Daring Bakers: Chocolate Eclairs

This is my first month participating with the Daring Bakers. When I first looked at the recipe posted for the month, I was feeling a little overwhelmed and wondered what I got myself in to. I have never made eclairs before and frankly thought they were something that would be WAY too difficult to attempt making on my own. This recipe proved me wrong! Other than the eclair itself being a little flat, I was happy with the overall result. I chose to fill mine with chocolate pastry cream (which I felt resembled chocolate pudding...not sure if was suppose to turn out like that, but it was tasty!). I topped it with the chocolate glaze from the given recipe minus the chocolate sauce addition. I was feeling a little pressed for time and didn't really know what the chocolate sauce was going to do for the glaze itself, so I just left it out and added a teaspoon of sugar to the chocolate glaze. I'm excited to participate in future recipes as it seems they will take me out of my "comfort" zone! The recipe is below...don't be intimidated by the length of the recipe...I had to break it down into manageable steps! Thanks to Tony and Meeta for this month's recipe selection!

One of my taste testers, Owen!

Pierre Hermé’s Chocolate Éclairs
Recipe from Chocolate Desserts by Pierre Hermé makes 20-24 Éclairs)

Cream Puff Dough (see below for recipe)
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Divide the oven into thirds by positioning the racks in the upper and lower half of the oven. Line two baking sheets with waxed or parchment paper.
Fill a large pastry bag fitted with a 2/3 (2cm) plain tip nozzle with the warm cream puff dough. Pipe the dough onto the baking sheets in long, 4 to 41/2 inches (about 11 cm) chubby fingers. Leave about 2 inches (5 cm) space in between each dough strip to allow them room to puff. The dough should give you enough to pipe 20-24 éclairs.
Slide both the baking sheets into the oven and bake for 7 minutes. After the 7 minutes, slip the handle of a wooden spoon into the door to keep in ajar. When the éclairs have been in the oven for a total of 12 minutes, rotate the sheets top to bottom and front to back. Continue baking for a further 8 minutes or until the éclairs are puffed, golden and firm. The total baking time should be approximately 20 minutes.
Notes:
The éclairs can be kept in a cool, dry place for several hours before filling.
Assembling the éclairs:
Chocolate glaze (see below for recipe)
Chocolate pastry cream (see below for recipe)
Slice the éclairs horizontally, using a serrated knife and a gently sawing motion. Set aside the bottoms and place the tops on a rack over a piece of parchment paper.
The glaze should be barely warm to the touch (between 95 – 104 degrees F or 35 – 40 degrees C, as measured on an instant read thermometer). Spread the glaze over the tops of the éclairs using a metal icing spatula. Allow the tops to set and in the meantime fill the bottoms with the pastry cream.
Pipe or spoon the pastry cream into the bottoms of the éclairs. Make sure you fill the bottoms with enough cream to mound above the pastry. Place the glazed tops onto the pastry cream and wriggle gently to settle them.
Notes:
If you have chilled your chocolate glaze, reheat by placing it in a bowl over simmering water, stirring it gently with a wooden spoon. Do not stir too vigorously as you do not want to create bubbles.
The éclairs should be served as soon as they have been filled.

Cream Puff Dough (makes 20-24 Éclairs)
½ cup (125g) whole milk
½ cup (125g) water
1 stick (4 ounces; 115g) unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces
¼ teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup (140g) all-purpose flour
5 large eggs, at room temperature
In a heavy bottomed medium saucepan, bring the milk, water, butter, sugar and salt to the boil.
Once the mixture is at a rolling boil, add all of the flour at once, reduce the heat to medium and start to stir the mixture vigorously with a wooden spoon. The dough comes together very quickly. Do not worry if a slight crust forms at the bottom of the pan, it’s supposed to. You need to carry on stirring for a further 2-3 minutes to dry the dough. After this time the dough will be very soft and smooth.
Transfer the dough into a bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or using your handmixer or if you still have the energy, continue by hand. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each egg has been added to incorporate it into the dough. You will notice that after you have added the first egg, the dough will separate, once again do not worry. As you keep working the dough, it will come back all together again by the time you have added the third egg. In the end the dough should be thick and shiny and when lifted it should fall back into the bowl in a ribbon. The dough should be still warm. It is now ready to be used for the éclairs as directed above.
Notes:
Once the dough is made you need to shape it immediately.
You can pipe the dough and the freeze it. Simply pipe the dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets and slide the sheets into the freezer. Once the dough is completely frozen, transfer the piped shapes into freezer bags. They can be kept in the freezer for up to a month.

