February is usually a big month in the Shaikh-Zaman household, especially this year, and especially this week. First off, the Giants won the Superbowl. Maheen had set the alarm for 4:45am India time so we could wake up to watch the game. Needless to say, after a long day of running errands and only 3 hours of sleep later, I wasn’t the one waking up on time. There are only a few things in this world that Maheen is loyal to and loves beyond reason. The Giants are definitely in the top 10. Through the ups and downs, Eli’s “aw shucks” interviews, and a number of throw away mistakes, Maheen has diligently watched nearly every game and read nearly every piece of commentary available to man. And this year, they won the Superbowl for his birthday.

This one's for you Maheen

That brings us to the second reason why February is a big deal. This year was Maheen’s big 3-0! He waved goodbye to the 20s and is now an old fogie like the rest of us. Hah, this is especially sweet because I’ve been hearing 20s vs 30s jokes since last April when I turned 30. Now Maheen’s not really into birthdays; just another day like the rest of them in his book. On the flip side, I love birthdays. Heck I love any reason to celebrate – birthdays, anniversaries, anything that can be made into a momentous occasion where I can bake a cake. And I love buying presents. Thinking about what a person likes, what they would never really buy for themselves but secretly want, and then wrapping the present – absolutely love it.

Years ago when Maheen and I first met, started courting, and got married, I would go through a whole slew of possible birthday presents. The full collection of Tin Tin graphic novels and accompanying “extras” to remind him of his childhood. An mp3 player preloaded with some albums from his favorite artists like Tom Petty, the Cranberries, and Cure. You know.. thoughtful presents. But through all of that, the thing that Maheen loves the most, are Amazon giftcards. Shaking head. A giftcard. What am I going to do with this guy? Lucky for the rest of you, to help celebrate Maheen’s big 3-0 birthday, I’m giving away a $30 giftcard from Amazon.com (details below).

Now even though I’ve compromised on getting him a giftcard for his birthday instead of a “real” present hah, I refused to give up on baking a cake. What’s a birthday without cake? Even though I’ve got an unhealthy obsession with chocolate (like this recipe, or this, or even this) Maheen tends to favor either a milk chocolate or a vanilla recipe. I’ve tried making vanilla cakes before and haven’t had the greatest success. Either they are too dense, or too dry, or only keep for a day. I wanted something box cake tasting. Don’t look at me that way, you know you love box cake too. A few months ago I found a recipe from Sweetapolita that changed my mind. This woman has the BEST roundup of vanilla cakes! The only thing was, the first time I made it, my batter curdled. The second time I made it, I kept the measurments the same but used the mixing method suggested by America’s Test Kitchen / Cook’s Illustrated. Success! This is the third time I’m making this cake and I think I’ve finally got it down. It’s got structure, is moist, a fine crumb, and can definitely handle quite a bit of frosting.

And speaking of frosting, this one is fantastic! I started off making the Magnolia version, but wanted it to be creamier and fluffier, so I added extra liquid. But after adding the melted chocolate I felt that it wasn’t chocolatey enough, and was a bit too sweet, so I added some cocoa powder to balance it out. Perfect. This cake NEEDS to be served at room temp, and this is a frosting that can handle sitting out on a counter or table for a while. Obviously not in direct sunlight, it is still made up of butter and chocolate, but I left the cake on the counter for at least 6 hours and the frosting kept it’s shape. And it’s a dream to pipe with!

Vanilla Cake Recipe (adapted from Sweetapolita and Cook’s Illustrated)

Can not stress this enough – eggs and milk MUST been at room temp! If they aren’t your batter WILL curdle.

5 large egg whites (room temp!)
1 cup whole milk (room temp!)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups sifted cake flour (sift first then measure) OR 1 3/4 cups All Purpose flour + 1/4 cup corn starch sifted together 6 times (I never have cake flour)
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons unsalted butter (room temp, cut into cubes)

