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February 27, 2008
A buttercake called Mango ....
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I have been baking for a few years now, but it wasn't until recently when I ate a gorgeous buttercake made by a neighbour that i realized the importance of using good quality, no skimping, golden wholesome butter. For health reasons and out of sheer laziness, I have been using margarine or spreads that call themselves butter, just so that I can start baking at the drop of a hat and not have to wait to soften the butter for the recipe. Yes, the cakes always turn out light and fluffy and yes, they are always cooked to perfection, but there is something missing. It is the rich homemade buttery taste that comes from using real butter. So, I decided to make a butter cake using real butter, but I wanted to try out something different from the same old boring butter cakes of the past. Browsing through the fridge I came across the mango puree left over from the mango and toasted coconut semifreddo and instantly made up my mind to make a mango butter cake. I googled it and didn't come across anything good, has no one out there ever tried out this delightful combination I wondered? So I settled on the sofa with my ever trusted copy of Donna Hay's "Modern Classics 2" and studied her butter cake recipe. After tweaking it mentally, I started assembling the ingredients. It was important to have the amount of liquid right, so I halved the milk and substituted it with mango puree. I also replaced vanilla essence with lemon and skipped the bicarbonate of soda, using more baking powder instead. I was quite happy with the result, finally a butter cake that was pure mango in the most basic sense ... no mango fillings, no mango toppings ... just plain buttery, mango flavour through each gorgeous browned crumb. [Note : I might substitute milk for buttermilk next time to try to enhance the sour tangy flavour of mango.] MANGO BUTTER CAKE Ingredients Method More Notes : Go crazy with toppings and fillings if you may before serving but this cake deserves to be eaten as is and warm from the oven. I would even slice it, toast it and butter it some more for an extra kick. |
Posted by Gel at 5:20 PM | | Comments (1)
February 25, 2008
Step By Step : How to make a traditional Pavlova
Step 1
Line a baking tray with baking paper. Mark a 23 cm circle onto the paper. Use a plate as a guide.
Step 2
Beat eggwhites until stiff peaks form or they hold their shape. Use a clean, dry bowl to beat eggwhites as any water or fat will reduce the volume of the eggwhites. Spoon the eggwhite mixture onto the circle.
Step 3
Using a palette knife or spatula, mold the eggwhite mixture to fit inside the circle.
Step 4
Make furrows or grooves along the sides of the circle. These will help support the pavlova and prevent it from cracking or collapsing.
Posted by Gel at 11:25 AM | | Comments (0)
February 24, 2008
My one occasional sin - Oaty Chocolate Caramel Slice
How many times have you overlooked those little pull-out cards accompanying a product advertisement in a cooking magazine? Well I have plenty of times, until one fine day last year I paused over one that caught my eye. It was a totally random occurrence and now when I think back, I am glad I did. The product was Nestle's dark chocolate bits and they had a recipe for "Chocolate Caramel Slice" featured on the card with a gorgeous photo of the most perfect slice I had ever seen. The inclusion of oats in the recipe sold it to me really fast, as I thought to myself "Ah well, a little bit of healthy breakfasty with a whole lot of sinful chocolatey and caramelly!!".
So, then I made it for a Playgroup breakfast one morning and it was a hit. I tweaked it a bit and tried it again for a barbecue get-together the following weekend. It was devoured in seconds. Then for a picnic lunch the following month and then one morning for no simple reason at all, since Nick kept asking when I was making it next. I have forgotten the countless times I must have made it since first laying an eye on that card which is now pinned to my recipe diary. It is simple and brilliant in its sinful taste. I am playing around with the idea of making it this week, since I haven't made these in a while. Just the thought of sinking my teeth through a well set, thin layer of dark chocolate to the gooey, buttery caramel and ending with an oaty, coconutty crunch is making my taste buds tingle.
OATY CHOCOLATE CARAMEL SLICE
[Makes 20/Prep Time : 20mins/Cook Time : 25 mins]
Ingredients
1 cup self raising flour, sifted
1 cup dessicated coconut
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup brown sugar
150 g butter, melted
350 g sweetened condensed milk
2 tablespoons golden syrup
30 g extra butter
200 g dark couverture chocolate, melted
Method
Preheat oven to 180ºC. Combine flour, oats, coconut, butter and sugar in a bowl. Mix well.
