Blueberry Macarons

Blueberry macarons. Tasty tasty blueberry macarons.

If there is one thing that I learned at the 2010 Food Bloggers Conference, it is that you should always start your posts with a sentence relevant to the subject matter. Fortunately I learned more than one thing, and you can too! Colleen aka browniegirl has taken the momentous task upon herself again this year to organize the 2011 Food Bloggers Indaba! Please go check it out if you have a blog, or intend to start one, or if you just want to go have a ball for a day!

Now back another subject matter.

"The time has come," the Walrus said,
"To talk of many things:
Of shoes and ships and sealing-wax,
Of cabbages and kings
And why the sea is boiling hot
And whether pigs have wings."

From The Walrus and the Carpenter - Lewis Carroll

For me, the time has come for many things...


The time for my student days has almost come to an end, only one presentation stands between me and the end of my degree. So instead of working on the presentation I am blogging, hellooooo procrastination!

I kid, the time is long overdue for posting again for me too. I have so many photos that are just sitting patiently on my harddrive just waiting to be published, bad blogger! The time has definitely come for more blogging.

The time has also come for me to change my blog's theme. It's a bit of a work in progress at the moment, so expect more changes in the future!

And now, the time has come for me to share the macaron recipe that I have been using!


Macarons
Source: Daydreamer Desserts
Makes about two baking trays

• 90 grams egg whites (aged for 2 days)
  
• 200g powdered sugar (icing sugar)
  
• 110g finely ground almonds
  
• 25g granulated sugar
  

1. The first and most important step: Weigh out all your ingredients before starting and line two baking trays with baking sheets! (don't use tinfoil, just trust me on that one) Also prepare a pastry bag with a round nozzle (approximately 1cm in diameter). This is just going to make your life much easier later...
   
2. Sift the powdered sugar and ground almonds together and set aside. I don't own a sieve so I just use a fork to mix everything together well, making sure there are no lumps in the mixture.
   
3. Place your egg whites in the most pristine clean mixing bowl you can find. (*cough* you can trust me on that one as well...) Beat the egg whites until foamy but not yet resembling anything stiff.
   
4. Slowly add the granulated sugar while beating and mix until the texture resembles that of shaving cream. (Be careful not to over beat!)
   
5. Add all of the powdered sugar/almond mixture to the egg whites in one go. Use a spatula to fold everything together. A good rule of thumb not to over mix is to not use more than 50 strokes to incorporate everything. The end result has been described as having the consistency of "thick pancake batter", I think foamy/runny mousse also describes it well.
   
6. Spoon the batter into the pastry bag and pipe round on to the baking trays prepared earlier. I prefer my macarons smaller, so I pipe my round to be about 2cm in diameter.
   
7. Now, mac batter has so stand outside a bit before baking in order for the finished product to have nice little feet. Some recipes recommend letting the batter rest for about an hour, but since that depends heavily on how the weather is, I leave mine until the tops aren't sticky to the touch anymore.
   
8. After resting, bake the macarons in a preheated oven at 140 degrees C for about 15 minutes. This part is also a bit tricky. I recommend watching your oven temperature like a hawk (mine varies with about 20 degrees within the heating cycle, so lots of opening and closing of the oven door for me). If the oven is too warm the tops of the macs will crack, too cool and they won't rise sufficiently. I'd recommend just getting a chair and sitting in front of the oven while they bake!
   
9. Once they are done, leave them to cool a bit before removing them from the baking sheet. Let them cool then sandwich together with the filling of your choice!
   

Notes

• To age the egg whites, place them in a bowl, cover them then either leave them outside for a day or refrigerate for two days. I'm too lazy to do this so I heat the egg whites in the microwave for 10 seconds on medium then mix. I repeat this until white flecks just start appearing in the egg whites. (Be careful, egg whites cook pretty quickly!)
  
• Instead of trying to get exactly 90 grams of egg whites, I break 2 or 3 eggs and weigh the resulting egg whites. I then just adjust the rest of the ingredients according to the egg whites weight.
  
• An accurate scale (digital) is pretty important for this recipe, get one!
  

