Your Daily Sweets (2005-2012)

[petite tête de chou]

An enormous nectarine and a mug of hot Earl Grey tea.

Usually I wait about 30 minutes to an hour after supper before eating or drinking anything. And even then I usually don't want something to eat but hot tea will almost always follow my meal. A cup of sweet peppermint tea is probably my favorite "dessert."

[browniebaker]

Last night I had warm, flaky peach empanadas with peach-almond sorbet and a drizzle of raspberry sauce. It was heavenly.

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Any chance you could share the recipe and instructions for peach empanadas or point me in the right direction? Just the thought of it is making my mouth water.

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If only I had the recipe! This was the conclusion to a delicious dinner with my favorite cousin (girls's night out!) at a little restaurant named Persimmon, right here in Chevy Chase. Uh, I can't get up the nerve to ask for the recipe, but if you get the recipe, please let me know!

[LoveToEatATL]

I made 2 desserts today for tomorrow's dinner....friends are coming over for my birthday and I love to cook, so I'm having a blast!  I made Chocolate-Orange Mousse (from the Barefoot in Paris cookbook), and Cook's Illustrated's "Perfect Lemon Bars."  I have tasted both and I am thrilled with the results. The lemon bars are truly perfect...the crust is excellent and the filling is just right.

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Would you mind terribly posting the recipe for the mousse? It sounds divine!!

Happy Birthday!

Edited August 31, 2005 by LoveToEatATL (log)

[wyf4lyf]

Here's the mousse recipe. It was to die for...we were all swooning!! I used Ghirardelli chocolate which comes in 4 oz. bars, so I used 4 oz. semi sweet and 4 oz. bittersweet and it was perfect. I like darker chocolate anyway. Next time I might use all bittersweet!

Chocolate-Orange Mousse (from Barefoot in Paris cookbook)

6 ounces good semisweet chocolate, chopped

2 ounces good bittersweet chocolate, chopped

1/4 cup Grand Marnier

1/4 cup water

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 teaspoon grated orange zest

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

8 extra-large eggs, at room temperature, separated

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar

Pinch kosher salt

1/2 cup cold heavy cream

Whipped Cream, for decoration

Mandarin oranges, drained, for decoration

Combine the 2 chocolates, Grand Marnier, 1/4 cup water, and the vanilla in a heat-proof bowl. Set it over a pan of simmering water just until the chocolate melts. Cool completely to room temperature. Whisk in the orange zest and butter until combined.

 

Place the egg yolks and 1/2 cup of the sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on high speed for 4 minutes, or until very thick and pale yellow. With the mixer on low speed, add the chocolate mixture. Transfer to a large bowl.

 

Place 1 cup of egg whites (save or discard the rest), the salt, and 1 tablespoon of the sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on high speed until firm but not dry. Whisk 1/4 of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture; then fold the rest in carefully with a rubber spatula.

 

Without cleaning the bowl or whisk, whip the heavy cream and the remaining tablespoon of sugar until firm. Fold the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture. Pour the mousse into individual dishes or an 8-cup serving bowl. Chill and decorate with whipped cream and oranges. Serve with extra whipped cream on the side.

[Megan Blocker]

Fudge brownies...yum!

[Moopheus]

Does ice cream before lunch count as dessert? I was passing by the Laboratorio de Gelato and it was hot out and so therefore I needed some. I had a cup with vanilla rum, caramel, and basil gelato. They open at 10 am, so they must have known I was coming. Then I went home and had lunch.

[Ling]

peanut butter cream tart (with an Oreo crust)

yum! Sooooo full.

[kitwilliams]

passionfruit curd and peach tart. it was lovely to look at, too. one of these days i'll get that digital camera.

now i have to go post on the "what's for breakfast" thread because i had it for breakfast too!

[Moopheus]

To make it worse, I came home and made more ice cream to have after dinner. Coffee. Actually, making coffee ice cream turns out to be not such a good idea if I want to actually be able to get to sleep tonight.

