Hamantaschen

hamantaschen zb 08

Before I moved to Minnesota, my husband and I lived in Burlington, VT, which we considered a suburb of Montreal. When our small college town felt as if it would pop at the seams, we’d jump in the car and drive to Canada.

We’d make the rounds of foods we couldn’t find in Vermont, like Montreal bagels at Fairmont, smoked meat at Schwartz’s and hamantaschen at a Jewish bakery, the name of which, I am sorry to say, has escaped me. The bagels and smoked meat are specialties of the city, and reason enough to visit Montreal.

Hamantaschen can be found in any city, at most Jewish delis and bakeries, especially during the holiday of Purim. Making these triangular cookies is easy and in my humble opinion, better than most that I’ve sampled, including those in Montreal.

The dough I use is the soft, rich, tender variety, the same one I use for rugelach, as opposed to the firm, crumbly, shortbread style dough, which is also common with this cookie. This dough is simple to work with and has a lovely texture and lemony flavor, which is a great partner to the poppy seed filling. Just like a rugelach, there are as many fillings as there are ovens, but the most traditional are poppy seed and prune. I went traditional here, but added some other dried fruits to the mix. If my fillings are not to your liking the cookies are fantastic with raspberry preserves, chocolate, apricot, lemon curd or anything else you are craving.

The shape of these cookies is said to represent the three-cornered hat of Haman, the diabolical villain who tried to take down the Jews in ancient Persia. Other stories say that hamantaschen (which translates “Haman’s pouch”) symbolizes his purse, which he tried to use as a payoff for permission to destroy the Jews. Haman’s sinister plans were thwarted and the story ends well with the celebration of Purim, where these tasty pastries are normally served. But, I think you should enjoy them way more often than that.

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Honey Madeleines

Honey Madeleines | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François

Nearly 22 years ago I got married, and as a gift I was given a copy of Patricia Wells’ book about the cuisine of Joël Robuchon. It was a heady book for a 23-year-old with Vermont commune roots. The book, and its recipes, stepped me directly into the intimidating world of French food. Patricia Wells promised to explain the techniques I’d need to make Robuchon’s Foie Gras and Creamy Scallop and Caviar Pillows, but at that age I could hardly afford to buy the ingredients, let alone all the equipment I’d need to make them. So, as is true to my nature, I flipped to the back of the book, to all the sweets and landed on the recipe for Madeleines. I’d read about these sexy, little, shell-shaped cakes in Marcel Proust’s Remembrance of Things Past, when I was in college. Proust would have been an amazing food blogger with words like these:

“She sent for one of those squat plump little cakes called “petites madeleines,” which look as though they had been molded in the fluted valve of a scallop shell … I raised to my lips a spoonful of the tea in which I had soaked a morsel of the cake. No sooner had the warm liquid mixed with the crumbs touched my palate than a shudder ran through me and I stopped, intent upon the extraordinary thing that was happening to me. An exquisite pleasure invaded my senses … And suddenly the memory revealed itself. The taste was that of the little piece of madeleine…”

But, Proust neglected to provide the recipe, so over the years people have made up their own versions. Some based on a genoise, some a pound cake batter, but Patricia Wells and Robuchon have created what I think is the ultimate Madeleine. It’s a combination of browned butter, honey, lemon zest and almond meal, which combines to make an incredibly rich cake that’s soft on the inside, crisp on the outside and worthy of the shuddering Proust describes. The key to the success of this recipe is to use really flavorful honey, chill the batter before baking and make sure your scalloped Madeleine pans are really well buttered. Whenever theres a special occasion or I want to do something particularly sweet for my husband, I bake him Madeleines.

Honey Madeleines from Simply French by Patricia Wells and Joël Robuchon (I rarely make a recipe without improvising, but this one is perfect in my mind and needs no changes.)

Unsalted butter, softened, for greasing the pans

13 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 2/3 cups confectioners’ sugar (powdered sugar)

1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1/2 cup finely ground almonds (almond meal)

6 large egg whites

1 tablespoon strong-flavored honey

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 lemons, zested – optional

To make the Madeleines:

Heating brown butter | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François

In a saucepan heat the butter over medium-high heat. It will bubble,

Making brown butter | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François

then foam and finally the solids in the butter will brown and smell nutty.

Making brown butter | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François

Strain the browned butter into a bowl and allow it to cool. It shouldn’t be solid, but no longer hot.

Sifting flour, sugar and almond meal | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François

Sift together the sugar, flour and almond meal.

Mixing brown butter and flour | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François

Beat the egg whites until foamy, but still very soft, so they run off the beater when it is lifted. Whisk in the dry ingredients. Add the brown butter, honey and vanilla. If you want a lemon scented cake, then stir in the zest.

Honey madeleine dough | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François

Place the batter into a container, cover and chill for at least 2 hours, but this can be done a day or two ahead.

To bake the Madeleines:

Preheat the oven to 375°F

Spooning madeleine dough into pan | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François

Generously grease the pan with butter. (I highly recommend getting a Nonstick Madeleine Pan)

Madeleine dough in a pan | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François

Fill the pans about 3/4 of the way with the chilled batter. This may require you to wet your finger tips to spread the sticky batter evenly in the pan.

Baked honey madeleines | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François

Bake the cakes for about 18 minutes or until they are golden brown on the edges and pale, but firm on the top.

Baked honey madeleines | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François

The cakes will dome on the top and that is part of their signature look.

Dusting honey madeleines with sugar | ZoëBakes | Photo by Zoë François

Dust with a little confectioners’ sugar and serve warm or allow to cool.

Dreams Do Come True…A Cookie Swap with Ina Garten!

