Salted Caramel Sauce Recipe
(Adapted from The Sweet life of Paris by David Lebovitz)
Makes about 2 cups
INGREDIENTS:
2 cups sugar
1 2/3 cups heavy cream
2 tablespoons salted butter
1/4 teaspoon fleur de sel or coarse sea salt (or to taste)
METHOD:
1. Spread the sugar in an even layer in a large metal Dutch oven or casserole, at least 6 quarts (6 L). Set over moderate heat and cook without stirring, until the sugar near the edge just starts to liquefy.
2. Using a wooden spoon or heatproof spatula, begin gently stirring, encouraging the melted sugar around the edges toward the center and delicately stirring up any sugar melting on the bottom as well. The sugar will start to look pebbly as it cooks, but keep going; it will melt completely as it turns amber.
3. Continue to cook until the sugar turns deep brown and starts to smoke. (Don’t worry about any large chunks of caramel.) The darker you can cook the sugar without burning it, the better the final sauce will taste. It’s ready when it’s the color of a well-worn penny, and will smell a bit smoky.
4. Remove from the heat and quickly stir in about a quarter of the cream. The mixture will bubble up furiously, so you may wish to wear an oven mitt over your stirring hand. Continue to whisk in the cream, stirring as you go to make sure it’s smooth. Stir in the butter and salt. Serve warm. If you like your sauce a bit thinner or less rich, add 1/4 cup (60 ml) water.
Storage: The sauce can be made up to one month in advance and kept refrigerated. Rewarm the caramel in a small saucepan over low heat or in a microwave
Showing posts with label dessert. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dessert. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Priscilla's Mother's Pandan Chiffon Cake
This cake is a killer. I haven't attempted it after learning from the shifu herself because I haven't gotten round to squeezing the pandan leaf for its juice. I tried, and I mortally wounded my thumb. No pandan essence maam!
9 eggs, yolk (don't break the yolks) and whites separated
1 small chinese bowl caster sugar
1 small chinese bowl plain flour (I wonder how it'll turn out if I use cake flour) + half tsp baking powder
1 small chinese bowl coconut milk (freshly squeezed from 1.5 coconuts)
3 tbs cooking/vegetable oil
1 tbs green colouring
3 tbs pandan juice
Half tsp cream of tartar
1. Beat 8 yolks for 5 minutes, then add half bowl sugar. Beat until creamy and light. Add in flour and baking powder and beat another 20 minutes. Set aside.
2. Beat the 9 whites intil risen, slowly mix in rest of the sugar (half bowl). Add in half tsp cream of tartar and beat until very dense, more than 10 minutes.
3. Mix oil, pandan juice and colour into coconut milk, and split this into 3 parts, mix with egg yolk mixture.
4. Mix yolk and white mixture, and pour into a chiffon cake tin (the one with the chimney in the middle). Bake at 180C til it turns light brown.
5. Once done, collapse the tin over a wine bottled, and let it cool completely before removing it from tin.
9 eggs, yolk (don't break the yolks) and whites separated
1 small chinese bowl caster sugar
1 small chinese bowl plain flour (I wonder how it'll turn out if I use cake flour) + half tsp baking powder
1 small chinese bowl coconut milk (freshly squeezed from 1.5 coconuts)
3 tbs cooking/vegetable oil
1 tbs green colouring
3 tbs pandan juice
Half tsp cream of tartar
1. Beat 8 yolks for 5 minutes, then add half bowl sugar. Beat until creamy and light. Add in flour and baking powder and beat another 20 minutes. Set aside.
2. Beat the 9 whites intil risen, slowly mix in rest of the sugar (half bowl). Add in half tsp cream of tartar and beat until very dense, more than 10 minutes.
3. Mix oil, pandan juice and colour into coconut milk, and split this into 3 parts, mix with egg yolk mixture.
4. Mix yolk and white mixture, and pour into a chiffon cake tin (the one with the chimney in the middle). Bake at 180C til it turns light brown.
5. Once done, collapse the tin over a wine bottled, and let it cool completely before removing it from tin.
Martha Stewart's Glazed Lemon Pound Cake
This turned out quite a yummy, polite little cake :) Good for teas.
Cake
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup low-fat buttermilk (this is the secret ingredient!)
Zest of 2 lemons, finely grated
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (from the 2 lemons you grated)
1.5 tsp salt
Half tsp baking powder
Half tsp baking soda
2 cups sugar (I use less)
5 large eggs
Lemon glaze
2 cups icing sugar
3-4 tbs fresh lemon juice
1. Pre-hear oven 350F, butter and flour 2 loaf tins.
2. Combine buttermilk, lemon zest and juice.
3. Whisk together flour, salt, baking powder and soda.
4. Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
5. With mixer on low, add flour mixture in three parts alternately with buttermilk mixture in two, beginning and ending with flour. Beat until just smooth. Do not overbeat.
6. Divide batter evenly into two pans, bake until toothpick inserted comes out clean -50-60 minutes.
7. Cool completely before glazing. Let dry 30 minutes after glazing.
Cake
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup low-fat buttermilk (this is the secret ingredient!)
