Madeleines

Madeleines . . . the first time I had memorable madeleines was at Café Boulud. They were sitting in a warm nest of linen napkins, and even though I was full from the meal, I devoured them.

Little miniature tea cakes, madeleines are described as "small, shell-shaped cakes made of flour, eggs, sugar, and butter and baked in molds." I think we can all agree that we could use more madeleines in our lives, so I couldn't wait to look through a whole book about them!

Beautiful endpapers should always be acknowledged.

If I woke up to that basket of madeleines every morning, I would be happy and content. All would be right.

I quickly flipped to chapter three, dark and deluxe chocolate madeleines!

Madeleines: Elegant French Tea Cakes to Bake and Share
Written by Barbara Feldman Morse
Photographs by Steve Legato
ISBN 13: 9781594747403
ISBN 10: 1594747407
Publisher: Quirk Books
Hardcover: 224 pages

Let's give the dark chocolate espresso madeleines a try. The author mentions that this recipe was adapted from her award-winning recipe that is a mix between brownies, fudge, and dense chocolate cake.

I used a double boiler and a stand mixer to create the batter. A lot of butter, sugar, semisweet chocolate chips, espresso powder, eggs, flour, and cocoa powder went into this.

This particular batter was dark, thick, and shiny. It also doesn't rise much, so you can fill the molds to the top without worrying about overflow.

The espresso flavor really stands out, the only thing I wished was that my mold was more defined. I felt that they didn't produce enough of a shell imprint on the madeleines. So if you're on the search for madeleine pans, get ones with more defined edges!

If you're not picky on how they look, then it doesn't matter because they taste great anyways. Looking over the table of contents, I would want to try these recipes next: the classic French madeleines, lemon poppy seed, chai tea, peanut butter and jelly, sunshine, molten, peaches and cream, snowball, fresh lemon drop, browned butter pecan, gruyère and rosemary, brie-stuffed, caramelized onion and asiago, and banana foster. As you can see, there are savory and appetizer madeleines!

Disclaimer: A review copy of Madeleines was sent to me for review from Eric Smith at Quirk Books. Thank you! No incentives were used to produce a positive review of this book.

Coffee Flan

We're mid-week already! How was your Thanksgiving?

We had a nice long weekend with family and friends. My brother came home from university on the Friday. We went to watch Looper on Sunday afternoon together. That movie was not what we expected! What do you think? Have you seen it? Our mother attempted to bake a turkey. We had salad with chutney sauce - my mom didn't realize it wasn't a salad dressing! The potato wedges she made were delicious though. And thank goodness for the garlic bread. Regardless, I love having dinner with my family and wouldn't trade our meal for anything else!

Saturday, we went out for dinner with Howard's family. Met up with friends for some bubble tea and philosophical conversations. Then we took it easy on Monday. And we ate flan.

I wanted to make my dad a coffee-flavoured flan after he told me how much he enjoyed the first one I made. So here was some guesswork, it isn't perfect yet (mainly the appearance), but the flavours are there!

Coffee Flan
(Makes about 6)

1 3/4 cups of heavy whipping cream
1 cup of whole milk
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1 1/2 tablespoons of ground coffee beans
1 cup + 7 tablespoons of sugar
1/3 cup of water
3 large eggs
2 large egg yolks

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 375°F. Have six ramekins (or cocottes) ready, make sure they fit in a large metal or glass baking pan (about 13x9x2 inches).
2. Combine the cream, milk, and salt in a heavy medium saucepan. If you have coffee beans, grind them!  You can use store-bought ones or instant coffee powder (we're guessing). Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Remove and let it steep while you make the caramel.
3. In another heavy medium saucepan, combine 1 cup of sugar and 1/3 cup of water. Increase heat to high and let it boil - do not stir!
4. Keep watch as the caramel will go from light to amber to dark to burnt! In about 10 minutes, it should be a nice amber. Remove from heat and immediately pour into the six ramekins. Tilt to coat the bottom entirely. Place ramekins back in baking pan.
5. Whisk eggs, yolks, and the remaining 7 tablespoons of sugar in a medium bowl. Gradually whisk in the cream mixture, try to avoid creating foam.
6. Pour the custard through a small sieve. Do it again! We did it twice, but as you can see, a lot of the coffee specks can still be seen. Pour the custard into the ramekins equally.
7. Carry the baking pan with the ramekins to the oven. Pour warm or hot water into the baking pan so that they reach halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
8. Bake flans until the center is gently set, about 40 minutes. Carefully take the baking pan out. Remove the water and let the ramekins cool.
9. Cover and refrigerate for at least two hours, but overnight is best.
10. To serve, run a sharp knife around the sides of the flan. Place the ramekin in hot water for a few seconds to loosen and melt the caramel at the bottom. This will help the flan slide out smoothly.

Look at the different coloured layers. Most of the coffee that our sieve didn't catch went to the bottom. Then there's the two lighter layers! Interesting. Despite all the coffee beans specks, the flan was still smooth, so you don't really feel a gritty texture.

Last bite!

Ladurée and Sucré

Ladurée

864 Madison Avenue

New York, NY 10021

(646) 558-3157

Look at the rain on the window! Still soaked, we walked eight minutes south from Lady M Confections to Ladurée. Howard hates wet and squishy socks, but he kept us on course (he loves me so). I was almost ready to give up. I just really wanted a hot shower and to change into dry clothes.

But, as it was our last day in New York, we weren't going home without visiting the newly opened and first Ladurée location in North America. We were going to get our Upper East Side on and try their famous macarons.

There was a bit of a line up there, but Ladurée had lots of helpful staff behind the counter. There were macaron towers on display around the entire shop. The famous Ladurée boxes - in pink and green. And do you spot the wall of ribbons?

