Storm Food

So the Mistral that teased me with daydreams of the South of France is turning into another Seattle Storm. On the way home from work tonight all the doomsday weather forecasters are talking about a horrible storm for Thursday with high winds,rain and yes snow. So of course wanting to be prepared I make a stop at the market to gather my storm supplies. While everyone else might be gathering batteries,candles,toilet paper,flashlights and matches my thoughts are "what would feed my soul and keep me warm during a dark stormy night?" And the answer is one of my favorite Italian meals from "RAO'S Recipes from the Neighborhood" cookbook. It's so easy you really don't need the recipe for your shopping list. Once you cook this it's one of those wonderful recipes that stays with you. So while the storm clouds gather and the wind starts to pick up I will be in the kitchen preparing Chicken,Sausage,Potatoes and Peppers in the Oven. Of course it helps if you have a gas oven during a storm so that the incredible smells of this dish cooking permeate the house with garlic and tomato sauce and make you feel all warm and cozy inside while outside your door the storm is approaching.

Chicken,Sausage,Potatoes and Peppers in the Oven
Pollo, salsiccie, Patate e Peperoni al Forno
adapted from RAO's Recipes from the Neighborhood Cookbook

Preheat the oven to 450F
Set aside a large roasting pan

2 1/2 -3 lb chicken, cut into about 12-14 pieces
1 lb Italian hot sausage cut in half crosswise
2 large baking potatoes cut into eighths
2 large bell peppers, seeded and cut into 1 inch strips
1 large red sweet pepper, seeded and cut into 1 inch strips
2 medium sweet onions,quartered
1 lb grape tomatoes
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 large can of Italian plum tomatoes, hand crushed with the juice
1/2-1 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons dried oregano
Salt and pepper to taste

Brown the chicken in about 3-4 tablespoons of olive oil in a large frying pan. Once browned set aside in the roasting pan.
Brown the sausage next and then set that aside in the pan with the chicken.
Add more olive oil to the the pan that you browned the chicken and sausage in as needed and brown the potatoes-again when finishing browning add them to the chicken and sausage mixture.
Brown the onions,adding more olive oil as needed until onions just start to caramelize then add a little bit of red wine along with the garlic to the mix to deglaze the pan -add this to the roasting pan with everything else.
Add fresh olive oil to the skillet and very lightly brown/roast the red and green bell peppers-once the skin of the peppers starts to brown/blister add them to the roasting pan with the chicken mix.
Add a little more olive oil to the frying pan and put the grape tomatoes into the pan and let them brown until the skin starts to crack,stirring or flipping occasionally. Once they are browned/roasted add them to the chicken mixture.
Take the crushed tomatoes with their juices and pour over the top of everything in the roasting pan. Drizzle about 1/4 cup of olive oil over it all.
Roast the dish for about 1hour and 15minutes,stirring about every 20minutes. The dish is done when the potatoes are tender and the chicken pulls away easily from the bone.

Serve with some delicious crusty Italian bread , your favorite red wine and candles . Then sit back and enjoy the storm.

French Daydreaming

Each time the wind starts blowing in Seattle it takes me back to Southern France and the Mistral. And I think how funny- the wind in France is more than just weather-it's an emotion, it's a story, it goes deep into your soul. At least for me it does. So right now I want something that will transport me to the South of France, walking down a dirt path through the olive groves to a place where Vincent Van Gogh could have easily sat and sketched for hours. I can feel the wind whipping through my hair and I see the dust down the road forming little twirling dust devils. The sun is warm on my face and the wind feels like the spirits of Provence whirling and dancing around me and taking me into their hearts. Lately I feel like all I am doing is daydreaming of Paris and Provence....so to honor those dreams I give you Lemon Madeleines-so French, so sweet,so wonderful to nibble on while I continue with my daydreams. Where are you today, what are you daydreaming about ?

Lemon Madeleines
from New American Table by Marcus Samuelsson
*I took Chef liberties today and instead of using my madeleine pan I used tiny little muffin cups !

Zest and juice of 1 lemon
2 1/2 teaspoons honey
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 vanilla bean
4 large eggs
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (plus more for the pans)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
Preheat over to 400 F.
In a small saucepan, bring the lemon juice to a boil over medium heat. Add the lemon zest and simmer for 2 minutes then add the honey and simmer for another 3 minutes. Add the butter and stir with a heatproof spatula until melted. Use a sharp knife to slice the vanilla bean lengthwise and use the back of the knife to scrape the seeds into the pan. Set this mixture aside to cool slightly.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs and both sugars. Add half of the butter mixture to the bowl and stir to combine. Add the flour, baking powder and salt to the bowl and mix. Finally, add the remaining butter mixture and fold until combined.

