Kitchen Experiment: Maple Pecan Pie

I hope everyone has got great plans for the weekend! I have anyway: a good friend of mine is down visiting from Roscommon for the World Power Lifting Championships that are on in Limerick, of all places. While she is down, we're taking the opportunity to have a mini Halloween house decorating party! We will be doing a bit of baking, and hanging up pound shop tat, and watching Tim Burton movies till our eyes come out.

As I promised in my last post, the first after a long compassionate break, I am going to let you in on the process that I followed for my most recent concoction: maple pecan pie!

Sunday was Thanksgiving in Canada, and my Canadian work colleague invited my brother and I to celebrate with his wife and a few friends. They had a variety of food, and it was really lovely to experience what is traditionally eaten as part of dinner, and also to be part of their pre-dinner tradition of introducing ourselves in turn to the guests at the table, and saying one thing we're thankful for. I'd love to do that before every meal anymore.

They had turkey (of course), roasted root vegetables, steamed broccoli, mashed sweet potato with maple syrup and walnuts, and stuffing. For dessert, other guests had brought apple pie and cinnamon rolls, and I brought my offering of a tart (snicker).

I did a bit of research as to what kinds of desserts are popular for eating after a Thanksgiving meal. Most of my research turned up results about Thanksgiving in the States, but my colleague assured me they eat pretty much the same things in Canada. I was originally thinking of doing a pumpkin pie, but pumpkins weren't on sale yet when I had to make something to bring.

This was a complete experiment: I'd never made a pie like this before. I read a few recipes online, and checked a few in my numerous cookbooks, and most of the recipes were the same. They all followed the basic formula of one 9 inch (22 centimetre) pie shell, filled with a mixture of 3 medium eggs, 6 ounces (170 grammes) brown sugar, 3 ounces (85 grammes) melted butter, 4 fluid ounces (120 millilitres) of maple or corn syrup, and about 5 ounces (140 grammes) chopped pecan nuts. Some recipes asked for the filling to be thickened with a little flour, and some asked for more syrup.

However, there was always one things on which the various recipes I read could not agree: was the crust blind baked or not.

So, I followed the recipe from one of the cookbooks I had which asked for the raw pastry and filling to be cooked at the same time. This meant cooking the pie at 200ºC (400ºF, Gas Mk.6) for the first half of cooking, then at 150ºC (300ºF, Gas Mk.2) for the second half. 

I made a nice buttery pastry case, using a traditional shortbread crust like I did on my treacle tarts that I made a few months back. I then filled it with chopped pecan nuts, and poured in the filling. I cooked it as instructed. The result looked wonderful, but on eating it was revealed that it had gone soggy in the middle. It still tasted epic, though.

After cooking, I then laid some whole pecans on top, glazed them with extra maple syrup, then gave it another 10 minutes to set them into place; worked a treat. Although, this recipe was very heavy on my bottle of maple syrup, which my brother had bought while on his travels in Ontario last month.

Conclusion

Next time I make it, which will probably be tonight, I think I'll make a few adjustments

• I will blind bake the crust so that it doesn't go soggy.
• I won't use my pure maple syrup, but will instead use my maple flavoured golden syrup; the pure stuff is expensive, and this recipe needs a lot, so I'll only use it for glazing.
• Following on from one of the recipe that suggested thickening with flour, and taking inspiration also from my treacle tart recipe, I might try adding some ground almonds to the filling to make it a little firmer and not as gooey.

 

So, keep your eyes peeled for an updated version! I will be beavering away on making a more perfect version of this. Although, if the feedback I got from the Thanksgiving guests is anything to go by, this one was pretty darn good!

THIS TIME IN 2014: Orange Chocolate Fudge
THIS TIME IN 2013: No-Churn No-Cook Strawberry Cheesecake Ice-Cream (EGG FREE, WHEAT FREE)

I'M BAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!! (Break-Ups Are Horrid)

Hello all!

I want to apologise for the complete silence over the last five weeks, but I was struck by personal tragedy. My relationship with my beloved companion suddenly and unexpectedly ended out of the blue, and it took me by complete surprise. I have spent the last little while going through a fairly complex grieving process which included questioning the direction of my entire life (it's about time I had a quarter-life crisis) and eating enough sugar to feed a small country.

I have always held relationships, marriage, and family in very high regard, ever since I was a little girl. I've always placed finding a good match and settling quite high up my list of life priorities. Having said that, I understand that these things can't be rushed, and give ample space to my romantic others so that they don't feel overwhelmed. This time, I thought I had found someone whose values and aspirations were equally prioritised, with whom I could share a long and happy life, but it turned out that I was wrong. Such, such, crippling disappointment.

But I understand my readers aren't interested in my personal issues, but are interested in my cooking. Unfortunately, due to the depth of my grief, I have avoided my kitchen outright. I haven't even cooked myself a meal in nearly six weeks, and not baked a single thing. I associated my kitchen so strongly with the time that I spent with my companion that even going into it to get a glass of water was too much for the first three weeks.

However, this weekend, I had the privilege of going to my first Thanksgiving dinner. I have a new Canadian coworker, and he invited my brother and I to join him, his wife, and a few friends for a traditional meal. I said to him I'd bring a dessert, and as such had to do my research. I found out that the most popular desserts are pumpkin pie, apple pie, or pecan pie.

So, I decided to try my hand at baking a pecan pie for the first time. It was quite a hit! However, there are a few things I'd tweak for the next try, which will be soon. The full write up will be up on Friday, along with my plans for Halloween baking!

Thank you to everyone who has read my blog so faithfully for the last two-and-a-half years. I cannot tell you how much it has meant to me.

