White Chocolate Easter Torte (Passover Friendly)

Since Easter and Passover again fall at the same time this year, I thought I would make a dessert that observed both holidays. My immediate thought was a variation of a Lithuanian Nut Torte I had made a couple of years ago. The recipe uses nuts, grated chocolate and whipped egg whites to make a light cake. 

The time I first made this cake, I made it with dark or milk chocolate, however always thought I should try a white chocolate version of it. Now two years later I am finally doing it! 

The idea to make this cake again reappeared in my mind late one night when I was trying to fall asleep. That day a friend and I had visited Bakedown Cakery in St Leonards, as I was really keen to get some of the new Easter range. We both bought some chocolate, and as we walked home got caught in the worst downpour! We were absolutely saturated once we got back, but our Bakedown goodies had been well protected and survived the journey. 

I had bought some of the Golden Almond Eggs (caramelised white chocolate filled with almond praline - as delicious as it sounds), and some of the Hot Cross Bunnies chocolate bark (white and caramelised white chocolate with Easter spices with cute bunny illustrations printed on top). These chocolates, particularly the bark got me thinking about how it could be used to decorate a cake. 

The Nut Torte I had made so long before popped into my head as the perfect Easter dessert, which could also double as dessert for Passover. I decided I needed to visit Bakedown again to get more of the Hot Cross Bunnies bark, and a couple of blocks of Toasty (Bakedown’s caramelised white chocolate) to use for the torte. Jen at Bakedown also had Toasty Easter Bunnies ready when I went in the second time, and my gosh I was excited! Caramelised white chocolate is one of the best things I have ever tasted, and as someone who can’t eat ‘normal’ chocolate it was so nice to have an Easter treat I could actually enjoy! 

For this Easter Torte, I used Bakedown’s Toasty to grate into the torte, and the Hot Cross Bunnies bark to decorate the outside. I also used a combination of Toasty and regular white chocolate to melt down and decorate the top and use to stick the bark to the sides of the torte. You can of course use any type of chocolate you wish to make this torte, and decorate with your favourite Easter eggs, or just leave the decoration at the chocolate drizzle if you are making this cake for Passover (some toasted nuts scattered over the top would also be lovely). 

White Chocolate Bark from Bakedown Cakery, illustrations by Dawn Tan.

Hot Cross Bunnies white and caramelised white chocolate by Bakedown Cakery

White Chocolate Easter Torte (Passover Friendly)

Ingredients: 

100g macadamias or almonds, ground

3 tbsp fine matzo meal (or fine dry breadcrumbs if not making for Passover)

100g good quality white chocolate (the kind you would buy to eat) 

3 eggs (large), separated

125g golden caster sugar

1 tbsp lemon juice 

To Decorate: 

50-100g white chocolate 

Easter eggs/chocolate to decorate or some extra toasted nuts (macadamias or almonds) 

Method: 

Pre heat oven to 170 degrees Celsius and line a round 20cm loose bottomed or springform tin with baking paper. 

Grate the chocolate into a medium bowl, then add the ground nuts and matzo meal. Mix to combine then set aside. 

Place the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the whisk attachment. Whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form, then gradually add the sugar. Continue to whisk until the sugar has just incorporated. Briefly whisk in the egg yolks, then fold in the chocolate nut mixture. 

Tip into the prepared tin, and gently smooth the top. 

Bake for 35-45 minutes or until the torte is golden in colour and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. The torte will rise up then sink down a bit as it cooks. 

Leave to cool on a wire rack, removing from the tin once cooled. 

To decorate, melt the chocolate either in the microwave or over a double boiler. If sticking chocolate bark or similar around the edges of your torte use 100g of chocolate, drizzle some over the top, then spread the remaining chocolate around the sides of the cake then sick on the bark. If not, use 50g chocolate to drizzle over the top. Decorate with Easter eggs or toasted nuts. 

Reference: ‘100 Best Jewish Recipes’ by Evelyn Rose with Judi Rose (Pavilion, 2016), p.149. 

Pink Rocky Road with Homemade Blackberry Marshmallows + Homemade Raspberry Jubes for Easter

This recipe has been a long time coming for me. 

