A Devilishly Good Devil's Food Cake

There is a definite end-of-term feeling in the air even though today like yesterday is surprisingly grey and overcast with a hint of rain. The seasons in Istanbul are very marked and holidays follow the school year: summer is now round the corner and the city will empty immediately schools finish in June. Turkish families will leave en masse for their seaside homes and expats will depart on annual home leave. Istanbul minus traffic then becomes the most wonderful summer city in which to be.



devil's food cake ready to serve



Last week a group of close friends met at my house for the last tea party of the season before such departures.  I especially wanted to hold it here before the imminent birth of Daughter No 2’s long-awaited baby! So I was looking for a special cake to offer my friends and found it in Nigella’s book Kitchen. It was the picture that drew me – I always go for recipes with pictures – and I thought it looked decadently delicious. Indeed it proved to be instant Death by Chocolate and was worth every calorie-filled mouthful!

with a few ripe strawberries alongside



Here is the very straightforward recipe for Nigella’s Devil’s Food Cake:

Ingredients

Serves 10-12

2 x 20cm sandwich tins

For the cake:

50g best-quality cocoa powder,sifted

100g dark muscovado sugar (I used light as that’s all I had)

250ml boiling water

125g soft unsalted butter, plus some for greasing

150g caster sugar (I used regular granulated sugar)

225g plain flour

½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 eggs, at room temperature

For the frosting:

125ml water

30g dark muscovado sugar

175g unsalted butter, cubed

300g best-quality dark chocolate, broken into small pieces

Method

·         Preheat oven to 180C/gas mark 4. Line the bottoms of both sandwich tins with baking parchment and butter the sides.

lined with baking parchment

weighing the cocoa

·         Put the cocoa and 100g dark muscovado sugar into a bowl with a bit of space to spare and pour in the boiling water . Whisk to mix and then set aside.

·         Cream the butter and caster sugar together, beating well until pale and fluffy.

·         In another bowl, stir the flour, baking powder and bicarb together and set aside.

·         Dribble the vanilla extract into the creamed butter and sugar – mixing all the while – then drop in 1 egg, quickly followed by a scoopful of flour mixture, then the second egg.

·         Keep mixing and incorporate the rest of the dried ingredients for the cake, then finally mix and fold in the cocoa mixture, scraping the bowl well with a spatula.

·         Divide this ‘fabulously chocolatey batter’ between the 2 prepared tins and put in the oven for about 30 mins or until a cake tester comes out clean. Take the tins out and leave them on a wire rack for 5-10 mins, before turning out to cool. Peel off the paper.

you can tell they are done because they are coming away from the sides of the tin

removing the paper

For the frosting:

2 bars nestles bitter + 1 bar lindt = 300g

1.       Put the water, 30g muscovado sugar and 175g butter in a pan over a low heat to melt.

2.       When this mixture begins to bubble, take the pan off the heat and add the chocolate pieces, swirling the pan so that all the chocolate is hit with heat, then leave for a minute to melt before whisking till smooth and glossy.

3.       Leave for about 1 hour, whisking now and then, by which time the cakes will be cooled and ready for frosting.*

filled but uniced

4.       Set one of the cooled cakes, top side down, on a cake stand or plate, and spread with about a third of the frosting, then top that with the second cake, regular way up, and spread the remaining frosting over the top and sides, swirling away with your spatula. This frosting ‘never quite dries to the touch but this is, in part, what makes the cake so darkly luscious. Goo here is good.’

Tips

*I actually had to wait 2 ½ hours before my chocolate frosting thickened and acquired a spreadable consistency. I’m not sure whether this was because of the chocolate or what but was quite worrying at the time! It looked fabulous, dark and glossy but refused to firm up. However, in the end it was perfect. Moral of the story: don’t panic, it'll all be fine.

The cake layers can be baked 1 day ahead and assembled before serving. This is what I did. Wrap each separately in cling film and leave on a plate or place in a tin. The iced cake will keep for 2-3 days in an airtight container in a cool place.

Uniced cakes can be frozen on day of baking, each wrapped in a double layer of clingfilm and a layer of foil, for up to 3 months. Defrost for 3-4 hrs on wire rack at room temperature.

Why don't you give this cake a try? I promise you'll love it!

Afiyet olsun!

