Pavlova Parfaits

The June 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Dawn of Doable and Delicious. Dawn challenged the Daring Bakers’ to make Chocolate Pavlovas and Chocolate Mascarpone Mousse. The challenge recipe is based on a recipe from the book Chocolate Epiphany by Francois Payard.

I actually layered these in goblets initially, and they looked exquisite, but then we had eaten about half when I realized I hadn't taken a photo! So I quickly scraped together what was remaining and made a mock up for the photo, which Bryant happily ate. I chose to make the meringues in disc form and then break them into pieces to layer in the parfait because Bryant is not a huge meringue fan. But apparently he is a huge chocolate meringue fan, so now I know. The chocolate mascarpone mousse is amazing, and something I would eat daily if I could. This isn't hard at all to make, but it does have several components and require a bit of prep work. It is very much worth it. I added the strawberries to the recipe and I am very glad I did because it went perfectly with all of the other flavors.

Recipe 1: Chocolate Meringue (for the chocolate Pavlova):
3 large egg whites

½ cup plus 1 tbsp (110 grams) white granulated sugar

¼ cup (30 grams) confectioner’s (icing) sugar

1/3 cup (30 grams) cocoa powder

Directions:
Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 200º F (95º C) degrees. Line two baking sheets with silpat or parchment and set aside.

Put the egg whites in a bowl and whip until soft peaks form. Increase speed to high and gradually add granulated sugar about 1 tbsp at a time until stiff peaks form. (The whites should be firm but moist.)

Sift the confectioner’s sugar and cocoa powder over the egg whites and fold the dry ingredients into the white. (This looks like it will not happen. Fold gently and it will eventually come together.) Fill a pastry bag with the meringue.

Pipe the meringue into whatever shapes you desire. Alternatively, you could just free form your shapes and level them a bit with the back of a spoon. Bake for 2-3 hours until the meringues become dry and crisp. Cool and store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Recipe 2: Chocolate Mascarpone Mousse (for the top of the Pavlova base):
1 ½ cups (355 mls) heavy cream (cream with a milk fat content of between 36 and 40 percent)

grated zest of 1 average sized lemon9 ounces (255 grams) (I used orange zest instead)

72% chocolate, chopped1 2/3 cups (390 mls) mascarpone

pinch of nutmeg

2 tbsp (30 mls) Grand Marnier (or orange juice, which is what I used)

Directions:
Put ½ cup (120 mls) of the heavy cream and the lemon zest in a saucepan over medium high heat. Once warm, add the chocolate and whisk until melted and smooth. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and let sit at room temperature until cool.

Place the mascarpone, the remaining cup of cream and nutmeg in a bowl. Whip on low for a minute until the mascarpone is loose. Add the Grand Marnier (or orange juice) and whip on medium speed until it holds soft peaks. (DO NOT OVERBEAT AS THE MASCARPONE WILL BREAK.) Mix about ¼ of the mascarpone mixture into the chocolate to lighten. Fold in the remaining mascarpone until well incorporated. Fill a pastry bag with the mousse. Again, you could just free form mousse on top of the pavlova.

Recipe 3: Mascarpone Cream (for drizzling):
1 recipe crème anglaise

½ cup (120 mls) mascarpone2 tbsp (30 mls)

Sambucca (optional - I used 1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract instead)

½ cup (120 mls) heavy cream

Directions:
Prepare the crème anglaise. Slowly whisk in the mascarpone and the Sambucca (or vanilla) and let the mixture cool. Put the cream in a bowl and beat with electric mixer until very soft peaks are formed. Fold the cream into the mascarpone mixture.

Recipe 4: Crème Anglaise (a component of the Mascarpone Cream above):
1 cup (235 mls) whole milk

1 cup (235 mls) heavy cream

1 vanilla bean, split or 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

6 large egg yolks

6 tbsp (75 grams) sugar

Directions:
In a bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until the mixture turns pale yellow.
Combine the milk, cream and vanilla in a saucepan over medium high heat, bringing the mixture to a boil. Take off the heat.

