Momofuku Cereal Milk with Chocolate-Hazelnut Thing (vegetarian vesion)

So, you know I'm not a great photographer, right?  Sorry about the shadows.

Anyway, I've never made panna cotta before, so this was fun.  I don't think I've ever even had panna cotta.  I modified the Momofuku recipe a little to make this dessert suitable for Niall. 


To make the Cereal Milk vegetarian I used agar flakes instead of gelatin.  I halved the recipe (and also used 2% milk instead of whole) and after straining the cornflakes I had almost two cups of liquid.  I poured the liquid into a pot, added the brown sugar and salt, and sprinkled two heaping tablespoons of agar flakes on top.  I heated the liquid on the lowest heat possible without stirring.  Once the liquid was piping hot (but not boiling) I stirred in the agar flakes and continued stirring until they dissolved.  Then I poured the milk into the molds. 

Niall (who has had panna cotta) said this was a little stiff.  It may be because of the agar but most likely it's because of who was making it.  Maybe the tablespoons shouldn't have been quite so heaping. Overall, this was pretty good.  Niall probably liked it more than me because I'm not a fan of hazelnuts.  The Cereal Milk on its own tasted like milk and cereal.  But adding the chocolate-hazelnut thing with the caramelized corn flakes added sweetness and salt.

The chocolate-hazelnut thing has a praline paste, which is roasted hazelnuts with caramelized sugar.  I poured the caramel into the blender with the nuts and almost broke the blender.  (The sugar hardened right away and stuck to the sides. Luckily Niall got it fixed and cleaned.)  Once we had the paste, I mixed sugar,  powdered milk, salt, butter and cornflakes and then baked them in the oven.  Then mixed together the bittersweet (okay, half semi-sweet half baking chocolate) with the praline paste and other ingredients.  The book calls for gianduja, but I cheated and just used Nutella.  I spread the mix on waxed paper and topped with the caramelized cornflakes.  I didn't do it fast enough and the cornflakes didn't stick. 

I put it in the freezer.  After it was cold, I broke it into pieces and sprinkled it on top of the panna cotta, which had been removed from the mold.  You're supposed to make an avocado puree as well, but I didn't.  We still have half of this left (it's in the freezer) so maybe next time I'll add the avocado.

Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Frosting

I really wanted chocolate cake.  And when I saw this recipe on Kuki's Cookbook, I thought the cupcakes looked pretty.  But the recipe it kind of scared me.  It's because the idea of peanut butter frosting-raw peanut butter mixed with butter-didn't sound appealing.  But the picture looked so pretty, so I made them.  When they were done I was scared to try them.  I finally did and they tasted fine.  The chocolate cake was descent and the peanut butter frosting was good as well.

I halved the recipe and got 11 cupcakes.  I followed the recipe on the blog except I used 2% milk instead of heavy cream for the frosting.

First, I mixed the dry ingredients together.

Then mixed in an egg, the vanilla, water and oil.

Poured into the cupcake pan.

Baked at 350 degree F until done-18 minutes worked.

While the cupcakes cooled I made the frosting.  Peanut butter, butter and powdered (icing) sugar.

Mixed well then added the milk.

Then frosted the cupcakes.  There was plenty of frosting, but my version didn't look pretty.  This is about as good as it gets around here.

Homemade Thin Mints

As far as I can tell there aren't Girl Scouts cookies in the UK.  So I attempted to make homemade thin mints from Baking Bites.  Reading through the recipe comments, a number of people commented the batter was dry, didn't work, etc.  So I halved the recipe to minimize my loss.

As it turns out, the cookie batter is the best part of this recipe.  It wasn't dry.  I really liked the uncooked dough.  I didn't love the finished cookie, but I used milk chocolate instead of dark chocolate.  Once I baked the cookies the mint flavor was almost non-existant.  If I made this recipe again, I probably would add more mint to the dough, use dark chocolate and probably add some mint to the dipping chocolate.  

Ingredients

1/4 cup unsalted butter (4 ounces, 100 grams) plus 1/4 cup unsalted butter for the chocolate dip

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract

3 Tablespoons milk

1 cup + 2 Tablespoons flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 Tablespoons cornstarch (cornflour)

3 Tablespoons cocoa

10 ounces dark chocolate

In a bowl, combine the butter and sugar and mix well.  (I used the stand mixer and beat the mixture for about two minutes.)  I had read that it was important to make sure the butter was softened to room temperature.  But our kitchen is so cold that I put the butter in the microwave for 10 seconds and then another ten before adding it to the bowl.  Slowly add the vanilla, peppermint and milk while continuing to mix.

If you're a proper baker, you should mix all the dry ingredients (flour, salt, cornstarch and cocoa) together in a separate bowl and then add it to the butter mixture.  I didn't.  I added the salt, cornstarch and cocoa and mixed.  Then I added the flour and mixed some more.  The batter smelled delicious (if you're into peppermint, which I am) and tasted even better.

When the batter is well mixed, lay a large piece of Saran wrap on the counter and empty the batter onto it.  Form the batter into a long log, about 1 1/2 inches in diameter.  Wrap the batter and place it in the freezer for about two hours.  I left it in the freezer for three days.

Remove the dough from the freezer, take off the plastic, and slice into thin slices (about 1/8 inch.)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Place the sliced dough on the sheet and bake for about 12 minutes.

Remove the tray, allow the cookies to cool and remove from the sheet.

In a double boiler, add the chocolate and butter and allow it to melt.

Dip the cookies in the chocolate and place on parchment paper.  I used milk chocolate on a whim.  I think dark chocolate would be better.  Allow the cookies to cool (I put them in fridge).

Since I prefer Thin Mints frozen, I put the majority of these in the freezer.