coffee loaf

coffee loaf

strawberry mascarpone mousse cake

strawberry mascarpone mousse cake

Mango and Passion Fruit Jam

Mango and Passion Fruit Jam

Ingredients:
(yields about 300ml of jam)

500g mango flesh (use firm, just ripped fruits)
50g passion fruit pulp
200g granulated sugar*

Method:

1. Place passion fruit pulp in a sieve, drain remove the seeds and retain the juice.
2. Cut mango into small chunks and roughly mash with a fork. Place mashed mangoes, passion fruit juice and sugar in a stainless steel pot or a large saucepan. Mix well. (Note: use non-reactive pots made with stainless steel, glass or enamel, avoid pots made with copper, aluminum or cast iron which would react with acid).
3. On medium heat, stirring constantly with a heat-proof spatula or a wooden spoon, bring the mixture to a full rolling boil (when the bubbles do not stop or lessen when you stir it). Once the mixture starts to boil, skim away any excessive foams or bubbles, stirring constantly all the time.
4. Keep at a slow rolling boil for another 5 ~ 10 mins, stirring constantly till the mixture thickens, becomes clearer and transparent (no more foams).
5. Remove from heat. The jam will be a little runny when hot but the consistency will be just right after it has cool off.
6. Ladle hot jam into hot sterilised jars, fill to the brim. Secure lids. Let cool. Unopened jam will keep up to 3 months if stored in fridge or in a cool, dark cupboard. Once opened, store in fridge and best consumed within 3 weeks.

Note:
*Do not reduce the sugar, as the amount is required to preserve the jam.

Cheese Flautas with Cilantro Pesto

Cheese Flautas with Cilantro Pesto

- serves 3 -
Adapted from Martha Stewart.
Ingredients

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, sliced
3/4 cup hulled pumpkin seeds
1 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
2 tablespoons lime juice
salt and pepper
8 corn tortillas
1 1/2 cups grated Monterey Jack cheese
1/4 cup peanut oil
Salsa

Procedure

1. Place a skillet over medium heat. Soften the tortillas on the skillet for a few second each side. Set aside. Pour 2 tablespoons of the olive oil into a skillet set over medium low heat. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Then add the pumpkin seeds and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until browned. Scrap into a food processor along with the cilantro, lime juice, and the rest of the olive oil. Process until smooth.

2. Place a tablespoon or so of the pesto onto each tortilla. Sprinkle each with the cheese. Roll up the tortillas, and place them seam side down on a plate.

3. Pour the peanut oil into a skillet set over medium heat. Place 4 our of the tortillas seam side down in the oil. Cook for a minute and then flip. Cook for another minute, and then drain on a paper towel. Repeat with the other tortillas.

4. Serve with salsa of your choice.

roy street coffee and tea

roy street coffee and tea

photo story of starbucks concept cafe, roy street coffee and tea. beer, cheese plates, sardine plates, granola and wines.

Cheese Biscuits

Cheese Biscuits
source : Food Network

Ingredients :
2 cups self-rising flour (gue pake all purpose flour)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon sugar
1/3 cup shortening
3/4 cup grated sharp Cheddar (gue pake permessan)
1 cup buttermilk (gue pake yogurt)
Salt
1/4 stick butter, melted

Directions :
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking powder, salt, to taste, and sugar together using a fork; cut in shortening until it resembles cornmeal. Add cheese. Sir in buttermilk all at one time just until blended. Do not over stir.

Drop by tablespoonfuls, or use an ice cream scoop, onto a well-greased baking sheet. Brush dough with melted butter. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes.

French Lemon Cream Tart

French Lemon Cream Tart

This is just superb! Way better than my epidermis! I recently purchased Dorie Greenspan's Baking:From My Home To Yours and I ADORE this cookbook to no living end. It's not only great for straight-up food porn, but the writing is excellent, the details are spot-on, and the glossary is invaluable. And this tart? Fun to make, a treat for the senses (the zest is divine) and a learning experience that is guided by Dorie's well placed instructions. The Lemon Cream is adapted from none other than Pierre Herme himself and could be used in a million ways - pastry, toast, cakes, pies, cupcakes, tartlets - you name it. It's creamy and light - yet rich and decadent too - and balances sweetness and tartness just right, as far as I can tell. And the crust is crisp with just enough "give" - and sweet enough to be a shortbread all on its own. Delicious.

