Death By Chocolate Trifle, Ditch the Jelly and Sherry!

I absolutely, completely hate trifle: the jelly (which I hate in general) soaked into the sponge fingers has the most revolting texture, the canned fruit cocktail is abysmal, and cold custard.... oh, cold custard. My brother and my Dad love it (sans the sherry, because neither of them drinks), but I find it disgusting.

However! There are alternatives to traditional trifle for those who, like me, despise its very existence. At the end of the day, a trifle is simply a layered dessert which includes cream, cake soaked in a flavoured syrup, and some sort of other filling like custard and/or jelly and/or mousse. Once you know the basic formula, the ideas generate themselves.

In this trifle, I chopped two chocolate brownies into little cubes and sprinkled them with a simple syrup flavoured with peppermint vodka (which I made myself). I prepared some chocolate custard following this recipe.

I made a rich chocolate mousse by separating one medium (US large) egg, placing the white in a bowl for whipping, and setting the yolk aside. In a heatproof bowl over a pan of warm water I melted 1 ounce (30 grammes) of plain chocolate and 1 ounce (30 grammes) of unsalted butter. I then quickly beat in the egg yolk and heated it while stirring for a minute.

I whipped the egg white with 1 ounce (30 grammes) of caster sugar to form a stiff peaking meringue. I folded a third of the meringue into the chocolate, then poured the now-lightened chocolate mixture into the rest of the meringue and folded through completely.

In two 10 ounce (280 millilitre) high-ball glasses, I divided the mousse and allowed it to set in the fridge for about half an hour before adding in the brownie pieces, the custard, and then finally some whipped cream with I had lightly sweetened with caster sugar and swirled with a little red food colouring for a festive feel.

One of these trifles is enough to share between two people, so you can divide the mixture among four tumblers or dessert glasses if you prefer!

If chocolate isn't your thing, you can:

• Make individual tiramisu desserts, soaking lady fingers in coffee- and rum flavoured simple syrup, a traditional light marscapone mousse, and some whipped cream.
• Layer slices of jammy Swiss roll with strawberry mousse (like Angel Delight) and cream.
• Gently sprinkle some gingerbread slices with rum and layer with some thick caramel and whipped cream.

However you make your trifle, be sure to keep it in the fridge for no more than 3 days.

Fröhliche Weihnachten! Individual Sacher Tortes (Wheat Free)

Glücklicher Internationaler Sachertorte-Tag!

Our festive tour continues throughout central Europe, stopping off in Austria for a slice of their famous chocolate and apricot jam sponge: Sachertorte!

December the 5th is international Sachertorte day, coincidentally, so what better way to celebrate than sharing my own version of this iconic dessert. Invented by Franz Sacher in 1832 in Vienna, this cake has been an Austrian speciality ever since. Traditionally, it is made with two light and soft cocoa sponge layers, sandwiching sweet sour apricot jam, with two outer layers: one of apricot jam, and one of chocolate icing, made with sugar syrup and dark chocolate.

There is a lot of dispute over which is the definitive Sachertorte, and some recipes even include a double layer of apricot jam under the chocolate icing--which is iced on, rather than glazed on as is typical nowadays--and other versions use melted chocolate in the sponge itself, resulting in a denser, moister cake more like a brownie. But, I personally prefer a simple chocolate creamed sponge with a ganache coating made with chocolate and butter, rather than chocolate and syrup.

As you can see in the pictures, I'm not 100% amazing at glazing cakes: using pourable icing is not my forte. If I were to do this again, I'd wait until the icing is spreadable and ice it onto the cakes over the apricot layer. I also used a wax seal stamp to make individual chocolate decorations, inspired by this Honey Fondant Cakes with Chocolate Wax Seals blog by Heather Baird at Sprinkle Bakes. She explains the entire process of making chocolate wax seals, and I dusted mine with gold fondant dust.

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DIFFICULTY

Each step is simple, but there are a lot of steps

TIME

About 2 or 3 hours

RECIPE RATING

Intermediate

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INGREDIMENTS

Makes roughly 8 small cakes

2 medium (US Large) eggs

4 ounces (115 grammes) butter, or baking margarine

6 ounces (170 grammes) caster sugar

5 ounces (140 grammes) flour

1 ounce (30 grammes) cocoa

2 teaspoons (10 millilitres) baking powder

4 fluid ounces (115 millilitres) milk, or milk alternative
 1/8 teaspoon (1 millilitre) salt

To decorate

Roughly 4 to 6 fluid ounces (115 to 170 millilitres) apricot jam

6 ounces (170 grammes) plain chocolate, or dairy free chocolate

3 ounces (85 grammes) unsalted butter, or baking margarine

4 tablespoons (60 millilitres) whole milk, or milk alternative

8 chocolate coins, or stamped chocolates (shown below)

Gold fondant dust

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FREE FROM

Wheat, yeast, nuts

CONTAINS

Eggs, spelt, dairy (dairy free option in italics), refined sugar

~~ ^ _ ^ ~~

METHOD

Before you begin the cakes, make the chocolate decorations

• Prepare the wax seal chocolates as instructed in Sprinkle Bakes' article, and set in the fridge. Use a soft brush to dust the chocolates with dry gold fondant dust. If you don't have the means to make chocolate seals, simply unwrap some chocolate coins and dust with gold.

