The Baker's Daughter

Cinnamon-Sugar puff pastry wheels

 
These are probably one of the most well received treats I've ever made!  My husband is crazy about them.  They are super easy to make and are really great for an afternoon snack or if you're having someone over for coffee or tea.  Make sure your puff pastry is cold before baking so if your kitchen is hot and the pastry feels warm, I would pop them into the fridge for 10-15 minutes before baking.  I've made mine small but you could cut them larger depending on what you want them for.

Cinnamon-sugar puff pastry wheels

1 lb (approx 450 grams) puff pastry

1/2 cup white sugar

1/8 cup unsalted butter, melted

1 tsp cinnamon

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Dust your surface with flour and place your puff pastry on it.  Dust with flour and roll your puff pastry into a rectangle that is about an 1/8th of an inch thick.

Brush the pastry with the melted butter and sprinkle the 1/2 cup of sugar evenly all over.  Sprinkle with the cinnamon.

Roll the pastry into a log starting from the long edge of the rectangle that is closest to you.

Cut the pastry into 1 inch pieces, and place cut side down on the baking sheet.

Bake for approximately 10-15 minutes, until the bottoms of the wheels are golden brown.  Flip the wheels over and bake for another 10-15 minutes or until both sides are crisp and golden brown. 

Let cool before serving.

 

Chocolate and orange-cream cheese pastries

 
I have wanted to make Babka for ages and was finally ready to get around to it the other day.  I made the dough with the best of intentions and then got busy and had to shove it into the fridge.  Two days later my brain switched on and I remembered my Babka.  One hour later I ended up with these.  I've decided to just call these pastries as they are so far from the Babka I had really wanted to make.  Traditional Babka is an Eastern and Central European cake that is usually made around Easter.  The Babka most often seen here in North America (at least in my experience) is the twisted chocolate bread, which I will make for ya'll one day I promise!  I decided to go with a cream cheese filling as the Babka dough smelled like the Danish dough my father makes and my favourite Danish is cream cheese with a little lemon zest.  I had a leftover Terry's chocolate orange from Christmas that I grated up in the Cuisinart but you could use any dark chocolate.  This dough made me very nervous as it rises verrrry slowly and doesn't rise as much as a regular yeast bread.  I got the recipe for the Babka dough from Peter Reinhart's "Artisan breads every day", which is a great bread resource. 

Chocolate and orange-cream cheese pastries

Pastry dough

1 tbsp instant yeast

1/4 cup + 2 tbsp milk

3 tbsp melted butter

3 tbsp sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla

2 egg yolks

1 1/2 cups + 3 tbsp all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

Orange-cream cheese

1/2 cup cream cheese, room temperature

1 tbsp sugar

1/2 tsp orange zest

1 tsp orange juice

3 oz dark chocolate, grated

Directions

To make the dough, heat up the milk until lukewarm.  Add the yeast and whisk together.  Let sit for 5 minutes, until frothy.

Meanwhile using the paddle attachment on a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar together for a few minutes.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the egg yolks one at a time and mix well until very light in colour and creamy.  Scrape down the sides once again and mix for a few seconds.

Switch to a dough hook if using a stand mixer and all at once, add the flour, salt, and milk mixture.  Mix on low for 5 minutes until the dough is soft and not sticky.  If the dough is a bit sticky add a small amount of flour. 

Place the dough in a bowl and cover.  Let sit in a warm spot to rise for about 2 hours. 

While your dough rises make the orange-cream cheese.  Place the cream cheese, sugar, orange zest and orange juice in a bowl and mix until creamy and free of lumps.  Set aside until you are ready to fill your pastries.

Place your chocolate in a cuisinart and chop until it is coarsely grated.  Alternatively, chop your chocolate with a knife.  Set aside.

Grease an 8 inch cake pan and set aside.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Break off pieces of dough and form into large golf ball sized rounds.  Place each ball in the pan and press your thumb into the center to make a well.

Fill each well with the cream cheese mixture and sprinkle the dough with the grated chocolate.  Cover and let rise for about one hour. 

Bake for 20-25 minutes until lightly golden.

 




 

 

Gibassier

These pastries are from Le Gibas in the South of France.  They are similar to a danish dough and have an amazing full bodied orange flavour.  These take a few hours to make, which makes them perfect for lazy Sunday mornings.  Traditionally these include Anise seed, and candied orange peel, both of which I've omitted.  The recipe also calls for vanilla sugar which is just white sugar mixed with the seeds of a vanilla pod.  I added cinnamon to my sugar instead of the vanilla and it tasted great!  I got the recipe for the Gibassier from "Artisan Breads" by Eric W. Kastel, which is a really useful reference for anyone who loves to bake bread.

Gibassier

Sponge Starter

1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp milk

1 cup all-purpose or bread flour

2 1/2 tsp instant yeast

Final Dough

3 eggs

1/3 cup olive oil

3 tbsp orange zest

3 1/2 cups all-purpose or bread flour

2/3 cup white sugar

2 tsp salt

6 tbsp butter, softened

2 tbsp Anise seed

1/2 cup candied orange peel

Egg wash

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 cup vanilla or cinnamon sugar

Directions

To make the sponge heat the milk up to 90 degrees Fahrenheit.  Combine the flour and yeast in a bowl and add it to the heated milk.  Mix together for a few minutes (this can be done by hand).  Cover and leave at room temperature for 30 minutes, until doubled in size. 

To make the dough, combine the sponge, oil, eggs, and orange zest in a stand mixer with a dough hook attached.  Mix on low for a few minutes to break up the sponge.  Add the flour, sugar and salt and mix on low for 6 minutes, turning over the dough twice and scraping down the sides of the bowl. 

Increase the speed to high and mix for 2 minutes, flipping the dough over twice more.  Add the butter gradually while the mixer is on medium speed.  Add the anise seed and orange peel if using. 

Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover and let rest for 1 hour. 

Divide the dough into 17 equal pieces.  Form them into rounds and place on parchment lined pans.  Cover and let rest for 10 minutes.

Roll until each round is 6 inches long.  Make 4 cuts width wise into the center and place on the pan in a crescent shape.  Brush with egg wash and cover for 45-60 minutes, until they spring back halfway when lightly touched. 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

Brush each Gibassier with egg wash again and place in the oven.  Reduce the heat to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and bake for 15 minutes.  Rotate the trays and reduce the heat further to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Bake for 3-5 minutes until nicely browned.

Let cool for 5 minutes before brushing with the melted butter.  Roll in the vanilla/cinnamon sugar.  Cool on racks.