It was a busy weekend. I made Mini Key LIme Pies for a party/luncheon today and with made some Chocolate Frosting filled Graham Cracker Cookies with the leftover graham cracker. Did I mention we also went to a wine tasting south of Sacramento?
The pies took two attempts as the first was a disaster. I over whipped the batter and cooled the pies to quickly causing them to collapse. I made them a second time and swapped the whisk for a paddle attachment after the eggs and cream cheese were well blended. I also left them in the oven when they were at the “jiggle” stage, turned the oven off and opened the door. This allowed them to cool slower. Once I could move the pan with bare hands I let them cool on the counter until they were room temperature, then moved them to the fridge.
The Graham cracker cookies can use and chocolate frosting you like.
The left picture shows the finished mini pie in the foreground and a disaster one in the back and a “recovered” bad one in the center
Mini Key Lime Pies – Sally
INGREDIENTS Crust • 180 g (1 ½ c) graham cracker crumbs (about 12 full sheet graham crackers) • 85g (6 Tbl) unsalted butter, melted • 50 g ( ¼ c) granulated sugar Filling • 4 ounces (113g) full-fat brick cream cheese, softened to room temperature • 4 large egg yolks • 396 g (one 14-ounce can) full-fat sweetened condensed milk • 120 ml ( ½ c) key lime juice* optional: lime slices and whipped cream for garnish
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a 12-count muffin pan with liners and a second 12-count muffin pan with only 4 (since this recipe makes only around 16). Set pans aside.
Use a food processor or blender to grind graham crackers. Mix the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, and granulated sugar together with a silicone spatula in a medium bowl until combined. The mixture will be thick, coarse, and sandy. Press a heaping Tablespoon of mixture down into each liner, making sure the crust is tight and compact. You might have a little crust leftover. If so, press a little more into each liner—if desired! Pre-bake the crusts for 5 minutes. Remove from the oven.
In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the cream cheese on high speed until smooth, about 1 minute. On medium-high speed, beat in the egg yolks, scraping down the sides as needed. On high speed, beat in the sweetened condensed milk and lime juice until combined. DO NOT OVER MIX.
Pour the filling evenly into each crust. Bake for 15–16 minutes or until the centers of the pies only slightly jiggle. Turn off the oven and open the door. Allow the pies to cool until the pans can be moved with bare hands, then let them cool to room temperature. Once completely cool, place the pan in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours and up to 1 day.
Once chilled, serve the key lime pies cold with whipped cream or Italian meringue and a lime slice if desired. I also drizzled some blueberry sauce over the pie.
Store leftover pies in the refrigerator (covered) for up to 1 week. If they last that long!
The idea for this parfait jumped into my head a couple of weeks ago. I knew I wanted the bottom to be creme patisserie, topped with fresh raspberry sauce. I was unsure of the upper layer until last week. It is creme chiboust, to add a lighter component. I considered adding a chocolate component and QC suggested crumbled graham crackers, which I did but made chocolate graham crackers to add a crunch. It is topped off with brûléed Italian meringue.
Make the chocolate graham crackers early to they have time to cool and crisp up, Make the creme patisserie early also so it has time to cool to room temperature. (To make 10 five ounce cups, as pictured, requires two recipes of creme patisserie.)
Chill the cup between adding each layer.
The raspberry sauce can be made a week in advance. Make sure it is thick enough not to run up the sides of the container when the creme chiboust is added. The viscosity of a thin jam is perfect.
Raspberry Parfait with Crème Chiboust
INGREDIENTS: Raspberry Dessert Sauce (Can make 1 week in advance) • 1 Tbl water • 2 tsp cornstarch • 375g (¾ c) fresh or frozen raspberries • 50g ( ¼ c) granulated sugar • 1 tsp fresh lemon juice (do not leave out) • optional: ½ tsp vanilla extract Chocolate Graham Crackers – KAB (Can make 1 week in advance) • 60g ( ½ c) All-Purpose Flour • 85g ((¾ ca) Whole Wheat Flour • ½ tsp table salt • ½ cup (42g) Dutch-process cocoa • 1 ¼ cups (142g) confectioners’ sugar • 1 tsp baking powder • 113g (8 Tbl ) unsalted butter, cold, cut into pats • 43g (2 Tbl) honey • 28g (2 Tbl) milk, cold Creme Patisserie: • 240 mL full-fat milk 1 c • 4 egg yolks from large eggs (save the egg whites from these eggs for the meringue) • 30 g butter 2 Tbl • ¼ tsp sea salt • 25 g sugar ~ 2 generous Tbl • 30 g cornstarch – 4 Tbl • 1.5 tsp vanilla extract Italian meringue: • 4 egg whites at room temperature • 150 g white sugar – ¾ cup • 80 g water – ⅓ cup
METHOD Chocolate Graham Crackers
Preheat your oven to 325°F with racks in the upper and lower thirds. Have two baking sheets and parchment paper to line them at the ready.
In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flours, salt, cocoa, sugar, and baking powder. With a pastry blender, two knives, or your fingertips, cut the butter into the flour mixture until evenly crumbly.
In a separate bowl, whisk the honey and milk, stirring until the honey dissolves. Add the liquid to the dry ingredients and toss lightly with a fork until the dough comes together. Add additional milk, if necessary.
Turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface and fold it over gently 10 to 12 times, until smooth.
Divide the dough in half, about 250 grams each. Work with half the dough at a time, keeping the remaining dough covered.
