27 mai 2009
Apple strudel - Daring Bakers
The May Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Linda of make life sweeter! and Courtney of Coco Cooks. They chose Apple Strudel from the recipe book Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafés of Vienna, Budapest and Prague by Rick Rodgers.
I had only
eaten Apple strudel once before, it was in Austria, and from what I remember it
was delicious. I was thus quite pleased to see this month’s challenge. My
boyfriend, though, was not that excited, I guess he would have preferred macarons
or something chocolaty.. tss, don’t let them get used to such things ^^
I decided
to stay pretty close to the recipe, because apple strudel was a very first time
for me and I did not want it to turn into a failure. I halved the recipe, added
some dried figs, and used wine vinegar instead of cider vinegar. Also, I
replaced walnuts with hazelnuts.
Result : yummy !! Sweet, tasty. Still I was not completely happy with my dough.. It just was not as crusty as I expected it to be. But we ate it so quickly, it can only mean it was delicious !
Preparation
time
Total: 2 hours 15 minutes – 3 hours 30 minutes
15-20 min
to make dough
30-90 min to let dough rest/to prepare the filling
20-30 min to roll out and stretch dough
10 min to fill and roll dough
30 min to bake
30 min to cool
Strudel
dough
from “Kaffeehaus – Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafés of Vienna,
Budapest and Prague” by Rick Rodgers
1 1/3 cups
(200 g) unbleached flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
7 tablespoons (105 ml) water, plus more if needed
2 tablespoons (30 ml) vegetable oil, plus additional for coating the dough
1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar (or red wine vinegar)
1. Combine
the flour and salt in a stand-mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix
the water, oil and vinegar in a measuring cup. Add the water/oil mixture to the
flour with the mixer on low speed. You will get a soft dough. Make sure it is
not too dry, add a little more water if necessary.
Take the dough out of the mixer. Change to the dough hook. Put the dough ball
back in the mixer. Let the dough knead on medium until you get a soft dough
ball with a somewhat rough surface.
2. Take the
dough out of the mixer and continue kneading by hand on an unfloured work
surface. Knead for about 2 minutes. Pick up the dough and throw it down
hard onto your working surface occasionally.
Shape the dough into a ball and transfer it to a plate. Oil the top of the
dough ball lightly. Cover the ball tightly with plastic wrap. Allow to stand
for 30-90 minutes (longer is better).
3. It would
be best if you have a work area that you can walk around on all sides like a 36
inch (90 cm) round table or a work surface of 23 x 38 inches (60 x 100 cm). Cover
your working area with table cloth, dust it with flour and rub it into the
fabric. Put your dough ball in the middle and roll it out as much as you can.
Pick the dough up by holding it by an edge. This way the weight of the dough
and gravity can help stretching it as it hangs. Using the back of your hands to
gently stretch and pull the dough. You can use your forearms to support it.
4. The dough will become too large to hold. Put it on your work surface. Leave the thicker edge of the dough to hang over the edge of the table. Place your hands underneath the dough and stretch and pull the dough thinner using the backs of your hands. Stretch and pull the dough until it's about 2 feet (60 cm) wide and 3 feet (90 cm) long, it will be tissue-thin by this time. Cut away the thick dough around the edges with scissors. The dough is now ready to be filled.
Apple strudel
from “Kaffeehaus – Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafés of Vienna,
Budapest and Prague” by Rick Rodgers
2
tablespoons (30 ml) golden rum
3 tablespoons (45 ml) raisins
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon (80 g) sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick / 115 g) unsalted butter, melted, divided
1 1/2 cups (350 ml) fresh bread crumbs
strudel dough (recipe below)
1/2 cup (120 ml, about 60 g) coarsely chopped walnuts
2 pounds (900 g) tart cooking apples, peeled, cored and cut into ¼ inch-thick
slices (use apples that hold their shape during baking)
1. Mix the rum and raisins in a bowl. Mix the cinnamon and sugar in another bowl.
2. Heat 3 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet over medium-high. Add the breadcrumbs and cook whilst stirring until golden and toasted. This will take about 3 minutes. Let it cool completely.
3. Put the rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Line a large baking sheet with baking paper (parchment paper). Make the strudel dough as described below. Spread about 3 tablespoons of the remaining melted butter over the dough using your hands (a bristle brush could tear the dough, you could use a special feather pastry brush instead of your hands). Sprinkle the buttered dough with the bread crumbs. Spread the walnuts about 3 inches (8 cm) from the short edge of the dough in a 6-inch-(15cm)-wide strip. Mix the apples with the raisins (including the rum), and the cinnamon sugar. Spread the mixture over the walnuts.
4. Fold the short end of the dough onto the filling. Lift the tablecloth at the short end of the dough so that the strudel rolls onto itself. Transfer the strudel to the prepared baking sheet by lifting it. Curve it into a horseshoe to fit. Tuck the ends under the strudel. Brush the top with the remaining melted butter.
5. Bake the strudel for about 30 minutes or until it is deep golden brown. Cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing. Use a serrated knife and serve either warm or at room temperature. It is best on the day it is baked.
Pour ceux et celles qui préfèrent le français !
Comme bien souvent, je n’ai pas trouvé le temps de traduire la recette (non mais quelle idée de devoir poster cette recette le lendemain de la fin des exams aussi !!). Mais je pense que Nawal ou Isa devraient la poster en français.
