Cherry Almond Brownies, Toasted Coconut Marshmallows, Chocolate Baklava

Brownies and Marshmallows and Baklava—oh my!!!

Christmas Baking is in full swing here (in those hours in which I am not spending decking the halls) and I have found some wonderful, delightful treats for this holiday season. My friend Jenni arrived last Friday for an 8+-hour baking session and the results were spectacular. Here are three of the goodies which we made, and I hope to get the rest posted soon.

First, the Brownies. But not any ordinary brownies, no sir, but brownies which not only contain amaretto-soaked dried cherries and almonds but, after being cut into small squares, are dipped in chocolate. Oh, be still my heart!

The recipe is from King Arthur Flour and these super-chocolatey little treats defies description (and also defies your eating just one…).

My notes for this recipe:

Line the pan with foil. Absolutely. Then the brownies are super-easy to remove from the pan when cool, and cut into nice little squares which are perfect for dipping and gift-giving.

The chocolate for dipping the brownie squares into is not mentioned in the ingredient list, and we used only half of the amount that was called for.

Also note that you have to decorate with sprinkles within seconds of dipping the brownies because the coating sets very quickly. I was able to dip about 5 at a time, decorate, the go on to the next set.

Cherry Almond Brownies

The candied cherries in these fudgy brownies evoke the Shirley Temple and Roy Rogers "cocktails" of childhood holidays. 1/2 cup dried sweet cherries, chopped 1 tablespoon Amaretto liqueur, brandy, or apple juice 3/4 cup chopped unsweetened baking chocolate 1/2 cup butter 1 cup sugar (Baker's Special superfine preferred) 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 large eggs 3/4 cup King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 cup diced almonds 1/2 cup chopped candied red cherries 1/2 cup Peter's Burgundy Semisweet Chocolate Chunks 3 ounces dried sweet cherries, chopped 1 tablespoon Amaretto liqueur, brandy, or apple juice 3 ounces chopped unsweetened baking chocolate 4 ounces butter 7 ounces sugar (Baker's Special superfine preferred) 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 large eggs 3 ounces King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 2 ounces diced almonds 2 ounces chopped candied red cherries 3 ounces Peter's Burgundy Semisweet Chocolate Chunks Directions 1) Place dried chopped cherries in a microwave-safe container, sprinkle with 1 tablespoon liquid, cover, and microwave for 45 seconds. Set aside to soften and cool. 2) Melt together the chocolate and butter over low heat, or in the microwave. Stir in the sugar and salt. Whisk well. Set aside to cool to lukewarm. 3) Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease an 8" x 8" square pan or 9" round pan. 4) Whisk the eggs, one at a time, into the chocolate mixture. Stir in the flour and baking powder, then the soaked cherries, almonds, candied cherries, and chocolate chunks. 5) Spread batter into the prepared pan. Bake the brownies for 25 to 30 minutes, until set. Remove from the oven, and cool before cutting. 6) To dip brownies in coating chocolate: Cut into 1 1/4" squares, patting crumbs into sides of brownies. Wrap and place in the freezer. 7) Melt 1 1/2 pounds coating chocolate by microwaving it in 15-second bursts, and stirring between bursts until most of it is melted. To make a dark, shiny glaze, mix ½ cup + 1 tablespoon hot milk with the melted coating chocolate. Stir vigorously, until the grainy mess smoothes itself into a dark, shiny glaze. The glaze will be firm but not hard, like the chocolate glaze on your favorite snack cakes. 8) Using a chocolate dipping fork, plop a brownie into the glaze, and pull it out. Allow excess chocolate to drip, sliding the tines of the fork against the edges of the dipping bowl to remove excess coating. Place on parchment to set. Yield: 3 dozen dipped brownies.

Next up, marshmallows. This is a recipe from Gourmet and the second year I have made them (they’re that good—I only make the absolute best two years in a row!). I love making marshmallows—they look impressive (“you’ve made me marshmallows???”), are absolutely delicious, and super-easy.

