Daring Bakers Challenge: Caramel Cake.
After a two month hiatus, the Daring Bakers have returned to the sweet side of things! This month’s challenge comes to us courtesy of Dolores at Chronicles in Culinary Curiosity, Alex (or Brownie) at Blondie and Brownie, and Jenny at Foray into Food. The challenge - a dense, buttery caramel cake with caramelized butter frosting - comes from a recipe made infamously popular by Shuna Fish Lydon at Eggbeater. Garnishing the cake with golden vanilla bean caramels (from Alice Medrich’s Pure Dessert) was an optional component to this challenge, (of which I opted out of).
The recipe is actually very similar to Maya Angelou’s caramel cake, which she published in her cookbook Hallelujah! The Welcome Table: A Lifetime of Memories with Recipes. Martha Stewart even featured this cake on her show. I’m not sure how Maya Angelou’s cake tastes in comparison to Shuna’s, but I’m willing to wager that both the taste and texture are different. Some of the major differences include: 4x as much baking powder (2 tsp vs. ½ tsp), whipping the eggs before incorporating them into the cake batter, and less butter and sugar overall.
Early on in the month, several of the Daring Bakers had remarked that the frosting was overpoweringly sweet - even for some of the more serious sugar lovers. With this in mind, I decided to offset the anticipated sweetness with a mocha sauce that didn’t add more sugar to the picture - and some dark chocolate-covered espresso beans.
After our first bite into this lovely confection, Señor Habanero and I knew we’d found a keeper. I’ve already made this recipe three times this month, including once for Thanksgiving dinner with the Señor’s family. This recipe has quickly gone into my aresenal of home-baked desserts.
A big thanks to Dolores, Alex, and Jenny (and Shuna!) for hosting such a sweet and satisfying challenge!
Caramel Cake with Caramelized Butter Frosting
as published in Bay Area Bites by Shuna Fish Lydon
10 Tbsp unsalted butter at room temperature
1¼ c granulated sugar
½ tsp kosher salt
⅓ c Caramel Syrup (see recipe below), at room temperature
2 eggs, at room temperature
splash vanilla extract
2 c all-purpose flour
½ tsp baking powder
1 c milk, at room temperature
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Butter one tall (2 – 2.5 inch deep) 9-inch cake pan. (I used two cake pans to make a layer cake. I also made 18 cupcakes with this recipe.)
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter until smooth. Add sugar and salt, and cream until light and fluffy.
Slowly pour caramel syrup into bowl. Scrape down bowl and increase speed. Add eggs and vanilla extract a little at a time, mixing well after each addition. Scrape down bowl again, beat mixture until light and uniform.
In another mixing bowl, sift together flour and baking powder.
Turn mixer to lowest speed, and add one third of the dry ingredients. When incorporated, add half of the milk, a little at a time. Add another third of the dry ingredients, then the other half of the milk and finish with the dry ingredients.
Take off mixer and by hand, use a spatula to do a few last folds, making sure batter is uniform. Turn batter into prepared cake pan.
Place cake pan on cookie sheet. Bake for 30 minutes, then rotate pan and bake for another 15-20 minutes. Bake until sides pull away from the pan and skewer inserted in middle comes out clean. Cool cake completely before icing it.
Cake will keep for three days outside of the refrigerator.
CARAMEL SYRUP
2 c sugar
½ c water
1 c water (for “stopping” the caramelization process)
In a small stainless steel saucepan with tall sides, mix water and sugar until mixture feels like wet sand. Brush down any stray sugar crystals with wet pastry brush. Turn on heat to highest flame. Cook until mixture is smoking slightly and a dark amber color.
When color is achieved, very carefully pour in one cup of water. Caramel will jump and sputter about! It is very dangerous, so use oven mitts, wear long sleeves, and be prepared to step back. (I covered the saucepan with a lid and, lifting it just a tad, poured the water in through the gap.)
Whisk over medium heat until it has reduced slightly and feels sticky between two fingers. (Obviously, wait for it to cool on a spoon before touching it.)
Note: For safety reasons, have ready a bowl of ice water to plunge your hands into if any caramel should land on your skin.
