In case you have been living under a frying pan for the past few months and are not familiar with Julie and Julia, it is the newest foodie movie coming out on August 7th. It is the story of Julia Child and Julie Powell and how their lives intertwined 41 years apart from each other. It is a movie, based on a book, which was based on a food blog. I am sure this will be a must see within the entire food blog community!
We were overjoyed when Kristen Tarnol, part of the marketing team over at Columbia Pictures contacted us to be one of their featured Food Blogs on the Food Blogs of the Day (thanks,Joy) segment of the Julie and Julia site. This was an honor, after all we would not only be in spirit with one of the best, Julia Child, but also in the company of some of the brightest raw food talent out there.
Julia Child holds a special place in our hearts. There are many reasons for us to love her: she grew up in San Francisco, which is our home; she lived in Cambridge, Mass, which is where Lenny grew up, well Somerville is right next door to Cambridge; she did not begin her cooking career until she was in her 40′s, I did not start this cooking site until I was in my 40s; she was a spy with the OSS, I have always had this secret desire to be an agent with 007; she lived in Paris, we dream about the day when we will have an apartment there and split our time between two countries; and she did not believe in “diets”, she ate it all, we both feel one should not diet but instead enjoy all food, whether it is cream, butter, red wine or cocktails before dinner! Julia, brought French cooking to all American homes, during the era we were growing up. We both remember watching her in awe as she flipped omelets in the air to introducing her chickens before roasting them; she was fun, messy and “real”. Julia was definitely a breath of fresh air for the cooking community. Years after the French Chef she stared with Jacque Pepin in Julia and Jacques Cooking at Home, which was equally as entertaining!
Forty one years later, Julie Powell, started a blog, before most of us even really knew what a blog was. She was going to chronicle her journey through Mastering the Art of French Cooking, 365 days and 536 recipes later, she had a book published and now a movie!
When we were asked to be featured as one of the food blogs on the movie site, besides saying a big YES, my mind went wild trying to figure out which recipe to make. Would it be the quiche recipe that inspired me to actually make a quiche? Would it be a roasted chicken? Or maybe something more complicated and classically French such as beef bourguignon? Then, we found out that our debut date would be the 28th of July … I knew we would not have enough time to be as elaborate as we had hoped, since we were leaving for a long weekend of camping trip. Now the question was, “what Julia recipe would be appropriate for a camping trip!?! There was only one that came to mind, a classic Creme Brulee. According to Julia, France, Britain and Spain all claim to have invented this dessert, my two cents ….it is a classic Julia recipe.
We take creme brulee on all of our camping trips. We tried to recount this past weekend as to why we do it? We really cannot remember, it is just sort of our thing to do. As well we wondered, did Julia Child go camping and if she did would she take this luscious dessert? I normally use a different recipe but was thrilled to find a Julia Child recipe, it was equally as easy as well as delicious. And yes, it is really easy to take creme brulee on your next camping trip, just follow our steps below!
Recipe: Julia Child’s Creme Brulee
3 cups heavy cream
1 vanilla bean
6 large egg yolks
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup superfine sugar, I process refined sugar until powdered.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Pour the cream into a stir in the vanilla bean and bring to a simmer. Remove from heat, cover the pan, and let steep for 30 minutes. Whisk the egg yolks and sugar in the mixing bowl until the yolks are thick, pale yellow, and form a fat, slowly dissolving ribbon when dropped from the whisk back into the bowl. Remove the vanilla bean from the hot cream. Temper the yolks, by slowly stirring the warm milk into the yolks, until all the cream has been added and the mixture is well mixed. Skim off any bubbles from the surface of the custard. Arrange ramekins in a baking pan and ladle the custard into each, leaving 1/4 inch at the top for the glaze. Set the baking pan in the oven and pour in enough hot water to come halfway up the ramekins. Bake the custards for 30 – 35 minutes, until the tops are set but the custard in the center is still soft to the touch. Carefully remove the baking pan from the oven, and lift the ramekins from the hot water. Let them cool briefly, and then chill thoroughly in the refrigerator, over night. Sprinkle a tablespoon or so of the powdered sugar over each custard and smooth it gently with the back of a spoon, forming an even layer of sugar that completely covers the surface. Using a cooking torch, melt the sugar until it starts to caramelize. Serve. Eat.
