Carious: Procrastination

Well, it isn't that I haven't been cooking or baking (as my facebook friends can tell you). I just haven't been blogging. Too busy, too lazy, and too uninspired to blog as well. I keep looking at the photos of what other bloggers put up and I am just looking down at my toes and wriggling them in shame.

HOW TO FIGHT? THEIR PHOTOS SO NICE..

Pfft. Anyway, I've decided to procrastinate a little during this exam period of mine and put up an entry with the nicest looking food photo I got. Camera courtesy of a dear friend, ZX. ;)


Procrastination

Oh yes I did. I unabashedly called this cake Procrastination. I made this cake on a whim because I was really craving for a layered petite gateux, which Perth lacks. Like seriously, CK and I have yet to see ANY shop that sells petite gateux other than an Opera. WHERE ARE THE HAUTE PATISSERIES IN PERTH?! Gah. I am so going to wipe out my cake limit in Singapore. I've bookmarked a list of dessert places to go and man will I be gaining some awesome pounds this coming holidays.

It's inspired by Sadaharu Aoki's Valencia, a 5 layer dreamy beauty topped with a stunning crown. Mine was a 4 layer wannabe with an orange slice. Hahaha. *looks down in shame and wriggles toes again*. But oh well, I'll up my game, one cake at a time!

Procrastination comprises of a base of chocolate biscuit joconde, followed by a layer of chocolate orange almond praline feuillantine, followed by a dark chocolate mousse and a bitter orange mousse. I mish-mashed the recipes from all over the place and winged it for the feuillantine layer with what I thought would make yummy feuillantine (read lotsa chocolate, lotsa nuts, lotsa love).


the other slices

Consistency is clearly my weak point here. Couldn't get consistent orange slices, consistent layers and good lines and consistent cuts. Terrible! The taste itself was pleasant and addictive, with a nice bitter orange taste that is complemented so well by the oodles of dark chocolate in the other 3 layers. However, I guess the component that I liked the least was the bitter orange mousse, which was slightly bitter cause I didn't add any sugar at all. The texture of the orange mousse wasn't as creamy as I would have wanted it as well but it didn't stick out like a sore thumb when all the components were eaten together.


nomnomnom

I ended up with 8 slices and plenty of scraps. Thankfully, I have grand plans for the scraps hahahaha. Shall update soon! =D

Recipe

Chocolate biscuit joconde
70g ground almonds
70g powdered sugar
70g egg yolks
30g egg whites
130g egg whites
45g caster sugar
55g cake flour
20g cocoa powder
25g melted butter, melted & cooled

1. Sift powdered sugar and ground almonds in a bowl. Add in all the egg yolks & 30g egg whites and whisk until pale and thick. Sift cake flour and cocoa powder together and fold into the egg mixture before folding in melted butter. In another bowl whisk 130g egg whites and 45g sugar until stiff peaks, then fold the meringue into the chocolate mixture. Spread mixture on baking tray lined with baking paper then bake in a preheated oven of 230C for 5-6 mins. The sponge is ready when it bounces back when pressed.

Chocolate feuillantine
100g almond praline paste
25g dark choc, melted & cooled til lukewarm
1/4 cup feuilletine flakes (I used wafer crumbs)
1/2 tbsp butter, melted & cooled
1/4 cup chopped almonds
2 tablespoon dried orange zest

2. Combine everything in a bowl and mix. Then spread unto joconde and chill.

Dark chocolate mousse
220ml whipping cream, whipped
30g mascarpone)
25g caster sugar
50g egg yolks
100g good dark chocolate, melted & cooled

3. Make the pâte à bombe by placing the mascarpone and sugar in a saucepan and bring to a boil, and keep it boiling. Then whisk egg yolks until pale yellow and add in the boiled sugar mixture. Continue to whisk until the yolks are thick and pale. Then, fold in the melted choc followed by whipped cream. Spread over the chilled sponge and feuillantine and return to chill.

