An epic birthday cake

I went home for my Popsy’s birthday and as usual I was put in charge of the puddings. I decided to cook an epic Triple Chocolate Caramel Cake from Olive Magazine. It was surprisingly easy to make. I had to do two batches as I only had two cake tins.

I will say make sure the ganache cools properly. I’m always too impatient and start layering it on and it all drips down the side of the cake.

I would also recommend making slightly smaller sponges- perhaps taking a quarter off each sponge in the ingredients list. The cake was enormous! It tasted really good though and went down well. People opted for having a half of the slices.







Ingredients:
Butter 500g, at room temperature
Golden Caster Sugar 400g
Dark muscovado sugar 100g
Eggs 10
Buttermilk 200ml
Plain flour 250g
Self raising flour 250g
Baking powder 2tsp
Vanilla extract 1 tsp
Cocoa powder 3 ¾ tbsp
Dark Chocolate Ganache
Plain chocolate 400g
Milk chocolate 200g
Double cream 300ml
Whole milk 100ml
Golden syrup 1 tbsp
Butter 25g
Caramel ganache
White chocolate 150g chopped
Nestle Carnation Caramel 150g
Milk Chocolate Ganache
Milk chocolate 150g, chopped
Double cream 100ml
Heat the oven to 170C, fan 150C Gas 3 and a half. Butter and line four 20cm cake tins. Beat 250g butter and 250g of the golden caster sugar until it is light and fluffy. Beat 5 eggs lightly with 100ml of the buttermilk and sift 125g of each flour with 1tsp baking powder. Fold the egg mixture and flour into the butter and sugar in alternate batches. Divide the mixture into two and add the ½ tsp vanilla to one batch and 3tbsp cocoa to the other.
Scoop the chocolate mixture into one tin and level the top. Scoop the vanilla mixture into another tin and level the top.
Beat the remaining butter and caster sugar with the muscovado. Combine the remaining eggs and buttermilk, sift the flours with the baking powder and add them in alternate batches. Divide the mixture in two. Add the remaining ½ tsp of vanilla to one and the remaining ¾ tbsp cocoa to the other. Scoop into the tins and level the top.
To make the dark chocolate ganache, heat the chocolate, cream, milk and syrup in a bowl over (but not touching) a pan of simmering water until the chocolate melts and you have a smooth, shiny mixture. Stir in the butter. Cool until spreadable.
To make the caramel ganache, heat the white chocolate with the caramel in a bowl as above until melted. Cool until spreadable.
To make the milk chocolate ganache, heat the chocolate and cream in a separate bowl as above until melted.
To assemble put the dark chocolate cake on a plate or stand. Spread over the caramel ganache then top with the lighter chocolate cake. Spread over the milk chocolate ganache then top with the caramel cake. Spread a layer of the dark chocolate ganache then top with the vanilla cake. Cover the whole cake with the rest of the dark chocolate ganache. Chill for three to four hours or overnight if you like- this will help the ganaches to set and will give neater slices when you cut the cake. Take out of the fridge an hour before you want to serve.

The other desserts I made were bread and butter pudding- this always goes down well- the recipe is in the November section from last year.
And I also made a apple and oat crumble from Rachel Allen’s book , Bake. It was easy and tasted good. I would recommend.

Apple and Oat Crumble

Serves 6

Ingredients
3-4 large cooking apples, peeled, cored and cut into big chunks
1 tbsp water
2-3 tbsp caster sugar

For the crumble
150g (5oz) plain flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon (optional)
75g (3oz) butter, chilled and cubed
25g (1oz) porridge oats
75g (3oz) soft light brown sugar

1 litre (1 ¾ pint) pie dish or six ramekins

Preheat the oven to 180oC (350oF), Gas mark 4.

Place the apples, water and sugar into a saucepan set over a gentle heat and cook, stirring every minute or so to prevent it sticking, for approximately 10 minutes or until the apples become a soft pulp. Taste and add more sugar if necessary. Transfer into the pie dish or six ramekins and allow to cool slightly.

Next, make the crumble. Place the flour and cinnamon (if using) in a large bowl, add the butter and, using your fingertips, rub it in until the mixture resembles very coarse breadcrumbs. (Don’t rub in too much or the crumble will not be crunchy). Add the oats and sugar and mix to combine, and bake for 15 minutes for small crumbles or 30-40 minutes for a large one until cooked and golden. Serve warm with custard, whipped cream or ice cream.

