Bolo Podre

This is a typical Southern Portugal cake that I tried two Christmas and quite liked as looks simple and tasty. So finally this weekend was the time to try this recipe.

Ingredients:

  • 2 medium eggs
  • 100g sugar
  • 100g honey
  • 75ml olive oil
  • 150g plain flour
  • 1/2 tbs cinnamon
  • 1/2 tbs baking powder
  • 1/2 ground anise grains.
  • A bit of butter

Process:

  • Pre-heat oven at 180C
  • Whisk eggs and sugar until double in volume. It takes time doing it by hand!
  • Add honey and oil, bit a bit and keep whisking.
  • Add flour, cinnamon, baking powder and anise. Mix all well
  • Pour the mix in a greased tin.
  • Bake for 45 minutes aprox. Use a tooth stick or similar to check the inside is cook before removing from oven.

Result:

It raised more than I expected. It wasn’t as moist as I remember but it was tasty. Based on the ingredients reminded me of a olive-Greek cake I did some months ago.

I checked other recipes like this so maybe I will try again at some point.

Lemon Pudding Souffle

Lemon zest garnish ingredients:

  • 1/2 lemon skin cut at julienne (long and narrow stripes)
  • 50ml water
  • 50g caster sugar
  • 1/2 lemon juice

Process:

  • Mix water and sugar in a pan. Heat up to boil water.
  • Add the lemon zest and mix for 10 sec, while water is boiling
  • Add lemon juice and keep mixing for another 10 sec.
  • Check the mix is getting some consistency then remove from heat
  • Let it cool down for later. It should be like a syrup and solidify while cooling down. You can heat it up in microware for 10-15s to make it liquid again.

Lemon Pudding souffle ingredients:

  • 125ml milk
  • 35g butter
  • 70g caster sugar
  • 70g plain flour
  • 2 eggs yolks
  • 4 eggs whites
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla paste
  • 1/2 lemon zest
  • butter and sugar for greasing

Process:

  • Pre-heat oven at 180C
  • Grease (solid butter and sugar) 4 dariole moulds. Be sure there is no shiny parts! Cut a small square of baking paper and put in the bottom of the mould.
  • Make a “beurre manie” that is mixing the butter and flour by hand in a bowl.
  • Scold the milk with the vanilla (just hit the boiling point). Then at medium heat, add pieces of the “beurre manie” and whisk non stop with the milk. It is like doing “bechamel” sauce. Once the whisk is not useful, move to a wooden spoon and keep mixing.
  • At the end you will have kind off a ball, keep cooking for 1-2 minutes to be sure the flour is properly cooked.
  • Remove from heat and let it cool down
  • Add the 2 egg yolks one at each time to the “ball”. It should become like a thick cream.
  • Whisk the egg whites until snow peak. Then add the sugar and lemon zest and whisk again until snow peak. This is the meringe
  • Now fold a 1/3 of the meringe into the pudding butter. Keep doing the same 1/3 at the time.
  • Once you have all mixed, pour the butter into the moulds up to 3/4.
  • Using a deep tray, put the moulds and fill it with water (hot if possible). Be careful the moulds dont float!
  • Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden on top and risen.
  • Prepare the egg custard while waiting

Fresh egg custard sauce ingredients:

  • 75ml double cream
  • 75ml milk
  • 35g egg yolk
  • 25g caster sugar
  • 1/2 tbs vanilla paste

Process:

  • In a glass, mix egg yolks and sugar.
  • Mix double cream, milk and vanilla in a sauce pan. Add a bit of the sugar and put to the boil.
  • Add the egg mix to the liquid and mix with a wooden spoon.
  • Keep mixing until the liquid thick up a bit! Dont over do it! If you ran a finger in the back of the spoon when covered with the custard, it should keep apart.
  • Remove from heat and pour it in a container. Cover with cling film

Presentation:

  • Once the pudding moulds are ready, remove the mould, be sure you take off the paper too!
  • Put each pudding in the middle of a dish.
  • Pour the custard around the pudding
  • Put a spoon of the lemon syrup on top of the pudding (put in microware if solid)

This is it!

It was actually quite nice. Spongy and lemony.

Dundee Cake

This is a typical Scottish cake and I learned today via an e-course.

