book review

S' Mores Doughnuts

18.10.2010 70 Comments

By the lack of postings one could wonder if I ever came down from the high that BlogHer Food and San Francisco. I did. I actually gave myself one day to catch up and crashed hard on Wednesday evening. Responsibilities hit me up again the following day. I love that work is insane and insanely good. I don’t like that it keeps me away from here this much. I definitely rely on a 4 o’clock break complete with cookies and milk. Or as it was the case this week, doughnuts and hot chocolate!

I am not one to be afraid of deep frying but I certainly am one to shy away from making doughnuts that often. I know I will end up eating too many. Right out of the hot oil. Almost. Perfectly brown. Crisp and soft. Lightly sprinkled with powdered sugar. Simple is always best but there is a place and time to venture out in baking. Especially when it comes to doughnuts. S’Mores Doughnut specifically.

Thanks to Lara Ferroni and her book "Doughnuts: Simple and Delicious Recipes to Make at Home", I only have to sit there and pick the next one. I know for having been part of her testing panel that all the recipes have been seriously and thoroughly discussed, dissected and perfected. I could not have possibly tested them all and started making a list of the ones to bake once her book would be out. S’mores doughnuts of course, but also Apple Cider, Creme Brulees, Sopapillas, Loukoumades, Carrot Cake…there is literally a doughnut and a glaze for every friend you have.

You get it. I liked the book. A lot. The doughs, the glazes, the fillings. The regulars like Basic Raised Yeast doughnuts, the basic cake, the chocolate version. And a impeccable gluten free version. Maple glaze, bourbon, caramel, chocolate. There four pages of these for your belly’s delights. See? Not kidding when I tell you there something for everyone.

If you are into visuals, Lara’s book is truly the proverbial feast for your eyes. And how could it be otherwise with Lara’s talent as a photographer and stylist. Knowing what goes into a shoot when working/acting as a single agent, from the shopping, cooking, styling, photographing, all the way to post processing, you can tell that Lara poured her heart and perfectionism into this book.

It shows. It’s fun, it’s straight foward, it’s generous in details and instructions and it’s quirky at times. Much like Lara…

So far this week, I made the Gluten Free Raised Doughnuts with a citrus glaze and the S’Mores Doughnuts. Wish I had not ran out of gluten free flours when I decided to make these but from the look on B’s face as he chowed through a couple, I know I must make them again this week! Stay tuned for another doughnut post…Both versions of the basic yeasted doughnut were equally easy to work with and very close in texture which is no small order in gluten free baking. That makes me very very happy for the rest of the recipes in the book.

Bravo Lara! Hard work pays off, period. Wishing your book plenty of sweet and delicious success! I am honored everyday by your friendship and generosity.

S’Mores Doughnuts (reprinted with Lara’s permission)

Makes 8 to 12

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, divided
10 graham crackers, finely crushed
2 teaspoons superfine sugar
1 batch Basic Raised dough (recipe follows)
1 tablespoon milk or water
twelve 1-ounce squares milk or dark chocolate
48 mini marshmallows

Stir together 3 tablespoons of the melted butter, graham crackers and sugar. Cover and set aside.

Prepare the dough as directed through the proofing stage. Roll the dough to just a bit more than 1/4 -inch thick. Cut into 3-inch diameter rounds. Roll out half of the rounds to about a 3 1/4-inch diameter. To assemble, lightly brush each wider round with the milk or water and place a square of chocolate and 4 mini marshmallows in the center of each. Top with the smaller rounds and lightly pinch to seal. Then recut with the same cutter to seal the edges.

Fry the doughnuts as directed and let cool for only 3 minutes. Brush each doughnut with a little melted butter, then dip into the graham cracker mixture. Serve immediately.

Basic Raised Dough:

3 tablespoons (22grams) active dry yeast, divided
1 cup of whole milk, heated to 110ºF, divided
2 to 2 1/2 cups bread flour, divided
2 tablespoons (30 grams) superfine sugar
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 egg yolks
½ stick (4 tablespoons / 2 oz) unsalted butter or vegetable shortening
vegetable oil for frying

In a medium bowl, dissolve 2 tablespoons of the yeast into ¾ cup of the milk. Add ¾ cup of flour and stir to create a smooth paste. Cover and let rest in a warm spot for 30 minutes.

