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Archive for the ‘Recipes’ Category

Gooey Chocolate Cake

Posted in Gluten Free, Recipes, tagged , , , on July 8, 2009| 4 Comments »

gooey-cake

This dead easy recipe from Trish Deseine’s book Chocolate has become a household staple.  It’s exactly as the name describes it – gooey, puddingish and rich – and has the added advantage of being gluten-free.  It’s best served with homemade vanilla icecream (recipe to follow) or whipped cream (or, in Big Boy’s case, both).

Here is my version, sized down to fit my 26cm (10″)  pie dish (comfortably serves 4 – 5).

  • 150g (5.5 oz)  dark chocolate (I use Callebaut 54% callets)
  • 150g (5.5 oz) unsalted butter
  • 4 large eggs (59g), separated
  • 150g (5.5 oz) sugar

1. Preheat the oven to 180C (350F) or 160C with fan.

2. Place the butter and chocolate in a large pyrex bowl.  Melt them together in the microwave in short 20 – 30 second bursts on high (or use a double boiler on the stove).  Allow the mixture to cool slightly (so that you don’t scramble the eggs in the next step).

3. Beat the egg yolks and sugar together in a large mixing bowl until the mixture is pale.  Combine this with the butter-chocolate mix.

4. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until they form stiff peaks.  Stir a generous scoop  into the chocolate mixture to lighten it, then gently fold the remaining egg whites into the batter.

5. Pour the mixture into a 26cm (10″) pie dish and bake for about 25 minutes, or until the cake is well risen and just past the really wibbly stage.  The cake will collapse as it cools, leaving a slightly raised crust around the edges.  You can serve this warm or cold, simply scooped out with a large spoon.

Here is the gooey cake just out of the oven, all puffed up….

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…and after it has sunk slightly on cooling.

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Sherry Trifle and Meringues

Posted in Food & Friends, Recipes, tagged , , , , , on July 5, 2009| 7 Comments »

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We’ve had a wonderful day at Lynda’s place – catching up with old friends, laughing and eating ludicrous amounts of food.  My contributions were these swirly meringues, a chocolate slab cake, a large tray of party pizza, and a sherry trifle.

The meringues were based on my old recipe, using up the four egg whites left over from the trifle. After the batter was prepared, I dipped a wooden skewer into a tiny bit of red food colouring and swirled it through the uncooked meringues just prior to baking.  The little girls found these irresistible!

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Sherry Trifle was an Aussie party staple in the 60s and 70s.  Judging by the response we had today, I think it’s well overdue for a comeback!  Pete commented that everyone ate this until they were sick, which (and I admit this is a little pathetic) made me deliriously happy.  Trifle is the Australian equivalent of an Eton Mess, although arguably healthier given the fruit and egg components.

It was a perfect vehicle for our new microwave custard recipe, as well as a way to use up the mini pound cakes I’d stashed in the freezer after Dan’s birthday.  Here are some loose instructions – it’s a recipe which can be easily adapted to your ingredients at hand. The quality of the custard is important and the microwave version is so easy that there’s really no need to resort to custard powder!

  • Leftover pound cake (I think you could probably use Saviordi biscuits if you preferred)
  • Sherry
  • 1 batch of microwave custard
  • ½ vanilla bean (optional)
  • 1 cup heavy cream (35%), whipped
  • Canned sliced peaches, drained
  • 2 packets of red jelly crystals
  • Meringues, roughly crushed
  • 1 cup heavy cream (35%), extra
  • Vanilla syrup (optional)

Preparation:

1.  Make up the jelly and set it in a wide flat container in the fridge.  Cut the chilled jelly into cubes.

2. Make the microwave custard, adding the scraped seeds from the half vanilla bean into the milk and cream before heating.  When the custard is ready, allow it to cool in the fridge, with a sheet of clingfilm pressed to the surface, to stop a skin forming.