Ingredients

  • 180g softened butter
  • 90g caster sugar
  • 90g dark brown sugar
  • 115g plan flour
  • 110g self-raising flour
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 300g dry mixed fruit
  • 1 tbsp of fresh grated ginger
  • 1 orange: juice + zest
  • coconut flakes for decoration
  • 50ml Scotch whiskey (optional)
  • 1 tsp grated nutmeg
  • 1 tsp ground ginger
  • 2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • optional: whiskey butter: 75g softened butter + 75g icing sugar + 1 tbsp whiskey

Process:

  • Pre-heat oven at 150C. Grease and line a baking tin 20x30cm aprox
  • Soak the dried fruit with the whiskey, orange juice, orange zest and fresh grated ginger.
  • In a bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy
  • Add the eggs one by one to the butter mix. Keep mixing
  • Sift the flour, spices and baking powder on the butter mix. Fold everything with a wooden spoon or spatula.
  • Drain the soaked fruit, reserve the liquid for later! Add the fruit into the dough, folding it.
  • Pour the mixture into the tin and smooth the surface.
  • Bake at 150C for 1h 20-30m aprox. Until golden and springy to touch.
  • While baking, prepare the whiskey butter. Whip the butter and icing sugar. Add the tbsp of whiskey. Whip and done.
  • Once the cake is out of the oven, immediately, brush the top with the liquid leftover (add one tsp of sugar) and then add the coconut flakes.
  • Leave it cool down

It taste a bit like a Christmas pudding but lighter. I liked it!

Chelsea and Swiss Buns

This recipe makes:

2x chelsea buns tins of 22cm diameter

6x swiss buns

Ingredients for the dough:

  • 850g strong white flour, plus extra for dusting
  • 25g dry yeast
  • 100g caster sugar
  • 475ml warm milk
  • 2 egg beaten
  • 100g unsalted butter, melted, plus extra for greasing
  • oil for greasing
  • 1 tsp sea salt

Filling ingredients:

  • 25g melted butter
  • 100g currants, chopped
  • 50g sultanas, chopped
  • 2 tsp mixed spice
  • 25g caster sugar

Glaze:

  • 200ml water
  • 200g caster sugar

Process:

  • Mix together the flour, yeast, sugar and salt. Make a well in the center.
  • Warm the milk at body temperature
  • Pour milk, melted butter and beaten eggs into the flour. Mix all together and then knead for 10 minutes until you have a smooth and elastic dough. It will be a bit sticky at the very beginning but dont add any flour.
  • Shape the dough into a ball, add a bit of oil into the bowl, put the dough, cover with clean film and let it prove until double in size (1h?)
  • Pre-heat oven at 180C
  • Prepare a tray with butter and a coating of flour to make it anti-sticky.
  • Prepare the chelsea buns tins. Put a layer of melted butter, then add a piece of baking paper of the same diameter to cover the bottom. Cover again with a bit of melted butter. Tray to cut another piece of baking paper for the side of the tin. Add a bit of butter again.

Swiss Buns:

  • Once the dough has double in size, put it on a lightly flour surface and knock the air out.
  • Cut 6 pieces of 80gr aprox. Cover the pieces and the big dough with the bowl and a towel so they dont dry out.
  • For each piece, make a ball, flat it with your palm, put pressure and make circules with your hand, remove pressure gradually and until you have a ball again.
  • Then roll it as it were a “cigar”. Put it in the tray. Leave around 3cm distance between each “cigar”.
  • Prove again until double in size (25-30m). Move to the Chelsea Buns.
  • Then bake for 6 minutes aprox or until golden light brown.
  • Let it cool down before adding the sugar coating.
  • Optional: make white fondant icing. For each Swiss bun, dip only the top, the lift it, let the fondant to drip by one side and then with a finger, clean the fondant drip without leaving the finger mark.

Chelsea Buns:

  • With the left-over dough and using a rolling-pin, spread the dough into a big rectangle. At least 42x25cm.
  • With a brush, cover the dough with the melted butter.
  • Mix sugar and spice, then spread it over the dough.
  • Spread evenly the chopped currants and sultanas.
  • With the roll, push a bit the dry fruit.
  • Make a roll with the dough, start by the “long” side. Be sure it is tight but dont break it.
  • With a sharp knife, cut both end until you have an even form. Then cut 12-14 pieces from the roll.
  • Put one piece in the middle, then put another at 5 or 6 other pieces around as it were a flower. Be sure the end of each piece points to the middle.
  • Put for tins to prove again. Aprox 25 minutes. They should grow until there is no space between each piece and raise a bit too.
  • Bake until the top is golden brown. At 180C, aprox 15-20 minutes.
  • Glaze with the sugar syrup as soon as the tins are removed from the oven. Remove the buns from the tin!

This is the result!

Donuts

Dough Ingredients (12 units):

  • 660g strong flour
  • 75g sugar
  • 5g salt
  • 60g unsalted butter
  • 30g liquid egg
  • 20g dry yeast
  • 150g warm water
  • 150g milk

Filling/Coating

  • egg wash
  • 100ml boling water + 100g sugar + cinnamon stick + star anise
  • jam
  • double cream: whipped + vanilla essence or 1tsp of coffee.

