daring cooks: dobos torte

Aside from the regular banana cake or muffins that I tried to make once a while, I have never tried anything sooo pretty. I can't say that I am at my most graceful in the kitchen but boy, I am so glad I didn't burn myself while trying to do quick quick 5 mins and shuffle pans thing. Which is funny because my mom chose at this moment to want me to come see the funny movie. I am quite preoccupied this week and had no time to do pretty pictures of the cake. I will definitely bake this torte again and take more pretty pictures. Now, without further delay, please welcome my pretty torte..


The August 2009 Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Angela of A Spoonful
of Sugar and Lorraine of Not Quite Nigella. They chose the spectacular Dobos
Torte based on a recipe from Rick Rodgers' cookbook Kaffeehaus: Exquisite
Desserts from the Classic Caffés of Vienna, Budapest, and Prague.

Preparing parchment papers.

Preparing sponge cake batter

Sponge cake layer

Chocolate Buttercream

Assembly, I use 2 hazelnuts to prop up 1 piece of caramel topping.

Sponge cake layers

• 6 large eggs, separated, at room temperature
• 1 1/3 cups (162g) confectioner's (icing) sugar, divided
• 1 teaspoon (5ml) vanilla extract
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (112g) sifted cake flour (SUBSTITUTE 95g plain flour + 17g cornflour (cornstarch) sifted together)
• pinch of salt

Chocolate Buttercream

• 4 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 cup (200g) caster (ultrafine or superfine white) sugar
• 4oz (110g) bakers chocolate or your favourite dark chocolate, finely chopped
• 2 sticks plus 2 tablespoons (250g) unsalted butter, at room temperature.

Caramel topping

• 1 cup (200g) caster (superfine or ultrafine white) sugar
• 12 tablespoons (180 ml) water
• 8 teaspoons (40 ml) lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon neutral oil (e.g. grapeseed, rice bran, sunflower)

Finishing touches

• a 7” cardboard round
• 12 whole hazelnuts, peeled and toasted
• ½ cup (50g) peeled and finely chopped hazelnuts

Directions for the sponge layers:

NB. The sponge layers can be prepared in advance and stored interleaved with parchment and well-wrapped in the fridge overnight.

1.Position the racks in the top and centre thirds of the oven and heat to 400F (200C).

2.Cut six pieces of parchment paper to fit the baking sheets. Using the bottom of a 9" (23cm) springform tin as a template and a dark pencil or a pen, trace a circle on each of the papers, and turn them over (the circle should be visible from the other side, so that the graphite or ink doesn't touch the cake batter.)

3.Beat the egg yolks, 2/3 cup (81g) of the confectioner's (icing) sugar, and the vanilla in a medium bowl with a mixer on high speed until the mixture is thick, pale yellow and forms a thick ribbon when the beaters are lifted a few inches above the batter, about 3 minutes. (You can do this step with a balloon whisk if you don't have a mixer.)

4.In another bowl, using clean beaters, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in the remaining 2/3 cup (81g) of confectioner's (icing)sugar until the whites form stiff, shiny peaks. Using a large rubber spatula, stir about 1/4 of the beaten whites into the egg yolk mixture, then fold in the remainder, leaving a few wisps of white visible. Combine the flour and salt. Sift half the flour over the eggs, and fold in; repeat with the remaining flour.

5.Line one of the baking sheets with a circle-marked paper. Using a small offset spatula, spread about 3/4cup of the batter in an even layer, filling in the traced circle on one baking sheet. Bake on the top rack for 5 minutes, until the cake springs back when pressed gently in the centre and the edges are lightly browned. While this cake bakes, repeat the process on the other baking sheet, placing it on the centre rack. When the first cake is done, move the second cake to the top rack. Invert the first cake onto a flat surface and carefully peel off the paper. Slide the cake layer back onto the paper and let stand until cool. Rinse the baking sheet under cold running water to cool, and dry it before lining with another parchment. Continue with the remaining papers and batter to make a total of six layers. Completely cool the layers. Using an 8" springform pan bottom or plate as a template, trim each cake layer into a neat round. (A small serrated knife is best for this task.)