Crust
1 1/2 c. all purpose flour
1/2 c. powdered sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
9 T. unsalted cold butter, cut into small pieces
1 large egg yolk

Put flour, sugar, and salt in processor and pulse to combine. Add butter and pulse until mixture has pieces the size of peas and smaller. Break up the yolk and add a little at a time, pulsing after each addition. After the egg is added, pulse for 10 seconds at a time until the dough forms clumps. Then, turn the dough out onto a surface and very lightly knead the dough just to incorporate any dry ingredients.

Butter a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom and press the dough evenly into the bottom and up the sides, saving a bit of leftover dough for any patching of cracks that may occur during baking (optional). Freeze the dough for at least 30 minutes before baking (can be longer). Center a rack in the oven and preheat to 375F. Butter the shiny side of a piece of aluminum foil and place the buttered side tightly against the dough. Put the tart pan on a baking sheet and bake for 25 minutes. Carefully remove the foil. If the crust has puffed, press down those areas with the back of a spoon. Bake for another 8 minutes or until crust is firm and golden brown. Transfer to cooling rack and allow to come to room temperature.

Lemon Cream
1 c. sugar
grated zest of 3 lemons
4 large eggs
3/4 c. fresh lemon juice (4-5 lemons)
2 sticks + 5 T unsalted butter, cut into T size, room temperature

Needed: blender, instant read temperature, strainer

Bring a few inches of water to a simmer in a saucepan. In a large heatproof bowl (off the heat, at this point), combine sugar and zest between your fingers until grainy. Whisk in eggs, then lemon juice. Set bowl over pan and whisk once the mixture becomes tepid. Cook mixture until it becomes 180F. You must whisk continuously to prevent the eggs from scrambling. The mixture will become foamy, then thicken as it gets closer to 180F - and be warned, it takes at least 10 minutes.

When it reaches 180F, strain the cream into the blender and discard the zest. Let the cream cool, stirring occasionally, to 140F, about 10 minutes. Turn blender to high and add butter, 5 pieces at a time, scraping down sides as needed. Once all the butter is in, blend for 3 more minutes. Pour the cream into a container and place a piece of plastic wrap on the surface of the cream; refrigerate for at least 4 hours. Then, loosen cream with a whisk and spoon into tart shell. Serve immediately or refrigerate. ENJOY!

tarte aux fraises

Tarte aux fraises (Strawberry tart)

1. Pie shell
Make a pre-baked pie shell, for instance using the recipe here. Instructions for blind baking it can be found here.

2. Crème pâtissière (pastry cream)
Source: Pierre Hermé, Secrets Gourmands

Ingredients
- 250g milk (1/4 liter)
- 23g corn starch
- 62g sugar (divided in two)
- 3 egg yolks
- 25g butter
- 1/2 to 1 vanilla bean

Place the corn starch and half the sugar in a saucepan with a thick bottom. Add the milk slowly while whisking. Split the vanilla bean, scrape seeds, and add bean + seeds to the milk. While whisking, bring to a boil.

In another saucepan, whisk the egg yolks with the remaining sugar, for three minutes. Pour in the milk and corn starch mixture in a thin stream, whisking continuously. Bring to a boil and remove from the fire as soon as you see the first big bubbles [I think mine could have boiled a little longer, it was too runny]. Remove the vanilla bean and immerse the saucepan in a ice cold water bath (put ice cubes and water in a big bowl).

Once the cream has cooled to 50°C, add the butter, turning quickly with a whisk. The butter should not be added when the cream is too hot (over 60°C), or the cream will be grainy and the butter will lose its fresh flavor.

