With all the tidying up that’s been going on lately, I decided it was time for a bit of a break. Cold winter days make for the best lazy days and in between bouts of cleaning, I’ve been luxuriating in afternoon naps.

I’ve also made time for a bit of baking. These days, when I want a baking experience that’s simple and relaxing, I tend to bake bread. Since we had a lot of cheese hanging around in the refrigerator after the various holiday celebrations, I decided to try a recipe for Savory Holiday Bread from the 2007 Holiday Cooking issue from Better Homes and Gardens.

I would describe this is more of a free-form quick bread than a traditional bread (it’s not yeasted). But it came together very quickly and I had the chance to knead it a bit which is always fun. I changed the recipe a bit so that I could use what I had available and the end result was a cheesy bread with a lovely garlic flavour (I used leftover roasted garlic). We had the leftovers the next day toasted in the oven and drizzled with some olive oil.

This is my last Magazine Mondays post for 2007. I never imagined that the little idea I had earlier in the year would be so successful. Here’s to many Magazine Mondays in 2008!

Ciao!

Savory Holiday Bread
Adapted from the 2007 Holiday Cooking magazine from Better Homes and Gardens.

3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups shredded provolone cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/4 cup roasted garlic cloves, mashed (2 heads of garlic)
3 large eggs, beaten
2/3 cup evaporated milk
1/3 cup chopped chives
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup sundried tomatoes (packed in oil), finely chopped
1 egg yolk and a few tablespoons of water for the egg wash

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, cheeses, baking powder, salt and roasted garlic.

Add the eggs, chives, evaporated milk, metled butter and dried tomatoes.

Mix until you have a lumpy mass.

Turn the mass out onto a lightly floured work area. Knead lightly until it comes together into a ball. Don’t worry if it’s not perfectly smooth.

Divide the dough into three equal pieces and roll each piece into a rope that’s between 12 and 14 inches long.

Transfer the ropes to the parchment-lined baking sheet.

Secure the ropes together at one end and then braid them loosely. Tuck the ends of the braid under so that you have a neat bread.

Combine the egg yolk and the water and brush the loaf with the egg wash.

Bake for 40 minutes or until the bread is a nice golden brown colour

Let the bread cool completely before slicing.

Enjoy!

Magazine Mondays on Other Blogs:

Liliana of My Cookbook Addiction made some beautiful Cranberry and Almond Bundt Cakes.

Dolores over at Chronicles in Culinary Curiosity is owning Magazine Mondays with a menu that was based almost entirely on recipes from Eating Well magazine. Way to go, Dolores!

Technorati tags: magazine mondays, bread

After having sorted through all my photos yesterday, the cleaning up process continues with a post that I’d meant to put up prior to American Thanksgiving but never did.

This past fall, I had the opportunity to review a copy of the cookbook How to Cook a Turkey produced by the talented team of people that work on Fine Cooking magazine. I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned this before on my blog, but I consider Fine Cooking to be the best food magazine out there. While I love magazines like Food & Wine and Bon Appétit, Fine Cooking is the one that I turn to time and time again.

Published in September 2007, How to Cook a Turkey is a comprehensive and compact guide to preparing a holiday meal from start to finish. Don’t be fooled by the word turkey in the title. While the turkey has it’s own chapter in this book (and an excellent chapter it is), this cookbook isn’t just meant for Thanksgiving or Christmas.

Divided into ten chapters including a holiday survival guide (which I love), the book covers every aspect of a holiday meal from appetizer to dessert. In typical Fine Cooking style, the recipes are clear and concise and in many cases (like making gravy) include step-by-step photos which would be particularly helpful to the person hosting a holiday party for the first time.

The recipes include the classics like Butternut Squash Soup with Apple and Bacon, Roast Duck or Goose, Maple-Glazed Carrots, Classic Pie Crust and Apple-Cranberry Crisp. But the cookbook also includes some interesting twists on holiday foods like Bacon-Wrapped Ginger-Soy Scallops, Madeira Gravy, Pearl Onion Gratin with Parmesan, Savory and Thyme, Sweet Potato and Grits Spoon Bread and Espresso Gingerbread Cake.