3.  When the custard is cold, fold in the whipped cream.

4.  Whip the extra cream with a little vanilla syrup (optional) and set it aside for decorating the finished trifle.

Assembly:

1. Break the pound cake into pieces.  In a large glass bowl, place a layer of cake pieces and sprinkle with a little sherry.  Add a handful of crushed meringue.

2. Top with a layer of custard cream, then a layer of peaches.

3. Top with another layer of cake pieces, sprinkled with sherry, and a handful of crushed meringue. Follow this with a layer of custard and then a further scattering of peaches.

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4. Continue layering until the bowl is nearly full, ending with a layer of custard.  Tumble the jelly cubes over the top, and finish with the reserved whipped cream.  Cover with clingfilm and store in the fridge until ready to serve.

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Lynda’s gorgeous husband Chris was a big fan of this trifle.  Chris, if you’re reading this, the leftovers are in your fridge waiting for you – hopefully you’ll find them before the kids do!

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Provence Style Nectarine and Apricot Jam

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , , , , , on July 4, 2009| 8 Comments »

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This is the very best jam Pete makes, bar none.  If any of our friends are reading and wondering why they’ve never tried this – it’s because it never leaves the house.  Pete and I wolf it down as fast as he can make it.

It is a jam with complex layers of flavours, best served thickly spread as it has less sugar than most preserves, thereby letting the fruit flavours shine through.   Whilst it’s really only worth making when the fruit is at its very best, this year we vacuum-sealed and froze nectarines and apricots when they were at their peak, which has allowed us to make a mid-year batch to see us through winter.

Here is Pete’s original recipe, and yes, I know it says one-sixteenth of a teaspoon of Herbie’s Mixed Spice.  I’ve raised this point with him, but he is adamant that any more than that will be too much, but leaving it out altogether would be detrimental to the finished jam.  I leave it to your discretion whether or not you deem it worth the effort!

  • 1kg apricots
  • 1kg nectarines (big, soft yellow ones, not hard crunchy white ones)
  • 1 cup water (more if required)
  • 200ml lemon juice
  • 1.25kg white sugar
  • 75g glace ginger
  • 2 Tbsp (40ml) Kirsch
  • 1/16 tsp Herbie’s Mixed Spice
  • 500ml homemade pectin

1.  Peel and halve the nectarines and remove the seeds.  In a small saucepan, boil the nectarine skins and seeds with 150ml of the lemon juice and 1 cup of water (more if required).  Dice the nectarine flesh into 1cm cubes.

2.  In a separate bowl, add the remaining lemon juice to the diced nectarines (to prevent oxidation).

3.  When coloured and thick, pour the nectarine skins and seed with their cooking liquid through a sieve into a large stew pot.  Press the pulp to extract all the liquid from it, then discard the seeds and remaining skin.  Add diced nectarines and pectin to the pot, simmer gently while you prepare the other ingredients.

4.  Finely dice the glace ginger and add to the simmering nectarines.

5.  Remove the seeds from the apricots and cut them into eighths (don’t peel). Discard the seeds.

6.  Add the apricots and the sugar and bring the mixture to the boil.

7.  Add the Kirsch and mixed spice. Skim the pot regularly to remove any foam – this improves the appearance of the final jam.

8.  Boil until the jam sets softly (about 30 minutes).  Test by putting a small blob on a cold plate – if the jam is set properly, it will wrinkle when given a small poke with your finger.

9.  Ladle the jam into sterile jars and seal tightly, then process the jars in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes, ensuring that the water covers the lids by at least 2.5cm.  Note: make sure you put the hot jars into hot water – if you use cold water, the glass jars may crack.

See our Jam Making Primer for more tips on making jam.

© copyright 2009 by Fig Jam and Lime Cordial. All rights reserved.

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Microwave Custard

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , on July 2, 2009| 10 Comments »

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The last time I made microwave lemon curd, it occurred to me that it might be possible to make pouring custard in a similar way.  I tried this last night and it was a hit – Pete and Big Boy ate a bowl of custard each (neat, with a spoon), whereas I had mine on a warm slice of fruit pudding.  Pete’s been walking around with a big grin on his face, saying “the whole world of English desserts has just opened up to us”.  The custard was  ludicrously easy to make and took less than five minutes from start to finish.  Watch this space – I’m sure we’ll find creative things to do with this!

