Bryllupskake med sitron og timian

Apologise, this blog post will be in Norwegian for now. Will translate soon!
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Jeg var forlover i min søsters bryllup forrige helg, og i fjor da de ble forlovet og jeg fikk æren av å holde tittelen forlover, tilbød jeg meg å bake bryllupskaken. Kjempelurt. Jeg synes det er sinnsykt morro å bake, men jeg hadde ikke tenkt på alle de andre tingene man må gjøre når nær familie gifter seg - for ikke å snakke om sin egen søster. Det var såvidt jeg rakk alt. Jeg hadde faktisk tenkt å ha franske makroner på toppen også, men jeg måtte bare si stopp da jeg sto midnatt før bryllupet på cateringkjøkkenet i skogen, med frosting i håret og 10 minutter til å hente kjæresten min på flyplassen.

Så der lærte jeg en del - vi tuller ikke med bryllupskake!

Fordi jeg var niopptatt med tale og andre forloveroppgaver som å holde kjole og roe ned bruden, tok jeg svært få bilder. Så beklager litt kjipe mobilbilder, men det er da ihvertfall noe!

Kakeoppskriften anbefales veldig, den er supergod og saftig.
Å lage en treetasjers kake med sukkerbomster på to dager - ikke fullt så anbefalt.

Sitron- og timiankake
(Nigel Slater - bbcgoodfood.co.uk)
Gir ca 3 liter røre. Det var faktisk litt lite til en treetasjers kake. Neste gang ville jeg laget mer for å få litt høyde på kaken.

500g smør

500 g sukker

250 g mel

2.5 tskj bakepulver

250g mandelmel (malte mandler)

10 egg

2-3 sitroner, bare skallene

2.5 tskj timianblader, eller en håndfull

Gul konditorfarge for å øke kontrasten til frostingen

• Varm ovnen til 160C. Smør formene, jeg brukte 9inch/23cm, 7inch/18cm og 5inch/12.7cm. 
• Kjør smør og sukker i en kjøkkenmaskin til det er hvitt og luftig. 
• I en annen bolle sikt sammen hvetemel og bakepulver, og deretter mandelmelet.
• Visp eggene lett med en gaffel og fold de inn i smørmiksen, i to eller tre omganger. Hvis de skiller seg, tilsett litt av melet og fortsett.
• Rasp skallet fra sitronene og bland sammen med timianbladene. Miks de gjerne sammen i en morter, eller bruk noe tungt til å presse ut smakene.
• Rør inn melblandingen gradvis, så sitron og timian.
• Smør røren ut i de forskjellige formene, konsistensen skal være litt som potetmos. Prøv å lage de like høye, sånn som jeg ikke gjorde.
• Bak i ca 45 minutter, avhengig av formenes størrelse. Baker du mange kaker som min bryllupskake, bak de i to omganger, og sjekk de underveis. 
• Nå en bakepinne eller tannpirker kommer ut uten røre, er den klar. Vær oppmerksom på at denne kaken har mye mandler i seg og vil være litt fuktig og smulete, selv om den er ferdig.
• Sett til avkjøling på rist i 10 minutter. Ta så kaken ut av formen og avkjøl på risten. Sett i kjøleskapet med plast rundt om du vil sette på frosting samme dag.

Sitronsmør 
(http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/lemon_curd)
Gir ca 500g, eller et stort syltetøyglass

4 sitroner

200g sukker

100g smør

3 egg + 1 eggeplomme

• Hell alt utenom eggene i en glass eller metallbolle, og sett den over et vannbad i en kjele. Vannet i kjelen skal småkoke, og ikke være i kontakt med bollen. Rør til smøret har smeltet.
• Visp eggene lett med en gaffel, og hell de i sitronsmørblandingen. Rør til alle ingrediensene har blandet seg, og la det stå over varmen i 10-13 minutter. Rør nå og da, til røren er tykk og kremete og legger seg på baksiden av en skje.
• Ta røren av varmen og avkjøl, rør innimellom til det er kaldt. Når røren er helt avkjølt kan du bruke den i kaken, eller helle på steriliserte glass og ha i kjøleskapet. 

