cooking challenge 28: chocolate and date brownies

I absolutely love brownies, and always have. There's something about the rich, moist, melt in your mouth, crumbly sweetness that just knocks my socks off.

I made these as a gift, hence the wrapping, but I ended up eating all the ones that didn't fit in the box. Whoopsies. However, I can still thoroughly recommend these as a gift, or party treat, or just something to whip up and take into work for friends!

You will need:

240g good quality dark chocolate (70%)
1 cup caster sugar
150g unsalted butter
3 eggs, beaten lightly
1/2 cup dried dates, chopped
1 cup plain flour

What to do:

Preheat oven to 180'c and lightly grease a shallow baking tin.

Over a moderate heat in a small saucepan, melt the butter. Remove from heat and add 200g of the chocolate and stir constantly until it is a liquid. Transfer to a small bowl and refrigerate for a maximum of 10 minutes - do not allow the butter to set.

Remove from fridge and stir in sugar, eggs and flour until combined. Add dates and remaining 40g of chocolate. Pour into the prepared baking tin and use a spatula to smooth the surface.

Bake for 30 minutes. Allow to cool before slicing and serving. Dust with cocoa or icing sugar.

Next time I make these, I think I will add macadamia nuts, or ginger, or orange rind. Something to make them just a little more sophisticated. Of course, Baileys would also do the trick...!

challenge 27: tart lemon pie

You will need:

For the lemon filling:

4 lemons (juice and zest)

130g caster sugar

5 eggs

150ml double cream

For the pastry:

250g good quality plain flour

140g unsalted butter - at room temp

60g icing sugar, sifted

3 egg yolks, room temperature

a little water

What to do:

To make the pastry, mix the butter and icing sugar to form a soft paste. Add 2 egg yolks and beat until combined. Sift the flour over the top and use your fingertips to rub it into the butter mix until it reaches the consistency of rolled oats. Add a little dribble of water (approximately a tablespoon - give or take) and use your hands to knead into a firm dough. Don't knead it for more than a few seconds - you really just want to get it to hold together. Wrap in cling film and refrigerate for half an hour.

Preheat the oven to 170'c.

Meanwhile, to make the lemon filling, mix the eggs, juice from the lemons, zest and sugar and whisk until combined and a little frothy. Pour in the cream and continue whisking. Refrigerate.

Remove the pastry from the fridge and, on a lightly floured surface, roll the pastry to approximately 4mm thickness. Lay the pastry gently into a flan tin and prick the base with a fork all over. Blind bake for about 15 minutes, remove from the oven. Take out the rice/beans to expose the pastry base. Use the remaining egg yolk as an egg wash to coat the pastry base. Bake for a further 20 minutes or so.

Meanwhile, transfer the lemon curd mix to a deep saucepan and slowly warm it, on a low heat, stirring constantly to ensure the sugar doesn't catch and the eggs don't curdle. Pour the lemon mixture into the pastry case and bake for a further half hour or so. The tart will have the consistency of just-set jelly when ready. Leave to cool before serving - drift icing sugar and lemon zest over the top before serving with a thick dollop of cream.

Will I make this again - definitely. I haven't yet, because I know I will end up eating 75% of it, but I do think it makes such a great summery treat, and the buttery pastry is the perfect foil to the tartness of the filling. Enjoy!

bacon and leek pasta with mushrooms and spinach

You will need:

3 rashers of rindless bacon

1 leek

a handful of baby spinach leaves

1 onion

2 cloves garlic

10 button mushrooms

1/2 cup single cream

1/4 cup white wine

Olive oil

Prepared Pasta

What to do:

Chop onions, leek, garlic and mushrooms. Julienne the bacon. Rinse the spinach.

In a large frying pan, heat your olive oil and then add the onions, leek, garlic and bacon. Fry for several minutes until the bacon is browned. Add the mushrooms and fry for another five minutes or so. Splash in the white wine and season with salt and pepper. Add spinach. Let the white wine reduce by half, then add the cream. Stir well.

Add to prepared pasta and serve immediately, topped with parmesan cheese.

ice-tastic!

D's sister gave me these ice trays- aren't they sweet? From Ikea, I've got fish and starfishies which now decorate my drinks. Love 'em!

delicious scones

You will need:

250g self-raising flour

pinch of salt

200ml milk

60g unsalted butter

What to do:

Preheat the oven to 200'c.

In a large mixing bowl, sift together the self raising flour and salt. Use your fingertips to mix in the butter, until it has the consistency of breadcrumbs.

Mix in the milk and stir with a wooden spoon until you have a dough. Knead it gently, then roll to the thickness of between 3 - 4 cm. Use a small cup to cut rounds and lay them on a non stick baking tray.

Bake for 10 - 15 minutes until lightly golden.

Scones freeze beautifully - wrap them individually and then just microwave them for 30 seconds before serving with jam and cream. Yum yum!

blue cheese souffle

You will need:

100g good quality blue cheese
30g unsalted butter
2 tablespoons cornflour
300ml milk
2 free range eggs
a little extra flour for dusting
salt and pepper

What to do:

Preheat the oven to 180'c - 200'c.

Melt the butter in a large saucepan, over low heat. Add the flour and stir with a wooden spoon to form a paste. Slowly whisk in the milk and the seasonings and continue stirring until you have a sauce consistency. Remove from the heat and add the yolk from the eggs, and the blue cheese. Stir until combined.

