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!

Look at the stars,
Look how they shine for you,
And everything you do,
Yeah they were all yellow …

- Coldplay

While I was in Italy, the incredible Barbara of winosandfoodies.com announced the details of the 2009 LiveSTRONG With a Taste of Yellow event. This is an event that Barbara created as a way of supporting Lance Armstrong’s LIVESTRONG Foundation. This year, LIVESTRONG DAY is on October 2nd.

Every year, when Barbara announces the details of her event, I am reminded of the importance of being united. With the simplest of gestures, by cooking or baking something yellow, we can all stand together in the fight against cancer.

It’s a powerful thing that Barbara does.

I’m honoured that I can take part.

For this year’s contribution to Barbara’s event, I’m submitting these little cakes that I actually made awhile ago using an ingredient that I tried for the very first time: Meyer lemons.

As you can imagine, Meyer lemons are difficult to source in Toronto. But one day, quite by surprise, I found some beautiful ones at my local grocery store so I loaded up on them.

Before I baked with them, I decided to taste them and was surprosed by their taste. I found the lemons to be a bit sweeter than regular lemons with less sourness. They seemed less acidic as well.

Happy with my purchase, I couldn’t wait to bake with them. I chose to try the Meyer Lemon Cake recipe from Chez Panisse Cooking by Paul Bertolli. Instead of making a 9-inch cake, I used a mini-bundt pan and made ten baby cakes.

The cakes were so pretty and the lemon flavour was very subtle. I glazed them and added a bit of lemon zest and some sweetened whipped cream when I served them.

If you have a moment on October 2nd, 2009, take some time to celebrate LIVESTRONG DAY and Barbara, for her incredible accomplishments.

Ciao!

Here are some Meyer lemon recipes that you might enjoy:

The Best Damn Meyer Lemon Cake
Meyer Lemon Cake with Lavender Cream
Meyer Lemon Coffee Cake

Dear Zucchini,

I’m sorry to have to do this to you in such a public manner, but you leave me no choice.

I have tried to let you down gently, but you just don’t seem to be getting the message. At first, I thought that if I just ignored you, you’d understand. But you didn’t.

I tried leaving you in the refrigerator, but you insisted. I withheld water, but you kept coming. I even left you for three whole weeks, without any contact, and still you were there.

I don’t know any other way to do this but to send you this letter in the hopes that you will finally hear what I’m saying:

It’s over.

Yes, it’s true, things were great in the beginning. You were so fresh and green, the only plant thriving in a garden of that had, up until that point, been bare.

You were sweet, Zucchini. You were. You were always waiting for me when I got home from work and on weekends, you filled me.

I don’t deny it.

But Zucchini, you’re too much. You don’t know when to stop. You put too much pressure on me. You, I could handle. But then your family started arriving, and your extended family, and your friends … what was I supposed to do with all of you?

Look, I thought that going to Italy for three weeks would be the answer. I thought that during that time, left alone to your own devices (and no water), you’d understand that you couldn’t crowd my space.

How was I supposed to know that it would rain for the entire summer? How was I supposed to know that while the rest of the garden slowly began its inevitable decline, you would still be inviting your zucchini relatives over? How was I supposed to know you’d live so long?

Please don’t take this the wrong way. I will always think you’re beautiful and there will always be a part of me that loves you.

But right now, it’s all about the tomatoes. They’re plump and juicy.

You’re not.

Goodbye, Zucchini. It was fun while it lasted. Call me next summer. Maybe we can hook up again.

Yours truly,

Cream Puff

Ciao!

Zucchini Cakes
A Cream Puff Original

Makes about 20 little cakes.

Note: The never-ending supply of zucchini has forced us to be most inventive when it comes to ways to cook them. This is a recipe that I came up with that’s always a big hit. The success of this recipe depends on three things: 1) You must squeeze as much water out of the grated zucchini as you can; 2) You must flatten the cakes as they fry so that they crisp up nicely; and 3) You must eat these hot; once they’re cold they lose their appeal. Try making them with yellow zucchini as well!

4 medium zucchini, grated
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup water
2 eggs
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
fresh herbs, finely chopped, such as basil, parsley, mint, etc., to taste
additional salt and pepper

Place the grated zucchini in the middle of a clean dishcloth. Roll the dishcloth up and then twist the ends, squeezing out as much of the water from the zucchini as you can.

Place the zucchini in a large bowl. Add the flour, water and eggs and mix until everything is well combined. Add a handful of fresh herbs (use whatever herbs you like and add as much or as little as you like).

Add the salt and pepper and mix.

In a large frying pan, heat an inch or so of olive oil until hot. Drop large spoonfuls of batter into the pan (don’t overcrowd). Very quickly flatten the drops of batter as much as you can. Flattening the cakes will help them to crisp up nicely.

Fry for two or three minutes and then flip the cakes over and fry for another minute or so.

Remove the cakes to a plate lined with paper towels and then season with additional salt and pepper.

Serve hot!

Enjoy!

Hello, blog! Hello, food world! I’ve missed you ever so much!

