Chocolate Almond Macaroons

With the help of my beautiful new Kitchenaid Artisan mixer that I was given for Christmas, I have finally been able to perfect my recipe for Chocolate Almond Macaroons. Of all the cookies I make, these are my father's favourite because they're relatively healthy. They contain no butter/shortening/oil, no flour and minimal sugar but are nevertheless delicious.

2oz bittersweet chocolated, melted
2 1/2 cup ground almonds
1/2 cup sugar
3 egg whites*
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp almond extract
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder

1. Preheat oven to 325C.
2. Add almonds, sugar, egg whites, vanilla extract, almond extract, baking soda and baking power to a large mixing bowl.
3. Mix on the lowest speed until the dough just comes together.
4. Add the melted chocolate and continue mixing on low until the chocolate is incorporated.
5. Measure out dough using a teaspoon and gently shape into a ball. Make sure you do not squeeze the dough or they will not expand properly in the oven.
6. Slightly flatten into cookies, gently.
7. Bake for 12-15 minutes until the tops of the cookies crackle and slightly firm to the touch.

Remember: the key to this recipe is to be gentle!

*If using liquid egg whites, use 1/4 cup

Optional: Add 1/3 cup chopped dried cranberries and only 2/3 cup sugar.

Cottage Cheese Pancakes

One of my favourite food websites is the Gourmet magazine website, which I came across after watching their show Diary of a Foodie. It's basically my go-to source for when I'm in the mood to make an interesting dish, which is why I was so incredibly upset to learn that after 68 years, Gourmet magazine will cease to exist. One of my favourite recipes that I discovered on the Gourmet website is for Cottage Cheese Pancakes.
These light and savoury pancakes are perfect for brunch or as an appetizer since they are really quick and easy to whip up.

Recipe:
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tbsp butter
1/4c butter, melted
1 1/2c cottage cheese
3 eggs
6 tbsp flour
salt and pepper, to taste

1. Melt 2 tbsp of butter in a skillet on medium heat. Once melted, add the onion and cook until softened.
2. Transfer onion to a mixing bowl and add the rest of the ingredients. Mix well to incorporate.
3. Drop large spoonfuls of the batter into a greased skillet and fry as you would a regular pancake. Cook on one side until you can easily flip the pancake. Make sure both sides are browned nicely.

I hope you enjoy these as much as I do!

Coq Au Vin

So I went to see the Julia Child movie, Julie & Julia, over the weekend and came out inspired. I decided to try Julia Child's recipe for Coq au Vin, which I found on the Food Network website:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/saras-secrets/chicken-in-red-wine-with-onions-mushrooms-and-bacon-coq-au-vin-recipe/index.html

From start to finish, the dish took three hours to prepare...and it was worth every minute! While I was making the sauce, I found myself making sure it was seasoned properly about every 2 minutes! As amazing as it was and as sacrilegious as it is to defy Julia Child, there are some adjustments that I would make the next time I prepare the recipe just to make life easier, as well as some timing tips:

1. Instead of using a whole frying chicken, I would use chicken breasts or legs depending on you preference for white or dark meat. Personally I love the dark meat of chicken legs so I would use those, however breasts are definitely easier to eat daintily. Another thing to keep in mind when choosing what part of the chicken you want use is that drumsticks will include bones that add more flavour, whereas breasts may not.

2. I used brandy instead of cognac in the sauce because it's not as expensive and it was still wonderful.

3. After adding the wine and seasonings (tomato paste, garlic, herbs) to the chicken, instead of letting the meat cook in the stock for 20-25 minutes, I would only let it cook for 5-10 minutes. I found that the chicken was slightly dry and overcooked when I let it simmer for so long in the stock. You have to remember that the meat will continue to cook even when you remove it from the heat and it will cook again when it is put back into the reduced sauce. But you should still check to make sure that it cooked entirely so that you don't serve raw chicken!

4. I used 3 three small white onions instead of pearl onions because that's what I had and it worked out well. With respect to timing, the onions can be peeled (and chopped) while the bacon is cooking in the water.

