Salted Caramel Brownies

I'm sorry it has been so long since I've last posted something, but I had crazy many things to do and get all my things straight for starting learning for my bar exam from October on. But I've missed baking even though I have been cooking for me as usual, but the baking on weekends or for friends sort of stopped. But anyways, here we go again. 

I've seen these first on the Instagram profile of the Donna Hay magazine weeks ago and I instantly knew I wanted to give them a try at one point and finally came around to it today!
Here's the link to the recipe: https://www.donnahay.com.au/recipes/desserts-and-baking/salted-caramel-chocolate-brownies

120g (3/4 cup) all-purpose flour
220g (1 1/4 cups) brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon baking powder
120g (1/3 cup) store-bought thick caramel or dulce de leech
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs
150g (1 1/5 stick) unsalted butter
150g (4.5 oz) dark chocolate
1/2 teaspoon seasalt flakes (or to taste)

1) Melt the butter over low heat, then leave to cool a bit. Chop the chocolate and set aside.

2) In the meantime, place the flour, sugar and baking powder in a bowl and mix to combine. 

3) Preheat the oven to 160°C (325°F). Add the caramel, vanilla, eggs and butter and which until smooth. 

4) Stir through the chocolate and spoon the mixture into a 20cm (8 inch) square cake tin lines with non-stick baking paper. 

5) Sprinkle with the salt and cook for 30-35 minutes or until just firm around the edges. Allow to cool in the tin before cutting into squares. 

Yield: 16 to 20, depending on how big you like yours
Active preparation time: about 20 minutes
Total preparation time: 55 minutes

Here's how they look:

I used about 1/4 teaspoon of sea salt instead of 1/2 teaspoon. I normally like the combination of sweet and salty, but the flakes already looked like so much and I was getting afraid so I stopped after 1/4 teaspoon. 

Otherwise, these brownies or rather blondies are super super delicious. They stay super soft and the chocolate pieces are beautifully melted and bring the slight bitterness in the mix. The caramel adds a great layer of taste. I'm sure they'll be gone in no time! 

Have a beautiful weekend!!

Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies

As I have been saying goodbye to my internship for the past seven months this week, me and another colleague have been throwing a goodbye after-work get-together with different types of sweet and salty snacks, wine and beer. This form of get-together is really typical for Switzerland and called "Apéro" which is a short form of aperitif, I guess. I didn't know it until I moved here ten years ago but now I really enjoy it.

I was responsible for all sweets and - hey - what better excuse could I get to try something new and mix it with all the beloved classics. 

As you all might know from different previous posts, I love a good chocolate chip cookie. It has to be a little crispy, soft and chewy on the inside and with tons of chocolate chips in it. 
I tried a new recipe from Nigella Lawson's website and these cookies were divine. They were the first thing to be gone, btw... 
This is the link: http://www.nigella.com/recipes/view/chocolate-chip-cookies

Here's the recipe:

150g (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter
125g (2/3 cup) soft brown sugar
100g (1/2 cup) caster or superfine sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 egg (straight from the fridge)
1 egg-yolk (straight from the fridge)
300g (2 cups) all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
326g (11 1/2oz) chocolate chips or dark chocolate

1) If you're using dark chocolate chips, place them in a bowl and put in the freezer while you're preparing the dough. If using chocolate, chop the chocolate into pieces any size you like, then put in the freezer, as well.

2) Melt the butter in a small saucepan, then let it cool a bit. Put the brown and white sugars into a bowl add the vanilla extract and butter and beat for about 6 minutes until a little lighter.

3) Add the egg and egg-yolk and beat further until the mixture is creamy.

4) Slowly mix in the flour and bicarb until everything is just combined. Then fold in the chocolate chips.

5) Preheat the oven to 170°C. Line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper. 

6) Place on tablespoon of dough onto the baking tray leaving a little room to spread. I love to use an ice-cream scoop for this - it makes things so much easier and ours happens to be one tablespoon exactly.

7) Bake for 9-10 minutes in the oven, until the edges are lightly set. Don't be afraid - the cookies will look undercooked, but they'll continue cooking on the tray once out of the oven. 

