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Scandinavian Almond Cake

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Advent is a very special time in our Community.  To me, it symbolizes not only waiting, but also preparation– preparing our hearts and our homes to receive the Christ-Child. We welcome ​Advent with a festive weekend open to the public.  ​One of the highlights is our candlelit service of Advent Lessons and Carols – a service steeped in English tradition. Throughout the weekend, we serve an elegant afternoon tea at Bethany Guest House situated in scenic Rock Harbor, Orleans. This tradition was started by one of our founders, Mother Cay.  She took great pride in entertaining and hospitality, and her sharp and loving eye for beauty and detail has been passed down to all of us.  Bethany becomes a magical place at Christmastime.  Throughout the weekend, our gift shop, Priory Books and Gifts is bustling with activity.  We stock our shop with home baked goods From a Monastery Kitchen – our famous Kentucky Bourbon Cakes, Fresh Baked Cinnamon Rolls, Cranberry Pear Chutney and English Toffee are just a few of the items sold throughout December in our shop.

For years now, it has been my ​responsibility​ to get the Monastic Bakeshop “ready” for Advent.  We start preparing in the summer – sampling recipes, making lists of ingredients and then going to companies to see if they would be able to “gift” items to us. In turn, we offer our prayers on their behalf, as well as a tin of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies.  It has been such a blessing to see the response.  Year after year, we have faithful donors that have given of themselves to support our outreach – sugar, flour, oats, chocolate chips, nuts, raisins and yes, even Jim Beam Bourbon, have been generously given to us – enabling a profit of the sales to help support our community.

A few years ago, I became friends with a woman who frequented our bakeshop.  She told me of a wonderful almond cake that I really should try sometime – and perhaps even sell in our shop.  She came back a couple days later with a gift for us – the special Scandinavian Almond Cake pan and recipe.  What a touching gift that was!  This has become one of our favorite cakes to make at Christmas time – or anytime.  We now share it with you.

A blessed Advent to you and yours,

The Gourmet Nuns

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Rating: 4.26
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Scandinavian Almond Cake
SERVINGS
8-10people
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
people
COOK TIME
40-50min
PREP TIME
10min
READY IN
1hr

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Generously grease a Scandinavian almond cake pan or rectangular tart pan with removable bottom.​​
  3. ​In a large mixing bowl, beat together sugar, egg, almond extract and milk
  4. Add flour and baking powder and mix​ at low speed to blend.​
  5. Add melted butter​ and mix well.​
  6. Pour batter into ​prepared ​pan and bake from ​30-45​ min. or until edges are golden and cake springs back to the touch.
  7. Cool​ cake​​ completely​ in pan before removing​.
  8. Say a prayer and turn the cake out of the pan.​
  9. Sprinkle with ​powdered​​ sugar before serving​​

**Variation – before pouring batter into pan, sprinkle sliced almonds on the bottom (or top of cake)

 

Cheese Soufflé

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For years I thought of making a soufflé as something too difficult to tackle except by the experts, so I put off making them. After finally trying one, I was amazed to discover how simple and straightforward it really is…and how very satisfying! The sight of your creation as it begins to rise before your eyes in the oven and then finally puffs up into all its glory… is reward enough to say nothing of the delight in tasting it.

In case you have been intimidated as I was, this may be the perfect time for you to overcome that fear and tackle one, because these light fluffy wonders are perfect for hot weather meals when you want to serve something other than cold food, and you don’t want anything cooked that’s too heavy. Guests in our retreat house are always thrilled when served a soufflé.  They say it makes them feel so special!

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Cheese Soufflé
SERVINGS
4people
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
people
COOK TIME
35-40minutes
PREP TIME
25minutes
READY IN
30minutes

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Allow the egg yolks and egg whites to stand at room temperature for 30 minutes.
  2. For cheese sauce, in a medium saucepan melt butter; stir in flour, dry mustard, onion salt, Worcestershire and cayenne pepper.
  3. Add milk all at once.
  4. Cook and stir cheese sauce over medium heat until thickened and bubbly.
  5. Turn heat to low. Add cheese, a little at a time, stirring until melted.
  6. In a medium bowl beat egg yolks with a fork until combined.
  7. Slowly add cheese sauce to egg yolks, stirring constantly. Cool slightly.
  8. In a large mixing bowl beat egg whites with an electric mixer on medium to high speed until stiff peaks form (tips stand straight).
  9. Gently fold about 1 cup of the stiffly beaten egg whites into cheese sauce.
  10. Gradually pour cheese sauce over remaining stiffly beaten egg whites, folding to combine.
  11. Grease with butter and coat with grated Parmesan a 2-quart soufflé dish.
  12. Pour batter into dish.
  13. Bake in a 350 degree F oven for about 40 minutes or until a knife inserted near center comes out clean.
  14. In the last 10 minutes of baking sprinkle some grated Parmesan cheese (about 2 tablespoons) for a nice crust on top.
  15. Serve immediately.

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Strawberry Napoleons

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It’s strawberry time, and our strawberry patch has been producing tub after tub of beautiful berries every morning . . . a delight to look at, let alone to eat. Of course, no strawberry dessert will ever top old fashioned strawberry shortcake, in my opinion, but if you’d like to try a creation that runs it a close second, these strawberry napoleons are simple to make and delicious to eat.

