Monday, July 30, 2007

Canneles de Polly Test Success

**Use "Canneles de Bordeaux" recipe from Foodnetwork.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_27405,00.html?rsrc=search

Foreword:
After baking 27 batches of Cannelles de Bordeaux in the year 2006, I had maybe 5 satisfactory results.    All other 22 times were exciting and delicious adventures.
The most difficult part of making Cannelles or Canneles is the Baking.   But there are few others that matters...
I always try to imagine how the nuns in Bordeaux, France would have been preparing and baking Canneles in the old days mixing ingredients, preparing canneles molds--with butter and beeswax mixture, rum...why rum...no refrigeration, so...to keep the eggs from spoiling?  or during its minimum 12-hours setting in refrigerator -- 'supposedly' curing....hmmm, very interesting.    I will leave the scientific part of what Rum is doing with Eggs and Sugar and Flour to FoodNetwork's Alton Brown, but here is my result for Year 2007, Batch 5 -- The Perfect Home Baked Canneles.


Materials to Gather:
  1. Timer Clock
  2. Gas Oven - the test completed in Large GE Gas Range Oven.
  3. 2 Large Tray with sides - to keep "butter and beeswax" from spilling out to the bottom of oven to prevent fire. or 1 Large Tray with Sides, 1 Medium Tray with Side.
  4. Cooling Rack set on top of Cookie Sheet to catch extra dripping "butter & beeswax"
  5. Extra Tray with Sides for Unmolding process Canneles before transferring to Cooling Rack
  6. Sturdy Tong that you can lift Copper Canneles Mold. Strong enough to allow you to flip the Copper Canneles Mold over.
  7. Empty mason jar to store Extra "butter & beeswax" for next use.
  8. Pastry brush just for Canneles baking stored in plastic ziplock bag in refrigerator.
  9. 18 Copper tin lined Canneles Molds or 15 minimum.
  10. Edible, clean Natural Beeswax -- not from Candle.   No color added and No chemical used during making into Beeswax block.    Buy it from Sacramento Bees store at http://www.sacramentobeekeeping.com/
  11. FAN to keep kitchen and home cool during summer as you will be baking at 445'F
  12. Flour and; Cake Flour
  13. A Strainer; Container with Cover or plastic wrap to cover the container -- glass or plastic
  14. Myers Dark Rum
  15. Vanilla Paste or purchase Vanilla Beans at Import/Export at a good price

The following ingredients are the "Control" items and based on Double Batch Recipe I prepared. Modify as needed, but do not change the sugar amount--more is Okay, but not less.


Recipe Modification --**for Double Batch Recipe:

  1. Sugar - Increase Sugar to 1-1/2 Cup.
  2. Eggs - Safeway's Organic "Large" Egg - 3 eggs. (If Double Batch Recipe - use 5 eggs Plus 1 egg yolk. ) **If Truly using Extra Large Eggs as FoodNetwork recipe calls for, and; they do weigh in to be Extra Large, then, 2 eggs + 1 yolk.
  3. Flour - 1-1/2 Cup but--its half Regular Flour, half Cake Flour
  4. Follow the FoodNetwork's recipe instruction in how to mix the ingredients.
  5. Space each Canneles 1-1/2 Inches apart from each other.
  6. Preheat oven to 445'F
  7. **Melt beeswax and butter over low heat. I use a dedicated small Pyrex "glass" saucepan with Silverstone coating.
  8. Place one oven rack at the Highest slot at the top.
  9. Place second one in 3rd slot from the top.
  10. Start your timer and start baking for 1 hour 20 min to 30 min.
  • At 1 hour into the baking, Swap Bottom tray to the Top and Top tray to the Bottom rack.
  • Before the end of 1 hour 20 minutes, using sturdy metal tong take one canneles out.
  • The Canneles should be Dark Chocolate Brown Color--Not Golden Brown.
  • Carefully Flip it Over to Receiving Tray (tray with sides). You will see extra 'butter and beeswax' pour out from the bottom of the mold.
  • Visually check its overall color. Dark Chocolate Brown--all around? but not burnt.
  • ***It should not be Jiggly like Jello - it means the Caramelization has not occurred yet.
  • Place it back into the mold and bake it longer.
  • If it feels sturdy, dark chocolate brown, Bake 10 more minutes if you would like or take one tray out---work one tray at a time.
Turn Canneles upside down, let extra 'butter and beeswax' to pour out.


Remove the mold and set it to one side of the tray.
Let Canneles cool in Receiving tray for a minute or two---Then,
Transfer it to the cooling rack.


