Chocolate Brownies

This is a Jamie Oliver recipe for brownies that are on the dessert menu at Fifteen. They look amazing in his cook book so I baked them on a cold Sunday afternoon as dessert after a Roast Lamb lunch.

When they first came out I thought they were a failure because I'd taken them out too early. The entire centre was still really runny. It was more like a runny pudding when we ate it. I was so disappointed, although the flavour was UNREAL. I left them out over night and in the morning it had set! Exactly the way it was supposed to. I had perfect chocolate brownies. The entire tray was eaten within hours. I'll absolutely be baking these again. Such a decadent, moreish treat. And the orange zested creme fraiche was a sensational addition and created such a good balance between the rich chocolate and zesty sour tasting cream.


250g unsalted butter
200g best-quality dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids) broken up
150g chopped nuts (I used hazelnuts)
80g coco powder
65g plain flour sifted
1 teaspoon baking powder
350g caster sugar
4 large eggs
zest of one orange
250ml creme fraiche

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Line a 30cm rectangular baking tin with greaseproof paper.

In a large bowl over some simmering water, melt the butter and the chocolate and mix until smooth. Add the nuts. In a separate bowl, mix together the cocoa powder, flour, baking powder and sugar, then add this to the chocolate and nut mixture. Stir together well. Beat the eggs and mix in until you have a silky consistency.

Pour your brownie mix into the baking tray; and place in the oven for around 25 minutes. You don't want to overcook them so, you don't want a skewer to come out clean. The brownies should be slightly springy on the outside but still gooey in the middle. Allow to cool in the tray, then carefully transfer to a large chopping board and cut into chunky squares. Serve with a dollop of creme fraiche mixed with some orange zest.


E.

Rice pudding

I don't recall having rice pudding when I was a kid. The first time I had it was maybe a year or two ago when I made chocolate rice pudding (which it seems I didn't blog about). I enjoyed it but never made again. For some reason it popped into my head recently. Probably because I thought it would be easy to prepare, I wouldn't have to leave the house, it does not contain chocolate but would still be comforting.

Yes, poor, poor Sathya cannot have chocolate at the moment. Its devastating! Our gorgeous baby boy screams and screams for two days when I eat chocolate. You know, I think I'm struggling more with no chocolate than no alcohol. Big call I know.

Anyway, enough fantasising about booze and chocolate! I searched the web and found so many different recipes but Deb's (adapted from Gale Gand) over at Smitten Kitchen seemed best as I had everything at hand.

Its perfect. Creamy, sweet and absolutely delicious. I have made it a few times since finding the recipe. You can serve it with any fruit (we really like banana too), here I have served it with dried cranberries.

1/2 cup Arborio rice
4 cups milk
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla essence
1/2 pint raspberries, other berries or dried fruit (optional)

In a large saucepan, place all the ingredients, except the fruit. Bring it to a gentle boil and then turn it down to a gentle simmer, stirring occasionally to keep it from sticking to the bottom, for about 30 to 40 minutes. Taste the rice to check for doneness. The rice should be very soft and plump.

Take the pudding off the heat and pour into dessert bowls and stir in some fresh raspberries, or other dried or fresh fruit. Serve immediately.

Sathya-rating *****

December Daring Bakers Challenge - French Yule Log

Its time for Daring Bakers! Yay!

This month's challenge is brought to us by the adventurous Hilda from Saffron and Blueberry and Marion from Il en Faut Peu Pour Etre Heureux. They have chosen a French Yule Log by Flore from Florilege Gourmand

I am a little late as I was in a rural part of Australia, Streaky Bay, without access to a computer and I couldn’t do it before we left on 27 December as posting day was 28 December. Hopefully I am not banished for this. We shall see though, as Daring Bakers has become much more organised and regulated in 2009.

This time last year the Daring Bakers made a Yule Log so when I first saw the challenge was a Yule log, I was a little disappointed as I thought it was the same, but I have since learnt that a French Yule Log is very different! I must say, however, that I enjoyed last years much more in taste and preparation.

This recipe took a lot of time and effort to prepare, so please don’t attempt unless you have those 2 things in abundance, which I didn’t at this crazy time of year plus being 7 months pregnant!

Thanks you to Hilda and Marion for hosting Decembers challenge. It can’t be easy to choose a recipe that both hosts are happy with and that they imagine all Daring Bakers will be happy with! Hats off to you ladies!

I think as Daring Bakers we need to be honest and open and give our feedback on these recipes so that is what I will do. I did not enjoy this challenge, preparing or eating it. Disappointing huh? I think it was partly the recipe, and partly me and my kitchen! Firstly, it was about 32C degrees (90F), my kitchen light had blown and I couldn’t change it as the ceilings are so high, my KitchenAid was playing up and finally the batteries in my scales ran out. Humph.

The taste testers enjoyed this though and it looks like many of my fellow Daring Bakers did as well so don’t take too much notice of me. I’m terribly hormonal!

FRENCH YULE LOG RECIPE by Flore of Florilège Gourmand

Element #1 Dacquoise Biscuit (Almond Cake)

80g almond meal
50g icing sugar
15g plain flour
3 medium egg whites
50g sugar

Finely mix the almond meal and the confectioner's sugar. (If you have a mixer, you can use it by pulsing the ingredients together for no longer than 30 seconds).

Sift the flour into the mix.

Beat the eggs whites, gradually adding the granulated sugar until stiff.

Pour the almond meal mixture into the egg whites and blend delicately with a spatula.

Grease a piece of parchment paper and line your baking pan with it.

Spread the batter on a piece of parchment paper to an area slightly larger than your desired shape (circle, long strip etc...) and to a height of 1/3 inches (8mm).
Bake at 180°C for approximately 15 minutes Let cool and cut to the desired shape.

Element #2 Dark Chocolate Mousse

2.5 sheets gelatin or 5g powdered gelatin
40g sugar
10g glucose or golden syrup
15g water
3 medium egg yolks
175g dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
350g heavy cream (35% fat content)

Soften the gelatin in cold water. (If using powdered gelatin, follow the directions on the package.)

Make a Pate a Bombe: Beat the egg yolks until very light in colour (approximately 5 minutes until almost white).

Cook the sugar, glucose syrup and water on medium heat for approximately 3 minutes (if you have a candy thermometer, the mixture should reach 244°F (118°C). If you do not have a candy thermometer, test the sugar temperature by dipping the tip of a knife into the syrup then into a bowl of ice water, if it forms a soft ball in the water then you have reached the correct temperature.
Add the sugar syrup to the beaten yolks carefully by pouring it into the mixture in a thin stream while continuing to beat the yolks. You can do this by hand but it’s easier to do this with an electric mixer.

