Mette

I made the truffles yesterday, using Callebaut Java (which is quite 'caramelly') and Callebaut 70/30, and I must say, I find them to sweet for my taste. It may be being a 'continental' or maybe just a bit strange, but I find a lot af american or american adjusted recipes too sweet (of course, Herme is french, so there goes that line of argument....) - anyway.... For my next batch, I'll try without the milk chocolate, and with a very bitter chocolate (whatever I can get my hands on). Anybody tried making these with all dark choc and if so, which make and which result? Thanks ← Mette, Just to follow up, I've since made the caramel ganache with all bittersweet, and it was still delicious, and still sweet enough for someone like me who prefers a sweeter chocolate taste. You could probably even increase the butter or cream a little, and swap in some unsweetened chocolate for the bittersweet. ← Thanks for the feedback - I'll give it go (mmmmmmm....) ← I've now given it a go with all bittersweet, as I had no unsweetened choc around and I need these for a pressie. They are much more to my taste, though still on the sweet side - I'm going to try and tweak the recipe more towards less sweet next time. I added 1½ teaspoon of cocoa nibs to the ganache, which is a very nice addition - a bit of bitterness and a bit of crunch to the otherwise sweet smoothness. This addition is definetely a keeper. .....must stop eating truffles..... Thanks again for the feedback, Patrick

Being Danish and all, I thought I'd better add my bit here A danish layer cake is (typically, but the variations are endless) 3 layers of sponge with pastry cream (sometimes lightened with whipped cream) and fresh strawberries or strawberry jam or raspberry jam. The layer of jam is quite thin, so the sweetness doesn't get to overpowering (homemade is of course optimal.....I know this is not often an option). There will be jam and pastry cream between each layer. The cake can either be covered completely in marcipan or just have the top covered in marcipan, with the sides covered with piped whipped cream. For a wedding the decoration will be marcipan roses. Similar cakes are made for birthdays (decorated with little danish flags and candles) or just for a fancy dessert. The layer cakes ar delicious but the flavour really hinges on a good quality pastry cream. And as cake recipes and traditions travel across oceans, they sometimes change radically, so what is a traditional danish layer cake in Denmark may be completely different in the States. The really traditional danish wedding cake is a 'kransekage' either as a top or as a cornucopia, which is marcipan mixed with icing sugar and egg whites, shaped into rings, baked and assembled into the appropriate shape, Here are some examples, the images ar clickable (from one of the best patisseries in Denmark). A prinsessekage (princess cake) is typically two layers of sponge with pastry cream and optional jam between, assembled in a bowl to get a domed shape. After unmoldning, the cake is covered in green tinted marcipan. Hope this helps a bit.

Finally got round to making another little gem from the book. I made the apricot and ginger chocolate loaf cake, but as it is going on a picnic, I decided to make little individual cakes instead of a loaf. The batch yielded 24 little fellas, and I baked them at 180 c. for 20 mins. They are very tasty (there aren't 24 to go on a picnic anymore, unless you count those currently inside me), but could have had a bit more sharpness to them - maybe I'll try adding some orange zest next time. Here a pic: Incidently, I bought some organic, fair trade cocoa for this batch, and for the first time ever, I had a real whiff of chocolate when opening the jar, instead of that dusty smell, most cocoas give off. I think I'm off regular cocoa for good..... /Mette

I made the truffles yesterday, using Callebaut Java (which is quite 'caramelly') and Callebaut 70/30, and I must say, I find them to sweet for my taste. It may be being a 'continental' or maybe just a bit strange, but I find a lot af american or american adjusted recipes too sweet (of course, Herme is french, so there goes that line of argument....) - anyway.... For my next batch, I'll try without the milk chocolate, and with a very bitter chocolate (whatever I can get my hands on). Anybody tried making these with all dark choc and if so, which make and which result? Thanks ← Mette, Just to follow up, I've since made the caramel ganache with all bittersweet, and it was still delicious, and still sweet enough for someone like me who prefers a sweeter chocolate taste. You could probably even increase the butter or cream a little, and swap in some unsweetened chocolate for the bittersweet. ← Thanks for the feedback - I'll give it go (mmmmmmm....)

