Double Yummy Apple Cake

Tags

apple and applesauce cake, apple cake, apple desserts, Apples, cake, desserts, double apple cake

I first started baking this apple cake when I was pregnant with my first daughter. It didn’t start out as a double apple cake. It was simply an apple cake, with apples, cinnamon and sugar mixed into the batter, and of course oil. I think by now some of you know how I feel about adding oil to my cake batter. If I can replace it with applesauce, I do. That’s where the double comes in. Applesauce and apples. Yummy! And rather than mix the apples into the batter, I layered them onto the batter in 2 layers and sprinkled cinnamon-sugar over them. Double yummy!

I can actually remember the very first time I made this cake. My dad loved sweets. Loved them! His on-set diabetes at the age of 60 did nothing to deter him from his beloved sugar addiction. He was in the hospital and I had gone to visit him with this freshly baked apple cake. A snack we would share together. It was lunchtime when I arrived and as he was having his lunch, he offered to share it with me. I replied that he was the one who needed to eat, not me. And being the sweet man that he was, he said, “Oh no. It’s not for you. It’s for the baby. The baby needs to eat more than you or I.” I shall always remember those words. He was already enamoured with this baby in my tummy! When the time came for the apple cake, one bite and he was smitten! And he was sure the baby was equally smitten. He believed the baby was enjoying it and would grow up loving this cake. Although my dad never got to meet my daughter, he was right. Charlotte just loves this cake. Emma does too, but it’s a comfort thing for Charlotte. And it’s comforting for me to know that Charlotte and my dad did in fact enjoy this double yummy apple cake together!

Ingredients

3/4 cups of sugar

1 1/2 cups of flour

1 1/4 teaspoons of baking powder

1/4 teaspoon of baking soda

2 or 3 large apples

2 eggs

1/4 cup of honey

2/3 cups of applesauce (I made my own with 2 or 3 apples in a food processor, adding about 1 tablespoon of water to turn it into a smooth consistency)

1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

2 tablespoons of lemon juice

1 tablespoon of sugar

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

Preheat the oven the to 350 F. Lightly oil an 8-inch square pan, line with parchment paper or tin foil, and oil the paper. Lightly flour the paper.

Make cinnamon-sugar by combining the 1 tablespoon of sugar and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon.  Set aside.

In a bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder and baking soda, and set aside. Peel, halve and core the apples. Slice them into 1/4 inch thick slices and set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, or with a hand-held mixer, beat the eggs with the 3/4 cups of sugar. Add honey, applesauce, lemon zest and beat well. With the mixer running on low speed, add the flour mixture and diluted lemon juice and mix until just combined.

Pour 1/3 of the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly. Arrange half the apple slices on top of the batter and sprinkle with 1/3 of the cinnamon-sugar. Spoon another 1/3 of the batter over the apples and spread evenly. Sprinkle with more cinnamon-sugar. Top the apples with the remaining batter, spreading evenly, and sprinkle with the remaining cinnamon-sugar.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Cool the cake in the pan on a rack for 30 minutes. Good luck with this part. As soon as the cake pan hit the counter, both girls were in the kitchen demanding a slice. I told them to go away. Then hubby came into the kitchen and helped himself to a slice. The girls were back in a flash and before I knew it, all three were biting into piping hot slices of this double yummy apple cake. If you can make it past the 30 minute cooling time, remove the cake from the pan and allow to cool completely on the rack. Now, you can dig in.

Upside Down Plum Cake & a Winner

Tags

desserts, Ontario plums, plum cake, plums, seasonal desserts, summer desserts

I just love going to the market with my girls. Emma in particular. She hops from one farmer’s stand to the next, tasting everything she possibly can along the way. And always presenting me with pieces of sweet and luscious fruit. She knows that if I have a taste of these juicy offerings, I shall be sold. “Oh mama! Taste this. It’s so sweet and juicy… you’re gonna love it!”. And love it I do!

I went to the market with an idea in my mind, an upside down apple cake. But one look upon the various Ontario plums which were on display, and I was hooked. Vibrant colours of red, purple and yellow. Magnificent! A treat just had to be made with these sweet beauties. After Emma duly fed me a taste of each plum, I decided that we just had to have one more taste of summer! There would be plenty of time to bake with apples. Now, which one would grace the top of my upside down cake? The brilliant yellow or the lustrous red? Or perhaps the deep-purple, almost-black, plum? They all tasted perfect. Oh, who says I could only have one? Why not all three?