Chocolate Banana Muffins

chocolate banana muffins for tea

If you’re looking for something nice to make this weekend or if you just feel like making a little extra something for tea for the family on Sunday, I think these are a good bet: easy ingredients, easy instructions and yummy result.

Cupcakes by any other name, these two flavours are wonderful together: the one complements the other in one delightfully moist muffin.

Arriving back from my lovely weekend in Selçuk on Sunday evening, I rushed into the kitchen to take these and the two cakes I had made on Thursday out of the freezer.  All of them including these little beauties freeze beautifully.  Our monthly book club meeting  was the very next day here at my place so it was all systems go.

These muffins are actually a Nigella recipe. Now, I can’t say I am a great fan of hers normally – I find it hard to believe that she is really doing all that cooking -  but I was given her lovely book ‘Kitchen’ for Christmas and finally had the opportunity to look through it. The recipes are not difficult at all: it’s the photos that make it. And on p139 a very appetizing picture of these muffins caught my eye. Instead of regular muffin  cases, they were each in a swirl of shiny brown paper that made them look sophisticated and most delicious:  she calls them ‘tulip-skirted party frocks’ which is a wonderful description. Well, I didn’t have these, just my lovely muffin cases that I bought in LA last summer – BTW you can buy them at IKEA but the shape is different: seems Swedish cupcakes are tall and narrow: very fetching but then you have to buy the matching muffin tin .... I’ll probably end up doing that. But anyway, here’s the recipe:

Ingredients

Makes 12

3 very ripe or overripe bananas

125ml vegetable oil

2 eggs

100g soft light brown sugar

225g plain flour

3 x 15ml tbsp best-quality cocoa powder, sifted

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

Method

·         Preheat oven to 200C/gas mark 6 and line a muffin tin with papers.

·         Mash the bananas by hand or with a freestanding mixer and then add the oil followed by the eggs and sugar.

·         Mix the flour, cocoa powder and bicarb together and add this mixture, beating gently, to the banana mixture, then spoon it into the prepared papers.

adding, mixing, beating

·         Bake in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, by which time the muffins should be dark, rounded and  ‘peeking proudly’ out of their cases. Allow to cool slightly in their tin before removing to a wire rack.

Tips

1.       Make the muffins up to one day ahead. Will keep for 2-3 days in an airtight container in a cool place.

2.       Can be frozen in an airtight container for up to 2 months.

3.       I think this is a really easy recipe and I  truly wasn’t expecting such wonderful muffins as these!

Our book this month was ‘Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand’ by Helen Simonson. Overall we gave it a grade of 3.5 out of 5. Personally, I gave it a 2 so you can tell it wasn’t my favourite read.

a bouquet of oya

I can't resist showing you these fantastic oya which I used instead of flowers in the middle of the table. Oya refers to the lace that village women make with a very very fine hook/tığ and use to edge headscarfs, like the one I am wearing in my profile picture at the top. I bought these last weekend  from a market in  the Selçuk area. They're amazing, aren't they?

New Era Recipes

Coach’s Potato Salad

6 Idaho potatoes
5 hard-boiled eggs
1 small onion
Salt and pepper
5 kosher dill pickles
2 cups Hellman’s mayonnaise (Grandpa insisted on Hellman’s)
Note: Check out Bruce’s suggestion below for substituting light mayo, buttermilk or yogurt for some of the Hellman’s.
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon prepared yellow mustard
1 tablespoon sour cream

1. Boil potatoes and cool to room temperature. Peel and dice.
2. Chop eggs and mince onions. Stir together potatoes, eggs and onion in a bowl and chill. Add salt and pepper to taste.
3. To make the dressing, chop pickles and combine them with remaining ingredients. Chill.
4. Combine chilled potatoes and dressing and return to fridge. Check for seasoning, adding more salt and pepper as needed. Best after several hours in fridge when flavors have had a chance to combine.

Bruce’s notes:
*While this salad is beloved in the family “as is,” we all realize the 2 cups of mayo contains a lot of fat and cholesterol. I have successfully “lightened” the salad by using “light” mayo, reducing the total mayo by at least ½ cup and upping the vinegar a little bit. Another possibility, but not tested, would be the addition of low fat buttermilk in place of some of the mayo and probably eliminating the sour cream.
*I also have added more mustard. Grandpa always used to ask “Is there enough mustard in the potato salad?”