Working with one piece at a time, transfer the dough to a sheet of parchment and shape into a flattened square. Place another piece of parchment over top and roll the dough to about 1/16″ thick; aim to roll it into a rectangle a bit larger than 10″ x 14″. Prick the dough evenly with a dough docker or fork.
Use the parchment to transfer the sheet of dough to a baking sheet, then gently peel off the top sheet. Repeat with the remaining piece of dough.
Bake the crackers for 15 to 20 minutes, rotating the baking sheets top to bottom and front to back halfway through, or until you begin to smell chocolate. Remove them from the oven, and immediately cut them into rectangles with a pizza wheel or knife. Transfer them to a rack to cool.
Store the cooled crackers tightly wrapped for up to a week, or freeze for up to one month.
Raspberry Dessert Sauce
Whisk the cornstarch and water together until all the cornstarch has dissolved. Combine cornstarch mixture, raspberries, granulated sugar, and lemon juice in a small saucepan over medium heat. Using a silicone spatula, stir the mixture while lightly mashing the raspberries as they begin to heat.
Bring to a boil and let it boil for 3 full minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the pan from heat and—if desired for a richer flavor—stir in vanilla extract, and if desired, a few fresh raspberries.
OPTIONAL (SKIP for a thicker sauce) Press the warm sauce through a fine mesh strainer to remove the seeds, if desired. I use the back of a spoon to press the liquid through the strainer, held over a bowl. It takes a couple minutes to really squeeze it all out.
Feel free to serve warm over warm desserts, but it should be cooled to really thicken up. Cool the sauce completely at room temperature or in the refrigerator. The sauce will thicken slightly as it cools, but the strained version is still liquid and perfect for drizzling.
Creme Patisserie
Whisk eggs and milk together and add to all other ingredients (except vanilla) to a medium saucepan.
Bring to boil whisking constantly
Cook until thickened (it will look lumpy, its ok)
Sieve lumpy mixture into a bowl and add vanilla, mix thoroughly
When incorporated, cover with plastic directly on the crème patisserie and cool about an hour. Alternatively, slide the piping tip you would use to fill the pâte à choux into the piping bag but don’t cut off the tip. Spoon the hot batter directly into the piping bag and seal the end. When the crème patisserie is cool, cut the tip off, force the bag around the piping tip and squeeze the crème pat to fill the end.
Italian meringue
In a medium-sized saucepan, combine the sugar and water. Heat over low heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Once the sugar has dissolved, turn the heat to medium-high and allow the syrup to come to a boil without stirring.
In the meantime, add the egg whites to a medium-sized, heatproof bowl and mix (with a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment) until foamy and the whites are almost able to hold soft peaks.
Once the syrup is boiling, clip on a candy (or sugar) thermometer.
Cook until the syrup reaches 116°C/240°F, then take the pan off the heat and slowly drizzle the hot syrup into the bowl with the foamy egg whites, mixing continuously to prevent the eggs from scrambling. Don’t pour the syrup onto the whisk, or the syrup may splatter against the sides of the bowl (or into your face!). Instead, aim for a spot close to the whisk.
Once all the syrup has been added, keep mixing until the bottom of the bowl feels cool to the touch and the meringue has cooled down to body temperature.
Use immediately or keep in the fridge (covered) until ready to use. It’s a very stable meringue, so it won’t start weeping, leaking or collapsing.
Creme Chiboust
Add about ⅓ of the meringue mix into the room temperature custard, and mix to loosen up the custard base.
Add the rest of the meringue and fold it in until there are no more white streaks in the custard. Be gentle when you fold in the meringue because if you mix it too vigorously, you will lose the air and it may deflate too much.
It’s very important to use the creme chiboust while it’s at room temperature, since it will set in the fridge. If you do want to keep the creme chiboust in the fridge, you will need to whisk it again before using. However, keep in mind that this will deflate the mixture AND not set as well again.
My neighbors, Donna and Alex (QC Cadre members,) gave me some huge peaches from their tree. I could barely finish the smallest so I decided to use two pounds of the rest to make Sally’s Fresh Peach Cobbler. Her recipe calls for about four pounds which would be baked in a 9”x13” dish, so I scaled it in half, used two pounds and used a 8”x8” dish. (I knew a full recipe would be too much for us to eat.)
Other than the scaling down I followed the recipe exactly and it was (and still is) delicious.
Fresh Peach Cobbler- Sally
INGREDIENTS Peach Filling • 0.9kg (~2 lbs) fresh peaches, peeled and cut into 1- to 1.5-inch chunks • 25g (⅛ c) packed light or dark brown sugar • ½ Tbl cornstarch • 8ml (½ Tbl) fresh lemon juice • ½ tsp pure vanilla extract • ¼ tsp ground cinnamon • 1/16 tsp ground nutmeg • 1/16 tsp ground ginger • 1/16 tsp salt Biscuit Topping • 125g (1 c) all-purpose flour • 50g (½ c) granulated sugar • ¾ tsp baking powder • 1/8 tsp baking soda • ¼ tsp salt • 56g (1/8 c; 4 Tbl) unsalted butter, cold and cubed • ¼ cup (120ml) buttermilk, cold* • egg wash: 1 large egg beaten with 1 Tablespoon (15ml) milk or buttermilk • optional: 2 Tablespoons (25g) granulated sugar mixed with 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
METHOD
Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking pan. Any 3- to 4-quart baking dish works.
