Thursday, August 5, 2010
I only recently discovered my fondness for Orange Sherbet. I recall throughout my lifetime hearing others exclaim their love for the treat and disregarding them almost instantly. It was a chance encounter with a grocery store Orange Sherbet ice cream cake, something that I would normally overlook without a second thought. Soon, a small slice turned into a second and a third...an accompaniment to my breakfast cereal, an after school snack...until one day, it was gone. There was something undeniably nostalgic about the flavor that I just couldn't place. And then suddenly, I had it. I even called my sister from across the house to have a taste and confirm my suspicion. Orange Sherbet tasted oddly like...Fruity Pebbles. Yes, Fruity Pebbles: a childhood favorite from my pre-gourmet days. A flavor-memory that I still find hard to resist when it crosses my path. Definitely a guilty pleasure of mine.
Behold, my hand-churned orange sherbet. Now before you start thinking that you ought to be impressed...my decision to hand-churn the ice cream was based more on desperation than inspiration. I had prepared and chilled my rather impromptu sherbet mixture and was starting to assemble the ice cream maker attachment on my KitchenAid stand mixer when I realized that the adapter was missing. What ensued first was panic, then frustration, and finally...insanity.
My freezer bowl was already out and starting to condensate. I had to act quick. I grabbed the chilled mixture and poured it into the bowl. I hastily set the microwave timer to twenty minutes, grabbed the plastic churner and began to spin the bowl with my left hand, while my right hand clenched tightly onto the top of the churner. I tried my best to keep my knuckles away from the freezing mixture. The end result was light and slightly creamy, with the tiny ice crystals characteristic of a sherbet. Thanks to my unwavering will and endurance, the consistency is exactly what I expected to achieve if I had used the ice cream maker.
This orange sherbet is not so much the result of a recipe, but the outcome of trial and error. I'm so embarrassed by my method that I won't even attempt to post a recipe or instructions. I simply took a few scoops of vanilla ice cream (cheating? perhaps, but I told you this was very impromptu), a teaspoon and a half of vanilla, a splash of milk perhaps (I used soy), and enough orange juice concentrate to achieve the flavor you want.
Not really faithful to a real Sherbet at all I suppose, but it satisfied my (Fruity Pebble) craving.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
I'm a bit apprehensive as I type this and soon you'll understand why. When my mother came home yesterday she brought along a small bag of peaches from her best friend's backyard. She told me that she would be out of town for the next two days and knowing that most of my clandestine baking happens while she's gone, she commissioned me to make a peach cobbler. Nothing fancy, no individual ramekins: just one simple cobbler.
Well I guess I don't take directions well unless they're part of a recipe that promises something delicious at the end. I convinced myself that if I made an alternative to cobbler that was simple, yet delicious enough to win over my mother, I would be in the clear. So I began my search for the perfect simple peach recipe. I found my answer in Dorie Greenspan's Dimply Plum (Well, Anything) Cake. I've always been an obedient daughter, but I suppose baking must bring out my inner rebel, because I had the audacity to make miniature cakes as well.
The cake smelled delicious sitting in the oven and I was so sure of my success. The first downhill turn was when I pulled the cakes out (the 6" cake and the 3" mini cakes) at 20 minutes and found them a little too dark along the edges. I tried to stay hopeful as I proceeded with picture taking and when I finally shut off my camera, I grabbed a slice and took a bite straight off the prop fork. Dry. Well, at least, not moist enough for my liking. Nothing too spectacular in terms of taste, but I'll also admit that the peaches from her friend didn't taste so good on their own to begin with.
Even still, I was disappointed and consequently worried about how my mother will receive the not-so-cobblery cakes when she returns. Whenever I run into a recipe I don't favor, especially from a source as reliable as Dorie Greenspan, my first assumption is that the fault is my own. Can someone please let me know if the cake is meant to be slightly dry? Am I missing out on something?
I'll be sure to give it a try again tomorrow morning and hope for the best, but my expectations aren't high.
You can find the recipe here.
