Category Archives: Nostalgia

Low(er) Fat Gingerbread

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Baking is perhaps my favourite way to spend a Sunday afternoon, specially in autumn and winter. I love being able to take my time mixing, baking, filling, icing, decorating. And full baking tins somehow make starting the working week a little bit easier.

I made this gingerbread a few Sundays ago. It didn’t turn out quite as dark as I’d like (I’m still thinking about this black, sticky gingerbread from 101 Cookbooks), but the recipe is definitely a keeper. The demerara sugar gives it a kind of crunchier texture than plain old white or brown sugar, and the ginger sprinkled on top makes for a delicious crusty edge.

I lowered the fat in it by replacing butter with fruit purée and low-fat spread. It’s still high really in sugar, so you couldn’t call it exactly healthy… but it is better than a lot of gingerbread recipes out there. I baked it as a cake, but I’m also thinking about halving the recipe and making it into a loaf.

I recommend it for a grey weekend afternoon. By the way, if Mother’s Day slipped past you this year, it’s not too late! You can make this for an afternoon tea for your mum ;)

Low(er) Fat Gingerbread
Loosely based on a recipe in Food magazine

3½ cups flour
1 Tbsp ground ginger
½ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp mixed spice
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1¼ cups demerara sugar
75g low fat table spread
½ cup treacle
½ cup golden syrup
100g fruit purée*
½ cup milk
2 eggs, lightly beaten
¼-½ cup crystallised ginger, finely sliced

*either bought apple sauce or pie filling, or I suggest homemade apple purée. You could also try mashed banana.

Preheat the oven to 180°(C). Line the base and sides of a square or round tin – I made this one in a 20cm square tin, but this cake was probably too big for it. I’m planning on using my 23cm round springform next time.

Sift the flour, ground ginger, spices, baking powder, baking soda and salt together. Stir in the sugar and make a well in the centre.

Microwave the spread gently until it has JUST melted (it’s fine if there are still a couple of lumps of unmeltedness), and stir in the treacle and golden syrup. Stir in the fruit purée too. Beat in the milk and eggs. Pour into the dry ingredients and stir to make a smooth batter. Pour it into the prepared cake tin and sprinkle the crystallised ginger over the top.

Bake for about 70 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean. Leave it in the tin for 20 minutes before turning on to a rack to cool.

Vintage Cooking: Goldenglow Cake

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Titri was the family farm on my mother’s mother’s side. We used to go there a lot when I was little to visit my grandmother’s rather comical brothers, Ben and Max, who would tease me mercilessly. I still think of them as the Statler and Waldorf of our family.

We also used to go to Titri every spring to pick daffodils – nobody knows when or why they were planted, but an enormous field of daffies cropped up in front of the house every single year.

I don’t know when the old house at Titri was built, but this photo was taken sometime around 1900. You can see its amazing garden – a huge vege patch to the side of the house, and flowers, trees and shrubs in front. It also would have had an orchard. Just in the background at the left you can see the dairy shed where the family made their butter.

My great-grandparents, Charlie and Mary farmed here. Sadly, Charlie died suddenly in 1945, when their four children were still teenagers, and from then on, Mary ran the farm with the help of the boys. My grandmother moved to another farm in 1953 when she married my grandfather.

This is Mary (seated) in front of the old house – my grandmother is standing beside her, and the little baby is my mum!

A new farm house was built at Titri in the 1960s, but Ben and Max never really got around to pulling down the old one. This photo was taken around the late 80s or early 90s, and you can see the old house in tumble-down form.

I have a recipe from Titri for you today. You might have read my previous Vintage Cooking posts – I’ve been working on a project to make recipes from my grandmother’s and great-grandmother’s recipe books.

This was actually one of the first recipes I tried from Mary’s book – how could you go past a name like Goldenglow Cake?

