Tuesdays With Dorie - Split Level Pudding

I work 5 days a week at Target, usually evening, so when I have a day off, I'm usually not home. I am cheating this week because I made the split-level pudding last year although I don't think the ganache layer settled properly. Probably because I was too impatient or something. I would have loved to make this again, but I'm just trying to get my life together right now. I'm going to hopefully start zumba classes again to get my motivation back.




Thanks Garrett of Flavor of Vanilla for this week's pick! I know I didn't actually make it with you this week, but the pudding is still yummy.

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Pomegranate Moosey

Almost two months ago, I received a case of pomegranate juice from POM Wonderful. I did a review of the juice itself but didn't get a chance to bake with it. Easter weekend I decided to make Pomegranate and White Chocolate Mousse, found on Fotocuisine's blog. As I said in my review, you either love or hate pomegranate juice, no in-betweens. However, the sweetness of the white chocolate mousse makes the pomegranate layer more...bearable? for non-pomegranate people. For example, my brother thought the juice itself tasted like cough syrup. When I offered him the mousse, he ate it no complaints. I think he doesn't like the juice itself because there is no added sugar or preservatives.

I tried taking pictures, but I was in a hurry and the lighting wasn't too great in my kitchen. Fotocuisine has much better pictures plus step-by-step instructions complemented with pictures. You could probably sub any type of chocolate for white. I love dark chocolate, so I might try that next time.

One problem I had with the recipe is the chilling of the gelatin. Once the pomegranate gelatin mix is heated, you have to let it chill in an ice bath. However, if it chills too long, you will have pomegranate jello. You want to take the gelatin off the ice when it thickens into a syrup. I kept checking it every few minutes, but it didn't thicken. As soon as I got distracted, it thickened too much. I tried my best to whisk the hell out of it, but my mousse was left with little jello chunks. It didn't affect the flavor, just wasn't as smooth as intended.

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Four Star Chocolate Bread Pudding

This week's recipe was Dorie's Four Star Chocolate Bread Pudding. I made this for Easter dessert a few weekends ago. Unfortunately, I had to leave for school that evening, so I cut the dessert while it was still hot instead of letting it cool. I ate a small spoonful, but since I was full, I wrapped it in foil and took it to school. Whenever I ate it a few days later, there was oil "leaking" from the bottom. Not sure if that was the recipe or the fact I wrapped it while it was still hot.




I can't really give my opinion since a cooled bread pudding was probably more set and easier to cut than scooping out still hot pudding. It tasted good, I know that much.




I've also been busy wrapping up my final semester (graduation in less than two weeks - eek!), so I didn't read the problems and questions thread on TwD. Some people did use donuts and cinnamon rolls instead of stale bread. Very interesting! For the recipe, check out pages 410-411 of Baking: From My Home To Yours or at Upper East Side Chronicle by Lauren.

Since I am graduating on May 2, anyone who works in video production, please hire me? I'll bake lots of goodies for you! Ok thanks! haha I hope I don't have to drop out of TwD for not being able to afford ingredients this summer...

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A Nice, Fluffy Dessert

I had leftover whipping cream from making pie, so I had to find a recipe that didn't leave me with extra egg whites. However, it did leave me with lots of chocolate mousse. One thing I don't like about this recipe is after you beat the cream, you beat the egg whites. You have to make sure to wash the beaters and make sure they are 100% dry. Otherwise, the eggs won't form soft peaks. I would say do the egg whites first, but then they would deflate by the time you finish the cream. Or at least that's my theory.

I think I need this to get me through this week. The week before finals is always killer for me because my professors love making projects due this week instead of during finals week. Why? Don't know. It's been like that all four years. And I have to clean out my freezer before winter break. I have salmon, swordfish, beef, ground beef, and chicken plus frozen vegetables and Hot Pockets. Not to mention leftovers from Thanksgiving. Usually, I'm low on food. This week I have too much to eat! haha

Chocolate Mousse




7 oz dark chocolate
5 Tbsp butter
4 eggs, separated
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 Tbsp powdered sugar

1. Melt chocolate and butter together until smooth. Add one egg yolk at a time, beating until well combined. Set aside.

2. Whip cream until soft peaks form. Set aside.

3. Whip egg whites until soft peaks form. Add sugar; whip until mixture is thick and glossy (but still soft peaks).

4. Gently fold cream into chocolate mixture. Then fold in egg whites. Refrigerate at least three hours before serving.

Serves 6-8.

