Recipes to Rival: Ratatouille

Once again, I have found myself joining another challenge group. And I am also very excited to participate in this one. Its a once a month challenge similar to the Daring Bakers. The big difference is that this is a savory based challenge. I think the mission statement that Lori of Lipsmacking Goodness and Temperance of High on the Hog, the creators of this new group, expresses the purpose and goal of the group wonderfully (well...that is its purpose, is it not? lol).

To work together as a group or individually to create a recipe that will increase our repertoire of cooking skills. To lend support and guidance as needed to other members of the club. Last but not least, to enjoy the whole experience.

Like I mentioned in my first post for Barefoot Bloggers, I am better at baking than 'normal' cooking (or rather, I have more experience baking) so I am looking for any opportunity to expand my overall cooking techniques and abilities especially in an environment where others are doing the same.

Our first challenge for Recipes to Rival was Ratatouille. Because I have never had the dish nor have I seen the movie, I wasn't familiar with the recipe at all. Once I read through it for the first time, I was very relieved. It didn't appear very difficult. The biggest challenge was going to be slicing vegetables 1/16th of an inch.

A size I am pretty sure I failed to achieve. I considered getting out my ruler to measure the exact measurement but I thought that would be a little too...I don't know...anal for me. So instead I ended up with slices of vegetables that were roughly 1/16th but some were way larger and some were practically paper thin. My fingers did manage to remain intact so I was pretty happy with how it went. ;)

After all of the veggies were readied for cooking, I got started on the piperade which is a mixture of roasted peppers, tomatoes, and onions. Many of my fellow participants compared it to a salsa. It was definitely a mixture that would be very tasty on anything from corn chips to a topping for enchiladas or such.

I misread the directions and almost missed that the vegetables needed to bake for 2 hours. I was preparing this later in the day but I had enough time that I wouldn't be eating dinner at midnight at least! I was very happy with my finished dish. Though it was just simple vegetables baked until very tender, the overall flavors was just delicious. I was particularly happy with the vinaigrette that was poured over the cooked vegetables. The balsamic vinegar in the vinaigrette was so tasty. Now that I know how delicious and easy Ratatouille is, it will definitely be on my make again list!

Many in the group served this as a side dish but I felt it was very good its own as a main dish. It was a perfect lunch the next day at work (though all of the guys in my office couldn't believe I was just eating veggies! silly boys!).

For the recipe, please go here. Please check out the other new members to see more delicious Ratatouille!

Daring Bakers: Danish Braid

For the third month in a row, I waited anxiously on the 1st for the Daring Bakers recipe to be posted. Since I joined the Daring Bakers I have learned something new every month and I knew this month would be no exception. Our hosts for the month, Kelly of Sass and Veracity and Ben of What's Cookin'? chose Danish Braid. What? huh? Danish Braid? Oh dearie...I was scared.

Throughout my baking life, I've generally stuck to the basics. Cakes, pies, cookies, etc. I have never made a laminated dough or pastry. But being in the Daring Bakers is about being daring. Stepping out of your comfort zones and trying something new. So after a quick pep talk, I sat down and planned how I was going to go about making my first Danish Braid.

After all was said and done, I felt like such a fool. This was seriously not that hard. Sure it was slightly labor intensive (well, mostly the rolling) and it did take some time (30 minutes rest after each 'turn'). But when it got down to it, it was not that hard. I didn't feel like I was out of my baking comfort zone.

We were given some leeway in regards to the filling. I was tempted to go savory and try something with spinach as well as use half the dough to make a sweet strawberry filling. However, at this point in the decision making process, I had not started the dough and I didn't want to make something to difficult. I decided to go ahead and make the Apple filling listed with the recipe. I am so glad that I did! The apple filling was sweet and had a prominant vanilla flavor. I ordered some plump Tahitian Vanilla Beans (on ebay of all places!) and the filling just was out of this world because of them. And my hands smelled like vanilla all day!

