Don't forget quality!

It's important for all chefs - pastry included - to have great, sharp knives. Don't forget, we slice fruit, breads, cakes, etc. If your knife isn't good, your beautiful hardwork suffers. Here are a few articles about knives:

Bon Appetit: http://www.bonappetit.com/blogsandforums/blogs/projectrecipe/2008/05/14/lets-talk-knives.html
Food & Wine: http://www.foodandwine.com/articles/kitchen-knives-guide

http://www.foodandwine.com/articles/the-knives-you-need-now

Getting BOWLed over!

A few weeks ago I was making a new pizza dough recipe, and after I let my dough sit and rise for 2 hours, I needed to divide it into 3 pieces and let it rise again. At that point, the recipe instructed that I put each piece into a separate bowl and let it rise for another hour or so. It's a good thing I have about 6 different mixing bowls of the larger variety.

I just wanted to point out how important it is to have multiple mixing bowls at the ready during your baking adventures. You need them for all kinds of recipes: metal or glass for melting chocolate like a double boiler; any material for separating wet and dry ingredients as well as eggs. Luckily, stores have all kinds of bowls at different price points for whatever your baking needs may be. From Target to Crate and Barrel, you can find some fabulous deals on mixing bowl sets. Just be sure to have enough for any kind of baking emergency, whether it be because you're making three individual pizza doughs or because your recipe asks you to separate ingredients into 4 different bowls! Happy baking!

Sticky lips

This weekend I made the most deliciously rich poundcake, filled with two of the most deliciously sticky ingredients - caramel and peanut butter. I took a simple poundcake recipe using these 2 sweet treats, and I added my own flair, creating depth with crunchy peanut butter and a variety of sugars. Check out the final product!

Straight out of the icebox

If you have a working refrigerator or icebox, you can make a delicious cake. There's something about icebox cakes that make me smile...they're quick and easy, and with the creamy pudding texture and cookie taste, they remind me of my childhood. There are so many variations on the recipe, I bet you could even think of one on your own. Here are some easy icebox recipes to get you started:

Espresso and Mascarpone Icebox Cake
(from Gourmet 2004)

Ingredients

• 3 cups chilled heavy cream
• 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 cup mascarpone cheese (about 9 oz) at room temperature
• 1 (9-oz) box chocolate wafers such as Nabisco Famous
• 1 tablespoon instant-espresso powder*

• Special equipment: a 9 1/2- to 10-inch springform pan (about 26 cm)

Directions                          

Beat 2 cups cream with 6 tablespoons sugar in a bowl with an electric mixer at medium speed until it just holds soft peaks, 2 to 4 minutes. Reduce speed to low, then add mascarpone and mix until combined.

Spread 1 1/4 cups mascarpone mixture evenly in bottom of springform pan and cover with 14 wafers, slightly overlapping if necessary. Spread with another 1 1/4 cups mascarpone mixture, followed by 14 more wafers arranged in the same manner. Spread remaining mascarpone mixture on top. Smooth top with a metal offset spatula, then cover pan with foil and freeze until firm, about 1 hour. Transfer from freezer to refrigerator and chill, covered, until a sharp knife inserted into center cuts through softened wafers easily, about 8 hours.

Pulse remaining chocolate wafers in a food processor until finely ground.

Beat remaining cup cream with espresso powder and remaining 3 tablespoons sugar using electric mixer at medium speed until it just holds stiff peaks, about 3 minutes.

Remove foil and side of pan and frost cake all over with espresso cream. Sprinkle edge of top lightly with wafer crumbs. Serve cold.

*Available at most supermarkets and The Baker's Catalogue (800-827-6836).

Cooks' notes: Cake, without espresso cream, can be chilled up to 2 days. Cake can be frosted with espresso cream 4 hours ahead and chilled, loosely covered with foil.

Lemon Icebox Cake
(from Gourmet 2008)

Ingredients

• 4 lemons
• 1 cup water plus additional for blanching
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, divided
• 1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
• 3/4 cup chilled heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon confectioners sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 (8- by 4-inch) store-bought all-butter pound cake (3/4 to 1 pound), chilled

 

Directions

Make candied peel:
Remove zest (peel) from 2 lemons in wide strips with a vegetable peeler (see Tips, page 118), then cut lengthwise with a sharp knife into 1/8-inch-wide julienne strips. Reserve lemons for juicing.

Fill a 2-quart heavy saucepan halfway with water, then add julienned peel. Bring to a boil and simmer 15 minutes. Drain peel in a sieve and rinse.

