I swear I’ll do it every month and every month I still find myself daringly baking away through the last week prior to posting. Maybe just a bad habit I guess, but these challenges continue to challenge themselves and the time they are taking to complete. All fine and good if I’d not been away leaving me, to my surprise, without many of the key ingredients, like say, um, flour.

Getting my elbows deep in to the pastry for the Danish Braid challenge hosted up by Kelly of Sass & Veracity, and Ben of What’s Cookin’?, I realized I had to make a decision between the dribble of milk in my morning coffee or in the dough. Also, I didn’t have an orange, and had to sift out the bran from my whole wheat to make up for the other 2 cups of that missing flour. Brilliant.

Day two into the challenge I had to finally decide on a filling for the Danish Braid. Thankfully I’d had a general idea, which my pantry was able to make up for with the ingredients I had on hand. Since I’d never made a Danish Braid, I wanted to read up on what might be a classic filling and pair with something seasonal.

I went for a frangipane with fresh raspberries. At first I was thinking of childhood memories and thought that an almond based custard might be not quite my speed but when I blitzed it up and taste tested it, I had to keep reminding myself of the raw egg in the mix to keep my fingers out of the bowl.

To proof my braided dough faster, I covered it and put it into the shade of the muggy summer day. I baked and rotated leaving my house to smell like a hot buttery heaven. The pools of melted butter under the golden braid urged me to eagerly lift the pan from the heat of the oven. I photographed to resist the temptation of diving in, getting my fingers burned and brew a fresh cup of coffee.

Excitedly, I chose my props; plates, napkin and garnish. I sliced in to set up my next set of shots and my coffee break - only to find a gooey, yeasty dough waiting, unbaked surrounding the almond and berry filling. I thought I’d read the method wrong, but no. I thought it could have been my substitutions or my choice of filling, but I’d noticed others had softly filled their braids before me… Back to the pseudo drawing board and into the oven, tented in foil, it went again.

Time consuming, yes but it’s given my promise and a glimpse in to the flaky world of croissants and other puff pastries. Plus it was just in time to greet my Mom who was getting out of the hospital and sick of bad food.

DANISH BRAID
(Full of substitutions)

For the dough (Detrempe):

1 ounce fresh yeast or 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1/2 cup whole milk, I only had 1%
1/3 cup sugar
zest of 1 orange, finely grated, optional - I skipped it.
3/4 tsp ground cardamom, optional - at least in my case
1-1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped, you guessed it - I didn’t have one
2 large eggs, chilled
1/4 cup fresh orange juice, optional - I replaced it with more milk
3-1/4 cups all-purpose flour, 1 cup All Purpose & 2-1/2 cups well sifted whole wheat
1 tsp salt

For the butter block (Beurrage):

1/2 pound (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, mine was organic goat butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour

For the egg wash:

1 large egg, well beaten

To make the dough:

Combine yeast and milk in a bowl of a stand mixer on low speed or a with a whisk.
Add sugar, vanilla extract, (orange zest, orange juice cardamom, vanilla seeds, if using) and eggs; mixing well.
Sift flours and add in batches, along with the salt.
When the ingredients have been incorporated, knead the dough until it becomes smooth, around 5 to 7 minutes, adding more flour if the dough is sticky.
Transfer dough to a lightly floured baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

To make the butter block:

Combine butter and flour in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and beat on medium speed for 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and the paddle and then beat for 1 minute more, or until smooth and lump free. Set aside at room temperature.

After the detrempe (dough) has chilled 30 minutes, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough into a rectangle approximately 18 x 13 inches and ¼ inch thick. The dough may be sticky, so keep dusting it lightly with flour. Spread the butter evenly over the center and right thirds of the dough. Fold the left edge of the detrempe to the right, covering half of the butter. Fold the right third of the rectangle over the center third. The first turn has now been completed. Mark the dough by poking it with your finger to keep track of your turns, or use a sticky and keep a tally. Place the dough on a baking sheet, wrap it in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Place the dough lengthwise on a floured work surface. The open ends should be to your right and left. Roll the dough into another approximately 13 x 18 inch, ¼-inch-thick rectangle. Again, fold the left third of the rectangle over the center third and the right third over the center third. No additional butter will be added as it is already in the dough. The second turn has now been completed. Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes.

