Mango Terrine

I usually buy a box of mangoes when they are in season and therefore cheap at $10.00 for 16 large ones. The only disadvantage is they ripen all at the same time. What to do aside from eating them with [ginger or chocolate] suman? Slice them thin, place them in a loaf pan, add lemon grass and mint tea agar (gelatin), let it set in the refrigerator, and voila! Mango terrine that's so refreshingly different and easy to prepare. The ginger-like lemon grass with a hint of cool mint is so delicious with mangoes. Yum!

Mango Terrine
4 mangoes, thinly sliced and chilled
1 sprig mint, reserve a few leaves for garnish
3 stalks lemon grass. trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces
4 cups water
¾ cup sugar, or to taste
3 teaspoons agar powder

• Line a medium loaf pan with plastic wrap leaving a 3 inch overhang on both long sides. Or lightly grease the bottom of the pan. Place a few mint leaves on the bottom if desired.
• Bring water and lemon grass to a boil and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes. Add sugar and simmer until sugar is dissolved. Strain and transfer into a bowl. Sprinkle the agar and stir until completely dissolved. Snip the edges of the mint leaves, add to the gelatin mixture and leave for 10 minutes. Remove mint and discard.
• Note: Omit the agar and leave the mint in the liquid, transfer into a tall bottle and chill in the refrigerator. It's a very refreshing and healthy iced tea drink, or if you love mixed drinks, add to vodka.
• Arrange mango slices, slightly overlapping on the bottom of the loaf pan, pour the gelatin mixture to cover mangoes. Arrange another layer of mangoes and gelatin to fill almost to the top of the pan.
• Cover with the plastic wrap overhang. Put in the refrigerator (or freezer if you are impatient like me) until completely cold and has set. Cut into slices.

I had 2 thin slices with chocolate suman. Delicious! Old [eating] habits are hard to break.;D

Barquillos

There are several things [including cooking] that regular folks should leave to the professionals. Making barquillos (wafer rolls) is one of them. I don't know what I was thinking when I decided to make them. Oh, probably because I'm obsessed and nutty. Also because I have a small bottle of hazelnut extract and I wanted to try it in barquillos. I have to admit the hazelnut flavor is very yummy but making them although not too complicated takes forever. The wafers don't wait and have to be shaped as soon as they come out of the oven.

I divided one recipe into 4 and added ube, buco pandan, and mango flavorings and the hazelnut extract with a sprinkling of cocoa powder. I baked two at a time in my toaster oven that's why it took so long to finish. Spreading them really thin was also tedious although by the fourth wafer I got more adept and was able to finish each round of dough thinner and quicker too.

Well, at least now I know it's not worth making them and I'll just buy from the store. Not only are the barquillos made by Filipino bakers very thin, they are uniform in size and I can honestly say yummier than mine. And most important, they're not terribly expensive so why bother. Unless I want the barquillos flavored with say lychee or orange blossoms. Nooooo.;p

Barquillos
½ cup butter, room temperature
½ cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract or other flavoring
2 egg whites
2/3 cup all-purpose flour

• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Draw 4-inch circles 2 inches apart on parchment paper, flip the paper and place on a cookie sheet.
• In a standing mixer bowl with the paddle attachment, cream butter with sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in egg whites until smooth. Stir in the flour.
• Drop 1½ teaspoons of the dough onto the baking sheet then spread thinly with a small offset spatula.
• Bake one sheet pan at a time until wafers are brown along edges. Remove wafers from the baking sheet, one at a time, using a spatula or kitchen turner. Roll each wafer around the handle of a wooden spoon until edges overlap. Cool seam side down on a wire rack until crisp all over.

one recipe makes about 2 dozens 4-inch barquillos