A Princess Birthday

I actually got my first real order for decorated cookies and a birthday cake! A little girl turning 6 wanted a princess birthday party. She had seen my cookies before and decided she wanted princess dresses for the girls and swords for the boys. She also wanted a  cake covered in pink ( what else!?) fondant. I haven't had too much experience with fondant, but it was something I thought I could do. Turned out to be no major problem, except for one. In all my enthusiasm and making sure it was finished on time and with perfection, I forgot to take a picture of it! Cute, huh? I'm trying to find out if they took a pic at the party before they cut it and if so, I will post it at another time. I was very pleased with the result of the cookies and so was the little girl. Funny thing happened at the party- her Dad told me that some of the boys wanted the dresses and some of the girls wanted swords! Good for them- no gender issue there! It all worked out in the end and everyone got what they wanted. Hope this is the first of many more orders to come- I really enjoyed  the process!

Committment

OK- this is it! I'm tired of being a procrastinator. I just joined the "The Cake Slice" group and I am committed to posting once a week ( remember those words!) and being diligent about taking pictures of things I bake. Actually, today I am writing about something I made a few weeks ago, and has nothing to do with baking. I like to cook but I do it because people need to eat around this house. If I could just serve sweets all the time, I'd be happy! One thing I have found I do like is pickling veggies. The taste of homemade is so much better than the store-bought stuff and without all the preservatives and unpronounceable ingredients.

Someone brought me a kilo of freshly picked radishes from a farm in the Southern part of Israel and I knew that we were not going to eat a kilo's worth of them- no matter how delicious and fresh they were! So, start my never-ending interent search for something to do with radishes- something easy that is! The idea of pickling them seemed interesting and appetizing. After viewing a number of recipes I came up with a concoction of my own, taken from a variety of sources. It's quick, easy to do and how yummy! Great to add to a sandwich, salad or just munch away for a snack!

Pickled Radishes

1-2 lbs. red radishes

2 small garlic cloves

1/2 raw red beet ( can be cooked if you happen to have it around like I did) optional

4 TB. dark brown sugar

4 tsp. kosher salt ( pickling salt or sea salt is fine too)

1 cup white vinegar ( I happened to have apple vinegar hanging around and that was fine too)

1-2 cups water

Wash the radishes, trimthe ends and cut in medium size slices. Peel garlic and cut in  half. Pack the radishes and garlic into a  canning jar with the red beet if using- it really enhances the look with a bright pink color.

Put the remaining ingredients into a small pot and boil. Pur the hot mix over the radishes and close the jar. Let cool , then refrigerate for 4 hours or longer before serving. Keeps for weeks in the fridge , if they last that long!

Not so Easy

I haven't posted for a month now and not because I've been away or anything. I've been working on starting up a small home-based baking business, but I must say, it's not as easy as it may seem- in theory at least. I spent most of the summer baking and trying out recipes to see what  works well, tastes good and is marketable. I decided to start on a very (very) small basis and, other than pass out the business cards I had made, I have done no formal advertising. With school back in session ( I teach Hebrew at the elementary school level) I thought that bringing some of my products to school would be a good boost. It would also let me know if I could manage working full time and bake on a larger scale at the same time. Like the title of this post says -"not so easy"! Sitting in the teacher's room trying to sell my stuff was too demeaning- just not my style. So for now, I will just be taking orders from those who know my work and like the results. This is a learning and soul-searching experience for me - baking is my passion and it is the thing  I enjoy doing the most- I feel the best when I am doing it- so where does it fit in my life?  Do I concentrate on the decorated cookies and cakes, or branch out into regular baked goods as well ( which is what I've been doing for the past few weeks)? Do I just let it remain as a passion and not try to earn money with it? I don't know at the moment, but I am on the journey to find out.

And.. in the meantime, I can' t post without telling you about at least one of the things I made recently. Unfortunately , I don't have a picture of it  since I was so busy baking, I neglected to take photos of all my work- bright huh?!