1. Set oven rack in middle position. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray two 8-inch round cake pans with nonstick cooking spray; line the bottoms with parchment or waxed paper rounds. If you don’t have the spray, butter the pans, dust the pans with flour, and invert pans and rap sharply to remove excess flour.
2. Pour milk, egg whites, and extracts into 2-cup glass measure, and mix with fork until blended. If the mixture still feels cooler than room temp, fill a bowl with warm water, and set the measuring cup in the bowl. Be sure that the water level is below the measuring cup.
3. Mix cake flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in bowl of electric mixer at slow speed. Add butter; continue beating at slow speed until mixture resembles moist crumbs, sort of like cornmeal.
4. Add all but 1/2 cup of milk mixture to crumbs and beat at medium speed (or high speed if using handheld mixer) for 1 1/2 minutes. Add remaining 1/2 cup of milk mixture and beat 30 seconds more. Stop mixer and scrape sides of bowl. Return mixer to medium (or high) speed and beat 30 seconds longer.
5. Divide batter evenly between two prepared cake pans; using rubber spatula, spread batter to pan walls and smooth tops. Arrange pans at least 3 inches from the oven walls and 3 inches apart. (If oven is small, place pans on separate racks in staggered fashion to allow for air circulation.) Bake until thin skewer or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 25 – 30 minutes.
6. Let cakes rest in pans for 3 minutes. Loosen from sides of pans with a knife, if necessary, and invert onto wire racks. Reinvert onto additional wire racks. Let cool completely, about 1 hour.
7. Wrap tightly and store at room temperature for up to 2 days, refrigerate for up to 5 days, or freeze for up to 2 months. Best eaten the same day as baked. Must be served at room temp.

Chocolate frosting recipe

1 cup unsalted butter, softened (2 sticks)
6 tbs milk
9 oz semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp salt
2 1/4 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup cocoa

1. Beat butter until fluffy creamy on medium speed (about 3 minutes)
2. Continue beating on medium while adding milk one tablespoon at a time. Add vanilla.
3. Continue beating while adding salt, cocoa powder, and sugar. Mix until fully incorporated and fully (about 3 minutes)
4. Add melted chocolate and mix (about 2 minutes)

The giveaway is now closed. Congrats to comment #89 Kim W. for winning the Amazon.com giftcard! Her favorite birthday moment was – “My favorite birthday memory is when my sister took me on a cruise for my birthday. We had so much fun and it was such an amazing surprise”

And now! The $30 Amazon giftcard giveaway.

RULES –  There are three possible ways to enter -

MANDATORY -

• Leave a comment telling me a favorite birthday memory, food related or otherwise

EXTRA ENTRIES -

• Follow BakingPartTime on Twitter. Leave a comment here with your twitter handle. If you already follow me, just let me know in a comment.
• Tweet about this post and giveaway on Twitter. Post the link of the tweet here in a comment. Tweet must include my twitter handle and a link to this post. Example – “Kiss-your-box-cake-mix-goodbye vanilla birthday cake by @BakingPartTime + Amazon gift card #giveaway http://bakingparttime.com/2012/02/08/vanilla-birthday-cake/”

  *** How to get the link for an individual tweet 

DISCLOSURE and NOTES -

• Each entry needs it’s own numbered comment. Please do not hit reply to an existing comment.
• Giveaway is open until 11:59pm EST Saturday Feb 18th. Winner will be picked by using the number generator on Random.org and contacted via email listed in the comment once entries have been verified. They will have 48 hours to respond. If no response is received, winner forfeits prize and another winner will be picked. Once winner has accepted the prize, it will be announced on the blog and on twitter.
• This giveaway is for Amazon.COM. Sorry but no substitutes will be made.
• This giveaway is being sponsored by BakingPartTime.com. Amazon.com has nothing to do with this, though I’m pretty sure they know who Maheen is

Most who know me know that I go through (frequent) periods of self reflection / re-invention / basic doubt. Trying to put together pieces of my identity while maintaining a balance. My faith feeds my soul and lifts me up, but so do chocolate, things of beauty, music, theater, books, and traveling. Yes I’m Muslim. And yes I’m South Asian. And yes I’m a New Yorker. Through and through. I keep a close group of friends and have built up a community where I never have to choose between these identities – they all work together. But being in Malaysia was different. It was eye opening. A space where all my identities could cohesively exist without having to explain myself. It was freeing in a way.

But it also made me yearn for NY like nothing else has because that part of my identity can only live and be nurtured there. It made me want to run back home and continue to work towards building my community – to set up food related events and classes at the IC; book clubs with KC; restaurant hopping with HTrain; visit Chicago for IMAN’s Community Cafes. To continue building a balance of different sides of myself and having that reflect in the fabric of the world around me.

Until then, I give you this chocolate mousse – perfectly balanced with the richness of chocolate, the depth of eggs, and lightness of cream. It comforts me when I want something more than just a chocolate pudding, but not as involved as a souffle. The texture is just that – a cross between pudding and a souffle. Another bonus of this recipe? The eggs are heated either using a double broiler or by whisking with hot milk. While I’m still in India, I’m not going to chance it by eating raw eggs, no matter how tempting the recipe

Chocolate Mousse by Cafe Fernando

8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped (I used the 52% Callebaut that I have on hand)
1/3 cup (80 ml) whole milk
3 tbsp granulated sugar
1/8 tsp salt
2 egg yolks, lightly beaten with a fork
4 egg whites
1 cup heavy cream, cold

