Dhanggit's Kitchen

Beignets, French Donuts

The art of loving French donut

I grew with a big "amour" shared between carbon drink and sinful donuts (the one's with creamy filling or chocolate coatings and nuts). As most people I met, they find it startling that for someone who was born in Asia I was way far the paradigms of hot Jasmin tea or sweet sticky rice balls or any local sweets that we love to devour in Asia, that is normally good for health. Well, who can blame me if I find them truly irresistible.

So discovering that there exist not even one shop of my favorite American donut in France (not even their competitor) this broke my heart into million pieces. So I presume you imagine how I react everytime we are outside France and there is an opportunity to enjoy my favorite: I consume in the average 2-3 donuts per day. My french family would often ask me how could I eat that? For they really consider it bad for health. Fried in deep-oil then stuffed later on with heavy filling and coated lastly with lots of nuts, chocolate and sugar. I know we are not getting any younger and that eating healthy food is essential at all cost. But I always believe that we have right to these little pleasures of life without explosing too much our arteries from time to time.

I'll be sending these donuts over at Ruth (Ruth's Kitchen Experiments) for her Bookmarked Recipes. Just check out the link to know more about the details.

By the way, I'll be posting the round-up of my Perfect Party Dishes this week. A big hug and thanks again to all the participants. I'll be announcing the winner and the prize, so stay tune!

Beignets or French Donuts

-These are pastries made from deep fried dough. It can be sweet powdered with sugar, with fruits or it can also be savory. This recipe is taken from a old french gourmet magazine (Cuisine Gourmand April 2005 edition)

150 g of flour
1 tablespoon of orange water
50 g of sugar
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
1 egg
10 cl of warm milk
1 sachet of dry yeast
a pinch of salt
cooking oil for deep frying
and icing or granulated sugar for coating

Dissolve the dry yeast in warm milk. Separate the egg yolk from the white. In a bowl put the flour, half of the sugar, the salt, the orange water, 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil and the egg yolk. Mix them well. Then add the yeast-milk mixture in the flour. Mix well and let it stand for three hours. Whisk the egg white until it becomes firm, then add the rest of the sugar. Mix them well. Add this mixture on the dough and combine them until it becomes homogenous. Warm your oil in a deep frying pan. Scoop a spoonful of your dough and slide it directly to the warm oil. It should be cook on both sides until its golden brown, about five minutes. After cooking dry them in

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I find the recipe a bit runny. The original recipe calls for additional of 10 cl of beer, that I did not add because the dough was already too watery. I added more flour about 50 grams to find the consistency I wanted. I suggest you could also also put some honey or spices (cinnamon, nutmeg) to this recipe. While cooking it is advisable to deep fry them with lots of oil. You can also coat them with some sesame seeds and honey.

Other sweet recipes:

Ile Flottante
Lemon Yogurt Mini-Cakes
Matcha Mint Cupcake

Grilled Peach Melba in Raspberry and Chocolate Sauce

Girls usually love to pamper themselves from time to time for whatever reasons. A trip to a Beauty Salon for some quick hairbrushing, some pedicure or manicure or even probably a total new coiffeur when we really feel the need for:
-after painful breakup we must turn the page and embrace the new chapter with a new us :-) -we have a date
-we need to impress someone (I'm guilty of this from time to time)
-oh what a heck we just want to be pretty :-)

It could also be something extravagant if we can afford to. A one week escapade in our dream destination with our best-friend or a shopping spree with a motto "shop till you drop". Well the list is infinite if we really have the means and imagination. And of course there are these simple moments when we simply pamper ourselves by indulging with a bar of chocolate, a bowl of an ice-cream or a slice of our favorite cake.

I did indeed devour this dessert yesterday all by myself while reading my newly bought cookbook (Oriental Patisseries) in the garden. Hmmm Elle n'est pas belle la vie? (Life is beautiful isn't it?)

I'll be sending some of this dessert over at Sig (Live to Eat) our host for this month's Monthly Mingle, with the theme "Grill it". A big thanks to Meeta for creating this event. And of course this is my Friday Dose of Chocolate :-)

Grilled Peach Melba sitting in slice of Chocolate bread Pudding

This dessert is normally consist of two peach halves, a scoop of a vanilla ice-cream and raspberry sauce. This sweet thing was created by a French chef August Escoffier to Dame Nellie Melba an Australian soprano.

