sour cream Archives - Sugar et al

Strawberry Almond Cake with Lemon Sour Cream Frosting

15|06|2014

Almond cake with strawberry jam for a delicious nutty texture and an easy lemon sour cream frosting and fresh strawberries to top the cake.

I’ve not been feeling like myself over the last few days. Rather, I’m feeling like my old-self before I became a mother. Carefree, energised, relaxed and slightly funny. Because even that takes some getting used to. My parents and my sister, who are staying with us at the moment apparently decided that I would be on a break till they are around and they are sharing the day-to-day responsibilities between themselves.

‘Take a break’ they told me. So, I took long showers, watched movies in fast forward mode, slept on the couch afterwards, visited a craft store I’ve been meaning to since months, eaten calories laden curries and flatbread. And baked cakes. For me, that has always been a way of de-stressing. With people to share them with, it just got a lot more exciting.

The cake uses strawberry jam for a subtle strawberry flavour. Almonds give it a moist nutty texture which is only typical of a nut-meal based cake. The great thing about the cake is that it is so simple to make by just throwing everything together in a bowl, that it can be created at the spur of the moment. The lemon sour cream frosting is equally quick and easy. Overall, this is one cake you would want to make over and over again for its simplicity yet refined flavours.

Strawberry Almond Cake with Lemon Sour Cream Frosting (adapted with variation from Taste.com)
Serves 5-6

Strawberry Almond Cake
175 g butter, at room temperature, roughly chopped
3/4 cup castor sugar
3/4 cup self-raising flour, sifted
3/4 cup almond meal
1/4 cup strawberry jam
3 eggs, at room temperature, lightly whisked
Fresh Strawberries, to serve

Lemon Sour Cream Frosting
1 1/2 cups icing sugar mixture
1/4 cup sour cream
1 lemon, rind finely grated

For the Strawberry Almond Cake: Preheat oven to 180 degrees C. Lightly grease a round 19 cm cake pan and line the base with baking paper.
Use electric beaters to beat the butter, sugar, flour, almond meal, jam, almonds and eggs in a large bowl until combined.
Pour the cake mixture into the prepared pan and use the back of a spoon to smooth the surface. Bake in the oven for 45-50 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre of the cakes comes out clean. Remove from oven and set aside to cool completely.

For the Lemon Sour Cream Frosting: Sift icing sugar into a bowl. Add sour cream and lemon rind. Stir until well combined. Pour icing over cake. Allow to set. Decorate with fresh strawberries. Serve.

Green No-Cheese Pizza with Broccoli Pesto, Chicken and Sour Cream

12|06|2014

I am on a Pesto making mission. I have two jars permanently dedicated to it. The sight of it makes me feel good like nothing else. This feel-good is different from the one I get from baking cakes:-) But I guess it’s fierce and it’s related. One exists on account of the other. Well, it’s hard to describe but let’s say I have a place and passion for both in my life. Weird?

You know there are times I tell my husband that I would like to have my own little chicken farm, have them lay eggs and then bake with them. That is my favourite culinary dream. It’s not impossible but at the moment I cannot even imagine squeezing in a teeny-weeny responsibility into my daily routine. On the other hand however, I have a little herb garden that doesn’t take up too much of my time but it provides so much of the flavour, nutrition and green that is needed to complete my meals.

I don’t follow a strict recipe anymore while making pesto. Most often, it is a bit of this and that (herbs and nuts) to bring together my magic green potion. That is the amazing thing about pesto. It is versatile, adaptable and personal. The kale pesto I posted a couple of weeks ago turned out to be an instant hit so I decided to share my broccoli pesto. Unlike the kale pesto, this one goes down well with my kids. Kids seem to love broccoli. And if you love broccoli, you are going to love this pizza too. I don’t like my pizzas loaded with toppings…a few complementing flavours that you can identify as you eat does it best for me.

While broccoli is the core ingredient here, you can substitute the other herbs and nut as per convenience and availability. I’ve made this pesto with green chillies earlier but If kids are eating, I prefer to leave them out. The pesto is flavourful enough to replace tomato and cheese in a pizza. So it is certainly healthier. I LOVE cheese but it’s nice to try out different things. In this recipe I have used store-bought smoked chicken which is handy to dish out quick meals. I also tend to use leftover roasted chicken from the previous day which I reserve for making quick curries and snacks. Frozen pizza dough, a jar of home-made prepared pesto, leftover chicken and a dollop of sour cream…it is as simple as that to make your pizza from scratch.
The broccoli pesto can also be used with pasta, on toast and soups. Vegetarians can replace the chicken with tofu or mushrooms.

Now for the winner of the Harris Coffee give away who receives a fabulous Harris coffee pack.
The winner is Krissie from Pearls of Style. Congratulations Krissie! You will be receiving your package shortly.

