THE DARING BAKERS’ JULY, 2015 CHALLENGE: YAFAWI SFEEHA

The July Daring Bakers’ Challenge was brought to us by Manal from Manal’s Bites. She introduced us to an authentic Palestinian dish from Java that is served as a main meal along with a bowl of soup or a salad. The “Yafawi Sfeeha” or also known as “Milwayeh” which means twisted, is crispy yet tender and full of flavor.Click here for the link to the background information and original recipes from the challenge.

I was nervous about this challenge and especially nervous about getting the shape done. The dough seemed very thin and I saw disaster in my kitchen looming. So, I did a bit of research to see if perhaps there was another acceptable shape that I could manage. I was surprised and happy to see that one of our own in Daring Bakers, The Food Doctor, had blogged about meat pies and had a nice(easy) shape to mimic. So, I am admitting that this may not be a true Yawafi Sfeeha but it is a Sfeeha and it is a fun way to spend a lazy Sunday afternoon.

The Sfeeha look impressive and made the house smell divine. My hubby kept lurking about waiting for me to turn my back so he could  taste test. He loved them but he likes a sauce with most everything and I knew he would want one with these. They don't need them but he was dipping away and said they were really good. I used a Peanut Coconut Sauce from Whole Foods. I put a link on the name to Amazon in case you do not have a Whole Foods nearby but want to try it. Here is a picture of the sauce.

Now back to the Sfeeha. I want to give a suggestion about the baking. Because the Sfeeha bake at a very high temperature, I used two baking pans nested to help insulate. This proved to be a vital step. When I removed the Sfeeha from the oven, two of them were not yet golden brown on the bottom(they were the first two I shaped also) so I removed the others and put the two back in the oven for a few more minutes. When I put them in though, I did not double pan them as I did initially. Within a minute, my oven was smoking. I took them out and they were burned, the parchment paper was burned and here is what they looked like. The underside was black.

No Good :(

But let's talk about the other successful eight! The pastry was crispy outside and cloud like tender inside. The meat was juicy and flavorful, the spices worked well together not overpowering each other or the dish. I served them with braised broccoli rabe and Russian kale but I think a fresh cold salad would have been a better choice. 

All in all, I think these will make a nice pot luck and I plan to bring some to the next book club meeting. They will travel well and don't really need a knife and fork.
Manal has some great versions that are sweet as well. Perhaps you are braver than I am and will give them a try.
Below is the recipe for Sfeeha that I made:

SFEEHA

Ingredients
Dough
2  to 2 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon yeast
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
3 tablespoons olive oil
3/4 cup water
Filling
1 pound ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped fine
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon cardamom
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon tahini
1 tablespoon sour cream, or Labana
1 tablespoon pomegranate molasses
salt, to taste
1 1/2 teaspoons dried mint flakes

Procedure

    Dough:

    

Proof the yeast by mixing the yeast, sugar and warm water and allowing it to sit for about 5 to 10 minutes until the mixture starts to bubble and foam. 

In a bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. Add the oil and rub the mixture with your fingers to make a coarse looking meal.

Add the water/yeast mixture and knead the dough until it forms a smooth soft dough that does not stick to your hands.

 Lightly coat a clean bowl large enough to allow the dough to expand and put the dough in it. Cover with a towel and allow the dough to double in size. At my house, in 72 degree Fahrenheit, it took a little over an hour. The warmer the room the faster the dough will rise. 

Punch down the dough and cut into 10 balls. Cover them with a towel and allow to rest for about 10 minutes.

Filling:

In a large saute pan over medium heat, saute the onions in the 2 

tablespoons olive oil until translucent, about 5 minutes.

Add the ground beef and spices and continue to cook, stirring constantly, until the beef is browned. Turn off the heat.

Add the molasses, tahini, sour cream or labaneh and mint. Mix well.

Grease your baking sheets or line with parchment paper. Place the oven rack in the center of the oven. Heat the oven to 500 degrees Fahrenheit. The recommended temperature was 270 degrees Celsius(518 degrees F.) but I was uncomfortable cooking higher than 500.  I also double panned my baking sheets for extra insulation.

Roll the dough into a small(I did a 4-inch) circle. Place the filling in the center. Wet your fingers and pinch two sides of the dough circle with your index finger and thumb. Repeat on the other side so that you have four corners

Transfer to the prepared baking sheet and allow to rest 10 minutes.