You can flavor the cream with:
- Coffee [of course not for use with the strawberry tart]: add 2.5g instant coffee diluted in a teaspoon of water + 2.5g natural coffee extract
Or with 1 to 2 tablespoons of one of the following:
- Cointreau
- Grand Marnier
- Kirsch
- Old brown rhum ("agricole")

3. Strawberries
If the strawberries are clean, I wouldn't bother washing them. If they're sandy, rinse them quickly and dry them carefully.

4. Glaze
[I think you can simply make a glaze from currant jelly, boiling it with a little water. I didn't have any jelly in the house, so I had to make this glaze from scratch, which tasted very much of strawberries. This glaze keeps for up to a month in the fridge.]

Source: Pierre Hermé, Secrets Gourmands

Ingredients
- 250g strawberries
- 200g sugar
- 10g pectin ("Vitpris" in France) [I used instead a kind of sugar sold specifically for making jams, I assume it contains pectin. Yes I happen to have this sugar at home because I keep buying it by mistake instead of regular sugar! I was elated to find a use for it, though I still have close to a kg to get rid of...]
- 1 tspn lemon juice

Wash the strawberries, dry them, hull them, puree them with a blender [I used a Bamix immersion blender], filter through a sieve, then pour into a saucepan. Heat the puree, then add the sugar and the pectin. Bring to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes while removing foam carefully [I didn't]. Let it cool.

5. Assembly
Spread a thin layer of glaze on the baked crust. Let it dry for a few minutes. Then spread about 1 cm (more or less, depending on your preference) of crème pâtissière on the crust. If the strawberries are large, cut them in half. Place them decoratively [I crammed as many in as possible, not focusing too much on esthetics] in the tart shell, starting with the largest ones in the center and scaling down toward the edges. Brush with glaze using a brush. If the glaze is too thick, dilute it with a tspn or two of water. Serve as soon as possible.

raspberry tart

honey with raspberry ice cream

Raspberry Honey Ice Cream

1 quart raspberries
1/3 cup raspberry honey (or any honey will do)
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup half and half
1 tsp lemon juice
1- 1 ½ cups sugar (depending on how sweet your berries are)
3 egg yolks
¼ tsp salt

Directions:

Add the yolks,sugar and honey to a medium-size bowl. Whisk together and then set aside.

Using a double boiler over medium-low heat, add the half and half, cream, raspberries and salt. Regularly whisk the mixture, heating until the temperature reaches approximately 145F. The mixture should begin to turn purple.
Once the cream mixture has reached the desired temperature, slowly add about half of the mixture to the eggs and sugar while whisking vigorously. This will prevent the eggs from curdling. Once the eggs and cream have been thoroughly integrated, pour back the egg mix into the remaining cream.

Whisk constantly and slowly as the mix rises in temperature. Once the temperature has reached 165-170F -- or when the mix evenly coats the back of a spoon -- remove from heat and add the lime juice and vanilla. Whisk them in completely and run through a sieve to remove any raspberries seeds. Move to a new container to cool. The mix can be placed in the freezer for 2 to 3 hours or, preferably, into the refrigerator overnight.

Churn according to your ice cream maker's instructions. After churning, place in freezer to firm up. I recommend placing a seal of plastic wrap tight against the ice cream after making it to prevent a skin from forming on the ice cream's surface. Serve once firm enough.

Source: Adapted from My Husband Cooks

old fashioned waffles and strawberries and syrup

Old Fashioned Waffles

2 cups milk
1 tsp salt
3 eggs separated
2 1/4 c flour
3 tsp baking powder
100g butter, melted

Beat together milk, salt and egg yolks, mix flour and baking powder. Once combined, add the melted butter and beat until smooth. Leave to stand about 2 hours. Beat egg whites until stiff then fold into mix. Pour about 3/4 c of mix onto hot buttered waffle iron and close. Cook until golden brown. Makes 8-10 waffles.

waffle recipe from The Best of Annabel Langbein: Great Food For Busy Lives (revised and expanded edition)

babycakes

Miniature Devil’s Food Cake

La treccia di Cocozza

La treccia di Cocozza
Treccia dolce di Cocozza

Questa splendida ricetta non è farina del mio sacco, bensì della cara Cocozza. Quando ho visto la sua treccia russa soffice soffice, me ne sono subito innamorata. Io ho optato per un ripieno di semi di papavero, ma voglio provarla anche con un ripieno di noci o di altra frutta secca. Le temperature sono un po' scese, il forno può essere riacceso!!
Scusate se in questi giorni latito un po', vorrei venire a leggere tutti i vostri blog, ma sto passando delle giornate di fuoco. Recupererò, promesso!

