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Phở Bò Tái

Allison — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 12:50:54 +0000

Phở bò tái (beef noodle soup)

It’s been four years, five months to the day since Son and I went on our first date. In those four years, he has widened my perspective on a lot of things – especially food. The eighteen-year-old girl who met Son in a ballroom dance club at her university wouldn’t recognize the almost-twenty-three-year-old programmer and food blogger that I’ve become – back then, I wouldn’t go near curry, sashimi, spicy foods, exotic fruits… anything that didn’t look like the Japanese- and Swedish-American foods I grew up with.

Nowadays, as you can see from the things I post about both here and on Sushi Day, my tastes have widened significantly. But oddly enough, there is one ethnic cuisine that I rarely cook in my home – Vietnamese food. Son is Vietnamese – so you’d think I’d be leaping at the opportunity to cook the food he grew up with… right? Not so much… for two main reasons.

First of all, Son lived in Vietnam until his family came to California when he was eleven years old. And, of course, his parents still cook the food they grew up with on a regular basis. So obviously, Son knows Vietnamese food pretty darn well… thus I have a certain level of insecurity when it comes to the dishes he’s eaten all his life – what if I make them terribly? What if… *gasp*… I’m deemed an unsuitable girlfriend for him, because I’m unable to make decent phở?

Secondly, we visit his parents every other weekend. And from every visit, we return with food. Lots of food. Lots of home-cooked Vietnamese food. So unfortunately, while the demand for me to cook anything at all is fairly low, the demand for me to cook Vietnamese food is even lower.

Thus when I discovered this month’s Daring Cooks challenge was phở, chosen by Jaden of Steamy Kitchen, I was excited. Very excited. But also incredibly nervous – what if it wasn’t good enough for him? I would be heartbroken if it ended up being a failed phở. But I set my fears aside, and set to work making the phở bò tái (beef pho) (click the link for the recipe).

Liquid gold

I did make a few changes to the recipe. Since there isn’t a single decent Vietnamese restaurant near me (I’d likely have to drive all the way to the Little Saigon area of Southern California, which is easily an hour or more away), I couldn’t find the *real* bones used for the broth. You know, those really great ones filled with all the yummy marrow. So I had to make do with what I could find at the grocery store: two pounds of “soup bone” (a large-ish bone with meat attached), and about three pounds of neck bone (also with meat attached).

Because of my inefficiencies in the bone department, I decided to add some extra richness to the broth by using two quarts of beef broth in place of two of the six quarts of the water used in the broth. I also could not, for the life of me, find cardamom pods anywhere during the short amount of time I had to shop before I started the phở. So I used ground cardamom instead. Instead of regular cinnamon, I used a stick of Vietnamese cinnamon that I’ve been hoarding ever since I was lucky enough to be gifted some by Todd and Diane of White On Rice Couple.

Lastly, I upped the cooking time. By a lot. You see, Jaden’s recipe says three hours of cooking is plenty to get all the great flavor from the bones. And I would have believed her. But no. Son insisted that I cook the broth for at least twenty-four hours, because when his dad makes it, he cooks it for days and days and days. And even weeks. So instead I cooked the broth as instructed in the recipe up to the first hour and thirty minutes, then instead of cooking it for only another one and a half hours, I let it simmer for about six more hours that night. Then I refrigerated it over night, and then simmered it again all the next day – about eight more hours.

The verdict? As I mentioned (more than once) on Twitter, the broth is absolutely heavenly. I would have no problem just drinking it by itself, noodles, meat, and other accompaniments be darned. But then I tried the meat that had been attached to the bones, which had been cooking the entire time and was so wonderfully tender it just fell apart in my mouth… *swoon* As for Son, he approved greatly. Which just makes me so incredibly happy, I could burst.

Yep, I’d say this was definitely a huge success. Easily a recipe I’ll be keeping in my repertoire for many years to come.

A wonderful success

Vols-au-Vents

Allison — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 04:49:51 +0000

Pecan vols-au-vents

The September 2009 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Steph of A Whisk and a Spoon. She chose the French treat, Vols-au-Vent based on the Puff Pastry recipe by Michel Richard from the cookbook Baking With Julia by Dorie Greenspan.

Brown sugar pecans

Sometimes time gets away from you. With work, and life, and everything else, sometimes an entire month can disappear before you realize it. Heck, it could even be Christmas before you know it! At least, that’s what it smelled like in my apartment when I was making these… a couple of days later than I was supposed to. (Remember what I said about time getting away from you? Yeah…)

So was all the work worth it? Oh goodness yes. I made some big ones with macaroni and cheese in them, which were good. Then I made some mini ones and some twists out of the scraps of puff pastry with pecans in a brown sugar sauce (1 cup brown sugar, 1 stick butter, 1/4 cup honey melted together, mix in 1 1/2 cups pecans) – that was good. It tasted… like the holidays.