I you are making a large amount of meat pies, cover the pies with a cloth while they are resting to prevent the surface from drying which will result in cracked surfaces at baking.

Just before baking, re-pinch the corners to , making sure they are sealed tightly. Brush the pastry surface with an egg wash optionally. I mixed an egg with 1/4 cup milk and brushed the pastry using a pastry brush.

Bake the pies for about 10 minutes or until the underside is golden. If they are golden on the bottom but not on top, you can put them under the broiler to brown the tops. i did not have to do this and the egg wash helped promote browning. Transfer to a wire rack and cool slightly. These are delicious warm.

Sourdough Starter Makes Sourdough Crackers

My sourdough starter is a couple of years old now. I feel as though it deserves a post. I got my starter from a great friend and have somehow managed to keep it alive. My mother also gave me some starter from King Arthur Flour Company and I keep the two separate but use them both. The King Arthur starter seems a little sweeter although I am not sure why. Sourdough starter gives bread that tang that is really delicious. King Arthur Flour gives a nice history and wonderful ideas for sourdough so hop over to their site for background information. For those of you considering the commitment of a starter, it is far less work than you think. If you leave it out at room temperature, especially a warm room temperature, you will have to feed it at least every day. I keep mine in the refrigerator and feed it about once a week if I am not in the baking mood. For just a little technical background, it is important to know that when you feed the starter, you remove some before adding some. The starter I remove has been traditionally been going down the drain, sadly. But then I came across a recipe from King Arthur flour that solved my guilty conscience,Sourdough Crackers.

Making these crackers is quick and fun. I have trouble keeping them on hand because they are so popular. You will need sourdough starter but if you have gotten this far, I am guessing you may have some already. A quick whirl around Google shows a lot of recipes for these type of crackers and I think most of them are using King Arthur Flour's recipe. I am using the recipe too with of course a personal spin. I eliminate the salt from the dough because I like the effect that sprinkling the kosher salt on top before baking the crackers gives to the texture and flavor. Having the salt in the dough and again on top made them a little too salty. Also, I used some herbs that I bought in the Laurentian Mountains while vacationing in  Montreal. If you do not have access to these wonderful organic melange of herbs, use whatever you fancy. The reason I used mine is because it was a mixture of lemon peel, thyme, garlic and a little salt. I like to serve these crackers with smoked salmon pate and the herb/spice blend is perfect. Click here for the information about the company and area in case you are interested. If you are nearby, head over to St. Sauveur and visit one of the sweetest little ladies who will not pass judgement on your lacking french skills but talk to you like a neighbor over the fence.

Below is the cracker recipe and then Smoked Salmon Pate recipe. I am thinking you will make a personal twist to the recipe so let me know what you have substituted. I am always amazed by a cook's creativity.

Here is the adapted recipe from King Arthur Flour

Sourdough Crackers

1 cup Sourdough Starter

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1 tablespoon mixed herbs, dried

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon kosher salt

Mix all the ingredients together in a Kitchen Aid mixing bowl with the dough hook on Speed 2 for about 5 minutes or until it forms a soft smooth dough. If mixing by hand, this should take about ten minutes. And after that, put a Kitchen Aid on your birthday wish list.

Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for about 30 minutes and up to 2 days. 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

Remove the dough from the fridge. Cut in half and roll each half to about 1/16th inch thickness. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with kosher salt. Prick with a fork all over. 

Using a pizza cutter or pastry wheel, cut the dough into strips about 1-inch wide, then across into 1-inch squares. Note the width of a ruler is about an inch so I just trace my ruler. You can cut any shape you please but make sure all the shapes are about the same size for even cooking.

Bake the crackers for about 20 minutes. After about 10 minutes of cooking, rotate the pan 180 degrees to promote even baking. Remove from oven and transfer crackers to a wire rack to cool.

Mis en Place

Store in airtight bag. 

Make sure all the ingredients are room temperature for best mixing

Cut any shape you want but try to keep the same size so they cook evenly

Smoked Salmon Pate

4 ounces smoked salmon

8 ounces cream cheese

2 tablespoons heavy cream

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon chives, chopped

salt and pepper, to taste

Put all ingredients in a food processor and pulse till combined. Taste for seasoning. Serve chilled.

Yes! It is that easy. And it is good on the morning toast too.

