French Pudding au Chocolat

CHOCOLATE FOR VALENTINE'S DAY

My Funny Valentine 

Sweet Comic Valentine 

You Make Me Smile With My Heart 

You're Looks Are Laughable, 

Unphotographable 

Yet You're My Favorite Work Of Art 

Is Your Figure Less Than Greek 

Is Your Mouth A Little Weak 

When You Open It To Speak 

Are You Smart 

Don't Change A Hair For 

Me Not If You Care For Me 

Stay Little Valentine Stay 

Each Day Is Valentine's Day 

- Chet Baker 

“One thing you should know about me,” he declared as I watched him dress, crumpled sheets pulled up to my chin, drunk on love, “you will never receive chocolates from me. I will shower you with gifts, buy you jewelry, fill your arms with flowers, but I will not buy you candy. Chocolate is a vice like cigarettes and alcohol and I will not feed any vice.” And as Valentine’s Day approached he stoutly proclaimed his disdain for this “American holiday, this commercial invention by some ad man or company created for the sake of making a few bucks. And I certainly don’t need someone else to designate one particular day, tell me when and how I should tell you that I love you! I can do that when and how I please!”


Yet that first Valentine’s Day together a single chocolate heart was placed atop my pillow with all the care of a newborn babe. One single chocolate heart filled with a thousand words, words that said “I love you” silently yet louder than if he had screamed them from the rooftops. With that one chocolate heart wrapped in shimmering silver foil he let me know that he understood that this simple gesture meant more to me than his contempt for the signs in shop windows and the ads on TV, the French adaptation of this very American faux holiday. He understood that expectation fluttered underneath my bold claim of agreement with him, my apparent disinterest for this special date, expectation fluttering like a schoolgirl heart as she places that shoebox decorated with pink crepe paper hearts and white doilies on the corner of her desk as she silently utters a prayer.

When I get older, losing my hair, many years from now 

Will you still be sending me a valentine, birthday greetings, bottle of wine? 

If I'd been out 'til quarter to three, would you let me drive 

Will you still need me, will you still feed me when I'm sixty-four? 

You'll be older too 

Ah, and if you say the word, I could stay with you 

- Paul McCartney 

So many Valentine’s Days have come and gone, 27 of them to be exact. 27 years filled with roses and tulips, carnations and peonies, stunning jewels and breathtaking adventure. And chocolates. One time I asked him, after a very long, arduous several months trying to slim down, if he could tell that I had lost weight, if I looked better in my snug skirts, and he looked at me with that look before saying, “You know, you always look the same to me… I see you through eyes of love and you are always perfect.”

Lately, he has been dancing around the apartment making fun of us growing old together. “Maybe I’ll start cultivating the “fat, old pépère look – you know, baggy clothes, crazy hair, slumped over in my armchair saying crazy things, walking Marty in my slippers and pajama pants?” And now I look at this man as he grows older, as his moods and tempers blow hot and cold, from stressed to panicked to gleeful, from utter joy to tempestuous moody and dark; I look at this man who can drive me absolutely nuts or rant and rave and make me feel like a disobedient girl, who can make me laugh so long and so hard that my sides hurt and tears course down my cheeks, who can woo me, whisper in my ear and make me feel so loved and I realize that 64 isn’t that far away anymore.

And my answer would be yes.

FRENCH PUDDING AU CHOCOLAT

Finely ground stale bread or dry wafer-type cookies – plain white bread, Challah, brioche, ladyfingers or digestive biscuits – are used to bind these puddings in place of flour and are a fabulous way to use up stale bread. Unlike the Anglo-saxon/American style of pudding in which chunks of bread soak up custard, the bread and cookies used for a French pudding are undetectable; these puddings are velvety smooth, creamy, incredibly rich and intensely chocolate without the bitter edge. The addition of a bit of cinnamon, ground ginger or espresso, Grand Marnier, Cointreau, rum, cognac, coffee liqueur, there are so many possibilities for these deep, lusciously chocolate puddings. This is a recipe based on one found in Maisons Côté Nos 100 Recettes Tout Chocolat December 2012

5.3 oz (150 g) stale bread and/or plain wafer cookies or digestive biscuits
7 oz (200 g) dark semisweet or bittersweet chocolat 70% cacao
2 2/3 cups (600 ml) milk – I used 2% lowfat
½ cup (100 g) sugar
3 large eggs
½ tsp ground cinnamon, optional or replaced by another flavoring
½ tsp vanilla

Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Lightly butter 10 muffin cups in a muffin tin or silicone mold or ramekins. These puddings will be baked in a bain-marie, so the muffin tin or the ramekins need to sit comfortably inside a larger baking pan that will hold water.

Finely chop the chocolate on a cutting board; place the cookies and/or stale bread in a robot mixer and grind to a fine powder.

Place the milk and sugar in a large saucepan and bring up to the boil over low heat; add the chocolate and stir until the chocolate is just melted then stir in the cookie/bread crumbs. Remove from the heat.

Allow the chocolate milk to cool to warm, stirring often. Lightly beat the eggs in a measuring cup or small bowl; once the chocolate mixture has cooled, whisk three or four tablespoons of it into the eggs in a slow stream just to warm the beaten eggs. Pour the eggs into the saucepan of warm chocolate mixture in a slow steady stream while whisking the mixture (we do not want the eggs to cook).

