Category Archives: Desserts, Sweets

BAKED COCONUT & “THE BRAZILIAN KITCHEN”

Posted on June 1, 2012 | 19 Comments

Or, you can call it as Brazilians do: Cocada de Forno

I am very excited to share this recipe, because it’s a very traditional Brazilian delicacy, one that brought me fond memories. Full disclosure: as a child, I wasn’t too wild about coconut, the texture and the way the shredded pieces got into my teeth distracted from its flavor. Thankfully I grew out of that phase, and now embrace the fruit’s unique flavor and texture with the appreciation it deserves. Cocada is a popular street food, sold in markets and coffee joints as small pieces wrapped in a paper napkin. You can take a look at them here. This version, from the book “The Brazilian Kitchen“, will produce a softer version, to be spooned out of a baking dish, or – if baked a little longer, as I did – a sort of blondie with intense coconut flavor. Absolutely perfect for a spring or summer day, it might very well bring a blast of sunshine to your deepest winter.

COCADA DE FORNO (BAKED COCONUT)
(published with permission from Chef Leticia Schwartz)

8 Tbs butter (1/2 cup), at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 eggs
1/3 cup coconut milk
1/3 cup sweetened, condensed milk
1 Tbs rum (optional)
1 + 1/2 cups grated coconut (unsweetened)
2 Tbs all-purpose flour, sifted

Heat the oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 24-oz baking dish with butter or cooking spray.

Place the butter and the sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, and beat them together at medium speed until creamy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, and continue to mix. Scrape the sides of the bowl after each addition.

Add the coconut milk, the condensed milk, and the rum (if using), and continue to mix until well blended (about one more minute). Add the coconut and mix until incorporated. Fold the flour with a rubber spatula, and spread the batter into the prepared baking dish. You can make the batter ahead of time, keeping it in the fridge for up to 2 days.

Bake in the 350 F oven until the top looks golden brown, the edges are set, but the center is slightly jiggly, about 20 minutes (or if you prefer a firmer consistency, bake until set, 30 to 35 minutes). Remove it from the oven and let it rest for 10 minutes. Serve with a scoop of lemon sorbet for a magical experience…

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

About “The Brazilian Kitchen“: As you may remember, I’ve been on a self-induced cookbook-starvation-diet lately. I bought this book as a gift for a dear friend, and had it at my bedside table for a few days. I knew I had to say goodbye to it, but Leticia’s writing and her recipes were so enticing that I decided to photocopy some (many) pages. Well, I didn’t have to: Phil ordered one for me! So, that explains how a person fully resolved not to buy cookbooks still manages to increase her collection…

I could not be happier with my gift! Leticia covers many of my favorite Brazilian recipes, some of which I’ve featured in the blog: moqueca, chicken soup, black beans, pao de queijo, and brigadeiros. Speaking of brigadeiros, she includes three recipes for them: the traditional chocolate, and two tasty departures from the classic, coconut and pistachio brigadeiros. Dreamy delight…

You will also find recipes for many other Brazilian classics: acaraje‘ (bean fritters), xim xim de galinha (chicken, shrimp, peanut and cashew stew), vatapa‘ (fish puree with coconut milk), quindim (coconut custard cake).

But, what I like the most about “The Brazilian Kitchen“ is that Leticia goes beyond the classics, and brings very creative dishes to the table, like “caipirinha risotto”, a playful take on the great Italian dish, using the ingredients of Brazil’s signature drink: pinga and lime juice.

Want some more teasers? Red pepper and Brazil nut pesto, sole with coconut ginger sauce, tilapia with acai’ sauce, dulce de leche molten cake, Passion fruit cannoli… many wonderful temptations to cook and enjoy!

If you are curious about Brazilian cooking, this book is a must-have, so help the economy with a click... And, if you want to see Chef Leticia in action (she is also a great teacher!) jump here for a demonstration on making cod fritters.

Leticia, thank you for allowing me to publish your recipe, and I look forward to your next cookbook!