Press into the base of a 18cm x 28cm lamington/slice pan lined with non-stick baking paper hanging over the edge. Bake for 10 minutes until golden. Combine condensed milk, golden syrup and extra butter in pan and bring to a boil stirring constantly. Reduce heat, simmer for 5 minutes stirring until it reaches a light brown colour. Pour caramel over cooked base, return to the oven and bake for a further 10 minutes. Cool. Spread the melted couverture chocolate over the caramel filling in swirling motions. Chill in the fridge for at least 1-2 hours before slicing into neat squares.
Posted by Gel at 1:05 PM | | Comments (2)
February 20, 2008
Thai Pineapple Fried Rice : The textures and flavours
Nick loves Thai Pineapple Fried Rice, the singular thing on any thai menu that jumps out and calls out to his taste buds. It is a shame then that ever since moving to Sydney he has been searching in vain for a decent bowl of pineapple fried rice. Strange as it may seem, not all thai joints offer this simple delicacy. I remember back in Singapore we had dinner at a beautiful Thai restaurant called 'Parkway Thai' in Marine Parade. Not only did the gorgeous decor of gold figurines, bamboo lights and artistically cut fruit centerpieces delight us but we were thoroughly impressed with the friendly and sweet waitresses all clad in traditional garb. And then their pineapple fried rice served in a scooped out pineapple just exceeded all our expectations. I would love to go there the next time I am in Singapore and I am sure Nick wouldn't mind a taste of their fantastic fried rice.
So today with a hankering for this very simple yet special dish, I cooked a batch of fragrant jasmine rice early in the morning to be used later. Then I browsed Vatcharin Bhumichitr's "Vatch's Thai Street Food" for inspiration and did indeed find a recipe for 'Fried Rice With Pineapple' that called for dried black fungus mushrooms. Not entirely satisfied with the list of ingredients I persevered and delved into the "Australian Women's Weekly Thai" and "World Food Thailand by Judy Williams". After taking comfort in the fact that I could safely substitute the exotic mushroom with fish sauce without compromising the taste much, I was ready to begin. I assembled ingredients in two lots, one for the flavour and the other for texture. After seasoning my wok and smoking it on high heat, I had the pineapple fried rice ready in just under 10 minutes. Now isn't that simple?
Ingredients
2 cups fragrant jasmine rice [I use the golden umbrella brand]
2 1/2 cups water
1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
1 tbsp chicken stock powder
1 tbsp olive oil
1 cup frozen prawn meat
1 cup finely diced pineapple pieces
1 medium white onion, diced
1/4 cup finely sliced garlic chives
1/4 cup finely sliced spring onions
1/4 cup freshly chopped coriander leaves
1 tsp dried red chilli flakes
2 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground white pepper
1 tbsp oil
Method
Soak rice in water for 1/2 hour. Add chicken stock, ginger garlic paste and olive oil. Cook in a rice cooker. Set aside to cool.
Smoke a wok on high heat. Heat oil. Add onions and prawns and stir fry for 2-3 minutes till prawns are cooked and onions start turning golden. Add pineapple pieces, stir-frying for another 2 minutes till some of the pieces are singed around the edges. Add cooled rice, soy sauce, fish sauce, salt, sugar and white pepper. Stir-fry for 2 minutes, mixing well. Add garlic chives, spring onions, coriander and chilli flakes. Stir-fry for another minute. Remove from heat and serve hot.
Posted by Gel at 9:37 AM | | Comments (1)
February 12, 2008
Fast Stir-Fry for the kids : Spinach Fried Rice
Feeding my 4 year old is becoming more and more of a challenge with the ever looming dilemma of trying to sneak in healthy ingredients. Sometimes I wonder why he can't expand his mind's horizon beyond the noodles, yoghurt and cheese that he seems to have an unfaltering devotion for? What I have figured out is that he gets excited about colour and itty bitty little pieces. Doesn't make sense I know but that is the mind of a 4-year old for you. So one wet, dreary afternoon when I had enough of the goopy, mess of noodles that he seems to love for lunch everyday, I decided to give him something colourful and yep you got it .... with itty bitty little things in it. With rice leftover from dinner, my mind immediately thought of fried rice. With little wheels turning in my head, I started picking out colourful, nutritious ingredients from the fridge .... a cube of frozen spinach, some frozen green peas, a pork sausage, a carrot, spring onions, ginger garlic paste and egg. A quick trip to the pantry and I had soy sauce and chicken stock. Within 10 minutes I had a plate of steaming fried rice speckled with red and green.
