Cupboard Flapjacks

Not a lot left in the cupboard today until the lovely orange and white van arrives tomorrow to fill our home with goodies. 

So I've decided to risk the furnace we call an oven and make some chewy, yummy flapjacks. 

250g Porridge Oats

125g Dairy free spread or butter

90g Golden syrup

90g Light brown sugar

75g Berries and cherries

75g Chopped Pecans

Melt the butter/spread in a saucepan with the golden syrup and sugar until all melted and gooey.

Stir in the oats, nuts and fruit and pour into a lined baking tin and bake for 30 minutes on 170c. Allow to cool in the tin completely before cutting into squares. Enjoy with a cuppa and a good book. 

Chebtia

A tunisian vegetable and lamb pattie. These could easily be made meat free and are totally delicious. They have a beautiful crunchy outside and yummy imside. I would serve these with some greek yoghurt swirled with harissa or a lovely cucumber and yoghurt dressing. Nice hot or cold or stuffed into a warm pitta bread filled with crunchy salad! 

Bunch of Parsley

Bunch of Dill

4 x Spring onions

500g Chard or spinach if you can't find chard. 

1 cup of Peas fresh or frozen

3 cloves of Garlic chopped

1 cup of Couscous

1 cup of Cornmeal or fine polenta or semolina. 

1 heaped dessert spoon of paprika or cayenne depending how spicy you like it. 

Seasoning of salt and black pepper

1 tsp of Turmeric

Small pieces of lamb liver or half a tin chickpeas. 

2 or 3 Eggs to bind the mix. Add another egg if you feel the mix is not moist enough to come together. But keep in mind the couscous will absorb the egg. 

Pop the chard, spring onions, garlic and herbs pulse in a food processor with the fine couscous. But don't over blitz it you want them combined not pulverised. Add the chickpeas at this stage if using. 

Chop the liver  and mix with the  paprika/cayenn, seasoning, turmeric, semolina and eggs. Then in a very large bowl mix in with the chopped herbs etc and make into patties and fry in oil until deep brown and crispy. 

Traditionally served as they are hot with a spicy tomato sauce as my family do. These are packed full of veg and are so tasty. Easily omit the liver to make this a lovely veggie dish. Or swap it with some minced chicken breast. I like a squirt of lemon over them when I eat them piping hot as they come. 

Florentines

Florentines (my version)

50g butter (I like slightly salted)

50g golden caster sugar

50g golden syrup 

50g plain flour or ground almonds

25g dried cranberries

25g sour cherries, finely chopped

25g dried apricots, chopped

25g blanched almonds, finely chopped

25g pecan pieces, finely chopped 

200g white chocolate 

Melt butter, sugar and golden syrup into a small pan over a low heat. Then stir in the flour and dried fruit and nuts.

On a baking sheet lined with baking parchment place small piles or the mix using two teaspoon. Bake in a preheated oven at 180 for bake for 8 minutes and remove from oven. Leave to cool for 5 minutes (not longer) and then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Once totally cooled melt the white chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Then with a teaspoon, put a small amount of the chocolate onto the back of each  biscuit and using a fork to make a pattern of ridges through the melted chocolate. Leave to set on the rack chocolate side up. 

You can also substitute dried blueberries, dried melon, mango or pineapple. 

Couscous BesBes

BesBes is actually fennel and this dish used the leaf stems rather than the bulb. My family usually cut up the bulb and wash it and serve it as a dessert snack at the end of the meal to crunch on and it's actually very delicious. I am not a fan of fennel usually but this dish is my rock solid favourite thing ever!! 

Couscous BesBes

Two dried red chillies 

1dessert spoon ground caraway seeds

Three cloves of garlic roughly chopped 

1tsp Salt

Pound up together to make a paste in a pestle and mortar or if your like me blitz in food processed/chopper lightly. 

4 x Sundried tomatoes soaked in water and blitzed with a few tablespoons of water to make a watery paste. Add a couple of fresh chopped tomatoes to this paste. 

Fry in a generous amount if olive oil a chopped onion and green chilli add paste and tomato mix and 1tsp turmeric and fry all together.  