Upside Down Plum Cake

cake batter adapted from Cooking Light

2 tablespoons of unsalted butter

1 tablespoon of melted unsalted butter

1 cup of sugar, divided into 1/2 cups

3 tablespoons of orange juice

6 to 9 plums, depending on their size, enough to fill the bottom of your pan

3/4 cups of flour

1 teaspoon of baking powder

1/4 teaspoon of salt

1/2 cup of milk

1 teaspoon of grated orange zest

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

2 egg yolks

4 egg whites

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Cut the plums in half and remove the pit. If they’re rather big, quarter them as I did.

In a 9 or 10 inch cast-iron skillet or oven pan, melt the 2 tablespoons of butter over medium-heat on the stovetop. Add 1/2 cup of sugar and the orange juice. Cook until sugar dissolves and remove from heat. Arrange the plums, cut sides up, on the bottom of your pan or skillet.

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Add milk, melted butter, orange zest, vanilla and egg yolks. Stir with a whisk until smooth.

Beat the egg whites at high speed of a mixer, until foamy. Gradually add remaining 1/2 cup of sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, beating until stiff peaks form.

Gently stir in 1/4 of the egg whites into the batter. Gently fold in the remaining egg whites. Pour the batter over the plums, spreading evenly.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Cool in the pan or skillet for 10 minutes. Place a plate upside down on top of skillet/pan and invert the cake onto the plate. Serve warm or at room temperature. Enjoy!

And now for the winner of the Maple Bundle Giveaway (see Pouding Chômeur & an Anniversary).  

I had my daughter Emma write down all the names of those who had left comments on the above-mentioned post. She then proceeded to cut them out and placed them in a little box. I then wanted Charlotte to pick a name from the box, but Oh No! Emma would not have it! She had done all the work, why should Charlotte have the enjoyment of picking the winner? This happens every time I try to engage the two of them to do something, and I always end up asking myself why, oh why? So I had them do it together, after much reluctance on behalf of Emma. And the winner is:

Karen, over at Back Road Journal. Congratulations Karen!

Pouding Chômeur & an Anniversary

Tags

desserts, maple syrup, maple syrup cake, maple syrup dessert, Quebec, Quebec desserts, Quebec maple products

Oh Lidia celebrates 1 year today! Yay! And what a year it’s been! Who knew I would so be enjoying this blogging thing? I’ll tell you who. Sue! Sue knew. This was her idea. I still recall the e-mail she sent back in March 2012. Simple. “I’ve been thinking. I think you should start a food blog. Actually, you must start a food blog. You must!”. And the rest, as they say, is history!

Well, not quite. There were a few hitches. Such as not-so encouraging comments. Like, “Oh, not another food blog!”. And, “What’s the purpose of a food blog?”. Or this one, “A blog? Don’t you have to BE someone to have a blog?”. I think they meant someone of importance. Someone knowledgeable who people could look up to. Well, I can tell you this. I’m pretty important to my daughters and they look up to me. They also believe that I know everything!

Oh, and then there was the confidence issue. Not believing that I could do it. In late March 2012, Sue had pretty much set-up my blog and showed me how to go about it. By the time June rolled around, I still hadn’t done anything with it. Why? I wasn’t a writer. I would be terrible at it. I can still recall my creative writing class in college. On the first day of class, the professor went through the course outline and stated that he would be calling upon students every class and have them read their writing out loud. And at the very end of that first class, I went straight to the admin office and dropped that class! No joke. In August, her hubby Halvdan asked my what the problem was. I told him. “I’m not a writer. I can’t write! I look at other blogs and I can’t do what they’re doing. What will people think?”. And then came his words of wisdom: “You don’t want to do what others are doing. You have to be you. And you’re not doing this for anyone. You’re doing it for you. Because it’s your passion. Just write the way you talk to me about food. Pretend you’re talking to me or Sue.” One week later, I launched my blog. And now it’s one year later! Hurray!

