Blackberry Tart with Spiked Créme Anglaise Recipe

Créme anglaise is a slightly thickened custard sauce that is used as a garnish on all sorts of desserts.  Here, the sauce is spiked with créme de cassis and drizzled over slices of warm blackberry tart.

Ingredients:
Tart Crust:
1/4 cup sugar
1 stick unsalted butter, slightly softened
1 egg
1/2 tspn vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

Topping:
2 cups fresh blackberries
2 tbsp corn starch
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tspn vanilla extract
1 tbsp créme de cassis
2 egg yolks
3 tbsp sugar

Preparation:
Tart Crust:

1. Cream together the sugar and butter until just combined.
2. Add in the egg yolk and vanilla extract; mix until incorporated.
3. Add in the flour; mix until the dough is smooth.  Wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
4. Remove from the refrigerator.  Roll out on a slightly floured surface to a 1/8 inch thick, 12 inch circle.
5. Place the dough in a 10 inch tart pan.  Carefully press the dough into the pan.
6. Cover with plastic and chill in the refrigerator until ready to bake.

To make the tart:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. 
2. In a medium bowl, combine the blackberries, cornstarch, and sugar until well combined.  Let stand for 5 minutes.
3. Remove the tart crust from the refrigerator and spread the blackberry mixture onto the tart crust, leaving a 1/2 inch border.  
4. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes or until the fruit is bubbling and the crust is golden brown.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly.
5. In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, add the cream and vanilla extract.  Bring just to a simmer.
6. In a large bowl, whisk together the créme de cassis, egg yolks, and sugar until smooth.  Whisking constantly, gradually add 1/2 cup of hot cream into the egg yolks.  Immediately add the egg yolk mixture back to the pot and cook, whisking constantly, until the mixture coats the back of a spoon, about 6 minutes.
7. Serve the tart slightly warm with the créme anglaise drizzled over the top.

Recipe courtesy of Not-So-Humble Pies by Kelley Jaggers

France [ print this recipe for Blackberry Tart with Spiked Créme Anglaise ]

Restaurant-Grade Salsa Recipe

We learned how to make this recipe at our friend Kacie's going away party that took place a few weeks ago.  We've already made this recipe twice since then so we decided to share it with our readers.  This recipe actually belongs to Kacie's Mother-in-Law, Griselda who grew up in Monterrey, Mexico.  So be sure to give her full credit if you ever decide to use it or else!!

We have tried to make salsa in the past using the freshest ingredients possible with only average results.  We tried a few recipes from one of the best known masters of Mexican cuisine here in the Midwest, Rick Bayless.  These recipes required alot of effort and still fell short of the type of salsa that we have come to love - the kind that is served in simple Mexican restaurants that are ubiquitous here in the 'States.

The key to making this simple recipe is to use canned whole tomatoes, no onions, and only a small amount of garlic.  The canned tomatoes are better preserved than fresh ones, taste just as good, and keep their flavor longer so your salsa will last up to 3 weeks in the refrigerator.  Give this recipe a try this weekend along with some Magaritas.

Recommended Equipment:
food processor or blender

Ingredients:
2  28oz. cans whole, skinned tomatoes
1 clove diced garlic
5 to 6 serrano or jalapeno peppers + 1 dried red chile pepper
1 handful of finely chopped cilantro, stems removed
salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

1. Add two cans of whole, skinned tomatoes to a food processor.  Be sure to remove the hard tops of the tomatoes where the stem was attached as you add them to the food processor.
2. Add the remaining ingredients to the food processor.
3. Pulse the ingredients until they are well combined and form the desired consistency.
4. Serve with your favorite tortilla chips. 

Mexico  [ print this recipe for Restaurant-Grade Salsa ]

Homemade Power Bars

This recipe is a good one to make on the weekend so that you always have a quick and easy, healthy meal when you are on the go during the week.  You can just grab one of these from the refrigerator in the morning before work and it will keep you from getting hungry during lunch time.  Best of all, they are made from pure ingredients.  Compare the ingredients below with those of energy bars that are sold in stores.  No chemicals or preservatives!

