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Archive for the ‘Dessert’ Category

Rumtopf – Romkrukke – Rum Pot

Posted in Dessert, Drinks, tagged , , , , , , , on April 1, 2013 | 2 Comments »

Making Rumtopf

Rumtopf is a very popular drink in Denmark and Germany. I recall my father making this when I was a girl and that it was a huge hit in the house. Of course my parents let me taste it and I liked the fruit :) although very strong, but I didn’t care for the rum liquid. It was much too strong for my young taste buds, however, that is not the case today. Today it is delicious, but don’t forget that this is straight flavored rum you are consuming and the wonderful fruit is loaded with alcohol. So beware when your enjoying this delicious Rumtopf.

I choose to pit my cherries, however, the pits can be left in place for added flavor.

Traditionally the Rumtopf is started in late spring and fruit is added during the summer as they come into season. However, since fruit is now available pretty much year-round you could start it at any time but ideally you want to follow the season for the best flavors. When you choose your fruit make sure they are not over-ripe. Small fruit that contain pits (like cherries) can either be pitted or the pits can be left in place for added flavor. Larger fruit need to be pitted and cut into bite size pieces.

Rumtopf

The Rumtopf is typically made in a large stoneware pot that has a lid. I don’t have a Rumtopf pot so I used a large glass jar which worked out well except for the fact that I was not able to add very much fruit. My Rumtopf only had two kinds of fruit, cherries and mangoes and hindsight being 20/20 I would not choose mango again with other dark colored fruit because the darker fruit (cherries) give off color and ended up discoloring my beautiful yellow mango. Not esthetically pleasing, but delicious nonetheless. The other dilemma I had was that you want to store the Rumtopf in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight. Well it’s been such an extremely hot summer here in Virginia and our house has been comfortable, but not cool per se, so I choose to store it in the refrigerator to avoid too much fermentation.

Rumtopf fruit and liquid mixed with a little strawberry jam over vanilla ice cream…
über delicious.

Suitable fruit: Cherries, Mangoes, Plums, Pears, Peaches, Apricots, Nectarines, Pineapple, Raspberries, Strawberries, Gooseberries, Red Currants, Grapes

Fruit not suitable:

Banana (too soft)

Watermelon and Cantaloupe (too watery)

Citrus (too much acid)

Apple (takes on an odd texture)

Blackberries and Blueberries (may discolor other fruit)

Rhubarb (too sour)

Mix half and half Rumtopf and Champagne for a cool delicious drink

Rumtopf

Ingredients:

1 pound fresh fruit

1/2 pound sugar

good quality rum, unflavored, enough to cover fruit

Directions:

Add fruit to jar. If fruit is large, cut into bite-size pieces. If fruit has pits they may either be left in place for added flavor or removed if you desire. If you choose to leave the pits in place don’t forget to tell your guests that pits are present, to avoid accidents.

Pour sugar over fruit and add rum to cover fruit by 1 inch. Give a quick stir and seal with a tight-fitting lid. Store in a cool dry location away from direct sunlight. Allow fruit to sit for at least 4 to 6 weeks, tasting periodically. Serve Rumtopf fruit and liquid over Ice Cream, cakes, cheese cakes and waffles or inside rolled-up crepes. Serve strained Rumtopf liquid as an after dinner cordial or mix with other drinks of your choice. Enjoy!

Source: My Danish Kitchen

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Krumkake – Norwegian Waffle Cookies

Posted in Christmas, Cookies, Dessert, Norwegian, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on February 4, 2013 | 6 Comments »

Norwegian Krumkager

Back in 2005, Joe and I took a week long class at John C. Campbell Folk School. We were at the school during their Scandinavian Heritage week which we figured would be the ideal time for us to be at the school. Joe took a blacksmithing class and I took Scandinavian baking which was so much fun and gave me a lot of confidence in my baking skills. Campbell Folk School is located in the southern Appalachian mountains by Brasstown, North Carolina and the campus is set in the most beautiful and serene location. The school is based on the Danish concept of Folkehøjskole which is an adult non-competitive learning experience. Campbell Folk School offer a wide variety of classes based on American traditional arts and crafts such as basketry, dance, drawing, enameling, leather, metalwork, music, photography, woodworking and so much more. I have written about my experience at Campbell Folk School before when I made Wienerbrød and making these Norwegian Krumkaker brought back wonderful memories about our experience there. I can honestly say that is was one of the most rewarding, exciting and at the same time peaceful experiences I have ever had. To get a feel for the atmosphere at the Folk School check out their blog.

