Penny Stankiewicz — Chef-Instructor, Pastry & Baking Arts, The Art of Cake Decorating

How to Make a Christmas Cookie Centerpiece

aday — Thu, 09 Dec 2021 20:00:00 +0000

How to Make a Christmas Cookie Centerpiece aday Thu, 12/09/2021 - 15:00 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/tree%20cookie%20header.jpg.webp?itok=xnuXpQrJ Chef Penny shares her guide to the ultimate holiday dessert display. December 5, 2022

By Penny Stankiewicz — Chef-Instructor, Pastry & Baking Arts, The Art of Cake Decorating

With a few tricks of the trade and a little patience, you can make a gorgeous, impressive and delicious tree-shaped cookie display to bring a little holiday cheer to any space.

Standing a foot tall, this Christmas cookie tree is a show-stopper for sure.

To start, you need a great sugar cookie recipe, like the recipe used in Chef Penny's gold covered sugar cookies (gold leaf not required!) We have also listed another recipe at the bottom of this post, but you can use any trusted one you like.

There are many secrets to successfully decorating sugar cookies. One of the most important parts is creating the perfect cookie canvas — so make sure to look for recipes that have little to no chemical leavening in them. Omitting the chemical leavening will help them stay the same shape even after they bake.

I prefer to roll the dough between two sheets of parchment right after it’s made. Roll half of the dough for the tree to about 1/3-inch thick and a minimum of 13 inches tall and 10 inches wide. Roll the remaining dough for the ornaments to about half that thickness. You’ll want them thinner later when you attach the cookies to the tree.

Chill the sheets of dough in the freezer for 15 minutes or so. If you don’t have room, the refrigerator works well but will take a bit longer. You want the dough to be cold and firm but not frozen. Cutting and baking a chilled dough will also help prevent the dreaded cookie spread.

Download and use the template here to cut out the tree shape. Use a sharp paring knife or a utility knife to cut out the shape from the chilled dough sheet. You’ll also need to cut out a rectangle template to use as a base later. Use a small circle cutter to cut the ornaments and/or use the templates for the ornaments and the star that goes on top. Any trim from the dough can be rerolled and used again.

Bake the chilled dough in the oven at 350˚F. The ornaments are done when there is a little golden brown around the edges, about 8-10 minutes for this size. The tree will take longer. Start checking it at about 15 minutes. You want to dry it out a bit more because it will need the strength to stand up. Let all the cookies cool completely.

You can use royal icing to line and flood the cookie. You’ll need to let the royal icing dry overnight before trying to do anything else with the cookie, but if you want a fast and super clean look, you can use modeling chocolate to cover the cookie instead. Follow the recipe exactly, and then color it as you like when kneading the rested modeling chocolate. After the chocolate sets it will be pretty hard. You can microwave it in very short bursts to make it a bit easier to knead. And I mean it: short bursts, about five seconds each. Any more and it will separate out and become completely useless.

Related Reading: The History of Royal Icing String Work

After coloring and rolling it, cut the chocolate out using the same pattern you used for the cookie. The cookie will have spread a bit in the oven but still kept its shape. Using the template again, you’ll have a little edge of cookie showing, which I like. If you don’t, place the sheet of chocolate over the cookie and using a paring knife, trim it to shape. Attach the chocolate with some royal icing.

You can ice the cookies with royal icing or with the same modeling chocolate. If using royal icing to decorate the cookie, make a double batch of the recipe below. If just using it to glue, then you’ll only need the small batch.

If using edible glitters, it's best to put them on right away when the icing is still wet. Sprinkle the glitter over the iced cookie and let it dry completely. To use the glitters on the modeling chocolate, paint the top of it with corn syrup to give the glitter something to stick to. When dry, you can brush off the excess glitter with a paintbrush. You can put glitter over a white flood icing, but it will look better if the icing is colored similarly to the color of the glitter. I used gold/yellow, red/red and green/green.

On day two, attach the dry ornaments to the dry tree. Let this lie flat for about two hours to make sure it's secured. If using modeling chocolate to decorate the tree and ornaments, there is no need to let it dry so you can move forward right away. Pipe a small amount of royal icing on the back of each ornament cookie to attach it to the tree. I also used the stiff royal icing to pipe mounds of snow on the tree. Be creative! Let this dry for about two hours.

Then, you’ll attach it to the foot. Pipe thick royal icing along the center of the base, and place the cookie on top. Have something heavy standing by, like a pan or quart container filled with water and covered, to hold the tree up while it’s drying. It will take several hours for it to dry securely enough to remove the supports.

And that’s it! Go crazy with the décor or keep it simple. Be inspired by your family’s tree, the Rockefeller Center tree or like me, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer and the felt animations of the ‘60s.

And always keep in mind, it’s a holiday — so have fun.

More Holiday Cookies: The History of Mexican Wedding Cookies

Sugar Cookie

510 grams unsalted butter
675 grams granulated white sugar
1020 grams all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 egg
4 yolks
1 tablespoon vanilla extract or paste
1 tablespoon rum or bourbon (optional for flavor)

In a 6-quart standing mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, or about 5-8 minutes.
Add egg and yolks one at a time and mix only until combined. Add vanilla and liquor if you’re using.
Combine the flour, baking powder and salt, and whisk to combine them well. Add dry ingredient in 2 to 3 increments, mixing only until combined.
Divide the dough in half and roll half to 1/3-inch thickness no less than 14x10 inches, between two sheets of parchment.
Roll the remaining dough a bit thinner. Chill both sheets until firm.
Use the templates to cut the chilled dough into shape. If this takes a bit of time, chill the dough again before baking. Bake at 350 F. Ornaments are done when golden brown around the edges. Tree and stand should be baked further for strength. It will likely be light brown over the entire cookie.
Cool completely before icing.

Royal Icing

Ingredients

1 pound confectioners sugar
3 egg whites
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

Directions

Place all of the ingredients in the bowl of a mixer with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until stiff peaks, or about 10 minutes or so.
If using to ice cookies, double this recipe. Leave half of it as stiff, and make the remaining icing flood consistency. Add water, one teaspoon at a time, mixing completely until when you test it by dotting it on the counter, the test smooth’s over completely in a 10-second count. If too fast, add more confectioner sugar.

Modeling Chocolate

Ingredients

2 pounds white chocolate
7 fluid ounces of corn syrup

Directions

In a microwave-safe bowl, melt white chocolate. First burst is 1 minute and stir. Continue with 30-second intervals and stirring between.
Move to a bowl much larger.
Place corn syrup in the microwave for 45 seconds just to warm.
Pour corn syrup over the melted chocolate in a crosshatch pattern.
Fold it together with no more than 24 -30 strokes. Mix this too much it and may break and not be usable.
Remove modeling chocolate to a sheet pan lined with plastic wrap. Cover the top with plastic wrap and press into a thin sheet.
For best results, let this sit for 8 hours or overnight to cure. If in a rush, you can refrigerate it to set. But this will not cure as well and could be a bit more oily to work with in the beginning. Use cornstarch to knead it if it's too oily.
After the modeling chocolate has cured, knead it to bring it to rolling consistency. Color with powdered colors or gel pastes.

Study with Chef Penny in Pastry & Baking Arts at ICE.

Cookies Holidays Recipe ICE Instructors Baking Arts

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Gold-Covered Sugar Cookies

ablustein — Thu, 02 Dec 2021 20:06:15 +0000

Gold-Covered Sugar Cookies ablustein Thu, 12/02/2021 - 15:06 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/chef%20penny%20sugar%20cookies%20header.jpg.webp?itok=B3WF59Cy Chef Penny Stankiewicz uses a creaming method to make her cookies. December 2, 2021

By Penny Stankiewicz — Chef-Instructor, Pastry & Baking Arts, The Art of Cake Decorating

On the latest episode of Epicurious' 4 Levels series, ICE Chef-Instructor Penny Stankiewicz shows how to make sugar cookies, which she tops with royal icing, dried rose petals, lavender and 24-carat gold leaf.

Chef Penny doesn't mess around with her sugar cookies. She begins by using the creaming method, the process of combining sugar into butter to create a light, fluffy mixture.

"The sugar is beating tunnels into the butter, and those tunnels are an opportunity for us to get the next ingredients ... to fit into it well," she says. "The more evenly that I cream the butter and sugar, the better my final results will be."

Depending on how you want to use the royal icing, Chef Penny suggests adding small amounts of water to thin it, add extra sugar to thicken it and even enhance the flavor with small amounts of various extracts. This acts as a base that intricate decorations like rose petals, lavender and gold leaf, will sink into.

