Mini Carrot Cakes - a way to someone's heart?

It was my boyfriends mother's birthday recently. It has become something of tradition now for me to make cake for his parents on their birthdays and other random occasions. Carrot cake is a particular favourite of his mum's so last year I made her a log cake of it. This year to change it up I think cupcakes are in order. The Barefoot Contessa said that carrot cake is merely a transportation device for icing. I believe she had a point there. What is carrot cake without the icing?! Cupcakes are the perfect method to get the most icing with the cake and needless to say they went down a treat (the ones that the bf didn't eat first anyway!)

Carrot Cupcakes

200 g Grated carrots
100g chopped roasted walnuts (optional)
150g Cake Flour
50g Wholemeal Flour
1 tsp Mixed Spice
1 tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp Salt
1 tsp baking powder
75g Stevia or caster sugar
75g brown caster sugar
75g Melted Butter
2 egg yolks and 1 whole egg
50ml whole milk
1 tsp vanilla essence
zest of one orange 

Icing
100g Cream Cheese
400g Icing Sugar
Whole Roasted Walnuts for decoration

Preheat oven to  190C/Gas mark 5 and prepare your cupcake tin, either butter and flour or use paper liners. Sieve together the flours, baking powder, salt and spices. Add the grated carrot and walnuts and mix until everything is fully incorporated. Add the sugar. Beat together the butter, milk, eggs and vanilla. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix only until everything is combined. Scoop into the cupcake tin and bake for 20mins or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Beat your cream cheese until it looks fluffy and then add the icing sugar until it looks firm. This is a delicate process and the mixture must be well beaten so that it is not grainy.

Let your cupcakes cool fully and then ice them whatever way you like. Top with a toasted walnut half and present!

Key Lime Cheesecake - A mother's day present and her review

Mother's day gift's are a difficult decision for anyone. My mum has lots of interests to choose from but the question is always whether to go with a significant present that is specific to her or something more cliche like chocolates or flowers. It seems like an obvious choice - go for something thoughtful for her but then there is something nice about flowers at the start of spring and cliche are cliches for a reason right?! This year we decided to go for a combo flowers and something she might specifically enjoy. I couldn't actually go to my parents house for dinner that day but as a part of the present I decided to provide desert. I love the concept of Key-Lime pie but in fact I have never ever eaten it so I can't be 100% sure that this tastes similar enough but I am hoping. I really focused on the citrus zing and contrasting that with sweetness. I tried to make the most of the zest oils in this recipe. My mum was delighted with the present and the cheesecake and when she rang me yesterday her review was 'It's delicious, maybe a little too delicious, it tastes very naughty!'

Key - Lime Cheesecake

Base
250g Reduced fat Digestive Biscuit crumbs
75g   Melted Butter
Zest of one lemon

Cheese Layer
600g Cream Cheese
3 egg whites & 2 egg yolks beaten together
90 g Stevia/ Sugar
Zest and Juice of 2 limes
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp Green Food colouring (optional)

Preheat your oven to 190/375/Gas mark 5. Mix the biscuit crumbs and lemon zest for 2-3 minutes. (the idea is to distribute the zest and the oils as much as possible through the base). Add the melted butter and mix thoroughly. Line the base of a spring-form cake tin and press the biscuit mixture down firmly. Let it rest in the fridge while you mix the cheese layer.

In a stand mixer or using a beater whip up the cream cheese. Add the zest, juice and colouring then beat thoroughly. Add the eggs and sugar and continue to beat until the mixture is smooth. Pour the mixture on top of the base and place the cake tin inside a larger baking tin and bake for 50 minutes or until the outside is firm with only a little movement in the center. Remove from the over and leave in the larger cake tin until cool. Once cool place in a fridge until fully cold. Place some lime slices on the top for decoration and serve.

I also made individual heart-shaped cheese cakes for some other people's mothers.

The fluffy yet creamy cheesecake that is almost 'too delicious'

Misfits Review after a personal encounter with Nathan

If you know me at all, you know that last night I met Robert Sheehan in the shops. How do you know this? Well possible because I texted or rang everyone I could think of that likes misfits, then updated my facebook status and would have tweeted if I could remember my password in work. Inspired by this my Wednesday post is a review of the show Misfits.

