War is over!!!

No... not that war... I'm sorry (hang head down in shame)... It's just the war between macarons and I.

Today, after the seventh attempt to tackle those sons of b****** cutie pies, I declare peace. A success with shine, dome and feet reigns upon us. The sun even came out to celebrate our victory. I can almost hear the music...

This has been a long and somewhat disastrous voyage, haunting me since last year.  The first time I tried to make macarons, they ended up shine-less, dry and feet-less... *sigh* it was a sad day... Then there were the ones that somehow became amaretti cookies... Then last week, they were just down right hollow, extremely shiny with feet, as if just to piss me off.

Thank goodness I'm so f**king stubborn. I wasn't giving up until I get it right.

So this is it, no more swearing and pulling out my hair at 2am talking to baked egg whites.  No more over-dosing on epic failed cookies with increasing anger after every bite. No more mumbling bad words at people who walk by with tubes of macarons from the cute pastry shops on the Plateau. No more! Yes, I mean it, I might never make macarons again now that it's done. LOL!!!!!

I read a lot on macarons, more than I'd like to remember, and  most people "fold" with delicacy. A few however, beat the crap out of the meringue when mixing in the almond meal. (I would have had to use that if the lucky seventh  failed) Fortunately, this war ended with no violence.

So after reading many awesome bakers and dessert chefs out there (David Lebovitz, Tartelette, A La Cuisine!, etc) this is how it all went down:

Macarons shells 

(makes about 60 shells, so 30 macarons)

• 1 cup almond meal (I ground my own natural almonds, then put it in the oven on a baking sheet with really low temperature to dry it out)
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 100-110 g egg white, left out on the counter loosely covered for at least 24 hrs (about 3-4 egg whites, I actually used the stuff from the box because of so many fails, I didn't want to have all the yolks left over)
• 1/4 cup sugar 
• powder color

Sift the almond meal and powdered sugar together, making sure there are no lumps.

Beat (in a stand mixer or hand-held, with a whisk attachment) the aged egg whites until foamy, then gradually add the 1/4 of sugar. When soft peaks form, add desired color and continue beating until peaks are firm. 

Add the almond meal mix into the meringue, in 3 batches. Fold the mixture delicately to not break the meringue and do a total of not more than 50 times.

Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Fill a piping bag with a plain tip of 1-2cm or so and pipe equal circles of your desired size (1.5-2 inches is usually the case) Let them sit for 30-60 minutes, until they have formed a skin on top, then bake in a 300F oven for 8-12 minutes depending on the size of the shells.

Cool completely before filling

Quick peanut butter, Nutella & banana liqueur filling

• 1 part peanut butter
• 1 1/2 part nutella
• a few spoons of banana liqueur (I used Austrian  Casali Schokobananen liqueur)

Mix peanut butter and Nutella together and add the liqueur. Fill the macaron shells.

Enjoy!!!!! Because nothing tastes better than victory!

A letter to Spring

Dear Spring,

Sitting here on a Friday night, with a patch on my left eye (don't ask... it's not that interesting really....) I realized that I have been slacking off on the blogging and the cooking, and I have a perfect excuse for it.

Cakes!!! Yes, cake is always a good excuse for anything!

I have been selling cupcakes to a little restaurant downtown and making quite a few cakes as well, so getting home from work means the oven heats up, the fondant starts rolling or the Cuisinart mixer is in over time. Sometimes it's all of the above.

I know for a fact that many cooks/bakers out there, just like me, what makes them most happy is to see the reaction on people's face when u cook/bake for them. Seeing the different emotions people have is like getting an endorphin shot for me. Shocked, ecstatic, amazed, amused, confused. All in a good way mind you. The one thing that always happens with the cakes, is they don't want to cut them LOL!

 A quick Optimus Prime cake for friend 30th birthday. Chocolate cake & strawberry buttercream. 

I didn't have the right colors, so I had to paint over it after, hence the streak :(

Banana cake and Amaretto buttercream. The colors and the little characters on the cake are from the birthday girl sketch book. She's amazing!!!!

For two very lucky birthday girls who have such caring people in their lives. Chocolate cake, Vanilla cake and both with strawberry buttercream.

Left: For 1 of my best friends' 30th birthday, green tea cake & dark chocolate matcha  ganache. 

Right: Baby shower for my soon-to-be niece, chocolate cake and strawberry buttercream.

