The Daring Bakers Strikes Again...

This month... chocolate eclairs! Well in my case they are more like cream puffs. My first batch of Pate a Choux (cream puff dough) deflated as soon as I took them out of the oven. I don't think I kept them in long enough. The second time I kept them in a few minutes longer and viola, perfect cream puffs! Oh yeah, and instead of chocolate eclairs I made Chocolate peanut butter eclairs. I used a chocolate glaze for the top and a salty peanut butter pastry cream for the filling. They were quite nice if I do say so myself.

Here is the recipe as given to us by the Daring Bakers Tony Tahhan and MeetaK.
The only change I made to the recipe was replacing the chocolate in the pastry cream with 1/3 cup of peanut butter. I also added a touch of fleur de sal after it cooled down to get the lovely salty sweet effect. It got many rave reviews. I highly recommend you give it a try!

Éclairs consist of 3 elements:

- Pâte à Choux, also known as Choux Pastry or Cream Puff Dough

-Pastry Cream

- Chocolate glaze

Pierre Hermé’s Chocolate Éclairs

Recipe from Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé

(makes 20-24 Éclairs)

• Cream Puff Dough (see below for recipe), fresh and still warm

1) Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Divide the oven into thirds by positioning the racks in the upper and lower half of the oven. Line two baking sheets with waxed or parchment paper.

2) Fill a large pastry bag fitted with a 2/3 (2cm) plain tip nozzle with the warm cream puff dough.Pipe the dough onto the baking sheets in long, 4 to 41/2 inches (about 11 cm) chubby fingers.Leave about 2 inches (5 cm) space in between each dough strip to allow them room to puff.The dough should give you enough to pipe 20-24 éclairs.

3) Slide both the baking sheets into the oven and bake for 7 minutes. After the 7 minutes, slip the handle of a wooden spoon into the door to keep in ajar. When the éclairs have been in the oven for a total of 12 minutes, rotate the sheets top to bottom and front to back. Continue baking for a further 8 minutes or until the éclairs are puffed, golden and firm. The total baking time should be approximately 20 minutes.

Notes:

1) The éclairs can be kept in a cool, dry place for several hours before filling.

Assembling the éclairs:

• Chocolate glaze (see below for recipe)

• Chocolate pastry cream (see below for recipe)1) Slice the éclairs horizontally, using a serrated knife and a gently sawing motion. Set aside the bottoms and place the tops on a rack over a piece of parchment paper.

2) The glaze should be barely warm to the touch (between 95 – 104 degrees F or 35 – 40degrees C, as measured on an instant read thermometer). Spread the glaze over the tops of the éclairs using a metal icing spatula. Allow the tops to set and in the meantime fill the bottoms with the pastry cream.

3) Pipe or spoon the pastry cream into the bottoms of the éclairs. Make sure you fill the bottoms with enough cream to mound above the pastry. Place the glazed tops onto the pastry cream and wriggle gently to settle them.

Notes:

1) If you have chilled your chocolate glaze, reheat by placing it in a bowl over simmering water,stirring it gently with a wooden spoon. Do not stir too vigorously as you do not want to create bubbles.

2) The éclairs should be served as soon as they have been filled.

Pierre Hermé’s Cream Puff Dough

Recipe from Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé

(makes 20-24 Éclairs)

• ½ cup (125g) whole milk

• ½ cup (125g) water

• 1 stick (4 ounces; 115g) unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces

• ¼ teaspoon sugar

• ¼ teaspoon salt

• 1 cup (140g) all-purpose flour

• 5 large eggs, at room temperature

1) In a heavy bottomed medium saucepan, bring the milk, water, butter, sugar and salt to the boil.

2) Once the mixture is at a rolling boil, add all of the flour at once, reduce the heat to medium and start to stir the mixture vigorously with a wooden spoon. The dough comes together very quickly. Do not worry if a slight crust forms at the bottom of the pan, it’s supposed to. You need to carry on stirring for a further 2-3 minutes to dry the dough. After this time the dough will be very soft and smooth.

3) Transfer the dough into a bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or using your hand mixer or if you still have the energy, continue by hand. Add the eggs one at a time,beating after each egg has been added to incorporate it into the dough.You will notice that after you have added the first egg, the dough will separate, once again do not worry. As you keep working the dough, it will come back all together again by the time you have added the third egg. In the end the dough should be thick and shiny and when lifted it should fall back into the bowl in a ribbon.

4) The dough should be still warm. It is now ready to be used for the éclairs as directed above.

Notes:

1) Once the dough is made you need to shape it immediately.

