Sugar High Fridays - Fruit and Nut

It has been a while since I participated in Sugar High Fridays. Unfortunately, I missed the deadline again... Work, family and a new hobby – gardening, are keeping me very busy. I baked a couple cakes last week which made me feel so rejuvenated and I decided to not let “busy” be my excuse for not doing something that I really enjoy doing. When I knew the theme of this month’s SHF was Fruit and Nuts from our host Mansi, Fun and Food Blog, I couldn’t stop thinking about Cadbury’s Fruit and Nut bar. I almost wanted to recreated a home version of it until I saw the macadamia nut tart recipe from Claudia Fleming’s book.

What wonderful about Fleming’s book is that it includes serving suggestions for every recipes in the book. For her Macadamia Nut Tart, Fleming suggested the Coconut Sorbet and the Roasted Pineapple with Pink Peppercorns.

When we say, “what grows together, goes together”, this composed dessert is definitely singing that song. Macadamia nuts, coconut and pineapple, it is Hawaiian! At the same time, the warmth from the tart and pineapple contrasts the cold of the sorbet; the rich, silky tart filling, crunchy yet soft nuts, flaky tart crust, meaty pineapple, crunchy peppercorns and melt in your mouth sorbet makes every bite so satisfying.

I did all the baking, churning and roasting in one day. It seemed like a lot of work but it was straight forward. (I made the tart dough and the sorbet base the night before.) One tip for making the roasted pineapple: have every ingredient ready before making the caramel because if the caramel overcooked and it will lend a burnt taste to the pineapple which is not part of the taste contrast.

After all, it was a great success and I wish you'll give it a try.

Macadamia-nut Tart

Tart Dough
1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp sugar
¼ tsp salt
7 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 large egg yolk
2 to 3 Tbsp milk

Macadamia Tart Filling
1 ¼ cups macadamia nuts (toasted and roughly chopped)
3 Tbsp unsalted butter
2 whole eggs
1 large egg yolk
¾ cup light corn syrup
¾ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
½ tsp dark rum
¾ tsp vanilla extract
¼ tsp salt

1. To prepare the tart dough, place the flour, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a food processor and pulse to combine. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the egg yolk and 2 Tbsp of the milk and pulse until the dough comes together and begins to leave the sides of the bowl. If the mixture is too dry, add more milk to the dough, ½ Tbsp at a time. Scrape the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap, form it into a disk, and wrap well. Refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour, and up to 3 days.
2. Preheat the oven to 350F. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into an 11-inch disk. Press it into a 9-inch tart pan, trimming away any excess dough. Prick the dough all over with a fork. Chill for 10 minutes. Line the tart shell with foil and fill with pie weights. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the pie weights and foil and bake for 12 to 15 minutes more until set. Let the tart shell cool on a rack.
3. In a small skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Continue to let the butter cook until some of the white milk solids fall to the bottom of the skillet and turn a rich hazelnut brown. Strain the browned butter through a fine sieve into the bowl of an electric mixer. Let the butter cool for a few minutes, then add the rest of the ingredients and using the whip attachment, beat until blended, then strain through a fine sieve. (The filling can be made up to 3 days in advance and stored in the refrigerator.)
4. Preheat the oven to 325F. Spread the nuts in the bottom of the tart shell, then pour the filling over them. Place the tart pan on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake until the filling is set and golden brown on top, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack before serving.

Coconut Sorbet

Yield: 1 pint

2 cups whole milk
1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
¾ cup sugar
½ teaspoon fresh lime juice

1. In a medium saucepan, combine the milk, coconut, and sugar. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Simmer the mixture until the sugar dissolves, about 2 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the mixture cool for 1 hour.
2. Strain the mixture into a bowl and discard the coconut. Stir in the lime juice, cover, and chill until thoroughly cold, at least 3 hours, or overnight. Strain again and freeze in an ice-cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Roasted Pineapple with Pink Peppercorns

1 cup sugar
1 tsp light corn syrup
1 pineapple, peeled, cored, and cut into 8 rings
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise, pulp scraped
1 bay leaf
4 Tbsp unsalted butter
2 Tbsp dark rum (preferably Myers’s)
1 Tbsp pink peppercorns
Pinch of salt

1. Preheat the oven to 375F. Place ¼ cup water in a 10-inch ovenproof skillet over low heat. Add the sugar and corn syrup and increase the heat to high. Cook, swirling the pan occasionally, until the mixture is a deep amber-brown caramel, about 7 minutes. Add the pineapple, vanilla pod and pulp, and bay leaf, then bake, basting every 10 minutes, until the pineapple is tender and translucent, about 40 minutes.
2. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the pineapple to a serving platter and either place in a low oven or tent with foil to keep warm. (Alternatively, let the pineapple cool in the pan, then reheat for a few minutes before making the sauce.)
3. To prepare the sauce, whisk the butter, rum, pink peppercorns, and salt into the hot pan juices until smooth. Serve the sauce spooned over the roasted pineapple.