For those of you that are turkey-obsessed, then this is definitely the book for you. I buy all the holiday magazines each year and have seen many a turkey how-to guide but I’ve never seen one as thorough, enlightening and helpful as the guide in this cookbook. From tips on which turkey to buy to brining, trussing and stuffing the turkey, every question you could possibly have is answered here. While I don’t believe a good cookbook needs photos, this cookbook has them and they are tremendously useful. There’s a gravy lesson for the gravy-challenged as well as a selection of stuffing options that are incredible.

So did I try any of the recipes? You betcha!

Butternut Squash Soup with Apple and Bacon

Delicious! The apple adds a fruity element to the squash and who doesn’t love crumbled bacon on anything?

Classic Apple Pie

While we have a family favourite recipe when it comes to apple pie, it never hurts to try a new one. This one is simple, easy to prepare, and comforting in the way that only apple pie can be.

Cranberry Rosemary Relish

I decided it was time to try a cranberry sauce with a twist and this one fit the bill. The rosemary is an interesting foil for the tart cranberry.

Maple Walnuts

Every holiday meal needs some munchies beforehand and these are perfect.

Yukon Gold Gruyère Galette

Perhaps the star of all the recipes that I tried, this is a layered potato pie featuring potato and gruyère cheese. This one will cause family members to fight over who wants the last piece. What’s a holiday without a family argument???

I also tried the following recipes but in the heat of the kitchen battle I didn’t have the chance to photograph them:

Your Basic Stuffed Roast Turkey
Classic Bread Stuffing
Pan Gravy with Fresh Herbs (the best gravy I’ve ever made!)
Browned Brussels Sprouts with Hazelnuts and Lemons
Stuffed Mushrooms with Pancetta, Shallots and Sage

If you’re a cookbook addict like me, then here’s another one to add to the list. If you’re a cookbook novice and you’re looking for that one all-encompassing cookbook that will help you through any holiday meal, then this is also the one you want to pick up.

And that, my friends, is the final cookbook review for 2007!

Ciao!

Technorati tags: fine cooking

Yesterday, I wrote about the start of my annual attempt to tidy up and organize myself for the coming year.

I’ve continued that project today by going through the hundreds of food photos stored on my computer. I have a tendency to download photos and then just forget about them. Many of the photos aren’t very good so I finally went through them all and deleted those that weren’t of use to me. The rest I moved to CDs for storage. I’ve deleted them from my computer and now feel that I’m a bit more organized in that regard.

While going through my photos, I had the opportunity to look back on some memorable posts over the course of 2007.

Making croissants from scratch was pretty cool. I finally got to declare my desire to be Southern and I also declared my love of lemon.

The spring and summer brought with them some work opportunities, Dorie, a new appreciation for tea, a confession of love, blueberries, cupcakes and cheesecake.

September was poetic, October was orange and November was tempting.

December has been so sweet!

But of all the posts that I loved this year, my favourite was the one about the Queen of sweet crepe cakes. For me, it was a real accomplishment.

So my crepe cake is my contribution to the event being hosted by Zorra of Kochtopf and Sandra of Un Tocco di Zenzero. Zorra and Sandra had the idea to ask foodbloggers everywhere to submit their favourite recipe or post of 2007.

What a beautiful way to say farewell to all the indredible food we witnessed this year!

Ciao!

While many people look forward to spring cleaning, for me this time of year has always been the time for organizing, decluttering and ridding oneself of all that excess stuff you just don’t need.

I’m not sure if it has something to do with readying myself for the new year to come, but I always feel that the days between Christmas and December 31st are the best days to reflect on what I truly need to move forward.

I need a maid.

I don’t need anymore cookbooks.

Since there’s no chance that I’ll be getting a maid anytime soon and since there’s even less chance that I will stop purchasing cookbooks, I feel it’s best that I focus my attention on more attainable goals.

So while I busy myself trying to tidy up my baking area and my Overburdened Bookshelf, I’m also turning my attention to tidying up my blog. As many of you know earlier this year I took a big step with the redesign of my blog. I’m thrilled with how it turned out, however, after having settled into the new design I’m now ready for some other changes. Nothing drastic, mind you, just a few nips and tucks here and there.

Part of the tidying up is going through all the food photos that I keep. In doing this, I realized that I somehow neglected to complete my reports on the baking course I took in the fall. While I summed up Weeks 1 and 2 and Weeks 3 and 4, I never summed up Weeks 5 and 6.

It’s been a couple of months since this course ended so I’m going to keep my explanations brief.

