Because what the Internet really needs is more French Macarons

For the past ten months, I have been working in a bakery doing various things (even inventing some of my own goods!), but mostly making French Macarons!

I'm one of the few awesome smartphone-free people left in the world...I mean, the San Francisco Bay Area, so I haven't really taken any pictures of my Macs (my phone camera sucks).

So the other day I brought my camera to work and did a little sesh with my cute little guys. Allow me to introduce them, from left to right:

Lemon, peanut butter, coconut blossom (rum, orange blossom water and coconut), chocolate, and avocado on top.

Lesson learned: I had freakin' better bring my camera to work more often!

De la Rosa Cupcakes

My dentist is going to hate me for this. She just told me a couple weeks ago that I'm not allowed to eat dried fruit anymore because it's messing up my teeth. But she didn't say I'm not allowed to eat cupcakes!

There's a market right by my house that sells four De la Rosa candies for a dollar. I used twelve for this recipe. If you've never had them, they're crumbly, dry, and taste like peanut butter. I don't remember exactly how or why this idea came to me, but I do remember it came to me on the walk home from that market, probably while eating one of these candies.

They're mostly powdered sugar. Buttercream frosting is mostly powdered sugar and butter. Makes sense, no?

This creamy frosting will have small bits of peanut in it, just like the candy does. You'll notice the chocolate cupcake recipe calls for chili oil. It didn't turn out quite as spicy as I wanted, so maybe next time I'll try with some dried, powdered hot pepper, like cayenne.

For the cupcakes:

-1 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
-1/2 cup cocoa powder
-1 cup boiling water
-2 tsp. baking powder
-1 3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
-1/4 cup Asian chili oil
-1 cup white sugar
-2 eggs
-2 tsp. vanilla extract

For the frosting:

-1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature
-12 De La Rosa candies, crushed up to a powder (comes out to about 2 cups)
-1 cup powdered confectioner's sugar

Make the cupcakes:

Preheat oven to 375 F.

Mix boiling water with cocoa powder, set aside to cool. If you're like me and bad at planning ahead, put it in the freezer to cool it at supersonic speed! Just take it out and stir every 10 minutes or so.

 Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt.

Use an electric mixer to beat the butter smooth and fluffy. Beat in the chili oil, then beat in the eggs one at a time. Finally, add the vanilla extract and beat until smooth.

Add the flour mixture, and beat until just incorporated (don't over-beat). Stir in the cooled cocoa water. The freezer should bring it to room temp in about a half hour.

Line a muffin tin with 12 cupcake liners, and fill each liner about 3/4 full. Bake 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Make the frosting:

Just like with the cupcakes, beat the butter until smooth and creamy. Gradually add the De La Rosa candy powder. If you found the candy to be lumpy, run it through a coffee grinder or food processor before adding it to the butter. Beat until incorporated, then add the powdered sugar. Beat until smooth.

Once the cupcakes are cooled, frost them and sprinkle with a bit of cocoa powder, if you want them to be real pretty.

Lemon & Raspberry Mini-Tarts

I am a dirty rotten cheater for posting this. Lemon curd from a jar? Pssshaw, clearly I am a terrible mad scientist. Go ahead and tell me how bad I am for posting this. What's that you say? Sorry, I can't understand you, because you just stuffed five of these delicious little tarts I made into your mouth. Why don't I get you a coffee to wash those down with, and then we can sit down and I'll tell you how to make them.

Preheat oven to 425.

You will need a mini muffin tin, as well as:

-1 ready-made pie crust (box usually contains 2 crusts for the top & bottom of the pie)
-1 jar lemon curd
-24 delicious raspberries.

Using a cookie cutter slightly bigger than the muffin holes in your mini muffin tin, cut out 24 circles.  Press pie crust circles into muffin tin, and bake for 10 minutes or until done (golden).

When cool, spoon in lemon curd, and top each mini-tart with a raspberry.

See what I mean? Too easy to post. But aren't they pretty?

Carrot Cake...Yay!

Not mad science-like at all, therefore I'm not posting a recipe. There is no shortage of carrot cake recipes on the internet. But...ain't it purdy?! =]

Panettone French Toast

Mmmm....I always loved Panettone as a kid. We ate it at breakfast, toasted with cream cheese on top. I remember one Christmas I gave a box to my teacher and she said "Is this from your Italian grandma?" I made sure to tell her it was actually my grandpa who is Italian.

