Daring Bakers - September ~ Lavash Crackers & Toppings

I am late posting my Daring Bakers challenge. I swear I have a good excuse. I had surgery last Weds. and I am just now feeling up to being on the computer. Anyhoo, on to the goodness...

This months challenge was vegan lavash crackers & toppings hosted by Natalie from Gluten A Go Go. Agnes and I had a blast making these.


Agnes helped roll out the crackers and used cookie cutters to make the crackers.


Some of the shapes look better than others. But considering I had a broken arm (it has been a rough month lol) and a she has two little 3 year old ones I think we did pretty good.



We sprinkled the crackers with cinnamon and sugar. Instead of a dip (my arm was killing me so I just couldn't cook anything else) I made a glaze out of the leftover cinnamon and sugar. Agnes now has iced vegan animal crackers. YUM!


Lavash Crackers ~ the recipe includes instructions for a gluten-free version

Makes 1 sheet pan of crackers

* 1 1/2 cups (6.75 oz) unbleached bread flour or gluten free flour blend (If you use a blend without xanthan gum, add 1 tsp xanthan or guar gum to the recipe)
* 1/2 tsp (.13 oz) salt
* 1/2 tsp (.055 oz) instant yeast
* 1 Tb (.75 oz) agave syrup or sugar
* 1 Tb (.5 oz) vegetable oil
* 1/3 to 1/2 cup + 2 Tb (3 to 4 oz) water, at room temperature
* Poppy seeds, sesame seeds, paprika, cumin seeds, caraway seeds, or kosher salt for toppings

1. In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, salt yeast, agave, oil, and just enough water to bring everything together into a ball. You may not need the full 1/2 cup + 2 Tb of water, but be prepared to use it all if needed.

2. For Non Gluten Free Cracker Dough: Sprinkle some flour on the counter and transfer the dough to the counter. Knead for about 10 minutes, or until the ingredients are evenly distributed. The dough should pass the windowpane test (see http://www.wikihow.com/Determine-if-Bre … ong-Enough for a discription of this) and register 77 degrees to 81 degrees Fahrenheit. The dough should be firmer than French bread dough, but not quite as firm as bagel dough (what I call medium-firm dough), satiny to the touch, not tacky, and supple enough to stretch when pulled. Lightly oil a bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.

or

2. For Gluten Free Cracker Dough: The dough should be firmer than French bread dough, but not quite as firm as bagel dough (what I call medium-firm dough), and slightly tacky. Lightly oil a bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.

3. Ferment at room temperature for 90 minutes, or until the dough doubles in size. (You can also retard the dough overnight in the refrigerator immediately after kneading or mixing).

4. For Non Gluten Free Cracker Dough: Mist the counter lightly with spray oil and transfer the dough to the counter. Press the dough into a square with your hand and dust the top of the dough lightly with flour. Roll it out with a rolling pin into a paper thin sheet about 15 inches by 12 inches. You may have to stop from time to time so that the gluten can relax. At these times, lift the dough from the counter and wave it a little, and then lay it back down. Cover it with a towel or plastic wrap while it relaxes. When it is the desired thinness, let the dough relax for 5 minutes. Line a sheet pan with baking parchment. Carefully lift the sheet of dough and lay it on the parchment. If it overlaps the edge of the pan, snip off the excess with scissors.

or

4. For Gluten Free Cracker Dough: Lay out two sheets of parchment paper. Divide the cracker dough in half and then sandwich the dough between the two sheets of parchment. Roll out the dough until it is a paper thin sheet about 15 inches by 12 inches. Slowly peel away the top layer of parchment paper. Then set the bottom layer of parchment paper with the cracker dough on it onto a baking sheet.

5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit with the oven rack on the middle shelf. Mist the top of the dough with water and sprinkle a covering of seeds or spices on the dough (such as alternating rows of poppy seeds, sesame seeds, paprika, cumin seeds, caraway seeds, kosher or pretzel salt, etc.) Be careful with spices and salt - a little goes a long way. If you want to precut the cracker, use a pizza cutter (rolling blade) and cut diamonds or rectangles in the dough. You do not need to separate the pieces, as they will snap apart after baking. If you want to make shards, bake the sheet of dough without cutting it first.

5. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the crackers begin to brown evenly across the top (the time will depend on how thinly and evenly you rolled the dough).

6. When the crackers are baked, remove the pan from the oven and let them cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. You can then snap them apart or snap off shards and serve.


I am throwing a birthday party for Sean at the end of October and I will be making the crackers to serve. Only I will probably sprinkle with granulated garlic and onion to serve with hummus.

I just have to say being a Daring Baker is so cool. I love all the new recipes and techniques I am learning!

Thanks Natalie! These crackers are so easy and delish!

