CHOCOLATE AND CHESTNUT TERRINE

Posted in Desserts, Sweets by sallybr

This delicacy deserves THE spotlight on the Hall of Fame of Desserts, perfect for closing with a golden key a very special dinner. It is classy, looks absolutely gorgeous, and according to Claudio, our dear friend who prepared it, it’s not too complicated to make. Granted, Claudio is a fantastic cook, so I wasn’t quite sure what to expect until he showed me the recipe. In this case, I must agree with him: if you have access to canned pureed chestnuts, this will be one of the simplest desserts you’ll ever make, but even if you don’t, making the puree is worth the effort, so you can taste this masterpiece and swoon with each bite.

TERRINE OF CHOCOLATE AND CHESTNUT PUREE
(from Le Cordon Bleu – Receitas Caseiras)

185 g (6.5 oz) semisweet chocolate, chopped
90 g (3.2 oz) butter, at room temperature
90 g (3.2 oz) granulated sugar
400 g (14 oz) canned chestnuts puree
¼ tsp instant coffee, diluted in 1 tsp warm water
¼ tsp vanilla
30 ml (1/8 cup) rum
shaved semisweet chocolate
fresh fruits of your choice (strawberries, blueberries, aguaymantos)

Lightly grease a loaf type pan with oil, cover the bottom with parchment paper, and oil the paper.

Melt the chopped chocolate in a bowl over simmering water (without letting the water touch the bottom of the bowl), stirring often. Once it is completely melted and smooth, allow it to cool for 5 minutes.

Beat the butter with the sugar in a KitchenAid type mixer until creamy. Incorporate the chestnut puree, and the melted chocolate. When the mixture is very smooth, add the vanilla, coffee, and rum. Pour into the prepared loaf pan, smooth the surface with the back of a spoon or a small icing spatula, cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for at least 12 hours.

To unmold, carefully run a spatula around the edges, invert the terrine on a serving platter, and decorate with fresh fruits of your choice, shaving chocolate all over.

Cut in slices, and serve. Count the seconds until the first compliment! 😉

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: This recipe is from a Brazilian edition of a Le Cordon Bleu publication from many years ago. I could not find a link to the specific book, but if you click here, you’ll be directed to the huge LCB collection available at amazon.com.

Both Phil and I were blown away by this dessert! It is creamy, rich, and even though I was firm on my intention of having a very small slice after the great dinner they had served us, I was powerless, unable to resist a second (bigger) slice. It melts in your mouth, with the fresh fruits balancing the intense chocolate flavor. The aguaymantos (fisalias in Portuguese) were a terrific touch, with their slightly tart taste and exotic look, they added extra pizazz to the dessert.
That’s what their garden looks like at winter time… a tropical paradise indeed!

ONE YEAR AGO: Bewitching Farro Salad

TWO YEARS AGO: From sea to table: sushi

9Aug2011

A YUMMY BRAZILIAN CAKE: BOLO DE FUBA’

Posted in Brazilian cooking, Desserts, Sweets by sallybr

I often say that I don’t care much for sweets, and visitors to the Bewitching likely realize that for me, savory stuff tops the sweets by a long, long margin. But, for many years I heard comments about my youngest niece’s cake skills (a gene that must have skipped my generation!), and now, finally, I had a chance to savor one of her specialties: a traditional Brazilian cornmeal cake, called “bolo de fuba’.” Her recipe has two interesting additions: a farmer’s type cheese and shredded coconut. Together, they produce a cake that´s moist, with just the right sweetness. If I had to describe it in a single word, that word would be irresistible.

RAQUEL’s BRAZILIAN CORNMEAL CAKE
(adapted from Na Cozinha com Carolina)

a little butter and flour to prepare the pan
4 eggs
3 cups of milk
1 + ½ cups sugar
2 Tbs butter
2 Tbs flour
1 cup cornmeal
100 g (4 oz) sweetened, shredded coconut
1 cup farmers type fresh cheese, coarsely grated
1 Tbs baking powder

Heat the oven to 350F. Prepare a round, medium size, ring cake type pan by buttering the inside and adding a small amount of flour, tapping off the excess.