Misfits is a British science fiction drama comedy produced by E4. It follows the antics of 5 juvenile ex-cons doing community service together when they get hit by lightning. This lightning occurs during an unusual storm and the lightning gives the whole group and their probation officer super-powers that are very specific to their personality types (e.g. Nathan Stewart-Jarrett plays an ex-running star who lost out on his dreams when he is caught using drugs but after the storm he has the power to turn back time). The fun begins straight away as it appears that the probation worker was turned into some evil monster and thus starts a running joke of killing probation officers, which to someone in my industry is not funny, but in this context it is so outrageous that it is.

The main characters are Simon (Iwan Rheon), Kelly (Lauren Socha), Alisha (Antonia Thomas), Curtis (Nathan Stewart-Jarrett) and Nathan (Robert Sheehan). These five are joined in seasons 2 and 3 by  Nikki (Ruth Negga), Seth (Mathew McNulty) and Rudy (Joseph Gilgun). Well one of the five is replaced and unfortunately it is not an improvement.....at all. The acting is very strong and considering some of the other shows produced by E4 (not naming names but I may have reviewed a certain season of a certain show very negatively before). No spoilers but there is one point in season 2 where the same actor plays two different versions of himself and I was blown away. I genuinely thought that one version had a better body than the other, entirely based on his depiction of confidence levels.

Overall Misfits is one of the most interest exploration of the phrase 'With great power comes great responsibility.' Here we are presented with complex characters with a variety of histories and problems who are now faced with powers greater than they could have previously dreamed of. The classic image of a superhero frequently entails someone who has faced hard-times but who perseveres with a unyielding set of morals that guides their treatment of this power, an underlying passion to conquer evil and fight for the greater good. Now we are presented with a set of characters who are inherently capable of bad choices and have all done things that have landed them in trouble.

I'm not saying that all superhero stories are completely two dimensional or that this show presents only multidimensional villains that challenge our notions of right and wrong. The lines are drawn throughout the show and the basic decider of who's good and who's evil appears to be based on the underlying reasons for people's decisions. This creates an interesting universe where the lines of good and evil aren't always straight and our heroes aren't always understood for what they are but eventually good can prevail and it frequently does.

Needless to say I would recommend this show to anyone and I am counting the days til season 4.
Although I don't like the idea of more new cast members but that's life ;)

Sick days and Baking Mad with Eric Lanlard Review

Today I'm posting later than planned. I had intended to give a delicious batch of health banana walnut muffins but they will have to wait as I have been out sick from life, so instead of making muffins yesterday I just slept. Today I spent the day on the couch catching up on tv shows on 4od. In particular I watched every episode (so far) of Baking Mad with Eric Lanlard. The only difficult question was whether or not to review it.
It would seem like an obvious choice to review a show about baking on a blog about baking, but what if you offended someone. Obviously the likelihood of anyone involved with the show seeing this is slim to non but it's important to remember that what you post online stays there indefinitely. Having said that I measured my thoughts and decided that I felt my comments were fair and not intended to insult but merely challenge.
The series follows the life of professional pastry chef Eric Lanlard as he bakes, makes displays of pastries for a variety of clients and works with amatuer bakers to teach themhow to improve their baking.
Firstly it goes without saying that Eric Lanlard is an unbelievably talented patissier. He also appears to a genuinely lovely guy. His approach to teaching and judging other people's work appears to be serious but at a reachable level for everyday bakers. I have to say that even though he was baking complicated recipes I felt that just watching it I could apply his techniques at home and I definitely learned a few little tricks that I will apply in other recipes. I thoroughly enjoy the typically french way that he brings elegance to all his recipes and adds flare to even the simplest cupcake or tart. There is no question that his recipes are decadent but he makes delicious looking healthy muffins as well.

However as a television show I feel that Baking Mad lacks focus. One might say that the hint is there in the title but I feel that the editors over in chanel 4 have a lot to answer for. These are experienced television producers we are talking about but the programme feels like something designed for the ADHD generation. There is far too much going on, in one show alone he will make two different recipes at different times then be talking about making cakes for an art exhibition and we're meeting three budding bakers from Kent and learning their life-stories and then we're back to the art show-house and then we're watching the budding bakers getting shown how to make pastry and all in all it just lacks focus.  In the second series they changed the format even further and have Eric judging some kind of one episode great british bake off kinda thing. It's just too muddled.
I have said before that I am a big fan of the food network and as such I could easily see Eric Lanlard host several different shows; one where we follow the projects and day to day dealings in his bakeries, one traditional baking show and another where he judges contestants and teaches them in a masterclass set up. This has been done with many a chef on the food network and has worked well in my humble opinion. Baking Mad, however, is trying to mash all these shows together and the result is like eating in an overly modern sophisticated restaurant when you are hungry; you're getting a teaspoon of each section when you could easily have a plateful and it leaves you feeling thoroughly unsatisfied.
Having said this I did watch every episode and I enjoyed them for the baking, not the format. So I would recommend that anyone have a look at this show (it's free on 4od) and if by any chance the producers happen to come upon this little blog please re-think the way the show is put together. On a happier not look what Eric Lanlard's inspiration did for my Ooey Gooey Stick Chewy.