The finished pastry was very tasty. The bread was moist and flavorful. The apples were sweet and slightly cinnamony. Together they went very well. However, there was something about the bread that threw me slightly. After I ate the pastry, I had an after taste similar to what you would have if you had just eaten breakfast sausage. It wasn't overhwhelming, just...strange. Perhaps it was the cardamom. If I were to make this again (and I will), for a sweet filling, I would cut back the cardamom or maybe leave it out. I would like to try a savory filling in the braid, possibly an egg, bacon, and cheese filling.

Thank you Kelly and Ben for choosing such a tasty and fun recipe! I learned a lot and gained another recipe in which I can show off my baking skills to others!

To see what the other Daring Bakers came up with, check out the Daring Baker Blogroll.

p.s. I had to type this post up twice. I had everything all nice and neat. Some how I managed to delete half of it. Of course it was everything above the recipe...grrrrrrrr.

DANISH DOUGH

Makes 2-1/2 pounds dough

Ingredients

For the dough (Detrempe)

1 ounce fresh yeast or 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1/2 cup whole milk
1/3 cup sugar
Zest of 1 orange, finely grated
3/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped
2 large eggs, chilled
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
3-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt

For the butter block (Beurrage)
1/2 pound (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour

DOUGH

Combine yeast and milk in the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and mix on low speed. Slowly add sugar, orange zest, cardamom, vanilla extract, vanilla seeds, eggs, and orange juice. Mix well. Change to the dough hook and add the salt with the flour, 1 cup at a time, increasing speed to medium as the flour is incorporated. Knead the dough for about 5 minutes, or until smooth. You may need to add a little more flour if it is sticky. Transfer dough to a lightly floured baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Without a standing mixer: Combine yeast and milk in a bowl with a hand mixer on low speed or a whisk. Add sugar, orange zest, cardamom, vanilla extract, vanilla seeds, eggs, and orange juice and mix well. Sift flour and salt on your working surface and make a fountain. Make sure that the “walls” of your fountain are thick and even. Pour the liquid in the middle of the fountain. With your fingertips, mix the liquid and the flour starting from the middle of the fountain, slowly working towards the edges. When the ingredients have been incorporated start kneading the dough with the heel of your hands until it becomes smooth and easy to work with, around 5 to 7 minutes. You might need to add more flour if the dough is sticky.

BUTTER BLOCK

1. Combine butter and flour in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and beat on medium speed for 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and the paddle and then beat for 1 minute more, or until smooth and lump free. Set aside at room temperature.

2. After the detrempe has chilled 30 minutes, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface.

Roll the dough into a rectangle approximately 18 x 13 inches and ¼ inch thick. The dough may be sticky, so keep dusting it lightly with flour.

Spread the butter evenly over the center and right thirds of the dough.

Fold the left edge of the detrempe to the right, covering half of the butter.

Fold the right third of the rectangle over the center third.

The first turn has now been completed. Mark the dough by poking it with your finger to keep track of your turns, or use a sticky and keep a tally. Place the dough on a baking sheet, wrap it in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

3. Place the dough lengthwise on a floured work surface. The open ends should be to your right and left. Roll the dough into another approximately 13 x 18 inch, ¼-inch-thick rectangle.

Again, fold the left third of the rectangle over the center third and the right third over the center third. No additional butter will be added as it is already in the dough. The second turn has now been completed. Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes.

4. Roll out, turn, and refrigerate the dough two more times, for a total of four single turns. Make sure you are keeping track of your turns. Refrigerate the dough after the final turn for at least 5 hours or overnight. The Danish dough is now ready to be used. If you will not be using the dough within 24 hours, freeze it. To do this, roll the dough out to about 1 inch in thickness, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and freeze. Defrost the dough slowly in the refrigerator for easiest handling. Danish dough will keep in the freezer for up to 1 month.

