Recently watched : Låt den rätte komma in

Recently wondered : If Cloudy, with a chance of Meatballs could quite possibly be the next ultimate foodie movie.

Recently heard : Röyksopp

Recently prayed to the food gods at : Spice Temple (recommended : Steamed eggplant with three flavours; Leatherjacket drowned in dried chilli and Sichuan peppercorns)

Recently baked : Lamington-rons!

Why?

Well, just when you think you have sufficiently scratched that itch, along comes another temptation to ponder the benefits of one macaron method over another. This latest temptation comes in the form of Julia’s lovely blog. My favoured standard macaron method isn’t too dissimilar to the one Julia was taught at a macaron class she took in Melbourne. It’s quick, and I always get results I’m very happy with, but I am definitely warming to the Italian meringue method which she also uses to great effect.

For these lamington inspired macarons, I chose to use David Everitt-Matthias’ recipe for chicory macarons from his new book (and my latest cookbook infatuation), substituting chicory as a flavour, with cocoa powder. What I found with the Italian meringue method was that the resulting raw mixture was incredibly stable. Where it’s not unusual to get a slightly less than 100% yield with my normal method, with this batch, I managed a full yield. Well, maybe 80%, because I ate a few. 😛

In the future, I hope to explore this method a little further. Next time though, I will stick to my usual step of sifting the almond meal and icing sugar before using it. I like sifting the dry ingredients to get rid of any larger bits of nut meal which would cause the macaron shell to look less smooth. They were a little bumpy in appearance on this occasion, but certainly no less tasty.

Chicory Macarons :
(makes 18; from Dessert by David Everitt-Matthias)

200g caster sugar
50 ml water
140g egg whites (4 – 5 whites)
200g icing sugar
200g ground almonds
30ml chicory essence

Put the caster sugar and water in a heavy-based pan and heat gently, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Raise the heat, bring to the boil and cook without stirring until the syrup reaches 120’C on a sugar thermometer. When it reaches approximately 110’C, whisk the egg whites to soft peaks in a freestanding electric mixer. When the syrup reaches the correct temperature, slowly pour it onto to the whites, whisking constantly. Carry on whisking until the mixture is thick and very stiff.

Mix the icing sugar and ground almonds together and add slowly to the egg whites, gently folding them in. Finally fold in the chicory essence. Place in a piping bag and pipe on to a tray lined with baking parchment, making rounds approximately 3cm in diameter. Allow to dry for about 30 minutes. This is important, as it allows a skin to form before you bake them. Place in an oven preheated to 180’C and bake for 8 – 12 minutes [Note : mine were ready at the 9 minute mark]. Ideally the vent of the oven should be open, but you could just prop the door open slightly [Note : I don’t really think this is necessary, but I did very slightly open the door of the oven for a second or two, half way through the baking process]. The macaroons should be firm to the touch and crisp when cool. Remove from the oven, leave to cool, and then remove from the baking parchment.

Chicory Ganache :

70ml double cream
10ml chicory essence [I omitted this]
100g bitter chocolate (71% cocoa solids), chopped
30g unsalted butter

Put the double cream and chicory essence in a small saucepan and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat and put to one side for 2 minutes. Put the chopped chocolate in a bowl and pour on the hot cream. Stir until the chocolate has melted [Note : If you have trouble getting the chocolate to melt before the cream cools down, do this over a bain marie, but be careful not to overheat the mixture], then add the butter and stir until amalgamated. Leave to cool completely, then whisk until smooth. Sandwich the macaroons together with the ganache.

Happy 2009 to everyone! Christmas 2008 zoomed by too quickly for me, but that’s okay, because I’m looking forward to the start of a new year, which hopefully will shape up to be as wonderful and memorable as a fine glass of wine.

I trust everyone had a great Christmas? At our family dinner, we had a fabulous organic ham with an apricot and orange glaze, turkey stuffed with wild rice and cranberries, as well as oysters, prawns, marinated vegetables, and dessert, which is my one responsibility every Christmas.

While this might sound like a pretty straightforward task to most people, I always accidentally make it difficult on myself by eschewing the safe option of making things I’m familiar with, for things that strike me at the spur of the moment. This year, we had sour cherries with white chocolate cream, followed by Christmas pudding ice-cream macarons and boozy brandy custard – both of which I think were better received than that one year I served poached peaches with a mint granita that tasted like toothpaste. Or the other time I tried to add a bit of theatrics to the end of the meal by releasing a shower of dried rose petals over everyone (it was meant to complement the dessert, honest). This was inspired by a story DP once told, of when he hosted a banquet and threw handfuls of walnuts across the length of the table, for his guests to pick, crack and eat as they pleased.

With some ingredients I still had around the next day, I thought it was time I finally made Christie of Fig & Cherry, a Cherry Ripe-inspired dessert. So here it is.

I call it, “To Christie, with love”, and it comprises a bitter chocolate sauce, coconut sorbet, sour cherry compote, with chestnut crumble and custard.

For those unfamiliar with the Cherry Ripe, it is an Australian chocolate bar consisting of a juicy cherry and coconut layer, enrobed in dark chocolate. It’s Christie’s favourite chocolate bar, and is second to the KitKat Chunky, as one of my favourites.

Now, before I hang up my macaron piping bag for at least a few months, there’s just one last flavour I feel I have to do. A Bacon ‘n’ Egg macaron. Stay tuned.

I say this every year, but I swear, I swear next year is going to be different. Next year I want more balance between life and work. Next year, I don’t want to feel panicked about not having done any Christmas shopping or cooking, because I’m pretty much working right up to Christmas Eve. Next year, I want to find time to write Christmas cards, especially to those friends who always send us one but never get any in return. Next year, I’m going to buy gifts at least one month ahead.

Okay, maybe the last one is a bit of a stretch, but I think the rest of it is pretty achievable.

2008 has been a pretty manic year for me. Thankfully, there have been a few things (and people) to keep me going inbetween the hectic work schedule. In no particular order :

TV shows I’ve loved :

1 Entourage
2 MadMen
3 Damages
4 Match of the Day
5 Dead Set

Favourite albums this year :

1 Boxer by The National (2007)
2 In Rainbows by Radiohead
3 Fleet Foxes by Fleet Foxes
4 Alas I Cannot Swim by Laura Marling
5 Oracular Spectacular by MGMT
6 19 by Adele

(with a special mention to two oldies but goodies, Appetite for Destruction by Guns ‘n’ Roses and Siamese Dream by The Smashing Pumpkins)

Favourite films :

1 There Will be Blood
2 No Country for Old Men
3 The Dark Knight
4 Before The Devil Knows You’re Dead
5 Gone Baby Gone
6 Lust Caution
7 Juno
8 Persepolis
9 Wall-E

This is also the year of :

-The thermometer. Between Katrina and myself, I think we have gone through at least seven in the past six months alone.

Next year, I also want to find the time to attend our apartment building’s annual Block Party, instead of making macarons for them but not actually turning up!