The beauty of fried rice lies in the fact that it uses up leftovers and produces brilliant results ... a different one each time as you play around with what you throw into the wok. I find that using powdered chicken stock adds a very authentic salty chinese flavour to the dish without overcompensating on the soy sauce. I served it to him on a blue IKEA plate with a bright yellow fork. I think all the colours sold it to him and he was very excited. For once he acted upon his excitement and enjoyed the meal instead of pushing it around his plate.
SPINACH FRIED RICE
[Serves : 2/Prep Time : 5 mins/Cook Time : 5-8 mins]
Ingredients
2 cups cooked leftover jasmine rice
1 small pork sausage, finely diced
1/4 cup frozen green peas
1 small carrot, neatly diced
2 small frozen spinach cubes
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tbsp chicken stock powder
1 tsp dark soy sauce
1 tsp ginger garlic paste
1/4 cup finely sliced spring onions
1 tbsp olive oil
Method
Heat oil in a wok on high heat. Add ginger garlic paste and stir fry for a few seconds. Add sausage, carrot, spinach and peas. Stir-fry for a minute. Add rice, soy sauce and chicken stock. Stir-fry for 2 minutes, mixing well. Push rice to one side in the wok and pour in the egg slowly on the other side, stirring rapidly till it resembles cooked scrambled egg. Mix it with the rest of the rice. Add spring onions and remove from heat. Serve hot.
Posted by Gel at 4:31 PM | | Comments (1)
February 9, 2008
Nick's Lamb Kofta Curry
For those of you who don't know Nick, he is my significant other and a good cook. He particularly enjoys picking up a cookbook and trying out a new recipe every once in a while. He was the one who introduced me to this lovely dish called "Parsi Egg" back when we were still at university. And he mastered the famous "Singaporean Chilli Crab" when we were living in Singapore. His "Paneer Bhurji" is to die for and he can dish out a mean "Lamb Kheema". But more about those later, because today I am about to share one of his latest experiments "Lamb Kofta Curry".
A couple of months ago I bought "The Food Of India" off ebay. It is a brilliant book and when I say brilliant, I mean it. It is hard to beat the authenticity of the recipes, the tastes of signature Indian dishes true to the versions dished out in restaurants in India on a daily basis. We have tried quite a few recipes from this book and they have never failed to satisfy our palates. Over the Christmas break, Nick had a hankering for lamb and wanted to do something different from the usual roasts and kebabs. A few minutes after browsing the book, he came into the kitchen a merry twinkle in his eye and told me that he was going to whip up something exciting. So off I went to put my feet up and wait. Within the hour delicious smells were tantalizing my taste buds and come lunchtime he had managed to lay out the table with a plate of Lamb Kofta Curry beautifully presented. Koftas are essentially meatballs and when gently simmered in a cream or yoghurt based gravy/curry become oh so tender and infused with the flavours of a million spices.
NICK'S LAMB KOFTA CURRY
Recipe courtesy 'The Food Of India' by Priya Wickramasinghe and Carol Selva Rajah
Serves : 4 | Prep Time : 30 mins + 2 hours to chill the koftas | Cooking Time : 1 hour
Ingredients for Kofta
500g minced lamb
2cm piece of ginger, grated
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 green chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
1 onion
1 egg
1/2 tsp salt
Ingredients for the Curry
200g tin chopped tomatoes
150ml thick natural yoghurt
1 onion, finely chopped
2 tsp coriander seeds
2 tsp cumin seed
10cm piece of cinnamon
6 cardamom pods
6 cloves
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp salt
3 tbsp oil
freshly chopped coriander leaves
To Make the kofta,
grate the onion, put it in a sieve and use a spoon to press out as much liquid as possible. Put it in a bowl and combine with the lamb, ginger, garlic, green chilli, salt and egg. Mix well, and divide into 20 equal portions. Shape each into a ball. Cover with clingfilm and refrigerate for 2 hours.
To Make the curry,
place a small frying pan over low heat and dry-roast the coriander seeds until aromatic. Remove, then dry-roast the cumin seeds. Grind the roasted mixture to a powder using a mortar and pestle. Heat oil in a karahi or heavy bottomed frying pan. Add the cinnamon stick, cardamom pods, cloves and onion. Fry until, the onion turns golden. Add all the ground spices and salt. Sauté for 30 seconds. Stir in the tomato and remove from heat. Slowly stir in the yoghurt and mix well. Return the pan to heat, slide in the koftas and bring to a boil. Simmer uncovered for 50 minutes over very low heat. Gently shake the pan from time to time to prevent the koftas from sticking. If the curry starts drying out add a little bit of water and continue cooking. Serve hot garnished with coriander leaves.
