#homeandfamilyhomecook ENTRY!

Hello Everybody!  I've been testing some gorgeous "Piquenchagne" bread for you and "perfecting" my macaron technique (those suckers aren't EASY for sure)!

All the while, I ran into this competition with the help of a few friends! Can you help me out? I know it's a lot to ask, but it will only take a couple minutes to vote and get me to the top of the list! If you're inclined, share! When you share, use the "hashtag" #homeandfamilyhomecook so that the folks at Home and Family can track progress! Thank you soooo much!! To VOTE Follow This LINK: http://bit.ly/bakingactor

Thank you all for following along! More recipes and vids soon! Here's my entry video! 

Lemon filled Pâte à choux!!

Hello Everybody!! Here is my tutorial on how to make a lemon filled pâte à choux! 
If you need to make some lemon curd, 
Here's how: https://youtu.be/yu3dGO0yLEg 

Ingredients for choux pastry: 
1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick)
2/3 cup water
1/2 cup AP flour
2 eggs

1T of water

Other stuff: 
Piping bag (I use this one) and tip (This is a GREAT/CHEAP starter kit!)
pan and implement for stirring
2 pans lined with parchment paper or a silpat, I have this one
sharp knife

Instructions: 
Preheat oven to 425degF
Melt butter and then add water.
Bring to a boil. 
Remove from heat and add in flour
Add eggs one at a time incorporating vigorously as to not to cook the eggs
Place mixture in piping bag
Pipe out the dough onto lined baking sheets
with wet finger get rid of the "kiss" on the top from the piping bag

Put in oven and turn down the temp down to 400degF
bake for about 25-30 minutes until golden brown

Remove from oven and poke a hole with knife in the side of the pastries to allow any steam to escape.
Cool completely before making filling. 

Filling: 
Ingredients: 
1 Cup heavy whipping cream
2 1/4 T of sugar
1/2 t  vanilla extract
c. 2 T lemon curd (if you haven't made mine, store bought is fine) ;) 

Place bowl and whisk attachment in the freezer for about 20 minutes. 
Add ingredients into the bowl and whip for about 4 minutes then add in curd. (this is totally optional. . . )
Put whipped cream into piping bag and find the slit in each pastry. 
Pipe in the whipped cream. 

Et Voila! Cream filled puffs WAY better than store bought! 

If you can't eat all at once ;), you can freeze these for a couple months. Just pull out about an hour before you're ready to eat! 

Homemade Croissants

Hello Everybody! This is my making of croissants!! There aren't THAT many ingredients, but it can be a LONG process. . . thank you, www.sprinkledwithjules.com for the recipe! 

Ingredients: 
DRY:
3 1/2 cups AP Flour (plus more for rolling dough)
1/2 cup sugar
2 t salt
2 1/4 t instant yeast (1 packet)

WET: 
1 1/4 cup warm milk (more than room temp. . . )
1T cold water 

FROM THE FRIDGE:
1 Egg (separated)
2 1/2 sticks butter

Instructions: 
Start some way to warm up the milk. I use a "double boiler" type method. It doesn't need to scald, but needs to be c. 110deg.

Measure out 3 1/2 cups AP Flour out of this pull 1 cup
Mix cup of flour and yeast package together and then add in warm milk allowing yeast to "bloom" for 20 minutes.

While "blooming" prep the rest of your dry ingredients in bowl with flour and a plate for the dough to rest.
Add in yeast mixture, combine and knead until the dough comes together and is elastic. This doesn't' take more than 3 minutes. You want the dough to still be pretty pliable at this point. 
Form into a disk and put on Floured plate and cover with plastic wrap. Into the fridge, she goes for at least 2hours to overnight. . . 

Before "waking the dough" prep your butter slab to fold in. 
between two sheets of parchment or wax paper, place cold butter to achieve a slab that is c. 7inX7in.
Place back into the fridge while you "wake" and prep the dough.
Remove plastic wrap and roll out your dough to about a 10inX10in. square. 
Remove wax paper and place the butter layer onto the dough placing it in the orientation that leaves "flaps" on the dough. 
Fold the dough and close like an envelope around the butter squeezing the dough along the seams. 

THEN start to elongate the dough to a 10inX24in long sheet. 
Fold in 3rds, dusting off excess flour and then turn and repeat. 
After 2nd application, place back on floured plate and put in FREEZER for 20 minutes. 
Repeat 2 more times. 
During the Last 20 minutes in the freezer, prep 2 baking sheets with Parchment paper (Wax paper can't be used here).

After the 3rd 20 minute rest. Remove the Dough and cut in half long ways. Wrap 1 half and put back on your floured plate and place in fridge while working with other half. 

make sure that the layers have been laminated to a solid layer and roll out the 1/2 of the dough to about 10in or 12inX15in. 

Using a measuring tape or your dough scraper make slits in the dough every 5 in., turn dough all the way around and starting 2in in from edge, make slits every 5 in. (the point here is to have slits in "V" shapes. "it's a pizza" ;) 

Once your slit templates are made, continue the cuts making "pizza" shapes. 
Flip over, dust off excess flour and on the wide end, make a slit in the middle then "tuck and roll". 
Place croissants on pans lined with parchment paper. 
REPEAT same process with other half of the dough. 

THEN put your croissants in the fridge over night to "proof". They will NOT double in size, but the flavors definitely develop. 

The next day, pull pans from the fridge and let "wake up" for 2 hours. Also, pull your egg out so that it will be easy to separate.