* Just as I went to retrieve the link for the recipe, I skimmed through the recipe commentary over at Bake-En and am instilled with new hope. "Dorie says that the first day the cake is like corn bread and the 2nd and 3rd days it's soft and moist. Perhaps I'll fall in love with it tomorrow." This is somewhat reassuring and now I am a little more excited for what breakfast might reveal. Perhaps it's the juices of the fruit permeating through the cake that makes it more moist over time...but for now that's just speculation. I'll find out for sure tomorrow. I knew Dorie wouldn't let me down so hard...
Meanwhile below is a Before & After project I took on, my first really. I saw this worn-out, shabby chic end table outside of a neighbor's house as I drove to work one morning. When it was still there on my way home from work the next day, I quickly pulled over and timidly went to go knock on the door and inquire about it. Fortunately for me, the homeowner walked right out to retrieve her child's toys outside and when I asked her about it, she gladly let me have it for free. I giddily placed it in my trunk and drove the half a block to my house where I immediately got started. After smoothing it down with a power sander, I vacuumed it and wiped it down. Then the next day I spray painted it bright white. Dozens of adorable color combinations flooded my mind, but for my first project I decided to keep it simple and clean...and easy to coordinate. It took me years of admiring Before & After projects for me to finally tackle one myself. Now I won't hesitate to pull over when I see a promising find. You can click here and here to see the "before" photos.
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Remember how I confessed to just not being a "cookie lover"? Well, there must exist some technicality that prevents rugelach from being classified as a cookie, because as of today...I love rugelach. More realistically, I could love rugelach. I made an almost classic variation with raspberry jam, walnuts, and semisweet chocolate chips. The recipe is great, but I had mixed feelings about the batch I made. For one, I'm not a big fan of chocolate. I know...a food blogger that isn't fond of chocolate or cookies, some might consider it an oxymoron. If and when I make these again, I'll probably cut down on the chocolate and definitely make the trip to go buy some currants or dried fruit, because although the cookie itself was flaky and tender, the texture of the filling left much to be desired. I'm also sure that the fruity flavor of the currants would lighten up the richness of the chocolate. So I suppose what I'm saying is that I'm not in love with these cookies as much as I am in love with the idea of what they could be.
Please don't let my rambling stop you from trying these cookies. The fact that they're Dorie's should be enough motivation to get you in the kitchen. And besides, the majority of my reservations are based solely on my inability to stick to the recipe in the first place...as soon as I add those currants, I might as well delete this whole rant and simply post five gold stars underneath picture.
Enough, enough. Run away before I start up again, you can find the recipe here.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
This is not an attempt to alienate my readers, but I honestly am not a cookie lover. In a bakeshop filled with all manner of baked goods, the last thing to usually catch my eye are the cookies. The only cookies that I ever crave are the ones sold at the Teacake Bakeshop locations around the Bay Area. And even then, the craving is often never strong enough to get me to walk into the store. I suppose my bias is this: if I'm going to put something unjustifiably caloric in my mouth, its looks should somewhat mirror its decadence. I guess even my stomach has a very particular aesthetic.
One of my favorite cookies there is the simple Lemon Pout. A soft, chewy sugar cookie with an undeniable lemon zing, perfectly offset by the crunch of sparkling sugar. I finally convinced myself into buying a microplane zester just so I could make these cookies. The recipe I found yields the most perfectly soft and chewy cookies. But beware: "store them in an airtight container to keep them nice and soft" is not a suggestion, it is a must. I left a few of the best looking cookies on a paper plate and covered them in plastic wrap so I could save them for picture taking later and within a few hours they lost their delicate texture. Nothing a quick zap in the microwave won't fix, but not ideal nonetheless.
Another note, I didn't have any lemon extract on hand (but after this incident, I will soon), so I took a cue from here and substituted four tablespoons of lemon juice. The result? Sadly not at all lemony. More like sugar cookies with a subtle hint of zest. Good, but just not tempting enough to cram down my mouth. I will, for certain, try this recipe again as soon as I get my hands on some lemon extract. Until then, for all you lemon lovers...don't settle for a substitute!
On a lighter, purely aesthetic note: next time I would definitely opt for rolling these cookies in sparkling sugar. Again, I only had granulated on hand, which lent nothing to the texture. Well, there was turbinado in the pantry, but I didn't want to risk discoloring the cookies with caramel-colored flecks. Just another reason to try it again, I'm missing out on that delicate crunch!
