Chocolate-Coconut Sherbet

And now back to the super easy ice cream recipes; this one happens to also be dairy-free with the possibility of a low-fat option. The cookbook description calls it something like Mounds in a cup - if you like coconut and chocolate, you'll like this!

After experimenting with a coconut-based vanilla rum ice cream (recipe still to be perfected), I've realized that great coconut flavor comes from coconut cream, so I might try to make a version of this with coconut cream to replace the coconut milk and sugar components. Meanwhile, I would recommend this as an easy recipe that is refreshing, but a little icy and very sweet. To be eaten in small amounts, or paired with a creamier, less-sweet ice cream like the caramelized white chocolate recipe I just posted.

Chocolate-Coconut Sherbet

from David Lebovitz' Ready for the Dessert

1 C water

1 C sugar

5 oz. bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped

2 C canned Thai coconut milk (low-fat will make this icier)

1-2 T dark rum (dark rum has a more caramelly flavor than light)

In a medium saucepan, heat the water and sugar til boiling. Stir to dissolve. Whisk in the chocolate off the heat until completely melted. Stir in coconut milk and 1 T rum.

Pour the mixture into a blender and blend until smooth. Taste and add 1 T rum if desired.

Refrigerate until completely chilled, then freeze in ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Coconut Milk Ice Cream: Blackberry Lemon

So, the good news is that I've found a great coconut milk-based ice cream recipe that's easy to make, experiment with, and render low-fat. The other good news is that you will want to sit down and eat it all at once, which could make this bad news for some of you.

It all started when I was forwarded this link to the best vegan ice cream recipes out there. I don't normally keep ice cream in the freezer, since I'm lactose intolerant, so this vegan ice cream thing is tempting me into a life of constant freezer goodness.

I first made the Caramel-Cinnamon Ice Cream with Black Gingerbread Chunks in a version that involved homemade spiced marshmallows, fleur de sel caramel sauce, Vietnamese cinnamon, dark chocolate chunks, and toasted pecans. I meant it to be a spicy caramely version of Rocky Road, but I'm really at a loss for what to call it. Whatever it was, it was tasty, and the homemade marshmallows really turned into wonderful chewiness in the frozen dessert.

I successfully substituted so many ingredients from the original recipe that I knew I could mess with it even more. This time I wouldn't make the mistake of adding more than a cup of mix-ins, since that made for super chunky ice cream, but I would replace the caramel sauce with blackberry jam and lemon curd, the cinnamon with a touch of ginger, add a bit of agave to sweeten it, and swirl in a ribbon of berry syrup.

The ice cream itself ended up incredibly creamy; next time I would probably leave out the berry syrup and just add it as a topping, since the water content of the uncooked berries froze very hard - or I would make the syrup break the berries down more before swirling it in to the ice cream. The lemon curd really made this flavor, so don't back away if berries and lemon sound strange to you.

Here's my take on this super easy, fabulously adaptable recipe:

Blackberry Lemon Coconut Ice Cream

1 C light coconut milk

2 C lactose-free, vanilla soy, or coconut creamer

1/4 C no sugar added seedless blackberry jam (strain to remove seeds)

1/4 C lemon curd (I love TJ's)

3 T agave syrup

1/4 tsp ground ginger

pinch salt

2 T corn starch

2 tsp vanilla extract

Combine the coconut milk and creamer in a medium sauce pan, along with the jam, lemon curd, agave, ginger, salt, and corn starch. Whisk vigorously to combine and beat out any lumps. Turn on the heat to medium, and whisk occasionally until it just comes up to a boil and has thickened significantly. Cool completely and add the vanilla. Chill thoroughly in the refrigerator. Before churning the ice cream, prepare any add-ins (berry syrup, chocolate chunks, etc.). Once the ice cream base is chilled, churn in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions (mine took 20 minutes total), adding any add-in in the last 5 minutes of churning. Transfer to an air-tight container, and freeze solidly for at least 4 hours before serving.