Then, make the cake

• Preheat the oven to 180ºC (350ºF/Gas Mk.4) and grease and flour a 4½ by 8 inch (11 by 20 centimetre) loaf tin, or you can use a silicone one which doesn't need greasing or flouring. Try to use one with fairly straight sides.
• In a mixing bowl, or food processor, cream the soft butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add in the eggs one at a time, making sure to beat well between each egg, and continue beating (or running the blade) until the mix is well incorporated.
• Sieve in half of the flour, baking powder, salt, and cocoa powder, fold through until mostly mixed, then add in the milk. Again, fold through until mostly mixed before adding the rest of the dry ingredients and folding through completely.
• Pour the mixture into the tin and bake on the centre shelf for 25 to 30 minutes, until the surface is springy to the touch and a cocktail stick comes out clean when stuck in the centre of the cake.
• Allow the cake to cool for 15 minutes before turning out and cooling completely on a wire rack.
• When cold, level the cake by cutting off the dome, then cut in half into two layers. Spread a layer of apricot jam, roughly 4 tablespoons (60 millilitres), onto the bottom layer, then sandwich on the top layer. Turn the entire cake upside down, so the flat bottom of the cake is now the top. Chill for about 30 minutes.
• Once the cake is chilled, trim the crusts off and cut into 8 small cakes. Spread a layer of apricot jam over the tops and sides of each cake. Return to the fridge for 30 minutes to an hour.

Now, make the ganache glaze to finish the masterpieces!

• Break the chocolate up into small pieces, or cut up with a sharp serrated knife. Heat the butter and milk together in a jug in the microwave until the milk is hot and the butter is melted.
• Add the chocolate to the jug and allow to sit for 3 minutes before mixing with a small whisk or fork. Beat vigorously until it becomes a thick ganache. If needed, heat in the microwave for about 20 seconds to help the chocolate melt.
• Put the cakes on a wire rack and set the rack over a baking tray or large square cake tin. Pour the ganache over each cake, paying particular attention to the square corners.
• While the ganache is still wet, decorate each cake with a gold chocolate seal, or coin. Allow to set completely in the fridge before serving.

STORAGE

Keep these cakes in an airtight container in the fridge for up to one week. Alternatively, freeze for up to 3 months.

Buon Natale! Orange Amaretti: Italian Almond Macaroons (Gluten- and Dairy Free)

And thus, our Advent-ure (get it?) around Central Europe will begin with a trip to Italy! Here is my take on a simple Italian seasonal treat: amaretti, with a hint of orange!

Essentially, an amaretto is an almond macaroon and a lot of Central European countries have a version of nut macaroons and coconut macaroons. In Germany, there are kokosmakronen (coconut), mandelmakronen (almond), and haselnussmakronen (hazelnut); in France, you have the iconic macarons, which are much more delicate and technical than its cousins in other countries; and in Hungary, there are kókuszcsók (coconut). Here in Ireland, coconut macaroons are definitely more popular than the almond variety.

Making amaretti doesn't really need a recipe, as it's just a combination of egg whites, sugar, and almonds. To make them, simply make a stiff meringue with 3 ounces (85 grammes) of caster sugar for each medium (US large) egg white. Add in orange zest and almond essence to taste, and enough orange food colouring gel to get a nice pastel shade, and then fold in 3 ounces (85 grammes) of ground almonds for each egg white.

Fit a disposable piping bag with a half-inch (1 centimetre) round nozzle, and fill the bag with the mixture. Pipe the biscuits onto non-stick paper lined baking sheets, making each biscuit into a mound about an inch or so tall and wide.

Bake in an oven preheated to 150°C (300°F, Gas Mk.2) for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the biscuits are crisp and dry to the touch. Allow to cool slightly on the trays before gently peeling off and tranferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with a little icing sugar to serve.

These keep very well in an airtight container for up to two weeks.

メリークリスマス! Japanese Christmas Strawberry Shortcake

So, on my Facebook page, I recently announced that this December would be one without traditional dried fruit recipes: no mince pies, no fruit cake, no pudding, et cetera! This led me to do an awful lot of research into the Christmas food traditions of various nations from all over Eurasia, particularly Central Europe, and I was considerably educated!

However, before we delve into the Christmas traditional vitals of the central Europeans, here is an offering from the far East: Japanese Strawberry Shortcake!

From my superficial research, I was surprised to discover that mainstream Christmas celebrations weren't common in Japan until the American occupation after World War II, as such Japan doesn't have much of a Christmas food culture. Christmas is a primarily commercial affair to the mostly-Buddhist Japanese, and there aren't many particular foods that are associated with the event.

In all of my Pinterest surfing and Google searching had one cake in common, however: strawberry shortcake, called いちごのショートケーキ (ichigo no shōtokēki). This confection comprises of two light fluffy sponges (sometimes tinted pink) brushed with liqueur-scented syrup, sandwiching a sweetened whipped cream and fresh strawberry filling, iced with more cream and fresh strawberries.


While soaking cake in alcohol is very much a Christmas thing, the rest of it is something I'd associate more with a summer time dessert. And even the name is not fully correct, as the word "shortcake" refers to a cake which has a high butter or fat content, which this cake certainly does not as a (mostly) fatless sponge. Most articles say that this cake is a common generic celebration cake in Japan, and as such is eaten at Christmas as a celebratory food. I suppose this is a case of East is East, West is West, and ne'er the twain shall meet.