German markets and lovely food in Edinburgh

ANOTHER glorious weekend away with my old uni pals, and this time we headed up to Edinburgh to visit out delightful pal, Jennie, who kindly let us stay in her parents’ flat. After a rather epic picnic on the train where we devoured pasties, crisps and falafel- we arrived in the beautiful Scottish city and had a mooch around.
In the evening we went to a lovely pub/ restaurant called The Salisbury Arms in Dalkeith Road. It’s got a great atmosphere and a really good menu. It was really busy- but yet it still felt relaxed and cosy.
We were all rather good and only had mains.
I went for the Slow-cooked Pork Belly and Seared Fresh King Scallops, sticky ginger beer glaze, crackling, black pudding, mashed potato, green beans, Bramley apple & vanilla purée (£17.50).

It was delicious and I would highly recommend- the sticky ginger beer glaze added a lovely sweetness to the pork which was well cooked- my only slight criticism was there was a bit too much fat on the pork belly- but that is neither here nor there.
The black pudding was divine as was the lovelyl apple and vanilla puree. A winning dish.

My pals opted for the specials of linguine with a plethora of seafood and the sea bass special which also looked great.

Check it out here http://www.thesalisburyarmsedinburgh.co.uk/

The next day after a lovely breakfast in we went to the Christmas Markets. Daisy was raving about these fried potatoes with bacon and garlic sauce- and they were amazing! Fully recommend if you get the chance to try them at any Christmas market in the country. They are lovely fried discs with the most delicious sauce- but make sure you have your polos to hand. We also tried the Bratwurst, which are pretty good but I prefer traditional English sausages.

That was it for the eating out- we had a lovely homemade chickpea stew in the evening followed by

bacon butties the next morning. Overall a great weekend of eating- made even better by great company.

Lovely place to have afternoon tea in Windsor

AH good old Groupon. My friend Lara and I took up the offer of afternoon tea for two for £13.75 at The Chocolate Theatre Cafe in Windsor. It is half the price it normally is.
We arrived on a dreary Friday to the bustling cafe. It is quite small and a bit cramped so at first I was a bit unsure. But once the glass of bubbling prosecco arrived with a strawberry in it my mood soon lightened.
You get to choose your sandwich from the menu. We were told they were smaller than usual but this just meant one round instead of a round and a half. We shared a bacon, brie and mushroom ciabatta and a Caesar chicken sandwich. Both were delicious and plentiful.
Then onto the scones- two thick fruit scones were served with strawberry jam and thick clotted cream, which were delicious. They also kept the tea flowing.
The staff were really friendly and I really enjoyed the food. It’s not a luxurious affair but the food is too good to pass it by. And for £13.75 for two it was a bargain.

Pesto and chorizo scones

AS featured before in this blog I went to a demonstration from All’Scone- a company set up by a couple called Liam and Grace. They love scones and baking and have released a cook book dedicated to the humble scone. I tried some of their lovely pesto and chorizo scone at the demo and it was delicious served with cream cheese and onion chutney. I decided to give them a go. It was harder than it looked. The chorizo was really hard to crumble up so I ended up chopping it. The good thing was I actually cut them thick enough so they actually looked like scones. Normally I cut them too thin and they look rubbish. They tasted really good straight out of the oven, but they weren’t so good when they were warmed up.