Directions for the chocolate buttercream:

NB. This can be prepared in advance and kept chilled until required.

1.Prepare a double-boiler: quarter-fill a large saucepan with water and bring it to a boil.

2.Meanwhile, whisk the eggs with the sugar until pale and thickened, about five minutes. You can use a balloon whisk or electric hand mixer for this.

3.Fit bowl over the boiling water in the saucepan (water should not touch bowl) and lower the heat to a brisk simmer. Cook the egg mixture, whisking constantly, for 2-3 minutes until you see it starting to thicken a bit. Whisk in the finely chopped chocolate and cook, stirring, for a further 2-3 minutes.

4.Scrape the chocolate mixture into a medium bowl and leave to cool to room temperature. It should be quite thick and sticky in consistency.

5.When cool, beat in the soft butter, a small piece (about 2 tablespoons/30g) at a time. An electric hand mixer is great here, but it is possible to beat the butter in with a spatula if it is soft enough. You should end up with a thick, velvety chocolate buttercream. Chill while you make the caramel topping.

Directions for the caramel topping:

1.Choose the best-looking cake layer for the caramel top. To make the caramel topping: Line a jellyroll pan with parchment paper and butter the paper. Place the reserved cake layer on the paper. Score the cake into 12 equal wedges. Lightly oil a thin, sharp knife and an offset metal spatula.

2.Stir the sugar, water and lemon juice in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over a medium heat, stirring often to dissolve the sugar. Once dissolved into a smooth syrup, turn the heat up to high and boil without stirring, swirling the pan by the handle occasionally and washing down any sugar crystals on the sides of the pan with a wet brush until the syrup has turned into an amber-coloured caramel.

3.The top layer is perhaps the hardest part of the whole cake so make sure you have a oiled, hot offset spatula ready. I also find it helps if the cake layer hasn't just been taken out of the refrigerator. I made mine ahead of time and the cake layer was cold and the toffee set very, very quickly—too quickly for me to spread it. Immediately pour all of the hot caramel over the cake layer. You will have some leftover most probably but more is better than less and you can always make nice toffee pattern using the extra to decorate. Using the offset spatula, quickly spread the caramel evenly to the edge of the cake layer. Let cool until beginning to set, about 30 seconds. Using the tip of the hot oiled knife (keep re-oiling this with a pastry brush between cutting), cut through the scored marks to divide the caramel layer into 12 equal wedges. Cool another minute or so, then use the edge of the knife to completely cut and separate the wedges using one firm slice movement (rather than rocking back and forth which may produce toffee strands). Cool completely.

Note to self: Separate all pieces of caramel covered pieces before caramel cool.

Assembling the Dobos

1.Divide the buttercream into six equal parts.
2.Place a dab of chocolate buttercream on the middle of a 7 1/2” cardboard round and top with one cake layer. Spread the layer with one part of the chocolate icing. Repeat with 4 more cake layers. Spread the remaining icing on the sides of the cake.
3.Optional: press the finely chopped hazelnuts onto the sides of the cake.
4.Propping a hazelnut under each wedge so that it sits at an angle, arrange the wedges on top of the cake in a spoke pattern. If you have any leftover buttercream, you can pipe rosettes under each hazelnut or a large rosette in the centre of the cake. Refrigerate the cake under a cake dome until the icing is set, about 2 hours. Let slices come to room temperature for the best possible flavour.

what to do with left over sofregit?

I found that I have some sofregit left over from august daring cooks challenge. What to do with it? It taste really good just by itself. But one can't possibly eat that alone for dinner, right? I rummage through the pantry and freezer and found some frozen shrimps, scallops and spaghetti noodles. Throw everything together and I have seafood pasta! The left over white wine goes really well with this dish too. Major YUM!

