Gingerbread with Brandied Plums

Recipe: Gingerbread with Brandied Plums
Page: 262
Date Cooked: March 23, 2013

This is the last dessert recipe for this project. The recipe itself sounds perfect for a cold night; perhaps even something during the holidays. Well, winter isn't over here in Central PA and this dessert seemed to be exactly what I wanted.

Ingredients: Walnuts, macadamia nuts, unsalted butter, all-purpose flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, eggs, sugar, ginger, molasses, honey, dark rum, almond extract, plums, grappa, and heavy cream

I buttered and floured a 9-x-5-x-3 inch loaf pan. I toasted the walnuts and macadamia nuts, let them cool, and then coarsely chopped the nuts.

Toasted and chopped nuts

I sifted the baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. In another large bowl, I beat the eggs, sugar, melted butter, grated ginger, molasses, honey, rum, almond extract, and water. I added the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and finally folded in the nuts.

Left: Sifted flour mixture
Right: Preparing the gingerbread batter

I poured the batter into the loaf pan and baked until a skewer came out clean.

Gingerbread batter in loaf pan

In the meantime, I halved, pitted, and sliced the plums. I placed them in a saucepan with butter, sugar, and grappa. I also beat the heavy cream along with a splash of rum until soft peaks formed.

Left: Brandied plums
Right: Whipped cream

Once the gingerbread was done and cooled, I sliced it into sliced. I placed a slice on the plate and topped it with the plum mixture and whipped cream.

Gingerbread with Brandied Plums

This was delicious! The gingerbread was delicious - moist and perfectly spiced. I also loved the addition of the walnuts and macadamia nuts. It had a bit of a banana bread texture, which I enjoyed. The brandied plums provided the perfect amount of acidity. Finally, the whipped cream provided a little fat. Overall, a simple dessert with a great pay-off.

Enjoy!

Angel Food Cake with Toffee Crunch

Recipe: Angel Food Cake with Toffee Crunch
Page: 272
Date Cooked: September 29, 2012

All of the components of this recipe were "firsts" for me. I had never made angel food cake, toffee, or butter cream icing before. Accordingly, I didn't have much to go off of, other than having tasted these items previously. While I don't want to spoil the ending... the one thing I discovered is I think I will be investing in a candy thermometer.

Ingredients: Cake flour, sugar, egg whites, cream of tartar, salt, honey, vanilla extract, sugar, light brown sugar, baking soda, brewed espresso, egg yolks, unsalted butter, and confectioners' sugar

I began by separating the eggs and getting 13 egg whites. I sifted cake flour and sugar in a bowl and set aside.

Sifted cake flour and sugar

With an electric mixer, I whipped the egg whites until foamy. I added the cream of tartar and continued to whip till peaks formed. I then slowly added sugar to the egg whites and continued to whip. Finally, I folded in the flour mixture, salt, honey, and vanilla extract.

Angel food cake batter in the making

I transferred the batter to an angel food cake pan. The cake baked until a skewer inserted near the center came out dry. I inverted the pan and let it cool upside down.

Angel food cake

While the cake cooled, I moved on to the toffee and icing. For the toffee, I combined sugar, brown sugar, and water in a saucepan. I cooked this sugar-water mixture until the sugar dissolved. I continued to cook, without stirring, until the caramel became an amber color. I removed the saucepan from the heat and added baking soda. I poured the toffee onto an oiled baking sheet and let cool.

Making toffee

For the icing, I combined espresso, egg yolks, and sugar in a make-shift double boiler and cooked. I whisked the mixture until it thickened. I then let the espresso mixture cool.

Espresso mixture

Once the espresso mixture cooled, I beat butter with an electric mixer until smooth. I then blended in the espresso mixture.

Blending butter

At this point, I was very close to putting the cake all together. However, my toffee just wouldn't set. After hours in the freezer, I still had a caramel-taffy type texture. Upon further research, I discovered that my "toffee" still had too much water in it and was just not going to set.

