I had a couple of cups of blueberries in the fridge that were complaining about being ignored, so I made them into drop scones for breakfast yesterday. Actually, I froze half of them so they will continue to be enjoyed for a while. They thaw on the counter and are as fresh as new.
Berry Drop Scones
INGREDIENTS
2 ½ cups (312g) all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/3 cup (67g) sugar
Zest of 1 small lemon (or orange or lime)
½ cup (115g) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into cubes
150-175g berries. Use any berries that you like.
1 cup heavy cream + extra if required
Coarse or turbinado sugar for topping
METHOD
Preheat oven to 400. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In the bowl of a food processor, add the flour, baking powder, salt, sugar and zest. Pulse a few times to incorporate.
Add the cubed butter and pulse to incorporate. The mixture should resemble very coarse sand.
Empty the flour mixture into a mixing bowl. Add the cream and stir until just barely incorporated. Add additional cream by the tablespoon to help the dough come together
Gently fold in the berries. (It’s fine if the raspberries or blackberries break up a little – it adds a nice pink stain to the dough.) The dough should just be moist, not wet, but also not crumbly or powdery looking. If it looks too dry, add a tablespoon of cold water.
Spoon the dough into 12 equally sized pieces on the parchment lined baking sheet. Sprinkle some coarse or turbinado sugar over the top, if desired.
Bake for 16-19 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. The scones should be lightly golden and cooked through. I rotate the pan after 10 minutes
Cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes then carefully remove to a cooling rack
I saw this recipe on Facebook and decided to make it for QC’s Mah Jongg group. I made a number of changes from the published recipe and they are incorporated below.
Next time I’ll punch the flavors up as mango is not a strong flavor and can be overpowered by the strawberry. The tequila didn’t add much either, so maybe a little lime in the cupcake batter would add some punch. (No coconut, so it cannot be “Put the lime in the coconut.”
The were pretty and were well received by the group. I always make a gluten free selection so added some crème patisserie/chocolate ganache topped with chopped pistachio nuts, and had some eclair shells in the freezer that I needed to use up and had the crème patisserie and chocolate ganache anyway and finally, plums from our tree as the season is now over.
Strawberry Mango Margarita Cupcakes
Makes 48 mini-cupcakes
INGREDIENTS : Cupcakes: • 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour • 1 1/4 cups caster sugar • 3 tsp baking powder • 1/2 tsp fine salt • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened • 2 large eggs • 1 1/2 cups full cream milk • 1/2 cup vegetable oil • 2 tbsp Greek yogurt or sour cream • 1 tsp vanilla extract • Pink and red food gel (for strawberry color) • 2-3 tsp strawberry freeze-dried powder • Yellow food gel (for mango color) • 2-3 tsp mango freeze-dried powder • 8-10 tsp tequila (optional) Frosting: • 1 batch American or Swiss Meringue Buttercream • Food gels: Pink and red for strawberry; yellow for mango • Flavorings: Strawberry and mango freeze-dried powder Decorations: • 1 cup granulated sugar • 10 limes, cut into 40 wedges • 10 strawberries, halved
METHOD:
Preheat oven to 275°F (140°C) for fan-forced or 320°F (160°C) for conventional.
Line two mini cupcake tins with liners and spray with bakers spray.
In a large bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
Add butter and mix until crumbly.
In another bowl, combine eggs, milk, oil, yogurt, tequila, and vanilla; mix well.
Fold dry ingredients into egg mixture until well combined.
Divide the batter into two portions.
Separately, by hand, mix each freeze-dried powder with 3-4 teaspoons of tequila
Add pink and red food gels and strawberry flavoring to one portion. Mix by hand.
Add yellow food gel and mango flavoring to the other portion. Mix by hand.
Pipe alternating layers of strawberry and mango batter into the liners.
Bake for 10–15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool completely.
Prepare the buttercream frosting, dividing it into two portions.
Add pink and red food gels and strawberry flavoring to one portion.
Add yellow food gel and mango flavoring to the other portion.
Dip the rims of the cooled cupcakes in water, then roll in granulated sugar to mimic a margarita glass.
Pipe frosting in swirls on each cupcake, alternating between strawberry and mango flavors.
Decorate each cupcake with a lime wedge and a strawberry half.
We are going to a friends birthday luncheon today and QC and I thought a nice summery berry tart would be a nice dessert on a warm sunny day.
There were choices and challenges to this bake. The choice was, should I make a Berry Chantilly Cake or this tart. The tart won, but don’t feel bad, summer is a long time.