Ingredienti

* mezzo cubetto di lievito di birra o una bustina di liofilizzato
* 200 ml di latte
* 90 gr di zucchero
* 90 gr di burro
* 2 uova
* 600 gr di farina
* 1 cucchiaino di sale
* 50 gr di burro, dello zucchero e 4-5 cucchiai di semi di papavero per il ripieno

Preparazione: fare un lievitino sciogliendo il lievito nel latte e aggiungere tanta farina fino a che non diventa una crema densa. Coprire con un po' di farina e lasciare lievitare finché non avrà fatto tante bolle (una mezz'oretta circa).
Al lievitino aggiungere gli altri ingredienti e lavorare, poi lasciarlo lievitare un'oretta circa. Riprendere l'impasto e stenderlo a rettangolo su una spianatoia e spalmarci burro, zucchero e semi di papavero. Rotolarlo e farci un taglio lasciando un po di spazio all'inizio. Avvolgerlo come un torciglione metterlo in uno stampo da plum cake imburrato e farlo lievitare un'altra oretta. Infornare a 180° per circa 40 minuti.

Treccia dolce di Cocozza

Deutsche Ecke
Russischer Hefezopf

Zutaten

* 1/2 Hefewürfel
* 200 ml Milch
* 90 g Zucker
* 90 g Brutter
* 2 Eier
* 600 g Mehl
* 1 TL Salz
* 50 g Butter, etwas Zucker und 4-5 EL Mohn für die Füllung

Zubereitung: Die Hefe in der Milch auflösen und soviel Mehl hinzugeben, bis ein dickflüssiger Teig entsteht. Mit etwas Mehl bedecken und so lange gehen lassen, bis der Vorteil Blasen schlägt (ca. eine halbe Studen).
Dem Vortei alle anderen Zutaten (außer Füllung!) hinzugeben und gut kneten. Circa 1 Stunde gehen lassen. Den Teig auf einer bemehlten Arbeitsfläche zu einem Rechteck ausrollen, die Butter, etwas Zucker und den Mohn darüber verteilen. Das Rechteck längs rollen, in der Mitte längs durchschneiden, wobei das obere Ende zusammen bleiben soll. Die zwei Teile zu einem Zopf rollen. In eine gebutterte Kastenform geben und eine weitere Stunde gehen lassen. Im vorgeheizten Ofen bei 180° ca. 40 Minuten backen. Die Mengen ergeben zwei kleine Zöpfe.

Postato da Alex

Spaghetti with Strawberries

Spaghetti With Strawberries
From Sfoglia Restaurant

Ingredients

1 pound good-quality dried spaghetti (like Setaro)
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for finishing
1 pound ripe strawberries, cleaned and halved
2 tablespoons good aged (eight-year-old) balsamic vinegar
1 cup San Marzano tomato purée
4 ounces reserved pasta water
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Freshly grated parmesan, for serving (optional)

Directions

1. Cook the pasta in rapidly boiling salted water until al dente.
2. In a large sauté pan, warm the olive oil and half of the strawberries over medium heat. Cook until the strawberries start to release juice. Add balsamic and reduce by half.
3. Add tomato purée, the rest of the strawberries, and the reserved pasta water, and reduce by half again until the sauce thickens. Season to taste.
4. Toss with spaghetti. Finish with olive oil and black pepper.

seedlings in newspaper

Maple Cardamon Mousse And Strawberry Tartelettes

Triple-Decker Decadence Cookies

Triple-Decker Decadence Chocolate Cookies

Ingredients

* 1/2 cup butter, softened
* 3/4 cup granulated sugar
* 1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/8 teaspoon salt
* 1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
* 1 egg
* 2 teaspoons vanilla
* 1-1/3 cups all-purpose flour
* 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
* Chocolate Ganache

1. In a large bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugars, baking soda, salt, and pepper; beat until combined, scraping bowl occasionally. Beat in egg and vanilla until combined.

