Cherry and Almond Victoria Sandwich: Recipe

Today is World Baking Day - I didn't #bakebrave and step out of my comfort zone because I was drawn towards this lovely cake after seeing it on the front cover of Waitrose Kitchen May Magazine.

These days I'm not quite so keen on cakes slathered in cream, I prefer to whip up a small pot of whipping cream, then add an equal amount of natural yogurt to the cream and whip again until thick. Once you have tried the cream and yogurt filling I think you may well find you will always use this method.

A while back I was chosen to be a World Baking Day Ambassador and I chose to make a chocolate heart cake for this event. A couple of people on twitter have kindly sent me tweets with photographs of their chocolate heart cakes and I'm really pleased they had fun baking my cake.

Adapted Recipe

225g margarine
225g caster sugar
225g self raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
4 eggs
1 tsp almond extract
2 tbsp milk
2 tbsp flaked almonds

For the filling:

425g can black cherries in light syrup (drained and juice reserved)
Approx 1 tsp arrowroot
150ml whipping cream
150ml natural yogurt
Icing sugar for dusting

1. Preheat the oven 180ºC. Grease 2 x 18cm sandwich tins, base line with parchment paper.  Dust the inside of the cake tin with flour and tip out the surplus flour.
2. In a large bowl add the butter, caster sugar, sieved flour, baking powder, eggs, almond extract and milk.  Using an electric hand whisk, beat for 2 minutes until smooth.
3. Divide the batter between the two tins, scatter the flaked almonds over one of the cakes.
4. Bake for 25 minutes until golden.  Leave the cooked cakes in the tins for 10 minutes.  Turn out and place on a cooling rack.
5. To make the filling:  Put 1 tsp arrowroot into a small basin and mix to a paste with a few teaspoons of the reserved cherry syrup.  Place the drained cherries into a small pan with approx four tablespoons of the reserved syrup and heat gently.  Add the arrowroot mixture to the pan and stir to thicken.  If it is too thick add more of the syrup, or too thin mix more arrowroot with a few teaspoons of reserved syrup and add again to the pan.  Remove from the heat and cool.
6. Whisk the cream until floppy add the yogurt, whisk again until floppy.
7. On the base cake spread over the cherry compote.  Top with the cream mixture.
8. Place the cake sprinkled with almonds top.  Dust with the icing sugar.

Ozeri Touch Professional Kitchen Scales: Review

Easy to read LCD display (image courtesy of Ozeri)

When I was asked if I would like to review kitchen scales by Ozeri, I have to be honest, it isn't a name I am familiar with. They are fairly new to this country, although well known in the USA - they sell their products on www.amazon.co.uk where their premium products receive favourable reviews.

These black tempered glass kitchen scales are a slim, contemporary, stylish design and will look fabulous on any work surface, or if you don't use your scales on a regular basis they will fit easily into a kitchen cupboard.

Slim stylish design (image courtesy of Ozeri)

The scale is thoughtfully supplied with two lithium batteries so you are ready to go from the moment the scales are taken from their packaging. The User Manual is in large print and set out with clear, easy to understand instructions and diagrams. A Calorie Guide is included with the scales and whilst the measurements are aimed at the US market, the guide includes calories per gram and is useful for those here in the UK who count calories.

The kitchen scales offer:

2 x CR2032 Lithium batteries (included).
Weight Units: g, fl.oz, lb/oz, ml
Capacity: 5250g, 185.2fl.oz, 11lb 9.2oz, 5250ml
Graduations: 1g, 0.05fl.oz, 0.05oz, 1ml
Low Battery Indicator.
Overload Indicator.
Automatically turns off after 2 minutes inactivity.
On/Off/Tare Button.
Unit Button

How do they perform? I use scales most days, if you are a baker then it is very natural to weigh everything. I tested them and made a Yorkshire Pudding which means switching from grams for weighing flour to fl.oz for the milk and water.  These digital scales make it very easy to weigh and add ingredients quickly.  The tare button works in a couple of seconds, it is easy to use the different unit measurements and the weight appears on the display immediately. Ozeri have thought of everything, there is a unit measurement display for lb oz instead of the usual oz display - many people here in the UK still use lb and oz measurements. I really like the large LCD display for easy reading.

The scales are on offer at Amazon.co.uk for £12.95.

Thank you Ozeri for the review sample.

