Did you Know? The Difference Between Croissant Shapes

Some plain croissants are straight, and some are joined together at the ends in a sort of crescent moon shape. I never knew that this actually meant something. I thought the shape of the croissant was simply the preference of the person who had shaped them.

What I learned recently is that the shape of the croissant - straight across or crescent moon, reflects the ingredients inside... in France at least. In France, it is the law, that only a croissant made with pure butter can be straight. If a croissant is made with any other sort of fat, for example, margarine, it must be joined at the ends to form a crescent moon shape.

The next time you buy a croissant, you might be a little more inquisitive about what it's made of...

A Great Cookie To Make With Kids: Russian Teacakes aka Snowballs

I've been making this recipe with my mom since I can remember; it's kind of our Christmas tradition. I have many fond memories of making these cookies.

At any rate, the teacakes are not only one of the easiest things I've ever baked, but are also very kid friendly. There are many jobs kids can participate in while making these; measuring ingredients, rolling the dough into balls, and covering them in confectionery sugar when they come out of the oven. The best part is, however, is that there are no eggs in this recipe, so mom's don't have to worry about their kids taking a little nibble of the dough or licking their fingers.



Russian Teacakes
Makes approximately four dozen cookies

Ingredients
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 confectionery sugar, sifted
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/4 cups flour, sifted
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup finally chopped (walnuts) nuts (optional, to be stirred in last)
extra confectionery sugar for rolling





Sift the dry ingredients (flour, salt) together and set them aside.





Cream the butter, sugar and vanilla together.





Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, and stir together.



Once the mixture starts coming together, use your hands and form a ball with the dough.



Refrigerate the dough until firm (usually 30 minutes to 1 hour). Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.



Form once inch balls with the dough by rolling them in the palm of your hand.



Place the cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet quite close together (they don't really spread much).



Bake for approximately 10 minutes. I can tell they are cooked with they start to slightly crack at the top.






Cool for a few minutes, but while still warm, roll all the cookies in confectionery sugar. After rolling all the cookies once, roll them for a second time. Then allow them to cool completely before storing.

A Few Photos From Le Cordon Bleu London Pastry Class

If anyone is curious about what I've been doing at school, I'm including a few photos in this post. I don't have any cuisine photos; we have to serve the food hot and it's tasted immediately, thus destroying the beauty of the food on the plate. In pastry the recipes are so exact that they don't taste our food/art pieces, so there is plenty of opportunity snap away.

Up at the top is a croquembouche, which is a traditional french wedding cake.



My first attempt to make a pulled sugar rose. I ended up with a huge blister on my thumb from making the petals!



My first attempt at making a pulled sugar ribbon.



Me, and my ribbon hat....



And, my first attempt at pouring sugar. Poured sugar is my favorite of all the sugar work so far.



The fraisier cake, from the top. You can see, my piping needs a bit of work!



The fraisier cake from the side... yum!

A Trip to Savannah: Dinner at Paula Deen's Restaurant, Lady and Sons

This Christmas vacation my family and I drove from Florida to Connecticut. On the way, we stopped in Savannah, Georgia. After consulting our guidebook, we decided to make a reservation at Paula Deen's restaurant, Lady and Sons. We chose Lady and Sons not so much because it was Paula Deen's, but more because the guidebook said it had authentic, southern cooking.

To eat at Lady and Sons, you must physically go there to make a reservation. Apparently in the high season it is often fully booked by noon. Being the 23rd of December however, it was busy but not sold out. Gazing through the window at the southern style buffet, I was not too optimistic about how good the food would be, but we decided we would try it out anyhow.

Upon being seated at the restaurant, you are promptly served hoecakes and cheese biscuits, which are really really good. The hoecake is a pancake made with cornmeal, fried in clarified butter... yum!

And the buffet... well, it's literally to die for. There is so much butter and saturated fat, I don't think you could eat there more than 3 or 4 times per year without feeling like a heart attack was coming on. But it was DELICIOUS. I'm no expert in southern cooking, but everything from the greens to the fried chicken were very tasty. Definitely the best fried chicken I've ever had.

Here's a picture of a very nice lady (unfortunately didn't catch her name) who was making the hot cheese biscuits and hoecakes. Here you can see her scooping out biscuits on to a baking tray.