Fill each of the madeleine molds about 2/3-3/4 full with the batter (slightly less than 2 tablespoons per mold). Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until the madeleines are golden brown around the edges. Remove them from the oven and turn the madeleines out onto a wire rack to cool.
Makes 25-30 madeleines

"If a little dreaming is dangerous, the cure for it is not to dream less but to dream more, to dream all the time". Marcel Proust

A Roomful of Memories at Easter

FROM MY GRANDMOTHER'S POST CARD COLLECTION DATED 1919

When I woke this morning , after making my coffee, I turned on the oven for some baking I planned on doing. As I turned the knobs and listened for the gas burners to begin I realized that this simple act brought so much comfort. It's an act that I have repeated thousands of times in the past but never really paid attention to it. Maybe because it's the beginning of the Easter Week end and all those childhood memories are coming back. I was raised as a very strict Catholic so the days preceding Easter Sunday were always somber and quiet days. I remember wanting to practice the piano one Good Friday and was stopped by my father in the middle of playing. I won't subject you to the lecture I received about the solemness of the day and how I should be thinking of sacrifice and the meaning of Easter. You've been there too ? My father was a quiet man , he had a gentleness within him, but was just stern enough to stop my fingers from any further frivolity on the piano keys that day. That memory stays with me today, even though I have drifted far from the church and have found my own spirituality.

FROM MY GRANDMOTHER'S POST CARD COLLECTION DATED 1919

But that little motion of turning the oven knob seemed to turn the door knob, opening a room full of memories revolving around this holiday. Dyeing Easter eggs and wanting pretty pastel colors and not the bright colors the dye produced; opening the refrigerator and smelling my mother's potato salad and quietly lifting the lid of the Tupperware cover and sneaking spoonfuls when I thought no one was looking. Watching my mother bake our Easter Paska, a Slovenian sweet and cheese filled bread that was only made at Easter. I can still hear her admonishing me to stop peeking under the towel at the dough - I didn't understand the rising process and was so curious to watch that clump of dough grow into something so puffy and smelling of sweet yeast and cheese. And then Sunday morning , just before church she would make  City chicken that she had  prepped the night before. No one made City Chicken like my mother's !

That was the final step before we all put on our new Easter clothes and piled into the car for the drive to church. Sitting on the hard wooden pews and kneeling on those wooden kneelers, all I could think of was the wonderful food waiting at home for us. I'm surprised I wasn't struck by lightening for those thoughts of food instead of concentrating on the church service !

And then arriving home Easter baskets filled with chocolate bunnies,yellow and pink marshmallow peeps, and foiled wrapped chocolate eggs and what seemed like hundreds of jelly beans hiding in the green shiny straw lining the basket. All this incredible wonderfulness was wrapped in pink or clear cellophane and tied with a huge bow. The cellophane was meant to keep us from sampling chocolate before dinner but we were very clever children and always found ways to sneak our little hands in through a little break in the cellophane, pull out a bunny and take a bite from the bottom of the bunny,placing it back in the basket so no one would notice !

My sister, brother and I won't be sneaking into any Easter baskets on Sunday. We will have our traditional ham and my sister will make potato salad that tastes just like the salad we grew up with. Me, I'm going to surprise them with City Chicken and a new treat-"Cinn-a-Bun Cheesecake" .

Holidays are such wonderful times to wrap yourself in childhood memories. They feel like your favorite soft and worn blanket wrapped around you while you sit with your morning coffee waiting for the oven to heat up.

Mom, it's been such a long time since we were in the kitchen together, I know you are with me, watching me do all those things I watched you do when I was  growing up...Happy Easter and love and warm Easter wishes to all of you and your loved ones.

You can find the recipe for City Chicken here. And while there are hundreds of different versions of Easter Paska I found this recipe at Chow, published by Maggie at Doghill Kitchen, it was her great-great grandmother's recipe and is closest to what I remember about my mother's recipe. And the Cinn-a-Bunn Cheesecake was adapted from "a passion for Baking" by Marcy Goldman. If this book isn't in your kitchen library, it should be. You can buy it here.

 "Bake to celebrate-Bake to nourish-Bake for fun"
My kind of mantra !

