Bostini Cream Pies

This month's Daring Bakers' Challenge was a dessert I'd never heard of before: Bostini Cream Pies. Our host, Mary from Alpineberry, explained, "Bostini cream pie, like the name implies, is a twist on the traditional Boston cream pie. The dessert is vanilla custard topped with an orange chiffon cake and then drizzled with a chocolate glaze."

I think of it as a "special occasion" dessert -- rather involved, very decadent, extremely impressive and, naturally, delicious. The custard is unbelievably creamy with a luxuriously silky mouth-feel. The chiffon cake is bright and zesty with orange and while light and airy, it provides an excellent counter note to the custard and darkly rich chocolate sauce.

The recipe below yields "8 generous portions" but, because we threw a Halloween Dessert party this past weekend (more on that later) I wanted smaller individual portions as part of a dessert buffet. To that end, using the same proportions below, I baked the chiffon batter in a mini cupcake pan (this took about 12 minutes to bake), and put the rest of the batter in a 9-inch cake pan, baked for about 22 minutes, and then sliced into small square pieces of cake after the cake had cooled. (If I had to do it again, I would bake the chiffon only in the cake pan; I think the slightly larger size of my cake pieces stood up better against the custard and chocolate.)

Because this dessert is so rich, I think it lends itself to smaller portions. That way, you can savor each of the decadent components yet not be overwhelmed by size of the dessert.

Incidentally, I made the custard on Wednesday evening, the cakes Friday afternoon, and the chocolate sauce minutes before the party started Saturday afternoon. Everything came together beautifully.

Food at a Halloween party has to have an appropriate name...

Bostini Cream Pie
(from Donna Scala & Kurtis Baguley of Bistro Don Giovanni and Scala's Bistro)
Makes 8 generous servings

INGREDIENTS:

Custard

3/4 cup whole milk
2 3/4 tablespoons cornstarch
1 whole egg, beaten
9 egg yolks, beaten
3 3/4 cups heavy whipping cream
1/2 vanilla bean (EDITED: vanilla extract is okay)
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon sugar

Chiffon Cake

1 1/2 cups cake flour
3/4 cup superfine sugar
1 1/3 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup canola oil
1/3 cup beaten egg yolks (3 to 4 yolks)
3/4 cup fresh orange juice
1 1/2 tablespoons grated orange zest
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup egg whites (about 8 large)
1 teaspoon cream of tartar

Chocolate Glaze

8 ounces semi or bittersweet chocolate
8 ounces unsalted butter

INSTRUCTIONS

To prepare the custard:

Combine the milk and cornstarch in a bowl; blend until smooth. Whisk in the whole egg and yolks, beating until smooth. Combine the cream, vanilla bean and sugar in a saucepan and carefully bring to a boil. When the mixture just boils, whisk a ladleful into the egg mixture to temper it, then whisk this back into the cream mixture. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Strain the custard and pour into 8 large custard cups. Refrigerate to chill.

To prepare the chiffon cakes:

Preheat the oven to 325°F. Spray 8 molds with nonstick cooking spray. You may use 7-ounce custard cups, ovenproof wide mugs or even large foil cups. Whatever you use should be the same size as the custard cups.

Sift the cake flour, sugar, baking powder and salt into a large bowl. Add the oil, egg yolks, orange juice, zest and vanilla. Stir until smooth, but do not overbeat.

Beat the egg whites until frothy. Add the cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks form. Gently fold the beaten whites into the orange batter. Fill the sprayed molds nearly to the top with the batter.

Bake approximately 25 minutes, until the cakes bounce back when lightly pressed with your fingertip. Do not overbake. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack. When completely cool, remove the cakes from the molds. Cover the cakes to keep them moist.

To prepare the glaze:

Chop the chocolate into small pieces. Place the butter in a saucepan and heat until it is just about to bubble. Remove from the heat; add the chocolate and stir to melt. Pour through a strainer and keep warm.

To assemble:

Cut a thin slice from the top of each cake to create a flat surface. Place a cake flat-side down on top of each custard. Cover the tops with warm chocolate glaze. Serve immediately.

Retro Recipe Challenge # 9 Deadline TODAY!

Just a quick reminder that today is your last chance to submit a post for RRC#9: The Candyman; the deadline is midnight PDT . Please visit Dolores at this month's host blog, Chronicles in Culinary Curiosity , for more details.

Brazilian Style Flan

I'd never made flan before so, when Shane requested it for his birthday (Oct. 12) I was a bit nervous. Luckily, though, it turned out to be surprisingly easy using this Epicurious community recipe (thanks, angelheart04!).

The hardest part is maintaining patience while waiting for the sugar to caramelize. Over low heat, it took me a good 35 minutes to achieve a light golden color. After that though, it was a piece of cake -- or, slice of flan?

And the taste? Cool, creamy, rich -- flantastic.

Brazilian Style Flan
1 Cup sugar
1/2 Cup water
1 (14oz)Can Sweetened Condensed Milk
3 Eggs
2 Cups milk
1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract (optional)

In a small pan, combine sugar and water, and boil rapidly until a light golden color.
Pour sugar into the pan of your choice, my husband likes when I use a bunt-pan but the curves make it a little trickier. Any basic pie pan will due. Coat the bottom and sides. Let cool; it will be hard set.

*TIP: The easiest way to ruin your flan is by burning your sugar. Take your time and use a lower heat so the sugar wont come out too hard.

