Every week I’d like to make a pie (or cake). I think that sometimes I will make the same pie over again, when it doesn’t turn out quite right the first time. So far I’ve made 3 pies and 1.5 cakes:

• Black and White Chocolate Cake, from the Baking From My Home to Yours cookbook by Dorie Greenspan. I learned how to cut a cake into even layers in class this semester. I turned my spice dolly into a temporary turntable so that I could properly cut the cakes into 4 thin layers. The cake was very even, but I clearly need to work on my piping skills.

• A sponge cake that fell A LOT. So much that I couldn’t possibly use it to make a layer cake, so I chopped it up and turned it into a Strawberry Lemon Curd Trifle. Because of the failure, I’m only counting this as 1/2 of a cake. This was my first trifle and it was a major sucess! I learned that when making a sponge cake (if you have more than one cake pan full of batter to bake as I did), try to position the 2 pans so that they do not need to be rotated in the oven. Rotating them made mine fall, and they never recovered.

• A strawberry-rhubarb pie. It turned out runny but delicious.

• A peach-raspberry pie. It turned out runny but delicious. I’m not sure why my pies are runny. The internet says that I don’t bake it long enough, or I don’t wait long enough for it to cool down. But both the strawberry and peach pies were still runny after spending the night in the refrigerator, so I’m going to try the peach pie again soon and bake it longer. And maybe try to sweat the peaches so that they aren’t so liquidy? I don’t know if I can do that. The peaches for this pie sat in a colander for about 30 minutes before I combined them with the sugar/cornstarch mixture, so I’m not sure what else I can do.

• An apple-cranberry pie with a struessel topping. I precooked the crust and the filling, so I am very optimistic that this one will not be runny. I’m not allowed to eat it until later tonight, so I don’t know how this one will end up. With cranberries in the pie though, it seems like vanilla ice cream should be eaten with a slice of this pie. The partially baked crust didn’t seem to bake up so well. And when I (slowly and carefully) lifted up the weighted foil after baking, some of the bottom came up with the foil, so I had to do some patching on the bottom. I’m not sure why the sides didn’t stay up. Even though it looks ugly, I’m sure it will taste just fine.

So far I’ve been working with an all-shortening crust. I like that it comes out super-flaky, and I feel that I have a pretty good grasp on the crust-rolling-out-preparation. I’d like to experiment and use some combination of butter/shortening (butter gives it more flavor but less flakiness) or a lard crust (which gives it flavor AND flakiness). I’m not sure that I can ever remember eating a crust made from lard. I’m not even sure where to buy lard. I think I can feel my arteries hardening just talking about lard.

When I saw that pate a choux (the dough that is used to make eclairs) were on the syllabus for the baking class that I took this past semester, I got very excited. I was hoping that I would be taught the right way to make the batter, and hopefully learn what I was doing wrong the few times before trying to make eclairs. The biggest problem seemed to be that they always deflated after taking them out of the oven, no matter how long I baked them.

After learning how to make pate a choux in class, I think the three things that I was doing wrong were:

1. Adding the eggs too quickly, and probably too many. I was unsure how to tell when I had enough eggs but not too much, as this was always stressed in the recipes/instructions that I read as being a critical element.
2. Using the wrong recipe. I’m sure if I went back and tried the recipe I was using, I’d have success (especially now that I know how to tell when I’ve added enough egg). But this combination and quantity of ingredients worked for me, so that’s what I’ll stick with.
3. Piping wrong. Probably not wrong, but I like the short/fat eclairs more than the long skinny ones, and I didn’t know how to pipe them fat.

I also learned that I don’t need to mix in the eggs with a mixer, as most of the recipes on the internet instruct you to do. Stirring in the eggs doesn’t require THAT much effort without a mixer… at least I don’t think so. Plus it makes it a one-pot recipe instead of a 2-pot + 1 paddle recipe.

So here is the recipe that seems to work for me. My teacher told me that you can use water or milk, but I used milk and that’s what I will stick with. Milk causes the pate a choux to brown faster and darker than using water, and the milk will also keep the pate a choux on the soft side after it has baked and cooled. If you want crisper eclairs, then use the water. Also, you can use butter or vegetable oil for the fat, but our class used vegetable oil because it is cheaper. So again, the oil worked so that’s what I’ll use forever.

Pate a choux

Ingredients
8 oz milk
4 oz vegetable or canola oil
1/2 tsp salt

5 1/2 oz bread flour

8 oz eggs (4 large eggs) – beaten

Preparation
Add the milk, oil and salt in a sauce pan and bring to a simmer. As soon as it starts to simmer, add the flour all at once. While still on the heat, stir in the flour with a wooden spoon. The dough will form a ball and will look a little like play-do. Continue to stir on the heat until a light film on the bottom of the pan forms. This will only take 2-3 minutes from the time you add the flour. Remove from the heat and cool the mixture for about a minute (so that the eggs do not cook when you begin to add them).

Still using the wooden spoon, add the eggs one by one. After each egg addition, the dough will become runny at first, but continuous stirring with the wooden spoon will eventually cause the batter to come back together. Once this happens, you can add the next egg. When you get close to the end, add eggs by the 1/2 egg portion so that you don’t add too much egg. The dough is ready when you put a small glob between your pointer finger and thumb and pull your fingers apart. The dough should stay together until your fingers are about an inch apart. If the dough does not stick together, add more eggs. I’m not sure what it looks like if you add too many eggs, I think that it is just really runny.

Put the dough into a piping bag and pipe into the shape of your choice. To pipe them fat, you have to begin squeezing out the dough while not moving the bag. The dough will begin to spread out width-wise, at which point you can very slowly start to move the piping bag along the length.  The first few times I did this, my hand was shaky and I ended up with little ridges along the length of my dough, but the ridges went away during the baking process. When you finish piping an eclair, you will be left with a not-so-smooth part at the end. If you bake it like this, it will turn into a very sharp point. After piping out all of the eclairs, dip your finger in water and pat down the rough ends to smooth them out before baking.

And if you mess up, you can scrap the dough up and put it back into the bowl, and then back into the piping bag for a second chance.

I came across this recipe and realized that I had everything already except for 3 eggs instead of 4, and cheddar cheese instead of Swiss cheese. I also realized that this wasn’t the quick side dish that I was looking for, but the night was young and Tommy was working late and it was raining outside and I was bored. My loaf of bread that was going stale was a rosemary-something-loaf that we used for paninis this weekend, so I felt this was a perfect match. And I’m happy to have had some dried porcini mushrooms in the pantry. Since the bread already had plenty of rosemary flavor, I did not add the rosemary that the recipe called for. It came together in about 30 minutes, then took 50 minutes to bake.

