pudding

Raspberry Rhubarb Tapioca Puddings & Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

20.04.2011 56 Comments

I got to say, social media and the way we interact is pretty phenomenal. And I mean that in all possible ways. I do love it. Being able to connect fast and furiously with people. Meeting new and interesting folks all the time. Being able to exchange links to pictures, recipes, news almost instantly. I like hearing my phone send me a little ring-a-ding "you got mail". Really I do!

Last week, I posted on Flickr a photo of tapioca puddings and lemon poppy seed muffins I was taking to our neighbors for dinner. I linked that to Twitter and then closed the computer and went next door. My phone in my pocket. Then my phone had a party. All by itself. It started ring-a-dinging with intensity. Tweets back and emails started coming in asking me to please share the recipes for the puddings and the muffins.

To tell you the truth I had not really planned on it but I had made more than enough to share with more friends. Here. One spoonful deep in that dessert, one whiff of lemon and poppy seed later and I was secretly giddy to have an opportunity to sample them again.

The Raspberry Rhubarb Tapioca Puddings are so good. Soothing. Little beads of tapioca rolling off your tongue. Smooth. Rhubarb and raspberries gently cooked until just barely soft. The distant scent of cherry blossom extract. The perfect crunch of lightly roasted pistachios.

And the muffins. Ah…gobbled up in a flash. Good thing I tend to cook and bake like my grandmother. Doubling a recipe, or more, is just a normal thing happening here. What can I say? I love to give and see the smile on someone’s face when they receive. The lovely part with these muffins is you can built upon the base any way your heart desires. Oranges, instead of lemons, nuts instead of poppy seeds, vanilla, rose, caramel…anything.

Quite a few many events are shaping up for this Spring and Summer (actually up ’til January…ugh!) that have me jumping up and down with excitement! I will make sure to keep everyone updated on workshops or conferences.

Right now I must get the house and studio tidied up a bit since Taylor is coming tomorrow and staying a few days to shoot the promo video of my book "Plate To Pixel". I heard the book was officially shipping out next week! I am extremely nervous but glad we practiced a little a few months ago. Remember this? I can’t believe this is all happenings. Months of hard work just about to see the light!

Another fun little tidbit that I forgot to post here: last month the printed issue of Elle Magazine published a feature "Cooking In Code" for which I was interviewed along with Heidi of 101 Cookbooks and Molly of Orangette as well as Eddie Gehman Kohan, Krista Garcia, Amanda Kludt. Extremely honored. Well, now the online version is live on the Elle magazine website. Click on any of our pretty mugs and you’ll be able to catch up on our interviews.

Ok…now I must really go clean the house for Taylor. I’ll try to post sneak peeks of the shoot with Taylor throughout the weekend. Should be fun!

Raspberry Rhubarb Tapioca Pudding With Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins:

Serves 6

For the pudding:
1 cup chopped rhubarb
1 cup raspberries
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons honey
1 cup small pearl tapioca (not instant)
2 cups milk
1/4 cup honey
1 teaspoon cherry blossom extract (or rose, or vanilla)
Toasted pistachios for garnish

In a large saucepan, combine the rhubarb, raspberries and lemon juice and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, to a simmer, add the honey and stir briefly. Cover the saucepan and let cook for about 10 minutes. Uncover and check the fruit. If there is a lot of liquid, cook a bit longer over low heat, uncovered until very little liquid remains at the bottom of the pan. Let cool to room temperature and then divide evenly among 6 ramekins or glasses.
In a separate and large saucepan, combine the tapioca, milk and honey over medium high heat. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat to low and let the mixture cook until the tapioca looks translucent (about 20-30 minutes). Let cool to room temperature and divide in between the ramekins or glasses with the raspberry/rhubarb mixture. Top with chopped pistachios.

