Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Nectarine Upside-Down Chiffon Cake (TWD)


This week's Tuesdays with Dorie: Baking with Julia recipe was hosted by Marlise of The Double Trouble Kitchen and Susan of The Little French Bakery: Nectarine Upside-Down Chiffon Cake.  It's been a long, long, time since I've posted for this group - I'm sorry :( I have just been so busy, and on top of that I'm six months pregnant and turning on the oven when it is 100+ degrees outside just hasn't been very appealing.  The good news, however, is that my baby girl (who is not so much a baby anymore) just started school this week so that means this mama is going to have a lot more time to bake each week! So, you should start to see blog posts pick up a little more at least.

I didn't have a pan large enough for this cake, so I made one large nectarine and peach upside-down chiffon cake and one mini blueberry upside-down chiffon cake.  After reading some of the comments on the weekly P&Q, I decided to skip the streusel and made sure to bake my cake for a few extra minutes.  I really think the longer baking time has to do with whether or not the cake is baked on a jelly roll pan.  I did not bake mine on one and I think it only took an extra 3-5 minutes to bake.  I did, however, cover the bottom of my pans with foil to catch the butter drippings, which was good because there was quite a bit.
The blueberry cake was delicious.  The chiffon was light and airy, as it should be.  It's a nice contrast to the denser, more traditional pineapple upside down cake.  I'm not sure how the nectarine and peach cake turned out because that one will be going with my husband to work tomorrow, but I imagine it's just as good as the blueberry cake.
Thanks to Marlise and Susan for hosting; you can find the recipe on their blogs here and here.  Make sure you check here, too, to see what everyone else thought of this sweet, end of summer treat.

* Recipe notes:
- If you bake your cake on a jelly roll pan, be sure to add at least another 10 minutes of baking time to your cake.  Definitely don't forget to wrap the bottom of your pan in foil, or you'll end up with a big mess on the bottom of your oven.
- Frozen blueberries work great with this recipe.  Do not thaw before baking.
- For more recipe notes, check here.

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Filled Pate a Choux Swans and Turtles (DB)

Kat of The Bobwhites was our August 2012 Daring Baker hostess who inspired us to have fun in creating pate a choux shapes, filled with crème patisserie or Chantilly cream. We were encouraged to create swans or any shape we wanted and to go crazy with filling flavors allowing our creativity to go wild!

I've made pate a choux several times in the past before, but it had been quite some time.  As such, I didn't catch that a key piece of information was missing from the recipe until my dough turned out like soup! :(  The recipe states that you are to melt the butter in water, milk, and salt.  Then remove the saucepan from the heat and add the flour.  Well, it doesn't say if you're to melt the butter over low, medium, or high heat so I did it over medium heat.  Unfortunately, if your liquid isn't boiling when you add the flour, it won't cook the flour and you end up with a soupy mess instead of a beautiful pate a choux dough! So, I've added those notes to the recipe so you can avoid that fatal mistake if you make this recipe.
Otherwise, everything went off without a hitch.  I made a few swans and then loved the idea of making some turtles as another Daring Baker had posted in our private forum.  I filled my pastries with chocolate pastry cream and they were delicious. 
Thanks Kat, for hosting this month's challenge.  You'll find the recipes below.  Also be sure to check out the Daring Bakers' Blogroll to see all the other wonderful creations that were made!