* if you want to take camping, do not do the sugar coating until you are ready to eat them. After baking and chilling, wrap each custard well with foil. Then seal in a zip lock container or bag and put in your cooler. Before eating proceed with the sugar and caramelizing step.
If you cannot wait until August 7th to catch a glimpse of the new movie this trailer will definitely wet your taste buds – Bon Appetite! As well you can follow Julie and Julia on Twitter for more culinary capers.
Blanc-Manger is a creamy dessert which is made out of milk, sugar, almond flour and thickened with gelatin. It has a similar texture of a panna cotta. Dorie includes fresh raspberries that are gently folded in before chilling.
Our sweet friend, Susan, of Sticky, Gooey, Creamy, Chewy is the hostess of this week’s Tuesdays with Dorie challenge. Susan picked the Raspberry Blanc Manger. I normally follow a TWD recipes to the T, but this time around, I changed it up. I decided we did not need one big dessert in our house, so I cut the recipe in half, as well, I did not use a baking dish, I used ramekins. The only other change was that I used some of the fresh boysenberries that we had picked the week before.
The recipe is pretty simple and after the previous weeks challenge, this was welcomed. The base of the manger is a mixture of milk, almond flour (I processed almonds, until very fine, which gave the dessert a nice slightly rough texture), a little sugar and gelatin. After warming and cooling the above mixture, I gently folded in soft peaked whipping cream. I poured the mixture into ramekins that I lightly sprayed with canola oil, to make the unmolding would be perfect, then I let them sit in the refrigerator for 6 hours. I served the manger in a pool of boysenberries that I sweetened with a little bit of sugar as they were very ripe and naturally sweet.
The verdict: wonderfully light dessert, perfect for a hot summer evening when you want something sweet. Lenny thought the dish was very unique and liked the slightly nutty texture.
Don’t forget to be sure to check out all the other TWD Blanc Mangers - you will not be disappointed.
The recipe can be found over at Susan’s beautiful new site and there is a fantastic interview all about Susan over here!
Leftover Challah is turned into moist bread pudding with the addition of ripe summer nectarines and still firm blueberries. A egg custard flavored with cardamon and vanilla makes the flavors of summer even more exotic!
Remember that Challah I made? Well, I tucked the leftovers into the freezer with the intention of turning it into bread pudding. Laudalino and I both love bread pudding, it is a nice comfortable dessert for us both. A couple years ago we got hooked on the bread pudding at Tartine Bakery, if you don’t go to Tartine for anything else, go for the bread pudding. Everyday they have a different flavor: stone-fruit, banana, currants, etc… In fact, we were going there every Sunday, for breakfast. Yes, breakfast! We would have two coffees, a pastry and a big bowl of bread pudding; we had to stop, 5 pounds later and once we realized we really could not afford these $30 bread pudding breakfasts every Sunday!
I knew this extra challah would come in handy. I had some very ripe nectarines as well as some very sweet but not too soft blueberries. I toasted the challah, lightly and layered it with the fruit. Before baking, I covered the mixture with a very fragrant egg custard. I lightly pour some custard in, let the bread soak it in, and then pour more custard. I do this until all of the custard is used and the bread is well soaked. Then I slowly bake it. The end result is a very creamy egg custard bread pudding!
Recipe: Nectarine and Blueberry Challah Bread Pudding
1/2 loaf of challah, lightly toasted and torn into chunks
4 cups whole milk
8 eggs, cage free and organic preferred (taste better and better color)
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons cardamon – or any flavoring you like
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 ripe nectarines, cut into chucks – you can use any fruit you like
2 cups blueberries
Preheat oven to 350. Butter a large baking dish, I like to use a souffle dish for this recipe. Make layers of bread and fruit. Mix together the milk, eggs, sugar, cardamon and vanilla until well mixed. Pour some of the egg custard over the bread and fruit, let it soak into the bread, then pour more egg custard over. Continue doing this until all the custard is used and has soaked into the bread. Put your dish on a cookie sheet and bake for 50 – 60 minutes, until set. You may have to cover with foil if it gets to dark. Serve warm. Eat.
