She dreams of Rahier.

Cream Puff has been dreaming of cake a lot these days.

Mainly because she hasn’t been able to bake one in, like, forever. (Sorry. When the Cream Puff is tired her Valley Girl persona emerges).

Whatever.

Anyway, soon the scents of baking shall be wafting forth from this blog once again.

Until then … just dream along with the Cream Puff … today’s dream is about coconut dacquoise, white chocolate buttercream, coconut mousse and passionfruit cream otherwise knows as the Colbert!

Ciao!

I first learned of Francois Rahier when I read about him in an issue of Martha Stewart Living. As it turned out, the man had a patisserie in my own city. Happiness! Quite frankly, Rahier is a patisserie on par with any in the world and in my humble opinion, has the best croissants in Toronto. The cake pictured above is called the Colbert and is the cake we ordered to celebrate Mama Cream Puff’s birthday!

Unless you happen to live in Emilia-Romagna, in whose towns and cities there are still a few shops selling pasta made by hand, you can make far better fresh pasta, either by the rolling-pin method or the machine method, than you can buy or eat anywhere.

– Marcella Hazan, Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking

Truer words were never written than those above. Homemade pasta is the epitome of creating beautiful food at home. And contrary to what many people thing, making pasta at home is not difficult, even if you make it entirely by hand and roll it yourself!

The Daring Bakers had the opportunity to do this thanks to our March hostesses.

The March 2009 challenge is hosted by Mary of Beans and Caviar, Melinda of Melbourne Larder and Enza of Io Da Grande. They have chosen Lasagne of Emilia-Romagna from The Splendid Table by Lynne Rossetto Kasper as the challenge.

These lovely ladies threw down the pasta gauntlet by challenging us to make lasagne typical of the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy; a region renowned for its citizens’ abilities to make the most beautiful homemade pasta..

To see the challenge recipe, you can visit The Daring Kitchen and view the recipe archive, or you can visit Mary, Melinda and Enza.

The recipe, the main challenge being hand-rolling the pasta, was for a spinach dough, a country-style ragu and a bechamel.

So I should tell you right off the bat that I had to make amendments to each section of the recipe. Normally, I love all of these elements but Famiglia Cream Puff has been struggling with various forms of flu and the thought of a heavy, albeit delicious, lasagne didn’t sit very well with the stomach.

Instead, I made a basic pasta dough, a plain tomato sauce and a bechamel that I used for a mini-lasagne. I used the rest of the dough to make a larger and plainer lasagne that was enjoyed throughout the week for work lunches.

I began by creating my dough. Using the method Mama Cream Puff taught me, I created a ring of flour and dropped in my eggs. Using a fork, I slowly incorporated the flour into the egg until I had a thick mixture that I gathered into a ball. I kneaded the dough for about 10 minutes (by hand) until it was nice and smooth. I then let it rest for about an hour.

I used the longest rolling pin that I had to begin rolling out my dough. It was tough work, especially because at a certain point I had to divide the dough in half. Our counters are very small and there was no way that I could roll the dough out thinly without cutting it into two pieces.

At a certain point, I will admit, I gave up. It was hard work rolling that dough and I probably could have gone a bit thinner, but I was satisfied so I cut my dough into segments, floured them and placed them on a baking sheet to dry out a bit.

I then went ahead and made a half portion of the bechamel. Because I couldn’t stomach the idea of eating bechamel since I was under the weather, I made a mini lasagne with the bechamel. I began with a layer of bechamel, followed by a layer of cooked lasagne noodles topped with sauce and grated Parmigiano Reggiano.

I repeated these steps several times and ended with a slathering of bechamel on top.

The end result looked lovely. While I didn’t try it, my family ate it right up, which is, of course, the best compliment a cook can get.

I went ahead and used the rest of my dough to make a simple lasagna of noodles, sauce and grated Parmigiano, which was also delicious.

My mother’s lasagne is the standard by which I judge all others. While this lasagne was good, it’s certainly not Mama Cream Puff’s, although I did take many liberties with the recipe.

I do want to thank Mary, Melinda and Enza for challenging us to step out of our comfort zones and get rolling!

Ciao!

Do you know what torrone is?

