Eat, Love & Travel

I'm moving !

2010-07-03T18:06:00.000-07:00

Not too far, just around the corner to http://www.seattlepastrygirl.blogspot.com/ .

Apparently there are multiple combinations of eatlovetravel,eatlovewrite,eattravellov and on and on. So I'm going with what I know and what I started with many moons ago.....please come along ... My goal is to leave this blog up for a bit so I don't miss any of you wonderful people. I hope that I am following the blogger directions correctly..I'm holding my breath that I don't lose anything or anyone !

June 2010 Daring Bakers' Challenge

2010-06-27T00:30:00.000-07:00

The June 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Dawn of Doable and Delicious. Dawn challenged the Daring Bakers’ to make Chocolate Pavlovas and Chocolate Mascarpone Mousse. The challenge recipe is based on a recipe from the book Chocolate Epiphany by Francois Payard

Here is the link for the printable PDF file

The beginnings of my meringue

Recipe 1: Chocolate Meringue (for the chocolate Pavlova):

3 large egg whites
½ cup plus 1 tbsp (110 grams) white granulated sugar
¼ cup (30 grams) confectioner’s (icing) sugar
1/3 cup (30 grams) cocoa powder

Directions:
1.Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 200º F (95º C) degrees. Line two baking sheets with silpat or parchment and set aside.
2.Put the egg whites in a bowl and whip until soft peaks form. Increase speed to high and gradually add granulated sugar about 1 tbsp at a time until stiff peaks form. (The whites should be firm but moist.)
3.Sift the confectioner’s sugar and cocoa powder over the egg whites and fold the dry ingredients into the white. (This looks like it will not happen. Fold gently and it will eventually come together.)
4.Fill a pastry bag with the meringue. Pipe the meringue into whatever shapes you desire. Alternatively, you could just free form your shapes and level them a bit with the back of a spoon. (Class made rounds, hearts, diamonds and an attempt at a clover was made!)
5.Bake for 2-3 hours until the meringues become dry and crisp. Cool and store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Folding the chocolate into the meringue

Recipe 2: Chocolate Mascarpone Mousse (for the top of the Pavlova base):
1 ½ cups (355 mls) heavy cream (cream with a milk fat content of between 36 and 40 percent)
grated zest of 1 average sized lemon
9 ounces (255 grams) 72% chocolate, chopped
1 2/3 cups (390 mls) mascarpone (see the recipe below for home made mascarpone)
pinch of nutmeg
2 tbsp (30 mls) Grand Marnier (or orange juice)

Directions:
1.Put ½ cup (120 mls) of the heavy cream and the lemon zest in a saucepan over medium high heat. Once warm, add the chocolate and whisk until melted and smooth. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and let sit at room temperature until cool.
2.Place the mascarpone, the remaining cup of cream and nutmeg in a bowl. Whip on low for a minute until the mascarpone is loose. Add the Grand Marnier and whip on medium speed until it holds soft peaks. (DO NOT OVERBEAT AS THE MASCARPONE WILL BREAK.)
3.Mix about ¼ of the mascarpone mixture into the chocolate to lighten. Fold in the remaining mascarpone until well incorporated. Fill a pastry bag with the mousse. Again, you could just free form mousse on top of the pavlova.

Beginnings of my Pavlovas

Recipe 3: Mascarpone Cream (for drizzling):
1 recipe crème anglaise
½ cup (120 mls) mascarpone
2 tbsp (30 mls) Sambucca (optional)
½ cup (120 mls) heavy cream

Directions:
1.Prepare the crème anglaise. Slowly whisk in the mascarpone and the Sambucca and let the mixture cool. Put the cream in a bowl and beat with electric mixer until very soft peaks are formed. Fold the cream into the mascarpone mixture.

Recipe 4: Crème Anglaise (a component of the Mascarpone Cream above):
1 cup (235 mls) whole milk
1 cup (235 mls) heavy cream
1 vanilla bean, split or 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
6 large egg yolks
6 tbsp (75 grams) sugar

Directions:
1.In a bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until the mixture turns pale yellow.
2.Combine the milk, cream and vanilla in a saucepan over medium high heat, bringing the mixture to a boil. Take off the heat.
3.Pour about ½ cup of the hot liquid into the yolk mixture, whisking constantly to keep from making scrambled eggs. Pour the yolk mixture into the pan with the remaining cream mixture and put the heat back on medium. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon until the mixture thickens enough to lightly coat the back of a wooden spoon. DO NOT OVERCOOK.
4.Remove the mixture from the heat and strain it through a fine mesh sieve into a bowl. Cover and refrigerate until the mixture is thoroughly chilled, about 2 hours or overnight.

I made these the diameter of a medium muffin

Homemade Mascarpone courtesy of Vera at Baking Obession
Much easier to make than it might seem, homemade mascarpone is a tastier and less expensive alternative to a store-bought cheese. It’s marvelous with ripe summer berries, finally appeared at our farmer’s markets.

Makes about 12 oz
Ingredients:
•500 ml whipping (36 %) pasteurized (not ultra-pasteurized), preferably organic cream
•1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

Preparation:
Bring 1 inch of water to a boil in a wide skillet. Reduce the heat to medium-low so the water is barely simmering. Pour the cream into a medium heat-resistant bowl, then place the bowl into the skillet. Heat the cream, stirring often, to 190 F. It will take about 15 minutes of delicate heating. Add the lemon juice and continue heating the mixture, stirring gently, until the cream curdles. Do not expect the same action as you see during ricotta cheese making. All that the whipping cream will do is become thicker, like a well-done crème anglaise. It will cover a back of your wooden spoon thickly. You will see just a few clear whey streaks when you stir. Remove the bowl from the water and let cool for about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, line a sieve with four layers of dampened cheesecloth and set it over a bowl. Transfer the mixture into the lined sieve. Do not squeeze the cheese in the cheesecloth or press on its surface (be patient, it will firm up after refrigeration time). Once cooled completely, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate (in the sieve) overnight or up to 24 hours. And according to Vera it will firm up beautifully in the fridge-don't worry about the custard like texture when you place it in the fridge.

Assembly:
Pipe the mousse onto the pavlovas and drizzle with the mascarpone cream over the top. Dust with confectioner’s sugar and fresh fruit if desired.

Additional Information:
Wikipedia’s definition of Pavlova
The history of Pavlova
Videos:
Great video from Epicurious

http://www.doableanddelicious.com/

Yotam Ottolenghi and Watermelon

2010-06-25T21:06:00.000-07:00

First of all if you haven't stumbled upon Yotam Ottolenghi by now google him and go to his website. How can you not love and want to be around a group of people who embrace this philosophy :
We take our food extremely seriously. We make everything – be it marshmallow, an elaborate upside down pear cake or a French bean salad - right from scratch. We don’t buy anything other than raw ingredients, and we only produce things that we would want to eat ourselves. We don’t use colouring or preservatives, we don’t freeze and we don’t refrigerate for long periods. We buy mostly local produce (that is, British and European), very often organic, and we cook to feed and to share, applying the same instincts as a home cook. But we are also perfectionists; testing and re-testing each dish until we get it just right; creating and maintaining beautiful and serene dining environments.
I just bought his cookbook "Plenty" and it is one of the most gorgeous cookbooks I have ever seen. It's a vegetarian cookbook and the photos alone make me want to cook every dish-and those of you who know me know that I am not a vegan. I'm not a huge fan of beef but I love chicken, fish and pork-and occasionally lamb. But with this cookbook I may be eating nothing but vegetables all summer long.

I was searching for a cookbook with an emphasis on vegetables since we have expanded our garden this summer. Even more tomatoes, more eggplant, cucumbers, peppers,broccoli,lettuce,mustard,sugar snap peas,onions,garlic and lots of fresh herbs. And we also started biweekly delivery from New Roots Organics out of Ballard. Carolyn Boyle started New Roots back in 1999 and supports local organic farmers. We got our first bin delivered last Thursday and it was perfection. Juicy nectarines,huge blueberries and some of the sweetest cantaloupe I have tasted in a long time. Snap green beans that tasted like they just came from my garden. I love this service. I try to get to the local farmer's markets but with my schedule I can't always make it so this is a nice fall back plan. I can't wait to see the next delivery-it's like getting Christmas presents every other week.

I love fresh veggies and fruit from the garden. I grew up in Duquesne , PA and my grandfather had a huge garden that my mom and dad would tend along with my sister,brother and myself. We had a cherry tree,several peach trees, a nectarine tree, and 2 plum trees. I was spoiled at young age, roaming through the garden with a salt shaker and having a dinner of fresh tomatoes with a little salt sprinkled on them. Or at lunchtime I would gorge myself on plums and peaches so juicy I would be covered with peach drippings and my fingers would be purple from the plums. When my grandfather became bedridden he would sit in the upstairs window and yell down at me "Yenta-pick up those peaches, bring me those with some tomatoes" He would place them on his nightstand or windowsill and usually by the next day they were gone. He taught me how to smell a peach and know if it was ready-how to pick off those huge caterpillars that would eat our tomato plants, how to set onions in so they would grow straight and have huge white bulbs by fall. I miss my grandfather the most during the summer when the sight of the garden takes me back to him and his window overlooking his garden. I like to think that my love of gardening comes directly from him.

Anyway I have gotten way off track here. Back to Yotam. One of the last recipes in the book has some of my absolute favorite ingredients in it basil, watermelon,feta cheese,olive oil and red onions. Now if you would have told me I'm going to make you a salad from those ingredients and season it with a little salt and pepper I would have said okay and then I would be making a mental note of where I could stop for good take out on the way home after the "salad". But the picture of this salad looked so incredible I had to try it and now I am addicted to this salad-it's going to be my go to salad for the entire summer. If I didn't tell you before, I love watermelon! My mother used to tell me she ate it all summer long while she was pregnant with me and that's where my addiction comes from ! The sweetness of the melon, the tartness of the feta, the crunch of the red onion and the slight grassy flavor of the olive oil-try it you won't be disappointed . And check out the cookbook-I'm certain you will love it as much as I do !

Chocolate Ice Cream and the Summer Cold

2010-06-24T13:01:00.000-07:00

I just stumbled out of bed. I have been under the blankets for almost 2 days now battling the mother of all summer colds. My throat hurts-tea soothes it a little, but I need something cold to numb the pain and something with some really good antioxidants. Like chocolate, like ice cream , like homemade chocolate ice cream. When I was very very young I remember the first time ice cream was used as medication-my tonsils were removed and the lovely nurse taking care of me brought me some chocolate ice cream. I remember thinking-wow I must be really sick if they are bringing me ice cream-maybe I'm dying (remember I was a silly goose of a child ). And then I took that first spoonful and I was hooked-ice cream as medication, far better than pain pills, or needles in the derriere-far far better ! That little moment set the stage for me and probably thousands of others who now reach for ice cream for comfort. When I'm down or like today when my throat feels like its stuffed with broken glass every time I cough, reaching for a bowl of ice cream takes me back to that hospital bed and that moment when the ice cream hit the back of my throat -that cool creamy numbing sensation-just what the doctor ordered. Maybe I should put the ice cream in one of those "break glass for emergencies "cabinets. I'll have to think about that. But for now, I'm setting up my mise en place,putting the Donvier in the freezer and sitting back with my cup of tea until my magic medication,aka homemade chocolate ice cream is ready! And of course I went to the specialist for advice, Ice Cream Maker extraordinaire-David Lebovitz and his book "The Perfect Scoop". Thanks David !

Chocolate Ice Cream
adapted from A Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz
Makes about 1 quart
2 cups heavy cream
3 tablespoons unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder ( I used E. Guittard Cocoa Rouge)
5 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate ( I used Scharffen Berger Unsweetened 99% Cacao)
1 cup whole milk ( I substituted buttermilk here-gave a nice light tang to the finished product)
¾ cup granulated sugar
Pinch of salt
5 large egg yolks
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Warm 1 cup of the cream with the cocoa powder in a medium saucepan, whisking to thoroughly blend the cocoa. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer at a very low boil for 30 seconds, whisking constantly. Remove from the heat and add the chopped chocolate, stirring until smooth. Then stir in the remaining 1 cup cream. Pour the mixture into a large bowl, scraping the saucepan as thoroughly as possible, and set a mesh strainer on top of the bowl.

2. Warm the milk, sugar, and salt in the same saucepan. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolk. Slowly pour the warm milk into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.

3. Stir the mixture constantly over the medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula (170°F on an instant-read thermometer). Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the chocolate mixture until smooth, then stir in the vanilla. Stir until cool over an ice bath.

4. Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. (If the cold mixture is too thick to pour into your machine, whisk it vigorously to thin it out.)

So I just finished chilling and churning the ice cream and all I can say is OMG-I'm in Paris at Berthillon-really, seriously, this recipe is crazy delicious-maybe it was the substitute of the buttermilk for the whole milk, maybe it's just my summer cold hallucinations, or maybe just maybe it's a recipe that produces some of the most chocolaty,creamy ice cream I have tasted this side of Berthillon, Paris. The first spoonful literally took me immediately to the Île Saint-Louis and my first taste of Berthillon Chocolate Ice Cream. October 2004, sunshine streaming through the oak trees, a crisp cool wind blowing of the Seine and the most indescribable taste in the world-no adjectives or superlatives can describe it. I didn't even want to try the other flavors after I tasted the chocolate. Now I have a way to time travel back to Paris with this recipe-Merci beau coup David Lebovitz..Merci beau coup...

(From The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz)

Alki Beach

2010-06-21T19:39:00.000-07:00

I feel so blessed to live in Seattle. Restaurants galore, some of the best farmer's markets in the world, fabulous shopping, year long sporting events, great music venues and crazy delicious coffee! And in the middle of all of this is the crown jewel-Alki Beach. You don't even need a car to get there. Head to Pier 50 on the Seattle waterfront and take the King County Water Taxi.

It's a beautiful 10 minute ride over to Alki. Don't forget your camera -you will get some incredible skyline pictures !. The water taxi arrives at the dock at Seacrest Park . Stop for lunch at Alki Crab & Fish and get some of the best fish and chips along with a gorgeous view After lunch you have your choice of adventures, rent a kayak,in line skates,a fishing boat, bicycle or long board all from Alki Kayak Tours.

Not feeling that adventurous ? Start walking south along the promenade. Walk about 2 miles and you will be in the heart of Alki Beach.

Alki Beach is the birthplace of Seattle. On November 13, 1851 the Schooner Exact landed there and the Denny Party started to establish themselves with a camp. A few months later, Arthur Denny, John Bell and Carson Boren paddled over to the east side of Elliott Bay and founded the actual town of Seattle. Besides the monument that commemorates Alki Beach as the birthplace of Seattle, walk just past the Bathhouse you will find a miniature reproduction of the Statue of Liberty. The Alki statue, or SeaLady is an exact replica of the original Statue of Liberty. It was presented to the City of Seattle in 1952 by the Boy Scouts of America to celebrate their 40th birthday in the United States.

If you didn't stop for lunch at Alki Crab & Fish and those hunger pangs are getting stronger, no worries. You have your choice of food. From casual outdoor dining at Slices to the small plates at Phoenecia.-don't miss the famous cinnamon rolls at the Alki Bakery or one of the best mojitos on the beach at Cactus ! It's a sunny day and you don't feel like restaurant dining- then stop by the Alki Urban Market and put together your own little picnic for lunch on the beach.

While you are in the area of the Statue of Liberty and Alki Bathhouse stop in and see if any of the artists are at work or join a Pilates class to work off that lunch you just enjoyed !

Are you a lighthouse buff ? Then start peddling a little further south-just about 1/2 mile and you will discover the Alki Lighthouse

Photo by Liza Phoenix Courtesy of Wikipedia Commons

Bicycle or walk along the beach in either direction-you can't go wrong. In the summer you will find the beach jammed with sun worshippers,volleyball players,in line skaters,bicyclers,dog walkers and people from all over the world. The crowds swell in the summertime and a party atmosphere is embraced by all. And if you are in town for Seattle Seafair you must come to Alki and join in the festivities when the Seafair Pirates kick off the start of Seattle's Seafair Celebration with the annual Pirates Landing at Alki Beach .They will be arriving on July 10, 2010 between 11:30 and 12:30. It's a fun family event and an Alki Beach tradition. There is always something happening at the beach during the summertime. And in the fall when the majority of tourists and sunworshippers head for warmer beaches Alki Beach turns back into a lovely place to while away hours sitting in the warm sun with the cool breezes blowing off the water. Or when the rains come, sitting in one of the coffee houses with a hot cup of your favorite beverage while watching storms roll in and out. And don't miss the arrival of the Christmas Ships-a great holiday tradition, listening to the carolers while huddling around the bonfires drinking your hot chocolate !

End your visit with dinner at one of my favorite restaurants- a place known mainly to locals "La Rustica" . You will have to walk or bicycle a little further south (approximately 1-2 miles) but your efforts will be rewarded with some of the best Italian food in Seattle. Braised lamb shank, black cod, Linguine al Tartufo, Vanilla Creme Brulee, cannelloni, crusty steamy garlic bread, I could go on and on. It's a small space so be prepared to be elbow to elbow with other diners- go, have dinner, mangia, then let me know what you think.

Alki Beach has always held a special place in my heart. It's one of those places you want to share but are afraid if you do it will lose it's magic. I don't think Alki will ever lose it's magic for me- I will always remember our first walk on the beach when we moved to Seattle and both felt so right about the move after that walk; it's the place that gives me refuge when I'm feeling down and it's our go to place for every celebration imaginable. And I'm happy to share it with you.. So check that water taxi schedule,pack your sun screen and head out to the beach !

Happy Father's Day

2010-06-19T23:11:00.000-07:00

I wish my Dad were here today. He would love this torte. Sweet but not overly sweet, fresh local strawberries and just a little sparkle from the Moscato d'asti. Understated but unforgettable. Like my Dad. He didn't conquer Mt Everest, he didn't invent some life saving device, he didn't find a cure for some deadly disease, but he lived his live with a quietness and dignity and peacefulness. My sister,brother and I grew up with a mother who had problems with alcohol and we pretty much had to fend for ourselves. But if there was one certainty,one anchor in our upheaval of a life it was my Dad. Amid all the chaos, a hug would make the sadness go away, if only for a moment. As I got older I realized how he gave up his happiness and dreams to ensure some type of stability in our lives. He was my hero-even when I was in the wrong and could hear that stern strong voice call out "Sandra" -he is the only person who has ever called me by that name and I knew if I heard it -well it was usually because I had broken some rule or done something I needed to be held accountable for. I'll never forget those good times -going to the lake and learning to water ski with him shouting out constant encouragement-no matter how many times I belly flopped on my face ; building the first snowman of the season -just he and I in the backyard; being 13years old and watching him graduate from college; having him drive me to my speech club matches every single Saturday for a year,never complaining always encouraging me to do my best.. shortly after J and I got engaged my dad came to visit me at college and when he was leaving and gave me that last hug and whispered in my ear "You're not my little girl anymore "...I didn't get it then, I thought it was just some grown up corny dad thing to say-but when we danced that father daughter dance at my wedding he whispered to me again.."forget what I said, you will always be my little girl "......I miss him, he died battling cancer many years ago. I will be forever grateful for the last few minutes I spent with him and forever grateful that I became the person I am today because of him. Dad , I know you are always with me and I hear you when I have those low moments and I feel you when those fabulous high moments happen too. You taught me well and I'm proud of the woman I have become and really proud that some of my best qualities are the same ones I so admired in you. Happy Father's Day Dad, I love you.

Thanks to Melissa Clark for sharing her recipe for this Strawberry Moscato Torte in the New York Times. Now go make one for your Dad-he'll love it !

Mille-Feuille and the Roses of Summer

2010-06-15T20:45:00.000-07:00

The roses are in full bloom in my garden and they look so beautiful. I remember when we first moved into this house -almost 18years ago-there was one rosebush on the west side of the house. I had been told that when the house was first built in 1919 the owner and his neighbor used to propagate roses and experiment with new strains. Those roses were long gone when we bought the house. I keep hoping that somewhere deep underground are the roots of at least one rosebush that someday will spring forward. In the meantime I had a vision for the property when we bought it. I wanted a garden like Monet's. I built my own trellis', put in rose arbors, sectioned out little beds , and now the entire yard is like wandering through Monet's garden.

I am happy with my handiwork and love roaming through the garden and discovering a new little geranium popping up-transplanted by the winds or the many birds that visit. We love to sit out on the deck in the evening and smell the vanilla scented Clematis or brush against the rosemary as we walk down the pathway. We have been talking about selling the house, since retirement is quickly approaching. We talk about downsizing and moving into a smaller place -translation "Condo with no yard maintenance " ! When and if that happens, I will miss my gardens and can only hope that whomever buys the house, loves to garden. It would break my heart if I returned and the gardens were gone. C'est la vie .

So to honor my garden in the present moment I decided to do something with my roses and baking. I started to search the Internet and remembered I had the link to Chef Eddy Van Damm on my home page. I thought of him because his work is so beautiful,creative and delicious I had a feeling he might have something that would inspire me-all of his work inspires me ! And how serendipitous-the topic on his home page was a Mille-Feuille with a Rose flavored Crème légère . And he used crystallized and fresh rose petals for the final touches. The photography was so gorgeous and his final product looked exquisite-I knew it was the perfect way to honor my roses.

