Chutney Goodness

So, I realise this isn't quite a cake, but it is pretty tasty nonetheless! Regretfully, I didn't get any photos of the chutney while I was making it so do your best to imagine it! We're lucky enough to have a huge apple tree in our back garden and in the past few weeks there have been a procession of apple-based puds going through our kitchen (and into our tummies!) including apple crumble, baked apples with mincemeat, and apple cake. But even we can get a little bored of cakes sometimes so we decided to have a go at chutney making!

This recipe was really easy, basically you put everything into one big (heavy-bottomed) pan, and leave it for two and a half hours - stirring occasionally to make sure it's not sticking. Once you can draw a spoon through the chutney without the channel it leaves behind filling with liquid, it's ready to be put in sterilised jars. To sterilise your jars, make sure they are clean, then put them in a pan of boiling water, and let them boil for a little while. Meanwhile, put the oven on low (100 degrees is fine). Take the jars from the boiling water (carefully) and put them on a baking tray into the oven. Leave them in there until you're ready to jar your chutney.

It's worth mentioning once you've made the chutney, you should leave it in the jars in a cool, dark cupboard for two to three months before eating, to allow the flavours to develop. Then, enjoy!

Ingredients

• 225g/8oz onions, chopped
• 900g/2lb apples, cored and chopped
• 110g/4oz sultanas, raisins or chopped dates
• 15g/½oz ground coriander
• 15g/½oz paprika
• 15g/½oz mixed spice
• 15g/½oz salt
• 340g/12oz granulated sugar
• 425ml/¾ pints malt vinegar
  
  
  
  

Raspberry and Almond Cake

Raspberry and almond flavours work so well together - Mr Kipling wouldn't be so popular otherwise! I saw this recipe for a raspberry and almond cake on Poires au Chocolat and it looked so lovely and summery I had to try it. I changed the recipe slightly in that I doubled the ingredients to make a 9" cake, and I also made an almond mascarpone icing for the top rather than using cream, as I was serving it as a birthday cake and needed to transport it, and I wasn't sure cream would hold up well during transit!

The recipe turned out beautifully, if I do say so myself.

Ingredients

200g butter

250g caster sugar

4 eggs

200g plain flour

50g ground almonds

2 tsp baking powder

4 -6 drops almond essence (I added significantly more as I loved the taste but be careful as it can be slightly bitter)

For the filling:

A punnet of fresh raspberries

Good quality raspberry jam

For the icing:

150g mascarpone

60g butter

80g icing sugar

almond essence, to taste

Preheat the oven to 170 degrees and grease two 9" round baking tins. Cream the butter and the sugar together until light and creamy. Lightly beat the eggs and add gradually to the butter and sugar. Add the flour, almonds and baking powder and mix until combined. Add the almond essence and beat briefly until combined. Bake for about 25 minutes until golden and springy to touch.

Allow to cool. Once cool, spread the bottom layer with jam, and cover in a layer of fresh raspberries. Save about half for the top of the cake. Make the mascarpone icing - cream the butter until light and pale-coloured. Add the mascarpone and mix until combined. Don't overmix or the mascarpone can curdle. Add the icing sugar and almond essence and briefly mix.

Spread on the top layer of the cake, and decorate with the remaining raspberries. If you're serving the cake immediately, dust with icing sugar and toasted slivered almonds.

Lovely Lemon Drizzle Cupcakes

Rather than make a traditional lemon drizzle cake, I decided to mix it up a little and have a go at making lemon drizzle cupcakes. I used a basic sponge recipe which I use as a base for most cakes, and added a little lemon zest to the batter. For added deliciousness I put some lemon curd in the centre of the cakes as a tasty surprise filling.

Ingredients

200g SR flour
200g butter, softened
200g caster sugar
4 eggs, lightly beaten
Juice and zest of one large, unwaxed lemon
100g extra sugar for the topping - I used caster sugar but you could use granulated if you wanted a 'crunchier' crust
Lemon curd - I used about a teaspoon per cupcake

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Line a 12 hole muffin tin. Cream the butter and sugar together until airy and pale-coloured. Add the eggs bit by bit and beat until well combined. Add the flour and the lemon zest, beat briefly until combined.