CARAMELIZED BUTTER FROSTING
12 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 lb (or 3½-4 c) confectioner’s sugar, sifted
4-6 Tbsp heavy cream
2 tsp vanilla extract
2-4 Tbsp caramel syrup
Kosher or sea salt, to taste
Cook butter until brown. Pour through a fine meshed sieve into a heatproof bowl, set aside to cool. (Another option is to let the solids settle as the browned butter cools, thus allowing for an efficient decanting.)
Pour cooled brown butter into mixer bowl. Add vanilla extract.
In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, add confectioner’s sugar a little at a time. When mixture looks too chunky or dry, add a bit of cream and or caramel syrup. Repeat until mixture looks smooth and all confectioner’s sugar has been incorporated. Add salt to taste.
Note: Caramelized butter frosting will keep in fridge for up to a month. To smooth out from cold, microwave a bit, then mix with paddle attachment until smooth and light.
MOCHA SAUCE
adapted from an epicurious.com recipe
8 Tbsp strong brewed coffee
4 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 tsp vanilla
½ tsp cornstarch
¼ tsp cinnamon (optional)
Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan and cook, whisking, over moderately low heat until smooth and thickened. Remove from heat and cool to warm before serving.
Note: Sauce may be made 2 days ahead and kept, covered, at room temperature. Reheat before serving.
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Andrea’s Pflaumenkuchen.
They say time flies when you’re having fun, right? Well, I must have been having a grand old time, because I made (and happily consumed) this pflaumenkuchen, or German plum cake, about a month ago, and didn’t get around to posting about it until now.
Toward the end of the plum season, I was compelled to bake something with plums - especially after I saw the beautiful pictures of pflaumenkuchen in these posts. Andrea, author of the Cooking Books blog (from which the second post originates) kindly shared with me her family’s heirloom recipe for this cake, which she understandably has a preference for. One look at the ingredients (butter and shortening top the list) and I knew I had to make it! The only problem was that I had no idea where to find Italian prune plums, which are crucial to the recipe. (Other varieties of plum don’t bake up the same way!)
Oddly enough, I found a lady hawking these very plums in Chinatown a few days later. I wasn’t sure if these really were the coveted Italian prune plums - hence, the following exchange between the vendor lady and me:
Me (in broken Cantonese): What kind of plums are these?
Vendor Lady (rolling eyes slightly at the sound of my accent): They’re sweet plums, very good taste! How much do you want?
Me: Uh… are they from Italy? (My lame attempt.)
Vendor Lady: I don’t know where they’re from, but they’re very sweet! How much do you want?
I couldn’t say no.
The plums’ greenish-yellow flesh bloomed into a lovely ruby color during the baking process, and also became noticeably sweeter. Unfortunately, I didn’t have any shortening on hand and had to subsitute with (more) butter, so it probably didn’t turn out the way it’s supposed to. Still, it was a delectable dessert that not only showcased the plums, but also was easy to make.
Check out Andrea’s post (and also another version by Micha) for more about German plum cakes. Also, don’t forget that ubiquitous plum torte recipe by Marian Burros, which was published almost every year in the NYTimes for a good stretch.
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Chicken with Roasted Lemons, Cherry Tomatoes, Green Olives, and Capers.
About a month ago, when we still had black cherry tomatoes and leftover olives and capers, Señor Habanero and I knew we needed to do something tasty with them. Something very tasty. (Thanks again to our friends who helped us figure out that these were black cherry tomatoes, after all!)
And yes… we’re fully aware of how behind we’ve been on posting! I was barely able to complete last month’s Daring Bakers’ challenge in time. Other parts of our everyday existence sometimes sneakily take on a life of their own, if you know what I mean.
Anyway, the Señor and I still remember how we savored our chosen dish of chicken with roasted lemons, cherry tomatoes, green olives, and capers. The original recipe (which can be found here on epicurious.com) doesn’t include tomatoes, but we decided to throw a few in anyway based on one commenter’s suggestion.
Another commenter recommended briefly brining the chicken beforehand, a tip which we also followed.
