Weevalicious Recipes

Chocolate Mousse Cheesecake

2010-03-20T16:03:00.000-07:00

My brother is very much a chocoholic like me - it runs in the family. So when he gets on a plane to fly 3,000 miles to spend his hard-earned spring break with me, what do I do?

I feed him, of course!

I teased him lots beforehand though. Every recipe I saw that looked even slightly tempting to me, I emailed to him with "Should I make you this?" ... "Or how about this?" ... "Ooh, we might be able to make this too!" I think he didn't eat at all the week before in preparation.

Out of the flood of goodies though, this one caught his eye. It's a chocolate-crusted cheesecake with a semi-sweet mousse layer topped with bittersweet ganache. It's rich enough that a single slice will satisfy. And after two days, it's now half gone.

Well, ok, I cheat: we took part of it to a party. But it is tasty.

Recipe is compliments of Mangio da Sola - the only adjustments I made were to omit the coffee and alcohol. I won't reiterate it here as you really should visit her site, if just for the pictures. Nom nom nom.

Blueberry-Almond Bars

2010-02-13T21:35:00.000-08:00

Whew. Just a little time has passed! I'd like to claim lots has happened, but mostly it's just been work work work. Good stuff, but we're here for the food, and we all know it. ;)

Food then! I present Blueberry Curd and Almond Cream bars. They take some work, but oh goodness, they're addicting. There's just one other recipe I've had more requests for - this one even passed the One-Bowl Brownies! I can't say I'm surprised though, for a non-chocolate dessert these are stunning. They start out with a layer of almond shortbread, flavored with cinnamon and lemon. A layer of almond cream, flavored with liquor, makes up the middle. The crowning glory is a layer of homemade blueberry curd. Just... yum.

The recipe is an adaptation, but after a year I'm afraid the link has vanished from my records. Once again recipe gods, please give my thanks to your acolyte!

Blueberry Almond Bars

Shortbread:
* 6 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces
* 1 cup all-purpose flour
* 1/4 cup ground toasted almonds
* 1/4 cup granulated sugar
* 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
* 1/4 teaspoon salt

Almond cream:
* 1/4 cup pure almond paste (2 ounces)
* 1/4 cup granulated sugar
* 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
* 1 egg
* 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
* 1/4 teaspoon almond extract

Blueberry curd:
* 1 pint blueberries
* 2 eggs
* 3/4 cup granulated sugar
* Pinch of salt
* 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
* 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into 1-inch pieces

Preheat an oven to 350°F. Lightly butter an 8x8" baking dish.

Crust: To make the shortbread, combine the butter, flour, almonds, granulated sugar, cinnamon, and salt until small lumps form. Sprinkle the mixture into the prepared pan and press evenly into the bottom. Bake until the shortbread is golden, about 20 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack. Reduce the oven temperature to 325°F.

Almond cream: Purée almond paste, granulated sugar, butter, and a pinch of salt in a food processor until smooth. Add 1 egg, vanilla, and almond extract and purée until incorporated. Add flour and pulse until incorporated.

Blueberry curd: In a food processor or blender, puree the blueberries until smooth. Pass the puree through a chinois set over a bowl, using a pestle to press on the solids and extract as much juice as possible; discard the solids. You should have about 1/2 cup juice.

In the top pan of a double boiler or in a nonreactive saucepan, whisk together the eggs and granulated sugar until blended. Then whisk in the blueberry juice, salt, and lemon juice. Set the top pan over but not touching simmering water in the bottom pan, or set the saucepan over medium-low heat. (If using a saucepan, take care not to heat the mixture too quickly.) Cook, stirring constantly with a wooden spatula or spoon, until the mixture is warmed through, 1 to 2 minutes.

Begin adding the butter a little at a time, stirring each addition until blended before adding more. Continue cooking, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom of the pan, until a finger drawn across the back of the spatula leaves a path, 8 to 10 minutes more. Immediately remove the pan from the heat. Pass the curd through the chinois set over a bowl and let stand for 10 minutes. Whisk to blend.

Assembly: Pour the almond cream over the cooled crust and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven then pour the curd on top, spreading it evenly to the edges. There may be some blending of the almond cream and the blueberry - no worries.

Bake until the curd is set, about 30 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool completely. Cut into individual bars, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Dust the bars with confectioners’ sugar before serving.

Christmas Goodies

2009-01-02T19:35:00.000-08:00

I am a bad person - I wholeheartedly admit it. I didn't meant to leave you all hanging, but the moving kicked in along with the aftermath of the other news, and, well, it was overwhelming. So let me jump straight to the biggest news.

I got married.

Boyo and I finally tied the knot and couldn't be happier. It was a small wedding, about as small as it gets in fact - a judge, two last-minute witnesses, and ourselves - but even the planning involved for that level was scary. From deciding to do the deed to doing it took a week, and I honestly cannot remember anything about that week leading up to the ceremony. I'm sure I worked (right up to 2 hours before the wedding - rar!) but I'm just going to have to hope I was productive because I don't remember a lick of what I did. My family is thrilled as they love him to pieces and I can completely relate.

The other news was that it was my birthday, but that's old news now and a bit blown out of the water by the wedding anyway. We timed it perfectly so we could have one celebration for both (I was born, and I got married - yay!). Of course, if he forgets our anniversary, he's doubly screwed ;)

So we got married, moved during one of the worst snowstorms this century in Seattle (yay snow!), fully unpacked, and cleaned everything. And just in time, as I now have a gorgeous kitchen and a serious itch to bake!

For this round: I'm a fan of chocolate and mint - I think I've mentioned this before, although it may have been drowned out in the "NOMnomnomnom"-ing. I got invited to a Christmas cookie party which was sadly cancelled due to the snow and the ice and the hills and the 20+ mph winds and the fact that no-one in the state of Washington knows how to drive in poor weather (me neither!)... but after I'd made the cookies. I should be complaining - these are by far the tastiest cookies I've ever had (evar!!) and having them around for Christmas break has, er, not helped my waistline. But, what can I say except NOMnomnomnomnom.

Peppermint Candy Cane Cookies (adapted from Epicurious.com)
Cookies
* 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
* 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Dutch-process)
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1 cup sugar
* 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
* 1 large egg

Frosting
* 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
* 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
* 3/4 teaspoon peppermint extract
* 2 drops (or more) red food coloring/gel

Preparation

For cookies:
Whisk flour, cocoa, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat sugar and butter in large bowl until well blended. Beat in egg. Add dry ingredients; beat until blended. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and flatten into a disk. Refrigerate 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350°F. On a floured surface, roll out the dough to about 1/4-1/8" thickness. Use your cookie cutter to cut out the shapes you want, transfer to a cookie sheet, and refrigerate another 10 minutes. Bake for 8-10 minutes (do not overcook or they will be crispy). If making sandwich cookies, make sure to bake half the cookies backwards! Cool on sheet 5 minutes. Transfer chocolate cookies to racks and cool completely.

For frosting:
Using electric mixer, beat powdered sugar and butter in medium bowl until well blended. Streak the opposite sides of your piping bag with the food coloring/gel and add the frosting (you may want to only use 1/2 the frosting so the color shows up for all cookies. Make sure the coloring goes all the way to the piping tip, otherwise your first few cookies won't have any coloring.).

Pipe the frosting short-ways back and forth on one cookie. Place backwards cookie on top and press down gently. These are best cold. Makes 18-20 cookies (depending on size)

Maple-Bacon Chocolate Chip Cookies (and a tall glass of good news)

2008-11-05T08:31:00.000-08:00

Gentle readers, it has been over a month since I last posted, and I do apologize. My excuses are good ones though, as I think you will agree. They number three (to be presented in three posts):

First: my boyo and I are moving! We got tired of the loud music and people throwing eggs at our door (no, this wasn't a Halloween thing, sadly), so we went looking. Folks, this is the market for renters - we found a beautiful condo with a waterfront view, for several hundred dollars less a month than we're paying now. The best part is the kitchen - I'll post pictures once we've fully moved in.

To celebrate our move to a better place (and one significantly closer to work, thankfully!) I give you Maple-Bacon Chocolate Chip Cookies. Yes, I finally jumped on the bacon-bandwagon and I cry to think of how long I resisted. I should have instead reasoned: "Bacon = good. Chocolate = good. Maple syrup on anything = good. Maple-Bacon Chocolate Chip Cookies must logically then = AWESOME!"

The recipe is from Never Bashful with Butter, who is one of the funniest individuals I have yet to meet - seriously folks, I'm not going to bother reiterating the recipe here, because you'll enjoy her version that much more.

Stick around; news items 2 and 3 are coming up, and they're doozies!

Pumpkin Cupcakes with Maple Cheesecake Topping

2008-09-15T20:45:00.000-07:00

Oh sad! Autumn is nearly here and I'm already missing my summer fruit. Luckily, there are plenty of winter goodies to substitute - apple turnovers, pecan pie, .... pumpkin cupcakes? Now, see, I'm not a huge fan of pumpkin anything, but you wouldn't have guessed it from my cupboard. I had six cans of the stuff sitting around with no plans to use them and no memory of how I had acquired them. They're breeding I tellsya!

It seemed fortuitous then that I stumbled across this recipe by Peabody. Don't let the title (or her story) fool you - she's a right sweetie, and a hell of a good cook!

Pumpkin Cupcakes with Maple Cheesecake Topping (adapted from Culinary Concoctions by Peabody):
Maple Cheesecake Layer:
* 9 oz cream cheese, room temperature
* 1/4 c granulated sugar
* 1/4 c brown sugar
* 6 tbsp real maple syrup
* 1 tsp maple extract
* 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
* 1 large egg

Pumpkin Spice Bread:
* 2 c all-purpose flour
* 1 tsp baking soda
* 1/2 tsp salt
* 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
* 1/4 tsp ground ginger
* 1/4 tsp fresh ground nutmeg
* 1/4 tsp ground gloves
* 1 c pumpkin puree (plain, not the already made pumpkin pie kind)
* 1/2 c canola oil
* 2 large eggs
* 1 1/2 c granulated sugar
* 1 c chopped pecans, plus extra for garnish

Preheat oven to 325F.
Line the holes of a cupcake pan with cupcake liners. In a medium mixing bowl, combine all the maple cheesecake ingredients; beat until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Set aside.

In another bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, salt, and spices; set aside.
Place pumpkin puree, vegetable oil, eggs and sugar in a mixing bowl of an electric stand mixer. Using the paddle attachment, beat for about 1 minute, until fully combined

Add flour mixture into the pumpkin mixture and mix just until combined. Fold in the pecans. Spoon ~1/4 cups of the pumpkin batter into the liners, and indent so the batter is shaped like a cup. Spoon cream cheese mixture into the cupcake hole until one cm from the top of the liner. Garnish with chopped pecans, if desired.

Bake in preheated 325° oven for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into center of one of the cupcakes comes out clean. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Variants on Old Favorites

2008-09-01T12:28:00.000-07:00

These were fun - I got invited to a party (Rock Band parties ROCK!) and was asked if I wouldn't mind bringing a dessert. Hee. Me? Mind? Good grief no. I wanted to spend more time decorating though, so I took a couple of favorites from the past (my blondies and brownies) and dressed them up for the occasion. Raspberries for the white chocolate, boyo's favorite, and I'd been dying to try out the chocolate-apricot combo I'd had on the cruise.

Because I was more decoration-oriented this time, I bought a couple jars of raspberry and apricot jam and strained out the seeds from the raspberry. After the blondies and brownies and cooled, I injected the jams into the middle, then covered the hole with a base of chocolate and bits of fruit, almonds, and chocolate designs. The overall appearance was nifty, and very, very tasty. My only objection is, at the time of making these I didn't have my mini cheesecake pan yet, so I had to use a muffin pan. The bulk of each goodie rather set off-balance the delicate decoration, but now I have my wonderful cheesecake pan I can fix this next time around. On the other hand, who's going to complain of too much brownie?

Mini Lemon Mascarpone Cheesecakes

2008-08-26T22:06:00.001-07:00

You'd think I liked cheesecake or something. Actually, I had a container of mascarpone that needed to be used, some extra lemon curd, and a love for my new mini cheesecake pan. Those three ingredients led to this tasty tidbit - a lighter than usual morsel with a refreshing lemon tang.

This will probably be my last cheesecake for a while - I've made other (boring, standard) cheesecakes that I haven't bothered to post here, and frankly, I'm cheesecaked out. I still have plans for that pan though; my birthday is coming up (ed: yea, in two months!) and I am plotting a big ole birthday feast. I have two companies and myself to feed, after all! If anyone has any suggestions or cravings, let me know in the comments and I'll add to my feeding extravaganza menu. I bet you can't wait (I know I can't!).

I used Trader Joe's lemon curd, but lemon curd is one of those recipes that's easy to make and gorgeous to taste.

Mini Lemon Mascarpone Cheesecake (minorly adapted from Diana's Desserts)
* 2 1/2 c graham cracker crumbs
* 1/3 c sugar
* 8 tbsp butter, melted
* 1 c blanched almonds, coursely chopped
* 12 oz cream cheese
* 1/4 c plus 2 tbsp. granulated sugar
* 1 tbsp lemon zest*
* 1/3 c mascarpone Cheese**
* 5 tbsp heavy cream
* 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
* 2 tsp lemon juice*
* 2 large eggs, separated

Preheat the oven to 350F. Set mini cheesecake pan on a cookie sheet.

In a medium bowl, mix together the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, butter, and almonds. Put a heaping spoonful in each cup and pat down with a shot glass.

In the bowl of an electric mixer with the paddle attachment, combine sugar, cream cheese and lemon zest. Mix until smooth. Add the mascarpone cheese and mix until just combined. Add cream, vanilla extract and lemon juice and mix until smooth. Stir in the yolks then transfer to a medium sized mixing bowl.

Wash and dry the electric mixing bowl. Using the whisk attachment, whip the egg whites until soft peaks form. Gently fold the egg whites into the cream cheese mixture. Add batter to each cup leaving about 1 cm from the top. Bake at 350 degrees F (180 C) for 20-25 minutes. Let cool, then dollop a teaspoon of lemon curd on top. Refrigerate until ready to eat.

Mini Caramel Apple Pie Cheesecakes

2008-08-17T08:15:00.001-07:00

I couldn't get apple pie out of my head. I tend to be naughty - I try to think of desserts that will poke at the boyo's weaknesses, even though I know he'd rather eat ... well, let's say "more wisely" tho I think "less funly" is more apt. My boyo loves apple pie. Pies of all kind, but give him apple and he won't even protest.

He also won't protest over cheesecake - remember those two from the cruise? Hmm, I thought. Could I possibly make him a dessert that is so in tune with his cravings, that he implodes from the tastiness? Hey, who can resist a challenge?

On top of that, I had a new pan I'd been dying to try: a mini cheesecake pan. Now, if the idea tickles your fancy, a word of recommendation - they're cheap, get two. I found myself taking way too long with the baking, just because I only had one pan in rotation. But, then again, I'm crazy and generally bake for 50. If buying pans for single projects isn't your thing (-cough-) you might be able to use a muffin pan .... but I really wouldn't recommend it. The cheesecake pan works because the bottoms come out, allowing you to push the cheesecakes up-n-out with very little hassle.

So. I'm going to give you guys options. There's the way I actually made the recipe, and then there are the tweaks. I'll add the latter in as notes so you can decide how you want to go, but let me just say, either way you go, YUM.

Mini Apple Pie Cheesecakes (adapted from Diana's Desserts)
Ingredients:
Crust:
* 2 c graham cracker crumbs
* 1/2 c granulated sugar
* 7 tbsp (3/4 stick/3 oz/85g) unsalted butter, melted
* 1/2 c pecans, coarsely chopped (tweak: my recommendation would be to omit the caramel swirl and caramelize the pecans instead before chopping them up)

Filling:
* 2 large apples (I used fuji)
* 3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, at room temperature
* 1 1/4 c granulated sugar
* 2 tsp vanilla extract
* 4 large eggs
* 1 tbsp cinnamon (or to taste)
* 1 tsp nutmeg (or to taste)
* 4 oz apple concentrate (or to taste)

Caramel Sauce (from The Food Network)
* 1 1/2 c sugar
* 1/3 c water
* 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 c heavy cream
* 1/2 vanilla bean or 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Serve with:
Leftover caramel sauce

Instructions:
For Crust:
Preheat oven to 325°F/160°C. Place removeable bottoms in mini cheesecake pan.

Stir cracker crumbs, pecans and sugar in medium bowl to blend. Add melted butter and stir until evenly moistened. Spoon a heaping teaspoon into each hole and pat down using the bottom of a shot glass.

For Filling:
Peel, core, and finely dice the apples. Beat cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla in large bowl until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Reserve 2/3 c batter for caramel swirl; add apple concentrate and spices to the remainder, then gently fold in the diced apples.

Note: The caramel swirl is optional - the contrast on the top wasn't as strong as I was hoping and there was only a hint of caramel in the overall flavor. Caramelized pecans in the crust would do better if you're looking for a caramel punch... but if you're looking for subtlety, the swirl's the way to go (or hey, both!).

For Sauce:
Mix the water and sugar in a large heavy-bottomed saucepan. Cover and cook over low heat until the sugar dissolves. Increase the heat and boil uncovered until the sugar turns a medium brown, about 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon. Watch it carefully at the end, as it will go from caramel to burnt very quickly. Stand back to avoid splattering, and gradually add the cream and the seeds scraped from the vanilla bean (or vanilla extract). Simmer until the caramel dissolves and the sauce is smooth and thick, about 2 minutes. Let cool before using.

Note: I think this is what is called "dry caramel" and boy is it scary as all heck (mostly because I wasn't expecting it). As a warning - that water you're adding? It's going to evaporate and leave big chunks of hard sugar to very slowly dissolve. I would leave the water out entirely - just watch that pan closely!

To the reserved cheesecake liquid add spoonfuls of the sauce until it turns a light golden and is still fairly liquid. Make sure the sauce is well incorporated into the batter.

Assembly:
Pour ~1/4 c of apple cheesecake batter over each crust (about 3/4's way full). Drop by teaspoons the caramel batter into each cup and swirl around with a toothpick. Place the pan on a cookie sheet and bake for 20-25 minutes. Let cool before removing.

For those curious - he didn't implode. He did eat five though!

Alaskan Grandeur

2008-07-12T08:12:00.000-07:00

Ok, I know you all are going to think me the greatest living dork alive, but on the cruise, surrounded by éclairs and napoleans and mousse and tartlettes, can you guess what I found to be the most delicious, scrumptious, going-back-for-thirds dessert?

Soft serve.

That's right, chocolate-vanilla swirl soft serve ice cream. I hadn't had it since I was 10 and at McDonald's (which probably accounts for the time it's been since my last taste) but this stuff was nectar from the gods. Creamy beyond belief, sweet, and with the right speed of melty-ness so I could dip my cookie in the leftover soup.

So I gained a little weight. Who's asking? :P

I did remember you guys though, and dragged myself from the ice cream machine long enough to visit several of their restaurants and take pictures of our meals. The two of us made quite a spectacle: we'd get our food, and the boyo would pick up his fork expectantly.

"NO! Don't touch it, give it here" I'd say as I pulled out my camera.

"Do you have to take pictures of my food? Can't you take pictures of yours?" he'd grumble.

"What, are you starving?" I'd retort.

And of course he wouldn't be due to the 3+ course meals we'd have 3 times a day, so he'd hand over his plate and roll his eyes while I posed it. More than one waiter eyed me askance as I would photo the dish before even tasting. Unfortunately I only remembered to bring the camera a couple of times but I think I got the best meals we had anyway.