I also drank (and enjoyed) some left over Verdicchio both while making and eating the bread pudding. And now we have leftovers to last through Friday.

I made some dinner rolls the week before we had class, so that if I had any questions while making them, I could be sure to ask the Chef (our instructor).  The rolls were very easy to make, and I learned a few things in the process:

Bread dough is more finicky about temperature than I realized.  Bakers use dough-temperature to adjust how bread tastes.  The longer a bread ferments (rises), the more intense flavor the bread will have.  I’m not really sure what the “intensity” scale is, but I haven’t been able to tell a difference in the different fermenting times.  For example, if you start with room-temperature water to mix the dough and then knead, the dough will end up being about 78-81 degrees F.  It will then take about an hour to rise (double in size).  This long fermentation times means a richer flavor.  However, if you don’t have an hour (like in class), you can heat the water to about 95F and then mix and knead the dough.  The dough will be very warm and will ferment a lot faster (only about 15-20 minutes to double in size). For my rolls, I used the longer fermentation time.

Now on to the egg wash. Egg wash keeps the bread moist while proofing (if done before proofing), and it gives the bread a nice pretty color when it is baked.  As you can see in the pictures though, I have a problem with applying egg wash to the ENTIRE round of dough, so you can see the difference in color.  I haven’t mastered this technique yet (even though it shouldn’t be that hard), and the Chef has been sure to point that out on the rolls that I have made in class.  I blame it on the crappy pastry brushes that they have in class.

I also now know how to properly round dough, so that it is completely smooth on top.  The rolls in this picture were done before I learned how to round the dough.  My rolls from class looked MUCH prettier as a result.

The rolls were OMGDELICOUS when eaten just out of the oven, and were good in the following days as well.

All of the recipes in my book list out the ingredients by weight.  This makes it a lot easier to understand the percentages of the ingredients used.  It takes a scale and a little more time to weigh out the ingredients, but in terms of understanding why X-amount of an ingredient is used makes a lot more sense.  I was too lazy to try and convert the amounts from weight to cups/tsp, etc, so here is the recipe, by weight.  I got about 30 rolls from this recipe.

Soft Dinner Rolls

Ingredients
1 oz. active dry yeast
12 oz. water (warmed to temperature of choice, but not more than 95F)
1 lb. 6 oz. bread flour
.5 oz. salt
2 oz. sugar
1 oz. nonfat dry milk
1 oz. shortening
1 oz. butter, softened
1 egg
egg wash

Preparation

1. Dissolve the yeast in the water in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook. Add the flour, salt, sugar, dry milk, shortening, butter and egg in the bowl. Mix on low speed until combined.
2. Knead on medium-speed for 10 minutes or until dough is kneaded (must pass the window pane test).
3. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl and cover.  Place in a warm spot and ferment until doubled.
4. Punch down the dough.  Let it rest for a few minutes (this relaxes the gluten).
5. Dived the dough into 1 1/4-ounce portions and round.   Arrange them on pans and apply egg wash.  Proof until doubled in size.
6. Bake at 400F until medium-brown, about 12-15 minutes.

I remembered Melanie’s blog post about a vanilla ice cream that she made way back when, and I put my Google Reader search engine to work until I found it.  I had whole goat’s milk and heavy cream to use up, so I used those instead of half-and-half and heavy cream.  I also had 1/2 of a vanilla bean hanging out in my pantry, so I used that in addition to some of the vanilla.  I scaled the recipe down a bit more, and came out with a nice rich vanilla ice cream.

It was very soft soft-serve consistency right out of the ice cream maker,  but then hardened up slightly in the freezer over night.  I was afraid of it becoming too hard and “crystally”, but it never got to that stage.  It was most definitely, as Melanie put it, happiness in a cup (or bowl).

Vanilla Ice Cream

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups goats’ milk (or whole milk)
1/2 vanilla bean
4egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
2 tsp. vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

Preparation
Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean.  In a medium saucepan over medium heat, heat milk, vanilla bean and seeds until very hot, but not boiling, stirring frequently. Remove from heat , remove the vanilla bean, and set the milk mixture aside.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together egg yolks and sugar.

Very gradually, while still whisking, add heated milk and mix until blended.

Return milk mixture to saucepan and cook over medium heat until small bubbles form around edge and mixture is steamy and slightly thickened, stirring constantly. Do not boil.

Transfer milk mixture into a large bowl. Stir in heavy cream, vanilla and salt.

Cover and chill thoroughly, at least 8 hours.

Assemble ice cream maker according to directions. Start up ice cream maker and add mixture slowly. Churn until thick, soft-serve consistency is reached.

Remove from ice cream maker. Either freeze for further “ripening” or serve immediately.  I ate some immediately and saved the rest for further ripening.

Tommy had sent me this recipe a few weeks ago after watching Bobby Flay make it on Throwdown.  I was asleep when he was watching it, so all I had to go on was a recipe.  The first thing that I noticed about it was that the cake was covered in genache, instead of the ooey gooey caramel-nut-coconut filling that coats every German chocolate cake I have seen in the past, like this one.

There were a lot of ingredients to buy for this cake, all of which I bought here and then transported up to Wilmington.   I know where to find everything and in what store here, and I didn’t want to bother with the hastle of not being able to find specific ingredients (such as goat milk, dutch-processed cocoa powder, and heavy cream).  I’m very picky about my heavy cream.

On Saturday morning while watching the Tour de France, I started making the cake.  I realized that Bobby Flay’s directions did not include a step to incorporate the flour mixture into the batter.   The directions for the cake seemed a little weird anyway, so I made the cake my way, as demonstrated in the instructions below.  The cakes turned out nice and tall and firm enough to be able to cut them in half and layer without any disasters.  I had to add cornstarch at the end of the filling-making process, because it just didn’t thicken to a spreadable consistency on it’s own.  This step is also included in my version of the instructions below.

The cake was the best chocolate cake I have made yet, and I was very pleased by both the chocolate cake on its own and in combination with the filling.  Tommy has already requested that I make this cake again sometime soon.  The cake was great the same day it was made, but was even better for breakfast the next morning after it had some time to sit in the refrigerator.  I also found that, while the coconut-whipped cream was very very tasty, I didn’t prefer to eat it with my cake.  The cake held up just fine by itself.

German Chocolate Cake

Cake

Ingredients
2 ¼ cups AP flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
¾ teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoons fine salt
1 ½ cups strongly brewed black coffee, at room temperature
1 ½ cups buttermilk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons good quality Dutch process cocoa powder
1 ½ cups muscavado light brown sugar
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
3 large eggs

Preparation
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter two 9-inch cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl.