Preheat oven to 350-degrees F. In a bowl, mix condensed milk, eggs & milk together. Add the vanilla now if using; mix batter well.

Place pie dish into a large roasting pan and set on oven rack. Pour flan mixture into the pie dish, then add enough hot water to the roasting pan so that the water comes halfway up sides of pie dish. The flan shouldn't float. Bake flan in water bath for 90 minutes, until set in center. Let cool, then cover and chill overnight.
The flan can be made a couple days ahead.

To serve:
Run a knife (or even better, a rubber spatula) around the edges to loosen. Place a serving plate that's a little bigger than the pie pan on top of the pie pan, and flip upside down. Gently remove the pie pan and cut the flan into sliced portions to serve.

Thai Spiced Barbeque Shrimp

Perhaps the most delicious way to prepare shrimp.


Thai Spiced Barbeque Shrimp (adapted)
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 teaspoons curry paste (Shane used a hot, red curry paste)
1 pound medium shrimp, deveined but not peeled


In a shallow dish or resealable bag, mix together the lemon juice, soy sauce, mustard, garlic, brown sugar and curry paste. Add shrimp, and seal or cover. Marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

Preheat a grill for high heat. When the grill is hot, lightly oil the grate. Thread the shrimp onto skewers, or place in a grill basket for easy handling. Transfer the marinade to a saucepan, and boil for a few minutes.

Grill shrimp for 3 minutes per side, or until opaque. Baste occasionally with the marinade.

Pomegranate Martinis

You know who I don't like? Oprah.

I mean, I like that she's at the top of a field that normally rejects women, African-Americans, and people who have a BMI higher than 18. And I like that she's made a zillion dollars doing what she loves and chooses to spend a lot of her cash on people who need it more than she does.

But, she also thinks she's God.

There. I've said it. Oprah has a God complex. And much like God, Oprah is everywhere. I've had enough. (Of Oprah, not necessarily God.)

However, she does like a damn fine martini. Nancy made Oprah's Pomegranate martinis for the party and we drank many, many, many of them. They're beyond delicious.

So maybe, maybe, Oprah is the god of cocktails. (Opracchus?)

Pomegranate Martinis (adapted)
1 1/2 cups pomegranate juice
2 oz. Patron Silver tequila
1 oz. Cointreau liquor
Cup of ice

Shake ingredients in a shaker and put in chilled martini glasses. Put pomegranate fruit into glass as garnish. Serves 2.

Vosges' Mo's Bacon Bar

Chocolate + salt + bacon pieces = Mo's Bacon bar.

I really like the combination of sweet and salty. Chocolate covered pretzels, chocolate chip cookies with a slightly salty hit, and salted caramels are all up my alley.

So I nearly dropped dead when I spotted Mo's Bacon Bar at Parkleigh. Chocolate and Bacon? ("You got chocolate in my bacon!" "Hey, you got bacon in my chocolate!") I was already a fan of Vosges' milk chocolate, a smooth, creamy concoction. I can imagine some might find it too sweet, but I like it very much.

Biting into the Mo's bar, the chocolate has a decent snap. The first flavor that hits you is the chocolate, followed quickly by smoky salt notes. A very tasty combination.

And then you realise you're eating bacon. Once the chocolate melts away, you're left with little chewy bits of bacon and it's a texture I don't care for in the context of chocolate. It puts me off so much that I can't fully enjoy the flavor of the bar.

So, overall: good flavor, weird texture. I think Vosges could achieve a similar flavor profile -- without using pork -- by swapping the bacon for smoked almond bits. The bar would still combine sweet, smoky, and salty elements but the crunch of the almonds would be a nice contrast to the yielding texture of the chocolate.

Then again, "Mo's Smoky Almond Bar" just doesn't have the same impact.

Nancy's Spinach & Mushroom-dressed Linguine

My friend Nancy made this FABULOUS pasta for the party. I can't even describe how fan-freakin-tastic it is. I ate the leftovers for breakfast and dinner on Sunday, and we all ate it for dinner last night.

There is one serving left. It is mine.

--

The following is written by Nancy, pictured below:

Laura's 30th Birthday Linguine

One and a quarter boxes of Barilla Linguine
One and a quarter pounds crimini (white button) mushrooms
Three portabella mushrooms
Three bunches of spinach
One head and three cloves of garlic (I used purple and white garlic)
One mild sweet onion (about as big as a baseball)
One stick of butter (or more depending on your taste)
One-quarter cup of Parmesan cheese, grated
Olive Oil
A splash of white wine
Salt
Parsley
Herbes d'Provence

Melt about one-half stick of butter slowly over less than medium heat in a medium to large-sized skillet. Slice garlic very thin (think Ray Liotta in Goodfellas) and chop onion and then place both in skillet.

Start slicing mushrooms (this is important—do not wash the mushrooms—I learned this from my friend Cathy Chou). Once garlic is browned and onion is softened begin adding sliced mushrooms to mixture. At this point, you may need to add some more butter to keep mushrooms moist.

Add a pinch of salt as mushrooms cook (this opens their flavor), add about a teaspoon of Herbs d'Provence (HP) and a 1/2 teaspoon of parsley. As mushrooms cook, add more. You may need to add more butter, but definitely drizzle more salt on the new cooking mushrooms, some more HP and parsley.

