I often contribute recipes to the blog of my friends' tea company, Arbor Teas. Here is the latest recipe I shared using a few of their teas.
Hurry! Before Meyer lemons are out of season, go make this pie! Or don't. Just wait for the right occasion and be inspired by what citrus is in abundance at that time. The original inspiration for this recipe came from Martha Stewart as a chamomile version of lemon meringue pie in a homey cornmeal crust. All of these elements, the mellow chamomile flowers, the zesty lemon, the pillowy marshmallow meringue, and the crunchy cornmeal work together in a wonderful, satisfying combination. But with the variety of organic loose-leaf teas available from Arbor Teas, why stop there? You could alter the recipe into a summery mojito rendition by subbing in lime for lemon and organic moroccan mint green tea for chamomile, all atop a buttery shortbread crust. Organic jasmine green tea and grapefruit (or those giant pumelos) would make a sophisticated, perfumed dessert. Tangerine and organic schizandra white tea, orange and organic earl grey black tea, or even blood orange and organic holiday spice black tea are a few more pairings I brainstormed to go with your favorite graham cracker, gingersnap, or chocolate cookie crust. Here is the original lemon-chamomile recipe. Let me know what combinations you dream up!
Citrus and Tea Cream Pie adapted from Martha Stewart
Cornmeal Pie Dough 1½ cups all-purpose flour ¾ cup medium-ground yellow cornmeal ¾ teaspoon salt ¾ teaspoon sugar 12 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces ¼ cup ice water
Lemon-Chamomile Cream Filling 3 cups whole milk 3-4 tablespoons loose organic chamomile (or whatever other tea flavor strikes your fancy) ¼ cup cornstarch 1 cup sugar ¼ teaspoon salt 4 large egg yolks 1½ teaspoons finely grated lemon zest (or other citrus zest) ¼ cup fresh-squeezed lemon juice (or other fresh citrus juice) 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
Meringue 4 large egg whites 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar a pinch of salt
To make the Cornmeal Crust:
Pulse flour, cornmeal, salt, and sugar in a food processor to combine. Add butter, and process briefly until mixture resembles coarse meal. With the machine running, slowly add ice water until dough just begins to hold together.
Shape dough into a disk, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour.
Roll cornmeal dough to ⅛-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface. Ease the dough into a 9-inch pie dish and trim the edges, leaving a 1-inch overhang. Tuck overhang under dough so edges are flush with rim and crimp edges. Prick the bottom of dough with a fork in several spots and chill for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 375° F. Line dough with parchment and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake until edges begin to turn golden, about 15 to 18 minutes. Lift up the parchment to remove the pie weights. Continue to bake, uncovered until the crust is golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes more. Let cool completely before adding the cream filling.
To make the Cream Filling:
When ready to make the filling, bring milk to a boil in a medium saucepan. Remove from heat, add the loose leaf tea directly to the hot milk, cover, and steep for 5 minutes. Strain the milk through a fine sieve into a bowl, pressing on the spent tea leaves with a spatula to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard tea.
Combine cornstarch, sugar, and ¼ teaspoon salt in a medium saucepan. Whisk in the tea-infused milk. Turn heat to medium-high and cook, stirring constantly, until bubbling and thickly coats the spatula. This should take about 7 minutes total (about 2 minutes after it comes to a boil).
Whisk yolks in a separate bowl, then pour in the milk mixture into the yolks in a slow, steady stream, whisking until thoroughly incorporated. Return the mixture to the saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it returns to a boil, 1 to 2 minutes more.
Remove from the custard from heat, and stir in lemon zest and juice. Add butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, stirring until butter melts before adding the next piece. Let cool in the saucepan off heat, whisking occasionally, for about 10 minutes.
Pour custard into the prepared crust. Press plastic wrap directly on surface of custard, taking care to smooth out any wrinkles as these will appear on the finished pie as it firms. Refrigerate at least 4 hours (or overnight) so that the custard filling is chilled and firm.
To make the Meringue:
Just before serving, combine egg whites and sugar in a heat-proof mixing bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water. Whisk until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is warm, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and add vanilla, cream of tartar, and a pinch of salt. Transfer the bowl to the mixing stand and whisk on medium-high speed until shiny, stiff peaks form, about 7 minutes.
Pipe the meringue in dollops over the pie. If you’d like, toast the tips of the meringue with a culinary torch. Or, bake the meringue-topped pie briefly on a rimmed baking sheet under a broiler until lightly golden.