Macaroni and cheese vols-au-vents

Ingredients

354 g unbleached all-purpose flour
142 g cake flour (or 121 g all-purpose flour and 21 g cornstarch)
1/2 tbsp salt
1 1/4 cups ice water
1 lb very cold unsalted butter
egg wash (1 egg whisked with a little water)
filling of your choice

Cooking Directions

Mix the all-purpose flour, cake flour, and salt. Add the water all at once, mixing until the dough forms a ball. The dough will be very moist and pliable and will hold together when squeezed between your fingers.
Form the dough into a ball, and with a small sharp knife, slash the top in a tic-tac-toe pattern. Wrap the dough in a damp towel and refrigerate for about 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, place the butter between 2 sheets of plastic wrap and beat it with a rolling pin until it flattens into a square that’s about 1″ thick. Take care that the butter remains cool and firm: if it has softened or become oily, chill it before continuing.
Unwrap the dough and place it on a work surface dusted with all-purpose flour (A cool piece of marble is the ideal surface for puff pastry) with your rolling pin (preferably a French rolling pin without handles), press on the dough to flatten it and then roll it into a 10″ square. Keep the top and bottom of the dough well floured to prevent sticking and lift the dough and move it around frequently. Starting from the center of the square, roll out over each corner to create a thick center pad with “ears,” or flaps.
Place the cold butter in the middle of the dough and fold the ears over the butter, stretching them as needed so that they overlap slightly and encase the butter completely. (If you have to stretch the dough, stretch it from all over; don’t just pull the ends) you should now have a package that is 8″ square.
To make great puff pastry, it is important to keep the dough cold at all times. There are specified times for chilling the dough, but if your room is warm, or you work slowly, or you find that for no particular reason the butter starts to ooze out of the pastry, cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate it . You can stop at any point in the process and continue at your convenience or when the dough is properly chilled.
Gently but firmly press the rolling pin against the top and bottom edges of the square (this will help keep it square). Then, keeping the work surface and the top of the dough well floured to prevent sticking, roll the dough into a rectangle that is three times as long as the square you started with, about 24″ (don’t worry about the width of the rectangle: if you get the 24″, everything else will work itself out.) With this first roll, it is particularly important that the butter be rolled evenly along the length and width of the rectangle; check when you start rolling that the butter is moving along well, and roll a bit harder or more evenly, if necessary, to get a smooth, even dough-butter sandwich (use your arm-strength!).
With a pastry brush, brush off the excess flour from the top of the dough, and fold the rectangle up from the bottom and down from the top in thirds, like a business letter, brushing off the excess flour. You have completed one turn.
Rotate the dough so that the closed fold is to your left, like the spine of a book. Repeat the rolling and folding process, rolling the dough to a length of 24″ and then folding it in thirds. This is the second turn.
If the dough is still cool and no butter is oozing out, you can give the dough another two turns now. If the condition of the dough is iffy, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate it for at least 30 minutes. Each time you refrigerate the dough, mark the number of turns you’ve completed by indenting the dough with your fingertips. It is best to refrigerate the dough for 30 to 60 minutes between each set of two turns.
The total number of turns needed is six. If you prefer, you can give the dough just four turns now, chill it overnight, and do the last two turns the next day. Puff pastry is extremely flexible in this regard. However, no matter how you arrange your schedule, you should plan to chill the dough for at least an hour before cutting or shaping it.
Line a baking sheet with parchment and set aside.
Using a knife or metal bench scraper, divided your chilled puff pastry dough into three equal pieces. Work with one piece of the dough, and leave the rest wrapped and chilled.
On a lightly floured surface, roll the piece of dough into a rectangle about 1/8 to 1/4-inch (3-6 mm) thick. Transfer it to the baking sheet and refrigerate for about 10 minutes before proceeding with the cutting.
(This assumes you will be using round cutters, but if you do not have them, it is possible to cut square vols-au-vents using a sharp chef’s knife.) For smaller, hors d’oeuvre sized vols-au-vent, use a 1.5” round cutter to cut out 8-10 circles. For larger sized vols-au-vent, fit for a main course or dessert, use a 4” cutter to cut out about 4 circles. Make clean, sharp cuts and try not to twist your cutters back and forth or drag your knife through the dough. Half of these rounds will be for the bases, and the other half will be for the sides. (Save any scrap by stacking—not wadding up—the pieces…they can be re-rolled and used if you need extra dough. If you do need to re-roll scrap to get enough disks, be sure to use any rounds cut from it for the bases, not the ring-shaped sides.)
Using a ¾-inch cutter for small vols-au-vent, or a 2- to 2.5-inch round cutter for large, cut centers from half of the rounds to make rings. These rings will become the sides of the vols-au-vent, while the solid disks will be the bottoms. You can either save the center cut-outs to bake off as little “caps” for you vols-au-vent, or put them in the scrap pile.
Dock the solid bottom rounds with a fork (prick them lightly, making sure not to go all the way through the pastry) and lightly brush them with egg wash. Place the rings directly on top of the bottom rounds and very lightly press them to adhere. Brush the top rings lightly with egg wash, trying not to drip any down the sides (which may inhibit rise). If you are using the little “caps,” dock and egg wash them as well.
Refrigerate the assembled vols-au-vent on the lined baking sheet while you pre-heat the oven to 400ºF (200ºC). (You could also cover and refrigerate them for a few hours at this point.)
Once the oven is heated, remove the sheet from the refrigerator and place a silicon baking mat (preferred because of its weight) or another sheet of parchment over top of the shells. This will help them rise evenly. Bake the shells until they have risen and begin to brown, about 10-15 minutes depending on their size. Reduce the oven temperature to 350ºF (180ºC), and remove the silicon mat or parchment sheet from the top of the vols-au-vent. If the centers have risen up inside the vols-au-vent, you can gently press them down. Continue baking (with no sheet on top) until the layers are golden, about 15-20 minutes more. (If you are baking the center “caps” they will likely be finished well ahead of the shells, so keep an eye on them and remove them from the oven when browned.)
Remove to a rack to cool. Cool to room temperature for cold fillings or to warm for hot fillings.
Fill and serve.

