Category: Cakes/Cookies

Perfect madeleines

Published on by Hanna2 Comments

In the budding beginning of this blog I was trying to find the perfect recipe for Madeleines. I tried two recipes and have since then been reading every madeleines recipe I could find, but they just didn’t seem right.

But then I saw Rachel Khoo making madeleines with lemoncurd and raspberries in The Little Paris Kitchen and I thought to myself, that this might be it.

I didn’t bother with the lemoncurd and berries; it was the basic recipe I wanted, and since it is courtesy of Le Cordon Bleu in Paris it was just as good as I’d hoped. All was right in the world.

The first time I made them I omitted the lemon, because I was ditsy enough not to buy it when in the supermarket. The second time I made them I used the lemon zest and although both batches were good I actually felt the lemon overpowered the flavours of honey and butter a little, so one could definitely use less lemon zest or not use it at all.

And although the baking instructions might strike you as odd (they did me) – they work. I noticed that lowering the temperature as described made the madeleines slightly more crustier on the outside so they come out absolutely perfect.

They are buttery, lightly sweet from the honey and just moist and delicious while still warm. Do try these, folks!

Madeleines, makes 20-25

From Rachel Khoo’s recipe.
 
3 eggs
130 g caster sugar
200 g plain flour
10 g (2 tsp) baking powder
1 lemon, the zest – can be omitted
20 g honey
4 tbsp milk
200 g melted and cooled butter
Beat the eggs with the sugar until pale and frothy. Put the flour and baking powder into a separate bowl and add the lemon zest.

Mix the honey and milk with the cooled butter, then add to the eggs. In two batches, fold in the flour. Cover and leave to rest in the fridge for a few hours, or overnight.

Put a heaped tablespoon of batter into each madeleine shell and press a raspberry deep into the batter.

Bake for five minutes and turn the oven off for one minute (the madeleines will get their signature peaks), then turn the oven on to 160C/325F/Gas 3 and bake for a further five minutes. Transfer the madeleines to a wire rack and leave for a few minutes until cool enough to handle. Meanwhile, wash and dry the tin, then repeat the baking as for the first batch.

 

Our Good Friday dinner party

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I went back to Sweden on Friday and after a quick fika (coffee break with cinnamon buns in this case) I whipped up a cheesecake for that evening’s dinner when my best friend Emma and her fiancée Claes came for dinner at my parents’ house.

We started with some bubbly (Crèmant de Bourgougne) and served some olives, pistachios and parmesan crisps as nibbles. It was the first time I made parmesan crisps, but certainly not the last. They were really yummy!

We then sat down and enjoyed my mothers’ roast lamb with garlic, red wine and rosemary and we had a large rösti, creamy sauce, broccoli and carrots with it.

We then served the dulce de leche cheesecake with coffee, bailey’s and whisky. Although I have made it before and loved it, I was still surprised by how divine it is. Just try it!

It was a perfect first evening back home and we had such a great time together. It can be real fun to hang out with different age groups at the same time and I truly enjoy spending time with my friends and parents at the same time.

Parmesan crisps

Choose a good parmesan. Grate it finely and place in piles on baking parchment on a baking tray. Bake in 200C for a few minutes or until the cheese has melted and is golden brown. Leave to cool on the tray.

Good ol’ meringues

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When I have left over egg whites, which is like all the time, I usuallt make meringues or use them in a cake with some kind of meringue base. Of course there are other ways to use it up, but making meringues is the easy way out.

The good thing about egg whites is that they keep for a long long time (minimum of two weeks, but even up to a month – just smell them to check if they’re ok) in the fridge, so you can ‘save up’ and make a bigger batch if you like. You can also freeze egg whites, but I usually don’t since they keep for so long anyway.

This recipe for meringues I came across at Smitten Kitchen and it has now become my go to meringue recipe. The reason for that is that they just come out perfect; brittle on the outside and chew in the middle. And they don’t require hours in the oven or to be left over night. All it takes is about half an hour in the oven + cooling time.

Meringues, makes about 25

Adapted from this recipe at Smitten Kitchen. 