APPLE FILLING
Makes enough for two braids

Ingredients
4 Fuji or other apples, peeled, cored, and cut into ¼-inch pieces
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
4 tablespoons unsalted butter

Toss all ingredients except butter in a large bowl. Melt the butter in a sauté pan over medium heat until slightly nutty in color, about 6 - 8 minutes. Then add the apple mixture and sauté until apples are softened and caramelized, 10 to 15 minutes.

If you’ve chosen Fujis, the apples will be caramelized, but have still retained their shape. Pour the cooked apples onto a baking sheet to cool completely before forming the braid. (If making ahead, cool to room temperature, seal, and refrigerate.)

They will cool faster when spread in a thin layer over the surface of the sheet. After they have cooled, the filling can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Left over filling can be used as an ice cream topping, for muffins, cheesecake, or other pastries.

DANISH BRAID
Makes enough for 2 large braids

Ingredients
1 recipe Danish Dough (see below)
2 cups apple filling, jam, or preserves (see below)

For the egg wash: 1 large egg, plus 1 large egg yolk

1. Line a baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper. On a lightly floured surface, roll the Danish Dough into a 15 x 20-inch rectangle, ¼ inch thick. If the dough seems elastic and shrinks back when rolled, let it rest for a few minutes, then roll again. Place the dough on the baking sheet.

2. Along one long side of the pastry make parallel, 5-inch-long cuts with a knife or rolling pastry wheel, each about 1 inch apart. Repeat on the opposite side, making sure to line up the cuts with those you’ve already made.

3. Spoon the filling you’ve chosen to fill your braid down the center of the rectangle.

Starting with the top and bottom “flaps”, fold the top flap down over the filling to cover. Next, fold the bottom “flap” up to cover filling. This helps keep the braid neat and helps to hold in the filling. Now begin folding the cut side strips of dough over the filling, alternating first left, then right, left, right, until finished. Trim any excess dough and tuck in the ends.

Egg Wash
Whisk together the whole egg and yolk in a bowl and with a pastry brush, lightly coat the braid.

Proofing and Baking

1. Spray cooking oil (Pam…) onto a piece of plastic wrap, and place over the braid. Proof at room temperature or, if possible, in a controlled 90 degree F environment for about 2 hours, or until doubled in volume and light to the touch.

2. Near the end of proofing, preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Position a rack in the center of the oven.

3. Bake for 10 minutes, then rotate the pan so that the side of the braid previously in the back of the oven is now in the front. Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F, and bake about 15-20 minutes more, or until golden brown.

Cool and serve the braid either still warm from the oven or at room temperature.

The cooled braid can be wrapped airtight and stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 days, or freeze for 1 month.

Barefoot Bloggers: Parmesan Chicken

Its Barefoot Blogger time again! Woo hoo! After another few rounds of sweets, I was ready to head back to the more savory foods. Megan of My Baking Adventures chose Parmesan Chicken. I have never made Parmesan Chicken before, eaten yes, made no. I was excited to try it because I have always loved to eat it at cozy Italian restaurants when I eat out.

This was a fairly simple recipe to make. And fun because you get to pound the heck out of those chicken breasts! Bam! Bam! Charlie thought I was crazy for awhile. The dredge in flour, dredge in egg, dredge in Parmesan/bread crumbs. Cook the chicken for a few minutes per side and voila! Parmesan Chicken! Naturally, mine got a little crispier (i.e. almost burned) on one side.

Despite my almost burning the poor bird, it was quite tasty. I'm not big on salads greens so I went with fresh spinach to top the chicken. Honestly, I would have rather had the chicken with some pasta. I know it is healthier to eat the greens but it just felt like a meal that needed some tomato sauce and spaghetti. The greens can go on the side! There! I would put them in anyway!

Check out the other Barefoot Bloggers here and see more delicious takes on Parmesan Chicken!