I followed the recipe exactly and they turned out beautifully.

Toasted-Coconut Marshmallow Squares

Gourmet | December 2007

Gina Marie Miraglia Eriquez and Lillian Chou

We often relegate marshmallows to a hot-chocolate topper, but these coconut treats definitely deserve to be offered up solo. Each pillowy square is surrounded by a flurry of toasted coconut. And since they keep for a month, they can be made well in advance of the holiday rush. Yield: Makes about 4 dozen candies Active Time: 1 hr Total Time: 3 1/4 hr (includes setting time) 2 cups unsweetened dried coconut 3 (1/4-ounces) envelopes unflavored gelatin 1 cup water, divided 1 1/2 cups sugar 1 cup light corn syrup 1/4 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoon coconut extract Equipment: a 9-inch square metal baking pan; a stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment; a candy thermometer Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle. Toast coconut in a shallow baking pan in oven, stirring occasionally, until golden, 7 to 10 minutes. Oil 9-inch baking pan, then sprinkle bottom with 1/2 cup toasted coconut. Sprinkle gelatin over 1/2 cup water in bowl of mixer and let soften while making syrup. Heat sugar, corn syrup, salt, and remaining 1/2 cup water in a small heavy saucepan over low heat, stirring until sugar has dissolved. Bring to a boil over medium heat, without stirring, washing any sugar crystals down side of pan with a pastry brush dipped in cold water. Put thermometer into syrup and continue boiling, without stirring, until it registers 240°F (soft-ball stage). Remove from heat and let stand until bubbles dissipate. With mixer at low speed, pour hot syrup into gelatin in a thin stream down side of bowl. Increase speed to high and beat until very thick, about 15 minutes. Add vanilla and coconut extracts and beat 1 minute more. Spoon marshmallow over toasted coconut in baking pan and press evenly with dampened fingertips to smooth top (it will be very sticky), then evenly sprinkle top with 1/2 cup toasted coconut. Let stand, uncovered, at room temperature until firm, about 2 hours. Run a sharp knife around edge of marshmallow and invert onto a cutting board. Cut into 3/4-inch-wide strips, then cut each strip into 3/4-inch squares. Put remaining toasted coconut in a small bowl and dredge marshmallows in it to coat completely. Cook's notes: · Marshmallow squares keep, layered between sheets of parchment paper in an airtight container, in a dry place at cool room temperature 1 month. · To avoid stickiness, try to make marshmallows on a dry day.

And, saved for last, the coup de grace—chocolate baklava from Cooking Light.

Words cannot explain. Delectable, perhaps? Decadent, definitely, even though it is a supposedly “light” recipe. Although we were quite judicious with the amount of butter brushed on the phyllo layers. We still needed almost twice as much more. Too late, we discovered that brushing on one layer, then spraying cooking spray on the next, and repeating, probably would have been the way to go.

No matter, it is delicious and a very holiday-worthy treat. Chocolate, Nutella, nuts, crispy phyllo, honey, cinnamon—why wouldn’t this be good???

And because there weren’t enough calories and fat in what we created, I melted additional bittersweet chocolate, puddled a little on the plate, topped with two “servings” (HA!) of baklava, and drizzled more over the top. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

Chocolate Baklava

From Cooking Light

December 2009

Yield: 24 servings (serving size: 1 piece)

3/4 cup honey
1/2 cup water
1 (3-inch) cinnamon stick
1 cup hazelnut-chocolate spread (such as Nutella)
1/2 cup toasted hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup roasted pistachios, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup blanched toasted almonds, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup toasted walnuts, coarsely chopped
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
Cooking spray
24 (14 x 9–inch) sheets frozen phyllo dough, thawed
1/2 cup butter, melted


Combine the first 3 ingredients in a medium saucepan over low heat; stir until honey dissolves. Increase heat to medium; cook, without stirring, until a candy thermometer registers 230° (about 10 minutes). Remove from heat; keep warm. Discard cinnamon stick.

