There’s something fun and festive about pull-apart bread, and this recipe is sure to bring the “wow” to your holiday spread. Golden crust on the outside, soft and fluffy insides, it’s versatile and easy to put together on the fly. Here we’ve shaped it into a Christmas tree, but the shape is limited only by your imagination.
You can switch things up depending on the dough you have on hand (adjusting baking instructions accordingly) and the filling you’d like. Pesto, zhug and other herb or tomato-based sauces can work as well.
Ingredients
2 8-oz packages crescent roll dough (we used Immaculate brand)
Small bit of flour
¾ cup chimichurri sauce
1 cup shredded mozzarella
¼ cup grated Parmesan
1 egg
1 Tbsp water
Fresh cherry tomatoes and parsley sprigs for garnish
Optional: Marinara sauce for dipping
Directions
Preheat oven to 375°. Get an edged sheet pan with parchment paper.
Open crescent roll dough and lay on a large, lightly-floured cutting board. Take two of the pre-perforated triangle shapes from the rectangle of dough and reposition them so the shape is now a triangle. Gently push together perforations and roll dough so the triangle is about 15” long. Carefully move to a parchment-lined sheet pan.
Spread sauce evenly over triangle surface, then sprinkle shredded cheese and then Parmesan across the same area. Create the same triangular shape with the other package of dough. Gently place it on top of the first, matching and gently pinching together the edges.
Lay a ruler down the middle of the tree for a visual of the “trunk.” Using a serrated knife, cut inward to the “trunk” so that each “branch” is about 1 inch thick. Repeat top to bottom and on both sides, so there are plenty of tasty branches for folks to enjoy without cutting through the trunk that’ll hold everything together, and a nice, pointed treetop.
Take the two bottom branches and fold them a few times toward the center. This will be the tree trunk. Then, carefully pick each branch up and give it 2-3 evenly-spaced, gentle twists – depending on how long the branch is. Beat egg with water and brush onto tree.
Bake until golden brown, about 15-18 minutes. Allow to cool slightly.
Garnish with several cherry tomatoes and parsley sprigs arranged like holly sprigs. Serve with marinara sauce for dipping.
You know how to make Irish Cream and can surprise your friends with this easy and absolutely delicious holiday gift that is ready in 30 minutes.
The origins of Irish Cream are a bit opaque, but seem to mostly point in the direction of a marketing effort in the 1970s by Gilbey’s of Ireland concocted by an Englishman…yes, that would be Baileys.
This recipe was gifted to us by Grass Valley born and bred Sarah Cain, an expert cordial and spirit maker. Now based in Vallejo, Cain currently works in beautiful, molded chocolate. Learn more at spiritedsweetschocolates.com.
Drink with a bit of ice, or mix with some coffee, for an Irish coffee. There are loads of fun cocktails to enjoy once you’ve made your liqueur.
Ingredients
750ml Whiskey (your choice of style, but buy something you’d like to sip!)
Dairy version: Cream base
1cup heavy cream (or ½ & ½)
1cup dark brown sugar
¼ cup dark roast coffee beans – coarsely cracked
¼ cup cacao nibs
1 14oz can sweetened condensed milk
Non-dairy version: Coconut milk base
2 14oz cans coconut milk (full fat!) – you could also sub 1 can for 14oz coconut cream (thicker)
2 cups dark brown sugar
¼ cup dark roast coffee beans – coarsely cracked
¼ cup cacao nibs
Directions
Combine the cream/coconut milk), brown sugar, coffee and cacao nibs in a heavy saucepan. Bring to a gentle boil over medium heat, stirring frequently, especially as the mixture approaches a boil. Remove from the heat and let steep for 10 minutes.
Strain through a fine mesh strainer into a clean jar and stir in the condensed milk, then stir in whiskey. Store in the refrigerator. Use within a month.
A fun, refreshing & slightly spicy non-alcoholic version of the Mexican Mule. Fancy enough to have at a holiday party, but cool enough to drink on a hot summer night too.
Because this mule is alcohol free it’s perfect for designated drivers, kids, expecting moms or anyone who just doesn’t want to drink alcohol.
In a mule cup or short cocktail glass, add ginger beer, lime juice, orange juice and Ritual. Stir gently. Add ice. Place a few jalapeño slices on top. Enjoy!
Fall is in the air, and we’ve got a treat that’s perfect for the season – Dairy-Free Caramel Apples. Our recipe features a rich, dairy-free caramel sauce that’s perfect for coating crisp apples. Whether you’re enjoying a cozy evening by the fire or hosting a fall gathering, these caramel apples are the ultimate indulgence without dairy. So, grab your apples, roll up your sleeves, and let’s get cooking – it’s time to celebrate the flavors of fall like never before!