I have always been obsessed with marshmallows, so making them myself was always going to happen. I used to melt bowls of them in the microwave as a kid and eat them (sometimes with rice bubbles added too!). 

After enjoying the white chocolate rocky road by Sweetness The Patisserie (now owned by Adora Handmade Chocolates), for years and gifting many a milk or dark chocolate rocky road, I really wanted to make a good rocky road at home. Years ago I bought marshmallows and patê de fruits from Sweetness and assembled it myself. But after having made my own marshmallows for quite a while, I really wanted to do the whole thing myself. 

I have been keeping an eye out for a good patê de fruits or jube recipe for a while now. And I finally found one, that actually looked achievable in Bourke Street Bakery’s book ‘All Things Sweet’. I immediately put the book on my wish list, and luckily was gifted it for Christmas last year. 

Now I had the marshmallows and the jubes covered, I had to tackle the chocolate! I don’t eat chocolate, unless its white chocolate, so I don’t have a lot of experience with tempering etc. The main thing I can say about it now I’ve done it is, buy good quality chocolate with a high cocoa butter content, and get yourself a chocolate thermometer. I made the mistake of thinking I could use my candy thermometer, only to realise it doesn’t read temperatures under 40 degrees Celsius, which is not helpful for tempering chocolate! 

I bought this thermometer from Peter’s of Kensington, which is great as it’s a thermometer and spatula in one. If you want to know more about tempering chocolate I would recommend the above Bourke Street Bakery book and Katherine Sabbath’s pop up book ‘Greatest Hits’. 

This recipe does look a bit daunting I know, but I found making the marshmallows and the jubes on one day quite achievable. They both need to set overnight at least, so the next day all you need to do is temper the chocolate and assemble the rocky road. I add a very small amount of pink colouring and rose flavouring which is suitable for use with chocolate, however this is completely optional. You could of course use any type of chocolate you like (I think ruby chocolate would be great here!). 

Along with the chocolate thermometer, a candy (sugar) thermometer is also necessary to make the marshmallows and jubes. 

I hope you have a go at this recipe (or one of the elements of it!), I think homemade rocky road would make great gifts to give this Easter - and if you can’t fathom all that effort I would recommend checking out the Easter ranges at Adora Handmade Chocolates (who also make a stellar rocky road!) and Bakedown Cakery for any Easter gifts you may need.

Blackberry Marshmallows

Homemade Blackberry Marshmallows

Ingredients: 

275g pureed fresh blackberries (the seeds can be strained if you wish, however the total weight still needs to be 275g)

50g gelatine powder

115ml water

820g white/granulated sugar 

320g glucose 

50g potato flour/starch

50g icing sugar (pure or confectioners)

cooking spray

Method: 

Spray a slice tin or lamington tray (at least 30x20cm) with the cooking spray and set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, briefly mix together the blackberry puree and the gelatine powder. Leave for now, ensuring the whisk attachment is fitted and everything is ready to go once your sugar syrup is ready. 

In a medium/large saucepan place the water, then the sugar, then the glucose. Place over high heat and cook until the syrup reaches 120 degrees Celsius on a candy thermometer.

With the mixer on low, gradually pour the sugar syrup into the blackberry mix. Whisk on medium speed for about 3 minutes, until the mixture turns a more opaque colour. The mixture will also start to thicken. Then increase mixer to high speed for about 8 minutes, until the marshmallow has tripled in volume and has thickened. 

Pour marshmallow into the prepared tray, tapping it down on the bench to remove any air bubbles and to ensure it is sitting in the tray evenly. 

Leave to set overnight before cutting (room temperature is best, preferably covered with a food net or cover).

Once the marshmallow is ready to cut, in a small bowl whisk together the potato flour and the icing sugar (sift if necessary). 

Dust some of this mixture onto your clean work surface. Remove the slab of marshmallow from the tin, use a spatula to pull the sides away from the tin and tip it onto the dusted work surface. 

Dust more of the icing sugar mix over the top of the marshmallow slab, and around the sides. Using a large sharp knife, cut into cubes, by cutting the slab into rows, then cutting rows in the other direction. Dust your knife regularly with the icing sugar mix, and continue to dust the marshmallows as they are cut. The size you cut the marshmallows is completely up to you, I like cutting them into larger cubes (as pictured). 

