Banana Fruit Loaf

Last weekend, with 4 bananas sat in the fruit bowl asking to be used, I was pleased to see this recipe for Banana Fruit Loaf posted by C over at Cakes, Crumbs and Cooking.  This is not to say that I don't already have a plethora of banana based recipes stashed away for those 'sat in the fruit bowl and slowly turning to mush' moments but they all just seemed so samey and this did nothing to ignite my interest in heading back into the kitchen.  And then along came C's post and I couldn't wait to get going, something different and not too taxing for a weekend of relaxing and with an impressive end result.

Banana Fruit Loaf
75g softened butter
100g light brown soft sugar
3tbsp honey
2 eggs
2 ripe bananas, mashed
225g self raising flour
1 tsp mixed spice
1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
225g raisins (I came up a bit short in the raisin department so added some sultanas to get the extra weight)

Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease and line a 2lb loaf tin.

Cream the butter until light and fluffy.

Add the honey, eggs and bananas and beat well.

Mix together the flour, spice, bicarb and raisins and fold into banana mixture.

Mix well then bake for 1-1 1/4 hours until a skewer comes out clean.

Makes 1 loaf
Stolen from Cakes, Crumbs and Cooking Blog

You may have noticed I over baked it ever so slightly.  Mine only had an hour in the oven, next time I'll give it 40-50 mins I think, I must have on overly hot oven!

Cinnamon and Raisin Fruit Loaf

This recipe appeared in the December issue of Delicious magazine and I set about making it straight away. I'm a bit of a sucker for fruit bread and this one didn't fail. Both Hubby and I really enjoyed inhaling our slices warm from the oven with the butter melting in. Actually I used spread instead of butter ... it was the lead up to the festive period and every ounce counts, as my scales are more than happy to point out to me!

This loaf recipe is fairly similar to the Fruit Loaf I usually make but I found that using the yeast in this dough makes for a lovely fluffy texture. The Fruit Loaf can sometimes be a bit on the dense side but as it doesn't have yeast in it means it is less labour intensive so I'm not ready to consign the recipe to the bin quite yet!

Cinnamon and Raisin Loaf

30g dried cherries (I used dried cranberries)

125g mixed golden sultana's and raisins

50g dried apricots

250ml strong Lady Grey tea, cold

400g strong white bread flour, plus extra for dusting

7g sachet (2 tsp) active dried yeast

1 tsp ground cinnamon

2 tbsp caster sugar, plus extra for dusting

1/2 tsp salt

Grated zest of 1 orange

55g butter, melted and cooled slightly, plus a little extra for brushing

1 medium free range egg, beaten

150ml full fat milk, warmed

Oil, for greasing

Place the cherries (cranberries), sultanas, raisins and apricots in a large bowl, pour over the tea and leave to steep for a couple of hours before draining well.

Sift the flour into a large bowl, add the yeast, cinnamon, sugar, salt and orange zest and stir to combine. Make a well in the centre and set aside. In a separate bowl, combine the butter, egg and milk, then pour into the well in the flour mixture. Use a wooden spoon to mix to a soft dough. When the dough has nearly come together, add the fruit and combine.

Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 10 mins, until the dough is elastic and smooth, adding a little extra flour if its too sticky. Place the dough in a large, well oiled bowl, cover with well oiled cling film and leave in a warm place for 45 mins or until doubled in size.

Knock back the dough by punching it gently, then transfer to a lightly floured surface. Shape the dough into an oblong or round and place in a lightly greased and floured 900g loaf tin. Cover with oiled cling film and leave to rise for 30 mins or until doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 200C/fan 180C. Brush the top of the bread with melted butter and scatter with a little sugar. Bake in the oven for about 25 mins until the top is golden brown and the loaf makes a hollow sound when tapped on the bottom. Cool on a wire rack.

Makes 1 loaf

Delicious Magazine - December 09

The only thing left to do after making this is to cut a slice, spread with butter (!!!), make a cuppa and relax!

Christmas Stollen - Fresh From The Oven

Yep, time for another addition to my recipe collection thanks to Fresh From The Oven. This one comes to you direct from my 'sick' bed, clever clogs that I am managed to slip on some ice this morning and I've thrown my back out - grrrrrrrrrrrr! I'm hoping that a hot water bottle and some time to rest up will mean I'm back in the kitchen quick smart. So pleased I didn't leave this month's challenge till today to make like as is my usual form.