Begin chopping spinach—wash thoroughly in a colander. Once mushrooms are cooked through, add about a quarter-cup of Parmesan cheese. Add it slowly so the juice from the mushroom/garlic/onion mixture can absorb it and you don't add too much! You don't want the mixture to be thick, but slightly loose and free.

Remove the mushroom mixture from the skillet and place in a bowl. Add about two teaspoons of olive oil and then begin adding spinach. Once spinach is cooked through, add the mushroom mixture back into the skillet and then add a titch more butter and a splash or two of white wine.

While this is simmering, boil water for macaronis. When water begins to boil, add olive oil (instead of salt—the mushroom/spinach mixture is salty enough) and then add the linguine. Cook for 11 minutes—al dente!!!

Then drain the linguine and place in the skillet with the mushroom/spinach mixture. Place in bowl and serve with Parmesan cheese on the side and a good crusty Italian bread with butter.

Serves about 8 (or ten--12 if this is a first course and there will be an entrée).

Grilled Oysters with Fennel Butter

Normally, I am not an oyster fan. But God, throw a bunch of butter, fennel seeds, garlic and shallots on top -- how can they not be loved?

Shane and his Commie oysters.

Grilled Oysters with Fennel Butter, adapted


1 tsp. fennel seed, ground
1 c. butter, softened
1 Tbsp. shallots, minced
1 Tbsp. garlic, minced (or to taste)
1 Tbsp. chopped fennel greens
1 tsp. ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
24 unopened, fresh, live medium oysters

Prepare and light a grill or preheat the oven to 500 degrees F (260 degrees C).

In a small bowl, blend together the butter, ground fennel seeds, shallots, garlic, fennel greens, pepper and salt.

Arrange the oysters on the grill or oven rack, cover and cook for 3 to 5 minutes or until they start hissing and begin to open.

Using an oyster knife, pry each oyster open at the hinge, loosen the oyster and discard the flat shell. Top each oyster with 1/2 teaspoon of the fennel butter. Return to grill and cook until butter is melted and hot.

Birthday Food Frenzy!

Click image for more party pics.

This past weekend, Shane invited a few friends over to celebrate my 30th birthday. It was terrific! And delicious! You will not believe the food they made:


Pomegranate Martinis
Grilled Oysters with Fennel Butter
Thai Spiced BBQ Shrimp
BBQ Halibut Steaks
Spinach & Mushroom-dressed Fettucini
Russian Tomato Salad
Beer bread
Deviled Eggs

All so amazing. Thank you, guys!

Recipes to come!

Pescatore's Prize Winning Double-Layer Pumpkin Pie

I know it would have been better have a photo of the pie showing the double layers but I forgot. What are you going to do?
The pumpkin shape on top was made gently pressing a cookie cutter into a graham cracker half.

About a year ago, Mark Pescatore (whom I occasionally write for) send me a recipe for his double layer pumpkin pie. The recipe was accompanied by this note:

"Oh so tasty. You may never bake a pumpkin pie again."

OK -- I will bake pumpkin pies again (I mean, really), but his recipe really is tasty. It even won second place in last weekends' Fall into Canandaigua Festival. (Side rant: apple crumb took first?!? )

The only change I made to the recipe was to use a home-made graham cracker crust, but a store-bought one will work just as nicely.

Pescatore's Prize Winning Double Layer Pumpkin Pie

Graham cracker crust, store bought or homemade (scroll down)

3 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup + 1 Tbsp cold milk or half & half, separated
1 Tbsp sugar
1 1/2 cups whipped topping, thawed

2 pkgs. (4-serving size) vanilla instant pudding
15 oz. pumpkin puree
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground cloves

Mix cream cheese, 1 Tbsp. milk, and sugar with wire whisk until smooth. Gently stir in whipped topping. Spread on bottom of crust.

Pour 1 cup milk into mixing bowl. Add pudding mix. Beat with wire whisk until well blended, 1-2 minutes. Let stand 3 minutes. Stir in pumpkin and spices; mix well. Spread over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate at least 2 hours. Garnish with additional whipped topping and nuts as desired.

Slow Cooked Chicken with 40 Garlic Cloves

This is a Wegmans' recipe: it's not bad but it's nothing to write home about, either. It made a ton of sauce/gravy, far more than we could use and the whole thing was rather bland. (Sort of like hospital food.) All in all, not a winner.

Slow-Cooked Chicken with 40 Cloves (adapted)

1 pkg (approx 3 lbs) of chicken pieces (breasts, thighs, legs)
1 Tbsp vegetable Oil
2 cups total carrots, celery, onion -- chopped
40 cloves garlic, peeled whole Food You Feel Good About Peeled Garlic
6 Tbsp all-purpose flour, plus more for dredging
2 cups dry white wine
32 oz chicken stock
2 tsp dried Herbes de Provence
2 medium bay leaves
1/2 cup fresh Italian parsley sprigs, rinsed and patted dry
salt and pepper



Dust chicken with a bit of flour.

Heat oil on medium in large braising pan. Brown chicken pieces lightly on all sides, 8-10 min. Remove chicken; place in slow cooker.

Turn heat to medium-low; add carrots, celery, onion and garlic to braising pan. Cook 10-12 min, stirring occasionally, or until garlic is lightly browned. Stir in 6 Tbsp. flour, add wine and stock; bring to simmer, stirring until thickened.

Pour wine/stock mixture over chicken in slow cooker. Add bay leaves and herbes de Provence, stir slightly to mix.