As you can probably tell from the name, this dish incorporated a handful of different flavors, from the brininess of the olives and capers, to the bright acidity of the lemon, to the subtle sweetness of the black cherry tomatoes.
Our palates were seriously stimulated (in a good way!), and we will definitely make this again - but with two major caveats:
- To skip pre-salting the chicken breasts (before dredging them in flour), as there is already plenty of sodium from the capers and olives, and also from brining the chicken.
- To make sure the chicken breasts are pounded to an even thickness, to ensure that different parts of the chicken are equally seasoned.
Without further ado, here’s our tweaked version of the original recipe.
Chicken with Roasted Lemons, Cherry Tomatoes, Green Olives, and Capers
adapted from an epicurious.com recipe
Roasted Lemons
- 12 thin lemon slices (from 2 lemons)
- Olive oil
Chicken
- simple brine solution, cold - basically about 3-4 Tbsp salt dissolved in 1 quart of water. (The linked article gives a great description of what goes on during the brining process!)
- 4 large skinless boneless chicken breast halves
- All-purpose flour
- 5 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved lengthwise
- ½ cup sliced pitted green Sicilian olives or other brine-cured green olives
- 2 Tbsp drained capers
- 1½ cups chicken stock or canned low-salt chicken broth
- ¼ cup (½ stick) butter, cut into 4 pieces
- 3 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
- pepper, to taste
For roasted lemons:
Preheat oven to 325°F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Arrange lemon slices in single layer on prepared sheet. Brush lemon slices with olive oil; sprinkle lightly with salt. Roast until slightly dry and beginning to brown around edges, about 25 minutes. (Lemons can be made 1 day ahead. Transfer to container. Cover; chill.)
For chicken:
While lemons are roasting, let chicken sit in a brine solution for about 30 minutes; remove and pat dry. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge chicken in flour to coat both sides; shake off excess. Heat 5 tablespoons oil in heavy large skillet over high heat. Add chicken and cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes per side. Stir in cherry tomatoes, olives, and capers. Add stock and bring to boil, scraping up browned bits from bottom of skillet. Boil until liquid is reduced to syrup consistency, turning chicken over after 3 minutes, about 5 minutes. Add butter, roasted lemon slices, and 2 tablespoons parsley; simmer until butter melts and chicken is cooked through, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to platter. Sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon parsley.
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Daring Bakers Challenge: Pizza!
October brought another (mostly) savory challenge for the Daring Bakers, thanks to Rosa at Rosa’s Yummy Yums. This is also her way of honoring the late Sherry of What Did You Eat?, who passed away suddenly in July, and who was supposed to co-host this month’s challenge (along with Glenna of A Fridge Full of Food, who quit the DB earlier). It was Sherry’s idea to make pizza dough the challenge, after all. So, thank you for hosting, Rosa - and here’s to you, Sherry.
The pizza dough turned out wonderfully - a thin crust that was soft and chewy on the top but crisp on the bottom. (It stayed crisp even after refrigeration!) The Señor has long since converted me to being a fan of thin-crust, authentic NY-style pizza, and looking back, the only explanation I can give for my previous thick-crust pizza preference is simply, sheer ignorance of anything better. Anyway: you can find the recipe for this divine crust at Rosa’s blog. (It’s yet another one of Peter Reinhart’s recipes from The Bread Baker’s Apprentice.)
I ran out of flour on the first day of preparing the dough (i.e. before it proofed in the refrigerator), and so my dough was more sticky than it should have been. Below, you can see that the result of using a dough that’s too moist is that it kind of looks like a blob on the attack… and that it sticks to everything!
Ultimately, because it was so wet, the dough would naturally stretch out in a more rectangular shape, rather than a round one.
Thankfully, regardless of its consistency and shape, the dough baked fabulously - especially with the sauce and topping combinations we tried!
Our first pizza had a homemade wild arugula pesto sauce, topped with roasted red pepper, shiitake mushrooms, and shredded mozzarella.
Next, we combined a rosemary-infused olive oil “sauce” with smoked mozzarella slices, shiitake mushrooms, and chopped prosciutto.
The third pizza featured a crème fraîche sauce under slices of boiled new potatoes, caramelized onions, bacon, and scallions.