1. Place a medium-sized mixing bowl and a wire whisk in the freezer and let chill (this will help you whisk the cream more easily).
2. Melt the chocolate on a double-boiler, take off heat and let stand.
3. In a small saucepan, bring milk and sugar to the boil and take off heat. While whisking the yolks constantly, slowly drizzle the hot milk in and continue whisking until the mixture thickens and coats the back of a spoon. Important: You need to add the hot milk in small amounts at first; otherwise the egg yolks will cook too quickly and the mixture will curdle. Once you’ve added half of the milk this way, the temperature of the egg yolks will rise enough to allow the rest of the milk to be added at once.
4. Add melted chocolate and whisk to combine.
5. In another mixing bowl set over a pan of simmering water, place the egg whites and whisk until hot-to-the-touch. Add the salt and whisk until stiff peaks form. Add 1/3 of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture and mix well. Fold in the rest gently with a spatula.
6. Place the heavy cream in the chilled mixing bowl and whip with the chilled whisk until stiff peaks form. Add 1/3 of the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture and mix well. Fold in the rest gently with a spatula.
7. Divide the mousse into 6 individual serving dishes (1/3 cup each), cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
8. Serve cold. Additional whipped cream and/or berries won’t hurt. Will keep fresh in the refrigerator for a few days.

View from hotel in Jodhpur during the day

Have my feelings changed since that night? I don’t know. Now I know people expect food blogs to always be happy and optimistic, but I don’t know is a truthful answer and so that’s what I wrote. Not to say anything bad has happened; the year has been really lovely to me so far. Since that night I’ve seen more of Rajasthan and other parts of India. We spent hours at Jasvant Thada in Jodhpur where I spent a good 45 minutes chatting with one of the workers about the state of South Asian culture in different parts of the world. Maheen and I bought a painting that we’d been admiring for months in Delhi that is a complex conversation starter. Well, for us at least. We also got the chance to visit the Taj Mahal. It’s been an awe inspring year so far. But I don’t know. There have definitely been days where I’ve been uneasy. Restless. And I’m not quite sure why. Then I read 6 Bittersweets’ post and something clicked. I miss being productive. Like really productive. I’ve held down a job for most of my adult life, and even before the New Year I was posting or working on the blog regularly. I need that routine again.

And that brings us to the point of this whole post. Xiaolu from 6 Bittersweets said something that made sense to me – “[resolutions are] usually too vague and easily forgotten.” And she’s right. Resolutions are absurd because I never stick to them, but I do love a good bulleted “To Do” list with tasks that I know I can accomplish. I’ve had most of these ideas floating around in my head and it’s a good idea to get them down on (cyber) paper. This blog, and by extention I, need focus so here we go – my 12 goals for 2012.

1. Get that smooth lovely finish when frosting  a cake. I’ve read posts. I’ve watched videos. I’ve tried and tried until I’ve got more frosting on my hands and the turn table than I do on the cake, but still I can’t quite get that beautiful smooth finish. Hah, most of the times I just give up, swirl my spatula a bit and go for the “rustic” look.

How to Frost a Cake by Whisk-Kid.com

2. Part two and an extension of #1 is learning how to cover a cake in fondant. Maybe sign up for a Michael’s class or just try on my own, but I want to learn to cover a cake with fondant and get those crisp edges.

Style Me Pretty

3. Practice piping accents on cakes. Yes I realize this is all very cake oriented but stay with me. Now I’m not talking about piping like the scroll work borders you see on cakes from your local grocery store bakery, but serious art. I know miracles won’t happen overnight, but someone needs to give me a good kick in the behind just to start practicing. I’m hoping to get in some work on a weekly basis. Fingers crossed.

SugarSugarGal (Fiona)

4. South Asian inspired recipes. Yes I know I’m South Asian (Pakistani Sindhi specifically) and I grew up in a house where we ate more chicken korma and pulao than we did Hamburger Helper, but Lord help me I have no idea how to replicate those dishes in my own kitchen. My mom is part of the school of thought that doesn’t believe in measuring out spices. It’s all very “teaspoon of this, handful of that, etc.” Oh and by “teaspoon” she means a heaping pile scooped up in whatever spoon she has laying in her drawer. So this year I need to get a better grasp on a basic korma, one other curry base, biryani, snacks like samosas and pakora.

5. Also tied to #4 I want to focus on more healthy recipes. Home style desi (South Asian) food is pretty healthy. Not too much oil, good tomatoes and onions, and lots of veggies and lentils. I want to learn to make good, homestyle, healthy weeknight meals so I don’t fall back on take out as much as I do.

6. Oh! Another one tied to #4! South Asian desserts. I feel like this needs a whole section just for itself. I need (yes NEED) to learn to make a good kheer – thick, creamy, spiced just so. And gulab jamun. And jalebi. And my mom’s gajrelo – a sort of carrot based kheer. Yes it’s as amazing as it sounds.

