In the Oven: Easy Candy Bar Tart
Posting date is July 6th! Happy baking!
Note that there’s an error in the book – the baking interactions for the crust are omitted, but they’re included here.
Easy Candy Bar Tart
Yield: One 9-inch tart
For the Chocolate Cookie Crust
30 chocolate wafer cookies (about6 ounces)
1 tablespoon sugar
3 ounces (3⁄4 stick) unsalted butter, melted
For the Caramel Walnut Filling
1 cup sugar
1⁄3 cup heavy cream
21⁄2 ounces (5 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened, cut into 1⁄2-inch cubes
1⁄2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1⁄2 teaspoon fleur de sel
2 cups walnuts, toasted
For the Chocolate Glaze
4 ounces good-quality dark chocolate (60 to 72%), coarsely chopped
3 ounces (3⁄4 stick) unsalted butter, softened, cut into 1⁄2-inch cubes
1 teaspoon light corn syrup
Make the Chocolate Cookie Crust
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Lightly coat a 9-inch springform pan with nonstick cooking spray.
In a food processor, pulse the cookies into a very fine powder. You should have about 1 1⁄2 cups. Place the crumbs in a medium bowl and stir in the sugar.
Pour the butter over the crumb mixture and mix until well combined. The mixture will feel wet. Turn the crumb mixture out into the prepared pan and press it into the bottom and up the sides (just shy of 1 inch high). You can use the back of a large spoon or the bottom of a glass to even out the crust.
Bake the crust crust until it’s set (about 10 minutes) or until just fragrant. Put it in the refrigerator while you make the filling.
Make the Caramel Walnut Filling
In a medium saucepan with high sides, combine the sugar with 1⁄4 cup water. Stir the mixture gently so you don’t splash any of it up on the sides of the pan. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Increase the heat to high, and, without stirring, allow the mixture to boil. Once it begins to turn a rich amber color, remove it from the heat and slowly stream in the cream. After the mixture stops bubbling, return the pan to very low heat and whisk in the butter. Continue whisking gently until the caramel is uniform and slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Stir in the vanilla and fleur de sel.
Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the walnuts. Pour the filling into the prepared crust and chill the tart for at least 1 hour.
Make the Chocolate Glaze
Place the chocolate, butter, and corn syrup in the bowl of a double boiler over medium heat. Using a rubber spatula, stir the mixture until the chocolate and butter are completely melted and smooth. Remove the bowl from the water and stir the glaze to release excess heat.
Pour the glaze over the tart and use an offset spatula to smooth it out to the edges—try to cover the entire surface of the tart. Refrigerate the tart for 1 hour to set the glaze before slicing and serving.
Serve slightly chilled or at room temperature. The tart can be stored, tightly covered, in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Excerpted from Baked Elements: Our 10 Favorite Ingredients by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito. Copyright © 2012 by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito. Excerpted by permission of Stewart, Tabori & Chang, an imprint of Abrams. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Roundup: Turtle Thumbprint Cookies
Leave Your Links: Turtle Thumbprint Cookies
How did everyone like these little bits of heaven?
In the Oven: Turtle Thumbprint Cookies
We’re back to weekly recipes so we can finish this cookbook just as the new book will be out in stores!
Posting date for the Turtle Thumbprint Cookies is Sunday, June 15th!
For the Thumbprint Cookies
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup dark unsweetened cocoa powder (like Valrhona)
1 1⁄2 teaspoons salt
8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened, cut into 1⁄2-inch cubes
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1⁄4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, plus 1 large egg white, divided
2 tablespoons whole milk
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
3 cups pecans, toasted (page 19), finely chopped
For the Caramel Filling
14 ounces (1 can) sweetened condensed milk
1⁄2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
3 1⁄2 ounces (7 tablespoons) unsalted butter
3 tablespoons light corn syrup
1 tablespoon heavy cream
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon salt
24 to 30 whole pecans, toasted (optional, page 19)
Make the Thumbprint cookies
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, and salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and both sugars together until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, add 1 whole egg, 1 egg yolk, the milk, and vanilla and beat until
incorporated. Scrape down the bowl again and beat for 10 seconds. Add half of the dry ingredients and beat for 15 seconds. Add the remaining dry ingredients and beat until just incorporated. Do not overmix. Scrape the dough into a ball, wrap the bowl tightly
and refrigerate until the dough is chilled and firm, at least 1 hour. The dough can be made a day ahead and refrigerated for up to 24 hours.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a small bowl, whisk the 2 egg whites until frothy. Place the pecans in a separate wide-mouthed, shallow bowl.
