Blood Orange Rosemary Olive Oil Teacake

I'm pretty in love with this tea cake because it's sooo pretty to look at AND it's delicious! Best of both worlds. ;) I am a huge huge fan of using fresh herbs with fresh fruit because life's too short to stay in your swim lane. With citruses all the craze right now at farmer's markets, this is a serious need to bake teacake and wonderful for breakfast or for afternoon coffee/tea. 

I mean, how beautiful are these blood oranges?! I'm in serious heaven!! My favorite part about this recipe is during the first part of candying the oranges where your kitchen will smell like this amazing citrus sweet symphony. Then, you add in the rosemary and POW. You actually end up with this incredible syrup that can be used to flavor cocktails or sparkling water mocktails. :D This is the gift that keeps giving! 

Note: Do not slice your oranges too thin or else they'll just boil down to nothing. Also, minimize your stirring when the peel is simmering in your sugar water.  The more you stir, the less pulp you'll have on that rind. You want to keep as much of this in tact as possible for that pretty lining on your cake. 

There are a few parts to this cake but don't let that scare you off. Keep calm and bake on.   Also, feel free to add other citrus cousins to this cake if you are so inclined to! I've added kumquats and it pairs wonderfully.

Couple of notes on your ingredients: Go with organic oranges. I REALLY think this makes all the difference. The sweeter and better the fruit, the BETTER THE CAKE! Same goes with the olive oil used in this cake. I LOVE my California Olive Oil so suggest you use your favorite olive oil for these yummy cakes.  Happy baking! 

Blood Orange Rosemary Olive Oil Teacake
Makes one 9" x 5" bread loaf  (Approx 7-8 slices) 

Candied Fruit Bottom 

  • 1/2 cup water 
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar 
  • 4 medium blood oranges, cleaned well & sliced semi-thin 
  • 3 sprigs of fresh rosemary 

Almond Paste

  • 3 oz. super fine almond flour 
  • 1.25 oz powdered sugar 
  • 1 large egg, room temp 
  • 1/2 teaspoon almond extract 

Cake 

  • 1 2/3 cups all purpose flour 
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 
  • 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt 
  • zest from 1 medium navel orange 
  • 2 tablespoon orange juice 
  • 1/2 cup canola oil 
  • 1/2 cup good quality extra virgin olive oil 
  • 1 cup granulated sugar 
  • 1 tablespoon whole milk 
  • 3 large eggs, room temp 

1. Start by making the candied fruit. In a medium saucepan on medium high heat, add water and sugar together. Lightly stir together until sugar melts. Bring to a simmer.

2. Add in sliced oranges layering on top of each other. You want the oranges to just barely sit at the same level as the water after adding into the pot. Lower heat to simmer and keep oranges there for 17-20 minutes until tender. Remember to stir every now and then but be VERY gentle as to not break the peels. They will become more fragile as they cook. 

3. Remove orange slices and place on a cooling rack to dry. Use the remaining orange sugar water and add rosemary sprigs. Simmer for another 5-7 minutes. Add a little water if needed and toss the rosemary so it's covered in the sugar water. Remove rosemary and place on the  cooling rack. 

4. Keep 1-2 rosemary sprigs in tact and toss in sugar to coat them. Set these aside to garnish for the top of your loaf if desired. Take the rest of the rosemary on the other sprigs off and give them a good chop and set aside.  (Note: Save your leftover syrup for drinks or flavoring other things!) 

5. Preheat oven to 350 F. Generously butter a 9x5 bread loaf. 

6. Layer cooled candied orange slices on the bottom of the pan layer on top so they are an even layer covering the bottom of the pan. Take chopped rosemary and sprinkle on top of the orange peel in the pan. 

7. Start the cake batter by making the almond paste. Add almond flour, sifted powdered sugar and  the large egg together in a small mixing bowl. Stir until well incorporated into a paste, set aside. 

8.  Next, work on the rest of the cake batter. In a medium bowl, add your dry ingredients, flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and orange zest. Whisk to incorporate together and set aside.

9. In a stand mixer bowl with a whisk attachment, add almond paste, canola oil, olive oil, and sugar. Careful, the oil may splash during mixing! Whisk together on slow at first then increase speed to medium until all the ingredients are incorporated. One egg at a time, add and beat without adding the next until the egg has been incorporated. Batter will start to get thick and creamy then add milk and orange juice.

9.  Switch the mixer to lowest setting ("stir") and mix in dry ingredients in 1/2 of a cup at a time. Careful not to overmix the dry ingredients. Once all the dry is incorporated, turn the mixer on medium and beat for 5 seconds. Turn off right away! (I love giving my cake batter a little taste at this time. Sooo yummy!) 

