Daring Bakers Challenge - Flourless Chocolate Cake with Deeply Chocolate Gelato

Flourless Chocolate Cake with Deeply Chocolate Gelato
Originally uploaded by watchjennybake.

The February 2009 challenge is hosted by Wendy of WMPE's blog and Dharm of Dad ~ Baker & Chef. We have chosen a Chocolate Valentino cake by Chef Wan; a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Dharm and a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Wendy as the challenge.

I have made flourless chocolate cake before, and was excited that making ice cream would be part of this challenge. I am still not a master of ice cream. I don't know exactly what consistency I'm looking for when I transfer the mixture from the ice cream maker to the freezer for the solid-freeze. I feel like the mouth feel just isn't right. It almost ends up like a gummy texture, rather than smooth. I would welcome any pointers or reassurances!


I decided to make this for Valentines Day, and I wanted to make a decadent ice cream. I had watched Ina Garten make this deeply chocolate gelato and knew I had to try it. And wow, this is the richest, darkest, chocolate ice cream or gelato that I have ever had. It made the flourless chocolate cake seem mild, and it was actually incredibly rich itself. Both my husband and I went through multiple glasses of milk just to eat one slice of cake with a scoop or two of ice cream.


For the cake itself, the main part of the challenge, I used 4 oz of milk chocolate, 4 oz of bittersweet, and 8 oz of semisweet. It was still pretty dark. Since you don't add sugar to the recipe, the sweetness depends entirely on the taste of the chocolate. I think next time I would use half milk chocolate and half semisweet, perhaps.

Chocolate Valentino
Preparation Time: 20 minutes
16 ounces (1 pound) (454 grams) of semisweet chocolate, roughly chopped
½ cup (1 stick) plus 2 tablespoons (146 grams total) of unsalted butter
5 large eggs separated

1. Put chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl and set over a pan of simmering water (the bottom of the bowl should not touch the water) and melt, stirring often.
2. While your chocolate butter mixture is cooling. Butter your pan and line with a parchment circle then butter the parchment.
3. Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites and put into two medium/large bowls.
4. Whip the egg whites in a medium/large grease free bowl until stiff peaks are formed (do not over-whip or the cake will be dry).
5. With the same beater beat the egg yolks together.
6. Add the egg yolks to the cooled chocolate.
7. Fold in 1/3 of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture and follow with remaining 2/3rds. Fold until no white remains without deflating the batter. {link of folding demonstration}
8. Pour batter into prepared pan, the batter should fill the pan 3/4 of the way full, and bake at 375F/190C
9. Bake for 25 minutes until an instant read thermometer reads 140F/60C.
Note – If you do not have an instant read thermometer, the top of the cake will look similar to a brownie and a cake tester will appear wet.
10. Cool cake on a rack for 10 minutes then unmold.

I was in a weird mood when I made this recipe, and decided to beat the egg whites by hand. Sometimes it is just fun to work hard for the end result.

On an unrelated note, is anyone on Twitter? I joined this week but am only using it as a place to stick random quotations from books I'm reading, or sometimes movies and songs. Still, if you ever wanted a trip inside the head behind jennybakes.com, there you go.

Categories: Cake, Chocolate, Daring Bakers, Gelato, Ice Cream

Happy Pączki Day!

Inside of a pączki
Originally uploaded by watchjennybake.

I just happened to be in Chicago the week before Lent, which to me meant that this year's culinary adventure during my conference had to be the pączki. There is actually a great Wikipedia entry on the pączki, including Chicago-specific information.

I am somewhat confused at when Pączki Day fell. Traditionally in Poland it is Fat Thursday, but since Americans have a lot of Fat Tuesday celebrations, in some cities here that becomes Pączki Day. It still seems like Chicago celebrated it yesterday, but Wikipedia does say that "Chicago celebrates both Fat Thursday and Fat Tuesday, due to its sizable Polish population." It made me laugh too. If you had pączki too often, sizable would definitely be the word.


Yesterday morning I set off for my culinary adventure by getting directions from Google Maps, because they have a walking and public transit version. As a result I walked 12 blocks including over the river in 18 degree weather instead of just getting on the train and transferring which is what I did on the way back. Well, once I got unlost. I ended up going across the river to the west instead of the north, which probably only makes sense if you know Chicago and are as directionally challenged as me, but I found my way back to the conference (an hour later than I'd planned!).


There are many places in Chicago to have a pączki, but I wanted to go to the Polish neighborhood to get something authentic! I'd had a jelly doughnut grocery store version some years back in Indiana, and while that was good enough to make me crave them when I moved to the south, I wondered if I wasn't getting the full experience.

Inside the Pasieka Bakery, all the customers ahead of me spoke Polish. The women at the counter spoke Polish, and they asked me what I wanted in Polish. I think we can determine that is fairly authentic! They had a bunch of different kinds - rose, prune, blueberry, raspberry, custard, and apricot.

So what is the verdict? Are these "magical mystery doughnuts" worth a trek across town in the bleakest of winter? Of course for me, the adventure is sometimes the best part. But I would say they aren't just doughnuts. The bread is denser than usual doughnut fare, and the fillings are interesting. I was just happy to be back in the midwest when pączki were in season.

Categories: Bakery, Bread, Paczki

Praline Banana Bread

Praline Banana Bread
Originally uploaded by watchjennybake.