Torrone is the Italian name for a candy confection that we would refer to in English as nougat. It’s a chewy sweet that is most commonly enjoyed at Christmas time. Growing up, our holiday cookie trays always had pieces of torrone added to them both for decoration and for enjoyment.

Many people make torrone at home, but for the most part, I dislike those versions of torrone because they almost all feature marshmellows as the main ingredient.

Real torrone is usually made with honey, sugar, egg whites and other additions, most commonly almonds. But you can find all sorts of variations that include chocolate, different nuts, candied fruits and spices.

Most people that make it at home melt marshmellows to recreate the nougat consistency and then simply add in the nuts. I’ve always found these homemade versions of torrone to be sickly sweet and worse, if the marshmellows are old or if the torrone hangs around a bit too long, it’s far too difficult to chew.

As a torrone lover, I’m lucky that we’re able to find some of the very best brands in various Italian supermarkets in and around Toronto. But I am also most happy to tell you that thanks to the 2007 December issue of Gourmet, you can now make real Pistachio Torrone at home.

I bookmarked this recipe more than a year ago and finally got around to trying it this past Christmas. I was going through some pictures on my computer the other day and realized that I’d never posted about this recipe and I certainly didn’t want to wait for next Christmas.

I’m not going to lie to you. Making nougat is a bit tricky, mostly because it involves adding a hot sugar syrup to well beaten egg whites. If you’ve ever made a swiss meringue or certain types of buttercream you’ll know that this can be the beginning of an unpleasant situation involving hardened sugar, much cursing and lots of scraping.

But if you take your time and follow the steps carefully, you’ll end up with a lovely mellow nougat that’s beautiful to look at (pistachios make everything pretty) and fragrant (rosewater is officially my ingredient of 2009).

Another friendly tip: making torrone at home means buying rice paper, which is an edible paper often used in baking. I’m able to find rice paper at my local bulk food store but if you can’t locate it, try your nearest cake supply store or on-line cake supply source.

In other news, I’m happy to see that Magazine Mondays is really taking off! Remember, anyone can take part. All you have to do is send me a link to a magazine recipe that you’ve posted about. It doesn’t matter what day of the week you post your recipe, I always do the round-up on Mondays!

Here are all the people that have made a dent in their magazine pile this week:

Janie of Panini Girl had me drooling with a Sausage Stuffed Rack of Pork!

Jen of Baking and Dogs made some adorable Flourless Honey Almond Cakes.

Cathy of the blog Noble Pig (I love it … love it … love it) made it all easier for the rest of us by preparing The Lazy Cook’s Baklava.

I missed posting Wandering Coyote’s entry last week so here it is: Tilapia with Soy Sauce and Pineapple Scallion Rice.

Joy of The Cooking of Joy made some health Wok-Fried Edamame with Garlic.

Mandy from Australia (I love saying that …) and the blog Red Dirty Mummy sends along a Date Loaf that looks scrumptious!

Thanks to everyone that took part! Have a great week, everyone!

Ciao!

This is another short Magazine Mondays post this week. Work has been crazy for me and I just don’t have a lot of time. I miss my blog and I miss you!!!

My submission is a recipe for Israeli Hummus with Paprika and Whole Chickpeas from the May 2008 issue of Food & Wine magazone. I made it for our Super Bowl party and it was the best hummus I’ve ever made!

If you want to participate in Magazine Mondays, click the link in my sidebar for all the details! Here are the other incredible submissions for today’s edition. Just think how much smaller our magazine piles are!

Candy Girl made some yummy Palmer House Brownies.

The Cooking of Joy features some Warm Tofu with Spicy Garlic Sauce that has my mouth watering!

The Wolf’s Den is featuring a fish dish from Cooking Light that’s having me plan a trip to the fish store soon!

I’m really missing baking these days and Saliha has given me my fix with these Honeysuckle Biscuits.

3 Sides of Crazy (great blog name) made Old Fashioned All Day Meatballs and Chicken with Baked Vegetable Stuffing in Tarragon Sauce.

My sweet and beautiful Tanna made Crabby Amuse Bouches … I miss you Tanna!!!

Thin Crust, Deep Dish made some awesome cream puffs … as if I wouldn’t link to those!!!