Chocolate Pastry Cream
2 cups (500g) whole milk
4 large egg yolks
6 tbsp (75g) sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch, sifted
7 oz (200g) bittersweet chocolate, preferably Valrhona Guanaja, melted
2½ tbsp (1¼ oz: 40g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
In a small saucepan, bring the milk to a boil. In the meantime, combine the yolks, sugar and cornstarch together and whisk in a heavy‐bottomed saucepan.
Once the milk has reached a boil, temper the yolks by whisking a couple spoonfuls of the hot milk into the yolk mixture.Continue whisking and slowly pour the rest of the milk into the tempered yolk mixture.
Strain the mixture back into the saucepan to remove any egg that may have scrambled. Place the pan over medium heat and whisk vigorously (without stop) until the mixture returns to a boil. Keep whisking vigorously for 1 to 2 more minutes (still over medium heat).Stir in the melted chocolate and then remove the pan from the heat.
Scrape the pastry cream into a small bowl and set it in an ice‐water bath to stop the cooking process. Make sure to continue stirring the mixture at this point so that it remains smooth.
Once the cream has reached a temperature of 140 F remove from the ice‐water bath and stir in the butter in three or four installments. Return the cream to the ice‐water bath to continue cooling, stirring occasionally, until it has completely cooled. The cream is now ready to use or store in the fridge.
Notes:
The pastry cream can be made 2‐3 days in advance and stored in the refrigerator.
In order to avoid a skin forming on the pastry cream, cover with plastic wrap pressed onto the cream.
Tempering the eggs raises the temperature of the eggs slowly so that they do not scramble.

Chocolate Glaze (makes 1 cup or 300g)
1/3 cup (80g) heavy cream
3½ oz (100g) bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
4 tsp (20 g) unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces, at room temperature
7 tbsp (110 g) Chocolate Sauce (recipe below), warm or at room temperature
In a small saucepan, bring the heavy cream to a boil. Remove from the heat and slowly begin to add the chocolate, stirring with a wooden spoon or spatula.
Stirring gently, stir in the butter, piece by piece followed by the chocolate sauce.
Notes:
If the chocolate glaze is too cool (i.e. not liquid enough) you may heat it briefly in the microwave or over a double boiler. A double boiler is basically a bowl sitting over (not touching) simmering water.
It is best to glaze the eclairs after the glaze is made, but if you are pressed for time, you can make the glaze a couple days ahead of time, store it in the fridge and bring it up to the proper temperature (95 to 104 F) when ready to glaze.

Chocolate Sauce (makes 1½ cups or 525 g)
4½ oz (130 g) bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 cup (250 g) water
½ cup (125 g) crème fraîche, or heavy cream
1/3 cup (70 g) sugar
Place all the ingredients into a heavy‐bottomed saucepan and bring to a boil, making sure to stir constantly. Then reduce the heat to low and continue stirring with a wooden spoon until the sauce thickens.
It may take 10‐15 minutes for the sauce to thicken, but you will know when it is done when it coats the back of your spoon.
Notes:
You can make this sauce ahead of time and store it in the refrigerator for two weeks. Reheat the sauce in a microwave oven or a double boiler before using.
This sauce is also great for cakes, ice-cream and tarts.

Barefoot Bloggers: Panzanella and Lemon (Butterflied) Chicken

I would highly recommend that you try these recipes! I made them both for dinner one evening this last weekend and they are wonderful! My husband didn't care for the panzanella salad only because he doesn't like the vegetables included...although he did pick out some of the bread pieces. I on the other hand loved it! I was a little leery at first as I've never had a "bread" salad. I also don't like soggy bread, but the nice thing was, once I mixed the bread in and served it up, the bread was still crunchy from being toasted! I was a little intimidated to use a whole chicken for the lemon chicken and attempt to butterfly it, so instead I substituted chicken breasts which is more our serving size anyway. I couldn't really taste the rosemary on my chicken, but the lemon flavor was great. The chicken was moist and had a nice refreshing taste. I will definitely make these recipes again!



