Chocoholic Friday !

What do you do when you are stressed ? Meditate,run,take a vacation,sleep?  Sometimes I shout - I will lock myself in a room alone and just let it all out.  Or sometimes I'll just turn up my radio in my car as loud as I can stand it without blowing out my windows or eardrums !  I was having that kind of day yesterday so after the deep breathing didn't work anymore I put myself  on the beach in Tasmania and turned up the music that was on my radio .



By the time I got home things were looking up and I was in a much better mood ! Having a bad day?  I recommend chocolate and lots of music ! So in honor of stressful work-weeks I am instituting Chocoholic Fridays. Every Friday I will bake something decadent to reward myself for surviving another week and to reward my loved ones for surviving me !!  And this is the perfect week to kick off my Chocoholic Fridays since March 14th signaled the beginning of American Chocolate Week. 

Since I love Canneles and they are THE food I would need to survive on a deserted island (along with Johnny Depp) my first Chocoholic Treat will be Francois Payard's Chocolate Canneles from his book "Chocolate Epiphany"

Click here to buy me

And if you love his recipes as much as I do you can bake along with a group over at Chocolate With Francois .

Mise en Place Chocolate Canneles

Chocolate Cannelés,

adapted from Chocolate Epiphany by François Payard

Ingredients:
3 oz, (90 g) dark chocolate (72%) chopped – I used Scharffen Berger Bittersweet 70%
2 Cups (500 ml) whole milk
4 Tbsp (60 g) unsalted butter
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
3/4 Cup plus 2 Tbsp (90 g) all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp (14g) Dutch processed cocoa powder
2/3 Cup plus 1/4 Cup (180 g) sugar
pinch of salt
1 large egg
3 large egg yolks
3 Tbsp (40 g) Myer’s dark rum or Armagnac
Vegetable cooking spray if using copper molds

Directions:
Make the batter-it needs to be refrigerated for at least 24hrs -and please don't drink the batter-you will be tempted but trust me don't !

-Put the chocolate in a medium bowl. Put the milk and butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, and scrape he seeds from the vanilla bean into the pan (reserve the pod for use in another recipe-I dry it and place it in my sugar canister).
-Scald the mixture, removing the pan from the heat when small bubbles form at the edges.
-Pour the mixture over the chopped chocolate and whisk until the chocolate is melted.

-Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, sugar and salt over a medium bowl.
-Combine the egg, egg yolks and rum and whisk until the mixture is smooth. Slowly whisk the egg mixture into the dry ingredients. If you go too fast, lumps will form.
-Slowly whisk in the chocolate mixture, whisking until the mixture is smooth.
-Strain through a fine mesh sieve into a bowl, cover, and refrigerate overnight or for up to 4 days.

Baking the Cannelés:
-Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 400ºF.
-If using copper molds, heat them in the oven for 10 minutes or until they are hot. This step is not necessary of using silicone molds.
-Spray the molds with vegetable cooking spray, doing so more generously for the cooper molds-lightly for the silicone molds. If using silicone molds, set them on a baking sheet.
-Stir the batter, and transfer to a large measuring cup or pitcher if desired, which will make it easier to pour the batter into the molds.
-Fill the molds almost to the top and let the batter rest for 30 minutes. This allows the flour to settle to the bottom, so the cannelés won't rise during baking.

-Bake for 60-75 minutes, until the exterior of the cannelés is crisp and set, and springs back when you lightly touch the top.

-Remove the molds from the oven and turn them over onto a wire cooling rack. Let the cannelés cool in the molds, which keeps them from shrinking and becoming dense.
-When cool, unmold them, and keep them in an airtight container.

Bon Appetit my little chocoholics

Caneles Bordelais Needed to Clear the Fog

Today is a typical Seattle winter day,foggy,damp and gray. So to cheer myself up I have decided to make caneles. I ordered the molds from a place called Mastercuisine. Even with shipping, currency conversion etc. they seemed to be the best price for the quality. They are deBuyer molds and I am very happy with the response and service from  http://www.mastercuisine.com/ .
I can taste them already.

Caneles-Bordelais Molds

This  recipe is adapted from a recipe by Chocolate & Zucchini.


CANELES-BORDELAIS

2 Cups whole milk

3 Tablespoons of unsalted butter-diced into small cubes

1 Teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 Cup All purpose flour

1 Cup Sugar minus 2 Tablespoons

3 Eggs

1/3 Cup rum

Combine the flour and sugar in a medium size mixing bowl. In a smaller bowl break the eggs and beat gently. Combine the milk and butter in medium size saucepan over medium heat. Stir frequently and bring to a boil. As soon as you see the first signs of boiling remove from the heat. Pour the eggs into the flour mixture but don't mix it yet. Pour the hot milk mixture in with the flour and eggs mixture and whisk until combined and frothy. Mix in the vanilla. Allow the mixture to cool and then refrigerate for at least 24hrs or up to 3 days.

Preheat the oven to 480F. Remove the mixture from the refrigerator and whisk gently to combine the ingredients which will have separated. Fill the molds almost to the top. Place in the oven for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes don't open the oven door but reduce the oven temperature to 400F and bake for another 40-60 minutes. The caneles should be carmelized a dark brown color when finished. Remove the moulds from the oven and allow to cool 10-15 minutes before removing the caneles.

My Caneles

I could hardly wait for these to cool . The smell of rum and vanilla filled the kitchen. I wasn't sure about the baking time of 40-60 minutes but I discovered with my oven 45 minutes was perfect. I have to confess that I couldn't wait for them to cool and bit into one still warm from the oven. Scrumptious ! I'm off to enjoy another one now with a fresh cup of coffee. What better way to take a mid day break !

Caneles and Ken's Artisan Bakery

A lonely Canele from Ken's Artisan Bakery

If you are lucky enough to live in Portland, Oregon you can get Caneles everyday at Ken's Artisan Bakery. I fought long and hard not to finish this last one but I couldn't bear how lonely it looked ! Ken's Bakery is a recent discovery of mine and his breads and pastries are soo wonderful they need to be shared with the Universe ! If you live in Portland you must make a trip there if you haven't already. And when you travel to Portland make sure you put this bakery at the top of your list . The Caneles are my favorite but close behind is his 1.5kg Blond Country Boule. Oh my gosh,we bought one the last two times we were in Portland and not only does it last us thru the week, it tastes just as wonderful as the first day we bought it. That fresh yeasty taste with a crunchy crispy brown crust.  Yummy, check out his web site for more info: http://www.kensartisan.com/ .  My next guilty pleasure when we make it back to Portland will be to try his pizza !