Seasons Greetings
25 Dec 2023
Wishing all my readers a safe and happy holiday season.
Bye for now,
Jillian
copyright 2023
Showing posts with label copyright 2023. Show all posts
xmas 2023 - gluten free gingerbread friands with a rum butter glaze
22 Dec 2023
Welcome to the last bake for Xmas Week 2023. I know one isn't supposed to play favourites, but of all the recipes I made for Christmas, these gingerbread friands were my favourite. They were moist, delicately spiced and topped with the most delicious glaze. The friands are a Liz Prueitt recipe I bookmarked years ago, whilst the glaze came from Sweet.
Here’s the recipe for you which makes 10 friands. For all my recipes I use a 250ml cup and a 20 ml tablespoon, unsalted butter and 60g eggs. My oven is a conventional gas oven so if your oven is fan forced you may need to reduce the oven temperature by 20°C.
Gluten free gingerbread friands with rum butter glaze – makes 10
Ingredients
130g unsalted butter
¼ cup gluten free flour mix
3 tsp cocoa sifted
2 tsp ground ginger
½ tsp each nutmeg and allspice
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp salt
125g brown sugar
100g almond meal
4 egg whites
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp golden syrup
¼ cup gluten free flour mix
3 tsp cocoa sifted
2 tsp ground ginger
½ tsp each nutmeg and allspice
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp salt
125g brown sugar
100g almond meal
4 egg whites
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp golden syrup
Rum-Butter Glaze
80g icing sugar
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
15 g unsalted butter, melted and warm
1 tbsp dark rum (or lemon juice)
1 tsp warm water
To decorate (optional)
candied thyme leaves or rosemary
candied thyme leaves or rosemary
Method
Preheat the oven to 220°C, conventional. Brush 10 holes of a friand tin with some melted butter. Place in the fridge to chill while you make the batter.
Preheat the oven to 220°C, conventional. Brush 10 holes of a friand tin with some melted butter. Place in the fridge to chill while you make the batter.
To brown the butter, place the butter in a small saucepan and cook over a medium heat until melted. Continue to cook until the butter is foaming, gently swirling the pan from time to time, to allow the solids to brown more evenly. Continue to allow the butter to bubble away until it turns a rich golden brown and smells of toasted nuts and caramel. Remove the pan from the heat and let it stand for 5 minutes, to allow the burnt solids to collect at the bottom of the pan. Strain through a fine-mesh (or muslin-lined) sieve, discarding the solids. Allow the browned butter to cool slightly before using. It should still be warm when folding into the mix later: if it is too hot it will start to cook the egg whites; if it is too cool it will be difficult to incorporate into the mix. You will need 100g of browned butter for this recipe.
While the butter is cooling, sift the flour, cocoa, spices and salt into a bowl. Stir through the brown sugar and the almond meal. Put the egg whites in a small bowl and use a whisk or fork to froth them up for a few seconds – you do not need to whisk them completely. Pour the egg whites into the sifted dry ingredients and stir until they are incorporated. Add the vanilla, the golden syrup and the browned butter and mix until the batter is smooth.
Remove the tin from the fridge and fill the moulds just over two-thirds of the way up the sides. Reduce the temperature to 200°C conventional and bake for 10 minutes before rotating the tray. Reduce the heat to 180°C and bake for another 5 minutes or until the edges of the friands are golden brown and the centres have a slight peak and spring back when gently prodded. Set aside to cool before removing them from their moulds; you might need to use a small knife to help you release the sides. Cool on a wire rack before icing the friands with the rum butter glaze.
To make the glaze, sift the icing sugar and cinnamon into a small bowl. Add the melted butter, rum (or lemon juice) and water and mix with a spoon until smooth. The glaze will thicken slightly if it sits around, so stir through a little more warm water if you need to—it should be the consistency of runny honey. Ice each cake and allow the glaze to set before serving. If liked, you can top the friands with some candied herbs.
To candy the herbs, simply brush the herbs with egg white (I used a small paint brush) then toss in caster sugar to coat. Place the herbs on baking paper to dry out before using. Store any leftover herbs in an airtight container.
That's my last post for 2023. Life is a bit topsy-turvy at the moment so I'm not sure when I'll be back in the kitchen again. Until then, all the best over the holiday season and keep safe and well.
Bye for now,
Jillian
xmas 2023 - toasted pecan cookies with dulce de leche
19 Dec 2023
During the year I took out a copy of the Beatrix Bakes Cookbook by Natalie Paull from my local library. I love Natalie's use of bold flavours and her clear explanations. I'd hoped to visit her bakery when I visited Melbourne this year only to find it had closed its doors for good just a few weeks earlier.
