This icing is amazing. It's soft enough to spread on virtually everything, and sets to a medium firm icing that it dry enough to not smear off.
White Chocolate Icing for All Your Frosting Needs
110 g butter (if you use half a cup, I won't tell anyone)
250 g icing sugar
150 g white chocolate
1 tablespoon milk (if needed)
Melt the chocolate in the microwave until totally melted and smooth - leave to cool, but not so much that it sets
Cream together the butter and the icing sugar - it will be quite thick
Add the melted chocolate, mixing all the while, until a smooth and fluffy frosting forms
If the icing is too firm, add a little milk. If it is too thin, add a little icing sugar
And that's it! Spread on whatever you desire, or just eat with a spoon. If the icing starts to firm up while you use it, you can heat it gently in the microwave to loosen it a little. This recipe will make enough to ice the top and sides of a standard cake or 12 cupcakes. If you want to make a layered cake with the frosting between the layers, I'd suggest either doubling the recipe, or add an extra 50% of the ingredients.
Saturday 8 June 2013
Cookie Dough Cake
When I made this cake the first time, I left it in the oven a bit long. It didn't burn, but it was a bit dry and hard - something like a giant cookie that is still soft enough to cut into slices that hold their shape without crumbling.
Cookie Dough Cake
3 cups plain flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter
1 and 1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 180C, 350 F
Mix together all the dry ingredients in a seperate bowl
Cream together butter, sugar and vanilla
Add the eggs one at a time, alternating the eggs with about 1/4 of the dry mixture
After the second egg is mixed in, add the rest of the flour to make a smooth, thick batter
Stir through the chocolate chips
Spread the batter into a lined, greased cake tin
Bake for 20 minutes - it will be a little soft and wobbily in the middle. The idea is that it will make a moist, squishy cake
Cool completely before removing from the pan
Cookie Dough Cake
3 cups plain flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter
1 and 1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 180C, 350 F
Mix together all the dry ingredients in a seperate bowl
Cream together butter, sugar and vanilla
Add the eggs one at a time, alternating the eggs with about 1/4 of the dry mixture
After the second egg is mixed in, add the rest of the flour to make a smooth, thick batter
Stir through the chocolate chips
Spread the batter into a lined, greased cake tin
Bake for 20 minutes - it will be a little soft and wobbily in the middle. The idea is that it will make a moist, squishy cake
Cool completely before removing from the pan
My (Current) Favourite Cupcake Recipe
I find this recipe dangerous enough to force myself to only make it in batches of 6 cupcakes at a time. It forms a light, buttery and rich cake, and the simplicity of it works wonders. Plus, it's really easy! I really, really love recipes with few ingredients, because it means that each ingredient shines through. You can also use this recipe (doubled) to make an amazing cake that holds icing really well.
My (Current) Favourite Cupcake Recipe
60 g butter
75 g white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
90 g self-raising flour
1/4 cup milk
Preheat overn to 180C, 350F
Cream together butter, sugar and vanilla until light an fluffy
Add the egg and about 1 tablespoon of flour, and mix well until smooth
Add the remaining flour and combine
When you add the milk, make sure everything is well mixed and smooth
Spoon into 6 cupcake whole (lined with cases)
(If making a cake, line the bottom of the tin with parchment paper and grease the sides well)
Make for 20 minutes
Cool slightly before removing from pan to a rack, and cool completely
The cupcakes will be buttery and springy, and are perfect for icing. Noms!
My (Current) Favourite Cupcake Recipe
60 g butter
75 g white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
90 g self-raising flour
1/4 cup milk
Preheat overn to 180C, 350F
Cream together butter, sugar and vanilla until light an fluffy
Add the egg and about 1 tablespoon of flour, and mix well until smooth
Add the remaining flour and combine
When you add the milk, make sure everything is well mixed and smooth
Spoon into 6 cupcake whole (lined with cases)
(If making a cake, line the bottom of the tin with parchment paper and grease the sides well)
Make for 20 minutes
Cool slightly before removing from pan to a rack, and cool completely
The cupcakes will be buttery and springy, and are perfect for icing. Noms!
Super Easy Cheese Scone Bread Thing
I love scones but I hate cutting the butter into the flour because I am super-lazy. I love bread, but I am scared of yeast. I also love cheese in everything. The following recipe is awesome, and super adaptable. You can bake it as a loaf, you can bake dollops as scones, and you can also use it as a breaded crust to a casserol. Bake! Enjoy!
Super Easy Cheese Scone Bread Thing
1 cup self-raising flour
1 cup grated cheese (a sharp cheddar works well, and I often add a few tablespoons of parmesan just for extra cheesey goodness)
2/3 cup milk
1-2 tablespoons pesto
1 pinch of salt
1 pinch of paprika (optional)
Preheat oven to 180C, 350F
Mix all the dry ingredients (including the cheese) together to distribute all the cheese evenly
Add the milk, and mix gently until the dough is just combined
Pour/scoop the dough into a greased pan
Bake for 15 minutes
Thats it! I like it served warm with lots of butter.
Super Easy Cheese Scone Bread Thing
1 cup self-raising flour
1 cup grated cheese (a sharp cheddar works well, and I often add a few tablespoons of parmesan just for extra cheesey goodness)
2/3 cup milk
1-2 tablespoons pesto
1 pinch of salt
1 pinch of paprika (optional)
Preheat oven to 180C, 350F
Mix all the dry ingredients (including the cheese) together to distribute all the cheese evenly
Add the milk, and mix gently until the dough is just combined
Pour/scoop the dough into a greased pan
Bake for 15 minutes
Thats it! I like it served warm with lots of butter.
Saturday 18 May 2013
Icecream Salted Caramel Sauce
Imagine the scene - craving something bad for you, you check out the kitchen. You find icecream in the freezer, but alas, you want something a bit more fancy that a bowl of icecream. If only you had some kind of terribly decadent topping for your icecream... but! Tragedy! All you have in the house except for icecream is some sugar, a bit of butter, and a salt shaker.
Rather than do something sensible and grown up like going to the store and maybe getting some vegetables, why not whip up some dangerously tasty salted caramel sauce?
Icecream Salted Caramel Sauce
4 tablespoons of white sugar
1 tablespoon of butter
2 tablespoons of icecream
Salt to taste, about 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon (I like my salted caramel salty)
DANGER: This recipe involves hot sugar napalm. Be extremely careful with melted sugar, because quite frankly it is probably one of the most dangerous things in your kitchen.
Put the sugar and salt into a small, non-stick saucepan and place over a medium heat.
Note about melting sugar; avoid stirring molten sugar - to do so can make it grainy (melted sugar is a supersaturation solution of sugar - if you add some sort of seed crystal it causes the rest of the sugar to start clumping). Instead, swirl the pan around as the sugar melts to incorperate the sugar evenly into the melted mix.
Swirl the pan regularly to help the sugar melt evenly.
When all the sugar is liquid and a golden colour (not dark gold), remove from heat and add the butter. The mixture will foam violently! This is normal.
Swirl to mix in the butter evenly.
Return the pan to the heat and then imediately add the icecream. It may foam again, and that's fine.
Keep swirling the pan on the heal while the icecream melts.
Once the icecream is melted and mixed through, remove the pan from the heat.
You can spoon this directly onto icecream (the icecream will cool the sauce so you won't burn yourself on it), or leave for 15 minutes to cool. It can be stored in the fridge, just give it 20 seconds or so in the microwave so it is spoonable.
Dangerously addictive!
Rather than do something sensible and grown up like going to the store and maybe getting some vegetables, why not whip up some dangerously tasty salted caramel sauce?
Icecream Salted Caramel Sauce
4 tablespoons of white sugar
1 tablespoon of butter
2 tablespoons of icecream
Salt to taste, about 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon (I like my salted caramel salty)
DANGER: This recipe involves hot sugar napalm. Be extremely careful with melted sugar, because quite frankly it is probably one of the most dangerous things in your kitchen.
Put the sugar and salt into a small, non-stick saucepan and place over a medium heat.
Note about melting sugar; avoid stirring molten sugar - to do so can make it grainy (melted sugar is a supersaturation solution of sugar - if you add some sort of seed crystal it causes the rest of the sugar to start clumping). Instead, swirl the pan around as the sugar melts to incorperate the sugar evenly into the melted mix.
Swirl the pan regularly to help the sugar melt evenly.
When all the sugar is liquid and a golden colour (not dark gold), remove from heat and add the butter. The mixture will foam violently! This is normal.
Swirl to mix in the butter evenly.
Return the pan to the heat and then imediately add the icecream. It may foam again, and that's fine.
Keep swirling the pan on the heal while the icecream melts.
Once the icecream is melted and mixed through, remove the pan from the heat.
You can spoon this directly onto icecream (the icecream will cool the sauce so you won't burn yourself on it), or leave for 15 minutes to cool. It can be stored in the fridge, just give it 20 seconds or so in the microwave so it is spoonable.
Dangerously addictive!
Friday 17 May 2013
Dark and Mean Brownie (Cupcakes)
I love most things chocolate, but unless I'm in the mood for something easy or decidedly frou-frou my preference is for dark chocolate. Most baking recipes for things chocolately involve a lot of sugar, and while this is good in it's place sometimes one wants something not-so-sweet to "fill in the corners" (if one were a hobbit). This recipe fits the bill, as well as being super easy. You can make it in a 20 cm X 20 cm pan if you feel like it, or in a cupcake pan. I just squeezed it into 6 cupcake cups, nit it would probably work better in 8 to 9 cups.
Dark and Mean Brownie (Cupcakes)
150 g butter (about 3/5 of a cup)
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup plain flour
1/2 cup cocoa
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
Yes, you read that right - 1/2 cup of cocoa. I use Dutch, but feel free to substitute whatever you have on hand.
Preheat the oven to 160 C, 320 F.
Cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy.
Add eggs one at a time, mixing well between each egg.
Add vanilla and salt.
Add flour and mix well.
Add cocoa and mix well. You can sift the cocoa first if you feel like it - if not, just make sure you scrape the bowl once or twice to get rid of any big lumps.
Fold in the chocolate chips.