Roll out, turn, and refrigerate the dough two more times, for a total of four single turns. Make sure you are keeping track of your turns. Refrigerate the dough after the final turn for at least 5 hours or overnight. The Danish dough is now ready to be used. If you will not be using the dough within 24 hours, freeze it. To do this, roll the dough out to about 1 inch in thickness, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and freeze. Defrost the dough slowly in the refrigerator for easiest handling. Danish dough will keep in the freezer for up to 1 month.

Assembling:

Line a baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper. On a lightly floured surface, roll the Danish Dough into a 15 x 20-inch rectangle, ¼ inch thick. If the dough seems elastic and shrinks back when rolled, let it rest for a few minutes, then roll again. Place the dough on the baking sheet.

Along one long side of the pastry make parallel, 5-inch-long cuts with a knife or rolling pastry wheel, each about 1 inch apart. Repeat on the opposite side, making sure to line up the cuts with those you’ve already made.

Spoon the filling you’ve chosen to fill your braid down the center of the rectangle. Starting with the top and bottom “flaps”, fold the top flap down over the filling to cover. Next, fold the bottom “flap” up to cover filling. This helps keep the braid neat and helps to hold in the filling. Now begin folding the cut side strips of dough over the filling, alternating first left, then right, left, right, until finished. Trim any excess dough and tuck in the ends.

Spray cooking oil onto a piece of plastic wrap, and place over the braid. Proof at room temperature or, if possible, in a controlled 90 degree F environment for about 2 hours, or until doubled in volume and light to the touch.

Near the end of proofing, preheat oven to 400°F. Position a rack in the center of the oven.

Bake for 10 minutes, then rotate the pan so that the side of the braid previously in the back of the oven is now in the front. Lower the oven temperature to 350°F, (I didn’t & left it at 400ºF) and bake about 15-20 minutes more, or until golden brown. (Check the center for doneness and return, rotated for another 5 minutes, tented in foil, if necessary.)
Cool and serve the braid either still warm from the oven or at room temperature.

Tags: braid, danish, Daring Bakers, frangipane, raspberry

I have to admit my jaw dropped just a little when I saw the announcment for this months Daring Bakers challenge. I mean an Opera cake, wow. Layers of a torte like almond meal jaconde sandwiched between sweet buttercream, syrup, mousse and a white chocolate glaze. So yes, I was intimidated but thank you so very much to my hosts this month, Fran of Apples Peaches Pumpkin Pie, Shea of Whiskful and of course, Lis & Ivonne for being so patient and kind to the real daring baker like myself who dare to attempt such a cake, for intricately spelling out and testing these details. God bless you. Really.

Once I carefully read through the instructions (four or five not quite hundred times) I was ready and really, it wasn’t so bad. Broken down then recreated in stages, just like the cake, the layers came together just like any other.

I started with the cake itself, my first challenge as I didn’t have the exact sized baking sheet. Ah well, my cake plate is smaller too, so no big deal… The instructions indicated I could adjust my oven’s racks and bake both cakes I needed at once. With one cake overdone and the other barely baked, this is the one and only thing I would have changed and taken the time to do separately.

With the all of the cakes baked and cooling I was still on the fence for flavourings. Our only rule was to keep it light. Traditionally, L’Opéra cake was flavoured with chocolate and coffee. Finding the opposite of that and thinking of a Taste of Yellow, which is the LiveStrong Event hosted by fellow Daring Baker, Barbara of Winos and Foodies, I settled on Earl Grey and Lemon with a white chocolate glaze.