2) You can pipe the dough and the freeze it. Simply pipe the dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets and slide the sheets into the freezer. Once the dough is completely frozen, transfer the piped shapes into freezer bags. They can be kept in the freezer for up to a month.

Chocolate Pastry Cream

Recipe from Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé

• 2 cups (500g) whole milk

• 4 large egg yolks

• 6 tbsp (75g) sugar

• 3 tablespoons cornstarch, sifted

• 7 oz (200g) bittersweet chocolate, preferably Velrhona Guanaja, melted

• 2½ tbsp (1¼ oz: 40g) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1) In a small saucepan, bring the milk to a boil. In the meantime, combine the yolks, sugar and cornstarch together and whisk in a heavy‐bottomed saucepan.

2) Once the milk has reached a boil, temper the yolks by whisking a couple spoonfuls of the hot milk into the yolk mixture.Continue whisking and slowly pour the rest of the milk into the tempered yolk mixture.

3) Strain the mixture back into the saucepan to remove any egg that may have scrambled. Place the pan over medium heat and whisk vigorously (without stop) until the mixture returns to a boil. Keep whisking vigorously for 1 to 2 more minutes (still over medium heat).Stir in the melted chocolate and then remove the pan from the heat.

4) Scrape the pastry cream into a small bowl and set it in an ice‐water bath to stop the cooking process. Make sure to continue stirring the mixture at this point so that it remains smooth.

5) Once the cream has reached a temperature of 140 F remove from the ice‐water bath and stir in the butter in three or four installments. Return the cream to the ice‐water bath to continue cooling, stirring occasionally, until it has completely cooled. The cream is now ready to use or store in the fridge.

Notes:

1) The pastry cream can be made 2‐3 days in advance and stored in the refrigerator.

2) In order to avoid a skin forming on the pastry cream, cover with plastic wrap pressed onto the cream.

3) Tempering the eggs raises the temperature of the eggs slowly so that they do not scramble.

Chocolate Glaze

Recipe from Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé

(makes 1 cup or 300g)

• 1/3 cup (80g) heavy cream

• 3½ oz (100g) bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

• 4 tsp (20 g) unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces, at room temperature

• 7 tbsp (110 g) Chocolate Sauce (recipe below), warm or at room temperature

1)In a small saucepan, bring the heavy cream to a boil. Remove from the heat and slowly begin to add the chocolate, stirring with a wooden spoon or spatula.

2) Stirring gently, stir in the butter, piece by piece followed by the chocolate sauce.

Notes:

1) If the chocolate glaze is too cool (i.e. not liquid enough) you may heat it briefly
 in the microwave or over a double boiler. A double boiler is basically a bowl sitting over (not touching) simmering water.

2) It is best to glaze the eclairs after the glaze is made, but if you are pressed for time, you can make the glaze a couple days ahead of time, store it in the fridge and bring it up to the proper temperature (95 to 104 F) when ready to glaze.

Chocolate Sauce

Recipe from Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé

(makes 1½ cups or 525 g)

• 4½ oz (130 g) bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

• 1 cup (250 g) water

• ½ cup (125 g) crème fraîche, or heavy cream

• 1/3 cup (70 g) sugar

1) Place all the ingredients into a heavy‐bottomed saucepan and bring to a boil, making sure to stir constantly. Then reduce the heat to low and continue stirring with a wooden spoon until the sauce thickens.

2) It may take 10‐15 minutes for the sauce to thicken, but you will know when it is done when it coats the back of your spoon.

Notes:

1) You can make this sauce ahead of time and store it in the refrigerator for two weeks. Reheat the sauce in a microwave oven or a double boiler before using.

2) This sauce is also great for cakes, ice-cream and tarts.

Check out all the other wonderful creations of my fellow Daring Bakers.

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The Magic Of Little Pies...

Needless to say my summer has been pretty busy. Seems like we have gone from one thing to another and its already August. August? Where has the summer gone? I can remember summer lasting forever when I was a kid. What happened to lazy days? To catching fire flies at night? To swimming until our hands turned into little prunes? Guess that's part of the magic of being a child. And now that I am a Mom I get to do it for my own kids, and that's pretty magical too.

I made these little pies a while ago when sour cherries were in season. I was So excited to find them at my local farmers market, I couldn't pass them up. Sour cherries are just that, sour. So I wouldn't recommend eating them straight up. But put a little sugar on them and throw them in a pie shell and they are just heavenly...especially with vanilla ice cream!

I used Martha Stewart's recipes for both the crust and the filling. But instead of using a typical 9 inch pie plate I made them in my muffin tin. I think they came out pretty adorable if I do say so myself.

