Apple Picking and Puff Pastry

Fall is officially upon us, although this week was still brutally hot in Georgia. Despite the hot weather, some friends and I went to a local orchard to go apple picking! We went to an orchard that had a lot of different apples to choose from and pick. The orchard we went to also had cow milking and pig racing! Both of them were pretty anticlimactic... Nonetheless we had a great time!

My favorite part of the day was a little stop we made on the way back.  On the way to the orchard, we saw a huge field of sunflowers from the road. We decided to take a quick adventure on the way back to Atlanta. The field had over 90,000 sunflowers, and lots of bees and butterflies to support! I'd say the only negative was when I stepped in an ant pile (ouch!). The orchard was about an hour and a half from the city, so we definitely made the most of the trip there!

We picked a total of 62 apples, and split it up between 8 of us. I don't usually eat apples, but the season calls for lots of apple desserts. I put together a quick cobbler and a pie, but I really wanted to make a flaky pastry with some of my apples.

I haven't made puff pastry since culinary school. It was only once before, and I understand why I haven't tried to make it again. It's a time consuming dough, but the finished product is well worth it! Laminated dough is something really special- every layer you make ends up in the finished product, creating the most wonderful texture. On top of that, the dough itself is not sweet.

Apple Puff Pastry (makes 12)

Dough
8 oz Flour
2.7 oz Water
2 oz Butter, Softened
Pinch Salt
1/3 of an Egg (mix it, then add only a third)
1 oz White Wine 

8 oz Plugra Butter, for Butter Block

1. Place the water, egg, wine, butter into a mixing bowl for a standing mixer. Then add the dry ingredients into the bowl. Use a dough hook attachment to mix the dough well.
2. Once the dough has started to gather and pulls away from the sides, turn on a timer and continue to mix on low speed for 6 minutes.
3. After 6 minutes, shape the dough into a square shape, wrap the dough, and put it into the fridge to rest.
4. Make a butter envelope by folding a piece of parchment paper to 7 inches x7 inches. You should be able to make an envelope shape. This is done by folding the parchment in half, short end to short end. Then, fold the sides in toward the center, so that the area inside of the fold is 7 inches. Then, fold the top portion of the parchment down, so that the square is complete.
5. Place the plugra butter block into the envelope. Use your rolling pin to roll the butter into the shape of the square. Make sure it's evenly rolled out. Place in the fridge to harden.
6. Once the dough and butter are at a similar consistency, pull them both out. They should both be firm but not hard.
7. On a floured surface, roll out the dough to a 10 inch x 10 inch square. Place the butter block on the dough, so that it sits as a diamond within the square. Bring the corners of the dough together to cover the butter. Do not overlap the dough corners.
8. Roll out the dough to a long rectangle. This is the portion of the dough where you make multiple folds to create layers of butter and dough. The first fold should be a 3-fold. Fold one side in, and the other side over, so that it is like a letter. Wrap and rest in the fridge for 15 minutes.
9. Roll out the dough in the opposite direction of the last fold. If the fold finished on the side, you should rotate the dough 90 degrees, so that the fold would finish on top or bottom. Roll out the dough to a long rectangle again. Fold the right side about 1/4 of the way inward. Then, fold the other side to meet the first flap. Then, fold the dough in half. Wrap the dough and rest in the fridge for 15 minutes.
10. Remove the dough from the fridge and repeat steps 8 and 9, so that you have performed a 3 fold, a 4 fold, a 3 fold, and another 4 fold.
11. Place the dough back into the fridge to rest until you are ready to assemble.

Frangipane (Almond Cream)
.5 stick Butter
2 oz Sugar
1.5 oz Almond Flour
1 egg
.5 oz Flour
.5 tsp Vanilla

1. Cream butter, sugar, and almond flour together in a bowl.
2. Add egg and vanilla.
3. Scrape the bowl to make sure that the ingredients are well incorporated.
4. Add flour and mix until incorporated.
Assembly
Final puff pastry dough
Frangipane
2 Apples
2 tbsp Sugar
Pinch Clove
Pinch Cinnamon
Pinch Ground Ginger

