Archive | March, 2014

Chocolate brownie s’mores pie with caramelised marshmallow

24 Mar

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You’d think by now I would have learnt my lesson regarding taking photos of my baked goods but nope – I still tend to bake then serve the item to friends before I’ve had a chance to take any photos.

Such was the situation with this ooey, gooey, decadent pie. When The Hungry Mum family descended upon America last year we hit many a supermarket, stocking up on all manner of baking goods unavailable in Australia. One of my fav purchases was ginormous marshmallows, the kind of which simply aren’t seen in the Antipodes. I’d been stashing them away, waiting for the perfect recipe and it soon presented itself. Thanks to Sally’s Baking Addiction and her delectable s’mores brownie pie my packet of behemoth marshmallows got cracked open. See her fab recipe here: http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2013/05/06/smores-brownie-pie/

I made this for a recent gathering of friends and managed to snap a few pics before it was cooked. Afterwards was a blur of people almost charging each other over in order to get a slice. As this desert is so rich a teeny sliver goes a long way.

I do also have a box of the legendary graham crackers which this recipe called for but decided to keep these for another day. I used plain sweet bickies so didn’t need the sugar as called for in the original recipe used. I also reduced the amount of sugar in the brownie as I knew the marshmallows would make the pie very sweet.

In any case this was such a hit that I reckon I’ll be called upon again to serve this delish creation.

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GATHER:

*Crust

10 plain biscuits [such as Marie], snapped in half

90grams melted butter

Place biscuits in bowl of food processor and wizz until it looks like big crumbs. Add butter and combine until it resembles wet sand. Press into a glass pie dish and place in fridge while you prepare the brownie filling.

*brownies

150g diced butter

¾ cup caster sugar

¾ cup sifted cocoa powder

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

2 eggs

½ cup plain flour

25 large marshmallows

LET’S GET TO IT:

Melt butter, sugar and cocoa in a microwave-safe bowl for 30 seconds at a time until melted and smooth when stirred. It will look gritty. Allow to cool for a few minutes.

Stir in vanilla, then eggs, one at a time.

Add flour, gently stirring, until fully incorporated. Ensure you don’t overbeat.

Tip into pie crust and use a spatula to level the top.

Bake for about 25 minutes, then remove from oven and neatly decoare the top with marshmallows. Bake for a nother two minutes but watch closely to ensure it doesn’t burn.

Allow to cool before serving.

Apple crumble semifreddo otherwise known as easy apple ice cream

11 Mar

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A recent excursion to Bilpin in NSW introduced me to the exquisiteness of fresh apples. When I say fresh, I mean picked from the tree moments before eating. I am guilty of popping into the supermarket on my lunchbreak to stock up on apples for my daughters’ lunchboxes but after trying these amazingly fresh apples I won’t be doing that again.

I was lucky enough to be invited recently on an ‘apple adventure’ day in Bilpin, a pretty little hamlet outside of Sydney, by the lovely Belly Rumbles. Check out her blog here:  http://bellyrumbles.com/

Isn’t it great?

Anyway a group of food bloggers did a tour of an orchard, where it was all systems go in the packing sheds.

Then we visited a pick your own orchard, which was so much fun. We were given delightful little straw baskets to fill with produce, and I felt quite relaxed and happy as I chose the most wonderful apples from the tree.

The difference between freshly picked Australian apples and the often floury, picked-months-ago-and-kept-in-cold-storage numbers from the supermarket couldn’t be more stark.

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Greengrocer 1, big chains 0.

I used some of these beauties to create an easy apple ice-cream by the fabulous Donna Hay. The Hungry Dad declared it one of the best he’s ever had, which is strong praise indeed.

The best thing is, you don’t even need an ice cream maker – pretty cool, huh?Image

GATHER:

2 cups grated apples [Donna specified Granny Smiths but I used red delicious]

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest

3 eggs

2 egg yolks, extra

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

¾ cup caster sugar [I reduced Donna’s quantity of 1 cup]

2 cups pouring cream

crumble

½  cup slow cooking rolled oats

1 cup plain flour

1/2 cup brown sugar

100g chilled butter, chopped

2 generous shakes of cinnamon and allspice

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 LET’S GET TO IT:

Place apple, cinnamon, lemon zest and juice in a non-metallic bowl, toss and set aside.

In a large ceramic or glass bowl put eggs, extra yolks, vanilla and sugar and place over a pan of simmering water.

Using hand-held electric beaters whip for six to eight minutes, until pale and thick.

Remove from heat and cool slightly.

Place cream in bowl of electric mixer and whip until stiff peaks form. Using a big silver spoon gently fold in the egg mixture, stirring until incorporated.

Gently fold in apple.

Pour into two litre metal cake tine, cover with foil and freeze overnight.

Serve, then top with crumble.

crumble:

Place flour, sugar and oats in a bowl and rub in butter until it is the texture of lumpy sand. Sprinkle over a dash of cinnamon and allspice.

Tip onto baking pan & bake for around 15 minutes at 150C or until golden. Cool before using.

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Super easy two egg white macaroon recipe

3 Mar

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So, this is a very basic recipe and the only reason I’m even posting it is that I often have a surplus of two egg whites when I’m baking or making the Hungry Dad’s favouritest ever sweet, custard. I was stashing the whites in the freezer but decided to actually bake with them recently.

This recipe is sooo simple that my kids [even Miss6] could make this without any supervision. The choc bottom takes them from meh to marvellous.

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 Gather:

3/4 cup caster sugar
2 egg whites
2 cups desiccated coconut

150g dark chocolate, melted

Let’s get to it:
Preheat oven to 180C and place non-stick baking paper on a baking tray.

Mix everything except chocolate in bowl using a silver spoon.

Place golf ball size mounds on the trays, leaving space to spread.

Bake for between 10-13 minutes, until pale gold.

Cool completely before using a butter knife to swipe the melted chocolate across their bottoms.

Allow chocolate to set before eating.

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