Mademoiselle Fraise

La Mademoiselle in London

noreply@blogger.com (Mlle Fraise) — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 23:08:00 +0000

I’ve been living in London on my own for a month and in my humble opinion, I’ve adjusted rather well. The tube is no longer a psychedelic spiderweb I can’t decipher, I can almost always remember which side to look at when crossing the street, and walking is my new cardio... right after shopping.

Without counting my obsession when it comes to trying almost every restaurant in London, my touristing along with my blogging has been dire. My biggest achievement so far has been visiting Hampton Court Palace (which is breathtaking), Madame Tussauds Wax Museum (biggest tourist trap) and pinpointing the biggest mall in Europe where I make sure to spend most of my leisure afternoons in when I don't have class.

With the help of London Select aka my new best friend, I've decided to spice it up.

First stop, breakfast at The Wolseley. The day was simply too hot for me to have porridge as the guide suggested so I settled for a lighter fare of bacon, sausage and eggs and of course, a pain au chocolat that seemed to be made of air.

Never having heard of The Wolseley, I can safely say that the old world ambiance, undeniable chicness that reigned every table and a staff that made it impossible to feel unattended, I will be returning.

Although not on the guide, I had originally planned to see Kate Middleton's dress at Buckingham Palace but tickets are sold out until next week. I caught the change of the guard. When they started playing songs of Phantom of the Opera, I decided once again that London continues to be made of awesome.

Instead of boiling myself alive taking the tube, I opted to stroll down St. James Park and head towards the London Eye which you could easily see at a distance. Without a map, getting there becomes tricky especially if your inner GPS is as bad as mine. After much wandering around and getting on the mini oven that was the tube, I found it.

The queues weren't too long and I got on the famous London Eye in less than half an hour. I already want to do it again.

Getting to see the city from such heights left me breathless. I couldn't pay attention to my fear of heights or the heat that seeped through the glass. All I could think of is... I am in London. I live in London. I get to work on a professional kitchen, studying pâtisserie twice a week. I get inspired by my surroundings that I write on a daily basis. I get to cross the Millennium Bridge that had been featured in so many movies and even in my own incomplete novels. I get to see St. Paul's Cathedral up close, stop dead in my tracks and be mesmerized.

I am lucky.

For Japan With Love

noreply@blogger.com (Mlle Fraise) — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 03:59:00 +0000

When I was a teenager, Japan symbolized an ideal world to me. It was a country where structure and organization thrived. A place where making a living out of drawing manga was not considered insane but feasible. Back then I was 100% sure I would live in a teenie tiny apartment with my friends and we would draw our stories to life. I dreamed of living in Japan, of eating bento boxes underneath cherry blossom trees, of visiting Buddhist temples in hopes that my broken faith could be restored.

I didn't know when or how but I was sure that some day I would visit Japan and be enthralled with all it has to offer.

Then the earthquake and the tsunami happened... I was and still am completely devastated.

Seeing the Japanese hurt, how the death toll rises each day, how family pets now wander aimlessly amidst the destruction of their homes fueled the despair in me that can only be born when one feels truly impotent. I needed to do something above donating. I needed to feel involved.

Thanks to Hannah from Honey & Jam I found "For Japan With Love", the baby of bloggers Ever Ours and Utterly Engaged.

I want to ask you to please consider being a part of this. All donations go to Shelterbox. In case you don't know the who's and what's, here is an explanation taken from their website: "Shelterbox is an international disaster relief charity that delivers emergency shelter, warmth and dignity to people affected by disaster worldwide."

By giving a small donation you will help make sure that families that have lost everything will at least have a warm place to sleep in. If you want to help Japan's animals please stop by here. There is a list of shelters and/or charities that are focusing their efforts on making sure they're rescued.

Please donate. If you can't, then spread the word. The more people are involved, the bigger our chances are of helping Japan recover.

Wordless Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (Mlle Fraise) — Wed, 16 Mar 2011 18:13:00 +0000

(Relatively) Wordless Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (Mlle Fraise) — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 19:03:00 +0000

I really believe a large, fluffy, merengue-y, and strawberry-kissed cake is the perfect way to celebrate my birthday.

Experiments & Apple Pie

noreply@blogger.com (Mlle Fraise) — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 16:03:00 +0000

This blog post is sponsored by the apple explosion at my local supermarket.