L’apfel strudel, je n’en avais goûté qu’une fois, c’était en Autriche, dans un petit salon de thé bien typique, au fin fond du Tirol. J’en garde un souvenir gustatif délicieux.
Le résultat que j’ai obtenu était tout à fait plaisant pour les papilles aussi. Une pâte un peu moins croustillante que ce que j’espérais, mais tout de même, on l’avait vite englouti, cet apfel strudel (enfin, j’avais divisé la recette par deux, mais ça m’a quand même donné un beau spécimen).
Par rapport à la recette originale, je n’ai pas changé grand-chose, j’avais trop peur de me louper. J’ai ajouté quelques figues séchées en morceaux, j’ai remplacé les noix par les noisettes.
Je n’aurais jamais eu l’idée de faire un apfel strudel moi-même, et c’est bien ce que j’aime chez les DB !!
27 avril 2009
Cheesecake ou j'adore les Daring Bakers !
The April 2009 challenge is hosted by Jenny from Jenny
Bakes. She has chosen Abbey's Infamous Cheesecake as the challenge.
As a big cheesecake
fan, I was so glad to read the theme of this month’s challenge :
cheesecake !
It was the
first time, though, that I cooked it with a water bath, and I admit that it
stays creamier this way!
It was the first time I accompanied a cheesecake with coulis and I think I will do it again. Rhubarb and lemon are really good friends!
Just one thing : I used less sugar than what we were expected (210 gr), but I still found it a little bit too sweet.
Abbey's Infamous Cheesecake:
Crust :
I did it my way
180 g Sprits (butter cookies)
1 stick / 4 oz butter, melted
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Cheesecake :
changed a few things
300 g Fromage a tartiner (creamy cheese) + 240 g Kiri cheese (very creamy
cheese)
190 g sugar
3 large eggs
1 cup / 8 oz heavy cream
Juice and zest from a lemon
1 tbsp. vanilla extract (or the innards of a vanilla bean)
1 tbsp ginjinha (Portuguese liquor)
Rhubarb sauce
400 g green rhubarb
60 g sugar
1 tbsp cornstarch
DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (Gas Mark 4 = 180C = Moderate heat). Begin to boil a large pot of water for the water bath.
2. Mix together the crust ingredients and press into your preferred pan. You can press the crust just into the bottom, or up the sides of the pan too - baker's choice. Set crust aside.
3. Combine cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of a stand-mixer (or in a large bowl if using a hand-mixer) and cream together until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, fully incorporating each before adding the next. Make sure to scrape down the bowl in between each egg. Add heavy cream, vanilla, lemon juice, and alcohol and blend until smooth and creamy.
4. Pour batter into prepared crust and tap the pan on the counter a few times to bring all air bubbles to the surface. Place pan into a larger pan and pour boiling water into the larger pan until halfway up the side of the cheesecake pan. If cheesecake pan is not airtight, cover bottom securely with foil before adding water.
5. Bake 45 to 55 minutes, until it is almost done - this can be hard to judge, but you're looking for the cake to hold together, but still have a lot of jiggle to it in the center. As for me, 45 minutes was largely sufficient.
You don't want it to be completely firm at this stage. Close the oven door, turn the heat off, and let rest in the cooling oven for one hour. This lets the cake finish cooking and cool down gently enough so that it won't crack on the top. After one hour, remove cheesecake from oven and lift carefully out of water bath. Let it finish cooling on the counter, and then cover and put in the fridge to chill. Once fully chilled, it is ready to serve.
Preparation of rhubarb sauce :
Rince, peel and cut in small pieces the rhubarb. Put it in a pan with the sugar and some water. When it’s cooked, mix it. Then put it back on the heat and add the cornstarch mixed with a little bit of water. When it starts to get dense, whip it up a few minutes. Then let chill. Be careful not to make something too dense. The idea is just that the sauce should not run from the cheesecake.
For my french people :)
Que dire à propos de ce quatrième challenge.. pour une
amatrice de cheesecake comme moi, 100% plaisir.
J'avais une terrible envie de rhubarbe, alors j'ai décidé de faire quelque chose de bien acidulé, accompagné d'un coulis de rhubarbe.
C'était la première fois que je faisais cuire un cheesecake au bain-marie, et je trouve l'idée excellente : le cheesecake m'a semblé plus crémeux, mois dense, plus humide.. Enfin plus quoi!
Juste un petit truc : j'ai beau avoir diminué la quantité de sucre (210 g à la base), j'ai trouvé le cheesecake un peu trop sucré. Dommage, ça masquait un peu le goût du citron.
Fond de pâte:
180 g de Sprits
100 grammes de beurre fondu
1 cuillère à café d’extrait de vanille
Cheesecake
300 grammes de fromage à tartiner (Carrefour pour ma part) et 240 grammes de Kiri
190 grammes de sucre
3 gros œufs
200 grammes de crème fraîche épaisse
Le jus et le zeste d’un citron
1 CS d’extrait de vanille
1 CS de Ginjinha ( alcool portugais)
Coulis
400 grammes de rhubarbe verte
60 grammes de sucre
1 CS de Maizena
Préchauffer le four à 180°C. Faire bouillir de l’eau pour le bain marie.