8) Cool on the baking sheets for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack.

9) Repeat steps 6-8 until you've used all dough.

Yield: 35 cookies
Active preparation time: 20 minutes
Total preparation time: 40 minutes

Here's how mine look:

I find that chopping your own chocolate instead of using chocolate chips makes the cookies look almost like a Pollock painting with their splatters. These cookies were moist, they dense but with a little crumb left and most of all - there was plenty of chocolate in them! I loved this recipe as it was super easy.

There's no better smell than a kitchen smelling from freshly baked cookies. Soon happy weekend baking!

Have fun trying!

Love wreaths

Finally winter is here! The temperatures have started to drop a little bit and we've had our first snow in Switzerland. It came right on time for the first Advent which was perfect timing to get me into the Christmas cookie baking mood. I simply don't feel like baking for Christmas when it's almost autumnally warm outside. 

I've introduced you to a few of my favourite Christmas cookie recipes a while ago, but I've still got some up my sleeve. Today's recipe might be my sister's all-time favourite. It comes from a my grandmother who's been baking these for decades. I've never met anyone who didn't fall in love with the buttery crumbly melt-in-you-mouth cookies. 
These cookies demand some attention and are not the fastest, but it's worth the effort. And after a few wreaths, you will get the hang of it.  

Here's the recipe:

6 egg yolks (whites reserved, for brushing)
120g (1/2 cup + 1 leveled tablespoon) granulated sugar
250g (2 sticks) unsalted butter, straight from the fridge
450g (3 cups) all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons vanilla sugar
decorating sugar, for sprinkling

1) Beat the egg yolks and granulated sugar for about 5 minutes until pale and fluffy.

2) Cut the butter into small pieces, then add to the sugar and egg yolks along with the flour and vanilla sugar.

3) Let the dough sit over night.

4) Take 1/2 teaspoon of dough and roll it into a 1/2 cm thick string, about 10 cm (4 inches long). Repeat with another 1/2 teaspoon of dough. Take the two strings and carefully twist them, then make a wreath of them and slightly press the ends together. Place the wreaths on a baking tray lined with baking paper. The dough has to be rather cold, so if you're noticing that you can't roll the dough into strings as well anymore, put the dough back in the fridge for 30 minutes, then continue.

5) Brush the wreaths with egg white and sprinkle with the decorating sugar. Let them sit in a cold space for 15-20 minutes before baking.

6) Preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F). Bake for 10-15 minutes, carefully watching them so they turn golden, but not brown.

Yield: 90-100 wreaths
Active preparation time: about 1 hour and 30 minutes
Total preparation time: 2 hours + overnight resting

Here's how they look:

These wreaths are wonderfully buttery and crumbly and they absolutely melt in your mouth. Every year I am debating over whether or not I should be baking them, because the dough makes a ton of wreaths and it is a lot of work, I'm not gonna lie. But I love how the wreaths can conjure a smile on every one of my family members' faces at any time.

Have fun trying and getting into the Christmas spirit!

Dark & Sumptuous Chocolate Cake

I am a little late for meat free monday but therefore today's recipe is a must. If you try this cake you would never guess it's vegan. It is dark, rich, chocolatey - everything you're dreaming of in a chocolate cake. And maybe the best thing? You can lick the bowl with no concerns whatever about catching salmonella from raw eggs or similar things. 

The recipe is from Nigella Lawson's latest book "Simply Nigella", but she posted it to her website as well so all of you can take a look at it and bake it along with me. Here's the link to the recipe: http://www.nigella.com/recipes/view/dark-and-sumptuous-chocolate-cake

Here's the recipe: 

Icing:
60ml (1/4 cup) cold water
75g (5 tablespoons) coconut butter (not the same as oil, made from the flesh of a coconut)
50g (1/4 cup) dark brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons instant espresso powder
1 1/2 tablespoons cocoa powder, unsweetened
150g (6 oz) dark chocolate, broken into pieces

Cake:
225g (1 1/2 cups) plain all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons bicarbonate of soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons instant espresso powder
75g (3/4 cup) cocoa powder, unsweetened
300g (1 1/2 cups) dark brown sugar
375ml (1 1/2 cups) hot water
75g (90ml) coconut oil
1 1/2 teaspoons cider vinegar or white wine vinegar
edible rose petals and chopped pistachios, to decorate

1) First things first: I had no time searching for a shop in Berne where I could buy coconut butter, so I made it myself. I am an avid user of my food processor and it is soon easy. Put 200g shredded coconut in a food processor and process for about 10 minutes until a paste forms. That's your coconut butter. You just do the same as with any other homemade nut butter.