Posted by Gel at 8:20 PM | | Comments (1)
February 8, 2008
Krups GVS2 Ice Cream Maker Reviewed with Mango & Toasted Coconut Semifreddo
I was very excited to try the new Krups GVS2 Ice Cream Maker when it arrived the day before. After unpacking and the box and making sure everything was in place, I briefly browsed through the manual. As per the instructions I placed the main tub in the freezer where it would sit for the next 24 hours. A couple of hours later I had been through "Iced" and a couple of cooking magazines waiting to be inspired by an ice cream recipe, inspired enough to try it out instead of just drooling over the pictures and fantasizing about the taste. When I came across the "Mango & Toasted Coconut Semifreddo" recipe in the launch issue of Donna Hay's magazine, I found the inspiration I was looking for.
The Krups manual did not have any instructions on different operations for different kinds of iced treats like ice cream, semifreddo or granita. I figured that the machine would churn them all just the same, but the different ingredients in different recipes would produce a whole new end-result. I prepared the semifreddo mix and popped it in the fridge to chill for 12 hours, again as per instructions. Once the tub had been in the freezer for 24 hours, I got it out and poured in the mix following all the steps in the manual. 25-30 minutes later the semifreddo was ready, a runny albeit very creamy and slushy treat. I scooped it out in a tupperware freezer container and stuffed it on one of the shelves of my exploding freezer. Overnight it transformed into a firm, delicious dessert. The recipe was fantastic and I had followed it to a T with a minor addition and a slight tweaking, I kid you not but it was the most gorgeous ice cream ... oh sorry .. semifreddo I have ever tasted. The Krups GVS2 passed with flying colours. For the price it comes at, it provides fantastic value. Some might say that the entire process takes too long, and they won't be wrong but even if you were to skip using an ice cream maker and make iced treats from scratch the old-fashioned way [see my sweet corn ice cream recipe], it would probably take you the same amount of time plus more effort. I think a little bit of extra time and effort is a small price to pay for the deep rooted satisfaction of making ice cream at home. That being said, I now leave you to enjoy the recipe.
MANGO & TOASTED COCONUT SEMIFREDDO
Adapted from Donna Hay's "Holiday" Launch Issue Magazine
Makes 1 litre/Serves 6-8| Prep Time : Forever | Making Time : 25 minutes
Ingredients
1 1/4 cups store bought mango puree [I used a can of pureed 'Kesar' mangoes from India]
1 3/4 cups cream
1/2 cup caster sugar
1 cup caster sugar, extra
3 eggs
3 egg yolks, extra
1/2 cup toasted shredded coconut [I lightly toasted moist, shredded coconut in a dry pan on low heat]
1 tbsp milk powder
Method
Place the mango puree and sugar in a saucepan over medium to low heat. Allow to simmer for 5 minutes until the sugar dissolves and mixture thickens. Set aside to cool.
Place the eggs, egg yolks and extra sugar in a heatproof bowl. Place over a saucepan of shimmering water and whisk the mixture for 5 minutes until heated through and frothy. Remove from heat, add milk powder and beat with an electric mixture for 5-6 minutes until pale and thick. Gently fold through the mango mixture.
Beat cream in the bowl of an electric mixture until very soft peaks form. Fold the egg mixture and coconut through the cream. If not using an ice cream maker, pour mixture in a metal pan lined with non-stick baking paper, cover with foil and freeze for 4-6 hours until firm. If using an ice cream maker, follow manufacturer's instructions.
Posted by Gel at 4:02 PM | | Comments (4)
February 7, 2008
Chunky Chocolate Chip & Cashew Nut Cookies
While perusing the Australian Women's Weekly "Cookies" cookbook yesterday, the 'Slice and Bake cookies' caught my eye. Actually it was the photography that drew me to this particular recipe. Who can resist a motley of various shaped glass cookie jars stacked randomly with cookies filled in some, a cute little wooden pinnochio figurine resting in one? On examining the recipe further and assuring myself that I had all the ingredients, I decided to make one of the four variations given along with the recipe. Although interesting I wasn't in the mood for 'orange and poopy seed', 'lemon and craisin', 'pecan and cinnamon' or m&m's. Digging into my baking stash, I came up with a half used bag of dark chocolate chips and a small packet of dry roasted, unsalted cashew nuts which seemed like a great combo. After preparing the cookie dough and chilling it for the said amount of time, I found that it was quite difficult to slice the cookies as the chunky bits of chocolate chip and cashew nuts would interfere and fall of the slice in the process. So I rolled out the dough and cut round shapes with a cookie cutter that sliced through the chocolate bits and cashew nuts around the edges with perfection. What started out as a plain slice and bake cookie eventually became a non-sliced chocolate chip and cashew nut cookie.