In another bowl, add the coffee, buttermilk, and vanilla extract and set aside.

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat (or in the microwave). Add the butter to the bowl of your mixer and slowly mix in (using the wire whisk) the cocoa powder.  Mix for about a minute, until the cocoa has been incorporated into the butter.  Add the sugars and mix on medium speed until the sugars are dissolved. Add the eggs one at a time, waiting until each egg is incorporated before adding the next.  Once all of the eggs have been incorporated, add 1/3 of the coffee/buttermilk mixture and 1/3 of the flour mixture.  Do not add the next until the first addition is fully incorporated.  Repeat until all of the wet ingredients and the flour has been incorporate in alternating batches.

Divide the batter evenly between the 2 pans and bake on the middle rack until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, about 42 minutes.  My cakes took about 51 minutes to bake.  They went from a jiggly center to a firm center in about 2-minutes’ time, so make sure that you carefully watch the cakes after the 40-minute mark until they are done.  Let them cool in the pans on a baking rack for 20 minutes. Then invert the cakes onto the baking rack and let cool for at least 1 hour before frosting.

Coconut Filling

Ingredients
2 cups whole milk
1 ¾ cup unsweetened coconut milk
1 cup goats’ milk
¾ cup plus 1 tablespoon pure cane sugar
¼ cup water
½ vanilla bean, seeds scraped
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 tablespoons very cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 ¼ cups sweetened coconut
1 ¼ cups toasted coarsely chopped pecans

Preparation
Bring the milk, coconut milk and goat’s milk to a simmer over low heat in a small saucepan.  Add the vanilla bean to the milk mixture while heating it up (keep the seeds out, they will go in later).   Keep warm while you prepare the caramel.

Combine the sugar and water in a medium saucepan over high heat and cook (do not stir) until deep amber brown color.   Remove the vanilla bean from the milk mixture, then slowly whisk in the milk mixture and continue whisking until smooth; add the vanilla seeds and corn syrup. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until the sauce is reduced by half and is the consistency of a caramel sauce, about 55 minutes.   If your sauce does not thicken once the mixture has reduced by half, turn up the heat a little so that the mixture is between a simmer and a boil.  Add no more than 1/4 cup of cornstarch to the mixture and stir with the wooden spoon until thick.

Once the sauce is thick, remove from the heat and whisk in the cold butter, vanilla extract, and  salt and whisk until combined. Transfer the sauce to a medium bowl and stir in the pecans and coconut. Let the frosting cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally before frosting the cake.

Coconut Whipped Cream

Ingredients
1 ½ cups cold heavy cream
¼ cup Cocoa Lopez (coconut cream, which can be found in a can usually on the soda isle with all of the other non-alcoholic mixer ingredients like Margareta mix)
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Preparation
Combine heavy cream, coconut milk, sugar and vanilla in a mixer and mix until soft peaks form.

Ganache

Ingredients
8 ounces heavy cream
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
2 tablespoons light corn syrup

Preparation
Bring cream to a simmer. Place chocolate in a medium bowl, add hot cream and corn syrup and let sit for 30 seconds. Gently whisk until smooth. Let sit at room temperature for 10 minutes before pouring over the cake.

Bringing it all together
Slice each cake in half horizontally. Place one cake layer on a cake round or platter and spread 1/3 of the filling evenly over the top, repeat to make 3 layers and top with the remaining cake layer, top side up. Pour the chocolate ganache over the cake, let sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes before slicing.  Slice cake, top with a dollop of whipped cream.

The next time I had an overflow of egg whites, I dispersed them among the compartments of my ice cube tray and put it in the freezer.  I read that once they are frozen, you should remove them from the tray put them in a plastic baggy for long-term storage in the freezer.  So once my egg whites were frozen, I found it impossible to get them out of the tray!  I bent and slammed the tray, trying to get them out, but they wouldn’t budge.  I tried dipping the bottom of the tray in hot water, and that didn’t work either.  Then I tried digging them out with a sharp knife… didn’t work.  So I gave up.

But then one day I had an idea.  The next time, I layed plastic wrap in the compartments and then I poured in the egg whites.  This time, they popped (lifted, really) right out of the tray.  I had to warm the cubes in my hand for a few seconds before the plastic wrap would peel off, but once that was done, the plastic wrap peeled right off, and I put the frozen cubes of egg white into a baggy for longer storage.

I give them a day to thaw out, but I have not had any problems using them so far.  I’ve even made macarons with my frozen-then-thawed egg whites and have been successful.

I am most recently excited about my new ability to make macarons.  I have tried twice in the the past, and both times resulted in a gloppy, lumpy-looking almond cookie that was edible but ugly, and nothing what a macaron should look like.   My stockpile of frozen egg whites was starting to get out of control due to all of the ice cream that Tommy and I have been making recently, so I gave macaron-making another go.  I put together all of  my ideas as to why the previous attempts failed, got serious and started again.   The result was plain-but-beautiful macarons that tasted delicious.  I was hoping that I hadn’t just gotten lucky, so I made another batch the following weekend and was successful in that as well.

In the next few months, I want to venture into adding flavor and fillings to my macarons.  And if I continue to make ice cream, I should have plenty of egg whites queued up for my experiments.

Plain Macarons

Ingredients
1 ¼ cups powdered sugar
4 oz (1 cup) almond flour or finely ground almonds (I used blanched almonds and ground them in my blender)
¼ cup plus 2 tbsps egg whites at room temperature (this is about 4 egg whites, depending on how big the egg is)
pinch of salt
¼ cup granulated sugar

Preparation
Allow egg whites to dry out by leaving them uncovered at room temperature for one or two days.

Line baking sheets with parchment.  If it is important to you to make perfectly sized macarons, then draw 1.5-inch circles on the back of the parchment for a guide when piping.  I find it more fun to try to match up the differently-sized macarons in the end for a perfect fit.

Sift the almond flour and powdered sugar. Mix the almonds and powdered sugar in a bowl and set aside.

In a large, clean, dry bowl whip egg whites with salt on medium speed until foamy. Increase the speed to medium-high and gradually add granulated sugar. Continue to whip to stiff peaks – the whites should be firm and shiny.

With a flexible spatula, gently fold in the powdered sugar/almond mixture into egg whites until completely incorporated. The mixture should be shiny and ‘flow like magma.’ When small peaks dissolve to a flat surface, stop mixing.  This should all take about 50 strokes of the spatula.

