Self-saucing Chocolate Pudding

Posted on May 20, 2023 by Crumbs In My Beard

Ingredients

Topping

1 cup brown sugar , loosely packed
¼ cup cocoa powder
1 ¼ cups boiling water

Pudding

1 cup All Purpose flour
2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
1/3 cup fine (caster) sugar
¼ cup cocoa powder
Pinch of salt
½ cup milk, room temperature
4 Tablespoons butte , melted
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

Preheat oven to 335°F
Grease 8x 8x 2.5” baking dish
Whisk brown sugar and cocoa in a bowl to make the topping mix. Set aside
Whisk flour, baking powder, fine sugar, cocoa powder and salt in a bowl
In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter and milk, then whisk in the egg and vanilla. Don’t worry if some lumps form from the butter- carry on whisking together
Pour the egg mixture into the flour mixture. Mix until combined – it will be a thick batter
Spread into baking dish. Sprinkle with topping mixture. Shake gently to spread out thinly
Carefully pour the hot water all over the top of the pudding, trying to avoid any pooling
Transfer to oven and bake for 30 minutes, or until the top of the cake springs back when poked lightly. The top will be a bit crusty, like the top of brownies
Remove from oven, stand for just a few minute, then serve immediately

Apple Cider Bundt Cake

Posted on November 15, 2022 by Crumbs In My Beard

Makes 1

Ingredients

Cake

2 cups apple cider
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup Red Fife flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons apple pie spice mix
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups sugar
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2/3 cup buttermilk, room temperature
3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
3 large eggs, room temperature

Coating

2 Tablespoons butter, melted
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon Baobab fruit powder (optional)

Method

Add the apple cider to a medium pan, and over a medium heat boil to reduce to 1/3 cup quantity. Remove from heat and allow to cool
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Prepare a 12-cup bundt pan by liberally spraying with baking spray, or generously grease with butter and flour. Pay special attention to all those crevices and folds
In a large bowl, whisk together both flours, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt
In separate bowl, whisk together sugar, cooled cider concentrate , oil, applesauce, vanilla, and eggs
Add egg mixture to flour mixture; whisk until combined, making sure there are no flour pockets
Transfer batter to prepared pan, and bake for 45- 50 minutes, until a tester inserted in center comes out clean
Transfer pan to a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet; let cool 15 minutes
While the cake cools make the coating. Mix together remaining sugar, cinnamon and Baobab fruit powder
After 15 minutes, turn the cake out onto a cooling rack set over some baking parchment
Brush with melted butter, then sprinkle liberally with the sugar coating. Let cool completely before serving

Apple Fritters

Posted on November 10, 2022 by Crumbs In My Beard

Makes 8

Ingredients

Apple Fritters

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/3 cup milk
2 eggs
3 tablespoons applesauce
2 large Granny Smith apples or Honey Crisp apples peeled, cored and diced

Glaze

2 cups powdered sugar
2 Tablespoons Baobab Fruit Powder (optional)
1/4 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in medium bowl. Make a well in the center and add 1/3 cup milk, eggs and applesauce. Stir just to combine. Fold in apples
Heat 1 1/2 inches of oil in heavy skillet, Dutch oven or deep fryer to 375F degrees
Drop about 1/4 cup of batter per fritter into hot oil; spreading it out as you drop
Cook each side until golden brown; approximately 2-3 minutes per side
Use a slotted spoon to remove to a cooling rack set over some paper towels to drain
While the fritters cool, whisk together 1/4 cup milk, Baobab fruit powder, powdered sugar and vanilla. Dunk each fritters in the glaze to coat. Place on wire racks to drip and air dry

Freezing & Reheating

If you’re making your fritters for later, they keep really well in the freezer compartment. Freeze for up to 2 month for best taste. You’ll need to remember not to glaze them though! Allow your unglazed fritters to cool completely before wrapping individually in cling wrap, popping in freezer bags and storing in your freezer.

The best way to thaw frozen apple fritters is to remove them from the freezer, unwrap them and place them into the fridge. It is best to leave them overnight to ensure they thaw all the way through.

If they have not thawed all the way through by the time you want to eat them, you could leave them out on the counter for up to an hour to speed up that process.

