I'm Nuts About This Post!

To contact us Click HERE
Happy Monday everyone! Hope you all had a good weekend.

We did the usual...shopping:)

The rain stopped us from a day trip to Vermont, but we were just there last weekend anyway:) Below is a picture of Lake Champlain with the Adirondack Mountains in the background. It was so lovely.

Our main reason for going to Vermont last week was an Antique and Classic car show in Stowe. Have you ever seen a car with a record player in the dashboard?

Raise your hand if you actually know what a 'record player' is! :)

Since we usually have to do our food shopping on weekends, I was so happy to find a great Natural Foods store right on the same road as the show:) We stopped on the way home for a much needed cold coconut water and a few pantry essentials. If you find yourself in Waterbury Center, Vermont make sure to stop by Sunflower Natural Foods.

The store was very well stocked,

and so neat and clean with a very friendly staff:) There was even a sweet play nook upstairs for the little ones:)

Don't you wish you were 4 or 5 again?

My recent post, Raw Pantry Essentials, showed a few pictures from one of my usual places to shop. But sometimes, a 'special ingredient' can only be found online.

I recently ordered Heathy's Moonie Pie ebook (they look amazing btw), and noticed that I didn't have one of the ingredients. Hmmm...as well stocked as my favorite store is, they do not carry this one special ingredient. A quick online search for it brought me to NutsOnline.

My order was placed on Monday, and the box arrived at my door Tuesday afternoon, less than 24 hours later! What a pleasant surprise:) Everything looked great!

NutsOnline has a huge selection of organic and raw products, as well as hundreds of other products.

While checking out their blog, I was thrilled to see they had linked up to my Sprouting Chia seeds post:) Thanks NutsOnline!

So, I am very excited to tell you NutsOnline has generously offered one of you* a chance to try 2 of their products!

One pound of Organic Chia Seeds, and one pound of Raw Organic Hemp Seeds! YAY!!!!!

Thanks so much to the lovely Katie Ide from NutsOnline for making this giveaway possible.

These products were hand picked by yours truly:), but you can change them if you have issues with either of these...for anything of a lesser or equal value:)

*This giveaway is limited to residents of the United States and Canada only.

Requirements to enter this giveaway are simple:

Mandatory for entry #1:
Visit NutsOnline and leave a comment below telling me which of their products you would love to try, and what you would make with them.

For one additional entry:
Subscribe to the NutsOnline Newsletter to receive special offers and coupons, leave a comment here telling me you did so, for entry #2.

That's it! This giveaway will close at midnight EST Sunday August 29, 2010. Winner will be announced on, or shortly after Monday, August 30.

You probably already have a favorite recipe using hemp or chia seeds, but if you don't, here are several pictures of a few of mine to whet your appetite.

All the links are to my posts which either have the recipe, or tell you where to find it:

Chia Puddings

Bitts Hemp Brownies

Kate Magic's Marching Biscuits

Magic Chocolate

Hemp Power Ball Truffles

Chia-Sesame Cracker

Oh my...I think we need something with a little green:)

Russell James' Wilted Kale Salad with Creamy Chipotle Dressing


My S&M Salad with Creamy Macadamia-Lime Hemp Dressing

There, that's better!

Good luck everyone!!!!

Drommekage - Danish Dream Cake

To contact us Click HERE


After spending a week in Denmark it's safe to say that I fell in love with the country. So you can expect Danish and Scandinavian desserts coming up! I already made a pre-Denmark dessert the Danish Pastry, and now one of my new favorite cakes: a Drømmekage or a Danish Dream Cake. Yes, this cake is a dream in every possible way! It's a dream to make because it's super easy, it's a dream to eat because it's super delicious, and my favorite, when eating a slice I dream of Denmark (and hopefully a returning visit!). I made this cake in Denmark attending a baking workshop and to cure my post-Denmark depression I'm making it again! Rating: 5 out of 5. Super duper nice!



Drømmekage: Diana's Desserts

Ingredients for Cake:
- 2 ¼ cup (250g) all-purpose flour
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ cup (50g) unsalted butter, softened
- 7 oz. (200ml) milk
- 4 eggs
- 1 ⅓ cups (300g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Ingredients for Topping:
- ½ cup (125g) unsalted butter, softened
- ¼ cup (50ml) milk
- 1 ⅓ cups (100g) dessicated coconut
- 1 to 1 ¼ cups (200-250g) light brown sugar

Instructions:
- For the Topping: In a mixing bowl, combine all topping ingredients. Set aside until ready to spread over cake.
- For the Cake: Preheat oven to 200 degrees C/400 degrees F. Grease an 8 or 9-inch (20-22cm) square or round baking pan. If desired, line baking pan with parchment paper, then grease paper.
- Sift the flour with the baking powder. Melt the 50g butter and mix with the 200ml milk. Beat the eggs with the sugar and vanilla extract until light and fluffy, then fold in the flour mixture. Lastly, fold in the butter and milk mixture.
- Pour into prepared baking pan and bake in preheated oven for about 20 minutes or until wooden pick inserted into center of cake comes out clean (leave oven on and set to 225 degrees C/425 degrees F). Remove cake from oven and immediately spread the topping over cake and bake cake for an additional 5-10 minutes at 225 degrees C/425 degrees F. Cool cake completely on wire cooling rack before serving. Cut cake into squares (or wedges, if baking cake in a round pan).