I was planning on taking this cake over to a friend's house that night and didn't have time to try making the toffee again. So I decided to assemble the cake with what I had. I ran a knife alongside the cake pan to unmold the cake. Jonathan Waxman instructs to slice the cake into 3 horizontal layers. But out of fear, I decided two horizontal layers would be sufficient.

Two layers of angel food cake

I spread the icing on the bottom layer and drizzled over the caramel/taffy/toffee. I put the top layer on top and repeated. I then using the remaining frosting around the cake. Finally, I dusted with confectioners' sugar.

Angel Food Cake with Toffee Crunch

In spite of not quite getting toffee, I thought the cake was pretty good. The angel food cake was light and delicious. I loved the espresso butter cream frosting. Personally, I'm not a fan of "too sweet" and this frosting was spot on. And even though the toffee ended up as caramel, it was still delicious. Also, Jonathan Waxman instructs putting the cake in the fridge if not serving right away - this is 100 percent spot on. The icing melts quickly.

Overall, what I discovered was the right toffee temperature is just before burning. So now I know. Given that this was my first toffee-making attempt, I would try this recipe again. And hopefully I will actually get some toffee crunch.

Enjoy!

Apricot-Mango Crisp

Recipe: Apricot-Mango Crisp
Page: 260
Date Cooked: July 7, 2012

Mangoes are one of my favorite fruits. So seeing this recipe in the cookbook had me pretty pumped. There is no doubt that I enjoy desserts. But I really tend to gravitate towards fruit-based desserts. Perhaps, I can trick myself into thinking it's healthy or something. Not sure if this recipe falls into the healthy category, but I will pretend it does!

Ingredients: Walnuts, almonds, all-purpose flour, sugar, salt, grated nutmeg, ground cinnamon, ground cloves, mangoes, apricots, butter, and vanilla ice cream (not shown)

I finely chopped the nuts and placed them into a bowl. I added the flour, sugar, salt, and spices and mixed it together.

Left: Chopped nuts
Right: Flour-nut mixture

I then peeled, pitted and cubed the mangoes and the apricots. The fruit was combined in a bowl, mixed together with a tablespoon of the flour mixture, and I let it sit for a few minutes.

(1) Cubed mango (2) Cubed apricots (3) Fruit in some of the flour mixture

I cut the cold butter into cubes. I used my fingers to work the butter into the flour mixture until it formed pea size amounts.

Butter cubes in flour mixture

I transferred the fruit to a buttered baking dish and then covered the fruit with the butter-flour mixture.

Left: Layer of fruit
Right: Butter-flour mixture on top of fruit layer

I baked the crisp until the apricots were tender and the top was browned. I served it hot with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Apricot-Mango Crisp

The best way to describe the Apricot-Mango crisp is "homey." The flavors were warm and familiar and the fruit combination was just right. JW mentions that this dessert can be made with almost any fruit combination (except for citrus) and I can see exactly why. It was incredibly simple and speaks to the seasonality of the fruit with just the right amount of additional sweetness from the "crisp" component. I will be keeping this quick dessert recipe handy.

Enjoy!

Lemon-Lime Meringue Pie

Recipe: Lemon-Lime Meringue Pie
Page: 267
Date Cooked: May 9, 2012

Lemon-lime flavored desserts are some of my favorite. I love the tartness of the citrus paired with something sweet. It's refreshing and hits that sweet tooth. Accordingly, I was excited to try this recipe out and of course review the pastry crust I made for this pie.

Ingredients: My Pastry Crust, limes, lemons, eggs, unsalted butter, sugar, cornstarch, salt, and confectioners' sugar

I rolled out the pastry crust dough, fit it to my pie pan, and put it in the refrigerator.

Fitting pastry crust

In the meantime, I juiced the lemons and limes and grated the zest from the lemons. I also separated the eggs, placing the yolks in a small bowl and the whites in a large bowl.