The January 2011 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Astheroshe of the blog accro. She chose to challenge everyone to make a Biscuit Joconde Imprime to wrap around an Entremets dessert.
A joconde imprime (French Baking term) is a decorative design baked into a light sponge cake providing an elegant finish to desserts/torts/entremets/ formed in ring molds. A joconde batter is used because it bakes into a moist, flexible cake. The cake batter can be tinted or marbleized for a further decorative effect.
Entremets (another French baking term) is an ornate dessert with many different layers of cake and pastry creams in a mold, usually served cold, much like a trifle but molded to be free-standing versus layered in a glass bowl.
All seems intimidating, but if you work through the layers in stages, it's really not that big of deal. I sketched out a plan in advance. The idea for mine started with wanting to use up some "leftovers" in my "pastry" fridge. Believe it or not I had on hand fresh lemon curd (recently made to use up 8 extra yolks), homemade marzipan (a gift I was working on for my dad), matcha tea (from my good friends at Arbor Teas), hazelnut meal (a bag that seems perpetually full no matter how much has been scooped from it), and crystalized lilacs (maybe only a dozen left from the original batch of 200).
I wasn't sure if the flavors of the dessert I was crafting in my head would meld well, but I was excited for the vibrant colors--a bolt of the tropics smack in the middle of a snowy and frigid winter. Since this dessert needed to travel to a weekend brunch, I took the safe route and layered them in juice glasses like a trifle. A true entremet with joconde is free-standing. Nonetheless, now having tasted the finished dessert, I can say yes, green tea, lemon, hazelnut, almond, butter and sugar all seem to work nicely together to put a warm smile in your belly.
Joconde Sponge
This Joconde/spongecake requires attentive baking so that it remains flexible to easily conform to the molds. If under baked it will stick to the baking mat. It over baked it will dry out and crack. Once cooled, the sponge may be cut into strips to line any shape ring mold.
YIELD: Two ½ size sheet pans or a 13” x 18” jelly roll pan
Ingredients: 3 large egg whites (90g)
2½ teaspoons (10g) white granulated sugar
¾ cup (85g) almond flour/or hazelnut meal - *omit the butter if using hazelnut ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons (75g) confectioners' sugar ¼ cup (25g) cake flour 3 large eggs (150g) 2 tablespoons (30g) unsalted butter, melted
Directions:
In a clean mixing bowl whip the egg whites and white granulated sugar to firm, glossy peeks. Reserve in a separate clean bowl to use later.
Sift almond flour, confectioner’s sugar, cake flour into the just emptied mixing bowl, no need to wash out egg whites.) On medium speed with the paddle attachment, add the eggs a little at a time. Mix well after each addition. Mix until smooth and light.
Fold in one third reserved whipped egg whites to almond mixture to lighten the batter. Fold in remaining whipped egg whites. Do not over mix. Fold in melted butter, if using.
Reserve batter to be used later.
Patterned Joconde-Décor Paste
YIELD: Two ½ size sheet pans or a 13” x 18” jelly roll pan
Ingredients: 14 tablespoons (200g) unsalted butter, softened 1½ cups plus 1½ tablespoons (200g) Confectioners' sugar 7 large egg whites (200g) 1¾ cup (220g) cake flour
Food coloring gel, paste or liquid (optional)
COCOA or MATCHA Décor Paste Variation: Reduce cake flour to (170g). Add (60 g) cocoa powder or Matcha green tea. Sift the flour and cocoa powder together before adding to creamed mixture.
Directions:
Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually add egg whites. Beat continuously until emulsified. Fold in sifted flour. Tint batter with coloring to desired color, if not making cocoa or matcha variation.
Preparing the Joconde- How to make the pattern:
Spread a thin even layer of décor paste approximately 1/4 inch thick onto silicone baking mat with a spatula, or flat knife. Place mat on an upside down baking sheet. The upside down sheet makes spreading easier with no lip from the pan.
Pattern the décor paste – Here is where you can be creative. Make horizontal /vertical lines (you can use a knife, spatula, cake/pastry comb). Squiggles with your fingers, zig zags, wood grains. Be creative whatever you have at home to make a design can be used. OR use a piping bag. Pipe letters, or polka dots, or a piped design. If you do not have a piping bag. Fill a ziplock bag and snip off corner for a homemade version of one.