Put a dessert spoon of the cake mixture into each cake case. Top each with a teaspoonful of lemon curd, and then cover with another dessert spoon of the cake batter. Smooth the top of the cupcakes down to cover the lemon curd.

Bake the cupcakes for around 25-30 minutes until golden and springy to the touch. While they are still in the oven, mix together the extra sugar and the lemon juice. When the cupcakes come out of the oven, and while they are still hot, drizzle over the lemon and sugar mixture. Once it cools it will make a nice crunchy crust.

I think these make the perfect companion to a nice cup of tea! Alternatively, if you don't to make cupcakes, this recipe would also make 2 x 8 inch cakes, or 24 little fairy cakes.

Coconut Ice is rather nice

Well, it's a typical British summer day today...by which I mean it's pouring with rain! So what better time to get in the kitchen and try my hand at a childhood favourite of mine...Coconut Ice.

I always think of coconut ice as being rather a retro sweet; maybe it's the simplicity of the ingredients, or the shocking pink colour! Either way, it makes a lovely and (very) sweet treat.

Ingredients

100g sweetened condensed milk
115g icing sugar
85g desiccated coconut (try if you can to find unsweetened, this recipe doesn't need any more sugar!)
Pink/red food colouring (optional)

I found the recipe on this website. There are a lot of recipes for coconut ice around, I chose this one since I only had a small amount of coconut in the cupboard.

The method for this recipe is pretty simple; first mix the condensed milk and icing sugar together, then add the coconut. Once you add in the coconut the mix does get quite hard to stir though, so I just got stuck in and used my (clean!) hands to mix it all up.

At this point, you can choose to add some pink food colouring to one half of the mixture. How much you add depends on how lurid you want the finished product to be. On this occasion I actually kept all the mixture white, I was going for an 'au naturel' look. However I think it would be fun to play around the with the colourings and flavourings for this - perhaps adding a little peppermint extract to the mix, or maybe even toasting the coconut before adding it in?

Anyway, once you've mixed everything up, you need to spread the mixture into a small tin. I used a cake tin since it suited the amount  of mixture I had. If you are doing two colours, spread the white layer first; then the pink layer on top, pressing the two layers together firmly.

Leave the coconut ice to set for a couple of hours, then cut into pieces. I cut mine into quite small cubes because it was so sweet, but it's a matter of preference really. Enjoy, and forget about the rain outside!

Best ever Brownies?

I'm sure it's no surprise given the title of my blog, but I love brownies. Especially when they're gooey, fudgey and soft - delicious! This Nigella Lawson recipe from 'How to be a Domestic Goddess' makes the perfect brownie in my opinion, and it's very easy.

Ingredients

375g unsalted butter
375g good quality dark chocolate (I used a roughly 50/50 mix of this and this)
6 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
500g caster sugar
1 teaspoon salt (I halved this)
225g plain flour
300g walnuts (I used macadamia nuts as I prefer them)

Preheat the oven to 180 degree and line a brownie pan with greaseproof paper.

Melt the chocolate and the butter together. Make sure the chocolate doesn't burn, either put it in a heavy bottomed pan over a low heat, or use a heatproof bowl over a pan of boiling water. Make sure the bowl doesn't touch the water if you do this.

Mix together the eggs, sugar, vanilla and salt in a separate bowl. Once the chocolate has melted, add the egg mixture and stir well to combine. Add the flour, then the nuts and stir everything together.

Put in the prepared pan and cook for 20-25 minutes. The brownies are ready once the top goes slightly paler and starts to crack. Be careful not to over-cook them as they'll continue to cook for a little while out of the oven and there's only a few minutes between lovely soft brownies and dry, dense ones! I cooked mine for 20 minutes since I like them on the soft side.

These brownies are really lovely; very rich and decadent, and the nuts add a nice contrast to the softness of the cake. This is definitely the best recipe for brownies I've found so far, I think they'd be equally yummy served as a treat alongside a coffee as they would slightly warmed with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream. Hmmm, perhaps I need to go and test this theory now...