For Week 5 of the course, our focus was the galette and the turnover using apple as a filling. I’ve made galettes and turnovers many times before, but this particular class was very interesting because of the dough that we used. We used a pastry made of pastry flour, unsalted butter and milk. I’ve never made a pastry with milk before and was a bit concerned at first that the pastry would be tough.

To my surprise, we ended up with one of the most flavourful and tender pastries I’ve ever tasted! While the galette and the turnovers were rather ordinary, I did walk alway from the class with the goal of using milk pastry in future.

For our final class, we prepared a French Almond Flan and Pithiviers using a sweet pastry made of butter, sugar, eggs, bread flour, pastry flour and vanilla. Once again I was very impressed with the quality of the pastry we made.

I resisted using pears with the French Almond Flan because I don’t really care for pears, in particular tinned ones which is what they gave us in class. But everyone that tried the tart seemed to really love it.

I much preferred the Pithiviers, which are almond filled pastries. I often buy these little treats at one of my favourite French patisseries in Toronto (surprisingly, Toronto has a number of high quality French-style patisseries). I’m hoping that I’ll have the chance to make these on my own at home.

Overall I enjoyed this course. While it wasn’t a long one (only 6 weeks), we covered a variety of pastries, most of which I enjoyed making. I also enjoyed the atmosphere in the classroom, which was more congenial as opposed to some of the other classes I’ve taken where the feeling in the room has bordered on competitive. The instructor did a fairly good job and her assistant was a great help.

At this point, I’m halfway through the Bakery Arts Certificate requirements. I have another five credits to go, but I’m not sure when I’ll take my next course. Professionally I’m as busy as ever and personally, I find I’m baking more and more at home as well as trying to make time for other important things going on in my life. I do promise, though, that when I finally do sign up for the next course, I’ll fill you in on the details!

Ciao!

It’s here! It’s finally here!

All the preparing and baking and wrapping is over and all that’s left is the eating. I don’t know even know how many pounds of butter we went through this year but it was all worth it.

It’s Christmas!

While there was no George Clooney in my stocking this morning, there were a lot of other wonderful things including time with my family, time with my friends and a lot of laughter and cheer.

I hope that all of you are enjoying a beautiful Christmas with your loved ones. For my part, I’m sending you these rich and decadent decadent caramel sandwich cookies.

May your day be bright and merry!

Ciao!

Alfajores (Dulce de Leche Sandwich Cookies)
From the Holidays 2007 issue of Ricardo magazine.

Note: These are an adaptation of the cookie known as Alfajores.

1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg yolk
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
at least 1 cup dulce de leche (you may need more)
1/2 dried grated coconut

In a bowl, combine the flour and baking powder. Set aside.

In another bowl, cream the butter and sugar with an electric mixer. Add the egg yolk and vanilla and beat until smooth. Mix in the dry ingredients. Shape the dough into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Set a rack in the middle of the oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

On a floured surface, roll the dough to a thickness of about 1/8th of an inch. Using a round cookie cutter (whatever size you choose), cut out as many rounds as you can. Bake the cookies until they begin to colour, anywhere from 9 to 12 minutes. Let the cookies cool completely on the cookie sheet before handling.

For each sandwich cookie, spread about 1 tablespoon of the dulce de leche on the underside of a cookie. Top with another cookie and repeat with the dulce de leche. Top with a third cookie. Spread dulce de leche around the sides and then dip in the coconut.

Enjoy!

I hope Santa likes butter and cinnamon. Because that’s what he’s getting this Christmas Eve.

Not wanting to miss an edition of Magazine Mondays, I decided to prepare these Cinnamon Spritz Cookies for Mr. Claus. The recipe comes from the December 2007 issue of Martha Stewart Living.

Now I have a tendency to be a bit hard on Martha. I sometimes find that her recipes don’t fulfill their promise. But in this case, I must give Ms. Stewart credit. These cookies were delicious. They’re crisp and buttery and enrobed in cinnamon sugar.

If Santa doesn’t leave me George Clooney as a gift after tasting these, then he’s no longer a cookie lover in my books.

I wish I could stay longer and write more but I must be off. The house is a disaster, there’s cookie dough everywhere, gifts must be wrapped, food must be prepared, chocolate must be eaten, alcohol must be consumed, friends must be hugged … and I must prepare for George Clooney’s arrival.

Have a great holiday week!

Ciao!

