Strawberry Champagne Tart

Strawberries are in season! Summertime is just about here, bringing the sweetest strawberries! Speaking of sweet- happy mother's day! I have been blessed with the sweetest mothers :) One of the memories I have is with my stepmom making fruit pizza- it's basically a bigger version of a fruit tart.

I guess you can call the fruit pizza a bit of an inspiration for this post. Fruit tarts are one of my favorite desserts, and I couldn't help but use the beautiful, ripe strawberries. The champagne cream filling is a perfect compliment, offering a creaminess with slight kick.

Strawberry Champagne Tart
For the crust
1 stick Butter
1/8 cup Sugar
1 egg yolk
1/2 cup Flour 
pinch Salt

1. In a bowl, cream softened butter with sugar until light and fluffy.
2. Add the egg yolk and incorporate well.
3. Add the flour and a pinch of salt and mix until combined.
4. Pour your dough out onto a plastic wrap and allow to rest in the fridge until firm.
5. Once firm, roll out until about 1/4 inch thick.
6. Line greased tart shell with the dough, trimming the edges. Repeat if you have multiple mini shells. Poke holes with a fork to vent.
7. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Bake the shell until golden. Remove from the oven and cool completely.

Champagne Cream
1 cup Milk
1 tbsp Butter
1/4 cup Sugar
2 Egg Yolks
2 tbsp Corn Starch
4 oz Champagne
.5 oz Gelatin Powder
3.5 oz Water
1 Cup Heavy Cream
3/4 cup Confectioner Sugar

Strawberries

1. Put 3/4 cup of milk into a pot with the butter.
2. Add half the sugar to the milk in the pot, and the other half into a bowl with the remaining milk.
3. Add yolks and corn starch to the bowl with the 1/4 cup of milk. Whisk to make into a slurry and combine well.
4. Heat the milk in the pot until it is scalding. Pour slowly into the bowl, while whisking. Pour the mixture back into the pot.
5. Whisk the mixture on low heat until it thickens. The mixture will boil, and the starchy flavor will cook out.
6. Immediately pour the mixture into a bowl.
7. Mix water and gelatin together. Melt in a microwave with champagne.
8. Add the gelatin mix to the pastry cream. Mix until combined.
9. In a separate bowl, whip heavy cream and confectioner's sugar to soft peaks.
10. Fold the heavy cream into the pastry cream into incorporated.
11. Pipe the cream into the cooled tart shells, and top with strawberries.

This is a great, refreshing summer treat! The sweet strawberries work perfectly with the crispy crust. It's best served right away, garnished with a little mint. It's the perfect treat for any occasion :)

Flan

I hope everyone had an awesome Thanksgiving! I had the pleasure of hosting a Friendsgiving this year, to celebrate one of my best friends birthdays! We got together and feasted on a relatively traditional Thanksgiving meal (minus the turkey- I went with rotisserie chicken this time to save some time and energy). One of our less traditional items was flan.

My flan actually made an appearance at the Thanksgiving dinner I had with my family. One of my mom's favorite desserts is flan, so I had to make it for her favorite holiday. Since I was also hosting the birthday party the next day, I extra one to share with my friends. Cynthia really liked this recipe, so per her request, I had to share it. Its a really simple recipe to make, and it's definitely a crowd pleaser.

Flan (makes 1 large flan)
1/2 cup Sugar
2 tbsp Water
Drop of Honey
2 tbsp Water
1 cup Cream
1 cup Milk
3 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.
2. In a small pot, bring 1/2 cup of sugar, 2 tbsp water, and a drop of honey to a rolling boil.
3. Cook the sugar until the boiling slows, and a dark caramel color is reached.
4. Remove the pot from the heat and quickly add the 2 tbsp of water. Be very careful when doing this step, as the sugar will boil very hard and can splatter. Shake the pot as the water cools the mixture to evenly thin the liquid.
5. Pour the mixture into a 9 inch cake pan and allow it to cool on a flat surface.
6. In a medium pot, pour cream and milk with half the remaining sugar. Bring to a boil.
7. Whisk 3 eggs with the remaining sugar in a bowl. When the cream boils, slowly add it to the eggs while constantly whisking.
8. Once the cream is fully mixed in, add the vanilla. Allow the mix to cool briefly.
9. Once the sugar has set in the pan, and the mix has cooled, gently pour it into the pan.
10. Place the pan into a casserole dish or large cast iron skillet, and pour water into the larger vessel so that the water level is 3/4 of the way up the pan.
11. Place the larger vessel into the oven and bake for about 2 to 2.5 hours.
12. When the custard has formed a skin, and jiggles very slightly, the flan is finished. Depending on the amount of air at the bottom of the pan, the flan may jiggle less or more. You can test if the flan is cooked by very gently pressing the custard. It should bounce back gently.
13. Remove the flan from the heat, and allow to cool for about 30 minutes.
14. Run a knife along the edge of the pan to separate the flan from the sides of the pan.
15. Place into the refrigerator until it is cooled completely. Turn over onto a plate when cooled and serve cold.

