My little world of tasty treats!
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I just saw this on Tumblr and had to post it here so I can remember to make these someday...
SUGAR COOKIES WITH EDIBLE FLOWERS
from Food with Friends by Leela Cyd
Photo of cookies © Leela Cyd
Yields approx. 3 dozen 2-inch cookies
Cookies
– 2 tablespoons creme fraiche
– 2 sticks (½ pound) unsalted butter, at room temperature
– 1 cup powdered sugar
– 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
– 1 large egg
– 3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for the work surface and rolling pin
– 2 teaspoons baking powder
– 1⁄2 teaspoon fine sea salt
– 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
Candied Flowers
– 3 to 4 dozen organic, untreated, edible blossoms (pansies, dianthus, rose petals, calendula, chrysanthemum, lavender, cosmos, or echinacea are all good options)
– 1 large pasteurized egg white, lightly beaten
– 1⁄4 cup turbinado sugar
PREPARE THE COOKIES: In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the crème fraîche, butter, and powdered sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in the vanilla and egg until combined.
In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add the flour mixture and lemon zest to the butter mixture and beat until evenly incorporated.
On a floured work surface, shape the dough into two 5-inch round disks, wrap tightly in plastic wrap or parchment, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 3 days. (Alternatively, you can freeze the disks, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and foil, for up to 1 month. Thaw in the fridge for a day before using.)
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and let it rest on the counter for 5 minutes.
Dust a work surface and rolling pin with flour. Give the disks a few whacks with the rolling pin to soften them slightly. Roll out the dough to a 1⁄4-inch thickness. Working quickly so the dough won’t soften too much, use cookie cutters to punch out whatever shapes you like. Transfer the cookies to the prepared sheets, re-rolling the dough scraps as you go to cut out more cookies.
Bake the cookies for 9 minutes, until the cookies are set but still pale and underdone. Transfer to a wire rack to cool slightly. Leave the oven on and set the lined baking sheets aside.
CREATE THE CANDIED FLOWERS: Set up a work station. Gather your edible flowers together. Place the egg white in a small bowl and the turbinado sugar in a second small bowl. Set out a small paintbrush. Gently dunk a flower in the egg white, taking care to get egg white in between the petals for an even pressing, then press the flower into the cookie. The delicate petals may curl up, but smooth them down with your finger. When the flower is as flat as possible, use the paintbrush to brush a thin coating of additional egg white over the entire surface of the cookie. Sprinkle with a generous pinch of the turbinado sugar. Transfer the flower-topped cookies back to the
baking sheets as you work.
Return the cookies to the oven and bake for 7 to 8 minutes, until the edges of the cookies are golden. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
*Note: Make sure to purchase edible, untreated, organic flowers for this, or grow your own. Keep in mind, the colors of the flowers you select will darken as you bake them, giving an antique color effect.
Recipe and Photography shared from Food with Friends by Leela Cyd. Published by Clarkson/Potter Publishers, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC.
Finally, I decide to post another recipe! From one of my favourite cook books ^^ I halved the recipe as I only had one small banana, and they turned out just fine.
Makes 12 cupcakes
Ingredients
120g plain flour
140g caster sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
A pinch of salt
80g unsalted butter, at room temperature
120ml whole milk
2 eggs (medium)
120g peeled banana, mashed
Chocolate Frosting
300g icing sugar, sifted
100g unsalted butter, at room temperature
40g cocoa powder, sifted
40ml whole milk
40g dark chocolate, grated with a cheese grater into shavings or sprinkles of choice
A 12-hole cupcake tray, lined with paper cases
Preheat the oven to 170oC/325oF/Gas 3.
Put the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, salt and butter in a freestanding electric mixer with a paddle attachment and beat on slow speed until you get a sandy consistency and everything is combined.
Slowly pour the milk into the flour mixture, beating well until all the ingredients are well mixed. Add the eggs and beat well (scrape any unmixed ingredients from the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula).
Stir in the mashed bananas by hand until evenly dispersed.
Spoon the mixture into the paper cases until two-thirds full and bake in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes, or until light golden and the sponge bounces back when touched. [I tend to make the frosting/icing while the cakes are baking to save time, if i'm extra speedy I wash the dishes at the same time! Haha]. Leave the cupcakes to cool slightly in the tray before turning out onto a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
When the cupcakes are cold, spoon the Chocolate Frosting on top and finish with chocolate shavings or sprinkles.
For the Frosting
Beat the icing sugar, butter and cocoa powder together in a freestanding electric mixer with a paddle attachment on medium-slow speed until the mixture comes together and is well mixed. Turn the mixer down to slow speed. Add the milk to the butter mixture a couple of tablespoons at a time. Once all the milk has been incorporated, turn the mixer up to high speed. Continue beating until the frosting is light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. The longer the frosting is beaten, the fluffier and lighter it becomes.
