23/02/2011 by D.

These little Australian cakes are extremely morish and a fun activity to do with small children.  It is also a great way of using up sponge pieces or cakes that haven’t risen well.  Otherwise you need to make a basic sponge first.

Sponge
8oz soft butter
8oz caster sugar
4 medium eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
8oz self raising flour
a little milk

Preheat the oven to 180c.  Grease and line a large square tin, or two 7in cake tins with baking paper. 

Cream together butter and sugar in a bowl until pale and fluffy.  Crack the eggs into a separate bowl, and give them a quick beating with a fork.

Slowly add a little of the beaten egg and a tsp flour.  Continue adding egg until it is all incorporated. Stir in the vanilla extract.

Gently fold in the flour with a large metal spoon, until the batter has a soft dropping consistency.  If too stiff add a bit of milk. Spread out the mixture into the tin/tins.

Bake for 20-25 mins until golden-brown and a skewer comes out clean.  Take the cake out of the tin and peel off the paper then leave to cool on wire rack.  When cool, cut cake into 1 inch cubes.

Icing
2 cups icing sugar
3 tbsp cocoa powder
3 tbsp butter
1/2 cup of milk
2 cups dessicated coconut

Mix icing sugar, cocoa powder, butter and milk in a heat proof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir until thick and smooth.

Roll cubes of cake in the chocolate icing then in the coconut and leave on wire rack to set.  NB If the icing cools enough to solidify after a bit, just put it back over the hot water to melt again.

These are very moreish… you have been warned!

Posted in Flour, Coconut, Icing sugar, Vanilla, Cake, Chocolate, Eggs, Butter, Milk, Recipe | Print | No Comments »

30/12/2010 by D.

Fed up with hunting down blini for the New Year’s Eve canapé, and then finding them a bit tough and dry?  Make your very own with this lovely recipe, which I’ve adapted from Hugh Fernley-Whittingstall’s.

500g plain white flour
350ml warm milk
350ml warm water (approximately)
5g powdered dried yeast
5g salt
1 tsp baking powder
A little sunflower or vegetable oil

Whisk together the flour, milk, water and yeast in a bowl and leave in a warm place to get bubbly for an hour (or more).

Heat a heavy frying pan or skillet and grease lightly with a piece of kitchen towel dipped in oil.  Make sure the heat is medium.  Whisk the salt and baking powder into the batter.  The batter should be the consistency of thick cream.

Drop a small spoonful of batter into the pan (the size you’d like the blini or pikelets to be).  When you see bubbles on the surface, flip it over and cook for a couple of minutes on the other side - you can take a peek and see if it is brown.  Remove to a warm plate.

Now drop in several spoonfuls and repeat until all the batter is finished.  You can re-grease the pan as necessary.

These are delicious with a spoonful of sour cream, a dollop of caviar and some chopped chives.  Alternatively they make a superb breakfast loaded with butter and jam, marmite, nutella or golden syrup.  Reheat them gently under the grill or in a toaster (for the bigger ones).

You can keep them for a couple of days in a plastic bag in the bread bin, but ours never last that long!

Posted in Flour, Baking, Milk, Vegetarian, Recipe | Print | No Comments »

03/04/2010 by D.

We had some of these in the freezer, (we doubled the quantity when making Gnocchi with spinach and bacon and froze half).  They boil up well straight from frozen (10 mins in boiling salted water) and it was short work to melt a little dolcelatte and toast some seeds.  I have repeated the recipe for the gnocchi here so you don’t have to print out two recipes.  We ate this with a rocket and pear salad.

for the gnocchi:
2 large potatoes
1 sweet potato
1 egg yolk
2 tblsp milk
pinch ground nutmeg
1 1/2 cups plain flour
1 tsp salt

for the sauce:
100g Dolcelatte
1 tsp butter
2 tbsp milk
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 cup chopped roasted hazlenuts or toast sunflower and pumpkin seeds

Bake the potatoes on a tray in a hot oven (220c) for around an hour.  Perfect thing to do if you have something else going on in the oven as they will be fine in the fridge for a couple of days until you have time to make the Gnocchi.

