Frozen Raspberry Makes Ripe Return

I have been in a little bit of a rut lately, where new recipes are seldom, and if I have ventured into the "white space" abyss, I have been unable to photograph, let alone post my epicurious adventures. The back half of 2008 turned out to be a tumultuous time for me personally, but I am giddy and gleeful with the new year imminent. As I kiss 2008 good-bye, it is rather difficult not to have a permanent smile on my face at present - we are surrounded by loving friends and family, back in the deep freeze that is home - Canada, and at the most wonderful time of the year - Christmas.

We attempted to climatise and brave ourselves for the Saskatchewan winter with a short stint skiing in Whistler en route to the "land of the living skies". In Whistler, zero degrees seemed cold, but the retail therapy quickly warmed us up, not to mention the skiing itself. As luck would have it, when we touched down in Saskatchewan, rugged up in our new winter gear, Jack Frost was truly nipping at our toes ... the temperature was minus 55°C with the wind chill. Temperatures have hovered around minus 25°C ever since, but the next few days should see things change to a balmy minus 8°C. I feel like a typical Canadian chirping on about the weather, but how can you not? I cannot count how many times we have been asked with a smirk, "Is it cold enough for ya?". On the positive side, I have been able to get my hands dirty in the kitchen with an eager sous chef (my mother) and an audience that is always up for something new and different.

From Donna Hay's Instant Entertaining, this brownie recipe (titled Raspberry-Spiked Chocolate Brownies) is my favorite brownie recipe so far - absolutely rich chocolate, colliding with the sweetness of ripe raspberries. Served warm accompanied by a little dollop of ice cream and a big glass of red wine, the flavours really come alive. Make this your next happily ever after!

Ingredients & Preparation:

200 grams (7 ounces) dark chocolate, chopped (I use Lindt 75% cocoa)

250 grams (8 ounces) butter

1 3/4 cups brown sugar

4 eggs

1 1/3 cups plain (all-purpose) flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/3 cup cocoa, sifted

1 1/2 cups raspberries, fresh or frozen*

* If using frozen raspberries there is no need to defrost them first. You can also use fresh or frozen blueberries.

Preheat the oven to 180°C (355°F). Place the chocolate and butter in a small saucepan over low heat and stir until melted and smooth. Place in a bowl with the sugar and eggs. Sift over the flour, baking powder and cocoa and mix to combine. Pour into a 23 cm (9 inch) greased square cake tin lined with non-stick baking paper. Top the mixture with the raspberries and bake for 30–35 minutes or until set. Serve warm or cold with thick (double) cream or vanilla bean ice-cream.

Bon Appetit!

Hopelessly Devoted to Pink Ladies

The Kitchen Aid got another work out today, this time to make an Apple Crostata! We had some Pink Lady apples in the fridge that had seen better days, which when found has been known to spark my baking bug. Normally I make an Apple Crumble when confronted with this type of fruit phenomenon, but since I need to expand my dessert repertoire, I went hunting for new recipes. I was very pleased with this dessert in the end - it was easy to make, presented well and was just a little different than a tradtional apple pie. For a dinner party, it would be great as it is quite a cute dessert, presents beautifully and is perfect for Autumn/Winter, the aromas heavenly.

What is a Crostata? Isn't it just a pie? Wikipedia, my humble and reliable online companion, cites: a crostata is an Italian baked dessert tart, and a form of pie. It is traditionally prepared by folding the edges of the dough over the top of the fruit filling, creating a more "rough" look, rather than a uniform, circular shape. The fruit can be anything from apple to mixed berry to peaches.

Ingredients & Preparation:

Short Crust Pastry (from Bill Granger's Bills Sydney Food):

2 cups plain flour

1/4 cup icing sugar (confectioners' sugar)

a pinch of salt

180g (11 3/4 oz) unsalted butter, cubed

1/4 cup (2 fl oz) cream

Filling:

3-4 Pink Lady apples, sliced thinly

Juice of 1 lemon

Lemon Zest of half a lemon

3 tbsp white sugar

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

Demerara Sugar (to sprinkle)

1 tbsp unsalted butter, cubed

1 egg yolk

1 tsp cold water

For the pastry: Place flour, sugar and salt in a bowl. Add butter and rub through the mixture until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Add just enough cream for the mixture to form a ball. I made the pastry with my Kitchen Aid, using the dough hook. Refrigerate pastry for at least 30 minutes before rolling. Ensure that you have a perfectly round sphere before rolling out the pastry on a lightly floured surface - this will ensure that your pastry rolls out into a round shape.