Hi all, I must share the wonders of nature (and the humble cherry) with you. In our garden is a huge cherry tree. We live right at the northernmost extreme of the habitat of sweet cherry trees, so the tree is pretty unreliable. For the five years we have been in this house the crop has never been big enough to do anything but eat them off the tree; last year we didn't get a single cherry, but this year......WHOAAAAAA. I've never seen so many cherries in my life, and they are gorgeous. The tree looks like one of those trees in a gardening book. We are eating away, the kids take them wherever they go but we've still got lots. Today I made my first ever cherry pie. It was a crust of sweet tart dough from Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Herme. Prebaked, and filled with pitted, halved cherries tossed with sugar and a bit of corn starch. The lattice is marcipan rolled out thin and brushed with egg wash. Served with a bit of creme fraiche and some fresh cherries in the garden. VIOLA! (the crust is slightly overcooked as I got engrossed in an exciting Tour de France stage....) The almondy crust and the marcipan lattice went very well with the cherries. Now for the question: What else to do with cherries? Ive looked at the clafoutis thread and the plated desserts thread and I've already got some ideas. But what else. Not too involved as we are off on holiday for two weeks on saturday. Oh, do cherries freeze? Thanks a bunch!!!! /Mette, in cherry heaven

Thanks for the info. Being in sunny Copenhagen the ingredients here are somewhat different than stateside. And I'm always pleased when I see 'foreign' recipes using fresh yeast, much more redily available here than dried. I'll definately try this loaf - I quite like walnut bread for various sandwiches. Thanks again /Mette

A quick question - does this flour have cracked grains of wheat in it as well as the floury parts or is it similar to graham flour. Thanks /Mette

Sorry, my binder of recipes seems to have grown legs and left. When I locate it, I'll post the recipe. In the meantime, this recipe looks pretty close, I normally use whole milk: Æbleskiver: 250 g. flour 3 to 4 eggs (depending on size) 4 ½ dl cream or milk or mixture 25 g. fresh yeast 1 tsp. sugar ½ tsp cardamom a pinch of salt shortening/butter for frying Sift flour with sugar and salt. Heat milk to app. 35 degrees celsius and dissolve the yeast in the milk. Mix in the eggs one at a time. Leave to rise for 2 hours. Pour batter in a jug. Melt a bit of shortening/butter in each dent in the pan and fill them 2/3 with batter. Turn over while batter is still liqid in the middle. Bake until brown, turning frequently. Serve with powdered sugar and jam. Enjoy And here's a pic of some æbleskiver (from a recipe site) so those of you not in the know can get an idea of what æbleskiver look like photo /Mette (edited for language)

Æbleskiver are traditionally eaten around christmastime, and they are normally served with powdered sugar and some kind of jam to dip in. The word æbleskive actually means apple slice - in the olden days, a bit of apple was added to the batter in the pan. I have never heard of filling them with strawberry or banana (yikes, coming from someone who detests warm banana). I make them occasionally, though mostly at christmas. One always have to make a bigger batch than expected At by daughters daycare, they had æbleskiver just the other day for the afternoon snack. If you make a big batch and keep them warm in the oven, they will not retain the round shape but become slightly flat, rather football-shaped, no effect on the taste, though. I've only ever seen the industrially produced stay round for any length of time (Yes, in DK there is a market for frozen æbleskiver, which you reheat in the oven - perfectly round, but most makes taste like warm cardboard) If you like, I'll post my tried and true recipe. Have fun with the pan /Mette

Hi, for danish baking, we use the ground white/green kind - readily available in the supermarkets of Denmark. Black cardamom does not feature at all in traditional danish cooking or baking. Traditional danish birthday bread rolls are made with a slightly sweetend buttery dough with a fair bit of cardamom in it and sometimes raisins, and danish dessert crepes often have cardamom in them. Cardamom is very widely used in various danish christmas cookies and if one makes Glögg (mulled wine, very traditional danish....) from scratch for christmas, cardamom is a very nice addition to yhe orange, lemon, ginger and cinnamon. Have fun on the danish cardamom adventure! /Mette

