Cousin to the crumble and the crisp, this fruity American dessert has many puzzling nicknames, including the Betty, Buckle, Sonker, Grunt and Slump.

Photo: Maple Plum Crumble (Cookthink)

These homey baked fruit desserts — invented in Britain during World War II and long popular on both sides of the pond — are separated only by a common language.

Giving unbaked bread dough, pie or pastry crust a good egg wash seals the dough and gives it a glossy finish once it comes out of the oven.

The puréed black beans in these virtuous fudgy gluten-free brownies add fiber, body and moistness to a decadent treat. (And nobody will guess what’s in them until you tell them.)

Recipe: Black Bean Fudge Brownies (Cookthink)
Reference: What are black beans? (Cookthink)

Flaky pie dough recipes usually indicate that you should not over-handle the dough. But I never fully understood why until one day in culinary school, when my chef described how his grandmother made the best pie crusts in the last years of her life.

Besieged with arthritis and poor circulation in her hands, she couldn’t physically work the dough with her chilly fingers. This was an accidental boon, since the heat and action produced by younger, more energetic hands would have activated the gluten in the flour, creating a protein web that holds dough together instead of allowing it to break into delicious, buttery flakes.

Keeping your warm hands off the dough while mixing and rolling is the key to producing a tender, flaky crust that won’t shrink or change shape in the pan. The gluten web of wheat proteins is what shrinks up the dough as it heats in the oven, regardless of the filling or type of pan. Using a low gluten flour like cake or pastry flour will help to prevent any “accidental” gluten formation, but the trick is just to leave it alone!

I don’t even try to completely mix my dough anymore before first letting it rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes and then rolling it out. I simply wrap the 85 percent mixed rough dough into the cling film to keep it moist, and let the rolling action of the wooden rolling pin do the final mix on the dough.

Keeping my warm and fidgety hands off of it is not the easiest task, but it really does produce the best pie crust.

There are lots of people around my house over the holidays who like to nibble on something sweet. This variation on a classic peanut brittle is delicious; it shines darkly of chocolate with specks of white slivered almonds.

But be warned: It is hard. Don’t give it to those with failing or baby teeth. Everyone else seems to enjoy it.

Recipe: Microwaved Chocolate-Almond Brittle (Barbara Kafka)

Note: This recipe originally appeared here on November 19. My apologies to everyone who gallantly tried the first vinegar pie recipe, which was the unsuccessful result of my having combined two recipes. Here is a newly tested recipe with what I think is an excellent filling. Remember that the meringue is sweet and will balance the filling. Allow the pie to cool completely so that it can be cut. If you have any trouble with lumps, put the filling in a food processor.

Vinegar pie sounds strange; but it is an old-fashioned American treat that tastes like butterscotch with a kick. It is a refreshing change from the usual pumpkin, apple pie or pecan pies at the holiday table. And guests and family will never guess the secret ingredient!

Recipe: Old-Fashioned Vinegar Pie (Barbara Kafka)
Related: More recipes by Barbara Kafka at Cookthink.com

At Cookthink, we believe in making things from scratch. But as we were fine-tuning our classic Thanksgiving pumpkin pie recipe for this week’s Root Source, we were reminded of the merits of canned pumpkin.

Fresh pumpkin can be a little watery and needs to be reduced into an intense purée to work as a good substitute for canned pumpkin. We decided that our efforts were better spent enhancing the flavor of good-quality canned pumpkin (not pre-seasoned, sugar-added “pumpkin pie filling”) with the complimentary flavor of roasted sweet potatoes.

Our take on the classic pumpkin pie has a velvety custard made of eggs, whole milk, heavy cream, canned pumpkin, roasted sweet potatoes and a zing of fresh ginger. It’d be a good addition to your Thanksgiving table this year.

Recipe: Classic Pumpkin Pie (Cookthink)
Recipe: Ginger Pumpkin Pie (The Washington Post)
Recipe: Apple Butter Pumpkin Pie (The Washington Post)
Recipe: Pumpkin Praline Cheesecake (The Cheesecake Bible)

Get out your mandoline, because you’re going to want to make these Garlic Truffle Fries. The recipe comes from this week’s featured author, Jaden Hair of Steamy Kitchen. Browse more of Jaden’s recipes and be sure to read Jaden’s answers to the inaugural Cookthink Questionnaire.

My last few Daring Bakers challenge posts have been tales of woe—crushed cakes, broken batards, etc. But I am happy to report that this most recent challenge, one of my first forays into pastry, went exceptionally well!

The Danish Braid recipe from Sherry Yard’s The Secrets of Baking, chosen by Kelly of Sass & Veracity and Ben of What’s Cookin’? was a laminated yeast pastry, meaning that it had yeast and needed to rise, but also that it has alternating layers—in this case, of dough and lots and lots of butter.
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