We decided to get half a dozen of macarons. My colour of choice? The distinguishable green. I was absurdly pleased to finally be owning the box.

Howard said I should keep it as a jewelry box - yes... if I had jewelry (hint hint Howard).

It felt so dainty and precious to open the box and unveil the macarons!

From left to right: vanilla, raspberry, coffee, coconut, lemon, and morello and almond.

Other flavours we wanted, but were sold out that day: pistachio, chocolate, and salted caramel.

If you look at the photo above, you can see that the macarons don't look perfect. For some, the pied (feet) of the macarons were broken. Then, some had more fillings than others, this is also visible in the photograph.

I will admit, not getting to try the flavours we intended to and seeing the less than perfect macarons was a disappointment. I mean, this is the place for macarons, they are famous worldwide, and it just felt like there wasn't enough of an effort put into these dainty treats.

How about the taste? Ladurée recommends that you consume the macarons within three days after purchase and that they should be stored in the lower part of your refrigerator. We didn't eat them at the store (there is no seating there) and had to commute by subway back. We did our best to keep the little box of macarons safe in our bag, away from the rain. However, I think the humidity in the subway might have still gotten to it.

When we ate them that night, a few of the macarons felt soft, but we'll never know what the original texture was. We can say that the flavours were scrumptious. The vanilla and coconut ones pleasantly surprised us!

Wait, I'm not done yet! I picked up another treat at the store:

That's right. Ladurée's Sucré: The Recipes. This book was on my wish list last year, but I never found it in bookstores and was uncomfortable ordering it online. There is a French version, so make sure you get the English one if you can't read French.

Just like the macarons, the book is wrapped and nested inside a box.

With bated breath!

The cover of the book is wrapped in fabric! I would have never guessed that, it just makes it one of those books you want to touch.

The edges? Gold of course.

The Ladurée macaron recipe? Check!

The desserts still keep their French names, but don't worry, the instructions are in English.

Just adorable!

Iron Cupcake: Earth - Coffee

Happy Family Day everyone!

Tomorrow will be a work day and you might need... Cocoa Coffee Cupcakes!

As you may already know, last December we joined Iron Cupcake: Earth (similar to Iron Chef, but with cupcakes) and this month's ingredient challenge is Coffee! Interestingly enough, we don't drink coffee on a regular basis (or wine, which is why we didn't do January's challenge). Maybe one or two times a year at the most! So we were planning on just buying coffee at Tim Horton's, but my mother said she could make us coffee. Sure enough, she had these lovely coffee beans that smelled great. She then grounded them up and filtered them for us. "Thanks mom!"

We've actually noticed a number of chocolate cake recipes that include coffee. So... why not right? Even if we're not huge fans of coffee, we love chocolate!

Perfect fit: Coffee filter and measuring cup!

Chocolate Butter Cupcakes
Recipe from Little Cakes from the Whimsical Bakehouse
(Makes about 20 regular cupcakes)

1/2 cup of hot coffee
1/2 cup of cocoa powder
1/2 cup of cold water
1 1/2 cups of cake flour
1 teaspoons of baking soda
1/4 teaspoon of baking powder
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1 stick of unsalted butter
1 1/4 cup of sugar
2 large eggs
3/4 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F) and have all ingredients at room temperature. Also have your cupcake liners and pans ready.
2. In a bowl, mix the hot coffee and cocoa powder together - no lumps!
3. Whisk in the cold water.
4. In another bowl, sift the cake flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together.
5. Using your electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
6. Slowly add in the eggs and the pure vanilla extract.
7. Alternate the two bowls (coffee mixture and flour mixture) into the batter.
8. Mix until smooth. Then using an ice cream scoop, scoop the batter into your cupcake liners.
9. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean.

We finally found a wholesale place that sold these cups in bulk! Needless to say, we picked up quite a few (the drive is semi-far). We think they look good, they stand for themselves, and they cater to different eaters. For example, at the pleats they can be easily pulled and eaten like regular cupcakes. Or you can take advantage of their sturdy cup form and eat the cupcake with a fork, spoon, or spork. Here, we show a step-by-step pulling of the pleated sides:

Chocolate Coffee Buttercream
(Makes enough to frost a dozen cupcakes and a few more.)

1 tablespoon of coffee
1/2 cup of chopped chocolate
1/2 cup of heavy cream
1 stick of butter
2 cups of confectioner's sugar

1. Heat the cream over a double boiler until it bubbles. Mix in coffee.
2. Remove from heat, pour heated coffee and cream over the chocolate.
3. Let the mixture sit for about a minute and then whisk until smooth.
4. Using an electric mixer, beat butter and confectioner's sugar until fluffy.
5. Slowly add in chocolate coffee mixture.
6. Mix until smooth and scoop into a piping bag.

This is what happens when we're low on frosting!


We haven't done a cross-section before, so here is our first photo of a cupcake half!


Yummy! I am bringing this to work!

You can vote for us HERE between March 1st to March 6th. The winner will receive these awesome prizes:

• Artwork from Etsy artist DIANAEVANS
• A pair of cupcake earrings from LOTS OF SPRINKLES
• Original artwork from Etsy artist CAKESPY by Jessie Oleson
• A variety of cupcaking supplies from SWEET CUPPIN CAKES BAKERY AND CUPCAKERY SUPPLY
• Head Chefs from FIESTA PRODUCTS
• HELLO, CUPCAKE, by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson
• an apron from JESSIE STEELE APRONS
• a cookbook from TASTE OF HOME
• a T-shirt from UP WITH CUPCAKES

Iron Cupcake: Earth is sponsored by 1-800-Flowers.
You can also join in on the fun yourself! Click here to learn more about Iron Cupcake: Earth.