For the lemon poppy seed muffins: (makes 12)
2 eggs
1/2 cup honey
1 cup yogurt
zest and juice of one large lemon
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tablespoon coconut oil (or melted butter)
1 cup millet flour
1/2 cup brown rice flour
1/2 cup potato flour
pinch of salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tablespoon poppy seeds

Preheat the oven to 350F. Line the inside of 12 muffin cups with muffin liners and grease slightly with melted butter or cooking spray. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk the eggs and honey until smooth. Add the yogurt, lemon juice and zest, olive oil, coconut oil and whisk until combined. Add the millet, brown rice, and potato flour, salt, baking powder and poppy seeds. Whisk until fully incorporated. Divide evenly between the muffin liners and bake 15-20 minutes.

Meyer Lemon Creams, Meyer Lemon Macarons & a Giveaway!

12.03.2011 497 Comments

I got to say, from my view point right this minute that I am a very relaxed and lucky gal. It’s been months since I have had the ability to take a day and just chill. I happen to be sharing that feeling with a dozen other bloggers too. See, this weekend a few of us are attending the first Go Savor Culinary Retreat and we are all spending some quality time getting to know each other, share our blogging experiences and enjoy the beautiful Southern sun.

I was very fortunate to teach a workshop with Bill on artificial lighting last night, giving more options for folks who can only shoot at night. It was a very casual discussions and sharing of experiences, all facilitated by a good dinner and a few glasses of wine.

This morning Tami and I taught a workshop on composition, food styling, choice of focal points, natural light sources, shooting tethered, etc… I absolutely *love* working with Tami. We don’t even have to wonder or ask questions. It’s very organic, calm, focused and efficient. We loved this session just from the sheer number of "ah doh" moment that many had. That was our goal: to provide sensible informations, techniques and tips that every one would be able to duplicate at home.

It’s really quite an honor to be able to share something we love with others. If it works, great. If someone decides to do something else, great! The worst thing you can do is not even consider the possibility. Photography is a series of unplanned moments, possibilities you create as well as a series of coherent decisions. It feels good to be able to share a passion with others just as passionate and interested.

Same goes with baking and cooking. It is truly an honor to be sharing new recipes and ideas with you. Today it’s a recipe for Meyer Lemon Cream and Meyer Lemon Macarons as well as the chance to win a super fun little new cookbook "Macarons: Authentic French Cookie Recipes from the Macaron Cafe" by Cecile Cannone.

Yes, it’s giveaway time! All you have to do is leave a comment on this blog, one per person, no anonymous, until Monday March 14th at midnight. A winner will be picked at random by my lovely husband and announced on the following blog post.

I really enjoyed the pocket size appearance of the book as well as all the recipes, techniques and troubleshooting suggestions Cecile offers for both Italian and French Meringue Macarons. I found lots of familiar ideas such as painted macarons and lollipop macarons but also a lot of new and interesting flavors such as gingerbread buttercream and apple cinnamon buttercream.

I followed Cecile’s instructions for French meringue macarons and flavored the shells with Meyer lemon zest and filled them with my own filling of cream cheese flavored with more lemon and a touch of honey. The Meyer Lemon creams are so simple and refreshing, you’d wish you had them at every meal. Almost. Variety is key I know, but for a lemon lover like me, this lemon all around dessert tray was heaven! Why so much lemony goodness you might ask. I have to thank my friends Anita and Jeanne for sending me a bunch of fresh, California Meyer and pink lemons to feed my addiction.

Hope you enjoy the rest of the weekend! Spring is on its way…

Meyer Lemon Creams and Meyer Lemon Macarons:

Note: once the macarons are made, let them mature in the fridge at least 2 days prior to eating so the flavor and textures can meld together better.

For the creams:
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
zest of one lemon
3 egg yolks
2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup lemon juice

In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, cornstarch, lemon zest and egg yolks until pale. Slowly add the milk and whisk well.
Bring the mixture to boiling point in a heavy bottomed saucepan placed over high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer until thick. Remove from the heat and slowly add the lemon juice. Return to medium low heat for a couple of minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool. Divide among ramekins or cup and place a piece of plastic wrap over each portions to prevent a skin from forming.

French Meringue Macarons, with permission of Ulysses Press.