Slide the baking sheet with paste into the freezer. Freeze hard. Approx 15 minutes.
Remove from freezer. Quickly pour the Joconde batter over the design. Spread evenly to completely cover the pattern of the Décor paste.
Bake at 475ºF until the joconde bounces back when slightly pressed, approx. 8-15 minutes. You can bake it as is on the upside down pan. This is a very quick bake, so watch carefully.
Cool briefly. Do not leave too long, or you will have difficulty removing it from mat.
Flip cooled cake on to a powdered sugared parchment paper. Remove silpat. Cake should be right side up, and pattern showing! (The powdered sugar helps the cake from sticking when cutting.)
Preparing the Jaconde for Molding:
Trim the cake of any dark crispy edges. You should have a nice rectangle shape.
Decide how thick you want your “Joconde wrapper”. Traditionally, it is ½ the height of your mold. This is done so more layers of the plated dessert can be shown. However, you can make it the full height.
Once your height is measured, then you can cut the cake into equal strips, of height and length. (Use a very sharp paring knife and ruler.)
Make sure your strips are cut cleanly and ends are cut perfectly straight. Press the cake strips inside of the mold, decorative side facing out. Once wrapped inside the mold, overlap your ends slightly. You want your Joconde to fit very tightly pressed up to the sides of the mold. Then gently push and press the ends to meet together to make a seamless cake. The cake is very flexible so you can push it into place. You can use more than one piece to “wrap" your mold, if one cut piece is not long enough.
The mold is done, and ready to fill.
Entremet- Filling:
Lemon Curd
makes 1 full cup
4 large egg yolks
1/2 cup plus 2 TBS sugar
3 fl oz freshly squeezed lemon juice
4 TBS, unsalted butter softened
pinch of salt
2 tsp finely shredded lemon zest
In a heavy, non-corrosive saucepan whisk the yolks and sugar until well blended. Stir in the remaining ingredients except the lemon zest. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened and thickly coats the back of a wooden spoon and reaches 170 F. Do not allow it to boil or it will curdle. Pour immediately through a fine mesh strainer, pressing on any remains with the back of a spoon to extract as much curd as possible. Stir in the lemon zest and cool. Pour into an airtight container and press a piece of plastic to the surface of the curd before sealing. The curd will continue to thicken when refrigerated.
Matcha Marzipan
1 tsp matcha powder
6 TBS marzipan
On a wooden surface, knead matcha into Marzipan until completely incorporated. Roll out to desired thickness to cut shapes or sculpt into character. Keep tightly wrapped in plastic until ready to use, to prevent drying out.
Recently, I sensed a trend in the artisanal popsicle. Recipes and photo spreads are "pop"ping up in food magazines and blog posts, and a variety of molds are out on the market boasting nostalgia, fun shapes, or no-mess features. Also, there's these people of whom I'm completely in awe.
You don't need me to tell you that it's been a pretty hot summer and that the trend of DIY endures. I so entirely relate and was ready to jump on that bandwagon. My first vision of frozen relief: multiple, vibrant stripes of fruit curd. Tart, refreshing, and a gorgeous gradation of color. That's the concept I was after.
Making interesting fruit curds strongly rivals my interest in jam making. Freezing them in popsicle format just seemed like a logical next step. The flavors of this batch, layered from top to bottom/ lightest to darkest, include: lemon-buttermilk sherbet, gooseberry curd, raspberry curd, and black currant curd. See below for the recipes.
Not ready to invest in popsicle molds? Try the tricks outlined here.
Lemon Buttermilk Sherbet from David Lebovitz's "The Perfect Scoop"
makes about a quart
⅓ cup water water ⅔ cup sugar Zest of 1 lemon 2 cups buttermilk ¼ cup lemon juice
In a saucepan, bring the first three ingredients to a boil. Remove from heat, transfer to a bowl and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled. Once it has chilled, add the buttermilk and lemon juice and churn in your ice cream machine.