It’s quite lovely – it’s really a vanilla cake, but has just a tablespoon of cocoa, which gives it quite an interesting colour and flavour. The real discovery was in the icing, which is boiled. Actually, it’s like an unset/unbeaten caramel fudge that you pour over the top of the cake. I took some liberty and sprinkled with walnuts and pistachios, of which I’m sure Mary would have approved.

Goldenglow Cake

¼ lb butter
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1½ cups flour
1½ baking powder
1 Tbsp cocoa
3 Tbsp milk

Icing:
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup white sugar
3 Tbsp milk
vanilla
pistachios and/or walnuts, to decorate (optional)

To make the cake:
Preheat the oven to 180°(C). Grease a 20 or 23cm round cake tin and/or line with baking paper.

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat again. Sift the dry ingredients and add them to the  butter mixture in three lots, alternating with the  milk.

Pour the batter into the cake tin and bake. Now I unfortunately didn’t write down how long mine took, but I imagine it was about 45 minutes. Unfortunately Mary has a habit of only leaving lists of ingredients, so she can’t help us, either. I’d say go for 45 minutes but check it frequently. It will be cooked when the sides start to come away from the tin, and a skewer comes out clean.

Leave the cake in its tin for a few minutes before turning out onto a rack to cool. I cut mine through the middle and spread with plum jam before icing – I think I was worried I’d slightly overcooked the cake and it would be dry without it – so that’s an option if you like jam. And who doesn’t?

To make the icing:
Put the sugars and milk in a small saucepan and place over medium heat. Bring slowly to the boil, boil for three minutes, then remove from the heat, add the vanilla and beat until creamy. Quickly pour over the cake (or it will set like fudge), and sprinkle with roughly chopped pistachios and walnuts.

Casserole for Dossy

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Let me introduce you to Dossy. Dossy has been a much-loved member of our family since we adopted her in 1996, when she looked like this:

Mum and Dad live in the country, and Dossy’s always loved the rural life – coming and going as she pleases, and bringing home all sorts of impressive hunting trophies (well, impressive to her, anyway). She’s a haughty old girl – while she’s cuddly and affectionate, you’re somehow left with the feeling that she sees you as a member of her staff, rather than a respected equal.

Sadly, Dossy’s age caught up with her this year, and she had to be put to sleep a couple of weeks ago. We all wanted to end her suffering, but I have to say it was devastating! Pets like Dossy truly become members of the family and it’s very hard to say goodbye, even long after you’ve “grown up” and left home.

It may seem odd to create a dish in honour of a pet, but hey, this is a cooking blog, and anyway, there are weirder things than this on the interweb. And venison was Dossy’s favourite food.

My dad and brother are hunter-gatherer types so we occasionally get treated to wild venison, and Dossy used to go bananas for it. Even if Dossy was fast asleep in another part of the house, she’d know when Mum was cooking it or even defrosting it in the microwave and nearly have her paws up at the microwave door trying to get to it. So Dossy, this one is for you!

Pets aside, this is the tastiest way of cooking venison I’ve come across. The dark beer makes for a bitter, almost chocolate-y casserole, and the venison cooks to a tender, tasty filling. Dumplings make a nice addition, although they’re still new to me (and they make me think of eating chicken and dumplings when she – of she’ll be coming ’round the mountain – comes).

Venison Casserole with Herb & Mustard Dumplings
loosely based on a recipe from Country Living

800g venison, cut into casserole-size pieces
fresh thyme, if you’ve got it
1 bay leaf
500ml dark ale or stout
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, finely sliced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 Tbsp plain flour
1 tsp dried oregano
½ tsp ground coriander
250ml beef stock
sprig rosemary
100g  plain flour
1½ tsp baking powder
large pinch English mustard powder
pinch salt
1 tsp horseradish cream (or more to your taste)
30g low fat spread
¼-½ cup trim milk

If you’re reading this the day before you want to make this casserole, good news! You can get a head start by marinating your venison in a non-metallic bowl with the thyme, bay leaf and ale in the fridge overnight (or for up to two days).

If you want to eat it tonight, good news! You don’t need the thyme or bay leaf after all.

