Extracting a Little Knowledge About Vanilla

Photo Credit: Nicole Franzen via Saveur

 As the most widely used form of vanilla, it’s no wonder why you'll never fail to find a bottle of extract in every kitchen pantry. And so choosing a good-quality pure vanilla extract is a good idea, as it will enhance your favorite recipes and make them taste even better. But which variety to chose?

The three most common types of vanilla extract are:

Madagascar Bourbon: Creamy, rich, and floral. This is the most commonly used of the vanilla varieties; it compliments other flavors without overwhelming them.

• Origin: Madagascar and Réunion (formally known as Île Bourbon, hence its name!) 
• Appearance: Long and skinny with a thick and oily skin 
• Uses: Baked goods like cookies and cakes; flavored beverages

Mexican: Spicy, smooth, and bold. Mexican vanilla has a similar, but stronger flavor than Madagascar, making it a great choice when you want to showcase vanilla as the main flavor in a dessert.

• Origin: Mexico (the birthplace of the vanilla bean!)
• Appearance: Similar to the Madagascar Bourbon bean, but a touch thicker and darker in color
• Uses: Cream based desserts: ice cream, custards, crème brulee, whipped/pastry cream, buttercreams, and icings

Tahitian: Aromatic, sweet, and fruity, with hints of licorice. Tahitian vanilla is less subtle in flavor when compared to the other varieties. Due to its unique aroma, this variety is also used in savory dishes and perfumes. 

• Origin: Tahiti
• Appearance: Flat and wide, but contain fewer beans and are shorter compared to other varieties
• Uses: Jams and chutneys; cream based desserts and sauces; seafood, game, and poultry dishes

To learn how to make your own vanilla extract at home, here's a great how-to video by Le Gourmet TV:

But for an easier option, you can always just purchase it, too. Some of my favorite vanilla producers include: Singing Dog Vanilla, Penzeys Spices, and HawaiianVanilla Co.

Berry & Nectarine Slab Pie

With Labor Day quickly approaching, summer is officially coming to an end. It will only be a matter of time before the warm flavors of pumpkin, apples, and cinnamon invade bakeries across the country. But a quick trip to the farmers market, and I had an abundance of nectarines, berries, and cherries. What to do with them? That’s where a little inspiration from Martha Stewart’s Slab Pie came into the equation.

And guess what? There’s no pie dish required for this recipe. Slab pies are rectangular and made on shallow sheet trays, providing an unexpected twist that goes beyond the circumference of the traditional 8 sliced dessert.

Martha Stewart’s Slab Pie (Adapted) 

Ingredients:

All-purpose flour, for dusting

Cornmeal Pate Brisee, recipe below

2 1/2 pounds fresh mixed berries and sliced nectaries (about 6 cups total)

1 1/4 cups granulated sugar

1/4 cup cornstarch

Juice of 1/2 lemon 

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons heavy cream

1/4 cup turbinado sugar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll out larger piece of dough to an 18-by-13-inch rectangle. Fit into a 15-by-10-inch rimmed baking sheet, pressing into corners (pastry will hang over sides). Chill while assembling filling.
2. In a large bowl, stir together berries, granulated sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, and salt. Spread mixture over chilled pie shell.
3. On a lightly floured surface, roll out remaining piece of dough to a 16-by-11-inch rectangle; drape over filling. Fold edge of bottom dough over top dough. Pinch edges to seal. Prick top dough all over with a fork. Brush entire surface of pie with cream, and sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
4. Bake until crust is golden brown and filling bubbles, 40 to 55 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack, and let pie cool until it is just warm to the touch, about 45 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature, cut into 12 pieces. Slab pie is best eaten the same day it is baked, but it can be kept at room temperature, loosely covered with plastic wrap, for up to 2 days.

Cornmeal Pate Brisee:

4 3/4 cups all purpose flour

1/4 cup cornmeal

1 tablespoon coarse salt

2 teaspoons sugar

1 pound (4 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes

12 to 16 tablespoons ice water

Directions

1. Process flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor until combined. Add butter. Process until mixture resembles coarse meal, about 10 seconds. With machine running, add ice water in a slow, steady stream just until dough comes together. (Do not process more than 30 seconds.)
2. Turn dough out in two portions onto two pieces of plastic wrap, with one slightly larger than the other (this will be your bottom crust). Flatten dough, and shape into rectangles. Wrap in plastic. Refrigerate at least 1 hour (or overnight).

What's In Season: Blackberries

What’s In Season

It’s late August which means blackberries on the east coast only have a short time left until we say must our goodbyes. So in an effort to make the most of them, I'll be baking and preserving these sweet little berries in as many ways as possible. 