Good Gosh, I sound like a King Arthur groupie...wait a minute, I am!!! I went there on the way to and from Montreal and they crowned me their Queen(in my dreams)

Cherry Cheddar Muffins

Here in New England, it is strawberry season. I cannot go to the farmers market without being dazzled by these plump,still slightly stemmed, beauties. So, why am I cooking with cherries?I am also charmed by cherries(sorry, could not resist) and their season is short as well. When I saw some organic cherries in the market that did not break the bank, I took a strawberry break. 

Additionally, I started getting emails and coupons from Cabot Creamery in Vermont. I had gone on a field trip there years ago when I was a culinary student in Vermont and remembered it fondly. What would happen if I made something with cherries and cheddar...I just loved the way the two rolled off the tongue. I felt like a quick bread would be the best course to take. Google did not help much. Then looking through Cabot's recipes, I saw apple cheddar muffins that seemed quick and easy. I thought this time saver would assist me because I still had to pit all those cherries. I have a cherry pitter , yes, I think it is a necessity even if the cherry season is short. The cherry pitter works equally well for olives which are always in season at my house. One note about pitting. Go ahead and pit all your cherries. I did about a pound and stored the rest for snacking and oatmeal. After about three days, they were gone but they looked and tasted fine while they hung around the fridge.

I sipped a bit of Evodia Old Vine Grenache  while liberating the pits from the cherries. If you have not tasted it, Evodia is a Spanish red wine that has tastes of cherry to it. It is a great sipping wine.The ingredients come together easily. Be sure to incorporate the cherries throughout. I was not as careful and in a few of the muffins,there were pockets of cherries and then dead zones of nothing. They still tasted yummy but I was eating in a really weird way so as to get bites of cherry in every bit and I am sure I was not showing very good manners at all. The muffins are not very sweet  so they would even be good for cocktails or teatime.

The recipe makes 12 nice sized muffins. They are best served warm. If you don't eat all twelve at once and believe me I was tempted, reheat them a bit either in the oven or microwave a few seconds. The heat brings them back to life. And here is the good news that might get you pitting cherries, each muffin is less than 200 calories!

    

CHERRY CHEDDAR MUFFINS

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup cherries, fresh, pitted

1 cup grated cheddar cheese, use sharp or extra sharp cheese

2 large eggs

1 cup milk

1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease a 12-cavity muffin pan. Make sure all ingredients except melted butter are at room temperature before proceeding

2. In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add the cherries and cheese.

3. cheese another bowl,whisk the eggs lightly. Whisk in milk and butter. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients; add the milk mixture and gently stir together until just combined. 

4. Divide the batter among the muffin cups. Bake for about 25 minutes or until the muffins feel firm when lightly pressed on the top.

Yield: 12 muffins

              Recipe adapted from a Cabot Cheese Co. Recipe

Mis en Place

Dry vs. Wet

Stir just to combine or they will be tough muffins!

Perfect for a dozen

I know! You are looking for your cherry pitter now.
Go for it!

THE DARING BAKERS’ MAY, 2015 CHALLENGE: LAMINGTONS

For the May challenge Marcellina from Marcellina in Cucina dared us to make Lamingtons. An Australian delicacy that is as tasty as it is elegant.

I knew this was going to get messy but I am not afraid of a mess, especially a chocolate one. There was a  rumor that went around the catering kitchen I worked in many years ago that when Evelyn worked with chocolate , everyone wore chocolate home that day. The rumor was started by my beloved co-worker and I do believe that there was a lot of truth to it. So, I waited for a day when I could leisurely make a mess and then just as leisurely clean it up. I recommend this tactic when you decide to make Lamingtons. 

I have attached the PDF for the challenge here in case you want the full scoop about the history and assorted recipes/ troubleshooting for the Lamingtons.

I veered away from the recipes a bit. I made a coffee raspberry butter cake as my cake base. You can get that recipe here and to that recipe add 1 tablespoon espresso powder to the milk and 1/2 teaspoon raspberry extract along with the vanilla extract. Also, as an aside, you can tinker different flavoring with the base recipe quite a bit; it is very forgiving.

One other difference was that I rolled some of the Lamingtons in crushed chocolate cookie crumbs. I was not convinced that the coconut would be well received. I was wrong. The coconut versions were adored and devoured.  They were also the prettiest so I am sure I will stay classic with the coconut in future baking.