Ina Garten

(photo by Quentin Bacon)

This summer I got an email that I thought was spam. It said something to the effect of…”Ladies’ Home Journal would like you to attend a private brunch and cookie swap with the Barefoot Contessa!” I sat on the email for about 30 seconds and then decided..what the hell, what if it is legit and I really get to meet her! It was and I did. Pinch me. I was dying to ask WHY ME? But, I was nervous if I brought it up they’d realize I’d made the list by mistake and take back the invitation. So, I kept my mouth shut and off I went.

We all have THOSE people in our life who we’d love to share a meal with, aspire to be like and find utterly compelling and delightful. For me Ina Garten sits at the top of the list. I remember, as a kid growing up in Westport, CT in the 70s and 80s, her store in the Hamptons was the “it” place to shop. The Barefoot Contessa was the epitome of sophistication and yet it wasn’t fussy or pretentious. She managed to make the “good life” seem accessible. Thirty some odd years later I’m invited to meet her. It was an OMG moment. With all of her fame and success, I couldn’t have faulted her for being aloof and a bit guarded about inviting her adoring fans into her home. She’s nothing of the sort, Ina is as kind, open and generous as she appears on TV. Not only that, she is deeply passionate and genuinely in love with food. She is the ultimate hostess.

ladies' home journal

This story gets even more surreal, because I also got to meet and spend the day with a group of intensely talented, driven and outrageously funny food bloggers. We shared a ride in an RV from Manhattan to the Hamptons, which was a bonding experience, not only because of the close quarters, but the sense that we’d all survived a tumble in a clothes drier. I’m not sure I’ve laughed that hard in my life. When we arrived in East Hampton, which is like an Audrey Hepburn movie set, we had brunch at Ina’s favorite restaurant. I didn’t realize I was holding my breath until she arrived and I could feel my body relax. It was as if she were greeting a group of old friends. She immediately put us all at ease and we sat and chatted over a lovely meal, which I know was delicious, but I hardly recall what I ate. We talked about everything from blogging, throwing the perfect party, the crazy world of publishing, to her husband/muse, Jeffrey. Since we’d all been invited here to attend Ina’s very first holiday cookie swap, we also talked about cookies. You can read all about our chat with Ina at The Ladies Home Journal.

After brunch we walked to Ina’s house for our cookie swap.  Read More

Icebox Cake

icebox cake with homemade chocolate wafers and caramel cream | ZoeBakes photo by Zoë François

Icebox cake, is really not a cake at all; it’s layers of chocolate wafer cookies and whip cream. So, what’s up with the name? Once the cookies and the cream have a chance to sit together, in their little rows, the cookies soften and in a blind taste test you’d never know you weren’t eating cake. I am sure the version I ate as a child was made with Nabisco Famous Chocolate Wafers, which are still available (and still satisfy), plus Cool Whip. I loved it as a kid, but now my taste buds crave more flavor and a LOT less sweet. I added burnt sugar to the fresh whipping cream and baked my own bittersweet chocolate wafers. The homemade chocolate wafers make a big difference. They are intensely chocolate and less sweet, which gives the icebox cake so much more personality. Something old is new again and much tastier.

When you slice into the icebox cake you reveal the beautiful stripes of caramel and chocolate. You can simply spread the top with the caramel whipped cream, but for Easter or other holidays you might want to use a pastry bag and pipe a fancier design. As you can see I went a little Downton Abbey with my decorating, but either way this is one of the easiest and tastiest desserts I have ever made.

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Russian Tea Cakes (Mexican Wedding Cookies)

Russian Tea Cakes (Mexican wedding cakes) packed in a holiday tin

It is a slight mystery why these are called Russian tea cakes and not cookies, but no matter the name, they are delicious. How can you go wrong with toasted pecans, brown butter and sugar? The texture is like a shortbread cookie that is taken to new heights by the richness of the nuts. They are typically served at the holidays, maybe because they look like little snow balls, and at special occasions, like weddings, as the name suggests. This holiday my aunt Kristin, who is my pastry muse, requested them. It is ridiculous that my house isn’t stocked with them all year round. The recipe is so simple and the results so incredible. Thanks to Kristin my cookie jar is now full. They make a great gift because they pack up well and actually improve with a bit of time, which can’t be said for many cookies.

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Rugelach – Raspberry, Nuts and Chocolate wrapped in Cream Cheese Dough

Raspberry, Nut and Chocolate filled Rugelach

My maternal great great grandmother, Shirley Sierra (the name given to her at Ellis Island), had a bakery in Kiev, Russia (now part of Ukraine). She moved to Brooklyn, NY at the turn of the 20th century and continued her “bakery” there. It wasn’t a shop as we imagine now, it was just her, baking in her apartment. According to my 92 year old grandmother, Sarah Berkowitz, her Bubbe would make rugelach, challah, strudel and all kinds of Jewish baked goods for her family and neighbors. She described their small apartment kitchen as stacked high with goodies, which in the depression must have been a welcome sight.

This morning when I told my grandmother that I was baking rugelach with raspberry preserves and chocolate, she said that was “way too modern for her tastes.” She prefers hers stuffed with chopped prunes and raisins. None of Bubbe Shirley’s recipes exist today, no one even remembers if they were written down way back when. Until recently I got a steady supply of rugelach from a bakery in town, but when they shut their doors I was determined to create my own recipe. After several attempts, all of which were tasty, but not quite ready for prime time, I landed on this recipe. The dough is soft and tender, with just a slight zip from the cream cheese and zest, which is a perfect compliment to the sweet fillings. Eating them brings back great memories. 

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