TWD: (Black) Amaretti & Palets de Dames

Quite obviously, I forgot to post some recipes. I made not all the things scheduled, but some as the Raisin-Swirl Bread... But here we go again. When I got the new book, I was immeadiately very much in the mood for baking! I have to say I did not get warm with Baking with Julia, don't know why exactly. But I have a great feeling for Dorie's new book and I am very much looking forward to the things to come!

But with two books and two "baking clubs" I got lost with when is which recipe due. So I have to post both, the Amaretti from this week and the Palets de Dames from last week (I thought it was the other way round... sorry).

I like anything almond and marzipan. Unfortunately, it is impossible to find american-style almond paste in Austria. I got some advice and help from fellow bakers - but I was too lazy for doing my own paste. So I went with marzipan even though I knew that the almond-sugar-ratio ist different than in almond paste and others reported dissapointing results with marzipan.

Don't be concerned by the colour - I had leftovers of black marzipan :-)

To make it short: It did not relly work out. The cookies turned out very flat and have more the taste and concistence of almond-caramel. I didn't bring them to work, as I am really not happy with the result. But they are good enough to be used for the anual Amnesty Cookies. Or maybe I cut them in little pieces and use them in brownies or chocolate cakes. I can imagine they will give a great crispy taste in them.

I am sure, if you have almond paste at hand (and if you like almond-taste) this recipe will be great. So: Have a look what it should look like, and for the recipe, see the book by Dorie Greenspan at p. 320

Completely different results for the Palets de Dames. Very easy in the making, great in taste and not too bad looking. I used yellow glazing I had left and some coloured sugar for decorating. The taste is easy and sublime at the same time and that's the treats I like most!

Here the link to the other great turnouts: http://tuesdayswithdorie.wordpress.com/2014/11/11/bcm-lyl-palets-de-dames/.
For the recipe, have a look at the new book by Dorie Greenspan, on pp. 272.

TWD: Honey Almond Fig Tart

I can't believe the Honey Almond Fig Tart took so long to be chosen. If I wouldn't be so timid when it comes to tart-shell-baking, I sure would have picked this recipe when it was my turn some weeks ago! Finally, Kayte of Grandma’s Kitchen Table opted for it. You can find the recipe on her blog or in Dorie's book on page 373.

Last week I made some more tart dough and put it in the freezer. Therefore I only had to make the cream this week, which comes together very quick and easy.
Figs and almonds are a wonderful combo, I think, and honey makes a perfect third part in this.

And I was not dissapointed. This is for sure one of the greatest tasting tarts I ever made. And whenever I am brave enough to try masterin tart dough, I will re-bake it!

I couldn't find any fresh figs but the florida-version presented in the "playing around"-option was not that appealing for me. So I used dried (but soft) figs and it worked out fine (even though I can imagine that fresh figs would be even more intriguing).

(Don't be misled by the pictures - the top was very dark brown, indeed, but not burnt at all!)

TWD: Chocolate Biscotti

 Boy, this was a failure! I have no idea what went wrong. Maybe I had just a bad-baking-day. Guess that happens to the best of us...

The dough went together very easily. I used dried sourcherries, because the chocolate-cherry-combo did sound extremely appealing to me

The baking time was far too long for my dough. No idea what went wrong. So I ended up with almost burnt logs, that were still so soft in the middle, that one of them broke up. How could that happen? Either I did bake it too long (would be an explanation for the almost black surface) or too short (what would be an explanation for the softness in the middle) - but both at a time?

Then I tried to cut them, what was impossible for about 2/3 of the dough.

Putting them back in the oven, for consolidation, it was clear that I had to shorten the baking time. Still, even 5 min. was too long.

So I ended up with about 6 or 7 acceptable biscotti, some "when I am generous you may call them mini-biscotti"-pieces and a whole lot of crumbs.Well, let's store them and make some cookie-icecream soon!

Nevertheless: The crumbs I tested did taste great. Biscotti dough with chocolate, almonds and dried cherries - a wonderful and excellent flavour combination. So don't blame the cookies for my lack af baking-abilities!

Sorry I can't give you better pictures for these (Cherry) Chocolate Biscotti, chosen for this week's TWD by Jacque of Daisy Lane Cakes. On her page you will not only find the recipe, but far better pictures!
(for the recipe you can also open Dorie's book on page 144)

TWD: Toasted Almond Scones

Oh, how I love, love, love Scones! In Vienna you can buy Scones maybe at Starbucks, but nowhere else. Not in any bakery, not in any other coffeeshop. Just like biscuits, they are not common round here. So I know them more from TWD and my few visits in the US so far. But I ADORE them, every single one. Really. I never met a scone or biscuit I didn't like :o]

So, many thanks to Mike of Living Out West who chose Toasted Almond Scones for this week's TWD. You can find the recipe on this page or in Dorie's book on pages 28 and 29.

I first made them about one year ago because during Lenten Season I was looking for recipes in Dorie's book where you could omit the sugar and this was one of them, and I think that these were definitely the best scones I made so far! I liked them last year, and I love them the now the second time I made them.

