Category Archives: Sweets

Almost-Candy Apples

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Finally, it’s that time of year again. For spooky and silly spider, bat, and black cat decorations. For expensive, itchy, and hot but oh so cute costumes. For BAM’s (Brooklyn Academy of Music) fun street party before trick-or-treating. And, time for candy, candy and more candy! 

Due to Character Day at school and spoiling my son, he gets two costumes. One that is a storybook character. (Last year he chose Sherlock Holmes because I was addicted to and binge watched the rather quite good TV show, Elementary.) And one for Halloween night, usually a vampire or Spiderman. 

Dracula and I, usually the queen of vampires, go trick—or-treating in our area. Of course, there won’t be any of that this year but there will be candy apples, as soon as I get that candy thermometer.

I knew before attempting this recipe that I should probably invest in one, but I couldn’t find one at our supermarket (only meat thermometers) so I thought that I could wing it and “see what happens.” 

Well, no hard candy happened. Only the almost-candy apples that were extremely sweet and dripping with gooey, ultra-thick and slides right off syrup. C’est la vie. 

It happens to the best of us. We make mistakes and we learn.

I still decided to post my mistake, because not only was it the sweetest one I’ve made yet, the apples didn’t come out half bad. 

My son enjoyed licking the candy off the apples the most, which I suspect, was his plan all along. It was a challenge keeping him away from the leftover “candy” in the pot.

My goal this weekend will be to rectify our candy-apple sich, by cleaning the wax off the apples with a mixture of a little vinegar and water so the candy sticks better, by using a candy thermometer to ensure that the syrup heats up to over 300 degrees, and by convincing my son to eat the apple, not just lick the candy. 

I’ll console myself that at least he’s eating something nutritious in addition to pure sugar.

Candy Apples 

Ingredients 
3 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup light corn syrup
Many drops of red food coloring 
2 tbsp maraschino cherry juice 
12 small red apples

Instructions
1. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray, then line with wax paper, then apply another coat of cooking spray.
2. Insert popsicle sticks (or whatever you have lollipop sticks, chopsticks, etc) into each apple and push about two-thirds through—be sure that you can safely pick up each apple, but sticks shouldn’t reach beyond the bottom.
3. In a medium heavy-bottomed pot over high heat, mix sugar, water, corn syrup and food coloring. Bring to a boil. Use a candy thermometer to ensure the syrup’s heat rises to above 300 degrees, which should take 20 minutes. Remove from heat.
4. Add cherry juice to the mixture quickly.
5. Quickly and carefully dip apples into bubbly, very hot, liquid candy, and put them on prepped baking sheet. 
6. Allow perfect, shiny, and sweet apples to cool and harden. Share with your favorite superheroes and/or villains.

The World Needs (Vegan) Crème Brûlée

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A crème brûlée experience is like no other. You’re in New York. Eating at a lovely (and expensive), New American restaurant on the Upper East Side of Manhattan or an authentic (and not so expensive) French café in a converted brownstone in Fort Greene, Brooklyn.

The appetizers and entrées were well done or barely cooked, whatever you prefer. Your friends and/or business associates are engaged in a deep conversation about politics. You’re interested and contributing to the conversation here and there, but you can’t help but wonder, ‘What’s on that dessert menu?’

Finally, you order the crème brûlée and it comes out beautiful, shiny, and appealing. You’ve never seen anything like it, have you? With hesitation to mess up its perfect, golden brown beauty, you break its candy crust, and soft Mozart violins start to play.

Tasting the burnt sugar candy is enough to make you grin like a child. But the sweet, silky vanilla cream is simply addictive. It’s a dessert of opposites. Hard and soft. Burnt and barely cooked. Deep and mild flavor. When you’re finished you ask yourself, who originated this loveliest of lovely desserts? And how am I the last one in the world to know about it?

According to my research, crème brûlée is derived from the Spanish Catalan cream, but the French has made it their own.

And, in turn, made me a fan of their cuisine for life! Crème brûlée one of the biggest reasons why I love French food. I may not be able to remember exactly the first time I had crème brûlée, but I’m sure that it was just like the amazing experience I described above, so much so that I had to have it if it was even an option.