Cover; cook 3-4 hours on HIGH or 6-7 hours on LOW. Transfer chicken to serving platter. Remove bay leaves. Stir parsley into sauce; season to taste with salt and pepper. Pour sauce over chicken and serve.

Recipe featured in Wegmans Menu Magazine, Fall 2002.

Nutrition Info: Each serving (2 pieces chicken, 1 2/3 cup sauce) contains 510 calories, 27g carbohydrate (3g fiber), 53g protein, 24g fat (8g saturated fat), 190mg cholesterol and 640mg sodium.

Serves: 4 - 6 Active Time: 25 min Total Time: 3 hours 30 min to 6 hours 30 min

LRK's Chicken Marsala

It's been about a month since the kids started school -- and extra-curricular activities -- again, I'm back to teaching, and Shane continues working at his new job. So life is suddenly busy.

A little over a year ago, we moved from Geneva to Canandaigua because -- damn, y'all* -- I needed to GET OUT of that town. And, Shane, after living and working there for 13 years -- the longest he's stayed in any one place in his entire life -- was ready for a change, too.

(I know lots of people love it. But it's way too small and insulated for me. It's the kind of town where you can buy a shirt in the morning and by that afternoon, everyone knows what color it is. And while it has lots of things going for it, it's not for me. )

The kids continue to go to school there as their mom lives there (did you catch a third reason?) and it was just easier to do so. When Shane worked in Geneva, he'd take the kids to school in the morning on his way to work (about a 20 minute commute) and then I'd pick them up in the afternoon. But now that Shane works in Rochester (which is in the opposite direction of the kids' school), I take & pick up the kids from school, so my time to do other things when I'm at home is reduced.

It doesn't sound like much, but being a livery driver can add up to 2 hours per day, which is 2 hours I don't have to do other stuff. Like grade papers, vacuum, mop, dust, do laundry and, oh yes, COOK. (Going to the gym and showering afterward, though, remains a priority -- I like being a dress size smaller, and would like to keep it that way. I also like smelling nice and showering accomplishes that.)

So it's not bad, but it's hectic. And I'm scrambling to find meals to cook that are delicious, satisfying, not fat-laden nor a billion calories, and come together quickly.

It's with this attitude that I threw together some Chicken Marsala last week, adapting a few recipes I'd found. Not only was it fast and simple to make, it hit the spot.

Now, if only the house would clean itself.

*As a born and bred New Yorker, I feel weird using that little phrase from south of the Mason-Dixon line. But as it's creeping into the general American vernacular , I guess I'll use it from time to time.

LRK's Chicken Marsala

Flour, salt & pepper
2 Tbsp. olive oil
3 Tbsp butter, separated
1 lb chicken
1 lb sliced mushrooms (I used baby portabellas)
3 large cloves garlic, minced
1 1/4 cups chicken stock
¾ cup. Marsala wine
2 Tbsp half-n-half

Lightlydredge cutlets in flour seasoned with salt and pepper.

Heat olive oil and a tablespoon of butter in pan to medium-high; add cutlets. Turn over when cutlet changes color one-quarter of way up and seared side is a golden brown. Flip and cook other side until browned. Transfer cutlets to clean plate and set aside.

Reduce heat to medium and add mushrooms, garlic and and a tablespoon of butter to pan, stirring occasionally, being careful the garlic doesn't burn. Cook about 3 min, until softened and browned. Stir in Marsala, stock, and half and half. Add cutlets; reduce heat to LOW.
Cook 6-7 min until cutlets are done (should have an internal temperature of 165 degrees F). If sauce is thin, continue cooking so that it may reduce, or add a bit of cornstarch to thicken. Transfer cutlets to clean serving platter and serve with sauce.

My First Daring Bakers Challenge:Cinnamon Rolls & Sticky Buns

Cinnamon rolls.

Sticky buns.

Click here for the recipe.

I was so excited (and, um, nervous) about participating in my first Daring Bakers Challenge, I decided to cover it "live blogger" style.

Of course, that doesn't really work when you publish the coverage almost a month later ... so, suspend disbelief people! Put yourself into the exciting times of September 5th, where flour flew and yeast grew and the result was sweetness and light drizzled with tasty goodness.

Wednesday, September 5th, 2007

10 am: Set up mise en place (I'm actually doing a mise en place!), pull out butter and egg. Throw in a load of laundry; finish prepping for tomorrow’s classes.

11am: Pull out buttermilk. Grab lunch; throw laundry in dryer.

12:15: Begin working on dough.

12:44: Dough begins its first proof. So far, so good. The dough is just as the recipe says; “silky and supple, tacky but not sticky.” I didn’t have to add any milk (or flour for that matter) but maybe that’s because I added 1 ¼ cups of buttermilk off the bat. I like the light lemony smell (and, um, taste) the raw dough offers.

Also, God bless Kitchen Aid stand mixers! The dough is beautiful, but if I’d had to knead it for 15 minutes, the dough that wasn’t stuck to my fingers (and hair, and shirt, and countertop…) would be a hideous, lumpy mess.