6 pieces of white or yellow peaches (count 1 peach per person) cut in halves
half a glass of water + 1 tablespoon of sugar
2 drops of vanilla essence
a liter of Vanilla ice-cream (home-made or any brand)
250 g of raspberries
50 of sugar
juice of one lemon
100 g of dark chocolate
about half a cup of heavy cream
6 slices of your left-over chocolate bread/cake (you can use any flavor of your preferance: lemon, orange, etc)

I noticed that grilling the ripe but firm peaches directly made them too dry after. So I suggest you immersed them first in syrup of (water+sugar+ vanilla) before passing them to the grill. Cooking time is up to you. If you prefer a firm one or well done cooked. For your raspberry coulis, mix the sugar with your raspberries. Let them macerate for about an hour (you will notice it will start to release some juice. Pass them on to the mixer and add the lemon juice. You can strain them to have a smoother coulis. In a bain marie melt your chocolate then add your heavy cream. Mix them well. Pour your raspberry coulis on it. To assemble, you start with a slice of your chocolate pudding. Top it with your peach halved, scoop an ice-cream and pour your rasberry chocolate sauce. You can use some raspberries and the remaing peach halved to decorate it.

My other chocolate recipes:

Chocolate Charlotte with berries
Chocolate Creme Brulée
Chocolate Pudding

Almond Croissants

We all have left-overs. How we deal with it, whether we throw them out or decide to do something else with it determines if we are contributing something good for the society. Dealing with left-over food is a skill and a challenge for a lot of household. I don't call this being frugal but simply loving our mother earth.

Do you know that in average we are dumping about 34 pounds of garbage per week? And majority of these are food and things that can still be consumed. I cannot blame those concerned citizens in Paris that I saw on tv few months back, who have decided to totally stop buying their goods in supermarkets. Not that they are against consumption but simply because they forsake people dumping food that are still consumable. And so every afternoon they instead do their shopping in centralized garbage bins of Paris. You will be amazed on what we can find that people have dumped. This is a beautiful concept imported from New York.

So in my kitchen yesterday, as I open the fridge and saw all these left-over sitting there; trimmings of my croissant dough, half a cup of pastry cream, about 3 tablespoons of apricot jam and some almonds, I chose not to dump.

This is supposed to be my Wordless Wednesday but you know me, I love talking :-) I hope Marija of Palachinka loves almonds because I'll be sending this to her. She is the host for this week's Weekend Herb Blogging, a genius event created by Kalyn.

Almond Croissant

(Note: You might notice that they are not in croissant shape. This is because I used left-over trimmings of my croissant dough)

left-over croissants (I have a recipe here)
half a cup of Pastry cream
4 tablespoons of almond powder
1 teaspoon of orange water
some apricot jam (optional) (recipe here)
2 tablespoons of almonds
some icing sugar

Slice horizontally your croissants as you would do a sandwich. In a bowl mix the pastry cream with almond powder and orange water. Put this filling inside your croissants. Adding a teaspoon of apricot jam is optional (the original almond croissant does not include this). Brush the top of croissant with egg yolk and put some sliced almonds on the top. Bake on preheated oven at 180 ° celsius for about ten to fifteen minutes. Let it cool before powdering with icing sugar on the top.

Other french desserts to try:

Filbert Cake with Praline Buttercream
Mini Dacquoise Cake in Chocolate Cream Chantilly

Nutella Dulche de Leche Tartellette

Cooking does not rhyme with laziness.

The sluggish post going on here in my kitchen mirrors my recent indolence due to beautiful blue sky and warm weather. Pardon me. Well as most Southern French people say, that living in this beautiful corner of the world makes you live like cicadas; do nothing but sing and enjoy life. :-) Although I would admit that it could be boring if blown out of proportion. I was lucky that the past three days, Mistral has been blowing cool winds and it suddenly awakened my thirst to be in the kitchen once again.

I just thought of something simple, good and of course with chocolate in it. I guess you cannot think of other recipes easier to make than this one. Provided of course you have some dulche de leche and nutella jar seating in your kitchen and a little bit of fervor to handle your dough.

I call this Nutella theraphy a perfect recipe to combat the laziness sleeping within us.

And by the way I'll be sending this recipe over at Joelen for her Eye in my Pie event. If you love sweet pies go and check it out!