Divide the batter evenly among the cups of the muffin tin/silicone mold or the ramekins. Place these inside the larger baking pan and slide into the preheated oven. Carefully pour very hot tap water from a spouted measuring cup into the pan around the molds until the molds/tin/ramekins are immersed just halfway, being careful to not let any water get on/in the puddings.

Bake in the preheated oven in the water bath (bain-marie) for 25 – 30 minutes until the puddings are set.

Remove the baking pan very carefully from the oven so the water doesn’t slosh and wet the puddings or burn your hands. Very carefully (use oven mitts or a kitchen cloth) lift each pudding or the muffin tin out of the bain-marie water and place on a kitchen towel or cooling rack.

Serve the puddings warm with salted butter caramel sauce, berry coulis, whipped cream or a scoop of ice cream. These puddings are incredibly sexy when eaten warm, but are also quite fabulous at room temperature. Chilling will make them very dense and chewy but the flavor is still astonishingly good.

Read more »

Honey Baked Custard with Caramelized Apples

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Behave so the aroma of your actions may 

enhance the general sweetness of the atmosphere. 

- Henry David Thoreau

How many plates of apples and honey do I remember ! Flimsy paper plates, too fragile to hold the weight of all of those slices of apples. Sitting in the classrooms behind the synagogue on those chilly folding metal chairs, we would pass around that paper plate, balance it on one small hand while choosing one slick slice of apple, dip it in the golden gooey honey and proffer the plate to our neighbor. Concentrated on the paper plate as we were, ever-fearful that it would tip and flop over, visions of apples tumbling to the floor, the honey perched on the tip of our own slice would slither down our fingers, leaving a sweet sticky remembrance of this special New Year treat. Apple slices eaten, fingers licked, we would listen as our teacher explained the significance of the sweet apples and honey.

How many years of High Holiday services at the synagogue do I remember? Sitting between our parents in the Temple for the first part of the service then spending the rest of the morning in the tiny stretch of classrooms in the back for Children’s Services. The clunky old plastic accordion walls which separated the space into individual classrooms would be pushed back to create one long open room. A shortened religious service dotted with songs and stories, followed by games would be our welcome into the New Year. Folding tables would be set up, laden with a cold buffet, bagels and lox, tuna salad and cold drinks, cakes and cookies. We would each fill one of those thin paper plate and snuggle into a chilly metal chair and happily dig in. Then the apples and honey, slippery apple slices surrounding sticky puddles of fragrant honey amid shouts of L’Shanah Tova! Happy New Year!

Little brother....

It is tradition to welcome the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah, with round, sweet foods which represent the wish for a round, sweet year to follow. The customary holiday Challah, a long braided loaf, is twisted into a circle, a round loaf for Rosh Hashanah. Already slightly sweet, sometimes made even more festive by the addition of ground almonds or plump raisins, slices of Challah will be passed around, chunks torn off and then dipped, yes, that’s right, into honey. We eat new fruits as well, fruits of the approaching season that we haven’t yet tasted, such as the pomegranate, in order to thank God for bringing us to this new season. And fish, the symbol of fertility and abundance, all things wished for the coming year. And apples, of course. Apples and honey to be eaten together as we pray for a round year sweet from beginning to end and on and on, a never-ending circle.

Honey and apples are, of course, the most well known traditional foods eaten on the Jewish New Year and not only eaten as is. They are baked into cakes, honey cakes and apple cakes galore – everyone seems to have his or her own family recipe! Yet honey, apples and other sweet things like raisins, prunes, dates, plums or other seasonally sweet foods, also flavor the savory dishes served during the New Year Meal. I often serve the sweet and savory Lamb with Honey, Almonds and Prunes, a Rosh Hashanah traditional dish served at Sephardic celebrations. Chicken baked with cinnamon and apples or a honey-coated baked chicken with preserved lemons, both Joan Nathan recipes, are stunning, savory sweet additions to the holiday table. My mother’s Sweet and Sour Brisket will be our newest holiday addition.

I pull out my collection of old cookbooks: home recipes gathered and shared by this community organization or that synagogue Sisterhood, recipes I turn to again and again when the Jewish holidays come around. I place them next to my new battery of cookbooks, Jayne Cohen, Claudia Roden and Joan Nathan, among others, and flip through each looking for something new to make to mark this special celebration, the beginning of the holiest days in the Jewish year. “Why make yet another honey cake?” I ask myself. “Or an apple cake, for that matter?” I try and make something new each year, out of the ordinary. And this year, although the idea of Honey Cake crossed my mind, I decided to bring it in another direction.

A baked custard. I found a recipe for Baked Custard in my favorite old community cookbook Abigail Serves, The Choicest Recipes Presented by Sisters of Abigail No. 3 United Order of True Sisters. Albany, New York, 1956. My Great Aunt Mae was chairman. This group did community service and raised money for such varied things as equipping the kitchen of the local YW and YMCA, isotope treatments for the indigent at Albany hospital, playing checkers with or writing letters for local veterans or organizing birthday parties for them. They set up and equipped a room for Cerebral Palsy patients at the hospital and raised money for a Warppler Machine at Albany’s Memorial Hospital.

The cookbook is a treasure, filled with fabulous and homey recipes from meat borscht and gefilte fish to spring lamb stew and lemon sole casserole with cream sauce. From Heavenly Chocolate Cupcakes to Lemon Chiffon Pie. I dug around and came across a recipe for Baked Custard with several variations. I chose Baked Honey Custard and knew I would serve them with Honey-Caramelized Apples.

For a round, sweet Happy New Year.

