Tablier taché

for the dough: 440g butternut squash, roasted 560 g bread flour 30g brown sugar 80 ml milk 9g dry yeast 3 large eggs at room temperature - save one yolk 9g salt 230g butter, cubed cold 1. Roast the squash, break it into purée and set aside to cool. 2. Scale the flour, sugar and pumpkin in a bowl. 3. Heat up the milk to feel warm to the finger touch. Add the yeast and let it stay for an about five min, than stir to dissolve the yeast completely.  4.  Add to the mixer bowl. 5.  Add the room temperature eggs plus one egg white, saving one egg yolk for glazing the bread.  6.  Start mixing on slow, while having the butter close to you. 7. Start adding butter two three cubes at a time and mix until the butter is fully incorporated before adding the next portion of butter. increase the mixing speed to medium halfway through the butter quantity.  8. Add the salt 9. Mix until all the butter is fully incorporated. The dough will be very smooth, glossy a...

The rhubarb pie I have never tried before. Then I was involved into a conversation at work how perfect the combination between rhubarb and strawberry is. There still was some time before the strawberry season was over, I thought it is time to try this. for the pâte sucrée: 190 g all purpose flour 70 g confectioners' sugar 25 g almond meal 115 g unsalted butter, softened 1/2 tsp vanilla extract 25 g egg (half large egg) Few strawberries in my garden are trying to be kissed by the late summer sun, playing 'hide-and-seek'   under the big leaves of the plant. I found even one flower - happily blooming in its proud beauty, but unfortunately never to produce any fruit. Nights are getting colder - all the perennial plants in the garden prepare for their long winter sleep. My beautiful roses, of course, require much more attention than any other plant. This is their strongest season - no harmful insects, crisp fresh air, warm day sun. I love the roses i...

for the cookies: 180 g unsalted butter 70 g vegetable shortening grated zest from two lemons 310 g sugar 5 g salt 1 large egg 8 g vanilla extract 60 ml lemon juice, freshly squeezed  625 g flour 18 g baking powder prepare the cookies: 1. Cream the butter, shortening and the zest together. Add the sugar and beat until creamy fluffy. Add the salt. 2. Add the egg. Beat until well combined. Add the vanilla extract and half the lemon juice. Mix lightly. 3. Incorporate half of the flour, alternating with the other half of the lemon juice and the rest of the flour. Mix until the dough is formed. 4. Divide the dough in two. Roll it out between two pieces of wrapping foil. Place on a flat surface and refrigerate for 2-3 hours. 5. With a round cookie cutter, cut out cookies. 6. Using a cookie cutter with a smaller diameter, cut the centre of half of the cookies to form a ring. Make the cut out centres into button cookies. 7. Place all the coo...

adapted from the recipe of Christophe Felder for the brioche: 250 g flour 30 g sugar 1 tsp salt 3 g dry yeast 3 large eggs 130 g butter, softened 1 egg, beaten, for the wash 1. Scale the flour, sugar and salt in a bowl. 2. Add the yeast. 3. Add the eggs and knead to form a dough. 4. Add the butter piece by piece until well incorporated. 5. Cover with foil and refrigerate for 2 hours. for the huney-almond paste: 100 g honey 80 g butter 80 g sliced blanched almonds 1. Heat the honey and butter in a pan. Let it cook for about 10 seconds. 2. Add the almonds and stir to coat. Set aside to cool. Tailoring: 1. Preheat the oven to 180 C. 2. Take the brioche out of the fridge. Roll the dough 6 mm thick. 3. Using 8 cm round cutter, cut out the rolled dough in small brioches. Let them rise for 2 hours. 4. Give each brioche an egg wash. Spread a teaspoon of the honey mixture on top of every brioche. 5. Bake for about 10 min. Transfer on a wire rack to co...