All you have to do is roll out the dough the same way as a traditional pie, but using a cookie cutter or a circle of some sort, cut out little 4" circles for both the top and bottom crusts. Line the muffin tin with the bottom crusts and fill with cherry mixture. Cut top crusts into strips to make lattice tops. At this point I put them in the fridge for a few hours or as long as over night. When you are ready to bake them brush the tops with beaten egg and sprinkle with course sugar. I baked these little guys for about 30 mins. Also I let them cool for quite a while before I removed them from their pan. If you do it while they are still warm I think they may just fall apart. Makes about 8 little pies.

So grab whats left of the summer and make some little pies. And if you cant get sour cherries just use whatever fruit is in season at the time. And just maybe the magic of one of these little pies will make you feel like a kid again!

Heres a wonderful little pie chart that tells you how to use different fruits for pie filling!

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With Friends...

So this weekend I find myself by myself. Well let me clarify, with time for myself. I have forgotten what it was like to do what I want when I want. To sit and read , clean the house and it actually stays clean for more than 24 hours, to go to a farmers market and think about only what would make myself happy, to prepare meals just for me and sit and eat them at a leisurely passe. This is all things I did before the boys. All wonderful things. Things that had once escaped me until Cyndee gave me the wonderful gift of a weekend for myself.

So of course having time for me had to include a wonderful dinner with friends, two of my best friends. A time to relax and decompress from all our worlds bring to us. A time to laugh and eat a bit to much and drink things that only taste best when shared. A time to giggle and cook and share stories of our life's and responsibilities. And a time to let go of it all.

Mango and avocado salsa. Freshly made mojitos with mint from the garden. Bruschetta, bright with locally grown tomatoes. Spaghetti and clams only made better with a bit of pancetta. This is a meal to linger over, to share with best friends, to let go of it all and feel refreshed.

Mango and Avocado Salsa

1 ripe mango, diced

1 ripe avocado, diced

2 scallions, sliced thinly

half pint cherry or grape tomatoes, chopped

handful fresh cilantro, chopped

juice of 1-2 limes

salt

Mix all ingredients together and serve right away. Serve with tortilla chips or pita chips.

Spaghetti and Clams

Our get togethers usually involve lots of picture taking. Me for my blog and Sopha for her flickr. But mostly because we just love to do it. Here Sopha is with her new macro lens she got for her Birthday.

And amazing chocolate peanutbutter cake from Sopha that I get to enjoy right now because we had no room for it after our lovely meal.

Thank you to my friends for helping make life just a little bit sweeter!

And as far as my family goes: As much as I have enjoyed this time for myself, they are my heart and my home, and I honeslty cannot wait for them to walk through the door!

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Heavenly Day...

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Sweet And Simple...

Chocolate. Hazelnuts. Peanut butter. Ice cream. Need I say more? Actually it's Nutella ice cream with swirls of creamy, frozen peanut butter.

When I first read about this ice cream on one of my favorite blogs I was intrigued.

I had made ice cream before but never with such few ingredients. I usually go the custard based route for the ice creams I have made in the past. But I have to say, this is one of the simplest, easiest, tastiest ice creams I have ever made.

The original recipe just called for evaporated milk and Nutella. But after tasting that mixture it was a little on the sweet side for me, so I ended up adding a small amount of heavy cream.

The peanut butter, also my idea, was just a way of making it even more indulgent!

Nutella, Peanut butter Swirl Ice Cream

1 & 1/2 cups Nutella

1 (12oz.) can evaporated milk

1/2 cup heavy cream

3-4 good Tablespoons creamy peanut butter

Mix Nutella, evaporated milk, and cream together in mixing bowl until combined thoroughly.

Let mixture chill in refrigerator a few hours or over night until well chilled. Freeze in ice cream maker according to manufacturers instructions. Add peanut butter towards the end when ice cream is almost done. For firmer ice cream put in air tight container in freezer until firm.

Don't have an ice cream maker? Here is a way to do it without one! (Another favorite blog of mine!)

"I think this is one of the best ice creams you have ever made." Says Cyndee.

"Mama! You made this?" Says Caleb.

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A Very Daring...Braid!

