Vanilla Rice Pudding with Cherry Almond Compote

I’ve had a busy week and sometimes when I’m particularly tired I just crave a bit of comfort food. Cake is usually my comfort food of choice, but sometimes even cake isn’t enough. Sometimes I want something warm and milky, something that comes steaming in a bowl that I can wrap my hands around and feel the warmth spread through my fingers and body start to relax before I’ve even taken a spoonful. Today was one of those days.

This afternoon when I opened the fridge door my eyes settled on a bowl of fresh cherries that were starting to look a little droopy and the thought that went through my head was ‘I bet they would be great as a compote’ which led to ‘I bet that compote would taste great on top of some rice pudding….ohhh rice pudding.... I could really eat some rice pudding right now.’

As the rice pudding started to simmer away on the hob, the room was filled with the rich, creamy, slightly sweet aroma of hot milk that always seems to soothe the soul. As I methodically stirred the pan and the rice became plump and tender I could almost peel myself start to unwind and relax. The cherries took on a whole new lease of life in their compote state and I also spiked them with a little almond extract for extra flavour.

Within 30 minutes I was nestled up on the sofa, hugging my bowlful of warm milky rice pudding topped with a spoonful of the glossy cherry compote. And relax…

Vanilla Rice Pudding with Cherry Almond Compote
Vanilla Rice Pudding
150g pudding rice
650ml milk
½ vanilla pod
½ tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp caster sugar

Cherry Almond Compote
100g cherries
2 tbsp caster sugar
½ tsp arrowroot
½ tsp almond extract
100ml water

Method
Place all of the rice pudding ingredients into a large saucepan and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Heat gently allowing the milk to heat up gradually, stirring every 5 minutes.
Once hot, increase the heat until the milk is simmering and leave to cook for 20-25 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, until the rice has absorbed most of the milk and become plump and tender. You may want to stir continuously when there is only a little milk left to prevent the rice from sticking to the base of the pan.
Eat a small spoonful of the rice to test for doneness. It should be soft and tender. If it is still a little chalky or al dente, then add another 100ml of rice and cook for a further 5 minutes before tasting again.
While the rice is cooking, prepare the cherry compote.
De-stone the cherries and cut then into small pieces. Place in a small saucepan along with the water and sugar and heat until bubbling. Allow to bubble for 5 minutes until the liquid is reduced by half, slightly syrupy and glossy and the cherries softened.
Dissolve the arrowroot in a small amount of cold water and stir into the cherries. Remove from the heat and stir until the syrup has thickened slightly and become glossy. Finally stir in the almond extract.
Set aside until needed.
Once your rice pudding is cooked, serve in individual bowls topped with a large spoonful of the cherry compote. Also tastes great topped with chocolate drops, a spoonful of jam or some fresh berries.
Best enjoyed just after making if you want to eat it hot, although also tastes delicious cold.
Serves 3-4
Note: If you want to reheat a portion the next day, place a small amount in your serving bowl and add 50ml milk (it will have become very thick overnight). Heat in the microwave or a small pan until piping hot.

Daring Bakers February 2010 Challenge: Tiramisu

Tiramisu is a much loved classic Italian dessert and one that now appears on restaurant menus worldwide. When done right it can be wonderful - layers of coffee soaked Savoiardi Biscuits, thick mascarpone, Marsala wine and a light dusting of cocoa. Unfortunately all too often restaurants and shops take shortcuts, using sponge in place of the traditional biscuits and whipped cream instead of the pricier mascarpone and with only a hint of coffee. These poor standards bear no resemblance to a traditional Tiramisu and so I was thrilled when this month’s challenge was announced.

The February 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Aparna of My Diverse Kitchen and Deeba of Passionate About Baking. They chose Tiramisu as the challenge for the month. Their challenge recipe is based on recipes from The Washington Post, Cordon Bleu at Home and Baking Obsession.

On reading the recipe I started to feel a little daunted about the challenge. The description and recipe filled 6 pages and consisted of not one, not two, not even three separate compulsory components – there were four! Each of which was its own challenge in itself. We had to make:
1) Our own Savoiardi biscuits – more commonly known as Ladyfingers
2) A Zabaglione flavoured with Marsala Wine – another Italian classic
3) Vanilla pastry cream
4) Even our own Mascarpone cheese!

Despite feeling daunted, I could also feel a leap of excitement building inside of me. Here was a proper test-your-skills get-the-adrenalin-going challenge. I could see this recipe meant business and I was eager to conquer it.

