Salted Caramels

I would like to introduce you to my new love... salted caramel! Now I know this is a thing that's been doing the rounds on food blogs for a while, but I am only just now jumping on the band wagon. "Salted caramel, where have you been all my life?" Caramel has always been a favorite flavour of mine, but when combined with sea salt, it takes on a whole new dimension. The perfect balance of sweet and salty!


I made two batches. The first, plain caramels cut in to 1 inch squares. The second batch, I put in to chocolate cups with pecans. Either way, these are Soooo yummy!!!
The recipe listed below is for the caramels in the chocolate cups.
Enjoy!

Salted Caramels

Ingredients

• 2 cups chocolate (use the good stuff, not baking chocolate!)
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 2 teaspoons sea salt, plus extra for sprinkling on top.
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1/4 cup light corn syrup or golden syrup
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 cup whole pecans

Directions

1. In a double boiler, melt 1 cup of chocolate. Carefully coat the inside of 24 patty pans, or mini cupcake papers with melted chocolate. I like to put a spoonful in the patty pan and just carefully turn it until coated. Place them in a mini cupcake tin as you go in the fridge so they harden.


2. Bring the cream, butter and sea salt to a boil in a small saucepan; remove from heat and set aside.


3. Boil the sugar, corn syrup/golden syrup, and water in a heavy saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Bring to a boil, without stirring but gently swirling pan; then cook without stirring until the mixture reaches 248°F (120°C


4. Carefully stir in the cream mixture—the mixture will bubble up. Simmer, stirring frequently, about 15 minutes. The temperature should not go higher than 250°F(121°C)


5. Carefully spoon caramel into prepared chocolate cups, filling about 1/4 full.


6. place 1 whole pecan on top of caramel and then spoon a little more caramel over the pecan, making sure that you do not fill the caramel above the edge of the chocolate cup.


7. Melt the remainder of the chocolate and when smooth, top the caramel cups with chocolate. Gently wiggle baking tray to smooth out the top.


8. Top each cup with a small pinch of sea salt.


9. Refrigerate to harden and set the chocolate. Once set, store at room temperature.

Apple Pie

"As American as apple pie." What does that mean? I guess it really is a very "American" desert. Australian's idea of pie usually includes some type of meat, not fruit. It's been a long time since I've had apple pie. What better way to remedy my homesickness than this classic American desert?
Enjoy!


Apple Pie

Crust:

• 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 3/4 cup butter, cut into 1 inch cubes and chilled
• 1/4 cup shortening
• chilled6-8 tbsp ice water
  

Filling:

• 6-8 apples, peeled, cored and sliced (I like a tart apple like Granny smith.)
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 Tablespoons flour
• 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon cloves
• 2 Tablespoons butter, melted

Combine dry ingredients in large bowl. Cut in butter and shortening with a pastry cutter until mixture is coarse and no chunks larger than a big pea remain. Add water and press dough into a ball with the palms of your hands.Wrap dough in plastic and refrigerate for at least one hour.

In a large bowl, combine sugar, flour and spices. Add apples and toss until apples are coated. Pour melted butter over the top of apples and stir until well combined. Set aside until pie crust is ready.

Divide dough in half. Place one piece between two large pieces of baking or parchment paper. This is different than the old school way of doing it where you would roll it out on a floured surface. Adding more flour to the dough may create a tougher crust and prevent it from being light and flaky. Keep rolling until the dough circle is about 1 1/2-inches wider in diameter than the rim of the pie dish (hold dish over flat crust to check size). Dough for top crust doesn't need to be quite as large, only 1/2-1 inch larger than the pie dish. Gently lay the bottom crust into the dish. Fill pie dish with apple filling. Roll the second piece of dough out like the first, but use a small cookie cutter to cut a small, simple shape out of the middle to let air escape while baking. Lay top crust on top of filling and pinch edges to seal. Bake pie at 425 F (220 C) for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 F (175 C) and bake for a further 30-35 mins, or until juices are oozing from the pie’s vent. Let pie cool for at least 1 1/2 hours before slicing to allow juices to thicken and pie filling to set.