Apple pie makes me think of fall and its multicolored leaves and apple orchards. While we don’t really experience fall and I have not gone to any Dominican apple orchards, it just sounds good, doesn’t it?

The only apple pie I had ever tasted was the one that came in an individual bright red package at my local McD’s. Sad, isn’t it?

An experiment to change my otherwise pie-less existence was in order. Badly.

After all, how did a real homemade, juicy apple pie taste like? You know, one with an actual buttery crust instead of a deep-fried one.

Why, I should just make it!

I have a blog now so this is all for the sake of research. Right.

I went through every foodie blog I could ever think of trying to find that ‘perfect’ apple pie recipe, preferably, one that didn’t use vegetable shortening. Overall, my top requirement was that it didn’t look that hard. I found my match at Simply Recipes. Elise even has a step-by-step process on how to make that perfect crust, which is great because I am a ridiculously visual person. This meant that the pie was going to be easy to make, right? I have blog support and pictures. There is no way would be hard, right?

Yeah… it’s not so easy.

It takes a lot time and a nearly inhuman amount of patience with your rolling pin to get that crust just right or, in my case, make it large and round enough to fit my pie plate.

It’s worth the effort though.

When I opened that oven door, what I saw and smelled left me breathless. A golden brown pie that sighed through its slits, its filling bubbling as the harmonious scents of cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice filled my kitchen.

Then I took that first bite. Oh my Oprah. Such velvety apples, such a buttery crust.

Yes. It was definitely worth it.

Old Fashioned Apple Pie

adapted from Simply Recipes

serves 8

Crust Ingredients 
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling
1 cup (2 sticks or 8 ounces) unsalted butter, very-cold, cut into ½ inch cubes
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
6 to 8 Tbsp ice water

Filling Ingredients 
2/3 cup sugar 
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour 
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice 
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg 
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 
3 pounds of 1/4-1/2 inch thick slices of peeled and cored good cooking apples such as Granny Smith, Pippin, Golden Delicious (I used Granny Smith cause they are really tart)
1 1/2 tablespoons brandy 
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Egg Wash 
1 large egg yolk 
1 Tbsp cream

FOR THE CRUST: In a food processor, combine flour, salt and sugar. Once it is combined add the pieces of butter and pulse 6 to 8 times. The mix should look like coarse meal with small pea-size pieces of butter. Add 1 tablespoon of water at a time, pulsing until mixture begins to clump together. Test with your fingers to see if it holds together. If it does, it’s ready. If it doesn’t, add a bit more water, and pulse once again.

Remove dough from machine and place on a clean surface. Carefully shape the dough into 2 discs. Be careful not to over-knead it. The dough should have tiny pieces of butter in it. These pieces of butter are essential for the crust to be flaky. Wrap each disc in plastic wrap and refrigerate from 15 minutes to 1 hour.

Preheat to 375°F. Position rack at the bottom.

Place the apple pieces in a large bowl. In it, mix sugar, flour and spices. To mix in the apples so they are well-coated use your hands, add the brandy and the vanilla extract.

Remove one disk of the crust from the refrigerator. Let sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes. Sprinkle some flour on top of the disk so when you use the rolling pin it doesn’t stick. Roll out with a rolling pin on a lightly floured surface to a 12 inch circle; about 1/8 of an inch thick. As you roll out the dough, check if the dough is sticking to the surface below using a metal spatula. Add a few sprinkles of flour if necessary to keep the dough from sticking. Gently fold in half. Place on to a 9-inch pie plate, lining up the fold with the center of the pan. Gently unfold and press down to line the pie dish with the dough.

Spoon in apple filling, making a small mountain of apples in the center.
Roll out second disk of dough, as before. Gently turn over onto the top of the apples in the pie. Pinch top and bottom of dough rounds firmly together. Trim excess dough with kitchen shears, leaving a 3/4 inch overhang. Fold dough under itself so that the edge of the fold is flush with the edge of the pan. Flute edges using thumb and forefinger or press with a fork.

FOR THE EGG WASH: Stir yolk and cream in small bowl to blend. Brush over top of pie.