To reheat, and to ensure you get a nice crisp apple fritter, you can either use a toaster oven or a conventional oven. Place the thawed fritters on a baking tray and reheat them at 375F for 5 minutes.

Once they’re reheated you can glaze them as Step 2 above.

Quick Individual Cherry Cobbler

Posted on July 2, 2022 by Crumbs In My Beard

So I’m a sucker for cravings. Once I get something in my mind that’s it- I won’t rest until I’ve tasted it. That was that was the case with this cherry cobbler. Sure it’s a cheat’s version- using canned pin filling. But I craved it and the quicker I got it the better. Also lets face it- using canned filling cuts down on the stove-time involved in the making off this. If you feel so inclined, go right ahead with your favorite mix of cherries that you might use for your fillings. I’m definitely not one to dictate how you should run your kitchen.

The topping here is an adaption of a regular biscuit dough that I use to biscuit top stews and casseroles. Here I’ve slightly upped the sugar for a sweeter finish, adding in some cinnamon and oats for a more rustic dessert finish.

I love the flavor combination of cherries and almonds, thinking that it’s one of the best out there. Food trivia moment- both are linked by the compound Benzaldehyde, which is the second most popular flavor and fragrance after vanillin. Baking- educational too! (Darn! now I’m thinking I need to make a Cherry Bakewell…curse you infernal cravings!

With the use of pie filling these are so quick and easy that even making them in the current warmer weather can be justified. Plus adding a scoop of your favorite ice cream on top even more so!

Makes 4

Ingredients

1 can 540ml (20 oz) cherry pie filling
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/4 cup toasted, flaked almonds
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup Jumbo rolled oats
3 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons melted butter
1/2 cup milk
4 Tablespoon Turbinado sugar

Method

Butter four 0.25L ramekins
In a bowl mix the pie filling and the almond extract. Divide the pie filling equally among the ramekins
Sprinkle the tops of the pie filling with the toasted almond flakes. Set them aside on a foil-lined baking sheet until later
Preheat oven to 375 F
In a medium bowl, combine flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, cream of tartar, ground cinnamon and salt. Whisk to combine
Add the melted butter and milk, stirring just until moistened. The biscuit batter will be quite thick and lumpy. Drop batter by heaping scoopfuls onto the filling
Sprinkle the turbinado sugar over the biscuit dough
Bake for about 20 minutes, or until biscuits are browned and filling is hot and bubbly
Leave to cool for about 5 minutes. Serve and enjoy!

Banana & Prune Sticky Toffee Cakes

Posted on May 27, 2022 by Crumbs In My Beard

Makes 6

Ingredients

Banana & Prune Cakes

1/4 cup orange juice
1/2 cup boiling water
1 cup pitted prunes, chopped
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cups light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 Tablespoon honey
3 medium-size overripe bananas, mashed (1 cup)

Rum Toffee Sauce

1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter
2 teaspoons Rum (or omit for a kiddy-friendly version)

Method

Banana & Prune Cakes

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease, or spray with baking spray, 6 mini-savarin or Bundt tins
In a small heatproof bowl, pour orange juice followed by the boiling water over the chopped prunes; stir in the baking soda. Stir together to combine and set aside to soak for about 15-2 0minutes
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, ground cinnamon and salt. Set aside until needed
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle, beat the butter with the brown sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 9-10 minutes
Beat in the eggs, one at a time until combined, followed by the honey
Reduce speed to low, beat in the flour mixture until just combined
Add the date mixture (including liquid) and bananas, and beat at low speed until just combined
Divide the batter into the prepared mini-pans, and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 25 minutes

Rum Toffee Sauce

With about 10 minutes left on the pudding baking time, in a small saucepan, combine the heavy cream, the butter, the brown sugar, and the rum.
Bring to a gentle boil over moderate heat, stirring to melt the butter and sugar, cooking until slightly thickened and deep golden, about 3 minutes.
Keep warm until serving

To finish

Once you remove the cakes from the oven, using a skewer or toothpick, poke holes all over the exposed surface
Spoon 4-5 teaspoons of the warm sauce over the cakes, and let stand until absorbed, about 10 minutes
Serve warm*, turned out onto plates (they may take some gentle persuasion!) with the remaining sauce spooned over

*If your sauce sets or becomes too thick to pour, gently warm over a low heat until pourable and warm again.