Ensure every part of the cut marshmallows are covered in the potato flour and icing sugar mix. Toss them around on the bench to remove any excess.

Store in an airtight container. The marshmallows will keep for about 3 weeks. 

Raspberry Jubes

Homemade Raspberry Jubes 

Ingredients: 

550g caster sugar, plus extra

15g pectin (citrus pectin)

15g citric acid

300g pureed raspberries, seeds removed (from about 400g fresh/frozen raspberries)

75g raspberry or mixed berry jam (sieved if lumpy)

juice of 1 lemon

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

75g glucose

80ml water

Method: 

Line the base of a large baking tray with baking paper (approx. 30x20cm) 

In a small bowl combine 50g of the sugar, with the pectin and citric acid. 

In a medium saucepan, place the pureed raspberries, jam, lemon juice and vanilla bean paste. Place on medium to high heat and bring to the boil. Add the pectin mixture and stir to combine. Allow the mixture to come back to the boil, the remove from the heat and set aside (keep near your stove as you will need it again soon). This fruit mixture should have thickened up by now, and will continue to do so as it cools. 

Place the remaining sugar (500g), along with the glucose and water, in a large saucepan and bring to the boil. Allow the mixture to continue boiling until it reaches 121 degrees Celsius on a candy thermometer. 

Once this point is reached, add the raspberry mixture and whisk to combine. Leave on the heat until it reaches 108 degrees Celsius. Once this point is reached, pour into the prepared tray, ensuring the mixture sits evenly in the tray. 

Leave to set overnight, at room temperature (preferably with a food net or cover sitting over it). 

When ready to cut, dust your clean work surface with some of the extra caster sugar, and tip the jube slab out of the tin. Cut into desired shapes, it’s really up to you. Sprinkle with more caster sugar until they are all well coated. 

Store in an airtight container. Will keep for about 2 weeks. 

Rocky Road Ingredients

Pink Rocky Road

Pink Rocky Road

Ingredients: 

700g good quality white chocolate

pink colouring (suitable for use with chocolate)

rose flavouring (suitable for use with chocolate)

80g raw or blanched pistachios

265g homemade raspberry jubes

500g homemade blackberry marshmallows 

dried edible rose petals, for decoration

Method: 

Line a square baking tin (approx. 22cm) with baking paper - I like to use small bulldog clips to hold the paper in place. 

Preheat oven to 160 degrees Celsius. Roast the pistachios on a lined baking tray for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.

Have all the rocky road elements ready to go next to your prepared tin. 

Place a small pot with a little water on the stove and allow to simmer. Using another pot or bowl that will comfortably sit over the top of the water pot, measure out 450g of the white chocolate. 

Place this pot over the simmering water (ensuring the water does not touch the base of the pot above) and melt the chocolate. Ensure the chocolate is constantly stirred. Once the chocolate reaches 45 degrees Celsius on chocolate thermometer, remove from the heat and continue stirring while gradually adding the remaining 250g of white chocolate. Add a little at a time and allow to melt before adding more. 

Continue to check the temperature of the chocolate, once it has fallen to 34 degrees Celsius, the remaining chocolate should have all been added. Continue stirring to allow the chocolate to cool further to 32 degrees Celsius. Add a little pink colouring at this point, and a few drops of the rose flavouring. Start small with both and add more if you think it’s necessary. 

Once the chocolate has reached 32 degrees Celsius, it is ready to use. 

Pour about a third of the chocolate into the base of the prepared tin and allow it cover the base completely. Scatter in half the marshmallows and half the jubes. Scatter in a third of the pistachios. Cover with another third of the chocolate, then place the remaining marshmallows and jubes in, and another third of the pistachios. Cover with the remaining chocolate, and scatter over the remaining pistachios. Decorate with some dried edible rose petals. 

Place in the fridge for about 30 minutes to set (especially if you are working in warm or humid conditions). 

Once set use a large sharp knife to cut the rocky road into desired sizes. 

I prefer to keep the rocky road in the fridge. Keeps for about 2-3 weeks. 

Makes 8 generous blocks of rocky road. 