Continue beating until cool (approximately 5 minutes). The batter should become thick and foamy.

In a double boiler or equivalent, heat 2 tablespoons (30g) of cream to boiling. Add the chopped chocolate and stir until melted and smooth.

Whip the remainder of the cream until stiff.

Pour the melted chocolate over the softened gelatin, mixing well. Let the gelatin and chocolate cool slightly and then stir in ½ cup (100g) of WHIPPED cream to temper. Add the Pate a Bombe.

Add in the rest of the WHIPPED cream (220g) mixing gently with a spatula.

Element #3 Dark Chocolate Ganache Insert

50g sugar
135g heavy cream (35% fat content)
135g dark chocolate, finely chopped
45g unsalted butter, softened

Make a caramel: Using the dry method, melt the sugar by spreading it in an even layer in a small saucepan with high sides. Heat over medium-high heat, watching it carefully as the sugar begins to melt. Never stir the mixture. As the sugar starts to melt, swirl the pan occasionally to allow the sugar to melt evenly. Cook to dark amber color (for most of you that means darker than last month’s challenge).

While the sugar is melting, heat the cream until boiling. Pour cream into the caramel and stir thoroughly. Be very careful as it may splatter and boil.

Pour the hot caramel-milk mixture over the dark chocolate. Wait 30 seconds and stir
until smooth.

Add the softened butter and whip hard and fast (if you have a plunging mixer use it). The chocolate should be smooth and shiny.

Element #4 Praline Feuillete (Crisp) Insert

Note: Feuillete means layered (as in with leaves) so a Praline Feuillete is a Praline version of a delicate crisp. There are non-praline variations below. The crunch in this crisp comes from an ingredient which is called gavottes in French. Gavottes are lace-thin crepes. To our knowledge they are not available outside of France, so you have the option of making your own using the recipe below or you can simply substitute rice krispies or corn flakes or Special K for them. Special note: If you use one of the substitutes for the gavottes, you should halve the quantity stated, as in use 1oz of any of these cereals instead of 2.1oz.

60g of gavottes (lace crepes - recipe by Ferich Mounia):
80ml whole milk
8g unsalted butter
35g plain flour
15g beaten egg
3.5g sugar
½ tsp vegetable oil

Heat the milk and butter together until butter is completely melted. Remove from the heat.

Sift flour into milk-butter mixture while beating, add egg and granulated sugar. Make sure there are no lumps.

Grease a baking sheet and spread batter thinly over it.

Bake at 430°F (220°C) for a few minutes until the crepe is golden and crispy. Let cool.

Ingredients for the Praline Feuillete:
100g milk chocolate
25g butter
30g praline
2.1oz (60g) lace crepes(gavottes) or rice krispies or corn flakes or Special K (I used cornflakes)

Melt the chocolate and butter in a double boiler.

Add the praline and the coarsely crushed lace crepes. Mix quickly to thoroughly coat with the chocolate.

Spread between two sheets of wax paper to a size slightly larger than your desired shape. Refrigerate until hard.

Element #5 Vanilla Crème Brulée Insert

115g heavy cream (35% fat content)
115g whole milk
4 medium-sized egg yolks
25g sugar
1 vanilla bean

Heat the milk, cream, and scraped vanilla bean to just boiling. Remove from the stove and let the vanilla infuse for about 1 hour.

Whisk together the sugar and egg yolks (but do not beat until white).

Pour the vanilla-infused milk over the sugar/yolk mixture. Mix well.

Wipe with a very wet cloth and then cover your baking mold (whatever shape is going to fit on the inside of your Yule log/cake) with parchment paper. Pour the cream into the mold and bake at 210°F (100°C) for about 1 hour or until firm on the edges and slightly wobbly in the center.

Let cool and put in the freezer for at least 1 hour to firm up and facilitate the final assembly.

Element #6 Dark Chocolate Icing

½ Tbsp powdered gelatin or 2 sheets gelatin
60g heavy cream (35 % fat content)
60g granulated sugar
¼ cup water
30g unsweetened cocoa powder

Soften the gelatin in cold water for 15 minutes.

Boil the rest of the ingredients and cook an additional 3 minutes after boiling.

Add gelatin to the chocolate mixture. Mix well.

Let cool while checking the texture regularly. As soon as the mixture is smooth and coats a spoon well (it is starting to gelify), use immediately.

How To Assemble your French Yule Log

Depending on whether your mold is going to hold the assembly upside down until you unmold it or right side up, this order will be different.

THIS IS FOR UNMOLDING FROM UPSIDE DOWN TO RIGHT SIDE UP.

You will want to tap your mold gently on the countertop after each time you pipe mousse in to get rid of any air bubbles.

Line your mold or pan, whatever its shape, with rhodoid (clear hard plastic, I usually use transparencies cut to the desired shape, it’s easier to find than cellulose acetate which is what rhodoid translates to in English) OR plastic film. Rhodoid will give you a smoother shape but you may have a hard time using it depending on the kind of mold you’re using.

Pipe one third of the Mousse component into the mold.

Take the Creme Brulee Insert out of the freezer at the last minute and set on top of the mousse. Press down gently to slightly ensconce it in the mousse.

Pipe second third of the Mousse component around and on top of the Creme Brulee Insert.

Cut the Praline/Crisp Insert to a size slightly smaller than your mold so that it can be surrounded by mousse. Lay it on top of the mousse you just piped into the mold.

Pipe the last third of the Mousse component on top of the Praline Insert.

Freeze for a few hours to set. Take out of the freezer.

Pipe the Ganache Insert onto the frozen mousse leaving a slight edge so that ganache doesn’t seep out when you set the Dacquoise on top.

Close with the Dacquoise.

Freeze until the next day.

The next day...

Unmold the cake/log/whatever and set on a wire rack over a shallow pan.
Cover the cake with the icing.

Let set. Return to the freezer.
You may decorate your cake however you wish. The decorations can be set in the icing after it sets but before you return the cake to the freezer or you may attach them on top using extra ganache or leftover mousse, etc...

Transfer to the refrigerator no longer than ½ hour before serving as it may start to melt quickly depending on the elements you chose.

Sathya-rating **

Tiramisu - David Lebovitz

I don't know about you, but if Tiramisu is on the menu somewhere, I always order it. Therefore I think of myself as quite the connoisseur! There seem to be so many different ways for it be made and presented. I am rarely disappointed, but there are outstandouts among all these tiramisu's I have ordered, I can't think how to describe it other than nice and moist, juicy, boozy and chocolatey as well as the definite flavour of mascarpone.