Add all ingredients to a blender and mix until they form a smooth batter. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until a cake tester or toothpick comes out clean.

Let the cake cool for 10 to 15 minutes before unmolding. Serve it warm or cold.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: Bolo de fuba´ originates in Africa, in fact the name fubá means flour in kimbundu (spoken in Angola), but in Brazil it is used exclusively for what in the US is known as cornmeal. The Portuguese, main colonizers of Brazil, expanded the use of cormeal into all kinds of sweet and savory concoctions, including breads, as their famous “broa.”

Bolo de fuba´ is the type of cake one would expect to be served with a nice cup of coffee or tea in the middle of the afternoon, or at breakfast to start the day on a good vibe. As you can see from the photo below, this cake bakes in three distinct layers, a cornmeal cakey component on top, a creamy center, and the coconut flakes in the base.

Raquel´s version is the best I´ve ever had, making me lose all my composure and restraint, going back for another tiny sliver, and another, and another, until she could not take it anymore and said “why don´t you just cut a real slice and get it over with?” Wisdom comes in many forms. Lesson learned. 😉

ONE YEAR AGO: Hidden Treasure

TWO YEARS AGO: Avocado Three Ways

6Jul2011

INA GARTEN’S BANANA BRAN MUFFINS

Posted in Desserts, Sweets by sallybr

I don’t cook Ina Garten‘s recipes that often because they tend to be way too rich (says she who recently baked a cake with a few hundred calories per bite.. ;-)). But these muffins have just the right amount of indulgence, well balanced by all their healthy components: unprocessed bran, fruits, and nuts. I am always happy when I find a good recipe for bran muffins, Phil’s favorite ways to start the day: one of these babies, warmed up slightly in the oven, next to a steaming cup of cappuccino.

CHUNKY BANANA BRAN MUFFINS
(adapted from Ina Garten, FoodTV Network)

1 cup unprocessed wheat bran
1 cup buttermilk (shaken)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
2 + 1/2 large eggs, at room temperature
3 tablespoons molasses
2 tablespoons agave nectar
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 + 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup mixed dried raisins, blueberries, cranberries
1 cup large-diced bananas
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place paper liners into a muffin tin.

Combine the bran and buttermilk and set aside. Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer for about 5 minutes, until light and fluffy. With the mixer on low, add the eggs, one at a time. Scrape the bowl and then add the molasses, agave nectar, orange zest, and vanilla. (The mixture will look curdled.) Add the bran/buttermilk mixture and combine.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the flour mixture to the batter just until combined. Fold in the dried fruits, bananas and walnuts with a rubber spatula.

Fill the muffin cups to the top and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: Most recipes of this type call for over-ripe bananas, all brown and mushy. In this recipe, Ina used bananas that were good enough to eat as a fruit, ripe, but not falling apart at all. I was a bit intrigued, but followed her lead. Verdict: not only it works, but it’s probably what makes these muffins quite special, the little morsels of concentrated banana flavor.

Phil gave his seal of approval to the recipe, so all you bran muffin lovers can go ahead and give it a shot. 😉

ONE YEAR AGO: Beer Bread with Roasted Barley

TWO YEARS AGO: Tomato Confit with Arugula and Zucchini

18Mar2011

ALMOND BUTTER CAKE

Posted in Desserts, Sweets by sallybr

My dear friend and baker extraordinaire Heather wrote me an email a couple of weeks ago saying that she baked a delicious cake and thought I should give it a try because it was simple (in other words: Sally-proof) but quite flavorful. What is simple for Heather, is not necessarily simple for me, but when I read the recipe, I noticed that it did not have that scary “cream sugar with butter” step. Cautiously optimistic, I gave it a try. Indeed, this was one of the easiest cakes I’ve ever made, and each bite seemed to taste better than the previous one. Heather adapted the recipe from the winning entry in a C&H Sugar Baking Contest years ago.

