Stream of consciousness and a macaron

This boy, he is the cake of my life. He’s sweet, makes day-to-day life interesting and gives me lots of cause to smile. On the way home yesterday he got bored and sent me a stream of Pidgin messages. Unfortunately I was in the kitchen at the time, so didn’t read them until he had already gotten home. They made me laugh so hard I had to record them for posterity. Other people reading this, especially those not in Sydney, might not get it (sorry!) so I should probably explain a couple of things : Wynyard, St. Leonards, Rosefield and Lindfield are train stations. MX is a free trashy publication, seen most frequently at train stations and on trains. Lindfield is home to our favourite nearby pizzeria which does a great Bastourma-topped pizza. And no, there was no pie for dinner!

B: Isn’t technology great? I’m standing on the platform at Wynyard. πŸ™‚
B: Booooo no reply.
B: Booo I say boo.
B: And pfft.
B: Boo and pfft.
B: Pfft and booo.
B: Oh and the train has come already. I’m at North Sydney now.
B: Why don’t I give you a running commentary of the train journey.
B: Semi-full train, most seats taken.
B: One woman with a backpack standing up.
B: MX count in this carriage; 10 that I can see.
B: But I haven’t looked behind myself because that would be rude.
B: Imagine how much trashy news is being sucked up daily!
B: Someone’s reading an article on “TV’s biggest bad losers”
B: Or was that “TV’s baddest big losers”?
B: Or “Biggy’s baddest TV losers”?
B: “Loser’s baddest TV biggies”?
B: A picture of weightlifting chimps.
B: Quality.
B: Just left St. Leonards.
B: Someone’s got a big leopard skin print furry coat.
B: Coldest day yet today I think.
B: Brrr, schoolboy wearing shorts!
B: What’s for dinner? Is it pie? I like pie!
B: Pie is good.
B: There’s a guy sleeping in the corner that looks a bit like Napoleon Dynamite.
B: Roseville.
B: It’s a cosy-looking station.
B: Surrounded by greenery.
B: Napoleon has woken up and is trying to gauge exactly where he is.
B: Lindfieldium :
B: A new element discovered by Prof. B.
B: Consistency of spiced meaty bastourma.
B: Getting off now.
B: Brrrrrr.
B: Hope you enjoyed my stream of consciousness!

(Or maybe it’s just me who finds him funny. That could be why we get along so well!)

Another interesting thing to cross my path recently : Raspberry and white chocolate sauce with thyme! It sounds like it would be a sickly sweet sauce, but in fact, as Michael Recchiuti points out, the sweet white chocolate is balanced by the acidity of the raspberries. The hint of thyme adds a little interest. I picked some sprigs from the pot on our balcony, and crystallised what I didn’t use in the sauce, as a garnish.

When reducing the raspberry puree, make sure to stir regularly, or it might catch and burn. I reduced mine further than recommended, so that I would get a thicker sauce. Once made and cooled, the sauce was like a silky, glorious custard. I sandwiched it between macarons. The recipe for the macarons is Helen’s. I wanted to make these, but aggravatingly, I only discovered my lack of appropriate food colouring when the time came to include them in the batter. Instead, I sprinkled the tops with berry powder. As for the swirly macarons, there is always next time! Or did I mean, thyme? πŸ˜›

Raspberry and White Chocolate Sauce with Thyme:
(makes about 2 1/2 cups; from Chocolate Obsession by Michael Recchiuti and Fran Gage)

453g raspberries (I used frozen)
3 tablespoons granulated cane sugar
340g heavy whipping cream (I used “thickened cream”)
2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
255g white chocolate, coarsely chopped (I used Lindt)
30g butter with 82% fat, very soft

Puree the raspberries in a food processor, then push them through a fine-mesh sieve to remove the seeds. You should have 1 cup.

Put the berry puree in a small saucepan and stir in the sugar. Place over medium heat, bring to a simmer, and cook, stirring occasionally with a spatula, until the puree reduces by half, about 15 minutes.

Put the cream and thyme in a small saucepan. Place over medium heat, bring to a boil, and remove from the heat.

Add the raspberry puree and the chocolate to the hot cream. Whisk until the chocolate is melted. Pour the sauce into a clear vessel. Blend with an immersion blender until smooth. Add the butter and again blend until smooth. Strain the sauce through a fine-mesh sieve to remove the thyme leaves.

