International Desserts, Month 7

(Subtitle: mega fail)

"Bruiti Ma Buoni" means ugly but good in Italian.  That is supposed to be the idea behind these cookies.  They are supposed to be lumpy and ugly, and really tasty. 

Um, yeah.

I saw these cookies on an episode of "David Rocco's Italy" and I thought they looked awesome.  Simple, easy ingredient list, pretty much all stuff I already had in the house!  And, since they are an Italian thing, they qualified for the International Desserts series.

I have no real idea what happened to these.  I followed the directions, I swear!  But, the first batch I  baked for the recommended time and they were totally burnt.  So the next batch I baked less, and those, and the ones after them, totally stuck to the pan.  That's why the photo is so bad, and why they are still on the pan in the photo.  I peeled a couple of them off to eat, and they were okay, but not anything great.  Sort of disappointing, actually.

So, I'm going to give you the recipe, and you can make them if you want, but I'm not actually going to recommend them.

Brutti Ma Buoni
Source: Cooking Channel

Ingredients
6 egg whites
1 cup toasted hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
1 cup toasted almonds, coarsely chopped
3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon amaretto

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line two baking sheets with parchment, or butter and flour them.

In a bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form.  Gently fold in the hazelnuts, almonds, sugar, cocoa powder, vanilla and amaretto until all ingredients are evenly distributed.

Spoon blobs of batter onto prepared baking sheets, leaving approximately 1-inch between each cookie. Bake 30 minutes (um, don't do that), or until firm to the touch.  If you prefer chewier cookies, underbake them slightly.  Remove the cookies to a wire rack and lest rest for 30 minutes, or until cooled.

Another spin on a regular

You all know I love monster cookies.  It's just so much fun to look in the cabinet, see what I have, and throw all kinds of things into a cookie.  So satisfying.  I came across this recipe, called "Chocoholic Cookies", and I knew I had to make it.  It didn't really start out as a monster cookie -- the original recipe only calls for semi-sweet chocolate chips, but I knew I could easily change that.  Also, the original suggests dipping half of each cookie into melted white chocolate, but I opted to (sloppily) drizzle the white chocolate on instead.  I prefer the more even coverage.

There is a note in the recipe that says not to alter the order in which the ingredients are added.  I'm not entirely sure why, but I went with it.  I didn't notice that these cookies were any different from regular cookies, but whatever.  I don't really want to find out what happens when you do alter the order, because that could result in a sad loss of a whole batch of cookies.

Chocoholic (Monster) Cookies
Source: Life Happening and Fun on the Farm
Makes a few dozen.

2 cups rolled oats (old-fashioned, not quick)
2 cups of your favorite add-ins (chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, etc) - more if you like
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
2 large eggs, slightly beaten
1 tbsp milk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
9 oz white chocolate
1 1/2 tbsp vegetable oil

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or lightly grease with butter. Author's note: Do not alter the order in which the ingredients are combined.

In a large bowl, combine the oats and other mix-ins; set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the butter and sugars until creamy. In a medium bowl, sift or whisk the flour, baking soda, salt, and cocoa, then slowly add to the butter mixture. Stir until combined.

The dough will be very stiff at this point.  Do not fear. Combine the milk, vanilla, and eggs. Stir slightly. Slowly add to the butter mixture and mix until thoroughly combined. Pour in the oats and other add-ins; stir until well mixed.

Using a medium cookie scoop, drop batter 2 inches apart on parchment lined sheets. Bake 9-12 minutes, longer if your cookies are larger, until cooked through. Cool on pan until completely cool, or transfer to a wire rack after a few minutes.

Once cookies are completely cooled, melt the white chocolate with the veggie oil in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water.  You can either dip the cookies in the melted chocolate, or drizzle it over the top of the cookies, using a fork.  Cool completely, and let the white chocolate set up.  Store between layers of wax paper in an airtight contained in a cool place.

Happy Pi(e) Day

At some time in your life, someone you know will need a pie. 

Happy Pi(e) Day.

Dutch Apple Pie
Source: America's Test Kitchen "Family Baking Book"

1 recipe for single-crust pie dough (I always make an all-butter crust. you can find that recipe here. for this pie, you can just use half of the recipe. it freezes well.)

Streusel
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1 tablespoon yellow cornmeal
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Filling
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 1/2 pounds firm tart apples, peeled, cored and sliced in 1/4 inch thick slices
2 pounds firm sweet apples, peeled, cored and sliced in 1/4 inch thick slices
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup golden raisins (i used craisins instead)
1/2 cup heavy cream

1. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 375 degrees. Line your chilled pie crust with a double layer of aluminum foil and fill with pie weights. Bake until the pie dough looks dry and is light in color, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer the pie plate to a wire rack and remove the weights and foil. Leave the oven at 375, and adjust the oven rack to the lowest position, and place a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet on the rack.
2. For the streusel: Mix the flour, sugars, and cornmeal together in a medium bowl, then drizzle with the melted butter. Stir the streusel with a fork until roughly combined.
3. For the filling: Melt the butter in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Stir in the apples, sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples have softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the raisins and continue to cook, covered, until some of the apples have begun to break down, about 7 minutes longer.
4. Drain the apples thoroughly through a colander, reserving the juice. Combine the drained juice and cream in a small saucepan and cook over medium-high heat until very thick and reduced by half, about 3 minutes.
5. Spread the apples into the baked pie crust and drizzle with the cream mixture. Sprinkle the streusel evenly over the top. Place the pie on the heated baking sheet and bake until the crust and streusel have browned, about 25 minutes. Let the pie cool on a wire rack until the filling has set, about 2 hours. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature.