My happiness goes into overload when afterward, people come to tell me "It not only looks good, it tastes delicious!" My heart literally flutters... Yeah, nerd, I know LOL!

...*Sigh*... I have nothing to complain about. Life is simply yummy and beautiful. The sun is coming out more often. I've switched to a lighter jacket and no longer wear my boots. The birds are getting louder. The squirrel who lives in the tree behind my house seem to appear more often (I don't know where he is hiding his food, but he seems to be carrying something EVERY SINGLE TIME!)

So Spring, will you please come and stay a while? I promise I won't take you for granted. I will enjoy you to the fullest all the while not forgetting how lucky I am compared to thousands and thousands of other people in the world. I won't pout when you need to rain. I will accept you even with the cold breeze that you sometimes bring. I know nothing lasts forever, and you will eventually leave, but I think we will have a great time together.

Your faithful friend, "Tramie"
Waiting for you.

Indian-inspired lentil soup

We all need a little lift from now and then to keep our spirit high. When something goes wrong, we have to remember all the other good people & things that are still there with us, and it may sooth the pain. These are times when we need to keep our heart & tummy warm, because the temperature refuses to collaborate.

I came to making this soup out of literally whatever I had in the house. The only thing that I had to go buy, was the fresh parsley. Let me tell you, tough out the cold bum and run to the store to get it, because it adds a really nice touch.

 Indian-inspired lentil soup (makes about 10 servings)

• a splash of olive oil
• 1 onion, roughly chopped
• a couple cloves of garlic, chopped
• 1 can of Italian tomatoes, whole
• 2 boxes of chicken broth (about 2L)
• 1 large bunch of curly parsley, washed, stemmed and roughly chopped. And a few for garnish
• about 1 cup of dried lentil, rinsed and picked over
• 1 tsp garam masala powder
• 1 tbsp curry powder (or more depends on your taste)
• Chili flakes if desired
• Lemon, sliced 

Heat oil in a big pot over medium heat, add onions and garlic, cook for a few minutes until fragrant but not burnt. Add the tomatoes & the juice, mash them up in small chunks with a wooden spoon. Then add the chicken broth, leaving about half of a box for thinning the soup later.

Turn heat to maximum, add the parsley and the lentils. Bring to a boil, then cook over medium heat for about 20 minutes, or until lentils are soft. Add the masala, curry and chili flakes half way and mix well.

Serve with fresh parsley for garnish, with some freshly ground black pepper, and a small wedge of lemon. It really kicks it up a notch (unfortunately I didn't get the lemon when I made this, boo!)

****I put this soup into individual microwavable containers for lunch, and before taking them to work, I would add a bit of chicken broth, because it thickens up quite a lot

It is Valentine's Day weekend, and I made some cakes for the occasion, for an order. One was a "kitsch" Birthday/Valentines Day theme (yes, "kitsch" was an important part of the order) It was chocolate layer cake with fresh strawberry buttercream.

Yeehaw!!!!! Chocolate layer cake with fresh strawberry butter-cream

And then there were the cute cupcakes *sigh*...

From front to back: Cinnamon "bun" & Orange butter-cream, Double amaretto, Green Tea & Lemon butter-cream, Double Root Beer

I wish you all a wonderful weekend with your Valentine (although I am sure that everyday is Valentine's Day for a lot of you *wink*) Share some soup, share some cupcakes. Most importantly, spread the love!

Sauté Shrimp Primavera Ptitim (Israeli couscous)

Ptitim, also called Israeli couscous, is my new favorite pasta! There is a slight chewiness to them that is very pleasing to eat, somewhere between a pastina and barley.

I've had them before in restaurants, but this is the first time I cook them. They really keep their shape through cooking, reheating and they don't clump like couscous. They cook a tad faster than other pasta because of their small shape, and the sauce really cling to them. It's awesome!

I made something pretty simple, with stuff that I already have in the fridge: primavera sauce purchased at Jean Talon market, broccoli and shrimp. Quite straight forward, really....

Sauté Shrimp Primavera Ptitim

• 1 1/4 cup water
• 1 cup Ptitim/Israeli couscous
• 6-8 shrimps, peeled, devained
• pinch of salt, pepper & chili flakes
• 1 1/2 - 2 cups of your favorite sauce, ready-to-eat
• About 1 Tbsp parmesan cheese

Boil the water, then add the ptitim, and simmer covered, for 10 minutes. Drain under cold water, set aside.