Pour about ½ cup of the hot liquid into the yolk mixture, whisking constantly to keep from making scrambled eggs. Pour the yolk mixture into the pan with the remaining cream mixture and put the heat back on medium. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon until the mixture thickens enough to lightly coat the back of a wooden spoon. DO NOT OVERCOOK.

Remove the mixture from the heat and strain it through a fine mesh sieve into a bowl. Cover and refrigerate until the mixture is thoroughly chilled, about 2 hours or overnight.

Assembly:Pipe the mousse onto the pavlovas and drizzle with the mascarpone cream over the top. Dust with confectioner’s sugar and fresh fruit if desired.

For my assembly I broke all of the chocolate meringues, and then layered each component with sliced strawberries in a tall goblet. This is truly divine.

What we've been eating.

I have a friend who is gluten/dairy/egg/sugar/nut intolerant, and this friend has some serious chocolate cravings. So I came up with this recipe and it is my new favorite quick chocolate fix. These cookies remind me of the chocolate macaroons at the Boise Co-op, minus the guilt.

No Bake Cookies
1 c old fashioned rolled oats (do not just quick cooking!!!)
1/2 c unsweetened coconut (I suppose this is optional, but if you don't like coconut you need to try harder.)
1 T coconut oil
1/3 c unsweetened cocoa powder
1/3 c light agave syrup
1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract

Combine oats and coconut. Set aside. In a small saucepan whisk the coconut oil, cocoa powder, and agave over medium heat until thick and smooth. When hot to the touch remove from heat and add vanilla. Add oats and coconut and stir until evenly mixed. Drop by tablespoonful onto parchment/silpat lined baking sheet and cool in the refrigerator for 20 minutes or until firm. This only makes 12 or so (perfect for the binge eater that I am) so feel free to try doubling or tripling. You may need to play around with the amount of coconut oil if you double the recipe because I'm not sure if that will have to be doubled. These are quite divine.

My new favorite sandwich requires a grill of some sort. I just use my grill pan and it works perfectly. For each sandwich you will need:

1 demi baguette, sliced and brushed lightly with olive oil
1 slice of young eggplant, peeled, brushed lightly with olive oil and seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and basil
a bit of butter
4 to 6 mushrooms, sliced
handful of fresh spinach, torn
1 oz pepper jack cheese (or any cheese of your choice)

Heat grill pan and grill eggplant on both sides until juicy and no longer tough. Grill baguette halves and set on plate. In a small fry pan heat a bit of butter and add mushrooms and cook until tender. Add spinach just to wilt. To assemble place grilled eggplant on bread, top with slices of cheese, top with mushroom/spinach mixture, and finish with other baguette. Even my carnivorous husband is in love with this sandwich.

Another great vegetarian dish is yam and bean burritos. You can use canned beans, but try to cook your own dried beans. I soaked a cup of pinto beans overnight and then covered them with water and boiled for 10 minutes, added a chopped onion, reduced the heat to a simmer and simmered for a bout 20 minutes until tender. Then I drained them and seasoned them with salt and garlic powder. To serve 4 to 6 you will need:

Tortillas (might I recommend the Garden of Eatin organic whole wheat tortillas - very good)
2 medium yams
Tomato Salsa (I used medium hot)
1 to 2 T olive oil or canola oil
Chili Powder (only use if you use a mild salsa, start out with 1 tsp and add more until you get the heat you like)
1 tsp cumin powder
1/2 onion, thinly sliced (I've used red, white, and yellow onions)
2 to 3 cloves of garlic, minced
Cooked beans (black beans would also work, I just used the pinto beans for kicks)
Avocado or cheese
Lettuce

Wash and prick yams with a fork and microwave until tender, about 5 to 8 minutes. They will soften as they sit so don't over cook because you don't want them to be mushy! In a large fry pan heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until tender, add the garlic for 1 minute, add the cumin, yams, beans, and salsa (I used about 1/3 c because it was very hot) and cook until fragrant and warmed through. Fill tortilla with mixture, top with avocado, cheese, or lettuce (or all three!) and prepare to fall in love with a burrito.