Serves 6
Created by Lester – his signature dish
Made at the cottage by Lester, of course, and by Bruce many times

Rudy’s Hot Fudge

2 tablespoons butter
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Melt butter in a small saucepan. Remove from heat and stir in sugar and cocoa.
2. Return to heat and slowly add evaporated milk, stirring constantly until mixture comes to a boil. Continue to boil, stirring constantly for 10 minutes.
3. Remove from heat and add the vanilla. Sauce will be quite thin but will set a little as it cools.

Katharine’s notes:
*You can also use 1½ cups heavy cream if you’d like instead of the evaporated milk.
*I added ¼ teaspoon salt because I think sweet things are always helped by a bit of it. There is a physiological reason for that but we don’t need to go into it here.

Makes about 2 cups
Created by Ruth and made at the cottage numerous times

The Kind of Brownie I Like

I just made some amazing brownies. When I pulled them out of the oven, a little undercooked, it seemed like they were going to fall apart. I started imagining all baked goods in which the crumbs never fuse together, but instead form individual crumblets that stay in the pan shape until cut into. Like a Monet you've come too close to, or a dream that disintegrates when you wake up.

But with brownies, as with life, patience is a virtue, and once the recalcitrant crumbs had cooled down, they formed a dense chocolaty interior with a glistening crust, and held together just fine when I lifted my second piece out of the pan (just to be sure it was any good).

This was the kind of brownie I liked. Dense and gooey and not at all cake like. Not too sweet, with a dark chocolate richness enhanced with a touch of espresso. No nuts, no frosting, no embellishment of any kind.

There are a lot of brownie recipes out there. Besides the wide variety of plain ones, there are recipes for mint brownies and cheesecake swirled brownies and caramel brownies and the brownie's sweeter, gentler younger sister the blondie. And you could try all of them. You should try all of them, to find the kind of brownie you like. Take your time and enjoy the search.

Double Chocolate Mocha Brownies (Gourmet, Dec 2002)

This recipe uses unsweetened chocolate squares, but cocoa powder works just as well. Since cocoa powder is just unsweetened chocolate separated from the cocoa butter, you can substitute one for the other by altering the butter or fat in the recipe. The substitution rate I've seen is 1 oz unsweetened chocolate = 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder plus 1 tablespoon butter. Don't be fooled by the chocolate chips in this recipe. They melt away and you'd never know they were there. If you're like me and hate a strong coffee flavor, cut the espresso in half. Also, I cut the recipe in half, using 3 oz chocolate and 5 tablespoons butter, in an 8x8 pan, and baked for only 15 minutes. It was perfect.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) unsalted butter
• 5 oz unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon instant-espresso powder or instant-coffee granules
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 large eggs
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a 15- by 10- by 1-inch baking pan with foil, allowing 2 inches of foil to hang over ends of pan, and grease foil well (except overhang) with 1 tablespoon butter.

Melt remaining 11 tablespoons butter with unsweetened chocolate in a large metal bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water, stirring until smooth. Remove bowl from heat and whisk in sugar, espresso powder, vanilla, and salt (mixture will be grainy), then add eggs 1 at a time, whisking after each addition until batter is smooth.

Toss together flour and chocolate chips in another bowl and add to batter, stirring until just combined.

Spread batter evenly in baking pan and bake in middle of oven until top is firm and edges just begin to pull away from sides of pan, about 20 minutes (do not overbake).

Cool in pan on a rack 5 minutes, then carefully lift brownies from pan by grasping both ends of foil and transfer to rack to cool 10 minutes more. Cut into 32 squares and lift brownies off foil with a spatula.

Holiday Sweets

I’ve written before (July 11, 2009 blog) about my issues with making desserts, especially baking. While I’m over being scared, I still don’t make desserts very often. For weekday dinners, Katherine and I try to stay away from sweets—for several reasons, all with an eye toward our spreading mid-sections. I do make them whenever friends and family come to dinner, especially during the holidays. I prefer them to be small and not too sweet. My daughter-in-law-Michelle and her friend Nicole continue to instruct me on these matters.

Chocolate Pots
These little pots are so good. And so easy. Nigella calls for 70% cocoa solids but I find that percentage just too intense. You can experiment for yourself. Some folks might be nervous about putting the raw egg into the chocolate mixture. If you are, don’t make this recipe. I’ve never had a problem.