Process

  • Warm water and milk at body temperature. Then add yeast and mix.
  • In a bowl, mix flour, salt and sugar. Then rubber the butter until you have a breadcrumb look mix.
  • Add egg to the milk and mix.
  • Add liquid mix to the flour.
  • Mix all together until forming a ball.
  • Knead on the table until you have a smooth ball. When you poke it, it should spring back in slow motion. For 7-10 minutes aprox.
  • Put the dough in the bowl, with a bit of oil, cover with cling film and let it prove until double in size. This is the most difficult thing to do at home. Try to put in a switch-on oven with a bit of boiling water in a small pan to simulate a proving machine (40C?). In a proving machine takes 1h.
  • In a lightly flour surface, tip your dough and roll it as a long ping. Use a scale and cut 12 pieces. It should be 92g each aprox.
  • With each piece, make a ball, with one plant of your hand, push to the table and start rolling releasing pressure until a ball forms. Put each ball in a tray with baking paper. Cover the pieces while you make the balls.
  • Prove the balls again until double in size. Try the oven again with a bit of boiling water. 1h aprox. You can as well, try donuts with a whole. Just with a dusted finger, make a whole in the middle and spin the dough. Be sure the whole is quite big in diameter and when it proves may close.
  • Second most difficult part. Deep frying. Keeping the temperature is critical so your will need a temperature prove and patience. Be sure the oil is at 170C. Add two balls (max) in you have a deep fryer. If you use a sauce pan, fry one ball at each time. Fry aprox for 1 minute each side. Ideally you should have a white lien in the middle. If the oil is below 170C the donuts will get soggy, too hot, they will burn. So again, be patience.
  • As well, you can bake in the oven, aprox 10 minutes at 180C. Just give it an egg wash and bake until golden. Use a toothpick to check they are baked inside. Then give it a sugar-water coating immediately after taking out of the oven.
  • For the deep-fry donuts, let them cool down. Then coat them with a mix of sugar/cinnamon.
  • Now you can add the fillings. With a knife, make a hole in the white line and pipe your filling. For the oven ones, cut in the middle around 3/4 and pipe your fillings.

This is my outcome:

I filling some with coffee cream, jam and plain cream.

They were really nice. I didnt expect this result. Again, critical is the proving and deep frying at the correct temperature.

Soda Bread and Naan

Soda Bread Ingredients:

  • 170g self raising flour
  • 170g plain flour
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 290ml (1/2 pint) buttermilk

Soda Bred Process:

  • Pre-heat oven at 200C
  • Mix the flours, salt and bicarbonate into a large bowl.
  • Make a well in the center and pour the buttermilk, mixing with a fork to form a soft dough.
  • Knead for 3-4 minutes in a lightly floured surface.
  • Form a ball with the sides of your hands, flatten a bit the top.
  • Cut the ball in 8 pieces with a big knife. Use a bit of oil so the knife doesn’t stick.
  • Let is rest for 15 minutes. Prepare a tray lightly floured.
  • Bake for 30 minutes. Check with a toothstick that comes out clean. And it should sound hollow when tapping the bottom.
  • Cool in a wire rack.

Ingredients for Peshwari Naan Bread:

  • 3/4 tsp instant yeast
  • 1/2 tsp sugar
  • 60ml body temperature water
  • 140g plain flour
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 60ml/54g Greek style yogurt
  • 1/2 tsp vegetable oil

Naan Filling:

  • 28g butter
  • 1 tbsp desiccated coconut
  • 24g raisins
  • 22g almonds

Naan Process:

  • Mix yeast, sugar and water. Wait a 1-2 minutes until the liquid is a bit bubbly.
  • Mix flour and salt in a bowl
  • Add the water mix to the yogurt and oil.
  • Add the yogurt mix to the flour. Mix well with a fork
  • Knead for 5 minutes. It is going to be sticky. Add a bit extra flour if needed.
  • Put the dough back in a lightly oiled bowl.
  • Let is prove until double in size. 1h at least
  • Prepare the filling. In a chopping board put all ingredients but butter. Chopped all them until they are fine.
  • Add the butter, mix all ingredients and form 3 balls.
  • Once the dough has risen. Divide in 3 parts.
  • With a lightly floured rolling pin, roll each dough into a small circle, put a piece of butter in the middle. Wrap it with the rest of dough.
  • Roll the dough ball with the pin trying to form an eye-drop. It should be quick, not many passes with the pin.
  • Put the naans on a ligthly floured towel.
  • Heat up a skillet. Once hot, (just a drop of oil), put a naan. Wait until puffs up and start to get brown dots in the bottom.
  • Flip and wait for the same. Check it doesnt burn! Likely less than 1 minute.
  • Repeat for the other naans.