Watch how Chef Penny makes her sugar cookies, and get the recipe below.

Explore Pastry & Baking at ICE.

Sugar Cookies

9 ounces all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 stick (or 1/2 cup) unsalted butter
4 ounces sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 375 F.
Sift together dry ingredients.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix until combined.
Add the dry ingredients to the mixer in small amounts, mixing to combine.
Roll the dough between two sheets of parchment paper to approximately 1/4-inch thick and chill until firm.
Remove one of the sheets of parchment and cut out shapes from the dough.
Bake until lightly golden.
Cool on rack.
When thoroughly cooled, decorate with royal icing.

Royal Icing

Ingredients

3 egg whites
1 pound confectioners' sugar
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

Directions

Beat egg whites with whisk attachment on medium speed in a standing mixer until soft peaks form.
Change to the paddle attachment, and add the sifted sugar in small amounts at low speed until incorporated.
Add lemon juice and beat on medium speed until icing holds its shape. Cover with plastic wrap at all times until ready to use.

Pastry Arts Baking Arts Cake Decorating

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How to Make a Mold

aday — Sat, 25 Sep 2021 14:03:19 +0000

How to Make a Mold aday Sat, 09/25/2021 - 10:03 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/custom%20mold%20final%20header.jpg.webp?itok=NXYPNn5U Pastry chef Penny Stankiewicz shares her custom sugar art tricks. September 25, 2021

By Penny Stankiewicz — Chef-Instructor, Pastry & Baking Arts, The Art of Cake Decorating

In my cake decorating and sugar art business, Sugar Couture, one policy that has not changed since the beginning is a requirement that all my work is custom. That provides an exciting opportunity to find creative ways to make things happen for each client, like a custom chocolate mold.

If a bride wants the lace from her veil to be replicated on her wedding cake, or I find a gorgeous trinket at an antique market that would be a perfect adornment for a cake, I have to find ways of bringing those details to life.

Standing out in a crowded field means that I have to bring something to the table that other designers don’t. Making custom molds for uses in all formats are one of the ways I can make gorgeous and unique pieces that will only be found in my work. I was doing this long before there were so many commercially available molds.

I love the challenge of figuring things out. What parts connect on a motorcycle’s engine? How is a dress constructed? The ability to break things down and replicate them is the true job of a sugar artist. A unique project I was tasked with recently: a chocolate bar created from a 3D-printed wavy art piece. The client had only one of these pieces.

I have many tricks to make food-safe molds, and I make choices of which to use based on the needs of the piece. Is it large? Does it have a lot of detail? Lots of undercuts? Do I need one or many? Will this mold be used in high volume or just once? How much time do I have to create the piece?

The original was very thin, undulating and rather large, about 4x7 inches. I needed only one chocolate piece for a specialty gift for a very discerning recipient. I chose to use a molding product for this that I could melt and pour over the prepared piece. It would set quickly, and since I only needed it once, I can remelt the material and make another mold.

Prep was the most important step here. It's best if the materials I use to make a mold are not used for any other purpose. Here are the items I use:

Original piece to mold.
Thin plastic cutting board or another non-silicone base that I won’t use for anything else.
Depending on the size of the positive, a container that it fits in with only about a half-inch of space all around or L-brackets (metal or plastic) with binder clips or clamps.
Petroleum jelly.
Hairdryer or heat gun.
Pot or microwave-safe bowl.
Mixing spoon.
Modeling clay.
Mold-making material, in this case ComposiMold, which is reusable.

If the piece I want to make will fit in, say, a pint container with space all the way around it, I'll use something like that to make the mold. If you're making your own mold, look around and see what you have that you are ok parting with. If you plan on making many molds over time, investing in mold box L brackets is the way to go. This gives you the flexibility to make a mold any size you need.

I prepare the base for the mold first. I've been using an inexpensive laminated shelf as the base, and a flexible cutting mat works great. Keep in mind some items may be damaged through this process. Many won’t, but if you’re planning on using something that is special or expensive to mold, you may want to consider that it can be damaged in the process.

I clean and dry the item well. In my case, the undulating card required something to support it underneath and to keep the mold-making material from going under the item. I kneaded clay, formed it into logs, and pressed it firmly underneath the piece to secure it and make sure it was well connected with no air gaps. The clay was about 1/3 inch thick in the lowest places. I pressed the clay to the shelf, and with a knife, trimmed off any excess clay so it was straight-sided. This will be the sides of my chocolate mold later.

I then rubbed a small amount of petroleum jelly all over the surface of the plaque. Some items come out of molds perfectly and some struggle. The jelly helps the item release from the mold later. I always use it because if it doesn’t come out, I’ve wasted time and product. Silicone isn’t reusable, so it can be very costly to make mistakes. Take caution and use only as much petroleum jelly as needed. Too much can stop silicone from curing. Using a hairdryer or heat gun, gently heat the surface that has the jelly applied to get it into all the crevices, and then using a clean paper towel, remove any excess, leaving only a very thin coat. This step is most important for items with a lot of small detail.

Using L-brackets, I formed a box around the piece, with about a half-inch around it. Then, I rolled more thin logs of clay and secured them around the outside of the brackets on the board, pressing firmly to make the edges where they meet the board as air-tight as possible. This is security against the thin mold-making materials seeping out from underneath before it's had the chance to set.

My piece is ready to go. If you use a smaller piece and you are going to try the pint container or some other kind of container you have on hand, you only need to secure the positive to the bottom. You can use clay, like I do, or there are products you can buy to anchor it to the base and the petroleum jelly can work, too. If you don’t need the piece again, you can use cool temperature hot glue, but the item has to be secured. If it isn’t, when the liquid material pours over, the piece will move and float, and the mold will not work.

Once the piece is completely ready, I can prepare the material. ComposiMold material can be melted in a pot on a stove or in the microwave. I heat it slowly over medium-low heat until no lumps remain. For this product, heating should be done in a well-ventilated area. I stir while it's heating but not too much. Over-stirring can add air bubbles that will ruin the final mold.

I like to get on a step stool to pour. The extra height gives me an advantage. I pour from a height in a very thin stream. The thin stream, with the help of gravity, will help pull out any bubbles that may have been incorporated during heating. I pour into a corner of the prepared mold box without moving around. When I stay in one place and pour slowly, the material fills all available areas efficiently. I pour enough material to have at least 1/4 inch on top of the piece. For my undulating piece, I needed much more material to get all areas covered and then have an even level on top.

I allow this to cool and set. The beauty of this product is that I have the mold very fast. It's not material that will last a long time, so if you’re planning on making a mold that will be used over and over, this is not the product to use. But for quick turnaround, lots of detail and a product that can be remelted and used again, this is a great option.

Once the mold is set, I remove the mold box or cut away the plastic container. Turning it upside down, I remove the clay and carefully peel back the mold, away from my positive. I wash it gently in soap and water, let it air dry or use the hairdryer to help. As this material is sensitive to heat, I don’t want to use too much here. Chocolate is fine, caramel is not. Towels or paper towels can leave debris that can get into the final product so air drying is best. I keep the clay, which can be reused.

Now the mold is ready to use for tempered chocolate, fondant, gum paste or modeling chocolate. My final piece is poured dark chocolate, freeze-dried raspberries, airbrushed raspberry color and hand-painted dots to meet the client's brief.

Having tricks like this in your toolbox means you can create whatever fantastical ideas you have and reproduce things that would otherwise be impossible with standard methods. Stand out from the competition by creating truly unique pieces that only you bring to life.

Study sugar art with Chef Penny in The Art of Cake Decorating at ICE.

Sugar Art Cake Decorating Cake Pastry Arts ICE Instructors

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The Ultimate Birthday Cake Techniques

aday — Wed, 01 Sep 2021 15:11:31 +0000

The Ultimate Birthday Cake Techniques aday Wed, 09/01/2021 - 11:11 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/birthday%20cake%20header.jpg.webp?itok=cbF6F6qJ Chef Penny demonstrates professional piping with a surprise inside. September 1, 2021

By Penny Stankiewicz — Chef-Instructor, Pastry & Baking Arts, The Art of Cake Decorating

On the latest episode of Epicurious' 4 Levels series, Art of Cake Decorating Chef-Instructor Penny Stankiewicz demonstrates elevating birthday cake by piping buttercream flowers and baking candy inside for the ultimate surprise.