Cut slits in top crust to allow steam to escape. Bake pie until crust begins to turn golden, about 20 minutes, then reduce heat to 350°F. Bake until crust is golden and juices are bubbling, anywhere from an additional 30 to 45 minutes, depending on the type of apples you are using. Transfer to rack; let stand 1 hour. Serve pie warm or at room temperature. Extra points if you use vanilla ice cream.

Wordless Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (Mlle Fraise) — Thu, 04 Nov 2010 05:04:00 +0000

A Month of Firsts & Maple Cinnamon Sugar Doughnuts

noreply@blogger.com (Mlle Fraise) — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 02:21:00 +0000

The October 2010 Daring Bakers challenge was hosted by Lori of Butter Me Up. Lori chose to challenge DBers to make doughnuts. She used several sources for her recipes including Alton Brown, Nancy Silverton, Kate Neumann and Epicurious. All which I idiotically ignored.

October has been a month of firsts for us here at Mademoiselle Fraise. By us I mean me, myself and I.

First, the blog received a beautiful, flawless, perfect, and completely adorable makeover by Jessica at The Frilly Coconut. It's everything I wanted it to be and more. The charming simplicity of the design, the harmony of the colors and those cute little dancing hearts make this little corner of the web seem more like home to me.

Second, I became an official member of The Daring Bakers. Whee! That means that once a month I will partake in baking challenges and post said results here. I know. Too much awesomeness. I can't handle it either.

However, being overwhelmed by all this awesomeness is possible. I didn't read the rules as thoroughly as I had thought and, since we are celebrating firsts, I committed my first offense on my first challenge.

Irony. Not a fan at the moment.

The word challenge was not used loosely in this particular scenario.

Fried donuts don't like me. The scalding oil in particular. Baking them seemed to me like the safer, saner choice.

I found this recipe in Handle the Heat. Tessa made it look so easy [and it was] that when this challenge popped up I immediately thought of this recipe. This is the part where you realize that I wasn't aware that you needed to use the recipes that were already provided.

Oops. Oh well.

All in all, I would say, October was a really great month for firsts.

Maple Cinnamon Sugar Doughnuts

from Cooking with my Kid

Yield: 6 doughnuts

1 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

pinch of salt

1 egg (lightly beaten)

1 6 oz container of non fat organic vanilla bean yogurt

1 tablespoon canola oil

2 teaspoons lemon juice

2 1/2 tablespoons real maple syrup

1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 cup sugar

2 tablespoons unsalted butter (melted)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Toss the cinnamon and sugar together in a dish. In a bowl whisk together all the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In another bowl stir together oil, lemon juice, maple syrup, egg and yogurt.

Make a hole in the center of the dry ingredients and pour the wet ingredients into the hole. Gently fold everything together until combined. The batter will be thick.

Scoop batter into a piping bag or ziploc bag, snip a bottom corner with scissors, and squeeze out the batter evenly into a doughnut pan.

Bake for about 10 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool for a few moments and then flip over onto a cooling rack while still warm.

Use a pastry brush to spread the melted butter over your doughnuts and then dip each doughnut in the cinnamon sugar mixture to coat. Serve immediately after coating with cinnamon sugar mixture for best texture.

Feed the Muse: Madeleines

noreply@blogger.com (Mlle Fraise) — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 05:22:00 +0000

Confession time: I go through books the same way I go through a fresh batch of cookies. To me, they're equally yummy.

My dream hotel looks like this. Yes, going there is on my mighty life list.

It was only a matter of time that my vice merged with my addiction.

A few months ago, I read "Delicious" by Sherry Thomas. It's a historical romance novel that tells the story of Verity Durant, who is well known for her mouth-watering dishes and her scandalous love life. After her former employer meets her maker, she is suddenly under the employment of his brother, Stuart Somerset. But uh-oh, it appears they have met before.

Beyond Verity and Stuart's back and forth love story, the true protagonist of this book are the madeleines.

They weren't just any madeleines. These were epic madeleines.

So epic were these miniature fluffy cakes that Verity baked that, at some point, Stuart finds a handkerchief his brother kept where these delectable treats were once served so he could smell it from time to time.

Ok so... handsome men + madeleines = ♥

Yes. If I am ever to render a man helpless when it comes to my baking, these are definitely the way to go. I can safely say that it works. These didn't last 24 hours in my house.