This is a great dessert that you can make in advance, or start and leave in the oven for a while. It's a laid back dessert that doesn't require a whole lot of maintenance to execute successfully. You can put it in the oven, and turn on Netflix for 2 hours while you wait! The best part is that it wouldn't be unproductive ;)

Green Tea Mochi

As many of you may know, I learned of Foodgawker earlier this week. I knew that it was a popular food photography website, but that's about it. I realized anybody with a blog can submit pictures that are reviewed for approval as long as the pictures are a certain size. I decided to submit a couple, and my green tea macaron picture was (amazingly) approved! :) I'm going to try to submit a few pictures every week to try to build a gallery on Foodgawker!

So, first, I would like to welcome those of you who may have stumbled upon this blog through Foodgawker. I'd also like to thank all of my supporters who have been sharing this site with their friends and loved ones. I received a lot of amazing encouragement this week, even from strangers. I hope that I can continue touching people's lives with my passion for food and the stories I have.

In honor of the green tea macaron post, I decided to make another green tea dessert for today!

Mochi is a rice cake made with glutinous rice flour. It has a very chewy and slightly sticky texture. It's normally filled with a red bean paste. Sometimes you can find mochi filled with ice cream (and it's heavenly). I opted to try something different. I made some green tea custard and made small green tea mochi bites. It's a bit easier than making mochi ice cream, since the custard is able to hold up well and doesn't melt as quickly.

Green Tea Mochi (Makes 20 pieces)
Green Tea Custard
1 tsp Green Tea Powder
1 tbsp Flour
1/4 cup Sugar
1 cup Milk
3 Egg Yolks
1 tbsp Butter 

1.  In a medium bowl, whisk green tea powder, flour, and half the sugar together.
2. Put the milk and the remaining sugar in a pot and whisk together. Heat on high and bring to a boil.
3. Whisk yolks into the flour mixture until smooth.
4. When the milk boils, pour slowly into the eggs while whisking.
5. Pour the mixture back into the pot and mix on very low heat until it thickens and bubbles.
6. Pour the custard through a sieve to remove any clumps.
7. Pour the custard onto a plastic wrap-lined cookie sheet to cool completely.
8. Once cool, pour into a bag and pipe into quarter-size circles onto aluminum foil.
9. Place in the freezer until completely frozen, about 2-3 hours.

Green Tea Mochi
1 cup Glutinous Rice Flour (Mochi Flour- Mochiko)
3 tbsp Sugar
1 tsp Green Tea Powder
1 cup Water 
1/4 cup Corn Starch, Potato Starch, or Rice Flour

1. In a microwave-safe bowl, pour rice flour, sugar, and green tea powder. Whisk it together to combine completely.
2. Slowly add water and mix until there are no pockets of flour.
3. Cover the bowl with plastic and microwave for 3 minutes.
4. Mix after the 3 minutes to disperse heat as evenly as possible.
5. Heat in 30 second intervals for another 1.5 minutes.
6. Remove from the microwave and allow to cool for about 2 minutes.
7. Sprinkle a thick coating of corn starch, potato starch, or rice flour onto a cutting board.
8. Pour the mochi onto the board and dust the top with starch.
9. Place starch on your hands (the mochi is super sticky). Carefully (it will be hot!) roll the mochi into a log that is about 1.5 inches in diameter and 10 inches long.
10. Cut with a sharp knife that is dusted with the starch into 1/2 inch thick medallions.
11. Coat slightly with the starch and flatten out to about 3 inch diameter circles.
12. Place the frozen custard in the center, and bring together the edges in the center.
13. Pinch the edges closed, and place into a mini muffin cup to hold.
14. Serve! If you want to save them for later, wrap well and place into an airtight plastic container in the freezer. Allow the mochi to thaw about 10 minutes before serving, so that the filling is soft.

