Macaron Madness

Behold! I'm becoming the Queenie of Macarons! =D
And while I'm at it, perfecting the blend of White Chocolate and Raspberries.

So, Last Saturday, I had tons of extra Egg-yolks (10, to be precise), so I figured I'd make ice cream. May as well - that's one of the only things that calls for straight egg yolks (aside from Creme Brulee and other custards).

So, I made it White-Chocolate Raspberry, and combined two recipes.
So, the one I'm giving you now, is both my own creation, and from memory. Dang, I'm getting good. (Note: Measurements have been double-checked ;) )

But first, Behold a "Eh" picture - it doesn't do the taste justice:






White-chocolate indeed.

Now, please keep in mind, I doubled this recipe.
White Chocolate Raspberry Gelato/Ice Cream
1 quart Milk
1.5 cups Heavy Cream
20oz White Chocolate Chips
8 egg yolks (I used 10 - didn't make much of a difference)
Some Raspberry Extract (I *never* measure this)

Bring Milk to a simmer in a medium-large saucepan. While this is heating, get your egg yolks and whisk them till they're a pale yellow. Whisk you're little heart out - your arm should be aching by the time you're done. If you've finished before the milk is at a simmer, Get a large bowl and fill it with ice water (only enough so that your pot with milk can sit in it comfortably, without overflowing).

Remove milk from the heat. Steadily add about 1/2 cup of the simmering milk into the eggs, whisking constantly. Do this until the eggs feel very warm, almost hot, or you've run out of room in the bowl. Now, combine the egg/milk mixture with the rest of the milk, whisking constantly.

Add the White chocolate, stirring constantly. Stir until white chocolate has dissolved completely. Set in the bowl of ice-water, and let cool. Once cool, add the heavy cream and add extract to flavor. You can use any kind of extract. (Note: If you want to use liqueur, use double the amount you would have used for extract)

Put in fridge to cool - until it's really cool, otherwise you'll hurt your ice cream maker. Put in ice cream maker, and voila! Magic.


So now for our next escapade.... So, I was in class last week, and a showed a few of my classmates the pictures of my White-Chocolate-Strawberry-Cheese Tart, and they said that I should bring *Them* one. And being the nice person that I am, I brought them something just as good (Because it's difficult to bring a has-to-always-be-cold dish to school all day).

White-Chocolate-Raspberry Macarons!! But Beware - these stinker-poos come with a tale.

So, I was making macarons one night, and I saw nothing Scary,
For I've never been afraid of anything - Not very.
But wrong the recipe I'd read,
And now my egg-whites were dead!

I yelled for help - I screamed, I shrieked, I howled, I yowled, I cried -
Oh save me, Kitchen Fairy, for my egg whites have died!
But did I give up? No, Not I -
I had more egg whites - enough for another try.

I whisked 8 new egg whites, carefully in my pan,
I'd make these Macarons perfect - I can! I can!
I brought those egg whites to one-hundred degrees,
In silent hope they wouldn't bring me to my knees.

The eggs-whites were great - All eight.
But as I beat them to stiff peaks, The time became late.
4 minutes, 6; 10 minutes, 16 -
"Oh Please!" I scream.

Sugar, I thought - so I added some,
And slowly, those egg-whites became one!
"Soft peaks," I sighed, but combined them anyway,
There'd be time to perfect Macarons Another day.

But lo! When they came out of the oven, they were perfect!
Off the cookie sheets the came! Then the taste - terrific!
Macaron Queenie, Am I -
Just taste one - and Happily you'll die!

Well, You'll die Happy. (Which is how it was meant ;) )

And there's the Bard's version of my escapade. =D I know, my poetry needs help - oh well. But here's to hoping you understand what went wrong.


First, I thought the recipe said to cook my egg whites to 170 degrees, not 100 - so they were overcooked. All eight (i'd doubled the recipe). So, i made them again, and the egg whites were fine this time - until I started beating them with the sugar.

Those dumb things wouldn't stiffen up!! So, I added a bit more sugar, and more cream of tartar... and it came together a bit better. But, I was expecting these things to completely flop.

So, when they had a film after about half an hour of sitting out, i was suprised. I was even more suprised when not only *every single one* looked perfect, but they tasted just as good!


Behold, my Raspberry Macaron with White-Chocolate Raspberry Ganache:

I'm brilliant, I know.

The recipe I modified, too - I'm getting adventurous, aren't I? Second time making macarons, and I'm already modifying the recipe....

Okay, so here's the base recipe: But be aware, it was doubled, and I didn't measure how much extra sugar, cream of tartar, or raspberry extract I added.