Thank you my friends! And not just those who gave me that gentle shove. To all my good friends who have encouraged and supported me. To my family, Carmine and Franca. To hubby and my girls, Charlotte and Emma. Especially them. For keeping them waiting while they were starving because I had to take just one more picture. And then when dinner was finally on the table, asking them to wait just a smidgen longer for that final photo. And to all of my new friends. That would be you! For without you, this blog would be pretty much non-existent. So thank you!

And now, on to the good stuff! Pouding Chômeur and a giveaway! 

I was once asked if I preferred receiving or giving gifts. I LOVE to give gifts. And to celebrate the first anniversary of Oh Lidia, I will be giving one of you a Maple Syrup Bundle. Maple syrup, maple butter and maple sugar! All pure, and all made in La Belle Province, Quebec. This way, you could make my Maple Syrup Cake. Or my Rhubarb-Maple Syrup Crème Brûlée (Yumminess in a Jar).  And even this very sinful Pouding Chômeur. If you’re into bourbon, why not give my Bourbon & Maple Syrup Fusion a try. Leave a comment if you’re interested in entering the draw, and I will contact the winner in just over a week.

Pouding Chômeur is a typical Quebecois dessert made with maple syrup. Chômeur meaning unemployed person in French, this dessert literally translates to unemployed person’s pudding, or poor man’s pudding. It was created by female factory workers during the Great Depression, in 1929. It consists of a maple syrup and cream sauce that is poured over the top of a cake batter. During the baking process, the sauce ends up on the bottom, all thick and gooey. And wickedly delicious! But it wasn’t always so. During the Depression, this dessert was meant to reflect its working-class roots. Back then, only the very basic of ingredients were available to these female factory workers: butter, flour, milk and brown sugar. No eggs, no cream. And definitely no maple syrup as it was too expensive. The original Pouding Chômeur cake batter was made without eggs, and its rich and sweet sauce was made up of brown sugar and water. I’ve had the original version, made by hubby himself. It’s good. But once you’ve tasted the “very rich poor man’s pudding”, oh my! There’s no turning back!

Maple Syrup Pouding Chômeur

2 cups of pure Maple Syrup

2 cups of 35% cream, heavy or double cream

1 1/2 cups of flour

2 teaspoons of baking powder

1/4 teaspoon of salt

1/2 cup of unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup of sugar

2 eggs

3/4 cups of milk

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a medium-sized saucepan, bring to boil the maple syrup and the cream. Set aside once it reaches a boil.

In a small bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, cream the butter and sugar. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour and milk, alternating between the two. Add vanilla and mix well. Pour the batter in a large baking dish or pan, a 10-cup capacity, and spread evenly.

Carefully pour the maple syrup and cream sauce over the cake batter.

Bake for 40 minutes and let it cool slightly. We like to eat ours warm so within 20 or 30 minutes, we’re ready to dig in!

You can also bake this in Mason jars. Pour some cake batter about half way up the jars and then pour some of the syrup sauce over the batter, stopping at about 1/4 away from the top. Bake at 350 degrees F for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the batter comes out clean.

Vino e Fragole

Tags

desserts, Italian wine, strawberries, strawberries and wine, strawberry desserts

One of the fondest memories I have of my dad is of his winemaking . As with most Italians who arrived in Montreal straight off the boat, one of the treasures my dad and uncles took with them from the Old World was the art of making wine. Vino. I’m not sure if all Italians made their wine heavy and strong, but it seemed to be de rigueur in our circle of family and friends. So much so that the women needed to add 7-Up or mineral water to their wine, whereas us youngsters would add a few drops to our 7-Up, just enough to flavour our drink and give it a purplish hue. Oh, how pretty it looked! Yes indeed, we were introduced to wine at a young age. It wasn’t a daily event mind you, mostly during holiday celebrations or festive occasions.

Every autumn, come September and October, trainloads of grapes would come rolling into Montreal from California. Red grapes. White grapes. Yummy grapes! My dad made both red and white wine. The men would take turns going to each other’s homes and lend a hand with this arduous task. One night in my dad’s garage. The next night in my Uncle Tony’s. The night after that, my Uncle Silvester’s. And I can proudly say that I played a pivotal role in helping my dad make his wine. Not just with the extraction of the deep-red droplets through the wine press. Oak barrels were used to ferment the grapes in for about one week to 10 days. They were just over 3 feet/95 cm tall, making it difficult to reach the bottom of the barrel. My dad would lay the barrel on the floor and I would crawl into it and scrape the bottom of the barrel. The fumes were remarkably intoxicating, and after scraping the bottom of 5 barrels, off I went to bed where I would be out like a light!

