FRENCH ONION SOUP

Six weeks since I lasted posted on my blog! - how did that happen? 

 

We did have a couple of weeks in France which was really lovely and very relaxing.  Lots of wine, good food, sun and sea does make for a good holiday.  It was straight back into real life once we got back with the kids back at school.  Kirsty, my youngest started 'big school' which was so exciting for her but much harder for me.  I do miss having her around the house but she is so happy at school and her brother is loving his role as big brother and all round protector.  On top of the kids being at school all day, my hubby was away on a business trip so the house was exceptionally quiet.  On the plus side, the house was also exceptionally clean, tidy and organised which is probably the first time that has happened in the last 7 years. 

To save me having to cook every night while my hubby was away, I made up a big pot of this lovely, rich French onion soup with onions and garlic all the way from France. 

 

 Curled up on the couch, bowl of soup in hand, pile of recipe books at the ready and just peace and quiet -

 

BLISSFUL

 

 

French Onion Soup

For the printable version - click here

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Total time: 45 minutes

 

Yield: 4 small bowls or 2 very generous bowls

 

Ingredients

• 2 tblsps olive oil
• 25g butter
• 5 onions, thinly sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• sprig of thyme
• 1 litre beef stock
• 2 tblsps balsamic vinegar
• 250ml red wine
• 1 French baguette
• 250g Gruyere cheese, grated

 

Cooking Directions

1. Melt the olive oil and butter together in a large pot.
2. When hot, add the sliced onions and cook on a high heat until just starting to brown.
3. Reduce the heat to low and continue to cook for 25 minutes or until the bottom of the pan and the onions are nice and brown.
4. Add the chopped garlic and thyme leaves for the last 5 minutes.
5. Add the beef stock, vinegar and red wine, stirring well to remove all the sediment from the bottom of the pan.
6. Bring back to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for a further 20 minutes.
7. Season to taste.
8. Just before serving: slice the baguette into 1cm slices and brush lightly with olive oil on both sides.
9. Toast both sides under the grill.
10. Top one side with grated cheese and place under the grill again to melt the cheese.
11. Ladle the soup into serving bowls and place the cheesy toast on the top.
12. Serve immediately.  

  

Written by : Angela Darroch

CHOCOLATE AVOCADO TRUFFLES

Normally I do my blogging on a Thursday or Friday when I'm at home by myself.  Not so this month as both kids are at home on holiday.  They are both quite good at entertaining themselves but nevertheless it is still just a bit more hectic than usual.  I had a small window of opportunity this morning before I had to take the kids to swimming lessons and thought I would quickly rustle up these delicious little treats of avocado and chocolate truffles.  All went to plan - kids playing contentedly outside while I played with melted chocolate and dusty cocoa powder inside.  That was until the kids popped their heads indoors and spied the bowls of melted chocolate.  By this time I was taking my photographs and was quite engrossed in what I was doing and gave a few vague nods when asked if they could lick the bowls.  Kids quiet - I carried on with my photos.  Most of my photos are taken next to an open door in the dining room and what I hadn't realised was how windy it was today.  Dusty cocoa powder sprinkled over a board with a gust of wind equals dusty cocoa powder all over cream floor tiles.  By this time I'm starting to watch the clock so no time to clean up.  Another dusting of cocoa powder is added to my board and off we go.  Kids run outside - barefoot - through the cocoa powder.  Next time I looked at the clock we had exactly 10 minutes to get ready.   The kids were called in from the garden only for me to discover they were covered in chocolate and cocoa powder. A quick wipe over, toilet check and we were out the door in 10 minutes. I patted myself on the back for arriving on time, got the kids changed, another toilet check and made our way out to the pool past the wash hand basin with the mirror placed conveniently above it.  What! What did I just see?  I stepped back to take another look in the mirror and was horrified to find that I had a generous helping of cocoa powder on my face and through my hair. "Why didn't you tell me?" I shrieked at the kids.  "Well, you always look like that" was the response.  There is not much you can say to that.  I found myself a little corner and hoped nobody would notice as I sat and picked and wiped away chocolate from head to foot.  

 Reminiscent of watching a chimp in a zoo, I'm sure.

  

 

I first came across the idea of combining chocolate and avocado from one of my favourite blogs, Strands of My Life.  I have adapted Suzanne's cupcake topping slightly by adding the melted chocolate to make a lovely rich truffle mixture which is much healthier that the traditional full cream version.  The only downside to using avocado is that the mixture doesn't keep for very long - a couple of days at the most. 