2) Preheat the oven to 180°C (350° F).

3) Place all ingredient for the icing in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, stirring continuously until the coconut butter has melted and everything is smooth. Turn the stove off, but let the saucepan sit on the hot hob. Add the chocolate in pieces, then - still stirring - let the chocolate melt form the heat until all the chocolate has melted and everything's combined. Set aside to cool.

4) Line the bottom of a springform tin (I used a 24cm round tin) with baking paper. Grease the sides with butter. 

5) Add the flour, bicarb, salt, cocoa and instant espresso powder to a bowl and mix with a fork.

6) Mix the hot water, sugar, coconut oil and vinegar and stir until the oil has melted. Then, stir into the dry ingredients and pour the dough into the prepared tin. Bake the cake for 35 minutes or until cooked when tested with a skewer.

7) Let the cake cool in the tin. Meanwhile, beat the icing with an electric mixer until it's starting to become a little fluffy. This will help you when spreading it on the cake.

8) Ice the cake with the icing, then decorate with the rose petals and chopped pistachios, if you wish to.

Active preparation time: about 20 minutes
Total preparation time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Yield: 1 24cm round cake (12-16 slices)

Here's how mine looks:

I really love this recipe. It is fast and really easy. It's basically as simple as melt and mix for the dough and the icing is super easily made as well. I found that my icing was too hard as that I could've poured it over the cake, but whisking it with an electric mixer makes it soft enough so it is easy to spread. 
I didn't have any pistachios at home and the only rose petals I could have used were fresh ones from our garden which I didn't want to pick since the purpose of baking was to make my dad happy on a sunday afternoon not winning an award for best decorated cake.

This cake is wonderfully fudgy, moist and incredibly chocolatey. If you don't like chocolate a lot, you're probably not going to love this recipe as much but for every chocolate lover, this is going to be heaven.

Have fun trying and enjoy!

Nutella and Hazelnut Babka

I'm back with a little weekend baking project for you. I don't know about you but I love to carve some time out of the weekend to bake. It always brings me in a good mood - and usually everybody else who's getting to eat the finished project as well. 

I have a couple of die-hard Nutella fans at home. My boyfriend loves it, my sister's boyfriend as well and I myself have very fond memories of spooning Nutella directly out of the glass whenever nobody else was at home. I know I know healthy is different but sometimes I just needed that. 

I discovered the following recipe for a Halvah and Nutella Babka on the food52.com website a while ago while browsing through new recipes. I fell in love with it at first sight. The babka looked absolutely beautiful and seemed to have the perfect amount of chocolate. And it's practical! You can enjoy your bread and you don't even have to spread Nutella on it anymore, because it comes with it. I changed the recipe a little bit, by added roasted chopped hazelnuts instead of the halvah. Mostly, because I don't know where I'd have to start searching to get ahold of halvah in Switzerland. So I decided to take the safe step and add hazelnuts which are already in the Nutella.  

Here's the link to the recipe: http://food52.com/recipes/37134-halvah-and-nutella-babka

And here's the recipe:

600g (4 cups; 21 oz) all-purpose flour
110g (1/2 cup) superfine sugar (I only had granulated on hand, which is a fine substitute)
2 teaspoons instant yeast (about 1 sachet with 7g in it)
3 large eggs
125ml (1/2 cup) water, at room temperature or hand-hot
1 teaspoon salt
140g (2/3 cup) unsalted butter, cubed

2/3 cup Nutella (I used probably double, but forgot to keep track with the measuring)
100g (3.5 oz) hazelnuts
80ml (1/3 cup) water
90g (6 tablespoons) granulated sugar

1) Preheat the oven to 200°C (395°F). Place the hazelnuts on a baking tray and roast in the oven for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool. 