Bitter orange mousse
4 - 5 oranges
1 cup whipping cream, whipped

4. Remove the zest of the oranges. Cut the oranges into little pieces and heat them in a skillet until the juices boil. Then, whizz them all in a food processor until they become a fine thick puree. Sieve the mixture and collect about 1 1/4 cup of sieved puree. You may add about 1 - 2 tablespoons of sugar if you'd like. When the puree has cooled, whip the whipping cream till soft peaks and tip the puree in and whisk until the 2 mixtures has JUST combined. Don't overwhip. Spread on top of the chocolate mousse and chill.

Well, there's that! =)

Pressure points and top tips! (from trial and error) =D

1) Spread as evenly as you can because it really shows!

2) You can freeze them to store them but remember to eat them when it has thoroughly thawed!

Plaisir Sucre - Sweet Pleasure, it really was.

from top - toasted hazelnut, tempered chocolate sheet, chocolate creme chantilly, chocolate ganache, hazelnut praline feuillantine, hazelnut dacquoise.

My very first entremet - a gorgeous 5 layer chocolate dessert from an esteemed pastry chef, Pierre Hermes. Man was this a lot of effort. Took me a good whole day, plenty of equipment, plenty of chocolate, plenty of stray chocolate and of course plenty of finger picking and licking.

When I first saw the recipe on Evan's blog, I knew that I HAD to make it. I've always been an avid reader of her blog. Her food styling, her pictures, her interests in complex desserts and flavors and her talents just never cease to amaze and inspire me. I wish I had as much finesse as her but I know I'm way too new to attain the magic her hands possess. But it's alright. I'll get there some day!



Gosh I can't even achieve the same effect as her pictures even when I shamelessly copied the positioning. HAHAHA. I've got SO MUCH to learn, and so much more to experiment before I can carve my own style, be it in food styling, photo composition and placement and even blogging styles.

Back to the entremet now. The taste was divine - indulgent, rich and chocolatey. Exactly what I absolutely adore in a pastry. The hazelnuts were an excellent complement, naturally. The textural elements were amazing - the crispy feuillantine, the crunchy chocolate sheets, the light creamy chocolate creme, the thick ganache, the nutty hazelnut dacquoise all played together like a perfect symphony. This was truly a spectacular creation by a spectacular man in the industry. And I can only look forward to trying the real deal from the man himself, someday.

The looks have so much more to improve though, on my part. I didn't know how to slice nor store them appropriately so the dacquoise layer got a little sticky and began losing some of its edges here and there. I didn't know how to slice it cleanly as well so there weren't beautiful lines and angles (which I personally believe is critical in displaying finesse and mastery. After all if it's ugly, then what am I paying for, right? Here is the original from Pierre himself!)

It took so so SO much restraint to not finish them all instead of sharing them with my friends. I remember my sister's face when she first tried it. With wide eyed wonderment and conviction, she said "eh that pastry is Very good. Very good. omg its Very good". =)

The recipe itself assumes some basic knowledge in handling of each component and hence, is very skeletal. I'll share some tips though, things that I've encountered along the way.

Adapted from Evan's blog, from Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermes.

Makes 8 3 x 11cm entremet, with plenty of components left overTempered milk chocolate sheets
at least 450g milk couverture choc. please splurge and get a good chocolate. =D The actual

Chocolate creme
143g milk choc, splurge and get good chocolate!
218ml whipping cream

Hazelnut dacquoise
35g ground hazelnuts
50g icing sugar
45g egg whites, room temp (about 2 egg whites)
1.5 tbsp caster sugar
1/2 cup whole hazelnuts, toasted, skinned & halved

Hazelnut praline feuillantine
100g nutella or hazelnut praline paste
25g milk choc, melted & cooled til lukewarm
1/2 cup rice krispies or 1/4 cup feuilletine flakes. wafer crumbs work as well. just something to give a textural crunch would suffice! =D
1/2 tbsp butter, melted & cooled

Milk choc ganache
95g milk choc (get good ones once again! =D)
83ml whipping cream

Steps


1. Temper the chocolate. For milk chocolate, the chocolate has to be melted to no more than 49C, then cooled to 27C, then warmed to 30C. The chocolate at 30C will be liquid and flowable. Upon cooling, the tempered chocolate will have an excellent bite (snap, they call it) that is texturally superior to chocolate that isn't tempered. Visit this site for a step by step photo tutorial on how to temper!

