This months challenge comes from Steph from the blog A Whisk and A Spoon.  She chose a Vols-au-Vent, using a puff pastry dough from Michel Richard that is featured in Baking with Julia by Dorie Greenspan. 

Huh?  What?  Don’t know what the heck a Vols-au-Vent is?  Sure you do.  It is those lovely little flaky hors devours that you have had at that fancy party.  You know - puff pastry formed into a “basket” and filled with either a sweet or savory filling. 

Lets just say I had such plans for this challenge!  But in true Blondie form, I planned until I ran out of time and then crunched to get it done.  With only one filling  *loser*  Hey, be nice!  In my defense this very easy, but time consuming pastry does require chilly temps and we have had a month of 115 degree weather!  A girl can not catch a break.  The filling by the way was delicious - scrambled eggs with herbs and brie.

Coming soon expect to see the following recipes, some of my favorite ways to use puff pastry…

• Prawn Thermidor
• Baked Brie
• Salmon Wellington
• Napoleon
• Carmelized Onion Tarts
• Palmier
• Blueberry handpies
• and many, many more

Please also check out what the other Darings have done.  It’s an impressive group of cooks and bakers that I have the honor of associating with.

And guess what?  You can follow this link to see Michel Richard preparing his puff pastry with Julia Child on an old PBS episode! 

Lastly, I am still dealing with a blog gremlin so I am unable to post more photos, the actual recipe and my normal ramblings (perhaps a good thing?).  But this I will soon resolve and then I will post more photos and details and the blah, blah, blah… Blah, blah.   In the mean time considered you have just dodged that bullet and go check out Steph’s blog for the recipe. 

~Blondie

Milanos and Mallows are the two cookie challenges for the July Daring Bakers Challenge - hosted by Nicole at Sweet Tooth.  The recipe variations came from pastry chef Gale Gand of the Food Network.

The challenge stated that you could create either cookie or both.  I chose to do only the Milanos, as I personally adore them, and I really prefer my marshmallows to make there appearance at a campfire.  Actually I ran out of time, the mallow cookie bases are done, not so much with the marshmallows or chocolate(hey a girls gotta go to the beach, right?).  Perhaps an update later this week is in order.

Can I just tell you that these milanos where so good!  They were gone in about 4.5 minutes at the beach, which is okay because they were really easy to make.  I mean, not easy like, buy premade cookie dough and cook for 8 minutes.  But easy like - the batter went together quickly, the ganache was not complicated (at the request of my beloved I didn’t add in the orange zest - which I think it needs), and all you do is schmear and stack.  So easy work, then. 

Some of the DBers were struggling with the shape of the cookies - achieving consistency - and while mine where not in any way perfect (check out this um, “masculine” one below), I think my method is what kept me from becoming frustrated (read: obsessed) with the shape.  Here’s what I did…  

Where have I seen this before? 

oh, oh I know… *giggles like a school girl*

I piped only one tray (and my cookies were more like short Popsicle sticks) because I wanted to get a feel for how much pressure to apply on the pastry bag, how much spread the batter would have and how thick or thin the resulting cookie would be.  And as you can see they were skimpy little anorexic cookies! 

The Starlets

So with the second sheet pan I piped confidently, fairly quickly and with more pressure on the bag, resulting in a thicker stripe and thus, after baking, a more traditional shape.  Success!  I piped a total of 6 trays, including the little “Hollywood Starlet” shaped cookies.

The Big Daddys - tee hee hee

I ended up with 45 cookie sandwiches, resembling the size and shape of the milano cookies that you can buy in the market.  Had I not ended up with 3 dozen “Starlets”, I probably would have netted out close to 5 dozen cookie sandwiches, with enough ganache left over to make my Dark Chocolate Dipped Dried Apricots with Pistachios. 

Milan Cookies

Makes about 3 dozen cookies

• 12 Tablespoons (170 grams/6 oz) unsalted butter, softened
• 2 1/2 cups (312.5 grams/11.02 oz) powdered sugar
• 7/8 cup egg whites (from about 6 eggs)
• 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons lemon extract
• 1 1/2 cups (187.5 grams/6.61 oz) all purpose flour
• Cookie filling, recipe follows

Cookie Filling:

• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 8 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
• 1 orange, zested

1. In a mixer with paddle attachment cream the butter and sugar.
2. Add the egg whites gradually and then mix in the vanilla and lemon extracts.
3. Add the flour and mix until just well mixed.
4. With a small (1/4-inch) plain tip, pipe 1-inch sections of batter onto a parchment lined sheet pan, spacing them 2 inches apart, as they spread.
5. Bake in a preheated 350 degree F oven for 10 minutes or until golden brown around the edges.  Let cool on the pan.
6. While waiting for the cookies to cool, in a small saucepan over medium flame, scald cream.
7. Pour hot cream over chocolate in a bowl, whisk to melt chocolate, add zest and blend well.
8. Set aside to cool (the mixture will thicken as it cools).
9. Spread a thin amount of the filling onto the flat side of a cookie while the filling is still soft and press the flat side of a second cookie on top.
10. Repeat with the remainder of the cookies.