Note: For some reason I can’t find the link to this recipe on Martha’s site. I’ll do some more digging over the holidays and hopefully post the recipe soon.

Technorati tags: magazine mondays, spritz cookies

‘Tis the season to enjoying the best things in life: family, friends, lots of baking and of course, the Daring Bakers!

We come to you a bit earlier than usual this December on account of the fact that in another day or so most of us will be busy celebrating with family. For the December 2007 Daring Baker challenge, I’m happy to say that I have the opportunity to host with the one that started it all with me, my lovely Lis.

It didn’t take Lis and I long to decide that the challenge for this month had to be a Yule Log. Popular in many baking traditions, we did some research on the origins of the Yule Log and found that it has a very rich history (to match the richness of the dessert)!

The Yule Log as a symbol dates back far into history. It’s associated with the tradition of celebrating the Winter Solstice in Northern Europe. Through the centuries, the tradition lived on in many cultures. As Lis and I explained to our fellow Daring Bakers, we liked the image of light associated with the Yule Log. Regardless of whether you celebrate Christmas, everyone wants a bit of light in their life!

While I don’t want to get all mushy on you, as 2007 draws to a close I must say how thankful I am for the Daring Bakers and for everyone who follows the exploits of the Daring Bakers so closely. Every month is a new challenge and a new opportunity for fun in the kitchen.

Here’s to the Daring Bakers and to the year to come!

Ciao!

Yule Log

The genoise and the buttercream for the Yule Log is from Nick Malgieri’s Perfect Cakes.

The meringue mushrooms are from The Williams-Sonoma Collection: Dessert.

The recipe for the Yule Log is below. Here is a picture gallery of my making of the Yule Log.

Making the genoise:

Making the buttercream:

Making the meringue mushrooms:

Assembling the Yule Log:

The Yule Log Recipe

Plain Genoise:

3 large eggs
3 large egg yolks
pinch of salt
¾ cup of sugar
½ cup cake flour - spoon flour into dry-measure cup and level off (also known as cake & pastry flour)
¼ cup cornstarch

one (1) 10 x 15 inch jelly-roll pan that has been buttered and lined with parchment paper and then buttered again

1.Set a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F.

2.Half-fill a medium saucepan with water and bring it to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat so the water is simmering.

3.Whisk the eggs, egg yolks, salt and sugar together in the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer. Place over the pan of simmering water and whisk gently until the mixture is just lukewarm, about 100 degrees if you have a thermometer (or test with your finger - it should be warm to the touch).

4.Attach the bowl to the mixer and, with the whisk attachment, whip on medium-high speed until the egg mixture is cooled (touch the outside of the bowl to tell) and tripled in volume. The egg foam will be thick and will form a slowly dissolving ribbon falling back onto the bowl of whipped eggs when the whisk is lifted.

5.While the eggs are whipping, stir together the flour and cornstarch.

6.Sift one-third of the flour mixture over the beaten eggs. Use a rubber spatula to fold in the flour mixture, making sure to scrape all the way to the bottom of the bowl on every pass through the batter to prevent the flour mixture from accumulating there and making lumps. Repeat with another third of the flour mixture and finally with the remainder.

7.Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.

8.Bake the genoise for about 10 to 12 minutes. Make sure the cake doesn’t overbake and become too dry or it will not roll properly.

9.While the cake is baking, begin making the buttercream.

10.Once the cake is done (a tester will come out clean and if you press the cake lightly it will spring back), remove it from the oven and let it cool on a rack.

Coffee Buttercream:

4 large egg whites
1 cup sugar
24 tablespoons (3 sticks or 1-1/2 cups) unsalted butter, softened
2 tablespoons instant espresso powder
2 tablespoons rum or brandy

1.Whisk the egg whites and sugar together in the bowl of an electric mixer. Set the bowl over simmering water and whisk gently until the sugar is dissolved and the egg whites are hot.

2.Attach the bowl to the mixer and whip with the whisk on medium speed until cooled. Switch to the paddle and beat in the softened butter and continue beating until the buttercream is smooth. Dissolve the instant coffee in the liquor and beat into the buttercream.