Pate a choux 

(cannot be doubled)

Recipe source: Good Housekeeping Illustrated Guide to Cooking, 1980 edition


Ingredients
½ cup (120 ml) (115 gm) (4 oz) butter
1 cup (240 ml) water
¼ teaspoon (1½ gm) salt
1 cup (240 ml) (140 gm) (5 oz) all-purpose flour
4 large eggs

Directions:
  1. Line at least two baking sheets with silicone mats or parchment paper, or grease pans well.
  2. Preheat oven to moderately hot 375°F/190°C/gas mark 5 .
  3. In a small saucepot, combine butter, water, and salt. Heat over until butter melts (and liquid has come to a full rolling boil), then remove from stove.
  4. Add flour all at once and beat, beat, beat the mixture until the dough pulls away from the sides of the pot.
  5. Add one egg, and beat until well combined. Add remaining eggs individually, beating vigorously after each addition. Resulting mixture should be somewhat glossy, very smooth, and somewhat thick.
  6. Using a ¼” (6 mm) tip on a pastry bag, pipe out about 36 swan heads. You’re aiming for something between a numeral 2 and a question mark, with a little beak if you’re skilled and/or lucky.
  7. Remove the tip from the bag and pipe out 36 swan bodies. These will be about 1.5” (40 mm) long, and about 1” (25 mm) wide. One end should be a bit narrower than the other.
  8. Bake the heads and bodies until golden and puffy. The heads will be done a few minutes before the bodies, so keep a close eye on the baking process.
  9. Remove the pastries to a cooling rack, and let cool completely before filling.
Assembly
  1. Take a swan body and use a very sharp knife to cut off the top 1/3rd to ½.
  2. Cut the removed top down the center to make two wings.
  3. Dollop a bit of filling into the body, insert head, and then add wings.
  4. Your first attempt will probably not look like much, but the more you make, the more your bevy of swans will become a beautiful work of swan art.

Vanilla Crème Patissiere

(Half Batch)
Ingredients:
1 cup (225 ml.) whole milk
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
6 Tbsp. (100 g.) sugar
1 large egg
2 large egg yolks
2 Tbsp. (30 g.) unsalted butter
1 Tsp. Vanilla
Directions:
  1. Dissolve cornstarch in ¼ cup of milk. Combine the remaining milk with the sugar in a saucepan; bring to boil; remove from heat.
  2. Beat the whole egg, then the yolks into the cornstarch mixture. Pour 1/3 of boiling milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly so that the eggs do not begin to cook.
  3. Return the remaining milk to boil. Pour in the hot egg mixture in a stream, continuing whisking.
  4. Continue whisking (this is important – you do not want the eggs to solidify/cook) until the cream thickens and comes to a boil. Remove from heat and beat in the butter and vanilla.
  5. Pour cream into a stainless steel/ceramic bowl. Press plastic wrap firmly against the surface. Chill immediately and until ready to use.

Chocolate Pastry Cream

(Half Batch Recipe):
Bring ¼ cup (about 50 cl.) milk to a boil in a small pan; remove from heat and add in 3 ounces (about 80 g.) semisweet chocolate, finely chopped, and mix until smooth. Whisk into pastry cream when you add the butter and vanilla.

Coffee Pastry Cream

(Half Batch recipe)
Dissolve 1 ½ teaspoons instant espresso powder in 1 ½ teaspoons boiling water. Whisk into pastry cream with butter and vanilla.

Chantilly Cream

1 cup (225 ml.) cold heavy cream
2 tablespoons confectioners' (powdered) sugar
Chill medium mixing bowl and whisk in freezer for 10 minutes before beginning. In chilled bowl, whisk cream until it begins to foam and thicken. Add sugar and continue to whisk just until soft peaks form. Do not over-whip.

Freezing/Storage Instructions/Tips: While the crème filling stores well when covered tightly and kept in a refrigerator, the baked choux does not store well at all, especially after being filled. Therefore, you must eat these the day they are made. This won’t be a problem, though, I assure you.

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Blueberry Nectarine Pie (TWD)


This week's Tuesdays with Dorie: Baking with Julia recipe was hosted by Hilary of Manchego's Kitchen and Liz of That Skinny Chick Can Bake: Blueberry Nectarine Pie.  This pie is about as summer as you can get.  I love taking advantage of fresh fruits that are in season. 