Oh well - I'd better eat up.

Chocolate Avocado Truffles

 

For the printable version - click here

Prep time: 30 minutes (includes resting time)
Cook time: n/a
Total time: 30 minutes (includes resting time)

Yield: 14 small truffles

Ingredients

• 1 ripe avocado
• 60ml cocoa powder
• 60ml honey
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 150g good quality dark chocolate

Cooking Directions

1. Melt half (75g) of the chocolate in a microwave or over a pan of boiling water.
2. Remove the flesh from the avocado and place in a small food processor.
3. Add the melted chocolate, cocoa powder, honey and vanilla essence and blend to a smooth consistency. (**Note** make sure to taste at this stage.  You should not be able to taste the avocado and if you do you will need to adjust the amount of chocolate you are using.  It will all depend on the size and variety of avocado you use.)
4. Place in a shallow dish and refrigerate for 20 minutes or until mixture is firm enough to handle.
5. Just before removing the mixture from the fridge, melt the remaining chocolate as before.
6. Using a teaspoon take enough mixture and roll between your hands to form a ball. You might find it easier to dust your hands with some additional cocoa powder to stop the mixture sticking to your hands.
7. Dip in the melted chocolate and place on a baking tray which has been lined with baking paper,
8. Decorate with sea salt flakes, chilli or drizzle with white chocolate.
9. Refrigerate to set completely.

This is my entry for this month's We Should Cocoa which is run by Chocolate Log Blog and Chocolate Teapot.  This month Elizabeth from Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary has challenged us to make small chocolates or truffles.

Written by: Angela Darroch

CHOCOLATE & RASPBERRY CREAM CUPCAKES

I woke up yesterday to the news that there was a family wedding taking place that very afternoon.  Now this wasn't your normal kind of wedding that takes 12 months to organise.  No this one had to be done in a day!  The bride, aka Puzzy and the groom, aka Fuzzy are bears that live with us and no they are not real bears - that's right - we were hosting a wedding for two stuffed bears.  My six year old son loves detail so I knew this would be a well thought out wedding.  I was right.  He made a red carpet out of cardboard which was the length of the living room floor.  All the other soft toys were laid out as guests.  A small lavender sachet became the ring cushion upon which lay a jewel any girl would be proud of.  The bride had a gorgeous fuchsia pink veil attached to her ears with clothes pegs.  The fact that she wore nothing else did not seem to concern neither my son nor my daughter.  The groom had a paper kilt made for him with a sgian-dubh attached to the front.  This was worn in typical Simon Cowell fashion - up round the armpits and again with no other clothes.  Super Monkey was brought in as the priest wearing only red briefs and a red cape.  Music was by Coldplay. 

 

 

My job in all this was Head of Catering.  The Groom requested chocolate cake and the bride wanted raspberries.  I thought I would go the extra mile and made some chocolate cupcases which once the cake was baked I placed into the chocolate cases and then decorated with cream and raspberries.

 

 

I also thought long and hard about a gift for the couple and so while all the preparations were taking place I made up this cute little cupcake holder in the shape of an oven.

I can't imagine many brides who wouldn't want a brand new pink oven to start off her new life of married bliss. 

 

This also leads me nicely into the fab competition which is being run by Rangecookers.co.uk.  All you have to do is make and blog about a cupcake to win a Select 90 dual fuel range cooker in stainless steel.  Now I may pretend to care what two stuffed bears would like for their wedding but in reality I'm thinking of a gorgeous new oven for myself.  Selfish, I know.

 

Anyway, back to the wedding.  The day was a great success - the bears are off on honeymoon to the Isle of Toyland, the kids had great fun, and I enjoyed watching the creativity that every 6 and 4 year old should be allowed to express.

 

If you would like to make these gorgeous, deliciously moist, fresh chocolate cupcakes served in their own edible chocolate cupcases and drizzled with tangy raspberry sauce (yes I really do want to win that oven) then here is the recipe ...

Chocolate & Raspberry Cream Cupcakes

For the printable version - click here

Ingredients

• 65g butter
• 50g caster sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla essence
• 1 egg
• 70g raspberry jam
• 25g self raising flour
• 70g plain flour
• 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 20g cocoa powder
• 80 ml buttermilk
• 250 ml whipping cream
• 2 tsps icing sugar
• raspberries for decoration
• raspberry sauce for decoration

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 180C, (350F).
2. Beat together the butter, caster sugar and vanilla essence until light and creamy.
3. Add the egg and beat well.
4. Add the jam and beat until smooth.
5. Fold in sifted flours, bicarbonate of soda and cocoa alternately with the buttermilk until nice and smooth.
6. Spoon mixture into cupcake cases and bake for 20 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean when inserted in the centre.
7. Leave cakes to cool completely before decorating.
8. Whip cream and icing sugar together until thick.
9. Pipe cream onto cakes and decorate with fresh raspberries and raspberry sauce.