So when I saw David Lebovitz' recipe recently and noticed how easy it all was to prepare I decided it was time to give it a go at home. The perfect occassion arose, when friends of ours came for dinner who both own successful restaurants with my favourite little girl, Indiah. I made delicious meatballs (coming here soon) and this tiramisu for dessert. I always get a little nervous cooking for people in the hospitality industry, they know so much and chances are they'll discuss it (often at length) on the way home. Everyone loved this though, I think I was actually the most critical - the balance wasn't quite right - too much boozy biscuit and not enough creamy goodness. There's an easy solution for that though, I'll just double the mascarpone/egg mix next time!

½ cup (125ml) espresso, at room temperature
2 tablespoons dark rum
1 tablespoon cognac
2 large eggs, separated, at room temperature
pinch of salt
90g sugar, divided
250g mascarpone
twelve ladyfingers
optional: 1 ounce (30g) bittersweet chocolate
unsweetened cocoa powder, for serving


Mix together the espresso, rum, and cognac.

Beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until they begin to get stiff. Beat in half of the sugar until stiff. Scrape the egg whites into a small bowl.

Separately beat the egg yolks with the remaining sugar until stiff and light-colored, about three minutes. Beat in the mascarpone with a spatula or whisk by hand, until smooth.

Fold in half of the beaten egg whites, then the remaining half, just until fully incorporated.

Place a large soup spoon, of the mascarpone cream into each vessel (I used martini glasses).

Dip each ladyfinger in the espresso mixture for 5-10 seconds, until completely, utterly soaked. (Dried ladyfingers will take longer to saturate than softer ones.) Break the ladyfinger in half to be sure; they should be dropping wet, and can't be saturated enough. Then layer them over the mascarpone cream in each vessel. Use two ladyfingers per.

Grate a lots of dark chocolate over serve and top with remaining mascarpone cream. Cover and refrigerate at least four hours, or overnight.

When you’re ready to serve shake powdered cocoa generously on top.

Sathya-rating ***

Daring Bakers August Challenge: Pierre Hermé’s Chocolate Éclairs

Yesterday was the last day I could possibly make August's Daring Bakers challenge. I had all the ingredients in the fridge, but had resigned myself to the fact I probably wouldn't make them. The kitchen hasn't been my favourite place since I found out I'm pregnant, the exhaustion and nauseous kills the fun, so I wasn't expecting to jump out of bed and feel like hours of whisking, beating, stirring and baking but I did! And, I am glad I did, these are so delicious! And it wasn't too complicated.

Tony Tahhan & Meeta set this months yummy chocolate-y challenge. Following our Daring Bakers forums this month, it seemed like a few people struggled so I was a little nervous but it all came together quite nicely. Now, I know my little creations don't look great, but I blame that on not having a big enough nozzle for my piping bag so I struggled to make the choux pastry into decent shapes (you should see the 'finger' style, eclairs ones - ha!). Yes, they don't look great but they tasted perfect if I may say so myself.

I was planning to make the pastry cream vanilla rather than chocolate but I had a visitor chatting to me whilst I was making these so I didn't pay close attention and suddenly realised I had made chocolate pastry cream! I'm glad I did to be honest, cos this component was my favourite - yum. Although this was my favourite, this pastry cream also annoyed me the most as I could not get it thick enough to pipe nicely into the choux pastries. Eventually I added some thick whipped cream which helped a little, but not enough. Its ok, people don't realise till they take a bite and yummy chocolate cream oozes all over them. Fun to watch if you ask me.

Please find the recipe below and if you want to check out my fellow Daring Bakers please do so here.

(Oh, I forgot to mention, I followed the recipe to the letter, but I halved the chocolate sauce ingredients at the end and it was plenty for the 7 tablespoons needed for the glaze).

Pierre Hermé’s Chocolate Éclairs
Cream Puff Dough (see below for recipe), fresh and still warm

1) Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Divide the oven into thirds by
positioning the racks in the upper and lower half of the oven. Line two baking sheets with waxed or parchment paper.

2) Fill a large pastry bag fitted with a 2/3 (2cm) plain tip nozzle with the warm cream puff dough. Pipe the dough onto the baking sheets in long, 4 to 41/2 inches (about 11 cm) chubby fingers. Leave about 2 inches (5 cm) space in between each dough strip to allow them room to puff. The dough should give you enough to pipe 20-24 éclairs.

3) Slide both the baking sheets into the oven and bake for 7 minutes. After the 7 minutes, slip the handle of a wooden spoon into the door to keep in ajar. When the éclairs have been in the oven for a total of 12 minutes, rotate the sheets top to bottom and front to back. Continue baking for a further 8 minutes or until the éclairs are puffed, golden and firm. The total baking time should be approximately 20 minutes.

Assembling the éclairs:
• Chocolate glaze (see below for recipe)
• Chocolate pastry cream (see below for recipe)
1) Slice the éclairs horizontally, using a serrated knife and a gently sawing motion. Set aside the bottoms and place the tops on a rack over a piece of parchment paper.

2) The glaze should be barely warm to the touch (between 95 – 104 degrees F or 35 – 40 degrees C, as measured on an instant read thermometer). Spread the glaze over the tops of the éclairs using a metal icing spatula. Allow the tops to set and in the meantime fill the bottoms with the pastry cream.

3) Pipe or spoon the pastry cream into the bottoms of the éclairs. Make sure you fill the bottoms with enough cream to mound above the pastry. Place the glazed tops onto the pastry cream and wriggle gently to settle them.

Cream Puff Dough
½ cup (125g) whole milk
½ cup (125g) water
1 stick (4 ounces; 115g) unsalted butter, cut into 8 pieces
¼ teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup (140g) all-purpose flour
5 large eggs, at room temperature

1) In a heavy bottomed medium saucepan, bring the milk, water, butter, sugar and salt to the boil.

2) Once the mixture is at a rolling boil, add all of the flour at once, reduce the heat to medium and start to stir the mixture vigorously with a wooden spoon. The dough comes together very quickly. Do not worry if a slight crust forms at the bottom of the pan, it’s supposed to. You need to carry on stirring for a further 2-3 minutes to dry the dough. After this time the dough will be very soft and smooth.

3) Transfer the dough into a bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or using your handmixer or if you still have the energy, continue by hand. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each egg has been added to incorporate it into the dough.
You will notice that after you have added the first egg, the dough will separate, once again do not worry. As you keep working the dough, it will come back all together again by the time you have added the third egg. In the end the dough should be thick and shiny and when lifted it should fall back into the bowl in a ribbon.

4) The dough should be still warm. It is now ready to be used for the éclairs as directed above.