I'm not gone. Never gone.

Lots of love,
Sweetie Pie x

Kitchen Experiment: Wagon Wheels (Wheat Free with Dairy Free Option)

And so, the first week of September begins: children and young people return to school and college, Limerick begins to get busier again as everyone returns from their holidays in Kilkee, and at last the shroud of boredom lifts from my work in the community centre. However, it will be some time before routine filters into my brain and wakes it out of the summertime haze of boredom and lethargy.

Having said that, this weekend I decided to do something a little experimental. On Friday I did make some toffee, but I forgot to photograph it and thus there was no recipe write up; I hope to rectify that this coming Friday. But yesterday, I tried my hand at making a household favourite: wagon wheels!

For my readers across the Atlantic, a 'Wagon Wheel' is exactly the same thing as a 'Moon Pie': two plain biscuits, sandwiched with fluffy marshmallow, enrobed in that mysteriously titled 'chocolate flavoured coating' stuff. Mine were a little different, using chocolate biscuits for sandwiching, and real dark chocolate for coating.

About two years ago, I tried my hand at sandwiching biscuits with marshmallow for the first time: I made some dinosaur shaped Kimberley biscuits (again, for those who don't live in Ireland, a Kimberley is two small gingerbread rounds, sandwiched with marshmallow, the sides of which have been dipped in coarse white sugar), and they were great. In hindsight, thinner biscuit would have been preferable, to have the appropriate biscuit to marshmallow ratio for optimum enjoyment.

This time, I again made the same mistake: I made my chocolate biscuits too thick, meaning the wagon wheels are far too big, which isn't an issue for people like me who have a significantly large sweet tooth (which makes finding gum shields that fit well an issue), but to normal folk would make them more of a dessert than a snack.

Another issue, which I will keep in mind for my next marshmallow adventure, is that I didn't use enough gelatine in the marshmallows and they were too soft, more like a melted marshmallow texture. In my mind, the biscuit should be soft, and the marshmallow firm.

If I make these again, I will do a full write up and recipe, but seeing as this was just an experiment, I will give you a log of how I made them.

To make these, I used a fairly standard biscuit recipe: I mixed 6 ounces (170 grammes) white spelt flour, 1 ounce (30 grammes) each of cornflour and cocoa powder, and a teaspoon (5 millilitres) of baking powder with 4 ounces (115 grammes) melted butter (or margarine for a dairy free option), 2 ounces (55 grammes) caster sugar, and enough milk to bind into a sticky dough. I then wrapped it in clingfilm, flattened it into a disc, and chilled for about 30 to 45 minutes. I rolled it out to just under half inch (about 1 centimetre) thickness and cut out rounds. If I were to do it again, the biscuit would be thicker, and contain more sugar and an egg for softness. I baked them for 15 minutes at 180*C, and let them cool before pairing them up with each other for sandwiching.

For the filling, I bloomed 1 tablespoon (15 millilitres) of gelatine (by 'bloomed' I mean I soaked it in cold water to make it spongy) in a cup; I also put 1 egg white at room temperature into a large mixing bowl. I cooked 8 ounces (225 grammes) of caster sugar, 2 fluid ounces (60 millilitres) of water, and a few drops of lime juice (for acidity) to the firm ball stage, removed from the heat and stirred in the bloomed gelatine to melt. I whipped the egg white to soft peaks, then gradually added the syrup; in retrospect I could have done it a little more gradually, as the finished marshmallow didn't whip up as much as I'd have liked.

Once I'd made the marshmallow, I put it into a greased disposable piping bag, fitted with a greased large round piping nozzle. For each biscuit, I piped a big dollop of marshmallow into the middle of one biscuit, then sandwiched the other on top, squeezing gently to push the filling out to just short of the edges.

I let them sit for two hours before enrobing in chocolate, just to make sure the filling was mostly set. I melted 5 ounces (140 grammes) of dark chocolate with a rounded teaspoonful (about 5 or 10 millilitres) of coconut oil (to improve the flow for dipping) in a cereal bowl. I dipped each biscuit, flipping to cover both sides, shook off the excess coating then placed them on some lightly greased foil; I would have used baking paper, but I'd run out. I let them set overnight because I was doing this in the evening, but an additional 2 hours would suffice if you were doing them during the day.

I made the mistake of scraping the leftover chocolate onto the tops of the biscuits, and this cause the chocolate to cloud; this was a rookie mistake. So, my wonderful companion - who had already solved two previous culinary problems during the day - suggested that I dust them with icing sugar to hide the clouding. I did, and I also dusted some with cocoa powder for visual interest.

All in all, for a first attempt they turned out very well! Again, as aforementioned, I would make the filling firmer and the biscuits softer, and also make them thinner. I will try another batch and let you all know the results...

THIS TIME IN 2014: Hazelnut Chocolate Gateau (Wheat Free)

THIS TIME IN 2013: Gingerbread Men (Gluten-, Dairy-, Yeast-, Egg Free)

Mini Apple Pies (Wheat Free with Dairy Free Option)

Apologies for the lack of updates last week. My life is a mess at the moment: I never know where I'm going to be or when I'm going to be there, and have a terrible time remembering what the Hell I'm supposed to be doing when I get there... if this is the life of a young professional then I firmly believe I have made a terrible decision.

However! Here is my most recent creation: little apple pies!

I had a few apples in my fruit bowl, languishing, not really fresh enough for eating out of hand anymore. So, I turned them into a nice compote, and put them into tasty, crispy, flaky pastry. I thought of making some puff pastry, but life got in the way.