So! Onward for a food-recap of our trip. What better way to start a vacation than with a cold mai tai, complete with cherry and umbrella?

I don't normally get to eat fish (the boyo doesn't like the stuff) but while at sea I indulged almost every night. Here we have seared swordfish (which was as smooth as butter) with braised-pork lentils - I was tempted to go back a second night!

My dessert for the night was a chocolate napolean: dense chocolate cake with something crispy throughout, layered with caramel mousse and topped with a chocolate disk. I may have been spoiled by all the soft-serve, but this dessert sort of missed the mark. It was cold when it was served, straight from the freezer, so I missed any subtlety of flavors in the density and chill overall. Still - chocolate, crisps, and caramel! It can't be all that bad.

I didn't grab the boyo's plate in time to photo his dinner, but I did snag his dessert! This strawberry cheesecake looks as though it's about to launch into space, but it must have been good, as he didn't save me a taste. That's ok though, I didn't save him one of mine either!

Even had I not been indulging in three full meals a day, there's no way I could have finished this veal chop on risotto. I tried though, oh how I tried. How many times can I compare meals to butter and still get away with it? Honestly though, the veal was tender and salty (I love salt) and the risotto was thick and creamy. After eating this I was sooo full.....

...but not too full for dessert! This was a gorgeous, gorgeous idea that I plan to duplicate immediately. The tort had a dense shortbread crust that encased a chocolate custard studded with apricots and walnuts. OMGGOOD!

The boyo may hate fish, but lobster he'll partake of. Besides my veal chop I also nibbled on his lobster ravioli which were floating in a pool of tomato-ey cream sauce. It was good, but not as good as mine!

Do you see a trend here? Cheesecake with strawberries and a branch of hard caramel - he definitely has his favorite dessert. Can't say I blame him though, I'd wavered between my tort and the cheesecake before choosing - chocolate always wins!

We got an unexpected knock at our cabin door one evening and the porter delivered this plate of chocolate-dipped strawberries. It was a gift! we were told, but the name on the card was not familiar at all. We called the kitchen and they told us, oops! wrong address, go ahead and keep them. Woot, free strawberries. Now, for the $20 they probably cost someone, they didn't look too nice (the strawberries were a bit tired) but even full as we perpetually were, they tasted fantastic. I'd never had chocolate strawberries before, but they're a new favorite now!

What cruise would be complete without a midnight chocolate buffet? Not this one, that's for sure! I didn't take pictures of the actual buffet because the crowd was incredible, but there were beautiful chocolate statues stationed between tables with big "Do Not Touch, Not For Eating" signs. But, but, but, chocolate! If it's not for eating, what good is it?

Ok, I didn't eat everything. But I tasted it all and I had some definite favorites. Clockwise from top, we have a chocolate-raspberry mousse cake (good), brownie coated in white chocolate ganache and nuts (blah), chocolate strawberry (awesome!), and a rum cake coated in chocolate (favorite!!!)

And for our second plate of midnight chocolate: at top is a milk/white chocolate mousse with a raspberry-chocolate decoration (decent), right is a dome of chocolate mousse on a chocolate cake base (decent), and left is a chocolate cake with white chocolate ganache pooled in the middle (meh). To be fair, I was very full at this point but my favorite of them all was by far the rum cake. Expect to see some of those in the future!

For those of you who are thinking "Ok, those are yummy-looking, but I see no evidence of Alaska: I think you lie!" I have proof! Non-food evidence can be found here. Now, I know that I took much longer to post this than I promised (a month! Yuck.) but I have excuses and compensation! I started my new job all of one day after we returned from the cruise and have been plugging away pell-mell since. But, I haven't stopped baking - in the next day or so I'll have posts of delicious, wonderful cheesecakes and then you all shall forgive me my absence and love me once more! :)

Mini Apple Pies

2008-06-27T12:58:00.000-07:00

June marks my boyo's birthday, and there's nothing he likes more than apple pie. He's a pie kinda guy. -snerks- Ok, so, apple pie was the way to go, but I didn't want to make one big one, as we'd then have it sitting around the house to tempt us later (we're trying to cut back on the quantity of sweets around here). Since slices of pie are not at all portable, I decided to send his work pie miniatures.

A note for those of you admiring the lattice: I am a dork. For each of the 50+ pies I made that day, I hand wove the individual lattices. Had I been smart I would have made only one or two large lattices, then cut them up into the sized sections that I needed. Hey, weave and learn, yes?

This post also marks a momentous occasion: the retirement of my camera. It was old and tired, as evidenced by the 5 seconds it would need to take a picture (hold still... hold still... keep holding still... oops, I twitched, shot taken!). The decision to get a new one was brought about by another momentous occasion: me and the boyo's very first vacation together! We've gone on family visits before, but as enjoyable as they are there's always a certain level of stress involved. Plus, this past year we were moving at the same time, so things were at a new level of crazy.

Now that we're settled in and life is relatively calm, we are taking a cruise to Alaska! I'm excited to see the glaciers and (hopefully) wildlife, but you guys know me. I'll be taking pictures of the food. But, under the guise of admiring wildlife, we decided to purchase a new camera. The Canon PowerShot A590 IS slices, dices, makes chili and fries! ... well, ok, not those four. But so far it takes astoundingly beautiful and easy shots. I'm reading up on the manual so I won't have to plead with the eagles to hold still while I figure out which setting to use, but once I've got it sorted, look out Alaska!

So, I'll be gone for the next week. But when I return, expect a deluge of pictures and lots and lots of new oh-my-god-I-gotta-makes.

Mini Apple Pies

Dough (adapted from Simply Recipes):
* 1 1/2 c all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling
* 16 Tbsp (2 stick) unsalted butter, very-cold, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
* 1 tsp salt
* 1 tsp sugar (increase to 3 tsp if for a sweet recipe)
* 4 to 8 Tbsp ice water, very cold

Start by cutting the sticks of butter into 1/2-inch cubes and placing in the freezer for at least 15 minutes (preferably longer) so that they become thoroughly chilled.

In a food processor, combine flour, salt, and sugar, pulse to mix. Add butter and pulse 6 to 8 times, until mixture resembles coarse meal, with pea size pieces of butter. Add water 1 Tablespoon at a time, pulsing until mixture just begins to clump together. If you pinch some of the crumbly dough and it holds together, it's ready, if not, add a little more water and pulse again.

Remove dough from machine and place on a clean surface. Carefully shape into two discs. Do not over-knead the dough! You should still be able to see little bits of butter in the dough. These bits of butter are what will allow the result crust to be flaky. Sprinkle the discs with a little flour on all sides. Wrap the discs in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1 hour.

Filling:
* 8-9 med granny smith apples
* 1 tsp lemon juice
* 3/4 c sugar
* 1/3 c flour
* 1 tsp nutmeg
* 1 tsp cinnamon
* 1/2 tsp mace
* dash of salt
* 3-4 tbsp butter

Peel, core and dice the apples to 1/2" cubes. Sprinkle with the lemon juice and toss. In a separate bowl, combine the sugar, flour, and spices. Sprinkle over the apples and gently stir to evenly coat.

Assembly:
* 1 egg, beaten
* turbinado sugar (optional)

Preheat oven to 350F.

Remove both crust disk from the refrigerator. Let sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes. Sprinkle some flour on top of one of the disks. Roll out with a rolling pin on a lightly floured surface to a 12 inch circle; about 1/8 of an inch thick. As you roll out the dough, use a metal spatula to check if the dough is sticking to the surface below. Add a few sprinkles of flour if necessary to keep the dough from sticking.

Cut out circles ~2x the size of your pan (I used a muffin tin; you don't need to grease it). Gently pat the rounds into the bottoms of the muffin tin, leaving the overhang (you may to need to do alternating cups first, then fill the other cups after the first round is finished, for room). Keep any scraps in the refrigerator.

Fill the crusts with the apples, until the top of the mound is ~1/2" over the crust. Dot with the butter. Brush the crust overhang with the beaten egg.

For lattice, roll out the second disk and cut into 1/3" strips. Weave the strips into one large lattice then cut off sections for each mini pie (you want the weave to be tight otherwise a lot of the moisture from the pie will escape). Carefully transfer the lattices to the muffin pan and pinch with the bottom crust to seal. Trim the excess, brush the remaining egg on top, and sprinkle with turbinado sugar.

Bake for 30-40 minutes, rotating in the middle. You want the crusts to be flaky-golden, not pale, otherwise the bottom crust won't be cooked all the way. Check a couple times during baking and add time as you feel is necessary.

Food for Father part 2

2008-06-12T16:54:00.000-07:00

Sorry to leave you in such suspense! Every time I went to post the second half of this post, my picture wouldn't upload, and really, what good is food porn without the pictures? But now, tada! The other half of my Father's Day package, long since consumed by now.

These are a variant on the petit fours I made earlier. I had lots of caramel and almond praline in the refrigerator, and I wanted to dip something in chocolate because I wanted to be sure the cake would stay fresh (but really, who needs an excuse to dip things in chocolate?) Dad loves almond, as a general rule - he eats them by the handful plain - so these are Almond Praline Petit Fours, dipped in chocolate.

In my opinion, the best part of this recipe was the cake. Subtly sweet and very almondy, I could have eaten it alone. Plying it with caramel and praline seemed almost like a waste, until you tasted the final product. The praline turned out to be essential, giving the overall texture a surprising crunch after biting through the stiff chocolate and soft cake. I snuck a few to keep for myself ;)

Almond Praline Petit Fours (makes ~20)
* 1 recipe Almond Sponge Cake (recipe below)
* 1 recipe caramel (recipe below)
* 1 c almond praline
* 12 oz dark chocolate, melted
* 12 oz white chocolate, melted

Almond Sponge Cake (adapted from Our Patisserie)
* 1/4 c milk
* 2 tbsp butter, cut into small pieces
* 1/2 c sifted cake flour
* 1/4 c sifted almond flour
* 1 tsp baking powder
* 3/4 c sugar
* 3 large eggs
* 3 large egg yolks
* 1 tsp almond extract

Preheat oven to 400F. Line bottom of jelly-roll pan with parchment so that the paper overhangs the pan at 2 opposite ends. Make cuts in corners so parchment lies flat.

Heat milk with butter in small saucepan until butter melts. Reduce heat to low, and keep hot, but do not simmer. Sift flours with baking powder twice. Return to sifter and set aside.

In large heatproof bowl, combine sugar, whole eggs, egg yolks and extract. Place the bowl in a pan of simmering water and whisk vigorously for about 1 minute until eggs are warm. Remove from heat, and beat at high speed until mixture has cooled, tripled in volume, and has the consistency of thick whipped cream.

Sift one-third of flour mixture over batter, and fold in gently by hand, using the largest spatula you have. Fold in half of remaining flour; then fold in the remainder. Pour the hot milk and butter into batter and fold well, scraping the bottom each time and bringing the batter up the sides of the bowl until you can no longer see traces of liquid.

Turn batter into prepared pan. Bake for about 10 minutes. The cake will have browned on top, and started to shrink from the sides of the pan. Cool cake in its pan.

Caramel (adapted from David Lebovitz)
* 1 can sweetened condensed milk
* pinch of salt
* 1 1/2 c heavy cream

Preheat oven to 425. Empty condensed milk into a glass pie pan and sprinkle salt over top (I like to use 1 tsp +, as I'm a fan of salted caramel). Cover tightly with aluminum foil and place in a roasting pan. Fill roasting pan with boiling water to halfway up pie pan.

Place roasting pan in oven and bake for 1-1 1/2 hours, until deeply golden brown. Remove from heat and let cool.

Beat heavy cream until medium peaks form (tips droop when lifted). Gently fold whipped cream into cooled dulce de leche and mix until smooth.

Chocolate Designs
These look awesome, especially considering how easy they are. Line a pan with parchment or wax paper. Place 1 oz melted chocolate in a ziploc bag and snip off the very tip (you want a tiny hole or the designs won't look as intricate). Pipe designs onto prepared pan, and refrigerate until ready to use.

Assembly
Place cooled cake in freezer and let sit 1/2 hour or until solid. Remove and cut in half; return to freezer until fully chilled.

Spread cooled caramel over one half of cake and sprinkle praline over caramel until thickly covered (reserve some praline for topping). Place other half of cake over caramel, sandwich style, and return to freezer again.

Once cake has been frozen, remove, and with a sharp knife cut into pieces. You may need to use the dip-and-wipe process (dip knife in hot water, wipe clean, cut, repeat). Return pieces to freezer while preparing chocolate.

Melt your chocolate (one at a time) and dip frozen cake squares. Scrape off excess chocolate from the bottom and place on a silicone mat or parchment paper. Before chocolate cools, sprinkle with remaining almond praline and top with a chocolate design.

If you want, you can temper your chocolate for a nicer snap. Tempering chocolate scares me, and while I will attempt it at some point, this was not the project to do so. For me, melted chocolate was fine.

Food for Father

2008-06-03T18:27:00.000-07:00

Hold onto your hats: this post is going to be a doozy. Father's Day is still a couple weeks away but this year it falls in a busy month for me, and unfortunately my Dad doesn't live down the street for me to just give him a hug (much as I'd like to). So this year I was forced to plan ahead. I sound like a good daughter -- in reality, I'm a bad sister. You see, I had another reason for sending out my gift early; my brothers' birthdays came and went, and I completely forgot to remark on them. Oops.

So, in repentance, I overkilled. It was great fun though and I felt properly forgiven when they called to thank me and I could barely understand through the mouths-full. Nothing makes you feel more loved than a strong demand that you move closer :D

As I said, I overkilled. As such, I'm going to break the contents of the gift into two posts - these treats are to be savored. So! My first offering: Raspberry Macarons with White Chocolate Ganache and Raspberry Jam. MmmmMmmm. I've been on a macaron kick (like you hadn't noticed!) and as my parents had dutifully ooh-ed and aw-ed my pictures I figured it was fair they got a taste.

There's a little story to how these macarons came about though. I'd been eyeing the dried raspberry powder from L'Epicerie but didn't want to shell out the cash to try some. I resolved to make my own and see if it passed muster first. Drying raspberries isn't hard - they go straight from freezer to oven and sit there for a few hours at a reasonably low temperature (190 F) until all moisture is evaporated. The purpose is to completely dehydrate the raspberries, leaving only the concentrated pulp left for grinding. There are a few stipulations though: 1) The raspberries should be deep-frozen before baking, and 2) you shouldn't live somewhere with 100% humidity (yes, this again.)

Eighteen hours later (I started at 10am, gave up at 10pm and continued again for half of the next day) I finally had dried raspberry shells. Grinding them up in a coffee grinder produced a coarse-to-fine dark maroon powder that tasted strongly of raspberries. Good! This seemed usable. I set it aside for the designated weekend...

....and the day after completing the powder, received a package in the mail. Inside were two packages of dried raspberry powder from L'Epicerie, a gift from my boyo's work. Wonderful people, they are! Now, even if you live in 100% humid climate, the homemade powder will do in a pinch. But oh, the superiority of the bought. This stuff turned the air around it raspberry-y. It was fine as dust and light as a feather, and had none of the grittiness of the homemade to it. Better yet, a tiny amount imparted plenty of raspberry flavor, so there was no need to over-use.

Behold the comparison:

I admit, I used the bought. How could I not? I ended up making two batches though, as through my first batch I learned of the potency of the powder. Too much used and the raspberry became almost aggressive, while the texture turned jammy. I scaled back the amount for the second batch and was left with beautiful macarons that balanced white chocolate and raspberry perfectly. The first batch I ate myself ;)

Raspberry Macarons with White Chocolate Ganache and Raspberry Jam (adapted from LA Times)
* 1 c + 3 tbsp almond flour
* 2 c + 3 tbsp powdered sugar
* 4 egg whites
* 3/4 tsp cream of tartar
* 4 scant tbsp sugar
* 1 scant tbsp dried raspberry powder
* 1 White Chocolate Ganache recipe
* raspberry jam (I used my leftovers from here)

Line two 17-by-12-inch baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside (you may want to fold over the edges to keep the paper flat).

In a food processor, blend the almond flour, powdered sugar and raspberry powder for 1 minute. Sift the blended almond mixture directly into a medium mixing bowl. Set aside. (This can be made up to 2 days in advance.)

Fill a small saucepan halfway with water. Bring to a simmer, then remove from the heat. In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk the egg whites until foamy. Place the bowl over the pot of hot water and whisk quickly until the egg whites reach 100 degrees on a candy thermometer.

Remove the bowl from the pot of water and whisk in the cream of tartar. Place it on a stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment. Whip on medium speed for 2 minutes, then gradually beat in the sugar. Continue whipping for 6 minutes until the egg whites come to medium stiff peaks (tips droop only very slightly) and are shiny.

Remove the bowl from the mixer. Add egg whites to the almond mixture by gently bringing the flat side of a rubber spatula through the center of the egg whites and up the opposite side of the bowl, folding the dry ingredients over the egg whites. Repeat the same motion 50 times, turning the bowl a quarter turn each time.

Fit a pastry bag with a medium round tip (No. 4) and fill with the mixture. On the parchment-lined baking sheets, pipe 1.5-inch rounds (the batter will be slightly wet) by holding the bag at a slight angle and releasing small amounts of batter. Allow one-half inch between cookies; they will spread slightly.

Keep the piped cookies at room temperature, uncovered, for 1 to 2 hours. (This will help form a skin.) If in a high humidity area, place cookies in oven turned off but with oven light on. Remove cookies from oven and heat to 325 degrees, placing the racks in the center and lower shelves of the oven.

Bake the macarons for 12 minutes, reverse the trays on the racks and rotate. Bake 8 to 10 minutes more, or until firm and not wet. Cool on a rack.

White Chocolate Ganache (from JoyofBaking.com)
* 8 oz white chocolate, cut into small pieces
* 3/4 c heavy whipping cream
* 2 tbsp unsalted butter

Place the chopped chocolate in a medium sized stainless steel bowl. Set aside. Heat the cream and butter in a medium sized saucepan over medium heat. Bring just to a boil. Immediately pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Stir with a whisk until smooth.

Assembly:
Pair up cooled macaron shells to approximate size match. On one half spread a thin glaze of raspberry jam. Pipe ganache onto other half and gently sandwich together.

I had a lot of fun packaging them up:

But now the real question is, now that you know what's in the pink box... what's in the orange? Tune in next time.... (dundunDUN!)

Tiramisu Macarons

2008-05-21T13:38:00.000-07:00

I am a very happy baker. No, strike that, I'm ecstatic. Pardon me a moment while I toot my own horn: just look at those macarons! Smooth tops, not a crack in sight, and although not visible, deliciously chewy inside. And best yet, this is representative of the whole batch; there wasn't a cracked top among them. I could weep for joy.

"What happened, what changed??" I hear you ask. Well, what happened was I tried a new recipe style as well as a few tricks I'd read about since my last struggle. The difference was astounding, so much so I feared to breathe in case I should break whatever lucky streak I was on. One hundred macarons in (I bake for a hungry crowd) and I finally started to believe that it wasn't luck at all. Remember how I said once I'd found my perfect brownie recipe I saved it in a million places so I'd never lose it? This recipe is now joining the brownie recipe.

The idea (and renewed interest) for a tiramisu variant of macarons came from Losillewen, who made her own beautiful morsels but has been derelict in posting them (graduating and job hunting are no excuse!). Genius, Los, simply genius.

In lieu of ladyfingers, the macaron shells give form to the treat while imparting a mild almond crunch and delicate coffee flavor. The mascarpone filling is lightly spiked with rum and just barely sweetened. The decadent blend of flavors is topped off with a hint of dark chocolate, completing the list of tastes you look for in a dessert you shouldn't have. This is a more subtle dessert with few heavy ingredients, making it easy to enjoy more than one.