Many thanks to Chef Eddy Van Damm for his instructions and inspiration. And for instructions on how to make your own crystallized roses go to Baking 911 or Martha Stewart. And if you have not discovered Chef Van Damm at this point in your baking experience please go to his website-you will be very happy you did-his work is incredible-and you will see why he is called the Prince of Pastry. The book he co-authored , On Baking ,has been on my wish list for some time and after this baking experiment I splurged and bought it for myself. You will probably be inspired to do the same once you visit his website !

Sorting through the petals from my garden

Rose flavored Crème légère.
Note a Crème légère is a pastry cream “lightened” by whipped cream.
1Cup (8 oz) Heavy cream
1 Cup (8 oz) Seedless raspberry puree
¼ cup + 1Tbsp (2.5 oz) Extra fine granulated sugar
4 Egg yolks
¼ Cup (2 oz) Extra fine granulated sugar
4 Tablespoons + 1 teaspoon (1 ¼ oz) Cornstarch
½ Cup (4 oz) Milk, boiling
1 Cup (8 oz) Whipping cream
Rose essence to taste

In a saucepan bring the heavy cream , raspberry puree and sugar to a boil.
In a separate bowl whisk the egg yolks until smooth. Add sugar and whisk rapidly until smooth, add cornstarch and whisk smooth. Whisk in the boiling milk.
Pour the egg yolk mixture into the boiling cream mixture and whisk rapidly to a boil. Boil for 1 minute and remove from heat. Cover the crème with plastic food film and place in an ice bath to quickly cool the cream until cold.
Whip the whipping cream until moussed (Soft peak). Add the rose essence to the pastry cream and whisk smooth. Fold in the moussed cream and gently fold together

Assembly
You can use a good quality store bought puff pastry for this recipe or if you are very brave and up to the challenge make your own !
Roll enough puff pastry to make about a half size sheet pan and 1/12 inch (2 mm) thick, bake at 400°F (200°C). Once the dough has quadrupled and the surface has gelatinized place a perforated sheet on the dough to ensure an even surface. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (180°C) or slightly cooler and bake until fully crisp.
When cold cut the dough into desired size pieces and sprinkle evenly with extra fine granulated sugar. Caramelize the surface evenly with a torch. Let cool.

Using the Rose flavored Crème légère , pipe a layer on caramelized puff pastry. Cover with another layer of puff pastry and pipe another layer of the cream. Finalize with another puff pastry layer and decorate with organic rose petals and crystallized rose petal.

PS BUY THE BOOK !

Sunday Morning, Coffee and a Cinnamon Roll

2010-06-12T21:13:00.000-07:00

I miss my Sunday mornings. Sleeping in late, letting my natural body rhythms determine when I was going to get out of bed-instead of the annoying alarm on my cell phone. Being in the travel industry, normal week-ends don't exist. My Sunday is my sweetie's Friday. No more laying in bed and smelling the coffee he has brewing for me. No gentle wake ups with a cinnamon roll fresh from Alki Bakery or a buttery croissant from Bakery Nouveau. Those Sundays are gone but not forgotten. My "Sunday" is spent alone but so is his...so tonight I'm turning the tables. Tonight I'm pretending it's Sunday morning for the two of us. Instead of dinner we will have freshly brewed coffee and homemade cinnamon rolls. I have to work with what I have and while I miss those precious Sunday mornings of the normal world-our life is what we make it and tonight I'm making it Sunday morning.

The kitchen smells crazy incredible with fresh baked cinnamon rolls in the oven. I bought a new bread book while in Portland ( yes I'm addicted to cookbooks). It's "Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day"-Fabulous with a capital F. Co-authored by Jeff Hertzberg MD and Zoe Francois, it's filled with one enticing recipe after another. I've always loved bread baking but never seem to fit it into my schedule so I thought this would be perfect if it works and it does ! I used the Buttermilk Bread recipe for the base of the rolls and instead of making loaves like they suggested for what's called "Judy's Board of Directors' Cinnamon-Raisin Bread", I rolled the finished product like a jelly roll and gently sliced them into rolls. I omitted the raisins and for the final touch I added a favorite cream cheese icing recipe.

I don't like to blog recipes from cookbooks unless they are already on the Internet and I found these two at a site called Simple Daily Recipes by Jill McKeever-nice website too!

This recipe makes three 1 1/2 pound loaves. It can be doubled or halved.
Buttermilk Bread
2 cups lukewarm water
1 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 tablespoons granulated yeast (2 packets)
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
6 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
butter or neutral-tasting oil for greasing the loaf pan-I lined a 1/2 sheet pan with parchment and spaced my rolls about 1-2 inches apart.

1.Mixing and storing the dough: Mix the yeast, salt, and sugar with water and buttermilk in a 5-quart bowl, or a lidded (not airtight) food container.
2.Mix in the flour without kneading, using a strong handled spoon, a 14-cup capacity food processor (with dough attachment), or a heavy-duty stand mixer (with dough hook). If you're not using a machine, you may need to use wet hands to incorporate the last bit of flour..
3.Cover (not airtight), and allow to rest at room temperature until the dough rises and collapses (or flattens on top); approximately 2 hours.
4.The dough can be used immediately after the initial rise, though it is MUCH easier to handle when cold. Refrigerate in a lidded (not airtight) container and use over the next 7 days. Stop here if you are making the cinnamon bread or rolls ..follow the recipe for the Cinnamon bread listed below.
5.On baking day, lightly grease a 9 x 4 x 3-inch nonstick loaf pan. Dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and cut off a 1 1/2 pound (cantaloupe-size) piece. Dust the piece with more flour and quickly shape it into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go. Elongate the ball into an oval.
6.Drop the loaf into the prepared pan. You want to fill the pan slightly more than half-full.
7.Allow the dough to rest for 1 hour and 40 minutes. Flour the top of the loaf and slash, using the tip of a serrated bread knife. Brush the top with melted butter.
8.Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
9.Bake for 45 minutes, or until golden brown.
10.Remove from the pan. Allow to cool completely before slicing or it will be nearly impossible to achieve reasonable sandwich slices.

Here is the Cinnamon Bread Recipe that I adapted to Cinnamon Rolls
Judy's Board of Directors' Cinnamon-Raisin Bread
1 1/2 pounds (cantaloupe-size portion) Buttermilk Bread dough
butter or neutral-tasting oil for greasing the pan
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup sugar
3/4 cup raisins
Egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water)

Lightly grease a 9 x 4 x 3-inch nonstick loaf pan. Set aside. Dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and cut off a 1 1/2 pound (cantaloupe-size) piece. Dust the piece with more flour and quickly shape it into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go.
With a rolling pin, roll out the dough to an 8 x 16-inch rectangle about 1/4-inch thick, dusting the board and rolling pin with flour as needed. You may need to use a metal dough scraper to loosen rolled dough from the board as you are working with it.
Use a pastry brush to cover the surface of the dough lightly with egg wash. Mix together the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle the mixture evenly over the dough. Evenly distribute the raisins. It helps to gently press the raisins into the dough before rolling into loaf shape.
And my favorite cream cheese icing:
4 Tablespoons of unsalted butter-softened
3 oz cream cheese
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1/8 teaspoon of salt
1 Tablespoon Milk (add more if you like to drizzle your icing-I like mine more like frosting !
Mix all the ingredients until well blended-medium speed on your mixer. Place dollops of icing on the rolls while still hot in the pan. Allow to cool and then .....

Pour yourself another cup of coffee ,pull out the Sunday paper and enjoy!

And here is another book to put on your wish list !

Rick Bayless Tacos -Yum Yum Yum

2010-06-10T11:40:00.000-07:00

Last week I was at Barnes and Noble looking for a recipe for something called Tali Sauce. I discovered the Tali Sauce on a bowl of deliciousness from a food cart in Portland called The Whole Bowl. More to come on that eating our way through Portland in 1 night and 2 day trip !! Oh and by the way if you have a recipe for this incredible garlicky/lemon sauce let me know. But I digress,back to the search. I was having no luck and I was starting to think that the sauce didn't exist.
I had been searching through Vegetarian, Asian, Japanese, Chinese and Mediterranean type cook books with no success. So I scooted myself over to the Mexican food cookbooks and Rick Bayless fell into my lap. Now I have watched him on Top Chef Masters and was very happy that he won-I love his true passion for food and he just seems like a really nice person.

I spotted his "Mexican Everyday" and pulled it off the shelves and started paging through it. I must confess that the first thing I do when looking at cookbooks is quickly thumb through for the photography-if the photography doesn't jump out at me the book usually gets placed back on the shelves. I know it's a very shallow way to buy a cookbook but I'm a visual person ! I do own quite a few books without tons of pictures so I'm not totally and 100 percent shallow when it comes to buying them !! Chef Bayless's cookbook made want to tear the pages out and start eating them. I mean really-there was Roasted Garlic Dressing with Green Chile, Chipotle Beef Tacos with Caramelized Onions, Crusty Black Bean-Chorizo Subs,Grilled Roadside Whole Chicken with Knob Onions- the list is endless is and delicious. I wanted something quick that night since I had spent so much time at the bookstore . There it was on pg 198 Green Chile Chicken Soft Tacos. If I never make anything else from this book -this recipe was worth it.

If you love Mexican Food ( and I don't mean that stuff you get at those drive thrus ) run out and buy this cookbook. You won't be disappointed. The smells in my kitchen the day I made this put me on beach in Mexico somewhere with a cold cerveza and a plate of these tacos with side of rice and beans-heaven !

For those of you who don't have the book I found the recipe on line at Chow.com . Try it and let me know what you think.

Green Chile Chicken Soft Tacos
Tacos de Pollo al Chile Poblano -adapted from Chow.com
Ingredients:
2 large fresh poblano chiles
2 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil ( I used Spanish Olive Oil)
1 large white onion, sliced 1/4 inch thick ( definitely use the white onion for the authentic flavors you are striving for)
Salt
1 pound (3 medium-large halves) boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
Ground black pepper
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice-I doubled the lime juice and garlic cloves
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped or crushed through a garlic press
12 warm corn tortillas, store-bought or homemade
About 3/4 cup roasted tomatillo salsa or guacamole, or bottled salsa or hot sauce, for serving-Chef Bayless recommends his Roasted Tomatillo Salsa or Guacamole.

I found his recipe for the salsa at Kalamazoo Gourmet along with his Guacamole recipe. Since I was rushed this night I opted for my go to tomatillo salsa and pico de gallo from Metropolitan Market-both made fresh daily-love that store !

Directions:
Roast the poblanos over an open flame or 4 inches below a broiler, turning regularly until blistered and blackened all over, about 5 minutes for an open flame, 10 minutes for the broiler. Place in bowl, cover with a kitchen towel and let cool until handle able.

Turn on (or adjust) the oven to its lowest setting. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a very large (12-inch) skillet over medium-high. Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until golden but still crunchy, 4 to 5 minutes. Scoop into a heatproof serving bowl, leaving as much oil as possible in the skillet, and slide into the oven. Set the skillet aside.

Rub the blackened skin off the chiles and pull out the stems and seed pods. Rinse the chiles to remove bits of skin and seeds. Cut into 1/4-inch strips and stir into the onions. Taste and season with salt, usually a generous 1 teaspoon. Return to the oven.

Sprinkle both sides of the chicken breasts generously with salt and pepper.

Return the skillet to medium heat. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil. When the oil is hot, lay in the chicken breasts. Brown on one side, about 5 minutes, then flip and finish cooking on the other side, about 4 minutes more. When the meat is done, add the lime juice and garlic ( I added half of my lime juice garlic mix )to the skillet. Turn the chicken in the lime mixture for a minute or so, until the juice has reduced to a glaze and coats the chicken.

Cut the chicken breasts into 1/4-inch strips ( at this point I place them back in the hot frying pan and added the other half of the lime juice and garlic mix and finished de glazing the pan )and toss with the onion-poblano mixture. Taste and season with additional salt if you think necessary. Serve with the warm tortillas and salsa, guacamole or hot sauce for making soft tacos.

Notes or Riffs from Chef Bayless:
A Couple of Riffs on Chicken Tacos: Grilling the chicken breasts is a delicious alternative to pan-searing them, but you’ll miss the lime-garlic glaze. To solve that problem, I suggest you add the lime juice and garlic to the onions when they’re browned, cooking until the liquid has reduced to a glaze. (You may want to have a little extra lime and garlic for marinating the chicken breasts before grilling.) If chicken tenders are more easily available than the breasts, use them; cooking time will be shorter. Beef skirt or flank steak works well here too. And, of course, any of the large fleshy chiles (from Anaheims to red bell peppers) can stand in for the poblanos.

Brining for Even Better Chicken: At Frontera Grill, we use free-range chicken breasts, which might taste tough to some of our guests if we did not brine them. (Besides promoting tenderness, brining can help make ordinary grocery-store chicken breasts moister and more flavorful too.) To brine 4 chicken breasts (1 1/4 to 1 1/2 pounds total), mix together 2 cups water, 3 tablespoons Morton kosher salt and 2 tablespoons sugar in a large bowl. Slip in the chicken breasts, cover and refrigerate for 20 to 30 minutes. Remove from the brine and dry on paper towels; the chicken breasts are ready to use.

Buen provecho!

PS. Chef Bayless's website has delicious recipe after recipe listed on it until you can get your hands on his cookbooks ! And apparently great minds do really think alike-if you have a taste for beef head over to A Chow Life for her "riff " on Chef Bayless's Shredded Beef Tacos !

Out of Africa or Take a Walk on the Wild Side Mac Attack 8 Challenge

2010-06-09T19:28:00.000-07:00

So the MacTweets challenge this month has to do with wild animals ! The challenge -"All aboard! The Mactweets Express leaves this month for adventure! Board along with us at your own peril, take your life into your own hands for if you come along with us to the Savannah, the desert, the forest or the jungle, as you choose, you can only survive by creating a macaron inspired by the wild animal of your choice, whether beast or bird, but well armed with the right equipment and a enough patience, you shall succeed and make it out of the dangerous wilderness of your kitchen alive! "

I thought lions or tigers or bears oh my-but one of my favorite animals is the giraffe. I have always thought they were so graceful and I envied their height and long legs-things I have lusted for my whole life ! And their coats-those beautiful camouflage spots. And something I never knew about them is they have a super short sleep requirement anywhere from 10 minutes to 2 hours in a 24 hour period ! I would never look that spectacular after 2 hours of sleep !!

The wheels started turning when I was trying to figure out how to create a macaron giraffe. I was going to do some type of spotted design but I was fearful because so far I have enough trouble just creating normal macarons much less trying to add even more to the mix. I remembered I had ordered some food coloring pens by KopyKake and thought ..hmm could I draw the giraffe pattern on the top of the macaron after baking without effecting the texture and quality ? Surprise ! Yes I could . So I sat down with my trusty orange colored KopyKake pen and hand sketched the giraffe coat onto a dozen of my chocolate macarons. I'm happy with the results -what do you think ?

A side note to this I finally found a recipe and instructions that resulted in successful macarons and now I love Hisako Ogito and his "I Love Macarons" book !! After using his basic recipe I waited patiently and with much anticipation for the oven timer to go off so I could see if I had created the elusive pied (foot) of the macaron along with the smooth glossy top. HALLELUJAH HALLELUJAH HALLELUJAH ! Even on a rainy day in Seattle I got the macarons I have been trying to create. I know there is lots of room for improvement but you have no idea what a great feeling it was to open that oven door and see those little feet and see the rise of the macaroon along with the glossy top. Nothing can stop me now - I'm hooked ! Buy this book - it is fantastic - I followed his instructions to the T and success !

I used his basic vanilla macaron recipe and added 2 tablespoons of dutch process cocoa powder to the almond and powder sugar mix. I wanted a light brown/beige color for my little giraffes . The filling is Pierre Herme's chocolate ganache recipe (Pierre is the King of Macarons after all so I must include him in my baking endeavors ! )

Bon Appetit !

I Have a Need for Nutmeg

2010-06-05T17:53:00.000-07:00

I was feeling very un-motivated today -I wanted to bake but I couldn't focus. The only thing I knew for sure is that I wanted something with nutmeg. I went through a few of my favorite cookbooks but still couldn't find something that grabbed my attention. So I opted for Google. Did you know that nutmeg can be psychotropic-ingesting about 10grams is equal to approximately1 marijuana cigarette-of course the side effects of that much nutmeg are severe and dangerous. Hmmm, I never knew this about nutmeg-since I didn't care to ingest it directly I was looking for something cakey and cinnamony with strong nutmeg overtones. In my search I stumbled on Hillbilly Muffins. I loved the name so of course I had to try the recipe !

And according to the author of Hillbilly Housewife Blog "This recipe is very very old, at least 80 years old. It was created by a cook with leftover donut batter who didn’t have time to deep fry them. She added a little milk to make the batter thinner, and cooked it in muffin cups instead of deep frying it. "

Many thanks to the Hillbilly Housewife for finding and publishing the recipe. These are quick and delicious. PS Shortening is not one of my favorite ingredients but I rationalized that if it was good enough for the baker of these 80yrs ago it's ok for me every once in a while. But just in case your kitchen is a shortening free zone I found a similar recipe at Orangette's blog and that recipe follows the Hillbilly Muffins. Enjoy !
Hillbilly Muffins
•1/3 cup shortening
•1/2 cup sugar
•1 medium egg
•1-1/2 cups flour
•1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
•1/2 teaspoon salt
•1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
•3/4 cup milk

For The Topping:
•1/2 cup powdered sugar
•1 teaspoon cinnamon
•1/4 cup melted margarine
In a mixing bowl mash together the shortening and sugar. Add the egg and whisk it all up until it is smooth. Make sure you use shortening, Not Margarine. The shortening gives this recipe it’s special texture. Measure the flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg into the bowl. Pour in the milk. Mix the batter with a whisk until it is smooth. Drop the mixture into 12 oiled muffin cups. Make sure not to over fill the muffin cups, 1/2 to 2/3 full is full enough. Bake the muffins at 350 for 25 minutes, or until the muffins are brown on top. Remove them from the oven and allow them to cool slightly.

Mix the powdered sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside.
Take the muffins out of the pan. When they are cool enough to handle, dip the tops of the muffins into the melted margarine. Then dip them into the powdered sugar/cinnamon mixture. Arrange the prepared muffins on a large plate and serve while still warm. Makes a dozen.

Nutmeg Donut Muffins -please read the link to this recipe-I love Molly Wizenberg's blog and this is the sweetest posting I have ever read !
Yield: 12 muffins

3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 ½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp baking soda
Scant 1 tsp salt
½ tsp freshly ground nutmeg
¾ cup plus 1 Tbs whole milk
2 Tbs buttermilk
1 ½ sticks (6 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
¾ cup plus 2 Tbs granulated sugar
2 large eggs

For topping:
4 - 6 Tbs unsalted butter
1 ½ - 2 cups powdered sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, and set a rack to the middle position. Spray a standard-size muffin tin with cooking spray.
In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg, and whisk to mix them thoroughly. Set aside.
Combine the milk and the buttermilk in a measuring cup, and set aside.

Place the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or, alternatively, in a large mixing bowl with electric beaters nearby), and beat on medium speed for a few seconds, until the butter is soft and creamy. With the motor running, add the sugar in a steady stream. Continue beating, scraping down the sides of the bowl once or twice, until the mixture increases in volume and lightens to pale yellow. It should look light, fluffy, and wonderfully creamy, like frosting. This could take a couple of minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating until they are just combined.

With a wooden spoon, mix ¼ of the flour mixture into the butter mixture. Add 1/3 of the milk mixture. Continue to add the dry and wet ingredients alternately, ending with the dries. Mix until the dough is smooth and well combined, but do not over mix.

Divide the batter between the cups of the muffin tin. Bake until the muffins are firm to the touch and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 25-32 minutes.

When the muffins are cool enough to handle, prepare the topping: melt the butter in the microwave or on the stove top, and pour the powdered sugar into a deep bowl. Using a pastry brush and working one muffin at a time, lightly brush the entire outside of the muffin with butter, and then roll it in the powdered sugar. Shake off any excess, and place the finished muffins on a rack or serving platter. Serve.

Note: These muffins are best on the day that they’re made, but they’re still awfully good on the second day—much better than the usual day-old muffin or stale doughnut. And for those who like advance planning, also note that this batter keeps, covered and chilled, for up to three days.

Granville Island

2010-06-04T20:05:00.000-07:00

Island Getaways—where would you like to go? The Bahamas? Caribbean? West Indies? What about someplace in your backyard? Granville Island maybe? Okay, it’s not the tropics, and it won’t be a white sanded beach with the waves lapping at your toes-but it’s accessible and a quick getaway for a nice overnight from Seattle.
If you have never heard of Granville Island it’s in Vancouver BC and one of my favorite places to go to when in Vancouver. I booked Amtrak to Vancouver, and I highly recommend the train ride up. When you check in at Amtrak in Seattle ask for a window seat on the left side of the train on the way to Vancouver and for a window seat on the right side of the train returning from Vancouver. Or better yet for $14 more you can upgrade to Business Class. That is definitely the way to go; priority boarding and you are among the first passengers off the train in Canada so no delays in the line to clear Canadian Customs!

The train leaves Seattle at 7:40am and the ride up is beautiful-all along the Washington Coast and then thru the Fraser Valley area in Canada. Keep watch for the bald eagles in the mudflats outside of White Rock, BC. They are all over the place. You will probably see herons along the way too. Just gorgeous. We passed a wedding on the beach on the return trip-what fun and how romantic!

