Holy Canoli

Umm kid, I'm going to tell you a story about canoli. There was a guy had his first ever canoli somewhere in Little Italy, and he fell in love for that holy canoli at the first bite. But somehow he wanted to change all of the ingredients in order to make a healthier version of canoli. And then he realized, it won't be the same canoli.

That's the intro about this Canoli Recipe. I've been wanted to make canoli for a long time ago, and finally yesterday I made that holy canoli from the scratch. Even for the canoli shells. It was a long process but trust me, totally worth it. 

I got this recipe from FoodNetwork.com courtesy Alex Guarnaschelli recipe. Ooh and I used grape juice for white wine substitute, because I don't drink. So here's the recipe,

Ingredients

Shells:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1 egg yolk

1/2 cup dry white wine ( I used grape juice )

Filling:

2 cups ricotta cheese, preferably whole milk

3/4 cup powdered sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon ( I skipped this one)

1/4 teaspoon allspice ( I skipped this one also )

1/4 cup heavy cream

1/4 cup small semisweet chocolate chips

1 lemon

1 quart canola oil, for frying

Flour, for rolling

1 egg, lightly beaten, for egg wash

Powdered sugar, for dusting

Directions

For the shell dough: In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, sugar and salt. Work the butter pieces into the flour with your fingers until the mixture becomes coarse and sandy. Add the egg yolk and the white wine and mix until it becomes a smooth dough. Spread a piece of plastic wrap on a flat surface and place the dough in the center. Wrap the plastic loosely around it and press the dough to fill the gap. Flattening the dough will mean less rolling later. Let it rest in the fridge for a few minutes while you make the filling.

For the filling: In a medium bowl, whisk the ricotta until smooth. Sift in the powdered sugar, cinnamon and allspice. Mix to blend. In a separate bowl (or in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment), beat the heavy cream until fairly stiff. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold the cream into the ricotta mixture. Stir in the chocolate chips. Lightly zest the exterior of the lemon and stir it into the ricotta. Refrigerate for a half hour to an hour.

To roll and fry the shells: In a medium pot with a heavy bottom, heat the canola oil to 360 degrees F. Meanwhile, sift an even layer of flour on a flat surface. Flour a rolling pin. Roll the dough until it is very thin (about 1/8-inch thick). Cut the dough into fourths and work in small batches. Use any glass or small bowl that has a 3-to-4-inch diameter. Cut rounds, tracing around each one to assure the dough has been fully cut. You should have about 24 circles. Wrap each circle around a cannoli mold. Use a little of the egg wash on the edge of each round to seal it shut and to assure it won't slide or fall off the mold before pressing it closed over the mold. Flare the edges out slightly from the mold. Flaring will allow the oil to penetrate each cannoli shell as they fry. Use a pair of tongs to hold the edge of the mold as you submerge and fry the shell in the oil until crispy, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the oil, and holding the mold in one had with your tongs, gently grip the shell in your other hand with a kitchen towel and carefully slide it off the mold. Set aside to cool. Repeat with all of the circles.

To fill the cannolis: Just before serving, use a pastry bag without a tip to pipe the ricotta into the cannoli molds. Fill the cannoli shells from both ends so the cream runs through the whole shell. Dust with powdered sugar. Powdered sugar gives that little extra sweetness and added texture to the exterior. It also makes me feel like I have a professional bakery touch in my own home. Serve immediately.

I know it is a very loooong recipe, but trust me it's totally worth it.

Eclairs Recipe

Wow ternyata sudah 4 bulan ngga ngeblog ahaha *tutup muka. Padahal sebenernya seperti biasa gue ngga ada kerjaan. Tapi kok bisa sih ngelupain blog segitu lama. Eh tapi pernah paling parahnya sampe setahun full ditinggalin deng *gawat ;p Makanya sekarang sekalinya ngeblog lagi langsung nulis dua resep aja deh yaa.

Cream puff alias kue soes ini adalah salah satu dari beberapa kue yang pertama kali gue buat waktu awal-awal nikah dulu. Karena almarhum suami gue adalah penggemar berat kue soes. Bener-bener semua jenis kue soes pokoknya. Jadi harus belajar bikin dong ya demi suami. Apalagi di kecamatan ngga ada yang jual yang versi proper nya. Jadilah mulai dari eclair, profiteroles, cream puff dan Paris Brest semuanya deh udah pernah gue bikin jaman dahulu kala itu. Padahal sebenernya gw paling juara malesnya kalo udah disuruh bikin soes haha *kapan lo ngga malesnya Din? ;p 

But the struggle was real. Like sooooo real. Because it wasn't easy to bake due to particular things you have to really be careful and be patient in every steps. Otherwise it will get flat, and omg it was so stressful aaarggh. And when I finally found the perfect recipe from Rachel Allen, I was sooo freakin happy. Because I can finally bake his favorite dessert to perfection, well at least according to his preference lol :p

And honestly after he passed away, I rarely make them anymore because it reminds me of him. But then, I realize I can't stay in the past, because I did for so long. I have to move on to another chapter. Total clean slate. So I dedicated this french delicacies especially for him. May God bless him with lots of cream puffs in Jannah ;)

Untuk filling custardnya, gue pake resep Honeykki yang mana resep aslinya sebenernya pake Earl Grey tapi karna gue lagi gemes pengen bikin semuanya serba thai tea jadi gw ganti pake bubuk thai tea yang merk number one. 

Custard

- 3 egg yolks

- 50 grams sugar

- 30 grams cake flour

- 250 ml milk

- 2 teabags tea ( gue pake bubuk thai tea 2sdm) 

- 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract 

Steps:

1. Put sugar and cake flour in a large saucepan. Gradually stir in a small amount of milk, making a smooth paste. Gradually stir in remaining milk mixture until blended. Put vanilla and teabags into the mixture.