Meringue Mushrooms:

3 large egg whites, at room temperature
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
½ cup (3-1/2 ounces/105 g.) granulated sugar
1/3 cup (1-1/3 ounces/40 g.) icing sugar
Unsweetened cocoa powder for dusting

1.Preheat the oven to 225 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment. Have ready a pastry bag fitted with a small (no. 6) plain tip. In a bowl, using a mixer on medium-low speed, beat together the egg whites and cream of tartar until very foamy. Slowly add the granulated sugar while beating. Increase the speed to high and beat until soft peaks form when the beaters are lifted. Continue until the whites hold stiff, shiny peaks. Sift the icing sugar over the whites and, using a rubber spatula, fold in until well blended.

2.Scoop the mixture into the bag. On one baking sheet, pipe 48 stems, each ½ inch (12 mm.) wide at the base and tapering off to a point at the top, ¾ inch (2 cm.) tall, and spaced about ½ inch (12 mm.) apart. On the other sheet, pipe 48 mounds for the tops, each about 1-1/4 inches (3 cm.) wide and ¾ inch (2 cm.) high, also spaced ½ inch (12 mm.) apart. With a damp fingertip, gently smooth any pointy tips. Dust with cocoa. Reserve the remaining meringue.

3.Bake until dry and firm enough to lift off the paper, 50-55 minutes. Set the pans on the counter and turn the mounds flat side up. With the tip of a knife, carefully make a small hole in the flat side of each mound. Pipe small dabs of the remaining meringue into the holes and insert the stems tip first. Return to the oven until completely dry, about 15 minutes longer. Let cool completely on the sheets.

Marzipan Mushrooms:

8 ounces almond paste
2 cups icing sugar
3 to 5 tablespoons light corn syrup
Cocoa powder

1.To make the marzipan combine the almond paste and 1 cup of the icing sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat with the paddle attachment on low speed until sugar is almost absorbed.

2.Add the remaining 1 cup of sugar and mix until the mixture resembles fine crumbs.

3.Add half the corn syrup, then continue mixing until a bit of the marzipan holds together when squeezed, adding additional corn syrup a little at a time, as necessary: the marzipan in the bowl will still appear crumbly.

4.Transfer the marzipan to a work surface and knead until smooth.

5.Roll one-third of the marzipan into a 6 inches long cylinder and cut into 1-inch lengths.

6.Roll half the lengths into balls. Press the remaining cylindrical lengths (stems) into the balls (caps) to make mushrooms.

7.Smudge with cocoa powder.

Assembling the Yule Log:

1.Run a sharp knife around the edges of the genoise to loosen it from the pan.

2.Turn the genoise layer over (unmolding it from the sheet pan onto a flat surface) and peel away the paper.

3.Carefully invert your genoise onto a fresh piece of parchment paper.

4.Spread with half the coffee buttercream (or whatever filling you’re using).

5.Use the parchment paper to help you roll the cake into a tight cylinder.

6.Transfer back to the baking sheet and refrigerate for several hours.

7.Unwrap the cake. Trim the ends on the diagonal, starting the cuts about 2 inches away from each end.

8.Position the larger cut piece on each log about 2/3 across the top.

9.Cover the log with the reserved buttercream, making sure to curve around the protruding stump.

10.Streak the buttercream with a fork or decorating comb to resemble bark.

11.Transfer the log to a platter and decorate with your mushrooms and whatever other decorations you’ve chosen.

To see what all the other Daring Bakers have created, please visit the blogroll.

Technorati tags: daring bakers, yule log

While I will very likely be making this showstopper as the grande finale of holiday desserts, it certainly doesn’t hurt to give other desserts the opportunity to show their sweet stuff.

I like to call this the Cream Puff version of holiday dress rehearsals.

For this edition of Magazine Mondays, I decided to try a recipe from the popular Canadian chef and television personality, Ricardo Larrivée. For those of you that don’t know, Ricardo has a show on the Canadian Food Network along with a magazine that I subscribe to.

In general, I like the food that he prepares and appreciate his focus on entertaining. While I didn’t see the episode where he made this particular dessert, it is featured in the very first issue of his magazine.

It’s called a Crunchy Chocolate-Chestnut Cake and it’s impressive! The only drawback is that the recipe is a tad on the expensive side to make. Between the chocolate, the chestnut cream and the decorative cookies, it cost a pretty penny. However, the ooohs and aaahs of those who tasted it made the expense worth it. Another Monday, another magazine down!

Have a great week everyone!

Ciao!

You can find the recipe for this cake here.

