The Two Best Cream Cheese Frostings EVER: Dulce de Leche and Whipped Cream

Today was not my best day -- my laptop died (RIP Antonio!) just as I was about to make a brilliant scientific discovery (that's what we're calling null effects these days) and shortly thereafter I nearly followed its example on a short 3 mile run (damnit legs! I thought we had a truce!). So, instead of actually addressing any of these issues (anyone wanna buy me a new laptop? Or some bionic legs?) I baked.

I had a vision, but not much more to go on than that -- chocolate cake with dulce de leche frosting.

This post isn't about the cake (my new staple), but about the magical frostings that just kind of inexplicably happened-- dulce de leche cream cheese frosting (important fact: my ipad changes "dulce" to "bruce", so this frosting will from now on be called "bruce") and, perhaps even better, whipped cream cream cheese frosting. Two creams in one. YES.

Unfortunately, but totally consistent with the theme of the day, while the dulce de leche frosting was delicious and provided a nice crumb coat, there wasn't enough of it, nor was it quite stable enough for decorating. So I reached into the vault of frosting recipes I have on hand (hello, google) and found a whipped cream cream cheese frosting.

This is my new favorite thing. I don't know if I can adequately describe my love of this frosting in my current fragile state, so let me just say -- it's amazingly delicious, not too sweet, light and fluffy, and be still my buttercream detesting heart, decorates as well if not better than the comparatively tasteless butter monstrosity (speaking of, I have 5 pounds of butter in my fridge. Ideas? Suggestions? Requests?).

Things seemed to finally be going my way -- my day took a definite turn for the better when I tasted these delicious frostings! I frosted and decorated my cake, reveled in the beauty of it, tasted the delicious frostings, reached for the lid to my cake carrier, and... well... gravity is such an asshole. Note to self: Do not keep cake carrier on top of the kitchen cabinet.

I have high hopes for tomorrow.

Sorry about the lack of pictures -- I didn't realize these recipes would be post-worthy until it was too late. Instead here is a picture of penguin duct tape. I'm calling it Bruce. 

Dulce de leche frosting (or, Bruce): 

Ingredients: 
2 cans sweetened condensed milk
2 8-oz blocks of cream cheese

First, make the dulce de leche--don't be scared! It's incredibly easy and everyone will be wildly impressed. Pour the milk into the top of a double broiler and cook it for an hour or hour and a half, stirring occasionally and adding water to the bottom of the double boiler as needed until the milk turns a light caramel color and thickens up. Let it cool.

Whip the cream cheese until light and fluffy. Add in the dulce de leche and whip!

Note: It might be a better consistency for decorating if I had used either 3 blocks of cream cheese or didn't use all the dulce de leche. I didn't try either, but if you do, let me know how it goes!

Whipped Cream Cream Cheese Frosting: 

Ingredients: 
1- 8oz block of cream cheese
1/2 c sugar
1 t vanilla
pinch of salt
2 c heavy cream

Whip the cream cheese, sugar, vanilla and salt until light and fluffy.

Add the cream and slowly mix to incorporate. Once it's combined, ramp up the speed and whip like mad until the frosting is nice and thick, about 2-3 minutes.

Strawberry Charlotte Russe: An Oldie but a Goodie.

I'm so super lame. I haven't posted any recipes for a long time... and I've even been baking tons! Just as much as ever! I've had a recent love affair with blondies (see? I took pictures, I totally intended to write it up).

Chocolate Peanut Butter Blondies

I made another cheesecake in puerto rico (this time key lime, again without any supplies as you can see by the 9X13 dish we had to use, and under duress with a NOVA crew filming our efforts): 

And I even branched out into candy and made chocolate toffee salted caramels.

I don't have Thalia's excuse (no babies here!) but I have been traveling a lot this summer, and I had a big goofy handful of a foster dog that a few students and I rescued from Puerto Rico. Oh yeah, and I'm hitting the academic job market, but the less we can say about that the better (otherwise I might curl into a ball in the corner and never finish this post). 

Goofy foster dog, Toad.

Anyway, all of that preamble is to say, sorry. I'm super lame. BUT I have something super fabulous for your culinary enjoyment to make up for my super lameness-- Charlotte Russe! I was only introduced to Charlotte Russe a couple years ago when I was visiting my parents and we were getting ready for a dinner party. In brainstorming about dessert my mom suggested a Charlotte Russe, mentioning it as a childhood favorite and staple of her youth. 

