blog — molly yeh

brunch

rhubarb rose jam

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Happy Sunday!!! It feels weird to have my computer open on a Sunday but Cousin Elaine and I made this rhubarb rose jam yesterday that I am first-day-of-summer-camp excited about. I wanted to write it down ASAP so I wouldn’t forget it and also so that we can all have time to make it over and over before rhubarb season ends. 

It is based on Claire Ptak’s rhubarb and angelica jam from The Violet Bakery Cookbook, only I’ve swapped out angelica and added vanilla bean and rosewater. Rosewater might be my favorite friend of rhubarb and because I was making this jam as party favors for Rob and Hansaem’s very elegant wedding in Paris later this month, I figured rosewater would be the perfect addition. And the vanilla bean just kind of gives the whole thing a luxurious hug. 

The measurements below are for a very big batch (triple of Claire’s), this made enough to fill 25 cute 2-oz Weck jars, and my 5.5 quart dutch oven was the perfect size to hold everything. If you don’t have a jungle of rhubarb in your yard that you need to use up or a zillion party favors to make, you can either get your calculator out and calculate a third of these ingredients (the timings stay the same), or come over and take some of my rhubarb. 

In a good container with a tight fitting lid, this will keep in the fridge for up to a month, but of course you can also can it with sterilized jars and seals and the whole bit. Yesterday was my first time doing the latter! Cousin Elaine is the canning expert of the family, so she and I spent the afternoon sterilizing jars and dipping things into boiling water to kill the cooties. Canning always seemed intimidating to me when I read about it on paper but when Elaine walked me through the process it all made complete sense. So if you’re considering canning for the first time, my biggest recommendation would be to get yourself a Cousin Elaine.

Happing Jamming!!

Rhubarb Rose Jam

Makes enough to fill 25 cute 2-oz jars

ingredients

1,500g (3 lb 6 oz) rhubarb, chopped into small pieces

1,125g (5 1/2 cups + 2 tb) sugar

juice of 3 lemons

1 tsp rosewater

1 tb vanilla bean paste or 1 vanilla bean, scraped

clues

In a large heavy pot, combine the rhubarb and half of the sugar. Cover and macerate at room temp for 1 hour. 

Add the remaining sugar and lemon juice to the pot and bring to a boil over medium high heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Once it comes to a boil, let it boil rapidly over medium high heat, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes. It might get a little spitty, so be careful and wear an apron, and if it gets too wild you can reduce the heat a little bit. It’s ready when most of the rhubarb is translucent and the consistency has thickened (it will continue to thicken as it cools). Reduce the heat to low and stir in the rosewater and vanilla bean. Carefully give it a taste to see if the rosewater is where you want it. 

Spoon into sterilized jars and seal or transfer to containers and keep in the fridge for up to a month. 

-yeh!

blintz baked french toast

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Hi! We are back from our Passover trip to Whistler and catching up on all of the missed pita and pizza, with stretchy pants for the assist!! But enough about bread for now because we first need to talk about how Whistler is the supermodel of… the Earth??? How come none of you told me to go there sooner?? Its beauty literally almost brought me to tears (Me! Your least mushy friend!). Every time we found ourselves cruising along a mountain, by ski or snowshoe, I thought I was dreaming or dead or on the set of Captain Fantastic. Sure, I’ve seen mountains and evergreens before, but these mountains were covered with the tallest, greenest, handsomest trees and happy little streams that flowed everywhere. All they were missing were baby brown bears sitting near these streams, fishing for lunch.

The skiing was way better than I could have imagined. We started off on the green paths and enjoyed the long winding coasts to the bottom but then worked up the gumption to go down some blues. My favorite path was called Burnt Stew. It started way above the tree line and had that same sort of whoosh whoosh sound that you hear anytime the camera cuts to Jon Snow standing on top of The Wall. I thought it was going to be scary but then most of the run was just like zooming down into a big ass bowl of powdered sugar. Anytime there was a steep bit I just did my thing of saying “Lindsey Vonn” out loud to myself and then it was ok. 

