For Valentine’s Day, I made a really nice lunch for Mamma Cream Puff and Brother Cream Puff and instead of ending with a chocolate dessert, I ended with a coconut one.

I’d had my eye on this pretty little thing for awhile and decided to finally try it: Coconut Rice Puddings with Crispy Coconut.

Needless to say it was so yummy! The rice was creamy with just the right touch of coconut flavour. The best part of the recipe, though, was the crispy coconut topping. Luckily I made extra, which I ended up eating out-of-hand because it was so good.

This is my Magazine Mondays entry for this week. For those of you that are new to MM, it’s a very informal event that I like to host every Monday where I invite people to send along links from magazine recipes that they’ve tried. It’s a good way to tackle that food magazine pile that we all have lurking somewhere in our house!

Here’s who joined me for this week’s edition of MM:

Simone of Junglefrog Cooking made a gorgeous White Bean Salad with Bacon and Rocket from Issue 37 of Donna Hay.

Dawn from Doable and Delicious made Shrimp with Israeli Couscous from Gourmet. She also made Asparagus Cheese Tartines from the September 2009 issue of Food & Wine.

Nicole of Sweet Tooth made Chocolate Mudslides from a 2005 holiday issue of Martha Stewart Living.

Tina of Life in the Slow Lane at Squirrel Head Manor made Ghirardelli Ultimate Double-Chocolate Cookies from Rebook Magazine.

Saveur of The Taste Space made Spiced Yogurt Muffins from the November 2008 issue of Food & Wine.

Remember, just send me a link to any magazine recipe you post and I’ll link to it in my next MM post! Have a great week, everyone!

Ciao!

You know Cream Puff loves you!

Just to be sure, I’m saying it with sweet crepes covered in Nutella.

And a few candied hearts, too!

Happy Love Day!

Ciao!

Crepes with Nutella
Inspired by Valvona & Crolla: A Year at an Italian Table.

This is a very easy recipe. For the crepes, I use like to use a crepe recipe from Julia Child, which never fails. But really you can use any crepe recipe you like. Once your crepes are made, drizzle with Nutella and serve.

Last night, in Vancouver, the 2010 Winter Olympic Games had their ceremonial opening with the lighting of a torch inside B.C. Stadium and another outside, by Vancouver’s waterfront.

I am an Olympics fanatic, regardless of where they’re held, but put them in my country, Canada, and it just adds a whole new meaning for me.

While I am so proud of my Italian heritage, I am Canadian.

To honour the 2010 Vancouver Games, I wanted to bake something, but had some difficulty finding the appropriate treat to express my excitement. Not too long ago the Daring Baker’s made Nanaimo Bars, in honour of the Olympics, but I wanted to try something else.

Then, last week, I was in the grocery store and I spotted a box of a favourite childhood treat: Passion Flakies. The best way to describe these is by saying that they’re puff pastry sandwiches with a marshmellowy and jam filling.

I avoid these because I could easily eat a box by myself, which is a bad thing.

But I remembered how much I loved them and the fact that they are a Canadian confection so I immediately went home and tried to recreate them.

My version of Passion Flakies consist of puff pastry rounds (I used store-bought puff pastry) sandwiched together with marshmellow creme and cherry jam. I topped them off with a sprinkling of red sugar just in case I haven’t fully conveyed my Canadian pride yet.

So yes. I am a very proud Canadian. Enjoy the Olympics.

Go Canada Go!

Ciao!

Jam and Cream Puff Pastry Sandwiches
My take on Passion Flakies.

Note: The puff pastry that I buy comes in two small squares per box. However you buy your puff pastry, you’re going to want to roll it out to about a 1/4-inch thickness. If you can’t find marshmellow creme, use whipped cream. You can also use any flavour of jam you like. You will need a biscuit or cookie cutter (2-inches wide) and some sheets of parchment paper

1 sheet of frozen puff pastry, thawed
1 cup marshmellow creme
1/2 cup cherry jam
1 egg for egg wash
coarse sugar for sprinkling

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Roll the puff pastry out to a 1/4 inch thickness. Using a biscuit cutter or cookie cutter, cut out as many circles as you can. Reroll your scraps and cut out more circles.

Place the circles on a parchment-lined baking sheet and prick each circle with a fork. Brush with egg wash and sprinkle on coarse sugar. Cover the circles with another sheet of parchment paper and bake in the centre of the oven for 15 minutes, or until golden and puffed.

Remove from the oven and let cool.

Once cool, sandwich circles together with a heaping spoonful of marshmellow creme and a spoonful of jam.

Enjoy!

And on the ninth day of the 12 Days of Cookbooks, I give you A Year in Lucy’s Kitchen by Lucy Waverman.

I’m not sure how well Lucy Waverman is known outside of Canada (hopefully very well). She’s a very well-respected food writer and cookbook author.

Her most recent book is yet another winner. In Canada, she’s probably best known for her column in the Globe & Mail, which is always a treat to read. I also love her because she’s the food editor of Food & Drink magazine, which is a free magazine available at the LCBO that has better recipes and a higher production quality than many of the all-too expensive “food magazines” on the market.

Okay. Obviously I’m a fan.

Her latest book is a tribute to seasonal food, with a month-by-month glimpse of all that is in season and delicious. The cookbook also boasts wine tips from Lucy’s husband.

Lucy’s recipes work. They just do.

Once again, I didn’t have a lot of time to test recipes, but I did head straight for the recipe for beignets with chocolate sauce. The batter for these are very similar to the batter for cream puffs. While they were absolutely delicious, I had some issues with them through no fault of Lucy’s. I mistakenly used the wrong size of eggs and it made my batter more runny than it should have been. I ended up with something closer to funnel cakes than I did to beignets. My silly mistake aside, the beignets and chocolate sauce were scrumptious!

I love Lucy. I hope you’ll take my word and buy her cookbook for yourself or as a gift for the avid cook in your life!

Ciao!

As much as I love being busy with my blog, Magazine Mondays and The Daring Kitchen, there is a downside.

Unfortunately, I don’t often have a lot of time to read other blogs and that is a shame because I know I’m missing a lot.

When I do have some time to visit other blogs, I’m always amazed at the creativity and beauty that I see out there. You can imagine how inspiring I find the blog Junglefrog Cooking by Simone. Not only is the photography GORGEOUS, but I love the variety of food that Simone presents.

It was through Simone’s blog that I came across a cooking group that I’ve become infatuated with. The group is called Cooking Italy and was started by the lovely Angela of the blog Spinach Tiger.

The purpose of Cooking Italy is very simple. The idea is to explore Italian cooking through the formidable Marcella Hazan’s book Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking. This book holds a very special spot on my bookshelf and when I read about Angela’s group, I couldn’t resist asking to join. The only requirements are that you own a copy of Hazan’s book. Angela sets the cooking schedule one month in advance by choosing four dishes, and sometimes a bonus dish. To join, you can e-mail Angela at spinachtiger{@}me{dot}com.

While I’m pretty sure I won’t be able to make four dishes from the book every month, I’m going to try my best to make at least a few of them. I decided to start with the Italian Chocolate Mousse from p. 599 of Hazan’s book, which was a bonus dish from September. I was so tempted by Simone’s mousse, I had to make it myself.

As is the case with all of Hazan’s recipes, the instructions are clear and direct and fool-proof. This was by far the best chocolate mousse I have ever made.

I could write more but the mousse is calling …

Ciao!

For the recipe, you can visit Simone’s blog.

The September 2009 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Steph of A Whisk and a Spoon. She chose the French treat, Vols-au-Vent based on the Puff Pastry recipe by Michel Richard from the cookbook Baking with Julia by Dorie Greenspan.

Before I left for Italy, I knew that Steph of A Whisk and a Spoon would be hosting the September 2009 Daring Bakers’ challenge and that she would be putting forth vol-au-vents (and puff pastry) as the challenge for DBers everywhere.

In the flurry of getting ready for my trip, I didn’t really think much about it until … ummm … yesterday when I was like, “Oh yeah. Vol-au-vents. Puff pastry. Yeah. I should get on that.”

I could look it up but am, quite frankly, too lazy and tired to do so right now but I believe that vol-au-vents means something like flying in the wind or on the wind. Or something like that. Someone will correct if I’m wrong, I’m sure.

In any event, I made like the wind yesterday and threw together a batch of puff pastry and can I just say that I was thanking Steph all along because truly, I adore making puff pastry.

It’s not that I think my puff pastry is all that great. I mean it’s good, but I’m by no means an expert and I’m sure that my puff pastry would be judged as serviceable, at the very best.

But the act of making it is one of the most beautiful baking experiences. All afternoon long, as I rolled and turned, I kept thinking to myself: “This is what I love.”

A quiet Saturday afternoon, a hot cup of tea, flour, butter and a rolling pin. It’s the best day I’ve had since I got back from Italy.

I decided to fill my little puff pastry nests with a cold, dessert filling. For that I chose Italian Chocolate Mousse from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan. I chose this chocolate mousse because it’s actually a recipe that I’m making along with my new friends in a new group that I joined.

Love new groups!

I actually found out about this group, called Cooking Italy, from Simone of Junglefrog Cooking (Love Simone!!!). On Simone’s blog I read about this group that cooks recipes from Marcella Hazan’s Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking. The group was created by the lovely Angela of the blog Spinach Tiger.

Once upon a time when I first started this blog, I remember thinking that I wanted to spend a lot of time really studying Hazan’s book. Of course, that hasn’t happened. While I do refer to it time-to-time, I haven’t used it nearly as much as I should and that’s a shame because Hazan is truly a treasure when it comes to Italian cooking.

I e-mailed Angela and she very graciously said I could join the group. So expect to see a lot more Hazan around here!

I’m going to do a separate post about the chocolate mousse but in the meantime, it was lovely in the little pastry nests. I caramelized some sugar and let it harden and then added some crushed caramel pieces to the top just for a bit of crunch.

So thank you so much to Steph, for choosing this challenge and for helping me remember why I love baking so much. And thanks to Simone for introducing me to Angela who’s helping me rediscover Marcella.

Ciao!

Here’s a photo journal of my vol-au-vent efforts. You can find the recipe on Steph’s blog.

We begin with a mass of flour, butter, salt and water … and a game of tic-tac-toe.

Bash a block of butter. Say it 20 times really quickly.

One day I would like to receive a love letter filled with butter.

My first turn. So pretty.

Dough rings.

And voila! Vol-au-vents!

I’m feeling a bit ragged these days.

It’s not one thing in particular, it’s just a combination of things. Nothing bad, mind you, just a lot of things going on at the same time and as usual, it’s always what you love most that tends to suffer most.

So while I deal with work and home and the myriad other factors that seem to make our days so chaotic, my little blog falls by the wayside.

Why do we always abandon that which we love most? Isn’t it strange? I know. I know. You can’t give up work (or can you???) and while the temptation to run off to an abandoned island to sit beneath the proverbial palm tree is great, that’s not quite feasible.

Between The Daring Kitchen and cookbook reviews, I sometimes feel like this blog is becoming a repository for “things I must do” rather than the quiet corner for “what I love”.

And don’t take this as complaining, because I’m not … really. I’m very lucky and I realize that. But for just one day, I wanted to do something for myself. Just for me. I didn’t want to have to worry about meeting a deadline or fulfilling a promise made to someone or just throwing up a post because it’s been a week.

For years, and I mean yeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaars, I have wanted to make Chouquettes, the sweet and simpler cousin to the cream puff. I don’t even remember where I first read about these beauties. Maybe it was here or here. Who knows. But about a month ago, as I was spending another night at the PC figuring out DK stuff, they just appeared before me like a vision.

Les Chouquettes.

I wanted them. All for myself.

In the corner of my mind that I keep reserved just for recipes that I want to try for the pleasure of it, I remembered seeing a recipe for Chouquettes in Chocolate and Vanilla by Gale Gand. I pulled the book, dusty and lonely from the bookshelf, and went straight to the kitchen.

I mixed and I stirred and I piped and I sprinkled and I baked.

And I ate.

And I was happy.

Just for me.

Ciao!

I used the recipe in Chocolate and Vanilla. But here are some links to recipes that you can try:
http://chocolateandzucchini.com/archives/2003/10/sugar_puffs.php
http://lacerise.blogspot.com/2007/02/chouquettes.html
http://www.shesimmers.com/2009/06/chocolate-chip-chouquettes.html

I just love saying the word strudel. It brings out my inner Austrian and brings back many happy memories of four precious days spent in Vienna, in December 2006.

I was so happy when Linda of make like sweeter! and Courtney of Coco Cooks announced that they would choose Apple Strudel as the May 2009 Daring Bakers’ challenge. When I first read the recipe, for some reason I thought that it would be a first for me. But then I remembered that last year, I made an apple strudel from Carole Walter’s Great Coffee Cakes, Sticky Buns, Muffins & More: 200 Anytime Treats and Special Sweets for Morning to Midnight. I remember loving the dough and the filling so I could only hope that this challenge would be up to par.

My love of Rick Rodgers’ Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafés of Vienna, Budapest, and Prague is known far and wide. Or at least I think it is. I love the book so much I actually took it with me when I went to Vienna.

Who else brings cookbooks along as travel guides?

I’m not going to give you the painfuly long version of my adventures in Apple Strudel Land. Suffice to say that most parts of the recipe worked out successfully, except for the stretching of the dough. I developed some holes very early on and no matter how much I tried, I could not get it to the two feet by three feet specified in the recipe. I think I made it two feet by two feet before this happened:

Not a pretty sight.

Perhaps the greatest quality of strudel, though, is that it rolls. In baking, rolling means hiding, whether the hiding be a cracked sponge or an incredibly holey piece of strudel dough.

While my holes were significant and not all that well hidden, in the end, it still looked like a half decent strudel. Right out of the oven, it was quite good. The crust was crispy and the filling was juicy thanks to the apples and raisins. A day later, though, the dough had softened and the filling was a bit on the dry side. This is definitely a dessert to be served the day it’s baked.

It was fun to try strudel for a second time, although thus far, I have to say that the recipe in Great Coffee Cakes, Sticky Buns, Muffins & More: 200 Anytime Treats and Special Sweets for Morning to Midnight is superior.

Ay yay yay … another Daring Bakers’ challenge come and gone. Where does the time go???

Ciao!

Click here for the Apple Strudel recipe.

The May Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Linda of make life sweeter! and Courtney of Coco Cooks. They chose Apple Strudel from the recipe book Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafés of Vienna, Budapest, and Pragueby Rick Rodgers.

In case you hadn’t noticed and just thought that everyone in the foodblog world suddenly decided to make Apple Strudel for some inexplicable reason, today is Daring Bakers’ reveal day!

I did make the apple strudel, thank you very much to our lovely hostesses Linda and Courtney, but it’s been a crazy week so I’m not giving you the fill post … today.

Just a little tease until I can give you the rest of the details …

Ciao!

It seems I missed the anniversary of one of my life’s great loves: Nutella.

I don’t know when exactly I became so clueless when it comes to blog events, but it seems I find out about them usually anywhere from two days to four months after they’ve happened.

I realied that I missed World Nutella Day when I began seeing all sorts of nutella posts over the weekend.

So, how to make amends when you’ve missed your loved one’s anniversary?

Well, first of all, you must reassure your love that you still love them.

Nutella, I still love you.

Secondly, you must compliment your love.

Nutella, you’re awesome. And so are the hosts of your official day: Sara of Ms. Adventures in Italy and Michelle of Bleeding Espresso.

Thirdly, you must present your love with some sort of gift.

Nutella, I give you an oven-baked pancake upon which to lay yourself.

I was going to post something else for Magazine Mondays, but to make amends to my love, I am instead giving you an Oven Crespella with Nutella Sauce from the April 2008 issue of Gourmet.

Here are the other MM posts that people have sent in for this week:

Wandering Coyote of ReTorte is sending me some Coffee Crunch Squares because I really want some and some Dutch babies!

Di of Di’s Kitchen Notebook made Croissants from a Fine Cooking issue that I’ve been meaning to try. Nicely done, Di!

Kylie of of Thin Crust, Deep Dish made a fabulous pasta dish using beets and beet greens!

Remember, if you post a magazine recipe send the link to me and I’ll include in my MM roundup!

Have a great week everyone!

Ciao!

Oven Crespella with Nutella Sauce
Based on this recipe.

Note: I made a few slight changes to the original recipe as I don’t have an oven-proof 12-inch skillet. I instead used an 8-inch cast iron skillet and made two crespellas. Please note that the recipe below is based on using an 8-inch skillet.

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups whole milk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup Nutella
icing sugar for dusting (optional)
nuts and/or berries (optional)

Combine the flour, eggs, sugar, vanilla extract, salt and milk in a large bowl and whisk to ensure that there are no lumps. Let the mixture stand for 20 minutes.

While the mixture is standing, place your skillet or cast-iron skillet in the oven on the middle rack. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Once the oven is preheated and the mixture has stood for 20 minutes, place one tablespoon of butter in the skillet, close the oven door and wait 30 seconds for the butter to melt.

Pour half the mixture into the skillet and bake for 15 minutes. The pancake will puff up and become deeply golden. Check it every so often to ensure that it’s not burning.

Remove the skillet from the oven and place on a wire rack. The pancake will sink but don’t worry about this.

Let it cool for at least 10 minutes and then carefully slide the pancake onto a serving plate. Drizzle on a 1/4 cup of Nutella. Dust with icing sugar and sprinkle with chopped nuts or with berries.

Let the skillet cool for about five minutes or so and then wipe it out. Return it to the oven and let it reheat for 15 minutes. Place the second tablespoon of butter in the pan and let melt for 30 seconds. Use the remainder of the batter to make the second crespella.

Enjoy!

Technorati tag: world nutella day

How many ways can you pronounce the word “tuile”? As it turns out, many ways. Fortunately, the pronunciation is about all I struggled with when it comes to the January 2009 Daring Bakers‘ challenge.

This month’s challenge is brought to us by Karen of Bake My Day and Zorra of 1x umruehren bitte aka Kochtopf. They have chosen Tuiles from The Chocolate Book by Angélique Schmeink and Nougatine and Chocolate Tuiles from Michel Roux.

