When I was home last week, friends asked if I still bake at home since I do that at work everyday."Of course! I can bake anytime for the people I love." I am sure a lot of people feel the same way too. It doesn't matter if it's an elaborate cake or some simple cookies. Freshly baked goodies make people feel loved and special.
Although I have just started work in the hotel for less than a week, I already noticed that colleagues from different departments like to stop by the bakeshop from time to time. Everybody is curious about the goodies we make for the day. If luck is on their sides, they may even get a taste of something fresh out of the oven. It still amazes me sometime to see people's contented smile, when given something as simple as a warm chocolate chips cookies.
Which is what I almost baked when I was home, but there's leftover eggwhites from other baking projects that OCT brought to my attention.
"Can you use up the eggwhites first before making other recipes?"
"Sure."
Almost immediately, some dessert ideas come to mind. The first one is pavlova. Minimum effort, improportional gratification. Instead of making one big pavlova, I piped the meringue into individual portions. Store in an airtight container, they can be kept for a week under room temperature or up to a month in the freezer. A perfect standby for the unexpected dinner party!
I topped the meringue shells with some whipped cream + homemade lemon cream and fruits we have in the fridge. A few strips of candied citrus zests help to balance the sweetness of the meringue but it's completely optional.
A simple and low fat dessert that both OCT and I enjoyed. Next, another simple recipe to use up MORE of the leftover eggwhites(much to OCT relief).
Mini Pavlovas
4 large egg whites, at room temperature
Pinch kosher salt
1 cup sugar
1/2 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
fruits of your choice
Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.
Place a sheet of parchment paper on a sheet pan.
Place the egg whites, cream of tartar and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat the egg whites on high speed until firm, about 1 minute. With the mixer still on high, slowly add the sugar and cornstarch, followed by the vanilla extract and beat until it makes firm, shiny peaks, about 2 minutes.
Fill the meringue into a piping bag with star tip. Pipe the meringue onto the parchment paper. Bake for 40-50 minutes or until the outer side feel dry and hard when touched. Turn off the oven, keep the door ajar, and allow the meringue to cool completely in the oven, about 1 hour. It will be crisp on the outside and soft on the inside.
Remove the meringue disks from the parchment paper when they are completely cool. If not consumed immediately, keep them in airtight containers. They can be stored at room temperature for a week or freeze for a month.
When ready to serve, top meringue shells with sweetened whipped cream. Note that the recipe below is just a guide. I usually just whip some heavy cream in a bowl to soft peak, combined with vanilla extract and fold in some lemon cream. Taste to adjust.
Sweetened Whipped Cream:
2/3 cup cold heavy cream
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/3 cup lemon cream
Whip the cream in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment (you can also use a hand mixer). When it starts to thicken, add the sugar and vanilla and continue to beat until firm. Don't overbeat! Fold in the lemon cream.
Pile your choosen fruits onto the cream. Enjoy!
Friday, September 18, 2009
What to do with leftover eggwhites - Mini Pavlovas
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Chocolate Raspberry Charlotte & I am 30!
Every year when our birthdays roll around, OCT and I prefer to stay low key and spend our days quietly in each other's company. Sometime we go out for dinner, sometime when we are too lazy or tired, we stay home and eat in. As much as I love to be around friends and having dinner parties, birthday is the one day which I like to just sit quietly and reflect on the things I have done in the previous year, the books I have read, the milestone I have achieved, the new foods I have discovered, the recipes I have tried, the loved ones I have lost, the places I have travelled, the new friends I have made, and all the blessings and good things that come my way. Most importantly, on my birthday every year, my heart is filled with gratitude for the woman who gave birth to me. This year marks the 30th anniversary of her bravery.
Because being emotional is not something our family is accustomed to, I feel terribly awkward to utter simple words like "I love you mum" & "thank you for giving birth to me all those years ago". Instead, I decided to make a pretty cake to pay tribute to mum.
