Sugar et al

Because Life is a blend of flavours...

Coconut And Raspberry cake

22|03|2017

Layers of Coconut and Raspberry Cake with a sweet-tangy, delicious cream cheese frosting and fresh raspberries. It’s easy to make and looks impressive.

This Autumn hasn’t been anything like I expected. Can I call it Monsoon because it has rained pretty much every single day since the last one month? Back in the tropics where I grew up, there would be a whole season dedicated to the rains called Monsoon. Rugby and Soccer matches have been cancelled for the boys for weeks and that means we have been indoors every evening. While it was a huge relief to escape the 40 degree plus temperatures of summer, I’m still waiting for the perfect picnic weather. The great news however is that we’ve still got beautiful summer produce at amazing prices and that means no dearth of inspiration. I know! I just can’t get past Summer and it’s bounty. Amidst my busy workload of new recipes for clients my heart has been craving Cake. I think this Coconut and Raspberry Cake is the first layer cake for the year. Quite shocking really for a person who loves making them. Now I don’t want to stop. It’s quite like therapy..helps me unwind and takes my mind off the stress of work and home.

Coconut And Raspberry cake

Coconut And Raspberry cake

Coconut And Raspberry cake

I am personally not a big fan of coconut cakes but readers and my friends seem to love them. For me they are great when you want to bite into a bit of texture but you don’t want a nut cake. They are also pretty amazing when you pair them with other flavours. I have a few frosted coconut cakes on my blog already so I wanted this one to be really simple and more like a Victoria Sponge cake. But instead of cream we have a sweet-tangy cream cheese frosting, fresh raspberries and layers of coconut cake that are light like sponge. It is a great marriage of freshness and flavour.

Coconut And Raspberry cake

Coconut And Raspberry cake

Coconut And Raspberry cake

Coconut and Raspberry Cake
Makes a 6 inch layered cake

180 g unsalted butter, softened
1 cup castor sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla essence
11/3 cup self raising flour
1/4 cup plain flour
1/2 cup desiccated coconut
1/2 cup milk

Cream Cheese Frosting
225 g full fat, cream cheese
50 g unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups icing/powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla essence

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C (160 degrees for fan-forced ovens). Lightly grease the base and sides of 3, 6 inch pans and line the bases with baking paper. Beat the butter and sugar together using a electric mixer (or an hand mixer) till light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in the vanilla essence. In a separate bowl mix together the self-raising flour, plain flour and desiccated coconut. Fold in the flour mixture and milk slowly into the egg mixture and mix till blended.

Divide uniformly between the prepared cake pans. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.Remove pans from oven. Leave aside for 5 mins, then turn cakes carefully onto a wire rack. Cool to room temperature. Once cool, frost with cream cheese frosting and top with fresh raspberries.

To make the Cream Cheese frosting :place the cream cheese and butter in a bowl and whip until smooth and blended. Add the icing sugar and vanilla essence and beat until light and creamy. Add more sugar, if needed.

 

Passion Fruit Cupcakes

7|09|2016

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A few years ago when we were packing for Australia, everyone was curious to know what were the first things I would like to see or experience ‘down under’. Perhaps the magnificent Opera House or one of the 100 incredible beaches around Sydney. Some were very sure it would be Adriano Zumbo’s dessert train because I would go on and on about him and his creations. ‘Passion fruit’ was my reply. ‘I want to see a passion fruit!’. I had seen pictures of the golden yellow pulp on cheesecakes and I just wanted to see if it was really as beautiful. Upon coming, which was around this time of the year, I fulfilled my desire and got hold of them in the very first week. I hadn’t seen the exterior before so I pondered at the market whether something not as beautiful outside could really be holding the vibrant puree. When I cut them open..Oh la la…there it was oozing out in all it’s golden glory.

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I love the taste of passion fruit but I love the smell even more. It’s got that intensely fruity smell which almost seems unreal. Like pineapple essence. It is so strong but fresh pineapple doesn’t taste or smell like that. But passion fruit is real. The taste, colour and smell. And of course, the black crunchy seeds! I’ve used a simple recipe to use some passion fruit pulp and turn it into delicious cupcakes.

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Passion Fruit Cupcakes
Makes 12

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C (160 degrees C for fan-forced. Line a 12-hole, 1/3 cup-capacity muffin pan with paper liners.

Using an electric mixer, beat butter, sugar, flour, baking powder, eggs and vanilla for 3 minutes or until smooth and combined. Add passion fruit pulp. Beat until just combined. Spoon mixture into paper cases. Bake for 20 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Stand in pan for 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Once cooled, frost with buttercream. Decorate with candies, sprinkles and/or edible flowers.