Cinn-a-Bunn Cheesecake

adapted from Marcy Goldman's "a passion for Baking"

Crust
1 1/2 cups finely crushed cinnamon raisin cookies or other spice cookies
(I used Alki Bakery Snickerdoodles and Alki Bakery Ginger Molasses cookies at a ratio of 2 Snickerdoodles for each Ginger Molasses)
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
2 tablespoons brown sugar

Filling
1 1/2 lbs creme cheese,room temperature softened
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup of sour cream (or whipping cream)
4 large eggs-room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 cup coarsely chopped cinnamon raisin cookie or other spiced cookies
1 cup raisins (plumped for a few minutes in hot water, then drained and dried off)
1/3 cup Hershey cinnamon chips-this is optional if you can find them they are delicious
1/4 cup butterscotch sundae topping-I used Dulce de leche and melted it in the microwave so it was pourable.
3 tablespoons ground cinnamon mixed with 1/4 cup sugar ( I used my vanilla bean sugar-it's the cannister I place all my used vanilla beans into )

Finishing touch
Confectioners' sugar

Preheat oven to 325F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

For the crust:
Toss the crushed cookie crumbs,butter and brown sugar together in the bottom of an 8" springform pan.  Press the crust into bottom of pan ,clean the sides of any stray crumbs and spray the sides lightly with a nonstick cooking spray.

For filling:
In a mixer bowl, blend cream cheese,sugar,and sour cream until smooth, scraping bottom and sides of bowl to incorporate everything, about 3-4 minutes.  Stir in eggs,vanilla and flour and blend well for 2-3 minutes on low speed.  You don't want to beat and incorporate air into your batter.

Assembly:
Place the springform pan on the parchment lined cookie sheet. Spoon one third of the cheesecake filling into prepared pan and top with half each of chopped cookies,raisins, and cinnamon chips.  Drizzle on the butterscotch or dulce de leche topping.  Dust on some cinnamon sugar.  Cover with another third of the cream cheese filling and then layer on more cookies,remaining raisins,more cinnamon chips, and more cinnamon sugar.  Add the last bit of filling and finish the top of the cake with cookie crumbs,coarsely chopped cookies in small pieces, cinnamon chips, and a good dusting of cinnamon sugar.  Don't put raisins on top or they will scorch.  You want to end up with what looks like a streusel type topping. This will be full to the rim, almost overflowing-deep breathe-it's ok, it will bake beautifully.

Bake 45-55 minutes.  Turn off the oven, open the oven door about 6 inches and let the cheesecake cool down inside the oven for 1 hour. Don't be alarmed if the center appears jiggly prior to chilling it-it should and it will firm up.  Once cooled move it to the refrigerator and chill for at least 6 hours-12 hours is best. Carefully loosen the springform pan from the cheesecake-you may need to slide a flexible metal spatula which has been dipped in hot water around the inside ring of the cheesecake to loosen it. I didn't find that necessary but I was very gentle and very slow in opening the ring and working it away from the cheesecake.

Dust with confectioners' sugar before serving.

Sit back and enjoy the rave reviews !

In Search of the Holy Grail on Chocoholic Friday

It's Chocoholic Friday and because it's also Easter week-end I wanted something simple that I could grab as I run out the door in the middle of errands. Come on you know you do it too! In the middle of a million things and you haven't stopped to eat and you have to run out the front door to the grocery store or soccer practice or the bank and you have rumblings in your stomach and no time to stop. So you grab a couple of cookies off the counter and away you go. Yes I know it's not healthy to eat like that and I'll pay for it in an hour or two with that sugar high hit and an extra thirty minutes on the treadmill. This is an eating practice for emergencies only-could I grab a healthy power type bar-sure I could but a just baked Chocolate chip cookie with the chips still soft and melting sounds so much better,doesn't it ?
With chocolate chip cookies we are always in search of the Holy Grail. Looking for that perfect recipe. I have found it, well at least for me !
This is an adaptation of a recipe posted on LA FUJI MAMA's blog, courtesy of Chris Garboski at the Nestle Test Kitchens. It's the original Nestle recipe ,but uses half the amount of butter normally used in the cookie recipe. I substituted dark muscovado sugar for the brown sugar and for half of the batch I sprinkled in some Heath English Toffee Bits. By the way, when did they start selling them in convenient packages all broken up so you don't have to buy the bars and crush them yourself ? I love it ! Try this recipe if you are one of the Chocolate Chip Crusaders in search of the Holy Grail and let me know what you think. If you already have THE Chocolate Chip recipe, the best cookie in the universe and are willing to share it post it here.
I'm on my way to the market and it's a 3 cookie drive !

