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Amaretti…Or My Adventures In Italy

Amaretti

One night that I was reading a post by my favorite Cream Puff about a beautiful dessert called Lucia’s Walnut Cake. Her post was a beautiful tribute to her grandmother as well as an introduction to a soon to be published cookbook, Adventures of an Italian Food Lover, by Faith Heller Willinger. Cath from A Blithe Palate had been given the opportunity to get a first look at the book before its release and had contacted Ivonne about it. Together they decided to create a blogging event of some sort around its release, sending copies to other bloggers with the sole instruction to make something from it and share their experience in a post, no book reviews necessary. I so wanted to be in the loop that I visited Cath’s site, left her a comment ( Did I beg? maybe…!) and a couple of weeks later I was sitting down on the back porch with an espresso and my own copy of the book.

This book represents everything cooking and baking is for me and my family. There is not a dish I make that does not have a story, a person or a name behind it. Some of the dishes I cook revolve around family holidays or special events, some remind me of the people who crossed my path and made me the person and baker I am today. Faith Willinger has the same approach in this book. All the recipes invite you to in somebody’s home, life and cooking. Little of the foods I make are Italian per se but they bear similarities having lived a good part of my life so close to the area, and I was very excited with the ability and ease this book provided me to broaden my horizons.
Out of all the recipes in the book, my thoughts came coming back to the Amaretti one. I have always admired this delicate cookie and yet, I probably only had it a couple of times in my life.Amaretti are cousins to the macarons in a way: same ingredients, different baking method and no filling. Their white and delicate appearance makes me think of weddings and summer days, long strolls on the beach and fragrant coffee. What can I say…I am a romantic.

The first time I had an Amaretti was during a memorable trip with my parents to Turino. Twenty eight years ago, my parents and grandparents bought a chalet in the southern Alps, a stone throw away from Italy. We would go across the border and get pancetta, coppa, pannetone, grappa and sometimes we would stay for lunch. On one occasion, over 20 years ago, we decided to have lunch at a tiny restaurant with one large dining area painted with a beautiful fresca of Italian coutrysides. It was late already, middle of the summer, hot outside. The chef was on his own, his aides and waiters gone on their daily siesta. We were starving, but well behaved, the chef was making everything from scratch, and plates were coming out one at a time. Our meal was a feast of ravioli, cold cuts, pizza, fish and other delicacies. We decided to make good fortune and the four of us shared each plate that was coming out of the kitchen when it was coming out. We slowed down after the first bites of ravioli filled our tummies with warm rich and cheesey tomato sauce. I don’t think my memories are failing me when I say that I truly believe we had the greatest time as a family that afternoon. The chef was kind and loved the way our little group chatted and feasted. Towards the end, we motionned for him to take a seat with us but he said he could not, he wanted to do the dishes and clean up before the Mrs. would come in and give him a hard time for serving "after hours"! He brought my parents espressos, spearmint syrup and water for us and a plate of amaretti. My first ones! I hesitated as they looked so delicate. My brother ignored his for a while…long enough for me to eat mine and half of his plate! I asked the chef how he made them and he said "I don’t make them, my mother does and she only told me the ingredients"….well, come on man! Dish it out!!! He hesitated for a second, then he replied "ok, well, it’s almonds, sugar, egg whites and a pinch of salt" That was it?!

It took me all this time and this book to finally make them. I don’t know the name of the restaurant that day many moons ago, and I surely do not know the name of the man who cooked us that fabulous meal, but the cookies were just as I remembered. Crisp and delicate, perfect with coffee or mint tea.

Thank you Ivonne and Cath for the opportunity. There are many pages of the book already bookmarked and other recipes already tried like the olive oil brownies that are out of this world. If you would like the recipe for the amaretti, contact me via email(marinette1ATcomcastDOTnet) and I’ll be happy to send it to you.

Amaretti

Banana Raspberry Frozen Parfaits

Banana Raspberry Frozen Parfait
News flash…the heat is scorching here down south….My solution? Something frozen, quick and satisfying.