Not that I can blame them.

Madeleines

adapted from Williams-Sonoma: Cookies

makes 2 dozen madeleines

1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour [the original recipe called for cake flour, there is none here in the DR]

¼ teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

2 large whole eggs plus 2 large egg yolks, at room temperature

¾ cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Grated zest of ½ lemon

½ cup of unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Preheat the oven to 375 F.

Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together in a bowl. Set aside.

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat the whole eggs, egg yolks, and sugar until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and lemon zest then beat until combined.

Using a rubber spatula, fold the flour mixture into the egg mixture and then blend. Add the melted butter and fold until well combined.

Generously brush a standard 12-mold madeleine pan with melted butter.

Drop the batter into the madeleine molds. Fill each mold three-fourths full. Bake until golden brown and spring to the touch for 15 minutes.

Immediately invert the pan onto a wire rack. If the cookies don't give in easily, you can use a knife. Let them cool completely on the rack. Clean the pan, let it cool, brush with melted butter, and repeat the process with the batter that's left.

Wordless Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (Mlle Fraise) — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 03:20:00 +0000

Strawberry Sundays: French Toast with Strawberries

noreply@blogger.com (Mlle Fraise) — Sun, 12 Sep 2010 15:56:00 +0000

I'm going to take a pledge. A pledge where I make the commitment to wake up early and enjoy breakfast. Because there is nothing better in this world than breakfast food. No doubt about it.

A flaky croissant, crunchy toast smeared with butter, downy pancakes and fluffy french toast. Just the thought of these makes my mouth water.

Sadly for me, my favorite meal is also the most skipped. Blame early morning classes. I should also say that I am not really a morning person. Ask anyone who has dared to wake me. It ain't pretty.

On those days where classes are not at the crack of dawn, I try to do my best and wake up for breakfast. I really do. However, my body has different plans.

This madness stops now. I've got to take back my power. I've got to say "bye bye bed, so long pillow, I am going to get me some yummy morning fuel and there is nothing you can do about it." What? You don't have conversations with inanimate objects? My bad.

So I'm taking the pledge. Because for french toast, I am more than willing to wake up at any hour of any day. Particularly one that is drenched in strawberry syrup peppered with fresh strawberry slices. De-li-cious.

French Toast with Strawberries

adapted from Joy of Baking

6 slices of day old brioche bread
3 large eggs
3/4 cup milk or cream
1 tablespoon sugar
pinch of salt
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (optional)
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
Butter for frying

For the strawberries
4 cups of fresh strawberries, sliced
4 tablespoons of sugar

MACERATING THE STRAWBERRIES: I didn't know what this was until I screwed up a recipe for strawberry shortcake and had these leftover. For one, I read it as massacred strawberries the first time. After some research, I noticed that this is normally made with alcohol and some lemon juice. However, I preferred to left those out and just focused on the sugar.

Slice the strawberries. Put them in a bowl and add the sugar. Set aside for a two hours. I normally do this the night before so I can refrigerate them and then have lots of juice in the morning.

In a large bowl whisk together the eggs, milk, salt, vanilla extract and ground cinnamon. Cinnamon clumps will form. It's normal. Once it's all whisked together, dip the sides of each slice of bread into the egg mixture. Some people like to soak their bread through. I prefer a quick dip.

Using a large non-stick frying pan, over medium to medium-high heat, melt about one tablespoon of butter. Fry the slices of bread until golden brown on one side and then turn and fry the other side. Continue frying the other slices of bread, adding butter as needed.

Serve immediately with fresh strawberry slices and strawberry juice.

(Relatively) Wordless Wednesday

noreply@blogger.com (Mlle Fraise) — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 19:06:00 +0000

This dreamy fruit market is my fondest memory from my trip to Frankfurt, Germany. I really want grapes now.

Strawberry Sundays: Strawberry Granita

noreply@blogger.com (Mlle Fraise) — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 03:38:00 +0000

The Little Island (as I fondly call it) has been hot, humid and muggy. Part of the perennial summer that we experience. Self-barbecue is no longer an option; it’s a reality.

You can imagine that I have been more than hesitant to use the oven. Not really in the mood to spontaneously combust. Luckily, I chose to do something that didn’t require that box of fire. All it required was strawberries, sugar, some lemon juice and my mother’s ancient food processor.