The challenge is our refrigerator died yesterday so we spent the afternoon buying and installing and transferring out food to a small refrigerator. While it is a bit inconvenient it’s only for a couple of weeks, and I only have one more required bake. (Note: required.)
I had some left over strawberries so dipped some in chocolate to add around the tart.
INGREDIENTS Shell • 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 Filling: • 1 (12 ounce) package white chocolate chips, melted and cooled • ¼ c heavy cream • 8 ounces cream cheese, softened Topping: • 2 c fresh strawberries, sliced • 1 c fresh blueberries • 1 c fresh raspberries Glaze: • 1 c water • ½ c white sugar • 2 Tbl cornstarch • 2 Tbl corn syrup
METHOD Shell
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Grease a 12-inch tart pan.
Pulse flour, sugar and salt a few times to combing
Add cubed butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse sand
Add egg and pulse until the dough just comes together but does not clump into a ball.
Chill in fridge for an hour.
Roll dough between sheets of wax paper until ~2 inches wider and longer than the tart pan (It needs to cover the bottom and all sides of the pan,) then refrigerate for 15-30 minutes
Spray tart pan and flip chilled sheet of dough onto the pan and press into all corners. Dock the dough on the bottom of the pan.
Fill with baking beads and bake 15-20 minutes, until the dough is dry and the edges begin to brown.
Take from oven and remove parchment paper.
Egg wash the edges of the tart.
Return to oven and bake crust until lightly browned, 10 to 15 minutes. Let cool completely. Filling
Beat melted and cooled white chocolate and heavy cream in a bowl until smooth. Mix in cream cheese until thoroughly combined. Spread over cooled crust. Chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Glaze
Combine 1/2 cup water and white sugar in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Mix remaining 1/2 cup water and cornstarch together in a bowl until cornstarch dissolves; add to sugar mixture. Cook and stir until mixture thickens and clears, about 5 minutes. Stir in corn syrup and return to a boil. Remove glaze from heat and let cool for 10 minutes. Topping
Arrange strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries over cream cheese layer and brush with glaze. Chill for at least 1 hour; store in refrigerator until ready to serve.
I retrieved my deep fryer from storage planning to make some jelly donuts. Well, I did and they were a total disaster. I faithfully followed the recipe, which apparently was deeply flawed and a deeply dejected baker binned the result.
To make myself feel better I made beignets which were fantastic. That pulled me half way out of the well of despair. This morning I made glazed donuts (all of which were on my baking bucket list) and I finally gasped the clear cool air of success.
I also had a half recipe of beignets, the dough of which I stored in the refrigerator overnight to see if they can be made a few at a time for a day or two. They were just as good today.
(Revisiting jelly donuts next time the fryer rears its ugly head.)
Glazed Donuts
INGREDIENTS • 2¼ teaspoons instant yeast (not active dry yeast) • ¾ cup warm water • ⅓ cup sugar • ½ teaspoon salt • ¼ cup unsalted butter (softened) • 1 egg • 1 egg yolk • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract • 2½ to 3 cups all-purpose flour • Vegetable oil (for frying) Glaze • 2 cups powdered sugar • ¼ cup milk • 1½ teaspoon vanilla extract
METHOD
In the bowl of a stand mixer, add yeast 1 Tbl (of the ⅓ cup of sugar,) and warm water. Let stand for 10 minutes. Add sugar, salt, unsalted butter, egg, egg yolk and vanilla extract. Attach the flat beater and mix on low speed to combine.
Switch to the dough hook and add 2½ cups flour, half a cup at a time while the stand mixer is on low speed. Knead on low until the dough starts to form. If the dough is still very sticky add more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. The dough should be somewhat tacky, but not sticky.
Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl and cover it tightly with plastic wrap. Make sure to place the bowl in a draft free, warm spot in your kitchen. Allow it to rise for 2 hours.
Gently press in the middle of the dough to deflate. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 6 to 8 hours, or overnight.
On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to about ½ inch thick. Use a 3½ – 4” round donut cutter or a large round cookie cutter to cut circles out of the dough. Use a 1” round cutter to cut out the center of the donut (donut holes). Place the cut-out donuts and donut holes on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Lightly cover with plastic wrap, and then drape a clean dry towel over the top and allow to rest for 1 hour (no more than 1 hour or the dough will start to get too yeasty).
In a large Dutch oven filled with 2 to 3 inches of vegetable oil over medium heat, bring the temperature of the oil up to 330-340°F.
Carefully place the donuts into the hot oil and allow to cook on each side until golden brown. Work in batches so you don’t overcrowd the pot.
