Grape Clafoutis

Coleen and Jerry, Jeremie's mom and dad celebrated their 40th anniversary and these fruits were our contribution for the reception. We had 3 of these but the guests did not eat these perhaps they thought it was a display - should have left a note - they only ate the loose grapes that were served in the bowl. So, after distributing some, we still have plenty and i had to scratch for recipes and found this very interesting one - Grape Clafoutis from Dessert Circus by JACQUES TORRES.

The classic Clafoutis is made with cherries. Jaques Torres thought that it would be fun to make with grapes and what a lovely idea, cos this version which makes a 10 inch Clafoutis, contains less flour and the custard is more intense than the traditional Clafoutis recipe. Do not be intimidated by the lengthy method, it is forth the typing and reading cos it is very informative.

Ingredients:

Sugar Dough:

(12 ozs(342 gm) enough to make one 10-inch tart shell)

6 tbsp/3 ozs/83 gm cold unsalted butter, cubed

1 large egg

1/3 cup/1.5 oz/42 gm powdered sugar

1 1/4 cups/6 ozs/166 gm pastry flour(i use 6 ozs/166 gm bleached all-purpose minus 1 tbsp and replace with 1 tbsp cornstarch)

1 1/2 tsp/0.3 oz/8 gm baking powder

For the Custard:

1/2 cup/4 ozs/120 gm whole milk

1/2 vanilla bean

2 large eggs

2 large egg yolks

1/3 cup/2.4 ozs/70 gm granulated sugar

1 tbsp/0.3 oz/8 gm pastry flour

1 tbsp/0.4 oz/14 gm sour cream(Jaques uses Creme fraiche of course)

For the Filling:

Large Seedless grapes - about 2 cups

To finish the Clafoutis

Powdered sugar for dusting

Method:

To make sugar dough:

Place flour, baking powder, powdered sugar in the food processor and pulse a few pulses to mix the ingredients.

Add in the cold cubed butter and pulse 2 - 3 times to chop the butter into small pea size.

Add in the egg and pulse until combined - dough will be still loose but when a small lump is pressed together, it should be able to clump.

Remove from bowl into a large ziploc bag and squeeze dough into a round disk and use immediately or store it in thee refrigerator.

Prepare the tart shell:

Preheat the oven to 350f(175c).

Lightly butter the bottom of a 10-inch fluted tart pan, or you may have trouble unmolding the baked Clafoutis. (i used a removable bottom tart pan although Jaques said that he tries not to use one just in case the tart shell cracks and spills the custard onto the baking sheet - well he is the master)

Prepare the sugar dough (if you are using refrigerated dough, you will need to give the cold dough four or five quick raps with a rolling pin to break up the cold butter). Flour each side and roll the dough into a 12-inch circle between 1/4 and 1/8 inch thick. After each roll with the rolling pin, rotate the dough a quarter turn. This will keep it from sticking to the work surface as well as maintain the shape of the circle. Dust the work surface with more flour if needed, but be careful not to overflour, as this will make the dough tough. When you roll the dough, don't press too hard on the rolling pin, or you will cut the dough in half. Work quickly to keep the butter from melting and the dough from becoming too soft; if this happens, place the dough in the refrigerator until it is firm once again, about 15 minutes.

Transfer the dough to the pan by rolling i up around the rolling pin. Hold the rolling pin over the pan and unroll the dough into the pan. Use your fingers to gently press the dough into the bottom and sides of the pan. Make sure you press into the edge where the side of the pan meets the bottom. Remove the excess dough by rolling the rolling pin over the top of the pan to make a nice clean cut. Dock the bottom of the tart shell lightly with a fork to allow the steam to escape during baking to keep the shell flat.

Place the tart pan on a baking sheet and bake for 5 minutes. The tart dough takes longer to bake than the custard, and for that reason, the dough is partially baked before the custard is added. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and set aside until ready to use. Keep the tart pan on the baking sheet, as this will make it easier to transfer the tart shell back into the oven once it is filled.