For the filling: Mix all of the filling ingredients together in a large bowl, then spread into the baking pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside as you prepare the topping. Keep the oven on.
For the topping: Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. Using a pastry cutter or 2 forks, cut in the cold butter until the mixture resembles coarse pea-sized crumbles. A pastry cutter makes this step very easy and quick! You could also pulse in a food processor. Pour in the buttermilk, and gently mix until evenly combined. Dough should be slightly sticky once completely combined, but if it’s too dry, add 1 more Tablespoon of buttermilk.
Assemble the cobbler: Take handfuls of dough and use your hands to gently flatten out into patties. Place dough all over the top of the warm peach filling. There’s no special trick to this—just flatten the dough in sections and cover most of the peaches.
Brush the top of the biscuit dough with egg wash, then sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar, if using.
Bake for 40–50 minutes, or until the biscuit topping is golden brown and peach filling is bubbling around the edges. To test for doneness, stick a toothpick into the biscuit topping; if it comes out clean, it’s done.
Remove cobbler from the oven, and set the pan on a cooling rack. Cool for 5 minutes before serving. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.
Cover and store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Often I bake for an event or occasion. Sometimes I see a recipe online and want to duplicate it. Sometimes I like to immerse myself in a bake to occupy my mind so I don’t think about anything else. Today was one of those days.
This recipe, upside down key lime pie, is from Sally of Sallys Baking Addiction.. It is delicious and my opinion is shared by the QC Cadre (i.e. neighbors.)
The graham cracker crumble is the perfect crunch for the pie filling just as the sweet meringue balances the tartness off the key lime.
I am sorry, but I cannot write my normal, snarky, quirky pander today. Perhaps I will return to it one day, but not today.
There is nothing like a fresh peach frosty. Early in the season peel and cut fresh peaches into wedges, spread them on a cookie sheet, or two and freeze overnight. After they are frozen solid bag them into freezer bags.
When I want s refreshing dessert I allow some (~200g) of the peaches thaw slightly. If you don’t soften them the blender has trouble blending the peaches and vanilla ice cream (~100g.) Add 4-6 Tbl of milk (to desired viscosity) and enjoy. This makes about 12 oz of refreshing, delicious peach frosty.
The 2:1 ratio of peach to ice cream is about right for me.
INGREDIENTS
200 g fresh frozen peach wedges
100 g vanilla ice cream
4-6 Tbl milk
METHOD
Partially thaw the frozen peach wedges,either on the counter or with a microwave,
Add ice cream and milk and blend, adding milk until the desired viscosity is attained.
Last week I was asked to make some (~6-7 dozen) dessert pastries for our temples gala fundraiser, This week I made the First Holy Communion cake for our granddaughter Grace, and her cousin Joe. What fun!
This cake is the second time I made a cake for 60 people. It is a two layer cake with fresh raspberry mousse filling, as requested by Grace. It took me 5 attempts to develop the mousse that fulfilled my requirements of fresh taste but firm enough to be a cake filling, without being too dense. Oddly, it also took me 5 attempts to perfect the chalice and the circular disk which represents the Eucharist. I ended up with simple fondant cut outs. The chalice was sprayed with edible gold glitter. A cross was impressed on the disk with a fondant tool. The sun rays were fondant cut at a thin taper with a pizza cutter, then dried.
The vanilla cake (as requested) is two 3” layers, each 11×15”. They were crumb coated with basic buttercream. I built a dam to hold the mousse b adding some meringue powder to a portion of the buttercream and piped it around the edge of the lower cake layer. Another portion of the buttercream was dyed in an attempt to color it gold. A few drops of yellow and one of orange was the prescribed ratio. I would have added a very small amount of brown, if I had the courage. To add very small amounts, just dip the end of a toothpick in the food dye and wipe it through the buttercream, then beat.
The fondant is basic marshmallow fondant, but a lot of it. I needed it to be 16×25” to cover the cake. One issue I had was the fondant was drying out as I kneaded and rolled it out. (Next time, don’t make it 2 days in advance.)
Yellow Sheet Cake (2 required)
YIELD: SERVES 25-30 INGREDIENTS
• 570 g all-purpose flour (spoon & leveled) • 2tsp baking soda • 1 tsp salt • 460 g unsalted butter, softened to room temperature • 700 g granulated sugar • 4 large eggs, at room temperature • 4 tsp pure vanilla extract • 240 g (1 c) sour cream, at room temperature • 480 ml (2 c) whole milk, at room temperature METHOD
Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Generously grease and lightly flour a 11x15x3” cake pan. Set aside.
Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. Set aside. Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on high speed until smooth and creamy – about 1 minute. Add the sugar and beat on high speed for 3 full minutes until creamed together. The mixture should be a light yellow color. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. On medium-high speed, add 1 egg at a time, beating well after each addition until both are mixed in. On high speed, beat in the vanilla extract and sour cream. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.
With the mixer running on low speed, add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients alternating with the milk. Start and end with the dry ingredients. Mix each addition just until incorporated. Do not overmix this batter. The batter will be smooth, velvety, and slightly thick.