Tiramisu Macarons (recipe adapted from L. A. Times)
* 1 c + 3 tbsp almond flour
* 2 c + 3 tbsp powdered sugar
* 4 egg whites
* 3/4 tsp cream of tartar
* 4 scant tbsp sugar
* 1/4 c instant coffee (more if you prefer a stronger flavor)
* Mascarpone Filling (recipe below)
* 6 oz dark chocolate, shaved

Line two 17-by-12-inch baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside (you may want to fold over the edges to keep the paper flat). In a food processor or coffee grinder, grind instant coffee granules into powder.

In a food processor, blend the almond flour, powdered sugar and coffee for 1 minute. Sift the blended almond mixture directly into a medium mixing bowl. Set aside. (This can be made up to 2 days in advance.)

Fill a small saucepan halfway with water. Bring to a simmer, then remove from the heat. In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk the egg whites until foamy. Place the bowl over the pot of hot water and whisk quickly until the egg whites reach 100 degrees on a candy thermometer.

Remove the bowl from the pot of water and whisk in the cream of tartar. Place it on a stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment. Whip on medium speed for 2 minutes, then gradually beat in the sugar. Continue whipping for 6 minutes until the egg whites come to medium stiff peaks (tips droop only very slightly) and are shiny.

Remove the bowl from the mixer. Add egg whites to the almond mixture by gently bringing the flat side of a rubber spatula through the center of the egg whites and up the opposite side of the bowl, folding the dry ingredients over the egg whites. Repeat the same motion 50 times, turning the bowl a quarter turn each time.

Fit a pastry bag with a medium round tip (No. 4) and fill with the mixture. On the parchment-lined baking sheets, pipe 1.5-inch rounds (the batter will be slightly wet) by holding the bag at a slight angle and releasing small amounts of batter. Allow one-half inch between cookies; they will spread slightly.

Keep the piped cookies at room temperature, uncovered, for 1 to 2 hours. (This will help form a skin.) If in a high humidity area, place cookies in oven turned off but with oven light on. Remove cookies from oven and heat to 325 degrees, placing the racks in the center and lower shelves of the oven.

Bake the macarons for 12 minutes, reverse the trays on the racks and rotate. Bake 8 to 10 minutes more, or until firm and not wet. Cool on a rack.

Mascarpone Filling:
* 6 oz mascarpone cheese, softened
* 6 tbsp butter, softened
* 1/2-1 c powdered sugar (as necessary)
* 1/8-1/4 c rum

In a stand mixer, beat the mascarpone cheese until smooth, 1 minute. Add butter and rum and mix until incorporated. Slowly add powdered sugar to mixer, until filling is thick without being stiff. (The mascarpone should outweigh the sugar flavor.)

Update: one reader suggests less rum for a thicker filling - I've modified the recipe slightly to reflect their experience. Go slow and add in parts - you may not need all!

Assembly:
Match up fully-cooled macarons for size and shape. Pipe filling on bottom macaron and sprinkle with shaved chocolate. Place top macaron on chocolate and press lightly.

Spiced Pecan Cupcakes with Whipped Caramel Filling and White Chocolate Frosting

2008-05-12T13:55:00.001-07:00

I wanted to make a dessert without having to run to the store, so I took stock of my kitchen. I had chocolate, nuts (oh goodness, lots of!), various fruits, and a whole lot of sweetened condensed milk. I loved the walnut cupcakes from Chockylit's Cupcake Bakeshop and wanted to make something similar again.

Glancing back over my list of ingredients, three jumped out at me: pecans, white chocolate, and dulce de leche. Not exactly a spring dessert, but one that brings nothing so much as "golden" to mind for description. The end result was a combination of subtle flavors, gentle enough to savor but light enough that you could enjoy more than one (and the boyo did!)

I don't have a cross-section but the daub in the picture is the caramel filling, with the almond-praline topping from here.

Whipped Caramel (adapted from David Lebovitz's recipe):
* 1 can sweetened condensed milk
* 2 tsp sea salt
* 1 c heavy cream

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Pour sweetened condensed milk and sat into a glass pie pan and stir to combine. Cover pan tightly with aluminum foil and place in a roasting pan. Fill roasting pan halfway up pie pan with hot water. Bake for 1-1/2 hours or until caramel is golden brown. Allow to cool completely before continuing.

Whip heavy cream until stiff peaks form. Add 1/3 of whipped cream to dulce de leche and stir until combined, to lighten. Fold remainder of whipped cream into dulce de leche. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Pecan Cupcakes (adapted from Cupcakeblog.com)
~20 cupcakes / 350 degree oven

* 1-1/2 c flour (cake if you have it, otherwise all-purpose)
* 3/4 c sugar
* 1/4 tsp salt
* 1 tsp baking powder
* 1/4 c grape seed oil or vegetable oil
* 4 egg yolks (approximately 3 oz)
* 1/4 c water
* 1/3 c pecan butter
* 7 egg whites (approximately 7 oz)
* 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
* 1/4 c sugar
* 1/2 tsp cardamom
* 1 tsp cinnamon
* zest of one orange

In a food processor, blend 3/4 c sugar with orange zest until finely ground. Sift flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and spices into the bowl of a standing mixer. In a medium bowl, combine oil, egg yolks, water, and pecan butter. Stir to combine.

On a low setting, start to beat the dry mixture and slowly add the wet. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat until incorporated. Transfer mixture to another bowl. Wash and dry mixer bowl.

Whip egg whites with whip attachment on medium-high speed until foamy. With the mixer on medium speed, add cream of tarter and slowly add sugar. Beat on high speed until stiff peaks form.

Scoop about a third of the stiff egg whites into the batter and stir to combine. This should lighten up the batter. Transfer the batter to the egg whites and gently fold until there are no more streaks of egg white.

Scoop into cupcake cups just less than 1/2 full and bake at 350 F for 20-22 minutes.

White Chocolate Frosting (from Rose Levy Beranbaum's "The Cake Bible"):
* 9 oz. white chocolate, melted, cooled to room temperature
* 12 oz. cream cheese, softened
* 6 oz. unsalted butter, softened
* 1 1/2 T fresh squeezed lemon juice, or to taste

Beat cream cheese in mixing bowl until smooth. Gradually beat in the melted and cooled chocolate until incorporated. Add in the butter and lemon juice last, beating well until smooth.

Assembly:
Once cupcakes have cooled, cut a cone out of the top and dollop enough whipped caramel to put it just below top of cupcake. Cut the tip off the cone and place it back on top of the cupcake. Pipe frosting over cupcake and sprinkle praline over top. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

One-Bowl Brownies

2008-05-08T18:30:00.000-07:00

I wrestled with the title for this one. Other options included: "Perfect Brownies," "Oh-Too-Easy Brownies," and "Doesn't-Survive-The-Night Brownies." I also considered "You-Can't-Have-Any-These-Are-Mine Brownies." In the end I choose the name that best personifies the attraction to this recipe: it's chocolate, and it's easy. Oh boy, is it easy. I've made this recipe several times in the past few months, and every time they vanished before I could get a picture. Not that I had anything to do with the vanishing though.... not me!

I am a brownie fiend, but before this recipe I was terrible at making them. They'd always be too dry, too wet, or have the wrong balance of sugar and chocolate. When I finally did find this recipe, I promptly saved it in six different locations for backup, to insure I would never, ever lose it. Unfortunately, since then I've lost track of the original source and have no genius attribute the recipe to. Brownie god, if you're out there, please direct my thanks to your acolyte.

My requisite description of oncoming sugar-coma: I'm a fan of fudgey brownies, and these don't disappoint. A thin, crispy crust on top adds texture to the smooth chocolate beneath. It's a very flexible recipe, tolerating all sorts of additions and swirls. And best of all, from start to finish takes under an hour. My poor waistline.

Fudge Brownies:
* 1 1/2 c butter, melted
* 3 c white sugar
* 3 tsp vanilla extract
* 4 eggs
* 1 1/2 c all-purpose flour
* 1 c unsweetened cocoa powder
* 1 tsp salt
* nuts, chocolate chips, or other additions to mix in (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9"x13" clear glass pan (clear is preferable to keep the edges from burning).

In a large bowl, blend melted butter, sugar and vanilla. Beat in eggs one at a time. Add the flour, cocoa, and salt and mix until smooth. Spread the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes, or until brownies begin to pull away from the sides of the pan (in California 30 minutes was plenty; in Washington I let them bake for 50. Allow for your climate. Also, if adding chocolate or something that would affect the consistency of the batter, add 5-10 minutes to the baking time). Let brownies cool, then cut into squares. Enjoy!

These are also very good with a ganache topping.

Apple Pie Blondies

2008-05-05T12:03:00.000-07:00

Comfort food! I'm generally not a huge fan of white chocolate, but in this combo the overwhelming sweetness of the chocolate is tempered with the flavors of apple, cinnamon and nutmeg. The texture is different from a normal brownie - instead of fudgey cake, it's a moist almost-bread pudding studded with lumps of spiced apples and drizzled with a concentrated white chocolate-apple ganache. It's best cold - the flavors are much more intense and independent than when warm.

UPDATE: Forgot to mention - the recipe is a follow-up to this post, as per request from Losillewen (I got it posted! What's six months between friends? :)

UPDATE 2: Commenter Topher was gracious enough to pass on her recommendations after trying the recipe, so I've incorporated them below. The big change - the ganache recipe has been halved so that even if you love ganache you won't have it coming out your ears for a month!

Apple Pie Blondies (adapted from Tartelette's version):
* 6 Tbsp unsalted butter
* 8 oz white chocolate
* 2 eggs
* 1/4 c sugar
* 1/2 Tbsp vanilla
* 1 cup flour
* 3 medium Granny Smith apples
* 1 Tbsp cinnamon
* 1 tsp nutmeg

Ganache:
* 10 oz white chocolate
* 1/6 c apple juice concentrate
* 2 Tbsp butter
* 1/6 c heavy cream

Blondies:
Preheat oven to 350.

Peel and core apples; chop into 1/2" cubes. Sprinkle cinnamon and nutmeg over apples and stir to coat.

Grease and flour an 9"x13" inch square baking pan. Melt butter and white chocolate together in top of double boiler over hot water. When melted remove from heat and stir to blend well. Set aside.

Beat the eggs and sugar until pale and thick. Add white chocolate and butter mixture, vanilla and flour. Beat just until smooth. Add apples and mix in by hand, being careful not to overmix.

Pour into prepared pan and bake 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack. Refrigerate for 4 hours then slice into squares.

Ganache:
Heat concentrate until boiling; remove from heat. Pour concentrate over white chocolate and let sit for a few minutes. Meanwhile, heat butter and cream in a separate bowl. Stir concentrate and chocolate until smooth; add butter and cream and mix thoroughly.

Pipe ganache in a lattice pattern on top or spread across cooled blondies.

Raspberry-Lime Petit Fours

2008-05-01T09:42:00.000-07:00

I've been to tea parties before, but lately I've had a strong craving to host my own. The boyo thinks I'm silly, but I've a tea set that's yet to be used and a desire to bake lots of little edibles. In fact, when I saw Jen's petit four post from Use Real Butter, I couldn't wait any longer. Raspberries were on sale and I had a couple of days off from work -- it was perfect timing. I'm just considering it practice!

Jen's recipe is for higher altitudes, but since I'm at sea level and already having various problems adapting my baking to the climate, I decided to piece together some well-known recipes for my own version.

I was expecting to have ~30 petit fours, but I ended up with over 100. Luckily, the boyo's coworkers were gratifyingly appreciative so there weren't leftovers to worry about, but you should scale the recipe accordingly if you're not feeding a small army.

Raspberry Lime Petit Fours
* 2 recipes Hot Milk Sponge (recipe below)
* 1 recipe Raspberry Jam (recipe below)
* 1 recipe Lime Buttercream (recipe below)
* 1 recipe Lime Syrup (recipe below)
* 2 recipes White Chocolate Fondant (recipe below)
* raspberries for garnish (washed and dried before use)

Hot Milk Sponge (compliments of Our Patisserie)
* 1/4 c milk
* 2 Tbsp butter
* 3/4 c sifted cake flour
* 1 tsp baking powder
* 3/4 c sugar
* 3 large eggs
* 3 large egg yolks
* 1 Tbsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 400F. Line the bottom of a jelly-roll pan (I just used a cookie sheet with sides) with parchment so that the paper overhangs the pan at 2 opposite ends.

Heat milk with butter in small saucepan until butter melts. Reduce heat to low, and keep hot, but do not simmer. Sift flour with baking powder twice. Return to sifter and set aside.

In large heatproof bowl, combine sugar, whole eggs, egg yolks and vanilla. Set the bowl in a pan of barely simmering water and whisk occasionally, until lukewarm to the touch. Now take off heat, and beat at high speed until mixture has cooled, tripled in volume, and has the consistency of thick whipped cream.

Sift one-third of flour mixture over batter, and fold in gently by hand, using the largest spatula you have. Fold in half of remaining flour; then fold in the remainder. Pour the hot milk and butter into batter and fold well, scraping the bottom each time and bringing the batter up the sides of the bowl until you can no longer see traces of liquid.

Turn batter into prepared pan. Bake for about 10 minutes. The cake will have browned on top, and started to shrink from the sides of the pan.

Raspberry Jam (compliments of my grandma!)
4 c raspberry (fresh or frozen)
4 c sugar

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Place the sugar in a oven-safe pan and heat for 15 minutes (heated sugar dissolves more easily.)

In a large saucepan mash the raspberries with a potato masher over high heat. Bring to a boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat and strain out seeds.

Return raspberry juice to saucepan and bring back to a boil. Add sugar and boil for 5-7 minutes - remove from heat when thickened.

Let cool before using.

Lime Buttercream (compliments of Use Real Butter)
* 8 oz egg whites
* 15 oz sugar
* 1 lb butter, room temperature
* 1 Tbsp lime zest
* 4 Tbsp lime juice

Combine egg whites and sugar in a stand mixer. Whisk constantly over a bain marie until 140F is reached. Place on mixer witha whisk and whip until stiff. Turn down whip speed to 3rd and whip until cool to the touch -- this will take a while, should be cooler than your hand.

Change to a paddle and gradually add soft butter by tablespoons. Mix to emulsify. Once desired consistency has been reached, add lime juice and zest.

Lime Syrup (compliments of Use Real Butter)
* 1 c sugar
* 1 c water
* 2/3 c lime juice

Heat water and sugar in a pot until sugar is dissolved. Bring to a boil and turn off heat. Let cool, then mix in lime juice.

White Chocolate Fondant
* 4 c powdered sugar
* 1/2 c water
* 1/4 c light corn syrup
* 1/2 tsp vanilla
* 1/4 tsp almond extract
* 5 Tbsp butter
* 1/3 c heavy cream
* 12 oz white chocolate
* food coloring (optional)

Combine the sugar, water, corn syrup and flavorings in a double boiler over medium heat. Stir until smooth, then add the cream, butter, and white chocolate. Stir until incorporated, watching that it doesn't burn. Add coloring to preference.

Assembly
Make the sponge and cool completely. Slice into quarters and freeze, placing wax paper liners between sections. When frozen thoroughly, using a long serrated knife (a bread knife is ideal) slice each quarter horizontally. Return to the freezer until jam, buttercream and syrup are finished.

Heat jam until liquid (I did this in small batches). Using one quarter of the sponge, brush the bottom half with the lime syrup then spread the jam over the syrup. Spread the buttercream on the bottom of the top half of the sponge, and place over the jam (sandwich style). Brush the top of the sponge quarter with the syrup again, and refreeze. Repeat with the rest of the sponge.

Once the sponge sections have been sandwiched and completely refrozen, slice into 1"x1" squares (you may need to clean your knife several times during this process). Return to the freezer while you make the fondant.

Place a wire cooling rack over a cookie sheet and arrange the cake cubes about 1 inch apart from each other. The following process works best if the fondant is very warm and liquid. Using a ladle, pour the fondant over each cube, using a toothpick to smooth out any gaps. Garnish with raspberries before fondant cools.

Allow petit fours to sit for a few minutes and fondant to harden. Using a sharp paring knife, free the base of the petit four from the rack and place into a cupcake liner. The leftover fondant from the cookie sheet/rack can be reheated and reused - just make sure it's free of cake crumbs. Keep finished petit fours refrigerated until ready to serve.

Lemony Cheesecake Pops

2008-04-27T16:17:00.001-07:00

This is my first, and unfortunately, only post for the Daring Baker's challenge. I over-estimated the amount of free time I would have to contribute and therefore withdrew from their blogroll. It's a fantastic idea though and I hope to rejoin in the future.

That said, lemony cheesecake pops! I was a bit dubious at the prospect of a cheesecake-on-a-stick, but the end result turned out very nice. A couple of notes:

1) These are better frozen than refrigerated. After forming the balls and inserting the sticks, you'll find them too soft to dip if you don't freeze them first. Also, they taste much better frozen as as they warm up the textures become too similar and you lose the transition from chocolate to cheesecake. My ultimate preference was to roll them in something crunchy (in this case, candied lemon peel, although I tested roasted hazelnuts as well) then freeze them for a few hours before eating.

2) I had big problems scooping these out. I didn't want to overcook the cheesecake so I actually baked it ~10 minutes less than the recipe calls for. It tasted great, but each scoop would fall apart as I formed it. I ended up rolling them in my hands which led to messy fingers but nicely rounded cheesecakes.

Overall they tasted like a heavier version of bonbons -- one was more than enough. I probably won't make these again -- there wasn't enough texture variation to allow you to truly appreciate the cheesecake versus the chocolate. They are very decadent-looking though, and no-one on the receiving end would think of complaining. ;)

To make these lemony, I added 2-3 tbsps of fresh lemon juice and the zest of one lemon to the batter before baking. Recipe for the candied lemon zest can be found here.

Cheesecake Pops
Makes 30 – 40 Pops

* 5 8-oz. packages cream cheese at room temperature
* 2 cups sugar
* ¼ cup all-purpose flour
* ¼ teaspoon salt
* 5 large eggs
* 2 egg yolks
* 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
* ¼ cup heavy cream
* Boiling water as needed
* Thirty to forty 8-inch lollipop sticks
* 1 pound chocolate, finely chopped – you can use all one kind or half and half of dark, milk, or white (Alternately, you can use 1 pound of flavored coatings, also known as summer coating, confectionery coating or wafer chocolate – candy supply stores carry colors, as well as the three kinds of chocolate.)
* 2 tablespoons vegetable shortening
(Note: White chocolate is harder to use this way, but not impossible)

Assorted decorations such as chopped nuts, colored jimmies, crushed peppermints, mini chocolate chips, sanding sugars, dragees) - optional

Position oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees F.

In a large bowl, with an electric mixer set at low speed, beat together the cream cheese, sugar, flour, and salt until smooth. Add the whole eggs and the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well (but still at lwo speed) after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and cream.

Lightly grease a 10-inch cake pan (not a springform pan). Pour the cheesecake batter into the cake pan and place in a larger roasting pan. Fill the roasting pan with boiling water until it reaches halfway up the sides of the cake pan. Bake until the cheesecake is firm and slightly golden on top, 35 to 45 minutes.

Remove the cheesecake from the water bath and cool to room temperature. Cover the cheesecake with plastic wrap and refrigerate until very cold, at least 3 hours or up to overnight.

When cold and very firm, scoop the cheesecake into 2-ounce balls and place on a parchemtn paper-lined baking sheet. Carefully insert a lollipop stick into each cheesecake ball. Freeze the pops, uncovered, until very hard, at least 1 – 2 hours.