Apparently, the word tuiles means tile in French and the cookies are named tuiles because after they’re shaped, they resemble a type of tile used in France.

I’d never made tuiles before but I have always found myself enchanted by both the shape of the cookie and the apparent lightness of the cookie. Karen and Zorra offered two sweet variations: one that makes a smooth cookie and one that makes a lacy cookie. They also provided a savoury variation.

I chose to make the sweet variation only and I flavoured mine with vanilla and lemon. The second part of the challenge was to shape the tuiles and combine them with something light and airy.

As I pulled my tuiles out of the oven, I rolled them around a spoon handle and then made a filling of whipped cream and dulce de leche. Some of my tuiles were a bit thick so as I rolled them, they cracked slightly. But once filled and stacked on a pretty plate, you couldn’t really notice any of the cracks.

These were delicious. I have to admit that I enjoyed them by sucking out the filling first and then munching the remaining tuile.

Thanks so much to Zorra and Karen for starting 2009 in such a light and pretty way!

Ciao!

To see a copy of the challenge recipes, please read Karen’s post and Zorra’s post.

If I had to pick one thing to say to sum up the December 2008 Daring Bakers’ challenge, not to mention all the other challenges that we faced this year, it would be go big or go home!

Our lovely hostesses Hilda of Saffron & Blueberry and Marion of Il en Faut Peu Pour Etre Heureux threw down the gauntlet big time by challenging Daring Bakers everywhere to make a French Yule Log. Their inspiration for the challenge comes from Flore of the site Florilege Gourmand.

Not to be confused with the Yule Log that the Daring Bakers tried last December, a French Yule Log is very reminiscent of an ice cream cake. For this particular challenge, our log had to have six distinct components: a dacquoise layer, a mousse layer, a creme brulee layer, a praline crisp layer, a ganache layer and an icing layer. The layers are assembled and then the entire creation is frozen. Hilda and Marion very kindly provided us with numerous variations for each element and also gave us the freedom to create whatever shape we liked.

As you can imagine, trying to juggle the preparation of such a dessert in the midst of all the preparations for the holidays was challenging to say the least. While I did find the time to make the French Yule Log, I’ll be honest, I rushed it and didn’t put the amount of effort into it that I would have liked.

As a result, I chose the very basic versions of each of the component recipes. My dacquoise was the original almond version. I made the chocolate mousse and the dark chocolate ganache insert. I went with the basic creme brulee layer and I used Rice Krispies to make my praline crisp layer. For the icing, I used a mixture of chocolates that I had left over from other baking endeavours this month which means there were bits of dark chocolate and bits of milk chocolate in there.

One day I’d love to own a proper French Yule Log mold but I used an 8 x 4-inch loaf mold instead. Because I rushed everything, my layers (while they’re all there) were not nearly as defined as the layers that you’ll see in some of the other amazing logs out there.

Also, my icing layer just wouldn’t set for me. I ended up having to soften more gelatin, which I added to the icing to help it along. To further complicate the icing, my chocolate pieces didn’t melt very well so you can see some chocolate lumps in the finished product.

It’s a shame and certainly a poor reflection on me as far as this month goes because in the end, the log was truly delicious. Everyone loved it and when you slice into it, you can’t help but be impressed by the look of the layers. I walked away thinking that I really would like to try this one again when I have the time to take each step slowly and seriously.

Hilda and Marion are featuring the recipe on their respective blogs. I’d like to extend my thanks to both of these wonderful women who really came up with an exclamation mark for 2008 for the Daring Bakers.

I’d also like to extend my thanks to a few other members who are invaluable. First of all, Helene of Tartelette is a constant source of patience and knowledge. Whenever we’re stumped with a baking question, we know we can turn to her.

Without Natalie of Gluten a Go Go, I don’t know what our alternative bakers would do. Lis and I would probably end up in a corner somewhere crying. With infinite patience, Natalie just keeps coming through for us.

And then there’s Mary of Beans and Caviar (and her son) who have dramatically changed the way that this group operates with the blog-checking program. Mary has also been invaluable in sorting through any discrepancies.

I’d like to give a shout out to Courtney of Coco Cooks who is our “events coordinator”. She very generously posts any events that Daring Bakers’ might be interested in and keeps us all up-to-date.

And then there’s Lis. Where would I be without my co-founder and partner in this crazy and wondrous thing we call The Daring Bakers?! Thanks, Lis!

To all our DBers out there, we love you! We would be nothing without you! Keep up the daring spirit and let’s make 2009 our best year yet.

And finally, a thank you to all of you! Without the thousands of readers who show their appreciation each month for the bravery shown by Daring Bakers everywhere, it just wouldn’t be the same.

Here’s to a great year for the DB in 2009 (something tells me it’s going to be incredible … )!

Ciao!

I wish you every joy and happiness on this special day!

Wherever you are, I hope there is light and warmth and much good food and company.

Buone feste! Happy Holidays!

Ciao!

For one of the desserts that I prepared this Christmas, I tried Fabio Trabocchi’s Italian Trifle from Food & Wine. I did not use marsala for the syrup, but rather I used Alchermes as explained in the recipes’s head note. Enjoy!

If you’re like me and haven’t started your Christmas shopping yet … yes … it’s true … and I’m not ashamed of it either … then here’s the post that might help you figure out how to begin.

In past years, many bloggers have summarized their favourite cookbooks of the year and last year I vowed I would do the same thing.

This is by no means to say that there aren’t more cookbooks out there that are worthy beyond the ones you see listed here. This is simply a list of my five favourites for 2008.

In no particular order, here we go:

(1) A Platter of Figs and Other Recipes by David Tanis

What could I possibly add to the countless articles and posts about this incredible cookbook? Really. Suffice it to say that as far as I’m concerned, this book is a love letter to food. This is one of those books that just makes you feel happy to be in the kitchen.

(2) Ottolenghi: The Cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi.

I am a frequent visitor at Toronto’s Cookbook Store and when I walked in a few months ago, one of the salespeople very quietly handed me this book and said, “Buy it.” I’m nothing if not obedient. Needless to say I have not regretted it once. Gorgeous. Gorgeous. Gorgeous. This cookbook is about the beauty of flavour and the joy of sharing large amounts of food. As was said to me, buy it! (The Salted Caramel Macarons pictured above are from this cookbook.)

(3) Field Guide to Cookies: How to Identify and Bake Virtually Every Cookie Imagineable by Anita Chu.

I did a post about this lovely gem of a cookbook and you can read it here. The book is the baby of my dearest Anita and not only is it a fabulous cookie book, it’s one of the highlights of my year in that it proves that good things do happen to good people!

(4) Nigella Christmas: Food, Family, Friends, Festivities by Nigella Lawson.

Oh, Nigella! When I grow up I want to be you. This book is basically a testament to the glory that is Nigella and the glory that is Christmas in her house. Please … adopt me!

(5) Urban Italian: Simple Recipes and True Stores from a Life in Food by Andrew Carmellini.

One of the very best Italian-themed cookbooks that I have ever seen. This is modern Italian food to the very core.

Honourable Mentions: Baking for All Occasions by the legend Flo Braker, The Ski Country Cookbook by Barbara Scott-Goodman and Rita Maas, Dish Entertains by Trish Magwood, Luscious Creamy Desserts by Lori Longbotham, Wine Bar Food by Cathy and Tony Mantuano.

Happy Shopping!

Ciao!

Home is many things.

Home is where you make chocolate éclairs thanks to Meeta and Tony.

Home is talking to Lis.

Home is saying hello again to all of you after a long absence.

Home is the Daring Bakers.

It’s good to be home.

Ciao!

There are many reasons to grow your own food. Some people do it as a hobby, some people do it for a living and some people do it because they believe it is the best way to ensure that the food they’re eating is the freshest and healthiest food available.

But I also happen to believe that growing your own food is deeply comforting.

I don’t think the scale on which you’re growing or gardening really matters. I think what matters is that when you put something into the soil and nurture it, in your own way your putting a little bit of love back into the world. And giving love is just as good as getting it.

If you’re getting a bit worried that the Cream Puff has gone all spiritual on you, don’t. These ruminations come about as a result of a two-month perusal of Jim Denevan’s excellent cookbook Outstanding in the Field: A Farm to Table Cookbook.

When I do a cookbook review, I like to take my time getting to know the book. I like to read it (or as much of it as I can). I pay attention to things like the binding and the quality of the paper (does the book lay flat when it’s open or do the pages flip over?). I like to read the directions to recipes and see if I can get it in the first read-through. In a nutshell, I like to get to know the book.

Based on my getting to know this book, I would say that we’ve become very close friends. Prior to receiving this cookbook, I’d never heard of Denevan. After a bit of research I found out that he’s a chef, but with a twist. Instead of operating a restaurant, Denevan brings the restaurant to the people by organizing huge outdoor meals that feature the freshest and most beautiful food available. He started an organization called Outstanding in the Field through which these incredible outdoor experiences are organized. Imagine a travelling restaurant showing up in your neighbourhood, setting up an enormous table and then inviting everyone in the neighbourhood to sit down together and enjoy the best of the local produce. What a way to honour all the incredible growers and food producers out there that are working their behinds off to keep the tradition of wholesome, good food alive!

As for the book, it’s just beautiful. Lots of colour photos and recipes that flow from one to the other seamlessly. The emphasis is not on complicated or fussy dishes but rather on simple, appealing cooking that relies entirely on fresh (and hopefully local) foods. There is also a strong sense of kinmanship with those among us who are food artisans. You know who I mean … those people that work like crazy to produce unbelievable cheese that no one knows about because too many of us are busy eating processed, fake cheese. Or that grower that’s singlehandedly brought all sorts of heirloom vegetable varieties back to the forefront.

I guess the point is that this food is beautiful and delicious and easy to grow and cook with.

And oh-so-comforting.

Ciao!

Note: The first two photographs feature a Fresh Strawberry Bavarian, which is made by combining strawberry puree, sugar and lemon with unflavoured gelatin dissolved in water. Some whipped cream is added and the bavarian is chilled overnight. The second photograph features a Corn Chowder with Marjoram, which is made by separate corn kernels from the cob. The cobs are then cooked in water for about an hour to create a vegetable stock. The kernels are sauteed with onion and carrot and diced potato. The stock is then added in and the mixture is cooked for a good 20 to 30 minutes. Puree half the mixture in the blender and then return to the remainder of the soup. What you end up with is a nice and chunky corn chowder. Don’t forget the marjoram!

My country turns 141 years old today!

And I can’t think of a better way of celebrating than submitting an entry to an event hosted by my sweetie Jasmine of Confessions of a Cardamom Addict and Jennifer of The Domestic Goddess: Mmmmmm … Canada!

As is often the case when the Cream Puff embarks on a project enthusiastically, she has a habit of misreading instructions and then forgetting about them altogether!

So not only did I forget that this event was due, I realized that the final posting date for the event already past.

Ah, well. What can I say? Mea culpa!

My lateness notwithstanding, I hope that Jasmine and Jennifer will accept my entry for an event about what Canadian food means to you.

In a nutshell, Canadian food means complete and total access to me. What I mean by this is that not only do we have the benefit of living in a land that provides a plentiful supply of all manner of fruits, vegetables, dairy products and meat and poultry products, but we also live in a land that has long opened its doors to foods from somewhere else.

Over the years that my family has been in Canada, we’ve embraced (and how!) many foods that were not necessarily part of the daily diet in Italy. Squash, for example. While some parts of Italy have a long history of consuming squash, my mother never ate it as a child and my father’s family would feed squash to the farm animals, but never ate it themselves.

Yet come the fall, there is very little that we look forward to (food-wise) as much as the harvest of all sorts of squash that are local and about as Canadian as you can get.

And just as we’ve embraced all manner of foods that Italians may not have had access to in Italy, we’ve also been able to continue the tradition of Italian cooking with authentic Italian products readily available to us.

We have always had Parmigiano Reggiano on the table and I was consuming extra virgin olive oil pretty much since the day I was born. Italian chestnuts, figs, walnuts, cookies … the list goes on an on of foods made or grown in Italy that we have easy access to here in Canada.

So basically we have the both best of both worlds: incredibly delicious local products and the highest quality of foreign products.

I would say I live in the best-tasting country in the world!

Ciao!

Note: I decided to use gorgeous Ontario strawberries (picked at a farm that’s about an hour away from my home) to top these adorable mini lemon semolina cakes that I drenched in vanilla syrup. The recipe is from Maxine Clark’s Easy Summer Food. After baking the cakes in a mini bundt pan, I soaked them in a vanilla syrup and then topped them with quartered strawberries mixed with mint and a bit of sugar.

There are numerous advantages to being a Daring Baker.

You get to meet new people and visit new blogs. Once a month you get to try a recipe you might not normally try.

But the one advantage to being a Daring Baker that most people might not be aware of is that being a Daring Baker results in a monthly occurrence whereby incredibly delicious aromas emanate from the vicinity of your kitchen.

Unfortunately, we don’t do dishes, but beyond that The Daring Bakers pretty much rock.

And that certainly goes for Kelly and Ben who are the hosts for this month’s edition of The Daring Baker’s challenge. Kelly and Ben decided to throw down the gauntlet and challenge everyone to make danish dough with an apple and cardamom filling.

I must tell you, my kitchen has rarely smelled as lovely as the day that I made this pastry. Even though I don’t necessarily crave apples in June, the aroma of the cardamom-laced apples was incredible!

Unlike some past challenges, I didn’t photograph the process because I’ve made danish pastry before. I simply enjoyed the recipe for what it was and for what it yielded: a soft, sweet and buttery bread that and a spicy apple interior.

In baking, simple and beautiful need no lengthy explanation.

Instead, I send you to Kelly’s site and Ben’s site for the recipe and to our blogroll to see what all the other Daring Bakers created.

Ciao!

If you hear music in the air it’s because Daring Bakers the world around are posting their tribute to one of the world’s great confections: Opéra Cake or L’Opéra as they would say in France.

For the May 2008 Daring Bakers‘ challenge, I have the privilege of hosting with my incredible co-founder Lis and with two of our newer Daring Baker members: Fran of Apples Peaches Pumpkin Pie and Shea of Whiskful.

The challenge chosen is the aforementioned Opéra Cake, but with a twist. We decided that in honour of spring, we’d attempt a lighter version of the cake and by lighter I don’t mean reduced calories. What I mean is we wanted to create cakes that were light in flavour and colour.

While we did our best to research the origins of this cake, we were unable to find out much beyond the fact that the creation of the cake is attributed to a gentleman by the name of Louis Clichy who first presented it in the early 1900s in Paris. Dalloyau, the great Parisian pâtisserie, is also attributed with offering a version of the cake that is considered by many to be the definitive version.

Traditionally, L’Opéra consists of layers of almond-based cake (joconde) that are moistened with syrup and then filled with buttercream. The cake is then topped with a mousse or ganache and followed by a glaze. Usually the flavours tend towards coffee and chocolate.

For our version of the cake, we relied on two sources: Dorie Greenspan’s Paris Sweets and Tish Boyle’s and Timothy Moriarty’s Chocolate Passion.

The building blocks of this cake, namely the joconde and the soaking syrup, were relatively straightforward. I didn’t have jelly roll pans that were the size required so I ended up using my trusty old sheet pans, which were slightly larger. The resulting joconde was a bit thinner than what the recipe intended but I was extra careful in handling them and cutting them to size so I didn’t have any troubles there.

For the soaking syrup, I decided to flavour it with a lovely liquid called Talea Amaretto Cream Liqueur. I wanted my cake to have a very strong almond flavour (to mirror the almond meal in the joconde) so I chose a liqueur that was very almondy (and delicious!).

Having the joconde and soaking syrup ready, I proceeded with the buttercream. This buttercream begins with a syrup of sugar, water and flavouring (vanilla in my case) that is cooked to a certain stage and then added to a whipped mixture of egg. The trick is to add the syrup very slowly because if it hits the spinning whisk it can create threads and strings that will ruin your buttercream. Once all the syrup is in, you add butter. I also added a liberal amount of almond extract to help with the flavour.

I adored this buttercream! It was silky and buttery. It was rich without eaving a greasy taste in your mouth as buttercream sometimes does. And it was a dream to spread.

While I was anxious to build my cake, I decided not to skip one of the components that is often found in Opéra Cake: the mousse or ganache layer that goes on top of the cake before the glaze is added.

The mousse was basically a mixture of melted white chocolate, heavy cream and more Talea. The heavy cream is whipped to a fluffy consistency and then mixed with the chocolate and refrigerated until ready to use.

Finally, it was time to start building my cake!

I began by cutting the pieces into the appropriate sizes with the first piece being a rectangle. I brushed it liberally with soaking syrup and then topped it with most of the buttercream. I fit two square pieces of joconde over the first layer of buttercream and brushed those with more soaking syrup. I then used the remainder of the buttercream. I ended with the final piece of joconde which I dampened with the remaining syrup.

When I build cakes with many layers, I like to take breaks in between to referigerate the cake. I think letting it get cold helps to stabilize it and it also gives me a break to ensure that I don’t rush and make a mistake or a mess, which is often what I do. Patience is not one of my virtues in the kitchen!

So after letting the cake sit in the fridge for about thirty minutes, I took it out and added the white chocolate mousse layer. I then popped it back in the fridge while I made the glaze.

The white chocolate glaze was simply melted white chocolate mixed with heavy cream. The key is to let the glaze cool so that it’s still spreadable but not too hot (or it will melt your mousse layer).

Of course I got a bit impatient and poured the glaze on a bit too soon. Some of my mousse melted into the glaze (or vice versa) and I ended up with not the prettiest of top layers. To resolve my blunder, I melted some candy coating (in pink) and used it to create a squiggly design on the entire top of my cake. This effectively hid the “ugly melty spots” as I came to call them and gave my cake a very colourful and light look.