The Chocolate Raspberry Charlotte from Alice Medrich's " Chocolate & The Art of Low Fat Desserts" sounds like a good idea. I love all the recipes I tried from that book. What is more importantly, as I've always told my tasters, they don't taste "low fat" at all.So that's the plan. I will make the cake a day before my birthday and post a nice tribute on the actual day to mum.
The cake was made, but my hopeless piping skill left the homemade lady fingers a lot to be desired for. As for the mousse, instead of using the recipe provided, I swapped it with another from the same book which I have tried and liked. Big mistake! Although the flavors were compatible, the recipe I used yield less mousse, and left the charlotte looking awful. I had to trim the lady fingers which explains the jagged/rustic look of the lady fingers wall. Despite of all the mishap, the lady fingers tasted 100 times better than the store bought ones. I think I will make them again and fill the charlotte with lemon mousse and berries next time for a summery dessert.
I called home on my birthday, too embarassed to mention about the unfortunate cake, and too shy to say "thank you mum for giving me life".Instead, I found myself sobbing, and stammering. And I confess to my parents about my fear of being 30 and that my friends teased me about still liking Mickey Mouse at 30 years old....
As for the cake, if you can look past its wretched shell, it tastes really great! I am sure the Varlhona cocoa powder and chocolate bar used certainly made a difference. You may not be able to see in the picture, but there were lots of raspberries buried in the rich chocolate mousse. The next time I make this, I will try the original mocha mousse recipe from the book. But this chocolate mousse recipe will certainly make appearance in my future cakes. I still can't believe it's a low fat recipe!
Chocolate Raspberry Charlotte
adapted from "Chocolate and The Art of Low Fat Desserts"
ladyfinger charlotte liner (see recipe below), baked and cooled
chocolate truffle mousse (see recipe below)
2.5 to 3 cups raspberries, rinsed and well dried
Line the 8 inch springform pan with a disk of lady finger circle, cut to fit. Next, line the side if the pan with the liners made earlier. Arrange raspberries on the circle and pour in half of the mousse, or enough to cover the raspberries.
Fit the second lady fingers disk in, and lightly press it against the mousse. Pour the remaining mousse on top to cover, and decorate with the remaining raspberries.
To make the ladyfinger charlotte liner:
4 eggs, separated
1/4 cup plus 1/3 cup granulated sugar
1.5 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 cup sifted cake flour (3.5 ounces)
2 to 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
Position the rack in the lower and upper third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 375F. Trace two 7 inch circle and two 12x3 inch rectangles on parchment paper. Make sure to have at least one inch space between the rectangles. Turn paper inside out to line the baking pans.
In a small or medium bowl, beat the egg yolks with the vanilla and 1/4 cup of granulated sugar for 2.5 to 3 minutes until very thick and pale.Scrape into a large bowl and set aside.
In a clean dry mixing bowl, beat the eggwhites with the cream of tartar at high speed until soft peak form. Gradually beat in 1/3 cup of granulated sugar until mixture is stiff but not dry.
Using a rubber spatula, fold a third of the egg whites into the yolk mixture. Scrape half of the remaining whites on top and sift half of the flour over them. To fold effectively without deflatting the batter, cut down through the center of the mixture to the bottom of the bowl with the spatula. Scrape a large scoop of batter up the side of the bowl. Lift it above the rest and let it fall gently back on top. Rotate the bowl and continue to cur, scrape and lift batter without mixing, stirring, or smoothing.Don't worry, the different parts will come together. Fold until barely combined.Scrape the remaining whites on top of the batter and sift the remaining flour over them,. Fold again, as described, until combined.
Scrape the batter into a pastry bag fitted with a 9/16-inch plain tip (ateco #7) or closed star tip (ateco #7). Pipe disks by starting in the center of a circle and pipe a spiral of batter to the edge of the circle. Sieve powdered sugar on top.