This is a recipe for what we call in my family, "pecan cups". It is a recipe from a dear family friend, that has become a real tradition in our house. The recipe is written on a tattered index card, taped into an old recipe notebook of mine.  For some reason, those are the recipes that seem to taste the best! I covered it with plastic wrap to preserve it since I can't bear to throw it away and rewrite it on a clean, new card. 

I'm sure there are many versions of it around- this is mine. Enjoy!

Pecan Cups

1 stick butter ( 100 g.)
1 3 oz. package cream cheese ( 75 g.)
1 cup flour (140 g.)

Blend together in food processor and chill for 30-60 min.
In the meantime, make the filling. Preheat oven to 325 F ( 170 C.)
3/4 cup brown sugar (200 g.)
1 heaping tsp. butter, softened
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla

Mix the filling ingredients together until smooth.
Form small  ( approx. 1 in.) balls of dough and place in a mini- muffin pan. Using your fingers, press dough on bottom and sides of each cup.
Break up some pecans and place a few on the bottom of each dough cup, fill each with a scant teaspoon ( it puffs up ) of filling and then top with more pecans.
Bake for 20-25 mins. unitl lightly browned.
Cool on rack for 10 minutes then remove from pan. I serve them in mini cupcake papers.

All Done!

Our group

That's it! I finished the pastry chef course ( I even passed the test I was dreading!) and what an ending it was. We spent the last two lessons preparing for the "finale" - an evening with our invited guests tasting our goods.

The evening was a true success - food, atmosphere and a major cooperative work effort on the part of all the class participants. We worked sooooo hard- I am now convinced that working in a pastry shop, being on your feet for amazingly long hours, is not for me. When I finally got home after midnight, I could barely walk and I was out of commission for most of the following day! I'll stick with the small time home-based business for now.

The evening began with roaming waiters ( us!) serving small cups of cold basil zucchini soup with cheese sticks. It was a very hot night and the event was outdoors so the cold soup was a welcome. A buffet table was then manned by more waiters (us again!) serving salads, a variety of breads, quiches and savory bites ( all prepared by us , of course!)

pissaladiere (puff pastry with carmelized onions, anchovies and black olives

Then came the "piece de resistance"- dessert. What a selection there was. Chocolate-nougat mousse, toffee- nut tarts, chocolate-pear tarts, dulche de leche mousse, cheesecake mousse with a cinnamon crumble ( yum!) coffee-pecan cookies, basil-almond lemon cookies ( very interesting), vanilla creme cookies, vanilla-chocolate- coffee cookies, citrus cake, chocolate-poppy seed cake, white chocolate penacotta with passion fruit and a streusel topping, meringue cups with a lemon-mint ganache filling...... should I go on?!

mini chocolate fondant cake and in the background,toffee-nut tart

Krantz Cakes- (plaited yeast cakes with a chocolate/halva filling)

I managed to get a only few pictures in between the serving and preparing and washing up. Feast your eyes!

basil-almond lemon cookies

All in all, it was a wonderful learning experience and I made some great friends along the way! Onward to the advanced course!

Business Card

Here's the card I forgot to put on the previous post!

Cookies for Sale!

Some examples of my latest work and the business card I had made.

Tahini Cookies

It's hot outside and I don't do well in the heat. Then why am I living in such a hot climate, you may ask? Good question and a long story ( but that's for another time)- but I can tell you that this global warming thing is real- summers are definitely much hotter than they used to be. Either that or my memory is starting to fade.

Air conditioning- I couldn't survive without it, spoiled thing that I am. So when it's unbearably hot and sticky outside, inside is where you'll find me- ironically enough- baking! Yeah, I know; the heat of the oven , etc. etc. Doesn't matter. As long as I'm working in the A/C, I 'm fine. So my project for today was tahini cookies . I am testing out all kinds of cookies recipes as I'm hoping to get my stuff together and start selling a bit when the school year starts again. Business cards are in the working and I'm am busy getting a solid list of tried and true recipes together. At least I'm trying to be organized- that's a step in the right direction!

