sel et sucre

Tag: dessert

  • Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

    chocolate chip cookie bars

    I’ve mentioned before that I’m not really a traditionalist. So maybe it’s not surprising that I prefer these chocolate chip cookie bars to regular chocolate chip cookies. They’re still the classic combination of sweet buttery cookie dough and rich chocolate chips, but the bar form means they’re nice and golden brown on the outside while staying soft and nearly underbaked on the inside. Plus, they’re easier to make since there’s no measuring out dollops of dough and multiple batches to bake. The sprinkle of sea salt at the end certainly doesn’t hurt either. And you know, just like these cookie bars, these could also be a thoughtful addition to condolence packages, providing a touch of homemade comfort during difficult times.

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  • Spicy Stawberry Fruit Roll-Ups

    spicy strawberry fruit roll-ups

    Earlier this week, I mentioned my trip to Istanbul and my newfound appreciation for Turkish food. As someone who loves spice, my favorite acquisition from my trip was a large bag of Turkish red pepper. An immensely flavorful twist on the crushed red pepper you may be more familiar with (and can use to substitute here), I’ve been taking any excuse to use it. Turkish red pepper is great with eggs or to add a little extra kick to dips or stews. But I’ve done something a little more unusual here. When I got back in town, strawberries were coming in season, tempting me at every turn, and I was determined to make homemade fruit roll-ups (often called “fruit leather”). As the strawberries were cooking down, I couldn’t resist throwing in a hefty portion of my new favorite spice, and the result was fantastic. Turkish red pepper isn’t too spicy, so there’s just a mild hint of spiciness at the end, a great complement to the perfect sweetness of in-season strawberries. I actually made a double batch of this recipe and left half as a sauce – amazing for stirring into yogurt, pouring over ice cream, or even adding a hint of sweetness to a salad dressing.

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  • Giant Chocolate Caramel Ice Cream Sandwich

    giant chocolate caramel ice cream sandwich

    I love cakes. Baking them, eating them, looking at photos of them. They’re extravagant and delicious. But my boyfriend prefers cookies, and it’s long been a source of tension between us. For his recent birthday, however, we came up with a compromise. An ice cream sandwich the size of a cake. All the extravagance of a cake, even layered almost like a cake, yet really just two giant cookies with ice cream. We tossed around flavors for a while before settling on chocolate and caramel, a classic combination. Baking two very large cookies was as simple as filling two cake pans; this also resulted in a denser and chewier cookie, although I imagine you could just drop the batter on two cookie sheets for thinner and more traditional cookies. The rest of the logistics were a little more difficult than expected. I made the mistake of attempting to layer the ice cream sandwich while the ice cream was freshly churned and very soft which ended up with the bottom cookie absorbing much of the ice cream. I re-filled the cookies with more ice cream after it hardened up in the freezer with better results (only to later discover the ice cream soaked cookie on the bottom with pleasant surprise). The cookies then started to crack when I was re-assembling the giant sandwich (as you can see in the photo), and that’s when I realized: making a giant ice cream sandwich is about having fun and being playful with food. Sometimes you have to try cooking something new, something fun, even though you make mistakes along the way. This has long been how I’ve felt about baking extravagant cakes, and suddenly I’m feeling that way about cookies, too.

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  • Salted Brown Butter Caramel Ice Cream

    salted brown butter caramel ice cream

    Three years ago, I pulled my parents’ dusty ice cream maker out of storage and started putting it to use. I began with simple recipes and was astounded to find just how easy it was to make delicious ice cream. I quickly graduated to custard-based recipes and discovered a whole new level of creamy richness. This recipe, however, still made me hesitate. Not only custard-based, but involving two separate batches of caramel pushed right to the edge of burning, it seemed far too complex to be worth it, especially when I could make very tasty ice cream without such a hassle. But it stayed in the back of my mind. In these past three years, I’ve become much more confident with making caramel, with making ice cream, and with my cooking in general, and finally it became clear I had to take on the challenge of this recipe. Never content to just follow the recipe, I decided to also brown the butter. Even with this extra step, I found this recipe came together fairly easily. And the resulting ice cream… unbelievably decadent, streaks of caramel in a rich caramel base with hints of nutty roasted flavors, and, of course, some salt to balance the sweetness. It was a triumph, one that made me seriously consider starting my own ice cream business, perhaps even exploring an Ice Cream Truck Rental to share these indulgent flavors with others on the go.

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  • Brownie Cookies

    brownie cookies

    Some people love brownies, and some people love cookies, but most people, myself included, love both. For all of them, these are a revelatory dessert. All of the chocolate decadence of a brownie in cookie form. The key to this magical crossover dessert is large quantities of melted chocolate and eggs which give the cookies a fudge-like texture. Simple to make and guaranteed to please, these cookies should most definitely make their way into your life. You’ll never look at brownies or cookies quite the same way again.

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  • Garam Masala Cookies

    garam masala cookies

    When it comes to desserts, I much prefer the unusual to the ordinary. I’ve never been one for vanilla ice cream or chocolate chip cookies; they’re tasty, sure, but way too boring for me. Give me something complex and exciting! These garam masala cookies are definitely in line with my dessert philosophy. Yes, they’re sweet, as cookies are meant to be, but they’re also nutty from brown butter and spicy from garam masala. At first, these fragrant cookies are reminiscent of spice cookies, with the familiar flavors of cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. But then there are those less familiar notes from the other components of the garam masala. While unusual, these cookies are still thoroughly enjoyable even for less adventurous eaters and were scarfed right up when I baked them for a party. So, whether you always prefer unique desserts or usually opt for more vanilla options, these cookies are worth throwing together the next time you have a chance.