Chef Penny has more than 15 years of professional pastry experience. After graduating from the Institute of �� Education and working at Spice Market, she opened custom cake bakery Sugar Couture in 2004 and has taught cake decorating since 2014.

For Epicurious' birthday cake episode, she uses a white cake, vanilla and chocolate icing, colored buttercream flowers and edible glitter — plus assorted sprinkles inside.

Watch her demonstrate cake decorating in the video and get each recipe below.

Explore the Art of Cake Decorating at ICE's New York campus.

Happy Birthday Cake

Yields 1 8-inch cake

White Cake

Ingredients

230 grams egg whites
420 grams whole milk
20 grams vanilla bean paste
255 grams cake flour
255 grams all-purpose flour
540 grams white sugar
23 grams baking powder
2 teaspoons salt
319 grams butter

Directions

Combine egg whites, milk and vanilla bean paste. Mix to incorporate.
Combine both flours sugar, baking powder and salt in the bowl of the kitchen aid mixer. Place on the mixer with the paddle attachment and mix to combine.
Add butter that is very soft, but still in solid form, in pieces in mixer with half of the milk mixture. Mix on medium speed until moist and no traces of butter remain.
Mix additional 2 minutes to develop texture. Add the remaining milk mixture. After it's combined, mix on medium-low for another 2 minutes.
Prepare four 8-inch-by-3-inch pans with pan spray and parchment. Add 3/4 inch of batter to each pan.
Bake in a standard 350 F oven or 300 F for convection until the top springs back when you touch it and it doesn’t feel wet inside, between 20-25 minutes.

Vanilla and Chocolate Icing

634 grams confectioners sugar
140 grams pasteurized egg white
935 grams butter, softened
3 grams salt
20 grams vanilla bean paste
160 grams 72% (very dark), Cluizel preferred

Directions

In a clean mixing bowl, combine confectioners sugar and egg whites. Whip on medium-low speed until a thick royal icing is created.
Add softened butter in cubes, mixing until icing no longer appears broken.
Add salt and vanilla.
Stir in cooled melted chocolate if making the chocolate version.
Separate icing in half and add melted chocolate to one half.

Assembly

1 pintt simple syrup
1 cup St Germain
1 pound sprinkles
4 ounces edible glitter, white or clear

Using ring cutters, cut a circle from the center of three of the cakes.
Place one down on the cake board. Soak with St Germain syrup and pipe chocolate icing on top.
Smooth with an offset spatula.
Repeat this process with the other two cakes with holes punched out.
Fill the center of the cake with sprinkles.
Top with the final uncut layer.
Apply a thin coating of icing as the crumb coat. Chill in the freezer for 15 minutes or in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
Apply a second, thicker coating of icing.
Place glitter in a large bowl. Holding the cake in your nondominant hand, use your dominant hand to stroke the glitter onto the surface of the cake.
Place the cake on your final presentation board with a dollop of icing to glue.

Decorators Buttercream

Ingredients

16 ounces butter
8 ounces shortening
1 teaspoon salt
48 ounces 10x
3 tablespoons meringue powder
4 1/2 fluid ounces milk

Directions

Beat the butter and shortening with a paddle attachment to combine fully. There may still be a few small shortening lumps but they should be very small. Lower the speed add the meringue powder, salt and sugar. Beat until fully combined.
Gradually add milk. Turn mixer to medium and beat until light and fluffy, about 6 minutes.

Buttercream Flowers

Extra buttercream will be needed to create the flowers. A half batch of the original recipe will be enough. Keep the buttercream cool but soft enough — too soft and the flowers won’t hold their shape, too firm and it will stick in the tip.

To color the buttercream, separate it into as many small bowls as you would like colors, having about a cup of icing in each bowl. I suggest one main color, two or three contrasting colors, and one green. Using gel paste food colors, preferably on the tip of a toothpick, add very small amounts and stir until the correct color is achieved and no streaks remain. Allow the icing to sit if you can before working with it, as the color will continue to develop. I used a rosy pink, lavender yellow and purple, along with an avocado green. The buttercream is slightly tinted yellow because of the butter added, so it will warm your colors some.

Piping buttercream flowers is a skill that requires practice. For this cake, I piped roses, peonies, small yellow four blossom flowers and wisteria. I used 13-inch piping bags, with plastic couplers and rose tips of various sizes, from 102 to 104, and one large tip, a 128, with no coupler. Pipe the flowers onto a nail with a piece of parchment, and then chill the flowers to make it easy to place them. If they warm up too much while you’re working, pop them back in the refrigerator or freezer. The smaller ones will get soft very quickly so work fast. If piping flowers is a bit too challenging, try piping rosettes of various sizes and colors in similar ways and using those to create a flower-like feeling.

Start by piping vines on the cake, where you think they will look nice. Use a small round tip or a tipless piping bag cutting only a small hole. To place the flowers, pipe a mound of icing, about 3 inches long, by about 1/2 inch high along one side of the cake, about three-quarters of an inch in from the edge. Place the largest most dominant flowers first and then fill the remaining areas with your smaller ones, working to keep a variance in color. Pipe the wisteria-type flower directly onto the cake, using the smallest rose tip. Save the small filler flowers for last, and use them to fill any spots that look empty. Finally, using a leaf tip of your choice, pipe leaves to fill in any raw spaces, to add contrasting green where it needs the color, and to add a bit more dimension.

Cake Cake Decorating Baking Arts Desserts Video Recipe

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Chef Penny's Passion Fruit Champagne Crepes

ablustein — Wed, 04 Aug 2021 17:25:17 +0000

Chef Penny's Passion Fruit Champagne Crepes ablustein Wed, 08/04/2021 - 13:25 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/sweet%20crepe%20header.jpeg.webp?itok=EFv0IBss How to make a sweet version of the French classic. August 4, 2021

By Penny Stankiewicz — Chef-Instructor, Pastry & Baking Arts, The Art of Cake Decorating

On the latest episode of Epicurious' 4 Levels series, Pastry & Baking Arts Chef-Instructor Penny Stankiewicz prepares sweet crepes with blackberry, passion fruit and Champagne.

Chef Penny says anywhere water is called for, you can replace that with a flavorful liquid — like Champagne, which in the case adds a little bit of lightness to the final dish thanks to the carbonation in the bubbly drink.

Watch her demo the dish in the video and get the complete recipe below.

Blackberry Passion Champagne Crepes

Yields 2-4 servings

Crepes

Yields 10-12

133 grams all-purpose flour
15 grams sugar
3 grams salt
2 large eggs
140 grams milk
140 grams champagne
40 grams butter, melted and cooled
Extra butter for greasing the pan

Directions

Combine the flour, salt and sugar in a blender.
Add the eggs and milk, and process to combine.
Add the champagne and blend for 30 seconds. It’s best to let the batter rest for at least an hour in the refrigerator, but overnight is better.
When you’re ready to make the crepes, place a crepe pan or small sauté pan over medium-high heat. Grease the pan lightly using a piece of paper towel with oil on it or melted butter and a brush.
Pour about 3 tablespoons of batter into the pan, swirling constantly to spread it thinly around the pan. Quickly pour back any extra batter.
Cook until set and golden around the edges, then gently flip using a large offset spatula and cook briefly on the second side.
Place cooked crepes between layers of parchment paper until ready to use. They may be refrigerated or frozen for longer storage.

Blackberry Sauce

Ingredients

1 pint blackberries
30 grams sugar
1 pinch salt
1 cup champagne
5 grams vanilla bean paste or half a vanilla bean

Directions

In a medium saucepan, add the berries, sugar and salt and bring to a boil, breaking up the berries with the back of a spoon.
When the berries are softened and have produced about a 1/2 cup of liquid, add the champagne.
Cook the sauce down until reduced by half or thickened, as desired.
Stir in vanilla bean paste.

Passion Fruit Cookie

Ingredients

75 grams confectioners’ sugar
142 grams unsalted butter, softened
1 gram salt
2 grams vanilla bean paste
10 grams egg yolk
156 grams all-purpose flour
8 grams passion fruit powder

Preheat the oven to 350 F.
Add the confectioners’ sugar, butter and salt to the bowl of a Kitchen Aid mixer with the paddle attachment, and beat until combined and mixture is lighter in texture.
Add the egg yolk and vanilla bean paste and combine.
Add the flour and passion fruit powder and mix only until combined.
Place the dough in crumbles on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes at 350 F, or until the crumbs are golden brown.
Let them cool, then break up the mixture into crumbs as desired.

