The Big Pancake.

Found this awesome recipe for the "Dutch Baby", or The Big Pancake. Basically it's this crazy pancake that you chuck in the oven and it rises into this incredible fluffy thing with a pool of butter in the middle. I cooked it the other day, it's so easy to do as well. At first I didn't think it was going to work. I poured the mixture into the skillet and just looked at it going, 'As if you're going to rise up.' DO NOT DOUBT THE BIG PANCAKE. Just watch it expanding in the oven (and deflating out of it) in amazement. 

Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons butter

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup milk

1 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

Pinch of nutmeg (optional). I think I might add cinnamon next time.

Garnish:

Juice of 1 lemon

Powdered sugar

Method:

1. Preheat oven

2. Put the butter in a 9 or 10 inch pie plate or oven proof skillet. Place in oven, then remove once butter is melted.

3. Mix the remaining ingredients together with a whisk and pour into the hot skillet. Immediately return it to the oven and bake for 18 to 20 minutes till puffy and evenly browned on the outside.

4. Remove. Sprinkle with the lemon juice and powdered sugar. Slice and serve immediately. 

Source: GQ December issue

Is this turning into a Food Blog? I think so. 

You are the butter to my bread

I've had the bliss of relaxing all day and ignorance of time and dead lines lately. I'm working tomorrow then I've got to get started on doing some research, assignments etc., so today is really one of the last few days I have of doing nothing. Ha that's a lie, I've got plenty of time. 

 

I've been listening a lot to the Romeo and Juliet soundtrack lately. I know some people either hate or love this movie, but I really love it, and I love how over the top it is. The soundtrack is really good as well, my favourite is definitely 'Everybody's Free' by Quindon Tarver. 

Pretty bad photo, but I  love this pattern on the inside of the case, it's the pattern of Romeo's shirt which I really want. 

 Also, I don't know if I've said on here before, but I've had a lot of trouble with macaroons before. The first time I made them, they were just perfect. Every other (numerous) time(s) after that were just terrible. Anyway I found this Nigella Laweson recipe which seemed to work. They don't look like the French ones, but they taste just as good:

Macaroons:
250g icing sugar
125g ground almonds
25g cocoa powder
4 large egg whites
25g caster sugar

ganache filling
90ml double cream (think its called heavy cream if youre american)
150g plain choc chopped/broken up
45g butter

Method

Preheat oven to 180c/gas 4. line 2 baking sheets

Sift together icing sugar, almonds and cocoa.
Whisk egg whites till half stiff, sprinkle over caster sugar then continue whisking until stiff but not dry.
Fold in dry ingredients to egg whites.
Then use an icing bag to pipe out 5 cm rounds (or if you dont have one spoon it on carefully). let them stand 10-15 mins before baking (forms a skin)

bake for 12-15 mins until dry on top but chewy underneath. remove to cool

Ganache...melt all ingredients together and stir well. when macaroons are cool use it to sandwich them together

I did the ganache with this really nice inexpensive milk chocolate and it was soooo good. Anyway have fun, hope your all having a nice break! 

This is not wind, this, is DRAGON'S BREATH!

So MasterChef Season 2 is on at the moment. I LOVE THIS SHOW. I reckon it's better than the English version as well. It is one of the most entertaining shows, and I always find myself cheering for the people to finish cooking under time. And the judges are really entertaining as well, Exhibit A:

I enjoy cooking, but I'm not that good, as I'm sure I've said somewhere on this blog before. Masterchef is good because it gives cool new recipes that are pretty hard to do but is fun. Last year one of the challenges was to make a Croquembouche, I think under 2 hours, so I had a party to make it and it took us about 6 :S. Anyway that's all for now, just a little indulgent post, sorry!

x

P.S- Really super excited to make these on the weekend!!!!!!!!!!!