One of my favorite cookies there is the simple Lemon Pout. A soft, chewy sugar cookie with an undeniable lemon zing, perfectly offset by the crunch of sparkling sugar. I finally convinced myself into buying a microplane zester just so I could make these cookies. The recipe I found yields the most perfectly soft and chewy cookies. But beware: "store them in an airtight container to keep them nice and soft" is not a suggestion, it is a must. I left a few of the best looking cookies on a paper plate and covered them in plastic wrap so I could save them for picture taking later and within a few hours they lost their delicate texture. Nothing a quick zap in the microwave won't fix, but not ideal nonetheless.
Another note, I didn't have any lemon extract on hand (but after this incident, I will soon), so I took a cue from here and substituted four tablespoons of lemon juice. The result? Sadly not at all lemony. More like sugar cookies with a subtle hint of zest. Good, but just not tempting enough to cram down my mouth. I will, for certain, try this recipe again as soon as I get my hands on some lemon extract. Until then, for all you lemon lovers...don't settle for a substitute!
On a lighter, purely aesthetic note: next time I would definitely opt for rolling these cookies in sparkling sugar. Again, I only had granulated on hand, which lent nothing to the texture. Well, there was turbinado in the pantry, but I didn't want to risk discoloring the cookies with caramel-colored flecks. Just another reason to try it again, I'm missing out on that delicate crunch!
Lemon Sugar Cookies (adapted from Crepes of Wrath)
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoons lemon extract
zest of 1 lemon
1/2 cup granulated or raw sugar for rolling cookies (I used raw sugar, which I think was an awesome choice)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or tin foil and spray lightly with Pam.
In a small bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
Rub together the zest and granulated sugar until the sugar is a pale yellow color. This helps to infuse all of the oils in the zest into the sugar and gives your cookies an even more lemony flavor. Using a mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until smooth and very fluffy (about 3-5 minutes).
Beat in egg, vanilla extract, and lemon extract.
Gradually blend in the dry ingredients and mix until just moistened.
Roll rounded tablespoons of dough into balls, and roll in sugar. Place on lined cookie sheets about 1 1/2 inches apart.
Bake 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until lightly golden and set.
Let stand on cookie sheet two minutes before removing to cool on wire racks. As soon as the cookies have cooled, store them in an airtight container to keep them nice and soft. Makes around 20 cookies.
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
I have had my eye on this enticing Baked Doughnuts recipe from 101 cookbooks for months. I have daydreamed in class about simple glazed doughnuts and different jam-filled varieties. And yet, I'm practically half way in to my summer and haven't found the time to tackle a yeast recipe. Or perhaps it's a little bit of moxie that I can't seem to locate. However, I did promise myself that I would get to it sometime before school starts and I have no intention of letting myself down.
Until then, I had to satiate my doughnut craving with this quick fix solution: doughnut muffins. The recipe is from The Downtown Bakery and Creamery north of the Bay Area in Healdsburg. They claim to sell out of these muffins every morning and I can already see why. The original recipe, which I posted here, yields 24 standard sized muffins. Predictably, I quartered the recipe and made 24 mini-muffins, but each little, melt-in-your-mouth bite is delectable. I'll shamefully admit that I've already eaten somewhere over 6 mini-muffins which is a little under 2 standard muffins...in under an hour. I've since forced myself to clean the kitchen completely and grab myself a glass of water so that I won't have a reason to go into the kitchen for a good couple of hours. I won't lie...doughnut muffins are not the new doughnut. But don't let that stop you from trying them.
Doughnut Muffins (recipe found here)
makes 24 medium muffins
12 oz. (24 Tbs.) unsalted butter, warmed to room temperature
1-3/4 cups sugar
4 large eggs
1 lb. 11 oz. (6 cups) all-purpose flour
1 Tbs. plus 2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1-3/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
1-2/3 cups milk
1/4 cup buttermilk
8 oz. (16 Tbs.) unsalted butter; more as needed
2 cups sugar
2 Tbs. ground cinnamon
Put a rack in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to 350°F.
In a stand mixer or a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until just mixed in. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg.
