It is on days like these when I’m on my 8th shift of the week, that I start to wonder about my sanity. Why do I do this to myself? Why did I pick this particular line of work, with which to bring home the bacon? Because, you know, haha, with the amount of money I’m earning, the bacon ain’t all that great! Why did I choose to work in a kitchen that feels like a furnace? Why am I working with someone who is obsessed with putting the Arctic Monkeys on repeat? Loudly.

I was thinking all these things as I drifted past the front desk of the restaurant, when the Sommelier called out, “You made a grown woman cry!”.

Hmm? What? (What have I done now?)

“A customer tonight said that the blueberry dish she had was the most amazing dessert she had ever eaten, and that it even brought a tear to her eye.”

Really? I mean, it’s not my dessert. I just work for the Pastry Chef, but to hear a compliment like that, in a place where you don’t often get feedback; it parted the grey cloud in my head like a certain bearded man had, the Red Sea. That, and the “best souffle ever” comment I got from another table that evening, left me practically skipping out the kitchen door when it was time to go home.

Ah yes, that’s why I do it. Maybe I’m not so insane afterall. Maybe all I need is the occasional reminder, that I cook because I love to feed people. Even if it’s for people I don’t know. My family have always been non-touchy-feely people. Most things, we said through food. Through the act of having a meal together. Through cooking a meal or paying for one. Food is one of the most pleasurable necessities in life, and I think we sometimes forget it, when we are worrying about being too fat or not thin enough, or whatever else that screws up rational thought.

So despite the stinking hot weather outside and the lethargy I was feeling, it was with many of the above things in my mind, that I completed January’s Daring Bakers Challenge.

This month’s challenge is brought to us by Karen of Bake My Day and Zorra of 1x umruehren bitte aka Kochtopf. They have chosen Tuiles from The Chocolate Book by Angélique Schmeink and Nougatine and Chocolate Tuiles from Michel Roux.

I opted to try the savoury tuile recipe instead, because it was a recipe by Thomas Keller, that I’ve always wanted to try. Instead of making cornets as stated in the recipe below, I decided to shape them as tacos, and fill them with crab, avocado and a spicy tomato salsa. A lovely light Summer treat. Perfect perhaps, with a tall glass of bubbly. 🙂

Savory tuile/cornet :
(from The French Laundry Cookbook by Thomas Keller)

65 grams plain flour
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt (= 2/3 teaspoon table salt)
114 grams unsalted butter, softened but still cool to the touch
2 large egg whites, cold
2 tablespoons black sesame seeds

In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, sugar and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk the softened butter until it is completely smooth and mayonnaise-like in texture. Using a stiff spatula or spoon, beat the egg whites into the dry ingredients until completely incorporated and smooth. Whisk in the softened butter by thirds, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary and whisking until the batter is creamy and without any lumps. Transfer the batter to a smaller container, as it will be easier to work with.

Preheat the oven to 200’C.

Make a 4-inch hollow circular stencil. Place Silpat on the counter. Place the stencil in one corner of the sheet and, holding the stencil flat against the Silpat, scoop some of the batter onto the back of an offset spatula and spread it in an even layer over the stencil. Then run the spatula over the entire stencil to remove any excess batter. After baking the first batch of cornets, you will be able to judge the correct thickness. You may need a little more or less batter to adjust the thickness of the cornets.

There should not be any holes in the batter. Lift the stencil and repeat the process to make as many rounds as you have molds or to fill the Silpat, leaving about 1 1/2 inches between the cornets. Sprinkle each cornet with a pinch of black sesame seeds.

Place the Silpat on a heavy baking sheet and bake for 4 to 6 minutes, or until the batter is set and you see it rippling from the heat. The cornets may have browned in some areas, but they will not be evenly browned at this point.

Open the oven door and place the baking sheet on the door. This will help keep the cornets warm as you roll them and prevent them from becoming too stiff to roll. Flip a cornet over on the sheet pan, sesame seed side down and place 4-1/2 inch cornet mold at the bottom of the round.

Fold the bottom of the cornet and around the mold; it should remain on the sheet pan as you roll. Leave the cornet wrapped around the mold and continue to roll the cornets around molds; as you proceed, arrange the rolled cornets, seams side down, on the sheet pan so they lean against each other, to prevent from rolling.

When all the cornets are rolled, return them to the oven shelf, close the door, and bake for an additional 3 to 4 minutes to set the seams and color the cornets a golden brown. If the color is uneven, stand the cornets on end for a minute or so more, until the color is even. Remove the cornets from the oven and allow to cool just slightly, 30 seconds or so. Gently remove the cornets from the molds and cool for several minutes on paper towels. Remove the Silpat from the baking sheet, wipe the excess butter from it, and allow it to cool down before spreading the next batch. Store the cornets for up to 2 days (for maximum flavor) in an airtight container.

Could this be the richest and most luxurious Daring Bakers challenge yet? If not, can we agree that it certainly comes close? It’s the kind of chocolate dessert you might find listed with cliched words like “indulgence” or “oblivion” tacked to the end of it.

This month’s challenge is brought to us by the adventurous Hilda from Saffron and Blueberry and Marion from Il en Faut Peu Pour Etre Heureux. They have chosen a French Yule Log by Flore from Florilege Gourmand.

If you’re wondering, hang on, a yule log .. didn’t we make one this time last year? Well, I thought the same too, but was put right when I read the definition of a French yule log.

As it turns out, this yule log, or Buche de Noel, is somewhat akin to an ice-cream cake, or a frozen version of the typical buttercream-laden yule log we are more familiar with. Mine consists of flavours that pretty much adhere to the original recipe. The layers are almond dacquoise, dark chocolate mousse, vanilla creme brulee, hazelnut praline, dark chocolate ganache and icing. A great choice of dessert for this time of the year, I think, because of the warm weather here in Sydney.

