Friday, September 30, 2011

Spanish desserts

Spanish desserts are usually made from egg yolk and milk. The best-known desserts of Spain are smooth and creamy custards such as flan, crema catalana and tocino de cielo.
Spanish desserts are really fantastic and evidently there is a sweet shop in every corner in Spain. Passing by, you will see a various beautiful, delicious types of sweets.. Combined with the aroma as you walk by, it is hard not to step in for a closer look and taste. Besides splendid pastries, there are a lot classic or traditional Spanish desserts, so this list consists of some of the best loved desserts in Spain.

There are many different types of cheese desserts whose recipes date back to the early sixteenth century. Greixonera de brossat and quesadas are some of the famous cheese desserts. Here are some of the easy Spanish dessert recipes that could be mashed up in a jiffy.
Start by preheating the oven to 3000F. Next step is to prepare the caramelized sugar. Spread the ½ cup of sugar evenly on a thick bottom saucepan and place it over medium-low flame. Allow it to slowly turn yellow and then a golden syrup, and finally into a brown caramel sauce.
Easy Spanish Dessert Recipes
Flan
Flan is a caramel custard which is not only light on your stomach, but also delicious. This recipe would serve 12 people.
Ingredients
4 Cups milk
2 Strips lemon zest
1 Cinnamon stick
5 Eggs
2 Egg yolks
1 Cup granulate sugar
½ Cup sugar
You require custard molds - 12 nos
Method
Now, swiftly pour the caramel into the 12 caramel molds and tilt the mold, so it can cover the sides and the bottom evenly. Do this swiftly because the change in temperature causes the caramel to solidify rapidly. Keep this aside.
Combine milk, lemon zest and cinnamon in a saucepan and heat it until it begins to boil. Lower the flame and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from the stove and allow the milk to cool.
Whisk the whole eggs, the egg yolks and granulated sugar, till they become foamy. Sieve the cooled milk through a fine mesh and mix it with the egg mixture. Blend well. Now, pour the mixture into the custard molds.
Arrange the custard molds on a baking tray and pour boiling water to a depth of about one inch to create a water bath. Bake for 1.5 hours or until the custard is set. Remove the custard molds from the water bath and allow it to cool. Once cool, cover and refrigerate the custard molds. Serve chilled.
Strawberry and Orange Sorbet with Cava
Ingredients
¼ Cup water
½ Cup sugar
10 Ounces of frozen strawberries, thawed
1 Cup orange juice
1 Cup cava (Spanish wine)
Few fresh strawberries
Method
Boil water and sugar, until sugar dissolves in it. Puree the thawed strawberries in a food processor. Mix this with the sugar syrup. Add orange and the wine to it. Stir well. Refrigerate the mixture, until chilled.
Now, in an ice-cream blender, blend the chilled strawberry mixture. Transfer it to a container and freeze it. Serve in a sorbet glass. Top the scoop with berries and dry nuts.
Mantecados - Traditional Spanish Crumble Cakes Say “mantecados” to a Spaniard and watch their eyes widen remembering those royal crumbly cookies they feast on at Christmas. They’re a true favorite. And, no wonder - they are so soft, they will literally melt in your mouth. Light, with a soft anise essence, words can’t do them justice. You will need to personally prepare them to find out why they are a Spanish favorite and why no Spanish home is without “mantecados” at Christmas!
Turrn - Spanish Almond Candy Turrn is an ancient, traditional dessert of Moorish (Arabic) source. This Spanish Almond Candy or Nougat is a customary Christmas delicacy in Spain. Made largely from almonds and honey, it comes in an ample array of flavors and textures.
Flan - Custard with Caramel Sauce Vanilla egg custard, topped with caramel sauce is one of the most popular desserts, served anywhere in Spain.