The hosts chose pastry chef Carminantonio Iannaccone’s recipe for Tiramisu which is a little different from some other Tiramisu recipes as it includes a zabaglione that is also lightly cooked. This was good as it meant there was no risk to any DB members from using raw eggs. The recipe also required us to make a vanilla pastry cream to combine with the zabaglione and mascarpone to form the cream for the layers, much more decadent, and Italian, than using plain whipped cream.

We were also strictly banned from using sponge for our soaking layer, and had to make the authentic Savoiardi biscuits. These turned out to be much simpler than I expected and the results were incredibly light and airy. Completely different to the brittle shop bought biscuits I must admit I have used in the past. They were studded with airy holes which soaked up the boozy rum spiked coffee liquid they are dunked in.

The longest part was making the mascarpone as this requires chilling overnight, but once this was done I got all the other components made, baked, assembled, chilled and eaten in one day and had a whale of a time in the process. It was so much fun seeing each individual component coming together and then assembling them into the finished dessert. Tiramisu is usually made in a large square dish which is then cut into portions to serve. However, on the day I decided to make the tiramisu we were having guests to dinner, so instead I though it would be nice to make and present them in individual glasses which I think makes them look far more elegant like for a dinner party and allows the various layers to be seen through the sides of the glass. Plus it allowed me to get arty with some strips of card and the cocoa powder for decoration, making each one unique.

While making the different components I was quite surprised to find that most of them included a little lemon zest. This seemed an odd thing to add to a coffee dessert, but I went with it and hoped for the best. When I tasted the finish dessert I was pleased to find that I couldn’t detect an obvious lemon flavour but there was a fresh, vibrant flavour to the dish that I’m sure was thanks to the lemon, like when you add a little salt to baked goods to enhance the flavour. The Tiramisu also includes quite a lot of booze – Marsala wine in the Zabaglione and Rum in the coffee soaking liquid. I thought these might be a bit overpowering or fight with each other and the coffee for prominence but I needn’t have worried.

Eating a spoonful of the tiramisu certainly resulted in a bitter coffee boozy taste, but no one flavour overpowered the others, they all seemed to meld together into one heady rounded grown up flavour, with the fresh creamy mascarpone layer swooping in to sooth your taste buds in readiness for the next bite.

After dinner I couldn’t wait to taste my first mouthful and see if all the effort had been worthwhile. Tiramisu translates as ‘Pick Me Up’ in Italian and I have to say this Tiramisu didn’t just pick me up, it had me and my guests letting out sighs of enjoyment and grinning at each other in delight. It’s sublime – the best Tiramisu I have ever tasted. I feel no shame is stating this – it’s the recipe and individually flavoured components that made it so fantastically wonderful, I just followed the instructions and put them together. It’s boozy with a strong coffee hit, the layers of Savoiardi biscuits adding just a little resistance and lightness against the thick creamy indulgent mascarpone/zabaglione/pastry cream layer all finished with a dusting of bitter cocoa powder.

Yes it involved some work, but the results are definitely worth it. Next time you have a few free hours and want to make a show stopping dessert – do give this recipe a go – it’s utterly divine!

Click to see my fellow Daring Bakers and their Tiramisu’s.

Ultimate Tiramisu
Mascarpone Cheese – needs making the day before
(Vera’s Recipe for Homemade Mascarpone Cheese)
Ingredients
475ml pasteurized whipping cream (not ultra-pasteurized)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Method – Mascarpone Cheese
Bring 1 inch of water to a boil in a wide pan. Reduce the heat to medium-low so the water is barely simmering. Pour the cream into a medium heat-resistant bowl, then place the bowl into the pan. Heat the cream, stirring often, until it reaches 90C. If you do not have a thermometer, wait until small bubbles keep trying to push up to the surface.
It will take about 15 minutes of delicate heating.
Add the lemon juice and continue heating the mixture, stirring gently, until the cream curdles. The whipping cream will become thicker, like a well-done crème anglaise. It will cover a back of your wooden spoon thickly. You will see just a few clear whey streaks when you stir. Remove the bowl from the water and let cool for about 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, line a sieve with four layers of dampened cheesecloth and set it over a bowl. Transfer the mixture into the lined sieve. Do not squeeze the cheese in the cheesecloth or press on its surface (be patient, it will firm up after refrigeration time). Once cooled completely, cover with clingfilm and refrigerate (in the sieve) overnight or up to 24 hours.
Keep refrigerated and use within 3 to 4 days. This recipe makes around 350g of mascarpone cheese.

Note: The first time you make mascarpone you may not believe it will be cooked enough, because of its custard-like texture. However, have no fear, it firms up in the fridge yet remains lusciously creamy.