Preheat oven to 400degF
Separate egg and discard the yolk (or keep for a delicious Lemon curd ;))
Mix 1 T of cold water with Egg white and brush on the croissants.
BAKE 1 pan at a time for 30 minutes (ovens vary, mine only takes 25 minutes)
I also change position of pan after 15 minutes. or turn. . . 

AND it's that easy ;)

Again, if you don't have time to make this, store bought is fine :D. 

Lemon Cream Cheese Danishes!

Hello EVERYBODY!! Here is my Danish tutorial! If you need something to do with your lemon curd, this is a perfect application!! Most of this recipe comes from www.sallysbakingaddiction.com (check her out!)

Ingredients: 
PASTRY
Wet Mixture: 
1 packet (2 1/4 t) active dry yeast
1/4 warm/hot tap water
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 t of salt
1/2 cup  milk room temp
1 egg room temp
1 t of vanilla

Dry Mixture: 
2 sticks of chilled butter
2 1/2 cups AP flour

LEMON CURD: HOW TO VIDEO! 

CREAM CHEESE FILLING (I only use 1/2 of this recipe in the video): 
2 (8oz packages) of Cream Cheese
3/4 cup white sugar
1 1/2 t lemon juice
1 t vanilla extract
2 t sour cream

GLAZE: 
1 cup confectioners sugar, sifted
1 t vanilla extract
2 T heavy cream
*optional: 1/2 T milk (I add this to make it more drizzleable (that's a verb, right?))

Other tools you'll need: 
Rolling pin
Dough Scraper (pretty much can't do this without one)
Food processor (you CAN use the "rub" method, but let the butter mixture chill before combining with the wet ingredients)
Egg Wash (room temp. egg with 2 T milk)

Instructions: 
Let your egg and milk come to room temperature
Bloom the yeast with  the warm water and set aside. 
Put flour and butter in a food processor and pulse 8-10 times
add the rest of the wet ingredients into the yeast mixture.
combine the two until the dry ingredients are wet
Cover with plastic wrap and chill for 4+ hours.
**Before you start laminating, take out cream cheese to soften***
Dust a surface with AP flour
Take out and form into a rectangle shape
With a rolling pin, elongate the rectangle and then make a "tri-fold" and turn. Repeat 2 more times. 
Fold up the dough, put back in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes. 
***THIS IS WHERE YOU MAKE YOUR CREAM CHEESE FILLING**
Once chilled, cut the dough in 1/2 and place one 1/2 back in the fridge. 
Roll out dough to c. 1/8 in. thick and cut into even squares. 
Make shapes as you please using egg wash (room temp egg and about 2 T milk) as glue. 
Turn on the oven to 400deg F. (dough will proof while oven is preheating). 
Put your lemon curd and cream cheese into the well created in the shapes. This will be fine with EITHER or BOTH! 

CREAM CHEESE FILLING: 
Cream the cream cheese with the sugar and then add to other ingredients until smooth. 

Bake in the 400deg Oven for 15 minutes (I turn my pans ever 5 minutes because of an uneven oven)

Let cool for at least 10 minutes. 

GLAZE:
Combine confectioners sugar, vanilla, and cream/milk mixture. 
And drizzle. 
VOILA!

Italian Lemon Ricotta Cookies!

Hello Everybody! During the summer season at Cincinnati Opera, we performed Puccini's TOSCA! To keep with the theme, I made some festive Italian Ricotta Cookies! Here's How: 

Lemon Ricotta Cookies: 
Cookie Ingredients: 

DRY:
3 1/2- 4 cups AP Flour (for my recipe, I don't "scrape" off the measuring cup, so it's a little more than 3 1/2 cups
2 t baking SODA
3/4 t salt (again, a little extra won't hurt if you don't have smaller than a tsp measure)
1 3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 t lemon zest
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature

WET: 
15 oz ricotta cheese (if you buy 30 oz container, it's about 1 3/4 cup)
1 T vanilla extract
1/2-1 T almond extract

2 eggs, room temperature

Glaze: 

Juice from one lemon 

1 1/3 cup confectioners sugar, sifted
 

Instructions: 
This dough needs to chill for a while, so don't start the oven yet!
While you let the butter and eggs come to room temperature, zest your lemon. I like THIS microplane zester. 
Whisk the flour, SODA, salt in a large bowl and set aside.
In a stand mixer fitted with the beater attachment, Cream the butter, sugar and lemon zest until fluffy.  
Beat in the vanilla, almond and ricotta one at a time until well combined. 
Add in the eggs one at a time. Beating well after each. 

Turn your mixer on "stir" and incorporate the flour mixture about a 1/4 cup at a time. 
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let chill for a minimum of 2 hours (up to a couple days). 

Preheat the oven to 350degF, Line a few baking sheets with parchment paper or silpat. 
Scoop out the dough into about Tbs balls (I use a small ice cream scoop.. . ) about 2-3 inches apart.  It's a STICKY dough, but has definitely firmed from chilling. 

Bake for 10-12 minutes. Maybe a little longer if your cookie size is larger. 
Let sit on pan for a couple minutes and then remove to cool completely. It takes about 30 minutes. 

For the glaze: 
Juice that lemon that we zested a few hours back. 
Incorporate a little at a time into the confectioners sugar until your spreading consistency is desired. If you're adding sprinkles, now's the time! 

And VOILA! Beautiful Lemon Ricotta Cookies!