Peppermint Pattie Ice Cream

I had some extra heavy cream and milk but I couldn't figure out what kind of ice cream to make. I consulted David Lebovitz's The Perfect Scoop. The recipe for peppermint patties were in the mix in section. I decided to combine them with the Philadelphia style vanilla ice cream which is like the regular vanilla ice cream minus the 6 egg yolks.

Peppermint Patties

2 cups powdered sugar

3 Tbsp. glucose

2 tsp. water

1/8 tsp. peppermint extract or few drops of oil (oil is much stronger than extract, use with caution)

6 oz. bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped

Line a baking sheet with parchment. Dust lightly with 1 Tbsp. powdered sugar to prevent sticking.

Mix glucose, water and mint extract. Stir in the remaining powdered sugar. Knead it until it turns into a smooth ball. Roll into 1 inch balls and flatten to 1/3 in.  Let dry at room temperature at least 2 hours.

Melt chocolate in a double boiler or metal bowl placed over 1 inch of simmering water. Stir until smooth and set aside. Dust powdered sugar off of patties and dip in melted chocolate. Set aside on parchment  to cool. Place in fridge or freezer to firm chocolate. Chop into small pieces if using as a mix in.

Vanilla- Mint Ice Cream- Philadelphia Style

2 cups heavy cream

1 cup whole milk

3/4 cup sugar (I lessened it to compensate for candies mixed in)

pinch of salt

1 vanilla bean (optional)

3/4 tsp. vanilla

1/8 tsp. mint (optional)

Pour 1 cup heavy cream into saucepan. Mix in sugar, salt, vanilla bean (seeds scraped and pod). Stir until sugar melts over medium heat. Remove.

Add remaining 1 cup heavy cream, milk, and vanilla and mint extracts.

Chill completely in fridge. Remove vanilla bean pod. Churn with ice cream maker. If adding chopped peppermint patties, fold them into ice cream. Freeze.

The ice cream turned out creamy and smooth with a little crunch from the chocolate and chewiness from the peppermint patties. Subtle mint flavor. If you love mint, add more extract to the candy or ice cream. You could also try making this with a chocolate or chocolate mint ice cream as well.

My journey into candy making continues. Peppermint patties are very simple to make. They take a few hours to dry. I left mine to dry at room temperature over night. They are very sticky and stick to the knife and parchment. When chopping them up, the chocolate cracks and is not the most attractive but if it's going to be mixed in with the ice cream anyway it doesn't matter.

Chocolate Banana Tartlets

These tartlets have a shortbread cookie crust covered with bittersweet chocolate, a fresh banana slice, and chocolate pastry cream with the subtlest hint of rum. Chocolate was grated on the top as a garnish.
A chocolate craving and too many bananas in the house. I decided to try out my new tartlet pans that had been sitting in the cupboard for months. They are so small, I doubted they would even hold a banana slice much less any pastry cream. I tested them out anyway and found that they do work. I just needed to use some melted chocolate as glue so the bananas wouldn't slide off.

Tartlet Dough (adapted from Cook and Be Merry http://cookandbemerry.com/mini-tartlet-shells-food-art-an-optical-illusion/)

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/8 tsp. table salt

1/3 cup sugar

8 oz. cold unsalted butter cut into small pieces

1 large egg

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Combine flour, salt, sugar, and butter in a food processor or using a pastry cutter or two forks till the mixture is mealy. Whisk the egg and vanilla in a small bowl. Add egg mixture to flour mixture and process or mix until the dough sticks together. Press it into a ball. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold (approx. 1 hr. ) Line up tartlet tins or mini muffin pans on a baking sheet. Do not grease. Take dough out of fridge and using a melon baller, scoop balls of dough and fill tins. Use fingers to press dough to cover the sides. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and bake 12-15 minutes until golden. Cool on wire rack. Unmold cookies from tins. When using mini muffin pans, I turn the cookies slightly to release before popping them out.  When cool store in airtight containers until ready for use.


Chocolate Pastry Cream (adapted from the pastry cream recipe from the Baking at Home With the Culinary Institute of America cookbook)

1/4 cup cornstarch

3/8 cup sugar-divided (I lessened it a little to compensate for the sweetness of the chocolate and banana)

1 cup whole milk (divided)

2 large egg yolks

pinch of salt

2 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped

1 1/2 tsp. cocoa powder

1 Tbsp. rum

1 Tbsp. unsalted butter

Melt chopped chocolate in a double boiler. If you do not have a double boiler, use a small metal bowl. Fill a small saucepan with water and set the metal bowl on top. Turn the stove to medium heat. When chocolate starts melting, stir it with a rubber scraper. Be sure not to get any water in the chocolate. Set aside.

Mix cornstarch with 1/8 cup sugar and cocoa powder in a mixing bowl. Stir in 1/4 cup milk. Add egg yolks and blend with wooden spoon until smooth.