Guess what I've got

let them eat whatever they want and upload whatever they want

I've been planning on a couple of posts lately but my internet is SLOW, so I can't upload any of my photos or sketches. Well I can, but it'll probably take a couple of hours, and then it'll have an error, and then I'll get frustrated. So until my internet gets fast, you can have fun eating this CAKE. I'm ok at cooking, but a lot of times I stuff up and then I get sad, and this is my fall back cake which always works. Except one time, when I used the 1/3 cup instead of the 1/4 cup and the cake came out all hard. Another particular recipe I would really like to GET RIGHT are macaroons. I made chocolate macaroons ONCE and they were amazing and fat yummy and incredibly rich. Then the second time they were ok. Then every single time after that I have failed. They stick to the paper, they collapse, are hollow inside, it's very bad for morale. I've heard Nigella Lawson's pistachio macaroons are pretty good so I might try them in my holidays coming up, yay. Until then, though I have 3 essays to write, a massive textiles project, a speech to write, a poster to create, and hundreds of other things.

Anyway you'll probs have all the ingredients for this cake, and it's pretty easy. Basically you have to sift the dry ingredients, beat the eggs and some other stuff then mix it all together.

Ingredients:

Cake:

3/4 cup self-raising flour

2 tbs cocoa powder

4 eggs, lightly beaten

3/4 cup caster sugar

Vienna Cream:

125g unsalted butter

1 1/4 cups icing sugar

2 tbs cocoa powder

2 tbs milk

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Line round cake tin with butter or baking paper.

2. Sift flour and cocoa together three times onto greaseproof paper.

Using electric beaters, beat the eggs in a small mixing bowl until thick and pale. Add the sugar gradually until the mixture is pale and glossy. Transfer mixture to large mixing bowl.

3. Fold in sifter ingredients into egg mixture quickly and lightly with a spatula. Spoon mixture evenly into prepared tin. Bake for 20 minutes or until lightly golden and shrink from sides of tin.

4. For Vienna Cream:

Using electric beaters, beat the butter until light and fluffy. Add icing sugar and cocoa, until smooth and fluffy. Add milk and continue beating.

When Sponge cake is finished and cooled, spread cream on top.

5. EAT.

Butterscotch Pot de Creme

This is soo yummy, it's just kinda like a caramel pudding. It's out of the September 2009 GQ. A little tip though, seriously follow all of the steps, especially the refrigeration time and cooling time and cooking time. Just follow the recipe. This recipe makes six, but I like to half it, which is a bit weird halving the 1/4's but whatever.

Ingredients:

6 eggs yolks

1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar

1 cup milk

2 cups heavy cream

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon salt (the salt is really important it's what makes it taste like butterscotch. But don't put too much in or else it'll taste sweet-ly salty, not carame-ly)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees

2. Place eggs yolks in a large bowl and lightly whisk till smooth. Set aside.

3. Over a medium high flame, heat the brown sugar, milk, and cream in a heavy saucepan and stir until the brown sugar starts to dissolve. Then heat until the milk is steaming and tiny bubbles have formed along the edges, but do not boil. Remove from heat. Cover to keep warm with a cloth.

4. In a medium saucepan, combine the granulated sugar with 1/2 cup of water and bring to a boil over high heat. As soon as the sugar turns amber, remove from heat. Carefully add 1/4 cup of the hot cream mixture, whisking until combined. Whisk in 2 more cups of the cream mixture then add the rest.

5. Pour the caramel cream into the yolks in a slow, steady stream. Do it too fast and you risk scrambling the eggs with it's heat. Gently whisk the mixture continuously. Stir in the vanilla and salt. Strain the custard through a sieve into a pitcher. Skim off any foam or bubbles on top.

6. Pour the custard into six 5- ounce ramekins, leaving 1/2 inch at the top of each. Place the ramekins in a roasting pan and carefully fill the pan with hot water until it comes halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Carefully ccover the pan with foil.

7. Bake in the oven for 45-47 minutes until set. (The temperature of the custard base and the water bath are factors that directly contribute to the time it takes for the time it takes for the crème to set. The hotter they are, the faster they'll set.) when the custard is gently shaken, the centre may seem a bit loose. This is okay. Remove the pan from the oven and let the crème finish setting in the water bath at room temperature uncovered. When cool, refrigerate uncovered to preserve the burnished cover.

Have fun!