Chocolate Ganache

• 85 grams chocolate, broken into pieces
  
• 60ml cream
  

1. Heat the cream until just before boiling point. (I do this in the microwave)
   
2. Add the chocolate to the hot cream, leave for about 2 minutes until melted.
   
3. Stir the mixture until mixed well, put into the refrigerator until set. (about 1 hour)
   
4. When cooled, beat the mixture a bit before using.
   

Notes

• For the blueberry filling I used white chocolate and added some cooked, squashed blueberries to the mix.
  
• I like adding a drop of jam in the centre of the macarons, makes for interesting eating!
  

Macarons, The First Encounter

Macarons. They are the temperamental diva's of the baking world. Like Everest to mountaineers! Like the Doldrums to sailors! Like sand through the hourglass! No wait, scrap that last one. Macarons are the mythical unicorn of the blogosphere at the moment, fickle little pastries that require the perfect circumstances in order to come out just right.

My first encounter with the macaron was when the boyfriend and I were at the end of our study exchange and we were spending the last few weeks traveling. We were in Paris during a chilly November where we stayed in a youth hostel in Bastille. The room's heater was faulty and was always on full blast, we went from almost freezing outside to sweating madly the moment we stepped into the room. In the mornings we got chewy rolls and jam for breakfast and some coffee to wash it down with. After breakfast on our way to the train station we had to walk past a bakery which is where I had my first taste of macaron. I can't remember what flavours we had, or how much it cost, but I can remember the texture. The shell was just firm enough to hold the macaron together, giving way to a soft interior when bitten into. The filling blended seamlessly with the soft interior filling my mouth with the most wonderful sensation. After that one taste I was hooked. No mediocre macarons would ever appease my taste buds! From then on I required perfection!

This week I was baking Christmas cookies when I suddenly realised that I would have a few leftover egg whites, and that they would be about 2 days old when my cookie baking was over. "Should I try it?", I wondered. With my impending working career looming on the near horizon I threw caution to the wind and decided, the time is now! With the ingredients bought I placed everything that I needed at arms length, ready to be used the instant it was needed. I carefully weighed out all the ingredients in little bowls (and felt very TV chef-esque). As I started beating the egg whites I had a horrible realisation; the very plastic bowl that the egg whites were in was brim-full of cookie dough yesterday, buttery oily cookie dough. My heart sank even further as my egg whites failed to puff up and just lay in a sorry pool in the bottom of the bowl.

Panic mode kicked in, I remembered reading somewhere that egg whites can be aged by microwaving them for about 10 seconds. A quick google search confirmed this and soon enough I was on my way to beating wonderful fluffy egg whites in a meticulously clean glass bowl. The rest of the macaron making process proceeded smoothly with only a minor flaring of tempers when a certain family member of mine started sticking his fingers into my delicate macaron batter (oh the horror!).


Right at this very moment I made my first mistake. With no silicone baking sheet or parchment paper in sight, I piped my macarons on to an ungreased sheet of tinfoil. I know I know, hindsight man, the recklessness of youth, blah blah blah. I've learned from my mistake! After losing almost all my macs' insides I learned!

After piping the batter I left the mac shells to harden a bit, no problem. I heated the oven to 150degreesC, inserted the first batch after resting for 40 minutes and then I waited. I watched that batch like a hawk. After the 16 minutes baking time was up I dutifully removed them and tried to remove one but got only the shell on my hand, the foot was still stuck to the foil. "No problemo", I said (in my head), "I will simply bake them a bit longer". Well I baked them for another minute, then 2 more minutes, then another 2 more minutes upon which I finally declared, "These macs must be ready!" (they weren't ready).

With the one batch out I inserted the next batch, adjusted my kitchen timer for 5 minutes longer than the recipe stated and then I promptly got distracted. Ladies and gentleman, meet mistake number 2. When I smelt the toasty smell of almonds I knew that I was in trouble. When I got to the oven a batch of toasty brown macs greeted me with horribly split tops and no feet. :(
So I had to learn the hard way that my oven's temperature was not as consistant and even as I previously believed. I also learned that macarons should be watched and that I should stay away from the Internet if I do not want to be distracted.


At this moment the story sounds pretty dire, bleak, with a macaronless future. But fear not, all was not lost! While all the insides stayed behind on the foil of one batch, and the other batch turned out toasted and very unmacaron like, they still tasted good! I filled them with chocolate ganache and sandwiched them together and they still turned out pretty tasty! Not very pretty, not like Parisian macarons, but not bad either.

