Daring Cooks March

The 2010 March Daring Cooks challenge was hosted by Eleanor of MelbournefoodGeek and Jess of Jessthebaker. They chose to challenge Daring Cooks to make risotto. The various components of their challenge recipe are based on input from the Australian Masterchef cookbook and the cookbook Moorish by Greg Malouf.

This was my first risotto and, since I didn't have the squash that was mentioned in the recipe, I replaced it with sweet potato. It was delicious, and I don't recall the last time I used so much butter in a recipe.

Preparation time:
Stock: 20 minutes prep time, 3 hours cooking.
Pumpkin Risotto: 10 minutes prep time, 20-30 minutes cooking. ,
Lemon Risotto: 10 minutes prep time, 20-30 minutes cooking.

Equipment required:
• 5 Litre stock pot, or other large pan
• knife
• chopping board
• tablespoon
• teaspoon
• sieve
• ladle
• hand blender (optional)
• wooden spoon or other stirring implement
• grater
• saucepans
• measuring cups
• scales

Chicken Stock

Ingredients:
1 large chicken 2-3 pounds about 1 kg
chicken bones 2-3 pounds 1 kg
2 onions, roughly diced
1 medium leek - white part only, roughly diced
2 sticks celery, roughly diced
2 cloves garlic, halved
1 cinnamon stick
1 tsp. white peppercorns ( Any type of whole peppercorn will do)
2 bay leaves (fresh or dried, it doesn't matter.)
peel of 1/2 lemon
1/4 tsp. allspice

Directions:

1. Wash the chicken and bones and places in a 5 Litre pot, cover completely with water and bring to a boil
2. Skim away any scum as it comes to the surface
3. Add the vegetables and bring back to a boil
4. Add the rest remaining ingredients and simmer very gently, uncovered for 1.5 hours
5. Carefully lift out the chicken, set aside. The chicken meat can be removed from the chicken, shredded off and used for other things like soup!
6. Simmer the stock gently for another hour. At , at the end you should have around 2 Liters
7. Carefully ladle the liquid into a fine sieve, the less the bones and vegetables are disturbed in this process the clearer the stock will be. 
The stock is now ready for use. Freeze what you don't need for later use.

Risotto Base

Ingredients:
olive oil 2 fluid oz 60 ml
1 small onion, quatered
rice 14 oz 400g
Any type of risotto rice will do. I use Arborio but the recipe itself says Vialone Nano. Another to look for is Carnaroli.
white wine 2 fl oz 60 ml
chicken or vegetable stock , simmering 2 pints 1 L

Directions:

1. Heat oil in a pan and add onion. Fry for a few minutes to flavour the oil then discard. (We diced ours and left it in as we like onion).
2. Add the rice and stir for a few minutes to coat each grain of rice with oil and toast slightly.
3. Add the wine and let it bubble away until evaporated.
4. Add enough stock to cover the rice by a finger’s width (about an inch or two). Don't actually stick your finger in, it will be hot. Just eye it off.
5. Cook on medium heat, stirring with a wooden spoon from time to time, until most of the stock has been absorbed.
6. Repeat Step 5 making sure to leave aside approximately 100 ml. of stock for the final step. .
7. Repeat, save 100ml for the final stage.
8. Once you are at this point, the base is made. You now get to add your own variation.

Pumpkin Risotto (OPTIONAL recipe)

Ingredients:
pumpkin, grated 7oz 200g Don't use butternut, the taste will be too watery
thyme, chopped 1 Tbsp
unsalted butter 3.5 oz 100g chilled and cut into small cubes
parmesan cheese, grated 2 oz 60g

Directions:

1. Melt half the butter in a saucepan. Add pumpkin and cook until tender. Set aside (optional - blend for a smoother texture)
2. Make the base up until the end of step 8.
3. Stir through the pumpkin mixture and thyme
4. Add the final 100ml of stock and hte remaining butter and stir until both are completely absorbed. Stir through the parmesan, stick the lid on and let it sit for a few minutes.

