Pete Fred

I'm a sucker for a pastel de nata, even the mass produced supermarket versions, so I'm not sure if it's a blessing or a curse to make a surprisingly decent home version... These looked particularly nice in the French morning sunlight so, Mr DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up... I was worried about overcooking the filling, so maybe next time I'll give them a minute or two longer for a slightly firmer set. But there's a lot to be said for the creamier texture, so maybe not.

Matcha Latte Bar from King Arthur... I'm largely ambivalent about American buttercream so only made enough to cover one slice. As cake-like substances go, it was ok but unremarkable. It probably didn't help that the matcha powder was from Lidl and no doubt low grade. The base was relatively dry and needed the icing to lift it. I suppose visually it's something a bit different, but other than that... meh.

Here's a sentence I never thought I'd utter - my dinner this evening was confit cabbage... I was intrigued after seeing the technique on a cheffy YouTube channel. It was tasty. If I'd had a bigger pan I could've happily polished off the other half of the head.

@ElsieD I can't say that I understand the grading of French flours, other than in the most general terms. In the UK I would look at protein content to gauge the strength, but over here the ash content (T) remains a mystery to me, other than knowing T45/55 is for cakes etc., but also, errrr, for bread and croissants. What I don't understand in the above video is that they say refined flours (T45/55) have more gluten than T80 flour (which doesn't make sense to me - T45 and T55 flours are 10%, whereas T80 flour is 11%, as well as the additional germ). So if you use a strong Canadian bread flour then you would going against his advice to minimise 'elasticity', whatever that means. It's all very confusing. You seem to have had good results of late, so I'm not sure there's anything to be gained, other than satisfying your curiosity.

In case it's of interest to cannelé obsessives, I'll add to your information overload with this video of how Cassonade make theirs (I mentioned them on the previous page). Auto-translate will hopefully give you a rough idea of what's going on, but the main takeaways are that they use a flour with a higher bran content than plain/AP, they have a specific temperature for the milk to pre-gelatinize the starch (65C/150F), and the batter is rested for at least 48 hours. For non-obsessives, hey just look at the pretty cannelés. (Incidentally, for behind-the-scenes footage of French bakeries in action, that channel has some cool videos.)

The disappointing HXBs from the other day deserved better than the bin so this pain perdu from the guys at Fallow seemed as good a way as any to use them up... I didn't have any marmalade so used Jersey Black Butter instead. It was pleasant, and I liked the whisky cream. However, I'm not sure how long it'll take to work my way through the remaining 1.3kg (3 lb) block! (The Fallow YouTube channel is worth a look, by the way.)

As the nursery rhyme goes: Hot cross buns! Hot cross buns! One a penny, two a penny, Hot cross buns! If you have no daughters, Give them to your sons. One a penny, two a penny, Hot cross buns! These were based on a Thomas Keller recipe which I seem to have adapted at some point in the past, unfortunately to its detriment. The spice mix was all wrong, and the texture a bit dry and crumbly. I'm scratching my head as to how it made its way into my recipe folder.

Tahini and date cookies... I tend to make these when I've the dregs of a jar of tahini. A pleasant cookie.

Yeah, I remember that ad from the 90s. (This YouTuber says 1997. Sounds about right.)

Another Galette des Rois, using the last of the Grand Marnier crème pâtissière in the filling, together with some inverted puff from the back of the freezer... This was a partial fail. The amount of pastry was a little smaller than I would normally use for a 24cm (9½-inch) galette, and in making it stretch (literally!) I compressed the layers too much. The top lost its shape and contracted in places, and towards the centre you can see where the layers failed to separate. The bottom was overworked and leaked butter. The final insult was the disappointingly muted flavour, with just the merest hint of orange. I'll get me coat.

I had some leftover cream from the choux puffs and, after admonishing others for being unseemly, I thought it unwise to simply plant my face in the bowl and inhale. So I made fairy cakes instead... Strictly speaking, I suppose these are more of a fairy cake/cupcake hybrid, combining a dainty base with a creamy swirl on top. And I'm kicking myself for not doing the fairy wings.

@Katie Meadow @JoNorvelleWalker Ladies, please! Control yourselves. This is a public forum. What I get up to in the kitchen late at night is not for idle speculation or gossip. You're better than this.

Choux au craquelin... The filling is a Grand Marnier crème légère.

I think I checked out the same video as you. So, I will see your meat chopper... ...and raise you the citrus press... But the question is, will anyone go all-in with the takoyaki pan?!?