Blackberry Syrup

1/3 C water

3 T agave syrup

1/4 tsp lemon zest

12 oz. blackberries

Combine ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium heat, and simmer for 8 minutes. Watch to make sure it doesn't boil over, stirring from time to time. After the 8 minutes, remove from heat. Optional: add up to 2 tsp liquor (brandy, framboise, etc.) and another 12 oz. of berries to add texture to the syrup. Let cool before mixing into the ice cream, or serve warm/room temperature as a topping on the finished ice cream.

How to adapt this recipe:

• Replace the liquid sweeteners (jam, lemon curd, agave) with up to a total of 1 C of another liquid sweetener (the caramel Rocky Road version had 1 C of fleur de sel caramel sauce from Trader Joe's).
• Replace the ground spice (ginger) with up to 1 tsp of another ground spice (the original had 1 tsp of cinnamon). Take care to not overwhelm the flavor you're trying to achieve - start with 1/4 tsp, taste, add more if you prefer.
• Add up to 1 C of chunky/chewy add-ins: marshmallows, chocolate chunks, nuts, berries, cookies, cake crumbs, etc. Adding more than 1 C will mean you are chewing your ice cream rather than licking it.

Hazelnut White Chocolate Truffles

This is a recipe that I sort of ended up making by accident; I initially saw this list of candy recipes on Epicurious.com and wanted to make the Brown Sugar-Pecan Balls (still do!), but the truffle recipe was slightly simpler and fit better into the limited time that I had. The truffles started out as Coconut Macadamia Truffles, but I swapped in hazelnut for the macadamia due to the contents of my freezer, and brandy for the rum ('cause I've always got brandy around...), and suddenly the flavor was hijacked by the nuts and a hint of brandy bitterness.

These are great if you need a sweet treat that takes very little prep time, and can be made ahead - you just need to allow for the 4 hours setting time and time to roll them into balls prior to serving. Definitely a good holiday candy!



Hazelnut White Chocolate Truffles

8 oz. white chocolate chips
1 C (5 oz.) dry salted roasted hazelnuts
1/4 C heavy cream
2 T brandy (omit or reduce to 1 T if you aren't a fan)
1 1/2 C finely shredded unsweetened desiccated coconut

Finely grind white chocolate in a food processor and transfer to a bowl. Pulse nuts in food processor until finely ground (be careful not to grind to a paste).

Bring cream to a simmer in a medium skillet. Remove from heat and stir in brandy. Whisk in white chocolate until melted and ganache is smooth. Stir in nuts. Pour ganache into a plastic-wrap–lined 8-inch square baking pan and chill, uncovered, until firm, about 4 hours or overnight.

Invert ganache onto a work surface and remove plastic wrap. Cut ganache into 64 squares and roll each piece between your palms to form a ball. When all balls are formed, roll in coconut to cover completely, then chill truffles, covered, until ready to serve.

Alfajores con dulce de leche

I just made these bad boys (from the beautiful blog flagrante delícia), and I have to say that I feel sorry for my roommate, whose gluten- and dairy-free life prevents her from indulging in the decadence of thick creamy caramel just barely contained by flaky shortbread. Add chocolate and coconut on top, and I've now consumed the amount of calories I burned in my 90 minute run today...thank goodness I ran!

I've always been hesitant to make caramel by boiling a closed can of sweetened condensed milk for hours, since I feel like I should be able to make real caramel (see Dave Leb's post on how to make it just right) from good ole sugar and cream. However, for dulce de leche I decided to give this method a try, and I see the merit: it produces a wholly different consistency and flavor than could be produced through scratch caramel creation, and the process couldn't be simpler. I would recommend making the caramel a day or two prior to making the cookies, since it takes so long to be done (3.5 hours) and needs to cool completely before you work with it.

A couple of pointers on the alfajores: the crumbly dough will need to be worked into a ball by hand, and then should be rolled out as thin as possible; if it is thicker than 3-4 mm, the cookies will take longer than 5 minutes to bake. To produce the tenderest cookies possible, you'll want to remove them from the oven before they're browned on top. You'll know that they're done when they've puffed a bit taller (as in the photos, you can see some layers on the side of each cookie) and when you poke at them they feel dry to the touch and slide on the parchment paper. They end up very delicate, so dipping in chocolate is difficult unless you have the right equipment. You can always drizzle with chocolate instead!