There is simply nothing better than an evening spent with various succulent strawberry. Imagine now those succulent strawberries in a frappe-like texture in the middle of a blazing summer day. Yes, folks, I am having an affair.

Meet my new love, strawberry “saved-my-life” granita.

Strawberry Granita

adapted from Epicurious

1 cup hot water

3/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

3 cups sliced hulled strawberries (1 pound whole berries)

Stir first 3 ingredients in small bowl until sugar dissolves. Blend 3 cups strawberries in processor until smooth. Add sugar syrup and blend until combined.

Pour mixture into 13x9x2-inch nonstick metal baking pan. Freeze until icy around edges for 30 minutes. Use a fork and stir the middle of pan. Freeze until mixture is frozen, stirring the center occasionally. Once it's ready, using the fork, scrape the granita into flaky crystals. Cover tightly and freeze. Preferably made one day ahead. Once ready, scrape granita into bowls. Serve.

MIA Happy Place & Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

noreply@blogger.com (Mlle Fraise) — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 05:46:00 +0000

My inner GPS seems to be damaged for I have been unable to reach my happy place in one piece these past few days. I could blame it on the heat or I could blame it on my bipolar oven. What's truly bothering me is the fact that I am 22 and still in college studying for a degree that I don’t like and won’t ever use.

I’ve been trying to graduate longer than I care to admit. But there’s always something getting in the way. Family issues, lack of direction and an ever-present frustration that comes with the knowledge that I am not where I am supposed to be. I don't know how to deal with that.

This is where the happy place comes in. You know, that place filled with gentlemanly man candy, sweets that don’t make me fat, and a ticket to anywhere in the world.

Due to my malfunctioning GPS I turn to the next best thing: comfort food. To be more specific, the baking of the ultimate comfort food: cookies. Baking is one of the few things I can do when I am so out of sorts. Just because these are oatmeal they give me automatic happy points.

I developed a liking for oatmeal cookies when I was going through finals in high school. There is just something about crunchy cookies that work as an immediate mood booster.

So when you’re staring at a calculus book filled with undecipherable gibberish or you’re wondering which road will actually take you where you want to be, crunch is good. Crunch is a must.

Oatmeal Cookies
adapted from Williams-Sonoma: Cookies
serves about 3 dozen cookies

½ cup unsalted butter
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup dark brown sugar
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¾ cup all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon salt
1 ½ cups old-fashioned rolled oats

1/3 cup raisins [the recipe originally called for walnuts but I don’t like those so I exchanged it for raisins]

In a saucepan melt the butter. Once that’s done, remove it from the heat. Using a wooden spoon, beat in the granulated and brown sugars until blended. Add the egg and vanilla. Beat until blended.

Sift the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt together into a bowl. Stir the flour mixture into the egg mixture, then stir in the oats and raisins. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 350F. Generously grease baking sheets. Drop the batter by rounded tablespoons onto the prepared pans. Using a flat surface, flatten each mound of batter into a disk.

Bake the cookies until golden brown, 12-15 minutes. Transfer the cookies to wire racks to cool completely.

Mondays & Flourless Peanut Butter and Jelly Cookies

noreply@blogger.com (Mlle Fraise) — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 04:59:00 +0000

What had promised to be a fairly uneventful week suddenly transformed into the week where I up my liquid intake times infinity. A Monday morning trip to the emergency room does that to you. Rest assured, it’s nothing life or baking threatening. The bad part is that it makes basic things like standing up and walking a real chore. Boo.

Imagine the difficulty when it came to baking; an activity which includes crouching, whisking, mixing, slouching, bending and dancing. Not necessarily in that order.

However, that wasn’t going to stop me from baking this week. I was going to do it all the same! Perhaps a little less dancing around though. Willpower (plus a great threshold for pain) mixed with quick and easy recipes are wonderful things, aren’t they?

I found this particular recipe while I was ~~stalking~~ browsing Joy the Baker’s beautiful oh-nom-nom worthy blog. Ever since I discovered my love for all things peanut butter, I haven’t been able to resist it in any shape or form. Imagine my delight when I found these. They were screaming “Make me! Bake me! EAT ME!”

All I did was follow instructions.