Pandan is also known as the pandanus plant and it grows abundently in Thailand. The leaves can be used to flavor coconut milk, soups and wrapping meat for the grill. Pandan paste can also be used as one would use vanilla. The color is a vibrant green and the flavor is very unique, slightly sweet and somewhat smokey. Pandan is also known for its healing properties, it has a cooling effect and is excellent for the treatment of internal inflammations, urinary infections, colds, coughs, measles, bleeding gums and skin diseases.
Elaine, of Gourmet Girl Magazine and the Kitchen Rap invited us to participate in her Cupcake Crawl. Well, I love making cupcakes. They even hold a sentimental value close to my heart. Elaine, how did you know this would be an easy one for us to participate in? We had an Asian inspired dinner last week and I decided to make a cupcake that would be befitting, Pandan with Ginger Coconut Frosting. They were pretty amazing and the guests loved them … I should say devoured them! Here is another pandan sweet.
If you love cupcakes you should definitely participate with us during the Cupcake Crawl, you have until July 15th to create something sweet to share!
Recipe: Pandan Cupcakes with Ginger Coconut Frosting
1 cup unsalted butter
1 3/4 cup unrefined sugar
2 eggs
3 teaspoon pandan
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/2 cups ap flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/4 cup milk
Heat oven to 375. Line muffin tin with cupcake papers. Stir together flour and baking powder in a bowl, set aside. Cream butter and sugar together. Add eggs, pandan and vanilla, beat until fluffy. Add half of the flour mixture and half of the mixture, mix until wet. Add rest of the flour and milk and mix until blended and smooth. Fill muffin tins with batter, I like to fill about 3/4 of the way. Bake for about 15 – 20 minutes. Remove from oven and cook on a rack. Frost. Serve. Eat.
Recipe: Ginger Simple Syrup
1/8 cup water
1/8 granulated sugar
3 tablespoons minced ginger
Stir all the syrup ingredients together in the saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let cook to room temperature.
Recipe: Ginger Coconut Frosting
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 box powdered sugar
1/8 cup milk.
1/8 cup ginger simple syrup
handful of unsweetened coconut shavings
Mix everything together in a mixing bowl until fluffly. Frost cupcakes. You can garnish with additional toasted coconut shavings if wanted.
Tart ground cherries compliment a sweet almond and custard like filling in a somewhat traditional French Clafoutis. Traditional French Clafoutis is made using fresh cherries with their pits still in. The pits give the dessert the slight almond taste. Ground cherries do not have pits so the addition of almond flavoring is required.
When we were in Montreal last weekend we went to the Marche Atwater, which is a fantastic farmer’s market, you can find everything and anything there. I have this crazy addiction to anything French but when I am given the opportunity to shop in a French Supermarche or even a Pharmacie, I go nuts buying all sorts of little things. You can imagine how I was when I saw these ground cherries; I was smiling ear to ear! We have only seen ground cherries one other time, at Lenny’s mother’s house last summer. We knew she would love some so we purchased a big basket to smuggle back to the states. We ate a large portion, gave her some and brought the rest back to California.
What is a ground cherry? A ground cherry also known as a Physalis is a small orange fruit similar to a very small cherry tomato, but it is enclosed in a large papery husk, which reminded me of a paper lantern. The small fruit does not have a pit, but rather a bunch of tiny seeds. The taste is slightly tart with a mild, and refreshing acidity.
I love making clafoutis and whenever I have some stone fruits laying around that are in need of love, I fall back onto a clafoutis. Traditional it is made with cherries but any stone fruit works just as nicely. The texture is somewhat custard like but a little firmer. I usually pit my fruit when I made it, therefore, I add either almond extract or I use almond flour, which gives it a great texture as well as flavor. This is a great and easy recipe to have on hand all year!
