cherry clafoutis You know what? I’m having a fantastic summer. Life is incredibly sweet, juicy opportunities for personal and professional development are cropping up left and right, we’re going to Napa in one month and — I’m thrilled. Its terrible how little I like to talk about this, how fearful even the most level-headed of us can be of jinxing out all the good in the world by bringing it up. I mean, really. And then there are the cherries. And now there’s this. If you’ve never made cherry clafoutis before, this will be a treat for you. You know what I say?
Macaron Mythbusters As I wrote in my first macaron post, I make macarons every day at work, learning something new with each batch. The most important thing I’ve learned is this: Macarons don’t have magical properties and shouldn’t require quasi-spiritual rituals as part of their mise en place. You wouldn’t learn that from reading up on macaron-themed blog posts, though. Instead you’ll find bakers fervently insisting on an assortment of essential steps to prevent failure, while simultaneously conceding failure as both inevitable and incomprehensible. Everyone harps upon their fickle nature, making half-joking references to spiteful macaron gods. Um, guys? Yet uncertainty makes up a common thread among macaron blog posts. Did you age the egg whites long enough? Such tricks place the importance on ritual and obscure the role of technique, either good or bad. So I wanted to conduct an experiment (or rather, a series of experiments) to determine which factors “the perfect macaron” actually depended upon. 1. 2.
How to make macarons - some tips and tricks For those of you who read this blog regularly, you will know that macarons are one of my obsessions. Some of you may remember a couple of my early attempts (here, here, and here), then the epiphany of the class at Lenôtre in Paris. Following that class, I had a number of successes and I found the recipe to be very similar to Helene’s (of Tartelette blog) and I used a combination of the Lenôtre techniques with Helene’s recipe most of last year, with varying success. Being a Taurean (stubborn) and A-type (a planner) what bugged me about macarons was how unpredictable they were. On many occasions I have wanted to make them for dinner parties or gifts but given the fact that I never knew if it was going to be a “feet” kinda day, I always chose something else. Until recently. Encouraged by Stella, I tried my hand at these just before the end of my spring break. I followed Stella’s instructions to a T – even down to the timing of the beating of the whites. I was on a roll! Choc mint macs:
10 Tasty Mug Cakes That You Can Make in Just Minutes By bellalimento | I’m sure you’ve heard of cakes that you make in a microwave in MINUTES. I have to admit the first time I saw a recipe for one I was skeptical. nggallery id=’120007′ Read more from bell’alimento {Paula} on her Food Blog, Twitter & Facebook. Want to whip up dessert in a flash? The 25 healthiest foods for under $18 breakfast recipes to make in a crockpot15 sinfully sweet dessert recipes in a jar8 homemade Girl Scout cookie recipes — Samoas, Thin Mints, and more17 drinks you wouldn’t guess are non-alcoholic More on Babble About bellalimento bellalimento Paula Jones started her blog, Bell'alimento, in 2009 as a place to share her recipes with her friends and family.
poppy seed lemondoodles The internet blows my mind. I lay awake at night trying to understand how it works; how it brings us all together, how we will continue to connect, and how it knows that I am searching for the current weather in Hong Kong, even when I myself did not know I even needed that information. How is the internet going to turn out? Are we all going to have claws for hands because of the overuse of touch screens? Are doctors going to rename the pointer finger the iPointer finger? Perhaps my limited knowledge comes from the fact that at 26, I am rolled into one of the last generations to know a childhood without the internet. I admit I may not be the best test case since my family had dial-up until about 4 years ago. But still. I am coming to terms with the fact that my adult life will be saved and stored online but not my youth. When I was 11 years old I wrote to The Seattle Times. It was a no-brainer that my journalistic career would only take off from there. I have only two words: make these!
How To Make Creamy Ice Cream with Just One Ingredient! Yes, that's right; you heard us. Creamy, soft-serve style ice cream with just one ingredient — and no ice cream maker needed! What is this one magic ingredient that can be whipped into perfectly rich and silky ice cream, with no additional dairy, sweeteners, or ingredients needed whatsoever? If you guessed BANANA, congratulations! You're right! What? "That's the sort of thing you discover," she sighed, "when all your friends are vegan, gluten-free, dairy-allergic, and you're on a sugar-free diet." It turns out that frozen bananas are good for more than just dipping in chocolate. Some bananas, depending on their ripeness, have a bit of that green aftertaste. Have you ever tried frozen-banana ice cream? Want more detailed instructions and step-by-step photos? → Step-by-Step Instructions for One-Ingredient Ice Cream Now try more flavors... → Magic One-Ingredient Ice Cream 5 Ways: Peanut Butter, Nutella, and More (Images: Faith Durand)
Maple Pots de Crème with Almond Praline Recipe at Epicurious photo by Dan Forbes yield Makes 4 active time 40 minutes total time 4 hours The crunchy praline is a nice contrast to the smooth, rich custard. Custard: 6 large egg yolks 1/3 cup maple sugar 2 tablespoons (packed) dark brown sugar 1/8 teaspoon imitation maple extract Pinch of coarse kosher salt 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream Praline: 2 tablespoons sliced almonds 3 tablespoons sugar 1 tablespoon water 1 teaspoon light corn syrup Pinch of coarse kosher salt Preparation For praline: Preheat oven to 375°F. Stir sugar, 1 tablespoon water, corn syrup, and coarse salt in small heavy saucepan over low heat until sugar dissolves. For custard: Preheat oven to 325°F. Arrange four 3/4-cup ramekins or custard cups in 13 x 9 x 2-inch metal baking pan. Bake custards until center is just set, about 35 minutes. Sprinkle praline over custards.