Combine the remaining milk and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the rested flour mixture along with the sugar, salt, vanilla, and egg yolks. Mix until smooth. Turn off the mixer and add ½ cup of the remaining flour. Mix on low for about 30 seconds. Add the butter and mix until it becomes incorporated, about 30 seconds. Switch to a dough hook and add more flour, about ¼ cup at a time with the mixer turned off, kneading the dough at medium speed between additions, until the dough pulls completely away from the sides of the bowl and is smooth and not too sticky. It will be very soft and moist, but not so sticky that you can’t roll it out. You may have flour left over. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour (and up to 12 hours).

Line a baking sheet with a lightly floured non-terry dish towel. Roll out the dough on a slightly floured surface to ½ inch thick. With a doughnut or cookie cutter (can use a glass, too) cut out 3-inch-diameter rounds with 1-inch-diameter holes (for filled doughnuts, don’t cut out the holes).

Place the doughnuts on the baking sheet at least 1 inch apart and cover with plastic wrap. Let sit in a warm spot to proof until they almost double in size, 5 to 20 minutes, testing at five-minute intervals. To test whether the dough is ready, touch lightly with a fingertip. If it springs back immediately, it needs more time. If it springs back slowly, it is ready. If it does not spring back at all, it has overproofed; no worries- you can punch it down and re-roll it once.

While the doughnuts are proofing, heat a heavy-bottomed pot with at least 2 inches of oil until a thermometer registers 360F. With a metal spatula, carefully place the doughnuts in the oil. Fry for 1 to 2 minutes per side or until golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon, drain on a wire rack over a paper towel, and let cool before glazing.

Disclosure: the book was sent by Lara’s publisher as a thank you for being one of her recipe testers.

Parmesan Roasted Asparagus, Tomatoes and Eggs

20.06.2010 48 Comments

I have a friend. Her name is Lorna. She writes The Cookbook Chronicles. She is drop dead gorgeous. Kindness and intelligence dance with every word she says. She is generous and humble. Humor and good disposition seem to like her. I have no idea if she is high or low maintenance but if she is the latter, I want to know how she does it. She’s got taste and she’s got gumption. And she wrote a book. A quirky, funky, well written, beautifully photographed cookbook, The Newlywed Kitchen. No wonder Henri asked her out and then asked for her hand in marriage. Smart man.

Lorna and Henri are newlyweds. They both love food. This is not a loose statement. They met on a food forum. In Lorna’s words "Our relationship was founded on our mutual love of food and our desire to nourish one another’s stomachs as well as our spirits." It could sound superficial and barely enough to hold a couple together but as she chronicled the making and writing of the book, you could tell that they were like the vast majority of couples. They love to share with others, spend time learning and give back what they know. Lorna did it with "The Newlywed Kitchen".

I am not a newlywed and yet I, we, thoroughly enjoyed the book. It does not pretend to be the "essential guide to cooking as a couple", instead it focuses on clean, simple recipes that can be at the foundation of any new couple repertoire. Narratives of other well known couples are dispersed throughout the book and add a charming and quaint little thing to it. I caught myself chuckling along as I was reading with that familiar feeling of "been there done that" of kitchen mishaps and victories. Pictures of newlyweds throughout the book are a little too quaint at times but they’re here to illustrate a point: there is plenty in this book to bring people together in many different ways.

Some of the recipes are kicked up classics like the "Four Cheese Mac-and-Cheese", the "Chicken Pot Pie with Cheddar Thyme Crust". Some are best saved for your first dinner cooking for the in-laws, "Holiday Rib Roast Wtih Thyme Gravy", "Chicken Piccata with Mushrooms and Leeks". Others are made for lazy Sunday mornings in newlywed Bliss like the "Topsy Turvy Apple French Toast", the "Smoked Salmon Frittata". And who would not want to cozy up with their better half with some "Chocolate Mudslide Cookies", "Nutella Doughnuts" or some "Lemon Sour Cream Pound Cake"?