4 to 6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 extra-large eggs
1 tablespoon water
1 1/4 cups seasoned dry bread crumbs
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan, plus extra for serving
Unsalted butter
Good olive oil
Salad greens for 6, washed and spun dry
1 recipe Lemon Vinaigrette, recipe follows

Pound the chicken breasts until they are 1/4-inch thick. You can use either a meat mallet or a rolling pin.

Combine the flour, salt, and pepper on a dinner plate. On a second plate, beat the eggs with 1 tablespoon of water. On a third plate, combine the bread crumbs and 1/2 cup grated Parmesan. Coat the chicken breasts on both sides with the flour mixture, then dip both sides into the egg mixture and dredge both sides in the bread-crumb mixture, pressing lightly.

Heat 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large saute pan and cook 2 or 3 chicken breasts on medium-low heat for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, until cooked through. Add more butter and oil and cook the rest of the chicken breasts.

Toss the salad greens with lemon vinaigrette. Place a mound of salad on each hot chicken breast. Serve with extra grated Parmesan.

Lemon Vinaigrette:

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
1/2 cup good olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper.

Yield: 6 servings

Source: Parmesan Chicken by Ina Garten, Courtesy of Food Network

TWD:Mixed Berry Cobbler

Beth of Our Sweet Life choose Mixed Berry Cobbler for this weeks TWD recipe.  Being a good Southern girl, I adore a good cobbler.  Peach is naturally my favorite but I can't deny that I will inhale a tasty berry cobbler as well.  Its been a while since I have eaten cobbler too.  What?!  Yes, its true.  I am sadly behind in my cobbler consumption.  So when this recipe was announced,  I was very happy to say the least.

However, in the P&Q post at Tuesdays with Dorie, many remarked that the crust was quite bland.  After taking a look at the recipe in my copy of Baking, I couldn't help but agree.  There wasn't a lot of sugar.  No vanilla or cinnamon either.  The crust/biscuit topping is very important to a good cobbler.  Depending on the cobbler, its my favorite part.  A bland topper is going to ruin the whole thing for me.  So taking the comments and suggestions into account, I added more sugar and a touch of cinnamon to the dough.

I went with a frozen mixed berry mix instead of frozen. Dorie recommends it in the book and fresh berries are to expensive for me to justify buying just for me. And frozen taste just as good in cobbler as fresh anyway.

I ended up with a little too much dough for the topping but I just put it all on top of the berries in my little ramekin. I wasn't going to complain about a little extra biscuit topping! Not me!

Now...it should be illegal to eat cobbler without a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top. Its not but it should be! I didn't have any ice cream in the freezer but I did have the ingredients and the ice cream maker to make a batch. Plus it was an excuse to use my delicious smelling Organic Tahitian Vanilla beans!

yummm! This was just about the best vanilla ice cream I have ever had. I'm sure it was the vanilla beans that made it so tasty. I don't think I could ever make it without them again. The taste and quality of the ice cream is just too good.

The ice cream on top of the cobbler was sooo tasty! I enjoyed the cobbler by itself though the biscuit even with the additions I made, wasn't as good as I was expecting. I prefer my cobbler crust to be thinner and crispier anyway. The berries were delicious. But the combination of the biscuit, berries, and vanilla ice cream was spectacular.

Now, my slight disappointment with my biscuit wasn't going to stop me from eating my serving of the cobbler. After all...I couldn't waste that delicious vanilla ice cream and berries, could I?

As you can see below, Charlie was very impressed by the cobbler. He spent about 5 minutes making sure that the bowl and spoon was completely licked clean.

For this weeks recipe, please visit Beth at Our Sweet Life. Check out the other bakers at Tuesdays with Dorie for more of Mixed Berry Cobbler. Next week will be making Apple Cheddar Scones, picked by Karina of The Floured Apron.