Source: Donna Hay's Modern Classics Book 2, 2003 p. 106

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Tuesdays With Dorie - Chocolate Pudding

I have been such a slacker this summer. You would think with no classes or school activities, I would have more time to blog. Oh, I've found plenty of time to bake and cook. I just never get in the mood to actually go online and blog about them. Actually, it has to deal more with my laptop overheating and shutting down without warning rather than laziness. The sad part is I can't open my laptop base (the bezel for you techies) to get to my fan. I can get it 75% open, but not enough to reach the fan. I'm tempted just to shell out the $35 and get it cleaned by professionals. Maybe they can teach me how to open the bezel.

I should have a little more free time now that my internship is finished. I was at Fox 53 with their commercial production department. Just as the name states, clients contact them and they shoot :30 and/or :60 commercials. Right now, not only are they doing commercials, they are working on a huge, 3-hour program for The Children's Institute. It is one of the best schools for children with special needs in the country. The place, especially the kids, made me smile every time we went there.

Because of my unpaid internship, I have been working less at my paid job. What does this have to do with me slacking with Tuesdays With Dorie? Simple - my restricted budget. Most of the recipes picked involved me buying ingredients. Although I would be up for buying fresh produce or whatever, I had to cut back on spending somewhere this summer. Once I start getting more hours at my paid job, I should hopefully be back more often. I'm surprised I haven't been kicked out of the group yet. Whenever I found out today's recipe was chocolate pudding, I ran out and bought whole milk. A 16 oz. container was only 73 cents. I'm not sure if skim milk could be substituted because the fat content may contribute to the creaminess and thickness of the pudding, so if anybody out there used skim milk and was successful, please let me know. Also, I used semi-sweet chocolate chips instead of bittersweet chocolate. If you don't have a food processor, use a blender. Just be careful when pouring the hot milk mixture in because it may overflow.

One thing I noticed while reading the instructions was it is almost the same instructions as the Split-Level Pudding. In fact, the only part that was different is the chocolate ganache part.

Mine took about 3 hours to set rather than the 4 hours Dorie suggests. When serving, use pretty coffee mugs or ramekins. Top with some whipped cream and chocolate shavings (which I didn't have). I guarantee that they taste better than how my picture looks simply because my batteries were dying, and I had to take a quick pic!


Chocolate Pudding




2 1/4 cups whole milk
6 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
3 Tbsp cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg
2 egg yolks
5 oz. bittersweet chocolate, melted and still warm
2 Tbsp butter, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract

1. Bring 2 cups of whole milk and 3 Tbsp sugar to a boil in a medium saucepan. In a blender or food processor, blend 3 Tbsp sugar and egg yolks for 1 minute. Add remaining 1/4 cup milk and pulse just to mix. Then add cornstarch, cocoa, and salt and pulse a few more times.

2. While the machine is still running, very slowly add hot milk mixture. Process for a few seconds more, then pour everything back into the saucepan. Whisk without stopping over medium heat until the pudding thickens and some bubbles burble and pop on the surface. Do not let it boil completely, so if it hasn't thickened yet, feel free to turn down the heat.

3. Scrape the pudding back into the machine (avoid any scorched spots) and pulse a few more times. Add butter, chocolate, and vanilla and pulse until evenly blended.

5. Pour the pudding evenly into four 6-oz or six 4-oz ramekins/cups. Press a piece of plastic wrap over each surface to prevent a milk skin from forming. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

Source: Baking: From My Home To Yours, 2006 p. 383

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Can't Decide? Have Both!

Everyone has made this tough decision at some point - chocolate or vanilla? Why not have both? Dorie did just that with her Split-Level Pudding. The bottom layer is chocolate ganache while the top layer is vanilla pudding. I enjoyed this dessert because you can serve the pudding in individual dishes and not worry about sharing or cutting into equal portions. My parents received these mugs as a wedding gift, and I absolutely adore them. We hardly use them because we own a ton of coffee mugs (95% of them are mine: cute and/or witty). Plus Dorie's recipe calls for six ramekins and I only have four.