When I got off the plane yesterday, I felt I was wilting on the spot. I had easily forgotten that with heat comes high humidity here in Charleston. I kid you not, my pants were wrinkle free in no time flat and my energy level sucked out of my body. I had not realized how my long weekend away had left me somewhat tired and I ended sleeping most of the time on the airplane, and that meant I was wide awake at midnight. I started looking around the kitchen, wanting to bake something to calm me down (works as good as drinking hot milk sometimes). Five days without his mate and B. had left quite a few bananas to go past their prime. I thought about muffins, scones or cake for breakfast the next day but that meant turning the oven on and oh..did I mention how hot and humid it was? Yes, bad idea…That’s how I ended up making a frozen parfait, on the complete opposite end of the spectrum!

I am a summer gal for the produce but a winter/fall one in regards to the weather, so I can’t help but stock on fresh with berries, peaches, nectarines, plums, watermelon, you name it. However, I like to keep me some naners (bananas) around for substance. I am constantly filling that fruit basket so much so that my produce guy said he thought I moved or left to see greener pastures when he did not see me these past few days. What can I say? “Hi, my name is Tartelette and I am addicted to fresh produce…what’s up doc?!”

I feel sleep deprivation is calling my name, so without further ado, here is the recipe:

Banana Raspberry Frozen Parfaits:

Serves 8 -10

2 eggs, separated
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup pureed bananas
1/2 cup mascarpone, at room temperature
1 cup heavy cream
1 pint raspberries

In an electric mixer bowl, whisk the egg yolks and 1/4 cup of sugar until pale and fluffy. In a separate bowl, stir the banana puree and mascarpone until smooth. Fold the yolk mixture into the banana mixture. Whisk the egg whites until firm peaks. Add the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar, 1 Tb. at a time and continue to whip until glossy. Fold the whites into the banana mixture. Whip the cream to soft peaks and add to the banana mix. Line the inside of a narow loaf pan with plastic wrap and let it hangs over the sides. Pour half of the banana parfait in the mold. Scatter raspberries on top and add the remaining half of the banana mixture. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze until firm.
Cut out slices and plate.

Banana Raspberry Frozen Parfait

3-2-1 Sorbet ! Hay Hay It’s Donna Day !


It is that time again for another round of Donna Hay inspired creations known as "Hay Hay It’s Donna Day" masterminded by Barbara of Winos and Foodies. The winner from last month, Laura, from the magnificient blog Eat Drink Live has chosen sorbet as the theme for July. How fitting! Not to mention that my ice cream maker seems to be churning nonstop these past couple of weeks!

The "3-2-1" part of the title needs to be explained, otherwise the sorbet you see in these pictures does not make any sense at all. As usual, when Laura announced the theme I could not make up my mind. I was thinking of mango, lychee, peach, strawberry, rapsberry….the list goes on. Finally after a week of churning flavors in my head, I decided I would make two, plate them up and let friends decide which one they prefered. One evening I made a lemon sorbet and an apricot sorbet, turn the ice cream maker on and let it do its own little dance. I could not help but try them and I swooned….they were awesome. "Oh dear! How to decide?" I thought. I was glad friends were going to do it for me! The next day, I served one scoop of each in separate bowls and drizzled both with raspberry sauce. I watched guests take a spoon of the lemon, then the apricot, then back and forth for a few times until they all combined both in one bowl and started mashing them all three together. When I timidly asked their favorite, they all showed their bowl and said "that one!"…The one they had created by churning together lemon and apricot sorbets with raspberry sauce. So you see, 3 elements became 2, made up 1: Lemon-Apricot-Raspberry Sorbet. I am telling you, along with 6 other people that it totally rocks!

For the recipe, I used the one posted on her blog from Donna Hay. It is easy and straightforward and give the silkiest sorbet ever. I have not tried to remake the sorbet by mixing all the ingredients prior to their churning in the ice cream maker. Mine is not big enough to accomadate both quantities. It does not take much longer to do both flavors and freeze them together or separately. Each is delicious on its own, but combined…hmmhmmhmm…Divine! The decoration is simply some caramel sesame tuiles: big drops of caramel sprinkled with sesame seeds and left to dry.