Whisk the egg whites with an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Gently stir the whisked egg whites into the blue cheese mixture, taking care not to lose the fluffy texture of the egg whites. Sprinkle the reserved flour into a couple of ramekins. Ladle the egg mixture in and bake for 25 - 30 minutes. Don't open the oven to check on their progress or they won't cook properly.

Would I make this again? Yes. I can't wait to keep working on this recipe. The flavour was just amazing. I used a very bitey blue, and with the fennel salad, it was a delicious entree.

cooking challenge twenty three: blue cheese souffle

One of the reasons I started this challenge was to learn to make souffles, particularly savoury ones. I was so happy with the flavour of these but I have a fair way to go technically. What they lacked in beauty they made up in taste. Mmm. I served them with a fennel salad and little croutons.
For our main course, we had a salad nicoise with salmon instead of tuna.

And for dessert, we had a rich chocolate ganache cake, topped with hazelnuts and served with double cream and strawberry coulis.

cooking challenge twenty one: chocolate tart

Here's the recipe for the deliciously gooey chocolate tart I made a few weeks ago, as a cooking challenge. This is so beautifully simple, and effective.

You will need:

300g dark cooking chocolate

250ml thick cream

60g unsalted butter, cubed

100g flour

1 egg

pinch of salt

pinch of cinnamon

1 teaspoon of cocoa

2 tablespoons icing sugar

What to do:

To make the pastry, beat the butter, icing sugar and egg together with an electric mixer until pale and well combined. Sift in the flour, cocoa, salt and cinnamon and gently combine using a wooden spoon until a soft dough forms. Knead gently on a bench until you have achieved the right consistency, then wrap firmly in cling film and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 180'c.

Use a rolling pin to flatten the dough to approximately half a centimetre in thickness and drape into a shallow cake tin. Freeze for 10 minutes then blind bake the pastry shell for approximately 20 minutes, until cooked through, then set aside until back to room temperature.

Meanwhile, melt the chocolate in a double boiler, whisking constantly. Add the thickened cream. Once the pastry has cooled, pour the melted chocolate mixture and refrigerate for 4 hours or until firmly set.

Just prior to serving, put it in the freezer for 5 - 10 minutes to firm the chocolate. Use a knife that you've dipped in hot water to slice. Delicious.

I would give this a 10/10. A sure fire hit, easy and quick to make. I have actually made a spare batch of pastry which is in the freezer, and as I always have dark chocolate in the pantry and cream in the fridge (!) I know that I can whip this up whenever I have guests coming on short notice. It is seriously delicious - the crunch of the pastry and the sweet, softness of the chocolate. Divine. Next time, I'm going to blend some crystallized ginger into the pastry mix and put some pistachios into the chocolate.

cooking challenge twenty two: coq au vin

I think there's an air of romance that surrounds this classic French recipe. It's a meal that is said to have existed since Roman times, and immediately makes me think of convivial chatter, friends around a rustic table, crusty baguettes and tasty sauce. Well, friends, the reality was somewhat of a let down. It was nice, but for the amount of preparation fiddling, I can think of a heap of other dishes that are much more satisfying and tasty. I am going to keep tweaking the recipe and my technique, to see if I can make it more to my taste.

Here's the recipe, nonetheless.

(Just a few last tips: You need to start this at least 24 hours before serving. The chicken needs to be cut into 8 pieces. I did this without poultry scissors, but it was hard work. I'd recommend getting your butcher to do this, or buy the equivalent amount of chicken pieces - breast, thighs, wings, drummies etc).

You will need:

1 organic chicken.
4 spare drumsticks
2 tablespoons browned flour
1 teaspoon each of salt, pepper and stock powder.
4 bacon rashers, diced
2 cups button mushrooms, brushed clean
2 cups schallots, peeled
2 celery sticks, sliced into 1cm thick rounds
1 litre Merlot or Shiraz
Parsley

What to do:

Boil the red wine for about 20 minutes, until it has reduced and concentrated. Cool.
Mix all the vegetables except the mushrooms, the boquet garni (I used parsley, thyme and chives) and chicken pieces in a large bowl. Season with salt, pepper and stock. Add the cooled red wine and refigerate, covered, for at least 24 hours.


Strain through a colander, reserving the liquid, then separate the chicken from the other ingredients. Pat dry with paper towel. Discard the boquet garni and reserve the vegetables. Heat some butter in a large frying pan, over moderate heat. Fry the chicken pieces until slightly browned. Remove and set aside. Fry the vegetables off in the same pan, same juices.

Preheat the oven to 180'c.

Transfer the vegetables to a large flame proof, oven proof casserole and add the browned flour. Stir over moderate heat until it has a gluggy consistency. Add 1/3 of the reserved red wine mixture and bring to the boil, stirring constantly. It will thicken and bubble. Add the rest of the wine, and the chicken, and bring back to boil. Cover the casserole dish and transfer to the oven for half an hour or so.

Meanwhile, in the same saucepan you fried the chicken and vegetables, fry off the bacon and mushrooms until crispy and browned. Add to the coq au vin right before serving, as well as the parsley.

I served this with roasted vegetables and garlic bread, as well a beautiful rice pilaf that D's mum makes (I will blog that recipe soon, it's divine!). I'd give this an 6.5/10. I would make it again, but I'd thicken the sauce more, and add something else. Let me think about it... I'll get back to you.

an ode to mum

I absolutely love my mum's style. When I last visited her, I took these snaps and, now that I have internet, I'm able to share them with you too, so you can see how homely and and country chic my mum's kitchen is.

Don't you just want to pull up a chair and have some pumpkin soup? :)