Extra points because the ingredient list and the process to make them was short and sweet. Extra yum forever points because… well… they were/are/will be forever delicious.

Flourless Peanut Butter and Jelly Cookies

adapted from Joy the Baker

makes 32 small cookies

1 cup all-natural chunky or smooth peanut butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon baking soda
about 1/4 cup any fruit preserves you fancy

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a baking sheet with butter and set aside. In a mixer combine peanut butter and sugars until well combined, about 2 minutes. Add egg and baking soda and mix for another 2 minutes. The dough will be crumbly. To be able to roll into teaspoon sized balls, you need to use a teaspoon along with your hand. The dough is so crumbly that it needs to be handled with your hand. Make a small indentation in the center of the dough ball with your pointer finger. Fill the depression with fruit preserves. Bake for 12 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool on a baking sheet for two minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Sins & Blueberry Angel Muffins

noreply@blogger.com (Mlle Fraise) — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 19:02:00 +0000

I nearly sinned this week. I gave serious consideration to getting back together with my kitchen ex, Miss Instant Betty Crocker. It was an unfulfilled impulse, I swear! All I wanted to do was something easy and delicious.

Cakes still scare me especially those with frosting. Scratch that. Anything with frosting in it scares me. The oven still scares me but it’s easier to deal with it when I have my armor aka elbow length oven mitts. Cookies were the first baked good I did for this blog so that wasn’t an option.

The week was spent reviewing all the cookbooks in my possession to see what I was going to bake that fulfilled the easy-and-delicious requirements. Nothing jumped out to me. Researching led to dilly-dallying. Procrastination 1. La Mademoiselle 0. My friends can’t understand how that’s possible. I explained it as baking block.

You know something that doesn’t help baking block at all? Hard-to-find ingredients. Whenever I settled on a recipe it had that type of component. Something I had never heard of before. That singlehandedly kept stalling me. Also, it made Instant Betty look mighty tempting in my eyes until I got tired of being stalled. I was no baking cheater. I was doing this the right way or NO WAY.

I opened my brand new cookbook and settled on the first thing that caught my eye. Blueberry Angel Muffins. Cute, fluffy and angelic! Alas, it had one of the ingredients-which-are-hard-to-find-in-this-island: cream of tartar.

To be honest, I didn’t even know what cream of tartar was until I settled on this recipe. I thought, don’t laugh too hard, that it meant this tartar. Obviously, I was in the wrong. After going to five different supermarkets, I decided that a substitute was in order. Luckily, we have a happy ending to this story! You know, if you don’t count the thrown out batter. The substitute worked out fine. I think.

I will admit that these came out tasting different than I thought. The blueberries truly make the difference. They add an explosion of taste that even a picky palate like mine can appreciate. Without them, you’d be eating fluffy air. Fluffy, angelic air, that is.

Blueberry Angel Muffins
from The Perfect Finish by Bill Yosses & Melissa Clark
makes 12 Standard-size muffins

[in my case though it made 24]

Nonstick cooking spray, for the muffin cups
2/3 cup cake flour
½ cup confectioners’ sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 ¼ cups blueberries
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
8 large egg whites
Pinch of cream of tartar [I used baking powder]
½ cup granulated sugar, plus 6 teaspoons additional for sprinkling
Fine grated zest of 1 lemon

Position a rack in the center of the oven. Lightly grease a standard-size muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray, or use ungreased paper muffin cups.

Sift the cake flour, confectioners’ sugar, and salt onto a piece of parchment or waxed paper and set aside. In a small bowl, toss the blueberries with the vanilla.

In a clean bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar on medium-low speed until frothy. Add 1 tablespoon of the granulated sugar and beat at medium at soft peaks form. Beat in the remaining granulated sugar, and raise the speed to high. Beat until stiff peaks form. While the eggs are beating, preheat the oven to 375F.

When you have stiff peaks, stop the machine and remove the bowl. Immediately sprinkle the dry ingredients and lemon zest over the egg whites and fold in with a rubber spatula, working carefully to avoid deflating the whites. Fold in half of the blueberries.

Divide the batter among the muffin cups so that each is two-thirds full. Top each muffin with a few more blueberries and sprinkle each with ½ teaspoon granulated sugar.

