Homemade Chewy Spiced Chocolate Chip Cookies

The other day, I blogged about a boxed chocolate chip cookie that I spiced up with some cinnamon and Marx Foods Organic Aji Amarillo Peruvian Chile powder . I was thinking that it would be fun to develop my own perfect chewy chocolate chip cookie from scratch. Not only did I finally make the perfect cookie, but I spiced it up again! I am really excited about the final product. Hopefully you are, too!

These cookies are thin, chewy, and soft! We made them last night, and they are still soft today!

Homemade Chewy Spiced Chocolate Chip Cookies

Yield: approx (45) 3" cookies

8 oz unsalted butter, very soft

1/4 cup Sugar

1 1/4 cup Brown Sugar (preferably homemade, recipe follows)

2 Eggs

2 Tbsp Milk

2 Cups Rice Flour

1/4 cup Cornstarch

2 tbsp Potato Starch

1 tsp Xanthan Gum

1 tsp Baking Soda

1 tsp Marx Foods Organic Aji Amarillo Peruvian Chile powder, or to taste

(directions for making chile powder can be found HERE)

3/4 tbsp Cinnamon, or to taste

pinch of Salt

1 1/2 cups Chocolate Chips

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Cream butter and sugars together until the mixture is thick and pale, and the sugar is dissolved. Add the egg one at a time, incorporating one before adding the 2nd. Add the milk. Whisk all of the dry ingredients together in a bowl, and add them into the butter mixture slowly. Once the dough is cohesive, add the chocolate chips. Taste the dough to determine of you would like to add more spice.

Spoon the dough onto baking sheets and bake for 8-10 minutes, or until slightly browned. Allow the cookies to cool on a cooling rack.

If you prefer to omit the spices to have a more traditional cookie, replace them with about 2 tsp of vanilla.

***Please note that pregnant women or the elderly should avoid tasting the raw dough, as it contains raw egg.***

*Homemade brown sugar is really easy to make! Pour about 4 cups of sugar into a food processor, add approx 1 1/2 tbsp blackstrap molasses and buzz the food processor for about 3 minutes, or until all of the sugar is coated and turns brown. Please feel free to add more or less molasses, depending on how dark or strong you want it.

Daring Bakers Challenge: French Yule Log Entremet

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.

This month was quite a challenge for me. It wasn't hard to make, it just had a ton of steps and took 2 days to make. Generally, I only make this kind of entremet for paying customers. Fortunately, this was an easy challenge to make gluten free. It was also really great that I already had some of the components pre-made from things I had made earlier in the week. I always love that :)

A really nice addition to this challenge was that we were given multiple formulas for each component, so we were able to choose the flavors we wanted to highlight. I chose chocolate and almond :) Love it! So, without further ado, my Buche Du Noel (Yule Log)...






Recipe (quite a doozie!):

1) Dacquoise Biscuit I actually used French Macaroons for this, which are essentially the same thing, since I had already made them.
2) Mousse
3) Ganache Insert I used Ganache that I made earlier.
4) Praline (Crisp) Insert
5) Creme Brulee Insert
6) Icing I used more ganache to enrobe the cake instead of making glaze :)

The assembly will essentially be a Dacquoise Biscuit at the bottom, and the inserts inter-layered with mousse, with an icing finish.

Element #1 Dacquoise Biscuit (Almond Cake)

Preparation time: 10 mn + 15 mn for baking

Equipment: 2 mixing bowls, hand or stand mixer with whisk attachment, spatula, baking pan such as a 10”x15” jelly-roll pan, parchment paper

Note: You can use the Dacquoise for the bottom of your Yule Log only, or as bottom and top layers, or if using a Yule log mold (half-pipe) to line your entire mold with the biscuit. Take care to spread the Dacquoise accordingly. Try to bake the Dacquoise the same day you assemble the log to keep it as moist as possible.