When the cheesecake pops are frozen and ready for dipping, prepare the chocolate. In the top of a double boiler, set over simmering water, or in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, heat half the chocolate and half the shortening, stirring often, until chocolate is melted and chocolate and shortening are combined. Stir until completely smooth. Save the rest of the chocolate and shortening for later dipping, or use another type of chocolate for variety.

Alternately, you can microwave the same amount of chocolate coating pieces on high at 30 second intervals, stirring until smooth.

Quickly dip a frozen cheesecake pop in the melted chocolate, swirling quickly to coat it completely. Shake off any excess into the melted chocolate. If you like, you can now roll the pops quickly in optional decorations. You can also drizzle them with a contrasting color of melted chocolate (dark chocolate drizzled over milk chocolate or white chocolate over dark chocolate, etc.) Place the pop on a clean parchment paper-lined baking sheet to set. Repeat with remaining pops, melting more chocolate and shortening (or confectionery chocolate pieces) as needed.

Refrigerate the pops for up to 24 hours, until ready to serve.

Mint Chocolate Cupcakes

2008-04-16T08:58:00.001-07:00

As I've mentioned before, I'm a chocoholic. The boyo doesn't understand it - to him chocolate is too heavy, too rich, too ... oh darn, I'm drooling. Needless to say, when I ran that poll, he agreed with the majority of you and voted (audibly) for fruit cupcakes.

But after all was baked and done, I couldn't get the mint chocolate cupcakes out of my mind. I love the mint-chocolate combo, but it is strong, and it's definitely not an overwhelming preference of the masses. So I pace myself - about one mint recipe every few months. It was due time though, and this recipe demanded to be made. The cupcake base is dense and fudgy, with a mint chocolate ganache filling you can smell a mile away. The peppermint buttercream isn't as light as the lemon, but it's much sweeter to counter the dark chocolate that permeates the treat. The garnish is an Andes mint sliced in half diagonally (using the dip-knife-in-hot-water-and-wipe-dry trick).

One thing I noticed when packing these up: compared to the angel food, these weigh a ton. They are indeed a very filling dessert - after taking the cross-section picture, I had to eat the subject (of course, mustn't waste!) and half that would have been plenty. It was absolutely delicious though and I still have the mint lingerings on my tongue.

Recipes are from Chockylit's Cupcake Bakeshop - I used this recipe for base then got the frosting and ganache recipes from here.

Lemony Angel Food Cupcakes

2008-04-13T19:27:00.001-07:00

The vote has closed, and we have a by-and-far winner: Angel Food Cupcakes! I'm surprised, I was expecting the Mint Chocolate Cupcakes to win. I should thank you all for voting though, 'cos these wouldn't have been top of my list to make otherwise - the chocolate would have been. What can I say! I'm a chocoholic.

I've read descriptions of summer recipes that always include "airy," "light," and "melts on the tongue." Well, now I'm adding one to the list. Guys, this recipe is airy, and light, and melts on the tongue, and is more than that besides. The angel food is basically foam with a gentle lemon edge to it; the buttercream is rich with a gentle sweetness, but no weight. The overall effect is a fluffy bite that whispers lemon and sugar - the strawberry is by far the most substantial part of the dessert. If I were to hold a tea party (and it is definitely on my to-do list) these would absolutely be on my menu.

Recipe, recipe! There are several parts to this one: the angel food, the buttercream, a lemon simple syrup, and the strawberries.

Angel Food (adapted from Fresh from the Oven):

Makes ~30 cupcakes

Ingredients:
* 1 cup cake flour
* 1 1/2 cup sugar
* 12 large egg whites, at room temperature
* 1 tsp cream of tartar
* 1/4 tsp salt
* 2 tbsp juice from 1 lemon
* 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
* 2 tbsp grated lemon zest

Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 325F. Line a cupcake pan with paper liners.

Whisk flour and 3/4 cup sugar in a small bowl, set aside. In a dry, clean electric mixer bowl, beat egg whites on low speed until foamy. Add in cream of tartar and salt, and increase speed to medium high. Continue to beat, adding the remaining 3/4 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, until all the sugar is added and the whites are shiny and form soft peaks. Beat in the lemon juice, vanilla extract, lemon zest until just blended.

Sift the flour mixture over the whites, about 1/4 cup at a time, and gently fold it in using a large rubber spatula. Fill each cupcake liner almost full (a little over 3/4) and smooth the tops so they are flat and touching the liner on all sides (these cupcakes rise only a very little and tend to get malformed and oval if the tops have not been smoothed.) Bake until the tops are lightly golden and spongy to the touch, 20-25 minutes.

Remove from cupcake pan and let cool completely before assembly.

Lemon Simple Syrup (Candied Lemon Peel from The Kitchn - not a misspelling!):

Makes ~ 1 1/2 cups

* 5-6 lemons
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 1/2 cup cold water
* 2 cups sugar
* Superfine sugar (optional)

Peel the lemons with vegetable peeler, taking off long, thin strips (slice to 1/4 inch if yours - like mine - peel off in wider strips). Fill a medium sauce pan 3/4 full with water and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Add the lemon peels and bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes, then drain. Repeat, using the other 1/2 teaspoon of salt. This is softening the lemon peels and taking away the residual bitterness of the white pith.

Drain the peels for a second time and set aside. Add the cold water and two cups sugar to the saucepan and bring to a simmer, stirring until the sugar dissolves. When the sugar dissolves add the lemon peels and simmer on low for 45-60 minutes. Watch near the end to make sure the sugar doesn't caramelize.

Immediately lift out the peels with a fork and let them cool on a piece of wax paper that has been sprayed with cooking spray. If you want to eat them as candy, roll them in superfine sugar while they are still wet. When they have cooled and dried put in a sealed container in the refrigerator, where they will last for quite a long time. The syrup can also be stored in the fridge and used for flavoring and sweetening.

Lemon Buttercream (from Rose Levy Beranbaum's The Cake Bible - best cake recipe book I've found yet. Recipe also here.):

Makes ~ 4 cups

* 6 large egg yolks (4 oz)
* 3/4 cup sugar (5.25 oz)
* 1/2 liquid cup corn syrup (5.75 oz)
* 2 cups butter
* 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
* 1/4 tsp lemon extract

Have ready a greased 1-cup heatproof glass measure.

Beat the egg yolks in a stand (or hand held) mixer until light in color. Meanwhile, combine the sugar, corn syrup, and lemon juice in a medium saucepan (preferably with a nonstick lining) and heat, stirring constantly, until the sugar dissolves and the syrup comes to a rolling boil. (The entire surface will be covered with large bubbles.) Immediately transfer the syrup to the glass measure to stop the cooking.

If using an electric hand-held mixer, beat the syrup into the yolks in a steady stream. Don't allow syrup to fall on the beaters or they will spin it onto the sides of the bowl. If using a stand mixer, pour a small amount of syrup over the yolks with the mixer turned off. Immediately beat at high speed for 5 seconds. Stop the mixer and add a larger amount of syrup. Beat at high speed for 5 seconds. Continue with the remaining syrup. For the last addition, use a rubber spatula to remove the syrup clinging to the glass measure. Continue beating until completely cool.

Gradually beat in the butter and lemon extract. Place in an airtight bowl. Bring to room temperature before using; rebeat to restore texture.

Assembly:
Once cupcakes have cooled, place a small dollop of buttercream on the top and line the top with thin slices of strawberries (ADDED: after slicing the strawberries, gently pat down with a paper towel. You want them to be as dry as possible so they won't leak juice). Lightly brush strawberries with lemon syrup. Pipe buttercream on top. Brush small slices of strawberries with lemon syrup and use for garnish.

Praline Macarons with Dulce de Leche (now with full Technicolor documentation!)

2008-04-06T18:21:00.001-07:00

Macarons are fickle, flighty culinary concoctions. On the one hand, they're wonderfully delicious -- the shells are crisp on the outside, chewy on the inside and melded together with a thick, rich sauce or ganache. Each bite melts on the tongue, leaving a sweet, nutty taste and a craving for more.

On the other hand, they're a pain in the butt to make.

They weren't always so difficult. While in California I had engineered a few different types, and had had an easy enough time that I didn't understand the pain many protested undergoing. Then I moved from moderate California to rain-everyday Washington and discovered just how touchy macarons can be. They don't like cold, they don't like heat, and they don't like humidity. 68 degrees with <20% humidity was perfect. Washington, with 55 degrees and 100% humidity, was a whole 'nuther ballgame.

You're supposed to leave the macarons out after piping and before baking for an hour or two to allow a skin to form. Macarons are essentially a meringue, so to maintain the smooth top of an ideal macaron you must have a hard skin in place when the baking bubbles start. The bubbles then have nowhere to go but out the sides, creating the desired "foot" effect. The purpose of leaving the macarons out for the few hours before baking is to dry them out enough to create the necessary skin.

Did I mention the 100% humidity?

Four hours out and the macarons were still sticky to the touch. I should have just left them overnight (couldn't have hurt) but I like to wrap up my baking projects in one day, preferably. The end result therefore was mixed: some were cracked on top but peeled away from the paper easily, others had perfectly smooth tops but disintegrated when moved, and still more turned out unblemished and photographable.

"Get on with it!" I hear you cry. Ok, well: the recipe is adapted from Tartlette's version, modified to work for more humid areas. I don't believe it'll fail given drier climates, but that's what small batches and lots of practice is for! By the third batch I'd gotten the hang of it, and had photographic evidence to document the step-by-step process, just because I love you guys. By the way, here are a few other sites I referred to for symptomatic fixes.

Some basic notes: I left my egg whites out for ~24 hours before using, but I have no idea if it made a difference. Also, before processing my almond flour, I lightly toasted it on a cookie sheet at 325 degrees for ~3 minutes. The idea was to eliminate as much extra moisture from the almond flour as possible before use.

UPDATE: While writing up this post I was commenting to my boyo about how much the humidity here had affected the general skin-forming time. A few hours later he came back to the topic with "Could you have used a hairdryer?" ..... That's not a bad idea. You'd have to use a low setting, and hold the dryer way above the macarons so the air wouldn't force the batter around, but it might work in a pinch. The other solution that occurred to me after (of course!) was to turn the oven on "warm," and leave the macarons in for a bit with the door propped open. This would have to be watched carefully though, so try it first on just one batch!

The Dulce de Leche is from David Lebovitz's site: it's awesome and I could eat it by itself (and did!)

Crushed Praline:
* 1/3 cup sugar
* 1 cup unblanched almonds

Combine the sugar and almonds in a heavy saucepan. Place over medium heat to begin melting the sugar, and stir occasionally with a wooden spoon so the sugar melts and caramelizes evenly. Cook to a light amber color.

Scrape the praline from the saucepan and spread it about 1/4-inch thick on an oiled baking sheet or a marble surface. Let cool at room temperature for about 10 minutes. Break the hard praline into 1-1/2 inch pieces and place them in a bowl of a food processor and quickly pulse until finely ground to crumb consistency (any coarser and they'll break the macaron's skin).

Macarons:
* 3 egg whites
* 50 gr. granulated sugar
* 200 gr. powdered sugar
* 110 gr. ground almonds

In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the egg whites to a foam, gradually add the sugar until you obtain a glossy meringue. Do not over-beat your meringue or it will be too dry and your macarons won't work. Soft peaks were about right for me.

Pulse the almond flour in a food processor a couple times, then gradually add the powdered sugar until thoroughly combined. You don't want to turn the almonds into butter, but by adding the powdered sugar in parts you'll insure the almonds are finely ground and fully incorporated. The picture below shows a before-and-after.

Add the almond mixture to the meringue in two parts, folding the mass carefully until you obtain a batter that flows like magma or a thick ribbon. Make sure there are no lumps or streaks! Test a small amount on a plate: if the tops flattens on its own you are good to go. If there is a small peak, give the batter a couple of turns.

Fill a pastry bag fitted with a plain tip with the batter and pipe small round onto parchment paper baking sheets. Sprinkle the praline powder over the shells. Let macarons sit out for a couple hours (or if need be, overnight!) until they are no longer sticky to the touch.

Preheat the oven to 315F. Bake for 8-10 minutes, depending on their size (mine were just under 2 inches wide, so I baked for 15-17 minutes). Let cool completely. If bottoms are still sticky after cooling, move the parchment paper to a cooling rack and leave for a couple of hours (or again, overnight. I love humidity!). Sandwich them with the Dulce de Leche, collapse into a chair, and enjoy!

Walnut Cupcakes with Apple Filling and Caramel Glaze

2008-03-26T18:58:00.000-07:00

These had a middling effect on me. The idea spawned from leftover apple compote I'd made; it was too delicious to let go to waste, but too tempting to leave for myself. I'd been looking through Cupcake Bakeshop and was wowed by what I saw. When I came to her Walnut Cupcakes topped with Rose White Chocolate Mousse and Baklava, I said "Hold the phone!" (while wiping away the drool), "I should totally make walnut cupcakes for my apple compote!"

Chockylit, you are a culinary genius, but that cupcake recipe made the funkiest batter I have ever encountered. For a while there the texture resembled nothing so much as tar. Now, this should not be taken as a critique against the recipe, for dear god were those cupcakes good. I just have to add the note that if you hit a point in the recipe where the batter's so thick you can't stir, don't panic: you're doing it right.

That said, the combination of soft, mildly-sweet walnuts and buttery, caramelized apples was just gorgeous. Had I stopped there I would have been thrilled. But no! This cook stirred the pot one too many times.

To add the filling to the cupcakes, you have to cut a cone out of the top, dollop a bit of compote in the hole, slice the tip off the cone, and put the top back on. This leaves you with a whole lot of cupcake tips (yum!) and a bunch of mangled cupcake tops. I knew this in advance, and had intended on making a mild caramel buttercream to go on top. However, I started late, finished later, and by the time I was considering making a frosting it was 10pm and my kitchen was full of dirty dishes. And this was where I strayed.

Never, ever, EVER use a frosting recipe that says "5 minute" or "never fail" or calls for a ton and a half of powdered sugar. Unless this is your intent, you will end up with frosting that carves holes in your teeth with each bite. Any other flavor will be mercilessly beaten into obscurity. My four hour endeavor for delicate-and-delicious flavors was utterly trumped by the frosting's predominating flavor of SUGAR. Anything would have been better, but I was loving the walnut-apple-caramel idea without the energy to do it correctly.

So. Sorry guys, no recipe for you. I'm holding out until I can do it right, and not give you mediocre results. If you hate me now I'll understand, but remember that I linked the Baklava Cupcake recipe above and try to forgive me. In fact, you should take it upon yourself to make it just so you can flaunt in my face how good it is. I'll believe you. And I'll drool.

UPDATE: I've had a few requests since, so I'll relent and give you some of the recipe. The cupcake base is here, and I didn't change anything about it: just keep my notes from above in mind. The filling is a caramelized apple compote that is just oh-dear-god awesome -- recipe below. Now, regarding the frosting. Here is the recipe I actually used but as noted, I don't recommend it. This is more along the lines of what I intended: light, fluffy, mildly caramel. Oh well, next time!

Apple Compote (from The Los Angeles Times):
* 6 tbsps butter, cut in 1-inch pieces
* 1/2 vanilla bean, cut lengthwise and scraped of seeds (I just used 1 tsp vanilla extract)
* 3 large or 4 medium Fuji apples, peeled, cored and cut into eighths
* 1/4 cup sugar
* 1/4 cup (light) brown sugar, packed
* 2 tbsps heavy cream
* 2 tbsps lemon juice

In a large skillet over a medium flame add the butter, vanilla bean and seeds, cook until the butter turns golden brown, about 6 minutes. Add the apples, letting them caramelize on one side, then turn, about 5 minutes total.

Sprinkle the sugar and brown sugar over the apples and cook, turning occasionally to caramelize and soften the fruit, about 10 minutes. Add the heavy cream and continue to cook for 1 minute. Remove from heat. Remove the vanilla bean and put the apple mixture in a food processor, add lemon juice and pulse until smooth. Cool over ice, 45 minutes to 1 hour. (This can be made and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 1 week.)

Yes, yes it is.

2008-03-10T23:39:00.001-07:00

Someone has a sense of humor, and I think I love them for it. This is one of the ugliest fruits I have ever seen -- when it is ripe it looks moldy -- but dang is it good. It's milder than a grapefruit, more comforting than a tangerine, juicier than an orange. The peel is disconcerting in that it is barely attached to the fruit within, but hey, that just makes for easier peeling. In short, between an awesome name and an awesome flavor, I'm going to have to indulge in a few more of these!

Just your normal sugar cookie

2008-03-10T22:58:00.000-07:00

Bear with me here: this was my first attempt at making sugar cookies. I know, I know, it's the staple of the cookie-diet but for my entire childhood I left that to my middle brother. For some inexplicable reason, there were a couple things I was much more comfortable having my brother make for me. Sugar cookies was one of them. Bacon was the other.

Ok, I was just lazy. But dang he made good sugar cookies/bacon! Anyhow, I figured it was time to try my hand at them. I had lemons I wanted to use though, so these are special sugar cookies. Lemon zested and glazed, you've got a chewy cookie with a tangy bite that fades into comforting sugar. Mmmmm.

But see, I shouldn't be allowed to blog. This talk of sugar cookies and bacon has me pondering a combo. I'm not crazy: it's a fad! Or if I'm crazy I'm in good company.

Ingredients:
* 1 cup unsalted butter
* 1 2/3 cup granulated sugar
* 2 large eggs
* 1 tbsp. vanilla extract
* 3 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
* 3/4 tsp. salt
* 2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
* Zest of 2 lemons
* 1-2 cup powdered sugar
* Lemon juice (sorry I can't be more precise)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs, vanilla and lemon zest. Mix together the flour, salt and baking powder. Fold the flour into the butter mixture.

Roll dough into a log and wrap in wax paper; refrigerate at least 1 hour. Slice into 1/4 inch slices and arrange on an ungreased cookie sheet (they will not expand much.) Bake 10-12 minutes, until very lightly golden. Remove and cool completely before adding glaze.

For glaze: combine powdered sugar and lemon juice (a tbsp at a time) until you have a thick almost-paste that falls slowly from the fork (you can test this within your mixing bowl.) Drizzle over cooled cookies.

Cardamom-Chocolate Pinwheels

2008-02-10T23:34:00.000-08:00

I've found a new favorite food blog! Dear god, this site is awesome: besides decadent recipes, she includes wonderful photos and notes. I didn't make any changes to the recipe this time around, so the original is here. I was impressed with the chocolate-pepper combination as pepper in general is not something I add to my bakery goods. It did indeed blend beautifully with these flavors though: a rich, chewy shortbread followed by the tiniest of kicks.

The prospect of swirling two flavors together in a cookie has left me breathless with possibilities: raspberry and lemon! Chocolate and orange! White chocolate and strawberry! Now that I have a base I believe I'll begin experimenting. Prepare for the pinwheel stampede!

Mozart Cake

2008-01-24T20:52:00.000-08:00

This is a Mozart (cake) - I have to add the cake in there because it seems too snobby to call it by a title. The original recipe is here; my adaptation is below. Regarding the flavor: the component parts were good, but nothing requiring the choir of angels that sang when other reviewers tried it. There are two major changes I would make if I try the recipe again:

1) Roll out the dough to wafer thin before baking - you roll it out on parchment paper so you don't need to worry about ripping it in the transfer.

2) When assembling the pieces, brush two of the pastry rounds with apple jelly before covering them with mousse. The apple flavor in this cake is very subtle; adding a little more does not hurt.

By the way -- did I mention the need for fire in this recipe? Fire is fun, but very very scary. A few notes about fire and alcohol:

1) Fire hurts. Skin and fire don't play well together.

2) Alcohol catches fire most easily when heated -- I found this out after several attempts at lighting room temperature alcohol.