Frosting
(Linda Lomelinos kokebok "Tårtor")
Gir ca 2.6 liter frosting, som er dobbel oppskrift fra boken

16 store egg

9.5 dl sukker (ca 800g)

1 kg romtemperert smør i terninger

Vaniljessens til smak

• Hell eggehviter og sukker en glass- eller metallbolle, og sett den over en kjele med småkokende vann (vannbad). Visp hele tiden til blandingen når 65C grader eller sukkerkrystallene har smeltet. Ta bort skålen fra varmen.
• Visp blandinegn i en kjøkkenmikser til den er luftig og hvit. Visp til røren er kald, dette kan ta ca 10 minutter.
• Tilsett smøret litt om gangen. Når alt smøret er tilsatt visp i 3-5 minutter. Ikke fortvil om frostingen skiller seg, bare fortsett å røre. Er den for kald, varm kremen over et vannbad i noen sekunder og visp igjen . Er den blitt for varm, putt den i kjøleskapet og så visp videre.
• Tilsett vaniljessensen.
• Dette skulle være mer enn nok til 3 kaker! Jeg måtte lage denne i to omganger da kjøkkenmaskinen min hadde for liten kapasitet.

Montering og frosting

• Etter å ha tatt ut kakene fra kjøleskapet, skjær de i 3 deler hver, med en kakedeler eller brødkniv. Begynn med den midterste delen underst, smør på  tykt lag med frosting, og så et lag sitronsmør. Legg toppen av kaken på neste, og gjør det samme. Legg tilslutt på bunnen av kaken, opp-ned. Smør utsiden av kaken med frosting, tynt lag for å holde smulene på plass og rette opp sidene. 
• Sett kakene i kjøleskapet i 60-90 minutter eller så lenge du har tid til, før du smører på resten av frostingen. Bruk heller for mye frosting og så ta av, enn å ta på for lite. Skal du frakte kaken bør du gjøre dette for du tar på siste lag med frosting. 
• For at ikke kakene skal synke sammen, sett små plastpinner vertikalt i de underste kakene. Jeg brukte trepinner, og det var veldig irriterende siden de ville flise seg overalt, så jeg anbefaler plast og avbitertang. For å få de riktig høyde mål hvor høy kaken er og kutt de til akkurat kakehøyde. Bruk ca 5 pinner i store kaker og 3-4 i små.
• Pynt med spiselige blomster, eller sukkerblomster.

Så det viktigste - drikk et glass sjampanje og nyt festen!

Vanilla macarons with strawberry centre

I went to an open day at Le Cordon Bleu London last month, and had the pleasure of attending a taster class demonstration, to watch a pastry chef make a 'Tarte Bourdaloue aux poires'. It was amazing, the kitchen was ultra modern with screens and mirrors so you could see everything, he had a crazy french accent, they gave me a glass of wine… they certainly convinced me to apply there. While the chef was making his delicious dessert, he casually made a macaron base while cooking something else, and told us 'it's so easy!'. Now, he should have seen my first macarons. 'Easy' wasn't quite what I felt when I took out my tray of a single, uniform almond pancake. I have practised quite a bit since then, and have finally come to peace with the recipe. In a way he is right, it IS easy. But only if you know exactly what to do, and what it should look like. And unfortunately, that only comes with practice. But don't worry, they taste good regardless of what they look like, and I'm sure people don't mind us practising a lot!

Vanilla macarons

Approx 25 sandwiched macarons, 2.5 cm diameter)

Macarons:

140 g Egg whites

180 g Caster Sugar

160 g Icing Sugar

160 g Ground almonds

Various colour essence

Simple Vanilla Buttercream:

150 g unsalted butter

250 g icing sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 tsp hot water

5-10 small strawberries cut in small pieces

Time: Approximately 45 mins to make, 12 minutes to bake. Filling and assembly, about 10 minutes.

Macarons

1. Measure up exactly all the ingredients and have them at hand, together with a mixer or a hand whisk. Use a stainless steel or glass bowl if possible.

2. Whisk the eggwhites and sugar into meringue, by gradually adding sugar into the eggwhites while whisking.

3. Make almond flour by sifting the icing sugar and the ground almonds together, before sifting the flour together into the meringue.

4. Put away your whiskers and fold gently with a spatula. When the mixture has the texture of thick porridge, add colour and taste essences like vanilla. Use paste colours from a specialist shop if you can.

5. Fold for a bit longer, and spread the mixture thinly around the bowl between strokes. Fold until the mixture feels like cake batter, and flows slowly, but not in lumps, from your spatula when you hold it up.

6. Put into a piping bag and pipe into 2cm circles, 2cm apart. If you get any batter peaks, pat them down with some water on your fingertip.

7. Tap the tray on your kitchen counter to get air bubbles out of the mixture. Let them stand to form a 'skin' for about 20 minutes, depending on air humidity.