Ingredients:
2.8 oz (3/4cup + 1Tbsp / 80g) almond meal
1.75 oz (1/2 cup / 50g) confectioner’s sugar
2Tbsp (15g) GF all-purpose flour
3.5oz (100g / ~100ml) about 3 medium egg whites
1.75 oz (4 Tbsp / 50g) granulated sugar

1. Finely mix the almond meal and the confectioner's sugar. (If you have a mixer, you can use it by pulsing the ingredients together for no longer than 30 seconds).
2. Sift the flour into the mix.
3. Beat the eggs whites, gradually adding the granulated sugar until stiff.
4. Pour the almond meal mixture into the egg whites and blend delicately with a spatula.
5. Grease a piece of parchment paper and line your baking pan with it.
6. Spread the batter on a piece of parchment paper to an area slightly larger than your desired shape (circle, long strip etc...) and to a height of 1/3 inches (8mm).
7. Bake at 350°F (180°C) for approximately 15 minutes (depends on your oven), until golden.
8. Let cool and cut to the desired shape.


Element #2 Dark Chocolate Mousse

Preparation time: 20mn

Equipment: stand or hand mixer with whisk attachment, thermometer, double boiler or equivalent, spatula.

Note: You will see that a Pate a Bombe is mentioned in this recipe. A Pate a Bombe is a term used for egg yolks beaten with a sugar syrup, then aerated. It is the base used for many mousse and buttercream recipes. It makes mousses and buttercreams more stable, particularly if they are to be frozen, so that they do not melt as quickly or collapse under the weight of heavier items such as the crème brulee insert.
In the Vanilla Mousse variation, pastry cream is made to the same effect.
In the Mango Mousse variation, Italian meringue is made to the same effect. Italian meringue is a simple syrup added to egg whites as they are beaten until stiff. It has the same consistency as Swiss meringue (thick and glossy) which we have used before in challenge recipes as a base for buttercream.

The Whipped Cream option contains no gelatin, so beware of how fast it may melt.
Gelatin is the gelifying agent in all of the following recipes, but if you would like to use agar-agar, here are the equivalencies: 8g powdered gelatin = 1 (0.25 oz) envelope powdered gelatin = 1 Tbsp powdered gelatin = 1 Tbsp Agar-Agar.
1 Tbsp. of agar-agar flakes is equal to 1 tsp. of agar-agar powder.

Ingredients:
2.5 sheets gelatin or 5g / 1 + 1/4 tsp powdered gelatin
1.5 oz (3 Tbsp / 40g) granulated sugar
1 ½ tsp (10g) glucose or thick corn syrup
0.5 oz (15g) water
50g egg yolks (about 3 medium)
6.2 oz (175g) dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
1.5 cups (350g) heavy cream (35% fat content)

1. Soften the gelatin in cold water. (If using powdered gelatin, follow the directions on the package.)
2. Make a Pate a Bombe: Beat the egg yolks until very light in colour (approximately 5 minutes until almost white).
2a. Cook the sugar, glucose syrup and water on medium heat for approximately 3 minutes (if you have a candy thermometer, the mixture should reach 244°F (118°C). If you do not have a candy thermometer, test the sugar temperature by dipping the tip of a knife into the syrup then into a bowl of ice water, if it forms a soft ball in the water then you have reached the correct temperature.
2b. Add the sugar syrup to the beaten yolks carefully by pouring it into the mixture in a thin stream while continuing to beat the yolks. You can do this by hand but it’s easier to do this with an electric mixer.
2c. Continue beating until cool (approximately 5 minutes). The batter should become thick and foamy.
3. In a double boiler or equivalent, heat 2 tablespoons (30g) of cream to boiling. Add the chopped chocolate and stir until melted and smooth.
4. Whip the remainder of the cream until stiff.
5. Pour the melted chocolate over the softened gelatin, mixing well. Let the gelatin and chocolate cool slightly and then stir in ½ cup (100g) of WHIPPED cream to temper. Add the Pate a Bombe.
6. Add in the rest of the WHIPPED cream (220g) mixing gently with a spatula.


Element #3 Dark Chocolate Ganache Insert

Preparation time: 10mn

Equipment: pan, whisk. If you have plunging mixer (a vertical hand mixer used to make soups and other liquids), it comes in handy.