 

  Notes : I served these cupcakes in edible chocolate cases which I made by melting chocolate and coating silicone moulds before placing in the freezer to set.  Once set, peel off the moulds and keep in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

I made the raspberry sauce by blitzing fresh raspberries with a touch of lemon juice and icing sugar to taste and then passing through a sieve to remove any seeds.

 

 

 Written by: Angela Darroch

 

 

STRAWBERRY CREAM ECLAIRS

The classic French chocolate éclair has been around for over 200 years and is loved the world over for its crisp, light as air pastry shell which is filled with crème patissiere or whipped cream and topped with chocolate fondant icing.  So why did I feel the need to mess with this classic recipe?  Because I'm a food blogger and I wanted something a bit different for this months Classic French challenge which is of course éclairs. 

 

The actual éclair was a success - lovely and crisp and hollow when opened up so don't be put off from using the following recipe.  Where I went wrong was with the cream filling.  Instead of using plain, whipped cream I tried to add some strawberry coulis to the cream and of course it wouldn't whip to the correct consistency.  I eventually whipped up another batch of cream and swirled some strawberry coulis through it but there wasn't really enough of the strawberry flavour for me.
 My next experiment was with the chocolate topping.  I had a small piece of this strawberry chocolate transfer left over from this previous bake and thought I could use it to pretty up my éclairs .   I tempered my chocolate and covered the transfer sheet with a thin layer of melted chocolate and placed it in the fridge to set.  I then cut into rectangles about the size needed for each éclair.  The trick then was to get the chocolate to soften enough so that it moulded over the éclair but not so much that the strawberry design completely melted.  I did this by placing the éclairs back in my still warm oven for a couple of minutes.  The result was not a complete success - more of a splodge of chocolate with some dodgy looking strawberries on it. I did however, enjoy the lovely crisp texture of the chocolate that you get from the tempering process.
I think I might stick to the classic version in future but would definitely add the crispy chocolate topping again (minus the chocolate transfer).

 

CHOUX PASTRY

 

For the printable version - click here

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Total time: 50 minutes

 

Yield: Enough for 6 eclairs

 

Ingredients

• 60g butter
• 125ml water
• 75g plain flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 2 large eggs

 

 

Method

 

• Heat the butter and water in a saucepan until the butter melts and the mixture comes to a boil.
• Add the flour and baking powder and stir well with a wooden spoon until the mixtures comes together in a ball and leaves the side of the pan completely clean.
• Remove from the heat and let the mixture cool down slightly.
• Once cool, add the eggs, 1 egg at a time, beating well with a wooden spoon until the dough is smooth and satiny.
• Line a baking tray with baking paper and to make éclairs - pipe the dough onto the tray in 10 cm long oblong shapes or to make profiteroles - drop spoonfuls of the dough onto the baking tray.
• Use your finger, moistened with some water to smooth off any points.
• Bake at 190C (375F) for 25 minutes or until golden brown.
• Remove from the oven and cut a small slit into each shape to remove any air.
• Return to the oven for a further 5 minutes.
• Cool completely on a wire rack.
• Fill with sweetened, whipped cream.
• Top with chocolate ganache or melted chocolate.

This month's Classic French challenge is hosted by Sarah over at the lovely Maison Cupcake blog.

 

 Written by : Angela Darroch

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

BLUEBERRY & THYME CURD TARTS

These blueberry and thyme tarts were inspired by nothing more than my love for all things purple.  I had just seen Jen's gorgeous blackcurrant & vanilla eclairs and decided I wanted to make something as colourful and vibrant and came up with these little tarts.  There wasn't much of the thyme flavour noticeable so I would probably try adding a bit more next time.  The blueberry curd is finger licking good and would look and taste lovely on any sponge cake or just served with clotted cream and scones. 