6 ounces best-quality chocolate, minimum 62% cocoa solids
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons heavy cream
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon whole milk
½ teaspoon vanilla
½ teaspoon allspice, optional
1 egg at room temperature, use the freshest you can find
8 ¼-cup pots, sake cups, or tiny custard cups
Roasted strawberries during strawberry season, optional
A dab of slightly sweetened whipped cream, optional

1. Crush the chocolate to crumbs in the food processor.
2. Heat the cream and milk until just about boiling. Add the vanilla and the optional allspice to the milk and pour it through the funnel over the chocolate. Let it stand for 30 seconds.
3. Process for 30 seconds. Then crack the egg down the funnel and process for 45 seconds. It’s done.
4. Pour into whatever little cups you have and refrigerate for 6 hours or overnight. Take them out about 20 minutes before you want to serve them.
Note: Don’t be tempted to use larger dishes. The chocolate is very intense and just a little is sufficient.

8 servings
Adapted from Nigella Lawson’s Nigella Bites

Apple Crumb Pie
This is such a delicious dessert. Basically it’s an Apple Crisp with a granola-like crust. A little more complicated than I usually make. But after a nice simple dinner, it is a splendid holiday treat. Plus I get to use more of my apples from the backyard tree.

Crust:
1 cup flour
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/3 cup rolled oats
6 tablespoons butter, melted

Filling:
6 cups peeled and sliced apples (about 7)
½ cup sugar
2 tablespoon flour
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon coriander
Zest from 1 lemon
1 tablespoon lemon juice (½ Meyer lemon)

Topping:
¾ cup flour
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup firmly packed brown sugar
¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
6 tablespoons butter
¼ cup finely chopped candied ginger, optional
Serving options: whipped cream or ice cream

1. Take your 8½-inch spring-form pan apart. Place a large sheet of aluminum foil over the round base/bottom of the pan. Place the sides on the base over the foil and attach to the base. Fold the excess foil up around the outside of the pan. (This procedure is an attempt to prevent leakage in baking.)
2. Place the crust ingredients in a bowl and stir with a fork until completely combined. Press the mixture into the bottom of the spring-form pan. Bake for 10-15 minutes at 350°F.
3. Turn the temperature up to 375°F.
4. Place the apples, sugar, flour, cinnamon, lemon zest and juice in a large bowl and stir until the sugar is evenly distributed. Pour the apples into the crust and press down lightly to even them out and pack them down.
5. Place the topping ingredients in a bowl and mix with a fork, a pastry cutter, or your fingers until crumbly. Distribute evenly over the apples.
6. Place the pie in the oven with a baking sheet on the rack below to catch any drippings. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the apples are soft. If the top browns too quickly, cover the pan loosely with foil and continue baking. Cool on a rack.
7. To serve, slip a knife around the sides of the pan to loosen the filling; release the sides of the springform pan. Slide the pie off the spring-form bottom and onto a serving plate leaving the foil underneath. Peel the foil from around the edges, leaving the rest hidden underneath the pie. If you find an easy way to remove all of it, let me know. When you cut the pie, leave the foil on the serving plate. Serve the pie with lightly sweetened whipped cream or ice cream.

6 servings
Adapted from Megan and Jill Carle’s Teens Cook Dessert.  This is a great cookbook for any young person you know who likes to cook.


Persimmon Bread

Finally my hachiya persimmons are soft enough for eating and baking. Slices of this persimmon bread are great with tea, as an appetizer with goat cheese, for dessert with whipped cream, or anytime you want a sweet holiday treat. These mini-loaves wrapped up with a bow make great holiday presents.














3½ cups flour
1½ teaspoons salt
2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon nutmeg
2-2½ cups sugar (I use the smaller amount)
1 cup (2 sticks) melted butter
4 eggs, lightly beaten
2/3 cup Jack Daniels or cognac
2 cups persimmon purée (about 7 medium very soft hachiya persimmons)
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup raisins

1. Sift flour, salt, baking soda, nutmeg, and sugar together into a bowl. Mix together the melted butter, eggs, Jack Daniels, and persimmon purée.
2. Make a well in the dry ingredients and pour in the melted butter mixture. Mix together. Fold in the nuts and raisins and mix well.
3. Pour the mixture into 6 buttered mini pans, filling ¾ full.
4. Bake at 350°F for about 45 minutes. Let cool in the pans for 15 minutes; then turn out of the pans onto a rack to finish cooling. Wrap well in plastic wrap or foil. They freeze well.