Keep distance from each other 1-1/2 Inches apart or more to allow Caramelization to crystallize.


As Canneles cools on the rack, the Canneles' outer shell will start to form--Crunchy.


Crunchy outside, but Creamy inside.


Enjoy!



Saturday, March 03, 2007

MARRONS GLACÉS I

MARRONS GLACÉS
Photo Journal of Adventure in Making MARRONS GLACÉS
Crystallized/Glazed Chestnut

1. Purchase Chestnuts in Premium Condition. Wash and Boil until Done.
2. Keep Boiled Chestnuts in Warm water Until All Peelings are Finished.   Remove as much veins as possible without breaking chestnuts apart.
3.  Cooked chestnuts is soft and semi-translucent.  When crushed between fingers, leaves somewhat powderly texture.
 4. Pots to prepare Sugar Syrup with Rum or liqueur.   A Shallow Baking Pan for Syrup Bath.   Another Shallow Baking Pan with Cooling Rack to Dry Marrons Glacés on.

5. Carefully transfer peel chestnuts into baking pan and pour prepared Syrup to cover the chestnuts.   Soak Chestnuts overnight.

6. Day 2 -- Carefully transfer each well soaked Chestnut onto Cooling Rack to start Drying Process.
7. Day 3 -- Carefully transfer each Dried Chestnut back to bathe in Syrup for several hours.
8. Day 3 -- Transfer each Chestnut to Cooling Rack to Dry

9.  Once the Marrons Glacés are Dried, they are ready to eat or packaged individually and stored in air tight container.
10. Save crumbled bits and pieces of Chestnuts and Syrup in a tight covered jar.  Serve it over Ice Cream or any Favorite Dessert Dishes and explore its possible use. Enjoy!

Summary:  On my next adventure in this Marrons Glacés II making, the preparation methods resulted in better looking Marrons Glacés.  Of course, the practices make it perfect, too.  The finishing texture is much desirable than this preparation method when the cooked and peeled chestnuts were heated through in the prepared syrup as prescribed.
So, hope you will check the other Marrons Glacés journal and find out for yourself.

Wondering how the commercial Marrons Glacés looks like? Here is the Link: http://www.clementfaugier.fr/fr/v4/v4_accueil.aspx

Links to Recipe:
Here is an interesting recipe you might want to try: http://www.harmonysweets.com/harmonysweets/croissant-chocolate-marrons-glace.jsp


For recipe with better result, please check out my other blog on Marrons Glaces Part Deux at http://rockdavinci.blogspot.com/2010/01/maron-glace-part-deaux.html

Thursday, October 12, 2006

Where to buy Canneles Baking Molds

I came across quite a few web forum asking where to buy the Canneles baking molds.     The molds are sold at limited number of places in US, I think. However, depending on how you spell the word "Canneles", the result group in web search engine differs.     By the way, there are Copper tin-lined mold, aluminum, non-stick aluminum, Copper and inox steel lined, gastroflex mold, and elastomold.     When you do an entry phrase in any of the web SEARCH ENGINE, you need to type: Canneles de Bordeaux molds or Caneles molds or Canneles copper tin mold.     The mold is sold individually and priced anywhere from $6 to $25, depending on who you are buying from.
Some of the sites are: **Some sites may have changed. Some might have discontinued.
Tip: Go to their Main Home Page and Do Search.

Interested in testing with Aluminum Cannele Molds?     Great affordable price at $4.99 ea.      How good is the mold?     I am not sure, yet.  I am waiting for my shipment (Purchased 12/29/2009 just now) from http://www.fantes.com/stacks.html



MYCHEFSFAVORITES thus far has the affordable copper tin-lined Canneles molds. 
http://www.mychefsfavorites.com/baking/cannele-and-charlotte/cannele--copper--tin-lined.html


http://culinary-direct.com/store/index.cfm?displayMode=catalog&action=search&viewmode=search&searchType=items&searchTerm=CANNELE

Other favorite sites are:
http://www.fantes.com/stacks.html
or
http://www.meilleurduchef.com/cgi/mdc/l/fr/boutique/produits/moule_cannele/index.html
The reason being that they do have promotional sales.
I am waiting for next group of Canneles molds to arrive to test my batch 9 and 10. Someone asked me whether I can use Low Fat Milk, etc.     Only a test will tell. However, I think in French cooking, the real butter and "whole" of something is the key to their wonderful rich taste.

So far, I have seen Canneles mold (moule in French) being sold individually.      I was very lucky to have acquired a set of 15 from France over e-Bay. It was a lucky buy.
I am interested in buying Copper Cannele Molds lined with inox steel, but I have not found anyone selling it.