Daring Bakers February

The February 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Aparna of My Diverse Kitchen and Deeba of Passionate About Baking. They chose Tiramisu as the challenge for the month. Their challenge recipe is based on recipes from The Washington Post, Cordon Bleu at Home and Baking Obsession.

I had a wonderful time making this and sharing it with friends. What a great challenge! The tiramisu I've made before comes from The Silver Spoon, and involves more chocolate, so this had quite a different flavor from the one that I'm used to. Other than the mascarpone, which didn't get super thick, everything went really well. The marsala adds a nice flavor to the dessert, and it was a wonderful excuse for an Italian dinner party! I now have my first lasagne under my belt, too!

Ingredients:
For the zabaglione:
2 large egg yolks
3 tablespoons sugar/50gms
1/4 cup/60ml Marsala wine (or port or coffee)
1/4 teaspoon/ 1.25ml vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

For the vanilla pastry cream:
1/4 cup/55gms sugar
1 tablespoon/8gms all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon/ 2.5ml vanilla extract
1 large egg yolk
3/4 cup/175ml whole milk

For the whipped cream:
1 cup/235ml chilled heavy cream (we used 25%)
1/4 cup/55gms sugar
1/2 teaspoon/ 2.5ml vanilla extract

To assemble the tiramisu:
2 cups/470ml brewed espresso, warmed
1 teaspoon/5ml rum extract (optional)
1/2 cup/110gms sugar
1/3 cup/75gms mascarpone cheese
36 savoiardi/ ladyfinger biscuits (you may use less)
2 tablespoons/30gms unsweetened cocoa powder

Method:
For the zabaglione:
Heat water in a double boiler. If you don’t have a double boiler, place a pot with about an inch of water in it on the stove. Place a heat-proof bowl in the pot making sure the bottom does not touch the water.

In a large mixing bowl (or stainless steel mixing bowl), mix together the egg yolks, sugar, the Marsala (or espresso/ coffee), vanilla extract and lemon zest. Whisk together until the yolks are fully blended and the mixture looks smooth.

Transfer the mixture to the top of a double boiler or place your bowl over the pan/ pot with simmering water. Cook the egg mixture over low heat, stirring constantly, for about 8 minutes or until it resembles thick custard. It may bubble a bit as it reaches that consistency.
Let cool to room temperature and transfer the zabaglione to a bowl. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight, until thoroughly chilled.

For the pastry cream:
Mix together the sugar, flour, lemon zest and vanilla extract in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan. To this add the egg yolk and half the milk. Whisk until smooth.
Now place the saucepan over low heat and cook, stirring constantly to prevent the mixture from curdling.

Add the remaining milk a little at a time, still stirring constantly. After about 12 minutes the mixture will be thick, free of lumps and beginning to bubble. (If you have a few lumps, don’t worry. You can push the cream through a fine-mesh strainer.)

Transfer the pastry cream to a bowl and cool to room temperature. C electric over with plastic film and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight, until thoroughly chilled.

For the whipped cream:
Combine the cream, sugar and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl. Beat with an hand mixer or immersion blender until the mixture holds stiff peaks. Set aside.

To assemble the tiramisu:
Have ready a rectangular serving dish (about 8" by 8" should do) or one of your choice.
Mix together the warm espresso, rum extract and sugar in a shallow dish, whisking to mix well. Set aside to cool.

In a large bowl, beat the mascarpone cheese with a spoon to break down the lumps and make it smooth. This will make it easier to fold. Add the prepared and chilled zabaglione and pastry cream, blending until just combined. Gently fold in the whipped cream. Set this cream mixture aside.

Now to start assembling the tiramisu.
Workings quickly, dip 12 of the ladyfingers in the sweetened espresso, about 1 second per side. They should be moist but not soggy. Immediately transfer each ladyfinger to the platter, placing them side by side in a single row. You may break a lady finger into two, if necessary, to ensure the base of your dish is completely covered.