Here are a few of my own troubleshooting recommendations(lessons learned the hard way):
1. Make sure the cake is a day old. Freshly baked cake will fall apart during the chocolate dipping phase.
2. Don't skimp on the chocolate! Also, I added a bit of safflower oil to the chocolate to thin it a bit. I cannot give an amount as it depends on the brand chocolate and how old it is. I can tell you that for one pound of Ghiradelli morsels, I used 2 tablespoons oil. I advise adding a tablespoon at a time until you get your desired consistency. And what is that?? I like the consistency where it drops evenly and quickly from a fork but leave a thin coating on that fork. 
3. Use a cake rack and put parchment paper or wax paper underneath it to catch the drippings. That way you can reuse the chocolate. I dipped the Lamingtons and then let them sit on the rack for a few minutes before tossing in the coconut. This reduced the globbing of chocolate in the coconut for me. After dipping about 10 Lamingtons, the first ones were ready for coconut coating. 
4. Make sure you have a crowd waiting for these. There will be a lot of them. I cut my cake into  approximately 1 1/2 inch squares and I practically fed the neighborhood. Here are a few photos to get you excited or if you are a neat freak, send you running and screaming. I hope you get excited.

Daring Bakers' Challenge March 2015: Tarte Tatin

Welcome to March in New England...

Come on in and see what is cooking.


This month's daring Bakers' Challenge is a classic. For the March Daring Bakers’ Challenge, Korena from Korena in the Kitchen taught us that some treats are best enjoyed upside down. She challenged us to make a tarte tatin from scratch.
The last time I made a tarte tatin was in culinary school about a thousand years ago. I admit that I have become lazy with puff pastry and buy it when I need it. I justify my laziness by buying really good quality pastry,  Dufours,  and saying probably correctly that it is better than any I could make. But here is Korena daring us to make it from scratch and giving an "easy to use" recipe.

I loved the rough puff pastry recipe and it will be a keeper. I had some definite challenges with the rest of the recipe. For the recipe that we were given, Click here

I started by making a Pear Tarte Tatin. I used the recipe and had trouble right off the bat with the sugar/butter mixture crystallizing. I also did not cook the pastry long enough so the dessert was a bit doughy.

Pear Tarte Tatin

I did a bit of reading. I went back to my basic knowledge of how to work puff pastry and I saw this hilarious video of Julia Child making a Tarte Tatin. Click here if you want to see this video. She flips the tarte at 18:00 minutes and that is where your confidence will balloon. She is classic like the tarte tatin and a testament to life's beautiful imperfections.Watching her flip that tart onto the plate made me laugh out loud. I am a huge Julia lover mainly for her enthusiasm and her attitude towards fearless cooking. I was laughing with love. So, I went back for another try. I decided to stay classic this time. There is a reason the tart is done with apples. They have flavor and firmness. I used the puff pastry recipe from Korena. I just love this puff pastry and may never buy Dufours again. The only change I made was with the butter. I grated the butter and then put it in the freezer for 10 minutes before mixing. I find this method makes the mixture stay chilled and I don't have to work the mixture as much because the butter is already in small pieces.

 

 

For the filling, I made a few changes. I added 2 tablespoons of water to the cup

of sugar in the saucepan and cooked that on low heat until the sugar dissolved.

Then I increased the heat to high and cooked the sugar mixture without stirring until it became a light amber color, swirling the pan to evenly distribute the caramel color.
Then I lowered the heat to medium and added the butter that I had cut into tablespoon portions and let that melt, stirring all the while with a wire whip.

I add the apples and cooked according to Korena's instructions.

I let the mixture sit off the heat for about ten minutes while I rolled out the puff pastry and preheated the oven.

 I heated the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit which is different from the recipe. I have always cooked puff pastry at a high temperature to keep the butter from melting and weighing down the pastry before the trapped air pockets in the pastry have a chance to expand. I covered the apples with the pastry, cut the air vents and popped that pan in the oven. After fifteen minutes of cooking, I lowered the heat to 375 degrees and continued to bake it for another fifteen minutes. The pastry got a beautiful deep golden color and a crisp puffy texture. I was feeling good about my second try.

 I  waited for the bubbling caramel to subside and then flipped it onto the plate.

 It was really pretty.

 I served the tart with a scoop of candied ginger ice cream and I was transported to dessert heaven. 

My husband ate half the tart and I am sure he was not just being kind...he loved it. I did not mention the caloric content because he looked so happy. 