Fun fact: My dog is named mochi! :)

Peaches and Cream Cupcakes

As my stay in Georgia comes to a close, I wanted to end with yet another local and seasonal recipe. Georgia peaches are sweet, juicy, and delicious. Though the cupcake "fad" may be slowly fading, there's no reason to move on so quickly! Instead, we should come up with exciting, innovative ways to approach the classic dessert. One way you can do this is by adding a filling, as well as using flavors that deviate from the traditional chocolate and vanilla.

The recipe for the cake portion of the cupcake is adapted from a recipe by Giada de Laurentiis. Although I am often opposed to using cake mixes, if you are in a pinch for time, it is possible to make the cake mix less sweet and dense. Adding a creamy dessert cheese, like mascarpone, can create a lighter, fluffier texture and can balance some of the sweetness with the tartness.

Peaches and Cream Cupcakes (Makes 24 Cupcakes)
Mascarpone Cupcakes
8 oz Mascarpone Cheese, Softened
2 Egg Whites
1 box White Cake Mix
1 cup Water
1/4 cup Vegetable Oil

1. Use a mixer to soften cheese. Gradually add the egg whites until well blended. 
2. Add cake mix, water, and oil.
3. Mix until well incorporated.
4. Scoop into a muffin tin lined with muffin liners. Fill about 3/4 of the way up.
5. Bake at 350 degrees F until golden brown, the cake springs back when poked, and a toothpick or paring knife comes out clean when you poke the cake. (about 17-23 min)
6. Allow to cool to room temperature.

Peach Custard Filling
1 Peach
5 Egg Yolks
3 cups Heavy Cream
3 cups Whole Milk
1/2 cup Sugar
3 tbsp Corn Starch
1/2 cup Heavy Cream

1. Rinse, peel, and cut the peach to a medium dice.
2. Combine milk, cream, half the sugar, and peaches in a pot and heat until it boils. Turn down the heat to low and allow to simmer for 10 minutes.
3. In the meantime, mix together corn starch, yolks, and the remaining sugar.
4. Do not pour sugar into the yolks until you are ready to mix them in. If it is not stirred, the yolk may curdle and you will have bits of yolk in your final product.
5. Pour hot milk slowly into the yolks, whisking constantly.
6. Pour the yolk mixture back into the pot.
7. Stir constantly over low heat until it becomes a thick custard. Allow it to bubble some before turning off the heat. Be careful to not overheat so that there are no chunks of egg in your custard.
8. Pour out the custard into a large bowl. Cover with plastic so that it is touching the surface of the custard. Then, press the custard up the sides of the bowl. Do not let it overflow
9. Allow the custard to cool completely.
10. Whip 1/2 cup of cream to medium-stiff peaks.
11. Once custard is cool, fold in cream.
12. Place custard into a piping bag fitted with a round tip.
13. Put the tip of the piping bag into the center of the cupcake and apply pressure until the cupcake bulges slightly.

Honey Buttercream
5 Egg Whites
3/4 cup Sugar
2 stick Butter
1 tbsp Honey
3 Peaches

1. Heat egg whites and sugar over a pot of boiling water until the sugar is completely dissolved. Whisk occasionally. Check if the sugar is dissolved by rubbing the egg whites between your fingers to feel for crystals.
2. Use an electric mixer on high speed to whip the whites until stiff peaks form and the meringue has cooled.
3. Add softened butter gradually to the meringue and whip.
4. Add the honey to the mixture.
5. Continue to whip. The mixture will separate, look like cottage cheese, then come together in a dense dough-like mass, and then become a very soft buttercream.
6. Put the buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a tip of your choice.
7. Pipe in a circular motion from the outside of the cupcake to the center. Apply even pressure to avoid any blemishes.
8. Garnish cupcakes with sliced peach wedges.

Enjoy this cupcake with a cold glass of milk as the hot summer comes to a close!