The buttercream method was new to me. It was an alteration from the original recipe and as informed, it was creamy. With a hint of lemon and my Earl Grey syrup ready I was just about set for assembly.

Chilled and firm, I prepared to trim the edges. You’d think I was about to carve a turkey not a cake the way I prepared my blade to meet the side of this cake.

My first taste was of the trimmed edges. Sweet. Very. The flavours were subtle, the sugar, not so much.
Being May, the weather around here is a bit unpredictable but the photographic debut of my cake was delivered a hot, muggy haze, always so perfect for a white chocolate sweat. However, the one perfect thing about photography, at least when I’m doing my own, is eating the props when I’m done.

Back to room temperature, the cake was much nicer, light, lemony and just perfect with a spot of tea.

Continue Reading »

Tags: Daring Bakers, dessert, Earl Grey, layers, lemon, opera cake, Sweet, taste of yellow, white, white chocolate

This is twice now that I’ve suddenly noticed Daring Baker posts all over the interwebs a little early. I quickly found that we were able to post three days before the end of the month. Regardless, I learned my lesson in reading the fine print and got to the recipe. … And then I found how many it made. Not typically a huge fan of cheesecake, I decided to reduce the recipe. Shrunken by more than half, the recipe made about a dozen of these little delights and they were fantastic. Even for me - revealing that bite sized portions really are an amuse for my bouche.

I’ve been quite lucky lately getting these great recipes challenges to make with the surplus of birthdays in my house.
My son, my sous chef, turns 3 tomorrow, so the last of the terrible two tantrums were taken out on me not letting him lick the raw batter fast enough. You might assume he enjoyed it - thoroughly.

I wanted to jazz these up a bit for the adults coming to the party who rarely gorge on cake in the same way three year olds can. I’d recently been out specialty food shop browsing and discovered this great line of Belgian chocolate bars. The flavour combinations included, Provincial Lavender, White Pepper and Cardamom from Guatemala and Japanese Matcha, just to name a few. So after dipping the cheesecake pops, I melted down the 1oz Matcha and drizzled it over. Mmmm.

Such a fun recipe co- hosted by Deborah at Taste and Tell and Elle of Feeding My Enthusiams . Even if you’re not in the middle of a birthday mayham, they’re fun and they’re good - give them a try.
Continue Reading »

Tags: cake, cheesecake, chocolate, Daring Bakers, dessert, green tea, matcha, sugar

Ok, so I have to bashfully admit that although I’ve only been hearing endless great things about Dorie Greenspan. (Baking, Tuesdays etc.)I’d always for that reason perhaps put her into the realm & era of the likes of Irma S. Rombauer, Graham Kerr or Julia Child.

All a great place to be I’m sure, but wasn’t I red faced to realize only a few months ago that she’s a current legend - Now and in the flesh, baking from her home to mine, well, sort of.

I was thrilled to finally be tossed into this world of Dorie. When this months Daring Bakers‘ host, Morven chose Dorie’s Perfect Party Cake.

This couldn’t have been more fitting - celebrate Dorie with a cake? Plus it’s my birthday month!

I lingered and saved my baking for the end of the month so I’d be able to relax (best way possible with kids) & spend my birthday in the kitchen and with all kinds of guests. It was perfect timing to present this big and wonderful cake.

I’d had a chance to read some of the other Bakers tribulations and with a little birthday luck, my cakes were perfectly puffed, light and lovely.

Being that I was losing my Dorie virginity, I wanted to stay true to the recipe and experience the real thing with the lemony buttercream and raspberry preserves. This gift of cake and the exposure to Dorie made for a great birthday indeed.

My first bite of the cake reminded me of bakery bought. May sound strange but I’m not talking bakery dept., little more high end than that. I’ve not always been the best cake baker ever but the cake did not at all seem typically home made. It had that “sercret” je ne sais quoi inside that just make it better. IT didn’t taste like a pantry. It was light, not too sweet and the butter cream - maybe I shouldn’t get started on the meringue buttercream. Lets just say that I’m usually an icing picker offer not really going for the sugary shortening flavour but this time I was scraping the pattern off the plate.