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DIFFICULTY

Each step is simple, but there are a lot of steps

TIME

About 2 or 3 hours

RECIPE RATING

Intermediate

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INGREDIMENTS

For one 7x11 inch (18x28 centimetre) rectangular cake

3 medium (US large) eggs

3 ounces (85 grammes) caster sugar

3 tablespoons (45 millilitres) sunflower oil

3 tablespoons (45 millilitres) milk, cream, or Baileys Irish Cream, or milk alternative

3 ounces (85 grammes) plain spelt flour

1 teaspoon (5 millilitres) vanilla essence

A few drops almond essence

Pink or red food colouring

Simple syrup

2 tablespoons (30 grammes) caster sugar

2 tablespoons (30 millilitres) water

Optional: 1 tablespoon (15 millilitres) liqueur of choice: Kirsch, rum, brandy, amaretto, Baileys Irish Cream

The liqueur can be replaced with a few drops of almond essence

Whipped cream and strawberry filling

3 ounces (85 grammes) strawberries, stems removed and cut into quarters

1 teaspoon (5 grammes) caster sugar

9 fluid ounces (250 millilitres) whipping cream

2 tablespoons (15 grammes) icing sugar

2 teaspoons (10 millilitres) vanilla essence

A few drops of almond essence

6 whole strawberries, stems removed and cut in half

Optional: 1 tablespoon (15 millilitres) Baileys Irish Cream

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FREE FROM

Wheat, yeast, nuts

CONTAINS

Eggs, spelt, dairy (dairy free option in italics), refined sugar

~~ ^ _ ^ ~~

METHOD

First, make the cake

• Preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F, Gas Mk.4). Lightly grease a 7x11 inch (18x28 centimetre) rectangular tin, and line with non-stick baking paper.
• Prepare the cake according to this recipe, adding the essences and enough food colouring to make a delicately pink mixture. Once baked, remove the paper and allow to cool completely.

Prepare the syrup

• Mix the sugar and water together in a jug or mug, and heat in the microwave for 1 minute on high, until the sugar has dissolved completely in the water.
• Mix in the liqueur, and allow to cool slightly until just warm. If you don't want to use alcohol, add in a few drops of vanilla and almond essences.

Prepare the strawberries and cream

• In a bowl, toss the quartered strawberries with the caster sugar and allow to sit for 10 minutes. The sugar will transform into a delicious syrup and the strawberries will become juicy.
• Whip the cream with the icing sugar, vanilla, and almond essences to soft peaks in a cold mixing bowl. Take about 3 ounces (85 grammes) of the cream and fold into the juicy strawberries.
• Keep the remaining cream and the strawberry cream in the fridge while you prepare the cake for assembly.

Now, assemble the masterpiece!

• Cut the cake in half to make two 7x5½ inch (18x14 centimetre) cakes. Brush liberally with the simple syrup to soak the surface. 
• On a serving plate, sandwich the two cakes together with the strawberry cream, spreading the filling to the edges. Press together gently, and chill for an hour.
• Take out of the fridge and trim the crusts; your cake will be reduced in size to roughly 6x5 inches (15x13 centimetre). Enjoy the cut offs!
• Ice with the remaining cream, smoothing to your liking, and then decorate with the halved strawberries.
• Chill for about 2 hours before serving. This cake can be cut into 12 little squares, or 6 fingers.

STORAGE

This cake will keep in the fridge in an airtight container for 3 days.

Last-Minute Traditional Christmas Cake, with Spelt (Alcohol-, Dairy-, and Gluten Free Option)

Happy 300th blog! And I thought that something befitting a celebration would be in order for this momentous post, so I bring you last-minute Christmas cake!

If any online article these days is to be believed, making a Christmas cake is a load of palaver: soak the fruit, bake the cake, store for three months feeding with alcohol, etc. In some respects it's off putting due to complexity, but it also leads people to believe that a Christmas cake can only be made three months in advance of the event, and there's no last minute option if you forgot to make your cake in September.

But fear not! A cake only needs to be made that far in advance if you plan to feed it with brandy or whiskey, and if you don't plan on doing that it can be made as soon as a week before Christmas. In fact, a Christmas cake made at any other time of year is just a very fruity fruit cake, which is a recipe found in nearly every cookery book published.

So, please, do not worry if you find yourself a week before Christmas without a cake: just follow this simple recipe. The only time consuming aspect of this cake is waiting for the fruit to soak overnight in tea and orange zest.

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DIFFICULTY

Lining the tin is a little fiddly, but the cake is very simple

TIME

4 hours, plus an overnight chill

RECIPE RATING

Easy!

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INGREDIMENTS

For fruit preparation

1½ pounds (680 grammes) dried fruit: sultanas, raisins, glacé cherries, candied peel, candied ginger, currants, prunes, apricots, etc.

Juice and zest of an orange

Zest of a lemon

4floz strong black or earl grey tea, or sherry, brandy, whiskey, or spiced rum

For cake mixture

8 ounces (225 grammes) plain spelt flour, or gluten free plain flour

2 teaspoons (10 millilitres) ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon (5 millilitres) ground ginger

 ½ teaspoon (2½ millilitres) ground coriander

 ½ teaspoon (2½ millilitres) ground mixed spice

¼ teaspoon (1 millilitres) ground cloves

Pinch of salt

8 ounces (225 grammes) soft butter, or baking margarine

8 ounces (225 grammes) brown sugar

4 medium (US large) eggs, at room temperature

2 ounces (55 grammes) ground almonds

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FREE FROM

Spelt, yeast

CONTAINS

Eggs, spelt, dairy (dairy free option in italics), nuts, refined sugar

~~ ^ _ ^ ~~

METHOD

First, prepare the fruit

• In a large saucepan, place the fruit, orange juice and zest, lemon zest, and tea (or spirits) and heat gently until it begins to simmer, stirring continuously. Once simmering, remove from the heat.
• Pour into a large glass bowl and allow to cool to room temperature. Cover with cling film, and then allow to soak overnight.