Prepare an ice bath. Combine 3/4 cup milk, 1/4 cup sugar and salt into a saucepan and bring to a boil. Set aside.

Gradually whisk egg mixture into hot milk. Start with 1/3 first. When it is all combined, return the mixture to saucepan. Whisk in melted chocolate. Cook over medium heat whisking constantly until it boils and thickens, about 5 minutes.

Remove from heat and stir in rum and butter. Put saucepan in ice bath. Let it cool stirring occasionally for 30 minutes. Store in fridge in a container until use up till 3 days.  Be sure to press parchment paper onto the surface of the cream so skin does not form.

Assembling tarts:

Melt chocolate in a double boiler. This step is optional but chocolate is good for adhering bananas as well as keeping the cookie crust from getting soggy.

Fill pastry bag with large star tip with chocolate pastry cream.

Slice 2 large bananas.

Grate chocolate bar using a vegetable peeler or sharp knife. 

Use a spoon or pastry brush to coat inside of tarts with melted chocolate. Place a banana slice on top. Pipe chocolate pastry cream on banana. Sprinkle with grated chocolate.

I thought these turned out rather well. I could still taste the freshness of the banana even with the dark chocolate. The crust was crumbly, the pastry cream smooth and chocolaty. I debated making a chocolate shortbread crust but that would be chocolate overkill. Whipped cream sounded good but would melt into a soggy puddle quickly. This was my updated version of a banana cream pie.

A few challenges I ran into were delicate crusts who's rims would break if you bump them and crusts were a bit thick toward the bottom of mini muffin tins opposed to the tartlet tins. Tartlets made with the tins didn't hold as much pastry cream. The pastry cream recipe is adapted from a regular vanilla one. You could take the cocoa powder and chocolate out and instead add vanilla bean and vanilla extract. I also added a little rum which I don't think you would notice. I didn't want to put too much and have the pastry cream become runny. To add more rum flavor, I would soak the bananas in rum but do not cook them or they will become mushy.

Middle of the Week Bread

We tend to get really busy during the middle of the week. During the evenings, there are toys everywhere, bath time, the kids are running around the house having light saber battles and  I'm trying to get dinner ready. I found this book called Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois at the library. It took me about 5 minutes to mix the ingredients in the stand mixer. Then I left it on the counter for 2 hours while I did other stuff. I put it in the fridge overnight and then the dough was ready. It makes enough for 3-4 loaves. I baked one and the other two are still in the fridge. It says that they taste better the longer they are in there because the flavors develop. Here is my adapted version of the recipe.


Easy Boule Recipe

3 cups lukewarm water

1 1/2 Tbsp. active dry yeast (1 1/2 packets)

1 1/2 Tbsp. coarse salt

6 1/2 cups all purpose flour

cornmeal for pizza peel

1. Put warm water into large mixing bowl (I like to use the Kitchen Aid stand mixer bowl).

2. Add yeast and salt and stir.

3. Mix in the flour using stand mixer with dough hook, wooden spoon or hands until incorporated. Do not knead or overmix. The dough should be uniformly wet.

4. Cover with plastic wrap or a damp cloth. Rise for 2-5 hours at room temperature until dough flattens on top. Now you can either bake it or put it in the refrigerator but it is easier to work with if you refrigerate for at least 3 hours. The dough will keep up to 14 days in the fridge or frozen in an airtight container and defrosted in fridge overnight.

5. To bake, take dough out of fridge. Sprinkle peel with cornmeal. Sprinkle flour on top of dough. Cut dough into 1 lb. pieces. I used a bench cutter. It should make 3-4 loaves. Shape into round loaf pulling the top of dough taut and securing it underneath to shape into a boule (dome shape). Stretch until the dough is smooth. This should only take a minute. Let it rest on peel or cookie sheet uncovered for 40 minutes at room temperature.

6. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Place baking stone on middle rack. ( I don't have a baking stone so I just used a cookie sheet). Put an empty broiler tray or 9 x 13 pan on the bottom rack of oven.

7. Dust the top of the dough with flour and slash with serrated knife in an X about 1/4 in. deep.

8. Place dough into oven on cookie sheet or heated stone. Pour 1 cup of hot tap water into the broiler tray or pan. The steam from the pan of water will keep the bread from becoming too dry. Close the door and bake for 30 minutes until crust is firm and brown. 

9. Cool on a wire rack before cutting and eating.

I thought this bread turned out o.k. It was crusty on the outside and soft in the middle. I want to see if the dough that has been resting in the fridge longer will yield tastier bread. The kids loved it with butter for dinner. Next time I will try to add some whole wheat flour in place of some of the white. It will be healthier but probably more dense.