Generally, breakfast treats are some of my favourite bakings. Some people are good when it comes to chocolate loaded torte, others master tartes like nobody else. And I guess I am at my best when it comes to scones, biscuits and everything brioche (and icecream, funnily).

The Toasted Almond Scones are easily made. The most time consuming part is toasting the almonds... you can bake them before breakfast on a Sunday morning and enjoy them while they are still warm. Is there a better start for a Sunday ?

TWD: Crunchy and Custardy Peach Tart

I was on the road almost the whole day because I had to accompany my boss to a day at a summer think-tank in the Austrian mountains. It was an exciting and interesting day, but also an exhausting one. We have been on the road for 9 hours - 4 and a half each way.

Nevertheless, and also against all the work I had to to on the weekend for preparing today's event, I made the Crunchy and Custardy Peach Tart, chosen by Rachel of sweet tarte (have a look at her page for the recipe, or flip through Dorie's book to pages 346 and 347. and left it at the office at 6:30 am, before we left from there. I am a good colleague. :o]

This tart was great, wonderful, extremely tasty! I did not arrive to get a perfect crust, but it turned out the best crust I ever made (which is not hard...). Anayways, I can live with the result, and the tart itself is almost perfect.

Funnily, the fruits didn't taste like peaches, but more like apples. Maybe I left them too long in the boiling water during blanching, maybe I cooked them too long in the oven. But who cares as long as the result tastes as perfect as it did?

Did I mention I love Streusel? Well - I do!!

TWD: Swedish Visiting Cake

When I was at university I took a swedish class for a year. I was interested in the language because I generally think of Sweden as a very interesting country. I mostly like how things are run there, and always thought that we can learn a lot from them. I like that politicians and top-managers are never seen as irreplaceable and VIPs. You can bump into them on Friday evening when they are at the movies with their friends and family. (Unfortunately, this also leeds to unwanted consequences, as things like this or that would not be possible in most other countries, due to big security entourages.)  like their way dealing with female participation in the workforce and the involvement of fathers in child-raising and homework-duties. And I am convinced that their open-mindness towards income and wealth transparency is a role-model.

And I think that it sounds funny when Swedish people speak. :o]

So I learned Swedish, but by chance, after the summer-holidays that year I went to Strasbourg, France, for an exchange semester, that ultimately became an exchange year and the basis of my love of France (which was the complete opposite before - my mother's a french teacher. You can imagine all the rest about teenage rebellion against parents...).

But the topic here is Sweden. So, to make it short, I forgot all my Swedish (read: the little bit Swedish I lernt in this one year), and almost all I can say is "min mor är en kassörska", what means "my mother is a till girl" - what is not even true (I seriously have  no idea why I did remind that!), and the most simple things like hello, good bye and thanks.

alternative TWD: Toasted Almond Scones

(Last weekend without the actual TWD-recipe. Im am so much looking forward to baking along with the others again! I love scones and biscuits and savory treats. But there comes the day when you really have had enough of it. Next Weekend it's Easter and I am "allowed" to eat sweets again. I thought about doin the Coconut Tea Cake, chosen by Carmen of  Carmen Cooksand I was almost ready to go for it. I even started shredding and toasting the coco. Because I started to feel like betraying. I was so happy when I finally made it to the blogroll, and for the last weeks I did just not participate. We have  a new "tool", the "Leave your link"-list, which is actually a pretty good idea by Clara from I heart food4thought. And I feel bad about not beeing able to leave my weekly link there. But when I made the Scones this morning I realised I will never, never ever be able to not taste what I made and lick off the spoons. No way. So I better stay away from the TWD-selection for this final week, even if it makes be feel bad. But breaking the Lenten promise in the very last week would make me feel even worse.)

This is it. This is the last recipe I found in Dorie's book where leaving out the sugar shouldn't make a big difference. I like almost all kinds of nuts (hazelnuts are not my favourite), so scones with a lot of almond taste are perfect for my last Lenten week.
 I exchanged the cream for lactose free yoghurt and the whole milk for soy-rice-milk, and it was fine. I took a tad less baking powder, and the scones did not spread a lot - maybe they would have otherwise. As usual, baking time was far less for my oven (about 12 mins for the first, and 10 mins for the second batch).

Funnily, I forgot to toast the almond slices. And that's funny, because I did not find out before I was looking up the accurate name of the scones to put it in this blog-entry :o] So, I guess it would have put the almond taste even more forward, but obviously it didn't matter too much.

I will definitely, definitely do them again, even if I look at all the recipes I first have to catch up with. But from all the Scones/Biscuit-recipes I made recently (Basic Biscuits, Sweet Potato Biscuits, Apple Cheddar Scones), this is definitely the one I like most and up to now my favourite scones recipe!

(In the bowl they look flatter as they had been. The bowl, by the way, is a bol, a mega-cup without handle for Café au lait, very common in France - and at my house :o] My friend J. made it. She is an awesome comic drawer. Well, not only comics, but comics are definitely her specialisation!)