I am not a fan of tiktok, but apparently this method to cut the potatoes was a huge hit a while ago, everybody doing, sharing videos, raving about it. I was intrigued, decided to give it a try. Super cool technique, and if you don’t need to make too many of those, the air-fryer does a great job. I made three, which fit well in the basket of our fryer. Most people deep fry the potatoes, but I almost never choose that path. I suppose you could use a very hot oven too, but I haven’t try it, so feel free to experiment. If you want to see how to cut the potatoes, this video explains it in detail.
ACCORDION POTATOES (from the Bewitching Kitchen)
3 large Russet potatoes olive oil salt and pepper
Peel the potatoes and trim them to form a nice rectangle shape. Place the trimmed potato over a cutting board, nudged between two chopsticks that will prevent your knife blade from cutting the potato all the way through. Make very thin slices – around 1mm thick. Turn the potato over, and make the same type of cut, but diagonally (check the video if you need clarification).
Thread a wooden skewer in the center of the cut potato and carefully open it like an accordion. Soak the potatoes and skewers in cold water for 30 minutes or so. Dry very well. Spray olive oil, season with salt and pepper and air-fry until golden brown, flipping the pieces every 5 minutes or so. Time will vary, depending on the power of your air-fryer and size of the potato.
You can deep fry if you prefer. Season with additional before serving.
Comments: It is hard to understand how to cut the potato without watching a video, so I advise you to either watch the one I linked in the post, or search the many options available on youtube. The most important thing is to cut the slices thin, or you won’t have the accordion effect. I sometimes wish we had a larger air-fryer, and this was definitely one recipe that would benefit from it. But for the two of us, three accordion slabs are enough, so no need to invest in a bigger machine.
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The best part is the crispy edge, but the center will be cooked nicely, very creamy. Even if you mess up and cut the slices a bit thick, it will work, but might take a little longer and not be so crispy. Experiment with it, we made it three times already. I intend to try with sweet potatoes soon…
I love to bake but we rarely have dessert at home. Only dinner parties will find us enjoying sweets after a meal. Still, when it is your perfect match’s Birthday, it is nice to close the meal with some sweetness. We wanted something light, no heavy laminated dough, no cake, no pie. I stumbled on this recipe by accident, simplified it quite a bit and we absolutely loved it! At the end of the post, I will give you a suggestion to turn it into a verrine, in case you do not want to go through the trouble of slicing the apples so thin.
APPLE CARPACCIO (from the Bewitching Kitchen)
1 apple (I used honey crisp) 1/3 cup pistachios, toasted 1/2 cup full-fat yogurt honey to taste 1/3 cup pomegranate seeds lemon juice
Cut the pistachios in small pieces, mix half with the yogurt, add honey to taste. Reserve the remaining pistachios.
Quarter the apple, core it, but do not peel it. Slice it super thin, ideally using a mandolin. Spread the slices over a plate, squirt lemon juice all over.
Place a dollop of yogurt in the center of the slices, top with pomegranate seeds and reserved pistachios. Drizzle with a little bit of honey and serve.
Comments: This was delicious, refreshing and light. I highly recommend it if you want to serve dessert but keep it on the light side. If you don’t own a mandolin and don’t want to go through the effort of cutting the apples by hand, dice the fruit and layer on a little glass. A layer of apple, some lemon juice, yogurt-pistachio layer, more apple, and top with the yogurt mix, finishing with pistachios, pomegranate seeds and a drizzle of honey. It will be a different serving style, but equally delicious.
Hard to believe another year is gone, I blinked twice and here we are… In My Kitchen posts are hosted by Sherry, from Sherry’s Pickings. Please visit her site to see whateverybody else is sharing this month. I join four times each year, on the first day of January, April, July and October. If you are a food blogger, considering taking part of this fun event. It is chance to share those little things you bought or received as gifts and that make your life in the kitchen easier.
Starting with gifts…
From my friend Caro, all the way from the UK this rolling pin to make phyllo dough from scratch arrived at my doorstep… Can you imagine my excitement? I have not been able to indulge in the adventure yet, but will do so very very soon. Stay tuned.