Now I find myself missing fine dining and making crème brûlée at home. I made two versions: traditional and vegan.

My son craves a classic NY Times version—I’ve posted it on Frealthy. It’s a traditional recipe that is pretty much the same everywhere online: eggs, heavy cream, vanilla, sugar, and burnt sugar finish. 

Most of my family loves this vegan version—also posted on Frealthy—originally by namelymarly.com, which defies the need for eggs and heavy cream. It was easy to make but took a while to finish because the “cream” must set over night in the fridge to thicken. 

The vegan crème brûlée never really sets like the traditional recipe, at least mine did not—perhaps I should’ve used more cashews or arrowroot powder to make the “cream” a thicker and richer texture. But, nonetheless, it turned out fantastic in flavor and creaminess. 

The Do’s and Don’ts of Devouring a Crème Brûlée Cupcake

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The darnedest things happen when your kid has to use the bathroom, so you run into a favorite Cobble Hill bakery/cafe/treasure trove of pastry lobster tails, tiramisu cakes and one of the best diner style strawberry shortcakes in Brooklyn, and you see it …

Your favorite new snack. A delicious mini version of your most cherished French dessert. Something blogworthy, finally.

The crème brûlée cupcake at Mia’s bakery! Follow these do’s and don’ts of experiencing this very French and very memorable cupcake. Trust me. You really need this eating guide. 

Do order three macarons and a chocolate cupcake—or whatever y’all agree on—as an enjoyable distraction for your child, while you finally focus on this special treat for yourself. Moist and delicious, you won’t want any interruptions.

Don’t let anyone have a clue, including your kid, as to how much the crème brûlée cupcake is making your mouth water. They might ask you for a bite and you won’t want to share.

Do resist the urge to buy two or three because despite its small size, this cupcake is satisfying and simply delicious. One is a good guilt-free indulgence. Two would be over-the-top richness.

Don’t take your order to go. Instead enjoy Mia’s quaint, clean and comfortable enough for a quick dessert stop café. I’ve seen people linger as though they’ve been sitting in the same place for hours but to me it’s not that type of place.

Do marvel at Mia’s cute cupcakes to-go policy. They use Chinese takeout containers as portable cupcake holders.

Don’t be hasty when removing this adorable cupcake from its close-fitting container. You don’t want to mess up the best part of this cupcake: its créme brûlée frosting.

Do eat the fresh berries that top the cupcake immediately, and simultaneously tune out your kid who finishes his snack, notices the pleasure you’re taking in savoring your delightful indulgence and whines for a piece.

Don’t hesitate to take three medium-sized bites—or however many bites it will take to finish—of this fantastic, one-of-a-kind cupcake. My only wish is that the filling oozed down the center of the cupcake.

Do leave Mia’s feeling like you just won a prize. If only you could get paid for eating crème brûlée cupcakes…

If you like créme brûlée and you also like vanilla cupcakes, you’ll love this clever dessert fusion at Mia’s.

Frealthy is finally live!

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Madeleines, sans gluten and dairy

I’ve started a new weekly page on BkFrench.com. It’s called Frealthy, a portmanteau of French and healthy. The first Frealthy post features a gluten-free recipe for France’s most iconic sweet tooth satisfier, madeleines. They’re buttery without the butter, sweet without the sugar and defy all negative thoughts of a gluten-free cookie’s nature. You smell them. You see them. You want them. This cookie is a must try.

Crazy for Crêpes: Part Deux

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Whether savory or sweet, crêpes are whimsical, delightful and limitless because of the opportunity to be adventurous when choosing a crêpe’s filling. The crispy, fluffy and/or puffy envelope—that would never be left unopened if it were mail—is usually made to provide the most amazing, French vehicle for cheese, meat, or my favorite crêpe filling, Nutella. Last Saturday morning , I took my son on a short crêpe tour in the often overrun with stroller traffic Park Slope and we had good experiences at all three crêpe stops on the following list. Good luck crêpe-ing (not to be confused with creeping)!