Carefully remove the cooked donuts and place them on a baking sheet lined with paper towels and a cooling rack. Repeat the steps until all of the donuts have been cooked.
Glaze
In a separate mixing bowl combine powdered sugar, milk and vanilla extract. Use a whisk to combine until no lumps remain. Carefully lower each slightly cooled donut (one at a time) into the glaze. Gently flip the donut to coat the other side. Return the donuts back to the cooling rack and allow the glaze to set, for about 10 minutes.
Tom Waits wrote: “Well, I wish I was in New Orleans, I can see it in my dreams, Arm-in-arm down Burgundy, a bottle and my friends and me.”
I wrote: “I made beignets this morning and ate nearly enough to be sick, but not enough to be sick of them. I promised myself I would give them a try after I bought my deep fryer. Why, oh why did I wait so long?“
These were spot on for Cafe du Monde beignets. QC just sort of sighed when she ate hers. One of my Neighborhood QC Cadre said: “Oh my!!!! Unimaginably delicious.”
Beignets
INGREDIENTS • 3/4 c warm water between 110⁰F • 100 g (1/2 c) granulated sugar • 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast (1 envelope) • 1 large egg room temperature • 120ml (1/2 c) room temperature milk • 10 ml (2 tsp) vanilla extract • 450 g (3 3/4 c) All Purpose flour • 1 tsp salt • 42 g (3 Tbl) room temperature unsalted butter • vegetable oil for deep frying or peanut oil • 60 g (1/2 c) powdered sugar
METHOD
Add the warm water to the bowl of a stand mixer or a large bowl if making this by hand or an electric mixer. Add the yeast and half the sugar then set aside for about 5 minutes to the yeast can get to work.
Measure out 3 ¾ cups of flour and mix with the teaspoon of salt and set aside.
Once the yeast mixture is bubbly, pour in the milk, vanilla, remaining sugar, and add the egg. Whisk together then add half the flour mixture and whisk together until smooth.
Attach a dough hook then add the remaining flour and begin mixing on medium speed, once the dough comes together add the butter and keep mixing until the dough is smooth and will pull away from the bowl, about 4 minutes. This dough is enriched and sticky but if it seems too wet you can mix in an extra ¼ cup of flour.
Transfer the dough to a large, lightly oiled bowl then cover and allow to rise in a warm place for at least two hours, you can also store the dough in the refrigerator for up to 48 hours. (Dough weighs 926 g.)
Add about 3 inches of oil to a large pot fitted with a candy thermometer and place over medium-high heat. Cover a wire cooling rack with a few layers of paper towels.
Once risen, roll the dough into a ½ inch thick rectangle on a well floured surface. Cut into 2-2 ½ inch squares using a pizza cutter.
Once the oil reaches 360⁰F add the beignets 3-4 at a time; fry until the bottom is puffed and golden ( 1 – 1½ minutes,) flip over and remove with a spider or slotted spoon once the bottom is golden too.
Place onto the paper towels then dust with powdered sugar and enjoy!
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.
I made some chocolate-orange-custard tarts last week. Honestly, they tasted pretty good, but if I saw them in a patisserie I would give them a pass.
I remade them today but without the baked custard, chocolate and orange bases. (Truthfully, maybe a little over baked in my case.) Version 2.0 used a new method to make the tart case, and creme patisserie, chocolate ganache and a new orange drizzle.
The tart base was made using a food processor to mix the butter, sugar, salt and 1/4th of the flour. It’s basically the same method I use to make berry drop scones. Using the food processor is easier and quicker than cutting the butter into the sugar with your hands.
I use the “Martha Stewart” creme patisserie method and a standard eclair ganache recipe and method. The orange drizzle is simple the zest of one orange, 70 grams of confectioners sugar and enough fresh orange juice to make a pipeable paste.
There are a lot of steps in this recipe (none of them very difficult,) but believe me, it is well worth the effort.
CremePat – Chocolate – Orange Tart
Yield: Five 4” tarts.