I used the remaining melted candy coating to pipe out musical symbols, which was a lot of fun. I let the cake and the symbols chill for several hours before trimming it. As careful as I was, parts of my cake were a bit uneven and I wanted a cake with perfectly even sides. So I trimmed off the uneven bits and thoroughly enjoyed eating them!

The rest of the cake was given a few final touches and photographed. I brought it to work the next day where everyone loved it. While it was sweet, the cake is not meant to be eaten in huge portions. A little goes a very long way.

Overall, I was very happy with my first attempt at Opéra Cake!

The most important thing I can tell you about this month’s challenge is that it’s dedicated to Barbara of winosandfoodies.com. Many of you know may know Barbara from her blog and many of you may also know her for her support and efforts for LiveSTRONG, the Lance Armstrong Foundation. As part of her efforts for LiveSTRONG Day, Barbara hosts A Taste of Yellow, which is an event that unites food bloggers everywhere in the fight against cancer.

Barbara was a member of the Daring Bakers for awhile but had to resign for personal reasons. But as Lis so eloquently put it, she’ll always be a Daring Baker because she represents the very qualities that we all work hard for: she’s is strong, she is passionate, she’s a fighter.

Barbara, this cake is for you!

Ciao!

The Daring Bakers’ Opéra Cake
Adapted from Dorie Greenspan’s Paris Sweets and Tish Boyle’s and Timothy Moriarty’s Chocolate Passion.

For the joconde:

6 large egg whites, at room temperature
2 tbsp. (30 grams) granulated sugar
2 cups (225 grams) ground blanched almonds
2 cups icing sugar, sifted
6 large eggs
½ cup (70 grams) all-purpose flour
3 tbsp. (1½ ounces; 45 grams) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Divide the oven into thirds by positioning a rack in the upper third of the oven and the lower third of the oven.

Preheat the oven to 425◦F. (220◦C).

Line two 12½ x 15½- inch (31 x 39-cm) jelly-roll pans with parchment paper and brush with melted butter.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or using a handheld mixer), beat the egg whites until they form soft peaks. Add the granulated sugar and beat until the peaks are stiff and glossy. If you do not have another mixer bowl, gently scrape the meringue into another bowl and set aside.

If you only have one bowl, wash it after removing the egg whites or if you have a second bowl, use that one. Attach the paddle attachment to the stand mixer (or using a handheld mixer again) and beat the almonds, icing sugar and eggs on medium speed until light and voluminous, about 3 minutes.

Add the flour and beat on low speed until the flour is just combined (be very careful not to overmix here!!!).

Using a rubber spatula, gently fold the meringue into the almond mixture and then fold in the melted butter. Divide the batter between the pans and spread it evenly to cover the entire surface of each pan.

Bake the cake layers until they are lightly browned and just springy to the touch. This could take anywhere from 5 to 9 minutes depending on your oven. Place one jelly-roll pan in the middle of the oven and the second jelly-roll pan in the bottom third of the oven.

Put the pans on a heatproof counter and run a sharp knife along the edges of the cake to loosen it from the pan. Cover each with a sheet of parchment or wax paper, turn the pans over, and unmold.

Carefully peel away the parchment, then turn the parchment over and use it to cover the cakes. Let the cakes cool to room temperature.

For the soaking syrup:

½ cup (125 grams) water
⅓ cup (65 grams) granulated sugar
1 to 2 tbsp. of the flavouring of your choice (i.e., vanilla extract, almond extract, cognac, limoncello, coconut cream, honey etc.)

Stir all the syrup ingredients together in the saucepan and bring to a boil.

Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature.

For the buttercream (The recipe for the buttercream that is listed here is based on the original. When testing the buttercream, we tested a slightly modified version that had 2 cups sugar, ½ cup water and 1¾ cups butter. The eggs remained the same. We ended up with a very creamy buttercream. But we don’t want anyone to be afraid of our modified version so you have the option of using the original above or the quantities we’ve listed here in this note):

1 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar (Used to say 2 cups but should be 1 cup)
¼ cup (60 grams) water (Used to say ½ cup but should say ¼ cup)
seeds of one vanilla bean (split a vanilla bean down the middle and scrape out the seeds) or 1 tbsp. pure vanilla extract
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1¾ sticks (7 ounces; 200 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature (Used to say 1¾ cups of butter but it should be 1¾ sticks).
flavouring of your choice (a tablespoon of an extract, a few tablespoons of melted white chocolate, citrus zest, etc.)

Combine the sugar, water and vanilla bean seeds or extract in a small saucepan and warm over medium heat just until the sugar dissolves.

Continue to cook, without stirring, until the syrup reaches 225◦F (107◦C) (Note: The original recipe instructs to heat the syrup to 255◦F (124◦C). We heated it to 225◦F and it worked just fine. However, if you are concerned, then by all means heat your syrup to 255◦F.) on a candy or instant-read thermometer. Once it reaches that temperature, remove the syrup from the heat.

While the syrup is heating, begin whisking the egg and egg yolk at high speed in the bowl of your mixer using the whisk attachment. Whisk them until they are pale and foamy.

When the sugar syrup reaches the correct temperature and you remove it from the heat, reduce the mixer speed to low speed and begin slowly (very slowly) pouring the syrup down the side of the bowl being very careful not to splatter the syrup into the path of the whisk attachment. Some of the syrup will spin onto the sides of the bowl but don’t worry about this and don’t try to stir it into the mixture as it will harden!

Raise the speed to medium-high and continue beating until the eggs are thick and satiny and the mixture is cool to the touch (about 5 minutes or so).

While the egg mixture is beating, place the softened butter in a bowl and mash it with a spatula until you have a soft creamy mass.

With the mixer on medium speed, begin adding in two-tablespoon chunks. When all the butter has been incorporated, raise the mixer speed to high and beat until the buttercream is thick and shiny.

At this point add in your flavouring and beat for an additional minute or so.

Refrigerate the buttercream, stirring it often, until it’s set enough (firm enough) to spread when topped with a layer of cake (about 20 minutes).

For the ganache/mousse:

7 ounces white chocolate
1 cup plus 3 tbsp. heavy cream (35% cream)
1 tbsp. liquer of your choice (Bailey’s, Amaretto, etc.)

Melt the white chocolate and the 3 tbsp. of heavy cream in a small saucepan.

Stir to ensure that it’s smooth and that the chocolate is melted. Add the tablespoon of liqueur to the chocolate and stir. Set aside to cool completely.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, whip the remaining 1 cup of heavy cream until soft peaks form.

Gently fold the whipped cream into the cooled chocolate to form a mousse.

If it’s too thin, refrigerate it for a bit until it’s spreadable.

If you’re not going to use it right away, refrigerate until you’re ready to use.

For the glaze:

14 ounces white chocolate, coarsely chopped
½ cup heavy cream (35% cream)

Melt the white chocolate with the heavy cream. Whisk the mixture gently until smooth.

Let cool for 10 minutes and then pour over the chilled cake. Using a long metal cake spatula, smooth out into an even layer.

Place the cake into the refrigerator for 30 minutes to set.

Enjoy!

I’ve had Paris on my mind of late.

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

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

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

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

Perhaps soon.

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

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

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

Faites-les!

Ciao!

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Enjoy!

I love crullers.

I have been known to eat … ummm … quite a few in a row without stopping or even taking a breath. I love their glazed exterior and sweetly soft interior. I love the way they melt in your mouth and slide down your throat in a rush of fried dough bliss.

When Peabody and Helene announced their doughnut event, I briefly entertained ideas of creating a new doughnut but my heart kept coming back to a recipe I’d seen in Marcy Goldman’s A Passion For Baking. For those of you that haven’t heard of Marcy, she’s the baker behind www.betterbaking.com. Her most recent cookbook is now gracing my bookshelf and from the moment I set eyes on her recipe for French Cruller Doughnuts, I knew I had to try them.

And here’s the the really shocking thing about this: these doughnuts are baked, not fried! Now I am never one to shy away from calories, but based on what everyone who tried these told me, you’d never guess that they weren’t fried.

And because I promised a month of chocolate, I decorated some of my crullers with melted dark chocolate for an added touch.

I’d like to thank two of my favourite bakers, Peabody and Helene, for hosting this great event! Here’s hoping it becomes a regular one!

Ciao!

If you’re interested in making crullers, check out Steph’s blog a whisk and a spoon for her entry to this event.

Yesterday, I wrote about the start of my annual attempt to tidy up and organize myself for the coming year.

I’ve continued that project today by going through the hundreds of food photos stored on my computer. I have a tendency to download photos and then just forget about them. Many of the photos aren’t very good so I finally went through them all and deleted those that weren’t of use to me. The rest I moved to CDs for storage. I’ve deleted them from my computer and now feel that I’m a bit more organized in that regard.

While going through my photos, I had the opportunity to look back on some memorable posts over the course of 2007.

Making croissants from scratch was pretty cool. I finally got to declare my desire to be Southern and I also declared my love of lemon.

The spring and summer brought with them some work opportunities, Dorie, a new appreciation for tea, a confession of love, blueberries, cupcakes and cheesecake.

September was poetic, October was orange and November was tempting.

December has been so sweet!

But of all the posts that I loved this year, my favourite was the one about the Queen of sweet crepe cakes. For me, it was a real accomplishment.

So my crepe cake is my contribution to the event being hosted by Zorra of Kochtopf and Sandra of Un Tocco di Zenzero. Zorra and Sandra had the idea to ask foodbloggers everywhere to submit their favourite recipe or post of 2007.

What a beautiful way to say farewell to all the indredible food we witnessed this year!

Ciao!

‘Tis the season to enjoying the best things in life: family, friends, lots of baking and of course, the Daring Bakers!

We come to you a bit earlier than usual this December on account of the fact that in another day or so most of us will be busy celebrating with family. For the December 2007 Daring Baker challenge, I’m happy to say that I have the opportunity to host with the one that started it all with me, my lovely Lis.

It didn’t take Lis and I long to decide that the challenge for this month had to be a Yule Log. Popular in many baking traditions, we did some research on the origins of the Yule Log and found that it has a very rich history (to match the richness of the dessert)!

The Yule Log as a symbol dates back far into history. It’s associated with the tradition of celebrating the Winter Solstice in Northern Europe. Through the centuries, the tradition lived on in many cultures. As Lis and I explained to our fellow Daring Bakers, we liked the image of light associated with the Yule Log. Regardless of whether you celebrate Christmas, everyone wants a bit of light in their life!

While I don’t want to get all mushy on you, as 2007 draws to a close I must say how thankful I am for the Daring Bakers and for everyone who follows the exploits of the Daring Bakers so closely. Every month is a new challenge and a new opportunity for fun in the kitchen.

Here’s to the Daring Bakers and to the year to come!

Ciao!

Yule Log

The genoise and the buttercream for the Yule Log is from Nick Malgieri’s Perfect Cakes.

The meringue mushrooms are from The Williams-Sonoma Collection: Dessert.

The recipe for the Yule Log is below. Here is a picture gallery of my making of the Yule Log.

Making the genoise:

Making the buttercream:

Making the meringue mushrooms:

Assembling the Yule Log:

The Yule Log Recipe

Plain Genoise:

3 large eggs
3 large egg yolks
pinch of salt
¾ cup of sugar
½ cup cake flour - spoon flour into dry-measure cup and level off (also known as cake & pastry flour)
¼ cup cornstarch

one (1) 10 x 15 inch jelly-roll pan that has been buttered and lined with parchment paper and then buttered again

1.Set a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F.

2.Half-fill a medium saucepan with water and bring it to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat so the water is simmering.

3.Whisk the eggs, egg yolks, salt and sugar together in the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer. Place over the pan of simmering water and whisk gently until the mixture is just lukewarm, about 100 degrees if you have a thermometer (or test with your finger - it should be warm to the touch).

4.Attach the bowl to the mixer and, with the whisk attachment, whip on medium-high speed until the egg mixture is cooled (touch the outside of the bowl to tell) and tripled in volume. The egg foam will be thick and will form a slowly dissolving ribbon falling back onto the bowl of whipped eggs when the whisk is lifted.

5.While the eggs are whipping, stir together the flour and cornstarch.

6.Sift one-third of the flour mixture over the beaten eggs. Use a rubber spatula to fold in the flour mixture, making sure to scrape all the way to the bottom of the bowl on every pass through the batter to prevent the flour mixture from accumulating there and making lumps. Repeat with another third of the flour mixture and finally with the remainder.

7.Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.

8.Bake the genoise for about 10 to 12 minutes. Make sure the cake doesn’t overbake and become too dry or it will not roll properly.

9.While the cake is baking, begin making the buttercream.

10.Once the cake is done (a tester will come out clean and if you press the cake lightly it will spring back), remove it from the oven and let it cool on a rack.

Coffee Buttercream:

4 large egg whites
1 cup sugar
24 tablespoons (3 sticks or 1-1/2 cups) unsalted butter, softened
2 tablespoons instant espresso powder
2 tablespoons rum or brandy

1.Whisk the egg whites and sugar together in the bowl of an electric mixer. Set the bowl over simmering water and whisk gently until the sugar is dissolved and the egg whites are hot.

2.Attach the bowl to the mixer and whip with the whisk on medium speed until cooled. Switch to the paddle and beat in the softened butter and continue beating until the buttercream is smooth. Dissolve the instant coffee in the liquor and beat into the buttercream.

Meringue Mushrooms:

3 large egg whites, at room temperature
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
½ cup (3-1/2 ounces/105 g.) granulated sugar
1/3 cup (1-1/3 ounces/40 g.) icing sugar
Unsweetened cocoa powder for dusting

1.Preheat the oven to 225 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment. Have ready a pastry bag fitted with a small (no. 6) plain tip. In a bowl, using a mixer on medium-low speed, beat together the egg whites and cream of tartar until very foamy. Slowly add the granulated sugar while beating. Increase the speed to high and beat until soft peaks form when the beaters are lifted. Continue until the whites hold stiff, shiny peaks. Sift the icing sugar over the whites and, using a rubber spatula, fold in until well blended.

2.Scoop the mixture into the bag. On one baking sheet, pipe 48 stems, each ½ inch (12 mm.) wide at the base and tapering off to a point at the top, ¾ inch (2 cm.) tall, and spaced about ½ inch (12 mm.) apart. On the other sheet, pipe 48 mounds for the tops, each about 1-1/4 inches (3 cm.) wide and ¾ inch (2 cm.) high, also spaced ½ inch (12 mm.) apart. With a damp fingertip, gently smooth any pointy tips. Dust with cocoa. Reserve the remaining meringue.

3.Bake until dry and firm enough to lift off the paper, 50-55 minutes. Set the pans on the counter and turn the mounds flat side up. With the tip of a knife, carefully make a small hole in the flat side of each mound. Pipe small dabs of the remaining meringue into the holes and insert the stems tip first. Return to the oven until completely dry, about 15 minutes longer. Let cool completely on the sheets.

Marzipan Mushrooms:

8 ounces almond paste
2 cups icing sugar
3 to 5 tablespoons light corn syrup
Cocoa powder

1.To make the marzipan combine the almond paste and 1 cup of the icing sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat with the paddle attachment on low speed until sugar is almost absorbed.

2.Add the remaining 1 cup of sugar and mix until the mixture resembles fine crumbs.

3.Add half the corn syrup, then continue mixing until a bit of the marzipan holds together when squeezed, adding additional corn syrup a little at a time, as necessary: the marzipan in the bowl will still appear crumbly.

4.Transfer the marzipan to a work surface and knead until smooth.

5.Roll one-third of the marzipan into a 6 inches long cylinder and cut into 1-inch lengths.

6.Roll half the lengths into balls. Press the remaining cylindrical lengths (stems) into the balls (caps) to make mushrooms.

7.Smudge with cocoa powder.

Assembling the Yule Log:

1.Run a sharp knife around the edges of the genoise to loosen it from the pan.

2.Turn the genoise layer over (unmolding it from the sheet pan onto a flat surface) and peel away the paper.

3.Carefully invert your genoise onto a fresh piece of parchment paper.

4.Spread with half the coffee buttercream (or whatever filling you’re using).

5.Use the parchment paper to help you roll the cake into a tight cylinder.

6.Transfer back to the baking sheet and refrigerate for several hours.

7.Unwrap the cake. Trim the ends on the diagonal, starting the cuts about 2 inches away from each end.

8.Position the larger cut piece on each log about 2/3 across the top.

9.Cover the log with the reserved buttercream, making sure to curve around the protruding stump.

10.Streak the buttercream with a fork or decorating comb to resemble bark.

11.Transfer the log to a platter and decorate with your mushrooms and whatever other decorations you’ve chosen.

To see what all the other Daring Bakers have created, please visit the blogroll.

Technorati tags: daring bakers, yule log

While I will very likely be making this showstopper as the grande finale of holiday desserts, it certainly doesn’t hurt to give other desserts the opportunity to show their sweet stuff.

I like to call this the Cream Puff version of holiday dress rehearsals.

For this edition of Magazine Mondays, I decided to try a recipe from the popular Canadian chef and television personality, Ricardo Larrivée. For those of you that don’t know, Ricardo has a show on the Canadian Food Network along with a magazine that I subscribe to.

In general, I like the food that he prepares and appreciate his focus on entertaining. While I didn’t see the episode where he made this particular dessert, it is featured in the very first issue of his magazine.

It’s called a Crunchy Chocolate-Chestnut Cake and it’s impressive! The only drawback is that the recipe is a tad on the expensive side to make. Between the chocolate, the chestnut cream and the decorative cookies, it cost a pretty penny. However, the ooohs and aaahs of those who tasted it made the expense worth it. Another Monday, another magazine down!

Have a great week everyone!

Ciao!

You can find the recipe for this cake here.

Magazine Mondays on other blogs:

Dolores of Chronicles in Culinary Curiosity is all over Magazine Mondays with three recipes: Kale and Potato Hash, Persimmon Raspberry Yogurt Parfait and Cranberry Upside-Down Cake.

Remember, if you put up a Magazine Mondays post let me know and I’ll link to it!

Technorati tags: magazine mondays

The Cream Puff is back! I had a lovely week in Florida where I spent a few days in Miami followed by a cruise that took me to Key West, Cozumel and then back to Miami.