Jules (formerly from Domestic Goddess in Training) chose Simon Rimmer's recipe for Christmas Stollen for the December challenge and I have to admit that I've never actually eaten Stollen before so i wasn't quite sure what to expect from this one. Only Hubby's brother likes marzipan in this family and he lives all the way down in London so I opted for a marzipan-less version which still turned out wonderfully moist and flavourful. The only other change I made to the recipe was to substitute the flaked almonds with some chocolate because I had run out of the first and always have a plentiful supply of the second! I know what you're all thinking, but I honestly did run out of the almonds!

Stollen

100ml warm milk

6g fast action yeast or 2 tsp dried yeast or 20g fresh yeast

Pinch of salt

1 tsp caster sugar

225g plain flour, plus extra for dusting

1 tsp ground mixed spice

200g mixed dried fruit (including glace cherries)

25g flaked almonds (ahem - chocolate!)

50g unsalted butter

1 free range egg, beaten

250g marzipan (optional in this case!)

To Finish

Rum

25g butter, melted

50g icing sugar

Place the milk and yeast into a bowl and mix well. Leave to sit for 5-6 mins.

Meanwhile, sift the salt, sugar, flour and mixed spice into a large bowl. Add the dried fruit (I used a mixture of sultana's, glace cherries, and dried cranberries), almonds (chocolate!) and butter and mix well. Then stir in the yeasty milk and mix well.

Add the egg and stir to form a dough. Knead the dough for 5-6 mins, then cover and leave to prove for 20 mins. Uncover the dough and turn out onto a clean, floured work surface. Knock the dough back to reduce the volume, then knead the dough for 3-4 mins.

Push the dough out by hand into a flat oval shape about 23cm x 18cm. If using marzipan, roll it into a sausage shape about 6cm shorter than the dough. Place the marzipan into the center of the dough, then fold over the sides of the dough to seal in the marzipan. Then fold in the ends of the dough to contain the marzipan and help give the dough shape. Place the Stollen seal side down onto a greased baking tray. Cover and place somewhere warm to prove for one hour.

Preheat the oven to 180C. Place the Stollen on the baking tray into the oven to bake for 40 mins, or until golden brown and cooked through.

To finish, remove the Stollen from the oven, brush with the rum, then melted butter and dust liberally with icing sugar immediately. Allow the Stollen to cool, then serve in slices.

Makes 1 loaf

In summary, its much easier to make Stollen than I ever thought it would be, I'm thinking of making it for Christmas presents in next year's hampers. The only thing I think I did wrong was in the first step with the butter. The recipe never said if it was to be melted and mixed in, at room temp and rubbed in, or if it was to be in pea size pieces and just left as is. I ended up melting it and adding it in as directed but this made for a very wet dough which meant that I had to add vast quantities of flour to the mixture while I was kneading it so it didn't stick to the board. The final product doesn't seem to have suffered any, although as I said at the start, I've never tried Stollen before so I've not really got a measuring stick on this one. If anybody could let me know how the butter is to be added I would be most appreciative ;0)

To see everybody else's wonderful Stollen creations please head over to Fresh From The Oven tomorrow.

Rhubarb and Vanilla Mincemeat

I know I'm leaving it a bit late to finally be posting this recipe but trust me when I say its worth waiting for. This is another Nigella recipe that I came across last year and it completely opened the door to the world of Mince Pie's for me. Before then mince meat was booze sodden mixed peel with some suet mixed in for good measure. Bless that Nigella!

Rhubarb and Vanilla Mincemeat
1kg rhubarb, trimmed and cut into 5mm slices
300g soft dark brown sugar
2 vanilla pods
2 tsp ground mixed spice
225g raisins
225g sultanas
225g currants
2 tbsp brandy (I replace this with either orange juice or grand marnier)

Put the sliced rhubarb with the sugar into a large pan. Cut the vanilla pod in halves length ways and scrape out the seeds, then cut each half into pieces, adding seeds and pod slices to the pan. Add the mixed spice and cook for about 5 mins.

Add the dried fruits and simmer the pan for about 30 mins. Stir in the brandy and take off the heat. When it's cool enough to handle, bottle in jars.