Meanwhile steam couscous over water for approx 10-15 mins.

My mother inlaw prepares the couscous prior to steaming by placing it in a large bowl, and running through with her hands a few tablespoons of water to coat the grains making sure they don't clump together. She then pops it in the steamer/colander over a large pan of boiling water. Once it's steamed for 10-15 mind tip the couscous back into the large bowl. 

Steam separately approx 500g of fennel tops with a small diced carrot and a hand full of peas and a bunch of spring onions or a medium chopped onion for about 7 minutes. Then top with the couscous back over the steamer whilst sauce is bubbling away. 

When the peas and carrots are tender. Tip couscous and greens into a bowl and mix thoroughly. Making sure the Fennel is really mixed through the couscous. Then add the sauce made from the spices etc and mix through the couscous until completely coated. 

Then serve. 

Potato Ojja

Potato Ojja is my most favourite meal after a roast beef dinner. It's delicious, cheap and fast.

This generously serves two hungry people. 

2 baking potatoes, diced small

2 tomatoes, diced small

4 fat cloves of garlic, finely chopped.

Olive oil

2tsp Cayenne pepper or medium chilli powder

1tsp Ground Coriander 

2 fat green chillies, roughly diced.

Pop some oil in a sauce pan and get nice and got, put diced potatoe into pile and mix, let the potato fry until it changes colour and softens. Add diced tomato and garlic and mix well. Add spices and mix again and a dash of water to loosen. Allow to cook down and thicken. Once everything has melded together add chopped chillies and let cook for 5 minutes. Serve with lots of bread and sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley. 

Yum!! 

Swiss meringue buttercream

Now I'll be honest until fairly recently I used to eat my cupcakes unadorned. Maybe a smear of tooth achingly sweet buttercream as a nod to the sugar fairies. Tradition English buttercream has its place but Oh my Goodness it can really overwhelm a little cupcake, if loaded up with sugary whipped butter. Buttercream has its place in my life but not (for me anyway) on top of my beautiful light, moist bites of heavenly sponge.
I didn't know I was looking for an alternative, until I stumbled across Italian Meringue Buttercream, which I've already written about on my blog. This was the answer I was looking for! Silky, light almost like sweet whipped air. Now I still love IMBC, but I'm now a complete convert to SMBC, and with lots of recipes online you can't fail. But they all seem really labour intensive? Worry no more. In my quest for deliciousness I came across the basic recipes by Fair Cake and The Gourmet Cupcake Company and adapted them slightly to suit my preferences. All you need is an electric hand whisk or stand mixer such as a Kitchenaid which do all the work for you.

Equipment:
Stand mixer with whisk attachment or electric hand whisk.
Large, clean grease free heatproof bowl.
Small to medium saucepan of water
Balloon whisk
Spatula
Sugar thermometer if you have one. If not font panic.

This will make enough frosting for 24 cupcakes or 1 x 8" cake.

Ingredients
250gms butter (I prefer to use salted)
120gms Golden caster sugar - you can use white caster if preferred
1tsp vanilla extract
2 Large Egg whites. Freeze the yolks for another day. I hate waste.

The nitty gritty:
Place caster sugar to egg whites into your a bowl. Your making this icing over a method called a Bain Marie or double boiler. Place your saucepan on the stove and pop the bowl on top so it perches nicely on the pan but with the base of the bowl not touching the water.
Now with your electric hand or balloon whisk beat the eggs and sugar over the hot water until it turns from opaque to thick and white. Do this until the sugar dissolves in the egg whites. Test this by pinching the meringue between your thumb and finger. You should not be able to feel any granules from the sugar. If you have a sugar thermometer pop it in and the meringue should reach 60C or 140F when its ready. This process doesn't take too long so do give it a go.

Take the bowl off the saucepan and scrape the meringue mix into your stand mixer bowl if using or pop the bowl onto a folded tea towel on your work surface to stabilise it. Beat for 10 minutes on high speed. Feel the bottom of the bowl to check the temperature from time to time. When it's cool to the touch its ready. By then you should have fluffy clouds of meringue in your bowl.