Note: Because the ganache hardens as it cools, you should make it right before you intend to use it to facilitate piping it onto the log during assembly. Please be careful when caramelizing the sugar and then adding the cream. It may splatter and boil.

Ingredients:
1.75 oz (4 Tbsp / 50g) granulated sugar
4.5oz (2/3 cup – 1 Tbsp/ 135g) heavy cream (35% fat content)
5 oz (135g) dark chocolate, finely chopped
3Tbsp + 1/2tsp (45g) unsalted butter softened

1. Make a caramel: Using the dry method, melt the sugar by spreading it in an even layer in a small saucepan with high sides. Heat over medium-high heat, watching it carefully as the sugar begins to melt. Never stir the mixture. As the sugar starts to melt, swirl the pan occasionally to allow the sugar to melt evenly. Cook to dark amber color (for most of you that means darker than last month’s challenge).
2. While the sugar is melting, heat the cream until boiling. Pour cream into the caramel and stir thoroughly. Be very careful as it may splatter and boil.
3. Pour the hot caramel-milk mixture over the dark chocolate. Wait 30 seconds and stir until smooth.
4. Add the softened butter and whip hard and fast (if you have a plunging mixer use it). The chocolate should be smooth and shiny.


Element #4 Praline Feuillete (Crisp) Insert

Preparation time: 10 mn (+ optional 15mn if you make lace crepes)

Equipment: Small saucepan, baking sheet (if you make lace crepes).
Double boiler (or one small saucepan in another), wax paper, rolling pin (or I use an empty bottle of olive oil).

Note: Feuillete means layered (as in with leaves) so a Praline Feuillete is a Praline version of a delicate crisp. There are non-praline variations below. The crunch in this crisp comes from an ingredient which is called gavottes in French. Gavottes are lace-thin crepes. To our knowledge they are not available outside of France, so you have the option of making your own using the recipe below or you can simply substitute rice krispies or corn flakes or Special K for them. Special note: If you use one of the substitutes for the gavottes, you should halve the quantity stated, as in use 1oz of any of these cereals instead of 2.1oz.
If you want to make your own praline, please refer back to the Daring Baker Challenge Recipe from July 2008.

To make 2.1oz / 60g of gavottes (lace crepes - recipe by Ferich Mounia):
1/3 cup (80ml) whole milk
2/3 Tbsp (8g) unsalted butter
1/3 cup – 2tsp (35g) all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp / 0.5 oz (15g) beaten egg
1 tsp (3.5g) granulated sugar
½ tsp vegetable oil
1. Heat the milk and butter together until butter is completely melted. Remove from the heat.
2. Sift flour into milk-butter mixture while beating, add egg and granulated sugar. Make sure there are no lumps.
3. Grease a baking sheet and spread batter thinly over it.
4. Bake at 430°F (220°C) for a few minutes until the crepe is golden and crispy. Let cool.


Ingredients for the Praline Feuillete:
3.5 oz (100g) milk chocolate
1 2/3 Tbsp (25g) butter
2 Tbsp (1 oz / 30g) praline
2.1oz (60g) lace crepes(gavottes) or rice krispies or corn flakes or Special K I used Rice Chex *celebrates again that Rice Chex are GF*. I also added some homemade hazelnut praline from the July challenge recipe.

1. Melt the chocolate and butter in a double boiler.
2. Add the praline and the coarsely crushed lace crepes. Mix quickly to thoroughly coat with the chocolate.
3. Spread between two sheets of wax paper to a size slightly larger than your desired shape. Refrigerate until hard.


Element #5 Vanilla Crème Brulée Insert

Preparation time: 15mn + 1h infusing + 1h baking

Equipment: Small saucepan, mixing bowl, baking mold, wax paper

Note: The vanilla crème brulée can be flavored differently by simply replacing the vanilla with something else e.g. cardamom, lavender, etc...