Use immediately or let cool to room temperature before using. Or, pour the sauce into a jar, cover, and refrigerate. It will keep for at least 2 weeks. Bring to room temperature before serving or stir over low heat to reheat.

22 Comments »

  1. Lisa said,

    July 25, 2008 @ 11:56 am

    hahahaa, those messages are hilarious. Only 10 MX in the carriage? πŸ˜›
    I really must get over my fear and try making macarons one day! Yours look fantastic.

  2. cakebrain said,

    July 25, 2008 @ 1:32 pm

    puuuurty looking macarons and I love white chocolate and raspberries together! your boy sure is entertaining!

  3. stickyfingers said,

    July 25, 2008 @ 3:11 pm

    Excellent post – Your boy sounds like a gem and with those Macarons in the kitchen they would surely make sweet words pour from the lips to brighten the day.

  4. Aran said,

    July 25, 2008 @ 8:45 pm

    That first photo is simply gorgeous! Fantastic job!

  5. Christy said,

    July 25, 2008 @ 11:42 pm

    I agree with Aran, your first photo is gorgeous!! B’s so funny…he is a bit like my boyfriend, I guess..in the way that they are both fond of sending hilarious texts and still persists after getting no reply whatsoever. Love the way you presented the macaron!!

  6. Lorraine E said,

    July 25, 2008 @ 11:56 pm

    I love the idea of raspberry and white chocolate but I am ambivalent about thyme. Actually not ambivalent, more not a fan so I’d probably omit this part but perhaps replace it with white chocolate hehe

  7. Alexa said,

    July 26, 2008 @ 2:19 am

    Thanks for the mouthwatering post. I have been trying to experiment with herbs in my sweets. This lovely inspiration.

  8. matt wright said,

    July 26, 2008 @ 3:02 am

    Awesome post! Yes, he is funny. Amazing, simply amzing photos – the first is brilliant.. I have to remember to take more top down shots.

  9. grace said,

    July 26, 2008 @ 5:38 am

    your boy’s stream of consciousness is hilarious–thanks for sharing! thanks for sharing this recipe, too. i’ve just started using thyme in my cooking, but i haven’t gone the sweet route yet. now i’m excited to try! πŸ™‚

  10. E for KC said,

    July 26, 2008 @ 11:20 am

    These are going to the top of my Cook This list. They are beautiful and I bet that taste just as good as they look!

  11. Food.Baby said,

    July 26, 2008 @ 12:20 pm

    That’s so funny! Gorgeous recipe too πŸ™‚

  12. Zoë François said,

    July 26, 2008 @ 1:37 pm

    Oh, I can’t wait to make the macarons that you’ve managed to improve with a lovely sauce. Inspired and beautiful!

  13. Anh said,

    July 26, 2008 @ 5:56 pm

    This is an interesting recipe. I would never think of thyme in such mix of chocolate and berries. Great and neat idea! πŸ™‚

  14. Marija said,

    July 26, 2008 @ 7:05 pm

    Amazing!

  15. Cakelaw said,

    July 26, 2008 @ 7:08 pm

    Delicious! Say the word “raspberry” and I’m in.

  16. Thip said,

    July 27, 2008 @ 6:07 am

    Hi Y,

    I’m passing along this award “Arte y Pico” to you, feel free to check info on my blog on July 26. Thank you.

    p.s. nice macaroon!

  17. Vera said,

    July 27, 2008 @ 3:19 pm

    Y, absolutely gorgeous photo! And brilliant idea for macaroon filling. Thanks for sharing.

  18. Eva said,

    July 27, 2008 @ 7:29 pm

    I’d love to get messages like this..;-) And to try your macaroons, of course..;-)

  19. the caked crusader said,

    July 28, 2008 @ 6:00 pm

    Everyone is making beautiful macarons at the moment and I really need to jump on the bandwagon!
    Yours look particularly beautiful and the photos are lovely

  20. linda said,

    July 30, 2008 @ 9:16 pm

    You’re not the only one who thinks he’s funny πŸ™‚ Had to laugh out loud at the pie bit ha ha!

  21. W said,

    August 6, 2008 @ 12:21 pm

    B should have messed with Napoleon some.

    Maybe wall-papered him with MX

  22. Lady Macaron said,

    October 1, 2009 @ 11:03 pm

    Oh thyme and raspberry, what a fresh new pairing! minty sweet sour? great shots!

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