Glittering Marshmallow Snow Flakes - SHF49

I love food blogging. It motivates me to try out new recipes that I saw from all my food magazines/books. In the past three months, I have made more desserts than I would normally do in a year. Now, I don’t need a reason or special occasion to make dessert. I’m so excited about making, photographing (normally done by Frank), tasting and giving out desserts. I also look forward to participating each month’s Sugar High Fridays. This month, Susan from The Well-Seasoned Cook is calling for all the dessert that glitters!

I knew what I was going to make for this month’s entry right away. I subscribed to Martha Stewart Livings at home. And I remember very clearly that she had featured marshmallow snow flakes in one of her winter issue many years ago. It was so adorable and I decided to make that marshmallow snow flakes with sparkling sugar. Just in time for Christmas

When I saw the recipe, I was shocked! I was shocked by the simplicity and the quantity that yield. It required only sugar, water, corn syrup, gelatin, salt and vanilla (I was hoping to use up some of the egg whites in my fridge.) and you can make 100 marshmallow snow flakes from one batch. Then I read on and realized that it makes small, one to two inches snow flakes. That’s better…

I cannot tell you how excited I was when I saw the sugar mixture (see recipe) became thick and had turned white. The texture looked exactly like the melting marshmallow that you’re trying to pull away from your wooden stick at the camp fire. I knew I did it!



I didn’t use sparkling sugar with bright, primary colours. They might be good for other purposes but not here, not for snow flakes. Unfortunately, the photo didn’t turn out as well as I hope (I took the pictures this time). You probably can’t see very well from the picture but my snow flakes did sparkle.

These Sparkling Marshmallow Snow Flakes are so beautiful and easy to make. It makes good gift for the holiday.

Glittering Marshmallow Snowflakes (recipe adapted from Martha Stewart Living)

Makes about 100

2 envelopes (each 1 scant tablespoon) unflavored gelatin
1 1/2 cups sugar
2/3 cup light corn syrup
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Vegetable-oil cooking spray
Sparkling Sugar (1/3 cup)

1. Coat a 12-by-17-inch rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray; line with parchment paper. Spray parchment; set aside. Pour 1/3 cup cold water into the bowl of an electric mixer. Sprinkle with gelatin; let mixture soften, about 5 minutes.

2. Place sugar, corn syrup, salt, and 1/3 cup water in a medium saucepan. Cover; bring to a boil. Remove lid; cook, swirling pan occasionally, until syrup reaches 238 degrees (soft-ball stage) on a candy thermometer, about 5 minutes.

3. With mixer on low speed, whisk gelatin mixture, and slowly pour the syrup in a steady stream down the side of the bowl (to avoid splattering). Gradually raise speed to high; beat until mixture is thick, white, and has almost tripled in volume, about 12 minutes. Add vanilla, and beat 30 seconds to combine.

4. Pour mixture onto prepared baking sheet; smooth with an offset spatula. Let stand at room temperature, uncovered, until firm, at least 3 hours or overnight.

5. Coat a 1- or 2-inch snowflake-shaped cookie cutter with cooking spray to prevent it from sticking. Cut out as many individual marshmallows as possible; coat cutter with more spray as needed. Coat marshmallow with sparkling sugar and use marshmallows immediately or store in an airtight container at room temperature up to 1 week.

SHF #48

This is my first time submitting post to SHF. Anita from Dessert First chose spice for this month’s theme. I like spice cake. It's perfect for October when the weather is cold, the sky is grey and the leaves are turning yellow. Nothing is better than sitting by the window, having a slice of warm, rich, aromatic spiced cake in a lazy afternoon and listening to your neighbours raking the leaves.

I made a Spiced-Quince Butter Cake from Claudia Fleming’s The Last Course. Unlike most of the spice cake which normally are sticky, dark and dense, this cake has a very light, fine crumbs. The poached quince in the cake tasted like honey. It’s sweet, fragrant and somewhat chewy. The different texture between the cake and the poached quince is very fulfilling. I served it with candied walnuts as suggested by Claudia Fleming and Vanilla Bean Ice-cream and the combination of the three is magical. :)

The other dessert I made for this month's SHF is Regan Daley's Sticky Spiked Double-Apple Cake with a Brown Sugar-Brandy Sauce. This one is a combination of tart & sweet, sticky & crunchy. A few different spices were used in this recipe but the taste is very subtle. It sure did save room for the flavour of the apple & brandy to shine. On top of the cake is the brandy sauce which gives this cake a different layer of coziness.

I can't choose one cake over the other. These two cakes are very different from each other. The quince cake is very elegant and unusual as for a spice cake. Daley's apple cake is everything you are expecting for a fall dessert. Try them both. They are both very easy to make and are perfect to make ahead in the morning for your dinner party at night.

