Macaroon Trials...

I am not getting on with macaroon making!

Mary Berry's recipe tasted quite good, but didn't look like the photos.
Lorraine Pascal's recipe has the little "foot" but they've kind of spread across the baking sheet... and they've gone a funny colour! Sort of brown-ish.

Hmm. Whose recipe shall I attempt next?!

Stalk-Eye for a Saturday!

I can't quite bring myself to post a photo...


It's quite clearly a wig!!!


I hope.

Sunday Sweets: Chocolate Delights!

 

Another variation on a theme? From me...? Surely not!
This one is made using the truffle mix.
And it gives me an opportunity to use my chocolate moulds again!

Chocolate delights!

Makes lots!! (40 ish)

You will need...

• 200g White Chocolate
• 200g Dark Chocolate
• 100g Truffle mix (roughly!)

 -scoop tiny portions of truffle mix (~1/4 tsp sized scoops), roll them into balls and set to one side
 -melt the chocolates separately in bowls over a pan of freshly boiled water

Hmmm... I must've cleaned the oven especially ;-)

 -half fill each of the moulds with melted chocolate; manipulate the bottoms of the moulds with your fingers to ensure there are no gaps. Bang the mould on the counter to remove any bubbles.
 -drop a ball of truffle mix into each mould, and top up with more melted chocolate.
 

-bang the tray on the counter again
 -refrigerate until set and turn out

ooooh, a pretty stripey one!

Stalk-Eye for a Saturday

 

Oh Jeremy... How I love you...

(Also, I would highly recommend watching the Unusuals. But I may be biased.)

Flour-free Chocolate Chip Cookies

In other news: My cookie scoops have arrived!!

(Alright... Ice cream scoops. But I'll be using them pretty much exclusively for cookies and cakes.)

 Now I need a reason to use them...

These flour-free cookies were made using an American recipe (hence all the cup measurements).
If you're interested in following the authentic American version, here are the original quantities:

3 cups powdered sugar
2/3 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 to 4 large egg whites, at room temperature
1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups bittersweet chocolate chips


But... I didn't have that much chocolate in the cupboard, so I've halved the recipe (roughly) in cups and measured it in ounces.

See... I could use cups!

Annnd here's what I used

8oz Icing Sugar
1.5oz cocoa powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 large egg whites, at room temperature
1/2 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract
4oz chocolate chips

Makes 12 HUGE cookies.
Stores in an airtight container for 3 days.

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180oC. Line two baking trays with non-stick sheets. (The recipe advises that if you use grease proof paper, you should "give it a light swoosh of nonstick spray.")

2. Sift together the icing sugar and cocoa into a large bowl, and mix thoroughly (again, the recipe says whisk... but for the love of all things sacred... don't use electric beaters!! You'll suffocate on sugar powder!)

Blow that for a game of soldiers. Just use a wooden spoon... it's so much easier...

3.  Mix in the egg whites and vanilla and beat together (the recipe author has given a range of ingredients as eggs may vary in size, if you're using her quantities, she says start with "two and beat just until the batter is moistened. You're looking for a brownie-like, thick and fudgy batter consistency. If it seems too thick, add another egg white-- then a 4th one if it still seems too thick." So, I started with one, which wasn't enough, and added another, which was too much, so added more icing sugar and cocoa - and adjusted the measurements accordingly.)

4. Gently stir in chocolate chips.

5. Using the shiny new ice-cream/cookie scoop (the small one, 3cm diameter) evenly space 6 cookie dollops onto each tray. (these bad boys spread like you wouldn't believe)

Just remember these came out of a 3cm scoop...

6. Bake for 15 minutes until the tops are shiny and lightly cracked.

These are now about 10cm in diameter!!

mmm shiny and crackley!

7. When cooked slide the cookies (still on the non stick sheets) onto wire racks to cool completely. Or eat them warm. You know. Whatever...

I didn't know what to expect really, but they do look just like the ones in the original recipe, so that's a good start! They're crunchy on the top, and the edges, but really gooey and chewy in the middle.
Quite an unusual cookie! (But really quite tasty!)

Easter Biscuits

 

Easter Biscuits for Eileen!

Ingredients:

• 4oz caster sugar, plus extra for dusting
• 4oz butter, softened
• 1 egg yolk
• 8oz plain flour, sieved
• 1tsp mixed spice
• 3oz currants
• 2 tbsp milk

-Preheat the oven 160oC. Line two baking tray with greaseproof paper.

-Cream the butter and sugar together in a bowl until light and fluffy. 

-Beat in the egg yolk until combined.

-Sift the flour and mixed spice into the mixture, and mix together

 

 

 

-Stir in the currants

-Stir in milk to form a stiff dough.

 

 

-Refrigerate mix for at least half an hour

-Roll the dough out onto a very well floured surface (this is a soft dough, and will stick if you let it!)

 

 

-Cut out the biscuits with a fluted cutter. 

-Place onto the baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes.

 

 

 

-Remove from oven, and rest on their trays for 10 minutes before placing on a wire cooling rack, and sprinkling in sugar.

 

CAKE POPS!!!

Pretty shiny cakes...

I have succumbed.
I am a cake pop convert! (but not the American cake pop which is crumbled cake mixed with icing. Just the thought of that makes my teeth hurt!)

I bought a cake pop maker from Home Bargains. It is indeed a bargain for my home. (you can get one here...)

There it is. Magnificent, no?

So here's what you do -

Cake mix (makes 12 cake pops)

2oz marg
2oz caster sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
2oz SR flour

• Make up a traditional cake batter by creaming the marg and sugar together, adding the vanilla, beating in the egg, and mixing in the flour.

• Heat the cooker until the green light comes on

• Spoon dollops of mix into each hole - working quickly as they start cooking immediately! (I've found that the best amount of mix for the make is one heaped measuring tablespoon.)

• Close the lid and leave to cook for 4 minutes

• Remove each ball when cooked, and allow to cool.

To decorate -

100g chocolate (melted over simmering water)
sprinkles!!!
Lolly sticks

• Poke a hole about half way through the cake ball with the lolly stick - remove the stick, and dip the stick in the melted chocolate - replace the stick in to the cake

• Refrigerate until set.

You could skip that step, but the cake is more likely to spin while being decorated, or just fall of the stick... which is most inconvenient!

• When set, twirl each cake pop in the melted chocolate until completely coated.

• Set up in the handy dandy cake pop rack, and allow to cool slightly. (not allowing them to cool will result in all the sprinkles just sliding off the cake. And nobody wants droopy cake pops)

• When the chocolate is no longer drippy, you can dip the pops in bowls of sprinkles, and return to the fridge to completely set.

Well... you get the idea

Quite.