Have I mentioned...

That I love lemon desserts?  I do not care for lemon candy, but give me a lemon dessert, and I'm in.  Also strange is that I don't prefer cheesecake.  It was never my thing until I had some that was really really good.  But even now, it's still not what I choose if given options.  However, lemon + cheesecake = divine! 

This dessert takes a delicious lemon cheesecake bar, and adds a wonderful crunchy creme brulee crust on the top.  So many good things happening in one little bar!  And, they were pretty simple to put together, and should actually be made ahead (except for the torching), so that's a plus.

Let's talk about the torching, shall we?  I have a small blow torch.  It's not one of those tiny "creme brulee" torches you find in housewares stores -- it's actually a little blow torch.  I don't get to use it often, so I get kind of excited when I get to pull it out.  When I made these bars, my excitement lasted approximately 1 minute, until the torch started to run out of fuel.  No big deal, I have more, so I refueled it.  I must have grossly underestimated the amount of fuel that either goes from the butane can into the torch, or the amount that was needed to burn the sugar, because I had to refuel so many times.  I think, at best, I could get through 2 bars before needing to refuel.  I got frustrated.  So for the last 3 bars, I thought I would just stick them under the broiler for a second and see how that worked.

Warning - when you use the broiler to torch sugar, DO NOT WALK AWAY! Not even for a second.  I did, and this is what happened:

So, let my sadness be a warning to you.  Keep close when  you use the broiler!  Good thing I only did 3 bars!

Lemon Cheesecake Creme Brulee Bars
Source: Lauren's Latest

1/2 cup softened butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
8 oz softened cream cheese
1-14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 egg
2 tablespoons lemon zest
6 tablespoons lemon juice
5 tablespoons fine granulated sugar for brulee-ing, approximately

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line at 8x8 inch glass dish with parchment paper and lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine butter, sugar, flour and vanilla until dough forms. Press evenly into the bottom of prepared dish. Set aside.

In another bowl, whip cream cheese.  Stir in sweetened condensed milk. Scrape sides and mix again. Pour in egg, lemon zest and juice. Mix until mixture starts to thicken, 20-30 seconds. Scrape sides and mix again briefly. Pour over cookie bottom and smooth the top. Bake 20-25 minutes or until cheesecake is set completely. Cool, then refrigerate. 

When completely cool, cut into 16 squares and separate (fp note: i found it easiest to lift the whole thing out of the pan using the parchment and then cut it.). Sprinkle the tops of each square with 1 teaspoon of sugar and spread around with your finger to evenly distribute sugar. Torch the tops until the sugar melts and turns an amber color. Return squares to the fridge until ready to serve.

Cookies that travel

I have a couple of friends that I have recently wanted to send cookies to, but these friends live on the other side of the country, so I needed a cookie that would travel well.  Not too fragile, longer shelf life, and of course, tasty.  Shortbread cookies fit the bill for this particularly well. 

Please allow me to extol to you the virtues of the shortbread cookie.  They are tasty when made in their original, unflavored way, but they are so versatile!  You can add any number of flavorings to get all kinds of different tastes!  It also helps that they are super simple to make, and you can make the dough days ahead and just let it hang out in your fridge until you're ready to slice and bake!  I'm actually going to share with you two different shortbread recipes -- not just different in final product, but also different in preparation.  Honestly, I liked both cookies, so you pick which method you like best.

Earl Grey Shortbread Cookies

Source: Claire Robinson, Food Network

Makes: 2 dozen or so

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons loose Earl Grey tea bags

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature

In a food processor, pulse together the flour, tea, and salt, until the tea is just spotted throughout the flour. Add the confectioners' sugar, vanilla, and butter.  Pulse together just until a dough is formed. Place dough on a sheet of plastic wrap, and roll into a log, about 2 1/2 inches in diameter. Twist each end of the wrap tightly, and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. 

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Slice the log into 1/3-inch thick disks. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Baked until the edges are just brown, about 12 minutes. Let cool on sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks and cool completely.

White Chocolate & Cherry Shortbread Cookies
Source: Love and Olive Oil
Makes about 4 dozen cookies

2/3 cup maraschino cherries, drained
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup cold butter, cut into cubes
12 ounces good quality white chocolate, finely chopped
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 drops red food coloring
2 teaspoons vegetable oil

Pulse cherries briefly in a food processor until finely chopped. This should produce about 1/2 cup of chopped cherries.  Spread them out on a double layer of paper towels to remove any excess liquid.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour and sugar. Add the butter and pulse until mixture resembles fine crumbs. Add the drained cherries and 4 ounces of the chopped chocolate. Pulse briefly to combine. Finally, ad the almond extract and food coloring.  Knead the mixture until it comes together in a smooth ball.  (fp note: cover any surfaces with plastic wrap that will be in contact with the dough. food coloring makes a mess, yo.)