Gulab Jamun by KurryLeaves

7. Tackle macarons. The tutorial from The Brave Tart assures me I can’t mess up too badly, but I do need to get my act together and at least try!

8. Get over my insane fear of yeast. It just looks so… complicated. And what bothers me the most is that if you’ve screwed up, you don’t even know it until like three days later (exaggerating but you get the gist). But I know if I stare back, not blinking, then eventually I can make things like bagels… and donuts… and.. wait for it.. fresh bread! Are those angels I hear?

9. Ehm. Yes. Getting back to the list. Original content. No sorry. Original quality content. Looking back at the (very) few posts I published in 2011, I realize that my most popular post was my Honey Truffles. It’s a recipe I put together myself and tested out a few times. The story is something that’s real. I guess that’s what everyone’s really looking for in this post that you can’t find anywhere else – my story and my recipe. So yes. More original quality content that shows who I really am so people actually want to come back.

Shameless plug Honey Truffles by Baking Part Time

10. And with those quality posts, I need to take quality photos. Plate to Pixels has been a huge help so far, but I need to finish the book and take all the lessons to heart. There have been some recaps of Alt Summit 2012 on the web lately, and one thing I remember reading from one of the panels was (paraphrasing of course) “Don’t just roll out of bed and put together a post. Really think about it.” I think that applies to food photography too. That’s what styling really is, isn’t it?

11. Getting a better understanding of Google Analytics. I’ve got a few buttons that I know how to push but man… I need to really understand the tools and work them to my advantage. I’m a Tech gal for goodness’ sake! I should be able to do this!

12. Now with all the points above, it brings me to my last goal. I’d like to post at least twice a month, or every other week. I’ve seen some people who post a few times a week and it astounds me! Personally I think they are marvelous to push out that many posts, but I know I’m too darn lazy. There is no way I can sustain that. But twice a month? That sounds more do-able.

So there you have it! Phew. That list got long didn’t it? Even just typing all that out has me feeling more amped than when I first started the post. There are going to be ups and downs this year, there are always bound to be, but there are also as many opportunities open to me as I’m willing to take on. So here we go. Hello 2012, it’s nice to meet you. Shall we make this an awesome year?

Growing up my sisters and I always brown bagged lunch to school. Back then I was sure it was because my mother wanted to torture us and make us stand out from the crowd with sandwiches made of whole wheat bread and aloo tikkis or tuna kababs. I remember being so jealous of all the kids that got to have school lunches. Delicacies like frozen pizza, mystery meat burgers with fries, and a baked pasta sort of dish with what I think was some sort of cheese caked on top. The only thing that salvaged those lunches were surprise treats – usually a bag of chips or (more often) apple slices. I’d try to trade up for something that involved chocolate like Kit Kat or peanut butter cups or (even better) cookies. And then, sometimes, the heavens would open and I’d find a baggie with two or three chocolate chip cookies of my own. Those were the best days. I’d savor the crispy Chips Ahoy and think, “This is the best thing in the whole world!”

Years have passed; I’ve tried everything from Chips Ahoy, to tubes of pre-made cookie dough, to mixing a batch from scratch and I have to say, chocolate chip cookies still make me happy like nothing else can. Especially when they are freshly baked coming out of the oven. I can barely stop myself from “taste testing” that first one while letting the others cool on the wire rack. Now, I appreciate all chocolate chip cookies, but I do have a favorite type. Something with crispy edges, a soft but not doughy center, not too thick and not too thin, and just the right amount of chocolate chunks to cookie dough ratio. May sound like a tall order, but I’ve found my local favorites that get it right most of the time. First is Pret a Manger since it’s close to work, the cookies are warm, and I can usually grab a sandwich so I’m not having just cookies for lunch (most of the time). Second choice are the cookies sold on the Sweetery NYC truck which used to stop off at Midtown. Oh and their red velvet cupcakes are amazing too!

But here’s the thing. Lucknow, India doesn’t exactly have a Pret a Manger or food trucks. Well none with chocolate chip cookies that is. And though it’s easy enough to get chaat, or parathas, or kababs on any street corner, cookies are hard to come by. Especially fresh baked ones. So what’s a girl to do but bake a batch? Sounds simple enough right? Yea. This is where India straight up laughed her little tukhus off.