It is extremely nice cut into strips and simply dipped in white chocolate - as a matter of fact, I don't normally like white choc, but this combo is very tasty. Mmmmmmmm, must get crystallised lemon! /Mette

What's the difference in flavour between a key lime and a normal lime? I'm quite intrigued by this all-america pie, and would likt to try but, alas, only normal limes in icy Copenhagen.... Thanks /Mette

What's the deal with buttercream? (bear with me, I'm Dnish and have not grown up with the stuff) Most of the recipes I've seen in run-of-the-mill cookbooks look disgusting (lots of shortening and artificial flavouring), so I stopped after one attempt, because a mouthful of sweet, chemical tasting grease does nothing for me. Also having cheap, commercial buttercream-covered cakes when visiting the States put me off a fair bit. Whenever I've needed to decorate a cake it's either been with royal icing (incl. flowers or other), rolled fondant, marcipan, ganache or simply whipped cream. This thread has got me all curious to try again with buttercream, as the Cupcake cafe recipe looks a bit more palatable. But how does the stuff handle - what happens once the cake is covered and the flowers piped? Does it set? Does it keep? Does the hot syrup cook the yolks, or should I use pasturized yolks? Any other recommendations regarding recipes? I'm all keen to get experimenting and piping flowers, even if most Danes think they are a bit naff. Thanks /Mette

I made the truffles yesterday, using Callebaut Java (which is quite 'caramelly') and Callebaut 70/30, and I must say, I find them to sweet for my taste. It may be being a 'continental' or maybe just a bit strange, but I find a lot af american or american adjusted recipes too sweet (of course, Herme is french, so there goes that line of argument....) - anyway.... For my next batch, I'll try without the milk chocolate, and with a very bitter chocolate (whatever I can get my hands on). Anybody tried making these with all dark choc and if so, which make and which result? Thanks On a different note, I tried photographing my caramel truffles, but the pictures were positively dull comparet to yours, Patrick, which are great, so I will keep them to myself. Happy truffling! /Mette

Thanks, I've noted these corrections in the recipes. And now a word on making a Nutella tart with a 3-year old....He loves to help in the kitchen and to bake cakes, but contrary to most youngsters, he's not that keen on eating cake; he'd rather have a banana (more cake for the parents). First of all, to make a succesfull tart, one needs lots more Nutella than stated in the recipe - it seems to vanish as soon as the long suffering mother turns her back I'd made the pastry ahead of time, rolled it and baked it, so we could start out with the fun parts. I'd made a big shell (app. 9'') for the grown ups and a small 4'' one for my son. Halfdan helped melt things in the microwave, crack eggs, measure out sugar and stir the filling. I gave him a small bowl with a couple of spoonfulls of Nutella to spred on the little crust, and some of it actually went in the crust, not on his hands/face/sleeves/apron/stool. I divided the filling and poured about 1/5 in a small jug for him to pour into the crust. This was a big challenge for him, as pouring carefully is not an action he approves of. A fair bit of the filling actually made contact with the nutella, and by a bit of swirling, the nutella got covered. He took great pride in placing the nuts carefully and evenly on the tart, but he does need a bit of practice with a piping bag. It was a very good project to do with a child, multiple stages of messines, and a tasty outcome. I can only recommend bringing children into the kitchen for all sorts of fun, not just baking (although my husband cringes when I let Halfdan use a sharp knife). Happy baking /Mette P.S. I don't own tart rings, but pie-dishes worked just fine Another P.S. Next time, I'll try to create a sort of photo-essay, he is so cute in his apron with stuff smeared everywhere, and quite capable in the kitchen