The recipe was very simple: I cut up 2 firm fleshed apples and 1 soft fleshed apple into little pieces, about a quarter inch (5 millilitres) across. Firm fleshed apples in this case could be Bramley, Granny Smith, or Pink Lady; soft fleshed apples could be Braeburn, McIntosh, or Discovery. Keep the pieces in a bowl of water with a dash of lemon juice while cutting to stop them from browning.

Melt about 1 ounce (30 grammes) of butter or margarine in a saucepan, and then cook the apples on medium until the firm apple pieces have softened and the soft apple pieces have started to break down. Add in brown or white (or both) sugar to taste; I added about 3 tablespoons (45 millilitres). Add about half a teaspoon (3 millilitres) of mixed spice, and top up with enough cold water to nearly over the apples. Cook on low, uncovered, for about 15 to 20 minutes, until the apples are fully tender and the mixture is like jam. Leave to cool.

To make the pastry, mix 8 ounces (225 grammes) of white spelt flour with 4 ounces (115 grammes) of melted butter or margarine until blended and a little sandy. Add enough water to make a soft dough, without handling too much. Roll out thinly, and cut into rectangles that are about 4 by 6 inches (10 by 15 centimetres). Wet the edges of one side of each rectangle, put in about a heaped teaspoon of filling, then fold over. Crimp with the tines of a fork, then use scissors to snip in the 'V' shaped vents. You should get about 12 pies.

Line on a lightly greased baking sheet, and brush with milk or eggwash, and sprinkle with caster sugar. Cook in the oven, preheated to 200ºC (400ºF, Gas Mk.6) for 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden brown and crispy. These can be eaten after about 5 minutes of cooling, and are also lovely if eaten cold. They will keep in an airtight container for about a week.

THIS TIME IN 2014: No blog this time last year

THIS TIME IN 2013: Variations on a Theme: Chocolate Chip Cookies

Something Different: Koeksisters (Wheat- and Dairy Free)

This time, I thought I'd try something completely different and unusual. My culinary explorations lead me to South Africa, where they make these delicious doughnut like confections soaked in syrup: Koeksisters.

For some reason, my family has had a lot of interaction with South African people: both my brothers have dated South African women, and I have had a few South African friends over the course of my school and college life. I think Ireland had some sort of connexion to the country, through hiring people to work for Intel in Leixlip, but I don't exactly know the details. Either way, it's a big migrant group here in Ireland.

Recently, I invited a friend around for dinner (who helped me out with the videos) and she told me she hadn't had a doughnut in years since going off dairy and wheat, so I promised her that I'd make some for her. I made the dough and thought, while I have it, I'll do a little experiment: another friend reminded me of the existence of koeksisters, which are braided doughnuts (sometimes flavoured with nutmeg and cardamom) that are deep fried and soaked in a simple syrup flavoured with cinnamon, ginger, and more cardamom.

The process was very simple: I used my new doughnuts recipe, adding ¼ teaspoon of ground nutmeg and the crushed seeds of 2 cardamom pods to the dry ingredients, and replacing the butter with block margarine. I then split the dough into eight equal pieces and then began the rolling and braiding process.

1. Take each eighth of the dough and roll it into a ball.
2. Use a rolling pin to flatten each ball out into a long oval.
3. Make a mark a little bit down from the top end of the oval, and cut the oval into three legs up to the mark.
4. Pinch each of the three legs into ropes.
5. Braid the legs together.
6. Pinch the loose ends together and fold them behind.

 My technique improved while I has braiding: my first two were a little loose and mental, but the third and all thereafter were much better and neater. My advice is don't be afraid to pull on the legs a bit to keep them tight.

I then fried them like normal doughnuts for about 6 minutes per batch, flipping each side twice to make sure even cooking. If you leave them too long on one side, it actually causes the braids to unravel a little, so turn a few times during the cooking process to make sure each side rises slowly.

Once each batch cooks, take each cake out of the oil and wrap in a piece of kitchen roll and leave on a wire rack to drain and cool slightly. Once all eight are cooked, allow them to cool enough to handle, then make the syrup.

In a saucepan, heat together 6 ounces (170 grammes) of caster sugar with 6 fluid ounces (180 millilitres) of water, along with some spices: 1 cinnamon stick (or a sprinkle of ground cinnamon), 2 whole cloves, the crushed seeds of 4 green cardamom pods, and a teaspoon of vanilla essence. Bring to the boil and cook until the mixture thickens and becomes syrupy like warm honey.

Lay the koeksisters in a dish and pour the syrup out of them, liberally dousing each one. Allow to soak for a while, then flip them over to allow the other side to soak.

These are very heavy going, and very similar to gulab jamun, which I made for one of our Indian themed tea parties. These are best kept in an airtight container and eaten within 3 days.

THIS TIME IN 2014: Honey and Cinnamon Popcorn (Gluten Free)
THIS TIME IN 2013: Minty Millionaire's Shortbread (Wheat Free)

Project Update (NO RECIPE TODAY)

This weekend I was visiting friends in Roscommon, so I didn't have a chance to bake over the weekend. Well, anything new: I did make some nice fluffy American style pancakes to feed my companion for breakfast.

Recently, I've been feeling a bit stale in life; this happens every so often, usually around August or September. I've been working in the same job for nearly 3 years, going to the same church every Sunday, seeing the same people and doing the same things... no matter how much you like something, you can get bored of it. This also extends into my blogging: I've recently been feeling a little bored with it. It's not that I want to stop doing it anymore, but I want to shake it up.

Last year, I tried making some videos, but I wasn't happy with how I made them: their style, quality, or content. I reflected on the experience, and found that they lacked planning, and needed to be refined and better designed. I have been working on a new design and concept, which I infinitely prefer.