Chocolate Pastry Cream
2 cups (500g) whole milk
4 large egg yolks
6 tbsp (75g) sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch, sifted
7 oz (200g) bittersweet chocolate, melted
2½ tbsp (1¼ oz: 40g) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1) In a small saucepan, bring the milk to a boil. In the meantime, combine the yolks, sugar and cornstarch together and whisk in a heavy‐bottomed saucepan.

2) Once the milk has reached a boil, temper the yolks by whisking a couple spoonfuls of the hot milk into the yolk mixture. Continue whisking and slowly pour the rest of the milk into the tempered yolk mixture.

3) Strain the mixture back into the saucepan to remove any egg that may have scrambled. Place the pan over medium heat and whisk vigorously (without stop) until the mixture returns to a boil. Keep whisking vigorously for 1 to 2 more minutes (still over medium heat).Stir in the melted chocolate and then remove the pan from the heat.

4) Scrape the pastry cream into a small bowl and set it in an ice‐water bath to stop the cooking process. Make sure to continue stirring the mixture at this point so that it remains smooth.

5) Once the cream has reached a temperature of 140 F remove from the ice‐water bath and stir in the butter in three or four instalments. Return the cream to the ice‐water bath to continue cooling, stirring occasionally, until it has completely cooled. The cream is now ready to use or store in the fridge.

Chocolate Glaze
1/3 cup (80g) heavy cream
3½ oz (100g) bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
4 tsp (20 g) unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces, at room temperature
7 tbsp (110 g) Chocolate Sauce (recipe below), warm or at room temperature

1)In a small saucepan, bring the heavy cream to a boil. Remove from the heat and slowly begin to add the chocolate, stirring with a wooden spoon or spatula.

2) Stirring gently, stir in the butter, piece by piece followed by the chocolate sauce.

Chocolate Sauce
4½ oz (130 g) bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 cup (250 g) water
½ cup (125 g) crème fraîche, or heavy cream
1/3 cup (70 g) sugar

1) Place all the ingredients into a heavy‐bottomed saucepan and bring to a boil, making sure to stir constantly. Then reduce the heat to low and continue stirring with a wooden spoon until the sauce thickens.

2) It may take 10‐15 minutes for the sauce to thicken, but you will know when it is done when it coats the back of your spoon.

Sathya-rating ****

Fragrant Custard Apple Cake

www.cuisine.com.au is a great Australian website linked to a local newspaper which I enjoy having a look at from time to time when I feel adventurous or like a challenge.

I found this recipe sometime ago and when my sister came over from Melbourne recently and lunch was to be at our house, I thought this would be the perfect dessert as she cannot eat chocolate.

I never really made up my mind about this cake, I didn’t really enjoy making it as there wasn’t enough batter to spread it on the bottom of the pan, then pour on the custard and then spread on more batter. Secondly, ‘spreading’ batter on runny custard is not easy with a thick batter. I ended up adding some of the left over egg whites into the batter to make it runny and just putting spoonfuls on top of the custard and hoping for the best. When it finally came out of the oven it looked perfect and delicious, the sliced apple and spiced sugar helped I think.

Once we let it cool a little and sliced it into chunks and served it with cream everyone was very happy and enjoyed it. Personally, I was expecting a layer of cake, layer of custard and another lay of apple cake, but the custard kinda went into the cake. You couldn’t differentiate the custard at all. Some bites were moist and custardy and others were just ordinary cake. If I make this again, I think I would add some of the spices to the batter and possibly put some apples slices on top of the batter before the custard goes in. Anyway, it lovely, and everyone enjoyed it and it was lovely to sit around the table with the whole family.

For the custard
1 cup milk
3 large egg yolks
55g castor sugar
30g plain flour
2 tsp vanilla extract

For the cake:
200g soft butter
110g castor sugar
2 eggs
225g self-raising flour, sifted
2 small unpeeled apples, cored and thinly sliced (about 140g each)
1 tbsp butter, melted
2 tsp castor sugar, extra
¼ tsp nutmeg
¼ tsp allspice
¼ tsp ginger
¼ tsp cloves
¼ tsp cardamom
½ tsp cinnamon

For the custard
Place milk in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Remove.

Whisk egg yolks and sugar in a small bowl until thick then add flour and whisk until smooth. Pour hot milk onto egg yolk mixture and stir until smooth. Return mixture to saucepan and stir over low heat until mixture comes to the boil. Stir constantly for 1-2 minutes until thick then remove from heat, stir in vanilla and chill, covered in the fridge.

For the cake
Pre-heat oven to 180C.

Combine butter and sugar in a bowl and beat with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy.

Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each. Fold in flour.

Spread half the mixture into a 22cm greased and base-lined cake tin, add custard and smooth with a spatula.

Add spoonfuls of remaining cake mix and spread carefully with a spatula to cover custard.


Arrange apples on top of cake mixture and brush with melted butter. Combine sweet spice mix with extra castor sugar and sprinkle over apples.

Bake for 60 or until cooked when tested with a skewer. Cool in pan before turning out.

Sathya-rating ***

June DB Challenge - Cherry & Custard Danish Braid

It's the end of June, which means time has come for the Daring Bakers to take over the blog-waves again!

This month we were set the enormous challenge of a Danish Braid with a filling of our choice.

Hours before I discovered this challenge, I was having lunch with dear Laura, who was telling me all about these amazing German custard and cherry pastries she devoured when she was working in Hahndorf, South Australia.

So by the time I'd finished reading the recipe for this latest challenge I knew I would use a cherry and custard filling and started thinking of how I could do that. I ended up finding a jar of morello cherries in juice at the supermarket, boiling them down with some sugar and mushing them to create a yummy compote. I glugged some custard on top and closed my braid and the end result was heavenly. Sour and sweet with flaky, sweet and buttery pastry.

The challenge took me a long time with all the resting (5 times + proofing) (one night and one morning which I didn't enjoy this time. I think because it was stopping and starting. The actual making of the braid part was fiddly but enjoyed it and the end result looked really special, which made it all worthwhile (as did the taste!). I made one large one and 1 small one, which I froze after proofing, defrosted in the fridge over night and then the next day took it out of the fridge for a few hours before popping it in the oven, and it worked fine, which is always good. Overall, I really enjoyed this challenge, I think the end result was my favourite out of all 11 challenges I have now completed, it was yum! I don't think the process was though, and I doubt I will be making Danish pastry from scratch again, although who knows!

If you would like to check out how my fellow Daring Bakers went with their Danish Braids this month you can do so here.