Indian Dosas

Allison — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 05:00:48 +0000

Indian Dosas

Oh my goodness me. These dosas… wow. Just wow.

I wasn’t too sure about these when I saw that Debyi of Healthy Vegan Kitchen had picked them for this month’s Daring Cooks challenge. I was positive that Son would love them, but I wasn’t so sure whether I would like them or not. Oh boy. Did I have nothing at all to worry about. Not only are these delicious… they’re just plain addictive.

How spicy they are probably depends on the type of curry powder you use, and the kind of chilies you have. Ours were spicy. I’m eating one as I write this, and my mouth is on fire. But oh man, is it so good.

Dosa Pancakes

1 c spelt flour (or all-purpose, gluten free flour)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp curry powder
1/2 c almond milk
3/4 c water
cooking spray, if needed
1/4 c grated coconut
1/4 cucumber, sliced

Dosa Pancakes – Cooking Directions

Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl, slowly adding the almond milk and water, whisking until smooth.
Heat a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Spray your pan with a thin layer of cooking spray, if needed.
Ladle 2 tablespoons of batter into the center of your pan in a circular motion until it is a thin, round pancake. When bubbles appear on the surface and it no longer looks wet, flip it over and cook for a few seconds. Remove from heat and repeat with remaining batter. Makes 8 pancakes.

Curried Garbanzo Filling

5 cloves garlic
1 onion, peeled and finely diced
1 carrot, peeled and finely diced
1 green pepper, finely diced
2 medium hot banana chilies, minced
2 tbsp cumin, ground
1 tbsp oregano
1 tbsp sea salt (coarse)
1 tbsp turmeric
4 c cooked or canned chick peas (about 2 cans)
1/2 c tomato paste

Curried Garbanzo Filling – Cooking Directions

Heat a large saucepan over medium to low heat. Add the garlic, veggies, and spices, cooking until soft, stirring occasionally.
Mash the chickpeas by hand, or in a food processor. Add the chickpeas and tomato paste to the saucepan, stirring until heated through.

Coconut Curry Sauce

1 onion, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp cumin, ground
3/4 tsp sea salt (coarse)
3 tbsp curry powder
3 tbsp spelt flour (or all-purpose GF flour)
3 c vegetable broth
2 c coconut milk
3 large tomatoes, diced

Coconut Curry Sauce – Cooking Directions

Heat a saucepan over medium heat, add the onion and garlic, cooking for 5 minutes, or until soft.
Add the spices, cooking for 1 minutes more. Add the flour and cook for 1 additional minute.
Gradually stir in the vegetable broth to prevent lumps. Once the flour has been incorporated, add the coconut milk and tomatoes, stirring occasionally.
Let it simmer for half an hour.