2. After tempering, spoon them into your mouth with a ladle spread them unto a plastic sheets preferably (I used plastic sheets that printing places use to cover the front of booklets) in a thin layer and score the 3cm by 10cm rectangle shapes. I spread the mixture onto 4 A4 plastic sheets and scored roughly 8 rectangles on every sheet. Be careful here cause they break easily. Not that I minded the extra pieces to eat... The remainder can be refrigerated until needed.

2. For chocolate creme, chop the chocolate into small pieces and place them into a large clean dry bowl. Bring the cream to a boil and then pour them over the chocolate. After 15 seconds (to let the chocolate gets warmed up) stir the mixture with a clean dry utensil until homogenous and then cover the bowl with plastic, allowing the plastic to touch the surface of the chocolate mixture. Refrigerate for 5 - 6h at least. Before using, whip the mixture until almost firm then re-refrigerate if not using immediately.

3. For hazelnut dacquoise, sift ground hazelnuts & icing sugar together & set aside. In a clean dry bowl, whisk egg whites until foamy and then gradually add in sugar and whisk until stiff peaks. Fold the hazelnut mixture into the whites gently until all the hazelnut mixture has been incorporated and then spread the mixture evenly onto a 8-inch baking tray lined with parchment paper. Scatter hazelnut halves on top then press down slightly. Bake in a preheated oven of 165C for 25-30 mins or until browned. Leave to cool. The dacquoise will deflate after cooling so don't worry, you didn't fail!

4. For hazelnut praline feuillantine, place nutella/praline paste in bowl then add in the remaining ingredients the order they're listed. Mix well then spread the praline evenly onto the dacquoise, working from the center and spread as far as it will go to the edges. Refrigerate the spread praline feuillantine for at least 30 mins to firm up. More importantly, resist spooning them into your mouth because you WILL end up with nothing left and may have to remake the entire batch of praline feuillantine.

5. For the choc ganache, chop the chocolate into small pieces and place them in a clean dry bowl. Bring cream to a boil and then pour the heated cream into the bowl of chopped chocolate. After 15 seconds, stir the chocolate and cream mixture with a clean dry utensil until the chocolate is completely melted (or when the lumpy bits have been eaten). Allow the ganache to cool & thicken or refrigerate until a pipeable consistency. If overchilled, just let the ganache sit out for a while and it'll soften back. If you're in a cold country, you could warm it up in the microwave in 10 second bursts.

6. To assemble, slice the dacquoise&praline feuillantine into 11x3cm rectangles. I managed to get 7.5 of them. Oops ate the other half. Then, pipe a thin layer of ganache over the dacquoises. Place a milk choc sheet on top, shiny side up and pipe another thin layer of ganache onto the chocolate sheet. Place another chocolate sheet over. Pipe a line of chocolate creme on top of the chocolate sheet and top with one last piece of chocolate sheet. Decorate with toasted whole hazelnuts if desired. I cemented them into place with chocolate ganache.



LOVE how this picture makes me go weak in my knees. And my heart muscles as well I reckon.

Pressure points and top tips! (from trial and error) =D

Tempering chocolate
1) Start with at least 400g so it's easier to handle and temper correctly. A thermometer is recommended, unless of course you've been tempering chocolate all your life and you KNOW what temperature it is at by just the sensation on your fingers and lips (you WILL dip your lips into chocolate when you are tempering. I can't be the only one in the world that does that, right?!)

2) Youtube it and read up on tempering chocolate thoroughly so you know what you have to achieve.

3) Lay a HUGE piece of parchment paper on the surface you're working on. Licking parchment paper after tempering seems more dignified than licking the table.

4) Ensure that everything that the melted chocolate touches is dry = free from ANY water at all. If not it'll cause the chocolate to sieze (become chunky and chalky) and render it completely unusable in its state.