Whichever way… on the day you want to eat the casserole, start by preheating the oven to 170°(C). If your venison’s been marinating, drain off the marinade, reserving the ale but discarding the herbs. Get a stove-top-proof casserole dish ready.

Pat the meat dry with paper towels, and season well by rubbing with salt and pepper. Heat a dash of oil in the casserole dish and quickly fry the venison in batches to brown it nicely. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Heat another small dash of oil in the casserole and gently cook the onion and garlic for a few minutes, until softened. Stir in the flour, oregano and coriander, and cook for 1 minute, coating the onion. Gradually add the hot stock and then the ale, ½-1 cup at a time, stirring until it’s thickened before you add the next lot. Do this over med-high heat (not so hot it sizzles and evaporates as soon as you pour it in!). Once all the liquid’s aboard, return the venison to the pan with the rosemary. Season well, cover and bring to the boil. Once it’s at a simmer, move the casserole dish to the preheated oven and cook for 1½ hours.

To make the dumplings, sift the flour, baking powder and mustard powder into a bowl. Add the salt and horseradish cream. Melt the spread and pour this over the top. Mix with a knife, and add just enough milk to make a soft but not-too-sticky dough. You can add more flour if you find you’ve put too much milk in. Using floured hands, shape 10-12 dumplings – I make mine slightly smaller than golf balls. Add these to the casserole, put the lid back on and return to the oven for 15-20 minutes. Take the lid off and cook for a further 5 minutes.

Serve the casserole with simple steamed veges like carrots and green beans.

Vintage Cooking: Scott’s Farewell Square

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Several weeks ago I was reading about the centenary memorials for Captain Robert Falcon Scott and his crew, who died returning from the South Pole in 1912.

Scott’s is a remarkable story. His led his second expedition to Antartica, the Terra Nova Expedition, with the express objective of being the first to reach the South Pole. The mission would be a race, with Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen also planning an expedition.

No way home: All members of Scott's expedition, from left Laurence Oates, H R Bowers, Scott, Edward Wilson and Edgar Evans perished on the return journey from the South Pole

Scott and his crew; from left: Oates, Bowers, Scott, Wilson and Evans (photo credit here)

Scott’s expedition was plagued with misfortune, but Scott and his colleagues Edward Wilson, Henry Bowers, Lawrence Oates and Edgar Evans finally reached the South Pole on 17 January 1912. Unfortunately, they arrived to the heartbreaking news that Amundsen’s team had beaten them by 33 days.

Doomed mission: Scott, right, and his team attempted to be the first to reach the South Pole but on arrival found Roald Amundsen's tent and a record showing he'd discovered the pole two months previously

photo credit here

Scott and his colleagues started the march back to base, but all five perished on the way. Edgar Evans was lost following falls on a glacier. A month later, Oates was barely able to walk, and left the tent voluntarily, famously saying “I am just going outside and may be some time.” The three remaining men marched a further 20 miles and set up camp 11 miles away from their base depot. A blizzard then prevented further progress. Supplies ran out and the men eventually succumbed to cold, starvation and exhaustion.

Why is this on my blog?

The centenary of Scott’s death reminded me of a recipe I spotted in Alexa Johnston’s book Ladies, A Plate. The recipe had originally caught my eye because Alexa had found the recipe in an old book that was produced by St Mark’s Presbyterian Church in Pine Hill, Dunedin – that happens to be the neighbourhood church where I grew up; I was christened there in fact! It would appear the recipe was invented as a farewell when Scott had departed Port Chalmers, Dunedin for the Antarctic in 1910 – Dunedin had been given a half-day’s holiday and thousands turned out to farewell the party. As Alexa says, the square has plenty to sustain a man on a long cold journey.

I must admit I didn’t have huge expectations for the slice – looking through the recipe, it has the hallmark ingredients of any common vintage NZ slice recipe – Weet Bix, coconut, dates… yawn, I thought. But I was wrong.