The Pleasant Pheasant 

Le French Tart should be renamed Le French Tasty Tart! In this bright, spacious and light-filled environment meant for families, the authentic Parisian cuisine that you’ll devour outshines the decor. You’ll like the Eiffel Tower candle holders and hound dog bottle openers that are for sale, but you’ll adore la poulet, the mouthwatering chicken crêpe.

The crêpe itself is a very thin, buckwheat, authentic Parisian crêpe. I didn’t mind the dark (almost burnt) areas, because the burnt taste added to the overall flavor of the crêpe. Something about a little bit of burntness says homemade—like your working mother ran home to make it for you in a rush homemade.

The filling of the crêpe—slightly overcooked grilled chicken breast, béchamel and swiss cheese—was ooey, gooey delightful to see and taste. Perfect for a rainy and unseasonably cold Saturday morning in May. It was served with a mixed salad with forgettable dressing, but I appreciated the gesture of serving a decadent crêpe with fresh veggies. How French!

Was it the French way to serve my chicken crêpe on a paper plate? I have mixed feelings: it took away from the experience of imagining that we’d traveled back to Paris to admire the beauty and taste of a great crêpe; but it also was a cleaner option than a plate they’d wash and reuse.

Either way, the decor and overall setup of Le French Tart could be greatly improved by focusing on the creation of a central space that is easily reachable from all four corners of this family-style cafe.

Le French Tart, 579 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215

https://www.yelp.com/biz/le-french-tart-brooklyn?osq=le+French+tart

The Not-So Gratifying Goat Cheese and Spinach

After the rather subdued, as subdued as a bunch of toddlers and their families can be, experience at Le French Tart, walking in or rather dancing in to Couleur Café was quite energizing, to say the least. Current R&B and pop music played at just the right volume: loud enough to hear the wonderful bass beats, but still quiet enough to be remain a special part of the background. Also, enjoyable enough to chair dance to while you eat.

While the music was enjoyable, so was Couleur Café’s mix of retro and vintage-modern aesthetics, evident in turn of the century-styled moldings on the walls, floral print cushioned chairs, and the reclaimed banisters that punctuate the turquoise counter/bar.

The crêpe was not my favorite but only due to the spinach filling. I tend to avoid cooked spinach, unless it’s cooked in cream and butter with cheese and made into a dip. The crêpe was like a biscuit or the crust of a potpie: tasty and hearty enough to hold up to a wet filling. Even with the spinach, it didn’t turn soggy on me. A smoked salmon option was available but I wasn’t in the mood for it. But next time and yes, there will be a next time for us at this unique cafe, I’ll be ordering the smoked salmon crêpe.

Couleur Café servers are friendly, if not on point. Our drinks—a well deserved mimosa and a well-done (according to my son) Shirley Temple—came to our table after our grilled cheese and crêpe orders.

With all of its misses, I’d still say Couleur Café is cooler than most cafés.

Couleur Café, 435 7th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11215

https://www.yelp.com/biz/couleur-café-brooklyn-2?osq=cafe+couleur

Petite Sweet

Very kid-friendly. Very petite. And very appetizing Nutella crêpe. I love Nutella so I’m biased towards the entire taste of the crêpe as Nutella’s dominance of deliciousness over everything it’s paired with seduces me.

But my son noticed that the crêpe was not light, thin, or fluffy but rather densely packed down in layers, which made it difficult for him to eat. I noticed that I was chewing it for a while, but I didn’t care.

My Nutella crêpe was fancily drizzled with Nutella and powdered sugar after being folded into the classic triangular crêpe shape. Perhaps if we ate it when it was warm, it’d be easier to eat and enjoy.

Cusp Crêpe and Espresso Bar, 321 7th Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11215
https://www.yelp.com/biz/cusp-crepe-and-espresso-bar-brooklyn

Other Taste-ables (Crêpe places I’ll try, but haven’t yet.)
Eight turn Crêpe
http://www.eightturncrepe.com
A popular spot in Dekalb Market Hall, with the prettiest crêpe flower presentations—some with ice cream—you’ve ever seen.
Little Choc Apothecary

Cute, colorful and French-dressed—freedom of effortlessly combining old school elegance with youthful, cheeky charm—indoor garden seeks flavor-bound vegans that live to eat. Lots of tea, lots of smoothies and lots of green greatness await.