The next day, make the cake

• Preheat the oven to 150°C (300°F, Gas Mk.2), and grease and double-line a 9 inch (22 centimetre) round deep cake tin, about 3 inches (7½ centimetres) deep.
• Onto a large piece of baking paper, sieve the flour, the spices, and the salt. Set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, cream the soft butter, or margarine, and sugar together very well with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.
• Beat the eggs in a jug, and beat into the butter and sugar in several additions, beating for at least 30 seconds after each addition. It helps if you beat the eggs for a bit where they're added to the bowl before mixing around the whole bowl to fully incorporate the eggs.
• Beat in the ground almonds and a quarter of the flour mixture only until there is no more visible dry flour. Using a metal spoon for a silicone spatula, fold in all the fruit and any leftover soaking liquid.
• Sieve in the remaining flour and fold through thoroughly with the spoon or spatula, until there is no dry flour left and the mixture is smooth and soft. 
• Pour into the tin, and bake on the centre shelf for 2½ hours, or longer if needed. It'll be done when a skewer inserted into the middle comes out completely clean. If it's browning too quickly on top, cover with a layer of tin foil.
• Turn off the oven and cool down inside to room temperature. Once at room temperature, remove from the tin, and peel off all the paper.
• Store in an airtight container for 5 days before coating with marzipan and icing. 

STORAGE

Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks. This cake can also be frozen for up to a year: just wrap in a layer greaseproof paper, a layer of foil, then finally a double layer of cling film before freezing.

Cheesecake Raspberry Brownies (Wheat Free, with Dairy Free Option)

I absolutely love cheesecake, and I absolutely love brownies--so does my lovely companion--so what would be better than merging the two into one fabulous morsel? Fudgy, dense, dark brownie smothered in rich, thick, creamy cheesecake, swirled with tangy, fruity raspberry jam; what's not to like?

I've seen lots of recipes online for cheesecake brownies, but usually the brownie mixture and the cheesecake mixture are partially mixed together then baked simultaneously as one large confection; it's not common to see them cooked as two separate layers. This was a delicious experiment, which led to another trial with the ever illusive perfect brownie recipe.

This brownie recipe is another variation on my recent trials with replacing flour in cake recipes: by replacing two-thirds of the flour in a classic sponge cake with dark chocolate, and omitting the liquid, you get a deliciously dense brownie.

I thought this brownie recipe was so perfectly delicious that I actually retrospectively edited my previous blog post on fudgy brownies. I thought instead of muddying up the waters with lots of contradictory brownie recipes, I'd just update the one I wrote for Ice-Cream Month.

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DIFFICULTY

Simple techniques, but time consuming

TIME

2 hours, plus an overnight chill

RECIPE RATING

Intermediate

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INGREDIMENTS

Makes one 9 inch (22 centimetre) square cheesecake brownie

2 medium (US Large) eggs

4 ounces (115 grammes) unsalted butter, or baking margarine

4 ounces (115 grammes) plain or dark chocolate, 55%-70% cocoa, or dairy-free chocolate

3 ounces (85 grammes) soft light brown sugar

3 ounces (85 grammes) caster sugar

2 ounces (55 grammes) plain spelt flour

2 teaspoons (10 millilitres) vanilla

Up to 2 tablespoons (up to 30 millilitres) cocoa powder, to taste

Cheesecake topping

1 pound (455 grammes) full fat cream cheese, or silken tofu, or unsweetened coconut cream

6 fluid ounces (170 millilitres) Greek yoghurt, or sour cream, or soya yoghurt, or coconut yoghurt

4 ounces (115 grammes) caster sugar

2 medium (US Large) eggs

1 tablespoon (15 millilitres vanilla essence

Jammy topping

4 fluid ounces (115 millilitres) seedless raspberry jam

2 teaspoons (10 millilitres) cornflour

1 teaspoon (5 millilitres) lemon juice

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FREE FROM

Nuts, gluten, yeast

CONTAINS

Eggs, spelt, dairy (dairy free option in italics), maize, refined sugar

~~ ^ _ ^ ~~

METHOD

First, make the brownie layer

• Preheat the oven to 170°C (325°F, Gas Mk.3), line a 9 inch (22 centimetre) square tin with tin foil, and lightly grease the tin foil.
• In a microwave safe bowl, or heatproof bowl set over simmering water, melt the butter and chocolate together. Allow to cool slightly.
• In a mixing bowl, beat together the eggs and sugars with an electric mixer until pale and thickened in consistency.
• Beat in the vanilla, and then slowly add the melted chocolate in a stream, beating all the time with the electric mixer, until all the chocolate is incorporated.
• Sieve in the flour, then fold through gently with a metal spoon or silicone spatula. Pour the mixture into the tin, and smooth out the top as much as you can.
• Bake for 20 minutes on the centre shelf, or until the top is dry and a cocktail stick comes out clean when poked into the middle of the cake. Allow to cool completely in the tin on a wire rack.