Mixer ensemble les Sprits, le beurre et la vanille, and étaler cette pâte au fond du moule. Réserver (au frais si possible).
Fouetter les fromage jusqu’à ce que ce soit léger. Ajouter les œufs un à un. Puis ajouter la crème, la vanille, le jus et les zeste du citron, la ginjinha et bien mélanger, jusqu’à ce que ce soit léger et crémeux.
Verser la préparation sur la pâte et taper le moule sur le plan de travail pour que l’air ressorte à l surface. Placer le moule dans un plat plus grand et verser l’eau chaude entre le moule et le plat, de façon à ce que l’eau monte jusqu'à mi-hauteur du moule.
Faire cuire 45 à 55 minutes (45 minutes pour ma part). Le cheesecake doit rester un peu tremblotant en son centre.
Laisser refroidir dans le four porte fermée pour une heure (au moins). Ca permet que le cheesecake refroidisse lentement et finisse de cuire, de façon à ce que le haut ne craquèle pas.
Puis sortir le cheesecake du four et du bain marie. Laisser finir de refroidir à l’air libre, puis couvrir et placer au frigo. Une fois complètement refroidi, c’est prêt à être servi.
Coulis de rhubarbe
Eplucher, laver et couper en tronçons la rhubarbe. La mettre dans une casserole à feu moyen avec le sucre et de l’eau. Lorsqu’elle est cuite, mixer. Puis remettre sur le feu et ajouter la maizena délayée dans un peu d’eau. Lorsque le mélange commence à épaissir, fouetter quelques minutes. Puis retirer du feu et laisser refroidir. Attention il ne s’agit pas d’obtenir quelque chose de trop ferme, juste de faire en sorte que le coulis ne coule pas du cheesecake.
Vivement le mois prochain!
27 mars 2009
Lasagna Verde chez les Daring Bakers
The March
2009 challenge is hosted by Mary of Beans and Caviar, Melinda of Melbourne
Larder and Enza of Io Da Grande. They have chosen Lasagne of Emilia-Romagna
from The Splendid Table by Lynne Rossetto Kasper as the challenge.
First, I would like to apologize to the english speaking daring bakers, for I really didn’t have time to write a text in english.. I would have loved to, but I’m just too busy.. Maybe I’ll edit my post later..
Mes excuses aussi aux français, parce que pour la même raison (trop de choses à faire ces temps ci), je n’ai pas eu le temps de traduire la recette. Mais vous trouverez sûrement la version en français chez Sandra, ou chez la Casserole Carrée ! Je vais tenter de faire la traduction un de ces quatre.
Quand j’ai vu la recette de ce mois-ci chez les Daring Bakers, l’excitation s’est mêlée à une sorte de trouille. Trouille de rater, trouille d’y passer trop de temps. Faire des lasagnes maison, sans machine, ça allait être du boulot. Sans parler du ragoût… Il aurait fallu prévoir une bonne journée de boulot... Mais en pleine finalisation de l’organisation d’un festival, c’est mission impossible... Alors on s’organise..
Réveil à 7h30 le dimanche, on commence par le ragoût. Boire son café du matin devant un ragoût est une expérience à vivre. Puis la pâte, qui reposera pendant la journée. Retour à la maison à 17h, on enchaîne sur l’étalement de la pâte... Puis sur la béchamel, la cuisson de la pâte, et enfin un petit réchauffage du ragoût avant de tout assembler, et enfourner.
Évidemment, il y a toujours des problèmes, des contretemps, sans quoi cuisiner serait moins marrant :p . Ainsi, mon mesureur s’étant cassé la veille, mes mesures sont un peu hasardeuses... et je mets beaucoup trop d’épinards par rapport a la farine... résultat une pâte affreusement humide, qui s’étale super bien mais qui reste littéralement accrochée au plan de travail... au final j’ai dû rajouter pas loin de 150 grammes de farine pour aboutir à quelque chose... et j’avoue que j’ai eu peur d’un résultat super sec et farineux... Mais Non ! (ouf !).
Pour ce qui est du ragoût, je l’ai adapté, j’ai supprimé la pancetta et le prosciutto di Parma... et il n’en restait pas moins Excellent... Quelques problèmes de mesure toujours : j’ai dû rajouter de la tomate, du lait et du vin.
Verdict :
Mais quelle satisfaction ! Du travail, mais quel résultat !! R. et moi aimons beaucoup les lasagnes, mais il est vrai que souvent les feuilles de lasagnes achetées dans le commerce deviennent plutôt caoutchouteuses à la cuisson. Celles-ci n’avaient strictement rien à voir (et heureusement) ! Un fondant, un goût, une délicatesse... hmmm... Alors après avoir goûté à ces magnifiques lasagnes maisons, il va être difficile de retourner à celles du commerce... Je pense d’ailleurs que je n’en rachèterai plus (mais je préfère ne pas parler trop vite, ça dépanne quand même.).
Sur le moment, avec mes difficultés pour étaler la pâte et couper les plaques (j’ai dû y passer 1h30 !!!!), je me suis dit que c’était la première et la dernière fois... Mais après y avoir goûté, ça valait bien la peine...