8. Preheat oven to 150C (300F), and bake the macarons on fan heat, in the middle of the oven, for about 12 minutes.

9. You can tell when the macarons are done by probing them gently, and see wether they bounce or stay still. If they stay still and firm, they are ready. Be careful with the timing, they burn easily.

Butter cream and assembly

10. To make the buttercream, beat tempered butter white, and gradually sift in the icing sugar. Add the vanilla extract, or any other flavour, before adding a bit of hot water to help the buttercream set when cooled. The buttercream is usually the flavoursome part of the macaron, so here you can do whatever you like! I added a slice of strawberry to mine, as a mid-bite surprise. However, if you plan on serving these long after making them, I suggest to use something like jam so they won't go off or soak the macarons. Macarons freeze very well (did I mention I like to freeze things?), and it's apparently what they do at Laduree in Paris. So if it's good enough for Mr. Laduree, it's good enough for me. 

11. Assemble by pairing macarons by size and piping a dollop of butter cream on one half before sandwiching them together. Et voilà!

If you have any problems with macarons like I did in the beginning, this is a nice blog to help you out: 

http://misohungrynow.blogspot.co.uk/2011/01/troubleshooting-macaron.html

Chorizo and Manchego muffins

I first got this recipe through a friend, who baked them for a breakfast we had out in a park. I wasn't very much of a foodie at the time, and the idea that you could have savoury muffins absolutely blew my mind. I have also realised since that I prefer portable food like this because I usually never sit still, so these flavoursome little delights are the perfect deal for me. They are surprisingly filling, and they have my favourite meat in, chorizo. You know, that delicious sausage shaped bit from the chorizo animal.

They are also super easy, just follow this:

Chorizo and Manchego Muffins

[Makes 12 medium sized]

220 grams self-raising flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

150 grams potato, grated and squeezed to remove any excess moisture

120 grams chorizo, sliced

2 small spring onions, chopped

100 grams Manchego, grated

1 egg

100ml milk, approx

fresh parsley, chopped

Chop all the ingredients. I chop the chorizo and Manchego cheese in small dices, as you often get the problem with uneven distribution of flavour if they are bigger. Then grate the potatoes, before drying them on a paper towel.

Sift the flour and baking powder together into a large bowl. Add in the potato and toss it through the flour so it's evenly distributed. Next, add in the chorizo, spring onions and Manchego, being careful not to break them too much as you stir.

Whisk the egg and milk together and pour this into the dry ingredients - sprinkle over the parsley and then fold gently until the mixture has just incorporated. Use your fingers if it helps!

Divide the mixture into about 12 muffin cases, almost full.

Bake in a preheated 170°C oven until golden and cooked through - about 20-30 minutes.

Adapted from

http://cookalmostanything.blogspot.co.uk/2010/05/chorizo-and-piquillo-muffins.html?m=1

Cinnamon Rolls

There are many things I miss about living in Oslo, and one of them is definitely the abundance of good pastry - buns and cinnamon rolls. They are the croissant of Scandinavia, I've practically grown up on these, and they are on every corner. Tasting like something between a hot cross bun and a french brioche, just fluffier and more moist, they work well as both tea time snack and for a sweet breakfast. They keep extremely well if you freeze them straight after they've cooled down - I've been eating fresh cinnamon rolls from the oven for breakfast for a week!

While I have written up the cinnamon roll version, the recipe can easily be rolled into balls and become regular buns.

Cinnamon Rolls

Time: 2.5 - 3 hours

Oven: 225 C/Gas mark 7/437 F

Portions: 24 pieces

Ingredients

950-1000g strong bread flour

5 dl milk (at 25 C)

½ pack yeast

125-150g sugar

1 ts ground cardamum (Not necessary but gives the buns a very distinct warming Scandi flavour)

¼ - ½ ts salt

1 egg

150g butter, diced

Filling

100g softened butter

1-2 tbs cinnamon

5 tbs sugar

1 egg (egg wash before oven)

Method for hand baking 

(With a mixer, just mix all ingredients except butter, and add those at the end)

Mix all dry ingredients, keep some of the flour. Create a flour mountain with a dent in the middle. Add the yeast into half the luke warm liquid, then mix all liquids together into the dent of flour. Mix together from the centre with a spatula until everything is combined. Knead as much as you can from here. There are two options for the butter; Low energy 1, melt and mix with the liquid in the beginning, or High energy 2, knead in at the end in dices. The last option produces the best results, but is pretty tiring without a machine! If you have a KitchenAid, smile and turn up the speed.