Scotch Kisses

Allison — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 22:27:00 +0000

Scotch Kisses

Throughout my life, See’s Candy has always shown up at special occasions. Birthdays, Christmas, Easter… certain holidays just wouldn’t be complete without something from the little white and black colored store. There were many favorites – polar bear claws, scotchmallows, bordeaux, raspberry truffles (my mom’s all-time favorite) – but for us three kids, there was one candy that stood above all the rest. Scotch Kisses.

Something about the See’s caramel just makes me melt. I’ve never found the same sort of soft, buttery, perfect caramels anywhere else. And then the marshmallow, well, how can you go wrong with that? To me, it’s a perfect combination.

So when I made this caramel recipe and discovered that it tasted almost exactly like the See’s caramels, well. I was ecstatic. And I knew exactly how I was going to use it. I already had some marshmallow made (left over from these), so it was easy as can be to make some quick scotch kisses! With the leftover caramel, I just wrapped pieces in wax paper in a similar way… delicious. Irresistible.

Plain Caramel

Ingredients

One batch of Vanilla Nutmeg Caramels (cooked to 260°F for soft, chewy caramels)
One batch of homemade marshmallows (or you can use store-bought marshmallows)

Cooking Directions

Cut wax paper into 4×4″ squares.
Using a pair of clean scissors, cut the marshmallows into 1/2″-1″ squares.
Using a spoon, scoop about a tablespoon of caramel. Place in the top-center of the wax paper.
Spread the caramel on the wax paper, so it is flattened and reaches from almost the top of the wax paper to between a third and half of the way down. There should be at least an inch of uncovered paper on each side of the caramel.
Place a piece of marshmallow in the center of the caramel.
Tightly roll the paper toward you, so the caramel surrounds the marshmallow.
When the paper is completely rolled up, twist each end tightly right next to the caramel (but not too tightly, or the paper will tear).
Repeat until you have used up the caramel.
Enjoy!

Rice with Mushrooms, Sausages, and Artichokes

Allison — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 07:00:24 +0000

Artichokes

This month’s Daring Cook’s challenge was Rice with Mushrooms, Cuttlefish, and Artichokes, picked by Olga of Olga’s Recipes. It sounded delicious – exactly the kind of dish that Son would love. I intended to make it just as written, except… cuttlefish isn’t exactly sustainable. Thus, a no-no for me. Besides, Whole Foods didn’t have cuttlefish… OR squid. And I was in a bit of a hurry, since I’ve been traveling most of the month. So then I figure, hey, I’ve got shrimp in the freezer! I’ll use that! Except… I didn’t. So instead, I went with sausage that I had at home, being in a hurry and all.

But otherwise, the recipe went exactly as planned. Making the allioli was quite a workout (okay, so I’ve got wimpy arms)… oh man, was I feeling it. And holy cow, is that stuff garlicky! Even Son, king of all things garlic, couldn’t eat more than a small dollop mixed into a serving of the dish.

As for that picture of the artichokes up there… well, I just couldn’t let all those beautiful artichoke leaves go to waste! So I microwaved them just like mom always used to, and ate them with melted butter like we did as kids. And THEN cleaned them for the dish. Yum.

The dish itself? Delicious. Son and I both had seconds (and maybe even thirds!) Then we ended up giving the leftovers to my dad, but ONLY because we were leaving the next day and didn’t want it going to waste, sitting in our fridge for a week. But man, was it good. And the sausage? (Pineapple and bacon sausage, from Costco, if you were wondering.) Oh man. Did it complement the dish wonderfully. A successful accident, if I do say so myself!

Rice with Mushrooms, Sausage, and Artichokes

Ingredients

4 artichokes (you can use jarred or freezed if fresh are not available)
12 button or Portobello mushrooms
1 or 2 bay leaves (optional)
1/3 cup white wine
6 sausages
2-3 tbsp sofregit (recipe follows)
2 cups short grain rice
6 cups water or fish stock (I used vegetable stock)
1 pinch saffron threads
allioli (recipe follows)

Cooking Directions

Cut the sausage into thin slices (about 1 cm thick).
Add 1 or 2 tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan and put the sausage in the pan.
If you use fresh artichokes, clean them as shown in this video. Cut artichokes in eights.
Clean the mushrooms and cut them in fourths.
Add a bay leaf to the sausage. Add the artichokes and the mushrooms.
Sauté the artichokes until you get .
Add the white wine so all the solids in the bottom of the get mixed, getting a more flavorful dish.
Add 2-3 tablespoons of sofregit and mix to make sure everything gets impregnated with the sofregit.
Add all the liquid and bring it to boil.
Add all the rice. Let boil for about 5 minutes in heavy heat.
Add some saffron thread to enrich the dish with its flavor and color. Stir a little bit so the rice and the other ingredients get the entire flavor. If you’re using turmeric or yellow coloring instead, use only 1/4 teaspoon.
Turn to low heat and boil for another 8 minutes (or until rice is a little softer than “al dente”).
Put the pan away from heat and let the rice stand a couple of minutes.