Parchment paper cut into squares about 10″, for every apple
Apple sticks or forks
Directions
Wash apples and chill.
Add coconut milk to pot, heat to almost boiling on med-high heat.
Slowly over about 5 minutes add Cocomels to coconut milk while stirring constantly.
Once dissolved, boil sauce on medium heat until its temp reaches 230° F. If you don’t have a thermometer it is about 10 minutes-ish of boiling. Keep stirring!
When sauce reaches 240 ° F (or your best guess), remove from heat.
CAUTION: THIS IS HOT LAVA!
Insert sticks or forks into your apples and dip into sauce, covering apple up to the stick. Put on parchment square, fold up sides to keep as much hot sauce on apple as possible. Let cool fully – about 1 hour. Remove parchment slowly – if still sticky, let cool for longer
For a limited time in the Fall, you can find delicious locally grown Bartlett pears from Boorinakis Harper Ranch at BriarPatch Food Co-op at our two stores in Grass Valley and Auburn.
“It’s a nice juicy fruit. They just have that flavor. Customers swoon,” said Julia Boorinakis Harper Barbeau, who grew up on a 12-acre organic farmstead in the middle of Auburn known as Boorinakis Harper Ranch with her mom, Phyllis Boorinakis and dad, Tom Harper.
The biggest, smallest, oldest and only farm in the City of Auburn, the Boorinakis family has been growing “the best pears in the land” since 1918.
We’re thrilled to share this recipe for Pear Crumble Pie with you from the farm!
Ingredients for filling
• 7 to 8 Bartlett pears, firm-ripe (just turning yellow)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 to 3 Tb flour
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg, preferably freshly grated
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• Small pinch of salt
• Optional — a bit of finely chopped candied ginger
Ingredients for crumble topping
• 6 Tb butter (salted, or add a pinch of salt if using unsalted butter)
• 2/3 cup brown sugar
• 2/3 cup flour
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• One deep-dish pie crust (your favorite recipe, or a good storebought crust works in a pinch)
Directions
Peel, core, and slice the pears. In another bowl, toss together the 1/2 c sugar, 2 Tb flour, the ginger, nutmeg, and salt. In a large bowl, toss dry mixture gently with the sliced pears. If the pears seem really juicy, you can add an extra spoonful of flour.
Make the crumble topping: combine brown sugar, flour, nuts, and cinnamon. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter, flork, or your fingers, to make a chunky, crumbly mixture.
Pile the pears into the crust — it should be full! Gently press the crumble topping over the pears.
Bake at 375 degrees for 25-30 minutes, until the crust and topping are browned and the pears are tender. If the crust and topping are getting brown before the pears are cooked through, cover loosely with foil, and remove the foil for the last 10 minutes or so of baking.
Baking times can vary for this pie due to the variable firmness/juiciness of ripe pears, so check it after 25 minutes — you may need to lower the oven temp a bit and bake it longer until they are set. Any which way, it’s delicious! Serve with vanilla ice cream if you really want a slice of heaven!
Gingerbread Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
You’ll enjoy these PSL adjacent goodies anytime of the year. Thank you to our friends at NCG for this amazing recipe!
Gingerbread is already a celebration of spices and deep, sweet molasses, and when you make it into a cupcake and add delicious cinnamon frosting, gingerbread becomes even more celebratory. The creamy frosting is a perfect foil for the dense, rich cupcakes.
In the month of October, we celebrate co-ops. Why? Because they are awesome! We feature recipes from co-ops around the country in our special Co-op Recipe Guide.
Ingredients
For the Cupcakes
1 stick butter
½ cup brown sugar, packed
1 large egg
1½ cup molasses
½ cup honey
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1½ cups unbleached flour
1½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
½ tsp ground clove
½ tsp black pepper
½ cup hot coffee or black tea
For the Frosting
8 oz cream cheese
½ stick butter, softened
½ tsp cinnamon
2 cups powdered sugar
½ tsp vanilla
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Prepare a 12 cupcake pan with paper liners, and butter the top of the pan as well. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar. Beat in the egg, then the molasses and honey. Beat until smooth.
In a medium bowl, combine the pastry and unbleached flours, soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, clove and black pepper. Stir to mix, then beat into the butter mixture. Pour in the hot coffee or tea and stir to mix well.
Portion into the 12 cupcake tins and bake for 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out dry.
For frosting, cream the butter and cream cheese, scraping down and beating until smooth. Add the cinnamon and powdered sugar and beat until smooth, drizzle in the vanilla and beat until smooth. Spread or pipe a 2 tablespoon portion of frosting on each cupcake.