The mixture should be soft and creamy when you either spread it into a lined pan or divide it between cupcake holes - if you are not using a silicon cupcake pan, make sure the holes are either lined with cases or well greased.
Bake for 25-35 minutes.
Cool completely before removing from the pan.
The brownies/cupcakes will have a crisp top, with a rich, moist centre. Enjoy the deep, dark chocolate goodness.
Dark and Mean Brownie (Cupcakes)
150 g butter (about 3/5 of a cup)
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup plain flour
1/2 cup cocoa
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)
Yes, you read that right - 1/2 cup of cocoa. I use Dutch, but feel free to substitute whatever you have on hand.
Preheat the oven to 160 C, 320 F.
Cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy.
Add eggs one at a time, mixing well between each egg.
Add vanilla and salt.
Add flour and mix well.
Add cocoa and mix well. You can sift the cocoa first if you feel like it - if not, just make sure you scrape the bowl once or twice to get rid of any big lumps.
Fold in the chocolate chips.
The mixture should be soft and creamy when you either spread it into a lined pan or divide it between cupcake holes - if you are not using a silicon cupcake pan, make sure the holes are either lined with cases or well greased.
Bake for 25-35 minutes.
Cool completely before removing from the pan.
The brownies/cupcakes will have a crisp top, with a rich, moist centre. Enjoy the deep, dark chocolate goodness.
Friday 10 May 2013
The Cake is a Lie Cookies (plus a bonus sneaky recipe)
There are two things you need to know about this recipe. One; it was billed as a Cake Batter Cookie recipe. While tasty, these cookies do not taste like cake batter. Two; this recipe uses packet cake mix. I know, I know. I am embarassed. I hate it when recipes call for a pre-packaged ingredient. That being said, I was willing to give it a try for the sake of cake batter flavoured cookies. All in all, these cookies are nice, but if you want home made cookies for the sake of being home made you're better off just busting out a sugar cookie recipe.
The Cake is a Lie Cookies
2 and 1/2 cups butter cake mix (I used Homebrand, because I couldn't bring myself to use a froufrou cake mix in cookies)
2 and 1/2 cups plain flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup butter
1 tablespoon vanilla (or less - I'm a bit of a vanilla addict)
1 egg
3 tablespoons jimmies/sprinkles
Preheat oven to 180 C/ 350 F
Mix together cake mix and flour
Cream together butter and sugar
Add egg and vanilla, and mix until incorperated
Slowly mix in flour/cake mix until a reasonably firm dough is formed (you may not need to use all of the dry mix - just enough to form a dough that isn't sticky)
Knead into a ball (add more of the dry mix if needed)
Flatten the ball, add the sprinkles, and knead though until evenly distributed
Roll dough to about 1/2 tp 3/4 cm thick (1/4 inch or so), cut out and place cookies on a lined tray (about 3 cm/ 1 inch apart)
Bake for 10 minutes, or until golden at the edges
Cool for 5 minutes on the tray, then cool completely on a rack
These cookies spread a little, but will still hold their shape pretty well. They're a nice solid cookie, not too crisp and not too soft. They'd probably work well with a simple icing, too!
Bonus Sneaky Recipe
Speaking of cake mix, this is an ideal recipe when you need cookies in a hurry. All you need to do is take a packet of cake mix and omit the liquid portion of the required ingedients. Add any required eggs and butter/oil, but do not add any milk or water. This will form a fairly thick dough.
Drop spoonfuls of the dough onto a baking tray and throw in the oven for somewhere around 10 minutes, somewhere around 180 C/350 F. This will make puffy, soft cookies that are perfect for emergencies.
The Cake is a Lie Cookies
2 and 1/2 cups butter cake mix (I used Homebrand, because I couldn't bring myself to use a froufrou cake mix in cookies)
2 and 1/2 cups plain flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup butter
1 tablespoon vanilla (or less - I'm a bit of a vanilla addict)
1 egg
3 tablespoons jimmies/sprinkles
Preheat oven to 180 C/ 350 F
Mix together cake mix and flour
Cream together butter and sugar
Add egg and vanilla, and mix until incorperated
Slowly mix in flour/cake mix until a reasonably firm dough is formed (you may not need to use all of the dry mix - just enough to form a dough that isn't sticky)
Knead into a ball (add more of the dry mix if needed)
Flatten the ball, add the sprinkles, and knead though until evenly distributed
Roll dough to about 1/2 tp 3/4 cm thick (1/4 inch or so), cut out and place cookies on a lined tray (about 3 cm/ 1 inch apart)
Bake for 10 minutes, or until golden at the edges
Cool for 5 minutes on the tray, then cool completely on a rack
These cookies spread a little, but will still hold their shape pretty well. They're a nice solid cookie, not too crisp and not too soft. They'd probably work well with a simple icing, too!
Bonus Sneaky Recipe
Speaking of cake mix, this is an ideal recipe when you need cookies in a hurry. All you need to do is take a packet of cake mix and omit the liquid portion of the required ingedients. Add any required eggs and butter/oil, but do not add any milk or water. This will form a fairly thick dough.
Drop spoonfuls of the dough onto a baking tray and throw in the oven for somewhere around 10 minutes, somewhere around 180 C/350 F. This will make puffy, soft cookies that are perfect for emergencies.
Sultana Oat Cookies
You know those days where you want to eat something sweet, but you want to pretend that you're being healthy? Add dried fruit and oats to it, and eat it in self-righteous glory! These cookies are a bit like fruity Anzac biscuits, and the recipe is pretty damn easy. Nehold!
Sultana Oat Cookies
1 and 1/4 cups plain flour
1 cup rolled oats (not quick-cooking - you want self-righteous-home-made-muesli type oats)
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup sultanas
150 g butter (just under half a cup - most sticks of butter in Australia have 50 g markings on the wrappers)
2 tablespoons golden syrup
1/2 teaspoon salt (can be omitted)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon sodium bicarbonate
Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F)
In a large bowl mix together flour, oats, sugar, fruit, salt and cinnamon
Put butter, syrup, sodium bicarbonate and 1 tablespoon of water in a small saucepan.
Slowly melt wet ingredients together in the saucepan - it will froth and bubble, which is normal. Do not lick the spoon! The sodium bicarb will make you gag if you do. That stuff is nasty.
Pour the liquid mixture into the dry mixture, and mix until combined. It will seem quite crumbly - that's normal
Place tablespoons of the mixture about 4 cm (1 and 1/2 inch) apart on a lined baking tray amd bake for 15-18 minutes
Leave to cool on the tray for 5 minutes before moving to a rack to cool completely
These super tasty, easy cookies store well, but they won't hang around long enough for that to be an issue. Enjoy!
Sultana Oat Cookies
1 and 1/4 cups plain flour
1 cup rolled oats (not quick-cooking - you want self-righteous-home-made-muesli type oats)
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup sultanas
150 g butter (just under half a cup - most sticks of butter in Australia have 50 g markings on the wrappers)
2 tablespoons golden syrup
1/2 teaspoon salt (can be omitted)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon sodium bicarbonate
Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F)
In a large bowl mix together flour, oats, sugar, fruit, salt and cinnamon
Put butter, syrup, sodium bicarbonate and 1 tablespoon of water in a small saucepan.
Slowly melt wet ingredients together in the saucepan - it will froth and bubble, which is normal. Do not lick the spoon! The sodium bicarb will make you gag if you do. That stuff is nasty.
Pour the liquid mixture into the dry mixture, and mix until combined. It will seem quite crumbly - that's normal
Place tablespoons of the mixture about 4 cm (1 and 1/2 inch) apart on a lined baking tray amd bake for 15-18 minutes
Leave to cool on the tray for 5 minutes before moving to a rack to cool completely
These super tasty, easy cookies store well, but they won't hang around long enough for that to be an issue. Enjoy!
Thursday 2 May 2013
Level 30 Rolled Sugar Cookies
I found this recipe for rolled sugar cookies when I was looking for a tasty answer to the need for cookies to celebrate the final session of out long-running Dungeons and Dragons game. The makers of this recipe lied. Lied with dirty lies! Don't misunderstand, they are very tasty, but very, very difficult to use as a rolled/cut out cookies. You can see the problem I had when I tried to use this dough to make cookie versions of our might level 30 characters.
That being said, it can be used to make cut out cookies, but not if you are a cookie novice. There is an insane chilling/rolling/chilling/cutting/chilling/removing excess dough/chilling/baking process involved. If you feel that you are not up to a level 30 cut out cookie encounter, this works really well as a drop cookie recipe too.
Level 30 Rolled Sugar Cookies
3/4 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 and 1/2 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Preheat oven to 200 C (375 F)
Cream the butter and sugar together
Add the eggs and milk and mix well
Stir in the flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon
Form into two disks, wrap in cling film and chill for at least 1 hour
(Awesome Baking Fact: chilling cookie dough not only makes the dough easier to work with, but it allows the dough to 'relax', making for more tender/less tough cookies)
Form your cookies (see below) and place on a parchment lined tray 3 cm (1 inch) apart
Bake for 6-8 minutes, until golden at the edges
Cool on the tray for 5 minutes before moving to racks to cool completely
Level 1 Cookies
Once chilled, roll dough into walnut-sized balls
Place on tray and flatten slightly
Bake as above
Level 30 Cookies
Working with one disk at a time, roll dough out to about 1 cm (1/4 inch) thick
Place dough on a parchment-lined baking tray and return to the fridge
While this is cooling, repeat with dough until you have 2 or 3 trays covered with dough
Take the first tray and cut the dough into desired shapes, the return to the fridge
Repeat with other trays
Take the first tray and carefully remove excess dough (retain and chill for later) - place tray in the oven and bake as above
Repeat with other trays
Once the cookies are moved to racks, allow trays to cool to room temperature
Repeat with remaining dough
No matter how you make them these cookies can be eaten as is, or covered with your favourite icing mixture.
That being said, it can be used to make cut out cookies, but not if you are a cookie novice. There is an insane chilling/rolling/chilling/cutting/chilling/removing excess dough/chilling/baking process involved. If you feel that you are not up to a level 30 cut out cookie encounter, this works really well as a drop cookie recipe too.