Towards the end of it, though, all I could think about was coming home and baking! Let the Christmas baking begin!

Before that happens, however, I must clear up a bit of business otherwise known as your homework assignment. I must confess I’m a bit embarrassed. Either I was really tired and really in need of a vacation before I left or I seriously underestimated all of you. I never imagined it would be so easy to figure out that the dessert pictured in my last post was indeed a tiramisù!

After reading Lis’ amazing and funny post about tiramisù wherein she shared her experience of making tiramisù using a recipe I’d given her, I had a serious craving for the stuff. Lis’ mouth-watering photos didn’t help! Since her bringing some to me was out of the question (although that would be my fondest wish … Lis … ), I decided it was time to make it.

It’s not that I don’t like tiramisù, it’s just that I think it’s become a bit of a clichè. And let’s not even get into the atrocities that people commit against this dessert by doing things like making it with fake whipped cream instead of mascarpone.

Shudder.

Anyway, I present to you my family’s tiramisù recipe. The beauty of this particular recipe is that it’s entirely up to you. You can bend it and shape it to suit your own tastes.

As for the homework assignment, you all get an A+, but the A++ goes to Suganya of the beautiful blog Tasty Palettes. Wow, is it a beautiful blog! Congratulations to Suganya and thanks to all of you for handing in your homework.

Now get baking!

Ciao!

Tiramisù
Treasured family recipe.

Note: You will surely find as many variations of the tiramisù recipe as you will find people of Italian background. For my family’s recipe, the main components are espresso, mascarpone, eggs, sugar, ladyfinger cookies, liquor and cocoa. How you marry these ingredients is ultimately up to you. Experiment and find the combination that you like best. This recipe will make one 2-layer tiramisù that will fit into a container that’s about 9 x 13 inches or a bit smaller. Alternatively, you can make individual tiramisùs. For this recipe, I used 16 plastic mini wine glasses.

5 large eggs, separated and at room temperature
1 tub of mascarpone (500 grams), at room temperature
8 tbsp. sugar (5 tbsp. for the cream mixture and 3 tbsp. for the espresso)
2 to 3 cups espresso (it’s best if it’s lukewarm)
2 to 3 tbsp. liquor of your choice (my favourites are brandy or Frangelico)
ladyfinger cookies (you will need about 35 to 40 ladyfinger cookies)
cocoa for dusting

Brew the espresso and then pour it into a large, shallow bowl. Add the 3 tbsp. of sugar and the 2 to 3 tbsp. of liquor and stir. Taste and adjust the flavour (add more liquor or alcohol of you want). Set aside and let cool a bit.

Place the egg yolks and the 5 tbsp. of sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer. With the paddle attachment, beat at high speed until the eggs have doubled in volume and the mixture is very light in colour (usually 5 to 8 minutes).

Add the mascarpone and beat on medium-high speed until the mixture is smooth and creamy (usually 3 to 4 minutes).

If you have another bowl for your stand mixer, then put the egg whites in that bowl. If not, put the mascarpone mixture into another large bowl and wash the stand mixer bowl very well. Dry it and then put the egg whites in that bowl. Beat the egg whites with the whisk attachment on high speed until stiff peaks form.

Remove one third of the beaten egg whites and add them to the mascarpone mixture. Stir until the mixture is smooth. Add the remainder of the egg whites and gently fold them in.

Begin assembling the tiramisu’ by dipping your ladyfingers in the espresso mixture and creating a layer across the bottom of your container. When dipping the ladyfingers, don’t dip them for more then a few seconds or they will become too soggy.

Spread half the mascarpone mixture over the ladyfingers and then sprinkle with cocoa.

Repeat with a second layer of ladyfinger cookies and the remainder of the mascarpone mixture. Dust with cocoa once again and then refrigerate. It’s best if you can refrigerate it for at least 4 hours to allow it to set.

Enjoy!

Technorati tags: tiramisu

The Cream Puff is taking a short break in the form of one week in a warmer climate. I’ll be back refreshed and ready to begin the two-week baking marathon that is my lead-up to Christmas.

For those of you that have been around this blog long enough, you’ll remember that last year I took a trip in December as well but not before I left you some homework.

Well I certainly don’t want you getting all lazy while I’m gone. So here’s another homework assignment.

Guess what dessert is pictured in the photograph above.

The first person to guess correctly, wins a copy of this book.

See you in a week!

Ciao!

No. Don’t worry. It’s not a typo. Bostini (not Boston) is, in fact, the capital of Daring Bakersville.

As the month of October arrived, Mary of Alpineberry let us know that our challenge for the month would be our very first plated dessert, one called the Bostini Cream Pie. The dessert is a take on the infamous Boston Cream Pie and is one of Mary’s favourites. Considering she first had it more than 12 years ago, I would have to say it must have been a most memorable dessert indeed.

Because I bow to Mary both for her beautiful blog and her tireless (and I mean tireless) work as the main administrator for The Daring Bakers, I approached this challenge with gusto.

When describing the recipe, Mary indicated that it yields eight generous servings. Wisely, Mary gave us the option of halving the recipe, which I did. It wasn’t easy, mind you, especially when it came to the custard but I think I did a reasonable job.

I began with the first element of the dessert, which was the custard. Made of whole milk, cornstarch, egg, heavy cream, sugar and vanilla extract, the custard was easy to pull together. Surprisingly, my attempt at halving the recipe worked quite well and my custard thickened very nicely. After straining it, I poured some of it into regular-sized ramekins and some of it into very tiny ramekins (pictured above). I set the custard in the refrigerator to chill and firm overnight.

After having completed the custard, I prepared the second component of the dessert which is an orange-flavoured chiffon cake. Once again I had a bit of a challenge in dividing the recipe. I also challenged myself further by baking the cake in a sheet pan (as opposed to molds as the recipe indicated) so that I could cut out pieces of cake to fit the different sizes of ramekins that I’d used.

The cake baked beautifully and looked gorgeous. I would have happily eaten it on its own if not for the fact that I had to use it for the dessert!

When it came time to assemble the dessert, I was able to easily cut out rounds to fit the ramekins. I quickly melted chocolate and butter for the glaze and rather than drenching the tops, I thought it would be best to spread a smaller amount of glaze on each. I topped each little dessert with a piece of candied orange zest to mirror the orange flavours in the cake and to contrast the flavour of the dark chocolate.

The desserts looked very pretty and certainly everyone that tried them enjoyed them. I found the custard to be a bit bland but this may be due to the fact that I halved the recipe and perhaps went a little too lightly in the flavour department. I didn’t use a vanilla bean as originally directed and used vanilla extract instead so perhaps that affected the flavour a bit.

The cake portion of the dessert was by far the best. This chiffon cake is light and so tasty! I’m looking forward to making it again. The chocolate glaze was a nice final touch but I would caution against drenching the dessert in glaze as the chocolate would overpower everything.

It certainly was fun to try my hand at a plated dessert and while I can’t see myself making this exact recipe again, I did really love the chiffon cake. I also appreciated the fact that Mary gave us the opportunity for some creative room with this challenge, which hasn’t always been the case with past challenges.

Many thanks to Mary for inspiring Daring Bakers everywhere this October!

Ciao!

For Mary’s original recipe for the Bostini Cream Pie, please click here.

To see what beautiful desserts the other Daring Bakers created, please visit the official Daring Bakers’ Blogroll.

Because I fiddled with the recipe quite a bit, here’s my version of the Bostini Cream Pie.

For the custard:

1/2 cup whole milk, at room temperature
1-1/2 tbsp. cornstarch
1 large egg, lightly beaten
4 egg yolks (reserve the egg whites for the cake)
2 cups less 1 tbsp, heavy whipping cream
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup plus 2 tsp. sugar

Mix together the milk and cornstarch in a bowl. Make sure there are no lumps.

Add the beaten egg and the yolks. Whisk until well mixed.

In a saucepan, heat the cream, vanilla extract and sugar. As soon as it comes to the boil, remove from the heat.

Carefully add a ladleful of the cream mixture to the egg mixture, whisking while you add it. (This is called tempering.)

Once mixed, pour the egg mixture into the saucepan with the remainder of the cream and whisk. Return to the heat.

Cook over medium heat until the mixture thickens so that it coats the back of a spoon (this means that when you drag your finger across the spoon, it leaves a trail).

Remove the custard from the heat and pour through a fine mesh sieve. Pour the custard into the molds or custard cups that you’re using. I used 4 6-inch ramekins and 4 2-inch ramekins.

For the chiffon cake:

3/4 cup cake and pastry flour
1/2 cup superfine sugar
3/4 tsp. baking powder
pinch of salt
1/2 cup less 1 tsp. canola oil
2 egg yolks
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
1 tbsp. grated orange zest
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
4 egg whites (use the reserved egg whites from the custard)
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Grease a half sheet pan (mine is 13 x 9 inches) and line with parchment paper. Grease the parchment paper and set the pan aside.

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

Add the oil, egg yolks, orange juice, orange zest and vanilla and stir until smooth.

Beat the egg whites until frothy. Add the cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks form. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter.

Spread the batter in the prepared pan. Bake for 18 minutes. The cake is done when it springs back lightly after being pressed with your finger.

Let cool on a wire rack before unmolding.

Flip the cake onto a large piece of waxed paper and peel off the parchment. Cut the cake into the appropriate sizes to fit your molds.

For the chocolate glaze:

2 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 ounces unsalted butter

In a small pan, melt the butter.

Add the chopped chocolate and stir until melted. Use immediately.

To assemble the dessert:

Cut out cake rounds to fit your molds. Place the rounds on the custard in each mold.

Top with chocolate glaze and serve.

Technorati tags: daring bakers, bostini cream pie

Mirror mirror upon the wall,

Who is the fairest of all?

Hmmm … good question. This is the question that all Daring Bakers attempted to answer this month as we tackled our latest challenge: Strawberry Mirror Cake. Our host for the month is the prolific, brilliant and talented Peabody of Culinary Concoctions by Peabody. Not only is Peabody one of my very favourite blog bakers, she’s also a kindred hockey spirit. Being a good Canadian girl, I know I can turn to her whenever I need comfort.

I’m a Leafs fan. Trust me. I need lots of comfort.

Anyway, back to the Strawberry Mirror Cake. Prior to this challenge, I’d never heard of a mirror cake. Some lightweight searching on Google didn’t reveal very much so I decided to just go ahead and jump in and not worry too much about the details.

The one good thing about waiting until the very last minute to complete these challenges is that I get to read about the experiences of other Daring Bakers on our private blog. In particular, Lisa and Helene provided some excellent guidance.

The mirror cake started with a very basic sponge cake made of eggs, flour, vanilla extract, cream of tartar and sugar. The cake was baked in a jelly roll pan. Once done, I cut out two 8-1/4 inch disks of cake and wet them with a simple syrup flavoured with Kirsch. Based on the end result, I suspect I did not wet the cakes enough as they were a bit dry.

Once the cake disks were ready, I began preparing the strawberry Bavarian cream that would be the “filling and frosting” of the cake so-to-speak. The Bavarian cream consisted of unflavoured gelatin, strawberry puree, egg yolks, sugar, milk, lemon juice, red food colouring and heavy cream. It took me awhile to make the cream because I first had to puree strawberries and strain them. Then, I found that it took quite a while for the strawberry base of the cream to thicken. I began to panic a bit so started to add more ice cubes to the bowl of ice water that the cream was sitting in. This backfired on me as all of a sudden, the strawberry cream thickened too much. I proceeded with the recipe and whipped some heavy cream, which I then folded into the strawberry base. But my sense from the recipe, and also from other bloggers, is that the Bavarian cream should have been a bit more “pourable”, whereas mine was like a frosting.

No worries, though. It still tasted good. I placed one cake disk in the bottom of a 10-inch springform pan and covered it with half of the Bavarian cream, making sure to fill in all the gaps in the pan. I topped with a second cake disk and spread the remaining cream over and around the cake disk. I then popped my creation into the refrigerator to sit overnight and set.

The next morning, I had some errands to run so I actually asked my mom to help me out by preparing the strawberry juice for the mirror part of the cake. What are moms for, after all?!

Essentially the strawberry juice involved cooking a heck of a lot of strawberries with water and sugar and then straining the end result. What you end up with is a lovely red juice that smells strongly of … what else … strawberries!

Making the mirror is actually quite easy as you combine the strawberry juice with unflavoured gelatin and place the mixture in a bowl of ice water to cool. Once it attains the thickness of syrup, you pour the mixture over the top of your set cake.

I actually found the mirror-making to be my favourite part of this cake. It was pretty cool to pour it over and then put it back in the refrigerator to set up. And it did look like a mirror!

After a few hours, it was time for the moment of truth and the unmolding of the cake. I followed the instructions very carefully and wrapped a hot towel around the pan for a few minutes. I also used a small knife with a hot blade (I kept running it under hot water) to carefully separate the mirror edge from the edges of the springform pan. When I felt confident, I released the springform and removed the ring. Surprisingly, it was quite easy.

I lifted the cake off the springform bottom (the recipe instructs you to wrap a cardboard round the same size as the pan bottom in foil and then put that on top of the pan bottom to make cake removal easier) and placed it on a cake plate. I didn’t want to overdue the decoration of the cake so I added a border of strawberries and mint and placed a flower in the middle.

So far, the cake looked pretty good.

But now came the taste test. Using a knife with a hot blade (kept running it under hot water), I cut a nice wedge from the cake. Once I cut into it and removed the edge, I must admit that appearance-wise it looked impressive.

So how did it taste?

Meh. It was okay. My cake layers looked pretty, but they were a bit on the dry side. I don’t think I wet them enough with the syrup. The Bavarian cream looked pretty as well, but to be honest, with all the strawberries we had to use, I thought there would have been a stronger berry flavour. I also don’t think it was sweet enough.

For me, the best part of the cake was the mirror. It looked pretty and eating it was certainly a different experience. It had a cool, gel-like texture and it was fun to see your reflection in the top of the cake!

Overall, the cake was enjoyed by all who tried it but not enthusiastically so. In many ways, I found this cake to be like Martha’s crepe cake, an awful lot of work and expense for a so-so result.

Still, though, it was nice to try something different. Thanks so much to Peabody for challenging us this month! Stay tuned to see what untravelled territories the Daring Bakers venture to next month …

Ciao!

For the recipe, you can see it listed on Peabody’s site.

To see what the other Daring Bakers did with this challenge, please visit our official blogroll!

Technorati tags: daring bakers, strawberries, mirror cake

When I made the beautiful lavender loaves using the lavender buds that Jasmine so graciously sent to me, I found myself in the strange position of not having anyone to share them with. It was a Saturday, no one was home, the neighbours had already been the beneficiaries of other baked goods from me earlier in the week and I didn’t think the loaves would stay fresh enough to be brought to work on the Monday.

Not wanting to waste the loaves, I let them sit on the counter for a day and then I did something I’ve never done before: I made trifle!

I sliced the loaves into thick slices and drizzled them with Grand Marnier. I let them sit for a few hours and then cubed them. I found our best glass bowl and began layering the cubed lavender cake with the leftover Rapid Chiboust from the Gâteau St. Honoré, which was the Daring Baker challenge for May. I topped the cream with strawberries that I had macerated in sugar, Grand Marnier, freshly squeezed orange juice and orange zest. I also drizzled more Grand Marnier over each layer of strawberries and sprinkled on a few lavender buds for good measure. To complete the trifle, I whipped up some heavy cream that I had in the refrigerator and piped it over the final layer of lavender cake. I sprinkled on more lavender buds, decorated the border of the trifle with raspberries and used some leftover spun sugar as a garnish.

I completely improvised my first trifle and it was fantastic! It was proof to me that you can take a few really good foods and put them together to make something profoundly delicious.

I hope you take the sun, the warm weather, the promise of a few days of relaxation ahead and put them all together to have a wonderful weekend!

Ciao!

Technorati tags: trifle, lavender

You may recall that a few months ago, the fearless Daring Bakers scaled Martha Stewart’s Crepe Cake Mountain.

We tamed the beast.

But having tamed it, a number of us decided that perhaps the beast wasn’t that scary after all. The general consensus at the time being that Martha’s cake was a tad disappointing. For myself, it turned out to be an awful lot of effort for so-so results.

There was, however, one positive thing to come of the whole excercise. On Martha Stewart’s site, there was a video link to a demonstration of the making of the crepe cake. During the demonstration, Martha explains that her version of the crepe cake is based on a very famous crepe cake from New York’s Lady M Cake Boutique.

After the letdown of the chocolate crepe cake, I went back to the video and watched it again. Intrigued by Lady M Cake Boutique, I googled the bakery and discovered that it’s quite famous, if a little mysterious.

As Web sites go, Lady M’s doesn’t tell you very much. It does, however, offer a most enticing view of the crepe cake for which it is famous.

So that’s what the real crepe cake looks like!

Hot on the trail of this cake, I did some more searching and came across an article by Amanda Hesser in the New York Times. An excellent article, it paints a most intriguing picture of Lady M Cake Boutique. And Cream Puff loves a mystery!

But bakery aside, what the article also does is provide a recipe for the Lady M Milles Crêpes™. (Yes. It’s trademarked.)

I’ll admit that I was skeptical. And a bit wary. Did I really want to use all those eggs not to mention time in pursuit of a crepe cake that could very well be just as disappointing as the first crepe cake I tried?

Hell yes!

I began by making the vanilla pastry cream filling so that it could chill overnight along with the crepe batter. I must say the filling was very straightforward. If you’ve ever made pastry cream before you should have no trouble with this one. It consisted of milk, vanilla, egg yolks, sugar, cornstarch and butter. So far, so good!

On to the crepe batter! Now I must tell you that I did have some assistance from Mama Cream Puff (she’s in Italy right now and we miss her so) with the crepe batter. Mama Cream Puff prepared the batter during the afternoon (while Cream Puff was work) so that it could sit in the refrigerator overnight, as required by the recipe. The crepe batter consists of butter, milk, eggs, flour, sugar and a bit of salt.