Split-Level Pudding




Chocolate Layer
2 oz bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1/3 cup heavy cream

Vanilla Layer
2 1/4 cups whole milk
6 Tbsp sugar
3 Tbsp cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt
3 egg yolks
2 Tbsp butter, room temperature
2 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1. Chocolate Layer: Put chocolate in heat-resistant bowl. Bring heavy cream to a boil in a saucepan. Pour over the chocolate and let sit for 30 seconds. Gently stir to blend. Divide among 6 four-ounce ramekins/pudding cups.

2. Vanilla Layer: Bring 2 cups of whole milk and 3 Tbsp sugar to a boil in a medium saucepan. In a blender or food processor, blend 3 Tbsp sugar and egg yolks for 1 minute. Add remaining 1/4 cup milk and pulse just to mix. Then add cornstarch and salt and pulse a few more times.

3. While the machine is still running, very slowly add hot milk mixture. Process for a few seconds more, then pour everything back into the saucepan. Whisk without stopping over medium heat until the pudding thickens and some bubbles burble and pop on the surface. Do not let it boil completely, so if it hasn't thickened yet, feel free to turn down the heat.

4. Scrape the pudding back into the machine (avoid any scorched spots) and pulse a few more times. Add butter and vanilla and pulse until evenly blended.

5. Pour the pudding evenly over each chocolate layer in the ramekins/cups. Press a piece of plastic wrap over each surface. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

Source: Baking: From My Home To Yours, 2006 p. 384

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Life Is Full Of Lemons

I love my new ramekins. They are perfect for individual desserts, but there's never enough to go around. When I saw this recipe in my free trial issue of Taste of Home magazine, I had to try it. I made these back in March, but because of laptop problems, I haven't had access to the picture.

I apologize about the picture not looking very appetizing, but I wanted to get both the pudding and souffle layer. By cooking the ramekins in a hot water bath, the bottom remains liquidy. It's hard to tell when they are done because you can't see the bottom. I dug into one of them and saw that the bottom wasn't thick enough.

This dessert is very light and lemony.

Lemon Pudding Souffles




1 egg, separated
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup milk
1 Tbsp butter, melted
1 Tbsp flour
Dash salt
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp lemon zest

In a small mixing bowl, beat egg yolk until slightly thickened. Gradually add sugar, beating until thick and lemon-colored. Beat in milk, butter, flour, and salt. Stir in lemon juice and zest.

In a small mixing bowl, beat egg white until stiff peaks form, about 4 minutes. With a spatula, stir in a fourth of the egg whites into lemon mixture until no white streaks remain. Fold in remaining egg white until combined.

Divide between two 6-oz or four 4-oz ramekins. Place in an 8-inch baking dish. Add 1 inch of hot water to dish. Bake at 350F for 25-30 minutes (mine took 35 min) or until tops are golden brown. Serve immediately.

Makes two 6-oz or four 4-oz servings

Source: Taste of Home, Feb/Mar 2008 p. 59

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Bread Machine - More Than Just Bread

I made white bread again on Monday. I was gone all morning and early afternoon, so by the time I got home, it was close to dinnertime. My mom wanted bread, but there was no way it would be done in time for dinner. She said that was fine. We could eat it after dinner. Well, that was a bad idea because my dad made his Italian potato salad (made with oil and vinegar rather than mayonnaise - amazing!),so we all filled up on that. The loaf of bread was only half-eaten. Since fresh bread goes stale the next day, I decided to try something on my list: #53 bread pudding.

The first time I had bread pudding was in Ireland. About once a month, I stayed over my friend's house in Dublin. Her and her family were amazing to me. When her mom found out I never had bread pudding, she made some for me. It was the only the best bread pudding I've had. Now, this bread pudding probably doesn't compare to hers since this is my first time, but it was still delicious. I was a little skeptical to pair it with the lemon sauce the recipe called for, but surprisingly, they went well together. The lemon sauce made a lot, so below is the adjusted version (which still makes a lot). You can serve the leftover sauce on ice cream or cake. Maybe even pancakes or waffles.