BLUEBERRY & THYME CURD TARTS

 

For the printable version - click here

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 35 minutes

Total time: 55 minutes

 

Yield: 6 individual tarts

 

Ingredients

• 250g fresh blueberries
• 3 sprigs of thyme
• Juice from 1 lemon
• 50g butter
• 225g caster sugar
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs, beaten
• 6 shortcrust pastry cases
• 80mls whipping cream

Cooking Directions

1. Put the blueberries, thyme, lemon juice and a teaspoon of water into a pan and bring to the boil.
2. Simmer for 10 minutes until the fruit is very soft.
3. Remove from the heat and push the fruit through a sieve set over a bowl to extract as much juice as possible.
4. Put the butter, sugar, vanilla extract and blueberry juice into a pan and heat until the butter has fully melted.
5. Remove from the heat and let the mixture cool down slightly before adding the beaten eggs.
6. Return to the heat and keep stirring for 20 - 25 minutes until thickened. The mixture will thicken further once cooled down.
7. I prefer to strain through a sieve once thickened just to remove any lumps.
8. Whip the cream until soft peak stage.
9. Add the blueberry curd to the cream (reserving some curd for decoration) and mix well.
10. Pour into the tart cases and smooth the tops.
11. Stir some of the reserved curd through the mixture to decorate.
12. Refrigerate until set.

I am entering these into this months Tea Time Treats challenge hosted alternately by Karen at Lavender & Lovage and Kate of What Kate Baked as this months challenge is fresh fruit.

 

 

Written by : Angela Darroch

BAKED BUTTERNUT

This month's Feel Good Food challenge is Maple syrup.  Now I have to admit to being slightly disappointed when I heard what the ingredient was. I have always found Maple syrup to be overpriced and I just can't get used to the consistency.  I guess it is just what you are used to.  However, in the spirit of the challenge I bought myself some middle of the range Canadian syrup and was shocked to read that my little bottle required 13 litres of tree sap .  No wonder it is so expensive! 

 

So, now to find something healthy to cook with my new acquisition.  This has proved harder than I thought.  There are plenty of recipes for sweet, sticky ribs, flapjacks, biscuits, cakes but nothing that I would term healthy.  The best that I have been able to come up with is this very traditional South African way of cooking butternut.  South Africans like their vegetables cooked with butter and brown sugar so I thought I would make it 'slightly' healthier by using Maple syrup instead of the brown sugar.  Victoria of A Kick At The Pantry Door has assured us that Maple syrup is a healthier option. I haven't cooked butternut like this for many years as my husband likes his vegetable au naturale.  When I dished these up on his plate his first reaction was one of pleasure but he was quick to ask how I had done them.  Needless to say, as nice as this dish is I don't think we will be eating it every week. 

One to bring out for that special occasion I think.

BAKED BUTTERNUT
 

For the printable version - click here

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 60 minutes

Total time: 1 hour 10 minutes

 

Yield: Serves 4

 

 

Ingredients

• 500g butternut, peeled and cut into large chunks
• 50g butter
• 2 tblsps maple syrup
• 2 sticks cinnamon
• Smoked paprika

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F).
2. Place the butternut in a roasting tin with the cinnamon stick.
3. Melt the butter and syrup together and pour over the butternut.
4. Lightly dust with smoked paprika.
5. Baked, covered with foil for 45 to 60 minutes.
6. For the last 10 minutes, remove the foil to let the liquid evaporate.

 

Written by : Angela Darroch

 

BAKED DOUGHNUT MUFFINS

The latest Bake Along challenge is for these lovely baked doughnut muffins from The Back in the Day Bakery Cookbook by Cheryl and Griffith Day.  I can't remember ever making traditional fried doughnuts and to be honest they would never be top of my list for a tea time treat.  I would probably have given this challenge a miss had it not been for my complete failure at making the last challenge which was a Japanese cheesecake.  I'm so glad I did try these as they are much nicer (in my opinion) than the heavy, fried version which seems to be so popular these days. 

 I made large muffins but I think next time I would opt for the smaller version as they would probably be easier to handle.  My favourite version so far has been Bake For Happy Kids which were done in a cake pop tin.  They look like the perfect size.

