Salty Sweet Perfection

I'm sure you have heard it before, but adding a little salt to chocolate takes the flavor to a whole new level. Not only are these fudgey morsels adorned with perfect little flecks of sea salt, the pretzel crust on these brownies was a real "ah-ha!" moment for me. As soon as I tasted the salty, crunchy crust against the sweet and chewy texture of the brownie my mind started racing while thinking "why haven't I been using pretzel crust all these years!?!"

Even if you never make these brownies, which would be a HUGE mistake, I would definitely hang onto this pretzel crust recipe. It can be used to compliment so many different desserts like as a pie crust or do what I did and use it for a cupcake crust...delish!

Happy Baking!!

Dani xoxo

Pretzel Crust (Adapted from Bakers Royale and Better Homes & Gardens)

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup crushed pretzels

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 cup melted butter

Directions: Line a 9x13 baking pan with parchment paper and pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl stir together crushed pretzels, flour, brown sugar, and baking soda. Once combined stir in the melted butter. Pour the mixture into the bottom of your prepared pan and pat it down.  Bake for about 10 minutes.

Dark Chocolate Brownie (Adapted from Bakers Royale and Better Homes & Gardens)

7 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped

3/4 cup butter

1/4 cup water

1 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions: Place a bowl over a saucepan with simmering water (bain-marie).  In the bowl combine chocolate, butter, and water; stir constantly until chocolate is melted.  Or, to save having to do a bunch of dishes later, place the chocolate, butter, and water in a medium bowl and microwave in 20 sec increments stirring after each time until the chocolate is fully melted.  Be careful you don't overheat the chocolate!  Transfer to a large bowl.

Add the granulated sugar and brown sugar to chocolate mixture; beat with an electric mixer on low to medium speed until combined. Add the eggs and vanilla; beat on medium speed for about 2 minutes. Add flour, salt, and cinnamon. Now beat on low speed until combined. Spread batter over the pretzel crust.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack. Topping: Drizzle with melted chocolate and caramel sauce and sprinkle with sea salt or fleur de sel. Cut into bars.  They are rich so I would suggest small bars.

Go Coo Coo for Choux!

You are probably wondering why the heck I waited so long to do a post on choux pastry considering it is my blog's namesake, but the truth is I wanted the post to coincide with my choux pastry assignment under Classic Pastry Elements, which I am very proud to say that I received 100% on!! Whoo Hoo!!

Choux Mise en Place

Like I have said before, choux paste is sooo simple to make. Just look at these ingredients: butter, water, flour, eggs and salt...THAT'S IT!! You can always add a little sugar too when you add the flour for a little more sweetness. 

Preparation of Choux Dough

All you have to do is slowly bring the butter and water to a boil. I like to melt the butter a bit first so that the water doesn't evaporate too much and mess up the liquid to flour ratio.

Once it comes to a boil you need to take it off the heat and add the sifted flour all at once. This is essential to keeping the paste from becoming lumpy.  After it has combined put it back on the heat and stir constantly until a white film develops on the bottom of the pot.  Then remove the dough from the heat and allow it to cool in a bowl on the counter.

Silky Pate a Choux

When the butter, water and flour mixture are cool to the touch add the eggs one at a time until fully incorporated.  If you add the eggs too soon you might end up with scrambled eggs in your batter so be careful! At first you will think you are doing something wrong because the dough separates and curdles a bit, but keep at it!!  Soon it all comes together into this silky and shiny paste. 

Piped & Ready for the Oven

After you have taken a moment to congratulate yourself on how amazing the paste looks (it's pretty great right?!?) fill a pastry bag with your paste (or large ziplock type bag with the corner snipped off) and pipe it onto a parchment lined cookie sheet (circles for cream puffs, rectangles for éclairs or even rings).

Golden Brown & Hallow Inside

Now time for the baking.  I know it will be hard, but restrain yourself from peaking in the oven for at least the first 15 minutes or so.  Opening the oven before the puffs set up can cause them to collapse. The goal is to create a crispy exterior with a tender yet hallow interior.  I like to bake for about 15 minutes then remove them from the oven, cut a small slit in the side (this will help the steam to escape) then return them to the oven for another 3-5 minutes or until they are golden brown, crispy and sound hallow when you lightly tap on them.

When you are ready to fill the puffs you can use the small slit you cut into them earlier to fill them without needing to cut them open any further, which will also help to keep that creamy center from dripping all over your lap! Choux Pastry tastes amazing filled with pastry cream and drizzled with chocolate sauce or used to sandwich your favorite ice cream flavor.

