I love caramel. If I had to choose between chocolate and caramel, I’d hands down choose caramel. And though this recipe in itself is pretty much a health hazard, both to cook and to eat, it really is worth it as long as you have it once in a while. With the copious amount of sugar, the cream, the butter and the salt, I couldn’t help but think that the serving size is a little too big, so I cut mine into 16s instead of 8s. As always, feel free to stick to the original recipe.
Sea Salt Caramels (recipe from Cookin’ Canuck):
[ 1 1/2 cups sugar + 1/4 cup light corn syrup + 1 cup heavy cream + 5 tablespoons unsalted butter + 1 teaspoon sea salt or fleur de sel ]
* Prep work:
Line an 8-inch-square baking pan with parchment paper, allowing it to drape over 2 sides, then brush the paper lightly with oil.
* Making the caramel:
In a small pot, bring the cream, butter and 1 teaspoon of fleur de sel to a simmer over medium heat. Turn off the heat and set aside.
In a deep saucepan, combine the sugar, corn syrup and water bring them to a boil over medium-high heat.
Boil until the mixture is a warm golden brown. Don’t stir — just swirl the pan.
When the sugar mixture is done, turn off the heat and slowly add the cream mixture to the sugar mixture.
* *Be careful, the mixture will bubble up violently once you add in the cream mixture.
Keep stirring and cook over medium-low heat for about 10-15 minutes, until the mixture reaches 248 degrees F (firm ball) on a candy thermometer.
Very carefully pour the caramel into the prepared pan and refrigerate for a few hours, until firm.
When the caramel is cold, pry the sheet from the pan onto a cutting board. Cut the square in half.
Starting with a long side, roll each of the caramel up tightly into an 8-inch-long log.
Sprinkle the log with extra sea salt, trim the ends and cut into 8 pieces.
Start by cutting the log in half, then continue cutting each piece in half until you have 8 (or 16) equal pieces.
** It’s easier to cut the caramels if you brush the knife with flavorless oil like corn or canola oil.
Serve or wrap individually in 4-by-5-inch pieces of parchment paper, twisting the ends. Store in the refrigerator.
Enjoy!
I’ll admit that this post was more of a concession to my perpetual need to cook than something that was carefully planned. I just had to cook something. Anything. And so came about this twist to the classic strawberry shortcake. I originally wanted to make mango shortcakes but someone or other seems to have eaten the mango for iftar yesterday, so I’m using caramelized bananas instead. Meh, c’est la vie. Feel free to substitute other fruits for the bananas.
Coconut Shortcake (basic shortcake recipe from Joy of Baking)
[ 2 cups all-purpose flour + 1/4 cup sugar + 2 teaspoon baking powder + 1/4 teaspoon salt + 1/3 cup cold, unsalted butter + 1 large egg + 1/2 cup coconut milk ]
Preheat oven to 190 degrees C and place rack in middle of oven.
Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or spray with cooking spray.
In a bowl, whisk the flour, sugar and baking powder and salt.
Cut the butter into small pieces and blend into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs.
Whisk the coconut milk with the egg and pour into flour mixture. Mix until just combined, do not overmix.
The dough will look a little scraggly but don’t be tempted to add more flour.
Turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead gently.
Pat the dough into an 18-cm round and cut circles using a 3 inch (7 cm) round cookie cutter.
Place the scones on the baking sheet. Brush the tops of the scones with a little coconut milk and sprinkle some sugar on top.
Bake for about 15 -20 minutes or until nicely browned and a toothpick inserted in the center of a scone comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
Caramelized Bananas (recipe from Food.com) :
[ 2 Bananas, each sliced at an angle to 6 pieces + 4 tablespoons of sugar ]
Pour sugar onto a plate. Roll bananas in sugar, until completely coated.
Spray a medium size nonstick pan, and heat over medium high heat. Add bananas and sugar.
Cook bananas until light to golden brown underneath, about 4-5 minutes.
Gently flip bananas over to brown other side, turning heat down to medium. The second side will brown in about one minute.Transfer to a plate that has been coated with cooking spray and set aside.
Coconut whipped cream:
[ 2 cups whipped cream, whipped until stiff + 4 tablespoon coconut cream ]
Mix the two cream together and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Assembly:
Take a shortcake and spoon about 4 pieces of bananas onto it.
Top with a rounded tablespoon of coconut whipped cream and take another shortcake to top it off.
Enjoy!
I sat through a grueling midterm yesterday and was looking forward to sleep in on the weekend when I remembered that earlier during the week I agreed to take some food pictures for Graha. I had to make the puff pastry from scratch. At 10PM. He owes me big and he knows it. I’m thinking lunch at our usual Korean BBQ place will cover for this favour very nicely indeed.
So angst aside, this is Jamie Oliver’s recipe for banana tarte tatin. You can always swap the bananas for any other fruits; stone fruits, strawberries, or go for the classic by using apples. If you have frozen puff pastry available then this recipe; the prep and cooking will take about 30 minutes. And it’s unbelievably good served warm with ice cream.
Banana Tarte Tatin:
Caramel & Banana:
[ 60g unsalted butter + 160g caster sugar + 1 teaspoon zest of orange + 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon powder + 4 bananas ]
Preheat your oven to 180°C/350°F/gas 4
Cut your butter into cubes and put into a sturdy deep-sided baking tray approximately 19 x 30cm
Place the tray on a low heat, let the butter melt, then add the sugar and stir constantly until completely combined
Continue to cook for about 5 minutes or until the sugar has all dissolved and the mixture is golden and caramelized. By the time this happens the mixture will be roasting hot so be very careful and whatever you do, DON’T be tempted to put your fingers in the mixture as you’ll give yourself a nasty burn
Meanwhile, peel the bananas, halve them lengthways, and lay them carefully on top of the golden caramel
Remove from the heat, then sprinkle over the cinnamon and finely grate over the zest of half your orange
ASSEMBLY:
Dust a clean work surface and rolling pin with flour
Roll out your puff pastry (homemade or store-bought) until you have a rectangle shape (or any other shape) about the same size as your tray and about 0.5cm thick.
Drape your pastry over your rolling pin and carefully lay it on the baking tray, gently tucking it around the bananas to make sure they’re well covered, with no gaps
Using a knife or fork, prick the pastry a few times
Place the tray at the top of the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden
Serve warm with some ice cream, crème fraîche or any other fluffy dairy product you like. I served mine with some whipped cream and honey with an extra pinch of cinnamon.
Enjoy!