Right: Juiced lemons and limes + grated lemon zest
Left: Separated eggs

I combined butter, sugar, and cornstarch in a saucepan and cooked over low while whisking together. I added the yolks to the pan, letting the yolks cook and constantly whisking. I slowly added the citrus juices to the pan. Finally, I added the grated lemon zest and cooked the mixture until thickened. I transferred the filling to a buttered bowl and covered it with plastic wrap.

Making lemon-lime curd

I took the pie shell out of the fridge and pricked it all over with a fork. I lined it with foil and filled it with rice. I baked the pie shell for several minutes. I then removed the foil and rice and baked until the crust was a golden brown. I set the crust aside to cool.

Baking pie shell

With an electric mixer, I beat the egg whites with salt until fluffy. I then added 2 tablespoons of sugar at a time and continued to beat until stiff peaks formed. I filled the cooled pie shell with the lemon-lime curd and topped the meringue over the filling.

Right: Lemon-lime curd in pie shell
Left: Pie topped with meringue

I put the pie under the broiler and watched it carefully. The moment I say peaks turn golden brown, I turned the pie accordingly. Once the meringue was evenly browned, I removed it from the oven and let it cool. Finally, I dusted the pie with confectioner's sugar.

Lemon-Lime Meringue Pie

I thought this pie was delicious! I absolutely loved the tartness of the lemon-lime curd. And the meringue was amazingly fluffy and light. The pastry crust, which I can now review, was delicious as well and really held up to the flavors of the lemon-lime curd. Overall, I truly enjoyed this dessert and I think it may show up on my kitchen counter again!

Enjoy!

And just for extra viewing pleasure, here is what is looked once you cut into it:

My Pastry Crust

Recipe: My Pastry Crust
Page: 266
Date Cooked: May 9, 2012

It feels somewhat strange to refer to this recipe as "My Pastry Crust" when in actuality it is Jonathan Waxman's pastry crust. Regardless, this is one of the quickest pastry crust recipes I have ever seen.

Ingredients: All-purpose flour, sugar, salt, unsalted butter, and ice water

In a large bowl, I whisked together the flour, sugar, and salt. I then made a well in the middle and added the cubes of cold water and water. I used my fingertips to work in the butter quickly, until the dough formed together.

Pastry crust dough in process

I then flattened the dough into a disk, wrapped it in plastic, and refrigerated.

My Pastry Crust

The recipe doesn't encompass actually cooking or tasting the dough (that will follow in the next post). Since, I cannot speak of those items, I can speak to the process. Well, there really was no process. It took little to no time, all stayed in the bowl, no mess and no fuss.

As for the verdict on flavor and texture, that's to be continued...

Pears Poached in Beaujolais

Recipe: Pears Poached in Beaujolais
Page: 264
Date Cooked: April 6, 2012

Through this project, I've really begun to appreciate a good Beaujolais. Jonathan Waxman often uses it in braising meat and here it serves as the liquid for a simple dessert.

Ingredients: Bosc pears, Beaujolais, Cointreau, whole black peppercorns, and cinnamon sticks

The first step was to peel the pears and core them. I ended up core-ing them through the top and all the way down. But upon some research after the fact, I noticed one recipe halved the pears and used a melon baller to scoop out the seeds. I can easily see how either technique would do the trick.

Peeling and core-ing pears

I placed the pears, Beaujolais, Cointreau, peppercorns, and cinnamon into a saucepan and brought it all to simmer. The pears poached in the liquid until they got just about tender.

Pear in poaching liquid

I let the pear cool in the liquid and then transferred it to a bowl. I strained the poaching liquid and poured it onto the pear.

Pears Poached in Beaujolais

I'm not sure if a dessert could be simpler than this. It was a cold night and the warmth of the dessert is something I really enjoyed. But apparently, the dessert can be served at almost any temperature. The poaching liquid was full of flavor. I enjoyed the hint of spice from the cinnamon and peppercorns. They played nicely off the sweetness of the Beaujolais and Cointreau. I perhaps, would add a little more Cointreau the next time around. The orange flavor was really subtle and I personally wanted more of it. All in all, an elegantly simple dessert.

Enjoy!