Gooseberry Curd
makes about 2 cups
1 pint pink gooseberries, rinsed
2 TBS water
½ cup sugar
2 TBS unsalted butter
2 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
Place the gooseberries and the water in a non-corroding saucepan. Cover and cook on a low-medium heat, stirring occasionally for 20 minutes or until the gooseberries are mushy. Pass the gooseberries through a food mill to produce about 1¼ cups puree. Stir the sugar and butter into the warm puree and heat, stirring constantly. Whisk the eggs and the egg yolk just until mixed, then whisk in a little of the hot gooseberry mixture to heat the eggs. Return to the pan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is well thickened and has reached 170° F. Pour into a container, cover and chill.*
12-oz fresh raspberries 1 cup sugar 4 large eggs 4 TBS fresh lemon juice 4 TBS unsalted butter (½ stick) ¼ tsp salt
In a medium saucepan, add the raspberries, sugar, lemon juice, butter, and salt. Heat on medium and, as the butter begins to melt and the raspberries break down, start whisking. Cook on medium heat until the mixture is uniform and the fruit has softened. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs. Stirring continually, slowly add ½ cup of the fruit mixture to the eggs. Mix to incorporate. While whisking continually, slowly add the eggs back into the raspberry mixture. Stir constantly as the mixture heats and thickens slightly. Don’t let the mixture come to a boil, but small bubbles around the edges are okay. Taste and add more sugar if desired. Place a mesh strainer over a large bowl. Pour half the raspberry mixture into the strainer and, using a spatula or spoon, press the solids into the mesh. When all the raspberry curd has been expressed, discard the solids and strain the second half of the mixture. Refrigerate the curd until use.*
Black Currant Curd
makes about 2 cups
1 pint black currants, rinsed
2 TBS water
½ cup sugar
2 TBS unsalted butter
2 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
Place the black currants and the water in a non-corroding saucepan. Cover and cook on a low-medium heat, stirring occasionally for 20 minutes or until the currants are mushy. Pass the currants through a food mill to produce about 1¼ cups puree. Stir the sugar and butter into the warm puree and heat, stirring constantly. Whisk the eggs and the egg yolk just until mixed, then whisk in a little of the hot currant mixture to heat the eggs. Return to the pan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is well thickened and has reached 170° F. Pour into a container, cover and chill.*
*Curds can be stored about a week in the refrigerator, frozen for several months, or canned,
Well, it’s been 30 days. This is the official, first use of the lemons I preserved last month. To be honest, having never had a preserved lemon, I really wasn’t sure what would come of allowing Meyer lemons to soak unrefrigerated, in a salty brine for a month. I think I anticipated something akin to a pickle. Instead what I got was exactly what the name implies: lemons still fresh as the day I preserved them. Certainly, the flesh is quite salty (and as such, often discarded), but if you peel this away and give the skin a quick rinse, you are left with the same brightly flavored rind from the outset. From a historical perspective, I can understand how this might be invaluable to your cooking repertoire if fresh lemons were not available year-round. I also see the value if you are one (such as me) who prefers to obtain your food according to what’s apropos of the seasons.
Now the fun comes with thinking of ways to incorporate lemon rind in my cooking. Risotto seemed a natural fit. In the recipe I present below, the bright flavor of the lemon pairs really nicely with some unusual additions (cinnamon and allspice) to a standard, homemade chicken stock. What may seem like an odd combination of mulled flavors for a rice dish, results in a classic Moor-inspired savoriness. I’ve said it before, but it bears repeating: I highly recommend making a chicken stock from scratch! The fundamental flavor is incomparable to anything you’ll ever pour from a can or reconstitute from a cube. Yes, it involves a bit more of a time commitment, but the tasks are simple, and the payoff is beyond.
In the spirit of full disclosure, a dear, kind friend made the stock for this recipe. I’m still seeking courage to handle meat for undertakings such as these. Although, currently I'm reading a book that just may entice me to get over this hurdle.
Inspired by a blog post from Not So Humble Pie, with the leftover risotto I made arancini. This was accomplished by stuffing a cube of smoked mozzarella into a clump of cold risotto, rolling it into a ball, then dredging it in egg followed by panko bread crumbs, and deep frying to a golden crisp. The full recipe can be found here. Apparently, I seem to have no fear of deep frying. Isn’t that peculiar?!
The 2010 March Daring Cooks challenge was hosted by Eleanor of MelbournefoodGeek and Jess of Jessthebaker. They chose to challenge Daring Cooks to make risotto. The various components of their challenge recipe are based on input from the Australian Masterchef cookbook and the cookbook Moorish by Greg Malouf.
Chicken Stock Makes about 2 quarts
1 large chicken, 2-3 pounds 2 onions, roughly diced 1 medium leek - white part only, roughly diced 2 stalks celery, roughly diced 2 cloves garlic, halved 1 cinnamon stick 1 tsp white peppercorns 2 bay leaves oreganothyme peel of ½ lemon ¼ tsp allspice
Wash the chicken and bones and places in a large stock pot, cover completely with water and bring to a boil. Skim away any scum as it comes to the surface. Add the vegetables and bring back to a boil. Add the rest remaining ingredients and simmer very gently, uncovered for 1½ hours.