Bake on the center rack until the muffins are lightly golden and a cake tester inserted in their centers come out clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove the muffins from the tin as soon as they come out of the oven and transfer them to a wire rack to cool for 15 minutes. Serve within 4 hours.

Inner Perfectionist & Vanilla Cheesecake

noreply@blogger.com (Mlle Fraise) — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 00:59:00 +0000

There are two absolute truths: cheesecakes are delicious even to lactose intolerant people such as myself and cheesecakes are very easy to screw up. There is also another truth: on certain days, I can be quite the perfectionist.

Did you know that by a single Google search, you come up with a gazillion different ways to make a perfect cheesecake? Did you also know that after reading them all, the things they have in common are very few? All of this mixed up made for a very confused and even more neurotic Mademoiselle.

Mine is the story of the little cheesecake that could. I went out at 9 am just so I could get my hands on my first springform pan. A must-have for any cheesecake maker, obviously. Determined to make that perfect creamy, delicious custard, I followed the instructions of my picture-filled Williams-Sonoma Dessert cookbook to a T. I was even more careful with my measurements. This was going to be a cheesecake of pure, unspoiled beauty.

However, I either misread the instructions or got distracted by something shiny because I did the most abominable thing you can do to a cheesecake. I over-mixed. I didn’t have cheesecake batter. Oh no. I had cheesecake SOUP. With BUBBLES. I debated for a while if I should pour that on my perfect crust when a fly took a dive inside the batter. I took that as a sign. No cheesecake soup on my golden crust. I had to start again.

My inner perfectionist nearly died. It threw a little hissy fit. I wanted to stop everything and cry but I kept going. That is what you do in these situations. YOU JUST KEEP GOING. Rain, hail, snow, fly, no fly. You just keep going. And I also told my inner perfectionist to put a sock on it.

My advice? MIX ONLY THE ABSOLUTE NECESSARY aka only enough to blend whatever it is you’re tossing into the batter. Ignore any other instructions that say “mix at medium-speed”. (I’m looking at you, Williams-Sonoma)

I spent the 70 minutes it takes for the cheesecake to bake worrying whether it’ll have a crack to rival the Grand Canyon (IT DID NOT CRACK! GO ME!) plus wondering how much time does it have to stay inside the oven after the baking part is over (five long hours). But you know what, it was totally worth it. Because even though we can't achieve perfection, we can redefine it and add some cherries to it. Don’t you agree?

Vanilla Cheesecake

from Williams-Sonoma Collection: Dessert

serves 16

For the crust:

1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs
3 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ cup unsalted butter, melted, plus extra for greasing

For the filling:

4 packages cream cheese, at room temperature
2 tablespoons all-purpose (plain) flour
¼ teaspoon salt
1 ¼ cups sugar
½ cup sour cream, at room temperature [a must if you don’t want crumbs and trust me, you don’t want crumbs because then you will do the over-mixing and this is BAD, very BAD]
1 tablespoon vanilla extract (essence) [I used white vanilla]
3 large eggs, at room temperature

1 can of cherry filling/topping (optional)

To make the crust, preheat the oven to 400F (200C). Lightly grease a 9-inch springform pan. In a bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, cinnamon, and melted butter. Stir until the mixture is well blended and the crumbs are evenly moist. Pour into the springform pan and press evenly onto the bottom and about 1 ½ inches up to the sides of the pan.

TIPS: FORMING THE CRUSTAfter creating the crumb mixture, pour it into the prepared pan. Spread the crumbs around the bottom of the pan, leaving any crumbs that stick to the sides of the pan where they are. Using a straight-side, flat-bottomed coffee mug, press against the crumbs from the center outward to form an even layer on the bottom and up the sides of the pan. You can also use your hand, wrapping it in a plastic bag to keep crumbs from sticking to your fingers.

To make the filling, in a large bowl, combine the cream cheese, flour and salt. Using a mixer set to stir or really low speed, beat until very smooth and fluffy, stopping and scraping down the sides frequently. Add the sugar, sour cream, and vanilla. Beat until well blended, again scraping down the sides frequently. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Pour into the crust.

Bake the cheesecake until the filling is set but the center still jiggles slightly when the pan is gently shaken and the edges are slightly puffed, 60-70 minutes. Turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake inside the oven for the next five hours for it to cool. This will make sure you don’t have any cracks. Once the cooling period is done, cover and refrigerate until well chilled (overnight is best).