With clean hands, form the dough into tablespoon-size balls, taking care that they have no lumps or cracks. Dip each ball in the egg white mixture, then roll in the pecans to cover completely and place on the prepared baking sheets (if the dough starts to become too soft, refrigerate it briefly to firm it up).
Use your thumb or a small dowel to make an indentation in the center of each cookie, rocking your thumb or the dowel ever so slightly back and forth to create a larger thumbprint (to hold more caramel). Bake for 8 minutes, remove the baking sheets from the oven, and use your thumb (careful—the cookies will be hot) or the dowel to make the indentation more visible.
Return the sheets to the oven and bake for another 4 to 5 minutes, until the cookies appear set. (These are the type of cookie that can overbake very quickly—pull them out at the first sign of cracking.) Remove the pans from the oven, set the baking sheets on wire racks and make one last impression using your thumb (again, careful—the cookies will be hot) or the dowel to make a larger thumbprint. Cool for 5 minutes. Use a spatula to transfer the cookies to the racks to cool completely before filling them.
Make the Caramel Filling
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, stir together all of the filling ingredients except the pecans. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring the mixture to a boil while stirring very occasionally. Once mixture starts a consistent boil, stir gently and continuously until the mixture starts to thicken and darken, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and strain through a fine-mesh sieve (to remove any unsightly brown bits) into a pourable glass measuring cup or bowl.
Fill the thumbprint cookies using a spoon, a glass measuring cup, or pastry bag and allow them to set until the caramel filling is room temperature, about 45 minutes, dropping a pecan in the center of the caramel filling in each cookie about halfway through the set up time. These cookies taste great at room temperature or directly from the refrigerator. They can be stored in the refrigerator, tightly covered, for up to 3 days.
Excerpted from Baked Elements: Our 10 Favorite Ingredients by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito. Copyright © 2012 by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito. Excerpted by permission of Stewart, Tabori & Chang, an imprint of Abrams. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Roundup: Classic Crème Brûlée
Leave your Links: Classic Creme Brulee
How did everyone enjoy this creamy dessert?
In the Oven: Classic Creme Brûlée with Caramelized Brown Sugar
We’re making creme brûlée next – break out your torches! Posting date is March 16.
Classic Creme Brûlée with Caramelized Brown Sugar
Yield: 4 servings
2 cups heavy cream
1 vanilla bean
6 large egg yolks
1⁄3 cup granulated sugar
1⁄8 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons firmly packed dark brown sugar
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Place four 6-ounce ramekins in a small roasting pan or large, high-sided baking pan.
Pour the heavy cream into a medium saucepan. Cut the vanilla bean in half lengthwise and, using the tip of a knife or a small spoon, scrape the seeds into the cream. Add the split vanilla bean pod and stir. Heat the cream to just below a boil (bubbles will form around the perimeter of the pan), turn off the heat, and let the mixture steep for 10 minutes.
In another bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, granulated sugar, and salt. Keep whisking until the mixture is well combined and begins to lighten in color, but do not over mix. Pour a small amount of the heavy cream into the egg yolk mixture while stirring (not whisking). Continue to add the cream, a little at a time, until it is incorporated. Push the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a pourable glass measuring cup or bowl.
Divide the mixture equally among the ramekins, filling almost to the top. Carefully pour boiling water into the roasting pan until the water reaches about halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the custards are set on the edge but still wobbly in the middle. Remove the ramekins from the water, let cool to room temperature, cover, and refrigerate least 4 hours or overnight.
Remove the ramekins from the refrigerator at least 15 minutes prior to serving. Sprinkle each ramekin with the brown sugar and use a kitchen torch to caramelize the sugar and create a smooth top. Wait a few minutes for the sugar to become crisp, and serve.
Excerpted from Baked Elements: Our 10 Favorite Ingredients by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito. Copyright © 2012 by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito. Excerpted by permission of Stewart, Tabori & Chang, an imprint of Abrams. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Roundup: Antique Caramel Cake
Leave your Links: Antique Caramel Cake
How did you guys like this recipe?