Zest of 2 lemons, finely grated
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (from the 2 lemons you grated)
1.5 tsp salt
Half tsp baking powder
Half tsp baking soda
2 cups sugar (I use less)
5 large eggs
Lemon glaze
2 cups icing sugar
3-4 tbs fresh lemon juice
1. Pre-hear oven 350F, butter and flour 2 loaf tins.
2. Combine buttermilk, lemon zest and juice.
3. Whisk together flour, salt, baking powder and soda.
4. Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
5. With mixer on low, add flour mixture in three parts alternately with buttermilk mixture in two, beginning and ending with flour. Beat until just smooth. Do not overbeat.
6. Divide batter evenly into two pans, bake until toothpick inserted comes out clean -50-60 minutes.
7. Cool completely before glazing. Let dry 30 minutes after glazing.
Violet Oon's Pineapple Tarts
I was once Violet Oon's cooking demo assistant. In Ikea Alexandra. It was fun, but quite tiring for the arms, especially when stirring the pineapple mixture to avoid it burning. It was a good experience, it quelled whatever fear I had in making my own pineapple tarts. And because of this, I've become quite a pineapple tart snob. The only tarts I would pay money to buy are the golf balls from Le Cafe. Alterntively, the other World's Best Pineapple Tarts are from my Godma's maid Beth. Beth's tarts are lovingly shaped like durians, and the paste is spicier (cinnamon/cloves).
Filling
1 sour pineapple, grated
(I don't know how you choose a sour pineapple, and no, I did not ask Aunty Violet)
5-8 tbs sugar
1 cinnamon stick
Pastry
2 egg yolks
200gm plain flour
3 tsp brandy (my favourite ingredient)
3/4 tsp vanilla essense
100-140gm butter, softened (the more butter, the harder to handle the pastry - you might need to work it in an air-con room, if the weather is too hot)
1/2 tsp salt
1. Boil grated pineapple with sugar and cinammon in a non-stick saucepan for 20-40 minutes over high heat, stirring continuously to prevent mixture sticking to pan. Cook til moisture dries up, mixture is thick. Cool and store.
2. Mix one yolk with vanilla and brandy and add in butter. Add sifted flour and salt and mix to a dough. Put in fridge for 30 minutes to harden.
3. Assembly time! Cut out equal portions of dough, and roll out equal portions of filling and start stuffing the filling into the pastry. I make my tarts ball shaped, but smaller than golf balls.
4. Brush balls with yolk and bake in pre-heated oven (175C/350F) for 20-30 minutes, of until light brown, or when your nose smells the delicious waft of buttery goodness.
Filling
1 sour pineapple, grated
(I don't know how you choose a sour pineapple, and no, I did not ask Aunty Violet)
5-8 tbs sugar
1 cinnamon stick
Pastry
2 egg yolks
200gm plain flour
3 tsp brandy (my favourite ingredient)
3/4 tsp vanilla essense
100-140gm butter, softened (the more butter, the harder to handle the pastry - you might need to work it in an air-con room, if the weather is too hot)
1/2 tsp salt
1. Boil grated pineapple with sugar and cinammon in a non-stick saucepan for 20-40 minutes over high heat, stirring continuously to prevent mixture sticking to pan. Cook til moisture dries up, mixture is thick. Cool and store.
2. Mix one yolk with vanilla and brandy and add in butter. Add sifted flour and salt and mix to a dough. Put in fridge for 30 minutes to harden.
3. Assembly time! Cut out equal portions of dough, and roll out equal portions of filling and start stuffing the filling into the pastry. I make my tarts ball shaped, but smaller than golf balls.
4. Brush balls with yolk and bake in pre-heated oven (175C/350F) for 20-30 minutes, of until light brown, or when your nose smells the delicious waft of buttery goodness.
Gwen's Famous Terror-Misu
This is not my recipe. It was from a friend's aunty, who is married to an Italian, which would mean this recipe is totally credible. The term "terror-misu" was coined up by my cousin, coincidentally also called Gwen, cos, well, they all look forward to it at Christmas :). I've kept this recipe secret for years, for I used it as my "party ticket". But many years and a declining rate of making it, I might lose it (its all in my head). So here's it:
500gm Mascapone cheese
5 eggs - yolks and whites separated
5 tbs caster sugar
2 cups of strong coffee
Generous lashings of rum
A large pack of lady fingers
1. Cream yolks and sugar together till creamy and pale yellow. Add in all the mascapone and beat until well mixed and no more lumps.
2. Beat whites till they form stiff peaks. Carefully fold the whites into the cheese/egg mixture.
3. Assemble first layer of lady fingers, pour about 1 tbs of coffee per finger, and generous lashings of rum over the layer. Pour out cream mixture and spread evenly. Repeat process. (2 layers in all). Refrigerate.
4. Dust cocoa powder on top just before serving.
500gm Mascapone cheese
5 eggs - yolks and whites separated
5 tbs caster sugar
2 cups of strong coffee
Generous lashings of rum
A large pack of lady fingers
1. Cream yolks and sugar together till creamy and pale yellow. Add in all the mascapone and beat until well mixed and no more lumps.
2. Beat whites till they form stiff peaks. Carefully fold the whites into the cheese/egg mixture.
3. Assemble first layer of lady fingers, pour about 1 tbs of coffee per finger, and generous lashings of rum over the layer. Pour out cream mixture and spread evenly. Repeat process. (2 layers in all). Refrigerate.
4. Dust cocoa powder on top just before serving.
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