10.  Pour prepared batter into the orange and rosemary lined bread pan. Spread with a spatula so it's even in the pan. Give the pan a light tapping on your countertop just to get rid of any air bubbles but do not tap too many times because of your oranges on the bottom. Place into heated oven and bake for 45mins-1hr until deep brown. Rotate the pan once 70% of the way through baking. Do not remove from the oven unless a toothpick comes out clean! 

11.  Let it cool in the pan for 20minutes. Invert on a cooling rack and let it cool completely. At this point you can brush the cake with the remaining orange/rosemary syrup or leave as is. 

12. Slice and enjoy!! Keep in an airtight container or plastic wrap for 4-5 days. 

 

My First Pop-Up!

This past weekend was one of the most rewarding and soul-fulfilling weekends I've ever had!! For those who don't know, I partnered with local Santa Monica coffee roasters, Cafe Demitasse, to take over their pastry case for the weekend selling my bakes exclusively. This was a few months of talks, menu planning, recipe testing, produce shopping and then pumping out schedules, marketing materials and more! 

I knew it would be something that would take a tremendous amount of work. What I didn't know was that we would sell out within hours of the event starting!! I'm still feeling the high and exhilaration of seeing all the smiling faces and empty plates coming back. I won't forget the near distant "mMMmms" and people telling me "SO GOOD" "DELISH" and "AMAZING!" as they walked out to carry out their weekend plans.

Here are photos from the weekend along with my beloved menu. I made 380+ pieces all on my own which was the largest amount I've ever had to make! Luckily I had my hubby as my Sous Chef on baking mornings where we woke up at 2:30am to bake off everything off. My other very best friend and cousin helped me prep more pieces on Saturday night for Sunday. I seriously couldn't have pulled this off without them. 

Both days we sold out and within a few hours. For the next one I'll DEF need to make more items. Crowd favorites were all different surprisingly!  Saturday the Matcha Maple Pavs were the last to go but on Sunday they were the first! The Breakfast Pie was a hit on both days and so were the Whisky Cherry Pies. 

I have to admit... I often (still) struggle with my path and baking talents (even after the show and everything!) and whether or not my bakes are good enough to "cut" it.  After this event, I realized that the overwhelming positive feedback from friends, families, strangers and industry foodies, that my happy place is making good food and people happy through my food! I plan to ride out this  overwhelming joy in my heart for as long as possible as I plan my next steps. :)

For those who showed up and we were sold out of goodies, please message me and we can arrange a pie or pavlova commission! 

Thanks again everyone and can't wait to let you know about future events/plans!! xoxox. 

Kelvin and I were up at 2:30am baking off all the pies! #bakerylife

Black Sesame Pavlova (Photo Taken by Jennifer Jou) 

 

Bunnies and Rainbows

I've been sadly neglecting my blog but wanted to at least share the latest commission I worked on for a friend I met at the previous agency I worked for. It brought me great pleasure to design and make this cake for her daughter because it was such a fun brief! 

Her daughter loves bunnies and rainbows. Doesn't get more fun than that! This was the first time I've painted with buttercream and totally want to explore more of this! Took me a bit to get the hang of the texture but I love how it came out. 

These pastel colors are super dreamy and makes me smiles. :) Inside is a simple Valrhona cake with vanilla Swiss meringue buttercream. Happy Birthday, Charlotte! 

 

Chocolate Puffs & Eclairs

After making some delish Hazelnut Vanilla Pastry Cream, I found myself going to the fridge to SPOON this stuff directly into my stomach. (Hey, I'm not ashamed ;)) But given I wanted to find a way to share it with others, I decided to go back to my choux roots and make a CHOCOLATE choux pastry. I don't think I've ever had a chocolate cream puff or chocolate base but I thought.. why the heck not, right? 

This was a bit scary to bake since you can't tell how brown they get but I stuck to the bake times generally and it was accurate. When you get close to them being finished, you can open the oven and check on them. Take out one puff and cut it open. However, don't get curious too soon or else if you take them out before they're stable, you'll get flat sad little puffs. :( 

The great thing about choux pastry is the ability to make whatever shape you want as you're piping. I decided on a mix of eclairs and puffs for this batch. In the end I would use this pastry type for puffs since they end up getting softer after being stored for a day. But this is up to you! Eclairs can be just a beautiful and delicious. 

Chocolate Hazelnut Puffs & Eclairs
Makes about 1 dozen puffs depending on how large you pipe them

Choux Pastry Dough

  • 1/4 cup whole milk
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 3 teaspoons granulated sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 cup bread flour
  • 3 large eggs 
  • 2 tablespoons cocoa powder

Filling

Glaze

  • 100g dark chocolate 60%, chopped 
  • 100ml heavy cream 

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Prepare a pastry bag with a round tip. 

2. In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt and cocoa powder. Whisk to combine then set aside. 

3. In a medium sauce pan, add milk, water and butter and melt together until mixture is just below simmering over a medium heat. Whisk constantly so you don't burn any milk on the bottom of the ban. You'll see steam coming off the top and foamy bubbles appear on the edges.  