In this recipe, the blueberries and nectarines get cooked down in a little bit of lime zest and brown sugar and then they're tossed in some fresh lime juice with more fresh blueberries and nectarines.  The lime is what really brings out the flavors in the fruit.  This pie was delicious, and the only thing I'd probably change is to double the fruit next time, as my pie came out a bit thin.
Thanks to Hilary and Liz for hosting; you can find the recipe on their blogs here and here.  Make sure you check here, too, to see what everyone else thought of this fruit-filled summer treat.

* Recipe notes:
- You'll definitely want to use a pie crust shield or cover the edges of your pie with some foil about half way through the baking process to prevent the edges from getting burned.
- I had to bake my pie about an extra 10-15 minutes before the crust was golden and the fruit juices were bubbling.
- I did not bake my pie on a baking sheet; in my experience that only causes the bottom crust to be undercooked.  Instead, I simply laid a piece of foil at the bottom of the oven to catch any juices that might bubble over.

Friday, July 27, 2012

Homemade Crackers: Pepper Jack and Oregano Crackers and Cheddar Rosemary Icebox Crackers (DB)

Our July Daring Bakers' Host was Dana McFarland and she challenged us to make homemade crackers! Dana showed us some techniques for making crackers and encouraged to use our creativity to make each cracker our own by using ingredients we love.

It's been quite some time since I made homemade crackers, so it's hard for me to compare this experience with my previous one.  However, I found that both of these recipes were extremely quick and easy to execute.  The icebox crackers, in particular, were very simple.  Just mix everything together and form the dough into a log and refrigerate; then slice and bake when ready.


My schedule is a bit hectic these days, so I stuck with the recipes as written and didn't take any creative license with them.  The only thing I changed was to omit the walnuts from the cheddar rosemary crackers because I don't care for nuts.

Both types of crackers were very flavorful.  My only complaint would be that the cheddar rosemary crackers were way too salty; so I'll definitely cut back on the salt next time.  These crackers reminded me of a gourmet version of cheezits; the rosemary is such a wonderful addition.

I really enjoyed this challenge because it reminded me of how much I love making my own crackers.  With a toddler to feed, I love that I can make her a snack that doesn't have all the additives and preservatives that are found in store bought crackers.

Thanks Dana, for hosting this month's challenge.  You'll find the recipes below.  Also be sure to check out the Daring Bakers' Blogroll to see what everyone else thought of these savory homemade treats.

Pepper Jack and Oregano Crackers (Roll with pasta rollers or by hand):

Servings: Approximately 80 crackers

Ingredients

1⅔ cups (400 ml) (235 gm) (8¼ oz) all-purpose (plain) flour
2¼ cups (540 ml) (225 gm/8 oz) grated pepper jack cheese, firmly packed
2 teaspoons (10 ml) (1 gm) dried oregano
½ teaspoon (2½ ml) (3 gm) salt
½ teaspoon (2½ ml) (½ gm) black pepper
½ cup (120 ml) (4 fl oz) vegetable oil
½ cup (120 ml) (4 fl oz) water

Spice topping

¼ teaspoon (1¼ ml) (1/8 gm) cayenne
1 teaspoon (5 ml) (3 gm) kosher salt
1 teaspoon (5 ml) (5 gm) sugar

Directions:

1. Combine the spice topping and set aside.
2. Grate the cheese and put in the bowl of a food processor with flour, oregano, salt and pepper and pulse to combine. This can also be done by hand.

3. Add the oil and pulse until the consistency of wet sand is reached.
4. Add enough water for the dough to come together.
5. Form the dough into two disks, wrap with cling film and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.
6. Heat the oven to moderate 325°F/160°C/gas mark 3.
7. Working with a quarter of the dough at a time, either use a rolling pin or roll out in your pasta rollers to 1/8 of an inch (3 mm) thick. If you use pasta rollers, ensure the dough is well floured so as not to stick.
8. Cut the strips into cracker shapes or cut out using a cookie cutter.