As you can tell from the abundance of pictures, I got a new camera!  Its a Nikon S550 and I love it!  There are so many cool features!  I just want to sit and play with it until I learn them all. ;)  

Vanilla Ice Cream
(Adapted From Ice Cream! by Pippa Cuthbert ad Lindsay Cameron Wilson, 2005)

Makes about 3 1/4 cups

1 1/4 cups milk (I used non fat)
1 vanilla bean
4 large egg yolks
1/2 cup of vanilla sugar
1 1/4 cups heavy cream

Split the vanilla bean in half length wise (don't scrape the seeds yet) and heat in the milk until almost boiling. Remove the saucepan from heat and infuse the vanilla for 15 minutes.

In a heat proof bow, beat the egg yolks and sugar until thick and pale. Remove the vanilla bean from the milk, scrape out the seeds and add them to the milk. Gradually beat the milk into the egg mixture.

Over a saucepan of simmering water, stir the egg mixture until it is thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon. Remove the bowl from the heat and cover with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming. Allow the custard to cool completely.

Once the mixture is cool, stir in the cream and churn in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions. Serve immediately or transfer to a freezer container and put in the freezer.

TWD: Peppermint Cream Puff Ring

I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to get this recipe done this week.  We had the CEO and CFO of the entire company at our office one day last week, my supervisor was gone, the engineer who is normally second in charge was out, and it was just plain crazy.  I was also told by my father that he wanted a rum cake for Father's Day.  I used Dorie's Vanilla Rum cake and it was delicious but it wasn't the rum soaked sugar concoction of his youth.  Now I just need to find that recipe for next time.

I found a spare moment late Thursday night and was able to make up a small batch of the dough.  I got two individual cream puffs out it and both baked up nicely.  Very puffy!  However, when I turned the oven off both fell completely.  Having never made a cream puff before, I wasn't sure if this was normal or not.  But since time was short I just went with them and whipped up some whipped cream with some peppermint extract added.  I decided against making the cream in the recipe since time was an issue.  The whipped cream was delicious though!

You're probably wondering by now why there are no pictures to document my make shift Cream Puff Ring.  Well...I had them.  Nice ones too.  But I took my camera to my parents' over the weekend where my middle sister reminded me that I was selling my camera to her.  Not thinking anything of it, I gave her the camera.  Ummm....I kind of forgot to take the pictures off of the camera first.  Sigh...  I ordered a new camera but thanks to Amazon's super slow super saver shipping, it won't be here until later this week at the earliest.  I took a picture of it with my iPhone but I couldn't get a good picture out of it.  Hopefully at some point I will be able to make this again and have good pictures!

I had frozen my second cream puff, so I took it out and put some whipped cream in the middle but it was just so...blah compared to my gorgeous peppermint whipped cream puff drizzled in chocolate.  Next time people...next time.

Hopefully my camera will be here in time for next weeks Tuesdays with Dorie recipe.  Beth of Our Sweet Life has chosen the Mixed Berry Cobbler.  woo hoo!  I love cobbler and this one looks delicious!  Can't wait to make it (though I will try and wait for the camera)!

For this weeks recipe, check out our host, Caroline of A Consuming Passion.  See what the other Tuesdays with Dorie bakers have come up with here!

Here is my not so fabulous picture of my second cream puff ring.

My first blog award!

Prudy of Prudence Pennywise has given me my first blog award!  I've only been seriously food blogging since March so it was a big surprise!  Thank you so much Prudy!  I hope I can keep blogging and sharing my culinary adventures with all of my friends for a long time to come!  

Barefoot Bloggers: Pasta, Pesto, and Peas

For our second Barefoot Bloggers recipe, Elizabeth of Ugg Smell Food, chose Pasta, Pesto, and Peas. I've always loved pesto but have ever taken the time to make in from scratch. Now that I know how easy it is, no more of that store bought stuff again!

I pretty much stuck to the recipe on this one. The only change was that I did half spinach and half basil for the pesto. While I do have a basil plant, it is small and didn't have five cups of leaves. I halved the recipe as well since I am the only one eating in my apartment. Well...there is Charlie but he's a dog and I don't feed him everything (though he wishes I would!).