Macarons - NOT DOUBLED

1 cup plus 3 tablespoons almond flour

2 cups plus 3 tablespoons powdered sugar

4 egg whites

3/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

Scant 4 tablespoons sugar

1. Line two 17-by-12-inch baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. In a food processor, blend the almond flour and powdered sugar for 1 minute. Sift the blended almond mixture directly into a medium mixing bowl. Set aside. (This can be made up to 2 days in advance.)

2. Fill a small saucepan halfway with water. Bring to a simmer, then remove from the heat. In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk the egg whites until foamy. Place the bowl over the pot of hot water and whisk quickly until the egg whites reach 100 degrees on a candy thermometer.

3. Remove the bowl from the pot of water and whisk in the cream of tartar. Place it on a stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment. Whip on medium speed for 2 minutes, then gradually beat in the sugar. Continue whipping for 6 minutes until the egg whites come to medium stiff peaks and are shiny.

4. Remove the bowl from the mixer. Add egg whites to the almond mixture by gently bringing the flat side of a rubber spatula through the center of the egg whites and up the opposite side of the bowl, folding the dry ingredients over the egg whites. Repeat the same motion 50 times, turning the bowl a quarter turn each time.

5. Fit a pastry bag with a medium round tip (No. 4) and fill with the mixture. On the parchment-lined baking sheets, pipe 1-inch rounds (the batter will be slightly wet) by holding the bag at a slight angle and releasing small amounts of batter. Allow one-half inch between cookies; they will spread slightly. Keep the piped cookies at room temperature, uncovered, for 1 to 2 hours. (This will help form a skin.)

6. Heat the oven to 325 degrees, placing the racks in the center and lower shelves of the oven.

7. Bake the macarons for 12 minutes, reverse the trays on the racks and rotate halfway through. Add a couple minutes longer to cooking time, depending on your oven.

8. Fill the macarons by using a spoon with the White Chocolate Ganache (see recipe below). This is the easiest part.

White Chocolate Ganache (With Raspberry Extract)
12 oz White Chocolate
3/4 Cup Whipping Cream
1/4 cup Butter
2.5 cups Powdered Sugar
1 tsp Vanilla
~1 tsp Raspberry Extract (add to taste)
Red Food Coloring (optional)

1. Heat cream until bubbles form around the edges of the pan (I did this in the microwave - ~2 minutes). Add the chocolate, and stir until dissolved. Add the butter (make sure it's soft!), and stir until combined. Add vanilla and sugar, and stir until combined. Add raspberry extract (as much or as little as you'd like) and Food Coloring, and let sit at room temperature for ~2 hours, until thick.

See? It's Easy!! And delicious, too.

Please comment! (Even if it's only on my poor excuse for baking-related-poetic-fun!)

Meatballs and Macarons

.... And a formal Apology.

We'll start with that. I'm sorry, dear, for the caption - I thought you would find it amusing, which is exactly how it was intended. It's been removed - I'd settle for pretending it never existed.

But next time - Please tell me that you're 'irate'. Don't let me find out through the grapevine.


So back to the baking.... I made Meatballs and Macarons. (Yes, Macarons - not macaroons.) I'd tell you about the 'job fair' this week, but I'm waiting for the results... wouldn't want to accidently jinx it.


So, the Meatballs (Because I *know* you want to see those first...) are delicious. They're turkey, blue cheese, breadcrumbs, eggs, chili powder, italian seasonings.... and at only 246 calores per 5 (of these two-inch giants), they're delicious.


Behold! My breakfast and lunch for the next week:

Don't they look delicious? With a liitttlllee bit of Pasta Sauce... Mmmmmm....

Recipe was from Allrecipes.com:

4 cloves garlic
1/2 onion, cut into chunks
2 jalapeno peppers, halved and seeded
1 pound ground turkey
3 tablespoons blue cheese
1/2 cup bread crumbs
3 egg whites
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1 tablespoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon chili powder

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and set aside.
Pulse garlic cloves in a food processor until minced. Add onion and jalapeno, and pulse until minced again. Scrape the onion mixture into a large bowl along with the turkey, blue cheese, bread crumbs, egg whites, and olive oil. Season with soy sauce, dried parsley, Italian seasoning, pepper, and chili powder. Mix well.
Roll the mixture into 2 inch balls, and place onto prepared baking sheet. Bake in preheated oven until golden brown, and no longer pink in the center, about 25 minutes.

So now, for the Macarons.... These, were interesting.

Apple-pie Macarons, which should've been cooked a bit longer, as they should've been a bit crunchier. But, as a first try at creating Macarons, these were pretty dang good. Sweet, Melt-in-your-mouth cookies. Except a lot better and a lot harder to make.