Then, make the cheesecake layer

• Place the jam in a saucepan and cook over medium heat until it melts and begins to simmer. Mix the cornflour, lemon juice, and a few teaspoons of water together in a cup to make a slurry.
• Beat in the slurry and continue to cook for a minute or two, until the mixture thickens. Allow to cool completely before using in the cheesecake.
• Preheat the oven to 150°C (300°F, Gas Mk.2)
• In a mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese with a wooden spoon until smooth, and then beat in the yoghurt, or sour cream. Mix the sugar in gently until completely incorporated.
• Gently mix in the eggs, one at a time, until completely blended. Try not to beat to hard, as beating the eggs can add in too much air and cause the cheesecake to crack.
• Pour the mixture out onto the brownie layer, smooth out as well as you can, then dollop the jam on top in polka dots all over the top.
• Using a cocktail stick or thin knife, swirl the jam into the cheesecake. I did this by running the cocktail stick back and forth in across, then up and down, then diagonally.
• Bake on the centre shelf for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the outside edge of the cake is firm and set, but the centre is still a little jiggly. It shouldn't be liquidy, just jiggly like a firm jelly.
• Open the oven door and turn off the oven, and allow it to cool to room temperature, about an hour or two. Transfer the cheesecake to the fridge and chill for at least 4 hours, or overnight.

STORAGE

Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Bakewell Gateau (Wheat Free, with Dairy Free Option)

My Dad celebrated his 57th birthday this year! It was a lovely day: he got some nice presents, like some new bubble baths and books on watercolors--which is a new hobby of his--and we got a lovely dinner made by my brother's fiancée (with his help).

So, to commemorate this special occasion, I decided to make a cake version of my Dad's favourite pastry: Bakewell tart! I've only had one brush with the iconic English delight on this blog in the past, and it was just a fairly straightforward traybake re-imagining to save some time on making individual pastry cases.

This cake pays homage to the delicious shortbread pastry case by encircling the whole perimeter with shortbread biscuits. The cake itself is made from two thick layers of buttery almond sponge, inspired by the dense, moist frangipane sponge usually found in a Bakewell tart. And you can't make this kind of cake without sweet fondant-style icing and glacé cherries!

Please set aside a good 5 hours to make this: it's not technically complicated, but it's time consuming. In fact, this tastes much better the day after it's made, not on the day.

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DIFFICULTY

Simple sponge cake and shortbread making, and layer cake constructing

TIME

About 5 hours

RECIPE RATING

Experienced: time consuming

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INGREDIMENTS

Makes one deep 8 inch (20 centimetre) round cake

9 ounces (250 grammes) caster sugar

6 ounces (170 grammes) unsalted butter, or baking margarine, at room temperature

3 medium (US Large) eggs, at room temperature

1 to 2 teaspoons (5 to 10 millilitres) almond essence, to taste

1 teaspoon (5 millilitres) vanilla essence

4 fluid ounces (115 millilitres) whole milk, or milk alternative

Pinch of salt

4½ ounces (130 grammes) white spelt flour

4½ ounces (130 grammes) ground almonds

2½ teaspoons (12 millilitres) baking powder

Jam Filling

4 fluid ounces (115 millilitres) seedless raspberry jam

2 teaspoons (10 millilitres) cornflour

1 teaspoon (5 millilitres) lemon juice

Shortbread Biscuits

3½ ounces (100 grammes) white spelt flour

1 ounces (30 grammes) cornflour

3 ounces (85 grammes) salted butter, or baking margarine

1½ ounces (40 grammes) sugar

To decorate

8 ounces (225 grammes) icing sugar

1 ounce (30 grammes) butter, melted, or coconut oil, or baking margarine

Hot water, to mix

7 glacé cherries, cut in half

~~ ^ _ ^ ~~

FREE FROM

Wheat, yeast

CONTAINS

Spelt, eggs, dairy (dairy free option in italics), refined sugar, nuts

~~ ^ _ ^ ~~

METHOD

First, make the biscuits to decorate the outside

• In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and icing sugar together until smooth. Sieve in the spelt flour and cornflour, and rub into the mixture with your fingers until you have a soft dough. Wrap in cling film, flatten into a disc, and chill for about an hour.
• If you like, while the dough is chilling, you can prepare the cake.
• Preheat the oven to 150°C (300°F, Gas Mk.2), and line one or two flat sheets with a piece of non-stick baking paper.
• Dust the work surface with cornflour and roll out to about a quarter inch (5 millimetres) thick. Cut into rectangles measuring 1 by 2½ inches (2½ by 6½ centimetres) with a straight blade or a fluted pastry wheel. You can re-roll the dough twice to cut more biscuits, and you should have about 20 biscuits.
• Lie the biscuits on the baking tray, about half an inch (1 centimetre) apart, and bake in the centre of the preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the edges are gently browned.
• After cooking, transfer the biscuits to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the cake

• Sieve together the flour, almonds, salt, and baking powder onto a sheet of baking paper, and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar together very well, until light and creamy. Using an electric mixer, this will take about 3 minutes.
• Beat the eggs in one by one, making sure to beat in each egg completely before adding the next. If you have a food processor, the eggs, sugar, and butter and be blitzed all at once for a couple of minutes.
• Beat in the essences, adding the almond essence to taste. Fold in half the flour mixture, followed by the milk, and finishing with the last half of the flour mixture.
• Pour the mixture into the prepared tin, and bake on the centre shelf of the preheated oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour. If the top is browning too quickly, but the cake isn't done through the middle, cover with a tin foil tent.
• Once cooked, remove from the oven, loosen the sides, and allow to cool completely in the tin on a wire rack.