Lemon Apricot Raspberry Sorbet:

For the lemon sorbet:

3/4 cup 150g caster (superfine) sugar
1 cup 240ml water
1 1/2 cups lemon juice
1 tsp lemon zest

To make the basic syrup, place the sugar and water in a saucepan over a low heat and stir without boiling until sugar is dissolved.
Increase the heat and bring to the boil for one minute. Set aside to cool.
Combine the lemon juice, zest and sugar syrup, place in an ice-cream maker and follow the manufacturer’s instructions or the instructions below for a thick and scoopable sorbet. If you don’t have an ice-cream maker, place the juice and syrup mixture in a metal bowl or cake tin, cover and freeze for an hour or until just beginning to set at the edge. Beat with an electric hand whisk and return to the freezer. Repeat three times at hourly intervals or until the sorbet is thick and smooth.

For the apricot sorbet:

3/4 cup 150g caster (superfine) sugar
1 cup 240ml water
2 1/2 cups apricot puree

To make the basic syrup, place the sugar and water in a saucepan over a low heat and stir without boiling until sugar is dissolved.
Increase the heat and bring to the boil for one minute. Set aside to cool.
Combine the fruit puree and sugar syrup, place in an ice-cream maker and follow the manufacturer’s instructions or the instructions below for a thick and scoopable sorbet. If you don’t have an ice-cream maker, place the fruit and syrup mixture in a metal bowl or cake tin, cover and freeze for an hour or until just beginning to set at the edge. Beat with an electric hand whisk and return to the freezer. Repeat three times at hourly intervals or until the sorbet is thick and smooth.

For the raspberry sauce:

1 pint fresh raspberries or 1 1/2 cups frozen
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp. cornstarch
2 Tb. water

In a medium saucepan, combine the raspberries and sugar. Cook over medium low heat until the fruits release their juices. In a separate ramequins, dissolve the corstarch with the water. Slowly add to the raspberries and continue to cook until the mixture is thickened and does not appear cloudy anymore. Let cool and refrigerate.

To make the Lemon-Apricot-Raspberry Sorbet:

In a large bowl, combine equal scoops of lemon and apricot sorbets, drizzle with raspberry sauce and smash, mash, beat, churn until it comes together. Do not worry if some small chunks remain of each sorbet, they are like little pockets bursting with flavor.

Check out Laura’s blog around July 15th for the round up and voting instructions.

Georgia Peach Ice Cream

Well these georgia peaches
Son they know their way around
They can take your money, son before you get sight of town
Well they talk a little funny, but they look so fine
Nine out of ten of them gonna sell you a dime
I think they’re cute, think they’re cute as they can be
Talkin’ about a funny talkin’, honk-tonking georgia peach

Well, peaches, peaches
Love them georgia peaches
Well, peaches, peaches
Love them georgia peaches

Excerpt from Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Georgia Peaches

Yes, I know that me and the boys from the band were not talking about the same kind of peaches, but I could not help myself and kept humming the tune while peeling the fruit to make this ice cream.

When I got to the farmer’s market this morning and found a bounty of gloriously fragrant and yellow Georgia peaches, I knew some would end up in a cake, some cut up on my salad and some would turn out into an ice cream. It has been so hot and humid the past few days, we keep filling up on frozen fruits and icy cold smoothies while the ice cream machine is dying from boredom. I just was not that inspired until this morning. Oh sure, I could whip up some of our favorites again, but we are craving light, fresh and if possible incredibly tasty and there is nothing fitting the description better than a Georgia peach.

There is not much to add, other than giving you the recipe, and urging you to make it with fresh fruit and not frozen or canned are we are here in the US in full peach season. The base is a light custard and a little lemon juice or crystallized ginger can really perk it up.


Peach Ice Cream, adapted from Cuisine at Home (thanks Lisa for my birthday present!)