Next up: rolling out the dough. This is what has me the most concerned. I want to make the smaller rolls but Reinhart’s admonition that the dough shouldn’t be rolled out too thin or “the finished buns will be tough and chewy rather than soft and plump” has me worried. The last time I made cinnamon rolls (and granted, this was 10+ years ago), I wound up with rolls that were pretty decent out of the oven but were very chewy and unappealing after they cooled off. (Come to think of it, I had to knead those little bastards by hand, too. Maybe this is why I’ve shied away from yeast breads—those rolls were pretty difficult. Huh --Who knew the DBers would provide a therapy session for cooking-related trauma? Thanks DBers!) I hope these guys turn out as nicely as everyone elses’!

After proofing, just before the dough is rolled out.

I’m planning on dividing the dough in half and using cinnamon/nutmeg sugar for one side and cardamom/cinnamon sugar for the other. My concern is that the cardamom won’t be punchy enough on its own. (Maybe I have a weak batch of ground cardamom?)

I’m also thinking about trying each version with the icing and caramel (separately, of course!) but I’m going to wait until later to make a final decision on that one. OK, time to walk to dog while the yeast blooms and the dough rises.


3:56pm: Wow! I just finished rolling out the dough – it’s amazing. It’s looking great! It has that faint tangy smell of a sweet yeast bread (is that from the yeast, the lemon extract or a combo of both?) and its texture is smooth and pillowy soft. It’s thrilling! I actually made this -- and it looks good!

I divided the dough in half to accommodate two different fillings: cinnamon/nutmeg (3/4 tsp. cinnamon, a pinch of nutmeg, and 3 Tbsp. plus 1 ½ tsp.sugar) and cardamom (just shy of a full1 tsp of cardamom plus 3 Tbsp. plus 1 ½ tsp.sugar). The smells that filled my kitchen! Spicy, warm, exotic – delicious!

After sprinkling each side with spiced sugar and rolling up the dough, I had a little bit of trouble getting the rolls to cut evenly. But I found a light coat of spray oil on the blade of a bread knife made quick work of things; I reapplied the oil after every two or three cuts.



Right now, two rolls (one cardamom, one cinnamon/nutmeg) are proofing while all the others are on parchment-lined baking sheets in the freezer. (That way, we won’t be “forced” to gobble them all up in one sitting…) Once the rolls are frozen, I’ll transfer them to Ziplock bags for easier storage.


I can’t wait to see how the rolls bake up!

8:09pm: The rolls have been baked and glazed with the fondant. They look quite pretty, but the texture -- . They’re not tender; they’re not the soft gooey mouth feel of traditional cinnamon buns. They’re more like bread. Yummy, tasty, flavorful bread, but not what I was expecting. Maybe I baked them too long? Maybe they’ll soften up under the caramel glaze?

9:28pm: I ask the DBers for input:

OK, I made the rolls (half cinnamon, half cardamom) and it seemed like everything was going really well (gorgeous, pillowy soft dough! ) until I poked my fork into the baked buns. They’re not soft and almost gooey as I’d expected; they’re rather bread-like. Albeit very, very tasty bread. I like the cardamom better than the cinnamon one, but that didn’t stop me from scarfing the cinnamon down lickety-split. (And, mmm mmm for the lightly lemony fondant glaze.)I only baked off two, so I have 11 rolls in the freezer, and am thinking I might get a softer product by using them for sticky rolls instead of glazing them with fondant…

Anyway, what kind of texture should this recipe yield? I don’t have much experience with yeast breads (which is why I was both excited and nervous by this month’s challenge!). I’m open to any and all suggestions; maybe I should give things another go?

-----
It turns out that, yes, this is the texture they're supposed to yield (phew!). A few days later, I tackled the sticky buns. They baked up beautifully, and the taste & texture were FABULOUS. They're softer and more gooey, plus the caramel is to die for. I prefer the sticky buns, but that doesn't mean I'd turn my nose up at a cinnamon roll, either!

I had a wonderful time with this challenge. Big thanks to Marce (this month's host) and Lis and Ivonne (the DB originators) for bringing it to all of us.

Next up: the October challenge!

Cinnamon Rolls & Sticky Buns Recipe

Click here for photos and a discussion of making this recipe.

Cinnamon and Sticky Buns
(from Peter Reinhart's The Bread Baker's Apprentice)
Daring Bakers Challenge #10: September 2007
Host: Marce (Pip in the City)

Days to Make: One (1)
Active/Resting/Baking Time: 15 minutes to mix, 3 1/2 hours fermentation/shaping/proofing, 20 - 40 minutes to bake
Recipe Quantity: Eight(1) - twelve (12) large rolls or twelve (12) - sixteen (16) small rolls

Making the Dough


Ingredients:

6 1/2 tablespoons (3.25 ounces) granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
5 1/2 tablespoons (2.75 ounces) shortening or unsalted butter or margarine
1 large egg, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon lemon extract OR 1 teaspoon grated zest of 1 lemon
3 1/2 cups (16 ounces) unbleached bread or all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons instant yeast*
1 1/8 to 1 1/4 cups whole milk or buttermilk, at room temperature OR 3 tablespoons powdered milk (DMS) and 1 cup water
1/2 cup cinnamon sugar (6 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar plus 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, or any other spices you want to use, cardamom, ginger, allspice, etc.)
White fondant glaze for cinnamon buns or caramel glaze for sticky buns (at the end of the recipe.)
Walnuts, pecans, or other nuts (for sticky buns.)
Raisins or other dried fruit, such as dried cranberries or dried cherries (for sticky buns, optional.)
*Instant yeast contains about 25% more living cells per spoonful than active dry yeast, regardless of the brand. Instant yeast is also called rapid-rise or fast-rising.