To serve, unclasp and remove the pan sides, then run a long, thin icing spatula between the pan bottom and the crust. Carefully slide the cake onto a flat serving plate. Use a thing-bladed knife, cut the cake into slices, dipping the knife into hot water and wiping it dry before each cut.

Here Comes The Sun & Pomegranate Lemonade

noreply@blogger.com (Mlle Fraise) — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 23:42:00 +0000

Once upon a particular hot day in Miami, I was at my wits’ end thanks to the lethal combination of heat and humidity. The sights and sounds of the mall I was in were no longer providing the much-needed distraction from the fact that I was baking inside out. My feet were sore, my throat was scratchy; I needed something right out of an oasis to satiate my thirst.

It was then that I found myself in front of Nordstrom’s E-Bar. They had a big poster advertising Pomegranate Lemonade. A fruit I had never heard of and that I couldn’t come up with the English to Spanish translation (it’s granada fyi.) The image showed a tall, sweaty glass with a vibrant red liquid in it and a lemon wedge. My mouth watered. I was sold. After all, necessity is the mother of ~~invention~~ desperation. I walked in, purchased it and had a little taste of heaven.

In honor of the upcoming days, weeks and months where I will most likely not be as happy with the sun’s presence as I am today and as a promise that my upcoming blog posts will be not be solely about the weather, I decided to recreate that invigorating drink.

The first try didn’t yield the results I was hoping for. I looked for another recipe and this time the product was much better. It was slightly more tart than I remembered so I was more than generous with the sugar, which wasn’t originally included in this recipe. My recommendation? Add it to your taste. Enjoy!

Pomegranate Lemonade

from Bon Appétit – February 2008 (slightly modified)

serves 4

2 cups lemonade [I made it myself]
1 cup club soda
1/2 cup pomegranate juice [I used Lakewood Organic Pure Pomegranate. Though POM Wonderful is the preferred choice for other foodies]
4 tablespoons of sugar

Ice

Pour lemonade, club soda and pomegranate juice into a nice pitcher. Stir lightly. Add sugar. Stir until dissolved. For best results, leave it in the fridge overnight. Once it's ready, pour into nice, clear glasses. Add ice.

Venice in the Caribbean & Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

noreply@blogger.com (Mlle Fraise) — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 04:48:00 +0000

The island I live in has been trying to recreate Venice in our little piece of the Caribbean for two weeks now. We have been subject to non-stop rain, which leads to very flooded streets, where I realized just how valuable rain boots are if I only had them. The bad thing is that it doesn't seem to be going anywhere anytime soon. The good thing about this faux hurricane is that I get to have a valuable excuse to spend all day in the kitchen.

With the sound of the rain pounding against the windows, I do my serious baking and my serious thinking. The latter goes quickly to pot the second a bright streak of white flashes across the sky. I am not partial to lighting. More so after reading “The Ice Queen” by Alice Hoffman.

I wasn’t the only one that was afraid. Lulu wanted to run to the nearest safe spot with me in tow. Stay in the kitchen? Near a window? With lightning striking every few minutes? She was not having it.

As a way to soothe my newly acquired fear, I decided to make chocolate crinkle cookies that I found on the lovely 17 and Baking. A fool-proof plan. Nothing calms me down like dollops of chocolate that orchestrate the perfect marriage between chewy and crunchy whilst coated with confectioners’ sugar. NOTHING.

Well, except perhaps a cocktail.

These are very easy to make and are sure to convert any self-proclaimed “I don’t like chocolate” to the other side. I speak from personal experience.

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

from All Recipes

makes about 7 dozen cookies

1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups white sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar

In a medium bowl, mix together cocoa, white sugar, and vegetable oil. Beat in eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt; stir into the cocoa mixture. Cover dough, and chill for at least 4 hours.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper. Roll dough into one inch balls with lightly oiled palms. I used a rounded teaspoon, a tablespoon would also work depending on what size you’re aiming. Coat each ball in confectioners’ sugar before placing onto prepared cookie sheets.

Bake in preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes. Let stand on the cookie sheet for a minute before transferring to wire racks to cool.