Sofregit – Ingredients

2 tbsp of olive oil
5 big red ripe tomatoes, chopped
2 small onions, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped (optional)
4 or 5 garlic cloves, chopped
1 cup of button or Portobello mushrooms, chopped (optional)
1 bay leaf
salt
a touch of ground cumin
a touch of dried oregano

Sofregit – Cooking Directions

Put all the ingredients together in a frying pan and sauté slowly until all vegetables are soft.
Taste and salt if necessary.

Allioli – Ingredients

4 garlic cloves, peeled
a pinch of salt
a few drops of fresh lemon juice
extra-virgin olive oil

Allioli – Cooking Directions

Place the garlic in a mortar along with the salt.
Using a pestle, smash the garlic cloves to a smooth paste. (The salt stops the garlic from slipping at the bottom of the mortar as you pound it down.)
Add the lemon juice to the garlic.
Drop by drop; pour the olive oil into the mortar slowly as you continue to crush the paste with your pestle.
Keep turning your pestle in a slow, continuous circular motion in the mortar. The drip of olive oil needs to be slow and steady. Make sure the paste soaks up the olive oil as you go.
Keep adding the oil, drop by drop, until you have the consistency of a very thick mayonnaise. If your allioli gets too dense, add water to thin it out. This takes time—around 20 minutes of slow motion around the mortar—to create a dense, rich sauce.

Milan Cookies

Allison — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 19:00:36 +0000

Milan Cookies

The July Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Nicole at Sweet Tooth. She chose Chocolate Covered Marshmallow Cookies and Milan Cookies from pastry chef Gale Gand of the Food Network.

The cookies are terribly addictive

Milan(o) cookies have always been a staple at my house. Growing up, we always had one of those bags, with the five cookies in each paper cup, sitting in our pantry. Since I associate them with my family, it’s no wonder that the moment I saw this Daring Baker’s challenge I knew I had to make them for them. And since the 4th of July was coming up… well, that was a perfectly fine excuse for me.

These cookies… they’re addictive. Consider yourself forewarned. I must have eaten 20 of the cookies just by themselves, snitching one from the baking sheet every time I walked past – before I even made the filling. Oh man. They’re good. Thin, crispy, with a citrusy sweetness that won’t let you eat just one. These were definitely a success in my book.

And who doesn’t like a filling of chocolate?

Ingredients

12 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
2 1/2 c powdered sugar
6 egg whites
2 tbsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp lemon extract
1 1/2 c all-purpose flour
1/2 c heavy cream
8 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped
the zest of 1 orange

Cooking Directions

Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Cream the butter and the sugar.
Add the egg whites gradually and then mix in the vanilla and lemon extracts.
Add the flour and mix until just well mixed.
With a small (1/4-inch) plain pastry tip, pipe 1-inch sections of batter onto a parchment-lined sheet pan, spacing them 2 inches apart as they spread. (And they WILL spread.)
Bake for 10 minutes or until light golden brown around the edges. Let cool on the pan.
While waiting for the cookies to cool, in a small saucepan over medium flame, scald the cream.
Pour the hot cream over the chocolate in a bowl, whisk to melt chocolate, add zest and blend well.
Set aside to cool (the mixture will thicken as it cools).
Spread a thin amount of the filling onto the flat side of a cookie while the filling is still soft and press the flat side of a second cookie on top.
Repeat with the remainder of the cookies.

Mallow Cookies

Allison — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 07:00:40 +0000

Mallow cookies

The July Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Nicole at Sweet Tooth. She chose Chocolate Covered Marshmallow Cookies and Milan Cookies from pastry chef Gale Gand of the Food Network.

So maybe my marshmallows ended up a little lumpy…

There is no other cookie I associate with my mother more than mallow cookies. For Christmas, Mother’s Day, her birthday… she would always get at least one box of chocolates (usually See’s), and a package of Marshmallow Pinwheels (like these mallow cookies). So it was no wonder when I saw that these were one half of this month’s Daring Baker’s challenge, I instantly thought, “I have to make these for mom.”