The full recipe yields 2000g of batter. Spread the cake batter into the prepared pan. Smooth it out into a thin, even layer. Bake for 20-22 minutes (for the jelly roll pan, less for a half recipe or 45-50 minutes for a double in an 11×15” pan.) Actual times depend on pan used, less time for shallow pan, more for deeper, or until the top is lightly browned and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, or 200F. (Two 8” round pans required 30 minutes to bake in my oven.) Make sure you rotate the cake pan once or twice during bake time if your oven has hot spots. Remove from the oven and allow the cake to cool in the pan placed on a wire rack. As the cake is cooling, make the frosting.
Make ahead tip: Cake can be made 1 -2 days in advance, wrapped in plastic wrapped tightly at room temperature.
I suggest freezing the wrapped cake for a couple of hours before assembling the cake. They are very tender and fragile when at room temperature and much more stable when chilled/frozen.
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream, chilled • 2 Tbl instant vanilla pudding powder (substitute corn starch if desired.) • 2-3 Tbl powdered sugar
METHOD
Combine raspberries and 2 Tbl confectioners’ sugar in a small bowl and add to a food processor and pulse until berries are reduced
Sieve the mixture allowing enough time for most of the raspberry juice to drip into a bowl, (enough to make 200ml (2/3 c) puree)
Add 1 Tbl vanilla pudding, softened cream cheese and 1/4 cup sweetener, raspberry powder and ouzo and beat until well combined (3-4 minutes on high.) Mix in red food coloring in 2 or 3 aliquots until desired color is attained.
In a large bowl, whip the heavy cream and confectioners sugar. Add red food coloring (in several small amounts until desired color is attained) and whip to firm peaks.
Add the vanilla pudding mix near the end and stir slowly. It will start setting the mousse quickly.
Fold the raspberry mixture into the whipped cream until combined. Divide the mousse among 6 dessert cups, cover, or fill a piping bag and chill until set, about 1 hour.
Marshmallow Fondant (2 required)
INGREDIENTS
• 1 package (16 ounces) white mini marshmallows • 2-5 tablespoons water • 2 pounds sifted confectioners’ sugar • 1/4 cup solid vegetable shortening
METHOD
Grease a mixing bowl and a glass bowl that can be used to melt marshmallows in the microwave.
Place the marshmallows, water and flavoring of your choice in greased glass bowl and microwave on high at 30 second intervals.
Stir every 30 seconds until marshmallows are completely melted, about 2 minutes.
Sift one half of the 2-pound bag of confectioner’s sugar in a greased mixing bowl. Make a well in the center of the confectioner’s sugar and pour in the melted marshmallows.
I use the paddle attachment for my KitchenAid mixer for this first part of the mixture.
Mix until all the melted marshmallows are incorporated in the confectioner’s sugar.
Add any food coloring at this point.
Mixture will be thick but still runny.
Sift the remaining half bag of confectioner’s sugar into the melted marshmallows.
Mix on low until it comes together.
Change to your dough hook attachment as this will get extremely thick.
Fondant will be very thick and have a dough like consistency. I like to knead by hand to assure everything is well mixed.
Wipe a thin layer of vegetable shortening over the surface and wrap the fondant in plastic to make sure no air gets to it.
Rest fondant for at least an hour before use. Store at room temperature for no more than a day.
Buttercream Frosting (May need 2-3 recipes)
INGREDIENTS
• 452 g (4 cups) of powdered sugar (or 1 box) • 1 Cup (2 sticks) of softened butter • 2-3 teaspoons of vanilla • 1-2 tablespoons of whipping cream (for crumb coat frosting add cream as needed) Optional • 2 Tbl Meringue Powder to make crusting frosting. • Violet food coloring (a very small amount will make the frosting white)
METHOD
Add powdered sugar to mixing bowl.
Add softened sticks of butter
Add vanilla. If you want white frosting add a very small amount of violet food coloring
Add 1 tbsp of cream.
Beat on low until powdered sugar is incorporated. Then move mixer up to medium-high speed. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often. When completely mixed the frosting may appear dry.
Add more cream, a little bit at a time, beating at slowest speed, until frosting is the proper consistency.
I am always pleased when asked to prepare some items for a party, large or small. Tonight is our annual temple baseball themed gala with an expected attendance of 100 people. I started this tradition in 2018, but missed a couple of years due to Covid etc.
Tonight Dede’ Bakery and Confectionary is serving chocolate/raspberry baseball field brownies, gluten free raspberry mousse tarts with baseball decorated cookies and key lime profiteroles with no baseball association whatsoever. (I just like them.)
GLUTEN FREE TARTS INGREDIENTS • 100 g cold butter cut into small cubes • 60 g icing sugar • 200 g Kim’s Bread flour blend • ½ tsp vanilla • ¼ tsp salt • 2 eggs – 1 for the dough and the other 1 reserved for an egg wash
METHOD
Mix dry Ingredients.
Lightly beat egg then add the melted butter.
Add wet to dry ingredients. Form into a dough ball.
Wrap the dough ball in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Roll to a 1/8” thick sheet between two pieces of parchment paper or plastic.
Cut rounds of the dough about an inch larger than the tart pans
Gently press the dough circles into the tart pans pressing into any flutes
Patch any breaks with extra dough
Dock the bottom of the crust. Wrap and keep in freezer at least 30 minutes.
Pre-bake the tart crust 8 to 10 minutes in preheated oven at 350 deg.
Depending on recipe, you may want to protect the crust of the tart with foil
Cool to room temperature
Fill with raspberry mousse.
Top with a raspberry and white sugar cookies with red baseball seams.