1. Roll out the puff pastry to about 1/8 inch thick. You can leave it a tiny bit thicker, but you want it to be less than 1/4 inch.
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
3. Cut the rolled dough to 3.5 x 3.5 inch squares.
4. Place squares onto a flat, parchment lined sheet pan. There should be some space in between each.
5. Pipe frangipane into the center third of the pastry. This should be a layer that is not too thin or too thick. I look for something about 1/2 an inch thick.
6. Slice your apple into 1/4ths. Then slice out the core by make a diagonal cut. Cut the apple piece in half.
7. Taking the 1/8th of the apple, lay it on its side, so that the flesh faces away from you. Use your knife to slice about 1/8 inch pieces. You can discard the end pieces.
8. Arrange the sliced apples on top of the frangipane.
8. Sprinkle a small amount of the sugar and spice mixture over the top. 
9. Bake the pastry for about 20-25 minutes, until golden brown. 

Once the apple pastries come out, they are flaky and tasty. The apples have a great natural sweetness that pairs perfectly with the almond cream and nutty pastry. If you're eating this after a day or multiple, be sure that you put it into the toaster oven for a short time. This will allow the pastry to recrisp. If you are short on time, you can also recreate this using store bought puff pastry.

I'm not the biggest dessert person, but I am a total sucker for french pastry. I love that it isn't too sweet, but still has a lot of integrity. French pastry is completely classic, elegant, beautiful, and tasty! It is a little bit time consuming, but definitely worth the effort.

Grande Macaron (Plus a Video)

My friends, Denver and Meng Meng, started a media company called Enjoy. Denver is very active in the film world, and has worked with the production of major shows, like MasterChef Junior, as well as filming music videos! The husband and wife duo branched out to grow their personal brand, while doing what they love! 

 

https://vimeo.com/171320772

 

When Denver approached me about doing this video, I was nervous to say the least... He and Meng Meng were so friendly and supportive when sharing their vision and directing me through it. Nonetheless, there's a reason I stick to blogging. You can take a peek at the 30-second promo here:


For this video, I wanted to make something that is elegant and makes a statement. The grande macaron was a great way to do that! It's basically a giant macaron filled with mousse and garnished with raspberries.

Grande Macaron (makes about 3-5 macarons)
Shells
100g Almond Flour
110 g Confectioner's Sugar
15 g Cocoa Powder
50 g Granulated Sugar
70 g Egg Whites (2 large whites)
 
1. Pulse almond flour, cocoa powder, and powdered sugar in a food processor until very finely ground. Be careful not to grind too long, because it will release all of the oils, ruining your final product.
2. Sift the powder with a medium-mesh sieve.
3. Place the particles that are too large to fit through the sieve back into the food processor, pulse, and sift again. Throw out the excess pieces.
4. In a grease-free bowl, place your egg whites and sugar. Allow to sit for a few minutes to begin to dissolve.
5. Use grease-free beaters on high speed to whip the egg whites to stiff peaks.
6. Use a rubber spatula to fold the dry ingredients into the meringue until the batter moves slowly, like lava. If you run your spatula through it, it should fall together after 5-7 seconds.
7. Put the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a large round tip (3/8 inch). 
8. Pipe rounds that are about an inch apart onto a nonstick baking mat (silpat) that is placed onto a cookie sheet. 
9. Do this by holding the bag straight up about half an inch above the silpat, applying pressure to the bag until about 2-2.5 inches in diameter, stopping pressure, and then removing by moving hand in a very small circular motion to release the tip from the macaron shell. Make sure there is enough space to spread.
10. Rap your cookie sheet/sheet pan on the table a few times to make sure there are no bumps on the macaron shells.
11. Let rest until dry to the touch (about 30-45 minutes, longer on rainy days).
12. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. If you have a convection oven, use convection.
13. Bake macaron shells on the second shelf of the oven for 20-25 minutes, until they do not wiggle when nudged.
14. Remove from oven and allow shells to cool completely before removing from the silpat.