Carefully lift out the chicken, set aside. The chicken meat can be removed from the chicken, shredded off and used for other things like soup! Simmer the stock gently for another hour to concentrate the flavor. You will end up with about 2 quarts of stock. Carefully ladle the liquid into a fine sieve, the less the bones and vegetables are disturbed in this process the clearer the stock will be. The stock is now ready for use. Freeze what you don't need for later use.
Preserved Lemon Risotto Serves 4
4 TBS olive oil 1 large shallot, diced 2 cloves garlic, diced 1¾ cups arborio rice 4 TBS white wine 5 cups or more chicken stock, simmering the peel from 1 preserved lemon, rinsed, patted dry and finely diced. 1 TBS parsley leaves, finely chopped 4 TBS unsalted butter,chilled and cut into small cubes 2 ounces Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
Simmer the stock in a large sauce pan. In a dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat. When shimmering, add shallots and sautee for several minutes until lightly golden. Add the rice and stir for a few minutes to coat each grain of rice with oil and toast slightly. Add the wine to the rice mixture, cooking until wine is nearly absorbed.
Add a ladle or two of stock, enough to cover the rice. Cook at a steady simmer, stirring from time to time, until most of the stock has been absorbed. Gradually repeat the process of adding stock, a ladle full at a time, until the rice is creamy and firm. This will take at least 20 minutes depending on your desired level of al dente.
Stir in the preserved lemon. Add an additional ladle full of stock and the butter, and stir until both are completely absorbed. Stir in the Parmesan, cover with a lid and let stand for a few minutes before serving.
Thank goodness March is here! February was a particularly hard month for a lot of people I know. Hearing so much woeful news, it seemed like the darkest month all winter. But for the last several days in a row (at least where I live), the sun has been shining, and the snow has been melting. Spring is definitely on its way, and it's bringing with it the promise of new beginnings and in my kitchen, a spate of lemon recipes.
Recently, I came into possession of one too many bottles of limoncello. For my comfort level, I couldn't let them sit idle for too long. Something creative had to be done to consume it. I'm not so much a drink-it-neat or over-the-rocks type of person. Recipe searches and suggestions turned up tiramisu (which I made), or sorbet, or (for the least effort involved) poured directly over ice cream. That's about all I found. I wanted to combine these last two ideas to make something not too icy (like sorbet) and not too creamy (like ice cream). Sherbet to me seemed like a good compromise, refreshing and comforting. This sherbet has a grown-up, yet nostalgic flavor and a consistency akin to lemon push-pops. Believe what you will about whether or not all the alcohol is cooked off when making the syrup. Moderation is always key and ample enough a portion to bring comfort and cheer.
Limoncello Sherbet
makes 1 quart
1 cup limoncello 1 cup water ¾ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice (from about 4-5 lemons) ½ cup sugar 1 tsp vanilla 1½ cups whole milk, chilled
Combine limoncello, water, lemon juice and sugar in a saucepan set over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring all the while to dissolve sugar. Continue to boil for 5 minutes, allowing the alcohol to evaporate and somewhat concentrating the liquid into a loose syrup. Remove from heat, stir in vanilla, and cool completely. Chill limoncello syrup in the refrigerator at least four hours or preferably overnight. It should be at 40° F before proceeding to next step.
In a large glass measure, stir 2 cups limoncello syrup into 1½ cups whole milk. (Some curdling may occur so work quickly.) Pour the combined mixture directly into the canister of your ice cream maker and process according to the manufacturer's instructions.
Do you ever feel like you're chasing ingredients in the kitchen? Here's what I mean: a recipe, say gelato, calls for 6 eggs--just the yolks; now 6 divested whites sit waiting for your attention. Possibly a family dinner of skinny omelets or dessert of angel food cake? Or, if feeling daring, aged to make a double batch of macarons? But wait! The filling for the macarons calls for several eggs--just the yolks. Now you've more whites to chase around both the kitchen and you're imagination. Certainly the scenario could just as neatly apply to say making a stock from leftover bones, or was it, that you now have extra poached chicken because you needed to make a stock for a certain dish. If you're frugal (which I am, or as my mother would say "a good steward") using every last bit of something becomes that much more important.
