• 1/4 cup butter
• 3 leeks, cleaned and sliced into 1/2 inch pieces
• 1/2 cup flour, plus more to dust crust
• 2 to 2-1/4 cups milk
• salt and pepper
• 1 tsp English mustard (available online, or substitute Dijon mustard)
• 2 cups leftover grilled chicken, pulled into chunks
• 1 cup cooked ham, cut into approximately 1/2 inch dice
• 1/4 cup or more chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• lots of freshly grated nutmeg
• 1 puff pastry sheet (thawed if frozen)
• 1 egg yolk, mixed with a little water and salt

Melt the butter in a heavy pan and add the leeks.

Cook gently for 5 minutes, add a splash of water, reduce the heat, cover the pan and sweat for 10 minutes. Add the flour and stir for 1 minute. Take the pan off the heat and gradually add the milk. Return to heat and bring to a boil, stirring; reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Season, and add the mustard, chicken, and ham. Heat through, then add the parsley and nutmeg to taste. Cool.

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Spoon the chicken into a glass baking dish (measuring approximately 8 x 9 in). On a floured surface, roll out a pastry sheet to the thickness of a quarter. Cut off a strip, wet it and wet the edge of your dish and place on the lip of the pie dish.

Lay the rest of the pastry on top, pressing down firmly. Trim off the excess. Crimp the edges and use pastry scraps to decorate. Make 3 cuts in the middle to let the steam escape.  Brush with the egg yolk and bake for 30—40 minutes, or until golden.

This would be really great to make with leftover turkey after Thanksgiving – just make a little extra pie crust when you are doing your pies.  I also think I will spice it up with some hot chili’s next time.

and . . . speaking of Thanksgiving – we have a great ceramic pumpkin this year that makes a great centerpiece and later a cookie or candy jar!

Stop into any Walter Knoll Florist flower shop and pick up a bunch or two –

Need one delivered?  We have special pricing on our Designer’s Choice Autumn Mix Bouquets

Check back for news on our upcoming Holiday Open House!

Exotic mixed tropical bouquet bunches

Mixed Tropicals Bouquet

Check out all our tropical bouquets - they are perfect for any occasion

I imagine if you grew Oriental lilies in your garden this year that, like mine, the blooming season is over.

But, never fear!  Walter Knoll Florist is here to improve the fragrance of your day!  Our wholesale bunch special thru Labor Day (9/5) is Oriental Lilies – bunches of 10 for $25.  That’s a lot of blooms and a lot of fragrance!

So stop into one of our stores and ask for the Wholesale Bunch Special – you’ll be glad you did!

Or have some Oriental lilies delivered , save some money and make someone’s day!

Everyone loves sunflowers – they are amazing plants to grow and harvest – I grow some every year – here’s a pic from back in the 70s!

This year my neighbor had a wild one show up in his garden along our fence – the mama of all sunflowers!

For the next two weeks we have a sunflower special going on at Walter Knoll Florist – our wholesale bunch special thru August 21 is 5 fabulous sunflowers for $7.50.  We also have special savings on an arranged sunflower bouquet that you can have delivered, because we know that not everyone can grow them!

This year I am growing some “white” sunflowers – this couple appears to be having one of those “May/December” relationships!

So pretty I hate to cut into it!

Lemon Chiffon Cake

adapted from recipe by Jen Castle,

Hell’s Backbone Grill, Boulder, Utah

published in “O” but of course I found it online . . .

For the Cake

2 cups flour

1-1/2 cups sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

Juice of 2 lemons plus water to equal 3/4 cup

7 egg yolks

1/2 cup vegetable oil

Grated zest of 3 lemons (reserve some for Glaze-see below)

2 teaspoons vanilla

8 egg whites

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

For the Glaze

1-1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar

2 teaspoons powdered egg whites

2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

2 tablespoons melted butter

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

Preheat the oven to 325°.

In a large mixer bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.

Add the lemon juice + water, egg yolks, oil, lemon zest and vanilla.

Beat mixture at medium speed until the batter is blended and smooth.  Set aside.

In a large mixer bowl, beat the egg whites and the cream of tartar at medium-low speed until foamy.

Gradually increase the speed to high and beat the whites until stiff (but not dry) peaks form.

Gently fold 1/3 of the beaten whites into the batter with a rubber spatula just until blended.

Fold in the remaining whites just until combined. Pour the batter into an ungreased 10-inch tube pan.

Bake 1 hour, or until the top springs back when lightly touched with a fingertip and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean.

Immediately invert the cake, still in the pan, onto the neck of a wine bottle or a large funnel. Cool completely.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the remaining ingredients until smooth.

Remove the cake from the pan.  Invert (or not) the cake onto a serving plate.

Spread the icing on top of the cake, allowing some of the glaze to drip down the sides.

Maybe I should call it Plumeria Lemon Chiffon Cake!

Too hot to bake you say?  We’ve got you covered with cakes AND pies AND cookies

And you know you can get your rudbeckia (black eyed susans) at our garden center on LaSalle and California!

Mr Stinky (my amorphophallus plant) finally came up out in my yard around Father’s Day – easily at least a month later than last year’s arrival.  It has grown so quickly and reproduced a dozen babies – check ‘em out!

