Recipes: Peppy Apple-Cheese Bread, M&M Bars and Cherry-Stuffed Grilled Chicken

Recipes: Peppy Apple-Cheese Bread, M&M Bars and Cherry-Stuffed Grilled Chicken

R. Hunsberger asked if anyone could help him come up with the recipe for an apple and cheese bread his mother made in the 1950s to serve with tomato chowder on meatless Friday nights.

This one was a stumper, but J.A. Yancey found the recipe in the 2009 facsimile edition of Pillsbury's Best 1,000 Recipes: Best of the Bake-Off Collection (Wiley), a reprint of the 1959 original. The bread was a "junior" winner for Jean Bart at the fourth Bake-Off in 1952.

I was amazed that this is a quick bread, and it is truly easy to put together. I served it with gazpacho on a hot summer night and can see how it would make a tomato soup supper something special. You might substitute a cup of whole wheat flour for one of the white to give it a nutritional boost.

Peppy Apple-Cheese Bread

Makes 12 thick slices

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter

2/3 cup sugar

2 eggs

1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

1 1/2 cups shredded apple

1/2 cup nuts

1. Grease a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl; set aside.

2. Beat the butter until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the sugar until no crystals remain, about 3 minutes longer. Beat in the eggs. Blend in the dry ingredients, half at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in the cheese, apples and nuts.

3. Turn batter into prepared pan, and bake at 350 degrees for 50 to 60 minutes. Cool before slicing. Per slice: 239 calories (43 percent from fat), 12 g fat (6 g saturated fat, 4 g monounsaturated fat), 61 mg cholesterol, 5 g protein, 29 g carbohydrates, 1 g fiber, 148 mg sodium.

Q. Help! I've lost my recipe for M&M cookies and my grandchildren are coming to visit. I made these last summer and they were such a big hit that they remembered a year later and asked if I'd make them again.

A. I can see why children — or anyone, really — would find these bar cookies fascinating. The color of the outer M&M shell bleeds a bit into the dough, coloring the cookies in a fun pattern. For the baker, these are a plus, too: One bowl, one pan, no time-consuming spooning of dough onto cookie sheets.

I tested these with plain M&M's, not any of the myriad variations — peanut, pretzel, etc. At the holidays when special colors are available, these would make a fun seasonal treat.

M&M Bars

Makes 24 bars

2 3/4 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup vegetable shortening, at room temperature

1 cup (packed) light brown sugar

1/2 cup sugar

4 eggs

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons sour cream (do not use low-fat or nonfat)

2 cups (12 ounces) milk chocolate

M&M's

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-by-13-inch metal baking pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper, using enough to form "handles" on the short sides of the pan.

2. Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl.

3. Beat the butter and shortening until smooth and well blended, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add both sugars, and beat on low, then on medium speed for about 2 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one a time, beating after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and sour cream.

4. Gradually add the sifted ingredients to form a soft dough. Stir in the M&M's by hand. Transfer the dough to the pan, patting it in evenly and smoothing the surface.

5. Bake about 25 minutes, until puffed and golden. Cover loosely with aluminum foil and bake 5 to 10 minutes more, until center is set.

6. Cool completely in the pan. Loosen the edges with a spatula, then use the parchment paper to lift and transfer to a cutting board before cutting.

Per bar: 276 calories (43 percent from fat), 13 g fat (5 g saturated fat, 2 g monounsaturated fat), 48 mg cholesterol, 3 g protein, 36 g carbohydrates, 1 g fiber, 310 mg sodium.

Cherry Season

Every summer I look forward to the short season when stone fruits from the Pacific Northwest hit the stores. I love the peaches and apricots — so much larger than their Southern cousins. But sweet fresh cherries were my late mother's favorite fruit, so opening a bag and munching always reminds me of her. I even have her much-used cherry pitter, a hand-held device that looks like it belongs on a dentist's tool table.

Are there foods or recipes that you associate with a loved one, or an occasion? I'd love to hear from you — it would be a wonderful theme for a column.

The recipe here is from the Washington State Fruit Commission, which has a website full of tips and recipes at nwcherries.com. The stuffing would be equally at home in a pork tenderloin.

Cherry-Stuffed Grilled Chicken

Makes 4 servings

1 1/2 cups pitted and coarsely chopped fresh sweet cherries

1/4 cup chopped onion

1 teaspoon chopped fresh sage

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar

1 1/2 teaspoons garlic salt

1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground pepper

1. Combine cherries, onion, sage, salt, and thyme; mix well.

2. Cut a pocket on the thicker side of each chicken breast; sprinkle lightly with salt if desired. Stuff 1/4 of cherry mixture into each pocket; close opening with metal skewers.

3. Combine oil, vinegar, garlic salt, and pepper, mixing well. Pour over stuffed chicken breasts and marinate 1/2 hour in refrigerator.

4. Broil or grill chicken, brushed with marinade, until fully cooked and juices run clear when sliced. (Or bake at 375 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes, until juices run clear.) ( The internal temperature in the thickest part of the chicken should be 165 degrees as registered on an instant-read thermometer.) Per serving: 305 calories, 32.4 g protein, 11.5 g carbohydrate, 14.3 g fat (42 percent calories from fat), 86 mg cholesterol, 1.1 g fiber, 1,130 mg sodium.

By Linda Cicero The Miami Herald

By Linda Cicero
The Miami Herald