This recipe comes from combining several, crazy thoughts in my head, and things I needed to use (bananas and homemade praline). The praline made the bread sweet and a little crunchy, with more depth of flavor than banana bread alone.

Praline Banana Bread
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup mashed banana (roughly 3 ripe ones)
1/4 cup sour cream
1 tsp vanilla
1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup homemade praline*

Preheat oven to 350. Prepare a loaf pan.

Cream butter and sugar until well blended. Add eggs, banana, sour cream, and vanilla. Mix in flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, on low speed. Mix in praline.

Scrape batter into pan. Bake until bread springs back, about 55 minutes. Cool in pan 20 minutes, then remove from pan.

*If you don't want to make praline, try substituting toffee chips. Or just use regular old nuts for regular old banana bread.

Categories: Bananas, Bread, Praline

Crunchy Cookies

Valentines Treats
Originally uploaded by watchjennybake.

I don't like crunchy cookies.

Both of the things I made for my student workers were crunchy. I thought maybe it was the recipe - too much flour? Or the weather - too dry? But I was told that some cookies are just crunchy.

Well, okay. But I don't have to like it.

These are both from A Passion for Baking by Marcy Goldman, a cookbook I find myself returning to again and again. The heart-shaped sandwich cookie is a Chocolate Ambivalence Cookie, meant to be sensitive to those who were more excited about Friday the 13th than Valentines Day. The other cookie is actually the recipe facing the first - Candy Bar Shortbread. Not too difficult, just make shortbread and sprinkle chopped up candy bars on top while it is still hot - I used Toblerone like suggested.

Categories: Chocolate, Cookies

Hazelnut Biscotti (Happy Birthday Mom!)

Hazelnut Biscotti
Originally uploaded by watchjennybake.

Today is my Mom's birthday. She lives far away from me, a forty-one hour drive to be exact, so I have to figure out ways to celebrate from afar. This year I sent her some coffee that is roasted locally that smelled exactly like an old favorite she used to drink, and decided I needed to bake something to send along with it.

Biscotti tend to be good travel cookies because they start out life crunchy, and will remain crunchy for a while. I still had hazelnuts left over from holiday baking, and came across the recipe for hazelnut biscotti in Baking with Julia, one of the cookbooks that gets the most use in my house. This is where the amazing hazelnut-skinning method that I mentioned in my last Yule Log post comes from.

It is more common for a mother to tell about the day of a child's birth, but the story of the day my Mom was born is a family legend, so I will retell it here. My Mom was born on a very cold day in February, and it was snowing. (She hates the snow). Her parents had just had the floors varnished, so her mother had to climb out the window to get to the hospital. I might have the details wrong, but it always makes me smile.

Hazelnut Biscotti
Makes about 4 dozen biscotti

2 cups water
3 tbsp baking soda
2/3 cup unblanched hazelnuts

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 large eggs
2 tsp hazelnut liqueur, such as Frangelico*
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup sugar

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 F.

To skin the hazelnuts, bring the water to a boil in a medium saucepan, add the baking soda and the nuts, and boil for 3-5 minutes, until the water turns black. To test if the skins have loosened sufficiently, drop a nut into a bowl of cold water and rub lightly against the skin - if the skin just slides off, the nuts are ready to go. Turn the nuts into a colander and run cold water over them. Slip off the skins, toss the nuts onto a towel, pat dry, and transfer to a jelly-roll pan.

Place the pan in the oven and toast the nuts, stirring occasionally, for about 15 minutes, or until evenly browned. The best way to test for total toastiness is to bite into a nut - it should be brown to the center. Remove the nuts from the oven and cool. Lower the oven temperature to 300 F.

When the nuts are cool enough to handle, coarsely chop them and set them aside.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and reserve until needed.

Put the flour, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl and whisk just to blend.

In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, liqueur, vanilla, and sugar. Add the dry ingredients to the liquid and stir with a wooden spoon to mix. Add the nuts and continue to mix, just until well incorporated. (Since this dough is stiff, sticky, and hard to stir, you might find it easier just to reach in and mix it with your hands).

Flour your hands and lift half of the dough onto one side of the parchment-lined baking sheet. Pat and squeeze the dough into a chubby log 12-13 inches long. Don't worry about being neat or smoothing the dough - it will even out as much as it needs to in the oven. Repeat with the other half of the dough, leaving about 3 inches between the logs.

Bake the logs for exactly 35 minutes. Transfer the pan to a cooling rack and let cool for at least 10 minutes.

Using a serrated knife, cut the logs into 1/2-inch thick slices, cutting straight across or diagonally. (You can make the biscotti thinner or thicker, as you wish, and adjust the baking time accordingly.) Lay the biscotti on their sides on a cooling rack - you may need to use a second rack - then place the cooling rack in the 300 F oven, directly on an oven rack. (Baking the biscotti like this allows the oven's heat to circulate around the cookies, so there's no need to turn them over.)** The cookies may need to bake for as long as 15 minutes, but it's a good idea to start checking them after about 10 minutes. When the biscotti are golden brown, dry, and crisp, remove the cooling rack(s) from the oven. Let the cookies cool to room temperature before packing them for storage.

The cookies will keep in an airtight container for about a month.

*I just substituted with vanilla extract
**I baked them on a cookie sheet, and turned them over at 10 minutes.

Categories: Biscotti, Cookies, Hazelnuts

Daring Bakers January 2009 - Tuiles

Palmetto Tuiles
Originally uploaded by watchjennybake.

