Marquise on Meringue

The May 2011 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Emma of CookCraftGrow and Jenny of Purple House Dirt. They chose to challenge everyone to make a Chocolate Marquise. The inspiration for this recipe comes from a dessert they prepared at a restaurant in Seattle.

This recipe isn't too challenging but it has a lot parts to it so it is a bit time consuming.  The finished product is so tasty and everything keeps really well in the refrigerator except for the meringue.  The Marquise melts really easy so keep it frozen until you are ready to serve.

Chocolate base (used in the marquise recipe)
6tbsp bittersweet chocolate about 70% cocoa
3 oz heavy cream
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1 Tbsp Frangelico (hazelnut liquor)
1 Tbsp agave syrup (or light corn syrup)
1/4 tsp canilla
1 tbsp cocoa powder
1/2 Tbsp unsalted butter
1 Tbsp ground coffee


Chocolate Marquise
3 large egg yolks at room temperature
1 large egg
2 Tbsp and 2 tsp of sugar
1 tbsp and 1 tsp water
Chocolate base
4 oz cup heavy cream
1/2 cup cocoa powder

Torched Meringue
3 large egg whites
1/2 cup minues 1 tsp of sugar
1/8 tsp vanilla

Roasted Walnuts
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1 large egg white
1 cup shelled walnuts

Frangelico caramel
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
1 cup heavy cream
3/4 tsp slat
2 Tbsp Frangelico

First make the chocolate base.  Melt your chocolate, I just put it in the microwave which can be tricky cause you don't want to burn it.  To be on the safe side it is probably best to melt it using a double boiler.  Add the melted chocolate to the rest of the ingredients listed for the Chocolate base in a large bowl and set aside.

To make the Marquise, place all of the egg yolks and full egg into a mixer and mix on high for about 10 minutes or until the eggs are thick and pale.  When the eggs are just about done, combine your sugar and water in a saucepan and boil until it has reached about 235 degrees F.  Turn your mixer on low and slowly add the sugar syrup into your eggs.  When all of the syrup has been added turn the mixer back on high until the bowl is cool to the touch...about 2-3 minutes.  In a separate bowl whip the heavy cream until it has soft peaks and set aside.  add the chocolate base to the egg mixture and whisk to combine.  Fold 1/3 of the whipped cream into the chocolate mixure, and then add the rest carefully folding in the chocolate so you keep the air in the cream and eggs.

Line a baking pan (8X12) with parchment paper and pour the chocolate mixure in.  Spread it with your spatula and then cover with plastic wrap.  Make sure the plastic wrap is actually touching your Marquise so no air gets trapped inside.  A couple of bubbles here and there are not a big deal so don't worry over them.  Place this in the refrigerator for about 6-8 hours or over night.

Next make the nuts.  Combine all of the ingredients for the nuts in a bowl and mix so that the nuts are evenly coated.  In this picture I used brown sugar and it was too much so above I wrote to use regular sugar instead.  When the nuts are evenly coated pour them out onto a pastry lined baking pan and place in a preheated oven of 350 degrees F for about 15-20 minutes, or until the nuts are lightly browned.  Take them out of the oven and allow them to cool.

Next make the caramel.  I don't have any pictures of me making the caramel because you have to time everything just right otherwise you burn your caramel and I didn't want to mess with the camera.  To make the caramel, put the sugar and water in a saucepan and cook until the water has evaporated and the sugar is a dark mahogany color.  Quickly whisk in the cream to the darkened caramel, you can remove from the heat to do this if you are afraid the cream may overflow.  Return the pot to the heat and mix your caramel with a whisk until all of the hardened sugar has broken up.  When the caramel has darkened to the point you want it remove it from the head and add the salt and Frangelico.

The last thing to make is the meringue.  Beat the egg whites until they become foamy.  With the mixer on high, slowly add the vanilla, and then the sugar.

Continue to mix on high until you have a shiny stiff mixture.  To make sure the sugar is mixed in thoroughly take a bit of the meringue and rub it between two fingers.  If you feel a little grit, that means the sugar is not completely mixed in yet.