A bit nervous at how smoothly things were going, I got up the following morning to make the crepes and I was immediately suspicious. The batter looked a bit on the thin side.

Hmmmm.

But Mama Cream Puff assured me that she followed the directions exactly so I shrugged and carried on.

While a few crepes (at the beginning) suffered tragically short lives and had to be put out of their misery in the food recycling bin, I quickly got the hang of it and discovered that while the batter was thin, it created lovely crepes. I had to be careful because they were a bit on the delicate side, but in no time at all I had about 30 beautiful crepes (you need 20 to make the crepes cake).

Somewhat amazed at how quickly things were proceeding, I decided to carpe diem and put that baby together! I added whipped cream and kirsch to the pastry cream, took out my nicest cake stand and began building.

You know what. It was pretty easy!

The crepes were delicate and very flat, which made spreading the pastry cream simple. The pastry cream was most spreadable and most delicious as I found it quite difficult not to suck up as much as I was spreading onto the crepes.

And before I knew it, I had a crepe cake!

I refrigerated it as directed and was very patient, which is not like me but I didn’t want all this effort to go to waste. Finally, later that day, I unveiled the crepe cake, which I’d garnished with some red currants that I had in the freezer from last year’s crop. I’d also bruleed the top crepe as the recipe suggests. Hey, any chance I have to use my kitchen blowtorch, I’m there!

The moment of truth was when I cut into the cake and served it.

It was incredible! It was easy to slice and serve and the taste was unbelievable. Everyone loved it and I knew right then and there that I would be making this dessert for Christmas Day!

Flushed with success, I thought of my Daring Bakers and all the struggles over Martha’s cake (which … pardon my ineloquence … truly sucks by comparison) and I shed a tear.

Okay, that’s not really true. I didn’t shed a tear but I did smile because I’d found the real crepe cake. The one that kicks Martha’s crepe cake’s ass!

Ciao!

The Real Crepe Cake
(Same recipe as the one from the New York Times but with a few minor liberties.)

For the crêpes batter:

6 tablespoons butter
3 cups milk
6 eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
7 tbsp. sugar
Pinch salt
vegetable oil

The day before serving the cake, make the crepe batter and the pastry cream. For the batter, cook the butter in a small pan until brown like hazelnuts. Set aside. In another small pan, heat the milk until steaming; allow to cool for 10 minutes. In a mixer on medium-low speed, beat together the eggs, flour, sugar and salt. Slowly add the hot milk and browned butter. Pour into a container with a spout, cover and refrigerate overnight.

To make the crepes, bring the batter to room temperature. Place a nonstick or seasoned 9-inch crepe pan over medium heat. Swab the surface with the oil, then add about 3 tablespoons batter and swirl to cover the surface. Cook until the bottom just begins to brown, about 1 minute, then carefully lift an edge and flip the crepe with your fingers. Cook on the other side for no longer than 5 seconds. Flip the crepe onto a baking sheet lined with parchment. Repeat until you have 20 perfect crepes.

For the vanilla pastry cream:

2 cups milk
1 tbsp. vanilla extract
6 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch, sifted
3 1/2 tbsp. butter

Bring the milk to a boil. Turn off the heat and stir in the vanilla extract then set aside for 10 minutes. Fill a large bowl with ice and set aside a small bowl that can hold the finished pastry cream and be placed in this ice bath.

In a medium heavy-bottomed pan, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar and cornstarch. Gradually whisk in the hot milk, then place pan over high heat and bring to a boil, whisking vigorously for 1 to 2 minutes. Press the pastry cream through a fine-meshed sieve into the small bowl. Set the bowl in the ice bath and stir until the temperature reaches 140 degrees on an instant-read thermometer. Stir in the butter. When completely cool, cover and refrigerate.

To assemble the cake:

2 cups heavy cream
1 tablespoon sugar
3 tablespoons Kirsch
icing sugar (optional)

Whip the heavy cream with the tablespoon sugar and the Kirsch. It won’t hold stiff peaks but that’s okay. Fold it into the pastry cream.

Lay 1 crepe on a cake plate. Using an icing spatula, completely cover with a thin layer of pastry cream (about 1/4 cup). Cover with a crepe and repeat to make a stack of 20, with the best-looking crepe on top. Chill for at least 2 hours. Set out for 30 minutes before serving. If you have a blowtorch for creme brulee, sprinkle the top crepe with 2 tablespoons sugar and caramelize with the torch; otherwise, dust with confectioners’ sugar. Slice like a cake.

Batter adapted from ”Joy of Cooking.” Pastry cream adapted from ”Desserts,” by Pierre Herme and Dorie Greenspan. Serves 10.

Technorati tags: crepes, crepe cake, lady m cake boutique

When I was a very little girl, I had a fascination with the airport. My parents would take me to Toronto’s Pearson International Airport and park on the top level so that I could watch the planes take off. Maybe it’s because our house is so close to the airport, but I always loved looking up into the sky and watching the planes fly by.

Now that I’m older, airports still have a strange pull. I love the idea of departing; going somewhere else. Somewhere new. And yet it’s always a bit sad and not just when you return from a vacation. There’s an inherenet loneliness to airports. So many people, so many faces that you’ll rush by in a second and never see again.

It’s bittersweet.

On Tuesday, I brought my mother to the airport for her flight to Italy and as soon as I set foot in the terminal, that feeling of wanting to be somewhere else washed over me.

As we stood in the slowly moving line, amongst so many people getting ready to visit Italy, I kept hearing snippets of conversations. People talked about how long they’d been in Canada and who they were going back to visit. People talked about what part of Italy they were from and where they were born. They talked about how long it had been since their last visit and how long they would stay.

And for most of them, I could tell that there was a sense of eagerness not just for travel, but to return to what is their spiritual home, if not their real home.

For my mother, it’s a return to my father. My mother’s family is all in Canada yet my father’s family is all in Italy. So she goes there to stay with her sisters-in-law and her brothers-in-law. She goes there to soak in the place where my father was born. She goes to our little itty bitty house there that has been slowly and painstakingly repaired.

When my mother had finally checked in, I walked her to the Gate and saw her off. Her last words to me were, “Take care of my little tomato plants.”

In the middle of an airport, it all comes back to what really counts … tomato plants and a trip to somewhere else.

Safe passage to travellers everywhere.

Ciao!

Rose Meringues
Adapted from Tea Party by Tracy Stern.

Note: I’ve never made pavlova before so I consider this to be the first step on my way to that most noble of desserts. Basically you’re looking at a 1/4 of sugar per egg white. It sounds like a lot but surprisingly the meringues do not end up overly sweet. If you don’t have rosewater, use another flavouring like vanilla extract. You can bake the meringues several days ahead and store them in an airtight container. It’s best to make the strawberry cream the same day that you serve these. Don’t assemble these until just before serving.

I made these because they reminded me of being in a plane looking at the clouds.

For the meringues:

4 egg whites
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. rosewater (optional)

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. Line two sheet pans with parchment paper.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites and the rosewater together gradually adding the sugar until you have a very stiff mixture. The egg whites should hold stiff peaks when you pull the whisk out.

With a tablespoon, drop the mixture onto the baking sheets in large mounds (about 2 inches in size). Be careful not to crowd the mounds together. (You can also use a piping bag to do this).

Bake for an hour, or until the meringues have dried and are not sticky to the touch. They will be slightly golden on top and around the edges. Be careful not to burn them.

Remove from the oven and let them cool completely.

For the strawberry cream:

1 cup heavy cream
1 pint strawberries or other berries
1 tbsp. icing sugar
1 tsp. rosewater

In a blender, combine one third of the strawberries with the icing sugar and rosewater. Blend until smooth.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the whipping cream until very thick and stiff.

Fold the strawberry mixture into the whipped cream.

To assemble:

Once the meringues have cooled, spoon a generous dollop of the strawberry cream onto each meringue. Top with the remaining sliced strawberries and serve.

Technorati tags: meringues, rosewater, strawberries

After the excitement of baking for a bridal shower at the beginning of May, I could not have possibly imagined what was to happen next. I was barely over the high of baking (and being paid for it) when I had what I consider to be an opportunity of a lifetime.

I had lunch with Dorie Greenspan.

Dorie is the author of many incredible cookbooks including Baking with Julia, Paris Sweets and the recently pubished Baking: From My Home to Yours. In April, Dorie was awarded the James Beard Foundation award in the Baking and Dessert category, and deservedly so.

Dorie was in Toronto for the Santé: The Bloor-Yorkville Wine Festival. As soon as Dorie e-mailed me to let me know that she’d be in town, I knew I had to make time to meet with her.

After a few e-mails, we agreed to meet at the Avenue bar and lounge in the Four Seasons Hotel for lunch. I arrived early and chose a table by the window. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous. I fidgeted in the chair and kept fussing with my top. I looked at the menu. I looked outside. I tried to imagine what it would be like saying hello to Dorie.

And then there she was. And the very first thing she did was give me a huge hug. Within seconds, I felt like I’d known Dorie forever. She is as sweet and charming in person as she is in her cookbooks.

Over the course of almost two hours, we talked about everything from living in Paris to creating recipes. With a wonderful sense of humour, Dorie imparted so much wonderful advice and encouragement. I told her about the Daring Bakers and how much baking meant to me.

I find myself at a point in my baking where I’m trying to figure out how to create recipes of my own, but I don’t want to fail. Dorie very wisely pointed out that it’s okay to try something and chuck it if it doesn’t work out. It was a liberating piece of advice! I was amazed by Dorie. Her energy and her presence were infectious.

Best of all, Dorie signed my copy of Paris Sweets, a book that I hold most dear!

But before I knew it, I had to return to work. I would have loved to have spent the rest of the afternoon with Dorie and walked over to The Cookbook Store. Gracious as ever, Dorie sent me on my way with another hug and a smile.

As I made my way back to work, I could hardly believe that I’d just had lunch with Dorie Greenspan. When I got back to work, a number of my colleagues were eagerly awaiting the details as I’d told them about the lunch. I got to relive it all and it was no less exciting and unbelievable.

In the days that followed, as I reflected on Dorie’s words, I had this overwhelming urge to bake for her. That may sound silly, but baking is the best way I know to share my appreciation. I have a little theory that we bakers share a generosity gene and I think Dorie proves that. Her selflessness, her willingness to share what she knows and give advice, I think it’s all because of that little bit of baking DNA!

For Dorie, I decided to bake one of my most favourite little treats. They’re called Pasticcioni (plump pastries) and are from Viana La Place’s dear, sweet cookbook, La Bella Cucina. They’re plump little cakes filled with a dollop of pastry cream and baked. While the original recipe advises to eat them while warm or the day that they’re baked, I actually like them if they’re a few days old. They’re lovely dipped in espresso and then bitten into to find the pastry secret inside. Sometimes, I also like to tuck a perfect blueberry or raspberry inside each one as a little treat.

Technorat tags: dorie greenspan, paris sweets

It was bound to happen. It was only a matter of time before the Daring Bakers adopted a patron saint.

Saint Honoratus of Amiens was a bishop of the town of Amiens, located in the North of France. He is believed to have died on May 16th, 600 A.D. While it doesn’t appear that Saint Honoratus was into making panna cottas and baking pavlovas, those that followed him did build a church in his name. In 1400, the bakers of Paris created a guild based in the church named after Saint Honoratus. Every May 16th, a feast was held in his honour and to this day, May 16th remains Saint Honoré Day. But perhaps even more than the day, Saint Honoré is known for the cake named for him: Gâteau St. Honoré.

After last month’s crepe cake, the hosting duties for the Daring Baker monthly challenge fell to Helene of Tartelette and Anita of Dessert First, both very accomplished followers of St. Honoré. Accordingly, they chose to challenge the Daring Bakers to bake the very famous gâteau.

When I first learned of the challenge for May, I ran to my room, hid under the covers and immediately began praying to St. Honoré himself for strength. This cake, you must understand, is made of some very lofty elements. To begin with, you have puff pastry.

That’s homemade puff pastry.

The puff pastry is followed by a pastry cream, which is then followed by cream puffs. While pastry cream and cream puffs may not be so bad, did I mention that there’s homemade puff pastry?

Oh, yes. For good measure, throw in a bit of caramel.

But St. Honoré must have felt that I was worthy because he sent some inspiration. Surely, I can do this. I’ve made croissants from scratch for heaven’s sake! So I printed the recipe, read it through, felt better and then promptly forgot about it for three weeks. But Saturday morning, I awoke and immediately began to worry … and pray. A recipe that had seemed straightforward and manageable three weeks earlier, was suddenly quite daunting.

So let’s begin at the beginning.

I started with the puff pastry, which involved making a dough and then preparing a butter packet. I have decided that I very much like butter packets and that if someone wanted to give me the gift of a butter packet, I would consider it a great gift.

But back to the puff pastry.

After enclosing my butter packet in the dough, I began the process of rolling and turning. Turning the puff pastry dough means rolling it out to a certain length and width (20 inches by 9 inches), and then folding the dough up in thirds, the way you would fold a letter. The seam of the letter will be facing you. After refrigerating the dough to let the butter cool down a bit, you remove the dough and begin rolling it out again with the seam facing to the right. That’s called a turn.

After repeating that process five times, I had a rather lovely (if I may say so myself) packet of puff pastry, which I left in the refrigerator overnight.

Before going to bed, I also decided to get a start on the cream filling for the gâteau. Helene and Anita chose what is called Rapid Chiboust or Diplomat Cream. I have no idea why it’s called that but I have to say I found the Rapid Chiboust name very entertaining.

Every time someone asked me what I was doing I barked, “Do not bother me! I’m making Rapid Chiboust!” We Daring Bakers have to amuse ourselves somehow!

Any way, the cream was quite easy to pull together. It involved combining sugar, flour, salt, egg yolks, vanilla extract and whipping cream to which was added unflavoured gelatin. Just before filling the cream puffs and spreading the cream on the gâteau, I added stiffly beaten egg whites.

Allow me to say that this cream was divine! I had a lot left over, which I was sorely tempted to eat with a spoon!

On the morning that I was ready to assemble and bake the gâteau (okay I’m not kidding anyone … it was this morning), I divided my puff pastry packet in half and rolled that half into a 12-inch square. From that 12-inch square I cut out four 6-inch circles. While the circles chilled in the refrigerator, I made the pâte à choux and this is where I encountered my first problem.

Clearly I had angered St. Honoré because I ended up having to throw out my first batch of pâte à choux and make a second one. When I make cream puffs, I’m used to mixing butter, water and salt and letting it come to a boil. I then add flour, all at once, and begin mixing together the ingredients to form the dough. This particular pâte à choux recipe requires that the flour be added slowly. I ended up with a lot of lumps, which I had to try to smush with a wooden spoon.

I hate smushing.

To make matters worse, because the quantity of eggs listed in the ingredients list was shown as “1 cup of eggs or 240 ml of eggs”, against my better judgement I ended up beating eggs and actually measuring out the liquid amount. I was so flustered about this that I didn’t read the instructions properly and poured in all of the liquid at once. The eggs are to be added one at a time, which posed a bit of a problem in that it wasn’t clear how many eggs were required. Needless to say I ended up with a liquidy mushy mess, which I very gladly dumped in the food bin.

After starting again, I decided to add the eggs individually and beat the mixture until it looked like thickened mayonnaise (as the directions indicate). I actually only used 3 eggs and the pâte à choux looked great.

Moving on to the assembly of the gâteau, I piped four rings of pâte à choux onto the puff pastry circles and used the rest to make little cream puffs. This is where I made my second mistake. The recipe indicated that we should pipe four concentric rings on the puff pastry.

Now when the Cream Puff hears the word “concentric”, for some reason she thinks of math and the Cream Puff was never very good at math. From reading other Daring Bakers’ posts, I gather that what I was supposed to do is pipe four rings with pâte à choux leaving a gap between each ring so that the pastry cream could then fall into the gaps. I didn’t do this.

Hey. I wasn’t good at math alright!

I piped the rings so that they touched each other and was left with a border all around the edge of the puff pastry circle. I didn’t realize my error until after the puff pastry and cream puffs were baked so at that point I realized I’d have to do some improvising with either the pastry cream or some whipped cream.

Mistake aside, I was delighted with how the puff pastry circles baked up as well as the cream puffs. While I think I made my cream puffs a bit too small, they were a lovely colour and the puff pastry was, if I may say so myself, just gorgeous!

After letting everything cool down, I filled my cream puffs with the Rapid Chiboust (never get tired of saying that) and then spread as much of it as I could on the puff pastry rounds. Unfortunately because of the way that I piped the pâte à choux on, I couldn’t get a lot of cream on there or it would fall over the sides. This is likely why I had so much pastry cream left over.

Oh, well. Live and learn!

I placed everything in the refrigerator for a few hours and then finally set about the process of gilding the cream puffs with caramel. I’ve made caramel many times before and I’ve always made it the same way. I’ve cooked a bit of water with sugar until a molten liquid develops and it turns the shade that I’m looking for. In this case, the recipe indicated that we should just cook sugar in a pot.

I had some difficulty with this method as it seemed that the sugar turned dark right away. I frantically started stirring it so that it wouldn’t burn but then it clumped up. I had to add a bit of water to help it along. While this was very quick, I disliked not having the control over how dark the caramel turns as I do when I follow my usual method.

All in all, though, the caramel worked out well and dipping the cream puffs in the caramel was fun. Once done, I used the extra caramel to drizzle over the cream puffs and to attempt to make some spun sugar.

To assemble, I began by piping whipped cream sweetened with sugar all around the edge of the puff pastry (that had no pâte à choux on it). I followed this by piping larger rosettes on top of the pastry cream. I set one cream puff in each of the large rosettes. I also piped rosettes around the base of the gâteau. I garnished with more cream puffs and also with raspberries. I dropped a few raspberries into the centre of the gâteau (on the pastry cream) and topped with some of the spun sugar.

I was very happy with the end result, my mistakes notwithstanding. I thought my little cakes looked very elegant. As I stood back and surveyed my work, I felt that all the effort was worth it. I’m already looking forward to trying the gâteau again very soon.