Fresh Ricotta

Ingredients

464 grams whole milk
232 grams heavy cream
35 grams white vinegar or 50 grams lemon juice
3 grams salt
35 grams confectioners’ sugar
5 grams vanilla bean paste

Directions

Heat the milk and cream in a small sauce pan to no more than 200F degrees.
Pull the pot off the heat and add the vinegar or lemon juice and salt. Stir gently, then allow to sit for 10 minutes.
Strain the mixture through a strainer lined with two layers of cheese cloth.
Keep the mixture in the strainer and place in the refrigerator to drain more liquid from the cheese, about 2 hours.
Add the confectioners’ sugar and vanilla bean paste, whisking the cheese lightly to thicken.

Passion Fruit Curd

Ingredients

4 lemons, zest
210 grams sugar
90 grams lemon juice
90 grams passion fruit puree
115 grams butter
8 large egg yolks

Directions

Add the lemon zest, sugar, lemon juice and passion fruit puree to a small saucepan and bring to a boil.
Remove from the heat and temper in egg yolks by adding a small amount of the boiling mixture while stirring constantly. Return this to the pot and cook, over very low heat, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula until thickened, about 5 minutes.
Strain the mixture into a clean bowl.
Add the softened butter and stir to completely combine.
Cover the top of the curd with plastic wrap and cool quickly over an ice bath.
Chill to fully firm up.

Assembly

Crepes
Blackberry sauce
Passion fruit cookie
Fresh ricotta
Passion fruit curd
1 pint blackberries

Pile three crepes on top of each other.
Cut a strip about 3” from the taller part of the round.
Line strips up overlapping by about 1 inch from their short side.
Dollop 4 tbs of fresh ricotta on crepes and spread with small offset spatula.
Then dollop 2 tbs passion fruit curd on top of the ricotta and spread evenly.
Sprinkle crumbled cookies over curd.
Cut blackberries in half and place them cut side up on the crumbs.
Begin to roll from the right, small edge, and continue until it’s rolled up. Place flat side down on a plate lined with additional passion fruit crumbs.
Add reduced blackberry sauce.

Study with Chef Penny in Pastry & Baking Arts at ICE.

�� Arts Pastry Arts Desserts French cuisine

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Recipe steps

Crepes;
Step 1 - Combine the flour, salt and sugar in a blender;

Step 2 - Add the eggs and milk, and process to combine;

Step 3 - Add the champagne and blend for 30 seconds. It’s best to let the batter rest for at least an hour in the refrigerator, but overnight is better;

Step 4 - When you’re ready to make the crepes, place a crepe pan or small sauté pan over medium-high heat. Grease the pan lightly using a piece of paper towel with oil on it or melted butter and a brush;

Step 5 - Pour about 3 tablespoons of batter into the pan, swirling constantly to spread it thinly around the pan. Quickly pour back any extra batter;

Step 6 - Cook until set and golden around the edges, then gently flip using a large offset spatula and cook briefly on the second side;

Step 7 - Place cooked crepes between layers of parchment paper until ready to use. They may be refrigerated or frozen for longer storage;

Blackberry Sauce;
Step 8 - In a medium saucepan, add the berries, sugar and salt and bring to a boil, breaking up the berries with the back of a spoon;

Step 9 - When the berries are softened and have produced about a 1/2 cup of liquid, add the champagne;

Step 10 - Cook the sauce down until reduced by half or thickened, as desired;

Step 11 - Stir in vanilla bean paste;

Passion Fruit Cookie;
Step 12 - Preheat the oven to 350 F;

Step 13 - Add the confectioners’ sugar, butter and salt to the bowl of a Kitchen Aid mixer with the paddle attachment, and beat until combined and mixture is lighter in texture;

Step 14 - Add the egg yolk and vanilla bean paste and combine;

Step 15 - Add the flour and passion fruit powder and mix only until combined;

Step 16 - Place the dough in crumbles on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes at 350 F, or until the crumbs are golden brown;

Step 17 - Let them cool, then break up the mixture into crumbs as desired;

Fresh Ricotta;
Step 18 - Heat the milk and cream in a small sauce pan to no more than 200F degrees;

Step 19 - Pull the pot off the heat and add the vinegar or lemon juice and salt. Stir gently, then allow to sit for 10 minutes;

Step 20 - Strain the mixture through a strainer lined with two layers of cheese cloth;

Step 21 - Keep the mixture in the strainer and place in the refrigerator to drain more liquid from the cheese, about 2 hours;

Step 22 - Add the confectioners’ sugar and vanilla bean paste, whisking the cheese lightly to thicken;

Passion Fruit Curd;
Step 23 - Add the lemon zest, sugar, lemon juice and passion fruit puree to a small saucepan and bring to a boil;

Step 24 - Remove from the heat and temper in egg yolks by adding a small amount of the boiling mixture while stirring constantly. Return this to the pot and cook, over very low heat, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula until thickened, about 5 minutes;

Step 25 - Strain the mixture into a clean bowl;

Step 26 - Add the softened butter and stir to completely combine;

Step 27 - Cover the top of the curd with plastic wrap and cool quickly over an ice bath;

Step 28 - Chill to fully firm up;

Assembly;
Step 29 - Pile three crepes on top of each other;

Step 30- Cut a strip about 3” from the taller part of the round;

Step 31- Line strips up overlapping by about 1 inch from their short side;

Step 32- Dollop 4 tbs of fresh ricotta on crepes and spread with small offset spatula;

Step 33- Then dollop 2 tbs passion fruit curd on top of the ricotta and spread evenly;

Step 34- Sprinkle crumbled cookies over curd;

Step 35- Cut blackberries in half and place them cut side up on the crumbs;

Step 36- Begin to roll from the right, small edge, and continue until it’s rolled up. Place flat side down on a plate lined with additional passion fruit crumbs;

Step 37- Add reduced blackberry sauce;

A Puff Pastry Recipe Perfect for Mother's Day

aday — Fri, 07 May 2021 13:38:34 +0000

A Puff Pastry Recipe Perfect for Mother's Day aday Fri, 05/07/2021 - 09:38 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/pineapple%20tart%20header.jpg.webp?itok=x1-inHbk A puff pastry project for baking enthusiasts and their mothers May 9, 2023

By Penny Stankiewicz — Chef-Instructor, Pastry & Baking Arts, The Art of Cake Decorating

Pastry & Baking Arts Chef-Instructor Penny Stankiewicz shares professional puff pastry guidance and the recipe for a picture-perfect kale clover and pineapple tart to treat your mother to — or make for yourself.

There are four key guidelines to making proper puff pastry like a pastry chef.

They are:

Keep it cold. The beautiful layers will only stay layers if you work with the dough cold and keep it cold throughout the process. This includes putting it in the freezer for a bit before it goes in the oven. Don't even try to make puff pastry in a super-hot kitchen. If it is too hot, the butter will melt into the dough and you'll never achieve any layers. If this is the case, just purchase one of the many great brands in the freezer section of your grocer.
The less you touch it, the better. The dough is going to warm up fast, so work quickly and try to touch it as little as possible.
Don't stress when the dough looks like a total mess. It will completely come together as you create the folds.
Use the right amount of force. You do have to exert some effort to roll and fold puff pastry, but you don't want to be too aggressive with it. This can result in the dough building up too much gluten and becoming tough, and it can also force the butter into the dough degrading the sharp integrity of the layers.

Train with Chef Penny in Pastry & Baking Arts at ICE.

Kale Clover and Pineapple Tart

Yields 8 4-inch pieces

Quick Puff Pastry

170 grams all-purpose flour
60 grams cake flour
260 grams unsalted European style butter, very cold
3 grams kosher salt
10 grams lemon juice or vinegar
80 grams ice water (or enough to combine with lemon juice and vinegar to make 4 oz or 1/2 cup)

Directions

Place both flours in the bowl of an electric mixer. Add 29 grams of cold butter and work it into the flour with the paddle attachment. (This can also be done by hand.)
Cut the remaining butter into 1/2-inch pieces and add to the flour. Toss to combine.
Mix acid, water and salt together.
Drizzle the liquid over the flour and butter. Toss this together by hand to combine lightly. Then work a bit to bring it lightly together. Dough should be very rough and some dry spots should still exist.
Flour your counter surface well with all-purpose flour. Place the dough on the counter and form it into a rough rectangle. Tap with a rolling pin to work the dough out into a larger rectangle that is approximately 12x6 inches. No need to be exact on the first roll, you just want your rectangle long enough to be able to perform the folds.
Perform a double fold: Fold the dough from the top edge to the middle, and from the bottom edge to the middle. Fold this in half and place the folded spine on your left side. This is one double fold. Use as much flour as you need to keep the dough from sticking, but try not to add too much or it will alter the ratio in the final product.
Roll the dough out into a longish rectangle and repeat folding procedure. Repeat once more for a total of three (3) double folds.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or overnight.

