New Flour Bakery in Back Bay

On Valentines morning, my team and I had to be in the office by 7:15AM for a 7:30 call that went until just before 10.  Needless to say, it was not the most romantic way to start the day, but the morning was saved by a post-call trip to the new Flour Bakery on Clarendon Street in the Back Bay!  My colleague wanted to pick up some desserts for her hunnie, so three of us took a little walk to help her pick them out.

A huge fan of the Flour Bakery in Fort Point, I couldn't wait to see the new location.  It's right behind the Back Bay T station, close to where the Hard Rock Cafe used to be.  I immediately fell in love with the decor; neutral wood, white and stainless steel made for a modern, yet comfortable space for enjoying breakfast, lunch or dessert.

The selection seemed a bit smaller than Fort Point, though that could have been due to less display space.  It was crowded and I didn't want to be too obnoxious taking forever with pictures and questions, but I did have enough time to fawn over the cases filled with sweets, especially these pastel-filled oreos, and giant tubs of ready-to-bake cookie dough.

My favorite find in the cafe (besides all of the sweets) was their unique artwork.  There was a large chalkboard that greeted customers, shared some weather facts and wished everyone a festive Happy Valentine's Day.  On the back walls, I found awesome framed images of little bubble people with funny sayings.  The best was two cute little people captioned with "Your perfume makes me gag."  We all know what that's like!  Too funny.

While I hadn't planned on getting anything to eat in preparation for a big dinner later that night, I just couldn't pass up trying the breakfast sandwich.  It was HUGE- egg, bacon, cheese, arugula, tomatoes and spicy dijon on a big, fat, chewy bun.  The dijon was way too spicy for me, I hadn't breathed that clearly in ages, but despite watery eyes from the spice, this sandwich was one of my favorite breakfast sandwiches ever.  It was fresh and filling, in fact I didn't eat again until dinner that evening.

Flour is one of my favorite bakeries in the city (accompanied by Lulu's and Bova's), and the new location did not disappoint.  I'm thrilled (and scared for my waistline) that it is so close to work!  If you're a fellow Flour-lover, what are you favorite things there?  Let me know in the comments below.

Blizzard Breakfast

Today is one of the best snowdays ever.  Starting around 11AM yesterday, Boston has been literally buried in snow.  The T (subway & bus system) is completely closed, and there's even a driving ban in the state- no driving at all unless you're essential personel.  Craziness!  Being snowed in called for a warm, comforting brunch, so B-hubs and I tag-teamed it to make these...

Bacon egg scramble-stuffed popovers!  Ahhhhh heaven.  I did the popovers, Jake did the egg scramble.  Popovers are one of my favorite things to bake.  They are a quick, 4-ingredient carb-y bun that is good with any meal, but we usually do them for breakfast.  They remind us of Jordan Pond up in Maine, which is the first place we tried popovers a few years back.  My in-laws gifted a popover pan to us, and we've been hooked ever since.

So far we've been in all day, enjoying brunch, blankets and catching up on episodes of Modern Family (I almost cried laughing at Lily's snarky comments from two weeks ago, does somebody need a WAMMM-bulance?!) This afternoon will probably bring us outside to check out how beautiful Boston looks under two feet of snow, then tonight we'll put on the snow pants and ski goggles and hike down to TD Garden for the Bruins game.  Faithful season ticket holders we are!

Here are some pictures from the blizzard so far.  For everyone in the area, I hope you are safe and warm!  For those who want to make some popovers, the recipe is at the bottom of this post.

7PM - Outside of Corner Tavern on Mass Ave (which was completely packed, by the way!) 

Quiet night on the roads

Looking out the window when I woke up

Happy weekend, all!

BostonSweetie's Popover Recipe - makes 6:

Need:

• 2 eggs
• 1 cup of flour
• 1 cup of milk
• 1/2 tsp of salt

Do:

• Preheat oven to 450F
• Grease a popover pan, 6 custard cups, or 6 cups in a muffin tin
• Gently beat the two eggs in a medium bowl - don't overbeat!  Then add in the rest of the ingredients and mix until smooth.
• Fill each cup about half way, evenly distributing the batter between the 6 cups
• Bake at 450 for 20 minutes, then lower the heat to 350 and bake for another 20 minutes. 