I wasn't sure how I was going to like this dish. I love pasta, peas, and pesto but I'm not much for a cold pasta salad. I always like my pasta hot or at least warm. But this group is about trying new things so I was game to at least try it once. Let me tell you...I was very pleasantly surprised! It was creamy and very tasty! I seemed to have a lot of pesto even though I halved the recipe so my pasta looked like a green pasta unlike the nicely light coated pasta in the picture. Oh well! It was still very tasty! Some of the other participants said they used a lot less of the mayo to cut calories but I went ahead and used the stated amount since I had light mayo. Next time I may do less but I really liked the amount I had. It gave the pesto a creamy, smooth taste that I loved.

Because I still had a huge batch leftover, I froze half for later and took the rest to lunch for the week. It seemed to be even better later! Yum! This will definitely be on my make again lunch list! Thanks Ina!

Pasta, Pesto, and Peas

From Barefoot Contessa Parties! page 98

3/4 pound fusilli pasta
3/4 pound bow tie pasta
1/4 cup good olive oil
1 1/2 cups pesto, packaged or see recipe below
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/4 cups good mayonnaise
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 1/2 cups frozen peas, defrosted
1/3 cup pignolis (pine nuts)
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Cook the fusilli and bow ties separately in a large pot of boiling salted water for 10 to 12 minutes until each pasta is al dente. Drain and toss into a bowl with the olive oil. Cool to room temperature.

In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, puree the pesto, spinach, and lemon juice. Add the mayonnaise and puree. Add the pesto mixture to the cooled pasta and then add the Parmesan, peas, pignolis, salt, and pepper. Mix well, season to taste, and serve at room temperature.

Pesto:
1/4 cup walnuts
1/4 cup pignolis (pine nuts)
3 tablespoons chopped garlic (9 cloves)
5 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups good olive oil
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Place the walnuts, pignolis, and garlic in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Process for 15 seconds. Add the basil leaves, salt, and pepper. With the processor running, slowly pour the olive oil into the bowl through the feed tube and process until the pesto is thoroughly pureed. Add the Parmesan and puree for a minute. Use right away or store the pesto in the refrigerator or freezer with a thin film of olive oil on top.

Notes: Air is the enemy of pesto. For freezing, pack it in containers with a film of oil or plastic wrap directly on top with the air pressed out.

To clean basil, remove the leaves, swirl them in a bowl of water, and then spin them very dry in a salad spinner. Store them in a closed plastic bag with a slightly damp paper towel. As long as the leaves are dry they will stay green for several days.

Yield: 4 cups

Source: Pasta, Pesto, and Peas courtesy of the Food Network

TWD: La Palette’s Strawberry Tart

This weeks delicious Tuesdays with Dorie recipe comes courtesy of Marie of A Year in Oak Cottage. She chose La Palette’s Strawberry Tart. I loooove strawberries...especially fresh strawberries. Any time I get to cook with them I am one happy baker.

I've made this tart before and was a fan instantly. The first time I made it was a few months ago when I was visiting my family for the weekend. My resident sous-chef, my youngest sister, sliced the strawberries to perfection. Unfortunately, I deleted my pictures (they were taken with my phone) so I had no choice but to make this again...it was soooo hard to make it again. Ummm...not.

I am without a food processor (my mom only has one and won't let me steal it..lol) so I decided to use my blender. I wasn't sure if it would work all that well but in the end it did just fine. It took a little longer than normal but it got the job done.

Because this time around, it was just going to be me this time, I decided to use my mini tart pans to make individual tarts. Of course...you know me...there were issues with those cute little tart pans.

Even though I sprayed the heck out of the pans, after they were baked...the litte buggers refused to come out! I should have known they would. The pans didn't have a removable bottom. I hoped but alas...it was not to be. But that wasn't going to stop me from enjoying the fruits..haha..of my labors.