Combine raspberries and 2 Tbl confectioners’ sugar in a small bowl and add to a food processor and pulse until berries are reduced
Sieve the mixture allowing enough time for most of the raspberry juice to drip into a bowl, (enough to make 200ml (2/3 c) puree)
Add 1 Tbl vanilla pudding, softened cream cheese and 1/4 cup sweetener, raspberry powder and ouzo and beat until well combined (3-4 minutes on high.) Mix in red food coloring in 2 or 3 aliquots until desired color is attained.
In a large bowl, whip the heavy cream, vanilla pudding mix and confectioners sugar.
Add red food coloring (in several small amounts until desired color is attained) and whip to firm peaks.
Fold the raspberry mixture into the whipped cream until combined. Divide the mousse among 6 dessert cups, cover, or fill a piping bag and chill until set, about 1 hour.
KIM’S GLUTEN FREE BREAD FLOUR BLEND Yield: 700g (5 c) INGREDIENTS • 285g Bob’s Red Mill potato starch • 250g superfine white rice flour (DON’T use regular rice flour, ie Bob’s Red Mill) • 75g Tapioca flour • 75g Whey protein isolate or egg white protein. • 15g Xanthan gum METHOD
Weigh all ingredients and add to a stand mixer bowl
Mix on low, with bowl covered for 30 seconds
CHOCOLATE AND RASPBERRY BROWNIE BARS I made a 1 ½ recipe and used an 11×15 pan.
INGREDIENTS Brownies • 4 large eggs • 1 ¼ c dark cocoa • 1 tsp salt • 1 tsp baking powder • 2 tsp vanilla extract • 2 ¼ c sugar • 1 c unsalted butter, melted • 1 ½ c All-Purpose Flour • 1 c chocolate chips • 1 c Raspberry Jammy Bits • 3 Tbl seedless raspberry jam • 1 Tbl water Chocolate Ganache Glaze • 1 Tbl cup heavy cream • 1 Tbl light corn syrup (20g) • 2 ⅔ c (400g) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped • 1 Tbl vanilla extract
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9″ x 13″ pan. To make very even bars, line the pan with aluminum foil before baking, leaving foil sticking up above the edges of the pan.
Crack the 4 eggs into a bowl, and beat them with the cocoa, salt, baking powder, and vanilla until smooth.
Add the sugar and melted butter, stirring until smooth.
Add the flour, chips, and Jammy Bits, again stirring well. The batter will be very thick.
Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and smooth.
Bake the brownies for about 30 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean (205 degrees,) or with just a few moist crumbs clinging to it. The brownies should feel set on the edges, and the center should look moist, but not uncooked. Do not over bake! Remove them from the oven.
Heat the seedless raspberry jam with the water and stir until smooth. (I use 2 tsp of apple jelly, mixed with 1 tsp water and heated to melt the jelly.) Brush over the warm brownies. Set aside to cool for an hour or longer before topping with the ganache.
To make the ganache, heat the cream and corn syrup until they begin to steam. Pour over the chopped chocolate in a bowl. Let sit for 5 minutes, add any flavorings, and whisk until smooth. Let cool for 15 minutes or so.
Pour ganache over the brownies while it’s still warm but has begun to thicken — reheat if it thickens too much as you work. Allow several hours for the ganache to set up fully. You may refrigerate the brownies to hasten the setting of the ganache.
Remove the brownies from the pan using the aluminum foil sling. Heat a knife in hot water, wipe dry and use to cut the brownies. Repeat with each cut.
KEY LIME PROFITEROLES INGREDIENTS Whipped Cream Key Lime Curd: • ½ c white sugar • 2 Tbl cornstarch • ¼ tsp kosher salt • 1 large egg, plus 2 large egg yolks • 2 tsp lime zest • ⅔ c key lime juice • ⅔ c sweetened condensed milk • 2 Tbl butter • ¾ c heavy whipping
Choux Pastry: • ½ c (65 grams) AP flour • ½ tsp granulated white sugar • ¼ tsp salt • 4 tbsp (55 grams) unsalted butter, cut into pieces • ½ c (120 ml) water • 2 large eggs, lightly beaten White Chocolate Raspberry Ganache • 150 g confectioner’s sugar • 50 g heavy cream • 1 Tbl freeze-dried raspberry powder • Red food coloring • Coarse decorating sugar
METHOD
Preheat oven to 400° F (200° C) and place rack in center of oven.
In a bowl whisk the flour with the sugar and salt.
Place the butter and water in a saucepan over medium high heat and bring to a boil.
Remove from heat and, with a wooden spoon, add the flour mixture, all at once, and stir until combined. It will look like mashed potatoes. Return saucepan to the heat and stir constantly until the dough comes away from the sides of the pan and forms a thick smooth ball (about 1-2 minutes). The dough will film the bottom and sides of the saucepan and make cleaning a pain.
Transfer the dough to an electric mixer and beat on low speed to release the steam from the dough (about 1 minute).
Once the dough is lukewarm start adding the lightly beaten eggs (dough will separate and then come together) and continue to mix until you have a smooth thick paste (dough will fall from a spoon in a thick ribbon).
Place the dough in a pastry bag fitted with a large plain tip and pipe oblongs of dough (about 3/4 inch (2 cm) wide) onto the parchment lined baking sheet. (When piping hold the bag at a 45-degree angle.) If desired, with a pastry brush, gently brush the tops of the dough with the lightly beaten egg.
