Butterbeer: Lindsay's Belated Birthday (cup)cake!

Anyone who knows my good friend Lindsay knows she's a Harry Potter fanatic! A few weeks before her birthday I told her that I would take care of her cake because I wanted to make her something fun! Well, because I couldn't find pipettes (you may have noticed my begging for help on facebook!) I wasn't able to make them in time for her birthday.

I wanted to use the Butterbeer that is served in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios as a reference. Basically, it's a cream soda with a underwhipped, butterscotch flavored cream on top. I made a buttery vanilla cake and topped it with a butterscotch whipped topping. This is where the pipettes come in. I filled them with cream soda.

To eat, remove the pipette and squirt the soda into your mouth and chase it with a big bite of cupcake and frosting.

It was magical..... touche.

European Flashbacks- Part 1 - Bienenstich

Every now and then my OCD kicks in full-force and I do something obnoxious like organize all my photos in my picture library. I have to make folders and sub folders until everything looks neat. I wound up going through many of these photos - specifically the photos from my last European adventure. As I was skimming through, I came across pictures I took of some regional foods that I tried. I though it would be fun to research these desserts and find authentic recipes.

My first stop was Germany. I flew into Frankfurt on a cold, snowy day and discovered that it was very commercial. This was slightly disappointing. However, after speaking with the concierge, I was given directions to a quaint part of the city known as Romerberg. It was an adorable square with some shops, a few restaurants and a bakery. Of course I had to try something. The bakery was very small. There was a counter filled with all different treats, each with its own little sign saying what it was. I looked for the most "German-looking" thing and came across Bienenstich. Bienenstick, or "Bee sting cake," is a dense cake (some may even say sweet bread) with a thin layer of honeyed almonds and filled with a whipped cream or vanilla custard.

Romerburg

Bienenstich from the bakery in Romerburg

The bottom layer with the honey-almond caramel
My finished version of Bienenstich

The Bienenstich in Romerburg was filled with whipped cream. I finally came across a recipe that looked right to me - and boy was it dead on! I prepared the cake batter and got the two layers into the oven. While it was baking, I made a caramel with some honey, sugar, butter and heavy cream. When the caramel was done, vanilla and almonds are stirred in. The almond mixture is then spread onto the bottom layer of the cake and baked some more. After the cake is cooled, I made a not-too-sweet whipped cream and piped it onto the layer with the almonds. The other half is placed on top and then sprinkled with some confectioner's sugar.

I brought this to my aunt's house and it was a hit. I'll definitely be making this again.

Salted Caramel

With Emma in Italy this past week, I had some time to do some recipe testing. For the past year or so, salted caramel has really been a "trendy" flavor. I do occasionally come across someone who hears about it and says, "Ew! That's gross." If you've never experienced the flavor combination, put a grain or two of salt on some (quality) caramel candy and enjoy.

To achieve a salted caramel buttercream, I made a salted caramel sauce. This is where things can get tricky. I like an American style caramel - think Milk Duds (so much for quality, eh?) I think most people like this kind of caramel but that's probably because it's what people are used to. Then there's the other caramel - it's usually a dark copper color and has a bitter aftertaste. Because Emma prefers this type, I decided to compromise and meet half way. Plus, I feel the salt goes better with a darker caramel.

I paired the salted caramel buttercream with out moist chocolate cake and garnished it with some salted caramel sauce and a sprinkling of Maldon sea salt. Yum!

Something Savory

I was skimming through the channels a few days ago and landed on PBS. Sometimes I like watching old school cooking shows like Yan Can Cook, Julia Child, etc. I happened to stumble across one of my favorites - Ciao Italia. The host, MaryAnne, was cooking artichokes and they looked yummy. I made a mental note to try them out one day. Surprisingly enough, we had artichokes on sale at work and they looked amazing.

There were only a few ingredients to her recipe - artichokes, garlic, chicken broth, salt, lemon, pepper, mint and parsley. I'm not a mint person, so I skipped it. My only suggestion would be to hit it with a splash of freshly squeezed lemon and ground pepper right before serving.

Here's the recipe...

INGREDIENTS

4 whole large artichokes Globe or Romanesco if available
Juice of two lemons
1/4 cup fresh chopped mint
1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley
2 large cloves garlic, minced
Three cups of chicken broth
Salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS

Remove the tough outer leaves of the artichokes.

Use a vegetable peeler to trim the outer layer of the stems.

Cut the artichokes in half lengthwise

Place in pan. Add chicken broth, salt, parsley, mint and garlic and cook until tender.

Remove from pan, scoop out chokes.

Serve warm with cooking juices.

As seen in Program 21o1

Impatience killed the cake.

Things have been so hectic lately that I barely have time to just bake something for the hell of it. This past weekend, I decided that I wanted to test out some new flavors for Layers NYC.

During my breaks at work, I like to stroll through the aisles to look for any new and interesting items that might have come in. Whole Foods is always adding new offerings and I, most often then not, pick one up to experiment with. My two favorite places in the store are the baking aisle and the produce department. On this particular day, I was walking though produce and noticed that the first batch of cherries had arrived. I couldn't resist and that's where it all began.

I decided to make a Tahitian vanilla and cherry compote which came out so good that had I had vanilla ice cream, we would have had a situation! Instead, I used the compote to make a buttercream. As for the cake flavor, we have been talking about offering an almond cake and I wanted to work on that. After a couple of tweaks to the original recipe, we had a winner.