References: ‘Bourke Street Bakery All Things Sweet’ by Paul Allam and David McGuinness (Murdoch Books, 2017), pp.104-105 + 119; ‘Greatest Hits - The Pop Edition’ by Katherine Sabbath (Katherine Sabbath, 2017) Recipe Card #40; Heilala Vanilla SWEETNESS Vanilla Bean Marshmallow. 

For more recipes showcasing the best of rose, check out my ebook Baking with Rose by clicking the link below!

Syrian Inspired Sesame & Pistachio Cookies

Late last year I started a new job, and in the first couple of weeks one of my co-workers had a birthday. It was her 21st, and some of the others bought her a cake. She also brought in some Syrian Barazek cookies. These biscuits are native to my co-workers homeland and I was really excited to try them. I also thought it was so sweet of her to bring something in to share on her own birthday! 

Syrian Barazek cookies are thin crunchy biscuits that have pistachios on the base and their tops are covered with sesame seeds. After trying them at work, I immediately knew I must try and make them myself. Unfortunately, I tried and failed miserably! The recipe I tried seemed simple enough, but maybe that was the problem. These cookies are not simple, and I feel only someone who has made them for a long time could teach me how to perfect them. 

I asked my co-worker and another who is also from Syria, and they said that most people would by Barazek cookies rather than make them. Even the ones I tasted at work had been imported from Syria. I was beginning to think I wouldn’t be able to replicate these delicious biscuits! 

A month or so passed, and I still couldn’t get the idea of making some of my own Barazek style cookies out of my head. I then stumbled upon a recipe in Greg and Lucy Malouf’s book ‘Suqar’ for a Lebanese version of Barazek with sour cherries added. Reading the recipe it was quite different from the other Barazek cookies I had tried to make, and looked more reminiscent of a shortbread or sugar cookie than the others. 

This gave me an idea. I didn’t need to perfect a traditional Barazek recipe, I could use those flavours and ingredients to create my own Syrian inspired cookie.

The below recipe is what I came up with. I adapted my favourite chocolate chip cookie recipe to include the two main ingredients of a Barazek cookie - sesame seeds and pistachios. I am very happy with the result, despite my biscuits being quite a departure from a traditional Barazek cookie. 

I took some into work, and one of my colleagues said it reminded her of the Syrian Barazek cookies, even though they were different. I took this as a great compliment, and am so happy others have not only inspired my baking but also enjoyed it! 

Cutting the dough from frozen (see recipe method)

Fresh from the oven

Syrian Inspired Sesame & Pistachio Cookies

Ingredients: 

250g unsalted butter, softened or margarine (I use Proactiv Buttery)

200g brown sugar

100g white sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

3 egg yolks

325g plain flour

3/4 tsp baking soda

150g slivered pistachios

60g white sesame seeds, plus 2 tbsp extra

Method: 

Beat the butter or margarine and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment until combined. Add the vanilla extract, then the egg yolks mixing until combined. 

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour and the baking soda, then add to the butter mixture and mix on a low speed until almost combined. Then add the pistachios and the 60g sesame seeds and mix until combined. 

At this stage you can either remove the bowl from the stand, cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or roll the dough into two logs, cover with plastic wrap or baking paper and freeze. 

Either way this biscuit dough needs to be chilled. If placing in the fridge, pre-heat oven to 160 degrees Celsius and line 3-4 trays with baking paper. Once the dough has been in the fridge for at least 30 minutes, scoop out heaped tablespoons of the mixture and place on the prepared baking trays (leaving room for the biscuits to spread as they cook). Sprinkle the tops of each biscuit with the remaining sesame seeds.

Bake for 15-16 minutes (rotating the trays halfway) for a softer biscuit, or about 18 minutes for a crunchier biscuit. The biscuit will be golden once done.

Allow to cool on their trays. 

If freezing the dough, roll out some plastic wrap or baking paper and shape half the dough into a log and cover. Repeat with the second half of the mixture. Allow the dough to lie flat in the freezer until completely frozen. 

When you want to bake the dough, pre heat oven to 160 degrees Celsius and line 3-4 baking trays with baking paper. Remove the dough from the freezer and allow to sit at room temperature for 5 minutes before cutting. 

Using a sharp knife, cut each log into 1/5-1cm rounds and place on the prepared trays (allowing room for the biscuits to spread whilst cooking). Sprinkle the tops of each with the remaining sesame seeds. 