2) For the dough add the flour, sugar, salt and yeast to a stand mixer with a dough hook or use a hand-held mixer with dough hooks. 

3) Add the eggs and water and mix on low speed for a few seconds. Increase the speed to medium and mix for 3 minutes, until the dough comes together. Add the butter, a few cubes at a time, mixing until incorporated into the dough. 

4) Continue mixing for about 10 minutes on medium speed until the dough is completely smooth, elastic and shiny. Don't worry, the butter will smudge all over the bowl at first, but it slowly will ease into the dough. If the dough keeps sticking to the sides, add a little bit of flour until the dough comes off the sides of your bowl.

5) Cover your bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 2 hours or overnight. 

6) Divide the dough in half. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into two rectangles of 40 x 30 cm (15 x 11 inches). Trim the sides to make your rectangle even. Using a spatula, spread the rectangles evenly with the Nutella, until everything is thinly or thickly (depends on what you like) covered. Chop the your roasted hazelnuts and sprinkle them over the top.

7) Using both hands roll the dough into a long log. Brush a little water along the long side to seal. 

8) Transfer the dough to a cutting board or sheet pan and freeze the dough for 15 minutes to make the next step easier. 

9) Working with one roll at a time, use a serrated knife to trim 1/2 inch off both ends of the roll. Use the knife to gently saw the roll into half lengthwise. With the cut sides facing up, gently pinch one end of each half together, then lift the right half over the left half. Repeat this process, so you end up twisting both half. Try keeping the cut sides facing up. When you get to the end, gently squeeze the tow halves together. Repeat with the remaining roll. Grease two loaf pans, lift the cakes into the prepared tins and cover with a damp tea towel. Leave to rise in a warm place for 1 to 1,5 hours. The dough will rise slowly, because the dough is cool and it has butter in it and grease slows the yeast down. 

10) Preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F). Remove the tea towels, place the cakes on the middle rack of the oven and bake for about 30 to 40 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean. When the cakes are turning a little dark, cover them with a paper towel.

11) While the cakes are in the oven, make the syrup. Combine the water and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil. Stir until the sugar has dissolved. As soon as the cakes come out of the oven, brush them liberally with the syrup. Use all of it. 

12) Let the loaves cool for about 30 minutes before removing from the pans to cool completely. 

Yield: 2 loaves
Active preparation time: about 40 minutes
Total preparation time: at least 5 hours

Here's how my babkas look:

I love how beautiful these twists look. The butter in the dough lends these babkas an almost brioche-like taste and the Nutella perfectly complements this. Freezing the dough before sawing it is just genius! Had I been anywhere near Yossi Arefi - this recipe's author - I would have given her the biggest hug. It makes the job soooooo much easier! I promise everyone can do this. All you have to do roll the dough, spread some chocolatey goodness on it, roll it up, freeze and cut. It's that easy. 

This recipe takes time which is why I'm introducing you to it before the weekend. It's not your "It a weeknight and I am really craving brioche with Nutella" recipe. Give the dough the time it needs to develop its flavor and let it rise. Your patience will be rewarded. I promise!

I took one loaf to the office on Monday. It was gone in no time. 

Have fun trying and have a sunny weekend!

Fig and Hazelnut Biscotti

And here goes the weekend baking. I love nothing more than a good baking project for the weekend, because usually it makes everybody happy. 
My god mother's birthday was last week and because it was a big one I wanted to surprise her by sending her a package. I have learned from my experience with boyfriends and best friends in military service that biscotti or cantuccini as they're called in Italy work great for sending, because they keep well for a long time and won't break easily. Perfect to send them on a long trip. 

This recipe is from Cynthia Barcomi's latest book "Cookies". She introduces four new recipes for cantuccini all of which are delicious and super easy. 

Here's the recipe: 
100g (3.5 oz) hazelnuts
270g (2 3/4 cups + 1 tablespoon; 9.5 oz) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
150g (5.3 oz) dried figs
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, for the figs
100g (a little more than 3/4 stick; 3.5 oz) unsalted butter
40g (2 slightly heaping tablespoons) granulated sugar
40g (2 slightly heaping tablespoons) dark brown sugar
zest of 1 organic orange, grated
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon granulated sugar

1) Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F). Line a baking tray with baking paper. Roast the hazelnuts for 6 minutes in the oven, then let them cool. Chop them roughly. 