3) When actually lighting the alcohol, keep your hands and face as far away as possible. Best method I found was to light a match, tilt the pan with the heated alcohol away from yourself, and quickly, lightly brush the match head against the top of the liquid. It may appear to have failed to light for a moment; don't put your face close to check. If you don't see a blue flame, strike another match and try it again. The only truly difficult part of this step is using matches; if you have a butane lighter (long and thin) there's much less of a concern about getting close.

Now that the book of notes is done, prepare for the book o' recipe!

Mozart
Prep Time: 3 1/2 hours
Serving Size: 10

Ingredients:

Cinnamon Pastry
* 2 sticks plus 5 tablespoons (10 1/2 ounces) unsalted butter, softened
* 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
* 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon finely ground blanched almonds (no skins)
* 3 hard-boiled large egg yolks, cooled to room temperature and pressed through a fine sieve
* 2 teaspoons cinnamon
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1 tablespoon dark rum
* 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
Mousse
* 1 large Granny Smith apple - peeled, cored and cut into 1/4-inch dice
* 1/4 cup sugar
* 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
* 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
* 2 tablespoons dark rum
* 1/3 cup heavy cream
* 1 cinnamon stick, broken in half
* 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
* 6 large egg whites, at room temperature
Garnishes
* 6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, at room temperature, shaved with a vegetable peeler
* 1/4 Granny Smith apple
* 1 teaspoon lemon juice
* 1/4 cup + 2 teaspoons apple or quince jelly
* 2 cinnamon sticks

Directions:

Notes: While assembling the pastry and mousse, I wished I had doubled or at least halved-again the mousse recipe. It's also better if you leave the mozart in the refrigerator overnight before serving as it allows the pastry to mellow out and soak up some of the moussey goodness.

1. Make the cinnamon pastry: Cream the butter in a food processor. Add the confectioners' sugar, ground almonds, egg yolks, cinnamon and salt and process until smooth. Add the rum and pulse to blend. Add the flour and baking powder and pulse to blend. Transfer the dough to a floured work surface and gather into a ball. Cut the dough into thirds; roll out on parchment paper into a 11-inch round. Using the bottom of a springform pan as a guide, cut out a 10-inch round (do not cut through parchment paper). Carefully move parchment paper onto cookie sheet; put in refrigerator for 30-60 minutes each.

2. Preheat the oven to 350°. Prick the rounds all over with a fork, then bake them one at a time for 20 to 25 minutes, or until lightly browned. Transfer the pastry to a rack and let cool completely.

3. Make the mousse: In a bowl, combine the apple with 1 tablespoon of the sugar and the cinnamon. In a large heavy skillet, melt the butter over moderately high heat. Add the apple and cook over high heat, stirring, until lightly crusted and tender but not mushy, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the rum, carefully ignite it and stir the apple to coat. Transfer to a plate and let cool to room temperature.

4. In a small saucepan, heat the cream with the cinnamon sticks until bubbles appear around the edge. Remove from the heat, cover and let steep for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, melt the chocolate in a metal bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water. Remove from the heat. Strain the hot cream over the chocolate; discard the cinnamon sticks. Gently stir until smooth and let cool until tepid.

5. In a bowl, beat the egg whites until very foamy. Gradually add the remaining 3 tablespoons of sugar, beating until stiff glossy peaks form. Using a large rubber spatula, fold one-quarter of the beaten whites into the chocolate. Fold in the remaining whites, then fold in the apple.

6. Set 1 cinnamon pastry round in the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan and brush the top with 1/8 cup of the jelly. Spread half of the chocolate mousse on top. Cover with a second pastry round, pressing gently until the mousse is within a quarter-inch from the edge of the pastry. Repeat for the second layer and cover with the last pastry round. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 8 hours.

7. Garnish the cake: Remove the side of the pan and pat a thin layer of chocolate shavings against the side of the cake. Cut 5 thin slices from the apple and rub with the lemon juice. Fan the apple slices on the cake. In a small saucepan, melt the apple jelly over moderately high heat and brush a thin layer over the apples. Garnish with the cinnamon sticks and serve.

Christmas Cakes!

2007-12-25T13:17:00.000-08:00

I'm not going to bother reiterating the recipes here; I'm just going to direct you to the genius who first came up with these recipes: Zinnur of Our Patisserie. Unfortunately I don't have cross-sections for you -- we're bringing these to a party and I'd feel a bit weird whipping out the camera. "Ok! Everyone freeze, I'm taking pictures for my blog! You in the Santa sweatshirt, hold that bite just a little closer to the plate. Closer.... Clooooooooser.... " Yeah. No. Luckily, Zinnur has some beautiful cross-section shots of her own, and I'm just going to assume mine look the same :)

Links:
Yule Log
A Romantic Cake with Raspberries

Nanaimo Bars

2007-09-26T21:06:00.001-07:00

...otherwise known as crack. Warning: these things are seriously addicting! Everytime I make them I always end up eating a quarter of the pan. They have a delicious combo of crunchy, dense bottom, creamy center, and chocolatey top. Even though they're called bars, they're actually more like fudge, so cut the squares smallish (1"x1"). They're also labor-intensive (3 hrs in the fridge, between stages) but very very worth while. All told, this currently stands as my favorite dessert recipe!

Recipe from JoyofBaking.com
Bottom:
* 1/2 unsalted butter, room temperature
* 1/4 granulated white sugar
* 1/3 unsweetened cocoa
* 1 large egg, beaten
* 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
* 2 graham cracker crumbs
* 1 c coconut (either sweetened or unsweetened)
* 1/2 c walnuts or pecans, coarsely chopped

Filling:
* 1/4 c unsalted butter, room temperature
* 2 - 3 tbsp milk or cream
* 2 tbsp vanilla custard powder (Bird's) or vanilla pudding powder
* 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
* 2 c powdered sugar

Topping:
* 4 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped
* 1 tbsp unsalted butter

-Note: I have always found I've needed to double or even triple the ingredients for the topping, but you can always start with the above and make more if need be.

Bottom Layer:
In a saucepan over low heat, melt the butter. Stir in the sugar and cocoa powder and then gradually whisk in the beaten egg. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens (1 - 2 minutes). Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract, graham cracker crumbs, coconut, and chopped nuts. Press the mixture evenly into the prepared pan. Cover and refrigerate until firm (about an hour).

Filling:
In your electric mixer cream the butter. Beat in the remaining ingredients. If the mixture is too thick to spread, add a little more milk. Spread the filling over the bottom layer, cover, and refrigerate until firm (about 30 minutes).

Topping:
In a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, melt the chocolate and butter. Cool until lukewarm but still maleable. Spread over the filling and refrigerate.

To prevent the chocolate from cracking, use a sharp knife and bring the squares to room temperature before cutting.

Apple Pie Blondies

2007-09-16T19:50:00.000-07:00

Please don't hate me! This is an experiment of mine and, while it turned out very, very well, I didn't take notes on what I was doing. The end result was gorgeous though. A blondie (white-chocolate brownie) with spiced apples throughout it, covered in a white chocolate-apple ganache: mmmmmmm.

Lemon-Blueberry Cupcakes

2007-09-16T18:57:00.000-07:00

These are a variation of the delicious black-bottom cupcakes from joyofbaking.com -- chocolate base with a cream-cheese dollop in the center. Instead these have a lemon pound cake base with a blueberry center. I pondered giving them a lemon glaze, but boyo claims they're sweet enough already. The blueberry is more prevelant this way!

Lemon Cake:
* 1 3/4 c all-purpose flour
* 1 tsp baking powder
* 1/4 tsp salt
* 1 c unsalted butter, room temperature
* 1 c granulated white sugar
* 4 large eggs
* 3-4 tbsp lemon juice
* Zest of one lemon

For Pound Cake:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Put paper-liners in a cupcake tin.

In a medium sized bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of your electric mixer, cream the butter until soft and creamy. Gradually add the sugar and continue to beat until light and fluffy (about 3 - 5 minutes). Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Add the lemon juice and eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. With mixer on low, add the flour mixture beating just until batter is smooth. Stir in the lemon zest and juice, making sure you do not over mix.

Fill each cupcake holder almost full (slightly greater than 3/4.) Move on to the filling!

Blueberry Filling:
* 1 package frozen blueberries
* 1-2 tbsp lemon juice
* 1/4 c sugar (or less, to taste)
* 8 oz cream cheese, softened
* 1/3 c sugar
* 1 egg

Heat the blueberries until thawed, press berries through a strainer back into saucepan and discard the skins. Boil the juice, lemon juice, and 1/4 c sugar until there's about 1/2 cup left; set aside to cool.

Beat the cream cheese, 1/3 c sugar, and egg until smooth; add cooled blueberry sauce and stir until combined.

Dollop ~1tbsp of the blueberry filling on top of the cake batter. Bake for 20 minutes.

Chocolate-Toffee Bars

2007-07-26T20:07:00.000-07:00

Ok, so they pale in comparison to the post below. I have to admit though, these hit the spot as fully as the cheesecake (partially because they took a fraction of the time.) They're very sweet, and nicely crunchy on the outside while still chewy on the inside. I ate three then packaged them up to be taken away before I could eat them all. Definitely not safe around-the-house food!

Crust:
* 1/2 cup butter, softened
* 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
* 1 cup flour

Topping:
* 2 eggs
* 1 cup brown sugar, packed
* 1 tsp vanilla
* 2 tsp flour
* 1 tsp baking powder
* 1/2 tsp salt
* 1 cup flaked coconut
* 1 cup almonds, chopped
* 2 cups chocolate chips, or combo chips and toffee bits

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. For crust: Cream butter and sugar. Blend in flour. Press into bottom of ungreased 9"x13" pan. Bake 10 minutes. For topping: Beat eggs. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Spread chocolate chips (or anything else you want) on top of the crust. Spread topping carefully over chocolate chips. Bake 25 minutes or until topping is golden brown. Cool slightly and cut into 36 squares.

Praline Cheesecake

2007-07-01T21:24:00.001-07:00

I've been derelict in my posting, but lo, I bring great gifts for forgiveness. I've been wanting to make a praline cheesecake for months, but could not find the recipe I wanted. Today I was looking at recipes for pecan floretines and suddenly I couldn't resist the craving for a praline cheesecake any more. Since I had already started the floretines though, I decided to merge and marvel. This is my pecan praline cheesecake with floretine topping. All together now: "mmmmmmmm!"

Floretines: (from Mrs. Fields' I Love Chocolate! Cookbook)
* 4 tbsps unsalted butter
* 1/3 c packed light brown sugar
* 1/4 c light corn syrup
* 1/2 c finely chopped pecans
* 1/3 c all-purpose flour
* 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
* 1 tsp salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a cookie sheet.

In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the brown sugar and corn syrup, then bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly until the sugar dissolves, 3-5 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Stir in the pecans, flour, and vanilla. Drop the batter into 1/2-tsp mounds 2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheet. Using a small spatula, spread each mound into a circle.

Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until browned, rotating the pan back to front after 4 minutes. Cool on the cookie sheet for about 1 minute, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

Cheesecake:
* 1 c packed dark brown sugar
* 1/2 c whipping cream
* 1/3 c butter, softened
* 2 tbsp praline liqueur
* 3 c pecans
* 1 c granulated sugar
* 3 tbsp melted butter
* 24 oz cream cheese, softened
* 3 eggs, room temperature
* 1/4 c praline liqueur

In a small saucepan, combine the brown sugar, whipping cream, and butter. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; boil for 3 minutes. Remove 1/3 c of the sauce; refrigerate until chilled. To remaining sauce add 2 tbsp liqueur; set aside.

Combine pecan pieces and 1/4 c of the sugar in food processor; pulse until it resembles coarse crumbs (do not overprocess.) Transfer to medium bowl and stir in melted butter.

Press nut mixture into bottom and halfway up sides of a 9-inch springform pan. Wrap outside of pan with 2 sheets of aluminum foil; bake in 325 degree F oven for 15 minutes.

Beat cream cheese with remaining 3/4 c of sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating just until blended. Stir in 1/4 c liqueur. Pour cream cheese mixture into nut crust. Drizzle the 1/3 c chilled sauce on top; gently swirl with knife.

Place foil-wrapped cake in a 1 inch water bath; return to 325 degree F oven for 1 hour. Turn oven off, leaving cheesecake in oven without opening the door for another hour (prevents cake from cracking.) Cool on wire rack.

Break floretines into pieces (1-2 inches); line top of cake with pieces. Drizzle melted chocolate over the top, then frigerate cake for 4 hours or overnight. Serve with warmed remainder sauce.

Strawberry Lemon-Curd Trifle

2007-05-28T10:23:00.000-07:00

Happy Memorial Day! The boyo and I got invited to a bbq, and I was put in charge of dessert! Since the boyo loves fruit and strawberries were on sale, I went searching for a light, strawberry-ey dessert that was easily portable. Compliments of JoyofBaking.com, this is a Strawberry Lemon-Curd Trifle. I was slightly pressed for time, since dessert wasn't all I was responsible for, but next time I would add ~1/4 cup more sugar to the pound cake, use vanilla beans in the whipped cream instead of extract, add 1-2 tsps of balsamic vinegar to the strawberry puree to bring out the full flavor, and double the lemon curd recipe. I'm still very pleased with it though, although I've only tasted the individual parts. Overall taste to be determined this afternoon!

Please note: it is very important, especially for the cake, that the ingredients be room temperature. They don't blend together correctly otherwise.

Pound Cake:
* 1 3/4 cups (230 grams) cake flour, sifted
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/8 teaspoon salt
* 1 cup (226 grams) (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
* 1 cup (200 grams) superfine or castor sugar
* 4 large eggs, room temperature
* 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
* Zest of a lemon or orange (optional)

Strawberry Puree:
* 1 - 20 ounce bag (570 grams) of frozen unsweetened strawberries or 20 ounces of fresh strawberries
* 1/4 - 1/3 cup (50 - 65 grams) granulated white sugar, or to taste
* Freshly squeezed lemon juice, optional

Lemon Curd:
* 3 large eggs
* 1/3 cup (80 ml) fresh lemon juice (2-3 lemons) (do not use the bottled lemon juice)
* 1 tablespoon (4 grams) finely shredded lemon zest
* 3/4 cup (150 grams) granulated white sugar
* 4 tablespoons (56 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature and cut into small pieces

Also:
* 1/2 pound (225 grams) fresh strawberries, sliced
* 1 1/2 cups (360 ml) heavy whipping cream
* 2 - 3 tablespoons (25 - 35 grams) granulated white sugar
* 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
* 4 crushed Amaretti Cookies or ginger cookies (home made or store bought)

For the cake:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Butter or spray with a pan spray, a 9 x 5 x 3 inch (23 x 13 x 8 cm) loaf pan. Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper and butter or spray the paper. Set aside while you prepare the batter.

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter until creamy and smooth. Gradually add the sugar, beating continuously on medium-high speed until light and fluffy (this will take about 5 minutes). Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. After about five minutes the batter should be light in color and fluffy in texture. Then add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. You will notice that the batter will look curdled. Don't worry as the batter will come together again after you add the flour mixture. Add the vanilla and lemon zest, if using, and beat until incorporated.

Add the flour mixture and mix just until incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.

Bake for about 50 to 60 minutes or until the cake is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Remove the cake from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool for about 10 minutes. Remove the cake from the pan and cool completely. Serve warm or at room temperature. Will keep several days well wrapped or it can be frozen for a month.

Makes one 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf.

For the Puree:
Place the unsweetened frozen strawberries in a large bowl and thaw. This may take a few hours. Once thawed, put the strawberries and their juice in the bowl of a food processor or blender and process the berries until they are pureed. Pour the puree into a 2 cup (480 ml) measuring cup. You should have about 1 1/4 cups of puree. Add 1/4 cup (50 grams) of the sugar to start and stir until the sugar dissolves. Taste and add more sugar if needed. Can also add a little lemon juice to taste.

Store covered in the refrigerator for one week. The sauce can also be frozen.

Makes approximately 1 1/4 cups (300 ml).

For the Curd:
In a stainless steel bowl placed over a saucepan of simmering water, whisk together the eggs, sugar, and lemon juice until blended. Cook, stirring constantly (to prevent it from curdling), until the mixture becomes thick (like sour cream or a hollandaise sauce) (160 degrees F or 71 degrees C). This will take approximately 10 minutes.

Remove from heat and immediately pour through a fine strainer to remove any lumps. Cut the butter into small pieces and whisk into the mixture until the butter has melted. Add the lemon zest and let cool. The lemon curd will continue to thicken as it cools. Cover immediately (so a skin doesn't form) and refrigerate for up to a week.

Makes 1 1/2 cups (360 ml).

For the Trifle:
Have ready the pound cake, the strawberry sauce, sliced strawberries, lemon curd, and whipping cream.

To make the whipping cream: In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the cream, sugar, and vanilla extract until stiff peaks form. Set aside.

To start: In the bottom of your trifle bowl place thick slices (about 1/3 inch thick) of the home made or store bought pound cake. Fill in any gaps with pieces of the cake. Pour half of the strawberry sauce over the pound cake. Top the strawberry sauce with half of the sliced strawberries. Then pour half of the lemon curd over the strawberries. Top with half of the whipped cream. Repeat the layers. Cover and refrigerate for 8 and up to 24 hours to allow the flavors to mingle. Just before serving sprinkle the top of the trifle with the crushed Amaretti cookies.

Serves 10 - 12 people

Cinnamon Buns

2007-05-05T22:01:00.000-07:00

Oh goopy gloriousity! This recipe, compliments of the food network, is brilliant. A couple of notes though: when rolling out the dough to spread the filling, roll it out thin. I ended up with thick layers of bread which, while good, weren't as permeated by the filling as it should. Also, the basic brown sugar-cinnamon filling wasn't exciting enough for me: I peeled and chopped up a couple Granny Smith apples really fine and tossed them in with the filling, as well as a handfull of pecans. Apple Pie Buns! Truly delicious.

Dough:
* 4 large egg yolks, room temperature
* 1 large whole egg, room temperature
* 2 ounces sugar, approximately
* 1/4 cup 3 ounces unsalted butter, melted, approximately 6 tablespoons
* 6 ounces buttermilk, room temperature
* 20 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 4 cups, plus additional for dusting
* 1 package instant dry yeast, approximately
* 2 1/4 teaspoons
* 1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt Vegetable oil or cooking spray

Filling:
* 8 ounces light brown sugar, approximately
* 1 cup packed 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
* Pinch salt 3/4-ounce unsalted butter, melted, approximately
* 1 1/2 tablespoons

Icing:
* 2 1/2 ounces cream cheese, softened, approximately
* 1/4 cup 3 tablespoons milk
* 5 1/2 ounces powdered sugar, approximately 1 1/2 cups

For the dough: in the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, whisk the egg yolks, whole egg, sugar, butter, and buttermilk. Note: it is really important that the eggs, butter, and buttermilk are room temperature. They won't blend together if they're too cold. Add approximately 2 cups of the flour along with the yeast and salt; whisk until moistened and combined. Remove the whisk attachment and replace with a dough hook. Add all but 3/4 cup of the remaining flour and knead on low speed for 5 minutes.

Check the consistency of the dough, add more flour if necessary; the dough should feel soft and moist but not sticky. Knead on low speed 5 minutes more or until the dough clears the sides of the bowl. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface; knead by hand about 30 seconds. Lightly oil a large bowl. Transfer the dough to the bowl, lightly oil the top of the dough, cover and let double in volume, 2 to 2 1/2 hours.

Combine the brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in a medium bowl. Mix until well incorporated. Set aside until ready to use.