Chocolate "French" Macarons

First of all, let me start by saying I am in no way an expert on the subject of french macarons. I have never made them before and I have never even been to France. (Although it is on my list of dream destinations.) I do however have a love for baking and cooking and love a challenge in the kitchen! Rumor has it, these little suckers are hard to make and there is a science to making them. Every recipe and website has different tips and tricks for perfecting them. I took a chance and tried a simple recipe for a chocolate macaron with an espresso ganache. Now like I said before, I've never had a real one, but I have an image in my head as to what they should look and taste like, and these came pretty close to what I'd imagined! Two little pillows of crunchy, melt in your mouth meringue, with a rich dark chocolate and espresso ganache sandwiched in between. Until I make it to France to taste the real thing, this will have to do.

ENJOY! Chocolate Macarons

Macarons:

• 1 cup icing (powdered) sugar
• 1/2 cup almond meal
• 3 Tablespoons coco powder
• 2 egg whites, room temperature
• 1/3 cup white sugar

Ganache:

• 1/8 cup cream
• 1 cup dark chocolate
• 1 teaspoon instant espresso

1. In a large bowl, sift together icing sugar, coco and almond meal.
2. In a separate bowl, or electric mixer, whisk egg whites until thick. Add white sugar in 2 separate parts, whisking in between each. On high, continue to whisk until very stiff peaks form.
3. Fold egg whites in to almond mixture until just combined. It's important not to over mix.
4. Fill a pastry bag with mixture. Pipe on to baking tray lined with baking paper. Form small flat circles, about 1 teaspoon, about an inch apart. Rap baking tray on the counter top a few times to flatten the macarons out slightly.
5. Bake for 12-15 mins. Remove and place on cooling racks completely.
6. To make ganache, put cream and espresso in a small pot on the stove. Bring to a boil and remove from heat. Add chocolate and let sit for 2 mins. Stir with a whisk until smooth.
7. Place a small amount of ganache between 2 macaroons making sure not to squish out the sides. Let set on cooling rack for at least an hour to set.

*From what I know of french macarons, these turned out ok in some ways and not in others. They tasted great and the texture was fantastic. They had the "foot" on the bottom of the macaron and did not crack during baking. They did not however have the smooth shiny finish across the top as they should have. It think this may be because I did not ground the almond meal as most recipes suggest, so that is is fine like flour rather than sand. I may have also over mixed it a bit. They also raised a bit more than they should have. I think this is because I used icing "mixture" rather than pure icing sugar. The mixture contains cornflour and may have caused it to rise a bit.

Coconut Cupcakes

I have a confession:
I LOVE CUPCAKES!

The cupcake defiantly seems to have made a comeback in recent years. From humble vanilla, to rich chocolate, the flavour possibilities are endless! I have made many cupcakes in the past few years, but this one has got to be one of my favourites!
ENJOY!

COCONUT CUPCAKES with meringue topping

• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup packed sweetened shredded coconut
• 6 ounces (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/3 cups sugar
• 2 large eggs plus 2 large egg whites
• 3/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/3 cups large-flake unsweetened coconut

Meringue topping

• 4 egg whites
• 1 cup caster sugar
• 1 Tablespoon coconut flavour
  

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk dry ingredients and coconut in a large bowl. Cream butter, sugar and vanilla with a mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each addition.

2 .Reduce speed to low. Add dry ingredients to butter mixture in 3 additions, alternating with wet ingredients and ending with dry. Scrape sides of bowl. Divide batter among muffin cups, filling each 2/3 full.

3. Bake cupcakes until testers inserted into centers come out clean, about 20 minutes. Let cool on cooling racks completely before topping.

4. To make meringue, whisk egg whites until stiff peaks form. Add caster sugar and continue to whisk until shiny. Spoon meringue on top of cupcakes and use s small spatula to form peaks, or fill pastry bag fitted with a large tip to top meringue.

5. Place cupcakes in oven bake until meringues until lightly browned, about 5 minutes.

Chocolate Chunk Cookies

I have been very hesitant about posting a chocolate chip cookie recipe on my blog. I mean, anyone can make a chocolate chip cookie... right? So I went on the hunt for the world's best chocolate chip cookie recipe. I mean if I am going to post a recipe for this universally loved cookie, it's gotta be something AMAZING! I found a recipe on allrecipes.com and adapted my recipe from that. The secret ingredient, instant vanilla pudding or vanilla custard powder, keeps them moist and gives them an extra kick of vanilla. The verdict's still out for me. Sure, they were good, but not sure if I would call them "World's best." However I was told by a few people when I took them in to work that they were the best they had ever had. You try them and be the judge!
ENJOY!

Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Ingredients
· 2 1/4 cup flour
· 1 teaspoons baking soda
· 1 teaspoons baking powder
· 1/4 teaspoon salt
· 1 cups butter, softened
· 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
· 1/4 cup white sugar
· 1 package of vanilla pudding mix or 1/3 cup vanilla custard powder
· 2 eggs
· 1 tablespoons vanilla
· 2 cups milk chocolate, chopped (I like cadbury dairy milk bar and used 2 whole blocks)

Preheat oven to 350 F (175 C.)
Line baking trays with baking paper.
Sift together flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda.
In another bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar and sugar.
Mix in instant pudding or custard powder until blended.
Stir in eggs and vanilla.
Blend in flour and then chocolate chips.Drop spoonfuls of cookie dough on to a baking tray and bake for 10-12 mins

Vanilla bean Panna Cotta

If you haven't ever tried panna cotta before and have no idea what it is, imagine if Jello and vanilla ice cream got together and had babies! It's wiggles like Jello, but melts in your mouth like creamy vanilla ice cream.
You can splurge and split a real vanilla bean, or you can use vanilla bean paste... my newest and greatest find! It's all of the thousands of tiny little seeds already scraped out of the vanilla pod. One little teaspoon is equivalent to one whole vanilla bean!
ENJOY!*** Note *** although this turned out soooo yummy, for some reason all of the vanilla seeds sunk to the bottom. Does anyone know why this happened or how to prevent it? Maybe something to do with using skim milk rather than whole?

Vanilla bean panna cotta

Ingredients (serves 6)

• 1 1/2 cups (375ml) cream


• 1 1/2 cups (375ml) milk


• 1 vanilla bean or 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste


• 1/2 cup (115g) caster sugar


• 2 1/2 tsp gelatin powder


• fresh berries to serve

Place the cream and milk in a saucepan. Use a small sharp knife to split the vanilla bean lengthwise, then scrape the seeds from inside the bean. Add the seeds and bean to the saucepan. (or 1 tsp of vanilla bean paste) Slowly bring to the boil over a medium heat. Remove from the heat and set aside for 10 minutes.
Discard bean from cream mixture. Add sugar and return to a low heat. Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes, or until sugar dissolves.
Place 2 tbs of boiling water in a small heatproof bowl. Sprinkle over gelatin. Bring a small saucepan of water to boil. Remove from heat. Sit the bowl of gelatin in the water and stir until dissolved. Cool slightly, then stir into the cream mixture.
Lightly oil 6 x 1/2 cup (125ml) panna cotta moulds or ramekins. Place on a tray and pour in cream mixture. Refrigerate for 4 hours.
To serve, break the seal by inserting a small knife between the panna cotta and the mould. Turn onto a serving plate and shake to release. Serve dish with fresh berries.

Baileys fudge

Fudge... mmm... Baileys... mmm... BAILEYS FUDGE...MMM!!! I haven't had a lot of experience making candy, but I have had a wee bit of experience eating it! I came across this recipe in Marie Claire magazine and couldn't resist!
ENJOY!Baileys Fudge

• 150ml (3/4 cup) Baileys
• 50ml (3 Tablespoons) milk
• 30g (2 Tablespoons) butter
• 350g (1 1/2 cup) sugar
• 300g (1 1/3 cup) white chocolate
• Butter for greasing
  

Grease a cake tin with butter or line with baking paper. Chop white chocolate into small pieces.
Measure out 125ml of Baileys and pour into a saucepan. Add the milk, butter and sugar, and put the pan over a low heat. Stir occasionally, until the sugar has dissolved and the butter melted.
Turn up the heat to medium and let the mixture gently simmer while stirring constantly. Leave the mixture to bubble slightly for 10 minutes. This is important because it it does not reach 238 F (114C) the fudge may not set.
Remove the pan from the heat and stir in chopped-up chocolate and last 25ml of Baileys. Keep stirring until the chocolate has melted and you have a smooth consistency.
Transfer to the tin and chill in the fridge for at least two hours, or until it has set completely.
Remove from the fridge, cut into pieces and enjoy!

