PIZZA!!!!

YES!! This Mounth the Daring Bakers baked pizza!!!
This mounth challenge was hosted by Rosa from Rosa's Yummy Yums
Amazing... what a mass i made at home!! Terrible, but terrific at the same time...
Loved it.
Here's the tossing (a requeriment!)

Well, for the toppings i sticy with the simple... cheesse... lots of it with some jalapeño pepper. Very very good... definitlly a sucess.






Can't wait for November challenge ... see you there... and check out the others yummy yummu pizzas at the Daring Barkers Blogroll.

Lavash Crackers & Toppings

This mounth challenged i almost skipped, the month went on and on and i just wasn't finding the time to make... But today i finaly got it throught!! And i coulnd't be happier. Lavash Crackers and Dips to go with it, and ohh... vegan/gluten free. When i saw this mounth challenge i have to say i got exited, dips vegan/gluten free, but, but, but... cheese makes a excelent dip!!! What would i make? So, 'cause of timing i ended up making the lavash non gluten free (didn't have the proper flour and agave syrup) with a sweet and a savory topping (sugar and sugar with cinnamon and sesame seeds) and for the dips a apple puré, of course with rhun and a tomato dip.
I just loved it was read for lunch time, very easy, nice to make and distressfull!!!
Thank you so much Natalie and Shel for bringing this lovely lovely recipe.
The recipe i post here as it is and check out the creations of my fellow bakers at our blogroll.


Makes 1 sheet pan of crackers

* 1 1/2 cups (6.75 oz) unbleached bread flour or gluten free flour blend (If you use a blend without xanthan gum, add 1 tsp xanthan or guar gum to the recipe)
* 1/2 tsp (.13 oz) salt
* 1/2 tsp (.055 oz) instant yeast
* 1 Tb (.75 oz) agave syrup or sugar
* 1 Tb (.5 oz) vegetable oil
* 1/3 to 1/2 cup + 2 Tb (3 to 4 oz) water, at room temperature
* Poppy seeds, sesame seeds, paprika, cumin seeds, caraway seeds, or kosher salt for toppings

1. In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, salt yeast, agave, oil, and just enough water to bring everything together into a ball. You may not need the full 1/2 cup + 2 Tb of water, but be prepared to use it all if needed.

2. For Non Gluten Free Cracker Dough: Sprinkle some flour on the counter and transfer the dough to the counter. Knead for about 10 minutes, or until the ingredients are evenly distributed. The dough should pass the windowpane test (see http://www.wikihow.com/Determine-if-Bre … ong-Enough for a discription of this) and register 77 degrees to 81 degrees Fahrenheit. The dough should be firmer than French bread dough, but not quite as firm as bagel dough (what I call medium-firm dough), satiny to the touch, not tacky, and supple enough to stretch when pulled. Lightly oil a bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.

or

2. For Gluten Free Cracker Dough: The dough should be firmer than French bread dough, but not quite as firm as bagel dough (what I call medium-firm dough), and slightly tacky. Lightly oil a bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.

3. Ferment at room temperature for 90 minutes, or until the dough doubles in size. (You can also retard the dough overnight in the refrigerator immediately after kneading or mixing).

4. For Non Gluten Free Cracker Dough: Mist the counter lightly with spray oil and transfer the dough to the counter. Press the dough into a square with your hand and dust the top of the dough lightly with flour. Roll it out with a rolling pin into a paper thin sheet about 15 inches by 12 inches. You may have to stop from time to time so that the gluten can relax. At these times, lift the dough from the counter and wave it a little, and then lay it back down. Cover it with a towel or plastic wrap while it relaxes. When it is the desired thinness, let the dough relax for 5 minutes. Line a sheet pan with baking parchment. Carefully lift the sheet of dough and lay it on the parchment. If it overlaps the edge of the pan, snip off the excess with scissors.

or

4. For Gluten Free Cracker Dough: Lay out two sheets of parchment paper. Divide the cracker dough in half and then sandwich the dough between the two sheets of parchment. Roll out the dough until it is a paper thin sheet about 15 inches by 12 inches. Slowly peel away the top layer of parchment paper. Then set the bottom layer of parchment paper with the cracker dough on it onto a baking sheet.

