Daring Bakers' Challenge: Tiramisu

The February 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Aparna of My Diverse Kitchen and Deeba of Passionate About Baking. They chose Tiramisu as the challenge for the month. Their challenge recipe is based on recipes from The Washington Post, Cordon Bleu at Home and Baking Obsession.

Okay. I'm a bit tickled with the result of this month's baking for The Daring Kitchen group. I really wanted to make Tiramisu and so was glad of a recipe (from scratch, what's more!) that has been tried by a few people. Here are the things which went wrong:

1. My mascarpone cheese turned out to be a hard blob of frozen cream. I later found out the cream I used was UHT. This is not an excuse though as it has been repeated in the forum of The Daring Kitchen to NOT use UHT cream. Yikes!
2. I over-whipped the cream and turned it into butter.

So, have a look at the slice of tiramisu above. It looks nothing like it. But amazingly, it tasted fantastic! Sure, the fingers were not as moist as they should be and instead of soft airy cream, I could actually slice cleanly through the tiramisu but presentation aside, I really believe the taste is where the proof of a good recipe is.

I was proud enough of it to gift a few slices to some relatives, however much my sister protested!

TIRAMISU

(Recipe source: Carminantonio's Tiramisu from The Washington Post, July 11 2007 )
This recipe makes 6 servings

Ingredients:
For the zabaglione:
2 large egg yolks
3 tablespoons sugar/50gms
1/4 cup/60ml Marsala wine (or port or coffee)
1/4 teaspoon/ 1.25ml vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

For the vanilla pastry cream:
1/4 cup/55gms sugar
1 tablespoon/8gms all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon/ 2.5ml vanilla extract
1 large egg yolk
3/4 cup/175ml whole milk

For the whipped cream:
1 cup/235ml chilled heavy cream (we used 25%)
1/4 cup/55gms sugar
1/2 teaspoon/ 2.5ml vanilla extract

To assemble the tiramisu:
2 cups/470ml brewed espresso, warmed
1 teaspoon/5ml rum extract (optional)
1/2 cup/110gms sugar
1/3 cup/75gms mascarpone cheese
36 savoiardi/ ladyfinger biscuits (you may use less)
2 tablespoons/30gms unsweetened cocoa powder

Method:
For the zabaglione:
Heat water in a double boiler. If you don’t have a double boiler, place a pot with about an inch of water in it on the stove. Place a heat-proof bowl in the pot making sure the bottom does not touch the water.
In a large mixing bowl (or stainless steel mixing bowl), mix together the egg yolks, sugar, the Marsala (or espresso/ coffee), vanilla extract and lemon zest. Whisk together until the yolks are fully blended and the mixture looks smooth.
Transfer the mixture to the top of a double boiler or place your bowl over the pan/ pot with simmering water. Cook the egg mixture over low heat, stirring constantly, for about 8 minutes or until it resembles thick custard. It may bubble a bit as it reaches that consistency.
Let cool to room temperature and transfer the zabaglione to a bowl. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight, until thoroughly chilled.

For the pastry cream:
Mix together the sugar, flour, lemon zest and vanilla extract in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan. To this add the egg yolk and half the milk. Whisk until smooth.
Now place the saucepan over low heat and cook, stirring constantly to prevent the mixture from curdling.
Add the remaining milk a little at a time, still stirring constantly. After about 12 minutes the mixture will be thick, free of lumps and beginning to bubble. (If you have a few lumps, don’t worry. You can push the cream through a fine-mesh strainer.)
Transfer the pastry cream to a bowl and cool to room temperature. Cover with plastic film and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight, until thoroughly chilled.

For the whipped cream:
Combine the cream, sugar and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl. Beat with an electric hand mixer or immersion blender until the mixture holds stiff peaks. Set aside.