Passion Fruit Swiss Meringue Buttercream

3 egg whites
3/4 cup castor sugar
275 g unsalted butter, room temperature
3 tbsp passion fruit pulp(strained)
1-2 drops yello food color (optional)

To make the Buttercream : Place the egg whites and sugar in a large bowl that is placed over a saucepan of simmering water (over low heat), and whisk continuously, until the sugar has completely dissolved and the bottom of the bowl is warm to touch

Remove the bowl from the heat and whip on high speed until meringue holds stiff peaks and looks glossy. The bowl should have completely cooled by now.
Add the butter, 2 tablespoon at a time, until thick and fluffy. If it begins to look curdled, continue to whip until it comes back together, before adding in remaining butter.

When the buttercream has come together, add the passion fruit pulp and food color and mix till smooth and well blended.

 

 

Strawberry And Apple Hand Pies

2|04|2016

Living up to the annual ritual in Autumn we went apple picking as usual. I can’t say that they are my favourite fruit but something about the season, the weather and the orchards have ensured that we do it every year with the kids. This time we were a bit disappointed that there were more apples on the ground, than on the trees but nevertheless it was fun. I’ve been on a pie high lately. I’ve been making all kinds of fillings and playing around with pastry designs. A kitchen smelling of pastry, spices and fruit is the best place to be in my opinion. These apple strawberry hand pies were like a kick-starter to my pie baking this season.

strawberry and apple hand pies

strawberry and apple hand pies

strawberry and apple hand pies

The highlight of our visit to the orchard this year however was not the apples. We discovered that the owner had started growing eggplants, peppers, kale, lettuce, zucchini and a whole lot of other veggies. Those were ready for picking as well. I warned the boys that if they picked they would have to eat all those veggies as well. Obviously no-one was listening and we came back with a boot full of freshly picked produce. We were also told that beets, cauliflower and winter bounty would be available from April. I can’t wait to go back!

strawberry and apple hand pies

strawberry and apple hand pies

strawberry and apple hand pies

Strawberry And Apple Hand Pies
Makes 12

For the pastry
21/2 cups plain flour
1/4 cup castor sugar
1/4 tsp salt
240 g unsalted butter, cold, cut into cubes
1/2 cup cold water
1 egg, for eggwash
raw sugar, for sprinkling

For the filling
2 cups strawberries, hulled, roughly chopped
2 apples, peeled, cored, roughly chopped
1/3 cup castor sugar (or to taste)
1/2 tsp powdered cinnamon

In a large bowl combine flour, sugar and salt. You could do this in the processor or by hand. Add the butter and blend quickly so that the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Stir in the water, 1 tbsp at a time, until dough comes together. On a floured surface, knead the dough gently and shape it into a ball. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate (at least 30 minutes). Meanwhile make the filling.

Heat the strawberries and apples in a heavy bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Keep stirring occasionally until fruits are soft. Add the sugar and cinnamon. allow the mixture to simmer until you get a thick jam-like texture. Cool slightly.

Preheat oven to 200 degrees C. Make the egg wash by lightly beating the egg in a small bowl with 1 tbsp of water. Take the dough out of the refrigerator. On a well floured surface, roll out the dough into a large circle and cut out circles using a cookie cutter for the bottom and tops. I used a 3.5 inch round cookie cutter. Place the bottoms on a tray that has been covered with baking paper. Spoon 1 tbsp of the filling into the center of the pastry bottom. Lay the top pieces of pastry over the filling, bringing the edges together and sealing them. You can do so with your fingers or with a fork to form a pattern. Reuse the balance dough to roll out and form more pastry tops and bottoms. You could also cut out small flowers and shapes to decorate your pies. Brush the tops all over with egg-wash. Place design cut-outs on top. Brush with egg-wash again. Sprinkle with raw sugar.
Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown and crispy.

 

Banana, Peanut Butter And Oat Smoothie

5|03|2016

If there was one thing on my cooking bucket list that I most definitely wanted to tick off in 2016, it was to try out oats in a smoothie. I’ve been fascinated all the while with the idea of a on-the-go drinkable breakfast and what better than chilled, nutritious and filling glasses of oat smoothie on hot summer days. So now my packet of rolled oats is sitting in a jar, ground and ready to be added to my latest obsession, every morning. To tell you the truth, I am hooked!

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There are various ways of including oats in your drink. You could use the overnight soaked oats or add the oats along with other ingredients directly into the blender. The process I like to use is to grind the oats first either in a coffee grinder or a food processor to a coarse powder. Then I can use it whenever I want to. That saves time and gives the smoothie a creamier yet thick consistency with some texture. After I shot this first combo, I made 2 other combinations with stone fruits, coconut milk, herbs, chia seeds and lots of other things. It’s fun to watch all the great ingredients disappear into the liquid with a few whirls of the blender.

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banana, peanut butter and oat smoothie

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Banana, Peanut Butter and Oat Smoothie
Makes 2 large glasses

1 banana, (peeled then chopped and frozen)
1 cup almond milk (or coconut milk or regular milk)
1/2 cup greek yogurt
1/4 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup rolled oats, powdered
2 tbsp sugar (or any other sweeter of your choice)

Dip a spoon in peanut butter and run the back of the spoon inside serving glasses to create a random swirl.
Combine all the ingredients in your blender until smooth. Serve immediately.