Apres Easter

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If you have not had the chance to celebrate life or being an adult of legal drinking age since Mardi Gras, then you might find the following list of bars and bakeries useful for your post-Lent and Easter festivities. Or, if you’re not religious at all, then think of this list as my celebration of French culture’s creation of the dessert course—yet another reason to love French culture. Whether you want a liquor-laced, calorie-laden cocktail dessert or a dessert cocktail, this list has you covered. Read on to find your too good to be good for you indulgence of choice.

Crown Heights Confections
Butter and Scotch
https://www.butterandscotch.com
The name says it all! Half bakery that specializes in boozy treats! Half cocktail bar that specializes in dessert cocktails. Between the milkshakes, the famous if not devilishly infamous in a bad-meaning-good way the hotline bling cake, and the sweet and perfect birthday cake, you won’t be able to commit to one choice. Pretend you’re at a wedding cake tasting and sample them all. Of course lent will be over, so it’s ok to be a little mischievous. What is a confessional is for, if not for sweet, sweet treats.

Atlantic Ave. Treatery
Elsa
https://elsabarnyc.com
Try the frozen craft cocktails, lush with fruit, herbs, and quality liquor. If you don’t drink too much—which is not an easy task at this classy throwback to the roaring twenties den of mixology—there is little to no chance of getting wasted. Elsa’s art deco vibe was created for the experienced drinker that prefers after dinner cordials. Enjoy light snacks from Stinky Brooklyn while sipping a fine, make your week cocktail.

Candy-Coated Cobble Hill

Mia’s Bakery
http://www.miasbrooklyn.com
Brooklyn Blackout, Strawberry Shortcake, and two cro-nuts was my most recent order from Mia’s. The diner-style strawberry shortcake was my favorite of the bunch but I have never gotten anything from here that didn’t make me smile. It can be frenetic at this busy, Smith Street, open till 1a.m. on a Saturday night cafe/bakery that sells traditional sweets sans alcohol. Promise that you’ll get a different kind of buzz if you stop in for a cupcake nightcap.

Cookie Monsters on 5th

Du Jour Bakery
http://dujourbakery.com
Park Slope is littered with bakeries, restaurants, and family-style eateries of all kind. Du Jour is a standout because its macaroons are so darn cute, and the fresh, baked on the premises pastries—like the monkey bread—are crave-worthy. Did I mention Du Jour pastries are extremely fresh? So fresh that if you blink while standing in the occasionally long line for coffee and sweets, or call a half an hour in advance to reserve your son’s birthday cake, your special sweet thing could be gone. No matter how important it is to you or your child, it’s just gone, without a sign of life or a crumb of sugar as evidence of its existence. Yes, I’m being dramatic because from time to time, I still think of the Du Jour cake we didn’t get to savor on his birthday. We instead got a regular Brooklyn Blackout cake from Du Jour that my family loved.

Park Slope’s Finest

The Chocolate Room
https://www.thechocolateroombrooklyn.com
In the words of Linda Grayson, “There is nothing better than a friend, unless it is a friend with chocolate.” My inner chocoholic would change the last part to say, “… unless it is a friend made of chocolate.” The Chocolate Room has been satisfying the universal, classic craving since 2005 and reopened in 2014 at a new 5th Avenue location. What it lacks in its part cafe, part diner and part store environment, The Chocolate Room makes up for in its sometimes delightful, sometimes lust-worthy offerings. If you want a truly decadent, thick and intense hot chocolate (available with rum), there’s no place that does it better. But if you’re in a nostalgic mood, the popular brownie hot chocolate sundae or the frenchified banana split with brûleéd bananas will make you feel like a kid again. Thirsty for a chocolate martini? Turn up with the rich, creamy and topped with cinnamon Brandy Alexander. A perfect good night.

Photo by Alireza Etemadi on Unsplash.