Level 30 Rolled Sugar Cookies
3/4 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 and 1/2 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Preheat oven to 200 C (375 F)
Cream the butter and sugar together
Add the eggs and milk and mix well
Stir in the flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon
Form into two disks, wrap in cling film and chill for at least 1 hour
(Awesome Baking Fact: chilling cookie dough not only makes the dough easier to work with, but it allows the dough to 'relax', making for more tender/less tough cookies)
Form your cookies (see below) and place on a parchment lined tray 3 cm (1 inch) apart
Bake for 6-8 minutes, until golden at the edges
Cool on the tray for 5 minutes before moving to racks to cool completely
Level 1 Cookies
Once chilled, roll dough into walnut-sized balls
Place on tray and flatten slightly
Bake as above
Level 30 Cookies
Working with one disk at a time, roll dough out to about 1 cm (1/4 inch) thick
Place dough on a parchment-lined baking tray and return to the fridge
While this is cooling, repeat with dough until you have 2 or 3 trays covered with dough
Take the first tray and cut the dough into desired shapes, the return to the fridge
Repeat with other trays
Take the first tray and carefully remove excess dough (retain and chill for later) - place tray in the oven and bake as above
Repeat with other trays
Once the cookies are moved to racks, allow trays to cool to room temperature
Repeat with remaining dough
No matter how you make them these cookies can be eaten as is, or covered with your favourite icing mixture.
Cookie Dough Not-Quite-Fudge
This recipe was billed as being a fudge, but I have to disagree - it doesn't nearly set as much as a real fudge does, and ends up being soft and yielding even after refridgeration. On the upside, it freezes super well and is nothing short of life-threatening when coated with chocolate. Behold!
Cookie Dough Not-Quite-Fudge
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla (I like to use jarred vanilla paste, which is amazing)
2 cups of plain flour
1 can (395 g/14 oz) of sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon cinnamon
(Optional: 1 cup mini chocolate chips)
Cream the butter and the sugar with the vanilla until pale and fluffy
While mixing, add half of the flour, then half of the sweetened condensed milk - repeat once the first lot is incorperated
(Fold in chocolate chips, if using)
Spread into a lined 20 cm x 20 cm (8 inch x 8 inch) pan, and chill for at least 3 hours
You can eat it straigh from the pan, giggling with glee, but I recommend putting on a pair of disposable gloves and rolling it into walnut-sized balls. These can be frozen for a quick sugary doughy fix, or drizzled in chocolate before stuffing into your gob.
Cookie Dough Not-Quite-Fudge
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla (I like to use jarred vanilla paste, which is amazing)
2 cups of plain flour
1 can (395 g/14 oz) of sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon cinnamon
(Optional: 1 cup mini chocolate chips)
Cream the butter and the sugar with the vanilla until pale and fluffy
While mixing, add half of the flour, then half of the sweetened condensed milk - repeat once the first lot is incorperated
(Fold in chocolate chips, if using)
Spread into a lined 20 cm x 20 cm (8 inch x 8 inch) pan, and chill for at least 3 hours
You can eat it straigh from the pan, giggling with glee, but I recommend putting on a pair of disposable gloves and rolling it into walnut-sized balls. These can be frozen for a quick sugary doughy fix, or drizzled in chocolate before stuffing into your gob.
Friday 19 April 2013
Cranberry-Bran Super Muffins
A muffin that's full of bran and yet is tasty and not like eating cardboard?! Madness!
Muffins differ from cupcakes in that they are not... you know... cake. Muffins tend to be coarser in texture, and are far simpler to make that cupcakes. None of this creaming butter and sugar silliness, it's just mix the dry and the wet, and bake. No cupcake cases! Just pure muffin glory!
Cranberry-Bran Super Muffins
1 cup oat bran (OAT bran. Oat bran is tasty - other brans are cardboardy)
1 and 1/2 cup self raising flour
1 teaspoon baking powder (not baking soda)
1 tablespoon white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup dried cranberries in water
3/4 cup milk (I use evaporated milk, because I can)
1 egg
1/2 cup vegatable oil (feel free to use 1/2 cup melted butter instead)
Preheat oven to 190 C (370ish F)
Grease a 12-hole muffin tin
Cook the dried cranberries covered in water for 90s in a microwave
Drain the cranberries and put aside
Mix together the dry ingredients (bran, flour, baking powder, sugars)
In a separate container mix together the wet ingredients (milk, egg, oil/butter)
Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until just combined (over-mixing will cause the muffins to be tough)
Fold through the cranberries
Bake at 190 C for 20-25 minutes
Remove from the oven when the muffins are firm to the touch and lightly browned. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes before turning out of the pan, then cool completely on a rack. Eat by the fistful, and pretend that you are being healthy...
Muffins differ from cupcakes in that they are not... you know... cake. Muffins tend to be coarser in texture, and are far simpler to make that cupcakes. None of this creaming butter and sugar silliness, it's just mix the dry and the wet, and bake. No cupcake cases! Just pure muffin glory!
Cranberry-Bran Super Muffins
1 cup oat bran (OAT bran. Oat bran is tasty - other brans are cardboardy)
1 and 1/2 cup self raising flour
1 teaspoon baking powder (not baking soda)
1 tablespoon white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup dried cranberries in water
3/4 cup milk (I use evaporated milk, because I can)
1 egg
1/2 cup vegatable oil (feel free to use 1/2 cup melted butter instead)
Preheat oven to 190 C (370ish F)
Grease a 12-hole muffin tin
Cook the dried cranberries covered in water for 90s in a microwave
Drain the cranberries and put aside
Mix together the dry ingredients (bran, flour, baking powder, sugars)
In a separate container mix together the wet ingredients (milk, egg, oil/butter)
Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until just combined (over-mixing will cause the muffins to be tough)
Fold through the cranberries
Bake at 190 C for 20-25 minutes
Remove from the oven when the muffins are firm to the touch and lightly browned. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes before turning out of the pan, then cool completely on a rack. Eat by the fistful, and pretend that you are being healthy...
Super Lazy Cake Batter Candy Bark
Candy bark isn't really much a thing in Australia. Sure, people will recognise it when they see it, but it's not something that the average Australian would eat, let alone make, on a regular basis. Candy bark is basically a base of chocolate with different tasty things sprinkled on it while it's still melty, and maybe a drizzle of a different chocolate over the top, broken into pieces. Low fuss, great results.
This recipe goes against the grain for me, because it uses pre-prepared cake mix. On the other hand, if you want something sweet in half an hour with minimum fuss, this candy bark will sort you out.
Super Lazy Cake Batter Candy Bark
1 cup milk chocolate chips (or dark, depending on what you like most)
3 tablespoons packet vanilla cake mix
1 and 1/2 cups white chocolate chips
Line a baking tray with baking parchment
Place the chocolate chips in a microwave-proof bowl, and microwave in 30 s bursts until the chocolate it fully melted.
Handy Tips For Melting Chocolate; check the chocolate every 30 s and stir vigrously - chocolate is very easy to burn. Also, resist the urge to lick the spoon! Adding anything water-based (like saliva) to melted chocolate will cause the chocolate to seize (turn gritty).
Pour melted chocolate out onto prepared tray, and spread out to the edges as evenly as you can
Leave to set for at least 30 minutes
Once the chocolate is set, put your white chocolate into a microwave safe bowl and repeat the melting/stirring procedure until it is all melted an smooth
Add the cake mix and stir briskly to mix through the white chocolate (you want to be pretty quick so that the chocolate won't set)
Pour the white chocolate mix out onto the milk chocolate layer and smooth out into a roughly even layer
(You can add spinkles or hundreds and thousands at this point if you like)
Leave to cool and set completely (30 minutes or so), then break into pieces
And that's it! Sweet, chocolately, cakey goodness. This can be made in bulk by doubling or tripling the ingredients, but I would not recommend it because you will go into sugar shock :)
This recipe goes against the grain for me, because it uses pre-prepared cake mix. On the other hand, if you want something sweet in half an hour with minimum fuss, this candy bark will sort you out.
Super Lazy Cake Batter Candy Bark
1 cup milk chocolate chips (or dark, depending on what you like most)
3 tablespoons packet vanilla cake mix
1 and 1/2 cups white chocolate chips
Line a baking tray with baking parchment
Place the chocolate chips in a microwave-proof bowl, and microwave in 30 s bursts until the chocolate it fully melted.
Handy Tips For Melting Chocolate; check the chocolate every 30 s and stir vigrously - chocolate is very easy to burn. Also, resist the urge to lick the spoon! Adding anything water-based (like saliva) to melted chocolate will cause the chocolate to seize (turn gritty).
Pour melted chocolate out onto prepared tray, and spread out to the edges as evenly as you can
Leave to set for at least 30 minutes
Once the chocolate is set, put your white chocolate into a microwave safe bowl and repeat the melting/stirring procedure until it is all melted an smooth
Add the cake mix and stir briskly to mix through the white chocolate (you want to be pretty quick so that the chocolate won't set)
Pour the white chocolate mix out onto the milk chocolate layer and smooth out into a roughly even layer
(You can add spinkles or hundreds and thousands at this point if you like)
Leave to cool and set completely (30 minutes or so), then break into pieces
And that's it! Sweet, chocolately, cakey goodness. This can be made in bulk by doubling or tripling the ingredients, but I would not recommend it because you will go into sugar shock :)
Saturday 13 April 2013
Sour Cream and Sweet Love Brownies
Sour cream is one of those ingedients in baking that is always unexpected, and yet gives the most fabulous results. I'm planning on trying out some more unusual ingredient tasties (sauerkraut brownies, mayonnaise cake, and the like), but in the meantime I give you an ultra moist and fudgey brownie recipe c/o the wonders of sour cream!