Me at John Campbell Folk School practicing decorating a delicious layered cake.

Me at John Campbell Folk School practicing decorating a delicious layered cake.

Krumkake is a delicate and delicious Norwegian waffle cookie which is traditionally served during the Christmas holiday. I first learned to make this classic waffle while taking my Scandinavian baking class at Campbell Folk School. Making the waffle does require an Krumkake iron and a cone shaped roller which can be purchased pretty easily these days online. The cookies can seem a little tricky to roll at first (careful, they are hot) but after a couple of cookies you’ll quickly get the hang of it. They can be rolled into a cone shape, a cylinder (by using the handle of a wooden spoon) or simply served as a flat round disc. The filling choices are numerous and only limited by your imagination but traditionally they are served with whipped cream and fresh berries.

Norwegian Krumkake

Krumkake – makes 38 Krumkaker

Ingredients:

4 large eggs, at room temperature

200 gram butter (7 oz.)

200 gram sugar (7 oz.)

200 gram flour (7 oz.)

2 tsp vanilla extract or 1/2 tsp ground cardamom

warm water to get correct batter consistency (I used 14 tbsp)

Special equipment required: Krumkake iron and a Krumkake roller (if not already included with your iron)

Directions:

Melt butter and set aside. Add eggs and sugar to a bowl and beat on high until thick and pale yellow in color. While continuing to mix, pour the melted butter, in a thin stream, into the egg mixture. Add your choice of either vanilla extract or cardamom and while continuing to mix, add  flour in small increments. If batter is too thick, add warm water to correct consistency.

Note: follow your Krumkake iron manufactures instructions regarding temperature settings, if iron needs to be greased and cooking time. Using the krumkake roller will give you a cone shape and using the end of a wooden spoon with give a cylinder shape.

Place a large piece of parchment paper onto your counter top next to the Krumkake iron. I taped the corners of the paper down to keep it from moving around.

Pour a generous tablespoon of batter onto your hot krumkake iron, close lid and cook until ready (30-45 seconds). Using a small offset spatula or a butter knife, quickly lift the soft krumkake onto the parchment paper and roll into desired shape. Keep the cookie on the roller for 1-2 minutes to allow it to take its shape before sliding the cookie off the roller and placing it onto a baking sheet to cool completely. Store cookies in an airtight tin until ready to serve. Fill cones with your favorite filling right before serving and enjoy.

Krumkake serving suggestions: whipped cream with fresh berries, soft ice cream, preserves or jams, pudding, custard or Carole’s Almond Pudding (recipe follows)

Carole’s Almond Pudding:

Ingredients:

1 small package instant vanilla pudding (95 gram or 3.4 oz.)

1 cup heavy whipping cream

1 cup milk

1/4 – 1/2 tsp almond extract

Directions:

Beat all ingredients together for 1-2 minutes until desired consistency and keep cool in refrigerator until ready to serve. Pipe into krumkaker cookies and serve immediately.

Source for Krumkake: adapted from Tine.no

Source for Carole’s Almond Pudding: my friend and coworker Carole Yoder

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Making Krumkaker

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Othellolagkage – Othello Layered Cake

Posted in Cake, Danish, Dessert, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 28, 2013 | 8 Comments »

Othellolagkage

Othellolagkage

The Othellolagkage is named after Shakespeare’s great tragedy Othello which was written in the early 1600′s. Lagkager or Layered cakes are very popular in Denmark and the Othellolagkage is the “creme de la creme” of layered cakes, a true Danish classic.

Othello

Draw circle, baked Makronbund, Cake cream, Layering cakes

The cake is served on special occasions but it can be quite expensive if bought at the bakery in Denmark. Of course you can make it at home although it is a little time consuming, but well worth your effort. To save some time you can buy the lagkagebunde (cakes for layered cake) at any store in Denmark or if you live overseas, they can be purchased online. However, I choose to make my own lagkagebunde which I had frozen and so all I had to do was pull them out of the freezer to thaw.