CHUNKY CHOCOLATE CHIP & CASHEW NUT COOKIE
Makes : 24 | Prep Time : 30 mins | Bake Time : 20-25 mins
Ingredients
2 cups plain flour
1/2 cup rice flour
1/3 cup cornflour
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips
1/2 cup coarsely chopped cashew nuts
250g butter softened
1 1/4 cup icing sugar, sifted
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp milk
Method
Beat butter, sugar and extract in a small bowl until light and fluffy. Transfer to a large bowl. In a separate bowl combine sifted flours, chocolate chips and cashew nuts. Add the butter mixture to the sifted flour in batches, mixing well. Then add milk and mix well.
Knead the mixture on a well floured surface until smooth. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour. Remove from fridge and divide into 4 equal parts. Roll out each part into a 1cm thick disc. Cut out cookie shapes with a round cookie cutter and place them about 3 cm apart on a cookie sheets lined with non-stick baking paper. Bake for 20-25 minutes in a pre-heated oven at 160oC. Cool on wire racks before storing in air-tight containers.
Posted by Gel at 10:48 AM | | Comments (0)
February 4, 2008
Hummingbird Cuppycakes with lemon cream cheese frosting
A couple of months ago I made a Hummingbird cake following a recipe for hummingbird cupcakes. It turned out to be quite scrumptious ... very moist and delectable. Then yesterday with the "The Cuppycake Song" doing its rounds in my head [thanks to a very musical little boy who keeps humming it all day long], I decided to take a shot at the original recipe. The cupcakes tasted exactly the same as the cake, but there was a big difference in texture. The cake was moist whereas the cupcakes turned out to be a wee bit dry. That was rectified by a generous dousing of delicious lemon cream cheese frosting. The overall effect was lemony, feel good and very satisfying. I might even add 1/4 cup pineapple syrup leftover from the canned, crushed pineapple for a moister texture.
Click here for the recipe.
Over christmas I bought some good kitchen props and pieces off ebay. I was particularly excited about trying some Robert Gordon polka dot patty cases in pink, green and blue [I use the green ones here]. They are the cutest, wispiest cupcake cases I have seen with scalloped edges and a deep-fill capacity .... just tear and dig in! My new microplane grater came in handy to zest the lemon. When I started assembling the ingredients, I realised that I was missing pecans. I substituted them with walnuts instead ... good idea but I prefer the taste of pecans which I had used in the original cake recipe the first time around. They marry well with pineapple and coconut as opposed to walnuts. If you want a lighter treat, skip the frosting and go with a dusting of powdered sugar.
Posted by Gel at 11:36 AM | | Comments (1)
February 2, 2008
Snapshots of a Sydney Summer Garden ...
This summer I was a busy bee in the garden, quite literally. An initial active working period was toned down to make allowance for my lumbering, pregnant self. We made a sandstone bed, smack dab in the center of our frontyard and planted a gorgeous "Magnolia Soulangeana" there. I populated the bed with some "Kew Lavender" bought from Bunnings and 3 packets of pink and purple paper daisies. The paper daisies grew amazingly fast and were almost a meter tall within a couple of weeks with papery thin and wispy little blooms that I just have to touch every time I pass by. The Magnolia seems to have established itself and is taller than me [I am barely 5 feet tall]. I am anxiously waiting for autumn and then winter when it will shed its leaves and give birth to those glorious pink goblet blooms.
My newly planted frangipani has sprouted 4 new leaves very late into summer. I can't help but wonder what went wrong when all around me frangipanis are already flowering and thriving. The rosemary in my frontyard has grown a lot over the summer and I have started thinking about cutting and propagating it to try and tame it a bit. After a flush of crimson red blooms, the bougainvilleas are quite dried up now with tiny little greenish brown leaves. The Salvias in full red blooms and the Murrayas in flushes of fragrant white blooms have given new life to our backyard. There have been lots of chillies, lemons, oranges, ginger, curry leaves, thyme and coriander growing through the end of spring and all through summer. The agaves and rhoeos have started becoming bigger. Our date palms are proving to be a nuisance with thousands of unusable dates littering the lawn and pool area. Some bulbs planted by the previous owners have produced lovely flowers and I have no clue what they are. The French marigold seeds I scattered everywhere are so cute with tiny little tight blooms of yellow sprouting as far as the eye can see.
