Daring Baker's Chocolate Valentino

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.

This was quite a fun challenge for me because the cake was super easy to make & it gave me another excuse to use the new ice cream maker attachment I got for the Kitchen Aid. Typically a Valentino is made in a heart-shaped pan. I don't have one so I decided to make two small cakes in my 4 1/2-inch springform pans. Half of the original recipe filled these pans perfectly. I used half bittersweet & half semisweet chocolate because we prefer a darker chocolate. I'll make this cake again, the flavor & texture are amazing!

For the ice cream (we could make any kind we wanted), I decided to make Raspberry Buttermilk Ice Cream because I love the flavor of raspberries with chocolate. The buttermilk makes this lower in fat than normal ice cream. It's wonderfully creamy thanks to the addition of the banana. You can substitute the raspberries for any other fruit you like. The cake was so rich that it really needed the ice cream with it.

Chocolate Valentino
from Sweet Treats by Chef Wan (adapted to make 1/2 the size)
Preparation Time: 20 minutes

8 ounces semisweet chocolate, roughly chopped (I used half bittersweet, half semisweet)
5 T of unsalted butter
3 large eggs separated, with 1 T removed from the both the whites & the yolks.

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. (In the smaller pans mine only took 20 minutes)
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.

Raspberry Buttermilk Ice Cream
(from The Ice Cream Bible)

1 c fresh or frozen raspberries without syrup
1 c buttermilk
2/3 c simple syrup*
1 ripe banana

Place everything in a blender or food processor & blend until smooth. Strain through a sieve into a airtight container to remove any raspberry seeds. Refrigerate until cold.

Freeze according to the directions on your ice cream maker, ours took about 20 minutes.

Makes 4 servings.

*Make simple syrup by simmering 2 cups water with 1 cup white sugar for 5 minutes while stirring. Any leftover syrup can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 months.

Pomegranate Cupcakes with Chinese Five Spice Buttercream

I got it in my head I wanted to use Chinese Five Spice Powder in my cupcakes this week, not sure why as I hadn't used it in forever. I figured it would be a good flavoring for a buttercream with an unusual anise flavor. But what flavor for the cake to go with it?

My original thought was a fruit flavored cake, maybe cherry or apricot. Then on the morning I'm about to do my baking this little package shows up from POM.

Well, that settled it the cupcakes would be flavored with pomegranate. I was a little worried about texture of the cake since the batter seemed a little thinner than most but it made a nice moist cupcake. The flavor is sweet & a little tart.

Pomegranate Cupcakes with Chinese Five Spice Buttercream

Pomegranate Cupcake

2 T unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 c + 2 T sugar
1 large egg yoke
1/4 c pomegranate juice
1/2 t vanilla
1/4 c plain yogurt
3/4 c all-purpose flour
1/8 t baking soda
1/4 t baking powder
1/8 t salt

Preheat oven to 350 F. Prepare 4 muffin tins.

Cream the butter & sugar together. Beat in the egg, pomegranate juice, vanilla, & yogurt. Mix in the flour, baking soda, baking powder & salt.

Divide between the muffin tins, filling them 2/3 full. Bake for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Allow to cool on a rack.

Chinese Five Spice Buttercream

4 T unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 t Chinese Five Spice Powder
1/2 - 3/4 c powdered sugar

Beat the butter until creamy. Beat in the Five Spice Powder & 1/4 cup sugar until completely incorporated. Add another 1/4 cup of the powder & completely incorporate. Add the remaining powdered sugar as needed to reach desired consistency.

Makes 4 cupcakes.

Cooking A Go-Go

This past Saturday Matt and I, along with 15 other cooks, were lucky enough to get to spend the morning cooking a lunch in the kitchen of the Corner Table with the chef Scott Pampuch. This Cooking A Go-Go event was put together by the Cookin' Minnesota group & we were lucky to get two of the spots. Chef Pampuch, one of this year's James Beard nominees, is known for his farm to table philosophy & we were given pretty much free run to his fabulous walk-in.

When we arrived at the restaurant we were greeted with mimosas & coffee. After a few minutes to settle in we were given the rules of working in a professional kitchen & then split into teams, egg, meat, vegetable, starch and dessert. Matt was on team starch & I was part of team dessert.

Each team was taken into the walk-in cooler by Scott to discuss their ideas for their dish based on what was seasonal & on hand. Matt's group decided on a mushroom risotto & roasted root vegetables. My team decided to make a bread pudding with apple, dried fig and golden raisins that we would top with brown butter sauce & vanilla whipped cream.

As you can imagine the kitchen was a fury of activity with 17 people cooking at once. But thanks to Scott's patience & humor all the dishes finished on time & we had an amazing lunch.

Team Egg served us an egg crostini topped with mushrooms. I think this was my favorite dish of the day. It seems so simple but the flavor was so deep & wonderful.