Sofregit

Seafood Pasta

Seafood Pasta

Sofregit (I have about more than half a quart left)
1 handful of spaghetti (about half a packet)
1 lb of shrimp, shelled and veined
1 cup of mini scallops
2-3 tbsp oil
a dash of white wine
salt and pepper to taste
Enough water to boil spaghetti

1. Cook spaghetti to al dente, per your spaghetti package instructions. Reserve one cup of spaghetti water and drain noodle. Do not rinse noodle.
2. In another pan, heat up oil and add shrimp and scallops. Stir a few times and add a dash of salt.
3. Add white wine and scrape the bottom of pan to release the wonderful flavor.
4. Add sofregit and cook till simmer. Add spaghetti and the reserve spaghetti water, you can skip the water if noodle is too wet. You just want to coat spaghetti noodle with the sauce. Turn off heat and add salt and pepper to taste. Serve and enjoy!

daring cooks: Rice with mushrooms, cuttlefish and artichokes

My first daring cooks challenge! It feels good to something different than constant chinese cooking. The rice turns out great. I have substituted cuttlefish with squid because I can't get them in store. I was also pressing on time and skipped the Allioli

Ingredients for Sofregit

Sofregit

Rice with mushrooms, cuttlefish and artichoke

Rice with mushrooms, cuttlefish and artichokes

by José Andrés

Ingredients (serves 4):

• 4 Artichokes (you can use jarred or freezed if fresh are not available)
• 12 Mushrooms (button or Portobello)
• 1 or 2 Bay leaves (optional but highly recommended)
• 1 glass of white wine
• 2 Cuttlefish (you can use freezed cuttlefish or squid if you don’t find it fresh)
• “Sofregit” (see recipe below)
• 300 gr (2 cups) Short grain rice (Spanish types Calasparra or Montsant are preferred, but you can choose any other short grain. This kind of rice absorbs flavor very well) – about 75 gr per person ( ½ cup per person) Please read this for more info on suitable rices.
• Water or Fish Stock (use 1 ½ cup of liquid per ½ cup of rice)
• Saffron threads (if you can’t find it or afford to buy it, you can substitute it for turmeric or yellow coloring powder)
• Allioli (olive oil and garlic sauce, similar to mayonnaise sauce) - optional

Directions:

1. Cut the cuttlefish in little strips.
2. Add 1 or 2 tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan and put the cuttlefish in the pan.
3. If you use fresh artichokes, clean them as shown in the video in tip #7. Cut artichokes in eights.
4. Clean the mushrooms and cut them in fourths.
5. Add a bay leaf to the cuttlefish and add also the artichokes and the mushrooms.
6. Sauté until we get a golden color in the artichokes.
7. Put a touch of white wine so all the solids in the bottom of the get mixed, getting a more flavorful dish.
8. Add a couple or three tablespoons of sofregit and mix to make sure everything gets impregnated with the sofregit.
9. Add all the liquid and bring it to boil.
10. Add all the rice. Let boil for about 5 minutes in heavy heat.
11. Add some saffron thread to enrich the dish with its flavor and color. Stir a little bit so the rice and the other ingredients get the entire flavor. If you’re using turmeric or yellow coloring, use only 1/4 teaspoon.
12. Turn to low heat and boil for another 8 minutes (or until rice is a little softer than “al dente”)
13. Put the pan away from heat and let the rice stand a couple of minutes.

Sofregit
by Olga from Las Cosas de Olga and Olga’s Recipes
Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• 5 big red ripe tomatoes, chopped
• 2 small onions, chopped
• 1 green pepper, chopped (optional)
• 4 or 5 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 cup of button or Portobello mushrooms, chopped (optional)
• 1 Bay leaf
• Salt
• Touch of ground cumin
• Touch of dried oregano

Directions:

1. Put all the ingredients together in a frying pan and sauté slowly until all vegetables are soft.
2. Taste and salt if necessary (maybe it’s not!)

pan fried black pomfret with tomato

I usually cook a whole week's lunches on Sunday. My first dish is bitter melon and you can scroll down to read about it. Second dish is pan fried black pomfret with tomato


pan fried black pomfret with tomatoes

1 black pomfret (I got mine frozen from vietnamese grocery store), cleaned and wiped dry
1 tomato, cut into 8 wedges
1 inch piece of ginger, sliced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 stalk of scallion
3-4 stalk of cilantro
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp ketchup
1/2 cup water
1 tsp salt (to taste)
5 -6 tbsp oil