Sea Salt Caramels

I've never been a fan of caramel. I'd always pick the caramels out of the box of assorted and give them to August. But lately I've been stretching myself especially in the confections department and trying new things. These caramels turned out rich, buttery with a salty contrast to the sweetness. They were really chewy inhibiting conversation for a minute or two. Someone's talking too much, just hand them one. I enjoyed a few moments of quiet chewing from our little boys who are nonstop conversationalists.
I tested my candy thermometers before starting. To do this, bring a pot of water to a boil. Boil the thermometers for 5 minutes and check the temp. It should be 112 F. I have three thermometers. The big rectangle one read 109 F. The digital read 111 F. And the long pointy one read 110 F. They were pretty close considering I thought they were broken.

Sea Salt Caramels inspired by the thechiclife.com

2 cups heavy cream

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup brown sugar (light, medium, or dark, it depends how dark you want your caramel)

1/2 cup corn syrup or glucose

1/2 cup unsalted butter (113 g or 1 stick) cut into small pieces

1/4 tsp. table salt

1/2 tsp. vanilla

kosher sea salt (coarse)

1. Grease or spray an 8x8 pan and line with parchment paper. Make sure it extends up the sides. Use a large piece and then cut a diagonal line from each corner so the paper fits in the pan. Set aside.

2. Combine the heavy cream, sugar, brown sugar, corn syrup, butter and salt in a large pot. It should be large so the mixture doesn't boil over. Turn the heat on medium high to melt the sugars and attach candy thermometer to pot making sure it doesn't touch the bottom.Stir frequently with wooden spoon.

3. When it boils, turn the heat down to medium. Use spoon to stir occasionally. Cook until heat reaches 245 F. It will take about 20-30 minutes. Watch it closely because temperature may spike rapidly. Brown bubbles will form and the mixture will look mottled.

4. At 245 F remove pot from burner and stir in vanilla. Pour mixture into parchment prepared pan.

5. Cool for 3 hours on a rack until set.

6. Grease a pizza wheel or knife and a scissors. Turn out caramel upside down onto cutting board and peel off parchment. Use pizza wheel or knife to make 1 inch rows. Make shallow cuts at first then deeper till it separates. Be sure to keep greasing the wheel or knife or the candy will stick. Use the scissors to cut into 1 inch squares.

7. Sprinkle with sea salt and press gently into candy.

8. Wrap individually in parchment or wax paper or place in little paper candy cups.

There were a few challenges I encountered. The thermometer never reached 245 F. Perhaps I didn't cook it long enough. I got impatient and turned the heat up to medium high but it still never got beyond 225 F. The mixture was bubbling a lot, the bubbles were brown and started to smell smoky. I thought it was burning and took it off the stove. When I poured it into the pan it was not a uniformed color. I read that if it didn't reach temperature, the caramel would be liquid and good for drizzling on ice cream. I left it for 3 hours and hoped for the best. The caramel set and became a nice brown color.
Later as I was reading on the internet, people posted that waiting for the thermometer to reach temperature was often unreliable with caramel and to wait until the bubbles just start to smoke.

Another challenge was cutting it. My pieces were often misshapen due to the stickiness of the caramel. When I would cut it with the knife it would stick. I found the greased pizza wheel to be better and made gradual cuts in a sawing motion. I reshaped the pieces gently if they became skewed. I read that wrapping them in waxed paper often made the candies stick to it so I opted for parchment. The caramels were a little greasy due to the high butter content. All in all I thought they turned out great. They also make great gifts especially for the holidays.

Palmiers (Elephant Ears)

One of August's coworkers suggested that I make these for the Treat of the Week. He is from England and says he loves palmiers. Most of the recipes I found used Pepperidge Farms frozen puff pastry. If you're short on time that should work fine. However, I'm trying to work on my pastry skills and opted to make puff pastry the long way. I made and cut the dough the day before then cut and baked them the following day. They say these are better the fresher they are. An airtight container will keep them from getting soggy if you put them in there as soon as they are cool on the rack.

Classic Puff Pastry
(Adapted from The Fundamental Techniques of Classic Pastry Arts by the French Culinary Institute)

4 1/2 ounces cake flour (If you don't have cake flour use all purpose and substitute 1 Tbsp. of it with cornstarch instead)
4 1/2 ounces of bread flour
1 tsp. salt
1 1/4 ounces unsalted butter (softened)
ice water 4 1/2 oz. 