Nutella Dulche de Leche Tartellette

for your tart shells (Pate Sablé)

11/4 cups of flour (about 150 g)
1/4 cup almond powder (about 50 g)
1/2 cup of sugar
1 egg yolk
1 stick of butter cut in cubes (about 100 g)

(note: you can add a little bit of water if the dough is too compact and dry)

In a food processor, pulse all the flour, almond and sugar. Then add the butter and pulse again. Add the egg yolk and pulse until the mixture comes together in a ball. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for about an hour. To avoid them sticking on to your hands and table roll the dough between sheets of plastic wrap and cut out circles larger than your tart shells, fit the dough into the molds and cut out the excess. Butter your tart molds and put your cut doughs. Press them firmly on the sides. Because the dough has tendency to puff up use fork to make holes on the bottom of your dough. Refrigerate them again for another hour before baking. Preheat your oven at 180° celsius and bake for about ten to fifteen minutes or until golden brown.

Once your tart shells are ready you can fill them up with dulche de leche and lots of nutella on it.

My other tart and pie recipes:

Mango Cheesecake Pie
Pinacolada Pie
Chocolate Tart

Easy Summer Appetizers

Easy Summer Verrine Recipes

Hello world!

I have been out of the blogging circulation lately. Not that I am hibernating its just that summer in Southern France is extremely hot. It makes you feel lazy. And even though I was born and raised in a tropical country I am only human being. This heat is truly unbearable. So do not crucify me (oooops that's the problem of watching too much Rome episodes) if I prefer to frolic in the cold blue water of Mediterranean from time to time or spend my entire day in the swimming pool instead of being in front of my computer.

Well, I am still here alive and kicking but very tanned :-). I maybe physically too lazy to do anything but my hunger for cooking and eating is still the same. So here's what my idle brain have concocted in the kitchen lately and this will be my submission to the Perfect Party Dishes blog event that I am hosting. These are easy and simple verrine recipes perfect for garden parties: Baby Zuccini Crips in Rosemary and Melon Mint Gaspacho. By the way you still have until August 15 to participate in this event.

Baby Zuccini Crisp in Rosemary
(for about 5-6 persons)

about 15 pieces of baby zuccinis
sprigs of fresh rosemary
3 tablespoons of olive oil
salt and pepper
1 small block of mozzarella

for the crisp
1/4 cup of cold butter
1/2 cup of chopped walnuts
1/4 cup of grated parmesan cheese
1/4 cup of bread crumbs

Start by slicing the zuccinis. Put them in a bowl add about 1 teaspoon of salt. Let it stand for about fifteen minutes and squeeze out some water. Warm the pan add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and sauté briefly the zuccinis with the rosemary for about 4-5 minutes. Cut the fire and add some pepper. Divide the zuccini on your verrine or any glass of your choice. Put a layer of the vegetable then add a layer of sliced mozzarella on the top. Put some olive oil on each of the verrine. Mix with your hands all the ingredients for the crisp until crumbly. You can add more nuts, parmesan or bread crumbs if needed. Preheat the oven at 180° celsius and bake it for about 15-20 minutes. It should be golden brown and crispy. Top your zuccini glasses with this mixture. You can prepare in advance, refrigerate and serve it only when the guests arrived.

Melon Mint Gazpacho
(for about 5 to 6 person)

1 ripe melon (I used the cavaillon variety very common in Provence)
a quarter of a small red onion (you need a very small amount only this could be optional)
2-3 sprigs of fresh mint
1 teaspoon of olive oil
a pinch of salt

Start by peeling and removing the seeds of your melon cut them and put them in your blender. Add the onion and mint leaves. Blend them together. Add the olive oil and the salt. Continue blending. Pour them on your verrine or glasses and decorate the top with a slice of melon and a mint leaf. Refrigerate before serving.

Other Appetizer Recipes:

Strawberry Gazpacho and Basil
Californian Citrus Couscous Salad
Chicken liver and Fig Bruschetta

Banana Fake Tiramisu

Got milk?

Have you heard that Linda is hosting Got Milk, a food blogging event that requires milk as the main ingredient (or a non-dairy product check the link for details) in connivance with the celebration of the World Breastfeeding Week? It is an annual celebration concerned with the protection, promotion and support of breatfeeding worldwide. I am running for this cause because I believe this does not only concern women but everyone else.

When I was pregnant with my first baby I was shocked to meet a lot of pregnant moms in my classes who refused to breastfeed their babies claiming that it will destroy their beautiful bodies, that it will be painful and other several reasons. I respected their decision and I don't want to judge them. But I was really quite surprise of these moms' behavior to deny their child that greatest thing they could give them to help them have stronger bodies. But after I gave birth and started breastfeeding my baby, that is the only time I realised it wasn't easy afterall. My own experience was really painful and a bloody one. But I was really lucky to have a supportive and loving husband and a bunch of nurses that helped me all the way. Right now I have a daughter that is smart, strong, and vibrant and not a single moment I regret that decision to breastfeed her.

