louise cake with plums and coconut

louise cake with plums and coconut

25 Feb 2019

When my copy of Sweet arrived, the baking book by Ottolenghi and Helen Goh, my eyes were drawn to the Louise Cake with plums. I just had to wait patiently until plums came back into season. Traditionally a Louise Cake is made with raspberry jam, so don't let the absence of fresh plums hold you back.



The cake or slice has 3 parts - a lemon flavoured base/a layer of fruit or jam and a topping of coconut meringue. I decided to hold true to tradition and used flaked coconut in the topping instead of the toasted flaked almonds in the version found in Sweet.



I also added an additional step, dredging the plum slices with sugar before baking. I bake with plums all the time and sometimes they can be unexpectedly tart.



I decided to make a small batch of Louise cake which I baked in a 7 inch square tin without a removable base. I was concnerned the slce might implode upon removal but cooling it for an hour in the fridge seemed to do the trick

Here's the recipe for you. For all my recipes I use a 250 ml cup, 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.

Louise cake with plums and coconut - adapted from a recipe from Sweet
Ingredients
60 g unsalted butter, softened and cut into 2 cm cubes
50 g caster sugar
½ tsp lemon zest
1 egg
60 g plain flour
¾ tsp baking powder
pinch salt
10 g desiccated coconut
40 ml whole milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Filling
5 small dark red plums, ripe but firm or peaches, apricots, cherries, etc.
Extra sugar

Meringue
30 g flaked coconut
70g egg whites 
pinch salt
92 g caster sugar
½ tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp vinegar
½ tsp cornflour

Method
Heat the oven to 180ºC.  Line the base and sides of a high-sided cake tin (preferably with a removable base) with baking parchment. You can use either a 7 inch square or a 17cm round tin.

To make the cake place the butter, sugar and lemon zest into a food processor and mix until the butter is light and creamy. Add the egg and process until combined. In a separate bowl, sift the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the shredded coconut and combine well. Pour the flour mixture, the milk and vanilla into the food processor and whiz to make a soft batter. Pour the batter into the prepared cake tin and even the top with a spoon.  Bake for 20-25 minutes until lightly golden or when a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

While the cake cools down, prepare the plums. Divide each plum vertically in half. Discard the stones and then slice every half into four segments. If you use smaller plums or cherries, then just quarter each fruit. Dredge the plums with sugar and place to one side while you prepare the meringue.

To make the meringue, in the bowl of a stand mixer whisk the egg whites and salt on medium-high speed until soft peaks from. Add the sugar a tbs at a time and continue whisking on a high speed until the egg whites become stiff and glossy. Add the vanilla, vinegar and cornflour and whisk again. Finally, add most of the coconut flakes reserving a few tbs for the topping. 

Arrange the plum pieces on top of the cake, close to each other and cut side down.  Try not to overlap the fruit; otherwise, it will make the middle layer of the cake watery. Distribute the meringue on top of the plums. Swirl the meringue around in order to get rough waves and peaks. Sprinkle over a few coconut flakes.

Bake for 35-40 minutes at 180º C or until the meringue has formed a crust and is lightly coloured. If the meringue is browning too quickly you may need to shield the top with a piece of baking paper. Remove the cake from the oven and allow it to cool for at least 30 minutes before removing from the tin.  Cut into 9 squares to serve.



This is a very tasty treat with a bit of a tang from the plums. The cake is best served on the day but it can be stored for up to 2 days in the fridge in an airtight tin. I'm now going to work on a version for Passover probably using jam rather than fresh fruit but we shall see. 

Anyway I'll be back again next week with some more baking from my kitchen.

Bye for now,

Jillian

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chocolate rosemary olive oil cake

chocolate rosemary olive oil cake

18 Feb 2019

I've been making a few gluten-free (GF) goodies of late but I've never used a commercial GF flour before. I bought a pack of GF flour a few weeks ago and decided to try it out making something pretty easy - a one bowl cake recipe from Julia Busutill Nishimura.



I've used rosemary with chocolate before but I reduced the amount in the recipe just a little.



I found I needed to use a bit more liquid than suggested in the recipe. I guess that's because the GF flour was primarily rice based. No-one else commented but I could definitely detect a grainy texture in the finished cake however the dark chocolate ganache topping covered a multitude of sins.



Here's the recipe for you which makes a small bundt cake. For all my recipes I use a 250 ml cup, 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.



Chocolate Rosemary Olive Oil  Cake - adapted from here
Ingredients
100 ml extra virgin olive oil
1 egg
150g natural yoghurt+ 2 extra tbs
150g caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
150g self-raising flour (GF)
25g dutch cocoa powder
1 tsp finely chopped rosemary, plus extra to serve

Ganache
75g 70% chocolate, finely chopped
50ml pouring cream

Method
Preheat oven to 180°C and grease and flour a small bundt tin. 