Mallows (Chocolate Covered Marshmallow Cookies)

Makes about 2 dozen cookies

• 3 cups (375 grams/13.23 oz) all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup (112.5 grams/3.97 oz) white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/8 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 12 tablespoons (170 grams/6 oz) unsalted butter
• 3 eggs, whisked together
• Homemade marshmallows, recipe follows
• Chocolate glaze, recipe follows

1. In a mixer with the paddle attachment, blend the dry ingredients.
2. On low speed, add the butter and mix until sandy.
3. Add the eggs and mix until combined.
4. Form the dough into a disk, wrap the clingfilm or parchment and refrigerate at least 1 hour and up to 3 days.
5. When ready to bake, grease a cookie sheet or line it with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
6. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
7. Roll out the dough to 1/8-inch thickness, on a lightly floured surface.  Use a 1 to 1 1/2 inch cookie cutter to cut out small rounds of dough.
8. Transfer to the prepared pan and bake for 10 minutes or until light golden brown.  Let cool to room temperature.
9. Pipe a “kiss” of marshmallow onto each cookie.  Let set at room temperature for 2 hours.
10. Line a cookie sheet with parchment or silicone mat.
11. One at a time, gently drop the marshmallow-topped cookies into the hot chocolate glaze.
12. Lift out with a fork and let excess chocolate drip back into the bowl.
13. Place on the prepared pan and let set at room temperature until the coating is firm, about 1 to 2 hours.

Note: If you don’t want to make your own marshmallows, you can cut a large marshmallow in half and place on the cookie base.  Heat in a preheated 350 degree F oven to slump the marshmallow slightly, it will expand and brown a little.  Let cool, then proceed with the chocolate dipping.

Homemade Marshmallows

• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup light corn syrup
• 3/4 cup (168.76 grams/5.95 oz) sugar
• 1 tablespoon powdered gelatin
• 2 tablespoons cold water
• 2 egg whites, room temperature
• 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. In a saucepan, combine the water, corn syrup, and sugar, bring to a boil until softball stage, or 235 degrees with a candy thermometer.
2. Sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water and let dissolve.
3. Remove the syrup from the heat, add the gelatin, and mix.
4. Whip the whites until soft peaks form and pour the syrup into te whites.
5. Add the vanilla and continue whipping until stiff.
6. Transfer to a pastry bag.

Chocolate Glaze

• 12 ounces semisweet chocolate
• 2 ounces cocoa butter or vegetable oil

1. Melt the 2 ingredients together in the top of a double boiler or a bowl set over barely simmering water.

Blondies Kitchen Notes

• I rotated my baking sheets half way through
• I used sil-pats to line my sheet pans
• I used semi-sweet dark chocolate in my milanos
• I would used the orange zest next time in the milanos.  Because I think the cookies need the extra something, I like chocolate and orange together and because I adore those cool chocolate oranges that you whack on the counter and then when you open the foil covering the chocolate is segmented and textured to look like orange wedges.  Do you remember those?  I have to go to the import store and see if they still carry those - I think the girls would think that’s pretty cool
• I used my left over chocolate  ganache to make my Dark Chocolate Dipped Dried Apricots with Pistachios
• I made the mallow cookie dough one day and cooked off, made the marshmallows and dipped the cookies on day two (update: not really on day two persay…)

 ~Blondie

Fig on top, Blackberry on bottom - nice crisp crust!

I am excited to reveal my first ever Daring Bakers Challenge! The fantastic June 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. It is a combination of a sweet almond-flavored shortcrust pastry, frangipane and jam.

No I wasn’t drinking when I drizzled. Why do you ask?

Great choice girls!  I personally love tarts, particularly tartlets and have been wanting to make a homemade jam for quite some time, in fact it’s on  it was on my 100 list (more on that another time).  And while I lust over the beautiful long and narrow fluted tart pans that many of my fellow participants are using (Santa, are you listening?) I used my 4″ tartlet tins.