I didn't know until I bought this particular loaf at a small shop here in Madrid that they also eat it in Perú. It's exactly the same, except that it's spelled "Panetón" and it's normally eaten dipped in hot chocolate.

This was an eye-opening and amazing discovery, but with it came an even more delicious discovery: Panetón makes excellent French Toast.

-6 thick slices of Panettone (or Panetón, depending on where you buy it from)
-3 eggs
-3/4 cup milk
-Cinnamon
-Butter
-Pinch salt

Beat eggs, milk, cinnamon and salt in a wide, shallow bowl. Melt butter in a frying pan. Let the Panettone slices soak in the egg mixture longer than you normally would for french toast, especially if the slices are very thick. You don't want them dry inside, or do you? It's best to let some slices soak while others are cooking, first coating on both sides and then flipping them as you flip the slices in the pan.
Cook until golden brown on each side, and then serve with maple syrup (hard to find here...boo!) and strawberries.

Pomegranate White Chocolate Oatmeal

Before the start of winter break, I decided to make some pretty, Christmas-y-looking pomegranate white chocolate cookies for my co-workers (eeew...i hate using that word. makes me sound so grown up). Everyone loved them and I ended up having a whole pomegranate left over, as well as a whole bar of white chocolate.

I'm living in Spain right now and haven't yet figured out where to find chocolate or white chocolate chips, so I always end up buying a chocolate bar and smashing it up. Is this how cavemen made chocolate chip cookies? I hope so.


The cookie recipe is great and all, but it's been done, and that's not what MadSpatch is about. MadSpatch is about eating pomegranates and white chocolate for breakfast! This one's for all you oatmeal lovers, because the more oatmeal I eat, the more fun things I find to do with it. See my previous Baked Oatmeal post for more fun with oats.

-1 cup oats
-1 1/2 cup water
-1 1/4 cup milk
-At least 1/3 cup pomegranate seeds
-1/4 cup white chocolate chips, or a smashed-up white chocolate bar if you're me
-Pinch salt

Bring water to a boil, add oats and salt. Turn down the heat and cook for about 10 minutes. Add the milk and cook for another 5. I haven't tried this, but I've heard great things about microwaving oatmeal with just milk (no water). I prefer to just use milk but I include the water in this recipe because milk tends to burn the pot.

Remove oatmeal from heat and stir in white chocolate until melted. Serve topped with pomegranate seeds and shaved white chocolate if you have a bar.

The most amazing thing I've ever done

OMNOMNOMNOMNOMNOM.....nom.

Baked Oatmeal

Anthony loves baked oatmeal! Do you?

No, not oatmeal cookies, but just as good! This is my friend Jeanne's recipe that I enjoyed for the first time a couple weeks ago. I modified it for the sake of using stuff I already had around the house (Apples and dates instead of pears and apricots). And really, what kind of culinary mad scientist would I be without a little experimentation here and there? My version is also vegan, if that means anything to anyone reading this =P. It was absolutely amazing and would be perfect for a sunday brunch or potluck, because it's good any time of day. I should know since I made mine around ten at night. For comparisons' sake and since I didn't even use eggs in mine, I'll put Jeanne's recipe first, followed by the one I used:

JEANNE'S
2 cups regular rolled oats
1 ½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1/3 cup chopped apricots
1 ½ cups milk
½ cup brown sugar
½ tsp cinnamon
1/3 cup chopped almonds
1 firm-ripe pear, stemmed, cored and chopped into 1/4"
2 large eggs
3 Tbsp. oil


MINE:
2 Cups Rolled oats
1/2 tsp. salt
1/3 cup chopped pitted dates
1 1/2 cups almond milk
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/ 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/3 cup chopped macadamia nuts
1 apple, cored and chopped into 1/4"
2 flax seed "eggs" (2 Tbsp. flax seeds, crushed in a blender and mixed with 6 Tbsp. water)
3 Tbsp Oil

"Preheat oven to 325. In large bowl, mix oats, baking powder and salt. Stir in almonds, apricots and pears (macadamias, dates, and apples).
In another bowl, whisk together (almond) milk, (flax seed) eggs, brown sugar, oil and cinnamon. Pour over the oat mixture and stir to combine.
Pour mixture into a Pam-ed 8” or 9” square baking pan. Bake until liquid is absorbed and top is light golden, about 45 minutes. Spoon into bowls and serve warm. Serve with the usual choices of sugar, brown sugar, raisins, milk…whatever."