If you don't have a kitchen scale, I've converted the gram measurements into American volume measures in parenthesis.

Alfajores con dulce de leche

Makes 40 (20 pairs):

Dulce de leche

1 can sweetened condensed milk

Place the can totally immersed in water in a pan.
Bring to boil over high heat.
Reduce to low heat and keep boiling for 3 1/2 hours.
Add water as needed.
Open the can when completely cold (very important!).
You can also use a pressure cooker.

Alfajores:

112 g cornstarch (1 C)
125 g wheat flour (1 C)
1 egg
50 g butter, softened (~ 1/2 stick)
62 g icing sugar (1/2 C)
2 g baking powder (1/2 tsp)
1 tsp vanilla extract

Pre-heat the oven to 250ºC.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy.
Add the egg and the vanilla extract and continue mixing until well combined.
Add the sifted flour with the cornstarch and baking powder and mix until smooth.
Roll out the dough (3-4mm thick) over a floured worksurface.
Cut 5 cm diameter cookies.
Place the alfajores into the prepared baking sheet.
Bake for 4-5 minutes.
Transfer cookies to a wire rack until completely cool.

Spread the bottoms of half of the cookies with a generous layer of dulche de leche.
Sandwich together with remaining cookies.
Coat with chocolate or grated coconut.

Chocolate-Dipped Coconut Macaroons

Yes, macaroooooons. The mounds of sweet coconut that have nothing to do with Parisian macarons. I've been looking for a good recipe for ages, and finally have a keeper (thank you David Lebovitz!).

I love that the French call these rochers à la noix de coco; little rocks of coconut. This is helpful in distinguishing them from the Parisian macarons, which are merengue (read: whipped egg white)-based delicacies, unlike these heavier, chewier little mounds.

The secret to the delicious chewy texture, I discovered, is cooking the ingredients on the stove top prior to forming the cookies. My less-successful rounds of coconut macaroons merely had you throw the ingredients together in a bowl, and then bake up the cookies in the oven, and they always came out less chewy and more dry than I like.

Even though I used the incorrect kind of coconut (only had sweetened dried coconut in my kitchen this week), they still turned out famously. Whether you think of coconut macaroons as a Christmas treat, Passover treat, or fourteenth of July treat, I'm guessing you would enjoy this easy recipe on any occasion.


Coconut Chocolate Macaroons (aka American Macaroons!):
grâce à Dave Lebovitz

4 egg whites
1 1/4 C sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 T honey
2 1/2 C unsweetened coconut* (if using sweetened coconut, reduce sugar by 1/4 C)
1/4 C flour (not a strictly unleavened Passover sweet!)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 oz chocolate chips, for dipping

In a medium-sized skillet on the stove top, combine egg whites, sugar, salt, honey, coconut, and flour. Stir constantly over low-medium heat, scraping the bottom of the pan to prevent burning. Stir until the mixture just begins to scorch (when some of the liquid has evaporated and the mixture is thickening, and you hear the pan contents sizzling a bit when you stir).

Off the heat, mix in the vanilla. Set aside in a bowl to cool.

When ready to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. On a parchment- or silicone pad-lined baking sheet, make 1 1/2 inch mounds of the coconut mixture. Bake 18-20 minutes until golden brown on top.

If you want to dip them in chocolate:
When cookies have cooled, melt the chocolate chips (in the microwave for 30 second-bursts at a time, stirring between bursts, or in a double boiler on the stove) and dip each cookie in the chocolate. Place the dipped cookies on a baking pan lined with plastic wrap, and place the pan in the refrigerator until the chocolate has hardened.

*unsweetened coconut is also called coconut powder, medium shredded coconut, and coconut flakes.

Notes on Guimauve

My marshmallow-making experiences in the last month have confirmed the, um, resilient nature of my recipe of choice. Not only does it turn out fine (fine = tastes good enough to serve to other people!) if I over whip the egg whites (although it does fall at a certain point and create a more gelatin-y marshmallow) or if the liquid is as much as 1/4 C more than the recipe calls for (although the mallows may need to dry a bit longer once cut), but it also is versatile because it may be formed in interesting ways. So far I have successfully formed them with a cookie cutter, as with the marshmallow baby rattles I made, and now by piping a stiffly whipped guimauve with icing piping bags.