To plate, pull the marquise out of the freezer and cut it into 6 even squares.  Roll it in some cocoa powder and place it on a heaping spoonful of meringue.  Torch the meringue using a cooking torch and drizzle with caramel and nuts.  serve immediately....

Mini lemon meringue tart

I had to make a treat that reminded me of summer because the last couple of days have been filled with snow.  Usually in April Utah has a couple of snow storms, but this storm was heavy and went on for three days.  The storm was more like a winter xmas storm rather than a small spring storm.  So far in my garden I have planted garlic, onion, and potato.  All of these will be fine, I hope.  The snow was kind of heavy so my poor Garlic shoots had to deal with the snow pushing them down.  Right now it is about 38 degrees F, to cold to put my seedlings out and harden them off.

Eating this tart made me feel better and for a moment it felt like summer filled with sprinklers, cold lemonade, and fresh cut grass........

note:  I used a set of six 4 inch round tart pans, if you just want to make one large tart, use a 10" tart pan.

Sweet Tart Pastry
1 1/4 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
31/2 ounces cold unsalted butter
1 egg yolk
2-3 tsp iced water

Filling:
6 large eggs
1 1/3 cups sugar
3/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 3-4 lemons)
finely grated zest of 3 lemons
3/4 cup heavy cream

Italian Meringue
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup sugar
pinch of salt
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
2/3 cup egg whites (about 4 eggs)

First make the pastry.  Add your flour, sugar, and butter and mix them with a pastry cutter, or food processor.  Mix until the butter is thoroughly mixed and it resembles corn meal.  Then add the egg yolk and 2 tsp of ice water.  Mix until the dough comes together.  If it isn't coming together add a little more water 1 tsp at a time.  Make sure you add just enough water to allow the dough to come together.

Shape into a ball and cover with plastic wrap.  Allow the dough to chill in the fridge for about 30 minutes.  After it has chilled take the dough out of the fridge and cut it into six even pieces.

Roll out the dough until it is slightly larger then your tart pan.......










Using your rolling pin, gently roll the dough onto it...........

.... drape it over your tart pan.............

......and then press your dough into the pan.  At the top give it a small crust so the meringue has something to grab on to.  Place them on your baking sheet and cover with plastic.  Let them sit in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Using parchment paper and beans (or pie weights) bake the tarts for about 15 minutes, or until they are slightly brown.  I have some beans that I use every time I make tarts or pie.  You can use them over and over again, just don't try to eat them later because they will not taste good.  When the tart shells are done baking turn the oven down to 300 degrees and let the tarts sit out and slightly cool while you make the custard.





For the custard, get a meduim mixing bowl and a whisk.  It is better to use a whisk because you don't want your custard to get foamy from being over beaten, you just want to mix it until it is smooth and everything is mixed evenly together.  First add the eggs and sugar.  Then add the lemon juice, lemon zest, and heavy cream.  A trick to get more juice out of your lemon is to roll the lemon on your counter top with your palm gently pressing down on it.  I used the three lemons I had used for their peel.  Three lemons almost made enough juice so I topped it off with store bought lemon juice.
Mix all together and pour it into a pitcher so it is easy to pour into the tarts.

Pour the custard into the shells and bake for about 35-40 minutes.  I set my timer to 25 minutes because I wanted to start my Italian meringue about 10 minutes before I pull the tarts out of the oven.  This is because the custard needs to be hot when your meringue is placed on the pie.  This makes the meringue less prone to shrinking or weeping.  It doesn't really effect the overall taste, just the presentation.

For the meringue beat your egg whites until they are foamy and then add the salt, and cream of tartar.

Beat this mixture on high until it forms soft peaks.  While this is mixing, put the sugar and water in a sauce pan and cook until the sugar is dissolved and the temperature is about 235 degrees F.  When the sugar is done, put your mixer on low and slowly pour in the sugar, try to avoid the wire whisk.  After the sugar has been poured in, mix on medium high until the meringue has cooled down.

When your tarts are down put the meringue on top, making sure it connects with the crust.  I piped mine on but that isn't necessary, just use a small spatula, it all depends on what you want the end product to look like.

To brown the meringue put your oven on a low broil and place the pies in the lower middle rack.  Watch them carefully because they will brown fast and you don't want them to burn!