Andyboy Cooks!

My first Daring Bakers' Challenge!

This month's challenge is brought to us by Karen of Bake My Day and Zorra of 1x umruehren bitte aka Kochtopf. They have chosen Tuiles from The Chocolate Book by Angélique Schmeink and Nougatine and Chocolate Tuiles from Michel Roux.

Light Cocoa Tuile w/ White Chocolate Mousse

   

I signed up for the Daring Bakers at the end of November but I wasn't able to do the challenge because my Christmas was nuts so this was my first one. I had never made a Tuile before (in fact I wasn't sure what one was until I looked it up) so I didn't really know what to expect. Basically it's a thin cookie that can be moulded. My assumption was that it would be very thin and flexable which would make it easy to mould into very specific shapes, but it turns out that when it comes out of the oven it's a little cake-like and when it dries it resembles the density and texture of a fortune cookie (which could very well be a form of Tuile, I don't know).

My initial plan was to create cup shape with a handle so that the final product resembled a cup of hot white chocolate, but after a few attempts it became clear that that wasn't in the cards. So I went free form and I'm really quite happy with the final product. The mousse was very light although the taste of cream was a little stronger than I'd normally like, and the strawberry and chocolate garnishes I thought added both colour and a nice treat to the dish (the acid of the strawberry cuts through the richness of the mousse very nicely). For a first time challenge I'm fairly pleased with the final result. Bring on February! Here are the recipes.

Tuiles

Recipe:

Yields: 20 small butterflies/6 large (butterflies are just an example)
Preparation time batter 10 minutes, waiting time 30 minutes, baking time: 5-10 minutes per batch

65 grams / ¼ cup / 2.3 ounces softened butter (not melted but soft)
60 grams / ½ cup / 2.1 ounces sifted confectioner’s sugar
1 sachet vanilla sugar (7 grams or substitute with a dash of vanilla extract)
2 large egg whites (slightly whisked with a fork)
65 grams / 1/2 cup / 2.3 ounces sifted all purpose flour
1 table spoon cocoa powder/or food coloring of choice
Butter/spray to grease baking sheet

Oven: 180C / 350F

Using a hand whisk or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle (low speed) and cream butter, sugar and vanilla to a paste. Keep stirring while you gradually add the egg whites. Continue to add the flour in small batches and stir to achieve a homogeneous and smooth batter/paste. Be careful to not overmix.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to firm up. (This batter will keep in the fridge for up to a week, take it out 30 minutes before you plan to use it).

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or grease with either butter/spray and chill in the fridge for at least 15 minutes. This will help spread the batter more easily if using a stencil/cardboard template such as the butterfly. Press the stencil on the bakingsheet and use an off sided spatula to spread batter. Leave some room in between your shapes. Mix a small part of the batter with the cocoa and a few drops of warm water until evenly colored. Use this colored batter in a paper piping bag and proceed to pipe decorations on the wings and body of the butterfly.

Bake butterflies in a preheated oven (180C/350F) for about 5-10 minutes or until the edges turn golden brown. Immediately release from bakingsheet and proceed to shape/bend the cookies in the desired shape. These cookies have to be shaped when still warm, you might want to bake a small amount at a time or maybe put them in the oven to warm them up again. (Haven’t tried that). Or: place a bakingsheet toward the front of the warm oven, leaving the door half open. The warmth will keep the cookies malleable.

White Chocolate Mousse

Recipe:

1 1/2 cups heavy cream
5 ounces white chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup egg whites (from about 4 eggs)
2 tablespoons sugar

Two days before you plan to serve the dessert, in a small saucepan, heat the cream over medium heat just until it boils. Immediately turn off the heat. Place the chocolate in a medium bowl. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and whisk until melted and smooth. Strain into another bowl, cover, and refrigerate overnight.

The next day, remove the mixture from the refrigerator and, using a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment or a hand mixer, whip it into fluffy, soft peaks. Return to the refrigerator.

In a clean dry bowl, whip the egg whites until soft peaks form, then add the sugar and continue whipping until glossy and stiff, about 30 seconds more. Fold into the white chocolate mixture, and then spoon the mixture (or pipe through a pastry bag) into glasses or chocolate bags. 