2) Mix the flour, baking powder and baking soda. Sprinkle the figs with the extra tablespoon of flour, then chop them roughly. Mix with the nuts.

3) Grate the zest from the orange. In a kitchen machine or a hand held blender, whisk the butter and both sugars along with the orange zest for 6 minutes until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, then add the vanilla extract and mix everything. 

4) Mix with the flour-mixture, then add the figs and nuts until everything is just coming together. The dough is a little sticky, but that is just right.

5) Divide the dough in half. Roll each half into a loaf of 22cm (9 inches) length. 

6) Bake for 22-25 minutes until golden. Let cool slightly on the baking tray, then take a large serrated knife and cut the loafs into 1cm thick slices. Place cut-side up on the baking tray. Mix the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle the biscotti with the cinnamon sugar.

7) Reduce the oven temperature to 170° (340°F). Bake the biscotti for 8 minutes, then take the tray out of the oven, turn the biscotti and sprinkle the other side with cinnamon sugar as well. Bake for another 8 minutes. 

8) Let the biscotti cool on the baking tray for 10 minutes. 
© Cynthia Barcomi "Cookies", p. 134.

Yield: about 24 pieces
Active preparation time: 25 minutes
Total preparation time: 1 hour 10 minutes

Here's how mine turned out:

I love how you can stack them in a glass and keep them on the countertop - they'll be gone like the wind. 

These cantuccini come with a wide range of flavors. There's zesty orange flavor, slightly tangy, the hazelnuts add warmth and earthiness, the figs crackle beautifully in your mouth when you take a bite and the cinnamon sugar sprinkle adds warmth and brings the different flavors together.

Don't be taken aback by the number of steps. The steps in itself are simple and easy and you will be rewarded with beautiful homemade biscotti in no time.

Have fun trying and have a great weekend!

My favorite pancakes

I know what you want to say. There's soo many pancake recipes out there, every family has its own favorite recipe or recipes they've been making for a long long time. I have had my own fair share of searching for the perfect recipe. I finally found my favorite recipe about two years ago, by accident. I had tried countless recipes by that time but had never been completely satisfied. Either the pancakes weren't fluffy enough or they wouldn't hold their shape well, but the dough would be so runny, you'd end up with a thin, large pancake and I like smaller pancakes that hold their shape well and end up fluffy and perfect.

The recipe is from Cynthia Barcomi's "Backbuch", her first book. I didn't buy the book for its pancake recipe - which I have done in the past, buying a book for a certain recipe. I have a slight cookbook addiction, I admit. But even though I discovered this recipe by accident, I have been making it ever since and never even tried a different pancake recipe. 

Here's the recipe:

180g (1 cup + 1 heaping tablespoon) all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
30g (2 tablespoons) granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
200ml (3/4 cup + 1 tablespoon) milk
30g (1/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted
2 eggs
unsalted butter, for baking

1) Combine the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in a bowl and mix. 

2) Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Whisk the milk and eggs in. 

3) Combine the wet with the dry ingredients and beat until the dough is smooth.

4) Preheat a large pan over medium-high heat and grease with a little butter. Add 1/8 cup of dough to the pan. Bake up to two pancakes at the same time. You know it's time to flip the pancakes when they are starting to form bubbles on the top. 

Yield: about 12 pancakes
Serves: 2 as a main breakfast, 4 as a "starter" breakfast
Active preparation time: 15 minutes
Total preparation time: 15 minutes

Here's how mine look:

I apologize for the quality of the picture.  It was such a grey day outside, I had to switch on a lamp to get enough light. 

I served the pancakes with maple syrup and a quick plum compote (that's 6 plums, cut into pieces, 125ml (1/2 cup water), 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, seeds from one vanilla pod and 1 cinnamon stick, brought to a boil and cooked for 6 minutes until the plums start breaking down). In summer, we usually go for a mix of blueberries, raspberries and strawberries. But feel free to use whatever you love. You could easily sprinkle chocolate chips on the unbaked side before flipping for chocolate pancakes, for example. Let your creativity loose!