Strawberry Napoleons

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Strawberry Napoleons: Recipes From A Monastery Kitchen
SERVINGS
3servings
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
servings
COOK TIME
15minutes
PREP TIME
READY IN
20minutes

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Heat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. Thaw folded pastry sheet for 20 minutes.
  3. Open sheet and cut along folds to make three equal strips; halve each strip to make six rectangles.
  4. Space apart on baking sheet.
  5. Bake in center of oven about 15 minutes until well browned and baked through.
  6. Remove to rack to cool.
  7. Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, whip heavy cream and powdered sugar together until cream is stiff. Set aside.
  8. In another bowl, whisk pudding mix, milk, and extract together for 2 minutes; fold in whipped cream and blend thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate.
  9. Carefully split each piece of pastry in half horizontally.
  10. Cover bottom halves with almonds, then pudding mixture and sliced strawberries, dividing equally.
  11. Cover with pastry tops. Dust with powdered sugar.
  12. *You could double the pudding mixture and use both sheets of puff pastry for more Napoleons. I ended up using all of my puff pastry to be able to have additional layers for each Napoleon.

Dinner Rolls

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There is no meal so plain or so elaborate that cannot be enhanced by the addition of freshly baked homemade bread. Whether it’s a simple soup and salad lunch or a full oven rolls is guaranteed to bring exclamations of joy from the eaters. It seems to convey a sense of special care and attention that warms their hearts.

We served these beautiful, easy-to-make rolls to a retreat of ladies for lunch today and their response was absolutely overwhelming.

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Dinner Rolls
SERVINGS
36rolls
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
rolls
COOK TIME
PREP TIME
READY IN
1 1/2 - 2hours

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. This recipe is best made in a standing mixer with a dough hook.
  2. Dissolve the yeast in some water with a pinch of sugar and let sit for approximately 5 minutes to proof.
  3. Add milk, sugar, 1/2 cup melted butter, salt and eggs. Mix well.
  4. Add flour as needed and mix well.
  5. Blend at medium-low speed for about 5-10 minutes, scraping down sides of the bowl once or twice.
  6. Cover bowl with plastic wrap; let rise in bowl about 1 hour or till doubled.
  7. Remove the plastic wrap and turn mixer on low to “punch down” the dough; if you wish, you can let the dough rise a second time as it makes for a more flavorful roll.
  8. Remove the dough from the bowl and divide into 36 rolls. The dough will be very sticky.
  9. Place rolls, edges just touching, in a buttered 9″x13″ or 9″ round pan.
  10. Cover pan with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled, about 30-40 minutes.
  11. Brush with reserved butter before baking or an egg wash.
  12. Bake at 300 degrees Fahrenheit convection oven or 350 degrees Fahrenheit conventional oven until golden.

Hot Cross Buns

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Countless stories surround the origin and the history of hot cross buns. Suffice it to say they are eaten as a simple little sweet during Lent after weeks of abstinence and looking towards the crucifixion. It is our tradition to serve them here at the Community of Jesus every Good Friday.

There is one little saying about them that I particularly like. It is said that a bun baked on Good Friday and hung in one’s kitchen will guarantee the success of all baked goods prepared in that kitchen. Worth a try?

HOT CROSS BUNS

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Hot Cross Buns
SERVINGS
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COOK TIME
20minutes
PREP TIME
READY IN
55-60minutes

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water and let stand 10 minutes in mixer until foamy.
  2. Add softened butter, instant powdered milk, egg, egg white. Mix well with dough hook.
  3. Add salt and flour only adding enough flour until dough is slightly sticky.
  4. Add citron and currants and cinnamon
  5. Continue to add rest of flour until the dough is soft and smooth and not too sticky to handle. You may not need all of your flour.
  6. Mix on slow for another 5 minutes – this will knead the dough.
  7. Let rise in mixer bowl until double in size.
  8. Punch down on floured surface, cover, and let rest 10 minutes.
  9. Shape into 12 balls and place in a greased 9 x 12 inch pan.
  10. Cover and let rise in a warm place till double, about 35-40 minutes.
  11. Mix egg yolk and 2 tablespoons water. Brush on balls.
  12. Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 20 minutes. Remove from pan immediately and cool on wire rack.
  13. To make crosses: mix together confectioners’ sugar, vanilla, and milk. Brush an X on each cooled bun.

Puff Pancake

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Birthdays in the convent are  quite celebratory centering a great deal around the meals. Today one of the sisters is having a birthday, so instead of eating breakfast in  silence as we normally do, there will be much laughter, chatter and  many exclamatory “Oohs” and “Aahs” as her meal is brought to her.

In this case she has selected a special puff pancake filled with fresh fruit, breathtakingly beautiful as it comes to her piping hot straight from the oven, all puffy and golden, with a whipped cream garnish and a crisp side of bacon curls.

What a happy entrance into the beginning of her new year. It’s hard to believe that so little effort could have produced something so impressive and delicious.

Puff Pancake

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Puff Pancake
SERVINGS
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COOK TIME
12-15minutes
PREP TIME
READY IN

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Beat eggs and milk together.
  2. Gradually stir in flour and flavorings.
  3. Pour into a buttered bake dish and bake @ 425 degrees Fahrenheit for 12 -15 minutes.
  4. Fill with fruit and garnish quickly. Serve immediately.