Two fun cookbooks to look for at your library are The Gluten Free Vegan (obviously I got this one to try to find some recipes to cook for my friend with all of the food allergies, but I've loved it and if you aren't gluten sensitive you can easily use wheat produces instead, but it has good recipe ideas) and V Cuisine, The Art of New Vegan Cooking. Again, I use dairy instead of soy and add meat to some of the recipes instead of meat substitutes, but really good recipes.

Raw Desserts

My mom and I are doing a 30-day no sugar challenge and in order to satisfy my need for something sweet I have been experimenting with a few raw recipes. These taste fabulous, are very filling, and leave me quite satisfied. They also happen to be egg/dairy/gluten free by virtue of being raw. Here's what I've been making:

Cardamom Tapioca Parfaits with Mango and Toasted Coconut

Strawberries and Cream

Mexican Chocolate Banana Coconut Cream Pie

I have had several requests for the banana cream pie recipe so here it is!

Crust for a 9" tart

1 c raw walnuts

1 c raw almonds

1 c wide-chip unsweetened coconut

11 dates

2 T really good cocoa powder

2 T light agave (you can substitute additional dates to increase the sweetness)

1 t pure vanilla extract

pinch of salt

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until it comes together in a ball. Taste and adjust for sweetness/chocolate flavor. Press into a 9" tart pan with a removable bottom. Cover and refrigerate.

Filling

1 1/2 c raw walnuts (soaked for at least 2 hours in cold water)

5 to 10 dates (adjust according to desired sweetness - may also add some agave syrup_

1 banana

1/4 to 1/2 c lite coconut milk

1 to 2 t pure vanilla extract

1/4 to 1/2 t cinnamon

1 t fresh lemon juice

Combine all ingredients in a blender and process until smooth and fluffy, adding more coconut milk as needed to reach desired consistency.

Assembly

2 to 3 bananas

1 oz unsweetened chocolate

1 t to 1 T agave or honey (mixed with melted unsweetened chocolate to desired sweetness)

Cocoa powder and Cinnamon

Slice bananas to cover bottom of tart. Top with 1/2 of the filling and repeat. Dollop melted chocolate all over top layer of filling and gently smooth to cover tart. Sprinkle with cocoa powder and cinnamon until lightly covered. Freeze for 20 minutes and then serve.

Chicken & Dumplings

Have you made Chicken in a Pot yet? When you do, save your leftover meat and juice to make dumplings. Heat some olive oil in a large pot. Add some chopped onion, carrot, and celery. Saute until carrot is just tender and add minced garlic. Add whatever meat you have leftover, and some frozen or fresh corn kernels if you have them handy. Now add the leftover juice from your chicken in a pot, chicken stock, and evaporated milk until you have a good liquid to solid ratio. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Now make your dumplings.

1 c flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 c buttermilk
2 T canola or olive oil

Mix dry ingredients. Combine milk and oil and stir into flour mixture until just moistened. Drop by spoonful into boiling soup mixture, cover with lid, reduce heat to a simmer, and let simmer for 15 minutes. No peaking!!! They will soak up a lot of liquid so make sure you add enough. Sorry, it isn't an exact recipe, but it makes for great variations.

Chocolate Banana Muffins

These are very very good. The original recipe is from Vegetarian Times but I added some chocolate chips to the batter and they now double as a semi-healthy breakfast/mostly-healthy dessert. The best part? No eggs, which means you can lick the bowl clean without an ounce of guilt.

1 1/2 c all-purpose flour
1/2 c sugar
1/3 c unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 c buttermilk
3/4 c mashed banana
1/3 c canola oil
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 to 1/2 c semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 12-cup muffin tin with cooking spray and dust with sugar for an extra sweet crunch.

Whisk together all dry ingredients. In another bowl combine the buttermilk, banana, oil, and vanilla. Fold the wet mixture into the dry mixture. Gently add chocolate chips.

Scoop batter into prepared pan. Bake for 18 to 22 minutes. SO GOOD.