Makes 50 to 60 shells, for 25 to 30 filled macarons.
2¾ cups (8.8 ounces/250 grams) almond flour
2¾ cups (12.4 ounces/350 grams)
powdered sugar
1 cup egg whites (from 7 or 8 eggs),
at room temperature
Pinch of salt
2 teaspoons powdered egg whites, if weather is humid
¾ cup (5.3 ounces/150 grams) superfine granulated sugar
5 to 7 drops gel paste food coloring (optional) (I used 2 teaspoons lemon zest instead)

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 300°F (325°F for a non-convection oven), and line your baking sheets with parchment paper.

Step 2: Blend the almond flour with the powdered sugar in your food processor to make a fine powder (or sift together, discarding any large crumbs and adding a bit more almond flour and powdered sugar as needed to compensate). Then sift the mixture through a strainer until it is as fine as you can get it. This keeps crumbs from forming on the macaron tops as they bake.

Step 3: With the wire whip attachment on the electric mixer, beat the egg whites with the salt and the powdered egg whites (if you are using them), starting slowly and then increasing speed as the whites start to rise. Add the granulated sugar and the food coloring. Beat until the egg whites form stiff peaks and your meringue is firm and shiny.

Step 4: Pour the beaten egg whites onto your almond flour mixture and gently fold them in, using a rubber spatula. Move your spatula from the bottom of the bowl to the edges with one hand, using your other hand to rotate the bowl. Now slap the sides of the bowl until the batter falls in a wide ribbon when you raise your spatula. When you can’t see any crumbs of almond flour and the mixture is shiny and flowing, you are ready to start piping.
The French have a special word—macaronner—to describe the physical action of mixing all the ingredients for macarons. This has to be done by hand. You cannot do it with your mixer—you must be able to feel the consistency of the macaron batter.
Step 5: Fit your pastry bag with a number 8 tip and fill with batter. Start by squeezing out a small amount of mix onto a parchment-lined baking sheet to form a 2½-inch circle. Be sure to leave 1 inch of space between macarons so they will not touch each other while they bake.
If the peak that forms on the top of the macaron does not disappear after piping, it means the batter could have been beaten a little more. Tap the baking sheet on the tabletop, making sure to hold the parchment paper in place with your thumbs.
Let the piped macarons rest for 15 minutes.

Step 6: Bake for 14 minutes at 300°F. After the first 5 minutes, open the oven door briefly to let the steam out.
Let the macarons cool completely on a rack before taking them off the parchment paper. Press the bottom of a cooled baked macaron shell with your finger; it should be soft. If the bottom of the shell is hard, reduce the baking time for the rest of your macarons from 14 minutes to 13 minutes.
Using a pastry bag requires some practice. It may seem awkward at first, but you’ll soon get the hang of it.
Prepare the bag (if it hasn’t been used before) by cutting about 2 inches off the narrow end—just enough so that when you insert a number 8 decorating tip, about a third of the tip extends outside the bag. Push the tip firmly in place and spoon in your filling, leaving enough room at the top to twist the bag shut. It is best to fill the bag with half of the batter at a time, that way it is not too heavy. To make it easier to fill your pastry bag, place it upright in an empty jar or other straight-sided container. This will help steady the bag while you fill it with batter.
Squeezing the bag slowly, pipe each macaron shell out in a single dollop. Lift the bag quickly to finish.

Cream Cheese Filling:
Juice and zest of one lemon
8 ounces (227 grams) cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup powdered sugar

In bowl of electric mixer, beat the lemon zest, juice and cream cheese on low speed, until very smooth with no lumps. Add the sifted powdered sugar and beat, on low speed, until fully incorporated and smooth. Pipe or spoon about a tablespoon into the center of each macaron shell and top with another shell.

Cardamom Tapioca Pudding, Roasted Rhubarb And Strawberry Syrup

29.04.2008 41 Comments

I know my mom is going to say "Ah! Finalement" (Ah! Finally) when she reads this post. You see it is not uncommon during our phone conversations for me to say "Oh, by the way, I saw this really cool ingredient, gadget, linen, etc…on a French site and I am having it come to your house so you can bring it next time you come visit or pop it in the mail with the next care package. Hope it’s not too much trouble!" There is usually a pause, sometimes a sigh, followed by "where the heck did you find this? What don’t you sleep at night for a change?"