Butter a 9 by 13-inch glass baking dish. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Gently shape the dough into a rectangle with the long side nearest you. Roll into an 18 by 12-inch rectangle. Brush the dough with the 3/4-ounce of melted butter, leaving 1/2-inch border along the top edge. Sprinkle the filling mixture over the dough, leaving a 3/4-inch border along the top edge; gently press the filling into the dough.

Beginning with the long edge nearest you, roll the dough into a tight cylinder. Firmly pinch the seam to seal and roll the cylinder seam side down. Very gently squeeze the cylinder to create even thickness. Using a serrated knife, slice the cylinder into 1 1/2-inch rolls; yielding 12 rolls. Arrange rolls cut side down in the baking dish; cover tightly with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator overnight or up to 16 hours.

Remove the rolls from the refrigerator and place in an oven that is turned off. Fill a shallow pan 2/3-full of boiling water and set on the rack below the rolls. Close the oven door and let the rolls rise until they look slightly puffy; approximately 30 minutes. Remove the rolls and the shallow pan of water from the oven.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. When the oven is ready, place the rolls on the middle rack and bake until golden brown, or until the internal temperature reaches 190 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer, approximately 30 minutes.

While the rolls are cooling slightly, make the icing by whisking the cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer until creamy. Add the milk and whisk until combined. Sift in the powdered sugar, and whisk until smooth. Spread over the rolls and serve immediately.

Hazelnut Fingerprints

2007-04-30T20:34:00.000-07:00

In making the macarons from my prevous post, I ended up with 2X+ the ganache I actually needed. Not wanting to have a container of strawberry chocolate sitting around to tempt me, I went searching for a quick way to use it. I found something that halfway suited; I forgot how hard it is to shell hazelnuts. These turned out to be well worth it. They're like soft shortbread: dry, with a gentle crunch from the nuts, made moist by the chocolate topping. Yum.

Ingredients:
* 2/3 cup Sugar
* 1 cup softened Butter
* 2 tsp Vanilla Essence
* 1 tsp grated Lemon Peel
* 1 Egg Yolk
* 2 1/4 cup Fine Wheat Flour (Maida)
* 1 1/2 cup ground Hazelnuts
* 1/2 cup Jam (I used chocolate spread instead)

How to make hazelnut cookie recipe:
Preheat the oven at 325 degrees. In a bowl mix sugar and butter, beating the mixture till soft and fluffy. Add vanilla essence, lemon peel and egg yolk, mix well.

Add the flour and the hazelnuts. Make 1 1/4 size balls out of the dough. Take a ungreased cookies sheet and place the balls on it 2 inches apart. Press the cookies in the center with the thumb.

Bake the cookies at 325 degrees for 10 to 15 minutes or until light golden brown around edges. When completely cool fill the cavity of each cookie with ½ teaspoon jam.

Chocolate-Strawberry Macarons

2007-04-30T20:04:00.000-07:00

After reading through Zinnur of Our Patisserie's adventures with macarons, I decided it was time to try them myself. Luckily for me, I had the benefit of her experiences to draw from, as well as those from David Lebovitz's blog (he's in France, where they have ingenious recipes like Salted Caramel Ice Cream. -droooooools-) I decided to use David's recipe, with a few minor changes. The end result was gorgeous: crunchy, chewy, sweet and fruity all at once. My ganache for the center was a little too soft: I didn't drain the strawberry juice before adding the puree because I wanted to keep the full flavor. In retrospect this was a mistake; next time I would add the juice to the cream and boil it a little.

Macaron Batter
* 1 cup (100 gr) powdered sugar
* ½ cup powdered almonds (about 2 ounces , 50 gr, sliced almonds, pulverized)
* 3 tablespoons (25 gr) unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
* 2 large egg whites, at room temperature* 5 tablespoons (65 gr) granulated sugar

Chocolate Filling
* ½ cup (125 ml) heavy cream* 2 teaspoons light corn syrup
* 4 ounces (120 gr) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
* 1 tablespoon (15 gr) butter, cut into small pieces

Strawberry Filling
* 15 medium strawberries (pitted), about 5 ounces (150 gr) strawberries
* 2½ ounces (70 gr) best-quality milk chocolate, finely chopped
* 2 tablespoons Amaretto

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (180 degrees C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and have a pastry bag with a plain tip (about 1/2-inch, 2 cm) ready.

Grind together the powdered sugar with the almond powder and cocoa so there are no lumps; use a blender or food processor since almond meal that you buy isn't quite fine enough. In the bowl of a standing electric mixer, beat the egg whites until they begin to rise and hold their shape. While whipping, beat in the granulated sugar until very stiff and firm, about 2 minutes.

Carefully fold the dry ingredients, in two batches, into the beaten egg whites with a flexible rubber spatula. When the mixture is just smooth and there are no streaks of egg white, stop folding and scrape the batter into the pastry bag (standing the bag in a tall glass helps if you're alone).

Pipe the batter on the parchment-lined baking sheets in 1-inch (3 cm) circles (about 1 tablespoon each of batter), evenly spaced one-inch (3 cm) apart. Rap the baking sheet a few times firmly on the countertop to flatten the macarons, then bake them for 10-15 minutes. Let cool completely then remove from baking sheet.

Strawberry Filling:
Smash the strawberries with a fork until you have a rough puree. Using a sieve and a wooden spoon, push the strawberry juice into a small saucepan. Keep the pulp. Melt the milk chocolate and the Armagnac in a double boiler or microwave, stirring until smooth. Stir into the strawberry puree. Cool completely to room temperature (it will thicken when cool.)

To make the chocolate filling:
Heat the cream in the small saucepan with the corn syrup and strawberry juice. When the cream just begins to boil at the edges, turn down the heat so it simmers for 2-5 minutes. Remove from heat and add the chopped chocolate. Let sit one minute, then stir until smooth. Stir in the pieces of butter. Let cool completely before using.

Assembly:
Spread a bit of batter on the inside of the macarons then sandwich them together. (You can pipe the filling it, but I prefer to spread it by hand; it's more fun, I think.)I also tend to overfill them so you may or may not use all the filling.

Let them stand at least one day before serving, to meld the flavors. Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days, or freeze. If you freeze them, defrost them in the unopened container, to avoid condensation which will make the macarons

Peanut Butter Raisin Cookies

2007-04-30T19:40:00.000-07:00

I found these last minute, and it turned out to have the best (and funkiest) texture I've ever found. Although the dough was soft, these cookies crumbled with you touched them and melted in your mouth. The boyo tried one under duress but was soon begging for "just one more!" Recipe compliments of Diana's Desserts.

Ingredients:
* 1/2 cup raisins
* 7 tbsp. (3/4 stick/3 1/2 oz/100g) butter, softened
* 1/4 cup crunchy peanut butter (I used smooth)
* 1/2 cup granulated sugar
* 1 cup all-purpose flour
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 C). Cream butter, peanut butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. 2. Sift together the flour and baking soda.
2. Mix in sifted dry ingredients to butter mixture to form a dough. Add raisins and mix well.
3. Roll tablespoons of mixture into balls and place on cookie sheet; flatten balls with fingers.
4. Bake for 15-20 minutes in preheated 350 degree F (180 C) oven.
5. Leave cookies to cool on cookie sheet. Makes 16 cookies.

Cappuccino Cupcakes

2007-04-22T17:38:00.000-07:00

Ok, so, these things are a pot of coffee and a half. I mean, I was twitchy after eating one. They're flippin' fantastic tasting though. They're a deep chocolate-coffee bottom, a chocolate-espresso ganache middle, and finally a mascarpone-cream topping. Probably just as well I can barely eat one at a time. Recipe was snitched from taste everything once.

Ingredients:
* 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons milk
* 6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
* 1/4 cup instant coffee powder
* 1 1/2 cups cake flour
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
* 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
* 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 3 large eggs
* 3 cups heavy cream
* 1/3 cup coffee beans, crushed
* 8 ounces milk chocolate, finely chopped
* 2 cups mascarpone cheese
* 1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted

Cupcakes:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 30 standard muffin cups with paper liners.Combine the milk, cocoa, coffee and 1/4 cup water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil, constantly whisking, until the cocoa and coffee have dissolved. Let cool and pour into a liquid measure.

Sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. In the bowl of a mixer, cream the butter, sugar, and vanilla on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients alternately with the milk mixture in three batches, ending with the liquid.

Fill each muffin cup halfway with the batter. Bake 18 to 20 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove the cupcakes from the pan and let cool completely on a wire rack.

Toppings:

Combine 1 cup of the heavy cream and coffee beans in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Remove from the heat, cover, and let infuse for 10 minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean sauce-pan and bring back to a boil.

Put the chocolate in a medium bowl and pour the hot cream over it, stirring slowly, until the ganache is smooth. Spoon enough ganache over each cupcake to fill the liners to the rim.

Using a whisk or in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a whisk attach-ment, whip the remaining 2 cups of heavy cream to stiff peaks. Add the mascarpone and confectioners’ sugar and whisk until smooth. Spoon the mascarpone cream into a pastry bag fitted with a medium round tip and pipe the cream on top of the ganache in a circle.

Fondant Rose

2007-02-07T11:40:00.000-08:00

I had some extra fondant so I figured I'd play around with it. Normally, when coloring fondant you stick it in a food processor and blend it until the color is even all the way through. Since I was testing a decoration though, I used an old paintbrush (this was not for eating!) The idea is nifty, but fondant is thirsty stuff and by the time I got it to the color I wanted, it was starting to fall apart from so much liquid added. Perhaps next time I'll try letting the fondant dry some to develop a crust before "painting" it.

Banana Cake with Mango Curd and Pineapple Buttercream

2007-02-07T11:34:00.000-08:00

I know, I know, it's very boring looking. It won't be, ultimately, but this is how the customer wanted it -- a blank canvas for her own decoration. It's mango curd and pineapple buttercream layered between two banana cakes and covered over with white fondant. The fondant was a new thing for me, and it turned out to be a lot of fun, if a lot of work.

Chinese Rolls

2007-01-15T12:13:00.000-08:00

I have been derelict in posting, but I after the Christmas baking-bonanza, I needed a break. Break-time is over though now! I've been hired to cater a party in February, and these funky-looking things were one of my practice runs. Before yesterday I was scared to death of deep-frying stuff: me and high heat don't mix. But after spending all day yesterday with hot oil and nary a burn, I'm a bit more confident. Enough so at least to tell my client (ee! client!) that I could make them for her. And really, they are very tasty - comfort food with a bit of a kick to them.

Stuffing
* 1/2 lb boneless chicken
* 1 lb potatoes
* 1/2 lb onion
* 2 tblspns red pepper
* 4 tblspns roasted curry powder
* 1/4 cup oil
* to taste salt

Pastry ( maybe any other pancake mix could be used)
* 1/2 lb flour
* 2 cups milk (coconut or dairy)
* 1 egg
* to taste salt

Breading and Deep Frying
* 3 cups oil
* 2 eggs
* 1 can bread crumbs

First make the stuffing. Boil the potatoes and peel of jackets. Cut chicken into small pieces. Dice onions. Add the oil to a pan at medium heat. Add the onions, chicken, and potatoes in that order leaving about half a minute between each and leave for 4 minute. Add the roasted curry powder, red pepper powder and salt and cook for 5 minutes. Remove from stove and place where it is easily accessible.

Now for the pancakes. Mix the flour, milk and eggs using a mixer. Heat a non-stick pan which has been wiped with paper towel soaked in butter or oil. Pour in a little over 1/4 cup of the batter to barely cover the bottom of the pan. Heat at low heat for a minute. Remove the pancake. Place on a plate and place stuffing on top. Tuck in the sides of the pancake to make parallel edges. Roll the pancake to make a roll.

Continue making the pancakes and the rolls from them. Do not allow the pancakes to cool or stand before adding the stuffing as this makes the pancake less malleable.

Finally dip each roll into beaten egg and coat all round. Then coat with bread
crumbs and deep fry until medium brown color.

Makes 10

Chocolate Pecan Fudge

2006-12-31T18:51:00.000-08:00

This is one of the fudges I made for the Christmas buckets: chocolate pecan fudge. Unfortunately, this time around I cooked it a little too long so it turned out slightly crumbley and not as smooth as it should be. Oh well, it tastes fantastic, and now the boyo knows what to get me for Valentines Day ;)

Ingredients:
1 cup heavy cream
2 cups sugar
4 oz. chocolate chips
1/2 stick salted butter
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 lb. chopped walnuts

Directions:
1. Combine heavy cream, sugar and chocolate chips in a heavy saucepan over low heat. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon until sugar dissolves. Wash down sides of pot with a pastry brush to dissolve sugar crystals.
2. Bring to a boil and cook (stir only once or twice during) until mixture reaches soft-ball stage, or 238 degrees on a candy thermometer. Remove pan from the heat and stop the cooking by plunging pot in a water bath for 1 minute. Add the butter and vanilla, but do not stir.
3. When the thermometer reads 110 degrees, mix fudge with a wooden spoon until creamy. Add the nuts and mix well.
4. Spoon into a greased 8 x 8 baking pan. Let cool and then cut into squares.

Yield: 1 lb.

Strawberry Almond-Cream Tart

2006-12-31T18:20:00.000-08:00

It's a variation on my pear-almond tart. All I did was substitute strawberries for pears, but oh wow the difference. Before the fruit flavor was too subtle; the pears were overwhelmed by the sugar. This time the strawberries and almonds made a gorgeous slightly tart but very sweet overall flavor. When baking it this time, I made an aluminum foil tent to put on top after 40 minutes, then let it bake for 30 more to avoid it being overbrowned on top. All in all, I'm very happy with this version. I might try it with other fruit (apricots!) later; seems like most fruit would work.

Raspberry Strippers

2006-12-18T22:14:00.000-08:00

I didn't pick the name! These are ok, more of a breakfast pastry than a dessert. They look pretty though!

Ingredients:
* 1/3 cup granulated sugar
* 5 tablespoons butter or stick margarine, softened
* 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 1 large egg white
* 1 cup all-purpose flour
* 2 tablespoons cornstarch
* 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* Cooking spray
* 1/3 cup raspberry or apricot preserves
* 1/2 cup powdered sugar
* 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
* 1/4 teaspoon almond or vanilla extract

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375°.
2. Beat granulated sugar and butter with a mixer at medium speed until well-blended (about 5 minutes). Add 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla and egg white; beat well. Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt, stirring well with a whisk. Add flour mixture to sugar mixture, stirring until well-blended. (Dough will be stiff.)
3. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide dough in half. Roll each portion into a 12-inch log. Place logs 3 inches apart on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Form a 1/2-inch-deep indentation down the length of each log using an index finger or end of a wooden spoon. Spoon preserves into the center. Bake at 375° for 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove logs to a cutting board.
4. Combine powdered sugar, lemon juice, and almond extract; stir well with a whisk. Drizzle sugar mixture over warm logs. Immediately cut each log diagonally into 12 slices. (Do not separate slices.) Cool 10 minutes; separate slices. Transfer slices to wire racks. Cool completely.
5. Yield: 2 dozen

Eggnog Cookies with Rum Butter Icing

2006-12-18T19:51:00.000-08:00

Best. Cookies. Ever. Oh WOW it surprised me. I was just looking for a recipe to use up the rest of my eggnog. Now I have to go buy some more to fill my new craving. Wow. Wowwowwow.

Ingredients:
* 1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
* 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
* 1 large egg
* 2/3 cup prepared eggnog
* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
* 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
* 1/4 cup unsalted butter
* 3 tablespoons rum
* 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
* 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. In a large mixing bowl, cream brown sugar and first addition of butter until smooth and light. Beat in egg until well blended. Stir in eggnog.
3. Mix together flour, baking soda, salt, first addition of nutmeg and ginger in a medium bowl. Blend into creamed mixture until smooth. Using either a ¼-cup measure or a 2-ounce ice cream scoop, scoop level measures of dough onto ungreased cookie sheets, spaced 2½ inches apart.
4. Bake until cookies are golden and firm to the touch, about 15 minutes. Using a spatula, transfer cookies to a wire rack and let cool. When cookies are completely cool, decorate with icing.
5. To make the icing, melt remaining butter and combine with rum in a small mixing bowl. Stir in powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, blending until smooth. Let sit for 15 minutes to thicken slightly. Spread icing on top of cooled cookies and garnish with remaining nutmeg.

Christmas comes but once a year...

2006-12-15T10:55:00.000-08:00

... thank god! Proof that I am certifiably insane:

The truffles (strawberry, gingerbread, mint, butter pecan, and coffee) are the top layer; below is a layer of fudge (eggnog, divinity, and chocolate walnut), then a layer of almond-pecan brittle. All in all it took me about 4 days of 12 hours, including freezing and waiting time. Crazy I tellya, crazy!! Although a candy basket is a nice idea, the truffles (the best part) actually took a significant majority of time. After this, baking will be a breeze!

Nut Brittle

2006-12-15T02:04:00.000-08:00

Recipe found here. I hadn't had brittle before, but this was really good: sweet, slightly salty, and crumbled in your mouth. It wasn't too hard, but flakey in a weird-yet-wonderful way. I'm afraid I ate quite a bit of it before I managed to give it away.

Christmas Truffles!

2006-12-13T16:58:00.000-08:00

Clockwise from the top: gingerbread truffle, coffee truffle, chocolate mint truffle, butter pecan truffle, and strawberry truffle rolled in coconut. Aren't you in love? These are going in buckets along with almond-pecan brittle and chocolate walnut fudge (which I will post later.) I haven't measured out the weights yet, I might have to slap something else together to fill the gaps (if there are any.)

Gingerbread Men

2006-12-10T23:24:00.000-08:00

This and hot cocoa: a Christmas staple. I'm not normally a fan of ginger cookies, but something about gingerbread men makes all the difference. I'm afraid I was (am!) the morbid little girl who would eat first one leg, then another, working my way up until only the head was left. Stars and trees (not shown) I'd just eat haphazardly.

I liked this recipe (from joyofbaking.com) much more than normal because the cookies came out soft, not hard as cardboard like standard ginger cookies. The eyes are chopped crystalized ginger; otherwise I just used frosting for decoration. My frenzed (12 hour) baking day is over, yet not: I finished the goodies (these + hot cross buns) for tomorrow, but I still have truffles and Christmas candy to finish for the gift packages. Good thing I like cooking!

Ingredients:
* 3 cups (420 grams) all purpose flour
* 1/4 teaspoons salt
* 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
* 2 teaspoons ground ginger
* 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
* 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
* 1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
* 1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated white sugar
* 1 large egg
* 2/3 cup (160 ml) unsulphured molasses

Confectioners Frosting:
* 2 cups (230 grams) confectioners sugar (icing or powdered sugar), sifted
* 1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
* 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
* 1 1/2 tablespoons milk or light cream
* Assorted food colors (if desired)

Gingerbread Men: In a large bowl, sift or whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, and spices. Set aside.

In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and molasses and beat until well combined. Gradually add the flour mixture beating until incorporated.

Divide the dough in half, and wrap each half in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least two hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside while you roll out the dough.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to a thickness of about 1/4 inch. Use a gingerbread cutter to cut out the cookies. With an offset spatula lift the cut out cookies onto the baking sheet, placing the cookies about 1 inch (2.54 cm) apart. If you are hanging the cookies or using as gift tags, make a hole at the top of the cookies with a straw or end of a wooden skewer.

Bake for about 8 - 12 minutes depending on the size of the cookies. Small ones will take about 8 minutes, larger cookies will take about 12 minutes. They are done when they are firm and the edges are just beginning to brown.