Makes 1.25 litres
From Nigella's Christmas Cook Book

This year I made the mincemeat when the Rhubarb was in plentiful supply and kept it in a dark cupboard until now. Last weekend I used some of it to make Crumble Topped Mince Pies which didn't last long at all.

Crumble Topped Mince Pies
1 quantity shortcrust pastry
200g mincemeat
25g ground almonds
25g flaked almonds (I didn't have any so I just left them out)
Pinch of ground cinnamon
25g soft light brown sugar

Turn the oven to 180C/fan 160C. On a lightly floured work surface, roll the pastry out to a 2-3mm thickness. Using a 9-10cm flutted cutter, stamp out discs from the pastry. Re-roll any trimmings and stamp out more discs until the pastry is used up. Line two 8 hole muffin tins with the pastry discs, then fill each pastry shell with 1 heaped tsp mincemeat and spread out to smooth.

Combine the ground and flaked almonds, cinnamon, brown sugar and the melted butter in a small bowl, then sprinkle a little over the top of each mince pie. Bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 20 mins, until the pastry is cooked and golden brown. Cool in the tins for 5 mins.

Serve with brandy butter or creme friache.

* To make ahead, freeze , uncooked, in trays for up to 1 month. Defrost overnight and bake as above.

Makes approx 16
Easy Cook Mag - Christmas 2009

We Should Cocoa ~ Paul A Young's Easter Simnel Brownie

Where to start?  I was more than a wee bit panic stricken when Choclette announced this month's challenge for We Should Cocoa.  Marzipan is a taste that I am yet to acquire ... in fact the vast majority of people I know are yet to develop a taste for it too so I knew that whatever I made it either had to be really subtle or something that could be easily distributed to the small handful of people in my office who like it.  I will admit to not doing a great deal of research into what to make, in fact, none at all!  The decision was made while I was flicking through some recipes I had recently clipped out of a magazine, there on the back of the Double White Chocolate Fudge Cake with Vanilla and White Chocolate Buttercream (I know!!!) was a recipe from Paul A Young for Easter Simnel Brownies.

They were horrendous!  The worst tasting 'thing' I have ever baked and as such I am following Aveen's lead and not posting the recipe (although in my opinion her Batterberg looks mighty fine to me)!  The brownies never even made it into to work, they got flung in the bin as soon as the mandatory 'rest in the fridge overnight' time had elapsed.  I hate wasting food like this,  but there was no way I wanted anybody at work to taste them and think that was the level best of my ability!  Oh well ... back to the drawing board!

We Should Cocoa ~ The Date Challenge

I have to admit that this months challenge was a toughie!  When Choclette announced that we all need to make something with chocolate and dates I had no clue what to do.  Hubby and I could not be considered fine connoisseurs in this department.  For me it is the texture of dates, my Granny used to make date scones when I was younger and I vividly remember the day I bit into one thinking it was full of sultanas, not quite scared for life but it has had an everlasting effect on me all the same.  For Hubby it is the flavour, so I knew that whatever I ended up making both the texture and flavour were going to have to be cleverly concealed.  This was no easy feat!

I scoured the Internet and blogs for ideas and recipes but nothing appealed.  Sticky Toffee pudding is nice but its Christmas time and I wanted to incorporate this into the challenge ... as if things weren't tricky enough!  So I ended up consulting my book shelf and this is what I found;

Christmas Pudding Cupcakes
110g sultanas
110g currants
120g chocolate drops
6 dates, stoned and chopped
170g unsalted butter, room temp
255g dark muscovado sugar
3 large eggs
170g SR flour
1 medium apple, peeled and grated
1/2 tsp mixed spice
4 tbsp rum
1 quantity White Chocolate Truffle Frosting

Preheat the oven to 170C.  Line two 12 hole non stick muffin tins with paper cases.

Place the sultanas, currants and dates in a pan.  Cover with water and bring to the boil.  Turn the heat down and simmer for 15 mins so the fruits are soft and swollen.

Beat the butter and sugar together until the colour begins to lighten.  add the eggs, one at a time, followed by the flour.  Stir in the grated apple, spice, rum and the drained fruit.

Divide the mixture between the paper cases.  Bake in the centre of the preheated oven for 25 mins.  Insert a skewer or knife in the centre to check that the mixture is cooked.  Remove and turn the cakes out onto a wire rack to cool.

Make the icing and pipe onto the centre of the cooled cupcakes using a large star shaped nozzle.  Decorate as desired.