BAKED HONEY CUSTARD

3 large eggs
½ cup (125 ml) runny (liquid) honey
¼ tsp salt
3 cups (700 ml) milk
½ tsp vanilla extract
Nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Prepare 6 – 8 ramekins or oven-safe custard cups; place them in a baking pan that will hold water.

Place the 3 cups milk into a saucepan and gently (over low to medium heat) bring it just up to the boil. Immediately remove from the heat.

Whisk the 3 eggs in a medium to large bowl. Add the honey and salt and whisk briskly until well blended. Pour the scalded milk into the egg and honey mixture in a slow stream while whisking constantly. Once all of the milk has been blended in, stir in the vanilla.

Evenly divide between the custard cups which are already sitting on the baking pan – I find it easier to pour the liquid into a large measuring cup with a spout, which allows you to pour cleanly into the cups without making a mess. Dust the top of each custard with just a tiny pinch of nutmeg and place the baking pan in the preheated oven. Very carefully pour very hot water (tap water is fine) in the baking pan, around the custard cups, careful not to get any water in the custards.

Bake the custards for 40 – 50 minutes (the original recipe called for closer to 35 minutes for individual custard cups while mine baked closer to 50 minutes. Just check often.) The custards are done when set in the center – test by very gently touching the top of the custard or gently jiggling the pan. The will continue to firm up a bit when chilling.

When set, remove the pan from the oven and place on a cooling rack. Allow to cool for about 10 minutes. Carefully lift each custard from the water bath and place on a cooling rack until cool enough to refrigerate. Cover each in plastic wrap and chill.

HONEY CARAMELIZED APPLES

I play the quantities by ear; just don’t leave the apples cooking unattended.

1 apple or more, depending upon whether you want to top the custards with more than a heaping tablespoon - I find one apple is good for about 4 custards
Butter or margarine
Water
Honey
Rum, optional
Cinnamon or nutmeg, optional
Whipped cream for serving, optional

Peel and core the apples and chop into small cubes. Heat a small amount of butter or margarine – about a teaspoon per apple – in a skillet and toss in the apple cubes. Cook, tossing often, until the apples are tender. Add small amount of water occasionally as the apple cooks; the water will steam off but will help “poach” the apples and keep them moist while not allowing them to brown.

Once the apples are fork tender, drizzle on honey, maybe ½ - 1 tablespoon per apple, depending upon the sweetness and the tanginess of the fruit. Continue to stir, adding more water as needed and desired. Add a tablespoon or 2 of rum to the fruit – if desired - as it is cooking, allowing the alcohol to burn away.

Once the apples are cooked as desired – taste and adjust the sweetness – scrape out of the skillet into a bowl to cool at least slightly before serving over the chilled Honey Custards. Top with a very light dusting of ground cinnamon or nutmeg and a bit of whipped cream.

Read more »

RASPBERRY COCONUT MACARONS FOR WORLD MACARON DAY!

WORLD MACARON DAY!


AND OLD FASHIONED BREAD PUDDING


I am anti-trend. Yes, I have worked in the arts. And fashion. Now food. How much trendier, how much under the influence can one get than art, fashion and food? Yet I recoil from trends, fads and crazes with a knee-jerk reaction, like being faced with the plague. Never one to easily fit in, I found that no matter how I tried to wear the latest styles or act like the others I looked little more than a misfit, a goon (yes), so why bother? While others were oohing and ahhing over the hot new artiste du jour, the David Salle or Julian Schnabel or whoever was being promoted as hot, I was too much of a naturally born skeptic to follow the crowd blindly, analyzing, over-analyzing and doubting the sincerity of this one or that. Too much is made over a film, a book or an exciting new gadget? I steer clear. I may purchase something – a cool pair of shoes, a lovely skirt, all the rage – but then I will safely tuck it away in the back of the closet only to pull it out 5 or 10 years later when the fad has passed and happily slip it on, pairing it with the most unlikely things. I may deign to discover a book or a film several years down the line, but first impressions and doubts tend to stick and I have been known to regret the money spent, close the book with disgust and give it away without having read further than the first chapter. Cell phone? Had to have one forced on me when I began working outside of the house. Iphone? Just got my first and my men still roll their eyes in dismay that I only use it…to phone.


And food. Once one is plugged into the world of food blogging, one has a front row seat to all the newest trends and crazes, watching the hottest, the coolest, the funkiest scroll by with a flick of the wrist: cupcakes, macarons and cake pops, bacon or pork belly, this new restaurant or cookbook. Mini this or fried that, edible dirt, molecular and foam, have absolutely no charm for me. If you must tack the word gourmet, heirloom, redefined or gastro- onto the name of whatever you are selling, then count me out. Farmer’s markets and eating more leafy, green vegetables, eating local and seasonal…wait a minute? Well, we’ve been doing this for years! I wouldn’t call these trends as much as I would call them smart!