Notes:

Don't open the oven while these are baking- they pop up with the steam and you don't want to mess up the temperature in the oven while they're trying to rise and pop.

Today was the first time I used a cup of almond milk instead of skim milk.  We switched milk types on the first of the year, and don't keep cow's milk in the house anymore.  They still tasted great, but definitely didn't rise/pop as much as they do with cow milk.

The great thing about popovers is that they are airy in the center and perfect for filling with anything!  This morning we filled them with butter and a scramble of eggs, bacon, peppers and onions.  We also love mixing butter and jam, or cream cheese and jam.

Enjoy!

Bacon & Oatmeal Dried Fruit Cookies - Guest Post!

Today's guest post is written by my sorority sister Amy who lives in NYC with her husband Zach.  Amy is an incredible woman and an amazing friend.  We lucked out with this post as she is not often a baker.  She is, however, a really great chef and is excellent at incorporating bacon into everything, from cookies to vodka!  Enjoy!

---

Zach with the freshly baked cookies

Zach's work was having a bake sale at to benefit victims of Hurricane Sandy, so I once again made Bacon and Oatmeal and Dried Fruit Cookies. I originally found these in a magazine and snipped out the recipe for its incorporation of bacon. Side note: they do not come off as very oatmeal-y, since I had a friend who does not like oatmeal cookies inhale one and then state her aversion to oatmeal. These cookies are awesome because they taste like breakfast as a cookie-- sweet and salty! In fact, they sold out immediately from the bake sale and Zach's boss had to have a talk with him about how if he ever brings bacon cookies to the office building again, the cookies need to first stop in the boss's office!

The original recipe calls for raisins, but since I am not a raisin fan, I substituted a dried berry mix which includes cranberries, blueberries, currants, and golden raisins. You can use any dried fruit here that strikes your fancy.

Ingredients 

• 8 ounces sliced bacon 
• 2 1/4 cups cake flour 
• 1 teaspoon baking powder 
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt 
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg 
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 
• 1 cup (packed) dark brown sugar 
• 2/3 cup sugar 
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature 
• 2 large eggs 
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
• 1 cup old-fashioned oats 
• 2/3 cup dried fruit (chopped to the size of raisins if applicable)

The Work

The process is simple. I chose to make the bacon on a rack over a cookie sheet in the oven so that they crisped evenly; I was able to crumble the bacon right into the batter at the end with the oatmeal and dried fruit, plus I had the added bonus of having a pool of bacon fat to use later on.

Once the bacon is cooking, I start whisking together the dry ingredients mix in a mixing bowl: 2 1/4 cups cake flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, and 1 teaspoon kosher salt. Keep this dry mixture on the side for a bit. Then, you start creaming together the butter and both sugars in a mixer. Give that a few minutes before adding in two eggs, one at a time.

Then add in the vanilla- the original recipe calls for 1/2 teaspoon, but feel free to amp that up; I sure did. Keep the mixer moving-- you are going for a pale and fluffy batter look. Once that is achieved add in the flour mixture from before, little by little until well-incorporated. Then you can turn off the mixer.

After that, you are practically done with the prep. It is time to add in the oatmeal and dried fruit and crumble in the cooled bacon and fold. This recipe calls for chilling the dough: make 1/4 cup scoops of the batter onto two parchment lined cookie sheets (well spaced), cover w/plastic wrap, and chill for at least an hour, but I tend to let it go overnight.

When it comes time to bake the cookies, just preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Bake cookies for 20-22 minutes and cool first for 10 minutes on their sheets and then move to racks to cool completely. Remember to first put aside cookies for your significant other and boss and then enjoy the rest of the batch! Delicious.

Original Source: http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/2012/03/bacon-oatmeal-and-raisin-cookies