Roll & trim Marzipan, smear cake cream along edge, gently apply Marzipan to edge, decorate seam with whipped cream

Roll & trim Marzipan, smear cake cream along edge, gently apply Marzipan to edge, decorate seam with whipped cream

Ingredients for Othellolagkage:

2 lagkagebunde (cakes for layered cake, see link for recipe)

1 makronbund (macaroon cake layer, recipe follows)

Lagkagecreme (cake cream, recipe follows)

Kakaoglasur (cocoa glaze, recipe follows)

Marcipanovertræk (marzipan coating, recipe follows)

6 tablespoons strawberry jam (optional)

6 oz heavy whipping creme

Ingredients for Makronbund – Macaroon cake layer: (makes 1)

200 gram marzipan (7 oz.)

100 gram sugar (3 1/2 oz.)

3 egg whites

Directions:

Preheat oven to 200 degrees C (390 degrees F). Take a piece of parchment paper and trace a circle from the baking pan which you used for making the lagkagebunde, I used an 8 inch pan. Set parchment paper with circle aside.

Mix all ingredients together until you have a smooth homogeneous “dough”, this may take a good 5-10 minutes. Place mixture into a plastic bag, cut off corner and squeeze dough onto circle on parchment. Bake for 20 minutes and allow to cool completely before using.

Ingredients for Lagkagecreme – Cake creme:

1 egg

3 egg yolks

4 tablespoons sugar

1 vanilla bean

4 teaspoons flour

4 deciliter whole milk (13 oz.)

1 deciliter heavy whipping cream (4 oz.)

Directions:

Whip egg, egg yolks, sugar and seeds from vanilla bean until slightly thickened and airy. Add flour and beat. Add milk and beat. Pour egg mixture and empty vanilla beans into a cooking pot and over low heat slowly bring to a simmer while whisking continously. Allow to simmer for 2 minutes while whisking. Remove from heat and transfer into a dish, cover cake cream with plastic wrap and place in refrigerator to cool completely. Once cake cream is cooled, whip heavy whipping cream to a whipped cream and stir into cake cream. Continue to keep cool until ready to use.

Ingredients for Marcipanovertræk – Marzipan coating:

150 gram marzipan (5 1/2 oz.)

175 gram confectioners sugar (6 oz.)

50 gram glucose (1 3/4 oz.)

Directions:

Mix marzipan and glucose, adding confectioners sugar in increments. Mix until you have a smooth mixture. Sprinkle a generous amount of confectioners sugar onto your work surface and roll marzipan out to the height of the finished layered cake and the circumference of the cake, this is easily measured using a butcher’s twine or some other string. Make sure Marzipan does not stick to your work surface and trim edges with a sharp knife to get straight lines.

Ingredients for Kakaoglasur – Cocoa glaze:

200 gram confectioners sugar (7 oz.)

2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa

warm water

Directions:

Mix together confectioners sugar and cocoa. In very small increments add the warm water little by little until the consistency is thick but flowing easily. Set aside.

Assembling the cake:

Place the Macaroon cake layer (Makronbund) in the center of your serving dish. Place half of the Cake Cream (Lagkagecreme) on the Macaroon cake layer and spread to the edge. Place the first Cake layer (Lagkagebund) on top and spread a layer of strawberry jam (optional) and the remaining Cake Cream, leaving a couple of small spoonfuls as left-over. Place the second Cake layer on top of the cream. Using the left-over Cake Cream, apply a thin layer around the edges to give the Marzipan something to adhere to. Gently fold up the  Marzipan strip and then un-fold it around the edge of the cake, pressing it lightly against the edge to make it stick. If you have not already done so, mix up your Cocoa Glaze (Kakaoglasur) and spread it out over the top of the Cake layer leading the glaze to the Marzipan edge. Whip up the last 6 oz of heavy whipping cream, place in a pastry bag fitted with a star tip (or whichever is your favorite shape) and decorate the edge between the Cocoa glaze and Marzipan to cover up any gaps. Keep cake refrigerated until serving. Enjoy!

