Daring Bakers: Chocolate Valentino and Pomegranate Ice Cream

This is one rich and chocolatety cake.  Not only does this recipe not call for flour, it doesn’t call for sugar.  The only three ingredients are semisweet chocolate, eggs and butter.  Honestly, this wasn’t really my kind of cake. The texture and the extreme chocolateyness were a bit much for my tastes.  However, other chocolate cake lovers enjoyed it just fine.  My sister-in-law doesn’t think that a ‘too chocolatey’ cake exists.  I made a pomegranate ice cream to balance the heaviness of the cake with some fruitiness.  I also made some tuiles for decoration.  Yes, I am the kind of dork who pipes her husband’s name in chocolate.  It’s okay, you can judge me. I enjoyed making this an over the top Valentine’s day themed dessert.

Although I thought the tuiles would be purely decorative, they were actually really delicious and stayed very crisp.  I made savory tuiles last month that didn’t hold up as well.  I asked J’s cousin, who happened to be over while I was making this, to draw me something interesting.  He chose to draw a Spring/Easter inspired dove.  Thanks Chris! I really like how they came out; although, it may look a little like there is a dead bird in my ice cream… Overall, the crisp tuiles, fruity ice cream and rich cake went quite well together.

The February 2009 challenge is hosted by Wendy of WMPE’s blog and Dharm of Dad ~ Baker & Chef.
We have chosen a Chocolate Valentino cake by Chef Wan; a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Dharm and a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Wendy as the challenge.

Thanks to both of you for hosting this month’s challenge! Check out the other Daring Bakers’ confections on the Blogroll.

Chocolate Valentino by Chef Wan
Preparation Time: 20 minutes
16 ounces (1 pound) (454 grams) of semisweet chocolate, roughly chopped
½ cup (1 stick) plus 2 tablespoons (146 grams total) of unsalted butter
5 large eggs separated

1. Put chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl and set over a pan of simmering water (the bottom of the bowl should not touch the water) and melt, stirring often.
2. While your chocolate butter mixture is cooling. Butter your pan and line with a parchment circle then butter the parchment.
3. Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites and put into two medium/large bowls.
4. Whip the egg whites in a medium/large grease free bowl until stiff peaks are formed (do not over-whip or the cake will be dry).
5. With the same beater beat the egg yolks together.
6. Add the egg yolks to the cooled chocolate.
7. Fold in 1/3 of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture and follow with remaining 2/3rds. Fold until no white remains without deflating the batter. {link of folding demonstration}
8. Pour batter into prepared pan, the batter should fill the pan 3/4 of the way full, and bake at 375F/190C
9. Bake for 25 minutes until an instant read thermometer reads 140F/60C.
Note – If you do not have an instant read thermometer, the top of the cake will look similar to a brownie and a cake tester will appear wet.
10. Cool cake on a rack for 10 minutes then unmold.

The recipe for Nigella Lawson’s No-Churn Pomegranate Ice Cream can be found here.

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Pizza with Goat Cheese, Arugula and Prosciutto

I have made many loaves of no knead bread and decided it was time to try no knead pizza dough.  The concept and the method are pretty much the same.  Shaping a blob of wet dough into a pizza shape is a little more challenging than dropping into a pot.  I followed the great step by step instruction at Bakers Banter that advised pre-baking the dough.  I had a few air pockets that I had to pop.  J was laughing as I appeared to be beating the pizza back into the oven and into submission.  I put a lot of toppings on this, but trust me this works.

Here what’s on the pizza:
Black Mission Fig Jam
Caramelized Balsamic Onions (2 sliced onions, cook over medium low heat with a tbs of olive oil until the onions soften and darken slightly, add 1 clove chopped garlic and 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar, cook for 1 minute and cool)
Goat Cheese
Arugula Salad (2 cups of arugula, 1 tbsp freh lemon juice, 1/2 tbsp olive oil, 1/4 kosher salt, 1/4 tsp ground pepper)
Prosciutto di Parma (1/4 pound thinly sliced, You only need a little so buy the good stuff.)