It turned out far more delicious than I had expected – I think the huge quantity of dates keeps the base really moist, and the chunks of interesting bits makes it perilously addictive. I was supposed to send the batch with my husband to work the next day, but not that much made it there.

I highly recommend making this square in honour of Scott and his team. It’s also my entry for this month’s Sweet NZ, hosted by Frances at Bake Club.

Scott’s Farewell Square
Recipe from St Mark’s Presbyterian Church, Pine Hill, Dunedin
Reproduced in Ladies, A Plate by Alexa Johnston

4oz butter
6 oz brown sugar
1 dsp golden syrup
1 egg
6oz flour
pinch salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 Tbsp cocoa
3oz coconut
2oz walnuts
4 Weet Bix
4oz dates
2oz raisins

Icing:
1 cup icing sugar
2 Tbsp cocoa
1 Tbsp butter
extra coconut, for sprinkling

Preheat the oven to 190°C. Line a  shallow tin with baking paper.

Cream the butter and sugar until light, then mix in the golden syrup and the egg, combining everything well. Sift in the flour, salt, baking powder and cocoa and mix to combine, then add the remaining ingredients. Stir everything thoroughly together. Tip the mixture into the prepared tin, spread it out evenly, and bake for 15-20 minutes. Remove from the oven and put on a wire rack to cool.

Make a thin chocolate icing from icing sugar sifted with cocoa and mixed to a spreading consistency with melted butter and little hot water. Spread over the cake, sprinkle with coconut and cut into squares when the icing has set.

Note: if golden syrup isn’t available where you are: firstly, that’s very sad. Secondly, try using maple syrup instead.

(References for this article come from Wikipedia, and news articles here, here and here, as well as Ladies, A Plate).

Vintage Cooking: Japanese Biscuits

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My great grandmother, or Granny, was Mary. She died many years before I was born, but I have something that gives me a real connection to her – her recipe book.

Granny was born in 1902 in St Bathans in Central Otago, where she grew up with her eight brothers and sisters.
When she married my great grandfather Charlie, she moved to our family farm, Titri, near Waihola in Otago. Charlie and Mary had four children and farmed cattle and beef through the depression years. By all accounts Mary was a great housekeeper; apparently the old house at Titri always had sparkling floors and furniture, the cake tins were always full, and shelves lined with all sorts of preserves. 
When Charlie died suddenly in 1945, Mary continued working the farm with her teenage children. Her sons Ben and Max eventually took over the farm, and Mary lived with the family at Titri for the rest of her days.
I love this photo of Mary (on the left) with her sister Rebe and a family friend. They look rather formidable matrons, don’t you think?

Anyway, back to the recipes – I’ve been selecting recipes from Granny’s book at random to try, and I made these Japanese Biscuits a couple of weeks ago. Here’s Granny’s recipe:

I really don’t know what makes them Japanese. They’re like a thin almond shortbread biscuit, sandwiched together with a lemon almond icing.

They’re quite lovely – I think they make a very elegant biscuit. They could even find their way into a dinner party dessert, perhaps to accompany a coffee flavoured gelato or ice cream. What do you think?

Granny’s Japanese Biscuits

4oz flour
½ tsp baking powder
2oz butter
2oz sugar
2oz ground almonds
1 egg
½ tsp almond essence

Preheat the oven to 160°, and line a couple of baking trays.

Sift the flour and baking powder. Rub in the butter, then add the sugar and ground almonds. Lightly beat the egg and almond essence together, then add this to the flour mixture and mix well. Roll out thinly and cut using a small cutter, and place carefully on the tray. I baked these really slowly – I think for about 20 minutes at 160°. Watch them carefully as I imagine they will go from just pale and cooked to burnt very quickly.

When cold, sandwich together with icing made from icing sugar, a little lemon zest and juice, ½ tsp almond essence, and just enough hot water to mix. Granny also suggests icing the top and sprinkling with coconut but I think they’re rather elegant just sandwiched as here. Disobedient great-granddaughter.