Making these was… a bit of an adventure. Not in a bad way… or at least, not too much. Instead of the predicted 2 dozen cookies, I got… 200. Heh. And then my marshmallows refused to firm up, even when I used a different recipe… so I put them in the refrigerator and they firmed up a little too much. Oops. So instead of pretty little marshmallow cookies, my marshmallows ended up a bit lumpier than I would have preferred. And I had a whole extra batch of marshmallows to eat (woe is me!). To top it all off, the chocolate coating refused to set. So I had to keep them in the refrigerator, lest the coating melt and get all over everything.

Cookies 3, Allison 0.

So I brought the refrigerated, lumpy mallows to my family’s 4th of July celebration (along with the milan cookies that I’ll post later today). Within a minute of trying the first one, my mom had eaten… five. Yep, you heard me right. And then she stuck them back in the fridge so she wouldn’t finish the whole container of them in one sitting. I would certainly consider that a success, wouldn’t you agree?

My mom made us take some of the cookies back home, so she wouldn’t eat them all. Because somehow, I don’t think she would have had any problem finishing all two hundred cookies, if we had left them there. So we took about a third of them back home… and I made Son take them to his coworkers. Who very much enjoyed them.

I win.

… but they were still really, very good.

Ingredients

3 c all-purpose flour
1/2 c sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp baking powder
3/8 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
12 tbsp unsalted butter
3 eggs, whisked together
1/4 c water
1/4 c light corn syrup
3/4 c sugar
1 tbsp powdered gelatin
2 tbsp cold water
2 egg whites, room temperature
1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
12 oz semisweet chocolate
2 oz cocoa butter or vegetable oil

Cooking Directions

In a mixer with the paddle attachment, blend the flour, 1/2 c sugar, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon.
On low speed, add the butter and mix until sandy.
Add the eggs and mix until combined.
Form the dough into a disk, wrap with clingfilm or parchment and refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to 3 days.
When ready to bake, grease a cookie sheet or line it with parchment paper or a silicon mat.
Preheat the oven to 375°F.
Roll out the dough to 1/8-inch thickness, on a lightly floured surface. Use a 1 to 1 1/2 inche cookie cutter to cut out small rounds of dough.
Transfer to the prepared pan and bake for 10 minutes or until light golden brown. Let cool to room temperature.
In a saucepan, combine the water, corn syrup, and 3/4 c sugar, and bring to a boil until “soft-ball” stage or 235°F on a candy thermometer.
Sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water and let dissolve.
Remove the syrup from the heat, add the gelatin, and mix.
Whip the whites until soft peaks form and pour the syrup into the whites.
Add the vanilla and continue whipping until stiff.
Transfer to a pastry bag.
Pipe a “kiss” of marshmallow onto each cookie. Let set at room temperature for 2 hours.
Melt the chocolate and cocoa butter together in the top of a double boiler or a bowl set over barely simmering water.
Line a cookie sheet with parchment or silicon mat.
One at a time, gently drop the marshmallow-topped cookies into the hot chocolate glaze.
Lift out with a fork and let excess chocolate drip back into the bowl.
Place on the prepared pan and let set at room temperature until the coating is firm, about 1 to 2 hours.

Note: if you don’t want to make your own marshmallows, you can cut a large marshmallow in half and place on the cookie base. Heat in a preheated 350°F oven to slump the marshmallow slightly, it will expand and brown a little. Let cool, then proceed with the chocolate dipping.

Pecan Pie Macarons

Allison — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 07:00:39 +0000

Pecan Pie Macarons

Every now and then, I come across a food that simply intrigues me. One that I’ve never had before, but that people often talk about and I think I would like to try it, even if people don’t always like said food. One such food was brussels sprouts (which I tried for the first time earlier this year and discovered I quite enjoy them.) Another was macarons. Not that you can blame me. After seeing them so often on Helene’s blog and on other food blogs around the internet, I just had to know what this new, fascinating dessert that I had never seen before tasted like.

So they’re not the prettiest macarons…

So, on a whim, I baked up a batch. Well, not quite on a whim. I didn’t actually get around to baking them until a week after I decided I wanted to… at first I had no almonds, then I had no time, and then… well. Here they are.

Now, you know how people always proclaim this chocolate chip cookie, or that chocolate cake, or whatever it is that they’re writing about is “better than sex”? I always thought that was silly. I mean, chocolate cake is great, but I’ve never had a slice that’s quite that amazing. But these macarons… oh man. The first bite… heaven. The second… euphoria. The third… well, we needn’t go there. Better than sex? Well, I wouldn’t say that. Erm, not that I would… uh… know anything about that. *blush* But… er… in the case that I did know anything about that sort of thing… I’d say these are pretty darn close. By far the best cookies (or cookie-type baked goods) that I’ve ever had.

