Tuesdays with Dorie: Apple-Apple Bread Pudding with Homemade Challah Bread

Elizabeth of Cake or Death? picked Dorie's Apple-Apple Bread Pudding for her week. This is an apple version, with caramelized sauteed Gala apples and homemade Challah bread smeared with apple butter. Then a lovely custard is poured over all and baked away. We all enjoyed this.

Since I have a hard time finding Challah bread here without the seeds on it, I decided to make my own. I inquired my Mother in Laws bread machine after she passed away (my old machine quit heating), so this is the first time I used it to make the dough. I used a simple recipe I quickly found online, but my braiding skills were not so simple, afterwards I looked up more info and learned to braid it from the middle to the ends. It looked so silly once baked, but tasted great! I wasn't sure if all of this could fit in my bread machine, so I cut the ingredients in half and made 1 loaf at a time. In the end, I'm sure it could've all fit.

The Best Bread Machine Challah
adapted from RecipeZaar

makes 2 loafs (I used 1 loaf for the bread pudding)

1 1/2 cups water
5 large egg yolks
1 1/8 teaspoons salt
1/3 cup oil
4 1/4 cups all-purpose flour or bread flour
1/2 cup honey
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1 large egg, lightly beaten

-Place the water, egg yolks, salt oil, flour, honey and yeast in the bread machine pan, according to the manufacturer's directions.
-Process the ingredients in the dough cycle.
-Remove immediately when the machine beeps.
-Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
-Divide the dough in half.
-Divide each piece into three sections.
-Roll each section into a long strand.
-Braid the three strands (starting from the middle), pinching the top and bottom ends together.
-Place on a parchment-lined or lightly greased baking sheet.
-Repeat with the remaining dough, making the second challah.
-Let the loaf rise, covered, for 30 minutes.
-Brush the loaf with the beaten egg.
-Bake for 30 minutes.
-Cool on a wire rack.

enjoy,

Tuesdays with Dorie: Quick Classic Berry Tart

Cristine of Cooking with Cristine picked Dorie's Quick Classic Berry Tart for TWD this week. Heads up, there is a tart shell to bake and pastry cream to cook and chill, both can be done ahead of time! Find your freshest fresh berries and pile them on! Don't have a tart pan? Use a spring form pan instead, works just as great, gives the tart a rustic look, I think.

For my tart, I used fresh raspberries, blackberries and strawberries (yay! for sales). I goofed and chilled my tart dough before pressing into the pan (lol) so I had to let it sit out before I could use it, but then I just decided to roll it out and lay it in my pan. It gave me taller sides, so I was able to use all the pastry cream.

TIP: Also, if you use egg whites for another recipe, don't throw away the yolk! Freeze it in a baggie, and when you need yolks for a recipe like this pastry cream, just thaw it in cool water (still in the baggie) and whisk away! It'll seem like a weird consistency at first, but it'll smooth out and be perfectly OK.

I loved this recipe, we all did! I love pastry cream and with the fresh fruit and buttery crust....perfect for the warm weather we're having!

my little helpers


enjoy,

Tuesdays with Dorie: Split Level Pudding

From Mommy I'm Hungry

Garrett of Flavor of Vanilla picked Split Level Pudding for our TWD this week! I remember just before I joined TWD I made her chocolate pudding for another blog event, and loved it so much I knew I had to give this a try too. This recipe has a layer of chocolate ganache hidden at the bottom, and some yummy vanilla pudding for the top layer. I found this pretty easy to make, you kind of have to work fast and transfer the hot liquids back and forth from the food processor to the pan...but I remember that from before. You will want to make sure your food processor has a large capacity because the hot liquid will expand and probably leak out, like it did me. It all came together great and was done in no time! The ganache made just enough for a small layer for 5 cups. I made this at night so it can sit in the fridge over night until lunch time the next day.

