Daring Bakers Challenge: Panna Cotta and Florentine Cookies

The February 2011 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Mallory from A Sofa in the Kitchen. She chose to challenge everyone to make Panna Cotta from a Giada De Laurentiis recipe and Nestle Florentine Cookies.
Florentine Cookies with Chocolate Art

I have good news and bad news. Shall we start with the good news? These florentine cookies manage to achieve both chewy and crunchy cookie status in the same bite. And as an added bonus, the dough is basically a big sweet bowl of oatmeal with tons of butter in it. Definitely good news.

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Daring Bakers Challenge: Biscuit Joconde Imprime/Entremet

The January 2011 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Astheroshe of the blog accro. She chose to challenge everyone to make a Biscuit Joconde Imprime to wrap around an Entremets dessert.
Joconde Imprime Entremets

The purpose of this challenge was to create a beautifully molded dessert with a pattern baked into the side – which it is, in this picture. So, technically, I completed the challenge. However, upon cutting the cake it all fell apart – literally.

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Daring Bakers Challenge: Orange Tian

The 2010 March Daring Baker’s challenge was hosted by Jennifer of Chocolate Shavings. She chose Orange Tian as the challenge for this month, a dessert based on a recipe from Alain Ducasse’s Cooking School in Paris.
Oval-shaped orange tian, ready to serve

Orange what? That was my first thought as well. Every Daring Bakers challenge introduces me to a new treat. Whether it’s a treat that I know well but have never made from scratch, or a treat like this month’s orange tian that I’ve never even heard of before.

Here in southern California, it’s not difficult to find fresh oranges. I can smell the fragrant orange blossoms when I walk by the small grove of orange trees downtown. The small citrus tree in my backyard is blooming and it smells heavenly. I suspect that it’s a lemon tree, but since this is my first year in my new house I have yet to find out. The farmer’s markets are stocked with crates and crates of fresh citrus. I was thrilled to be able to use some of the local bounty for this month’s challenge!

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