…but with that oooey gooey caramel…

Here’s the recipe, which I slightly adapted from Tartelette’s Pecan Pie Macarons.

Mine didn’t turn out nearly as pretty as hers did. I have a feeling I might have piped the macarons too thickly on the parchment paper, so when baking they may have risen too much and then fallen over so they ended up lopsided. I also opted to leave out the pecan brittle. But they still tasted great, and I would make them again without hesitation.

…they’re the best cookies I’ve ever had.

Ingredients

3 egg whites (about 90 g)
40 g granulated sugar
200 g powdered sugar
55 g almonds
55 g pecans
240 g sugar
80 ml water
115 g salted butter
150 ml heavy whipping cream

Cooking Directions

The day before (24hrs), separate your eggs and store the whites at room temperature in a covered container. If you want to use 48hrs (or more) egg whites, you can store them in the fridge.
In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the egg whites to a foam. Gradually add the sugar until you obtain a glossy meringue. Do not overbeat your meringue or it will be too dry.
Combine the almonds, pecans and powdered sugar in a food processor and give them a good pulse until the nuts are finely ground.
Add them to the meringue, give it a quick fold to break some of the air and then fold the mass carefully until you obtain a batter that flows like magma or a thick ribbon. Give quick strokes at first to break the mass and slow down.The whole process should not take more than 50 strokes. Test a small amount on a plate: if the tops flattens on its own you are good to go. If there is a small beak, give the batter a couple of turns.
Fill a pastry bag fitted with a plain tip (Ateco #807 or #809) or a ziplock bag with one tip cut off with the batter and pipe small rounds (1.5 inches in diameter) onto parchment paper lined baking sheets.
Preheat the oven to 300°F.
Let the macarons sit out for 30 minutes to an hour to harden their shells a bit and bake for 15-20 minutes, depending on their size. Let cool.
If you have trouble removing the shells, pour a couple of drops of water under the parchment paper while the sheet is still a bit warm and the macarons will lift up more easily do to the moisture. Don’t let them sit there in it too long or they will become soggy. Once baked and if you are not using them right away, store them in an airtight container out of the fridge for a couple of days or in the freezer.
In a heavy saucepan set over low heat, combine the sugar and water and heat just until the sugar is dissolved.
Add the butter. Let it come to a boil and cook until it reaches a golden caramel color.
Remove from the heat and add the cream (it will splatter, but that’s okay). Whisk to combine and put back on the stove. Let it come to a boil again over low heat and cook 10-15 minutes until you reach a nice creamy consistency.
Refrigerate for a little while before spreading the caramel onto the shells, so it doesn’t ooze out when you press the shells together. (If it’s too hard when you take it out from the refrigerator, just let it sit at room temperature for a little while until it’s at the right consistency.)
Place about a tablespoon of sauce on one shell, then top with a similarly-shaped shell. Repeat with all remaining shells. Makes about 20.

Coconut Ice Cream with Saffron

Allison — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 09:27:03 +0000

Coconut Ice Cream with Saffron

It’s summertime. It’s hot. It’s time for ice cream.

Actually, who am I kidding? It’s always time for ice cream. But now, even more so. Not only because it’s hot, but also because… *drumroll*… I got an ice cream machine!

We got this one, to be exact. From Costco. For $35. (In case you may have had any doubts about the price, Son took a picture of the price tag with his iPhone, because they accidentally overcharged us. We have proof!) It’s a steal, if you ask me. And totally worth it. In the week since we got it, we’ve made 6 batches of ice cream. And… erm… only gotten pictures of two. Not that we’ve been eating them too fast to remember to take pictures… no… of course not. *looks around innocently*

But never fear! There’s no doubt that we’ll be making them again… for pictures, of course. Not because I’m pigging out on ice cream. No, definitely not because of that. It’s the… um… duty of a food blogger, to perfect her recipes then take pictures of them for her adoring readers. (Because you all do adore me… right? … *crickets* …) Yes, such is the life of a food blogger. (Woe is me. )

However! I am pleased to tell you that there was one ice cream recipe that I didn’t consume too quickly to take pictures of. Well, actually… the first batch was gone pretty darn quickly. I blame that on Son. But then he suggested I make a second double-batch for his parents, because they would love it! So I did. Then stole some. For pictures, of course.

The saffron gives it that beautiful yellow color.