It’s very easy to get around Vancouver with all the transportation options. I took the Sky train and transferred to a bus that took me right to Granville Island. A $9 day pass was a great investment for the bus and Sky train all day long. The Route 50 from the Waterfront at Seymour took me directly to Granville Island. You simply cross the street, go under the Granville Bridge and you have arrived at Granville Island.

I recommend you allow at least 3-4 hours to see everything on Granville Island-starting with the Public Market. Granville Island is literally an island in the city-I couldn’t describe it better than their website: “a place moulded by a fascinating history, buzzing with a colourful artistic community. A living, breathing urban oasis filled with fine waterfront restaurants, theatres, galleries, studios, unique shops, cafes and the most spectacular fresh food market you’ve ever seen. Add a vibrant and diverse mix of people and activities, and you have a destination so dynamic, no visit to the city is complete without spending at least a day here. Just think of Granville Island as Vancouver’s Town Square.”

The Public Market is a feast! Beautiful berries stacked like miniature Christmas trees; pastries that you will be dreaming of days after you have left the market; so many choices for lunch from peirogis and stuffed cabbage to pitas stuffed with lentils to spicy sausage sandwiches; and don’t forget the bread-whole grain, sour dough, cinnamon loaf, if you can’t find it here you won’t find it anywhere!

You can take your lunch and sit outside and enjoy watching the False Creek Ferries or just people watching-beware of the cute little sparrows-they will try to charm and distract you while trying to steal your food !

After lunch wander the streets, around one corner you will find a streetful of artist galleries; around another corner you will find a beautiful park to sit and enjoy;

another walk takes you down to the docks where the boats moor and you daydream what it would be like to own one of the yachts moored there ! Or grab a chocolate croissant from La Baguette Bakery and take a ride on the False Creek Ferries.

You can listen to street musicians, watch glass blowing at it’s finest or shop to your heart’s content.

There is a children’s section of the Island too-filled with a fun children’s park, a Kid’s Market and enough to do to tire out the most energetic child!

Take a tour of the Granville Island Brewery, British Columbia’s first “cottage brewery” or stop in and try a brew. If barley and hops aren’t to your liking head over to Railspur Alley and visit Canada’s only Artisan Sake maker.

And if you are lucky artists will be carving totem poles at Ocean Art Works next to the Ocean Construction Plant. If you still need something to do there are three theaters, the Performance Work Space and an outdoor amphitheatre-always something going on somewhere.

Granville Island is a jewel and right in our backyard-just one of the many sights to see in Vancouver.
Returning from Vancouver on the 545pm train- pull out your stash of scrumptious chocolates from Chocolatas in the Granville Market or those delicious fig and fennel sour dough crisp breads from La Baguette Bakery, pour yourself a glass of wine (from the Amtrak Bistro on board) , sit back and enjoy the view along with a beautiful sunset! Sweet dreams and Bon Voyage.

Blini,Blini,Blini

2010-05-30T21:01:00.000-07:00

This month's Chocolate with Francois challenge was his recipe for chocolate blinis. Linda from Diva Weigh chose this recipe and I'm so glad that she did . I never made sweet blinis before and thought it would be similar to the savory ones I've made in the past. I was very wrong-the recipe itself was very easy to put together and the batter was so rich and delicious. My challenge was flipping the blinis and gauging when they were ready to be flipped. The little edges were bubbling and calling out to me, flip me, flip me. So I would try to flip and the chocolate would come oozing out from all edges. My official tester enjoyed the blini mistakes and even though they looked all mushed and wrinkled like little chocolate baby cakes they still tasted incredibly rich.

I try to imagine the first person who decided it would be a great idea to combine chocolate with eggs and create a chocolate blini. Can you imagine the look on their face when they got the combination of ingredients just right and took that first bite. That soft cake like exterior and the creamy chocolate interior. These don't need butter or syrup,they are perfect just plain. But I thought wouldn't some caramelized bananas and a side of whipped cream just send them over the top? And yes it did-what a natural combination of flavors. This was my Sunday night dinner- I know it's not very healthy and certainly doesn't meet any food pyramid recommendations. But it does meet my criteria and that's when in doubt eat chocolate !

Daring Baker's Challenge - Croquembouche

2010-05-27T01:09:00.000-07:00

The May 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Cat of Little Miss Cupcake. Cat challenged everyone to make a piece montée, or croquembouche, based on recipes from Peter Kump’s Baking School in Manhattan and Nick Malgieri.
It's amazing what a little over confidence can do to you-I love pate a choux-and I thought I was pretty good at making eclairs, swans and cream puffs using the choux. So when I saw this month's Daring Bakers' Challenge-I thought great no problem ,piece of cake. Ha-the choux was the least of my worries-it was the building of the piece montee that was my downfall! You see Seattle and caramel glaze do not a marriage make-especially during Spring rain showers. I was so proud of my little piece montee and couldn't wait to get up at the crack of dawn to photograph it-figuring I would have some great early morning light. Well imagine my surprise when I came around the bend into the kitchen and saw caramel glaze dripping off the cake stand and sad little puffs that had rolled off the piece montee onto the counter top and floor. So back to the drawing board.
Fortunately the Vanilla Creme Patissiere and the Pate a Choux are not complicated and the recipes provided by Cat were excellent. My cream puffs have never been more airy or tastier ! The 2nd time around I knew not to even attempt the caramel glaze and decided on chocolate ganache. But I didn't want a giant cream puff tower covered in chocolate so I decided to add some Belgian Sugar Pearls to half the batch of choux just before baking. I applied the sugar just after the egg wash. They turned out so pretty and had a nice crunch from the sugar-the next time I make cream puffs I'm going to make the entire batch with the sugar-very tasty.

Voila-Success

Quel Horrible ! And the pretty spun sugar -all gone

Vanilla Creme Patissiere

For the Vanilla Crème Patissiere (Half Batch)

1 cup (225 ml.) whole milk

2 Tbsp. cornstarch

6 Tbsp. (100 g.) sugar

1 large egg

2 large egg yolks

2 Tbsp. (30 g.) unsalted butter

1 Tsp. Vanilla

Dissolve cornstarch in ¼ cup of milk. Combine the remaining milk with the sugar in a saucepan; bring to boil; remove from heat.

Beat the whole egg, then the yolks into the cornstarch mixture. Pour 1/3 of boiling milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly so that the eggs do not begin to cook.

Return the remaining milk to boil. Pour in the hot egg mixture in a stream, continuing whisking.

Continue whisking (this is important – you do not want the eggs to solidify/cook) until the cream thickens and comes to a boil. Remove from heat and beat in the butter and vanilla.

Cooling the Pate a Choux

Pate a Choux (Yield: About 28)
¾ cup (175 ml.) water
6 Tbsp. (85 g.) unsalted butter
¼ Tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 cup (125 g.) all-purpose flour
4 large eggs
For Egg Wash: 1 egg and pinch of salt
Pre-heat oven to 425◦F/220◦C degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Preparing batter:
Combine water, butter, salt and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil and stir occasionally. At boil, remove from heat and sift in the flour, stirring to combine completely.
Return to heat and cook, stirring constantly until the batter dries slightly and begins to pull away from the sides of the pan.
Transfer to a bowl and stir with a wooden spoon 1 minute to cool slightly.
Add 1 egg. The batter will appear loose and shiny. As you stir, the batter will become dry-looking like lightly buttered mashed potatoes.It is at this point that you will add in the next egg. Repeat until you have incorporated all the eggs.

Pate a Choux ready to pipe

Piping:
Transfer batter to a pastry bag fitted with a large open tip (I piped directly from the bag opening without a tip). Pipe choux about 1 inch-part in the baking sheets. Choux should be about 1 inch high about 1 inch wide.
Using a clean finger dipped in hot water, gently press down on any tips that have formed on the top of choux when piping. You want them to retain their ball shape, but be smoothly curved on top.Brush tops with egg wash (1 egg lightly beaten with pinch of salt).

My little choux

Baking:
Bake the choux at 425◦F/220◦C degrees until well-puffed and turning lightly golden in color, about 10 minutes.
Lower the temperature to 350◦F/180◦C degrees and continue baking until well-colored and dry, about 20 minutes more. Remove to a rack and cool. Can be stored in a airtight box overnight.

So pretty and brown and so light

Filling:
When you are ready to assemble your piece montée, using a plain pastry tip, pierce the bottom of each choux. Fill the choux with pastry cream using either the same tip or a star tip, and place on a paper-lined sheet. Choux can be refrigerated briefly at this point while you make your glaze.

Love the Belgian Sugar

Sometime this summer, when it is dry I will try them again with the caramel glaze !

Chocolate Ganache
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
12 oz good quality chocolate-finely chopped

Bring the cream to a boil over medium heat. Take the boiling cream and pour it over the finely chopped chocolate. Gently shake the bowl so that all of the chocolate is covered by the cream. Let it sit for 2 minutes then gently whisk until the chocolate is melted.

Here is the rest of the instructions if you are brave enough to try the caramel glaze .

Use one of these to top your choux and assemble your piece montée.
Chocolate Glaze:
8 ounces/200 g. finely chopped chocolate (use the finest quality you can afford as the taste will be quite pronounced; I recommend semi-sweet)
Melt chocolate in microwave or double boiler. Stir at regular intervals to avoid burning. Use the best quality chocolate you can afford. Use immediately.
Hard Caramel Glaze:
1 cup (225 g.) sugar
½ teaspoon lemon juice
Combine sugar and lemon juice in a saucepan with a metal kitchen spoon stirring until the sugar resembles wet sand. Place on medium heat; heat without stirring until sugar starts to melt around the sides of the pan and the center begins to smoke. Begin to stir sugar. Continue heating, stirring occasionally until the sugar is a clear, amber color. Remove from heat immediately; place bottom of pan in ice water to stop the cooking. Use immediately.
Assembly of your Piece Montée:
You may want to lay out your unfilled, unglazed choux in a practice design to get a feel for how to assemble the final dessert. For example, if making a conical shape, trace a circle (no bigger than 8 inches) on a piece of parchment to use as a pattern. Then take some of the larger choux and assemble them in the circle for the bottom layer. Practice seeing which pieces fit together best.
Once you are ready to assemble your piece montée, dip the top of each choux in your glaze (careful it may be still hot!), and start assembling on your cake board/plate/sheet. Continue dipping and adding choux in levels using the glaze to hold them together as you build up. (You may want to use toothpicks to hold them in place – see video #4 below).
When you have finished the design of your piece montée, you may drizzle with remaining glaze or use ribbons, sugar cookie cut-outs, almonds, flowers, etc. to decorate. Have fun and enjoy! Bon appétit!
Additional Information: Here are some videos you may want to take a look at before you get started on your piece montée.
1) Martha Stewart Assembles a Croquembouche:
http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/marthas-famous-croquembouche
2) Assembling croquembouche using the interior of a cylinder:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fq-UgMxe0Y4
3) Asembling Free-standing Croquembouche with Chocolate Glaze:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrIanD5pi9E&feature=related
4) Assembling a Croquembouche with Toothpicks and Cone:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIGaidsM-NI&feature=related
See this google images search of Croquembouche for inspiration:
http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&source=hp&q=croquembouche&btnG=Search+Images&gbv=2&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=
Here’s a link to a dairy-free pate a choux and crème patisserie recipe:
http://dairyfreecooking.about.com/od/dessertsbeverages/r/creampuffs.htm

Whoopie ! Life is Sweet !

2010-05-11T17:12:00.000-07:00

Feeling very nostalgic this week. Probably just the after effects of Mother's Day. You know how it is when everyone is celebrating a day that you can't or don't celebrate for whatever reason. With my job I have constant contact with people-happy people,people heading out on vacation or returning home. So they are already in festive moods-add a holiday to the mix and they are giddy with excitement. All day long I gave and received Happy Mother's Day Greetings. It was sweet even though I'm only a step mother to my kitty Mischa and doggy Hailey. But it made me think of all the people-both men and women who have been a mother to me when I needed it most. Friends no longer in my life, a stranger just passing momentarily on the street yet sensing my sadness and reaching out ,touching my arm and asking "are you OK". A brother who wrote something in an email so sweet and poignant it brought tears to my eyes , a sister who knows what I'm feeling and thinking all the time.
Every day someone comes into our life and touches it -sometimes just briefly and we don't even notice, sometimes they linger and we end up lingering over the meeting , trying to figure out what message the universe was trying to deliver through the contact and then just giving in to the experience and adding it to our "character bank ". I have always believed we have something to learn from each other with every contact and those contacts add to our own character ,spirit or soul whatever you choose to call it. On Mother's Day this week I had a contact that will stay with me and one I will draw on when I forget how precious life is. And you know we all do, we get caught up in going somewhere,doing something,seeing someone,meeting a deadline-that we miss the moment of the present-and once it's gone,it really is gone.

The moment I had with a customer on Mother's Day started just as a normal interaction-you know -hi how are you ? heading home ? where did you go for vacation ? Her answer was New York-and then she added she was there for the whole car bomb incident in Times Square-and not only was she there,she and her friends and some family members were standing next to the car when it went off with the pop pop pop and the smoke. They thought the car was on fire and started to walk away-and then the police came-forcing everyone quickly out of Times Square. It wasn't until later, sitting in a restaurant,when they caught what had happened on CNN. And then she knew just how lucky she was-then she knew how many angels had surrounded her and her loved ones, how the Universe in that split second reached out and said, no not now, not here, not today. For whatever reason-everyone who was there that day was blessed by circumstances that stopped a very terrible thing from happening. And this beautiful woman with the warm smile and sparkling eyes was standing in front of me telling me the story of that day. In that moment I really looked at her and thought how different it could have been-she wouldn't have been sharing that moment with me-we wouldn't have been laughing about crazy New York cabbies,about the wild and woolly side of Times Square and about going home to family. She knows how blessed she was and is and I know . And in sharing that moment with me I was reminded how precious every single second of life is. Does it sound corny- I don't care-I don't want to become complacent with life. I want to be corny,and sappy,and happy and embrace it with excitement and exuberance. I want to celebrate every second every day and share love and happiness with those I care most deeply about. And I don't ever want to forget that those people who come into our life are there for a reason.....for the moment..... for life. Peace

When I was thinking about what could I bake to celebrate life and what I writing about-what could sum up how life should be, well what better way then with a "WHOOPIE PIE" . Now I don't want to diminish my thoughts by saying something I bake could sum up that feeling- I just want to capture that feeling in some small way through my baking. And doesn't just saying Whoopie make you happy, make you remember something sweet and joyful from your childhood. Here's to the joy of life and the wish for good memories and sweet moments for all of us.

I used the fabulous "whoopie pies" cook book written my 2 fellow baking peeps-Sarah Billingsley and Amy Treadwell. What fun bakers they must be to put together the recipes in this book. And it's a wonderful book of mix and match -so many recipes you could mix and match to Whoopie eternity. Buy It !

I made S'more Whoopie Pies-yummy yummy yummy. Here is the recipe from Daily Candy-but go out and buy the book -there are wonderful scrumptious recipes to be tried.

S’more Whoopie Pies
makes about 48 two-inch cakes

Graham Cracker Whoopie
Ingredients1½ c. graham flour
¾ c. all-purpose flour
1½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
4 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
4 tbsp. vegetable shortening
1 c. (packed) dark brown sugar
2 large eggs
½ c. buttermilk
2 tbsp. milk
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. white vinegar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1. Place rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 375°. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a medium bowl, stir together both flours, baking powder, and salt.
3. In the work bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter, shortening, and brown sugar until light and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs and buttermilk and beat until combined.
4. In a measuring cup, combine milk, baking soda, and vinegar. Add milk mixture to batter along with flour mixture and beat on low speed until just combined. Add vanilla and beat on medium speed for about 2 minutes, until completely combined.
5. Using a spoon, drop about 1 tablespoon of batter onto one of the baking sheets. Repeat, spacing them at least 2 inches apart.
6. Bake one sheet at a time for about 10 minutes each or until the cakes begin to brown.
7. Remove from the oven and let the cakes cool on the sheet for at least 5 minutes before transferring them to a rack to cool completely.
8. Spread with marshmallow cream and chocolate ganache, but if you’re in a hurry a dollop of Marshmallow Fluff and a square of chocolate will do the job.
Marshmallow Cream
Ingredients
1½ c. Marshmallow Fluff
1¼ c. vegetable shortening
1 c. confectioner’s sugar
1 tbsp.vanilla extract
1. In the work bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together Marshmallow Fluff and shortening, starting on low and increasing to medium speed until the mixture is smooth and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
2. Reduce mixer speed to low, add confectioner’s sugar and vanilla, and beat until incorporated. Increase mixer speed to medium and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes more.
Chocolate Ganache
Ingredients
8 oz. semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips or 8 ounces dark chocolate, finely chopped
½ c. heavy (whipping) cream
1. Put chocolate in a large, heat-proof bowl.
2. Heat cream in a large, heavy saucepan over medium heat just until it bubbles.
3. Pour cream over the chocolate in the bowl and let it sit for about 10 minutes, until the chocolate is melted.
4. Stir until smooth. Allow the mixture to rest until firm enough to spread, about 2 hours. You may also refrigerate the mixture for about 30 minutes, until it is firm enough to spread, stirring every 10 minutes.

If the pies last long enough to store, the authors recommending keeping them in a single layer because they tend to stick together. I lined a cookie sheet with clean parchment and then put another layer of parchment over the top of them and built a little aluminum foil tent over that-I think that helped keep them fresh for delivery to the office the next day!
Bon Appetit my little Whoopie Pie Peeps ! And to Angela from BC who took the time to share her moment with me , I wish you a life filled with angels, laughter and people who love and care for you.

Happy Mother's Day

2010-05-08T18:01:00.000-07:00

It is very sweet and touching to read all the Mother's Day related posts among food bloggers. So many memories, so much learned and shared. And for those of you whose mother's are still with you - I wish you many many more days of sharing and love. I lost my mother years ago and when she was alive our relationship was never one of those idyllic mother daughter relationships that everyone would love to have. And it's taken me all these years to remember the sweet moments we used to share. For the longest time all I could remember were the bad times and those obliterated the good times or as I refer to them now, as the not so bad times. On a day that is meant for celebrating that motherly bond I am flooded with those rare sweet moments we experienced. Maybe because they were so few between they have become so much sweeter.
Happy Mother's Day to all of the women who are so much a part of our lives, both the good and the bad-they have helped make us who and what we are today. This little bit of sweetness is for all them.

Thanks to Martha Stewart for the recipes I used today. And Happy Mother's Day Martha !

Butter Cake Cupcakes with Raspberry Filling
INGREDIENTS

Makes 26 cupcakes or two 9-by-13-inch cake layers.

8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened, plus more for pans

3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups sugar

4 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup whole milk

Raspberry Jam-approximately 1 1/2 cups

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. For cupcakes: Line a standard muffin tin with paper liners. Set aside. For cake layers: Cut a long sheet of parchment or waxed paper into two 9-by-13-inch rectangles to line the bottom of two 9-by-13-inch baking pans. Butter and line pans. Butter linings, then flour pans, tapping out excess. Set aside. (Alternatively, if you have only one pan, set aside second piece of parchment paper to bake one layer at a time.)

Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl; set aside. Put butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; cream on medium-high speed until pale, 2 to 3 minutes. On medium speed, add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add vanilla, and mix, scraping down sides of bowl. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture in three batches, alternating with two batches of milk. Stir with a rubber spatula until the batter is evenly blended.

For cupcakes: Pour batter into lined cups, filling each two-thirds full. (You will have batter left over for additional batches; set aside.) For cake layers: Pour 2 3/4 cups batter into each prepared pan. Smooth the top of each layer with a small offset spatula.

Bake until a cake tester inserted into centers comes out clean, 15 to 18 minutes for cupcakes, 20 to 25 minutes for layers.

Let layers or cupcakes cool in pans on wire racks, 20 minutes. Run a knife around edges of cakes to loosen. Invert cake layers or cupcakes to remove from pans (peel off parchment from cake layers). Re invert, and let cool completely on racks. Wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to decorate.

For cupcakes (or cake layers, if baking in two batches): Repeat with remaining batter, lining muffin tin (or baking pan) when cooled.

Scoop out a very small cylinder of the cupcake from the center. Using a pastry bag filled with the raspberry jam fill the cavity with the jam just to the top of the cupcake.

Simple Syrup

1 cup sugar

1 cup water

In a small saucepan, bring sugar and water to a boil; simmer until the sugar is dissolved, 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool completely.

I made up a small batch of simple syrup and added Raspberry extract. Once the syrup had cooled I lightly brushed the top of the cooled cupcakes with it.

Meringue Butter cream Icing

INGREDIENTS

Makes about 10 cups.

3 cups granulated sugar

12 large egg whites

2 pounds (8 sticks) unsalted butter, softened and cut into tablespoon-size pieces

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

Whisk sugar and egg whites in a large heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water until sugar is dissolved and mixture registers 140 degrees.on an instant-read thermometer, 2 to 3 minutes.

Fit an electric mixer with the whisk attachment, and beat the egg-white mixture on high speed until it holds stiff (but not dry) peaks and mixture is fluffy and cooled, about 10 minutes.