For the first layer,  I spread the fig jam in a thin layer like a sauce.  On top of the jam, I added the balsamic caramelized onions and goat cheese.  I put a small amount of the lightly dressed arugula on each slice and draped the prosciutto over the top.  In one bite, you get the sweetness of the bottom layer, the crispy acidity of the arugula and the mellow savory prosciutto.  It’s a lot of flavor, but it’s the right flavors.

The original recipe from  Jim Lahey for No Knead Pizza Dough can be found here.  I used half white whole wheat flour without any issues.

Rice Pudding

I love complicated desserts that require using a mountain of dishes and stretching my culinary ability. This is not one of those desserts. In fact, this is pretty much as simple as dessert can get, but it’s really, really good. Arborio rice gives this a really nice texture, and the end result is creamy and custardy. If I had a vanilla bean, I would have simmered it with the milk, but I had to settle for vanilla bean paste. I topped this with some whipped cream and cinnamon, but it really doesn’t need any adornments.  This is a perfect weeknight dessert or a light dinner .

Rice Pudding, inspired by this recipe at Allrecipes.com
Ingredients
¾ cup of Arborio rice
1 ½ cups of water
2 cups of low fat milk
1/3 cup of sugar
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
½ tsp cinnamon
pinch of salt
1 egg

Bring water to a simmer and add the rice, stir occasionally until the rice is almost entirely cooked and add the milk.  Add the sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, and pinch of salt.  Return to a simmer. In a small dish, beat the egg and add a 1/4 cup hot milk to it a tablespoon at at time.  Stir the egg mixture into the pudding and cook on a low simmer until it coats the back of a spoon (about two minutes).  Cover with plastic wrap to avoid the pudding forming a skin or serve warm.

Lobster Macaroni and Cheese

Lobster mac and cheese. I just love the thought of it, my two favorite things together. Despite the fact that cheese and seafood are tricky together, this recipe really works. I have wanted to make it since I saw it on Michael Smith’s Chef at Home series. Lobster is obviously expensive and this is a great way to stretch it. I probably used about ¾ pound of lobster meat in this. Although the recipe says it serves 6, I think this could easily serve 8-10 people. Even with only adding half the amount of cheese, this was incredibly rich. Next time I make this, and there will absolutely be a next time, I may serve this in individual little ramekins.

I made minimal adjustments that are noted below in parentheses.

Lobster Macaroni and Cheese
By Michael Smith, Chef at Home
Ingredients
1 box of penne pasta (I used elbows)
1 sticks of butter
2 x garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 cup of flour
1/2 cup of white wine (I didn’t have any and used ¼ dry sherry)
1 can of evaporated milk
4 cups of milk
1 tbsp of paprika
2 tbsp of Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp of cayenne pepper
8 oz of cheddar cheese, grated
8 oz of Monterrey jack cheese, grated (I omitted this)
Salt and pepper
2 x 1 lb. lobsters, cooked and shelled (I used about ¾ pound cooked lobster meat)
2 cups of breadcrumbs (I used 1 cup of panko)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Drop the pasta into boiling, salted water and cook until almost tender, about 12 minutes. Make sure the water tastes like a day at the beach, as the pasta will absorb it and become properly seasoned. The pasta should not be fully cooked; it should have just a touch of firmness when tasted. Drain well.
Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat, add garlic and cook for several minutes until it softens. Add the flour and stir with a wooden spoon until a smooth paste forms. Continue cooking for a few more minutes, in effect toasting the mixture and adding flavour to it. Slowly stir in the wine and continue mixing until smooth and then add both milks, mixing well again. Continue whisking until the mixture coats the back of a spoon. Add paprika, Dijon, cayenne, salt, pepper and cheeses and stir until melted. Roughly chop lobster meat and add to the cheese mixture along with the pasta. Stir well to combine and season with salt and pepper. Pour into a 9-inch by 13-inch ovenproof casserole or similar dish. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs and bake until the mixture is heated through and the breadcrumbs are golden brown, about 30 minutes. (I topped it with chives before serving.)

