Orange Madeleine

French Madeleine cookies also referred to as tea cakes have been on my mind for years.

Since these cookies require a specialty Madeleine pan I have only been able to dream about making them.

Thanks to modern shopping techniques and help from a more expert internet shopper than me, two beautiful Madeleine pans were dropped off at my door step less than twenty four hours from ordering.

Purchasing the pans proved to be a lot easier than choosing a recipe for these cookies.  The recipes I came across were considerably different from each other in method, baking temperature, baking times and ingredients.

This recipe requires simple ingredients and are very easy to make.  It's actually the Madeleine pan that does all the work in making them beautifully presentable.

Having never baked nor tasted these before it was a matter of trying out at least a couple of recipes and hoping to find one that looked and tasted as described in the recipes.

The first recipe I tried called for flour, granulated sugar, butter, eggs, lemon zest and vanilla extract.  I tried baking them in a 375 degree F. oven for 15 to 17 minutes as instructed.  At the six minute mark they were overdone and almost burnt.  I was overly disappointed!

The second recipe was quite different.  Confectioners’ sugar replaced the granulated sugar and orange extract and zest replaced the lemon zest and vanilla. A small amount of baking powder was also an ingredient, totally missing in the first recipe. The lower oven temperature of 350 degrees F. and shorter baking time of 6 to 8 minutes resulted in a remarkable difference from the first recipe.

Similar in taste and texture to the better known Lady Finger Cookies, these slightly sweet little sponge cakes are fragrantly orange and a pleasure to eat.

However, the classic scalloped shell shape makes them what they truly are… French Madeleine!

Orange Madeleine
2/3 cups flour
1 cup confectioners' sugar
¼ teaspoon baking powder
2 eggs
½ cup butter (melted and cooled)
½ teaspoon orange extract
1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Spray pans with nonstick spray.
3. Sift together flour and baking powder into a small bowl, set aside.
4. In a separate bowl beat together eggs, orange extract and orange zest at high speed for about 5 minutes.
5. Gradually add sugar and continue to beat until light and thick.
6. Gently fold in flour then melted butter.
7. Spoon mixture into molds filling about ¾ full.
8. Bake 6 to 8 minutes or until edges are light brown.
9. Cool in pan for 1 to 2 minutes, remove from pan and cool on rack.
10. When cool, sprinkle tops lightly with powdered sugar.
11. Yield 24 madeleine.

 

 

 

 

Notes, Tips and Suggestions

• Nonstick Madeleine pans work really well for easy removal of cookies.
• A few drops of orange oil instead of orange extract will really bring out the orange taste, orange oil can be purchased in Bulk food stores.
• Cookies can also be glazed with a sugar glaze made of ¾ cups confectioners’ sugar, 1 tablespoon of orange juice and 2 tablespoons of water.  After mixing, brush on cookies and allow to set.
• Fold orange zest in along with flour and butter as it seems to stick onto the beater whisks when added with the eggs.
• Madeleine are best eaten the same day they are made but also freeze well.  It's not recommended to dust with confectioners' sugar or glaze them before freezing.  These steps can quickly be done after defrosting.
• Bon Appetit!

Peanut Butter and Chocolate Biscotti

These Peanut Butter and Chocolate Biscotti would make any regular peanut butter cookie envious!

I was not intentionally looking for yet another biscotti recipe but this one fell right into my lap and begged me to try it out.  You should have been there to witness this strange event.

I have now officially made a separate file for the collection of biscotti recipes that seem to find their way to me when least expected. Chocolate, Mocha Chocolate Chunk and Banana Walnut Biscotti recipes previously posted are just a few of many very good biscotti recipes. 

The combination of the words peanut butter and biscotti would have never crossed my mind.  The delicious taste of peanut butter and chocolate along with the amazing texture and crunch of biscotti make these rather unique.

The extra step to brown the butter in this recipe is well worth the time and trouble since it adds a deeper nutty taste. Lightly salted dry roasted peanuts and dark chocolate combination take these biscotti over the top. Salty sweet along with classic biscotti crunch keeps you reaching for more.

Peanut Butter and Chocolate Biscotti... in my opinion the perfect adult peanut butter cookie!