For the filling: Toss the sliced apples with the lemon juice and zest. Add the cinnamon and white sugar, then gently combine.

To assemble: Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Place the rolled pastry in a pie plate or on a flat cookie sheet. Arrange apples within the pastry, leaving 5 cm on the outside if using a cookie sheet. If you are using a pie plate, ensure that there is at least 5 cm of extra pastry on the outside of the pie plate.

Once the apples are arranged on the pastry, fold the pastry edges in to the centre. Dust pastry edges with egg yolk mixed with water. Sprinkle demerarra sugar on top of the crostata. Drop tiny cubes of the butter on the apples just prior to baking.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, until crust is lightly golden. Dust with icing sugar. Serve warm.

Bon Appetit!

Berry Blue Tuesday Blueberry Vanilla Tart

Today’s inspiration is a verbatim (well, almost verbatim) recipe from Australian Gourmet Traveller magazine, and also features in Bathers’ Pavilion Menus and Recipes by Serge Dansereau. Normally I deconstruct recipes to make them my own, but when it comes to desserts I lack this creative flare, and I seldom bend the rules.

I spent yesterday in hospital. It was a playground for people watching, which had my mind racing like a merry-go-round, a rusty merry-go-round on its last dilapidated legs. As I conjured up images of what my future may hold (how could I help it with all of these unwell and mostly elderly folk sitting in the sidelines), I had the usual waiting room magazine diversions, and I could cast my mind back to the cuisine and couture of years gone by, reading trashy and passé magazines borne of another decade. I found a few diamonds in the rough, a relatively recent Australian Gourmet Traveller, being one of them. With a little treasure chest from the bottom of the hospital's literature ocean in my trembling fingers, I was able to find today’s recipe, but in the back of my mind, I continued to cast my thoughts in to the future, my health future.

I could not help but wonder, how much do I have left in my bank? My body bank? What niggling ache or pain will I have in 10, 20, 30, 40 years time? On a more superficial front, how many fashion faux pas will I be guilty of? Will my addiction to higher than high heels render my knees useless, whittled away to dust? When will I have to ditch the stilettos for something more practical? Will my metabolism wind down so much that this blogging gene really catches up with me? When will my skinny jeans mutate into Fortrels®? On a more sombre note, when shit hits the fan, who will be my ‘wing man’ escorting me through these nosocomial hallways? Will the magazines have changed? Will I have a sense of humour about my ailments? And of course, this got me thinking to what I can do now to ensure there are at least a few trump cards in my body bank.

I am now 32; in 32 more years I will be 64. I do not eat processed foods, and I have not had fast food in a number of months. I have finally embraced exercise as part of my weekly routine, and have to say I am enjoying it considerably. I am trying to minimise carbohydrates, but not eliminate them – this is my vice. And, of course more organic fruits and vegetables are becoming part of the daily repertoire. I know I need to eat more berries, dark luscious berries, and hence the choice of this dessert. I am not going to stop enjoying food, in fact I am going to relish in all of those things I love, with healthy interpretations when I can, in moderation. And while this is not the healthiest of desserts – share one with me that really is – I am pleased it has me eating more berries! And in our household, desserts feature once or twice a month, so a once in awhile indulgence is permissible, or this is what I tell myself. After having had some reflection on building up my body bank and stacking it high with trump cards, my body currency has to be trending better than it has been in the past, but like anyone I have cravings. These vanilla tarts even stack up to the ones I used to give in to at Le Pâtissier Chocolatier in Neutral Bay (Sydney), consequently just on the way to Balmoral Beach, home of the Bathers' Pavillion, birth place of this recipe and a favorite destination of Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman.

Ingredients & Preparation:

Tart:

225g (1 cup) unsalted butter

100g (1/2 cup) caster sugar

1 egg, beaten

350g (2 3/4 cup) plain flour

3-4 punnets ripe blueberries and/or raspberries, rinsed and towel dried (note: original recipe only calls for blueberries)

icing sugar, to dust

Frangipane Filling:

100g (1/2 cup) unsalted butter

100g (1/2 cup) caster sugar

3 eggs

40g (1/3 cup) plain flour

125g (2/3 cup) ground almonds

Vanilla Custard Filling:

1 litre (4 cups) milk

2 vanilla beans, split

250g (1 1/4 cup) white sugar

6 egg yolks

40g (1/3 cup) plain flour

40g (1/3 cup) corn flour

Frangipane filling: In an electric mixer, beat the butter and cast sugar for 2 minutes. Then add the eggs, slowly, beating until well combined. Sift the flour and ground almonds, and add to the butter mixture. Beat for a further minute, transfer to a bowl and refrigerate overnight covered with plastic wrap. (Note: I refrigerated this for 6-8 hours and it was okay).