Nestle Chocolate Chip Cookies
adapted from Chris Garboski's tip at the Nestle Test Kitchen
for the Original Nestle Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Makes 60 cookies

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar-I used dark muscovado sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs (room temperature)
2 cups (12-ounce package) Nestle Toll House Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
1 cup Heath English Toffee Bits-when my cookie dough was mixed I just divided it in half and added these bits to one half of the dough.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. In a separate large mixer bowl, beat together the butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar (or muscovado), and vanilla extract until the dough is creamy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating the dough well after each addition. Gradually beat in the flour mixture. Stir in the chocolate chips. Scoop out rounded tablespoons of dough (use a small ice cream scoop to keep your cookies all the same size-they look so pretty and appealing that way ) and place 2 inches apart on parchment lined baking sheets
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool on the baking sheets for 2 minutes and then remove the cookies to wire racks to cool completely.

Pour a glass of cold milk,sit back and enjoy. Happy Chocoholic Friday !

" She's as sweet as tupelo honey"

I'm almost at the end of a food photography class I've been taking on line.  It's from Perfect Picture School of Photography.    And if you are looking for an on line class I highly recommend this one.  I just kind of stumbled on their web site one night googling food photography information.  I checked them out and found they were fairly reasonable and I'm very happy with the course.  Lots of great feedback,tips and instructor interaction.  And I am not receiving any compensation from them for writing this either.  Hmm maybe I should investigate that.  I'm getting ready to sign up for a second class ! 

So why do I ramble on about this course, because one of my assignments involved honey.  I decided that  I wanted to do a close up of a honeycomb . Living in the city and not having my own little hive in my backyard (although with all my lavender and flowers I do keep the little bees happy in Seattle ! ) I figured my favorite store-Metropolitan Market - would be able to help me. And of course they didn't disappoint.  On their shelf I found a beautiful Tupelo honeycomb from Savannah Bee Company.  I rushed home with my little treasure and immediately began setting up for my little photo shoot.  The entire time I'm setting up all I could hear was Van Morrison's "Tupelo Honey" song.  Now if you know me ,you know that Van Morrison is my absolute favorite singer-I can listen to him every single minute of the day and not tire of his voice.  It takes me to a world of sunshine streaming thru the trees, warm sun on my face,my love beside me off on another adventure. Ohhh,ok I'm back from my day dreaming, but the song was still playing in my head as I took each shot. Somewhere along the way the assignment  turned into a moment in time-something sweet and quiet and it was  just my moment.  I was enthralled with the honeycomb and the sun shining through it and that song still streaming through my mind and soul......

"You can take all the tea in China

Put it in a big brown bag for me

Sail right around the seven oceans
Drop it straight into the deepblue sea
She's as sweet as tupelo honey
She's an angel of the first degree
She's as sweet as tupelo honey
Just like honey from the bee "

Now that the assignment is over I have this beautiful honeycomb all dressed up and no where to go.  I have decided to send it to honey heaven , also known as "Lavender & Tupelo Honey Creme Brulee". I found this recipe on the Savannah Bee Company Website. According to the Savannah Bee Website this recipe was created by Sondra Bernstein, the Proprietor of the girl & the fig™ in Sonoma .

the girl & fig Cookbook, by Sondra Bernstein

Thank you Sondra Bernstein for an incredible creme brulee and I dedicate this to Van Morrison and all those sweet little bees who made this beautiful honeycomb.

LAVENDER & TUPELO HONEY CRÈME BRULÉE
4 Servings
7 Egg yolks
2 oz. Sugar
2 oz. Savannah Bee Tupelo Honey
1 1/2 Cups Heavy cream
1/2 Cup Milk
3-4 sprigs Lavender (or 1 Tbs dried lavender)
3 – 4 Tbs Granulated sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Put cream and milk into a saucepan with lavender. Bring to a boil and turn off. Let stems steep for about 15 minutes or until the milk has a lavender flavor.

Meanwhile, beat the egg yolks, sugar and honey until smooth. Pull sprigs out of the cream and milk mixture
and whisk into eggs. Strain through a fine mesh sieve and skim off any foam.