Certainly a cake I will make again - even if it’s not my birthday. With the many Daring Baker variations that I’ve seen, I definitely have many flavours yet to try.

Continue Reading »

A trip to Montréal could be a faster route to Paris if it weren’t for it’s own personal and famous delicacies.
Sure, there are so many restaurants, so many of which are indeed French, however, a visit would not be complete without a trip to Schwartz’s or St. Viateur.

If you’re lucky enough to experience a St. Viateur bagel hot from their wood burning oven, you’ll be certain to leave with at least a dozen and compelled to repack your suitcase for more. Unlike their doughy, over-puffed counter parts, these bagels are now a distinctive Montréal establishment. Founded in 1957, they have been confusing copy-cats seeking out the recipe for decades. “It’s in the oven.” Says, Vince of St.Viateur. As it’s not just the recipe that holds the secret to these chewy and flavourful masterpieces. Since most cities aren’t permitted wood burning ovens, which produce the optimal conditions and heat to bake the bagels.

Thankfully Montréal is a very walkable city - even in the winter. Although cold and particularly snowy during my last visit, there were people out enjoying the day. It really is the best way to get around and work off that extra bagel or your last order of poutine.

Poutine is common street food and even though it’s made it into fast food outlets, it’s still the mom and pop’s that make it the best. Years ago, while living in the city, I had a chef friend who obviously shared my love of the food experience. In addition to the best French restos, he had me lined up for a poutine taste test. Poutine is a dish of crisp, straight cut French fries, gooingly topped with cheese curds and a “brown sauce”. This gravy and the cheese somehow have a way of touching and melting over every über fattening bite. Served up with a hot dog avec tout; onions, relish, sauerkraut and a sprinkling of cayenne (don’t balk, it’s surprisingly delicious). With that you may think that a plate of poutine would be the same as the next, but it really isn’t so. The one spot you may second guess entering from the street view is often the best, including the case of where we were. Don’t let the orange counter and the faded overhead menu photos fool you. Of course, now a days I might opt for some of Montréal’s French uppity restaurants versions that offer fois gras or an ox tail gravy on their Belgian style frites. But once in a while, during a visit this sit down street food is simply irresistible.

I know, I know, if you see one more cupcake shop you may just want to toss your sprinkles but while out on my food jaunt, I just couldn’t help but notice the retro pink shop bustling with customers. Perhaps it was the unforgiving snow or the fact that the store looked as if it were decorated by Barbie herself, I couldn’t not enter. So sweetly named, Petits Gâteaux is only one of the few popular cupcake joints in the city.

Inside, I was greeted by friendly faces and long glass counters filled with the tiniest of cupcakes decked out with the likes of banana fudge, chocolate mocha and white chocolate raspberry. Even with a flight out the next day, I couldn’t resist these tea party cakes. Living up to their names of small cakes, they were just about that.

I learned my lesson of temptation then still moved along to smoked meat.

All of this during a crazy snowstorm, we were blasted and whitened as the snowballs fell from the sky. Our last stop was Schwartz’s Deli. Between the small hike of two blocks, our once dark jackets were lightened. Quickly saturated by the steam of some of the most known smells in Montréal, the snow that covered out jackets melted faster than the Schwartz’s Saturday wait.

A Montréal landmark since 1928, it’s the spot for locals, tourist and celebrities alike, the line up is deservedly out the door on the best of days. …And why not? Schwartz’s is well known for it’s spices and slow preparation, helping to give New York City a run for not only bagels but the perfect deli sandwich. It’s a thing of pride for the folks at Schwartz’s. One of the best damn sandwiches you will ever have. Piled a mile high and the chance to see Angelina Jolie with mustard on her chin, who could possibly pass that up while in town?