Reduce speed to medium-low, and add butter several tablespoons at a time, beating well after each addition (meringue will deflate slightly as butter is added). Add vanilla; beat until frosting comes together, 3 to 5 minutes. Beat on lowest speed until air bubbles diminish, about 2 minutes. Stir with a rubber spatula until frosting is smooth.

Use your favorite pastry tip and sprinkles for decorating. Now go give your mom a big hug and thank her for being the kind of person she is.

MMMMarionberry Scones

2010-05-06T11:47:00.000-07:00

The cure for anything is salt water - sweat, tears, or the sea. ~Isak Dinesen

I was very fortunate last week in that I got to take a little mini vacation in the middle of the week. J and I headed to one of our favorite spots along the Oregon Coast-Neskowin. More specifically a place called The Breakers. The Breakers is a place you want to tell everyone about because it's such a wonderful getaway and it's also a place you don't want to let anyone know about so that it retains all the things that make you love it in the first place.

J and I have been going there for several years now and so far,fingers crossed, it still gives us the quietness and wonderful undisturbed walks on the beach we have come to love. It's a group of 11 privately owned condominiums right on the beach-and I mean right on the beach -not 2 blocks back from the beach. I never care if it's blue skies and sunshine or Northwest storm days when we arrive. I know that I will either be sitting in front of the huge picture window watching the ocean or walking along the beach-either way I'm happy as the proverbial clam.

Neskowin is about 10 miles north of Lincoln City so if you have a Jones for shopping,restaurants or casino gambling you are a short drive away. Not me, I head to the coast for renewal and to re-charge my spirit and I'm never disappointed. I have a special draw to the ocean,always have,and always will. Maybe it's something to do with my zodiac sign-I'm a Cancer. Or maybe it's the memory of the first time seeing the Atlantic Ocean. I was about 11 years old and my Aunt Mary and Uncle Honey used to take a couple of the nieces and nephews to Atlantic City for a long week-end. It was before all the crazy casinos popped up-when walking along the boardwalk or under the boardwalk was an exciting adventure. Tasting salt water taffy,watching the amazing diving horse jump off a very high platform into a very small swimming pool,hearing the music blaring from the bars and wishing like crazy I was old enough to capture the attention of all the cute lifeguards !
But what I remember most was first smelling the salt water as we walked to our hotel room,butterflies in my stomach over the excitement of what I expected to see associated with that salt water smell. Then my Aunt Mary pulling back the hotel drapes,and oh my gosh, I didn't think I could breathe- miles of open beach and the water-oh the water. It went on forever and ever and the waves pounding the beach,one after another,building on the horizon and coming into within feet of where I would be standing . I don't remember what I thought when I first saw the ocean but I will always remember what I felt-love, pure love and that hasn't diminished over the years. I always dream of living in a little cottage at the beach and that dream gets me through many of life's challenges. Do you love the ocean as much as me ? Or are you a mountain or desert person ?

Sadly we had to leave our little hideaway and on the way home we made a quick (you know jump out of the car grab the food and get back in the car) stop at one of my favorite cafes in Cannon Beach-The Lazy Susan. I had a deadline to make back in Seattle so we really didn't have time to stop for breakfast but I knew we had time to run in and grab something just baked and always yummy. And right there on the counter were the most incredible Marionberry Scones-huge and loaded with berries. I usually don't get excited by scones because most look like large concrete lumps ! But these on the counter, be still my heart-we bought two and quickly devoured both of them. They were gone after we had driven less than 10 miles from the cafe.

Lazy Susan Marionberry Scone before it disappeared from the dashboard of our car !

When I got home I searched the Internet to see if their recipe was published anywhere and I couldn't find it but I did find this recipe from a bakery in Coos Bay Oregon. I made a few little tweaks and the scones were so tender and sweet, I can't wait to find fresh marionberries at the farmer's market and try these again ! Bake them, I promise you will never buy another scone again. And if you run across the Lazy Susan's Recipe for their fabulous Marionberry scones please share !

Lazy Susan Marionberry Scone

Marionberry Scones
Recipe courtesy Chris Erb, Early to Rise Bakery
Makes 12 scones
Ingredients
5 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for hands and parchment (I used wholewheat pastry flour only for the dusting through out the recipe)
1 cup sugar, plus more for sprinkling
2 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup shortening -I used margarine
1/2 cup butter
2 cups milk -I used 1 1/2 cups buttermilk and 1/2 cup of milk
1 1/2 to 2 cups Marionberries (or substitute blackberries) -since neither are in season yet I used a frozen mixed berry medley

Icing:-I didn't ice instead with about 10 minutes left to bake I used and egg wash and sprinkled with decorator's sugar.
2 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons lemon extract
1/4 cup milk

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

To make the scones: In a mixer, blend dry ingredients, shortening and butter together thoroughly until mixture looks like bread crumbs. Add most of the milk and mix for about 30 seconds. Scrape down sides and bottom of bowl, adding more milk to completely moisten dough. Be careful not to over mix. Flour hands and divide the dough in half and place on 2 pieces of floured parchment paper. Re-flour hands and shape dough into a large circle about 10 inches in diameter. Place about 3/4 cup Marionberries evenly on each circle, leaving a 2-inch edge. Re-flour the parchment papers. Re-flour hands and fold up edges to completely cover Marionberries. Flatten out scone with floured hands to 10 inches in diameter. Cut into 6 pie shaped pieces and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 20 minutes-I've checked my oven temp over and over and it always check accurate but with these I ended up baking them 40 minutes-so keep a close eye on them until they get that lovely golden brown tint to them, rotating once halfway through the cooking time. Remove from oven and let cool completely.

To make the icing: Combine all ingredients in medium bowl. Mix for about 30 seconds or until thick. Drizzle scones with lemon icing. Let icing harden before serving.

Note: Step away from the scone-these are "can't stop eating them " delicious !

I sent a basketful of scones to J's office but saved one for myself and I'm going to sit in my sun room with a good cup of coffee, my scone and my memories of the ocean.

For whatever we lose (like a you or a me),

It's always our self we find in the sea.
~e.e. cummings

A Night to Remember at The Corson Building

2010-05-02T17:17:00.000-07:00

This was a wonderful week for me-I enjoyed a few days at my favorite spot along the Oregon Coast; enjoyed the best tour of the Pike Place Market with Seattle Bites Food Tours (watch my blog for the posting regarding this tour ! ) and concluded my whirlwind week with a Saturday night dinner I will never forget. Saturday night provided a dining experience that was so fabulous calling it a dining experience doesn't do it justice. Val,of More Than Burnt Toast ,was in town and we decided being the foodies we are, that dinner at the Corson Building would be a perfect way to wrap up her visit to Seattle. If you haven't heard of The Corson Building or Chef Matt Dillon ,you will know a great deal more by the end of this article !

Seriously ,living in Seattle, we are blessed to have this restaurant in our backyard. I feel guilty for not visiting sooner. A quote from the website best describes , in as few words as possible, what the Corson Building is all about :
"The Corson Building is a home, a restaurant, and a community. Dedicated to food and its direct connection to celebration, community, and culture. Providing one of the few human experiences we all have in common. Eating. Sharing at the table, we can open up our senses and our consciences to our place in the world, along with the place of our neighbors."

Open since June 2008 by Chef Matthew Dillon, winner of Food & Wine's 2007 Best New Chef Award and a semi-finalist in the 2010 James Beard awards. Along with co-owner Wylie Bush-owner of Joe Bar in Seattle and Co-Chef Emily Crawford (formerly of Boulettes Larder in San Francisco) a dining experience of magical delicious moments is created. Don't believe me or think I'm gushing with over exaggerations? Check out a review of the restaurant.

I am not going to bore you with the descriptions of melt in your mouth tastiness or memorable flavors, just make reservations and be prepared to have a dining experience that you will not soon forget. If I could afford to , I would dine here at least once a week. Since I haven't yet figured out the magic numbers for the WA lottery I'll be content to plan my journeys to the Corson Building for those special moments we like to include in our lives. My next journey will be Chef Dillon's Thursday or Friday night dinners inspired by the writings and philosophy of Angelo Pellegrini .

Chef Dillon & Chef Crawford thank you for a most incredibly delicious meal . And thank you very much for the energy that surrounds the dining experience-every one of your staff makes each person feel special and welcomed into your family.

And a special thank you to my dining partners who shared their evening and table with me. Your energy was so positive and you had so many interesting tales to tell of Bali and Paris and Thailand and the funny rat story of Alberta-the evening went much to quickly.
This is a small list of my food memories from the evening . Unfortunately I don't have a photographic memory and sadly I didn't take notes to document the wonderful sauces or every single thing that was served. What I remember was,well , memorable in it's deliciousness ! To my dining partners if I omitted something you remembered and loved -your comments would be most welcomed and appreciated.

Fresh crisp carrots
Pickled radishes and onions
Squab confit
Squab pate
Duck with couscous and mint sauce and fresh yogurt
Crunchy toasted bread with a hint of olive oil
Focacia
Pickled peppers
Geoduck ceviche-outstanding !
Spotted prawns with aioli

Smoked crab-wonderful-boiled then smoked outside on the wood fired oven over apple wood-this is beyond incredible !

Freshly gathered eggs from the girl's in the backyard -poached ,served with asparagus and morels
Shortbread
Chocolate truffle-hmmmm,I can still taste the melt in your mouth flavor
Cheese
Finely shaved pork with hazelnuts

I know there are some things missing from list but that is the way the shortbread crumbles-which by the way was delicate and sweet and crumbly-fabulous ! And to Marc the Sommelier, next time I'm bringing my own designated driver so I can taste the perfect wine pairings you provided for this meal.

You will see no photos of the food from my dinner-it felt like too special of a moment to pull out the camera-and I wanted the memory of the tastes to linger not the memory of the photo. So if you want to see the fresh crisp baby carrots,pickled radishes, the duck and couscous or my favorite of the night -smoked crab-then you will just have to get yourself to the Corson Building as soon as possible. Or take a look at the Corson Building photo gallery. And if you aren't able to get to The Corson Building here are some recipes I found on line by Chef Matt Dillon.

Grilled squid with miner's lettuce salad and green sauce
Chef Dillon's Green Goddess dressing
Oil Poached rabbit legs
Scallops crudo with smoked paprika and toasted cuminl
Air dried ham,feta,melon and dill
Beets marinated in rose water with sweet and sour carrots
Sauteed porcini with grapes,almonds and chicory
Black cod with potates,chickpeas and tomato
Roasted chicken with anise,hyssop, peaches and hazelnuts
Plum tart with olive oil gelato

Take someone you love to this special place and Bon Appetit !

Chocolate with Francois

2010-04-30T01:22:00.000-07:00

This month's challenge was hosted by Moogie of Moogie and Pap and the direction from Moogie was to make Francois Payard's Chocolate Mousse (Presented in a different and creative way ) . I thought of a zillion different ways to present the Mousse but seriously it's all been done before, tarts,tortes,frozen,baked in a cake,sandwiched between cookies and I'm sure somewhere along the line someone even tried to fry it ! So I just decided to go with the flow and do something I love and enjoy. While I was picking up groceries this week I kept seeing all the fixings for strawberry shortcake and I thought what about raspberry shortcake with chocolate mousse instead of whipped cream and of course raspberries instead of strawberries. So ta da I give you my take on Chocolate Mousse ,it will be the first time I have ever had it this way-Raspberry Shortcake with Chocolate Mousse !

I used my new miniature angel food cake pans and made tiny little angel food cakes. Yes I'm one of those gadget girls when it comes to baking , aren't we all ? I mean someday someone will be beating down my door for those little angel food cakes ! I used the recipe that came with the pan and they turned out OK,a little too spongy for my liking but not bad. I made up some raspberry syrup from fresh raspberries and put that in the bottom of the serving bowl along with a layer of fresh raspberries. I hollowed out an even larger opening in the center of the cake to make room for the chocolate mousse and filled it to the brim ! I drizzled more raspberry syrup over the whole thing and took chocolate ganache that I had left over from some cream puffs and drizzled that over the entire cake and topped it with a sweet little raspberry ! Yummy, way too rich and something I will only have occasionally-like maybe every Friday ! This challenge reminded me how much I love mousse-it's so light and sweet-it matches the personality of the little angel cakes ! So enjoy my sweet little angels !

Chocoholic Friday

2010-04-29T23:30:00.000-07:00

Whew, what a week it's been. Trying to do a minor remodel in the kitchen-very minor but hopefully it will create more storage and more baking space for moi ! Had to make a decision about my job and if I wanted to move on to more responsibility-decided to stay put for now ! And last but not least getting ready for a major garage sale next week. Now I'm not a garage sale kind of gal -truth be told I hate holding them,love checking them out but really hate putting one on. So you ask why am I doing one-that's exactly what I'm asking myself right now and I haven't come up with the answer yet. And in the middle of all of this mess J and I have decided to head to the Oregon Coast for a 2 day vacation. Ahhh. the coast- the beach just like chocolate makes everything good again ! And I really need that right now-my spirit needs recharged. I even felt frazzled when I was baking this week. I couldn't commit to what I wanted to make for Chocoholic Friday. I would think of one thing and drift to another-very uncommitted and indecisive. And then when I decided on Francois Payard's recipe for pate a choux,pastry cream and ganache I had trouble putting everything together. My pate a choux was a little tough,my pastry cream a little too thick and my ganache-actually my ganache was pretty nice-shiny and smooth.

I'm a firm believer in being right with the universe that whatever you put out there is what you get back. Unfortunately I was putting out frazzled energy and stress so my little cream puffs were bumpy and lumpy. Oh well such is life-just a minor bump in the road. Really with all that is going on in the world my little cream puff crisis is ridiculous and guess what? I'm so grateful that it's the worst thing I have to worry about. And a bumpy cream puff tastes just as delicious as a perfect one. I wish you a worry free life, but if you do have bumps in the road I hope they are as small as the bumps in my cream puffs ! Enjoy.

Velveteen Rabbit and Carrot Cake Macarons

2010-04-25T11:42:00.000-07:00

I have wanted to join a macaron challenge at Mactweets for some time now and the theme this month is just perfect. Why you ask this month-well just on the heels of Easter all of the stores have had their Easter decorations at 50-75% off and so many times I have walked by the bins and spotted sad little bunnies in all the colors of the rainbow looking up at me-I wanted to take them all home with me. I'm well beyond the age of collecting stuffed animals but not beyond the age of remembering my favorites that are long gone. My absolute favorite was a little brown raggedy rabbit that I had with me at college. I don't remember much about the awkward 15 year old boy who gave him to me for my birthday but I remember everything about the rabbit. Whenever I was sad and needed someone to talk to he,the rabbit, not the boy was always there. Where he is now? The rabbit,not the boy, I'm sad to say I don't remember..hopefully he has met the same fate as the sweet little Velveteen Rabbit in my favorite childhood book by the same name.

You think I am mindlessly chattering now but I'm not, I really am getting to the point. The point being the May Mac Attack challenge is to create a macaron inspired by a beloved childhood book, an extract, a character, something from any book from your childhood. With that being said,and with melancholy memories of that rabbit and all of my secrets he took with him, and to honor my favorite book The Velveteen Rabbit, I am creating Carrot Cake Macarons with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting .

My little rabbit wherever you are I can only wish that you led a life of happiness in green grassy fields with fresh young carrots and many friends. Hmm,that's an appropriate wish for my friends to-many many days of happiness in green grassy fields,with blue skies,plenty of fresh young carrots to munch on and many friends who help make you real !

And thank you to Lara at Cook and Eat for inspiring me with her photos and recipe ! And a huge thanks to Helen Dujardin at My Tartelette for her amazing Macaron Tutorial .

Carrot Cake Macarons with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting
Adapted from Helen Dujardin
Macarons
3 large egg whites (90 grams)
1/4 cup Just Carrots dried carrot pieces (From Whole Foods or go to Just Tomatoes website)
1 pinch ground cinnamon
1 pinch ground mace
1 pinch ground ginger
200g powdered sugar
110g slivered almonds
a pinch of salt
25g caster or very fine granulated sugar

Filling
4oz cream cheese, room temperature
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 pinch salt
1 to 1/2 cup powdered sugar, sifted

Place the freshly separated egg whites in a bowl, lightly covered with plastic wrap, and leave them overnight (or up to 4 days in the refrigerator). It is important to age the eggs before starting the cookies.

When the eggs have been aged, grind the carrot pieces to a fine powder in a spice (or clean coffee) grinder.

In a food processor, grind the almonds with the powdered sugar until it resembles coarse sand. Add the powdered carrot, cinnamon, mace (or nutmeg) and ginger and give a quick whir to mix. Set aside.

Place the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, and beat for about 30 seconds until the whites are a bit broken. If you are measuring by weight, this is a good time to make sure you have 90 grams and adjust as needed. The egg whites are easier to work with when they’ve been beaten a touch. Toss in the small pinch of salt, and beat them to a foam. Then, start slowly adding the sugar letting “rain down” (as Helen says). Beat until the meringue is glossy and holds a peak, stopping and checking frequently to make sure you don’t over beat.

Add the sugar/almond mixture to the meringue and stir with a rubber spatula to combine, about 10 strokes. Then, start more gradually folding to slightly break down the meringue. Test the batter every few strokes. Drop a small dot of the batter on a plate. If the top flattens after a few seconds, it is ready. If it holds a peak, give it a few more strokes. If it spreads quickly, you’ve over folded.

Transfer the batter to a pastry bag fitted with a plain round tip, and pipe small rounds onto a parchment lined baking sheet (I’ve had better luck with parchment than silplat, but some people like the silplat better). Preheat your oven to 280F. Let the macaron sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes and up to an hour before putting them in the stove. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. If the interiors still seem wobbly (lightly touch the top with your finger and move back and forth to check), turn the oven off, but leave the cookies in while it cools. Then, remove the cookies from the oven, and let cool to room temperature before filling.

To make the filling, whisk the cream cheese, butter, maple syrup and salt together until smooth. Add the powdered sugar a little at a time until you reach your preferred texture and sweetness. The shells are quite sweet, so the filling doesn’t need to be.

Spread a good sized dollop on one shell, and then top with a shell of a similar size and shape, giving it a little turn as you do. Place the cookies in an air tight container overnight, either at room temperature or in the fridge, for at least 12 hours before eating.

PS. These were quite the challenge. I went through 5 attempts and still my macaron tops are a little flat and the feet a little small. I think I will try these with Italian Meringue vs French the next time. Although after looking at the volcanoes and amaretti type results from the first 4 attempts I don't think these turned out too badly. Any advice on what I am doing wrong that is resulting in flat tops and little feet would be greatly appreciated.

Cherry Chocolate Cheesecake

2010-04-22T20:45:00.000-07:00

Things were very hectic today. You know one of those days were one thing starts everything else rolling and spiraling almost out of control . And I say almost because you are always right on the edge,thinking you may fall off or maybe even leap off just to get away from the craziness. But then you look up and the day is over and you are looking into the eyes of someone who loves you, who can make the world calm again for you and make you realize what life is really all about. And a day of craziness turns into a sweet little night,watching my favorite,Anthony Bourdain, in Provence. Not just Provence,but Saint Remy-my perfect place. It's the place I go to when I need to center myself and calm myself. Just closing my eyes I can see the blue skies and the bright sun and smell the olives and lavender. Then in my mind I see the produce,the beautiful melons, the juiciest reddest tomatoes I have ever seen with a taste that I will never forget. The saltiness of the olives, the smell of the fresh herbs, the creamy tartness of the cheese..yes it's my part of the world I hold in heart always....

And now it's time for dessert....if only I had a bagful of cerise de Provence...cherries...I have always loved cherries. Growing up we had one of the most beautiful cherry trees in our backyard. Every spring it was so full of blossoms and bees-incredible. And we would watch the little green cherries grow and turn red and darken to a deep dark red. Then we would try and pick the most perfectly formed ones before the robins devoured them. That sweet taste,the dark stain on our fingers,the red cherry juice on our lips,those were wonderful times picking those cherries. In honor of that wonderful cherry tree I give you today's dessert for my Chocoholic Friday. Triple C- Cherries,Chocolate and Cheesecake-a perfect food for the end of the day. Something that reminds me of the beauty of Provence and the sweetness of youth.

Cherry Chocolate Cheesecake

Adapted from Deep Dark Chocolate Cheesecake
Bon Appétit October 2006
by Jeanne Thiel Kelley

Yield: Makes 24 small cupcake size servings
Crust24 chocolate wafer cookies (from one 9-ounce package)
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted
1/2 cup blanched almonds finely chopped

Filling
1 9.7-ounce bar Scharffen Berger 70% Cocoa Bittersweet Chocolate,* chopped
4 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Scharffen Berger)
4 large eggs

Topping
3/4 cup whipping cream
6 ounces Scharffen Berger 70% Cocoa Bittersweet Chocolate,* chopped
1 tablespoon sugar
1 13oz jar of Chukar Cherries Raspberry Cherry Preserve & Topping

For crust:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line muffin pan with 12 cupcake lines. Blend cookies and almonds in processor until finely ground; blend in sugar. Add melted butter and process until well blended. Press crumbs evenly onto bottom (not sides) of cupcake lines. Bake just until set, about 5 minutes. Cool while preparing filling. Maintain oven temperature.

