Apple and Cinnamon Bundt Cake

This recipe is originally a Martha Stewart recipe and the bundt cake I produced using it was honestly one of the most delicious things I have ever made (and I always say that puddings are not my strong point!). I saw Nigella making a bundt cake in her Christmas programme, but, when I looked online, there were only American recipes for bundt cakes. Therefore I decided to fill the gap and rewrite Martha's recipe using British measures (I don't have cups, y'see). I have adapted the amounts using this marvellous converter which has proven invaluable for my progression into the baking world. I made this recipe for Christmas Day tea time, and it was fantastic with a cup of milky chai tea. Yum yum!

Apple & Cinnamon Bundt Cake

375g plain flour
1-2 tbsp cinammon
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
250g butter, melted
263g brown sugar (soft not granulated)
4 eggs
6 Granny Smith apples, peeled & cored

Glaze

white icing sugar
boiling water

Martha Stewart's Method

1. Preheat oven to 150°C or Gas Mark 2. Make the cake: In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, baking powder, salt, and baking soda.
2. In a large bowl, combine butter, brown sugar, and eggs. Whisk until smooth. Gradually whisk in dry ingredients just until combined (do not overmix). Using a rubber spatula, fold in apples. Spoon batter into a 12-cup nonstick Bundt pan, and smooth top. Bake until a tester inserted in cake comes out clean, 50 to 60 minutes. Cool in pan on rack 15 minutes; invert onto rack to cool completely.
3. Make the Glaze: Whisk together confectioners' sugar and enough water to form a thick yet pourable glaze. Set rack with cake over a piece of wax paper (for easy cleanup); drizzle cake with glaze, and let set before serving. 

Original photo by Lucy   

My killer brownies!

I came across the Jamie Oliver brownie recipe and then, because I didn't have some of the ingredients. adapted it, and the outcome was fantastic!

Ingredients

125g unsalted butter
125g dark (70% cocoa solids) chocolate
25g chopped walnuts (optional) - you could use chocolate chips / cherries / hazelnuts - anything!
73g plain flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
180g mixed sugars (caster / demerara / muscovado) - use whatever you have
2 large eggs

1. Set your oven to 180 degrees C / 350 degrees F and lightly butter the bottom and sides of your baking pan (I decided to use a round, spring bottom cake mould).
2. Break the chocolate into small pieces into a bowl and melt it with the butter over a pan of water on the hob.
3. Once all melted, take off the heat and add the chopped walnut. Mix in.
4. In a big mixing bowl, incorporate all the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder) and then pour in the chocolate, butter, walnut mix. Mix until just merged.
5. Crack the 2 eggs into the mixture, and, again, mix everything together. I just use a wooden spoon, not an electric whisk, as you don't want to over beat the batter and loose the air.
6. Pour the mix into your prepared tin and place in the oven for 35 minutes, although do check on it around the 25 minute mark and assess whether it needs any more time. The top should be firm but, ideally, the middle will be gooey and slightly undercooked.
7. Leave the brownie in its pan for 5 minutes to retract from the sides and then pop it out and eat!

Serving suggestion: have your brownies with a dollop of double cream or ice cream to bring to life the hot/cold match made in heaven and, if you're feeling like you should have one of your five a day, add some raspberries or orange segments to go on the side. These also taste fantastic the next day, when cold, so don't worry about having to eat them only when they are hot. Delicious! 

Simple canapé ideas

One of my big joys in life is hosting dinner and drinks parties. On Friday I had a very small drinks and canapés party for two of my friends and I made various things to eat. Two of these turned out to be most successful, and I thought I would share them as they are simple and effective (perfect drinks party fare as far as I'm concerned!):

Figs wrapped in prosciutto (serves 3)

6 figs
6 slices of prosciutto
squeezy honey
balsamic vinegar

1. Chop the very top of each fig and cut a deep (but not to the bottom) cross into the middle of the open top.
2. Wrap each fig with the prosciutto (this is surprisingly fiddly, as the meat is rather wet feeling so it sort of sticks to the next slice; try not to get the prosciutto to squidged together!) and place onto a non-stick baking tray.
3. Open the cross up slightly and squeeze a blob of runny honey into it and a dash of balsamic vinegar.
4. Cook in a hot oven (200 degrees C) for 15 minutes or until fizzing and oozing!