When I was looking for cookies to bake for Christmas, I immediately thought of the almond jaws or toasted almond cookies with dulce de leche that I'd found in the book. Naturally I made a few changes to the recipe. I had pecans in the fridge so I swapped out the raw almonds for pecans. I skipped the demerara sugar topping and sandwiched the biscuits with pre-made dulce de leche I had lurking in my pantry. I also made the cookies smaller so the recipe yielded 32 sandwich cookies rather than the 16 in Natalie's recipe.
Toasted pecan cookies with dulce de leche
Filling
400g tin of dulce de leche
pinch salt flakes
Filling
400g tin of dulce de leche
pinch salt flakes
Ingredients
230g unsalted butter, diced and cool, not cold
80g icing sugar mixture
1 tsp vanilla extract
100g pecans roasted to golden brown and cooled
300g plain flour
5g fine sea salt
3g baking powder – around ½ tsp
230g unsalted butter, diced and cool, not cold
80g icing sugar mixture
1 tsp vanilla extract
100g pecans roasted to golden brown and cooled
300g plain flour
5g fine sea salt
3g baking powder – around ½ tsp
To decorate
icing sugar
Method
For the dulce de leche filling, spoon the contents of the tin into a bowl and mix until smooth before stirring in the salt flakes. Set to one side.
For the biscuits, in a stand mixer, cream the butter, sugar and vanilla together until soft and white with a paddle on a medium speed. Scrape down the sides twice. This takes around five minutes.
Grind the nuts with about 50g of the total flour amount and set aside.
Mix the remaining flour with the salt and baking powder and then mix in the nut flour.
Add the dry ingredients to the creamed butter, taking care not to overwork the dough but don’t leave any butter streaks as it will cause buttery fissures (not pretty but still delicious) when baked. Do this on low speed for around one minute. Form dough into fat discs, wrap in plastic and allow to rest in the fridge for fifteen minutes.
Preheat the oven to 170°C, conventional and line 2 trays with baking paper. Roll out one disc of the dough on a lightly dusted surface to around 3 mm thick. You can roll the dough between two sheets of baking paper but do keep flouring so the dough moves as you roll.
See you all again tomorrow with some more baking from my kitchen.
Bye for now,
Jillian
xmas 2023 - spiced praline meringues
12 Dec 2023
My gas oven must be about 4 or 5 years old now and whilst I've worked out how to bake bread, pastries, biscuits and cakes, I've never really mastered meringues. For this bake for Xmas Week 2023, I turned to the master of meringues, Ottolenghi, for the recipe, then baked them on the top shelf with my gas oven on the lowest setting and voila, I had the most perfect looking meringues.
Here’s the recipe for you. For all my recipes I use a 250ml cup and a 20 ml tablespoon, unsalted butter and 60g eggs. My oven is a conventional gas oven so if your oven is fan forced you may need to reduce the oven temperature by 20°C.
Ingredients
50g blanched almonds
300g caster sugar
25ml water
½ tsp ground cinnamon
pinch ground cloves
finely grated zest of 1 large orange (1 tbsp)
¼ tsp flaky sea salt
150g egg whites (from 5 large eggs)
Method
Preheat the oven to 190°C, conventional. Spread the almonds out on a small baking tray and roast in the oven for 5–7 minutes, until lightly browned. Set aside to cool. Line two large baking trays with baking paper and set aside.
Place 50g of sugar in a small saucepan with the water and stir to combine. Cook over a high heat for about 4 minutes, until it has turned a light golden brown; do not stir, just gently shake the pan to help the sugar dissolve. Add the almonds and cook for 1 minute, so the nuts are coated and the caramel turns dark, without burning. Pour the mixture on to one of the lined baking trays and set aside until cool.
Once cool, break the praline into smaller pieces, place in a food processor and blitz to form a rough powder. Remove from the machine and place in a shallow bowl with the spices, orange zest and salt. Mix, then set aside until ready to use.
Spread the remaining sugar out on the second lined baking tray and place in the oven for 7 minutes, until the sugar is hot. Remove from the oven and reduce the temperature to 130°C, conventional. As soon as the sugar is out of the oven, place the egg whites in the bowl of an electric mixer with the whisk attachment in place, and whisk on a high speed until they begin to froth up. Carefully add the hot sugar to the whisking egg whites, 1 tablespoon at a time, and continue beating for 7–8 minutes until the mixture is completely cold. At this point it should be silky and thick and keep its shape when you lift a little bit from the bowl.