Pâte à Choux Recipe (Cream Puff Pastry) Thursday, November 17, 2011 Simple Pate a Choux and Cheese Puffs Update 11/17/11 I’m re-posting this recipe from 2009 – it’s perfect for Thanksgiving dinner – 3-ingredient recipe with impressive results. Update 12/8/09 I’m thrilled to share that I’m a featured blogger for Oprah’s Holiday 2009 where this recipe is being featured! Pâte à Choux paht-ah-shoo! Sounds like sneeze, those fancy French words that I can’t ever get right! But so easy that it can be summed up with this ratio 1:1:1:1:1 1 cup water: 1 stick butter: 1 cup flour: 1 cup eggs: 1 pinch salt And so easy that even *I* an oven-fearing, non-baker could master it on the very first try. So easy that I’ve made these cute little babies 6 times in the past 6 days. Now that’s easy. Or obsessive. Either way, you MUST make these — like TONIGHT! And if you try to make me pronounce gougeres, I can’t. So we’re calling them “Fancy Cheesy Puffy Poofs” at dinner. Rule #1: Simplest is best. Oh but wait. Easy Mushroom Pate Leave a Comment
The Best Chocolate Mousse of Your Life Under 5 Minutes : Cafe Fernando – Food Blog - best chocolate mousse - best chocolate mousse recipe - chocolate chantilly - chocolate mousse recipe - herve this - Chocolate December 22nd, 2010 | Category: Chocolate Two ingredients (seriously, only chocolate and water) and five minutes later, you will be eating The Best Chocolate Mousse of Your Life. I promise. And you don’t even need any fancy kitchen gadgets. This amazing discovery was made by the famous French chemist, Hervé This, who is also known as the man who unboiled an egg. Since the recipe has only two ingredients, it all comes down to the quality of the chocolate you use. Don’t take this as a mousse recipe only. You can also flavor it with spices like cinnamon or cayenne pepper or add a tablespoon of liquor like Grand Marnier, Chartreuse or Tia Maria. Or boil the water first, take off heat, place a couple of Earl Grey tea bags, let infuse and then use it as your liquid. The most important part of the recipe is achieving the right consistency. As soon as I hit the publish button, I’ll start working against a very tight deadline for the book. Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Cinnamon Toast Rolls The USDA released its new food pyramid the other day (which is actually a plate now instead of a pyramid), and I am sorely disappointed to report that cinnamon rolls did not appear anywhere on that plate. I think by now most of us know what should be on our dinner plate in terms of healthy, well-rounded nutrient-laden meals, but it is my considered opinion that our breakfast plate should include cinnamon rolls now and then. And not just any cinnamon roll, mind you, but how ‘bout a homemade cinnamon roll hybrid that is a cross between a cinnamon roll and cinnamon toast, is super easy to make and gosh darn delicious. In honor of their ancestry, I call these little gems cinnamon toast rolls, and here’s all you need to make them… Yep. Trim the crusts off of the bread Roll the bread really flat Brush both sides of the bread with butter Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar Roll in any fashion you like (I’ve also folded them into little triangles) Cinnamon Toast Rolls Click here for a printable recipe
Honeyed Pears in Puff Pastry Poaching fruit is one of my favorite things to do when cold weather arrives. It's so warming to stand over a boiling pot of fragrant spices and lose yourself in thought. When I made these, I couldn't help but daydream as I stirred; if I were a pear... That sounds a little silly, but that's what I'd want... if I were a pear. The idea for these came from the Pepperidge Farm website. On a personal note, our Christmas tree is already up courtesy of Mr. Since poaching is a relatively easy task, I'll skip to some helpful tips for wrapping the pears in puff pastry. The poaching liquid has a high concentration of sugar, so your pears will be sticky. When you reach the top, tuck in the end piece of pastry behind the last spiral. 4 small pears 1 sheet of ready made puff pastry dough, thawed 4 cups water 2 cups sugar 1 cup honey 1/2 lemon 1 vanilla bean, seeded with hull reserved 3 sticks of cinnamon 6-8 whole cloves Peel pears and core from the bottom. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
DessertStalking Popsicles! Not to sound full of myself, but I’m pretty sure this is the be all, end all of popsicle roundups. There’s a little something for everyone: the foodies, the purists, the ones who prefer frozen yogurt, the ones who prefer a little alcohol, everyone. Tweny-five options to be exact. The post I did last summer on the cold guys was one of DC’s most viewed ever, so I thought you’d all be up for another round – was I right? Click on the photo to be taken to the recipe. All photos and recipes copyright of their respective source unless otherwise noted.
Citrus Love-Lemon Posset, Langues de Chats & Lime Meltaways Posted by Grace Massa Langlois on Monday, 3rd May 2010 After the last couple of weeks of sweets I was looking for something tangy and refreshing, Lemon Posset with Langues de Chats and a few batches of Lime Meltaways definitely fulfilled my craving. I thought for a change I would turn to my vast selection of cookbooks for inspiration. I am a little embarrassed to say that I usually tend to turn to the Internet in search of recipes rather than take a few minutes and go through all the beautiful cookbooks that I have. Of course, my first stop was Gordon Ramsay’s Sunday Lunch. I decided on Gordon’s Lemon Posset recipe because it was so simple to make, 3 ingredients, heavy cream, caster sugar and lemon juice. If you want to lighten up the dessert you could add some Italian Meringue, keep in mind, if serving as is, it is quite dense and rich and you will want to serve a small portion, a shot glass is the perfect size. Another of my favourite tangy desserts is Baked Lemon Tart. Langues de Chats