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Paris on My Mind

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I’ve had Paris on my mind of late.

I suspect part of it is that I recently finished reading this lovely book. Not to mention that I kept seeing this other pretty little tome pop up all over the food blog world (who wouldn’t want to go to Paris after seeing that?).

But part of it also the desire for a bit of escape.

It’s been a tough month and as is often my way, I look to my cookbooks for relief.

This month, my eyes fell on Paris Boulangerie-Patisserie. I’ve had this book for quite awhile and, from time to time, have perused its pages wondering wistfully when I will be able to visit Lenôtre and Dalloyau, among others.

Perhaps soon.

In the meantime, though, I have set my mind to baking.

I am of the belief that the truly simple things are the ones that do your heart good. And while there are those that would argue that butter and sugar may not be the most heart-friendly things in the world, I believe that something that comes out of the warmth of your oven does far more good than bad, no matter what.

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I saw a recipe for these lovely jam squares and my heart immediately said, “Make them!”

Faites-les!

Ciao!

Jam Squares
Adapted from Paris Boulangerie-Patisserie by Linda Dannenberg.

Note: The original recipe for these squares is called Carrés aux Framboises (Raspberry Squares). I had to do some work on the dough part of this recipe as I could not get it to come together nicely for me. But after a few tweaks, I ended up with a gorgeous dough that’s a cross between a pie dough and a shortbread dough. You can use any sort of jam to fill the squares.

2-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup sliced blanched or natural almonds (the original recipe uses blanched almonds but I used sliced, natural almonds as I preferred the texture)
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
2-1/2 sticks (1-1/2 cups) unsalted butter, softened
a glass of ice water (you may need it to moisten the dough)
1 to 1-1/2 cups of thick jam (whatever jam you prefer)
1 large egg, lightly beaten with a tablespoon of water (this is for the egg wash)
coarse sugar (optional)

Place 1 cup of the flour and the 1/2 cup of the almonds in the bowl of the food processor. Process until the almonds are finely chopped and you have a powdery mixture.

Add the remainder of the flour and the sugar to your mixture and pulse several times to combine.

Add the beaten egg, vanilla extract and the softened butter and pulse 15 to 20 times (or until your dough comes together around the blade). If your dough doesn’t come together, drizzle in a few tablespoons of ice water. The dough should come together nicely and should not be powdery or floury.

Turn the dough out onto a clean surface and gather into a disk. Wrap with plastic and refrigerate for half an hour.

While the dough is chilling, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. The original recipe calls for a 10-1/2 x 15-1/2-inch jelly roll pan but you can use any size you have. If you have smaller pans, then make two sets of squares.

When the dough has chilled, divide it in half and roll out the first half into a rectangle that is about an eighth of an inch thick (you can make it slightly thicker). Carefully transfer your rectangle of dough to your lined baking sheet.

Spread the jam over the rolled out dough, leaving a two-inch border all the way around.

Roll out the second half of the dough to a slightly smaller size. Lightly brush egg wash over the border on the first half of the dough and then top with the second piece of rolled out dough. Working from one end, fold the bottom part of the dough up over the top half. Then press down with a fork all the way around to seal the border to ensure that the jam doesn’t escape.

Brush the top of the dough with more egg wash and prick with a fork to create some holes to allow the steam to escape. Sprinkle on coarse sugar if you like.

Bake for 35 minutes. The dough should be golden and baked through.

Remove to a wire rack and allow to cool before slicing into squares.

Enjoy!

32 Comments

Linnea

05/13/08 at 7:19 pm

Ivonne, those look delish!! Speaking of Paris…makes me think of France, which makes me think of a book called “A Year in Provence” by Peter Mayle. It’s foody and full of cultural observances and stories. It will have you laughing…and your mouth watering! If you haven’t read it… plan a trip to the library :o) xox Linea

Heather

05/13/08 at 7:21 pm

wow… how beautiful! the sound delicious. do you think you could add fresh fruit too, or would that make it too watery? it almost sounds like breakfast, instead of dessert… ;) heather

Y

05/14/08 at 1:27 am

Those squares look almost like a fruit square my boyfriend’s mom used to make all the time, except she put fruit mince in the middle. I like the look of the pastry, so I’m definitely bookmarking this one to try some time.

barbara

05/14/08 at 1:30 am

I’d be happy with any of those books. THey all look interesting…and you jam squares look delicious Ivonne.

peabody

05/14/08 at 1:37 am

Make them indeed. Yum. I love jam squares. I should try these with my mom’s pear-nutmeg jam.

Joanne at frutto della passione

05/14/08 at 3:12 am

My grandmother used to make something very similar when I was a kid. She called it pizza dolce and all the kids in my class wanted to trade their snacks with me at recess. I have been trying to recreate the recipe for ages but something always seems not quite right, this looks lovely, thanks for posting.

Sheltie Girl

05/14/08 at 4:56 am

What a wonderful recipe…I have the perfect apricot jam for this too. Thanks for the new books to read…my husband and I were having a Paris thing the other day too.

Natalie @ Gluten A Go Go

grace

05/14/08 at 6:10 am

a cross between pie dough and shortbread dough? sign me up immediately–i could eat a boatload of either one of those!