5) When the chocolate gets chilled in the fridge, it distorts and bends. I used a flat weight (a frozen pizza pizza box) to weigh on top of the chocolate in the fridge so that I will still have my straight rectangles

Chocolate creme chantilly
6) Please chill it sufficiently. The longer it sits in the fridge, the better. If not, it won't hold its shape when its beaten and all you'll have is a lump of chocolate butter that doesn't fluff. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing of course... But that's another recipe already I reckon.

Hazelnut dacquoise
7) It's just like making macarons or meringue. I folded the hazelnut powder mixture until it has just disappeared. It doesn't have to be over babied.

8) The dacquoise will be sticky when it has cooled down for too much and is difficult to handle so don't be surprised that it sticks to the paper!

Overall there isn't much to look out for since each component on its own is very basic. But the beauty is in the composition of the entire entremet itself. Sweet Pleasure, it really was. From the making, to the plating, to the eating, right down to the sharing. Some people may find it too rich and cloying for their liking though (which happened to me and I had some half eaten entremets left over) but not for me. If I am going to spend some of my calorie credit, it better be on something rich, indulgent and chocolatey. =)

July Daring Bakers Challenge - Fresh Frasiers

Jana of Cherry Tea Cakes was our July Daring Bakers’ host and she challenges us to make Fresh Frasiers inspired by recipes written by Elisabeth M. Prueitt and Chad Robertson in the beautiful cookbook Tartine.

Wheeeeee, my first post in a long time! And my first post for Daring Bakers! =D

Ok excitement over. I was SUPER excited about this challenge cause of a few reasons. First, it is my first challenge for DB *omgexcites* and second, its a cake I've never seen, heard nor done before!



So this was my final product. A very simple and ugly Durian Frasier. I made it 2 layers instead of 1 so that I can stuff more durian in it! because I wanted to be, uh, different.

A Frasier is a beautiful layered sponge cake with pastry cream in the middle, with fruits in the middle and exposed. It's SOMEWHAT like a Japanese Strawberry Shortcake, but with pastry cream instead of whipped cream. Omg typing that description just made me tingle in foodcitement.

Having said all those however, I am just immensely disappointed with my photos this month. The cake doesn't look as pretty as the other Daring Bakers'! =( *hangs head down in shame*. I got so much to go in food styling. Sigh!

I was back in lovely Singapore for my winter holidays and man was it enjoyable. Being in Dental school means that my holidays are shortened considerably as compared to other courses so that sucks epicly. We had to return 2 weeks earlier than the rest of the school for lectures and lab work. URGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! On top of that, we had a test on the following Monday after school starts. Yes, 1 week after school starts, and I've got a test AND assignment due. CRIESSS

ANYWAY, I was on a mini baking and cooking frenzy in Singapore. Before I knew it, I had to come back to Perth. So July in Singapore only meant one fruit, and that is The Durian. Omg. People who know me knows my list of loves. And durian is right up there with chocolate. I wanted to make my Durian Frasier WITH chocolate cream on top but I got shot flabbergasted looks. Since I was making the cake for more than just ME, I had to hold my chocolate fingers at bay.

So the mention of durian induces 2 extreme responses. Either the OMGILOVEIT or the OMGIHATEIT. Some weird people in the world think it's too pungent and disgusting. (I'm kidding! =P) Personally I'd bottle the fragrance and spray it everywhere in my house. There's something about durian that sends my nose into overdrive, my soul into excitement, and my salivary glands into active secretion. The creamy rich thick delicious fruit has the texture of puree.

Sigh. I weep with forlorn desire.

To be honest, the cake is not much, really. It's all about celebrating the durian, and my short time in Singapore. I should have cut and taken a picture of the slice perhaps it'll be better. But you know.... Circumstances.... I ended up eating the cake directly with a fork. Well, I was sharing with family alright! They don't mind fork marks! I hope..