Fit a piping bag with a 3/8-inch (1 cm) round tip. Pipe the batter onto the baking sheets (in the previously drawn circles if you drew circles).  When  you pipe the batter, leave the tip in the center and let the batter move out. Do not try to “swirl” the batter when piping.  Tap the underside of the baking sheet to remove air bubbles.   Let dry at room temperature for at least 30 minutes to allow skins to form.

Bake, in a 310F oven for 10 to 11 minutes total, rotating the baking sheet after 5 minutes for even baking.

Remove macarons from oven and transfer the parchments to a cooling rack. When cool, slide a metal offset spatula underneath the macaron to remove from the parchment.

Chocolate Ganache Filling
8 oz heavy cream
8 oz bittersweet chocolate

Bring the cream to a boil and pour over the chocolate.  Let sit for 2 minutes, then stir with a whisk until the chocolate and the milk have been incorporated and the mixture looks like shiny ganache.  Let sit at room temperature for at least an hour to thicken.

Pair macarons of similar size, and pipe about 1 tsp of the filling onto one of the macarons. Sandwich macarons, and refrigerate to allow flavours to blend together. Bring back to room temperature before serving.

In an attempt to convince some of our vegetarian friends to come to our wine/football party last weekend, we advertised hamburgers AND vegetarian chili.  I thought this was a good idea, until I realized that my favorite chili recipe just couldn’t be converted into a vegetarian version by simply removing the beef and beef stock.  Having never made a vegetarian chili, I started to get nervous as party day approached.

Knowing what I already like in chili, I set out to find a recipe that would be acceptable to Tommy and I as well as our vegetarian friends.  I combined a few recipes to come up with a final version.

The final result was a very good first-vegetarian-chili.  Of course, my tastings had my mind spinning with the minor tweaks that I should use next time to make it even better.  It was lacking a serious kick (which I normally enjoy in my chili), but it still held up very well.

I was a little disappointed that I didn’t get to enjoy an entire bowl of it.  It was very popular both with the vegetarians and the hamburger-eating folks.    I happened to look over as I was eating my hamburger to realize that there were only a few spoonfuls left of the chili, so I filled a little ramekin and had my few bites before the rest of it disappeared.  There are no pictures because 1) it was consumed very quickly and 2) I was in party-host mode and didn’ think about taking a picture.

Vegetarian Chili

Ingredients

• 1 orange
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 onions, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 2 jalepenos
• 4 garlic cloves, smashed then minced
• 3 Tbsp chili powder
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 2 15.5-ounce cans seasoned black beans
• 1 15.5-ounce can kidney beans
• 1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes
• 2 tbsp white wine vinegar
• 1-3 cups water
• 4 chipotle chilis in adobo, seeded and finely chopped***
• salt
• pepper

Preparation
Juice orange. Heat oil in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onions, carrots and jalepenos; sauté 5 minutes. Mix in garlic and spices. Add beans (with juice), tomatoes (with juice), and half of orange juice and vinegar. Add water. Simmer over medium heat until heated through and flavors blend, stirring often, about 2 hours. After 1 hour, mix in remaining orange juice, salt and pepper.

***This is one ingredient that I will add next time.  These chilies give the chili a nice smokey flavor that I love.

I had some cream cheese in my refrigerator that needed to be used up before it went bad.  The only thing that I could think of to make with cream cheese was cheesecake.  I haven’t made a cheesecake in a long time, so I thought this was a good plan.  While a whole cheesecake would have been acceptable to take to a party, cutting into it can be a pain to deal with.  So I went bitesize.

I used my favorite cheesecake recipe and adjusted the quantities in hopes of filling up 12 empty muffin compartments.  I have a muffin tin that has straight sides and removable bottoms, which works perfectly when you want mini-cakes and don’t want to use muffin liners.

The cheesecake tasted fabulous as always.  The crust-to-cheesecake ratio was higher than with one normal cheesecake with crust.   I liked it better, and I think that it will encourage me to double the amount of crust that I use in the future for normal-sized cheesecakes.    This particular cheesecake recipe is has a very nice smooth lemony kick to it and a rough but wet texture (as opposed to a silky and dense cheesecake texture).  The cakes could be eaten in two bites, or shared between two people, each getting one bite (this is what most people did at the party because of the quantity of desserts that were brought by everyone).    If you want to make this as a normal-sized cheesecake, you can just double everything.

Mini Blueberry Cheesecakes

Ingredients
Crust
1 cup crushed graham crackers (15 squares)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, melted

Filling
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 egg
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup sour cream
zest of 1/2 lemon
1/2 tsp vanilla

Topping
1/2 cup blueberries
juice and zest from 1/2 lemon
1 tbsp sugar

Preparation
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

In a mixing bowl, combine the crust ingredients with a fork until evenly moistened.  Pour a heaping tbsp of crumb mixture into each muffin compartment and pack down.  Refrigerate until ready to pour the cheesecake filling into the compartments.

In a medium-sized bowl, beat the cream cheese on low speed for 1 minute until smooth and free of any lumps. Add the eggs and continue to beat slowly until combined. Gradually add sugar and beat until creamy, for 1 to 2 minutes.

Add sour cream, lemon zest, and vanilla. Periodically scrape down the sides of the bowl and the beaters. The batter should be well-mixed but not overbeaten. Pour the filling into each muffin compartment, filling about 3/4 full.

Bake for 25 minutes.  Let cool in pan for 30 minutes (don’t be alarmed if your cheesecakes shrink in size — this is normal), then chill in the refrigerator, loosely covered, for at least 4 hours.

While the cheesecake is baking, add the blueberries, lemon zest, juice, and sugar in a small saucepan.  Turn the heat to medium and cook until the blueberries begin to burst and the sauce thickens.  Let cool to room temperature, then store in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Remove cheesecakes from muffin compartments and top with filling.

I keep saying next time because I really want to make these again. Despite the eggy choux and the fact that 90% of them flattened out so that I couldn’t fill them unless I sliced them in half, they were pretty good. The internet says that I should have kept them in the oven after baking (turn oven off and leave door open) so that they won’t deflate when I take them out. Tommy and I didn’t have a problem eating most of them over the weekend. They only took about 2 hours to make, start to finish including cleaning all of the dishes. Next time I make them, they won’t be eggy and they will look beautiful!

Eclairs

Ingredients
Cream Puff Dough (see below for recipe), fresh and still warm
Pastry Cream of choice
Chocolate Glaze

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 12 minutes. After 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.

4) Using a small, sharp knife, cut a small slit in each eclair to let the steam out. Let cool for a few minutes before filling and icing.