Merci, merci, merci, aux organisateurs du challenge de ce mois-ci... c’est ce qui est génial chez les Daring Bakers : on tente des choses que l’on n’aurait pas essayé tout seul chez soi... On bénéficie de conseils, d’encouragements, de l’expérience des autres, et c’est vraiment génial J
La recette.. en anglais…
Recipe
Firstly, I would advise you to prepare the different elements in this order :
- the ragu
- the pasta
- the béchamel sauce
- the assembling
Note : I halved all the recipes (but the ingredients above are for Full recipes.). I think a little bit
more béchamel would have been great! Also, I had to add A LOT of flour.. for I
put a tiny little bit too much spinach … Also, I used almost 125g of parmesan, (and not 60g) because we are big fans ^^
All recipes below from The Splendid Table: Recipes from
Emilia-Romagna, the Heartland of Northern Italian Food by Lynne Rossetto Kasper
(published by William Morrow and Company Inc., 1992).
Lasagne of Emilia-Romagna (Lasagne Verdi al Forno)
(Serves 8 to 10 as a first course, 6 to 8 as a main dish)
Preparation Time: 15 minutes to assemble and 40 minutes cooking time
10 quarts (9 litres) salted water
1 recipe Spinach Pasta cut for lasagna (recipe follows)#1
1 recipe Bechamel Sauce (recipe follows)#2
1 recipe Country Style Ragu (recipe follows)#3
1 cup (4 ounces/125g) freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
#1 Spinach Egg Pasta (Pasta Verde)
Preparation: 45 minutes
Makes enough for 6 to 8 first course servings or 4 to 6 main course servings,
equivalent to 1 pound (450g) dried boxed pasta.
2 jumbo eggs (2 ounces/60g or more)
10 ounces (300g) fresh spinach, rinsed dry, and finely chopped; or 6 ounces
(170g) frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
3&1/2 cups (14 ounces/400g) all purpose unbleached (plain) flour (organic
stone ground preferred)
Working by Hand:
Equipment
- A roomy work surface, 24 to 30 inches deep by 30 to 36 inches (60cm to 77cm
deep by 60cm to 92cm). Any smooth surface will do, but marble cools dough
slightly, making it less flexible than desired.
- A pastry scraper and a small wooden spoon for blending the dough.
- A wooden dowel-style rolling pin. In Italy, pasta makers use one about 35
inches long and 2 inches thick (89cm long and 5cm thick). The shorter
American-style pin with handles at either end can be used, but the longer it
is, the easier it is to roll the pasta.
Note: although it is not traditional, Enza has successfully made pasta with a
marble rolling pin, and this can be substituted for the wooden pin, if you have
one.
- Plastic wrap to wrap the resting dough and to cover rolled-out pasta waiting
to be filled. It protects the pasta from drying out too quickly.
- A sharp chef’s knife for cutting pasta sheets.
- Cloth-covered chair backs, broom handles, or specially designed pasta racks
found in cookware shops for draping the pasta.
Mixing the dough:
Mound the flour in the center of your work surface and make a well in the
middle. Add the eggs and spinach. Use a wooden spoon to beat together the eggs
and spinach. Then gradually start incorporating shallow scrapings of flour from
the sides of the well into the liquid. As you work more and more flour into the
liquid, the well’s sides may collapse. Use a pastry scraper to keep the liquids
from running off and to incorporate the last bits of flour into the dough.
Don’t worry if it looks like a hopelessly rough and messy lump.
Kneading:
With the aid of the scraper to scoop up unruly pieces, start kneading the
dough. Once it becomes a cohesive mass, use the scraper to remove any bits of
hard flour on the work surface – these will make the dough lumpy. Knead the
dough for about 3 minutes. Its consistency should be elastic and a little
sticky. If it is too sticky to move easily, knead in a few more tablespoons of
flour. Continue kneading about 10 minutes, or until the dough has become
satiny, smooth, and very elastic. It will feel alive under your hands. Do not
shortcut this step. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap, and let it relax at room
temperature 30 minutes to 3 hours.
Stretching and Thinning:
If using an extra-long rolling pin work with half the dough at a time. With a
regular-length rolling pin, roll out a quarter of the dough at a time and keep
the rest of the dough wrapped. Lightly sprinkle a large work surface with
flour. The idea is to stretch the dough rather than press down and push it.
Shape it into a ball and begin rolling out to form a circle, frequently turning
the disc of dough a quarter turn. As it thins outs, start rolling the disc back
on the pin a quarter of the way toward the center and stretching it gently
sideways by running the palms of your hands over the rolled-up dough from the
center of the pin outward. Unroll, turn the disc a quarter turn, and repeat. Do
twice more.
Stretch and even out the center of the disc by rolling the dough a quarter of
the way back on the pin. Then gently push the rolling pin away from you with
one hand while holding the sheet in place on the work surface with the other
hand. Repeat three more times, turning the dough a quarter turn each time.
Repeat the two processes as the disc becomes larger and thinner. The goal is a
sheet of even thickness. For lasagne, the sheet should be so thin that you can
clearly see your hand through it and see colours. Cut into rectangles about 4
by 8 inches (10 x 20 cm). Note: Enza says that transparency is a crucial
element of lasagne pasta and the dough should be rolled as thinly as possible.
She says this is why her housekeeper has such strong arms!
Dry the pasta at room temperature and store in a sealed container or bag.
