Thursday 25 February 2010

Chocolate Cake


Traditionally this cake would be baked in a bread tin but I think it looks a lot more sumptuous this way.

250 g unsalted butter
250 g sugar
6 eggs
1 lemon, juice of
100 g chopped almonds or crushed flaked almonds
200 g flour
1 sachet/14 g baking powder, mix into flour
pinch of salt
200-250 g chocolate with 70% cocoa
6 tbsp hot water

Icing:
100g chocolate with 70% cocoa
3 tbsp hot water
2 tbsp brandy, rhum or whisky (to taste)

1. Beat butter and sugar untill foamy.
2. Add the eggs and keep beeting until the sugar has dissolved.
3. Add the lemon juice and almonds to the mix.
4. Add the flour/baking powder mix a couple of tablespoons at the time.
5. Heat the water in a heavy saucepan, break up the chocolate and dissolve over a low heat. Add to the cake mix. Add a pinch of salt.
6. Grease a 26 cm spring tin and optionally, sprinkle very lightly with flower. Shake the tin to loosen off any excess flour and tip the excess flour into the sink.
7. Pour the cake mix into the baking tin and bake at gas mark 5 for 50-60 minutes. The cake is done when a metal skewer stuck into the middle comes away clean.
8. Remove the cake from the oven and using a knive carefully loosen it from the rim. Open the spring. Place a cooling rack over the top and using a dish towel or oven gloves, turn the cake upside don. Remove the base of the tin. Place a second cooling rack on the bottom and turn the cake over once more.
9 To make the icing, heat the water in a heavy saucepan, break up the chocolate and dissolve over a low heat until smooth. Add a pinch of salt and stir in the alcohol.
10. Pour over the warm cake spreading it out with a rubber spatula.

Serve with wipped cream.

Easy Apple Cake



This apple cake recipe has been made in my family for as long as I can think. In German we call it a "sunken apple cake" because the apples sink into the cake while it is baked. Eat like the Brits for dessert with a serving of good vanilla ice cream or like the Germans for afternoon "Kaffee and Kuchen" with whipped cream. The only thing I've changed is that I use a good (i. e. unrefined), fine brown sugar instead of the regular white stuff.

190 g unsalted butter
190 g fine, unrefined brown sugar
5 eggs
Juice and finely grated rind of 1 unwaxed lemon
pinch of salt
300 g flour
1 sachet/14 g baking powder, mix into flour
6-7 tbsp milk
500-750 g juicy apples, e.g. Granny Smith, Braeburn (Golden Delicious will turn chewy)
more lemon juice

icing sugar for dusting, optional

1. Beat butter and sugar untill foamy.
2. Add the eggs and salt and keep beeting until the sugar has dissolved.
3. Add the lemon juice and rind to the mix.
4. Add the flour/baking powder mix a couple of tablespoons at the time.
5. Grease a 26 cm spring tin and optionally, sprinkle very lightly with flower. Shake the tin to loosen off any excess flour and tip the excess flour into the sink.
6. Pour the cake mix into the baking tin and spread evenly using a rubber spatula.
7. Cut the apples into quarters or eights, depending on size, core and peel them. Score the outside in a criss-cross pattern. Sprinkle over some lemon juice to prevent the from oxidising.
8. Place the apples on top of the cake mix pushing them in.
9 Bake at 175° C/gas mark 4 for 40-50 minutes (until a metal skewer stuck into the middle comes away clean).
10. Optionally dust the cake with icing sugar when cold.

Paprika flavoured aubergine slices


I've probably mentioned this elsewhere in this blog but I just LOVE aubergines. Could eat them every day. One of my favourite ways to prepare them is to roast them. And to prevent my taste buds from getting bored, I sprinkled them with Hungarian paprika the other day. Yum!

1-2 aubergines cut into 1 cm thick slices
freshly ground black pepper
sea salt
Hungarian paprika, hot or sweet to taste
extra virgin olive oil

1. Heat some olive oil in a frying pan and fry the aubergine slices on both sides until lightly browned, batches if necessary.
2. Transfer the aubergine slices into a roasting tray.
3. Season one side with pepper, salt and a generous amount of paprika. You probably won't have to add any more oil but may lightly brush the aubergins with oil to prevent the paprika from burning.
4. Pllace into a preheated oven and cook for 30-45 minutes at gas mark 7 until the aubergines are golden brown and tender.

Honey-roasted leek


2 leeks, cut into diagonal slices
freshly ground black pepper
sea salt
runny honey
extra virgin olive oil

1. Season the leek slices with pepper and salt and place them side by side into a roasting tray brushed lightly with oil. Brush the leek with oil as well.
2. Place in a pre-heated oven and roast at gas mark 7 for 20-30 minutes until they're starting to brown.
3. Then brush with the honey and roast for another 5-10 minutes.

Carrot Salad with Kumquats


Last Sunday, we went to the organic food market and café, Earthy. A lovely experience. The cappuccino was just right, not too much milk, no burned coffee taste. Perfect.

Afterwards we wondered around the shop and bought some goodies, organic carrots and kumquats, among them. I wanted to eat the carrots as fresh as possible and while grating them it occurred to me that the kumquats should taste rather nice in a carrot salad. The result was delicious a little unusual but it's definitely a keeper.

1 kg carrots, washed, peeled and coarsely grated
8-10 kumquats, unpeeled, cut lengthways, pips removed and cut into slices
vinaigrette to taste

2 tbsp toasted sesame seeds (optional)

Mix the carrots, kumquats and vinaigrette and leave at room temperature for a couple of hours to marinate. Check the seasoning. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds, if used.