My Kitchen, My World - Have to skip this week

I would like to apologize to Andrea of http://nummykitchen.blogspot.com/ for having to miss this week.

I was so excited to see Lithuania picked for our country this week. I had a lot of fun researching the culture and food.

But after I found out I am having surgery on Wednesday I didn't have time to get stuff together well trying to prepare for Weds.

All I know is when I recover I am making some grybas cepilinai! Yum!

My Kitchen, My World - Indonesia

I was honored to be chosen to host this week over at My Kitchen, My World. The country I chose is Indonesia. I have been to Indonesia a couple of times. Once with my best friend Jody and the other with Sean on our honeymoon. Indonesia is made up of over 17,000 island so it saddens me I have seen so little of the county.

Jody and I went in 2000 to Bali. The day after we arrived we thought it would be great if we rented a Jeep and toured the island on our own. That day is one of the best days of my life. I don't think Jody and I will ever laugh that hard again. One of our first stops was the monkey sanctuary in Ubud. When we were getting out of the car I told Jody don't lock the keys in the car. Guess what? OMG. I think the entire village of Ubud tried to open our car with every tool available. Nothing was working. Then a very, very old man walked up, stuck his car key in the door, and unlocked our car door!!! I wish I had a picture of him but as soon as he unlocked the car, he turned, and walked away.

A few of our saviors.


There are so many beautiful things to see in Bali. The scenery is absolutely breathtaking.


This kind of scenery wasn't too bad to look at either! Oh, how I love those little blond surfer boys!


We did all the touristy things. Here we are at Ulu Watu. Seriously, so beautiful.

Jody and Michelle - 2000


Sean and Michelle - 2001


We went to a Kecak dance that totally blew us away. It was one of the most amazing things I have ever seen. It puts you into a complete trance. But of all the things Jody and I and Sean and I did we ate good food. I mean really, really, really good food.

The places I preferred to eat at were the small family run warungs that you can find while wandering down a gang (alley). I crave the food I ate in Indonesia. The smell of the spice market, the beauty of the open kitchens, the smiling faces of the proprietors.

The owner of my favorite warung putting giving an offering. This woman made killer Nasi Goreng. I can't even think about it without drooling.


Tonight I made my dinner in honor of all of those fantastic meals I have eaten and all the wonderful people I have met on my travels in Indonesia.

We were lucky enough to be able to get a few of the ingredients out of our backyard.


We made Lumpia, Udang Goreng, Sambal Udang, Mie Goreng, and Chicken Satay with peanut sauce**. Since I have a broken arm Sean helped me out a lot!

Lumpia Semarang and Udang Goreng (Indonesian spring roll and fried shrimp)-


Sambal Udang (Prawns in chili sauce) -


Mie Goreng - (Fried Noodles)


Chicken Satay and peanut sauce -


The only things missing were some ice cold Bintangs and the sound of the ocean crashing to the shore. Dinner made me so happy tonight. It made me almost as happy as this...almost.


**I didn't post recipes this week because it was hard enough getting this all typed up with my arm. If there is a recipe you would like I would be more than happy to send it to you.

Something to think about

It is no secret that I am a huge Obama supporter. I have donated time, money, and cupcakes to his campaign. That said, I am not going to have a political debate with anyone. I believe everyone has the right to vote for whomever they think is the best candidate. I am only posting this as "Something to think about".

My friend Matt posted this in his journal and I think more people need to see it. Here is just a bit of what Matt had to say:

(Note: I'm not saying vote for Obama, just that Republicans have become the stain of the shit that was nixon. If McCain had the balls to call these festering canker sores out for their douchebagery, he might even earn my vote.)

Thinking about it, perhaps that's what Fox news means about Fair and Balanced. They talk out both sides of their asses when it suits their needs.


Here is the video:



I love the Daily Show.

Daring Bakers - August ~ Éclairs

This months challenge was selected by Meeta K of http://whatsforlunchhoney.blogspot.com and Tony Tahhan of http://www.antoniotahhan.com.

I had made cream puffs with my Grandma when I was a little girl so I had kind of an idea of what I was doing. It is a very easy dough to make. I will be keeping that recipe but I am not sure if I will make the chocolate cream again. It seemed runny to me. I got about 28 éclairs. Half were filled with chocolate cream and half were filled with Bavarian cream. YUM!

Pierre Hermé’s Cream Puff Dough
Recipe from Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé
(makes 20-24 Éclairs)

• ½ cup (125g) whole milk
• ½ cup (125g) water
• 1 stick (4 ounces; 115g) unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces
• ¼ teaspoon sugar
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (140g) all-purpose flour
• 5 large eggs, at room temperature

1) In a heavy bottomed medium saucepan, bring the milk, water, butter, sugar and salt to the
boil.