9. Transfer to a parchment lined cookies sheet and sprinkle with the spice mixture.
10. Bake for 20-25 minutes until medium golden brown.
11. Store in an airtight container and eat within three days

Cheddar, Rosemary and Walnut Icebox Crackers (form into a log and slice):

Servings: Approximately 48 crackers

Ingredients

½ cup (120 ml) (1 stick) (115 gm/4 oz) butter, well softened
2¼ cups (540 ml) (225 gm/8 oz) grated aged cheddar cheese (the better the cheese, the better the cracker), firmly packed
1 cup plus 3 tablespoons (285 ml) (190 gm/6oz) all-purpose (plain) flour
1 teaspoon (5 ml) (6 gm) salt (I found this to be way too much! try 1/4-1/2 tsp)
1/2 cup (120 ml) (60 gm/2 oz) finely chopped walnuts
1 tablespoon (15 ml) (1¾ gm) finely chopped rosemary

Directions:

1. Combine butter, rosemary and cheese in a stand mixer and beat well (can also be done by hand)

2. Add the flour, salt and nuts and stir to combine
3. Form the dough into two tight logs and wrap with cling film

4. Chill for at least an hour and up to several days. The log can be frozen at this point for several months.
5. Heat the oven to moderate 325°F/160°C/gas mark 3.
6. Slice a log into 5mm (1/5 inch) coins and place on a parchment lined baking sheet
7. Bake about 10 minutes until golden brown
8. Store in an airtight container and eat within three days
9. Try this recipe with different cheeses, nuts (or no nuts), and spices. Get creative!

Storage and Freezing Instructions/Tips:

Generally crackers with less fat and cheese last for weeks in an airtight container and richer crackers only a few days. Dough can be made days ahead, stored in the fridge and baked when needed. The icebox cracker dough can be frozen for several months before thawed, sliced and baked.

Friday, July 20, 2012

Dove Visible Care Body Wash & Spa Certificate Giveaway

I'm a busy working mom.  Sadly, since the birth of my little girl, I've had less and less time to devote to this blog.  I'm thankful to all my readers who still check in on this blog, despite the less frequent updates.  I know the other mothers out there can relate to what I'm talking about.  Sometimes life is so hectic and chaotic, that something as simple as taking a hot shower feels like a day at the spa! It's my own "me time" where I don't have to worry about getting anything else done for anyone else but myself.

I was recently sent a sample of Dove Visible Care Renewing Body Wash to try out at home. It's part of a new line of premium body washes made by Dove that contains the highest concentration of Nutrium Moisture technology of all Dove products.  I was a bit skeptical that you could really see any kind of difference in a short amount of time, but after using it for just a week, I could actually tell that my skin was softer.  I love that I can improve the look and feel of my skin by using a product that is already part of my daily routine - a body wash - instead of adding another step to my regimen because quite frankly, as a busy mom, my skin care regimen is quite minimal these days!

It is available in three varieties: New Dove® VisibleCare Toning Crème Body Wash helps to promote skin’s elasticity and strength, Renewing Body Wash nourishes and replenishes skin, and Softening Body Wash softens skin and dry spots.
 
Not all of us have the time or money to go pamper ourselves at the spa... but this is one small way that you can pamper yourself with more beautiful looking skin in one easy step.  Of course we'd all love some real pampering at the spa, though, right? So, if you'd be interested in entering a sweepstakes to win one of two $500 spa gift cards, follow the instructions below to enter. Even if you don't win, be sure to visit Dove® VisibleCare® to get a coupon for $1 off!

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Thursday, June 28, 2012

Battenberg Cake (DB)


For the June Daring Bakers' challenge, Mandy of What The Fruitcake?! came to our rescue last minute to present us with the Battenberg Cake challenge! She highlighted Mary Berry’s techniques and recipes to allow us to create this unique little cake with ease.

This cake has far grander beginnings than tea with teddy. It was actually created as a wedding cake for royalty.  The first Battenberg cake was made to celebrate the marriage of Queen Victoria’s granddaughter, Princess Victoria, to husband Prince Louis of Battenberg.