Divide dough in half, and roll each half into a cylinder approximately 1 1/2 inches in diameter by 10 inches long.  Roll up in parchment paper or plastic wrap, twisting ends to seal. Refrigerate for at least  1 hour or until firm.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.  Working with one log at a time, slice it into disks about 3/8" thick and place on parchment lined baking sheets. Back for 10 to 12 minutes or until centers are set and bottoms are lightly golden. Cool on the cookie sheet for a few minutes before removing to a cooling rack to cool completely.

To prepare the white chocolate drizzle:  Melt the remaining white chocolate with the veggie oil in a bowl set over a pot of simmering water, stirring constantly to prevent burning.  When it is cool enough to not burn you, but still liquid, put it in a piping bag fitted with a small round tip (fp note: normally i would put it in a squeeze bottle, but i don't have a funnel, so getting the chocolate into the bottle was too much hassle.).  Drizzle the melted chocolate on the cooled cookies and leave them alone until the chocolate has set. 



Sweets for my Sweetie

It's that time of year again! That's right, it's the Hubster's birthday!  And, true to tradition, I sent him to work with cupcakes.  But not just any cupcakes.  You see, for the Hubster, simple is not really better.  More is better, so whatever I was going to make had to have lots going on.  The cupcakes we chose this year are banana split cupcakes. 

The basic idea:  banana cake, with strawberry and pineapple filling, whipped cream frosting, chocolate drizzle, sprinkles, and a cherry. 

I have to be honest and tell you that I haven't actually eaten one of these.  I sent the majority of them to work with the Hubster, and there is one ugly one left in the fridge.  I might get to it tonight, but I'm not sure about that.  But, I did eat some of the cake, and it was really tasty, and I KNOW I love the frosting.  So, really, what's not to like?

I found this recipe over on Annie's Eats.  She has a wonderful blog, and you should check it out if you haven't already.  I did make a few changes:  I made a different frosting, and I made a milk chocolate gananche instead of semi-sweet.  The reason I made different frosting is because I wanted something a little more stable than a traditional whipped cream frosting.  The one I made, which came from America's Test Kitchen, has cream cheese in it, so it is more stable, has more body, and a nice little bit of tang.  The recipe I used is reflected below.

Banana Split Cupcakes
Source: Annie's Eats, with frosting from America's Test Kitchen
Makes about 30 cupcakes

For the cupcakes:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
12 tbsp unsalted butter, at room temp
2 1/2 cups sugar
6 eggs
1 cup plus 2 tbsp. buttermilk
1 1/3 cups mashed ripe banana (about 4 bananas)

For the filling:
1 lb strawberries, hulled and diced small
2 tbsp confectioners' sugar
12 oz. crushed pineapple, drained

For the frosting:
1 8oz block cream cheese, room temp
1/2 cup sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups heavy cream

For the ganache:
8oz chocolate, chopped
1 cup heavy cream
1 tbsp light corn syrup

For garnish:
Multi-colored sprinkles
Maraschino cherries

To make the cupcakes:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Line cupcake pans with paper liners. In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking powder and salt; whisk together and set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment cream together the butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Reduce the mixer speed to medium low and add in eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Mix in the mashed banana until well combined. With the mixer on low speed alternately add the dry ingredients and buttermilk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients and mixing only until just incorporated.

Divide the batter between the prepared cupcake liners, filling each about 2/3 to 3/4 full. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 20-22 minutes. Allow to cool in the pan 5-10 minutes, then transfer the cupcakes to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the strawberry filling:
Combine the strawberries and confectioners' sugar in a medium bowl. Toss well, smashing slightly with a fork. Allow the berries to macerate at least 20-30 minutes.

To fill the cupcakes, cut a small cone out of the center of each cupcake with a paring knife or small biscuit cutter. Add a teaspoon or two of the strawberry filling to the center of each cupcake. Top with a teaspoon or two of the crushed pineapple.  Cover with a disk cut out of the cake you cut out of the center.

To make the frosting:
Whip the cream cheese, sugar, salt and vanilla in a bowl with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy.  Gradually add the heavy cream and whip until stiff peaks form. Add the frosting to a piping bag fitting with a large round tip. Pipe a swirl of frosting onto each cupcake and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

To make the ganache:
Place the chopped chocolate in a heat proof bowl.  Bring the cream to a simmer over medium-high heat. Remove from the heat and pour the hot cream over the chocolate; let stand 1-2 minutes. Whisk together until a thick, smooth ganache forms. Blend in the corn syrup. Let stand at room temperature at least 10 minutes so the ganache is not hot. The longer you let it hang out, the thicker it gets.

To finish the cupcakes, pour a spoonful of the ganache over the whipped cream topping of each cupcake (fp note: do this over something. the ganache makes a mess). Garnish with sprinkles and maraschino cherries before the ganache sets. Chill until ready to serve.

Water horses need love too! and sprinkles.

Most people, when making cut-out cookies for Valentine's Day, would choose a shape that is more easily associated with the holiday, like hearts, or cupids.  I, on the other hand, would like to challenge that a little.  Yes, those cookies are shaped like hippos.  What do hippos have to do with a holiday that is about love?  Well, I say they do, so there you go.  And they have pink icing, and some of them have heart sprinkles, so they are festive.