Ingredients:
1/2 cup (115g) heavy cream (35% fat content)
½ cup (115g) whole milk
4 medium-sized (72g) egg yolks
0.75 oz (2 Tbsp / 25g) granulated sugar
1 vanilla bean

1. Heat the milk, cream, and scraped vanilla bean to just boiling. Remove from the stove and let the vanilla infuse for about 1 hour.
2. Whisk together the sugar and egg yolks (but do not beat until white).
3. Pour the vanilla-infused milk over the sugar/yolk mixture. Mix well.
4. Wipe with a very wet cloth and then cover your baking mold (whatever shape is going to fit on the inside of your Yule log/cake) with parchment paper. Pour the cream into the mold and bake at 210°F (100°C) for about 1 hour or until firm on the edges and slightly wobbly in the center.

Tartelette says: You can bake it without a water bath since it is going to go inside the log (the aesthetics of it won't matter as much since it will be covered with other things)....BUT I would recommend a water bath for the following reasons:
- you will get a much nicer mouth feel when it is done
- you will be able to control its baking point and desired consistency much better
- it bakes for such a long time that I fear it will get overdone without a water bath
Now...since it is baked in a pan and it is sometimes difficult to find another large pan to set it in for a water bath, even a small amount of water in your water bath will help the heat be distributed evenly in the baking process. Even as little as 1 inch will help.
5. Let cool and put in the freezer for at least 1 hour to firm up and facilitate the final assembly.


Element #6 Dark Chocolate Icing

Preparation time: 25 minutes (10mn if you don’t count softening the gelatin)

Equipment: Small bowl, small saucepan

Note: Because the icing gelifies quickly, you should make it at the last minute.
For other gelatin equivalencies or gelatin to agar-agar equivalencies, look at the notes for the mousse component.

Ingredients:
4g / ½ Tbsp powdered gelatin or 2 sheets gelatin
¼ cup (60g) heavy cream (35 % fat content)
2.1 oz (5 Tbsp / 60g) granulated sugar
¼ cup (50g) water
1/3 cup (30g) unsweetened cocoa powder

1. Soften the gelatin in cold water for 15 minutes.
2. Boil the rest of the ingredients and cook an additional 3 minutes after boiling.
3. Add gelatin to the chocolate mixture. Mix well.
4. Let cool while checking the texture regularly. As soon as the mixture is smooth and coats a spoon well (it is starting to gelify), use immediately.


How To Assemble your French Yule Log

Depending on whether your mold is going to hold the assembly upside down until you unmold it or right side up, this order will be different.
THIS IS FOR UNMOLDING FROM UPSIDE DOWN TO RIGHT SIDE UP.
You will want to tap your mold gently on the countertop after each time you pipe mousse in to get rid of any air bubbles.

1) Line your mold or pan, whatever its shape, with rhodoid (clear hard plastic, I usually use transparencies cut to the desired shape, it’s easier to find than cellulose acetate which is what rhodoid translates to in English) OR plastic film. Rhodoid will give you a smoother shape but you may have a hard time using it depending on the kind of mold you’re using.

You have two choices for Step 2, you can either have Dacquoise on the top and bottom of your log as in version A or you can have Dacquoise simply on the bottom of your log as in version B:

2A) Cut the Dacquoise into a shape fitting your mold and set it in there. If you are using an actual Yule mold which is in the shape of a half-pipe, you want the Dacquoise to cover the entire half-pipe portion of the mold.
3A) Pipe one third of the Mousse component on the Dacquoise.
4A) Take the Creme Brulee Insert out of the freezer at the last minute and set on top of the mousse. Press down gently to slightly ensconce it in the mousse.
5A) Pipe second third of the Mousse component around and on top of the Creme Brulee Insert.
6A) Cut the Praline/Crisp Insert to a size slightly smaller than your mold so that it can be surrounded by mousse. Lay it on top of the mousse you just piped into the mold.
7A) Pipe the last third of the Mousse component on top of the Praline Insert.
8A) Freeze for a few hours to set. Take out of the freezer.
9A) Pipe the Ganache Insert onto the frozen mousse leaving a slight eidge so that ganache doesn’t seep out when you set the Dacquoise on top.
10A) Close with the last strip of Dacquoise.
Freeze until the next day.