Magazine Mondays on other blogs:

Dolores of Chronicles in Culinary Curiosity is all over Magazine Mondays with three recipes: Kale and Potato Hash, Persimmon Raspberry Yogurt Parfait and Cranberry Upside-Down Cake.

Remember, if you put up a Magazine Mondays post let me know and I’ll link to it!

Technorati tags: magazine mondays

The Cream Puff is back! I had a lovely week in Florida where I spent a few days in Miami followed by a cruise that took me to Key West, Cozumel and then back to Miami.

Towards the end of it, though, all I could think about was coming home and baking! Let the Christmas baking begin!

Before that happens, however, I must clear up a bit of business otherwise known as your homework assignment. I must confess I’m a bit embarrassed. Either I was really tired and really in need of a vacation before I left or I seriously underestimated all of you. I never imagined it would be so easy to figure out that the dessert pictured in my last post was indeed a tiramisù!

After reading Lis’ amazing and funny post about tiramisù wherein she shared her experience of making tiramisù using a recipe I’d given her, I had a serious craving for the stuff. Lis’ mouth-watering photos didn’t help! Since her bringing some to me was out of the question (although that would be my fondest wish … Lis … ), I decided it was time to make it.

It’s not that I don’t like tiramisù, it’s just that I think it’s become a bit of a clichè. And let’s not even get into the atrocities that people commit against this dessert by doing things like making it with fake whipped cream instead of mascarpone.

Shudder.

Anyway, I present to you my family’s tiramisù recipe. The beauty of this particular recipe is that it’s entirely up to you. You can bend it and shape it to suit your own tastes.

As for the homework assignment, you all get an A+, but the A++ goes to Suganya of the beautiful blog Tasty Palettes. Wow, is it a beautiful blog! Congratulations to Suganya and thanks to all of you for handing in your homework.

Now get baking!

Ciao!

Tiramisù
Treasured family recipe.

Note: You will surely find as many variations of the tiramisù recipe as you will find people of Italian background. For my family’s recipe, the main components are espresso, mascarpone, eggs, sugar, ladyfinger cookies, liquor and cocoa. How you marry these ingredients is ultimately up to you. Experiment and find the combination that you like best. This recipe will make one 2-layer tiramisù that will fit into a container that’s about 9 x 13 inches or a bit smaller. Alternatively, you can make individual tiramisùs. For this recipe, I used 16 plastic mini wine glasses.

5 large eggs, separated and at room temperature
1 tub of mascarpone (500 grams), at room temperature
8 tbsp. sugar (5 tbsp. for the cream mixture and 3 tbsp. for the espresso)
2 to 3 cups espresso (it’s best if it’s lukewarm)
2 to 3 tbsp. liquor of your choice (my favourites are brandy or Frangelico)
ladyfinger cookies (you will need about 35 to 40 ladyfinger cookies)
cocoa for dusting

Brew the espresso and then pour it into a large, shallow bowl. Add the 3 tbsp. of sugar and the 2 to 3 tbsp. of liquor and stir. Taste and adjust the flavour (add more liquor or alcohol of you want). Set aside and let cool a bit.

Place the egg yolks and the 5 tbsp. of sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer. With the paddle attachment, beat at high speed until the eggs have doubled in volume and the mixture is very light in colour (usually 5 to 8 minutes).

Add the mascarpone and beat on medium-high speed until the mixture is smooth and creamy (usually 3 to 4 minutes).

If you have another bowl for your stand mixer, then put the egg whites in that bowl. If not, put the mascarpone mixture into another large bowl and wash the stand mixer bowl very well. Dry it and then put the egg whites in that bowl. Beat the egg whites with the whisk attachment on high speed until stiff peaks form.

Remove one third of the beaten egg whites and add them to the mascarpone mixture. Stir until the mixture is smooth. Add the remainder of the egg whites and gently fold them in.

Begin assembling the tiramisu’ by dipping your ladyfingers in the espresso mixture and creating a layer across the bottom of your container. When dipping the ladyfingers, don’t dip them for more then a few seconds or they will become too soggy.

Spread half the mascarpone mixture over the ladyfingers and then sprinkle with cocoa.

Repeat with a second layer of ladyfinger cookies and the remainder of the mascarpone mixture. Dust with cocoa once again and then refrigerate. It’s best if you can refrigerate it for at least 4 hours to allow it to set.

Enjoy!