I just made myself hungry…

My better half does not cook. He barely boils water. We have shared custody of the grill. I don’t even know if he’s any good at it, he’s just not interested. And as he says "I married a chef, why would I even consider crossing the line? You don’t come in the garage and bleed the break of the MG now do you?". Touche. So you might wonder how this cookbook fared with us…

It did exactly what it was intended to do for a couple like us regarding food: I’d hold the book in one hand, pencil in the other and ask him whether "Grandma’s Italian Meatballs" sounded good for dinner or would he rather have the "Fall Apart Pot Roast"? Should I take the "Red Velvet Cake" or the "Strawberry Rhubarb Pie" to a dinner party with friends? My man may not cook or enjoy cooking but he loves to eat and knows his food, making it a pleasure and never a chore for me to cook everyday.

Finding a recipe to illustrate this review was a no brainer (I picked two actually and will write about the other one next week – with a little surprise you guys reading). The "Parmesan Roasted Asparagus, Tomatoes and Eggs" is exactly the kind of dish I like to fix us for lunch on Saturdays when we come back from the market or on Sundays when we set out to "not have a schedule". It’s simple, it’s fresh, it comes together fast and needs nothing but maybe a glass of wine and a piece of bread.

It’s the kind of meal we enjoy as a couple. It fits us and it felt even more special when we sat down to ingredients we had just picked up at the market from people who loved food as much as we do.

Let’s make lunch this week "French Word A Week" feature: "dejeuner". One of our favorite activity and time of the day. (click on the word to hear the pronunciation).

Check out Jen at Use Real Butter making Grandma’s Italian Meatballs from Lorna’s book. I also love this review of the book from Becky at Chef Reinvented (and don’t forget to click on the video link – adorable).

Parmesan Roasted Asparagus, Tomatoes and Eggs, courtesy and copyright Lorna Yee for "The Newlywed Kitchen"

Serves 2

1 pound asparagus
1 cup grape or cherry tomatoes
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1/4 cup grated Parmesan or pecorino (I used shredded)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly grounded black pepper
2 large eggs
3 spoonfuls pesto (optional)

Preheat the oven to 425F.
Wash the asparagus. Break the bottom stems off and discard. Toss the asparagus spears and tomatoes in 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, then place them on a parchment paper or Silpat lined baking sheet. Sprinkle with the Parmesan, salt and pepper. Roast the vegetables for 12=14 minutes, or until tender and cooked through..
Meanwhile, fry the two eggs in the remaining oil, seasoning them with salt and pepper to taste. Place an egg in each portion of the cooked vegetable and top with a dab of pesto if desired.

Disclosure: I received a free copy from The Newlywed Kitchen from Sasquatch Books.

Muscovado Date Cake With Maple Sugar Buttercream And A Giveaway

10.09.2009 447 Comments

Baking for Bill is easy. It’s actually very enjoyable. He likes everything. He is willing to try it all. He is also very much like an 8 year-old when I bake. He comes to the kitchen five times for the same imaginary glass of water. Goes back to his study with a banana. Comes back to the kitchen to dispose of the banana peel. Sixth imaginary glass of water. You get the idea. I love it. I also love that when I stacked the last layer of this cake, the first words that came out of his mouth were "Oh wow! That cake is huge! Yeah!!" Yes, The New England Cake, is indeed humongous and delicious.

I would not make a cake of this stature on the spur of the moment, just for us and two cups of tea. This is a Reunion Cake, a Birthday Dinner With Friends Cake, a Celebration Cake, a Date Cake! No really, I mean it. It is literally a lovely brown sugar cake filled with dates and iced with maple sugar buttercream. Trust me, you could make this for a first date and end up with a second. And a third.

There were a couple of reasons for this cake to start taking over the kitchen countertop. A family reunion and a book club. The reunion was as typical as can be: tiresome, crazy, at times scary but ultimately fun. Basically, no reason to elaborate on that but to focus on the book club instead. The Edible Word started last year under the initiative of Cath from A Blithe Palate and Stephanie from Dispensing Happiness. I had such a good time doing it that I said yes for this year’s book, "Confections Of A Closet Master Baker" by Gesine Bullock-Prado, a non fiction memoir. I am just a couple of days behind the deadline but I blame it on this cake. And the reunion.

Confections Of A Closet Master Baker traces Gesine’s journey as a Hollywood executive who finds her true calling in baking and decides to pursue her passion by moving to Vermont and opening a bakery in the small town of Montpelier. I devoured the book, all pun intended. So many emotions, "coups de coeur" and fun truths. Her passion is the air she breathed. You can bet I found myself in many of Gesine’s mornings, getting to the bakery at the crack of dawn, leaving after everybody else and never questioning getting to do it all over again the next day.