Makes 6 mini loaves, 4 small loaves, or 2-3 regular loaves.
You’ll need to increase the baking time for the bigger loaves.
Adapted from Susan Weeks, Co-President, Meals on Wheels, Sonoma, as it appeared in The Sun, December 2005

Seasonal Sweets: Pumpkin Muffins and Apple Crisp

Karyn’s Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins
Here is Karyn's and Marie Clare's recipe for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins. Marie Clare also makes a fabulous Maida Heatter Cow Town cake for birthdays, cupcakes with various delicious fillings, chocolate tarts, pumpkin pies, brownies, many muffins, hot chocolate sauce for ice cream, and eclairs with custard filling. Much more too, but you get the idea.

1 2/3 cup flour
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice (cinnamon, ground ginger and ground cloves)
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup pumpkin (canned)
½ cup melted butter, cooled slightly
1 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat over to 350°F. Butter your mini-muffin tins or insert paper liners.
2. Mix flour, sugar, pie spice, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.
3. Break eggs into a second bowl. Add pumpkin and butter; whisk until well blended.
Stir in chocolate chips.
4. Pour the egg/pumpkin mixture over the dry ingredients and fold in with a rubber spatula until the dry ingredients are moistened. Or mix with your hands. Don’t over-mix.
5. Spoon the dough into the muffin tins.
6. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until the muffins puff up and spring back when touched in the center.

[The recipe doesn't say how many it makes. I would guess 2 dozen mini-muffins.]
As made by from Karyn's friend, Geri, and now by Marie Clare






Apple Almond Crisp
The apples for this crisp came from my backyard in Sonoma. I picked them and used them immediately. Talk about local. Talk about fresh. Can't get any better.

7-8 cups firm, peeled, cored tart-sweet apples, cut in 1-inch chunks
Note: 1 apple yields about 1 cup of chunks I’ve found.
3-5 tablespoons lemon juice
1/3 cup sugar or a little more to taste
¼ cup maple syrup
1 tablespoon grated lemon rind or rind from 1 lemon
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon salt

Topping:
½ cup sugar
¾ cup unbleached all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon cinnamon or coriander
½ teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut in ½ –inch pieces
¼ cup chopped candied ginger
1 cup sliced almonds

Vanilla ice cream, whipped cream or crème fraiche

1. Place a rack in the bottom third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
2. Grease a 2-quart ovenproof glass or earthenware casserole that is at least 2 inches deep.
3. In a large bowl, mix the lemon juice, sugar, maple syrup, lemon rind, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. As you peel, quarter and chunk the apples, add them to the bowl and stir so the lemon juice can prevent their turning brown. If needed, add more lemon juice and/or sugar; the amount will depend on the flavor of your apples, so taste them. Place the apples in the casserole.
4. To make the topping: Stir the sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt together. Cut in the butter with a food processor, a pastry cutter or your fingers until the mixture is crumbly. Stir in the ginger and the almonds.
5. Cover the apples evenly with the topping and bake for 50-60 minutes until the juices are bubbling and the top has browned. Because the back of the oven is usually hotter than the front in most ovens, it is a good idea to rotate the baking dish once or twice to brown the topping evenly.
6. Cool at least 10 minutes before serving. Serve warm or at room temperature with vanilla ice cream, whipped cream, or crème fraiche.

At least 6 servings
Adapted from Marian Burros’ Cooking for Comfort

This Makes All the Difference

Last year my 30th birthday was celebrated with the theme, "30 is the new 16!", complete with princess birthday hats, pink balloons and a fairy presiding over the food spread.

Those phyllo triangles in the front right corner - I made those, despite how I feel about phyllo. They were filled with mushrooms and cheese. I was told not to make anything for the party, but I insisted. That's how I roll.

This year, 31, wasn't quite worthy of the same level of celebration. It was, however, worthy of a cake. Earlier this summer, as I stood in line at Marshall's, I was unexpectedly wooed by a cookbook perched by the checkout. The title of the book was Great Cakes. Now I don't consider myself a cake person, but when a cookbook costs only $6 and boasts 250+ cake recipes, it's a no-brainer.