Asparagus spears wrapped in prosciutto (serves 3)

9 asparagus spears
5 slices of prosciutto

1. Snap the ends of each asparagus spear, and discard any woody ends.
2. Carefully cut each slice of prosciutto into half (again, as above, this is surprisingly fiddly, so I would suggest you use good kitchen scissors and a will of iron!).
3. Wrap each asparagus spear in half a slice of prosciutto; you can do this is any way you like, but I find it best when I wrap it length ways, like a duvet cover, or round and round like a spiral.
4. Lay each spear onto a non-stick baking tray (I just put them on the same one as the one with the wrapped figs).
5. Cook in a hot oven (200 degrees C) for 15 minutes or until you want to eat them!

Optional serving choice: these go particularly well with a cold, fizzy prosecco; Italian all the way! 

Breakfast of eggs, tender stem broccoli, avocado and red onion

Breakfast. The most important meal of the day. Something I have always heard, but, until recently, found it quite difficult to believe. With my morning rush to work an all to very apparent reality, breakfast has always been something that has been put on the back burner. Not any more, however. I think I have found the perfect quick, delicious and nutritious breakfast formula.

Eggs, tender stem broccoli, avocado and red onion
Eggs are the most versatile, beautiful and nutritious sources of protein, so I use them whenever I can. Moreover, the maximum time it takes to cook them is 8 minutes (for hard boiled) and can be as little as 90 seconds (for lightly scrambled), so busy rushers like me can use them often. I like to use Organic eggs if I can (and always free range if I can't buy Organic) as I am a big believer in proper manufacturing methods and happy animals!

Tender stem broccoli is the gorgeously sweet, better looking cousin of regular broccoli. Although slightly more expensive than its original form, it really does prove excellent in this dish as you can simply hand snap it and toss it into the pan. No messing around. I like a good crunch and bite, so I don't like to cook it for too long. Moreover, if there isn't a bite, it is likely to have lost vital nutrients, so keeping it al dente is key.

Avocado is simply a wonderful addition to any dish. I was concerned it wouldn't fit with the hotter elements of the dish, but I was completely wrong. It is a fabulous contrast with its cool creaminess, giving a different texture and temperature to its plate buddies. It really helps to balance out the dish.

Red onion is an ingredient I have come to rather late on in my cooking career; always favouring the normal white onion as it has a punch and a kick, a little like a wayward child. Red onions, however, are much sweeter, and can be cooked in a matter of minutes (and can even be eaten raw, if you're not concerned about your breath!), which makes them ideal for this on the go breakfast.

Ingredients (for 1):

1-2 eggs (small, medium, large, x-large; your choice!)
6 stems of tender stem broccoli
half an avocado
quarter/half a small red onion
chilli oil

Method:

1) Put a teaspoon of chilli oil into your non-stick frying pan and gently heat
2) Using your hands, break up the stems of brocolli into 3 inch pieces (i.e. each stem is broken roughly into two). Throw them into the pan and allow them to sizzle. Give the pan a little shake, so that all the broccoli is exposed to the pan and has some oil on it.
3) Chop the red onion into slices. I like them quite chunky, but do chop as you see best (you might want a finer dice, or rings). Throw them into the pan and, again, have a shake around and a mix,
4) Now the broccoli should be getting a little tinge of char on the edges, this is great. Just keep an eye on it as you don't want it to actually just be burnt!
5) Whilst the onions are sweating down and the broccoli is tenderising, now is your chance to prepare the avocado. I like just a half an avocado with this dish, but, if you have a giant appetite, obviously have a whole one. I cut the avocado in half, take out the stone, and then lightly score down to the skin slices. I then use the knife to score round the edge to pop the buttery flesh out onto the plate.
6) The time to prepare the avocado is all you need to finish off the broccoli and onions, so take them off the head and add them, spilling all around, to the avocado.
7) Finally, the egg. I like to do it as a fried egg, but, again, please do it as a poached egg, or even perhaps scrambled. I break the egg into the pan that has been used with the onions and broccoli, as the egg takes on those delicious flavours. Fry for roughly 3 minutes, and then, carefully, using a spatula, flip the egg over, so the yolk stays runny but it has a wonderful crust over it. Fry for another minute tops.
8) Take the egg out of the pan and lay it on top of all the other ingredients. When you cut into the egg its yolk will ooze and spill all over everything, leaving in you in culinary heaven.

Optional extra: Sour dough toast or a warmed through crumpet. These both are wonderfully textured sources of carbohydrates which really lend themselves to dripping eggs and smooth avocado.

Enjoy!