This is the result:

The soad bread was very tasty and super quick to make!!!

The naans were tasty too. I guess the filling can be very different.

Aquafaba Cherry Brownie

I had aquafaba left over from making humus and always wanted to do something simple with it. As well, it has been a long time since I do brownies. So found a recipe that mixed both:

Ingredients:

  • Liquid from a can of chickpeas (around 120ml)
  • 290g sugar (I think it is too much)
  • 150g dark chocolate (I used 85% dark) chopped
  • 110g margarine
  • 180g plain flour
  • 40g cocoa powder
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp coffee powder
  • optional: chocolate chips (I didnt use…)
  • 2 handful of frozen cherries

Process:

  • Pre-heat oven at 175C
  • Let the frozen cherries to get to room temperature. Dont add them frozen to the butter (as I did…) as it will solidify it….
  • Sift flour and cocoa powder.
  • In another bowl, mix sugar and aquafaba. I dont have a mixing attachment to my hand blender so I did it manually. I didnt get to the point as in the video.
  • Add the vanilla, salt, coffe to the liquid. Fold it with a spatula.
  • Melt the margarine and chocolate using Bain Marie. I ran out of bowl and had to use a saucepan directly on the heat….
  • Pour the melted chocolate over the aquafaba mix. Fold everything together.
  • Add the flour mix to the wet ingredients. Combine properly but dont over mix.
  • Add the chocolate chips and cherries if you want to. Mix all a bit.
  • Pour the butter into a baking tin covered with baking paper. Mine is 30x20cm and I think it is a bit too big. You dont have to spread the butter everywhere if you want a bit thicker brownies.
  • Bake for 30-35 minutes. Use a toothpick to check if the center comes out with a bit of moister. Dont over bake it! (as I did)
  • Let the brownies to cool for 0 minutes then you can cut them.

To be honest, I made many mistakes. The worse one was adding the cherries frozen!!! And I left the brownies too long in the oven. As usual, more practice!!!

I think my normal brownies are much better but still it was a way to use aquafaba. Need to find more usage for that anyway.

Calzone

This dough can be used for pizza too. And the filling is quite personal.

Ingredients for dough (x2 calzone)

  • 225g plain or strong white flour + dusting
  • 90ml milk warmed at body temperature
  • 50ml water warmed at body temperature
  • 1 tsp dried yeast
  • 25ml olive oil
  • pinch salt

Filling:

  • cherry tomatoes
  • 1 mozzarella roughly chopped
  • any cold meat if you wish
  • capers, oregano
  • grated parmesan
  • olive oil
  • some slices of onion
  • some tbsp of tomate sauce

Process

  • Sift the flour and salt in a bowl.
  • Warm the milk and water in a saucepan. Just body temperature! If too hot, will kill the yeast. Add the dry yest and mix.
  • Add the milk mix to the flour, mix a bit and then add oil. Mix well.
  • Knead until smooth and the window test passes.
  • Let me it proof until double in size.
  • Pre-heat oven at 250C.
  • Mix all your filling ingredients in a bowl.
  • Dive the dough in two, roll in a big circle around 23cm or so.
  • Put the filling in the middle. Dont put too much so you need to “close” the dough.
  • Brush the dough edges with water, then fold half the side over to cover the filling.
  • Pinch the edges “covering your thumb”.
  • White a knife score the top of your calzone.
  • Bake until dough is golden.

It looks like a big “empanada” but still was good.

To be honest, I need to practice more my pizza dough. It is quite far from any good pizza I have tried.

Rosquillos

This is typical sweet from my hometown and never tried to bake it until yesterday. I have been in the bakery (“horno”) twice in the last two years and just got an idea of the ingredients but never been brave enough to ask for the proportions so this is just a guess…

Ingredients:

  • 200ml water + 25g sugar + 2 star anise
  • 100ml orange juice
  • 200ml olive oil
  • 400g strong white flour (harina pastelera)
  • 120g caster sugar
  • 50ml anise (43%) – I used sambuca

Process:

  • Boil the water, sugar and star anise. Let it simmer for 5 minutes. Then cool down.
  • In a bowl, mix all ingredients. Just add 150ml from the water mix above.
  • Knead for 15-20 minutes until smooth. It doesnt stick much as it has lot of oil.
  • Let the dough to rest for 30 minutes in the bowl.
  • Using a scale, make 6 balls, aprox 150g each. Be sure they are tight balls.
  • Let them rest for 1h or so in a tray with a bit of flour as anti-stick. I used two trays. The idea is to try to prove the balls (in my case it didnt happen…)
  • Pre-heat oven at 175C
  • Make a hole in the middle, like a “rosquilla” and the try to make “picos” in the sides. I failed miserably with the “picos”.
  • Put one tray in the oven, bake until golden.
  • Bake the second tray.
  • Let the “rosquillos” to cool down.

