yorkshirepud

Claire, which ones did you make? I've heard good things about the all cocoa powder ones. I need to put this book to work again sometime soon. Poor thing has been neglected. Shame on me!

Hey Mamsue, Do share what you try. I haven't fully explored the book yet. Get making that ice-cream! It's divine. Everyone, sorry for being AWOL lately. I've been super busy and out of it lately. I have guests coming for 2 weeks, so will resume this blog after if there's still interest. Adele

I just got done making the base for the WS coffee ice-cream recipe. Oh my, it tastes very good. I went ahead with the 3tbsps of espresso powder and it's spot on. Thanks for reassuring me it would be okay. Can't wait to try it churned tomorrow. Gifted Gourmet, are you still doing it this weekend?

Anna, I'm going to throw it together after dinner on Saturday night along with the ice-cream. What's interesting is the the souffle looks much higher in the shot in Bittersweet than mine was. Though I suspect I deflated it alot when I took it out of the oven to add the flour/almonds. Let us know how the pie is. Are you baking in a pie pan? I don't recommend a tart shell unless you want it all to spill out. Though there must be a way as I've seen pecan tarts before. Anyone know the secret?

Anna N, I've visited Golda's Kitchen (online only) and it does seem like a great place. I'm hoping to get out there for a skeg at the store soon. marlowe, thanks for the store. I'll check it out. allezcuisine, I don't get downtown often but thanks for the stores. I'll be on the look out next time I'm down that way. Katharine, oohh thanks. I'm going to have a good look around the website later. I actually want to WS last night and walked out $150 poorer *L*. I do like their bakeware though (I buy the pro regular, not non stick). Very heavy duty. I wish they'd branch out a little as the store I go to (Yorkdale) has slim pickings.

Ted, I agree. If you going to have ice-cream, have ice-cream! Michael, Is their a formula you’ve found to achieve the perfect balance of fats? I see recipes that use as little as 2 eggs and as many as 8. All of course, will offer a variation of richness. I also see no pattern to the dairy used. Even those not attempting to be ‘light’ will sometimes use just light cream and half and half, depending upon the actual flavour (fruit, chocolate or whatever). I do remember reading if the only dairy used is whipping cream, this will produce a ‘greasy’ cream. phaelon56, Thanks for the info on coffee. I do have a recipe that calls for roasted beans which I will have to try out. Is there a particular bean (not necessarily brand) you’d recommend?

Week 2 So I’ve just finalized my plan for the coming weekend. Here’s what on the menu: - Danish Braid with Apricot Filling and Confectioner’s Cream – Baking with Julia (Dorie Greenspan) - Fallen Chocolate Soufflé Cake – Bittersweet (Alice Medrich) - Coffee Ice Cream– Williams-Sonoma Website I’m rather excited about the Danish I’ll be making. It was one of the first recipes that caught my eye when I first got the book. It’s also a test run for a potential ‘show-off’ for when my parents visit next month for 2 weeks. I have actually made the Fallen Chocolate Soufflé Cake before but I made a bit of a boo. After a few minutes in the oven, I eyed the almonds and flour on my counter. Yes, they were supposed to be in the oven with the rest of the soufflé. I had to quickly pull the soufflé out of the oven and fold them in. I’m sure it affected the recipe somewhat but thankfully it turned out okay. So, I’m going to go another round with it and get it right this time. The ice-cream will be an accompaniment to the cake. I’m a little skeptical of the source as my last ice-cream recipe from there was a total bomb. Let’s see if it can redeem itself. I am also a little dubious about the amount of espresso called for (we discussed it a little here), but I’ll give it a shot anyway. Tom (my husband) eats anything - mistakes and all - so it’ll go to a good home.

Ted, I just reading earlier on baking911.com that the egg yolks in ice-cream act as an emulsifier. Therefore, because they help disperse fat droplets evenly, the ice cyrstals are forced to be smaller resulting is a much smoother end product with a more desirable 'mouth feel'. This explains why lower fat ice-cream (at least those made at home) just don't cut it. You're right about the change in coffee taste when I put in milk. I never thought to look at it way. Thanks.

That's true. I remember reading the same thing is true of sugar.

Thanks Tan319. It does help but what I don't understand (bear with me ) is why fat mellows the bitterness of the espresso. Is it because of the added richness? Good idea about reconstituting the espresso. If I decide not to throw caution to wind and just do it, I'll do that instead. Based on your findings with the eggless PB ice-cream am I right in thinking perhaps fat brings out the flavour of ingredients? Kind of like how salt works?

Great idea Anna. I actually have a scrap piece leftover from the roll I bought to line some of my drawers. Thanks for the idea!

Hey Guys, I've decided to tackle the Danish Braid this weekend, probably Sunday morning for breakfast. What is everyone else doing? I've already got the apricot filling ready (yum!). I recommend you make this ahead of time if you ever try it, if definately gets better and thickens up. Adele

Hey all, I want to stock up on some baking supplies (equipment that is). What are you favourite places to go to? I usually head to Williams-Sonoma but they don't have a 'huge' selection and often don't have what I'm looking for (i.e. individual flan rings). Thanks.

Rebecca, The recipe I did called for Lyles, but the author said you could sub it with dark corn syrup with no changes, so I'm sure you can take your favorite PP recipe and make the change.

To add onto mktye's locations for finding Lyle's Golden Styrup. In Canada, you can find it at Loblaws. At least in Toronto.