Tarte Tatin

Recipe: Tarte Tatin
Page: 265
Date Cooked: October 26, 2011

Recently, I went apple picking at a local farm in Central PA. Of course I went a little crazy and picked more apples than a single person would ever need. Accordingly, apple recipes ensued. So when I came across the apple recipe in "A Great American Cook," I knew it was the perfect time to make it.

Ingredients: Jonagold apples, sugar, unsalted butter, Quick Puff Pastry (not shown), and vanilla ice cream

I peeled and cored the apples, and then cut them in half (from the stem to the bottom end). Jonathan Waxman also suggests trimming the apple bottoms so that they stand up - but I found that it wasn't necessary to do this and that the apples stood up regardless (see picture later). I also combined the sugar and butter in the skillet and cooked it until the mixture became a light caramel color.

Left: Peeled, cored, and halved apples
Right: The beginning of the caramel

Once the caramel-butter sauce was ready, I began adding the apples by lining them up around the perimeter of the pan. I continued making concentric circle until all the apples were used up. I then allowed the apples to cook for a few minutes.

Concentric circles of apples cooking

In the meantime, I rolled out the puff pastry. Earlier, I traced the circumference of the cast-iron skillet onto a piece of parchment paper. Accordingly, I used this as a guide to cut out a round of the puff pastry; keeping a little extra for some overlap. Finally, I picked the pastry all over with a fork and placed it in the fridge for a few minutes.

1. Tracing circumference of skillet
2. Cutting out round of puff pastry
3. Puff pastry with fork pricks

I then set the pastry over the apple-filled skillet and placed it in the oven to bake. I knew the tart was ready once the pastry turned a deep golden brown.

Baking the tart

Now to the hardest part...inverting the skillet. As you might know, a cast iron skillet is incredibly heavy, almost 8 pounds. So the idea of flipping the tart over onto a plate was incredibly daunting. Luckily, I had some help. But even figuring out the logistics of how best to accomplish the flip was quite humorous. Anywho...the tart was flipped onto a large platter and the skillet sat on the platter for a few minutes before lifting it off. And though the apples slid to one side a little bit, the pattern was still evident.

Left: Inverted skillet
Right: Finished product

Finally, it was ready to eat. I cut slices of the tart and served it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream (JW also suggests serving it with créme fraîche).

Tarte Tatin

I think the Tarte Tatin was delicious. Jonathan Waxman mentions that he "[struggled] to make a tart that wasn't too sweet or too heavy." And I think he accomplished it beautifully. And the recipe itself required little work. Like I mentioned earlier, the hardest part was inverting an eight pound cast iron skillet. 


However, I have to make mention of the Quick Puff Pastry. The last time I reviewed the quick puff pastry was for the Chocolate Espresso Tart recipe and I didn't have very nice words to say about it. I mentioned it being too thick and difficult to eat. This time around, I didn't have that problem at all! And the funny part is I was aware that the puff pastry would be different this time around as I was making it. I was more in tune with getting the initial soft dough texture. Furthermore, I worked quickly with butter and easily got that brick shape. I guess I owe the puff pastry recipe an apology.


Overall, I think the Tarte Tatin was quite delicious and I definitely think I would make it again. However, I may experiment with a lighter skillet the next time around.

Enjoy!

Flourless Chocolate Espresso Tart

Recipe: Flourless Chocolate Espresso Tart
Page: 269
Date Cooked: April 30, 2011

I happen to have a bit of a sweet tooth and I'm not sure why, but it has taken me a while to make a recipe from the dessert section of this cookbook. So in an effort to make a dessert and fill in that Quick Puff Pastry from the previous post, I settled on the flourless chocolate espresso tart.

Ingredients: "Quick Puff Pastry", unsalted butter, bittersweet chocolate, eggs, sugar, brewed espresso, almond meal, salt, cocoa powder (not shown), and confectioners' sugar (not shown)

The first step was to bake the puff pastry created in the last post. I rolled out the pastry dough, fit it to the pan, pricked it all over with a fork, laid a buttered piece of aluminium foil on the dough and filled it with rice. The tart was then baked and removed to cool.