Ingredients:
1/4 cup unsalted butter + additional for greasing pan
3/4 cup raisins
1/2 cup pineapple juice
2 tspn pure vanilla extract

1 cup steel cut oats (I used Bob's Red Mill brand)
1 cup 10 grain cereal (Bob's Red Mill for this too)

1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup flax seeds

2 tspn cinnamon
1/2 tspn kosher salt

2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup honey

1/4 cup dark chocolate, chopped (I used Vermont Nut Free brand)


Preparation:

1. Soak raisins in the pineapple juice and vanilla extract for 20 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Grease an 8 x 8 pan with butter.
3. In a large bowl, mix together the oats, cereal, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, flax seeds, cinnamon, and salt.
4. Add the eggs and honey to the raisin and pineapple juice mixture.
5. In a skillet over medium heat, melt the 1/4 cup unsalted butter and then add the oat, seed, and cereal mixture.  Toast the oats, cereal, and seeds for about 4 minutes.

6. Add the toasted oat, cereal, and seed mixture back to the large mixing bowl.  Mix in the egg, honey, and raisin mixture along with the dark chocolate chips.  Mix until all of the ingredients are well combined.
7. Pour the mixture into the 8 x 8 pan and bake for 25 minutes.

8. Remove pan from the oven and let cool. 
9. Cut into bars and store in a covered container in the refrigerator.   

United States [ print this recipe for Homemade Power Bars ]

Créme de Papaya Recipe

Creme de Papaya is a classic dessert that can be found on the menus of many restaurants in Brazil.  In the states, your best bet is looking for it at one of the many churrascaria chains here such as Fogo de Chao, Texas de Brazil, or Boi Na Braza.  However, as you can see in this recipe, you don't need to go to a restaurant to enjoy this great tasting dessert as it is so easy to make!  The biggest challenge is getting your hands on a bottle of créme de cassis.  But fortunately, you can find it at most liquor stores.  Then all you need is a papaya and some vanilla ice cream and you are in business!  Give this recipe a try the next time that you are looking for a quick, easy, and delicious dessert.

Recommended Equipment:
blender

Ingredients:
1/2 papaya
2 - 3 scoops vanilla ice cream
créme de cassis


Preparation:

1. Cut the papaya in half.  Scoop the ripe flesh out and put it into the blender.
2. Add 3 generous scoops of ice cream to the blender.
3. Mix the ice cream and papaya in the blender until they form a smooth, thick cream.
4. Distribute the mixture evenly between 2 to 3 decorative glasses (we used martini glasses).
5. Pour a shot of créme de cassis into each glass and then swirl the créme de cassis into the papaya mixture using a spoon.
6. Serve immediately. 

Brasil [ print this recipe for Creme de Papaya ]

Torta all Alancia (Orange Cake) Recipe

From Grace's Sweet Life by Grace Massa Langlois......

This light, moist, citrusy cake is one of my favorites.  It rises nice and high and it's very easy to make.  I especially enjoy serving it at coffee time.  When I was working, I would get a call from my sister almost every day in the late afternoon and she would ask, "Coffee time?"  My answer was always yes!  We would go to our mother's house, where we were always greeted with the most amazing aroma of freshly percolated coffee, pizzelle, or cakes just like this one.  And we never left empty-handed.  My mother would send us on our way with freshly made sugo di pomodoro (tomato sauce), lasagne, cannelloni, or fresh bread.  I look forward to these types of rituals, not because of all the goodies, but because it's time to catch up and spend quality time with my family.  I believe it's one of the reasons our large family remains so close.


Ingredients:
Cake:
6 large eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
4 tspn baking powder
1/2 tspn salt
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tspn pure vanilla extract
1 cup + 2 tbsp superfine sugar, divided
grated zest of 2 oranges
1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1/4 tspn cream of tartar

Syrup:
1 1/2 cups freshly squeezed orange juice
1/2 cup superfine sugar
zest of 1 orange in large strips (with no pith attached)
1/2 vanilla bean, split and seeded
2 to 3 tbsp Cointreau or other orange liqueur

Preparation:
Cake:

1. Separate the cold eggs.  Place the yolks in a large bowl and the whites in a stand mixer.  Cover each bowl with plastic wrap and allow the eggs to come to room temperature, about 30 minutes.
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Very lightly coat with butter the bottom and sides of a 10-inch tube pan with feet and removable bottom.
3. Using a fine-mesh sieve, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into a medium bowl.  Whisk to combine well.
4. Use a handheld mixer to beat the egg yolks, oil, vanilla, and 1 cup sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
5. Beat in the orange zest and juice.
6. Reduce the mixer speed to low and gradually add the flour mixture, beating to just combine.
7. In a stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment, beat the egg whites to stiff peaks, beginning at low speed and gradually increasing to medium-high.  When the whites are foamy, add the cream of tartar.  At the soft peak stage, add the remaining 2 tbsp sugar.
8. Using a large flexible spatula, fold one-third of the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture to lighten the batter, then carefully fold in the remaining egg whites until just combined.
9. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, spreading it evenly with an offset spatula.
10. Bake until golden and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 50 to 60 minutes.
11. Remove from the oven and immediately invert the pan onto a wire rack.  Let the cake cool completely in the pan upside down on the rack.
12. While the cake bakes, prepare the orange syrup.

Orange Syrup:

1. In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring the orange juice, sugar, orange zest, and the vanilla bean and seeds to a simmer, stirring until the sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes.
2. Reduce the heat to low, add the liqueur, and continue to simmer until the syrup reduces  and thickens slightly, about 5 minutes.
3. Remove from the heat and strain the syrup through a fine-mesh sieve into a pourable container.  Allow the syrup to cool slightly.

1. Flip the cake over, carefully run a thin knife around the edges of the pan, and turn the cake out onto a serving plate or cake stand.
2. To serve, place the cake on dessert plates and serve with warm orange syrup.

Recipe courtesy of Grace's Sweet Life by Grace Massa Langlois

Italy  [ print this recipe for Torta all Alancia (Orange Cake) ]

Reine De Saba (Chocolate Almond Cake) Recipe

In a slight departure from the usual recipes and reviews posted on the International Recipe Syndicate, today we are featuring a recipe from one of the original, modern culinary masters, Julia Child.  On August 15th of this year, she would have turned 100 years old!!  In celebration of her life, many food bloggers are participating in JC100 as a tribute.  As such, we were asked to submit one of Child's recipes so we chose Reine de Saba (Chocolate Almond Cake).

Not since we made a delicious cup of cafe noir a few years ago, have we attempted such a nostalgic recipe.   While preparing this amazing, creamy chocolate classic, one cannot help but imagine a time before food processors, stand mixers and other modern conveniences that we take for granted today.  Even without these conveniences, Julia Child was able to make traditional French cooking accessible and interesting to a contemporary audience.  In doing so, she has influenced generations of both professional and amateur cooks and lifted the culinary world to new heights. 

Here is Julia's Recipe...

This extremely good chocolate cake is baked so that its center remains slightly underdone; overcooked, the cake loses its special creamy quality. It is covered with a chocolate-butter icing, and decorated with almonds. Because of its creamy center it needs no filling. It can be made by starting out with a beating of egg yolks and sugar, then proceeding with the rest of the ingredients. But because the chocolate and the almonds make a batter so stiff it is difficult to fold in the egg whites, we have chosen another method, that of creaming together the butter and sugar, and then incorporating the remaining items.

The chocolate icing is butter beaten into melted chocolate, and forms a tender coating over the chocolate cake.

Recommended Equipment: 
A round cake pan 8 inches in diameter and 1 1/2 inches deep.
A 3 quart mixing bowl
A wooden spoon or an electric beater
A rubber spatula
A cake rack

Ingredients:  
For the cake:
4 ounces or squares semi-sweet chocolate melted with 2 tbsp rum or coffee
1/4 pound or 1 stick softened butter
2/3 cup granulated sugar
3 egg yolks
3 egg whites
Pinch of salt
1 tbsp granulated sugar
1/3 cup pulverized almonds
1/4 tspn almond extract
1/2 cup cake flour (scooped and leveled) turned into a sifter

For the icing:
2 ounces or squares semi-sweet baking chocolate
2 tbsp rum or coffee
5 to 6 tbsp unsalted butter

Preparation: 
For the cake:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Butter and flour the cake pan.
3. Set the chocolate and rum or coffee in a small pan, cover, and place (off heat) in a larger pan of almost simmering water; let melt while you proceed with the recipe.  Measure out the rest of the ingredients.
4. Cream the butter and sugar together for several minutes until they form a pale yellow, fluffy mixture.
