2. In a small bowl, whisk together flour and cocoa powder. Gradually beat or stir into egg mixture. Divide dough into two portions. Shape each portion of dough into a 1-1/2-inch-diameter log (about 8 inches long). Wrap each log in plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour or freeze for 30 minutes or until firm enough to slice.

3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Working with one roll at a time, unwrap chilled dough and cut into slices about 1/4 inch thick. Place slices 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.

4. Bake in the preheated oven for 8 minutes or until edges are set. Cool on cookie sheet for 1 minute. Transfer cookies to a wire rack; let cool.

5. For each three-cookie stack, spread 1 teaspoon Chocolate Ganache evenly over the bottom side of one cookie. Top with a plain cookie, top side up. Spread with 1 teaspoon Chocolate Ganache. Top with another cookie, top side up. Pipe remaining Chocolate Ganache over tops of cookie stacks. Chill 30 minutes to set. Makes about 14 cookie stacks.

Chocolate Ganache: In a small microwave-safe bowl, combine 6 ounces chopped bittersweet chocolate and 1/3 cup whipping cream. Microwave on 100 percent power (high) for 1 minute. Stir until mixture is melted and smooth. Let stand about 30 minutes or until mixture thickens enough to spread. Makes about 1 cup.

To Store: Layer plain cookies between sheets of waxed paper in an airtight container; cover. Store at room temperature for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw cookies, if frozen, before stacking and serving. Or store stacks in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Leah is clearly a Licker

gingerbread cake with coffee icing

Gingerbread Cupcakes With Candied Ginger
Karen DeMasco and Mindy Fox

November 24, 2009

Makes 18 cupcakes.

CANDIED GINGER
One 3-inch knob fresh ginger
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

CUPCAKES
3/4 cup stout beer, such as Guinness
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons brewed coffee
3/4 cup dark molasses, such Grandma's
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup packed dark brown sugar, or organic dark brown molasses sugar, such as Billington's
1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons grapeseed oil
3 tablespoons Demerara sugar
2-1/2 tablespoons finely grated fresh ginger
1 large egg
1-3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons purpose flour
2-1/4 teaspoons baking powder
2-1/4 teaspoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2-1/4 teaspoons ground ginger
1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

ICING
1-1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup brewed coffee, or more if needed, cooled
1 tablespoon dark molasses, such as Grandma's
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

To make the candied ginger, peel and thinly slice the knob of fresh ginger lengthwise. Cut each strip into thin sticks. Put the ginger in a small saucepan, cover with cold water, and bring to a boil over high heat. Strain out the ginger, return it to the pan, and repeat this process two more times. Drain the ginger and set it aside.

Combine 1 cup of the granulated sugar and 1 cup water in the same saucepan, stirring to make sure all of the sugar is damp. Bring to a boil, add the ginger, and simmer over medium-low heat until the ginger becomes translucent, about 10 minutes.

Strain out the ginger, discarding the syrup, and spread it out on baking sheet. Toss it with the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar and leave it to dry for 2 hours, or overnight.

For the cupcakes, preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a standard 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners, and line 6 more cups in a second muffin tin.

In a large saucepan, bring the beer, coffee, and molasses to a boil; whisk together to combine. Remove from the heat and whisk in the baking soda. Be cautious; it will bubble up quite a bit. Let the mixture sit for 5 minutes to cool.

In a large bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, oil, Demerara sugar, and grated fresh ginger. Whisk in the egg. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, cocoa powder, ground ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, white pepper, and salt. In three additions of each, alternately whisk the flour mixture and the beer mixture into the brown sugar mixture to combine.

Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups, filling them about three-quarters of the way. Bake, without opening the oven, for 20 minutes. Then turn the tins and bake until the cupcakes spring back to the touch and a cake tester inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean, about 5 minutes more. Invert the cupcakes onto a wire rack, turn them top side up, and let them cool completely.

To make the icing, put the confectioners' sugar in a mixing bowl and whisk in the coffee, molasses, and vanilla. If the glaze is too thick for dipping, add another 1/2 tablespoon coffee. Dip the top of each cupcake in the molasses icing and then top it with a couple of strands of candied ginger. Return the cupcakes to the wire rack to let the icing set up, at least 30 minutes. The cupcakes can be kept in an airtight container at room temperature for a day or in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

From The Craft of Baking: Cakes, Cookies, and Other Sweets with Ideas for Inventing Your Own by Karen DeMasco and Mindy Fox. Copyright 2009 by Karen DeMasco and Mindy Fox. Published by Clarkson Potter. Used by permission of the publisher. All rights reserved.

Lavender Chiffon Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Lavender Chiffon Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon dried lavender
2/3 cup water
1/2 cup unflavored vegetable oil (canola or safflower)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
zest from 1 lemon
2 1/4 cups cake flour (I used all purpose flour with no problem)
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, separated
7 large eggs, at room temperature, separated
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
Cream Cheese Frosting (see recipe below)
Berries for decoration

To make the lavender chiffon cake:
Cut a round of parchment paper to fit the bottom of the pan and cut out a hole in the middle to fit the center tube of the pan. This cake is baked in an ungreased pan because greasing the pan would keep the batter from rising and gripping the sides of the pan as the cake bakes.

Preheat the oven to 325F.

In a large measuring cup or medium bowl,combine the oil, water, vanilla and eggyolks. Whisk until well combined.

Over a large piece of parchment paper or bowl sift together the flour and baking powder. Add 1 cup of sugar, the dried lavender, lemon zest and salt and stir together.

Make a well in the center of the mixture by pushing the dry ingredients towards the side of the bowl. Add the oil mixture. Using a rubber spatula, stir together until thoroughly combined.

Place the egg whites in the grease free bowl of an electric mixer or in a large grease free bowl. Using the wire whip attachment or a hand held mixer, whip the egg whites on medium speed until they are frothy. Add the cream of tartar. Slowly sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar and continue whipping until the egg whites hold glossy and firm but not stiff, peaks, about 5 minutes.

Fold the egg whites into the cake batter in 3 to 4 stages, blending thoroughly after each addition. Transfer the batter to the tube pan. Use the rubber spatula to smooth and even the top.

Bake for 1 hour, or until the cake tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.(Mine took 45-50 minutes).

Remove the pan from the oven and invert it over a cooling rack onto its feet or over a funnel or a thin necked bottle. Let the cake hanf to cook completely. Don't set the pan on a cooling rack on its base. This will cause the cake to collapse onto itself.

Don't shake the cake out of the pan before it is cool. Once the cake is cool. use a thin blade knife or flexible blade spatula to run across the outer edge and the inside tube to help release the cake from the pan. Invert the cake onto a rack, then reinvert onto a serving plate.

To make the cream cheese frosting:
4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 stick ( 4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1.5 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Using a stand mixer,fitted with a paddle attachment or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter together until smooth and creamy. Gradually add the sugar and continue to beat until the frosting is velvety smooth. Beat in the lemon juice and vanilla extract.

sagaform design

juicy cups, sagaform, 2010. via.

Dean & Deluca's 15 Licorice Varieties

1. White Duet Licorice Drops: Hard and very chewy with a chalky, grainy mouth feel. Really intense peppermint flavor.

2. Black Duet Licorice Drops: Similar texture to the white variety, with a creamy vanilla and caramel flavor, followed by a slight aroma of anise and ammonia.