Left: Uncooked and pricked puff pastry Right: Cooked puff pastry

As the puff pastry cooked, I began putting the filling together. I melted butter and chocolate until the mixture became smooth and then removed it from the heat. Egg yolks, sugar, espresso, and almond meal were subsequently added to the chocolate mixture.

Chocolate mixture with egg yolks, sugar, espresso, and almond meal

In another bowl, I whipped the egg whites and salt till soft peaks formed. I don't know why I decided to do this step by hand, but I need to remember that for the next time a hand blender is definitely going to in the mix. Nonetheless, I am proud to say I whipped those egg whites into submission. The whites were then folded into the chocolate mixture.

Folding egg white peaks into chocolate mixture

Finally, I poured the chocolate mixture into the tart and it was all baked together to yield the final product.

Chocolate Espresso Tart
(with dusted cocoa powder and confectioners' sugar)

There is one word for this tart: RICH. It tasted delicious but it was rich and dense. Considering it is a flourless tart, I was prepared for the dense taste, but the texture remained incredibly light and a bit airy. I really love chocolate and heck I drink espresso like it's my job so I was happy the flavor combination. Overall, I enjoyed the filling very much.

However, I mentioned in the last post that I could only comment on the Quick Puff Pastry once I made it. And...I wasn't very impressed with the puff pastry. There is no doubt that the pastry achieved a flaky texture, but it was thick and hard to eat! I found myself eating the filling and leaving the pastry on the plate.

Yet, when I delved into a piece of the tart at a later time, I found the puff pastry to be quite manageable and good. The filling of course remained delicious. So I guess I'm a bit on the fence about this recipe. Perhaps I need to give the Quick Puff Pastry another shot or just make the filling and put it into something else.

Enjoy!

Quick Puff Pastry

Recipe: Quick Puff Pastry

Page: 271

Date Cooked: April 29, 2011

The secret to puff pastry is well butter and there is not a doubt in my mind that Jonathan Waxman was already well aware of this secret. In the past, I have either bought puff pastry from the grocery store or prepared it using a food processor, but this recipe called for a bit of elbow grease in the rolling pin department.

Ingredients: Unsalted butter, all-purpose flour, ice water (not shown), and salt

I placed the flour into a bowl and created a well in the center. Melted butter, salt, and ice water are then added to the well and all the ingredients were mixed to create soft dough. I then chilled the dough in the freezer for several minutes.

A well of flour filled with melted butter, ice water, and some salt

While the dough chilled, I used a rolling pin to smash some butter into a square. This step was a little more difficult than anticipated. The rolling pin continued to pick up pieces of butter. Moreover, I wanted to work quickly, so the butter wouldn’t melt or stick to the surface. It may not have been a perfect brick shape, but I believe it did the trick.

Brick of butter

I then pulled the chilled dough out of the freezer, rolled it out to the desired size, placed the block of butter into the center, and enclosed the butter by wrapping the dough around it. This nifty little package of buttery dough is then put into the refrigerator for a bit.

Package of butter filled dough

Lastly, when refrigerator time was up, the dough is rolled out into a rectangle, folded, then rolled out once more, and finally placed pack in the fridge. Since I knew I would be utilizing the dough the very next day it was kept in the fridge overnight.

After being rolled out twice

Because I didn't actually cook the dough in this recipe, I won’t comment on its texture and flavor in this post. Yet, I can comment on the process itself. At the time, the process appeared to be quite tedious (granted I was in the midst of writing 3 papers and felt the need to put in another recipe). Nonetheless, the technique was novel to me. I understood why the butter was smashed into a brick and placed in the center – a smart way of truly incorporating butter across layers of puff pastry – but it also seemed to just be an additional step. Moreover, the recipe required one chilled session in the freezer and two sessions in the fridge before you could even use the dough. That’s almost more than 2 hours of just wait time. I wasn’t thrilled about that component either.

However, the true and final test is the taste. And the verdict is still out on that…

Enjoy!