Screeeeeech…. Wait a doggone minute there. Did you say….macarons? Ah, the trendiest of food trends, that lovely little French confection, that wisp of powdered sugar and almonds, that mouthful of delicate, feminine froth. Since these tiny, colorful treats have taken the world by storm, shops spreading like wildfire across the globe, one pastry chef creating even more eye-popping, astonishing flavor combination after the next, I have tasted exactly five store-bought macaron selections: Ladurée (much too gooey and sweet), Fortnum & Mason (a tad dry, a tad bland), Pierre Hermé (luscious! Some I could have passed over but his cassis-chocolat and caramel au beurre sale are exquisite) and Vincent Guerlais and Sucré (my favorites, beautiful flavors, perfect shell-filling balance and not overly sweet, simply suggestive, seductive), but I tend to prefer purchasing a box of handmade chocolates to macarons any day. Macarons for a treat, a snack, a dessert are simply not my thing. There is little attraction and, quite possibly, the fact that everyone seems to go wild over them, everyone dreams of nibbling on a chocolate-truffle macaron by PH or is willing to spend hours queuing on the sidewalk in front of Ladurée, so many have elevated this tiny sweet to dizzying heights, had me simply turned off from the get go. Just another trend, fad, craze. And I am so not interested.


“So then why do you make macarons?” you ask with a sneer or a laugh. “I mean, just take a gander at your blog, stroll through your own recipe index and there they are for all the world to see: Espresso Sea Salt Chocolate Macarons, Coffee Macarons, Gingerbread Macarons, Blueberry Hibiscus Macarons with Blueberry Vanilla Mascarpone Cream, Tulip Macarons with Honey-Pistacho Mascarpone Cream, Violet Macarons, Vegetable Macarons with Chili Chocolate Ganache, Beetroot Macarons with Smoked Salmon, even Cotton Candy Macarons. Guilty as charged! I’ve been caught red-handed falling in line and succumbing to this latest food trend. But I can honestly say that I was seduced by the baking challenge rather than beguiled by the treat. Never one to be tempted and turned on by any dessert not rich and hearty, creamy and gooey, I would have never imagined in my wildest dreams that I would have taken to the delicate, ethereal French macaron. Husband despises them and I did long avoid both eating and making them, but THIS challenge got me started, thanks to Deeba, the wonderful baker behind Passionate About Baking, and ever since we have baked macarons side by side, in failure and in success, gathering around us so many passionate, talented bakers in our own virtual Mactweets’ Kitchen. And today is World Macaron Day, so I will heartily and lustfully shout out a cheery Happy Macaron Day to you all and share my latest creation: Raspberry Coconut Macarons with Chocolate Ganache for Mac Attack Challenge #27.


These rather brown macarons are indeed Raspberry-Coconut – having mysteriously turned the color of mud in the oven after beginning their round life a stunning, deep fuchsia pink. I added 2 tablespoons of dried raspberry powder – sifting out the seeds – and a couple of tablespoons sifted dried coconut powder to the powdered sugar/ground almond blend of my traditional recipe (without the spice, cinnamon or cocoa of course). I filled the shells with a simple dark chocolate ganache, although if I did not have such a persnickety family I would have stirred some raspberry or cherry preserves into the chocolate. In spite of their sad murky color, the flavor was brilliant, a mild yet wonderful fruity flavor which paired beautifully with the chocolate. The macarons were perfect: a thin crispy outer shell giving way to a perfect, tender, mildly chewy inside. Wonderful.


But to end this anti-trend, non-fad, craze-free sentiment and blog post, I will add on a recipe that immediately became a family favorite: Pudding au Pain. We always prefer the old fashioned, the homey, the comforting over the latest and the hottest. And what is better or more delightful or, for that matter, more popular than a Bread Pudding? But this Bread Pudding is no regular Bread Pudding…. This is French Bread Pudding. The stale bread is soaked in hot milk and then the softened bread is mashed into a purée into which is blended the rest of the ingredients. Plump raisins are added for sweetness to an otherwise lightly sweetened pudding and baked under a lovely caramel. Of course, I based the recipe on JP’s favorite Françoise Bernard from Recettes Faciles, but giving it my all-American twist of finely grated orange zest, a dash of cinnamon and a splash of vanilla.


The result? Instead of chunks of bread rising to the top and getting crusty while others remain soft and rather than, as so often happens, the custard separating during the baking, the puréed bread blends into a batter-type mixture and creates a dense, chewy, pudding-like cake. This is a marvelous way to use up any type of stale bread or cake, any and all kinds blended together; this is a staple of most French boulangeries: leftover breads and cakes are used to create a very popular, old-fashioned dessert, either vanilla or chocolate and topped with either gooey caramel or a chocolate glaze or ganache. Next time you crave bread pudding, next time you have stale bread piling up around you calling for attention, make this fabulous French Bread Pudding. Gorgeous, addictive, a perfect balance between very delicately sweetened pudding and sweet, sweet raisins, mildly bitter caramel and the hint of orange and cinnamon….a truly stunning treat.


PUDDING AU PAIN –or- FRENCH BREAD PUDDING
Adapted from Recettes Faciles by Françoise Bernard

3.5 oz (100 g) raisins, dark or blond
7 oz (200 g) stale bread, cubed
2 cups (500 ml or ½ litre) milk, whole or low fat
¾ cup (150 g) sugar
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
Finely grated zest of one orange, preferably untreated
Dash of ground cinnamon, ¼ to ½ tsp
½ tsp vanilla

10 sugar cubes (2 oz, 60 g)
2 Tbs water
Couple drops lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Have ready a regular loaf pan.

Rinse the raisins and place in a small bowl; cover with hot water and allow to soak for 15 minutes to plump. Drain and set aside.

While the raisins are plumping, cube the stale bread (smaller is better, but about an inch square is fine) and place in a large mixing heatproof or Pyrex mixing bowl. Bring the milk to the boil in a small saucepan and immediately pour the hot milk over the bread cubes. Allow the bread to soak up all of the milk, tossing and pressing the cubes down into the hot milk regularly. This should take several minutes.