Pastries are enticing

Pastries are tempting, pastries are enticing! Moreover, French pastries when served on the table lure us to grab them immediately.
Whether it is a crescent shaped Croissant or a cream layered Profiterole, they are simply heavenly. Well if you are a pastry lover, then this article's gonna be a great delight to you. It's because the French pastry recipes presented here, shall let you know the preparatory methods that contribute to its utterly delicious taste.
Pain au Chocolat has a middle chocolate layer and a crisp and fluffy top layer. The following top in the list of French Pastries, viz, Croissant, Petit Four, Éclairs, Pain au Chocolat and Brioche. Other than pastries, the most common cookies are Profiterole, Mille-feuille, Beignet, Croissant Amande, etc. The pastries, cakes and cookies when combined together serve as wonderful desserts. These delightful desserts were first served during the 17th century. Some other royal tasting pastries are Choux and Crullers.
French Pastry Desserts: Recipes
So how to make French pastries? The cake recipes will be provided to you from the following French pastries list. Learn the most simple methods for preparing these delicacies at home.
Almond Croissants
The following are the French pastries names. These pastries are authentic having unique tastes and flavors. The most common being the croissant, which is sweet, flaky and light.
Ingredients
Dry yeast, 4 tsps
Milk, ½ cup
Bread flour, 3 ½ cup
Soft butter, 1 cup
Salt, 1 ½ tsp
Almonds sliced, 1/3 cup
Powdered sugar, 2 tsps
Granulated sugar, 1/3 cup
Egg, 1
Almond filling (frangipane), ½ cup
Preparation
First dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Make the dough by combining milk, sugar, flour, salt, yeast (dissolved) and water to get the desired consistency.
Form dough balls and wrap them with plastic. Refrigerate them overnight.
Allow them to stay at room temperature after taking them out from the refrigerator. Roll the dough and cut pieces of at least 12 inches. Make the pastries crescent shaped.
Fill the wedges with the almond filling and roll them up.
Cover the pastries and place in a warm place for 60 minutes. This will make it fluffy.
The oven is preheated at 350 °F. The croissants are then brushed with eggs and sprinkled with almonds. The baking sheets are then placed inside the oven for 15-20 minutes.
Pain au Chocolat
Ingredients
Yeast, 25 gm
Butter, 400 gm
Water, 270 ml
Sugar 75 g
Bread Flour, 500 gm
Apricot jam,100 gm
Mars bars
Beaten egg, 1
Preparation
Prepare the dough by mixing flour, sugar, salt, water and yeast. Do not knead the dough vigorously. Cool the dough inside the refrigerator for one hour.
Take the dough out and roll on the butter from the top. Make sure that at least two third of the dough is covered with butter.
Wrap the remaining portion of the dough over the butter coat. Roll in the same way for two more times. Keep it inside the refrigerator once again.
Fill the pastry with Mars bar and make it look like sausages.
Flatten the pastries a little and brush with an egg.
Place the pastries on a sauce pan and glaze with apricot jam. Bake inside over for 20 minutes at 350 °F.
French Pie Pastry
Ingredients
Water, ½ cup
Butter, ½ cup
All purpose flour, 2 cups
Salt, ½ tsp
Preparation
Mix flour, salt and butter together. Add a little water. Roll the dough with the help of your index finger and use a fork to create a spiral shape.
Make sure that the dough is soft. Form balls with the dough and cover it with a foil. Refrigerate it for an hour.
Preheat the oven at 350 °F and place the balls over the baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes. Allow the balls to cool and cover them with the cream flavor of your choice.
That was all about making French pastries at home. Bake them at home and serve your kids and family at breakfast time and also as desserts. I'm sure everyone will love the delightful flavor of French pastries.