Actually, to be perfectly honest, I didn’t have more than a bite of this ice cream. Really. I’m (*sigh*) very ashamed to admit that… I don’t like coconut. Or at least not much, anyways. Not at all, compared to Son and his family. (Did I mention they’re Vietnamese? I think that might have something to do with it. Maybe. Or not.) Not that it was a problem. Son loved it, his family loved it… and I didn’t have to feel too bad about not so much liking it. But if you like coconut… you’re going to love it as well.

As for the recipe, I adapted it from David Lebovitz who adapted it from the Delicious Days cookbook, I believe. Not that I have the cookbook, so I couldn’t tell you for sure. *gives Son a gentle nudge, reminding him that I would love that cookbook* But it’s good. If you like coconut.

And that gorgeous yellow color of the ice cream? That’s from the saffron. (Yes, I was highly amused watching the pretty yellow swirls trailing from the saffron while the ice cream cooked. Both times. What? I’m easily amused.) It also adds a subtle flavor… very nice. (Quite a rich ice cream indeed, if you get the double entendre. Okay, I’m a dork.)

(One last thing… no making fun of my terrible ice cream styling. I don’t have an ice cream scoop. I’m planning a grand ice cream scoop heist from my parents’ house… soon. But until then, I must relegate myself to scooping ice cream from the container with a spoon. Which unfortunately doesn’t make for such pretty ice cream pictures.)

Very rich, very decadent

Ingredients

2/3 c heavy cream
1 c coconut milk
1/4 c white sugar
scant 1/2 tsp saffron threads

Cooking Directions

In a medium-sized saucepan, bring all the ingredients to a boil.
Reduce the heat and simmer gently for ten minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat, and chill the mixture thoroughly.
Once chilled, freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s directions. Once churned, be sure to scrape any saffron threads clinging to the dasher back in to the ice cream.

Scallops, and some Molecular Gastronomy

Allison — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 08:09:22 +0000

Poached scallops, edamame, and various powders

When I make a dish, I want to like it. I really do. But it seems all too often these days, I end up making dishes that involve way too much effort for a final result that’s just… underwhelming.

Unfortunately, such was the case with this dish. Originally, the recipe called for skate wings, green beans, and different flavor powders. So I’m willing to accept that my dislike of the dish could be due to the changes I made to it. But given how often I talk about sustainable seafood over on Sushi Day, I couldn’t possibly use the incredibly unsustainable skate wings in my dish. So I opted for the more sustainable scallops.

The best part of this dish, in my opinion, was the edamame – cooked in the beurre monte, it was actually quite good. But the scallops were bland (which makes me sad because I normally love scallops) and the powders weren’t that great… sadly, not worth the effort.

If you’d like to see the original recipe, it (and a lot of information about molecular gastronomy) can be found here. (I would link to the blogger who hosted this month’s Daring Cooks challenge, but I believe his blog is down at the moment. Besides, Audax Artifex always has some of the most creative dishes based around the challenge.)

Green onion, wasabi, gari, and togarashi powders

Ingredients

8 scallops
300g shelled edamame
sea salt
4 sticks butter, cubed and cold
water
16 slices gari
8 stalks green onion
1 tbsp wasabi powder
1 tbsp togarashi

Cooking Directions

Wash and thoroughly dry the green onion.
Chop the green onion coarsely.
On a paper towel, microwave the green onion for on HIGH for 2 minutes. Set aside any fully dried green onion pieces. Microwave the remaining green onion 2 more minutes on HIGH or until fully dried, stopping at 1 minute intervals to set aside dried pieces (so they don’t burn).
Crumble the green onion finely between your fingers. (Or if you have a mortar and pestle, or a coffee grinder, you can use them to grind the green onion.)
Dry the gari between two paper towels.
Microwave on HIGH until fully dry, about 2-3 minutes.
Crumble into a powder, like you did with the green onion.
In a small saucepan, bring the water to a boil, remove from heat and whisk in the butter 1 cube at a time. This should from an emulsion – known as a beurre monte. Keep this heated, but under 195 degrees.
Bring 100g water, 100g beurre monte, and edamame to a boil over high heat. Cook until the water has evaporated (about 3 minutes). When the pan is almost dry, remove it from heat and season with salt.
Bring 300g water and 300g beurre monte to simmer over medium heat, add scallops and simmer for 2 minutes. Remove the pan from heat and flip the scallops over and let rest in pan for two more minutes. Transfer to warming tray lined with parchment and season with 5 grams of fine sea salt.
To plate, top a scoop of edamame with the scallops. Garnish the plate with the green onion, gari, wasabi, and togarashi powders.