Raspberry Lemon Mille Feuille

Goodbye summertime! It is officially fall/winter here and as soon as I had to break out the turtlenecks, I immediately had cravings for pumpkin flavors and spices. So I was surprised when I was walking through the grocery store and I spotted these bright red raspberries taunting me and beckoning me back to warmer weather. I thought it would be so refreshing to serve this after I made a definite cold weather dish: coq au vin.  It was a perfect ending to a nice fall dinner.

Raspberry Lemon Mille Feuille

(recipe adapted from Balthazar)

4 extra large egg yolks

4 extra large eggs

juice of 4 lemons

zest of 2 lemons

1/2 cup of sugar

2 sticks of unsalted butter, room temperature, cut up into pieces

filo dough

2 sticks butter, melted

raspberries

Combine the yolks, eggs, lemon juice, zest, and sugar in bowl that can go over a double boiler.  Whisk until smooth, pale, and thick.  Remove from the heat and whisk in the cut up butter, one piece at a time until the mixture is nice and thick.  Refrigerate for at least 4 hours with plastic wrap against the surface of the lemon curd. If you take it out too soon, your lemon curd will be too runny.

Filo: Defrost in the refrigerator overnight.  Lay a sheet of filo dough on counter and brush surface with melted butter.  Repeat for all 7 sheets.  Rest the filo in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 325 F.

Take filo out of fridge and cut rectangles measuring 3 1/2 by 1 1/2 inches.  Arrange the rectangles on baking sheet with parchment. Sprinkle a handful of sugar over the tops of the filo.  Cover with another baking sheet to prevent it from puffing up.  Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Assembly: Lay a rectangle on work surface. Pipe two rows of lemon curd on bottom piece, place rasberries on top.  Place another rectangle on top and sift powdered sugar on top. Voila! A perfect summer or fall dessert.

                    

Moon Festival

Plum Streusal Coffee Cake

I go crazy for pluots this time of year. If you've never had a pluot, you need to run out and try one instantly. A cross between a plum and an apricot, a pluot (or a plumcot) is such a sweet and juicy fruit--no tartness at all. (The skins have been a little bitter this season so I've been peeling them off before devouring 3 or 4 at a time). In any case, the reason why I made plum streusal is because last time I went to the store, I saw no pluots so I decided to give plums another go. Unfortunately, they are just not as sweet as the pluots for me so I decided to bake them into something. The tartness on top of the cake is perfect and offsets the brown sugar streusal.

Plum Streusal Coffee Cake (Recipe adapted from Gourmet magazine, 1995: Plum Streusal Coffeecake)

For streusel

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into pieces and softened

1 teaspoon cinnamon

For cake:

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

5-6 plums

1. Cake: Cream the butter and sugar. Add vanilla and 1 egg at a time until incorporated.

2. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt.

3. Combine wet and dry ingredients.

4. Pour into a buttered and floured 9" inch round mold.

5. Slice up the plums and layer onto the cake batter.

6. Streusal: Combine all the ingredients in food processer and pour this mixture on top of the plums.

7. Bake at 350 F for one hour or until tester comes out clean.

Green Tea and Chocolate Cake

On my recent trip to New York, I picked up some green tea powder from Ten Ren Teas and have been looking to use it in something delicious and decadent as green tea powder has a very distinctive and aromatic taste to it.  My first thought was to use it in macarons but as yesterday was my birthday, I was craving something a little more cakey. So I decided to try an Opera cake of sorts. The result? Sinfully rich and a sweet new year for myself!

                                                  The cake melting in the sunlight.

Chocolate Mousse Cake with Strawberry Rose Filling

Some days, a girl just needs chocolate. This fine Sunday morning is one of those days for me. No party to go to, no guests for dinner, just me, some free time and my whisk. So I wanted to try out a chocolate mousse cake.  I also wanted to try out my strawberry rose jam from Fauchon that I got on a recent trip to Paris.  Combining them seemed like the perfect idea.  

With the genoise sponge cake bottom, airy yet rich chocolate mousse, and strawberry rose jam filling, a red wine should be a surprisingly luscious partner.  Look for a light to medium bodied vino from the New World with a touch of Old World characteristics.  A 2007 Pinot Noir by Lange, from the  Willamette Valley, Oregon, would be a great match.  It has bright red fruits--strawberries, raspberries, currants, as well as elegant floral and earth nuances on the back palate.  No signs of heavy oak except for a whisper of coffee and dark chocolate--as silky as the dessert itself.

Red Bean Puffs

My friend Shirly is the one who taught me this fun little dessert which will be a hit at any Asian party you go to (or non-Asian party as well!). There is never any left when I make this. And best of all, it is so darn easy to make as I cheated for this recipe and bought (gasp) the frozen puff pastry (oh how my pastry instructor would seize up). Thank you Shirly!

1 box of frozen puff pastry

red bean paste (found at any Asian grocery story)

water

egg wash (optional)

1. Follow the directions on how to thaw your puff pastry.

2. Preheat oven to 400 F.

3. When your sheets are appropriately thawed, slice one whole sheet into 6 equal squares.

4. Spoon about 1 Tbsp. of red bean paste into the middle of each square.

5. Using a little water to dab the edges, fold the corners together to make a triangle. The water is to ensure the edges stick together.

6. (optional) Egg wash the outside and pop into the oven.

7. The Puffs are ready when they're nice and golden and puffy in the oven!

While this dessert has a flaky crust, the buttery qualities as well as the velvety texture of the red bean inside calls for a full bodied white wine. We don't want to overpower it with anything too over-the-top oaky or fruity (like a California chardonnay) but a Chassagne-Montrachet from Burgundy may be just right. Their French oak barrels impart notes of butter, vanilla, and cinnamon that will complement this treat. These wines also have beautiful mineral aromas that bring out the sweet earthiness of the red bean.

Pictures to come!

Macarons Galore

Macarons should actually be the name of this blog since it was one of my main inspirations to start writing. The irony in this is that the first time I tasted a macaron, I was in Paris with one of my best friends, Monica.  We went to Laduree to find out what all the hoopla was about and bought a box of four flavours--rose, coffee, chocolate, and pistachio.  We stood outside and eagerly dug in......and were disappointed. We thought perhaps we got a bad batch or maybe our palettes were not delicate and fine enough to appreciate such a delicate cookie.  As sacriligious as it sounds, we both swore we would never bother with macarons again and would allot our calories elsewhere.  That was 9 months ago.  

A few weeks ago, I met my friend Andriani in Rome and lo and behold, she brought me a box of Laduree macarons as a present. The flavours within were bergomat, vanilla, and caramel du fleur de sel.  After I bit into the caramel du fleur de sel, I was sold and an official macaron convert. I vowed to replicate this delicious delicacy the minute I got back. So, 3 batches later, I think I got it. And my sommelier found a perfect Chardonnay to pair with it. Her suggestion is a Brewer-Clifton Chardonnay from the Santa Barbara county.

I also served a chocolate macaron with a milk chocolate and passion fruit ganache (recipe courtesy of Cannelle et Vanille) and paired this with a Joseph Phelps Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa. Amazing!