Remember in my last post when I said our oven is (how do I put this?) “special”? Well I never got to explain what this meant exactly. When you think of most ovens, they have knobs to turn on the stovetop and little digital buttons to set things like temperature and a timer, right? Our oven… doesn’t quite have all those options. We’ve got three dials for the stove, and two slots for the oven that are empty. So how do you set the temperature Aaisha? Glad you asked! Hah, I guess. Ok it got a little more scientific than that. I unscrew the knobs for one of the stove tops and plug it in for the oven to turn it on and adjust the flame for the oven. But here’s the thing, the dial that I’m using doesn’t have any sort of numbering system so even though I can turn it on, I have no idea what temperature I’m at. So out comes a manual oven thermometer and me spending an hour slowly turning the dial in increments and checking the temperature until I had a consistent 350 degrees. I’ve done this a few more times so now I have a basic idea of where I turn the dial to for 375 degrees and 400. Yeah Aaisha! Yeah science! (Breaking Bad reference) As for the timer, well that’s what cell phone alarms are for.

But back to the recipe! I’ve been meaning to try out a few different recipes but wanted something simple. Not sure what my access is to stuff like bread flour, so I needed a recipe that would make due with the basics like all purpose flour, butter, sugar, vanilla and eggs. Oh and chocolate. Of course. Basically all the stuff I had brought over with me in my suitcases. One that stood out is the Cooks Illustrated / Americas Test Kitchen “Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookie” recipe. The only thing I needed was brown sugar! How hard could that be?

By this point India is rolling around laughing hysterically. I’m glad I amuse you so. Humph. Trusty language skills in hand, I set out to the market for either molasses or proper brown sugar. The thing is, they do have something labeled as “brown sugar” here in India. It just happens to be completely different than what I’m used to. Here it’s more like raw or mineral sugar – dry crystal form that have a brownish hue. I did end up finding packaged brown sugar, but when I got home and opened it up, it was a not quite what I was expecting. It looked more like the raw sugar coated in honey. Normally I would have just given up, but I was craving cookies so bad that I just barrelled through.

And man oh man am I glad I did! If nothing else, I got to brown butter. I didn’t know butter could smell this good! It took on this nutty / caramelly / amazing scent that hung in the kitchen. I can’t describe how fantastic it smelled. Then I added the sugars, whisked for 30 seconds, let it rest for 3 minutes, and again whisked / waited and whisked / waited until I had this beautiful pecan color butter + sugar mixture. It looked so creamy with a shine to it that I just wanted to stop and eat it from the bowl right then and there. And well, I did, but only a teaspoon or so. I finished off the rest of the recipe and popped it in the fridge to set a bit. Now here’s the thing. I usually let my cookie dough “settle” for at least 2 days. I guess I do that so I get that same caramelly undertone that the butter gave this cookie. But, after being refrigerated for that long, these cookies didn’t spread much and it made them a bit thick. Going forward, I’ll refrigerate them for maybe an hour or so, then bake them.

And seriously. You should bake them too. They are fantastic. Man.. just writing this post has me craving them again. Um excuse me while I go mix up another batch. Happy baking!

Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies by Cooks Illustrated / Americas Test Kitchen
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
14 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg + 1 large egg yolk
1 1/2 cups chocolate chunks (I used Callebaut 53% bar chopped into chunks. Yum!)

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lined two cookie sheets with parchment paper. Whisk flour and baking soda together in medium bowl; set aside.
2. Heat 10 tablespoons butter in a skillet over medium-high heat until melted, about 2 minutes. Continue cooking, swirling pan constantly until butter is dark golden brown and has nutty aroma, 1 to 3 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and, using heatproof spatula, transfer browned butter to large heatproof bowl. Stir remaining 4 tablespoons butter into hot butter until completely melted.
3. Add both sugars, salt, and vanilla to bowl with butter and whisk until fully incorporated. Add egg and yolk and whisk until mixture is smooth with no sugar lumps remaining, about 30 seconds. Let mixture stand 3 minutes, then whisk for 30 seconds. Repeat process of resting and whisking 2 more times until mixture is thick, smooth, and shiny. Using rubber spatula or wooden spoon, stir in flour mixture until just combined, about 1 minute. Stir in chocolate chunks and nuts (if using), giving dough final stir to ensure no flour pockets remain.
4. Divide dough into 16 portions, each about 2 heaping tablespoons (or use #24 cookie scoop). Arrange 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets, 8 dough balls per sheet. (Smaller baking sheets can be used, but will require 3 batches.)
5. Bake cookies 1 tray at a time until cookies are golden brown and still puffy, and edges have begun to set but centers are still soft, 10 to 14 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through baking. Transfer baking sheet to wire rack; cool cookies completely before serving.

Now, I may have gotten my best friend back, but Lord knows I was scared. The first question I asked the hubster was, “Will I have an oven? What’s the flour situation? Um… and what about chocolate??” Just to be on the safe side, I packed a few essentials. Hah, let’s just say I brought maybe 4 outfits and a few pajamas because the rest of my suitcases were packed with things like all purpose flour, vanilla extract, and an 11 pound bar of Callebaut chocolate. Don’t judge. It’s all about priorities folks.