For filling:
Stir chopped chocolate in metal bowl set over saucepan of simmering water until melted and smooth. Remove bowl from over water; cool chocolate until lukewarm but still pourable. Blend cream cheese, sugar, and cocoa powder in processor until smooth. Blend in eggs 1 at a time. Mix in lukewarm chocolate. This filling is very thick, I used an ice cream scoop and placed a scoop of filling into each cupcake liner. I used the scoop to flatten out the filling,it came to just about 1/4 inch of the top of the liner. Bake until center is just set and just appears dry, about 15-18minutes. Cool 15-30 minutes. Then chill overnight.
For topping:
Stir cream, 6 ounces chocolate, and sugar in heavy medium saucepan over low heat until smooth. Cool slightly. Take a teaspoon of the Chukar Cherries preserve and place on top of the cheesecake in the center. Pour the chocolate ganache carefully around the preserves so that you don't cover the cherries. Chill until topping is set, about 1 hour. Do ahead: Can be made 3 days ahead. Cover with foil and keep refrigerated.

Calcotada Festival -Seattle Style

2010-04-19T22:11:00.000-07:00

Sometime in the middle of January when the weather was cold and grey and I was mindlessly channel surfing I found Anthony Bourdain's Spain Journal on the Travel Channel. I was mesmerized by his participation in a Calcotada Festival at a private farm. The Spring Onions roasting on the fire, the thick chunky red romesco sauce and the Spanish Wine flowing like water . I wanted to go there immediately, I wanted to taste those sweet onions dipped in the Romesco sauce while the red wine dribbled down the side of my mouth. That was the moment I knew I had to visit Spain ! Seriously, we usually make our travel decisions on something that gripped at our hearts and souls. We traveled to Italy one year after seeing the movie Only You with Marisa Tomei. We both fell in love with Positano and knew that someday we would be there walking down the steps to the beach at Positano and the Mediterranean Sea. And we did exactly that-it was incredibly beautiful and romantic.

So of course after watching Anthony Bourdain all I can think of is that wonderful farm in the Catalan Region of Spain in the Spring-and guess where we are planning our next trip ? Yes Spain-Barcelona, Madrid, Andalusia and Catalonia and as many more places that we can squeeze in without filling squeezed in ! And in honor of the vacation planning and the memory of that first glimpse of Catalonia thanks to Anthony Bourdain (PS I love him and his show ) I am celebrating Spring in Seattle with our own little Calcotada Festival.

I'm heading to Pike Place Market looking for spring onions and the ingredients for the Romesco Sauce. Even Saveur magazine fell in love with the recipe, check out their recent recipe and article . I searched and searched for authentic Spanish Romesco Sauce recipes -I stumbled on this one at La Tienda the Best of Spain. I also found a beautifully written article in the LA Times describing the Catalonian alchemy of a good romesco sauce. If you can try and ignore all the ads please read the article ,it's wonderfully romantic ! And it's accompanied by several Romesco Sauce recipes.

The recipe I finally settled on was one I found at a blog called In Praise of Sardines by Chef Brett Emerson. Apparently he has opened a lovely little restaurant in San Francisco that was recently written up in Food and Wine . Check out the web site and on your next visit stop by his restaurant Contigo and let me know how it was. I'm putting it on my list of stops in San Francisco just because I loved the things I found on his blog !

I bought everything I needed for the Festival at Pike Place Market. The peppers,vinegar,almonds,hazelnuts and garlic-all from a wonderful store called "The Spanish Table". The onions and tomatoes came from one of the produce stands at the market,the bread from Three Girls Bakery and the shrimp from one of the many fish purveyors at the market. It was such a gorgeous day for shopping at the market I was easily distracted by the flowers and people. I wish I would have come later in the afternoon because there was a BBQ competition going on and the street was packed with different cooks and my oh my the smell of BBQ was everywhere. Unfortunately for me cooking had just started at 10am and wouldn't be ready for a bit. That's what I love about Pike Place Market,always a surprise and always something delicious !

So back to the Calcotada Festival- I decided that I can't have a festival without dessert so keeping with the theme we will be have Crema Catalana. I found this recipe at a beautiful blog by the beautiful Laylita, a fellow blogger from Seattle. It is so sweet and indescribably delicious. Jorge,my brother in law,is going to be very sorry he missed this dessert ! He loves flans and creme brulee type desserts and this one is perfection.

Salsa de Romesco
adapted from Brett Emerson
Yields about 3 cup

7-8 dried Nora chilies (reconstituted in water that is brought to boiling and chilies allowed to steep for about 1 hr-save the water , throw out the seeds and stems)
6 Tablespoons good Spanish Sherry Vinegar 1 1/2 cup hazelnuts -skins removed
1 1/2 cups marcona almonds-blanched
3 slices bread - torn into 1-inch pieces
approximately 1 1/2 cups Spanish extra virgin olive oil
3 small tomato
1½ cloves garlic, one whole and unpeeled, the half clove peeled and minced
sea salt to taste
2 tablespoons bittersweet Spanish paprika
1 1/2 tablespoons cayenne pepper-if you want it spicy otherwise eliminate or season to taste
Preheat the oven to 400˚F.

Tear chili(s) in half and remove stem and any seeds. In a pan, heat the chilies in enough vinegar to cover the chili halves and allow to soak until softened, about 15 minutes. Strain the chili (s),reserve the liquid,throw away any stems or seeds.

In another pan, fry the nuts and bread in 1 cup of the olive oil over medium heat until golden brown . Scoop out the toasted nuts and bread and reserve them. Save the olive oil, allowing it to cool to room temperature, to add to the sauce later.

Roast the tomato and whole clove of garlic in the oven for 15 minutes. I left the tomato skins on during roasting and when I added to the sauce.

In a mortar, the traditional way , or in a food processor, pound or grind the raw garlic with a pinch of salt. Then add the nuts, bread and roasted garlic and pound/grind to a paste. Add the tomato, pepper , cayenne, 1/2 cup of the reserved vinegar, salt and continue to pound/grind.

Gradually drizzle in olive oil, first the nut infused oil from the frying of the nuts and then an additional ¼ to ½ cup oil, until the sauce reaches a spoon able consistency. Adjust the flavor by adding more vinegar and salt to your taste.

While you can use it right away, the sauce tastes even better the next day and keeps for about a week.

Calcots,Romesco Sauce and Shrimp
1 pound tail-on large shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 bunches large spring onions, bulbs trimmed of their roots and greens attached
Best-quality olive oil, preferably Spanish
1 loaf pain rustic or country white bread, sliced 3/4 -inch thick on the diagonal
Sea salt
Romesco sauce
1. Heat a grill over medium heat. Toss the shrimp and the onions with a little olive oil and a sprinkling of salt; brush the bread with olive oil and sprinkle with salt.
2. Grill the onions until the bulbs are tender and with good grill marks and the green parts are somewhat charred, several minutes. Rotate the onions occasionally with tongs for even grilling. Set aside.
3. Clean the surface of the grill and cook the shrimp next, rotating for even grilling just until the flesh is opaque and firm.
4. Clean the surface of the grill and grill the bread, rotating for even grilling. Serve the warm bread, shrimp and onions on a platter with a large bowl of romesco sauce in the center for dipping.

A perfect night for our first of many Calcotada Festivals !

Ahhhh the Crema Catalana.....so sweet,so light..and the burnt caramelized sugar on top..mmmm

I am so grateful that I can spend a wonderful day shopping and enjoying the market and then come home and prepare such an incredible meal from the market's bounty. It was a lovely dinner, we sat and talked and dreamt about our trip to Spain . Life can sometimes be harsh but when we take the time to create these little moments for ourselves it's magical. I wish you a little magic in your life.

PS. You can see my market shopping adventure over on my work blog http://blog.clippervacations.com/

Enjoy !

Cheesecake and Chocoholic Friday

2010-04-16T13:36:00.000-07:00

It has been a busy week, as am I sure is true for you too ! Work has picked up and I took on a new assignment-writing once a month for our blog at work . I'm very excited about that and trying to map out my strategy ! I'm a week away from first deadline and first blog so if I seem a little scattered it's because I am !
On top of that I had to do what we call "site visits", that is visit the hotels we sell as part of our tour packages so I know what I'm talking about when I make recommendations to our customers ! It couldn't have been a more beautiful day to visit Victoria, BC. The skies were blue, the waters calm and our boat, Clipper IV fast and comfortable.

In between site visits I discovered a wonderful little Scottish Pub that opened in Victoria just a little under 2years ago-The Bard and Banker. If you are in Victoria stop by and order the Pork Sliders for lunch. You will not be disappointed ! 3 little sliders of delectable pork served three ways, a spicy pork sausage with a sweet smokey sauce, a pulled pork with zesty barbecue sauce and coleslaw dressing and last but not least a crisp bacon,lettuce and tomato slider. Mmm Mmmm good. Definitely on my list to return to and should be on yours too.

From Vicpubco

But I digress, again and again. Back to Chocoholic Fridays-today I'm dedicating my White Chocolate,cinnamon blueberry , mouth puckering lemon cheesecake to Chocoholic Fridays ! I started working on this recipe on Tuesday and after 2 other combinations this is the recipe I came up with. Warning- this is not your one little bite won't hurt me cheesecake. This is give me the cheesecake or I will huff and puff and blow your house down cheesecake ! So don't say I didn't warn you.

White Chocolate,Cinnamon Blueberry, Mouth Puckering Lemon Cheesecake

Crust
1 cup finely crushed lemon shortbread cookies or make your own lemon shortbread !
1 cup finely crushed lemon snicker doodles -ditto
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon zest

Filling
1 1/2 lbs creme cheese,room temperature softened
2 cups coarsely chopped white chocolate
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup of sour cream (or whipping cream)
4 large eggs-room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon extract
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 cup coarsely chopped lemon shortbread and lemon snicker doodle cookies
11/2 cups of whole blueberries
1/2 cup Hershey cinnamon chips.
3 tablespoons ground cinnamon mixed with 1/4 cup sugar
Zest of one lemon

Finishing touch
Confectioners' sugar

Preheat oven to 325F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
For the crust:
Toss the crushed cookie crumbs,butter and sugar together in the bottom of an 9" spring form pan. Press the crust into bottom of pan ,clean the sides of any stray crumbs and spray the sides lightly with a nonstick cooking spray. Sprinkle the 2 tablespoons of lemon zest over the crust.

For filling:
In a mixer bowl, blend cream cheese,sugar,and sour cream until smooth, scraping bottom and sides of bowl to incorporate everything, about 3-4 minutes. Stir in eggs,vanilla,lemon and flour and blend well for 2-3 minutes on low speed. You don't want to beat and incorporate air into your batter.

Assembly:
Place the spring form pan on the parchment lined cookie sheet. Sprinkle 1 cup of fresh blueberries over the crust . Spoon one third of the cheesecake filling into prepared pan and top with half each of chopped cookies,cinnamon chips and the zest of one lemon and 1 cup of the coarsely chopped white chocolate. Dust on some cinnamon sugar. Cover with the 1/2 cup blueberries and another third of the cream cheese filling and then layer on more cookies,more cinnamon chips, and more cinnamon sugar. Add the last bit of filling and finish the top of the cake with cookie crumbs,coarsely chopped cookies in small pieces, cinnamon chips,the remaining white chocolate and a good dusting of cinnamon sugar. You want to end up with what looks like a streusel type topping.
Bake 55-65 minutes. Turn off the oven, open the oven door about 6 inches and let the cheesecake cool down inside the oven for 1 hour. Don't be alarmed if the center appears jiggly prior to chilling it-it should and it will firm up. Once cooled move it to the refrigerator and chill for at least 6 hours-12 hours is best. Carefully loosen the spring form pan from the cheesecake-you may need to slide a flexible metal spatula which has been dipped in hot water around the inside ring of the cheesecake to loosen it.

Dust with confectioners' sugar before serving.

Grown Up Grilled Cheese

2010-04-13T20:34:00.000-07:00

As I was rushing home from work today I was trying to think what could I make that was quick,nourishing and very tasty ? I knew I had to work on a lemon blueberry cheesecake before I started dinner so I wanted something that wouldn't occupy a great deal of my time because my little cheesecake was going to need my full attention. See I have my priorities straight -cheesecake first, dinner second. Of course I have some friends who would say who needs dinner when you have cheesecake !

Trying to think of something quick for dinner took me back to growing up, when my mother was working part time and we would get home from school and she would have less than an hour to feed us before she took off for work. Those nights became grilled cheese nights-something that was a favorite with my sister and brother too. Good old Kraft American Cheese on Wonder Bread, with a slathering of butter and a bowl of Campbell's Tomato Soup to wash it all down ! That's a comfort meal I crave on cold winter days. But today is not cold, and it's not winter,but I , like my mother, need something really quick,now, and fast ! And I can't get that grilled cheese out of my head. I remember seeing a recipe for grilled cheese and ham sandwiches in a magazine recently so as soon as I walk in the front door I grab my stack of April magazines and as luck would have it I stumble right onto the recipe in the first magazine I picked up. It's in the April issue of Food & Wine. By the way if you don't have this issue run out and buy it . There are so many fabulous " let's get together for a party " recipes in there I can't wait for summer to try them ! Anyway, back to the grilled cheese.

The recipe is called "Grilled Ham and Cheese with Strawberry-Red-Wine Jam ." It takes 30 minutes to prepare and it is delicious ! Of course I didn't have brioche so I substituted some fresh Italian bread and I used a Cabernet instead of the Pinot Noir in the jam-excellent ! First, I never thought of putting strawberry jam on my ham and cheese. Second I never would have thought of mixing red wine with my strawberry jam-but the combinations in the sandwich were perfection. The smokey ham,melted cheese,sweet strawberry jam and the wine on a crisp Italian bread-yummy. And with a glass of the same Cabernet I used in the jam-it's a great way to wind down after a busy day! I can't wait to try this on brioche the next time !

Bouchons and Ribbons

2010-04-09T12:12:00.000-07:00

Here it is Friday again and I have found a way to combine two of my favorite things-shopping and chocolate ! Maybe I should call this Shopaholic Friday instead of Chocoholic Friday.
The good news is the "Terrible Storm" never really materialized-it came in the night while we were sleeping and barely woke anyone. I think that was very considerate. And since the weather turned out to be so lovely on Thursday I ventured out to one of my favorite stores in West Seattle, Northwest Art and Frame.

Now don't let the name fool you -it is full of artist's materials and they do amazing custom framing. I speak from experience-they framed an antique print of Paris for me a few years back and did an exceptional job. But I digress, what the name of the store doesn't tell you is this store is better than Martha Stewart meets Donna Hay ! You can find lotions,candles,cards,place settings,little tiny bird's nests,books,children's stuffed teddy bears and frogs ! Beautiful wrapping papers,gorgeous construction papers in wonderful pastel hues -I can go on an on -really truly it is an artist's nirvana.

I went in search of ribbons yesterday and as usual they did not disappoint. If you are looking for unusual ribbons in many colors and textures and materials this is the place for you. I confess,sometimes I just go in and buy the ribbons because they are so pretty-I have nothing in mind when I buy them but something always develops once I have them ! Plan on spending some time here,as you wander the aisles and inspect the displays you find little treasures hidden around every corner. I found everything in my photos for this post today during my wanderings in the store. Except for the Bouchons.

Ahhh, the Bouchons-I remember when I first discovered them-sweet little brownie like kisses. I must have spent hours that day reading about Thomas Keller and his restaurants and cookbooks and THE BOUCHONS. I love petite desserts-one or two tiny bites and it's gone. But the flavor and memory of the taste never leave. They are little baby surprises for your mouth and senses. I could bake these everyday and never tire of them,but alas J, my taste taster would chase me out of the kitchen for adding to his waistline and increasing his treadmill time ! So I make them every few weeks, little week-end treats for us and only us-sorry today Chocoholic Friday is for my love and myself. You can join us by making your own sweet little Bouchons.

I found the molds I use for these at another favorite store Williams Sonoma, you can order them here . They make a wonderful gift for your favorite baker !
Enjoy Chocoholic Friday !

Chocolate Bouchons
adapted from“Bouchon”
by Thomas Keller

Makes 24-30 Bouchons\
Butter and flour for timbale molds
3 ½ ounces (3/4 cup) all purpose flour
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp kosher salt
3 large eggs
1 ½ cup plus 3 tbs granulated sugar
½ tsp pure vanilla extract
24 tbs unsalted butter, melted and just slightly warm
6 oz semisweet chocolate, such as Valrhona Equitoriale (55%) chopped into pieces the
size of chocolate chips-yes you can cheat and use the miniature Nestle semi sweet chips !
Confectioner’s sugar for dusting

Special equipment : 2-ounce Fleximolds or 3-ounce timbale molds or the Williams Sonoma Bouchon Molds
Preheat oven to 350F. Butter and flour twelve timbale molds-I used a very light coating of Baker's Joy on my molds. Set aside.
Sift the flour, cocoa powder, and salt into a bowl; set aside.
In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together the eggs and sugar on medium speed for 3 to 5 minutes, or until thick and very pale in color. Mix in the vanilla. On low speed, add about one-third of the dry ingredients, then one-third of the butter, and continue alternating with the remaining flour and butter. Add the chocolate and mix to combine. (The batter can get refrigerated for up to a day.)

Put the molds on a baking sheet. Place the batter in a pastry bag, without a tip, or with a large plain tip, and fill each mold about two-thirds full. Place in the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes. When the tops look shiny and set (like a brownie), test one cake with a wooden skewer or toothpick; It should come out clean but not dry (there may be some melted chocolate from the chopped chocolate).

Transfer the bouchons to a cooling rack. After a couple of minutes, invert the molds and let cool upside down in the molds; then lift off the molds. Bouchons are best eaten the day they are baked-just not in one sitting-trust me you will be tempted !
To serve: Invert the bouchons and dust them with confectioners’ sugar.

Storm Food

2010-04-07T17:00:00.000-07:00

So the Mistral that teased me with daydreams of the South of France is turning into another Seattle Storm. On the way home from work tonight all the doomsday weather forecasters are talking about a horrible storm for Thursday with high winds,rain and yes snow. So of course wanting to be prepared I make a stop at the market to gather my storm supplies. While everyone else might be gathering batteries,candles,toilet paper,flashlights and matches my thoughts are "what would feed my soul and keep me warm during a dark stormy night?" And the answer is one of my favorite Italian meals from "RAO'S Recipes from the Neighborhood" cookbook. It's so easy you really don't need the recipe for your shopping list. Once you cook this it's one of those wonderful recipes that stays with you. So while the storm clouds gather and the wind starts to pick up I will be in the kitchen preparing Chicken,Sausage,Potatoes and Peppers in the Oven. Of course it helps if you have a gas oven during a storm so that the incredible smells of this dish cooking permeate the house with garlic and tomato sauce and make you feel all warm and cozy inside while outside your door the storm is approaching.

Chicken,Sausage,Potatoes and Peppers in the Oven
Pollo, salsiccie, Patate e Peperoni al Forno
adapted from RAO's Recipes from the Neighborhood Cookbook

Preheat the oven to 450F
Set aside a large roasting pan

2 1/2 -3 lb chicken, cut into about 12-14 pieces
1 lb Italian hot sausage cut in half crosswise
2 large baking potatoes cut into eighths
2 large bell peppers, seeded and cut into 1 inch strips
1 large red sweet pepper, seeded and cut into 1 inch strips
2 medium sweet onions,quartered
1 lb grape tomatoes
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 large can of Italian plum tomatoes, hand crushed with the juice
1/2-1 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons dried oregano
Salt and pepper to taste

Brown the chicken in about 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil in a large frying pan. Once browned set aside in the roasting pan.
Brown the sausage next and then set that aside in the pan with the chicken.
Add more olive oil to the the pan that you browned the chicken and sausage in as needed and brown the potatoes-again when finishing browning add them to the chicken and sausage mixture.
Brown the onions,adding more olive oil as needed until onions just start to caramelize then add a little bit of red wine along with the garlic to the mix to deglaze the pan -add this to the roasting pan with everything else.
Add fresh olive oil to the skillet and very lightly brown/roast the red and green bell peppers-once the skin of the peppers starts to brown/blister add them to the roasting pan with the chicken mix.
Add a little more olive oil to the frying pan and put the grape tomatoes into the pan and let them brown until the skin starts to crack,stirring or flipping occasionally. Once they are browned/roasted add them to the chicken mixture.
Take the crushed tomatoes with their juices and pour over the top of everything in the roasting pan. Drizzle about 1/4 cup of olive oil over it all.
Roast the dish for about 1hour and 15minutes,stirring about every 20minutes. The dish is done when the potatoes are tender and the chicken pulls away easily from the bone.

Serve with some delicious crusty Italian bread , your favorite red wine and candles . Then sit back and enjoy the storm.

French Daydreaming

2010-04-06T20:29:00.000-07:00

Each time the wind starts blowing in Seattle it takes me back to Southern France and the Mistral. And I think how funny- the wind in France is more than just weather-it's an emotion, it's a story, it goes deep into your soul. At least for me it does. So right now I want something that will transport me to the South of France, walking down a dirt path through the olive groves to a place where Vincent Van Gogh could have easily sat and sketched for hours. I can feel the wind whipping through my hair and I see the dust down the road forming little twirling dust devils. The sun is warm on my face and the wind feels like the spirits of Provence whirling and dancing around me and taking me into their hearts. Lately I feel like all I am doing is daydreaming of Paris and Provence....so to honor those dreams I give you Lemon Madeleines-so French, so sweet,so wonderful to nibble on while I continue with my daydreams. Where are you today, what are you daydreaming about ?