Using the rectangular guides, pipe a series of straight of S-Shaped ladyfingers 3 inches long and only 1/4 inch apart within the guide. They will puff and attach together as they bake.
Repeat in the second rectangle. Sieve powdered sugar over the batter.
Bake for 12-14 minutes, until golden brown. Rotate sheets from back to front and upper to lower racks about halfway through the baking time. Turn the oven temperature to 300F and leave the oven door open for about 1 minutes. Close down and bake for another 10 minutes.
Remove from oven and immediately lift or slide the parchment papers off the baking sheets and turn them upside down. Peel away the paper from the ladyfingers rectangle. Bend one to fit the inside of the 8-inch springform pan with the flat side facing inside. Repeat with the second rectangle, triming to fit snugly against the first. Set aside to cool completely in pan.
*the ladyfinger liners may be stored, well wrapped at room temperature up to 1 day.
Bittersweet Chocolate Truffle Mousse
1 3/4 teaspoon gelatin
2 eggs, separated
1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch processed cocoa powder
1/2 cup plus 1/3 cup sugar
1 1/4 cup low fat (1%)milk (I used 1 cup soy milk + 1/4 cup heavy cream)
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped finely
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
Sprinkle gelatin over 1/4 cup of cold water in a small cup. Let stand without stirring for 5 minutes, or until needed.
Place the egg yolks in a medium bowl near the stove and have ready a small whisk. Combine the cocoa, sugar in a 1.5 quart saucepan and stir in enough milk to form a paste. Stir in the remaining milk and bring mixture to a simmer over medium heat. Stirring frequently with a wooden spoon, reaching all over the bottom and sides of the pan to prevent scorching. Stir the chocolate mixture continuously once it begins to simmer. Simmer gently, stirring for about 1.5 minutes.
Remove from heat and whish a small amount of the hot mixture into the egg yolks. Scrape the mixture back into the pot and whish well to combine. It will be hot enough to be safe. It will thicken without further cooking. Stir in soften gelatin, chopped chocolate and vanilla. Let stand a minute or so and whisk again until chocolate is completely melted and the mixture is perfectly smooth.
Set the saucepan over a bowl of ice water to cool and thicken. Stir and scrape the side from time to time. If mixture set before needed, remove from ice bath, whisk and set aside. If the mixture set, place the pan in a bowl of hot water, and stir until resoftened.
To make the safe meringue:
Bring 1 inch of water to a simmer in a large skillet. Combine cream of tartar and 2 teaspoons of water in a 4-6-cup stainless steel bowl. Whisk in the egg whites and 1/2 cup of sugar. Place the thermometer near stove in a mug of very hot tap water. Set bowl in skillet. Stir mixture briskly and constantly with a rubber spatula, scrapping the sides and bottom often to avoid scrambling the whites. After 1 minute, remove bowl from skillet. Quickly insert thermometer, tilting bowl to cover stem by at least 2 inches. If less than 160F, rinse thermometer in skillet water and return it to the mug. Replace bowl in skillet. Stir as before until temperature reaches 160F when bowl is removed. Beat on high speed until cool and stiff.
Fold about a quarter of the cooled chocolate mixture into the beaten egg whites. Scrape egg white mixture back into the remaining chocolate mixture. Use immediately in the mousse cake. Or scape mixture into dessert glasses or a serving bowl, cover and refrigerated for at least 4 hours, or until set.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Daring Bakers Challenge: Cheesecake Pops
More than 1000 cheesecakes pops are landing on the food blog world today, because this is the Daring Bakers challenge for April! It is no secret that cheesecake is one of my favorite desserts, seeing that I have made quite a few varieties in the past. I would even stock up on cream cheese when they are going on sale in the grocery stores!