I piled the strawberries on top and topped that with a biiiiiggg dollop of of homemade whipped cream. Yummmmm! The crust is like a sugar cookie. Sweet but not too sweet. Just the right amount to go along with the tartness of the strawberries. I wanted one picture where you could see the crust, so I managed to scrape the crust out of the tart pan and topped the strawberries with it. Still just as yummy!

While this was a tasty, delicious strawberry treat...its not my favorite. You could say its my favorite fresh strawberry treat but its not my overall favorite. What is you may be asking yourself. My favorite is Strawberry shortcake from Perini's Steakhouse near my parents' home outside of Abilene. Its warm strawberries on top of a sugar buttermilk biscuit and topped with a little pitcher of real yummy cream...le sigh...'tis bliss that one, 'tis bliss. Thankfully, I was able to score an autographed cookbook sighed by Tom Perini himself. And it just so happens to include the recipe for that heavenly treat. ;) Be expecting it soon dearies!

Please check out the other goodies from my fellow Tuesdays with Dorie bakers!

Next weeks selection is Peppermint Creme Puff Ring from Caroline of A Consuming Passion.

For this weeks recipe, check out Dorie Greenspan's amazing book, Baking from My Home to Yours, page 374.

I was tagged!

Last week, I was tagged by two of my fellow Barefoot Bakers, hornedfroggy of My Baking Heart and bethanyjg of This Little Piggy Went to Market. I haven't had a chance to do it until now so it here it goes!


The rules: Each player answers the questions about themselves. At the end of the post, the player then tags 5 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read your blog. Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer.

What was I doing ten years ago?

Ten years ago, I had just moved to Abilene, Texas after finishing up my seventh grade year in my itty bitty hometown in the Texas Panhandle. My mom was about to get married to my step-father. Wow...they'll have been married ten years in August!

What are five (non-work) things on my to-do list for today:

1. Work out on Wii Fit
2. Take Charlie on a long walk
3. Finally do this meme (1 check!  Woo hoo!)
4. Make something tasty for work tomorrow
5. Lose 10 pounds (oops...not sure I can get that done today! ;) )

5 Snacks I enjoy:

1. An apple and peanut butter
2. popcorn
3. Cheddar Cheese
4. Fresh Strawberries
5. Bananas

Things I would do if I were a billionaire:

1. Travel 
2. Build/live in my dream home(s) (1 will be in England for sure!)
3. Buy a fantastic car
4. Not worry about how much money I spent on food
5. Have no debt

Places I have lived:

• In Texas: Memphis, Abilene, Canyon or Amarillo (I can't remember which one for sure), San Antonio, Farmers Branch (Dallas),
• In Oklahoma: Oklahoma City, Tulsa, Stillwater, Tahlequah, Muskogee
• I'm sure I'm leaving some out.  We moved around a lot when I was between 2-10. Unfortunately, most of that was in Oklahoma (sorry Oklahomans...nothing against ya!). Thank goodness I've been back in Texas since I was about 10.  I'm a Texan through and through.

Jobs I have had:

• Cashier/Waitress at my mom's sandwich shop
• Cashier at my grandma's shop
• University Bookstore Cashier
• PetSmart Cashier, Lead Cashier, Support Manager
• Marketing Assistant
• Engineering Administrative Assistant

I would tag others to do the meme but everyone I see seems to have done it already!  If you haven't...feel free to do it!  Just leave me a comment on this post and let me know!  I'd love to read about you!

TWD: French Chocolate Brownies

Brownies have long been a major weakness of mine. Especially fudgy brownies. gah....heaven on a plate! My hips and thighs are not so appreciative of the brownie induced bliss. So when it was announced that this week's Dorie treat was French Chocolate Brownies picked by Di of Di's Kitchen Notebook, I was quite happy yet a little afraid at the same time. Not afraid because the recipe would be hard...no...I was afraid because I doubted me ability to not eat the whole pan.