Chocolate Mousse
3.75 oz Dark/Semi-Sweet Chocolate
4 oz Heavy Cream
.5 packet (.13 oz) Gelatin
.75 oz Water, to Bloom Gelatin
1.75 oz Sugar
.5 oz Water, to Melt Sugar
1.25 oz Egg Yolks
1 box Raspberries

1. Melt the chocolate in a heat proof bowl placed on top of a pot of boiling water (double boiler).
2.  Whip the heavy cream to soft peaks and set aside.
3. In a small container, mix gelatin and water and allow to bloom.
4. Begin whipping the yolks. You are looking to aerate them to a pale yellow.
5. As the yolks begin whipping, heat the sugar and water in a pan. Allow to boil and become slightly syrupy. The bubbles will start to linger slightly, but the sugar syrup will not become very thick or change color. You will probably cook the sugar for about 1 minute to get to this point.
6. Pour the sugar syrup very slowly into the yolks as you whip them. Be careful as it is extremely hot. This is best done in a standing mixer.
7. Once the sugar is poured in, melt the gelatin mixture. Pour the melted gelatin into the yolks. Keep the yolks whipping until completely cool.
8. Once cooled, fold the yolks into the chocolate.
9. Once combined, add the cream and mix until smooth. Allow to set in the fridge until it is no longer soft, and is completely set. This could be a few hours or overnight.

Assembly
1. Pair the shells by size.
3. Put the mousse into a piping bag with the same tip that you used to pipe the macarons.
4. Pipe the mousse into the center of the macaron. You want to hold the bag about 3/4 inch to one inch above the surface. Pipe leaving plenty of room for raspberries to go around.
5. Place fresh raspberries around the mousse, allowing it to hold them in place.
6. Put the other shell onto the top to create a "sandwich". 
7. Place in the fridge a few hours before to allow the flavors to develop.

The macaron definitely packs a wow factor, with great flavor. Chocolate and raspberry are the perfect pair, so I was definitely excited to try it!

If you ever have any film or photography needs, you definitely should consider Enjoy. They do corporate videos, events, weddings, and music videos. Enjoy also does social media management. I can attest to the difficulty of trying to manage social media while working full time. It's a great way to grow your audience, and can definitely benefit your site.

Be sure to check them out for all of your media needs!

Facebook: /enjoynewmedia
Instagram: @enjoynewmedia
Website: http://www.weareenjoy.com/ 
 

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 :)

Profiteroles (Choux Cream)

Happy Easter! I hope that everyone was able to celebrate and enjoy the day. This was my first Easter in a couple years that I wasn't working, which seemed strange. When I was working at the hotel, I worked Easter brunch, so I'd be there from about 5 or 6 am to set up until close to the end of brunch. After brunch I would head to church (back when my church had service at 4pm). Needless to say, Easter Sunday was always a long day, but it was always so rewarding and refreshing.

Thinking about Easter brunch at the hotel reminds me of all the desserts that I used to help put out with the rest of the team. I personally don't have the biggest sweet tooth, which is why I love choux so much! This french pastry is not very sweet, but pairs excellently with creamy fillings. You see it used for cream puffs/profiteroles and eclairs.

I paired this choux with a mascarpone filling. It's great with the choux, since it's smooth, creamy, and light. If you're a fan of chocolate or coffee, you could make a cocoa glaze to top it.

Choux Pastry (makes 50 small pieces)
250g Milk
150g Water 
185g Butter
8g Sugar
8g Salt
220g Cake Flour
400g Eggs
 
1. Bring milk, water, and butter to a boil in a large pot.
2. Reduce heat to low. Add flour, sugar, and salt all at once.
3. Mix the batter thoroughly until it combines into one mass.
4. Move the batter into a bowl and use a mixer to mix on low speed to cool off gently.
5. Crack the eggs into a container.
6. Pour the eggs slowly, about 2 at a time while mixing on low speed. Scrape the bowl between pours to ensure a smooth batter.
7. Place the finished batter into a piping bag fitted with a round tip. Pipe small rounds, about 1-1.5 inches in diameter onto a silpat.
8. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
9. Spray the piped out choux lightly with baking spray. Bake in the oven until golden brown, around 18 minutes, rotating halfway through.
10. Remove the choux from the oven and allow to cool. Once cool, use a small knife or a sharp piping tip to poke a hole at the bottom of the pastry.