5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit with the oven rack on the middle shelf. Mist the top of the dough with water and sprinkle a covering of seeds or spices on the dough (such as alternating rows of poppy seeds, sesame seeds, paprika, cumin seeds, caraway seeds, kosher or pretzel salt, etc.) Be careful with spices and salt - a little goes a long way. If you want to precut the cracker, use a pizza cutter (rolling blade) and cut diamonds or rectangles in the dough. You do not need to separate the pieces, as they will snap apart after baking. If you want to make shards, bake the sheet of dough without cutting it first.

5. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the crackers begin to brown evenly across the top (the time will depend on how thinly and evenly you rolled the dough).

6. When the crackers are baked, remove the pan from the oven and let them cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. You can then snap them apart or snap off shards and serve.

Chocolate Eclairs

OH MY GOD!!!! This mounth the challenge was amazing, not because the recipe but the origin of the recipe. We made chocolate eclairs from Pierre Herme!!! AMAZING, and the moust amazing thing was i had the book with the recipe but never tried it, i already had an amazing recipe so just kind of was sticy to it! Our lovevly hosts was MeetaK from Whats for lunch honey? and Tony Tahhan from Tony Tahhan, the recipe you can find at their blogs.

I have to say that i really enjoyed making it! Had no troubles what so ever. In the begginig i planned to make the recipe as it was given, but i wanted to do a lite treat (he really likes The Simpsons and donuts so i made him a cream puff/donut) for my boyfriend and ended up making white chocolate pastry cream, but the rest was the original recipe.

Can wait for next mounth challenge and check out the other creations from The Daring Bakers .

A FILBERT GATEAU NOT THAT MUCH FILBERT!

Sooo... This mounth challenge was a Filbert Gateau with Praline Buttercream from the book "Great Cakes" by Carol Walter, this mounth host was Chris from Mele Cotte, you can find the recipe in her blog.
This time i decided that i wanted to go out of line and not make exactelly the recipe as it says... Inside the rules, of course, so... instead of hazelnuts as the recipe called for i used macadamia and instead of the buttercream that the recipe called, a Swiss one, i decide to use a White Chocolate Cream Cheese Buttercream from "The Cake Bible", and well for the first time i really enjoyed buttercream, i always find them to butterry.
And i can honestylly say that i really liked the cake, when i first saw the challenge i tought, cake with buttercream? can i take it again?? and well this time i could.

I think the true challenge this mounth was to make praline... i don't really make it often and don't have much practice and the way that the recipe where it gave me butterflys on my bally, but every think ended up going really well as you can see.

And here is the final product.

Check out the DB's blogroll to see the master picies that my fellow bakers have created.
See you next mounth.

Danish Dought

So... as usual i only post the DB challenge of the mounth. This time the hostess were Kelly, Sass & Veracity, and Ben, What’s Cookin’?. And their choice was a Danish Dought, and i looked and wondered, what is that?, is it difficult? So i went trought their wonderfull text that was very inlightening and trought the recipa, hum... sounded a little hard, wey out of my confort zone, of course i just loved.

But it would consume a lot of time that i was kind of out this mounth, here in Brazil is the end of the semester for school and colleges, no different for me, so lots of tests, papers and lots of studying, again.... really time consuming. I tought about skiping this mounth challenge, even tought i was really excited for... so.. i waited till the end of the mounth i lucky for me i got a little time of to complete the challenge... (very tight on schedule – i made it on the 28^th of the mounth).

And i coudn’t be happier.... it went all very nice... nothing to difficult or hard working and the smelly, on the good sense... cardamom plus vanilla bean plus orange... OH MY GOD just amazing...

The recipe suggested a apple filling, but how i had strawberry and raspyberrys at home decide to combine with havy cream and white chocolate in a ganache and this was my filling... oh.. and i added a little lemon just to make it even more citrus... acutally i made a berry jam and then added the ganache and as you all can see the filling exploded... But thats OK because everything tasted so dam good that no one really cared about aperences... We just loved, and the left overs of the dought i baked just as it is and again amazing... definitlly a keeper... the dought not the combination of dought and filling.

I loved, and had a wonderfull time making it.

Thank you Kelly and Ben for this mounth challenge. The recipe you can check out on their blogs and the creations of my fellow bakers you can find here.