The cookies themselves are chocolate sugar cookies.  So good.  And easy to make! I used the recipe from The Way the Cookie Crumbles, and I would definitely use it again.  I added about a teaspoon of instant espresso, because I usually do when I make chocolate things.  It's tasty and it accentuates the chocolate flavor.  But, if you don't already have, don't feel like you have to run out and buy it just for this.

The royal icing recipe is the same that I used for my gingerbread men from Christmas.  I like it because it doesn't use meringue powder, or any other ingredient that I don't already have in the house. If you feel squicky about the raw egg whites, then you should find another recipe that you like better.  As you can see, my icing technique leaves a lot to be desired.  There are lots of tutorials on the interwebz that will teach you how to do it really well, so I'm not even going to try.  For me, getting the cookie covered, and adding some sprinkles was enough.

Let's talk about the sprinkles.  I have a lot of them.  It's slightly ridiculous.  I know I show you three different kinds of sprinkles in the photo, but I actually used 5 kinds.  My faves are the ones in the photo.  And yes, the silver stars are edible.  Those sprinkles, like the hippo cookie-cutter itself, were a gift from a friend, and they were both so fun to use! 

Chocolate Sugar Cookies

Source: The Way the Cookie Crumbles

Makes a good amount. I don't remember how many it made.

2 3/4 cups all purpose flour

2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa, sifted

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temp

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 eggs, also room temp

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon instant espresso (optional)

In a large bowl, combine flour, cocoa and baking powder (fp note: i find i get the best results from sifting everything together.  removes any lumps and mixes everything, in one step.).  Set aside.  In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and salt on medium until creamy, about 1 minute.  With the mixer running, gradually add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.  Add the eggs, one at a time, making sure each egg is fully combined before adding the next.  Add the vanilla and instant espresso.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl and the beater as needed. Reduce mixer speed to low and slowly add the flour mixture, mixing until just combined, with no pockets of flour.  Divide dough into two portions and shape each portion into a 1-inch thick disk, and wrap in plastic wrap.  Refrigerate for at least an hour.

Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Lightly flour a sheet of wax paper.  Transfer the chilled dough to the wax paper and top with another sheet of paper.  Roll the dough out to1/8" thickness, using just enough flour to keep the dough from sticking to the paper.  Cut out your shapes and place on the baking sheet.  Re-roll the scraps as much as you want.  (fp note: at this point, when i have a full sheet of cut outs, i put the sheet in the fridge for about 15 minutes.  i feel like this reduces spreading.) Bake cookies just until the tops look dry, but are still soft, about 8 minutes.  Let cool on the sheet for a couple of minutes, and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

After the cookies are completely cooled, frost to your hearts' content!  (fp note: hearts'? hearts? heart's? i don't know.)



International Desserts, Month 6

I know I said last month was month 6 of international desserts, but, well, I goofed.  So, this is actually month 6 of this. 

A friend of mine suggested some time ago that I make a traditional British dessert, Banoffee Pie.  Banoffee Pie is a graham cracker crust, sliced bananas, toffee filling, and whipped cream topping, with shaved chocolate thrown in for a cute garnish.  Really, a super easy dessert, once you make the toffee. 

Let's talk about the toffee.  I'm not the biggest fan of it, but that's not really the point.  When you make it, you take the label off of a can of sweetened condensed milk, put it in a large pot, cover it with water, and boil it for 2.5 hours.  Make sure you keep it covered with water, or apparently the can will explode and not only will you not have the toffee you need, but you will have a huge mess to clean up.  I find doing things like this a little dicey.  I mean, you can't see into the can, so you won't know if you did it right until several hours later, when the can is cool enough to handle.  But, the good news is that you can do more than one can at a time, as long as your pot is big enough, and they supposedly keep forever in the cupboard.  As for the pan, use the biggest one you have -- you will thank me later.  I used my largest pot, and I wish I had something that was a little taller, because I ended up having to add more water a few times. 

The reason I chose this month to make this dessert is because I was going to spend the day at a friend's house, watching Downton Abbey all day (fantastic show. you should watch it). I thought it was fitting to bring a British dessert to eat while watching a British show.  I made them mini, in my mini tart pan, because, well, mini food gets eaten faster.  They were so cute.  And yes, I cheated and used canned whipped cream and mini chocolate chips on top.  I didn't feel like dealing with making whipped cream at my friend's house. 

The only other change I made was I did a baked graham cracker crust, because I knew it would hold up better to being mini-fied.   I have printed the original crust recipe here. 

Banoffee Pie

Source: Nigella Lawson

fp note: i halved this recipe, and it made me almost 2 dozen tiny tarts.

400 grams graham crackers, crushed into crumbs

200 grams butter, melted

2 cans of condensed milk

2 cups heavy whipping cream

2 large ripe bananas

chocolate, for shaving as garnish

1. Combine graham cracker crumbs and melted butter.  Press the mixture into a pie pan and chill. Boil the cans of condensed milk for  2-2.5 hours, making sure they stay fully submerged in the water at all times.  Set aside to cool.
2. When cool, spread the toffee on the crust.  Slice up the bananas and place on top of the toffee layer.  Whip up the whipped cream and spread over the bananas.  (fp note: oops, did that backwards. my bananas were on the bottom.) Grate some chocolate over the top for garnish.
3. Either chill the pie or serve immediately!