Othellolagkage

Othellolagkage

Source: Himmelske Kager

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Mandelmusslor – A Swedish Dessert

Posted in Dessert, Swedish, tagged , , , , , , on November 5, 2012 | 6 Comments »

Mandelmusslor

Mandelmusslor is a Swedish dessert which is a delicate little morsel but big enough to satisfy your sweet craving. The shell is crisp and has a wonderful sweet almond flavor which is nicely contrasted with the soft and cool whipped cream and strawberry preserve. I choose to use a strawberry preserve here but you can certainly use any flavor you like.

Pressing dough into shells

This is not exactly a quick and easy dessert to make. It is a bit tedious pressing the dough into the tins, however, the Mandelmusslor can be made ahead of time and stored in a cookie tin so when you are ready to serve them, it’s very quick to whip up the cream and top with a teaspoon of jam. Viola, dessert anyone?

Let Mandelmusslor cool upside down

Word of advise, make sure tins are greased very well and when you go to remove them from the tins try to “bang” them straight down onto the baking sheet to release them. It may take just a couple of tries.

Mandelmusslor (makes 18)

Ingredients:

100 g margarine (3.5 oz.), at room temperature

150 g unsalted butter (5.3 oz.), at room temperature

150 g sugar (5.3 oz.)

1 teaspoon almond extract

30 g ground almond meal (1 oz.)

360 g all-purpose flour (12.7 oz.)

Filling:

1 pint (16 oz.) heavy whipping cream

Strawberry preserves (or use whichever is your favorite flavor)

Directions:

Beat margarine, butter and sugar until soft and smooth. Add the almond extract and the almond meal. While continuing to beat the mixture, add the flour in small increments until the dough comes together.

Preheat oven to 390 degrees F (200 degrees C)

Prepare tins by generously spraying them with baking spray. Pinching off a ball of dough the size of a small golf ball and press the dough into greased tin. You want the dough to be a pretty thin layer. Place tins on a baking sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden.

After tins are pulled out of the oven, using your oven mitts or a tea towel, turn the tins upside down on the baking sheet and let sit for a couple of minutes. Then lift tins up (careful tins will still be hot) and drop them firmly down onto the baking sheet to release the Mandelmusslor from the tins. Let the pastries cool upside down to maintain their shape.

For the filling: beat the whipping cream just until the cream starts to thicken. Serve Mandelmusslor with whipped cream and a teaspoon of preserve. Enjoy!

Source: adapted from Anne’s Food

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Kammerjunker – Twice-baked Biscuits

Posted in Breakfast, Danish, Dessert, Koldskål, tagged , , , , , , , , , on May 28, 2012 | 6 Comments »

Kammerjunker – Twice Baked Biscuits

Kammerjunker is a small twice-baked biscuit which is served with the Danish summer dish Koldskål. I have been promising to write a post about Kammerjunker for quite some time now and with summer right around the corner I find myself day-dreaming about cold, sweet and tart delicious Koldskål with some crunchy homemade Kammerjunker. And so here they are!

Kammerjunker – Twice baked biscuits

I have to say that the home-made Kammerjunker completely beats the store-bought kind. These turned out crunchy and so tasty that I had to fight off my husband for them. Btw he told me to tell you that they are also great with a little jam and Nutella on them (shaking her head in disbelief). They are not overly sweet like the ones from the store, which I really like, besides I find the store-bought kind more like a cookie anyway. I hope you enjoy these as much as we have.

Kammerjunker – makes 48 whole or 96 half sliced biscuits

Ingredients:

250 grams all-purpose flour (8.8 oz.)

2 teaspoons baking powder

100 grams sugar (3.5 oz.)

1/2 vanilla bean

1/2 teaspoon cardamom

100 grams butter, room temperature (3.5 oz.)

1 egg

1/2 deciliter milk (1.7 oz.)

Directions:

Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean and mix with a small amount of the sugar to separate the seeds. In a large bowl add flour, baking powder, sugar, seeds from vanilla bean and cardamom, stir to combine. Cut butter into pieces, add to flour mixture and using your clean hands work butter and flour together until crumbly. Add egg, mix only until incorporated. Add milk and mix only until dough comes together. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and place in refrigerator for 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 345 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

Roll small pieces of dough into approx. 2 centimeter (0.8 inch) balls and place on baking sheet 2 centimeter apart. Bake for max 10 minutes. Remove from oven and while biscuits are still warm slice into halves using a serrated knife. Place back onto baking sheet with cut-side down.