The large one is over 5 feet tall and the stem is at least 3 inches across – that means the rhizome must be the size of a football!

Here is another unusual thing in my garden – an Italian tomato call Cuore Di Bue (which means Heart of Ox) – It’s a fancy oxheart type tomato with lots of flesh and not much seeds.   Have not had any turn red yet, but I’ll post a pic when they do!  How’s your garden growing?

My black eyed Susan (rudbeckia) is blooming gangbusters!  And spreading out nicely – Lots of flowers to cut and bring inside in a vase!

What?  You don’t have flowers in your yard to cut and enjoy!  Well stop into any Walter Knoll Florist location and check out our Summer Roses – a full dozen are only $12.50 cash n carry – at $12.50 a dozen, I think you’ll want 2 or 3 dozen!   What a perfect day to take a dozen roses over to your neighbor who is grabbing your newspaper off your front lawn while you vacation next month!

SR36 - 36 summer roses, arranged and delivered for $81.98 (LOCAL ONLY)

Or we have mini hydrangea bunches at wholesale pricing too – $24.95 for a mixed pastel colored bunch.  (While supplies last)

HYDR Hydrate Your Day Hydrangea Bouquet $61.98 Delivered thru 7/24 (LOCAL ONLY)

Delphinium – Larkspur, Lark’s Claw and Knight’s Spur -lotsa names for a pretty little flower – Shakespeare called it Lark’s Heel.  Used by Native Americans and European settlers to make blue dye, it’s believed that the most ancient use of delphinium flowers was for driving away scorpions.  The July birth flower, these lush, dolphin-shaped flowers symbolize an open heart and ardent attachment and convey a feeling of lightness and levity.  We have special pricing on a hybrid delphinium arrangement!

From Barb Eastman’s comment on 1/19/10 red velvet cake blog – “Here is another wonderful recipe for you to try, Di. I got it from my brother Pat’s mother-in-law, Colleen Moening.  Uses a 10″ springform pan and it’s outstanding.”

Polish Apple Raisin Cake

3 sticks butter (2 for the cake; one for the topping)
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 cups flour
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. baking soda
3 cups apples, grated (2-3 apples, depending on size)
1-1/2 cups raisins (half for the cake and half for the topping)
1-1/2 cups chopped walnuts (half for the cake and half for the topping – and I like them toasted)
1/2 cup brown sugar (all for the topping—none in the cake)
For the cake

Grease and flour a large spring form pan.

Cream 2 sticks butter with 2 cups sugar, until light and pale.

Add the eggs, one at a time and mix until incorporated.

Add flour, cinnamon and baking soda and beat for about 3 minutes.

Fold in 2 cups apples, 3/4 cup raisins and 3/4 cup walnuts.

Bake in prepared springform pan at 350F for 1 to 1 hour and 15 minutes (toothpick should come out clean).

Cool cake completely before doing topping.
For the topping

Melt remaining stick of butter with 1/2 cup brown sugar.

Bring to a boil and then add the remaining raisins, 1 cup grated apple and remaining walnuts.

Turn down the heat and cook slowly until the raisins plump and the sauce begins to thicken.

With a wooden skewer, wooden knitting needle or the tines of a large fork, pierce the cake and then pour the sauce over the cake.

Allow to cool completely. As the sauce cools it begins to set up.

Serve with whipped cream (whipping cream, sugar to taste, and about 1 tsp. vanilla).

This is an amazing cake – it makes easily enough for a dozen servings!  The first time I made this cake I accidentally put all the grated apples into the batter and had to grate more apples for the topping – did not matter, amazing cake!  The second time I made this cake I added about half a bag of these Kraft caramel bits – OMG!!!! – so good, but have not been able to find these at my local markets again!

Don’t have time or it’s too hot to bake?  Check out the pies and cakes and cookies at Walter Knoll Florist!

Turtle Pecan Cheesecake anyone?

4 cups chicken broth combined with 1 cup water

2 tbs extra virgin olive oil

2 or 3 shallots finely diced

4 garlic cloves finely diced

1-1/2 cups aborio rice

1 cup dry white wine

1 lb peeled, deveined, chopped shrimp pieces (1″ dice)

2 roasted peeled and seeded poblanos (1″ dice)

2 cups chopped arugula

salt and pepper

freshly grated parmesan cheese

Prepare and have all ingredients at the ready, this only takes about 20 minutes

Measure the wine

Roast and peel and cut up poblanos, chop the arugula

You can leave the shrimp whole but I prefer them in about 1 inch pieces

Combine chicken broth and water and bring to simmer on back burner

heat 2 tbl olive oil in large saute pan on medium high heat

add shallots and cook, stirring for about 3 minutes

add garlic and rice and cook, stirring constantly for about 3 minutes

Add the wine and cook until it is absorbed.

Add the broth a ladel or 2 at a time, stirring occasionally and waiting until it is absorbed before adding more.

About halfway thru the broth add the poblano

Add the shrimp and arugula with the last broth addition and cook only until

the shrimp are done – about 2 minutes.  Turn off the heat!

Serve with a sprinkling of freshly grated Parmesan Regianno.

A few of these ingredients came from my garden

Shallots

Garlic from Hood River

Arugula (green beans and celery in the back ground)