I’ve got some other classic sounding recipes to try out, including a “goldenglow” cake, and a mysteriously titled cake for sham brides. Stay tuned for the results!

Thanks Granny! x

Just Peachy Pancakes

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Happy Easter! I hope you get to relax with friends and family over the break.

Right now I’m eating the biggest bowl of fresh fruit and yoghurt… and I’ve told myself that if I finish that, then all bets are off and I can rip into the chocolate. I’m sure I’ll read this post again later with chocolate stains and remorse.

Today I bring you a breakfasty brunch recipe, so if you feel like making it, you’ve still got tomorrow to try it!

This is just a simple pancake recipe – actually, it’s a pikelet recipe, which I’ve often used for pancakes. This makes hotcake-y kind of pancakes, rather than the really fat pancakes that you get with beaten egg white recipes. I served our pancakes with what may be the last peaches we eat this season.

Pancakes

25g low fat spread or buttter
1 Tbsp golden syrup (or maple)
½ cup sugar
2 eggs
¾ cup trim milk
1½ cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cream of tartar

Melt the spread in a large heatproof bowl or jug in the microwave. Add the syrup and microwave again, just until the mixture is softened. Add the sugar and eggs, and whisk until they’re well combined. Whisk in the milk, then add the sifted flour, baking soda and cream of tartar and just mix until there are no more pockets of flour – as for muffins, avoid over-mixing like the plague.

Heat a large-ish frypan over medium heat and either spray with non-stick cooking spray, or melt a little butter and swirl in the pan to grease.

Drop the batter in to form pancake sized discs – I use a slightly less than full ¼ cup measure to do this. Once you have quite a few bubbles burst on the surface, gently flip the pancake. I find if you have a good non-stick spatula or fish slice you can tilt the edge up and have a peek to see whether it’s your preferred colour too. Once both sides are cooked, remove from the pan and serve.

If you’re cooking for a bunch of people, and you want everyone to eat at the same time, I keep the pancakes stacked on the bench in a folded clean teatowel, one pancake between each folded layer. This keeps them pretty warm without letting them go stodgy.

Good served with bacon/banana/maple, berries and yoghurt, light butter and syrup, or grilled fruit as below.

Grilled Peaches

Preheat the grill to 180-200 or so. Slice the peaches, cutting the flesh away from the stone, and lay the slices out in a single layer in a small lined baking tray. I suggest using metal, as it  heats up quickly and conducts heat to the peaches – ceramic dishes will take longer. Sprinkle the peaches with brown sugar and drizzle some balsamic vinegar over the top. Grill for a few minutes until tender and delicious.

Enjoy your Easter weekend!

Easter Biscuits

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Another Easter recipe for you! This one’s a bit more old fashioned, and would make a great afternoon tea over the holiday weekend.

It comes from Alexa Johnston’s sequel to Ladies, A Plate – A Second Helping. They’re rather lovely biscuits – crisp and lemony, with crunchy sugar on top.

The dough is a delicate one to deal with – so chill it well before you roll it out so it’s good and firm. I rolled out half and left the remainder in the fridge, then started again.

Easter Biscuits

5oz butter, slightly softened
4oz caster sugar
1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
2 egg yolks
8oz flour
¼ cup currants
pinch mixed spice

for the glaze:
1 egg white
extra caster sugar

Preheat the oven to 190°C and line a couple of baking trays with baking paper.

Cream the butter and sugar with the lemon zest. Add the egg yolks and mix well. Work in the sifted flour, spice and currants until you have a fairly stiff paste. Put the dough in the fridge in a covered bowl, and leave there for 10-15 minutes.

Sprinkle the bench with cornflour to help the dough from sticking, and roll it out fairly thinly (I think 3-5mm), and cut biscuits (I used a 7-8cm fluted cutter). Place carefully on the lined baking trays, and brush with the lightly beaten egg white and sprinkle with caster sugar.