Ooey Gooey Sticky Chewy (or Rocky Road Bars to everyone else)

When life gives you lemons make macarons

There are situations in life when you feel completely and utterly let down by life, when the efforts you have made feel fruitless and you can be tempted to throw stones and blame everyone and yourself. It has happened to everyone at some point and I think everyone can relate to the desire to get one's own back or alternatively sink into self destructive despair about the future. You may well hear people say to cheer up and move on, when life gives you lemons and all that. To be honest I sometimes feel like saying 'I have enough lemonade, thank you very much!' So you've been churning away making lemonade and you've had enough. Well I have a sweet suggestion - lemon macarons!
When I was thinking about this recipe I thought about the inspiration and the desire to throw stones. I frequently think that macarons look like little pebbles and so I also decided to design my macarons like little stones with symbols on them, more on this later. So here's the silver lining to an annoying situation -

 

Lemon Macarons

The rind of 1 lemon

3 egg whites (preferly one day old and cold)

pinch of salt

75g Caster sugar

125g ground almonds

175g icing sugar

optional drops of lemon essence and yellow food colouring

Red food colouring for decoration

Beat your egg whites with the pinch of salt until fluffy. Add the caster sugar and continue to beat until you achieve firm peaks.Take the rind of one lemon and sieve it with the ground almonds and icing sugar. (This process is not easy, the ground almonds will not want to go through the sieve and I recommend weighing after you sieve as the 125g of ground almonds is important.)

Mix the almond mixture into the meringue mixture. At this stage if you wish you can add the extra lemon flavour or yellow food colouring. Be VERY careful with how much extra liquid you add as macarons are very delicate and too much liquid will ruin them completely. I choose not to add food colouring as I wanted them to look like little stones. Once the mixture has reached the stage that small bit spooned onto a plate retains no peak then put the mixture into a piping bag.

Pipe little circles of the mixture onto a parchment lined cookie sheet. To add the design I drew on the macarons with red food colouring on a tooth pick, but it is important to note that this must be done immediately before the shell hardens. Here is an example of one that worked and one that I left too late

A nicely decorated macaron (note the smooth shell)

One that I left too late (note the bumpy shell

)

 Once the macarons have been decorated they should be left to dry for at least an hour before baking at medium heat for 15-20 minutes. Watch the oven carefully as much like cookies there is a very small window in which they are perfectly baked. Then you can choose the filling. I don't like filling my macarons with buttercream. Firstly because macarons as sweet enough but more importantly because I have eaten proffessional macarons that just tasted dry and disgusting because the buttercream has dried up and simultaneously dried up the whole thing. I choose to put raspberry jam and marmalade inside and they worked out very well. I would even suggest something less sweet. Then enjoy them in three little bites of delight -

                                    1-

                                   2-










                                   Gone!

A sweet idea for Valentines morning

As Valentine's day approaches I relish the opportunity to be unashamedly cliche and 'rosemantic' as my bf calls it. During my last year in America I spent literally hours lost in the aisles of heart shaped, red, pink and white Valentine's themed candy, chocolate and cakes etc. There is something so wonderfully ridiculous in the escapism that occurs around holidays. This is no ordinary day; this is a day of love, of expectations, of grandiose gestures and last minute offerings for forgiveness and yet, in fact, it is just another day.

For a great many years I disliked the day, I thought that it was invented and intended as a money grabbing event for peddlers of meaningless bunches of over-priced flowers and boxed chocolates, perhaps it is. But these days I think it is an opportunity to remind the one you love in little wonderful and perhaps cliche ways that you think they are amazing and that they are so loved. I personally believe that these little gestures should be frequent and random but I understand that it is all to easy to fall into a routine where you take each other for granted. Therefore I welcome any day that reminds and encourages people to show there love.

This year I intend to show my special someone my appreciation of them in a series of little gestures stretched out over multiple days. This started today with a Valentine's themed breakfast of homemade raspberry heart-tarts with pink lemonade icing.