Lower heat in oven to 200 degrees F (100 degrees C) and continue to bake for another 45 minutes to dry biscuits out. Allow to cool completely before storing Kammerjunker in a cookie tin. Enjoy!

Source: adapted from Det Søde Liv

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Ymerdrys

Posted in Breakfast, Danish, Dessert, tagged , , , , , , , , on May 7, 2012 | 11 Comments »

Ymerdrys

Ymer is a Danish milk product that was developed in the 1930′s. It’s similar to yogurt and buttermilk and it’s often served as a breakfast, snack or dessert. Unfortunately Ymer cannot be purchased in the US but I find that Greek Yogurt is a great substitute.

Rugbrød (Rye Bread)

Ymerdrys is a topping that is sprinkled on top of the Ymer. It is made from Danish Rugbrød (Rye Bread) and the tart and sweet taste of the bread is a perfect compliment to the slightly sour Ymer. Many years ago I purchased Ymerdrys online but I was very disappointing because it was much too sweet. Then recently I came across homemade Ymerdrys, but could it be as good as what I remember from home? Yes it can! And it is very quick and easy to make :)

Rugbrød (Rye Bread) crumbs

Ymerdrys is definitely one of those foods that I’ll be making on a regular basis. It’s a great source of fiber, a delicious addition to your Ymer or Yogurt and a great way to use up leftover Rugbrød. Now, Ymerdrys from back home did not have freeze dried berries in it, so that is completely optional, but I just wanted a little extra color in it and I had a bag of freeze dried raspberries sitting around waiting to be used up, besides it turned out über good. Also, when you choose your Rugbrød I would recommend choosing one that has some seeds into, it gives a little extra crunch after it’s baked.

Ymerdrys with dried raspberries

Ingredients:

200 gram Rugbrød (7 1/2 oz Dark Rye Bread)

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1/4 to 1/2 cup freeze dried raspberries, optional

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C)

Break Rye Bread into large chunks and place in a food processor. Add brown sugar. Pulse until desired consistency. Place bread onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake in oven for 10-15 minutes. Watch it closely the last 5 minutes to make sure it doesn’t burn. Allow to cool on baking sheet. Place freeze dried berries into a small plastic bag and crush into small chunks. Add berries to Rye Bread and mix. Enjoy sprinkled over top of your Ymer or Greek Yogurt!

Rugbrød

Source: adapted from Miras Madblog

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Citronfromage – Danish Lemon Mousse

Posted in Danish, Dessert, tagged , , , , , , , on April 16, 2012 | 8 Comments »

Citronfromage

Citronfromage is a classic Danish dessert, a familiar old friend to all Danes. It can of be served any time of the year but I associate it with long summer days when the sun sets late in the evening. The mousse is a beautiful pale yellow color and it is filled with air making it a very light dessert. The tart lemon flavor is complimented with sweet whipped cream which gives it nice contrast. Make sure to serve the Citronfromage cold with a dollop of whipped cream and enjoy!

Disclaimer: this recipe is made with raw eggs, and as we all know, these days eating raw eggs is frowned upon due to a potential risk of salmonella food poisoning.  You can certainly use pasteurized eggs for this dessert but I chose to use fresh eggs lade the old fashioned way by a happy chicken. For more info on safe handling of eggs check out this FDA site, it has a lot of good information.

Citronfromage: serves 6

Ingredients:

For the Mousse:

1 tablespoon granulated gelatin

3 tablespoons cold water

3 organic lemons, juiced

1 teaspoon lemon zest

3 eggs, separated

1/3 cup superfine sugar

generous 1/3 cup heavy cream

For Serving:

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 tablespoon confectioners sugar

For Candied Lemon Zest:

1 lemon

1/3 cup superfine sugar

1/4 cup water

Directions:

To make the Mousse: Place gelatine and cold water in a heat-proof bowl and let sit for 5 minutes. Meanwhile in a small bowl, using an electrical mixer, beat the egg yolks and sugar until thick and pale in color. In the bowl of your stand-mixer with the whisk attachment (or using a large mixing bowl with clean beaters), whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form. In another bowl beat the heavy cream until soft peaks form.