Chicken Pot Pie

I think that pot pies are so homey and comforting to have in the winter.  They are a little time consuming but really worth it.  Chicken pot pies are J’s favorite.  I am kind of indifferent to chicken, but I just added mushrooms to this and all was well in the world.   It may be a little strange but the frozen peas in this were also really good.  Have frozen peas always been so delicious, and I didn’t know it?  The best part of pot pies are of course the crust.  Next time I make these, I would probably drape a little more pastry over the sides even though it is a little decadent with all that butter.

For the crust, I used Martha Stewart’s trusty pate brisee recipe. You can find it here.

Ingredients

4 boneless chicken breasts
4 diced yukon gold potatoes
2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion
1 cup chopped carrots
1 cup chopped celery
1 1/2 cups sliced mushrooms
1 clove chopped garlic
3 tbsp butter
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup sherry
1 1/2 quarts chicken stock
1 cup frozen peas
2 bay leaves
1 tsp thyme
2 tbsp fresh dill
2 tbsp heavy cream
salt and pepper
olive oil

You will need 5-6 heat proof bowls

Boil lightly salted water in a medium sized pot.  Boil the potatoes until they are slightly tender but not fully cooked.  Reserve the potatoes and poach the chicken. Dice the chicken and reserve.

In a large pot heat about 2 tbsp of olive oil, saute one onion until it is translucent, add carrots, celery. Saute until the vegetables are slightly tender, add the mushrooms and garlic.  Add the butter and cook until melted and add the flour. Stir to coat the vegetables. The mixture will thicken quickly, add the sherry and stir.  Add the chicken stock, potatoes, chicken, bay leaves and frozen peas and salt and pepper. Heat through and bring to a simmer. Stir in the fresh herbs and cream. Turn off the heat add allow it to cool before ladling into the heat proof bowls.

Roll out the pastry dough and cut into circles at least 1/2 inch larger than the bowl’s circumference.  Brush the sides of the bowl with egg wash and place the dough over the top.  Make a few slits in the top for heat to escape. Brush the top of the pastry with the remaining egg wash and bake at 375 until it is golden brown.

Spaghetti with Mushrooms and Bacon

My mushroom obsession has been well established here. I put them on pizzas and in soup, lasagnas, you name it.  I love this pasta dish because the flavors of the mushrooms are really enhanced by the other flavors. The shitakes cooked in the bacon fat were amazing. Of course anything cooked in bacon fat is amazing, but this really brought out the woodsy smokiness of the mushrooms. The crisp bacon also adds a nice crunch to the texture of the pasta. The mushroom mixture would also be really good over simple roast chicken breasts. You could pair other mushrooms with this but the shitakes are essential for their flavor, and the stems are used to make the broth. They are very woody, and it pains me to waste them. So, I decided it was time to incorporate them in a recipe. I thought they added another layer of mushroom flavor to the sauce.

4 slices of bacon
2 tbsp olive oil
3.5 oz. shitake mushrooms sliced, reserve the stems
8 oz. cremini mushrooms
2 Portobello mushroom caps, sliced into bite sized pieces
1 garlic clove finely minced
3 tbsp good quality sherry
1 bay leaf
2 cups of water
3 tbsp crème fraiche
2 tbsp chopped fresh dill
Salt and pepper
¾ pound of spaghetti

Cook the bacon in a large pot or saucepan over medium high heat until crisp, drain on paper towel. Add additional olive oil (the exact amount needed  will vary depending on the fattiness of the bacon, the bottom of the pan should be covered), add the mushrooms. Allow the mushrooms time to brown on each side and add salt and pepper.
In a small separate pot bring water, shitake mushroom stems and a bay leaf to a boil. Allow to reduce until you have about a ½ cup of liquid. Strain and reserve. In another large pot, bring pasta water to a boil and cook until al dente.

Add the chopped garlic to the mushrooms and cook for a minute. Add the sherry and reserved mushroom broth. Allow to reduce slightly and add the crème fraiche and taste for salt and pepper. I found I really needed to add a lot of pepper, about ½ tsp and 3/4 tsp of salt. Remove from the heat and add the drained spaghetti to the pot and chopped fresh dill and reserved bacon. Use tongs to combine. Serve immediately with additional chopped dill and bacon if desired.