And here's the pancakes with a quick blueberry sauce (1 package frozen blueberries brought to a light boil and 1 tablespoon maple syrup added for a hint of sweetness).

Have fun trying and have a great start to the weekend spoiling your loved ones!

Pita Bread

How was your weekend? Did you dig in to some baking? I did, if not cake for once, but bread. One of my boyfriend's most vivid memories is from a holiday he spent in Israel eating pita bread as a side for dinner almost every day. When he returned, he was raving about it so much, I decided to make it for him. Of course, I don't go out to buy some at the supermarket which you could obviously, but decided to try my hand at home-made pita bread. I was baffled by how easy it is and how amazing and satisfying the end result was. It is pretty fast as well. The best thing? You need 4 ingredients most of you will already have at home.

I got the recipe from Food52. They have a few recipes for pita bread on their site but I was drawn to the picture accompanying the recipe for a whole wheat pita. I used all all-purpose flour, because my boyfriend was skeptical as to how a whole wheat pita would taste, so I obeyed, but trust me, I won't stop until I've planted some whole wheat pita bread on him. 
Here's the link to the recipe: http://food52.com/recipes/20445-whole-wheat-pita-bread

And here's my adaptation:

1 tablespoon dry yeast (1 sachet of 7g)
375 ml (1.5 cups) warm water (lukewarm)
1 teaspoon salt
525g (3.5 cups) all-purpose flour

1) Dissolve the yeast in the water and let it sit for 5 minutes until the yeast starts bubbling up to see it's active. 

2) Add the salt and the flour. Knead with a kitchen machine or electric mixer until a forms. Continue kneading for about 8 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic. Add a little more flour if it is too sticky.

3) Turn the dough onto a lightly flour-dusted surface. Divide it into 8 equal portions. Roll into balls, then flatten them to 1 cm high disks. Place the breads on a baking tray lined with baking paper and set aside to rise for 30-40 minutes until slightly puffed.

4) Preheat the oven to 220°C (425°F). Place the tray in the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes until light golden.

Yield: 8 pitas
Active preparation time: 15 minutes
Total preparation time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Now get creative! What we like to do is slice a little piece off the pita and cut a pouch on the inside. Then fill with whatever you like. I've hosted a pita evening where we served the pitas along small falafel balls, pan-fried chicken breast and pan-fried ground beef. For vegetables we served tomatoes, salad and corn. And as a sauce classic cocktail sauce along with sour cream that we tweaked with a little paprika powder, salt and pepper. This makes a great main course, but feel free to use the pitas on their own as a side dish for your next barbecue.


Here's how it looks:

I am sorry the lighting it a little bad. I was at my boyfriend's home but still wanted to take pictures of this to introduce you to. The first time we made these everything was gone so fast I didn't succeed taking a picture. But let me assure you, this is absolutely delicious and the pitas look beautiful all round and puffed. 

Have fun trying!

Pumpkin Maple Pies

I'll get back to what I promised last saturday. My sister's second birthday cake. Or cakes rather. I've been itching to try my hand with this recipe for a long time, but it is a little work (pie dough, filling) and I simply couldn't find the time or just wanted to relax on the weekends. But my indecisiveness with regard to what my sister could or would want for her birthday cake made it impossible to decide on one cake, so I ended up baking two. 

I know I've been introducing you to a ton of Donna Hay recipes and this is no exception. I will try to get back to other recipes as well, but this was too appealing to let it wait in the drawer for another year. 

Here's the link to the recipe: https://www.donnahay.com.au/recipes/recipe-entertaining/pumpkin-and-maple-pies-with-walnut-sugar

Here's how I worked:

1kg butternut pumpkin
250ml (1 cup) maple syrup
4 eggs
250ml (1 cup) single cream
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
450g (3 cups) all-purpose flour
250g (2 sticks) unsalted butter
160g (1 cup) icing sugar
6 egg yolks, whites reserved
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons iced water
55g (1/2 cup) walnuts
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1) Start by deseeding and peeling the pumpkin. I find this works easiest by cutting the pumpkin quarters in thin slices and using a peeler to remove the skin. Cut the pumpkin into one-inch (2.5cm) cubes.