It’s traditionally flavored with almond and has the signature Battenberg markings, that is, the yellow and pink squares (said to represent the four princes of Battenberg). The strips of sponge are glued together using jam (normally apricot) and the whole cake is covered in marzipan. Sometimes the edges are crimped and the top is patterned with a knife.

Although there are specialized Battenberg cake tins available, you don’t need one. This cake can be baked in a square baking tin and a divide made with foil to separate the two batters. This recipe really is all about simplicity.

I found the cake to be very simple to make.  The almond flavor was nice and the crumb was moist and perfect.  Instead of marzipan, I attempted to make some chocolate plastique (plastic chocolate).  I was not so successful with this.  Despite kneading my chocolate for quite some time, I just could not get it to come together.  It simply crumbled as soon as I tried to roll it out.  I'm not sure what I did wrong, but this prevented me from wrapping my cake beautifully as others have done.  Instead, I'm going to attempt a marshmallow fondant (for the first time).  That also means that I haven't finished it yet, so pics for this post will come later...



Thanks Mandy, for hosting this month's challenge.  You'll find the recipe below.  Also be sure to check out the Daring Bakers' Blogroll to see what everyone else thought of these beautiful and impressive cakes!

Traditional Battenberg:

Recipe Source: Traditional Battenberg adapted from Mary Berry’s “Baking Bible”

Servings: approx. 8

Ingredients
¾ cup (1½ sticks) 175gm / 6 oz Unsalted Butter, softened & cut in cubes
¾ cup / 175gm / 6 oz Caster Sugar
1¼ cups / 175gm / 6 oz Self-Raising Flour (*To make your own self raising flour: 1 cup Self Raising Flour = 1 cup / 115g All Purpose Flour + 1 ½ tsp Baking Powder + ¼ tsp Salt (omit salt if there is salt in the recipe) sifted together)
3 Large Eggs, room temp
½ cup / 65gm/ 2 1/3 oz Ground Almonds (Can be substituted with ground rice)
3/4 tsp / 3½ gm Baking Powder
½ tsp / 2½ ml Vanilla Extract
1/4 tsp (1¼ ml) Almond Extract
Red Food Colouring, paste, liquid or gel

To Finish
1/3 cup (80 ml) 100gm /3 ½ oz Apricot Jam
1 cup / 225gm / 8 oz Marzipan, natural or yellow


Directions:
1. Preheat oven to moderate 350°F/180°C/160°C Fan Assisted/Gas Mark 4
2. Grease an 8”/20cm square baking tin with butter
3. Line the tin with parchment paper, creating a divide in the middle with the parchment (or foil)
4. OR Prepare Battenberg tin by brushing the tin with melted butter and flouring


Making the pan divider with parchment paper and foil.

I folded over a sheet of foil several times to help reinforce the divide.
Fold the parchment in half and put the foil into the crease.
Butter the bottom of the cake pan, this will help "glue" the parchment to it.
Make sure the divide is in the middle of the pan and stick the excess parchment onto the bottom.