Pairs well with:

• Cinnamon
• Lemon and citrus
• Other berries
• Peaches
• Hazelnut 

What to make/eat:

1. Homemade blackberry jam: Easy to make and even easier to eat all year long. Whether you spread it over warm toast for breakfast, or swirl into your favorite vanilla ice cream for dessert, you can’t go wrong with this simple-to-prepare staple.
2. Lemon curd trifle: A great make-ahead dessert for entertaining. Fold fresh whipped cream into lemon curd (store bought or homemade) and layer with cubed pound cake, more freshly whipped cream, and fresh blackberries. A drizzle of Grand Marnier or Limoncello over each layer of poundcake is nice, too. Refrigerate a few hours to overnight to allow the flavors come together before enjoying.
3. Blackberry buckle: Often prepared with blueberries, this dessert is called a "buckle" because when you add too much fruit to this the cake and crumble combo, it will literally buckle. Top buttery, vanilla cake batter with a layer of fresh blackberries and cover with streusel; bake until golden and serve warm with a dollop of cream.

Hand-Pulled Strudel

Making strudel for the first time is an incredibly eye-opening experience. It is a feat one simply cannot imagine when looking at a small circle of dough. To believe it will stretch it into a sheet several feet squared takes a lot of faith.
 
While it really isn't as hard as it may seem, it is a bit time consuming and labor intensive. You simply can't rush the process; and it requires at least a few cooks to stretch the dough tissue thin and roll into its classic long shape. This is why in most professional pastry kitchens, a chef will rarely make strudel dough from scratch. Instead many of us use frozen phyllo dough as a perfectly acceptable substitute. Just like strudel dough it is light, crisp, and extremely flaky.  

But lucky for the pastry arts students at ICE...they have the opportunity to experience the process from start to finish! And lucky for you, I had the opportunity to snap shots of Pastry Chef-Instructor, Chad Pagano, demonstrating each step of the process. 

So if you can muster the courage, give it a shot. It will make for a great afternoon project to tackle with friends, with a seriously sweet reward for your effort.


Hand-Pulled Apple Strudel
Makes about 16 servings
(Recipe courtesy of The Institute of Culinary Education)

For the dough:
397 grams high gluten or bread flour, plus extra for rolling
7 grams salt
100 grams (2 large) whole eggs
14 grams canola oil, plus extra for coating
Warm water

To assemble:
60 grams finely-ground bread crumbs
170 grams melted butter, cooled to room temperature

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour and salt. In a small bowl, whisk the the eggs and canola oil together and slowly add enough warm water to the eggs and oil to bring the entire mixture of liquids to a total of 300 grams by weight. 

Stir the liquid into the flour with a rubber spatula, making sure no flour sticks to the sides of the bowl. 

Turn the dough out on to a lightly floured surface, then pick it up and, from a couple of feet above the surface, slam it against the surface with a fair bit of force. Fold the dough in half, scoop it up, and repeat the slamming of the dough 100 more times until the dough is smooth and elastic. Use additional flour as need to prevent the dough from sticking to the surface. 

Very lightly oil a small bowl and place the dough in the bowl, turning the dough over once to oil the entire surface of the dough. Press a sheet of plastic wrap against the dough and allow it to rest at room temperature for about an hour. Meanwhile, make the apple filling.

Cover a large rectangular table with a clean cloth and generously flour the surface of the cloth.

Place the dough in the center of the cloth and roll the dough as thinly as possible. Lightly brush the surface of the dough with oil, and proceed with the dough stretching and strudel assembly process outlined in the slideshow. 

Dust with a confectioner's sugar, serve with a dollop of whipped cream, and enjoy!

Apple Strudel Filling
Makes enough for 1 large strudel

For the filling:
115 grams unsalted butter
2230 grams (about 10) Golden Delicious apples 
170 grams granulated sugar
Finely-grated zest of 1 lemon 
3 grams ground cinnamon
85 grams raisins (optional)
85 grams chopped walnuts (optional)

Peel, core, and cut the apples into about 12 slices per apple. 

In a large sauté pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the remaining ingredients, cover and cook until the apples are just tender, about 8 minutes. Lower the heat, remove the cover, and continue to cook the apples until the juices have evaporated, about 10 minutes. 

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the filling to a baking sheet or shallow dish. Refrigerate until cool before using.

Coming Soon...My First Cookbook: Jenny McCoy's Desserts for Every Season!

 

After 23 months of testing recipes at home, 6 photo shoots, writing every single word on every single page, burning a few batches of cookies, and dropping a whole cake, I can officially declare my very first cookbook, Jenny McCoy's Desserts for Every Season, is complete!

A million and one thanks to my amazing team: Editor Sandy Gilbert, Photographer Pernille Pedersen, Graphic Designer Jan Derevjanik, Prop Stylist Michelle Wong, Food Stylist Amy Wilkinson, and Recipe Tester Junita Bognanni. Ladies, I could have never completed this project, which I first dreamt up in 1999 while working as a pastry cook at Blackbird.

Desserts for Every Season shall be arriving at bookstores near you on September 24th. Please do consider it for holiday gift giving. The better the book does, the more opportunity I will have to make my dream to be a published cookbook author come true again in the future.

Happy baking!