8.24.2014

Note: Steps On How To Keep A Cut Apple From Turning Brown

6 

Steps On How To Keep A Cut Apple From Turning Brown

1
Use lemon juice. Apples turn brown due to an enzyme in the fruit that reacts with oxygen in the air. This process is known as "oxidation." Lemon juice works to prevent oxidation as it contains citric acid, which is an effective anti-oxidant.[1] You can use either freshly squeezed or reconstituted lemon juice, though it may be best to only use this method on sweeter types of apple, as the lemon juice will add tartness. To use lemon juice to stop your cut apples from turning brown, you can use one of two methods:
  • You can apply lemon juice directly to the cut side of the apple by sprinkling the juice over the cut apple pieces in a bowl and tossing to coat. Alternatively you can use a pastry brush to rub the lemon juice onto the exposed flesh. These methods will give the apple a slight lemony taste.
  • You can also use lemon to prevent browning by soaking the apple pieces in a bowl of cold water and lemon juice. You should use a ratio of one tablespoon of lemon juice to one cup of water. You only need to soak the apple for 3-5 minutes, before draining and rinsing.[2]
  • Lime juice can be used in place of the lemon juice in these methods, as limes also contain the citric acid necessary to prevent oxidation. Pineapple juice is another good option.
2
Use salt. Salt is a natural preservative and can be effective in keeping cut apples from turning brown. To use this method, make a solution of 1/2 teaspoon of salt, dissolved in a quart of cold water. Place the cut apples in the salty water and leave to soak fro 3-5 minutes. Remove from the water and rinse thoroughly in a sieve or colander. The apple slices should remain unoxidized for some time.[2]
  • Don't worry about your fruit tasting salty - as long as you don't use too much salt, avoid soaking the apple for too long and rinse the apple thoroughly afterwards, your fruit will taste just fine.
3
Use carbonated drinks. Carbonated drinks which contain citric acid can also be useful for preventing your apples from turning brown. Lemon-lime soda and ginger ale are two popular options which can be used to soak your cut apples.
  • Simply pop the apples in a bowl of your chosen carbonated drink for 3-5 minutes, then drain. You can rinse the apple pieces, if you like, or leave them if you enjoy the added flavor!
  • Seltzer water is another option that supposedly works to prevent apples from browning, so you can also give that a try if you have some lying around![2]
4
Use Fruit-Fresh. Fruit-Fresh is a powdered form of citric and ascorbic acids which is specifically designed to prevent fruit from turning brown. It claims to prevent food from browning for up to eight hours, and can be found in the canned goods section of most grocery stores.[3]
  • To use Fruit-Fresh, all you need to do is sprinkle half a teaspoon of the powder per cup of chopped apple and toss to coat.[3]
5
Blanch the apples. It is possible to blanch cut apples to prevent them from browning. Blanching basically deactivates the enzymes in the apple, preventing them from reacting with oxygen in the air.[4] To blanch your cut apples, simply place them in a pot of boiling water for approximately five minutes, then remove and rinse with cold water.
  • Be aware that using this method will significantly soften the texture of the apple, making it less suitable for eating on it's own. As a result, this method is best reserved for apples that you plan on using in cooking or baking.[5]
6
Cover in plastic wrap. A very simple method you can use to prevent apples from browning is just to cover the cut apple with plastic wrap. This technique works by keeping the air away from the apple flesh, thus preventing the apple flesh from oxidizing. Try to wrap the plastic around the apple as tightly as possible and avoid having any creases in the plastic wrap on the exposed side of the apple.
  • This method works best with half of a whole apple, rather than several pieces, as it is easier to wrap the plastic tightly around a single piece.
  • Be aware that if any air at all remains inside the plastic wrap, the apple will begin to oxidize. As it is very difficult to eliminate all air, this method may not be the most effective.
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Nigella Lawson: Apple Pie & Apple and Almond Cake

Apple Pie

Ingredients

For the pastry

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 pinch of salt
  • 5 oz soft unsalted butter
  • 1 iced water

For the filling

  • 5 apples
  • ½ cup soft unsalted butter
  • 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • ½ cup superfine sugar
  • ½ cup soft light brown sugar
  • 1 pinch of salt
  • ¼ cup water
  • cinnamon (to taste)

For the glaze

  • milk
  • superfine sugar

(not- Nigella lawson picture to the pie not available- above image is from the net)