5. Whisk together the dry ingredients then combine with the wet ingredients in a large bowl and beat together just until the ingredients are combined and the batter is smooth
6. Spoon half the mixture into the one side of the prepared baking tin
7. Add a few drops of red food liquid/gel/paste to the remaining batter, stir until the colour is thoroughly distributed, add more colour if needed
8. Spoon the pink batter into the other half of the prepared baking tin
9. Smooth the surface of the batter with a spatula, making sure batter is in each corner
10. Bake for 25-30mins until the cake is well risen, springs back when lightly touched and a toothpick comes out clean (it should shrink away from the sides of the pan)
11. Leave to cool in the tin for a few minutes before turning out to cool thoroughly on a wire rack
12. Once completely cool, trim the edges of the cake with a long serrated knife
13. Cut each coloured sponge in half lengthways so that you are left with four long strips of sponge
14. Neaten the strips and trim as necessary so that your checkered pattern is as neat and even as possible
15. Gently heat the apricot jam and pass through a small sieve
16. Brush warmed jam onto the strips of cake to stick the cake together in a checkered pattern (one yellow next to one pink. On top of that, one pink next to one yellow)
17. Dust a large flat surface with icing sugar then roll the marzipan in an oblong shape that is wide enough to cover the length of the cake and long enough to completely wrap the cake
18. Brush the top of the cake with apricot jam
19. Place the cake on the marzipan, jam side down
- Tip: Either in the middle or to the one side of the marzipan
20. Brush the remaining three sides with jam
21. Press the marzipan around the cake, making sure the join is either neatly in the one corner, or will be underneath the cake once turned over
- Tip: If you put the sponge to the one side of the marzipan, I found it easiest to "roll" the sponge over and over onto the marzipan instead of lifting the marzipan up onto the sponge
22. Carefully flip the cake over so that the seam is under the cake and score the top of the cake with a knife, you can also crimp the top corners with your fingers to decorate
23. Neaten the ends of the cake and remove excess marzipan by trimming off a small bit of cake on both ends to reveal the pattern

Coffee and Walnut Battenberg:

Servings: Approx. 8
Ingredients
¾ cup (1½ sticks) 175gm / 6 oz Unsalted Butter, softened & cut in cubes
¾ cup / 175gm / 6 oz Caster Sugar
1¼ cups / 175gm / 6 oz Self-Raising Flour (***see end of doc on how to make your own)
3 Large Eggs, room temp
½ cup / 65gm / 2 1/3 oz Ground Almonds (Can be substituted with ground rice)
3/4 tsp / 3½ gm Baking Powder
3 tsp (15 ml) Milk
½ tsp (2½ ml) Vanilla Extract
1½ tsp (7½ ml) 7 gm Instant Coffee Powder or Granules
3 Tbsp / 25gm / 1 oz Walnuts, roughly chopped

To Finish
½ cup (1 stick) 115gm /4 oz Unsalted Butter
2 cups / 225gm /8 oz Powdered (Icing/Confectioners') Sugar
½ tsp / 2 gm Instant Coffee
1½ tsp (7½ ml) Milk or Cream
1 cup / 225gm /8 oz Marzipan, natural or yellow

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to moderate 350°F/180°C/160°C Fan Assisted/Gas Mark 4
2. Grease an 8”/20cm square baking tin with butter
3. Line the tin with parchment paper, creating a divide in the middle with the parchment (or foil)
- Tip: See photos or watch video above for detailed instructions
4. OR Prepare Battenberg tin by brushing the tin with melted butter and flouring
5. Whisk together dry ingredients (except walnuts and coffee) and combine with the wet ingredients in a large bowl (except vanilla and milk) and beat together just until the ingredients are combined and the batter is smooth
6. Spoon half the mixture into a separate bowl and stir in the vanilla, 1½ teaspoons milk and chopped walnuts
7. Spoon the walnut mixture into the one side of the prepared baking tin
8. Dissolve the coffee in the remaining 1½ teaspoon milk and add to the remaining batter, stir until just combined
9. Spoon the coffee batter into the other half of the prepared baking tin
10. Smooth the surface of the batter with a spatula, making sure batter is in each corner
11. Bake for 25-30mins until the cake is well risen, springs back when lightly touched and a
toothpick comes out clean (it should shrink away from the sides of the pan)
12. Leave to cool in the tin for a few minutes before turning out to cool thoroughly on a wire rack
13. Once completely cool, trim the edges of the cake with a long serrated knife
14. Cut each sponge in half lengthways so that you are left with four long strips of sponge
15. Neaten the strips and trim as necessary so that your checkered pattern is as neat and even as possible
16. Combine the buttercream ingredients together and mix until combined
17. Spread a thin layer of buttercream onto the strips of cake to stick the cake together in a checkered pattern (one yellow next to one pink. On top of that, one pink next to one yellow)
- Tip: See photos for detailed instructions
18. Dust a large flat surface with icing sugar then roll the marzipan in an oblong shape that is wide enough to cover the length of the cake and long enough to completely wrap the cake
19. Spread the top of the cake with a thin layer of buttercream
20. Place the cake on the marzipan, buttercream side down
21. Spread buttercream onto the remaining three sides
22. Press the marzipan around the cake, making sure the join is either neatly in the one corner, or will be underneath the cake once turned over
23. Carefully flip the cake over so that the seam is under the cake and score the top of the cake with a knife, you can also crimp the top corners with your fingers to decorate
24. Neaten the ends of the cake and remove excess marzipan by trimming off a small bit of cake on both ends to reveal the pattern

