Your Daily Sweets (2005-2012)

[RobertM]

Kim:

Thank you for the nice compliment. The easy answer to your question is yes, they are White Jimmies. The difficult part of that answer is that I bought them (under a different "name" from Callebaut Chocolate) I was going to put white chocolate curls on the top, but ran out of time and thought those would "work".

Thanks again

Bob

[DesertCulinary]

Joe – that coffee cake looks gorgeous and I am joining the amazement at your perfect and beautiful graham crackers.  I love graham crackers (even the boxed ones are ok if they are the ones with cinnamon sugar), but very few bakeries make them.  You may have just inspired me to try my own!  I’ve found the AB recipe – what did you add/do differently, if you don’t mind telling? 

Thanks Kim!

Nothing too dramatic, I just swapped out half of the molasses for golden syrup.

[Patrick A.]

delish as ever isomer!  And what clean edges (now I'm just harassing you!).

Here are a few recent things.

Butterscotch cheesecake

Inspired by something I had by Adrian Vasquez at Providence, White truffle infused ganache inside of chocolate pasta with blood orange reduction and cracked pepper.

And with the same ganache, I made this lil treat

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Show me how to make the chocolate pasta.

[chuchelo]

Today I came across a jar of sour cherries from Trader Joe's lurking in the back of the fridge and as I am doing the "eat from your fridge/freezer thing," I decided to try my hand at a very old-fashioned dessert - Pennsylvania Dutch cherry flip cake. Yummy! I could have done with about 2 tablespoons of vanilla ice cream alongside but as that wasn't in the freezer, I gave it a miss.

[Knaw]

Torta di Mandorla (Moist Almond Cake)

The last slice of the first cake I ever baked. Up to this point I've stuck to cooking only but my girlfriend's birthday rolled around, so I figured I'd try out something new: baking. I'm pleased to report she enjoyed it.

[Tri2Cook]

Knaw: Nice first cake and first post. Welcome to the asylum.

cebada con leche - helado de cajeta - caramelo del limon - cebada soplada

[Lisa2k]

Flourless white chocolate and 70% bittersweet chocolate cake topped with ganache and served with strawberry-lime pink peppercorn cream cheese ice cream. Plated with strawberry-raspberry coulis, chocolate straws, and a chocolate dipped strawberry.

[Darienne]

Who else can I tell?

Yesterday I made Alton Brown's Serious Vanilla Ice Cream, as cited on Cookbooks for Ice Cream & Sorbets (not exact name) and it is incredible!!!

Today it is still soft enough to scoop...set the freezer at -4 degrees F as instructed. This recipe is lower in whipping cream than many and has no eggs! Good-O for caloric intake which is already high enough.

Of course, I substituted my glace kumquats...what on earth could I really do with them? ...for his peach preserves, and added chopped pecans. Yummm (means 'yum')

I am so excited! A terrific success!!!

[Darienne]

Post number two...busy lady.

Especially for those of you with grandchildren. I just received a thank you note from the kids at the MultiCultural Center in Moab. Makes it all worthwhile and fun. I get to be a kid again.

Using a recipe from by Elizabeth LaBau for 'Conversation Hearts' at About Candy.com, I made the candy dough, colored and flavored it, rolled & cut it into assorted largish shapes (not hearts) and then made Royal icing in six different colors, divided into 12 separate little plastic bags and turned it over to the Center staff. Added some premade bitsies and eyes. The kids had a ball decorating and eating the candies. No, I forgot about photos.

After these candies and the Valentine's red heart hard candy lollipops...not to mention the Christmas candies...my stock is running very high.!! The mystery candy lady, indeed.

I do love the magic of making confections for kids. They are not sophisticated nor difficult, but they are fun and the kids here are ecstatic. Just think what I can make for them for Easter.

[Lior]

Wow! Amazing lady!! I wish I could see some pictures!!

[sazji]

I made "Blondies" from Laura Brody's "Basic Baking." I had thought it was a rich chewy butterscotch brownie like my mom used to make...it was sort of dense spongy cakey rubbery. Hmm. I wish I had made any of the amazing things pictured a couple posts back...they all look amazing!

[Kim Shook]

Knaw – that is some first effort!!! Beautiful crumb and it looks so moist! Congratulations and welcome.

Lisa2k – the flourless cake looks just delectable!

Georgia Cracker Candy:

I made these for work to celebrate a birthday – just a bottom crust of graham crackers, PB, butter and 10X and a topping of melted chocolate. No baking – just refrigerate and cut. They were pretty good – not quite as peanut buttery as I’d like, but everyone at work liked them.

[gfron1]

Wanna decorate my cake for me? I'm just wiped after a long couple of weeks of great sales and I've been dorking around with this cake for far too long and quite simply I don't care how it looks anymore - have you ever finished a product just so you can post it here? Well, this is mine.

Its going to be great, but it definitely needs those final touches. So here's what I have from bottom to top:

grapefruit shortbread

very thin layer of 85% tempered chocolate

honey cake with black tea and szechuan peppercorns

grapefruit mousse

celery mousse

celery geleè

The theme is really the grapefruit, but the celery will be right behind it.

So, any suggestions? I'll do whatever you tell me to as long as I have the ingredients. Thanks.

[isomer]

kim shook: Those look really, really good. No bake, huh? I think I may give 'em a try

gfron1: I am in awe and envious of the super clean edge on that cake!!!! Ever get anywhere with the upside down bowl cake?

