Just another day in the Bloggerhood...

In spite of all the emotional upheavals and psychic fallout post-elections, I’ve managed to have a few precious laughs.  Come to think of it, most of these laughs are because of the elections…

Dave at Next Draft is a hoot.  He’s a news aggregator/ blogger/ commentator with a much-welcomed sassy attitude.  From today’s Next Draft: “…Am I arguing that the constant layer of saliva on Aaron Brown's lips ultimately cost the Democrats the Senate? Well, yeah, I guess I am.”

Hahahaha…it’s as good as any other explanation at this point in time…

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There’s been some great “You Googled Me?” material today, which I can’t possibly get to due to time constraints.  You can savor the humor potential in the following referral requests that came my way:

“post-death food rituals”  -- hmmm, that’s more grim than funny…got to wonder, though…

“QVC fake diamonds” – wonder who the lucky person is…

“stealth advertising” – top link was not my site but one regarding political campaigning.  Go figure…wonder why they’re asking now…

And the ever popular “bookreports”…10+ referrals today.

8:33:27 PM    comment []

You Googled Me?:  “pain au chocolat”

First, for non-foodies:  “pain au chocolat” translates from French to “bread with chocolate”. (No, it's not an S&M with Food thing...)

(I’ve been Googled twice within the last couple of days with this one, looks like I should respond.)

Check out the recipe here.  Bon appetit!

4:32:43 PM    comment []

You Googled Me?:  “pain au chocolat”

First, for non-foodies:  “pain au chocolat” translates from French to “bread with chocolate”.

(I’ve been Googled twice within the last couple of days with this one, looks like I should respond.  Since it's a food subject, I'm cross-categorizing to Tactile as well.)

In France, it’s really a oblong hand-sized bread/confection, made of croissant /brioche dough, wrapped around a nugget of chocolate.  Walk down nearly any other street in Paris past a boulangerie (bakery) or a patisserie (sweets shop) and you’ll see these in the case.

They are to die for if you are a Francophilic chocoholic like me.  One of these fresh from the oven, buttery flaky crusty dough, soft and melting chocolate inside, served with a café grande, is heaven on earth.

One could try to make croissant dough, but it’s not for the faint of heart, recommended for more experienced bakers.  Williams-Sonoma has also carried frozen pain au chocolat – you could check to see if they still offer them.

I have made a reasonably satisfactory approximation, that will see me through until I master croissant/brioche dough or return to France for a visit.  If you have a bread machine, you’re in luck – I’ve got just the thing for you (it can still be made by hand, too).

The following recipe comes from one of my favorite cookbooks, Beth Hensperger’s The Bread Lover’s Bread Machine Cookbook.  (It’s worth the money, 300 recipes, very tasty!  Chock full of info on flour, bread making process, history of breads.  Foodies, it’s a great book!)

Petit Pains au Chocolat (makes 15 little sweet breads)

For 1-1/2 or 2-pound loaf machines:

(Hensperger’s preface:)  Chocolate-filled pastries, often made from labor-intensive brioche dough, line up side-by-side with other morning pastries such as Danishes, brioche à tête, and croissants.  But here is a recipe for chocolate pastries that uses a much easier sweet egg dough (that chills overnight, so plan accordingly) to make the perfect pouch for a good melted chocolate filling.  If you can, use a high-quality brand of semisweet chocolate, like Callebaut, Scharffen Berger, or Guittard.  Cut off chunkcs from a thick block, or, if you are using thin blocks, here is a tip for breaking them easily into pieces:  Dip a 10-inch chef’s knife into hot water for a minute, dry it off, and then, exerting as little pressure as possible, cut the chocolate into strips; reheat the knife as needed.  These pastries are great for brunch, still slightly warm, with coffee.  Go ahead and dunk them.

1. Place the ingredients, except the chocolate, in the pan according to the order in the manufacturer’s instructions.  Program for the Dough cycle; press Start.  The dough will be sticky.  Grease a deep bowl.  When the machine beeps at the end of the cycle, press Stop and unplug the machine.  Using a dough car, turn the dough out into the bowl, scraping the sides of the pan and supporting the dough as it comes out.  Cover with 2 layers of plastic wrap² and refrigerate for 4 hours to overnight.

2. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper and brush with melted butter.  Turn the cold dough out onto a work surface dusted with flour.  With a metal bench knife, divide into 15 equal portions.  With a floured rolling pin, roll out each portion to a 4-inch square about ¼ inch thick.  Place ½ ounce of chocolate in the center of each square. Fold each corner up into the center to encase the chocolate.  Pinch to seal.  Place seam side down on the baking sheet, about 1 inch apart.  Cover loosely with plastic wrap² and let rise at room temperature until puffy, about 1 hour.

3. Twenty minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 350 deg. F.

4. Brush each pastry with some egg glaze.  Bake, one pan at a time, for 15 to 18 minutes, until light golden brown and dry to the touch.  Transfer to a rack to cool, although these are good eaten warm.

My notes on this recipe:

¹- Don’t snitch chocolate until you’re done making the rolls.  You should have 16 pieces, good for one snitch, but if you need an even number of rolls, you can’t afford it.  Reward yourself when done.

²- Spraying plastic wrap with baking release spray (Pam) works best here, so it doesn’t stick to the dough.  (I prefer sprayed waxed paper during final rise.)

Lastly -- EAT THESE ABOUT 5-10 MINUTES AFTER TAKING OUT OF THE OVEN -- not too soon, the molten chocolate will scorch your mouth, not too late as the chocolate won't be oozy once they cool.

4:26:13 PM    comment []

Poor Mark over at Fried Green Al-Qaedas.  He seemed so despondent yesterday, and frankly, with plenty of good cause.  He feels he’s moving his way through grieving – in his eyes this last 24 hours is yet another mile marker on that road…

I offered my two cents – that while he might believe this is the depression portion of the Five Stages of Grieving, I believe it might be the ‘dark night of the soul”.

But it’s not just Mark’s dark night, it’s ours.  We’re in this together.

St. John of the Cross wrote about this phenomenon, the “dark night of the soul”, wherein one can reach absolute bottom, lose their religion, experience the utter completeness of devastation…just before the dawning of new birth, a resurrection of creation.

One has to complete spin out of control and slam into the total depths in order to prepare for the real mission.  The darkness is purgation, cleansing, a time to withdraw, lick wounds.  A time to clean house, take inventory of this dark place, and wait.

Wait for the complete openness that comes of utter desertion and desolation.  But only for a bit. 

Over the next handful of weeks, we’re going to read the many ways in which the political left in this country failed to make their case, to be heard.  This will offer us much information on which to meditate and contemplate.  We should collect it, look through it for the raw, naked truth, and prepare to use it as building materials.  It’s going to be laid out for us so neatly -- it shouldn’t take us long to figure it all out.

With the passing of the holidays and the birth of a new year, we can prepare to be reborn.  We should take this time to remove the chaff and discard the burnt; organize what’s left, make room for the new.

Cleanse ourselves through Ramadan, free our hearts and minds.

Give thanks on Thanksgiving Day and through Hanukah and Diwali that we’re still here and that we’ll get another chance to fight another day; acknowledge we have all the resources we really need to do battle; recognize our inner light.

Give away the excess baggage we don’t need, remove the barriers to our next move, through Lent and Christmas Day; embrace our friends, partners and families through Kwanzaa, thanking them for seeing us through it.

And hit the ground running on New Year’s Day. 

Think I just made my first New Year’s Resolution!

9:41:49 AM    comment []