4. Remove the pan from the heat then add the flour mixture all together at once and then return back to the medium heat. Begin to stir quickly with wooden spoon until the dough pulls away from the sides, about 3-4 minutes. 

5. Place dough into a stand mixer bowl fitted with the whisk attachment. Spread the dough up the sides of the bowl to help cool it. Let it cool for 1-2 minutes. 

6. One by one, add in the eggs with the mixer on a medium speed. Don't add the next egg until the previous one has been incorporated. After all 3 eggs, remove the bowl and add in the cocoa powder. Stir in with a wooden spoon. 

7. Fill the pastry bag with the chocolate dough and pipe on the prepared baking sheet. Space them no less than 1 1/2 inches apart since they will puff up. 

8. Place into the preheated oven and bake for 15-18 minutes until they've completely puffed up. Reduce oven temp to 375 degrees F and continue to bake another 10-15 minutes until the shells are firm. 

9. Remove from the oven and pierce with a skewer to allow steam to escape. I run the skewer from end to end near the bottom of the puffs. Place them back into the oven turned off with the door propped open. Allow shells to cool completely before filling. 

10. Take your filling and also fill a pastry bag fitted with a Wilton 230 tip. Poke into the puff near the top of them since this will be covered up by ganache later. Careful not to overfill your puffs. 

11. Make your ganache by chopping your chocolate evenly and place into a glass bowl. Heat cream in a small saucepan until simmering. Pour over chocolate and let it sit for 3 minutes. Stir together till smooth with a spatula.

12. Take each of your filled puffs and dip the tops in the chocolate ganache. You may need to twist them a bit and carefully lift from the chocolate to have a uniform top. Sprinkle each puff with crushed hazelnuts.

13. Set aside on a cooling rack then pack together in an airtight container. Enjoy them within a few hours of making them or the shells will get soggy.  

     

    Hazelnut Vanilla Pastry Cream

    I've been playing with different fillings and methods of infuse MOAR FLAVOR into my bakes lately. Specifically tartlets since I found a new pate sucrée recipe that I'm loving. This time I've infused my whole milk to make a wonderful Hazelnut Pastry Cream! 

    This recipe is inspired by Kitchn using flour to thicken vs. cornstarch. I was pleasantly surprised at how smooth this cream turned out which is different than the more custardy, firm type I make with my fruit tartlets. 

    Hazelnut Vanilla Pastry Cream
    Makes about 1 1/2-2 cups

    • 1 1/4 cups of roasted hazelnuts 
    • 1 1/2 cups whole milk (possibly need 1/2 cup more after infusing milk) 
    • 1/3 cup sugar + 1 tablespoon 
    • 1/4 cup flour
    • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
    • 4 large egg yolks, room temp 
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or 1/2 vanilla bean pod scraped

    1.  If you haven't already, make sure to roast your whole hazelnuts for 15-20 minutes at 275 degrees F.  If they have skins on them, place the warm hazelnuts in a kitchen towel and rib them together vigorously. (You're going to strain the mixture either way so no need to remove all the skin) 

    2. Place cooled hazelnuts in a food processor and give them a rough chop. It's ok if there are still some large pieces in there. Add them into a medium saucepan and add 1 1/2 cups of milk and vanilla bean if using or vanilla extract. 

    3. Heat medium saucepan with hazelnuts and milk on a medium to low heat while constantly whisking. It's important you don't burn the milk which can easily be done. Continue to heat and scald the milk till just below simmer. Remove from the stove and allow the hazelnuts to continue infusing the milk for 10 minutes, stir occasionally to remove the dry layer of skin on top. 

    4. Prepare a fine mesh strainer over a measuring cup. Pour mixture into the measuring cup to see how much liquid remains. Some of it may have been cooked off. Top off the milk with regular whole milk to make sure you have 1 1/2 cups of liquid. 

    5. In a separate medium bowl, add egg yolks, sugar, flour and salt and combine together until it is well mixed and turned into a paste. Place hazelnut milk back into the saucepan and reheat till it has just been scaled. 

    6. Temper 1/3 of the milk into the egg mixture bowl, whisking constantly so you don't cook your eggs. Add another 1/3 of the mixture into the bowl then take the bowl and add it back into the saucepan. Keep whisking! 

    7. Over a medium heat, cook the egg milk mixture while whisking until you see large bubbles boil to the top and the mixture becomes nice and thick. 

    8. Place another mesh strainer over a medium bowl and pour the mixture through the strainer. This will help remove any cooked egg bits. 

    9. Place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the cream sealing it into the bowl. Place into the fridge and chill for a few hours until completely cold. Mixture will continue to firm as chilled. Use within 4-5 days in the fridge.