Prepare the Custard:

Place the milk in a 1-quart heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Use a sharp knife to slice the vanilla bean in half lengthwise. Separate the seeds from the skin by scraping the blade of the knife along the inside of the bean. Place the seeds and skin in the heating milk. Adding the vanilla to the heating milk will allow the full flavor of the vanilla to infuse the milk and give the Clafoutis a stronger vanilla flavor. When bubbles begin to form at the edge of the pan, remove from the heat.

Place the whole eggs and egg yolks in a large mixing bowl and whisk until well mixed. Whisk in the sugar, flour, and sour cream. When smooth, whisk in the heated milk mixture until well combined. Strained the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a large measuring cup with a spout. Straining the mixture removed the vanilla bean as well as any pieces of cooked egg or lumps of flour. Set the custard aside.

To assemble the Clafoutis:

Place the grapes in the bottom of the prebaked tart shell.

Completely fill the bottom of the tart. Pour the custard into the tart shell to fill the pan. Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake until the custard sets, about 20 minutes. You can tell if the custard is set by gently shaking the tart pan, if the custard trembles slight, it is ready. If it is too loose, it needs to be baked longer. In that case, check it every 5 minutes until it is ready. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and allow the Clafoutis to cool.

To unmold the cooled Clafoutis, place tart over an overturned glass and remove sides of tart pan but if you are not using a removable pan do what Jaques does - center a flat plate face down over the tart pan. If you use a plate with raised edges, the tart will break. Flip over the plate and pan at the same time so the tart pan is on top of the plate. Gently lift off the tart pan. Center a second flat plate face down over the unmolded tart. Flip over both plates at the same time so that the Clafoutis is now right side up. Remove the top plate.

Sprinkle the top with powdered sugar (i always forget) before serving.

The baked Clafoutis will keep well wrapped in the refrigerator for up to two days.

Serves

Blueberry Muffin Tops

Muffin tops are, as everyone knows, truly the upper crust of those jumbo-sized, coffee-shop muffins. Why is the top so much better and how do we go about baking the tops without the bottom? Offer the bottoms to the Culinary God? That's effective but wastefull and the best solution so far has been muffin pans that are extremely shallow—only about 1/2 inch (1.25cm) deep. This recipe turned out some very delicious bottomless enjoyment, Renee ate 3 as soon as they were out of the oven. I had one and now i can understand why these kind of tops are beloved by 'Seinfeld'' partisans.

Ingredients:

For batter

3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter
1/3 cup whole milk
1 whole large egg
1 large yolk
3/4 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups fresh blueberries (12 oz)

For topping

3 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into bits
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons sugar

Special equipment:

2 muffin-top pans, each with 6 (4- by 1/2-inch)

Muffin-top cups (1/2-cup capacity);

or regular muffin pans

Method:

Make batter:

Put oven rack in upper third of oven and preheat to 375°F.

Generously grease muffin pans.

Microwave butter in a big microwave-safe bowl on high for 1 minute.

Whisk in milk, then whisk in whole egg, yolk, and vanilla until combined well.

Sieve together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a bowl, then add milk mixture and stir until just combined.

Fold in blueberries gently but thoroughly and do not overmix.

Divide batter among 12 muffin cups, spreading evenly.

Rub topping ingredients together with your fingertips until crumbly, then sprinkle evenly over batter in cups.

Bake until golden and crisp and a wooden pick or skewer inserted diagonally into center of a muffin comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes.

Cool in pans on a rack 15 minutes, then run a knife around edge of each muffin top and carefully remove from cups.

Serve warm or at room temperature.