I got the recipe from the LA Times - they were for Gingerbread Macarons with Apple Compote, but I modified the recipe, to be Cinnamon Macarons with Apple Compote. Pretty good.


Apple compote

6 tablespoons butter, cut in 1-inch pieces
1/2 vanilla bean, cut lengthwise and scraped of seeds - I used 1 tsp Vanilla
3 large or 4 medium Fujiapples, peeled, cored and cut into eighths
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
2 tablespoons heavy cream
2 tablespoons lemon juice

1. In a large skillet over a medium flame add the butter, vanilla bean and seeds, cook until the butter turns golden brown, about 6 minutes. Add the apples, letting them caramelize on one side, then turn, about 5 minutes total.
2. Sprinkle the sugar and brown sugar over the apples and cook, turning occasionally to caramelize and soften the fruit, about 10 minutes. Add the heavy cream and continue to cook for 1 minute. Remove from heat. Remove the vanilla bean and put the apple mixture in a food processor, add lemon juice and pulse until smooth. Cool over ice, 45 minutes to 1 hour. (This can be made and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 1 week.)


Macarons
1 cup plus 3 tablespoons almond flour
2 cups plus 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon cinnamon
4 egg whites
3/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
Scant 4 tablespoons sugar

1. Line two 17-by-12-inch baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. In a food processor, blend the almond flour, powdered sugar, ginger and cinnamon for 1 minute. Sift the blended almond mixture directly into a medium mixing bowl. Set aside. (This can be made up to 2 days in advance.)

2. Fill a small saucepan halfway with water. Bring to a simmer, then remove from the heat. In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk the egg whites until foamy. Place the bowl over the pot of hot water and whisk quickly until the egg whites reach 100 degrees on a candy thermometer.

3. Remove the bowl from the pot of water and whisk in the cream of tartar. Place it on a stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment. Whip on medium speed for 2 minutes, then gradually beat in the sugar. Continue whipping for 6 minutes until the egg whites come to medium stiff peaks and are shiny.

4. Turn the mixer to the lowest setting and carefully spoon in the molasses. Remove the bowl from the mixer. Add egg whites to the almond mixture by gently bringing the flat side of a rubber spatula through the center of the egg whites and up the opposite side of the bowl, folding the dry ingredients over the egg whites. Repeat the same motion 50 times, turning the bowl a quarter turn each time.

5. Fit a pastry bag with a medium round tip (No. 4) and fill with the mixture. On the parchment-lined baking sheets, pipe 1-inch rounds (the batter will be slightly wet) by holding the bag at a slight angle and releasing small amounts of batter. Allow one-half inch between cookies; they will spread slightly. Keep the piped cookies at room temperature, uncovered, for 1 to 2 hours. (This will help form a skin.)

6. Heat the oven to 325 degrees, placing the racks in the center and lower shelves of the oven.

7. Bake the macarons for 12 minutes, reverse the trays on the racks and rotate. Bake 12 to 14 minutes more, or until firm and not wet. Cool on a rack.

8. Fill the macarons by placing the apple compote in a pastry bag fitted with a small round tip. Pipe a one-half-inch round of filling on to the bottom (flat side) of one cookie, then place another cookie on top to make a sandwich (try to pick two cookies the same size and shape). Twist gently to spread the filling. These are best filled 1 hour before eating so that the apple compote makes the macaron melt in your mouth.


The Best and the Worst of these: They are 37 calories each (filled). They are also *really* addicting.


Please comment!! Feedback is *always* appreciated. =)

Delicious Desserts from a Moody Baker

"Every man has his secret sorrows which the world knows not; and often times we call a man cold when he is only sad."

Henry Longfellow really knew what he was talking about, didn't he?

Call me cold and complacent - I've just had a hard week. And sometimes, when someone else is sad, it's really easy to identify with them when you know exactly what they mean. The worst part, is sometimes a hug can just make it all better (at least temporarily) - but it'd have to come from the right person. And sometimes, they're just not willing to recognize someone outside of their own personal world may need their help every once in awhile. Or, they just don't take the time to realize it.



Anyway, I'm meloncholy and gloomy and ready to sleep (not drink, mind you) the night away, but I do have some pictures of baking escapades to show.

So, earlier this week, when I was a happier person, I decided to bake Cupcakes. Apple Pie Cupcakes, to be exact. This was in response to my getting the highest score in the class in my Manufacturing, Planning, and Control class. Thank goodness there's only 4 weeks left... Anyway, back to the recipe.

They were pretty good - Cinnamon cake, somewhat-glazed apples, and buttery-buttercream frosting. Next time, however, I'm going to use apple compote as a filling, with the apples still on top, replace the milk for yogurt (or buttermilk), and add a little nutmeg. But, as a first time, they were pretty good.