Anything to declare? I was asked as I entered customs for my quick flight home.
“Schwartz’s and bagels.” was my reply.
And in the most relaxed customs agent response, “Haha. Bien sur, allons y. Just next time remember the Tourtiere and the sugar pie.”

For a few more shots of the trip check out my flickr page.

Thank you to those who sent over or dropped a photo into the Flickr group!
There are so many great green and sour shots.
There weren’t any ideas for the New theme, so a printed magazine might be a bit on the thin side this month, but check in soon for a pdf of some great photos…

After hosting DMBLGIT and deciding to quit my humming and hawing, my thoughts have solidified.

There are such fantastic blogs with photos so beautifully styled by, for lack of a better word, amateurs. Yet, passion melts through my screen with these drool worthy photos. There is a love of food, creating a sense of calm from an otherwise chaotic kitchen that keeps us going, even on those chocolate chip cookie kind of days.

It’s obvious we love to look at food as much as cook it - striving for better, otherwise there wouldn’t be photo competitions and trophy badges. With an amazing sense of community, food bloggers come together and support one another in ways so sincere and supportive. Through kind words and encouragement from across the globe we are all connected by this passion we have for making food and photographing it.

After months of drooling, entering and reviewing I searched for photo collections that could showcase and inspire new horizons as well as opportunities. I would like to host a gallery which promotes content, supported and selected by our peers. I would like to publish it, using it as a tool to promote and showcase these great and often undiscovered talents. Each issue will be broken into three themes, leaving the only “rules” to be:

• These works must be original and high res.
• They must be considered a print worthy, portfolio piece by the photographer.
• You may enter as many times as you see fit, considering the content is relevant to the theme
• You need to be willing to have your pieces printed in the magazine. (Food+Photography Only)
• Please do not over manipulate photos in Photoshop or by adding text, boarders or multiple images.
• If you would like to submit a corresponding recipe, please do so by email, adding it in the Flickr comments or, of course, a link back to your site.

Post your photos in the Food+Photography group , if you don’t have a Flickr account you can email your pictures to me at foodandphotography AT gmail DOT com

The deadline for the spring edition is March 15, 2008.

This first issue; SPRING, the themes are:

SOUR

GREEN

&
NEW

Be creative and give it your best shot.

Yes, surprisingly, I’m not referring to the Superbowl.

Thinking game birds and not pig skins, I invited our long time friend and foodie, Lynne over for dinner.
We’ve been trying to consume as wild and locally as possible so finding a pheasant in our little grocers was nothing short of serendipitous.

I’d never cooked a pheasant before, or any game bird for that matter. I remember stories and pictures of my Grandfather in and around the Rat Pack era with ventures of Pheasants and Wild Turkey from his forested property. Stories which were prompted by the discovery of odd prints and ashtrays decorated with the birds distinctive plumage. Having found a photo or two, I’d heard about weekend escapades with old friends, now gone like the flock of birds drawn in groups from their grassy clearings.

At home with my bird, I searched for ways to do it justice. Surprisingly, of the extravagant number of those long tailed ashtrays I’d seen in my lifetime and the countless ads for hunting excursions, I had only uncovered a handful of recipe suggestions. With the first being from “Shooting Times”, I opted for guidance from our Fair Lady, Julia Child and a variation from a 2001 edition of Parade Magazine.

Pheasants, like most other wild birds, are quite lean and can dry out quickly. Many of the recipes I’d discovered suggested all out braising or wrapping the bird in bacon to roast it. Although bacon is known to be good enough to lure a vegetarian, I wanted to taste as much of the flavour the pheasant was prepared to offer us without masking it in that smoky, salted fat. In the end, I opted for olive oil, a little stock and frequent basting, while stuffing the cavity with tangerines, garlic, onion, rosemary and bay, delivering me the best part of a turkey dinner in every bite.