THE NEXT DAY...
Unmold the cake/log/whatever and set on a wire rack over a shallow pan.
Cover the cake with the icing.
Let set. Return to the freezer.
You may decorate your cake however you wish. The decorations can be set in the icing after it sets but before you return the cake to the freezer or you may attach them on top using extra ganache or leftover mousse, etc...
Transfer to the refrigerator no longer than ½ hour before serving as it may start to melt quickly depending on the elements you chose.

Toffee Studded Brownies

My sister's brother in law was mistakenly diagnosed with Celiac recently, and upon discovering that he was mis-diagnosed, they decided to send me all of the special food they bought. I am super grateful, but I'm not sure why they didn't just keep it and eat it. It's not like gluten free specialty food is cheap. And it sure doesn't taste bad. They didn't even make me pay for it, either!

Either way, I was happy to take it and see what I could do with it all. They sent me a Whole Foods Brownie Mix that I wanted to mess around with, and I remembered seeing a Paula Deen Recipe for Symphony Brownies that looked so good! I decided that I would make my own toffee, complete with toasted almond slices to layer in the brownies. What a grand treat!



Toffee Studded Brownies:


So rich and delicious, it's quite obvious why we could only eat one at a time! Scoop some ice cream on top for a nice summertime treat.




Toasted Almond Toffee


1/3 C Water
1 1/4 C Sugar
2 Tbsp Butter (preferably unsalted)
A couple of handfuls of Toasted Sliced Almonds

On medium heat, combine the sugar and water then bring it to a boil. Wash the sides of the pan down with a pastry brush dipped in water to prevent the sugar from crystallizing. Cook until you have reached your desired caramel color. Add in the butter and stir quickly to combine. Please remember that this mixture will be upwards of 300* and will burn you if you are not careful. Mix in the almonds quickly and pour onto a Silpat lined sheet tray. Once cooled, break the toffee into pieces.


Brownies


Follow the directions on the back of the box, or make your favorite homemade brownie recipe. Once the batter is made, grease up a square pyrex dish and line it with parchment paper. This is super important-do not skip the parchment paper!! Pour in half of the batter and smooth it out. Lay the toffee pieces over the batter in an even layer. Make sure to fill all of the empty spots with little toffee bits. Pour the 2nd half of the batter over the toffee and smooth it out. Bake according to the package directions. My brownies needed a little bit longer in the oven to bake through.


Once finished baking, let the brownies cool for a bit. Run a knife around the edges and flip out onto a cooling rack. Pull off the parchment and eat 'em up!


*Make sure when cutting to use a sharp knife to get through the toffee easily.

Daring Bakers Challenge: Filbert Gateau with Praline Buttercream

Although this challenge had a lot of time consuming components, it was much easier to convert to gluten free than the last challenge. I saw the challenge and had to sigh with relief! The only special item I had to finally break down and buy was a food processor. I have wanted one for so long, and I finally had an excuse to get one! Yippee!

Filbert Gateau with Praline Buttercream

The only ingredient I had to change was the small amount of flour in the cake. I also left the Xanthan Gum out (by accident!) as well as the alcohol (not by accident!). Everything else stayed the same. I do have to say that I didn't like the buttercream recipe. I have my standby Swiss buttercream recipe that I love, and this one didn't cut it for me. I also thought that the finished product was too sweet. I think I must like more bitter tastes, because everyone else who tried it loved it and thought that it had just the right amount of sweetness. I brought it to a church function, and everyone who tried it (non gluten free eaters), loved it!

We were also supposed to decorate the top of the cake with a beautiful piped design using the praline buttercream, but my house was literally 92 degrees, and the buttercream was separating inside my piping bag as I tried to make the design. Although, I could not use the buttercream on the top, I feel that I was able to elegantly substitute the design with a beautiful flower made from gum paste rose leaves, filled with toasted filberts (hazelnuts) in the center. I also used some leftover praline powder to mask the sides of my cake. It turned out beautifully and I may make it again with less sugar and my own buttercream recipe in the future.