Bake for 15 minutes and then reduce the oven temperature to 350o F (180o C).
Remove from oven, pierce an end of each éclair with a small skewer to release the interior steam.
Continue to bake for a further 25 minutes or until the shells are a nice amber color and when split, are almost dry inside. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.
Warm white chocolate to soften (30 seconds in a 1000W microwave)
Heat whipping cream to steam, but not boil and pour over the softened white chocolate
Let sit 3-4 minutes then add freeze dried raspberry, red food coloring and beat with a spoon until the mixture is smooth
After filling the profiteroles with the key lime curd dip the top into the warm ganache and sprinkle with decoration sugar. ROYAL ICING Makes ~3 cups of royal icing, (¼ recipe decorated 48 1” diameter cookies) INGREDIENTS • 4 cups (480g) confectioners’ sugar, sifted • 3 Tablespoons meringue powder (not plain egg white powder) • 9–10 Tablespoons room temperature water METHOD
Sift confectioners’ sugar and meringue powder, into a large bowl and add 9 Tablespoons of water. Add half the water after sifting 2 cups of sugar. Add the remaining water or more, checking flow consistency of the icing is what you want for piping etc.
Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat icing ingredients together on high speed for 1.5 – 2 minutes.
When lifting the whisk up off the icing, the icing should drizzle down and smooth out within 5-10 seconds. If it’s too thick, beat in more water 1 Tablespoon at a time. I usually need 10 Tablespoons but on particularly dry days, I use up to 12-14 Tablespoons. Keep in mind that the longer you beat the royal icing, the thicker it becomes. If your royal icing is too thin, just keep beating it to introduce more air OR you can add more confectioners’ sugar.
When applied to cookies or confections in a thin layer, icing completely dries in about 2 hours at room temperature. If icing consistency is too thin and runny, it will take longer to dry. If the icing is applied very thick on cookies, it will also take longer to dry. If you’re layering royal icing onto cookies for specific designs and need it to set quickly, place cookies in the refrigerator to help speed it up.
We are going to a gala at our temple next month and our administrator asked if I would make some desserts for the baseball themed event. At this point my providing pastries and other baked goods is more or less a tradition.
These tartlets are the first of three types of pastries I am making. In deference to a gluten intolerant friend these tartlets are gluten free, but you could not tell from the taste and texture. They are wonderful. (No brag, just fact, for anyone old enough to remember that TV line.)
For gluten free pastries I mix a specialty flour from an online baker named Kim. (Search Kim’s Artisan Bread Flour for more info.) It is an exceptional gluten free flour.
New design after QC’s brilliant suggestion!
A couple of weeks ago my uphill neighbors gave me a bag of oranges and I have been concocting ways of processing and returning them. These tartlets have a layer of fresh orange mousse, covered with a layer of dark chocolate mousse. The entire tartlet is topped with a gluten free sugar cookie striped with royal icing to give the impression of a baseball. Whew!
(If I tell you the cookie topping is supposed to be a baseball would that help?)
Key Lime Tartlets Using Kim’s Bread Flour
INGREDIENTS • 100 g cold butter cut into small cubes • 60 g icing sugar • 200 g Kim’s Bread flour • ½ tsp vanilla • ¼ tsp salt • 2 eggs – 1 for the dough and the other 1 reserved for an egg wash
METHOD
Mix butter with sugar until well incorporated 3-5 min
Add salt then vanilla.
Add egg and mix 3-5 min
Stir in flour. Mix by hand until incorporated and forms a thick smooth(ish) sticky dough
Cover with plastic and refrigerate for 30 min.
Butter or lightly spray tartlet pans or use non-stick pans.
Roll dough between parchment paper to about ⅛” thick
Refrigerate rolled dough still between parchment paper until firm: 20 – 30 minutes
Remove from fridge and while still firm, cut dough to rounds about 1” larger diameter than the mold. Cut all the rounds at once while still firm. If necessary, return to the fridge to firm up. Again, if necessary, use an offset spatula to remove the circles from the parchment paper. Keep the spatula clean.
Lay tart dough circles over molds. This allows the dough to thaw slightly, then gently press into the molds and fill all crevices.
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees
Return to fridge for 15 – 20 min to firm up the shell
Prick holes in bottom of formed dough
Place a mini cupcake paper in each tart and fill with with pastry weights (or beans)
Paint edges of the tartlet with an egg-white wash. (Whisk one egg white with 1 Tbl water)
Bake in preheated oven 350 deg F (175 C) for 8 min until edges are dry
Remove pastry weights and bake an additional 4-6 minutes to dry the bottoms. Bake until the edges begin to turn light brown and the bottom is nearly dry. (I find it easier to dump the weights into a bowl then remove the cupcake papers.)
Immediately remove from pans and cool on a wire rack
Dark Chocolate Mousse
INGREDIENTS • ½ c chopped chocolate (72 percent) • 1 c heavy cream • 4 large egg yolks • ⅓ c sugar • Whipped cream, for serving • Chocolate shavings, for garnish
METHOD
Melt the chocolate in a bowl over a water bath, making sure the water is not boiling. Set aside.
In a separate bowl, whip the heavy cream to soft peaks.
Place the egg yolks in a small bowl and set over the same water bath to slightly heat while beating them with a whisk.
Add the sugar to the yolks and then transfer the mixture to a stand mixer set up with the whisk attachment. Beat until the sugar is completely dissolved and the yolks double in size, about 5 minutes.