In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, egg, yoghurt, sugar and vanilla until combined.

Sift flour and cocoa into wet ingredients and add rosemary. Mix well to combine. Pour into prepared tin and bake for 40-45 minutes or until a skewer comes out just clean. Cool slightly in tin and turn out onto wire rack to completely cool.

Meanwhile, heat the cream until just begins to simmer. Take off heat and pour over chocolate. Leave to sit for a couple of minutes and then stir until all the chocolate has melted. Set aside for 10 minutes to cook and thicken slightly. Pour over cake and let drip down the sides. Top the cake with extra rosemary sprigs and flowers. 



The rosemary and olive oil gives an intriguing savoury note to this cake. I wasn't keen on the grainy texture from the GF flour though, so I'd love to remake this some time using regular flour.

See you all again next week with some more baking from my kitchen.

Bye for now,

Jillian

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mini pavlovas

mini pavlovas

11 Feb 2019

With Valentine's Day just around the corner the time had come to make some individual pavlovas. I always had loads of trouble baking meringue in my old gas oven. The flame would go out all the time, making meringues into a very long and slow process. I've had my new oven for 2 years now and haven't tried making a pavlova in all that time. 



I like mini desserts, so instead of making one large pavlova I decided to make 6 individual pavlovas. I measured everything out the night before and in no time at all I had a bowl of fluffy white meringue that I wrangled into 6 small pavlovas.



My new oven goes from 160°C to 'low' and I had no idea what that temperature was, but that's what I used. It must be quite low, because after an hour the meringues still weren't quite dry to the touch. The mini pavlovas took 1½ hours to bake, then I left them in the turned off oven to dry.

Traditionally a pavlova is topped with whipped cream and passionfruit or strawberries as it needs something tart and fresh to counter balance all that sugar. I served the pavlovas with whipped cream, raspberries and a shard of bitter chocolate flecked with toasted coconut. 



If you'd like to make some mini pavlovas for the special people in your life, here's the recipe for you. For all my recipes I use a 250 ml cup, 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.

Mini pavlovas – makes 6

Ingredients
2 egg whites 
Pinch of salt
110 g (½ cup) caster sugar 
½ tsp white vinegar 
2 tsp cornflour 
½ tsp vanilla extract 
150 mls thickened cream, whipped 
1 punnet raspberries, washed and dried
Chocolate curls, if desired

Method
Preheat the oven (conventional) to 180°C/350°F. Line a flat baking tray with baking paper and using a 7 cm ramekin as your guide, mark out 6 circles on the paper. Flip the paper over and use this as your template.

In a large clean dry bowl, beat egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff. Add the caster sugar gradually, one heaped tablespoon at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat for a further 5 minutes or until the sugar has completely dissolved and the meringue is white and fluffy. Stir in the vinegar, cornflour and vanilla essence.

Pile or pipe the meringue mixture onto the baking tray, keeping within the marked circles. Smooth the tops so they resemble flat cakes. 

Place the pavlovas in the oven and immediately reduce the oven temperature to 130°C/275°F or the lowest setting for your oven and bake for 1¼ - 1½ hours or until the pavlovas are dry and very lightly coloured. Turn the oven off and allow the pavlovas to cool completely in the switched off oven.



When cool, remove the pavlovas from the baking paper and store in an airtight container. Just before serving, top the pavlovas with the lightly whipped cream and berries and a shard of chocolate, if desired. 

See you all again next week with some more baking from my kitchen.

Bye for now,

Jillian

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peach melba yoghurt pops

peach melba yoghurt pops

4 Feb 2019

Now I know for some of my readers you're shivering through a snowy winter but it's summer time here in Australia. It's been a blisteringly hot summer in Sydney so I've been eating loads of salads and food that can be quickly cooked or reheated. For dessert it's been mangoes and popsicles! 



I bought some popsicle moulds just before Christmas but needed to clear out my freezer before I had enough room in which to fit the moulds. Friday night saw me tossing out items I couldn't identify or knew had been in there for way too long. I located some frozen raspberries in the deep freeze and after I rummaged through the fridge I found I had peaches and yoghurt as well, so peach melba popsicles it was.



I don't have a regular blender so I puréed the fruit using my stick blender. The Greek yoghurt I used was quite tart as were the raspberries so I needed to add something to sweeten the popsicles. I added some honey, but you could use sugar or any other sweetener that won't overpower the flavour of the fruit. The most difficult part of making the popsicles? The time you have to wait for them to freeze!





