The Week in Between

Our next Tuesdays with Dorie post is not due until the 21st, but I made the next recipe, chocolate tart, this past Saturday because my husband (and official taster) is off to Florida for the next 10 days.

In the meantime, I have the following to report. I made biscotti for the tart filling. It was typical biscotti - hard, crunchy and cinnamon flavoured - but seemed to make up more quickly and with less hassle than other recipes that I've tried. And it's just what I need - a nice treat with a cuppa but not good enough to call me away from my desk to sneak one or three.

In the course of making the tart, of course, I was left with 8 egg whites. I already have many of these in my freezer, from making ice cream, so it seemed like a good idea to spend my Sunday using them up....which meant more baking. I know, I know - I've could have had a healthy egg white omelet. But, you know, I am neither a good nor an inspired cook. I simply love to bake (usually while listening to a book!)

So, I turned to one of my favourite books, David Lebovitz's Ready for Dessert and decided to try his chocolate-dipped coconut macaroons. I substituted almond meal for the flour (just in case I feel the need to eat something gluten-free). Also, I only had 3 of the 5 required cups of coconut so I added oats. I don't know if these changes accounted for the extreme mess that resulted... or if it was just me (I am not known for my precision in the kitchen). Additionally, the melted chocolate was far too thick for dipping - despite the addition of an impressive amount of Kahlua. And the cookies were so soft that I could not even spread the thick chocolate with a spoon, so what the heck! I used my (very clean) index finger and it seemed to work OK. After cleaning up large amounts of sticky crumbs, cookie parts and chocolate, I had about 2 dozen intact cookies that taste surprisingly like a Bounty bar - yummm. Gooey, sweet, coconut and chocolate - they taste far better than they look!

So, that's it - no more baking for me - at least until early March when the Tuesdays with Dorie group tackles rugelah. I have 4 pcs of chocolate tart left and I'm going to take my chances and freeze them. They, the macaroons and biscotti will join the frozen output from my other baking days - Danish, stollen, brownies, hot fudge pudding, homemade ice cream, lemon curd, etc. Even I am beginning to feel ill after reciting all this - and I'm fairly sure I've forgotten something.

In retrospect, I should have named this blog "Sweet Tooth" or "There's a 250 pound woman inside of me trying to get out!"
Til next time...