From our friend Dave, all the way from Oklahoma, very delicious pears, bursting with flavor and oh so juicy!
From my beloved husband, a coffee mug from our favorite artist (Mary Rose Young). He’s found this cup on eBay, as usual. It is my favorite now, she painted this one in 1995 if you can believe it. No idea how she paints the inside… it is just absolutely beautiful!
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From our friend Ines and her family all the way from New York, a double pleasure: Panforte from Siena, and a wonderful book!
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From our friends Pat and Bill, all the way from Michigan, a beautiful platter that shall be part of many cookie and dessert productions for years to come!
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AND NOW, LET ME SHOW YOU THE RECENT ACQUISITIONS IN THE BEWITCHING KITCHEN
In our kitchen…
I got the heads up about this product from my dear friend Elaine, her husband loves it. I decided to get some and wow, it is very very good! If you love chipotle flavor, go search for it and bring a bottle home.
In our kitchen…
I rarely buy prepared food in the supermarket but something about this product caught my attention. Maybe because it is cooked sous-vide. They have many different kinds, and this one really hit the jackpot with me. The sauce is hot but not overly so. The texture of the meat quite pleasant, so if you need a quick lunch, ready in less than 10 minutes, this line of product is a good option. No, we don’t use it for dinners, Phil is not fond of it, so it is my little dirty secret…
In our kitchen…
For those who live in our town, Manhattan, KS – this place is amazing. Right near Wal-Mart, they sell high-quality beef farmed from a place in Northern Kansas. We were super impressed by their store, it had the feel of the fancy butcher places from Paris. Everything beautifully packed, the store is clean, neat. And the meat absolutely wonderful. Click here for their website, or stop by for a visit.
In our kitchen…
A very special kind of brown sugar from Belgium, the one used to make authentic speculoos cookies. I had one experience with it using a recipe for springerle-type cookies but was not happy with it, so it is back to the drawing board on that. It is not always easy to find, even online, but you can take a look at amazon with a click here.
In our kitchen…
Speaking of springerle cookies, I got two new molds this year, but this one I have not yet used. Isn’t that gorgeous? My favorite animal shall be turned soon into a cookie entity… The mold was from Gingerhaus but is currently unavailable.
And the second new kid on the block? Cheeky Santa, available here….
In our kitchen…
These are great for cookies! I used to get exclusively PME spray but it is quite a bit more expensive. Thanks to Marlyn’s advice, I tried them. Excellent coverage, no after taste, although PME smells a little more like vanilla once it dries. I used these three in many different cookies over the holidays. They are usually available at stores such as Jo-Ann and sometimes even in grocery stores.
In our kitchen…
Hazelnut Bakery Emulsion from LorAnn. It has a strong smell that I did not care for, but it was recommended by a very reputable cookie baker, so I decided to go for it and use it in my sugar cookies. It is actually super nice, I love to pair it with I am pairing it with orange zest and orange extract, and find that combination particularly lovely. I have also used it to make buttercream for macaron fillings.
and now… it is time for the Dynamic Trio to bark their piece…
Prince, the Puppy, turned 6 months old and we cannot quite believe how big that little puppy got, in such a short period of time!
It seems like just the other day he was barely able to peek over the countertop…
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Whereas now……….
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Our home had turned into a very quiet, silent spot since BogeyQT left us, but Prince brought new energy to the whole pack…
He loves to play with Buck, all mornings start with several rounds of play. Of course, Oscar takes no part of it… (sigh)
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Here you have a short video of the Two Stooges in action… I absolutely love the way he always ends up rolling on the floor at some point….
Oscar all of a sudden shows a lot more interest in playing with whatever toy Prince fancies….
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Prince has a lot of respect for Oscar and will never challenge him.
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Prince just observes from a safe distance when Grumpy gets his Christmas gift….
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and all of a sudden two pups enjoy a game of tug of war, although NOT with each other!
. Prince adjusted to our routine as if he was born here… he is a fun pup to have around, super loyal, super affectionate and superbly naughty…. .
He is the Destroyer of Earrings…
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The Armageddon of Furniture
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The Chewer of Scrunchies
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The Stealer of Shoes
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But no one can resist his eyes inviting you to play….