My fondest memory of my dad’s wine was during strawberry season. He made the loveliest strawberries in wine. I just LOVED it! It was an elixir for me and I still LOVE it to this day! Although my daughters did not have the opportunity of meeting my dad nor of tasting his wine infused with 7-Up, I wanted them to have a taste of his favourite strawberry treat. Vino e fragole.

Strawberries in Wine

Strawberries

Sugar

Red wine

Cut the strawberries in half, or quarter them if they’re big. In a bowl, add the strawberries and sugar to your liking, perhaps a tablespoon per cup of strawberries. Add your favourite red wine, enough to just cover the strawberries. It’s essential that you use a good quality wine as you do end up drinking it in the end.

Taste it and adjust the amount of sugar. It does get slightly sweeter as they macerate. Cover and refrigerate at least 24 hours. The longer, the better! For adults, I like to serve them in wine glasses so that any left-over wine can be easily slurped. Buonissimo!

Yumminess in a Jar

Tags

creme brûlée, desserts, maple syrup, rhubarb, rhubarb and creme brulee, rhubarb and maple syrup, rhubarb-maple syrup creme brûlée

Rhubarb-Maple Syrup Crème Brûlée

I just love the presentation of individual-sized desserts. You can have so much fun with it. Like using pretty cocktail or wine glasses, as I did with White Chocolate and Passionfruit Mousse. I especially love it when desserts are baked in a variety of different vessels and presented as is. Like my Maple Syrup Cake baked in the maple syrup tin. Or baked goodies in glass jars! How clever is that? Your very own little jar of yumminess to hold in your hand, all to yourself. I think it’s genius that you can see through the various layers. It’s reminiscent of an old-fashioned dessert, some sweet comfort from the deep South. They are practical as heck to transport. They make the most adorable gifts. And they’re just plain ol’ cute!

I thought I’d try making Crème Brûlée in individual sized Mason jars. The wide-mouth jars, to make it easier to scoop your spoon in and out of. And not just any Crème Brûlée either. Quebec Rhubarb is making its appearance at the farmers’ markets, therefore combining it with maple syrup and adding it at the bottom of the jar would make for a pleasant and sweet-tart surprise, no? And infusing it all with a little fresh rosemary? Just picture it. The custard is lightly flavoured with maple syrup and there is just a hint of infused rosemary to it. And when you plunge your spoon all the way down to the bottom of the jar, you come up with that sublime custard and the tarty rhubarb-rosemary-maple syrup flavour combination. Definitely not for the Crème Brûlée purist. Like my brother! He had a taste and declared that when he wants to eat a Crème Brûlée, he doesn’t want anything else in it. He’ll take the classic and, according to him, only version of this sumptuous dessert. I, on the other hand, like to create and diversify. And I sure am glad I came across this recipe at edible Green Mountains. I just love it!

Give it a try and decide for yourself if you’re a Crème Brûlée purist, or if you enjoy a little adventure when plunging into one of these delectable yummies! You can omit the maple syrup if it’s hard to come by and cook the rhubarb with brown sugar or honey instead. Not a rosemary fan? Skip it. Or try it with fresh lavender! Oh, yum!

Rhubarb-Maple Syrup Crème Brûlée

2 cups of diced rhubarb
¼ cup of maple syrup
1 teaspoon finely diced fresh rosemary
1 cup of 35% cream, heavy or double cream
¼ teaspoon of vanilla
2 large rosemary sprigs
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
3 tablespoons of maple syrup
4 tablespoons of maple sugar
4 four-ounce ramekins, or 4 250 ml Mason/Ball jars

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

In a small pan, add the rhubarb, 1/4 cup of maple syrup and chopped rosemary. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until rhubarb is soft, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

While the rhubarb cooks, add the cream, vanilla and rosemary sprigs in a small pan and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the cream just starts to bubble. Remove from heat. Remove the rosemary sprigs, along with any leaves that may have dislodged from the stem.