Sour Cream and Sweet Love Brownies
300 g dark chocolate chips
150 g butter
3/4 of a cup white sugar
2 eggs (whisked)
1 and 1/2 cups plain flour
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
1/2 cup caramel chips (or milk chocolate chips)
Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F)
Line a 20 cm x 20 cm (8 inch x 8 inch) pan with baking parchment, leaving an overhang to help lift the brownies from the pan once cooked
Melt the dark chocolate and the butter together over a low heat (or in a microwave), stirring continuously to keep the chocolate from burning, until the mixture is smooth and the chocolate melted
Leave to cool to room temperature
Once cool, add the whisked eggs and the sugar, mixing well to combine
Add the flour and the sour cream and mix until smooth
Fold in chocolate chips, pour into the lined pan, and smooth the top
Bake for 30-45 minutes (until a skewer comes out mostly cream)
Leave to cool completely before removing from the pan and cutting
My oven is, at best, cantankerous, so my brownies were super squishy in the middle, but I didn't mind one bit. Share with friends, of scoff the whole tray by yourself. You may die from sugar overdose, but it would be worth it.
Sour Cream and Sweet Love Brownies
300 g dark chocolate chips
150 g butter
3/4 of a cup white sugar
2 eggs (whisked)
1 and 1/2 cups plain flour
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
1/2 cup caramel chips (or milk chocolate chips)
Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F)
Line a 20 cm x 20 cm (8 inch x 8 inch) pan with baking parchment, leaving an overhang to help lift the brownies from the pan once cooked
Melt the dark chocolate and the butter together over a low heat (or in a microwave), stirring continuously to keep the chocolate from burning, until the mixture is smooth and the chocolate melted
Leave to cool to room temperature
Once cool, add the whisked eggs and the sugar, mixing well to combine
Add the flour and the sour cream and mix until smooth
Fold in chocolate chips, pour into the lined pan, and smooth the top
Bake for 30-45 minutes (until a skewer comes out mostly cream)
Leave to cool completely before removing from the pan and cutting
My oven is, at best, cantankerous, so my brownies were super squishy in the middle, but I didn't mind one bit. Share with friends, of scoff the whole tray by yourself. You may die from sugar overdose, but it would be worth it.
Saturday 6 April 2013
Death by Diabetes Cookies
Sometimes you just need a cookie that's impossibly sweet and bad for you, but also very simple and low fuss. As it happens, I was in that sort of mood when I found a tin of sweetened condensed milk in my pantry. You know where this is going...
Death by Diabetes Cookies
200 g butter
1/3 cup white sugar
395 g (one small tin) sweetened condensed milk
1/2 teaspoon salt (or more, if you're feeling frisky)
2 cups self-raising flour
250 g (one cup) dark chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F)
Cream together the butter and sugar
Mix in the condensed milk until smooth and creamy
Add the salt
Add the flour, 1/2 cup at a time
Stir in the chocolate chips
Bake for 12-15 minutes until lightly brown at the edges
The dough with be very, very soft and creamy because of the condensed milk, so I'd recommend either a cookie scoop or teaspoons to place small balls of dough on a parchment-lined tray, about 3-5 cm apart - they will spread and puff a little as they cook. Keep an eye on them; because of the high sugar content they can brown super fast. Cool for 5 minutes before trying to shift them to a rack - they will be very soft until they cool, and then they will be quite crisp.
I'm not going to lie, these cookies border on the lethal side of sweet. When first baked the condensed milk taste will be very strong, but the following day the flavours will be blended better. They are super simple, and super tasty!
Just watch out for the diabetes.
Death by Diabetes Cookies
200 g butter
1/3 cup white sugar
395 g (one small tin) sweetened condensed milk
1/2 teaspoon salt (or more, if you're feeling frisky)
2 cups self-raising flour
250 g (one cup) dark chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F)
Cream together the butter and sugar
Mix in the condensed milk until smooth and creamy
Add the salt
Add the flour, 1/2 cup at a time
Stir in the chocolate chips
Bake for 12-15 minutes until lightly brown at the edges
The dough with be very, very soft and creamy because of the condensed milk, so I'd recommend either a cookie scoop or teaspoons to place small balls of dough on a parchment-lined tray, about 3-5 cm apart - they will spread and puff a little as they cook. Keep an eye on them; because of the high sugar content they can brown super fast. Cool for 5 minutes before trying to shift them to a rack - they will be very soft until they cool, and then they will be quite crisp.
I'm not going to lie, these cookies border on the lethal side of sweet. When first baked the condensed milk taste will be very strong, but the following day the flavours will be blended better. They are super simple, and super tasty!
Just watch out for the diabetes.
Friday 5 April 2013
Super eggy almond cake
I have a love-hate relationship with Nigella Lawson's recipes. Some of them are absolutely fail-proof, while others I have never managed to get to work. The good thing about her recipes (the ones that work) is that they are super simple and easily modified.
This is an adaptation of Nigella's "Damp Lemon and Almond Cake"; mostly because I didn't have enough almond meal or a spare couple of lemons. It will end up a little drier than the original because of the lower almond meal content, but it is lovely all the same. Due to the large number of eggs it ends up as a very rich cake without being overly sweet.
Super Eggy Almond Cake
225 g butter (just under a cup - feel free to live dangerously and add a full cup)
225 g white sugar
4 large eggs
150 g plain flour
225 g ground almonds
1/4 of a cup milk
1 teaspoon almond extract (less or more according to taste)
1/4 of a cup white chocolate chips
Preheat oven at 180 C (350 F)
Grease either a loaf pan or a round cake tin
Cream butter and sugar
Add eggs alternately with dry ingredients, incorperating well between each egg
Add milk and almond extract before the last of the dry ingredients
Stir through the white chocolate chips and pour into prepared tin; the batter will be very thick, so don't forget to smooth the top before it goes into the oven
Bake for about an hour (50 to 70 minutes, depending on your oven), until the cake is firm to the touch and a skewer comes out clean
Be prepared to loosely cover the cake about 30 mins through to stop it from browning too much (my oven is notoriously awful, so I ended up over-browning my cake)
Once done, leave in the tin for about 5-10 minutes before turning out, and cool completely before slicing
This is a super moist cake, so it will break apart and crack if you take it out of the pan too soon. Patience!
This is an adaptation of Nigella's "Damp Lemon and Almond Cake"; mostly because I didn't have enough almond meal or a spare couple of lemons. It will end up a little drier than the original because of the lower almond meal content, but it is lovely all the same. Due to the large number of eggs it ends up as a very rich cake without being overly sweet.
Super Eggy Almond Cake
225 g butter (just under a cup - feel free to live dangerously and add a full cup)
225 g white sugar
4 large eggs
150 g plain flour
225 g ground almonds
1/4 of a cup milk
1 teaspoon almond extract (less or more according to taste)
1/4 of a cup white chocolate chips
Preheat oven at 180 C (350 F)
Grease either a loaf pan or a round cake tin
Cream butter and sugar
Add eggs alternately with dry ingredients, incorperating well between each egg
Add milk and almond extract before the last of the dry ingredients
Stir through the white chocolate chips and pour into prepared tin; the batter will be very thick, so don't forget to smooth the top before it goes into the oven
Bake for about an hour (50 to 70 minutes, depending on your oven), until the cake is firm to the touch and a skewer comes out clean
Be prepared to loosely cover the cake about 30 mins through to stop it from browning too much (my oven is notoriously awful, so I ended up over-browning my cake)
Once done, leave in the tin for about 5-10 minutes before turning out, and cool completely before slicing
This is a super moist cake, so it will break apart and crack if you take it out of the pan too soon. Patience!
Saturday 30 March 2013
When in doubt, add bacon
Long weekends are awesome, because I end up with a lot of 'dead time' that I need to fill in somehow. My favourite way of filling in dead time is to cook. As this is the Easter long weekend, I decided that I wanted to make something kind of festive. Festive for me is an excuse to eat things that are bad for me!
I love cornbread, and like to bake some when I roast something fleshy. There is something infinitely satisfying to make something that is hugely tasty, but that you feel good about eating. There is no food regret with cornbread. This is a Nigella Lawson recipe that I have modified a little to make little bundles of soft and crunchy joy. After all, everything is better when you add bacon!
When in Doubt, Add Bacon Cornbread Muffins
175 g polenta
125 g plain flour
45 g white sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder (not baking soda)
250 mL (1 cup) milk
1 egg
45 g butter
2-3 rashers of bacon
1 cup grated cheese (I like to use the sharpest cheddar I can find)
Preheat oven to 200 C (400 F) and grease a 12-hole muffin/cupcake tray
Mix together dry ingredients, then stir through the cheese in a large bowl
In a large measuring cup or jug with a spout mix the egg and milk together
Chop bacon into small pieces and place in a microwave safe bowl with the butter
Cook the butter and bacon together in a microwave until the butter is melted and the bacon is cooked (2-4 minutes)
Add the bacon and butter to the milk and egg, and mix well
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix together until just combined
Divide the batter evenly in the muffin tray, then place in the preheated oven
Cook for 15-20 minutes until the muffins are firm when touched and are starting to brown
These muffins are great on their own, or served alongside something rich in flavour. I love them with butter or cranberry sauce, but your results may vary - they are versatile and moreish. Enjoy!
I love cornbread, and like to bake some when I roast something fleshy. There is something infinitely satisfying to make something that is hugely tasty, but that you feel good about eating. There is no food regret with cornbread. This is a Nigella Lawson recipe that I have modified a little to make little bundles of soft and crunchy joy. After all, everything is better when you add bacon!
When in Doubt, Add Bacon Cornbread Muffins
175 g polenta
125 g plain flour
45 g white sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder (not baking soda)
250 mL (1 cup) milk
1 egg
45 g butter
2-3 rashers of bacon
1 cup grated cheese (I like to use the sharpest cheddar I can find)
Preheat oven to 200 C (400 F) and grease a 12-hole muffin/cupcake tray
Mix together dry ingredients, then stir through the cheese in a large bowl
In a large measuring cup or jug with a spout mix the egg and milk together
Chop bacon into small pieces and place in a microwave safe bowl with the butter
Cook the butter and bacon together in a microwave until the butter is melted and the bacon is cooked (2-4 minutes)
Add the bacon and butter to the milk and egg, and mix well
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix together until just combined
Divide the batter evenly in the muffin tray, then place in the preheated oven
Cook for 15-20 minutes until the muffins are firm when touched and are starting to brown
These muffins are great on their own, or served alongside something rich in flavour. I love them with butter or cranberry sauce, but your results may vary - they are versatile and moreish. Enjoy!