Is there a list of errors in CDBPH somewhere online? I've just recieved the book, and only made the nutella tart. Which I afterwards found out is converted wrongly to metric. And now I stumble upon the rice pudding-debate where the proportions seem to be ambigous. As a lot of these recipes are qiute pricey to make, it would be nice to be able to look up any corrections before starting out. Thanks a bunch /Mette P.s. The nutella tart came out nicely - veryyyyy buttery. my 3 year old helped making all of it (minus the pastry) and it is a great childrens project and the flavour is child friendly too. I'll post a pic of his creation later and tell a bit more about making it with a child :-)

Thanks for the compliment. The technique is pretty much as described in lots of posts above. Polish the clean molds with cotton wool. Wipe the cavities very thinly with cotton wool dipped in cocoa butter. My limited experience tells me that the harder one presses the cocoa butter into the cavity, the shinier the bon bon. The cocoa butter is of unknown origin, bought through a local candy making supplier. The colour is ruby colouring powder from PCB. I sprinkled it in with a paint brush, and for some reason there was lots of static electricity which helped spread the powder evenly in the molds. Bash them upside down to get rid of excess powder and mold the chocolate as usual - I used Sao Thome fro Callebaut. I'm no master photographer, but for this kind of work, I'd avoid using a camera mounted flash. It will give unsightly reflexes. A north facing window or similar on a bright day, and a camera with a good macro is all I used. Your bon bons look great - photographing them from the side instead of from above will show them off more. A subdued background will set them off. (This is fun - chatting about chocolate!!!) Get photographing!!! /Mette

I got my book through my local Callebaut-pusher. It was quite pricy but I am enjoying it a lot. Don't know about the usual suspects - I'm in Denmark, where the usual suspects are a completely different lot..... /Mette

Here's a pic of the final result I'm a bit intimidated by posting pictures as an amateur amongst all you great pros, but I am very pleased with the result myself..... In the end I used a subtle honey (which was what I had around), and the flavour compliments the raspberries very well. I'm not too worried about the shelf life, as they are only going to have a life of about two weeks. Next time, I think I'll try and concentrate the raspberry puree for a more intense flavour. The ganache was very tasty, and my husband (who has no class :-)) had the leftovers on a piece of crusty italian bread, pretending it was high class Nutella Thanks for all the suggestions on subs for invert sugar. I'll try them out some other time. Thanks again /Mette

I'm going to make a raspberry ganache based on Wybauw's recipe, but I have no invert sugar. Can I substitute someting else for it?? Thanks /Mette

Metric or imperial????? This looks like a great book - and what awesome looking creations you all have put together from it! Just a quick question, before I spend a lot of money getting the book to try to create some of the goodies: Are the measurements etc. in the book metric or imperial? Living in the land of metric, I always find it too much trouble converting recipes from imperial to metric unless there's a very good reason.... Thanks, and I hope to join the fun soon /Mette

In Copenhagen, I'd try 'Kanal cafeen' (Frederiksholms Kanal 18, 1220 København K) for traditional, danish smørrebrød (Open face sandwiches piled high with meat or cheeses) and the chance to spot members of parliament. It's very good!!! There's quite a trend i Copenhagen for microbreweries and some of them serve very good food too. Try Nørrebro bryghus for a varity of beers and excellent beer themed food - reservations highly recommended even on weekdays. Velbekomme /Mette

For my first eGullet post I thought I'd do something meaningful, so therefore it involves two favorite things - beer and chocolate. For the grand opening of my husbands brewpub, I'd like to surprise him with some themed molded chocolates, the theme being beer. I'm thinking about a stout flavoured filling and perhaps something made with malt syrup and maybe a hint of hops. Anybody have experience with any of this? I've dabbled with making a stout flavoured ganache (Young's chocolate stout, cream, chocolate), but the stout flavour was way to subtle, ie. basically non-existing... All ideas regarding this theme are most appreciated. I've only got the kitchen in my home, but a good supply of chocolate-making equipment (and experience) as well as access to good quality chocolate and all sorts of beery ingredients. Thanks Mette (no longer an eGullet virgin)