 

Chicken and Veggie Stir-Fry (ish)

     

I'm not sure if this constitutes a stir-fry (I imagine it doesn't) but I'm calling it that as that's the name I've always used. I always find that I have leftover proteins and veggies in the fridge and this is a great way to use them up (leftovers seem to be a bit of a theme this month, but I digress). This is something I whip up when I have those things as well as some left over rice. This isn't a formal recipe so bear with me here. Essentially I heat up about a tablespoon of canola oil (olive will do if that's what you have on hand) or if you have it about a half a tablespoon of sesame oil with about two tablespoons of soy sauce - low sodium, people... always control your salt in recipes. When that heats up throw in a pinch of ginger powder, a pinch of cayenne and a couple of grinds of pepper. After that throw in your chopped leftover veggies and protein (chicken and pork work wonderfully) and heat them through with the occasional stir for about two minutes. Lastly throw in your cooked rice. I use about a cup of cooked rice, a cup of protein and two cups of veggies. Stir everything through until it all appears coated. You may feel the need to add some more soy sauce if it seems a little dry - go right ahead. I do it all the time.

Now here's a little catch. If you like your stir-fry a little on the wet side, go ahead and take it out about three minutes after you've added the rice. If you're like me and you like your stir-frys (fries?) sticky, keep cooking until there is no liquid left in the pan and everything really starts to hold together. Feel free to eyeball all of this - it's not rocket science. Just tinker with it until you have it the way you like it. If you want to sweeten it up a little bit add a teaspoon of honey. If you want to make it a little richer mix in a tablespoon of peanut butter. Or add both (I just didn't do that this time because I started a fitness program and I'm watching my intake). And that's basically it folks. As always, feel free to add you thoughts or questions to the comments section.

Serves 2-4

AB

AWESOME.

I bought the balloons today and will be trying this tomorrow (as well as my Daring Bakers' Challenge!).

Sunday Morning Frittata

 

 

A frittata is a type of Italian omelette that frequently features fillings such as meats, cheeses, and vegetables. Like a traditional French omelette, a frittata is prepared in a skillet. However, whereas an omelette is cooked on a stovetop and served folded, a frittata is first partially cooked on a stovetop but then broiled to finish and served open-faced.

This is another one of those must-know recipes because, like pizza and pasta, it's cheap, it's delicious and it's an excellent way to use up leftovers in the fridge. For example, for the frittata you see above, I browned some turkey sausage in a pan with some olive oil, then added some cooked peppers, mushrooms, red onions and asparagus and sauteed them just enough to heat them through. I added the eggs (eight total, whipped up with some salt, pepper and water) and poured them over the goodies in the pan. Then I added some tomatoes, brie and parmigiano reggiano (always add those at the end) and after a few minutes it went into the oven. About seven minutes later, presto. Here's the method (after a few efforts you will probably want to tweak it a little to suit your tastes). Recipe from Low Carb Diets.

 

1. Adjust top oven rack - with a skillet (ovenproof!) on it, you want the top of the skillet to be 4-6 inches from the broiler. Turn on broiler.
2. Put skillet (preferably 12" nonstick) on stove and add about a tablespoon of oil. Add any raw vegetables or meat you want in your frittata and saute them until done, adding any herbs, spices, and salt you desire.
3. Add any cooked ingredients and heat them through.
4. Whisk eggs (12 eggs for a thick frittata in a 12" skillet, fewer eggs for a thinner frittata or in a smaller skillet) with salt, pepper, and 3 Tablespoons of water, milk, half and half, or cream. (Half and half is said to produce the best results.) If using cheese, add about half to the eggs (or you can save all of it for the top). Add egg mixture to skillet.
5. On medium heat, cook eggs for about 2 minutes, scraping the sides and bottom with heat-resistant spatula. When eggs are mostly cooked but still very wet, stop stirring. You want to see cooked egg scattered throughout, but loose egg in between.
6. Continue cooking on stove for another minute so underside sets.
7. Sprinkle the rest of the cheese on top. Put skillet under broiler. Watch carefully while top browns. This will take 2-4 minutes
8. Remove skillet from oven and let sit for about 5 minutes to finish cooking in center.