Introduction to Digital SLR Photography - Nikon Training Course Review

Picture Control being illustrated in the classroom

I was recently invited to write a blog posting after attending a Nikon Introduction to Digital SLR Photography Course at the newly opened Nikon Centre of Excellence in central London. I was delighted to take advantage of learning from the professionals, using the Nikon D3200 that Kitchen Delights uses to pictorially illustrate postings.

I have always technically supported Kitchen Delights blog, however, my wife takes all of the photographs for the blog, improving my knowledge will benefit any support that I can provide.  Food photography in a home kitchen is a challenge, especially cooking hot meals, presenting food in the most appealing way and hopefully getting a meal to the table whilst reasonably hot.

Mark the class tutor, started with introductions to find the photographic interests of the attendees.  It’s surprising how diverse the interests were, from landscapes, portraiture, macro to family, sport and food.

The initial ground covered was to highlight what all of the buttons and dials are typically for.
We all know the Auto button is the starting point for ‘point and shoot’ but to take creative control we need to expand the use of the options available on today’s high specification cameras. M, S and P shooting modes allow for much more control over the camera options, these were explained with their relevance for different shooting requirements. Everyone has a different take for their style of photography and the modern DSLR can cater for a tremendous diversity of needs.

The first practical exercise was outside on the street, to photograph moving vehicles, to freeze their motion and try blurring background and vehicles. Mark our tutor was there to ensure we could ask questions to clarify the previous time spent studying the theory.

The course progressed through all the basic understanding required to achieve better creative control,  after studying the theory the practical sessions followed to reinforce the learning.

Example of picture control
Top left Standard, Top right Neutral,
Bottom left Vivid, Bottom right Monochrome

As the day progressed, through a series of easy to follow practical exercises, all of the common aspects associated with creative photography were covered, exposure control regarding aperture, shutter speed and ISO, colour balance and picture control, both for picture taking and effects after the shoot.

The course helped to give attendees confidence to explore all the menus within the camera, adjustments for the shooting conditions and features for editing photographs within the camera, as well as teaching why there are different file types to allow for more control at the editing stage.

There were refreshment breaks in the morning and afternoon and a lunch break with good quality food provided for everyone to enjoy.

A fabulous selection of filled baguettes

Fresh fruit for dessert or chocolate brownies and strawberries.

The course provided stimulation for the attendees and focused on the basic knowledge for taking improved photographs, this is a valuable start to using a DSLR.

I can thoroughly recommend attending a Nikon Introduction to Digital SLR Photography.  The class size when I attended was eleven people which meant we all had our share of individual attention from the tutor.

There are Nikon courses on many different aspects of photography including, lighting, movies and street photography in London.  For more details about upcoming courses visit Nikon Training.

Thank you to Nikon Training for an informative and enjoyable day.

Contigo Morgan Take-Out Mug - Review

Available in Lilac, Ocean and Citron

These fabulous take out mugs look far trendier than the usual disposable coffee shop cup.  The mug has double wall insulation and holds 355ml of either hot or cold liquid. There is a band around the middle for one hand easy grip and the mug is both leak proof and spill resistant.

The lid is very clever and has an autoseal button to ensure there aren't any unexpected spillages.  All you have to do is press the lilac button to sip and release to seal. The mechanism on the underside of the lid is extremely well made and easy to clean. All parts are dishwasher proof too.

My local coffee shop are more than happy to fill transportable mugs, or simply fill the mug at home with a hot or cold drink.

The mug doesn't leak or spill and looks 100% more attractive than a disposable take out cup.

The Contigo Morgan Mug is from Premier Housewares and retails for £16.99.

Thank you Pam and Premier Housewares.

De'Longhi and Lindt, Coffee and Chocolate Pairing Experience

Posting courtesy of Kitchen Delights London based reporter.

Last week I was kindly invited to spend an evening with other bloggers at a De'Longhi coffee and Lindt chocolate masterclass in Central London.

Lindt Master Chocolatier Stefan Bruderer listening for the all important snap.
Image courtesy of Lindt.

Lindt’s Master Chocolatier Stefan Bruderer and expert Barista, Robert Henry guided us through an exciting coffee and chocolate tasting and encouraged us to deliberate about different taste profiles and why one particular chocolate might work well with a specific coffee bean or style of coffee.

Chocolatier Stefan demonstrated to us that he could determine the quality of chocolate just by the way it sounded when snapping it. If it is sharp and loud, that’s a good indicator that the chocolate is high quality and made from a high percentage of cocoa.