#2 Bechamel
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
4 tablespoons (2 ounces/60g) unsalted butter
4 tablespoons (2 ounces/60g) all purpose unbleached (plain) flour, organic
stone ground preferred
2&2/3 cups (approx 570ml) milk
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Freshly grated nutmeg to taste
Using a medium-sized saucepan, melt the butter over low to medium heat. Sift
over the flour, whisk until smooth, and then stir (without stopping) for about
3 minutes. Whisk in the milk a little at a time and keep the mixture smooth.
Bring to a slow simmer, and stir 3 to 4 minutes, or until the sauce thickens.
Cook, stirring, for about 5 minutes, until the sauce thickens. Season with
salt, pepper, and a hint of nutmeg.
#3 Country Style Ragu’ (Ragu alla Contadina)
Preparation Time: Ingredient Preparation Time 30 minutes and Cooking time 2
hours
Makes enough sauce for 1 recipe fresh pasta or 1 pound/450g dried pasta)
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (45 mL)
2 ounces/60g pancetta, finely chopped
1 medium onion, minced
1 medium stalk celery with leaves, minced
1 small carrot, minced
4 ounces/125g boneless veal shoulder or round
4 ounces/125g pork loin, trimmed of fat, or 4 ounces/125g mild Italian sausage
(made without fennel) I chose to use pork loin
8 ounces/250g beef skirt steak, hanging tender, or boneless chuck blade or
chuck center cut (in order of preference)
1 ounce/30g thinly sliced Prosciutto di Parma
2/3 cup (5 ounces/160ml) dry red wine
1 &1/2 cups (12 ounces/375ml) chicken or beef stock (homemade if possible) I used vegetable stock
2 cups (16 ounces/500ml) milk
3 canned plum tomatoes, drained
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Working Ahead:
The ragu can be made 3 days ahead. Cover and refrigerate. It also freezes well
for up to 1 month. Skim the fat from the ragu’ before using it.
Browning the Ragu Base:
Heat the olive oil in a 12 inch (30cm) skillet (frying pan) over medium-high
heat. Have a large saucepan handy to use once browning is complete. Add the
pancetta and minced vegetables and sauté, stirring frequently with a wooden
spoon, 10 minutes, or until the onions barely begin to color. Coarsely grind
all the meats together, including the prosciutto, in a food processor or meat
grinder. Stir into the pan and slowly brown over medium heat. First the meats
will give off a liquid and turn dull grey but, as the liquid evaporates,
browning will begin. Stir often, scooping under the meats with the wooden
spatula. Protect the brown glaze forming on the bottom of the pan by turning
the heat down. Cook 15 minutes, or until the meats are a deep brown. Turn the
contents of the skillet into a strainer and shake out the fat. Turn them into
the saucepan and set over medium heat.
Reducing and Simmering:
Add the wine to the skillet, lowering the heat so the sauce
bubbles quietly. Stir occasionally until the wine has reduced by half, about 3
minutes. Scrape up the brown glaze as the wine bubbles. Then pour the reduced
wine into the saucepan and set the skillet aside.
Stir ½ cup stock into the saucepan and let it bubble slowly, 10 minutes, or
until totally evaporated. Repeat with another ½ cup stock. Stir in the last 1/2
cup stock along with the milk. Adjust heat so the liquid bubbles very slowly.
Partially cover the pot, and cook 1 hour. Stir frequently to check for
sticking.
Add the tomatoes, crushing them as they go into the pot. Cook uncovered, at a
very slow bubble for another 45 minutes, or until the sauce resembles a thick,
meaty stew. Season with salt and pepper.
Method for the Assembling
Working Ahead:
The ragu and the béchamel sauce can be made up to three days ahead. The ragu can also be frozen for up to one month. The pasta can be rolled out, cut and dried up to 24 hours before cooking. The assembled lasagne can wait at room temperature (20 degrees Celsius/68 degrees Fahrenheit) about 1 hour before baking. Do not refrigerate it before baking, as the topping of béchamel and cheese will overcook by the time the center is hot.
Assembling the Ingredients:
Have all the sauces, rewarmed gently over a medium heat, and the pasta at hand.
Have a large perforated skimmer and a large bowl of cold water next to the
stove. Spread a double thickness of paper towels over a large counter space.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (180 degrees Celsius). Oil or butter
a 3 quart (approx 3 litre) shallow baking dish.
Cooking the Pasta:
Bring the salted water to a boil. Drop about four pieces of pasta in the water
at a time. Cook about 2 minutes. If you are using dried pasta, cook about 4
minutes, taste, and cook longer if necessary. The pasta will continue cooking
during baking, so make sure it is only barely tender. Lift the lasagne from the
water with a skimmer, drain, and then slip into the bowl of cold water to stop
cooking. When cool, lift out and dry on the paper towels. Repeat until all the
pasta is cooked.
Assembling the Lasagne:
Spread a thin layer of béchamel over the bottom of the baking dish. Arrange a
layer of about four overlapping sheets of pasta over the béchamel. Spread a
thin layer of béchamel (about 3 or 4 spoonfuls) over the pasta, and then an
equally thin layer of the ragu. Sprinkle with about 1&1/2 tablespoons of
the béchamel and about 1/3 cup of the cheese. Repeat the layers until all
ingredients are used, finishing with béchamel sauce and topping with a generous
dusting of cheese.