Makes 24 cupcakes
Adapted from Eat Me!

But of course there were just one or two hiccups along the way.  Firstly, I ran out of sultanas so had to make the quantity up with currants.  Then I ran out of the dark muscovado sugar but thankfully had some dark soft brown sugar left in a canister ... I ran out of that too and had to make the rest up with light brown soft sugar.  Turned out all for the best though, these cupcakes are delicious even if I do say so myself.  Sis In Law and Mum In Law were here today and munch away on them happily even when, like me, they aren't big Christmas Pudding fans. 

To decorate them I made use of some fondant I had left over from a cake order and made holly leaves and berries.  On some of them I painted some edible glue and then used wilton's white cake sprinkles to make them look as though they've been touched with frost ... this is not out of place for these parts at the moment!

To see all the other creations for this months challenge please head over to the Chocolate Log Blog after then 25th.  Don't forget to head back here on the 1st January to find out what the next challenge will be ;0)

The Great Hot Cross Bun Hunt - Trial Three

Bet you thought I'd forgotten all about my search for the greatest Hot Cross Bun recipe this Easter. Things have been pretty hectic (again!)but I now have the luxury of a few days off to look forward to which means there will be plenty of time to catch up baking and blogging!

This recipe could be considered a cheat I guess. Technically not a bun but a Hot Cross Loaf. My first justification for including it in the hunt is because its a recipe by my Domestic Goddess, Donna Hay. A search for the greatest recipe just wouldn't be complete without her version thrown into the fray. And my second justification is that its a bit different and I always like to stray from the norm when I can ;0)

Hot Cross Bun Loaf - Donna Hay Style

2 tsp dried yeast

5 tbsp caster sugar

250ml milk, warmed

2 1/2 cups plain flour
40g butter, melted
1 egg yolk
2 tsp cinnamon

160g sultanas

Crosses
75g plain flour
80ml water
Glaze
2 tbsp apricot jam

1 tbsp water

In a bowl, mix the yeast, 2 tsp of the sugar and the milk. Set aside in a warm place for 5 mins or until bubbles appear.

Place the flour, butter, yolk, remaining sugar and cinnamon in a bowl, add the yeast mixture and mix until a smooth dough forms. Add the sultanas and knead on a floured surface for 5 mins or until the dough is smooth and elastic.

Place in a greased 20 x 10 x 7cm loaf tin. Cover with a tea towel and set aside in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 180C. To make the crosses, whisk together the flour and water and pipe a cross pattern on the uncooked loaf. Bake for 40 mins or until golden.

To make the glaze, place the jam and water in a saucepan over low heat and stir until the jam is softened. Brush the jam mixture over the baked loaf. Cool slightly in the tin, turn out and slice to serve.

Serves 8-10

Donna Hay Website

Would I make this again? Hmmmmmmmm, not sure. The bread isn't a patch on the Times Online recipe for Hot Cross Buns. But for kitch appeal and if the time and place was right I might consider it again but not as a loaf of bread for munching on as is I'm afraid. The loaf was a bit too dry for that. It does make lovely toast for breakie in the morning though and I'm going to try and turn the leftovers into a Hot Cross Bun Loaf and Butter Pudding for dessert tonight - but we'll see if the thought of all those calories gets the better of me or not lol. Other than that the flavour of the bread is really nice, the cinnamon is very subtle. Much as I never thought I would say this, this isn't the best Donna Hay recipe I've ever tried and the Times Online recipe is still in the lead.

The Great Hot Cross Bun Hunt - Trial One

This year I'm on the search for the best Hot Cross Bun recipe. I want a Hot Cross Bun that is fluffy, full of juicy fruit (but none of that icky peel stuff!) and full of Hot Cross Bun flavour. Flicking through magazines and cook books and roaming around on the net has revealed quite a few different recipes for this Easter treat which got me to thinking, surely a Hot Cross Bun is fairly standard fare? Can so many different recipes all produce a different bun, different from any other? Or is it all a big con designed to suck in unsuspecting Hot Cross Bun wanna-be-makers? I've made it my mission to find out!

