry ingredients in a food processor. Add butter and pulse until mixture forms a coarse meal texture. Slowly add egg yolks until just combined. Form dough into a disc and wrap with plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight.
Summer 2012 is flying by! With farmer’s markets and full-on jam production, sometimes we feel we are missing the joys of summer, a walk by the lake or an ice cold beer. We decided it was well past due for a new Black Label Edition jam utilizing summer crops and a bit of inspiration.
To celebrate Trisha’s one year anniversary here at Rare Bird Preserves, she created a stunning new jam called the Summer Berry Shandy. This preserve was made with Seedling Farm’s blueberries, raspberries in combination with black currants. As a collaborative jam, this was RBP’s first mixed berry preserve, but a long time favorite flavor of Trisha’s. Her unique addition of beer added flavor and complexity. Ebel’s Weiss beer, from Two Brothers Brewery (Warrenville, IL), was exactly what she needed to balance the strong berries and classic citrus tones of a shandy.
We featured this jam at the last Dose Market in July. A very short run of 14 jars sold out right away! Due to the small first batch, we decided to do a Vol. 2, of which we have sold half the batch from pre-orders. We still have 24 jars left, which will be available on our web store at rarebirdpreserves.com and Logan Square Farmer’s Market this Sunday or as long as the jars last.
Come try this delicious preserve and savor the last weeks of summer.
(top photo courtesy of Nathan Michael)
Anonymous asked - "Elizabeth, I am enjoying the curd and preserve you gave me at the NRA Show. Very delicious! Thanks a lot. I hope you are doing well. Best regards, Christoph (PolyScience)"
HI Christoph! so glad to hear you enjoyed the jam. Thanks for all the info at the show. Amazing and inspiring!
best,
Elizabeth
Cold Brew Ice Coffee - delicious!
With the temperatures rising and the abundance of the Midwest’s first crops, we are cooking like mad! The kitchen is hot and we need something to cool us down and keep us going. Using our very own Rare Bird coffee blend we found a iced coffee recipe that hits the spot.
The RBP Blend is a collaboration with local coffee roaster, Ipsento Cafe. Ipsento is known for their delicate, nuanced roasts that are a welcomed compliment to preserves. Half pound bags are available on our website for $8.
Here is a recipe we adapted with great results from the New York Times.
1 cup ground coffee (medium-coarse grind is best)
Milk (optional)
1. In a jar, stir together coffee and 4 1/2 cups of water. Cover and let rest at room temperature overnight or 12 hours.
2. Strain twice through a coffee filter, a fine-mesh sieve or a sieve lined with cheesecloth.
3. In a tall glass filled with ice, mix equal parts the coffee concentrate and water, or to taste. If desired, add milk.
Yum!
For the second round of the Black Label Edition we are pleased to present Amy’s inspired Pineapple Rum Pink Peppercorn preserve. This limited run of 37 12oz. jars can be purchased directly from us by emailing (info@rarebirdpreserves.com) for $20.00.
Amy graduated from the French Pastry School in December and has been one of our amazing part time assistants ever since. We were so happy to work on this project with her, as she had so many great ideas in what she was looking for in this flavor.
Amy choose pineapple as the starring flavor because it has always been one of her favorite fruits because it reminds her of warmth and sunshine. The versatility of the fruit also allows for both sweet and savory applications.
Using liquor as a preservative we were able to experiment with the technique and the nuanced flavors inherent in rum. Amy was happy to be able to incorporate New Holland Artisan Spirits Freshwater Huron white rum from her home state of Michigan (sourced from City Provisions). The pink peppercorns were a nice way to add some spice to cut some of the sweetness from the pineapple and incorporate a bit of color and texture to the jam. Visually, the pink peppercorns reminded Amy of polk dots, a pattern she is certainly drawn to!
It was also this special lady’s birthday this past week and in order to celebrate we whipped up a creme fraiche cake swirled with Pineapple Rum Pink Peppercorn jam. Incorporating this preserve into a cake enhanced the flavors found in the preserve and made the most addictive crispy crust. This is a recipe you can certainly have fun with by experimenting with your favorite flavors of RBP jam.
Creme Fraiche Cake with Pineapple Rum Pink Peppercorn Jam
(yields 2, 6” cakes)
6oz. Butter
1c. Sugar
3 Eggs
1t. Vanilla
2 1/2c. Flour
1T. Baking powder
1/2t. Salt
1 1/2c. Creme fraiche
TT Pineapple Rum Pink Peppercorn jam
TT Brown sugar (for sprinkling)
Preheat oven to 350 F. Prepare 2 6” cake rings or spring release pans by lining the outside with tin foil (if using cake ring) and brush with softened butter. In medium bowl combine flour, baking powder, and salt and whisk to combine.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment add butter and sugar. On high speed cream until light and fluffy, then scrape down sides of bowl.
With machine running at medium speed, add eggs one at a time, scraping sides between each addition. Then add vanilla.
On lowest speed add in half of the dry mixture, mix until almost incorporated. Add creme fraiche and mix until almost incorporated. Finally, add last half of dry mixture and mix until combined.
To assemble cake, portion enough batter to fill up to 2/3 of cake pan and spread evenly into the two pans. Next, spread an even layer of jam (about 1/4c.) on top of batter. Top with dollops of batter, then sprinkle liberally with brown sugar.
Bake for about 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow to cool then remove from cake ring or pan. To serve spread jam on top and sprinkle edges with powdered sugar (optional).
#Gilt Taste #Breakfast Box #Sale #Mother's Day #Strawberry Rhubarb Jam #Meyer Lemon Curd #Scone Mix #Coffee #Tea
It’s a Mother’s Day special! Click on over to Gilt Taste to find 20% off RBP’s breakfast box. Chock full of everything you need to make the perfect mother’s day breakfast or tea.
The box features: Strawberry Rhubarb Jam- 8oz. jar
Meyer Lemon Curd- 8oz. jar
Rare Bird Traditional Scone Mix- 1.5lbs.
Rare Bird Breakfast Tea by Todd & Holland- 1oz.
Rare Bird Coffe Blend by Ipsento- .5lbs.