Panzanella (from Barefoot Contessa Parties!)
3 tablespoons good olive oil
1 small French bread or boule, cut into 1-inch cubes (6 cups)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 large, ripe tomatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and sliced 1/2-inch thick
1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
1/2 red onion, cut in 1/2 and thinly sliced
20 large basil leaves, coarsely chopped
3 tablespoons capers, drained

For the vinaigrette: 1 teaspoon finely minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons Champagne vinegar
1/2 cup good olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a large saute pan. Add the bread and salt; cook over low to medium heat, tossing frequently, for 10 minutes, or until nicely browned. Add more oil as needed.
For the vinaigrette, whisk all the ingredients together. In a large bowl, mix the tomatoes, cucumber, red pepper, yellow pepper, red onion, basil, and capers. Add the bread cubes and toss with the vinaigrette. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Serve, or allow the salad to sit for about half an hour for the flavors to blend.



Butterflied Chicken (Barefoot Contessa)
1/4 cup chopped fresh rosemary leaves, plus 2 sprigs
3 garlic cloves, chopped 1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
Good olive oil
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 roasting chickens (2 1/2 to 3 pounds each), deboned and butterflied
1/2 lemon, thinly sliced

Mix the chopped rosemary, garlic, lemon zest, lemon juice, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 2 teaspoons salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper together in a small bowl to make a paste.
Place the chickens on a sheet pan, skin side up, and loosen the skin from the meat with your fingers. Place 1/2 of the paste under the skin of each chicken. Rub any remaining paste on the outside and underside of the chickens. Turn the chicken skin side down and scatter the lemon slices and sprigs of rosemary over each chicken. Season with salt and pepper. Roll each chicken up, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Heat a grill with coals. Spread the coals out in 1 dense layer and brush the grill with oil. Unroll the chickens, place them on the grill and cook for 12 minutes on each side.

Cookie Carnival: Hazelnut Biscotti

The recipe chosen for this month comes from 'The Bakehouse' in Bloomington, Indiana! I have to admit, I have never been to this establishment, but I may have to look it up next time I visit my alma mater, Indiana Univeristy. This recipe makes A LOT of biscotti! I thought about halving it, but then figured I would just make the whole batch and freeze some for a later date. As it's getting cooler here, I can enjoy it over the next couple of months with my hot chocolate and chai tea! The dough was fairly easy to work with, although mine spread in the oven a little more than I feel it should have. I used 3 egg whites in place of the 3 large eggs, which may have had something to do with it? I never think of biscotti as being very pretty, but it sure tastes good with my chai!



CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT BISCOTTI
1 1/2 cups hazelnuts, toasted, husked
3 cups all purpose flour
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips


Preheat oven to 350°F. Line heavy large baking sheet with parchment paper. Grind 1/2 cup toasted hazelnuts in processor. Set aside. Whisk flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt in large bowl. Beat butter and sugar in another large bowl to blend. Add eggs and vanilla and almond extracts and beat until well blended. Beat in flour mixture. Mix in 1 cup whole toasted hazelnuts, chocolate chips and 1/2 cup ground hazelnuts. Divide dough into 2 equal pieces. Shape each piece on baking sheet into 2 1/2-inch-wide by 14-inch-long log. Place logs on prepared baking sheet, spacing 2 1/2 inches apart (logs will spread during baking). Bake until logs feel firm when tops are gently pressed, about 35 minutes. Cool logs on baking sheet 15 minutes. Maintain oven temperature. Using long wide spatula, transfer baked logs to cutting board. Using serrated knife, cut warm logs crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Arrange slices, cut side down, on 2 baking sheets. Bake biscotti until firm, about 15 minutes. Transfer to racks and cool completely. (Chocolate-Hazelnut Biscotti can be prepared ahead. Store in airtight container up to 4 days, or wrap in foil and freeze in resealable plastic bags up to 3 weeks.)