Pastry: Cream the butter and sugar together in a bowl until very pale, then beat in the egg. Gradually add the flour and mix to a smooth paste. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours. Roll out the pastry to 3mm thickness and use it to line 8 individual 7.5cm-diameter tartlet tins. Once you have lined the tartlet tins with pastry, chill in the refrigerator for 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius and blind bake for 10 minutes or until starting to get golden brown. Remove from oven, add a tablespoon of frangipane filling to each tart and bake for a further 10 minutes, until golden brown.

Vanilla Custard: Bring the milk, vanilla beans and sugar to a boil, slowly. Cream egg yolks and flours together and pour the slowly boiled liquid into this egg mixture once the vanilla beans have infused well. I actually only kept the vanilla beans in the mixture for about half the time I was heating this up, as I found the vanilla taste was becoming very strong. Mix well. Using an electric mixer whilst you are adding the eggs mixture to the milk and sugar mixture will ensure that the eggs do not curdle or cook too quickly. Return the entire mixture to the heat and cook on low heat, stirring or mixing with an electric mixer until thickening occurs. Continue to mix on low heat and cook out the flour taste for a further 5 minutes. Pass through a sieve and place into a bowl with some baking paper on top to stop a skin from forming. When the mixture has cooled to room temperature, spoon a level amount of the custard into each cooked pastry tart.

To serve: While the vanilla custard is still at room temperature in the tart shells, place the berries tightly packed on top of the custard and dust with icing sugar to serve.

This is perhaps the best pastry I have had in a very long time. I can't wait to make this in summer when fresh berries are in abundance and in season. At $8 per punnet, I think I will need to find some winter dessert alternatives! Regardless, it was amazing and worth the indulgence.

Bon Appetit!

Apple Crumble Meets Cinnamon Twist and it is Happily Ever After Apple Pie

For someone who claims not to be a dessert aficionado, I certainly am blogging like one. My last post was a recipe for Cinnamon Twists, a childhood favorite. Even though I halved the original recipe, I still felt like it was too much for two people so I ended up saving about half the dough. The vision was to make my first pie. So here it is, my very first pie! This is somewhat of a deviation from a traditional pie crust, but it was my own experiment, and it seemed to work. With my faithful family cookbook at my side, I was able to dig out one of my submissions for Apple Crumble, which was the inspiration for the Apple Pie filling. I was fourteen when the recipe was submitted, and it seems as though most of my specialties at that time were in fact desserts. In any case, as it turns out, a Cinnamon Twist can meet an Apple Crumble and live happily ever after.

When serving, remember that apple pie and ice cream are synonymous! One indulgence can't go without the other.

Ingredients & Preparation:

Pastry Dough: 1 1/4 cup plain flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

115 g (1/4 lb) butter

Apple Filling: 5-7 apples, sliced and diced into cubes

1/4 cup white sugar

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 cup butter

1/2 cup flour

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Divide pastry dough in to two equal balls. Sprinkle a little flour on a clean surface, and roll one of the pastry dough balls until thin and round, and large enough to fit over a pie plate. Move the circle of flattened dough to a greased pie plate, and press in to the dish gently.

Add sliced apples on top of the first layer of pastry. Mix cinnamon and white sugar, then sprinkle over the apples. Crumble butter, flour and brown sugar together, then top the apples with this mixture.

Roll the second ball of pastry with the same technique as the first ball. When thin and round, gently place on top of the pie plate and apple mixture. Squeeze the dough together around the top of the dish, pinching both layers of pastry together, all the way around.

Place a few slits in the top of the pastry with a sharp knife. Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon mixture again if desired.

Bake for 30-40 minutes until crust is golden brown. Slice and serve warm with ice cream.

Bon Appetit!

