Spiced Madeleines With Orange Date Compote Food

ORANGE-CARDAMOM MADELEINES

Steps:

• Brush molds of a madeleine pan with butter; set aside. Make the batter: Melt butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Remove from heat, and stir in honey and vanilla. Let cool 10 minutes.
• Whisk flour, baking powder, cardamom, and salt in a small bowl; set aside.
• Preheat oven to 325, with rack in center. Stir together sugar and eggs in a medium bowl. Gently fold in flour mixture until combined. Add butter mixture, and fold until combined. Cover with plasticwrap, and refrigerate 30 minutes.
• Spoon batter into prepared pan, filling each mold halfway. Tap pan on work surface to eliminate air bubbles. Bake until cookies are puffed and edges are golden, 7 to 8 minutes. Transfer pan to a wirerack; let cool slightly. Unmold cookies onto rack, and let cool completely.
• Make the orange glaze: Stir together sugar and orange zest and juice in a small bowl until glaze is smooth, thick, and opaque. Using a small pastry brush, coat ridged side of each cookie with glaze. Let set 15 minutes. Cookies can be stored in a single layer in an airtight container up to 3 days.

SPICED FRUIT COMPOTE

Steps:

• Place cinnamon sticks and cloves on a double thickness of cheesecloth; bring up corners of cloth and tie with kitchen string to form a bag., In a large saucepan, combine the orange juice, raisins, brown sugar, salt and ginger. Add spice bag; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 8 minutes. Add fruit; simmer for 3 minutes. Discard spice bag. Serve fruit warm or cold with a slotted spoon.

SERIOUSLY GOOD SPICED FRUIT COMPOTE

Steps:

• Put all the ingredients, except the fruits, into a large saucepan and slowly bring to the boil, uncovered. Boil the syrup for 5 minutes then remove the pan from the heat.
• Top and tail the oranges, then slice off the skin and every scrap of pith, using a small, sharp kitchen knife. Cradle each orange in the palm of your hand, hold it over the saucepan and cut out the segments, letting them drop into the syrup. Squeeze any juice from the debris into the syrup, too, then discard.
• Add the apricots and plums to the syrup and return the saucepan to a medium heat. Bring to the boil, then simmer the fruits for 10 minutes. Leave to cool, then chill for at least 2 hours.
• Serve the poached fruits just as they are or as a brûlée: whisk the milk into the fromage frais to loosen it a little, then divide the fruits and enough juice to cover them, among six ovenproof ramekins and spoon on the fromage frais, thickly. Dust with caster sugar and then 'burn' the sugar with a blow-torch. (Or put the ramekins on a heavy baking sheet, place it under a very hot grill and leave for 1-2 minutes until the sugar has caramelised.)

DATE AND ORANGE COMPOTE

Steps:

• Place dates, apricots, juice, sugar and cardamon pods in saucepan.
• Cook on medium heat till sugar dissolves.
• Simmer 5 minutes.
• Serve topped with rind and vanilla yoghurt.

BLOOD ORANGE COMPOTE

Steps:

• Squeeze the juice from two oranges, strain and set aside. Remove the peel and pith from the remaining oranges. The easiest way to do this is to cut away both ends of the fruit so that it sits flat on your work surface, then using a chef's knife, utility knife or a paring knife, cut the skin and pith completely away from the fruit, following the natural curve of the fruit from top to bottom. Once peeled, remove the sections from between the membranes, holding the fruit over a bowl to catch the juice and slicing next to the connective membranes on one side of each citrus segment. Set the sections aside while you make the blood orange caramel syrup.
• Place the sugar in a medium saucepan and carefully add the water and agave nectar. With a wet pastry brush, brush down the sides of the pan. Look closely and make sure there are no stray sugar granules adhering to the pan. Brush any that you detect down into the wet sugar using the pastry brush. Turn the heat on medium and bring to a boil, watching again to make sure there are no loose sugar crystals on the sides of the pan and brushing down if necessary. Cook until the caramel is golden to amber. Swirl the pan if necessary, but do not stir, to distribute the syrup, which may be hotter and darker in one area than in another. There should be many bubbles breaking on the surface. As soon as the caramel reaches a golden color (about 325 degrees), remove from the heat. Wait until the bubbles subside, then carefully add the orange juice, being very careful to stand back, as it will bubble up. Stir the mixture with a whisk. The caramel will probably seize on the whisk (it helps to heat the whisk in hot water first). Don't worry about that, just stir and return to the heat. The caramel is very hot so resist the temptation to taste it. Heat through, whisking, until all of the seized caramel has melted. Remove from the heat and stir in the Cointreau or Triple Sec (or other orange liqueur), vanilla, and cinnamon. Allow to cool, then pour over the oranges. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