[gfron1]

you're looking at it. help me decorate it and I'll show you the guts

[shaloop]

gfron1: I am in awe and envious of the super clean edge on that cake!!!! Ever get anywhere with the upside down bowl cake?

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Anyone mind pointing me in the direction of these directions? I need all the help I can get with clean edges.

[gfron1]

Besides mirror glaze, THIS is my favorite cheat. Its just the ol' orange exotic cake that's built upside down in a spring form. I can't edge or pipe worth crap, so I do this and you all think I know what I'm doing

[isomer]

you're looking at it.  help me decorate it and I'll show you the guts

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I know less than nothing about cakes or cake decorating, so I'm kinda hoping you'll teach us n00bs.

[gfron1]

Here's the final product - I, like Tri2Cook, do not claim any skill beyond a kindergartener when it comes to decorating cakes...but it was very tasty

Grapefruit shortbread, black tea infused honey cake with szechuan peppercorns, white chocolate with szechuan, grapefruit bavarois, celery mousse and celery gelee:

The whole process is at my blog.

[Kim Shook]

Rob – that cake is just amazing looking. I’d really love to taste it!

I tried a friend’s browned butter chocolate chip cookies again. He had given me a couple of tips to improve them and stop them from flattening out and spreading so much. He suggested that I use 5 oz. cups of flour and to chill the dough balls for a couple of hours before baking. It really helped that a lot. And the flavor with the browned butter is fantastic:

See how much higher they are? Here are my last ones:

But the texture suffered a little. Look inside:

They were a little dense. So maybe I play a little with the time in the fridge – I had them in there for 4 hours. Maybe only 1 hour? I just love the flavor and that the didn’t end up being Frisbees, but I want a little more tenderness.

[chocoera]

Wanna decorate my cake for me?    I'm just wiped after a long couple of weeks of great sales and I've been dorking around with this cake for far too long and quite simply I don't care how it looks anymore - have you ever finished a product just so you can post it here?  Well, this is mine.

Its going to be great, but it definitely needs those final touches.  So here's what I have from bottom to top:

grapefruit shortbread

very thin layer of 85% tempered chocolate

honey cake with black tea and szechuan peppercorns

grapefruit mousse

celery mousse

celery geleè

The theme is really the grapefruit, but the celery will be right behind it.

So, any suggestions?  I'll do whatever you tell me to as long as I have the ingredients.  Thanks.

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wow! totally inspired by those flavor combos...daring, ballsy, incredible you said you've been wanting to finish the cake...does that mean you assembled it and its been hanging out in the fridge? aren't you worried about the mousse deflating? i love mousse, but am afraid of how long a mousse can last before being consumed....most mousse has gelatin, (except my chocolate mousse doesn't use it) but i've heard horror stories about having it out of the fridge very long, or having it weep or deflate...can that happen?

anyway, sorry i got off topic. but man. can't wait to see the finished cake!

[chocoera]

Here's the final product - I, like Tri2Cook, do not claim any skill beyond a kindergartener when it comes to decorating cakes...but it was very tasty

Grapefruit shortbread, black tea infused honey cake with szechuan peppercorns, white chocolate with szechuan, grapefruit bavarois, celery mousse and celery gelee:

The whole process is at my blog.

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i'm crying. that cake is so beautiful. God bless people like you! and don't be so modest...all your posts/advice/pictures on all these forums are awesome. you are very inspiring!

[CanadianBakin']

Rob – that cake is just amazing looking.  I’d really love to taste it! 

I tried a friend’s browned butter chocolate chip cookies again.  He had given me a couple of tips to improve them and stop them from flattening out and spreading so much.  He suggested that I use 5 oz. cups of flour and to chill the dough balls for a couple of hours before baking.  It really helped that a lot.  And the flavor with the browned butter is fantastic:

But the texture suffered a little.  Look inside:

They were a little dense.  So maybe I play a little with the time in the fridge – I had them in there for 4 hours.  Maybe only 1 hour?  I just love the flavor and that the didn’t end up being Frisbees, but I want a little more tenderness.

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Kim, I think if you chilled them just the same but flattened them a bit when you put them on the pan that they would probably turn out just right.

[gfron1]

You really are too kind Erika Some time you should look at my early posts where my ugliest creations dwell...I've learned lots from these threads and do every day. This was like so many other desserts - I thought it was just okay (translation: not sweet enough) and Tyler thought it was the best ever (translation: not too sweet). I will say once again, you're missing out if you haven't worked celery into a dessert!

[Kim Shook]

Rob – that cake is just amazing looking.  I’d really love to taste it! 

I tried a friend’s browned butter chocolate chip cookies again.  He had given me a couple of tips to improve them and stop them from flattening out and spreading so much.   He suggested that I use 5 oz. cups of flour and to chill the dough balls for a couple of hours before baking.  It really helped that a lot.  And the flavor with the browned butter is fantastic:

But the texture suffered a little.  Look inside:

They were a little dense.  So maybe I play a little with the time in the fridge – I had them in there for 4 hours.  Maybe only 1 hour?  I just love the flavor and that the didn’t end up being Frisbees, but I want a little more tenderness.

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Kim, I think if you chilled them just the same but flattened them a bit when you put them on the pan that they would probably turn out just right.

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Thank you, I'll try that the next time I do them. They were a little 'dome-y', weren't they ?