Better than the sum of its parts.

When you take one thing, and wrap it in another thing, the resulting thing is so much greater than the first two things could have ever been on their own. (how many times can i use the word "thing" in one sentence?)  Wrap just about anything in phyllo dough, and you end up with something super fun and festive.  And yeah, messy.  Sorry, C, for all of the bits of phyllo dough that are probably all over your house. 

I used to hate dealing with phyllo dough.  It is really fragile, and dries out if you look at it wrong.  But, after some practice, it's not so hard.  You just have to remember to keep it covered, be gentle, and work as fast as you can. 

I found this recipe on my googly reader, and I knew it was perfect for C, who has a deep seated love for olives.  This is actually a recipe for two different fillings.  I'm not sure which was my favorite, but it was probably the green olive one.  It's a little more pungent, a little more fun.  I think the black olive one would have been a little better if I had used Kalamata olives, but the recipe called for the regular old black ones that come in the can. 

As a side note, the filling for the green olive triangles would likely make a delicious tapenade.  It was tasty on it's own, so spread it on some bread, and you're good!

Crispy Olive Bites
Source: Keep it Simple Foods

You will need 1 box of phyllo dough (it's enough for both fillings), and olive oil for brushing.

Preheat your oven to 350 F.

Filling #1: Green Olive Filling

1 cup green olives, drained and chopped
1 Tablespoon capers, drained and rinsed
1 15 oz can artichoke hearts in water, drained and rough chopped
1 clove garlic

Put all ingredients in a food processor and blend until it forms a sort of paste.

Filling #2: Black Olive Filling

1 cup black olives, drained and chopped fine
4 green onions, chopped fine
1/3 cup feta cheese, crumbled
a good bunch of flat leaf parsley, chopped fine
1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes in olive oil, minced

Combine all ingredients  in a bowl.  Add a tablespoon of olive oil to combine all ingredients.

fp note: you could probably make this in the food processor and avoid some of the chopping.  but if you do, i would mix in the feta after processing, so it doesn't get too chopped up.

Assembly:
Layer 2 sheets of phyllo at a time, and brush lightly with olive oil, and cut into 2 inch strips.  Put a good spoonful of the filling at one end and fold the phyllo into a triangle shape, like folding a flag.  Repeat until all of the filling is used up. (fp note: or, you could go until you run out of phyllo. even though i'm getting better at working with it, i always end up tearing a bunch of sheets and having to throw them out.)

Place triangles onto a cookie sheet.  Brush tops with olive oil and bake for 15 minutes until brown and crispy.

Let them cool a little before serving, or the filling will burn your mouth like the heat of 1000 suns.

National Holidays

Did you know that January 26 is National Peanut Brittle Day?  I don't know who comes up with these holidays, or what, but it sure is fun to have a reason to make a specific food.  I'm not one to ignore a holiday, so I set out to make some peanut brittle. 

When I do a google search for a recipe, I almost always come up with lots of options, from a variety of sources.  I am actually fairly picky about whose recipe I will trust, since baking and candy making can be so finicky.  I looked at a bunch of recipes.  Some had lots of ingredients and long and complicated instructions.  Since I had always heard that peanut brittle was supposed to be so easy, I crossed these ones off of my list of possibilities.  I also didn't feel like using a recipe that would yield three pounds of peanut brittle.  THREE POUNDS!! What was I going to do with that much peanut brittle? 

I finally landed on a recipe that had a short list of ingredients, simple instructions, and only yielded about a pound and a half of brittle.  When I read the recipe, I also made sure to read the comments that others had left, and I'm glad I did.  There was one comment, recommending reducing the amount of baking soda, and adding butter and vanilla. And then there were a whole bunch of comments saying that they took the original commenter's suggestions, and it was great.  So, I did too.  The recipe I have printed here reflects those changes. And one other change -- I used lightly salted cocktail peanuts.  They came in a little can in my little grocery store up the hill.  I like the salt they add.  It's nice.

This stuff is addictingly tasty.  When I was breaking it up, I swear bits of it just flew right into my mouth!  I wasn't about to spit them out, so I obliged them by chomping away.  So good. I've read that the stuff has a decently long shelf life, but I don't think mine will be around long enough to test that. 

Peanut Brittle
Source: Epicurious, originally from Bon Appetit, March 2003

2 cups lightly salted, toasted peanuts
1 cup sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and butter the parchment.  Or you could use a silpat, if you have one, which I do not. Stir peanuts, sugar, and corn syrup in a heavy large saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat to high and boil until candy thermometer registers 295 degrees F, stirring frequently.  Add butter and vanilla and stir.  Remove from heat and add baking soda- the mixture will foam up.  Immediately pour onto buttered parchment and use a buttered spatula to spread into an even layer - work quickly!  Let stand until cold and hard.

Break the brittle into pieces.  Store in an airtight container at room temperature. 

International Desserts, Month 6

In case you didn't know, Chinese New Years is on Monday, January 23, so I thought it was fitting that this month's installment of International Desserts would feature something Chinese.  So, I consulted my BFF A, who is Chinese, and asked her what I should make.  Her first suggestion was Egg Tarts, which is something that she and I both love.  I tried those, and it was a massive failure.  So, I asked for another option.  She suggested Sesame Balls.