Combine the milk and buttermilk. With a wooden spoon, mix a quarter of the dry ingredients into the butter mixture. Then mix in a third of the milk mixture. Continue mixing in the remaining dry and wet ingredients alternately, ending with the dry. Mix until well combined and smooth, but don't overmix.
Grease and flour a standard-size muffin tin. Scoop enough batter into each tin so that the top of the batter is even with the rim of the cup, about 1/2 cup. (A #16 ice-cream scoop gives you the perfect amount.) Bake the muffins until firm to the touch, 30 to 35 min.
Melt the butter for the dipping mixture. Combine the sugar and cinnamon. When the muffins are just cool enough to handle, remove them from the tin, dip them into or brush them all over with the melted butter, and then roll them in the cinnamon sugar.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
It's so difficult to brainstorm products and prices for people that you know. Not only did I have to come up with something that appeals to their tastes and that they would actually buy (which entails that they either cannot make it themselves or conveniently buy it elsewhere). I remembered often hearing the women mention red velvet cakes before. It seemed perfect, it wasn't a cultural staple, so it wasn't something that most of the women would make on their own. It was also not too simple, as many of the women were already well-seasoned in making their own quick breads, so banana bread for sale was out of the question. Red velvet was the perfect option the more I thought about it.
Then there was the price to consider. After researching prices at most well established bakeries, I found that even a small 6 inch cake can run up over $30. Considering the population of the church, I realized that this would not do. Even with the price above $20 I could already imagine their polite "No Thank You"s. I figured the price had to be low, a low amount of funds is better than no funds at all and I was hoping that the low price would encourage more orders. So, I sold 6 inch red velvet cakes for....$15 dollars. No lie. And for a moment it even pained me to do it, but it all turned out for the better in the end. The cake was very well received and on our first day of taking orders we sold 10 cakes, totaling up to $150 raised on our first go.
This of course means that this Friday, I will be in the church kitchen baking up ten red velvet cakes. And although we'll continue taking orders for more as the weeks go by (I have several requests to make a sugar-free version) I assure you that by the time I get back to school, I will be running out the door if my friends so much as request a Red-Velvet-Anything.
But for now, I give you this cake recipe. The only adaptation I made was altering the prescribed one teaspoon of cocoa powder to two tablespoons. I know, I know there is so much controversy over doing this. However, I had made a half recipe earlier in the week as a batch of mini-cupcakes for an order of 6-dozen (2 dozen lemon with cream cheese, 2 dozen vanilla with chocolate ganache, and 2 dozen red velvet) and the flavor never seemed to develop. To make a six inch cake, I only needed to use half the recipe, but I added a tablespoon of cocoa powder instead and after the cake cooled and I had sliced it and taken my bite of the scraps I immediately screamed for my sister to come down to the kitchen. Even right out of the oven, without maturing, the flavor was so full and complex. That extra hit of cocoa gave the taste so much body without actually being too obviously chocolate, because believe me I am NOT a chocolate fan. Just keep in mind that the recipe posted below makes a three-layer, 9 inch cake. You could make half and end up with a good sized 6 inch or use the other half for cupcakes. All up to you.
*Also, I'm considering making those 6 inch cakes into three-layers instead of two. Well maybe if I ever make it again for myself I'll try it out.
Southern Red Velvet Cake (adapted from Food Network)
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon fine salt
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
2 eggs, room temperature
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
red food coloring (as much as desired)
1 teaspoon white distilled vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly butter and flour 3 (9 by 1 1/2-inch round) cake pans.
In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder. In another large bowl, whisk together the oil, buttermilk, eggs, food coloring, vinegar, and vanilla.
Using a standing mixer, mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined and a smooth batter is formed.
Divide the cake batter evenly among the prepared cake pans. Place the pans in the oven evenly spaced apart. Bake, rotating the pans halfway through the cooking, until the cake pulls away from the side of the pans, and a toothpick inserted in the center of the cakes comes out clean, about 30 minutes.
Remove the cakes from the oven and run a knife around the edges to loosen them from the sides of the pans. One at a time, invert the cakes onto a plate and then re-invert them onto a cooling rack, rounded-sides up. Let cool completely.