5) 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 (or you can poke a hole in them and fill with pastry cream instead of slicing them into two pieces).

6) Fill the eclairs with the pastry cream, then dip the eclairs (or eclair tops if you have cut them in half) down into the chocolate glaze. The glaze should be barely warm to the touch (between 95 – 104 degrees F or 35 – 40 degrees C, as measured on an instant read thermometer).

Pierre Hermé’s Cream Puff Dough
Recipe from Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé

Ingredients
• 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

Preparation
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.

Pastry Cream
I used a pastry cream from a cookbook that I was borrowing from the library. I have since returned the book, and forgot to write down the recipe. Basically, any pastry cream (or vanilla pudding) will work.

Chocolate Glaze
Recipe from Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé

Ingredients
• 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

Preparation
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.

Chocolate Sauce
Recipe from Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé

Ingredients
• 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

Preparation
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.

Ingredients
1 plantain, as green as you can find
oil for frying (I used vegetable oil this time)
Salt
Dipping sauce (I used Thousand Island dressing, but the internet says that people use ketchup, mayonnaise, and pretty much anything else you can think of to dip into)

Preparation
1. Heat oil in pan over medium to medium-high heat (oil should be 1/4 inch in depth)

2. Peel the plantain — Peeling a green plantain like a banana won’t work. Chop off a little of each end, then score the flesh down the length of the plantain 4 times, so that you have 4 sections of flesh. Then take your thumb and wedge it between the flesh and the meat and run your thumb down the length of the plantain to get the skin off.

3. Cut it into 1/2 to 1-inch pieces

4. Fry the pieces for about 2 minutes on each side, just until they start to get some color

5. Put a piece of wax paper on a cutting board. Put one piece at a time on one half of the wax paper,then fold over the other half to cover the piece of fried plantain. Use a heavy skillet to smash the plantain (it should now be no more than 1/4 inch thick. I like them on the thicker side, but some may like them super-thin).

6. Put the flattened plantains back in the frying pan and fry on each side until golden.

7. Sprinkle salt on the plantains after taking them out of the frying pan..

8. Let cool, then dip in your favorite sauce and eat!

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients
1/2 cup butter at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
3/4 cup AP flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
1/2 cup milk chocolate chips

Preparation
Preheat oven to 350-degrees and prepare cookie sheets for baking.

1. Cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

2. Add eggs and vanilla and mix until blended.

3. Add flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt, mixing until just blended.

4. Add chocolate chips, mixing until combined.

5. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto cookie sheets and bake for 12 minutes

6. Let sit on cookie sheets until they have flattened out and cooled down, 3-4 minutes.

And not that this affects the typical dinners that Tommy and I make, I thought I would let everyone know that I have quit using high fructose corn syrup. NO MORE! I’m sure I won’t really notice an actual difference in my body by not having HFCS, but I feel better about it. I’m curious to know how long I will be able to not use it. Tommy and I watched King Corn a few weeks ago, and since then I’ve been anti-HFCS, and I’ve also been a little uneasy about beef and such, the non-grass fed kind. I’m definitely not a vegetarian or even close, but I don’t feel bad about paying a little bit more for local (ish) grass fed beef.

Some recipes that I have enjoyed recently are:

Chipotle Shrimp Tostadas, from our most recent Food & Wine magazine. I have recently discovered that I love cabbage and fish tacos, so this meal wasn’t a big stretch. The only variation I used was that I didn’t have chipotle chile powder, so I just used regular chile powder. The wine pairing recommendation was a Rose, which is exactly what we had. Delicious.

Another dinner from our most recent Food & Wine, Lemongrass Pork with Pickled Carrots, served alongside Caramelized Broccoli with Garlic was delicious too. We used boneless pork chops sliced thin, and served it over brown rice. The only thing that I would like to note about this recipe is that this is the first time that Tommy and I have cooked with Fish Sauce. When Tommy saw it on the grocery list, he said “ewww”. But I remained optimistic and forged on anyway. As I started preparing the meal, the fish sauce SMELLED REALLY BAD. I was dreading the thought of finishing the cooking and it tasting like it was smelling. But again, I kept quiet (I was hoping that Tommy wasn’t smelling what I smelled) and forged on. The finished product tasted nothing like it smelled. All of it was pretty tasty. Aside from all of the chopping (Tommy was chopping, and he goes really slow because all of his minced pieces are of uniform size), this meal was fairly quick to make. I like quick but delicious meals.

When I was little, one of my favorite things to eat was “Stew and Noodles”. My parents would buy the canned beef stew, cook up some egg noodles, and BAM, I would devour it. Whole Foods had some grass-fed stew beef that I was eyeing over the weekend. After finding a use for it, I went back and bought some. Some people might think that Tommy and I are weird for making beef stew in South Carolina in August. But we eat soup all year ’round, no matter how hot. Although it has been rather cool lately, in the 80′s. The only substitution I made for this Tuscan Beef Stew was that instead of 2.5 cups of red wine (who wants to use 2.5 cups, that’s almost the whole bottle!!), I used 1 cup of red wine (a merlot) and 1.5 cups of beef stock. We ate it with egg noodles and I slurped it up while thinking of childhood memories. For some weird reason, the memory that came up first was when I was eating the soup at our kitchen table, and I was watching our ferret steal the dog’s food, and the dog was going crazy, too afraid to stand up to the ferret stealing his food.

And now for my favorite parts about the cake:

The Swiss buttercream recipe required a hazelnut brittle be made, then ground into a paste, then added to the buttercream. I have made caramel a few times before, but I have never melted sugar only. It took about twice the amount of time to melt, but it finally did and I didn’t burn it. I felt very accomplished after mixing in the hazelnuts and spreading it out on the mat. I mean, it actually looked like nut brittle! YAY! It tasted pretty good too. And it was so easy. I was very skeptical of the instructions that said to grind the brittle in a food processor until it turns into a paste. I didn’t quite understand how brittle would turn into paste. But I kept the food processor going and then all of a sudden, there was paste! It wasn’t as good as the brittle, but it was good.

My next favorite part was making the buttercream. My first attempt at making buttercream last month didn’t go so well. The buttercream looked like vomit. This buttercream used a different method, making a meringue instead and then mixing in the butter to make buttercream. Nothing seemed to fall apart, and in the end I had some pretty tasty buttercream to put between the cake layers.