ALMOND BUTTER CAKE
(from Heather’s kitchen)

½ C butter, melted
1 + ½ C sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp almond extract
1 + ½ tsp vanilla
¼ tsp salt
1 + ½ C flour
¼ C sliced almonds, lightly toasted
1 tablespoon sugar

Preheat oven to 350. Butter and flour a 9” round pan.

Beat sugar and melted butter together, add eggs and flavorings and beat well. Add salt and flour and mix just until blended. Spread in pan, sprinkle with sugar and almond slices.

Bake 30 to 35 minutes – it is better not to over-bake, so use a toothpick to test it, and as soon as it comes out almost clean, the cake will be ready. Cool on a rack for 15 minutes before unmolding it.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I served this cake next to strawberries and blueberries macerated with a small amount of sugar, and a dusting of powdered sugar on top, as suggested by Phil. Perfect indeed, the fruit went very well with the almond flavor and the tenderness of the cake. Sorry, no pictures of the sliced cake, often when we have guests I don’t feel like grabbing a camera and taking photos. Even served plain, this cake would shine next to a cup of tea on a sunny afternoon.

ONE YEAR AGO: Taillevent (a meal that shall never be forgotten…)

9Feb2011

SATURDAY MORNING SCONES

Posted in Desserts, Sweets by sallybr

Scones and bran muffins have something in common: they often make a bad first impression. Indeed, my first scone experience was over 10 years ago, and I’ve avoided them ever since. I had no intention of ever baking a batch, but a series of events made me reconsider. First, I saw this post at Lisa’s blog, which peaked my interest. Then, a few days later some friends raved about banana scones from the latest Fine Cooking. Any hope of removing scones from my mind were shattered when I asked Phil what I should make for our Saturday post-run breakfast? “How about some blueberry scones?” …was his response. The path of least resistance was beckoning, and I veered that way.

LEMON-GLAZED BANANA-BERRY SCONES
(adapted from Fine Cooking)

9 oz. (2 cups) all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2-1/4 tsp. aluminum-free baking powder
zest of 1 Meyer lemon
3/8 tsp. table salt
5-1/2 Tbs cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 small ripe banana, cut into 1/4-inch dice (1/2 cup)
1/2 to 3/4 cup dried blueberries and cranberries
3/4 cup plus 2 Tbs. heavy cream; more for brushing
For the glaze
3 oz. (3/4 cup) confectioners’ sugar
1-1/2 Tbs. fresh Meyer lemon juice
1 Tbs. unsalted butter, softened
pinch of salt

Heat the oven to 375°F.

In a large bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, lemon zest, and salt. Rub the pieces of butter into the flour mixture using your fingers until a few pea-size lumps remain. Stir in the banana and the dried fruits. Add the cream and stir the mixture with a fork until it comes together.

Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and pat gently into a 7-inch circle about 1 inch high. Cut the dough into 8 wedges. Transfer to a baking sheet lines with parchment paper, allowing 1 inch of space between the scones. Brush the tops with heavy cream and bake until the tops are golden and they feel firm to the touch – 20 to 25 minutes. Cool slightly on a wire rack before glazing.

To make the glaze, mix the confectioner’s sugar, lemon juice, butter, and salt, stirring until completely smooth. Drizzle the warm scones and serve them warm or at room temperature.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: The original recipe called for bananas and crystallized ginger. I’m insecure about changing baking recipes, especially the first time making them. However, being married to an incorrigible optimist helps a lot. ” Just skip the ginger and add the blueberries, it will be fine.” As I was preparing the ingredients he dug out a bag of dried cranberries and handed it to me: “…here, add these babies too, they’ll be some awesome scones”!

Well, he was right. The scones were delicious! Moist, flavorful, with a delicate banana flavor that although not pronounced, was definitely noticeable. The lemon glaze pumped them up another notch, so don’t skip it [yet another delicious use for those Meyer lemons. ;-)]

ONE YEAR AGO: Pain de mie au levain