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

cockapoo n'est


Pourtant, même si cockapoo n'est pas le plus élégant des noms, c'est le chien on a fini avec un joli petit 4 ans de secours qui a capturé le premier moment nous nous l'avons vue. Vous pouvez appeler une Spoodle si vous le devez, mais nous l'appelons Snickerdoodle, ou Snickers pour faire court. Certains d'entre vous qui me suivent sur Facebook peut-être déjà vu quelques photos que j'ai mis en place d'elle, mais jusqu'ici je n'ai abstenu de tourner cela en un blog animaux-et-pâtisserie. Depuis ce poste a pris un tour pour la canine, cependant, j'espère que vous allez livrer quelques coups d'elle.
Prenant une pause brève du rechapage de vacances ... juste un peu plus pour couvrir les arrêts de gauche! Je jure que je vais finir mon album de vacances avant l'été est fini!
Je ne pouvais pas ne pas post sur la saison fruits à noyau et la vague de coucher de soleil aux tons de fruits enveloppant les marchés de producteurs en ce moment. Si vous n'avez pas mordu dans une mûre, prune automne outrageusement parfumés encore le faire. J'ai un faible pour les coeurs des éléphants, mais la plupart feront toute variété, y compris les cousins ​​de plus en plus bizarre appelé hybrides de prunes.
Pluots, je peux passer derrière (ils sont un grand favori de la mine). Ou plumcots (essentiellement la même chose, un croisement entre les prunes et les abricots). Mais certains autres mélanges je trouve un peu moins mélodieuse à mon oreille: aprium? peacotum? nectaplum? Ils n'ont tout simplement pas la même bague appétissant. Cela me rappelle quand nous sommes allés à la recherche d'un chien à adopter et à découvert tous ces non-officiel de races croisées. Je connaissais Goldendoodles et Labradoodles, mais la mention de Shih-Poos et whoodles simplement m'a fait rire. Pas tous les portemanteaux sont destinés à être, au moins à mes oreilles.
J'ai aussi beaucoup aimer ce tir de son chien dans le parc parce qu'elle semble si heureux. Elle était probablement juste de fermer les yeux dans le soleil, mais quand même. J'espère qu'elle est heureuse dans notre maison - elle est certainement nous a apporté tant de joie. Et je promets que je vais essayer d'être un bon propriétaire et se nourrissent pas son dessert trop - même si elle prie pour elle!
Retour à l'automne et le dessert: bien que la plupart des fruits que nous ramener à la maison n'est-il pas passé le stade de manger hors de la main, je voulais faire un plat bon sortir de certains de nos dernières richesses de sucré, Pluots rubis foncé . Ainsi, cette tarte Pluots disposées en rond dans une croûte d'amande parfumée, avec la cassonade et la crème de fleur d'oranger.
Évidemment n'importe quelle variété de prunes va fonctionner, bien que les plus petits le mieux, afin qu'ils s'insèrent plus facilement dans la tarte. Essayez aussi de ramasser celles autour de la même taille pour une uniformité quand vous les organiser dans des cercles. J'ai toujours une brosse un peu d'œuf blanc sur le fond de tarte après une pré-cuisson; en séchant il forme un bouclier qui permet de garder la croûte à tarte croustillante et sèche et empêche sogginess après avoir passé le fruit. Il est possible de garder ce simple desserts ultra et omettre la crème, surtout si le fruit est doux super; les jus de fruits se mélange avec le sucre pendant la cuisson et laisser caraméliser. Mais je voulais ajouter un petit supplément pour la tarte, donc cette crème de la cuisine fine semblait idéal. Le sucre brun et crème de fleur d'oranger ajoutez une richesse veloutée au dessert.
Prenez un soupçon de chiens: sortir et profiter de l'été, et les fruits de l'été, avant qu'ils ne disparaissent.

rouleau de citrouille

Avec la saison des vacances a officiellement sur nous, une recette de dessert vraiment délicieux et unique est appelé à accueillir l'arrivée de la saison. Déploiement de citrouille LIBBY'S est la recette parfaite pour faire juste cela. C'est le dessert des vacances parfaites avec son gâteau de potiron doux enroulé autour d'épaisses couches de fromage à la crème riche. Lorsque tranché, le gâteau fantaisiste pinwheel délices tous servis.
Ne soyez pas intimidé par l'aspect fantaisiste de ce dessert est. Gâteaux rouleau peut sembler complexe, mais si vous suivez les instructions et rouler le gâteau chaud dès qu'il est retiré du four, le dessert va construire parfaitement et coupez-les en virevents belle lorsqu'elle est servie. Conserver au réfrigérateur et servir à toutes les parties de votre repas des Fêtes cette saison!
Ingrédients
3 / 4 c de farine tout usage
1 / 2 c. à thé de poudre à pâte
1 / 2 c. à thé de bicarbonate de soude
1 / 2 c. à thé de cannelle moulue
1 / 2 c. à thé de clou de girofle moulu
1 / 4 c. à thé de sel
3 oeufs
1 c de sucre granulé
2 / 3 c LIBBY'S ® 100% Pure citrouille
1 (8 oz) de fromage à la crème, ramolli
1 c de sucre en poudre, tamisé
6 c. à soupe de beurre ou de margarine, ramolli
1 c. à thé d'extrait de vanille
Itinéraire
1. Préchauffer le four à 375 ° F. Graisser 15 x 10 pouces gâteau roulé casserole ou une tôle à biscuits profonde; tapisser de papier ciré. Graisse et le papier de la farine. Saupoudrer la serviette avec le sucre en poudre.
2. Mélanger la farine, la poudre à pâte, le bicarbonate de soude, la cannelle, clous de girofle et le sel dans un petit bol. Battre les œufs et le sucre dans un grand bol jusqu'à consistance épaisse. Incorporer la citrouille. Incorporer le mélange de farine. Étendre uniformément dans le moule préparé.
3. Cuire au four pendant 13 à 15 minutes ou jusqu'à ce sommet de gâteau reprenne sa forme quand on le touche. Desserrer immédiatement et mettez le gâteau sur une serviette préparée. Retirez délicatement le papier.
Rouler le gâteau et serviette ensemble, en commençant par l'extrémité étroite. Laisser refroidir sur une grille.
4. Battre le fromage à la crème, le sucre en poudre, le beurre et l'extrait de vanille dans un bol mélangeur jusqu'à consistance lisse petits. Dérouler le gâteau délicatement, enlever une serviette. Le mélange de fromage à la crème sur le gâteau. Relancer le gâteau. Envelopper dans une pellicule plastique et réfrigérer au moins une heure. Saupoudrer de sucre en poudre avant de servir, si désiré.