In a medium bowl, beat the egg, egg yolk and maple syrup with a whisk. While whisking, slowly pour the hot cream into the egg mixture. Divide the rhubarb evenly on the the bottom of the ramekins or jars.

Pour the cream over the rhubarb in each jar, filling to the top with the ramekins or just below the top if using jars. They need to bake in a water bath. Therefore, place a casserole dish or a deep oven dish into the oven and transfer the jars to that dish. Pour some hot tap water into the dish until it reaches half way up the sides of the jars. Bake for about 35 minutes, until the custard quivers when shaken but there is no longer any liquid underneath the skin. Cool the custard in the fridge for a minimum of 1 hour and up to 3 days.

When cool, or when you’re ready to serve them, sprinkle the maple sugar over each custard. You can use white sugar instead if you don’t have maple sugar. If you have a little blow torch, go ahead and burn the sugar until it’s nice and dark. No torch? Adjust your oven rack to the highest location in the oven. Turn on the broil. Add the jars or ramekins on the top rack, just under the broiler, for about 5 minutes. Every oven is different so give it a look after 3 minutes. When the sugar had burned, they’re done! Remove from the oven, give them a few minutes for the sugar coating to crystallize and serve. Enjoy!

Meyer Lemon Soufflés

Tags

dessert souffles, desserts, lemon desserts, lemon souffle, meyer lemon souffles, meyer lemons, souffles

The first time I bought Meyer Lemons was by mistake. I noticed these cute little handle-bags filled with lemons. I picked one up to make lemon water for Charlotte’s sore throat. Once home, I noticed they were different. Not quite as yellow as regular lemons, the skin on these were much thinner and had a slightly orange tint to them. I sliced one open. The flesh looked oh, so juicy. Upon tasting it, I realized how much sweeter it was than a regular lemon. I looked on the bag and only then did I notice the words Meyer Lemons.

This darling citrus fruit is apparently a cross between a lemon and a mandarin, and grows profusely in California. I could just imagine having a Meyer Lemon tree in my backyard if I was only so lucky to live in California. They are lower in acidity, sweeter and more floral in taste, making them just perfect for lemon desserts and even cocktails. I once made a delicious Lemon Drop Martini with this little sweetie. Once difficult to find here in Montreal, they are now more common in grocery stores and farmers’ markets. Unlike the regular lemon though, this little baby has a shorter shelf-life and is seasonal. They can be found from December or January through May, early June if you’re in luck.

I whipped up these gorgeous little Meyer Lemon Soufflés, courtesy of Martha Stewart. Oh, they were the yummiest! And a first for me with soufflés.

Meyer Lemon Soufflés

• 8 large lemons, preferably Meyer
• 3 large eggs, separated
• 1/2 cup of granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour
• Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting, optional

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Trim the tip ends, or bottoms, from the lemons so that the fruit sits level. I suggest you keep these little tip ends, and you’ll see why in a minute. Cut the stem ends, or tops, about a quarter of the way down, maybe a little less, making cuts parallel with the bottom.

Hold a lemon above a sieve set over a bowl, and scoop out the pulp. Repeat with the remaining lemons. If you’re not careful, you might scrape a hole in the bottom, as I did. Not to worry though. That’s why I suggested you hold on to those little tips. Now you can just add the tips on the bottom so the soufflé batter doesn’t ooze out.

Squeeze the juice from the pulp, and reserve. Repeat with all lemons. Place shells on prepared baking sheet.

Combine egg yolks, 1/4 cup of granulated sugar, 1/4 cup of reserved lemon juice, and flour in the heat-proof bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat mixture on medium speed until pale yellow, about 3 minutes. Place bowl over a pan of simmering water. Whisk constantly until very thick, about 8 minutes. Remove bowl from heat and return to mixer. Beat on medium speed until cool, scraping down sides several times, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl and set aside.

Combine egg whites and remaining 1/4 cup of granulated sugar in clean mixer bowl. Place the bowl over the pan of simmering water and stir until sugar has dissolved and mixture is warm to the touch. Remove bowl from heat and return to mixer. Beat on low speed until frothy. Gradually increase the speed until meringue is shiny and holds soft peaks, 2 to 3 minutes, being careful not to over beat. Whisk 1/3 of the meringue into the yolk mixture. Gently fold int the remaining meringue. Carefully fill the prepared lemon shells to just below the rims, or to the very top of the rims as I did!