5. The mushrooms can be prepared while the sauce is reducing since this takes the most time. When browning the mushrooms, remember "not to crowd the mushrooms or they will not brown properly!" I browned a handful of mushrooms at a time, switching them with uncooked mushrooms once they were nicely browned then put everything back in the pan with the shallots to cook some more.

6. Once the mushrooms were cooked, I braised the onions in water with the herb bouquet. I did not have any cheesecloth lying around so I just wrapped the herbs in a little packet using a paper towel and some twine.

7. After whisking in the beurre manie, I still found the sauce to be a little thin so I added some dissolved cornstarch to thicken it a little more, however this can be adjusted to your liking.

8. When I was ready to serve dinner, I added the chicken back into the sauce to simmer for a few minutes and at the same time I reheated the mushrooms and onions.

Despite how long it takes to cook down the sauce, this recipe is quite easy to prepare. The name and description is definitely intimidating but once you break it down, it's not that bad. Really, what's three hours on a lazy Sunday afternoon when you get to "test" this phenomenal sauce every couple of minutes and then serve a ridiculously fulfilling dish for dinner. I will warn you though that people will harass you for cooking chicken in red wine because they generally think that chicken only goes with white wine. Kick them. Kick them out of your kitchen and threaten not to let them have any of this delicious meal unless they stop with the blind criticisms. And then rub their faces in it when they have to admit how good chicken tastes in a red wine sauce.

In the words of Julia Child, "Bon appetit!"

P.S. Everyone MUST go see Julie & Julia. Meryl Streep is incredible in the role of Julia Child, but this really isn't a huge surprise...

Chocolate Almond Mousse Cake

So I know I wanted to make this blog about interesting flavour combinations, and I will still be writing about those that I come across...but I also want to write about "gourmet" recipes that seem hard to make and try to make them less terrifying.

For my dad's birthday I decided to make him a Chocolate Hazelnut Mousse cake but since he told me that he preferred almond, I changed the recipe to accomodate him. I found the recipe for this cake on the Gourmet magazine website: http://www.gourmet.com/recipes/2000s/2006/02/chocolateglazedmoussecake

Here is the altered Almond Mousse Cake recipe:

Chocolate Almond Mousse Cake

Shortbread Base:
2 tablespoons ground almonds

3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/8 teaspoon salt

1 tsp almond extract

Mousse:
2 teaspoon unflavored gelatin

6 tablespoons cold water
1 cup almond butter

6 teaspoons sugar

4 teaspoons cocoa powder
1 cup mascarpone

3 cups chilled heavy cream
4 tablespoons cocoa powder
6 tablespoons sugar

Ganache topping:
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon heavy cream
3 1/2 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°F with the rack on the middle shelf.

Invert bottom of springform pan (to make it easier to slide off shortbread base), and lock sides on to bottom.

Grease the pan.

Combine ground almonds with sugar, flour, butter, cocoa, salt and almond extract in a food processor and pulse until a dough forms.
Press dough evenly onto bottom of springform pan with your fingers.

Prick all over with a fork, then bake until just dry to the touch, about 15 minutes.

Cool base completely.

While the shortbread cools, make the mousse:
Sprinkle gelatin over water in a heavy saucepan and let stand until softened, about 5 minutes. Heat gelatin mixture over low heat, stirring, just until gelatin is melted, about 2 minutes.

In a small bowl, mix almond butter with 2 tsps cocoa powder and 3 tsps sugar until well blended.

Whisk in chocolate almond mixture into gelatin until combined then remove from heat.
Whisk chocolate almond mixture into mascarpone in a large bowl.

Beat together cream, 2 tbsps cocoa powder, and 3 tbsps sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at low speed until just combined, then increase speed to high and beat until cream just holds soft peaks.

Whisk one third of whipped cream into mascarpone mixture to lighten, then fold in remaining whipped cream until well combined.