INGREDIENTS Tart Shell • 100 g cold butter cut into small cubes • 60 g icing sugar • ½ tsp vanilla • ¼ tsp salt • 2 egg – 1 for the dough and the other 1 reserved for an egg wash • 200 g all-purpose flour Chocolate Ganache • 150 g dark chocolate finely chopped • 150 g heavy cream • 2 Tbl corn syrup • 1 tsp vanilla Orange Crème • 1 orange, juiced and zested • 35g confectioners sugar Crème Patisserie • 1 c (175 ml) whole/full fat milk (¾ c 2% plus ¼ c heavy cream) • 2 (40g) large egg yolks • ¼ c (13 grams) granulated/caster sugar • ⅛ c corn starch • 1 Tbl butter • ½ tsp vanilla extract
METHOD Tart Shell
In a food processor pulse sugar, salt and 50g AP flour
Pulse in cubed butter and vanilla
Transfer to a mixing bowl and add egg and mix until incorporated
Stir in flour. Mix by hand like you are kneading bread until incorporated
Cover with plastic and refrigerate for 30 min
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees
Butter or spray tartlet pans, or use non-stick pans
Roll dough to about ⅛” thick
Lay over tart mold and press into all crevices
Prick holes in bottom and sides of formed dough
Fill tarts with pastry weights. (For mini tartlet pans I put beans in a cupcake paper. For large pans use crumpled parchment paper filled with pie weights.)
Paint edges of the tartlet with the egg wash.
Bake in preheated oven 350° F (175 C) for 12 min
Remove from oven, remove weights, then roll top to cut off excess
Return to oven and bake 8 more minutes to dry the bottoms
Immediately remove from pans and cool on a wire
Chocolate Ganache
Heat the cream to just below boiling.
Place the chopped chocolate in a heat proof bowl
Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and let it sit for a couple of minutes
Add the corn syrup and vanilla and mix until smooth
Pour the chocolate into a sealed piping bag. (No piping tip required.)
Let the mixture cool to the desired viscosity.
Orange Crème
Place the confectioners’ sugar and zest in a small bowl. Add the orange juice one drop at a time while stirring, until the desired viscosity is attained.
Pour into a piping bag with a small circular piping tip inserted. (Do not cut the end off yet.)
Crème Patisserie
Whisk eggs and milk together then add to all other ingredients (except vanilla) to a medium saucepan.
Bring to boil, whisking constantly
Cook until it begins to thicken (it will look lumpy, its ok)
Sieve lumpy mixture into a bowl and add vanilla, mix thoroughly
Transfer to a sealed piping bag to cool. (No piping tip required.)
ASSEMBLY
Pipe a ¼” layer of CremePat into each tart shell and smooth
Pipe a ⅛” layer of chocolate crème on the CremePat layer and smooth
Pipe concentric ⅛“wide circles of orange cream and feather the orange cream with a toothpick
I was watching YouTube for ideas on how to shape pastries and boy! there are a lot of them. These three are pretty popular and I thought they would be a good place to start.
I bought some berries that were on sale from a local supermarket. (Truthfully, they should have paid me to take them away.) Out of a 6 oz container I was fortunate enough to find a half dozen berries to use as garnish. The rest were made into jam.
First CutBoth Cuts and First FoldFolded, Egg-washed and Jam AddedFlower and Pin-Wheel Designs
While I now make my own puff pastry I had a box of Pepperidge Farm puff pastry in the freezer and I wanted to use it up.
I don’t actually have a recipe for this so here it is in a nutshell: Cut the puff pastry in 4 squares. Fold a square in have to form a triangle and cut as necessary to make the desired design. Fold and pinch any overlaps to reduce the chance of separation.
The jam is made with equal parts berry and sugar, cooked until the temperature reaches 220° F. When cooled and gelled, add a rough teaspoon to each pastry. Coat the pastry with an egg wash. (I used an egg-white wash as I had some left over in the fridge.)
Bake 12-16 minutes until the pastry is a nice brown. Let them cool then dust with some confectioners sugar.
My neighbors gave me a BIG bag of oranges from their trees. The navel oranges in the markets have been very disappointing this year, but these are wonderful.
Usually I give them something made with their oranges in appreciation of their generosity. This time I made chocolate/orange tarts with a vanilla custard base. They tasted good, but looked poor to fair. They baked well with all the components done perfectly. The problem is the top, and therefore the appearance has no “snap.” They would not catch your eye in a patisserie (I will re-make them on the next rained out golf day.)
A 1/8” layer of vanilla custard was poured into the bottom of each tart shell. The tart was baked for 10 minutes at 450° F to set the custard. A layer of chocolate filling was piped over the custard followed by a spiral of the orange crème. A toothpick was used to feather the orange crème.