Lastly, we made a simple dessert pizza: nutella generously sprinkled with salted roasted almonds.
These pizzas were so good, we were hard pressed to pick a favorite. (The best we could do was decide on our least favorite one, the nutella and roasted almond pizza - though it was by no means unenjoyable.) Maybe it was the dough (did I mention how amazing it was?), or maybe it was the sauces and toppings - or maybe it was the confluence of all three components: regardless, Señor Habanero and I happily devoured our slices while reminiscing of our favorite pizza place in the city and devising a plan to open a pizza restaurant in our nabe if we should one day leave our current jobs.
Check out some more Daring Baker’s pizza creations here!
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Name that Tomato.
Miss Bell Pepper visited us from California last weekend, bringing with her a gift of just-picked heirloom tomatoes and golden delicious apples from her family’s garden and orchard. (Bell Pepper’s mom had an ingenious method of packing the fragile fruit for cross-country transit, which involved large yogurt containers, a one-pound bag of green tea wasabi peanuts, and whole rolls of paper towels.)
Señor Habanero and I are total newbies to the world of heirloom tomatoes, and have no idea what the three varieties we’d received are called. (Neither does Bell Pepper, for that matter.) Some internet research was helpful, but ultimately didn’t confirm very much.
Can you help us out? We’d really appreciate any insight you can give us!
Without further ado, here are the participants:
Tomato #1
Small, juicy, and very sweet. I suspect that this might be a black plum tomato…
Tomato #2
Firm flesh, with a slightly tart and fruity taste. No idea what this one is.
Tomato #3
This one had a firm texture and a lovely deep flavor. Maybe it’s a Black Krim - or some other variety of black tomato?
…And something for size comparison:
From left to right: Tomatoes #1, #2, and #3. The coin shown has a diameter of 1 inch (2.5 cm).
Help us figure out what these heirloom tomato varieties are!
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Banana Mac Nut Pancakes.
The inspiration: memories of breakfast in Kauai (and Maui), plus a Jack Johnson favorite of the Señor’s.
What made it possible: a huge bag of Honey Roasted Macadamia Nuts from Hawai`i, flown back to NYC by Sichuan Pepper. (Thanks, Dad!)
Can you tell that we miss the islands?
Banana Macadamia Nut Pancakes
based on the Basic Buttermilk Pancake recipe from The All New All Purpose Joy of Cooking.
1½ c all-purpose flour
3 Tbsp sugar
1½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
½ tsp baking soda
1½ c buttermilk*
3 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
2 large eggs
½ tsp vanilla
½c honey roasted macadamia nuts, roughly chopped
2-3 bananas, sliced
butter or oil, for frying
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and baking soda.
In another bowl, whisk together buttermilk, melted butter, eggs, and vanilla.
Pour wet ingredients over dry ingredients and gently whisk them together until just combined. Fold in macadamia nuts.
Heat up a small quantity of butter or oil in a pan over medium heat. Spoon ⅓c batter onto the pan, and lay several banana slices on pancake. Cook until bubbles have formed in the center of the pancake, then gently flip and cook until the underside is lightly browned.
Serve immediately, or keep warm in a 200°F oven while cooking the rest of the pancakes. Serve with pure maple syrup. Eat and be instantly transported to a waterfront lanai bathed in morning sunshine and ocean breeze.
* To make these pancakes with regular milk, substitute buttermilk with an equal quantity milk, and omit baking soda.
What’s your favorite pancake mix-in?
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Daring Bakers Challenge: Sesame Lavash Crackers with Eggplant Caponata.
The Daring Bakers were challenged this month to create something vegan and gluten-free. Hosts Natalie of Gluten a Go Go and Shel of Musings from the Fishbowl provided us with a recipe for Lavash Crackers from Peter Reinhart’s The Bread Baker’s Apprentice and gave us the freedom not only to top them with our choice of seeds, spices, and salts, but to use either all-purpose flour or a gluten-free substitute. The other part of this challenge was to make a vegan, gluten-free dip or spread to accompany the crackers.