Fabulous De'Longhi Coffee Machines

Expert Barista Robert Henry
Image courtesy of Lindt

Expert Barista Robert Henry showed us how to correctly taste lattes and espressos which were made using De’Longhi coffee machines. By taking a really good sniff and a big slurp, this was enough to bring out the different flavours, just as you might taste a wine. I found this quite hard at first but the more I did it, the easier it became.

Lindt Excellence Bars - which one will you choose?

I was lucky enough to try quite a few variations of coffee and chocolate from a Brazil Fazenda Passeio long black to a Sidamo blend flat white and match it up with Lindt Excellence Extra Creamy and Lindt Excellence 85% Cocoa. I also really enjoyed a Bolivian Coffee such as a ‘Copa Cobanna’ which is full of orangey notes and discovered that it makes the perfect partner to a Lindt orange chocolate. Of course, it is all subjective but it did make me realise that there are a tremendous amount of flavour combinations out there which are fun to discover.

Sea Salt Lindt Excellence Chocolate

To find out more about pairing chocolate with coffee visit http://www.lindt-excellence.co.uk/

A huge thank you to my London Reporter for the Lindt Excellence Chocolate Selection Box goodie bag.

Thank you to both Lindt and De’Longhi for the very informative and delicious evening.

Banana and Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

Banana and Chocolate Chip Cupcakes taken with the Nikon D3200

Looking at bananas in the fruit bowl turning from black to blacker, resisting throwing them out and then feeling pressured into using them happens far too often in my house, so let's do some baking. All you need are a few store cupboard/fridge ingredients to make the cake batter and hopefully a few cupcake cases.  I used nine tulip cupcake cases and shared the batter between them.

The recipe by Mary Berry for the banana and chocolate chip cupcakes can be found on the Daily Mail website, I substituted the caster sugar for soft brown sugar and left the milk out to prevent the chocolate chips sinking to the bottom of the cupcakes.

Banana and Chocolate Chip Loaf

Mary Berry to the rescue for those black banana recipes, the banana and chocolate chip loaf is one of the best I have ever eaten - I try to remember to leave the milk out of the recipe because I've always found the chocolate chips sink to the bottom of the loaf, in this instance I forgot and the chocolate chips sank....This loaf improves with keeping and turns lovely and sticky, a drizzle of chocolate on top of the loaf will totally transform it's otherwise plain appearance.

Both the cupcakes and loaf freeze perfectly.

More suggestions for using up those ripe or over ripe bananas:

Nigella's Chocolate Banana Muffins
Banana Blueberry Cakes

Individual Carrot Cakes

Individual Carrot Cakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

I can always be tempted by carrot cake, they are a great adult favourite here and a few carrot cake postings can be found on my blog.  A while back I visited a lovely coffee shop in East Dulwich, they had made a huge tray of amazing carrot cake and I would have happily taken the tray home with me. For me, great coffee and a slice of carrot cake are a match made in heaven.

Spray the tins with cake release and fill three quarters full with cake batter.

This recipe isn't too sweet, is light in texture and packed full of flavour - perfect for us.

Mini bundt tins are recommended for this recipe but I used my tin from TKMaxx and half the recommended quantity of ingredients to make six cakes.

The recipe can be found on Edd Kimber's blog - Edd is a past winner of BBC2's Great British Bake Off.

Links to other cake postings:
Passion Cake
Mini Carrot Cakes
Mini Carrot Cakes with Lemon Cream Cheese Icing

The bundt tins recommended by Edd can be purchased from Amazon.

Sticky Toffee Pudding with Ginger: Recipe

Sticky Toffee Pudding with Toffee Sauce and Ice Cream

There are many variations of Sticky Toffee Pudding, and here is yet another, but this time with a ginger twist.  If dates aren't your thing, a pudding studded with stem ginger may well entice you towards making this rich and delicious pudding.

The pudding is really light in texture and the outer crust is sticky. I decided to use a toffee
sauce recipe using evaporated milk, it's more lightweight than using double cream and I promise the sauce doesn't taste of 'evap'.

A fabulous recipe by Mary Berry from her book Mary Berry's Family Sunday Lunches.

I served mine with ice cream because I like hot puddings with a dollop of cold ice cream.......

Slightly adapted recipe.

Serves: 6-8 people

You will need:  greased and base lined baking tin measuring 26cm x 19cm.