I've been designing the content and the visuals, and getting excited about what it will look like and be about! I plan to make a series of eight 15 minute episodes to air next spring, but this year I will make two short series (3 or so videos) for Halloween and Christmas.

I'll be sharing the development of the video concept on this blog, as well as sharing recipes and techniques.

Something Savoury: Tomato Soup with Cheese Buns (Wheat-, Dairy-, and Egg Free)

I know that my blog is about baking nice sweet things to eat and be happy about, but when I'm not baking up sugary delights I'm using my other culinary skills to make meals for myself (and occasionally my companion). This time, I made some nice tomato soup with little cheese buns to dip in.

Every so often, I do a grocery shop, but then my life gets busy and I end up with vegetables in my fridge that are still in date, but a little bit too sad to serve in their own right with a meal. So, I turn them into soup, generally speaking, and usually tomato soup (or sometimes carrot and coriander).

This soup, however, is a little different to most recipes you'll see as is contains no added dairy, sugar, or flour (for thickening), but is still rich and creamy. I achieve this by using passata instead of fresh or tinned tomatoes, as it is already rich and thick, adding an apple for sweetness and texture, and a touch of rice for thickening. Sounds mad, but it works a treat!

The buns are also incredibly simple and are ready in less than half an hour, and are very easily customised. You can add some chopped spring onions, herbs, or spices if you wish.

FREE FROM
☑ Soya (check for soya lecithin)
☑ Yeast
☑ Wheat
☑ Nuts
☑ Eggs
☑ Dairy

CONTAINS
☒ Gluten (unless you use gluten-free flour)
☒ Refined sugar products


INGREDIMENTS

For the soup

• 1 pound (450 grammes) carrots
• ½ a white onion, or a small red onion
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 medium sized dessert apple, such as a Gala or a Pink Lady
• 1 carton (500 grammes) passata
• 1½ to 2 pints (850 millilitres to 1 litre) water
• 2 tablespoons (30 millilitres) uncooked Basmati rice
• ½ teaspoon (3 millilitres) dried basil
• ½ teaspoon (3 millilitres) dried parsley
• ½ teaspoon (3 millilitres) paprika
• 1 tablespoon (15 millilitres) olive oil, for cooking
• Salt and black pepper

For 8 mini buns, or 4 medium buns,

• 3 ounces (85 grammes) white spelt flour
• 1 ounce (30 grammes) cornflour
• 1½ teaspoons (7 millilitres) baking powder
• ½ teaspoon (3 millilitres) caster sugar
• 1 ounce (30 grammes) butter, at room temperature, or block margarine for those who can't eat dairy
• 1 ounce (30 grammes) mature cheddar cheese, grated
• 2 to 3 fluid ounces (60 to 90 millilitres) water, at room temperature
• Salt and black pepper
• Optional: a beaten egg to wash the scones before baking, if you can eat egg

METHOD

To make the soup,

• First, prepare and cut all the vegetables for the soup. Peel and cut the carrots roughly into small pieces, no bigger than half an inch (1 centimetre) big; peel and quarter the apple (cutting top to bottom), cut out the core in each quarter, cut in half again, then chop into pieces no bigger than an inch (2½ centimetres); peel and finely cut the onion into small pieces; and press the garlic, or if you don't have a garlic press, cut into teeny tiny pieces.
• Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat, and add in the onion with a generous pinch of salt and stir. The salt will make the onion release all the juices, and when it has gone moist reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for about 5 minutes; this is called "sweating".
• After sweating the onions, increase the heat to medium again, remove the lid and add in the garlic and uncooked rice, cooking for a minute or two while stirring until each grain of rice is shiny and a little translucent. Adding the garlic at the start would be risky, as the garlic can easily burn and make the soup bitter.
• Then, add the carrots, apples, herbs, and paprika, cooking for another minute or two while stirring. Pour enough water over the top to cover the vegetables: you may not need the whole 2 pints (1 litre) now, but keep onto whatever water is left as you'll need it later.
• Bring the mixture to an active simmer, lots of little bubbles as opposed to lots of big bubbles, and cook for 45 minutes to an hour, or until the vegetables are very tender and the rice has fallen to pieces.
• Once the vegetables and rice are cooked, add in the passata and stir to mix fully.
•  Remove from the heat, and then blend the soup. If you have an immersion blender, this is super easy as you just pop it into the saucepan and whizz until to soup is smooth. I, however, only have a regular blender: I filled the blender jug about a third full at a time (because the soup is hot), covered the blender leaving the middle of the lid out to let steam escape, and then blended until smooth, covering the hole with a tea towel to prevent splashing. I then poured the blended soup into a  3½ pint (2 litre) measuring jug to return to the saucepan after the whole soup was blended.
• Return the blended soup to the hob to heat and season. It's wise to season the soup at the temperature it will be eaten, to make sure the seasoning is accurate. Add salt and pepper to taste: it should be rich and creamy, but still a little tart.

To make the buns,

• Preheat the oven to 200ºC (400ºF, Gas Mk.6), and lightly grease a flat baking tray.
• Sieve the flour, cornflour, baking powder, sugar, and a pinch of salt and black pepper into a mixing bowl. Rub the butter into the flour until it resembles something like fine breadcrumbs.
• Add the grated cheese and stir until each strand of cheese is tossed in the flour. Add the water, a little at a time, mixing until it comes together in a soft and slightly sticky dough.
• Flour your hands and break the dough into 4 or 8 pieces, to your preference, rolling into balls.
• Place on the baking tray, about an inch or two (2½ to 5 centimetres) apart. Brush with milk or beaten egg, if you can eat those.
• Bake for 10 to 15 minutes (depending on size), until they are puffed up and pale brown on top. Serve warm or at room temperature.