And now that I owned it, I decided I was making a cake for my birthday. Some people say I shouldn't make a cake for my own birthday, but I see no problem with it. It's not like I won't make a cake for yours! In fact, I would love to. Would you like Swiss Chocolate Silk or Black Bottom Mint Cheesecake? Graham Cracker Cake or Raspberry Ribbons? Holiday Honey Cake or Lemon Velvet Squares? There are over 250 to choose from.

I went with a cake called Double Trouble Fudge Cake, a two layer cake with a chocolaty nutty filling which I switched out for a raspberry filling instead. The cake itself was as good as any chocolate cake, but I what I want to tell you about here is the frosting and filling. Those two things can turn an average chocolate cake into a winner. It's like regular old "you" with a good haircut and clothes that fit well. Anyone who has seen an episode of What Not to Wear knows this makes all the difference.


The filling is easily made with frozen raspberries (1 1/2 cups), sugar (1/4 cup), lemon juice (2 T), and cornstarch (1 T) cooked briefly to combine and dissolve the sugar and cornstarch. The frosting is something like a chocolate ganache in its taste and texture. I swear it was just an ordinary cake underneath, but it was praised like no other. Or maybe that's just because it was free dessert.

Chocolate Custard Frosting
(yields about 3 cups, enough to fill and frost 2 9-inch layers, 3 8-inch layers, the top and sides of a 9X13X2 pan or a 10-inch tube cake.)

2 oz unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 oz semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon ground coffee
1/2 cup boiling water
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup half-and-half
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

In a small heavy saucepan, combine the chocolates, coffee, and boiling water. Stir until the chocolate is completely melted and the coffee dissolved. In a separate small bowl, combine the sugar, cornstarch, and salt and add to chocolate mixture, stirring until blended. Slowly add the half-and-half, whisking gently until well combined.

Bring to a boil over low heat, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon. Cook gently about 1 minute longer, stirring occasionally, then remove from the heat. Off the heat, blend in the butter and vanilla. To cool quickly, set saucepan in cold water. Stir gently, do not beat, until icing is thick enough to spread. This will only take a few minutes.

Desserts in Three Flavors

Fudge Brownies
I’ve been using this recipe for years and years. The round pan will give you a dessert that looks more like a cake than a cookie.

















½ cup (1 stick) butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
2 1-ounce squares unsweetened chocolate, melted*
½ cup flour, sifted
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup walnuts, optional

1. Cream butter, sugar, and vanilla. Beat in eggs.
2. Blend in melted chocolate. Stir in flour and nuts.
3. Grease an 8x8 square or an 8-inch round pan. If you are using the round one, line it with parchment paper for easier brownie removal. Pour the batter into the pan and bake in a 325ºF oven for 30-35 minutes. The round one may take slightly longer.
4. Cool and cut into 16 squares or as for a cake. You can serve with Roasted Strawberries and whipped cream if you like or dust with powdered sugar.

* You can melt the chocolate in a microwave for 4 minutes at 50 percent power.
You dramatically improve the quality of the brownies if you use good chocolate.

Makes 16 squares or 8-10 slices.
Adapted from Better Homes & Gardens New Cookbook

Lemon Pudding Cake
The miracle of this dessert is that the batter separates into a cake layer on top and a lemon sauce layer on the bottom. It’s magic.
















1 cup sugar (divided ¾ cup and ¼ cup)
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup flour
4 tablespoons (½ stick) butter, melted
Zest of 1 lemon
1/3 cup lemon juice (1-2 lemons)
1½ cups milk
3 eggs, separated

1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Butter a 1½-quart baking dish or an 8-inch baking pan.
2. Mix ¾ cup of the sugar, the salt, and the flour together in a bowl. Add the melted butter, lemon juice, lemon peel, and egg yolks, and stir until thoroughly blended. Stir in the milk.
3. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites with the remaining ¼ cup sugar until they are stiff but remain moist. Fold the beaten whites into the lemon mixture. Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish.
4. Set the baking dish in a larger pan at least 2 inches deep and pour enough hot water into the larger pan to come halfway up the sides of the baking dish. Bake for about 45 minutes, or until the top is lightly browned.
5. Serve warm or chilled. Blueberries or raspberries, or any other fruit of your choosing, would be great on the side.