Serves

Yellow Squash Soup

I was away and when i came home, the yellow squash had grown big and over matured. I harvested it and used it as a decor on the kitchen counter. It was pretty to look at as the yellow was so pleasing next to the tomatoes. One day, i wanted to cook soup and there was nothing fresh and i do not want to make herbal soup in the summer. The only fresh vegetables i had were tomatoes and that matured squash, so squash and tomatoes soup it was. I was very surprised that the soup turned out so delicious and the squash tasted very much like 'the old cucumber' soup which i yearned for. For all the years here, i have not found 'matured/old cucumber' in the asian stores and i am not looking anymore, i am leaving my squash to mature.

Ingredients:

1 large over matured yellow squash

1 cup grape tomatoes or 4 large tomatoes

1/4 cup dried scallops - soak in hot water

1 lb pork spareribs/pork butt

Method:

Put pork and cover it with enough water. Bring to a boil and continue to boil until scum has subsided. Remove pork and discard the water - scum and all. Wash the pork under cold water.

Cut the squash in half lengthwise and using a metal spoon, remove the seeds. Then cut squash into large pieces.

Put pork, squash, tomatoes (cut into quarters if using the bigger tomatoes) and dried scallops into the pressure cooker. Put enough water to cover all ingredients and make sure it does not come up to half way up the pressure cooker. Close the lid and cook on high. As soon as the pressure is build-up - 15 lbs, reduce heat and maintain pressure, cook for 15 minutes.

Turn off heat and let the pressure release by itself with time. Remove lid only when there is no more pressure.

Adjust taste with salt and pepper.

Serve hot.

Serves

Green Tea Kasutera/Castella Cake

This was a gift and what a welcome one as i have yearned to taste one since it has so many good reviews of how good it is. I was inspired to try to bake one.

This is my green tea kasutera wannabe, at least this time it did not go to the Culinary God and in fact, tasted better than the gift. I don't know if i had used the wrong type of Green Tea Powder, which is slightly brownest than green and the Honey was brown too, thus making my cake more like a caramel cake. The most important thing that i managed to bake this sponge without it sinking and creating a huge crater and i was glad that i borrowed BakeWise by Shirley O. Corriher from the Library. The first chapter - Priceless Knowledge is all what home bakers need to know before we start baking.

For this cake, i went through Genoise in this book and applied what she has to suggest with her technical knowledge - the recipe has to balance - the weight of flour and sugar are close to equal and the amount of sugar should not exceed the ratio of 1 - 1.25 to the weight of eggs.

Adding more egg yolks to the whole eggs improves their aerating ability and the stability of the foam.

Temperature of the eggs and sugar is important and the desirable temp. of 86 - 90F and to achieve a thick egg foam with very fine bubbles, patience is required. Beat on medium and since beating time on medium speed is extended, the stability of the foam increases.

Adding 1 tablespoon of sugar to the flour aids in blending the flour into the batter and prevents white clumps of flour in the baked cake.

Add the flour before you add the fat. The fat must be added at the final mixing stage to minimize the loss in volume.

Folding anything into the foam can be tricky, so i love the technique of blending a cup of the batter with the melted butter/oil, and then folding this mixture into the rest of the batter.

A good kasutera is moist, with a very fine texture, and is very light. It should have a dark brown and sugary top and bottom. It is sweet yet not cloyingly sweet. It should not have any oil but i added in 2 tablespoons besides adding in 2 yolks cos according to E,J. Pyler in Baking Science and Technology, modern eggs may be deficient in yolk solids. The next time around, i would use 2 tablespoon of whipped cream instead of oil and milk.

Although most sponge is baked with cake flour, bread flour is used in this recipe to give more structure to the mixture.

A long long time ago when i came here to visit and i wanted to bake the Kuih Lapis Batavia but there was no square cake pan available in the house. So, i covered a square cardboard box with heavy duty aluminium and voila the cake baked in it was so moist and wonderful. i used the same approach and it did not failed me this time too. The cardboard is thick and not as hot so it allowed the cake to finish baking and remained moist. My dear friend, Nellie, gave me a very good answer to my question of why the green tea turned brown - it is HEAT which caused oxidation.