ONE YEAR AGO: Two-Stage Risotto

TWO YEARS AGO: Life is a matter of taste (and I still miss you, David Rosengarten!)

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Posted in Desserts, Sweets

Tagged baked coconut, Brazilian cooking, Brazilian dessert, cocada, cocada de forno, coconut, shredded coconut

THE SECRET RECIPE CLUB: TRIPLE CHOCOLATE BROWNIES

Posted on April 30, 2012 | 53 Comments

The last Monday of the month is the much awaited Reveal Day for Group D of The Secret Recipe Club! For those who don’t know about it, The Secret Recipe is an event in which food bloggers from the same group are paired (in secret), and have about 3 weeks to choose a recipe from their assigned blog, cook it, and compose a blog. Everyone publishes their post on reveal day at the exact same time. How cool is that? If you want to become a member (beware, there is a waiting list), visit the site and get in touch with Amanda, the founder of this fun group.

For my sixth participation at the SRC I was paired with “The More than Occasional Baker”, a virtual spot hosted by a very accomplished baker from London. She defines herself as a “baking addict”, and as I browsed through her blog, it was clear she was not kidding! What is a poor cake-o-phobe blogger to do when faced with such a Herculean task? Knowing my limitations, I searched for something that wouldn’t involve creaming butter with sugar, preparing an Italian meringue, or handling icing bags. Suddenly, three beautiful words comforted my soul: triple chocolate brownies. Anything with triple chocolate makes me go weak in the knees, and I am quite fond of brownies because for the most part they are fuss-free. Plus, once I read her post about the recipe, I wanted to stop everything and go buy the three kinds of chocolate (and a little extra of the white, just because… )

TRIPLE CHOCOLATE BROWNIES
(from The More than Occasional Baker)

200g bittersweet chocolate (1 cup)
50g milk chocolate (1/4 cup)
225g butter (1 cup or 2 sticks)
4 eggs
325g unrefined golden caster sugar (I used light brown sugar) (1 + 1/2 cups)
0.5 tbsp vanilla essence
200g white chocolate (1 cup)
150g plain flour, sifted (1 + 1/2 cup)
pinch of salt

Heat the oven to 360 F (180 C). Line a baking dish (11in x 7in x 2.5 in) with parchment paper. Break the bittersweet and milk chocolate into pieces, and melt in the microwave with the butter. Let the mixture cool slightly.

Chop the white chocolate not too finely. Reserve.

In a separate bowl, beat the eggs, sugar, and vanilla. Whisk this mixture in the cooled chocolate/butter, then fold the flour, the salt, and finally the chunks of white chocolate.

Pour the mixture in the prepared baking dish, place in the oven and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the top is dry and cracked, and the center still moist when tested with a toothpick.

Remove from the oven, cool over a rack, and when the brownie is at room temperature, remove from the pan and cut in squares.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: If you are not too fond of white chocolate, MAKE THESE BROWNIES ANYWAY. They are amazing! We took them to the lab to celebrate one of our students passing his qualifying exam, and they disappeared in a few minutes! The crumbs left on the serving plate were fought over with considerable enthusiasm by two members of our group, normally quite well-mannered.

They are fudgy, dense, moist, sweet, decadent, with a nice crunchy surface that provides a perfect contrast with the creamy center. The white chocolate, kept in chunks, is a superb touch, don’t skip it. I didn’t add nuts (macadamia would be the number 1 choice), because one of our students is allergic to them.

I couldn’t be happier with this month’s adventure! Stop by “The More than Occasional Baker” to see all the goodies she makes on a regular basis. Maybe I should become a more regular baker myself

Check out all other posts from bloggers in my group, by clicking on the blue frog at the very end of this post…

ONE YEAR AGO: Springtime Salad

TWO YEARS AGO: Indonesian Delight

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Posted in Desserts, Sweets, Secret Recipe Club

Tagged brownies, chocolate brownies, Secret Recipe Club, triple chocolate brownies

GOT STOUT?