To assemble the tiramisu:
Have ready a rectangular serving dish (about 8" by 8" should do) or one of your choice.
Mix together the warm espresso, rum extract and sugar in a shallow dish, whisking to mix well. Set aside to cool.
In a large bowl, beat the mascarpone cheese with a spoon to break down the lumps and make it smooth. This will make it easier to fold. Add the prepared and chilled zabaglione and pastry cream, blending until just combined. Gently fold in the whipped cream. Set this cream mixture aside.

Now to start assembling the tiramisu.
Workings quickly, dip 12 of the ladyfingers in the sweetened espresso, about 1 second per side. They should be moist but not soggy. Immediately transfer each ladyfinger to the platter, placing them side by side in a single row. You may break a lady finger into two, if necessary, to ensure the base of your dish is completely covered.
Spoon one-third of the cream mixture on top of the ladyfingers, then use a rubber spatula or spreading knife to cover the top evenly, all the way to the edges.
Repeat to create 2 more layers, using 12 ladyfingers and the cream mixture for each layer. Clean any spilled cream mixture; cover carefully with plastic wrap and refrigerate the tiramisu overnight.
To serve, carefully remove the plastic wrap and sprinkle the tiramisu with cocoa powder using a fine-mesh strainer or decorate as you please. Cut into individual portions and serve.

MASCARPONE CHEESE

(Source: Vera’s Recipe for Homemade Mascarpone Cheese)
This recipe makes 12oz/ 340gm of mascarpone cheese

Ingredients:
474ml (approx. 500ml)/ 2 cups whipping (36 %) pasteurized (not ultra-pasteurized), preferably organic cream (between 25% to 36% cream will do)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Method:

Bring 1 inch of water to a boil in a wide skillet. Reduce the heat to medium-low so the water is barely simmering. Pour the cream into a medium heat-resistant bowl, then place the bowl into the skillet. Heat the cream, stirring often, to 190 F. If you do not have a thermometer, wait until small bubbles keep trying to push up to the surface.
It will take about 15 minutes of delicate heating. Add the lemon juice and continue heating the mixture, stirring gently, until the cream curdles. Do not expect the same action as you see during ricotta cheese making. All that the whipping cream will do is become thicker, like a well-done crème anglaise. It will cover a back of your wooden spoon thickly. You will see just a few clear whey streaks when you stir. Remove the bowl from the water and let cool for about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, line a sieve with four layers of dampened cheesecloth and set it over a bowl. Transfer the mixture into the lined sieve. Do not squeeze the cheese in the cheesecloth or press on its surface (be patient, it will firm up after refrigeration time). Once cooled completely, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate (in the sieve) overnight or up to 24 hours.
Vera’s notes: The first time I made mascarpone I had all doubts if it’d been cooked enough, because of its custard-like texture. Have no fear, it will firm up beautifully in the fridge, and will yet remain lusciously creamy.
Keep refrigerated and use within 3 to 4 days.

LADYFINGERS/ SAVOIARDI BISCUITS
(Source: Recipe from Cordon Bleu At Home)
This recipe makes approximately 24 big ladyfingers or 45 small (2 1/2" to 3" long) ladyfingers.

Ingredients:
3 eggs, separated
6 tablespoons /75gms granulated sugar
3/4 cup/95gms cake flour, sifted (or 3/4 cup all purpose flour + 2 tbsp corn starch)
6 tablespoons /50gms confectioner's sugar,

Method:

Preheat your oven to 350 F (175 C) degrees, then lightly brush 2 baking sheets with oil or softened butter and line with parchment paper.
Beat the egg whites using a hand held electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Gradually add granulate sugar and continue beating until the egg whites become stiff again, glossy and smooth.
In a small bowl, beat the egg yolks lightly with a fork and fold them into the meringue, using a wooden spoon. Sift the flour over this mixture and fold gently until just mixed. It is important to fold very gently and not overdo the folding. Otherwise the batter would deflate and lose volume resulting in ladyfingers which are flat and not spongy.
Fit a pastry bag with a plain tip (or just snip the end off; you could also use a Ziploc bag) and fill with the batter. Pipe the batter into 5" long and 3/4" wide strips leaving about 1" space in between the strips.
Sprinkle half the confectioner's sugar over the ladyfingers and wait for 5 minutes. The sugar will pearl or look wet and glisten. Now sprinkle the remaining sugar. This helps to give the ladyfingers their characteristic crispness.
Hold the parchment paper in place with your thumb and lift one side of the baking sheet and gently tap it on the work surface to remove excess sprinkled sugar.
Bake the ladyfingers for 10 minutes, then rotate the sheets and bake for another 5 minutes or so until the puff up, turn lightly golden brown and are still soft.
Allow them to cool slightly on the sheets for about 5 minutes and then remove the ladyfingers from the baking sheet with a metal spatula while still hot, and cool on a rack.
Store them in an airtight container till required. They should keep for 2 to 3 weeks.

Oatmeal Bread

The first time I attempted to make this bread, it turned out tough with a really thick crust. When I recently made it again, it baked beautifully. Thin crackly crust with the softest texture inside. The difference was the dough. When I started making bread, I liked my dough to be not sticky at all. So I smothered it with flour until it no longer sticks to my fingers. However, I recently discovered the stickier the dough, the lighter the bread.

I was extremely pleased with how this bread turned out. Unfortunately, I cannot remember the source of the recipe and am unable to link it back to that website (Apologies to the author of this excellent recipe).

This recipe serves 4.

Ingredients:
1 cup Water
1/2 cup Quick oats ; or coarsely chopped rolled oats
10 grams Butter
2 teaspoon Instant yeast ; scant
1/4 cup Warm water ; 38C to 43C
2 1/2 tablespoon Brown sugar ; firmly packed
1/2 teaspoon Salt
2 cups All purpose flour

Instructions:
1) Cook oats in 1 cup water according to package directions. Remove from heat and stir in butter, brown sugar and salt. Allow to cool for 5 minutes.

2) Mix yeast, oats and flour in a bowl. Add in water slowly until the dough starts to come away from the side of the bowl (try kneading without water first). Dough is very shaggy and sticky. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic (about 5 minutes). Place in a well greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until dough has doubled in size, about 1 hour.

3) Turn dough out and gently shape into a round loaf. Place dough on a baking sheet and let rise for 30 - 45 minutes. Slash top of the loaf as desired.

4) Preheat oven to 191°C.

5) Bake at 191°C for 40 minutes.

Transfer to a wire rack to cool almost completely before serving.

Pongteh

I recently tried a dish I've never had before in a Nyonya restaurant. It was called pongteh and it had the most delicious flavour. It's not very attractive to look, being all dark and the meat hardly discernible from the mushrooms or even the potatoes; but oh, the flavour! This dish (and the following recipe) is definitely a must-try in my book.

The recipe is adapted from Kuali and serves 4.

Ingredients:
300 grams chicken
300 grams belly pork ; (optional)
3 tablespoons cooking oil
200 grams shallot paste ; (from about 20 shallots)
1/2 tablespoon garlic paste ; (from 3 cloves garlic)
1 tablespoons preserved bean paste ; (tau cheo)
5 dried shiitake mushrooms ; soaked and quartered
400 mililiters Water
1 1/2 potatoes ; peeled and quartered
125 grams yambean ; (jicama), cut as desired
30 grams palm sugar ; (gula Melaka), or to taste
1/2 teaspoon salt ; or to taste

Instructions:
Cut the chicken into pieces; cut the pork into 2cm-thick slices.

Heat the oil to sauté the shallot and garlic paste until fragrant, stirring continuously. Add the bean paste and fry until the oil starts to separate.

Add the pork if using and fry for 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and water, and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 20 minutes before adding chicken. Continue simmering until chicken and pork are tender, adding the potatoes and yambean half way through. Add more water if gravy becomes too thick. Season to taste with sugar and salt. Serve with sambal belacan.