2) Once the mixture is at a rolling boil, add all of the flour at once, reduce the heat to medium
and start to stir the mixture vigorously with a wooden spoon. The dough comes together very
quickly. Do not worry if a slight crust forms at the bottom of the pan, it’s supposed to. You
need to carry on stirring for a further 2-3 minutes to dry the dough. After this time the dough
will be very soft and smooth.

3) Transfer the dough into a bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or using your
handmixer or if you still have the energy, continue by hand.


Add the eggs one at a time,
beating after each egg has been added to incorporate it into the dough.
You will notice that after you have added the first egg, the dough will separate, once again do
not worry. As you keep working the dough, it will come back all together again by the time you
have added the third egg. In the end the dough should be thick and shiny and when lifted it
should fall back into the bowl in a ribbon.



4) The dough should be still warm. It is now ready to be used for the éclairs as directed above.

Notes:
1) Once the dough is made you need to shape it immediately.

2) You can pipe the dough and the freeze it. Simply pipe the dough onto parchment-lined baking
sheets and slide the sheets into the freezer. Once the dough is completely frozen, transfer the
piped shapes into freezer bags. They can be kept in the freezer for up to a month.

Pierre Hermé’s Chocolate Éclairs
Recipe from Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé
(makes 20-24 Éclairs)


Cream Puff Dough fresh and still warm

1) Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Divide the oven into thirds by
positioning the racks in the upper and lower half of the oven. Line two baking sheets with
waxed or parchment paper.

2) Fill a large pastry bag fitted with a 2/3 (2cm) plain tip nozzle with the warm cream puff dough.
Pipe the dough onto the baking sheets in long, 4 to 41/2 inches (about 11 cm) chubby fingers.
Leave about 2 inches (5 cm) space in between each dough strip to allow them room to puff.
The dough should give you enough to pipe 20-24 éclairs.



3) Slide both the baking sheets into the oven and bake for 7 minutes. After the 7 minutes, slip the
handle of a wooden spoon into the door to keep in ajar. When the éclairs have been in the
oven for a total of 12 minutes, rotate the sheets top to bottom and front to back. Continue
baking for a further 8 minutes or until the éclairs are puffed, golden and firm. The total baking
time should be approximately 20 minutes.

Notes:
1) The éclairs can be kept in a cool, dry place for several hours before filling.

Assembling the éclairs:

• Chocolate glaze (see below for recipe)
• Chocolate pastry cream (see below for recipe)

1) Slice the éclairs horizontally, using a serrated knife and a gently sawing motion. Set aside the
bottoms and place the tops on a rack over a piece of parchment paper.

2) The glaze should be barely warm to the touch (between 95 – 104 degrees F or 35 – 40
degrees C, as measured on an instant read thermometer). Spread the glaze over the tops of
the éclairs using a metal icing spatula. Allow the tops to set and in the meantime fill the
bottoms with the pastry cream.

3) Pipe or spoon the pastry cream into the bottoms of the éclairs. Make sure you fill the bottoms
with enough cream to mound above the pastry. Place the glazed tops onto the pastry cream
and wriggle gently to settle them.

Notes:
1) If you have chilled your chocolate glaze, reheat by placing it in a bowl over simmering water,
stirring it gently with a wooden spoon. Do not stir too vigorously as you do not want to create
bubbles.

2) The éclairs should be served as soon as they have been filled.

Chocolate Pastry Cream
Recipe from Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé



• 2 cups (500g) whole milk
• 4 large egg yolks
• 6 tbsp (75g) sugar
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch, sifted
• 7 oz (200g) bittersweet chocolate, preferably Velrhona Guanaja, melted
• 2½ tbsp (1¼ oz: 40g) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1) In a small saucepan, bring the milk to a boil. In the meantime, combine the yolks, sugar and cornstarch together and whisk in a heavy‐bottomed saucepan.

2) Once the milk has reached a boil, temper the yolks by whisking a couple spoonfuls of the hot milk into the yolk mixture.Continue whisking and slowly pour the rest of the milk into the tempered yolk mixture.

3) Strain the mixture back into the saucepan to remove any egg that may have scrambled. Place the pan over medium heat and whisk vigorously (without stop) until the mixture returns to a boil. Keep whisking vigorously for 1 to 2 more minutes (still over medium heat).Stir in the melted chocolate and then remove the pan from the heat.

4) Scrape the pastry cream into a small bowl and set it in an ice‐water bath to stop the cooking process. Make sure to continue stirring the mixture at this point so that it remains smooth.

5) Once the cream has reached a temperature of 140 F remove from the ice‐water bath and stir in the butter in three or four installments. Return the cream to the ice‐water bath to continue cooling, stirring occasionally, until it has completely cooled. The cream is now ready to use or store in the fridge.