It’s been a little over two weeks since I arrived and I’m slowly settling in. There is indeed an oven in our kitchen, but the dial you use to set the temperature doesn’t have any numbers. Yea. But more on that in another post. A few days ago I was feeling homesick. I wanted something that would comfort me… something that would wrap me in a bear hug and kiss me on the forehead… then went with me to a karaoke bar with to belt out some embarrassing Taylor Swift or songs covered by Glee. In short, I wanted my sisters and friends.

That’s what these honey truffles mean to me. The dark chocolate reminds me of hot chocolate and dessert outings with friends. The warm sweetness of honey brings me back to when I was a kid and my dad would warm up spoonfuls with a touch of lemon and pepper whenever I had a sore throat. The smoothness of the ganache is all my sisters – smooth, rich, and multilayered in it’s flavors. Meant to be savored slowly like the conversations we would have that would last for hours. These truffles were a piece of home. And the fact that I could make them on the stove top didn’t hurt.

But before I could tackle these honey truffles, I had to find heavy cream. If this whole India adventure teaches me nothing else, I hope I learn to appreciate how good I normally have it. A carton of cream usually means a 5 minute walk to the local grocery story. India wanted to break me in. First I bought a batch of full whole milk, let it sit in the fridge overnight, and then skimmed the cream off the top. I managed to get a third of a cup. Yea… this is some serious milk folks. Next I tried to visit the local ‘dood wala’ (milk guy) to buy cream direct from the source. What I thought meant cream – ‘malai’ – apparently also means a dish where milk is boiled, the cream skimmed off, and then seared. Delicious, but not what I needed. Then, just as I was about to resign myself to buying a few gallons of milk just to skim off a cup of cream, I felt India opening it’s arms to me. I found a dairy company that sold cream in a carton – Amul dairy

So there you have it. I still feel bouts of homesickness, but me and India are becoming friends. Slowly and surely… we are getting along. Karaoke is more Hindi songs than the Top 40, and though we don’t go for long drive down the highway, there are still adventures on ‘rickshaws’. Who knows… in a few months (weeks?).. this may become home too. Until then, happy truffle making.

Honey Truffles

9 ounces dark chocolate chopped (It makes a world of difference to use a kitchen scale, but if you don’t have one, this is about 1.5 – 2 cups. I used 53% Callebaut)
2/3 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup honey
4 ounces dark or milk chocolate chopped (to coat the truffles)
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (for rolling)
pinch of salt

1. Place 9 ounces of dark chocolate in a heat resistance bowl.
2. In a sauce pan mix heavy cream, honey and salt. Heat over low flame until honey dissolves.
3. Pour cream mixture into bowl of chocolate.
4. Starting from the center working your way outwards, whisk cream and chocolate in small circles until all the chocolate is fully melted and you’ve got a gorgeous shiny ganache.
5. Refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.
6. Using either a melon baller, or teaspoon, scoop out ganache balls. Freeze for 30 minutes.
7. If you want more uniform spheres, roll ganache balls between your two hands and freeze again for another 15 minutes. Otherwise, move onto the next step.
8. In a double broiler start heating the 4 ounces of chocolate. Place unsweetened cocoa in a bowl close by.
9. Remove ganache balls from the freezer. Using two fingers, spread a generous layer of melted chocolate on one palm. Roll ganache ball with both hands to coat with a thin layer of chocolate.
10. Drop ball into cocoa powder and coat.
11. Refrigerate for another hour then eat one or two (or ehm four) as a reward for all your hard work.

I used to swear by the Cook’s Illustrated / America’s Test Kitchen. That is until I tried these simple coconut macaroons by Culinary Institute of America (CIA). No condensed milk or sweetened shredded coconut or cream of coconut (yes that’s a real product). Just a few simple ingredients – egg whites, sugar, a bit of flour, vanilla extract, and the true star, unsweetened shredded coconut.

 

A batch comes together easily enough for a present, a hostess gift, or just for yourself paired with a cup of tea. I’m serious. Try them out and let me know what you think. Another thing that’s great is that this is just the base. They are just barely sweet, and have a warm hearty sort of feeling. You can add chocolate chips, nuts, cranberries… whatever your little heart desires. Hah, I know I sound like a sales(wo)man right now, but this is by far one of the easiest things to make that will wow just about anyone.

