Earl Grey Ice Cream Sandwich Recipe

I made Earl Grey ice cream sandwiches today with homemade Earl Grey tea ice cream. One member in my family is allergic to eggs, so this recipe suits her perfectly, as no eggs are involved in this dessert. I used chocolate chip Walkers shortbread cookies, which are eggless as well. At the same time, I thought I'd experiment a bit in advance of my little munchkin's big birthday party at the end of the month. She's been such a good girl, helping me out all week long since she's on vacation. I thought this would be the perfect treat to reward her because the sandwiches are perfect for little hands and fingers!

I absolutely adore the flavor combination; the bergamot in Earl Grey tea has a truly distinctive flavor which, -interestingly- tastes almost like Fruit Loops cereal when mixed in ice cream batter. For convenience, and because they taste great, I made ice cream sandwiches using packs of Walkers chocolate chip cookies. If you have time, you could also make homemade chocolate chip cookies for the sandwiches.

Chocolate Coconut Macaroons (Rochers Coco Recipe)

Coconut macaroons (called "rochers coco" in French) are another dessert that I bake very often.  When I have extra egg whites from pudding, custard, crème caramel or crème brulée, I always whip up a batch. The macaroons I've tasted in America are generally more crumbly and denser than the ones from France. I make mine with a coating of condensed milk, which enhances the flavor and alters the texture.

I also covered the coconut cookies with dark chocolate for a fancier look. Check back tomorrow to see how I used the cookies in a decadent dessert that is perfect for Mother’s Day.

Pandan Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Pandan cookies always intrigue the guests who come to our house. The green color from the pandan paste makes the cookies very original, and after the first bite, our guests are amazed at how great they taste. Daddy's friend, who lives in Minnesota, loved them so much that I decided to send a basket of two dozen cookies to him as a care package.

When I was a child, Maman would use pandan leaves to flavor steamed jasmine rice. It's also used in many Vietnamese desserts, such a rau câu. That inspired me to try using pandan in Western dessert recipes.

I often fuse the ingredients of one cooking tradition with the recipes of another. It’s a great way to create new dishes. In fact, the very first recipe posted on PhamFatale.com was for pandan cookies. In that recipe, I used pistachios and white chocolate chips. Both are great, but I think the cocoa in semi-sweet chocolate pairs especially well with pandan. Changing ingredients and coming up with new dishes is a big part of the culinary journey I've been sharing with you for a year and a half. After all, that's what cooking is all about. The history of cooking is really the history of the migration of people from one place to another. As they traveled, they adopted and adapted the local cuisine, creating many of the classic dishes we enjoy today. I hope you enjoy my small contribution to this tradition.

Kumquat and Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate chip cookies are so classic that one might ask, why mess with perfection? Well, I think my kumquat and chocolate chip cookies are the answer to that question. Citrus and chocolate are a great pair in desserts, and this is no exception. The zing of the rind really enhances the creamy quality of the chocolate.

I decided on kumquat preserves because I still had one jar leftover from last season (I'm making more today!). For the cookie dough, I mixed butter, brown sugar, finely chopped fresh kumquat zest and whole wheat flour for texture and a little nutrition. It provides a nice canvas for the morsels of chocolates and chunks of preserved kumquats.

If you're still skeptical that kumquats can enhance the flavor of chocolate chip cookies, there's really only one solution; make them yourself! You won't be disappointed.

Banana Almond Butterscotch Cookies

Butterscotch, freeze-dried banana chips and sliced almonds may not be the first ingredients to come to mind when making cookies, but they work incredibly well together. The crunch of the almonds and bananas is a great foil to the soft and creamy butterscotch chips. To reinforce the flavors, I added banana extract to the brown sugar cookie dough. The cookies taste fantastic, right out of the oven.

If you have a little extra time on your hands, make an extra batch so you can freeze the cookie dough for later use. We had some surprise company for tea this weekend, so I needed to whip up a plate of cookies. I just pulled out a log from the freezer, cut it into discs and popped them in the oven. They taste so much better than store-bought cookies, and when you pull them out of the oven, ooey gooey and piping hot, you'll look like an absolute rockstar!