Method

  1. Heat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C, gas stove mark 7).
  2. Make the pastry... cut the butter into small squares, and refrigerate. Measure the flour and salt into a large bowl. Add the butter, and using a pastry cutter, blend in the butter until it resembles wet sand. Bring together, using a few tablespoons of ice water at a time, until almost totally cohesive, then work it for a bit to make it a nice dough.
  3. Cut in half, and form each half into a disc. Wrap in plastic wrap (clingfilm) and refrigerate till needed.
  4. Peel, core, and quarter the apples. Then cut each apple quarter in half lengthways, then each of those pieces in half horizontally (to give you 16 chunks per apple). You don't have to be this precise... this is just how I find it easy to do...
  5. Cover the apples directly with plastic wrap (clingfilm) to prevent browning. Place in the fridge.
  6. Melt butter in a 2-quart (about 2 litre) sauce pan. Stir in flour to form a paste. Add sugar, brown sugar, salt, and water; bring to a bubbly simmer. Reduce temperature, and simmer 5 minutes, stirring a lot.
  7. Meanwhile, roll out your pastry and place the bottom crust in your pan. Fill with apples, mounded slightly. Sprinkle over your desired amount of cinnamon (I like a lot).
  8. When the sauce is done, slowly and evenly pour it over the apples.
  9. Place the top crust on, seal edges (I put a little water between the two crusts, to help them adhere), roll the excess under, and flute edges. Cut four steam slits in the top to look like a cross but don't connect at the middle. Paint the crust with the milk, and generously sprinkle over the sugar.
  10. Bake 15 minutes at 425 degrees F (220 degrees C, gas stove mark 7). Reduce the temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C, gas stove mark 4), and continue baking for 35 to 45 minutes. Enjoy!
Serves six-eight

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Apple & Almond Cake

Ingredients 

for the apple puree

  • 3 tart eating apples (such as braeburns)
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 2 teaspoons caster sugar

for the cake

  • 1 splash of vegetable oil to grease tin
  • 8 large eggs
  • 325 grams ground almonds
  • 275 grams caster sugar
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 50 grams flaked almonds

to decorate

  • 1 teaspoon icing sugar



Method

  1. Peel, core and chop the apples roughly. Put them in a saucepan with the lemon juice and sugar and bring the pan to a bubble over a medium heat. Cover the pan and cook over a low heat for about 10 minutes or until you can mash the apple to a rough puree with a wooden spoon or fork. Leave to cool.
  2. Preheat the oven to Gas mark 4/180ºC/350ºF; oil a 25cm / 10 inch springform tin with almond or a flavourless vegetable oil and line the bottom with baking parchment.
  3. Put the cooled puree in the processor with the eggs, ground almonds, caster sugar and 1 tablespoon - or generous squeeze - of lemon juice and blitz to a puree. Pour and scrape, with a rubber spatula for ease, into the prepared tin, sprinkle the flaked almonds on top, and bake for 45 minutes. It's worth checking after 35 minutes, as ovens do vary, and you might well find its cooked earlier - or indeed you may need to give a few minutes longer.
  4. Put on a wire rack to cool slightly, then spring open. This cake is best served slightly warm, though still good cold.
  5. As you bring it to the table, push a teaspoon of icing sugar through a fine sieve to give a light dusting.
Serves twelve

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8.22.2014

Special: Christy Tania- Om Nom Dessert Bar

Christy Tania is the owner of the "Om Nom Dessert Bar" in Melbourne.

She Says:
"I have learnt many different things from many different people growing up. One of my biggest influences was my grandfather and also my dad, who both shared similar characteristics. My father was a labourer by trade and came to Indonesia, with literally nothing on his back. His priority and focus was to feed and provide for his six children. It is these stories that remind me when I hit an obstacle in my life, to just press on and keep going. There is no time to dwell, learn from your mistakes and make it happen. My mum has also been a very strong influence on me, and is probably the hardest and strongest woman I know. There were times though where I found her strength intimidating. For example, she strongly believed that even as a woman in our culture, I could still be independent, get a good education and be financially successful on my own. She also did not want me to be emotionally or financially dependent on any guy or relationship, it was all about me making my own way. I look back now and I can see the confidence and strength it has given me, to be where I am today."



The Beginning: 
Actor John Depp always liked to turn away the first plate that he was served at the legendary Ritz Hotel in Paris. It was his thing, his idiosyncrasy. So when he was presented with an exquisite and perfectly executed dessert by Christy Tania, he stayed true to form.
The plate went back to the kitchen and in keeping with hotel policy to satisfy every whim of its clientele, Christy started over. Similarly when Nicolas Sarkozy, then President of France, returned his pancakes, not once but twice, Christy lifted to the challenge and pleased his palate on the third attempt.
The experiences served the young chef well, reinforcing as they did her intuitive response to stay calm under pressure while remaining grittily determined to succeed, whatever the odds. These characteristics coupled with a maestro-like flair for creating sweet sensations have made her the new darling of Melbourne’s culinary set.
As head chef at Om Nom, the 40-seat dessert restaurant and bar at the Adelphi Hotel, Christy has not strayed far from her classical training as a pastry chef. She studied at the Ducasse Institute Ecole Nationale Superieure de la Pattiserie, a school run by the fabled chef Alain Ducasse, at Yssingeaux, an hour’s drive from Lyon in France. It was an improbable choice of career for a woman who at 23 was the youngest female project manager with IBM in Singapore.
But the lure of a kitchen filled with possibilities for creating art that could be eaten proved far stronger than a lucrative and high-powered job in the corporate world. 
“I just felt I was meant to do something bigger,” she explains. At the time she wasn’t exactly a pastry virgin as she had already launched a hugely successful side business baking wedding and birthday cakes while still working with IBM. But she wanted to take the craft to a more professional level. In a month, she quit her job in Singapore, folded her business, and flew to France. It was a bold but brilliant move. She found her home in the kitchen.