The explanation is easy: B’s muscles unwind when he falls asleep by severely twitching which provokes him to jerks and send his knee(s) in my ribs or his arm across my face. One black eye and a many bruises later we both agreed that it was safer for me if I let him fall asleep first and then sneak in the bed half an hour later. Most of the time, I turn the computer on and start browsing….and find things I "need" for baking. You’ve been there, "surfing" the Internet…How long is your baking wishlist now that you’re blogging?!! That’s how I found a bunch of cool syrups one night that I "wanted" for baking. Flavors like cotton candy, pain d’epices, candy apple, lavender, and this strawberry syrup I used with the Tapioca Puddings. A few clicks and a phone call to the parents and they were on their way.

Now that Sprig is in full swing, I can’t get enough rhubarb. Every trip to the store and a couple of pounds end up in my cart, it’s like I am on auto pilot. My preferred method of cooking is to cut it large cubes and cook it down over the stove and stop the heat when I can still get some chunks. I can’t describe the feeling of biting into it when it is cooked that way. The mellow bite of flesh that gives out on your tongue, while your taste buds are tickled by the sourness of the fruit quickly followed by a hint of sugar. I like sour tastes so I have a tendency to go light on the sugar when I cook the rhubarb down. I also took opportunity of the oven being on one night I was cooking the cheesecake for the Daring Barker challenge to cut large cubes of it and roast it with a sprinkle of sugar at 325F. The end result was allright, a little bit too "stewed" down for my taste…but who cares? It’s rhubarb!!

I like rice puddings a great deal but there was this little container of small bead tapioca left to be used and in an effort to organize the pantry (and I hate to throw away) I used it instead for the puddings adding a touch of cardamom to the milk while it was cooking. Some tapioca or rice pudding recipes call for an egg custard but that always seem a little too rich for me so I skipped that one. Once cooled down, I spooned into glasses, topped it with the rhubarb and added a splash of the strawberry pie syrup my parents sent me. I understand you may not have the same syrup I sued available but you can substitute you favorite syrup with these like grenadine, reduce pomegranate juice, blueberry, etc…Seemed like the perfect pairing, strawberries and rhubarb. We’ve been feasting on these for the last couple of days feeling pretty happy and virtuous after an insane amount of cheesecake chocolate pops!!

Cardamom Tapioca Puddings With Roasted Rhubarb and Strawberry Syrup:

For the puddings:

1/3 cup tapioca

2 1/2 cups milk (I used 2%)

1/4 cup sugar

6 cardamom pods, crushed with the back of a knife

1/4 cup fruit syrup

In a heavy saucepan combine the milk, and cardamom pods. Bring to a simmer, remove from the heat, let steep for 20 minutes. Strain the pods. Return the milk to the saucepan and add the 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 cool to room temperature, cover with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming.

Roasted Rhubarb:

2 cups diced rhubarb, large chunks (1 inch)

1/2 cup sugar

Put the chunks of rhubarb in a large roasting pan and sprinkle with the sugar. Bake at 325F until the fruit barely starts to give when you press your fingers in one piece, 30-45 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.

Divide the pudding among 4 glasses or dishes and top with the rhubarb. Drizzle one tablespoon of syrup over each glass. Serve at room temperature.

Toffee Butterscotch & Tapioca Pudding

19.01.2008 43 Comments

Every month I get a little surprise in the mail, Cuisine at Home magazine, courtesy of my dearest Lisa who got me a subscription for my birthday last year. I am usually very bad with food magazines, letting them pile up on the bed stand until they become one with the floor…not good. This one is a no fuss-no muss kind of magazine and their dessert recipes are always so mouth watering…it is difficult to resist!!