Recipe for the Chiffon Cake


1 cup + 2 tablespoons (270 ml) (51⁄2 oz/155 gm) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon (5 ml) (4 gm) baking powder
3/4 cups (180 ml) (6 oz /170 gm) sugar
1/2 teaspoon (21⁄2 ml) (11⁄2 gm) salt, preferably kosher

1/4 cup (2 fl oz/60 ml) vegetable oil
3 large egg yolks
1⁄3 cup + 1 tablespoon (3.17 fl oz/95 ml) water
1 teaspoon (5 ml) pure vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon (33⁄4 ml) (3 gm) lemon zest, grated
5 large egg whites
1⁄4 teaspoon (11⁄4 ml) (1 gm) cream of tartar


Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to moderate 325°F (160°C/gas mark 3).

2. Line the bottom of an 8-inch (20 cm) spring form pan with parchment paper. Do not grease the
sides of the pan.

3. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the flour and baking powder. Add in all but 3 tablespoons (45
ml.) of sugar, and all of the salt. Stir to combine.

4. In a small bowl combine the oil, egg yolks, water, vanilla and lemon zest. Whisk thoroughly.

5. Combine with the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly for about one minute, or until very smooth.

6. Put the egg whites into a stand mixer, and beat on medium speed using a whisk attachment on a
medium speed, until frothy. Add cream of tartar and beat on a medium speed until the whites hold soft peaks. Slowly add the remaining sugar and beat on a medium-high speed until the whites hold firm and form shiny peaks.


7. Using a grease free rubber spatula, scoop about 1⁄3 of the whites into the yolk mixture and fold in gently. Gently fold in the remaining whites just until combined.


8. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.


9. Removed the cake from the oven and allow to cool in the pan on a wire rack.

10. To unmold, run a knife around the sides to loosen the cake from the pan and remove the spring form
sides. Invert the cake and peel off the parchment paper. Refrigerate for up to four days.

Let me say that this chiffon recipe is a KEEPER! Really. I've never smiled so much, for so long, after eating a sponge. It's.... Just sheer beauty. The fluff, the flavor, the caramelized crumb, the fluff, the fragrance. lovessss

For the filling, I mixed in copious amounts of durian flesh and a cup of whipped cream to lighten the mixture. Then I also made a simple syrup of 2 tablespoon sugar to 2 tablespoon water to brush over the sponge layers to keep them moist and excited. The assembling is pretty straightforward, as I smeared durian flesh all around the sides and spread my durian filling in the middle.



Oh what I would give to have even a mouthful of that cake right now. Should've taken more pictures. Drats. NOT a good first post, at all. Pretty, it definitely isn't. But as a vehicle for the best fruit (no its not healthy, unlike other fruits. this is Calorific with a capital C.) in the world, damn that was a fine one.

Carious: Cheeeeeesecake

I remember the first time I had a cheesecake..

Actually I don't.

I just didn't know how to start off this post.

Ok actually I do.

No really, I do. The very first cheesecake I had was a Japanese cotton soft cheesecake when I was 6.



It was from Fiesta, and it had that signature moo moo on it. I still remember the restaurant outlet that used to be at Parkway Parade at the basement, a little open concept place right next to the foodcourt, where the current Coffee Bean, Subway and Sakuraya place is.

I admit, I wasn't blown away. There were no frosting, there were no layers, there were only that caramelized layer of baked crust on the top with the cow that got my rockets on. I remember scraping every inch of the top and then sharing the plain looking yellow cheesecake with the rest of the family. Oh how they stared at me. Right then, I thought I would never love cheesecake.

Then when I was 7, my mom came back from the United States and bought back this little triangular slice of cheesecake from a little bistro she had dinner at before going to the airport. After my first mouthful of that golden goodness, I knew I was in the presence of greatness. Thick, creamy, velvet greatness.

Ok I may have gotten the age stuff wrong but the story of How I Met My Cheesecake still holds true alright! Gah. Pedants.

Anyway, a good Sour Cream cheesecake has to be thick, velvety, and moist. And these are all reproduced by this one awesome recipe that I'll share with you guys. Because I am awesome, and I want the world to be fat loved. This recipe produces such a lovely batter and cake that my housemate and I could just clean out the bowl with our fingers.

"Use your fingers, and get in there. You guys need the proprioceptive value!" - certain prostheses tutor.