My future definitely holds more forays into the black magic that is making macarons. I have not abandoned hope! I will learn from my mistakes and try again (but this time after a trip to the store to buy a proper baking sheet and perhaps an oven thermometer...)

Post Script: The background color of the images were changed in photoshop for higher visibility and just for the fun. When my macarons are of a higher quality I'll post prettier pictures!

Babyshower Cake and a long overdue post

As you might have noticed, it's been pretty quiet here on the blog since September. I have been neglecting my blog for the past few months, but I promise that it was for a good reason! Yesterday I finally handed in my Master's thesis! Yay! Unfortunately that means that I have to start job hunting, but I'll just forget about that for a little while while I'm still enjoying this new freedom from thesising...


These photos are of a baby shower cake that Grethe and I made. We made a two-layer sponge cake that was wrapped in fondant and covered with multiple pink fondant flowers.

We made extra cupcakes with the cake.


And coloured the half of each layer pink for a surprise when the mother to be cut into the cake!



As usual the cat's curiosity got the better of her...



So until next time (which should not be 3 months away again *cough*), adieu!

Nectarine Parcels

Phew, last post, last minute! Thank you LadyRaven for hosting the Ready Steady Cook! challenge, it definitely was a challenge to finish it all on time (due to my laziness...), but it was a learning experience.



This dessert is quick and dirty, no measuring of ingredients, just add to taste..!

Nectarine Parcels

• Nectarines, cut into slivers
  
• Butter
  
• Sugar
  
• Cinnamon
  
• Mixed Spice
  
• Lemon Zest
  
• Phyllo Pastry
  

1. Melt the butter and sugar in a pan. Add the nectarines and cook for about 10 minutes.
   
2. Add the spices and lemon zest, cook for a few minutes more and remove from heat.
   
3. Cut phyllo pastry into 10cm wide strips. Place about 5 strips on top of each other.
   
4. Place some nectarines on one of the corner areas. Fold the corner over to the opposite side to form a triangle. Keep on folding triangles until you have reached the end of the strip. Brush the edge with butter to seal the triangle.
   
5. Bake in a preheated oven at 180 degrees Celsius until the pastry is golden brown.
   

Filled Red Pepper with Hollandaise Sauce

In my mind the 15th of September was on a Friday (I soon realised that it was actually a Wednesday). This date is significant because it is the deadline for entries for the Ready Steady Cook! challenge. Why did I fly into a panic when I realised that the 15th of September was tomorrow? It is because up until that point I had only finished my starter entry. This blog post will probably hold the record for the fastest turnover time between cooking and blogging, there's nothing like a deadline to get me moving!



I had my reservations about how successful this course would be, but the pronounced silence when my boyfriend started eating soon quelled any fears I had! This is the first time that I have made hollandaise sauce, despite my fears of ending up with pieces of lumpy egg it came out great; smooth, creamy, lemony and oh so tasty!

Check out my first post to see what this Ready Steady Cook is all about: Red Pepper Walnut Dip with Naan Bread


Hollandaise Sauce

• 3 egg yolks
  
• 150ml butter
  
• Juice of 1-1.5 lemons
  
• Salt to taste
  

1. Place egg yolks, salt and lemon juice in a blender. Blend for 1 minute.
   
2. Heat butter until very hot (the butter is going to cook the eggs).
   
3. With the blender running very slowly pour in the butter.
   
4. Continue blending for about a minute, then it's done!
   

Couscous and Broccoli filled Red Pepper with Chickpeas
Serves 2

• 1 Large Red Pepper
  
• 3/4 cup Couscous, uncooked
  
• 0.5 Broccoli head
  
• 0.5 tin Chickpeas, drained
  
• 2 teaspoons Cumin
  

1. Cut red pepper in half, place on a baking tray and bake for 20 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius or until soft.
   
2. Meanwhile heat a splash of oil in a pan. Add cumin and fry for a minute. Add the couscous and fry for 5 minutes.
   
3. Prepare the couscous according to the instructions on the packet.
   
4. Steam broccoli until just cooked.
   
5. Assemble and serve with the hollandaise sauce!
   

Red Pepper Walnut Dip with Naan Bread

This is my starter course for the Ready Steady Cook! challenge hosted by LadyRaven from Add To Taste. How does this challenge work? Each blogger thinks up a list of 7 ingredients for another participating blogger. You have to create a 3 course meal with your ingredients as well as the allowed pantry ingredients. I got assigned the following ingredients from Ayeesha from Taste of Pearl City:

• Couscous
• Chickpeas
• Red Pepper
  
• Broccoli
  
• Walnuts
  
• Filo pastry
  
• Nectarines
  

So first thing I thought when I saw the chickpeas was "Yay, hummus!", but then I realised that tahini isn't one of the pantry ingredients, boo. "But wait", I thought, "tahini adds a nutty taste and I've got nuts man, walnuts!". So the hummus was back on, although I'll rather go with calling it a dip as it is rapidly straying from traditional hummus territory.