Makes 5 cups

2 cups fresh peaches, skinned, pitted and diced
1/4 sugar
1 tsp. lemon juice
4 egg yolks
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
1 vanilla bean, split in half or 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Macerate the peaches with the lemon juice in a saucepan with the lemon juice and sugar for about 10 minutes or until syrupy. Simmer over medium heat until the peaches are soft for about 5 minutes. Let cool completely.
Whisk the egg yolks with the sugar until thick and pale. In the meantime, heat the milk, cream and vanilla bean until steam rises. Gradually add the hot cream to the egg yolks, whisking constantly to prevent them from scrambling. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan and cook over medium heat until the cream coats the back of a spoon, 5 to 8 minutes.
Strain the cream and let cool completely. Stir in the peaches. At that point I used an hand-held mixer to puree some of the peaches and leave chunks into the base. Churn the mixture in an ice cream maer according to manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer to a container and freeze until firm.

It is so good that I am taking it to Meeta’s Monthly Mingle. She is on a well deserved vacation, so check back after the 7th of July for a cold and creamy ice cream round-up.

Bye Bye May: Lemon Macarons

Why would the end of May prompt me to make macarons? Well, they are delicate little cookies and for me May is a "delicate" month. On the first of May, I get a card from my parents with dried, fragile Lily of the Valley tucked inside. Then there is my birthday, for which I receive some precious orchid (background in the picture above) or other exotic flower….delicate.
Then there is a few more girlfriends' birthdays and of course mother’s day…the month ends up being very feminine, very pink and a major reason to make macarons!

I have been experimenting with a couple of recipes, one is promising but I want to tweak it a little bit more before posting, the results are almost as good as my cherished recipe originally found on Mercotte's blog.
I made a batch of these in an attempt to teach my friend C. and when she divided the loot in half I told her to keep them all and that I did not like macarons that much. Her jaws dropped, her eyes rolled in their socket and she almost checked my temperature. Yes, I am weird: I will gladly put me through the joyous torture of Italian meringue and macaron making but I don’t like eating them. I love the whole process, from deciding on the flavors, colors, folding, piping, filling but I am not a big fan. I find the process more rewarding than the results but friends and family think otherwise.

What could be more fitting the celebrate the end of May than a lemon flavored macaron filled with freshly whisked lemon curd? June will bring bolder flavors and colors but for now let’s stick to a tried and true recipe for the shells, as well as this lemon curd that I use now all the time.

Lemon Macarons:

For the shells:

120 gr. egg whites, divided
35 gr. sugar
150 gr. finely ground almonds
150 gr. powdered sugar
2 tsp. pure lemon extract

For the boiling syrup:
150 gr. sugar and 50 gr. water

Sift the ground almonds and powdered sugar.
In a stand mixer, whip 60 gr. egg whites to soft peaks, add 35 gr. sugar.In the meantime, in a saucepan on high heat bring the water and sugar for the syrup to 230 F. on a candy thermometer.
Slowly add the boiling syrup to the egg whites and continue to whip on medium – high speed until they are completely cooled and you have a shiny meringue (10-15 minutes).
Mix the remaining 60 gr. of egg whites, the lemon extract and the sifted almond/sugar and carefully fold into the meringue.
Fill a pastry bag fitted with a plain tip with the mixture and pipe macarons about 3 inches in diameter on parchment paper lined baking sheet. You can let them sit at room temperature for 20 minutes if desired. This is often done to assure those little feet at the bottom but I found that I can skip this step with this recipe and still end up with the same result.
Bake at 320 for 15 minutes. Let cool.

Lemon Curd:

grated zest of 1 lemon
1/2 cup strained lemon juice
1/4 cup sugar
1 eggs
Combine the zest, sugar, juice in a saucepan, and bring to a simmer.
In a small bowl, beat the eggs until light.
Beat some of the lemon mixture into the eggs to temper. Scrape the mixture back into the saucepan and cook stirring constantly until it thickens up, about 5 minutes.
Strain and refrigerate, covered with plastic wrap until ready to use.
Fill the macarons with about 1 Tb of the curd and refrigerate.