Cream Cheese Frosting
1 pound cream cheese, softened 4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar 2 sticks unsalted butter (1 cup), softened 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
In a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or with a hand-held electric mixer in a large bowl, mix the cream cheese, sugar, and butter on low speed until incorporated. Increase the speed to high, and mix until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. (Occasionally turn the mixer off, and scrape the down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.)
Reduce the speed of the mixer to low. Add the vanilla, raise the speed to high and mix briefly until fluffy (scrape down the bowl occasionally). Store in the refrigerator until somewhat stiff, before using. May be stored in the refrigerator for 3 days.
Assembly
Frost the cake. Place 1 layer, rounded-side down, in the middle of a rotating cake stand. Using a palette knife or offset spatula spread some of the cream cheese frosting over the top of the cake. (Spread enough frosting to make a 1/4 to 1/2-inch layer.) Carefully set another layer on top, rounded-side down, and repeat. Top with the remaining layer and cover the entire cake with the remaining frosting.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
For any of you who have yet to pick up on the pattern, I'll spell it out for you. If you so much as see the word "strawberry", know that the post has my boyfriend all over it. Because of the recent makeover and all my giddy self-satisfaction at doing it all on my own--from the logo to every last, frustrating bit of code--my boyfriend has taken a closer look at my blog, instead of the customary once over. I even received my first "reader complaint" when he noted that I had failed to mention him in the Strawberry Bavarian post. The title of the post clearly shows that I had meant to make mention of it, but my busy school schedule and sheer laziness when it comes to writing here prevented the post from ever developing into more than just a recipe card. The cake was made for my boyfriend's .......th birthday. Funny, I hesitated to announce the age, partly because I'm not sure how much more information my boyfriend minds me posting outside of a mere mention and because I suddenly became worried about dating ourselves by giving his age. Besides, as most of you know, the number itself means little and most people who see that kid in action and then hear his real age are surprised.
I will now simply refer to him as J, because I'm not sure how fond he would be of my previous nickname for him. Anyways, this last Monday was our 34 month anniversary or two months short of three years anniversary...however you choose to look at it. And yes, you can see that we're still silly enough to celebrate our relationship down to the month, but part of me hopes that if we're together ten years from now, we'll still be celebrating our 114 month anniversary, a.k.a our 9 1/2 years anniversary.
As soon as I hinted to J that I would be making him something, he immediately exclaimed "ice cream cake!". I almost went for it too, and began mentally planning out individual ice cream cakes made in ring molds, but inevitably came back to my original idea...strawberry shortcakes. Which surprisingly for a strawberry lover, he has never tried, but he's not the kind to try something new unless under duress. He also stared shocked for a moment when he saw how I had cut the dozen peach roses he had given to me short enough to fit into a mason jar. He had expected for me to leave them long-stemmed and elegant, like he was accustomed to seeing, but I explained that I liked the cozy feel of the simple display.
So the verdict? Success! Despite a few helpless (albeit, adorable) questions about how he should go about eating it, his plate was emptied and scraped in a few minutes and I was finally relieved of enough anticipation to enjoy my own.
As soon as I hinted to J that I would be making him something, he immediately exclaimed "ice cream cake!". I almost went for it too, and began mentally planning out individual ice cream cakes made in ring molds, but inevitably came back to my original idea...strawberry shortcakes. Which surprisingly for a strawberry lover, he has never tried, but he's not the kind to try something new unless under duress. He also stared shocked for a moment when he saw how I had cut the dozen peach roses he had given to me short enough to fit into a mason jar. He had expected for me to leave them long-stemmed and elegant, like he was accustomed to seeing, but I explained that I liked the cozy feel of the simple display.
So the verdict? Success! Despite a few helpless (albeit, adorable) questions about how he should go about eating it, his plate was emptied and scraped in a few minutes and I was finally relieved of enough anticipation to enjoy my own. As for myself, I love the recipe. Too often you encounter dry or flavorless shortcakes, but these were so moist and tender that I couldn't resist taking one to work with separate little containers of sliced strawberries and whipped cream and trying to assemble it without anyone noticing and sneak it back to my desk to enjoy.
This recipe came from a recent Tuesdays with Dorie, though I don't know if I can officially claim to have participated seeing as I am two weeks late. You can find the recipe over at The Tortefeasor.
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