Step 1 - Making the Dough: Cream together the sugar, salt, and shortening or butter on medium-high speed in an electric mixer with a paddle attachment (or use a large metal spoon and mixing bowl and do it by hand).

Note: if you are using powdered milk, cream the milk with the sugar, and add the water with the flour and yeast.

Whip in the egg and lemon extract/zest until smooth. Then add the flour, yeast, and milk. Mix on low speed (or stir by hand) until the dough forms a ball. Switch to the dough hook and increase the speed to medium, mixing for approximately 10 minutes (or knead by hand for 12 to 15 minutes), or until the dough is silky and supple, tacky but not sticky. You may have to add a little flour or water while mixing to achieve this texture. Lightly oil a large bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.


Step 2 - Fermentation: Ferment at room temperature for approximately 2 hours, or until the dough doubles in size.


Step 3 - Form the Buns: Mist the counter with spray oil and transfer the dough to the counter. Roll out the dough with a rolling pin, lightly dusting the top with flour to keep it from sticking to the pin. Roll it into a rectangle about 2/3 inch thick and 14 inches wide by 12 inches long for larger buns, or 18 inches wide by 9 inches long for smaller buns. Don´t roll out the dough too thin, or the finished buns will be tough and chewy rather than soft and plump.

Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar over the surface of the dough and roll the dough up into a cigar-shaped log, creating a cinnamon-sugar spiral as you roll. With the seam side down, cut the dough into 8 to 12 pieces each about 1 3/4 inches thick for larger buns, or 12 to 16 pieces each 1 1/4 inch thick for smaller buns.

Step 4 - Prepare the Buns for Proofing:

For cinnamon buns: line 1 or more sheet pans with baking parchment. Place the buns approximately 1/2 inch apart so that they aren´t touching but are close to one another.
For sticky buns: coat the bottom of 1 or more baking dishes or baking pans with sides at least 1 1/2 inches high with a 1/4 inch layer of the caramel glaze. Sprinkle on the nuts and raisins (if you are using raisins or dried fruit.) You do not need a lot of nuts and raisins, only a sprinkling. Lay the pieces of dough on top of the caramel glaze, spacing them about 1/2 inch apart. Mist the dough with spray oil and cover loosely with plastic wrap or a food-grade plastic bag.

Step 5 - Proof the Buns: Proof at room temperature for 75 to 90 minutes, or until the pieces have grown into one another and have nearly doubled in size. You may also retard the shaped buns in the refrigerator for up to 2 days, pulling the pans out of the refrigerator 3 to 4 hours before baking to allow the dough to proof.


Step 6 - Bake the Buns:

Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) with the oven rack in the middle shelf for cinnamon buns but on the lowest shelf for sticky buns.

Bake the cinnamon buns for 20 to 30 minutes or the sticky buns 30 to 40 minutes, or until golden brown. [NOTE: Most of the DBers found that the cinnamon & sticky buns were finished more quickly than this. I pulled my sticky buns out after 20 minutes. Check the baking process early & often. --LR] If you are baking sticky buns, remember that they are really upside down (regular cinnamon buns are baked right side up), so the heat has to penetrate through the pan and into the glaze to caramelize it. The tops will become the bottoms, so they may appear dark and done, but the real key is whether the underside is fully baked. It takes practice to know just when to pull the buns out of the oven.

Step 8 - Cool the buns:

For cinnamon buns, cool the buns in the pan for about 10 minutes and then streak white fondant glaze across the tops, while the buns are warm but not too hot. Remove the buns from the pans and place them on a cooling rack. Wait for at least 20 minutes before serving.

For the sticky buns, cool the buns in the pan for 5 to 10 minutes and then remove them by flipping them over into another pan. Carefully scoop any run-off glaze back over the buns with a spatula. Wait at least 20 minutes before serving.

Toppings for the Buns:

White fondant glaze for cinnamon buns

Cinnamon buns are usually topped with a thick white glaze called fondant. There are many ways to make fondant glaze, but here is a delicious and simple version, enlivened by the addition of citrus flavor, either lemon or orange. You can also substitute vanilla extract or rum extract, or simply make the glaze without any flavorings.

Sift 4 cups of powdered sugar into a bowl. Add 1 teaspoon of lemon or orange extract and 6 tablespoons to 1/2 cup of warm milk, briskly whisking until all the sugar is dissolved. Add the milk slowly and only as much as is needed to make a thick, smooth paste.

When the buns have cooled but are still warm, streak the glaze over them by dipping the tines of a fork or a whisk into the glaze and waving the fork or whisk over the tops. Or, form the streaks by dipping your fingers in the glaze and letting it drip off as you wave them over the tops of the buns. (Remember to wear latex gloves.)


Caramel glaze for sticky buns

Caramel glaze is essentially some combination of sugar and fat, cooked until it caramelizes. The trick is catching it just when the sugar melts and lightly caramelizes to a golden amber. Then it will cool to a soft, creamy caramel. If you wait too long and the glaze turns dark brown, it will cool to a hard, crack-your-teeth consistency. Most sticky bun glazes contain other ingredients to influence flavor and texture, such as corn syrup to keep the sugar from crystallizing and flavor extracts or oils, such as vanilla or lemon. This version makes the best sticky bun glaze of any I´ve tried. It was developed by my wife, Susan, for Brother Juniper´s Cafe in Forestville, California.