These cookies are easy, easy, easy , delicious and melt-in-your mouth. If you've never tried anything with tahini paste before, then I highly recommend giving it a chance. Beyond the typical tehina sauce, it can be used in baking with super results.

Tahini Cookies (adapted from "Cookies" by Benny Saida) 50 cookies

Ingredients:

3 cups ( 420 g.) flour, sifted

1 tblsp. baking powder ( 10 grams )

1 cup ( 200 g) sugar

1 cup tahini paste

1 cup ( 200 g.) butter, softened

50 almond halves for decoration

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. ( 180 C)

2. Place all ingredients in bowl of mixer and blend until a uniform dough is formed.

3. Form 50 balls of dough ( I weighed each one at about 20 g. so they would be uniform) and place on a parchment or silicone lined bakin sheet.

4. Lightly flatten each ball and push in an almond half on top.

5. Bake 15-20 minutes until just beginning to turn golden. Cool thoroughly on wire rack and store in an airtight container.

Chocolate Week

Had some trouble posting this but I think it's all straightened out now. Anyways, as I was trying to say before, the pastry chef course I have been taking is coming down to the finish line. Next Monday we have our final test( gulp!). This past week was the first of two lesson about chocolate. We learned about the origins of chocolate, how it is made, what makes a fine chocolate and how to work with it in baking. Next week comes the candy part. The 4 recipes we made were all quite simple, but very rich and delicious, as well as impressive on the plate. (Not to mention impressive on the waistline!)

Coconut Chocolate-Orange Treat

three layers of a coconut macaroon type with chocolate-orange ganache in between-

total decadence!

Three Chocolate Cookies-

a chocolate cookie with bitter, milk and white chocolate chip pieces

(at home I exchanged the white chocolate chips for peanut butter chips- both were amazing!)

Cremeux chocolate tart-

a delicious base with chocolate, carmelized nuts, butter and a bit of flour (wow!),

a crispy middle and cremeux in between! Hard to describe the incredible flavor.

Coffee-Chocolate Brownies with a cheese and white chocolate topping- just the best!

Recipe for these brownies ( which can also be marbelized instead of having the cheese on top)

For a small square pan( I used an aluminum 25cm x 18 cm)

Brownie mix:

80 g. dark chocolate

80 g. butter

1 tsp. instant coffee diluted in 1 Tblsp. hot water

100 g. brown sugar

60 g. white sugar

2 eggs

60 g. white flour

pinch of salt

20 g. chopped walnuts

Heat oven to 170 C (325 F)

Butter the pan well.

Melt the chocolate, butter and coffee in a double boiler ( bain marie) . Mix until smooth. In a separate bowl, mix eggs and sugar well and then add to the chocolate mix which has been removed from the heat source. Continue to mix until smooth. Add the flour, walnuts and salt and lightly mix.

Pour into pan and bake 17 minutes.

In the meantime prepare the cheese topping:

30 ml. heavy cream

75 g. white chocolate

100 grams cream cheese (here in Israel I use a soft white cheese that is 9% fat) If you use Philadelphia, be sure it is softened to room temperature.

25 g/ sugar

1 egg

20 g. flour

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Melt the heavy cream and white chocolate in a double boiler. In a separate bowl mix the cheese, sugar , egg and vanilla. Mix in the chocolate mix. Add the flour and mix well until smooth with no lumps.

As soon as the brownies are finished baking for 17 minutes, take them out and carefully pour the cheese mix on top ( start from the sides and let in fill in towards the middle) and return to the oven for another 15 minutes to set. The top should not brown. Cool completely and cut in to small squares (they are very rich!) I dusted some with cocoa and some with confectioner's sugar and set them on a plate in a checkerboard fashion. Use your imagination!