ORANGE COMPOTE

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan, combine orange zest and slices, sugar, salt, and 2 tablespoons water; bring to a boil over high. Reduce heat to medium, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until oranges collapse and liquid is syrupy, 12 to 15 minutes.
• Cool compote to room temperature.

ORANGE-DATE COMPOTE

Steps:

• Cut off peel and white pith from oranges. Working over large bowl, cut between membranes to release segments into bowl. Add dates to oranges. Whisk lemon juice, honey, and cornstarch in heavy small saucepan. Stir over medium heat until mixture boils and thickens slightly, about 4 minutes. Pour hot syrup over oranges and dates. Cool. (Can be made 6 hours ahead. Cover and chill.)

ORANGE MADELEINES

Steps:

• Butter and flour madeleine molds thoroughly. Set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Melt butter and let cool.
• Beat together eggs, salt, and sugar until very light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla and orange-flower water. Fold in flour, then the melted butter and orange zest.
• Pour batter into molds almost to the top. Bake for 10 minutes, or until cakes are firm in the center. Let cool for 1 minute in molds, then turn out onto racks.

SPICED ORANGE COMPOTE

Steps:

• Place oranges in a shallow glass bowl.
• Mix orange juice, brown sugar, orange liqueur, allspice and cinnamon in a small saucepan.
• Heat to just boiling; pour over orange slices.
• Refrigerate, covered or overnight for flavors to blend. Garnish with mint.

SPICED MADELEINES

Steps:

• In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs and vanilla with an electric mixer on high speed for 5 minutes. Gradually beat in the sugar. Beat for 5-7 minutes, or till thick and satiny.
• In a medium mixing bowl sift together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and nutmeg. Sift one fourth of the flour mixture over the egg mixture: gently fold inches Fold in remaining flour by fourths Fold in the 1/2 cup butter or margarine. Spoon batter into greased madeleine molds, filling each one three-fourths full.
• Bake in a preheated 375F oven for 10-12 minutes, or till edges are golden and tops spring back. Cool in molds on a rack for 1 minute.
• Transfer cookies to a rack and cool. Sift powdered sugar over tops. Store in freezer.

SPICED MADELEINES WITH ORANGE-DATE COMPOTE

Steps:

• Combine raisins and rum in small bowl. Let stand 1 hour at room temperature. Melt butter in heavy medium saucepan over medium heat. Add star anise; cook until butter browns but does not burn, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Stir in honey and citrus peels. Remove from heat. Let stand 15 minutes. Discard anise. Preheat oven to 375°. Generously butter and flour pan for large madeleines. Finely grind almonds and flour in processor. Transfer to bowl. Mix in powdered sugar and spices. Using electric mixer, beat in browned-butter mixture. Gradually add egg whites and beat until mixture thickens and forms slowly dissolving ribbon when beaters are lifted, about 4 minutes. ** One reviewer indicated they rose after setting in the refrigerator for 30 minutes** Working in batches, spoon 1 tsp rum-soaked raisins into each indentation in madeleine pan, then spoon 1 generous tablespoon batter atop raisins. Bake madeleines until puffed and brown, about 15 minutes. Cool 5 minutes. Gently remove from pan. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cool. Store airtight at room temperature. Before continuing, place on baking sheet and rewarm 5 minutes in 350° oven.) Mound compote onto plates. Top with madeleines and creme fraiche. Sprinkle with toasted hazelnut, if desired.