When I piped the mallow with a medium round tip, I was able to create the marshmallow kisses pictured above, pipe cursive letters, and even form simple shapes like little ducklings. I'm thinking these would be fun decorations for cakes and cookies, but for pop-in-the-mouth goodness, the best were the marshmallow kisses dipped entirely in chocolate (in the background below). Yum!

I also tried some new flavors that turned out well:

Butter (salty/sweet):
per whole guimauve recipe:
4 tsp. Wilton butter flavoring
coat marshmallows in a mixture of equal parts confectioner's sugar with granulated sugar, with a few pinches of kosher salt added

Coconut:
per whole guimauve recipe:
3 tsp. fresh coconut water
3 tsp. coconut extract (imitation if necessary)
coat marshmallows in granulated sugar (which will form a nice sugary crust on the outside) or also with shredded or toasted coconut if desired

S'mores:
coat plain marshmallows in graham cracker crumbs and dip in melted chocolate; to improve upon the one pictured below, I would have toasted the crumbs and maybe would have glued a square of graham cracker on the bottom of each with a dollop of melted chocolate.

A Little More Cupcaking Around

Last week there were 2 occasions that served as excuses to make something special; I schemed for several weeks to come up with something sufficiently inspiring, and this is what came about. I am starting to feel like I need a coup de foudre, as the French would say, in order to want to make something. A coup de foudre could literally mean a "clap of thunder," but it is mostly used to describe love at first sight - a moment of passion that seizes you all of a sudden, with involuntary captivation. Any foodies out there get me? I feel a bit lost in the kitchen without the electricity of creative passion. While this general premise previously inspired me, this time the new prospective flavors and icings got me all whipped up again.

General premise: make a good white cake mix (or from scratch if you have more time and a good recipe) and divide the batter evenly up into 6 bowls. Plan your flavors and make icings to match! Last week I opted to top half of them with buttercream frosting and half with cream cheese frosting, to make some of them a little less sweet and the selection more diverse.

Here they are (left to right): coconut, Oreo, orange ginger, mocha, brown sugar au fleur de sel, and chocolate dipped strawberry.


I find these naked cupcakes to be nicely photogenic, with their varying colors and surfaces, but wait 'til you see what they became...as a general decorating technique, I wanted the decorations to clearly reflect the cake flavor, while being pretty, of course! If you decide to do a batch of only one flavor, do make sure to increase your flavoring proportions appropriately.

Buttercream Icing
1 C butter
1 t vanilla
1 lb. powdered sugar (approx. 4 C)
2 T milk (reduce for stiffer icing)

Cream the butter and vanilla with an electric mixer or stand mixer until well combined. Add the powdered sugar gradually until smooth. Add milk 1 T at a time; use less for stiffer icing. I recommend starting with stiffer icing for these cupcakes, since you will be adding more liquid for some of the flavors which will make it softer. When you are piping icing onto cakes, you generally want the piped icing to be stiffer than icing spread on the cake with a spatula (stiff icing will pull the cake apart as you spread it, but when piped holds shape better).


Oreo Cupcakes
Batter: Mix in 2-3 tsp. unsweetened cocoa powder. Pour batter into cupcake pan and insert a whole Oreo into each cupcake - place flat on top of the batter and gently push down until batter rises over the sides of the Oreo. Fill in the middle top with plain white batter (see the unfrosted ones above with white tops and brown sides?). Once baked, this results in a soft cookie on the interior that you can see the profile of when a bite is taken of the cupcake - so cute!

Decoration: Buttercream frosting: Load plain frosting into a piping bag with a medium round tip. Pipe in concentric spirals on top of cupcake, building up as desired. Top with halves or quarters of Oreos and microplane/grate some dark chocolate over the top. Use reduced-fat or sugar-free Oreos to make this a tad healthier.



Mocha Cupcakes
This mocha guy is very similar to the mocha cupcake I made last time, but I added small chunks of chocolate on top and made the coffee slightly stronger. Still a hit! I love how he stands at attention at the head of the other cupcakes in this picture.




