Wednesday, October 7, 2009
The recipe below makes enough dough, filling, and glaze for 2 pastries. Keep in mind I substituted a scant mixture of cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves for the cardamom and it was still delicious. Cardamom is close to $15 a jar and I can't bring myself to buy it. I also used vanilla extract in place of the vanilla bean which was nearly $20 for a jar with 2 beans inside.
Danish Dough:
1 tablespoon dry active yeast
1/2 cup whole milk
1/3 cup sugar zest of 1 orange, finely grated
3/4 teaspoon cardamom
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 vanilla bean split and scraped
2 large eggs
1/4 cup orange juice, freshly squeezed
3 1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
Butter block: 1 cup cold, unsalted butter mixed with 1/4 cup flour
Combine yeast and milk in a large mixing bowl that has been fitted with a mixing attachment. Mix on low speed and slowly add sugar, orange zest, cardamom, vanilla extract, vanilla bean seeds, eggs, and orange juice. Once ingredients are mixed thoroughly, remove the mixing attachment and install the dough hook to the mixer. Sift salt and flour together, and add to wet ingredients 1 cup at a time, increasing speed to medium until thoroughly mixed and dough is smooth. You may need to add more flour if the pastry dough sticks to the sides of the bowl. Add flour, a little at a time, until the dough clings to the dough hook. Transfer dough to a lightly floured baking sheet, cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Butter block: Mix butter and flour on medium speed for about 1 minute. Scrape the sides of the bowl and mix for another minute or until smooth. Set aside, allowing mixture to almost reach room temperature.
Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll dough into a rectangle about 18x13 inches, 1/4 inch thick. If the dough is sticky, dust it with flour. Spread the butter block evenly over the center and right third of the dough. Fold the left (unbuttered) third onto the center and the right third on top. This marks the first of four "turns." Return the dough to the baking sheet, cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Put dough on a lightly floured surface, with the open ends to your right and left (like a 8.5x11 piece of paper turned horizontally). Roll the dough into another 18x13 inch rectangle. Fold the left third over the center, and the right on top. Keep in mind the entire butter block was used in the first turn, so no butter will be added for the remaining turns. Return the dough to the baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate 30 minutes. This completes the second turn.
Continue rolling out, folding, refrigerating until you have completed 4 turns. After the final turn, refrigerate the dough at least 5 hours, overnight if possible. After the final refrigeration, the Danish dough is ready. Remember you have enough for 2 braids, so you can either use both now, or use one and freeze the other.
Filling (for 2 pastries):
3 cups strawberry freezer jam 2 large egg whites, beaten for egg wash
Line a baking sheet with parchment or waxed paper. Roll the Danish dough into a 15x20 inch rectangle, 1/4 inch thick. If the dough seems to shrink back when rolled, let it rest for a few minutes and try again. The closer the dough is to room temperature, the less elastic it will be. Place the dough on the baking sheet. Using a pastry wheel or a knife, cut the dough on one of the long edges in parallel 1 inch wide, 5 inch long strips. Repeat on the other side, making sure to align strips with each other. Spoon the strawberry filling down the center of the dough.
Starting with the bottom, fold the center pieces of dough over the filling. Now fold the cut strips of dough over the filling, right over left in a braided fashion. Trim and extra dough and tuck the edges underneath. Whisk the egg and brush lightly on top of pastry. Sray cooking oil onto a piece of plastic wrap and use it to cover the pastry.
Proof at room temperature for about 2 hours, or until doubled in volume. Position an oven rack in the center of the oven, and preheat to 400 degrees. Bake 10 minutes, then turn the baking sheet 180 degrees so the pastry is evenly baked. Lower the temperature to 350 degrees and bake for 15-20 minutes more. Drizzle the top of the pastry with glaze and serve warm or at room temperature. Enjoy!
Orange Vanilla Glaze (for 2 pastries):
1 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons milk or orange juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract zest of 1 orange, finely chopped
Mix all ingredients in a mixing bowl until smooth.
Friday, October 2, 2009
Banana Bread
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Beef Pulkogi (Korean Barbecued Beef)
Taco Salad
On to the recipe. I'm not a fan of taco seasoning. At all. So I didn't use any to season the ground beef. Instead, I sauteed some onion, Anaheim pepper and garlic in a little olive oil and added it along with some salt, pepper and cilatro to the ground beef. It had a nice flavor; could have used a little chili powder and a dash of cumin, but all in all the meat was good. The ingredients and directions are below. Enjoy!
1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 white onion, diced
1 Anaheim pepper, diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 pound ground beef (I used extra lean and there was nothing to drain)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon cilantro, chopped
1 can black beans, drained
1 head romaine lettuce, shredded
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1 avocado, chopped
1 cucumber, sliced
Shredded cheddar cheese
Lime wedges
Tortilla chips
*Salad dressing--I used tomatillo ranch, recipe below
Meat and beans preparation: Pour olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and pepper and saute several minutes, or until onion is translucent. Add crushed garlic and stir constantly for 60 second. Add ground beef, salt and pepper and cook until brown. Taste and reseason meat if needed. Add cilantro, stir, turn heat to low, and cover until serving. Cook beans according to package directions and keep warm until serving.
Salad preparation: Toss salad ingredients together in a large salad bowl. I like to shred lettuce into the bowl and put the other vegetables on top, tossing very lightly once everything is added. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until serving.
Tortilla chip preparation: I made my own chips, but packged tortilla chips are just as good. If you want to make your own chips read on, otherwise skip to the salad dressing recipe below.
Move one oven rack to top position and turn broiler on high. Spray a cooking sheet with nonstick cooking spray. I put corn tortillas on a cutting board and used a sharp knife to cut them into strips approximately 1 inch wide and 2-3 inches long; a pizza cutter would work well for this, too. Place the tortilla strips on the baking sheet and spray them lightly with cooking spray. Salt the tortilla strips if desired and put the baking sheet under the broiler. Broil for 5-7 minutes and then turn them. Cook for an additional 5-7 minutes or until golden brown and crisp.
*Tomatillo Ranch Salad Dressing
1 jalepeno (remove seeds for milder dressing)
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tomatillo, chopped
1 handful cilantro
Juice of 1 lime
1 cup milk
1 package ranch dressing powder (I used Hidden Valley)
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
Put all but the last two ingredients in the blender and mix until pureed. Whisk in mayonnaise and sour cream. Chill until ready to serve. Dressing lasts up to one week covered in the refrigerator.
To serve: Layer tortilla chips, ground beef, black beans, shredded cheese, and salad on a plate. Drizzle with dressing and garnish with lime wedges, cilantro, and a few more chips.