Instead of baking one big cheesecake, our hostesses Elle of Feeding My Enthusiasms and Deborah of Taste and Tell have chosen the Cheesecake pops from Jill O'Connor's Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey: Desserts for the Serious Sweet Tooth as our April challenge. Readers, you will soon hear the resounding "YUM" from other fellow DBers that this is one delicious and fun challenge.
The original recipe makes 30 to 40 pops, which would be great for party. But seeing that we won't have any party going on anytime soon, I have scaled the recipe down to 3/5. Most of them are brought to OCT lab, but I save some for snacking in the afternoon. I love that they are of the perfect size to nibble. It will still be less than the calories of 1 slice of cheesecake if I have eaten 2 cheesecake pops. And if I only eat one, that's practically no calories consumed. (yeah, right..)
I have posted two recipes below; one is my scale-down version and one is the original. Remember to check out other fabulous cheesecake pops from my fellow Daring Bakers here. Thanks Deborah and Elle for the fun and delicious challenge. This recipe has both thumbs up from this cheesecake lover! xoxo.
Cheesecake Pops
from Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey: Desserts for the Serious Sweet Tooth by Jill O’Connor
Makes 30 – 40 Pops
5 8-oz. packages cream cheese at room temperature
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 large eggs
2 egg yolks
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup heavy cream
Boiling water as needed
Thirty to forty 8-inch lollipop sticks
1 pound chocolate, finely chopped – you can use all one kind or half and half of dark, milk, or white (Alternately, you can use 1 pound of flavored coatings, also known as summer coating, confectionary coating or wafer chocolate – candy supply stores carry colors, as well as the three kinds of chocolate.)
2 tablespoons vegetable shortening
(Note: White chocolate is harder to use this way, but not impossible)
Assorted decorations such as chopped nuts, colored jimmies, crushed peppermints, mini chocolate chips, sanding sugars, dragees) - Optional
Position oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees F. Set some water to boil.
In a large bowl, beat together the cream cheese, sugar, flour, and salt until smooth. If using a mixer, mix on low speed. Add the whole eggs and the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well (but still at low speed) after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and cream.
Grease a 10-inch cake pan (not a springform pan), and pour the batter into the cake pan. Place the pan in a larger roasting pan. Fill the roasting pan with the boiling water until it reaches halfway up the sides of the cake pan. Bake until the cheesecake is firm and slightly golden on top, 35 to 45 minutes.
Remove the cheesecake from the water bath and cool to room temperature. Cover the cheesecake with plastic wrap and refrigerate until very cold, at least 3 hours or up to overnight.
When the cheesecake is cold and very firm, scoop the cheesecake into 2-ounce balls and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Carefully insert a lollipop stick into each cheesecake ball. Freeze the cheesecake pops, uncovered, until very hard, at least 1 – 2 hours.
When the cheesecake pops are frozen and ready for dipping, prepare the chocolate. In the top of a double boiler, set over simmering water, or in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, heat half the chocolate and half the shortening, stirring often, until chocolate is melted and chocolate and shortening are combined. Stir until completely smooth. Do not heat the chocolate too much or your chocolate will lose it’s shine after it has dried. Save the rest of the chocolate and shortening for later dipping, or use another type of chocolate for variety.
Alternately, you can microwave the same amount of chocolate coating pieces on high at 30 second intervals, stirring until smooth.
Quickly dip a frozen cheesecake pop in the melted chocolate, swirling quickly to coat it completely. Shake off any excess into the melted chocolate. If you like, you can now roll the pops quickly in optional decorations. You can also drizzle them with a contrasting color of melted chocolate (dark chocolate drizzled over milk chocolate or white chocolate over dark chocolate, etc.) Place the pop on a clean parchment paper-lined baking sheet to set. Repeat with remaining pops, melting more chocolate and shortening (or confectionary chocolate pieces) as needed.
Refrigerate the pops for up to 24 hours, until ready to serve.