Place the bowl with the softened gelatin over small saucepan of simmering water to melt gently. Once gelatine is melted, add lemon juice and zest. While continuing to beat the egg yolks, add the gelatine/lemon mixture in a thin stream. Fold the stiff egg whites and whipped cream into the egg/gelatin mixture until smooth. Pour into individual serving dishes or a large serving bowl, cover with plastic wrap and place in refrigerator to set for at least 3-4 hours.

To make Candied Lemon Zest: Using a zester, cut the peel from the lemon into long strips. Squeeze the juice from the lemon and set aside. In a small saucepan add water, sugar, lemon juice and lemon peel, bring to a boil and continue to simmer for 5 minutes. Remove the lemon strips from the hot liquid. Separate the lemon strips from each other and spread them out on a baking sheet, allow to cool.

To serve: whip the remaining 1/2 cup heavy cream with confectioners sugar until soft peaks form. Serve the lemon mousse cold with the whipped cream and candied lemon zest. Enjoy!

Citronfromage

Source: adapted from The Scandinavian Cookbook

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Mazarinkage

Posted in Cake, Danish, Dessert, tagged , , , , , , on April 2, 2012 | 20 Comments »

Mazarinkage

You’re probably all wondering, why does she keep posting recipes with marzipan? Well, all I can say is that marzipan is immensely popular in Denmark and it’s a natural part of baking (and besides….I like it)

Mazarinkage is a classic Danish cake found in most bakeries. It’s a sponge cake made with Marzipan which makes the cake moist, sweet and compact. There are many different variations of this cake. Some make it with orange juice/mashed oranges, amaretto or with a nougat glaze instead of the chocolate ganache, all sounding very enticing. But for this post I wanted to keep it close to the way I remember the cake, simply delicious.

Mazarinkage - The ganache is still moist in this picture, and yes I stole a piece of cake before putting the ganache on :)

Ingredients:

For the dough:

100 grams all-purpose flour (3 5/8 oz)

100 grams cornstarch (3 5/8 oz)

1 tablespoon baking powder

200 grams butter, melted (7 1/4 oz)

200 grams marzipan, grated (7 1/4 oz)

4 eggs

200 grams confectioners sugar (7 1/4 oz)

For the ganache:

100 grams semi-sweet chocolate, chopped (4 oz)

1 deciliter half and half (3.4 oz or 0.4 cup)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).

In a medium bowl, add flour, cornstarch and baking powder, set aside. In a small saucepan melt butter and set aside to cool. Grate marzipan and set aside.

In the bowl of a stand-mixer, with the speed on medium, beat eggs and confectioners sugar. While continuing to beat, add cooled butter in a thin stream.  Add marzipan and then add remaining dry ingredients.

Spray with baking spray or butter a round 9 inch (23 cm) spring-form pan. Pour dough into spring-form and bake 35 to 40 minutes. Allow to cool on a cooling rack.

To make ganache: Add half and half  and chopped chocolate to a small saucepan. Over medium-low heat melt chocolate, stirring frequently until mixture starts to thicken. Remove cake from spring-form and spread ganache over top of cake. Enjoy!

Source: adapted from Kvalimad

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Berry Chip Ice Cream

Posted in Dessert, Frozen Dessert, tagged , , , , , , , , on March 26, 2012 | 13 Comments »

Berry Chip Ice Cream

The other day I had the pleasure of meeting Ree Drummond from the Pioneer Woman. I was thrilled when I found out she was doing a book signing at our local book store here in Virginia Beach. Our normally sleepy Books-A-Million was filled with people and the lines were as long, as if you were waiting to get on the roller-coaster on a warm summers day, but it was well worth the wait. Ree was as sweet and personal as she appears on her blog. She did not rush people and made small talk with everyone. It was a real pleasure.