Trivia!

There are mainly 2 types of cheesecake. Baked and no-bake. Baked cheesecake are mixed with eggs, natural coagulating agents and are baked to cook the eggs so that the cheesecake will firm up. No-bake cheesecakes are held by gelatin, which upon cooling forms a gelatinous structure which holds the cake together. Different places in the world have different variations of cheesecake as well. Some examples include New York (made with cream), Sour Cream (sour cream, duh), Italian (made with honey and ricotta), Dutch/Belgian (made with melted chocolate! *gasp) and Asian (with tropical fruits and often a cotton sponge texture).

From Wikipedia of course!



Original recipe from here!

I must credit Kelly for this recipe. She gave me this life changing link. Thank you! =D

For the following pictures, I halved the recipe to make 12 cheesecaklets.

15 graham crackers, crushed
100g unsalted butter, melted

2 packages cream cheese (500g) at room temperature
3/4 cups white sugar
3/8 cup milk (slightly under half?)
2 eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 cup all-purpose flour

I must confess that the halving of the batter recipe (I didn't halve the crust) to make small cakelets did not produce as divine a cake as a whole recipe in a 9" springform tray. The crust to cheese ratio just wasn't as sensational but nonetheless still a pretty awesome cake.



Preheat the oven at 170 deg C. Pour the butter into the crushed biscuits and stir it up until everything is moistened with butter.



Oil the sides of the pan generously. I used the remaining butter on the bowl. Saves a lot of washing! =D This step is especially important because cheesecake tends to stick to the sides of the pan and upon cooling, creates undesirable cracks on the cake surface. Another precaution that you can take is to line the inside with baking paper.



Press the crushed biscuit-butter mixture firmly unto the base with your fingers. "Use your fingers, and get in there. You guys need the proprioceptive value!" Don't forget to give them a good lick! You may chill the crust while mixing the batter but I just left them out there. Probably distracted by the buttery fingers. =\



Put the cheese and sugar into a nice clean big bowl. And take out a secret weapon.



The Fork.

Oh yeah. Let's rock and roll my friends.

It's a nifty little trick suggested by the people giving reviews. This will prevent you from overbeating and incorporating too much air into the batter, which will cause the resultant cake to have cracks on the surface.

Mix it until the sugar is incorporated and there are no lumps.

Then, mix in the milk until incorporated. Then, mix in the eggs one by one, after each one is incorporated into the batter. Yes yes I didn't take pictures of those stages. Was busy nicking the peaches in the corner while my housemate mixed the batter up.



Pictorial evidence.



The batter should be smooth after all the mixing.



In goes sour cream.



Vanilla and flour.



Then fold in the peaches. Yeah, about 1/3 cup here. Just wanted to fruit things up a little..

Yeah those are the hands of my housemate, who mixes really good cheesecake batters. Really, I haven't even come close. =(



Good ol finger test. Check. And bake for 1 hour with either a bowl of water beside it, or a tray of water below it (i.e. water bath!). No more, no less. It wouldn't firm up like other cakes and survive the customary poke of the stick. Just turn off the oven after 1 hour and let it sit and cool down for about 2 hours. The cake will continue cooking after 1 hour as well due to the residual heat. Then, chill the cake for at least 5 hours to ensure that it has properly set.



Thats my housemate again. Did I tell you he is a brilliant mixer?



The whole recipe in its glory. We first made the cake for a friend's birthday. And it was a showstopper. I don't even remember whose birthday it was anymore... Ok I'm kidding. =X

Pressure points and top tips! (from trial and error) =D

The cheesecake will expand upon heating and shrink upon cooling. It is a dense cake and doesn't have the sponge texture of other cakes to provide for the expansion and contraction. As such, the cake WILL CRACK if both processes are not factored in.

1) Avoid overmixing the batter and playing with it excessively as it will introduce air into the batter. Use The Secret Weapon!

2) Oil the sides of the pan generously and put oiled baking paper if you want to.

3) The water bath is to ensure even distribution of the heat throughout the oven. Often, steam is created.