 

 

BAKED DOUGHNUT MUFFINS

 

For the printable version - click here

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 25 minutes

Total time: 45 minutes

 

Yield: 6 large or 12 small muffins

 

Ingredients

• 335g plain flour
• ⅛ tsp baking soda
• 1¼ tsp baking powder
• ¼ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
• 100ml milk
• 1 tblsp plain yogurt
• 70g butter
• 85g sugar
• 1 egg

 

For the coating:

• 70g butter
• 100g sugar
• ½ tblsp ground cinnamon

 

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F).
2. Lightly grease a muffin tray for 6 large or 12 small muffins.
3. Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon in a mixing bowl and set aside.
4. Combine the milk and yogurt in a small jug and set aside.
5. Using a mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
6. Add the egg and beat until just combined.
7. Add the flour mixture in thirds, alternating with the milk mixture and mix until just combined - do not over mix.
8. Spoon the batter into the prepared tin, filling approximately ⅔ full.
9. Bake for 25 minutes until golden brown and firm to touch.
10. For the coating - melt the butter and place in a bowl.
11. In a separate bowl, combine the sugar and cinnamon.
12. Once the muffins have cooled completely, dunk first in the melted butter and then coat with the cinnamon sugar.                         

 

Best eaten fresh.

 

I will be submitting to Bake Along #43 hosted by Joyce from Kitchen Flavours, 

Lena from Frozen Wings and Zoe from Bake For Happy Kids.

 

 

 

 

Written by : Angela Darroch

STRAWBERRY TARTS

 

This month's Classic French challenge is a French fruit tart.  Now, in all the times I have visited France I don't think I have ever been tempted to buy one of those glossy, sweet tarts that seem to adorn every French patisserie window that you pass.  I think it is the thought of cold custard that has always put me off.  So when Jen of Blue Kitchen Bakes set the challenge I decided to give them a go.  They were quite easy to make and would make a delicious dessert that would go well with most menus.  They were not overly sweet and were very light.

Delicious!

 

 

STRAWBERRY TARTS

 

For the printable version - click here

Yield: 6 small individual tarts

 

Ingredients

• 6 individual sweet shortcrust pastry cases (recipe here)
• 4 large egg yolks
• 65g caster sugar
• 15g plain flour
• 15g cornflour
• 350ml full cream milk
• 1 vanilla pod
• 600g fresh strawberries
• 1 tblsp seedless strawberry jam

Cooking Directions

1. Using a sharp knife, split the vanilla pod lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. Add them, along with the pod, to the milk in a saucepan. Bring almost to the boil, being careful not to let it burn.
2. Remove the milk from the heat, strain and set to one side.
3. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until light in colour.
4. Add in the flour and cornflour and mix well.
5. Slowly pour the hot milk onto the egg mixture, whisking all the time.
6. Return the mixture back to the pan and bring back to the boil and simmer for one minute, whisking continuously, or until smooth.
7. Remove from the heat and cover with wax paper pressed directly against the surface of the pastry cream to prevent a skin forming.
8. Refrigerate until chilled.
9. To assemble the tarts - fill the pastry cases about 3/4 full with pastry cream and decorate the top with whole, fresh strawberries or sliced as I have done.
10. To glaze the tarts - Heat the strawberry jam until just melted and brush lightly over the strawberries.

Notes :

When making custard I always use a balloon whisk to stir the mixture whilst it is in the pan.  This prevents any lumps forming but remember to not use your best non stick pans if you do this.  I don't know how many pans I have ruined this way!

If you think the custard has turned a bit lumpy then pour through a sieve and your problem is solved.

If you want to prepare the tarts well in advance it is probably best to seal the pastry cases before you add the pastry cream.  Brush the baked cases lightly with some egg white and then pop back in the oven for 1 minute to seal.  This should prevent a soggy bottom.

Written by Angela Darroch

STRAWBERRY & CREAM LAYER CAKE

In the build up to Fathers Day I asked my hubby if he had any preference as to how he would like to spend it.  "How about you do the barbecue this week" was the reply.  "Uh, ok if that's really what you want" was my less than enthusiastic response "but what if it rains?"  "Ok, then I would like a big juicy steak with mushroom sauce and roasted butternut."  Now that is more like it but I still wanted something a bit more extravagant.  "How about a dessert?" I tried.  "Nah, no thanks" and that was that.  No fun for me in the kitchen on Fathers Day.  Well, that is until I saw the theme for The Sunday Baking Club which is Summer Sunshine Week. 

 

 

Now I don't think I've seen the sun all week but summer to me is fresh strawberries and lashings of cream. I had bought this chocolate transfer sheet from Squires Kitchen a while ago and was desperate to try it out so what more of an excuse does a girl need.

 

  Into the kitchen I went and whipped up a four layer sponge cake but later decided that would just be completely over the top so only used three of the layers.

 I then blended some of the less than perfect strawberries together with some icing sugar and a dash of lemon juice to make a lovely, tangy strawberry sauce.

  I then whipped up some fresh cream and chopped up some fresh strawberries. I layered all this together and then moved on to the fun part.