Once the bread has soaked up all of the hot milk and is softened, either run it though a food mill or purée it using an emulsion mixer or robot until fairly smooth. Return to the mixing bowl and whisk or stir in the sugar, the lightly beaten eggs, the plumped and drained raisins, the finely grated orange zest, the ground cinnamon and the vanilla. Stir to blend well.

Place the sugar cubes, the water and a few drops of lemon juice into the loaf pan. Place the loaf pan over medium-low heat and carefully cook. The sugar will melt and the mixture will bubble; allow to cook gently, shifting the pan around and back and forth gently, until it turns into a deep golden/light brown caramel. This can take from 5 to 10 minutes but watch very carefully for as soon as the sugar begins to turn into a caramel (turning brown) it goes very quickly and can burn easily.

Remove the loaf pan from the heat and carefully tilt the pan back and forth so the caramel evenly coats the bottom of the pan and goes a little way up the sides. Immediately pour the pudding batter into the loaf pan on top of the caramel and smooth. Bake for one hour until puffed and golden.

Remove the loaf pan from the oven and allow to cool just until the pan can be handled (the pudding should no longer be hot but should still be warm). Run a sharp knife around the edges to loosen the pudding then place a serving platter upside down on top of the loaf pan. Quickly invert the platter and the pan and lift the loaf pan off of the pudding.


The Bread Pudding is delicious eaten warm or at room temperature, plain, with yogurt, whipped cream or ice cream. We love it plain with a cup of coffee.

Read more »

3 FABULOUS TREATS FROM DESSERTS 4 TODAY

NUTELLA FUDGE BROWNIES

CREAMY ESPRESSO PUDDING

& COCONUT CRÈME CARAMEL

Baking is pure joy. Hands pressed down into soft bread dough, kneading, caressing, stroking, easing my stress and filling my soul with peace and goodness. Watching the dough rise, slowly, the time tiptoeing by, like a mother watching her baby sleep. Thick, creamy batter, measuring, blending, stirring, breathing deeply of the scent of chocolate, redolent of cinnamon and vanilla, earthy and exotic, easing one ingredient into the next. Egg whites whipped and whizzed, thickening like magic before my very eyes until I have a bowl of marshmallow and visions of my childhood dancing in front of my eyes. I take my time, I move through the kitchen, through the afternoon, fingering the pages of cookbook after cookbook until I stumble across just what I am looking for, just what I crave. I pencil my list on a scrap of paper and step out to purchase all that I don’t have, adding each item, each ingredient to what I have pulled from the cupboard. I measure flour and sugar, crack eggs, butter baking pans, taking my time, easing myself into the recipe, attentive to getting each and every step right, savoring the textures and smells and working my way slowly through the preparations. Baking is calming and at the same time exhilarating, it eases stress, slows me down and gives me time to think, letting my mind wander into other worlds, reliving memories or discovering new ideas. But it also excites and energizes me. When I am lagging behind or feeling the pull of boredom or anxiety is slowing me down and clogging my brain, I bake, I create and I come alive again, reinvigorated after a day in the kitchen.


Yes, I take my time when I bake and revel in every dusting of powdered sugar, watching it drift down like snow across a landscape. Or I carefully, slowly drizzle warm, aromatic ganache spooned precisely over the surface of a cake, or sandwich macaron shells together in perfect tandem, like a sweet matchmaker pairing one half with one alike. I plan ahead, or not, as the urge takes me, leaving my computer, my writing, my housework to fend for themselves, alone in this big apartment to while away the morning or afternoon as they see fit. And I concentrate on this activity of creating. And I am content in that I have some here who are happy to find something sweet in the kitchen to eat or to share, proud to carry a tray of this to the office or a tin of that to friends. This gives me as much, if not more pleasure than the bit of time I spend preparing it.

Yet as much as I love baking, sometimes I just don’t have the time. Or the courage. Sometimes it is pouring and I don’t want to look beyond my pantry for ingredients, unwilling to slip on rubber boots, coat and hat to run out and buy what I don’t have. Sometimes I just want it simple and straightforward, easy and with a minimum of fuss, a quick fix to palliate a sudden urge. Once in a while we’ll decide to have guests and there is just too much to organize for me to concoct something complicated and fancy. Or every now and then I have a houseful of young men who adore my pastries, cakes and confections and I just enjoy hearing the oohs and the ahhhs, watching eyes light up and happy faces heading to the kitchen.


And then I met Abby. Sweet as the day is long on a rambling summer day, I got to know her rather quickly, shooting tweets back and forth, happily joking and sharing kindness and information on Facebook. I quickly learned that she had something to do with certain scrumptious Nutella Fudge Brownies that seemed to be making a stunning appearance across the blogosphere… and that got me curious. Sometimes I feel so out of the loop living here on the Old Continent, finding out things, gathering information and news about books and people. Yet getting to know Abby – and who Abby is – was quick, easy and delightful. And then she offered to have her latest cookbook sent to me. Who would say no? And this wonderful little book is genius! And a lifesaver! desserts 4 today is that go-to book when you want something sweet and homemade but have neither the time nor the energy to put into something long and complicated. Each and every one of the 125 mouth-watering recipes has only four ingredients! Yep, four. How easy is that? I passed around this gem of a cookbook to my men and asked them to each choose one. Now, normally I get harrumphs and groans and the book shoved back at me. But for some reason… and I am guessing that it may have had something to do with the gorgeous photos in the book, but they each happily selected one treat that they wanted. And I chose the fourth. Ah, four recipes each with only four ingredients! Sadly, I made only three, JP lost out on his choice of Maple-Glazed Figs with Hazelnut Mascarpone, but don’t worry, that one is coming soon…


As I have a birthday coming up, my mind tends to think in terms of gifts. This lovely little book is the perfect gift for someone who loves to bake but doesn’t always have the time or is usually limited to pantry staples when baking. Or someone who wants to become a baker but may not have the experience yet and needs something simple, easy to follow, easy to understand. Or just anyone that loves baking. Or cookbooks. Or gifts.