Ladyfingers/ Savoiardi Biscuits
(Recipe from Cordon Bleu At Home)
Ingredients
3 eggs, separated
75g caster sugar
85g plain flour
10g cornflour
50g icing sugar

Method
Preheat your oven to 175C and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Beat the egg whites using a hand held electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Gradually add the caster sugar and continue beating until the egg whites become stiff again, glossy and smooth.
In a small bowl, beat the egg yolks lightly with a fork and fold them into the meringue, using a wooden spoon. Sift the flour and cornflour over this mixture and fold gently until just mixed. It is important to fold very gently and not overdo the folding. Otherwise the batter would deflate and lose volume resulting in ladyfingers which are flat and not spongy.
Fit a pastry bag with a large plain tip and pipe the batter into 5inch/12cm long strips leaving about 1inch/3cm space in between each one.
Sprinkle half the icing sugar over the ladyfingers and wait for 5 minutes. The sugar will pearl or look wet and glisten. Now sprinkle the remaining sugar. This helps to give the ladyfingers their characteristic crispness.
Hold the parchment paper in place with your thumb and lift one side of the baking sheet and gently tap it on the work surface to remove excess sprinkled sugar.
Bake the ladyfingers for 10 minutes, then rotate the sheets and bake for another 5 minutes or so until the puff up, turn lightly golden brown and are still soft.
Allow them to cool slightly on the sheets for about 5 minutes and then remove the ladyfingers from the baking sheet with a metal spatula while still hot, and cool on a rack.
Store them in an airtight container until required.
This recipe makes approximately 24 large or 45 small ladyfingers.

Tiramisu Components
(Carminantonio's Tiramisu from The Washington Post, July 11 2007 )
Zabaglione
2 large egg yolks
50g caster sugar
60ml Marsala wine
½ tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp finely grated lemon zest

Vanilla Pastry Cream
55g caster sugar
1 tbsp plain flour
½ tsp finely grated lemon zest
½ tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg yolk
175ml whole milk

Whipped Cream
235ml chilled double cream
½ tsp vanilla extract

To Assemble the Tiramisu
(I thought only 1teaspoon of rum was a little stingy so I used 420ml coffee and 50ml rum)
470ml brewed espresso, warmed
1 tsp rum
110g caster sugar
75g mascarpone cheese (recipe above – I used 125g)
36 savoiardi/ ladyfinger biscuits (recipe above)
Cocoa powder for dusting

Method - Zabaglione
Heat some water in a double boiler or place a pot with about an inch of water in it on the stove. Place a heat-proof bowl in the pot making sure the bottom does not touch the water.
In a large glass or metal mixing bowl mix together the egg yolks, sugar, Marsala, vanilla extract and lemon zest. Whisk together until the yolks are fully blended and the mixture looks smooth.
Transfer the mixture to the top of a double boiler and cook the mixture over low heat, stirring constantly, for about 8 minutes or until it resembles thick custard (mine took more like 12minutes).
Once thick, remove from the heat, transfer the mixture to a small bowl and allow to cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight, until thoroughly chilled.

Method - Pastry Cream
Mix together the sugar, flour, lemon zest and vanilla extract in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan. Add the egg yolk and half the milk and whisk until smooth.
Now place the saucepan over low heat and cook, stirring constantly to prevent the mixture from curdling.
Add the remaining milk a little at a time, still stirring constantly. After about 12 minutes the mixture will be thick, free of lumps and beginning to bubble.
Transfer the pastry cream to a bowl and cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight, until thoroughly chilled.

Method - Whipped Cream
Combine the cream and vanilla extract in a mixing bowl. Beat with an electric hand mixer until the mixture holds fairly stiff peaks. Set aside.

Method - To Assemble the Tiramisu
Mix together the warm espresso, rum and sugar in a shallow dish, set aside to cool slightly.
Once you have your marscapone, ladyfingers, pastry cream, zabaglione, whipped cream and coffee dipping liquid done you are ready to start assembling your tiramisu.
Have ready a rectangular serving dish about 8inches/20cm square ready to hand.
In a large bowl, beat the mascarpone cheese with a spoon to break down the lumps and make it smooth and easier to fold. Add the prepared and chilled zabaglione and pastry cream, mixing until just combined. Gently fold in the whipped cream. Set aside.
Now to start assembling the tiramisu.
Workings quickly, dip 12 of the ladyfingers in the sweetened espresso, about 1 second per side, no longer or else they will start to disolve and break up. They should be moist but not soggy. Immediately transfer each ladyfinger to the platter, placing them side by side in a single row. You may break a lady finger into two, if necessary, to ensure the base of your dish is completely covered. Drizzle over a little extra of the coffee rum mix.
Spoon one-third of the cream mixture on top of the ladyfingers, then use a rubber spatula or spreading knife to cover the top evenly, all the way to the edges.
Repeat to create 2 more layers, using around 12 ladyfingers and the cream mixture for each layer, ending with a final layer of cream. Cover the dish carefully with clingfilm and refrigerate the tiramisu for at least 4 hours or overnight.
To serve, sprinkle the tiramisu with cocoa powder dusted through a fine-mesh strainer. Cut into individual portions and serve.
Serves 6