End note: As much as I like spice cake, making one at home is a real challenge. The reason is that Frank is not a big fan of spice cake. (He loves spices in cooking but not too familiar with spices in baking) It took over an hour to poach the quince. And Frank asked me, "When is this spice project going to be ended?". Thankfully, he likes both of the cake, especially the quince cake. Otherwise, it will be hard for me to make them again at home.


Spiced-Quince Butter Cake

Serves 6 to 8

QUINCE
1 large quince, peeled, cored, and cut into 16 slices
1½ cups sugar
1 cup dry white wine
1 whole clove stuck into a 2-inch strip of orange peel
½ cinnamon stick
1 star anise
3 cups water

CAKE
½ cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1-1/3 cups confectioners’ sugar
½ cup almond flour
1/3 cup cake flour
½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp ground cardamom
4 large egg whites (1/2 cup)
½ tsp grated orange zest
Additional unsalted butter, at room temperature, for greasing the pan


1. To prepare the quince, in a large saucepan, combine the quince and all the ingredients. Cut a round of parchment paper slightly smaller than the pot and lay it on top of the quince (this will keep the fruit submerged; you can also use a sturdy, heatproof plate). Bring the mixture to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the quince is tender and spongy, about 1¼ hours. Let the quince cool in the poaching liquid. Drain the quince pieces on layers of paper towel. Discard the liquid.

2. To make the cake, preheat the oven to 400oF. In a large skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Continue to let the butter cook until the white milk solids fall to the bottom of the skillet and turn a rich hazelnut brown. Strain the browned butter through a fine sieve into a clean bowl, discarding the solids.

3. Sift together the confectioners’ sugar, almond flour, cake flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and cardamom. Place the sifted ingredients in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. On the lowest speed, add the egg whites and orange zest; mix until all the dry ingredients are moistened. Increase the speed to medium and beat until very smooth. Decrease the speed to low and stir in the browned butter, then increase the speed to medium and beat until smooth.

4. Butter a 10-inch tart pan with a removable bottom or a springform pan. Pour in the batter and smooth the top. Arrange the quince slices on the batter. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the cake is golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely. Remove the sides of the pan before serving.

Candied Walnuts

Yield: 2 cups

2 cups walnuts
3 tbsp simple syrup
¼ cup turbinado (raw) sugar

1. Preheat the oven to 350oF. In a large bowl, toss the walnuts with enough of the simple syrup to coat them well. The nuts should be sticky and well coated with enough syrup so the sugar will stick.

2. Add the turbinado sugar to the walnuts, tossing well. Work quickly so that the sugar doesn’t melt. Spread the nuts out on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes, stirring the nuts after 5 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool completely.

Sticky Spiked Double-Apple Cake

Serves 10 to 12

1 cup Lexia, Muscat or sultana raisins
1/3 cup brandy
1 cup unsulphured dried apple slices
½ cup granulated sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
1½ tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
¾ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground cloves (preferably freshly ground)
1½ cups tightly packed dark brown sugar
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
¾ cup coarsely chopped pecans, toasted
2 medium-sized tart cooking apples, one peeled, one unpeeled, both cored and cut into ½ inch pieces
Additional unsalted butter, at room temperature, for greasing the pan

1. In a small bowl, soak the raisins in the brandy for 45 minutes. Add the dried apple slices and macerate for a further 15 minutes. Do not drain!

2. Preheat the oven to 325oF. Butter a 9 x 13-inch pan and line the bottom and up the two long sides with a sheet of parchment paper, letting the paper hang over the edges by an inch or so. Lightly butter the paper. In a small bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves and set aside.

3. In a large bowl, blend both sugars. Add the eggs and beat on medium speed until thickened and pale, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add the cooled melted butter and mix to blend. Fold in the dry ingredients in two additions, mixing just enough to moisten most but not all of the flour. Add the dried fruit and brandy mixture, chopped pecans and diced fresh apple, then fold them into the batter with long, deep strokes. Don’t fret about the ratio of fruit to batter – there is a remarkable amount of fruit but it bakes into a wonderfully chewy cake.

4. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and set in the centre of the oven. Bake until the centre springs back when lightly touched, a tester inserted into the centre comes out clean and the cake is beginning to pull away from the sides of the pan (about 1 hour and 10 minutes). Transfer to a wire rack and cool. Serve warm or at room temperature with the warm Brown Sugar-Brandy Sauce.

Sugar-Brandy Sauce

Yield: 2¼ cups

1/3 cup unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 cup lightly packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup whipping cream
2½ tbsp brandy

1. Combine the butter, sugars and cream in a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Stir this mixture over low heat until the sugar dissolves, then increase the heat to medium and bring the sauce to a very gentle boil, stirring all the while. Cook 5 more minutes, then remove from the heat and stir in the brandy.