Remove the cookies from the oven and cool on the baking sheet for about 1 minutes. When they are firm enough to move, transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

If desired, you can press raisins, currants, or candies into the dough for eyes and buttons while the cookies are still warm. Otherwise, confectioners frosting can be used to decorate the cookies. You can also use the icing as a glue to attach candies, raisins, and sprinkles.

Confectioners Frosting: In an electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), cream the butter until smooth and well blended. Add the vanilla extract. With the mixer on low speed, gradually beat in the sugar. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beater. Add the milk and beat on high speed until frosting is light and fluffy (about 3-4 minutes). Add a little more milk if too dry. Place the frosting in a pastry bag fitted with a decorative tip and decorate the gingerbread men as desired.

Tint portions of frosting with desired food color (I use the paste food coloring that is available at cake decorating stores and party stores).

Makes about 3 dozen cookies depending on the size of cookie cutter used.

Store in an airtight container.

Eggnog Hot Cross Buns

2006-12-10T17:43:00.000-08:00

I had some eggnog left over and I wanted to bake bread. What could be more efficient? I took the original recipe (one I had buried in my recipe folder,) and substituted eggnog for the milk. They turned out crusty on the outside, light and fluffy inside. The eggnog glaze and frosting on top helped sweeten it, and inside I spread some maple-walnut butter I had leftover. The result: a perfect snack for the chilly, rainy day it was.

Ingredients:
1 pkg. yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1 tablespoon plus 1 tsp. white sugar
4 cups flour (2 c. white & 2 c. whole wheat)
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups warm eggnog
1/4 cup butter -- softened
2 eggs -- lightly beaten
1 cup raisins

Put the yeast, warm water and 1 tsp. white sugar in a small bowl,stir and set aside until frothy about 10 minutes. Put the flour, brown sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves and salt in a bowl and whisk together. Put the butter into 1 cup of the warm eggnog and let it melt. Make a well in the center of the flour and pour in the yeast mixture, the warm eggnog mixture and the eggs. Mix until blended, then add the currants or raisins and knead until you have a smooth dough, soft but not sticky about 5 minutes in an electric mixture, 10 minutes by hand. (Add a little extra milk if you need it to get the right consistency.)

Cover with a plastic bag or plastic wrap and leave in a draft-free spot until the dough has doubled in bulk 1-1/2 to 2 hours. Punch the dough down; shape into 16 to 18 balls and place on a greased cookie sheet. Cover with a sheet of plastic, place in a warm spot and allow to rise again until the buns are almost double in volume about 20-30 minutes. Now with a very sharp knife or razor, make a quick cross on top.

Preheat the oven to 400F. Allow the buns to recover from the cross-making for 10-15 minutes, then bake for 12-15 minutes or until they sound hollow when you rap the bottoms.

Make a glaze by boiling 2 Tbs. of the remaining eggnog with the 1Tbs. of sugar until it is very bubbly. Brush the glaze on the buns as you take them from the oven it makes them shiny. Makes 16-18 buns. Drizzle frosting on buns to make a cross.

Vanilla frosting: Stir together 1 1/2 cups icing sugar, 1 to 2 tablespoons eggnog and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract.

Pecan Truffles

2006-12-09T23:07:00.000-08:00

I know I promised pictures of my almond cake, but disaster struck during assembly. Instead of looking like a three-tier wonder, the cakes cracked under the weight of the frosting, leaving me with a bakery earthquake. The taste was ok, not something I would make again. Overall it was a disappointment.

These, however, were not! I haven't made truffles in years, and I couldn't remember how to dip them to get that smooth outer coating. With a little practice with a spoon, a corn skewer, and a lot of melted chocolate, I think I've got the knack. Good thing too, since truffles are a major portion of my Christmas goodie bags. These are but the beginning to my seasonal baking frenzy -- I already have a mint version in the frig that will have to wait until tomorrow for coating since it is near midnight. Tomorrow's post should be a long one though! On the agenda: gingerbread men (haven't made those in years either, I even bought sprinkles!), eggnog hot cross buns (since I have leftover eggnog and have a yearning to work dough), almond brittle, chocolate walnut fudge, and of course, truffles. Whew, who needs a job, I'm hard at work already!

Ingredients:
* 2 1/2 cups toasted pecan halves
* 3 tablespoons superfine granulated sugar
* 1/3 cup graham cracker crumbs (from about three 5- by 2 1/2-inch graham crackers)
* 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
* 1 teaspoon vanilla
* 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
* 24 oz white chocolate (chopped)

Finely chop 1/2 cup pecans.

In a food processor grind remaining 2 cups pecans with a pinch salt, occasionally scraping down side of bowl, until pecans release their oil and mixture becomes a smooth paste, about 3 minutes. Transfer pecan butter to a bowl and stir in remaining ingredients until combined well.

Form level teaspoons of pecan butter into balls and with a dipping fork dip into melted white chocolate. Adorn with halved pecans, if desired. Chill truffles, in layers separated by wax paper, in an airtight container at least 1 hour, or until firm, and up to 4 days.

Makes about 40 truffles.

Lemon Cheesecake with Almond-Gingersnap Crust

2006-11-29T18:56:00.000-08:00

The boyo and I are visiting my parents this week, and I commandeered the humongous kitchen for myself. Since 9:30 this morning, I have made 2 batches of peppermint bark cookies, an apple crisp that turned out beautifully, an almond cake that I will post tomorrow, and this: a lemon cheesecake with almond-gingersnap crust. It looks rather plain, especially compared to its predecessor, but delicious nonetheless. I changed the recipe (as is my wont) and added some chopped almonds for crunch and extra lemon juice for zing. My modifications were minor though, and recipe below (thanks epicurious!) is unaltered.
Ingredients:
Crust
* 2 cups ground gingersnap cookies
* 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted
Filling
* 5 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
* 2 cups sugar
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 7 large eggs
* 3 cups (24 ounces) sour cream
* 2 tablespoons (packed) finely grated lemon peel
* 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Lemon leaves or twists (optional)

For crust:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Stir cookie crumbs and butter in medium bowl until evenly moistened. Press mixture onto bottom of 9-inch-diameter removable-bottom cheesecake pan with 3-inch-high sides. Bake crust until deep golden, about 12 minutes. Cool completely. Reduce oven temperature to 325°F.

Stack 3 large sheets of foil on work surface. Place same cake pan in center. Gather foil snugly around pan bottom and up sides to waterproof.

For filling:
Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese in large bowl until smooth and fluffy. Gradually beat in sugar, then salt. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time. Beat in sour cream, grated lemon peel, and lemon juice. Pour filling into pan.

Place wrapped cake pan in large roasting pan. Pour enough hot water into roasting pan to come halfway up sides of cake pan. Bake cake until filling is slightly puffed and moves only slightly when pan is shaken gently, about 1 hour 25 minutes. Remove cake pan from water bath; remove foil. Cool cake in pan on rack 2 hours. Chill uncovered until cold; cover and keep chilled at least 1 day and up to 2 days.

Cut around pan sides; carefully loosen pan bottom from sides and push up pan bottom to release cake. Place cake (still on pan bottom) on platter. Garnish with lemon leaves or twists.

White Chocolate Blackberry Cheesecake with Blackberry Sauce

2006-11-27T17:30:00.000-08:00

I got to taste this one! Can we say "yum?" The original recipe (modified below) called for a very little bit of blackberry sauce in the cheesecake, and none to go on the individual slices. Sacrilege! I doubled a sauce recipe and now have enough for the cheesecake, pancakes for breakfast, and ice cream in between. I might have over done it. A little.
Cheesecake
Ingredients:
* 1 cup pecans
* 1 1/2 cups graham crackers
* 3 tbsp sugar (for crust)
* 6-8 tbsp butter, melted
* 1 1/2 cups fresh blackberries, or unsweetened frozen blackberries, defrosted and drained
* 1 1/4 cups plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
* 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
* 8 oz. white chocolate, chopped (Callebaut or Baker's Premium preferred)
* 2 lb. (32 oz/907g) cream cheese, softened
* 2 tbsp. unbleached all-purpose flour
* 4 large eggs, room temperature
* 2 tsp. vanilla extract
* 1/2 tsp. almond extract
* 2 tablespoons whipping cream
* 1 cup fresh blackberries for serving with the cheesecake (optional)

* blackberry sauce (see following recipe)

Instructions:
Wrap the outside of the 9-inch springform pan with a large piece of heavy aluminum foil and place in a large baking pan with at least 2-inch high sides. The springform pan will be watertight. Preheat the oven temperature to 350 degrees F (180 C).

For crust: Blend nuts, graham crackers, and sugar together in a food processor until fine. Add melted butter until you can pinch the crust together slightly. Pat into bottom and sides of your springform pan and bake at 350 degrees F for 10 minutes. Remove and let cool.

Puree the blackberries in a food processor. Use the back of a spoon to press the blackberries through a strainer to remove the seeds. Measure 1/2 cup strained puree into a small bowl and mix with 1 tablespoon sugar and the lemon juice. Set the sauce aside and save any additional puree for another use.

Position an oven rack in the middle of the oven. Place the white chocolate in a non-reactive ovenproof container and melt it in the oven, 8 to 10 minutes. As soon as the white chocolate is melted, remove it from the oven and stir it smooth. Set the white chocolate aside to cool slightly while you mix the cheesecake. Put the cream cheese in the large bowl of an electric mixer. Mix on low speed until the mixture is smooth, about 1 minute. Add the remaining 1 1/4 cups sugar and mix until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute. Mix in the flour. Add the eggs, 2 at a time, mixing the batter smooth before the next addition of eggs and again after all of the eggs are added. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl twice during this mixing. Mix in the vanilla and almond extract. Mix in the whipping cream. Stir in the melted white chocolate.

Pour the batter into the prepared springform pan. Use a small spoon to drizzle the blackberry sauce over the batter, leaving a 1-inch plain edge. Dip the spoon gently into the batter and swirl some of the sauce into the batter, leaving some swirls of sauce on top of the batter in a marbleized pattern. Do not disturb the crumb crust. Put the cheesecake in the oven and pour hot water in the large baking pan to reach 1-inch up the sides of the springform pan. Bake about 1 hour or until you give the cheesecake a gentle shake and the top looks firm (mine actually needed 1:30.) Cool the cheesecake in the water bath for 1 hour on a wire rack covered loosely with paper towel. Carefully remove the cheesecake from the water bath. Remove the paper towel and cool 1 hour more. The cheesecake should feel cool to the touch. Cover with plastic wrap and chill thoroughly in the refrigerator, at least 6 hours or overnight.

Blackberry Sauce
* 2 pints blackberries (frozen or fresh)
* 1/2 cup water
* 3/4 cup sugar
* 2 tablespoons cornstarch

Crush the raspberries with water in a saucepan. Add sugar and cornstarch. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and simmer 2 minutes. Push through a foodmill or strainer.

To make this quicker/easier, you can just make more of the blackberry puree for the cheesecake, and apply the sauce recipe to the excess. It's worth it!

Peppermint Bark Cookies

2006-11-22T09:27:00.000-08:00

I made these for a friend who's taking care of our kitties while we're away next week. Peppermint bark is a gorgeous concoction generally saved for the holidays (a tradition I aim to change immediately!). It's a layer of milk chocolate, covered in a layer of white chocolate, and sprinkled with crushed candy canes. Genius, the person who invented it!

I had a moment of culinary stupidity while making the bark. After making the bark and fridgerating it, the recipe called for you to "break" it. I promptly fetched a hammer.

-squish-

Bark isn't like brittle -- it smooshes instead of shattering. A butcher's knife proved much better at cutting it down to size, and didn't separate the layers like the hammer did (-ahem-.) But that just left me with "unuseable" bits to nibble on!
Cookies
Ingredients:
* 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
* 1 cup light brown sugar (not packed!)
* 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
* 1 large egg
* 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 1-3/4 cups all purpose flour
* 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 1/4 cups peppermint bark, chopped (recipe below)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Cream the butter with the sugars using an electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy (approximately 30 seconds.) Beat in the egg and the vanilla extract for another 30 seconds. In a mixing bowl, sift together the dry ingredients and beat into the butter mixture at low speed for about 15 seconds. Stir in the peppermint bark.

Using a 1 ounce scoop or a 2 tablespoon measure, drop cookie dough onto a greased cookie sheet about 3 inches apart. Gently press down on the dough with the back of a spoon to spread out into a 2 inch circle. Bake for about 20 (hs note: 25) minutes or until nicely browned around the edges. Bake a little longer for a crispier cookie (hs note: or if your cookies are a bit bigger).

Makes 2 dozen cookies.

Peppermint Bark
Ingredients:
* 9 Candy Canes
* 1 lb. of milk or dark chocolate
* 1 lb. of white chocolate

Directions:
Line a cookie sheet with wax paper. Unwrap candy canes and place in a large resealable bag. With a rolling pin, smash the canes.

Melt milk/dark chocolate in microwave-safe bowl in microwave, on high for 10-15 second cycles. Stir between heatings. Pour chocolate into cookie sheet and carefully spread to ~1/8" thickness. Refrigerate until firm (~15 minutes).

Repeat with white chocolate (careful! White chocolate burns easily, monitor heat closely.) Spread on top of dark chocolate. Before refrigerating, sprinkle the crushed candy canes on the still-warm white chocolate. Refrigerate for ~15 minutes.

Invert bark in cookie sheet and peel off wax paper. Break into a few large chunks with your hands then chop into 1/2" chunks for cookies. Enjoy!

UPDATE: Having now made bark with both milk and dark, I can safely say that dark is much better. It keeps the bark from being overly sweet, and has a more distinguishable flavor from white chocolate than milk.

Chocolate Genoise with White Chocolate Tangerine-Pomegranate Mousse

2006-11-20T11:34:00.000-08:00

Whew, that title is a mouthful. But yay! My first attempt at mousse and it turns out perfectly -- look at those clean corners! The recipe (compliments of Epicurious.com) called for straight tangerine juice, but all I could find at the store was pomegranate-tangerine, and I was too lazy to squeeze my own. Next time I won't trim the cake as the recipe calls for, but will just put cake+mousse in a larger pan. Trimming the cake is kind of a waste in my opinion... although I'll admit it made a good midnight snack!
Cake
* 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
* 9 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, chopped
* 3/4 cup sugar
* 5 large eggs
* 1/2 cup ground toasted hazelnuts
Mousse
* 3 cups strained fresh tangerine or orange juice (or pomegranate- tangerine)
* 1/3 cup sugar
* 2 1/2 teaspoons unflavored gelatin
* 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
* 14 ounces imported white chocolate (such as Callebaut or Lindt), chopped
* 6 tablespoons sour cream
* 2 cups chilled whipping cream

* 9 ounces imported white chocolate (such as Callebaut or Lindt)
* Unsweetened cocoa powder
* Fresh raspberries
* Fresh mint sprigs

For Cake:
Preheat oven to 325°F. Butter 9-inch-diameter springform pan with 2 1/2-inch-high sides. Line bottom with parchment. Butter parchment. Dust pan with flour. Melt butter and chocolate in heavy large saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly until smooth and melted. Remove from heat and whisk in sugar, eggs and ground nuts. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake cake until toothpick inserted into center comes out with very moist crumbs attached, about 45 minutes. Cool completely on rack (cake will fall and crack).

Release cake pan sides. Turn out cake onto work surface. Peel off parchment. Cut off outer 1/2-inch edge of cake. Clean cake pan. Reattach cake pan sides; brush sides of pan with vegetable oil. Set cake in center of pan (there will be space around cake that will be filled in with mousse). Refrigerate cake.

For Mousse:
Boil tangerine juice and sugar in heavy large saucepan until reduced to 1 1/2 cups, about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, sprinkle gelatin over lemon juice in small bowl. Let stand 10 minutes to soften.

Add gelatin mixture to tangerine juice mixture and stir to dissolve. Add 14 ounces white chocolate and whisk over low heat just until melted. Whisk in sour cream. If using pomegranate-tangerine juice, add a few drops of red coloring to the mousse now. Pour into large bowl. Chill mixture until cool and thickened but not set, whisking occasionally, about 1 hour 45 minutes.

Beat chilled whipping cream to stiff peaks. Fold into white chocolate mixture. Pour mousse over cake in pan, covering top and sides completely. Refrigerate cake overnight.

Using vegetable peeler, shave 9 ounces white chocolate into thin curls (if white chocolate is too hard to shave, place briefly in warm place to soften slightly). Run small sharp knife around pan sides to loosen cake. Release pan sides. Place cake on platter. Sprinkle chocolate curls over top of cake. Press more chocolate curls around sides of cake, covering completely. Place cocoa powder in fine sieve. Dust cocoa very lightly over chocolate curls. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.) Garnish cake with raspberries and mint sprigs. Serve cold.

Serves 12.

Sour Cream Apple Pie

2006-11-20T11:25:00.000-08:00

Again, compliments of Our Patisserie (is it any wonder this is my favorite blog?) I doubled the crust because I had to use a larger pan, and if I'd thought about it I would have halved-again the apples and cream. Unfortunately I don't have a cross-section picture but I'll have a taste-test result here soon!
Crust:
* 1 1/2 c graham crackers, finely ground
* 8 tbs melted butter (or enough to make it stick)
* 3/4 c ground pecans
Filling:
* 3/4 c sugar
* 2 tbs flour
* 1 c sour cream
* 1 egg
* 1 tsp vanilla
* 1/4 tsp cinnamon
* 5 large apples, peeled, cored and sliced thinly
Topping:
* 3 oz chopped walnuts
* 1/2 c packed brown sugar
* 1/2 tsp vanilla
* 1/2 tsp cinnamon
* 4 oz butter, cut into tiny pieces
* 1 1/2 c all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 350F. Combine the crust ingredients well and press into a 9-inch springform pan.

Mix all the filling ingredients except the apples in a large bowl until well combined. Add the sliced apples and mix well. Pour into the crust and bake 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the topping. Place all the topping ingredients in the food processor bowl and process just until crumbly. (Of course, if your food processor is small like mine, you can do this the old-fashioned way. Mix sugar, flour, cinnamon and vanilla in a bowl, cut in the butter using a pastry blender until crumbly and add the chopped walnuts.) Sprinkle the topping on the partially baked filling and bake for another 15-20 minutes.

UPDATE: The taste-test results are in, and it's a success! There were comments about how it was a bit runny, so next time I'll probably add a bit more sour cream and a little cornstarch, and bake it for ~5 more minutes.

Pear-Almond Tart

2006-11-18T16:45:00.000-08:00

I've never made a pear tart before, mostly because pears are not my favorite fruit. They can be very good, but mostly they're failed attempts at the brilliant: too mealy, too starchy, not sweet enough, overripe. At the request of a friend though, I attempted one for a dinner party. It was good, about what I would expect from a pear dessert. Not my preference but edible. However, the almond cream that went in the bottom was gorgeous. That I would love to make into a tart by itself -- it was sweet and nutty, and the texture was properly crunchy with ground almonds.
Recipe was taken from one of my favorite blogs, Our Patisserie.
Pastry Shell:
* 1 1/2 c unbleached flour
* 8 tbs unsalted chilled butter, cut into 8 pieces
* 1 large egg
* 2 tbs sugar
* pinch of salt
* 1 tsp ice water (if required)
Almond Paste:
* 1/2 c (1 1/2 oz) whole almonds
* 3/4 c sugar
* 4 tbs butter at room temperature, cut into 4 pieces
* 1 large egg
* 1/2 tsp almond extract (check health food stores for oil-based almond flavor)
* 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
Cream Filling:
* 1/2 c heavy cream
* 1 large egg yolk
* 1 tsp sugar
* 1 tsp vanilla extract
* 4 large ripe Bartlett or Bosc pears, halved, peeled and cored

For the crust, process flour, butter, egg, sugar and salt until mixture resembles coarsemeal, 10-15 seconds. Pinch; if it does not hold together, sprinkle a few drops of cold water and pulse 2-3 times to mix. Do not overprocess. Gather dough in a ball, flatten, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 30 minutes. On lightly floured surface, roll dough into a 12 inch-circle about 1/8-inch thick. Line a 10-inch quiche pan. Refrigerate 30 minutes before filling.