[Ling]

graham crackers...mmm

pastry cream...mmm

[Woods]

Inspired by the "What's for Dinner?" and "Breakfast -- The most important meal of the day" threads in the "Cooking" forum, I ask you...

What are you cooking for dessert for yourself?

I just pulled a strawberry/blackberry crisp out of the oven.  Cinnamon, brown sugar, and St. Brendan's Irish Creme was mixed in with the fruit.  The crisp topping contains a buncha butter, brown sugar, toasted coconut flakes, flour, and rolled oats.

Smells amazing.  I'm about to go try it now that's it's cooled down a bit.

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I'm having vanilla ice cream topped with chestnuts in rum flavored syrup.

[skyflyer3]

Tried Alton Brown's recipe for The Chewy chocolate chip cookies, and I've been eating them after all meals, or about six on their own for a meal. Every night. My body can't take this much butter on a regular basis, let me tell you, but they're just so good.

[Ling]

-whale's tails with cinnamon sugar

-maple nut fudge

-blue raspberry cotton candy

-molten chocolate cake with ice-cream

[raxelita]

Fudge brownies...yum!

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These look like superior brownies. Can you post the recipe? I'd like to attempt these after a shot at Ling's.

[yellowmnm81]

i made pierre herme's tarte grenobliese tonight... yummmmm!!! :-) wasn't too difficult... and the tart was sensational. can't wait to eat more tomorrow..

[cathrynapple]

four berry pie, and a giant piece of belgian chocolate cheesecake from work. i'd been eyeing it in the case, and there was one piece left at closing time. so i took it.

[Ling]

Some pecan pie that I originally made for a dinner party, but didn't bring because the I rolled out the pastry dough too thin and the pastry leaf border browned too much in the oven. So I'm eating my imperfect pie. (I whipped up a batch of brownies to bring to the party instead.)

[petite tête de chou]

A few slices of Black Diamond extra-sharp cheddar cheese with seeded crispbread, a cup of English Breakfast tea and huge red plum...while watching Shawn of the Dead. My kinda dessert.

[Syrah]

Tonight we are having strawberries. I hulled them and poured some cointreau over. Served with mascarpone cream. Simply delicious.

[Mottmott]

I've been getting some wonderful fruit from a local orchard.

When I'm not too busy scarfing them down raw, I poach the peaches simply, in water, with allspice, cinnamon stick, a splash of kirsch, and a very small amount of sugar. After they've poached to the proper texture, I remove them, reduce the liquid, return the peaches . I'll try a batch in wine or champagne, but I think that might interfere with the peach flavor rather than enhance it.

A week or so back I made a peach pie with them, but the essentail peachy taste and perfume is stronger when poached.

My index for when a peach is best to eat? If you can pull the skin off without first dipping it in hot water or paring it. I just use the knife to catch the skin away from flesh and pull. If perfectly ripe, it takes very little more time than the hot water method and does not damage the fresh ripe taste.

[kthull]

Went to a barbecue today and brought two Herme desserts, one from the Desserts book (Philadelphia cake) and one from the Chocolate book (Linzer tart). Both were big hits.

[Ling]

chocolate cake scraps from the 4 cakes I baked and levelled today

[Megan Blocker]

Fudge brownies...yum!

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These look like superior brownies. Can you post the recipe? I'd like to attempt these after a shot at Ling's.

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Absolutely! I'm at work right now, but will post the recipe tonight when I get home!

As promised: Fudge Brownies

Spent this weekend in CT at my grandparents' place on the Sound (gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous). Since there were only four of us, the blueberry pie I made for Saturday night's dessert kept us going for Sunday, too!

Edited to include link to recipe.

Edited September 7, 2005 by Megan Blocker (log)

[jgarner53]

Apple pie again - this time it was the pie I made for the pie crust demo thread. Definitely superior to the one from last week.

[etalanian]

Banana Creme Fraiche Ice Cream. Homemade, of course.