Technorati tags: tiramisu

The Cream Puff is taking a short break in the form of one week in a warmer climate. I’ll be back refreshed and ready to begin the two-week baking marathon that is my lead-up to Christmas.

For those of you that have been around this blog long enough, you’ll remember that last year I took a trip in December as well but not before I left you some homework.

Well I certainly don’t want you getting all lazy while I’m gone. So here’s another homework assignment.

Guess what dessert is pictured in the photograph above.

The first person to guess correctly, wins a copy of this book.

See you in a week!

Ciao!

When I was little, our meals did not often stray from Italian cuisine. That’s not a bad thing, it’s just that at times, my brother and I would wonder what certain foods tasted like. Shepherd’s Pie, for example, fascinated me. And I can still remember watching an episode of Little House on the Prairie and feeling a sharp stab of desire for the family’s chicken dumpling dinner.

Coming home for lunch on schooldays, my mother would sometimes surprise us with something different. Of all the surprises, my favourite was baked beans.

Except I call them Bakedy Beans. I’m not sure when or why I affectionately coined the term Bakedy in reference to these Beans, but sinch childhood, they have been in my top five list of comfort dishes.

Bakedy Beans for Cream Puff. Except today, I’ve made Bakedy Beans for Peabody.

Here are the 10 reasons why I have made Bakedy Beans for Peabody:

1. Her name is Peabody. Isn’t that cute?!

2. She is a hockey fan and I am a hockey fan.

3. When I complain about the Toronto Maple Leafs, she undersands.

4. Peabody is a brilliant baker whose creations frequently (okay, always) make my mouth water.

5. I love her blog.

6. She takes pretty pictures.

7. She’s a Daring Baker.

8. She sent me a special gift recently (can’t reveal the details now).

9. Peabody makes me laugh.

10. She and her husband recently moved into their first home and so she decided to host a Blog Housewarming Party. I think Bakedy Beans are perfect for housewarming parties.

I’m on my way, Peabody. Save me a seat on the couch and make some space on the buffet table for the Bakedy Beans!

Ciao!

Note: While I love to make Bakedy Beans by soaking the beans overnight and then slow-cooking them in a low oven for hours, sometimes I need a quick fix. And this is the perfecti quick fix: Triple-Bean Bake from Epicurious. I’ve been making this one for years. It’s fast and you won’t be disappointed. Enjoy your Bakedy Beans!

After a three-week hiatus, Magazine Mondays returns! I’m happy to put another magazine that has been languishing in what I now affectionately call, “the basket where magazines go to die,” to rest.

When it comes to recipes, I am nothing if not melodramatic.

This time around it’s the December 2006 issue of Food & Wine magazine and the recipe for Devil’s Food Cupcakes with Espresso Meringue.

Oh, baby!

Excuse the ineloquence but hot damn … these were good!

Densely rich and chocolatey (that’s how I like my cupcakes thank you very much), the meringue was light and not too sweet thanks to the touch of espresso powder.

I wanted to eat them all but bearing in mind that in a few short days I will be making an appearance on the beaches of Miami in a bathing suit, I limited myself to one.

I don’t want to frighten the good people of Miami anymore than necessary. They’ll be scared enough as it is.

On another less frightening note, I’ve noticed that some of you have put up Magazine Mondays posts of your own. If you let me know about them, I’ll happily link to them in my own posts.

Have a great week everyone!

Ciao!

For the cupcake recipe, click here.

Magazine Mondays on Other Blogs:

More Than Burnt Toast featured some Ranch Mashed Potatoes.

I love Christmas!

Only 23 days to go.

Just 23 short days to Rudolph and Santa and the tree and the gifts and the food and the weight gain.

I love it!!!

And how will the Cream Puff be spending the next 23 days?

The next few days will be spent trying to finish a major project at work.

Following that, the Cream Puff will be spending a handful of well-deserved days soaking up some sun and Christmas shopping in a warmer climate.

Upon returning, the remaining eight or nine days will be spent baking, eating, shopping, baking, spending time with family and friends, baking, drinking, baking, blogging, baking and baking.

I love it!!!

There really was only choice for Flavour of the Month for December 2007: Georgeanne Brennan’s Christmas Sweets. I bought this book as soon as it was published this past September and I’ve been waiting impatiently to try some of the recipes.

Let’s see what treats it holds.

Happy December!

Ciao!