This month's challenge is brought to us by Karen of Bake My Day and Zorra of 1x umruehren bitte aka Kochtopf. They have chosen Tuiles from The Chocolate Book by Angélique Schmeink and Nougatine and Chocolate Tuiles from Michel Roux. The savory option (tuiles/cornets) was from Thomas Keller's French Laundry Cookbook.

This was something I hadn't done before, and I have never had tuiles, just seen them in cookbooks. I decided to try two of the recipes and play around with shaping them.

If you want the recipes, please go to the blogs of the hostesses, listed above. Including them would make this entry far too long! There were two recipes I didn't try that I'm interested in doing in the future - nougatine and chocolate tuiles. I've seen some amazing versions of those already today!


The first thing you have to figure out is the shape. I didn't want to make my own stencils, and found a huge pack of good ones in the scrapbooking section. I used a circle to make into cornets, and a palmetto for the sweet recipe.


I made the Thomas Keller recipe one night, and I was in a hurry because I wanted to bring them to book club. To speed things along, I softened the butter in the microwave and it went a little too far. As a result my cornets were never crunchy, just a little soft and greasy. Not what I would have hoped at all, but at the same time, I wasn't really sure what I was going for. They still look cute, and the mousse recipe was simple but tasty.


The sweet tuiles recipe from The Chocolate Book worked a lot better for two reasons - I let the butter soften on its own, and the step where I had to chill the dough for 30 minutes made for a much more even baking consistency. These were not greasy at all, but rather crisp and sweet. You can't really tell from the photos, but I did lay the palmettos over a rolling pin so they had some dimension to them. I served them with peach sorbet.

What do I think of tuiles, now that I've made two versions? I'd like to go back and make the savory version the right way. The recipe itself was simple but baking them takes a lot of time for the end result. I think I might make them again for a special occasion, because I like how you can make them into anything.

Categories: Cheese, Cookies, Daring Bakers

Lemon Ricotta Pancakes

Lemon-Ricotta Pancakes
Originally uploaded by watchjennybake.

Sometimes I'll eat something at a restaurant and all I can think is "I could make it better." I know, I'm sure that makes me a joy to be around, but I try to keep it to myself.

We ordered lemon ricotta pancakes at the hotel we stayed at in Miami, much to the chagrin of the waiter who was trying everything in his power to get us to just order the breakfast buffet. He was rude, the pancakes took forever, and we had paid $16 for a big plate and three thin little wimpy pancakes with a tablespoonful of something vaguely fruity. We pushed the bad experience behind us, but I have had this nagging suspicion that they had just not done the concept of lemon ricotta pancakes justice!

I have had ricotta in my fridge for a few days, so this weekend I decided to make those pancakes that I knew could be better that what we had. I turned to one of my favorite food blogs, Smitten Kitchen, where she had made the same recipe that everyone across the internet seems to have made - the Lemon Ricotta Pancakes with Sauteed Apples from the September 1991 issue of Gourmet Magazine.

I didn't bother with the sauteed apples; we had leftover fruit syrup to use. These were light and fluffy and flavorful, no wimpy here. Not too sweet, but the lemon and ricotta allowed for a nice depth of flavor not found in pancakes-in-a-box.

Categories: Breakfast, Lemon, Pancakes, Ricotta

Happy Birthday Elliott Carter

Yellow Layer Cake
Originally uploaded by watchjennybake.

While I love to bake, in my day job I am a music librarian. I just put up a display featuring Elliott Carter, a composer who recently turned 100 years old and is still writing music! If you want to know more about him, there is a great summary of his life and work in the New York Times article about his birthday. I feel like his life is an example to all aspiring artists - although he mastered many things at a younger age, the first time he published an opera was at age 90!

At the music library, I decided that even without his presence, we could at least celebrate his birthday with cake. (Or I'd been wanting to try something from The Modern Baker, the newest cookbook by Nick Malgieri, one of my favorite bakers and baking teachers.)

I chose simple yellow cake layers. I paired them with a quick powdered sugar/butter/cocoa powder frosting, although Malgieri's Italian buttercream would have been much more decadent. The cake was lovely - dense, flavorful, and would have been lighter had I not overcooked it slightly. Guitar Hero and baking do not mix!

Making a cake from scratch is just about as simple as throwing the ingredients together necessary to use a mix, especially Malgieri's way. He experimented with separating the eggs and adding the whipped whites separately and found it made little difference, and adjusts the mixing time of other steps to aerate the dough. Any time a recipe makes something take one fewer bowl, I am not going to complain. You can tell it is not from a box the minute you slice into it and take a bite.

I'm going to put the recipe into this blog, but I think any of Malgieri's cookbooks are worth buying, so please do. They are always very well explained, and flawless. I have learned a lot over the years by watching him on Baking with Julia and Sara's Secrets.