Pioneer Woman and My Danish Kitchen

Now, I have been plowing through Ree’s new book Pioneer Woman Cooks: Food From My Frontier and it is loaded with tons of delicious food made in traditional Pioneer Woman style. What caught my eye in her new book was her Blackberry Chip Ice Cream which seems very fitting since we have already had some warm days here in VB. I decided to add some raspberries to the blackberries and I also gave the ice cream time to rest and cool down before tossing it into the ice cream maker. The ice cream turned out creamy, silky and delicious with a gorgeous purple/pink color and it was consumed very quickly by a person who shall remain nameless ;)

Ingredients:

For the Berries:

12 oz blackberries

4 oz raspberries

1/2 lemon, juice

1/4 cup sugar

For the Custard:

1 1/2 cup half and half

1 cup sugar

5 egg yolks

1 1/2 cup heavy cream

4 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips, lightly chopped

Directions:

Place blackberries and raspberries in a saucepan, add lemon juice and 1/4 cup sugar. Simmer over medium heat for 25 minutes until berries are soft and syrupy. Place hot berries in a strainer and with the back of a spoon press juices completely out until only the pulp and seeds remain. Set juice aside, discard pulp and seeds.

In a saucepan over medium-low heat, warm the half and half and 1 cup sugar. Meanwhile in a small bowl beat the egg yolks until thick and pale yellow in color. Temper the egg yolks, by pouring a very thin steam of the warm half and half into the eggs while continuing to beat. Then pour the tempered egg yolks into the saucepan with the remaining half and half. Cook while stirring constantly until  custard has thickened, remove from heat.

Mix the heavy cream into the berry sauce. Then add the custard to the berries and stir to combine. Place mixture in refrigerator to  cool down completely. After mixture has cooled down, freeze according to your ice cream maker’s instructions. At the end of the freezing process, add the chopped chocolate chips. Store ice cream in a freezer safe container. Enjoy!

Berry Chip Ice Cream

Source: adapted from The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Food From My Frontier

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Devil’s Food Cupcakes With Perfect Chocolate Frosting

Posted in Cake, Chocolate, Dessert, Frosting, tagged , , , , on March 12, 2012 | 7 Comments »

Devil's Food Cupcake With Perfect Chocolate Frosting

Attention all chocolate lovers…this one is for you! These cupcakes are double trouble. The cupcake is super moist with an intense chocolate flavor and the frosting is silky soft with an intoxicating chocolate aroma. Careful not to overbake the cupcakes, you don’t want to loose that perfect moisture.

Devil's Food Cupcakes

I was taking a cake decorating class and had brought this chocolate frosting in with me for my project and we were about an hour into the class when all of the sudden the girl next to me burst out ”omg that frosting smells amaaaazing” :) It really does have a fantastic aroma.

Perfect Chocolate Frosting

Ingredients for Cupcakes:

3/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder

3/4 cup hot water

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/4 teaspoons coarse salt

1 1/2 cups unsalted butter (3 sticks)

2 1/4 cups sugar

4 large eggs, room temperature

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup sour cream, room temperature

Ingredients for Frosting:

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate (120 grams), coarsely chopped

2/3 cup unsalted butter (150 grams), room temperature

1 1/3 cups confectioners sugar (160 grams), sifted

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Directions for Cupcakes:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners.

Whisk together cocoa and hot water until smooth. In another bowel, mix togther flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Melt butter with sugar over medium-low heat until dissolved and stir to combine. Remove from heat and pour into mixing bowl. On medium-low speed beat until cooled (4-5 minutes). Add eggs one at a time, mixing until each is combined. Add vanilla and cocoa mixture, beat until combined. Scrape down sides as needed. On low speed, add flour mixture in two batches, alternating with the sour cream, beat just until combined after each.

Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full with batter. Bake, rotating muffin tins halfway through cooking time, for approximately 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Transfer muffin tins to baking racks and allow to cool for 15 minutes. Remove cupcakes from baking tins and place on baking racks, allow to cool completely.

Note: cupcakes can be store at room temperature overnight or frozen up to 2 months, in airtight containers.

Directions for Frosting:

Melt chocolate over a hot water bath. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.

In the bowl of an electrical mixer, beat butter until smooth and creamy (about 1 minute). Add confectioners sugar and beat until smooth and light (about 2 minutes). Add vanilla extract and chocolate, beat on low speed until incorporated. Increase speed to medium high and beat until frosting is smooth and glossy (2-3 minutes).

Pipe or spread frosting onto cupcakes. Enjoy!

Source: Cupcakes – Martha Stewart’s Cupcakes, Frosting – Joy of Baking

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