TWD: Chocolate-Banded Ice Cream Torte

I've been neglecting my blog for the past week as I've had lots of other things going on and haven't been cooking much other than the recipes that I needed to make for my various blogging groups. I feel like my freezer is full of cookies and now this Chocolate-Banded Ice Cream Torte. It was nice to have a recipe that included ice cream this week, as we need to take advantage of the last days of summer! This recipe was very easy to put together, although a bit time consuming just waiting for the layers to freeze (about 8 hours!!!). The half hour time for the second ganache layer wasn't long enough for mine and when I went to place the second layer of ice cream, my chocolate layer moved a bit. I halved the recipe and rather than using a springform pan, I used a medium loaf pan to create a rectangle. I'll just cut mine into slices rather than wedges. We have company coming this weekend, so mine will be in the freezer a bit longer waiting on their arrival. I did cut myself a small slice this morning just to see how the flavors worked out. I followed the exact recipe by using vanilla ice cream and adding raspberry puree. It tastes like a dark chocolate raspberry truffle!! If I ever get around to making this again, I may experiment with various ice cream flavors....mint chocolate chip would be wonderful (but that is my favorite ice cream, so of course I would think it would be great!).

Thanks to Amy at Food, Family, and Fun for the great pick this week!

TWD: Granola Grabbers

What a great pick this week by Michelle at Bad Girl Baking as this cookie would be a perfect treat for the kids heading back to school. I don't have any of those in my house yet, but this cookie was so good they won't be sitting around here for long! I was excited that these turned out for me after a disappointing attempt last week. I typically don't care for fruit in my cookies, but I think the addition of coconut and a variety of nuts really overshadowed the raisins in these cookies so you almost didn't know they were there. I noticed some other TWD bakers used chocolate and peanut butter chips in place of the raisins, an idea I will need to remember for next time!

Hamburgers with Double Cheddar Cheese....

Grilled Vidalia Onions, and Horseradish Mustard....is what we had for dinner last night. The rain cleared and it ended up being a nice evening so we took advantage of the break in weather and grilled out. My husband has a wonderful hamburger recipe that we enjoy but it's always fun to try some new recipes. I'm still working my way through Bobby Flay's Boy Meets Grill Cookbook, and this is the final "real" food recipe that I wanted to try. The other three remaining on my "make" list are desserts....summer desserts at that, which may need to wait until next year as I'm itching to make some apple crisp and nice Fall sweets. I do have to say the actual hamburger in this recipe was nothing spectacular, the toppings and horseradish mustard are what added to the flavor. That being said, I am only posting the horseradish mustard recipe (and it's real tough....) as I feel this was the only aspect of the whole dish that was different than anything else you may have already tried yourself. Horseradish Mustard
1 cup dijon mustard
2 Tbls finely grated fresh horseradish, or prepared horseradish, drained


Mix the mustard and horseradish together in a small bowl. May be refrigerated up to 1 week; serve at room temperature. Makes 1 cup; enough for 12 hamburgers.

Sign of Fall

The past couple of days have felt like Fall in Cheyenne....rainy and cold. Growing up one of my favorite seasons was Spring, probably because it meant I was getting ready to finish up another school year and I could enjoy the lazy days of Summer. As I've grown older I have begun to appreciate and really enjoy Fall -- the crisp cool air, watching the leaves change color, the excitement of college football, and wearing jeans and sweatshirts! One thing that marks the beginning of Fall in my household is when my husband asks me to pull out his family's pretzel recipe. What a treat it was today when he asked for the recipe this afternoon! Home made pretzels make the house smell wonderful and this time of year we use the oven to help add a little heat in the house (rather than turning on the furnace in August!). The pretzel baker asked that I not post the recipe (not that it's a huge secret) but it's one his family has always used and since I have a few of those myself, I have to respect his wishes. I will leave you with a picture of one thing that marks Fall for us.

And just because I found this so funny, I also had to post my husband's new and inventive "cup holder"! Yes, a beer always accompanies the pretzels.