Yellow Cake Layers

Makes two 9-inch (23-cm) round layers

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour (spoon flour into a dry-measure cup and level off)
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
3 large eggs
1/3 cup milk or buttermilk*

1. Set a rack in the middle level of the oven and preheat to 350 F (180 C).
2. Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir well to mix.
3. Combine the butter, sugar, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat with the paddle on medium speed until lightened in color and texture, 3-4 minutes.
4. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
5. Decrease the mixer speed to the lowest and add half of the flour mixture. Stop and scrape down the bowl and beater.
6. Beat in the milk and after it is absorbed, beat in the remaining flour mixture.
7. Stop and scrape the bowl and beater. Increase the speed to medium and beat the batter continuously for 3 minutes.
8. Divide the batter equally between the 2 prepared pans and smooth the tops. Bake the layers until they are well risen and deep golden, and feel firm when pressed in the center with a fingertip, 25-30 minutes.
9. Cool in the pans on racks for 5 minutes, then unmold, turn right side up again, and cool completely on racks.

Tips for serving and storing are in the cookbook. Buy it!

*I try to always use buttermilk when I can.

Categories: Cake, Chocolate

Review - Tea at the Biltmore Inn

Living an hour from Asheville means we live an hour from the Biltmore, "America's largest home!" My husband and I have been several times to see the house and grounds, and discovered that you can have afternoon tea at the inn. They serve you in the library, which overlooks the grounds, including a view of the Biltmore House. Our favorite time of year to go is autumn because the leaves are spectacular, but the holiday season is another great time to go. The tours of the house include live music, and the entire property is decorated for the holidays. The trees inside the house are all themed and memorable, although this year we didn't brave the crowds to see them.

From December Holidays 2008

During the holidays, we had family here, and we all trekked up to the Biltmore Inn for tea. Something to know is that the best seats are given to couples, since the smallest tables are by the windows in the library, but larger groups will still have excellent service and a great atmosphere. Because of the holidays, there was a pianist entertaining us most of the time, which was nice.

From December Holidays 2008

Once you decide if you want tea with your tea, or if you want something a little stronger (there are options for Kir Royale or champagne), you can choose a tea from the box with little samples on each table. They offer teas from Mighty Leaf which is one of my favorite companies, and I tend to go with one of the more strongly flavored black teas, but they have a nice variety of herbal, black, and green. (That's my husband Nathaniel, pondering his tea selection. I'm sure he'll be thrilled I included that picture).

From December Holidays 2008

The afternoon tea comes with savory and sweet treats. Did I already recommend skipping both lunch and dinner the day you come for tea? It is a lot of food. The selections have been different every time I have gone, but this particular day the savory plate (vegetarian options only) included cucumber sandwich, butternut squash crostini, artichoke hummus, quince paste with brie, mushroom on baguette, and cranberry chutney. Everything was excellent and the flavors and textures were a nice contrast.

From December Holidays 2008

The sweet options included muffins, scones, chocolates, cookies, and mini tarts. Also on the table were clotted cream, strawberry jam, and lemon curd to spread on various things. This particular day the scones were raisin and the muffins were something like banana. The chocolates were delicious, but the tarts and cookies were somewhat mediocre.

One thing I want to make sure you understand - to get to tea at the Biltmore Inn, you need to either be staying as a guest at the inn or have a ticket to get in to see the house that day. I would recommend making plans for tea in the midst of spending the day there. We are season passholders this year, and hope to be able to get up there more often than we did before. If it seems too steep "just" for tea, Biltmore Village (a tiny town right outside the property) also has Chelsea's Tea Room which is excellent.

Daring Bakers Challenge December 2008 - French Yule Log

French Yule Log, slice view
Originally uploaded by watchjennybake.

This month's challenge is brought to us by the adventurous Hilda from Saffron and Blueberry and Marion from Il en Faut Peu Pour Etre Heureux.
They have chosen a French Yule Log by Flore from Florilege Gourmand.

Last December's Daring Baker's Challenge was to make a Buche de Noel, which seemed complicated at the time but was nowhere near the steps required for this French Yule Log. All the steps were fairly easy, just time consuming. And it took a lot of planning ahead of time to make sure everything required for each part was ready to go.


Take the Praline Feuillete (Crisp) Insert layer. It only had four ingredients, but two were items we had to make - the praline paste and the lace gavottes. Praline paste necessitated the peeling and roasting of hazelnuts, which I had in the freezer, but this time around I found the best way on the internet which made life so much easier. Rose Levy Barenbaum describes a way to peel hazelnuts that involves boiling them in water and baking soda, what a life saver.


My little sister Julianna is visiting from Christmas through New Year's Eve, so we devoted an entire day to the making of this French Yule Log. (There she is while I was working on taking photos.) She made the feuillette and the crisps and helped with everything else as well. It was definitely helpful to have an extra pair of hands!


As I made this recipe I discovered I didn't have a loaf pan. I'm sure I used to, but either I threw it out or it is hiding with the springform pan that has also taken a vacation. I looked around and discovered the ice tub that comes with the fridge sitting on top of the fridge, and it was just about the right size, so I lined it with cardboard from the chocolate boxes, plastic wrap, and we went from there.

We had slices of the French Yule log tonight after making pizzas (a la Daring Bakers Challenge October 2008) and the verdict was torn. The person that didn't do any of the work thought it was great, and loved all the different tastes and textures. Those of us who did the work would have made less components. I could have done without the chocolate creme brulee - it was icey in the slice and didn't have a lot of flavor (while excellent slightly chilled, it just takes the longest to unthaw). The dark chocolate mousse was amazing and was a nice companion to the ganache and feuillette.

As 2008 comes to a close, I'll take this opportunity to extend best wishes to everyone for 2009. You never know what's in store!