When we weren’t skiing, we hung out with Lyndsay and Stephanie who drove up from Vancouver <3 <3, walked around the cute as a button Whistler Village, chilled out at the silent amazing Scandinave Spa, and après-skied with the Pesach on the Mountain crew who hooked it up with the chocolate fountains and k for p s’mores. Our hardest decision every day was should we begin our après-ski with the chocolate fountain or the hot tub? Which is the sign of a dope trip. 10/10 would recommend getting your butt to Whistler (and I also hear that it is equally fantastic if not *prettier* in the summer time?!) and 10/10 would also recommend Pesach on the Mountain if you're in the market for a Passover program!

Here are a few photos from our trip. I really didn't take too many because I was busy being ~present~ and also afraid that I'd drop my phone off the side of the ski lift or into the hot tub.

And now for the chametz!! I’ve been sitting on this recipe since summer camp last year when we featured it as one of the breakfasts. We had to make enough for 150 people and it was miraculously easy! So if it’s easy to make for 150 people, you can deduce how easy it is to make for eight. It is a delicious prep-ahead brunch situation that is basically the innards of a blintz poured over thick eggy challah. I love blintzes because they straddle that line between savory and sweet. You can add sugar and fruit to make them totally sweet, or caramelized onions to go the savory route (see: Molly on the Range for that one)! My fave blintz filling ingredients like ricotta, nutmeg, and a bit of lemon zest here make this french toast extra special. It's sweet, but not too sweet (although we should probably do a savory version soon covered in caramelized onions and some sharper cheeses, right??), and it can all be prepped the day before and popped in the oven the morning of your brunch for a meal that doesn't mind if you're totally hungover.

Here I've used a half batch of the basic challah recipe from Molly on the Range and baked it in a pullman loaf pan because I love those perfectly square edges. But if you have access to a good store-bought challah (or even a bad one! the egg mixture will moisten it up and bring it back to life!) then totes do that.

blintz baked french toast

serves 8

ingredients

1/4 c (57g) unsalted butter, melted

12 thick slices day old challah

6 tb (75g) brown sugar

1 t cinnamon

1/8 tsp ground nutmeg 

1/8 tsp ground cardamom

6 large eggs

1 c (240g) whole milk

2/3 c (165g) whole milk or part skim ricotta

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

zest of 1 lemon

Blueberries, for serving

Powdered sugar, for serving

clues

Pour the melted butter in a 9x13 casserole dish and layer in 6 slices of bread. Sprinkle on half of the sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamom. Layer on remaining slices of bread. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, ricotta, salt, vanilla, and lemon zest and pour it on. Sprinkle with remaining sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamom. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Bake covered at 350ºf for 30 minutes, and then uncovered for 15 minutes, until browned. Top with berries and powdered sugar and serve!

Note: You can also arrange the bread slices as pictured, in an 8x12 casserole, sprinkling each slice with some of the sugar and spices before lining them up domino style. The custard won’t get as evenly distributed (the top parts will be a little crisper and the bottom will be super custardy), but it looks cool!!!

-yeh!

pictured: mugs by marian bull, plates and casserole dish from ikea, butter warmer from dansk

chocolate chip rosemary scones + eggsister's bridal shower!

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alright, we defrosted the princess cakes successfully and pulled off a super fun scandinavian woodland tea party bridal shower for eggsister!!!! we held it out in the woods behind our house last weekend and showered eggsister with love and giggles before it actually showered raindrops. organizing showers might be my new favorite hobby so i told eggsister and eggsisterfiancé this weekend at the twins game to get to werk on miniature humans asap so that i can plan a baby shower.

here was our menu!

rhubarb princess cakes

rose petits fours- from erin’s book which will be out this fall. they were so good and rosy and moist, that recipe alone would make buying her book worth it so go preorder it right this second (and zomg watch the trailer on her preorder page it's so hypnotizing and satisfying).

sprinkle cookies and elderberry jelly thumbprints- used this dough for both

strawberry oreos 

chocolate chip rosemary scones (see below)

a little woodland cake- vanilla cake with nutella frosting, decorated with crushed cookie "dirt," buttercream succulents, fresh rosemary, dala horse cookies, almonds, sprinkles, shaved rhubarb roses, a marzipan sign painted with food coloring, and marzipan mushrooms. yes, i went wild with the toothpicks to make sure everything stayed in place. 