Coconut Macaroons from Culinary Institute of America

1 cup sugar (divided use 1/3 + 2/3)
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 1/2 cups shredded unsweetened coconut (either one package of Red Mill or you can use the open bins at Whole Foods)
6 large egg whites
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
6 – 8 ounces of melted chocolate (optional – for dipping)

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
2. Combine 1/3 cup of the sugar with the flour and set aside.
3. Combine the remaining 2/3 cup sugar, the coconut, and egg whites in the top of a double boiler. Heat over simmering water, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and holds together, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat.
4. Fold in the flour mixture and vanilla extract.
5. Drop tablespoonfuls of batter onto the prepared cookie sheets, spacing them 2 inches apart and shaping into neat mounds as needed. The mixture is sticky so wet your fingertips before doing this.
6. Bake until the macaroons are a light golden brown on the outside but still soft enough to give slightly when you press them lightly with your fingertip, 22 to 25 minutes.
7. Transfer the macaroons, still on the parchment paper, to a wire rack to cool completely. When cool, they will lift off easily.
8. Dip in or drizzle on chocolate if you’d like. Personally it’s my favorite combo

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The breakfast I have usually involves coffee in some shape or form, depending on my mood or the weather. If it’s raining and cold and miserable, I drown myself in a hot mug of coffee with just a little milk and sugar. If there’s a hint of a cool breeze in the air with a touch of excitement, then I turn to a spiced chai or latte. If it’s sweltering and humid and I am berating myself once again, “Why do we still live in this awful city??” then it’s a (very) large glass of iced coffee with a shot of some flavoring. But this post isn’t about coffee, it’s about the disappointing / sugar rush inducing pastry that nearly always goes with it.

Now I may be too tired when I first wake up to get breakfast, but by the time I stumble off the train near work, I’m starving and need something to go with my coffee of choice that morning. This usually leads to a donut, or muffin, or apple tart, or a bagel, or whatever is available. And no matter how many times I’ve been disappointed in the past with the hum drum, nearly tasteless, why-does-it-turn-to-mush-in-my-mouth muffins, I still go back. Something is seriously wrong with me. Until now.

I’ve had Smitten Kitchen’s blueberry muffin recipe tucked away for some time now, and decided to give it a whirl over the weekend. Since I’m weary of white flour muffins, I thought I’d try the recipe out in three batches – 1) all purpose flour 2) a mix of all purpose and wheat 3) full force wheat pastry flour. My favorite? The wheat. Without a doubt. Not that any of them were bad. Let’s just say that out of the nearly 30 muffins that were made as part of this test, less than a handful are left. I felt that the wheat test case had a grainy-ness that appealed to me. It tasted hearty and substantial.

(left) whole wheat pastry flour (upper right) half all purpose and half whole wheat pastry (lower right) all purpose flour

Give them a try and let me know what you think. Happy baking.

Perfect Blueberry Muffins adapted from Smitten Kitchen (who adapted them from Cook’s Illustrated)

5 tablespoons unsalted butter , softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
3/4 cup sour cream or plain yogurt (all I had at home was banana flavored yogurt so that’s what I used. Gave it a nice underlying flavor)
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest (optional. I couldn’t find my zester so I skipped it.)
1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour (you can use all purpose, or half all purpose and half whole wheat pastry. Up to you.)
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 – 1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen (if frozen, don’t bother defrosting. I used frozen this time just to test.)

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Line a muffin tin with 10 paper liners or spray each cup with a nonstick spray.
3. Beat butter and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. About 5 minutes.
4. Add egg and beat well, then yogurt and zest.
5. Put flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a sifter and sift half of dry ingredients over batter. Mix until combined. Sift remaining dry ingredients into batter and mix just until the flour disappears.
6. If using frozen berries, toss with some flour so they are just coated. Gently fold in your blueberries.
7. The dough will be quite thick, closer to a cookie dough, which is why an ice cream scoop is a great tool to fill your muffin cups. Or just spoon out a large chunk, adding more as you see fit. Fill each up about 3/4 of the way.
8. Bake for 28 to 30 minutes, until tops are golden and a tester inserted into the center of muffins comes out clean.

UPDATE – I just wanted to post a note that whole wheat flour and whole wheat pastry flour are not the same thing. I used whole wheat PASTRY flour for this recipe. Specifically the Whole Foods 365 brand. Hope that helps.

Want to know something? I didn’t like cream puffs growing up. Or eclairs. I never understood what the fuss was about. I couldn’t figure out why someone would want this thing that looked like a roll that was stuffed with a custard filling when you had options like ice cream sundaes, and cookies, and cake. Mmmmm…. cake. But then something happened. I had a profiterole from Choux Factory.