2) Transfer the pumpkin pieces to a saucepan large enough to fit all pieces, cover with water and bring to a boil. Once the water is boiling, cook for about 15 minutes on medium heat until the pumpkin is soft. Drain and set aside.

3) Place the flour, butter and icing sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer or food processor. Process until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. While the motor is running, add the egg yolks and vanilla. Add the water, if the dough is too dry, until the dough just comes together. 

4) Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and gently bring together. At this point, you can either flatten the dough into a disk or roll it, line the pie tins with it and freeze after. I followed the second. Roll the dough between two sheets of baking paper until 3mm thick. Cut rounds from the pastry (I have smaller pie tins, so I used 12cm rounds) and line your pie tins, after you've lightly greased them. 

5) Trim the edges and prick the base with a fork. Refrigerate for 30 minutes or up to two hours. 

6) Preheat the oven to 160°C (325°F). If you have baking weights, linke the pastry cases with non-stick baking paper, fill with the weights and blind bake for 10 minutes or until light golden. If not, don't worry. The pastry will puff a little more while baking, but don't bother buying weights. 

7) While the pastry cases are baking, prepare the pumpkin filling. Purée the pumpkin along with the cream, maple syrup, eggs and nutmeg until smooth. 

8) Brush the inside of the pastry shells with egg white. Place the pie tins on a baking tray, fill with the pumpkin mixture and bake for 30 minutes or until just set.

9) While the pies are baking, make the walnut sugar. Place the walnuts, sugar and cinnamon in the bowl of a food processor and process until finely chopped. 

10) Top the pies with the walnut sugar to serve

Yield: 8 according to Donna; I ended up with 15.
Active preparation time: about 45 minutes 
Total preparation time: 2 hours

Here's how mine look(ed):

I really love the fall colors of this beautiful dessert or pastry. 
The recipe is easy enough to follow, although I always tweak recipes for pastry dough, because I find it extremely hard to work with if you're cooling it first. Once you take it out of the fridge, you have to wait again for it to soften, but not let it get too soft or it'll crumble and you can't work with it. I find the dough turns out just as good if you're rolling and placing it in the baking tin before cooling. 

These pumpkin pies combine the distinct taste of pumpkin with the soft sweetness from the maple syrup. I love that these don't turn out overly sweet. They are sweet, but not with a sticky sweetness. The walnut sugar also adds a nice, slightly crunchy touch. 

These will keep in the fridge for a couple of days. 

Have fun trying and have a lovely weekend!

Apple-(Walnut) Coffee Cake

Wow, time is flying!! I can't believe we're in the middle of September again. I started a second apprenticeship on my way to becoming a lawyer at the beginning of July and have been keeping myself busy all around. But fall is definitely making me want to bake and indulge in all sorts of lovely comfort food. The weather has been changing so much and sometimes it can get pretty cold. Usually this will send me to the sofa with a big cup of tea and some kind of piece of cake. I don't know why but I love love love apples at the moment. There is such a variety available, sweet, crisp, tart, whichever way you like them and they'll help you make sure you're getting vitamins and staying healthy in the season of runny noses and colds. Ok, maybe not the apples you've used in baked goods.... 

This recipe comes from a calendar my boyfriend's lovely parents brought me as a gift from a trip to the US two years ago. I've been making a few switches here and there, but overall it never failed me.

Here's the recipe:

1 1/2 cups (375 ml) canola oil (I've used sunflower, because that's what I usually have at home)
1 cup (220g) white sugar
1 cup (175g) dark brown sugar
4 eggs
2 1/2 cups (375g) all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 apples
1/4 cup (ca. 50g) chopped walnuts 

1) In a large bowl mix together the oil and sugars. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, and add the vanilla.

2) In a second bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and cinnamon. Blend into the egg mixture.

3) Peel and chop the apples. You can cut the pieces to any size you like. I usually end up with 1/4 inch cubes. Chop the walnuts and add to the dough along with the apple pieces.

4) Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F). Grease a bundt cake pan and dust with flour. Pour the dough into the tin, make sure it is evenly distributed.

5) Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes until a skewer comes out completely clean.

Yield: 1 bundt cake, approx. 16 pieces
Active preparation time: 30 minutes
Total preparation time: 1 hour 45 minutes

Here's how mine turned out:

This cake is very moist from the apples. I didn't use specific apples for baking, but my favorite kind called Elstar. You have to make sure the cake is cooked through or you won't be able to get it out of the tin. It is also super important to wait until the cake has cooled a fair bit or you will end up breaking the cake trying to get it out of the tin. The reason I'm sharing this recipe now even though I've been making it a few times already is that I've been trough all the errors listed above and ended up with cakes not worthy of a picture... 

The original recipe calls for white sugar only but I like to use brown sugar as well because it lends the cake a nice caramel flavour. I also omit the walnuts sometimes. The picture above shows the cake without walnuts because I'd run out of them. 

I've already introduced you to my favourite apple cake recipe which is baked on a tray. If I had to pick my favourite tin baked apple cake, it would be this recipe. It has the perfect amount of sweetness, a hint of tartness (if you use tart apples) and a lovely, moist texture. 

Have fun trying and enjoy beautiful fall season!

Honey Lemon Biscotti with Pistachios

I seem to be really bad at writing a blog. Either that or it's the fact that my life has been pretty busy with starting a full-time job and little to no time left for cooking and baking that has kept me from posting. As you might guess, it’s the latter.

Lucikly, I have a month off at the moment in between two apprenticeships and it allowed me to get back on the wagon again.

I already introduced you to Cynthia Barcomi and her recipes a while ago. She published a new cookbook, called „Cookies“ earlier this year and I’ve been dying to get my hands on these recipes. One recipe that instantly intrigued me was this one for Honey Lemon Biscotti with Pitachios. Bicotti or Cantuccini as they’re often called as well, are easy to make and serve as great presents because they are great to pack and send and quite robust. Mine will be part of a gift to my boyfriend’s dad on his birthday.

Don't let the steps fool you. This recipe is super easy and fool-proof. You can't go wrong. 

Here it is:

100g (3.5 oz) pistachios, peeled

280g (9.8 oz; a little less than 2 cups) all-purpose flour

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

50ml (1/4 cup) mild olive oil (search for those labeled "mild", not "extra vergine")

85g (3 oz; good 1/3 cup) granulated sugar

1 tablespoon lemon zest, finely grated

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons (60g; 2.1 oz) honey

1) Preheat the oven to 175°C (°F). Line a tray with a baking sheet. Roast the pistachios in the oven for 6 minutes, then set aside to cool.

2) In a bowl, mix the flour,  baking powder, baking soda and salt. Roughly chop the pistachios.

3) In a second bowl, using a hand mixer or kitchen machine, mix the sugar, olive oil  and lemon zest. Add the eggs, one at a time, until well combined. Add the vanilla extract and honey and mix again until combined.

4) Mix dry and wet ingredients until combined. Add the pistachios and stir until evenly distributed.

5) Divide the dough into three parts. Put them on the baking sheet horizontally and spread into a rectangular loaf of ca. 22 x 4 cm using your (wet) hands.

6) Bake for 22-25 minutes until golden. Leave to cool on the tray.

7) Reduce oven temperature to 160°C (°F). Once cooled so you can handle the loafs, cut them into 1cm (1/2 inch) slices. Put the slices cut-side up on the baking tray.

8) Bake for 8 minutes, then turn the biscotti and bake the other side for 8 more minutes until golden.

9) Leave on the tray to cool.

Yield: about 45 biscotti

Active preparation time: 20 minutes

total preparation time: 1 hour

And this is how mine turned out:

I had to try one biscotti straight from the oven – and some crumbs while cutting. These biscotti have a ton of bright lemon flavour, a hint of sweetness from the honey and added crunch from the pistachios. The flavour is really complex and surprising. I just love these. Imagine them with a cup of perfect foamy cappucino on the side for dunking while sunshine is shining through your windows – perfection.

Have fun trying and let these biscotti brighten your day!