Note: This recipe also works very well when divided between 6 individual serving glasses. Just layer them up as you would for a big one.

Celebrating 3 years of Apple & Spice with an Overnight Apple Spice Cake

Today is my blogs 3rd birthday. I can’t quite believe it. Three years ago I was at university and sitting in an attic bedroom with my laptop, huddled under the sloping eves and deciding to make my first tentative steps into blogging. A lot has changed since then, both for me and my blog. I feel I have developed more as a cook, baker and general foodie, the world of blogging opening my eyes and imagination to new recipes, cooking techniques and flavours. So thank you to all my fellow bloggers, commenters and followers for your support and inspiration, you help make my day shine.

Every year on this date I always ensure I have an apple and spice themed dessert to celebrate my little blog. The 1st year was a delicious apple packed Spiced Apple Cake and last year some yummy Apple & Cinnamon Oat Crumbles. This year is no exception, and I present to you an overnight apple spice cake. It’s basically LOTS of apple layered with spiced sugar and slowly baked until soft, tender and bursting full of concentrated apple flavour. It couldn’t be more apple packed if you tried!

The dessert is baked in a very low oven overnight – 12 hours of gently baking to be precise, to allow the water from the fruit to evaporate and become more concentrated. The fruit softens and becomes more compact as it bakes. It’s not so much a cake, more of a layered compote. I saw this recipe on Desert Candy’s blog using orange zest and apples, but being a lover of spices I removed the orange and used a lovely warming blend of spices in its place. The result was heavenly.

I put the cake in the oven before I went to bed and in the morning I opened the kitchen door to be greeted by a cloud of intoxicating spiced apple aroma, filling the kitchen with its sweet fragrance. Just divine. Once baked, the cake is inverted while the apple juices that seeped out during baking are reduced and drizzled over the top as a sticky glaze.

Cutting a slice revealed the layers of apple and spices. You need to use firm apples that will survive a long cooking or else you’ll end up with mush. I was pleased to see mine stayed together well, whilst still becoming soft and tender. I enjoyed my first slice au natural, letting the full burst of intense apple flavour shine through but I think it would be wonderful served in a pool of custard too. Or, seeing as it’s also Pancake Day today, on top of some fluffy American style pancakes!

Overnight Apple Spice Cake
(Recipe adapted from Desert Candy blog)
Ingredients
2kg firm fleshed and quite tart apples (I used 1kg Breaburn & 1kg Granny Smith)
Juice of 1 lemon
150g caster sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp ground ginger
¼ tsp ground cardamom

Method
Line a 7-8inch/18-20cm deep springform tin with a layer of greaseproof paper.
Peel and core the apples using an apple corer, to allow the apple to remain whole. Alternatively, cut into quarters and remove the core this way.
Add the juice of the lemon to a large bowl of water. Finely slice the apples into 2mm thick rings and place them into the liquid to prevent them from turning brown while you slice the remaining apples.
Mix the spices into the sugar and stir together to mix.
Preheat the oven to 85C.
Drain the water from the apple slices and pat dry with a kitchen towel. Arrange a layer of apple rings into the base of the tin. Sprinkle over 2-3 tsp of the spiced sugar and cover with another layer of apple. Repeat the process of apple, sugar, apple…until both are used up.
Cut a disc of greaseproof paper the size of the tin and place on top of the layered apples and press down lightly.
Wrap the tin in a sheet of foil and place into a baking tray to catch any juices that escape during baking.
Place the tin in the oven for 12 hours (yes really!).
Once the 12 hours are up, remove the tin from the oven and carefully remove the foil. Do this over the baking tray as lots of juices will have collected in the base and you want to keep them.
Press down gently on the top of the apple cake to extract any remaining apple juices.
Invert the apple cake onto a plate and remove the greaseproof base.
Pour the apple juices into a small pan and bring to a simmer. Allow to bubble slowly for 10-12 minutes until reduced by half and syrupy.
Drizzle the apple syrup all over the upturned apple cake and serve.
Also tastes delicious cold and can be served with custard, cream, yogurt or simple on its own.