I have never made carrot cake from scratch before, I have only used packet mix at work, so it has been fun to make a decent cake. [Recipe from here] Actually, my cake is baking in the oven as I type this :D so here is a random internet picture for now, and if my cake looks ok i'll plonk a photo of it here when i'm done.
[Ingredients]
175g Muscovado sugar
175g Sunflower oil
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
140g Grated carrots
100g Raisins
175g Self raising flour
1 tsp Baking powder
1 tsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
Grated rind from one orange
[Method]
# Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas 4/fan 160C. Oil and line the base and sides of an 18cm square cake tin with baking parchment. The easiest way to do this is to cut two long strips the width of the tin and put each strip crossways, covering the base and sides of the tin, with a double layer in the base. [I didn't have any baking parchment, so I hope I greased the tin well enough!]
# Tip the sugar into a large mixing bowl, pour in the oil and add the eggs. Lightly mix with a wooden spoon. Stir in the grated carrots, raisins and orange rind.
# Mix the flour, bicarbonate of soda and spices, then sift into the bowl. Lightly mix all the ingredients - when everything is evenly amalgamated stop mixing. The mixture will be fairly soft and almost runny.
# Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for 40- 45 minutes, until it feels firm and springy when you press it in the centre. Cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then turn it out, peel off the paper and cool on a wire rack.
[Icing]
125g butter [must be soft]
50g icing sugar
250g cream cheese
Beat together the butter and sugar, then mix in the cream cheese until soft. Chill the mix for a while until it is thick but also spreadable. Spread a thick layer on top of the cake. Enjoy!
Nigella Lawson's Honey Chocolate Cake
The recipe is adapted from her latest book, Feast: Foods to Celebrate Life.
[Ingredients for the Cake]
4 ounces semi or bittersweet chocolate, broken into pieces
1 1/3 cups light brown sugar
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup honey, room temperature
2 eggs, room temperature
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
1 cup boiling water (I used cola - it really makes a difference!)
[Ingredients for the Sticky Honey Glaze]
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup honey
6 ounces semi sweet chocolate
3/4 cup confectioners sugar
[To make the cake]
Melt the chocolate in the microwave (make sure it doesn't burn) or over boiling water. Set aside to cool slightly.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9-inch springform pan and line the bottom with wax paper. Sift flour, soda and cocoa together.
Beat together the sugar and butter, until airy and creamy. Add the honey. Add eggs one at a time, adding a tablespoon of flour with each.
Fold in the melted chocolate, followed by the dry ingredients.
Then add the boiling water, mixing well to make a smooth batter.
Pour into prepared pan and bake for one hour, or until a cake tester comes out clean. If the cake is still loose after 45 minutes, yet the top is appears quite cooked, gently lay a piece of foil atop the cake.
Cool cake completely in the pan on a rack. Remove the sides. Invert it onto a cake plate. (If the top stays just perfectly rounded, yes, flip it back over. If it sinks a bit, inverting the cake will mask the problem.) Slide strips wax paper under the edges to keep the plate free of glaze.
This cake is good either with the chocolate-honey glaze, or honey butter. You decide which to use!
[To make the glaze]
Bring honey and water to a boil. Turn off heat and add the chocolate. Let it rest while the chocolate melts, then whisk gently. Sift the sugar into the pan (to avoid lumps) and whisk until smooth.
Make the glaze in plenty of time to let it cool. If you put it on a warm cake or if it is still warm, the glaze will run right off. When the cake is cool and the glaze is room temperature, the honey glaze turns your cake into a shiny, irresistible confection. Slide the paper out from around the edges and serve.
[Honey Butter]
This makes a pretty decent amount, but you can make more or less just by combining equal parts of honey and butter.
2 sticks softened butter, salted or unsalted
1 cup honey
Combine butter and honey in a medium bowl. "Whip the heck out of it," with a hand mixer until mixed and fluffy.
For the ultimate honey garnish, shape yellow marzipan into chubby bee bodies. Then use a toothpick and a bit of glaze to make stripes and slivered almonds for their wings.
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I made this cake last year with Craig. It worked really well, although we had to do some guesswork into how much a cup was, as I didn't have a measuring cup... I also didn't know how much a stick of butter was. I found the recipe on an American website, here in the UK recipes are usually done by weight. I hope this makes sense!
I looked this up in a conversion table, and here we are!
1 stick of butter = 1/4 pound
1 stick of butter = 1/2 cup
1 stick of butter = 8 tablespoons
1 stick of butter = 4 ounces
1 stick of butter = 113 grams
Have fun!
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