2 egg whites, at room temperature
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp vanilla
175 ml caster sugar

Beat the egg whites foamy. Add the cream of tartar, salt and vanilla. Beat until soft peaks occur. Add the sugar bit by bit and continue to beat on high speed until very stiff peaks. Use a tablespoon to spoon the mixture on to baking parchment. Bake for 25 minutes in 150C. I baked two trays at the same time, swapping place after half the time. The meringues are done when they are slightly golden and crispy on the outside. Check that they are dry and crisp underneath and they are done. Store in an airtight container.

 

Gooey chocolate cake with cheesecake marbling

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Every month when I make the cakes for work I make sure on of them is a chocolate cake as it is always popular.

In Sweden a gooey mudcake is very popular and although the office loves the plain one I wanted to make one a little bit more interesting. And when I found this recipe on Alexandras’s Swedish blog Kärlek på tallrik (in English: Love on a plate) I knew I had to try it.

The chocolate cakes is a fairly standard mudcake recipe that you bake for 10 minutes so it sets around the edges. In the meantime you make a cheesecake filling and pour it into the chocolate batter and bake it until just set and still gooey. Really yummy, especially if it has been in the fridge for a few hours and is served with lightly whipped cream.

Gooey chocolate cake with cheesecake marbling, sreves 10

After Alexandra’s recipe.

Chocolate cake:

150 g butter
2 eggs
300 ml caster sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking powder
150 ml plain flour
4 tbsp cocoa

Cheesecake filling:

2 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla
75 ml caster sugar
400 g philadelphia
the juice from 1/2 lime

Preheat the oven to 175C and butter a cake tin. Melt the butter and leave it to cool a little. Beat eggs and sugar for the chocolate until pale and fluffy in a large mixing bowl. Mix the dry ingredients in a seperate bowl and incorporate into the egg mixture. Add the vanilla and melted butter and stir to combine.

Pour the batter into the cake tin and bake for 10 minutes. In the meantime mix all the indgredients for the cheesecake filling: beat the eggs and sugar until pale and fluffy then add the cream cheese and lime juice and beat until smooth.

Pour the cheesecake mixture into the chocolate cake anyway you like, I poured it into the middle. Bake for another 30 minutes or until the cake is just set but still gooey. Leave to cool and chill in the fridge before serving. Serve with icecream, lightly whipped cream or on its own.

Almond meringue tart with custard

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The next cake for work have also featured on the blog before, but it was a while ago, so I think it is fair to let it into the limelight once again.

The recipe for this cake is from one of my mother’s many cookbooks and is courtesy of the chefs at Svaneholms Slott in Sweden once upon a time (it is an old book) but the nice thing is that this hotel is in an old castle just 15 minutes from where my parents live.

My colleague Michael loved this cake so much that he asked for the recipe straight away, and I do agree with him – it is a wonderful cake.

It works just as well to end a dinner party as to serve with tea or coffee on a Sunday aftrenoon. The texture is creamy and chewy at the same time and the flavours are really nice. Also it is very simple to make, but it might not look it.

The original recipe calls for flaked almonds to top but I, however think it looks nicer with some fresh raspberries.

Almond meringue tart with custard (gluten free), 8 portioner

150 g ground almonds

5 eggwhites

200 g icing sugar

Beat the eggwhites until stiff peaks. Fold in the icing sugar followed by the ground almonds. Pour into a buttered dish and bake until golden brown, about 30 minutes in 175C.

Custard:

3 egg yolks

200 ml double cream

150 ml caster sugar

1,5 tbsp butter

Add the ingredients to a saucepan. Let it all melt while stirring and let it simmer for about 5 minutes. Leave to coll and pour onto the meringue base. Leave to cool a little and decorate with raspberries or flaked almonds.

Victoria sponge

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As you might know by now, I bake the birthday cakes for my office once a month. We haven’t got a budget big enough to get patisserie cakes and we were all so bored of the supermarket varieties. So the company pays for the ingredients and I bake away one night a month. I really enjoy it as I get to choose what to make and I have always loved to bake.