Like I already said, in my rush to get ready for the party I was going to (and taking the cake to), I didn’t take any pictures of the final cake. I thought that the texture of the cake part was off, just like in the Opera cake. I think it was the nut-base instead of flour base. I won’t be participating in anymore nut-cake challenges, they just aren’t for me. The other part of the cake that my palate didn’t enjoy very much was the apricot glaze just under the ganache glaze. For some reason, the apricot and chocolate just didn’t taste right together. A few pieces were eaten at the party, but the majority of the cake came home and sat in the refrigerator until the following weekend, when my in laws came to town and ate it up. They seemed to enjoy it.

Filbert Gateau with Praline Buttercream
From Great Cakes by Carol Walter

1 Filbert Genoise
1 recipe sugar syrup, flavored with dark rum
1 recipe Praline Buttercream
½ cup heavy cream, whipped to soft peaks
1 recipe Apricot Glaze
1 recipe Ganache Glaze, prepared just before using
3 tablespoons filberts, toasted and coarsely chopped

Filbert Genoise
Because of the amount of nuts in the recipe, this preparation is different from a classic genoise.

1 ½ cups hazelnuts, toasted/skinned
2/3 cup cake flour, unsifted
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
7 large egg yolks
1 cup sugar, divided ¼ & ¾ cups
1 tsp. vanilla extract
½ tsp. grated lemon rind
5 lg. egg whites
¼ cup warm, clarified butter (100 – 110 degrees)

Position rack in the lower 3rd of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 10” X 2” inch round cake pan.

Using a food processor, process nuts, cake flour, and cornstarch for about 30 seconds. Then, pulse the mixture about 10 times to get a fine, powdery mixture. You’ll know the nuts are ready when they begin to gather together around the sides of the bowl. While you want to make sure there aren’t any large pieces, don’t over-process. Set aside.

Put the yolks in the bowl of an electric mixer, with the whisk attachment, and beat until thick and light in color, about 3-4 minutes on med-high speed. Slowly, add ¾ cup of sugar. It is best to do so by adding a tablespoon at a time, taking about 3 minutes for this step. When finished, the mixture should be ribbony. Blend in the vanilla and grated lemon rind. Remove and set aside.

Place egg whites in a large, clean bowl of the electric mixer with the whisk attachment and beat on medium speed, until soft peaks. Increase to med-high speed and slowly add the remaining ¼ cup of sugar, over 15-20 seconds or so. Continue to beat for another ½ minute.
Add the yolk mixture to the whites and whisk for 1 minute.

Pour the warm butter in a liquid measure cup (or a spouted container). * It must be a deep bottom bowl and work must be fast.* Put the nut meal in a mesh strainer (or use your hand – working quickly) and sprinkle it in about 2 tablespoons at a time – folding it carefully for about 40 folds. Be sure to exclude any large chunks/pieces of nuts. Again, work quickly and carefully as to not deflate the mixture. When all but about 2 Tbsp. of nut meal remain, quickly and steadily pour the warm butter over the batter. Then, with the remaining nut meal, fold the batter to incorporate, about 13 or so folds.

With a rubber spatula, transfer the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the surface with the spatula or back of a spoon. **If collected butter remains at the bottom of the bowl, do not add it to the batter! It will impede the cake rising while baking.

Tap the pan on the counter to remove air bubbles and bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes. You’ll know the cake is done when it is springy to the touch and it separates itself from the side of the pan. Remove from oven and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Invert onto a cake rack sprayed with nonstick coating, removing the pan. Cool the cake completely.

*If not using the cake right away, wrap thoroughly in plastic wrap, then in a plastic bag, then in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. If freezing, wrap in foil, then the bag and use within 2-3 months.

Sugar Syrup
Makes 1 cup, good for one 10-inch cake – split into 3 layers

1 cup water
¼ cup sugar
2 Tbsp. dark rum or orange flavored liqueur

In a small, yet heavy saucepan, bring the water and sugar to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, add the liqueur. Cool slightly before using on the cake. *Can be made in advance.

Praline Buttercream
1 recipe Swiss Buttercream
1/3 cup praline paste
1 ½ – 2 Tbsp. Jamaican rum (optional)

Blend ½ cup buttercream into the paste, then add to the remaining buttercream. Whip briefly on med-low speed to combine. Blend in rum.

Swiss Buttercream
4 lg. egg whites
¾ cup sugar
1 ½ cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, slightly firm
1 ½ -2 Tbsp. Grand Marnier or liqueur of your choice
1 tsp. vanilla

Place the egg whites in a lg/ bowl of a elevtric mixer and beat with the whisk attachment until the whites are foamy and they begin to thicken (just before the soft peak stage). Set the bowl over a saucepan filled with about 2 inches of simmering water, making sure the bowl is not touching the water. Then, whisk in the sugar by adding 1-2 tablespoon of sugar at a time over a minutes time. Continue beating 2-3 minutes or until the whites are warm (about 120 degrees) and the sugar is dissolved. The mixture should look thick and like whipped marshmallows.
Remove from pan and with either the paddle or whisk attachment, beat the egg whites and sugar on med-high until its a thick, cool meringue – about 5-7 minutes. *Do not overbeat*. Set aside.

Place the butter in a separate clean mixing bowl and, using the paddle attachment, cream the butter at medium speed for 40-60 seconds, or until smooth and creamy. *Do not overbeat or the butter will become toooooo soft.*

On med-low speed, blend the meringue into the butter, about 1-2 Tbsp. at a time, over 1 minute. Add the liqueur and vanilla and mix for 30-45 seconds longer, until thick and creamy.

Refrigerate 10-15 minutes before using.

Wait! My buttercream won’t come together! Reheat the buttercream briefly over simmering water for about 5 seconds, stirring with a wooden spoon. Be careful and do not overbeat. The mixture will look broken with some liquid at the bottom of the bowl. Return the bowl to the mixer and whip on medium speed just until the cream comes back together.

Wait! My buttercream is too soft! Chill the buttercream in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes and rewhip. If that doesn’t work, cream an additional 2-4 Tbsp. of butter in a small bowl– making sure the butter is not as soft as the original amount, so make sure is cool and smooth. On low speed, quickly add the creamed butter to the buttercream, 1 Tbsp. at a time.

Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days, or can be frozen for up to 6 months. If freezing, store in 2 16-oz. plastic containers and thaw in the refrigerator overnight or at room temperature for several hours.

Praline Paste
1 cup (4 ½ oz.) Hazelnuts, toasted/skinless
2/3 cup Sugar
Line a jelly roll pan with parchment and lightly butter.