Spoon filling onto completely cooled shortbread base in pan, gently smoothing top, then chill, covered, at least 3 hours.

Ganache:

Bring cream to a simmer in a small heavy saucepan and remove from heat.

Add chocolate and let stand 1 minute, then gently whisk until completely melted and smooth. Transfer ganache to a small bowl and cool, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened but still pourable, about 20 minutes.
Run a warm thin knife around inside of springform pan, then remove side.

Slide cake off bottom of pan and transfer to a serving plate.

Pour ganache onto top of cake and spread, allowing excess ganache to drip down sides.

Decorate with almond slivers.

(Original Recipe By Maggie Ruggiero)

Besides using almonds instead of hazelnuts, I also doubled the recipe for the mousse because I found that the cake came out too short. Otherwise, I really enjoyed this recipe, especially with the almond alternative, because it wasn't too sweet and was very light. I also added almond extract into the base to bring out more almond flavour. If I were making the hazelnut version of the cake, I would add a teaspoon of frangelico (hazelnut-flavoured) liqueur.

Enjoy!

P.S. I just tried making this cake with the doubled mousse...words cannot even express my amazement. The satisfaction of pouring that amount of chocolate almond or hazelnut mousse into the cake pan is an experience of its own. DO NOT make this cake unless you are prepared to double the mousse (which has already been done in my version of the recipe).

Ricotta-Stuffed French Toast

My favourite meal of the day is breakfast. I love eggs and how versatile they are. I love them fried, scrambled, baked, poached, sunny-side up, benedict, florentine, but most of all soft. I usually prefer savoury breakfast dishes over sweet ones. Anyone who knows me knows what a salt fiend I am...thank goodness for my low blood pressure! Occasionally however, I am curious about the sweeter side of the menu...so I came across a recipe of French Toast stuffed with ricotta cheese that I just had to try:

Ingredients:

2 cups fresh mixed berries
1/4 cup sugar

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2/3 cup low-fat ricotta cheese
1/4 cup strawberry jam

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3 large eggs
2/3 cup evaporated milk
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla flavoring
1/2 teaspoon almond flavoring

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12 slices French bread or Texas toast (1/2" to 3/4" thick)

1 tablespoon vegetable oil, butter or margarine

Directions
1. Combine berries and sugar in small bowl, set aside.

2. Combine ricotta cheese and strawberry preserves in another small bowl and mix well.

3. Combine the eggs, milk, brown sugar, and vanilla in a deep-dish pie plate or shallow bowl and mix well.

4. Spread ricotta preserve mixture evenly over 6 slices of bread.

5. Top with remaining slices of bread to form a sandwich. Press the outer edges together slightly with a fork to keep the filling in place.

6. Heat a small amount of oil in a large frying pan or griddle over medium heat. Dip each sandwich in the egg mixture, turning to coat both sides.

7. Cook each side about 2 minutes till golden brown.

8. Serve this French toast with butter, maple syrup, a spoonful of the sugared berries, and a dusting of powdered sugar (confectioners sugar).

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When I made this recipe, I made a few adjustments to make things easier. I didn't have fresh berries on hand so I eliminated those as well as substituted skim milk for evaporated milk. Instead of just dipping the sandwich into the egg mixture, I let it soak for a few minutes on each side. In the end, the final product was quite decadent. As I prefer salt to sugar, I found it to be too sweet for my personal tastes but I have a certain soon-to-be diabetic friend who would love this dish. For myself, I might not mix jam in with the ricotta stuffing next time in attempt to lessen the sweet factor.

The recipe was found at:
http://www.breakfast-and-brunch-recipes.com/stuffedfrenchtoast.html

Nice to meet you...

Hello World!

I love food. I love making it, eating it, and discovering it. I am very interested in unique and different flavour combinations. I decided to start a blog to document interesting flavours and recipes that I come across. This blog will not be exclusive to stranger tastes, but I will be posting about any intriguing flavour combinations that I encounter, any interesting recipes that I try, basically any memorable food experience I have.

Hope you enjoy!
C~