Peanut Butter and Chocolate Biscotti
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (softened)
2 ½ cups all purpose flour
2 ¾ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
1 ¼ cups sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
½ cup smooth peanut butter
1 cup dry roasted peanuts
1 cup semisweet chocolate chunks or chips

1. Set oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Melt butter over medium heat, swirling the pan occasionally.
3. Continue to cook until butter browns and gets a nutty aroma, about 5 minutes. Let cool slightly.
4. Sift flour, baking powder and salt into a large bowl.
5. In a medium bowl using an electric mixer, beat eggs until light and pale yellow colour then gradually add the sugar while still beating.
6. Slowly add the butter and vanilla mixing well then add the peanut butter until well combined.
7. Place mixer on slow and add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in 2 additions and mix just until absorbed.
8. Mix in the peanuts and chocolate pieces.
9. Divide dough into thirds and shape dough with lightly floured hands into logs about 2 inches wide and 15 inches long.
10. Put each log in the center of a baking sheet lined with parchment paper..
11. Bake each sheet until set and brown around the edges, about 25 to 30 minutes.
12. Cool logs on baking sheets for 5 minutes then transfer to cutting board and cut crosswise with a long serrated knife into 2 inch wide cookies.
13. Place biscotti cut side down on cookie sheets and bake until crisp about 6 to 8 minutes.
14. Turn biscotti over and bake until golden brown, about 6 minutes.
15. Transfer biscotti to cooling rack to cool completely.

 

Notes, Tips and Suggestions

• Substitute regular peanut butter with all natural, make sure to bring it to room temperature.
• I used a large baking sheet and was able to bake the three rolls at one time.
• You may find the dough a little sticky while forming the logs, a sprinkle of flour will help, just don't give up.
• It's almost impossible to pick up a shaped roll and transfer it to the baking sheet. After the roll is shaped, place baking sheet right in front of it and roll it right onto the sheet. ( You can't appreciate how much stress this will alleviate unless you've tried picking one up to transfer!)
• Dipping the ends into melted chocolate would make these biscotti twice baked and double dipped!

Coconut Buttermilk Pound Cake

Forever on the look out for new recipes I came across this one for Buttermilk Coconut Pound Cake.  Being an avid fan of anything coconut I just had to try it out and this was the initial reason for the purchase of the liter of buttermilk.  You may recall that the overabundance of buttermilk lead to the discovery of the Lemon Scone recipe.

Pound Cake refers to a type of cake traditionally made with a pound
each of four ingredients being flour, butter, eggs and sugar.  Sounds like you end up with a lot of cake.

While the pound cakes made today often have different proportions of ingredients from the original they can still be wonderfully rich, moist and buttery with a lovely golden brown crust.

Pound cake can offer the perfect little slice when all you crave is a simple piece of cake but can also be deliciously dressed up for any occasion by serving with berries, whipped cream, ice cream or any other favourite topping.

It pays to have one or two loaves ready in the freezer for those visitors who may show up at your doorstep for an unscheduled coffee date.   Slicing it from the frozen state makes it easier to thaw out by the time coffee is ready to be served. The loaf can also be sliced before freezing making things a little easier, a small piece of wax paper placed in between the slices will keep them separate.

If you share my love for the taste and texture of coconut along with the richness and tang of buttermilk you might want to give this one a try.

The sweet buttermilk glaze and sprinkle of toasted coconut on top is the crowning glory of this delicious cake!

Coconut Buttermilk Pound Cake
¾ cups unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1 ¼ cups toasted coconut

1. Toast coconut in a 350 degree F. oven for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring often.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
3. Butter and flour a 4 ½ by 8 ½ inch loaf pan.
4. Sift together flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl.
5. In a separate bowl beat together with a mixer butter, granulated sugar and vanilla on medium- high until light and fluffy.
6. Add eggs one at a time beating well and scraping down bowl as needed.
7. With mixer on low add flour mixture in 3 additions with 2 equal additions of the buttermilk and beat until well combined.
8. Fold in the 1 ¼ cups of toasted coconut and transfer batter into prepared pan.
9. Bake until a skewer inserted in center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, 60 minutes.
10. Cool in pan about 1 hour then remove from pan and cool completely on rack.
11. Store at room temperature, wrapped in plastic, up to 4 days.

Glaze
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
2 to 3 tablespoons buttermilk
¼ cup toasted coconut

1. Wisk together confectioners’ sugar, add buttermilk until the consistency of a runny glaze.
2. Drizzle over cake and sprinkle with ¼ cup toasted coconut.

Notes, Tips and Suggestions

• Keep a close eye on coconut while toasting as it can go from browned to burned before you know it.
• Allow glaze to harden before storing or freezing.
• Freezes very well.