Yummy, Chewy Fruit and Seed Slice

I have inherited from my mum the idea that feeding people is a great way to show you care for them. Cupcakes, cakes, cookies, flapjacks and the rest are all little ways of showing my affection. Naturally this means my boyfriend gets to eat a lot of baked goods!

Thankfully he is a very active, outdoorsy type, so he is the perfect tester for all my baking experiments. This chewy fruit and seed slice is one of my favourite things to bake, it's very little effort for something so delicious. It's also a very good high energy snack, so perfect for anyone sporty in your life!

Ingredients
200g unsalted butter
175g golden syrup
125g crunchy peanut butter
2 tsp vanilla extract
30g plain flour (I've used white and wholemeal for this before and either works well)
75g ground almonds
0.5 tsp mixed spice (you can add more to taste)
300g quick cooking oats
185g soft brown sugar
45g desiccated coconut
50g toasted sesame seeds
90g pumpkin seeds
80g dried cranberries, chopped

(As an aside, this recipe is really versatile so if you're not keen on cranberries or pumpkin seeds you could easily exchange them for something else. I've made this with raisins, dried apricots, pine nuts...anything goes!)

Preheat the oven to 170 degrees. Put the butter and golden syrup in a saucepan over a low heat, stirring until melted.Remove from the heat and stir in the peanut butter and vanilla extract until combined.

To toast the sesame seeds, put a dry frying pan over a medium heat and add the seeds in a thin even layer. Shake the pan frequently to make sure the seeds are evenly heated. Keep your eye on them as they can burn easily. They will be ready when they are nicely golden brown and smell 'toasty'. If you wanted to add even more flavour to the slice, you could also toast your coconut.

In a large bowl, mix together the rest of the ingredients, making sure they are well combined. Make a well in the centre, and add the butter and syrup mixture. Mix together until everything is combined and nicely syrup coated.

Press evenly into a baking tin, and bake for 25 minutes, or until it's golden and firm. The slice will still be a little soft on top when it comes out of the oven, but don't worry, it'll solidify slightly once it's cooled. Don't be tempted to leave it in the oven for longer as it will make the finished product hard and crunchy instead of soft and chewy. Enjoy after a bracing walk in the countryside, or just with a nice cuppa!

A Pretty Pavlova Pudding

There's nothing like bringing out a beautiful looking dessert, to 'oohs' and 'aahs' from friends, to make a keen home baker feel good! So, keen to test my dessert making skills, I decided to try making a pavlova last time we had friends round for dinner. I've always been a little wary of meringue, thinking that it was too difficult to do well. I'm glad to say I was proved wrong though! This recipe was very straightforward and the resulting dessert was the perfect end to a dinner party - light enough to follow a big meal but still delicious and indulgent.

Ingredients

4 egg whites
225g caster sugar
1 tsp cornflour
1 tsp white wine vinegar
Mixed berries to top - I used frozen strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and blackcurrants but this would be even better with fresh fruit. You could also use kiwi and passionfruit for a more traditional pavlova.

Heat the oven to 180 degrees. Cover a baking tray with greaseproof paper.

Whisk the egg whites until they form stiff and shiny peaks. Add the sugar a couple of tablespoons at a time, and whisk really well between each addition. When you've added all the sugar, whisk the mixture for 3-4 minutes, or until the meringue is stiff and glossy and stands in peaks.

Add the cornflour and the vinegar, and mix to combine. Spread the meringue onto the prepared baking sheet - you could make one large pavlova or several smaller ones if you fancy. Smooth a shallow well into the centre of the meringue, this will hold the topping once it's cooked. Put the meringue into the oven and lower the temperature to 120 degrees. Cook for one and a half hours. Turn off the oven and leave the meringue inside until it has completely cooled - this prevents it from cracking by making sure it cools slowly.

The finished meringue will have a crunchy, light exterior and a soft, more 'marshmallowy' centre. Top your meringue with the fruit of your choice, serve with cream and wait for the 'oohs'!