I would love to thank Abby and the very kind people at The Taunton Press for allowing me to test, taste and share from Abby’s wonderful and now well-thumbed book desserts 4 today.

All three recipes are from desserts 4 today (Flavorful Desserts with just Four Ingredients) by Abigail Johnson Dodge. (another recipe from Abby will be posted on Life’s a Feast very soon, a recipe she developed for Bon Appetit Magazine.) At the end of each recipe, Abby gives several variations or Switch Ins as well as a suggestion on how to Gussy It Up.


I share with you these three excellent and easy recipes and promise you that this is one cookbook that won’t get forgotten on a bookshelf somewhere. I already have plans to make those figs for JP as well as Maple Cornmeal “Indian” Puddings, Meyer Lemon-Ricotta Panna Cotta, Crushed Raspberry-Mascarpone Whip, Basil Ice Cream… well, you see where this is going?


CREAMY ESPRESSO PUDDING FOR TWO
Instead of making 2 full servings, I chilled this luscious, coffee-lover’s treat in four tiny espresso cups. I so loved this – I got my coffee blast in such a sweet way. Did I really eat all four of them myself?

¼ cup firmly packed brown sugar (I used light brown)
1 Tbs cornstarch
1 ¾ tsps fine instant espresso powder
1 ¼ cups half-and-half, divided (I used light cream)


Have ready two 6-oz ramekins ready (or 4 espresso/demi-tasse cups) and space in the refrigerator.

Put the brown sugar, cornstarch and espresso powder in a small saucepan and whisk to blend. Add about ¼ cup of the cream or half-and-half and whisk until the coffee is almost dissolved. Whisk in the remaining half-and-half. Cook, whisking frequently, over medium heat until boiling. Boil, whisking constantly, for 1 minute.


Pour the pudding into the ramekins or cups. Cover with plastic wrap (touching the surface). Serve warm or refrigerate until ready to serve or for up to one day.


(Note: I found that these actually improved after one and even two days in the refrigerator.)

NUTELLA FUDGE BROWNIES
There is absolutely nothing to say…

½ cup Nutella spread
1 large egg
5 Tbs all-purpose flour
¼ cup chopped hazelnuts


Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a 12-cup mini muffin pan with paper or foil liners.

Put the Nutella and the egg in a medium bowl and whisk until smooth and well blended. Add the flour and whisk until blended. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tins about ¾ full and sprinkle with the chopped hazelnuts.


Bake until a pick comes out with wet, gooey crumbs, 11 to 12 minutes. Set on a rack to cool completely. Serve (eat) immediately or cover and store at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Mine sunk a tad, I don't know why, but they were still fabulous!

COCONUT CRÈME CARAMEL
Clem’s choice, double thumbs up from JP

1 can (13-14 oz) coconut milk
2/3 cup granulated sugar, divided
3 whole large eggs + 1 egg yolk
¼ tsp ground cardamom


Preheat the oven to 325°F (160°C). Have ready four 6-oz ramekins and place them in a shallow baking pan that will comfortably hold the ramekins. Make room in the refrigerator for the 4 ramekins.

Pour the coconut milk into a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat (don’t leave it alone because when it comes to a boil it froths up and over) and cook until reduced to 1 ½ cups (actually this only takes a couple of minutes).

Meanwhile, put 1/3 cup of the sugar with 1 tablespoon water into a small saucepan and cook over low heat until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is boiling. Increase the heat to medium and boil, without stirring, until the sugar is medium-amber, about 2-3 minutes. Gently swirl the pan to even out the color. Pour the hot caramel evenly into the four ramekins and quickly but carefully swirl each ramekin to cover the bottom with caramel. (The caramel will harden almost immediately when it touches the cool ramekins, so pour and swirl one at a time and rather quickly but don’t worry at all when the caramel solidifies because it will turn back into liquid caramel when baked with the cream.)

Put the remaining 1/3 cup sugar, the eggs, the yolk and the cardamom in a medium heatproof bowl and whisk to blend. Slowly add the hot coconut milk in a steady stream over the egg mixture while whisking constantly, until all the coconut milk is added and well blended. Pour (or ladle) the cream into the ramekins (it will come up to the top rim). Carefully pour hot water into the baking pan around the ramekins until the water comes halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake until the custards jiggle when nudged (about 40 minutes). Transfer the pan to a rack and carefully lift out the custards (I used a metal spatula) and place them on a rack or cutting board to cool completely. Cover and refrigerate until well chilled, at least 6 hours (unless the husband comes home from work and sees them in the refrigerator and takes one) or for up to 2 days. If they last that long.

To serve, run a small, thin, sharp knife between the custards and the ramekins then quickly invert onto serving plates. Gently shake to loosen.