NOTE: you can substitute the corn syrup for any neutral flavor syrup, like cane syrup or gold syrup.

1. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature.

2. Cream together for 2 minutes on high speed with the paddle attachment. Add 1/2 cup corn syrup and 1 teaspoon lemon, orange or vanilla extract. Continue to cream for about 5 minutes, or until light and fluffy.

3. Use as much of this as you need to cover the bottom of the pan with a 1/4-inch layer. Refrigerate and save any excess for future use; it will keep for months in a sealed container.

"Best" Carrot Cake

Look, it's good carrot cake. Moist, thanks to the buttermilk glaze. Tender. Flavorful. The frosting is to. die. for. But the cake itself? Meh. I think my issue with it is that its only spice is cinnamon and, in my ideal carrot cake, there's more going on. It kind of reminds me of an oatmeal cookie, which is fine for oatmeal cookies, but I want a little more out of my carrot cake.

Having said that, I brought it to a pot luck and complete strangers came up to me and raved about it. So ... I don't know. It's not my favorite -- and back to the drawing board!



Best Carrot Cake (Southern Living magazine)

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup buttermilk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups grated carrots (about 3 large carrots)
1 (8-ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained
1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut
1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Buttermilk Glaze (see below)
Cream Cheese Frosting (see below)

Grease and flour a 9x13-inch pan and preheat oven to 350-degrees F.

Stir together flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Beat eggs and sugar, oil, buttermilk and vanilla at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Add flour mixture, stirring until blended. Fold in carrots, pineapple, coconut, and pecans.

Pour batter into pan and bake for 30 minutes; cover pan loosely with aluminum foil to prevent excessive browning, and bake 13 more minutes or until a wooden pick inserted into center comes out clean.

Drizzle Buttermilk Glaze evenly over cake; cool completely in pan. Spread Cream Cheese Frosting evenly over cake.

Serves 10-12.

Buttermilk Glaze
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Bring first 5 ingredients to a boil in a saucepan over medium to medium-high heat. Boil, stirring often, for 4 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in vanilla.

Cream Cheese Frosting
3/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
11 oz cream cheese, softened (use 8 oz. and 3 oz. packages of cream cheese)
3 cups sifted powdered sugar (or more, to taste)
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Add powdered sugar and vanilla; beat until smooth.
Yield 4 cups

Not Dead, Just Busy

These recipes are coming, I swear.

• Apple Crisp


• Chicken Marsala


• Slow Cooked Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic


• Carmelized Onion Pot Roast

Stay tuned!

Do a Kid a Favor....

And clink this link to see Kian's (my stepson) first animated film.




It's extremely violent. Maybe this is how Tarantino got started?

Weekend Cookbook Challenge 20: Anisette Toast from "Entertaining With the Sopranos"

I was so, so happy to find this cookbook. One of the joys in watching The Sopranos was seeing archetypes, words, locations, and even brands that are familiar to me from growing up and living on Long Island and NY. (OK, the Sopranos live in New Jersey, but there's a lot of overlap -- trust me.) And to have a cookbook that reflects that -- too much fun.

It in, Carmella Soprano, the "author" acting as a mob-wife Martha Stewart, advises readers on how to best throw a confirmation party, host a holiday celebration, or throw a get together just for the girls.

Of course, Carmella has her own way of thinking about things. From the chapter, "Small events for Men Only":

Have you ever heard the term "metrosexual"? Me neither, until they were discussing it on The View one day [...] A metrosexual is a man, I guess, who isn't gay but likes some of the finer things in life that women tend to like, like a good facial exfoliant or a color-coordinated buffet table. Well, I'm not talking about those kind of men here.

A few of Carmela's friends and family put in their two cents as well.

Janice Soprano Baccilieri with "Tips on handling rambunctious children":

I apply a mild form of fear, as in "God will punish you if you don't behave at a confirmation party." Another technique: bribe them.

Christopher Moltisanti with "Rules on the Giving of Money":

Always give cash. No checks, IOUs, travel vouchers, gift certificates (very popular these days), or free car wash coupons. Cash. [...] Put it in a plain legal-sized white envelope. Do not put your name on it in florid script, nor include a stupid "To a Cool Grad!" greeting card.

Gabriella Dante on "When Things Go Terribly Wrong":

Worst dinner party ever? Silvio has this cute cousin from Fairfield who's really into breast feeding. Twelve people sitting around a table eating osso bucco and she pulls a breast out of her halter top and stick it in little Bobo's mouth. My dad almost choked. A friend of our daughter Heather snuck down the stairs and took a picture with his cell phone. Then Rocco, the lush, tries to place an order for low fat. Sure, it's natural, but not at my table, thank you very much.

Fortunately, I don't think we have anyone JUST like these characters in the family, but there is a lot of overlap regarding the food.

One of my favorite food memories is running around the corner from my grandmother's (Me-ma) house in Astoria to the La Guli pastry shop to buy treats for dessert. Chocolate Italian ices, seven layer cookies, sfogliatelli, those little sandy cookies sandwiched together with jam and dipped in dark chocolate and sprinkles -- mmm.

But the thing I was told to buy most often was anisette toast, or as they are known in the 21st century, biscotti. They are dry and firm -- I had to dunk them in milk so I wouldn't shred the top of my mouth when I took a bite -- but delicious. (Maybe not something with wide appeal, but they do it for me.)