Ashley

05/14/08 at 6:19 am

Those look delicious! I think it was how you described the dough as half shortbread half pie crust that convinced me to save the recipe. Hope your month starts to get better soon!

mimi

05/14/08 at 7:28 am

oh, sorry it’s not a good month! if it’s any consolation at all, please know that your jam squares look absolutely lovely! i’ll take two please for breakfast!

Anita

05/14/08 at 7:37 am

Ivonne,
Isn’t it a great book? Almost (almost) as good as going to Paris for real! I love your perfect little jam squares!

Dana

05/14/08 at 8:03 am

“I believe that something that comes out of the warmth of your oven does far more good than bad, no matter what.” Hear, hear! I completely agree, and these look wonderful.

Lisa

05/14/08 at 8:09 am

They look so buttery and goldeny delicious. WHY do they look so buttery and goldeny delicious?? Is it because I can’t have them?? YES. YES IT IS.

You need to strap your rocking chair to your car, pack a bag (DON’T FORGET THE JAM SQUARES) and drive to see me.. then allow me to sit on your lap while you rock me and tell me it’s going to be okay and I will try to believe you in between chewing my jam squares. *sniff*

xoxo

african vanielje

05/14/08 at 8:48 am

I agree, a little warm butter and sugar are part of nature’s panacea for heartache and TLC. These look like they did the job. Your pic is so beautiful I can almost smell the butery pastry and feel the heat wafting off the tray

VeggieGirl

05/14/08 at 8:56 am

I always have Paris on my mind, haha - it’s one of my all-time favorite cities to visit from time to time!

I’m so sorry that things have been tough for you, Ivonne :0( But I agree - baking is a great way to bring happiness to one’s life, and always yields delicious results! Those Jam Squares?? Divine!!

Christina

05/14/08 at 10:37 am

Ivonne, you make something that one might consider a simple treat look like something far more, and I believe that has something to do with the story behind why you baked it. Lovely!

And I always think of Paris in the springtime, probably because of the song and different blogs I see!

breadchick

05/14/08 at 11:18 am

Ivonne, I ALWAYS have Paris on my mind ;-)

These look so good and I think they would be just about all anyone would need to transport themselves to Paris.

Take care of yourself!

Hillary

05/14/08 at 2:01 pm

Jam squares doesn’t sound like too bad of a consequence for having Paris on the mind :)

Oh yea, we’re also having a contest on our blog where you could win a package from Lou Malnati’s. Check it out!

MyKitchenInHalfCups

05/14/08 at 2:07 pm

I’ve often wondered if I charted the number of bakings that I did would it correlate with how tough life was treating me.
Hope life starts behaving better for you and that these jam squares help until then. They do look just wonderful.

Dana McCauley

05/14/08 at 3:01 pm

I agree that heart health and calories occasionally need to take a backseat to mental health. There truly is nothing like simple foods.

I used to know someone who made a very similar recipes with a fig filling or currant filling. Also delicious!

gizmar

05/14/08 at 5:00 pm

I hope the rough month is sorting itself out - it seems to go in such waves doesn’t it - just when you think you’re okay - wham - something comes up that either costs too much, hurts someone, or causes us some form of grief.

The good news is when you start thinking about Paris, that can only mean lovely things to eat coming from your blog. I’m really fine with that and will trade you a shoulder for some of those jam squares.

Slender Octopus

05/15/08 at 6:57 am

Oh yes Paris is on my mind too!!! All the time….:)
and recently my lips ;)
http://slenderoctopus.blogspot.com/2008/05/laurent-fix.html

michelle @ TNS

05/15/08 at 12:32 pm

sigh…i’ve been having dreams of rome lately. hopefully, i’ll b going in the fall…

i don’t know if jam-squares will help my rome-sickness, but they still look damn tasty.

Desi

05/15/08 at 2:21 pm

Hi Ivonne, I found you by chance and I immediately loved your blog, I’m from Bologna, where is your family from exactly? I’d be glad to stay in touch, have a nice time, ciao!!

Elizabeth Mackey

05/15/08 at 4:14 pm

I was just thinking about Paris today! I lived there for two years,and today was one of those I miss Paris days. On m blog I did a post on Laduree, that is my most favorite patisserie in the entire city of Paris. I found your blog through another and thought I’d say hi. Your jam squares look tasty!!

RecipeGirl

05/15/08 at 5:47 pm

So they look a little pop-tart-ish, right? I love that. Baking makes my heart warm and mended too!

LINA

05/15/08 at 9:56 pm

how beautiful! Almost too beautiful and too perfect to eat! …almost

Tartelette

05/16/08 at 3:22 pm

Well, that’s a feeling I can understand :)
The jam squares look wonderful!

ginny

05/19/08 at 5:39 am

I tried this recipe after being tempted by your gorgeous photos and was very disappointed. It was VERY rich. The dough was difficult to work with. The whole family had difficulty eating this. Maybe almost 3 sticks of butter is a little too much no?

Kens soup recipes

06/16/08 at 11:44 pm

Those desserts look delicious, going to have to try them out.
Might have to get my wife to do them I’m not much of a baker.
Kudos on the great pictures.

heather

05/29/09 at 1:32 pm

Has anybody ever heard of the similar recipe called the commodore square? Please respond back, because my mom is trying to find this to make for my 89 yr old grandfather who loved them.

Farmer

10/10/10 at 5:38 pm

Heather yes!!!
my Grandmother made them using fresh fox berries or cranberries, they look just like above!!!
Did you find a recipe??

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