  I melted some dark chocolate and spread this over the transfer sheet and placed it in the fridge for 10 minutes or so until it set.

I then removed it from the fridge and peeled the transfer sheet off and revealed the most beautiful piece of chocolate with strawberries on it.

  I broke this up into shards and placed them round my cake.

I added some whole strawberries on the top and drizzled with some more strawberry sauce and hey presto - a cake full of British Summer goodness.

 

So for all the special Dads out there but especially for my Dad and my hubby

HAPPY FATHERS DAY

 

 

I used the sponge mixture from here but only because I like a dense sponge.  Any good Victoria sponge recipe will do.

 

 

 Tea Time Treats which is hosted by What Kate Baked  and Lavender and Lovage has a theme of layer cakes this month so here we go ....

 

I'm also submitting this to A Mummy Too's weekly blog hop

 

LAMB KOFTA CURRY

I've spoken before about my love for hot, spicy food and this lamb kofta is one of my favourite midweek curries. 

The kofta mixture is very versatile - make small meatballs, shallow fry them in oil and serve with chutney or a yoghurt dip as an appetiser, mould them on to skewers and char-grill and serve as a starter or cook them in this curry sauce for a more substantial meal. 

 I always make this quantity and then freeze any surplus meatballs and sauce separately, ready for a quick home made meal when I don't feel like going to too much trouble.

When served with the curry sauce, they are quite spicy but it is easy enough to tone down the chilli if you prefer.

 

For the printable version - click here
 

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 1 hour

Total time: 1 hour 15 minutes

 

Yield: 6

 

Ingredients

• 1 small onion, roughly chopped
• 5 cm piece of ginger
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 green chillies, seeds removed
• 15 g coriander (cilantro) leaves
• 2 tblsps plain yoghurt
• 500 g minced lamb
• 2½ tsps ground cumin
• 1½ tsps ground coriander
• 2 tsps garam masala
• ¼ tsp chilli powder
• 2½ tsps salt
• ½ tsp black pepper

 

•  For the sauce
• 3 tblsp ghee or sunflower oil
• 2 medium onions, roughly chopped
• 10 cm piece of ginger
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• ½ tsp chilli powder
• 3 tsp garam masala
• ¼ tsp asafoetida
• 4 ripe tomatoes roughly chopped
• 1 tblsp tomato puree
• 500 ml lamb stock
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 4 curry leaves
• 200 ml water

Cooking Directions

1. To make the kofta, blend the onion, ginger, garlic, green chillies and the coriander leaves together in a food processor until they form a paste.
2. Put the lamb mince in a bowl, add the paste, yoghurt, spices, salt & pepper and mix well with your hands until thoroughly combined.
3. Cover and put in the freezer to rest while you make the sauce. (You just want it super chilled - not frozen).
4. To make the sauce, heat the ghee in a large saucepan and gently fry the onions, garlic and ginger until softened and lightly browned.
5. Add the chilli powder, garam masala, and asafoetida and stir well.
6. Add the chopped tomatoes and cook for a couple of minutes to release some of the juice.
7. Add the stock and tomato puree and season with black pepper.
8. Add the cinnamon stick and curry leaves and bring to a simmer.
9. Partially cover with a lid and cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
10. Remove the sauce from the heat and discard the cinnamon and curry leaves.
11. Blend the sauce until as smooth as possible.
12. Return to the heat, add 200 ml water and bring back to a simmer.
13. Remove meat mixture from the freezer.
14. Using wet hands, shape the mixture into meatballs about the size of a walnut. you should get between 25 and 30.
15. Drop all the meatballs gently into the sauce mixture and return to a simmer.
16. Cook, uncovered for a further 30 minutes, stirring regularly.
17. Serve the meatballs with rice and topped with yoghurt and fresh coriander leaves      

 

Written by Angela Darroch  

 

The sauce is adapted from BBC Food

CHOCOLATE MINT BROWNIES

Chocolate and mint is this month's theme for the We Should Cocoa challenge which is run by Choclette of Chocolate Log Blog and Chele over at Chocolate Teapot and which is being hosted this month by Victoria of A Kick at the Pantry Door.  Now I am not a huge fan of mint and rarely cook with fresh mint but hand me a bar of mint chocolate or a box of After Eight mints and I am a happy bunny.  I decided to try and add a mint layer to my usual brownie recipe but to be honest I wasn't convinced that I would like them, thinking the flavour would be just too strong.  How wrong I was - the mint layer is very addictive, subtle and smells so fresh and is lovely together with the rich, fudgy brownie layer and the crisp, dark chocolate layer on top.  They are rich and could probably be cut into smaller pieces giving you 18 portions instead of the 9 which I cut but that is up to you. 