I was wondering why the postman was taking a break by our mailbox and I went to check on things, he was reading my magazine and looked up at me with a big smile on his face. "You have got to make this" he said, pointing at the Toffee-Butterscotch Pudding in the latest edition. I had to agree that it looked mouth watering, and it had two of my favorites Heath Toffee Bar and tapioca. I am addicted to the toffee bar and crumble it up on top of everything lately such as cakes, cookies and my afternoon yogurt. Over the past year I have become quite fond of tapioca puddings, creams and bubble teas, nutritious and filling, it is as versatile as rice for puddings.

The recipe was very easy and straightforward, but if course I had to make it richer by adding a small handful of toffee bits inside the pudding. I used the same 8 ounce preserving jars that I used previously for chocolate pots de creme, that way I could take one down to the mailman the next time he came. It’s like a sweet surprise as you dig your spoon into it! I don’t eat candy that often so this is like a candy addiction to me which is a good thing actually because I am sending this off to Candy Recaper as my entry to Sugar High Friday.

Toffee Butterscotch Tapioca Pudding, adapted from Cuisine at Home:

Serves 4

1 can evaporated milk
2 egg yolks
2/3 cup whole milk
3 Tb instant tapioca
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
3 Tb. unsalted butter
2/3 cup dark brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup tofffe bits (such as Heath)
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tsp. sugar
toffee bits for garnish

Warm the evaporated milk in a saucepan until it comes to boiling point. Reduce the heat to low and keep it warm. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolk, milk, tapioca and salt. Let stand 5 minutes.
Melt the butter in a saucepan on medium heat, add the brown sugar and cook until the sugar melts and starts to foam, about 4 minutes.
Slowly whisk in the warm evaporated milk, stirring until smooth. Be careful as it will bubble like mad.
Add the tapioca mixture and bring the pudding to a gentle boil. Cook, stirring constantly for an additional 3-4 minutes. Remove form the heat. Stir in the vanilla. Pour half the pudding among 4 serving dishes, divide the toffee bits evenly on top, pour the remaining half of pudding. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing it to the surface as to prevent a ski from forming. Let stand or chill until serving time. Whip the heavy cream to soft peaks with the sugar and garnish the puddings with it. Garnish with more toffee bits.

Chocolate Ice Cream Pops

01.05.2007 44 Comments

It’s hot here…really hot. Leave it to South Carolina to skip spring and go right into summer!

We are starting to crave ice cream…bad! I am impatiently awaiting David’s new cookbook, the ice cream maker is all polished and shiny but we need something to cool us down…now! Yes, we could go and buy some but what fun would that be when I can whip this little cuties out?!

The day I made the Banana-Chocolate Bonbons I doubled on the recipe since it was pretty tasty. Turned out that half of the chocolate pudding stayed in the fridge while I tended to other creations. To top things off, we did not really feel like eating it "like that", so I came up with these.

Dark Chocolate Ice Cream Pops:

Chocolate Pudding:

1/2 cup sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

4 ounces fine-quality bittersweet chocolate

2 Tb cocoa powder

1 1/2 cups whole milk

1 large egg yolk

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

In a heavy saucepan whisk together sugar, cornstarch. Add chocolate and cocoa powder to sugar mixture. In a bowl whisk together milk and egg yolk and gradually whisk into chocolate mixture. Bring mixture just to a boil over moderate heat, whisking constantly, and boil 1 minute, whisking. Remove pan from heat and whisk in butter and vanilla.Divide pudding between two 8-ounce ramekins. Chill puddings in freezer, surfaces covered with plastic wrap, until cooled, about 30 minutes.

1 cup heavy cream, whipped to stiff peaks.

For the pops: once the pudding has cooled, gently fold the whipped cream into it. Pour the batter into 4 ice cram pops, or 4 glasses like I did. Put a wooden ice cream stick on the middle, and freeze until firm.

Easy to make on a hot day and easier to eat on a hotter day!

Banana-Pistachio Bonbons & Chocolate Pudding

19.04.2007 24 Comments

Or…"monkeying around instead of finishing my spring cleaning"… according to B.