My version:

The real deal:

So still a bit off target 🙂

The real “rosquillos” uses only anise (liquor). But it can be dangerous to use at home because if the oven has not good ventilation, the alcohol can blow it, so for that reason I just used it a bit and try to replace it with the water+star anise.

In summary, my version is eatable. I didnt have to throw them away so that’s a win at the end. The flavour is still far from the original but tasty nonetheless.

Another thing, I had the oven at 230C initially so the first batch went to dark and inside wasnt very well cooked. And this morning were quite hard. I remember the original ones go hard too but no the next day. Still it was tasty today though.

So possible modifications/incognitas:

  • Bake at 175C (already updated instructions)
  • Less olive oil, 150ml?
  • A bit more anise alcohol?
  • how to make them prove?

I guess I will try again soon as the process and ingredients are not “difficult”. It was to find a decent proportion. Hopefully next year I will go back to the bakery and ask for the proportions.

2nd Attempt:

  • 150ml water + 25g sugar + 2 star anise
  • 100ml orange juice
  • 100ml olive oil
  • 450g strong white flour (harina pastelera)
  • 120g caster sugar
  • 50ml anise (43%) – I used sambuca

Super sticky dough, not much better 🙁

3nd Attempt:

  • 100ml orange juice
  • 150ml olive oil
  • 450g strong white flour (harina pastelera)
  • 120g caster sugar
  • 100ml anise (43%) – I used sambuca

No sticky dough (good to remove water+sugar+anise), but still not raising. It releases liquid…. I think I need to put less liquid (of everything)?? It is the flour correct? The recipe needs “Harina Pastelera” and when asked what was the difference I was told it was the “strength” so I have assumed I need “strong” white flour… Next time I will try to make “Harina Pastelera”.

Vegan sticky toffee pear pudding

For NYE dinner I wanted to try something different from my standard vegan cherry frozen cake so this recipe looked nice.

Ingredients for caramelized pears:

  • 6 small firm pears (conference are good)
  • 200g caster sugar
  • 2 cinnamon sticks
  • 1 star anise
  • 6 cloves
  • 1 lemon zest
  • 1 orange zest

Ingredients for sponge:

  • 250g pitted dates
  • 1 tsp chia seeds
  • 1 can of coconut milk
  • 200ml sunflower oil
  • 160g dark muscovado sugar
  • 200g self-raising flour
  • 1 tsp bicarbonate soda
  • 1 tsp ground mixed spice (I used Chinese)
  • pinch of salt

Process:

1- Peel the pears, cut the bottom off each to give a flat base. With a small knife, try to cut the pips/heart from the base. Roughly chop these scraps and discard the seeds as are not sweet. Set aside for later.

2- In a saucepan where all pears can fit, pour sugar, cinnamon sticks, star anise, cloves, zests and 600 ml water. Bring to a boil, then simmer and add the pears. Cover the saucepan if you can. Poach them until a knife easily slides into the pear. Around 25-30 minutes. After that, remove from heat and let the pears cool down in the liquid.

3- Put chopped dates, chia and coconut milk in another saucepan. Bring to medium heat, stir often so the milk doesnt stick in the bottom. Check the dates get soft.

4- Pour the date mix into a food processor and blitz until smooth. Add oil and blend again. Let it cool down.

5- Pre-heat oven at 175C. My bakin tin is 32x22x5 cm. Line it with baking paper.

6- In a bowl, put the sugar, flour, bicarbonate, mixes spice and pinch of salt. Mix all well by hand. Be sure there are no sugar lumps.

7- Add the date mix to the flour. Mix with a spatula all together. Add the pear scraps.

8- Pour the mix into the tin. Nestle the pears, standing up right. Bake for 35-40 minutes. Remove from oven only if a skewer in the center of the cake comes out clean.

9- Try to reduce the pear poaching liquid to a syrup (I couldnt).

10- Once the cake is out of the oven, with a brush, pour a bit of the syrup on top. Then let it cool down a bit.

11- I cut mine in six parts to be sure everybody had a piece with pear.

I haven’t tried a sticky toffee pudding from a long time. This one didnt remind me much but it was really tasty nonetheless. So happy with the result. And my friends too!