Chocolate Plastique / Modelling Chocolate:

Servings: Approx. 8
Dark Chocolate Plastique
200gm /7 oz Good Quality Dark Chocolate (70% Cocoa content)
¼ cup / 60ml /2 oz Light Corn Syrup / Glucose Syrup / Golden Syrup
Milk Chocolate Plastique
200gm /7 oz Good Quality Milk Chocolate (+-50% Cocoa content)
3 Tbsp / 45ml /1½ oz Light Corn Syrup / Glucose Syrup / Golden Syrup
White Chocolate Plastique
200gm /7 oz Good Quality White Chocolate
2 Tbsp / 30ml /1 oz Light Corn Syrup / Glucose Syrup / Golden Syrup

Directions:
1. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler or in a heatproof bowl over a pot of simmering water, stir occasionally
2. Once completely melted, remove from heat and allow to cool a bit
3. Stir in corn syrup / glucose syrup / golden syrup, it will seize up almost immediately, just keep stirring until mixed and it comes away from the side of the bowl
4. Transfer chocolate into a sealable bag, spread the chocolate out then seal the bag
5. Leave overnight or refrigerate for about 2 hours until completely firm
6. Turn out from the bag and knead on a surface dusted with powdered sugar, at first it will just break , but as you knead, it will warm up and start to become pliable
7. Knead until it's pliable enough to roll out or mould, 5 - 10mins
Storage Instructions/Tips:
- Battenberg will keep for 3-4 days stored at room temperature in an airtight container
- Keep chocolate plastique in an airtight container at room temperature, it will keep for as long as the
expiry date on the chocolate wrapper

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

French Strawberry Cake (TWD)




This week's Tuesdays with Dorie: Baking with Julia recipe was hosted by Sophia of Sophia's Sweets and Allison of Sleep Love Think Dine: French Strawberry Cake.  It's a genoise, or Italian sponge cake, made without any chemical leavening agents.  Instead, the sponge is made by whipping air into the batter and the dry ingredients are folded in.  The batter is extremely delicate, and over mixing will cause it to deflate.  The cake is then split into three layers, and then strawberries and cream are layered into between each cake layer.


I had a few small issues with this cake.  First, I was traveling and did not have an 8-inch cake pan.  I had to use a larger pan, and the resulting cake was too thin to cut into three layers.  So, I ended up baking a second cake and splitting both cakes into two layers instead - resulting a 4-layer cake instead of a 3-layer cake.  Even though I whipped up a full 2 cups of heavy cream (instead of the indicated 1-1/4), I did not have enough cream to pipe around the cake.  Instead, I decided to just decorate my cake with more fresh strawberries.


Thanks to Sophia and Allison for hosting; you can find the recipe on their blogs here and here.  Make sure you check here, too, to see what everyone else thought of wonderful summer treat.

* Recipe notes:
- Be very very careful folding your ingredients together, especially the butter.  If you're not careful all is lost and you shouldn't even bother baking up the deflated batter.
- I'd recommend using at least 2 cups of heavy whipping cream to frost the cake.