Two of Christy's Desserts

Raspberry Field With Raspberry & Lychee Sorbet

Mango Alfonso




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Nigella Lawson: Penne & Linguine

Penne With Aubergine, Tomato, Chilli & Feta
This is in one sense wholly un-Italian, and yet the inspiration for it is the traditional pasta alla Norma, which combines aubergines with ricotta salata. This semi-dry salty cheese is hard to come by in the UK and so I thought to substitute it with that supermarket standby, feta. I also sprinkle some balsamic vinegar over the aubergine as I cook it, which counters and brings out its gorgeous earthiness. Tomatoes and chilli flakes bring brightness and zing.
Ingredients:
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 small onion or banana shallot (peeled and finely chopped)
  • 1 clove garlic (peeled and chopped)
  • ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes or chilli flakes (or to taste)
  • 1 x 14 oz can diced tomatoes
  • ¾ cup water
  • 1 eggplant (approx. 250g / 8oz)
  • 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
  • 8 oz penne rigate
  • 4 oz feta cheese
  • 1 bunch basil leaves (to serve, optional)

Method

  1. Put a capacious amount of water in a pan to cook the pasta and put on the heat.
  2. In another pan, one in which the pasta and sauce will fit later and, even better, one which you can bring to the table to serve from, heat the oil and then add the chopped onion/shallot and let cook, stirring every now and again, for 3 minutes.
  3. Add the garlic and chilli flakes and cook, along with the onion for about 30 seconds, stirring all the whilst before adding the canned tomatoes, then fill the empty can up with cold water and add that to the pan too.
  4. Slice the eggplant into 1 cm / ½ inch slices and then cut each slice into 1cm / ½ inch bits – this makes for easier, faster cooking.
  5. Now tumble in the eggplant cubes and pour in the balsamic vinegar, stir well and bring to a bubble, then clamp on a lid, turn the heat down and let simmer – not too gently – for 15 minutes, by which time the eggplant should be tender and the sauce thickened. If the pasta sauce is ready before the pasta, simply take off the heat but leave the lid on.
  6. After the eggplant has been cooking for about 5 of those minutes, add the pasta to the boiling water and cook as per packet instructions. Just before draining, lower in a cup and remove some of the pasta cooking liquid.
  7. Take the lid off the pan of sauce, and crumble in the feta, give a stir and then add the drained pasta and toss together, adding a little pasta water if you need to help everything amalgamate. Once combined, clamp the lid back on the pan and – still off the heat – leave to stand for 2 minutes.
  8. Either serve in the pan or transfer to a warmed bowl or bowls and strew with some basil leaves.
Serves Four

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Linguine With Lemon, Garlic & Thyme Mushrooms

This is one of my proudest creations and, I suppose, a good example of a recipe that isn't originally from Italy, but sits uncontroversially in her culinary canon. I don't think it would be too presumptuous to name this linguine ai funghi crudi. It is about as speedy as you can imagine: you do no more to the mushrooms than slice them, steep them in oil, garlic, lemon and thyme and toss them into the hot cooked pasta.
If all you can find is regular button mushrooms, this pasta is still worth making - so no excuses.


Ingredients
  • 225 grams chestnut mushrooms
  • 80 ml extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon maldon salt (or 1½ teaspoons table salt)
  • 1 small clove garlic (crushed)
  • zest and juice of 1 lemon
  • 4 sprigs fresh thyme (leaves stripped off)
  • 500 grams linguine
  • 1 bunch fresh parsley (chopped)
  • 2 - 3 tablespoons freshly grated parmesan cheese (or to taste)
  • freshly ground black pepper

Method

  1. Slice the mushrooms finely, and put in a large bowl with the oil, salt, crushed garlic, lemon juice and zest, and marvellously scented thyme leaves.
  2. Cook the pasta according to packet instructions and drain loosely, retaining some water. Quickly put the drained pasta into the bowl with the mushroom mixture.
  3. Toss everything together well, then add the chopped parsley, grated cheese and pepper to taste, before tossing again, and eat with joy in your heart.
Additional information - for vegetarians replace the Parmesan with vegetarian alternative.
Serves Four-Six






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