Bake for 18 minutes (rotating the trays halfway) for a softer biscuit, and 20 minutes for a crunchier biscuit. The biscuits will be golden once done. 

Allow to cool on their trays.

References: ‘The Violet Bakery Cookbook’ by Claire Ptak (Ten Speed Press, 2015), pp.140-1; ‘Suqar’ by Greg and Lucy Malouf (Hardie Grant Books, 2018), p.84. 

Off the Shelf - 'Simple' by Yotam Ottolenghi

Bought at: received as a gift - thankfully as I had been wanting it so badly after it was released!

Recipes Made: Roasted Baby Carrots with Harissa and Pomegranate p.116, Butternut Squash with Sweetcorn Salsa, Feta and Pumpkin Seeds p.122, Roasted Beetroot with Yoghurt and Preserved Lemon p.125, Pappardelle with Rose Harissa, Black Olives and Capers p.188, Chicken Marbella p.229, Bridget Jones’s Pan Fried Salmon with Pine Nut Salsa p.246, Plum, Blackberry and Bay Friand Bake p.274 and Fig and Thyme Clafoutis p.278. 

The Roasted Carrots with Harissa and Pomegranate has a few flavours that I particularly like - honey, coriander and pomegranate seeds, so I was always going to be trying this recipe. I made it as a side to a main meal, and I really enjoyed it. I put much less harissa in than the 2tbsp Ottolenghi says, as I am not a great fan of spicy foods. The pomegranate seeds added a great juicy crunch to the carrots which was lovely, and also gave the dish a great vibrant colour!

The Butternut Squash with Sweetcorn Salsa Feta and Pumpkin Seeds, is great as a side to something else, or as the main thing itself. The Sweetcorn salsa was absolutely amazing and had me wanting to eat more even though I was full! It was a really nice meal to have on a warm Summer night (even though pumpkin isn’t exactly in season then!).

I made the Roasted Beetroot with Yoghurt and Preserved Lemon with golden beetroot, as I find I am unable to walk away from a store without buying them if they have some. As I didn’t have any tahini, I used pistachio butter instead for the yoghurt dressing and also omitted the preserved lemons too. We did have a jar of preserved lemons, and I wanted to use them, but Mum had bought them with the idea of using them for something else. Nonetheless the salad was still great, and I even added some of the leftovers to a frittata a few days later.

Butternut Squash with Sweetcorn Salsa Feta and Pumpkin Seeds

I really enjoyed the Pappardelle with Rose Harissa Black Olives and Capers (albeit with much less harissa than stated in the recipe!). I had heard about the recipe before I got a copy of Simple, as Yotam made it during one of his podcasts. I remember thinking I needed to make the recipe once I got the book, and it ended up being the first thing I made! I loved the combination of capers and olives in this recipe, as they are two of my absolute favourite ingredients. 

Chicken Marbella with Baked Rice with Pomegranate and Olive Salsa (added 08/08/2019)

The Chicken Marbella is my favourite chicken recipe of the moment. I make it every week or two and I just enjoy it so much. Most of the ingredients we usually have at home already, so I only need to buy some chicken. I haven’t found the specific cut of chicken specified in the recipe, when I have found something similar (like chicken marylands), they just don’t have that much meat on them. I now buy drumsticks (about 6, to feed three people) and it works really well. I always have the chicken marinating overnight, and I even found date molasses in a Persian grocery store here in Sydney (which I have now found more uses for than this recipe!). The combination of chicken, capers, green olives, white wine and vinegar leads to the most moorish chicken dish that has the perfect balance of sweet and acidic flavours. 

When I first received a copy of Simple, I sat down and put sticky notes on every recipe I wanted to make. Sure enough I used up a lot of sticky notes as there are so many great recipes in this book. I didn’t however mark the recipe for Bridget Jones’s Pan Fried Salmon with Pine Nut Salsa. I’m not sure why, as I do like salmon and again it uses capers and olives which usually has me bookmarking a recipe in an instant. The fish section in Simple is towards the back of the book, maybe I just had bookmarking fatigue by then? Luckily when my Mum looked at the book this recipe stood out to her and she made it. It was so good, that I now want to eat it all the time. The Pine Nut Salsa cuts through the oiliness of the fish, and the flavours are delicate yet tasty. 