Gingersnap search

I'm searching for the perfect gingersnap cookie. You know-just like the ones you buy in the supermarket that come in the old-fashioned paper bags. It needs to have just the right snap, a lot of ginger and that extra "bite" that sets it apart from all the others. Of course there are a multitude of gingersnap recipes out there. So, I have set my sights on wading through them all, comparing ingredients and trying out the ones that appear to be "the right one".

This is my first try. I don't even know where I got the recipe- found it in my collection of recipes but with no indication of its origin. Somewhere on the net- so my apologies if someone recognizes the recipe and I haven't given credit to them.

The dough was simple to make. I needed a small touch of flour to roll them into logs ( how do you get a perfectly round log?) Froze them a bit ( they can be stored in the fridge for 3-4 days as well) then sliced and baked. I now see that I sliced the first batch too thick and they didn't come out crunchy or "snappy" enough. Taste was good but not enough bite in it for me. Next time I think I would add more ginger( for sure) and even a bit more pepper. The second batch was sliced a lot thinner and I gave them a little extra time in the oven . That definitely solved the "snappy" issue.

Here's the recipe to try if you like, and if anyone out there has a gingersnap cookie recipe to add to my collection, I'll be happy to give it a try. Happy snapping!

Gingersnap Cookies

makes 40-50 cookies

2 cups (280g) flour

1 1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

2 tsps. cinnamon

1 1/2 tsp. ground ginger

1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

11 TBLSP. (150 g) butter, salted or unsalted , at room temp.

2/3 cup (130 g) sugar

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 cup (80 g) mild-flavored molasses ( sometimes called light molasses)

1 large egg, room temp.

1. Stir together dry ingredients

2. In bowl of electric mixer, beat butter just until solft and fluffy. Add sugar and continue to beat until smooth, stopping the mixer to scrape down any butter clinging to the sides of the bowl.

3. Stir in vanilla, molasses and egg.

4. Mix in dry ingredients gradually until dough is smooth.

5. Divide dough into two equal protions and roll each on a lightly -floured surface until about 2 inches (5 cm) around.

6. Wrap eachin plastic wrap and roll lightly to smooth them out. Refrigerate or freeze until firm.

7. Preheat oven to 350 (180) and line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone baking mats.

8. Slice cookie dough into 1/4 inch ( scant 1 cm) rounds witha sharp knife.

9. Place on baking sheet about 5 cm apart( they spread slightly). Bake 10-14 minutes until deep golden brown. Bake on lower end of range for softer cokies and higher end for snappier ones( depending on your oven)

10. Cool on baking sheet or two minutes then transfer to a cooling rack.

Storage: the dough can be refrigerated for up to 5 days or frozen for up to 3 months. Once baked, store in an airtight container for a few days.

Bialys

I have been dying to try these for some time now. Growing up, I remember Sunday mornings with fresh bagels and bialys from "Snowflake Bakery" in Syracuse , N.Y. Bialys, for those who hae never heard of them, are similar to bagels , but different( that makes sense, huh?). Bialys originated in Bialystok, Poland, and when the European Jews emmigrated to the U.S., they brought their recipes along, one being for bialys. From what I have read, there used to be dozens of bialy bakeries in New York- today, only a few remain. They can still be found in selected bakeries in Florida as well ( I'm sure in other parts of the country too, but that's what I'm familiar with). The bialys I remember were crispy on the outside and chewy in the middle, not too thick and of course had the yummy center filling of onions, poppyseeds and garlic.

The recipe I used is from smittenkitchen who always has the best recipes and stories to go with them! The original recipe is from The Bread Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum ( which I have yet to acquire, but that will come too!)

I followed the recipe exactly and although the process is time consuming (more waiting than anything), they turned out really great. The recipe makes only 6 bialys, so next time I will try doubling the recipe. ( 6 bialys in my house is like a drop in the bucket) Now, slice in half, add a bit of Philadelphia cream cheese or just let some fresh butter melt all over the bialy- heaven!!