This month, I am not going to post the entire recipe, but if you are interested in making it, the recipe originally comes from Great Cakes by Carol Walter.

Not-So-Red Velvet Meringue Cupcakes

The other day was my husband Mark's birthday. One of his favorite cakes is a red velvet cake, so being the loving wife that I am, I decided to make it for him. I decided that it would be nice to make cupcakes instead because, well, I think they are cooler :) Cupcakes are better than full cakes. They are the perfect portion, and you cant argue with that. Cupcakes rock. I pulled all of my mis en place together and made sure to check the ingredients lists for anything questionable. The only item that I was unsure about was the red food coloring. I'm just not down with the Modified Food Starch, so I kicked it out of the recipe...hence the name "Not-So-Red".
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I wanted to make them special and a little bit different; something that he has never had before, so I thought it would be cool to incorporate a meringue disk inside the cupcakes. It's something that I learned in culinary school back in the day, and it is classic in a lot of European tortes to include meringue disks as a layer. Thinking about it a bit more, I decided that instead of splitting each cupcake to add a disk inside, I would use the meringue in place of the cream cheese frosting. I would make meringue "kisses" if you will. It was very simple, I measured the top of the muffin rounds with a corresponding round pastry cutter to find the right size. I then placed the cutter onto my silpat lined baking sheet and spooned the whipped egg whites into the cutter. I pulled the cutter off and used the back of a spoon to kind of mound a 'dollop' shape, or a 'kiss'. I then baked them off in a 200* oven until they dried out.



Once the cupcakes were baked and cooled, I cut the tops off to make a flat surface. I then spread just a bit of raspberry ganache on them, sort of as a glue if you will, and then I placed the meringues on the top. Voila! They turned out beautifully, and so delicious! It made for quite a nice dessert with different textures. Paired up with some ice cream and a few raspberries, it lightens it up quite nicely.

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Not-So-Red Velvet Meringue Cupcakes


CAKE:
2 whole Eggs, room temp
1/2 C Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
2 1/4 C Sylvan Border Farms GF All Purpose Flour
2 tsp Xanthan Gum
1/2 C Butter
1 1/2 C Sugar (or Agave/sugar substitute)
1 tsp Vanilla
1 C Buttermilk (or soured milk)
1 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp white Vinegar
1/2 tsp Salt


Preheat the oven to 350*. Sift together the flour, xanthan gum and salt. To make sure there is no lumps, it is very important that you don't skip the sifting part. Cream the butter and sugar together in a separate mixing bowl. Add the vanilla and then each egg, one at a time, until each is incorporated. Turning your mixer on low, add in the cocoa powder. Alternately add in the milk and flour, making sure to end on flour. Stir together the baking soda and vinegar, then add it into the batter. Mix thoroughly.


You will have enough batter to make 24 big cupcakes or 2- 9" cakes. You could also make 12 cupcakes and 1- 9" cake. Whatever combo you want :) The batter will be turbo thick...the vinegar has an effect on the eggs, and it begins to coagulate them fairly quickly, so be patient and work quickly while spooning them into your pans. Bake them for about 30 minutes or so. Depending on your altitude, it could take less or more time. I would check it after 20 or 25 minutes, and watch it after that.

*Cooks Note- If you have red food coloring that you would like to use, just mix a couple Tbsp in with the cocoa powder to make a paste and incorporate it into the batter as directed.



RASPBERRY GANACHE:
-recipe inspired by Ruth Lendrick, off of the Food Network site
1 1/2 # Milk chocolate
1 C Heavy Whipping Cream
1/2 C Raspberry Jam

Place the chocolate into a large glass bowl. Bring the cream up to scalding on the stove, while mixing the jam into it. Once scalding, pour the cream/jam mixture over the chocolate. Let it sit there, without stirring for about 3-5 minutes. This is to allow the heat from the cream to melt the chocolate without incorporating air into it, and will create a more glossy and fine appearance to your ganache. Using a rubber scraper (spatula), gently and slowly stir the ganache together. Work in small circles, and do not incorporate air. Refrigerate for about 20-30 minutes,basically until your cupcakes are cooled.