I’d like to thank Helene and Anita for pushing the Daring Bakers to even greater heights this month. This challenge was stressful, tiring and complicated. I had to sand blast my kitchen counter to get rid of the hardened caramel and I somehow managed to get pastry cream into every tile groove and cranny. But it was all worth it.

Clearly my prayers were answered.

Ciao!

Note: Helene and Anita have decided to post a round up of the Daring Bakers’ accomplishments this month. They’ve divided the group so that they will each list links to half of the Daring Baker blogs so be sure to check in with them regularly to see what everyone else has done. For the recipe, you can also visit Helene’s blog as she has kindly listed it.

One more thing, membership for the Daring Bakers is closed for the month of June. So many of you have e-mailed us asking to join that we’ve had to close the doors. But for those of you that do want to join, don’t worry, July membership is open. If you’re interested, send an e-mail to my lovely co-founder Lisa (tesla67@roadrunner.com) of La Mia Cucina or to me (imellozzi@sympatico.ca).

Technorati tags: gateau st. honore, st. honore, puff pastry, cream puffs, caramel, daring bakers

Move over, Martha. The Daring Bakers are claiming your territory!

Well, perhaps we’re not quite claiming your territory but we are all over a dessert you showcased. And it’s a good thing too as judging by my own experience and that of most of the other Daring Bakers, your recipe could do with a bit of help.

As many of you know, back in November Lis of La Mia Cucina and I decided to challenge ourselves to bake (or create) foods that we would normally not try. Since November, the little group that we affectionately named The Daring Bakers has grown to close to thirty members!

Each month our challenges have been exciting and we have been pushed to try new recipes and expand our creativity. But along with the growth spurt we’ve had some growing pains. Voting on our monthly challenge became a bit of a headache due to the number of people involved. As a result, we made a decision to move to a hosted event. Part of the duties of being hostess (or host) is that you must choose a challenge for the month, supply the recipe (and post the recipe on your own blog) and pick a date for the challenge.

The April edition of The Daring Bakers features Brilynn of Jumbo Empanadas as hostess. Brilynn had her eye on a Martha Stewart confection called Darkest Chocolate Crepe Cake. Martha’s own creation is based on a famous crepe cake from the New York bakery, Lady M Cake Boutique.

This particular dessert consists of four components:  crepes, filling, glaze and decoration. While I have some experience with crepes, I was very intrigued by the idea of making chocolate crepes, which I’d never done before. The crepe batter, which included semisweet chocolate, was fairly straightforward to pull together. As I went to actually cook the crepes, however, I was a bit concerned as I know that some of my fellow Daring Bakers had experienced some difficulties.

While the first few crepes had their lives tragically cut short after tearing and generally not cooking properly, I found the rest of the crepes easier to produce. The only drawback to this part of the recipe was that it took so very long to make the crepes. This was partly my fault as I decided to make mini crepes. After some research, I "invested" in a $9 egg fry pan that has the most adorable handle ever! I don’t usually eat a lot of fried eggs but the pan was so cute that I couldn’t resist.

While the crepes were good, I didn’t find anything particularly exciting about them. So I looked to the filling to offer the pizazz factor for this dessert.

I studied the recipe for the filling in the original but knew right away that I didn’t want to make it. Have you ever looked at a recipe and thought, "You know what. I just don’t want to go to the trouble"? That’s precisely how I felt when I looked at the filling recipe. Did I really want to buy Hazelnut Cream? Did I really want to use six egg whites? Did I really want to use almost a pound of butter just for a filling? For some reason I just felt uninspired by the filling and decided it just wasn’t worth using up precious butter.

Instead, I decided to go the simple route by spreading Nutella on the crepes. I figure you just can’t go wrong with Nutella! After having filled and built my little crepe cakes, I put them in the refrigerator to set. While they rested, I made the chocolate glaze. This particular glaze was quite easy to make and definitely good, but again, there wasn’t anything spectacular about it. It had a great pour quality that definitely covered a multitude of crepe sins, but other than that it was your average chocolate glaze.

For some strange reason, the further into the recipe I got the less interested I felt.

The final step before putting it all together was the decoration. The original recipe includes instructions on how to make candied hazelnuts with a decorative effect. Initially I wasn’t going to make these as it seemed a lot of trouble, but I changed my mind. I reminded myself that part of being a Daring Baker is pushing yourself so I went ahead with caramelizing the hazelnuts. I’m glad I changed my mind. The hazelnuts were probably my favourite part of the recipe. I would be lying if I said it wasn’t great fun creating strings of caramel sugar all over the kitchen.

The fun of the hazelnuts aside, at this point I was just eager to put the cake together and see the final result (and get it over with). I cloaked the crepe cakes in the chocolate glaze and let them set for a few minutes before transferring the cakes to a serving dish and then finally cutting into one of them.

The cakes were sweet with a nice touch of hazelnut from the Nutella. And the caramel decorations were a big hit. However, if I were to make this again, I think I would make a cream filling. As good as the Nutella was, I think some creaminess would have helped to lighten the cake just a bit.

But to be very honest with you, I just don’t see myself making this particular crepe cake again. It was uninspiring. It tasted alright, but the taste doesn’t match the visual appeal of the cake. It’s hard to put my finger on it, but the end result just didn’t live up to the hype.

Having said that, my Daring Bakers have all acquitted themselves admirably. In fact quite a few of them have given Martha a run for her money! To see what incredible confections the other Daring Bakers produced, you can check their blogs by clicking on the links under The Daring Bakers category in the sidebar to the right of this page.

And stay tuned … The Daring Bakers will be back for more next month!

Ciao!

Note:  For those of you interested in trying this dessert, there is a video demonstration that you can watch from the Martha Stewart site.

Technorati tags: crepes, crepe cake, daring bakers

What is this blog about if not the love of all things sweet?

This would explain the warming of my Cream Puff heart when Meeta announced that the theme for her popular Monthly Mingle (round 7!) was Sweet Love. Ah, yes. Bring on the sweets.

It’s almost unseemly that so soon after the holidays I already find myself back in the midst of boxes of chocolate, imagining all the sweet treats I’d bake if only I had the time. But that is in fact the case.

I think it speaks to the nature of this month, and not just because Valentine’s Day is smack in the middle of February. I think it has more to do with the cold, long nights … all those hours between dinner and bedtime. What better way to spend them than baking scores of delicacies in the imaginary kitchen in your mind?

When I imagine the sweets that I would like to bake, there’s always one that makes a repeat appearance in my baking fantasies:  coeur à la crème.

French in origin, coeur à la crème means "heart of cream." A classic dessert, it’s components are simple and sublime. I’m not sure what it would have been made with when it was first created, perhaps fresh cheese, but most recipes today call for a mixture of cream cheese and either heavy cream our sour cream. Most recipes also feature the ever-important vanilla bean.

The dessert’s signature is that it’s traditionally made in a heart-shaped mold. The cream mixture is packed into a mold lined with cheesecloth, and then allowed to rest in a cold spot for many hours. Once unmolded, you’re left with a beautiful, creamy dessert that is simplicity at its very best. It’s usually accompanied by a berry sauce.

I’ve wanted to make coeur à la crème for so long, but I could never find the right mold. I know you can make it any container that has holes that will allow water to seep out, but I just wouldn’t settle for anything less than a porcelain heart of my own!

The baking gods smiled down on me for a few months ago, I found the very mold I’d been looking for. When Meeta announced Monthly Mingle #7, I knew right away that my coeur à la crème dream would finally come true.

For the recipe, I turned to Ina Garten’s Barefoot in Paris. The preparation was a breeze. I mixed cream cheese, icing sugar, lemon zest, the seeds of a vanilla bean and heavy cream together until I had a thick mixture. I lined my mold with paper towel and then packed in the cream cheese mixture. I rested my little heart in the refrigerator overnight, where a bit of water from the cheese drained out.

The following day I unmolded my little cheese heart and avoided the overwhelming urge to dig right in. As an accompaniment, I decided to make my own dulce de leche by boiling a can of sweetened condensed milk for two hours. Once cool, the milk had turned into a lovely caramel-coloured spread which I used to drizzle on the serving plate, as well as the heart itself.

But I also wanted something with colour. Since raspberries aren’t in season, a raspberry sauce was out of the question. Instead, I made use of the currants that I collected during the summer from our currant bushes. I cooked the currants with sugar and powdered pectin to form a lovely glaze. Unfortunately, I overcooked the glaze slightly so it was a bit difficult to drizzle, but still, the end result was lovely.

This dessert was out of this world! Light and fresh, we had no difficulties polishing off the entire heart. And the dulce de leche and currant glaze went very nicely with the dessert.

What can I say? Sweet Love is glorious, especially when some long-held dessert dreams get to come true. So go ahead. Bite me!

Ciao!

Note:  For the dulce de leche, I removed the label from a can of sweetened condensed milk. I placed the can on its side in a pot, and covered it with cold water. The water should cover the can by at least an inch. I brought the water to a boil and then lowered the heat so that the water remained at a gentle simmer. I simmered the can of sweetened condensed milk for 2 hours. I then turned off the heat and left the can in the water until it had cooled to room temperature. At that point I opened the can, scooped the contents into a container and refrigerated it overnight. I have made dulce de leche in this manner on many occasions and never encountered any problems. However, if you do try it, I urge you to be careful as any time you have canned goods that are heated, there are some risks involved.

Technorati tags:  monthly mingle, valentine’s day, coeur a la creme

One of the (few) advantages of being late for a food blog event is that you get to enjoy the efforts of other food bloggers long before you have to worry about your own post. I am glad to see that the world is indeed in love with what I like to refer to as Hazelnut Gold, otherwise known as Nutella.

As for my own post, let’s just say that I’m fashionably late for World Nutella Day hosted by Sara of Ms. Adventures in Italy and Shelley of At Home in Rome. Better late than never is what I say.

Having read so many of the entries about World Nutella Day, I think we’ve pretty much covered the history/origins/significance of Nutella to food bloggers and the world at large. There is, however, one crucial bit of Nutella lore that has not been covered.

It is the age-old Nutella question:  do you spread with a knife or a spoon?

There are very few things that will get me as worked up as this little query. And while I realize that a knife is featured oh-so-prominently on the label of Nutella jars, I can say beyond the shadow of a doubt that Nutella is to be spread with a spoon.

Never, ever use a knife! Never! The only reason there’s a knife on the label is that on the particular day the photo was taken, there were no spoons. Perhaps it was during the year of the Great Italian Spoon Shortage. I don’t know. What I do know, is that to use a knife to spread Nutella, is to sink a knife deep into the heart of Cream Puff.

And why would you want to hurt Cream Puff?

Nutella should always be spread with a spoon. Using a knife is an indication of stinginess of spirit. I mean how much Nutella can you possibly pile on to the thin blade of a knife?

A spoon is a different story. You can sink it deeply into the jar and with a gentle twist of the wrist you can scoop up a glorious creamy mound of the stuff. Then, slowly, you bring the spoon to a waiting slice of bread. You begin by smearing on as much of the Nutella as you can. Of course some of it will be caught in the spoon’s gentle indentation.

This brings me to what I call the Moment of Nutella Thrill, for now you have a choice. You can either pop the spoon in  your mouth and enjoy the appetizer to your Nutella sandwich. Or, you can use the corner of the bread to scoop out the bit of Nutella that remains in the spoon. Either way, you’ll feel that little thrill as the moment of Nutella consumption is near.

So please, put away the knives and embrace the spoons.

Happy belated World Nutella Day!

Ciao!

Technorati tags:  nutella, world nutella day

I’ve always counted myself lucky that I grew up in a family of passionate home bakers. As far back as I can remember, I’ve been acquainted with the rituals of turning out cookies, cakes and various other sweets for all sorts of holidays and special occasions, or simply for a special treat to enjoy with an afternoon espresso. Having started to bake at a young age, I’ve overcome the fear of pie dough and choux pastry never really phased me much. I am a Cream Puff, after all.

In my own personal quest as a home baker, the holy grail has always been croissants. Now that’s scary! Words like "quarter turn" and "lamination" never failed to send a chill down my spine any time I even entertained the idea of trying croissants at home. But as with all epic battles, sooner or later you just know you’re going to be facing your enemy on the battlefield. In this case, the battlefield being your basic home kitchen.

Two recent developments gave me cause for hope in this Cream Puff versus croissants battle. The first was that in my Breakfast Breads course last fall, we made croissants in class. Under the supervision of a great instructor, and with the support of classmates, I survived my very first attempt at making these buttery pastries. The second development was that Brilynn, the funny and brilliant mind behind Jumbo Empanadas, suggested that the try their hand at croissants for January’s baking challenge.

For those of you who don’t know, the Little-Baking-Group-That-Could started with Lisa of La Mia Cucina and myself when we challenged each other to bake pretzels in November 2006. Our next challenge happened in December when we baked biscotti. Besides Brilynn, our little group had grown to include Peabody of Culinary Concoctions by Peabody and Helene of Tartelette. This time around, we’ve been joined by Jenny of All Things Edible and Veronica of Veronica’s Test Kitchen. Surely, with the help of my blogging friends, I could finally wrap my hands around the holiest of baking holy grails!

Once we’d agreed on croissants, the next thing we needed was a recipe. I’d recently become the owner of Tartine, a book by the owners of Tartine Bakery in San Francisco. Filled with the most delightful recipes for pastries, desserts and savoury treats, we figured we’d roll up our sleeves and make like real pastry chefs.

So last Friday night, I began what would become a three-day odyssey into the world of butter, yeast, flour, rolling pin and a serious lack of upper body strength on my part. It all started with the creation of a "preferment" on Friday night. The preferment acts as the starter for the croissant dough. It consisted of flour, yeast and water. After being allowed to rise for several hours, the result was a puffy, spongy mass that smelled strongly of yeast.

Once the preferment was ready, it was time to create the dough, which would be the base of the croissant recipe. In my stand mixer, I combined the preferment, milk, flour, more yeast, sugar and salt. I was completely unprepared for the stiff dough that resulted from this mixture. It was so stiff that my trusty Kitchen Aid actually stopped working twice. I had to reset the machine and help it along by punching down the dough with my hands every now and then. I briefly entertained the idea of kneading the dough by hand, but I knew that my wimpy, pastry-cream filled arms would be no match. Instead, I continued with the mixer, adding a bit of milk to loosen the dough, all the while praying that my Kitchen Aid wouldn’t blow up. After letting the dough rest for 20 minutes and then mixing again, I finally had a ball of dough that was ready for its first rise.

For an hour and a half, the dough sat covered in a bowl while I petted my Kitchen Aid mixer, promising never to put it through such hardships again. After the rest, the dough was popped into the refrigerator to continue rising for four to six hours.

Because of my busy weekend, I had no choice but to complete the croissant dough by staying up Friday night and waking up early on Saturday morning. So at about 4:00 a.m. on Saturday, I got up to begin the process of laminating the croissant dough. Laminating the dough means adding butter to the dough and then folding it several times so that the butter is distributed throughout the dough. This process is what creates the precious layers of butter and dough.

My refrigerated dough had grown quite a bit during its five-hour rest. Having heard from Brilynn, who had already baked her croissants, and looking at the size of the dough compared to my very limited kitchen counter space, I decided to divide the dough in half. Rather than dealing with one massively huge rectangle of dough, I only had to deal with two easier-to-handle rectangles. I rolled out my dough to roughly 14 x 6 inches and then divided almost three cups of butter between both rectangles. The butter was dotted over two-thirds of the dough. I then folded up the rectangles, business-letter style and turned the dough clockwise, a quarter of a turn. I immediately rolled out the dough again, and once again folded it up in thirds. At this point, it was time to refrigerate the dough because the butter was beginning to soften. The last thing you want is for your butter to get too soft and begin leaking out of your dough. So back into the refrigerator went the dough for an hour and a half.

After that time had elapsed, I once again rolled out both pieces of dough into 14 x 6 rectangles. The recipe called for the dough to be rolled and folded three times, but in my baking class, we’d rolled and folded our croissant dough four times. I figured it wouldn’t hurt so I went for the fourth turn. At that point my croissant dough was ready, however, I was not ready to bake it. So I froze both pieces of dough, in anticipation of baking them on Sunday morning. Saturday night, before going to bed, I removed the dough from the freezer and put it back in the refrigerator to thaw out.

At 5:30 on Sunday morning, I hauled my Cream Puffiness out of bed to begin, thankfully, the final phase of my quest. Deciding to make mini croissants, I divided each piece of dough into two, so I had four lengths of dough. I cut three of the lengths into triangles and rolled my croissants.

I cut the fourth length of dough into smaller rectangles and filled them with pieces of Lindt chocolate. The croissants then had to proof for about two hours, before they were finally ready to bake.

After a brush of egg wash, into the oven they went for roughly 20 minutes. By this point, I was a wreck. I was tired, my muscles were sore from rolling the dough and the kitchen was a total mess.

But the winds of victory came blowing into the kitchen and I was refreshed! The smell of butter, a lot of butter, wafted through the air and I began to see victory on the horizon. While I was concerned about the fact that it seemed butter was melting out of the dough and pooling on the baking sheets, my croissants rose beautifully and turned a gorgeous golden brown.

After removing them from the oven, I picked a few up and they were light as a feather, a sign that they had baked through. I pulled one apart to reveal a gorgeous interior filled with air pockets. And then I bit one. Pure crispy butter heaven! A bit on the salty side, but still, they were delicious.

So was it worth it? The scars, the mess, the sleeplessness, the stress … was it all worth it in the name of croissants?

I would have to say yes. In the end, I’m glad that we did try this. And while I will not be trying croissant dough any time soon, at least I can say I cracked The Croissants Code.

I just wonder who’s going to play us in the movie version???

Ciao!

Check out the posts of my bakers-in-crime:

Brilynn:  I Also Like Butter

Peabody:  @#%^&*%$^& Croissants 

Lisa:  What Does a Lot of Dough + A LOT of Butter + 183 E-Mails Make?

Helene:  I Think I Read Wrong … Croissants?