My Mum also made the Plum Blackberry and Bay Friand Bake, which was a lovely dessert for the end of a meal. I love friands so a whole cake size of it was just great. Like any friand it is best eaten the day it is made. 

Mum also made the Fig and Thyme Clafoutis. And after trying to search for the particular figs mentioned in the recipe (black figs), we ended up just having to buy whatever we could find. This is the only recipe we haven’t really loved from this book so far, and I think it was more because we just aren’t a ‘fig loving family’ unfortunately! 

Favourite Things About the Book: The recipes! This book is absolutely jam packed with fantastic recipes. They have Yotam’s characteristic bold flavours, but with a paired back, slightly more simple approach. There is also a great variety of recipes in this book, so it’s one you can add to your collection and know you will use it all throughout the year for all different kinds of meals and occasions. Ottolenghi’s recipes are also very well tested before publication, and it shows, as they all work!

Bookmarked Recipes (to make later!): There are so many, but a few that I would like to try next are Roasted Aubergine with Anchovies and Oregano p.64, Cauliflower, Pomegranate and Pistachio Salad p.91, Sweet Potato Mash with Lime Salsa p.131, Oven Chips with Oregano and Feta p.138, Baked Mint Rice with Pomegranate and Olive Salsa p.171, Pasta alla Norma p.184-5, Orzo with Prawns, Tomato and Marinated Feta p.193, Gnocchi alla Romana p.198 and Fishcake Tacos with Mango, Lime and Cumin Yoghurt p.254.

Pistachio Hamantaschen + How to Make Pistachio Paste

Purists look away now, these are not traditional hamantaschen! Hamantaschen (made during the Jewish festival of Purim) are only a recent discovery for me, so I don’t have any preconceived ideas or traditions to guide me as to how they ‘should’ be. My only experience with them is seeing pictures pop up on Instagram the week or so before Purim. And many of the ones I have seen are variants on the traditional versions. The recipes from Molly Yeh’s blog ‘My Name is Yeh’ are a great example of this. Last year I made her Marzipan Sprinkle Hamantaschen and they were delightfully fun.

This year I have been baking with pistachios a lot, and trying to perfect a homemade pistachio paste (since none seems to be available to buy at any store I have so far looked at!). When I noticed Purim was fast approaching I thought a pistachio version with my newly perfected pistachio paste would be great. 

Great, if you aren’t set on a traditional hamantaschen that is! After speaking to a few people, I have since discovered that firstly, traditionally hamantaschen are filled with a poppyseed filling. Secondly, the shortbread like pastry sometimes used nowadays (like the one below), is definitely not traditional! A yeasted dough is the traditional way to make them. 

Well, that had me seriously questioning my hamantaschen idea, and for a moment considered making this version and a traditional poppyseed one with yeasted dough. After more discussion and some research online and in a few of my cookbooks, I decided to forge ahead with my super untraditional hamantaschen recipe. 

From my research on hamantaschen the shortbread like dough was a 20th century adaptation of the original, as it was easier to make and had a slightly longer shelf life. From my observations it looks like the shortbread like dough is quite common in America and in US based recipes. Which is where the below recipe originates. After some trial and error I finally settled on the dough recipe by Uri Scheft from his book ‘Breaking Breads’. Uri has bakeries in Israel and New York, and based on the types of recipes in this book, I definitely need to visit one of these bakeries one day!

So to those celebrating, Chag Purim Sameach! And for everyone else, I hope you give these a go! They are worth it just for the pistachio paste alone 😀.

If you want to know more about Purim or Hamantaschen here are a few good links! 

• All You Need to Know About Hamantaschen 

• The OG Hamantaschen: Yeast Dough Poppy Triangles 

• A Purim Classic: Sugar Cookie Hamantaschen 

• Molly Yeh’s Hamantaschen Recipes 

NB. The leftover pistachio paste can be used to flavour ice creams or gelato, cakes, icings, milkshakes etc. 

Also! The Pisacahio Paste requires blending by a fairly powerful food processor! If you don’t think yours is up to the task, or don’t feel like making it I would recommend making the marzipan from Molly’s Marzipan and Sprinkle Hamantaschen but with ground pistachios instead of almonds. 