Martha Rose Shulman’s recent article in the NY Times about the “Misunderstood Eggplant” caught my eye, as did her recipe for eggplant caponata, which looked like it would be a wonderful compliment to a crisp and lightly-seasoned lavash cracker. Most of the ingredients for this dish are in season right now, (at least, in the northeastern U.S.), and one Saturday morning at the local greenmarket was all that I needed to buy everything I needed - including the beautiful Japanese eggplants below.
Lavash Crackers
Makes one sheet pan of crackers.
1½ c (6.75 oz) unbleached bread flour*
½ tsp (.13 oz) salt
½ tsp (.055 oz) instant yeast
1 Tbsp (.75 oz) agave syrup or sugar
1 Tbsp (.5 oz) vegetable oil
⅓-½ c + 2 Tbsp (3 to 4 oz) water, at room temperature
Poppy seeds, sesame seeds, paprika, cumin seeds, caraway seeds, or kosher salt for toppings (I used toasted sesame seeds)
* Visit Gluten a Go Go or Musings from the Fishbowl to see the gluten-free version of this recipe.
In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, salt yeast, agave, oil, and just enough water to bring everything together into a ball. You may not need the full ½ c + 2 Tbsp of water, but be prepared to use it all if needed.
Sprinkle some flour on the counter and transfer the dough to the counter. Knead for about 10 minutes, or until the ingredients are evenly distributed. The dough should pass the windowpane test and register 77-81°F. The dough should be firmer than French bread dough, but not quite as firm as bagel dough (what I call medium-firm dough), satiny to the touch, not tacky, and supple enough to stretch when pulled. Lightly oil a bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.
Ferment at room temperature for 90 minutes, or until the dough doubles in size. (You can also retard the dough overnight in the refrigerator immediately after kneading or mixing).
Mist the counter lightly with spray oil and transfer the dough to the counter. Press the dough into a square with your hand and dust the top of the dough lightly with flour. Roll it out with a rolling pin into a paper thin sheet about 15 inches by 12 inches. You may have to stop from time to time so that the gluten can relax. At these times, lift the dough from the counter and wave it a little, and then lay it back down. Cover it with a towel or plastic wrap while it relaxes.
I didn’t have a rolling pin, so I used a foil-wrapped bottle of cabernet instead. It did the trick!
When it is the desired thinness, let the dough relax for 5 minutes. Line a sheet pan with baking parchment. Carefully lift the sheet of dough and lay it on the parchment. If it overlaps the edge of the pan, snip off the excess with scissors.
Preheat the oven to 350°F with the oven rack on the middle shelf. Mist the top of the dough with water and sprinkle a covering of seeds or spices on the dough (such as alternating rows of poppy seeds, sesame seeds, paprika, cumin seeds, caraway seeds, kosher or pretzel salt, etc.) Be careful with spices and salt - a little goes a long way.
Sesame seeds were gently toasted in a pan over medium heat before being sprinkled on the lavash dough.
If you want to precut the cracker, use a pizza cutter (rolling blade) and cut diamonds or rectangles in the dough. You do not need to separate the pieces, as they will snap apart after baking. If you want to make shards, bake the sheet of dough without cutting it first.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the crackers begin to brown evenly across the top. (The time vary will depending on how thinly and evenly you rolled the dough).
When the crackers are baked, remove the pan from the oven and let them cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. You can then snap them apart or snap off shards and serve.
Eggplant Caponata
1½ lbs eggplant, roasted
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, from the tender inner stalks, diced
3 large garlic cloves, minced
2 red bell peppers, diced
Salt to taste
1 lb ripe tomatoes, preferably Romas, peeled, seeded and finely chopped (or 1, 14-ounce can crushed tomatoes, in purée)
3 heaped Tbsp capers, rinsed and drained
3 Tbsp coarsely chopped pitted green olives
2 Tbsp sugar, plus a pinch
3 Tbsp red or white wine vinegar, or sherry vinegar (more to taste)
Freshly ground pepper to taste
Roast the eggplant, then allow to cool. Chop coarsely.
Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over medium heat in a large, heavy nonstick skillet, then add the onion and celery. Stir until the onion softens, about five minutes, and add the garlic. Cook together for a minute, until the garlic begins to smell fragrant, and add the peppers and ½ teaspoon of salt. Stir until just tender, about eight minutes. Add another tablespoon of oil and the eggplant, and stir together for another five minutes, until the vegetables are tender. The eggplant will fall apart, which is fine. Season to taste.
Add the tomatoes to the pan with about ½ teaspoon salt and a pinch of sugar. Cook, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan often, for 5-10 minutes, until the tomatoes have cooked down somewhat and smell fragrant. Add the capers, olives, remaining sugar and vinegar. Turn the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring often, for 20-30 minutes, until the vegetables are thoroughly tender and the mixture is quite thick, sweet and fragrant. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and remove from the heat. Allow to cool to room temperature. If possible, cover and chill overnight. Serve at room temperature.
Thanks to Natalie and Shel for challenging us in a new way!
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Daring Bakers Challenge: Gianduja Eclairs.
Yes, I dare to bake!
Don’t be fooled by my apparent boldness, though: my first steps as a member of the Daring Bakers were something of an emotional roller coaster.
First: intimidation. Let’s just say that last month’s challenge (a filbert gateau with praline buttercream) produced a lot of incredibly beautiful results, and likewise was an incredibly complicated recipe. Just to give you an taste of what these talented bakers created, check out these images (click to see the post):
From top left: Aran of Cannelle et Vanille, Michelle of Greedy Gourmet, Marija of Palachinka, Linda of Make Life Sweeter, Melina of Sweet Dreams, and Ann of Redacted Recipes.
(Chris of Mele Cotte, host of the July ‘08 challenge, posted the recipe and her results here.)
These ladies - among other Daring Bakers - certainly give me a lot to aspire to!
Second: disappointment. I’m not a big fan of cream puffs, or anything with a huge gob of creamy filling (e.g. twinkies and their manifold preservative-pumped relatives) for that matter, so when I found out that my first challenge as a Daring Baker was to make eclairs, I was a little less than excited - but only initially. After all, does not the title Daring, which is to be “venturesomely bold in action or thought,” by definition assume a fearless foray into the vast wilderness of the unknown - even if the unknown necessarily involves gobs of creamy filling?
Thankfully, Señor Habanero was here to remind me of the truth about being a Daring Baker (”it’s supposed to be fun”) and keep my imagination in check. And so, into the unknown I went.
Third: a wee bit of courage (and a lot of heavy cream). Taking full advantage of my culinary liberty, I chose to make a gianduja (chocolate hazelnut) mousse filling instead of the usual heavier pastry cream. I also made my own crème fraîche for the first time!
Despite my aversion to creamy fillings, the eclairs tasted excellent. (A little Nutella goes a long, long way.) The Señor and I loved the mingling flavors of dark chocolate, hazelnut, and that small kick of whiskey (in the mousse), and the pâte à choux (cream puff dough) was the perfect canvas for them. (I can also envision using a savory filling for this choux pastry!)
Thanks to Meeta of What’s For Lunch Honey? and Tony of Olive Juice for hosting this month’s challenge! (You can see the full original recipe for these eclairs at Meeta’s blog; Tony’s blog delineates his adapted version, which incidentally also incorporates Nutella.)
Crème Fraîche
From www.joyofbaking.com. Super easy to make, and way cheaper than the store-bought stuff!
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tablespoon buttermilk
In a medium saucepan over low heat, warm the cream to 105°F (40°C). Remove from heat and stir in the buttermilk. Transfer the cream to a large bowl and allow this mixture to stand in a warm place, loosely covered with plastic wrap, until thickened but still of pouring consistency. Stir and taste every 6-8 hours.
This process takes anywhere from 24-36 hours, depending on your room temperature. The crème fraîche is ready when it is thick with a slightly nutty, sour taste. Chill cream in the refrigeratorfor several hours before using. Crème fraîche may be made and stored in the refrigerator for up to 10 days.
Gianduja Mousse
adapted from a Food and Wine recipe
½ cup chocolate-hazelnut paste, such as Nutella
¼ cup crème fraîche
1½ teaspoons brandy or hazelnut liqueur
(I substituted whiskey, since I wasn’t going to buy a whole bottle of liquor just for this!)