2. Put the pan over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and comes to a bubbly.

3. Stir mixture into slightly beaten egg yolks.

4. Return to heat and cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly until it thickens. Remove from the heat immediately. Cool thoroughly. 

Whipped cream

- 200 ml whipping cream

- 2tbs sugar

Steps :

1. Increase mixer speed to medium and begin whipping. For the first several minutes, the cream will be very frothy and bubbly.

Mix the whipping cream just until the cream reaches soft peaks and gradually add the sugar. Continue to mix it until reaches stiff peaks.

2. Fold in the chilled custard into whipped cream. Chill until you are ready to use it.

Kali ini gue agak curang sih sebenernya, karena gue pake eclair yang beli jadi waktu pas nemu di Titan, jadi tinggal bikin filling sama ganache nya aja. Much simpler kaaaan hahaha. Tapi gue tetep masukin resepnya Rachel Allen di bawah kok :) 

Eclairs

Rachel Allen

Ingredients

Choux pastry

• 100g (3 ½ oz) strong white or plain flour( gue pake tepung cakra kembar)
• Pinch of salt
• 150ml (1/4 pint) water
• 75g (3oz) butter
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1 extra egg, beaten - to brush eclairs 

Method

Choux Pastry

1. Sift the flour and salt into a large bowl and set aside
2. Place the water and butter in a medium-sized saucepan with high sides (not a low sauté pan) set over a medium-high heat, stirring until the butter melts. Allow the mixture to come to a rolling boil then immediately remove the pan from the heat. Add the flour and salt and beat very well with a wooden spoon until the mixture comes together.
3. Reduce the heat to medium and replace the saucepan, stirring for 1 minute until the mixture starts to ‘fur’ (slightly stick to the base of the pan). Remove from the heat and allow to cool for 1 minute.
4. Pour about one-quarter of the beaten egg into the pan and, using the wooden spoon, beat very well. Add a little more egg and beat well again until the mixture comes back together. Continue to add the egg, beating vigorously all the time, until the mixture has softened, is nice and shiny and has a dropping consistency. You may not need to add all the egg or you may need a little extra. If the mixture is too stiff (not enough egg) then the choux pastries will be too heavy, but if the mixture is too wet (too much egg) they will not hold their shape when spooned onto greaseproof paper.
5. Although the pastry is best used right away, it can be placed in a bowl, covered and chilled for up to 12 hours, until ready to use.

Eclairs

1. Preheat the oven to 220°C (425°F), Gas mark 7. Line a baking tray with parchment paper (not greaseproof paper, as the éclairs may stick when cooked).
2. Place the dough into a piping bag fitted with the plain 5–8mm (1/4–3/8in) nozzle and pipe into lengths approximately 10cm (4in) long onto the prepared baking tray, spaced about 4cm (1 ½ in) apart to allow for expansion. Use a small wet knife to stop the dough coming out when you have finished piping each éclair.
3. Brush the éclairs gently with the beaten egg and bake in the oven for 10 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 200°C (400°F), Gas mark 6 and continue to cook for a further 15–20 minutes or until the éclairs are puffed up, golden and crisp.
4. Remove the éclairs from the oven and using a skewer or the tip of a small sharp knife, make a hole in the side or the base of each éclair. Return to the oven and bake for a further 5 minutes to allow the steam to escape. Transfer the éclairs to a wire rack to cool.
5.  When the éclairs are cool, spoon the custard into a clean piping bag fitted with the small, plain nozzle (or use the same nozzle used for piping the éclairs) and pipe the cream into the éclairs through the hole made by the skewer or knife until they are well filled. 

White Chocolate Ganache

- 100g white chocolate, chopped

- 100ml whipping cream/heavy cream

Steps :

1. Place the chocolate into a medium bowl. Heat the cream in a small sauce pan over medium heat. Bring just to a boil, watching very carefully because if it boils for a few seconds, it will boil out of the pot. When the cream has come to a boil, pour over the chopped chocolate, and whisk until smooth.

2. Allow the ganache to cool slightly before dipping the eclairs in. 

Sekarang pada ngerti kan ya kenapa gue dulu malas banget kalo disuruh bikin eclair? Karena prosesnya panjang banget belum lagi peer banget masukin custard nya ke dalam eclair :D Tapi semuanya sepadan dengan hasilnya kok hehe. Selamat mencoba ;)

Roasted Chicken

Sebenernya udah lama sih bikinnya, sekitar 1,5 tahun  yang lalu *LOL tapi belom sempet nulis resepnya alias males. Why oh why although all I have was just time haha. But better late than never right??

So here's the recipe

Resep :

1 ekor Ayam utuh (sekitar 1kg )

1/2 sdm Dried Rosemary

2 sdm minyak zaitun

2 sdm butter

1 buah lemon utuh

2 siung bawang putih 

Garam secukupnya 

Merica secukupnya 

Cara :

- Bumbui ayam dengan garam, merica, Rosemary, dan minyak zaitun

- Geprek bawang putih, masukkan ke dalam badan ayam

- Masukkan lemon utuh ke dalam badan ayam

- Masukkan butter ke dalam kulit ayam agar menghasilkan kulit yang kering

- Tutup ayam yang telah di bumbui dengan Aluminium foil lalu simpan dalam kulkas minimal 30menit agar bumbu meresap ( semalaman lebih baik)

- Panaskan oven 180c

- Panggang ayam dengan Aluminium foil di suhu 180c selama 45menit , lalu lepas aluminum foil dan panggang lagi selama 45menit di suhu 200c

This roast chicken goes along with mashed potato or roasted potato and gravy. But if you typical Indonesian just like me, then a hot bowl of rice and sambal will do too :D