Foodle: I Measure in Grahams

It's been a crazy few weeks, but I just got my first "big girl" job as a pastry cook 2 at the Eau Palm Beach Resort & Spa! To make up for lack of posts I provided two super yummy graham cracker inspired desserts. So here goes...Enjoy!

My dad is a picky eater, I mean my whole family is picky but my dad is my hardest customer to please. For someone like me who tries to keep things new and fresh it is challenging to experiment with fun flavors and still have some guinea pigs willing to try it. I had a bench test last week for a new job opportunity and wanted to try out a graham cracker cookie recipe (below) which I used in two ways at home. Half was for refreshing nectarine peach ice cream sandwiches and the other was for rich chocolate strawberry cheesecake bars. Yummy right? Well even my dad thinks so!

Graham Crackers

Yield: 30, 2 ½” round graham cookies (for 15 nectarine peach ice cream sandwiches) and 1, 8”x 8” layer of graham for the chocolate strawberry cheesecake bars

Tools: extra flour, rolling pin, 2 ½” round (preferably fluted) cookie cutter, plastic wrap, cookie sheets, 8”x 8” pan

Ingredients:

¾ cup	125 grams	All Purpose Flour
1/3 cup	58 grams	Brown Sugar
¼ tsp.	2 grams	Baking Soda
¼ tsp.	1 grams	Salt
2 ½ Tbsp.	33 grams	Unsalted Butter, cubed
1 Tbsp. + 2 tsp.	36 grams	Orange Blossom Honey
1 Tbsp. + 2 tsp.	26 grams	Milk
2 tsp.	9 grams	Vanilla

Method of Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350^oF. Measure out all ingredients.

2. Cut the first five ingredients together with a pastry blender. Make sure there are no more butter chunks.

3. Measure honey, milk, and vanilla into a container.

4. Stir in the liquid ingredients into the dries.

5. Mix until ingredients are just combined. Dough will be sticky.

6. Dust some flour in the center of a square of plastic wrap. Place 2/3 of the dough in the center.

7. Flour hands and shape into thin rectangular shape.

8. Wrap up dough and refrigerate overnight.

9. Spray an 8”x 8” pan with nonstick spray, flour hands, and press the remaining dough into the pan. Bake until golden and crisp.

10. Once the other piece of dough is cold, take out a small piece at a time and roll out to 1/8” thick.

11. Dip round cutter into extra flour, and cut out graham cookies.

12. Place on cookie sheet ½” apart. Bake less than 10 minutes, until edges are golden and cookies are crisp. Cool and set aside for ice cream sandwiches.

Nectarine Peach Graham Ice Cream Sandwiches

I had a straight out of the magazine moment yesterday. You know when they describe what seems like an overly elaborate food (the one with all those ingredients that are never conveniently in your fridge) and a picturesque food and family moment. Well after plating this all pretty for my follower, I asked my dad to try it. I think he was so tired and sweaty from working on our new front door, he would eat anything but after just one bite he grabbed the bowl and said, “I’ll take care of this for ya,” with a wry smile.

Nectarine Peach Ice Cream

Yield: 1 quart of ice cream, about 12 ice cream sandwiches.

Tools: sauce pot, blender or immersion blender, ice cream maker, rubber scraper, hard plastic spoon, strainer, ice cream container, plastic container, knife, peeler, cutting board

Ingredients:

1 ea.	113 grams	Peach
2 ea.	241 grams	Nectarine
½ cup	95 grams	Sugar
1 Tbsp.	14 grams	Lemon Juice
1 ½ cup	371 grams	Half and Half
¼ cup.	47 grams	Sugar
½ tsp.	4 grams	Salt
1 Tbsp.	9 grams	Vanilla
¼ tsp.	½ gram	Dried Ground Orange Peel

Method of Preparation:

1. Place ice cream maker bowl in freezer if necessary.

2. Peel and pit fruit.

3. Place the peel and pit in a small sauce pot.

4. Roughly chop up the fruit flesh, place in blender.

5. Add ½ cup (95 grams) sugar, lemon juice, vanilla, and salt to fruit flesh.

6. Add half and half, ¼ cup (47 grams) of sugar, and dried ground orange peel to sauce pot.

7. Cook to a boil then cover and infuse flavors for 20 to 40 minutes.

8. In the meantime, blend fruit flesh and other ingredients until smooth and slightly frothy.

9. Once infusion is ready, strain out pieces.

10. Using a rubber scraper be sure to push as mush dairy and flavor out of the peels.

11. Add dairy to blender or use a stick blender to emulsify the two liquids.

12. Cool in clean plastic container in the fridge overnight (flavor will further develop).Stir before churning.

13. Spin in ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions (i.e. turn machine on then add ice cream).

14. Once ice cream reaches soft serve consistency, transfer it into a freezer safe container and freeze about 2-4 hours until firm.

...to finish

· When firm, scoop onto 2 ½ inch round graham cracker. Press another cracker on top, push down, and smooth all the way around with a spoon.

· Place a table spoon of silan (date honey) at the bottom of the bowl and use a pastry brush to spread it upwards in one curved swoop.

· Stand up ice cream sandwich in the bottom of the bowl and add a fresh sprig of citrus mint to garnish.

Nectarine Peach Ice Cream in a Graham Cracker Sandwich
with Silan (Date Honey) and Citrus Mint

This ice cream treat added the right kinda sunshine to a hot day!

Finger Lickin' Good!

Dad looked like he was enjoying one so I gave it a go!

Hot Day = Bowl is a Necessity!

Chocolate Strawberry Cheesecake Bars

Since moving to Florida, my family has had weekly dinner with our local friends and family and I was going to make cookies but I was told by (guess who?) my dad, to “Make something special, like from your fancy website (not this, i.e. my portfolio)!” Well, all my culinary friends know it is a bit challenging to make high end plated desserts or entremets at home in the matter of 2 hours. Like, helloooo no blast freezer! ..or fleximolds, expensive ingredients, couverture…need I say more? But since I aim to please I had a go at making something a bit more “special” at home.

Strawberry Cheesecake

This may look like a bigger batch in my pictures because I made a double…whoops I forgot this recipe makes A LOT of cheesecake…don’t worry my dad will take care of the extra. But, so you folks can save a dime and make the correct amount, I sized it down for you.

Yield: 16, 2”x 2” servings

Tools: 8”x8” pan, pan spray, stationary mixer or hand blender, rubber scraper, knife and cutting board

Ingredients:

2, 8 oz. packs	454 grams	Cream Cheese
¾ cup	189 grams	Sugar
3 Tbsp.	35 grams	Cornstarch
2 ea.	90 grams	Eggs
1 tsp.	3 grams	Vanilla
¾ cup	181 grams	Cream
About a ½ quart	250 grams	Fresh strawberries, chopped

Method of Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 300^oF Measure out ingredients (use measurements above, remember I made too much).

2. Mix cream cheese on medium speed for 3 minutes in a stationary mixer with a paddle attachment. Scrape down sides.

3. Whisk together sugar and cornstarch.

4. Add sugar to cream cheese. Mix on low speed until combined.

5. Scrape down sides

6. Mix on medium-high for 4 minutes until silk smooth. Scrape down sides.

7. Measure all of the liquids into a container.

8. Slowly stream in liquids while mixing on low speed.

9. Add strawberries and combine.

10. Pour into sprayed pan and bake until set.

11. Allow to cool and remove any heavily caramelized parts or crunchy edges. (You should still totally eat them, they’re delicious but the rich luscious caramel flavor doesn’t belong in the strawberry cheesecake bars).

12. Clean mixing bowl and paddle, scoop the strawberry cheesecake into the bowl and paddle for 3 minutes on medium-high speed. Set aside for use in the bar recipe that follows.

Soft Ganache

Microwave 1 cup (160 grams) of chocolate and 2/3 cup (160 grams) of heavy cream for increments of 30 seconds. Whisk until smooth. Set Aside.

Krispy Crunch Layer

Microwave 1 cup (160 grams) of chocolate until soft. Mix with just enough rice krispies so they are lightly coated with chocolate. Spread over the graham cracker layer in the pan with a rubber scraper. Press firmly with rubber scraper to make a flat, even layer. Place in freezer to set quickly.