Raspberry Heart-tarts with Pink Lemonade Icing

Short-crust pastry

225g plain flour
50g Icing Sugar
100g cold butter
Approx 3-4 tbsp of cold water until the dough has reached a smooth texture

Sieve the flour and icing sugar together, cut in the cold butter. Work this with a food processor or with you hands to achieve breadcrumbs (if you use your hands cool them using cold water before working). Slowly add the water mixing vigorously to achieve the smooth dough. Wrap in cling film and let it sit in the fridge for at least an hour.

Pink Lemonade Icing

200g Icing sugar
2 drops red food colouring
2-3 drops lemon flavouring
1-2 tsp water until texture is smooth but firm

Sieve the icing sugar and add the drops together and the water slowly mixing constantly. Put icing into an icing bag to pipe.

Preheat your oven to 200/400/gas mark 6. Roll the dough into a 1/4 inch think and cut heart shapes using a large heart cookie cutter. Put a large spoonful of jam in the centre and cover with a second heart. Dab the edges with water and close along the edge using a fork to achieve a stitch pattern. Egg wash if you like, for these tarts I decided not to egg wash as I wanted the rough appearance, I think it looks a little more like material somehow. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes on a lined baking tray. Let them cool on a wire wrack.

Using your icing bag pipe whatever message you like...

Then brew your coffee and enjoy!

Cold weather and Orange and Apricot Hot Cross Buns

This winter everyone was expecting another big freeze. I was completely prepared; new hiking boots with not one but two pairs of shoe spikes, all weather tires, waterproof trousers, ski jacket and all the accessories of anti-freeze, scrappers, gloves and scarves. And what happens? It's a hot December, 20 degrees warmer than the year before. So warm in fact that it really didn't feel like Christmas when the 25th finally arrived. However now that it's spring the cold weather has come and what better weekend for snow than when I have flown over to England with nothing but a pair of converse all stars and only enough outfits for a few days. On the up side the snowy weather makes Cambridge look even better than normal.

                    

Cold weather like this always inspires me to bake and this week in the spirit of the forthcoming lent and Easter season I decided to make Hot Crossed Buns, with a little twist of course.

Nothing beats the cold better than a hot cup of coffee and a bun!   

Orange and Apricot Hot Crossed Buns (makes 14)

1 x 7g packet of dried yeast

200ml warm milk
1 tsp Honey
500g Strong flour/Cream flour
1 tsp salt
50g Brown Sugar
2 eggs
50g melted butter
50g Candied orange peel
75g dried apricot

Warm the milk until it is luke warm and then put it in a bowl with the dried yeast and the honey. Mix thoroughly and then leave to stand for 10 minutes.
Sieve together the flour, salt and brown sugar. Melt the butter and beat the eggs into the butter. Once the yeast and milk mixture has formed a frothy top slowly mix in half of the flour. Add the rest of the flour in small sections alternated between small amounts of the egg and butter mixture. Do not add all the flour if the mixture appears to be too dry. Finally flour the fruit and add it to your dough.

Knead your dough, adding small amounts of flour when necessary, until it becomes elastic to the touch and does not stick to the surface or your hands. Place your kneaded dough into a lightly greased bowl and turn it once to get grease on all sides of the dough ball. Cover the bowl with a clean, damp dish-cloth or with cling-film and allow it to proof for 1-2 hours or until the dough has doubled in size.

Once the dough has doubled in size remove it from the bowl and knead it again until it has lost some of it's volume. Form 14/15 even balls of dough and place them on the baking tray. Cover with the cloth/cling-film again and allow to proof for a further 45minutes/1 hour. Preheat your oven to 210 degrees celcius/400 degrees farenheit/Gas mark 6, your oven needs to be well preheated for bread baking. To make the cross form a dough from flour and water ( I also add a spoon of sugar) and roll it into thin strips to be placed on the buns just before they go into the oven. Brush the buns with an egg glaze.

Bake the buns for 15-20mins or until they are browned all over and sound hollow when tapped underneath.

While the buns are cooling brush them with a marmalade or apricot jam glaze. the glaze can be made by heating 2 tbs of the jam or marmalade with a tsp of water in the microwave. Then let the buns cool and finally enjoy them.
Someone asked me yesterday why I would bake when it was cheaper and faster to just buy things from the store. It is actually a fair question in this case considering HCBs are everywhere and v.cheap but honestly the answer is simple; the pleasure of making something from scratch that turns into a delicious and beautiful treat is far more rewarding than any cheap sugar high I could ever buy.