View fullsize

View fullsize

View fullsize

Hamantaschen ready for the oven

Homemade Pistachio Paste

How to Make Pistachio Paste

Ingredients: 

250g raw or blanched pistachios 

100g white sugar 

30ml water

60ml (4tbsp) pistachio oil 

Method: 

Pre heat oven to 160 degrees Celsius, and place the pistachios on a baking tray. Roast in the oven for 10 minutes. Once done set aside to cool a little. 

Place the sugar and water into a small/medium saucepan and heat until it reaches 120 degrees on a sugar thermometer. Whilst the sugar syrup is heating, place the roasted pistachios in the bowl of a food processor and blitz until they form a fine crumb. 

Once the sugar syrup has reached 120 degrees Celsius, gradually pour into the food processor whilst it is running. Gradually add the pistachio oil, and continue to process until a smooth paste forms. This should take between 5 and 10 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the food processor bowl at regular intervals if necessary. The finished product will be a smooth paste, similar to a nut butter. When the paste initially combines it will form a smooth ball, continue processing until a more paste like consistency is reached. 

Once a smooth paste has formed, decant into plastic containers or glass jars and store in the fridge until needed. It should last about 1 month refrigerated. If the oils in the paste separate a little during storage, mix the paste briefly before using.

Makes about 390g. 

Homemade Pistachio Paste

Pistachio Hamantaschen

Pistachio Hamantaschen 

Ingredients: 

230g unsalted butter (cold not room temp)

100g icing sugar (confectioners)

50g white sugar

2 eggs 

400g plain flour

50g almond meal

salt

Ingredients for the Filling: 

1/2 tbsp water

salt

60g mixed berry jam

250g pistachio paste 

slivered pistachios, to decorate

Method: 

Place the butter in between two sheets of baking paper and bash with the end of a rolling pin. This tenderises the butter without warming it up too much. 

Place the butter and both sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat with the paddle attachment on a low speed until just combined. Increase the speed a little for a few moments longer to ensure everything is well mixed. 

In a glass, add one of the eggs and lightly beat. Tip half of this into another glass and add the other egg to one of the egg halves and beat until combined. Only 1.5 eggs is necessary for the dough, however keep the other half for the egg wash later. 

Add the beaten 1.5 eggs to the butter and mix on low until combined. Add the flour, almond meal and a pinch of salt then mix until almost combined. 

Tip your dough onto a work surface and bring the dough together with your hands, until everything is combined. Wrap in plastic wrap or baking paper and place in the fridge for at least 1 hour (however you can do up to this step on one day and finish off the rest the next). 

Once the dough has chilled, pre heat oven to 160 degrees Celsius and line three large baking trays with baking paper. 

Flour your work surface and roll the dough out with a rolling pin until it is about 0.5cm thick. Continue to dust with more flour if the dough is sticky. 

Cut out rounds of the dough using a 7.5-8cm (3 inch) round biscuit/cookie cutter and place on the prepared trays. Place these trays in the fridge if the dough has softened too much for a few minutes. Bring the scraps of dough together and flatten out again. If the dough is too soft re-wrap and place in the fridge for a few minutes, then continue to cut out more rounds of dough. 

Remove the trays from the fridge. Get your beaten half egg from earlier and add the water and a pinch of salt. Whisk until combined. Brush this mixture over each round of dough. 

Then spread a little of the jam in the centre of each round, then place a 1tsp sized ball of pistachio paste on top. 

Shape the rounds of dough into the characteristic triangle shape by pinching one side into a corner, then folding the other side up to form two more corners. Sprinkle the middle of each with a few slivered pistachios.

Bake for about 20-23 minutes, rotating the racks a couple of times during baking to ensure an even bake. The hamantaschen will be lightly golden when they are done. 

Cool on trays or on wire racks. 

Makes about 40. 

References: ‘À La Mère de Famille’ by Julien Merceron (Hardie Grant Books, 2013), p.160; ‘Breaking Breads’ by Uri Scheft (Artisan, 2016), pp.258-260.

Off The Shelf - ‘À La Mère de Famille - Artisanal Recipes’ by Julien Merceron

Bought at: Grosgrain Homewares - a gorgeous homewares store in Wahroonga (in Sydney, NSW). 