tea sandwiches- egg salad, pimento cheese, baloney (eggsister’s idea not mine but you know i jumped at the opportunity to buy baloney)

chopped veggies with yogurt ranch- i’m putting that recipe in my yogurt book!

my mom’s quiche! and i even used homemade pie crust (sarah’s crust!) the quiche recipe is on a super old newspaper clipping that my mom put in a homemade cookbook for me a long time ago, but one of our shower guests was asking for it so here it is: pre-bake a pie shell for 10 min at 375. combine these: 5 eggs, 1 1/2 c half and half, 1/4 tsp dry mustard, 1/8 tsp pepper, 1/16 tsp cayenne, 1/8 tsp nutmeg, 1/4 tsp salt, 1 1/4 c grated gruyere or swiss, 1 c finely chopped onion (softened in a skillet for 5-7 min), 8 strips bacon or 1/2 c ham. pour into pie shell, bake at 375 until set (begin checking for doneness at 45 min). 

rhubarb hibiscus tea- from shelly’s book and everybody loved it! it wasn’t too sweet and the color was such a pretty shade of pink that the clear glass bottles of it were like decorations themselves. 

here are some make-ahead tips in case you’re planning a shower: pretty much all of the sweet things could be made ahead. the princess cakes, cookies, and scones are able to be fully assembled and then frozen for up to a couple of weeks in advance. defrost in the fridge the day before and then bring to room temp the day of. i made the cake and the petits fours a few days before and stored them in the fridge. i prepped the sandwich fillings the day before and assembled the sandwiches the day of. and the quiche i also made the day before and then stored in the fridge until it was time for the party. 

for decorations, we referred to melissa’s book, scandinavian gatherings. that book is so stinkin cute. eggboy and i made the mushroom felt garland, the polymer clay mushroom sandwich picks, and the teacup terrariums using vintage teacups that have been in the eggfamily for generations. and eggboy made the tiered tree trunk stands from trunks in our yard! 

we also made flower crowns! we used pipe cleaners instead of floral tape since they were easier to distribute to all of the guests, but they came out so beautifully and convinced eggsister to have flower crowns at her wedding. our surprise decoration/activity was a homemade dala horse piñata. his name was bojack horseman. we made him a few weeks ago out of cardboard and a whole lot of packing tape (no need to do the paper mache thing, it turns out!) and hid him in a closet until the party. every so often we’d take him out and admire our work, which up close looked a little *rustic* but still we were really proud. i actually got kind of sad when it was time to whack him with a stick. luckily only his belly broke to let out all of the gummy bears and ring pops and the rest of him stayed in tact. no one except for little eleanor the flower girl went for the candy, everyone was sugared out. so our job was complete!

happy almost wedding, eggsister!!!!!!!!!

here is the recipe that i used for the chocolate chip rosemary scones. they are a basic buttery scone that have been infused with fresh rosemary. i added a bit of orange zest too because i always feel like that helps accentuate the rosemary flavor in the way that espresso boosts cocoa and cinnamon boosts tahini. great aunt ethel said that these were the best scones she’s ever had! i’ll take it, especially from ethel because she is a baking queen. 

and like all things that i infuse with one herb, i suddenly want to try them out with other herbs. mint chocolate chip scones? basil chocolate chip scones????

chocolate chip rosemary scones

makes 15 scones

ingredients

for the scones:

2 c (240g) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

1 tb baking powder

1 tsp kosher salt

6 tb (75g) sugar

zest of 1/2 orange

1/2 c (113g) unsalted butter, cold and cut into 1/2" cubes

6 oz (170g) chocolate chips

1/2 c (113g) rosemary cream (recipe below)

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

 

for the glaze:

3 tb (40g) reserved infused rosemary cream

1 c (120g) powdered sugar

pinch of kosher salt

clues

for the scones:

preheat the oven to 400ºf. line two baking sheets with parchment and set aside.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and orange zest. pulse to combine. add the butter and continue to pulse until butter is pea-sized. 

pour the mixture into a large bowl and then add the chocolate chips.