Posted on March 24, 2012 | 32 Comments

Make a chocolate stout cake!

This wasn’t just any stout beer …it was a stout made by Chuck, a graduate student in our lab, who is soon to become Dr. Chuck. In my husband’s opinion he already deserves a PhD in beer making. We like to think that growing bacteria in our lab on a regular basis helped him master the brewer’s yeast, but maybe that’s just wishful thinking. What matters is that Chuck has been producing amazing beer, and he often shares his favorites with us. I love to cook with beer, so when he gave us a couple of bottles of his oatmeal stout I immediately reserved one to make this cake. As an added bonus, it gave me a chance to use this very cool baking pan, that was sitting ignored in our kitchen for way too long, from my cake-phobia.

CHOCOLATE STOUT CAKE
(from Bon Appetit, September 2002)

1 cup stout beer
1 cup unsalted butter
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (Dutch-process)
2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1 + 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
2/3 cup sour cream
Heat the oven to 350°F. If using a bundt type pan (or the flower pan I did), make sure to coat all the ridges with melted butter, using a brush. Bring 1 cup stout and 1 cup butter to simmer in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add cocoa powder and whisk until the mixture is fully smooth. Allow it to cool slightly.

In a large bowl, whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, and 3/4 teaspoon salt. In another bowl, beat eggs and sour cream until blended, preferably using an electric mixer. Add the beer-chocolate mixture to the egg- sour cream and beat just until combined. Add flour mixture and beat briefly on slow speed. Using a spatula, fold the batter to make sure everything is well mixed, with no clumps of flour remaining.

Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, 35to 40 minutes for a single cake, or 25 to 30 minutes for a 6-single cake pan. Transfer cake to rack; cool completely in the pan, then turn cake out onto rack. Serve with a dust of powdered sugar on top, if so desired.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

To my taste, this cake is close to perfect! The bitterness of the beer cuts any excessive sweetness, making this chocolate cake a “grown-up” dessert. The original recipe called for a ganache coating, but I opted for a light dusting of powdered sugar instead.

The flower pan makes for a nice presentation, but one cake might be a bit too big for a single person. I was happy with half, saving the other half for later. About 5 minutes later, that is…

ONE YEAR AGO: The Odd Couple

ONE YEAR AGO: Cottage Loaf and Yeasty Dogs

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Posted in Desserts, Sweets

Tagged chocolate cake, chocolate stout cake

SECRET RECIPE CLUB: EARTHQUAKE COOKIES!

Posted on February 27, 2012 | 24 Comments

After one month break, we are back with “The Secret Recipe Club“, and our group even has a new moderator, April, who did a great job coaching us through the changes that took place during the break. For those who are not familiar with the event, a few weeks before reveal day, each member is assigned a food blog (in secret) to cook a recipe from. This time I was paired with My Judy the Foodie. When I get an assignment, I jump straight to the “About” page, to get to know my fellow blogger. Shari describes herself as a “kitchen-clueless person”. But one who is ready for a challenge, the challenge of creating new traditions for her own family, inspired by her mother’s cooking. The whole blog is in fact a beautiful tribute to her Mom. Her page “About Judy” was particularly touching to read.

I next browsed through her recipes, and it didn’t take me very long to choose her beautiful “Earthquake Cookies“. Considering the fact that while living for one year in Los Angeles we didn’t have a single earthquake, but the very week we moved back to Oklahoma the earth shook three days in a row, I felt these cookies were the perfect choice!
JUDY’S EARTHQUAKE COOKIES
(from My Judy the Foodie)

8 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 squares unsweetened chocolate
2 tsp vanilla
2 tsp baking powder
2 cups sugar
4 eggs beaten
2 cups flour, sifted
1/2 tsp salt
1 + 1/2 cups of confectioner’s sugar

Melt chocolate and butter in a microwave safe container, stirring every 15 seconds.

Beat the eggs in a large bowl, add the sugar, vanilla extract, and melted chocolate/butter mixture. Add the baking powder, flour, and salt and beat until very smooth.