Ingredient chasing happens to me quite a lot, and I dare say, actually pushes me to be more creative with the leftovers. In fact, it was from ingredient chasing that I decided to make a less traditional version of tiramisu to complete this month's baking challenge. The February 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Aparna of My Diverse Kitchen and Deeba of Passionate About Baking. They chose Tiramisu as the challenge for the month. Their challenge recipe is based on recipes from The Washington Post, Cordon Bleu at Home and Baking Obsession. The challenge included making from scratch the ladyfingers (or savoiardi biscuits), mascarpone, and two components not normally found in tiramisu recipes: a zabaglione (egg custard) and a vanilla pastry cream.
I happened to have a large supply of lemons on hand from recently having had purchased an entire bag, when really just one would have been fine for my purposes. What to do with all the extra? Also, I knew my friend Susie had homemade limoncello in her fridge. As such, I invited Susie to bake with me, and this is the version of tiramisu that came about. On a technical note, we decided to make our version in tiny spring-form pans, which necessitated a retooling of the ladyfinger. Ours were piped in a round, spiraling, saucer shape; if you're making your own anyways, why not custom fit it to the baking pan at the outset?
The day we got around to baking, Susie's DIY limoncello was long gone, meaning a new (non-DIY) bottle had to be purchased. Currently, the ingredient chase is on for as what to do with the extras. A similar story could be said for the day I took these photos. I forgot to reserve lemon peel to place curled as a garnish. Not wanting to chase a single ingredient more for a silly photo shoot, I decided to let that one go. I hope you'll understand. Not to worry, though. I can almost guarantee that lemons will make another appearance here soon. And yes, this recipe leaves you with 3 extra egg whites. Imagine away what I did with them; more than likely, they became a buttercream.
TIRAMISU (Recipe sources: Carminantonio's Tiramisu from The Washington Post, July 11 2007 which I varied based on Lidia Bastianich's recipe) 8 servings Ingredients For the zabaglione: 2 large egg yolks
3 TBS sugar
¼ cup limoncello
¼ tsp vanilla
½ tsp finely grated lemon zest
For the vanilla pastry cream: ¼ cup sugar
1 TBS all purpose flour
½ tsp finely grated lemon zest
½ tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg yolk
¾ cup whole milk
For the whipped cream: 1 cup chilled heavy cream
¼ cup sugar
½ tsp vanilla extract
For the limoncello syrup: 1 cup water
1 cup limoncello
¾ cup lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla
½ cup sugar
To assemble the tiramisu: ⅓ cup mascarpone cheese
1 TBS lemon zest
36 savoiardi/ ladyfinger biscuits (you may use less depending on size and shape)
2 TBS lemon sugar or large curls of zest for garnish
Method
For the zabaglione: Heat water in a double boiler. If you don’t have a double boiler, place a pot with about an inch of water in it on the stove. Place a heat-proof bowl in the pot making sure the bottom does not touch the water.
In a large mixing bowl (or stainless steel mixing bowl), mix together the egg yolks, sugar, the limoncello, vanilla extract and lemon zest. Whisk together until the yolks are fully blended and the mixture looks smooth.
Transfer the mixture to the top of a double boiler or place your bowl over the pan/ pot with simmering water. Cook the egg mixture over low heat, stirring constantly, for about 8 minutes or until it resembles thick custard. It may bubble a bit as it reaches that consistency. Let cool to room temperature and transfer the zabaglione to a bowl. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight, until thoroughly chilled.
For the pastry cream: Mix together the sugar, flour, lemon zest and vanilla extract in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan. To this add the egg yolk and half the milk. Whisk until smooth.
Now place the saucepan over low heat and cook, stirring constantly to prevent the mixture from curdling.
Add the remaining milk a little at a time, still stirring constantly. After about 12 minutes the mixture will be thick, free of lumps and beginning to bubble. (If you have a few lumps, don’t worry. You can push the cream through a fine-mesh strainer.)
Transfer the pastry cream to a bowl and cool to room temperature. Cover with plastic film and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight, until thoroughly chilled.
For the whipped cream: Combine the cream, sugar and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl. Beat with an electric hand mixer or immersion blender until the mixture holds stiff peaks. Set aside.
For the limoncello syrup: Mix together the water, limoncello, lemon juice, vanilla, and sugar in a sauce pan over medium heat, whisk to dissolve sugar. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently and allow to cook 5 minutes or so until syrup-like. Refrigerate to cool completely.