Ingredients:

4 large eggs

2 yolks

4 1/2 tbsp fine granulated sugar

3/4 cup bread flour,

1 tbsp fine granulated sugar,

1 tbsp green tea powder

1/8 tsp salt

2 tbsp honey

2 tbsp milk

2 tbsp oil

Sugar for sprinkling

Glaze:

1 tbsp honey

1 tbsp hot water

Method:

Line a cardboard box with heavy duty aluminium foil and grease the inside, then line with grease proof/parchment paper, bottom and sides - make the sides 1 1/2 inches higher than the sides. Sprinkle sugar on to the base of box.

Arrange oven rack to the middle of oven and preheat oven @ 350f.

Sieve flour, green tea powder, salt and sugar together.

In a saucepan, one which your mixer bowl will sit and the bottom does not touch the water, heat about 1 inch of water to 110f.

Rince mixer howl with tap water as hot as possible to warm, then dry well.

Whisk eggs, egg yolks and sugar in the warm bowl sitting over the simmering water.

Check the temperature of the mixture, you want to get the mixture between 86 - 90f. Keep whisking and checking the temperature.

Put honey and milk in a bowl and place it over the warm water, stir to melt the honey. Remove and leave aside.

Place the bowl of warm egg mixture on the mixer with the whisk attachment. Beat on high speed for 2 minutes only. Turn the speed down to medium(4 in kitchenaid) or just below medium and beat for 10 minutes until the foam is completely cool, thick and shiny.

Sift part of the flour mixture on top, avoiding the edges of the bowl and 1 tbsp of honey and milk mixture. Very carefully fold once only by dipping a large spatula into the foam at the 12 o'clock position, dragging it across the bottom. At the 6 o'clock position, lift up some foam and spread it across the top. Sift more of the flour mixture and honey mixture, fold again. Try to incorporate all the flour and honey mixture in about three to five batches and fold carefully to blend.

Place oil in a medium mixing bowl and spoon in 1 cup of the batter and fold together. When this is well blended, fold this mixture into the main batter.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes and then reduce heat to 300f and bake further for 40 minutes. Check for doneness.

As soon as the cake is out of the oven, brush the top with the honey-water mixture.

When it's cool enough to handle but still warm, lift it out of the pan, paper and all, and put into a plastic bag. Seal the bag and put into the refrigerator, for several hours preferably overnight as this will ensure a moist texture.

To serve, use a very sharp serrated knife to make clean cuts. Cut off the sides and make small, neat slices.

Enjoy

Serves

Chicken With Salted Lemon and Olives

The word Tagine , also spelled Tajine, refers both to the cooking pot as well as a stew cooked in it. The tagine consists of two parts: a round pot (traditionally clay), and a conical cover with a small hole which allows some steam to escape and there are endless recipes prepared in a tagine from Northern Africa, especially Morocco. These 3 spices are typical - black pepper, ginger and saffron but other spices added makes this dish more flavorful. This tiny tagine that i own, is more for serving as it is too small for cooking. I bet that a stew cooked in a proper large clay tagine will cook a tastier stew.

Ingredients:

Marinade:

4 cloves of garlic, minced

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp oil

4 chicken thighs cut into serving sized pieces

Spices:

A pinch of saffron
1 tsp ground cumin (optional)
1/2 tsp ground turmeric (optional)
1 tsp ground coriander (optional)

one stick of cinnamon (optional)

Oil for pan-frying chicken
1 big onion, finely chopped
1 tsp grated ginger

1 cup unsalted chicken broth or stock (or water)
1/2 cup olives
1 preserved lemon, cut into slices or chopped

salt, to taste

Method:

Mix the garlic, black pepper, and a spoonful of oil. Rub the chicken with the mixture and set aside for a few hours or overnight.

Heat the oil in a tagine or skillet. Fry the chicken until all sides begin to brown. Remove and set aside.

Add onions, ginger and spices.. Stir-fry over high heat until fragrant.

Put browned chicken back to cook and add chicken broth/stock, or water.