Baking and Serving the Lasagne:
Cover the baking dish lightly with foil, taking care not to let it touch the
top of the lasagne. Bake 40 minutes, or until almost heated through. Remove the
foil and bake another 10 minutes, or until hot in the center (test by inserting
a knife – if it comes out very warm, the dish is ready). Take care not to
brown the cheese topping. It should be melted, creamy looking and barely tinged
with a little gold. Turn off the oven, leave the door ajar and let the lasagne
rest for about 10 minutes. Then serve. This is not a solid lasagne, but a moist
one that slips a bit when it is cut and served.
Result :
28 février 2009
Chocolate's the word.. Daring Bakers flourless chocolate cake
The February 2009 challenge is hosted by Wendy of WMPE's blog and Dharm of Dad ~ Baker & Chef.
We have chosen a Chocolate Valentino cake by Chef Wan; a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Dharm and a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Wendy as the challenge.
A sugarless cake, very first time to me... It was supposed to taste exactly like the chocolate we use.. so I decided to use my favorite : 70% cocoa organic fair trade chocolate. 400 grams, this is.. original.. usually i use between 150 and 250 grams for a cake. As a result you can guess it was very, very chocolate-y!
We were expected to pair the cake with ice cream. If you know me a little bit, you know that I don't have a real freezer that I could use to deep-freeze things. All I have is a little casebox (15 cm high..) which can only keep frozen for 48 hours.. However, I thought Why not try.. Daring Bakers, ain't we! So I made an orange blossom flavour ice cream.. It was D-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s!! Since I don't have an ice-cream maker i followed the instruction here. I changed some od the ingredients : semi-skimmed milked, and replaced half of the cream with evaporated milk. It went very well, and know I know that my tiny freezer is a suitable place for handmade icecream!!
The cake on itself was, I have to admit, a little bit TOO chocolate-y. I mean, it was good, but it lacked a bit of sugar. But when paired with the ice cream, it was perfect, for the ice cream brought a sugary taste.
If I do this cake again some time, I'll use 50% or 60% chocolate, so that it is not too bitter! And I think I will do it again!
Chocolate Valentino
Preparation Time: 20 minutes
16 ounces (1 pound) (454 grams) of semisweet chocolate, roughly chopped
½ cup (1 stick) plus 2 tablespoons (146 grams total) of unsalted butter
5 large eggs separated
1. Put chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl and set over
a pan of simmering water (the bottom of the bowl should not touch the water)
and melt, stirring often.
2. While your chocolate butter mixture is cooling. Butter your pan and line
with a parchment circle then butter the parchment.
3. Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites and put into two medium/large
bowls.
4. Whip the egg whites in a medium/large grease free bowl until stiff peaks are
formed (do not over-whip or the cake will be dry).
5. With the same beater beat the egg yolks together.
6. Add the egg yolks to the cooled chocolate.
7. Fold in 1/3 of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture and follow with
remaining 2/3rds. Fold until no white remains without deflating the batter.
{link of folding demonstration}
8. Pour batter into prepared pan, the batter should fill the pan 3/4 of the way
full, and bake at 375F/190C
9. Bake for 25 minutes until an instant read thermometer reads 140F/60C.
Note – If you do not have an instant read thermometer, the top of the cake will
look similar to a brownie and a cake tester will appear wet.
10. Cool cake on a rack for 10 minutes then unmold.
Orange blossom flavor ice cream
based on Wendy's ice cream recipe
2 cups (473 ml) of half and half (1 cup of heavy cream and 1 cup of whole, full
fat milk) I used semi skimmed milk
1 cup (237 ml) heavy cream I used evaporated milk
2/3 (128 grams) cup sugar
Dash of salt
1 (12 grams) tablespoon of vanilla 2 tablespoons orange blossom water
Preparation : see here (David Lebovitz's web site).
Decoration : Sprinkle with nibs ( roasted cocoa beans separated from their husks and broken into small bits).
Pour les français :)
Le challenge de février 2009 est hébergé par Wendy du blog WMPE et Dharm de dad ~ baker and chef. Ils ont choisi un gateau au chocolat Valentino, de Chef Wan, et une recette de glace à la vanille de Wendy.
Un gâteau sans sucre, première fois pour moi.. il devait donc avoir le goût exact du chocolat utilisé. c'est pourquoi j'ai utilisé mon favori : du chocolat à 70% biologique, issu du commerce équitable. Quant à la quantité, 400 grammes, c'est.. original.. habituellement dans mes gâteaux au chocolat j'en mets 150 à 250 grammes.. Résultat : un gâteau très, très chocolaté!
Pour aller avec ce gâteau, l'autre partie du challenge était de faire une glace (une crème glacée plus précisément). Pour ceux qui me lisent ou me connaissent, vous savez que je n'ai pas de congélateur. Juste un petit freezer, disons 15 centimètres de haut^^.. qui ne garde congelé que 48 heures.. Malgré cela, je me suis dit pourquoi pas! Faut bien oser, on chez les Daring Bakers, oui ou non! J'ai donc fait une crème glacée à la fleur d'oranger.. Un r-é-g-a-l! N'ayant pas de sorbetière (bah, sans congélo...), j'ai suivi les instruction ici. J'ai changé certains ingrédients : j'ai remplacé par du lait demi-écrémé le lait entier et par du lait concentré non sucré la moitié de la crème fraîche épaisse. La glace a très bien pris, et je sais maintenant que je vais pouvoir me faire plaisir à faire des glaces!!