Apricot & Hazelnut Cake with Caramel Meringue Frosting

It was my mums birthday last week and naturally birthdays always mean a special cake. This year I wanted to deviate away from the traditional sponge and try something a bit different. My mum is a lover of baked goods with nuts, so I decided on making a hazelnut cake by substituting some ground hazelnuts for some of the flour. Nuts can sometimes result in dense cakes, so after a little hunting I chose to bake a butterless whisked cake that relies on separating the eggs and whisking the whites to add lightness.

I was a little worried the nuts would make the layers too heavy and they wouldn’t rise properly, but they puffed up beautifully and were very flat and even. The toasting hazelnut aroma as the cake baked was wonderful. When hot the cakes were quite delicate so it’s best to let them cool in the tins, but once cooled they are quite easy to handle. On tasting the cake the ground nuts were quite apparent, adding a great flavour and nobly nutty texture which was a hit with my mum – less so with my dad but he doesn’t like cake with ‘little bits in.’

As the cake was very light it seemed pointless to choose a rich buttercream or whipped cream filling to accompany it. Instead I hit upon the idea of making a caramel meringue by beating hot caramel over egg whites to create a very light and airy frosting. This worked well and created pillowy soft mounds of meringue which literally dissolved in tiny bubbles on your tongue.

Apricots and hazelnuts complement each other well so I sandwiched the cake together with some apricot conserve and sliced apricots. Over time the juice from the fruit dissolved a little of the meringue frosting, creating a delicious syrup that seeped into the cake layers making them incredibly moist. It’s the sort of cake you could easily serve as a dessert but it also made a delicious birthday cake. If you don’t want to go the fruity route I bet it would taste delicious with some sort of chocolate filling too.

Apricot & Hazelnut Cake with Caramel Meringue Frosting
Hazelnut Cake
100g skinned hazelnuts
75g self raising flour
175g caster sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp baking powder

Apricot Filling & Caramel Meringue
100g apricot jam or conserve
8 fresh or tinned apricots
3 egg whites
150g caster sugar
100ml water

Method – Hazelnut Cake
Preheat the oven to 175C. Grease and line two 8inch/20cm cake tins and set to one side.
Place the hazelnuts and flour into a food processor and blitz until you have a nutty flour with a few tiny chunks of nut remaining.
Separate the yolks and whites of the eggs into two bowls. Add the caster sugar to the egg yolks and beat until thick, pale and creamy, about 3 minutes.
Whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold a third of the egg white mixture into the egg yolk mix to slacken it. Then add the rest of the egg whites and fold in gently.
Scatter the nutty flour and baking powder over the surface of the batter and fold in gently until no streaks remain.
Divide the batter between the two cake tins and bake for 20 minutes until golden in colour and springy to the touch.
Allow the cakes to cool in the tins before running a knife around the edge and inverting them out onto a plate.

For the Caramel Meringue
Place the water and caster sugar together in a small pan. Heat gently, stirring often, until the sugar has dissolved. Then allow the liquid to bubble and take on a light golden caramel colour. You don’t want it too dark.
Meanwhile whisk the egg whites until soft peaks form. Once the caramel is ready, slowly drizzle it over the egg whites while still whisking. The egg whites should take on a thick glossy look and turn amber in colour. Continue to beat for 3-4 minutes once the syrup has been used up.
Use to sandwich and frost the cake immediately.

To Assemble
Spread a generous layer of a good quality apricot jam or converse over one of the cake layers. Cut the apricots into segments and arrange over the top of the jam, reserving a few for decoration on top.
Spoon half of the caramel meringue over the top of the jam and fruit and spread gently to the edges.
Top with the remaining cake layer. Use the remaining half of the meringue to cover the top of the cake and decorate with the reserved apricot slices.
Serve straight away. Best eaten on day of baking as if left, the meringue starts to break down due to the moistness of the fruit in the cake.
Eat within 2 days. Serves 8-10

Chocolate Chestnut Truffle Torte

As both my brother and sister were visiting for the holidays a delicious dessert was on the cards and seeing as they are both complete chocoholics, I knew chocolate would have to be the main feature. My brother in particular is such a chocoholic that he won’t even consider eating a dessert that doesn’t involve chocolate. In my opinion he doesn’t know what else he is missing out on, but as he was home for a visit I was more than happy to accommodate. When I found this torte in a recent food magazine I knew it more than met his requirements.

The original torte called for a sponge base, but I changed this to a chocolate biscuit base, as I wanted something with more of a textural contrast to the soft torte. I also added in a shot of Brandy to add a little extra decadence, a decision that was noticed and appreciated by my siblings.