Bring to a boil and reduce heat.

Cover, but leave a crack for steam to escape. (if using the large tagine, there should be a steam outlet).

Simmer over low heat until chicken is tender and cooked through.

Add olives and preserved lemons and taste first before adjusting taste with salt.

Continue to simmer until sauce has thickened.

Serve chicken, covered with sauce...

Chance Tomato Gugelhupf

I named this savory Gugelhupf after my dear friend, Nancy whose nickname is 'Chance'. This nickname is only known among our classmates from The Convent. Being taught to speak in english, we would all chance or dance but nancy somehow adopted the american slang and it was 'Chance", so that's why we nicknamed her so. Nancy has the same passion as i do, we both love to bake and our conversion would be always about baking something. I have told her that i wanted to make 'gugelhupf' but have not been able to bake one cos i do not have the proper mould. The day, i took her to Denver downtown, it was so hot that we can't remain outdoors anymore, by chance , we landed in TJMAX and what did we see? A blue silicone gugelhupf mould staring at us. Since my birthday was around the corner, 'Chance' gave me the most wanted present and so i have to bake a gugelhupf as soon as we got home. Thank you, dear 'Chance' for making this possible and hope that you had a safe and comfortable journey home to Malaysia.

Ingredients:

(for a 23 cm / 9 inch bundt pan)

3 large eggs + enough water to make 1 cup

1 tsp salt

1 Tbsp sugar

3 cups bread flour

1 tsp instant yeast

1 stick/4 ozs soft butter

1/4 cup pine nuts

1 bunch parsley

4 spring onions

25 cherry tomatoes

a dash of pepper

Method:

Roast pine nuts without any oil until fragrant.

Wash and chop parsley.

Wash and dice spring onions.

Preheat oven to 350 °F.

Put the ingredients for the bread in the bread machine according to the order listed, starting with the liquids and ending with the yeast on top of the flour.

Choose the dough function and when dough has formed, add in the butter.

At the first beep, add in the pine nuts, parsley and spring onions. Continue dough function until it is over. The dough should have been doubled.

Butter the bundt pan.

Wash and dry the tomatoes.

Roll the dough into a log shape.

Cut off 25 slices of dough.

Press down each slice, put one tomato on each slice, add some pepper.

Wrap each tomato into the slice of dough, forming little balls.

Put balls into pan.

Let rise until dough has doubled its volume.

Bake on bottom rail of the oven for 50 to 60 minutes.

Let cake rest for 10 minutes, then flip over onto a wire rack.

Serves

Mussels The Asian Way

There are many ways to cook mussels but i like to cook them the asian way which i find is the best way as good mussels, fresh or frozen should be cooked in a subtle and simple way so as not to mar the flavor or texture - "Less is more when it comes to cooking mussels! "



Ingredients:

2 lbs mussels(fresh or frozen) - To clean mussels visit How to clean mussels

2 tbsp cooking oil

1 tbsp chopped garlic

1 tsp chopped ginger

1 tbsp chopped chili padi/jalapeno

3 - 4 tbsp shaoxing wine

A dash of fish sauce

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

2 tbsp chopped spring onion

Method:

Heat wok with cooking oil and when oil is hot, add in chopped ginger , garlic and chili padi .

Saute until fragrant but not browned.

Add in the cleaned mussels and stir.

Add in the shaoxing wine, fish sauce and black pepper.

Cover wok , this creates the necessary steam required to open the shells. It will also decrease the overall heat within the pan. Continue to finish cooking.

After about 4 minutes, remove the lid. At this point, most if not all of the mussels will be open. Mussels, unlike clams, will open before they are cooked all of the way through. If some of your mussels have not opened, then it is possible that either they were not cooked long enough, or they are bad and should be discarded. If most of them have not yet opened, place the cover back on the wok and wait another minute or two. Be careful not to cook the mussels for too long, as they will become tough and grainy if overcooked.

Sprinkle with spring onions and serve immediately.

Serves