Well its 9:47 0n a Sunday night and I just walked in the door and realized...yikes, I didn't post my Daring bakers! Luckily I still have about a few more hours to get it done...so here it goes.
This months challenge is something I had always thought about making. It was filed in the back of my mind in the "someday file". But thanks to the Daring bakers, Danish Braid can now be stored in the "I did it!" file. Actually the "I did it and loved it and will be doing it again" file.
Danish pastry is considered a laminated dough, which is layered dough created by sandwiching butter between layers of dough. The same idea is used for croissants and puffed pastry.
The challenge was to make at least one danish braid and than we could do what we wanted with the remaining dough. We could also make the recommended apple filling or we could come up with our own homemade fillings. I chose to make little pastries using rhubarb, blueberries, pastry cream, almond paste and of course chocolate. I was able to create some delightful little treats.
The braid was blueberry and pastry cream (my favorite). And the pastries were a combination of almond paste and chocolate, rhubarb jam and almond paste, some just chocolate, some just jam, and some just almond paste. They were all delightful. Don't be afraid to experiment a little.

Here is the original recipe given to us by Kelly of Sass & Veracity, and Ben of What’s Cookin’?
The cardamom and the orange zest give an amazing flavor to the dough.

DANISH DOUGH
Makes 2-1/2 pounds dough

Ingredients
For the dough (Detrempe)

1 ounce fresh yeast or 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1/2 cup whole milk
1/3 cup sugar
Zest of 1 orange, finely grated
3/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped
2 large eggs, chilled
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
3-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt

For the butter block (Beurrage)

1/2 pound (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour

DOUGH
Combine yeast and milk in the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and mix on low speed. Slowly add sugar, orange zest, cardamom, vanilla extract, vanilla seeds, eggs, and orange juice. Mix well. Change to the dough hook and add the salt with the flour, 1 cup at a time, increasing speed to medium as the flour is incorporated. Knead the dough for about 5 minutes, or until smooth. You may need to add a little more flour if it is sticky. Transfer dough to a lightly floured baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Without a standing mixer: Combine yeast and milk in a bowl with a hand mixer on low speed or a whisk. Add sugar, orange zest, cardamom, vanilla extract, vanilla seeds, eggs, and orange juice and mix well. Sift flour and salt on your working surface and make a fountain. Make sure that the “walls” of your fountain are thick and even. Pour the liquid in the middle of the fountain. With your fingertips, mix the liquid and the flour starting from the middle of the fountain, slowly working towards the edges. When the ingredients have been incorporated start kneading the dough with the heel of your hands until it becomes smooth and easy to work with, around 5 to 7 minutes. You might need to add more flour if the dough is sticky.

chocolate almond croissants

BUTTER BLOCK
1. Combine butter and flour in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and beat on medium speed for 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and the paddle and then beat for 1 minute more, or until smooth and lump free. Set aside at room temperature.
2. After the detrempe has chilled 30 minutes, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough into a rectangle approximately 18 x 13 inches and ¼ inch thick. The dough may be sticky, so keep dusting it lightly with flour. Spread the butter evenly over the center and right thirds of the dough. Fold the left edge of the detrempe to the right, covering half of the butter. Fold the right third of the rectangle over the center third. The first turn has now been completed. Mark the dough by poking it with your finger to keep track of your turns, or use a sticky and keep a tally. Place the dough on a baking sheet, wrap it in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
3. Place the dough lengthwise on a floured work surface. The open ends should be to your right and left. Roll the dough into another approximately 13 x 18 inch, ¼-inch-thick rectangle. Again, fold the left third of the rectangle over the center third and the right third over the center third. No additional butter will be added as it is already in the dough. The second turn has now been completed. Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes.
4. Roll out, turn, and refrigerate the dough two more times, for a total of four single turns. Make sure you are keeping track of your turns. Refrigerate the dough after the final turn for at least 5 hours or overnight. The Danish dough is now ready to be used. If you will not be using the dough within 24 hours, freeze it. To do this, roll the dough out to about 1 inch in thickness, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and freeze. Defrost the dough slowly in the refrigerator for easiest handling. Danish dough will keep in the freezer for up to 1 month.

dough after its first turn

APPLE FILLING
Makes enough for two braids

Ingredients
4 Fuji or other apples, peeled, cored, and cut into ¼-inch pieces
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
4 tablespoons unsalted butter

Toss all ingredients except butter in a large bowl. Melt the butter in a sauté pan over medium heat until slightly nutty in color, about 6 - 8 minutes. Then add the apple mixture and sauté until apples are softened and caramelized, 10 to 15 minutes. If you’ve chosen Fujis, the apples will be caramelized, but have still retained their shape. Pour the cooked apples onto a baking sheet to cool completely before forming the braid. (If making ahead, cool to room temperature, seal, and refrigerate.) They will cool faster when spread in a thin layer over the surface of the sheet. After they have cooled, the filling can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Left over filling can be used as an ice cream topping, for muffins, cheesecake, or other pastries.

fresh blueberry jam and pastry cream danish braid

DANISH BRAID
Makes enough for 2 large braids

Ingredients
1 recipe Danish Dough (see below)2 cups apple filling, jam, or preserves (see below)