The rose cuttings that I planted in early spring have produced several flushes of gorgeous white, peach, yellow and crimson blooms. Once they finish flowering I go snip snip snip with my secateurs, removing dead heads and within a week or two have new buds thriving. I think roses are like little treats for the gardener and nothing compares to the emotion that swells in you when you see a full bloom and breathe in their heavenly scent.
We were very excited about the strawberry seeds we sowed, especially when the leaves filled up the wooden barrel and began sprouting tiny white flowers. A few days later out came teeny weeny little green strawberries and then they started turning red ... aaahh the wonders of nature! Then yesterday morning on our routine inspection of the plants, the strawberries were gone ... all but one. What was even more baffling was that it was an extremely neat job, no damage to the leaves or soil visible at all. We were debating on whether the culprit was a possum or a bird, but couldn't reach a verdict. Then this evening when we were out and about in the garden we heard our 4 year old say "Rivvy eating strawberries" and he came right upto us and opened his mouth. There crushed between milky teeth lay the answer to "Who ate our strawberries?". Needless to say we had a good laugh and rested easy with the thought that neither birds nor possums have gained the expertise that man possesses in picking fruit from tiny vines flawlessly.
On a personal note Rish was born on the 6th of Jan and will be a month old soon. I can't wait to get cooking and gardening again ....
Posted by Gel at 6:22 PM | | Comments (0)
February 1, 2008
Heirloom Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Ganache
Summer is on a slow decline here in Sydney. Thunderstorms cool the spiking temperatures every few days and tease you with the anticipation of autumn. On days like today when the sun is on vacation and there is a delicious chill in the air, there is nothing more comforting than a slice of homemade chocolate cake and a cup of hot coffee.
A good, solid, no-fuss chocolate cake recipe is akin to the classic white shirt in your closet which happens to be a perfect fit and never goes out of style .... meant to be used over and over and yet over again with great results every time. I made this gorgeous chocolate cake over Christmas and then again to ring in the New Year. The recipe came from a personally signed copy of Donna Hay's "simple essentials Chocolate" cookbook [yep ... signed by the lady herself while she briefly chatted with me at the Sydney Good Food And Wine Show 2007]. You won't believe how easy this is to make, the ganache being the crowning glory of this chocolat-ridden masterpiece. I have always craved those store-bought Swiss chocolate cakes with their perfect fudgy frosting and velvet texture, but I will pine those no more. I will simply march into the kitchen and make myself a big slab of this beautiful cake. The only demand this no-fuss recipe makes is that you use good quality chocolate. I have tried it with Nestle's Plaistowe and Green & Black's Organic Chocolate Bars. It tasted better with Green & Black's, maybe I am partial to their beautiful packaging but their vast range of organic chocolate bars are pure magic.
Meandering back to the chocolate cake, it is the kind of recipe that one would pass down in the family. Hence the witty 'heirloom' mention, now ain't I resourceful? The frosting that Donna mentions for this recipe is called 'chocolate glaze' in the book. I compared the recipe for that as well as 'chocolate ganache' and other than the sequence of mixing both ingredients, I didn't find any other difference. Here is the recipe. Enjoy!
Heirloom Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Ganache Frosting
courtesy Donna Hay's "simple essentials Chocolate"; basic chocolate cake
Serves : 12/Prep Time : 15 mins/ Cook Time : 1 hour 10 mins
Ingredients
-----------------------
for the cake
2 cups plain flour, sifted
2/3 cup cocoa powder, double sifted
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
375g butter, softened
2 tsp baking powder3/4 cup milk
3 eggs
for the chocolate ganache
150g chopped dark couverture chocolate
1/2 cup pouring cream
a dash of Tia Maria
Method
----------------------
to make the cake
Preheat the oven to 160oC [320oF]. Place butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat for 8-10 minutes or until light and creamy. Gradually add the eggs and beat well. Fold through the flour, baking powder and cocoa powder. Stir in the milk.
Spoon the mixture into a 22cm [8 1/2 in] round cake tin lined with non-stick baking paper and bake in the pre-heated oven. Cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then turn onto a wire rack to cool completely. Frost with the ganache after chilling the cake for an hour in the fridge.
to make the ganache
Place the chocolate and cream in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring until melted and smooth. Add Tia Maria and mix. Allow the mixture to stand for 10 minutes till it has thickened slightly. Pour over a well chilled cake and tap to remove any bubbles.
Posted by Gel at 4:29 PM | | Comments (2)