Two Kinds of Panini

Apple & Brie

Margarita (Basil, Tomato & Mozzarella)

 

A panino (pronounced /pəˈniːnoʊ/) is a sandwich made from a small loaf of bread, typically a ciabatta. The loaf is often cut horizontally and filled with salami, ham, meat, cheese or other food, and sometimes served hot. A grilled panino is buttered on the outside and grilled in a press.

Basically what we're talking about here is a grilled sandwich, nothing more. It's easy to make and can be a nice surprise for people if you choose to be creative with the ingredients. Let me say that you don't need to own a panini press to make panini - that's a bunch of bunk. All you need is a wide, no stick frying pan and something to weigh the panini down. Some people use bricks wrapped in aluminum foil (which I've used on the grill before when making flattened Cornish hens so I can tell you that that does work) but I prefer another frying pan with something heavy in it to weigh it down (a big can of tomatoes works well). The only advice I will give is instead of dropping a pad of butter into the pan like one might with a grilled cheese sandwich, rather melt some butter in the microwave and brush it on. It'll prevent any extra butter in the pan from smoking/burning. Also, be patient. Cook on a medium heat and take a little extra time to make it. It'll be worth the wait.

Two Kinds of Pizza

Roasted Asparagus & Red Onion

Mushroom & Mixed Peppers

 

I think of all the things I've learned to cook over the past few years the one I'm most pleased to know is homemade pizza. It's very inexpensive, it's incredibly delicious and after you've got the method down it's very easy to whip up (it's also a wonderful way to use up leftovers). If you've never made pizza from scratch before and you're planning on trying it, know this; the odds are pretty good that you're going to screw it up a couple of times. Don't be discouraged! The payoff will be well worth your efforts. Watch the instructional video below, and note these little tips and tricks that I've learned (usually the hard way).

1) Be exact with the measurements. BE EXACT WITH THE MEASUREMENTS. Even though it's pizza, you are still essentially baking bread and when it comes to baking you can't mess around with the amounts. Cooking is an art and baking is a science, people. Make sure do everything properly - don't cut corners.

2) Make sure the water for the yeast is not too hot. Yeast is a remarkable thing in that you can starve it, you can dehydrate it and you can freeze it, but the one thing it can't handle is heat. The temperature of the water should be around 100 to 110 degrees F, but since nobody ever bothers to actually take the water's temperature, I describe it is half way between luke warm and hot. If you have kids, it should be a little warmer than a baby bottle (so I've read).

3) After you've mixed your wet ingredients with the dry, mix it with a fork until it appears "shaggy". Then turn it out on a floured surface and get ready to knead.

4) Speaking of kneading, don't get all super aggressive with it. Feel free to "massage it forcefully" instead of attacking it like a sixty year old Italian guy with Popeye forearms.

5) When it comes time to shape the dough into rounds, feel free to use a roller. I do. Just try to roll from the inside out so that the edges are thicker than the center. And if the dough tears at any point, just patch it right up. Pizza dough is good like that.

6) Do NOT put too much sauce on. A quarter of a cup max for each pizza. You'll thank me when you grab your first slice and the toppings don't all slide off onto your shirt.

7) This is just a personal preference, but I like to brush some olive oil on to the crust edges before it goes in the oven. It helps make the crust crispy without drying it out.

I used the video below to learn about pizza dough, and I used this gentleman's recipe and it has always served me well. Here's the video with the ingredients listed beneath.

 

Dough Ingredients

2 tsp yeast
1/2 cup water (100 -110 degrees)

4 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1/4 olive oil
yeast mixture
1 cup warm water

Follow the instructions in the video.

N.B. In terms of the toppings, I generally use mozzarella, parmigiano reggiano and whatever leftover veggies and cheese I have in the fridge. Don't skimp on the quality of the cheeses. Here is a recipe for the sauce that I use:

No Cook Pizza Sauce Recipe

Ingredients:
1 (29 oz) can - Contadina Roma Style Tomato Sauce, (or other medium consistency sauce)
2/3 cup - Water
1 tbsp - Garlic Powder
1 tbsp - Whole Oregano, fresh chopped or dried flakes
1 tbsp - Sweet Basil, fresh chopped or dried flakes
2 tbsp - Sugar
11/2 tsp - Salt
1/2 tsp - Black Pepper, ground

Mix all ingredients. Done.