8 1/4 ounces unsalted butter (cold)

Sift flours and salt onto a cold or marble surface. Mix the 1 1/4 ounces of softened butter into the flour with your fingers. Add ice water and mix until dough forms. Shape into a square, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Prepare the butter next by placing it between sheets of plastic wrap and pounding it with a rolling pin until smooth. Form into square and refrigerate.
Take the dough out of the refrigerator. Lightly dust marble slab with flour to prevent sticking. Roll dough into a square and place chilled butter in the center. The dough and butter should be the same temperature. Fold the corners over the butter to seal it in. Roll it out into a rectangle 3/8 in. thick. Cut in half if too large. Put other half wrapped in plastic wrap into the fridge. Roll into rectangle 11 in. long 3/8 in. thick. Fold the lower half of the dough up toward the middle. Fold the upper half of the dough down overlapping the other layer. This is like folding a letter. Turn the dough a quarter turn. Roll dough into rectangle  3/8" thick and do the letter fold again. Use your finger to mark two indentations into the dough to remind yourself that you folded it twice. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate one hour. Take other dough out of the fridge and repeat first two folds.
After an hour, take dough out of fridge, turn it a quarter of a turn . Roll and fold two more times and mark with fingers. Refrigerate 1 hour. Repeat a third time turning, rolling and folding. After the final roll, the dough should be folded 6 times. Refrigerate 1 hour.


Palmiers (Elephant Ears)

2 cups granulated sugar
1 recipe unbaked puff pastry

Cover a marble slab with granulated sugar. Work quickly so the dough remains cold. Take dough out of fridge, sprinkle with sugar, and roll it out on marble slab into a rectangle 14 in. long and 1/8 in. thick . If you like your palmiers sweeter, sprinkle with sugar, cinnamon sugar or vanilla sugar. Trim edges so that sides are straight. Roll the top of the dough toward the center. Roll the bottom of the dough toward the center. Leave a space in the middle of the two rolls. Bring the top half onto the bottom half so the sides meet evenly. Use a rolling pin to press sides together. Wrap in plastic and transfer to baking sheet. Refrigerate overnight.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Take dough out of fridge and cut crosswise into 3/8" slices. Brushing with egg wash and/ or sprinkling with sugar on top of dough is optional. Take care not to egg wash sides of dough or it will not rise well. Place on baking sheet 2 inches apart. While baking they will double or even triple in size. Bake until bottoms are golden about 10 minutes. If they start unrolling gently push them back together. Flip and bake another 10 minutes until golden. Cool on wire racks. Store in airtight containers so they don't get soggy.

One of the challenges I encountered was that the dough was too long to be rolled out on my marble slab. I cut it in half and made two batches. The butter was oozing out  of the top and bottom of the dough probably because it was a little too soft but I just tucked it back in. I also rolled it the wrong way at first which would make many small palmiers instead of regular sized ones. I baked them in a 350 degree oven and when they were supposed to be done they were pale, mushy and bubbling in butter. I think the heat wasn't high enough so I cranked it up to 425. Soon they were browning and the parchment was dry. They also unrolled a little bit. When we tried them they were flaky, buttery and slightly sweet. If you like sweeter pastry you could roll them up with cinnamon sugar, vanilla sugar  or sprinkle sugar on them before baking. I think if I had baked them at a higher temperature from the beginning they may have puffed up more. But they turned out pretty well. Parents and teachers liked them so much there were only 6 for August to take to work. Next time I'll try to make mini ones so there will be more to give out.

Zucchini Cornbread Mini Loaves

Zucchini seems to be on sale lately. What to do with all of that zucchini before it goes bad? Muffins and mini loaves are packable and freeze well for easy breakfasts and snacks with the veggies hiding inside. It also goes well with veggie chili.  The whole family loves this recipe.

Zucchini Cornbread

Makes 12 Muffins, 30 Mini Muffins, 1 Loaf or 4 Mini Loaves

1/4 cup unsalted butter (melted and cooled)
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 large eggs (lightly beaten)
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 cups zucchini (1 large or 3 small grated)
3/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar (or substitute half of sugar with stevia for diabetics)
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
3/4 cup cornmeal (medium grind whole grain is best)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter or spray loaf pans. If making muffins, butter, spray or use liners in tins. Combine melted butter and applesauce in a medium bowl.  Whisk in eggs and buttermilk. Cut ends off of zucchini and grate. Add to butter mixture. Stir until blended scraping bottom and sides with a rubber scraper. Sift flours,  baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk in sugar and cornmeal. Fold into zucchini mixture just until blended. Divide evenly among pans or tins. Bake on middle rack. 10 minutes for mini muffins, 20 minutes for muffins, 30 minutes for mini loaves and 60 minutes for regular loaves until golden brown and toothpick comes out clean. Cool in pans 15 minutes then remove to cooling rack. Keeps 2-3 days in airtight container at room temperature or freeze in freezer bags.

My favorite thing to do is to take them out of the freezer the night before and put them in the fridge. The next morning, the boys take them out and have them for breakfast. If you like them warm just pop them in the microwave. Also great for packing in school lunches or bringing to the park.

Raspberry Financiers

Little Almond Cakes with Fresh Raspberries

Whole Wheat Buttermilk Biscuits With Nutella