Pour into four ounce ramekins or brulee dishes. Set into a baking pan, add enough hot water to reach halfway up the sides. Place in oven and bake 25 - 30 minutes or until they are set. Test by jiggling the dish.

"You can take all the tea in China

Put it in a big brown bag for me

Sail right around the seven oceans

Drop it straight into the deepblue sea

She's as sweet as tupelo honey

She's an angel of the first degree

She's as sweet as tupelo honey

Just like honey from the bee "..Van Morrison

Daring Bakers March Challenge-Orange Tian

March 1, 2010
The 2010 March Daring Baker’s challenge was hosted by Jennifer of Chocolate Shavings. She chose Orange Tian as the challenge for this month, a dessert based on a recipe from Alain Ducasse’s Cooking School in Paris.

And now I understand why it is called DARING ! When I first saw the challenge I thought oh my gosh a recipe from Alain Ducasse's Cooking school-Toto we aren't in Kansas anymore !! After my heart stopped racing I couldn't wait to begin. I read and re-read the instructions at least 5 times. I would wake up in the middle of the night thinking of what my results would look like and taste like and I can't wait for my days off to begin the challenge !

PS: I baked this earlier in the month but we couldn't post to our blogs until everyone completed the challenge.
March 4, 2010
Here it is my week-end and I'm starting with the marmalade. I have decided to use blood oranges because I love the color and think it will make a pretty presentation besides tasting incredible.

Pretty blood oranges

I spent some time reviewing the You Tube video on segmenting citrus. Even though this is the way I normally segment them, I was a nervous wreck wanting to get them just perfect , so it took me most of the morning to segment my oranges and make my marmalade. I decided to do the segmenting first so that any scraps and defective ones could be thrown in with the marmalade. I think that was a good plan, except I have enough marmalade now to feed most of my neighbors for a week !

And so pretty when sliced open

Slices for the marmalade

Bitterness all gone after blanching

Lovely marmalade setting up

Such beautiful colors and so sweet

Even the compost is pretty

March 5, 2010

After my morning coffee I couldn't wait to begin phase 2 of the challenge. I made my caramel-but instead of just orange/caramel I made chocolate,orange caramel-because you can never have too much chocolate with anything ! Then I moved onto placing the blood orange segments into the silicone molds. I decided to use the molds instead of cookie cutters just to see how they would turn out and because I wanted them just a little smaller than the 4" cookie cutters I have.

              The molds worked out perfectly

Once I placed the segments into the molds and was satisfied with how they looked, I placed the molds into the freezer while I prepared the whipped cream with gelatine. This went fairly quickly and I was soon placing my completed Tians into the freezer to set up. I had to stop myself from opening the freezer every few minutes to see how they were doing ! I patiently waited 2 hours before pulling them out and keeping my fingers crossed that they would easily pop out of the molds. I had one minor casualty and it was the last one so of course I had to give the damaged one to my official taste tester. He didn't protest at all and he didn't seem to mind that the blood oranges no longer had the pretty swirl design to them. I watched his face and his expression said it all when he took his first bite-so of course I had to take a bite too. Oh my oh my-we almost had to arm wrestle for the next bite. I left him in Tian paradise while I went back to adding the caramel I had made to complete the presentation and Voila -behold my first Daring Bakers Challenge:

BLOOD ORANGE TIANS

Lovely Layers of Pate Sablee, Blood Orange Marmalade, Whipped cream with Marmalade folded in, topped with Blood Orange Segments covered with Chocolate Orange Caramel

BON APPETIT !

Directions,Recipe and Tips for Orange Tian

Recipe Source: Recipe slightly adapted from Alain Ducasse‘s Cooking School in Paris, France (http://www.ecolecuisine-alainducasse.com/).

Stabilized whipped cream (http://tamsin-cakes.com/2009/06/05/tamsincakes-on-flickr-adventures-in-s...)

Note: There are quite a few steps to making this dessert; however a lot of them can be made in advance. The orange marmalade can be made several days ahead of time and the caramel sauce and orange segments preparation should be made the day before you make the dessert. Also, if you have a scale, try and use the weighed measurements as they will be the most accurate.

This recipe and fabulous directions are compliments of Chocolate Shavings-check out her blog !

CAUTION-THIS IS NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART-IT IS INTENSE AND WILL TAKE DAYS BUT THE RESULTS ARE WELL WORTH IT !!