5. Beat in the egg yolks until well blended.
6. Beat the egg whites and salt in a separate bowl until soft peaks are formed; sprinkle on the sugar and beat until stiff peaks are formed.
7. With a rubber spatula, blend the melted chocolate into the butter and sugar mixture, then stir in the almonds, and almond extract.  Immediately stir in one fourth of the beaten egg whites to lighten the batter.  Delicately fold in a third of the remaining whites and when partially blended, sift on one third of the flour and continue folding.  Alternate rapidly with more egg whites and more flour until all egg whites and flour are incorporated.
8. Turn the batter into the cake pan, pushing the batter up to its rim with a rubber spatula.  Bake in middle level of preheated oven for about 25 minutes.  Cake is done when it has puffed, and 2 1/2 to 3 inches around the circumference are set so that a needle plunged into that area comes out clean; the center should move slightly if the pan is shaken, and a needle comes out oily.
9. Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes.  Run a knife around the edge of the pan, and reverse cake on the rack.  Allow it to cool for an hour or two; it must be thoroughly cold if it is to be iced.

For the icing:

1. Place the chocolate and rum or coffee in a small pan, cover, and set in a larger pan of almost simmering water.
2. Remove pans from heat and let chocolate melt for 5 minutes or so, until perfectly smooth.  Lift chocolate pan out of the hot water, and beat in the butter a tablespoon at a time.
3. Then beat over a bowl with a tray of ice cubes and water until chocolate mixture has cooled to spreading consistency.  At once spread it over your cake with spatula or knife.

To serve, use the butter icing and press a design of almonds over the icing.

Recipe courtesy of Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child

Copyright 1961 by Alfred A. Knopf.  Reprinted with permission from the publisher Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House, Inc.

France  [ print this recipe for Reine De Saba (Chocolate Almond Cake) ]

Pavlova Recipe

This favorite dessert of Australia was named after the Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova by a chef who wanted to create something "as light and ethereal as the dancer herself."  He achieved his goal with this meringue crust topped with whipped cream and an assortment of fresh fruit.

Ingredients:
Meringue:
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 tspn cornstarch
6 large egg whites
1 tspn distilled white vinegar
1/4 cup boiling water
1 1/2 tspn pure vanilla extract

Whipped Cream:
2 cups heavy cream
2 tbsp sugar
1/2 tspn pure vanilla extract
1/2 tspn pure almond extract

4 cups mixed fresh fruit, such as blueberries, blackberries, red currants, gooseberries, strawberries and/or raspberries

Preparation:
For the Meringue:

1. Position an oven rack in the center of the oven.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and trace a 12-inch round on the paper with a pencil.
2. In a medium bowl, combine the sugar and cornstarch.  Stir with a whisk until smooth.  In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on high speed until they begin to froth and turn opaque.  Decrease mixer speed to low, and add the sugar mixture in 1/2 cup increments, immediately followed by the vinegar.  Continue to beat on high speed for at least 2 minutes, until the whites form stiff peaks.  Increase the mixer speed to high and pour the boiling water into the egg whites all at once.  The egg whites will swell up considerably.  Beat the egg whites until the water is totally incorporated, stopping once to scrape down the sides of the bowl.  Add the vanilla and continue to beat for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the egg whites form stiff, glossy peaks.
3. With a rubber spatula, take some of the meringue and carefully fill in the base of the traced circle.  Continue to add meringue to make a thick cake.
4. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 200 degrees Fahrenheit and bake for 40 minutes, or until set.
5. Remove from the oven and let cool completely on the pan on a wire rack.  Gently remove the parchment paper by rolling it out from under the meringue; take care, as the meringue will be very delicate.

For the Whipped Cream:

1. In a deep bowl, beat the cream until it begin to hold its shape.  Add the sugar and the vanilla and almond extract.  Beat until soft peaks form.
2. Carefully spread the whipped cream over the top of the meringue and top with the mixed fresh fruit.  Serve at once, cut into wedges.

The baked meringue can be refrigerated and lightly covered for up to 2 days.

Recipe courtesy of Blackbird Bakery Gluten-Free by Karen Morgan

Australia  [ print this recipe for Pavlova ]