Transfer the baking sheet to the oven and bake until meringue is slightly golden and rises about 1 inch above the shell, about 14 minutes. Remove from oven and transfer to serving plates. Dust with confectioner’s sugar if desired. Serve immediately.

Exquisite Hazelnut-Chocolate Cakes

Tags

cakes, chocolate, chocolate hazelnut cakes, desserts, Frangelico, hazelnut-chocolate cakes, hazelnuts, Italian desserts, nutella

I just love the combination of hazelnuts and chocolate, don’t you? The first thing that comes to mind is Nutella. And although these little cakes are reminiscent of that delicious spread of hazelnuts and chocolate, there is no Nutella to be found in them whatsoever. They do share a few main components, hazelnuts and chocolate, but the cakes have an added ingredient to them: an absolutely divine liqueur known as Frangelico. If you love hazelnuts and have yet to be introduced to Frangelico, then you must give it a try. I would say it is the Italian equivalent to Bailey’s Irish Cream. Perfect on the rocks, in baked goods, even in your coffee. I had some in my cafe-latte this morning. Perhaps not ideal first thing in the morning, but hey, it sure was yummy!

Frangelico dates back to over 300 years, to the Piemonte region of northern Italy, and was distilled by Christian monks living in the hills of that area. Legend has it that its name is the abbreviation for Fra. Angelico, a hermit monk believed to have inhabited the magnificent Piemonte hills during the 17th century. Take a look at the monk’s-habit-shaped bottle with the traditional rope-belt around it’s waist. Charming, no?

Distilled with Tonda Gentile hazelnuts which are a specialty grown in this northern region of Italy, they are bigger, plumper, more uniform, shed their skin easily and allows for toasting with no bitter taste. It’s no wonder these hazelnuts are sought after from confectioner’s like Ferrero Rocher and, you guessed it, Nutella!

So why do these little cakes remind me so much of Nutella? The intense hazelnut taste, the smoothness of the chocolate, it’s rich, moist texture. But don’t take my word for it. Give these babies a try and see for yourself!

Recipe adapted from Mario Batali’s Babbo Cookbook.

Ingredients

• 8 oz. of bittersweet chocolate
• 2 oz. of unsweetened chocolate
• 4 oz. of toasted hazelnuts
• 3 tablespoons of confectioner’s sugar
• 1/4 cup of Dutch-process cocoa powder
• 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) of unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3/4 cup plus 5 tablespoons of granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup of hazelnut butter
• 6 eggs, separated
• 2 teaspoons of brewed espresso coffee, cooled completely
• 3 teaspoons of Frangelico
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch springform pan or 12 3-inch ramekins with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.

Melt the 2 chocolates together and set aside to cool. I use the bain-marie method.

In food processor, pulse the hazelnuts, confectioner’s sugar and cocoa powder to form a fine, sand-like mixture. I made sure the hazelnuts weren’t blitzed completely, so as to keep a little crunch. I used hazelnuts with their skin on. Immediately after toasting them in the oven at 350 degrees F for 10 minutes, rub the hazelnuts between your fingers and the skin will shed right off.

In an electric mixer, beat the butter and 3/4 cup of the granulated sugar until very light and fluffy. Beat in the hazelnut butter, then the egg yolks, one at a time. Beat in the espresso, Frangelico, and vanilla, followed by the melted chocolate. Fold in the nut mixture.

In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until foamy and then gradually add the remaining 5 tablespoons of sugar. Continue beating until soft peaks form. Fold egg whites into the cake batter. If using ramekins, place them on baking sheets and divide the batter evenly among them.

Bake the cakes for 16 to 18 minutes, until they puff up and no longer look wet on top. If making a 9-inch cake, bake for 45 to 50 minutes. Remove from oven and cool completely in the ramekins, or pan, on a wire rack.

Don’t be surprised when your cakes go from looking like this…

to looking like this.

I was serving these little cakes to a group of 25 people. So I gently ran a knife around the rim and inverted them upside-down.

The presentation was lacking somewhat so I decided to whip up some 35% cream with a couple of splashes of Frangelico. The addition of a toasted hazelnut on top and voila! Ready to serve.

