March 15, 2017

Pears Helene

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Pears Helene

(Poire belle Hélène)

March 15: National Pears Helene Day

We have posted recipes for Peach Melba and Melba Toast on our blog before. Now we are trying Pears Helene. All of these dishes were invented by a French chef during the 19th century.

Auguste Escoffier created Peach Melba at the Savoy Hotel in London, England, in 1892 or 1893, in honor of Australian opera singer Nellie Melba (he revised the recipe in 1900 when he became head chef at the Carlton Hotel). In 1897, Escoffier also made Melba Toast for her when she was ill.

Apparently, even great chefs need inspiration and motivation. Before Escoffier named his culinary creations after Nellie Melba, he was moved to make a fruity dessert from the operetta “La belle Hélène” by Jacques Offenbach (the operetta parodies the story of Helen’s elopement with Paris, which set off the Trojan War). And voilà—he invented Poire belle Hélène in 1864.

When we get stuck in a rut and routine in our kitchen, what inspires and motivates us is the theme for a food holiday. It gives us an idea of what to make for our meal as well as for our blog, and we also get to try out new and different recipes so cooking does not get to be the same old boring chore.

For National Pears Helene Day, we were inspired to make Poire belle Hélène. Simple poached pears are upgraded to a fancy dessert status when chocolate sauce is drizzled on them, sprinkled with toasted almond slices and served à la mode! Channel Chef Escoffier and be motivated to make Pears Helene for National Pears Helene Day.

Recipe

Ingredients

  • 4 firm pears, Bosc or Bartlett, with stems
  • water
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • almonds, sliced and toasted
  • 4 ounces (1 package) semi-sweet chocolate
  • ¼ cup milk
  • vanilla ice cream

Directions

Wash and peel the pears, leaving the stems intact. Place them in a large pot and fill with enough water to cover the pears. Stir in the sugar and vanilla extract. Bring to a boil, then simmer for about 30 minutes or until the pears are softened. Drain and set aside to cool until ready to use.

Toast the almonds in a skillet to bring out the nutty flavor. Set aside to cool until ready to use. In a bowl, combine the chocolate with milk. Melt and stir until smooth.

Assemble a poached pear in a dessert dish. Pour chocolate sauce over the fruit. Scoop vanilla ice cream into the dish next to the pear. Sprinkle with almonds. Serve immediately.

Notes

 

 

March 12, 2017

Original Girl Scout Cookies

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Original Girl Scout Cookies

girlscoutdropcookies

March 12: Girl Scouts Birthday (founded in 1912)

Congratulations to the Girl Scouts, a non-profit organization whose mission is to build “girls of courage, confidence and character who make the world a better place”, for reaching 100 years of their cookie sales program in 2017. The program, which began in 1917, helps fund its mission and sustain troop activities.

We sometimes buy Girl Scout cookies. Their “Thin Mints” are our favorite, especially when we eat them right out of the refrigerator! There are many other Girl Scout cookies, from “Samoas” (caramel de-lites) and “Tagalongs” (peanut butter patties) to the newest “S’mores” (introduced in 2017 for its 100th year of cookie sales history). Their basic sugar-shorbread cookie, “Trefoils”, which now bears the Girl Scout logo, was the first cookie to be sold by local troops en masse.

We tried out the original recipe, which is for a roll-out dough. But it was too sticky to handle and we ended up making drop cookies instead. Besides, we did not have a “trefoil” cookie cutter to make the shapes so we kept it simple.

In honor of the Girl Scouts birthday, bake their original cookie recipe and indulge in the sweet treat that started the seasonal sales a century ago.

Recipe

(Adapted from the Girl Scouts)

Ingredients

  • ½ cup (1 stick) butter, softened
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tablespoon milk
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup flour
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspon baking powder

Directions

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter with the sugar. Beat in the egg. Stir in the milk. Add the vanilla extract.

girlscoutdropcookiessteps1

In a separate bowl, combine the flour, salt and baking powder. Gradually add the flour mixture to the butter mixture to make a sticky dough. Cover and refrigerate for an hour.

girlscoutdropcookiessteps2

Scoop a tablespoon of the cookie dough onto lightly greased, foil or parchment paper lined baking sheets, leaving at least two inches between the dough to expand during baking. Bake in a preheated oven at 375 degrees F for 10-15 minutes or until the edges are brown. Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

girlscoutdropcookiessteps3

Notes

  • We halved the recipe for this blog post, which yielded 1 ½ dozen 2-inch round drop cookies.
  • We substituted the vanilla extract for almond flavor and lessened the amount of sugar from ½ to 1/3 cup.
  • If making roll-out cookies, generously flour the surface and rolling pin before handling the cold dough. Roll out to ¼-inch thickness and cut out desired shapes. Sprinkle the top with sanding or colored sugars before baking.
  • Learn more about the Girl Scouts from their official website at http://www.girlscouts.org.
 

February 28, 2017

Chocolate Soufflé

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Chocolate Soufflé

chocolatesouffle

February 28: National Chocolate Soufflé Day

While going out on “date nights”, we are always impressed when we see the waitstaff present a chocolate soufflé to couples sitting at other tables at a romantic restaurant. Then we want to order one, too, because 1) it is chocolate (duh!) and 2) it looks so light, fluffy and fancy! But we can enjoy that delicious dessert at home without paying the “fancy” price. Serve soufflés with fresh berries or à la mode (with vanilla ice cream) and that makes them extra special for someone special! Extend your Valentine’s Day celebration and make a chocolate soufflé on National Chocolate Soufflé Day and the end of National Chocolate Month.

Recipe

(Adapted from Good Housekeeping)

Ingredients

  • 1 cup dark chocolate chips (or 4 ounces baking squares), melted
  • 1/3 cup sweetened condensed milk
  • 2 eggs, separated, plus 1 egg white (total: 3 eggs, minus 1 yolk)
  • powdered sugar

Directions

Spray small ceramic ramekins with nonstick baking spray with flour (such as Baker’s Joy brand) OR generously butter the bottom and sides of the ramekins and sprinkle a little sugar in them. Set aside. In a large microwave-safe bowl, melt chocolate chips according to the package instructions. Remove from the microwave and stir the chocolate with the condensed milk until smooth. Beat in two egg yolks (saving the remaining one for another recipe).

chocolatesoufflesteps1

In a separate bowl, whisk 3 egg whites until medium-stiff peaks form. Gradually add the egg whites in thirds into the chocolate mixture and fold until just incorporated. Place ramekins on a baking sheet.

chocolatesoufflesteps2

Sift about 1 scant teaspoon of powdered sugar over each of the tops. Bake in a preheated oven at 375 degrees F for 11-13 minutes or until the tops rise about half-to-an-inch above the rims of the ramekins. When done, remove from the oven and serve immediately while the tops are still risen.

chocolatesoufflesteps3

Notes

  • Avoid over baking or the soufflés will have a cake-like instead of light and airy texture with moist centers. Also do not open the oven until the end of the baking time or the soufflés will fall (scroll down to see our deflated ego soufflés on our Food Flops page).
  • Check out our cheese soufflé recipe for a savory snack. 
  • Our date nights and “month-aversaries” are not always held at fancy restaurants. Sometimes we just go out to get a pepperoni pizza or try a new ethnic restaurant. The main point is to focus on us and on our marriage, especially when life gets too busy or complacent. As marriage sponsors, we always advise our church couples to have date nights—whether fancy or frugal!
  • Search our blog for other chocolate recipes.

 

 

 

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