Notes:

1) The pastry cream can be made 2‐3 days in advance and stored in the refrigerator.

2) In order to avoid a skin forming on the pastry cream, cover with plastic wrap pressed onto the cream.

3) Tempering the eggs raises the temperature of the eggs slowly so that they do not scramble.

Chocolate Glaze
Recipe from Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé
(makes 1 cup or 300g)


• 1/3 cup (80g) heavy cream
• 3½ oz (100g) bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
• 4 tsp (20 g) unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces, at room temperature
• 7 tbsp (110 g) Chocolate Sauce (recipe below), warm or at room temperature

1)In a small saucepan, bring the heavy cream to a boil. Remove from the heat and slowly begin to add the chocolate, stirring with a wooden spoon or spatula.

2) Stirring gently, stir in the butter, piece by piece followed by the chocolate sauce.

Notes:
1) If the chocolate glaze is too cool (i.e. not liquid enough) you may heat it briefly in the microwave or over a double boiler. A double boiler is basically a bowl sitting over (not touching) simmering water.

2) It is best to glaze the eclairs after the glaze is made, but if you are pressed for time, you can make the glaze a couple days ahead of time, store it in the fridge and bring it up to the proper temperature (95 to 104 F) when ready to glaze.

Chocolate Sauce
Recipe from Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé
(makes 1½ cups or 525 g)



• 4½ oz (130 g) bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
• 1 cup (250 g) water
• ½ cup (125 g) crème fraîche, or heavy cream
• 1/3 cup (70 g) sugar

1) Place all the ingredients into a heavy‐bottomed saucepan and bring to a boil, making sure to stir constantly. Then reduce the heat to low and continue stirring with a wooden spoon until the sauce thickens.
2) It may take 10‐15 minutes for the sauce to thicken, but you will know when it is done when it coats the back of your spoon.

Notes:
1) You can make this sauce ahead of time and store it in the refrigerator for two weeks. Reheat the sauce in a microwave oven or a double boiler before using.

2) This sauce is also great for cakes, ice-cream and tarts.

The final product ~



I will definitely make these again.

My Kitchen, My World - England

I had a really nice entry I wanted to type up for this week but I broke my freaking arm!! I was vacuuming our stairs today and managed to fall down them backwards bringing the vacuum with me. OMG. I am in so much pain. This royally sucks! I have a bunch of baking to get done tomorrow for our Labor Day party. Sean has said he will be my baking assistant tomorrow. I am SO lucky to have him!


This week Megan of My Baking Adventures picked England for our country. I knew immediately what I wanted to make. Curry! I love pub curry. The couple of times I have been to England and when I went to Ireland I lived on pub curry. Served with rice or chips I didn't care as long as I had a good pint to go with it.

We hit our local farm to pick up the veggies. We bought broccoli, fresh picked baby carrots, onion, and some goegeous purple cauliflower. Agnes fell in love with the cauliflower. Since she can eat a little bit of spicy I steamed some cauliflower separately for her. She ate almost a cup of it!! I think we have a new favorite veggie at Casa Dargen.



This most likely not the correct way to make pub curry but this is how I do it. :)

First - poach the chicken. When it is cooked I chop it up.

Second - throw all the chopped up veggies into water and boil until just tender.

Third - drop in the curry mix.I used my favorite curry mix by S & B. This stuff is the bomb. But as you can tell I don't follow the instructions at all.


Let the curry melt into the water. When it is all mixed in add the chicken. Let it simmer for about an hour. The longer it cooks the better the flavor. This stuff is SO good the next day.

Serve in a bowl with rice or chips.

I went with chips this time and a Bridgeport Ropewalk amber beer.



I was just like being at the pub except no ciggie smoke and no room at the bar!!




***With the broken arm and the pain killers I am not responsible for any grammatical errors.

My Kitchen, My World - Jamaica

This week Laura of One Happy Hubbard picked the lovely country of Jamaica for our My Kitchen, My World weekly menu. I was so excited about cooking a Jamaican menu this week but things just didn't go as planned. Things have been crazy here at Casa Dargen so I had to improvise for a Jamaican dinner tonight.

I made a very simple Jerk Chicken salad. We hit up our local farm to pick up the lettuce, red onion, and mango. I sprinkled the chicken breast with a bit of veggie oil and then rubbed them down with jerk seasonings. After grilling the chicken breasts I chopped them up and tossed them with fresh lettuce, mangos, and some diced red onion. I gave the salad a little squirt of lime juice and served it with a balsamic vinaigrette.

What a simple, delicious, and refreshing meal for a warm summer night. Mmm...