Meanwhile, you can prepare the almond paste, pears and the cream filling: For almond cream, process almonds and sugar until finely ground. Add butter and pulse 4-5 times. Add remaining ingredients and process 15 seconds to blend. For cream filling, process cream, egg yolk sugar and vanilla extract for 10 seconds.

Before assembly of tart, preheat the oven to 350F. Spread almond paste over bottom of pastry shell and arrange pears attractively, flat side down on almond paste. Pour cream filling carefully over pears. Bake for 1 hour or until filling is set and browned. Cool in pan over wire rack. You can glaze the tart with a little diluted apricot jam if you want. Equally delicious served warm or at room temperature.

Banana-Rum Cheesecake with Caramel Sauce

2006-11-14T11:24:00.000-08:00

I guess I'm just in a cheesecake mood. Compliments of the Food network, this has an almond crust, a caramelized banana layer, a rum-cheesecake layer, then is smothered in caramel. Next time I think I'll embed almond slivers on the top for decoration; otherwise, yum!
Crust
* 9 graham cracker sheets
* 1/2 cup almonds
* 1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
Banana Layer
* 2 tbsp unsalted butter
* 1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
* 1 tsp vanilla
* 1 tbsp rum
* 3 firm bananas, sliced
Cheesecake
* 2 lb. cream cheese at room temperature
* 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
* 2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
* 5 large eggs
* 2 tsp vanilla extract
* 1 tsp rum extract
Caramel Topping
* 1 1/2 cups sugar
* 1/4 cup water
* 1 tbsp corn syrup or lemon juice
* 1 cup whipping cream
Directions:
For crust, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and grease the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan and wrap the pan in foil. In a food processor, pulse almonds until fine. Add graham crackers and pulse until crumbled. Add melted butter and pulse to combine. Press into the bottom of prepared springform pan (not up the sides) and bake for 12 minutes. Allow to cool while preparing bananas.

For bananas, heat a sauté pan over medium-high heat and add butter and brown sugar, stirring until melted and bubbling. Stir in vanilla and rum and add bananas. Stir just to coat and warm and pour into cooled crust.

For cheesecake, beat cream cheese until fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl often. Add brown sugar in 2 additions, beating well after each addition. Beat in butter. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat well after each addition. Stir in vanilla and rum extract and pour cheesecake batter over caramelized banana layer in springform pan. Bake cheesecake in a water bath: place springform pan into a baking dish and pour hot tap water around it, to come halfway up the pan. Bake for 30 minutes, then reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees F. and bake for another 30 to 40 minutes, until filling puffs just slightly around edges but still moves a little in center when shaken. Remove pan from water and allow to cool for 2 hours before refrigerating overnight.

For caramel topping, combine sugar, water and corn syrup or lemon juice in a pan. Bring to a boil without stirring and cook, uncovered, until it turns a rich amber colour. While cooking, occasionally brush down the sides of the pot with a brush dipped in cool water. Once sugar has reached desired colour, remove from heat and carefully stir in whipping cream (watch out for the steam and bubbling). Return to medium heat and simmer until reduced by a third, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Chill until thickened but still fluid, about 15 minutes. Pour caramel over cheesecake and chill completely. (This can be done up to 8 hours before serving). To serve, run a knife carefully along the inside of the pan to loosen, remove pan and slice with a hot, dry knife.

Pumpkin Cheesecake

2006-11-13T20:42:00.000-08:00

Sheesh, how very orange. It's a pumpkin cheesecake with a gingersnap crust, and (not yet included) cinnamon whipped cream. Tis the season! I might add more sugar next time -- the batter wasn't very sweet when I tasted it. We'll see how the reviewers handle it!

My other bakery today was your basic banana bread, but I spiced it up with some walnut-maple butter. Unfortunately I won't get any of that either, but I'm keeping it in mind to have with a hot cup of cocoa next time it rains out here.

Orange-Blueberry Cake

2006-11-09T20:17:00.000-08:00

There's a cake under there, I swear! Problem is, I had to disguise the fact that the frosting was melting off the cake. The recipe below is adjusted, but it originally called for way too little powdered sugar in the frosting -- it was more of a glaze. Unfortunately for me, I didn't realize this until late at night when I didn't want to go running to the store for more sugar. Still, it looks neat (I hope it hopes up til tomorrow!) Thank goodness oranges are in season, and blueberries were on sale!
Cake
* 2 1/2 cups cake flour
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
* 1 1/2 cups sugar
* 3 tablespoons frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
* 1 1/2 teaspoons grated orange peel
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 4 large eggs
* 1 cup whole milk
Filling
* 2 1/2-pint baskets blueberries
* 2 tablespoons sugar
* 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Frosting
* 1 8-ounce package cream cheese, room temperature
* 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
* 4+ cups powdered sugar
* 2 tablespoons frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
* 1 teaspoon grated orange peel
* 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

* 2 1/2-pint baskets blueberries

For cake: Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour two 9-inch-diameter cake pans with 1 1/2-inch-high sides; line bottoms with rounds of parchment paper. Sift first 3 ingredients into medium bowl. Beat butter in large bowl until fluffy. Gradually add sugar, beating until blended. Beat in concentrate, peel, and vanilla. Beat in eggs 1 at a time. Beat in flour mixture in 4 additions alternately with milk in 3 additions. Divide batter between prepared pans. Bake cakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Cool in pans on rack.

For filling: Combine berries, sugar, and lemon juice in heavy small saucepan. Bring to boil over high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Boil until mixture is reduced to 3/4 cup, stirring occasionally and mashing berries coarsely with fork, about 8 minutes. Chill filling uncovered until cold, about 30 minutes.

For frosting: Beat cream cheese and butter in bowl to blend. Beat in powdered sugar in 4 additions, then orange concentrate, peel, and vanilla. Chill until firm but spreadable, about 30 minutes.

Cut around cakes to loosen. Turn cakes out. Peel off parchment. Place 1 layer, flat side up, on platter. Spread filling to within 1/2 inch of edges. Chill 5 minutes. Top with second layer, flat side down. Spread 1/2 cup frosting thinly all over cake to seal. Spread remaining frosting over cake. Mound remaining blueberries on top. (Can be made 1 day ahead; chill. Serve at room temperature.)

Chocolate Mint Scroll Cake

2006-11-09T19:30:00.000-08:00

This is an adaptation of my Chocolate Raspberry Ganache Cake. When it came time to decorate I'd originally intended to put 6 or 8 large rosettes of chocolate around the rim then lean the Pirouette cookies on them... but I turned out not to have enough chocolate. So I settled for mass-o-cookies with a little white chocolate shaved on top. I think it looks nice, although I would have preferred powdered sugar instead of white chocolate. Meh. I'll find out how it tastes tomorrow :)

The cake itself consists of one chocolate genoise (a moist egg cake) that has been sliced in half. Each half is brushed with a syrup to make it moist (in my case, I made a syrup from water, sugar, and creme de menthe), then ganache is spread between the layers and over top. Finally, over all of it a chocolate-cream glaze is poured that hardens slightly and helps keep the cake's shape. It's really rich, almost like eating fudge. Yum.

Pimp That Snack

2006-11-06T21:16:00.000-08:00

I used to have this one recurring dream in which, through masterful arcade skills, I would win several gigantic candies -- a huge caramel and a Reese's peanut butter cup the size of twice my head. That was a goooood dream. Anyway, I recently came across this website, Pimp That Snack.com and thought "I could do that." Voila, behold, my Hegemon Snickers. This baby is equivilent to over 200 fun sized bars, or 32 king sized bars as you can see by the poor dwarfed king in the picture.

Pictures and recipe will (hopefully) be posted at the site, in which case I'll supply a direct link. Otherwise the fun will be here. Since I didn't get to eat the Hegemon (it went to the boyo's coworkers) I'm not feeling the effects of the sugar coma that was undoubtably part of the joy of eating the world's only Hegemon Snickers. Actually, I want to make another one. Not a Snickers this time, been done now. Perhaps a Caramel Crunch or even a Rocher (yum!) ... although those I'd have to eat myself. Oh well. Maybe next weekend.

UPDATE: WHOOO! It was finally posted, and I've been ranked #2 of all Pimps. I feel so flattered!

Blueberry-Lemon Cake with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

2006-10-23T14:07:00.000-07:00

Yummy! Granted, I didn't actually get to taste - this slice was cut for your benefit then dutifully placed back in the cake. I did get to taste the frosting though: wow. I didn't use fresh blueberries - not in season - but frozen blueberries worked fine.
Ingredients:
* 3 1/3 cups cake flour
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
* 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
* 2 cups sugar
* 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
* 1 teaspoon (packed) grated lemon peel
* 4 large eggs
* 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk
* 2 1/2 cups fresh blueberries
Frosting:
* 11 ounces good-quality white chocolate (such as Lindt or Baker’s), finely chopped
* 12 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
* 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
* 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
* 3+ cups powdered sugar
Additional blueberries (optional)
Lemon slices (optional)

For cake: Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour two 9-inch-diameter cake pans with 2-inch-high sides; line bottoms with rounds of parchment paper.

Sift first 4 ingredients into medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl until fluffy. Gradually add sugar, beating until blended, scraping down sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in lemon juice and peel, then eggs 1 at a time. Continue to beat until well blended. Beat in dry ingredients in 4 additions alternately with buttermilk in 3 additions. Fold in berries. Transfer batter to pans. Bake cakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Cool cakes in pans on racks.

For frosting: Stir white chocolate in top of double boiler set over barely simmering water until almost melted. Remove from over water and stir until smooth. Cool to lukewarm. Beat cream cheese and butter in large bowl until blended. Beat in lemon juice, then cooled white chocolate. Add powdered sugar until frosting is smooth and moderately stiff.

Turn cakes out onto work surface. Peel off parchment. Place 1 cake layer, flat side up, on platter. Spread with 1 cup frosting. Top with second cake layer, flat side down. Spread remaining frosting over top and sides of cake. Garnish with additional blueberries and lemon slices, if desired. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover with cake dome; refrigerate. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour before serving.)

Makes 10 to 12 servings.

Bakewell and Linzer Tarts

2006-10-19T11:14:00.000-07:00

Now I understand the term "food porn." Lately I've been flipping through the Flickr photo sets for desserts and pastry while watching tv: BAD idea. Thousands upon thousands of gorgeous food pics, but very very few recipes to accompany them. The agony! Many don't even have titles, so I don't know what sinful concoction is before me. The few who do post recipes however, normally link the picture to their blogs, which are chock full of brand-spankin' new recipes for me to try. I've added a few of the best to my favorites.

Anyway, from my porn surfing, I found these two tarts: the Bakewell Tart (pictured above) and the Linzer Tart. The Linzer I didn't get a picture of before it was whisked off to the hungry boyos; just assume mine looked as good as the one in the recipe. The Bakewell is a shortbread crust, with strawberry jam smeared on it, then covered with an almond cake. It overflowed while baking so I got to taste the leavings: the almond cake absolutely melts in your mouth. The Linzer Tart is an almond shortbread crust, with a raspberry jam layer, then chocolate ganache poured on top. I didn't get to taste but the bowl for this one, but I did make one adjustment to the recipe: I added ~1 tablespoon of cinnamon to the ganache, to spice it up a little bit.

The last recipe I'll post today is my birthday cake. Mine didn't photograph well at all; in fact it collapsed mid-picture under the weight of the mint sauce. It was a definite chocolate bomb though. I made one addition to the recipe: mid-bake time, I stuck a chocolate ganache truffle in the center of each. The idea was, melted chocolate truffle center! However, I stuck it too far down then over-cooked the cakes: the truffle was melted at the bottom, causing it to collapse faster once I took it out of the pan, and there was no molten center. They were still excellent though; just mini souffles.

Lemonade Cake

2006-10-06T22:07:00.000-07:00

I know, I know, I've been making a lot of fruit desserts lately. But, how could I resist Lemonade Cake! It looks rather plain so next time I'll probably candy some lemon rinds and sprinkle them across the top. I didn't have a chance this time around, unfortunately.
Ingredients:
* 1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
* 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick/3 oz/85g) butter, softened
* 1 tablespoon grated lemon rind
* 3 tablespoons thawed lemonade concentrate
* 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 2 large eggs
* 2 large egg whites
* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
* 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
* Cooking spray
Frosting:
* 2 tablespoons butter, softened
* 2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
* 2 teaspoons thawed lemonade concentrate
* 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 8 ounces cream cheese
* 3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°F (180 C). Place first 5 ingredients in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 5 minutes). Add eggs and egg whites, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda; stir well with a whisk. Add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to sugar mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture; beat well after each addition.
Pour batter into 2 (9-inch) round cake pans coated with cooking spray; sharply tap pans once on counter to remove air bubbles. Bake in preheated 350°F (180 C) oven for 20 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans 10 minutes on a wire rack; remove from pans. Cool completely on wire rack.
Place 2 tablespoons butter and the next 4 ingredients (2 tablespoons butter through cream cheese) in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until fluffy. Add confectioners' sugar, and beat at low speed just until blended (do not overbeat). Chill 1 hour.
Place 1 cake layer on a plate; spread with 1/2 cup frosting. Top with remaining cake layer. Spread remaining frosting over top and sides of cake. Store cake loosely covered in the refrigerator.

Vanilla-Orange Drop Cookies

2006-10-06T21:55:00.000-07:00

Orange Cookies! Very orange cookies in fact. I experimented with vanilla beans for the first time in this recipe; besides the vanilla extract, I scraped out the seeds of one vanilla bean. Did you know that vanilla beans are not actually bean pods? I was expecting a lima bean-like pod, but in actuality the beans were tiny little bits encased in the pod. Nifty! The other thing to know about vanilla beans is you can pay 8 bucks for a glass container and two vanilla beans. Next time I'm buying them wholesale.
Ingredients:
* 1/2 cup cream cheese, softened
* 1/4 cup (1/2 stick/2 oz/56 gm) unsalted butter, softened
* 1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
* 1/2 cup honey
* 1 large egg
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
* 1 tablespoon grated orange zest
Orange Icing:
* 1/2 can (3 oz.) frozen concentrated orange juice
* 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 1 teaspoon grated orange zest
* 3 cups confectioners' sugar
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375˚F (190˚C). Grease and flour a cookie sheet or line with parchment paper. In a large bowl, combine cream cheese, butter, sugar, honey, egg and vanilla. Mix at medium speed until smooth. Add dry ingredients and mix until incorporated. Drop medium sized spoonfuls of dough onto cookie sheet and bake for 7-8 minutes. Remove to a wire rack to cool. When cookies are cool, ice with orange icing.
In bowl of an electric mixer or in other medium size bowl, combine all icing ingredients and mix on medium speed with electric stand mixer or electric hand mixer, until smooth.
Makes 3 dozen cookies.

White Chicken Curry

2006-10-02T20:20:00.000-07:00

I tried my hand at a different type of curry, a mild white one. It was ok, but very very mild. The chicken was tender but not very flavorful; the onions absorbed most of the spices. All in all, I probably won't make it again. Still, I like the look of that star anise tucked in there!

Spices Galore!

2006-10-01T21:59:00.000-07:00

I've had a curry craving for ages, but I have a hard time finding recipes online that match the taste of Indian restaurants, so I broke down finally and bought a cookbook: Indian Essence by Atul Kochhar. So far, it's really good. Unfortunately it also requires loads of spices not sold in your average grocery store. Luckily, I live in the Bay Area, and Berkeley is wonderful for finding the oddest everythings. Mango powder, nigella, star anise, all in a little store called Bombay Spice House. Eee! Expect loads of odd-ingrediented but wonderful-looking recipes in the future.

Shrimp Curry

2006-10-01T20:38:00.000-07:00

Compliments of the Essence of Emeril. It's brightly colored and has a bit of a kick to it. I omitted the okra and eggplant... but I'm a wimp. Was very good regardless though.
Curry Oil:
Ingredients:
* 1/2 cup olive oil
* 2 tablespoons curry powder
* 2 teaspoons minced garlic
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 3 turns freshly ground black pepper
Place all of the ingredients in a food processor or blender and blend for 15 seconds. Store in an airtight jar or bottle for up to 1 week.

Shrimp Curry:
Ingredients:
* 1 teaspoon black mustard seed
* 1 cup finely-chopped onion
* 1/2 cup chopped poblano pepper
* 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
* 1 tablespoon ground coriander
* 5 tablespoons canola or neutral vegetable oil
* 1 cup each julienned carrots and green bell pepper
* 1 cup each sliced okra and diced eggplant
* 1 cup peeled, seeded, diced tomatoes (tomato concassè)
* 1/2 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
* 1/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 2/3 cup plain yogurt
* 2 tablespoons butter, melted
* 2 tablespoons chopped parsley, for garnish
* Curry oil (previous recipe), for garnish
Directions:
Gently saute mustard seeds, onion, poblano pepper and spices in oil. Add carrots, okra and eggplant and sauté 2 minutes. Add shrimp, tomatoes and bell peppers and cook just until shrimp turn pink. Stir in coconut and season with salt. Simmer just until heated through and remove from heat. Stir in yogurt and melted butter. Serve garnished with chopped parsley and lightly drizzled with curry oil.

Lemon-Honey Drops

2006-10-01T19:19:00.000-07:00

I was making a selection of cookies, and needed to include a non-chocolate item (infidels!) These are Lemon Honey Drops. They've got this gorgeous lemon-sugar frosting that you brush on while the cookies are still warm.
Ingredients:
* 1/2 cup granulated sugar
* 7 tablespoons butter or stick margarine, softened
* 2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
* 1/3 cup honey
* 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
* 1 large egg
* 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 cup plain fat-free yogurt
* Cooking spray
* 1 cup powdered sugar
* 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
* 2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Beat first 3 ingredients with a mixer at medium speed until light
and fluffy. Add honey, extract, and egg; beat until well-blended.
Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife.
Combine flour, baking powder, and salt, stirring well with a whisk.
Add flour mixture to sugar mixture alternately with yogurt, beginning
and ending with flour mixture. Drop by level tablespoons 2 inches
apart onto baking sheets coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350
degrees for 12 minutes or until lightly browned.
3. Combine powdered sugar and juice in a small bowl; stir with a
whisk. Brush powdered sugar mixture evenly over hot cookies. Sprinkle
evenly with 2 teaspoons rind. Remove cookies from pan; cool on wire
racks. Yield: 32 cookies.

Buttermilk Sugar Cookies

2006-10-01T19:09:00.000-07:00

First recipe! These are Buttermilk Sugar Cookies, yum. Mine turned out looking more like scones than cookies, but I was making large cookies.
Ingredients:
* 1/2 cup butter (no substitutes), softened
* 1 cup sugar
* 1 egg
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 cup buttermilk
Frosting:
* 3 tablespoons butter (no substitutes), softened
* 3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
* 1/4 cup milk
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts or pecans for topping
Directions:
1. In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine flour, baking soda and salt; add to the creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk and mix well. Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart onto greased baking sheets.
2. Bake at 375 degrees for 10 - 12 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Remove to wire racks to cool.
3. For frosting, combine butter, sugar, milk and vanilla in a mixing bowl; beat until smooth. Frost cookies; sprinkle with nuts if desired.

2006-10-01T14:52:00.000-07:00

New blog! I was posting so many recipes I figured I'd dedicate one strictly for food. Prepare for the yummies!