Brown Sugar au Fleur de Sel Cupcakes
It is nearly impossible to pick a favorite for myself from among these 6 flavors, but I will say that this one appeals strongly to my current salty/sweet attraction.
Batter: Make caramel in a saucepan on the stovetop: let 1/3 C brown sugar sit in the saucepan with 1 T water (do not stir, but swish pan occasionally) until bubbles form on the surface; then pull the pan off the heat before it burns, and stir in 3 T butter and 1/4 t fleur de sel or sea salt until butter is melted and all is thoroughly combined. Let cool slightly, then mix into the cake batter. Pour into the cupcake pan and top each with several flecks of fleur de sel.

Decoration: Buttercream frosting: Stir in broken-up brown sugar and a pinch of sea salt (to taste). Make sure to break up the brown sugar chunks and only add small salt pieces, as they will block the decorating tip if they are too big. Use a large star tip in your decorating bag and start making concentric spirals on top of the cupcake, building up to a conical swirl on top. Sprinkle with brown sugar and a few flecks of fleur de sel. Use the fleur de sel sparingly, as it is easy for it to overwhelm the sweetness - a little bit goes a long way. If you are not going to serve the cupcakes immediately, you may want to wait on sprinkling the brown sugar on top; it may dissolve into brown liquid droplets if there is any condensation on the cupcakes in the refrigerator.


Cream Cheese Frosting
1 cube butter, softened
8 oz. cream cheese
1 lb. powdered sugar (approx. 4 C)
1 t vanilla

Cream the butter and cream cheese with an electric mixer or stand mixer until well combined. Add the vanilla and powdered sugar gradually until smooth. This icing starts out softer than the buttercream; if you find that this icing gets too thin when you add the flavoring, feel free to mix in more powdered sugar one spoonful at a time until it thickens up as desired.


Coconut Cupcakes
These were the most disappointing to me, simply because I got very excited about the idea of coconut being paired with toasted pecan, but in the end there wasn't a strong coconut flavor to the cake. I was unable to find coconut extract, and ended up using a coconut pudding mix when I could have had more success with coconut milk. Still, the cake ended up moist due to the pudding, and it tasted good if not super coconut-y.
Batter: Stir in 1/4 of Dr. Oetker Organic Coconut Pudding Mix package and 1/4 C shredded sweetened coconut.
Decoration: Cream cheese frosting: Mix in another 1/4 package of coconut pudding mix. Using medium star tip pipe in concentric spirals onto cupcake, building up into a cone. Top with toasted coconut shreds (toast your own on the stove top, stirring constantly) and toasted pecan bits.


Orange Ginger Cupcakes
Lovely, light, freshly orange cupcakes; these were good for folks who preferred less sweet dessert. The ginger is barely discernable.
Batter: Mix in 2 T freshly squeezed orange juice, 1 large pinch orange zest, and a pinch of grated fresh ginger.
Decoration: Cream cheese frosting: Add 2 t freshly squeezed orange juice and a pinch of freshly grated ginger; stir in more powdered sugar to thicken as necessary. Add a small drop of red food coloring and a few drops of yellow if orange color is desired. Pipe onto cupcakes with medium round tip and top with orange zest.


Chocolate Dipped Strawberry Cupcakes
I consider these cupcakes a fabulous success; the batter ended up very moist and full of strawberry flavor with a tint of chocolate, and the cream cheese frosting was a great complement.
Batter: Add 1/4 C condensed strawberry purée (if making 6 cupcakes, reduce for less). Instructions for the purée on this previous post. Use a small grater or microplaner to grate enough bittersweet chocolate into the batter so that when stirred in the occasional fleck is visible in the midst of the strawberry seeds. These will not rise like the other cupcakes, but don't worry! They will taste great.
Decoration: Cream cheese frosting: Pipe on with medium round tip. Top with a strawberry half, stem included, and surround with small bittersweet chocolate chunks. If making a day ahead, wait until right before serving to put the strawberries on top.


Final tip: Take a sharp knife along when you serve them so that folks can try slices of the different flavors without going sugar crazy!