Preheat oven to 350°.

Place hazelnut-chocolate spread in a microwave-safe bowl; microwave at HIGH for 30 seconds or until melted. Combine hazelnuts and next 5 ingredients (through salt). Lightly coat a 13 x 9-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Working with 1 phyllo sheet at a time (cover remaining dough to prevent drying), place 1 phyllo sheet lengthwise in bottom of prepared pan, allowing ends of sheet to extend over edges of dish; lightly brush with butter. Repeat procedure with 5 phyllo sheets and butter. Drizzle about 1/3 cup melted hazelnut -chocolate spread over phyllo. Sprinkle evenly with one-third of nut mixture (about 1/2 cup). Repeat procedure twice with phyllo, butter, hazelnut-chocolate spread, and nut mixture. Top last layer of nut mixture with remaining 6 sheets phyllo, each lightly brushed with butter. Press gently into pan.

Make 3 lengthwise cuts and 5 crosswise cuts to form 24 portions using a sharp knife. Bake at 350° for 35 minutes or until phyllo is golden. Remove from oven. Drizzle honey mixture over baklava. Cool in pan on a wire rack. Cover; store at room temperature.

Calories: 238, Fat: 13.4g (sat 4.3g,mono 5.6g,poly 2g), Protein: 4g, Carbohydrate: 27.8g

Strawberry-Coconut Daiquiris, Thai Chicken Skewer Wraps, Tropical Strawberry Ice Cream Pie

In a previous post, I mentioned a “cooking weekend” which I hosted at our lake house with my friends Nancy and Jenni, and I posted the recipe for the delectable Thai Summer Stew which we made for a dinner.

This time, I would like to post the accoutrements of that meal.

First, from Eating Well magazine, a recipe for Strawberry-Coconut Daiquiris. Usually when you see a coconut daiquiri recipe it included the very high fat cream of coconut, but this one used coconut rum. I subbed unflavored rum and coconut liquer, and it turned out to be a repeater. What more can I say—strawberries, coconut, and rum! As for an accompanying photo… I didn’t really think of taking one!

Strawberry-Coconut Daiquiri

Recipe from Eating Well

Makes 6 servings, about 3/4 cup each

Ingredients

2 ½ cups chopped fresh or frozen (not thawed) strawberries (about 12 ounces)
3 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons lime juice
3 cups ice cubes
¾ cup coconut-flavored rum, such as Malibu

Strawberry-Coconut Daiquiri Ingredients Cont.

Strawberry-Coconut Daiquiri Instructions

Combine strawberries, sugar and lime juice together in a blender. Blend until smooth. Add ice cubes and rum and blend until frothy. Transfer mixture to a pitcher and serve.

Strawberry-Coconut Daiquiri Instructions Cont.

Nutrition Information

Per serving: 112 calories; 0 g fat (0 g sat, 0 g mono); 0 mg cholesterol; 12 g carbohydrate; 0 g protein; 1 g fiber; 3 mg sodium; 113 mg potassium.
Nutrition bonus: Vitamin C (70% daily value).
1 Carbohydrate Serving
Exchanges: 1/2 fruit, 1/2 carbohydrate (other)

As an appetizer, I prepared Thai Chicken Skewers from Cuisine at Home .

Chicken breast is marinated, then threaded on skewers, broiled (I grilled), and served in bibb lettuce leaves with cucumber and red bell pepper, drizzled with a heavenly sauce of brown sugar, lime juice, red curry paste, peanut butter, shallots, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic. Delicious!!! We commented that we could be very satisfied having only these for dinner, but then that wonderful stew changed our minds… Anyway, no photo for this one, either. I should have, but we were just too busy eating.