To view my pictures of the wonderful Copenhagen, click here.

Mother's Day

To contact us Click HERE
Bonjour everyone!

Wishing all the mothers in the world and particularly those
who are reading this now a blessful Mother's Day, and, in the
words of my food goddess Nigella Lawson:

"Sending sympathy to those, like me, without mothers and also know how hard
today is for those who would like to have been mothers but aren't."


Mommy & me circa 1996.

I am baking a Drømmekage (Danish Dream Cake) for my mother, aunt
& grandma today. It is fast becoming my family's favorite!

What are your plans?

Also, I wrote about my trip to Denmark on my other blog.
See what we wore, ate & experienced.
French Madame in Denmark - Part I & Part II.

Love,

Mama's Angel Food Cake with Rum Creme Anglaise

To contact us Click HERE


Can I just say how much I love angel food cake? The sky-high cake that looks airy but when eating a slice (or two... three!) instantly fills you up, is my new favorite cake! I might just make the other two variations from the weekly poll. To make this cake even more spectacular than the angel food cake with cream and strawberries I baked two weeks ago, I served the cake with a rum crème anglaise. Which brings me to my love-affair with rum as well :P I LOVE RUM! The crème anglaise made the cake wonderfully moist and reminded me of a French baba au rhum. What could be better? Rating: 5 out of 5.




Angel Food Cake: Virginia Willis - 'Bon Appetit, Y'all'

Ingredients:
- 1 ¼ cups sifted cake flour (not self-rising)
- 1 ½ cups sugar
- 12 large egg whites, at room temperature
- 1 ½ teaspoons cream of tartar
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ vanilla bean, split and scraped or 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract
- Rum Crème Anglaise, optional

Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees with a rack set in the center of the oven.
- Sift flour together with ¾ cup sugar. Repeat process three times; set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat egg whites, cream of tarter, and salt on medium speed until foamy. Add vanilla-bean seeds and almond extract. With the mixer on medium speed, slowly add remaining ¾ cup sugar. Continue mixing until whites are glossy and stiff peaks form.
- Sift enough of the flour mixture over the egg white mixture to lightly dust the top. Gently fold flour mixture into the egg white mixture. Repeat process until all the flour is incorporated into the egg white mixture.
- Gently spoon batter into a 10-inch tube pan. With a spatula or knife, using a circular motion, cut through the batter twice to eliminate any large pockets of air. Smooth top to remove any large peaks.
- Transfer to oven and bake until golden brown and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Invert pan over a bottle (such as a 2-liter soda bottle or wine bottle) until completely cooled, about 2 hours.
- To serve, set upright, and using a butter knife or a long spatula, loosen the cake from the sides of the pan. Invert onto a serving plate. Slice using a serrated knife or an angel food cake cutter; serve drizzled with bourbon crème anglaise, if desired.



Rum Crème Anglaise: makes 3 cups

Ingredients:
- 2 cups whole milk
- 6 large egg yolks
- ¼ cup sugar
- Pinch of fine sea salt
- 1 tablespoon rum or bourbon

Instructions:
- Prepare an ice-water bath; set aside.
- Place milk in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. In a medium bowl, whisk together egg yolks, sugar, and salt until thick and light. Slowly pour in half of the hot milk, while stirring constantly. Slowly pour the egg mixture into the remaining milk mixture, stirring constantly. Stir in bourbon.
- Place saucepan over low heat and bring to a gentle simmer, stirring constantly. Continue cooking until mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon and reaches 180 degrees on an instant-read thermometer. Remove from heat.
- Strain crème anglaise through a fine mesh sieve set over a medium bowl. Set bowl in ice water bath and stir creme anglaise until cooled. Keep refrigerated until ready to use, up to 1 day.


A slice of heaven drenched with rum crème anglaise ♥.

'Laduree: The Sweet Recipes' Baking Book Giveaway! New Domain Celebration!

To contact us Click HERE
Bonjour!

It finally happened!
ParisPastry.blogspot.com is now ParisLovesPastry.com

I've thought long and hard about the new domain and name.
Why choose a different name you might wonder...

Well, ParisPastry.com is taken by a Californian bakery.
Plus, pastry-legend David Leibovitz has a new book out named 'Paris Pastry'
(which might mean that he paid a visit to my blog once..?!), so that might end up
for confusion. Especially since he has the name 'Paris Pastry' taken on Twitter.
And, I don't want to confuse anyone with this blog and the great
ParisBreakfasts.blogspot.com blog.

So voilá!