Oven Roasted Potatoes

Ahh... the oven roasted potato. So simple yet so delicious, and with so many possibilities. Potatoes, like pizza and pasta, are a terrific canvas for featuring any variety of flavours. Below you'll find the basic recipe for oven roasted potatoes, a healthful alternative to deep fried french fries, but feel free to spruce them up any way you want. You can add curry and cumin powders for curry fries, chili and cumin powders for chili fries, you can add rosemary, thyme or oregano if you like. Anything you can think of you can pretty much do. Personally I like them with rosemary, thyme and lots of cracked pepper. Have fun (recipe from Food Network Kitchens)!

Oven Roasted Potatoes

Ingredients

3 medium russet potatoes, about 1 1/2 pounds, scrubbed and dried
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil or a neutral tasting oil
2 teaspoons kosher salt
Pinch freshly cracked black pepper, optional


Directions

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Leaving peel on, cut the potatoes into 6 lengthwise to make long wedges, about 3/4-inch to 1-inch wide. Combine the potatoes, oil, salt and pepper on the baking sheet and toss to combine. (1 less bowl to wash) Arrange the potatoes on a baking sheet in a single layer, so a cut side is in contact with the pan, but evenly spaced so the potatoes aren't touching each other. Bake until golden brown and cooked through, about 30 minutes. Slip a spatula under the potatoes to turn them over and cook for 5 minutes more.

Transfer potatoes to a serving dish and serve immediately.

Mexican Rice

I've been trying to dig up some more healthful recipes as I'm starting Body For Life tomorrow and this one seemed perfect. Very little oil is used, and it has lots of vegetables and spice which is what you want when trying to eat right. It worked out really well, and the only change that I made (besides doubling the amount I made) was I cooked the rice a little longer with the lid off at the end and while occasionally stirring it. This cooks off any extra liquid which makes the flavour stronger and gives the rice a dense and sticky consistancy (which I like). This is a recipe you should try - very authentic, very tasty. Recipe from Closet Cooking.

Mexican Rice


Ingredients:
1 tablespoon oil
1 onion (chopped)
1 clove garlic (chopped)
1 green pepper (chopped)
1 jalapeno pepper (chopped)
1 cup long grained rice (I used brown long grained rice)
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
2 cups diced tomatoes with liquid
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:
1. Heat the oil in a pan.
2. Add the onions, garlic, green pepper, jalapeno and saute until tender, about 5-7 minutes.
3. Add the rice, chicken stock, tomatoes, chili powder, cumin and salt and bring to a boil.
4. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer until the rice is tender, about 20 minutes.

Gift

Hi all,

As many of you know I love to cook and I love to post about it. The one thing I DON'T like is the quality of photos that I've been putting up. To be honest, it's been a source of embarrassment for me. So I'm pleased to report that I received a portable photo studio on my bithday yesterday and I'm pretty excited about it. I've done a little bit of reading up on it but not a lot yet and I plan on practicing different shades and angles and the like. But for now here's a comparison of a photo taken with the studio and one in the manner that I shot my food in the past.

 

Nice!

Delicious Pear Pie

 

 

Here's a nice little pear pie that I found here and decided to try. I have to admit - this one was a bit of a cheat. I saw that they had frozen pie crusts at the store and I wanted to give them a shot and see if they were any good, and this seemed to be a good opportunity. It was pretty good to be honest and i will certainly use them in the future if I'm in a pinch or, more likely, feeling a little lazy.

Everything thing went well with the pie except that it seemed finished after about 45 minutes instead of the full hour that the recipe calls for. Some of that can be attributed to my oven being different from the writer of the recipe, but not enough to shave off one quarter of the cooking time. So if you decide to give this one a shot, keep that in mind. Here is the recipe (from Honey & Jam).

 

Delicious Pear Pie
 
Ingredients:

1 (9 inch) unbaked pie crust
3 or 4 pears - peeled, cored and cut in half
3/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs, beaten


Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Press the pie pastry into the bottom and up the sides of a 9 inch pie plate. Flute the edges. Place the pear halves cut side down in the pie crust with the small ends toward the center.
3. In a medium bowl, mix the butter and sugar together until smooth, then beat in the eggs one at a time until light and fluffy. Stir in flour and vanilla. Pour over the top of the pears.
4. Bake for 1 hour in the preheated oven, until pears are soft and custard is set in the center. Cool completely before slicing and serving.