I was just being silly. Oeufs de Lompe is lumpfish roe. For the avoidance of any doubt, I do not have a monthly supply of Sevruga sturgeon caviar, whereas I can often be seen shopping in Lidl. 😉

I guess you'll either love it or hate it, Jason Atherton's Marmite tart... It was Insta-famous for ten minutes before everyone moved on to the next thing. Given the ingredients, they really should stick it on the lunch menu at the Museum of Iconic British Brands... I liked it. It's essentially just a savoury crème brulée, not too strong, with a nice tangy note. In his restaurant, Atherton adds a scoop of caviar, so that was all the excuse I needed to break the seal on this month's tin of Sevruga* ($400/100g)... If anyone's curious and wants to take a stab, the recipe is here. *It's a bit cheaper at Lidl ($3/100g ) if you're lucky enough to have one nearby...

I was particularly taken with the Grand Marnier, but I've liked them all so far. For me, chocolate is probably more suited to a smaller soufflé, as it's quite rich. I'll try to make more with fruit purée as the base; I have a fig tree so thanks for the nod. The copper moulds are by Mauviel.

The first time I saw something similar was by Tom Kerridge, a multi-starred UK chef. He roasts rather than grills the minced beef, and for longer. His seems to have better colour than in the chilli video. Kerridge also uses star anise (a Heston Blumenthal thing, which I recall is supposed to boost the beefiness by, err, magic.) The only place I could find a clip was on facebook.

When I first started on my soufflé tests it was to make a Ritz recipe that called for 10x5 cm (4x2") ramekins. I don't have any so improvised with the only thing to hand: 10x5.5 cm stainless steel entremet rings. Obviously they're useless if I ever wanted to serve guests - plonking a red-hot baking tray down in front of someone and saying "dig in" would certainly be an usual end to a meal - but these were just tests to satisfy my own curiosity. I do like the large serving, but can't see myself ever buying an appropriate dish, unless I stumbled across something at a car boot/garage sale. Although if I ever won the lottery I'd treat myself to the copper moulds in the Comice video.

Experiments in soufflé, day 432... This was raspberry, simply using purée as the base. I liked this; clean, bright flavour, and easily adaptable depending what's in season or in the frozen aisle. And the best cheesecake in New York, circa 1971... I made the adapted version which called for whipping the mix somewhat, whereas the original version seems to me to be attempting to limit aeration. Anyhoo, it was very good, quite mousse-like with a nice tang. I had some leftover purée from the soufflé so made a raspberry version as well...

Here's the butter rack in my local supermarket for @rotuts... It's not a huge selection, sadly, and there's a few lines missing. (Just to the right is the same amount of margarine.) In the larger supermarkets, the Wall of Butter is really quite impressive. Páturages and Merci are own-brand. Doux (sweet) is unsalted; demi-sel is salted (2%). I mainly buy the red blocks, bottom left. Lots and lots of red blocks. President and Elle & Vire are for those who would never be caught dead buying own-brand or 'basics'. Isigny Sainte Mère and Grand Fermage have salt crystals (3%). My favourite is raw-cream Isigny sea salt butter, but I've only seen that in big cities. If I'm after unsalted butter for a specific use (brioche, lamination) then I look for the AOP protected status stuff (Charentes-Poitou, Isigny, Bresse).

Saffron and Lemon Syrup Cake by Honey & Co... A handsome, tasty cake. I gave a few slices to a plumber working on site to take back to his family, but only after jokingly 'warning' him that these dense, syrupy Middle Eastern cakes are meant to be this way. But it's a very good cake, so I expect it'll be a hit. Recipe here.

@rotuts The regular supermarket butter is around €4.80 for 500g ($5 for ~1 lb) and can sometimes be made with EU milk, but for an extra 30c or so there's 'extra-fin' which is guaranteed 'origine France'. Then there's brands like Isigny or Charentes-Poitou from regions which are known for their butter, and they might be another buck or two extra. These are readily available in all supermarkets. And in the larger cities you might find premium stuff like Échiré at €12 for 500g. I will take a snap of the butter fridge on my next visit. I've got two medium-sized supermarkets in my small town (pop. ~3000), Intermarché and SuperU, as well as a Lidl and, until recently, an Aldi (Trader Joe's) which unfortunately relocated to the next town. There's a market on Saturdays which is pretty vibrant and has plenty of local traders, and there's a small organic market (half a dozen stalls) on a Monday.

I don’t have a blender, but will test a batch if I ever get one. 👍

My soufflé adventures continue with a David Lebovitz recipe, using chocolate pastry cream as the base and serving it family-style in a shallow dish (I only had a deep dish to hand). He also suggests waiting ten minutes for a more mousse-like texture rather than digging in immediately. So out of the oven it's at maximun height... After the requisite ten minute wait... The pause seemed unnecessary to me. It was still plenty light and airy, but now missing the visual impact of a well risen soufflé. It was fine, but I'll stick with the ganache-based method which is more streamlined and avoids the need to make pastry cream. Once fully cooled, it had sunken chocolate cake vibes...