Snickerdoodle Cookies

This is an oldie, but a goodie! Snickerdoodle cookies were the very first ever thing I have memory of baking. Junior high school home ec. class! Simple, yet tasty... with a fun name!


ENJOY!

SNICKERDOODLE COOKIE

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2. Cream together butter, shortening, 1 1/2 cups sugar, the eggs and the vanilla. Blend in the flour, cream of tartar, soda and salt. Shape dough by rounded spoonfuls into balls.
3. Mix the 2 tablespoons sugar and the cinnamon. Roll balls of dough in mixture. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets.
4. Bake 6 to 8 minutes, or until set but not too hard. Remove immediately from baking sheets and cool on cooling racks.

Sticky date muffins

I'll admit, until a few years ago, dates made me think of old people... I don't know, something about dried up little pieces of fruit. As a kid, the only time I would see dates were at Christmas in dried fruit baskets that no one wanted to eat. Then a few years ago I was introduced to the wonderfulness that is STICKY DATE PUDDING! Not the pudding I grew up eating (like custard here in this part of the world,) but a soft, sort of dense cake, with a sticky caramel sauce over the top! Mmmm... I sort of played with the idea of creating a muffin version of this, one of my favourite deserts. I wasn't quite sure how this would turn out, but was pleasantly surprised how fast the dozen disappeared! I will definitely be making these again!

ENJOY!

Sticky date muffins

Ingredients:

• 250 grams (2 cups) pitted dates, chopped
• 1 1/2 cup boiling water
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 80 grams (1/3 cup) butter, softened
• 3/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
• 2 eggs
• 1 Tablespoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups flour, sifted

caramel glaze

• 3/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
• 1/4 cup cream
• 80 grams (1/3 cup) butter
• 1/2 cup icing (powdered) sugar

Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F.) Place 12 large paper muffin liners in muffin tray. In a medium bowl, dissolve baking soda in boiling water then add chopped dates. Let sit until room temperature.

Mix butter and brown sugar until fluffy. Add eggs and mix well. Stir in cinnamon, vanilla.

In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Fold in butter/sugar mixture and dates.

Pour in to muffin liners and bake for 2o mins of until golden brown on top.

To make caramel glaze, put all ingredients in a small sauce pan and simmer while stirring for 3 to 4 minuets. Drizzle over muffins and let cool.

Blueberry crumb bar

Ok, I have a confession... This was the first time I have ever baked with Blueberries! After tasting these, I can tell you that I will for sure be using them again in the future!

Enjoy!

Ingredients

base and crumble:

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3 cups flour
• 1 cup cold butter (2 sticks)
• 1 egg
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Filling:

• Juice of one lemon
• 4 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 4 teaspoon cornstarch (cornflour)

Preheat the oven to 375 F (190 C). Grease a 9×13 inch pan or baking dish.
In a medium bowl, stir together 1 cup sugar, 3 cups flour, salt and baking powder. Use a fork or pastry cutter to blend in the butter and egg. Dough will be crumbly. Press half of dough into baking dish, firmly with hands.
In another bowl, stir together the sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice. Gently mix in the blueberries. Spread blueberry mixture evenly over the crust. Crumble remaining dough over the top or blueberries.
Bake in preheated oven for 40-45 minutes, or until top is slightly brown. Cool completely before cutting into squares.

Pear Crumble

Autumn is knocking on our door here in Australia! Mornings and evenings are getting a little chilly. This fueled my need for a warm treat. I bought these cute little ramekins this week and could not wait to do little cobblers, crisps and crumbles in them! At the market, these big beautiful pears caught my eye and I knew that was it! This is the easiest recipe, and even if you can't bake ofrcook, you can do this. And even better yet, it only takes about 20 mins from start to finish!

ENJOY!

Pear crumble

Ingredients

filling:

• 6 large pears (it's ok if they are firmer than you would eat them raw)
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup of brown sugar

Crumble topping:

• 2 Tablespoons cold butter
• 3 Tablespoons flour
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup oats (optional)

Preheat oven to 200 C (390 F). Peel and core pears, then slice in to small wedges. Melt butter in large pot on stove, then add pears. Put brown sugar, cinnamon and vanilla over the top of the pears and cover with out stirring. Reduce heat to medium and leave covered for 2 mins, then stir and recover. Leave on stove for 10-15 mins (until pears are soft and tender) , stirring occasionally to mix caramelized mixture into pears. Divide pears evenly into 6 small ramekins or one 9 inch baking dish.