Twist and Shout for Cinnamon Twists

I became a seasoned baker by the age of around ten, and this recipe was a family favorite, especially of my brothers. When making this tonight, I realised how lucky I was in my early years when getting my sea legs in the kitchen - with the choice of a Bosch or Kenwood mixer, baking was so easy and straight forward. No wonder I was a baking addict back then! These days, it is back to old fashioned grass roots - bowl, spoon, elbow grease. The inspiration for tonight's nostalgic recreation is twofold. First, I was flipping through family recipe books, trying to understand some basics such as making a pie (I have NEVER made a pie). Secondly, my husband has always said that he loves Cinnamon Twists, a staple when he was growing up too, so tonight I have made these for him for the first time - on a Friday night, while he is entertaining clients at a soccer match. I hope he is twisting and shouting at tonight's effort when he returns home!

No excuses about rolling up your sleeves and trying this recipe. As I mentioned, I was making this by age ten. It is so straightforward and presents very well. Perfect as an afternoon pick me up, spiked with ice cream or with a nice cup of coffee or tea.

Ingredients & Preparation:

2 1/2 cups plain flour

1 tsp. baking powder

230g (1/2 lb) butter

1/2 cup milk

1 egg

1 cup sugar (I actually used 1/2 cup white sugar, 1/2 cup demerarra sugar)

4 tsp cinnamon

Mix flour, baking powder and butter together. Add milk and egg, whipped slightly. Divide into 4-5 balls and chill. Mix together sugar and cinnamon in a separate bowl and set aside.

Once the dough has chilled, roll out balls (one at a time) on a clean surface covered with the sugar and cinnamon mixture. As you roll the balls with a rolling pin, continue to sprinkle the sugar and cinnamon mixture on top of the dough. Flip the dough a few times as you are rolling, continuing to coat with the sugar and cinnamon. Once you have a flat and round piece of dough rolled, cut into equal wedges as you would a pizza, approximately 8-10 slices. Roll up the triangles large ends towards small corner. Bake in a greased cookie sheet at 180 degrees Celsius for 12-15 minutes. These will be done when the sugar mixture has caramelised and hardened on the bottom of the baking tray.

These freeze well. They are a great thank you gift when attending a dinner party, and a lot more personal than a bottle of wine! This recipe is also suitable to make with kids.

Bon Appetit!

Brownie Points for Ready Made Brownie Sundays

Have you ever had a Brownie Sunday? Well, this dessert is just that, and more. It is a ready made Brownie Sunday with a difference. The outside of these little puddings bake to form a moist cake, while the insides remain as melted molten chocolate. Serve just out of the oven, add a scoop of ice cream on top, and be amazed at how the flavours melt together. No need for chocolate sauce here. For any chocolate lover out there, this will go down a treat. This is a simple dessert to make, 20 minutes from start to finish.

Ingredients & Preparation:

200g (1 cup + 1 tbsp) good quality dark chocolate, broken up roughly (I used 2 x large Lindt bars)

110g (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, chopped

3 eggs, lightly beaten

110g (1/2 cup) caster sugar

2 tbsp plain flour, sifted

Good quality ice cream to serve

Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Grease 4 x 150ml Ramekins.

Place the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water making sure not to let the bowl does not touch the water. Stir to combine, until melted, then cool slightly.

Place the eggs, sugar and flour in a bowl and whisk until just combined. Gradually whisk in the chocolate mixture, then pour the batter into the ramekins and place on a baking tray. Bake in the oven for 12 - 15 minutes until the edges are set but the centre is soft. Serve hot with ice cream or cream.

Bon Appetit!

A First Date with Sticky Date Pudding

This dessert is perhaps the happiest ending to any meal in my opinion. If I see this iconic Australian 'after' on any cafe, bistro or restaurant menu, I just have to order it. Today, I have made this iconic dessert for the first time. This is my first proper date with Sticky Date Pudding. I have now earned at least one badge on my way to becoming a fair dinkum Australian.

This recipe is from Neil Perry's Good Food cookbook. I did not mess around when choosing this recipe - Neil Perry is a renowned Australian Chef whose brainchild is Rockpool, one of Australia's best restaurants. Neil Perry also heads up a team of six consultants who together develop Qantas Airways Business and First Class menus. As a chef, he is truly first class, and so too is this recipe.