Mandy's 3/5 low fat version
3 8-oz. packages cream cheese at room temperature (I used 2 blocks of Neufatchel and 1 block of original)
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
1 egg yolks
1.5 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/8 cup heavy cream
Boiling water as needed
Proceed as mentioned in the recipe above.
Note: I bake the cheesecake in a 9x3 loaf pan for about 45 minutes, depending on the temperature of your oven, it may need shorter or longer time. Check your cheesecake after 25-30 minutes.
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Thursday, April 17, 2008
Moscato and Vanilla Poached Pears and Getting to Know My Oven
Growing up, I have never been the girliest girl among friends. I probably checked the content of the fridge more often than checking myself out in the mirror. Yes, I am one who doesn't even look into the mirror when I wash hands, after going to the bathroom. Especially so in the the public bathrooms.
Given my total negligence on my appearance, I turn out to be slighly above average as an Asian female homo sapiens, thanks to my parents excellent genes. However, beneath my tomboy-ish skin, my favorite color happens to be pink. The girliest color among all.
When I see this tree blooming with pink flowers in front of my new apartment, I go crazy taking hundreds of photos of it, at different angles, once in the morning and once before sunset. It is a good omen, I tell myself. I shall get into the kitchen to bake something marvelous and fill our new house with delicious scent.
Here comes the problem.
Despite my enthusiasm of a new and bigger kitchen, my first few collaborations with the oven don't turn out as well as I have anticipated. A failed batch of Pandan chiffon cake, chocolate and pear clafoutis and Nutella cupcakes later, I know I need more time to get to know the oven.
It is time like this that reminds me of the poached pears I made for a dinner party not long ago. Tired of thinking what else to bake, and the prospect of cleaning many bowls, I decided to bring something different this time. With a few pears sitting in the refrigerator, it would be a perfect occasion to try my hand at poaching. The delicious pears have then be devored (with some premium quality ice-cream), with photos taken as proof, then promptly forgotten and burried in one of the picture folders. Until now. This effortless dessert would be perfect at time like this.
Poaching is a simple and healthy technique to impart flavors. As fancy as the term sounds, poaching is nothing more than immersing the desired fruits or meat into a flavorful simmering liquid. I poached the pears roughly based on a recipe from Epicurious.com. But one could easily substitute any components of the poaching liquid to obtain the desirable taste. This is the kind of dessert one needs when the oven is not cooperative. :)
Note: If you come via feeds, click through to check out my new layout. I get bored and decided to give my blog a facelift, again.
Moscato and Vanilla Poached Pears
adapted from epicurious.com
6 firm but ripe large Bosc/Anjou pears, peeled, halved, cored
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 cup water
1.5 cups Moscato
12 tablespoons honey
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
Toss pears with lemon juice in large bowl. Set aside. Combine water, Moscato and honey in large saucepan. Scrape in seeds from vanilla bean; add bean. Stir over medium heat until honey dissolves. Add pears. Cover mixture with round piece of parchment paper. Reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer until pears are just tender when pierced, turning when half-way through cooking, about 15-25 minutes.
Using slotted spoon, transfer pears to large bowl. Boil poaching liquid until reduced to half. Cool syrup. Pour syrup over pears. Cover and refrigerate until cold, at least 8 hours or overnight. Remove vanilla bean.
Halved the pears, removing the cores with stem attached. Or thinly slice each pear half lengthwise, leaving slices attached at stem end for a fancier presentation. Using metal spatula, transfer pears to plates. Spoon some syrup over pears. Serve with ice cream or enjoy the poached pears as they are.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Chocolate Matcha Loaf Cake
Has Spring arrived in your neck of the woods yet? This morning when I looked out from the window, there's still no sign of its arrival yet. I feel cheated when seeing my contacts on Flickr posted their Spring inspired photos, of flowers blooming and people smiling, on a presumably happy Spring day.
Old man winter seems to overstay his welcome here. And I am grumpy, with the view of depressingly barren trees, and the prospect of hunting an apartment which we can call home in Atlanta. We are moving in 2 weeks time, but not a single detail of the move has been finalized.