Put the sugar in a heavy 10-inch skillet. Heat on low flame for about 10-20 min until the sugar melts around the edges. Do not stir the sugar. Swirl the pan if necessary to prevent the melted sugar from burning. Brush the sides of the pan with water to remove sugar crystals. If the sugar in the center does not melt, stir briefly. When the sugar is completely melted and caramel in color, remove from heat. Stir in the nuts with a wooden spoon and separate the clusters. Return to low heat and stir to coat the nuts on all sides. Cook until the mixture starts to bubble. **Remember – extremely hot mixture.** Then onto the parchment lined sheet and spread as evenly as possible. As it cools, it will harden into brittle. Break the candied nuts into pieces and place them in the food processor. Pulse into a medium-fine crunch or process until the brittle turns into a powder. To make paste, process for several minutes. Store in an airtight container and store in a cook dry place. Do not refrigerate.

Apricot Glaze
Good for one 10-inch cake

2/3 cup thick apricot preserves
1 Tbsp. water

In a small, yet heavy saucepan, bring the water and preserves to a slow boil and simmer for 2-3 minutes. If the mixture begins to stick to the bottom of the saucepan, add water as needed.

Remove from heat and, using a strainer, press the mixture through the mesh and discard any remnants. With a pastry brush, apply the glaze onto the cake while the cake is still warm. If the glaze is too thick, thin to a preferred consistency with drops of water.

Ganache Glaze
Makes about 1 cup, enough to cover the top and sides of a 9 or 10 inch layer cake

6 oz. (good) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, like Lindt
6 oz. (¾ cup heavy cream
1 tbsp. light corn syrup
1 Tbsp. Grand Marnier, Cointreay, or dark Jamaican rum (optional)
¾ tsp. vanilla
½ – 1 tsp. hot water, if needed

Blend vanilla and liqueur/rum together and set aside.

Break the chocolate into 1-inch pieces and place in the basket of a food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Transfer into a medium sized bowl and set aside.

Heat the cream and corn syrup in a saucepan, on low, until it reached a gentle boil. Once to the gently boil, immediately and carefully pour over the chocolate. Leave it alone for one minute, then slowly stir and mix the chocolate and cream together until the chocolate is melted and incorporated into the cream. Carefully blend in vanilla mixture. If the surface seems oily, add ½ – 1 tsp hot water. The glaze will thicken, but should still be pourable. If it doesn’t thicken, refrigerate for about 5 minutes, but make sure it doesn’t get too cold!

Assembling Cake
Cut a cardboard disk slightly smaller than the cake. Divide the cake into 3 layers and place the first layer top-side down on the disk. Using a pastry brush, moisten the layer with 3-4 Tbsp. of warm sugar syrup. Measure out 1 cup of praline buttercream and set aside.

Spread the bottom layer with a ¼-inch thickness of the remaining buttercream. Cover with ½ of the whipped cream, leaving ¼-inch border around the edge of the cake. Place the middle layer over the first, brush with sugar syrup, spreading with buttercream. Cover with the remaining whipped cream.

Moisten the cut side of the third layer with additional sugar syrup and place cut side down on the cake. Gently, press the sides of the cake to align the layers. Refrigerate to chill for at least 30 minutes.

Lift the cake by sliding your palm under the cardboard. Holding a serrated or very sharp night with an 8-ich blade held parallel to the sides of the cake, trim the sides so that they are perfectly straight. Cut a slight bevel at the top to help the glaze drip over the edge. Brush the top and sides of the cake with warm apricot glaze, sealing the cut areas completely. Chill while you prepare the ganache.

Place a rack over a large shallow pan to catch the ganache drippings. Remove the gateau from the refrigerator and put it the rack. With a metal spatula in hand, and holding the saucepan about 10 inches above the cake, pour the ganache onto the cake’s center. Move the spatula over the top of the ganache about 4 times to get a smooth and mirror-like appearance. The ganache should cover the top and run down the sides of the cake. When the ganache has been poured and is coating the cake, lift one side of the rack and bang it once on the counter to help spread the ganache evenly and break any air bubbles. (Work fast before setting starts.) Patch any bare spots on the sides with a smaller spatula, but do not touch the top after the “bang”. Let the cake stand at least 15 minutes to set after glazing.

To garnish the cake, fit a 12 – 14-inch pastry bag with a #114 large leaf tip. Fill the bag with the reserved praline cream. Stating ½ inch from the outer edge of the cake, position the pastry tube at a 90 degree angle with the top almost touching the top of the cake. Apply pressure to the pastry bag, moving it slightly toward the center of the cake. As the buttercream flows on the cake, reverse the movement backward toward the edge of the cake and finish by pulling the bag again to the center. Stop applying pressure and press the bag downward, then quickly pull the tip up to break the flow of frosting. Repeat, making 12 leaves evenly spaced around the surface of the cake.

Make a second row of leaves on the top of the first row, moving the pastry bag about ¾ inch closer to the center. The leaves should overlap. Make a 3rd row, moving closer and closer to the center. Add a 4th row if you have the room. But, leave a 2-inch space in the center for a chopped filbert garnish. Refrigerate uncovered for 3-4 hours to allow the cake to set. Remove the cake from the refrigerator at least 3 hours before serving.

The most recent Food & Wine magazine featured a very simple squash soup that caught my eye over the weekend. Knowing that we STILL had squash in the refrigerator, and knowing that I had a sore throat and wanted something comforting like soup, this was a perfect choice for dinner. The soup itself has only a few ingredients. Buttermilk is added after pureeing to give it a slight tanginess. My most favorite part about this soup was that with so few ingredients, the squash flavor was very intense. A “garnish” was also prepared, which was actually a small salad of a handful of vegetables. The garnish wasn’t really a garnish, it was more like a bunch of chopped veggies, that, when added to the soup, provided a nice crunch to every bite of soup. This description may sound a little weird for soup, but trust me, it was good.

Summer Squash Soup
Modified from August 2008 Food & Wine

Ingredients
For the soup:
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 pound small yellow squash, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 small yellow onion, roughly chopped
2 fresh bay leaves
1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 cups water
1 cup buttermilk
Salt and pepper

For the garnish:
6 scallions, white and tender green parts only
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup grape tomatoes, quartered
1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon
1 tablespoon minced flat-leaf parsley
1/4 cup finely diced peeled cucumber
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground white pepper

Preparation
1. In a saucepan, melt the butter. Add the yellow squash, onion and bay leaves and cook over moderate heat for 8 minutes. Add the broth and water and bring to a boil. Simmer just until the squash is tender, 25 to 30 minutes.
2. While the soup is simmering, heat a pan over high heat. Rub the scallions with 1 teaspoon of the oil and grill over high heat, turning occasionally, until lightly charred, 5 minutes. Let them cool, then cut into 1/2-inch pieces.
3. Add the scallions, tomatoes, tarragon, parsley, cucumber, lemon juice and the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil in a bowl. Salt and pepper to taste. Set aside until ready to serve the soup.
3. When the squash is tender, transfer it and 1/2 cup of the broth to a blender and discard the bay leaves. Puree the soup and blend in the buttermilk. Season with salt and pepper.
4. To serve, ladle soup into bowls. Put a generous portion of the garnish in each bowl.