Oh. My. Word. It’s like I was reborn. Why had no one told me about this before? What WAS this filling? Swoon. Floating. Wonder. Now whenever wonder strikes me, the next thought is usually, “I can make this. How hard could it possibly be?” Sigh. Ladies and gents, this thought applies to everything. I think I can build coffee tables, sew my own clothes, fix my car. Hell I don’t put it past me to get it in my head that I can renovate a gorgeous old school brownstone in BK. Usually I can’t. But this. This cream I could do. It took me a few recipes, a few trials and a hell of a lot of breakdowns and tears before I found a recipe and technique that didn’t congeal the minute I came near it.

 

Now, I am perfectly content just eating this cream straight from the pot with spoon, but I probably shouldn’t. So next up was the puff. Ugh. One of the first recipes I tried came out like a dream. But only once. Just like I can’t control my dreams, I couldn’t control this original recipe. It just kept failing. Recipe after recipe, test after test until… one day.. VICTORY! Alton Brown’s recipe was a godsend. Bread flour to keep protein content in check, extra egg whites to help the puffing, and starting with a higher temperature make these practically fool proof. I’ve made them by dropping spoonfuls of down onto a parchment lined baking sheet, with a a smooth pastry tip, and a spikey pastry tip. All three methods work fine, but I prefer the spikey tip because I feel like they puff out better.

Try these guys out and let me know how they work for you. Happy baking!

Pastry Cream from Culinary Institute of America

1/4 cup cornstarch
3/4 cup sugar (divided use)
2 cups whole milk (divided use)
4 large egg yolks, lightly beaten
Pinch of salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1. Combine the cornstarch with 1/4 cup of the sugar in a mixing bowl, and then stir in 1/2 cup of the milk. Blend the yolks into the cornstarch mixture.
2. Prepare an ice water bath; reserve for later use.
3. Combine the remaining 1 1/2 cups milk with the remaining 1/2 cup sugar and the salt in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil. Remove pan from heat.
4. Temper the egg mixture by gradually adding about one-third of the hot milk mixture, whisking constantly. Add the remaining milk mixture to the eggs. Return the mixture to the saucepan and continue cooking over medium heat, stirring with a whisk, until the mixture comes to a boil and the whisk leaves a trail in the pastry cream, 5 to 7 minutes. Now this is IMPORTANT! You need to whisk while it’s boiling. This cream changes from super liquid to custard consistency in a matter of a minute once it reaches the right temperature. You will feel it change. If you aren’t whisking, it’s going to turn into a goopy, chunky mess.
5. As soon as the pastry cream reaches this stage, remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract and the butter. Transfer the pan to the ice water bath. Stir occasionally until the pastry cream is cool, about 30 minutes.
6. Transfer the pastry cream to a covered storage container and refrigerate until needed, up to 3 days. I also put a piece of plastic wrap or parchment paper right on the surface of the cream before I put it in the fridge. Make sure the cream is room temp before covering and putting in the fridge. If it’s warm when you put it in the fridge, it will turn to liquid and lose it’s thick creamy consistency.

Pate Choux by Alton Brown

1 cup water
3/4 stick butter (6 tablespoons)
1 tablespoon sugar
pinch of salt
5 3/4 ounces bread flour (It’s really best to use a scale, but if you don’t have one this is about 1 1/3 cups using the ‘scoop method’)
1 cup eggs (about 4 large eggs and 2 whites) *Note 10/20/11 – the egg whites is what helps the puff actually puff. Measure out 3 large eggs and 2 whites first. If it’s below one cup, add the fourth egg.

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
2. In a medium sauce pan add water, butter, salt, and sugar. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Try not to use a non stick pan.
3. Dump in the entire batch of bread flour. Using a wooden spoon, or a plastic spatula, work flour into liquid until combined. It’s ok if there are a few chunks or spots of flour.
4. Increase heat to medium and continue to work the flour until it comes together in a ball. Keep flattening the dough and working it until you see it start to stick and leave a residue on the pan.
5. Transfer mixer to a mixing bowl and let it cool down for 5 – 8 minutes.
6. With your mixer on the lowest speed, add eggs one by one. Let the egg get fully incorporated before you add the next once. I usually have to stop the mixer and use my spatula to help it combine. Continue adding eggs until the mixer is smooth and is elastic when you turn your beater through it.
7. Use a piping bag to pipe out golf ball size chunks of dough, or spoon out dough onto a parchment paper linked baking tray.
8. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Turn oven down to 350 degrees F and continue to bake for another 10 – 15 minutes, until golden brown.
9. Remove from oven and pierce each puff to help release any excess steam.

To assemble – spoon pastry cream into a pastry bag. Pierce the puff with the pastry cream bag and inject pastry cream. If you want to add the chocolate stripes like I did, melt some chocolate, dip a spoon into the bowl, and flick across a batch of puffs. Or you can use a parchment cone (my usual method). You can even simply dunk the top half of the puff and have a smooth chocolate coating. Be creative!