While the cake cools, prepare the jam

• Place the jam in a saucepan and cook over medium heat until it melts and begins to simmer. Mix the cornflour, lemon juice, and a few teaspoons of water together in a cup to make a slurry.
• Beat in the slurry and continue to cook for a minute or two, until the mixture thickens. Allow to cool completely before using to fill the cake.

Assemble the masterpiece!

• If the cake has a dome, cut it off. Cut the cake in half into two equal layers. Place the top half of the cake upside down on the serving plate, cover with the jam, spreading out to half an inch (1 centimetre) from the edge. Sandwich with the bottom half of the cake, upside down. Now, the flat bottom crust of the cake is the top.
• Make a thick but running icing with the icing sugar, melted butter, and enough hot water to get the right consistency.
• Cover the top and sides with a very thin layer of glace icing. Use a little bit of icing on the back of each biscuit and attach to the side of the cake to make a crust.
• If the icing has set too much, add a few drops of water and heat for a few seconds in the microwave to retrieve the flowing consistency. Pour onto the top of the cake to make a thick icing layer; the biscuits make a damn to hold in the icing.
• Decorate the top with halved glacé cherries, as you like. This cake is best made the day before serving, but if you don't have that amount of time, allow the whole confection to set for about 2 hours before serving.

STORAGE

Best eaten the day after it's made, but keeps in an airtight container for up to 10 days at room temperature.

Recipe Revision: Maple Pecan Pie (Options to make a Wheat- and Dairy Free Version)

November is a bit of a non-month here in Ireland, traditionally: you know how January is a bit of a non-month at the start of the year? Well, November is the traditional Celtic January. In England, there's bonfire night on the 5th; in America, there's Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday; but here, it's just the waiting period between Hallowe'en and Christmas, with no real identity of its own.

As such, it's kind of difficult to come up with any nice and interesting baking projects. The only event  I feel is worth baking for in November is my Dad's birthday, on the 16th, which is obviously specific to my family with no widespread relevance, like any other family birthday. So only things you can really do is to capitalise on Thanksgiving, which is not a native festival here, but it is gaining popularity, particularly the Black Friday sales.

Which is exactly what I've done here: I've taken a traditionally American and Canadian treat and done a local version using ingredients commonly available in Ireland. There's no corn syrup here: in this recipe, I use golden syrup, and maple flavoured golden syrup. In my previous maple pecan pie attempt a few years ago, I tried using actual maple syrup, but I personally prefer the taste of maple flavoured golden syrup: it has a stronger, albeit slightly synthetic, smoky flavour.

This recipe uses the exact same ingredient ratios as the chocolate fudge tart I made in May, but the chocolate has simply been replaced with syrup: it makes for a sticky sweet treat, with just enough egg to set the middle into a gloriously sticky custard filling, chock full of roasty toasty pecan nuts. It's a truly decadent treat, to be enjoyed in small doses with ice- or whipped cream.

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DIFFICULTY

Requires mixing (and pastry making skills if you're making your own pastry case)

TIME

About 2 hours

RECIPE RATING

Easy!

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INGREDIMENTS

Makes one 8 inch (20 centimetre) deep dish pie, weighing roughly 2¼ pounds (1 kilogram)

One 8" (20 centimetre) deep pie crust

3 ounces (85 grammes) golden syrup

3 ounces (85 grammes) maple syrup, or maple flavoured golden syrup

4 ounces (115 grammes) unsalted butter, or margarine

1 tablespoon (15 millilitres) lemon or orange juice

6 ounces (170 grammes) soft light brown sugar

2 teaspoons (10 millilitres) vanilla essence

2 medium (US Large) eggs, beaten

6 to 8 ounces (170 to 225 grammes) pecan nuts, toasted

Optional: 1 shot (35 millilitres) spiced rum

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FREE FROM

Nuts, wheat (if you make your own pastry), yeast

CONTAINS

Gluten, dairy (italics show alternatives), eggs, refined sugar,

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METHOD

• If you're making your own pie crust, blind bake it and allow it to cool. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F, Gas Mk.4)
• In a small saucepan, heat together the syrups, butter, and lemon juice only until the butter is melted, stirring occasionally. 
• Remove from the heat and mix in the sugar and vanilla essence, and rum if using. Allow to cool slightly before adding the eggs.
• Using a balloon whisk, vigorously beat in the eggs until the mixture is smooth.
• Scatter three-quarters of the nuts on the base of the pie crust. Pour in the filling, then add enough nuts to nearly fill the pie crust completely; this pie doesn't rise much, if at all. Make sure to poke down the nuts so they are all covered in syrup.
• Bake on the centre shelf of the preheated oven for 45 minutes to an hour, until the centre is puffed up and no longer liquidy; a little jiggly is okay. If the pastry is browning too quickly, over with a large piece of tin foil.
• Once cooked, remove from the oven and cool completely in the pie dish on a wire rack. If you want to remove the pie from the tin to serve, chill overnight before unmoulding.

STORAGE

As with all things made with pastry, this is best enjoyed within 3 days of eating, kept in an airtight container at room temperature. However, it can keep in an airtight container for up to a week in the fridge.

Toffee Apple Upside-Down Cake: a Simple but Effective Technique

Although November is technically winter here in Ireland, I understand that over the rest of the northern hemisphere it's usually considered the last month of autumn. Whenever we think of autumn, we always think of apples, and by extension, toffee apples. I've always had a fraught relationship with toffee apples: I love the idea, and they are wonderfully visually appealing, but never actually like eating a toffee apple. They're sticky, and inevitably the apple is powdery and manky.