This soup keeps for up to 5 days in the fridge, but also freezes exceptionally well. The buns can keep for up to a week in an airtight container, but are best enjoyed on the day they're made.

THIS TIME IN 2014: Quick Pizza Base (Wheat-, Dairy-, Egg-, and Yeast Free)

THIS TIME IN 2013: Chewy Caramel

Neapolitan Cheesecake (Wheat Free)

It was this August bank holiday weekend, 2015, that my little sister turned 18 years old, and was no longer little. For her birthday she requested cheesecake, and cheesecake I provided!

Despite not being able to decide between a chocolate or a strawberry cheesecake, she had very specific instruction that the cheesecake be of the chilled variety, and definitely not baked. She spent so much time umming and aahing about which flavour she wanted, that I decided to make both.

Now, as I have mentioned in my previous Neapolitan adventures, here in Ireland it's vanilla, strawberry, and lemon, not chocolate. However, to fit in with my sister's request, I did the typical white pink brown combination.

I didn't really know how to decorate it once I had made it, but at the moment sprinkling biscuit or cake crumbs onto the finished cake is in vogue, so jumping on the bandwagon kinda worked this time. You can decorate your cake however you want, though.

Taking the recipe I used to make her cheesecake last year, I decided to play with it a little to see if I could make it more of a formula instead of a static recipe, dividing the ingredients into parts and ratios. It worked very well: in fact, there was an opinion among the consumers that it was one of my finest cheesecake creations.

This recipe has been slightly edited so that the chocolate and strawberry layers are equal. In my cake, the chocolate layer was a little deeper than the strawberry one.

FREE FROM
☑ Soya (check for soya lecithin)
☑ Yeast
☑ Wheat
☑ Nuts
☑ Eggs

CONTAINS
☒ Gluten
☒ Refined sugar products
☒ Dairy

INGREDIMENTS

For biscuit base,

• 3 ounces (85 grammes) white spelt flour
• 1 ounce (30 grammes) porridge oats
• 1 tablespoon (15 millilitres) cocoa powder
• 2 ounces (55 grammes) butter, at room temperature
• 2 ounces (55 grammes) caster sugar
• Pinch of salt

For chocolate layer,

• 8 ounces (225 grammes) cream cheese, at room temperature
• 4 fluid ounces (120 millilitres) whipping cream, cold
• 4 ounces (115 grammes) good quality milk chocolate
• 1 teaspoon (5 millilitres) vanilla essence
• 2 to 4 tablespoons (30 to 60 millilitres) caster sugar, to taste

For strawberry layer,

• 8 ounces (225 grammes) cream cheese, at room temperature
• 4 fluid ounces (120 millilitres) whipping cream, cold
• 4 ounces (115 grammes) strawberry jam, at least 50% fruit content
• 1 teaspoon (5 millilitres) vanilla essence
• 2 tablespoons (30 millilitres) lime juice, or 3 tablespoons (45 millilitres) of lemon juice
• 2 to 4 tablespoons (30 to 60 millilitres) caster sugar, to taste

For white chocolate icing,

• 7 ounces (200 grammes) whipping cream
• 3½ ounces (100 grammes) white chocolate, in small pieces
• 1 teaspoon (5 millilitres) vanilla essence

METHOD

First, make the base.

• Line the sides of an 8 inch (20 centimetre) round loose bottomed tin with baking paper. Preheat the oven to 180ºC (350ºF, Gas Mk.4).
• In a mixing bowl, mix the flour, oats, cocoa, salt, and caster sugar together until blended. Rub the butter into the dry ingredients to make a coarse crumbly mixture.
• Tip the mixture into the tin and even out with the back of a spoon, pressing very gently. 
• If you want, you can take a tablespoon or two of the crumbs and bake separately to make the topping: just sprinkle them on a small ovenproof dish and bake alongside the main crust
• Bake for 10 minutes, only enough to set the crust. Take out of the oven and cool completely on a wire rack.

Once the base is cold, make the chocolate layer.

• In a bowl or jug, melt the chocolate in the microwave in 1 minute intervals on the Defrost setting, mixing between each spin in the microwave. Alternatively, you can melt the chocolate traditionally in a bowl over a pan of simmering water. Set aside to cool.
• In a mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth and creamy. Fold in the cooled melted chocolate until fully mixed. Add the sugar to taste: you may not need all the sugar.
• In a separate bowl or jug, whip the cream until it forms stiff peaks. Fold gently but quickly into the chocolate cream cheese mixture. Taste for sweetness again, adding more sugar if you want, but working quickly to not deflate the mixture.
• Pour into the tin on top of the crust and smooth out evenly. Chill for an hour before adding the strawberry layer.

To make the strawberry layer,

• In a small bowl, beat the jam to make it smooth and to even out the texture.
• As before, beat the cream cheese in a large bowl, then fold in the jam until fully mixed. Add the lime juice, and then add the sugar to taste.
• Whip the cream in a separate jug or bowl until it forms stiff peaks, then fold into the strawberry cream cheese mixture. Taste for sweetness again, adding more sugar if needed.
• Pour on top of the chocolate layer, smoothing out with a spoon. Put in the fridge to chill overnight.

Also make the whipped white chocolate icing,

• Put the broken white chocolate in a small mixing bowl or large jug.
• Heat the whipping cream either in a saucepan over medium heat, or in the microwave, until it reaches simmering point: little bubbles should appear around the edges and it should be steaming hot.
• Pour the hot cream over the white chocolate and let it stand for about 2 minutes. Then, mix thoroughly with a spoon or balloon whisk; the heat of the mix will have started to melt the chocolate.
• Allow to cool to room temperature before putting in the fridge to chill overnight with the cheesecake.