Here's the recipe for you, which makes 8 popsicles. For all my recipes I use a 250ml cup and a 20ml table spoon. You'll need a blender, 8 x 1/3 cup popsicle moulds and 8 wooden popsicle sticks

Peach Melba Yoghurt Pops – makes 8

Ingredients
1⅓ cup plain Greek yoghurt
Runny honey or caster sugar to taste
150g fresh or frozen raspberries
1 medium peach, peeled and chopped
1 tsp vanilla extract

Method
Combine yoghurt and honey, adjust the sweetness as desired, then divide into 3 bowls. Place a ¼ cup yoghurt into the first bowl for the raspberry layer. Place ¾ cup in the second bowl for the vanilla yoghurt layer then put the remaining ⅓ cup into a bowl for the peach layer. 

Place a few raspberries in the base of each popsicle mould. Puree the remaining raspberries in a blender until smooth, then strain through a fine sieve into the bowl containing a ¼ cup yoghurt and stir to combine with the yoghurt mixture. Put into the fridge until needed.

Puree the peeled peach in the blender, then add to the ⅓ cup yoghurt mixture and stir to combine. Pour the peach mixture over the whole raspberries. Freeze for about 20 minutes. Mix the vanilla into the ¾ cup of yoghurt and pour over the peach layer. Freeze for a further 30 minutes before topping with the raspberry yoghurt layer. Freeze until firm but not completely frozen, then insert a popsicle stick into each mould and freeze until set. 

To unmould, dip base of moulds in cold water and slide out the popsicles.


See you all again next week with some more baking from my kitchen.

Bye for now,

Jillian

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lamington cupcakes

lamington cupcakes

28 Jan 2019

I've been looking forward to the Australia Day long weekend pretty much since I returned to work in the New Year. I planned to make a lamington roll to share with you and was so organised, I baked it a week early. It was an absolute disaster and as I was going away for the Long Weekend it looked as though I'd have nothing to share with you.



I came home a little earlier than planned and went straight to the kitchen to make Plan B, some lamington cupcakes from the Cook and Baker. I adapted the recipe a little; halved the recipe and added a buttermilk soak. The cupcakes didn't rise a great deal and as I was pretty tired, I wasn't sure if I'd used plain flour instead of self raising, so I went to bed in 2 minds whether to make something else for you or complete the process. In the end I did both!



I've had no lunch or breakfast so my caloric intake today has consisted of chocolate icing, coconut, whipped cream and cups of tea. I've literally just finished cleaning the mess made from dipping the cakes in chocolate icing. I can't tell you how many times I've swept the floor in a futile attempt to remove all the coconut from the kitchen floor. I now remember why I only make lamingtons once a year. It's a real fiddle but the end result is pretty delicious.



Here's the recipe for you, slightly adapted from original recipe from The Cook and Baker and you'll need to start this process a day ahead. If you don't feel like making jam from scratch, shop bought is fine.

For all my recipes I use a 250 ml cup, 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.

Cake
300 g (10½ oz/2 cups) self-raising flour
40 g (1½ oz/1⁄3 cup) cornflour (cornstarch)
pinch salt
340 g (12 oz) unsalted butter, softened
330 g (11¾ oz/1½ cups) caster (superfine) sugar
1 teaspoon natural vanilla extract
4 eggs, at room temperature
200 mls milk

Buttermilk Soak
1/4 cup milk 
½ cup buttermilk
3 tsp caster sugar 
½ tsp vanilla extract

Lamington Dip
160 g (5¾ oz/1½ cups) dark cocoa powder
500 g (1 lb 2 oz/4 cups) icing (confectioners’) sugar
100 g (3½ oz/2⁄3 cup) chopped dark chocolate 
500 ml (17 fl oz/2 cups) boiling water 

To serve
320 g (11¼ oz/1 cup) Berry Jam 
350 g (12 oz/5 1⁄3 cups) thread (shredded) coconut, for coating  
Whipped Cream, to serve

Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Lightly grease and flour two 12-hole standard 250 ml (9 fl oz/1 cup) muffin tins.

Sift together the flour, cornflour and salt, and set aside. Use an electric mixer with a beater attachment to beat the butter and caster sugar until pale and creamy. Add the vanilla and then beat in the eggs one at a time. If the mix starts to curdle, add a tablespoon of the sifted flour. Fold in the rest of the sifted dry ingredients, then add the milk and mix until just incorporated.

Spoon the batter into the prepared tins. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the sponge springs back when gently pressed on top. While the cakes are baking prepare the buttermilk soak. Combine all the ingredients in a small jug and stir until the caster sugar is dissolved. Cool the cakes for about 10 minutes in the tins before turning out. Place the cakes on a rack over a tray to catch any drips. Using a fine skewer, poke a few holes in the top of each cake before spooning a few teaspoons of the buttermilk soak over each cake. Allow the cakes to cool completely before storing overnight in the fridge in an airtight container.