1. Heat oil using medium high heat. Make sure pan is hot else the fish will stick. Gently, I mean really gently, lower fish into pan. Don't move the pan, don't do anything, and after 3 mins, lower the heat to medium. Leave the fish alone, don't try to move it. Let pan fry for 6 - 7 mins. and flip the fish. Once flipped, don't touch the fish. Let pan fry for another 6-7 mins or longer until fish is cooked. Remove fish and set a side.
2. Using the same pan, add a little bit more oil. Add ginger, garlic and tomatoes wedges for 3 mins.
3. Add sugar, ketchup and water. Stir and put a lid on the pan. Cook until tomato is soft. Add salt and lastly the scallion and cilantro. Turn off heat and pour over fish. Serve with rice.

bitter melon me

I spent whole day yesterday cooking and this is one of the dishes. I usually cook for the whole week and store them into containers. Everyday, I'll make lunch box picking from a combination of dishes.

One of my week's lunch is bitter melon with shrimp. Easy peasy to make and it doesn't taste bitter at all. Some people don't like bitter melon because they complained its bitter! Duh. But I admit some are more bitter than others. The trick of picking bitter melon is the picking a bitter melon with bigger ridges, those that with ridges that are farther apart. Try this when you picking out bitter melon the next time.



Bitter melon with shrimp
2 - 4 bitter melon, about 1.5 lbs, (see tips below for cutting)
1 lb of shrimp, shelled and veined
2-3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 tbsp ground bean sauce
2 tbsp oil
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup water

1. Heat up oil with medium heat. Add garlic and ground bean and stir fry until fragrant, about 5 mins.
2. Add bitter melon and stir fry for a few mins. Add water and close pan with lid. Let cook for 6 mins.
3. Add shrimps and stir fry until it turns pink. Add salt to taste. Serves with rice.

tips:
bitter melon - wash and trim off both ends. Cut into half and scoop out the middle (seeds and white part). Cut into thin slices.
shrimp - I prefer to use shrimp with heads for this dish. Shrimps will need to be shelled but the orange color part in the head gives a lot of wonderful flavor to this dish. Not to mention some nice reddish color too.

vietnamese salad rules

I have to warn you that this post consists of animal parts that is not too frequently consumed in this part of the world. You can stop here if you are only chops and fillet eater.

OKAY. You are still here :-). My Saturday routine usually starts with the local farmer's market but I gave my routine a break this week. Since I am not going to farmer's market, I can sleep in late. That's a good start for me. I got up and did some running around and went to the vietnamese grocery store in town. They have tons of fresh asian vegetables, but some items can be a little pricey. Anyway, I picked up a week of vegetables and since I am running on an empty stomach, I picked up some ready made salad and noodle rolls. Noodle rolls are common but the salad is a little interesting. Its jicama/carrot/shrimp/pig's ear salad with fish sauce dressing!


Pig ears are actually quite tasteless. Its the gelatinous and crunchy texture that is so good and nope, its not hairy at all.

summer is hot

This is not an understatement today. Temperatures hovering into the 90s and I don't even want to mention the humidity. I came home from work and took a shower. Made myself a salad and thought, hey why don't I take some picture of it in the balcony where there's more light? I was barely 5 mins out there and already sweating. I don't know what I'll do if I go to hell...

This is what I had for dinner

Chicken Salad Veronique



Once I saw on foodnetwork Ina Garten's Chicken Salad Veronique and have been wanting to try this. Well, I finally did, 2 years later.

Here is my version
2 cups of leftover store bought roast chicken breast, cut into cubes
1 cup of green grapes, cut into half
1/4 cup of dill, chopped
2 stalks of celery, cut into cubes
2-3 tbsp mayo
salt and pepper to taste

Toss everything together and dinner is ready. I had some pita bread and one last glass of white wine to go with the salad. Perfect summer dinner.