Classic Raisin Bread Pudding



4 cups firm white bread, cubed
1 cup raisins
2 cups milk
2 Tbsp butter
2 eggs
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg

Lemon Sauce
1/4 cup sugar
1 Tbsp cornstarch or 2 Tbsp flour
1/2 cup water
1/2 tsp lemon zest
1 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice
2 Tbsp butter

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a one-quart baking dish. Combine bread and raisins; place in baking dish.

2. Heat milk and butter in a saucepan until butter has melted (do not boil). In a bowl, combine eggs, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add milk mixture to egg mixture, stirring constantly. Pour over bread mixture; let stand 5 minutes. Bake uncovered for 50-60 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

3. For sauce: combine sugar and cornstarch/flour in saucepan. Stir in water, zest, and juice. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until thickened. Remove from heat. Stir in butter until combined. Serve immediately on top of bread pudding.

Makes 4-6 servings.

Source: Gooseberry Patch Family Favorite Recipes with Sun-Maid Raisins and Dried Fruit, 2005 p.24

You can get a free copy of the Gooseberry Patch book from the Sun Maid website.

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A Giant Can of Pumpkin Goes a Long Way

When I was home for fall break, I found a 29 oz. can of pumpkin on sale for $1.50. That's a pretty good bargain for so much pumpkin. For the past two weeks I have been trying all those wonderful pumpkin recipes out there.

Before I get to the recipes, I want to thank Megan for doing the cookbook exchange with me.

Pumpkin Nut Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting




As a good friend of made said when eating this cupcake, "I'm going to marry this!" She requested a dozen of these as her Christmas present. Glad to know she's easy to shop for. I got lots of compliments on how I decorated, but the idea wasn't mine. But I guess if they don't see the original post and picture, then they'll never know. All I did was cut the recipe in half and added walnuts. I suggest if you cut the cupcake recipe in half, also cut the frosting recipe in half. I didn't and there is leftover frosting in the freezer.

Cupcakes
2 1/4 cups sifted flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 cup softened butter
1 1/3 cups sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup canned pumpkin
3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup chopped walnuts

Frosting
4 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
2 1/4 cups confectioners sugar, sifted

1. Sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt into a bowl.

2. In a second bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy; beat in eggs. Mix in the pumpkin. Stir in the dry ingredients alternately with the milk until the batter is smooth. Add in nuts.

3. Spoon batter into greased or paper-lined muffin pan cups. Bake at 375° for 25-30 minutes. Makes 24 cupcakes.

4. In a bowl, beat on medium speed the cream cheese and butter until creamy. With mixer on low speed, make 1/2 cup additions of sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Increase the speed of your mixer between each addition.

Source: Cupcakes: Bake Bake Bake; Frosting: Bake and Destroy


Pumpkin Oatmeal




Another oatmeal recipe, yay! This one is a healthier alternative when you crave pumpkin pie. The first time I made it, I had too much milk. The second time I made, I didn't have enough milk LOL Try to find a happy medium between 3/4 cup and 1/2 cup (for one bowl's worth).

1/2 cup quick oats
1/2 cup milk
1/8 cup canned pumpkin
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1/16 teaspoon nutmeg
1/16 teaspoon ginger
1/8 cup brown sugar

Microwave oats and milk for 2 minutes. Stir in pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and sugar until blended.

Source: Recipe Zaar


Pasta with Pumpkin Sauce



Another "what the hell are you making?!" recipe. That's what my one roommate said with disgust when I was in the kitchen. I was being daring and decided to eat pumpkin for dinner. Don't let the pumpkin fool you because this sauce was great! I used cream cheese instead of heavy cream and left out the red bell pepper because I didn't have any.

1/2 cup onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon butter
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup water
2 oz. cream cheese
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 cup uncooked pasta

1. In a skillet, saute onion and garlic in butter until softened. Stir in pumpkin, broth, water, cream cheese, and nutmeg. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.

2. While the sauce is simmering, bring a pot of water to a boil. Cook pasta until done.

3. Add pasta to sauce and cook over moderate heat, stirring and thinning with reserved water if needed, until pasta is well coated.