I decided to serve it with naan bread because I've wanted to try my hand at making it for a while now. Alas, another obstacle was in my way, after making the naan and taking photos I realised that I had used *gasp* a disallowed ingredient! Since baking powder isn't one of the pantry ingredients, I made the recipe again with self raising flour instead of bread flour and I am happy to say that it came out just as well. So with a clean conscience I can now present the recipes for Red Pepper Walnut Dip with Naan Bread!



Red Pepper Walnut Dip

• 1 can of Chickpeas, drained
  
• 1 large Red Pepper
  
• 50g Walnuts
  
• 2-3 Garlic Cloves
  
• Juice of 1 Lemon
  
• Salt, Pepper and Cumin to taste
  

1. Cut the red pepper into segments, roast in the oven until soft and cooked.
   
2. Roast walnuts under the oven grill for a few minutes.
   
3. Put the walnuts in a blender, blend until fine.
   
4. Add the rest of the ingredients and blend until smooth. Extra oil can be added if the mixture is too firm.
   

Naan Bread
Makes about 10 thin breads

• 3,5 cups Self Raising Flour
  
• 1.5 Tablespoon Sugar
  
• 2 Teaspoons Salt
  
• 1 cup Milk, warmed
  
• 60ml Oil
  
• Melted butter for brushing the dough (keep for later)
  

Note: If using bread flour, add 1 teaspoon baking powder.

1. Mix the dry ingredients together.
   
2. Add the wet ingredients and knead for 10 minutes.
   
3. Cover the dough and leave to rise for 1 hour.
   
4. Break off golf ball size pieces and roll out very thin into elongated oval shapes (some refer to this as teardrop shaped).
   
5. Brush the dough with melted butter and bake in a preheated oven at 200 degrees Celsius for about 2 minutes or until golden brown.
   

Gingered Turkish Apricot and Camembert Tart

Fairview has recently launched a competition for food bloggers to create a recipe with Fairview Camembert; this is my entry!

I got a couple of recipe ideas from browsing the Internet but in the end this tart was wholly my brain child. I first tried to make little individual pies but it didn't look (or taste!) as good as this open tart.


The final product was pretty damn tasty if I say so myself. The sweetness of the baked apricots go well with the creaminess of the cheese, the ginger biscuits add a nice spicy crunch while the honey just brings all the flavours together. The tart would make a nice sweet addition to a cheese platter and I am proud to present it for the Fairview Camembert Competition!


If you would like to vote for my recipe, head over to the competition page over here and select number 6 in the poll on the right hand side of the page.


Gingered Turkish Apricot and Camembert Tart
Makes 4 triangles

• 1 15cm x 15cm sheet of Puff Pastry
  
• 10 Turkish Apricots
  
• 0.5 Wheel of Camembert
  
• 4 Ginger Cookies
  
• Honey
  
• 1 egg for brushing the pastry
  

1. Preheat the oven to 150 degrees Celsius.
   
2. Roll out the puff pastry slightly on a floured surface. Put the pastry dough on a tinfoil lined oven pan.
   
3. With a knife draw a 1cm border around the pastry (be careful not to cut through!).
   
4. Cut the apricot length-wise, pack them so that they overlap slightly on the pastry within the border.
   
5. Place about 1cm thick slices of Camembert on top of the apricots.
   
6. Brush the pastry border with beaten egg and bake for 25 minutes.
   
7. Break the ginger cookies into small pieces and sprinkle over the tart after it has been in the oven for 25 minutes.
   
8. Place the tart back into the oven and grill it for a few minutes. (Keep your eyes on the tart in this step, it burns very quickly!)
   
9. Generously drizzle honey over the tart, cut into triangles and serve.
   

My cheese slices in the photos were a bit thin, I corrected it in the recipe.