Chef Bruno Albouze cracks me up, but also gives a great tutorial on how to make choux pastry and fancy swans (sorry, youtube videos only show up on computers - follow this link if viewing from your phone http://youtu.be/w4fQc1wJZ3w):

I hope you try to make your own choux pastry and you too go coo coo for choux!!!  If you are not sure that you want to make a huge batch on your first try follow this great recipe by Christina of Desserts for Two, which only makes about 6 or 7 puffs.

Flashback Pic of My Very First Attempt at Cream Puffs
Recipe From Another Great Cookbook: The Illustrated Kitchen Bible

Happy Baking,
Dani xoxo

Smitten With A Tiny Chocolate Cake

Wow, where do I begin, this cake is A-MAZ-ING.  It's the perfect mash up of a chewy brownie and a chocolate torte and the addition of fresh berries and whipped cream really amp up the yum factor. This delicious and super easy recipe was created by obsessive home-cook Deb Perelman of Smitten Kitchen. If you have never read her food blog you are truly missing out. Her blog has become so popular, in fact, that she has written her own cookbook: The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook. I dare you to try and skim through the Amazon preview of this book and not buy it...impossible!  Also, if you remember from my post Successful Pinspirations (Part 1) I made her Hostess Cake, which was shockingly good.

This week at work we celebrated my boss' birthday and since I work in a small office of four people I thought it would be nice to surprise them with a homemade treat. I started flipping through my Smitten Kitchen Cookbook and came upon this Tiny, but Intense Chocolate Cake.  Deb writes a great little intro before each recipe, either commenting on why she loves the recipe or how it came to be. This recipe in particular is her "go-to" cake for those last minute celebrations or the perfect "cheer up" cake for a friend who has had a bad day. The ingredients are minimal and you can even change up the chocolate to reduce the intensity.

A Simple Mise En Place

Since I wasn't sure how intense my co-workers like their chocolate I decided to use half semi-sweet chocolate and half milk chocolate and since I didn't have a 6 inch cake pan I used my smallest CorningWare dish and adjusted the cooking time.  I also found myself with a big ol' bag of dark brown sugar, but no light brown sugar as specified in the ingredients.  The difference between light and dark is the amount of molasses mixed with the sugar.  So here's a great tip...use half dark brown sugar and half granulated (regular) sugar and there you go...light brown sugar!

Browned Butter to Melt Rich Chocolate

Browned butter...something I am loving lately.  It really gives recipes a depth of flavor that you won't get just melting the butter and it's so simple.  You just need to cook your butter over medium heat until it has turned a golden color and gives off a nutty flavor with brown specks at the bottom of the pan.  Be careful not to burn it, because you will have to start all over again!

Creamed Sugar and Eggs with Chocolate

Gentle Folding of Egg Whites with Chocolate Batter

Be gentle when you are folding in your egg whites and make sure you don't incorporate them all at once.  It's very important to fold in about 1/3rd of the whites first then fold in the rest.  This will help to keep the cake from becoming a baked chocolate block.

Chocolate Perfection with Strawberries and Whipped Cream

VERDICT: A perfect little cake that I am sure would be welcomed by any friend or hostess.  Not to mention that since there is no flour it's a great cake for those trying to eliminate or reduce their gluten intake.

Enjoy and Happy Baking,

Dani xoxo

Tiny, but Intense 
Chocolate Cake
Adapted from Deb Perelman's
Smitten Kitchen Cookbook

Ingredients

• • 6 tablespoons butter
  • 4 ounces semi sweet chocolate
  • three large eggs separated
  • 1/3 cup light brown sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
  • pinch cinnamon
• 
  Instructions
  
  1. Preheat oven to 350.line a 6 inch round springform pan with a circle of parchment paper. Generously butter sides of pan and parchment round.
  2. in a small saucepan melt your butter over medium heat, stirring for even cooking. After the butter melts, it will then hiss and spatter a bit, fragrant brown bits will form at the bottom of the sauce pan. The whole process will take three minutes. Quickly remove from heat and stir in chocolate until melted and smooth. Cool chocolate mixture to lukewarm, a process that maybe sped up by transferring the mixture from the hot sauce pan to a small bowl set in a puddle of cold water. keep stirring if you are using this method
  3. With electric mixer beat eggs yolks, brown sugar and vanilla together until mixture thickens and takes on a pale yellow brown color. Slowly beat in lukewarm chocolate mixture, and a pretty good color will return the mixture will become very thick.
  4. In a separate bowl beat egg whites with clean beaters until firm peaks form. Add a pinch of cinnamon, if desired. Stir one third of eight mixture into chocolate mixture. Fold remaining two thirds in gently, trying to keep better as light as possible. Pour into prepared pan and bake in preheated oven 20 to 25 minutes, or until it is puffed with a lovely dome on top. test with skewer.
  5. To serve let cool 10 minutes. Run tonight around cake to make sure it's not stuck. Release the spring form sides. Let cool. once cooled flip onto plate remove parchment.
  6. additional: beat 1/2 cup whipping cream with 2 teaspoons granulated sugar until soft peaks form dust cake with confectioners' sugar dollop with whip cream and berries.