Line the two large baking trays once again with baking parchment. Use an extra-large serving spoon to scoop up some meringue, and use another large spoon to help shape it into a rough ball the size of a large apple. Sprinkle some praline over half the meringue ball, then place on the baking tray. Repeat with the rest of the mixture, spacing the balls about 10cm apart to allow room for increase in size.
Place the meringues in the oven for 2–2½ hours. Check that they are done by lifting them from the tray and gently tapping to make sure the outside is completely firm and the centre is only a little soft. Remove from the oven and leave on the tray to cool completely.
See you all again tomorrow with the final bake for Xmas Week 2023.
Bye for now,
Jillian
big sur cookies
11 Dec 2023
For my birthday a friend kindly gave me a book voucher and I used the voucher to buy a copy of Claire Ptak's new book, Love is a Pink Cake. As you know, I just love baking with fruit and nuts and the book is filled to the brim with recipes I can't wait to make.
The biscuit tin was empty so for my first bake, I adapted Claire's recipe for Big Sur cookies. I had everything in my house to make the cookies, apart from the granola, but I had unsweetened muesli so I used that to make the cookies and instead added a little extra brown sugar to the batter. Once the batter was made, I portioned it into 2 tbs balls of cookie dough which I then froze but for how long?
The recipe didn't state a time, so for the first batch I froze the dough for one hour and when I checked at both 7 and 10 minutes the cookie dough was still raw. In the end the cookies took about 12 minutes to bake. For the second batch of cookies, the dough had been frozen for days. I let the dough balls come to room temperature for 30 minutes before baking and they were still raw at 15 minutes and in the end took 19 minutes to bake. Use the cooking time as a rough guide and look for signs of doneness - still soft in the centre and lightly coloured around the edges.
Big Sur Cookies - makes 18 cookies or 36 small ones
Ingredients
150g (1 cup) wholemeal flour
140g (1 cup) plain flour
1 tsp fine sea salt
1½ tsp baking powder
135g (½ cup) soft light brown sugar
225g unsalted butter, softened
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
200g (7oz) white chocolate, chopped into chunks
400g (3¼ cups) granola
Flaky sea salt, for sprinkling
150g (1 cup) wholemeal flour
140g (1 cup) plain flour
1 tsp fine sea salt
1½ tsp baking powder
135g (½ cup) soft light brown sugar
225g unsalted butter, softened
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
200g (7oz) white chocolate, chopped into chunks
400g (3¼ cups) granola
Flaky sea salt, for sprinkling
Method
Whisk the flours, baking powder and salt together and set aside. Cream the butter and brown sugar just until smooth and combined but do not aerate or make fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla extract and mix well, then mix in the flour until just combined. Add the white chocolate and granola and mix again, just until it all comes together.
Line 1 or 2 trays with baking paper, then use an ice-cream scoop to portion out 18 balls of cookie dough onto the baking sheets. (I used 2 tbs of cookie dough for my cookies). Chill for 30 minutes, then flatten to a thickness of 1.5cm and freeze for 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 170°C fan/190°C/375°F. Defrost the cookies for 5-10 minutes before baking. Sprinkle with the flaky sea salt and bake for 7-10 minutes. They should be just starting to colour, but still soft in the centre.
Cool on the tray for 10 minutes before placing on a baking rack to cool completely and then store in an airtight container.
See you all again next week for Christmas week 2023.
Bye for now,
Jillian
cherry moon signature birthday cake
4 Dec 2023
When the November issue of Delicious magazine landed in my letterbox, I spied a photo of the Cherry Moon signature birthday cake. I was only in Sydney for a fleeting visit and as I had all the ingredients to make the cake, apart from the cream and fresh raspberries to top the cake, I made a quick decision to bake the cake before I returned Brisbane.
I baked the cake and while it was cooling, made a trip to the shop for some cream and a punnet of fresh raspberries. Before you knew it the cake was cooled, filled and photo ready.
I needed to tweak the proportions of the recipe a little for my smaller cake otherwise the batter would have been too runny and slightly changed the method, otherwise it's quite faithful to the original. Here's the recipe for you which makes a 17cm cake. For all my recipes I use a 250ml cup and a 20 ml tablespoon, unsalted butter and 60g eggs. My oven is a conventional gas oven so if your oven is fan forced you may need to reduce the oven temperature by 20°C.