And oops, by the way, she just started walking yesterday few days even before her birthday. Isn't that great?

Banana Fake Tiramisu
(for 2 persons)

150 g of Fromage Blanc or Fromage Frais
2 tablespoons of condensed
2 tablespoons of honey
About 10-15 pieces of pounded graham crakers
10 g of melted butter
3 pieces of fresh bananas
1 teaspoon of cocoa powder
some banana chips for decorations

In a bowl cream the fromage blanc with the milk and honey. Mix them well. You can add more honey if you wish a sweeter version. In another bowl mix the graham crackers with the melted butter. Assemble your tiramisu on your desired glasses or verrine. Put a layer of graham crackers butter mixture. Arrange nicely your cut bananas and then add your layer of fromage blanc-milk-honey mixture. Powder it with cacao on the top and some banana chips. Refrigerate for at least three hours before serving. You can replace bananas with other fruits of your choice: mango, peach, nectarine, etc.

My other tiramisu or banana recipes:

Banana and Honey Muffin with Nutella Swirl
Banana chocolate Crepe
Nutella Tiramisu with Dulche de leche

Chocolate Brownies with dulche de leche and pecan nuts

I hope you have time to spare for me and my chocolate?

Have you ever felt that since were grown up now life has lost its magic? That somehow our guardian angels (if ever you believe they exist) have left or abandoned us? This was the topic that I had with my youngest sister, those rare occasions that I see her online. A person of few words as we often describe her, but online she metamorphoses into a talkative person that is much approachable that is easier to communicate with.

As we were saying, how things could be so ironic that when we were kids our life was in reality was a harsher life. But we never perceived it that way. Life always finds solution to our small worries. We were craving for ice-cream and there we found that shiny coin that fell from whosever pocket to the ground. It was raining outside we couldn’t play we drew images of sun on the floor then the mighty sun appears and the rain suddenly stops. There was this time we needed to bring frogs for our science project and it rained so hard it flooded even inside our house. And you probably guessed what happened next. Dozens of frogs were swimming in our living room, catching them wasn’t so hard after all. Oh And that day that we all had that big exam on Math (the subject we hated the most) and that we prayed so hard to avoid it. Next thing we knew there was a big typhoon and classes we’re suspended. How I wish things right now were a lot easier like before.

I am happy that I had that chat with my sister yesterday. Honestly since our dad passed away (not so long ago) we never really confronted the void he left on us. We all tried to live a normal life and deliberately avoided this emptiness and sadness. I guess it’s just really hard to realize we are grown up persons now on our own. A grown up person that needs to maturely face the cruel realities of life

That is why eating chocolate a lot of time is highly advisable for it wakes up the childness on us. This is my entry to Lore’s Original Recipes.

And by the way I’m sending three slices of this brownies virtually to 3 Pinay bloggers that I want to cheer up: Kala (lost in translation somewhere in the Middle East), to Makis (giving tutorials without electric fan that’s cruel!) and to Haze (building her cement factory in Corsica). Go girls!!

Chocolate Brownies with dulche de leche and pecan nuts

125 g (4 oz) of butter
125 g (4 oz) of dark chocolate
2 eggs
1 cup caster sugar
1 cup plain flour
2 tablespoons of selfraising flour
3/4 cup of chopped pecan nuts (leave some unchopped to decorate your brownies)
4 tablespoons of dulche de leche
I suggest go and check Gloria's recipe (Canela's Kitchen) she is the best dulche de leche maker I know!!

Put butter and chocolate in a saucepan over very low heat and stir until mixture becomes homegenous. Place eggs and sugar in a bowl and beat until mixture is pale and thick. Fold the chocolate mixture, sifted flour and pecan nuts. Mix well. Grease your square cake pan and pour the first layer with chocolate mixture. Add a layer of a dulche de leche on the layer and put the remaining chocolate mixture. See to it that the dulche de leche still floats on the surface. Decorate the surface with some pecan nuts. Bake in a preheated oven at 180° for about 20 to 30 minutes. I normally prepare my brownies a day before, keep them in the fridge and cut them once they have really cooled off.

Try my other chocolate recipes :
Nutella Tiramisu with Dulche de leche
Chocolate Mousse
Pecan nuts and Maple syrup Tart