Recipes Made: Marshmallows pp.108-112, Passionfruit Caramel p.142 & Galette au Beurre p.214. Pistachio Paste p.160, Pistachio Cake p.22.

À La Mère de Famille, Paris.

I have always been a big fan of marshmallow, and I bought a packet of mixed marshmallows at À La Mère de Famille when we were there in 2014. They were nice, albeit a little sticky. A little while later I decided I needed to try and make some of my own and used À La Mère de Famille’s recipe. They turned out exactly as I remembered them from the shop, however didn’t cope very well in the humidity of a Sydney Summer. I found I needed to keep tossing them in the icing sugar and potato flour mix to stop them going wet and sticky. They were definitely nice, however this recipe has not become my go to marshmallow recipe. 

À La Mère de Famille Marshmallows (Raspberry & Passionfruit)

À La Mère de Famille Passionfruit Caramels

After visiting À La Mère de Famille in Paris, I knew I had to make some of the Passionfruit Caramels. I had bought a handful of them when I was there, and they were just so good I couldn’t fathom not eating another until the next time I was in Paris. Luckily the recipe is in their book. You definitely need a candy thermometer for this recipe, however many of the recipes in this book do as well, so it well worth getting one anyway. I found the caramels didn’t work as well when I made them in the heat and humidity of Summer, but worked better in the cooler months. I even went to the effort of buying candy wrappers for them, and I found plastic wrap fairly useless the first time around! 

À La Mère de Famille Passionfruit Caramels

À La Mère de Famille Passionfruit Caramels

À La Mère de Famille Passionfruit Caramels

To me the Galette au Beurre are kind of like the French version of shortbread. Lots of butter, however using icing sugar instead of caster sugar. This recipe makes a lot (about 50 biscuits), but they are that good that it’s worth having that many. I posted the recipe for them years ago here on the blog (one of the very early posts!), and I mention there that when I made them I took some to my Grandpa who was in a nursing home at the time. He seemed to like them, telling me later he had gotten up in the night to eat one! 

I made the Pistachio Paste recently, as I have been on a mission to recreate a pistachio ice cream/gelato. While the book does have a Pistachio ice cream recipe (p.250), I just added some of the Pistachio Paste to my easy egg free ice cream recipe. The flavour was quite nice but the ice cream froze really solid so I think I will need to try another recipe next time. The pistachio paste was relatively easy to make, as long as you have some kind of food processor. I made a half quantity of the recipe and used a mini food processor. As the paste has a sugar syrup in it, the paste firms up quite a lot when it cools. I’m not sure how easy it would be to add to other recipes once it is like this, it would probably need to be pureed again or lightly warmed to get it to incorporate properly. Considering however how difficult bought pistachio paste is to find here in Sydney, making it using this recipe is a great substitute. 

À La Mère de Famille Pistachio Cake

The final thing I have made so far from this book is the Pistachio Cake. It is relatively easy to make (no mixer required), and is meant to use the Pistachio Paste (p.160) from the same book. As I didn’t have enough left after making the ice cream, I used some of the Pistachio Butter I bought from the Royal Nut Company online. The cake turned out well, despite not knowing what size loaf tin I should be using (this book doesn’t seem to mention sizes or dimensions of anything unfortunately - for this cake I used one  22 x 10 x 9cm loaf tin). The green colour of my cake was probably a little muted from using pistachio butter rather than paste, but I think it still made a good substitute (though I should probably test with pistachio paste next time to really compare). If you don’t have access to good quality pistachio paste or butter, or can’t be bothered making some, I would recommend using this Pistachio Cake recipe instead to get your pistachio cake fix! 

Favourite Things About The Book: This book has an amazing variety of recipes from cakes, biscuits, chocolates, confectionary and ice creams. It really gives a great representation of what À La Mère de Famille is all about and the types of products they sell. It also gives a history of the store (which was established in 1761) periodically throughout the book which is lovely. 

Bookmarked Recipes (to make later!): Pain d’Épice p.32, Praline Paste p.48, Pistachio Nougat p.154, Strawberry Pâte de Fruits p.168, Quince Paste p.176, Macaron de Nancy p.242, Pistachio Popsicle p.250.

À La Mère de Famille, Paris