The next day, assemble the master piece.

• An hour before you intend to serve your cake, you will need to ice it. Take the white chocolate cream and whip it until it makes soft peaks.
• Use half of the cream to ice the sides very carefully. Make sure that your icing utensil, whether it's a palette knife, table knife, or the back of a spoon, only touches the icing layer, and not the cheesecake layer: this will prevent smearing.
• Put the remaining half in a piping bag fitted with a large star tip and pipe a rosette design around the edge of the top.
• Sprinkle the biscuit crumbs on the top, if you like, or leave it plain.

This cake is very rich and indulgent, and this cake can serve up to 16 people, so eat with caution. It will keep in the fridge, covered, for about 3 to 5 days.

THIS TIME IN 2014: How NOT to Make Hazelnut Ice-Cream
THIS TIME IN 2013: Traditional Coconut Ice

Danish Pastries: Dinosaur Paws (Wheat Free with Dairy Free Option)

Having learnt how to make fairly decent puff pastry, I think it may be my new favourite thing. There are so many things I want to try out using it; it's a shame it takes so long to make! However, for now, I will show you all my most recent adventure in the land of laminated pastry: cinnamon Danish pastries!

In a lot of bakeries here in Ireland, there are a few varieties of puff pastry snacks available: maple pecan plaits, apple turnovers, croissants, and cinnamon spirals. The cinnamon ones are my favourite, and for those who have never seen one before, it looks like a slice of Swiss roll (roll cake) made with puff pastry and cinnamon sugar, and I love pulling off the pastry following the spiral around to the middle... because I'm strange like that.

This time, though, I decided to do a different shape, using the same combination of things. From researching, I've found no name for this kind of folding technique other than "Turkey Feather", which a few North American bloggers have used, and I've also seen it referred to as a "Tulip Fold"; I, however, think it looks like a dinosaur footprint.

To make these pastries, I used the same puff pastry dough I used to make the croissants, doubling the ingredient amounts to make a bigger batch of pastry. It also needs an extra 5 to 10 minutes freezing time between folds. You will also need about 4 teaspoons of light brown sugar or caster sugar mixed with a half to full teaspoon of ground cinnamon, depending on how strong you want the cinnamon flavour.

Without the aid of a video, I have drawn a little diagram of how I folded it and then took a photograph:

1. Roll the puff pastry into a rectangle roughly 14 inches (35½ centimetres) wide; trim the edges if you want it to be nice and neat, but it's not necessary. Wet the surface with a little water and sprinkle on some cinnamon sugar to make a nice covering.
2. Working with the long sides, fold each long side into the middle, using a technique called a book fold.
3. Wet the new plain surfaces of puff pastry and sprinkle on some more cinnamon sugar.
4. Fold in half, short end to short end.
5. Fold in half again, long side to long side.
6. Pop in the fridge for about 20-30 minutes (or the freezer for about 10-15 minutes) before cutting into 8 equal portions.

Arrange these on a baking tray which has been lightly floured, about 2 to 3 inches (5 to 7½ centimetres) apart from each other and the side of the tray, and bake in an oven preheated to 220ºC (450ºF, Gas Mk.8) for 10 to 15 minutes, or until fully expanded and have a nice golden brown colour around the edges. Use a fish slice to move the pastries from the tray to a wire cooling rack and eat cool, and preferably on the day they are baked.

These are super cute, and quite tasty! I thought they were just fine the way they were but you can also, for a more Scandinavian style cinnamon pastry, use some ground cardamom in addition to your cinnamon. 

Stay tuned for more adventures in the land of laminated pastry!

THIS TIME IN 2014: Mini Chocolate "Melkterts" (Wheat Free)
THIS TIME IN 2013: Homemade Box of Chocolates = WIN

Recipe Revision: Doughnuts (Wheat-Free with Dairy Free Option)

Every so often, I like to revisit and revise some recipes that I think need tweaking. I take on the feedback, and make adjustments to the recipes, and this time I'm having a look at my doughnuts recipe.

I've been using the same doughnut recipe for a while now, and it's been doing the job. However, the most common bits of feedback is that they're too dry, the crusts are too thick, and that they crack when they cook. A few people, both online and in the real world, have said that they would prefer something a little more moist and soft, like a "shop bought" doughnut, and I would actually agree with them.

To achieve this, I did a few things:

1. I reduced the amount of raising agent. This was causing the doughnuts to rise too quickly and too much, causing the cracking on the surface.
2. I upped the amount of milk in the recipe, to make the dough softer and a little cakier.
3. I swapped the oil for butter/margarine, and upped that too for more moisture. The block fat is melted to make mixing easier at the start, but sets up to solid again after a brief chill, making the dough - which now has more moisture - firm up and become easier to work with.

Also, another comment that was made, and that I personally experienced, is that the recipe I was using made dense and dry doughnuts that were difficult to fill with jam using the standard syringe method after cooking. However, no matter how many variations I tried, this was always the case. Also, sometimes the round doughnuts with no hole never cooked fully through, or needed way too long in the oil

To combat this, I had a go at filling the doughnuts before frying and it worked a treat! It also meant that they cooked faster and more evenly in the oil.

In the photos below, you can see a batch of doughnuts with glazed rings, and jam doughnuts. You can see in the sides of these ones where I attempted to inject jam, which didn't work at all. In the second photo, which had the jam sandwiched inside the raw dough before frying, the jam inside the doughnut, and the texture of the crumb of the cake itself. This method was far more effective. That's my brother's hand; can't you see the family resemblance?