Place bowl in fridge and chill as long as 24 hours.

Heat the oven to 350 F. Cover two cookie sheets with parchment paper. Place confectioner’s sugar in bowl large enough to roll out the fudge balls. Take a teaspoon of the cookie dough and form into balls. Coat the ball with confectioner’s sugar by rolling it around in the sugar many times.

Place on baking sheet with enough room for each ball to “explode” open. Bake for approximately 12 minutes (mine took longer). Cool and then remove cookies to wire rack (make sure to place foil under the rack as powdered sugar can be quite messy).

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: When you make these cookies, don’t forget the cookie dough must sit in the fridge for 24 hours. Once you mix the dough, it will be very soft, the only way you can shape them is by refrigerating for several hours. As far as taste goes, a full day in the fridge seems to be the best option.

Here you can see the dough right after mixing it…

and next day, ready to finish the job…

My cookies did not explode the same way Shari’s did, her cookies looked a lot more “interesting” than mine. Not sure what happened, I suspect the geologic fault that runs near our home was fast asleep when I put them in the oven. Bummer! However, exploded or not, these cookies were VERY tasty. They have a slightly fudgy consistency, and as they melt in your mouth the chocolate flavor will force you to close your eyes and indulge in extremely happy thoughts. My kind of cookie!

Shari, nice to meet you through The Secret Recipe Club! Looking forward to checking out what was your assignment this month!

ONE YEAR AGO: A Soft Spot for Chevre

TWO YEARS AGO: Seared Tuna, My Own Private Idaho

→ 24 Comments

Posted in Desserts, Sweets, Secret Recipe Club

Tagged chocolate cookies, cookies, earthquake cookies

CARAMELIZED BANANAS

Posted on February 16, 2012 | 42 Comments

First, let me to introduce the world’s expert on caramelized bananas, my Mom!
If I had to select one recipe to always associate with her, I’d pick caramelized bananas. When I was a child she’d make a batch almost every week, using different types of bananas from the street markets of Sao Paulo. Sometimes, depending on the variety she found at the market, the “doce de banana” turned almost purple when she cooked it, which was quite interesting. For my Brazilian readers, “banana prata” was the one that acquired the reddish-purple color. But, the regular Brazilian banana, which is the one on the shelves here in the US, was her top choice, because both me and my Dad loved it the most. It gets dark brown, with an intense, sweet flavor and a splash of freshness from the lemon juice squeezed at the end. So, when I saw this recipe in the February issue of Food and Wine I immediately went to work, making a batch of caramelized bananas, and using some for this delicious frozen yogurt treat.

CHOCOLATE FROZEN YOGURT WITH CARAMELIZED BANANAS
(adapted from Food and Wine magazine)

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 large ripe bananas, cut into 1-inch rounds
3 tablespoons light brown sugar
squeeze of lemon juice
1 tablespoon dark rum
1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons 2 percent milk (divided)
2 + 1/2 tablespoons Dutch-process cocoa powder
2/3 cup granulated sugar
Pinch of salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 + 1/3 cups nonfat Greek yogurt
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

In a nonstick skillet, melt the butter. Add the bananas in a single layer and sprinkle with the brown sugar. Cook over moderate heat, turning once, until caramelized, about 8 minutes. Squeeze a little lemon juice all over. Remove the pan from the heat, add the rum and swirl the pan to completely dissolve the sugar. Scrape three-quarters of the bananas into a food processor and add 3 tablespoons of the milk. Puree until smooth. Transfer the puree to a small bowl and freeze until chilled, 15 minutes. Chop the remaining bananas and freeze until chilled.

In another bowl, whisk the cocoa with the granulated sugar, salt, vanilla and the remaining 1/2 cup of milk. Whisk in the yogurt until smooth, then the banana puree.