Still staying true to the catchy 'Paris Pastry' phrase, I decided to go for
Paris Loves Pastry. Because I do. I love Paris and I LOVE pastry.





And what's a celebration without a gift?
A very special gift I might add.

I spotted this book when I stayed in Paris last Summer.
At the time, there was only the French version. But I immediately knew I wanted to
give one of my readers a copy of this book when the English version would come out.


How To Enter:
(everyone across the world may join)

1. Leave a comment here with your email address.
If you have a Blogger account and your email is on there, that's fine too.

2. For a second entry, become or be a public follower of Paris Pastry on Blogger.
I hate to be prissy about this, but I do actually check if you are.

3. For a third entry, Like Paris Loves Pastry on Facebook.

4. For a fourth entry, follow Paris Loves Pastry on Twitter.


The green links will direct you to Facebook and Twitter.
But, they are on the top of the sidebar as well.


Giveaway closes on July 10th. Bonne Chance!







Images: 1, 2, 3, 4

Chocolate and Vanilla Pound Cake

To contact us Click HERE


The transformation of this blog is almost finished! Have you checked out the 'About', 'Press' and 'Contact' buttons above?! Feeling nostalgic about baking and this blog, I whipped up a cake that is simplicity at its best, yet anything but ordinary. One of my old-fashioned favorites:; a pound cake. You see many pound cakes here in Holland with 50/50 chocolate and vanilla, so that's what I made. I simply filled the cake tin with vanilla cake batter and poured the chocolate on top. Out the oven came a wonderful, almost-marble effect cake. The taste is sublime! I added a little light brown sugar to the recipe, which gives it just that little extra flavor. J'adore ♥. Rating: 5 out of 5.






Marble Pound Cake: Martha Stewart - Baking Handbook

Ingriedents:
- 1 ¾ cups cake flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pan
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup light brown sugar
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2/3 cup buttermilk, room temperature
- ¼ + 1 tablespoon Dutch-process cocoa powder
- ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons boiling water

Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously butter a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan; set aside.
- In a large bowl, sift together cake flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and the sugars until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, mixing to incorporate after each one. Stir in vanilla extract.
- Add flour mixture, alternating with buttermilk, starting and ending with flour. Set aside one-third of the batter in another bowl.
- In a small bowl, using a rubber spatula, combine cocoa powder and 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons boiling water. Mix until smooth. Add cocoa mixture to reserved one-third of batter. Stir until well combined.
- Fill the prepared pan by alternating large spoonfuls of vanilla and chocolate batters, simulating a checkerboard pattern. Run a wooden skewer or paring knife through batter in a circular motion.
- Bake until a cake tester comes out clean, 40 to 50 minutes. Remove to a wire rack to cool; invert after 5 minutes. Cool for about 30 minutes.

Angel Food Cake with Cream and Strawberries

To contact us Click HERE



Are you watching the European Championship? My country (the Netherlands) played against my current-favorite-country (Denmark) and LOST! Is it bad that I was rooting for Denmark to win..? Wednesday the Netherlands will play against long-time-soccer-enemy Germany, so to show my support I made the angel food cake a bit Dutch-themed. The angel food cake with whipped cream and fresh strawberries won the poll. How could it not? It is perfect for this time of year (and weather). Light, airy, fruity, creamy and yummy. What more could you want?

No but seriously, this cake is YUMMY! I never thought an angel food cake could have so much bite and flavor, since it's made without butter and relies on 13 egg whites. The whipped cream and strawberries complements the airy texture of the cake perfectly. I immediately wolved down two giant slices and this comes from a girl who rarely has seconds. This recipe is going in the 'cake hall of fame'! Rating: 5+ out of 5.




Angel Food Cake: Martha Stewart - Baking Handbook

Ingredients:
- 1 cup cake flour (not self-rising)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 13 large egg whites, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1 ¼ cups superfine sugar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- Strawberries & cream, for serving

Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place flour and salt in a sieve set over a bowl; sift into bowl, and set aside. With a mixer, beat egg whites on medium-high until foamy, about 1 minute. Add cream of tartar; beat until soft peaks form. Continue to beat, gradually adding sugar; beat until stiff peaks form, about 2 minutes. Add vanilla; beat to combine.
- Gently transfer egg-white mixture to a large, wide bowl. In four batches, using the sieve again, sift flour mixture over egg-white mixture. While turning the bowl, use a rubber spatula to fold in the mixture by cutting down the center and coming up the sides.
- Gently spoon batter into an ungreased angel food cake pan with a removable bottom; smooth top. Cut a knife or small spatula through batter to release air bubbles. Bake until cake is golden and springs back when lightly pressed, 35 to 40 minutes. Invert pan; let cool in pan, 1 hour. Run a knife around the inside of the pan and around the tube to release cake, and unmold. Use knife to release cake from bottom of pan, and remove.


I enjoyed this cake so much, I picked three angel food cake
variations for the next poll!