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  • Carrot Cake Muffins Baked in Eggshells

    carrot cake muffins baked in eggshells

    Usually I’m all about taste, but every once in a while, I decide to cook something mostly for the visual impact. These muffins baked inside of eggshells were perfect for a spring brunch (where I also served scrambled eggs from the emptied out eggs – waste not, want not). You can use this technique with your favorite muffin or cupcake batter, but I decided that carrot cake muffins (a less sweet and more breakfast friendly take on classic carrot cake) with a “yolk” made from a cream cheese filling seemed like a great fit. I was pretty pleased with how these turned out, but I’d definitely do some things differently next time. The batter stuck to the eggshells which I hadn’t quite anticipated, so I think swirling a drop of oil inside them before filling would be useful. I filled my eggs using a plastic bag with the corner cut off, but I think a professional pastry tip would make this a lot easier and quicker. I also overfilled the shells, and while it’s easy enough to scrape off the overflowing muffin after they’re baked, this meant that my “yolks” didn’t end up as pretty little balls in the center of the egg as hoped, so stick to filling the eggs a little less than 2/3rds full. Learn from my mistakes so you don’t have to make them! Even with these small issues (and the hours spent emptying eggshells and piping batter in them), everyone at brunch was very impressed, and it was really fun to crack away the shell and reveal a muffin!

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  • Maple Bacon S’mores

    maple bacon s'mores

    Okay, it might be a little silly for me to post a recipe for s’mores. I know, you already know how to make s’mores. It’s really so simple, just marshmallows, chocolate, and graham crackers. But these were easily the best I’ve ever had. Very different from what I had as a kid (and I wonder what me as a kid would have thought of these). The salty-sweet combination with bacon in the homemade marshmallows and smoked salt on the homemade graham crackers adds another dimension to this classic dessert. As I’ve gotten older, my chocolate preferences have shifted away from milk chocolate and towards dark chocolate, and this was the perfect place to embrace that. Dark chocolate (60% cocoa content or higher ideally) helps these seem sophisticated instead of sickeningly sweet (although, okay, they’re still quite sweet). These s’mores were the perfect way to kick off the grilling season during the recent abnormally warm weather, and I’m pretty sure I’ll have to make them the next time I go camping. I think my young self would approve; these are the best of both worlds: playful and messy to tap into your inner kid but complex enough to please your adult taste buds.

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  • Blood Orange Curd

    blood orange curd

    I feel pretty lucky to have friends who are wholeheartedly enthusiastic about food. Nothing reminds me of this quite so much as when we get together for brunch; we pull out the leaves on the table just so we can have as much space as possible to load down with food. Bagels with cream cheese and lox, omelets, hash browns, biscuits, scones, bacon, curried vegetables, fresh fruit, crepes… and the list goes on. Sometimes it’s a chance to get creative, sometimes an excuse for a feast, and always a welcome time to relax and chat with friends.

    For our most recent brunch, I decided I wanted to make a blood orange curd to go with the crepes that my boyfriend was cooking. Of course, I managed to undercook my blood orange curd the first time around. As I shook my head with dismay and tried to hide the less than perfect results in the kitchen, my brunch companions excitedly spooned the “sauce” onto their crepes and reassured me that the flavor was still amazing. Nevertheless, I poured the concoction back into the saucepan after they’d left in a second attempt at thickening it up. Luckily, all I needed was a little more heat, and within minutes, I had my curd at the perfect consistency.

    Blood oranges are nearing the end of their season sadly, so now is the chance to embrace them while you still can. If you’ve had lemon curd, you can guess at how delicious blood orange curd is (and if not, a curd is a smooth sweet and tart spread, thickened by eggs, similar to a custard). The flavors here are a bit more subtle than lemon curd; there’s still that citrus tang, only now it’s accompanied by light floral notes and a gorgeous dusty rose color. Crepes are not the only option for this curd; it will do equally well slathered on scones and shortbread or used as the filling for a tart.

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  • Brown Butter Blondies

    brown butter blondies

    Browning butter is truly a magical process. Somehow, simply by adding heat, your run of the mill stick of butter transforms with nutty caramel notes that elevate nearly everything. I’m not usually a butter fiend, but when the aroma of browning butter starts to waft through the air, it’s all I can do not to start eating it plain. Brown butter can be used in both savory and sweet dishes, but I think my favorite use is these brown butter blondies. They’re incredibly easy to make and really showcase the butter’s phenomenal transformation (the combination of the brown butter with brown sugar has prompted many to ask me if there’s caramel in these). This time around, I mixed in finely chopped walnuts and cocoa nibs, but they’ve been equally delicious in the past with hazelnuts and toffee bits. Actually, nearly any leftover sweet bits (or savory, if you’re feeling adventurous) in your pantry can work here, or you can even forgo the mix-ins entirely. I’ve made these blondies for hosting friends, meeting new roommates (one of whom I ended up dating – can’t be a coincidence, right?), bringing along to parties, and just when craving something sweet. Toss these together the next time you’re in the mood for a decadent treat, and you will most assuredly not be disappointed.

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