I also fell in love with Gesine, her writing style and her voice. Fun, honest, visual. Writing is definitely her other talent. She is a cool chick. Each chapter of the book ends on a sweet note with one of her recipes. I had plenty to choose from: Carrot Cake, Plum Tart, Espresso Cheesecake, cream scones, and the list goes on. I went with The New England purely out of necessity. I was given very short notice to bring another dessert and not much time to shop so I did have to match my pantry to one of the recipes in the book.

I did make a couple of changes to her original recipe. The cake calls for brown sugar and I substituted half the amount with muscovado sugar which gave it an even deeper brown sugar flavor and kept the cake ultra moist, even days later. The frosting is a wonderful maple sugar Swiss meringue that would also go very well with any other darker cakes. I did make the executive decision to leave it un-buttercreamed on the outside. I had this vision of the cake growing and growing the more I was spatulating the inner layers. It was also starting to be pretty hefty and I had to travel with this cake. Honestly, it was quite perfect as it was. Impressive and delicious, filled with dried dates and a soft hint of molasses and maple sugar.

Due to copyright restrictions I am not at liberty to post the recipe (although I have stumbled upon a few close recipes with a quick Google search) but trust me, this cake is worth getting the book alone. Wait! Wait! What I do have is one extra, brand new copy to give away to one lucky reader. If I could I’d add a slice of the New England cake with it but I am afraid it won’t work with the post office policies.

To enter the giveaway:
– leave a comment between Thursday September 10th 2009 and Sunday September 13th 2009 (midnight Eastern time)
– One entry per reader.
– no anonymous comment will be taken into consideration. Sign Zorro or X if you must.
– the giveaway is open to all. I’ll ship anywhere in the world.
– the winner will be randomly picked by asking Bill to call out a number from all the entries received.

If you happen to know or have a link to a great date cake recipe, feel free to leave it in the comment. I know I am ready to try more!

You can follow Gesine on her blog, Confections Of A (Closet) Master Baker filled with humorous stories, tempting recipes and videos and on Twitter.

Sweet Melissa’s Blueberry Muffins and Carrot Cake & Books Giveaway

15.03.2008 272 Comments

I have really felt like I have been on a mini vacation this past week, baking my way through The Sweet Melissa Baking Book, written by Melissa Murphy, owner and pastry chef of Sweet Melissa Bakery in New York city. When I received the book for preview I was really excited to finally make some of her creations in my own kitchen. I have been a fan of her work for a long time and promised myself I would straight to her bakery if I ever made it to New York one day. Well, it was even better this past week because I took a trip there four times in four days! I have tried to do a thorough review of the book for you guys but the best part is at the end of this post where I have the chance to give away 5 copies of this new book!

The book is a right along the line as a classic baking book filled with hundreds of recipes of every body’s favorites. This is the kind of book that references all the basic and classic American standards but often with a little spin to it (like an orange flavored cream cheese frosted carrot cake). Fans of the bakery are able to make some of their bestsellers right in their house at the spur of the moment and others like me can rely on a thoroughly written book for all the things that make a bakery a success. Out of the four recipes I have tried so far, (Blueberry Muffins, Lemon bars, Lemon Blueberry Buttermilk Pie, Carrot Cake) all turned out perfect and delicious and there are plenty more I am dying to try like the cashew bar that Jennifer recently posted about.

For the sake of doing a true to the author’s work review, I baked the recipes as written and everything not only turned out delicious but I never once had to scratch my head saying "not sure I would have given the instructions like that, but eh…" I liked the book on so many different levels. If you are a novice baker, this is definitely the book to get to get you started in the kitchen, if you are a seasoned baker you will certainly enjoy revisiting the classics as well as childhood favorites. Each chapter is chock full of life and love for sugar, butter and flour!

