mm84321

Fried zucchini blossoms Black bass with aromatics

Grilled monkfish, peas, lemon butter

I plan to make a batch of pate sucrée in advance, rolling it out and shaping into individual tarts, freezing on a sheet pan, then storing in the freezer for a few days. Would it be necessary to defrost the tart shells prior to baking, or should they go straight into the oven from frozen? Thanks.

Jeanne, I have held the unsoaked caked in airtight containers at cool room temp for one day without a problem. That does not mean it could not hold for two, I just haven't kept them that long to find out. I imagine they would be fine. I have also soaked the baba and held it for a day in the refrigerator. It is still fine the next day, but it will not be the same as if it's soaked the very last minute before serving.

Thank you very much! I know how particular you are about the quality of your results, so I'm really looking forward to giving this a go. Important: be sure your eggs are at room temp before incorporating into butter/sugar/flour mixture. Also, the butter should be quite soft. I kept mine on the side of the stove for 10 minutes or so. It should be a soft pomade. You can make them in whichever shape you'd like. There are recipes for making one large baba, instead of small individual cakes. I've even seen some make them in a regular loaf pan. I'm not sure the shape has much to do with the overall absorption of the syrup, but I think size might, and smaller cakes will probably be easier to evenly saturate.

Soaked the cooled babas tonight in just hot syrup for 5-6 minutes before serving. Glazed in apricot syrup, split and a good dash of rum poured on each cut half. Overall, I am quite happy with the results.

I have followed several different recipes, some using fresh yeast, others dry, with varying degrees of success. Tonight, I tried one published in the New York Times back in 2001. It is an adaptation of Ducasse's recipe, and I found the most success following this particular recipe. The crumb is perfect, and the cake itself is light without the unpleasant density I experienced in other recipes. I am using silicone dariole molds, but I still butter and flour them, as I think it helps facilitates in the browning. I also turn the tray halfway through cooking to ensure even cooking. For the syrup, I use lemon and orange zest (did not care for lime) and half a split vanilla bean. Once it's cooled down, I add 1/2 cup of rum. For the whipped cream, I bring 100ml of cream to the boil, add a whole, scraped vanilla bean, let infuse for 20 minutes or so, then add an additional 200ml of cream and let infuse overnight in the fridge before whipping. You can add a little caster sugar, but I think it's better unsweetened. Tonights outcome: Recipe: http://www.nytimes.com/recipes/1859/Baba-Au-Rhum.html

I appreciate your response. I am going to go the way of soaking them just before serving, since I think that will yield the best result. The texture after having just been soaked would be too hard to replicate any other way.

A few questions for making individual cakes. I have read many recipes, and there seems to be a variance in how to soak the babas. Some say let them cool completely, then imbibe in a hot, but not boiling syrup. Some say to keep the syrup at a boil. Others say to dip them while they are still warm from the oven. Some say to let both the baba and the syrup be completely cool, and then soak. There are also instructions to poke the cakes with toothpicks. In any case, I do not have enough time, nor eggs and butter, to experiment every possible scenario. Which way would be best to get as much syrup into the babas? So far, I have let them cool, then soak in a hot syrup for about 10 minutes, and while good, I feel the cake could have been a bit more saturated. Secondly, I plan to make 10 babas for a party next week. Is soaking them the day of ideal, or can this be done a night ahead? Again, I don't really have the time or desire to eat and test these at different stages. I had thought of possibly storing them in their syrup inside an airtight container. Any thoughts are appreciated.

Pea cromesquis Roas poularde Baba au rhum

Strawberry tarts souffléed with lemon and basil

I forgot to mention, the potatoes should be warmed in their marinade before serving.

Mm84321, your garbanzos look a lot greener than the ones I am used to seeing - is that what they look like fresh? Yes. These were fresh. I blanched them, then peeled their skins, finished by warming in butter, lemon zest and juice, a bit of olive oil and then added some arugula to wilt in the pan. Would you tell me what other things? Apparently the potato is puréed. Little garnish of shallot (?) & dill. And is the white a soft cheese w/dill? Kind of bread? I'm having a dinner party in couple of weeks & this looks/sounds like a perfect app, instead of the same old tartare I'd been hoping to replace with something more festive. Or this might even make a great amuse! Thanks for anything you're willing to share. Sure. I actually found out this morning that fish was just regular wild Alaskan King, though I had thought it was sockeye from the color, that is just the result of the curing process. Cut the salmon into fillets and cure for 8-10 hours in a mixture of 100g coarse sea salt and 80g caster sugar. Rinse, dry, then marinate in olive oil for at least 4 hours. The salmon is sitting on potatoes which are sliced 3mm thick, then cut out with a 3cm round, blanched in salted, boiling water, drained, and marinated in olive oil seasoned with thyme, bay leaf, a crushed clove of garlic and salt. On top are carrots, sliced on the bias, blanched, not refreshed and added to the marinade with the potatoes. Then sliced spring onions (but you can use shallots) blanched, shocked in ice, drained, then also added to the potato marinade. You can do all of this the morning of or night before. On the side of the plate is whipped cream seasoned with dill, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Be generous with the dill, and let it sit in the fridge for a few hours to let the flavors infuse the cream. Serve with toasted country bread.

Salmon belly with garbanzo beans

Franci, your food looks great. Tonight I had snails with potatoes, and for dessert, baba au rhum.

Thanks. It was cured in a mixture of coarse sea salt and caster sugar overnight, then rinsed and marinated in olive oil. This was sockeye, hence the vivid color. Hard to photograph, but it was a really beautiful shade of red.

Cured salmon with potatoes, dill, other things Lobster tart, claws in salad with miso Salmon and sorrel sauce

Franci, I first remove the small pincer by cracking it away from the claw and twisting it off, then I make two cuts at the base of either side of the claw with my knife, and twist my knife on the second cut to pop off the bottom part of shell. At that point, the claw should come out by simply pulling gently on the now exposed meat, or just by shaking it out. It is important to remove them while they are still warm, as opposed to the tail, which I always refresh in ice water after cooking. Hope that helps. The tart itself is made from white bread, and the base of the caviar is whipped cream seasoned with dill, the green of a scallion (or cebette) and lime.

Tarte aux golden oscietre

Bar de ligne with chorizo, calamari and periwinkles

Lobster, asparagus and caviar

Lobster tart

Ketih, it is a type of pasta called "candele" Each piece is about 50cm long, but I cut them down a bit to fit on the plate. They are cooked in milk, stuffed with a puree of violet asparagus and then sauteed slowly in butter. You sprinkle with parmesan, baste with some butter, then finish with chicken jus.

Thanks, Ann. Your steak au poivre looks delicious. Macaroni gratin stuffed with violet asparagus

Salmon with marrow croutons, sauce Genevoise