Bake for 10-15 minutes – mine only took 10, and watch them carefully, as they turn from lightly golden to crispily brown very quickly. Cool on a rack and store in an airtight container.

Home-made Easter Eggs

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Easter is turning into my second Christmas with all sorts of things to try in the kitchen. Hot cross buns, Easter Biscuits (keep an eye out, I’ll post them), and today, Easter Eggs!

I tried these last year and fell in love with them! You need a bit of time to make them, and they do create a few dishes, but they’re actually really easy and very fun. And I imagine they’re super cool to make with kids.

The recipe below is for either strawberry or peppermint eggs, they’re my favourite so far, but you could experiment with flavours. I’ve been thinking about trying orange, caramel, mocha… or rum. Maybe not one for the kids.

Marshmallow is easy and very cheap to make at home; it’s one of those things you wouldn’t think to make yourself, but once you start you may never stop. So you just whip them up, shape into eggs, let them set and roll them in chocolate. I came across the method of shaping them by making your own egg ‘mould’ out of flour in a magazine last year, and it works really well for these.  Have fun!

Home Made Easter Eggs

Stuff you’ll need:

  • a couple of deep baking dishes or trays (you don’t need to bake anything in them, they just need to be 4-5cm deep and fit in your fridge).
  • a small egg (I used a small-ish size 6)
  • quite a lot of flour – probably a whole packet (1.5kg). You don’t actually use any flour, just borrow it – you can tip the lot back into the packet when you’re done.
  • an electric beater. My trusty kenwood did the trick, or the hand held electric kind would probably be ok, but I wouldn’t recommend mixing by hand.

Ingredients:
¼ cup cold water
1 Tbsp gelatin
1 cup sugar
another ½ cup cold water
small squeeze lemon juice
½ tsp strawberry or peppermint essence
few drops pink or green food colouring
packet dark chocolate buttons (I like Nestlé)
1 tsp flavourless oil (rice bran, canola etc)

1. Time to make marshmallow. Put the first measure of cold water in a small ramekin or bowl. Sprinkle the gelatin over the top and put it to one side to let the gelatin swell. Put the sugar and second measure water in a medium saucepan, and stir over low heat until the sugar dissolves. Tip the gelatin mixture in and stir til that dissolves too. Increase the heat and get it boiling. Boil steadily for 5 minutes. Keep an eye on it as it has a tendency to rise up quickly. After 5 minutes, take off the heat and set it aside to cool.

2. While the gelatin’s boiling, fill the baking dish with flour. Take your size 6 egg and press it gently into the flour so you leave an egg-shaped impression. This is the mould you set the marshmallow in. I just press the egg in about a third of the way down – this means you end up with finished eggs about the size of bought marshmallow eggs. Your mould should look like this:

3. Back to the marshmallow. You only need to cool the gelatin for 3 or 4 minutes, then carefully pour it into the bowl of your mixer, and get it moving. Mix on high speed for a few minutes (5 or 6 I think), until it looks like pavlova mixture – thick, creamy, but still runny enough to pick up and dollop with a spoon. Kind of like this:

Add the small squeeze of lemon (or white vinegar would probably do the trick), essence and food colouring and beat again til it’s mixed through.

4. Drop spoonfuls of the mixture into each egg hollow. When the tray’s full, pop it in the fridge. I leave mine to set for about half an hour, but longer would be fine too if you want to pop away and do something else.

5. Once you’re ready to coat the eggs in chocolate, gently melt the chocolate in a clean, dry bowl, and stir the oil through. Get a piece of baking paper ready on the bench. Gently pick each egg up – you’ll find you can easily handle it with your fingertips on the flour-y side of the egg. Gently brush off the excess flour, and roll the marshmallow in the chocolate to coat it. Use whatever works for you, I’ve settled on using two teaspoons. Leave your easter eggs on the baking paper to set (or put them in the fridge on a warm day), then try to make them last!

This is also my entry for Sweet NZ, a monthly food blogging event started by Alessandra Zecchini and hosted this month by Emma at My Darling Lemon Thyme.