Microwave Vanilla Custard

using the ingredients from a taste.com.au recipe

  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 cup cream (heavy whipping cream – 35% fat)
  • 1 tsp homemade vanilla extract
  • 4 egg yolks (from 59g eggs)
  • 1 Tbsp (4 tsps) cornflour (cornstarch)
  • 1/3 cup caster (superfine) sugar

1. In a large pyrex mixing bowl, whisk together the milk, cream, extract, cornflour and caster sugar until smooth.  Microwave on high for 2 minutes  until hot (my microwave is 1100 watts).

2. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks until smooth.  Pour the egg yolks through a sieve into the bowl of heated milk and cream, whisking constantly as it ribbons into the hot mixture to ensure it doesn’t curdle.

3. Heat the eggy milk in the microwave on high for 30 seconds, then whisk.  Heat for another 30 seconds, then whisk again.  Continue heating in 30 seconds bursts, whisking well after each, until the custard has thickened to your liking. Use immediately, or refrigerate until needed, with a piece of clingfilm pressed to the surface to stop it skinning.

Pete plans to use this custard as a base for icecream, and I’m hoping to find a way to adapt this technique for Portuguese tart filling.  More to come!

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Use this custard to make:

© copyright 2009 by Fig Jam and Lime Cordial. All rights reserved.

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Birthday Cake for Dan

Posted in Food & Friends, Recipes, tagged , on June 28, 2009| 7 Comments »

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It’s Dan’s birthday today, but she’s on the other side of the world, so I baked her a virtual birthday cake.  Here it is – a lemon pound cake, adapted from a Debbi Fields recipe, and baked in a Nordic Ware Chrysanthemum bundt pan.  Dusted with icing sugar, it is simple, smooth textured and easy to eat. And, whilst it used up every mixing bowl and cup measure in the house, this cake, and Dan, are worth the effort!

Dan, we’ve had a little party here – eaten cake, wished you well, and delivered Sunday morning packages of pound cake to the neighbours.  Hope you’re being thoroughly spoilt today – you deserve it!

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Lemon Pound Cake

adapted from recipe in Debbi Field’s Great American Desserts

  • 3 cups plain (all-purpose) flour
  • ½ tsp bicarbonate (baking) soda
  • ½ tsp fine sea salt
  • 250g (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
  • 2 cups white sugar
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • Grated rind of one large lemon
  • 4 large (59g) eggs, separated
  • ½ cup buttermilk
  • 1/3 cup Greek yoghurt

1. Preheat oven to 160C (with fan).  Spray bundt pan with oil, making sure to coat well.

2. Whisk together the flour, bicarb of soda and salt.  Set aside.

3. In the large mixing bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar together until fluffy, about 4 to 5 minutes.  Add vanilla and lemon rind, then the egg yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Scrape down the bowl.

4. In a separate bowl, stir the buttermilk and yoghurt together until smooth.

5. Beat in one cup of the flour mixture, followed by half the buttermilk mix, then another cup of flour, then the remainder of the buttermilk, and finish with the final cup of flour.  Mix for 45 seconds after each addition.

6. Pour the egg whites into another mixing bowl and beat until stiff peaks form.  Stir a large spoonful of the eggwhites into the batter to lighten it, then gently fold the rest into the softened mixture.

7. Pour the batter into the bundt pan and bake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until the top is brown and a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out with a few crumbs sticking to it.  Note: This recipe makes more batter than needed for the bundt pan – I baked my excess in mini bundt tins for 25 minutes and stashed the little cakes in the freezer.You could easily use muffin pans if you don’t have the mini bundts.

8. Allow the finished cake to cool in the pan for 20 minutes, (don’t rush this, or the cake might stick) then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Leftover pound cake makes a wonderful base for trifle!

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