After everyone was awake, I brushed it with the egg wash, stuck it in the oven for 20 minutes, and out came this beautifully browned pastry! Oh the excitement! The combination of an excited baker and hungry stomachs meant that there were no pictures of the final product. Only memories, and the other half of the dough in the freezer.

I chose to do two different fillings in one braid, each filling taking up half of the braid. I put pastry filling along the entire length of the braid. I filled the first half with a raspberry-blueberry filling (a very runny filling I might add), and the other half with bittersweet chocolate chips and bananas. While the whole thing was delicious, I would have to agree with Tommy that the cardamom seemed too much for the pastry. It overpowered the fillings, and in general, just didn’t seem to go with the pastry. I would happily leave that out next time. The texture of it, however, was PERFECT! Warm and flaky. I can’t wait to use up the second half of the dough. I’m thinking about doing a variety of things, including a few croissants, and some decorative danishes with filling in them. I’m just waiting for a time when others can help us eat them. I would highly recommend trying this out if you have a few hours to kill in the kitchen one afternoon. I enjoyed it.

A Danish Braid
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 (At the recommendation of someone on the forum, I used Lurpak butter because it has less water content than American butter. I don’t know if it helped or not, but my danish was perfect)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour

Preparation
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.

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.)

Danish Braid
1/2 recipe Danish Dough (above)
2 cups filling
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.

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

Le Opera Cake

Jaconde
6 large egg whites, at room temperature
2 tbsp. granulated sugar
2 cups ground blanched almonds
2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
6 large eggs
½ cup all-purpose flour
3 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1.Divide the oven into thirds by positioning a rack in the upper third of the oven and the lower third of the oven.
2.Preheat the oven to 425?F. (220?C).
3.Line two 12½ x 15½- inch (31 x 39-cm) jelly-roll pans with parchment paper and brush with melted butter.
4.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.
5.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.
6.Add the flour and beat on low speed until the flour is just combined (be very careful not to overmix here!!!).
7.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.
8.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.
9.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.
10.Carefully peel away the parchment, then turn the parchment over and use it to cover the cakes. Let the cakes cool to room temperature.

Syrup
½ cup water
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tbsp. limoncello

1.Stir all the syrup ingredients together in the saucepan and bring to a boil.
2.Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature.

Butter cream
Alton Brown’s Butter cream
Alton Brown’s technique (The Icing Man Commeth episode)

White Chocolate Mousse
7 ounces white chocolate
1 cup plus 3 tbsp. heavy cream (35% cream)
1 tbsp. limoncello

1.Melt the white chocolate and the 3 tbsp. of heavy cream in a small saucepan.
2.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.
3.In the bowl of a stand mixer, whip the remaining 1 cup of heavy cream until soft peaks form.
4.Gently fold the whipped cream into the cooled chocolate to form a mousse.
5.If it’s too thin, refrigerate it for a bit until it’s spreadable.
6.If you’re not going to use it right away, refrigerate until you’re ready to use.

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

1.Melt the white chocolate with the heavy cream. Whisk the mixture gently until smooth.
2.Let cool for 10 minutes and then pour over the chilled cake. Using a long metal cake spatula, smooth out into an even layer.
3.Place the cake into the refrigerator for 30 minutes to set.

Assembly
1. Cut the jaconde into 2 10X10-inch sqaures, and 2 10X5-inch rectangles. Place one 10X10 inch square on a serving platter or cutting board. Brush on 1/3 of the syrup.
2. Spread 1/2 of the butter cream onto first layer.
3. Put 2 jaconde rectangles side-by-side on the butter cream layer. Brush jaconde layer with next 1/3 of syrup.
4. Spread remaining 1/2 of the butter cream onto 2nd jaconde layer.
5. Put remaining jaconde layer on 2nd layer of butter cream. Brush with remaining 1/3 of syrup.
6. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
7. Spread mousse layer on top of 3rd jaconde layer.
8. Refrigerate for 2 hours.
9. Make the glaze while the cake is chilling in the refrigerator.
10. After 2 hours of chilling, pour the glaze on top of the mousse layer.
11. Refrigerate for at least 2 more hours.
12. Trim all 4 sides of cake so that layers are visible.
13. Eat the scrap.
14. Eat and share the cake.

Ingredients
1 large egg white, lightly beaten
1/2 cup well-shaken buttermilk
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1 large sweet onion, cut crosswise into 1/3-inch-thick slices
1 tablespoon olive oil

Preparation
Preheat oven to 450°F. Separate onion slices into rings and pick out the 12 largest, reserving remainder for another use.

Whisk together egg white, buttermilk, sour cream, flour, salt, and cayenne in a shallow bowl until smooth. Add onion rings to the mixture, making sure onion rings are coated well. Let onion rings sit in the batter in the refrigerator for a few hours or until ready to use (you don’t have to let the onion rings sit in the batter, but I chose to do this in hopes of the onion absorbing some of the batter).

Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking. Working in batches of 4, cook onions in skillet until golden brown, about 1 minute on each side. (Use 1 teaspoon oil per batch.) Transfer rings as browned to a lightly oiled shallow (1-inch-deep) baking pan.

Bake rings in middle of oven, turning once, until crisp and deep golden, 15 minutes total.

But the other vegetables have been fun to cook with. Spring in South Carolina yields plenty of greens, broccoli, turnips, radishes, and an abundance of strawberries. Last week we got an unidentified vegetable that I had never seen before. After a few long internet searches, I finally found what this vegetable was: Kohlrabi. Once finding out what it was, I began trying to figure out how to prepare it. It sounds like it is a lot like broccoli stems in texture and taste, only a tad bit sweeter. It can be eaten raw or cooked. I am going to cut it up into bitesize pieces and roast the pieces along with the cute little baby squash that we got.

I pick up my box on Wednesdays after work. Every Wednesday I find myself anxiously waiting to find out what is in the box for that week. This week we’re supposed to be getting fresh eggs too! I am also learning what grows in South Carolina and when it grows. The vegetables will keep coming through mid-July. I think that once the summer heat hits, we will be transitioning away from the greens (the heat kills them) to water melons, canteloupe, beans, and peppers.