After the cake was baked and stacked with the vanilla-cherry buttercream, I decided that I wanted to cover it in a white chocolate ganache. I had even pictured how I'd like to decorate the cake. I had a problem, though. I didn't have much time to do this because I wanted to bring some for Emma to taste and we had a schedule to keep.

I knew I should have either not bothered with the ganache or not brought some to Emma so I could do it right. Of course I went ahead and tried to glaze the cake before the ganache had time to set and it melted away at the cake. What a disaster! The good news: It didn't affect the taste of the cake and Emma was able to give her seal of approval! The bad news: no picture. Oh, well.

Chocolate Trio

One day I'd love to open a dessert bistro. I already have a "working" menu and have been meaning to begin recipe testing to make sure that the flavors are perfect! Having at least one chocolate dessert is a must on a menu. Being that chocolate is one of my least favorite flavors, I really had difficulty coming up with a dish that I liked and that I think people would like.

As obnoxious as I am, I prefer simple flavors and presentation. I tend to go for something more rustic than fru-fru and my menu reflects that.

I decided to try out my chocolate dish on Easter knowing I'd have a full house of people to use as guinea pigs! The dish I created is a chocolate trio - Dark Chocolate Souffle, Milk Chocolate Creme Brulee and White Chocolate Gelato.

The Creme Brulee...


I know I said I'm into simple presentation - and I really am - but this is probably slightly obnoxious. I recently bought myself an egg topper (an apparatus that allows you to take the top off an egg with a straight edge) and was dying to use it. I prepared the custard for the creme brulee and baked it in the hollowed shells. (FYI - they are a bitch to clean!) I used beans to keep the eggs upright when baking and cooling. I really enjoyed making these. Due to the high chocolate content, the texture was in between that of a traditional creme brulee and a mousse - which I liked.



The Gelato...


I actually like white chocolate and was very excited about this component. I used a recipe from one of my favorite gelato and sorbet cookbooks, Ciao Bella. I am not going to lie, I was not thrilled with the recipe. I am angry at myself for following it so literally when I had a hunch that I wouldn't love it. I found it too eggy and had to tweak the recipe to make it more to my taste. When the gelato was almost finished churning, I drizzled in some melted bittersweet chocolate to add some more texture and chocolaty goodness. I garnished the gelato with some lemon confit. I was skeptical to do this at first but, I am so glad that I did. The citrus cut through the sweetness of the gelato and it was delish! The tweaked recipe is at the end of the post.

The souffle...


I feel that people expect to see a souffle on a restaurant menu and I don't want to disappoint. Not only was I going to try a new recipe, I also haven't made one since culinary school so I was not sure what to expect. It was relatively easy to make. I prepared a pastry cream-like base and folded in chocolate, butter and a french meringue. I wasn't thrilled with the rise and the look of the souffle (I didn't fill the ramekin high enough) but the taste was dead on. It had everything that I look for in a souffle - soft, decadent and a slightly gooey in the middle. Great success!

Here is what the finished plate looked like. I think this one is a keeper and can't wait for you guys to try it when I open my restaurant!



White Chocolate Gelato with Bittersweet Chocolate Drizzle


2 cups whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
6 ounces white chocolate, finely chopped (use a quality chocolate, not in a chip version)
1/2 tsp high-end vanilla extract or seeds from half a bean
1/4 cup sugar
3 large egg yolks
3 ounces of melted bittersweet chocolate

Combine the milk, cream and vanilla in a saucepan and place over medium heat. Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolk yolks with the sugar until they lighten in color. As soon as the milk mixture comes to a simmer, remove it from the heat and, while whisking, slowly pour it into the egg mixture to temper the eggs. When both mixtures are combined, return to the sauce pan. Add the white chocolate and whisk it into the egg/milk mixture. On a low heat, gently stir the mixture (with a wooden spoon) until it begins to thicken and it coats the back of the spoon (about 185 degrees.) Be sure not to over cook the mixture or the eggs will scramble!

Pour the custard through a fine strainer into a bowl set up with an ice bath. Stir to cool down the custard and then pour it into a container and refrigerate overnight.

Process the gelato base in an ice cream machine and follow manufacturer's instructions on how to churn. When the gelato is nearly finished, drizzle the melted bittersweet chocolate in a fine stream. Transfer to an airtight container and freeze until ready to use.

Easter & Updates...

I hate that I haven't had time to post more, but things have been crazy! Emma and I have been working on promoting of cake company, Layers NYC (http://www.layersnyc.com/). Everyone's feedback has been wonderful! Between recipe testing, sourcing supplies and, of course, making cakes, I don't know how we work full time jobs! Also, on top of that, I have been working on another project for months (really years!) and just announced my new business endeavor this past week. I know it doesn't have anything to do with culinary, but this involves my other passion - music. Please check it out... http://www.statenislandgleeclub.com/.

Anyway, Easter is tomorrow and I am up to my knees in flour. I've been working on a special dessert menu for the holiday and am still making the components for it. My next blog will be about that.

One tradition in our family is Easter bread. Sometimes my mom makes it but I volunteered to make it this year. Our version of Easter bread is sort of a combination of a challah and a brioche. It is relatively simple to make but, between mixing, kneeding (by hand, of course), rising and baking - takes over 4 hours to make!

I would share this recipe with you but then I'd have to kill you...

Don't you just hate when people say that.

I know this hasn't been the most exciting post but just wait until you see how obnoxious the next one is! I will be sharing some recipes for that one, too.