To assemble the tiramisu: Have ready a rectangular serving dish (about 8" by 8" should do) or I used four 6-inch springform pans.
In a large bowl, beat the mascarpone cheese and zest with a spoon to break down the lumps and make it smooth. This will make it easier to fold. Add the prepared and chilled zabaglione and pastry cream, blending until just combined. Gently fold in the whipped cream. Set this cream mixture aside.
Working quickly, dip the ladyfingers in the lemon syrup, about 1 second per side. They should be moist but not soggy. Immediately transfer each ladyfinger to the serving dish, placing them side by side in a single row. You may break a lady finger into two, if necessary, to ensure the base of your dish is completely covered. The spongy nature of the wetted cookies will allow them to squeezed snugly side-by-side into the dish. I simply stacked the saucer-shaped cookies neatly in the springform pan.
Spoon one-third of the cream mixture on top of the ladyfingers, then use a rubber spatula or spreading knife to cover the top evenly, all the way to the edges.
Repeat to create 2 more layers, using 12 ladyfingers and the cream mixture for each layer. Clean any spilled cream mixture; cover carefully with plastic wrap and refrigerate the tiramisu overnight.
To serve, carefully remove the plastic wrap and sprinkle the tiramisu with lemon sugar or garnish with lemon peel curls. Cut into individual portions and serve.
Ingredients 2 cups whipping cream
1 TBS fresh lemon juice
Method
Bring 1 inch of water to a boil in a wide skillet. Reduce the heat to medium-low so the water is barely simmering. Pour the cream into a medium heat-resistant bowl, then place the bowl into the skillet. Heat the cream, stirring often, to 190 F. If you do not have a thermometer, wait until small bubbles keep trying to push up to the surface.
It will take about 15 minutes of delicate heating. Add the lemon juice and continue heating the mixture, stirring gently, until the cream curdles. Do not expect the same action as you see during ricotta cheese making. All that the whipping cream will do is become thicker, like a well-done crème anglaise. It will cover a back of your wooden spoon thickly. You will see just a few clear whey streaks when you stir. Remove the bowl from the water and let cool for about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, line a sieve with four layers of dampened cheesecloth and set it over a bowl. Transfer the mixture into the lined sieve. Do not squeeze the cheese in the cheesecloth or press on its surface (be patient, it will firm up after refrigeration time). Once cooled completely, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate (in the sieve) overnight or up to 24 hours.
Vera’s notes: The first time I made mascarpone I had all doubts if it’d been cooked enough, because of its custard-like texture. Have no fear, it will firm up beautifully in the fridge, and will yet remain lusciously creamy.
Preheat your oven to 350 F degrees, then lightly brush 2 baking sheets with oil or softened butter and line with parchment paper.
Beat the egg whites using a hand held electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Gradually add granulate sugar and continue beating until the egg whites become stiff again, glossy and smooth.
In a small bowl, beat the egg yolks lightly with a fork and fold them into the meringue, using a wooden spoon. Sift the flour over this mixture and fold gently until just mixed. It is important to fold very gently and not overdo the folding. Otherwise the batter would deflate and lose volume resulting in ladyfingers which are flat and not spongy.
Fit a pastry bag with a plain tip (or just snip the end off; you could also use a Ziploc bag) and fill with the batter. Pipe the batter into 5" long and ¾" wide strips leaving about 1" space in between the strips. I cut a pattern the shape of my small springform pans and used that as a template to pipe large, flat swirls of dough.
Sprinkle half the confectioner's sugar over the ladyfingers and wait for 5 minutes. The sugar will pearl or look wet and glisten. Now sprinkle the remaining sugar. This helps to give the ladyfingers their characteristic crispness.
Hold the parchment paper in place with your thumb and lift one side of the baking sheet and gently tap it on the work surface to remove excess sprinkled sugar.
Bake the ladyfingers for 10 minutes, then rotate the sheets and bake for another 5 minutes or so until the puff up, turn lightly golden brown and are still soft.
Allow them to cool slightly on the sheets for about 5 minutes and then remove the ladyfingers from the baking sheet with a metal spatula while still hot, and cool on a rack.
Store them in an airtight container till required. They should keep for 2 to 3 weeks.
1 large chicken, 2-3 pounds
4 TBS olive oil
Ingredients
Ingredients