Tarte Tatin is a challenge. I hope you will try it but my advice is not to try it on the fly, that is, read about it, look at pictures and give yourself plenty of time. The classic dishes are beautiful, thoughtful  concoctions that will, I guarantee, give you a sense of place in the world. 

Looking for adventure? Make a Tarte Tatin. Thank you Korena!

The Daring Bakers’ January 2015 Challenge: Esterhazy Torte

  

For the month of January Jelena from A Kingdom for a Cake invited us to start this year with a dreamy celebration cake. She challenged us to make the Esterhazy cake a.k.a the Hungarian dream. What better way to start the year than with a sweet dream?

Today in New England we had quite the weather. It has been snowing since noon on Tuesday and there have been periods of blizzard conditions that prompted advice from authorities to stay inside. Having procrastinated this month's challenge to the very last minute, I thought it a perfect day to fire up the ovens and make this house smell delicious. And the Esterhazy torte certainly filled that bill. The recipe has several stages. If you don't want to spend all day in the kitchen, do the torte over a couple of days as advised by Jelena.

Because the torte filling is made with lots of egg yolks, I recommend keeping the torte chilled until serving and refrigerating leftovers...if there are any. I thought the torte would be very sweet with all the sugar but the nuts really balanced it all out. 

Here is the recipe from Jelena:


Esterhazy Torte

Servings: 10-12, Original recipe in metric 

Ingredients

HAZELNUT SPONGE LAYERS

12 large egg whites

1 cup plus 1 tablespoon (9 oz) (250 gm) caster (superfine) sugar

2 tablespoons (2/3 oz) (20 gm) vanilla sugar

2½ cups (9 oz) (250 gm) ground hazelnuts

2/3 cup (2¾ oz) (80 gm) plain (all purpose) flour

HAZELNUT CREAM

12 large egg yolks

1 cup plus 1 tablespoon (9 oz) (250 gm) caster (superfine) sugar

2 tablespoons (2/3 oz) (20 gm) vanilla sugar

1 -1/3 cups (10½ oz) (300 gm) butter at room temperature

1½ cups (5-1/3 oz)(150 gm) toasted ground hazelnuts

APRICOT JAM GLAZE

around 3 tablespoons (45 ml) (1-2/3 oz) (45 gm) apricot jam
1 teaspoon (5 ml) water

WHITE ICING

2½ to 3¼ cups (10-2/3 to 14 oz) (300-400 gm) icing (powdered) (confectioners') sugar
2 teaspoons (10 ml) sunflower oil
3-4 teaspoons water(15-20 ml) lemon juice

around 4 tablespoons (60 ml) hot 

CHOCOLATE DECORATION

¼ cup (1¾ oz) (50 gm) dark chocolate
1 teaspoon (5 ml) oil

HAZELNUTS

¾ cup (3½ oz) (100 gm) roughly chopped hazelnuts

Directions:

Place the hazelnuts on an oven tray in a cold oven, increase the temperature to moderate 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4, and bake until a nice aroma starts to come out of the oven and the nuts have become darker.

Continue until their skins almost turn black or dark brown and the hazelnut 'meat' becomes a caramel color. You will need to watch the oven carefully since the nuts can easily burn. From time to time, just open the oven and carefully try one to see if the center is nice and crispy, but be careful not to burn yourself. It should take about 15-25 minutes.

This baking process brings out the aroma of the hazelnuts needed for the cake. (If you are using almonds instead of hazelnuts, they need to stay white. Hazelnuts are not good in this cake if their aroma is not present.)

Let them cool.

Set aside ¾ cup (3½ oz) (100 gm) toasted nuts and roughly chop them. These will go around the cake at the end.

The rest need to be ground. A grinding machine is best since a food processor might turn the hazelnuts into a creamy mush. If you are using a processor do it in short pulses so they do not have the consistency of peanut butter but of fine powder.

Divide the ground hazelnuts into 2 batches of 2½ cups (9 oz) (250 gm) and 1½ cups (5-1/3 oz) (150 gm) for the sponge layers and the filling respectively.

HAZELNUT LAYERS  (Dacquoise layers)

With an electric mixer beat the egg whites while gradually adding the sugar and vanilla sugar for about 5 minutes until stiff peaks form.

Turn the mixer to the lowest speed and add in the hazelnuts mixed with the flour and beat until just combined.