Ingredients & Preparation:

Pudding:

230g (1 cup) fresh dates, pitted and chopped

250 ml (1 cup) water

1 tsp bicarb soda (baking soda)

100g (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened

175g (3/4 cup) caster sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp natural vanilla extract

150g (2/3 cup) self-raising flour, sifted

Sauce:

500ml (2 1/2 cup) thick (double heavy) cream

110g (1/2 cup) Demerara Sugar

2 tbsp treacle or molasses (worst case scenario, use Golden Syrup)

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Grease a deep loaf tin and line the base and sides with parchment or waxed paper. Place the dates and water into a pan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Remove the pan from the heat and add the bicarb soda. The mixture will begin to bubble up. Set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, use an electric mixer to cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Add the vanilla and beat until combined. Fold the flour and the date mixture alternatively into the butter mixture. I would recommend using the electric mixer to beat all ingredients together, only to further beat up the dates.

Pour the batter into the prepared loaf tin and bake for 50 minutes, or until cooked when tested with a toothpick or skewer.

To make the sauce, combine the cream, sugar and treacle in a small pan, stirring constantly over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, stirring occasionally until the sauce reduces and thickens slightly.

To serve, turn the warm pudding out onto a platter and drizzle with half the sauce. Cut the pudding into thick slides or squares and serve with the remaining sauce and thick cream. If the pudding needs to be reheated, cover it with foil and place it in a 150 degrees oven for 30 minutes or until heated through. Microwaving is just as effective. Freezes well.

If you are using Ramekin dishes or a shallow pan, adjust cooking time accordingly, probably around 20 minutes.

Bon Appetit!

Sweet Baby Cakes

My husband calls me sweetie. I don't even have a sweet tooth. Not until now.

This recipe was suggested to me by a friend, who described these cakes as: "THE BEST lemon cakes I have ever had (I'm not lying). They are unbelievably moist. I can't describe how heavenly they are. You MUST try them They are super easy and you only have to dirty two bowls and a spoon! Amazing!" I think you would agree that after an introduction like that, this recipe really peaked my curiosity. The recipe is from Nigella Lawson's How to be a Domestic Goddess. I don't actually own this book, but may have to add it to my collection. Nigella titles the recipe Baby Bundts.

I decided to try the Magnolia Bakery's Vanilla Buttercream Frosting instead of Nigella's frosting (which is simply icing sugar and lemon juice). This was not to undermine Nigella or my friend, but because I had another friend who was making the cupcakes of Sex and the City fame for a baby shower, and again my interest was tweaked. The photos of these cupcakes look amazing, and I wanted to taste at least half of what they were about - the frosting.

Ingredients & Preparation: Baby Bundts

125ml (1/2 cup) natural yogurt

75g (1/3 cup) butter, melted

2 large eggs

Zest of 1 lemon

150g (2/3 cup) plain flower

1/2 tsp bicarb soda

Pinch of salt

125g (1/2 cup) caster sugar

6 ramekins, 1 mini bundt tray with 6 moulds or a regular muffin pan

Preheat oven to 170 degrees Celsius. Mix yoghurt, melted butter, eggs and lemon zest in a small bowl. Mix flour, bicarb soda, salt and sugar in a separate bowl. Fold wet ingredients into dryingredients. Bake at 25-30 minutes or less if you are using smaller pans. I actually baked at 150 degrees Celsius as I have a convection oven.

Ingredients & Preparation: Magnolia Bakery Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

1/2 cup unsalted butter

4-5 cups confectioners' sugar (icing sugar)

1/4 cup milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

Place the butter in a large mixing bowl. Add 4 cups of the sugar and then the milk and vanilla. On the medium speed of an electric mixer, beat until smooth and creamy, about 3-5 minutes. Gradually add the remaining sugar, 1/4 cup at a time, beating well after each addition (about 2 minutes), until the icing is thick enough to be of good spreading consistency. You may not need to add all of the sugar. If desired, add a few drops of food coloring and mix thoroughly. (Use and store the icing at room temperature because icing will set if chilled.) Icing can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Bon Appetit!

Cupcakes on Pitt

We travelled to Sydney this weekend for my best friend's birthday, and not only had a great weekend, but drummed up more inspiration for posting! No surprises. Today's topic - Cupcakes! (or Queen Cakes, as they are called in Ireland, apparently (where Nuala grew up)). I have never heard anyone talk more passionately about cupcakes than Nuala. In fact, Nuala was so excited when we went to pick up these cupcakes that she bashed somone en route to the counter, and his Oreo Cupcake sadly spilt into his serviette. At least he wasn't wearing it.

Check out Cupcakes on Pitt for your next function. Huge queues. Order ahead and pay by credit card.

Bon Appetit!