Natashya of Living in the Kitchen with Puppies made Spanish Rice Pudding with Almonds.

Keep the MM posts coming! Have a great week, everyone!

Ciao

When I write a blog post, I usually have a good idea of what I want to say. It’s as though I pre-write my post in my head before I sit down to type out the words.

But right now, I have no idea what to say.

Partly because of exhaustion. Partly because of disbelief. Partly because of pure joy.

I guess I’ll just come out and say it.

After what feels like 1,000 years of work, countless e-mails and phone conversations with my buddy Lis, endless consulting with Scott and Patricia, The Daring Bakers have a new home.

I give you: The Daring Kitchen.

Ain’t it pretty?!

The Daring Kitchen is the culmination of the dream that Lis and I have developmed since November 2006 when The Daring Bakers first started. Today, The Daring Kitchen officially becomes the home of The Daring Bakers and … The Daring Cooks!

That’s right, we have finally launched a group to challenge all the cooks out there, as well as the bakers.

And to celebrate, we have an unbelievable new look. Our logo, designed by the amazing Patricia Furtado, represents this venture’s new direction. Each of the characters in that logo (yes … they all have names and personalities but you have to be a member to know about them …) represent a facet of our members. Daring Bakers and Daring Cooks will be able to save our logo, and badges of the individual characters, and upload them on their respective blogs. Eventually, they’ll even be able to put those images on merchandise.

What can I say? Go visit the site. If you’re already a Daring Baker, register again and get cracking in our new forums. If you want to become a Daring Cook as well, great! For those of you that aren’t members, here’s your chance to find your daring side.

And even if you don’t want to join as a member, you can still head over to The Daring Kitchen and enjoy the articles and the pictures.

All that’s left is thank you. Thank you, Lis! This has been tough and stressful but also fun and joyful. I can’t wait to see where this ride takes us next!

Thank you, Patricia! Thank you, Scott (and all Scott’s helpers)! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

Ciao!

I missed my Magazine Mondays post last week but couldn’t miss this week because I’ve received so many amazing contributions! I’m really happy to see this event taking off. Sharp-eyed readers will notice that the MM logo has been added to my sidebar. It still needs a little work but I’m getting there. By clicking the link, you get to a page that explains the history of MM and the requirements to take part.

For my own submission, I chose to feature one part of one of my very favourite recipes from the February 1990 issue of Gourmet: Chili Con Carne with Chili Cheddar Shortcakes.

This is THE chili recipe in my family. But more importantly, the Chili Cheddar Shortcakes are not-to-be-missed. While I don’t always make the shortcakes when I make the chili, there’s no question that the shortcakes make the chili taste that much better.

There’s not much to the recipe. You can make them in about 20 minutes and enjoy them with soup, stew and braises or just on their own with lots of salted butter. But they really are best with the chili.

And finally, here are the submission for this week’s Magazine Mondays:

Joy from the aptly named The Cooking of Joy made my mouth water with French Red Onion Soup.

Tamy from 3 Sides of Crazy (that’s an awesome blog name!) made Baked Caramel Pears and some really cool Tomato Spaghetti cups.

Wandering Coyote of ReTorte made a comforting Butterscotch Pudding.

Nurit of 1 Family. Friendly. Food. makes a lovely Butternut Squash Galette.

My sweet Jenny of All Things Edible made a Grilled-Fennel Couscous.

Lori of Lori’s Lipsmacking Goodness makes a lipsmacking Shrimp and White Bean Cassoulet.

Remember, if you’ve posted about a magazine recipe, send me the link and I’ll publish it in my next MM post.

Have a great week, everyone!

Ciao!

In the last instalment of my little series about the joy of having rediscovered breakfast, I bring you a breakfast item that is perhaps more nourishing to the soul than the body, but nourishing nevertheless.

When people talk about “good” food or “healhy” food, I always start to squirm because I believe that something can be classified as “good for you” or “healty for you” and make you absolutely sick.

