Monday, October 24, 2011

Easy Cilantro Salad Recipe with Simple Vinaigrette


Not all salads need to be complicated, and this Cilantro Salad proves just that. It’s a quick and easy dish with fresh ingredients, topped with a zesty vinaigrette. If you’re a fan of cilantro (or looking to give it another try), this salad is a perfect way to let its bold flavor shine.

Also known as Chinese Parsley, cilantro is the leafy green of the coriander plant. Its unique flavor can be polarizing—some love its freshness, while others describe it as soapy. But give it a chance, and you might find yourself craving its herbaceous zing.

Did you know? In ancient Chinese culture, cilantro was used in love potions and believed to bring immortality.

Why You’ll Love This Salad
  • Perfect for busy days or as a light side dish.
  • Packed with fresh greens, tomatoes, and the distinctive flavor of cilantro.
  • Add avocado, grilled chicken, or your favorite nuts for a heartier option.

Tips for Success
  • Use fresh cilantro for the best flavor. Avoid bunches with yellowing or wilting leaves.
  • Balance the vinaigrette by adjusting lime juice and garlic to your preference.
  • For extra crunch, sprinkle toasted seeds or nuts, such as pumpkin seeds, on top.
Recipe: Cilantro Salad

Serves: 6

Ingredients:

For the vinaigrette:
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 clove garlic, minced
salt and pepper, to taste

For the salad:
4 cups butter lettuce, cleaned and torn into bite-sized pieces
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Instructions:

Whisk the ingredients for the vinaigrette. Mix the salad ingredients. Just before serving, mix the vinaigrette with the salad.




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Monday, October 17, 2011

Easy Caramel Apple Tarts with Puff Pastry – Perfect Fall Dessert


Looking for a delicious dessert idea? These Caramel Apple Tarts are the perfect treat for fall. Made with puff pastry, diced apples, and rich homemade caramel, this recipe transforms a classic fairground favorite into a delightful baked dessert. Whether you make a full pie or individual tarts, the result is always irresistible.

If you don't have puff pastry in your refrigerator, just use a regular pie crust. If you don't have that, just make caramel apples!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe
  • A great way to use up fresh apples during apple-picking season.
  • Use puff pastry for a light, flaky crust or substitute with pie crust.
  • Serve as a show-stopping dessert with vanilla ice cream at your next gathering.
Recipe: Caramel Apple Tarts

Makes 1 pie or 12 individual tarts

Ingredients:

1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, cut into pieces
3/4 cup sweetened condensed milk (or 300-mL can)
2/3 cup golden corn syrup
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 teaspoon honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt

6 apples, peeled and diced

Puff Pastry

Instructions:

In a heavy saucepan over medium heat, stir all ingredients until a temperature probe reaches 236°F. Make sure you stir constantly and ensure the mixture doesn't stick to the bottom and start to burn. Let cool.

Meanwhile, peel and dice the apples. Stir the apples into the cooled caramel mixture.

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

Roll out the puff pastry.

Fill the tart shell (or individual tart shells). Bake for 50-60 minutes (30-40 minutes for individual tart shells). Let cool. Serve with vanilla ice cream.


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Monday, October 10, 2011

The Magic of Puff Pastry: Flaky, Buttery Perfection


Puff pastry is a magical dough that transforms simple ingredients into flaky, buttery masterpieces. Through a process called lamination, layers of butter are trapped between dough, creating steam during baking that pushes the layers apart. The result? A light and airy pastry that’s as impressive as it is delicious.  

Tips for Perfect Puff Pastry:
  • Keep It Cool: Butter is the key to puff pastry's signature layers. Keeping both the dough and butter cold is essential to prevent the butter from melting or seeping out.  
  • Roll with Care: Use a light touch when rolling to maintain the distinct layers. If the butter starts to soften or squish out, pop the dough back in the fridge.  
  • Be Patient: While the process of rolling and folding can be time-consuming, the reward of perfectly flaky pastry makes it worth the effort.
Now that I have a block of puff pastry, what should I make with it?
Recipe: Puff Pastry


Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup cake flour
1 teaspoon salt
2/3 to 3/4 cup water
2 tablespoons unsalted, butter, melted
14 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 egg, lightly beaten, for glazing

[You can find the recipe for Puff Pastry in the book Le Cordon Bleu at Home (affiliate link) or here.]

Instructions:

In a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the flour and salt. Pour in the water and melted butter. The dough will be shaggy. Bring it together into a ball and score an "x" in the top. Cover with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes.