Before BakingAfter Baking
Chocolate Orange Tart with Vanilla Custard
Yield: Five 4” tarts. INGREDIENTS Tart Shell • 100 g cold butter cut into small cubes • 60 g icing sugar • ½ tsp vanilla • ¼ tsp salt • 2 egg – 1 for the dough and the other 1 egg white reserved for an egg wash • 200 g all-purpose flour Chocolate Filling • 75g butter • 115g dark chocolate (no more than 60% cocoa solids), finely chopped • 115g caster sugar • 55g AP flour • 4 medium eggs Orange Crème • 25g butter • 50g white chocolate • 1 orange, finely grated zest only • 35g caster sugar • 25g AP flour • 2 medium egg yolks Cream Custard • 1 ½ cups (350 ml) whole/full fat milk (1 ¼ c 2% plus ¼ c heavy cream) • 6 large egg yolks • ¼ cup (45 grams) granulated/caster sugar • 1 teaspoon grated nutmeg • ¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract METHOD Tart Shell
Mix butter with sugar
Add salt then vanilla
Add egg and mix until incorporated
Stir in flour. Mix by hand like you are kneading bread until incorporated
Pre-heat oven to 350° F
Cover with plastic and refrigerate for 30 min
Butter tartlet pans, or use non-stick pans
Roll dough to about ⅛” thick
Lay over tart mold and press into all crevices
Roll top to cut off excess
Prick holes in bottom and sides of formed dough
Fill tarts with pastry weights. For mini tartlet pans I put beans in a cupcake paper. For large pans use crumpled parchment paper filled with beans. Remove 5 minutes before the end of the bake.
Paint edges of the tartlet with the egg wash.
Bake in preheated oven 350° F (175 C) for 15 min
Immediately remove from pans and cool on a wire
Chocolate Filling
Melt the butter and chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water until melted and smooth. Remove from the heat and stir in the sugar and flour. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, and leave to stand.
Orange Crème
Melt the butter and white chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water until melted and smooth. Remove from the heat and stir in the orange zest, sugar and flour. Beat in the egg yolks, one at a time and pour the mixture into a jug. Cream Custard
Add the milk to a saucepan over medium heat. Just heat until it starts to lightly simmer, do not boil. Turn off the heat.
Add egg yolks and sugar to a separate mixing bowl, vigorously whisk (or use a hand blender) until pale and bubbly. Remove the milk from the heat and very slowly drizzle into the egg yolks while whisking. Whisk in the vanilla if using. Transfer the mix to a container with a spout.
ASSEMBLY
Pipe a ¼” layer of custard into each tar shell and smooth
Pipe a ½“ layer of chocolate crème on the mousseline layer and smooth
Pipe concentric ⅛“ wide circles of orange cream and feather the orange cream with a toothpick
Bake tarts 14-16 minutes at 350°F. (Start checking at 10 minutes.)
You can take the boy out of science, but you can’t take science out of the boy.
Blackberries were on sale this week and, of course, I couldn’t resist. I had no idea how to use them, but knew something would come to me.
I also had some plain yogurt left over from a Blueberry Cake I made recently and wanted to use it up. I also had a pie crust frozen in the freezer left over from a Banana Cream Pie and a piece of puff pastry that was ending its useful life.
I decided to make Berry Hand Pies – half with pie crust (for the first time) and half with puff pastry. I also made half of each with fillings made with yogurt or cream cheese.
I preferred the puff pastry version while QC liked the pie crust variety. Both the yogurt based and cream cheese based filled were equally delicious.
Berry Hand Pie
INGREDIENTS • 1 egg • 1 tablespoon water • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour • 1 sheet Trader Joe’s puff pastry, thawed but cool. • 2 ounces cream cheese, softened • 1 tablespoons granulated sugar or decorating sugar • ¼ cup white chocolate chips • 3 ounces berries • 2 tablespoons coarse white sugar or decorating sugar METHOD
Stir the cream cheese and granulated sugar in a medium bowl until the mixture is smooth. Stir in the white chocolate chips.
Cut large berries in half.
Sprinkle the flour on the work surface. Unfold the pastry sheet on the work surface. Roll the pastry sheet into a 12-inch square. Using a round cutter, cut into as many 4 -inch circles as you can.
Brush the edges of the pastry circles with the egg mixture. Place about ½ tablespoon cream cheese mixture in the center of each. (Don’t overfill.) Top each with about one small or two halves of a large berry. Fold the circles in half, pinching the edges together. Crimp both edges with a fork. If you don’t seal them adequately or have to much filling it will leak out of the sides of the finished pastry.
Brush the pastries with the egg mixture and sprinkle with the coarse sugar. Using a sharp knife cut small slits in the tops of the filled pastries. Place the pastries onto a silicone or parchment paper lined baking sheet.
Bake for 20 minutes or until the pastries are golden brown. Remove the pastries from the baking sheets and let cool on wire racks for 10 minutes.
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