In the same pot, heat olive oil over medium high heat, sauté shrimps just until they turn opaque (which means they are cooked) sprinkle the salt, pepper and chili flakes, stir around to coat, set shrimps aside in a bowl.

Use the same pot & add the sauce over medium low heat until it starts bubbling. Add the cheese, it will thicken the sauce. Stir to mix well, then add the ptitim.

Gravlax : cured salmon

Days like these, I'm happy I stock my freezer the way I do. It's like -1000*C outside!!!!!! Eesh!

And the most recent things I made to add to the bunch, is gravlax.
Gravlax?
Gravlax??
Gravlax!!!
It sounds unappetizing doesn't it? If you repeat it long enough, you might actually never want to try it! LOL!

What it is, is simply cured salmon. The texture is just like smoked salmon, but the taste is more salty in depth due to the way it's made: cured in salt, sugar and dill.

It's one of the easiest things you will ever make. The only problem is waiting 3 days before you can sink your fangs into it graciously taste it. I made a big batch, then froze them in individual portion (Slice thinly, then overlap them onto aluminum foil and placed inside freezer bags)

Gravlax: cured salmon

• The best salmon filet you can get, whole, about 2 pounds, skinned and cut half length wise (Mine fit perfectly into a 9x13 glass baking dish)
• 7-8 Tbsp sea salt
• 4-6 Tbsp light brown sugar (depending on how sweet you want to make it)
• 1 bunch of fresh dill, chopped, stems removed

Line a 9x13 baking dish with plastic wrap. Sprinkle dill onto the surface (big enough to cover one filet)

Mix salt and sugar together. Take one half of salmon, press some salt & sugar mix onto the surface thoroughly. Place salt & sugar side down onto dill surface. Then repeat step with the other surface, and the other filet.

Sandwich the two together, and wrap up tightly. Place a chopping board on top, and then weigh it down with something heavy.

Place in the fridge. Turn over every 12 hours and remove any liquid that accumulate in dish. Do this for 3 days and then you shall be able to enjoy the fruit of your labor & patience.

Eat it however you'd like: appetizer (atop crackers spread with cream cheese) breakfast (aside some scrambled eggs and a bagel) quick lunch (sandwich with avocado, spinach salad, etc) I'm thinking I will even use it in maki rolls just like I would with smoked salmon. Hmmmm... yeah... *drool*...not a bad idea.....

Still everyone's favorite brownies...

There is one type of brownies that I am requested to make over and over again, and it's the Oreo Brownies. Actually, I think anything with chopped Oreo cookies in them, people will love it: brownies, biscotti, cakes, fudge, ice cream. Sold!

I have already posted once on Oreo Brownies here, and this is just a slightly different version, from Kraft Kitchen, with no addition of cocoa powder, a bit less of butter and chocolate. The best part of baking this (beside the obvious of eating them) is the use of just ONE bowl for your satisfaction.

One-bowl Oreo Brownies

(adapted from Kraft)

• 4 squares Baker's Unsweetened Chocolate
• 3/4 cup butter
• 2 cups sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 cup flour
• 1 1/2 cup chopped Oreo cookies (Kraft suggested 1 cup cookies and 1 cup raisins, but really, raisins???)

Heat oven to 350°F. Line a 13x9-inch baking pan with parchment paper, with an inch or so sticking our the sides of pan (for easy lifting later)
Microwave chocolate and butter in large bowl 2 minutes or until butter is melted. Stir until chocolate is completely melted. Stir in sugar. Add eggs and vanilla and mix well. Stir in flour until well blended. Mix in 1 cup of chopped cookies.
Spread into prepared pan. Sprinkle with the rest of the chopped cookies. Bake 30 to 35 min. or until toothpick inserted in centre comes out with fudgy crumbs (Mine only took about 15-20 minutes!!!!) Do not over-bake!!! Cool in pan, then lift out and cut in squares.

Another Oreo related thing I made last week is a Kaboum cake (A Quebec kids show) Unfortunately I don't have pictures of the cut cake, but just imagine: dark chocolate cake layers, with a filling of dark chocolate buttercream and chopped Oreo cookies. Hm.... it's a good thing I have self-control....

This was my inspiration for colors

And this is what the cake looked like

So, Oreo-up your sweet treats, I'm sure that will bring lots of cheers and hugs from everyone (And I better warn you, get used to the requests afterward)