For the lamington dip: Sift the cocoa powder and icing sugar into a medium bowl. Add the chopped dark chocolate and pour over the boiling water,½ cup at a time until you reach the right dipping consistency. Whisk until combined and the chocolate has melted. Strain through a sieve to remove any lumps and allow to cool. If the mixture is too thick just add a little more boiling water.

To assemble: Cut each sponge in half and sandwich together with the raspberry jam. Carefully dip each one into the lamington dip, drain off any excess chocolate and roll in the coconut threads to coat. Place on a wire rack to dry. Serve with whipped cream.

Note: Store in an airtight container for up to 2-3 days.




Berry Jam
Makes about 1.25 kg (2 lb 12 oz/4 cups) • Preparation time 30 minutes plus 10 minutes standing time • Cooking time 40 minutes

Ingredients
1 vanilla bean
1 kg (2 lb 4 oz/8 cups) raspberries and strawberries (halved) fresh or frozen
495 g (1 lb 1½ oz/2¼ cups) caster (superfine) sugar
juice of 1 lemon

Split the vanilla bean in half lengthways, then scrape the seeds from the halves using the tip of a sharp knife.

In a heavy-based saucepan, put the berries, sugar, lemon juice, vanilla bean and seeds, and 125 ml (4 fl oz/½ cup) water. Stir constantly over low heat until the sugar is dissolved, approximately 5 minutes.

Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat. Simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, for approximately 20-25 minutes until the mixture will jell when tested on a cold saucer.

Discard the vanilla bean. Stand the jam for 10 minutes to settle before pouring into hot sterilised jars.

Note: Store in a cool, dark place for up to 12 months. Once opened, keep in the fridge and use within 1 month.



I hope you enjoyed your Australia Day Long Weekend. See you all again next week with some more baking from my kitchen.

Bye for now,

Jillian

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apricot and almond cake with a cinnamon topping

apricot and almond cake with a cinnamon topping

21 Jan 2019

Christmas heralds the all too brief apricot season. I spent Christmas in Brisbane and when I returned home to Sydney, I spied some beautiful apricots in the fruit shop. I came home with a dozen, determined to turn them into an apricot cake. 



I looked through my copy of the Cook's Companion by Stephanie Alexander and came across the Mieze's plum cake recipe. I've made something similar to this before and wondered how it would work if I used apricots instead? I found an apricot and almond cake recipe in Sweet, which looked very similar to the plum cake recipe, so decided to give it a go.



I made the cake and took it with me to our New Year's Eve beach picnic which unfortunately was washed out. I left without trying a piece of the cake and decided to make it again, this time for my work colleagues.


Here's the recipe for you which makes an 8 inch cake. For all my recipes I use a 250 ml cup, 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. 

Apricot and almond cake with a cinnamon topping (adapted from Stephanie Alexander recipe for Mieze’s Plum Cake) 

Topping 
5-6 large apricots halved and stoned 
50g caster sugar 
½ tsp ground cinnamon 
30g unsalted butter 
pinch salt 
1 large egg 
25g ground almonds 

Cake 
125g unsalted butter, softened 
100g caster sugar 
finely grated zest of 1 small lemon  
1 tsp vanilla extract 
2 large eggs 
70g self-raising flour 
70g plain flour 
Pinch salt 
1-tbs milk or yoghurt 

Method
To make the topping, combine the sugar, cinnamon in a small bowl. Sprinkle one tbs of the cinnamon sugar over the cut surface of the apricots. Set to one side. Melt the butter in a small saucepan and add the remaining cinnamon sugar and salt. Stir to combine, and then remove from the heat. Allow to cool for 5 minutes, stir through the beaten egg and set aside. 

Preheat the oven to 190°C and grease an 8 inch/20cm round spring-form tin and line with baking paper. Place the butter, sugar, lemon zest and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer and mix until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl a few times. Sift the flours and salt into another bowl, reduce the speed of the mixer to low and add the dry ingredients to the creamed mix. The mixture should be of a dropping consistency so if the mixture is looking too dry add a tablespoon or 2 of milk or yoghurt.  

Spoon the batter into prepared tin (it should not fill more than a quarter of the depth, as the cake rises a great deal), smooth the top and sprinkle over ground almonds. Arrange the apricot halves on top, cut side facing up, starting around the outside edge of the tin and working towards the centre, then spoon the cinnamon topping over and around the apricots. 



Bake at 190°C for about 1 hour, or until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. Set aside for 20 minutes in the tin to cool before removing and serving warm, with some cream alongside if desired. 

I took this into work worried that the apricots might be a bit too tangy and the cake too dry. The apricots were tangy but in a good way and the longer the cake was stored the more moist and delicious it became. Next summer when apricots are back in abundance I'll definitely be making this cake again.

See you all again next week with some more sweet treats from my kitchen.

Bye for now,

Jillian

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