Green No-Cheese Pizza with Broccoli Pesto, Chicken and Sour Cream
Serves 3-4

Pizza Dough (makes two 12 inch pizzas)
3 cups Plain Flour
2 tsp/7g/1 sachet dried yeast
1/2 tsp castor sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 cups warm water
1 tbsp olive oil
Olive oil, for brushing
Semolina or Polenta, to dust

Pizza Topping
1 recipe Broccoli Pesto
1 smoked chicken breast (or fresh, cooked chicken), roughly chopped
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup sour cream
Baby Spinach and Rocket leaves, for garnish
Cracked Pepper, to serve
Extra virgin olive oil, to drizzle (I use garlic infused extra virgin olive oil)

Broccoli Pesto
1 head broccoli (about 400 g), cut into florets
3 cloves garlic,
1 tbsp. almonds, toasted and roughly chopped
1/4 cup basil leaves
2 springs thyme
1 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
salt and pepper, to season
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

Make the dough: Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl and make a well in the centre. Add the warm water and olive oil. Mix together and use your hands to bring it to a soft dough. Knead it on a floured surface to make it smooth and pliable. Return it to the mixing bowl that has been brushed with oil. Add the dough and turn to coat.
Cover with a damp tea towel. Set aside in a warm place for 30 minutes or until dough doubles in size. Punch down dough with your fist. Remove the dough from the bowl and knead it gently for a minute. Halve the dough (for one 12 inch pizza) and roll it out to the desired portion and thickness.

Make the Pesto : Heat 3/4 cup salted water on medium heat in a saucepan. add the broccoli and simmer for 3- minutes until just tender. Most of the water would be absorbed by now. Cool the mixture slightly. Add to the processor along with garlic, basil, thyme, almonds, lemon juice. Process to a coarse paste. Season with salt and pepper. Add the olive oil and mix until smooth. Store in the refrigerator until needed.

Make the pizza: Preheat the oven to 220 degrees C. Dust pizza tray with semolina or polenta. Place the rolled out dough onto the prepared tray. Spread a thick layer of broccoli pesto around the base of the pizza. Top with smoked chicken and red onion. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil. Bake for 10 minutes or until base is crisp. Remove the pizza from the oven, dollop with sour cream and top with leafy greens. Serve with an extra drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and cracked pepper.

Smoked Salmon, Olives and Herbed Sour Cream Pizza

1|10|2013

On Sundays we like to eat big breakfasts. And elaborate lunches, a lavish afternoon tea and sometimes even a few in-betweens. Sitting around the table at home or eating out at a restaurant, filling each other in on the week that was, debating over the menu or simply watching our little boys voice out their opinion at every opportunity… is our favourite way of relaxing on a holiday. By dinner time we are either on a guilt trip or stuffed till the brim. Naturally no one is hungry for a meal. A soup or a light sandwich is generally our first choice but on days we wish for a lighter yet fitting end to a great day, I make a quick pizza. Wondering if a pizza could ever have anything to do with small or light, well it could. If you make it from scratch. You decide the portions, you pick the toppings and trust me when I say..homemade pizza is better than any takeaway.

Making pizza dough is actually such a simple process. It hardly fails, freezes well and appeals to kids and adults alike. When I have leftover dough (which is most often) I either store it to make a rosemary Focaccia bread or roll out a few Naan breads (Indian flatbread) with a little garlic butter the next day. It is such a versatile dough. For extra flavour, you can add some thyme, rosemary or oregano leaves, fresh or dried.

I used the left over smoked salmon from my salmon scotch egg recipe to make this. You can use prosciutto, leftover chicken, paneer, tofu, grilled pumpkin, pineapple, your favourite cheese..literally any topping of your choice. I have skipped the cheese to make it healthier…relatively! I love sour cream and find it extremely useful to make fillings for sweet and savory or just dolloping it over soups, pancakes or pizzas. And lastly adding leafy greens not only enhances the look but also is a good source of nutrition. Roll out your pizzas in any shape, size or thickness as you prefer. I am actually known for my pizzas-for-two. Simply roll out the dough in a rectangle and add your toppings. Once ready slice them in as many ways as you want.

Smoked Salmon, Olives and Herbed Sour Cream Pizza

Pizza Topping
1 tbsp passata/pizza sauce
1/2 red onion thinly sliced
A few slices of smoked salmon
A handful kalamata olives
1 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive oil for drizzling
A handful of spinach, rocket, thyme and dill leaves

For the Herbed Sour Cream
1/4 cup sour cream
a few sprigs of parsley/oregano/thyme/chives finely chopped

Make the dough: Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl and make a well in the centre. Add the warm water and olive oil. Mix together and use your hands to bring it to a soft dough. Knead it on a floured surface to make it smooth and pliable. Return it to the mixing bowl that has been brushed with oil. Add the dough and turn to coat.
Cover with a damp tea towel. Set aside in a warm place for 30 minutes or until dough doubles in size. Punch down dough with your fist. Remove the dough from the bowl and knead it gently for a minute. Halve the dough and roll it out to the desired portion and thickness.

Make the topping: Preheat the oven to 220 degrees C. Dust pizza tray with semolina or polenta. Place the rolled out dough onto the prepared tray. Spread a thin layer of passata or pizza sauce around the base of the pizza. Top with smoked salmon, olives and red onion. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil. Bake for 10 minutes or until base is crisp. While the pizza is baking mix the sour cream and herbs together to make herbed sour cream. Remove the pizza from the oven, dollop with sour cream and top with leafy greens.