Read more »

PORTUGUESE CREAM TARTLETS

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

You've got to accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
And latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between

You've got to spread joy up to the maximum
Bring gloom down to the minimum
Have faith or pandemonium's
Liable to walk upon the scene

-Johnny Mercer

30 days hath September, April, June and November… and jolly old December has 31 and here we find ourselves not only at the end of another month but standing at the end of another year, on the cusp of a new one, looking out over the sill into darkness slowly fading into light. We each of us tend to get just a little too sentimental, a tad too nostalgic when stirring up the Ghosts of the Year Past, and I promised myself stoutly that I would not. I would rather look back at 2010, revisit my accomplishments and mishaps, marvel at the opportunities grabbed at with success and ponder over those opportunities boggled, and generally discuss my foibles with a sense of humor and a good laugh rather than shedding a wistful tear. Truth be told, 2010 was rather an amazing year for me both personally and as a blogger and writer, so as I look back over the past twelve months I smile and clap my hands as I revel in the positive, focusing on the good while attempting to shrug my shoulders and laugh off the mistakes or the chances I let slip by. As the old song goes “accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative….”


The snow still alludes me and the days are gray and cold, something eerie hangs over the world hidden by the mist and shrouded under steely skies, but the briskness in the air as we step outside revivifies me, the iciness that fills my lungs and nips at my cheeks startles me awake after the drowsy warmness inside has lulled me into a dreamy stupor, and suddenly I feel alive again as, arm entwined in arm, we walk down the street and wander through the abandoned town, abandoned to ski chalets and blazing fires or simply the chance to huddle together inside amongst their loved ones as the vacation days and the old year wind down, happier to be quietly at peace after the rambunctious, noisy holidays. JP shivers and laughs at how cold it has become as I tug harder on his arm and drag him along, thrilled to be out, satisfied to be happily alone with him surrounded by the silence of the empty streets. We still, after all these years, so enjoy each other’s company and have the power to make each other laugh out loud, on and on, over and over again, wondering if our silliness is normal for such a pair of staid, respectable, old people such as we. Together we step over the threshold and into the new year, boldly pushing our way in on winged feet, hoping, nay insisting upon taking the bull by the horns and making 2011 our year, a year of success and dreams, adventure and excitement! Like the baker lining up plain old white flour, grainy sugar, mud-colored vanilla and dark bitter chocolate, measuring precisely, stirring and blending gently yet with firmness and vigor and creating a masterpiece, a confection sweet, luscious and beautiful, have we decided to take all that we have experienced and learned along the way, the contacts that have stepped into our paths, the skills we have honed, the confidence built up throughout the year and combine them all, tenderly, carefully folding them together, stirring, shaping, simmering, spicing them with the friendships made, the love and encouragement, flavoring it with the advice gratefully accepted and the sweet opportunities offered and create something exciting, a delicious concoction, a delightful 2011. Like the icy cold weather, it invigorates me, excites every brain cell, every inch of my body and stirs me into action, pushing me along a wind-blown, sometimes blustery and obscure, sometimes bright and clear path into the future.


Never one to toot my own horn, I prefer not to list my brilliant accomplishments or ogle in wonderment at all that has come my way in 2011 as bloggers, and I, are wont to do at the end of a year. Anyone who reads my blog or follows me on Twitter or Facebook knows all that I have done in the year past, my achievements and my projects, all of which I am extremely proud, and can peruse my Published Articles page as they wish, a bit at a time. But I would like to take this opportunity to thank a few of the wonderful people that have done so much for me, have supported and encouraged me, given me opportunities, presented me with exciting challenges, worked on projects with me, believed in me and inspired me to work ever harder, bolstered my confidence, advised, corrected, shared and always kept me laughing. And with whom I enter this New Year full of hope and pleasure, full of endeavors, projects and plans for grand adventures. And because of whom I am truly a better person:

Deeba, my twin sistah and inspiration in all things baking, together with whom I have kept the MacTweet fires burning, offering a warm space and an inviting, laughter-filled virtual kitchen for everyone who wishes to bake French Macarons together. Meeta, Jeanne, Ilva, three amazingly talented, smart and rip-roaringly funny women, and the extraordinarily tight-knit group we have formed in order to create From Plate to Page (along with other interesting projects), the workshop borne of a common vision, our passion for what we do and the desire to share both with other food bloggers. All three are my inspiration, my support system, my creative and personal sounding board, and truly family. The great folks at Huffington Post Food, Arianna, Colin and the team, who have offered me an incredible opportunity and an exciting challenge, who support me and give me the freedom to express myself on that amazing platform. Lael for introducing my blog to Saveur.com and since becoming a great friend and forming our own “buddy system” on this great adventure we call writing. There were also a few others who, by mentioning me in interviews as a favorite blogger, by featuring my blog on their website or by simply adding me to their impressive blogroll, have really boosted my confidence and motivated me to keep writing, keep working, keep reaching for the stars. My sincere and boundless gratitude to each and every one of you.

On a more personal note, JP and I had a fabulous, romantic, gastronomic week together this Spring in the mountains outside of Clermont Ferrand, Lyon and Annecy. We also spent a month in Florida, joined at my mom’s by Clem & Simon, both of whom have become fine young men. My Spice Sisters and I succeeded in meeting up in London this past year not once but twice, the second time a fabulous all-girl weekend which also involved meeting up with a roomful of friends and bloggers! Together we created an evening Skype Cinema event, the first of many evenings spent with great friends, drinking wine, eating pizza and watching a film even though we are spread out over several countries and time zones! And I have truly made some amazing friends this year, some with whom I am in contact every single day and their tweets, private messages and e-mails make me smile, laugh, forge ahead into the unknown and often scary world, their confidence in me making me shine! Ah, the magic of the internet!