Not that warm weather would deter me from baking. After a few forkfuls of this wonderful dessert, I think ‘Chocolate Ooh’ might even be a nice addition to that list of cliched words. Or maybe ‘Chocolate Blessing’, because I’m thankful for having managed to find a little time this month to make this challenge. I’m grateful because the alternative would mean never having had the opportunity to experience this pure Chocolate Sensation. This Chocolate Bliss. This Chocolate Epiphany of textures, from ultra smooth mousse to crunchy praline and toothsome ganache. This Chocolate Happiness.

If you have been sufficiently tempted enough to make it, you might want to search for the recipe on the hosts’ blogs (thanks, guys!), or from the blogs of other DB members.

Caramel. The ultimate expression of the potential of sugar.

(The above line works better if you imagine Jean-Luc Picard saying it)

—

In a move as wildly unanticipated as black beans in brownies, I have recently found myself obsessed with listening to Guns and Roses. This is surprising even for me, because I have never really rated them too highly in the past. In their heyday, the only GnR-related things that ever registered on my radar were Slash’s hair, and Stephanie Seymour walking down the aisle in November Rain.

Now, I can’t stop listening to them. I’ve become an instant fan (just add sugar..) and even found myself arguing with B the other day over whether November Rain was on Appetite for Destruction. He insisted no. “And I should know,” he said, “I’ve listened to that album millions of times.” “So have I,” I countered, “I listened to them millions of times.. erm..yesterday!” Of course, it turns out the track is on Use your Illusion I.

Anyway, Appetite for Destruction makes for great baking music. Or maybe it doesn’t. Perhaps I was sufficiently distracted by the music to calculate my conversions wrongly (darn cup measures!). Perhaps it was the mistaken double amount of butter I incorporated into my cake mix, or the extra flour, but I don’t think the end result was as originally intended. Mind you, the cake still turned out well, with a lovely caramel flavour, but it wasn’t anything to get too excited about.

So, I’m putting this one down as a “glad I made this, but probably wouldn’t be tempted to repeat it again!” challenge. As for decorations, I wasn’t feeling too inspired when it came to making this cake, probably because I had already been making quite a few cakey related things this month, so I went for a simple round cake, split it and slathered on the thinest scraping of vanilla cream, then topped it with some hazelnut macarons (my best attempt to date, of an adapted Paco Torreblanca recipe) sandwiched with the leftover frosting and chocolate ganache.

Meanwhile, I’m sitting back with another macaron and a cup of tea, wishing someone would take me down to the Paradise City…

Caramel Cake with Caramelised Butter Frosting :
(Note: I realised after putting the cake into the oven that I had stuffed up my conversions, so the cake recipe below is the original unconverted recipe, cup measures and all.)

CAKE:
10 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/3 cup Caramel Syrup (see recipe below)
2 eggs, at room temperature
splash vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup milk, at room temperature

Preheat oven to 176’C.

Butter one tall (2 – 2.5 inch deep) 9-inch cake pan.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter until smooth. Add sugar and salt & cream until light and fluffy.

Slowly pour room temperature caramel syrup into bowl. Scrape down bowl and increase speed. Add eggs/vanilla extract a little at a time, mixing well after each addition. Scrape down bowl again, beat mixture until light and uniform.

Sift flour and baking powder.

Turn mixer to lowest speed, and add one third of the dry ingredients. When incorporated, add half of the milk, a little at a time. Add another third of the dry ingredients, then the other half of the milk and finish with the dry ingredients.

Take off mixer and by hand, use a spatula to do a few last folds, making sure batter is uniform. Turn batter into prepared cake pan.

Place cake pan on cookie sheet or 1/2 sheet pan. Set first timer for 30 minutes, rotate pan and set timer for another 15-20 minutes. Your own oven will set the pace. Bake until sides pull away from the pan and skewer inserted in middle comes out clean. Cool cake completely before icing it.

Cake will keep for three days outside of the refrigerator.

CARAMEL SYRUP:
392g sugar
125g water
250g water (for “stopping” the caramelisation process)
In a small stainless steel saucepan, with tall sides, mix water and sugar until mixture feels like wet sand. Brush down any stray sugar crystals with wet pastry brush. Turn on heat to highest flame. Cook until smoking slightly: dark amber.

When color is achieved, very carefully pour in one cup of water. Caramel will jump and sputter about! It is very dangerous, so have long sleeves on and be prepared to step back.

Whisk over medium heat until it has reduced slightly and feels sticky between two fingers. {Obviously wait for it to cool on a spoon before touching it.}

CARAMELISED BUTTER FROSTING:
180g unsalted butter
453g icing sugar, sifted
4-6 tablespoons heavy cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2-4 tablespoons caramel syrup
Kosher or sea salt to taste

Cook butter until brown. Pour through a fine meshed sieve into a heatproof bowl, set aside to cool.

Pour cooled brown butter into mixer bowl.

In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, add icing sugar a little at a time. When mixture looks too chunky to take any more, add a bit of cream and or caramel syrup. Repeat until mixture looks smooth and all icing sugar has been incorporated. Add salt to taste.

Note: Caramelised butter frosting will keep in fridge for up to a month.
To smooth out from cold, microwave a bit, then mix with paddle attachment until smooth and light

(This month’s DB challenge recipe was brought to you by Shuna Fish Lydon of Eggbeater, as selected by the wonderful Dolores of Culinary Curiosity and co-hosted by Alex and Jenny. Thanks guys!)