For the dough (Detrempe)
28 grams active dry yeast
1/2 cup whole milk
1/3 cup sugar
Zest of 1 orange, finely grated
3/4 tsp ground cardamom
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped
2 large eggs, chilled
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
3 1/4 cups plain flour
1 tsp salt

For the butter block (Beurrage)
225 grams cold unsalted butter
1/4 cup flour

DOUGH

Combine yeast and milk in the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and mix on low speed. Slowly add sugar, orange zest, cardamom, vanilla extract, vanilla seeds, eggs, and orange juice. Mix well. Change to the dough hook and add the salt with the flour, 1 cup at a time, increasing speed to medium as the flour is incorporated. Knead the dough for about 5 minutes, or until smooth. You may need to add a little more flour if it is sticky. Transfer dough to a lightly floured baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Without a standing mixer: Combine yeast and milk in a bowl with a hand mixer on low speed or a whisk. Add sugar, orange zest, cardamom, vanilla extract, vanilla seeds, eggs, and orange juice and mix well. Sift flour and salt on your working surface and make a fountain. Make sure that the "walls" of your fountain are thick and even. Pour the liquid in the middle of the fountain. With your fingertips, mix the liquid and the flour starting from the middle of the fountain, slowly working towards the edges. When the ingredients have been incorporated start kneading the dough with the heel of your hands until it becomes smooth and easy to work with, around 5 to 7 minutes. You might need to add more flour if the dough is sticky.

BUTTER BLOCK

Combine butter and flour in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and beat on medium speed for 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and the paddle and then beat for 1 minute more, or until smooth and lump free. Set aside at room temperature.

After the detrempe has chilled 30 minutes, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough into a rectangle approximately 45 x 33 cm and 0.5 cm thick. The dough may be sticky, so keep dusting it lightly with flour. Spread the butter evenly over the center and right thirds of the dough. Fold the left edge of the detrempe to the right, covering half of the butter. Fold the right third of the rectangle over the center third. The first turn has now been completed. Mark the dough by poking it with your finger to keep track of your turns, or use a sticky and keep a tally. Place the dough on a baking sheet, wrap it in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Place the dough lengthwise on a floured work surface. The open ends should be to your right and left. Roll the dough into another approximately 33 x 45 cm, 0.5 cm thick rectangle. Again, fold the left third of the rectangle over the center third and the right third over the center third. No additional butter will be added as it is already in the dough. The second turn has now been completed. Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes.

Roll out, turn, and refrigerate the dough two more times, for a total of four single turns. Make sure you are keeping track of your turns. Refrigerate the dough after the final turn for at least 5 hours or overnight. The Danish dough is now ready to be used. If you will not be using the dough within 24 hours, freeze it. To do this, roll the dough out to about 1 inch in thickness, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and freeze. Defrost the dough slowly in the refrigerator for easiest handling. Danish dough will keep in the freezer for up to 1 month.

Cherry compote
Makes enough for two braids

500 grams cherries, washed, pitted and halved (or 1 jar of morello cherries)
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon kirsch, or orange flavored-liqueur

In a medium saucepan, combine the cherries, water, lemon juice, and sugar.

Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In a small bowl, combine the cornstarch and kirsch and add to the cherry mixture.

Return to a boil and cook for 1 minute, stirring. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until thickened, about 4 minutes.

DANISH BRAID

Makes enough for 2 large braids

Ingredients

1 recipe Danish Dough (see below)
2 cups cherry compote
1 cup of thick vanilla custard
2 tbs flaked almonds (for decorating)
For the egg wash: 1 large egg, plus 1 large egg yolk

Line a baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper. On a lightly floured surface, roll the Danish Dough into a 38 x 50 cm rectangle, 0.5 cm thick. If the dough seems elastic and shrinks back when rolled, let it rest for a few minutes, then roll again. Place the dough on the baking sheet.

Along one long side of the pastry make parallel, 12 cm long cuts with a knife or rolling pastry wheel, each about 2.5 cm apart. Repeat on the opposite side, making sure to line up the cuts with those you've already made.

Spoon the cherry compote onto down the center of the rectangle of the braid and then glug a little custard over the top of your braid.



Starting with the top and bottom "flaps", fold the top flap down over the filling to cover. Next, fold the bottom "flap" up to cover filling. This helps keep the braid neat and helps to hold in the filling. Now begin folding the cut side strips of dough over the filling, alternating first left, then right, left, right, until finished. Trim any excess dough and tuck in the ends.

Egg Wash

Whisk together the whole egg and yolk in a bowl and with a pastry brush, lightly coat the braid.

Proofing and Baking

Spray cooking oil onto a piece of plastic wrap, and place over the braid. Proof at room temperature or, if possible, in a controlled 32 degree C environment for about 2 hours, or until doubled in volume and light to the touch.

Near the end of proofing, preheat oven to 200 degrees C. Position a rack in the center of the oven.

Bake for 10 minutes, then rotate the pan so that the side of the braid previously in the back of the oven is now in the front. Lower the oven temperature to 180 degrees C, and bake about 15-20 minutes more, or until golden brown. Cool and serve the braid either still warm from the oven or at room temperature. The cooled braid can be wrapped airtight and stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 days, or freeze for 1 month.

One year on + Lemon Bars

One year ago today, this little blog, The Baker and The Currymaker began. Yep, that's right. I survived a whole 12 months. I didn't know I had it in me to come here several times a week and tell you all about my kitchens goings-on all the while, taking pictures, trying new things, trying to keep it exciting as well as suitable for the mouths that needed feeding. I've loved it. Honestly, every single time has been fun. I've made friends, I've tried new things, my photography is very slowly getting better, I feel a little more confident in my verbal ramblings to you all and according to the traffic, theres quite a few of you who like it here even though, no matter what I do, I can't get you to comment much, apart from my favourite day of the month, Daring Bakers challenge reveal day when I get my dose for ages.

To celebrate all this I decided to try something from 2 ladies I love - Smitten Kitchen and The Barefoot Contessa. I came across these Lemon Bars on Smitten Kitchen's site and its a Barefoot Contessa recipe she's adapted and here's my attempt at it.

It was almost too easy. Strange thing for me to say really, as I still don't consider myself a baker, but there's a little more proof I am I guess. So you make an easy shortbread style layer and chill it and then mix a few things together and pop it in the oven, slice it up and you have little pieces of heaven. Yum! These are delicious. My sister, Surya, must be happy to have me home, as I swear she ate like 6 of them, if not more!

For the crust:
225 grams unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 cups flour
1/8 teaspoon salt

For the lemon layer:
6 extra-large eggs at room temperature
2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 tablespoons grated lemon zest (4 to 6 lemons)
1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 cup flour
Icing sugar, for dusting

Preheat the oven to 180C and grease a 22 by 33 by 2-inch baking sheet.