The recipe can be a little bit tricky to put together, especially the first time. My main tip is to make sure the whipped cream is firm enough when you make it and be sure to leave the desserts to set in the freezer for long enough or they will fall apart when you unmold them.

Preparation time:
- Pate Sablee: 20 minutes to make, 30 minutes to rest, 15 minutes to roll out, 20 minutes to bake
- Marmalade: 20 minutes to make, 30 minutes to blanch
- Orange segments: 20 minutes, overnight to sit
- Caramel: 15 minutes, overnight to sit
- Whipped Cream: 15 minutes
- Assembling: 20 minutes
- Freezer to Set: 10 minutes

Equipment required:
-Cookie cutters . Ideally, you should have about 6 cookie cutters to build the desserts in and cut the circles of dough (see photo). The cookie cutters will be the size of your final dessert, so they should be the size of an individually-sized tart mold. If you don’t have round cookie cutters you could use an individually-sized cheesecake mold without its base.
- A food processor (although the dough could be made by hand too)
- A stand-up or hand mixer
- Parchment paper or a silicone sheet
- A baking sheet
- A rolling pin

For the Pate Sablee:
Ingredients U.S. Imperial Metric Instructions for Ingredients
2 medium-sized egg yolks at room temperature
granulated sugar 6 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon; 2.8 oz; 80 grams
vanilla extract ½ teaspoon
Unsalted butter ¼ cup + 3 tablespoons; 3.5 oz; 100 grams ice cold, cubed
Salt 1/3 teaspoon; 2 grams
All-purpose flour 1.5 cup + 2 tablespoons; 7 oz; 200 grams
baking powder 1 teaspoon ; 4 grams

Directions:
-Put the flour, baking powder, ice cold cubed butter and salt in a food processor fitted with a steel blade.
-In a separate bowl, add the eggs yolks, vanilla extract and sugar and beat with a whisk until the mixture is pale. Pour the egg mixture in the food processor.
-Process until the dough just comes together. If you find that the dough is still a little too crumbly to come together, add a couple drops of water and process again to form a homogeneous ball of dough. Form into a disc, cover with plastic wrap and leave to rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.
-Preheat your oven to 350 degree Fahrenheit.
-Roll out the dough onto a lightly floured surface until you obtain a ¼ inch thick circle.
-Using your cookie cutter, cut out circles of dough and place on a parchment (or silicone) lined baking sheet. -Bake for 20 minutes or until the circles of dough are just golden.

For the Marmalade:
Ingredients U.S. Imperial Metric Instructions for Ingredients
Freshly pressed orange juice ¼ cup + 3 tablespoons; 3.5 oz; 100 grams
1 large orange used to make orange slices
cold water to cook the orange slices
pectin 5 grams
granulated sugar: use the same weight as the weight of orange slices once they are cooked

-Finely slice the orange. Place the orange slices in a medium-sized pot filled with cold water. Simmer for about 10 minutes, discard the water, re-fill with cold water and blanch the oranges for another 10 minutes.
-Blanch the orange slices 3 times. This process removes the bitterness from the orange peel, so it is essential to use a new batch of cold water every time when you blanch the slices.
-Once blanched 3 times, drain the slices and let them cool.
-Once they are cool enough to handle, finely mince them (using a knife or a food processor).
-Weigh the slices and use the same amount of granulated sugar . If you don’t have a scale, you can place the slices in a cup measure and use the same amount of sugar.
-In a pot over medium heat, add the minced orange slices, the sugar you just weighed, the orange juice and the pectin. Cook until the mixture reaches a jam consistency (10-15 minutes).
-Transfer to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and put in the fridge.

For the Orange Segments:
-For this step you will need 8 oranges.
-Cut the oranges into segments over a shallow bowl and make sure to keep the juice. Add the segments to the bowl with the juice.
-[See YouTube video in the References section below for additional information on segmenting oranges.]

For the Caramel:
-Ingredients U.S. Metric Imperial Instructions for Ingredients
-granulated sugar 1 cup; 7 oz; 200 grams
-orange juice 1.5 cups + 2 tablespoons; 14 oz; 400 grams
-Place the sugar in a pan on medium heat and begin heating it.
-Once the sugar starts to bubble and foam, slowly add the orange juice. As soon as the mixture starts boiling, remove from the heat and pour half of the mixture over the orange segments.
-Reserve the other half of the caramel mixture in a small bowl — you will use this later to spoon over the finished dessert. When the dessert is assembled and setting in the freezer, heat the kept caramel sauce in a small saucepan over low heat until it thickens and just coats the back of a spoon (about 10 minutes). You can then spoon it over the orange tians.

