Celebrating Japanese New Year....le Macaron de Shōgatsu!

This article is part of "The Macaron Series"
http://lafleuraucacao.blogspot.com/2009/10/in-mood-for-loveand-macaronthe-macaron.html

As we count down along with the crystal ball in NYC, January 1st is also considered by most Japanese to be one of the most important annual festivals and has been celebrated for centuries with its own unique customs. After an evening a festivities, toasts with Champagne, and feeling at ease on my day off, I decided to create macaron that celebrate Japanese New Year (正月) or Shōgatsu.


Japanese people eat a special selection of dishes during the New Year celebration called osechi-ryōri (御節料理). This consists of boiled seaweed (昆布), fish cakes (蒲鉾), mashed sweet potato with chestnut (栗きんとん), simmered burdock root (金平牛蒡), and sweetened black soybeans (黒豆). Many of these dishes are sweet, sour, or dried, so they can keep without refrigeration—the culinary traditions date to a time before households had refrigerators, when most stores closed for the holidays.

This special macaron incorporates one of the ingredients from osechi-ryōri, sweet chestnut, with 2 other signature flavours of Japan, Red Bean (赤豆) and Matcha Green Tea (抹茶).


~ le Macaron de Shōgatsu ~

Makes 20 Macarons

6 Sweet Roasted Chestnuts - cut into 1/4" cubes

1 batch of red bean flavoured macaron shells
for the Macaron Recipe, please click on this link below for the recipe for the Earl Grey Macaron:
http://lafleuraucacao.blogspot.com/2009/10/earl-grey-macaronnew-creation-for.html

* Replace the 8g of Earl Grey tea powder with 8g of Red Bean (Kochi An) powder

1 batch of Matcha Ganache
for the Matcha Ganache Recipe, please click on this link below for the recipe for the le Macaron de l'amour:
http://lafleuraucacao.blogspot.com/2009/11/macarons-that-shimmered-for-union-of.html


Assemble the le Macaron de Shōgatsu:
1. Place the ganache into a piping bag and pipe mixture onto one macaron shell.
2. Place 3-4 pieces of sweet roasted chestnut cubes into the ganache.
3. Gently press an un-piped shell onto the ganache until the ganache just reaches the rim of the macaron.
4. Dust very lightly with Matcha powder if desired.

Bon Appetit!

Giving the gluten-free grain "keen-wah" an Asian flare....Chinese Five Spice Quinoa Pilaf!

Apart from the ambiance and the company, I find that a memorable dining experience often brings a certain something unexpected. A Mediterranean sampling plate was served, as I was catching up with a friend over dinner at a local "Tavern". Apart from the usual trio of hummus (that itself was surprisingly unusual, with one carrying a green hue of edamame), I was inspired by a salad made with quinoa, a grain I love, but it has been a long while since its last escape from my pantry.


Quinoa is a relative newcomer to the American pantry. The tiny, ancient Peruvian seed, which has a mild, nutty flavor, is closer related to leafy green vegetables like spinach or beets than to a grain.


Quinoa is as versatile as rice but it has a protein content that is superior to that of most grains. Unlike wheat or rice (which are low in lysine), quinoa is a complete protein source containing a balanced set of essential amino acids for humans. Distinguished from most grain, quinoa is also gluten-free, making it an excellent alternative for individuals with gluten-sensitive enteropathy. It is a good source of dietary fiber and phosphorus and is high in magnesium and iron. Its high iron content makes quinoa a favourable ingredient to be incorporated into diets of vegetarians and vegans.

Quinoa in its natural state has a coating of saponins, a bitter substance that protects them against birds and other predators, making it unpalatable. Most quinoa sold commercially in North America has been processed to remove this coating but it is important to rinse the seeds well prior cooking.


With a cooking time of 15 minutes, plus an internally integrated cooking timer (seeds display a little white thread that curls around them when cooked), there is no reason not to replace the bland quick-cooked white rice, with this light and fluffy super "grain"!


~ Chinese Five Spice Quinoa Pilaf ~

*The fragrant yet savoury Chinese Five Spiced powder, along with sweetness from the Hoisin sauce, complement the mild bitterness of quinoa.


Serves 4-6

1 cup quinoa
3 cups water
1 tsp salt
2 tablespoons canola or grapeseed oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp Chinese five spiced powder
2 tbs Toasted sesame seeds
2 tbs Toasted sesame seed oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 tsp sugar
1 lb Asparagus, blanched and cut into 2-inch pieces
4 tbs Chinese Hoisin sauce
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Serve with Szechuan Chili Bean Paste

1. Place the quinoa in a strainer and rinse until the water runs clear.
2. Bring the water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add the salt and the quinoa. Bring back to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer 15 minutes, or until the quinoa is tender and translucent, and each grain displays a little thread.
3. Drain and return to the pan. Cover the pan with a clean dish towel, replace the lid and allow to sit undisturbed for 10 minutes. Fluff gently with a fork.
4. Heat a large, heavy frying pan over medium heat add oils, Chinese Five Spiced Powder and sesame seeds. Add the diced onion and garlic after the five spiced powder becomes fragrant, stirring often, until tender, about 5 minutes.
5. Stir in the cooked quinoa, and asparagus over medium heat to heat through, several minutes.
6. Mix in the Hoisin sauce, and add salt and pepper to taste.