So I was thrilled to find a recipe for anisette toast in the pages of the Sopranos cookbook. I had to make the recipe twice as I didn't bake the first batch long enough, resulting in a rubbery, not crisp, cookie. I noted the difference in time below.

The result is good -- the flavor is spot on with La Guli's -- but, damn you, texture! They're too crunchy and, unlike La Guli's, I suspect will chip a tooth if you don't dunk them first. (So if anyone has some biscotti tips for me, please pass them along!)

Having said that, I'm glad I got to explore "Entertaining With the Sopranos" and look forward to trying out some more recipes. (Especially the Easter Sweet Bread, which was always found at Mema's table during the holiday.)

Thanks to Sara for hosting!

Anisette Toast

3 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 c. cornstarch
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
6 large eggs
1 1/2 c. sugar
1 Tbsp. anise extract

Preheat the oven to 400-degrees F. Butter a 9x13 baking pan.

Sift together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder and salt; set aside.

In the bowl of a large stand mixer, beat the eggs until foamy. Add the sugar, about a tablespoon at a time, beating constantly until very light and fluffy. Beat in the anise extract. With a rubber spatula, gradually fold in the flour mixture until just blended.

Scrape the mixture into the prepared pan and spread it out evenly. Bake 20 to 22 mintues or until the top is golden an a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove pan from oven but leave the oven on.

Let the cake cool for 5 minutes, then invert it onto a cutting board. With a serrated knife, cut the cake lengthwise in half, then cut each half crosswise into 1/2-inch thick slices.

Place slices in a single layer on two parchment lined baking sheets. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes * or until cookies are toasted and crisp. Transfer to racks to cool.

Store in an airtight container. These keep a long time.

*I baked mine for about 22 minutes total, flipping the cookies and rotating the cookie sheets about halfway through.

This Thing About Lasagna

I have always maintained that, if you are an Italian-American from the NY-metro area (and parts of NJ & Conn, too) that you are either in the mafia or know someone who is. (And, for what it's worth, I fall into the latter category. )

I have a similarly sweeping statement about those of Italian descent and lasagna: the version you grew up with is the best there is.

Sure, you might go to a fantastic restaurant, or eat dinner at a friend's who really knows how to cook, but their lasagna, no matter how delicious, just isn't as good as the one you know.

This is how I feel about my lasagna. Yes, I've had other versions -- really delicious versions! -- but they weren't mine, so they weren't the best.

Ironically, the recipe doesn't come from my Dad's (Italian) side, but my mother's (Irish) side. My mom's aunt by marriage (Aunt Ann, who, um, happened to be German) picked up this recipe from her days cooking in a school cafeteria in Queens, NY. This was during the days when cafeterias actually cooked food as one might at home, though on an admittedly larger scale.

I feel a little sheepish admitting this lasagna's pedigree (Irish? German? CAFETERIA?!?) but, who knows -- maybe Aunt Ann got the recipe came from an Italian woman who worked alongside her. Plus, it's a damn fine lasagna.

In any event, I didn't find out this story until I was in college, and by then my love for it had been long cemented. I hope you enjoy it.


Lasagna

This lasagna always tastes better the next day. You may assemble the lasagna a day ahead with stellar results. Leftovers reheat nicely in the microwave, but I like to eat it cold, too.

16 oz. lasagna noodles
1 lb of ground beef
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
Approx 37 oz. of marinara sauce (if using jarred sauce, this is typically 1 and 1/3) plus a little more for the baking dish & top of the lasagna
2 lbs of ricotta cheese
8 -12 oz. mozzarella cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 375-degrees F. Cook pasta per package directions, being careful not to overcook. Drain, then place back in the pot adding cold water to stop cooking process and prevent the pasta from sticking together.

While the pasta is cooking, in a large frying pan, brown the ground beef over medium, removing cooked meat with a slotted spoon to a small bowl. Drain all but 1 1/2 TBS of fat from the pan. Add onion, cooking until translucent. Toss in minced garlic and cook briefly. Put meat back in pan, mix well, then add in sauce.

Drain pasta well (I use my index and middle fingers as a squeegee to help get rid of excess water). In the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish, spread a bit of the reserved marinara sauce, then lay down the first layer of lasagna, overlapping the edges. Add a layer of the meat sauce (about 1/3), spreading well to cover the noodles. Add the ricotta (again 1/3 of the total) dropped from a tablespoon in an even but random pattern. Top this off with a scattering of mozzarella cheese (about 1/4 the total amount). Repeat this process two more times, layering the lasagna in alternate directions and tucking in the edges, until complete. Top the final "uncovered" layer with lasagna noodles, and lightly cover with marinara sauce. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes, or until hot in the center. Remove foil, sprinkle with additional mozzarella cheese, and bake another 5 minutes. Let stand for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

Depending on how you slice it, this serves 8-12. (I usually slice it for 12.)

Entertaining With the Sopranos

SCORE!!! I stepped into my department's conference room this morning to find a pile of books free-for-the-taking boxed up on the floor. I poked around and YES! There it was....







Entertaining with the Sopranos. Do you know how long I've wanted this book? Do you know how big a Sopranos fan I am? (Do you know how cheap I am that I haven't bought the freakin' thing before?)


But there it was, staring me in the face, completely free. (Perfect cover art, too.) Ahhhh. I am so, so happy.

And now I know exactly what book I'm using for the next WCC.