Winning Valentine’s Day Dessert

Tags

cayenne pepper, chocolate, chocolate pots, chocolate pots with cayenne pepper, cinnamon whipped cream, desserts, Grand Marnier whipped cream, Valentine's Day Dessert

After my third attempt in presenting my brother with a dessert deemed worthy of his Valentine’s Day dinner menu, success! Although he liked them all, this one was the winner. Cayenne Chocolate Pots with Grand Marnier Whipped Cream. Outrageously decadent, I admit, but just perfect for chocoholics who are looking for that little twist in their chocolate pot. The taste of cayenne pepper is completely undetected. After the first spoonful you get the rich, unctuous taste of dark chocolate. After the second spoonful, you are in chocolate heaven! At this point, you start to feel a little heat at the back of your throat. By the third spoonful, the warmth that engulfs your throat and mouth, just slightly, leaves you with a pleasant sensation. And I haven’t even mentioned the whipped cream with Grand Marnier. Well, what more needs to be said about the marriage of dark chocolate and orange liqueur? Pure lusciousness in a pot!

I made a kid-friendly version for the girls. Meaning, no cayenne and freshly grated cinnamon in the whipped cream instead of Grand Marnier. And I made them in heart dishes. I chose to wait before having my dessert. I have to say, these are not for the faint-of-heart. It is pure, chocolate indulgence at its best. I thought that surely the girls couldn’t finish them off and that I would swoop in and clean-up their bowls. Clearly, I was mistaken!

Although these little pots are quite simple to make and only requires 5 ingredients, the quality of the chocolate you use has got to be exceptional. I tend to use Belgian chocolate, Callebaut. But you can use Valrhona, Barry, Scharffen Berger… just not the baking chocolate you pick-up at the grocer’s.

Chocolate Pots

2 cups of whole milk
500g of dark chocolate (more or less 70% cocoa), chopped up
6 large egg yolks
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper, optional

Over medium heat, bring milk to a simmer. Add the chocolate chunks, stirring until melted. Remove from heat and allow to sit for 10 minutes.

In a large bowl, beat the egg yolks. Slowly begin to add the chocolate, one ladle at a time, whisking continuously. You want to do this slowly so the eggs don’t cook and scramble. Once you’re about 1/2 way through, add the remaining chocolate and continue to whisk. Add the vanilla, salt and cayenne if using. I’m not very good at measuring and keeping track. Instead, I taste. So after adding say 1/8 of a teaspoon of cayenne, I tasted the chocolate and adjusted until I got the desired effect. Transfer the mixture to small pots, cups, glasses, bowls… or into one large bowl. Refrigerate until set, about 2 hours for the small pots and 3 to 4 hours if using a large bowl. Add a dollop of whipped cream and enjoy!

Whipped Cream

1 cup of 35% whipping cream

1 teaspoon freshly grated cinnamon or about 1 tablespoon of Grand Marnier

Whip up the cream until soft peaks form. Fold in some freshly grated cinnamon. Or if you’re using Grand Marnier, whisk it into the cream as you’re whipping it up. Again, I kept adding little splashes of it as I went along. Taste and adjust to your liking.

Passion Crepes

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crepes, desserts, Passion Crepes, passion fruit, passion fruit caramel sauce, pastry cream, Valentine's Day Dessert, vanilla pastry cream

February is the month of LOVE. I can just imagine some of you rolling your eyes and thinking that every month should be the month of love. Some of you may be of the opinion that Valentine’s day is far too commercial. And you’re right. I always show my loved ones how much they are appreciated and loved, no matter what month it is. But I have to admit, I love Valentine’s Day. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not into going out and spending money on gifts. But I do love giving them that little extra something. Sweets for my sweets! Like making heart-shaped desserts, or serving chocolate pudding in heart-shaped bowls. And that’s not something I do every day. And besides, how can I not love Valentine’s when Emma reminds me every year that she is my Valentine gift. She was born on the 15th, you see.

I’ve mentioned before that my brother is a Chef and owner of an Italian restaurant, La Vieille Banque. He rang me the other day asking for a dessert idea for his Valentine’s Day dinner. Needless to say that Valentine’s is HUGE business for restaurants. I gave it some thought. What is Valentine’s Day about? Sweet, love, heat… And what came to mind was chocolate, passion fruit, cayenne pepper.