 The one thing to remember when baking brownies is to take them out the oven when they are still slightly 'sticky' in the middle and they are always better the next day.

Enjoy!!

  

For the printable version - click here

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 35 minutes

Total time: 55 minutes

 

Yield: 9 servings

 

Ingredients for Brownie Layer

• 100 g butter
• 100 g plain chocolate
• 300 g caster sugar
• pinch of salt
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 125 g plain flour
• 2 tblsp cocoa powder

 

Ingredients for Mint Layer

 

30 g soft butter

100 g icing sugar

1 tblsp natural yogurt

½ tsp peppermint essence

green food colouring

 

Ingredients for Chocolate Layer

 

100 g dark chocolate

15 g butter

 

 

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
2. Butter and line the base of an 18cm square tin with greaseproof paper.
3. Melt the butter and chocolate over a pan of simmering water. Remove from the heat and cool slightly.
4. Stir in the sugar, salt and vanilla.
5. Add the eggs, one at a time, stirring well until blended.
6. Add the flour and cocoa and beat for 30 seconds until smooth.
7. Spoon the mixture into the tin and bake for 35 - 40 minutes. If you insert a skewer it should come out slightly sticky.    
8. While the brownies are baking prepare the mint layer by adding the butter, icing sugar and yogurt to a mixing bowl and beat with a mixer until soft and creamy.
9. Add the peppermint essence a bit at a time, tasting as you go.  Different brands have different strengths and you don't want to overdo the flavour.
10. Add the food colouring, drop by drop and mix well until you have a nice, soft green.
11. Once the brownies have cooled down completely, spread the mint layer over the top.  I found it easier to leave them in the tin to do this.
12. Place in the refrigerator to set while you prepare the chocolate layer.
13. Melt the chocolate and butter in the microwave or in a bowl over a pan of simmering water.
14. Cool slightly and then spread over the mint layer.
15. Leave to cool until the chocolate layer has set.
16. To cut into slices it is easier to dip your knife into hot water to prevent the chocolate layer from cracking.

 

 

 

 ** The mint layer was adapted from The Joy of Baking.com

 

 



FLUFFY PUFF PUFFS - REVIEW

I was recently sent a little goodie bag of soft, fluffy gourmet marshmallows from an online company called Fluffy Puff Puffs.  I've only ever had the standard pink and white marshmallows which you find in the supermarket and more recently I attempted to make my own which you can see here.  

 

 The company have a good selection of flavours and are continually adding new ones.  I was sent Lime Punch, Love Currant, Sugar & Spice and Raspberry.  My favourite was definitely the Sugar & Spice which reminded me of eating Snickerdoodles as a child.  They are coated in sugar which gives them a nice crunch in contrast to the soft, fluffy mallow.  My least favourite was the Lime Punch and I think it had more to do with the colour than the flavour.  It is very, very green which to me was just a bit off putting.  The Raspberry and the Love Currant were both nicely flavoured.  There are no preservatives so the shelf life is quite short - which just means you have to eat them all up quickly.  I did look up to see what they use for food colouring and they use the PME food colouring range which is between 85 - 100% natural.  PME do however use E133 (Brilliant Blue) in some of the colours which I know can be a problem for some people.

 

These little puffs of sweetness would make a lovely and unusual gift for someone with a sweet tooth.  If you fancy trying Salted Caramel marshmallows (why, why didn't I get this one??), or marshmallows drizzled with chocolate then pop over to their website to see all the lovely flavours available.

 

I was sent a free sample and was not paid for this post.  All opinions are my own.

TOFFEE CUPCAKES

The latest theme for the Bake Along challenge is Celebration Cupcakes. 

 The girls have been baking together for two years now and I wish them well for the next year and look forward to joining in many more bake along events.

 

I wanted to make something that was a little bit indulgent as that is what I associate with a celebration.  The cupcakes themselves are standard vanilla cupcakes so feel free to use your own tried and tested recipe if you have one.  The toffee cream is super indulgent and once you add a bit of caramel sauce over the top you have something worthy of any celebration.

 

We had nothing in particular to celebrate but it didn't stop us from enjoying every little morsel.