Jenny:  Happy Croissant Day!

Veronica:  My Attempt to Make Croissants …

Technorati tags:  croissants

I just love surprises! The thrill. The anticipation. The agony of wanting to know. When Alanna of A Veggie Venture announced that the theme for SHF #23 would be "The Surprise Inside", I smiled.

I smiled a secret, Mona Lisa smile. And then I began to plan.

This particular SHF was most challenging for me because I knew I wouldn’t be able to bake. Instead, I hit the books, so to speak, for a surprising sweet that didn’t require the use of an oven. I contemplated many options in my cookbook travels, and yet it seemed like every place I stopped I wasn’t inspired.

Determined, I once again turned to my beloved cookbooks knowing that one of them would surely give me what I was looking for. And as always happens, they came through for me! In this case, it was a former Flavour of the Month that did it. Janie Hibler’s The Berry Bible was a book that I featured in August 2006. While I did share a few recipes with you, I didn’t delve that deeply into the book (it was a busy month) and I certainly didn’t close the loop by sharing my feelings on the book with you.

The Berry Bible is a thorough and accessible tribute to berries of all sorts. In fact, it’s downright amazing in that it proves you can use berries in almost any dish or course. And for those of us that still have some trouble identifying our berries, there is a full colour insert that identifies each berry by name with a helpful photograph. Who knew there were so many types of berries?!

So towards the end of this lovely cookbook, I noticed one lone post-it at the side of the page. I flipped it open and … SURPRISE … I found the surprise inside the cookbook that would inspire me for the surprise inside SHF.

So what’s the surprise?

Do you know what it is?

Do you smell it?

Do you taste it?

Do you give up?

Okay. I’ll end your agony. It’s a phyllo pocket stuffed with mascarpone, blackberries and marcona almonds. The pockets are gently sauteed in melted butter until they turn a lovely golden and become gloriously crispy on the outside. Shatter the crust with your fork and you will discover an oozing, melting centre.

What a delicious surprise indeed. And on a Friday no less!

Ciao!

Phyllo Pockets with Mascarpone, Blackberries and Marcona Almonds

Adapted from The Berry Bible by Janie Hibler.

• 12 sheets phyllo dough, thawed and kept under a moist towel to ensure they don’t dry out
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 1/4 cup marcona almonds, chopped
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1/4 cup mascarpone
• 1 cup blackberries
• more butter for sauteing

1. Combine the almonds and sugar in a small bowl.
2. Take one sheet of phyllo and lay it out on a work surface. Brush with butter.
3. Top with two more sheets of phyllo, brushing each one with butter.
4. Cut the phyllo sheets into three strips, lengthwise.
5. Starting at the left corner of each strip, place a tablespoon or so of mascarpone on the phyllo.
6. Top with 3 or 4 blackberries.
7. Sprinkle some of the almond/sugar mixture over the blackberries.
8. Take the left edge of the phyllo and fold it over the mascarpone/blackberries and almonds. From that point, fold the phyllo over as you would fold a flag, creating clean corners. Keep folding until you reach the end of the phyllo strip and tuck any excess pastry under the seam.
9. Put the phyllo pocket seam down on a plate.
10. Repeat these steps until you have made 12 phyllo pockets.
11. In a large pan, melt on or two tablespoons of butter. Saute the pockets for two to three minutes on each side, our until they are golden. Saute two or three pockets at a time.
12. Transfer to a plate while you saute the other pockets.
13. Dust with icing sugar and serve immediately.
14. Enjoy!

Note:  If you can’t find marcona almonds (I bought mine at Williams-Sonoma), use regular blanched almonds. Instead of blackberries, you could also use blueberries.

Technorate tags:  sugar high friday, phyllo, mascarpone, blackberries, marcona almonds

One of the main reasons why I decided to start a food blog was so that I could finally get around to cracking the spines on all those cookbooks that were weighing down the Overburdened Bookshelf. Needless to say, the burden on the bookshelf has increased significantly over the past seven months as I’ve added quite a few new members to the cookbook family. Happily, I’m thrilled with all of them and look forward to more cooking and baking ahead.

But I was slightly taken aback when I was asked, by some wonderful food blogger friends, to review a copy of a new cookbook and that in the process, I would be receiving my very own copy. A copy of a cookbook just for me?! How could I, cookbook addict that I am, turn down an offer like that?

Of course the fact that my dear blog buddies Cath of A Blithe Palate, Ali of Something So Clever and Sara of I Like to Cook were the ones asking meant that I couldn’t possibly say no. And I’m certainly glad that I agreed to participate in this unique event involving 25 food bloggers all reviewing a copy of the newly published Kitchen Sense by Mitchell Davis.

I’m a bit late with my post, which was supposed to be up by July 10th. Cath, Ali and Sara will have to forgive me but the past 48 hours have been consumed with celebrations after Italy’s win in the World Cup final. Much food, Prosecco, grappa, food and … oh yes … food was consumed. Strangers were kissed and hugged, flags were waved and in general, a good time was had by just about everyone in Toronto who decided to make their way to either Little Italy or Corso Italia. But the celebrations have come and gone and it’s time to get on with the business at hand!

Having never heard of Mitchell Davis, I was intrigued by the cookbook and upon its arrival at my door step, pleasantly surprised. While he may not be a household name, Mitchell Davis is a good writer who very clearly loves his food. And his book is a testament to that love.

With 600 recipes and a wealth of tips, Kitchen Sense is an excellent all-round cookbook for both the beginner and the more experienced home cook. The book is divided into sections that cover every type of dish including Soups; Sandwiches and Pizza; Vegetables, Beans, and Potatoes; Pasta, Noodles, and Dumplings; Poultry; and Desserts. Each section is marked by an introduction to the recipes ahead. As well, each section is dotted with useful hints and tips to help the reader along.

Clearly written and precise, the recipes are fairly straightforward. Mitchell ends each recipe with suggestions for variations, as well as notes on how much advance preparation is required and what to do with leftovers.

Every now and then, a shaded section entitled "Kitchen Sense" or "Basics" will appear. These entertaining paragraphs are like mini-essays within the cookbook that explain food topics such as whether to use fresh or dried pasta; how to clean squid; how to prepare a turkey; the ins and outs of meat terminology; and how to peel soft-skinned fruits like peaches and tomatoes. The "Basics" section offers the basics of foundation foods like pizza dough or pie dough.

Like most people, one of the first things that will usually attract me to a cookbook are the photographs. If a cookbook does not have pictures, it has to be that much better so that readers can visualize what they’re making. As a result, the cookbook author’s writing skills are key. Fortunately, Davis’ writing style is easy to follow and flows well. This is important because Kitchen Sense does not have any photographs or illustrations.

What Kitchen Sense does have is a collection of quality recipes that are current and tempting. But for me, the true test of a cookbook is in the results. So, tempting fate, I flipped the book open to a random page and prepared the first recipe that I saw. On page 419 I found a recipe for Roasted Figs with Mascarpone Mousse. Serendipity. I had some mascarpone left from my Strawberry Tiramisù and just this past weekend I’d picked up some California Black Mission figs.

Mitchell’s recipe was very reliable. The instructions were clear and the recipe turned out exactly as the recipe indicated it would. The cooking time was accurate. The only inaccuracy was the tip about leftovers because there were no leftovers. These delicious figs were consumed quickly as was the mascarpone mousse!

You know this Cream Puff well. You know that I don’t recommend cookbooks lightly. So believe me when I say that Kitchen Sense is a worthy addition to your cookbook family.

Ciao!

Recently, I contemplated the merits of a religion based on the worship of fried dough. I am still of the opinion that such a faith would be advantageous to all who believed. And now that I’ve been eating fresh strawberries for over a week, I believe that this religion should also include the worship of strawberries. Cream Puff cannot live by fried dough alone. Or can she? Hmmm … a question for another post.

I’ve mentioned previously on this blog that while I love a well-made tiramisù, it’s not a dessert that I often crave. How could anyone not crave tiramisù, you ask? While I assure you that I adore mascarpone, espresso and all of the other ingredients that go into a tiramisù, the problem is that for the longest time, it was the dessert of choice for every event from birthdays to baptisms to anniversaries. It appeared during every holiday and sometimes it even showed up mid-week for no other reason than it gave one the excuse to eat mascarpone.

And then it happened.

One of the worst food crimes ever to cross Cream Puff’s path. I actually came across a tiramisù made with fake whipped topping instead of mascarpone. That was it! I turned my back on tiramisù and all those who dared to forego the mascarpone in the interest of saving a few dollars. When it appeared on the table, I simply looked the other way.

I understand that mascarpone is expensive, not to mention hard to find. I understand that ladyfingers (known as savoiardi in Italian) can also be difficult to locate. I understand that not everyone likes espresso. This is why tiramisù is not meant to be eaten every blessed day. This is the problem with the world we live in. We find something we like and then we make it to death. Tiramisù is a treat. It should be enjoyed on rare occasions. Savoured. Admired. Respected.

So for several years I lived a tiramisù-less life. And then this past April, I picked up a copy of Bon Appétit and was intrigued for within its pages lay a recipe for Strawberry Tiramisù. Could this be the recipe that would make Cream Puff embrace tiramisù once again? Why yes it could be! And it was!

It was glorious. Angels sang. I think there were even harps.

Admittedly, this is a departure from what we call tiramisù. It’s more of a trifle. As far as I’m concerned you can call it whatever you like. I call it good.

Praise the strawberries and pass the mascarpone!

Ciao!

Strawberry Tiramisù

My tiramisù is based on the original recipe from www.epicurious.com. You can click here for that recipe.

This is my version:

• 1 cup strawberry jam
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 1/3 cup orange juice
• 1/4 cup Grand Marnier, plus one tablespoon extra
• 1-1/4 pounds mascarpone, at room temperature
• 1-1/3 cups whipping cream (35%)
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ladyfingers or Savoiardi (you’ll need about 50)
• 1-1/2 to 2 pounds strawberries, washed, dried and sliced
• 2 tablespoons lemon zest

1. In a bowl, combine the jam, water, orange juice and half of the Grand Marnier. Mix well. The mixture should be liquidy. Set aside
2. In a bowl, combine the mascarpone and the remaining Grand Marnier. Mix well. Set aside.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the whipping cream with the sugar, vanilla extract and remaining 1 tablespoon of Grand Marnier. Beat until stiff peaks form.
4. Take a quarter of the whipped cream mixture and stir into the mascarpone to lighten the mascarpone. Then add the remaining whipped cream mixture and fold gently into the mascarpone mixture. Set aside.
5. Spread 1/2 of the jam mixture in the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish. The mixture will be very liquidy but don’t worry about it. The ladyfingers will absorb the liquid.
6. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of the lemon zest over the jam mixture.
7. Line the bottom of the dish with ladyfingers, making sure to fill in every spot. If you have to snap the ladyfingers into smaller pieces in order to make them fit.
8. Spread half of the mascarpone mixture evenly over the ladyfingers.
9. Layer half of the sliced strawberries over the mascarpone.
10. Spread the remaining jam mixture over the strawberries.
11. Sprinkle the remaining 1 tablespoon of lemon zest over the strawberries and jam.
12. Create a second layer of ladyfingers over the strawberries and jam. Again be sure to completely fill in the layer.
13. Spread the remaining mascarpone mixture over the ladyfingers.
14. Layer the remaining strawberries on top.
15. Chill for at least 12 hours before serving.
16. Enjoy!

Note:  I would recommend chilling for 24 hours. Chilling for 12 hours will do, but if you can hold off devouring this dessert, the extra time will really help it set.

Technorati tags:  strawberries, tiramisu

After testing the recipe for crêpes Suzette for Mrs. B of Eating Suburbia, the next recipe on my list was crostata. Now I should tell you that crostata is a type of pastry that is near and dear to my heart. My father’s family, who hail from Le Marche in Italy, are master crostata makers. My grandmother’s recipe for crostata is a much-treasured possession that we turn to again and again when we’re craving the comfort of a sweet dough smothered in jam.

With the high standards of my grandmother’s crostata in mind, I set about testing the recipe Mrs. B sent to me from The World is a Kitchen. For those of you who are unfamiliar with crostata, it’s a typical Italian sweet that consists of a sweet dough that has been topped with jam. The dough for crostata is called pasta frolla in Italian. It’s a dough made of butter, flour and egg. Often lemon or orange zest will be added for that extra bit of flavour. Crostatas can be fancy affairs, baked in tart pans, or they can be free-form, which is how my family usually makes them. The one characteristic of crostata that is constant, however, is the lattice top. The lattice can be very wide or very thin and intricate. But you will rarely find a crostata that is not topped with a lattice design so that the jam can ooze through while baking.

Mrs. B’s recipe comes from the forthcoming cookbook, The World is a Kitchen, due to be published in August 2006. The first time that I tried the recipe, I made the dough in the food processor and ran into some problems. I overmixed the dough and as a result, found it difficult to work with. It kept falling apart and was far too soft to work with even though I repeatedly refrigerated it. While I eventually was able to turn out a crostata, I wasn’t happy with the results.

The second time I tried the recipe I made the dough by hand and was able to control the consistency of it by controlling how much I worked the dough. I had a soft yet far sturdier dough and found working with it to be much easier.

The recipe indicates that the crostata should be baked in an 8-inch round pan but I didn’t have one so I improvised with an 8-inch square pan and I found it worked just fine. I used plum jam for the filling but cut down the amount I used from the original recipe which called for 2 cups. And while I did sprinkle the crostata with chopped nuts, I’m not sure if I would repeat that step in future. I like my crostata simple and unadorned. The end result was impressive. The dough was sweet and buttery with a hint of lemon zest and the plum jam complimented the dough very well.

In an e-mail to me, Mrs. B explained that The World is a Kitchen isn’t just a cookbook. It’s a book about people’s experiences travelling through the world and the foods that they encounter during those travels. The book takes a look at how food and experience shape our view of the world. I know that when I take a bite of crostata, my first thought is always of my grandmother in Italy and the time I spent with her.

What will you think of when you take your first bite of crostata?

Ciao!

Crostata

Adapted from the The World is a Kitchen.

• 2 cups unbleached flour
• 1/2 cups sugar
• 2/3 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 large egg
• 1 large egg yolk
• grated zest of one lemon
• 1 cup jam (I used plum)
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1. In a large bowl, combine the flour and sugar.
2. Add the butter, egg and egg yolk and mix well until the dough gathers into a ball. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
4. Roll the dough out to a 1/2-inch thickness and fit into a 8-inch round or square pan.
5. Spread the jam on the dough.
6. Reroll the scraps and cut into strips. Using the strips, form a lattice top for the crostata.
7. Sprinkle with the nuts and bake for 30 minutes, or until the dough becomes golden.
8. Cool completely before serving.
9. Enjoy!

Note:  The crostata will serve 8. Instead of walnuts, you can use pecans or hazelnuts.

Technorati tags:  crostata, pasta frolla

I am constantly amazed at the quantity and quality of food blogs populating the Blogosphere. Not a day goes by where I don’t discover a new friend waxing poetic about food. Each day I find myself falling in love with blogs I don’t know and falling in love all over again with the blogs I do.

When I first came across Mrs. B of Eating Suburbia via Tea of Tea and Cookies, I knew immediately that I’d found a kindred spirit. Based in California, Mrs. B is passionately dedicated to the food of the world and to the world of food. She’s a fantastic cook and she gardens. What’s not to love!

Last month, Mrs. B sent out the culinary equivalent of the Bat signal when she asked for recipe testers. In August 2006, the book that she has been editing, The World is a Kitchen, will be published. To prepare for this incredible event, she asked fellow bloggers to donate their time and kitchens to test recipes from the book. How could I resist?

Mrs. B honoured me with four recipes to try and the recipe for crêpes Suzette was the first to get my attention mainly because I’ve never had crêpes Suzette much less made them. I decided to research the origin of this dessert so I turned to my copy of the Larousse Gastronomique. As often happens with desserts of this nature the origin is unclear. While a chef by the name of Henri Charpentier claimed to have invented the dessert in 1896 in honour of the consort of the Prince of Wales (her name was Suzette), it is unlikely that his claims are true. While there are references to a dessert resembling crêpes Suzette in the late 1800s, the exact origin of this dessert is not known. What I will say about this dish is that whoever did have the bright idea, I thank you immensely!

The recipe supplied by Mrs. B was quite easy to follow. A simple crêpe batter was prepared and allowed to rest in the refrigerator for an hour. Following the rest, the batter was a dream to work with as the crêpes turned out easily. As the crêpes were cooked, they were placed on a plate between sheets of waxed paper to keep them from drying out.

The sauce for the dessert was even simpler. Butter, sugar, orange zest and Grand Marnier were combined in a saucepan. The crêpes were then folded in quarters and added to the pan to be coated in the luscious sauce. To serve the crêpes Suzette, I sliced oranges and layered them on a serving platter, placing the crêpes on top. While I had initially only intended this as decoration, it turned out to be a great move as the sauce from the crêpes dripped down onto the orange slices. This made for a double treat as we enjoyed the crêpes and then enjoyed the orange slices.

The recipe was clear and the ingredients list was undemanding. I’m sure you have everything you need to make this at home right now. If you don’t have Grand Marnier, you can use another orange-flavoured liqueur or you can even forgo the liqueur entirely.

I have to shower Mrs. B with many thanks for supplying me with this recipe. It was delicious from start to finish and I can now proudly proclaim that I am no longer in the dark when it comes to crêpes Suzette. And even better, I now have another cookbook to add to the family in August 2006!

Ciao!

Crêpes Suzette

Recipe adapted from The World is a Kitchen.

For the crêpes:

• 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• pinch of salt
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1-1/2 cups milk
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tablespoons melted butter
• 1 tablespoon grated orange zest
• butter for cooking the crêpes

1. Place all the crêpes ingredients in a blender and blend thoroughly. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
2. Heat a 6- or 8-inch skillet over medium heat and add some butter. Once the butter is melted pour the crêpe batter into the skillet, a few tablespoons at a time. Carefully swirl the pan so that the crêpe batter covers the entire pan. Cook for 30 seconds to 1 minute on each side, or until it begins to become firm and turn golden.
3. Place the cooked crêpes on a plate and separate with pieces of waxed paper.

