Stirring It Up with Molly Ivins (33 page)
Read Stirring It Up with Molly Ivins Online
Authors: Ellen Sweets
“So off we went to Jeffrey's, but when we got there we learned that somehow things got screwed up and my paintings weren't being shown. The exhibit had been moved to New Year's Eve. On the one hand it was the millennium, so I got way better exposure than I would have on the original date. I was still kinda disappointed until I saw that cake. What a work of art!”
Austin attorney Janet Dewey, a friend and fellow traveler, was among the cake's admirers. Janet got to know Molly when they were doing a little upscale camping on a houseboat on Lake Amistad.
“Molly and I were preparing breakfast together. I'm not sure she'd ever given me much heed other than occasionally calling me âDarlin',' and I suspect that was because she couldn't remember my name. But as I was peeling and slicing apples, I felt Molly's gaze fix on my apple action and say, âWell, it looks like you've made a pie or two.'
“Suddenly, I existed. Molly always appreciated people with great stories, tall tales, courage, or, as luck would have it, cooking skills. She seemed to be able to divine personality and character through your movements with a knife, or concept of a dish. I think food talked for Molly. It was another form of communication. And preparing food and sharing meals was just another way to be with people and tell stories. Food, stories, stories, food.
“Anyway, the cake was a thing to behold. Molly served it as if delivering the Eucharist to sinful tongues. It was light and billowing, layer upon layer, nothing cloying or cakey, just soft angelic mousse, whispery layers of perfect soufflé-like cake, and rich, dark chocolate icing. Crackled caramelized sugar drizzled over the top delivered a delightful crunch in contrast to the cloud within. While not a shy group, not a one of us asked for more. Clearly for Molly, that cake was more than food. It was an offering. And it was
so good
!”
After some sleuthingâmostly in the wrong directionâI thought the recipe came from a Four Seasons
hotel
restaurant until I learned otherwise. As I grumbled about my difficulty in finding the recipe to Gayla Hoffman, a St. Louis friend and fellow foodie, she said she thought she had seen it somewhere. Lo and behold, it was in her copy of
The Four Seasons: A History of America's Premier Restaurant
, written by John Mariani and Alex von Bidder, the restaurant's owner.
The ingredients and instructions would have intimidated the living daylights out of a lesser mortal, but not our Molly. So for those of you who think you are a match for her resolve in the kitchen, have at it. Be sure to savor it with champagne and drink a toast to her as you take fork to pastry.
THE FOUR SEASONS CHOCOLATE FANCY CAKE
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This is an exercise in patience and diligence and is done in stages. Please read the recipe through twice before cracking the first egg. You do not want to discover an error halfway through making it! Reprinted with permission from New York's Four Seasons restaurant.
INGREDIENTS
For the Bavarian cream:
3¾ cups milk, divided use
3 scant tablespoons (3 envelopes) unflavored gelatin
6 large eggs, separated
¼ teaspoon salt
1¼ cups sugar
¼ cup dark rum
1 cup heavy cream, whipped stiff
¾ cup crushed almond macaroons or vanilla wafers (about 10 to 12 small cookies)
cup finely chopped walnuts or pecans
For the orange chiffon cake:
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sifted cake flour
¾ cup sugar
1½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup vegetable oil
2 egg yolks
6 tablespoons fresh orange juice
1½ tablespoons finely chopped orange peel
½ cup egg whites (from 3 or 4 large eggs), at room temperature
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
½ cup heavy cream, whipped stiff
For the chocolate almond cream coating:
2 pounds almond paste
1 cup cocoa
Confectioners' sugar for sprinkling
DIRECTIONS
To prepare the Bavarian cream, place 1 cup of milk in a medium bowl and sprinkle gelatin over the milk. Let stand for 5 minutes to soften. In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, warm the remaining milk until tiny bubbles appear around the edge.
Meanwhile, beat the egg yolks with the salt and ½ cup of the sugar until blended. Stir in the milk and gelatin mixture. Gradually stir in the warm milk. Place the mixture in the top part of a double boiler. Cook over hot (but not boiling) water, stirring often, until the mixture coats the back of a spoon, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat, cool slightly, and stir in rum. Refrigerate, covered, until the mixture mounds slightly when lifted with a spoon, about 3 hours. (Alternatively, place the pan over ice water to
hasten chilling. Stir occasionally until the mixture mounds slightly when lifted with a spoon, about 30 minutes.)
