The Daring Baker´s June Challenge

Bakewell Tart…er…pudding

The June Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Jasmine of Confessions of a Cardamom Addict and Annemarie of Ambrosia and Nectar. They chose a Traditional (UK) Bakewell Tart... er... pudding that was inspired by a rich baking history dating back to the 1800's in England.
Thank you Jasmine and Annemarie for this challenge, it was easy and delicious too, I had all the ingredients at home, I decided to fill my tart with apricots and white chocolate truffle and for garnish Italian almond meringue, dark and white chocolate truffle sauce, I thought it was one of my crazy combinations but to my surprise it matches deliciously, I guess that after a year and a half cooking with the daring Bakers I am learning.
The only trouble I had was with the dough, it was too dry so after four teaspoons of water I had two add 2 more teaspoons and it wasn’t sticky at all.
I have a question, the tart name was given after the town’s name or because the tart actually bakes well???

For the recipe please visit Jasmine and Annemarie

All I can say is: YUMMMM ;9

The Venezuelan Rolls.

The Venezuelan Rolls.

These delicious rolls are among the traditional Venezuelan pastries, they are made of a sweet dough scented with anise seed and a filling that consist of grated papelón (panela, cane sugar), white cheese and more anise seeds they are glazed with melao (some say melado others say melao, which is the right one? For me melao, it is more traditional) which is a syrup made of papelón, butter and some milk and finally they are sprinkled with grated white cheese. To me they look like mountains covered with snow like the Andes in my country. Uuups I forgot: They are called Golfeados. I hope you like them.

Super soft bread

Papelón or Panela

For the dough.

2 eggs.
125 gr white sugar.
50 gr melted butter room, temperature.
1 tablespoon instant yeast.
4 tablespoons milk powder.
½ teaspoon salt.
200 ml warm water.
650 gr ap flour.
1 tablespoon anise seeds.
½ tablespoon malt extract.
½ teaspoon baking powder.

1- Mix all the dry ingredients.
2- Mix all the wet ingredients.
3- Mix dry and wet ingredients and knead un til you have a smoot and elastic dough.
4- Let rest until it doubles its volume.
Note: you may need a bit more flour, about ¼ cup depending on the flour and weather.

For the Filling.

250 gr grated white cheese.
250 gr grated papelón.
30 gr soft butter.
1 tablespoon anise seeds.

1. Mix white cheese, papelón and anise seeds.

Melao.

100 gr grated papelón.
50 gr salted butter.
3 tablespoons milk.
1- All the ingredients in a small sauce pan and heat until the papelón is melted, you may need a bit more milk if the melao gets to thick.

How to make the Rolls.

1. Roll out the dough, and spread the 30 gr of butter, sprinkle the papelon and cheese mix.
2. Roll the dough as you do for a Swiss roll and cut portions of about two fingers.
3. Place the portions on a jelly roll sheet greased and floured ( you better line it with aluminum foil and then grease and flour the foil, if you don’t want to scrub your jelly roll sheet for two days).
4. Let rest until the rolls double its size and bake at 200°C until they are light brown.
5. Take the rolls out of the oven and glaze with the melao and sprinkle some white cheese.
Note: golfeados are so good whit coffee with milk

Chicken Filled Tortellini and Pesto Sauce

Chicken Filled Tortellini and Pesto Sauce

Today, I cook without a recipe I cook “eye percent” as I call this way of cooking or doing things, when I do not measure…it is great working like this
Let’s say on Saturdays I feel lazy, after 5 days in a row feeling (not that I like) like a tornado and doing things without a decent rest from 6:00 am toooo… let’s say, 9:00 pm, I see Saturdays like my personal oasis. Well today, I said I am not going to the butcher’s and the supermarket .I’ll cook with what is left in the fridge and so I did: there was 1 chicken breast, vegetables, some cream and 4 eggs … I had flour , almonds and parmesan cheese too, I went to the backyard and took some basil leaves and made tortellini filled with chicken and basil pesto, the verdict it: delicious and I stayed at home but tomorrow I’ll have to go to the butcher’s. *SIGH* I NEED A VACATION


For the Filling
1 boneless, skinless chicken breast.
Half medium onion.
Half red bell pepper.
¼ cup chopped green onion.
1 tablespoon cappers.
2 tablespoons cream.
Salt and pepper to taste.
Place all the ingredients in the food processor and process until they are smooth.


For the Dough
3 eggs.
2 ½ cups ap flour.
1 teaspoon water.
1 teaspoon oil.
¼ teaspoon salt.Knead all the ingredients until the dough becomes satiny and smooth, let rest for about 7 minutes.

Then roll the doug as thing as you can, place some small amounts of the filling over it.

Dip your finger in some water and make a line of moisture around the filling,

fold the dough over the filling and cut, finally press the edges with a fork.

Brush off any excess flour on the tortellini before throwing them into the boiling water.

Water, salt and 2 tablepoons oil. whisk the water before trowing the tortellini in, this way you will not end up with a "cluster" of testellini

You will also need white sauce and more parmesan cheese.

In a Pyrex dish, place a layer of white sauce then a layer of tortellini and sprinkle parmesan cheese to taste then repeat the process and then bake it , I wanted mine pale because I decorated it with the pesto as soon as I took it out of the oven

For the Pesto
1 cup basil leaves.
½ cup almonds.
½ cup grated parmesan cheese.
1 big garlic clove.
About 2/3 of a cup of oil. (maybe a bit more)
Place all the ingredients in the food processor and process until they are smooth.

It was kind of tic tac toe

One tortellini cut, I love these colors

With the left over dough my mom made these fried forms and sprinkled some sugar with cinnamon over them, they were delicious . sometimes she fills this forms with mermelade yummmm

So crunchy

Corn Bread

Corn Bread.

Hello, its been a long time since my last post but so many things happened these past days: we finished the “security system” around the house, I finished my detective work too but we are still working on my dad’s pick up truck … well no I am not a bricklayer nor a mechanic but I have to be there just telling the guys what to do and helping my cousin with the pick up truck. the sun is been so… so splendid , as a result I do not recognize myself on a mirror, my skin is reddish, tanned and like bloated also itchy. The good news is that I began my English classes again. We are getting our passports done, yes you cannot do that yourself online, in this country you hire someone to make the passport for you…but you pay a lot for that “favor”, A LOT. The Italian passports are for July when Michele is on vacation because we have to travel to Valencia to get them but these are cheaper because there is no corruption there so I gladly pay the cost; we think we will have to leave the country if things get worst.But I HOPE the big ape leaves the country first.

Compare my leg and my arm. By the way I am not a shaman those bracelets were given to me by my nephew, he thinks they are beautiful and so do I.

The most common Venezuelan security system… ha.

I found the reason why my mom’s ferns are brown and not green.

I feed it cheese hi hi hi don’t tell her please.

Corn Bread.

Ingredients.

350 gr all purpose flour.
150 gr corn flour.
350 gr warm water (or milk and water).
Tablespoon instant yeast.
1 tablespoon malt extract.
3 tablespoons corn oil.
½ teaspoon baking soda (optional)

1- Mix all the ingredients and knead for about 5 minutes or less, until the dough is smooth.
You may need 5 extra tablespoons of all purpose flour is the dough is too sticky do not add more or the bread will be too heavy.
2- Place the dough in a floured bowl and cover with a bag and let rest until it doubles its volume.
3- Form the bead and let rise again until doubled in size, make some decorations with knife spray the loaves with water and sprinkle some corn flour over them.
4- Bake at 190 °C until you hear a hollow sound when you tap on them.
5- Let the loaves get room temperature before eating.