A late DB Challange

As ussualy I only come here to post the DB 's challanges not because i don't cook just don't cook enough or have time to take pics to post... But at leats this i'm doing.. OH NO.... this mounth i'm late... the challenge should have been posted yesterday but du to a cold i just couldn't.. but here i am today...

A liked the OPERA CAKE a lot, the challange was indeed a challange... but... with some of mom's help it all whent OK.

This mounth challange was dedicaded to Barbara of winosandfoodies.com. Barbara is the force behind the food blog event called A Taste of Yellow that supports the LiveSTRONG foundation started by Lance Armstrong.

And here are the result!
Thank you Lis and Ivonne for the great challange and mostly for creating this group.

As always you can find the recipes in their blogs.

Hope you had as much fun as i had.

BBM packge-just a litlle late

How late am I?
I've recived my packge a week a go and just now had the time to post here!
It camed all the way from Baltimore, from Katie.
Her box was just so cute, very well put together.
The itens were:
- car (with a draw made from her), a letter and a recipe;
- potatos chips;
- star foil cups (so cuteee)
- Vanilla butter
- spices
- chewy caramel

Just loved
Thank you very vey much!!

Daring Baker's go with Dorie

Hello!!

And the time of the mounth i actually post!! The DB challenge.

This Mounth we made the Perfect Party Cake by no other then Dorie Greenspan, the hostess, Morven at Food Art and Random Thoughts, gave us total freedom to make the cake as we wanted but, i decided to go with Dorie and do it just the way the recipe was.


I liked i a lot, deffinitlly a keeper for special ocasions.


Can't wait for next mounth challenge.

Please check out the recipe at blog and view the other beautifull creations of my fellow DB's.

See you soon i hope...

The Challenged i almost didn't post!!

For God sakes... HOW COUfLD I POSSIBIBLE FORGET TO POST THE CHALLENGE??
I've made this bread suck a long time ago to be sure that i would be fine and safe to post the challenge today and what happened?? Weeelll... i've forgot and remembered to post when i was coming back home at 11 (pm) o'clock!!!
So... came running to the computer and to my suprise.. were are the photos?? I simple coulnd't find them...(as you can see i found then, but only after i've finished to do the post)
But... going to the challenge it self now... As i alredy said i've made it a long time ago, in the very begging of the mounth, on the 5th.

I took the hole day to do it.... began at 8 am and finished at 7 pm, but had lots of fun. As you can see we made French Bread, but not just a french bread, it was Julia Child French Bread. Indeed a challenge, that was hostesses by Breadchick Mary (The Sour Dough) & Sara (I Like to Cook).
This mounth i wont be writing a lot but was want to give a big thanks to Mary and Sara to say that this mounth i realllllly leaft my confort zone and tried something i would have never, really never, choosen to make, and i really enjoyed to make it, i probably wont be doing it again but it was nice to know i'm able to do something like that... THANK YOU really....
The recipe is really long so i wont be posting here you can find them at Mary and/or Sara's blog.
And please... check out the other beautis that the rest of the group baked.

PS: It's 11:55!!!!

Lemon Meringue Pie - It only could be a DB challenge

How i wished to be a better blogger... When i started the blog i planed to you know.. post at least once a week.. but... look at me... The only thing i've been posting are the Daring Bakers challenge! I'm so emberesed... I've wanted this blog to have lots of informations, recipes and this kind of thing, but, look, there's nothing... It makes me so sad, i wish so much i had more free time to post, and to cook actually.. I haven't been visiting my kitchen a lot... only to eat i thing... such a shame...
But... well, what can i do? At leats i can steel make the DB challenges and thats a lot right now, and i thing i'm... well... glad with that.
So shall we go to this mounth challenge?
The hostess for the challenge was Jen from The Canadian Baker and her choice was Lemon Meringue Pie. When i firt saw what we would be making this mounth i just couldn't be happier. Lemon Meringue Pie it's a dessert we've been eating in my family since way before i was born and just the thought of try out a new recipe was indeed a challenge. The recipe we are used to make have a filling using condesed milk and this one was very diferent... so i kept wondering if it would be aproved by people here.
I started making the pie and well, my mom got all over the kitchen to know how was it doing and to give out her opnions. Firts was the crust when i remove it from the oven the smell was fabulous, and as a good daughter that i am i separeted i piece of the crust for her to try before the intere pie was ready. Well, did she liked? Oh yes.. she loved!! So.. i've got really exiceted and went for the filling, after mixing the cornstrach and sugar with the water my father (yes... he decided to participate on this too) sad "wow, this looks like what my mom did to me when i was i kid and was sick" and of course i had to ask "and did you liked it?" and for my surprise the answer was "oh, yes.. a lot", so all this talk lift me up even more to the recipe, if the base is good the chance of the role thing be good are good. And.. after ending my mom came with a spoon and said "can i try?", in again she liked a lot!! So, so far a succes! And for the meringue, well i was alone so nothing intersting to tell. No suprises here...
And after the proving of the pie the coments where "DELICIOUS". Everybody liked and aproved the pie, the only thing wee tought was so so was the meringue, the general opnion was a chocolate ganache would be better...
Can't say that making this was boring, had lots of fun and liked a lot...
Thanks Jen for such a wondefull challenge. I surrly advice you all to check my fellow bakers with theirs criations. You can find them here.
See you all next mounth/challenge. Or how knows i don't get my grips on and post something here before that.