Bye bye May…Looking forward to June!

Note: Check out the WTSIM May edition on Jeanne’s blog…Yum!

Waiter There’s Something In My… Citron

I almost missed that one, all entangled that I was in webs of spun sugar! This month’s edition of "Waiter There’s Something In My…" focuses on stuffed fruits or vegetables and is hosted by Jeanne from Cooksister.

There are those challenges when two or three recipes come to my mind and I keep oscillating between them for days…not for that one. For some reason only known to my brain (and trust me sometimes we don’t communicate very well), the only thing that came to my mind and stayed there was "Citron Givre", or Frozen Lemon, another typical bistro dessert in France back in th 70s and 80s: a hollowed lemon filled with lemon sorbet. This was my dessert of choice when I was a child, really, it never failed that anywhere we went with my parents I would either have "vacherin" (a dessert of meringue and ice cream) or citron givre. Imagine: a whole lemon stuffed with more refreshing tart and sweet lemon flavored! How fitting for the theme and the hot days we are having now!

As an adult, I did not lose my love for anything lemony but I also added a repertoire of spices, herbs and other ingredients to my palate. This particular sorbet falls more on the line of a sherbet as it contains milk but the French only have one word for "sorbet". The ice cream was inspired by Pierre Herme’s Lemon sorbet (sherbet) and kicked up a notch with crystallized ginger. The only downfalls to this particular dessert are that you don’t want to share and you wished you had more!!

Citrons Givres:

Serves 4

4 lemons
150 ml lemon juice (some coming from hollowing out the lemons + extra if needed)
150 gr. (2/3 cup) sugar
150 ml whole milk (less fat makes it curddle)
150 ml water
1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped crystallized ginger (your taste)

Slice a tiny bit off of the bottoms of the lemons so that they can sit straight (relatively speaking). Slice the top off and keep that "hat".
Scoop as much of the flesh out of each lemon and set in a fine mesh strainer set over a bowl. With your hands or the back of a spoon press as much of the lemon juice as you can and measure 150 ml. Add extra lemon juice if needed.
In a saucepan over medium high heat, bring the water and sugar to a bol. Add the ginger and let cool completely. Add the milk and the lemon juice, stir and process in your ice cream machine according to your manufacturer’s directions.
If you do not have an ice cream machine: freeze until soft serve consistency and mix with an immersion blender or whisk in a stand mixer. Put back in the freezer and repeat the operation 2-3 times, leaving enough time in between whippings for the mixture to get frozen.

Once your ice cream is ready, fill the lemon cavities and keep frozen until ready to serve.
The presentation always makes people happy and you have just made an easy bistro dessert in almost no time!!


Head over to Jeanne’s blog in a few days for a tasty roundup!

Previous Tartelette’s participations:
Waiter, There’s Something in My Brioche
Waiter, There’s Something in My Easter Basket
Waiter, There’s Something in My Pie

Tapioca Raspberry Verrines – Heart Of The Matter

I thought that after some rich mousses, very sweet pastries and buttery brioches, B. and I could use a little dessert break. I know our waistlines and hearts would thank us…it is spring after all! There are plenty of gorgeous seasonal fruits available at the market and since we did a good house spring cleaning our eating would not suffer a lighter dessert fare.

I also thought that Ilva’s and Joanna’s event The Heart of The Matter was a great pretext to come up with a little easy, tasty creation using what I had picked up at the market one morning. I love raspberries….maybe as much as I love lemons. Stranded on a desert island, I would be completely satisfied with a bowl of these and a dollop of whipped cream. I don’t use tapioca very much because of the gelatinous texture it takes when it is cooking. I was on the lookout for big pearled tapioca but the Asian market I go to was closed so I had to fall back on the regular kind. I was not really sure of the end result when I cooked the tapioca layer of the verrine but it thickens a bit when cooling and becomes more like rice pudding once completely refrigerated.
This dessert uses minimum sugar, milk (you can use low fat), and plenty of fresh fruit. Even the topping won’t put your heart into shock!