Daring Baker - Traditional British Pudding

The April 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Esther of The Lilac Kitchen. She challenged everyone to make a traditional British pudding using, if possible, a very traditional British ingredient: suet.

Now I really feel like a daring baker. Have you heard of suet? I hadn't prior to this challenge. Suet is a hard and flaky fat taken from the area around the kidneys of a cow or sheep. No joke. Do you have any idea how difficult it is to find suet? I finally tracked some down at a local butcher and was slightly grossed out when he handed this to me:


Yep. This is daring for me. I was both excited and confused when I saw this month's challenge. Excited because it is something I've always wanted to make but confused because I think of this as a cold weather dish. The weather cooperated however and today was perfectly cold and overcast, making it an excellent day to eat a steamed pudding.

I took my recipe from an extremely old black 3-ring binder that used to belong to my Nana and I think used to belong to her mother. Inside was a recipe for Nut & Date Pudding, which fit the requirements of the challenge in that the recipe called for suet and it was a steamed pudding.

Honestly, the most difficult part of this recipe was finding the suet. I put the pudding together in about 10 minutes. First I had to separate the suet from the membrane and crumble out a cup to use in the batter. (Bryant was completely grossed out by the suet, luckily I had him taste the pudding before showing him the suet. He couldn't believe that something that looked so disgusting could make something so amazingly delicious.)

The recipe didn't contain many instructions, so I combined the dry ingredients in own bowl and the wet ingredients in another. Then I rubbed the suet into the dry ingredients (kind of like when making pie dough) and added the chopped dates and walnuts. I added the wet ingredients and briefly stirred until combined. Next it was into a greased bowl, covered with 2 layers of greased parchment paper and 2 layers of foil, and then into my canning pot to steam.

Perfectly steamed after only 2 hours.

The unmolded pudding.

The pudding after receiving a bath of hot caramel toffee-ish sauce.

I am not a very good food photographer, but these will have to suffice.

I made up the sauce because my great-grandma's recipe seemed lacking a bit, but I used her general idea and added a bit of molasses, some cream, and omitted the flour and boiling water. This is going to become my new Christmas tradition. Suet is so incredibly high in fat that I can only justify eating it once a year, and I can't think of a better way to honor my British heritage than by making a traditional British pudding.

Date & Nut Pudding

This is the original recipe, I halved it for the 2 of us and still have quite a bit tucked away in the freezer for a future midnight snack.

2 c suet

3 eggs

1 c sugar

3/4 c buttermilk

pinch of salt

1 tsp nutmeg

2 tsp vanilla

2 c flour

1 T baking soda

1 c chopped walnuts

1 lb chopped dates

Combine dry ingredients in one bowl and wet in another. Mix suet into dry ingredients and add dates and nuts. When evenly combined add wet ingredients and mix. Put batter into a greased pudding mold/ceramic bowl/#10 can and cover with 2 layers of greased parchment paper and 2 layers of aluminum foil. Place on a steamer rack in a steamer/canner/really large pot with a lid with boiling water that reaches up to the middle of the pudding. (The idea is that the pudding bowl should never touch the bottom of the pan, which is why I propped it up with my steamer rack. Cover pot and let steam for 2 to 2 1/2 hours. To check for doneness (is that a word?) insert a skewer through the foil and parchment paper. If it comes out clean the pudding is done. Remove from pan, unmold and serve with sauce.

I need a clever name for this sauce.

1 c sugar

4 T butter

1 c cream, divided

2 T molasses

Combine sugar, butter, molasses, and 1/2 c cream in a heavy saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. When sugar has melted remove from heat and add remaining 1/2 c cream. Serve immediately with pudding.

I can understand if you are grossed out by the suet, but honestly, this is amazing. Rich, decadent, and a family recipe at that. Now that's my kind of family history.

Pie Notes

I made the blackberry tonight for my parents but couldn't get the same type of berries (Stahlbush Island Farms Marion Blackberries) and the pie was good, but not life changing. So, if you make this pie, try really hard to get the right blackberries, because you want them to impart amazing flavor, not just so so flavor. That's all.