Cake + Tim Tams = extra noms
I'm currently in love with both slices and CWA recipes. For those who don't know, slices can range anywhere between sheet cake and finger biscuits (cue people from either side of the equator Googling the term they don't recognise. Sometime it's confusing to be multinational). Slices are a great alternative to baking an all out cake served in slices, because you can limit portion size by cutting the slice into bars or squares.
I think I have resisted the lure of slices because with my background, baking was a Big Thing (TM). Baking only ever happened for special occasions like birthdays or Christmas, and even then it was limited to Family Traditions (TM). It was only after I moved out of home that I started baking recreationally. I know, that's a weird thought - recreational baking - but I really do enjoy making things from the raw ingredients of flour, sugar, eggs and milk. I find it soothing.
The reason why I find baking and roasting relaxing is basically because I don't let the fussy, fiddly nature of peoples' expectations get in the way. I just focus on the creating and, most importantly, the taste.
Which brings us to Tim Tams! Tim tams are awesome, and I can easily finish a packet on my own in an evening. As I'm an older lady now, no longer a teenager, this isn't really advisable. Tim Tams are often used in the kitchen (rather than right out of the package) to make rum balls, but I am rarely in the mood for anything that fussy. Instead, I decided to modify a cake recipe from the CWA Classics cookbook (Kim's Chocolate Cake) to be a kind of a slicey thing with a Tim Tam layer. Because if thete's anything that can make Tim Tams better, it's cake!
Cake Plus Tim Tams Equals Extra Noms Slice Thing
200g pack of Tim Tams (classic)
2 cups plain flour
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 and 1/2 cups of sugar
1 and 1/2 cups of buttermilk
2 eggs
2 tablespoons of melted butter
Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F)
Grease and line a 20 x 30 cm baking dish
Melt butter in the microwave and leave to cool
Place the Tim Tams into a ziplock bag and bash heartily with a rolling pin (You want a mix of crumbs and chunks - also, it's very therapeutic to bash cookies in a bag)
Mix together dry ingredients
Add buttermilk and eggs, and mix briskly
Add the melted butter and mix with vigour! (You want a mostly smooth batter)
Pour half of the batter into the pan
Sprinkle the Tim Tam crumbs over the layer as evenly as possible
Coat with the remaining batter to cover the Tim Tam crumbs
Bake for 45-55 minutes
This will never be a light, fluffy cake type affair. Just looking at the list of ingredients, I was pretty sure that this wouldn't rise like a cake, but I was game to try it anyways (mostly because I needed an excuse to not eat the Tim Tams right out of the pack). It is instead a thick, dense, moist cake/biscuit thing that is the same density as a thick fudgey brownie, but is nowhere near as rich. This actually isn't a bad thing, because it means that at a slice-type-thing it is much more manageable.
This is one of those nice, filling tasty things that the CWA does so well - the ideal accompaniment to a cup of tea and a bit of a gossip.
I think I have resisted the lure of slices because with my background, baking was a Big Thing (TM). Baking only ever happened for special occasions like birthdays or Christmas, and even then it was limited to Family Traditions (TM). It was only after I moved out of home that I started baking recreationally. I know, that's a weird thought - recreational baking - but I really do enjoy making things from the raw ingredients of flour, sugar, eggs and milk. I find it soothing.
The reason why I find baking and roasting relaxing is basically because I don't let the fussy, fiddly nature of peoples' expectations get in the way. I just focus on the creating and, most importantly, the taste.
Which brings us to Tim Tams! Tim tams are awesome, and I can easily finish a packet on my own in an evening. As I'm an older lady now, no longer a teenager, this isn't really advisable. Tim Tams are often used in the kitchen (rather than right out of the package) to make rum balls, but I am rarely in the mood for anything that fussy. Instead, I decided to modify a cake recipe from the CWA Classics cookbook (Kim's Chocolate Cake) to be a kind of a slicey thing with a Tim Tam layer. Because if thete's anything that can make Tim Tams better, it's cake!
Cake Plus Tim Tams Equals Extra Noms Slice Thing
200g pack of Tim Tams (classic)
2 cups plain flour
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 and 1/2 cups of sugar
1 and 1/2 cups of buttermilk
2 eggs
2 tablespoons of melted butter
Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F)
Grease and line a 20 x 30 cm baking dish
Melt butter in the microwave and leave to cool
Place the Tim Tams into a ziplock bag and bash heartily with a rolling pin (You want a mix of crumbs and chunks - also, it's very therapeutic to bash cookies in a bag)
Mix together dry ingredients
Add buttermilk and eggs, and mix briskly
Add the melted butter and mix with vigour! (You want a mostly smooth batter)
Pour half of the batter into the pan
Sprinkle the Tim Tam crumbs over the layer as evenly as possible
Coat with the remaining batter to cover the Tim Tam crumbs
Bake for 45-55 minutes
This will never be a light, fluffy cake type affair. Just looking at the list of ingredients, I was pretty sure that this wouldn't rise like a cake, but I was game to try it anyways (mostly because I needed an excuse to not eat the Tim Tams right out of the pack). It is instead a thick, dense, moist cake/biscuit thing that is the same density as a thick fudgey brownie, but is nowhere near as rich. This actually isn't a bad thing, because it means that at a slice-type-thing it is much more manageable.
This is one of those nice, filling tasty things that the CWA does so well - the ideal accompaniment to a cup of tea and a bit of a gossip.
Friday 22 March 2013
Forgive me for doubting you, CWA
For those who aren't of the Australian persuasion, you might not be familiar with the Country Womens Association (CWA). Really, it's a fabulous network designed to offer support and companionship in the bleak, sparsely population of rural Australia. It has a reputation of being something of an old-fashioned, fussy type of organisation, but they do amazing things.
This was especially brought home to me many years ago when one of my aunts died out in a tiny country town between Melbourne and Sydney. The funeral itself was filled with such sympathetic and warm-hearted people (a woman who I never met, and I never saw again stood up and helped me leave the church because I was so distraught). After the funeral came the wake, and just about every single person from the town turned up; the CWA was there in force, providing food, tea and generally taking care of everything so the family didn't have to.
I've always steered away from CWA recipes in the (mistaken) idea that they were fussy, fiddly and old fashioned. I've found as I've grown older, however, that there is something infinitely comforting in old fashioned recipes, be they from my adoptive home (Australia) or from my family's traditions (Danish, American and Hungarian).
I accidentally chose the following recipe because it seemed simple and tasty. The problem with it is that is one of those (what I call) "Nanna Recipes". There's always one Nanna Recipe in every family that is written on a scrap of paper and serves only as a reminder - not an actual recipe.
This is a modification of Mrs Arlene Roberts, from the Mount Morgan Branch in Queensland that I got from the CWA Classics cookbook. It isn't really much of a modification, but instead a bit more detailed for us folk who aren't used to Nanna Recipes.
Forgive Me For Doubting You Jam Slice
50 g softened butter
2 cups self-raising flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
Strawberry jam (although plum or raspberry are more common)
1 cup dessicated coconut
2 tablespoons sugar
Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F)
Grease a 30 x 20 cm baking dish, and line the bottom with baking parchment
Rub the butter into the flour until it resembles breadcrumbs (I've started using a pastry blender because I hate getting butter under my nails)
Add sugar and egg, and mix with a fork
Add enough water to form a dough, kneading it into the mixture until it is no longer dry (I ended up using about 1/4 of a cup - you don't want a soggy dough!)
Press dough into the pan, all the way into the edges and corners, trying to keep the layer smoothish
Spread jam over the top (about 1/4 cup) - just a little thicker than you would spread on toast, but not swimming in jam
Combine the coconut, sugar and remaining egg in a bowl with a fork
Sprinkle coconut mixture evenly over the top of the jam, and press ever so lightly to make sure it sticks
Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the coconut starts to turn golden brown
Just like anything from the oven with jam in it, leave this to cool before you explore it too closely because the jam will be hot sugar napalm right out of the oven. Once it has cooled, you can cut it into squares or fingers - what ever you fancy.
This slice is amazing. It's not too sweet, it's not too crumbly, and it has a lovely soft base. This is the kind of thing you can serve equally as a snack with tea or after a low-fuss dinner. Highly recommended, and really super easy!
Noms.
This was especially brought home to me many years ago when one of my aunts died out in a tiny country town between Melbourne and Sydney. The funeral itself was filled with such sympathetic and warm-hearted people (a woman who I never met, and I never saw again stood up and helped me leave the church because I was so distraught). After the funeral came the wake, and just about every single person from the town turned up; the CWA was there in force, providing food, tea and generally taking care of everything so the family didn't have to.
I've always steered away from CWA recipes in the (mistaken) idea that they were fussy, fiddly and old fashioned. I've found as I've grown older, however, that there is something infinitely comforting in old fashioned recipes, be they from my adoptive home (Australia) or from my family's traditions (Danish, American and Hungarian).
I accidentally chose the following recipe because it seemed simple and tasty. The problem with it is that is one of those (what I call) "Nanna Recipes". There's always one Nanna Recipe in every family that is written on a scrap of paper and serves only as a reminder - not an actual recipe.
This is a modification of Mrs Arlene Roberts, from the Mount Morgan Branch in Queensland that I got from the CWA Classics cookbook. It isn't really much of a modification, but instead a bit more detailed for us folk who aren't used to Nanna Recipes.
Forgive Me For Doubting You Jam Slice
50 g softened butter
2 cups self-raising flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
Strawberry jam (although plum or raspberry are more common)
1 cup dessicated coconut
2 tablespoons sugar
Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F)
Grease a 30 x 20 cm baking dish, and line the bottom with baking parchment
Rub the butter into the flour until it resembles breadcrumbs (I've started using a pastry blender because I hate getting butter under my nails)
Add sugar and egg, and mix with a fork
Add enough water to form a dough, kneading it into the mixture until it is no longer dry (I ended up using about 1/4 of a cup - you don't want a soggy dough!)
Press dough into the pan, all the way into the edges and corners, trying to keep the layer smoothish
Spread jam over the top (about 1/4 cup) - just a little thicker than you would spread on toast, but not swimming in jam
Combine the coconut, sugar and remaining egg in a bowl with a fork
Sprinkle coconut mixture evenly over the top of the jam, and press ever so lightly to make sure it sticks
Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the coconut starts to turn golden brown
Just like anything from the oven with jam in it, leave this to cool before you explore it too closely because the jam will be hot sugar napalm right out of the oven. Once it has cooled, you can cut it into squares or fingers - what ever you fancy.