The torte is quite unassuming to look at, but it tasted fabulous. It was quite dense and truffle-like in texture when cut, but light and melting in the mouth thanks to the addition of whipped egg whites in the mix. It was packed with rich chocolate flavour that developed and intensified as the torte softened in your mouth. The chestnut puree still contained tiny amounts of ground chestnut pieces which added to the texture and resulted in a creamy nutty flavour which was the perfect pairing to the rich bitter chocolate. The Brandy made it taste very decedent and just that little bit more special. The chocoholics were more than satisfied and couldn’t help but let out a little moan of ‘Mmmm’ when they took their first bite.

Chocolate Chestnut Truffle Torte
(Recipe adapted from BBC Good Food Magazine)Ingredients
200g Bourbon biscuits (these are chocolate crème sandwich cookies)
50g butter
1 x 435g can unsweetened chestnut purée
2 eggs
400g dark chocolate (around 60%)
600ml double cream
2 tbsp Brandy

Method
Grease a 25cm/10inch springform tin and line the base with baking paper.
Start by making the biscuit base. Place the biscuits, crème filling and all, into a food processor and blitz until you achieve fine crumbs. Melt the butter, drizzle it over the biscuit crumbs and pulse until mixed and the crumbs look damp.
Pour the crumbs into the tin and press down well to a flat even surface. Place in the fridge to firm up while you make the topping.
To make the truffle topping, separate the egg whites and yolks into different bowls. Add the chestnut puree to the egg yolks and beat until well combined (it won’t go completely smooth).
Melt the chocolate, Brandy and half of the cream together in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Once melted and glossy, remove from the heat and beat it into the chestnut mixture.
Whip the remaining half of the cream until thick enough to hold its shape, but not too stiff, before folding it into the chocolate mixture.
Whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Carefully fold them into the chocolate mixture until no streaks remain.
Pour the rich chocolate chestnut mixture over the chilled biscuit base and shake gently to level the surface. Place in the fridge to chill and firm up for at least 5 hours, or preferably overnight.
When ready to eat, run a hot knife around the edge of the pan to release it from the tin. Dust the top with cocoa powder and serve with lightly whipped cream or crème fraiche if desired.
The torte can also be frozen for up to 2 months. Allow to thaw in the fridge overnight before using.
Serves 12-16

Note: The torte contains raw egg and so is not recommended for pregnant women or people recovering from illness.

Christmas Pudding Truffles

With Christmas and New Year over things are starting to settle down and return to the regular routine, with the last few slices of Christmas cake or pudding the lingering reminder of the festivities.

My homemade Christmas pudding was a great success on Christmas day. It had been maturing for a month by the time it was given a final steam, doused in a copious amount of Brandy and set alight. The wispy blue flames looked so pretty dancing around the edge of the pudding. I did try and take a photo of it, but the flames haven’t really shown up. The pudding was very moist and flavoursome. The fruits and Brandy had mingled together nicely to give a deep, rich fruity overtone and the cakey bit was light and moist. I’m definitely going to make it again next year.

Over Christmas a friend had also given us a bought Christmas pudding and rather than eat it simply as a pudding (as we had the homemade one) I was given permission to turn it into truffles…Christmas pudding with Brandy butter chocolate truffles!
To make the truffles, you simply crumble the leftover pudding into a bowl, warm it gently in the microwave to make it soft and gooey and then mix in a little Brandy butter to help stick everything together (regular butter would do if you don’t have any leftover). It was then a matter of rolling them into balls, chilling them and covering with melted dark chocolate or a dusting of cocoa powder and your done. Delicious truffles, that look and taste like you must have been working in the kitchen for hours and yet in reality they are made from a few simple leftovers.

They were very moreish. The chocolate coating cracked with a very satisfying crunch as you bite into it yielding to a soft, fruity, boozy interior. The perfect after dinner treat when you don’t want a full dessert.

