Your Daily Sweets (2005-2012)

[Ling]

I had a fruit tart filled with whipped cream at my student's house.

[Stephanie Wallace]

Melange...thanks for the pictures! Which was your favourite? I hope to eat Payard's desserts one day, and I've been reading the L.A. Burdick's thread on Egullet too. The desserts at both these places look incredible. 

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Honestly, I don't think I could choose! The delicate balance of flavors in Payard's plated desserts was absolutely amazing, but sometimes nothing is more satisfying than a few macarons or a slice of Nuss Torte and a pot of tea.

Yum! Any idea what kind of wafer that is? Is it a cookie base?

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It is an almond wafer. I'm going to start experimenting with some recipes; I'll let you know if I get a similar result.

[sanrensho]

It is an almond wafer. I'm going to start experimenting with some recipes; I'll let you know if I get a similar result.

Please do! Thanks.

[spaghetttti]

We will be having a light fish dinner, and I thought these would be good for dessert with some Vietnamese coffee.

[Eden]

My wonderful husband invented eggnog & pumpkin ice-cream floats for dessert last night

Sorry I didn't think to take a picture till it was too late.

[lia]

chufi, please explain the Speculaas cookies, they look delicious.

Isn't it funny how you've never heard of something, then you see it constantly? I'm planning a trip to London in march, and I was reading something about a French bakery called Laduree that recently opened in Harrod's (I think) and the article went on about the macaroons, which were colorful and unlike any macaroons I've seen anywhere else. Now of course photos of these particular type of macaroons are popping up everywhere and I'm completely intrigued.

Anyway, after trying Nigella's Sticky Toffee Dessert a couple of weeks ago, and not being too pleased with the results, I was happy to find a Sticky Toffee Pudding recipe online here since I lost the original tear sheet from NY Mag quite some time ago, and that's what I'm going to make right now!

[Ling]

I made another chocolate cake...oh man, I love chocolate cake.

[Ling]

(the batter was even yummier than the cookies! )

[Megan Blocker]

Dark chocolate filled with raspberry jam from Chocolate Bar. Yummmmm...

[Ling]

^Love the packaging.

[Moopheus]

Peanut butter goop. It was supposed to be peanut butter fudge, but it didn't set up very solidly. Spoonable fudge. That's it. Spoonable fudge.

I eat my mistakes. Leave no evidence.

[ericablu]

A coconut cream tart with butter cookie crust. . .

><img src="http://baking.ericablu.com/wp-content/coconutcreme.jpg" />

[shaloop]

(the batter was even yummier than the cookies!  )

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Mmmmmm! Please tell me more!

[Stephanie Wallace]

Apple-cardamon cake with walnuts and a scoop of 5-spice ice cream.

[Ling]

Mmmmmm!  Please tell me more!

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Jgarner's recipe:

4 1/2 oz. unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped

9 oz. bittersweet chocolate (70%), coarsely chopped

1/2 C. (1 stick) unsalted butter

4 eggs

3 TBS. instant espresso powder

1 3/4 C. sugar

1/2 C. pastry flour

1/4 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped into 1/2-inch chunks (or use semi-sweet morsels)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt unsweetened chocolate, bittersweet chocolate, and butter in a heavy saucepan over low heat, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat.

Combine eggs, espresso powder and sugar in mixer and mix on low speed until blended, then on high speed until mixture becomes lighter in color and thickens, about 2-3 minutes. Add melted chocolate mixture (do not cool beforehand) and beat on medium speed until just mixed.

Add pastry flour, baking powder and salt, scraping down the sides of the mixer as necessary, mixing at medium-low speed, just until combined. Fold in the remaining chocolate chunks.

Scoop or spoon one-fourth cup batter per cookie onto parchment. Bake until set, about 15 minutes. Cool for a few minutes before removing to a rack to cool completely.

I made the following changes with my batch:

-scaled the sugar down to 1 1/3 cup

-omitted the 3 tbsp espresso powder, and added 3 tbsp Scharffen Berger cocoa nibs

-baked for 14 minutes, except I think they would've been better if I took them out at 11-12 minutes (I like my cookies a bit gooey and underdone.)

Edited November 22, 2005 by Ling (log)

[Patrick S]

I haven't posted in a while because nothing I've made has been very exciting. Plus it is getting dark so early that I dont have much time to take shots in the sunlight. But here's a few things we've had recently.

Bittersweet souffle:

Ginger cake:

Apple loaf:

RLB's lemon cream illusion:

Orange tuiles:

[CanadianBakin']

Patrick, which apple bread recipe did you use? Was it the one Wendy suggested in the apple bread thread?

[Patrick S]

Patrick, which apple bread recipe did you use? Was it the one Wendy suggested in the apple bread thread?

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Yes.

[Daniel]

Patrick,

Everything looks so perfect.. I wanted to single out just how gorgeous that souffle looks.. That is text book, protractors involved type shtuff.. I dont think I have ever seen a better looking souffle.. But then I noticed the ginger cake, again, cut perfectly.. Perfect on top, looks super moist.. All the way down the line, you create such great things..

Edited November 23, 2005 by Daniel (log)

[Ling]

Patrick, do you use collars for your souffles? (Everything looks cookbook-worthy, btw. )

[Sottise]

I made my first batch of meringues ever, to celebrate my grandmother passing her 51 year old Kenwood Chef mixer on to me. She makes meringues for every occasion, but has now decided she needs something a little less hefty (she's 81), so her loss is my gain!

These were especially nice, caramel flavoured and just a little salty to take the edge off the sweet. The strawberry was the sole ripe one on my plants, and I choose to believe it completely makes up for the fact the rest of dessert was basically sugar and whipped cream.

A successful first attempt really - and Bee almost managed to give them the lick of approval. He's moving so fast he's blurry, the little thief - he wasn't there when I pushed the button.

[Chufi]

chufi, please explain the Speculaas cookies,  they look delicious.

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Lia, see here in the Dutch Cooking thread for the recipe (for 2 kinds of speculaas)

[Patrick S]

Patrick, do you use collars for your souffles? (Everything looks cookbook-worthy, btw.  )

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No, but the recipe I used said to run a paring knife around the edge of the ramekin before you bake, to create a little air pocket between the souffle and the ramekin. I trying omitting this step on a couple of the souffles, just to see what would happen, and indeed they rose very unevenly.

[tejon]

Dobos Torte for dessert on turkey day. I didn't do a great job with pouring the caramel or in decorating, but it was delicious!

[Rebecca263]

Someone brought a Delicious Orchards blueberry pie to dinner and my 12 year old niece made a sugar free Jello um, sculpture(for want of a better description) but I ate another plate of turkey with trimmings. It's Thanksgiving and I'M grateful for turkey with trimmings!