Thursday, September 23, 2010

I'm getting creative! ... and possibly a little carried away.


So excited with how well my first batch of butter madeleines went earlier this afternoon, I just spent the past few hours baking a dozen each of fat-free vanilla madeleines, fatfree chocolate madeleines, lemon zest butter madeleines, and orange coffee madeleines!  They're all so good!  I even put on the kettle, made some tea and enjoyed a few with my mom, sister, and grandmother!

... as soon as I figure out how to incorporate matcha, strawberries, and apple tea, I'll have completed this task in full. I've also discovered a few other things...

1.  Dry ingredients are easier to clean from your counter and bakeware if they're dry.  Water only makes things worse.
2.  The more you beat your eggs before adding any other ingredients, the fluffier the texture will be.
3.  The butter is what gives the moisture. When I removed the butter to make the fat-free madeleines, they turned out tasty but dry.

On another update, I've decided that I'm going to do the Mille Crepe again but with fruit in between the layers.  I'm going to have to learn how to cut strawberries REALLY thinly in order to maintain the right texture.  I also need to make a Genoise sometime this week so that I can take my hand at soaking a cake... or is a Savarin better suited to that? Also, anybody know where I can get rose water or tips on how to use it in baking?

4 comments:

  1. Good Eats S12E10 Switched on Baklava (1/2)-on youtube 8:30 and onward, Alton brown uses rose water for his baklava, can be found in international markets and he also says how to make it yourself.

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  2. Well, I finally got the chance to check out your blog, and I'm impressed with the amount of effort you are investing in baking your way through the show. I'll admit that I myself do not really have the passion necessary to make the vast majority of the pastries in the show, but I do want to try the mille crepe and am thinking of using the recipe you used.

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  3. a) See? Butter...is...important. b) I could probably get my hands on some rosewater from work. Gotta be careful though, too much of that stuff can really ruin something and c) You free Friday morning/midday?

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  4. Jason, thank you. I'll look that up.

    Gar Gar Stegasaurus - the Mille Crepe was amazing!!!

    Andres - French pastry is ALL about the butter and this whole using no leavening thing is killing my arms! I've been WHIPPING EVERYTHING!!! Rosewater... I wonder if it bakes away just like in the show. Yes, let's bake together! I have no clue what we'll bake but with our powers combined...

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Tell me what you think or even send me links to other recipes for these sweets!