However, when I saw that the recipe called for bittersweet chocolate and I had no semisweet to substitute, I felt quite safe. I like my chocolate sweeter. The only thing that remained an obstacle to making the brownies was the raisins. Its not that I don't like raisins, I do. I just prefer to have my brownies either plain or with pecans. Putting raisins in brownies just seemed a little strange and out of place to me. I contemplated subtituting dried cranberries but I was nearly out so they weren't an option. In the end, I just decided to go for the raisins. I was going to get another chance at flambeing them in rum so why not?

Many TWD Bakers mentioned that their brownies had a very crumbly crust. My brownies seemed to have a normal amount of cracks and crumbliness that a brownies usually has on top. I didn't notice anything different. I also noticed that mine baked less than many bakers. They baked for about 30 minutes and were completely done in the middle. To finish mine, I took some frozen raspberries and lightly mashed them to create a chunky sauce.

oh my jeezus! These were so good! The flambed raisins were a nice surprise (arousing according to my taste tester. um..ok.). My favorite part was the raspberry sauce and chocolateyness of the brownie. So good! With out the sauce, the chocolate was to dark and overwhelming for me. I think if I made these again I would use semisweet chocolate so it wouldn't be so much chocolate. They were also a little too cake like for me since I prefer fudgy brownies. Dorie meant them to be a cake so that really isn't a bad thing for the overall brownie.

I decided to freeze the rest of the batch to use in ice cream later on. I think they would be a great add in for vanilla ice cream. I did save one brownie and whipped up so heavy cream to have on top. oh my...

Check out the other TWD Bakers to see all of the delicious brownies. Next week will be La Palette’s Strawberry Tart courtesy of Marie of A Year in Oak Cottage. I've made this one with my youngest sister before and it was delicious! Can't wait!

French Chocolate Brownies

- makes 16 brownies -
Adapted from Baking From My Home to Yours.

Ingredients

1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
1/3 cup raisins, dark or golden
1 1/2 tablespoons water
1 1/2 tablespoons dark rum
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons; 6 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature and cut into 12 pieces
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup sugar

Getting ready: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 300°F. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with foil, butter the foil, place the pan on a baking sheet, and set aside.

Whisk together the flour, salt and cinnamon, if you're using it.

Put the raisins in a small saucepan with the water, bring to a boil over medium heat and cook until the water almost evaporates. Add the rum, let it warm for about 30 seconds, turn off the heat, stand back and ignite the rum. Allow the flames to die down, and set the raisins aside until needed.

Put the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Slowly and gently melt the chocolate, stirring occasionally. Remove the bowl from the saucepan and add the butter, stirring so that it melts. It's important that the chocolate and butter not get very hot. However, if the butter is not melting, you can put the bowl back over the still-hot water for a minute. If you've got a couple of little bits of unmelted butter, leave them—it's better to have a few bits than to overheat the whole. Set the chocolate aside for the moment.

Working with a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar until they are thick and pale, about 2 minutes. Lower the mixer speed and pour in the chocolate-butter, mixing only until it is incorporated—you'll have a thick, creamy batter. Add the dry ingredients and mix at low speed for about 30 seconds—the dry ingredients won't be completely incorporated and that's fine. Finish folding in the dry ingredients by hand with a rubber spatula, then fold in the raisins along with any liquid remaining in the pan.

Scrape the batter into the pan and bake 50 to 60 minutes, or until the top is dry and crackled and a knife inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a rack and allow the brownies to cool to warm or room temperature.

Carefully lift the brownies out of the pan, using the foil edges as handles, and transfer to a cutting board. With a long-bladed knife, cut the brownies into 16 squares, each roughly 2 inches on a side, taking care not to cut through the foil.

Serving: The brownies are good just warm or at room temperature; they're even fine cold. I like these with a little something on top or alongside—good go-alongs are whipped crème fraiche or whipped cream, ice cream or chocolate sauce or even all three!

Storing: Wrapped well, these can be kept at room temperature for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 2 months.