½ cup heavy cream
In a medium bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the chocolate-hazelnut paste with the crème fraîche and brandy at low speed until smooth. In another bowl, beat the heavy cream until firm peaks form. Using a rubber spatula, fold the whipped cream into the chocolate-hazelnut mixture until no streaks remain. Spoon the mousse into small bowls and refrigerate for 20 minutes, or until ready to serve.
SOME THOUGHTS ON…
The pâte à choux:
I didn’t find the choux too eggy, as other Daring Bakers had mentioned on the forum. (I’m wondering if it has to do with how long the dough is beat between the addition of each egg, as Amelia A. pointed out in the forums?)
I did have issues with some of the eclair shells deflating after the baking them for the recommended duration. I ended up baking them for a good bit longer (though I didn’t keep track of how much longer), and they not only held up better, they took on a lovely golden shade. Still, a few of them went flat. Next time, I’ll let bake them for the recommended time and let them cool in a slightly-open oven.
The chocolate glaze:
It went on smoothly the first time, right after it was made. I found that, even though the recipe said it could be refrigerated and warmed back when ready to glaze the eclairs, it just wasn’t the same - especially after multiple refrigerate-and-rewarm cycles. The butter tended to separate from the rest of the glaze, and wasn’t easy to reincorporate, even after much stirring.
The gianduja mousse:
Seriously, who could resist a mousse that has Nutella as a major ingredient? This decadent but light filling has a number of uses, both inside and outside a pastry shell. (Food and Wine, which published this recipe, also suggests freezing it between two chocolate wafers for an ice cream sandwich.)
The only (minor) fault I found with using this mousse as an eclair filling is that it would start to melt after a few minutes. This problem was easily remedied by either refrigerating the assembled eclairs (or freezing them, as the Señor prefers) and bringing them out just before serving.
Many thanks to Lis and Ivonne for their creativity and hard work in managing the Daring Bakers group! I never thought I’d be baking and blogging alongside hundreds of others. You guys rock!
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Greenwich Grill.
Hurrah! With the completion of this post, I shall soon experience post-victory… which is something like the elusive inbox victory.
After our pleasant experience at Sushi Azabu a while back, Sichuan Pepper made a mental note to return there to dine at Greenwich Grill, the “other” restaurant at that location. (Sushi Azabu and Greenwich Grill are owned by the same people and are at the same address, but only the latter has its name displayed outside.) Thus, Señor Habanero and I found ourselves dining there with Sichuan Pepper, Cherry Pepper, Little Peppercorn and El Jalapeño (LP’s boyfriend) one evening.
Our table shared a bottle of Ferrari Carano 2007, a light-bodied, crisp and fruity fumé blanc (or sauvignon blanc). We had decided ahead of time to go with the 5-course prix-fixe, which was surprisingly affordable for the quality and quantity of food involved.
Our first dish was a red snapper carpaccio, tossed in sesame (and olive?) oil with slivers of pickled ginger, scallion curls, and black and white sesame seeds. Definitely delicious.
A zwai crab & bottarga spaghetti was presented to us next. Bottarga is a salted, cured fish roe (traditionally from tuna) that is sliced thin or ground up (as in this dish) and used as a sort of seasoning. (There’s an interesting article about how to make bottarga here.) Our waiter instructed us to mix the bottarga with the pasta before digging in, and it added a nice touch of brininess to the soft, gentle flavors of this dish.
Our third course was a ribeye steak, topped with a garlic onion sauce and served with an arugula salad and fried potato wedges. While the garlic onion sauce was very tasty, the potatoes were too salty - and moreover, the steak itself was on the chewy side (despite being cooked medium rare - it must have been that particular cut of beef). Though flavorful, this dish was not my favorite.
Then we arrived at the course I’d been anticipating all evening: the omakase nigiri. It might seem strange to insert sushi into a menu of Italian- and Californian- influenced food, but hey, the creators of this restaurant (and their signature “Pacific Grill” cuisine) are Japanese, after all. (Besides, their sister restaurant Sushi Azabu is tucked away downstairs.)