[Tip: Be very careful when making the caramel — if you have never made caramel before, I would suggest making this step while you don’t have to worry about anything else. Bubbling sugar is extremely, extremely hot, so make sure you have a bowl of ice cold water in the kitchen in case anyone gets burnt!]

For the Whipped Cream:
-Ingredients U.S. Metric Imperial Instructions for Ingredients
-heavy whipping cream 1 cup; 7 oz; 200 grams
-3 tablespoons of hot water
-1 tsp Gelatine
-1 tablespoon of confectioner's sugar
-orange marmalade (see recipe above) 1 tablespoon
-In a small bowl, add the gelatine and hot water, stirring well until the gelatine dissolves. Let the gelatine cool to room temperature while you make the whipped cream. Combine the cream in a chilled mixing bowl. Whip the cream using a hand mixer on low speed until the cream starts to thicken for about one minute. Add the confectioner sugar. Increase the speed to medium-high. Whip the cream until the beaters leave visible (but not lasting) trails in the cream, then add the cooled gelatine slowly while beating continuously. Continue whipping until the cream is light and fluffy and forms soft peaks. Transfer the whipped cream to a bowl and fold in the orange marmalade.

[Tip: Use an ice cold bowl to make the whipped cream in. You can do this by putting your mixing bowl, cream and beater in the fridge for 20 minutes prior to whipping the cream.]

Assembling the Dessert:
-Make sure you have some room in your freezer. Ideally, you should be able to fit a small baking sheet or tray of desserts to set in the freezer.
-Line a small tray or baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone sheet. Lay out 6 cookie cutters onto the parchment paper/silicone.
-Drain the orange segments on a kitchen towel.
-Have the marmalade, whipped cream and baked circles of dough ready to use.
-Arrange the orange segments at the bottom of each cookie cutter. Make sure the segments all touch either and that there are no gaps. Make sure they fit snuggly and look pretty as they will end up being the top of the dessert. Arrange them as you would sliced apples when making an apple tart.
-Once you have neatly arranged one layer of orange segments at the bottom of each cookie cutter, add a couple spoonfuls of whipped cream and gently spread it so that it fills the cookie cutter in an even layer. -Leave about 1/4 inch at the top so there is room for dough circle.
-Using a butter knife or small spoon, spread a small even layer of orange marmalade on each circle of dough.
-Carefully place a circle of dough over each ring (the side of dough covered in marmalade should be the side touching the whipping cream). Gently press on the circle of dough to make sure the dessert is compact.
-Place the desserts to set in the freezer to set for 10 minutes.
-Using a small knife, gently go around the edges of the cookie cutter to make sure the dessert will be easy to unmold. Gently place your serving plate on top of a dessert (on top of the circle of dough) and turn the plate over. Gently remove the cookie cutter, add a spoonful of caramel sauce and serve immediately.

And if you have made it through all of this, pour a glass of wine and enjoy your dessert !

Resources:
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-tian.htm (An article about the dessert known as tian.)
YouTube link on how to segment an orange: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZG5mcEEBlcI

Chocoholic Fridays-Brownies From Another Time

Have you ever wondered where time goes ? I was out walking my sweet little Hailey during a recent sun break this week and as we followed our familiar path I could hear sounds of the kitchen coming from various houses we passed. You know those sounds, pots clanging when you pull out the one that is on the very bottom, silverware chiming and tinkling as you gather it for the table, the gentle clatter of the dinner plates. And then I realized , Winter is gone and Spring has arrived. Everyone has thrown open their doors to allow the fresh air of Spring easy entry into their lives. We were buttoned up and wrapped in sweaters for so many months just waiting for the snow to come and it didn't. Mother Nature was easy on us this Winter and she is now treating us to so much greenness and so many flowers . It's as if she can't wait and doesn't want to pace herself over 2 or 3 months so she is pushing all her little tulips and daffodils and hyacinths out into the world all at once .

 I am trying to teach myself to savor each and every moment. Sometimes it seems as though those moments can disappear -poof like a little wisp of fog,gone but never really forgotten. Do you remember when you were 12 or 13years old and thought that turning 21 was a century away and would never happen ? Sometimes I long for those days when time seemed to move much slower.