Lemon Meringue Pie
Makes one 10-inch (25 cm) pie

For the Crust:
3/4 cup (180 mL) cold butter; cut into ½-inch (1.2 cm) pieces
2 cups (475 mL) all-purpose flour
1/4 cup (60 mL) granulated sugar
1/4 tsp (1.2 mL) salt
1/3 cup (80 mL) ice water

For the Filling:
2 cups (475 mL) water
1 cup (240 mL) granulated sugar
1/2 cup (120 mL) cornstarch
5 egg yolks, beaten
1/4 cup (60 mL) butter
3/4 cup (180 mL) fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp (15 mL) lemon zest
1 tsp (5 mL) vanilla extract

For the Meringue:
5 egg whites, room temperature
1/2 tsp (2.5 mL) cream of tartar
1/4 tsp (1.2 mL) salt
1/2 tsp (2.5 mL) vanilla extract
3/4 cup (180 mL) granulated sugar

To Make the Crust:
Make sure all ingredients are as cold as possible. Using a food processor or pastry cutter and a large bowl, combine the butter, flour, sugar and salt.Process or cut in until the mixture resembles coarse meal and begins to clump together. Sprinkle with water, let rest 30 seconds and then either process very briefly or cut in with about 15 strokes of the pastry cutter, just until the dough begins to stick together and come away from the sides of the bowl. Turn onto a lightly floured work surface and press together to form a disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for at least 20 minutes.

Allow the dough to warm slightly to room temperature if it is too hard to roll. On a lightly floured board (or countertop) roll the disk to a thickness of 1/8 inch (.3 cm). Cut a circle about 2 inches (5 cm) larger than the pie plate and transfer the pastry into the plate by folding it in half or by rolling it onto the rolling pin. Turn the pastry under, leaving an edge that hangs over the plate about 1/2 inch (1.2 cm). Flute decoratively. Chill for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Line the crust with foil and fill with metal pie weights or dried beans. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Carefully remove the foil and continue baking for 10 to 15 minutes, until golden. Cool completely before filling.

To Make the Filling:
Bring the water to a boil in a large, heavy saucepan. Remove from the heat and let rest 5 minutes. Whisk the sugar and cornstarch together. Add the mixture gradually to the hot water, whisking until completely incorporated. Return to the heat and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly until the mixture comes to a boil. The mixture will be very thick. Add about 1 cup (240 mL) of the hot mixture to the beaten egg yolks, whisking until smooth. Whisking vigorously, add the warmed yolks to the pot and continue cooking, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil. Remove from the heat and stir in butter until incorporated. Add the lemon juice, zest and vanilla, stirring until combined. Pour into the prepared crust. Cover with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming on the surface, and cool to room temperature.

To Make the Meringue:
Preheat the oven to 375ºF (190ºC). Using an electric mixer beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar, salt and vanilla extract until soft peaks form. Add the sugar gradually, beating until it forms stiff, glossy peaks. Pile onto the cooled pie, bringing the meringue all the way over to the edge of the crust to seal it completely. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden. Cool on a rack. Serve within 6 hours to avoid a soggy crust.