Cherry Moon signature birthday cake – 17cm version
Ingredients
1 small orange, rind grated and reserved, peeled and then sliced into 7 rounds
150g raw caster sugar, plus 2 extra teaspoons
¾ cup (115g) SR flour
¼ cup (35g) Plain flour
pinch salt
60g unsalted butter, chopped, at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs, at room temperature
85ml (1/3 cup) vegetable oil
40ml buttermilk or yoghurt, at room temperature
Pure icing sugar, to dust
Fresh raspberries and edible flowers (optional), to serve
Ingredients
1 small orange, rind grated and reserved, peeled and then sliced into 7 rounds
150g raw caster sugar, plus 2 extra teaspoons
¾ cup (115g) SR flour
¼ cup (35g) Plain flour
pinch salt
60g unsalted butter, chopped, at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs, at room temperature
85ml (1/3 cup) vegetable oil
40ml buttermilk or yoghurt, at room temperature
Pure icing sugar, to dust
Fresh raspberries and edible flowers (optional), to serve
Filling
200ml thickened cream, whipped
1/2 cup (160g) raspberry or berry jam
200ml thickened cream, whipped
1/2 cup (160g) raspberry or berry jam
Method
Preheat oven to 180°C conventional/160°C fan-forced. Grease and flour the base and side of a 17cm round springform cake pan, and then line base with baking paper.
Sprinkle both sides of orange slices with a tsp of the extra sugar and then arrange in a single layer over base of prepared pan.
Sift flours and salt together into a bowl then set to one side.
Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter with the sugar, orange rind and vanilla on medium-high speed for 7 minutes until light and fluffy (the sugar won't be totally dissolved). Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well on medium speed between each addition. Reduce speed to low, then gradually drizzle in the oil, mixing constantly until it forms a mayonnaise consistency.
Add sifted dry ingredients in 3 batches, mixing well after each addition, alternating with the buttermilk until well combined and a smooth and thick batter has formed (do not overmix). Carefully spoon batter over the oranges in the prepared pan, trying not to disturb their placement. Level top using a spatula. Sprinkle top evenly with the remaining tsp extra sugar.
Bake for 30-40 minutes on the centre rack of the preheated 180°C conventional/160°C fan-forced oven until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean and the top is golden. Let the cake cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack before releasing the cake from pan and inverting the hot cake onto the rack, orange slices facing up. Allow the cake to cool completely and develop a crust before slicing.
Once cooled, use a large serrated knife to carefully split cake horizontally into two layers. Place the cake base (without orange slices) on a serving platter, spoon over the jam and then dollop with whipped cream. Top with the other cake half, orange slices facing up.
Serve cake scattered with raspberries and edible flowers, if using, and lightly dusted with icing sugar.
See you all again next week with some more baking from my kitchen.
Bye for now,
Jillian
louise cake with apricots and coconut
27 Nov 2023
This is the fourth time I've made the Louise cake from Sweet by Yotam Ottolanghi and Helen Goh. The orginal recipe was made with plums and coconut but it's a bit early for plums and at $14.99/kilo, they were too expensive. Instead I picked up some battered apricots which were on special at the fruit shop and used them instead of the the plums. I've also made the cake with rhubarb which was absolutely delicious.
I wasn't sure if the apricot version would deliver, but it did in spades. The apricots were just delicious in the cake, which I shared with my neighbours.
Louise cake with apricots
85g unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into 2cm cubes
65g caster sugar
1½ tsp finely grated lemon zest
2 large egg yolks
85g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
a pinch of salt
15g desiccated coconut
60ml full cream milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 apricots, halved deseeded then quartered
15g desiccated coconut
60ml full cream milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 apricots, halved deseeded then quartered
Meringue
40g flaked almonds
95g egg whites (from 3-4 eggs)
pinch salt
125g caster sugar
3/4 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 tsp white wine vinegar
3/4 tsp cornflour
Method
Preheat the oven to 170°C, conventional. Spread out the flaked almonds for the meringue on a baking tray and roast for 10 minutes, until they are a light golden brown. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
Increase the oven temperature to 180°C conventional. Line the base and sides of a high-sided 17cm round tin (with a removable base) with baking paper.
Place the butter, sugar and lemon zest in the bowl of an electric mixer with the paddle attachment in place. Beat on a medium-high speed, until light and creamy. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, and beat until combined. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together into a bowl. Add the coconut and stir to combine. With the machine on a low speed, gradually add the dry ingredients to the butter mix, alternating with the milk and vanilla.