This evening’s omakase (which literally means “it’s up to you” in Japanese - that is, these are the chef’s picks) consisted of one piece each of tuna and fluke. The tuna was sweet and tender, as we’d remembered it from our previous visit downstairs, and the fluke, while also tender and fresh, had a hint of saltiness.
A creamy cheesecake, infused with lemon and garnished with candied lemon peel, completed our meal. This light and airy finish was served with our choice of coffee or tea. My chamomile tea, which had fruity notes and a natural sweetness to it, was first such tea I’d truly enjoyed.
More recently, I checked the restaurant’s website and found that they’d added a fish option to the entree (third) course - and knowing that they do fish well, I find it an exciting addition. Even though the prices have gone up a bit, this prix-fixe menu still makes Greenwich Grill worth a visit!
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Restaurant Week: Del Posto.
This post has been sitting in my “drafts” for way too long - the Señor and I dined at Del Posto at the end of July! - but hey, better late than never, right?
Señor Habanero and I had been curious to try at least one of Mario Batali’s many, many eating establishments in NYC. Most of them feature Italian food of a particular region or variety. When we saw that Del Posto was participating in Restaurant Week, we sprung on the opportunity to go there for lunch.
Upon entering the restaurant, I was taken aback by the sheer enormity of the space. The main dining floor had ceilings two stories high, and was partially encircled by a balcony. (There was also a downstairs area, which we didn’t get to explore.) The host seated us at a table on the balcony, away from the hubbub of the main floor.
Our meal opened with a “complimentary” starter of a black cherry mimosa - a drink more appropriate for brunch, we thought, as we sipped the fizzy beverage.
Soon after, a basket of warm house-baked bread arrived at our table, accompanied by sweet butter and extra virgin olive oil. We liked the olive bread, but our favorite was the herb bread.
Finally, it was showtime. Our first course - or primi - was the speck di alto adige with a salad of arugula & parmigiano-reggiano.
If you have no idea what speck is, like the Señor and I when we ordered this dish, it’s actually a juniper-flavored type of prosciutto. (Yep, we didn’t even ask the waiter what it was - we figured it was worth taking a risk on this!) The fresh floral notes of the arugula paired perfectly with the speck, while the parmeggiano shavings balanced the dish.
For the secondi, or second course, I selected the garganelli verdi al ragu bolognese.
Like most other green pastas, spinach gave this garganelli its dark color - but unlike those other pastas, this house-made pasta actually retained the flavor of the spinach. Sadly, however, the texture of the pasta was chewy, as if it had been sitting out for a while before being reheated (!).
Meanwhile, the Señor had chosen more wisely, ordering the heritage USA pork arista with charred onion salad.
Oh yes - this was good. Tender, juicy pork filets, (possibly seasoned with sage?), were perfectly complimented by a tangle of caramelized onions.
Lastly we were served dessert, or dolci. I had the ricotta cheesecake with strawberries, sbrisalona & aged balsamic. 
(Sbrisalona are the crumbs in the picture; they kind of reminded me of graham cracker crumbs.) What the menu didn’t mention was that there would be blueberries and raspberries instead of strawberries. It also didn’t mention that this cheesecake would be rather gelatinous and sturdy - something like a Jello no-bake cheesecake, and nothing like the light-textured ricotta cheesecakes I’ve had before. Overall, this dessert was less than spectacular.
Once again, the Señor fared better than I did, by choosing the bittersweet chocolate budino with thyme milk foam & olive oil.
This, unlike my dessert, was definitely worthwhile. The combination of thyme, olive oil, and bittersweet chocolate was unexpected, yet the indivdual flavors worked together harmoniously.
Service at Del Posto was top-notch. It was impressive to see how many waitstaff were bustling around on the floor without getting in the way of either the patrons or each other. Despite the fact that the lunch hour doesn’t usually allow for leisurely dining, our plates were cleared in timely but not brusque manner, and a watchful eye made sure our water glasses were always full.
Would we return to Del Posto? Definitely - but not for Restaurant Week. I have a feeling that better things await us on the “real” menu.
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