For the crust, cream the butter and sugar until light in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Combine the flour and salt and, with the mixer on low, add to the butter until just mixed. Dump the dough onto a well-floured board and gather into a ball. Flatten the dough with floured hands and press it into the greased baking sheet, building up a 1/2-inch edge on all sides. Chill.

Bake the crust for 15 to 20 minutes, until very lightly browned. Let cool on a wire rack. Leave the oven on.

For the lemon layer, whisk together the eggs, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, and flour. Pour over the crust and bake for 30 to 35 minutes (less if you are using the thinner topping), or about five minutes beyond the point where the filling is set. Let cool to room temperature.

Cut into triangles and dust with icing sugar.

Sathya-Rating ****

April Daring Bakers Challenge - Cheesecake Pops

Its the end of April, which means it Daring Bakers challenge time. This month one of my favourite bloggers, Deborah from Taste & Tell joined Elle from Feeding My Enthusiasm choose the challenge - Cheesecake Pops. I was quite excited to see this recipe originally as I've never made a baked cheesecake and have not really 'played' with food like this to form it into something so fun.

We're moving back to Adelaide, South Australia from Sydney next week so I wasn't sure I'd be able to complete the challenge but things came together and I managed to make them this weekend for my gorgeous friends Stacy and Will who are kindly looking after us at the moment as we had to get get out of our apartment quicker than we thought.

I loved this challenge, the pops taste fantastic and I didn't struggle with any of the tasks. The only slight difficulty was the fact there are no beaters in this kitchen, so it took me a long time to combine everything to the right consistency. It made me realise how much I love my gorgeous red KitchenAid! I will definitely be making these again, maybe not us 'pops' but the cheesecake part for sure. It'll be a breeze with the KitchenAid.

Thank Elle and Deborah, this was a lot of fun. If you would like to check out my fellow challengers, please do so here.

Makes 30 – 40 Pops
5 x 225g packages cream cheese at room temperature
2 cups sugar
¼ cup flour
¼ tsp salt
5 large eggs
2 egg yolks
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
¼ cup heavy cream
Boiling water as needed
Thirty to forty 8-inch lollipop sticks
450g milk chocolate, finely chopped milk
2 tbs vegetable shortening
Assorted decorations such as chopped nuts, colored jimmies, crushed peppermints, mini chocolate chips, sanding sugars) - Optional

Position oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 160C. Set some water to boil.

In a large bowl, beat together the cream cheese, sugar, flour, and salt until smooth. If using a mixer, mix on low speed. Add the whole eggs and the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well (but still at low speed) after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and cream.

Grease a 10-inch cake pan (not a springform pan), and pour the batter into the cake pan. Place the pan in a larger roasting pan. Fill the roasting pan with the boiling water until it reaches halfway up the sides of the cake pan. Bake until the cheesecake is firm and slightly golden on top, 35 to 45 minutes.

Remove the cheesecake from the water bath and cool to room temperature. Cover the cheesecake with plastic wrap and refrigerate until very cold, at least 3 hours or up to overnight.

When the cheesecake is cold and very firm, scoop the cheesecake into 2-ounce balls and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Carefully insert a lollipop stick into each cheesecake ball. Freeze the cheesecake pops, uncovered, until very hard, at least 1 – 2 hours.

When the cheesecake pops are frozen and ready for dipping, prepare the chocolate. In the top of a double boiler, set over simmering water, or in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, heat half the chocolate and half the shortening, stirring often, until chocolate is melted and chocolate and shortening are combined. Stir until completely smooth. Do not heat the chocolate too much or your chocolate will lose it's shine after it has dried. Save the rest of the chocolate and shortening for later dipping, or use another type of chocolate for variety.

Alternately, you can microwave the same amount of chocolate coating pieces on high at 30 second intervals, stirring until smooth.

Quickly dip a frozen cheesecake pop in the melted chocolate, swirling quickly to coat it completely. Shake off any excess into the melted chocolate. If you like, you can now roll the pops quickly in optional decorations. You can also drizzle them with a contrasting color of melted chocolate (dark chocolate drizzled over milk chocolate or white chocolate over dark chocolate, etc.) Place the pop on a clean parchment paper-lined baking sheet to set. Repeat with remaining pops, melting more chocolate and shortening (or confectionary chocolate pieces) as needed.

Refrigerate the pops for up to 24 hours, until ready to serve.





S

Apple Pandowdy

Here’s another dish we whipped up while I was home in Adelaide. I don’t know where I found this, it was in my emails. I’ve never heard of a Pandowdy but basically it’s like a cobbler, yummy spiced apples with a cake topping. It looks pretty boring when it comes out of the oven, but it’s delicious! Everyone was very excited and there were no leftovers. That plus a few more compliments the next day means it’s a winner! I served this with ice-cream which worked perfectly. You could try this with any fruit really. I’d like to try it with some raspberries next time, mmm.

900g golden delicious apples
2 tbs golden syrup
½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
175g plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
115g sugar
115g unsalted butter, melted
150ml milk

Peel, quarter and core the apples, then thinly slice them into a bowl. Add the syrup, cinnamon and nutmeg, and toss gently to coat the apple slices evenly.

Spoon the mixture into a buttered 1-litre ovenproof, deep-sided dish. Sift the flour, salt and baking powder into a bowl and stir in the sugar.

Make a well in the centre and add the melted butter and the milk. Stir to make a smooth batter, then spread it evenly over the apple slices.

Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C for 40-45 minutes or until the sponge topping has risen and is browned.

Serve from the baking dish or invert into a serving dish. It is, of course, highly improved with cream in generous dollops.

S

January Daring Bakers Challenge - Lemon Meringue Pie

Jen the Canadian Baker is the hostess with the mostess whom set January's Daring Baker's challenge. This is my sixth challenge with the wonderful group of supportive and inspiring bakers from all around the world.

Jen set us a Lemon Meringue Pie as something lighter after all the holiday treats. It was great. I didn't struggle with this challenge, which means this scary dare I set myself to join this awesome group has taught me something. I think the main reason I am having more success in the baking department, is to do with confidence and following the instructions to the letter. I'm one of those eh, I'll throw a bit f this or that in, so baking was never my forte.

We had people over the night I made this and I managed to make each part at different stages through my day in the kitchen and then assembled it as we sat down for dinner, set the timer jumped up 15 minutes later, allowed it to cool and served it about 2 hours later and it was a hit! Everyone loved it. So, thank you Jen for the gorgeous recipe and challenge and thank you fellow Daring Bakers for all your help and support in the last 6 challenges.