First up is Passion Crepes. Crepes filled with a vanilla pastry cream and drizzled with a passion fruit caramel sauce. I came across this recipe in the South Beach Wine & Food Festival Cookbook. It was originally created by Claude Troisgros for a special dinner for Bill Clinton. I thought I’d give it a try. The pastry cream was pure bliss. The passion fruit sauce, divine! The crepes were light and fluffy and slightly sweet…superb! The only downfall is the amount of time it takes to make the crepes. I’ve made crepes before, but never this way. They’re great if serving a small group, say 8 to 10 people. But if you need to make over 100, which is what my brother needs, it is far too time-consuming. The recipe yields 20 crepes. It takes 20 minutes to cook up 5 crepes! You would need a Pastry Chef along with 2 Sous-Pastry Chefs to get 100 of these done!

Pastry Cream

3 large egg yolks

1/3 cup sugar

1 tbsp flour

1 cup whole milk

1 vanilla bean, split and scraped

In a mixing bow, whisk egg yolks with sugar until light and fluffy. Add flour.

In a saucepan, bring milk, vanilla bean and vanilla seeds to a boil.

Remove pan from heat and gradually stir in the egg yolk mixture. Return pan to the heat and bring to a boil, whisking constantly, and cook until thick, 1 or 2 minutes. Remove from heat and transfer to a bowl, allowing to cool for at least 2 hours. Note: If you fill your crepes with a substantial amount of cream the way I did, you should double up on the pastry cream.

Passion Fruit Caramel Sauce

8 oz./225 g passion fruit

3/4 cup sugar

8 tbsp water

2 tbsp cold butter

There’s a passion fruit dessert which is quite popular amongst the Portuguese community and because of this, Portuguese grocery stores carry passion fruit pulp. It comes frozen in 1 lb./450 g and can be found both with the seeds or without. Lucky for me, we have a Portuguese neighbourhood here in Montreal where I scooped up a few packages of each. If you’re in a part of the world where you can purchase them fresh at this time of year, you’re even luckier than I am! So, begin by combining the sugar and 1 tbsp of water in a medium saucepan. Cook on medium heat until it turns a light caramel colour. Do keep an eye on it as it takes but a few seconds to go from light in colour to dark, turning your caramel into a bitter-tasting one. Remove from heat and add passion fruit with seeds and remaining 7 tbsp of water. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in the butter until melted and set aside.

Crepes

10 large eggs, separated

1 cup sugar

1 cup plus 1 tbsp flour

2 cups whole milk

6 tbsp butter

1 tsp baking soda

In a mixing bowl, whisk egg yolks with 1/2 cup of sugar until pale and smooth. Gradually add the flour.

In a saucepan, bring the milk and butter to a boil. Remove from heat and let cool 2 minutes. Pour hot milk into egg yolk mixture and mix well.

In a clean bowl, beat egg whites and remaining 1/2 cup of sugar until soft peaks form. Stir in the baking soda. Fold the egg whites into the batter.

Heat oven at 350 degrees F.

Heat some butter in a non-stick pan and add a generous ladle of batter. You can use a 6-inch pan if you’ve got one and fill with enough batter to cover. I used a larger pan and made 6-inch crepes, making it easier to lift. Cook 2 minutes on one side only and then place crepe on a baking sheet. I was able to fit 5 crepes on my baking sheet. Bake in oven for 10 minutes.

Fill each crepe half with a generous amount of pastry cream. Fold over and either sit atop some passion fruit sauce, or drizzle sauce over crepe. Or both! Enjoy!

Cupcake anyone?

Tags

Cupcakes, desserts, Sweets

I baked up a storm of cupcakes recently.  6 delicious flavours! Amazingly-Red Velvet Cupcakes,  Sweet-Tart Lemon Cupcakes,  Delectable Black-Bottom Cupcakes (although I might re-name this one Halvdan’s Fave Cupcakes),  Outta-This-World Salted Caramel Cupcakes, I Dream of Nutella Cupcakes and Oh Tiramisu Cupcakes.  Just came up with the names, by the way.  What do you think?

And here they are.  Don’t they look fabulous?  And they taste even better!

My friend Sue took these photos for me. Aren’t the pics gorgeous?  I owe her way more than just the dozen cupcakes I gave her!