Monday, September 26, 2011

How to Make Strawberry Frozen Yogurt

This is quick and easy and tastes great. A good alternative to sugar laden store bought ones. I made some this morning for an afternoon treat for us. It was great.
I asked my husband if it needed to be sweeter and he said, "No. Not at all. It's perfect!" You can try it for yourself and see. It truly was sweet enough but if you like things very sweet you could add a little more sugar to the mix. This can also be made without any sugar at all.
Strawberry Frozen Yogurt
2 cups plain yogurt
1 cup organic strawberries, chopped
1/4 tsp stevia extract powder (this kind)
12 drops stevia liquid extract (this kind)
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 Tbsp sugar (2 if you like things very sweet)
Blend all the ingredients together in a blender or with a hand stick blender until fairly smooth. Freeze according to your ice cream maker instructions
If you don't have an ice cream maker, you can use a metal or glass bowl (careful if using glass that you use only glass that can stand the freezer). If using the bowl method, place the yogurt mixture in the bowl and place in the freezer, stirring every 15-20 minutes until it reaches the desired thickness.
Sugar-Free Version:
Follow the recipe and method above but leave out the sugar and add 1 to 2 stevia packets (a mild form of stevia). Remember, it will get sweeter the longer it sets and the stevia plays up the natural sugars in the fruit. If you use too much stevia it will be bitter or have a weird taste. I have found using a combination of forms of stevia help to prevent that.
Eating cake out of jar might be my new favorite sweet-related activity. Not only are they adorable, but they are the perfect boozy dessert to share on a weekend picnic. That's what I would do anyway.
This cake is moist and rich on its own, but after you drench it in whiskey-butter sauce and top it with vanilla butter cream, well, it's probably the naughtiest thing any jar has contained...