3. Double Salt : This candy is stamped with a "DZ," which stands for "double salt" in Dutch. It was probably the worst candy I've ever eaten. After about five seconds on my tongue, I realized it tasted just like ammonia or perm solution and I spit it out! I'm not sure if it's really edible.

4. Licorice Mounties: Brown exterior had a strong maple flavor with notes of black coffee and a sandy texture. The interior had a traditional black licorice flavor with a semi-soft texture.

5. Licorice Buttons: These super hard and chewy little dots were full of berry and vanilla aromas and had a floral licorice flavor.

6. Salmiak Rocks: Simply the complete opposite of the Licorice Mounties.

7. Honey Licorice: Even thought this candy boasts a lovely beehive design, it didn't taste one bit like honey. It has a sweet and ammonia-like flavor with a crumbly texture.

8. Licorice Ice: This little tube has a very satisfyingly sweet hard candy shell that cracked when bitten into. It's filling was light peppermint-flavored, with a nice creamy, vanilla background.

9. Money Licorice: These made me want a return on my money. They had a papery, cardboard flavor that was laced with must and ammonia. They were also really hard and chewy. Perfect for a filling removal.

10. Black Kookaburra: Yum. Soft and chewy, spicy and delicious, with lots of molasses and cloves.

11. Licorice Caramel: These were my favorite! Super soft like a Kraft caramel, with a milky, floral flavor that reminded me of lots of lavender.

12. Licorice Mint: The same as number 11, with a bright, spicy, peppermint swirl.

13. Mango Kookaburra: Soft and sticky texture with tart, acidic, like an under ripe mango flavors.

14. Green Apple Kookaburra: Bright green apple scent and flavor, with a salty start and a chalky finish.

15. Raspberry Kookaburra The gourmet version of a Twizzler. Lots of acid and tang, followed by a sweet and salty, bright red berry flavor.

via http://www.seriouseats.com/2010/05/licorice-at-dean-and-deluca-candy.html

spring blossoms

spring blossoms via http://www.leogren.com/

perfect spring party dress

vintage 60's perfect spring party dress

perfect spring party dress

vintage 60's perfect spring party dress

blooming crystal glasses

By Joe Colombo in the 1970's, this set of crystal drinking glasses is like a blooming flower. The irregularly-shaped vessels are designed so that they can nest into one another.

strawberry dumpling

Strawberry Dumpling, gourmet

Serves 6

* Active time: 15 min
* Start to finish: 40 min

June 2009

Test kitchen director Ruth Cousineau learned how to make this stovetop dessert from her husband’s family, who would throw it together it after picking pounds of strawberries to freeze for the winter. And it couldn’t be easier: Simply stir an easy biscuit dough into the boiling fruit, cover, and cook until the dough bakes up into a fluffy, cakelike dumpling dripping with sweet, juicy strawberries. All you need to add is a drizzle of heavy cream.

* 1 qt strawberries, trimmed and thickly sliced (about 4 cups)
* 2/3 cup sugar
* 1 cup all-purpose flour
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
* 2/3 cup whole milk

Accompaniment:
heavy cream

* Stir together strawberries and sugar in a 4-qt heavy saucepan and let stand, stirring occasionally, until juicy, about 15 minutes. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
* Meanwhile, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Blend in butter using a pastry blender or your fingertips until mixture resembles coarse meal with some roughly pea-size butter lumps. Stir in milk until just blended, then add mixture to boiling berries and stir once or twice. Tightly cover saucepan and reduce heat to low. Cook, undisturbed, until dumpling looks dry on top, 15 to 18 minutes. Let stand off heat, uncovered, 5 minutes before serving.

Recipe by Ruth Cousineau

Photograph by Stephanie Foley

cake pops

cake pops from Confection Concoctions, Spanaway, WA

trix treats

trix treats. via http://www.flickr.com/photos/plaidponyvintage/2102094038/

found!

turns out it wasnt a tumblog which is why i couldnt find it. it was http://thxthxthx.com/.

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah.

via http://bit.ly/dbN6vk (an entry from yesterday! thank goodness for late night last minute surfing)