Hot Cross Buns - Australian Women's Weekly Style

2 x 7g sachets fast action yeast

55g caster sugar

375ml warm milk

600g plain flour

1 tsp mixed spice

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

60g butter

1 egg

120g sultanas

Flour Paste For Crosses

75g plain flour

2 tsp caster sugar

80ml water, approx

Glaze

1 tbsp caster sugar

1 tsp gelatine

1 tbsp water

Combine yeast, sugar and milk in a small bowl or jug. Cover and stand in a warm place for about 10 mins or until the mixture is frothy.

Sift the flour and spices into a large bowl. Rub in the butter. Stir in the yeast mixture, egg and sultanas; mix to a soft sticky dough. Cover and stand in a warm place for about 45 mins or until the dough has doubled in size.

Grease a 23cm square slab cake pan.

Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead for about 5 mins or until smooth. Divide dough into 16 pieces, knead into balls. Place the balls into the prepared pan. Cover and stand in a warm place for about 10 mins or until the buns have risen to the top of the pan.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 220C/200C fan.

Place the flour paste for crosses into a piping bag fitted with a small plain tube. Pipe crosses onto the buns.

Bake buns in the oven for about 20 mins or until well browned. Turn buns onto a wire rack, brush tops with hot glaze; cool. Serve with butter.

Flour Paste For Crosses - Combine flour and sugar in a bowl. Gradually blend in enough of the water to form a smooth paste.

Glaze - Combine ingredients in a small saucepan and stir over heat, without boiling, until the sugar and gelatine are dissolved.

Makes 16 buns (I got 18 out of my dough somehow!)

Breads and Muffins - The Australian Women's Weekly

The result is a tale of woe I'm afraid. Flavourless and dry, they defiantly needed some more spice added than suggested in the recipe and as for the dryness, well this may have been down to me but there is equal possibility that it was the recipe so I'll call it even on that front ... sigh! I actually bought the book this recipe is in because of the picture of the hot cross buns on the front cover, standing proud in all their fluffy glory! In this case our overall verdict (Hubby gets to cast a vote too) is that we were conned with this recipe. Never mind - plenty more still to try ;0)

Things to do with Butternut Squash

I'm still alive! So much has been happening in our world lately though, most recently Hubby's Mum has been taken into hospital so we have a little visitor staying with us for the next couple of weeks.

This is Mack. Don't be fooled by his cute little face - he can be a proper wee beastie when he puts his mind to it! Thankfully he has been on his best behaviour since he came to visit. My favourite Mack story was when Hubby and I took him for a walk not long after he had been bathed by Hubby's Dad. Mack caught sight of a bog that he had been warned away from several times before but the devil got the better of him this occasion and he paused at the edge just long enough to give us a mischievous glance over his shoulder before diving in, splayed leg and happy as a pig in mud (or a dog in a bog in this case)! We love him really ;0)

Its been a while since I've posted anything not sugar or chocolate related so tonight I thought I'd bring the world up to speed with my latest addiction ... Butternut Squash. Can't believe its taken me until now to truly appreciate this vegetable. And the best news of all is that its one of those items I can eat as much of as I like on WW cause it has no points in it - course the butter its drowned in is another story!

I'm thanking Saint Nigel (Slater) for introducing this wondrous veg into my life. I was watching one of his recent shows when I saw him making the Stuffed Squash below and thought I would give it a try myself. Yum!

Nigel's Stuffed Squash

For the Squash

2 butternut squash

A few thick slices of butter (If I'm being particularly virtuous I just roast it without the butter)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the Stuffing

2 slices butter (Angelic me would use frylite in place of butter)

2-3 large onions, peeled and sliced

Finger length piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated (or cut into matchsticks if you prefer)

2-3 pinches ground cinnamon

2-3 pinches cumin seeds

Pinch or so paprika

Handful sultanas

Preheat the oven to 200C.

Cut the squash in half, spoon out the seeds and discard. using a sharp knife, score the flesh of the squash in a criss cross pattern, so that the heat can get to the interior. Place the squash halves, cut side facing upwards into an ovenproof dish, dot with the butter and season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Roast in the oven for one hour.

In the meantime, make the stuffing. Heat the butter in a large shallow pan until foaming, add the onions. Cover and cook gently until softened, about 15 mins. Add the ginger, cinnamon, cumin seeds, paprika and sultanas and continue to cook until the onions are starting to caramelise.

Place equal amounts of the stuffing mixture on top of the roasted squash, then return tot he oven for 10-15 mins to allow the juices to trickle through the squash. Serve immediately with some of the pan juices spooned over.