And, a view from the top:

So, when I made the buttercream, I was worried. The recipe calls for equal parts butter and powdered sugar (!!), and by the time I was done baking the cakes, this tasted really weird. But, I frosted them anyway (without modification), dusted with a little cinnamon, and took them to work on Friday.

The frosting was almost the best part.

It was fluffy, smooth, fluffy, delicious-goodness - so light, and did I mention fluffy? You definitely didn't taste the number of calories it had. (again, !!)

But, behold the recipe (Stolen from AlpineBerry - http://alpineberry.blogspot.com/ )

Apple Pie Cupcakes(adapted from Donna Hay Magazine 27)(makes 24 cupcakes)

Cupcakes2 1/4 all purpose flour

2 1/4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

9 ounces (2 sticks plus 2 tbsp) unsalted butter, softened at room temp

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

4 large eggs

1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/2 tsp finely grated lemon or orange zest

1 cup (8 fluid ounces) whole milk

Apple Topping

3 tbsp (40 g) unsalted butter

1/3 cup granulated sugar

3 granny smith apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced

Cinnamon Frosting

12 ounces (3 sticks / 340g) unsalted butter, softened at room temp

1 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

To cook the apples

Place butter and sugar in a large fry pan over low-medium heat. Stir to dissolve sugar. Add apple slices and cook for 8-10 minutes or until apples are lightly caramelized. Remove apples from pan and let cool completely.

To make the cupcakes

Preheat oven to 325F. Line 24 4-fl-oz-capacity muffin wells with paper liners.Sift together flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Set aside dry ingredients.In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the sides if the bowl occasionally. Beat in the vanilla and grated zest. On low speed, add the flour mixture and mix until flour is barely incorporated. Add the milk and mix until just smooth.

Divide the batter among lined muffin wells, filling each well about 2/3 full. Top with the apples.

Bake at 325F until a cake tested comes out clean, about 15-20 minutes. Remove from pan and cool cupcakes on cooling racks. Make sure cupcakes are completely cooled before frosting.

To frost the cupcakes

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the confectioner's sugar and cinnamon and beat for another 5 minutes until light and fluffy. Frost the cupcakes with an icing spatula or piping bag. Optional: Lightly dust frosted cupcakes with 2-3 tsp ground cinnamon.

And, on Friday, I decided to make the White-Chocolate-Strawberry-Cheese Tart again. Although, this time I used the whole egg in the crust (Not the best move - wasn't as flaky), and actually used White-Chocolate Chips. And, lots more strawberries.

It was just as good as the first time. I took it to Archery, and barely had enough pieces for most of the people there. Come summer, I need to make Baklava again.... maybe for my birthday. But, a picture of the Strawberry-topped goodness:

I used alot of strawberries.

And still no recipe for this one - but it's just as easy as the last time I posted this, and you can use any recipe for the tart-crust (mainly just flour, butter or shortening, and milk/water).

Please comment... I do appreciate feedback. :)

One White-Chocolate-Strawberry-Cheese-Tart, Coming Up!

Okay, so I haven't been as prompt in posting as I should have been.... But I'm trying! Last weekend I had projects, This weekend I have a School "Case Competition" to go to... And Renn Faire on Sunday! I have no time for posting..... =(

However, Behold my beautiful Last-weekend contraption! It's a White-Chocolate-Strawberry-Cheese-Tart. And is absolutely delicious.

I was given a "Vinegar Pie Crust" Recipe the weekend previous, and I'd been aching to try it, and Strawberries were on sale - it was a combination made in heaven.

So, quickly look up a recipe for some sort of a filling, Decide that White-chocolate and Cream cheese make a marvelous combination, and voila! Perfection at its best.

And while I don't have the recipes now, I promise I'll edit this post later, and attach them.

Mini-Recipe-Outline:

- 1/2 Recipe Vinegar Pie Crust

- 2.5 cups Fresh Strawberries

- White-Chocolate Cheese Filling

- (1) 10oz Package Vanilla or White chips

- (1) pkg Cream Cheese

- 1/4 cup Heavy Cream

- Glaze

What we learned from this Recipe: Don't put the Glaze on until RIGHT BEFORE SERVING, otherwise it makes the sides of the crusts soggy, and soggy crust is not good. Thankfully, since it was a springform pan, the bottom was fine - but next time, don't take the chance.

And, I finished my Renn blouse.... It's marvelous. Better than the picture (I figured out how to wear it properly). Now, I just need to make a pouch/bag... but I don't have time. Joy.

And...... I think that's it. I'll edit with the recipes, I promise!