4) Stop at 1 hour! Don't overbake it because it'll will turn dry and incredibly crumbly.

5) Hold your horses and CHILL IT before eating it. I know it is difficult, trust me. I've been dragged away from the fridge bawling before. But its for your own good.

6) Remember the crust to cheese ratio. More cheese is good. Repeat after me. More cheese is good. More cheese is good. More cheese is good.

7) Clean the mixing bowl with your fingers. Don't let any batter touch the sink. It's blasphemous. The God of Cheesecake will get you one day.



I dressed it with sliced peaches, mint leaves and raspberry coulis. Sigh. Wish I still had more of these lil fellas around. =(

Carious: Tiramisu Makes Me Happy

Nope, I ain't giving up on updating my blog! I've just been distracted reeeaaaaally busy lately. Yeah that's the excuse I'm gonna lay it down here. I'm not gonna confess that I haven't been taking nice photos and that I've been having a poor run with my food. ZZZ but seriously, I just don't know why I can't seem to get the food to cooperate with me. =( But anyhow, I've scraped out some photos and I'm determined to update, albeit with photos that don't look that nice.

So this entry is about tiramisu. The amazing, velvety and alcoholic spongey goodness that is tiramisu. Man, the things I'll give right now to get some good tiramisu... *dreamy eyes*

I've made this dessert 3 times now and I think I've finally gotten the hang of making a good tiramisu. There are 2 rules that I have come up with making tiramisu - the sponge must be absolutely SOAKING wet and the alcohol amount must cross a minimum threshold. Seriously, don't flout either. Go heavy, or go home.

Trivia!
It's Italian.

Duh. Wikipedia didn't say anything else worthy of mentioning. So... Let's move on shall we? Yes? Yes? Yes.



I recently made the tiramisu for a dear friend's housewarming. What better place to share a dessert filled with truckloads of calories love than a housewarming?

Tiramisu is traditionally made with raw egg yolks mixed in a mascarpone cheese and sugar mixture before folding beaten egg whites into the mixture. A more contemporary method is to cook the egg yolks with the alcohol into a custard or zabaliogne and thereafter, folding it into the mascarpone cheese and sugar mixture. I have made both types of tiramisu before and I honestly can't taste the difference (well I made them on 2 separate occasions and I haven't tried them side by side though). It is said that the one with the cooked custard is supposed to give the tiramisu more depth.

Depth. =\ Whatever.

The contemporary recipes could be found on Joe Pastry, Pioneer Woman, and Joy of Baking. Joy of Baking has a recipe that involves an English custard rather than the zabaglione that Joe Pastry or Pioneer Woman has presented. However, both Pioneer Woman and Joe Pastry have a beautiful step by step photographic tutorial to made the tiramisu and I urge you guys to have a look at them to familiarize with the steps of making tiramisu.

Here's the traditional recipe that I've unearthed during my spring cleaning last year, tucked in my old un-used scanner. I've modified it of course, seeing that the original recipe only called for 2 tablespoons of coffee liquer. Blasphemous I say, 2 tablespoons. Blasphemous!



500g mascarpone cheese
1/2 cup caster sugar
2 eggs, separated
1/2 cup of coffee liquer. I recommend Tia Maria. Marsala wine or dark rum is fine as well. NO BAILEYS.

250ml whipping cream
1/4 cup icing sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 cup of boiling water with 1 1/2 tablespoons coffee powder (estimation. just make it as strong as you like)
1/3 cup of sugar
1/3 cup of coffee liquer

At least 60 sponge fingers. I used store bought ones for this particular episode. But if you like the satisfaction of making things from scratch like I do, this recipe is pure brilliance. However for 500g of mascarpone cheese, you gotta double this recipe i.e. you need at least 8 eggs to make enough sponge fingers...



Put the mascarpone cheese, 2 egg yolks and 1/2 cup of sugar into a mixing bowl and whip them into a frenzy. You can adjust the sugar level as you deem fit though.



The all important finger test. It's the mark of a professional baker.