Lemon Madeleines
from New American Table by Marcus Samuelsson
*I took Chef liberties today and instead of using my madeleine pan I used tiny little muffin cups !

Zest and juice of 1 lemon
2 1/2 teaspoons honey
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 vanilla bean
4 large eggs
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (plus more for the pans)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
Preheat over to 400 F.
In a small saucepan, bring the lemon juice to a boil over medium heat. Add the lemon zest and simmer for 2 minutes then add the honey and simmer for another 3 minutes. Add the butter and stir with a heatproof spatula until melted. Use a sharp knife to slice the vanilla bean lengthwise and use the back of the knife to scrape the seeds into the pan. Set this mixture aside to cool slightly.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs and both sugars. Add half of the butter mixture to the bowl and stir to combine. Add the flour, baking powder and salt to the bowl and mix. Finally, add the remaining butter mixture and fold until combined.

Fill each of the madeleine molds about 2/3-3/4 full with the batter (slightly less than 2 tablespoons per mold). Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until the madeleines are golden brown around the edges. Remove them from the oven and turn the madeleines out onto a wire rack to cool.
Makes 25-30 madeleines

"If a little dreaming is dangerous, the cure for it is not to dream less but to dream more, to dream all the time". Marcel Proust

A Roomful of Memories at Easter

2010-04-02T14:20:00.000-07:00

FROM MY GRANDMOTHER'S POST CARD COLLECTION DATED 1919

When I woke this morning , after making my coffee, I turned on the oven for some baking I planned on doing. As I turned the knobs and listened for the gas burners to begin I realized that this simple act brought so much comfort. It's an act that I have repeated thousands of times in the past but never really paid attention to it. Maybe because it's the beginning of the Easter Week end and all those childhood memories are coming back. I was raised as a very strict Catholic so the days preceding Easter Sunday were always somber and quiet days. I remember wanting to practice the piano one Good Friday and was stopped by my father in the middle of playing. I won't subject you to the lecture I received about the solemness of the day and how I should be thinking of sacrifice and the meaning of Easter. You've been there too ? My father was a quiet man , he had a gentleness within him, but was just stern enough to stop my fingers from any further frivolity on the piano keys that day. That memory stays with me today, even though I have drifted far from the church and have found my own spirituality.

FROM MY GRANDMOTHER'S POST CARD COLLECTION DATED 1919

But that little motion of turning the oven knob seemed to turn the door knob, opening a room full of memories revolving around this holiday. Dyeing Easter eggs and wanting pretty pastel colors and not the bright colors the dye produced; opening the refrigerator and smelling my mother's potato salad and quietly lifting the lid of the Tupperware cover and sneaking spoonfuls when I thought no one was looking. Watching my mother bake our Easter Paska, a Slovenian sweet and cheese filled bread that was only made at Easter. I can still hear her admonishing me to stop peeking under the towel at the dough - I didn't understand the rising process and was so curious to watch that clump of dough grow into something so puffy and smelling of sweet yeast and cheese. And then Sunday morning , just before church she would make City chicken that she had prepped the night before. No one made City Chicken like my mother's !

That was the final step before we all put on our new Easter clothes and piled into the car for the drive to church. Sitting on the hard wooden pews and kneeling on those wooden kneelers, all I could think of was the wonderful food waiting at home for us. I'm surprised I wasn't struck by lightening for those thoughts of food instead of concentrating on the church service !

And then arriving home Easter baskets filled with chocolate bunnies,yellow and pink marshmallow peeps, and foiled wrapped chocolate eggs and what seemed like hundreds of jelly beans hiding in the green shiny straw lining the basket. All this incredible wonderfulness was wrapped in pink or clear cellophane and tied with a huge bow. The cellophane was meant to keep us from sampling chocolate before dinner but we were very clever children and always found ways to sneak our little hands in through a little break in the cellophane, pull out a bunny and take a bite from the bottom of the bunny,placing it back in the basket so no one would notice !

My sister, brother and I won't be sneaking into any Easter baskets on Sunday. We will have our traditional ham and my sister will make potato salad that tastes just like the salad we grew up with. Me, I'm going to surprise them with City Chicken and a new treat-"Cinn-a-Bun Cheesecake" .

Holidays are such wonderful times to wrap yourself in childhood memories. They feel like your favorite soft and worn blanket wrapped around you while you sit with your morning coffee waiting for the oven to heat up.

Mom, it's been such a long time since we were in the kitchen together, I know you are with me, watching me do all those things I watched you do when I was growing up...Happy Easter and love and warm Easter wishes to all of you and your loved ones.

You can find the recipe for City Chicken here. And while there are hundreds of different versions of Easter Paska I found this recipe at Chow, published by Maggie at Doghill Kitchen, it was her great-great grandmother's recipe and is closest to what I remember about my mother's recipe. And the Cinn-a-Bunn Cheesecake was adapted from "a passion for Baking" by Marcy Goldman. If this book isn't in your kitchen library, it should be. You can buy it here.

"Bake to celebrate-Bake to nourish-Bake for fun"
My kind of mantra !

Cinn-a-Bunn Cheesecake

adapted from Marcy Goldman's "a passion for Baking"

Crust
1 1/2 cups finely crushed cinnamon raisin cookies or other spice cookies
(I used Alki Bakery Snickerdoodles and Alki Bakery Ginger Molasses cookies at a ratio of 2 Snickerdoodles for each Ginger Molasses)
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
2 tablespoons brown sugar

Filling
1 1/2 lbs creme cheese,room temperature softened
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup of sour cream (or whipping cream)
4 large eggs-room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 cup coarsely chopped cinnamon raisin cookie or other spiced cookies
1 cup raisins (plumped for a few minutes in hot water, then drained and dried off)
1/3 cup Hershey cinnamon chips-this is optional if you can find them they are delicious
1/4 cup butterscotch sundae topping-I used Dulce de leche and melted it in the microwave so it was pourable.
3 tablespoons ground cinnamon mixed with 1/4 cup sugar ( I used my vanilla bean sugar-it's the cannister I place all my used vanilla beans into )

Finishing touch
Confectioners' sugar

Preheat oven to 325F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

For the crust:
Toss the crushed cookie crumbs,butter and brown sugar together in the bottom of an 8" springform pan. Press the crust into bottom of pan ,clean the sides of any stray crumbs and spray the sides lightly with a nonstick cooking spray.

For filling:
In a mixer bowl, blend cream cheese,sugar,and sour cream until smooth, scraping bottom and sides of bowl to incorporate everything, about 3-4 minutes. Stir in eggs,vanilla and flour and blend well for 2-3 minutes on low speed. You don't want to beat and incorporate air into your batter.

Assembly:
Place the springform pan on the parchment lined cookie sheet. Spoon one third of the cheesecake filling into prepared pan and top with half each of chopped cookies,raisins, and cinnamon chips. Drizzle on the butterscotch or dulce de leche topping. Dust on some cinnamon sugar. Cover with another third of the cream cheese filling and then layer on more cookies,remaining raisins,more cinnamon chips, and more cinnamon sugar. Add the last bit of filling and finish the top of the cake with cookie crumbs,coarsely chopped cookies in small pieces, cinnamon chips, and a good dusting of cinnamon sugar. Don't put raisins on top or they will scorch. You want to end up with what looks like a streusel type topping. This will be full to the rim, almost overflowing-deep breathe-it's ok, it will bake beautifully.

Bake 45-55 minutes. Turn off the oven, open the oven door about 6 inches and let the cheesecake cool down inside the oven for 1 hour. Don't be alarmed if the center appears jiggly prior to chilling it-it should and it will firm up. Once cooled move it to the refrigerator and chill for at least 6 hours-12 hours is best. Carefully loosen the springform pan from the cheesecake-you may need to slide a flexible metal spatula which has been dipped in hot water around the inside ring of the cheesecake to loosen it. I didn't find that necessary but I was very gentle and very slow in opening the ring and working it away from the cheesecake.

Dust with confectioners' sugar before serving.

Sit back and enjoy the rave reviews !

In Search of the Holy Grail on Chocoholic Friday

2010-04-02T14:18:00.000-07:00

It's Chocoholic Friday and because it's also Easter week-end I wanted something simple that I could grab as I run out the door in the middle of errands. Come on you know you do it too! In the middle of a million things and you haven't stopped to eat and you have to run out the front door to the grocery store or soccer practice or the bank and you have rumblings in your stomach and no time to stop. So you grab a couple of cookies off the counter and away you go. Yes I know it's not healthy to eat like that and I'll pay for it in an hour or two with that sugar high hit and an extra thirty minutes on the treadmill. This is an eating practice for emergencies only-could I grab a healthy power type bar-sure I could but a just baked Chocolate chip cookie with the chips still soft and melting sounds so much better,doesn't it ?
With chocolate chip cookies we are always in search of the Holy Grail. Looking for that perfect recipe. I have found it, well at least for me !
This is an adaptation of a recipe posted on LA FUJI MAMA's blog, courtesy of Chris Garboski at the Nestle Test Kitchens. It's the original Nestle recipe ,but uses half the amount of butter normally used in the cookie recipe. I substituted dark muscovado sugar for the brown sugar and for half of the batch I sprinkled in some Heath English Toffee Bits. By the way, when did they start selling them in convenient packages all broken up so you don't have to buy the bars and crush them yourself ? I love it ! Try this recipe if you are one of the Chocolate Chip Crusaders in search of the Holy Grail and let me know what you think. If you already have THE Chocolate Chip recipe, the best cookie in the universe and are willing to share it post it here.
I'm on my way to the market and it's a 3 cookie drive !

Nestle Chocolate Chip Cookies
adapted from Chris Garboski's tip at the Nestle Test Kitchen
for the Original Nestle Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Makes 60 cookies

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar-I used dark muscovado sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs (room temperature)
2 cups (12-ounce package) Nestle Toll House Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
1 cup Heath English Toffee Bits-when my cookie dough was mixed I just divided it in half and added these bits to one half of the dough.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. In a separate large mixer bowl, beat together the butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar (or muscovado), and vanilla extract until the dough is creamy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating the dough well after each addition. Gradually beat in the flour mixture. Stir in the chocolate chips. Scoop out rounded tablespoons of dough (use a small ice cream scoop to keep your cookies all the same size-they look so pretty and appealing that way ) and place 2 inches apart on parchment lined baking sheets
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool on the baking sheets for 2 minutes and then remove the cookies to wire racks to cool completely.

Pour a glass of cold milk,sit back and enjoy. Happy Chocoholic Friday !

" She's as sweet as tupelo honey"

2010-03-30T18:13:00.000-07:00

I'm almost at the end of a food photography class I've been taking on line. It's from Perfect Picture School of Photography. And if you are looking for an on line class I highly recommend this one. I just kind of stumbled on their web site one night googling food photography information. I checked them out and found they were fairly reasonable and I'm very happy with the course. Lots of great feedback,tips and instructor interaction. And I am not receiving any compensation from them for writing this either. Hmm maybe I should investigate that. I'm getting ready to sign up for a second class !

So why do I ramble on about this course, because one of my assignments involved honey. I decided that I wanted to do a close up of a honeycomb . Living in the city and not having my own little hive in my backyard (although with all my lavender and flowers I do keep the little bees happy in Seattle ! ) I figured my favorite store-Metropolitan Market - would be able to help me. And of course they didn't disappoint. On their shelf I found a beautiful Tupelo honeycomb from Savannah Bee Company. I rushed home with my little treasure and immediately began setting up for my little photo shoot. The entire time I'm setting up all I could hear was Van Morrison's "Tupelo Honey" song. Now if you know me ,you know that Van Morrison is my absolute favorite singer-I can listen to him every single minute of the day and not tire of his voice. It takes me to a world of sunshine streaming thru the trees, warm sun on my face,my love beside me off on another adventure. Ohhh,ok I'm back from my day dreaming, but the song was still playing in my head as I took each shot. Somewhere along the way the assignment turned into a moment in time-something sweet and quiet and it was just my moment. I was enthralled with the honeycomb and the sun shining through it and that song still streaming through my mind and soul......

"You can take all the tea in China

Put it in a big brown bag for me

Sail right around the seven oceans
Drop it straight into the deepblue sea
She's as sweet as tupelo honey
She's an angel of the first degree
She's as sweet as tupelo honey
Just like honey from the bee "

Now that the assignment is over I have this beautiful honeycomb all dressed up and no where to go. I have decided to send it to honey heaven , also known as "Lavender & Tupelo Honey Creme Brulee". I found this recipe on the Savannah Bee Company Website. According to the Savannah Bee Website this recipe was created by Sondra Bernstein, the Proprietor of the girl & the fig™ in Sonoma .

the girl & fig Cookbook, by Sondra Bernstein

Thank you Sondra Bernstein for an incredible creme brulee and I dedicate this to Van Morrison and all those sweet little bees who made this beautiful honeycomb.

LAVENDER & TUPELO HONEY CRÈME BRULÉE
4 Servings
7 Egg yolks
2 oz. Sugar
2 oz. Savannah Bee Tupelo Honey
1 1/2 Cups Heavy cream
1/2 Cup Milk
3-4 sprigs Lavender (or 1 Tbs dried lavender)
3 – 4 Tbs Granulated sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Put cream and milk into a saucepan with lavender. Bring to a boil and turn off. Let stems steep for about 15 minutes or until the milk has a lavender flavor.

Meanwhile, beat the egg yolks, sugar and honey until smooth. Pull sprigs out of the cream and milk mixture
and whisk into eggs. Strain through a fine mesh sieve and skim off any foam.

Pour into four ounce ramekins or brulee dishes. Set into a baking pan, add enough hot water to reach halfway up the sides. Place in oven and bake 25 - 30 minutes or until they are set. Test by jiggling the dish.

"You can take all the tea in China

Put it in a big brown bag for me

Sail right around the seven oceans

Drop it straight into the deepblue sea

She's as sweet as tupelo honey

She's an angel of the first degree

She's as sweet as tupelo honey

Just like honey from the bee "..Van Morrison

Daring Bakers March Challenge-Orange Tian

2010-03-26T22:02:00.000-07:00

March 1, 2010
The 2010 March Daring Baker’s challenge was hosted by Jennifer of Chocolate Shavings. She chose Orange Tian as the challenge for this month, a dessert based on a recipe from Alain Ducasse’s Cooking School in Paris.

And now I understand why it is called DARING ! When I first saw the challenge I thought oh my gosh a recipe from Alain Ducasse's Cooking school-Toto we aren't in Kansas anymore !! After my heart stopped racing I couldn't wait to begin. I read and re-read the instructions at least 5 times. I would wake up in the middle of the night thinking of what my results would look like and taste like and I can't wait for my days off to begin the challenge !

PS: I baked this earlier in the month but we couldn't post to our blogs until everyone completed the challenge.
March 4, 2010
Here it is my week-end and I'm starting with the marmalade. I have decided to use blood oranges because I love the color and think it will make a pretty presentation besides tasting incredible.

Pretty blood oranges

I spent some time reviewing the You Tube video on segmenting citrus. Even though this is the way I normally segment them, I was a nervous wreck wanting to get them just perfect , so it took me most of the morning to segment my oranges and make my marmalade. I decided to do the segmenting first so that any scraps and defective ones could be thrown in with the marmalade. I think that was a good plan, except I have enough marmalade now to feed most of my neighbors for a week !

And so pretty when sliced open

Slices for the marmalade

Bitterness all gone after blanching

Lovely marmalade setting up

Such beautiful colors and so sweet

Even the compost is pretty

March 5, 2010

After my morning coffee I couldn't wait to begin phase 2 of the challenge. I made my caramel-but instead of just orange/caramel I made chocolate,orange caramel-because you can never have too much chocolate with anything ! Then I moved onto placing the blood orange segments into the silicone molds. I decided to use the molds instead of cookie cutters just to see how they would turn out and because I wanted them just a little smaller than the 4" cookie cutters I have.

The molds worked out perfectly

Once I placed the segments into the molds and was satisfied with how they looked, I placed the molds into the freezer while I prepared the whipped cream with gelatine. This went fairly quickly and I was soon placing my completed Tians into the freezer to set up. I had to stop myself from opening the freezer every few minutes to see how they were doing ! I patiently waited 2 hours before pulling them out and keeping my fingers crossed that they would easily pop out of the molds. I had one minor casualty and it was the last one so of course I had to give the damaged one to my official taste tester. He didn't protest at all and he didn't seem to mind that the blood oranges no longer had the pretty swirl design to them. I watched his face and his expression said it all when he took his first bite-so of course I had to take a bite too. Oh my oh my-we almost had to arm wrestle for the next bite. I left him in Tian paradise while I went back to adding the caramel I had made to complete the presentation and Voila -behold my first Daring Bakers Challenge:

BLOOD ORANGE TIANS

Lovely Layers of Pate Sablee, Blood Orange Marmalade, Whipped cream with Marmalade folded in, topped with Blood Orange Segments covered with Chocolate Orange Caramel

BON APPETIT !

Directions,Recipe and Tips for Orange Tian

Recipe Source: Recipe slightly adapted from Alain Ducasse‘s Cooking School in Paris, France (http://www.ecolecuisine-alainducasse.com/).

Stabilized whipped cream (http://tamsin-cakes.com/2009/06/05/tamsincakes-on-flickr-adventures-in-s...)

Note: There are quite a few steps to making this dessert; however a lot of them can be made in advance. The orange marmalade can be made several days ahead of time and the caramel sauce and orange segments preparation should be made the day before you make the dessert. Also, if you have a scale, try and use the weighed measurements as they will be the most accurate.

This recipe and fabulous directions are compliments of Chocolate Shavings-check out her blog !

CAUTION-THIS IS NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART-IT IS INTENSE AND WILL TAKE DAYS BUT THE RESULTS ARE WELL WORTH IT !!

The recipe can be a little bit tricky to put together, especially the first time. My main tip is to make sure the whipped cream is firm enough when you make it and be sure to leave the desserts to set in the freezer for long enough or they will fall apart when you unmold them.

Preparation time:
- Pate Sablee: 20 minutes to make, 30 minutes to rest, 15 minutes to roll out, 20 minutes to bake
- Marmalade: 20 minutes to make, 30 minutes to blanch
- Orange segments: 20 minutes, overnight to sit
- Caramel: 15 minutes, overnight to sit
- Whipped Cream: 15 minutes
- Assembling: 20 minutes
- Freezer to Set: 10 minutes

Equipment required:
-Cookie cutters . Ideally, you should have about 6 cookie cutters to build the desserts in and cut the circles of dough (see photo). The cookie cutters will be the size of your final dessert, so they should be the size of an individually-sized tart mold. If you don’t have round cookie cutters you could use an individually-sized cheesecake mold without its base.
- A food processor (although the dough could be made by hand too)
- A stand-up or hand mixer
- Parchment paper or a silicone sheet
- A baking sheet
- A rolling pin

For the Pate Sablee:
Ingredients U.S. Imperial Metric Instructions for Ingredients
2 medium-sized egg yolks at room temperature
granulated sugar 6 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon; 2.8 oz; 80 grams
vanilla extract ½ teaspoon
Unsalted butter ¼ cup + 3 tablespoons; 3.5 oz; 100 grams ice cold, cubed
Salt 1/3 teaspoon; 2 grams
All-purpose flour 1.5 cup + 2 tablespoons; 7 oz; 200 grams
baking powder 1 teaspoon ; 4 grams

Directions:
-Put the flour, baking powder, ice cold cubed butter and salt in a food processor fitted with a steel blade.
-In a separate bowl, add the eggs yolks, vanilla extract and sugar and beat with a whisk until the mixture is pale. Pour the egg mixture in the food processor.
-Process until the dough just comes together. If you find that the dough is still a little too crumbly to come together, add a couple drops of water and process again to form a homogeneous ball of dough. Form into a disc, cover with plastic wrap and leave to rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.
-Preheat your oven to 350 degree Fahrenheit.
-Roll out the dough onto a lightly floured surface until you obtain a ¼ inch thick circle.
-Using your cookie cutter, cut out circles of dough and place on a parchment (or silicone) lined baking sheet. -Bake for 20 minutes or until the circles of dough are just golden.

For the Marmalade:
Ingredients U.S. Imperial Metric Instructions for Ingredients
Freshly pressed orange juice ¼ cup + 3 tablespoons; 3.5 oz; 100 grams
1 large orange used to make orange slices
cold water to cook the orange slices
pectin 5 grams
granulated sugar: use the same weight as the weight of orange slices once they are cooked

-Finely slice the orange. Place the orange slices in a medium-sized pot filled with cold water. Simmer for about 10 minutes, discard the water, re-fill with cold water and blanch the oranges for another 10 minutes.
-Blanch the orange slices 3 times. This process removes the bitterness from the orange peel, so it is essential to use a new batch of cold water every time when you blanch the slices.
-Once blanched 3 times, drain the slices and let them cool.
-Once they are cool enough to handle, finely mince them (using a knife or a food processor).
-Weigh the slices and use the same amount of granulated sugar . If you don’t have a scale, you can place the slices in a cup measure and use the same amount of sugar.
-In a pot over medium heat, add the minced orange slices, the sugar you just weighed, the orange juice and the pectin. Cook until the mixture reaches a jam consistency (10-15 minutes).
-Transfer to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and put in the fridge.