Serves 4

BBC Food Website

I've not ventured off the beaten track with the recipe yet but I'm thinking its quite versatile and that the herbs and spices can be interchanged with what is to hand. Adding Pine Nuts to the mix also works well.

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup Piri Piri Style

1 butternut squash, peeled, deseeded and cut into smallish cubes

2 onions, cut into quarters

2 pints veg or chicken stock (made from a cube is fine)

1 tsp piri piri spice (think I may need to reduce this just a touch!)

Preheat oven to 200C.

Place the butternut squash and onions in a roasting tin along with some seasoning and cook for 1 hour or until the squash is soft. Don't worry about any parts that start to go brown, this adds to the flavour of the finished soup.

When soft add the veg to a large saucepan, add the stock and piri piri spice. Bring to the boil then simmer for 15 mins. Puree into a smooth soup.

Serves 4

Adapted from a WW recipe

I added a dollop of low fat fromage frais to my soup to help cut through the spiciness of the piri piri mix. Hubby is a true heat freak though and preferred his without. This is a great soup for a cold and bleak winter's night.

Stir Up Sunday Comes Early

Did you know that Stir Up Sunday is this coming Sunday?  That's only 6 sleeps away ... not sure if this helping you or not, sorry if it's not!  The thing is that I'm not going to be anywhere near the close and comfy confines of my wee kitchen on Sunday, I'll be in the Lake District instead for a nice long weekend, so I decided that I had better get ahead of the game and start to get myself organised. 

We are not huge mince pie fans in this house, although it just doesn't seem to be Christmas without the little blighters.  Every year I try to find new recipes to try out for alternative mince pie filling, Rhubarb and Vanilla is my all time favourite but owing to a particularly bad rhubarb season for me this year I'm having to go without ... sigh.  Then when I was flicking through the December issue of Delicious I spotted a recipe that, with a few tweaks, I could make my own and hopefully find a new alternative.  This is what I came up with;

Buttery Apple, Hazelnut and Chocolate Mincemeat
Finely grated zest and juice of 2 large oranges
Finely grated zest and juice of 2 large lemons
1 large (about 300g) bramley apple
100g butter
50ml frangelico
200g raisins
150g sultanas
150g currants
150g chocolate, grated (I used Willie's Supreme Cacao - Indonesian Black)
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 tsp mixed spice
175g light brown sugar
50g lightly toasted hazelnuts, chopped

Put the orange and lemon zest and juices into a medium pan.  Peel, quarter and core the apple, then grate ot, stirring it into the juices as you go so it doesn't discolour.

Add the butter, frangelico, dried fruits, vanilla extract and spices, then cook over a low heat, stirring frequently, for 1 hour until the apple has broken down, the dried fruits have plumped up and all the liquid has evaporated.  Leave to cool, then mix in the sugar, chocolate and toasted hazelnuts.

Spoon into cool, sterilised jars, press a waxed disc onto the surface of the mixture and seal.  Refrigerate and use within 1 month.

Makes about 1.2kg mincemeat

Adapted from Delicious, Dec 10

* Because this mincemeat is made with butter instead of suet, it keeps in the fridge for no more than a month.  However, it freezes well for up to 6 months.  For a mincemeat with a longer shelf life, omit the butter and stir in 100g shredded suet at the end, along with the sugar, chocolate and nuts.  This will keep for up to a year in a cool dark place.

The smell from this mixture bubbling away on the stove for an hour was so Christmassy and comforting.  The mincemeat is now sitting happily in the freezer at the moment, can't wait to sample it in pie form! 

Fresh From The Oven ~ Chelsea Buns

This months Fresh From The Oven challenge was set by Wendy of Notes From The Quirky Kitchen blog (great name for a blog by the way, I love it!!!)

I was tickled pink to find that Wendy had picked a recipe for Chelsea Buns, having always wanted to have a bash at these myself.  It was such an easy recipe and tasted wonderful that I am sure these will be made again and again.