Christmas Pudding Truffles
Ingredients
500-600g leftover Christmas pudding
25g Brandy butter (or regular butter with ½ tbsp Brandy)
200g dark chocolate
Cocoa powder for dusting

Method
Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper and set aside.
Crumble the Christmas pudding between your fingers into a bowl. Add the Brandy butter and place the bowl in the microwave for 30 seconds, until warmed but not hot.
Mix everything together, until combined.
Take teaspoonfuls of the mixture and squish it gently into balls using the tips of your fingers. Place on the prepared baking tray. Continue until all the mixture is used up.
Place the baking tray in the freezer for an hour to completely chill the pudding truffles (this prevents them from breaking up when you dip them in chocolate).
After an hour, melt the dark chocolate until smooth. Remove the truffles from the freezer and dip each one into the melted chocolate, turning it until well covered. Use two small forks to help you.
Place the chocolate covered truffles back onto the baking tray. Once the chocolate has been used up, roll any remaining balls in cocoa powder.
Leave the chocolate to set at room temperature. Once set, place the truffles in small petit fours cases and serve.
Store any leftover truffles in an airtight container.
Makes around 30 truffles

Sweet Potato Cake Cheesecake

After my experiments with the sweet potato cakes I was left with quite a lot of leftover cake and decided to try baking it into a cheesecake to give it a new lease of life. This may sound odd, but I was inspired by my trip to Chicago in the summer, where I saw a carrot cake cheesecake. This involved a thin carrot cake base, topped with cheesecake and another round of carrot cake. I didn’t actually taste it (I went for an Oreo cheesecake) but the idea has stuck with me.

For my cheesecake I crumbled some of the sweet potato cake and pressed it into the base of my tin, in place of the usual biscuit base. I then made a basic vanilla cheesecake mix, and cut the remaining cake into 1cm cubes. I stirred most of the cake cubes into the cheesecake mix and used the rest to top the cheesecake.
I was really excited to see how the cheesecake would look when I sliced into it and after an impatient wait for it to cool I had my first slice. The cheesecake was very incredibly smooth and creamy and the cake base was soft but held together well. Most of the middle cake cubes had drifted towards the surface but they had stayed fully submerged and although soft, were still different enough to add their own texture. The top cake cubes had turned a lovely golden brown and gone ever so slightly chewy. The little pieces of pecan nut I had used on top of the sweet potato cake were given a light toasting and added their own toasty nut flavour when you happened upon one.

The orange and spices from the sweet potato cake had permeated into the cheesecake itself and given it a lightly spiced flavour of its own. Quite unusual on first bite but addictively good. The whole thing reminded me a bit of bready and butter pudding, only with much more creamy filling. Just divine. So if you have a bit of leftover cake lingering in a tin, don’t throw it out – turn it into a delicious cake cheesecake instead. I’m sure you won’t be disappointed.

Sweet Potato Cake Cheesecake
(Recipe adapted from Nigella Lawson)
Ingredients
400-500g sweet potato cake (or cake of your choice)
50g butter
600g cream cheese
150g caster sugar
3 eggs
3 egg yolks
1 tsp vanilla extract

Method
Preheat the oven to 180C. Have a deep 8inch/20cm springform tin close at hand.
Weigh out 150g of the sweet potato cake and crumble it into fine pieces using your fingers. Melt the butter and pour it over the top of the cake crumbs. Mix together briefly and then press into the base of the tin. Press down well so that they form a flat base. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the sugar and beat again, followed by the egg yolks, eggs and vanilla.
Cut the remaining sweet potato cake into 1cm cubes. Lightly stir three quarters of the cake cubes through the cream cheese mixture. Do not over mix or the cake will start to break apart.
Pour the cheesecake mix into the springform tin. Scatter the remaining quarter of the cake cubes over the top of the cheesecake and press down so they are partially submerged.
Boil the kettle. Wrap the tin in a large sheet of foil and place it inside a deep baking tray. Place the tin in the oven and pour the boiling water into the baking tin, so that it comes half way up the sides of the cheesecake tin. Make sure your foil comes above the water level.
Bake for 55 minutes. Test if the cheesecake is done by giving it a gentle shake. If the centre ripples and looks very runny, then give it 5 minutes more. However, a gently wobble in the centre is fine as the cheesecake will continue to cook after you have taken it out of the oven.
Take the cheesecake out of the oven and baking tray. Remove the foil and place the whole tin on a cooling wire to cool.
When cool, place in the fridge to chill for at least 4 hours to ensure it is sufficiently set.
When ready to serve, run a hot knife around the inside edge of the tin to release the cheesecake. Remove the tin collar and serve.
Serves 10-12
Makes one 8inch/20cm cheesecake

Bettys Traditional Christmas Pudding

I can’t believe it is the beginning of December tomorrow! November has just flown by. I saw the Christmas Coco Cola advert last night. You know it’s nearly Christmas when that appears on the TV, and even though I’m not a coca cola fan I love the advert – it always makes me feel festive and brings back memories of excited anticipation of Christmas approaching when I was younger. What do any of you associate with the start of Christmas? Putting up your tree, a song or on the radio or a bite of your first mince pie? I personally began feeling rather festive when I backed my Christmas cake last weekend. If you haven’t baked yours yet, don’t worry there is still time.