Served with roasted vegetables and a dish of sautéed brussel sprouts with crumbled blue cheese.
Continue Reading »

Along with the closing of 2007 went DMBLGIT for December. Having watched this competition grow over time, it was fantastic to celebrate the end of the year with such a turn out. With over 100 entrants the amazing cast of judges; Bea, Dré, Haalo, Jen, Lara, Lynne and Patricia, had their work cut out for them.

There are such wonderful photographers amidst the blogs we’ve come to read. Congratulations to everyone.

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BEST OVER ALL WINNERS

1st Place:

Jenn and Oliver of Chocolate Shavings with Lemon Poppy Seed Cookies

Camera: Cannon 350D

2nd Place:

Syrie Wongkaew of All Things Nice with Dark Chocolate Mousse and Raspberry Tart

Camera: Nikon D50

3rd Place:

Carol Rode of Oh For The Love of Food with Matcha Green Tea Macarons

Camera: Nikon D40X

Winner of Edibility:

Mandy of Fresh From The Oven with Normandy Apple Tart

Camera: Pentax k100D

Winner of Originality

Maryann of Finding La Dolce Vita with Pomegranate Merlot Reduction

Camera: Nikon Coolpix 2100

Winners of Aesthetics

Chocolate Shavings, All Things Nice, both pictured above, and:

Bri Brownlow of Figs With Bri with Pears Poached in Saffron Vanilla Syrup

Camera: Minolta DiMAGE X

Sandra Salerno of Untoccodizenzero with Bread (in) pot

Camera: NIKON D70S

Andrew, who’s hard work and great organizing makes this all possible, has allowed for Host Awards.

These are my picks:

Cookworm with Lemon Curd

Camera: Nikon D100

Jaime of Good Eats n’ Sweet Treats with Pumpkin Cheesecake with Caramel Sauce

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD1000

Danielle of Habeas Brûlée with Cranberry Quince Sorbet

Camera: Canon 30D

Bee of Rasa Malaysia With Satay Jellyfish

Camera: Canon Rebel XT

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It’s been so fun hosting. Thank you to everyone.

I just absolutely loved receiving all of your photos and discovering so many new and wonderful blogs.

Congratulations and good luck next month with Francesco at The Food Traveller!

The more food blogs I discover the more of one common element continues to show through. It’s obvious that we food bloggers love food. We love discovering it, smelling, touching, buying, cooking, sharing, eating and meeting with the growers who bring it all to us.

It was quite sudden when it occurred to me that we are not only lovers of food, but advocates of it as well.
Being a food blogger myself, I’ve always felt driven by my pure love of food but I’ve discovered that in that love, a voice is emerging to protect it.

Promoting local growers, farmer’s markets and eating seasonally seems to be a morsel of our returned protection of the food in which we love. Appreciating the true flavours of unmodified food, taking back our taste buds from the corporations who have tried to feed the masses.

We are the movement which began sharing what we had for dinner to showcase our passion or to remind people of the food that sustains us.

Releasing January 1st, is Michael Pollan’s new book, In Defense of Food. I was pretty excited I was to get my hands an advanced copy of this book. Already being a fan of Michael Pollan and specifically his last book, Omnivore’s Dilemma, this book is a continuation of his essay entitled “Unhappy Meals”, published in The New York Times Magazine.

It was wonderful to read about many opinions I already shared about what we’re being told to eat. However, the fantastic amount of precision and research put into this celebration of food is simply extraordinary.

If you’re like me, this book may be redundant as to the ways you already appreciate food and if that’s the case, upon reading you may agree that this could be the book to send Michael Pollan on a An Inconvenient Truth type road tour promoting respect for growers, quality of food, tradition and community in order play a hand in the relief of global warming as well as Western Diseases.
A large claim yes, but the importance of all that could just be the tipping point which sits us down to the best meal of our lives.

Since I’ve already read my book, I’ll be the first willing to share.
Leave your own opinions of the food we eat in the comments here or on my other blog between now and tomorrow, December 31st, and I’ll ship it before the clock strikes twelve.

Tags: michael pollan