These are a little on the 'nude' side.  There are a couple of reason for this, firstly I'm just not that find of the normal Chelsea Bun icing so I decided that I would swap this for some lovely melted chocolate artistically drizzled over.  This is where the 'secondly' comes into play, my chocolate seized and didn't want to play ball at all so I lost my patience and decided that nude buns would have to do.  I'm not denying that the sublime addition of melted chocolate wouldn't have gone astray but that said, these buns were perfectly tasty in their natural state ;0)

Chelsea Buns
225g strong white bread flour
25g caster sugar
1/4 tsp salt
25g softened butter - this is for the dough
1 1/2 tsp fast action dried yeast
1 medium egg, beaten
90ml warm semi-skimmed milk
25g butter really softened, but not melted - this is for the filling
65g light muscovado sugar
115g dried fruit (I stuck to sultanas)

Combine the flour, sugar, salt and yeast into a mixing bowl (I used my KitchenAid). Make a well in the centre and add the softened butter, egg and milk. Mix to make a soft dough.  Knead until smooth.

Cover and prove until doubled in size.

Generously butter and line a 7" square tin. Make sure it's not a loose bottomed one, or you'll get problems later on and loose your filling.

Flour your work surface, and roll out the dough, (no need to knock it back) to a rectangle measuring about 12 x 9 inches. If you get the edges as square as you can it will help to make your buns look even.

Spread the softened butter as evenly as you can over the dough. Sprinkle the sugar and the dried fruit on top, and gently press it into the butter.

Now, roll up the dough along the long edge, as though you were making a Swiss Roll.  Seal the edge.

Turn the roll over so that the seal is underneath and divide the roll into 9 equal buns. (I got 10 out of my dough - I know I can't count!)

Place the buns, cut side down, into the buttered and lined tin, and leave to prove until the dough has doubled in size, and they have all joined together into one big Chelsea bun muddle.  Heat the oven to 180C.

Bake for about 20 minutes. Some recipes suggest covering the buns with parchment or foil, I guess this is if they are browning before they are cooked.

Once cooked, cool on a wire rack, and eat them as soon as you dare.
Makes a Chocolate Teapot 10!!!!
 

Chocolate Overload - Part I

As promised (for breaking my promise!) I'm making amends this weekend and going all out for the last two days of Chocolate Week. Today I've made itsy bitsy muffins and muesli bars and I'm in the process of making some 'truffles' for one of tomorrows recipes ~ I'm so looking forward to my kitchen time tomorrow, I've saved the best two recipes of the week for the last day ;0)

Anyhoo, back to today! The first recipe is for Mini Toblerone Muffins. This one wasn't a recipe I originally planned to make for Chocolate week but in my hast to get enough Toblerone for the cheesecake on Thursday night after work I grabbed the biggest bar I could lay my little hands on. Two recipes later and I still have half the bar left and it keeps calling my name from the cupboard I've had to wedge it in to because its too big to fit neatly. Think there will be some more Toblerone recipes being posted soon, if there isn't I'm pretty sure you'll be able to figure out what happened with the leftovers!

Mini Toblerone Muffins

1 cup plain flour

1/4 cup cocoa powder

2 tsp baking powder

1/3 cup brown sugar

60g butter, melted and cooled

1/3 cup milk

1 egg, lightly whisked

100g toblerone milk chocolate, chopped

Preheat oven to 180C. Grease 2 x 12 hole x 2 tbsp capacity mini muffin pans or line with paper cases.

Sift flour, cocoa and baking powder into a bowl. Stir in sugar. Make a well in the center.

Whisk butter, milk and egg in a jug. Pour into well. Add chocolate and gently fold until just combined. Three quarter fill muffin cases with mixture. Bake for 10-12 mins or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Stand muffins in pan for 5 mins. Serve warm.

• To make regular sized muffins from this mix, bake in a 1/3 cup capacity muffin pan for 15 to 18 mins.

Makes 24-32 mini muffins

Taken from the Taste Website

I've been wanting to try out mini muffins for ages now. They just look so cute and I figure they would pretty much be guilt free as well seeing as they are so small. Hubby really liked these when he sampled one but the one I tried managed to not have any Toblerone in it ;0(

The next recipe, Chewy Seedy Oat and Apricot Bars, was also an attempt at a guilt free chocolate fix. I got part way through making the recipe and realised I was kidding myself. These muesli bars are very, very tasty though quite plain looking. I had planned to drizzle them in artistic zig zags of melted milk and white chocolate but after sampling a 'plain' one I thought they were probably sweet enough so I've left them naked.

I'd like to preempt the recipe by saying that usually I am far more organised with my kitchen supplies than my notes below imply!