To roll the dough:

Dust the surface with all-purpose flour. Tap the surface of the chilled dough with the rolling pin to get it started. Roll the dough into a rectangle that is about 1/4-inch thick and a minimum of 8x8x16 inches. Place the rolled dough back in the refrigerator or freezer until ready to use.

Kale Filling

Ingredients

1 bunch kale, washed, dried, deveined and sliced into 1-inch strips
1 medium shallot, thinly sliced
1/3 whole nutmeg
Butter or oil for sautéing (approximately 28 grams)
Salt and pepper, to taste
60 grams ricotta cheese

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the oil or butter and when hot, add the sliced shallot. Stir while cooking to keep it from coloring.
When the shallot is softened, add the kale and sauté until tender. While it's cooking, season with salt, pepper and freshly grated nutmeg.
Transfer cooked kale to a bowl to cool. Stir in ricotta.

Note: You can hold this filling in the refrigerator for 3 days.

Marinated Pineapple

Ingredients

1/2 pineapple
20 grams good quality rum
40 grams light brown sugar
14 grams freshly grated ginger

Directions

Remove the skin from the pineapple. Slice down the side half, avoiding the core, to get one full semicircle side of pineapple. Reserve the rest for another application. Dice pineapple finely and move to a bowl.
Mix together the rum, brown sugar and ginger, and drizzle this mixture over the pineapple. Let them sit at room temperature for as long as you have, 15 minutes to 1 hour.

Kale Clover Assembly

Yields 8 using all the dough, 4 using half

Preheat oven to 400 F.
Cut the puff pastry with a pizza wheel or very sharp knife, straight down into 4-inch squares. (No sawing motions, please! It will seal the puff and prevent it from rising.)
Take the square and with a paring knife, cut a 1 1/2-inch slice into each point of the square. Keep the dough cold while working. Chill it if you need. The colder the dough, the easier it is to work with.
Place about 1/4 cup of the cooled sautéed kale into the center of the square. Take the edges where you cut in, and fold them towards the center, pushing down firmly to seal. Repeat with all sections. Chill again before baking if dough has warmed up at all. Brush the top of the visible dough with egg wash.
Bake the kale clover in the 400 F oven for about 22 minutes, or until the dough has puffed and is deep golden brown.
Serve immediately.

Pineapple Tart Assembly

Yields 10 3-inch tarts using all the dough, 5 3inch tarts using half the dough

With the remaining dough, cut 3-inch circles with a large cookie cutter, a template and paring knife, or a pizza wheel. With a smaller cookie cutter, make a delicate mark in the center of the round, about 1/2 inch away from the edge. Don’t cut all the way through the dough. Pile the pineapple in the center of the round, using the new mark as a guide.
Chill pastry again before baking if necessary.
Bake at 400 F for about 18 minutes or until pastry is puffed, golden and cooked until crisp.
Serve immediately or hold at room temperature.

More recipes by Chef Penny:

Pastry Arts Baking Arts ICE Instructors Holidays

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Recipe steps

Quick Puff Pastry;
Step 1 - Place both flours in the bowl of an electric mixer. Add 29 grams of cold butter and work it into the flour with the paddle attachment. (This can also be done by hand.;

Step 2 - Cut the remaining butter into 1/2-inch pieces and add to the flour. Toss to combine;

Step 3 - Mix acid, water and salt together;

Step 4 - Drizzle the liquid over the flour and butter. Toss this together by hand to combine lightly. Then work a bit to bring it lightly together. Dough should be very rough and some dry spots should still exist;

Step 5 - Flour your counter surface well with all-purpose flour. Place the dough on the counter and form it into a rough rectangle. Tap with a rolling pin to work the dough out into a larger rectangle that is approximately 12x6 inches. No need to be exact on the first roll, you just want your rectangle long enough to be able to perform the folds;

Step 6 - Perform a double fold: Fold the dough from the top edge to the middle, and from the bottom edge to the middle. Fold this in half and place the folded spine on your left side. This is one double fold. Use as much flour as you need to keep the dough from sticking, but try not to add too much or it will alter the ratio in the final product;

Step 7 - Roll the dough out into a longish rectangle and repeat folding procedure. Repeat once more for a total of three (3) double folds;

Step 8 - Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or overnight;

Step 9 - Dust the surface with all-purpose flour. Tap the surface of the chilled dough with the rolling pin to get it started. Roll the dough into a rectangle that is about 1/4-inch thick and a minimum of 8x8x16 inches. Place the rolled dough back in the refrigerator or freezer until ready to use;

Kale Filling;
Step 10 - Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the oil or butter and when hot, add the sliced shallot. Stir while cooking to keep it from coloring;

Step 11 - When the shallot is softened, add the kale and sauté until tender. While it's cooking, season with salt, pepper and freshly grated nutmeg;

Step 12 - Transfer cooked kale to a bowl to cool. Stir in ricotta;

Marinated Pineapple;
Step 13 - Remove the skin from the pineapple. Slice down the side half, avoiding the core, to get one full semicircle side of pineapple. Reserve the rest for another application. Dice pineapple finely and move to a bowl;

Step 14 - Mix together the rum, brown sugar and ginger, and drizzle this mixture over the pineapple. Let them sit at room temperature for as long as you have, 15 minutes to 1 hour;

Kale Clover Assembly;
Step 15 - Preheat oven to 400 F;

Step 16 - Cut the puff pastry with a pizza wheel or very sharp knife, straight down into 4-inch squares. (No sawing motions, please! It will seal the puff and prevent it from rising.);

Step 17 - Take the square and with a paring knife, cut a 1 1/2-inch slice into each point of the square. Keep the dough cold while working. Chill it if you need. The colder the dough, the easier it is to work with;

Step 18 - Place about 1/4 cup of the cooled sautéed kale into the center of the square. Take the edges where you cut in, and fold them towards the center, pushing down firmly to seal. Repeat with all sections. Chill again before baking if dough has warmed up at all. Brush the top of the visible dough with egg wash;

Step 19 - Bake the kale clover in the 400 F oven for about 22 minutes, or until the dough has puffed and is deep golden brown;

Step 20 - Serve immediately;

Pineapple Tart Assembly;
Step 21 - With the remaining dough, cut 3-inch circles with a large cookie cutter, a template and paring knife, or a pizza wheel. With a smaller cookie cutter, make a delicate mark in the center of the round, about 1/2 inch away from the edge;

Step 22 - Don’t cut all the way through the dough. Pile the pineapple in the center of the round, using the new mark as a guide;

Step 23 - Chill pastry again before baking if necessary;

Step 24 - Bake at 400 F for about 18 minutes or until pastry is puffed, golden and cooked until crisp;

Step 25 - Serve immediately or hold at room temperature;

Pâte à Choux's Potential

aday — Mon, 22 Mar 2021 15:50:38 +0000

Pâte à Choux's Potential aday Mon, 03/22/2021 - 11:50 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/choux%20pastry%20header.jpg.webp?itok=WJBAHOep Photos by Catharina Capps The essential pastry has seemingly endless baking applications. March 24, 2023

By Penny Stankiewicz — Chef-Instructor, Pastry & Baking Arts, The Art of Cake Decorating

Croquembouche, profiteroles, beignets, churros, Parisian gnocchi, Paris-brest and gougères all have one thing in common: a deceptively simple dough like no other that creates seemingly endless varieties of deliciousness.

As a chef who is obsessive about technique, I’m enthralled by these types of recipes that seem to have endless variations and uses. By having a solid pâte à choux pastry recipe in your tool kit, you’re never without the means to make something extraordinary, taking this humble mix of flour and water to new heights.

What is pâte à choux?

Pâte à choux translates to "cabbage paste," and dates back to 1540 and the court of Catherine de’ Medici. Named for the way the small choux looks after baking, it is a relatively simple concoction with endless sweet and savory possibilities. It became notable when it was further refined by Antoine Careme for profiteroles, or rounded shells filled with ice cream.