Recipe: Ground Cherry Clafoutis
* 1 serving
1/4 lb ground cherries, left whole
1 egg
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons milk
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
butter
Heat oven to 350. Butter small gratin dish and sprinkle ground cherries in it. Mix the egg, sugar, flour, milk and almond extract, until well blended. Pour over the ground cherries and place on a cookie sheet. Bake for 20 – 30 minutes, until golden and lightly puffed. Serve. Eat.
The June Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Jasmine of Confessions of a Cardamom Addict and Annemarie of Ambrosia and Nectar. They chose a Traditional (UK) Bakewell Tart… er… pudding that was inspired by a rich baking history dating back to the 1800′s in England.
(more to come (we are traveling) but this recipe was fantastic – come back on the 28th for all the “juicy details)!
Bakewell Tart History and Lore
Flan-like desserts that combine either sweet egg custard over candied fruit or feature spiced ground almonds in a pastry shell have Mediaeval roots. The term “Bakewell pudding” was first penned in 1826 by Meg Dods; 20 years later Eliza Acton published a recipe that featured a baked rich egg custard overtop 2cm of jam and noted,
“This pudding is famous not only in Derbyshire, but in several of our northern counties where it is usually served on all holiday occasions.”
By the latter half of the 1800s, the egg custard evolved into a frangipane-like filling; since then the quantity of jam decreased while the almond filling increased.
This tart, like many of the world’s great foods has its own mythic beginnings…or several mythic beginnings. Legend has it in 1820 (or was it in the 1860s?) Mrs. Greaves, landlady of The White Horse Inn in Bakewell, Derbyshire (England), asked her cook to produce a pudding for her guests. Either her instructions could have been clearer or he should have paid better attention to what she said because what he made was not what she asked for. The cook spread the jam on top of the frangipane mixture rather than the other way around. Or maybe instead of a sweet rich shortcrust pastry case to hold the jam for a strawberry tart, he made a regular pastry and mixed the eggs and sugar separately and poured that over the jam—it depends upon which legend you follow.
Regardless of what the venerable Mrs. Greaves’ cook did or didn’t do, lore has it that her guests loved it and an ensuing pastry-clad industry was born. The town of Bakewell has since played host to many a sweet tooth in hopes of tasting the tart in its natural setting.
Bakewell tarts are a classic English dessert, abounding in supermarket baking sections and in ready-made, mass-produced forms, some sporting a thick sugary icing and glazed cherry on top for decorative effect.
Enjoy it with a cup of tea or coffee or just eat it sneaky slice by sneaky slice until, to your chagrin, you realise the whole tart has somehow disappeared despite you never having pulled out a plate, fork or napkin with which to eat it.
Is it a tart or is it a pudding?
Someone once said something like “The Bakewell pudding is a dessert. The Bakewell tart is that girl over there.”
It’s a debate that rages on and we aren’t taking sides on this one. But we will say that many people call this pudding a tart.
While we’re at it…
The etymology of pudding is a rather interesting and slightly convoluted one.* The naming confusion may come from the British manner of referring to the dessert course as ‘pudding’ (as well as referring to fat babies by the same name, though we don’t think that is what was the inspiration in this case). And so any dessert is a pudding until another name comes along and adds clarity to what it really is.
Recipe: Bakewell Tart
Makes one 23cm (9” tart) Prep time: less than 10 minutes (plus time for the individual elements) Resting time: 15 minutes Baking time: 30 minutes Equipment needed: 23cm (9”) tart pan or pie tin (preferably with ridged edges), rolling pin
One quantity sweet shortcrust pastry (recipe follows)
Bench flour
250ml (1cup (8 US fl. oz)) jam or curd, warmed for spreadability
One quantity frangipane (recipe follows)
One handful blanched, flaked almonds
Assembling the tart
Place the chilled dough disc on a lightly floured surface. If it’s overly cold, you will need to let it become acclimatised for about 15 minutes before you roll it out. Flour the rolling pin and roll the pastry to 5mm (1/4”) thickness, by rolling in one direction only (start from the centre and roll away from you), and turning the disc a quarter turn after each roll. When the pastry is to the desired size and thickness, transfer it to the tart pan, press in and trim the excess dough. Patch any holes, fissures or tears with trimmed bits. Chill in the freezer for 15 minutes.