This slice is amazing. It's not too sweet, it's not too crumbly, and it has a lovely soft base. This is the kind of thing you can serve equally as a snack with tea or after a low-fuss dinner. Highly recommended, and really super easy!
Noms.
Thursday 21 March 2013
The reason why you should bake cupcakes
Sometimes, you just want to bake. It's cathartic and wonderfully satisfying to not just make something, but to make something that you know is fatty, sugary, utterly bad for you, and super tasty. Normally I like to pass on my baking results to my workmates so that I don't eat them all myself. Baking awesome things does not lead to a "healthy" weight unless you share, and sharing is most of the fun anyways.
I love anything that is "cookies and cream" flavoured. Really, it's a short hand for something that's vanilla flavoured with chocolate flavoured cookie bits in it. That being said, the easiest fix you can get for anything "cookies and cream" flavoured is Oreo cookies. Of course, the filling of Oreos is not "creamy" per se - it's some awful vanilla and hydrogenated coconut oil confection that has no nutritional value save an enormous helping of calories.
I also have an unreasonable love for cupcakes. Single serve, frosting covered confections that you can pretend are okay to eat because they are technically smaller than a slice of cake? Hell yes.
The joy of baking comes from baking something that you love to eat. Something that you would eat when raw and will eat when cooked, and that you know will bring a sunny moment to anyone else you want to offer them to.
These cupcakes are, basically, the entire point of baking in my mind.
The Reason Why You Should Bake Cupcakes
1 150 g pack of Oreo cookies
100 g of softened butter
1 cup of caster sugar (white sugar is just fine)
1 teaspoon of vanilla bean paste (or real vanilla essence)
2 large eggs (free range eggs would make me happy)
1 cup of self raising flour (not plain)
1/2 cup of milk (low fat milk is just fine - there's enough fat in the cookies to send it into terribly bad food territory)
Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F)
Using a 12-hole cupcake pan, place 1/2 Oreo cookie in the bottom of each cupcase case. Remember the add? Don't pull the cookies apart - twist them. Place the filling side up.
Put the remaining cookies in a plastic bag (ziplock or whatever you have) and smash with something heavy like a rolling pin (some sort of canned food will work just as well) until the largest pieces are no bigger that 1/4 a cookie)
Cream the butter and the sugar, then add the vanilla
Add eggs, one at a time and mixing until incorperated
Slowly add 3/4 cup or so of flour until incorperated
Add milk and mix - the mix will look a little curdled, and that's okay
Add the last 1/4 cup of flour
Once the ingredients are just incorperated
Fold in the pre-bashed cookies
Split the batter evenly between the cookie lined cupcake cases
Bake for 15-20 minutes until the tops are golden and the batter no longer wobbled when you shake the pan, and that the batter springs back when lightly poked
These cupcakes are awesome as is, but can be iced with all kinds of things. I like something simple like white chocolate (melted in a microwave) or a mix of peanut butter and milk chocolate (also melted in a microwave). A good buttercream or cream cheese frosting would work well.
I melted about 1/3 of a cup or white chocolate chips with 1/3 of a cup of hazlenut spread (Nuttella to you and I) in the microwave and smeared it over the top. It didn't end up setting, but it's still very tasty.
Remember, anything cooked always tastes better when it's shared with friends!
I love anything that is "cookies and cream" flavoured. Really, it's a short hand for something that's vanilla flavoured with chocolate flavoured cookie bits in it. That being said, the easiest fix you can get for anything "cookies and cream" flavoured is Oreo cookies. Of course, the filling of Oreos is not "creamy" per se - it's some awful vanilla and hydrogenated coconut oil confection that has no nutritional value save an enormous helping of calories.
I also have an unreasonable love for cupcakes. Single serve, frosting covered confections that you can pretend are okay to eat because they are technically smaller than a slice of cake? Hell yes.
The joy of baking comes from baking something that you love to eat. Something that you would eat when raw and will eat when cooked, and that you know will bring a sunny moment to anyone else you want to offer them to.
These cupcakes are, basically, the entire point of baking in my mind.
The Reason Why You Should Bake Cupcakes
1 150 g pack of Oreo cookies
100 g of softened butter
1 cup of caster sugar (white sugar is just fine)
1 teaspoon of vanilla bean paste (or real vanilla essence)
2 large eggs (free range eggs would make me happy)
1 cup of self raising flour (not plain)
1/2 cup of milk (low fat milk is just fine - there's enough fat in the cookies to send it into terribly bad food territory)
Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F)
Using a 12-hole cupcake pan, place 1/2 Oreo cookie in the bottom of each cupcase case. Remember the add? Don't pull the cookies apart - twist them. Place the filling side up.
Put the remaining cookies in a plastic bag (ziplock or whatever you have) and smash with something heavy like a rolling pin (some sort of canned food will work just as well) until the largest pieces are no bigger that 1/4 a cookie)
Cream the butter and the sugar, then add the vanilla
Add eggs, one at a time and mixing until incorperated
Slowly add 3/4 cup or so of flour until incorperated
Add milk and mix - the mix will look a little curdled, and that's okay
Add the last 1/4 cup of flour
Once the ingredients are just incorperated
Fold in the pre-bashed cookies
Split the batter evenly between the cookie lined cupcake cases
Bake for 15-20 minutes until the tops are golden and the batter no longer wobbled when you shake the pan, and that the batter springs back when lightly poked
These cupcakes are awesome as is, but can be iced with all kinds of things. I like something simple like white chocolate (melted in a microwave) or a mix of peanut butter and milk chocolate (also melted in a microwave). A good buttercream or cream cheese frosting would work well.
I melted about 1/3 of a cup or white chocolate chips with 1/3 of a cup of hazlenut spread (Nuttella to you and I) in the microwave and smeared it over the top. It didn't end up setting, but it's still very tasty.
Remember, anything cooked always tastes better when it's shared with friends!
Tuesday 19 March 2013
Marzipan plus chocolate is awesome
I'm trying to build up a backlog of recipes so that if I'm ever stuck with not enough joie de vivre to bake something on a given weekend I can still put something food porny up every week. However, these cookies were too good to keep to myself, and so you get some mid-week tasties.
I am a big fan of comfort food. Sometimes you need something that is full of flavour, full of fat, and utterly bad for you. Sure, you could always just whip up some raw cookie dough (I am not afraid of raw eggs, but if you are there are many egg-free cookie dough recipes specifically for eating raw), but throwing something in the oven isn't really that much work if you're not interested in making something pretty.
In my mind, unless you're in a cooking competition or your job is making food pretty then taste comes first. I think there's way too much pressure on people these days to produce works of edible art. If it's just you and yours, there's no need to be fussy about things.
Just make stuff that you like to eat.
In that vein, these cookies are pretty much as ugly as sin. They don't even have a quirky rustic feel to them - they just look like cow pies. I regret nothing, though, because they are amazingly tasty.
Marzipan + Chocolate = Awesome Cookies
125 g marzipan (or 1/2 of a 250 g pack - marzipan is very heavy, so 250 g is less than 1 cup)
1/2 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla (I use vanilla paste, but any vanilla flavouring will do)
1 cup plain flour
1 cut white sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda (sodium bicarbonate)
1 pinch (1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon) salt
2 tablespoons of cocoa (unsweetened)
1 egg
Chop marzipan into rough chunks of about a teaspoon in size
Cut butter into 1 cm wide slices and put in a microwave safe bowl with marzipan
Melt marzipan and butter together in microwave (1 - 2 minutes)
CAUTION: this mixture will become hot liquid sugar and oil napalm; do not stick your finger in it, and do not lick the spoon!
Stir the melted mixture well to make sure the marzipan is totally melted
Add vanilla to the melted mixture and stir well
Mix flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and cocoa together in a large bowl
Pour melted mixture (carefully) into dry ingredients and stir with a spoon until about half the mixture is incorperated and wet - this will help cool the melted mixture quickly
Carefully test the temperature of the gooey mass - when it is warm, not hot, add the egg and mix thoroughly
Place teaspoons of the dough 5 cm apart on parchment-lined cookie sheets (these cookies spread a great deal)
Bake in a preheated oven at 200 C (400 F) for 8-10 minutes
These cookies can range between delicate and chewy or very crisp depending on how long you want to leave them in the oven. The crinkly surface probably isn't great for icing, but they would work well if you wanted to sandwich them with a creamy filling as they are very thin.
I am a big fan of comfort food. Sometimes you need something that is full of flavour, full of fat, and utterly bad for you. Sure, you could always just whip up some raw cookie dough (I am not afraid of raw eggs, but if you are there are many egg-free cookie dough recipes specifically for eating raw), but throwing something in the oven isn't really that much work if you're not interested in making something pretty.
In my mind, unless you're in a cooking competition or your job is making food pretty then taste comes first. I think there's way too much pressure on people these days to produce works of edible art. If it's just you and yours, there's no need to be fussy about things.
Just make stuff that you like to eat.
In that vein, these cookies are pretty much as ugly as sin. They don't even have a quirky rustic feel to them - they just look like cow pies. I regret nothing, though, because they are amazingly tasty.
Marzipan + Chocolate = Awesome Cookies
125 g marzipan (or 1/2 of a 250 g pack - marzipan is very heavy, so 250 g is less than 1 cup)
1/2 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla (I use vanilla paste, but any vanilla flavouring will do)
1 cup plain flour
1 cut white sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda (sodium bicarbonate)
1 pinch (1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon) salt
2 tablespoons of cocoa (unsweetened)
1 egg
Chop marzipan into rough chunks of about a teaspoon in size
Cut butter into 1 cm wide slices and put in a microwave safe bowl with marzipan
Melt marzipan and butter together in microwave (1 - 2 minutes)
CAUTION: this mixture will become hot liquid sugar and oil napalm; do not stick your finger in it, and do not lick the spoon!