When the potatoes are ready (the sweet potato may take a little less time that the others), cut them in half and leave to cool a little.  Scoop out the flesh and push through a sieve/use a ricer/mash thoroughly to make absolutely sure there are no lumps.  I have to be honest, pushing them through a sieve is a bit of a pain, and I actually bought a potato ricer specifically to make this dish as I love it so much.

In a large bowl, mix the potato, milk, nutmeg, salt and 1 cup of the flour and stir well.  Flour your hands, then take a small spoonful of the mixture out and briskly roll into a ball between your palms.  It should roll, but still be sticky.  If you just end up with potato smeared hands and not a little gnocchi, add some more flour.  It is important to get the balance right as too much flour will make the gnocchi too heavy and more like boiled bits of dough, too little and the next step will be almost impossible!

Put a big pan of salted water on to boil.  Lightly flour a baking tray, a chopping board and your hands.  Gently knead the mixture in the bowl and divide into two.  Take out half the mixture and roll into a long snake 2cm thick (this is the playdough bit!) on the chopping board.  Using a knife, cut off 2cm diagonal lengths and push them onto the baking tray with each cut.  Repeat with the second half of the mixture.  If you are feeling fancy (or have a bored child, friend or spouse handy), gently indent your gnocchi with a fork.  (NB If you are freezing the gnocchi, leave them on the plate to cool.  Freeze in a box and again, respect their space.)

Melt the dolcelatte, with the butter and milk in a saucepan.  Add the nutmeg and stir well.  Take off the heat.

Cook the gnocchi in the boiling water (I flick them off the baking tray into the water, trying to avoid the flour) in batches for 2 or 3 mins each; don’t crowd them as all your hard work will go to waste.  Do about four batches, depending on the size of your pan.  Generally the rule is once they float, they are ready.  Try one if you are unsure.  They should be firm and not taste of raw flour.  Scoop out with a slotted spoon and then spread them out on a plate whilst the next lot are cooking.  When you are done, drain the excess water off the plates and add the gnocchi to the sauce.  Taste and season. 

Give it all a couple of minutes to reheat, then serve immediately with roasted hazlenuts or toasted sunflower and pumpkin seeds sprinkled on top.

Posted in Pumpkin seeds, Gnocchi, Milk, Flour, Hazlenuts, Dolcelatte, Sweet potato, Eggs, Potato, Recipe, Vegetarian, Nutmeg, Sunflower seeds, Organic Box | Print | No Comments »

21/02/2010 by D.

Two very quick breads with the same method.  Both lovely toasted or fresh, spread with some salty butter.

Bara Brith
10 oz mixed fruit
2/3 pint black tea
2 eggs
6 oz wholemeal SR flour
6 oz white SR flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp mixed spice

Coconut Bread
8 oz dessicated coconut
2/3 pint milk
2 eggs
2 oz caster sugar
6 oz wholemeal SR flour
6 oz white SR flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon

Method for either
Before you go to bed, soak the fruit in the tea (or the coconut in the milk).  Line a 2lb tin with baking paper.

Next morning, heat the oven to 170 c.  Check the soaked mixture, you should have at least a little liquid on top of the fruit.  If it has all completely absorbed, add a little more liquid. 

Mix the eggs into the fruit (or coconut) then add the rest of the dry ingredients, mixing well.  The mixture should have a dropping consistency (plop off the spoon) and not be too thick, nor too runny (you’ll end up with either a dry or a soggy loaf).  Adjust accordingly with liquid/flour.

Spoon into the loaf tin and smooth the top.  Bake for 50mins then turn the oven off and leave for a further 10 mins.  Remove from the oven and leave to cool for at least 10 mins before cutting.

These are fantastic for tea, elevenses, breakfast, late night snacks and lunch boxes!  Both are delicious toasted and spread with salty butter.  The brith goes very well with slices of cheddar.

Posted in Wholemeal flour, Tea, Mixed fruit, White flour, Mixed spice, Bread, Snack, Coconut, Milk, Recipe, Toddler, Vegetarian, Cinnamon, Brunch, Eggs, Weaning | Print | No Comments »