"To prep the night before, mix the oats, baking powder, salt, almonds and apricots in a bowl; cover and let stand at room temperature. In another bowl, combine the milk, eggs, brown sugar, oil and cinnamon; cover and chill. Next morning, mix the two together and stir in pear and bake."

Sweet & Spicy Yucca

At first I wanted to call this "Yucca Surprise", but then thought it sounded too much like mystery meat they would serve in a grade school cafeteria, So I decided on "Sweet and Spicy". Despite the spicy part, this is really more of a dessert because it's still so darn sweet. I've eaten Yucca at Salvadoran restaurants and was disappointed with its' blandness. This was my first time cooking it myself, and I was determined to grab blandness by the neck and throw it against the nearest brick wall with my spicy super-strength.

If you don't have maple yogurt (which you should because it's amazing), just use plain yogurt and some maple syrup!

1 Yucca root, peeled and cubed
1 Cup Maple Yogurt
1/2 Cup Apple sauce
2 tsp. ground Coriander seed
1 tsp. Cinammon
1 1/2 Tbsp. Sriracha sauce or any hot chili sauce
1 tsp. salt



Boil the Yucca for about 20 minutes until soft (Just pretend you're cooking potatoes) and drain.
In a deep frying pan, heat the yogurt and spices. Add the drained Yucca and stir until coated.

Turn down the heat and let it cook for about 15 minutes.
Remove from heat and stir in the apple sauce. I guess I could say you're done.

Oh yeah, and Yucca roots make excellent mustaches.

Spicy Persimmon Chutney

While riding my bike, I found a box full of free persimmons in front of someone's house and proceeded to go persimmon crazy for the next 3 weeks or so (yeah, there were that many). Having never really cooked with them before, I saw this as a true mad science opportunity. I thought I would try making a pie or pudding, but my friend suggested I try making chutney and the rest is history. The thing to remember is the four C's: Cardamom, Coriander, Cloves, and Chili Powder. This chutney is good with almost anything! Try it on samosas/Indian food, or with cheese and crackers. I actually really like to put it on pancakes.

-7-10 VERY RIPE fuyu persimmons
-1 3/4 C sugar
-1/2 C water
-2 Tbsp. Chili Powder
-1 1/2 Tbsp. ground Coriander seed
-1 Tbsp. ground Cardamom
-1 tsp. ground cloves

Pull the stems off the persimmons and peel off part of the skin from the opening under the stem. Scrape out all the pulp into a large saucepan and discard the skins. Mix the persimmon pulp, sugar, and water over medium heat. Add the spices and bring to a low boil. Simmer, stirring occasionally until the mixture thickens to a "jammy" consistency (about 15-20 minutes). If you think it's too thick, add more water. Remove from heat and spoon into a large jam jar. It should keep for about a month in the fridge, but I really can't be sure since it never lasts that long =]

PICTURE COMING SOON! JUST HAVE TO GET THE FILM DEVELOPED.

FYI: If you've never eaten or cooked with persimmons before, just know they have to be EXTREMELY ripe, or they'll be grainy, bitter, and all around vile. Try squeezing one gently. If it feels the teensiest bit firm, it's not ready yet. Wait until it's squishy all the way around.

"Wooden Bird" Coffee Liqueur

Like Kahlua? You'll like this better! I made this for Christmas presents this year and it was a big hit! I found it in my mom's old recipe box and added my own pizzaz, in the form of Chinese five-spice powder. It gives the liqueur an interesting little kick without it being overpowering. This stuff makes a great gift and and even better White Russian.

BEWARE: This recipe makes 1 and 1/4 gallons, so be prepared to either give a lot of it away as gifts or live on it for the next couple months.

-6 C sugar
-6 C water
-1/2 cup instant coffee crystals (like Folger's)
-1/2 cup vanilla flavor OR 2 vanilla beans
-1/2 gallon vodka
-1 Tbsp. Chinese five-spice powder

Mix sugar, water and coffee crystals in a large pot with the vanilla beans, but reserve the vanilla extract if you're using that.
Bring to a boil and simmer for 2 hours, then remove beans or add extract.
Tear open a tea bag, remove the tea. Add the five-spice and sew it shut. Hang the tea bag into the death brew. (You can also use a coffee filter, but it will eventually dissolve if it sits in the brew too long). A piece of t-shirt would probably work too. You get it, anything that filters.
Let it sit for at least 6 hours, then stir in the vodka and let it sit for at least another 6-12 hours (I think this is called "marrying")
Remove the tea bag and pour the finished liqueur into pretty jars or bottles. Your friends will think you're a genius!