Carefully fold the chocolate into the yolks.
Lastly, fold in the whipped cream.
Store the mousse in an unopened piping bag until ready to fill the tartlets.
When ready to assemble the tartlets pipe about ¼” of chocolate mousse on top of the orange mousse. Store in a refrigerator to keep cold.
Orange Mousse
INGREDIENTS • ½ c orange juice • ¼ c plus 1 tablespoons sugar • 1/8 tsp salt • 2 egg yolks • 2 tbl unsalted butter, at room temperature • ¼ tsp orange zest (from ¼ orange) • ½ c heavy cream • ¼ tsp vanilla extract • Orange gel food coloring (optional)
METHOD
In a small saucepan set over medium heat, bring the orange juice to a boil and cook until reduced by half, about 4 minutes.
Meanwhile in a small bowl, whisk together 1/4 cup of the sugar, the salt and yolks until smooth. Whisking constantly, add half of the reduced orange juice to the yolk mixture to temper.
When it is all incorporated, return the tempered yolk mixture to the pan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula to prevent the eggs from scrambling, until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 7 minutes.
Strain the mixture into a clean bowl and whisk in the butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, and the zest. Place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the mixture and refrigerate until chilled through, at least 5 hours.
Pour the heavy cream into a medium bowl and add the vanilla and the remaining tablespoon sugar. Using an electric mixer, beat the cream on medium speed just until stiff peaks form, 2 to 3 minutes, being careful avoid over-beating.
Using a rubber spatula, gently fold half of the whipped cream into the chilled orange mixture. Pour that mixture into the remaining whipped cream and continue to fold until completely incorporated.
Transfer the mixture to an unopened piping bag, close the end and refrigerate until ready to use.
When ready to assemble the tartlets pipe about ¼” of orange mousse into the bottom of refrigerated tartlet shells. Store in a refrigerator to keep cold.
Kim’s Gluten Free Bread Flour Blend
Yield: 700g (5 c) INGREDIENTS
285g Bob’s Red Mill potato starch
250g superfine white rice flour (DON’T use regular rice flour, ie Bob’s Red Mill)
75g Tapioca flour
75g Whey protein isolate or egg white protein.
15g Xanthan gum
METHOD
Mix all ingredients, place in an air tight container and shake well to mix everything together.
A month ago, QC and I went to Apple Hill to buy some, wait for it,… apples! This is our traditional trip up past Placerville. It’s a nice drive up and we take a backroad home through the Sierra Nevada foothills. It looks a lot like Vermont.
I made a couple of dozen pints of applesauce, (we like applesauce.) and had leftover apples, beyond those we ate. I found a recipe for an apple pie designed to be prepared and frozen (for up to 2 months.) I also have a nice pie crust recipe I never used so along with the apples, the time was ripe. If you do not over-mix the fats and dry ingredients and do not over-work the dough the crust will be very flaky and delicious like this one.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t wait the full two months to complete the test, and baked it today, almost exactly one month from freezing. (Next time I will make two pies.)
Two Slices, two plates.
Apple Pie Ready for Freezing
PIE CRUST • 2 ½ cups (315g) all-purpose flour plus more for shaping and rolling • 1 teaspoon salt • 6 Tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, chilled and cubed • 2/3 cup (130g) vegetable shortening, chilled • ½ cup (120ml) ice cold water
INGREDIENTS – PIE FILLING • 6 c thinly sliced, peeled apples (6 medium) • ¾ c sugar • 3 Tbl all-purpose flour • ¾ tsp ground cinnamon • ¼ tsp salt • ⅛ tsp ground nutmeg • 1 tsp lemon juice
METHOD CRUST
Whisk the flour and salt together in a large bowl.
Add the butter and shortening. Use a pastry cutter, cut the butter and shortening until it looks like coarse gravel. (A few larger bits of fat are OK). In this step, you’re only breaking up the cold fat into tiny little flour-coated pieces; you’re not completely incorporating it. Do not overwork the ingredients.
Measure ½ cup (120ml) of water in a cup. Add ice. Stir it around. From that, measure ½ cup (120ml) of water, since the ice has melted a bit. Drizzle the cold water in, 1 Tablespoon (15ml) at a time, and stir with a silicone spoon after every tablespoon has been added. Stop adding water when the dough begins to form large clumps. Do not add any more water than you need.
Transfer the pie dough to a floured work surface. Using floured hands, fold the dough into itself until the flour is fully incorporated into the fats. The dough should come together easily and should not feel overly sticky. Avoid overworking the dough. If it feels a bit too dry or crumbly, dip your fingers in the ice water and then continue bringing dough together with your hands. If it feels too sticky, sprinkle on more flour and then continue bringing dough together with your hands. Form it into a ball. DO NOT OVERWORK THE DOUGH!
Use a sharp knife to cut it in half. If it’s helpful, you should have about 1 lb, 8 oz dough total (about 680g). Gently flatten each half into 1-inch-thick discs using your hands.
Wrap each tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 5 days.
After the dough has chilled for at least 2 hours roll it out, one crust at a time, keeping the other in the refrigerator until you’re ready to roll it out. Lightly flour the work surface, rolling pin, and your hands, and sprinkle a little flour on top of the dough. Use gentle-medium force with your rolling pin on the dough—don’t press down too hard on the dough. When rolling dough out, start from the center and work your way out in all directions, turning the dough with your hands as you go. Between passes of the rolling pin, rotate the pie crust and even flip it, to make sure it’s not sticking to your work surface. Sprinkle on a little more flour if it’s sticking; don’t be afraid to use a little more flour. Roll the dough into a very thin 12-inch circle. Your pie dough will be about 1/8 inch thick, which is quite thin. Visible specks of butter and fat in the dough are perfectly normal and expected.
