Baby Shower | Congrats Liang & Josh!

Baby "DoFo" (that's a mashup of last name syllables) is on the way, and I was happy to bring desserts to the tea-time themed baby shower. To match the theme, I wanted to make small bite-sized desserts that didn't require any utensils to eat or serve. Another friend was already bringing scones, so I decided on coconut macarons with lime-lychee curd, matcha green tea sugar cookies (this time cut into D's, F's and circles -- the ability to spell out DoFo was purely coincidental), and bourbon sugar fudge squares.

To make the macarons, I made plain shells but baked them with toasted coconut shavings on top. I probably could have ground up coconuts into the shell or used coconut extract, but I didn't necessarily want the coconut flavor to be predominant. For the filling, I made lime-lychee curd (using a basic lemon curd recipe but substituting the lemon juice for about 75% lychee puree and 25% lime juice) and mixed it with a small portion of pastry cream.

The matcha green tea sugar cookies were just like the previous time I made them, but with a different brand of matcha that made the mix much more vibrant:

The fudge comes from a Bon Appétit recipe and is addicting. The original thought was just to throw in something darker and richer, like the pastry equivalent of a cigar for the men at the shower. But this ended up beingmy favorite of the three. The fudge has a light bourbon flavoring in it, and is topped with bourbon raw sugar and Maldon sea salt flakes which really give this dessert that something special.

Here's the recipe:

Chocolate Fudge with Bourbon Sugar

Makes an 8"x8" square (cut to desired shape/size)

Ingredients:

• 283.5g bittersweet chocolate
• 113g unsweetened chocolate (okay to substitute with bittersweet)
• 1 14-ox. can of sweetened condensed milk
• 142g unsalted butter (1¼ sticks), cubed
• ¾ cup (170g) unsalted butter (room temperature)
• 2 Tbsp bourbon
• 1 Tbsp light corn syrup
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 vanilla bean
• flaky sea salt

for bourbon sugar:

• 1 vanilla bean
• 1 cup demerara sugar (raw cane sugar)
• 2 Tbsp bourbon

Directions:

1. In advance, prepare bourbon sugar by scraping vanilla beans into a small bowl and stir in demerara sugar and bourbon. Spread on to a parchment-lined baking sheet and let dry out overnight (or speed up process by placing in oven at lowest heat possible.
2. Line an 8"x8" baking dish with parchment paper, leaving generous overhang to be able to pull out fudge later. Lightly coat with butter or nonstick spray.
3. Heat chocolates in a double boiler (i.e. heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water), stirring occasionally until almost completely melted. Set aside.
4. Combined condense milk, butter, bourbon, corn syrup, and salt in a small saucepan. Scrape in vanilla beans and heat over medium under barely hot (as close to same temperature as the chocolate).
5. Gently stir in a quarter of the milk mixture into the chocolate with a rubber spatula. Add another quarter, stirring to incorporate. Continue mixing in the remainder of the milk in 2 additions, stirring vigorously until fudge is shiny and almost elastic, about 5 minutes. 
6. Scrape into the prepared pan and smooth top.
7. Let cool before sprinkling with bourbon sugar and sea salt.
8. Cover and chill at least 4 hours.
9. Turn out onto cutting board and cut as desired.

Office Bytes | A Box of Chocolates

Life (work?) is like a box of chocolates!

In preparation for my recap of our chocolate units in pastry school, I dusted off my chocolate tempering skills and decided to try my hand at making chocolate bonbons and a chocolate box at home.

For this project, I made a round box with a keyhole cutout on top out of dark chocolate with some milk chocolate accents. For the company logo, I painted orange cocoa butter on a sheet of acetate before pouring on tempered chocolate and cutting the logo shape.

There are two flavors of bonbons inside: (1) salted basil ganache, and (2) pecan bourbon ganache. I only had maybe three dozen bonbons total, so I offered up the box for eating too. And wow, people were not shy.

Chocolate Bourbon Tart

 Chocolate bourbon tart (with a slight emphasis on the bourbon . . . )

I love the crust on this. It has the crunchy yet crumbly texture and taste of a chocolate shortbread, which contrasts well with the rich bittersweet chocolate bourbon filling. It's like eating an adult fudgy brownie with a cookie crust.

This recipe is contributed by Michael Glissman to the Food & Wine Annual Cookbook 2011 (which, by the way, has not let me down yet). I believe the original publication is from Italian Lunch in a Sonoma Vineyard with Jamey Whetstone and Michael Chiarello, and Food & Wine first published this in its monthly in October 2010.

Ingredients
Pastry

• 1 ½ cups flour
• ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Filling

• 12 oz. bittersweet chocolate
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ½ cup bourbon (if you're not a fan of the taste, dilute this a little)
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 5 large eggs, room temperature

 Directions

1. In a small bowl, sift the flour with the cocoa powder and salt. In a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter with the sugar at medium-high speed until it is well blended. Beat in the dry ingredients at low speed until just combined. Add the vanilla extract and beat just until a soft dough forms, about 5 seconds. Press the pastry into a disk, wrap in plastic and refrigerate until the dough is firm, about 1 hour.
2. Preheat the oven to 350°. On a floured work surface, working quickly, roll out the pastry to an 11-inch round, about 1/4 inch thick. Transfer the pastry to a 10-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom. Gently press the pastry over the bottom and up the side of the pan. Trim off any excess pastry. Refrigerate the shell for about 20 minutes, until firm.
3. Line the pastry with foil and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake for about 30 minutes, until almost cooked. Remove the tart shell from the oven and let cool for 15 minutes, then gently remove the foil and weights. Return the shell to the oven and bake for about 12 minutes longer, until dry. Transfer to a wire rack and let the tart shell cool to room temperature. Just before filling, refrigerate the tart shell for a few minutes until slightly chilled.
4. Put the chocolate and salt in the bowl of the standing mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. In a small saucepan, heat the bourbon with the sugar over moderate heat, stirring a few times, just until the sugar is dissolved; try not to let the bourbon boil. Pour the warm bourbon mixture over the chocolate. Add the pieces of butter and the eggs and beat at moderate speed until the mixture is creamy and shiny.
5. Set the tart shell on a large baking sheet and pour in the filling. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the filling has risen and the top is cracked in places. Transfer the tart to a rack and let it cool completely. Unmold the tart and refrigerate it overnight. Using a sharp knife, cut the tart into thin wedges and serve.