Daring Cooks' Challenge: Mezze

The 2010 February Daring Cooks challenge was hosted by Michele of Veggie Num Nums. Michele chose to challenge everyone to make mezze based on various recipes from Claudia Roden, Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Dugid.

I was terribly excited about this month's challenge. I love bread and I've been wanting to make hummus for some time. Unfortunately I couldn't find tahini in my local supermarket. So I substituted peanut butter for it. As a result, although the hummus was delicious, it did taste very strongly of peanut butter (I may have been a bit heavy handed while adding it).

I will make my own tahini the next time I need it for hummus; just to taste how authentic hummus should be.

Pita Bread – Recipe adapted from Flatbreads & Flavors by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid

Prep time: 20 minutes to make, 90 minutes to rise and about 45 minutes to cook

2 teaspoons regular dry yeast (.43 ounces/12.1 grams)
2.5 cups lukewarm water (21 ounces/591 grams)
5-6 cups all-purpose flour (may use a combination of 50% whole wheat and 50% all-purpose, or a combination of alternative flours for gluten free pita) (17.5 -21 ounces/497-596 grams)
1 tablespoon table salt (.50 ounces/15 grams)
2 tablespoons olive oil (.95 ounces/29 ml)

Directions:
1. In a large bread bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the warm water. Stir to dissolve. Stir in 3 cups flour, a cup at a time, and then stir 100 times, about 1 minute, in the same direction to activate the gluten. Let this sponge rest for at least 10 minutes, or as long as 2 hours.
2. Sprinkle the salt over the sponge and stir in the olive oil. Mix well. Add more flour, a cup at a time, until the dough is too stiff to stir. Turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 8 to 10 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Rinse out the bowl, dry, and lightly oil. Return the dough to the bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise until at least doubled in size, approximately 1 1/2 hours.
3. Place a pizza stone, or two small baking sheets, on the bottom rack of your oven, leaving a 1-inch gap all around between the stone or sheets and the oven walls to allow heat to circulate. Preheat the oven to 450F (230C).
4. Gently punch down the dough. Divide the dough in half, and then set half aside, covered, while you work with the rest. Divide the other half into 8 equal pieces and flatten each piece with lightly floured hands. Roll out each piece to a circle 8 to 9 inches in diameter and less than 1/4 inch thick. Keep the rolled-out breads covered until ready to bake, but do not stack.
5. Place 2 breads, or more if your oven is large enough, on the stone or baking sheets, and bake for 2 to 3 minutes, or until each bread has gone into a full balloon. If for some reason your bread doesn't puff up, don't worry it should still taste delicious. Wrap the baked breads together in a large kitchen towel to keep them warm and soft while you bake the remaining rolled-out breads. Then repeat with the rest of the dough.

Hummus – Recipe adapted from The New Book of Middle Eastern Food by Claudia Roden
Prep Time: Hummus can be made in about 15 minutes once the beans are cooked. If you’re using dried beans you need to soak them overnight and then cook them the next day which takes about 90 minutes.

1.5 cups dried chickpeas, soaked in cold water overnight (or substitute well drained canned chickpeas and omit the cooking) (10 ounces/301 grams)
2-2.5 lemons, juiced (3 ounces/89ml)
2-3 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
a big pinch of salt
4 tablespoons tahini (sesame paste) OR use peanut butter or any other nut butter—feel free to experiment) (1.5 ounces/45 grams)
additional flavorings (optional) I would use about 1/3 cup or a few ounces to start, and add more to taste

Directions:
1. Drain and boil the soaked chickpeas in fresh water for about 1 ½ hours, or until tender. Drain, but reserve the cooking liquid.
2. Puree the beans in a food processor (or you can use a potato masher) adding the cooking water as needed until you have a smooth paste.
3. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Adjust the seasonings to taste.