Case-in-point, I have always heard it said that All-Bran Buds are very good for you and that may, in fact, be the case. Unfortunately, All-Bran Buds disgust me beyond belief. I don’t know if it’s the texture or the taste or a combination of both, but I would positively never eat again if I had to eat those for breakfast every morning (with apologies to the good people at Kellogg’s). So yes, I might be having a “healthy breakfast”, but what is the benefit to me if said breakfast leaves me unhappy and dissatisfied?

Honestly, I don’t see much merit in that.

I left this particular post to the last for my series because while the subject of this breakfast might hold very little bodily nourishment, it is manna to my soul.

What you see pictured above is what in Italian we call, Ciambellone. I’m not posting a link because depending on where you find yourself in Italy, ciambellone can refer to many different things. When we would go to Italy and we’d visit my paternal grandparents, my grandmother would serve ciambellone for breakfast. A cross between a bread and a dry cake, we would have large slices of ciambellone in the morning with our milk and coffee.

How many childhood breakfasts began this way? The foundation of every Italian child’s breakfast had to be a mug of hot milk with a few drops of espresso. As you got older, the espresso content increased so that the milk to espresso ratio was relatively equal. But as a child, a few drops of espresso, enough to colour the milk, already made you feel like you were almost grownup.

And so onto this foundation, my grandmother would lay the ciambellone. In this age of refined, sugary sweets, I’m not sure how many children would actually like ciambellone. Since we were not exposed to store-bought cookies as children, homemade cookies and cakes were the pinnacle for us.

While I love my fancy cakes and while I am the first in line for the incredible confections of a pastry chef, this home baking of my childhood resonates so deeply.

And to this day, my favourite breakfast (next to pancakes), is a mug of steaming, frothy milk and espresso with the dry, flavourful cookies my maternal grandmother used to make expressly for dunking. And while ciambellone is not something we baked (the one my paternal grandmother served us in Italy was always bought from the bread store), the very idea of it just makes me feel whole and happy.

I cracked open the great Marcella Hazan’s Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking
and made some minor adaptations to her recipe for this beautiful bread/cake.

I enjoyed making this so much that I kneaded it by hand. The added elbow grease just made the end result that much more desirable. My changes are subtle but even if you own the cookbook and follow the original recipe, you will not be disappointed unless you’re expecting a moist cake. This is a cake for dunking. Period.

I’m not sure what the nutritional value is, however, that is not the point. This makes your stomach and your heart happy, and surely there can be nothing healthier than that.

Ciao!

Ciambellone
Adapted from Marchella Hazan’s Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking.

Note: The cake will keep for a week as long as it’s tightly wrapped in plastic wrap or sealed in an airtight container. I think it tastes better the older it gets and it’s more enjoyable to dunk it!

1 stick butter (8 tbsp.), unsalted
4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3 1/2 tsp. baking soda
pinch of salt
zest from one medium orange (finely grated)
1 tbsp. freshly squeezed orange juice
1/4 cup whole milk, lukewarm
2 extra large eggs (you can use large but you may need some extra water)
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup to 1/2 cup warm water

Line a baking sheet with parchment and preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Melt the butter in a small saucepan and let cool slightly (for about 5 minutes).

Heat the milk and set aside.

Combine the flour, sugar, salt and zest in a bowl and whisk together, set aside.

Add the melted butter and the milk and mix until you have a slightly wet mixture. It will still look dry.

Separate one of the eggs (set aside the yolk). Put the other egg and the egg white from the separated egg into the flour mixture. Remove a bit of the set aside yolk and place it in a small bowl (you will use this as an egg wash). Put the remaining egg yolk in the mixture.

Begin gathering the mixture together. If it’s still dry and doesn’t come together, start adding water. I find I always have to add water for this to come together. I usually add about a quarter of a cup of warm water. What you’re looking for is a dough that comes together and has the consistency of a lumpy dough. It will not be smooth.

Once it’s come together enough that you can roll it into a rope, do so. You can make the rope as long or as short as you like. I usually make mine about 10 to 12 inches. The length and thickness of the rope is up to you. Mine tends to be a couple of inches thick at least. Bring the rope together in a ring and seal the connected ends carefully.

Brush the ring with the leftover egg yolk and place in the oven. In my oven, I bake this for 40 minutes so that it’s nice and golden but the original recipe indicates that you should bake it for 35 minutes.

Enjoy!