Scrape the batter into the prepared tin – it will only rise about a fifth of the way up the sides – and smooth the top evenly. Place in the oven and cook for 25 minutes or until the cake is fully cooked and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
When the cake is cooked, remove it from the oven and turn the temperature up to 200°C conventional. Gently lay the apricot slices on top of the cake.
Meringue
Place the egg whites and salt in a clean bowl of an electric mixer with the whisk attachment in place. Beat on a medium-high speed for about 1 minute until soft peaks form. Add the sugar, a tablespoon at a time, and continue to whisk on a high speed until the egg whites are stiff and glossy. Add the vanilla, vinegar and cornflour and whisk again until combined. Finally, fold in the toasted flaked almonds.
Place the egg whites and salt in a clean bowl of an electric mixer with the whisk attachment in place. Beat on a medium-high speed for about 1 minute until soft peaks form. Add the sugar, a tablespoon at a time, and continue to whisk on a high speed until the egg whites are stiff and glossy. Add the vanilla, vinegar and cornflour and whisk again until combined. Finally, fold in the toasted flaked almonds.
Scrape the meringue into the cake tin, on top of the fruit, and spread out evenly over the fruit. Swirl the meringue around so you get rough waves and peaks, then place in the oven. Immediately lower the oven temperature to 180°C conventional and bake for 35 minutes, or until the meringue has formed a hard crust and is just beginning to brown.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the cake tin for at least 30 minutes before pushing up the removable base to release the cake. Peel away the parchment paper, place on a platter, and serve.
See you all again next week with some more baking from my kitchen.
Bye for now,
Jillian
browned butter pecan frangipane tart
20 Nov 2023
My household is a small one so a 23cm tart is way too big, even when I share it with my neighbours and workmates. I've long wanted a shallow 15.5cm tart tin as its exactly half the dimensions of a 23 cm tin. When I was in Paris I made a beeline to A. Simon and purchased a De Buyer perforated tart tin, which is impossible to find in Sydney. Since my return, I've been looking for a reason to use the tin, then suddenly realised that Thanksgiving is upon us. 
I love frangipane tarts so I used Claire's tart as inspiration but adapted my own recipe to come up with this browned butter pecan frangipane tart. I thought the filling might be a bit overwhelming if it was made entirely from pecans so I used half almond meal and half toasted pecan meal. I toasted the pecans for about 8 minutes in a 190°C, conventional oven, then ground them in my mini food processor.
Here's the recipe for you which makes a 15.5 cm tart. For all my recipes I use a 250ml cup and a 20 ml tablespoon, unsalted butter and 60g eggs. My oven is a conventional gas oven so if your oven is fan forced you may need to reduce the oven temperature by 20°C. If you'd like to make a 23cm tart, the quantity of pastry in the recipe is sufficient to make a 23cm shell. For the filling, use a whole egg, and double the rest of the filling ingredients. The bake time will stay the same.
Browned butter pecan frangipane tart – makes a 15.5 cm tart
Pastry
60g cold unsalted butter
1 cup plain flour
pinch of salt
2 tbs cold water
Frangipane
65g unsalted butter
50g raw caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg yolk
50g almond or toasted pecan meal or a mixture of both
pinch salt
2 tsp flour
1½ tsp rum
Topping
75g whole pecans
1 tbs maple syrup
flaky sea salt
To serve
cream
candied rosemary leaves (optional)
Pastry
You’ll only need about half of the pastry dough to make a 15.5 cm tart. The pastry freezes well so just wrap the remaining pastry in plastic wrap and store in the freezer.
Combine the butter, flour and salt in a food processor and process a few times until the butter is coarsely chopped. Add sufficient water and process just until a dough starts to form around the blade. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate the pastry for an hour before rolling out thinly - 3mm thick - on a floured benchtop. Line a greased 15.5 cm flan tin with the pastry then return to the fridge for another 30 minutes while making the filling. Trim excess pastry.
Frangipane
Chop the butter and place in a microwave safe bowl. Cover and cook on high for about 4 minutes until the butter has browned and smells nutty. Set aside to cool. You can also do this step in a small saucepan on the stove. You will need 50g of the cooled brown butter for this recipe.
In a small bowl, mix together the still liquid browned butter, the sugar and vanilla. Add the egg yolk followed by the nut meal, salt, flour and rum. You should end up with a very soft paste. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes to firm the mixture.