I decided that since this was such a lovely week I didn't need chocolate to alleviate my stress but I was longing for something from another time-when time moved much slower. I remembered brownies, and the surprise of finding them in my lunchbox along with newspaper clippings about the high school baseball pitcher I had a crush on-thanks mom-those were always special little surprises and it took the passing of time for me to realize how special. So in honor of those moments I give you brownies . You can make these according to the recipe, and they are incredible, or you can make them a little more special to bring back the sweetness of that moment in time that is gone but always in your heart.

Heart of Darkness Brownies
adapted from a Maeda Heater recipe

These are dense with a crackly crust, they have a little tang from the sour cream which also adds the moisture. The dusting of sugar helps a nice crackly crust to form. I planned on icing these with ganache so I eliminated the dusting of sugar.

Note: It is very important to use good quality, bittersweet chocolate, with 60 to 72% cocoa solids. Don’t be tempted to substitute Nestle’s or Baker’s chocolate in this recipe. You are going to all the trouble of making your own brownies, go the extra step and buy the better chocolate-you won’t be sorry. It doesn’t have to be the most expensive higher end brand of chocolate -just keep an eye on the percentage of cocoa solids.

12 oz / 340g bittersweet chocolate, at room temperature, chopped into small chunks
12 oz / 340g unsalted butter (plus about 2 tsp for greasing pan)
1-1/4 cups / 238g white sugar
2 Tbl / 24g (approx) additional sugar for dusting
3/4 cup / 100g all-purpose flour
1/4 cup / 24g cocoa powder (plus about 2TB for dusting pan)
1 tsp / 6g salt
4 large eggs /200g
2/3 cup / 140g sour cream
1 Tbl / 14g vanilla extract
Optional: chopped nuts or chocolate chunks

Directions:

-Melt butter in heavy saucepan over low heat
-Whisk in sugar until smooth and thick
-Sift and thoroughly stir together the flour, cocoa powder, and salt
-Whisk into the butter/sugar mixture until smooth.
-Turn heat as low as possible, and stir chocolate into butter/sugar/cocoa mixture until mostly melted. --- -Remove from heat, and continue stirring until smooth. allow to cool until just above room temperature; about 80 degrees F. it should become fairly thick. you can speed the cooling process by putting the pan in a water bath and stirring.
-While mixture is cooling, preheat oven to 300° with rack in center.
-Grease baking pan and lightly dust with cocoa powder. optionally, line the bottom with a greased/dusted with cocoa sheet of parchment, to make serving easier.
-Shortly before chocolate mixture is cooled, combine eggs and sour cream in a medium bowl. whisk until well mixed, pale, and a bit frothy. do not try to incorporate enough air to increase the volume. stir in the vanilla.
-Stir egg mixture into the other ingredients (if the saucepan is big enough, just do it in the pan). If mixture gets thick and lumpy, it means the chocolate has cooled too much--return it to the stove, and stir over low heat. mixture should get fairly smooth.
-If you're incorporating any chopped nuts or chocolate chunks, stir them in.
-Pour into prepared pan and smooth top. dust a light, even coating of sugar over the top .
-Bake about 35 to 45 minutes, depending on oven and batch size. batter should rise evenly from center to edge. the top surface should look uniform. a tester should come out of the center dirty, but without any large chunks of batter attached. better undercooked than overcooked.
-Allow to cool on cooling rack. they can be served room temperature, warm (very soft), or chilled (like fudge). they keep a long time at room temperature or refrigerated, but crust will soften quickly.

These brownies are delicate; be careful cutting and serving. they should be cooled to room temperature (or ideally chilled) before slicing.

And because I love chocolate so much and these were being prepared for my Chocoholic Friday I made them a little fancier by baking them in a 9" round tart pan. After they cooled and I removed them from the pan, I sliced the tart into 16 delicate slivers. I then prepared chocolate ganache and coated the brownies with the ganache. Once coated I chilled the ganache. After the chilling I whipped the ganache and used a pastry bag to pipe little rosettes on the ganache coated brownies . I then dusted them with a grating of fresh nutmeg.
Ganache:
8 ounces /227g bittersweet chocolate, cut into small pieces
3/4 cup /180 ml heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons/28 grams unsalted butter

Place the chopped chocolate in a medium sized stainless steel bowl. Set aside. Heat the cream and butter in a medium sized saucepan over medium heat. Bring just to a boil. Immediately pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Stir with a whisk until smooth.

Voila-my brownies, dressed to the nines !