Have a lovely weekend everyone!

One ha’penny, Two ha’penny

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If you have no daughters, give them to your sons,
one ha’penny, two ha’penny, Hot Cross Buns!

And other nonsense.

Are you looking forward to Easter? We don’t have any plans as such but I’m looking forward to a couple of extra days off to relax.

And I really love doing a bit of baking in the lead-up to Easter! I relax my usual policies on healthy eating in favour of a wee few treats. Starting with these hot cross buns.

I know not everyone’s into spicy, fruity hot cross buns, but I think they’re delicious. Has the first person in your office warmed up a hot cross bun in the microwave at work yet? I’ve always taken that as the signal that autumn has arrived (although the weather is also giving some strong clues today).

I think I was the first one this year! I took one of these little buns to work for morning tea yesterday. Sometimes you need to cheer yourself up on Monday mornings.

This recipe comes from the lovely Dame Alison Holst and her son Simon, from their New Zealand Bread Book. This is a terrific book if you have a breadmaker. I’ve made all sorts of stuff from it, and it’s been really tasty (see posts on pizza dough, catalan tomato bread, and yoghurt rolls). Easy recipes to adjust to your own taste, and experiment with too, if that’s your thing.

I won’t reproduce another recipe from the Holsts’ book, but I’ve found a very similar one they published in the newspaper last year which I can share with you. This one differs from mine by including cocoa powder and honey, yum! I like their Xs instead of + crosses, too (by the way, you can make your own pastry for these instead of store-bought stuff by mixing 30g cold butter, 1/2 cup high grade flour and a wee splash of water).

For those that aren’t so much about the spicy, fruity hot cross buns, I might make some chocolate ones too, so stay tuned. And I’m having kind of a crazy few days so unfortunately there won’t be a Friday’s Favourite Five this week. But check back later in the week for some home made marshmallow chocolate Easter Eggs!

Classic Chocolate Mousse

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This is a quick wee Tuesday post.

If I was honest, I’d tell you that I actually made this in October but have been putting off blogging it because I don’t really like the photos, and because the recipe just doesn’t seem that, well, special.

If I was being even more honest, I’d tell you that the reason it’s going up this week is because I’m a bit low on other material. I seem to have hit a cooking rut over the last couple of weeks. I’m confident it’s on its way out now, and exciting things are developing for next week, but in the meantime, classic chocolate mousse can have its moment in the sun. Or the wind and rain, to be more accurate.

Now that I come to write it up, the recipe does seem quite special again. Not because it’s special, but because it’s classic. It’s a great one if you’re new to mousse and need a good solid practice recipe, of if you want to start making adaptations with flavours or techniques or even purpose (like using it to fill a chocolate sponge cake).

This recipe comes from Alexa Johnston’s What’s for Pudding?, the follow up to her popular Ladies, A Plate and A Second Helping books. I love her tried and true recipes and cute styling and photography.

Classic Chocolate Mousse
from Alexa Johnston’s What’s for Pudding?
Serves 4-6 

115g (4oz) dark chocolate
2 Tbsp cold espresso
4 eggs
1 Tbsp rum

Before you start, bring a saucepan of water to the boil then remove from the heat.

Chop the chocolate and place in a heatproof bowl with the coffee. Set the bowl over the saucepan of water. Leave for about 5 minutes, then stir gently until the mixture is smooth and well combined.

Separate the eggs and put the yolks and whites into separate mixing bowls. Beat the egg yolks with a whisk until fluffy and gradually stir into the warm chocolate followed by the rum.

Whisk the egg whites until stiff but not dry, and fold them very gently into the chocolate mixture. Keep folding and turning the bowl until there are no white streaks left.

Spoon into small individual dishes (or a crystal bowl) and  leave in a cool place for several hours or overnight. The mousse will become firmer as the chocolate sets, but may become a little too hard in the fridge (which, by the way, is probably what caused the cracked edges on mine).