Stir the melted mixture well to make sure the marzipan is totally melted
Add vanilla to the melted mixture and stir well
Mix flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and cocoa together in a large bowl
Pour melted mixture (carefully) into dry ingredients and stir with a spoon until about half the mixture is incorperated and wet - this will help cool the melted mixture quickly
Carefully test the temperature of the gooey mass - when it is warm, not hot, add the egg and mix thoroughly
Place teaspoons of the dough 5 cm apart on parchment-lined cookie sheets (these cookies spread a great deal)
Bake in a preheated oven at 200 C (400 F) for 8-10 minutes
These cookies can range between delicate and chewy or very crisp depending on how long you want to leave them in the oven. The crinkly surface probably isn't great for icing, but they would work well if you wanted to sandwich them with a creamy filling as they are very thin.
Saturday 16 March 2013
Cheese in the title
As it is international pretend you're Irish day, I present one of my modifications on the classic Irish Soda Bread!
For some reason, I'm terrified of using yeast in cooking. In fact, thus far I've only used yeast in a bread maker, and if it went wrong I could just blame the machine. I'm not sure what it is - maybe it's my fear of bringing new life into the world only to kill it with fire. One day I will face my fear of yeast, but until then I will continue to be a culinary coward.
I love carbohydrates. Pasta, potatoes, rice, it's all good. I especially love bread, so you can see the irony in me being afraid of yeast. Fortunately, there are other ways to make bread!
Quick breads don't require yeast, but instead usually use something alkali like sodium bicarbonate and something mildly acidic like buttermilk. If you've ever done the baking soda and vinegar volcano experiment, you'll know that acid + base = bubbles. If the bubbles are formed in something substantial they don't pop as easily. A nice flour and liquid medium is pretty strong so the bubbles don't pop, causing the bread to rise. See? Baking is all about science.
Personally, I feel that most things are made tastier by the addition of cheese. Infact, I am drawn to just about anything with cheese in the title. Thus I present to you my cheesey quick bread recipe.
Cheese in the Title Soda Bread
3 cups of flour
1 and 1/2 teaspoon baking soda (make sure that there are no lumps - mash it to make sure)
1 and 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon whole grain mustard (optional, but I like the slight sharpness to go with the cheese)
1/2 to 1 cup shredded cheese of choice (sharp cheddars work well)
1 and 1/2 cups buttermilk
Preheat oven to 180 C (375 F) - you want to be able to put the dough in the oven as soon as it's ready
Mix dry and cheese together in a large bowl
Drop your mustard on top
Add one cup of buttermilk and mix
Gradually add more buttermilk until a soft dough is formed
(it may be a little sticky - that's okay! It will just make tasty crinkly bits on the bread)
Knead the mix for about a minute
Form dough into a circle on a parchment lined baking tray, and cut a cross on the top
Bake for 40-45 minutes
A scientific note on preheating ovens; most baked goods need to be put in a hot oven as soon as they are mixed. The reason behind this is actually pretty cool. When the reaction of the acid and the base starts forming bubbles, if the bubble is warmed up the gas inside it expands, which leads to an even lighter rise to your baked goods. If the reaction between acid and base has slowed down or even finished by the time you start heating it, the dough won't rise as much.
For some reason, I'm terrified of using yeast in cooking. In fact, thus far I've only used yeast in a bread maker, and if it went wrong I could just blame the machine. I'm not sure what it is - maybe it's my fear of bringing new life into the world only to kill it with fire. One day I will face my fear of yeast, but until then I will continue to be a culinary coward.
I love carbohydrates. Pasta, potatoes, rice, it's all good. I especially love bread, so you can see the irony in me being afraid of yeast. Fortunately, there are other ways to make bread!
Quick breads don't require yeast, but instead usually use something alkali like sodium bicarbonate and something mildly acidic like buttermilk. If you've ever done the baking soda and vinegar volcano experiment, you'll know that acid + base = bubbles. If the bubbles are formed in something substantial they don't pop as easily. A nice flour and liquid medium is pretty strong so the bubbles don't pop, causing the bread to rise. See? Baking is all about science.
Personally, I feel that most things are made tastier by the addition of cheese. Infact, I am drawn to just about anything with cheese in the title. Thus I present to you my cheesey quick bread recipe.
Cheese in the Title Soda Bread
3 cups of flour
1 and 1/2 teaspoon baking soda (make sure that there are no lumps - mash it to make sure)
1 and 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon whole grain mustard (optional, but I like the slight sharpness to go with the cheese)
1/2 to 1 cup shredded cheese of choice (sharp cheddars work well)
1 and 1/2 cups buttermilk
Preheat oven to 180 C (375 F) - you want to be able to put the dough in the oven as soon as it's ready
Mix dry and cheese together in a large bowl
Drop your mustard on top
Add one cup of buttermilk and mix
Gradually add more buttermilk until a soft dough is formed
(it may be a little sticky - that's okay! It will just make tasty crinkly bits on the bread)
Knead the mix for about a minute
Form dough into a circle on a parchment lined baking tray, and cut a cross on the top
Bake for 40-45 minutes
A scientific note on preheating ovens; most baked goods need to be put in a hot oven as soon as they are mixed. The reason behind this is actually pretty cool. When the reaction of the acid and the base starts forming bubbles, if the bubble is warmed up the gas inside it expands, which leads to an even lighter rise to your baked goods. If the reaction between acid and base has slowed down or even finished by the time you start heating it, the dough won't rise as much.
Friday 15 March 2013
Time for a new career pudding
You know those days where everything goes wrong at work to the point where you want to run away and join the circus? Where you start to question not only your ability and expertise, but also the ethical (or lack thereof) foundation of the kind of employment you are in?
I recently had one of those days. I since the age of seven have spent all of my life chasing the dream, full of idealism and the hope of making the world a better place. Now it seems that everything I had convinced myself of is a small flower crushed under the heel of reality.
So I ranted. I raved. I actually had a crying fit from the sheer frustration of it all.
Then I did the only thing I could do - I made cupcakes.
Unmitigated Disaster Cupcakes
1/2 cup softened butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 and 1/2 cup flour
2 and 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 egg
3/4 cup milk
Cream the butter and sugar together
Add maple syrup and cinnamon; mix well
Mix in 1 cup of flour, the add the baking soda and salt
Add egg and mix until combined
Add the milk - the mixture will start looking a little curdled, but that's okay
Mix in the remaining flour; it looks way too curdled, feel free to add in another tablespoon or two.
Spoon into cupcake cases (obviously already loaded into a 12-hole cupcake pan. I use silicone cases, because the cakes pop out easily and the cases can be reused)
Bake in a preheated oven at 180 C (375 F) for 15-18 minutes.
Of course, just like my career, these cupcakes turned out to be an unmitigated disaster. I should have split the batter between 18 cupcake cases, not 12. I should have paid more attention to the oven temperature. I shouldn't have taken them in and out of the oven in a panic. I should have used baking powder instead of baking soda. All pretty elementary mistakes that made me question not just the wisdom of a career in science, but also what on earth was I doing making a cooking blog?
With a terrible day at work, and a tray of cupcakes that were simultaneously overflowing, slumped, burnt and underdone, all I wanted was a stiff drink.
Three drinks later, I came up with a new plan.
Time For a New Career Pudding
3 cups cake crumbs, loosely packed (feel free to substitute your own cake disasters here)
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons butter
Take your own cake disaster, and fork it to death until you have small pieces and crumbs
Pour 3 cups (or so) of the crumbs into a cassarole dish and laugh maniacally
Pour milk over the crumbs and take a celebratory drink
Dot the top with a little butter, or not if you don't feel like it
Bake at 180 C (345 F) (or less, if you're worried about burning it again) for... who knows. Until it gets crispy on top I guess. It's not like you can make it any worse at this stage. Say somewhere between 20 and 40 minutes.
Handy hints; place the dish on a baking tray before you put it in the oven, so that if the pudding over boils it won't go all over the oven itself. Leave the pudding to cool a little before you try to eat it - you don't want to add another disaster to your cooking day.
Serve warm or cold.
I recently had one of those days. I since the age of seven have spent all of my life chasing the dream, full of idealism and the hope of making the world a better place. Now it seems that everything I had convinced myself of is a small flower crushed under the heel of reality.
So I ranted. I raved. I actually had a crying fit from the sheer frustration of it all.
Then I did the only thing I could do - I made cupcakes.
Unmitigated Disaster Cupcakes
1/2 cup softened butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 and 1/2 cup flour
2 and 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 egg
3/4 cup milk
Cream the butter and sugar together
Add maple syrup and cinnamon; mix well
Mix in 1 cup of flour, the add the baking soda and salt
Add egg and mix until combined
Add the milk - the mixture will start looking a little curdled, but that's okay
Mix in the remaining flour; it looks way too curdled, feel free to add in another tablespoon or two.
Spoon into cupcake cases (obviously already loaded into a 12-hole cupcake pan. I use silicone cases, because the cakes pop out easily and the cases can be reused)
Bake in a preheated oven at 180 C (375 F) for 15-18 minutes.
Of course, just like my career, these cupcakes turned out to be an unmitigated disaster. I should have split the batter between 18 cupcake cases, not 12. I should have paid more attention to the oven temperature. I shouldn't have taken them in and out of the oven in a panic. I should have used baking powder instead of baking soda. All pretty elementary mistakes that made me question not just the wisdom of a career in science, but also what on earth was I doing making a cooking blog?
With a terrible day at work, and a tray of cupcakes that were simultaneously overflowing, slumped, burnt and underdone, all I wanted was a stiff drink.
Three drinks later, I came up with a new plan.
Time For a New Career Pudding
3 cups cake crumbs, loosely packed (feel free to substitute your own cake disasters here)
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons butter
Take your own cake disaster, and fork it to death until you have small pieces and crumbs
Pour 3 cups (or so) of the crumbs into a cassarole dish and laugh maniacally
Pour milk over the crumbs and take a celebratory drink
Dot the top with a little butter, or not if you don't feel like it
Bake at 180 C (345 F) (or less, if you're worried about burning it again) for... who knows. Until it gets crispy on top I guess. It's not like you can make it any worse at this stage. Say somewhere between 20 and 40 minutes.