Team Vegetable made a cream of vegetable soup that was garnished with sautéed kale and a salad that was full of fennel, apples, olives and almonds.

Team Starch's mushroom risotto, made with the mushroom stems the restaurant had leftover, was also full of deep flavor & a perfect accompaniment to the meat. Unfortunately, their roasted vegetables did not cook through on time, no problem though as Scott planned on turning them into a roasted vegetable soup for that night's dinner service.

Team Meat treated us to two duck dishes. One was duck breast with a golden curry sauce. The other was duck confit on a bed of potatoes & onion. Both we fabulous!

As for my Team Dessert, we had a little problem with our bread pudding as it was huge & didn't cook completely evenly but we did manage to cut out enough good bits for everyone, though at that point we were all so full we almost could have skipped dessert.

We love to eat at Corner Table but getting to cook there, what a treat!

Cheesy Chicken & Broccoli Hot Pockets

No, we haven't resorted to blogging about processed, frozen, microwaved food. But I guess you would say those were our inspiration for this dish.

We loved the flaky crispness of the puff pastry with the creamy, cheesy center. These aren't anything fancy but really some darn good comfort food. If you've got leftover cooked chicken these come together in just minutes. Matt is already listing the different fillings he wants to try; chicken curry, meatballs & sauce, & on & on. Now that I think of it, when we have leftovers from other meals like that this will be the perfect use for them. Next time we'll make at least a double batch & freezer them for when we want a hot lunch or quick dinner.


Cheesy Chicken & Broccoli Hot Pockets

1 sheet puff pastry, thawed
3/4 c broccoli florets, cut into small pieces
1/2 T unsalted butter
1 T all-purpose flour
3/4 c half & half
2 oz white cheddar, grated
big pinch of dried mustard
1/2 t fresh thyme leaves chopped (or 1/4 t dried)
salt & pepper
1/2 c cooked chicken, chopped
1 well beaten egg

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Blanch the broccoli in boiling water for 1 minute. Drain & set aside.

In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in the flour. Cook the flour while stirring for 1 minute. Slowly whisk in the half & half. Cook while stirring until thick & bubbly. Turn the heat to low & whisk in the cheese. Once the cheese is melted in, stir in the mustard & thyme. Season with salt & pepper. Stir the broccoli & chicken into the sauce.

Using a rolling pin, roll the puff pastry dough out to make it into a little bigger rectangle. Cut into 4 rectangles. Brush a little beaten egg onto two sides of each triangle. Put 1/4 of the sauce into the middle of each rectangle. Fold over to make a triangle & press the edges together to seal (you may need to stretch the dough a little). Place on a baking sheet, I used a silicone pad on mine. Brush each turnover with beaten egg. Use a sharp knife to poke 2 slits in the top of each.

Bake for 15 minutes. Turn the heat down to 350 F and bake another 10 - 15 minutes until golden brown. Let cool a few minutes before serving as the filling will be really hot.

Makes 4 turnovers. (We each ate 2 as our dinner)

New England Clam Chowder with Thyme Crackers

I can't think of a better way to end a busy week than with a bowl of rich, creamy soup & lots of crunchy homemade crackers.

We decided to make a classic version of clam chowder so we went to our source for so many things, Joy of Cooking. Joy has you make your own stock from fresh clams but we've changed the recipe to make it Friday night easy by using clam stock in a box & clams in a can. I don't think we lost any flavor with these shortcuts especially since Kitchen Basic stocks are so good. We both thought the soup tasted really, really good but Matt would have liked it to be a little thicker & would have added some flour in with the butter to achieve that. I, on the other hand, thought it was just creamy enough & needed no thickening at all.

To go with the soup I made some Thyme Crackers. I used the Lavish Cracker recipe from The Bread Baker's Apprentice which was the Daring Bakers challenge last September. I made half a batch of the dough & added 1 T of fresh thyme to the dough as it was mixed. Once the dough was rolled out for crackers I sprinkled kosher salt on top. These crackers are really easy to make, especially if you have a mixer with a dough hook. I need to remember to make them more often we like them so much & the flavoring possibilities are endless. They were the perfect accompaniment for the chowder.

New England Clam Chowder
(adapted from Joy of Cooking)

2 strips bacon, diced
1 medium onion, peeled & chopped
1 bay leaf
1/2 T fresh thyme
1 T unsalted butter
8 oz clam stock
1 large russet potato, peeled & cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 c heavy cream
6.5 oz canned clams, chopped
1 T fresh parsley, chopped
freshly ground black pepper

Cook the bacon until just beginning to crisp over medium heat in a soup pot. Add the onion, bay leaf, thyme & butter. Cook until the onions are translucent. Add the clam stock & potato & bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer & cook until the potato is tender, about 15 minutes.

Add cream & clams and simmer 5 more minutes. Stir in parsley and pepper to taste.

2 main course servings