Le gateau en lui-meme, je dois l'admettre, était un peu trop chocolaté. Il était bon, mais quanait à mon goût de sucre. mais associé à la glace, c'étai parfait, la glace apportant une touche sucrée.
Si je refais ce gateau, j'utiliserai du chocolat à 50% ou 60%, pour que ce ne soit pas trop amer. Et je pense bien le refaire!
Gateau Valentino au chocolat
Temps de préparation : 20 minutes
454 grammes de chocolat noir en morceaux
146 grammes de beurre doux
5 gros oeufs, jaunes et blancs séparés
1. Faire fondre le chocolat et le beurre au bain-marie, en
remuant fréquemment.
2. Pendant que le chocolat et le beurre fondus refroidissent, beurrer un moule à cake (26 cm de diametre pour moi) ou placer une feuille de papier cuisson.
3. Séparer les jaunes et les blancs, et les mettre dans des récipients assez grands.
4. Battre les blancs en neige jusqu'à ce que des pics se forment (ne pas trop fouetter, sinon le gateau sera sec)
5. Avec le meme batteur battre les jaunes.
6. Ajouter les jaunes au chocolat fondu refroidi.
7. Mélanger 1/3 des blancs d’œufs battus à la préparation au chocolat, puis ajouter les 2/3 restants. Attention à ne pas casser les blancs.
8. Verser la préparation dans le moule, qui devrait être rempli aux ¾, et faire cuire à 190°C.
9. Faire cuire 25 minutes, jusqu'à ce qu’un thermometre lise 60°C. Si vous n’avez pas de thermometre, le dessus du cake doit ressemvler a un brownie et un couteau doit ressortir humide.
10. Laisser refroidir sur une grille pendant 10 minutes puis démouler.
Crème glacée à la fleur d'oranger
Basée sur la recette de crème glacée de Wendy
473 ml de “half and half” : 50% de crème fraîche épaisse,
50% de lait entier lait demi écrémé
237 ml de crème fraîche épaisse lait concentré non sucré
128 grammes de sucre
1 pincée de sel
12 grammes de vanille 2 CS d'eau de fleur d'oranger
David Lebovitz explique tout bien sur son site.. c'est en anglais ok... alors grosso modo ou mélange tout, on met dans un tupp' qui passe au congelo, et toutes les demi heures on fouette un ptit coup! En 3 à 5 heures le tour est joué!
The déco Touch' : Saupoudrer le cake et la glace de grué de cacao
29 janvier 2009
My first tuiles for my first Daring Bakers Challenge
This month's challenge is brought to us by Karen of Bake My Day and Zorra of 1x umruehren bitte aka Kochtopf. They have chosen Tuiles from The Chocolate Book by Angélique Schmeink and Nougatine and Chocolate Tuiles from Michel Roux.
My first tuiles for my first Daring Bakers challenge.. ain't that just perfect ? In fact I was pretty scared that the challenge may be far too difficult for me, especially after last month's yule log :D But the tuiles, that was just the perfect challenge!
We were expected to pair the tuiles with something light and fruity.. so I decided to make a mango - coconut- white chocolate cream / soup.
I had very much fun baking them. At first I wanted to make a coconut
tree out of the tuiles, that would be small and light enough to just
float over the cream, but, well, it was bigger than expected, the trunk didn't
much look like one, and the cream, not so much a cream than a soup ;) Anyway,
the whole thing was very nice. However, I wouldn't advise you to eat the soup
with a tuile used as a spoon, since the tuiles get soaked and thus flabby very
quickly.
Also, even though it tasted very good, I don't think the tuiles are going to get my new favorite cookies! Or maybe I'll try with only one egg white, i'm sure it would be much more tasty!
Oh, and, I chose Anelique Schmeink' Tuiles, by the way!
Tuiles and mango - coconut - white chocolate soup for an edible coconut tree :)
Tuiles
Yields: 20 small tuiles/6 large
Preparation time batter 10 minutes, waiting
time 30 minutes, baking time: 5-10 minutes per batch
65 grams / ¼ cup / 2.3 ounces softened
butter (not melted but soft)
60 grams / ½ cup / 2.1 ounces sifted
confectioner’s sugar
1 sachet vanilla sugar (7 grams or
substitute with a dash of vanilla extract)
2 large egg whites (slightly whisked with a
fork)
65 grams / 1/2 cup / 2.3 ounces sifted all
purpose flour
Butter/spray to grease baking sheet
Oven: 180C / 350F
Soup
300 ml coconut milk
1 mango
100 grams white chocolate
10 cl mango juice
Tuiles
Using a hand whisk or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle (low speed)
and cream butter, sugar and vanilla to a paste. Keep stirring while you
gradually add the egg whites. Continue to add the flour in small batches and
stir to achieve a homogeneous and smooth batter/paste. Be careful to not
overmix.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 30
minutes to firm up. (This batter will keep in the fridge for up to a week, take
it out 30 minutes before you plan to use it).
