24 March 2018

Angel food cake (modified)

436g egg whites (15 large, 1 bantam)
436g sugar
1T vanilla extract

Mix on low 1 minute, increase to 4 for 3 minutes.

Add 2T lemon juice & 1/4tsp salt (Morton kosher). Increase speed to 6 and whip 3 minutes more.

Increase to 8 and whip 2-4 minutes, until it's like a slightly runny soft serve. (It was pretty much to this point before we increased the speed--go by visual cues, not times in future. I didn't this time because of the huge discrepancy.)

Fold in 140g bleached cake flour, spoon into 10" tube pan and bake at 350*F for about 45 minutes. Should be puffed, golden blond, and firm, 206*F.

It does not tell you to cut through the batter with a butter knife. Do this, unless you like large air bubbles. I would also say golden brown. Mine was blond, and it was slightly underdone.

18 February 2018

French Pancakes (Mary Berry and Alison Uttley)

4T butter, softened
65g sugar (1/3c)
2 eggs, beaten
70g flour (1/2c self raising)
1 1/4c milk, heated to just below boiling

Cream together the butter and sugar. Beat in the eggs gradually. Fold in the flour. Stir in the milk. Bake about 20 minutes at 375*F.

Mary Berry calls for a 3" muffin tin; I wonder if a muffin top tin would work better. Alison Uttley baked hers in tea saucers.

Alison Uttley's recipe doesn't call for any raising agent. She also specifies warm milk, but that the milk will curdle the eggs. That sounds more on the hot side to me.

Very sweet, but quite tasty. I'd cut the sugar a bit next time.


Best Ever Brownies (Mary Berry)

375g chocolate (Lindt 78%)
250g margarine (butter)
2tsp instant coffee (espresso powder)
2T hot water
2 eggs
250g caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla (1 capful)
90g self raising flour
175g walnut pieces
250g chocolate chips

Melt chocolate and butter together. Dissolve espresso in hot water. Stir in eggs, sugar, and vanilla. Beat in chocolate. Fold in flour and walnuts, then chocolate chips. Pour into greased and parchmented 9x13 and bake 40-45 minutes at 375*F. Don't overbake! The crust should be dull and crisp and the center gooey.

I overbaked. So, good but not great. Also, I'll cut the butter next time.


Garam Masala (Serious Eats, halved)

3-4 green cardamom pods, husked
10g coriander
5g cumin
6g black pepper
2g cloves
2g fennel
3g cinnamon (1.5")
0.5g star anise (1 podlet)
1g ground nutmeg or mace

Toast all but the nutmeg/mace (2 minutes or so, over medium heat). Add nutmeg/mace and grind.


Kartoffel-Strudel

Strudelteig: (strudel dough)

250g Mehl (flour)
2 El Öl (2T oil)
150mL Wasser (water)
Salz (salt)

Fülle: (filling)

800g Kartoffeln roh (raw potatoes)
1 Stk Zwiebel (?unit? onion)
1 Stk Knoblauchzehe (?unit? garlic)
250g Sauerrahm (sour cream)
1 Stk Hühnerei Eigelb (chicken egg yolk)
100g Käse, beliebig (cheese, optional)
Salz, Pfeffer, Muskatnuss (salt, pepper, nutmeg)

125g flour
1T oil
75mL water
1/2tsp salt

400g potato, grated
1/2 medium onion
1 clove garlic
125g greek-style yogurt
1 bantam egg yolk