Bring water (1 cup) and 1 cup granulated sugar to a boil in saucepan, stirring until sugar has dissolved. Add peel and gently simmer until translucent, about 15 minutes.

Remove peel from syrup with a slotted spoon, letting syrup drain off into saucepan. Spread out on a sheet of wax paper and cool to room temperature.

Toss peel with remaining 1/2 cup granulated sugar, stirring with a fork to coat and separate. Transfer sugared peel to clean dry sieve and shake off excess sugar, then spread out on a fresh sheet of wax paper to dry slightly. Make lemon filling while peel simmers and cools: Grate enough zest from remaining 2 lemons with a rasp to measure 2 teaspoon, then squeeze enough juice from all lemons to measure 2/3 cup. Whisk together zest, juice, and condensed milk. Chill until cold, at least 30 minutes.

Whip cream:
Beat heavy cream with confectioners sugar and vanilla in a chilled bowl with a whisk or electric mixer until it just holds stiff peaks. assemble cake: Halve cake crosswise, then trim crust from all sides. Cut each block horizontally into 4 (1/2-inch-thick) squares. Halve each square diagonally into 2 triangles.

For each serving, layer 2 triangles with lemon filling, offsetting corners. Top cake with whipped cream and candied lemon peel.

Cooks' notes: •Candied lemon peel can be made 2 days ahead and kept in an airtight container at room temperature.
•Lemon filling can be made 1 day ahead and chilled.

Even Steven...cake.

In order to make a beautiful, level cake, you need to have perfectly even cake layers. It might seem impossible, but with the right equipment you'll be able to level your cake. It is important to have two tools for creating even layers:

A high-quality turntable (such as this one from Ateco: http://www.amazon.com/Ateco-Metal-Revolving-Cake-Stand/dp/B000BVFYUO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1329934468&sr=8-1)

A serrated cake knife

Once you've taken your cake layers out of the oven, cooled completely, then allowed to chill in the freezer for a short period of time, they will be easier to cut without crumbling. Place one layer on top of a cardboard cake round on top of your turntable. Slowly using your cake knife, start cutting the cake through the center, rotating the table as you go. Remove your top half and put aside. Trim the uneven part of the cake to make it a clean layer. Do the same with the top part, as well as the other cake rounds you've baked earlier. By using a turntable, it is easier to cut the cake into even layers.

Don't get discouraged...this takes practice. When baking, everything needs to be done slowly and gently because desserts are delicate. Happy baking!

Peanut buttery Valentine

Hi all! I hope you had a lovely President's Day break...I was very busy. My fiance and I celebrated our Valentine's Day on Saturday, so I could have time to bake and make a delicious dinner. After much deliberation, I chose a double chocolate peanut butter pie recipe. The crust was a chocolate-chocolate graham cracker, which added depth of chocolatey flavor. The filling, of the oven-free variety, was made with crunchy peanut butter to add texture, cream cheese, heavy cream, sugar, and vanilla. The pie was topped with a thick layer of ganache (chocolate and heavy cream), and sprinkled with roasted peanuts. Like an elegant and grown-up peanut butter cup, this pie was a Valentine delight!

Sweet and sour

The weather outside has been deceiving...it feels like spring is coming soon! I'm starting to think about all of the fabulous, light flavors I'll be using in the springtime to make delicious desserts.

When I think about some great flavors for spring cakes, I like to remember citrus - lemon and lime. These flavors make great curds, pies, and even flavors for the cakes themselves. Citrus can cut the sweetness in a very dense, rich cake, and add depths of additional flavors. If you've never made a lemon curd, it's actually very easy, but will look impressive to all of your guests. Ina Garten has an easy recipe for you to try. Let me know how it turns out...happy baking!

Barefoot Contessa's Lemon Curd

Ingredients

• 3 lemons
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1/4 pound unsalted butter, room temperature
• 4 extra-large eggs
• 1/2 cup lemon juice (3 to 4 lemons)
• 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions

1. Using a carrot peeler, remove the zest of 3 lemons, being careful to avoid the white pith. Put the zest in a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Add the sugar and pulse until the zest is very finely minced into the sugar.

2. Cream the butter and beat in the sugar and lemon mixture. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and then add the lemon juice and salt. Mix until combined.
3. Pour the mixture into a 2 quart saucepan and cook over low heat until thickened (about 10 minutes), stirring constantly. The lemon curd will thicken at about 170 degrees F, or just below simmer.
4. Remove from the heat and cool or refrigerate.