Sunday, September 25, 2011

Passover Dinner-Chocolate Fondant


The unfortunate fire that I told you about in my last post happened 3 hours after Daniel, Avi’s brother’s girlfriend and me finished preparing 3 kinds of desserts for the Passover evening dinner. We made macaroons (the American coconut cookies), macarons – it was my first time and they came out really good and with a great chewy center, as they should.
It’s a real shame I can’t share it with you guys… But it’s a great reason for making my second batch sooner than I planned! We also made a no-sugar cheesecake for one of our dinner guests. So all in all, after the fire, I remained with no dessert for the Passover dinner.
That was definitely a situation that had to be fixed, and so I made this great chocolate fondant. I followed the recipe of a dear Israeli blogger friend of mine – Maya from Bazek Alim, adapting the recipe to fit the flourless Passover restriction. It’s a great recipe and it turned out great even in the Passover version!
Thanks Maya for a yummy recipe, and also many thanks for oferring me to come and cook with you at your home! This is a really generous offer, and I think it also could be lots of fun.
I’ll be in touch with you about that. Since I baked it at my mother’s house, in an oven I didn’t bake in before, I baked one test fondant, it took 12 mins in her oven and the result was perfect!
A liquid chocolate center wrapped up in a cloudy-like chocolate soft crust… So much YUM!
Unfortunately, thinking I’ve mastered the fondant art in just one try, when I baked the ones for the guests, I left them 2 mins more in the oven (each one of them was bigger than the test one), which resulted in a very small liquid center. It was still very tasty, no doubt about that, but it left me with a bit of a sad feeling for succeding on the test round and failing (or succeeding less) on the important round.
Baking time is crucial in this recipe.
You should bake your fondant just until its margins have stabilized, but the center is still soft and hasn’t firmed up yet. It’s best to spend the last 3-4 mins near the oven, keeping a close eye on these little pieces of yummyness. Baking one of them in advance in order to test the time it takes in your oven is highly recommended.
Ingredients:
150 gr bitersweet chocolate
150 gr butter
2 eggs
a pinch of salt
2 egg yolks
4 1/2 Tbsp sugar
2 1/2 Tbsp flour (Passover version: substitue with 3/4 Tbsp Matzos flour and the rest potatoes flour or corn flour)
Directions:
1. Melt the chocolate and butter together in a Bain-Marie or in the microwave. Stir well until a uniform mixture is formed.
2. Add in the 2 eggs and the pinch of salt and whisk well until incorporated.
3. Add in the egg yolks and whisk well until inpcorporated.
4. Add in the sugar and stir well, so that in the next step, when adding the flour in, only a minimal stir will be needed.
5. Add the flour and stir only until incorporated.
6. Pour into greased ramekins or muffins pan, and bake in an oven preheated to 356F (180 C). As mentioned in the final paragraph of the post, keep a close eye on your fondants and take them out when their margins have firmed but the center hasn’t yet.

Friday, September 23, 2011

Make a Cake

Or at least the best I can remember ever tasting. A few weeks ago Nir, a good friend of Avi’s from work, invited us over to watch the finals of the “Big Brother” show, the Israeli version.
I obviously felt a need to bring cake, so what if Nir’s house is 10 minutes away from ours
But since we’ve only talked about meeting a few hours before the show, I didn’t have much time on my hands.
Exactly on time I remembered seeing this cake on Fanny’s wonderful blog, and drooling on it several times. I made the cake in a large loaf pan, and I also kept enough batter for 2 muffin sized cakes, so I’d be able to taste the cake before bringing it for people to eat in the evening.
The instant my lips touched the warm and soft cake, I fell in in love! A chocolate cake that looks quite innocent and ordinary on the outside, completely takes you by suprise when you get to taste it. So rich and fudgy on the inside, with an intense chocolate flavor and a very pleasant sweetness.
I’ve probably told you by now that Avi says that I use the description “the best ______ I’ve ever tasted” much too often, but when I told him that this was the best chocolate cake I’ve ever had, he looked at me for a second and simply said “yes”.In the original recipe there is also a chocolate syrup that you’re supposed to pour on top of the cake after taking it out of the oven.
I’ve made it but ended up not using it, since in my opinion it makes the cake overwhelmingly sweet.
Since then I’ve already made the cake again, and brought it to a Hannukah social gathering that our friends Daniel and Dana organized last week, and there too it was a huge hit.
Some notes and tips about the cake:
* In the original recipe Fanny says that you can make the cake by mixing all the ingredients with a wooden spoon. The first time I made it I tried to use a wooden spoon but couldn’t get all the many ingredients incorporated, and the butter, that is soft but not melted, didn’t make it any easier. So in this recipe I really recommend using a mixer, unless your hands feel strong enough for a vigorous mixing.
* Something we’ve learnt in the pastry course – Cakes baked in loaf pans tend to crack on top. The place of the crack can be controlled, so it will be nice and symmetrical. The way to do it is by passing a knife or a thin spatula in the middle of the cake (lengthwise), which will determine that the crack will be in the middle.
* If you, like me, often forget to take the butter out of the refrigerator in advance for cakes that require soft butter, you can cut the cold butter into cubes and place them in the microwave for 10 seconds. If it isn’t soft yet, place it for another 10 seconds, and so forth until the butter is soft, but note that it’s only supposed to be soft to touch, but not melted.