Bring out the alcohol. I found this bottle of alcohol tucked in the corner of the rack of alcohol I got at home. I don't even know how old this bottle of alcohol is but it's good enough for me! Tia Maria is great as well. Did I say Tia Maria? Yes I did. Ahhhh...




1 tablespoon of coffee liquer..



2 tablespoon of coffee liquer..

The original recipe called for 2 tablespoons of liquer.



But I'm such a rebel. So in went my 3rd tablespoon of liquer.



And pushing the envelope a little bit more, I added my 4th tablespoon.




And a little dash of Jamie-Oliver-and-his-sparing-usage-of-olive-oil amount of coffee liquer...



After whipping it and letting the alcohol incorporate completely, that's how it looked.




Oops. Accidentally spilled 2 tablespoons more into the mixture.



Finally! A mixture that crossed the critical alcohol threshold. When it gives you an alcohol kick with the finger test, you know you've struck gold. Now refrigerate the mixture.



Put the vanilla, sugar and whipping cream in a bowl and whip up the cream at HIGH SPEED till you see ripples forming and remaining in the mixture. That's the soft peak stage of whipping cream. Continue whipping for like 15 seconds or so and more ripples will form and remain. That's the stiff peak stage of whipping cream. Stop at the soft peak stage.



Fold the whipped cream and the mascarpone cheese mixture until incorporated. Don't over fold until the color of the mixture is even throughout. A few streaks of whipped cream is fine because we don't want to beat the air out of the whipped cream.



Beat the egg whites in a clean, dry bowl until the egg whites does not fall out of the bowl like that. The bowl MUST BE DRY and the egg whites MUST NOT CONTAIN EVEN A DROP OF YOLK. Both elements will interfere with the rising of the egg whites. Been there, done that. You don't want to drink tiramisu.....



Put the beaten egg white into the mixture.




And fold it in gently until there are no more visible egg whites.



Take out the coffee mixture and add some alcohol in there.

Just take a deep breath, close your eyes, and tip the bottle. There is nothing to be ashamed here.

Tadah! You got your components to assemble the tiramisu! Here are some ways to serve it up..



In a large bowl like a trifle. Just alternate layers of soaked sponge with mascarpone mixture.



In individual cup format. Once again, alternating soaked sponge with mascarpone mixture.



Or cake form. And surprise surprise, alternating soaked sponge with mascarpone mixture.

How much coffee to soak a layer? I hear you ask. Well for a typical sponge finger about the length of your middle finger, it takes about 1 tablespoons of the coffee and liquer mixture. For a cake layer, I would recommend at LEAST 1/2 cup - 3/4 cup of coffee and liquer mixture. The liquid has to get IN THERE and soak the daylights out of the sponge. And I mean daylight. If you pour the coffee unto the cake and it doesn't flow out and the bottom, you probably ain't got enough coffee in there. In fact, I think I might just dip the entire cake layer into a flat tray of coffee in the future just to make sure that it gets soaked.



Chill the tiramisu overnight to ensure that the cheese mixture firms up enough for proper slicing. You may freeze it a couple of hours before serving but not overnight.

Pressure points and top tips! (from trial and error) =D

1) Don't use Baileys. It's too weak. Waaaay to weak. And there is no distinct coffee taste as well as it tastes creamy so it doesn't contrast with the mascarpone cheese mixture at all.

2) Don't overbeat the egg whites. A tiramisu is better off not served with a straw. Keep checking it by tilting the bowl to see if it flows out of the bowl. Do not overbeat for good measure because the air will all escape and you will be left with a pool of egg whites that is no good at all. Also, remember that the bowl must be Sahara dry and that the egg whites shouldn't be contaminated with egg yolk or anything of that sort.

3) Please put enough alcohol in there. Ok that's just me. Keep tasting the batter and adjust the alcohol level accordingly. But for my relatives, the amount of alcohol I added was JUST enough to excite their tastebuds.

4) PLEASE SOAK THE SPONGE WITH AMPLE AMOUNTS OF COFFEE AND LIQUER. It has to be soaked. There is no despair worse than a dry tiramisu. Absolutely not.



Now go make some love calories and share it with your neighbours.