You can stop here and pip this onto Lemon Cupcakes filled with homemade lemons curd and then using a gas gun quickly blast the swirl of meringue you've piped into it and you have a luscious lemon meringue cupcake.

Or you can take it one step further to heaven and add the butter. Chop all 250g into rough cubes. Approximately 16 pieces. Make sure the bowl is cool to the touch or the butter will melt as you start adding it to the meringue. Start
to add one cube of butter at a time. Wait until the butter has been mixed thoroughly before adding another cube. After half the butter has been added the mixture may lose it volume and look curdled. Fear not this just means its going to taste wonderful. Continuing adding the rest of the butter as above. Once its all added approx 5 minutes leave to beat on high for a further 10mins. Yes it's taken a long time but believe me when I say it's 30 minutes you'll happily spend each time you make it once you've tasted what you've made.
Little hint if the bowls really not cool enough before you add the butter feel free to let the mixer beat it until it is. If the mixture still looks curdled its because the butter has melted into the too warm mixtures. But pop it in the fridge for 20 minutes and then beat it again and it should all come together nicely.

Flavour this however you want with Vanilla or some fabulous Foodie Flavours. If you want to colour it please don't use liquid food colouring as it will just make the buttercream running and yucky. Use Sugarflair or Wilton food colouring pastes and gels. Fab, vibrant colours and easily available. Especially online with Amazon or eBay.

Variations to try are

Marshmallow ideal for whoppie pie fillings 4tbs of marshmallow fluff beaten in to your SMBC.

Peanut butter just add a large tablespoon of smooth peanuts butter in and the top a vanilla cupcake filled with seedless raspberry jam.

For Oreo Cream I'd add 4tbs of fluff and half a packet of crushed Oreo cookies folded through at the end and top a nice chocolate cupcake.

Possibilities are endless and you really must try this SMBC adorned on a vanilla cupcake! It's heaven in a mouthful!

www.faircake.co.uk
www.foodieflavours.com
www.gourmetcupcakes.co.uk
My Facebook cake blog is Heather's Cake Crumbs so come and say Hello!!

Rainbows and Butterflies

Rainbows and butterflies! There is nothing sweeter than a beautifully iced and decorated celebration cake and to cut the first slice to reveal the most stunning, vibrant colours inside as well as out.

Ingredients
275g Caster sugar
275g Soft butter
275g Self raising flour
3 Large eggs
1tbs sour cream
1tsp Vanilla extract
1tsp Baking powder
Food colouring gels/paste NOT liquid food colouring.

Cream butter and sugar together and add each egg one at a time beating well at each addition and add the vanilla extract and sour cream. Then add the sifted flour and baking powder and give it a final mix. Don't over beat it! But make sure it's lovely pale and fluffy. Divide batter into 6 bowls and colour in your chosen colours. Remembering to go slightly darker as the cake changes depth of colour once baked.

Now this is where you can play with how the cake works. You can use cupcake cases. This mix should yield approx 18 to 24 standard cupcakes. Or two 7" sandwich tins one 8" deep cake tin.

I'm using the 8" in this one. Line one 8" deep cake tin and select your first colour. Pour batter into the middle of the tin. Then select the next contrasting colour and repeat, pouring each colour into the centre of the previous colour and repeat until all batter has been used. This looks great in graduated shades of the same colour going darker to lighter.

Bake cake in a preheated oven at 160 for 1hr 15mins. Test my putting a skewer in the middle of the cake and if it comes out clean its ready.

Method for cupcakes.
Place a small amount of each coloured cake batter in the case until 3/4 full. Bake for 18 minutes.

7" sandwich tins use 5 colours of cake batter. Grease and line the two tins and place a 5th of batter into each one and spread out evenly. Bake them for 20 mins on 160 until the cakes coming away from the sides of the tin and cooked through with a skewer. Repeat until each colour has been baked and allow to cool and then sandwich the layers with buttercream. And voila!

Another cute method is to do spoonfuls of batter in alternating colours in the large 8" tin and bake as above.