Tapioca Raspberry Verrines, from Tartelette, inspired by the cover of this book:

Serves 4

1/3 cup tapioca
2 1/2 cups milk (I used 2%)
1/2 cup sugar, divided
1 1/2 cups raspberries (could use frozen)
1 1/2 tsp. gelatin
1 Tb. water
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
2 Tb. sugar
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 Tb. butter

For the tapioca pudding:
In a heavy saucepan combine the milk, tapioca and 1/4 cup sugar. Cook over medium heat until the mixture thickens up, about 10 minutes, stirring every so often. Remove from the heat and let coo to room temperature.

For the raspberry layer:
Combine the remaining sugar and the raspberries in a saucepan and cook over low heat to break the raspberries a little so that they release their juices and soften up.
In a small bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over the tablespoon of water and let it get soft.
Remove the raspberries from the stove and gently stir in the soften gelatin. Stir until it is completely incorporated. Let cool to room temperature.

For the topping:
In a saucepan, combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, spices and butter and cook until the mixture lumps up and gets toasty. Let cool completely.

Assemble the verrines:
Divide the tapioca pudding and raspberries evenly among 4 glasses or other containers.
Right before serving, sprinkle about 2 Tb. of the crumb topping among the verrines.

Funny thing is that this was meant to be shared between friends in sunday night, but a terrible wind storm kept each couple home so we had ours and we had theirs on monday night… I hope that if they read this they will invite us again…!

Sugar High Friday 29: Cocoa Nibs Pavlovas

Well, there is more to these than just "pavlovas"…

I really thought I would have to sit this one out…The theme for this month’s Sugar High Friday was "Raw Chocolate" …. where am I going to find raw chocolate in my neck of the woods? There were the obvious choices like homemade chocolate including cocoa butter in the ingredient list, or cocoa nibs that I had successfully located a couple months back. I was feeling less than inspired. I kept looking at my pantry, at the cocoa nibs, at the fridge, and then inspiration came late friday night with these:

Cocoa Nib Pavlovas, Avocado Cream, Honeyed Strawberry and Pineapple, Cocoa Nib and Pistachio Praline….

Yep….just that…Really, I can’t be left alone… and before you turn your heads away, let me tell you that sweet avocado rocks! I wanted to keep up with the raw theme throughout this dessert so beside the cocoa nibs everything else is in its original form. I thought at first of filling the meringue disks with a citrus curd or a chocolate cream, but I wanted something soft and light that would let your mouth taste the cocoa nibs as well as the crunch of the praline.

I am not going to lie, I was a bit skeptical about having avocados on the sweet side, but I found tons of recipes out there for avocado dessert so it gave me the confidence to break away from my savory conceptions and get whipping. And you know what…it is amazingly good!

All the components can be made up to one day ahead. These were assembled and served saturday night for a dinner party. I did not tell people about the avocado part, everybody assumed it was pistachio custard until one guest asked me for the recipe and everybody stopped eating, raised their heads, looked at their dessert funny for a minute and digged in again to the sound of :"crunch…crunch…crunch…this is so surprising…this is so good…"

Cocoa Nibs Pavlovas, adapted from Eggbeater, via Simply Recipes:

Makes 12 shells, but I only used 6.

3 egg whites
3/4 cup sugar
2 1/4 tsp cornstarch
1/2 cup cocoa nibs

Preheat oven to 275.
Mix the sugar and corn starch and set aside. In a stand mixer fitted with the ballon whisk, start whipping the egg whites to soft peaks. Slowly add the sugar mixture in a slow steady stream, or one tablespoon at a time. Stop the mixer and with a spatula, fold in the cocoa nibs.
Line 2 sheet pans with parchment paper, and with a large spoon, mounds 12 meringue rounds. Bake at 275 for 40 minutes. Reduce heat to 250 and bake for another 20 minutes. At this point you can remove them from the oven, or turn the oven off and let them cool in the oven for a few hours. I let mine sit there overnight.