6 servings
Adapted from Marian Cunningham’s Lost Recipes

Buttermilk Panna Cotta
A cool and refreshing Italian treat on a summer evening with the wonderful hit of concentrated strawberry flavor from Roasted Strawberries.
















1½ cups half and half or whole milk
½ cup sugar
Grated zest of 2 lemons or 1 lemon and 1 orange
2 cinnamon sticks
1 envelope unflavored gelatin
3 tablespoons cold water
¼ teaspoon salt
¾ cup buttermilk
Fresh strawberries or Roasted Strawberries
Fresh mint for garnish

1. Warm the half and half, sugar, zest, and cinnamon sticks in a non-reactive saucepan. Once the mixture begins to steam, remove it from the heat, cover, and let steep for 30 to 60 minutes.
2. In a medium-sized bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water and let it soften for 5 minutes.
3. Rewarm the infused half and half, then pour it through a strainer over the softened gelatin, stirring to dissolve it completely. Press the zest to release as much of the liquid as possible. Add the salt. Let the mixture cool.
4. Stir in the buttermilk. (If the mixture is steaming hot when you add the buttermilk, the mixture can separate. If it does, whisk it vigorously until it is smooth.)
5. Lightly grease 5 or 6 4-ounce ramekins with unflavored oil. (If you use smaller ramekins, you’ll make more desserts.) Divide the panna cotta mixture evenly among the prepared ramekins and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
6. To serve, run a sharp knife around the inside edge of each ramekin to release the panna cotta. Invert each one on a serving plate. Spoon the strawberries (roasted or fresh) around it. Add a sprig of fresh mint if you like.

5-6 servings in 4-ounce ramekins
Adapted from David Lebovitz’s Ripe for Dessert
He serves his with a blueberry sauce.

Oven-Roasted Strawberries
 Roasting concentrates the luscious strawberry flavor. You won’t believe it.

Strawberries
Sugar

1. Remove the stems and place the strawberries on a sided cookie sheet covered with parchment paper or silicone mat.
2. Sprinkle lightly with sugar (about 1 tablespoon per basket).
3. Roast in a 300°F oven for about 1 to 1½ hours. Turn them over about half way through roasting. You can use Convection Roast if your oven does that. The roasting time will be shorter.
4. The strawberries are done when they have shrunk to about half their original size and are soft without being burned.
5. Store with any collected juices in the refrigerator in a covered container.

Serve with Fudge Brownies, anything chocolate, panna cotta, or shortcakes.

Adapted from Michelle Polzine’s suggestions in San Francisco Magazine, June 2007

Chocolate Mousse Redux - Video Recipe

No, that's not me. It's (a slightly more hirsute) Heston Blumenthal demonstrating the method I wrote about last week to make mousse from just chocolate and water.

For all you naysayers, here's the proof:

Chocolate Mousse

To those of you with a vague understanding of scientific principles, this will probably make sense.

For those in the opposite camp (and I put myself firmly in this bracket), this will probably seem a little bit like sorcery.

If this technique had been demonstrated by an enterprising 16th century chef, he would probably have been burnt at the stake for dancing with the devil and engaging in nefarious culinary exploits.

This is a chocolate mousse made entirely out of chocolate and water.



There is nothing else involved. No binders, no emulsifiers, no eggs, no eye of newt or bollock of bat. Nada. Zilch.

Chocolate and water.

It is one of the few ‘experiments’ I’ve attempted from Hervé This’ book Molecular Gastronomy: Exploring the Science of Flavour (Columbia University Press, 2006).

Despite references to ‘metabotropic glutamate’ and ‘sugar chains forming molecular skeletons to carry carboxylic acid’ much of the book remains within the grasp of the average home cook and offers some valuable material to those looking to improve their cooking, or at least seeking a more thorough understanding of what goes on when frying pan meets egg.

When I read about the possibility of making a chocolate mousse within seconds and only two elements, I had to try it.

The lack of any extra ingredients in this chocolate mousse enables the purity of the chocolate to really shine, important if you’re working with high quality produce or single estate chocolate, for example.

The flavours aren’t dulled and there is an intensity of flavour I’ve not experienced before. It also opens up all sorts of possibilities for adding additional flavours, if you so wanted.