Cucumber Raita – Recipe adapted from The Indian Grocery Store Demystified by Linda Bladholm
Prep time: Approximately 15 minutes

1 medium cucumber, peeled and most of the seeds removed
1 teaspoon cumin seeds (.1 ounce/3 grams) OR use a small pinch of dried cumin—to taste
2 cups plain whole milk or Greek yogurt (17 ounces/473ml)
1 garlic clove, peeled and minced
fresh coriander or mint, chopped, a couple pinches or more to taste
cayenne pepper or paprika, just a pinch to use as a garnish (optional)

Directions:
1. Peel cucumber, de-seed, and dice. Blot off moisture with paper towels.
2. Toast cumin seeds for a few seconds in a small, heavy frying pan over high heat.
3. In a bowl, stir yogurt until it is smooth.
4. Mix it with the cumin, garlic and coriander or mint leaves (I used some grated radish instead).
5. Stir in the cucumber and sprinkle with cayenne or paprika, and chill before serving.

Miso Soup

Apart from Cawanmushi, miso soup is often a part of the Japanese bento meal. There are plenty of instant miso soup packets but really, I got to try making one from scratch some day. It's part of the fun of cooking!

As with Cawanmushi, miso soup is very easy to whip up, is very versatile and almost fool-proof. The following recipe serves 5.

Ingredients :
30 Tofu ; (half-inch cubes)
4 mushrooms ; sliced
1/4 cup dried seaweed ; (wakame)
4 cups water
2 teaspoons dashi (nomoto)
3 tablespoons miso

Instructions:
Soften seaweed in lukewarm water. Boil 4 cups of water and dashi. Add tofu and mushrooms and seaweed, simmer gently about 3 minutes. Add miso and dissolve completely. Immediately turn off the heat and serve.

Cawanmushi

Chawanmushi is a great way to add eggs to your diet. Plus it's so simple to make. You can add as much ingredients as you like or as little if you prefer more egg.

This recipe is adapted from here and serves 4.

Ingredients:
3 Large Eggs ; very lightly beaten
1 teaspoon Mirin
1 teaspoon Japanese Soy Sauce
2 cups dashi stock
12 prawns ; (shelled and deveined) OR
Chicken ; cubed
8 Gingko Nuts
2 Fresh Shiitake Mushrooms ; sliced (or whole if small)
12 slices Japanese Fish Cake ; thinly sliced

Instructions:
Mix the beaten eggs with mirin, soy sauce and the dashi stock. Strain and set aside.

Divide the rest of the ingredients into 4 small bowls and pour in the egg mixtures. Cover the bowl with a small sheet of tin foil.

Steam the egg mixture on a high heat for about 5 minutes. Then reduce the heat to low and steam for another 15 minutes or until they are set. Serve immediately.

Japanese Cheesecake

I'm a big fan of the Western cheesecake; dense and full of cheese in every bite. The Chinese version of the western cheesecake is a fluffier, lighter and spongier cake. The cheese flavour is very subtle.

I was looking to make the Chinese version when I came across this recipe. It seemed close enough so I gave it a try. The cake was very nice. It's more moist than a sponge cake and tastes rather eggy. However the flavour of cheese in the cake comes out stronger than the cheesecakes I buy from local cake shops. This gets a thumbs up from me.

Ingredients:
100 grams fine granulated sugar
6 egg whites
6 egg yolks
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
50 grams butter
250 grams cream cheese
100 mililiters fresh milk
1 tablespoon lemon juice
60 grams cake flour
20 grams corn flour
1/8 teaspoon fine salt

Instructions:
1. Melt cream cheese, butter and milk over a double boiler. Cool the mixture. Fold in the flour, the cornflour, egg yolks, lemon juice separately and mix well.

2. Whisk egg whites with cream of tartar until foamy. Add in the sugar and whisk until soft peaks form.

3. Add the cheese mixture to the egg white mixture and fold well. Pour into a 8-inch round cake pan (lightly grease and line the bottom and sides of the pan with greaseproof baking paper or parchment paper). Wrap the base of your cake tin with aluminium foil if you are using a springform tin, to prevent seepage.

4. Bake cheesecake in a water bath for 1 hour 10 minutes or until set and golden brown at 160C.