Sesame balls are a ball (duh) made of rice flour, coated with sesame seeds and deep fried.  Inside the ball is sweet red bean paste.  The rice flour makes them chewy, and the frying makes the crispy on the outside.  All in all, these are a pretty tasty thing (but they are not good the day after you make them - yuck!).

I hit up my local Asian grocery store to find the majority of the ingredients.  I recommend this, or, if you have a particularly well-stocked Asian section in your regular grocery store, you might have some luck there.  Places like World Market also tend to carry some of the things you will need.

A found me the recipe I used, and it came from My Morning Chocolate, with the actual recipe from BellaOnline. 

I have a few notes:  First, I followed the directions, but after trying to form a couple of balls of dough, I felt that my dough was too dry, so I added a little more water.  This helped a lot.  Second, make sure you flour your hands really well.  Even the "too dry" dough stuck like crazy if my hands weren't floured well enough.  And third, don't expect your first few balls to be perfect -- they won't be.  The first two I made were a total mess.  Witness:

Sesame Balls
This says it makes 8 to 10 medium sized balls, but I followed the direction and got something closer to 15. 

2 1/2 cups sweet rice flour
1/2 cup regular rice flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup hot water
18 oz can sweetened red bean paste
1 1/2 cup white sesame seeds
4 to 5 cups peanut oil

1. In a large bowl mix together the sweet rice flour with the regular rice flour and stir until they are thoroughly combined.
2. In a smaller bowl mix the sugar and the water and stir until the sugar dissolves.
3. Pour the sugar water into the flour mixture and stir until a dough forms.  It should have the consistency of cookie dough.
4. Open the can of bean paste and set it aside.
5. Place the sesame seeds in a large bowl or on a large plate and set them aside.
6. Next, set up a work area to roll and fill the sesame balls. Have a floured surface on which to work. Place a little extra regular rice flour on the surface to flour our hands. Place the sweet bean filling, sesame seeds, a bowl of water, and a plate to place the finished balls on close by.
7. Start making the balls by first flouring your hands. Then take a small piece of dough, about 1 1/2 tablespoons and form it into a circle. Place this circle in the palm of one of your hands. Using your thumb press gently in the center of this circle to make a small indentation. Then cup your palm around the indentation and use the knuckle of your opposite hand to push along the sides and form a cup or upside down hat shape.
8. Once you have a hat shape, place about a teaspoon of the sweet bean paste in the center. Then carefully pull the edges up and over the paste an pinch them at the top. Make sure to pinch the dough on the outside of the ball instead of pushing it inside. Then gently roll and pat the ball into an even round shape.
9. Once you have a ball shape, quickly dip it into the bowl of water and then roll it in the sesame seeds, coating the entire outside. Then place the finished ball on a plate. Continue making the rest of the sesame balls.
10. In a pot or wok heat the oil on high, keeping it at a temperature of 350 or below.
11. Once the oil is hot, add about 5 sesame balls, one at a time. Let them cook for about 6 minutes and then remove them with a slotted spoon and place them on a plate lined with paper towels. Continue cooking the rest of the balls in batches. Then let them cool for about 10 minutes, and place them on a plate to be served.

Let's talk

Let's talk about pears.  We're sort of in that no-man's land of winter fruit, in which the only decent looking fruits I can find with any regularity (and at any decent price) are apples, oranges, and pears.  I like pears, I really do, but I have a problem with them.  See, when I go to the store, all of the pears are a pretty uniform degree of rock-hard-ness.  So I buy a few, like 5 or 6, and I take them home.  They sit in my fruit bowl on the counter to soften up, and then - BAM! - every single one of them is really ripe. Like you-need-to-eat-this-today kind of ripe.  And I can't eat 6 pears in one day (well, I could, but that seems unpleasant). 

So, inevitably, I end up eating a bunch of them over the course of a couple of days, and then I have a couple that are still hanging out in the bowl.  This time around, I decided to make something with them.  A while back, I made a pear ginger quick bread that was quite tasty.  This time, I went for muffins. 

I found this recipe for pear and ginger muffins on my Googly reader, linking me to Not the Kitchen Sink!.  They were pretty good, but they needed more ginger.  In the notes on the recipe, the blogger mentions that some people thought they needed more ginger flavor, and since I usually agree with that sort of comment, I added extra fresh grated ginger on top of the ground ginger.  I still think they needed more. 

Also, I messed up the crumb topping.  For some reason, I thought I was supposed to put the topping on after baking the muffins.  Thinking back, I have no idea why I thought that was a good idea.  So, my topping didn't really stick or anything.  Don't be like me.  Except you should make these muffins. 

I made these mini, and it made about 20.  I would say at least double this recipe if you want to serve a crowd.