Mascarpone Cream
1 cup Milk
1 oz Butter
1.25 oz Flour
3 oz Sugar
1.5 oz Egg Yolks
.3 oz Gelatin
1.8 oz Water
8 oz Mascarpone Cheese
2.5 oz Powdered Sugar
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract

1. Bring milk and butter to a boil.
2. In the meantime, whisk together flour and sugar in a bowl, and add the egg yolks.
3. Pour the milk into the egg mixture slowly, whisking constantly, then pour everything back into the pot. Turn your heat to low.
4. Whisk the mixture constantly and allow it to boil and thicken.
5. Pour the mixture through a strainer into a bowl.
6. Bloom gelatin in water, and melt. Pour it into the pastry cream mixture and let it cool slightly.
7. Put mascarpone and powdered sugar into the pastry cream and fold thoroughly. Add vanilla for flavor.
8. Place the filling into a piping bag fitted with a small round tip.
9. Pipe the filling into the choux pastry and serve. You can freeze or refrigerate these pastries as well, but they taste best freshly served.

Choux pastry is one of my favorites! I love that it's not very sweet, but adds the perfect balance of flavor with a smooth filling. The other thing I like about choux is that you can fill it with whatever filling that you want to.

Chi and Yusuke Wedding

Chi and Yusuke had a really beautiful wedding back in October. I was honored to be able to work with them to develop the cake that they wanted! Chi reached out to me towards the beginning of this year to see if I'd be able to do their wedding cake. A couple phone conversations and a tasting later, we had a plan for the perfect cake!

Chi and Yusuke ended up deciding to do a white sponge with a light chocolate mousse filling for their flavor. They wanted the cake to have a smooth buttercream on the outside, with a palette knife finish and decadent florals. They got the most beautiful gold cake topper that perfectly complemented the flowers.

This couple was such a joy to work with- they are both Atlanta artists and animators. They work together and have been dating for years! Chi made her own invitations and a lot of the decorations. Chi and Yusuke are a really kind couple, and I look forward to being able to work with them again!

Chi graciously provided me with these beautiful pictures taken by their photographer at the wedding. Chris Wong, an Atlanta-based photographer took these stunning pictures. You can check out more of his work at his website.

Stay tuned for a fun recipe to celebrate fall next week!!! I think the technical difficulties have been solved- I'm so looking forward to posting regularly again!

Hot Chocolate Pastry Cream

Winter is on its way out! And with it, hot cocoa. This is a great recipe to transition hot cocoa packets out of your pantry and into something more fit for spring. It's a simple recipe that can be used in whatever dessert you would like! It's great to fill tarts, eclairs, pies, or as a dipping sauce for fruit!

I took pie dough and folded it multiple times, before baking it into a compressed sheet and cutting my desired shapes from it. I'll provide the recipe below- so that you can recreate the bite-size layered pastries!

Pie Crust Circles
1 stick Butter
6 oz Flour
1/2 tsp Salt
2 oz Ice Cold Water

1. Cut the cold butter into small cubes (1cm x 1cm).
2. Put the pieces into the flour and salt. Make sure each cube is coated.
3. Press the butter to flat pieces.
4. Rub the butter between your fingers to make flakes. Continue until the butter chunks are about the size of a lima bean.
5. Create a well in the center of the flour and pour your cold water into it.
6. Bring your flour towards the center of the well a little bit at a time, until it is completely incorporated.
7. Flatten your dough slightly and wrap it in plastic. Place in the fridge for about 30 minutes to 1 hour, until it is chilled.
8. Roll out the dough into a long rectangle.
9. To make the flaky layers, you will have to perform folds to the dough. You will need to perform 2 tri-folds, and 2 book-folds, resting the dough for about 10 minutes in between each.

10. Tri-fold: This fold is very simple. You will need to roll your dough out to about 1/4 inch thick in the shape of a rectangle. Begin by bringing one end upward. Bring the other end downward to create 3 layers of dough.
11. Repeat this process. when you re-roll the dough, you should roll in the opposite direction of the folds.
12. Book-fold: After you have rested the dough from the second tri fold, re-roll the dough. Many people will fold the edges to the halfway point, and then fold it in half again. However, I advise against that, so that you will have even distribution of layers. Bring the top side to the 1/4 point, and then the bottom side of the dough to the same point. Then, fold the dough in half.
13. Roll the dough out and repeat.

Tri-Fold

Book-Fold

14. After resting the dough again, roll the dough out to a 1/4 inch sheet. Place the dough onto a baking sheet lined with parchment.
15. Cover with another sheet of parchment and another baking sheet to compress the dough.
16. Bake at 350 degrees F until both sides are golden brown. You may have to flip the dough if the bottom heat in your oven is very high.
17. Cut circles out of the dough after the dough is cooled.