For those of you, like the past me, who haven't heard of Charlotte Russe, it's basically custard encased in ladyfingers. That description doesn't really do it justice -- it's silky and sweet and understated. It's delicious. Also, it's gorgeous. Look at how pretty!! In other words, the perfect dessert for my comeback debut! 

Ingredients: 

For the ladyfingers: 

3/4 c. Kirsch 

3/4 c simple syrup (1 part water to 2 parts sugar, boil until sugar is dissolved, voila!) 

36-40 ladyfingers (the hard italian kind) 

parchment paper*

springform pan*

*If you don't have these, why not do it as a trifle! Instead of arranging the ladyfingers as described, alternate layers of ladyfingers and custard in a trifle dish)

Italian Style Ladyfingers

For the custard: 

3 c whole milk

1 1/4 c sugar 

4 t vanilla

1/2 t salt

1/4 c + 2 t blue curaçao or grand marnier 

1 packet unflavored gelatin 

1 packet strawberry gelatin (or you can use 2 unflavored or 2 strawberry, just decrease the sugar by a couple tablespoons if you use both strawberry)

10 egg yolks, well mixed

1 lb fresh or frozen strawberries, hulled

2 c heavy cream

For the Strawberry glaze: 

1.5 lb strawberries, hulled 

1/3 c sugar

1/2 c water + 2 T water 

juice from one lemon

1 T cornstarch

1/2 packet of strawberry jello (optional) 

Mix together the kirsch and simple syrup in a shallow bowl. Cut a piece of 30" parchment paper, fold it in half, and make a collar around the springform pan. Use a paperclip or a safety pin or something to fasten it together. 

Dip the ladyfingers in the kirsch/simple syrup mixture and hold for a couple seconds so they soak up the goodness. 

Place the ladyfingers (sugar side down) along the bottom of the pan, leaving enough space for perpendicular lady fingers to be placed around the rim (sugar side out). 

And keep going until the bottom is covered and there are ladyfingers all around the circumference. If you've adequately soaked the ladyfingers they'll expand and there should be no gaps. If there are gaps in the bottom fill them in with broken ladyfinger pieces. 

Now make the custard! Pour the curaçao into a bowl and sprinkle with the galatin powder. Set this mixture aside while you cook the custard. 

Bring the milk, sugar, vanilla, and sugar to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sugar is dissolved (5-8 minutes). 

Once this happens, turn off the heat and add about 1 cup of the hot milk mixture to your reserved eggs, stirring to mix well (this is called tempering eggs). 

Add the tempered eggs back to the custard mixture and stir well. 

Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until the custard thickens a little. You'll know it's done when you turn your spoon over and run your finger through the custard on the back and the custard doesn't fill back in the mark you've made. 

Pour the custard through a strainer into a large bowl then add in the gelatin mixture, whisking until dissolved. 

Stick the custard in the refrigerator for about 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it reaches about room temperature. 

Meanwhile, puree the strawberries. 

When the custard is cooled, add the strawberry puree to it, mixing well. 

Whip the cream, and fold it into the custard. 

Pour your custard into your ladyfinger springform pan, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours. I took this opportunity to go to the beach, and highly recommend it. 

Next make the strawberry glaze! Bring the strawberries, water, and lemon on the stove on medium-high  up to boil then reduce the heat to low and simmer until the strawberries break down (about 10 minutes). You may need to encourage them to do so by smashing them with a potato masher. It's also loads of fun. 

Strain the solids from the sauce, pressing as much juice as you can out of them before discarding. 

Whisk the cornstarch with 3T water, add to your strawberry concoction (and add the optional jello powder now too), and simmer 3-5 minutes until it thickens into a glaze. 

Cool for 15-20 minutes then pour on top of the custard, being careful to cover the whole surface with the glaze. 

Cool overnight. 

When it's time to serve, unlock the springform pan and remove the rim and the parchment paper. 

Cut it in pieces like a pie and serve immediately, otherwise it'll get a bit unstable. If you want to display it before eating, just tie a ribbon around it so it'll stay standing! 

Enjoy! 

Thalia Learns to Cook: Sauces!