This month people had requested a traditional Victoria sponge so I made this classic with only one little addition – fresh strawberries. It went down a treat and it really is a wonderful summer cake.

I hade made this before, but this time I made the cake slightly higher and below is that recipe. The cake is incredibly easy to make, just don’t open the oven door until 30 minutes have passed (to avoid it sinking in the middle), then you’ll be fine. I prefer to make one sponge and cut it in half with a serrated knife, but feel free to use two cake tins (same size) if you wish.

Victoria sponge, serves 10

260 g plain flour

260 g caster sugar

260 g softened butter

5 eggs

1,5 tsp baking powder

1 tsp vanilla

Filling:

200 g strawberry jam

200 ml whipped cream

150 g sliced strawberries

Place all the ingredients in a mixing bowl and beat together with an electric whisk. Pour into a buttered and lined cake tin (or two of the same size). Place in a 175C oven for 35-40 minutes. Do not open the oven door until 30 minutes have passed.Cut the cake in half with a serrated knife and let it cool completely.

Place the bottom sponge on a cake plate and spread the jam onto it. Add the sliced strawberries and on top the whipped cream. Place the other sponge on top. Decorate with a few strawberries and dust with icing sugar.

Very cherry chocolate cake

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The most impressive of the three cakes I made for work last week was this very cherry chocolate cake. It is easy to make (even though it might not look it) and it tastes divine.

Just make sure you choose a decent preserve for the filling and to make the ganache thicker than the original recipe suggests.

Very cherry chocolate cake, sreves 12

Translated and adapted from this recipe.

Sponges:

2 eggs

250 ml water

250 ml butter milk or natural yoghurt

125 ml sunflower oil

200 g plain flour

450 g caster sugar

85 g cocoa

1 tsp baking powder

2 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla

Filling:

500 g (2 tubs) mascarpone cheese

300 ml whipping (or double) cream

250 ml cherry preserve

120 g caster sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla

Ganache:

100 g dark chocolate

200 ml whipping (or double) cream – halve this

1 tbsp butter

cherries to decorate

Preheat the oven to 175C. Butter three round cake tins, approx 20 cm diameter and line with baking parchment.

Add eggs, water, oil and butter milk/yoghurt in a mixing bowl and beat with an electric whisk until incorporated. Add all the dry ingredients in another mixing bowl and mix. Add the dry mixture to the liquid and beat unitil fully incorporated.

Divide the batter between the three cake tins. Place in the middle of the oven and bake for about 35 minutes. Leave to cool completely.

Beat mascarpone, cream, sugar and vanilla until a stiff and fluffy cream in a mixing bowl. Add the preserve and stir to combine.

Place one sponge cake on a cake stand and add a layer of filling. Repeat with the other two sponges. Then cover the top and sides of the cake with the filling and spread it even with a spatula.

Melt the chocolate and cream in a saucepan until fully melted and incorporated. Add the butter and leave to cool and thicken. Pour it over the cake and decorate with cherries before serving.

Lemon meringue pie

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It was time for the monthy cakes again on Friday. This time I made a Tosca cake, a very cherry chocolate cake (recipe to come) and this fresh lemon meringue pie.

I really like lemon in cakes as the acidity masks the fat and makes the cakes to appear light.

Lemon meringue pie, serves 10

Adapted from this recipe.

Short crust:

200 ml plain flour

100 g cold butter

1 tbsp icing sugar

1 egg yolk

1 tbsp cold water

Lemon curd:

2 lemons, zest and juice

1 orange, the juice

100 ml water

2,5 tbsp maizena corn flour (for thickening)

100 ml caster sugar

75 g butter

3 egg yolks

1 egg

Meringue:

4 egg whites

200 ml caster sugar

1 tsp lemonjuice

Add the butter and flour to a food processor and mix it into crumbs. Add the icing sugar, egg yolk and water and blitz to a dough. Knead it in a bowl for a few minutes. Either roll out and cover your dish or press it into the dish. Pick wholes with a fork and leave to set in the fridge for an hour.