I had a spectacular vacation in Italy but now I am ready to get back to baking, blogging and all my cookbooks (it seems someone has come into my house and brought more cookbooks for me to look at … I hate it when that happens!).

Before I get into my first Magazine Mondays post in awhile, I’d like to thank Wandering Coyote of ReTorte who very graciously hosted MM for me for the past month. She’s a trooper!

I have loads of bookmarked magazine recipes to try and many of them are years old so it may seem a bit unfair that this week’s offering is a brand spanking new recipe from the October 2009 issue of Food & Wine. But sometimes, jumping the queue is acceptable and in this case it’s more than acceptable. I introduce you to the Nutella-Swirl Pound Cake. The recipe, while featured in the magazine, is actually from a book called Cake Keeper Cakes: 100 Simple Recipes for Extraordinary Bundt Cakes, Pound Cakes, Snacking Cakes and Other Good-To-The-Last-Crumb Treatsby Lauren Chattman.

People, I beg you, go buy a jar of Nutella and make this cake.

It’s a pound cake with Nutella layers and it’s … like … the best cake ever. Like. For real.

In the last week I’ve made it about five times and each time the cake disappears faster than I can slice it.

Go. Bake. This. Cake.

This week, the following dedicated MMers have reduced their magazine piles:

Wandering Coyote of ReTorte made a Chocolate Walnut Tart from Tase of Home.

Margaret of Tea and Scones made Chicken Marsala from Woman’s World Magazine.

Remember, if you post a magazine recipe just send me an e-mail (creampuffsinvenice{@}gmail{dot}com) and I’ll link to it in my next MM post.

Have a wonderful Nutella-filled week, everyone!

Ciao!

Cream Puff is back! I had an amazing vacation in Italy. I spent three weeks enjoying my family and friends, all the while surrounded by the most incredible food and wine.

And best of all, I got to stay in our little house that we finished renovating last year.

It was truly a magical vacation.

Being away meant no activity on this blog and that was a good thing. I had a lot of time to recharge and restore myself so I’m looking forward to a new season of baking and cooking, and sharing it all with you.

Of course being away also meant that I missed a Daring Baker’s challenge and today, I’m also missing the Daring Cook’s challenge for September 2009. I promise, though, that I will catch up in the coming weeks!

In the meantime, I just wanted to take a moment to say hello again to all of you and to my sweet little blog. I missed you!

Ciao!

I blogged about the plum tart pictured above here. Now that we have our very own kitchen in Italy, I took a handful of recipes with me to try and this was one of them. I made two mini tarts instead of one big one. It was delicious.

This is where I’m going for the next three weeks.

I can’t wait. My family, Mamma Cream Puff, the sun, the stars so close you can touch them, the sea and the mountains.

And the food.

I won’t be posting while I’m away so take care of yourselves and enjoy the rest of August!

I leave you with a little something to whet your appetite for when I return …

Ciao!

Hey! It’s Magazine Mondays but starting this week, until September 14th, MM is being hosted by the gracious Wandering Coyote of ReTorte.

Check out her site for all the MM results and remember, if you want to participate, just send her a link to a magazine recipe that you’ve posted about. You can e-mail her at: wandering_coyoteATyahooDOTca.

Have a great week, everyone!

Ciao!

It’s Daring Cooks time and the August 2009 challenge was hosted by the gracious Olga of Las Cosas de Olga and Olga’s Recipes.

I’m always a bit in awe of people who have not one blog but two so I tip my hat to you, Olga. Of course I would tip it to you anyway for this incredibly delicious challenge.

The challenge date was, of course, August 14th, but I was having some issues and couldn’t post.

I’ll get right to it. This is just delicious. From start to finish it was a lovely recipe to make that was actually surprisingly quick (considering some of the Daring Bakers’ challenges take … like … four days!).

Without question my favourite part of the recipe was the sofregit, which was a thick, almost paste-like mixture of tomatoes, onions, mushrooms and garlic, used to enhance and flavour the rice. I loved the sofregit so much I ended up spreading some of it on bread and just eating it that way!

I loved cooking the rice in the rich liquid consisting of some white wine, water (you could have also used fish stock) and a bit of the sofregit. The cuttlefish was delicious in this dish and the artichokes and mushrooms were also very good (confession: I used artichokes canned in water.).

The only element of the challenge I didn’t make was the allioli, which is a thick, custard-like sauce meant to accompany the dish. I really wanted to make the traditional allioli, which would have required a mortar and pestle. I don’t have those. Yet.

I could go on and on, but I won’t. I really hope you try this recipe out as it’s scrumptious.

Thank you so much for broadening our horizons, Olga!

Ciao!

If you’re interested in the recipe, you can find it here.

Today is Daring Cooks’ reveal day and as you may have noticed, there’s a little something missing around here like … ohhhh … the challenge!

Never fear! I have done it but am experiencing some difficulties in posting. Will have it up as soon as I can.

In the meantime, please head over to The Daring Kitchen to check out the incredible August 2009 Daring Cooks’ challenge results.

Speaking of, have you joined The Daring Kitchen yet? If not, what are you waiting for?!

And remember, all the cook kids are wearing DK merchandise so don’t forget to stop by the store!

Ciao!