Posts made in February, 2026

• Place the frozen blueberries in a microwave-safe bowl and zap in the microwave until thawed. Do 20 seconds, stir, then perhaps another 20 seconds, stir again, and do more if needed. Don’t drain away the juice–you’ll use everything in the bowl.
• In a large mixing bowl, mix butter, sugar, and salt until light and fluffy. Add in the full contents of the blueberry bowl followed by the lemon juice and vanilla. The mixture may look curdled at first but keep beating until it smooths out and emulsifies the blueberries.
• Add the flour, cornstarch, and baking powder, scraping the bottom of the bowl to incorporate everything. Fold in the white chocolate chips.
• Cover the dough and chill for at least 2 hours or overnight.
• Preheat oven at 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Use a small cookie scoop or spoon to create dough balls. Space them out on the baking sheet.
• Bake until cookies are set, about 10 to 14 minutes. Let set on pan a few minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
• Store in a sealed container at room temperature. If stacking cookies, place waxed paper between the layers; cookies are quite soft and may stick together otherwise.

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• In a large bowl, mix together 3 cups bread flour along with the yeast and salt.
• Either use a small saucepan on the stove or a microwave-safe bowl in the microwave to warm up the milk and butter to reach 120-130 degrees Fahrenheit. Add milk-butter to the dry ingredients and beat in. Add sugar. Add the eggs one at a time.
• Stir in the seasoning and garlic powder. Gradually mix in the remaining flour (and more, if needed) until the dough is soft and only a bit sticky.
• Use a mixer with a dough hook or knead by hand on a floured surface for 6 to 8 minutes, until it is elastic and smooth.
• Grease a bowl and place dough inside, turning to coat with oil. Cover and place where it can rise until doubled, about an hour.
• Grease a 13×9 pan and set out a food scale. Measure entirety of dough and divide the amount by 24. Pull off equal portions of bowl and shape into tight round balls, the seam underneath, and line up in prepared pan.
• Cover and place in a warm place to rise until doubled, about an hour.
• Preheat oven at 375. Remove cover from rolls. Brush on the olive oil or melted butter. Sprinkle additional seasoning on top followed by the shredded cheese.
• Bake rolls for 14 to 20 minutes, until tops are golden brown. Serve hot or at room temperature. Rolls are fantastic to freeze and pull out later.

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Make the crust

• Use a food processor to pulse together the flour, sugar, and salt. Add the shortening and butter to form coarse crumbs. Add the vinegar and the minimum 6 tablespoons water. [Note that the vinegar may smell quite strong but that will bake away.] Pulse repeatedly. If the dough doesn’t start to come together, drizzle in more water and pulse more but don’t overwork.
• Turn the dough out onto a piece of plastic wrap and press together into a 1/2-inch thick rectangle. Chill in fridge for at least an hour, or up to a few days.
• Line jelly roll pan with a large piece of foil that covers bottom and up all four sides. Apply nonstick spray.
• Roll out the dough to create a very large rectangle, about 13×18, and use the rolling pin to lift it into the pan. Press crust in, folding over excess dough and crimping. Chill pan in fridge, uncovered, for at least an hour.
• Preheat oven at 375 degrees. Line the interior of the crust with foil. Fill up with pie weights or dried beans.
• Bake crust for 20 to 25 minutes, until turning golden at edges. Carefully use the foil to lift the pie weights onto another pan to cool completely.
• Return the crust to the oven to bake for another 25 to 30 minutes, until golden across the bottom. Transfer to a rack to cool.
• Reduce oven temperature 325 degrees.

Make the filling

• Place butter and chocolate in a large microwave-safe bowl. Heat in microwave in 20-second intervals, stirring between each pass, until melted and smooth.
• Mix the sugar, cocoa powder, espresso powder, and salt into the chocolate. Follow up with the half & half, vanilla, whole eggs, and yolks until smooth without any streaks of egg.
• Pour filling into the cooled crust. Bake until pie is set with only a slight jiggle to the middle, 25 to 35 minutes.
• Transfer to a rack to cool. A bench knife will be easier to cut the pie within the pan, but regular sharp knife will also do. Serve warm or at room temperature. It is best with ice cream, Cool Whip, canned dairy cream, etc.

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• In a large bowl, beat together butter and white sugar until fluffy. Follow up with the eggs, vanilla, and almond extract.
• In another bowl, combine the two flours along with the baking powder and salt.
• Gradually mix the dry ingredients into the wet, scraping the bottom of the bowl to incorporate everything. At this point, wrap the dough in plastic to chill for at least an hour, or freeze dough for later.
• When ready to bake, preheat oven at 350 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Measure the confectioners’ sugar into a small bowl.
• Use a small cookie scoop or spoon to shape small balls of dough. Roll in confectioners’ sugar to coat. Place spaced out on parchment-covered sheet.
• Bake for 13 to 15 minutes. Let set a few minutes then transfer to a rack to fully cool. Store cookies in a sealed container at room temperature.

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