For the sauce:

• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon grated orange zest
• 1 tablespoon Grand Marnier

1. Melt the butter in a large skillet. Add the sugar, orange zest and liqueur and mix well. As soon as the sugar is melted, add the crêpes by folding them in half and then folding them into quarters. Place all the crêpes in the skillet and let cook for 1 minute. Turn all the crêpes over and let cook for 30 seconds.
2. Remove the crêpes to a serving platter and pour the remaining sauce over the crêpes.
3. Enjoy!

Note:  This recipe will yield 6-8 crêpes.

Technorati tags:  crepes, crepes suzette, Grand Marnier, dessert

"Enjoy with reckless abandon …"

These are the words that are written on the first page of my copy of Donna Dooher and Claire Stubb’s Out to Brunch, the Cream Puffs in Venice Flavour of the Month for May 2006. How did I come by this autographed copy of such a wonderful book? Let me explain.

As you may have already guessed my entire family shares the philosophy of good food. So it’s not surprising that we are all, in our own way, deeply involved in the pursuit of good food. One of my uncles, Uncle C, has been a waiter for years and as luck would have it, his path brought him to the doors of Mildred Pierce, the restaurant from which the recipes for Out to Brunch come.

Uncle C spent many years at Mildred Pierce before eventually moving on. But during his time there, he developed a strong friendship with the restaurant’s owners. When Out to Brunch was published, knowing how much I loved the restaurant and how much I coveted the cookbook, he had Donna Dooher autograph a copy for me and her words to me were … enjoy with reckless abandon.

How refreshing!

How refreshing to read the words of an accomplished woman who is not afraid of eggs and butter and cream.

How refreshing to know that there is someone else out there who embraces the joy of food and eating without any guilt.

How refreshing, indeed!

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not advocating that you spend your days gorging on eggs, sugar, cream and butter. As lovely as blueberry pancakes are and as much as I love my goopy squares, the food universe is too enormous to imagine and it would be a shame not try everything … not to enjoy everything whether it be a vegetable, a piece of cheese or the best piece of chocolate cake you’ve ever laid eyes on.

But I am advocating enjoying your food. I am advocating turning off that stupid little voice that says "This is bad for you," or "You shouldn’t be eating that," because ultimately, food is not bad. What we do with our food, or don’t do with it, is what harms us.

Donna’s book is a constant reminder that a meal, in this case brunch, is what you make of it. You can deny yourself and feel a sense of pleasure over having denied yourself or you can choose to make all foods a part of your life and give up the silly guilt over that cookie you’ve had your eye on.

If you’re in the market for a trusty brunch book, look into Out to Brunch. You know that this Cream Puff does not recommend books lightly. I test as many recipes as I can and I have to feel a connection. Out to Brunch passes the test on all counts. And if you’re ever in Toronto, take the time to visit Mildred Pierce for a meal. You won’t regret it.

And so he we are, my friends. The month of May prepares to make its exit and June readies itself for the stage. Soon there will be a new Flavour of the Month and we will all be enjoying the fruits of June. But before we get there, there is time for Mildred to take her final bow.

For the grand finale, I chose a dessert that I am in the habit of describing as the King of Desserts … the crème brûlée. The Mildred Pierce version is a lovely concoction of cream and caramel. It’s light with just the right note of caramelly sweetness. It’s a beautiful thing.

And I leave you with the words that I have come to love … enjoy with reckless abandon!

Ciao!

Caramel Crème Brûlée

Adapted from Out to Brunch by Donna Dooher and Claire Stubbs.

• 3 cups heavy cream (35% cream)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons water
• 6 large egg yolks
• extra white sugar for the brulee tops

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Heat the cream in a saucepan just until it begins to boil. Remove from the heat and set aside while you prepare the custard base.
3. Combine the sugar and water in another saucepan. Cook over high heat until the mixture turns a light amber, 5 to 7 minutes (have a bowl of ice water nearby just in case of splatters or in case you need to quickly cool down the caramel by plunging the bottom of the pot into the ice water).
4. As soon as the mixture has turned a light amber, remove from the heat and carefully add the cream. The mixture will bubble furiously so take extra care.
5. In a large bowl, whisk the egg yolks with a small amount of the caramel cream to temper the eggs. While whisking continuously, slowly add the remainder of the caramel cream.
6. Strain your mixture through a fine-mesh sieve and then pour the custard into 6 ramekins (ramekins should have a 1/2 cup capacity).
7. Place the ramekins in a large baking pan and fill the pan with hot water so that it comes about halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
8. Carefully transfer the pan to the oven. Bake the custards for 45 to 50 minutes or until just set. The centre of the custards will jiggle slightly. Remove from the oven and let stand for half an hour.
9. Remove the ramekins and refrigerate until cold (at least 4 hours).
10. Before serving, spread 1 teaspoon of sugar across the top of each custard. Using a kitchen torch, brûlée the sugar until it has turned golden.
11. Enjoy!

Note:  Keep leftover custards in the refrigerator for no more than 2 days … if they even last that long.

Technorati tags:  caramel, creme brulee, mildred pierce

You may be wondering what that oozy, creamy blob is pictured above? It’s sticky toffee pudding and it’s an oozy, creamy dish of yumminess that never fails to make Cream Puff feel good!

Being Canadian, I have always had a certain affinity for all things English. Canada, you see, was once an English colony. In fact, in Canada, the British Monarch is still recognized as the Head of State and is represented by the Governor General. So when Sam of Becks & Posh and Monkey Gland of Jam Faced announced that they would be hosting an event to commemorate St. George’s Day … well … how could I resist?

Without question, I knew I would make sticky toffee pudding. From the first time I made this dessert, I was hooked. It combines so many of my favourite things:  dates, muscovado sugar, butter … and table cream.

While researching the history of sticky toffee pudding, I did come across some vague references to Scottish desserts. I, however, have decided that this is a truly English dessert. So shall it be written so shall it be done! The basis for this decision comes from the information I gleaned from the mighty Wikipedia which explained that sticky toffee pudding may have initially been called "icky sticky toffee pudding". Why, I have no idea, as there is nothing icky about it!

There are a couple of versions of how this dessert originated. One is that it was created in 1960 by a hotel owner named Francis Coulson who served the dessert at a hotel he owned located near the Scottish border (could possibly explain references to this being a Scottish dessert). The other version is that the pudding was created in 1907 by the landlady of an inn in Millington. Either way, I’m grateful for the dessert’s invention.

My sticky toffee pudding is based on the version in Nigella Lawson’s Nigella Bites. Now I know people have mixed feelings about Nigella and the role she has taken in representing British food. Some people like her and some people don’t. I have to admit I am a Nigella fan. When it comes to food personalities, especially those on television, I always judge them on the success of their recipes when I try them at home. In Nigella’s case, I must give credit where credit is due. Every recipe that I’ve tried from her books has turned out well. Her recipes are easy to follow and they work. I can’t argue with that!

Plus, I am endlessly fascinated by the way she stuffs food into her mouth. I know, I know. I’m falling victim to unadulterated television manipulation but I don’t care. She’s transfixing. Like the episode of Nigella Bites where she bakes a Yorkshire pudding and then promptly cuts a piece for herself, drowns it in cream and syrup and then gorges on it, all before serving her guests.

I like to use Medjool dates in my version of this pudding. Quite simply, they are heaven with a pit in the middle. Fortunately the pit comes out very easily! If you have any dates left over, stuff them with mascarpone or cream cheese for a treat. This dessert is very easy to pull together. You mix it in one bowl and into the baking dish it goes. It belongs to the family of "self-saucing puddings" which means that by some scientific miracle, during baking, a spongy cake rises to the top and a sinfully rich sauce forms at the bottom. I have no idea how it happens. And to be honest I don’t much care. As long as I get my spongy cake and rich sauce, I’m a satisfied Cream Puff!

So Happy St. George’s Day to all! Pour yourselves a pint, have some fish and chips and enjoy some sticky toffee pudding.

God Save the Queen!

Ciao!

Easy Sticky-Toffee Pudding

Adapted from Nigella Bites by Nigella Lawson.

For the cake:

• 100 g (3-1/2 ounces) dark muscovado sugar
• 175 g (6 ounces) self-raising flour
• 125 ml (1/2 cup) whole milk
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 50 g (about 2 ounces) unsalted butter, melted
• 200 g (7 oz) chopped dates (I used Medjool dates)

For the sauce:

• 200 g (1 cup) dark muscovado sugar
• approximately 25 g (about 1 ounce) unsalted butter (to top the pudding), broken into little pieces
• 500 ml (2 cups) boiling water

To assemble the pudding:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C, or if you’re British, gas mark 5).
2. Generously butter a baking dish that has a capacity of 1-1/2 litres.
3. In a bowl, combine the muscovado sugar and the flour. Make sure there are no lumps!
4. Pour the milk into a measuring cup and beat in the egg, vanilla and melted butter. Mix well.
5. Pour the milk mixture into the sugar and flour mixture and mix until just combined.
6. Fold in the dates.
7. Spoon the mixture into the prepared baking dish and spread evenly across the bottom of the dish. This doesn’t make a lot of batter but don’t worry, it will rise to fill your baking dish.
8. Sprinkle the 200 g (1 cup) of muscovado sugar over the top of the batter. Dot with the 25 g of butter.
9. Pour the boiling water over everything. Yes … I know … it sounds strange but trust me … it works!
10. Bake for 45 minutes, or until the cake is springy when touched.
11. Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes. When you cut into it, you will have a lovely sponge cake on top and the most delicious sauce on the bottom.
12. Serve with ice cream, whipped cream or do as I do and just pour lovely table cream over the whole thing.
13. Enjoy!

Note:  This recipe serves 6-8 people. It can be doubled to feed a crowd.

Technorati tags:  What’s For Pud?, St George’s Day

I already know what you’re thinking.

You’re thinking, “Why did she make a dessert with rum when Chandra of Lick the Spoon, who’s hosting SHF#18, mentioned avoiding the ubiquitous rum cake?”

In my defence, I had not planned on making a dessert for SHF#18 that had rum in it. I had been planning something with a lovely limoncello as part of this month’s focus on Lori Longbotham’s Lemon Zest. But it was not to be. You see, a few days ago, I was consulting Dorie Greenspan’s Paris Sweets, when I inadvertently turned to a page with a recipe for Ali-Babas. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Ms. Greenspan, she is a food writer extraordinaire. She is a contributing editor for Bon Appétit and she has written several acclaimed cookbooks including a collaboration with the great Julia Child on the book Baking with Julia. While I haven’t ever made anything from Paris Sweets, I was instantly smitten with the book. It’s charming and precious in the way that only a book about the pâtisseries of Paris can be.

So there I was, flipping pages absent-mindedly, when the heading Ali-Babas came jumping out at me. Without even reading the recipe I knew that this would be my entry for SFH #18.

Let me explain.

I was not the most outgoing of children. I was bright and studious, but shy. I preferred to observe from the background rather than claim centre stage. Books were the great interest of my childhood. My nose was always buried in a book and thankfully I had a mother who nourished that activity.

Among my favourites, was a book called The Arabian Nights. I had a version written for children that I consumed over and over again. All the while I imagined that I was a part of that magical world. At night, in bed, I would turn towards my window and wish for a flying carpet to stop right outside so that I could hop on and fly off to an adventure. My mind’s eye delighted in visions of flowing veils, colourful jewels, gleaming lamps and exotic foods.

But without question, the story that I loved the most was the story of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves. In short, the story is about a man named Ali Baba who discovers a secret treasure belonging to a band of forty thieves. The treasure is hidden in a cave that is sealed by magic. To open the cave you must say “Open, Sesamé” and to close the cave you must say “Close, Sesamé”. Being the imaginative child I was I would walk up to doors and quietly intone “Open, Sesamé”. Of course they never opened but I didn’t care. I was a kid and I was having a ball.

Seeing a recipe for Ali-Babas brought back so many of those delightful childhood moments when the world is a huge, open place where all sorts of wondrous things can happen simply by wiggling your nose or clicking your heels together. Ah, youth!

In Paris Sweets, Greenspan explains that the recipe for Ali-Babas comes from Pâtisserie Stohrer, the oldest pastry shop in Paris. It is believed that the recipe for Ali-Babas was created early in the 18th Century by Nicolas Stohrer in honour of the exiled King of Poland, Stanislas Leszczynski. Apparently the original version included saffron, wine, grapes, raisins, angelica and candied lemons, which were all kneaded into the dough. The resulting pastry was then soaked in a syrup of saffron and wine.

Over time the Ali-Babas made at Pâtisserie Stohrer have changed to resemble a baba au rhum. It is a yeasted pastry that is soaked in a rum syrup. The top part is then sliced off and a lovely dollop of pastry cream is added. The top part is then perched atop the pastry cream like a crown.

While it wasn’t a difficult pastry to make, it does take some time so you’ll want to prepare in advance. I enjoyed every step, especially the part where I got to soak raisins in rum and then flambé them. That’s the kind of adventure the little girl in me who read The Arabian Nights just loves.

It goes without saying that the Ali-Babas were delicious. Dripping with rum syrup, the vanilla pastry studded with raisins is a glorious match. Having eaten one, I am now ready to go in search of hidden treasure, armed with the magical words that will help me in my quest.

Close, Sesamé!

Ciao!

Ali-Babas

Adapted from Paris Sweets by Dorie Greenspan.

For the vanilla pastry cream:

• 2 cups whole milk
• 1 moist, plump vanilla bean, split and scraped
• 6 large egg yolks
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup cornstarch, sifted
• 3-1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 3 pats, at room temperature

1. Bring the milk and the vanilla bean to a boil in a small pot. Turn off the heat and allow the milk and vanilla to infuse for at least 10 minutes, or up to an hour.
2. Take a large bowl, and a second smaller bowl that fit within the larger one. Place ice cubes in the larger one and have it at the ready.
3. In another saucepan, whisk the eggs, sugar and cornstarch until smooth. Slowly drizzle in the milk, whisking constantly. If the milk is hot go slowly as it may curdle the eggs.
4. Once the milk and egg mixture are combine, remove the pod and set the pan over medium heat. Whisk until the mixture comes to a boil. Continue to whisk for a further minute or two. The mixture should be thick and creamy.
5. Pass the cream through the sieve into the smaller bowl. Add water to the larger bowl and then place the smaller bowl in the ice bath. Stir frequently until the mixture has cooled to 140 degrees F (60 degrees C).
6. Remove the mixture from the ice bath and whisk in the butter. Place plastic wrap directly on the surface of the cream and refrigerate until ready to use.

For the raisins:

• 1/2 cup moist, plump raisins
• 2 tablespoons dark rum

1. Soak the raisins in hot water for about 5 minutes.
2. Drain the raisins and place them in a small pot.
3. Heat the raisins until they are very hot.
4. Remove from the heat and immediately add the rum.
5. Carefully, ignite the raisins with a match. Swirl the pot around until the flames extinguish. Be very careful and stand back when you do this!
6. Let the raisins cool to room temperature.
7. Once the raisins have cooled, stir them into the vanilla pastry cream and refrigerate until ready to use.

For the rum syrup:

• 1-1/4 cups water
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup dark rum

1. Bring the water and sugar to boil in a small pan.
2. Pour the syrup into a deep bowl (deep enough for you to be able to soak the Ali-Babas in) and let cool for 15 minutes. Add the rum and stir.
3. Set aside until ready to use.

For the Ali-Babas:

• 1/3 cup water, at room temperature
• 1 packet (2-1/4 teaspoons) active dry yeast
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 large eggs, at room temperature
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1. Generously butter a 12-cup muffin pan (or 12 baba au rhum molds if you have them) and set aside.
2. Stir the water, yeast and sugar together in the bowl of a heavy-duty stand mixer. When the yeast is dissolved, add the flour and salt. Using the dough hook, mix at medium speed until a moist ball forms. This should take about 2 minutes.
3. Switch the attachments to the paddle. Add 2 of the eggs and beat at medium-low speed for 3 minutes. Add the remaining 2 eggs and mix until the eggs are incorporated. Once the eggs are thoroughly mixed in, increase the speed to medium-high and beat for 3 minutes.
4. Add the cooled butter and beat for 5 more minutes on medium-high speed. The dough the should be fairly thin and smooth.
5. Divide the dough evenly between the muffin cups. Each cup should be about half full. Cover the pan with a sheet of parchment or wax paper and set aside for about 25 to 30 in a warm place for the dough to rise. Once the dough has risen it should fill the cups about three-quarters of the way.
6. While the dough is rising, place a rack in the centre of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).
7. Remove the paper, place the muffin pan on a baking sheet. Once you put the muffin tin in the oven place the handle of a wooden spoon in the door of the oven to prop it open slightly. Bake for 25 to 28 minutes. The Ali-Babas will be golden brown. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then unmold onto a rack and allow to cool to room temperature.

To assemble the Ali-Babas:

1. Take each Ali-Baba and make six small slits. One by one, drop the Ali-Babas into the syrup. Drench them thoroughly in the rum syrup and transfer to a plate.
2. Refrigerate the Ali-Babas and thoroughly chill them, for at least 3 hours but not more than a day.
3. Once the Ali-Babas are cold, take each one and slice off the top third. Top each one with a spoonful of the pastry cream and then cover with the top piece. Serve them immediately or wrap them tightly and refrigerate them for up to 6 hours.
4. Enjoy!

Note:  Each of the elements of this recipe can be made ahead. The syrup can be refrigerated for up to a week. The pastry cream can be made up to three days prior to use and kept tightly-covered in the refrigerator. The unsoaked Ali-Babas can be kept at room temperature in a container for 1 day or wrapped airtight and frozen for up to a month. Bring to room temperature before soaking. The rum-soaked Ali-Babas can be kept well-wrapped in the refrigerator for up to 1 day.

Technorati tags:  rum, sugar high friday, SHF, vanilla