Not Such a Hard Nut to Crack After All

I seriously enjoy coconut, dried or still in the shell.  My father used to crack one open for us now and then and I would intently watch him hoping one day to be able to do it for myself.  I was intimidated by the drill he used for making holes in the three little dimples at the end of one side of the coconut.  He would let the coconut water drain into a bowl then whack it a few times with a hammer cracking it wide open.

He gave me  a little hammer one day to place in a small tool box I had put together for myself. This little hammer has become a tool full of memories for me.  Not only do I use it occasionally to hammer in a nail or two but it's great for cracking open coconuts as well.

Still intimidated by the thought of using a drill I have found a method that works just as well.

Hold the coconut in the palm of one hand and make sure you place a bowl just under your hand to catch the coconut water.  Begin whacking the coconut around the middle or its "equator" giving the coconut a bit of a turn as you continue hitting it with the hammer.  Do this until the coconut breaks in half. You may get a little debris from the shell in the water which can easily be strained out with a fine mesh sieve.  With a small paring knife pry the coconut meat away from the shell, slice and store the coconut slices in the water in the refrigerator.  I've read that placing the coconut halves in the freezer for about 15 minutes loosens it from the shell and is easier to remove.

If you haven't yet but decide to buy a coconut an some point I suggest you use it right after purchasing since it quickly begins to deteriorate on the inside even if the outer shell still looks good. I am speaking from experience.

My little hammer goes missing once in a while and I go on the hunt for it until it's found.  Seems there's someone else in the kitchen that has taken a liking to my favourite little tool.

Seared Sea Scallops

I’ve only prepared sea scallops a few times perhaps cautious of investing a sizable amount of money then not cooking them properly.

Like Lemon Grilled Shrimp and most sea foods for that matter over cooking definitely alters the delicate texture making it unpleasantly rubbery.

While looking for a good recipe I came across this particular one
which was a little different from the others since the scallops are dredged in herb scented flour before searing.  A splash of fresh lemon juice and sprinkle of fresh Italian flat leaf parsley finish them off in a most delicious way.

This is the second time I’ve used this recipe and will definitely use it again.  Larger size scallops can be a little or maybe a lot on the expensive side but when the outcome is successful and enjoyed by all present at the table it’s definitely worth the extra expense.  Although scallops come in various sizes the 16 to 20 per pound size make perfect appetizers.  These are anywhere from 1 ½ to 2 inches in diameter and even with shrinkage still end up being a good size.

As you well know by now I enjoy learning about the food I cook and while taking an interesting read on scallops came across some shocking information allowing me to become a little wiser on the subject.

Buyer beware!  Apparently some less than honest vendors are selling scallops which are not scallops at all. Who could have even imagined that the larger sea scallops are sometimes imitated by taking circular cookie cutter punches out of skate or shark meat and passed off as very expensive scallops.

Reading further I learned that the easiest way to determine if you have purchased real scallops is to check the striations on the side of it.  If they run vertically you’re eating a scallop.  If they are horizontal then you’ve been duped and someone has made off with your hard earned cash!

This news sent me running to my fridge to check out exactly on what I had spent my money all the while hoping for the best.

Vertical!  Thank goodness, and now much wiser on the subject of scallops I will make sure to check each time I purchase them.  The real thing is a delectable mollusk harvested from a ribbed, fan-shaped shell.

No fins, no scales and definitely no cookie cutter!

Seared Sea Scallops
½ cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon black pepper
16 sea scallops
2 tablespoons olive oil or corn oil
½ lemon
2 tablespoons fresh Italian flat leaf parsley

1. To defrost scallops place in a bowl of cold, salted water.
2. When defrosted drain well and place on paper towels to dry off as much as possible.
3. In a bowl mix together flour, salt, oregano, thyme and lemon pepper.
4. Roll scallops in flour mixture until lightly coated on all sides.
5. Heat oil in a skillet over high heat.
6. Add 3 to 4 scallops at a time to the pan and sear on both sides (about 2 minutes each side.)
7. Repeat 3 times until all of the scallops are cooked.
8. Place on a dish then into a warmed oven until ready to serve.
9. Toss with parsley and lemon juice.
10. Serves 4.

 







Notes, Tips and Suggestions

• Make sure scallops are dried off very well to ensure a good sear.
• I replaced the lemon pepper with lemon thyme and added black pepper instead.
• Don’t overcook, scallops will do a little carry over cooking after removing from pan.
• You may be tempted to sear all of the scallops at once since there is enough room in the skillet... don't do it! You may end up eating steamed scallops instead. A good sear is produced by a hot skillet and cooking a few scallops at a time.