Carefully roll one end of the circle of dough gently onto the rolling pin, rolling it back towards you, slowly peeling it off the work surface as you go. Pick it up, and carefully roll it back out over the top of the pie dish.
METHOD – PIE FILLING
Place 1 pie crust in 9-inch disposable foil or metal pie plate (do not use glass). Press crust firmly against side and bottom of pie plate.
In large bowl, gently mix filling ingredients; spoon into crust-lined pie plate.
Top with second crust. Wrap excess top crust under bottom crust edge, pressing edges together to flute and seal.
Tightly wrap unbaked pie in 3 layers of plastic wrap, making sure all sides of pie are completely sealed and unexposed.
When ready to bake pie, heat oven to 450°F. Remove frozen pie from freezer; cut a few slits in top crust and place in oven. Do not thaw pie.
Bake 25 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375°F; bake 40 to 50 minutes longer or until crust is golden brown and apples are hot and soft when pricked with a fork. If necessary, tent the edges of the pie to reduce darkening and bake in 10-minute periods until the internal temperature of the pie is 190 – 200°F.
I love key lime. I saw a recipe that inspired me to make two pastries featuring whipped key lime (like a chiboust with key lime curd mixed with stabilized whipped cream.)
My first attempt used Pepperidge Farm puff pastry to form the pastry cups. This puff pastry “puffed” up too much. My second try used Trader Joe’s puff pastry which only puffs about 25% of Pepperidge Farm’s. This pastry worked better.
Pastry in pan with cupcake papers and beans“Sandwiched” puff pastry, cupcake papers, beans and second cupcake panBaked puff pastry
Cut the puff pastry into circles (I use hexagons as they don’t waste as much pastry) about 2” larger than the diameter of the cupcake pan pocket. Fit the circles into each pocket. Try not to fold them over along the sides and more than necessary. Place a mini-cupcake paper in each and fill with baking beans (not baked beans,) then cover with an identical cupcake pan. This will retard the “puff” of the pastry.
Raspberry coulisCoulis filled bottom of shellKey lime whipped cream piped into shell
Bake about 15 minutes at 400F. Remove the upper pan, the cupcake paper and beans, turn the oven off and return the baked shells to the over to dry the bottoms. This should take ~5 minutes.
Raspberry drizzled profiterolesRaspberry drizzled pastry shellsFinal pastriesI could have done a better job drizzling (should have!) When the first attempt failed I made profiteroles as well.
Whipped Cream Key Lime Curd: • ½ c white sugar • 2 Tbl cornstarch • ¼ tsp kosher salt • 1 large egg, plus 2 large egg yolks • 2 tsp lime zest • ⅔ c key lime juice • ⅔ c sweetened condensed milk • 2 Tbl butter • ¾ c heavy whipping cream
Key Lime Drizzle: • 3 c confectioners’ sugar • 2 tsp lime zest • 4-6 Tbl key lime juice • ¼ tsp Agar agar.
Alternative Raspberry Drizzle • 12 oz raspberries – fresh or frozen; about 320g • ~4 to 6 Tbl granulated sugar – to taste • ~1 tsp lemon (or lime) juice • ¼ tsp Agar agar.
METHOD
Curd: In a medium saucepan, whisk together the sugar, cornstarch, and salt.
Whisk in the egg yolks, lime zest, and juice. Bring to a boil, over medium-high heat. Whisk constantly and cook for about 1 minute.
Remove from heat, whisk in sweetened condensed milk, and bring back to a boil.
Remove from heat again and strain the mixture through a sieve. Add in butter and whisk until smooth.
Cover with plastic wrap, and chill for at least 3 hours, or overnight.
Puff Pastry Shell: Cut defrosted and pliable puff pastry into circles 2” larger than the cupcake pan pocket. I use hexagon cutters as they are more efficient and don’t waste as much pastry dough.
Fill each cupcake pan pocket with pastry, put small cupcake paper in each pocket, fill with beans and cover with an identical cupcake pan.
Bake at 400 F for 15 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown. Remove the upper pan, beans and cupcake papers and bake another 5 minutes to dry the bottoms of the shells.
Cool pastry cups to room temperature.
Drizzle: Whisk together confectioners’ sugar, key lime zest, and lime juice. Add more powdered sugar/lime juice if needed for the right dripping consistency.
Assembly: Spread a thin layer pf curd in the bottom of each cup.
Whip heavy cream to stiff peaks and fold into the the balance of the curd.
Refrigerate the mixture until ready to use.
Transfer the whipped cream key lime curd to a piping bag, with a large star tip.
Alternative raspberry drizzle:
Add the raspberries, sugar, agar-agar and lemon juice to a saucepan and bring to a boil while mashing the raspberries to break them down. Once it boils, turn off the heat and adjust with more sugar or lemon juice as needed.
Strain the raspberry sauce through a fine mesh sieve to remove the seeds. Press firmly to extract all of the pulp as that is what thickens the sauce.
Thin with a teaspoon of water at a time, (if desired) keeping in mind the sauce thickens as it cools.
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