Apricot Buckle Recipes

Steps:

• Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees F. Butter the bottom and sides of a 10-inch cast-iron skillet.
• For the cake batter: Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl until combined. Beat the butter, granulated sugar and lemon zest in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the egg until combined. Reduce the mixer speed to low and gradually beat in the milk (it's okay if the mixture looks curdled). Add the flour mixture and beat, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally with a rubber spatula, until smooth, about 1 minute. Stir in the mixed berries until evenly distributed, then spread the batter into the prepared cast iron skillet; set aside.
• For the crumb topping: Stir together the granulated sugar, brown sugar, flour, nutmeg, ginger and salt in a small bowl until combined. Work in the butter with your fingers until the entire mixture is moistened and clumpy. Scatter evenly over the batter.
• Bake until the top is golden and set and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Transfer the skillet to a wire rack and let cool at least 30 minutes before serving warm or at room temperature with ice cream.

Steps:

• 1. If you do not have buttermilk, you can use any milk or dairy free milk and just add a tablespoon of vinegar and let it sit.
• 2. Toast the pecans. I prefer to use a little butter and toast them in my cast iron skillet. Then chop them.
• 3. In a small saucepan, on med-low brown the butter. You can also prepare your fruit. I cut my apricots into approximately 1/8's with skin still on.
• 4. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9-inch round springform pan with parchment paper and spray with non-stick spray.
• 5. Next make the streusel topping: In a small bowl, combine the sugar, flour and butter (cut butter into 1/2 inch cubes). With a fork, cut the butter into the flour mixture until it is crumbly. Stir in cinnamon and chopped pecans. Set aside.
• 6. For the cake: In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a mixing bowl using the paddle, mix the brown butter and sugar until combined. Add the egg and mix until combined. Add the buttermilk and vanilla extract and mix until combined. Then slowly add in the dry mixture. I did it in 1/3rd's at a time and let it mix fully each time. Once that's all mixed, add in your fruit and stir.
• 7. Spread the batter evenly over the bottom of the prepared pan with a spatula. Sprinkle the streusel over the top. Bake for about 55-60 min. In my oven it was ready at 50 minutes. It's ready when the buckle is a deep golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
• 8. Cool on the rack for at least 20 minutes before serving. It can be served warm or at room temperature.

Steps:

• To make the molasses mixture: In a tall 6-quart pan, bring the water and molasses to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in the baking soda. The mixture will foam up. Set aside to cool.
• In a small saucepan, bring the apricots and 1 cup of the apple cider to a boil. Remove from heat and let the apricots plump for about 20 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9 by 13-inch baking dish with vegetable oil cooking spray.
• In a medium saucepan, blend the brown sugar and cornstarch. Stir in the remaining 1/2 cup apple cider, the butter, cinnamon, salt, and cloves. Cook over medium heat until clear and thickened. Stir in all but 1/4 cup of the plumped apricots. Stir in all but 3/4 cup of the apples. Pour the mixture into the prepared dish; set aside.
• To make the cake layer: Sift the flour, ginger, baking powder, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, pepper, and salt together into a medium bowl; set aside.
• In a mixer bowl, using the mixer on high speed, cream the brown sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add the egg, beating until creamy. On low speed, alternately blend in the dry ingredients and the molasses mixture. The batter will be thin. Stir in the reserved apricots and apples. Pour the cake batter over the fruit layer in the baking dish. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted just into the cake layer comes out clean. Let cool slightly and serve with whipped cream.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees, with racks in middle and lower thirds. In a large bowl, whisk together cornstarch and 1/2 cup granulated sugar. Stir in apricots and blueberries. Spread mixture into a 10-inch cast-iron skillet.
• In a food processor, pulse remaining 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, flour, baking powder, and salt until combined. Add butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal, with a few pea-size pieces of butter remaining. Add heavy cream and pulse 2 or 3 times until combined.
• Spoon batter in 8 mounds on fruit mixture. Press lightly on tops to flatten, brush with heavy cream, and sprinkle with sanding sugar if desired.
• Bake on middle rack, with a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet on lower rack to catch drips, until biscuits are golden and juices bubble in center, 45 minutes to an hour. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Steps:

• In a large heavy skillet, heat oil over medium high heat. When the oil is hot, brown the beef on all sides. If the brisket is too large, cut it in half first, and brown in two stages. Place the meat in a large Dutch oven with a lid.
• Add onions to the drippings in the skillet. Saute over medium heat until the onions are beginning to brown. Stir in garlic, and cook for 2 or 3 more minutes. Pour over the brisket in the Dutch oven.
• Empty one package of dry, instant onion soup mix over the browned onions and meat. Arrange all of the apricots on top of the soup mix. Pour enough water around outside of meat, not on top, to cover the sides of brisket. Cover.
• Bake at 325 degrees F (160 degrees C) for 1 hour. Check liquid; if dish is starting to look dry, add a bit more water around meat. Cover, and cook another hour. Remove lid, and stir apricots into gravy. Leave uncovered, and cook for another hour. Stir gravy again, and add more water if the gravy is too thick. Meat should be very tender; if necessary, bake for an additional 1/2 hour. Cut across grain to serve.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Butter and line the base of a 23cm square tin. For the crumble mix, put 2 tbsp flour and 25g of the butter with the demerara sugar and cinnamon in a bowl. Rub between your fingers until it resembles damp breadcrumbs.
• Tip the remaining flour and butter and the caster sugar, eggs and vanilla in a bowl, then beat until well combined. Lightly fold in half the apricots and raspberries, then spread over the prepared tin.
• Scatter over the remaining fruit, then sprinkle with the crumble mix. Bake for 45-50 mins until light golden, then cool for 10 mins and remove from the tin. Cut into squares and serve warm with cream or ice cream for dessert, or cold for tea.