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or
grease with either butter/spray and chill in the fridge for at least 15
minutes. This will help spread the batter more easily if using a
stencil/cardboard template such as the butterfly. Press the stencil on the
bakingsheet and use an off sided spatula to spread batter. Leave some room in
between your shapes. Mix a small part of the batter with the cocoa and a few
drops of warm water until evenly colored. Use this colored batter in a paper
piping bag and proceed to pipe decorations on the wings and body of the
butterfly.
Bake butterflies in a preheated oven
(180C/350F) for about 5-10 minutes or until the edges turn golden brown. Immediately
release from bakingsheet and proceed to shape/bend the cookies in the desired
shape. These cookies have to be shaped when still warm, you might want to bake
a small amount at a time or maybe put them in the oven to warm them up again. (Haven’t
tried that). Or: place a bakingsheet toward the front of the warm oven, leaving
the door half open. The warmth will keep the cookies malleable.
If you don’t want to do stencil shapes, you might want to transfer the batter into a piping bag fitted with a small plain tip. Pipe the desired shapes and bake. Shape immediately after baking using for instance a rolling pin, a broom handle, cups, cones….
Soup
Heat the coconut milk with the orange juice in a saucepan. Be careful
that it does not boil. When warm, add the white chocolate cut in small
quarters. Make it melt. Then chill in the fridge for about 3 hours.
Cut the mango in small quarters. Put about 3/4 of the mango in the soup.
Then pour the chilled soup in glasses. Put each glass on a plate. On the top of
each glass, put 4-5 tuiles, try to make it look like a coconut tree ;)
On the plate you can put sugar, though it think it's not useful at all (of course you all guessed it was supposed to represent.. sand!). Maybe you'd just better make some caramel... And put the rest of the mango on it. Decorate the tuiles with dried strawberries.
Et pour les français
;)
Le challenge de mois nous vient de Karen de Bake My Day et de Zorra de 1x umruehren bitte aka Kochtopf. Elles ont choisi des tuiles, du livre « le livre du chocolat », de Angélique Schmeink et des tuiles en nougatine / au chocolat de Michel Roux.
Mes premières tuiles pour mon premier challenge Daring Bakers, c’est pas parfait ça ^^?? En fait j’avais un peu peur que le challenge soit trop compliqué pour moi, surtout après avoir vu celui du mois dernier :D Mais les tuiles, c’était parfait !
Le challenge était d'accompagner les tuiles avec quelque chose de léger et fruité. J'ai donc décidé de faire une crème / soupe de mangue - noix de coco - chocolat blanc.
Je me suis bien amusée à les faire. Au départ je voulais en faire une sorte de palmier, qui serait assez léger et petit pour flotter sur la crème, mais en fait c’est devenu plus grand que prévu, le tronc ne ressemblait plus tellement à un tronc, et la crème, plus tant à de la crème qu’a une soupe… ;) En tout cas, tout ça était très plaisant. Par contre, je ne vous conseille pas de manger la soupe avec une tuile comme cuillère, parce que les tuiles deviennent vite détrempées et molles.
Aussi, même si c’était très bon, je ne pense pas que ces tuiles vont devenir mes nouveaux gâteaux favoris. Ou peut être que j’essaierai avec juste un blanc d’œuf, je pense que ça aurait un plus prononcé.
Eh, euh, au fait, j'ai choisi les Tuiles d'Angélique Schmeink.
Des tuiles et une soupe mangue -noix de coco - chocolat blanc pour un palmier comestible :)
Tuiles
Pour environ 20 petits petites tuiles ou 6 grandes
Temps de préparation : 10 minutes, temps d'attente 30 minutes, temps de cuisson
: 5-10 minutes par fournée
65 grammes de beurre ramolli
60 grammes de sucre glace
1sachet de sucre vanillé
2 gros blancs d'oeufs (légèrement battus avec une fourchette)
65 grammes de farine
beurre pour graisser la feuille de cuisson (facultatif)
Soupe
300 ml de lait de coco
1 mangue
100 grammes de chocolat blanc
10 cl de jus de mangue
Tuiles
Avec un fouet manuel ou la palette du fouet électrique (vitesse lente), travailler le beurre, le sucre et le sucre vanillé en pâte. Continuer à mélanger pendant que vous ajoutez graduellement les blancs. Continuer à ajouter la farine en petites doses, et remuer de façon à obtenir une pâte homogène et lisse. Attention à ne pas trop mélanger.
Dans une casserolle, faire chauffer sans porter à ébullition le lait de coco et le jus d emangue. Une fois que c'est chaud, ajouter le chocolat blanc coupé en carrés, et laisser fondre. Puis placer au frais pour environ 3 heures.
Couper la mangue en petits quartiers. En verser environ les 3/4 dans la soupe. Ensuite verser la soupe dans des verres. Poser chaque verre sur une assiette. Au dessus de chaque verre placer 4 ou 5 tuiles, en essayant de faire en sorte que ça ressemble à un palmier...
Sur l'assiette vous pouvez éparpiller un peu de sucre, bien que ce soit completement inutile (bien sûr vous avez tous deviné que le sucre représente.. du sable!). Peut etre que ce serait mieux de faire du caramel. Puis poser le reste de la mangue dessus. Décorer les tuiles avec une ou deux fraises séchées.