For the Crust:
180 grams cold butter; cut into ½-inch (1.2 cm) pieces
2 cups plain flour
¼ cup sugar
¼ tsp salt
⅓ cup iced water

For the Filling:
2 cups water
1 cup sugar
½ cup cornflour
5 egg yolks, beaten
¼ cup butter
¾ cup fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp lemon zest
1 tsp vanilla extract

For the Meringue:
5 egg whites, room temperature
½ tsp cream of tartar
¼ tsp salt
½ tsp vanilla extrac
t¾ cup sugar

For the Crust: Make sure all ingredients are as cold as possible. Using a food processor combine the butter, flour, sugar and salt. Process until the mixture resembles coarse meal and begins to clump together. Sprinkle with the iced water, let rest 30 seconds and then process very briefly just until the dough begins to stick together and comes away from the sides of the bowl. Turn onto a lightly floured work surface and press together to form a disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for at least 20 minutes.

Allow the dough to warm slightly to room temperature if it is too hard to roll. On a lightly floured board roll the disk to a thickness of ⅛ inch. Cut a circle about 2 inches larger than the pie plate and transfer the pastry into the plate by folding it in half or by rolling it onto the rolling pin. Turn the pastry under, leaving an edge that hangs over the plate about ½ inch. Flute decoratively. Chill for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 180ºC. Line the crust with foil and fill with metal pie weights or dried beans. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes.

Carefully remove the foil and continue baking for 10 to 15 minutes, until golden. Cool before filling.

For the Filling: Bring the water to a boil in a large, heavy saucepan. Remove from the heat and let rest 5 minutes. Whisk the sugar and cornstarch together. Add the mixture gradually to the hot water, whisking until completely incorporated.

Return to the heat and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly until the mixture comes to a boil. The mixture will be very thick. Add about 1 cup of the hot mixture to the beaten egg yolks, whisking until smooth. Whisking vigorously, add the warmed yolks to the pot and continue cooking, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil. Remove from the heat and stir in butter until incorporated. Add the lemon juice, zest and vanilla, stirring until combined. Pour into the prepared crust. Cover with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming on the surface, and cool to room temperature.

For the Meringue: Preheat the oven to 190ºC. Using an electric mixer beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar, salt and vanilla extract until soft peaks form. Add the sugar gradually, beating until it forms stiff, glossy peaks. Pile onto the cooled pie, bringing the meringue all the way over to the edge of the crust to seal it completely.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden. Cool on a rack. Serve within 6 hours to avoid a soggy crust.

S

Mango mascarpone coconut cheesecake

On the roads back to Sydney there were numerous signs for trays of mangoes. Now, let me tell you, mangoes are my absolute, absolute favourite. Yum! We bought a tray of gorgeous mangoes for $10. Nothing compared to Sydney prices, let alone the prices I used to see when I lived in Europe at this time of year.

With absolutely nothing to do on my holidays other than swim, eat, drink and sleep I bought myself a library of magazines to entertain myself. The Gourmet Traveller, had this cake on the cover. Had me at hello!

And, I had the perfect dinner party for which to make it.

We arrived back from our trip after a day of driving on Saturday evening. I rushed off to the supermarket to buy the ingredients and everything else we needed. I began preparing the cake. I didn’t think would take me too long. Knee deep in mangoes I was informed we were already late for the concert we were going to that night. I put lids on everything and scooted out. I returned home later that evening, very tired and rather tipsy and continued where I left off. Finally I thought I was done and it was time for bed, when I realised it had to be refrigerated for 2 hours before I could pour on the final layer!

I went to bed and set my alarm for 2 hours later. Somehow I dragged myself out of bed and poured the jelly layer on to set overnight.

The following morning I was to scared too look. In my sleepy daze I recalled the last time I poured jelly on top (of the Strawberry Mirror Cake) and it seeped through and went everywhere, so this time I put the pan on a plate. That morning, I had visions of the springform being on the plate crooked and all the jelly pooled on one side. Tony eventually coaxed me into it and it was fine. More than fine in fact, it was a good looker and delicious!

190 grams butter, softened
110 grams brown sugar
110 grams (¾ cup) plain flour
110 grams desiccated coconut

Mango jelly
500 grams mangoes, coarsely chopped (3 – 4 mangoes)
100 grams caster sugar
20ml lemon juice
1 tsp gelatine

Mascarpone mousse
750 grams mascarpone
2 tbsp finely grated lemon rind
2 tbsp milk
¾ tsp gelatine
4 egg yolks
110 grams (½ cup) caster sugar
25ml lemon juice

Start with the mango jelly - combine mango with a 1 litre of water in a saucepan and bring to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes until pulpy and fragrant. Puree using a hand-held blender or food processor, and strain through a fine sieve. You need 400ml, discard the pulp. Combine liquid with sugar in a clean saucepan and stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil, remove from heat and stir through lemon juice. Sprinkle on the gelatine and stir to dissolve. Stand until cool.

Next the base - preheat oven to 180C. Cream 140gm butter and 80gm brown sugar until pale and fluffy. Add the flour and coconut and stir to the butter and sugar mix. Transfer to a baking paper lined oven tray and press out to approx 1cm-thick rectangle and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Bake this for 1015 minutes or until golden, and cool completely. Break the coconut biscuit into a food processor and process till finely ground. Melt remaining butter and add to food processor with the remaining sugar. Transfer to springform pan, lined with baking paper and press the mix to form the base and refrigerate for 1 hour.

The mascarpone mousse - combine mascarpone and lemon rind in a bowl, folding gently. Heat milk in a saucepan over low heat to just below simmering point. Sprinkle the gelatine on and stir to dissolve. Allow to stand for 5 minutes to cool, and add the to mascarpone mix. Whisk egg yolks, sugar and lemon juice in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water for 5 minutes (until thick and pale) and carefully fold through mascarpone mixture. Spoon over crumb base, smooth top and refrigerate for 2 hours.

Lastly, pour mango jelly over mascarpone mixture and refrigerate overnight or until firm.
To serve, remove cake pan ring and scatter cake with shaved coconut.

S

My Mums Dutch Apple Pie

a

My gorgeous Mum made this apple pie for my Dads birthday the other day. My Mum is amazing in the kitchen. Many of my friends hold on to memories of her cooking years later. The thing is, she is not so good at baking. Her magic is with savouries and dinners. However there is one thing she can bake - an apple pie, and wow, is it perfect every time!