FREE FROM

☑ Soya (check for soya lecithin)
☑ Yeast
☑ Wheat

CONTAINS
☒ Gluten
☒ Refined sugar products
☒ Eggs
☒ Dairy (you can use block margarine instead of butter, and water instead of milk)

INGREDIMENTS

For the dough:

• 6 ounces (170 grammes) white spelt flour
• 2 ounces (55 grammes) cornflour
• 2 ounces (55 grammes) caster sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 medium egg
• 2 ounces (55 grammes) butter or block margarine, melted and cooled
• 4 fluid ounces (120 millilitres) milk or water, or milk alternative, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
• Optional: ¼ teaspoon grated nutmeg

For filling and decoration:

• 4 ounces (115 grammes) raspberry, strawberry, or any jam you'd like, sieved to remove seeds and pieces of fruit
• Icing sugar
• Food colouring
• Sprinkles
• Caster sugar
• Cinnamon

METHOD:

• In a mixing bowl, sieve the flour, cornflour, sugar, (nutmeg, if using) and baking powder together. Make a well in the centre, and add in the egg, butter, and milk. Mix with a wooden spoon until the dry ingredients are fully moistened, and the ingredients are well combined. The dough will seem very, very sticky, but don't freak out: it needs a stint in the fridge to set/
• Cover the mixing bowl with a sheet of cling film, or a slightly damp tea towel, and put in the fridge for about 30 minutes, or until the dough is firm to touch, but still a little tacky.
• In a saucepan filled with about 2 inches (5 centimetres) of flavourless oil, such sunflower oil, or in a deep fat fryer, preheat the oil to 190˚C (375˚F). Line a plate with a double layer of kitchen paper, for draining. I use a deep fryer because it's safer, and also because the heat is more consistent, which makes more consistent doughnuts.
• Dredge your work surface, rolling pin, and cutters very well with flour. You will need a 3 inch (7½ centimetre) round cutter for all the doughnuts, and a 1½ (3¾  centimetre) round cutter to cut out the middles of the ring doughnuts.

To make ring doughnuts,

• Roll the soft dough out on the surface, keeping flour nearby in cake it sticks, to a thickness of half an inch (1 centimetre).The mixture is very sticky and very soft, but that's how you want it, DO NOT be tempted to add more flour, because it'll make the dough too dry, which will cause the crusts to crack too much while frying.
• Cut out the doughnuts out with the big cutter, then their middles with the small cutter, and lie them on a baking paper line tray, to make frying easier. Gather up and re-roll the trimmings and punched out middles, being careful not to work the dough too much or be too rough with it; it’s delicate and temperamental.
• Using a fish slice and a table knife, put a doughnut on the fish slice, lower it into the oil, and slide it off the slice with the flat of the knife. This stops the doughnuts from losing their shape. Only fry a few at a time, because they need room to puff up, and if you put too many in at once you will make the temperature of the oil will drop too much.
• Fry the doughnuts for a total of 3 to 4 minutes, flipping half way through. You can tell when they’re ready to flip because the outside of the doughnuts, and the inside of the hole, will be a nice golden brown colour around the edge. If they brown too quickly, your oil is too hot, and if they don’t brown in two minutes, the oil is too cold.
• Flip and finish cooking, then remove with a slotted spoon and drain on the kitchen paper lined plate, blotting off all the excess oil. Move to a wire rack to cool.

To make jam doughnuts,

• Roll the soft dough out on the surface, keeping flour nearby in cake it sticks, to a thickness of a quarter inch (6 millimetres). Try and get the dough into a nice a rectangle as you can.
• On one half of the rectangle, spoon teaspoonfuls of jam, about 2 inches (5 centimetres) apart, then fold the plain dough over, covering the jam blobs, pressing the edges around the jam gently. Use the big round cutter to cut out around the jam, making little round jam and dough sandwiches; treat them gently. Gather up and re-roll the trimmings as with the ring doughnuts.
• In the same way as the ring doughnuts, use a fish slice to lower them into the oil and a knife to push them off. These take a little longer to cook: about 5 minutes, flipping half way through. You can tell when they’re ready to flip because the outside of the doughnuts will be a nice golden brown colour around the edge. If they brown too quickly, your oil is too hot, and if they don’t brown in two minutes, the oil is too cold.
• Flip and finish cooking, then remove with a slotted spoon and drain on the kitchen paper lined plate, blotting off all the excess oil. Move to a wire rack to cool.

To decorate,

• Once the doughnuts are cool, you can decorate them however you want. You can mix some caster sugar with some cinnamon, and toss the doughnuts in that to coat, or just toss them in plain caster sugar.
• Or, you can make some simple glaze with water and icing sugar, adding some food colouring if you like, and dip them in it. Decorate with sprinkles.

These new revised doughnuts are much nicer in texture and flavour than their predecessors, and using the pre-filling method is much more effective. You can, of course, fill them with whatever you like: custard, nutella, marmalade, peanut butter, marmite, superglue, or whatever your heart desires... within reason, obviously.

THIS TIME IN 2014: Variation on a Theme: Persian Banana Bread

THIS TIME IN 2013: Sweeties Make Great Gifts, Hopefully

Cheat Croissants (Wheat and Yeast Free)

Hello everyone!! I'm back from my extended break, and I am happy to be back to managing my time well enough to be able to bake often. Let me tell you what I was up to in my time away:

Firstly, where I work is a community centre run by the Methodist Church in Limerick: it's a three story building that used to be an office block that the church built about 75 years ago to rent out and have an income. However, 15 or so year ago, the businesses moved out and it was unoccupied except for one street unit that houses USIT, a student travel agent.