Line a 2½-quart bowl no wider than 9 inches in diameter with plastic wrap or foil. Set aside.
In the bowl of a large electric mixer, beat egg whites on high speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add the remaining ¾ cup of sugar and beat until stiff but not dry. Add the whipped cream and the gelatin mixture. Beat at low speed until just combined, about 1 minute. Turn into the prepared bowl.
In a small bowl, combine the crushed macaroons or wafers with the nuts. Mix well. Sprinkle over the top of the mixture in the bowl and gently press down. Cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours or overnight.
To prepare the orange chiffon cake, preheat the oven to 350°F. Sift flour with sugar, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. Make a well in the center. Add the oil, egg yolks, orange juice, and orange peel. Beat with a spoon until smooth.
Beat the egg whites with cream of tartar on high speed until stiff but not dry. With an under-and-over motion, use a wire whisk or rubber spatula to gradually fold the orange batter into the egg whites. Mix just until blended. Do not stir. Pour into an ungreased 9-by-1½-inch round cake pan. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Place the cake upside down on a dry, clean kitchen towel. Cool completely, about 1 hour. With a spatula, carefully loosen cake from pan. Hit the pan sharply on a table. Remove cake and place it on a serving platter.
Spread the whipped cream over the top of the orange chiffon cake. Invert the bowl of Bavarian cream over the whipped-cream-topped cake. Remove the bowl and peel off the plastic wrap. The Bavarian cream will form a dome over the cake. Refrigerate until ready to coat.
To prepare the chocolate almond cream coating, in a large bowl knead the almond paste with the cocoa until thoroughly mixed and softened. Divide into 5 portions, 4 of equal size and 1 smaller portion for the top-knot. On a large board sprinkled with confectioners' sugar, roll out the 4 uniform pieces, one at a time, into 8-by-7-inch sheets that measure about
inch thick. As each sheet is rolled out, place it on the covered Bavarian-orange cake, working from the bottom up and pinching the top to make gathers in it. Break off any excess that sticks out at the top. The whole cake should be covered by the 4 rolled-out sheets.
Roll out the remaining portion of chocolate almond cream coating into an oblong that measures about ¼ inch thick. Gather into a topknot and place on top of the cake. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Let the cake stand at room temperature for 20 minutes before slicing. Serves 16.
OUEFS Ã LA NEIGE
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Courtney Anderson lost her recipe for this classic French recipe, so we found a close substitute in the one Gale Gand developed for the Food Network. Reproduced with permission.
INGREDIENTS
3 cups milk
½ vanilla bean
9 egg yolks
1¾ cups sugar, divided use
2 quarts water
6 egg whites
Crystallized rose petals for garnish
DIRECTIONS
In a saucepan, bring milk to a boil with the vanilla bean in it. Let sit 15 minutes to infuse. Whisk yolks with 1 cup of sugar, then slowly add hot milk. Return to heat and cook gently to thicken. Strain into a stainless-steel bowl and place the bowl in a shallow pan filled with ice water. Stir sauce to cool and thicken. Chill, covered.
Simmer 2 quarts of water in a large frying pan but do not boil. Meanwhile, beat the egg whites until stiff but not dry. Gradually add the remaining ¾ cup of sugar and continue beating until glossy, about 30 seconds more. Place a large sheet pan next to the water and line it with waxed paper dampened slightly. Using a large star tip or 2 dessert spoons or an ice cream scoop, squeeze out rosettes onto the paper.
Using a spatula, lift the rosettes off the paper one at time and slide them into the simmering water. Poach for 7 minutes on the bottom, then turn over for 3 minutes, not allowing them to touch while poaching. Drain on a dish towel. Remove to a sheet pan and chill.
In a shallow glass bowl, saucer, or long-stemmed champagne glass, float meringue on a puddle of custard and garnish with rose petals. Serves 4 to 6.
CRYSTALLIZED ROSE PETALS
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INGREDIENTS
½ teaspoon water
1 egg white
16 rose petals from organic or confetti roses
2 tablespoons sugar
DIRECTIONS
Whisk water and egg white in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Dip rose petals into mixture and stick them to inside rim of bowl to drain. Dip both sides of drained petals in sugar and place on a sheet pan with parchment paper. Let dry for 4 hours in a warm place.