On your birthday in Holland, the tradition is that everyone comes over. Its a visiting day as such. Its a great tradition as you get to see everyone. I don't think it would work in our Aussie culture though, as its announced and everyone expects cake and coffee. 'Gebakje' its called, usually served with lots of cream.

So this is what Mum made for all the visitors who came over for Dads 60th birthday this year. They were pretty lucky if you ask me!

300 grams plain flour
200 grams butter
150 grams caster sugar
2 eggs

Filling:
1 kg granny smith apples, peeled and sliced
100 grams sugar
100 grams sultanas, rinsed under cold water
Ground cinnamon
lemon rind
2 tbs flour
apricot jam

Preheat the oven to 170C.

Mix the flour, butter (cut the butter into fine pieces), egg and caster sugar in a bowl and knead into the dough with your hands till smooth.

Mix the apples slices, with the sultanas, sugar, cinnamon, lemon rind and 2 tbs of flour.

Roll out the dough [in between sheets of clingwrap] with a rolling pin. Fit this into an buttered tin and cut off the overhanging edges.

Add the apple mixture into the tin.

Roll out the left-over dough and cut long and shorter strips and place these in lattice style over the top of the apple pie. Cut the overhanging edges.

Bake for 1 hour.

Remove from the oven and brush the top with apricot jam.

Serve with sweetened cream.


Happy birthday Daddo xx

S

Toffee Apple Tart

A

I came across this recipe on Jamie Oliver’s website and decided our weekend away at the beach, with a couple of friends, was a good time to have a go.

I didn’t read the recipe properly, so if you’re going to make this, be aware that you need to start a few hours before you plan to serve it.

It wasn’t a difficult tart to make, however there were several different steps during the preparation. The end result was a rich oozing caramel with tart apples and soft crumbly pastry. I could not finish my slice, others did though… If I was to make this again, which I think I will, I would only use one tin of condensed milk and use a deeper tart pan, a couple more apples, and push the apple slices into the caramel, and maybe even a lattice of pastry on top.

On a side note, we were all very excited about the end result of the condensed milk boiled for 3 hours, it was the perfect caramel and oh, so easy!

Pastry:
125g butter
100g icing sugar
a small pinch of salt
255g/9oz flour
zest of ½ a lemon
2 egg yolks
½ tsp vanilla extract
2 tablespoons cold milk

Filling:
2 x 397g tins of condensed milk
4 granny smith apples
2 tablespoons icing sugar

Start this tart at least 3 hours before you want to serve. Firstly you need to pop the unopened tins of condensed milk in a pan and cover with water. Bring to the boil, and reduce the heat and simmer constantly for 3 hours with the lid on. Keep in mind the liquid will evaporate so keep an eye on the water level always covering the tins ‘cos they’ll explode. After 3 hours, switch the heat off, drain the water and set them aside to cool.

Next comes the pastry. This also needs 2 hours. I just put all the ingredients in the food processor and it produced a ball of dough that I floured lightly. Don’t play with it too much as it will ruin the texture. Roll it into a large sausage shape and wrap in clingfilm. Put it in the fridge to rest for at least an hour.

After an hour, take it out of the fridge and slice it up and line a 28cm tart mould with the slivers. Push them together to form the case and tidy up the sides by trimming off any excess. Place into the freezer for an hour.

Preheat the oven to 180ºC.

Take the pastry case out of the freezer and bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes.
Peel and slice the apples and toss in the icing sugar.

Take the pastry out of the oven and smear the caramel you produced from the condensed milk over the pastry.

Scatter the apples on top and pour any remaining juices over.

Bake in the oven for 40 minutes and serve with vanilla ice cream.

S

Bostini Cream Pie - October Daring Bakers Challenge

a

14 eggs were needed for the October Daring Bakers Challenge! This month we were asked by Mary at AlpineBerry to make Bostini Cream Pie.

For those of you, like me, who’ve never heard of a Bostini Cream Pie it’s basically a light, fluffy orange cake in a smooth cold vanilla custard with a rich chocolate glaze on top.

I have to be straight up with you, I did not like the sound of this, which is probably why I left it to the last minute. All the components separately would have worked for me, but I do as I’m told (most of the time, anyway) and it wasn’t too bad. The part I enjoyed the most was custard I’d never made my own, and was a little worried about all those eggs, but it went fine and the result was delicious and perfect. I’ll definitely be making that again.

If you’d like to see what my fellow friends in the Daring Baker community did with this challenge, have a look here at our blogroll - http://daringbakersblogroll.blogspot.com/

Custard
3/4 cup whole milk
2 3/4 tablespoons cornstarch
1 whole egg, beaten
9 egg yolks, beaten
3 3/4 cups heavy whipping cream
1/2 vanilla bean
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon sugar

Chiffon Cake
1 1/2 cups cake flour
3/4 cup superfine sugar
1 1/3 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup canola oil
1/3 cup beaten egg yolks (3 to 4 yolks)
3/4 cup fresh orange juice
1 1/2 tablespoons grated orange zest
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup egg whites (about 8 large)
1 teaspoon cream of tartar

Chocolate Glaze
225 grams semi or bittersweet chocolate
225 grams unsalted butter

To prepare the custard:
Combine the milk and cornstarch in a bowl; blend until smooth. Whisk in the whole egg and yolks, beating until smooth. Combine the cream, vanilla bean and sugar in a saucepan and carefully bring to a boil. When the mixture just boils, whisk a ladleful into the egg mixture to temper it, then whisk this back into the cream mixture. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Strain the custard and pour into 8 large custard cups. Refrigerate to chill.

To prepare the chiffon cakes:
Preheat the oven to 160°C. Spray 8 moulds with non-stick cooking spray. You may use 7-ounce custard cups, ovenproof wide mugs or even large foil cups. Whatever you use should be the same size as the custard cups.

Sift the cake flour, sugar, baking powder and salt into a large bowl. Add the oil, egg yolks, orange juice, zest and vanilla. Stir until smooth, but do not overbeat.

Beat the egg whites until frothy. Add the cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks form. Gently fold the beaten whites into the orange batter. Fill the sprayed moulds nearly to the top with the batter.

Bake approximately 25 minutes, until the cakes bounce back when lightly pressed with your fingertip. Do not overbake. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack. When completely cool, remove the cakes from the moulds. Cover the cakes to keep them moist.

To prepare the glaze:
Chop the chocolate into small pieces. Place the butter in a saucepan and heat until it is just about to bubble. Remove from the heat; add the chocolate and stir to melt. Pour through a strainer and keep warm.

To assemble:
Cut a thin slice from the top of each cake to create a flat surface. Place a cake flat-side down on top of each custard. Cover the tops with warm chocolate glaze. Serve immediately.

S