 

For the printable version - click here

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 20 minutes

Total time: 40 minutes

 

Yield: 8 large or 12 small cupcakes

 

Ingredients

• 225 g plain flour
• 110 g caster sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 egg, beaten
• 150 ml milk
• 50 ml sunflower oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

 

• Caramel sauce see here for recipe

 

•  For the toffee cream
• 110 g sugar
• 2 tblsp water
• 400 ml cream

 

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 200C, 400F, Gas 6.
2. Arrange 8 - 12 paper cases in baking tin.
3. Sift the flour, sugar and baking powder into a mixing bowl.
4. Whisk together the egg, milk, oil and vanilla.
5. Stir in the dry ingredients until combined.
6. Spoon the mixture into the paper cases and bake for 20 minutes until golden brown.
7. Cool in the tin for 5 minutes.
8. To make the toffee cream, heat the sugar and water in a pan over a medium heat until the sugar has dissolved. You should not need to stir.
9. Continue cooking, and again do not stir, until the sugar turns a golden amber.
10. Remove from the heat.
11. Slowly pour the cream into the pan. It will bubble up but not enough to spill over the edge of the pan.
12. Stir until well combined.
13. Chill well, stirring occasionally.
14. Whisk the toffee cream until soft peaks form.
15. Arrange the toffee cream over the top of the cupcakes.
16. Drizzle with caramel sauce and serve.

 

       

A happy 2nd birthday to the Bake Along girls,
Zoe, of  Bake for Happy Kids, Joyce of Kitchen Flavours and Lena of Frozen Wings
 

 
 
Written by : Angela Darroch
 
 

TRES LECHES CAKE

If I had to name my top guilty pleasure it would have to be dairy products.  From a simple cheese sandwich accompanied with a cold glass of milk to a fresh scone topped with jam and clotted cream and then of course there is hot toast dripping with salted butter.  I could go on and on...  I'm very much aware that these all have to be eaten in moderation but that is what a guilty pleasure is all about - you know it's bad for you but you just can't help yourself.  Well you can imagine my delight when I saw that the latest theme for Bake Along is Tres Leches cake. 

 

 

I had never heard of it before and on further reading discovered it to be a light sponge cake soaked in not one, not two but three different kinds of milk. I am not a fan of soggy desserts and couldn't imagine that this cake would not have a 'soggy bottom' and was intrigued enough to give it a go. You definitely have to leave it soaking overnight to avoid the soggy texture and even after that the ends were still a little wet BUT it was delicious. The final result is more sticky than wet and you will find yourself seeking out the wet bits because they are so moreish. As a family we very seldom finish off a whole cake but this one disappeared in a flash. I even discovered my hubby had had a sneaky slice and that is very unusual as he does not have a sweet tooth. Most of the recipes I had seen suggested serving with cream and fresh fruit and it was good this way but I think I preferred it just on its own.

 

 

A very delicious, sticky and surprisingly light Latin American treat.

 

For the printable version - click here 

TRES LECHES CAKE

Prep time: 25 minutes

Cook time: 35 minutes plus resting time

Total time: 1 hour plus resting time

Yield: 6 - 12 depending on size of slices

Ingredients

• 4 large eggs, separated
• 200g caster sugar
• 200g plain flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 100ml milk
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 200g (½ standard tin) sweetened condensed milk
• 200g (½ standard tin) evaporated milk
• 200ml single cream

 

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas 4.
2. Grease and line a 23cm/9in square cake tin.
3. Beat the egg yolks with 2/3 of the sugar on high speed until the yolks are pale and creamy.
4. Add the milk and vanilla extract and combine well.
5. Add the flour and baking powder to your mixture and stir very gently until combined.
6. Beat the egg whites on high speed until soft peaks form. Add the remaining sugar and beat until egg whites are stiff.
7. Fold the egg white mixture into the batter very gently until just combined.
8. Pour into prepared tin and bake for 35 - 40 minutes until a skewer comes out clean.        
9. While the cake is baking - combine the condensed milk, evaporated milk, and cream in a small bowl.
10. As soon as the cake comes out the oven, prick all over with a skewer and slowly pour over your milk mixture. (I left my cake in the tin).
11. Leave the cake overnight (in the fridge) to absorb all the liquid. (I turned my cake over once during this time so that any excess liquid drained back down into the cake).
12. Decorate with whipped cream and fresh fruit or just serve as is.      

Adapted from BBC Food

I am very happy to finally be able to submit a post to Bake Along which is hosted by Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids, Joyce of My Kitchen Flavours and Lena of Frozen Wings.