My mother became the minister of the Methodist Church in 2012, and since then she has been working on making the office block into a community space. In that time we have had many a different group and individual use our space, and everyday it is used for something or other, from breakdancing classes and theatre rehearsals, to English language classes and Mums and Tots groups. In 2014, I was made part-time community and youth worker, and as of the start of July, I was made full time.

Our longest tenant is an organisation called Doras Luimní, which is a migrant support and human rights NGO (non-governmental organisation) that offers legal aid, advocacy, and assistance to migrant people living in Limerick, and as part of my job I work with them for 5 hours on a Thursday. Part of Doras Luimní's remit is anti-racism and integration training, and since 2014 we have been running a European initiative called "C4i" (Communication for Integration), which involves "Anti-Rumours" training and workshops, designed to tackle racist rumours. The project evaluation was in Brussels at the end of June, and the project leader and I went over to attend the conference.

Since then, I've just been getting to grips with having a full time job and juggling it with my personal life - my friends, my companion, and my hobbies - and it's been incredibly time consuming. For about three weeks I only baked things for youth groups and church things, and as such used old reliable recipes with little or no experimentation.

But now, having found my feet, I'm back to abnormality, and my trip to Belgium inspired my to try something that I haven't done for years: croissants!

I tried making croisssants once when I was younger with no success: they didn't rise, and were as tough as nails. My brother Paddy ate them, but I did not think they were successful. Not only because I hate working with yeast (yeast and spelt are not friends in my experience), but because my layering process wasn't done properly or something.

Since then, I have dabbled in puff pastry many times, including recently when I made some sausage rolls. That dough was nice, but not quite right either. So, I did some serious research. What I present to you now is a mixture of about 4 different puff pastry recipes; these croissants are raised with baking powder, which is a little bit of a cheat, but it works.

FREE FROM

☑ Soya (check for soya lecithin)
☑ Yeast
☑ Wheat

CONTAINS
☒ Gluten
☒ Refined sugar products
☒ Eggs (you can skip on the egg wash, though)
☒ Dairy (you can use block margarine instead of butter, and water instead of milk)

INGREDIMENTS:

• 4 ounces (115 grammes) white spelt flour
• 1 teaspoon (5 millilitres) baking powder
• ½ teaspoon (3 millilitres) lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons (10 millilitres) caster sugar
• 2 fluid ounces (60 millilitres) water
• 4 ounces (115 grammes) butter, at room temperature, divided in four
• Extra flour for dusting
• 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon (15 millilitres) of milk or water, for glazing

METHOD

First, make the pastry (this takes roughly 90 minutes, over an hour of which is waiting for the pastry to chill):

• In a mixing bowl, sieve together the flour, baking powder, and sugar to mix evenly. Then, using your fingertips, rub in one quarter of the butter until it resembles a slightly wet sand kind of consistency.
• Add the water and mix until it becomes a very soft dough that cleans the sides of the bowl. Gather the dough into a ball, and allow to relax for about 15 minutes.
• Dust the work surface with flour and roll the dough into a rectangle about a quarter inch inch (5 millimetres) in thickness. Using a butter knife or the back of a spoon, spread another quarter of the butter over two thirds of the dough's surface. Sprinkle a little with flour, and then do a trifold: fold the unbuttered third over, then fold the remaining buttered flap over again; think of how you would fold a letter into three before you put it in an envelope. Wrap in cling film, and then put in the freezer for 15 minutes.
• After the brief freeze, the dough should be firm but still pliable. Dust the surface once more and roll out the dough into another rectangle quarter of an inch (5 millimetres) in thickness again. This time, do a trifold with no butter, folding the dough into three like a letter. Roll out again, and spread another quarter of the butter over two-thirds like before, sprinkling lightly with flour. Do another trifold, then wrap up and freeze again for another 15 minutes.
• Repeat the process, doing one more dry trifold and one last trifold with the final quarter of butter and a last little sprinkling of flour. Wrap and freeze for another 15 minutes.
• At this point, you can use it after the 15 minutes of freezing, but if you want even more flaky crispy layers, you can do a few more dry trifolds. Just be careful: do NOT allow the butter the melt out of the pastry, and always freeze it for 15 minutes before you finally decide to use it. Congratulations, you have made puff pastry!

Now, make the croissants:

• Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F, Gas Mk.6)
• When you're ready to use, roll out the pastry on a dusted work surface into another rectangle to about a quarter inch (5 millimetre) thickness. Cut 3 long triangles out of the dough, like this:

• Put the scraps on either edge aside for now, and then take each triangle in turn. Cut a tiny slit in the wide end, maybe about an inch or so (2½ centimetres), end then roll from the wide end to the thin end. Bend in the ends to made a crescent shape and that's your first croissant! Repeat with the others. You can also make wonky croissants with the edge strips, if you like; that's what I did.
• Place about 2 inches (5 centimetres) apart on baking tray lined with baking paper, or that has been every so lightly greased. 
• Brush each croissant with the milky egg wash, using a brush or your fingers, and then bake in the well preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until puffed up, flaky, and golden brown. It's important that the oven is well preheated, otherwise they'll be soggy. (You can use any leftover egg wash to make some nice egg fried rice or an omelette.)
• Once cooked, remove  from the oven and transfer to a wire rack. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before eating, or if you want you can eat them cold.

Croissants are best enjoyed the day they are made, straight from the oven, but if you want to eat them later they keep for up to 3 days in an airtight container.

THIS TIME IN 2014: Variation on a Theme: Choco-Nut Granola with Cranberries
THIS TIME IN 2013: Ginger Nut Biscuits (Wheat Free)