Source: Recipe Zaar


Pumpkin Pudding



It tastes better than it looks, I swear!! It tastes just like pumpkin pie without the pie crust. I really wished I had Cool Whip when I was eating it. I didn't make as much as the recipe called for because I had a small box of pudding and 5 oz. evaporated milk, so I used 1 cup pumpkin. If my picture doesn't make you crave it, check out the picture on Nestle's website.

1 pkg (5 1/10 oz) vanilla instant pudding and pie filling mix
1 can (12 fl. oz) evaporated milk
1 can (15 oz) pumpkin
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground ginger
Whipped topping (optional)

Beat pudding mix and milk according to package directions in large bowl. Refrigerate for 5 minutes. Add pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger; mix well. Spoon into dessert dishes. Refrigerate for 10 minutes or until ready to serve. Top with whipped topping, if desired.

Source: Nestle's Very Best Baking.


Pumpkin Raisin Muffins




Since I didn't have much pumpkin left, my choices were pumpkin muffins or pumpkin bread. Muffins are easier to share, plus I had Halloween paper liners I needed to use. I was debating on using white chocolate chips and raisins, and since I don't eat as healthy as I should, I went with raisins. I cut the recipe in half and used all-purpose flour entirely.

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground ginger
2 large eggs, slightly beaten
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease muffin cups or line with paper cups.

2. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger in medium bowl. Combine eggs and sugar in large bowl. Add pumpkin and oil; mix well. Stir in flour mixture until moistened. Stir in morsels. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.

3. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until top springs back when lightly touched.

Source: Nestle's Very Best Baking

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Why Can't Everyone Enjoy Seafood?

It's very hard to make seafood dinners when one member of the family hates it. Not only do I have to make the seafood dinner, I also have to make something else to accommodate my mom's hate for seafood. Usually she's content with a grilled cheese sandwich, but since there was veal in the freezer, Friday night I made 2 dinners and dessert. It was easy to do because both involved spaghetti and I could bake the meat while cooking the shrimp, but there's a lot of preparation for one person to do. Fortunately, dessert only took 5 minutes to prepare.

Lemon Garlic Shrimp




1 pound large shrimp, peeled, deveined and cooked (tails optional)
2 Tbsp + 1 tsp lemon juice (or juice from 2 lemons)
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp dried basil
1/4 cup olive oil
Enough spaghetti for 4 people (1/2 - 1 lb.)

1. Prepare shrimp as necessary. If frozen, run under hot water. Make sure all shrimp are deveined (if using prepared bag, some shrimp are overlooked in the deveining process). Tails are ok to leave on (although I would recommend tailess). If not already cooked, cook the shrimp.

2. Boil pasta in water. Meanwhile, combine lemon juice, garlic, basil, and oil in a bowl. Pour into skillet. Heat shrimp in lemon mixture until hot. Add more lemon juice if needed.

3. Drain pasta. Add pasta, shrimp and lemon mixture to bowl; toss together.

My thoughts: We didn't have enough spaghetti, so there wasn't enough food for 3 of us. I served it with green beans.

Source: Inspired by Razzle Dazzle Recipes


Veal Scallopini




I never had veal before, so I tried a piece when I cooked it. I think I'll stick with beef. My mom enjoyed it, so that's good enough for me. Since I didn't change the recipe (except changing it to 1 serving), you can view it here.


Pudding Parfaits




1 (4 serving) box of banana pudding
2 cups cold milk
Sliced strawberries
Chocolate syrup
Whipped topping

Prepare pudding as directed on package. Fill the bottoms of 6 wine glasses with pudding. Add enough chocolate syrup to cover the pudding. Top with strawberries. Repeat the layers. Top with whipped topping.

There are many variations to this recipe. You can have banana pudding + banana slices + chocolate syrup; coconut cream pudding + shredded coconut + chocolate syrup; vanilla pudding + chocolate chips + chocolate syrup; chocolate pudding + banana slices + strawberry syrup. Experiment with different flavors. Perfect for hot summer days.

Source: Me (inspired by picture in "New Joys of Jell-o" April 1991, p.15)

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