MERINGUE:
4 Egg Whites
6 Tbsp Sugar


Using a mixer, beat the whites and sugar together until medium/stiff peaks are formed. Proceed by following the directions in description above.


*Cooks Note: Humidity will soften your meringues, so it is best to eat these the same day, unless you live in Nevada and it never rains. Then they will last for a few weeks! :)

.

Strawberry Spoom

What is Spoom, you ask? Let me tell you!

Spoom is an Italian frozen dessert, similar to sorbet. In fact, it starts out as sorbet. I learned about this light as air dessert in culinary school. I never actually made it nor had I even tried it until this week. It's even hard to find any info or a recipe for it when searched in Google. So I made it up. I knew what is standard in making it, so I figured it out. Not bad! In fact...really good!

Think of it this way...Sherbet is essentially sorbet with dairy frozen in. Spoom is sorbet with whipped egg whites, or meringue frozen in. So think of sherbet, but a million times better and no dairy. And not strange fake lemon-lime gooey weirdness. That's it. Easy Shmeezy ;)

Strawberry Spoom

Sorbet Mix-

1 Cup Sugar

1 cup Water

1 Pound hulled Strawberries

Meringue-

2 Egg Whites

1/3 Cup Sugar

Method: Bring the sugar and water to a rolling boil to make a simple syrup. Refrigerate until cold. In a blender, puree the strawberries and enough simple syrup for your liking until totally blended. Taste it and see if you want more simple syrup. Strain through a mesh sieve if you don't like seeds. Refrigerate again.

Whip the egg whites and sugar together and bring to medium peak. GENTLY fold the two mixtures together. You do not need to fold until there is no white left...just fold it together a little bit. The ice cream machine will mix it well enough.

Freeze the mix following the directions on your machine. If you do not have a machine, you will need to do this a little differently. Just take the Strawberry/Simple Syrup mix and put it in a very large bowl in your freezer. Every 15-30 minutes or so, pull it out and whisk it like crazy. After it starts to freeze, whip up your meringue and GENTLY fold in the egg whites. It wont be totally the same as using a machine, but it should work.

In either case, keep your spoom in the freezer for at least 2 hours before serving.

The texture comes out flaky and light. I like to use strawberries that are super ripe...like you have to use them that day or they will be bad. Those have the best flavor for ice creams and sorbets.

Soft/Medium Peak

NOTE: This has raw egg whites...do not feed to young children or the elderly. Do not eat it if you are pregnant. Please be careful, I like you!

Indian Rice Pudding

This is one of my favorite recipes. It cooks in a jiffy, so it is perfect for last minute get togethers, yet it is homey enough to be comfort food. Eat it warm or cold, it is a treat for all!

*

*April in Colorado is usually our snowiest month, and this year seems to be no exception. I made this last week when I needed something to warm me up from the wet, heavy, snow-filled nights and again today to cool me off when it hit 65 degrees. *

*Indian Rice Pudding

3 Cups cooked rice (I prefer Jasmine rice)
1 Can (15 oz) Coconut Milk, 1st pressing
3 Cups Milk (I use soy)
1 Cup Sugar (white or brown...or both!)
2 Tbsp Cinnamon
1 tsp Ginger
1 tsp Nutmeg
Splash GF Vanilla
Large handful Currants, Raisins, or other Dried Fruit
Large handful toasted Almonds, slivered
Pinch of Salt



*In a large pot, cook rice according to package directions. Add the rest of the ingredients, and while whisking, heat it to just before a boil. Take it off of the heat while still a bit soupy.


*That's it. No joke. The rice will soak up the rest of the liquid over time.


*Eat it warm-soothing, relaxing, comforting
*Eat it cold-a great breakfast, dessert or midnight snack



*cooks note-change up the qty's of the sugar and spices to go along with your tastes. Use agave instead of sugar or brown rice instead of jasmine! Go crazy!