Spoon one-third of the cream mixture on top of the ladyfingers, then use a rubber spatula or spreading knife to cover the top evenly, all the way to the edges.

Repeat to create 2 more layers, using 12 ladyfingers and the cream mixture for each layer. Clean any spilled cream mixture; cover carefully with plastic wrap and refrigerate the tiramisu overnight.
To serve, carefully remove the plastic wrap and sprinkle the tiramisu with cocoa powder using a fine-mesh strainer or decorate as you please. Cut into individual portions and serve.

Daring Bakers January

The January 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Lauren of Celiac Teen. Lauren chose Gluten-Free Graham Wafers and Nanaimo Bars as the challenge for the month. The sources she based her recipe on are 101 Cookbooks and www.nanaimo.ca.

I have to admit, bar sweets aren't my favorite thing in the world. It was a bit of a challenge getting motivated for this challenge, especially since I have to limit the amount of chocolate I consume, and I actually only fulfilled half of it. I made the graham crackers, using the recipe from 101 Cookbooks found here: http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/000126.html. In my rush to try them, I ate them hot out of the oven, but I found that they taste far more like graham crackers once they've had the chance to cool and harden up a bit. Also, since I did an awesome job on this challenge, I can't find my camera. I'll snap a photo of them once I manage to locate it again.

December Daring Bakers

The December 2009 Daring Bakers’ challenge was brought to you by Anna of Very Small Anna and Y of Lemonpi. They chose to challenge Daring Bakers’ everywhere to bake and assemble a gingerbread house from scratch. They chose recipes from Good Housekeeping and from The Great Scandinavian Baking Book as the challenge recipes.

While I enjoyed my first challenge of cannoli, I was looking forward to stepping away from frying oil and to use the oven. To my knowledge, I've never made a gingerbread house from scratch, so I was thrilled by the choice. I chose the recipe from The Great Scandinavian Baking Book, namely because I had all of the ingredients and felt as though it might be more durable:

Y's Recipe:
Scandinavian Gingerbread (Pepparkakstuga)

from The Great Scandinavian Baking Book by Beatrice Ojakangas http://astore.amazon.com/thedarkit-20/detail/0816634963

1 cup butter, room temperature [226g]
1 cup brown sugar, well packed [220g]
2 tablespoons cinnamon
4 teaspoons ground ginger
3 teaspoons ground cloves
2 teaspoons baking soda
½ cup boiling water
5 cups all-purpose flour [875g]

1. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until blended. Add the cinnamon, ginger and cloves. Mix the baking soda with the boiling water and add to the dough along with the flour. Mix to make a stiff dough. If necessary add more water, a tablespoon at a time. Chill 2 hours or overnight.

2. Cut patterns for the house, making patterns for the roof, front walls, gabled walls, chimney and door out of cardboard.

3. Roll the dough out on a large, ungreased baking sheet and place the patterns on the dough. Mark off the various pieces with a knife, but leave the pieces in place.

4. [I rolled out the dough on a floured bench, roughly 1/8 inch thick (which allows for fact that the dough puffs a little when baked), cut required shapes and transferred these to the baking sheet. Any scraps I saved and rerolled at the end.]

5. Preheat the oven to 375'F (190'C). Bake for 12 to 15 minutes until the cookie dough feels firm. After baking, again place the pattern on top of the gingerbread and trim the shapes, cutting the edges with a straight-edged knife. Leave to cool on the baking sheet.

Royal Icing:

1 large egg white
3 cups (330g) powdered sugar
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon almond extract

Beat all ingredients until smooth, adding the powdered sugar gradually to get the desired consistency. Pipe on pieces and allow to dry before assembling. If you aren't using it all at once you can keep it in a small bowl, loosely covered with a damp towel for a few hours until ready to use. You may have to beat it slightly to get it an even consistency if the top sets up a bit. Piped on the house, this will set up hard over time.