Ingredients
• FOR THE BOWL
• 450g/32/3 cups self-raising flour, plus extra for dusting
• 175g/1½ sticks of butter
• 40g/2 tbsp + 1 tsp golden caster (superfine) sugar
• 2 large pinches of salt
• 2 large pinches of black pepper
• 100g/3½oz Spanish chorizo, skinned
• 1 tbsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp garlic salt
• FOR THE JUG
• 2 large eggs
• 4 tbsp buttermilk, plus extra for brushing
• 3 heaped tsp of basil pesto, plus extra for brushing
• 1 large garlic clove, crushed in a garlic press
• FOR FLAIR
• Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (optional), for sprinkling
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 190°C / 375°F / gas mark 5.
In a bowl, rub the flour and butter together gently through your fingers until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs or, if you want to get the job done, give them a quick whizz in the food processor. Add the sugar, salt and pepper.
Next whip out the chorizo. Our tip is to finely chop, grate or blend it in a food processor - this works better than adding large chunks as it helps to distribute the flavour through the whole scone. Go for a ring of chorizo rather than slices as it packs more flavour. In a small bowl mix the smoked paprika into the chorizo (this helps to elevate the smokiness of the chorizo) and then add this to the mixing bowl with the dry ingredients, along with 1 teaspoon of garlic salt. Mix thoroughly to combine. You will start to see the mixture taking on a red tinge.
In a jug, whisk together the eggs and buttermilk until light and airy. Add the Pesto and garlic to this mix and whisk again to combine. Next the smell test. If you don’t get bowled over by a garlicky Pesto basil burst then sneak a bit more in the jug, but 3 heaped teaspoons usually does the job. Pour this mixture into the bowl and gently mix together with the dry ingredients.
Work the dough in the bowl with a wooden spoon or a spatula until it starts to come together, and then finish with your fingers until the dough comes away clean from the edges of the bowl. Tip on to a lightly floured surface and work through with the base of your palm 3 or 4 times, each time folding the sides in and turning over until the dough becomes smooth. We love this bit as you start to see the paprika and chorizo spread into the dough.
Pat and shape the dough into a ball and roll out the dough until it is approximately 3cm/1¼inches thick then, using a floured round cutter, cut out your scones. For posh nosh scones use the smooth side of the ring cutter and not the serrated edge as this will give them a more professional finish.
Place your scones on a lightly floured baking tray, leaving enough space between each one for them to spread. Brush each one with buttermilk and dust with flour. Top each scone with a small dollop of Pesto smoothed out over the top with the back of a spoon. For extra flair and wow factor add a sprinkle of cheese - we recommend Parmigiano-Reggiano - to give your scones a crisp golden top.
Bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown. To serve you can have it the All’Scone way, which is a nice helping of crème cheese and caramelized red onion chutney or our favourite: an old skool spread of butter and pâté to make it a mighty meaty bite.

A lovely winter warmer: reminiscent of my Granny's cooking

I WAS given a herb kit from Schwartz to make Beer and Beef Stew with Herb Dumplings. I love a good stew, especially now the nights are drawing in and we all turn to a good deal of stodge to warm our little tums. I also love dumplings- my lovely Granny used to make the best ones and reminds me of coming home on a Tuesday night from school and smelling my Gran’s lovely home cooking as she always used to look after us on a Tuesday. I loved her cooking as it was simple yet delicious. I don’t think Granny used beer in her stews but this was very tasty and I think she would have approved.

The herb kit costs about 69p I think, but you obviously don’t really need it as you may have all the herbs in your cupboard. But it is a good idea if you don’t usually buy herbs as it isn’t overpriced and gives you just what you need.

I used Budweiser beer which seemed to work well. I also froze one portion of the meal and I was surprised how well the dumplings took to the freezing process.
I served it with potatoes and broccoli. This is a great winter warmer and fairly cheap too.

YOU WILL NEED
1 pack Schwartz Herbs & Spices for Beef & Beer Stew with Herb Dumplings (Garlic Granules, Paprika, Marjoram, Sage, Rosemary, Thyme)
2 tbs oil
450g (1lb) lean stewing beef, cubed
1 onion, sliced
175g (6oz) carrots, sliced
1 tbs plain flour
225ml (8fl oz) beer

350ml (12fl oz) beef stock

2 tbs tomato purée

100g (4oz) self-raising flour

50g (2oz) beef or vegetable suet

Pinch Schwartz Sea Salt
75ml (3fl oz) water

DIRECTIONS

1. Pre-heat the oven to 170°C, 325°F, Gas Mark 3. Heat the oil in a large flameproof dish, add the beef and brown all over for 5 minutes. Carefully remove from the pan with a slotted spoon to ensure the oil and juices remain in the pan. Set the beef to one side, then add the onion, carrots and Garlic Granules (1 tsp). Fry gently for 5 minutes until the onions are brown, return beef to the pan, then add the plain flour and stir through.

2. Add the beer, beef stock, tomato purée, Paprika (1 tsp), Marjoram (1 tsp) and Sage (1 tsp). Stir through and cover with a lid. Cook in the oven for 1½ hours.

3. Meanwhile, combine the self-raising flour, suet, a pinch of salt, Rosemary (½ tsp), Thyme (1 tsp) and water in a bowl and mix to form a dough. Roughly shape into 8 equal sized balls.

4. Remove the stew from the oven and increase the oven temperature to 200°C, 400°F, Gas Mark 6. Place the dumplings on top of the stew, cover and cook for 10 minutes. Remove the lid and cook for a further 10 minutes. Delicious served with creamy mash.