While the dough is chilling, place the butter between plastic wrap and form it into a square that's 3/4 inch thick.

To roll the dough, make arms or flaps to form a plus sign. The middle should be mounded slightly. The arms must be long and square enough to cover the middle. (See this post.)

Place the formed butter in the middle and fold the arms over the butter, stretching the dough if needed. Seal in the butter. Using a rolling pin, press on the dough to seal the edges and flatten the square.

Roll the dough about 7 inches wide and 21 inches long. Fold the top down and the bottom up to make an envelope. Turn a quarter turn. Roll again to 7 inches wide and 21 inches long. Fold again. Mark the dough with two fingerprints and chill in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes.

Repeat the rolling/folding/turning and then chill. Repeat once more. Now the dough has been turned six times and is ready to be formed into pie crust, cheese sticks, turnovers, napoleons or whatever you fancy. (The dough keeps well in the freezer, too.)

Next Time
Danoises (Danish) in Le Cordon Bleu Complete Cook Home Collection (affiliate link) page 485

Links
White on Rice: Strawberry Danish Recipe
Not without Salt: Quick Puff Pastry
Dorie Greenspan: Puff Pastry Pinwheels
::Whisk::
I'm baking my way through a cooking school curriculum using the Le Cordon Bleu at Home (affiliate link) cookbook. The "classes" are based on the Le Cordon Bleu curriculum found online and used as a guideline. Not all the items in the curriculum are in the cookbook, but most are. Where the items are not in the book, I try to find a suitable substitution.

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Monday, October 3, 2011

The Art of Brioche: A Buttery Indulgence Worth the Wait

If you're patient, in a few hours you can make brioche. You just need a teaspoon of yeast, a half dozen eggs, and almost half a pound of butter along with the usual breadlike suspects.

Brioche is classified as a viennoiserie (Viennese Specialties), which are baked goods made from a yeast-leavened dough that is enriched with milk, sugar, eggs, or butter. In this case, lots of eggs and butter. Brioche isn't a low-fat treat but an indulgence.

The trickiest part of this recipe is the dough's stickiness. But leave the pasty dough to the hook, forget the traditional, hand-kneading method, and go check your email. Then, while it's rising, do some gardening. And after you've formed the rolls, go downtown to buy a new gadget. Then eat some cake.

Original: "Qu'ils mangent de la brioche."- Marie Antoinette
Translation: "Let them eat rich, expensive, funny-shaped, yellow, eggy buns."
-Urban Legends
Tips for Perfect Brioche  

1. Embrace the Stickiness: The dough will be sticky; let your mixer’s dough hook do the work.  
2. Be Patient: Brioche takes time, but the slow rise develops flavor and texture.  
3. Use Butter Generously: Don’t skimp—this is where brioche gets its magic.  

Recipe: Brioche

Makes: 16 individual rolls


Ingredients:

3 tablespoons milk, warmed
1/4 oz package dried yeast
3 cups bread or all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
6 eggs, lightly beaten

3/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 egg beaten and mixed with 2 tablespoons of water, for glaze

[You can find the recipe for Brioche in the book Le Cordon Bleu Complete Cook Home Collection (affiliate link).]

Instructions:

In a small bowl, proof the yeast in some warm milk. In a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, whisk all the ingredients. Add the yeast mixture. Knead until the dough forms a smooth ball. In an oiled bowl, place the dough and cover. Let rise at room temperature for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, or until doubled in size.

Punch down. In a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, add the room-temperature butter to the dough and knead until the dough is smooth again. Cover and let rest for about 5 minutes.

Form into rolls. Let rise for 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Preheat oven to 400°F. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown. Let cool.

Here's a video showing how to make it by hand.


Tasting Notes
The crust on my brioche was nice and crunchy, but I should have pulled mine out of the oven sooner than I did. Overall, they have a nice texture and warming them in the microwave for about 10 seconds makes them even tastier.

Next Time
Puff Pastry in Le Cordon Bleu Complete Cook Home Collection (affiliate link) page 542

Links
La Tartine Gourmande: Simplest Brioche
Julia Child: Brioche Dough (video)
Dorie Greenspan: Brioche

::Whisk::
I'm baking my way through a cooking school curriculum using the Le Cordon Bleu at Home (affiliate link) cookbook. The "classes" are based on the Le Cordon Bleu curriculum found online and used as a guideline. Not all the items in the curriculum are in the cookbook, but most are. Where the items are not in the book, I try to find a suitable substitution.

More to Explore:





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