Anyhow, if you are ever in Savannah, check our Lady and Sons!

A Traditional (and easy!) Singaporean Noodle Dish: Kway Teow

I asked my Singaporean friend at Le Cordon Bleu, Christine, to teach me a typical Singaporean noodle dish. The next Monday at school, she brought in homemade kway teow and let me have a taste, and I told her I wanted to learn it!



The next Sunday she came over. We went to an Asian grocer, picked out all of the ingredients with her expert guidance, and came home and cooked a delicious, and surprisingly simple dish.



Kway Teow
Makes two servings

Ingredients
400g fresh ho fun (or 200g dry)
3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
100g of bean sprouts
20g (5-6 stalks) of Chinese chives, cut into two inch pieces
100g fish cake or shrimp/chicken/beef/tofu/pork
2 tbsp vegetable oil or canola oil
2 eggs
1 ½ tbsp dark soy sauce
1 ½ tbsp sweet soy sauce
1 tbsp sweetish chili sauce (not too sweet!)
1 tbsp regular soy sauce (or more to taste)

First, lets take a look at some of the ingredients... I certainly wasn't familiar with all of them!



Three types of sauce... to the left, the chili sauce, in the middle, the sweet soy sauce, and on the right, dark soy sauce.



Chinese chives aka garlic chives... they are beautiful and mild tasting, and have a hint of garlic taste.



Dry ho fun. Needs to be cooked like pasta until al dente (probably about 5 minutes depending on what variety you get).



Fresh ho fun. Separate them in warm water.



Fish cake. A commonly used ingredient in Asian cooking. Any sort of protein can be used though.





Prepped fish cake, chives and garlic.

Now for the method. Heat the oil until it's extremely hot, even smoking. Add the garlic, and stir in the pan until fragrant (about 30 seconds). Do not let the garlic burn!





Crack the eggs and add them to the pan. Don't stir until they start to look brown around the edge. Then, break the egg up and stir until cooked through.



Add the fish cake, or whatever protein you are using, and cook accordingly.



The next step is to add the noodles. Be gentle stirring so that the noodles do not break. Heat through.



Next, add the dark soy sauce, sweet soy sauce, chili sauce and regular soy sauce. Stir thoroughly. Taste a noodle to check the seasoning, and look at the color. For more color, add more dark soy sauce. For more heat, add more chili sauce. For more sweet/smokey flavor, add more sweet soy sauce. And for more saltiness, add regular soy sauce.



Add the bean sprouts and stir through. Cook them for about one minute. They add crunch and texture to the dish, so don't cook them too much or they will become soft. Finally, add the chives. Turn off the heat, and stir the chives until distributed evenly. Serve piping hot.

Christmas Time Reminds Me Of: Slightly Caramelized Brussels Sprouts

I don't know why brussels sprouts are so dreaded. As long as they are cooked properly, I think they are delightful. I feel that many veggies get a bad wrap, and it's often due to the fact that people don't cook them well - I mean, who likes brussels sprouts that are very strong tasting, or totally droopy because someone has boiled them to death? I can understand that they are a somewhat acquired taste that that comes with age, but I don't think they should have such a terrible reputation.



Brussels sprouts take 90-180 days to grow. They grow on a long stalk, 2-4 feet in length, in a spiral pattern. Besides being related to cabbage, they are also a close relative of broccoli!

Anyway, here is one way I like to cook brussels sprouts. It's quick, and requires little skill.

Slightly Caramelized Brussels Sprouts
Makes 4 side dish servings

Ingredients
3/4 of a pound of brussels sprouts
1 tbsp of canola or vegetable oil
1/2-1 cup of water
salt and pepper to taste

Peel outer leaves off of brussels sprouts, trim ends (not too much or the whole sprout will fall apart!) and cut in half. Heat a shallow bottomed pan. Add oil and brussels sprouts. Place enough water in the pan so that the brussel sprouts are half covered. Season with a little salt and pepper.



Place lid over the pan. Simmer for 5 minutes.



Remove lid, and let water completely evaporate. Taste a brussels sprout. If it's reasonably tender, caramelize the brussels sprouts (let them brown, stirring occasionally) gently, making sure not to blacken them. If not, add a bit more water, and simmer. Taste again. Once they are tender, caramelize them. Adjust seasoning as necessary.