Preheat oven to 200C/400F.
Remove shell from freezer, spread as even a layer as you can of jam onto the pastry base. Top with frangipane, spreading to cover the entire surface of the tart. Smooth the top and pop into the oven for 30 minutes. Five minutes before the tart is done, the top will be poofy and brownish. Remove from oven and strew flaked almonds on top and return to the heat for the last five minutes of baking.
The finished tart will have a golden crust and the frangipane will be tanned, poofy and a bit spongy-looking. Remove from the oven and cool on the counter. Serve warm, with crème fraîche, whipped cream or custard sauce if you wish.
When you slice into the tart, the almond paste will be firm, but slightly squidgy and the crust should be crisp but not tough.
225g (8oz) all purpose flour
30g (1oz) sugar
2.5ml (½ tsp) salt
110g (4oz) unsalted butter, cold (frozen is better)
2 (2) egg yolks
2.5ml (½ tsp) almond extract (optional)
15-30ml (1-2 Tbsp) cold water
Sift together flour, sugar and salt. Grate butter into the flour mixture, using the large hole-side of a box grater. Using your finger tips only, and working very quickly, rub the fat into the flour until the mixture resembles bread crumbs. Set aside.
Lightly beat the egg yolks with the almond extract (if using) and quickly mix into the flour mixture. Keep mixing while dribbling in the water, only adding enough to form a cohesive and slightly sticky dough.
Form the dough into a disc, wrap in cling and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes
Cream butter and sugar together for about a minute or until the mixture is primrose in colour and very fluffy. Scrape down the side of the bowl and add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. The batter may appear to curdle. In the words of Douglas Adams: Don’t panic. Really. It’ll be fine. After all three are in, pour in the almond extract and mix for about another 30 seconds and scrape down the sides again. With the beaters on, spoon in the ground nuts and the flour. Mix well. The mixture will be soft, keep its slightly curdled look (mostly from the almonds) and retain its pallid yellow colour.
The easiest Parisian Apple Tartlet recipe ever! Dorie Greenspan of Baking, from my home to yours, hit it right on, again with this easy tart recipe: puff pastry lined with apple chunks, brown sugar and dots of butter, baked to perfection! A great recipe to have on hand for when you need an easy dessert in a hurry.
Jessica of My Baking Heart is the hostess for this week’s Tuesday With Dorie challenge and she picked the perfect Parisian Apple Tartlet. As soon as I saw the recipe, I had flash backs to one of our favorite restaurants in Paris, Au Gamin de Paris. They have by far the best apple tart I have ever had (little secret I am not a big apple pie fan), it is not overly sweet, the crust is not too flaky and it has a layer of caramel sauce which is so subtle but compliments the apples so incredibly well. I knew that this recipe would become our Au Gamin de Paris tart and I was absolutely right!
I was going to make my own puff pastry but due to time, I used my favorite frozen brand, Dufour. As well I opted to use a fluted tart pan as I wanted it to be somewhat elegant; we were taking it for friend’s for dessert. I used tart Granny smith apples, which I quartered and kept in chunks and I melted the butter and brown sugar together to form a glaze, which I brushed over the apples and crust before baking. We served the tart with homemade vanilla bean ice cream (recipe will come separately) and a burnt grey sea salt caramel sauce – it was fantastic!
You will definitely want to over indulge today and check out the TWD site for more Parisian Apple Tartlets!
Recipe: Parisian Apple Tartlet
This recipe as well as all of the Tuesday with Dorie recipes can be found in this book, which I highly recommend. If you only need to have one go to cookbook on baking, this is it! Or you can visit Jessica’s site.