Bon Appetit~!

Turn the deflated toasting bubbly into a refreshing dessert....Gelée de Champagne Lychee

No matter how much you imbibe on New Year’s Eve, chances are you’ll have some already-opened bubbly still left over on the morning, or the week after.


While mimosas, bellinis and other champagne cocktails are always an option on New Year’s Day, a more healthier method can utilise the corked bubbly in creative home cooking. Here I combine one of my favourite tropical fruits to create this refreshing yet simple dessert....

*This recipe can be made into a vegetarian/vegan version with Konnayaku powder or Agar replacing gelatin.

~ Gelée de Champagne Lychee ~


1 tb gelatin = 2 cups liquid *This recipe can be made into a vegetarian/vegan version with Konnayaku powder or Agar
1 Can of Lychee in light syrup
Leftover Champagne
Sugar to taste

1. Combine the leftover champagne with the light syrup from the canned lychee, and measure out the amount of gelatin required for the corresponding volume of liquid.
2. Place the liquid in a saucepan, and sprinkle the gelatin. Allow the gelatin to bloom in the liquid at room temperature for 20 mintues.
3. Heat the champagne mixture with gelatin over medium heat. Constantly stir until all the gelatin is dissolved.
4. Stir and dissolve sugar to your taste. Remove from heat.
5. Place 2 lychee in each champagne glass, and gently pour the champagne mixture into each glass to avoid bubbles.
6. Allow it to cool to room temperature and refrigerate for 4 hours or until the jello sets.

Bon Appetit!

The Yulelog of Milano, Italy....the Crowd Pleasing Panettone and the creation of Été Trifle!

All day long, a flow of Milanese and tourists has streamed in to buy the dome-shaped, fluffy cake studded with raisins and candied citrus peel, Christmas would not be the same without star on the Italian Christmas table, the Panettone. The first signs of Christmas in Milan are the stacks of trapezoidal boxes, wrapped in blue, cream, white, gold and beige, that crowd the aisles and display windows of coffee shops, pastry shops and confectioners from early November to early January. A traditional Yuletide sweet bread, made with flour, eggs, leavening, butter, sugar, raisins and cedro (the candied rind of a large Sicilian lemon), Milan's panettone is a close cousin to Verona's star-shaped pandoro and Genoa's fennel-flavored pandolce. Unlike these, which are still primarily known locally, panettone has become, for many non-Italians, the symbol of Christmas in Italy.


Months before the panettone goes into the oven to be baked, experienced bakers begins their work in creating this richly sweet yeasted bread, which its taste lies within the secret from a natural yeast. Hop leaves are allowed to macerate and flour and water are gradually added. The mixture obtained is left to ferment for days and then more flour is added to create a dough. The last ingredient to be incorporated into the dough is the fresh mountain butter, plump natural raisins and citrus peels.

Differentiated from daily breads by their richness - and by the addition of fruits, nuts, spices or glazes as well as by shapes or decorations with symbolic references - all Christmas sweet breads are probably descended from the breads baked by ancient Romans as ritual offerings to their gods.

Many legends are associated with panettone. The best known tale links its origins to a 15th-century romance. Ughetto de la Tele, a young man of good family, fell in love with the a poor belle, the daughter of Milanese baker named Tonio. Fearing that his family would oppose the marriage, he supplied Tonio the finest eggs, flour, butter, sugar, raisins and candied peels in creating the bread that became an instant success, making Tonio rich and his daughter a suitable bride.

Despite the origin, there would be not doubts that the panettone is Milan's favorite Christmas dessert, usually eaten with zabaglione or with mascarpone. I have yet to attempt my own trial for this aggressive yet mesmerising flavoured treat from the bare ingredients, but using this luscious cake, my version of the Été Trifle was created; the sweet juicy berries and the lightness from the mascarpone crème will bring sunshine into our snow covered January.


Été Trifle - Summer Trifle
makes 8


1 cup heavy cream
2/3 cup mascarpone - soften and whipped
1/2 cup sugar
Panattone - cut into 1 inch cubes
1 pint Blueberries
2 cup Frozen black cherries
2 tbs lemon juice
1/2 cup Toasted almond slices


1. Place frozen cherries in sauce pan with 1/4 cup sugar and lemon juice. Cook over medium heat until simmer and reduced to 1/2 its volume. Remove from heat and cool completely. Refrigerate.

2. Whip heavy cream to medium peak with 1/4 cup sugar, fold into soften whipped mascarpone. Refrigerate.

3. Spoon 4 tbs of mascarpone crème mixture into each of the 8 martini glasses. Sprinkle fresh blueberries over the crème and cover the cream with panettone cubes.

4. Generously spoon chilled cherry sauce over the panettone layer. Repeat step 3 and 4 two more times.

5. Lastly, place one spoonful of mascarpone crème in the centre and garnish the trifle with a generous sprinkling of toasted almonds.

Bon Appetit!