Monday, 8 February 2010

B E E T R O O T C H O C O L A T E C A K E

Many Thanks to Sally Bramwell for this recipe

(This is quite the best cake I have ever tasted. You can’t taste the beetroot it just makes the cake nice and moist.)

This cake will keep in an airtight tin for up to 3 days or up to a week in the fridge and freezes well for up to 1 month. Thaw overnight and bring up to room temperature to serve. You can also serve it as a pudding, drizzled with hot chocolate sauce and a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Ingredients:
200ml corn or sunflower oil, plus extra for greasing
75g cocoa powder
180g plain flour
2tsp baking powder
250g caster sugar
250g vacuum-packed cooked beetroot in natural juice, drained
3 large eggs
1tsp vanilla extract
Icing sugar, to dust

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180 C/ fan 160 C/gas 4. Lightly grease a deep 20cm round cake tin. Sift the cocoa powder, flour and baking powder into a large bowl. Stir in the sugar and set aside.
2. Puree the beetroot in a food processor, then add the eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition. Add the vanilla and oil and whizz until smooth. Make a well in the centre of the bowl of dry ingredients, add the beetroot mixture and lightly mix. Pour into the tin and bake for 50 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. (If the cake begins to darken too much, cover loosely with foil after 40 minutes.) It won’t rise a great deal, and the top will crack. Remove from the oven and cool in the tin for 15 minutes.
3. Remove the chocolate cake from the tin and transfer to a wire rack to cool
completely. Dust with icing sugar and serve..
I once put a chocolate icing on it which was also good but I preferred it with just a dusting of icing sugar.

Enjoy!!

Sunday, 18 October 2009

Damson and Apple Tansy

This English pudding recipe dates back to the 15th century. It takes its name from tansy, a bitter tasting herb which was once popular for flavouring sweets - it now describes a buttered fruit puree with eggs and breadcrumbs.

Preparation time - 15 minutes
Cooking time - 40 minutes
Chilling time - 1 hour

Ingredients for 4 people:
1/2 lb damsons
1/2 lb cooking apples
2 oz unsalted butter
4 oz caster sugar
2 egg yolks
4 level dessertspoons of fresh white breadcrumbs
1/4 pint double cream
1 dessertspoon lemon juice

Wash the damsons. Peel and core the apples. Melt the butter in a saucepan with 2 1/2 fluid oz cold water. Cover with lid and boil the fruit over low heat until soft, stirring from time to time.

Remove the pan from the heat and rub the fruit through a coarse sieve. Return the puree to the pan andstir in sugar to taste. If the puree is thin, cook it over low heat until it has reduced slightly and thickened to a dropping consistency.

Take the pan off the heat and blend in the beaten egg yolks and the breadcrumbs. Stir the mixture over low heat until quite thick, then leave to cool.

Whisk the cream lightly and fold it into the cooked puree. Sharpen to taste with lemon juice. Spoon the mixture into serving glasses and chill in the fridge for 1 hour. Before serving, whipped cream may be piped over the tansy.

Thanks to Rob Hallows (aka Mr Culpeper) on Plot 5b

Cherry or Damson Clafoutis

7 fl oz milk
seeds of 3 green cardamom pods, crushed
2 eggs
2 oz caster sugar
1 oz plain flour
4 oz plain fromage frais
2-3 tablespoons of brandy or rum
1 oz butter
1 lb black cherries or damsons (de-stoned)

Method

Place the milk and the crushed cardamom seeds in a saucepan and bring to the boil then turn off the heat and leave to infuse.

Beat together the eggs, sugar and flour. Add the fromage frais and rum/brandy.
Butter a shallow 1 1/2 pint or 900ml gratin dish and arrange the fruit over the base.

Strain the milk into the egg mixture and mix well. Pour over the frit and bake in a preheated oven (oven gas mark 5, 190 degrees centigrade or 375 degrees farenheit) for 35 minutes or until the custard has set.
Cool and refrigerate.

Rob Hallows (aka Mr Culpeper) Plot 5b???