Recipes and examples of dishes I can now make!  Taken from a variety of sources and changed according to my abilities, needs, and dislike of doing dishes.

To my mind, a major component that separates the meal made at home from the fancy schmancy made in a restaurant is the presence of a sauce.  Sauces are delicious. They add flavor, moisture and depth to otherwise plain ole’ pieces of chicken, fish, etc.  However, they are difficult to make and make well. Although I haven’t been doing much new cooking as of late (see: 5 month old who is cute and smiley and doesn’t think sleeping is something he should be doing), I have been starting to venture into the world of sauces. And also panko bread crumbs (which are amazing and the subject of another post).

Tonight, we decided to make a lemon caper chicken.  Or rather, chicken breasts with lemon-caper sauce. What is a caper? I have no idea. But it’s small and salty and goes well with lemon.  Plus, we had some delicious rose wine that had to be drunk. 

Delicious Rose wine.

Gone are the days where opening a bottle of wine means finishing it in the same night. Nope, we have become 1-glass with dinner people. Mostly because any more than that and I will fall face first, dead asleep, into my lemon-caper chicken. So, there was extra wine. On with the recipe!

 Ingredients (Recipe taken from http://allrecipes.com/recipe/chicken-with-lemon-caper-sauce/)

• 1 pinch salt (I omitted this- the capers have so much salt in the sauce, no salt needed for the chicken).

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour (You actually need way less than this, just enough to coat the chicken).

• 2 (6 ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves (I cut these down to even out the cooking)

•  2 tablespoons olive oil (I also added some onion into the pan with the oil, only because I had left over cut up onion from some guacamole I had made earlier. Hate to let some cut up onion go to waste. It’s like you cried for nothing).

• 1/4 cup dry white wine (I used dry Rose. It was delicious).

•  1/4 cup lemon juice (I used a mix of fresh lemon and jarred lemon juice. It ended up being a bit too lemony- so next time I will use less).

• 1/4 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces (I used pastured butter. Um, pastured butter is the best thing in the whole world. Find some, buy it, eat it, and be happy).

• 2 tablespoons capers, drained (I didn't drain them- it made the sauce a bit salty, but it was a good thing).

• 2 lemon wedges (As mentioned, the sauce ended up pretty lemon-y, so extra lemon was unnecessary. Your experience may vary). 

Directions

1.     Mix together salt and flour in a small dish or plastic bag, then coat chicken and shake off excess. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Shake excess flour from chicken, then brown in hot oil until both sides are golden-brown, and the inside has turned white and firm, 3 to 4 minutes per side.

Chicken dredged in flour. The word dredged is funny. 

Traditionally, I have a problem just letting the darn chicken cook. Leave it alone! Let it cook!  So now I set a timer, 3 minutes and turn. 3 minutes and flip. 3 minutes and turn. 3 minutes and flip.  Then it's done.  I get impatient.  So, instead of futzing with the chicken as it cooked (Leave it alone!) I took a picture of the timer on my microwave. That's how I roll.

39 seconds to flip!

2.     Remove the chicken, and set aside. Pour white wine into the skillet, and allow to boil as you dissolve the cooked bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the lemon juice, and allow to come to a boil, cook for a few minutes until reduced by half.

The wine almost bubbled away! Nooooo!

My stovetop is hot, so this took no time at all.  Beware, you might want to remove the pan from the heat to avoid losing all of your wine and/or lemon juice. 

3.     Sprinkle the cubed butter into the boiling sauce. Swirl and shake the pan vigorously to dissolve the butter, thus thickening the sauce. The butter must never come to rest, or the sauce will separate and become oily. Once the butter has completely incorporated, remove from heat and stir in capers.

I was stirring so fast, you can't even see my hand! I'm speedy. 

So, this instruction had me totally freaked out, and is the reason sauces are something I've tried to avoid.  It seems so easy to just mess it all up if you're not moving quick enough.  But, if you prep ahead of time (an important lesson!!), then it goes relatively smoothly.  Happily, my sauce did not break. Or if it did, I didn't notice.  Whatever, this much butter? It was delicious. 

4.     To serve, pour lemon-caper sauce over the chicken, and serve with a wedge of lemon.

Delicious!

I served with a salad: greens, tomato, red pepper goat cheese. The sauce was also a nice salad dressing. 

So was it delicious? 

Yes it was!