The small puffs can be filled with pastry cream or ganache and built with caramel to form the French wedding cake croquembouche. It’s most obviously known as the dough that makes cream puffs and eclairs and is also the secret behind the delicate dumplings known as Parisian gnocchi. It can be added to mashed potatoes and fried into dumplings. Baked, boiled or fried, its signature form for most applications is a light and crispy outer shell with an open interior perfect for any sweet or savory filling. With humble ingredients at its core, pâte à choux can be easily made in any environment.

I first made this dough in pastry school and I was immediately enthralled by the magic. This simple little recipe showcases the majestic capabilities of humble ingredients, the power of gluten, the strength of eggs and the heights of steam.

How is pâte à choux made?

For the base dough, the liquid is boiled with butter and salt, and sugar as well if it's meant to be used in a sweet manner. At the rolling boil, dump all the flour in at once off the heat and stir quickly. Continue cooking over heat, stirring constantly until a skin forms on the bottom of the pot and then a minute or two longer. Transfer the dough to a standing mixer with the paddle attachment and beat until it's cool. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until they are incorporated and continuing to add them until the paste is the correct consistency. Sounds easy, and it is, but delve deeper into each of the steps and the ingredients, and there are many discoveries to be made. There are not any other recipes made in a similar way — the only exception is a hot water crust, which is likely this pastry’s ancestor.

The ingredients — flour, water, maybe milk, butter, salt, sugar and eggs — are limited, so how each one is treated is important.

Steam is the mechanical leavener of these miraculous puffs. The liquid we use to create it is key. Standard recipes can require water, milk or both. Those that have all water will take on less color but puff magnificently. Recipes with all milk will take on a darker more enticing color but won’t puff as much because the milk encourages the eggs to coagulate faster and therefore puff less. The liquid is the first opportunity for creativity. Imagine using earl gray tea or hibiscus-infused water. My base recipe calls for equal parts water and milk to guarantee enough steam and to add some color and richness to the dough.

The butter in the recipe is for richness and flavor. Add too much fat and it will inhibit the puff. Still, even with a higher ratio of fat, you’ll get a worthy product. It’s best to cut the butter into smaller pieces so it melts more efficiently, without evaporating too much of the water needed to produce the steam.

The fat is interchangeable. One of the stellar variations I played with when writing this piece was to swap the butter for duck fat and it was incredible. It added a level of depth that worked wonderfully in my savory applications and in the sweet. Duck fat is 100% fat, unlike butter, which is 82% fat and 18% water. So when swapping out another type of fat, you need to change the amounts. Use 82% of the replacement fat that is called for in the recipe, and increase the water by 18% of the amount of butter. Since this dough is only mechanically leavened by steam, it's important to maintain the levels of the liquid in the recipe for consistent results. This is the next place where creative muscles can be flexed.

Recipes regularly call for either all-purpose flour or high-gluten/bread flour, but I’ve also encountered ones that use cake flour. When you mix wheat flour with water, gluten begins to develop. Agitate it and the gluten matrix gets stronger. Pâte à choux is a double-cooked dough, with flour first cooked in boiling liquid, developing and denaturing the gluten. My choice is for high-gluten flour, which allows for enough gluten to be developed for strength while some is lost to the denaturing without loss of structure. It’s dumped all at once into the boiling liquid to quickly hydrate and gelatinize the flour. If you didn’t dump it in all at once, it would hydrate unevenly. All at once is the way to go.

Read More: Best Flour for Baking

Salt and sugar are there for flavor, and the salt can aid in hydration so don’t leave it out. Sugar can be increased for a sweeter version or left out in savory applications.

After the liquid comes to a boil, and the flour has been added off the heat, the pot is placed back on the burner to cook it a bit further. This is one of the most important parts. You want to cook the mixture, stirring constantly, until a film builds up on the bottom of the pot. Take care not to scrape this up into your dough or you can get little unappetizing lumps. This all-important step is all about hydration. When I first learned this recipe, I was told that it was to dry it out so you could get more eggs in the dough. That is true, but more importantly, the extra cook time aids in the hydration and gelatinization of the flour, trapping more water in the dough. The more water you can trap here, the larger the expansion.

The dough gets transferred into a KitchenAid mixer and beaten on medium speed with the paddle attachment until it's cooled, so as not to cook the eggs. Once it reaches room temperature, the eggs are added one at a time. It’s best to hold back the last egg. Depending on how long the mixture is cooked and the humidity, it may take more or less eggs than the recipe calls for. You’re looking for a paste that is thick enough to hold a shape when piped but not so stiff that you can’t easily pipe it. Rather than a specific amount of eggs, there are visual cues to look for. When running a spatula through the mixture, it should readily close over itself. When lifting the paddle attachment from the mixer, it should form a "v" from the bottom of the paddle.

Almost all recipes call for whole eggs. In Shirley Corriher’s book, "Bakewise," she suggests a portion of egg whites. My recipe for pâte à choux now includes half eggs and half egg whites by weight. The change was dramatic. The dough was stronger, formed a more sturdy shell, and surprisingly, tasted better. Eliminating the extra fat of the egg yolks allowed the flavor from the butter — or duck fat — to shine through. The only thing I didn’t like about using the extra whites was a bit of unpredictability in puffs shaped only by piping with a round tip. But those with craquelin or frozen prior to baking were perfectly shaped. A higher ratio of egg white also made more delicious and delicate Parisian gnocchi and crullers. This version was the undeniable favorite.

Shaping the dough can be done in many forms, usually piped through a large tip. I’ve experimented with all forms of piping tips and find that the tight serrated or many-pronged open star tip provides the best structure. Pipe in one motion without moving the tip to avoid trapping air pockets. Tap your finger lightly in water and pat down any pointy tips. These will burn in the oven and take away from the beauty of the final pastry. Allow for plenty of room around the puffs for expansion when baking, as they increase in size threefold.

The most uniform pastries come from choux paste that has been piped into silicone molds and then frozen. The puffs can be baked directly from the freezer and this method creates a beautifully domed pastry.

For Parisian gnocchi, the dough is piped from a tip, cut into boiling water and cooked for only 1 to 2 minutes. The same is done for churros, but in this case, piped with a serrated tip into hot oil. For beignets, the dough can be portioned with a scoop into oil at 350˚F. And for French crullers, it can be piped on a small piece of parchment and then slid carefully into the hot oil.

Many temperature ranges have been used to bake pâte à choux. You’ll often find directions to start high, about 415˚F, to create a lot of sudden steam to encourage puffing and then turn it down to cook through. Here at ICE, managing multiple oven temperatures with trays going in and out of the oven can be challenging, so we generally keep convection ovens about 350˚F throughout the bake time and this works well. In a non-convection oven, that would be 380-400˚F. They bake until they are puffed and dried almost completely. Take one out, and tap it on the table. Properly baked, it will feel hollow, and firm. It’s also a good idea to break one open and make sure that it is no longer wet inside. The bake time will vary depending on the size and temperature of the dough when it goes into the oven. Small sizes at room temperature will take about 20 minutes and large eclairs can go significantly longer. It's always best to have a thermometer in the oven to confirm it's working at the proper temp. Too low and the pâte à choux will never achieve its full puff potential. It’s also important not to open the oven door while it's cooking, which would let out the much-needed steam and heat, and the puffs will be cakey.

Some chefs will use egg wash to encourage browning. With the right mix of ingredients, though, it's not needed. I either spray them with a cooking spray or dust them with powdered sugar to discourage the formation of an exterior crust and keep it pliable for as long as possible while baking.

Cracking is often an issue with baking puffs. A few tricks will help avoid the dreaded cracks. Using the serrated piping tip is key. Avoiding egg wash that can hold the paste down to the parchment when baking helps as well. Oven temperature is important, too. If the puffs dry out too much before fully expanding, there will be cracks where the surface has dried.

Another issue that often occurs is collapse after removing the puffs from the oven. In this case, they were under baked and the protein structure didn’t have enough time in the oven to fully set up. Pâte à choux can also be cooled in the oven with the heat off and the door cracked to avoid collapse. A small hole poked in the bottom of each puff will encourage steam to escape and maintain the shape.

Choux with craquelin originated in Japan, where the traditional French pastry is taken to a new level. It's incredibly simple to make: Combine equal amounts of all-purpose flour, white or brown sugar, and butter in a mixer. Roll thinly between two sheets of parchment and freeze before using a round cutter to cut to a size just larger than your puff. Top each puff with a round of craquelin and bake. This method adds a lovely sweet crunch and helps the puffs keep an elegant uniform shape.