Pastry School Online...Whaaaat!?!

Wow...where do I begin...it has been quite an adventure so far.  Last year I was knee deep in books and stressed out beyond belief studying the law and now I am knee deep in flour studying the science of baking and loving every minute of it.

My first choice was to attend the very prestigious and well known Le Cordon Bleu, but being a thirty-something, wife and full time paralegal the very strict schedule was not something that was realistic for me.  I admit that for a moment there the wind had been taken out of my sails.  I had finally decided to do something that I knew I would love, but I found myself at a road block.  Not easily defeated, I knew there had to be another route so I searched and searched the web looking for any sign of hope and one beautiful day the heavens opened up and shined brightly on my computer screen, well that's how I remember it anyway.

That day I found Escoffier Online International Culinary Academy , which offers an online version of their culinary arts program and pastry arts program found at their schools in Austin, TX and Boulder, CO.  More specifically, "Escoffier Baking and Pastry Academy provides an outstanding online baking and pastry experience that offers classical skills while incorporating contemporary baking and pastry trends from around the globe. The combination of classical and contemporary techniques provides an in-depth exploration of the source of ingredients and sustainable practices that are increasingly relevant for today’s baker or pastry chef." (Couldn't have said it better myself!)  As a side note, click here if you would like to learn more about Auguste Escoffier.

Many people may give a wrinkled brow at the thought of an online culinary/pastry school, but to tell you the truth, the Escoffier program has been amazing thus far.  I am learning so much and for a fraction of the price it would have cost me to go to Le Cordon Bleu. The chef mentors have umpteen years of experience in the field and I am able to study and bake as my schedule allows.   The best part though is that I haven't lost any more precious moments with my husband, friends and family as I had in my law school days.

I will make sure to update you with my pastry school journey, but for now I leave you with a few pics of my "homework"...

Buttercream Frosting

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Chocolate Ganache

Viennese Cookies Five Ways

Whole Wheat Apple Pecan Muffins with Cinnamon Sugar Compound Butter

Rosemary Focaccia

It's my goal to continue to learn from my mistakes, perfect my craft and to never look back.  I am excited to be a part of something new and innovative and would love to hear what you think of online culinary and pastry programs or just online schools in general?  Until next time...

Happy Baking,

Dani xoxo

Mise En Place...An Essential Technique

Okay, so I have a confession to make...sometimes in the kitchen I have been known to be...well, as my husband may put it...a tornado.  The kitchen starts out perfectly clean and inviting, but before I know it there's flour or panko crumbs all over and just about every pot, pan, cookie sheet and utensil I own is in the sink, which my husband especially appreciates on the nights it is his turn to do the dishes.

(photo courtesy of Neat Method Kitchen)

I guess I would compare it to sleepwalkers (a la Step Brothers) who innocently lay their heads down at night only to discover the next morning that they had been up causing chaos as they slept.  In the moment I don't realize that I am doing it...I'm in the zone I tell ya! (Youtube videos don't show up when reading from your phone so you can follow this link http://youtu.be/5jIYBatQyCM)

(youtube clip courtesy of Step Brothers)

Thankfully, there's a solution to this natural disaster of a method I have and it's what the French call mise en place (pronounced meez ahn plahs), which means "putting in place".  The point is, get all your ingredients and tools together beforehand, including measuring, chopping and bringing ingredients to the right temperature, because you don't want to be searching through your cupboards mid-recipe only to discover that you don't have any sugar after all (I could have sworn I picked some up! darn it! Oh Honey, can you do me a favor?!?)

I have always loved learning new things and learning to be organized is right at the top of my bucket list of things to know.  The very first thing they teach you in culinary/pastry school is to get used to being organized because you can't survive in a kitchen without it.  Here are a few of my most recent showings of mise en place for school:

Mise en place for deliciously moist red velvet cupcakes

Mise en place for buttery Viennese Cookies

I know what you might be thinking, "what a pain in the ass...I just want to get baking!" Well, as a recovering tornado I am going to tell you, it will make the process, not to mention the clean up, much more enjoyable.  Baking can be such a relaxing and soothing process, but basically the way I have been going about it, it's like I was doing yoga to rock 'n roll!  Now, I can do my yoga to Enya just as it was intended :-P

Give it a try, if it's not for you that's okay, but if it is let me know how you like it.

As always...Happy Baking!!
Dani xoxox