Thai Chicken Skewer Wraps
Makes 16 skewers, about 2 cups sauce

1 cup fresh cilantro leaves, packed
6 T. brown sugar, divided
6 T. fresh lime juice, divided
2 T. Thai red curry paste, divided
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
Salt to taste
2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breast, sliced into 1/4” thick strips
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup shallots, chopped
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 T. fresh ginger, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
16 Boston or bibb lettuce leaves
16 strips each red bell pepper and cucumber
Lime wedges

Blend cilantro, 4 T. brown sugar, 2 T. lime juice, 1 T. curry paste, pepper flakes, and salt in a food processor till smooth.

Pour over chicken, toss to coat, and marinate 10 min. Preheat broiler to high with rack 6” from element; coat a broiler pan with nonstick spray.

Process 2 T. brown sugar, 4 T. lime juice and 1 T. curry paste with peanut butter, water, shallots, soy sauce, ginger and garlic in the processor (no need to wash the bowl) until smooth. Transfer to a serving dish.

Thread chicken onto 32 skewers. Arrange 8 skewers on prepared pan; cover ends of skewers with foil to prevent burning. Broil chicken in batches till browned and cooked though, 6 min.

To serve wrap a lettuce leaf around 2 strips of chicken, remove skewers, then add bell pepper and cucumber. Drizzle with sauce and lime juice.

And, finally, dessert.

The previous weekend, for a larger weekend-long party, I had prepared two strawberry ice cream pies which I had planned to serve with a strawberry-black pepper sauce. However, a friend added a couple of extra courses and by the time dinner ended, everyone could barely see, much less eat dessert. Which, actually, was a good thing since I had royally screwed up the sauce earlier that evening (I need to work on my caramel-making skills).

The pie itself was a simple recipe—softened strawberry ice cream mixed with a dash of cinnamon and some chopped fresh strawberries, spooned into a graham cracker crust and refrozen.

I hoped that my friends would not mind being “re-desserted”.

This time, I went with a tropical-style sauce for the strawberry pie. It was simple as well. I reduced a can of guava nectar by almost half, added about a half teaspoon cornstarch (mixed with a teaspoon of water) to thicken it a bit further, stirred in a squeeze of lime juice and some finely chopped fresh pineapple. This was cooled to room temperature then served over each slice of ice cream pie, and sprinkled with toasted coconut. It was a hit, with both my friends and with Jack, who had a piece a couple of days later.

Note, take the pie out of the freezer for 5 minutes prior to serving.

And, in a complete turnaround from the above two menu items, no recipe, but I do have a photo! :)

Lemon Cheesecake Soufflés with Crushed Raspberry Sauce

Although I cook a lot there are certain recipes which I have never tried for one reason or another. Until a couple of weeks ago, one of these was a soufflé. It seemed to be too difficult; fussy, with a lot of prep and, when we entertain, I like to have dessert made and ready to go (except for garnishing) after the meal. Whipping up a soufflé and baking it seemed as though it would be too time-consuming.

I have been corrected. :)

I found this recipe in a February 2007 issue of Cuisine at Home magazine, and it really called out to me. Lemon cheesecake soufflé. I adore cheesecake, and lemon is such a lovely springtime flavor, plus the accompanying raspberry sauce would go with it so well. I just had to try it.

Now, the original recipe was for 8 servings and I was only going to make two. Because if I made 8 (6, 4…), we would eat them all. I wasn’t certain if soufflés would take to being leftover well, so I would only make what we should eat.

Of course, scaling the recipe down so much left me with needing to use ¾ of an egg yolk, and 1-1/4 egg whites. I considered doing just that, extra preparation steps with beating the yolk or white, and measuring them, but decided against it. Life is too short. I used a whole yolk, and one white. And it worked just fine.

I first made the raspberry sauce and set it aside. The original soufflé recipe called for buttering the ramekins and sprinkling with crumbs, then baking the “crust”. I skipped this step, preferring to spray the ramekins with cooking spray and not using the crumbs at all. I also made a small change in how the lemon mixture was prepared, but that was minor and was only to make that particular step a little easier. I also used fat free “Super Skim” milk and neufatchel cheese.