Handy hints; place the dish on a baking tray before you put it in the oven, so that if the pudding over boils it won't go all over the oven itself. Leave the pudding to cool a little before you try to eat it - you don't want to add another disaster to your cooking day.
Serve warm or cold.
Thursday 14 March 2013
Work was awful, time for cookies
I find baking very relaxing. There is something very comforting of just turning off your brain, following a set of instructions, and creating something awesome at the end of it. Today was a day that I realised the only thing for it was to have a vodka and soda, and bake cookies.
A modified recipe of a modification of a recipe made by my brother, these Work Was Awful cookies are a great base from which to tailor to your specific wants or needs. A drop cookie recipe that spreads a little and forms a nice, rounded surface, these cookies are as low key or as spectacular as you want them to be. They are soft, delicate, and infinitely nomable.
Work Was Awful Cookies
2/3 cup softened butter
3/4 cup brown sugar (lightly packed)
1/4 cup white sugar
2/3 cup almond meal
2 eggs
2 cups self-raising flour
Extras
Rose Petal Cookies; 1 teaspoon rose water essence, 2-4 tablespoons dried rose petals (I used rose buds from T2 used for Just Rose Tea, ripping the petals from the stems and crumbling them in my fingers. It was very therapeutic.)
White Chocolate and Cherry Flavour; 1 teaspoon maraschino cherry flavouring, 1/2 teaspoon chocolate flavouring, 1/2 to 1 cup roughly chopped white chocolate, 2-4 drops Rose Pink food colouring.
Cream butter and sugars
Mix in almond meal
Add eggs and mix until combined
Add flour, 1/4 cup at a time
Drop walnut sized balls of dough 3-4 cm apart on a parchment lined cookie tray
Bake in a preheated oven at 190 C (375 F) for 10 minutes, or until brown at the edges.
You can ice them when cool if you are feeling fancy, or mash into your gob while warm.
A modified recipe of a modification of a recipe made by my brother, these Work Was Awful cookies are a great base from which to tailor to your specific wants or needs. A drop cookie recipe that spreads a little and forms a nice, rounded surface, these cookies are as low key or as spectacular as you want them to be. They are soft, delicate, and infinitely nomable.
Work Was Awful Cookies
2/3 cup softened butter
3/4 cup brown sugar (lightly packed)
1/4 cup white sugar
2/3 cup almond meal
2 eggs
2 cups self-raising flour
Extras
Rose Petal Cookies; 1 teaspoon rose water essence, 2-4 tablespoons dried rose petals (I used rose buds from T2 used for Just Rose Tea, ripping the petals from the stems and crumbling them in my fingers. It was very therapeutic.)
White Chocolate and Cherry Flavour; 1 teaspoon maraschino cherry flavouring, 1/2 teaspoon chocolate flavouring, 1/2 to 1 cup roughly chopped white chocolate, 2-4 drops Rose Pink food colouring.
Cream butter and sugars
Mix in almond meal
Add eggs and mix until combined
Add flour, 1/4 cup at a time
Drop walnut sized balls of dough 3-4 cm apart on a parchment lined cookie tray
Bake in a preheated oven at 190 C (375 F) for 10 minutes, or until brown at the edges.
You can ice them when cool if you are feeling fancy, or mash into your gob while warm.
Wednesday 13 March 2013
The cookies that started it all
I love to bake and I love to eat baked things, but I love sharing baked things with people even more. I'm always looking for new, exciting and unusual recipes, and so when I first saw an Instructable for "Unicorn Poop Cookies" I knew that I had to make this rainbowed horror a reality in my kitchen.
Because I can't leave well enough alone, I did a bit of searching to find a recipe for smoother, less craggily topped cookies, as well as a recipe that was a little more reproducible in terms of colour. (Yes, I did just use the word 'reproducible' while talking about cookies. I'm a scientist - I can't help it.)
I found a fabulous method for making rich coloured cookie swirls thanks to Make.Bake.Celebrate, and an incredibly tasty yet easy to work with cookie recipe from Sugarbelle.
While you can use what ever sugar cookie recipe you prefer, not all sugar cookies are the same, largely because of the consistancy of the dough. Some recipes are more suited for rolling and cutting shapes out with a cutter and are best used when the dough is chilled - these cookies don't spread or rise very much, which is why they can hold the shape of whatever cutter you use. Some recipes are best for 'drop cookies', where you drop teaspoons or scoops or dough on the tray with minimum fuss - these are basically 'fire and forget' cookies that spread and rise, leaving a rough, cracked surface.
The recipe below, often called a 'play dough' cookie recipe, is somewhere in between. They rise and spread a little, but they come out of the oven with a nice smooth surface. I'm a fan!
Unicorn Poop Cookies
1 cup butter, softened (I almost always use salted butter, but you can use unsalted if you prefer)
1 and 1/2 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 teaspoon butter flavouring (Optional; you can find this in specialty bake stores)
2 and 3/4 cup plain flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
Mix together flour, baking powder and salt in a seperate bowl
Cream softened butter and sugar
Add egg and flavouring, and mix until incorperated
Slowly mix in dry ingredients, 1/4 of a cup at a time
The resulting dough may need to be kneaded of mashed together to form a smooth dough. Once you are happy with the dough, divide it into four or five portions (depending on how many colours you'd like) in seperate bowls. Add colouring to each dough, and knead together until the colour is evenly distributed. I'd recomend latex gloves for this part!
As far as the colouring goes, ideally you can use colour pastes/gels (from companies like Wilton), because they give a much richer end product. Colour gels are expensive and can be a pain to clean up, so if you don't have any on hand you can happily use the standard food dyes that you can get in the supermarket.
Once your dough is dyed, roll grape-sized portions of each colour and set aside. If your dough is too soft, chill it in the refrigerator for 15 mins or so.
After rolling out your different coloured balls, take one ball of each colour and mash them together to make a larger, multicoloured ball. Then it's just a simple matter of rolling out the ball between your hands like a sausage until it is somewhere between a finger and a pencil in thickness. Coil the dough in a spiral from the inside out, and transer to a parchment lined baking tray. Once safely on the tray, squash the coil with the palm of your hand to both slightly flatten the coil and to make sure all the spirals are stuck together.
Space the spirals about 3 cm (1 inch) apart. Once you have finished making all your spirals, bake in a pre-heated oven at 180 C (350 F) for 7-10 minutes. It will be hard to tell if they are ready, because of the vivid colours, but once you start to see browning at the edges they are ready to come out. Don't be afraid to under bake these - they are just as delicious if they are a little bit soft!
Once the cookies are cooled you can either stuff them straight into your mouth, or if you're feeling especially fancy you can knock it up a notch with glitter and shiny things. First apply a layer of sparkle gel (avaliable from Wilton), then sprinkle with edible glitter. Add all kinds of edible shiny or frou-frou things. Go nuts!
Eat and share with friends. I recommend waiting until they take a bite before telling them that they are eating unicorn poop.
Because I can't leave well enough alone, I did a bit of searching to find a recipe for smoother, less craggily topped cookies, as well as a recipe that was a little more reproducible in terms of colour. (Yes, I did just use the word 'reproducible' while talking about cookies. I'm a scientist - I can't help it.)
I found a fabulous method for making rich coloured cookie swirls thanks to Make.Bake.Celebrate, and an incredibly tasty yet easy to work with cookie recipe from Sugarbelle.
While you can use what ever sugar cookie recipe you prefer, not all sugar cookies are the same, largely because of the consistancy of the dough. Some recipes are more suited for rolling and cutting shapes out with a cutter and are best used when the dough is chilled - these cookies don't spread or rise very much, which is why they can hold the shape of whatever cutter you use. Some recipes are best for 'drop cookies', where you drop teaspoons or scoops or dough on the tray with minimum fuss - these are basically 'fire and forget' cookies that spread and rise, leaving a rough, cracked surface.
The recipe below, often called a 'play dough' cookie recipe, is somewhere in between. They rise and spread a little, but they come out of the oven with a nice smooth surface. I'm a fan!
Unicorn Poop Cookies
1 cup butter, softened (I almost always use salted butter, but you can use unsalted if you prefer)
1 and 1/2 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 teaspoon butter flavouring (Optional; you can find this in specialty bake stores)
2 and 3/4 cup plain flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
Mix together flour, baking powder and salt in a seperate bowl
Cream softened butter and sugar
Add egg and flavouring, and mix until incorperated
Slowly mix in dry ingredients, 1/4 of a cup at a time
The resulting dough may need to be kneaded of mashed together to form a smooth dough. Once you are happy with the dough, divide it into four or five portions (depending on how many colours you'd like) in seperate bowls. Add colouring to each dough, and knead together until the colour is evenly distributed. I'd recomend latex gloves for this part!
As far as the colouring goes, ideally you can use colour pastes/gels (from companies like Wilton), because they give a much richer end product. Colour gels are expensive and can be a pain to clean up, so if you don't have any on hand you can happily use the standard food dyes that you can get in the supermarket.
Once your dough is dyed, roll grape-sized portions of each colour and set aside. If your dough is too soft, chill it in the refrigerator for 15 mins or so.
After rolling out your different coloured balls, take one ball of each colour and mash them together to make a larger, multicoloured ball. Then it's just a simple matter of rolling out the ball between your hands like a sausage until it is somewhere between a finger and a pencil in thickness. Coil the dough in a spiral from the inside out, and transer to a parchment lined baking tray. Once safely on the tray, squash the coil with the palm of your hand to both slightly flatten the coil and to make sure all the spirals are stuck together.
Space the spirals about 3 cm (1 inch) apart. Once you have finished making all your spirals, bake in a pre-heated oven at 180 C (350 F) for 7-10 minutes. It will be hard to tell if they are ready, because of the vivid colours, but once you start to see browning at the edges they are ready to come out. Don't be afraid to under bake these - they are just as delicious if they are a little bit soft!
Once the cookies are cooled you can either stuff them straight into your mouth, or if you're feeling especially fancy you can knock it up a notch with glitter and shiny things. First apply a layer of sparkle gel (avaliable from Wilton), then sprinkle with edible glitter. Add all kinds of edible shiny or frou-frou things. Go nuts!
Eat and share with friends. I recommend waiting until they take a bite before telling them that they are eating unicorn poop.
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