Pear and Ginger Muffins
Source: Not the Kitchen Sink!
Makes about 20 minis, or 6 large muffins

For the muffins:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground ginger (optional: about another tsp of grated fresh ginger)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp allspice
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
1 1/2 tbsp honey
1/3 cup sour cream
1 cup chopped peeled pears

For the topping:
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 tsp butter, softened
1/4 tsp ground ginger

1. Preheat oven to 350F.  Line a muffin pan with paper liners or spray with baking spray.
2. In a bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients - flour, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon, allspice and brown sugar.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg and sour cream, followed by the oil and honey.  Pour into the dry ingredients and combine until the dry ingredients are moistened. Lumps are okay - if you overmix this, your muffins will be tough.
4. Add in the chopped pears and briefly fold the mixture to distribute the pears evenly. Scoop the batter into muffin cups.  I think I filled mine almost full and it wasn't a problem.
5. To prepare the topping, cut the butter into the brown sugar and ginger.  I did this with a little food processor/chopper thingie that came with my stick blender.  Much faster than doing it by hand. Sprinkle the mixture evenly over the tops of the muffins.
6. Bake the muffins for 25 minutes (start checking at 20 for minis), until the tops are brown and firm to touch. Transfer to a wire rack to cool for another 10 minutes before chowing down.

EPIC

This holiday season, I realized something about myself.  Where most people look to find the perfect gift for someone, I look to find the perfect recipe.  And often, it's not so much that I look, but that in my browsing through countless food blogs, I happen upon the perfect recipe.  This is a perfect example of this.

This is the most epic of all of the things that I made for gifts for friends.  And, it was the one that I have been thinking about the longest.  You see, Dear Friend C LOVES s'mores.  And she loves cheesecake.  So, back during the summer, when I found a recipe for S'mores Cheesecake, I knew immediately that I had to make it for her -- I just needed to find an occasion.   By the fall, it became apparent to me that I would need to make an occasion.  So, I determined that I would make this cheesecake as a Christmas gift.   But, I knew that a whole cheesecake was a lot of cheesecake, with a limited shelf-life, and a limited number of people to eat it.  I had to think of a different way to do this, to give C the most enjoyment, for the longest amount of time.

So, what lasts a long time (and isn't full of preservatives)? Frozen stuff.  And what makes things last longer? Dividing them up into small portions, so you can just eat what you want, and not feel committed to a whole piece of cheesecake. Cover it in chocolate, and you're in business.

Yes, that's right.  I made chocolate-covered frozen s'mores cheesecake bites.  And you know what?  They were EPIC.  I'm not the biggest fan of cheesecake, and I like chocolate cheesecake even less, but these were so good.  I gave them to C at our annual Christmas dinner, and they were eaten for dessert.  The look on her face (and that of her husband, K) was the most amazing thing I have ever seen as a result of something I made.  So I know I did what I set out to do, and all of the time, and chocolate that ended up all over my kitchen, was totally worth it. 

Chocolate Covered S'mores Cheesecake Bites
Adapted from Tracey's Culinary Adventures
I lost count for how many this made.  It was a lot.

Crust
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (12 whole sheets for me.  Cinnamon grahams are awesome for this)
3 tablespoons sugar
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
A couple of good handfuls of Heath bar toffee bits (chocolate covered or not)

Filling
9 oz milk chocolate, chopped
2  8-oz packages cream cheese, at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup heavy cream, at room temperature
3 large eggs, at room temperature

Topping
1 cup sugar
2 large egg whites
3 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/8 teaspoon salt
12 large marshmallows, cut into quarters with wet kitchen scissors
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

To make the crust: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line a 9" x 13" metal pan with parchment paper, with extra paper hanging over the edges so that you will have handles later.  In a medium bowl, stir together graham cracker crumbs, butter, sugar and toffee bits.  Press into the bottom of the prepared pan in an even layer.  Bake for 12 minutes, or until set.  Set the pan on a wire rack to cool completely.  Reduce oven temp to 325.

To make the filling: Melt the chocolate in a small bowl set over a pan of simmering water.  Cool until just barely lukewarm, stirring occasionally. (fp note: you could do that in a microwave, but i always burn chocolate when i do that.)

Combine cream cheese, sugar, and salt in the bowl of your food processor and pulse until smooth.  With the machine running, pour the heavy cream through the feed tube and process just until blended.  Again, with the machine running, add the melted chocolate and then the eggs, one at a time, blending and scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition until the mixture is smooth.  Pour the batter over the cooled crust.

Bake for about 55 minutes, or until the outer edge is slightly puffed and the center is barely set (the center will jiggle slightly when the pan is gently shaken).  Transfer the pan to a wire rack, and cool.  You can cool it on the counter for a little while, and then put it in the fridge overnight.  After it is completely cooled, wrap it in plastic wrap and put it in the freezer for at least another 8 hours.

After the cheesecake is frozen, you can make the topping.

To make the topping:  In a large metal bowl, combine the sugar, egg whites, water, cream of tartar and salt.  Set the bowl over a pan of simmering water and whisk constantly until the sugar dissolves and the mixture feels hot to the touch, about 3 minutes. Remove the bowl from the pan and add the marshmallows; let stand a few minutes until the marshmallows soften. Place the bowl back over the pan of simmering water and beat the topping with a hand mixer for 4-5 minutes, or until stiff, shiny peaks form. Beat in the vanilla.