Avocado Cream, adapted from Avocado.org:

Serves 6

3 avocados, pitted, skin removed and cut into cubes
1/4 sugar, or to taste
1 cup heavy cream
juice of 1 lime

In a food processor, combine all the ingredients and puree until smooth. Refrigerate until ready to assemble.

Cocoa Nib and Pistachio Praline:

100 gr. sugar, divided
1/4 cocoa nib
1/4 shelled raw pistachios

Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and set aside.
In a heavy saucepan, melt 50 gr. sugar until light golden brown. Add the remaining 50 gr. sugar and stir until the sugar melt and the caramel is dark golden. Remove from the heat, quickly add the nuts and the nibs. Pour it onto the sheet pan and let cool completely. Break into pieces to decorate the meringues.

For the fruit I just cut up some strawberries and pineapple and drizzled them with some honey to taste.

Assemble the Pavlovas:
Do this just before serving.
Set one meringue disk on a plate. Scoop about 1/4 cup of the avocado cream. Spoon some fruit over the cream and add piece of praline to decorate.

This was perfect last night, as it was still over 80 degrees at 8pm, and it finished our dinner al fresco with style, simplicity and a very light feeling both in the stomach and the mouth.

Salted Butter and Chocolate Caramels

These are soft, chocolatey homemade butter caramels with a hint of salt linguering on my tongue…and I admit it without guilt or shame that I have been eating way too many of them..the ones in the picture were gone in one minute… oops…

I admit that I am a bit of a caramel, cooked sugar, freak and it is not uncommon that I play with it for fun or to enhance a dessert. I am particularly fond of salted butter caramel anything and I was in heaven when we visited Normandy and Brittany because caramels are everywhere (region’s specialty) Unfortunately, B. and I are out…we finished the last one a couple of weeks ago and we are starting to show some signs of "salted butter caramels deprivation"…and it got me thinking that there must be a tried and true recipe out there that I can cook up to save us.

I started searching familiar cooking sites and pondered on this one from Epicurious, but the 70/30 rate of success and disaster made me discard it (and there were some pretty awful reviews)… After some more research I found myself on Guillemette's blog again, staring at these several times a day.

Even if you are a novice baker/cook, I encourage you to try your hand at these, especially following the recipe below as it is simple and straightforward. Making homemade caramels is not complicated but some steps are important to follow:
– just like with any other confections or desserts, only use the best quality ingredients available
-always undercook your caramel, meaning do not let it get dark golden, because it will continue to cook once removed from the heat
– buy a candy thermometer, it is cheap and will make your life so much easier
-be patient. Depending on the humidity or heat in your house, your caramel might take longer to cook than what the recipe says…but always read your thermometer and don’t try to outsmart burning sugar…

Salted Butter and Chocolate Caramels, adapted from Guillemette:

100 gr. salted butter
3 gr. sea salt
50 gr. bitter sweet dark chocolate
20 ml. water
100 gr. light corn syrup
250 gr. sugar
200 ml. heavy cream

Melt the chocolate in the microwave or over hot water bath and set aside. Heat the cream to lukewarm in the microwave also, and set aside.
In a heavy saucepan, set over medium heat, combine the water and corn syrup. Add the sugar and let it caramelize until it reaches a light golden brown.
Remove from the heat and slowly add the cream to the caramel. It will bubble like made but do not worry…it will not bubble over and things come down eventually.
Return the pan to the heat and add the butter and the salt. Let the mixture cook until a thermometer registers 118 C ( about 245 F). Remove from the heat, add the chocolate and stir until completely smooth.
Pour into a parchment lined 8X8 inch baking dish. Let sit overnight.
Unmold and cut squares the next day. Wrap them in parchment paper or candy foil if they last long enough to be packed up for guests.

Here are the converted measurements, thanks to Lisa from La Mia Cucina:

½ c. salted butter
½ tsp. sea salt
2 oz. bitter sweet dark chocolate
2 Tb water
1/3 c. light corn syrup
1 ¼ c. sugar
3/4 cup heavy cream