In a medium bowl, whisk together rosemary cream, egg, and vanilla extract. Add to the dry ingredients, and mix until just combined.

Turn the dough out onto a surface dusted with flour and roll it out to 1" thick. cut out 2" circles using a biscuit cutter and place on baking sheets, 1 1/2" apart. bake until bottoms are lightly browned, beginning checking for doneness at 12 minutes.

let cool for 10 minutes on the pan, then transfer to a wire rack.

for the glaze:

Combine reserved cream with the powdered sugar and a pinch of salt. Mix until spreadable (if it’s too thick, add a bit of water or additional heavy cream bit by bit until it’s spreadable).

spoon the glaze over the scones while they’re still warm. enjoy!

infused rosemary cream

ingredients

1 c (227g) heavy cream

4 sprigs fresh rosemary

clues

add the heavy cream and rosemary springs to a small saucepan. bring to simmer over medium high heat, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring often. let cool then strain out the rosemary. store in the fridge until ready to use. 

-yeh!

lemon poppyseed olive oil muffins

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In my experience, muffins have the ability to be really really bad or really really good. The ratio of bad to good muffins in this world is something depressing, like 2:1, and their lack of nutritional value doesn’t ever work in their favor too. Like, if you’re going to eat that much junk for breakfast, why not go all the way, add a little more sugar and have a slice of cake, you know? I mostly avoid the risk of eating muffins except for when it comes to two equal and opposite specimens: the mini lemon poppyseed kind that come in clear plastic packages in the bakery section of the grocery store that I would devour by the dozen as a wee one, and the large triumphant muffins from Blue Sky Bakery in Park Slope which will be the last remaining muffins on earth once everyone realizes that most muffins blow hard. Both of these muffins transcend the universal muffin problem of what to do with the muffin bottom once you’ve ripped off, buttered, and eaten the lesser evil muffin top, for the grocery store lemon poppyseed muffin’s homogenous squishy texture from the outside in makes the top no different from the bottom, and Blue Sky’s oft filled muffin bottoms read like moist sour cream coffee cakes. 

And here’s a third muffin option that combines my lifelong love for lemon poppyseed with my tendency to root for the underdog: it’s a topless muffin. A stubby breakfast cake that’s moistened with olive oil, beefed up with almond meal, and is as good as a muffin top. It works because parchment muffin liners are nary seen in this recipe, therefore allowing the outer edges of the muffin to get caramelized and crusty, just like a top would be. So it’s kind of like this whole thing is a muffin top with a shape that’s easier to grab onto. And are they kind of just an unfrosted mini cake in disguise as a more socially accepted breakfast food? Yeah, that’s pretty much exactly what they are.

Jumbo muffin tins (7.1 ounce capacity) make these muffins the perfect size. (I don’t recommend making them in standard cupcake tins, as the small size doesn’t allow for the full effect. In a pinch, using a 9” cake pan will work, but plan for more baking time.) These muffins are just as good the next day so add these to your list of brunch things that can be made ahead of time. Serve them with a light dusting of powdered sugar, and perhaps some yogurt and berries for a sweet simple breakfast.

lemon poppyseed olive oil muffins

makes 12 jumbo muffins

ingredients

1 1/2 c sugar

2 c flour

3/4 c almond meal

1 1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

4 tsp poppy seeds

4 tsp lemon zest

3 eggs

1 1/2 c olive oil

1/4 c lemon juice

3/4 c whole milk

1 tsp almond extract

Powdered sugar, for serving

clues

preheat the oven to 350ºF. coat 12 jumbo nonstick muffin tins with cooking spray and set aside.

in a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, flour, almond meal, salt, baking soda, baking powder, poppy seeds, and lemon zest. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, olive oil, lemon juice, milk, and almond extract. add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir to combine. distribute the batter evenly amongst the muffin tins and bake until the edges are deep golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. begin checking for doneness at 28 minutes. 

cool in the pan on a rack for 15 minutes. run a small offset spatula around the edges and remove to the rack. serve warm or cool completely and then serve. dust with powdered sugar before serving.

-yeh!