Categories: Cake, Chocolate, Daring Bakers, Hazelnuts, Holiday, Mousse

Gingerbread trio

Gingerbread trio
Originally uploaded by watchjennybake.

One set of my in-laws is here this week, and we had a birthday to celebrate today. I made gingerbread on request, and decided to offer various toppings for it.

I have memories of applesauce with gingerbread growing up, whipped cream (specifically from a squirty can) seems essential, and I also see lemon curd offered with gingerbread on restaurant menus.

So I did all three. The gingerbread recipe I used was a modification of Ina Garten's Old Fashioned Gingerbread, and if you are a fan of raisins I would go ahead and use mine. Nobody here was really a fan, plus I was out of rum and didn't want to go out to the stores on the day before Christmas Eve just for that. And fair warning - the only sweetness in this recipe is the orange juice and molasses, so this may not be sweet enough for some palates. Personally, after a season full of sugar, it was perfect for me.

Here is my modified recipe!

Old Fashioned Gingerbread

1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 cup unsulphured molasses
1 cup (8 oz) sour cream
1 1/2 tsp grated orange zest
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp orange juice
2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup minced dried crystallized ginger

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8x8 inch cake pan and line with parchment paper. Grease and flour the pan.

Place the butter and molasses in a small pan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Pour the mixture into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Cool for 5 minutes, then mix in the sour cream, orange zest, orange juice, and vanilla.

Meanwhile, sift the flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and salt together in a small bowl. Mix with your hands until combined. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the flour mixture to the molasses mixture and mix only until smooth. Add the crystallized ginger to the mixture with a spatula. Pour (or scoop, it will be thick) into the prepared pan and bake for about 35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Set aside to cool completely.

For my method, remove the cooled cake from the pan and cut into 25 or 36 squares. Dollop various ones with heated lemon curd, whipped cream, and applesauce.

Happy holidays everyone, from JennyBakes!

Categories: Bread, Ginger, Molasses

Cucidati - Fig Cookies

Cucidati
Originally uploaded by watchjennybake.

I have been wanting to make these cookies for several years and finally got my act together. They are a little time consuming because the dough and filling have to be made ahead of time. I think the flavor is nice - the spices and sweetness are a good balance with the dough, but these are more adult cookies than for kids. They remind me of the mincemeat-filled cookies my Grandma sometimes makes during the holidays.

According to the cookbook, cucidati are the Sicilian version of buccellati, which means "little bracelets."

Cucidati
from A Baker's Field Guide to Christmas Cookies

Dough:
4 cups all-purpose flour
1/ 2 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons
1/4 cup chilled vegetable shortening, cut into pieces
4 large eggs

Filling:
2 cups dried whole Calimyrna figs (about 14), halved and stemmed
1 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup blanched or natural whole almonds
1/3 cup dark raisins
1/3 cup golden raisins
1/4 cup 100 percent apricot spreadable fruit
1/4 cup diced candied orange peel
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves

Topping:
1 large egg
coarse sugar
multicolored nonpareils or sprinkles

1. Pulse flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt together in food processor. With the machine on, add butter and shortening a few pieces at a time through feed tube and process until evenly combined and mixture resembles coarse meal. Pulse in eggs one at a time until mixture forms large, moist clumps. Scrape dough onto large piece of plastic wrap, cover completely with wrap, and refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight.

2. To make filling, combine figs, water, and sugar in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until figs are fork tender, about 20 minutes. Transfer to food processor and process into a thick, smooth paste. Add almonds and process until nuts are finely chopped within the paste. Add remaining filling ingredients and pulse until combined. (Filling can be made up to 4 days ahead and refrigerated in airtight container).

3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.


4. Divide dough into 8 pieces. Shape each piece by rolling beneath your palm on a lightly floured surface into 1-inch-diameter rope; then roll rope out float with a rolling pin to a 1/4-inch thickness, about 3 inches wide and 20 inches long. Spread filling down center, making a 1-inch-wide x 1/2 inch-thick strip of filling. Fold both sides over the filling and pinch firmly to close. Use hands to squeeze the cylinder gently and roll back and forth to coax into a round shape; have seam side down. Make slashes at 1/4-inch intervals all along the pastry, then cut into 3-inch lengths. Place 1 inch apart on cookie sheets and bend into a crescent shape. Repeat with remaining dough and filling.


5. To make topping, whisk egg until frothy. Brush egg on cookies and sprinkle with coarse sugar, sprinkles, or nonpareils. Bake until light golden brown around edges and on bottom, about 20 minutes. Slide parchment onto racks to cool completely.

The only change I made to this recipe was to use orange juice instead of water, because I didn't have candied orange peel but still wanted an orange flavor element. It seemed to work fine.

I'm not sure these cookies will prove good enough to warrant going into the JennyBakes Family Annual Tradition for holiday baked goods, but I'm still glad I made them!

Categories: Cookies, Figs, Holiday

Bakery Review - The Bunnery Bakery & Cafe, St. Augustine, Florida

The Bunnery Bakery & Cafe
Originally uploaded by watchjennybake.

I just got back from a cruise, which was a nice way to spend what would otherwise be a very cold week in December. We decided to drive to Miami instead of fly since we had not seen much of Florida, which put us in St. Augustine the first night.


The first night was Thanksgiving, so many shops were closed, but we came across what looked like a cute bakery on St. George St., and decided to stop there the next morning on our way to Miami.