75g soft unsalted butter, 150g light brown sugar, 2 large eggs, 175g self-raising flour, 1tsp bicarbonate of soda, 2 tbsp black treacle, 1 tsp vanilla extract, 125ml milk, 4 bulbs stem ginger in syrup chopped finely.

1. Heat the oven to 180ºC.
2. Place the softened butter and sugar into either a food processor or mixing bowl and beat until it is light and fluffy.
3. Add the eggs, flour, bicarbonate of soda, treacle, vanilla extract and milk - whisk or whiz until smooth and thick.
4. Pour into the baking tin, bake for 35 - 45 minutes until cooked.
5. Cool in the tin for 10 minutes, turn out onto a baking tray.
6. Cut into slices - after cooling the pudding can be frozen or to reheat place on a plate and microwave for 30-40 seconds to reheat.

Sauce:
60g unsalted butter, 150g demerara sugar, 1 tbsp golden syrup, 150g evaporated milk

For the sauce: 
1. Melt the butter in a small pan.
2. Add the sugar and golden syrup to the butter.
3. Stir until the sugar dissolves.
4. Pour in the evaporated milk.
5. Beat until boiling.

To Serve:
1. Reheat a slice of pudding in the microwave for 30-40 seconds on high.
2. Pour the hot sauce over the pudding.
3. If you wish, serve with either a dollop of ice cream or some fresh cream.

For more of my yummy puddings:
Syrup Sponge
Plum, Rhubarb and Apple Crumble
Vanilla Rice Pudding with Blackberries & Plums
Brioche & Butter Pudding

Bakewell Tart: Recipe

Traditional shortcrust pastry topped with raspberry jam. An almond sponge layer topped with crunchy icing and a scattering of oven toasted flaked almonds - bliss. There are many variations of this delicious tart and this recipe gives a nod to the Bakewell Tart but I'm sure it is far removed from the secret recipe used by The Bakewell Tart Shop in Bakewell, Derbyshire.

You will need:

20/23cm loose bottom flan tin

For the pastry: 250g plain flour, 50g butter, 50g lard, 3 tablespoons chilled water

For the filling: 125g softened butter, 125g caster sugar, 3 eggs, 125g ground almonds, 3 tablespoons unsweetened raspberry jam

To decorate: 50g sifted icing sugar, 1 tablespoon water, 25g flaked almonds

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 200ºC. Sift the flour into a mixing bowl, rub in the fat until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Stir in the water to make a dough, if it doesn’t come together add more water. Knead to make a smooth dough and wrap in clingfilm. Chill for 30 minutes.
2. Roll out the pastry on a floured surface, line the tin and dock the pastry. Take a piece of baking paper, scrunch up, place into the pastry case, and fill to the top with baking beans. Bake blind for 15 minutes; remove the baking paper and baking beans.
3. Take a bowl and beat together the softened butter, caster sugar, the beaten eggs and ground almonds until smooth.
4. Spread the jam over the base of the cooked pastry case. Pour the cake batter over the jam to cover. Bake for 30-35 minutes.
5. Add the sifted icing sugar to a bowl and mix with water to make a thin pouring consistency and spread over the tart whilst still hot. Scatter over the flaked almonds, return to the oven for 5 minutes.

Links to previous postings:
Quick Portuguese Tarts
Apple & Pear Crumble Tart
Pear & Almond Tart with Chocolate Sauce
Blackberry & Apple Crumble Tart

A Nigel Slater Recipe - A Soup of Cauliflower and Cheese

Cauliflower Cheese Soup is a firm favourite, it's filling and comforting, not the best choice for those who may be on a diet, but for the rest of us a luxurious soup.

Grain mustard is stirred through the pureed soup along with a pot of creme fraiche - Nigel likens this soup to Welsh rarebit which I'll go along with....I made some mixed grain bread and served grilled cheese on toast to go alongside.

The recipe can be taken to dinner party level by using Gruyère Cheese. For an everyday soup a mature Cheddar cheese is fine, this was my cheese of choice because I had a slab in the fridge shouting to be used.

Taken from Tender Volume I -  Nigel Slater A cook and his Vegetable Patch - page 189.

I am entering my soup into Dish of the Month challenge hosted by Janice at Farmers Girl Kitchen and Sue at A Little Bit of Heaven on a Plate.

For more soup postings:
Celery, Leek & Stilton
Cauliflower Cheese Soup with Parmesan Wafers
Broccoli & Stilton Soup with Stilton Croutons
Spicy Tomato and Red Pepper Soup