For the Orange Segments:
-For this step you will need 8 oranges.
-Cut the oranges into segments over a shallow bowl and make sure to keep the juice. Add the segments to the bowl with the juice.
-[See YouTube video in the References section below for additional information on segmenting oranges.]

For the Caramel:
-Ingredients U.S. Metric Imperial Instructions for Ingredients
-granulated sugar 1 cup; 7 oz; 200 grams
-orange juice 1.5 cups + 2 tablespoons; 14 oz; 400 grams
-Place the sugar in a pan on medium heat and begin heating it.
-Once the sugar starts to bubble and foam, slowly add the orange juice. As soon as the mixture starts boiling, remove from the heat and pour half of the mixture over the orange segments.
-Reserve the other half of the caramel mixture in a small bowl — you will use this later to spoon over the finished dessert. When the dessert is assembled and setting in the freezer, heat the kept caramel sauce in a small saucepan over low heat until it thickens and just coats the back of a spoon (about 10 minutes). You can then spoon it over the orange tians.

[Tip: Be very careful when making the caramel — if you have never made caramel before, I would suggest making this step while you don’t have to worry about anything else. Bubbling sugar is extremely, extremely hot, so make sure you have a bowl of ice cold water in the kitchen in case anyone gets burnt!]

For the Whipped Cream:
-Ingredients U.S. Metric Imperial Instructions for Ingredients
-heavy whipping cream 1 cup; 7 oz; 200 grams
-3 tablespoons of hot water
-1 tsp Gelatine
-1 tablespoon of confectioner's sugar
-orange marmalade (see recipe above) 1 tablespoon
-In a small bowl, add the gelatine and hot water, stirring well until the gelatine dissolves. Let the gelatine cool to room temperature while you make the whipped cream. Combine the cream in a chilled mixing bowl. Whip the cream using a hand mixer on low speed until the cream starts to thicken for about one minute. Add the confectioner sugar. Increase the speed to medium-high. Whip the cream until the beaters leave visible (but not lasting) trails in the cream, then add the cooled gelatine slowly while beating continuously. Continue whipping until the cream is light and fluffy and forms soft peaks. Transfer the whipped cream to a bowl and fold in the orange marmalade.

[Tip: Use an ice cold bowl to make the whipped cream in. You can do this by putting your mixing bowl, cream and beater in the fridge for 20 minutes prior to whipping the cream.]

Assembling the Dessert:
-Make sure you have some room in your freezer. Ideally, you should be able to fit a small baking sheet or tray of desserts to set in the freezer.
-Line a small tray or baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone sheet. Lay out 6 cookie cutters onto the parchment paper/silicone.
-Drain the orange segments on a kitchen towel.
-Have the marmalade, whipped cream and baked circles of dough ready to use.
-Arrange the orange segments at the bottom of each cookie cutter. Make sure the segments all touch either and that there are no gaps. Make sure they fit snuggly and look pretty as they will end up being the top of the dessert. Arrange them as you would sliced apples when making an apple tart.
-Once you have neatly arranged one layer of orange segments at the bottom of each cookie cutter, add a couple spoonfuls of whipped cream and gently spread it so that it fills the cookie cutter in an even layer. -Leave about 1/4 inch at the top so there is room for dough circle.
-Using a butter knife or small spoon, spread a small even layer of orange marmalade on each circle of dough.
-Carefully place a circle of dough over each ring (the side of dough covered in marmalade should be the side touching the whipping cream). Gently press on the circle of dough to make sure the dessert is compact.
-Place the desserts to set in the freezer to set for 10 minutes.
-Using a small knife, gently go around the edges of the cookie cutter to make sure the dessert will be easy to unmold. Gently place your serving plate on top of a dessert (on top of the circle of dough) and turn the plate over. Gently remove the cookie cutter, add a spoonful of caramel sauce and serve immediately.

And if you have made it through all of this, pour a glass of wine and enjoy your dessert !

Resources:
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-tian.htm (An article about the dessert known as tian.)
YouTube link on how to segment an orange: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZG5mcEEBlcI

Chocoholic Fridays-Brownies From Another Time

2010-03-26T09:52:00.000-07:00

Have you ever wondered where time goes ? I was out walking my sweet little Hailey during a recent sun break this week and as we followed our familiar path I could hear sounds of the kitchen coming from various houses we passed. You know those sounds, pots clanging when you pull out the one that is on the very bottom, silverware chiming and tinkling as you gather it for the table, the gentle clatter of the dinner plates. And then I realized , Winter is gone and Spring has arrived. Everyone has thrown open their doors to allow the fresh air of Spring easy entry into their lives. We were buttoned up and wrapped in sweaters for so many months just waiting for the snow to come and it didn't. Mother Nature was easy on us this Winter and she is now treating us to so much greenness and so many flowers . It's as if she can't wait and doesn't want to pace herself over 2 or 3 months so she is pushing all her little tulips and daffodils and hyacinths out into the world all at once .

I am trying to teach myself to savor each and every moment. Sometimes it seems as though those moments can disappear -poof like a little wisp of fog,gone but never really forgotten. Do you remember when you were 12 or 13years old and thought that turning 21 was a century away and would never happen ? Sometimes I long for those days when time seemed to move much slower.

I decided that since this was such a lovely week I didn't need chocolate to alleviate my stress but I was longing for something from another time-when time moved much slower. I remembered brownies, and the surprise of finding them in my lunchbox along with newspaper clippings about the high school baseball pitcher I had a crush on-thanks mom-those were always special little surprises and it took the passing of time for me to realize how special. So in honor of those moments I give you brownies . You can make these according to the recipe, and they are incredible, or you can make them a little more special to bring back the sweetness of that moment in time that is gone but always in your heart.

Heart of Darkness Brownies
adapted from a Maeda Heater recipe

These are dense with a crackly crust, they have a little tang from the sour cream which also adds the moisture. The dusting of sugar helps a nice crackly crust to form. I planned on icing these with ganache so I eliminated the dusting of sugar.

Note: It is very important to use good quality, bittersweet chocolate, with 60 to 72% cocoa solids. Don’t be tempted to substitute Nestle’s or Baker’s chocolate in this recipe. You are going to all the trouble of making your own brownies, go the extra step and buy the better chocolate-you won’t be sorry. It doesn’t have to be the most expensive higher end brand of chocolate -just keep an eye on the percentage of cocoa solids.

12 oz / 340g bittersweet chocolate, at room temperature, chopped into small chunks
12 oz / 340g unsalted butter (plus about 2 tsp for greasing pan)
1-1/4 cups / 238g white sugar
2 Tbl / 24g (approx) additional sugar for dusting
3/4 cup / 100g all-purpose flour
1/4 cup / 24g cocoa powder (plus about 2TB for dusting pan)
1 tsp / 6g salt
4 large eggs /200g
2/3 cup / 140g sour cream
1 Tbl / 14g vanilla extract
Optional: chopped nuts or chocolate chunks

Directions:

-Melt butter in heavy saucepan over low heat
-Whisk in sugar until smooth and thick
-Sift and thoroughly stir together the flour, cocoa powder, and salt
-Whisk into the butter/sugar mixture until smooth.
-Turn heat as low as possible, and stir chocolate into butter/sugar/cocoa mixture until mostly melted. --- -Remove from heat, and continue stirring until smooth. allow to cool until just above room temperature; about 80 degrees F. it should become fairly thick. you can speed the cooling process by putting the pan in a water bath and stirring.
-While mixture is cooling, preheat oven to 300° with rack in center.
-Grease baking pan and lightly dust with cocoa powder. optionally, line the bottom with a greased/dusted with cocoa sheet of parchment, to make serving easier.
-Shortly before chocolate mixture is cooled, combine eggs and sour cream in a medium bowl. whisk until well mixed, pale, and a bit frothy. do not try to incorporate enough air to increase the volume. stir in the vanilla.
-Stir egg mixture into the other ingredients (if the saucepan is big enough, just do it in the pan). If mixture gets thick and lumpy, it means the chocolate has cooled too much--return it to the stove, and stir over low heat. mixture should get fairly smooth.
-If you're incorporating any chopped nuts or chocolate chunks, stir them in.
-Pour into prepared pan and smooth top. dust a light, even coating of sugar over the top .
-Bake about 35 to 45 minutes, depending on oven and batch size. batter should rise evenly from center to edge. the top surface should look uniform. a tester should come out of the center dirty, but without any large chunks of batter attached. better undercooked than overcooked.
-Allow to cool on cooling rack. they can be served room temperature, warm (very soft), or chilled (like fudge). they keep a long time at room temperature or refrigerated, but crust will soften quickly.

These brownies are delicate; be careful cutting and serving. they should be cooled to room temperature (or ideally chilled) before slicing.

And because I love chocolate so much and these were being prepared for my Chocoholic Friday I made them a little fancier by baking them in a 9" round tart pan. After they cooled and I removed them from the pan, I sliced the tart into 16 delicate slivers. I then prepared chocolate ganache and coated the brownies with the ganache. Once coated I chilled the ganache. After the chilling I whipped the ganache and used a pastry bag to pipe little rosettes on the ganache coated brownies . I then dusted them with a grating of fresh nutmeg.
Ganache:
8 ounces /227g bittersweet chocolate, cut into small pieces
3/4 cup /180 ml heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons/28 grams 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.

Voila-my brownies, dressed to the nines !

Forgive Me For I Have Sinned

2010-03-25T17:52:00.000-07:00

I belong to this group called "Baked from Scratch" and every once in a while we are permitted to fall off the wagon so to speak. So with that said forgive me fellow bakers but I needed something in a hurry for a breakfast this morning and yes I waited until the last minute. But that seems to be the story of my life this week. My rationalization is that at least I didn't run off to the grocery store and pick up a pre-packaged something or other-like 10 day old cinnamon rolls. I did use quality ingredients for my cheating Palmiers. Since I didn't have the time to make my own puff pastry dough I defrosted some "just in case of emergency" puff pastry dough I had in the freezer. It's Dufour Pastry Kitchens Classic Puff Pastry. And according to the packaging it's made with the finest churned sweet butter-something else I didn't have the time to do. What you don't churn your own butter ? The New York Times quote on the cover is " One of the best sources for top quality puff pastry." and Details Magazine states : "The most buttery and flaky pastry you will ever find." It also has a gold seal on the cover showing it was a Winner at the International Fancy Food Show ! So as you can see I at least tried to use the best pre made puff pastry ! See how good I am at rationalization ?
And if that wasn't enough reason for me to rationalize I found that one of my baking idols Dorie Greenspan had a recent recipe using pre made puff pastry dough. She has two recipes on her web site , a sweet version and a savory version. Ok, I'm off the hook,if Dorie can do it then so can I !

I rolled the pastry out to 18inches length on a cinnamon sugared surface. Once I had the width I was looking for -about 4-6inches, I sprinkled more cinnamon sugar over the dough and folded it using a four fold (check out the video below to see how to do that). I placed this in the refrigerator to rest for 30 minutes. After it's little pastry nap I took it out and sliced off even rounds for the baking sheets. I cut them about 3/4" wide-I wanted small dainty little Palmiers. I placed them about 2 inches apart on the parchment lined baking sheet and sprinkled them with another light dusting of the cinnamon sugar.

Note to myself, don't mess with the basic Palmier shape !

Bake in a 375F oven on the center shelf.
Baking time is approximately 20-30 minutes.

About halfway thru the baking-after about 12 minutes-I took the pan out and carefully flipped the Palmiers and sprinkled more sugar on them. You don't have to flip them-if you don't, you end up with one side shiney from the carmelized sugar and once side with more of a matte finish. I like the matte finish and I like the little crunchy trim that forms from the carmelized sugar when I flip them. If you do flip them-do so carefully-carmelized sugar is very very hot !
You want to watch them carefully until they turn that lovely French Pastry shade of golden brown. Not white with brown highlites,not dark brown but that lovely just took them out of the oven in time French Pastry Golden Brown.

Note to you: Bake them through to the centers-otherwise you will have a dough pastry and really if its doughy you shouldn't even label it pastry but compost .
And you will be tempted to bite into one immediately-not a good idea unless you plan on not eating for a few days due to serious carmelized sugar burns on your tongue-and besides it's not a pretty site when you greet your loved ones !

And for all of you baking purists-come on I know you are out there-here is my recipe for Blitz Puff Dough-which is what I would have used if I had the time !

Blitz Puff Dough

1/2 lb bread flour
1/2 lb pastry flour
1 lb unsalted butter-cold & chilled
1/4 oz salt
8 oz cold water
Add the salt to the water and set aside.
Mix the flours together.
Cut in the cold butter-leaving large 1 inch lumps.
Add in the salted water and mix with the dough hook until absorbed. You will still have chunks of butter in the dough and that is a very good thing.

Let the dough rest for 15 minutes covered.
Roll the dough into a rectangle 24"x15"
Give the dough three 4 folds,one after another,no resting.
For the Palmiers:
Roll to about 2 1/2mm thickness into a rectangular shape.
Dust the table with your cinnamon sugar,place the dough on top of that and sprinkle the top of the dough with more sugar. Using a rolling pin roll the dough out ensuring at least one side is 18" in length. Trim with a french knife and fold into a four-fold. Freeze for 1/2 hour before cutting the Palmiers 3/4" in width.

I found a great instructional video for using pre made puff pastry -if you haven't made Palmiers before check this out-it's very well done !

Pastry:
How To Make Palmiers

2010 James Beard Nominations

2010-03-23T11:29:00.000-07:00

The 2010 James Beard Nominations are out and I applaud all of them . Especially my fellow Northwest creators of all things delicious ! And the Northwest nominees are :
Best Chef: Northwest (AK, ID, MT, OR, WA, WY)
Naomi Pomeroy-Beast-Portland, OR
Andy Ricker-Pok Pok-Portland, OR
Ethan Stowell-Union-Seattle
Cathy Whims-Nostrana-Portland, OR
Jason Wilson-Crush-Seattle

Chef Rucker is one of the 5 Rising Star Chef's of the Year Nominees
Gabriel Rucker-Le Pigeon-Portland, OR
And hats off to the fabulous Tom Douglas, nominated for Outstanding Restaurateur Award !
Tom Douglas-Dahlia Bakery, Dahlia Lounge, Etta’s, Lola, Palace Kitchen, Serious Pie -Seattle

Of course because sweets and pastries are the love of my life here are the cookbooks nominated in those categories:
BAKING AND DESSERT

Baking
by James Peterson
(Ten Speed Press)

DamGoodSweet: Desserts to Satisfy Your Sweet Tooth, New Orleans Style
by David Guas, Raquel Pelzel
(The Taunton Press)

Peter Reinhart's Artisan Breads Every Day
by Peter Reinhart
(Ten Speed Press)

And last but not least a huge round of applause for our fellow food bloggers who have been nominated :
FOOD BLOG
Newyork.grubstreet.com -Grub Street New York-Aileen Gallagher, Daniel Maurer, Alexandra Vallis
Seriouseats.com -Serious Eats-Ed Levine
Honest-Food.net -Hunter Angler Gardener Cook -Hank Shaw

Sunday Mornings with Alice

2010-03-21T05:21:00.000-07:00

Besides my Chocoholic Fridays, I have decided to start my own Sunday morning tradition-Sunday mornings with Alice. I love the whole Baking with Julia, Tuesdays with Dorie thing that goes on among food bloggers so I have decided to start my own. You are welcome to join me-one rule-BUY THE BOOK, no regulations- the only thing I require is your passion-you have to love to bake !! I'm going to start with her Pure Dessert book and work my way through that one first before I move on to Bittersweet. First of all , let's start with a little about my heroine. Alice Medrich has been referred to as the First Lady of Chocolate. Her cookbook honors include 3 named as Cookbooks of the Year. She also founded the Cocolat chain of chocolate stores, and has taught at the Tante Marie Cooking School. But what is really important for you to know is summed up in one sentence from the book. She says "I want the soul satisfaction and the sensual pleasure of real flavors." Me too Alice ! Let the desserts begin !

Chocolate Raspberry Muffins will be my first dessert this Sunday morning.

These were incredibly easy to make and so good. Bittersweet chocolate with fresh raspberries..mmm perfection. Pay attention to the batter-don't over mix it or you will end up with tough little muffins and nobody likes tough little muffins! And the next time I bake these I will definitely make my chocolate chunks chunkier !

Sundays have always been my favorite day of the week. Lying in bed with a good cup of steaming coffee, a fresh chocolate raspberry muffin and the Sunday paper-what could be more perfect ? I love nibbling a little, reading a little, napping a little and waking up and starting all over again. Sunday mornings ...all is well with the world ,or at least my little world. I hope all is well with yours too.

Raspberry and Chocolate Chunk Muffins

Adapted from "Pure Dessert" by Alice Medrich (Artisan Books, 2007)

Makes 12 muffins

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour (use Nancy Silverton's trick if you don't have whole wheat flour- use unbleached white flour and added a generous dose of wheat germ)
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg -I used a full teaspoon because I love the smell and flavor !
2 large eggs
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup whole or 1 percent milk
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and still warm
5 to 6 ounces individually frozen fresh raspberries
4 oz of bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chopped into little chunks or 2/3 cups semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips
Cook's notes: If using fresh raspberries then freeze raspberries on a cookie sheet with edges. Frozen berries keep a bit of shape and are crucial to the recipe. You'll need paper cupcake liners if you don't have a silicone muffin tray.

Directions:

-In a medium bowl , mix the flours, baking powder, salt and nutmeg-set aside
-In another bowl whisk eggs with sugar, whisk in the milk and butter
-Pour the wet mixture over the flour mixture
-Fold gently until the dry ingredients are moistened but the batter is still lumpy-don't over mix !
-Fold in berries and chips just until they are distributed throughout the batter.
- Divide batter between muffin cups and bake in 400-degree preheated oven for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out free of batter.
-Cool and eat-be careful if you can't wait for them to cool off,melted chocolate is incredible but watch out for hot raspberries !

These are incredible the day after too !

Chocoholic Friday !

2010-03-19T15:05:00.000-07:00

What do you do when you are stressed ? Meditate,run,take a vacation,sleep? Sometimes I shout - I will lock myself in a room alone and just let it all out. Or sometimes I'll just turn up my radio in my car as loud as I can stand it without blowing out my windows or eardrums ! I was having that kind of day yesterday so after the deep breathing didn't work anymore I put myself on the beach in Tasmania and turned up the music that was on my radio .

By the time I got home things were looking up and I was in a much better mood ! Having a bad day? I recommend chocolate and lots of music ! So in honor of stressful work-weeks I am instituting Chocoholic Fridays. Every Friday I will bake something decadent to reward myself for surviving another week and to reward my loved ones for surviving me !! And this is the perfect week to kick off my Chocoholic Fridays since March 14th signaled the beginning of American Chocolate Week.

Since I love Canneles and they are THE food I would need to survive on a deserted island (along with Johnny Depp) my first Chocoholic Treat will be Francois Payard's Chocolate Canneles from his book "Chocolate Epiphany"

Click here to buy me

And if you love his recipes as much as I do you can bake along with a group over at Chocolate With Francois .

Mise en Place Chocolate Canneles

Chocolate Cannelés,

adapted from Chocolate Epiphany by François Payard

Ingredients:
3 oz, (90 g) dark chocolate (72%) chopped – I used Scharffen Berger Bittersweet 70%
2 Cups (500 ml) whole milk
4 Tbsp (60 g) unsalted butter
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
3/4 Cup plus 2 Tbsp (90 g) all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp (14g) Dutch processed cocoa powder
2/3 Cup plus 1/4 Cup (180 g) sugar
pinch of salt
1 large egg
3 large egg yolks
3 Tbsp (40 g) Myer’s dark rum or Armagnac
Vegetable cooking spray if using copper molds

Directions:
Make the batter-it needs to be refrigerated for at least 24hrs -and please don't drink the batter-you will be tempted but trust me don't !

-Put the chocolate in a medium bowl. Put the milk and butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, and scrape he seeds from the vanilla bean into the pan (reserve the pod for use in another recipe-I dry it and place it in my sugar canister).
-Scald the mixture, removing the pan from the heat when small bubbles form at the edges.
-Pour the mixture over the chopped chocolate and whisk until the chocolate is melted.

-Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, sugar and salt over a medium bowl.
-Combine the egg, egg yolks and rum and whisk until the mixture is smooth. Slowly whisk the egg mixture into the dry ingredients. If you go too fast, lumps will form.
-Slowly whisk in the chocolate mixture, whisking until the mixture is smooth.
-Strain through a fine mesh sieve into a bowl, cover, and refrigerate overnight or for up to 4 days.

Baking the Cannelés:
-Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 400ºF.
-If using copper molds, heat them in the oven for 10 minutes or until they are hot. This step is not necessary of using silicone molds.
-Spray the molds with vegetable cooking spray, doing so more generously for the cooper molds-lightly for the silicone molds. If using silicone molds, set them on a baking sheet.
-Stir the batter, and transfer to a large measuring cup or pitcher if desired, which will make it easier to pour the batter into the molds.
-Fill the molds almost to the top and let the batter rest for 30 minutes. This allows the flour to settle to the bottom, so the cannelés won't rise during baking.