Tart
Preheat the oven to 190°C, conventional. Fill the pastry shell with the frangipane mixture stopping about ½ cm from the top, then level the surface with a knife. Arrange the pecans decoratively over the frangipane. Brush the maple syrup over the pecans then sprinkle with a few sea salt flakes.
If you'd like your tart shiny, then glaze again with maple syrup just before serving. Serve with cream.
I decided to gild the lily a little and topped the tart with a sprig of candied rosemary left over from another project. Just a warning, this is not a very sweet dessert, in fact it's almost savoury, so you might want to increase the sugar in the filling to 75g.
The finished tart looks pretty impressive but it's easy to make.
Happy Thanksgiving to my US readers and see you all again next week with some more baking from my kitchen.
Bye for now,
Jillian
lemon meringue pie bars
12 Nov 2023
When I opened my copy of 'Love is a Pink Cake' by Claire Ptak and saw a photo of the lemon meringue pie bars, I knew I had to make them. I've been making lemon squares for at least 20 years and love lemon meringue pie, so this recipe seemed to combine the best of both worlds. My friend Liane, who passed away last year, loved my tart lemon squares and I just know she would have loved this lemon meringue version.
This is not the original recipe, which you can find here. I made a half batch of the lemon meringue bars which I baked in a 7 inch square tin. I used my own tried and true shortbread base and cut down the sugar in the filling substantially because I wanted the filling to be quite tart. I also lined the base with lightly greased non-stick foil rather than baking paper and while it worked well, it retained heat so the edges were a little too brown. I just trimmed the edges a little but next time, I'd reduce the bake time by 5 minutes or so.
Here's my version of Claire's recipe for lemon merigue pie bars which yields 8 bars. For all my recipes I use a 250ml cup and a 20 ml tablespoon, unsalted butter and 60g eggs. My oven is a conventional gas oven so if your oven is fan forced you may need to reduce the oven temperature by 20°C.
Lemon meringue pie bars - makes 8
Shortbread base
150g plain flour
40g icing sugar
pinch salt
150g plain flour
40g icing sugar
pinch salt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
110g unsalted butter, cold, cut into cubes
110g unsalted butter, cold, cut into cubes
Lemon filling
25g plain flour
¾ tsp baking powder
150g caster sugar
2 eggs
2 lemons, zested and juiced (you need 85g lemon juice)
Meringue topping
2 egg whites
100g caster sugar
3 tsp golden syrup
Pinch of salt
3 tsp vanilla extract
Method
Preheat the oven to 190°C, conventional and grease and line a 7x7in tin with baking paper or non-stick foil. Do not cut the corners of the paper to fit the tray, just line as tightly as possible so that the paper comes above the edge of the tray on all sides. If using foil, lightly grease the foil.
To make the filling, put the flour, baking powder and caster sugar into a large bowl and use a whisk to combine. Add the eggs and lemon juice and whisk again. Strain the mixture into a clean bowl and stir in the lemon zest.
As soon as the base is baked, remove from the oven, carefully pour the filling over the base and return to the oven. Immediately lower the temperature to 170°C, conventional and bake for about 30 minutes, or until the top is set; it should be slightly firm and lightly golden. Remove from the oven and allow the slice to cool completely.
Meanwhile, put all the ingredients for the meringue topping into a heatproof bowl and place over a saucepan of boiling water (do not let the water touch the bottom of the bowl or it will cook the egg whites). Whisk continuously until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is very warm to the touch. If using a sugar thermometer, whisk continuously for 2 minutes, or until it reads 70-75°C, whichever comes first. Transfer to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment to whip the mixture into stiff, glossy peaks.
Put the marshmallow into a piping bag fitted with your favourite nozzle. Pipe or spoon the meringue onto the cooled lemon filling. You can either cover the entire tray or slice into 8 bars first and then pipe each one individually, as we do at the bakery. If you have a blowtorch, torch the top of the meringue, or if you're brave you can pop it under the grill for 30 seconds or so to get the same effect.
These are best enjoyed on the same day but will keep at room temperature for 24 hours.
As expected these were very good - melting shortbread base, tart lemon filling and fluffy meringue. If you look closely, you'll see the meringue has split a bit. This has nothing to do with the recipe but with the cook whose arms gave out after 7 minutes of whipping the meringue using electric hand beaters. I reckon the meringue needed 10-15 minutes of whipping to be stable. Memo to self - remember to use a stand mixer next time.
See you all again next week with some more baking from my kitchen.
Bye for now,
Jillian
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