Some creations speak for themselves. Fresh puffs, filled with chocolate pastry cream are a classic dessert. for the chocolate pastry cream: 250 ml milk 3 egg yolks 50 g sugar 30 g corn starch 20 g Dutch processed cocoa 1 tsp vanilla extract 1. Bring the milk to boil. 2. Beat the egg yolks, sugar, starch and cocoa without over beating.  3.  Pour half of the hot milk into the egg mixture, stirring constantly (dissolving the sugar). Pour the yolk mixture back to the pot where the other half of the milk is and place over medium heat.  4. Stir constantly with a whisk attachment, until thickens. 5. Place the pastry cream in a deep dish, cover it with cling foil, (the foil should touch the cream). Leave to cool at room temperature. 6. Stir the cream and fill a piping bag with a star attachment.  7. Cut "the lids" of the puff pots and fill with the cream. Cover with the lids. 8. Serve the same day.

with the glorious help of Chef Ani: Chef Ani made working on the Joconde sponge a pure satisfaction. She worked very passionately stencilling the shells in the following steps: 1. Prepare the Ribbon Sponge 2. Divide in batches. 3. Colour each batch. 4. Stencil. 5. Refrigerate. 7. Prepare the Joconde sponge, spread, bake and cut, following the instructions in Flower Power post. There are few early flowers in the garden. There are much more on the table. I can not wait to see my garden in full bloom.  The chocolate mini cakes are decorated in different colours and represent different flowers. All of them - great favourites of mine.  Which else to start with, but with the Queen of all flowers - the rose.... My childhood memories are always full of colours. Most favourite are the ones I built in the meadow, braiding head wreaths out of wild flowers. I close my eyes and I feel the sun rays, kissing the flowers around, I sense the...

Crispy cut-out cookies that are made with molasses. That is how they have the signature dark colour and are perfect canvas for decorating in snow motives with a contrastingly white royal icing. These spicy cookies are perfumed similarly to the Lebkuchen , but because of their high fat quantity, they are harder and able to keep their crispiness even after stored for months. These should be rolled out very thinly. I rolled mine to 3 mm (even less on one batch) and produced more than hundred.  for the cookies: 140 g unsalted butter 110 g molasses 125 g custard sugar 250 g all purpose flour 70 g cornstarch 1/2 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp baking soda 1 Tbsp cinnamon 1/4 tsp ground cloves 1/8 tsp nutmeg 1/8 tsp cardamom grated rind of one lemon 1/4 cup ground almonds 5.5 cm 6-point star cookie cutter prepare the cookies: 1. In a heavy-bottomed pan, warm the butter, sugar and molasses, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Do not bring to boil. Leave to ...

In these cold autumn days I still have some flowers in the garden. How beautiful is that?! Surely, it is magically inspiring. Dessert making is even more satisfying - it gives me the feeling of cosines and warmth. With a cup of herbal tea or hot chocolate, autumn is magnificent. I chose today's dessert to be this classic french almond tart Frangipane.  It is really delicious and have an extraordinary mild taste. It is a real celebration of the almonds. I baked it in my favourite cast iron skillet. Why? Well..., just because I really like my heavy skillet and it has never been used for preparing any desserts. Any tart pan or ring with a diameter 20-22 cm (8") will do the work. for the pâte sucrée: (adapted from the recipe of Sebastin Rouxel) 190 g all purpose flour 23 g powdered sugar I 47 g powdered sugar II 25 g almond meal 115 g unsalted butter at room temperature 1/2 tbsp vanilla extract 1 egg yolk  1. Combine the flour, first quantity of...

Thanksgiving is an extraordinary day. I have discovered the gracefulness of this beautiful holiday while living in Canada. Being grateful is a wonderful feeling.  The season is so amazingly inspiring - all the colours and warm sun, the bright blue sky and the birds in preparation for leaving, the orange pumpkins, sneaking from below the big green umbrellas of their leaves and the juicy heavy apples and pears,  twisting the brunches of the trees.  I love autumn.  This year's Thanksgiving dessert gave me hard time to prepare. I was wondering how to include the pumpkin into a delicate French recipe, how to make nuts present in a celebration of their harvesting, and at the same time to keep the taste and elevate it even more.  For this Autumn Roll, you will need to prepare the following recipes: Ribbon Sponge, Joconde Sponge, caramel sauce, Mousseline Cream (Pumpkin Pastry Cream & Meringue type Caramel Buttercream), quater recipe of ...