-Bake for 60-75 minutes, until the exterior of the cannelés is crisp and set, and springs back when you lightly touch the top.

-Remove the molds from the oven and turn them over onto a wire cooling rack. Let the cannelés cool in the molds, which keeps them from shrinking and becoming dense.
-When cool, unmold them, and keep them in an airtight container.

Bon Appetit my little chocoholics

Lemons and Rosemary and Polenta Oh My

2010-03-14T13:33:00.000-07:00

If you follow Orangette then you recently read her blog on polenta. I love good polenta and after reading her blog my polenta craving started. I don't know about you but when a craving starts with me it's all or nothing. I either ignore it completely and free myself from the crazy obsession that I know lurks just around the corner. Or I give in ,open my arms wide and welcome the obsession into my life. And then there is a funny kind of serendipity that seems to occur when I'm getting ready to enter the craving zone- I start to run into all kinds of things associated with that craving, articles,colors,songs-you know what I mean?

Here's a good example,yesterday I read Orangette's article on polenta, gave into the craving and embraced the obsession. I was just getting ready to google for some ideas for a recipe when I decided to read the NY Times and catch up on the world outside my kitchen. At the bottom of the front page my interest was piqued by the "Opinion" category. It wasn't just a news article title, it was an illustration of the beginnings of a recipe .

See what I mean, wouldn't that illustration make you want to read more ? So I clicked on the title of the article "All-Nighters: Shapton's In the Night Kitchen". And discovered a lovely essay by Leanne Shapton, accompanied by a little magical illustration of the recipe's ingredients. Take the time to read the essay-it will confirm the obsession we all have when it comes to baking or cooking -can't sleep at night get up and bake ! Anyway back to my obsessive craving for polenta. After reading Leanne's essay I knew my craving would only be satisfied by some type of polenta cake. After searching and comparing ingredients in various recipes I decided this one by Ed Schneider, "Lemon Rosemary Polenta Cake with Lemon Rosemary Syrup", would be the cake that would conquer my obsessive craving for polenta. The recipe was published by Mark Bittman under his Bitten Blog in the New York Times.
PS The name of the cake is so long that you may lose your craving in the time it takes to say it but even just saying it -can't you smell the rosemary, can't you taste the creamy lemony polenta? You can't stop, I know you are licking the syrup off of your finger tips! Wouldn't it be the perfect cake to be eating out on the patio, under the lemon trees in the South of France ? Some women may chant-Calgon take me away-not me I'll be chanting Lemon Rosemary Polenta Cake with Lemon Rosemary Syrup take me away.....

LEMON ROSEMARY POLENTA CAKE WITH LEMON ROSEMARY SYRUP

Preheat the oven to 360 degrees
Butter and flour a 9" spring form cake pan

1 stick of unsalted butter-4oz
1 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 scant teaspoon of fine salt
3/4 cup good quality medium grind polenta
4 eggs-room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
Grated zest of 1 1/2 lemons
2 teaspoons of finely chopped fresh rosemary

Melt a stick of unsalted butter and set it aside to cool
Combine a cup and a half of flour, two teaspoons of baking powder, a scant teaspoon of fine salt and three quarters cup of good medium-grind polenta
Using an electric mixer, whip four room-temperature eggs and three quarters cup sugar until they are airy and more than doubled in volume; toward the end, add the grated zest of one and a half lemons and two teaspoons of very finely chopped fresh rosemary.
Carefully fold in about a third of the dry ingredients and then half of the melted butter; repeat until everything is incorporated. Scrape into the cake pan and bake for 35 to 40 minutes; the sides should slightly come away from the pan and a toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean. It should be well baked; more moisture will be added later.
TIP: I used my silicone muffin pans for these-I got 12 3" cakes and they baked in about 1/2 the time

Lemon Rosemary Syrup
1 large branch of rosemary-chopped
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup sugar
zest of 1/2 lemon
Juice of 1 lemon

Make this syrup while the cake is in the oven. Strip the leaves from a big branch of rosemary and chop them up. Put a half cup of water and a third cup of sugar on the heat; when the sugar has dissolved, add the rosemary and the zest of half a lemon. Bring to a boil, and let it steep for 15 minutes, then strain and reserve. Before using, add the juice of one lemon.
TIP: I doubled the amount of lemon zest just because I like more tartness in my simple syrup

When the cake has cooled for 10 minutes, spoon the syrup evenly over the cake (still in the pan). Let it soak and cool in the pan, then remove. Serve at room temperature.

Ed suggested a side of whipped cream or a rhubarb compote ! I opted for the whipped cream- Bon Appetit..

Memories

2010-03-12T12:46:00.000-08:00

This has been a rough week full of challenges, not the least of which was trying to deal with my Face book account being hacked. You know how hard it is to want to talk to someone or yell at someone and there is no one there but your computer? I need to find solace in comfort food today. It’s cold and windy and all the pretty blossoms are blowing off the trees like snowflakes.

One of the highlights of my week was the writing seminar I attended. We were given an exercise in writing involving tasting Kim chi and chocolate. I have never had any problems tasting chocolate-bring it on! Dark chocolate-the darker the better, milk chocolate with nuts without nuts I don’t care. As soon as I hear the word chocolate my taste buds start revving up just waiting for the chocolate to coat my tongue-even thinking about it is sending them into taste bud frenzy. But I digress back to the Kim chi..

Whenever I smell Kim chi it always reminds me of sauerkraut. That first whiff of something fermented and sour immediately takes me back to my grandmother’s kitchen where I’m sitting on a hard wooden chair, with my legs tucked up under me, watching her make her stuffed cabbage with sauerkraut. I remember how she would scoop up just the right amount of the beef, pork and rice mixture, drop it onto the steaming cabbage leaf and so quickly and deftly roll the leaf into a perfect little bundle and place it into her black speckled baking pan. Once she had the bottom filled with the bundles she would grab bunches of her homemade sauerkraut from her yellow and white bowl and layer it onto the stuffed cabbage, pour some tomato sauce over that and start with a new layer of stuffed cabbage bundles. I can still see her small gnarled fingers moving so quickly from the steaming leaves, to the meat mixture, to the sauerkraut. I was mesmerized, and always wondered how she moved those fingers and hands so fast. She had arthritis in her fingers and when she wasn’t cooking she was massaging those tender fingers trying to rub away the stiffness and soreness. As a child I couldn’t understand how the pain could be so terrible yet there didn’t seem to be any sign of pain when she was cooking. Now, grown up, I understand. It was and is a labor of love when you become so involved in that cooking moment that you are so truly in the moment of doing something you love, for those you love, there is nothing but the moment. No pain,no challenges,no outside world. You surround yourself with the smells and foods you love while creating something special for those you love.

The black speckled enamel-baking pan is out on my counter and the smell of sauerkraut is filling my kitchen along with the sweet memories of my grandmother.

My Grandma's Halupki
3 medium heads of cabbage
2 large onions, chopped
11/2 lbs lean ground beef
1 lb lean ground pork
1/2 lb smoked ham,ground
1 1/2 cups rice (dried-if its washed 2 or 3 times and rinsed well it doesn't need to be par-boiled-season it well with salt and pepper)
3 strips of bacon,cut up or some vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic -crushed
1 teaspoon salt or more to taste
1/4 teaspoon black pepper or more to taste
1 teaspoon sweet paprika for the onion glazing
Paprika to taste to add to meat mixture
2 eggs
1 lb drained sauerkraut-reserve the juices

Tomato Sauce
2 tablespoons butter
1 small onion chopped
2 tablespoons flour
1/2 cup water
1 large can diced tomatoes-drained-reserving the liquid
Salt , pepper and paprika to taste
Reserved juice from the drained sauerkraut

For the tomato sauce heat the butter on medium heat,add the chopped onion and stir in the flour. Add the water, stirring well, add the tomato,salt,pepper and paprika. Once mixed add the juice from the sauerkraut and liquid from the drained tomatoes. Boil for 5 minutes. If it's too watery for your taste and you want to thicken it you can add flour as needed or add 1 can of tomato paste. Set the sauce aside while you move on to the stuffed cabbage preparation.

Stuffed Cabbage -Grandma's Halupki-Preparation

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Preparing the cabbage, click here to watch the cabbage leaf preparation

Remove core from cabbage. Place whole head in a large pot filled with boiling water to which a little vinegar has been added. Cover and cook 3 minutes, or until softened enough to pull off individual leaves. You will need at least 18 leaves.

When leaves are cool enough to handle, use a paring knife to cut away the hard vein -be careful not to cut the leaves in half. Dry off leaves with a paper towel.

Chop the remaining cabbage and place it in the bottom of a baking pan or casserole dish.

Finely chop onions and glaze them in a heavy iron skillet using the sliced bacon or vegetable oil. Sprinkle the teaspoon of paprika over the onions when glazing.

Cool the glazed onions.

Mix the meat,pork,ham ,cooled onions,eggs,rice,garlic ,salt,pepper and paprika to taste -don't overmix or the meat will be tough

Place about 1/2 cup of meat mixture on each cabbage leaf. Roll away from you to encase the meat. Flip the right side of the leaf to the middle, then flip the left side then finish rolling away from you.

Place the cabbage rolls on top of the chopped cabbage in the baking pan or casserole dish. Layer with sauerkraut, seasoning each layer with salt and pepper. Pour a little tomato sauce over the layer. Repeat each layer finishing with a topping of sauerkraut and any remaining tomato sauce.

Bake for 1 hour or until cabbage is tender and meat is cooked.

Onions with Hungarian Paprika

The meat mixture before adding the onions

The sweet little stuffed rolls

Have a Favorite Food Blog ? Or Want to Take a class from a Famous Blogger ?

2010-03-05T09:03:00.000-08:00

Fellow food bloggers -head over to Saveur Magazine site and vote for your favorite food blog ! Voting is for their First Annual Food Blog Awards in categories ranging from Desserts to Wine. Someday I'll be asking you to vote for me ! I'm sure some of your favorite bloggers have been nominated-so get out there and support them ! You will need to register but you don't have to buy anything .

Click to vote

I am very excited today-besides the sunshine and blue skies out my office window I have enrolled in a writing class called " How to Write Like I Do - How To Use A Tomato To Tell Your Life Story" conducted by none other than-drum roll please-da da da da-Molly Wizenberg of Orangette and author of "A Homemade Life" along with ,another drum roll please -da da da da- Matthew Amster-Burton of Roots and Grubs and author of "Hungry Monkey" fame !

A HOMEMADE LIFE HUNGRY MONKEY

The class is being sponsored by 826Seattle. What you ask is 826Seattle ?? Well I'm glad that you asked -they are a fabulous-incredible organization for children. Their website says it all : " 826 Seattle is a nonprofit writing and tutoring center dedicated to helping youth, ages six to 18, improve their creative and expository writing skills, and to helping teachers inspire their students to write. Our services are structured around our belief that great leaps in learning can happen with one-on-one attention and that strong writing skills are fundamental to future success."

I just stumbled on this place through aimless blog wandering late yesterday and enrolled immediately. If you are reading this today you still have time to PURCHASE TICKETS HERE and take a look at the upcoming class schedule .

More Thoughts of Spring

2010-03-04T17:54:00.000-08:00

I picked up the October/November 2009 Issue of Donna Hay last week-yes I'm a little behind the times ! It caught my attention because the cover was so pretty,as it always is. But it just brought on gentle thoughts of all things spring with the pale green background. As I leafed through it I came upon Donna's recipe for Roasted fish,potato and asparagus with dill butter on page 29. Yummy. I stopped by the grocery store on the way home for some fresh halibut and asparagus. Nothing says Spring like fresh stalks of asparagus lined up like little green garden sticks in the supermarket .

I used fingerling Russian potatoes -they were so tasty and crisp around the edges-potatoes are one of my weaknesses.

It was a lovely dinner -just the two of us,thank you Donna .......

Adapted from Donna Hay's Roasted Fish, Potatoes and Asparagus with Dill Butter

1 lb Russian fingerling potatoes

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 lb fresh halibut with skin removed

1 lb asparagus, trimmed and halved lengthways

1 tablespoon salted capers, rinsed and drained

1 stick of unsalted butter, melted

1 tablespoon salted capers, rinsed and drained
1 tablespoon dill leaves

Preheat oven to390ºF. Place the potato and 1 tablespoon of the oil on a baking tray and toss to coat. Roast for 25 minutes-I roasted mine for 35minutes until a little brown. Add the fish, asparagus and capers to the tray and drizzle with the remaining oil. Roast for 15–20 minutes or until the fish is cooked through and the potato is golden-this took approximately 45 minutes for the halibut to roast and the potatoes to brown.

Combine the butter and dill and spoon over the fish to serve.

Bon Appetit

Bravo Canada

2010-03-01T17:31:00.000-08:00

Crazy but loveable Canadians !

I was very fortunate to have a long weekend this week and took advantage of the extra time off and headed up to Vancouver Friday morning. We didn't expect to get tickets to any of the events and we didn't,boo hoo ! Although we gave it a good try,it was the question " Would you like the $700 seats or the $1000 seats that sent us scurrying off to the German Hospitality Tent !

It was incredible fun just to be in the city among all of the thousands of people out celebrating the Olympics. I don't think I ever saw so much red,so many maple leafs , so many hockey shirts and so many Canadian flags in my entire lifetime. The mood was infectious-even in the rain and greyness of the day-everyone's smiles and laughter brightened the city.

We wandered for hours-all over Robson St and down to the waterfront. We sat next to a lovely couple at lunch-Amanda & Don- residents of Yaletown who gave us the secret tip on where to watch the Yaletown fireworks ! We had ducked into a place called "The Next Noodle Bar" and had a wonderful lunch of Hot Chili Chicken Soup with a couple of side orders of Shrimp dumplings and mushroom and vegetable dumplings The place has gotten mixed reviews but I have to say they were spot on for our lunch Everything was fresh and tasty and the service was excellent !

At the end of the day we both felt like adopted Canadians and felt such pride at what our neighbors to the north had accomplished. British Columbia you outdid yourself-you shined as brightly as the Olympic flame and it was my pleasure to bask in the warmth of the citizens of your wonderful country !

Culinary Olympics

2010-02-25T11:27:00.000-08:00

When I thought about this competition I decided I wanted to accomplish two things. I wanted a recipe that reflected some type of traditional cooking or baking. I felt that there wasn't anything more traditional than the down home mountain baking which occurs in Appalachia. And secondly I wanted to bring attention to hunger in the US. As we all know it's not just 3rd world countries who experience poverty and hunger. I found this article from a recent newswire.
PRNewswire:
"46 percent Increase in U.S. Citizens Receiving Emergency Food. 37 Million Americans, Including 14 Million Children, at Risk of Hunger"

"CHICAGO, Feb. 2 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A landmark study released today from Feeding America, the nation's largest domestic hunger-relief organization, reports that more than 37 million people, one in eight Americans -- including 14 million children and nearly 3 million seniors -- receive emergency food each year through the nation's network of food banks and the agencies they serve. The findings represent a staggering 46 percent increase since the organization's previously released study in 2006."

In searching for recipe ideas- I came across a site by Mark Sohn along with his recipe for Apple Cakes. It is from his book Appalachian Home Cooking,History , Culture & Recipes . If you know anything about Appalachia it has a very high poverty level and has been the focus of many studies and articles dealing with hunger.

What the author has to say about the Apple Cakes:
"Like prune cakes, carrot cakes, or pumpkin cakes, we make fresh apple cakes with either oil or margarine. Some add cinnamon, allspice, raisins, coconut, and butterscotch chips. You may also vary the cake by reducing the flour by a cup and adding a cup of rolled oats. Try the basic cake, and then try one of the variations."-Mark Sohn

I thought this recipe was a perfect fit for what I wanted to accomplish.

So all that being said here is my entry for the Blogger Aid Changing the Face of Famine Culinary Olympics.

USA USA USA

Fresh Apple Cakes

Yield: 12 servings.

1 cup margarine at room temperature

2 cups sugar

3 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 and 1/2 cups chopped raw apples

1 cup (1/2-inch-size) black walnut pieces

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350° F. Select, grease, and flour a 13x9x2 inch baking pan. Peel, core, and dice the apples into 3/4 inch pieces. Cream the margarine and sugar, and when they are well-mixed and a bit white, mix in the eggs, one at a time. Add the vanilla. Mix and sift together the flour, baking powder, soda, and salt. Stir this into the butter mixture. The batter will be thick.

Using a rubber spatula, stir in the apples and walnuts. Spread and scrape the cake batter into the prepared pan and bake 45 minutes or until it has browned across the top and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool 1/2 hour and cut into 12 pieces.

It was delicious with a side of butter pecan ice cream !

And don't forget to order your copy of Blogger Aid Changing the Face of Famine Cookbook

The members of BloggerAid-Changing the Face of Famine have published a cookbook where 100% of the proceeds target children and education through the World Food Programme called School Meals. Purchases can be made by clicking the cookbook cover above.

Spring is in the air

2010-02-19T19:02:00.000-08:00

It is unseasonally warm here in Seattle and while walking my sweet Hailey I was surrounded by pink blossoms all along our walk. It is so beautiful. After our walk I made a quick trip to my favorite market , Metropolitan Market, and being in a pink frame of mind , I couldn't help but notice the beautiful raspberries on display. I could hear their sweet little voices crying out, take us home, take us home. I found one very chatty and said what would I make with you my plump little red angel? She answered, I don't know but I want to go home with you. I don't want to sit on this shelf among those blueberries, I’m tired of hearing them talk about how easy their life is, no thorns you know! Just take me home, something will come to you and I’m sure it will be beautiful and sweet and a wonderful. So I brought my sweet little friends home and this morning while perusing some of my favorite blogs low and behold Tartellete had published a Raspberry Macaron recipe. Serendipity! I have egg whites aging now and almost ready to become marvelous macarons and now I have a place for my plump sweet little red raspberry friends.

Basic Macaron Recipe
Adapted from Pierre Herme’s PH10 – Via Foodbeam and Pierre Herme's Macaron Recipe from his Chocolate Desserts Book

Ingredients

125g Icing Sugar (powder sugar)

125g Ground Almonds

125g Caster Sugar (very fine Baker's Sugar)

31g Water

47g Aged Egg Whites (that have been sat out for 48-72 hours)

43g Fresh Egg White(I used the aged egg whites for this portion too )

Food colouring

Instructions
1. Put the Icing sugar and Almonds in the food processor and blitz for around a minute or so until you have a fine powder. Sieve this mixture twice.

2. Preheat your oven to 160c

3. Put the caster sugar and water in a saucepan and over a medium heat bring to 120c

4. Just before the syrup gets to 120c (around 114) start the aged egg whites going in the mixer, set to high, Whisk egg white till they are white and foamy. Turn the speed up to high and whip them just until they are firm but still glossy and supple - and when the syrup gets to 120c pour it into the mixer, down the side of the bowl avoiding the whisk, and keep it going until the bowl is cool. The meringue should be thick and glossy.
when you lift the whisk, the whites should form a peak that droops just a little.

5. In a seperate bowl mix the fresh egg white into the almond/sugar mix until you have a thick paste add the colouring to this. bear in mind that the meringue and the baking will make the final colour paler.

6. Mix a third of the egg whites into the second bowl just to lighten the mixture. You dont need to be gentle on this addition.

Tips from Tartelette for folding the meringue:

Add them to the meringue, give it a quick fold to break some of the air and then fold the mass carefully until you obtain a batter that falls back on itself after counting to 10. Give quick strokes at first to break the mass and slow down. The whole process should not take more than 50 strokes. Test a small amount on a plate: if the tops flattens on its own you are good to go. If there is a small beak, give the batter a couple of turns

7. In two seperate additions fold the meringue in gently until your mixture just begins to shine.. It will seem like a lot of dry ingredients to go into a relatively small amount of whites, but keep folding and you'll get everything in. Don't worry if the whites deflate and the batter looks a little runny - that's just what's supposed to happen. When all the dry ingredients are incorporated, the mixture will look like a cake batter, if you lift with your finger, it should form a gentle, quickly falling peak.

8. Pipe the mixture into small rounds onto a lined baking sheet and then bake for around 9 mins

9. Remove macaroons from the parchment - they should be removed as soon as they come from the oven. You will need to create moisture under the cookies. Carefully loosen the parchment paper , lifting the paper, pour a little hot water under the paper. The water may bubble and steam.Allow the macaroons to remain on the parchment for about 20 seconds, then peel the macaroons off the paper and place them on a cooling rack.

10. Sandwich with the filling of choice and if you can resist, refrigerate overnight to get better flavour.

This is what step 5 looked like for me !

My little sweethearts drying while I do the offering to the macaron gods that they grow feet !

For the filling

Adapted from Tartelette

4 oz mascarpone, room temperature

2-3 tablespoon good quality raspberry preserves , I used fresh raspberries instead.

In a small bowl, whisk together the mascarpone and preserves together until well incorporated. Fill a small piping bag with a large plain tip (Ateco #809) with it and pipe in the center of each shell. Press a fresh raspberry into the filling and cover with more of the filling . Cover with another shell. Let the shell mature at least 24 hours in the fridge so all the flavors have the chance to meld together.

Not too bad for my first attempt ! Tiny little feet caused by underbeating-I was so afraid of overbeating !

PS. Serious Eats has everything you wanted to know about macarons but were afraid to ask. And desperately seeking macarons is a very good site for even more information.