Some mornings, there is a line before the bakery opens. Inside you can order from the menu (eggs, etc), get a drink (tea, mocha), or get a baked good. I have to admit that once I saw the baked goods I didn't have any desire to look at the regular menu. There were scones, croissants, danish, sticky buns, cinnamon buns, cookies, biscotti, and squares of various varieties.


We got a few croissants and a Lady Sarah scone to try. The croissants were among the best I've had - the perfect crunch as you bite into it, paired with the softness of the buttery layers inside. When we drove back home and stayed in St. Augustine again, you can bet we made a repeat trip to this bakery. I also purchased their cookie recipe cards that they make available and hope to try some of them soon.

I loved St. Augustine and it seems to have some interesting places to eat. The next time I go there, I might be convinced to branch out, but it will be hard to resist coming back to The Bunnery. They are open daily from 8 am - 6 pm.

Categories: Bakery

Daring Bakers Challenge - Caramel Nemesis Cupcakes

Like it says
Originally uploaded by watchjennybake.

I am actually in Miami getting ready to board a cruise ship for a week but did not want to miss posting when I had actually completed the challenge! I am typing from an iPhone though, which doesn't allow copying and pasting, so for now I am afraid I will have to omit links to the hosts and recipe. Upon my return I will remedy it all as well as more pics and my own experience. I will say that this recipe was sweet, incredibly sweet!


ETA: Okay, I'm back and wanting to add to this post. I renamed the caramel cake "Caramel Nemesis" for one reason at first, and then added another. The actual name of the recipe is Caramel Cake with Caramelized Butter Frosting. Throughout the Daring Bakers challenges, caramel has been my great nemesis. So I had to approach this challenge with courage and the will to succeed. :)

I like to wait a few weeks before doing a challenge because I like to benefit from others experience. As a result I made sure the butter that goes into the icing was really browned, and I decreased the amount of sugar in the cake by 1/4 cup, just to try to cut back on the sweetness. I'm not sure it helped. These were sweet, sweet, sweet.


The point that I thought my nemesis had defeated me was when I added the caramel syrup to the cake batter. I had let it sit overnight to cool and it was too solid, so I heated it a few seconds in the microwave, putting it back to magma stage. At the point I added it, it made the batter seize up. As a result my cake was not purely caramel, more of a vanilla with caramel pieces.

The recipe comes courtesy of Shuna Fish Lydon, as published on Bay Area Bites. This Daring Bakers challenge was posted by Delores from Culinary Curiosity, assisted by Alex (Brownie of the Blondie and Brownie duo, and Jenny of Foray into Food.

Categories: Cake, Caramel, Cupcake, Daring Bakers

Cranberry Nut Bread

Cranberry Orange Nut Bread
Originally uploaded by watchjennybake.

When I was in Miss McCoy's fourth grade class, part of our study of Oregon history included Native Americans. Since we were in the northwest, we had a potlatch that included food, and acted out myths that we had written ourselves (complete with homemade masks). One of the recipes the class made was this cranberry-nut bread.

My family made it for Thanksgiving that year, and it has been made every year this time of year ever since. That means I have been making this recipe for 21 years, if anyone was counting.

The first picture is from last year, when I made it but didn't blog it. The rest of the pictures are from when I brought the muffin version to work, and were taken by Ed since I didn't have my camera. Thanks, Ed!



Cranberry-Nut Bread
2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup orange juice
2 tbsp butter, melted
1 well beaten egg
1 1/2 cups fresh (or frozen) cranberries
1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350. In a bowl, mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. Stir in orange juice, butter, and egg. Mix together. Stir in cranberries and nuts.

Turn into a greased 9x5" bread pan. Bake for 55 minutes. Cool 10 minutes, then move from pan. (The muffins version bake for about 20 minutes).


One thing I love about this recipe is how easy it is. Obviously, a classroom full of fourth graders managed, so give it a try. It makes a great hostess gift for Thanksgiving, or breakfast.

Categories: Bread, Cranberry, Nuts, Orange

The Curse of the Pumpkin Cheesecake

The Curse of the Pumpkin Cheesecake
Originally uploaded by watchjennybake.

I have had some days where baking just does not go well. (See potato bread day for a clear example!). The subject of this blog, however, is a recipe that appears to be cursed.

Back when I worked at the Almost Home Tearoom making desserts, this pumpkin cheesecake was a seasonal favorite. I loved it for its lightness and interesting flavor combination - most pumpkin cheesecakes tend to be heavy and pretty solidly pumpkin in flavor.

It is still those things, but something happens in its production each time I make it outside of the restaurant. The first time, as soon as it cooled i managed to get half of it to fall off the springform pan bottom onto the floor - that was a Thanksgiving where I was eating with friends, so I shrugged and brought the safe half with me.

This year we were having a Halloween party at work, and I decided to bring the pumpkin cheesecake. I had everything mixed up when I realized I had no idea where my springform pan went. I don't think I've seen it since moving, but it was too late to want to go to the store. I decided to cook the cheesecake in a few ramekins and a 9" square pan, but that meant it didn't cook as evenly (you should have seen the cracks in the finished version) and the lovely maple sour cream layer never got added.

*Frustrated sigh*


The funny thing about this cheesecake, it doesn't matter how bad it looks, people seem to like it anyway. One co-worker was working at the reference desk, and rather than attempting to bring her a slice of cheesecake, she got a cup-o-cheesecake. This is a closeup of it, held by witchy hands (Halloween everyone), so you can see how very light in color it is. The crust is a delicious gingersnap concoction that goes very well with the pumpkin.