For the egg wash: 1 large egg, plus 1 large egg yolk

1. Line a baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper. On a lightly floured surface, roll the Danish Dough into a 15 x 20-inch rectangle, ¼ inch thick. If the dough seems elastic and shrinks back when rolled, let it rest for a few minutes, then roll again. Place the dough on the baking sheet.
2. Along one long side of the pastry make parallel, 5-inch-long cuts with a knife or rolling pastry wheel, each about 1 inch apart. Repeat on the opposite side, making sure to line up the cuts with those you’ve already made.
3. Spoon the filling you’ve chosen to fill your braid down the center of the rectangle. Starting with the top and bottom “flaps”, fold the top flap down over the filling to cover. Next, fold the bottom “flap” up to cover filling. This helps keep the braid neat and helps to hold in the filling. Now begin folding the cut side strips of dough over the filling, alternating first left, then right, left, right, until finished. Trim any excess dough and tuck in the ends.

Egg Wash

Whisk together the whole egg and yolk in a bowl and with a pastry brush, lightly coat the braid.

Proofing and Baking
1. Spray cooking oil (Pam…) onto a piece of plastic wrap, and place over the braid. Proof at room temperature or, if possible, in a controlled 90 degree F environment for about 2 hours, or until doubled in volume and light to the touch.
2. Near the end of proofing, preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Position a rack in the center of the oven.
3. Bake for 10 minutes, then rotate the pan so that the side of the braid previously in the back of the oven is now in the front. Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F, and bake about 15-20 minutes more, or until golden brown. Cool and serve the braid either still warm from the oven or at room temperature. The cooled braid can be wrapped airtight and stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 days, or freeze for 1 month.

blueberry jam pastry with coffee glaze

These are the fillings I used for my braid and pastries.

Rhubarb Jam

Pastry Cream

Blueberry Jam
Baking with Julia by Dorie Greenspan

2 cups blueberries
1 cup sugar
1 -2 Tablespoons lemon juice
1 vanilla bean, scraped

Stir berries , sugar, and vanilla bean in a large microwave safe bowl. Put bowl in microwave and cook for 10 minutes. Take out and stir. Continue cooking until most of the juice is gone, about 8 more minutes. Remove vanilla bean. Stir in lemon juice and let cool. Can be refrigerated for up to a week.

chocolate almond pastry drizzled with chocolate

Almond paste
Baking with Julia by Dorie Greenspan

1 cup blanched almonds
1/2 cup confectioners sugar
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, room temp
1/2 tsp. almond extract
1 lg. egg white, lightly beaten

Put the almonds, sugar and butter in food processor. Process until mixture is finely ground. Add the almond extract and 2 tablespoons of beaten egg white and mix until fully combined. Can be kept in fridge for one week.

coffee glaze
Baking with Julia by Dorie Greenspan

3 tablespoons strong cold coffee
1/2 cup confectioners sugar, sifted.

mix sugar and coffee together and drizzle over pastries after they are baked.

Come see all the other daring braids!!!

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The color alone will make you swoon...

Rhubarb is one of those things I do not have much experience with. I never really had it growing up and honestly I never really wanted too. But as of late I have been reading a lot about this seasonal vegetable and I became intrigued. And yes, I did confirm that rhubarb is indeed a vegetable, though many people commonly mistake it for a fruit. Good to know! It kind of goes along with that whole avocado thing. I had no idea it was actually a fruit!

Anyway, back to rhubarb. I picked up a bunch at my favorite local farmers market (I'm so excited it is time for farmers markets again!) and brought it home and let it sit on my counter for a few days until I turned it into luscious rhubarb jam. Its slightly tart flavor was an unexpected delight. I can see why it is commonly paired with strawberries, each bringing its own distinctiveness to the other for a lovely balance.


So when I saw this recipe in Martha Stewart I knew rhubarb would be a welcome flavor squished between two buttery layers of soft cookie dough. Their sugared cookie tops add a nice contrasting crunch to the soft tart centers that lay just below.

Rhubarb Jam
adapted from Baking with Julia by Dorie Greenspan

This jam could not be any easier to make and the color alone will leave you wanting to make more.

1 lb. rhubarb, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped

Put rhubarb, sugar, water and scraped vanilla bean (along with scraped seeds) into a medium sized sauce pan. Simmer over low heat until rhubarb softens and melts. remove vanilla bean and cool to room temp. Can be stored in refrigerator for up to a week.

Do yourself a favor and go pick up some rhurarb while you still can!

Now Tishy, dont you think its time for another post???

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