Cut baking paper into five squares large enough to draw a circle of 10 inch (25cm) in diameter on the squares.

Turn the paper over and place one piece onto an up-side down oven tray and delicately spoon inside the circle one-fifth of the beaten egg white mixture.

Place the tray into an preheated moderate 325°F/160°C/gas mark 3 (no fan) oven and bake for 14 minutes. It will look soft but that is how we want them. Your finger should not stick to the layer when you touch it.

Take the layer out together with the paper and place on an even surface

Cool the oven tray and repeat with the next 4 layers. It is important that the up-side down oven tray is cool when you start to bake the layers.

If you have a 10 inch (25cm) diameter spring form pan with a removable bottom just cut out five pieces of baking paper to fit the bottom and spoon the mixture in the pan.

Make sure to cool the bottom of the pan after removing each layer and before placing the egg white mixture for the next layer into it.

Place all the layers next to each other.

HAZELNUT FILLING

The filling is cooked in a double boiler. If you do not have a double boiler just take two pots so that the smaller one fits perfectly in the larger one and there is no gap between them.

Fill the larger pot with about 1-inch (2 cm) water place on the stove and bring the water to a slow boil, the water should not touch the smaller pot bottom.

Beat the egg yolks and the sugar with an electric mixer in the smaller pot for 30 seconds. Place the smaller pot into the larger one and cook for 14-15 minutes. Stir every 2-3 minutes for a short while with a wooden spoon always scraping the sides and the bottom. Stir constantly, near the end.

Let the filling cool.

Beat the cooked yolks for 30 seconds with an electric mixer.

Beat the room temperature butter for 2 minutes until light and fluffy then beat into the cooked yolks.

Add in the ground hazelnuts and beat again until combined.

Set aside 2 tablespoons of the filling to spread around the torte at the end.

Divide the rest of the filling into 4 cups.

Line a large tray with some baking paper.

Remove the baking paper from one of the dacquoise and place it onto the tray, spread one quantity of filing evenly over the dacquoise, then place another layer on the top.

Repeat, making sure that the last layer is placed bottom-side-up (do not place filling on this surface) which will make it easier to obtain a smooth looking finish.

Place some baking paper over the torte. Press a bit with your hands to even it out, put another tray over the torte and now place something heavy on the top to allow the torte to level up. A pan half-filled with water will be fine.

Place the whole torte with the pot in the fridge for one hour.

APRICOT JAM GLAZE

Heat the apricot jam and water on the stove.

Remove the top baking paper from the torte and spread the jam on top of it. We want a very thin layer, just barely covering the torte.

Place the torte back in the fridge for 30 minutes for the jam to cool.

When the 30 minutes is up, spread the 2 tablespoons of reserved hazelnut filling around the cake.

By hand mix the powdered (icing) (confectioners') sugar, oil, lemon juice while adding teaspoon by teaspoon of hot water until the mixture is creamy, but not runny. Mix vigorously for a couple of minutes. The sugar should be lemony.

With a hot wet large knife quickly spread the icing over the apricot layer.

You will need around 2½ to 3¼ cups of powdered sugar but it is better to have more than less, since when you start spreading you cannot go back. You will have some left over icing. If it is a bit uneven just turn on the hair dryer and heat the icing so it will smooth out a bit.

Before starting with the icing have the chocolate ready since it needs to go onto the soft icing in order to get the web.

Melt the chocolate with a teaspoon of oil, place in a pipping bag, or a  plastic bag with a cut in the corner that will act as the tip.

Draw four (4) concentric circles onto the cake, then with a knife (not the sharp side) or a wooden skewer run six (6) lines at 30 degree angle to the cake to get the decoration (see pictures for more details). Each line should be in a different direction. One running away from you and the next one running to you.

Press the remaining crushed hazelnuts around the cake to complete the decoration.

Let rest in the fridge for at least 24 hours before tasting. This cake that gets better as times goes by. We usually enjoy ours for 7 days.

Toasted hazelnuts

Cooking the Cream Filling

Butter and Nuts Added to Cream Filling

Meringues ready to be baked

Baked meringue

Assembly time

Looks good but needs some cream filling to fill in those gaps

That is better

Apricot jam with sugar icing over it

I need to work faster!!!

Looked good for a moment..then I put chopped hazelnuts around the sides and it looked great

Tired snow angel: too much snow shoveling and not enough cake