I'm curious to know if it is just me who has this curse with this recipe, or if the recipe itself is cursed. If you try it, let me know what you find out!

[Cursed] Pumpkin Cheesecake
from the Almost Home Cookbook

Mix together:
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs (26 crackers or 5 1/3 ounces, may use part gingersnaps)*
1/3 cup ground almonds**
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Stir in:
1/3 cup melted butter

Press into bottom of 10-inch springform pan.

Bake at 425 degrees for 10 minutes, and then remove from the oven.

Beat at medium-high speed:
4 (8 oz) packages softened cream cheese (2 pounds)

Gradually add:
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/8 tsp salt

Beat fluffy and add:
3 tbsp maple syrup
3 tbsp Kirsch (cherry brandy or cognac)***
1 tsp ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

Add, one at a time:
4 eggs

Beat well and add:
1 cup pumpkin
1/4 cup whipping cream

Pour into crust. Bake at 325 for 45 minutes. Turn off oven but do not open door for one hour.

Blend:
2 cups sour cream
1/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp maple syrup
1 tbsp Kirsch

Spread over cheesecake. Bake at 425 degrees for 10 minutes. Cool one hour.

Arrange around top edge of cheesecake:
1/4 cup toasted slivered almonds

Chill 3 hours and remove from pan.

Serves 14-16

*We always used all gingersnaps, but at least half.
**I have substituted pecans before for this, but almond is good.
***Don't leave this out - it really adds a very interesting flavor depth to this recipe.

Daring Bakers - Basic Pizza Dough

Pizza Margherita
Originally uploaded by watchjennybake.

This month's Daring Bakers Challenge was the basic pizza dough recipe from The Bread Baker's Apprentice, hosted by Rosa's Yummy Yums where you can find the recipe if you are interested.

The Bread Baker's Apprentice is written by one Peter Reinhart, who happened to open a pizza restaurant fairly recently in Charlotte, NC. Since Charlotte is two hours from me and on my way to a conference I attended earlier in the month, I was able to make a stop at Pie Town.


Pie Town was a classy place, and was pretty busy during the lunch rush. Our waiter was excellent, and the menu had a lot of options even for us vegetarians. I ordered the Pie Town Margherita pizza (with local Chapel Hill creamery cheese), and N- ordered the wild mushroom. I loved the crust - it was chewy but not overly so. The middle of the pizza was a bit soggy but I loved that they served chili oil to drizzle over everything. I filed that little detail away for when I made the crust.

While I was at Pie Town, I picked up an autographed copy of Reinhart's other book, American Pie: My Search for the Perfect Pizza. I flipped through it while plotting my own pizza recipes, and I really appreciated his advice for the home cook. So many pizza dough recipes I encounter assume you can or want to track down a tile or create your own pizza oven, and most of us just don't have the storage or resources!

From American Pie, I made crushed tomato sauce, white sauce, sauteed mushrooms, and followed his general recipe for pizza margherita (pictured at top of this entry). I had purchased basil oil for drizzling on the top, but it is still sitting unopened, whoops. Next time.

He also said you could substitute another flour for unbleached bread - 1 tbsp for every cup, so I did add about 1/4 cup of rye flour to the dough. I liked the additional texture and flavor depth that brought without altering the consistency.


I had read about Pizza Bianca, or White Pie, throughout the book, and decided to make a version of it using this crust. The white sauce I made only covered half the pie, so that was an easy fix with additional crushed tomato sauce. On top of that went the sauteed mushrooms, and fresh mozzarella. The white side of the pie was pretty sweet, since I cooked the onions in the white sauce so long. Sweet as in sweet-tasting, not sweet as in "dude!"


The last pizza I made comes from Entertaining for a Veggie Planet. Sometimes I'll see recipes and they go into my mental storage to pull out at an appropriate time, and this butternut squash - goat cheese pizza recipe was the best possible combination of fall flavors and pizza! Also included were carmelized onions and fresh sage. Delicious, and the goat cheese really balanced out the sweetness of the squash and onions. I think I liked this pizza the most out of the three because the other two had sauces or cheese that made the crust a little soggy.

Categories: Cheese, Daring Bakers, Dough, Onions, Pizza, Squash, Tomatoes

Double Crusted Cheddar Apple Pie

Double Crusted Cheddar Apple Pie
Originally uploaded by watchjennybake.

Growing up, attending many church potlucks*, I witnessed a strange repeating occurrence of older church members adding slices of cheddar cheese to their apple pie. At the time, I was disgusted but intrigued. I wondered if there was a way to fit the flavors together in an intentional way.

I wasn't the only person to think of this. Sarah Moulton created a Double Crusted Cheddar Apple Pie, and John T. Edge pushed it even further in his Cheese-Straw Apple Pie, complete with cayenne pepper.

I'm not sure why I picked Sarah's recipe, because she has said time and time again that she is not a baker. And from the reviews I knew the pie filling part was watery, so I substituted another person's pie filling for hers. I think the pie would have been better if I had picked a better variety of apples. It lacked depth of flavor to compete with the intensity of the crust.


Oh, the crust. It was delicious. I'm not sure I'd pair it with apple pie again, and in fact, I used the remnants on a quiche tart (with "mom-dried" tomatoes, basil, and mozzarella), and it was marvelous in that capacity. But not just good flavor - flaky, buttery, and sturdy.

