Sticky Toffee Cake. Update 3/3/11 – Suvir Saran will be appearing on Top Chef Masters, April 6th on Bravo!
I could not be more excited for him and for all of us to get the opportunity to watch him in action! My ideal day consists of walking around NYC, eating oysters, going to museums to see great quantities of art and then finishing with an incredible meal. This is precisely what I did with my family during our trip last month. My boys were fine until about hour 3 at the Met, when they just wanted to leave to grab a hot dog and run wild. They were fed up with all the talk of brush strokes, juxtapositions, impressionists and cubists. (picture of Suvir by Charlie Burd, picture of devi by Ben Fink) I met Suvir several years ago at a pastry conference hosted at the CIA. More about our meal at devi, a Sticky Toffee Cake with Nut Brittle Ice Cream recipe: (pictures of food at devi by Ben Fink) Here is a sampling of the meal we ate at devi.
(pictures of devi desserts by Ben Fink) Cake: 8 ounces dates 1 1/4 cup water. Meringues. I believe a lot of people think that baking meringues is quite a daunting task. I was one of those people. After 2 unsuccessful attempts, I’ve finally figured out the way to get perfect meringues, every single time and there are just two things: 1. Vinegar 2. Patience Why vinegar?
As for patience…as long as you can keep your mind pre-occupied with something else for 2.5 hours other than “eat meringues now”, you’re just a step away from baking perfect meringues as far as I’m concerned, hehe. So have you established whether you’ve got the 2 items that would ensure your meringue baking success? 3 egg whites 300 grams of sugar # – Firstly, separate the egg yolks from egg whites. . # – Be patient with your camwhoring boyfriend who’s supposed to be taking pictures of you only. . # – Beat the egg whites until they’re shiny & fluffy. # – Kind of like this…. # – Now, gradually add the sugar while still beating the eggs. . # – You can stop beating when the mixture is glossy and stiff. . # – Time for piping. Best Frosting I've Ever Had. Bake your favorite chocolate cake and let it cool.
In a small saucepan, whisk flour into milk and heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens. You want it to be very thick, thicker than cake mix, more like a brownie mix is. Remove from heat and let it cool to room temperature. (If I’m in a hurry, I place the saucepan over ice in the sink for about 10 minutes or so until the mixture cools.) It must be completely cool before you use it in the next step. While the mixture is cooling, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Grab a spoon and taste this wonderful goodness. Cut yourself a piece and put it on a pretty plate. Cherry Almond Crumble. Every year, around this time, I’m reminded of how much I adore cherries.
I forget about them during the long winter, those days when fresh fruit is scarce. Then, as soon as I see them in the grocery store, I snatch them up, not giving a second thought about the $10 price tag. I love that not only are they tasty, they are absolutely beautiful. There’s lots of pretty fruit out there, but I think cherries win the beauty contest, hands down. All those shades of red, their shiny skin, their ombre interior. Today was the first time this season I seen them in the grocery store, so I grabbed a bag and brought them home to make this crumble. This recipe is loosely based on a recipe for a rhubarb, oat & pecan crumble from one of my favorite cookbooks, Rustic Fruit Desserts. This is best served fresh out of the oven, topped with vanilla bean ice cream.
Cherry Almond Crumbleadapted from Rustic Fruit Desserts Crumble Cherry Filling Preheat the oven to 350. Quick Tiramisu Trifle. Chocolate Hazelnut Mousse. I had great intentions of serving this mousse on Christmas — I was going to make it into more of a cake using fancy pirouette cookies standing upright as the outer crust. But I was tired of baking (gasp!) By the time Friday rolled around and thus somehow we survived on only apple pie, the cupcake wreath, and sugar cookies. I still had all the ingredients though, so I rethought the recipe to fit the next big holiday: New Year’s Eve! This was my first time making mousse, it was really fun to use my mixer to make the whipped cream and then gently fold in the chocolate-hazelnut mixture using my knowledge from Ina and Martha.
I served the mousse in martini glasses (a new gift from Ryan to my parents!) The mousse is topped with chocolate shavings and toasted hazelnuts, and those pirouette cookies got some use as well. Tagalong Peanut Butter Parfaits. Peanut Butter Parfaits made with Girl Scout Cookies?
Yes, you read that correctly and yes, they are as rich and decadent as they sound.