One of my very favorite uses for this dough is to create cake layers. Use a ring mold and pipe the paste in a thin layer in a concentric circle inside of the mold. Halfway through baking press it down with a spoon to take out a bit of the air. Let it cool and fill the light and delicate pastry with fresh fruit and a cream of choice to match that ethereal texture of the pastry.

Pâte à choux is truly a magical dough that can host myriad transformations. What will you do to take it to the next level?

Work with Chef Penny in ICE's Pastry & Baking Arts program.

Pate a Choux Recipe

80 grams milk
80 grams water
65 grams unsalted butter
3 grams salt
3 grams sugar
110 grams high-gluten (bread) flour
100 grams whole eggs
100 grams egg whites

Transform dough for a living with career training in Pastry & Baking Arts.

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Matzo balls with this technique

Submitted by Jill Kibler on March 24, 2021 2:45am

Thanks for this great lesson! I have made matzo balls using schmaltz As the fat, water as the liquid, and matzo meal in place of the flour. The balls turn out lovely and light. I did not realize Parisian gnocchi were made in this same fashion.

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Recipe steps

Step 1 - Boil water or a mix of water and milk), butter, salt, and sugar if making a sweet version in a pot until the mixture reaches a rolling boil;

Step 2 - Remove from heat and add all the flour at once, stirring quickly to combine;

Step 3 - Return to heat and cook, stirring constantly, until a film forms on the bottom of the pot about 1-2 minutes;

Step 4 - Transfer the dough to a stand mixer with the paddle attachment;

Step 5 - Beat on medium speed until the dough cools to room temperature;

Step 6 - Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition until fully incorporated;

Step 7 - Stop adding eggs when the dough reaches the desired consistency thick enough to hold a shape but not too stiff

Step 8 - Pipe the dough onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or silicone mat;

Step 9 - For even shapes, use a serrated or open star piping tip and ensure the puffs are spaced adequately to allow for expansion;

Step 10 - Preheat the oven to 350°F or 380-400°F for non-convection ovens;

Step 11 - Bake until the puffs are well-risen, dry, and hollow inside. Baking time varies by size, approximately 20 minutes for small sizes and longer for larger eclairs;

Step 12 - Avoid opening the oven door during baking to maintain steam and heat;

Step 13 - If needed, use a small hole in the bottom of each puff to release steam and prevent collapse;

Step 14 - Let the puffs cool on a wire rack;

Step 15 - Optionally, brush with egg wash or dust with powdered sugar to enhance appearance and prevent crust formation;

The History of Royal Icing String Work

aday — Fri, 30 Oct 2020 18:23:58 +0000

The History of Royal Icing String Work aday Fri, 10/30/2020 - 14:23 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/string%20work%20header.jpg.webp?itok=9yffY7AV Chef Penny shares the story behind the Australian and oriental cake decorating technique. October 30, 2020

By Penny Stankiewicz — Chef-Instructor, Pastry & Baking Arts, The Art of Cake Decorating

On the first day of classes for the recent start of the Art of Cake Decorating program here at ICE, I asked the students what they were most excited to learn. String work didn’t come up. Until then, they hadn’t even heard of the cake decorating technique. And once they looked at some images, I think they were a bit intimidated.

The traditional technique is one perfected over a century. It involves delicate piping of royal icing, through a very small piping tip, built up upon itself to reach breathtaking gravity-defying heights. The two main forms of this highly skilled technique are Australian string work and oriental string work.

As with so many of our cake decorating traditions, string work evolved from techniques popular in England at the turn of the 20th century. According to Chef Toba Garrett, a master cake decorator and string work specialist, the story of how it’s thought to have developed is a relatable one. A cake decorator from Australia was in the UK learning from masters of overpiping — the technique of building up layers and layers of piped royal icing to create incredible sugar masterpieces. While there, sometime between 1920 and 1930, she traveled over the London Bridge. This transformative ride inspired her to consider replicating its elegant and delicate lines in sugar. I can relate. Every place I’ve ever traveled, including across my home of New York City, has been constant inspiration for my work.

As the story goes, the cake decorator went home to Australia where she practiced and developed the techniques for building the string work that seems to pop off the cake. She piped ultra-thin layers of string work over platforms or “bridges” that support them.

Modern string work in ICE's Art of Cake Decorating class.

These cakes would have been built on the base of a fruit cake, covered in marzipan for straight edges, and then covered in rolled fondant for a perfect surface. Then the cake is marked for the curved bridge bases, which are piped repeatedly on top of each other, with time to dry in between. After the bridge is built, the cake is tilted towards the decorator, and each string is piped with a 0 tip to create ultra-delicate strings attaching to the bottom bridge, as though they are hanging in mid-air. Once these strings dry, some kind of detail piping or ornament is attached at the top string line to hide the starts.

According to Chef Toba, these cakes typically would be finished with the addition of some tiny piping work or sometimes a ribbon around the center of the cake and a tiny bow attached at the meet point, maybe a small floral spray on top. There would be no greetings or messages on the cake but maybe the name and the age. The artists wouldn’t have wanted to take away from its delicate simplicity.

Like an ice sculpture, the truth is these cakes were never really meant to be eaten. Because of the fragility, transport would have been difficult at best, and the labor involved would have made them cost-prohibitive. So mostly, Chef Toba says, they were used for cake competitions. Australian string work cakes enjoyed a height of popularity between 1950 and 1970 through the commonwealth of Great Britain, including Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

Art of Cake Decorating students practice string work at ICE.

Oriental string work is similar with its use of fine strings piped with royal icing, but in this case, the strings are dropped to create a curve. Dots are piped to attach the strings away from the cake and added layer by layer, actually turning the cake upside down during part of the process so the strings hang from the top and bottom creating elegant curves in both directions. Due to the need to turn it upside down several times, this is not really suitable for an edible cake either, but more for use in competition or display.

Both rely entirely on royal icing, a multiuse mixture of confectioner’s sugar and egg whites, plus an acid stabilizer that is firm upon piping and dries very hard. Our confectioner’s sugar in the U.S. has 3% corn starch in it. This makes the icing a bit weaker than the traditional English version. The icing sugar available in the UK does not have corn starch in it and because of that, it creates a significantly stronger icing that dries rock hard. We paddle this back and forth to remove any air bubbles that could break the strings while piping. It's then placed in a cornet, or paper cone, with a 0 tip and used only in small batches so it can be easily controlled.

As our interest in fondant-covered cakes grew in the U.S. in the 1980s and '90s, so did our interest in these traditional techniques. Those with the most skill guarded these techniques. As Chef Toba yearned to learn more, she had to work very hard to source mentors and instructors in the craft. She traveled to England to convince the masters to train her and has since become known as a master in the art. Instead of keeping it for herself, she offers instruction in this time-honored technique, passing it down to new generations — including in her design of the Art of Cake Decorating curriculum.

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When it began, it could only be in white. No variation of color was allowed or accepted. Students who learn this technique now are bringing it into the 21st century, honoring the long-held techniques and traditions but adapting it for modern audiences. Specifically, the use of bold colors can assert a modern feeling with a vintage vibe. Marbleizing the fondant or the addition of other pieces of decor can make these techniques feel more at home in the present.

While the students in my cake decorating class may have started out a bit intimidated, I broke the process down into very manageable pieces, and they were able to create things they never dreamed they could. They know more about the history of how our current cake decorating techniques came to develop and where they sit among the masters that have gone before. And we’re grateful to Chef Toba for sharing her knowledge with us all. String work is one of our more traditional ways to turn humble icing and cakes into masterful works of art. With this skill in your creative toolbox, you can craft masterpieces with a wink to the past while fully embracing modern times.

Learn more about the eight-week continuing education course, The Art of Cake Decorating.

Cake Cake Decorating �� Technique ICE Instructors

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Halloween Cookies Recipe

aday — Tue, 06 Oct 2020 16:55:22 +0000

Halloween Cookies Recipe aday Tue, 10/06/2020 - 12:55 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/Halloween%20cookie%20header.jpg.webp?itok=zEQav9L2 Chef Penny demonstrates how to make your own pumpkin slice-and-bake cookies. October 25, 2022

By Penny Stankiewicz — Chef-Instructor, Pastry & Baking Arts, The Art of Cake Decorating

Slice-and-bake cookies combine convenience and nostalgia, and these pumpkin cookies with purple sparkles are a fun and festive way to celebrate the holiday.

Making these from scratch adds a hands-on activity for the family and ensures you know exactly what you're eating.

Plus, you can be creative and customize the design to your liking. Simply follow this recipe and technique from Chef Penny Stankiewicz to make your dough, and refrigerate the roll until you're ready to bake and serve.