How does Sweet Potato Bread With Cinnamon Rum Glaze sound from the chapter "Dessert for breakfast"? It also has some terrific recipes for muffins, quick breads, waffles and more. "After School Snacks" has been thoroughly studied by me husband bookmarking Snickerdoodles and Chestnut Honey Madeleines among the dozens of brownies, cookies and bars. I have been studying the chapter "It’s Somebody’s Birthday" closely lately as we have a few family members coming up with serious celebrating time and the Fluffy Coconut Cake With Passion Fruit Filling is high on my priority list! I can’t wait for B 's birthday to make the Chocolate Malted Layer Cake!
If you have read this blog for a while now, you know of my produce guy Sunny who seems to download all his surplus fruits into my cart!

I found my happiness in "What Will We Do With All This Fruit" making the Lemon Blueberry Buttermilk Pie (recipe next week) and I can’t wait to try her Sour Cherry Pie With Pistachio Crumble. Now the recipe that really made it for us was the Carrot Cake with Orange Cream Cheese Frosting in the chapter entitled "Sunday Supper Grand Finale". I love carrot cakes that are simple in ingredients and yet very moist. We are not big fan of pineapples in ours, and B. has an aversion for raisins so it was quite a delight to make Melissa’s version that excludes both but remains delicately moist and the frosting really gave the cake another dimension. What about a Fallen Chocolate Souffle Cake or a Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie? I know! I can’t stop!! To end things on a strong sugar high, the final chapter is devoted to "Favorite Gifts" like Butter Toffee Crunch, Earl Grey Truffles, Peanut Praline, just to name a few!

Blueberry Muffins (Makes 12)

2 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 Tb plus 1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 stick butter, melted
1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup whole milk, at room temperature
zest of 1 lemon
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
1 Tb granulated sugar for sprinkling

Preheat the oven to 350F and line a muffin pan with muffin liners, coat with cooking spray.
In a large blow, whisk together the flour, baking powder granulated sugar and salt. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the melted butter, brown sugar, and eggs until smooth. Whisk in the heavy cream and milk until combined.
Add the zest to the flour mixture and with your hands, gently rub the mixture together, releasing the oils and breaking up the bits. Add the fresh fruit and gently toss with your fingers to combine. Make a well in the center of the bowl. Pour the butter mixture into the center of the well and using a spatula, gently pull the flour mixture into the center of the well until just combined.
Divide the batter among the muffin cups, filling each until 3/4s of the way up. Bake 30-35 minutes. Remove from the oven, sprinkle with sugar and let cool on a wire rack.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Carrot Cake With Orange Cream Cheese Frosting:

For the cake:
2 cups all purpose flour
1 ½ Tb ground cinnamon
¾ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp baking powder
4 large eggs
¾ cup vegetable oil
2 cups granulated sugar
1 tsp kosher salt
1 pound carrots, grated medium fine
¾ cup chopped walnuts

For the frosting:
12 oz cream cheese softened
2 1/ 2 cups confectioners’ sugar
Zest of 1 orange
2 sticks butter, softened
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350F. Butter and flour two 8×2-inch round cake pans. Line each pan with an 8-inch round piece of parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking soda and baking powder.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whip attachment, beat the eggs at high speed until light and frothy, about one minute. Decrease the speed to medium and add the oil, sugar and salt and mix just until combines. Decrease the speed to low and add the flour mixture until jut combined. Using a spatula, fold in the carrots and walnuts.
Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cake pans. Tap the pans one against the other to level the top and eliminate air bubbles. Bake for 45 minutes. Remove and let cool on a wire rack for 20 minutes before turning the layers out onto the rack. Cool completely before frosting.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the cream cheese, sugar and zest. Start on low speed and then increase to medium high speed and beat until smooth. Add the butter and mix on medium speed until just fluffy and smotth, about 45 seconds. Add the vanilla and mix until just combined. Do not overbeat.

To assemble:
Use the frosting as both the filling and the frosting so divide some evenly between both layer and use the remaining to cover the sides and top.
I made 4 small ones (4-inch round) and use the frosting just in between the layer and also to cover them all. I split each layer in half so I had a total of four which is to me a little nicer on the eye.

Book Giveaway: I am really excited to be able to give away 5 copies of the book to you guys…Yes! Thanks to the great folks at the Penguin Group/Viking Studio, one book can be yours! All you have to do is leave a comment to this post between now and monday 3pm and I’ll let the Random Number Generator pick 5 lucky recipients. I will announce the winners on Tuesday 3/18 as well as tell you about another fantastic recipe from the book.