Once the crust has resten, cover with baking parchment and ceramic beads and blindbake for 15 minutes in 175C. Remove the parchment paper and beads and bake for another 10 minutes. Turn the oven down to 150C.

While the crust is baking, prepare the curd and the meringue. Wash the lemons and grate the zest and add it to a saucepan. Add the juice and the juice from the orange too. Add the water, sugar and maizena. Bring to the boil and let the mixture thicken while stirring. Remove from the heat and add the butter. Stir while it melts.

Divide the yolks and the whites in two bowls (3 yolks and a whole egg in bowl for the curd and 4 whites in another mixing bowl for the meringue). Beat the yolks and the whole egg together and add to the curd on low heat. Beat with a whisk while the mixture thickens, do not let it boil. Put aside.

Beat the egg whites foamy, then add some of the sugar and beat until stiff peaks. Add the rest of the sugar bit by bit while beating, until very stiff peaks and a glossy meringue. Add the lemon juice and beat a little while longer.

Assemble the pie: Add the warm lemon curd to the warm pie crust and cover with the meringue. Bake in 150C for an hour in a low oven. Leave to cool before serving.

Almond cake with milk chocolate ganache, chopped almonds and seasalt

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The third cake for work last month was very popular; my colleagues are crazy about almonds.

The recipe for this cake is from a wonderful Swedish food blog called Anne’s food, and yes, it is in English. I made some slight changes to the recipe though, as I couldn’t find any good substitute for the chocolate with nuts in (Marabou’s Schweizernöt). Instead I used regular milk chocolate for the ganache and added some chopped almonds to it as well as some seasalt at the end. Toasted chopped almonds would have been even better, will do that next time.

The salt I used was a vanilla salt from Halen Môn, but using regular Maldon salt is just fine. I was just intrigued to try the vanilla salt. It is black from all the vanilla seeds and taste wonderful.

Almond cake with milk chocolate ganache, chopped almonds and seasalt, serves 8-10

2 eggs

270 g caster sugar

100 g ground almonds

75 g plain flour

100 g butter

Ganache:

200 g milk chocolate

5 tbsp cream

1 tbsp butter

Garnish:

chopped almonds

seasalt

Preheat the oven to 175C. Melt the butter and grease a round cake tin. Beat eggs and suga pale and fluffy with an electric mixer. Add the almonds, flour and butter. Stir to combine properly. Pour the batter into the tin and bake for 20-25 minutes. Leave to cool completely before spreading on the ganache.

Melt the chocolate for the ganache in a saucepan on low heat or in a bain marie. Add the cream and stir, then add the butter and combine. Spread the ganache onto the cake and sprinkle with the almonds. Let it set and sprinkle with salt before serving.

Chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting

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Cake number two for work last month was a recipe from the same great blog as where I found the lemon cheesecake; Matrepubliken [The Food Republic].

Both the cake and the frosting are sweet and if you don’t have such a sweet tooth as I, then I would recommend to make a less sweet chocolate cake (any recipe will do), but do keep the frosting as it is, becaus it is perfect. Perfect, do you hear?! Do not mess with perfection.

I can’t wait to try the frosting on some cupcakes next. Just make it, if you love peanuts or peanut butter this will blow you away!

Chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting, serves 12

Cake:

120 g butter
200 g milk chocolate
100 ml peanut butter, preferably crunchy
50 ml cocoa
3 eggs
250 ml caster sugar
250 ml plain flour

150-200 ml crunchy peanut butter
450 ml icing sugar
200 g Philadelphia cheese

Preheat the oven to 175C. Butter a cake tin. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the chocolate and peanut butter. When it is all melted, add the cocoa. Pour the mixture into a mixing bowl and beat in the eggs, one at the time, with an electric mixer. Add the sugar and flour to combine. Pour into the cake tin and bake for 25-30 minutes. Leave to cool completely before spreading on the icing. 

Mix the peanut butter, cream cheese and icing sugar together and spread onto the cake in a thick layer. Keep in the fridge before and after serving.