More cookie recipes.

Slice-and-Bake Pumpkin Cookies

225 grams unsalted butter
322 grams white granulated sugar
3.5 grams kosher salt
1 egg
5 grams vanilla extract
300 grams all-purpose flour
Orange and green gel paste food color, as needed
Colored sanding sugar, as desired (I used purple)
1 egg white, for assembly

In the bowl of a KitchenAid mixer, cream together the sugar and the butter and salt with the paddle on medium speed until the mixture is light and fluffy.
Add eggs one at a time, followed by vanilla.
Add flour in 2-3 increments, lowering the speed so it stays in the bowl, and mix only until combined.
Separate the dough into three parts, one batch of 500 grams, leave natural color. Color 300 grams with orange gel paste food color, and color 100 grams green.
Starting with the orange color, form a log. Shape the log into more of a pumpkin shape by making a grove down the center of the log, tapering the bottom a bit. Remember the shape is only visible when the cookie is cut, so keep the general log shape, and manipulate it so it resembles the pumpkin shape from the front only. Use any real pumpkin shape for inspiration. Chill this until firm.
Roll the green into a log. Brush some egg white down the center of the chilled orange log’s ridge. Place the green log in the center of the groove of the orange pumpkin-shaped log, and create a form that resembles the stem of the pumpkin from the front. Chill this until firm.
When the pumpkin log is fully chilled and firm, brush it entirely with egg white. Roll thinner logs of the naturally colored dough, and fit it into any of the grooves around the form you’ve created, starting around the stem. You’re working to build the neutral-colored dough around the pumpkin to encase it in the uncolored dough. Use as many small logs to do this as you need to. Then roll out the rest of this dough very thickly, as long and as wide as your log is. The dough will be about 1-inch thick. Brush your log once more with egg white, and wrap this layer of dough all the way around, enclosing your pattern completely in the neutral-colored dough. Wrap this in parchment paper, and roll it so that it's smooth all the way around. Chill this one more time.
Remove from the wrapping. Brush the log once more with egg white, and roll it in your colored sanding sugar.
Cut slices about 1/3-inch thick. You’ll need to cut past the end of the roll to start seeing the clear image. Place these on a lined cookie sheet or sheet pan, and bake in a preheated 350 F standard oven (300 F for convection). Bake just until set and barely light golden. You don’t want to add too much color to these cookies. About 8-11 minutes.

Learn more about studying Pastry & Baking Arts with Chef Penny at our New York campus.

More recipes from Chef Penny:

Cookies Video Recipe Holidays Halloween

October Cookies

Submitted by Marissa W on October 12, 2020 2:36pm

I love these! It's kind of got a funky style to them! This is just me, but I think we could even make these work for Christmas, using Christmas colors.

Slice and bake cookies

Submitted by Donna on October 16, 2020 3:43pm

Going to try this. How do you keep the cookie round when you slice it. Should it be chilled to almost frozen before slicing ?

Yep! Nice and super cold. —…

Submitted by aday on October 20, 2020 1:56pm

Yep! Nice and super cold. — Chef Penny

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Recipe steps

Step 1 - In the bowl of a KitchenAid mixer, cream together the sugar and the butter and salt with the paddle on medium speed until the mixture is light and fluffy;

Step 2 - Add eggs one at a time, followed by vanilla;

Step 3 - Add flour in 2-3 increments, lowering the speed so it stays in the bowl, and mix only until combined;

Step 4 - Separate the dough into three parts, one batch of 500 grams, leave natural color;

Step 5 - Color 300 grams with orange gel paste food color, and color 100 grams green;

Step 6 - Starting with the orange color, form a log. Shape the log into more of a pumpkin shape by making a grove down the center of the log, tapering the bottom a bit;

Step 7 - Remember the shape is only visible when the cookie is cut, so keep the general log shape, and manipulate it so it resembles the pumpkin shape from the front only;

Step 8 - Use any real pumpkin shape for inspiration. Chill this until firm;

Step 9 - Roll the green into a log. Brush some egg white down the center of the chilled orange log’s ridge;

Step 10 - Place the green log in the center of the groove of the orange pumpkin-shaped log, and create a form that resembles the stem of the pumpkin from the front. Chill this until firm;

Step 11 - When the pumpkin log is fully chilled and firm, brush it entirely with egg white. Roll thinner logs of the naturally colored dough, and fit it into any of the grooves around the form you’ve created, starting around the stem;

Step 12 - You’re working to build the neutral-colored dough around the pumpkin to encase it in the uncolored dough;

Step 13 - Use as many small logs to do this as you need to;

Step 14 - Then roll out the rest of this dough very thickly, as long and as wide as your log is. The dough will be about 1-inch thick;

Step 15 - Brush your log once more with egg white, and wrap this layer of dough all the way around, enclosing your pattern completely in the neutral-colored dough;

Step 16 - Wrap this in parchment paper, and roll it so that it's smooth all the way around. Chill this one more time;

Step 17 - Remove from the wrapping. Brush the log once more with egg white, and roll it in your colored sanding sugar;

Step 18 - Cut slices about 1/3-inch thick. You’ll need to cut past the end of the roll to start seeing the clear image;

Step 19 - Place these on a lined cookie sheet or sheet pan, and bake in a preheated 350 F standard oven (300 F for convection);

Step 20 - Bake just until set and barely light golden. You don’t want to add too much color to these cookies. About 8 11 minutes;

Chef Penny's Chai Apple Pie

aday — Fri, 01 May 2020 20:18:50 +0000

Chef Penny's Chai Apple Pie aday Fri, 05/01/2020 - 16:18 /sites/default/files/styles/width_1400/public/content/blog-article/header-image/apple%20pie%20header.jpg.webp?itok=bRm__qmM This dessert recipe has bonus recipes for candied ginger and creme Parisienne. May 1, 2020

By Penny Stankiewicz — Chef-Instructor, Pastry & Baking Arts, The Art of Cake Decorating

Epicurious' 4 Levels series showcases three approaches to a comfort food recipe with an amateur and home cook alongside a chef from the Institute of �� Education. In the latest episode, Chef Penny shares a special apple pie with spices and rum.

"The secret ingredient in this recipe is caramelized white chocolate," Chef Penny entices. She says the warm and sweet pie with savory and boozy kicks "fires on every note."

"If you're going to eat dessert, it better be worth it. This is worth it." Watch her demonstrate pro apple pie making techniques in the video and get the complete recipe below.

Chai Apple Pie with Dulcy Rum Creme Parisienne

Yields 2 double crust pies

Pie Dough

3 grams salt
15 grams sugar
454 grams all-purpose flour
225 grams cake flour
454 grams unsalted butter, cold
3 fluid ounces water
3 fluid ounces vodka

Directions

Combine dry ingredients in bowl of KitchenAid mixer.
Cut cold butter into 1-inch pieces. Cut into dry ingredients with paddle attachment until about almond size pieces.
Add liquid and mix only to bring together.
Create a log and chill dough for 1 hour up to overnight.

Pie Filling

Ingredients

12 medium apples, various kinds (4 Granny Smith, 4 Jona Gold, 4 Gala), resulting in about 1350 grams when prepped (peeled, cored and sliced)
80 grams unsalted butter
6 grams spice mix (recipe follows)
15 grams whole cinnamon
3 grams salt
1 vanilla bean
30 grams dark rum (Don Q)
215 grams demerara sugar
150 grams candied ginger, finely chopped (recipe follows)

Directions

Melt butter, add spices, split vanilla bean and salt.
Add apples and sugar and sauce until softened and juices have come out.
Finish with rum and candied ginger.
Chill in refrigerator, 4 hours or overnight.

Candied Ginger

Ingredients

150 grams ginger, peeled and sliced
250 grams sugar
250 grams water
1 pinch salt

Directions

Boil in water 3 times.
Cook in sugar syrup to 225 F.
Let sit 1 hour.
Remove and dry, roll in sugar if desired.

Spice Mix (for pie filling)

Ingredients

5 grams ea whole spices (star anise, allspice, cardamom)
3 grams black pepper
3 grams clove

Directions

Toasted together and ground in spice grinder.

Assembly

Ingredients

1 egg
Demerara sugar

Directions

Roll bottom pie crust and fit into pan with overhang.
Fill will cooled filling.
Brush edge with egg wash.
Top with preferred upper crust.
Egg wash and sprinkle with more demerera sugar
Bake at 375 F preferably at bottom of oven, until top is crisp and any visible juices are bubbling.