In a small bowl, combine cold butter, flour, brown sugar and oats. With a pastry cutter of fork, chop at it until crumble mixture is the size of peas. Sprinkle over the top of the pears. Bake for 10 mins or until crumble turns golden brown.

This recipe is sooooo easy... and fast! Top it in with some vanilla ice cream and you're good to go!

Spiced Almond Biscotti

I guess you could say I have a slight "thing" for coffee. I've worked for a major, globally known coffee company for the last 10 years. So in looking for my next baking project, I set out for something to go with my favourite coffee. What better accompaniment is there to go with a steaming cup of joe than a nice crisp piece of biccotti. Biscotti are twice baked, Italian cookies that have warm, rich flavours in them that compliment coffee well. This particular biscotti is spicy, nutty and not too sweet. Perfect for dipping!


ENJOY!

Spiced almond biscotti

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup butter
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup molasses (or treacle if you are in Aus)
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 Tablespoon ground ginger
• 1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 cup almonds, chopped
• 1 cup white chocolate for drizzling

Preheat oven to 350 F (175 C) degrees. Beat together butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl until smooth and fluffy. Add the eggs. When combined, blend in the molasses. In a large bowl, sift together flour and all. Add butter and sugar mixture to flour mixture along with nuts and mix until combined well. Divide the dough in half and turn onto a lightly greased baking sheet. With greased hands, shape each half into a log approximately 3 or 4 inches wide and 1 inch high. Make sure the logs are at least 2 inches apart on the baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from oven. Reduce heat to 300 F (150 C) degrees. Cool Biscotti for 10 minutes then remove them from the pan and place them on a cutting board.Carefully cut each log into 1/2 inch slices. Place the slices back on the baking sheet, cut side down.Place the baking sheet back in the oven and bake for 10 minutes.Remove the pan from the oven, turn the biscotti over and bake for an additional 10 minutes on the other side.Remove from oven and let cool.When the cookies are cool, melt white chocolate. When the chocolate is smooth place it in a ziploc sandwich bag and seal the bag shut. Squeeze the chocolate into a lower corner and snip 1/8 - 1/4 inch from the corner of the bag. Squeeze the chocolate out onto the cookies in a zigzag motion for decoration.

Coconut Macaroons

I will never be able to think of coconuts without comical images of my Dad, ever again! Last year when he came to visit us in Australia, we took a side trip up to Carins. The excitement and determination on his face while trying to open this coconut with a rock on the beach was hilarious! He was soooo proud of himself when he finally got it open. We all gnawed on a piece of it while while strolling down the beach that afternoon. I'll always remember that trip and that coconut!

ENJOY!

Coconut macaroons

• 3 cups shredded coconut


• 4 egg whites, room temperature


• 1/4 tsp salt


• 1 cup caster (superfine) sugar


• 2 tsp vanilla essence


• ½ tsp cream of tartar
• 1 /2 cup dark chocolate
  

Macaroons:

1. Preheat oven to 170°C (335°F). Line 3 large baking trays with non-stick baking paper. Spread the coconut over 2 of the trays and cook in preheated oven, tossing occasionally, for 3-4 minutes or until lightly toasted.

2. Use electric beaters or mixer to whisk the egg whites, cream of tartar and salt together in a large bowl until soft peaks form. Add the sugar a spoonful at a time, whisking after each addition. Whisk for a further 2 minutes or until mixture is thick and glossy.

3. Add the vanilla essence and whisk to combine. Add the toasted coconut and use a large spatula or spoon to fold in until just combined.

4. Spoon tablespoonful of mixture onto lined trays, leaving about 2cm between each. Bake in preheated oven, swapping trays halfway through cooking, for 12-15 minutes or until light golden and firm. Set aside for 5 minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.

5. Fill a pan half way with water and bring to a boil. In a heat proof bowl, set over boiling water and turn off heat. Let stand for 2 mins and stir until smooth. with a spoon, dip in chocolate and drizzle back and forth over macaroons.