For a complete lack of wit, allow me to leave you with this chocolate matcha loaf I made, using my favorite low fat recipe from Alice Medrich, which never fails to make me feel better and comforted after a slice.
I am going out for a walk now, hoping to find the slightest hint of Spring's arrival.
Monday, January 14, 2008
Light Dessert : Lemon Angel Food Cake
Dear friends who are trying to lose weights:
Some said there's a season for everything. And eating seasonal is the way to go. So what has the angel food cake has anything to do with seasonal eating? Everything!
Remember your new year resolutions to lose weights? This is also the time of the year I pulled out my tube pan and make angel food cake, the fat-free dessert I adore. Combined with my favorite citrus, I don't mind eating it whether I am on diet or not. Come to think of it, I don't remember myself being on diet before, except for the two weeks leading to my wedding. The stake of not able to fit into the custom-made wedding gown was far too high!
Anyway, my point is- whether you are on a diet or not, don't skip desserts! At least I won't. All we (I mean, you who are staring at this screen have considered of losing weights after the festive eating, no?) need is a good strategy. No point eating a bite of brownie which make you crave for more, (and end up doing just that) or a tiny sliver of cheesecake which could easily be blown away by the strong gush winter wind. I rather have a healthy serving of a piece of this. This airy, flavorful, fat free, good for you angel food cake!
Since new year is about a healthier, slimmer and prettier you, where not pair the angel food cake with a cup of warm honey lemon drink? Some experts claim that it's good for detox. There are some really gluesome regimes for body detox, but for me, honey lemon drink is a sweeter way to do it.
Lemon Angel Food Cake
adapted from The Best Light Recipe (The Best Recipe)
1 cup (4 ounces) cake flour
1.5 cuos (10.5 ounces) sugar
12 larg eggwhites, at room temperature
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 tsp salt
2 tablespoons juice from 1 lemon
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsps grated lemon zest
Adjust the oven rack to the lower middle position and preheat the oven to 325F. Have ready an ungreased 9-inches, 16 cups tube pan.
Whisk flour and 3/4 cup sugar in a small bowl, set aside. In a dry, clean electric mixer bowl, beat eggwhites on low speed until foamy. Add in cream of tartar and salt, and increase speed to medium high. Continue to beat, adding the remaining 3/4 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, untill all the sugar is added and the whites are shiny and form soft peaks. Beat in the lemon juice, vanilla extract, lemon zest until just blended.
Sift the flour mixture over the whites, about 1/4 cup at a time, and gently fold it in using a large rubber spatula. Gently scrape the batter the batter into the pan and smooth the top with a spatula. Give the pan a couple of raps on the counter to release any large air bubbles. Bake until cake is golden brown and the top springs back when pressed firmly, 55 to 60 minutes.
If the cake pan has prongs around the rim for elevating the cake, invert the pan onto them. If the pan does not have prongs, invert the pan onto the neck of a bottle or funnel. Let the cake cool completely upside down.
To unmold, run a knife or long offset spatula around the edges of the cake pan, being careful not to separate the golden crust from the cake. You can either loosen the cake from the center with a wire cake tester, skewer or offset spatula.Slide the cake with the removable cake bottom out of the pan . Run a knife between the cake and the pan bottom to loosen, then gently flip the cake onto a platter, bottom side facing up. (which is also the more presentable side)
The cake tastes best when served the same day it is made. But we enjoy it just as much in the following few days.
Serves 16.
Per serving: cal 150; fat 0 g; Sat Fat 0 g; Chol 0 mg; Carb 33 g; Protein 4 g; Fiber 0 g; sodium 105 mg
Edit: I have added the nutritional info per serving as provided by the recipe for those who are interested. Note that although the cake is fat free and taste really yummy, don't attempt to finish it in a day on top of other tempting food you are already eating. :)
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