Chewy Seedy Oat and Apricot Bars

300g porridge oats

50g pumpkin seeds (the original recipe says to use 100g or a mixture of pumpkin and sunflower seeds, I used just the one variety and used less so I could add the cocoa nibs)

50g cacao nibs

50g desiccated coconut

50g plain flour

200g butter

200g golden syrup

150g soft brown sugar (usually my preference is for the light brown variety because its not as overpowering as the dark version but I seem to have run out of the light so I had to use the later)

150g dried apricots, chopped (I ran out so topped the rest up with sultanas)

125g crunchy peanut butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven 10 160C/fan 140C. Line a 18x28cm swiss roll tin with non stick baking paper, leaving a little hanging over the edges for easy removal later.

Place the oats, seeds, cacao nibs, coconut and flour in a large bowl and mix together. Melt the butter with the golden syrup in a saucepan, then mix in the sugar, chopped apricots (ahem ~ and sultanas), peanut butter and vanilla extract. Pour into the dry ingredients and mix until combined.

Press into the tin and bake for 20-25 mins or until golden and slightly firm. Cool in the tin, then lift out on the paper and cut into 18 bars.

Makes about 18

Delicious Mag, October 2008

What are Cacao Nibs? According to Willie Harcourt Cooze in his cookbook they are "... cacao after its been fermented, roasted and winnowed ..." I'm not entirely sure what that means exactly but I can tell you that they are yummy ;0)

Old Mother Hubbard

A whole week has slipped by since my last post and I have no real excuse for my lack of dedication. Work has been insane, I spent Monday on a mini bus travelling from Edinburgh to Stockport and back again all for an hour long meeting (just between you and me my backside was flatter than a pancake by the end of it!) The rest of the week was spent sorting out different presentation packs for all the teams and also sifting through 100 files for an audit that was supposed to be held tomorrow and has now been moved to next Monday. Of course we only found out about our extension after 5pm on Thursday!

I think too that my lack of kitchen activity is also down to a bit of a dent in my confidence after the spectacular failure of the Triple Chocolate Cake for the team meeting. I was being serious when I said it was my worst cooking disaster since Mum's ill fated birthday cake all those years ago. But then Hubby's Dad called this morning to say he was on his way over and I realised, just like Old Mother Hubbard, that the cupboards were bare! Oh the shame of it! Action was required and quickly. The only problem with impromptu baking is that ingredients are limited, my selection pretty much consisted of basic store cupboard stuff and 2 bramely apples. I quick flick through the internet and the Bramley Apple Website came to my rescue with this tea cake. Phew!

Easy Bramley Apple and Sultana Teabread
25g porridge oats
50g Muscovado sugar
2 medium Bramley apples, cored, peeled and grated
6 tbsp apple juice
4 tbsp olive oil
115g self raising flour
115g sultanas
½ tsp baking powder
1tsp mixed spice
1 medium egg, beaten

Pre heat the oven to 180°C.

Place the oats and sugar into a bowl, add the grated apple, juice and oil, mix well and then leave for 15 minutes.

Add the flour, sultanas, baking powder, mixed spice and egg and mix well, but carefully.
Spoon the mixture into a greased and lined 1lb loaf tin.

Bake for 45-50 minutes, then remove from the oven and cool slightly.

When cool, slice and serve with a smidgeon of olive oil spread.

Serves 6-8

From Phil Vickery on the Bramley Apple Website

This produces a very moist tea cake, so moist in fact that all three of us had a debate about if it was actually cooked or not. I felt it wasn't. Hubby and his Dad thought it 'might be' but that the grated apple made it look as though it wasn't. Hmmmmmm. The skewer test said it was cooked as well but I think next time I'll bake it an extra 10 mins or so just to be on the safe side, my oven does seem to be on the cooler side of the temp range - really most get a thermometer for it one of these days.

Now for some exciting news! Tomorrow sees the start of Chocolate Week. A whole week dedicated to my all time favourite food stuff, one might say that I am about as happy as a pig in chocolate (what did you think I was going to say?!?!?!) To mark this truly wonderful week in [my] history books I've thought long and hard about what to do. It was a short list. A very short list! So I'm sticking with my original idea which is to extend my Chocolate recipe file and create something new everyday for the whole week, the only rule is that I can't make something I have already made before. I'm hoping to be able to post everyday but in case you need more of a chocolate fix check out one of my fave blogs the Chocolate Log Blog.