Transfer the mixture to an ice cream maker and churn until nearly frozen. Mix in the chopped bananas and pieces of chocolate. Scrape the frozen yogurt into an airtight container, cover and freeze until firm, at least 2 hours.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Food memories are so powerful! As the bananas cooked down in the skillet, their aroma whisked me back to my parents’ home. Suddenly I was 17 again and rushing home from school, dashing to the kitchen, all tantalized by the smell of Mom’s caramelized bananas. Back home people like to pair them with farmer’s cheese or some vanilla ice cream, but I’m a purist: just a small bowl of “doce de banana,” and a tiny spoon to make sure the pleasure lasts longer…

I never imagined using them as part of a frozen dessert, but it is sublime! The yogurt reduces the sweetness, but the bits of banana and the chunks of chocolate bring it back, just enough to make you happy. It is still a light dessert, much lighter than ice cream, and perfect for someone who’s not wild about sugary concoctions. Come to think of it, the other day I found a recipe online for burnt orange ice cream, and my antennas immediately went up. But I found that it called for a cup and a half of heavy cream, a cup of whole milk, a ton of sugar, and 5 egg yolks. It’s easy to make a decadent dessert with such a surplus of fat, but as David Lebovitz points out in his book “The Perfect Scoop,“ it’s really not necessary, and this frozen yogurt proves his point.

ONE YEAR AGO: Roasted Lemon Vinaigrette

TWO YEARS AGO: Whole Wheat Bread

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Posted in Desserts, Sweets

Tagged bananas, caramelized bananas, chocolate, frozen dessert, frozen yogurt

BROWN BUTTER MAGIC

Posted on February 1, 2012 | 24 Comments

I got to know “Beautiful Disasters” through The Secret Recipe Club, when Casey, a very fit and active high school student, made a recipe from my blog. She hit the jackpot: her post was the most popular of our group! I always look forward to her articles, not only for the recipes, but for the “Random fact of the day“. Did you know that the average shoe size of a gorilla is 17? Well, I didn’t, but learned on her site.

Recently Casey wrote this enticing post about her favorite chocolate chip cookie, and the description and photos got my immediate attention. At first glance, the recipe seems pretty straightforward, using the usual suspects for this traditional American favorite: butter, sugar, baking soda, walnuts, and chocolate chips. But, what sets it apart is the browning of the butter, and the toasting & grinding of the walnuts. Brown butter. Ground walnuts. Who would imagine they could make a simple cookie so decadent and delicious?
BROWN BUTTER CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
(from Beautiful Disasters)

1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 + 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 + 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 + 1/2 cups chocolate chips
1 cups walnuts, toasted and ground
1-2 teaspoons of milk, as needed

The day before (or at least 3 hours before making the cookies), heat the butter over low heat in a small saucepan. It will foam and bubble, slowly acquiring a tan color. Keep stirring, watch it carefully so that the solids won’t burn. Cook until the butter is a deep caramel color (it took me over 12 minutes). Pour into a pyrex type dish, and refrigerate until solid.

Heat the oven to 300 degrees F, and toast the walnuts on a baking sheet for 12 minutes, or until fragrant and starting to get some color. Transfer to a small food processor and turn it on and off a few times, to grind the nuts. Reserve. (You can also finely chop them by hand, but it’s a bit cumbersome).

Cut the brown butter in small cubes, place it in the bowl of an electric mixer, and cream it with both sugars. Beat in the egg, vanilla, and baking soda. Add the flour and salt, mixing gently. Finally add the ground i nuts and chocolate chips. If the dough is too crumbly, add a couple of teaspoons of milk.

Scoop the dough onto cookie sheets lined with parchment paper, and bake in a 300 F oven for 18 minutes. Let cool on wire rack.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

These are some amazing cookies! Hot from the oven, they were simply irresistible… I had THREE cookies. Now, keep in mind that when I make a batch of cookies I eat one, and that is pretty much it for me. I had three. One, then another. And then another. (sigh)

My moment of pure joy, on a Sunday afternoon…

A cup of steaming spiced almond milk…. (for recipe, click here)