This year I decided to also make a Christmas pudding, something I have never attempted before. For those of you who may not know, a Christmas pudding is a sort of cross between a Christmas cake and mincemeat (the kind found in mice pies not bolognaise!). Your soak your fruits in alcohol before using them, like a Christmas cake, but you then mix these into a spiced cake batter than contains suet, like mincemeat (vegetable suet). The mix is then placed into a pudding basin and part boiled, part steamed in a pan of water for several hours. This produces a very moist and soft pudding, that has all the flavours of Christmas cake only slightly more spongy and less densely fruited. The pudding is kept for several weeks to allow the flavour to mature and develop. Then on Christmas day the pudding is heated, doused in Brandy and set alight. The lights are quickly turned down and people ‘ohhh’ and ‘arrrrh’ as wispy blue flames dance around the pudding giving a spectacular end to the Christmas meal.

Last week I saw this recipe for a Christmas pudding in a supplement given away with the newspaper. It’s based (apparently) on the Christmas puddings they sell in Bettys of Taylors and Harrogate. I have always been impressed with their bread and cakes whenever I have visited and the pudding sounded quite straightforward so I decided to give it a go. The pudding does require 5 hours of boiling/steaming, but don’t let that put you off. As long as you check the water level a couple of times during cooking, it can be left to its own devises. The actually making of the pudding is very quick and easy.

Obviously I haven’t tasted it yet, but it looks very moist and smells very traditional, warming spices, boozy fruits and a hint of citrus. It doesn’t look all that appetising before you cook it, but it transforms into a lovely looking pudding after its steam session. It’s currently wrapped up tight and hidden away under the stairs until its big reveal on Christmas Day. I’ll try and catch a shot of it on fire to show you later. It’s just occurred to me how odd it sounds to want to purposely set food on fire!

I nearly forgot, don’t forget to give your Christmas cake its weekly feed of one tablespoon of your chosen booze. It appreciates some festive spirit too *groan* couldn’t resist!

Bettys Traditional Christmas Pudding
Ingredients
230g raisins
50g currants
75g sultanas
50g glace cherries
Zest of 1 lemon
Zest of 1 orange
100ml Brandy
15g flaked almonds
25g chopped hazelnuts (my addition)
50g vegetable suet
30g wholemeal breadcrumbs
50g plain flour
90g light soft brown sugar
½ tsp mixed spice
¼ tsp nutmeg
¼ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp ground cloves
1 tsp salt
2 eggs, lightly beaten

Method
The day before, place all the dried fruits into a bowl. Grate the orange and lemon zest over the top and pour in the Brandy. Give everything a good stir, cover the bowl with clingfilm and set aside for 24 hours to allow the fruits to plump up and absorb some of the Brandy.
The next day, place all the remaining ingredients into a large bowl. Add the soaked fruits, scraping in any leftover juices. Mix together lightly with a wooden spoon until everything is evenly combined.
Place a small disc of parchment paper in the base of a 1½ pint pudding basin. Fill the basin with the pudding mix, pressing down lightly. Place another disc of parchment on top and cover the top of the basin with a sheet of foil. Fold a little crease into the middle of the foil to allow it to rise with the steam.
Tie a long strip of string around the top rim of the pudding and then secure it over the top of the basin from one side to the other to form a string handle. (This will help you retrieve the pudding from the pan later without burning yourself).
Place a trivet or small unturned saucer in the base of a deep saucepan – it must be wide enough to hold your pudding.
Place the pudding on the upturned saucer, boil the kettle and fill the pan with the hot water until it reached half way up the side of the pudding basin.
Bring the water to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, cover with the lid and leave to simmer gently for 5 hours. It does not need to boil rapidly.
Every 2 hours lid the lid of the pan to check the water level. Add more boiling water if it’s looking low.
Once the 5 hours is up, lift the pudding out of the pan with the help of the string handle. Place on a cooling rack, remove the foil and leave until cool. Leave it in the basin and with the parchment disc still on top. Once cooled, wrap tightly in clingfilm and store in a cool dark place until required, the longer the better.
On Christmas Day, steam the pudding again for 2 hours to heat through thoroughly. Turn out onto a serving plate that has a rim. Carefully warm a ladleful of Brandy until it ignites and quickly pour it over the pudding to flambé. Take it to the table and serve with Brandy butter or custard once the flames have extinguished. Alternatively, heat the Brandy in a pan, pour it over the pudding and set light to it with a lighter.
Makes 1 pudding, to serve 6 – 8 people