Right then I lifted my eyebrows and replied "well then, if this is monkeying around I am sure you won’t care if I eat it all …"

I have never seen a man picking up a vacuum cleaner faster than he did when he saw what I had just pulled out of the oven! Up until know I had never seen the necessity to re-arrange our cleaning responsabilities so why do it now…"I feed you honey, give you clean clothes and love you, darling…Keep vacuuming"

A conversation on the state of the pantry and the fridge with my dear friend C. made me realize it was about time to organize my shelves again and use the (many) items i had bought for a particular recipe that I had never gotten around to make or that left me with extra "stuff" such spices, flours, extracts and in this case spring roll wrappers (scroll down to the bottom of the link) and plenty of fine chocolate needing to be used!

I had bananas getting tired of staring at us day after day, pistachios about to take a trip to the neighbors' because they were feeling abandoned, and wrappers about to get as wrinkly as prunes, and plenty of chocolate to share the love.

I decided to make little banana packets with the spring roll dough and I shaped them into candy wrappers, baked them and served with some form of chocolate… When I usually make them, I use vanilla beans cut in half lengthwise to tied the ends but I did not feel like using my precious loot on a casual weeknight dinner.
Instead of making my staple chocolate sauce of heavy cream, chocolate and spat of butter (which works great as an impromptu fondue), I decided to make B.’s childhood favorite: chocolate pudding. I grew up on mousse, he loves his mama’s pudding…except dear mother-in-law never seems to find the recipe…I got inspired by this one from Gourmet Magazine, and the serving amount was perfect for 2, no sharing…!

Banana and Pistachio Bonbons:

Serves 2

4 spring roll wrappers
2 bananas
1 Tb. lemon juice
1/4 cup toasted, chopped pistachios
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup of butter, melted

Peel the bananas and cut them into small cubes, add the lemon juice.
Lay a wrapper down on a clean cutting board, brush with some melted butter, sprinkle with 1 Tb of sugar, add 3 Tb or so of diced banana, add 1 Tb of pistachios. Roll the wrapper into a log and secure the ends with kitchen strings or vanilla bean (cut in half and soften if necessary), to form a candy wrapper type package.
Repeat with the remaining ingredients and bake for 10-20 minutes or until golden brown.
Let cool to room temperature.

Chocolate Pudding, adapted from epicurious:

Serves 2

1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
4 ounces fine-quality bittersweet chocolate
2 Tb cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1 large egg yolk
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon vanilla

In a heavy saucepan whisk together sugar, cornstarch. Add chocolate and cocoa powder to sugar mixture.
In a bowl whisk together milk and egg yolk and gradually whisk into chocolate mixture. Bring mixture just to a boil over moderate heat, whisking constantly, and boil 1 minute, whisking. Remove pan from heat and whisk in butter and vanilla.
Divide pudding between two 8-ounce ramekins. Chill puddings in freezer, surfaces covered with plastic wrap, until cooled, about 30 minutes.

I regret I did not make more for tonight…the wrappers are good any time of the day, cold-warm-hot. And the pudding….I scored major points with B. Good I have got a birthday coming up!

Lemon Surprises

05.02.2007 11 Comments

I really did not want to call these by their "real" name because of the ill sound it produces in my ear everytime I serve them to guests. They are "lemon sauce puddings"…uh…they are more like a cross between a mousse, a curd and a fallen souffle. They rise a tiny bit once in the oven, the top layer is a perfect tender mousse and when your spoon reaches the bottom you scoop out a nice lemon sauce/ curd. There are many versions of this dessert and the night I made these for guests, I noticed that Lisa posted one of them.

I found this particular one on a site that I love, Lex Culinaria, and the history behind them is as lovely as the outcome:

Lemon Surprises, adapted from Lex Culinaria:

preheat oven to 350F
juice and rind of 1 lemon
1 cup sugar
2 Tablespoons flour
2 egg yolks
pinch salt
1 cup milk
2 egg whites, beaten until stiff but not dry peaks form

Sift together dry ingredients and combine with yolks. Add in milk, lemon juice and rind. Fold in beaten egg whites.
Spread batter in bottom of 4 ramequins and place baking dish inside a larger baking dish or roasting pan. Fill outer pan with hot water until the water comes halfway up the sides of the pudding dish. Place whole contraption in the oven and bake for 35 minutes.