Right out of the oven

The recipe follows and the results were surprisingly good, even for a disaster.  What?  Yes a disaster, wait…let me explain.  Sure the jam is delicious.   First I thought the frangipane was way too sweet, but when all together it was mellow and not to overpowering.  The crust was crisp and overall I think my BW was a well balanced tart that I would make again, albiet with various flavor combos.  But my photog session?  Oh Lord help me!  I can definitely add “Foodstylist of the Year” to the titles I will not be recieving any time soon.  My food stylist (me) dropped the tarts on the patio outside during the shoot!  WTF?  She’s so fired.  They landed face down on their cute little (unperfect)chocolate drizzles.  But all was not lost.  As it turns out the BW is super sturdy!  As you can see by the photos they didn’t even crack or break!  And like any good multi-tasking cook/maid/mother/wife/food stylist/photographer/blah-blah-blah, I picked them up, dusted them off and served them to my family anyway (shh, I didn’t tell them-hee hee)!  They were very yummy.  Taylor was the only one who would not eat them, but at 4 she is now going thru her experimental “I’m a vegetarian” stage (um, yeah, you read that right), which has now manifested into a full blown case of picky-eater syndrome.  Oh, so much personality in one little body!

Are you freakin kidding me?
Actually, all was fine til I sat in the chocolate!

Hey look Mom, they didn’t break!
Nevermind the chocolate is all screwed up

Sweet Shortcrust Pastry

• 8oz All Purpose Flour
• 1 oz Sugar
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 4 oz Unsalted Butter, Cold (or frozen)
• 2 Egg Yolks
• 1/2 tsp Almond Extract (optional)
• 1-2 Tbl 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 with cling and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Frangipane

• 4.5 oz Unsalted Butter, softened
• 4.5 oz Icing Sugar (confectioners sugar)
• 3 Eggs
• 1/2 tsp Almond Extract
• 4.5 oz Ground Almonds (almond meal)
• 1 oz All Purpose Flour

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.  Don’t panic.  Really, it will 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 color.

 Ahh, my beautiful jam. Oh yeah and I found the light!

Blackberry Vanilla Jam by Blondie inspired by Certo

• 3 1/2 cups Blackberries
• 6 1/4 cups Sugar
• 1 pouch Certo Liquid Pectin
• 1 Vanilla Bean

Crush the blackberries, 1 cup at a time, and press pulp thru a sieve to remove the seeds (optional, I did not).  In a 6 to 8 quart saucepan, combine fruit, sugar and a split vanilla bean.  Bring mixture to a full rolling boil on high heat, stirring constantly.  Stir in pectin quickly.  Return to a full rolling boil and boil exactly 1 minute, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat.  Skim of any foam with a metal spoon.  Ladle into prepared jars and process for 10 minutes in a water bath.

Hello Beautiful!
Thank goodness for the three second rule. Right?

Assembling the tart

Place chilled dough disc on a lightly floured surface.  If it is 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 1/4″ thickness, by rolling in one direction only (start from the center and roll away from you), and turning the disc a quarter of a turn after each roll.  When the pastry is to the desired size and thickness, transfer to the tart pan, press in a trim excess dough.  Patch any holes, fissures or tears with trimmed bits.  Chill in the freezer for 15 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400d.

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 the oven and strew flaked almonds on top and return to the oven for the last five minutes of baking.

The finished tart will have a golden crust and frangipane will be tanned, poofy and a bit spongy looking.  Remove from the oven and cool on the counter.  Serve warm with creme fraiche, 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.

Blondies Notes

• The shortcrust can all be made quickly and efficiently in the food processor, but the challenge encouraged us to make the shortcrust by hand (as I did)
• The private members forum talked about blindbaking the shortcrust to prevent a soggy final result, I did not blind bake.
• I had made almond shortcrust tartlets (with 1″ tins) a few months ago and filled them with melted chocolate and lime curd (yummy!).  So I planned on smearing melting dark chocolate on some of the tartlets (then jam, then frangipane), but I got sidetracked by the swimming pool and well, I drizzled to serve…
• Okay, Next time I will also make a lemon curd and substituted it for the jam (with the chocolate of course!)
• With the left over dough I made little cookies.  I rolled out the dough and used my new fluted cookie/biscuit cutters to make little 1″ circles and put a touch of jam on top.  Then I cooked them for 10 minutes at 400d.  Chandler loved them!  Although my blackberry jam has not fully set yet so it ran all over the place!
• I used a fig jam in one of the tarts and on some of the cookies.  It is a Mission Fig Jam that I purchased at Wingshadow Hacienda when we went on our ranch tour on Monday. 
• You definitely have to like almonds to like this tart.  For those who are unfamiliar with frangipane (as I was) I would describe it as a sponge of sorts, actually the first thought that came to my mind was that it was like an almond flavored madeline (but grittier from the almond meal).

Try it, you might like it…

~Blondie

Guess what???

I recently joined The Daring Kitchen as a Daring Baker and a Daring Cook!