Let the topping cool just slightly (don't wait too long or it will set and you won't be able to spread it). Take the cheesecake out of the freezer and spread the topping evenly with a spatula.  Let the topping cool completely.  At this point, you can toast the marshmallow, if you want to.  I'm not sure it made a big difference, but I have a kitchen torch I never use, so I took the opportunity to use it for this.  Make sure you fold the parchment handles out of the way, and toast the marshmallow with the torch.  You can also put it under the broiler for a minute, but if you do, make sure you watch it so you don't burn it.  Put the whole thing back in the freezer to firm up.  The topping never gets hard-frozen, so don't expect it to.

After it is completely frozen, take it out of the pan (I told you that you would need those paper handles!).  Using a hot knife (run it under hot tap water, and don't dry it), cut the cheesecake into cubes.  Put the cubes on a pan lined with wax paper and put them back into the freezer. 

Melt some chocolate.  Use whatever mix you want - I did about half and half milk and dark chocolate.  You will need a lot of it.  I think I ended up needing about 6 cups total.  Let the chocolate cool until it is just warm, but still liquid enough to be easily pourable.  While it cools, prepare your dipping station: Line a sheet pan (that will fit in your freezer) with wax paper, and cover every surface that is anywhere near the chocolate with wax paper too.  Get out a couple of forks.

Remove the bites from the freezer, a few at a time (keep the cold things cold).  Drop a bite into the melted chocolate and make sure it gets covered by spooning melted chocolate over it, using the forks (I know, how can you spoon with a fork? carefully) Use one fork to lift the bite out of the chocolate, and tap the handle of the fork gently on the side of the bowl to shake off any excess chocolate and smooth things out.  Transfer the bite to the wax paper-covered sheet pan.  Top with sprinkles if you want while the chocolate is still soft.  After you have dipped the bites, put them back in the freezer.  Continue in this manner until all bites are covered. 

Once the bites are completely frozen again, you can put them in the container of your choice.  And then you can take them out and eat them!!

A new form of a semi-old tradition, and the hunt for something

This recipe is sort of a convergence of two things.  First, it is a continuation of the tradition of me making marzipan for the Dadster every year for Christmas. Second, it is possibly the end to a years-long hunt for a recipe for something special.

Years ago, BFF A used to have a job where she travelled the world.  Several times, she would bring me back this marzipan that she would get in Spain.  It was unlike any marzipan that I had ever had -- still chewy and almondy, but the outside was a little crunchy and browned, like it had been baked.  Once I started making my own marzipan, I wanted to figure out how to make something like what A would bring me back from Spain.  I tried a bunch of different things, none of which were successful (did you know that if you bake regular marzipan, it puffs up and becomes hollow? it's pretty nifty, but not what i wanted.).

One day, while scanning through my Googly reader, I came across a recipe for "Figuritas de Mazapan", and the picture intrigued me.  And, the recipe was in Spanish.  I was hoping this would be what I had been looking for, so I gave it a shot (after I used Google translate on the recipe, which made for an interesting recipe). I figured that the worst that could happen was that it would be no good, and I could fall back on the regular marzipan that I make normally. 

I am happy to report that this recipe was a success! While not exactly like the ones A would bring me, I think part of that is because mine aren't mass produced and then packed in plastic and sold to the masses.  The end result was almost like a really chewy almond cookie.  In fact, when the Dadster first opened them (packaged in a super cute R2D2 pail that I got a Disneyland), he thought they were little shortbread cookies, until he smelled them.  And, the Momster, who doesn't like marzipan, even like them!  I will for sure be using this recipe in the future (and it doesn't help that it's easier than regular marzipan).

Figuritas de Mazapan (or, Baked Marzipan Cookie Thingies)
Source: Sin Salir de Mi Cocina
Makes a bunch, depending on how big your cutters are.

Note: The original recipe uses a piece of equipment called a Thermomix.  I don't have one of those, but I do have a food processor, so that's what I used.  Also, when you use Google Translate on something, there are lots of weird little sentences that don't really make sense.  So, the recipe I've put here is what I did, based on the original. Also, I used a food scale for the measurements, so I don't have the cup equivalents.

500 g raw almonds (original recommends Marcona, but those are very expensive, and hard to find in bulk. I used regular raw slivered almonds)
375 g sugar
25 ml water
1 or 2 egg whites

Egg yolk to paint the pieces before baking

In the bowl of a food processor, process the sugar for 20 to 30 seconds.  Add the almonds and process for another 20 to 30 seconds until they are finely ground. Add the water and let it sit for a minute or so, and then process again to form a ball.  If it doesn't form a ball, add a little egg white for extra moisture.  Dump the mix onto a clean surface and knead with your hands to form an evenly moist ball.  It will be a little sticky, but not much.  Divide the ball into two, and wrap each in plastic and let it sit for 30 minutes at room temperature.

After the 30 minutes, roll 1 ball with a rolling pin to about 1/2" thickness (thicker if you want).  Line two baking sheets with parchment.  Cut out the dough with the cutters of your choice (I recommend small ones) and set them on the baking sheets, set a little bit apart.  Repeat with the second ball of dough.  Let the sheets sit out, uncovered, 6 to 7 hours, or overnight.

After the sheets have sat out and dried, preheat your oven to 375.  Brush each piece with a little bit of the egg yolk and bake for a few minutes (I think I did mine for 6-8, but keep an eye on them) to give them a little color and a crust. 

Let cool on the sheets, and then store in an airtight container.