As an experiment I prepared the batter a few hours in advance, filled the ramekins, and kept them in the refrigerator until I preheated the oven (I used a toaster oven for the 2 ramekins), at which time I placed them on the counter to start to come to room temperature. Then they were baked. They rose very nicely, about 1” above the rims of the ramekins. But be warned, they are to be served immediately. Get some powdered sugar in a small strainer or sifter, have small plates at the ready for placing the soufflés on after they are removed from the oven, and have the sauce already on the table for everyone to use.

Mine fell after about a minute, so take those babies out of the oven, plate, dust with powdered sugar, and serve.

I understand that you can refrigerate any leftovers and that although they taste great, they will not be “pretty”.

All told, this really was a super-easy recipe, and yielded great results. The soufflés tasted lemony and very cheesecake-like, and were nice and light in texture. The raspberry sauce is a perfect accompaniment, and I added a little Chambord-cornstarch mixture (2 tablespoons of the black raspberry liquer to ¾ teaspoon cornstarch) to punch up the berry flavor and thicken the sauce as well.

Excellent choice for a spring or summer dinner party, and now I know that they can be prepped ahead I will definitely make them again.

* Exported from MasterCook *

Lemon Cheesecake Soufflés with Crushed Raspberry Sauce

Recipe By: Cuisine At Home, Issue 63

Servings: 4

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method

-------- ------------ --------------------------------

1/2 cup 2% low-fat milk (I used Super Skim fat-free)

1/4 cup sugar

2 ounces cream cheese -- cubed, softened (I used neufatchel)

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice -- strained

1/8 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tablespoon fresh lemon zest -- minced

1 1/2 large egg yolks -- room temperature

1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 large egg whites -- room temperature

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar

2 tablespoons sugar

6 ounces raspberries -- frozen

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

pinch salt

Preheat oven to 400F

Coat 4 6-ounce soufflé cups with cooking spray, and then set aside.

Combine egg yolks and vanilla, in a small cup and set aside. Simmer milk, sugar, and cream cheese over low heat until cream cheese melts. Add the lemon juice and zest and flour and whisk until smooth. Turn up the heat to medium-high and whisk constantly until thick and bubbly, about 4 minutes

Whisk the egg yolk mixture into the lemon mixture and cook for 2 minutes. Transfer pan to a bowl filled with ice water to cool.

Beat egg whites with salt and cream of tartar to soft peaks in a bowl with an electric mixer on high speed.

Gradually add 2 tablespoons sugar, beating until stiff peaks form. Blend 1/4 cup of the whites into the lemon mixture with a whisk, and then fold in the remaining whites until there are no white streaks.

Fill the ramekins 1/2" from the top with the batter and bake on a baking sheet until puffed, 18-20 minutes. Test for doneness by inserting a skewer into the center-- the soufflés are done when the skewer comes out clean or just slightly moist.

Dust with powdered sugar, serve immediately with warm raspberry sauce.

RASPBERRY SAUCE: Simmer all ingredients in a saucepan for 5 minutes, then crush with a potato masher.

Source:

"CAH Issue 63"

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Per serving as made in the original recipe:

255 Calories (kcal); 8g Total Fat (4g Saturated); (26% calories from fat); 6g Protein; 42g Carbohydrate; 98mg Cholesterol; 222mg Sodium

Food Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); 1/2 Lean Meat; 0 Vegetable; 1/2 Fruit; 1 1/2 Fat; 2 Other Carbohydrates

Using skim milk and neufatchel cheese:

Per serving: 242 Calories (kcal); 6g Total Fat (3g Saturated); (21% calories from fat); 6g Protein; 43g Carbohydrate; 93mg Cholesterol; 237mg Sodium

Food Exchanges: 0 Grain(Starch); 1/2 Lean Meat; 0 Vegetable; 1/2 Fruit; 1 Fat; 2 Other Carbohydrates