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Or begging for a little sample from your plate….
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Or his incredibly cute head tilts…
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The video below on the day he turned 5 months (November 12th)
We feel so lucky to have him as part of our pack! And we hope we can help him explore the world and grow up to be the happiest pup in the known universe!
You can choose any filling you like, this post focuses on their shape or decoration. .
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DESIGN #1 TWO-TONE FLOWER
Basic French macaron recipe (click here to retrieve it), one small portion to be dyed red, the rest dyed green). Pipe shells in green, add a few dots of red to form a full or partial flower, then pull with the needle to give the petal shape. Once the shells are baked, I sprinkled gold luster in a random pattern for added bling. Filling was peppermint buttercream (recipe here).
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DESIGN #2 LEAF BORDER
Same basic recipe, dyed with Dusty Rose pink. Once the shells are baked and cooled, a very fine black pen is used to draw a simple pattern of leaves, and they are then painted with luster powder (I used gold and bronze). Filling was hazelnut buttercream.
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DESIGN #3 SHELLS
I have used the same French meringue basic recipe, but stopped the macaronage before it was fully smooth. I divided the batter in half, left some plain and dyed some pink. Then I marbled slightly the two colors together to pipe the shells. Using a small round piping tip, I piped shells like shown below. Filling was lemon buttercream. If you have a nice sprinkle that can work as a pearl, it could be a nice finishing touch. Mine was not the right size, so I skipped it.
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DESIGN #4 AIR-BRUSHING
Basic recipe dyed orange, and air-brushed with luster gold using a stencil. It is such a nice and easy way to decorate macarons very quickly. Filling was pumpkin ganache (recipe available here). I hope you can find inspiration for your next batch of macarons, these could very well help you celebrate the New Year, using any filling you love…
I love it when a friend shares a baking idea with me, and in this case I am talking about Alex, my tent-baker partner of three years ago (time flies!). I gilded the lily by coupling some air-brushing with the basic scoring pattern, and I must say I’m pretty smitten by this little loaf of sourdough, perfumed with a touch of za’atar.
ZA’ATAR CHRISTMAS SOURDOUGH (from the Bewitching Kitchen)
385g white bread flour 20g whole-wheat flour 65g sourdough starter at 100% hydration 280g water 8g salt 1 tsp za’atar
Make the levain mixture about 6 hours before you plan to mix the dough. It should be very bubbly and active.
When you are ready to make the final dough, place the water in the bowl of a KitchenAid type mixer and dissolve the starter in it, mixing with a spatula briefly, then add the two types of flour, the baharat and the salt. Turn the mixer on with the hook attachment and knead the dough for 4 minutes at low-speed all the time. If the dough is too sticky, add 1/4 cup flour, you want the dough to start clearing the sides of the bowl, but still be sticky at the bottom.
Remove from the machine, and transfer to a container lightly coated with oil, cover lightly with plastic wrap and allow it to ferment for 4 hours, folding every 45 minutes or so. After four hours bulk fermentation, shape the dough as a ball, and place, seam side up, in a lightly floured banetton. Leave at room temperature one hour, and then place in the fridge overnight, from 8 to 12 hours.
Next morning, heat the oven to 450F. Invert the dough over parchment paper, rub gently white flour on the surface. Score with a pine tree pattern (see picture below) and paint them with air-brush in green, then go over the center lines with gold luster powder.
Bake at 450F for 45 minutes, preferably covered for the first 30 minutes to retain steam. Cool completely over a rack before slicing.
Comments: Alex brought to my attention this post from Instagram, so you can check how it is scored by watching the reel. I used the air-brush to add some green to the trees after scoring. It worked great because it goes fast, but of course there is little precision on the edges. I then used gold to hide the green that sprayed in between the tree pattern. Just like the Instagram post, my central star also bursted in the oven, but such is the price you pay for good oven spring. The green faded a little bit during baking so next time I will use a heavier hand with the air-brush. Now that I know the colors of air-brush dyes work well, I will be playing with other patterns and bringing stencils to play too. Stay tuned!