As I was doing the photos for this, I found the saran wrap you place on top to cover it, left some not so pretty marks on the pudding. *sigh. Then as I took a scoop out to show the layers, I couldn't find the ganache! So, I had to keep eating and scooping it until I could get some for a photo, haha!! Then I forgot the chocolate shavings for a garnish, oh well! This was pretty good though, and my only complaint is, wondering why the ganache turned a little gritty? I think I would've liked this with a chocolate pudding layer instead.

If you would like to give this whirl, head over to Garrett's blog, he's got the recipe posted for you!

Next week's TWD: Allspice Muffins!

From Mommy I'm Hungry

enjoy,

Tuesdays with Dorie: Four Star Chocolate Bread Pudding

there was powdered sugar there when I started these photos

This is a 5 star dessert! I have been waiting for this one! It's just one of the recipes that attracted me to Dorie's book Baking: From My Home to Yours. Please check out Upper East Side Chronicle by Lauren, she chose this week's TWD and she's got the recipe for ya!



I did mine a little differently with a twist on things. I used a loaf of Challah as suggested and a sprayed oval bake ware dish (probably smaller than 9×13 -held all the bread). I used 8 oz of Hershey's 60% dark chocolate, and…I used 2 C milk + 1 C hazelnut flavored liquid creamer plus the heavy cream it called for. Then I added in about 1/4 C sliced almonds and omitted the raisins. Baked it for about 50 minutes in a water bath. I've already noted this in my copy.

*This recipe happened to be a great budget helper for me. A couple of weeks ago, I found the Challah marked down as day old bread for .99 -just tossed it in the freezer for later use, found a few bags of the Hershey squares for $1 mark down, had a $1 off coupon for the creamer already on sale, the eggs were still on Easter sales and of course the nuts are always a deal at Trader Joe's! Oh, and the oval dish, another deal from Linens and Things when they closed down. I guess that makes this a 6****** dessert!

We ♥ this! Go check out the recipe, because I bet you will too! This is one I'd definitely make again! Thank you Dorie!

enjoy,

Tuesdays with Dorie: Arborio Rice Pudding

This week we get to make Arborio rice pudding, both white and black with Dorie and Isabelle of Les gourmandises d’Isa. I made half vanilla and half chocolate flavor, But I doubled the recipe so there'd be enough for all of us. I like rice pudding, but I grew up with using boring white rice, adding raisins and pouring milk over it when served. This turns out more pudding like, and didn't need the milk poured over it. I have to say the chocolate flavor is really good! This was my first time using Arborio rice, and it's wonderful for rice pudding! Making this reminded me of Tapioca, which I love, but lots of stirring and watching also. The looks also reminds me of cottage cheese, haha.

There was discussion of a wrong cooking time, and thankfully Dorie came to the rescue to say that yes there was a typo in her recipe, instead of cooking if for 30 minutes, it should be 55 minutes.

I stood at that stove with my watchful eye for about 1 hr 40 minutes! From par boil to finish. Seemed like it took my milk forever to come to a boil (30 minutes!). Even with the rice added in, I kept the heat on medium or else it wouldn't even simmer and stirring it often. Maybe it's because I had doubled it, and had it in a big pot, but right at 55 minutes, it was ready!

par boiling

almost ready

Rice Pudding

This is a great way to use leftover cooked rice. Just skip the rice cooking part of this recipe. Be prepared to stand at the stove and stir, stir, stir so you get a creamy pudding. Oh and my kids said there were too many raisins, I just used what was left in the bag, it was probably more than called for. I love rice pudding served cold.

3/4 cup uncooked white rice
2 cups milk, divided
1/3 cup white sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten
2/3 cup golden raisins
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a medium saucepan, bring 1 1/2 cups water to a boil. Add rice and stir. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
In another saucepan, combine 1 1/2 cups cooked rice, 1 1/2 cups milk, sugar and salt. Cook over medium heat until thick and creamy, 15 to 20 minutes. Stir in remaining 1/2 cup milk, beaten egg and raisins. Cook 2 minutes more, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, and stir in butter and vanilla. Serve warm or cold.

~ Allrecipes