As such, each year I try to make something toffee apple inspired that isn't a toffee apple. This year, I had a nice handful of Pink Ladies and Granny Smiths, and decided to do something nice and traditional, and kinda retro: an upside-down cake.

This is more of a technique than it is a recipe: all you need for this is toffee sauce, apples, and some sponge cake mixture. You can make your own, or use a boxed mix. It really doesn't matter

I used some toffee sauce, one red and one green apple, halved, cored, and cut into thin slices, and some Victoria sponge cake mixture made with 2 eggs and brown sugar instead of caster sugar. I poured the toffee sauce into the bottom of a greased 8 inch (20 centimetre) deep round tin, arranged the apple slices on the bottom to make a nice pattern, and then spooned the cake mixture in on top. I then cooked the entire confection for about 45 minutes in a preheated 180°C (350°F, Gas Mk.4) oven. I then allowed it to cool slightly before turning out onto a plate and serving warm with custard.

I hope you give this classic technique a try for a truly delicious autumnal treat!

Multicoloured Sweet Popcorn (Gluten-, Egg-, and Dairy Free) with Video!

If there's something that kid's particularly love, it's sweet things. And if there's something they love more than that, it's brightly coloured sweet things! Although, sometimes adults like it too.. especially this adult.

This is a simple way to make frosted popcorn of any colour you have available, that doesn't require a sugar thermometer: all you need is a microwave and an oven, and you'll have multicoloured popcorn in under 15 minutes.

If you want to add flavourings, you can add any flavouring oil or essence to the sugar syrup before tossing the popcorn. My companion likes popcorn that is sweet and salty, so I usually add a good few pinches of salt for that sweet/savoury experience.

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DIFFICULTY

Requires mixing and using a microwave

TIME

Under an hour

RECIPE RATING

Easy!

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INGREDIMENTS

Makes enough popcorn for 6 people

3 ounces (85 grammes) popped popcorn kernels
3 ounces (85 grammes) caster sugar
3 tablespoons (45 millilitres) water
Liquid food colouring

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FREE FROM

Eggs, nuts, dairy, gluten, yeast

CONTAINS

Maize, refined sugar

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STORAGE

Best eaten on the day it's made, but can be eaten the net day if kept in a airtight plastic bag or container.

Pull-Apart Pumpkin Cake (Dairy-Free Sponge Recipe) with Video!

If you are planning a Halloween party for entertaining, you will always need some kind of cake as a centre piece for the party table. Layer cakes, like the Bat 'n' Burg, will always impress older kids and adults, but little children are much more easily impressed. So, if you're entertaining little ones, you don't need to go to so much bother: this pull-apart cake will make your life easier, and will make sure everyone has a piece of cake that's the same size.

This video demonstrates how to make a pumpkin themed cake, but you could do anything like a bat, or a ghost. It's completely up to you!

 

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DIFFICULTY

Requires mixing and piping icing

TIME

About 2 hours

RECIPE RATING

Easy!

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INGREDIMENTS

Makes 12 cupcakes

4 ounces (115 grammes) white spelt flour

½ teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon (15 millilitres) cocoa powder
2 medium (US large) eggs

2 ounces (55 grammes, 60 millilitres) sunflower oil

2 ounces (55 grammes) caster sugar

2ounces (55 grammes) soft light brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

To decorate

Melted milk or dark chocolate, roughly 3 ounces (85 grammes)
12 ounces to 1 pound (340 to 455 grammes) buttercream icing, coloured orange, made using margarine for a dairy-free option

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FREE FROM

Dairy, nuts, wheat, yeast

CONTAINS

Spelt, eggs, refined sugar

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STORAGE

These keep for up to 2 weeks in an airtight container at room temperature.

Coco-Lime Cream Soda (Naturally Free From)

You can't have a party without something to drink, and when party food is usually sugary and fatty, you want something nice and refreshing. Enter in this Thai inspired soft drink: the Coco-Lime Soda! A zingy lime syrup, mixed with rich yet light coconut milk, and topped off with sparkling water. The coconut milk and sparkling water create a wonderfully spooky frothy head...

This would appeal more to adults than children, especially if you decided to take this Thai delight to the West Indies and add in some white rum!

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DIFFICULTY

Requires mixing and using a microwave

TIME

Under an hour

RECIPE RATING

Easy!

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INGREDIMENTS

Makes roughly half a pint (285 millilitres) of lime syrup

6 fluid ounces (170 grammes) fresh lime juice, roughly 6 or 8 limes

Rind of 2 limes, peeled into strips with a vegetable peeler

6 ounces (170 grammes) caster sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

Green food colouring

Pinch of salt

To serve

Light coconut milk, in a can (about 20-25% coconut), or full fat coconut milk if you're feeling decadent

Sparkling water

Green sugar
Optional: white or spiced rum

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FREE FROM

Dairy, nuts, gluten, eggs, yeast

CONTAINS

Refined sugar

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METHOD

• In a microwave safe jug, place the lime juice, zest, sugar, and salt. Microwave for about 20 minutes, stirring half-way through. Allow to cool completely.
• Strain the syrup into a bottle; discard the zest. Chill completely before assembling the drinks.

To serve

• To mix a drink, wet the rim of a highball glass and dip in green sugar. Add 1 part lime syrup, 2 parts chilled coconut milk, and 3 parts sparkling water. If you pour the water from a height, you will get plenty of foam.
• Serve with a straw. If you like, you can put ice in the glasses first.
• Alternatively, you can make the drink in a punch bowl, rather than mixing individual drinks.
• To make an alcoholic drink, mix 1 part lime syrup, 2 parts coconut milk, 2 parts rum, and 2 parts sparkling water.