JP took off a few days this week, a time to resource and a time to spend together, tête à tête, in the coziness of our own home. He cooked and I baked, each to our hearts’ content, we ate out as we pleased, we watched crazy, silly movies just to end the year with a good, hearty laugh, and we discussed the year past and the year to come. We toasted each other and the dreams we have for 2011 and feel that maybe we are actually on our way. As this post sees in the new year, a new decade, I wanted to wish my dear readers a truly magnificent 2011 filled with happiness and good health and I would like to begin this new year with something truly sweet and very special: Portuguese Cream Tartlets, my way. Tiny cinnamony puff pastry cups cradling a rich, silky, elegant cream caressed with a touch of vanilla and a hint of nutmeg and dusted with pale silvers of almonds. Although a tad underbaked, these tartlets were the perfect, creamy, voluptuous, sumptuous, delicious dessert.


New Year is always a time of partying and celebration with friends and family. But on a personal and professional level it is also a time of reflection and evaluation; of planning and regrouping; of refreshment and renewed inspiration. And it is in this reflective spirit that we have decided to ask each one of the four From Plate to Page workshop presenters to look back at 2010 to tell us what they feel they have achieved; as well as forward at 2011 to share with us some of their goals for the coming year. The series kicks off with Ilva, the talented photographer behind Lucullian Delights and Ilva Beretta Photography.


PORTUGUESE CREAM TARTLETS
Although a combination of several recipes, the cream filling was based on one found in the December 2010 issue of delicious, so I would like to share this with Ivonne of Creams Puffs in Venice for Magazine Mondays.

2 x 13 oz (375 g) packages of frozen puff pastry or the equivalent quantity of homemade (I believe I had closer to 22 oz (650 g) homemade, the recipe can be found here.)
2 – 4 Tbs cinnamon sugar (1/2 - 1 tsp ground cinnamon for every 2 Tbs sugar)

3 large egg yolks*
¼ cup + 2 Tbs (75 g) sugar
2 Tbs cornstarch or corn flour
1 cup (250 ml) milk (I used 2% low fat)
¾ cup (200 ml) heavy cream
2 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1 – 2 Tbs slivered blanched almonds
Powdered/confectioner’s sugar for dusting

* Reserve the whites in a clean jar for Macarons!

Butter a 12-cup muffin tin.

If using frozen or packaged puff pastry:
Thaw the puff pastry if frozen. Halve each sheet in half lengthways and then place one half of each sheet on top of the other so you have two stacks. Press and roll together and, if need be, roll each double sheet to the size of a sheet of notebook A4 paper.

If using homemade puff pastry:
Slice the dough in half, placing one half on top of the other and roll the dough out to the size of two pieces of notebook A4 paper placed side by side. Slice the rectangle in half so you have two pieces, each the size of one piece of notebook A4 paper.

Dust each sheet of thinly rolled out dough with cinnamon sugar, as generously as you like and place with the long side facing you (the wider sides are going from left to right, perpendicular to your body). Roll each sheet up tightly to form a two logs and neatly slice off each messy end. Slice each log into 6 even pieces, about 1 ¼-inch (3 cm) each. Pile the leftover pieces on top of each other, press together into a stack, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for another use.


One at a time, place the pastry pieces cut side up in between two squares of parchment paper having first lightly dusted the paper as well as the top of the pastry piece (so each side is dusted). With the palm of your hand, gently press the piece almost flat before placing the second piece of parchment on top. Roll out the pastry into thin 4-inch (10 cm) rounds then carefully press into each cup in the muffin tin. The edges do not have to be even; these look better as a more rustic dessert. When all the pastry pieces are rolled out and fitted into the muffin tin, place a piece of plastic wrap over the whole tin and refrigerate for 30 minutes while you prepare the filling (the 30 minutes allows the dough to rest and is a necessary part of the puff pastry process).

A lovely swirl of cinnamon sugar!

Prepare the cream filling:
Gently whisk the egg yolks with the sugar, cornstarch and the milk in a medium-sized saucepan until blended and smooth. Cook gently over very low heat, whisking constantly, for 5 minutes until thick like custard. Remove from the heat, quickly stir in the cream, the vanilla and the nutmeg. Transfer the cream to a bowl or glass/Pyrex measuring cup, cover with plastic, pushing the plastic down to touch the surface, and allow to come to room temperature as you wait for the puff pastry’s 30 minutes rest period to be up.

Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).

Remove the muffin tin from the refrigerator, remove the plastic wrap (of course!) and evenly divide the cream filling between the pastry shells. The filling should almost come up to the top of the shells. Sprinkle the slivered almonds around the outside edges of the cream filling, making sure they stick to the filling.


Bake in the preheated oven for 20 – 25 minutes until the pastry shell is golden (my husband would have preferred that I had left mine in until the shells were a deep golden color) and the cream filling is set but slightly wobbly (again, my husband asked me the next time to allow the surface to form more of a skin and color a bit, but that is personal preference). Remove from the oven and allow the tartlets to cool in the muffin tin for 5 – 10 minutes before removing them carefully from the tin to a wire rack to cool completely.


The Portuguese Cream Tartlets can be eaten at room temperature or chilled. Dusted with powdered sugar, of course.

Read more »