Simple Syrup:
2 cups (400g) sugar

Place in a small saucepan and heat until just boiling and the sugar dissolves. Dredge or brush the edges of the pieces to glue them together. If the syrup crystallizes, remake it.

I used whole wheat flour and, since I only had 1/2 a cup of butter, I threw in a 1/2 cup of grapeseed oil. The dough, as many have pointed out, was quite dry, but I put it in the fridge and hoped that it would help things out.

When it came to rolling it out, I did end up having to add a bit of water to the dough to keep it from crumbling. It was just eyeballed, but seemed to work out fine. Rolling it out between two pieces of parchment paper made the whole process a lot easier, and we (a friend who was unaware of the challenge) used a template we found online (I don't remember where, unfortunately...) and cut the pieces out of cardboard. Other than some of the smaller bits getting a bit dark, things turned out nicely. Both roof pieces broke during transportation, but we were able to easily patch it up with simple syrup. I was really happy with how it glued things together, and the royal icing worked quite nicely during the decorating process. Plus, it tasted really good. We were both more or less coated in royal icing by the end, but had a really fun time putting our house together.

Daring Bakers

November was my first month as a member of Daring Bakers, and I just completed my first challenge yesterday: cannoli. Frying things isn't usually in my kitchen arsenal, but I guess it was a pretty fun change from the norm. My favorite part of the challenge, I would say, was making the ricotta that was used for the filling (http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/000282.html). I didn't think to save any of it in its unadulterated form - prior to adding the other filling ingredients - which is something that I wish I'd done. I also have large bowls full of whey in my fridge now, and learned that dogs are big fans of the stuff. The filling itself was quite dense, making the consumption of more than one cannoli quite a task. I made a few substitutions to the recipe I used, mainly by using whole wheat flour and sucanut as the sweetener. I am still without a camera (although some pictures were taken with someone else's), so there are currently no visuals to post. This month's challenge was successfully completed.

The cake, as it turns out, is delicious. It is a little on the spicy side, to the point where it masks the chocolate flavor, but it is still moist and satisfying.

I currently have an abundance of produce in my possession, including an entire garbage bag full of kale that my dad brought up from our garden at home. There were two sad looking beets that had been in my vegetable drawer for some time, so I decided to make a barley risotto with them. I cooked barley in some mushroom broth, added the chopped beets and 2 bay leaves, salt and pepper, some white wine, and then finished it off with some lemon juice, olive oil, and some cherry tomatoes cut in half. It was in need of some fresh herbs (parsley would have been good), but I didn't have any in the fridge. I have a meal idea in my head for the upcoming days that may end up being disgusting, but I'm looking forward to trying it. It involves ground goat.

Like Water for Chocolate

One of my closest friend recently started a book club. After only two meetings, it has become quite clear that food will play a vital role in our get-togethers. Our Julie and Julia discussion included food directly out of Mastering the Art of French Cooking. After reading Fieldwork, we had a delicious Thai-inspired meal. Today we are gathering to discuss Like Water for Chocolate, and I had yet to decide what my culinary contribution was going to be. It then hit me that I really enjoy the chile/chocolate combination, and I decided to run with it. The inspiration came from http://www.pinkbites.com/2009/04/mexican-chocolate-cake.html, but with a few changes. The flour was replaced with whole wheat pastry flour, sucanat was the sweetener, and grapeseed oil was used instead canola. My glaze was made out of honey, cocoa powder, vanilla, and cinnamon, and then I decorated the finished cake with cinnamon, more cocoa powder, and some chocolate nibs. The meeting begins at 6 tonight, so I've yet to taste it. I know from my chocolate cake eating experience, however, that I tend to prefer flourless cakes, and this one doesn't contain any eggs. I'm pretty certain that the cinnamon/chili combo is something that I will continue to experiment with, but I might try it out with an egg-heavier recipe. But I shouldn't say anything until I actually try it!