Cheddar Crust
(from Double Crusted Cheddar Apple Pie)

Ingredients
* 2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter, cubed
* 4 tablespoons cold vegetable shortening
* 4 ounces sharp Cheddar, grated fine and chilled well
* 2 egg yolks beaten lightly with 1/3 cup cold water
* Milk**

Make the dough: In a food processor combine the flour and salt. Add the butter and shortening and pulse until it resembles very coarse meal. Add the Cheddar and pulse until it again resembles coarse meal. Transfer the mixture to a bowl. Add the yolk mixture, tossing with a fork until it forms a dough. Add more cold water 1 tablespoon at a time, if necessary. Form the dough into a ball, flatten it into a disc, and dust with flour. Wrap the dough in waxed paper and chill for at least 1 hour or overnight.

Do with it what you will. :)

* - in the south, these are sometimes called a "covered dish," in the midwest they were "pitch-ins." Just didn't want to confuse anyone!
** - I used cream. Why not.

Categories: Cheese, Pastry, Pie

Oktoberfest - Schwarzwälder

Schwarzwälder
Originally uploaded by watchjennybake.

Yesterday was the first annual Colvin Family Oktoberfest. N- made vegetarian sausages, and I made Roggenbrot (German rye bread), Caraway-Ale Potato Salad, and Cheddar and Hard Cider Fondue (highly recommended).

With all the dark, sour, and vinegary flavors included in German food (from beer to sauerkraut), it was essential that we have a sweet dessert to balance everything out. I think this must be why most German desserts are so sweet.

Schwarzwalder Kirschtorte (Black Forest Cherry Cake)
(from EuropeanCuisines.com)

For the cake:

* 6 large eggs
* 1 cup sugar
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or essence
* 4 ounces unsweetened baking chocolate, melted
* 1 cup flour, sifted

For the syrup:

* 1/4 cup sugar
* 1/3 cup water
* 2 tablespoons Kirsch

For the filling:

* 1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar / icing sugar
* 1/3 cup unsalted butter
* 1 large egg yolk
* 2 tablespoons Kirsch

For the topping:

* 2 cups canned sour cherries, drained
* 2 tablespoons confectioners' / icing sugar
* 1 cup heavy cream, whipped
* 8 ounces semisweet chocolate

CAKE: Beat eggs, sugar, and vanilla together until thick and fluffy, about 10 minutes. Alternately fold chocolate and flour into the egg mixture, ending with flour. Pour the batter into 3 8-inch cake pans that have been well greased and floured. Bake in a preheated 350 degree F. oven for 10 to 15 minutes or until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool cakes in pans for 5 minutes; turn out on racks to cool completely.

SYRUP: Make syrup by mixing together sugar and water and boiling for 5 minutes. When syrup has cooled, stir in kirsch. Prick the cake layers and pour syrup over all 3 layers.

FILLING: To make the butter-cream filling, beat together sugar and butter until well blended. Add egg yolk; beat until light and fluffy, about 3 to 5 minutes. Fold in Kirsch.

CAKE ASSEMBLY: To assemble cake, place 1 layer on a cake plate. Spread with butter cream filling. Using 3/4 cup of the cherries, which have been patted dry, drop cherries evenly over cream. Place second layer on cake. Repeat. Place third layer on top. Fold 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar into the whipped cream. Cover the sides and top of the cake with whipped cream.

Decorate top of cake with remaining 1/2 cup cherries. To make chocolate curls from chocolate bar, shave (at room temperature) with a vegetable peeler. Refrigerate curls until ready to use. Press chocolate curls on sides of cake and sprinkle a few on the top. Chill until serving time.

***

The only thing I didn't do very well was incorporating the chocolate - I think it was too warm, and I ended up with a flecked cake instead of a chocolate one. It still tasted good though. The kirsch is essential to make this "authentic" but it definitely has a presence. That combined with the sour cherries (as opposed to maraschino or cherry pie filling) makes the cake less sweet than you would assume, and there is a nice contrast and balance in the flavors.


I wanted to be blogging about the rye bread which I spent a blissful 12 minutes kneading, but my kitchen was too cold, the dough never went through its second rise very well, and the end result was tasty but too dense. I really want to go more towards bread baking and get away from these super sweet desserts!

Categories: Cake, Cherry, Chocolate

Big Soft Ginger Cookies

Big Soft Ginger Cookies..
Originally uploaded by watchjennybake.

Sometimes a cookie recipe is so good that you make it frequently. These big soft ginger cookies go so quickly, I always just try to make what I think we should eat and store the dough in the fridge. They almost disappeared on our picnic in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park before I thought to take a picture, which explains the strangeness of the photo.

This recipe has been reviewed over one thousand times at allrecipes.com, and I'm glad someone pointed it my way. I wouldn't change a thing.

Big Soft Ginger Cookies

INGREDIENTS:
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup margarine, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
1/4 cup molasses
2 tablespoons white sugar

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Sift together the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the margarine and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, then stir in the water and molasses. Gradually stir the sifted ingredients into the molasses mixture. Shape dough into walnut sized balls, and roll them in the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar. Place the cookies 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet, and flatten slightly.
3. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.


The park is beautiful this time of year!

Categories: Cookies, Ginger, Molasses