Hot Chocolate Pastry Cream
1 cup Milk
1 tbsp Butter
1/4 cup Sugar
2 Egg Yolks
2 tbsp Corn Starch
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
1 packet of Hot Chocolate

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. Turn off the heat and immediately pour the hot chocolate packet into the mixture.
7. Pour the mixture into a bowl or onto a plastic lined baking sheet and cover with plastic touching the custard.
8. Place into the refrigerator until completely cool.
9. Once set, you can pipe dough onto the dough circles and stack

This is a great way to use up your remaining hot cocoa as the weather warms up, and a simple dessert to share with your loved ones!

Plum Hand Pi(e)

Happy belated Pi Day! It was an exciting one this year (one in a hundred). We got to experience 3/14/15 9:26:53! I realize this is a nerdy thing to be excited about, but how could you not be excited when you get to celebrate with PIE!

This week, I made some mini hand pies. A hand pie is basically a small handheld pocket made with pie dough and filling. Plums are starting to get closer to coming into season. You can find some popping up at grocery stores, though they'll probably be underripe. These plums are great for baking! The hard plum becomes soft when baking, without becoming soggy or releasing too much liquid.

The flavor of the plums after being baked is sweet and tangy, and the texture is tender, without becoming mushy. It compliments the flaky pie dough very well.The pastry cream is a quick addition that adds a balance and sweetness to the savory pie crust. Cinnamon-ginger sugar is the perfect note of warmth to finish the pie.

Plum Hand Pie (Makes 15)
Pie Dough
1 stick Butter
6 oz Flour
1/2 tsp Salt
2 oz Ice Cold Water

1. Cut the cold butter into small cubes (1cm x 1cm).
2. Put the pieces into the flour and salt. Make sure each cube is coated.
3. Press the butter to flat pieces.
4. Rub the butter between your fingers to make flakes. Continue until the butter chunks are about the size of a lima bean.
5. Create a well in the center of the flour and pour your cold water into it.
6. Bring your flour towards the center of the well a little bit at a time, until it is completely incorporated.
7. Flatten your dough slightly and wrap it in plastic. Place in the fridge for about 30 minutes to 1 hour, until it is chilled.

Vanilla Pastry Cream
1 cup Milk
1 tbsp Butter
1/4 cup Sugar
2 Egg Yolks
2 tbsp Corn Starch
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract

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 or onto a plastic lined sheet and cover with plastic touching the custard.
7. Place into the refrigerator until completely cool.

Assembly
Pie Dough
Pastry Cream
3 Plums
1 Egg
1/4 cup Sugar
Cinnamon
Ginger

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Slice plum into thin slices. You do this by cutting in half and removing the pit. Then, cut slices no more than 1/4 inch thick.
2. Roll the pie dough until very thin- no more than 1/8 inch. Be sure to flour your surface often, to prevent sticking.
3. Use a round cookie cutter to cut 3-inch circles. Remember you will need 2 circles for each pie.
4. You can re-roll your dough once, but then will have to rest the dough again.
5. Whisk an egg with a little water to make a quick egg wash.
6. On a baking sheet lined with foil, set half of the pie dough circles about 3 inches apart. Put the other half of the pie dough into the fridge to cool.
7. Brush the circles with a light coating of egg wash.
8. Use a spoon to spread a thin layer of pastry cream on the center of the dough disk. Place some plum slices onto the center.
9. Mix sugar with a little ginger and cinnamon to taste. Sprinkle the sugar onto the plums. 
10. Remove the other half of the dough from the fridge and use a sharp knife to cut out a pattern. This is a vent hole to allow the steam to escape.
11. Place the top circle onto the other dough disk and use a fork to seal all the way around. You do this by pressing the fork onto the edges.
12. Brush a light coat of egg wash over the top and sprinkle with the sugar mixture.
13. Bake the plum hand pies in the oven for about 20 minutes, or until golden brown. Rotate the pan halfway through baking.
14. Allow the pies to cool slightly and serve warm.

Sorry to everyone who has been waiting for a new post for a while! I have been so occupied with work, as well as other things that have come up keeping me from posting! I really have missed it, and I am excited to be back! I hope everyone had a great pi day, and I look forward to next week! Until then, don't forget to share! :)