Recipe: Burnt Grey Sea Salt Caramel Sauce
1 cup sugar, prefer raw and unrefined
1/4 cup water
1 stick of butter, unsalted
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
grey sea salt, to taste, don’t over salt
In a heavy saucepan set over low heat, combine the sugar and water and cook over low heat until the sugar is dissolved. Add the butter and bring it to a boil. Cook until it reaches a deep golden brown color. Do not let it smoke or burn. Keep stirring until it reaches the color you desire. Remove from the heat and add the cream. Be careful, it will splatter. Whisk to combine. Put it back on the stove over low heat, add the salt and stir to combine. Bring the temperature to medium and to a boil, then lower the heat and continue to cook for about 10-15 minutes, just until it is creamy. Serve with your favorite dessert or eat with a spoon!
How do you get your kids to eat “gourmet” meatballs smothered with prosciutto rich tomato sauce; by recreating an old time favorite, Chef Boyardee SpaghettiOs.
I had originally made this dish a couple years ago, but never wrote down the recipe. I have received a few emails asking for it so I decided it was time to make it for the MEM Big Special Weekend. I use the meatball recipe also for hamburgers and Max tells me it is the best hamburger he as ever eaten (and he is a picky boy). Your kids will love the circle pasta and the tiny meatballs. Sure to be a hit with even your pickiest eater!
For dessert we made Pizookie. I had never heard of a Pizookie until I read a post over at Diane & Todd’s site, White on Rice Couple. As soon as I saw it, I knew I had to make it for the kids. All day I told them about the surprise dessert the Pizookie, we liked saying it, we would be having, never letting on what it was. They were so happy when I handed each of them a big deep dish, warm, gooey, chocolate chip cookie with vanilla bean ice cream. The only compliant was, that they wanted it served with chocolate next time and maybe a little chocolate sauce, too!
Before reading the recipes don’t forget to FLIP OUT & enter our gift away!
Recipe: SpaghettiOs
Sauce
1/8 lb prosciutto
1/2 yellow onion
2 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 14 oz cans tomato sauce + 1 can water or red wine
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 cup basil, roughly chopped
kosher salt, to taste
black pepper, to taste
1 lb. anelleth pasta, found at trader joes
parmesan cheese for serving
Heat olive oil in a deep saucepan. Process prosciutto, garlic and onion in a food processor until finely minced. Slowly cook in olive oil until caramelized, about 15 minutes. Add the tomato sauce and water. Stir in red pepper flakes and season with salt and pepper. Lower heat and simmer for about an hour. The longer you cook the more intense the flavor. Before serving stir in basil.
Recipe: Meatballs
1 lb ground beef, we prefer grass-fed
1/4 lb ground pork
1/4 lb ground veal, we prefer grass-fed
1/4 yellow onion, finely minced, I use a food processor
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1 egg
kosher salt
fresh cracked black pepper
Mix everything together with hands. Form into tiny meatballs. If you have kids, they will love doing this. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and lay the meatballs on it. Bake at 425 for about 15 – 30 minutes, turning occasionally, until they are cooked to your liking. Before serving gently toss with the sauce.
While meatballs are cooking, cook pasta according to directions.
To serve: Drain pasta well. Toss with sauce and meatballs. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Serve. Eat.
Recipe: Pizookie
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
Vanilla Bean Ice Cream
We used the tradition Toll House Chocolate Chip cookie recipe. You can use your favorite one.
Heat oven to 350. Lightly butter 4″ ramekins. Fill 1/2″ deep with raw cookie dough. Place ramekins on a baking sheet and place on the middle rack of oven. Bake for about 10 – 15 minutes, or until the top starts to turn golden. Remember to keep them slightly undercooked.
Remove from oven and let sit for about 5 minutes as to not burn little fingers. Then place in a cloth napkin. Top with a scoop of ice cream. Serve. Eat. Enjoy the smiles on their little faces!