Perhaps a drop of chilli or a little vanilla extract.

So, how do you go about making this magic mousse?

Melt equal parts (by weight) of chocolate and water together in a double boiler. Remove the bowl, place it in some iced water and, using a good old fashioned balloon whisk, start beating the liquid.

You should notice a change in the texture almost immediately.

Keep whisking and then remove the bowl from the water to stop it from cooling too much and solidifying again.

Stop whisking once the ‘mousse’ is at the required consistency. If you go too far, don’t worry – just re-melt the chocolate and keep trying until you get the texture you want.

For my ‘cauliflower cheese’ I kept going until I had a slightly grainy texture but for a dessert you probably want something a little lighter.

Food sorcery at its finest, and most simple. Now all I have to do is avoid visiting Salem.

I’m on Twitter…

Beetroot, Ginger & Chocolate Risotto

You learn something new every day, or so the saying goes. Did you know, for example, that the first meal that was eaten on the moon by Armstrong and Aldrin was a roast turkey dinner with all the trimmings (freeze dried, one would assume)?

Or that sperm swim faster after they have been exposed to caffeine?

Or that the largest beetroot ever grown was over 18 feet in length?

Or that it is near impossible to take a good photo of a risotto? Especially a risotto that I promised you good people a couple of weeks ago (you'd thought I'd forgotten, hadn't you?)

It’s true – no matter how appealing it may look on the plate, in photographic form it will almost always take on the appearance of lumpy aardvark vomit.

You could gild it with gold leaf, adorn it with asparagus and top it with truffles but under the lights and through a lens it will still look about as appealing as a jock strap salad.

We tried. We really did. But even the best photo we got wouldn’t have looked out of place in a crime scene report. So you’ll have to make do with this representation instead. And the best thing about beetroot risotto is the colour anyway. So sit back, use your imagination and take note. Recipe below.



It’s hard to write a definitive recipe for risotto. There are so many variations (rice absorbency, stock quality, stirring capacity) that I hesitate to make any assertions for fear I will end up with angry emails and comments.

Instead, use this as a platform, a launch pad, or a mere eyebrow-raiser. All I will say is that it is certainly worth trying and that there is true deliciousness hidden behind the vaguely bizarre veneer of the combination of ingredients.


The Ingredients – should serve four

Olive oil or butter (about 25g)
A pinch of bicarbonate of soda
A small onion, or three/four shallots finely chopped
Two cloves of garlic, finely chopped
A teaspoon of grated ginger
Four or five small beetroot, roasted in the skins (in a sealed foil package for about an hour), peeled and diced into teeny, tiny pieces.
Risotto rice (Arborio, carnaroli, vialone nano) – about 250g
A small glass of white wine or white vermouth
Chicken or vegetable Stock (impossible to say how much you will need but most likely about a litre), in a pan on a gentle heat.
The darkest dark chocolate you can find, preferably 70%+ cocoa solids

The method
You all know how to make risotto, right? You’re going to find this incredibly patronising if you are talked through each step in the manner of a sports teacher humiliating the fat kid aren’t you? Oh well, here goes:

Put the onion and garlic in a large, heavy bottomed pan along with the olive oil or butter. Turn on the heat (low – see here for why) and add the bicarb (this helps soften the onion and bring out the flavours. I learnt why here). Fry gently for 10 minutes, or until you have a delicious pulpy mass of onion and garlic. Add the ginger and stir.

Crank up the heat. Pour in the rice, stir and cook off for about a minute to start it toasting. Add the wine or vermouth. It should sizzle and give off a fairly potent steam of near pure alcohol. Stir again (can you see a theme developing?). Tip in the beetroot. Admire the colour. Go on, you know you want to. Stir.

The stock (which is in a pan on a gentle heat, right?) can now be ladled in bit by bit. Stir. Stir some more. When almost all the stock has been absorbed add another ladle full. Stir. Keep stirring.

Repeat the above until the rice is cooked – usually about forty minutes. By this point your arm will aching and you should have worked up a considerable appetite with all that stirring.

Spoon onto a plate, grate the chocolate over the top. Admire the colour once more and eat.

One final point – risotto should be soft, it should spread evenly and slowly over the plate like a slew of molten lava running down a volcano. You shouldn’t be able to slice it.

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