Báirín Breac, a.k.a. Barm Brack: Traditional Irish Fruit Bread

Hallowe'en as a holiday originates in Ireland: Oíche Shamhna was the original Gaelic new year's eve, where the division between the living world and the spirit world would open for one night only to permit the dead to pass over. Sometimes, though, pesky spirits would accidentally (on purpose) take people who were still alive into the spirit world, where they'd get stuck forever. To prevent this from happening, the living people were advised to disguise themselves as ghouls, goblins and sprites to fool the spirits into thinking they were some of their own, and prevent their apprehension.

Once the Irish migrated en-masse to the United States, Hallowe'en became part of the American consciousness, and was popularised worldwide through American television. How the Irish celebrated Hallowe'en was always a little bit more ghoulish and pagan when I was a kid, and not as holiday-fied as the American Hallowe'en, but over my lifetime it has lost popularity and has become completely overshadowed by Christmas. Seriously, we have Christmas stuff in the shops from September.

So, in the spirit of sharing our traditions, I will share with you a recipe for barmbrack, or báirín breac in Irish, which is a fruited bread often eaten at this time of year. Hidden inside the loaf are a few trinkets that have symbolic meaning: a ring for marriage, a coin for wealth, a stick for poverty, a pea for spinsterhood, and a relic for a religious life. Nowadays, it's usually only a coin or ring. And yes, even the ones in the shop have the trinkets hidden inside; I understand in America it's illegal to sell food that contains foreign object, but not here!

I tried making this the traditional way, with a home-cultured yeast and tea-soaked fruit, but it was really really difficult: making your own bread starter is a tricky business, and I personally find it too sour, and using soaked fruit made a complete and utter mess. Instead, I've somewhat adapted the traditional bread recipe to make it a tad easier.

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DIFFICULTY

Requires bread making

TIME

About 5 hours

RECIPE RATING

Experienced

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INGREDIMENTS

Makes one large loaf, weighing roughly 1½ pounds (680 grammes)

6 fluid ounces (170 millilitres) strong black tea, hot

10 ounces (280 grammes) raisins or currants, or a mixture of both

2 teaspoons (10 grammes) brown sugar

12 ounces (340 grammes) white spelt flour, plus up to 2 ounces (55 grammes) extra for dusting

1½ teaspoons (7 grammes) salt

1 quarter-ounce (7 gramme) packet of dry active yeast

1 ounce (30 grammes) caster sugar

1 medium (US Large) egg, or you can use more tea

1½ ounces (40 grammes) unsalted butter, soft, or margarine

Demerara sugar, for sprinkling

Eggwash

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FREE FROM

Nuts, wheat

CONTAINS

Spelt, dairy (italics show alternatives), eggs (italics show alternatives), refined sugar, yeast

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METHOD

• In a large jug, mix the fruit with the hot tea and brown sugar. Heat in the microwave on full power for 1 minute, stirring half way. Allow the fruit to cool to hand-hot, which will take about 20 minutes
• Strain all the liquid out of the fruit, pressing as much liquid as you can out of the fruit. Set the fruit aside for later, and make sure the tea is still hand-hot: it should feel like nice bathwater. If it's too cold, heat gently in the microwave until it's hot enough again.
• In a large mixing bowl, sieve in 8 ounces (225 grammes) of the flour, and add in the yeast, the sugar, and salt. Mix in the egg, and only enough of the strained tea to make what looks like a thick pancake mixture. Cover loosely with a tea towel or cling film, and allow to rise for about 20 minutes to half an hour. This will help the strengthening of the gluten.
• Once the dough has risen, add in the remaining 4 ounces (115 grammes) of flour and mix to a very soft dough; it will be a little bit tacky. Sprinkle some of the premeasured flour onto the work surface and knead until smooth.
• Add the butter and fruit into the dough, and knead again until the dough is very smooth and supple, and passes the window-pane test. The whole kneading process from adding the flour to finished dough might take up to 20 minutes and will be incredibly messy, so prepare yourself and don't be afraid to flour the surface often (making sure not to add more than 2 ounces (55 grammes). If you have a standing mixer with a dough hook, it'll be ready in half the time.
• Roll into the dough into a ball, return to the bowl, and allow to rise for about an hour to two hours, or until just over doubled in size.
• Grease and flour an 8 inch (20 centimetre) deep, round cake tin. You could also use two 8 inch (20 centimetre) sandwich tins to make shallower loaves.
• Once doubled, press the air out of the dough and shape again to a ball, making sure the surface is very smooth and tight. Put into the prepared tin and flatten out until the surface is level. Cover again and allow to rise once more until doubled in size, about 45 minutes. In the last few minutes of rising, preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F, Gas Mk.4).
• Brush the surface of the loaf with eggwash and sprinkle with Demerara sugar. Bake the loaf on the centre shelf of the oven for 30 to 45 minutes: the top will be a beautiful golden brown, and to test the doneness take the loaf out of the tin and knock the bottom, and if it sounds hollow it's done.
• If the top is browning too quickly, cover with a tin foil hat. Ovens turn loaves of bread into conspiracy theorists sometimes.
• When cooked, carefully remove from the tin and cool on a wire rack. If you want to enjoy it freshly baked, allow it to cool enough to handle before cutting, but it's best cut at room temperature.

STORAGE

These keep for up to 3 or 4 days in an airtight container at room temperature. Do not store in the fridge!