Cover the bowl with cling film, and leave to prove. The time it takes depends on the environment, but it should roughly prove until double size. I put mine over a hot bowl of water and leave it for about 45 minutes to an hour. (My grandmother's strategy)

Put some flour on your working surface, and gently lay the dough onto it. Divide into two pieces. Roll out to a rectangle about 45-60 cm wide. Spread butter, sugar and cinnamon on the long half of the piece. Fold over to make a long rectangular surface. Cut the flat dough vertically into about 12 pieces, and fold each one into a knot. (Check out trinesmatblogg.no's images) Repeat with second piece of dough.

Lay out the cinnamon rolls on a baking tray with parchment paper, one roll width away from each other. Set to prove for another 30-60 minutes. (If you can't wait, at least give them 25!) Heat up the oven to 225 C. Once proved to bigger and fluffier, brush the cinnamon buns with egg wash and cook in the middle of the oven for 10-12 minutes. Watch them closely, they burn quickly!

Cool down on an oven rack.

My mum used to say that we had to wait for them to cool down before tucking in, or they would give us a tummy ache - and unfortunately she is right. It's better to leave them for 5 minutes on the rack, trust me!

Pink lime cake with cream cheese frosting

I've been longing to try this cake for some time, after seeing it on Linda Lomelino's blog last year. It's just so beautiful (her photographs are always stunning as well), and looks so yummy. So there was a birthday coming up, and I seized the opportunity to try it out. The cake is baked in quite a small tin, making it really tall and slim, which I thought was quite exciting. Decorating with real flowers is something I haven't tried before, but this went down very well with the guests, and was no trouble doing! All in all a very fun cake, that I'd happily do again. Who's birthday is it next?

The recipe is as follows:

Pink lime cake

Time: About 2 hours incl icing

Oven: 175C/Gas mark 6/350F

Tin: 15cm/6in

Ingredients

For the cake

3 large eggs

240g caster sugar

1 dl milk

180g flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Zest of 1 lime

Pink food colouring

Heat oven to 175°C (350F). Butter a 15 cm cake pan and layer the bottom and sides of the pan with parchment paper (the paper around the edges should be taller than the pan itself). Beat eggs and sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Heat milk and vanilla slightly in a saucepan and carefully mix with egg mixture. In another bowl, mix flour and baking powder and sift into bowl with wet ingredients. Add lime zest and pink food colouring if desired and stir until combined. Pour batter into prepared cake pan and bake 50-55 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.

For the icing

100g butter

300g Philadelphia Cream cheese

150g icing sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Beat butter until light and fluffy. Add cream cheese and beat until combined. Add remaining ingredients and whip until smooth.

If frosting is too loose, put the bowl in the fridge for a while.

Decoration

Fresh roses (Pesticide-free and washed)

Cake assembly

Divide the cake into 3 parts. Put the top third on a serving tray, and spread a generous dollop of cream cheese frosting over it, covering out until the edges. Do the same to the other layers, finishing with the bottom part, which goes upside down to form a flat top. Cover the whole cake with frosting. Set in the fridge to cool.

Decorate with fresh roses. (I wrapped mine with greaseproof paper before inserting them into the cake.)

That's it!



Finally, and most importantly, make sure the dog does not get hold of the cake

Asparagus, lemon & ricotta tart

When I'm home from working late, I struggle to find the motivation to make food, wether it's dinner, or something ambitious like lunch for the next day. This tart recipe is really easy to do, and can give little munchies like me, a good lunch and dinner for a couple of days.

In the spirit of time and money saving, I have used ready-roll shortcrust pastry in this recipe.

Ingredients
1 Pack pre rolled shortcrust pastry
3 eggs, plus 1 egg yolk
300ml double cream
1 lemon, zest only
300g pack of asparagus, ends trimmed
140g ricotta
handful mint leaves, chopped

Method
Heat oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6. Roll out the pastry over a 23cm loose-bottomed tart tin. Press the pastry into the sides, then prick the base with a fork. Blind bake for 10-15 mins. Beat one of the eggs. Remove baking beans and brush with egg wash. Bake for another 10 minutes, or until golden. Leave to cool.

Reduce the oven to 180C/fan 160C/ gas 4. Whisk together the remaining eggs, then gently mix in the cream and lemon zest until all combined. Season with salt. Pour the cream mixture into the tart case, then arrange the asparagus spears on top. Dollop over teaspoonfuls of ricotta and sprinkle with the mint, then carefully slide into the oven. Cook for 25-30 mins until the quiche is set with just the faintest wobble in the middle.

Leave to cool for 10 minutes and serve warm, perfect with a fresh salad.

Great for keeping in the fridge for lunch the next day.

Carrot and pistachio cake

For my first blogpost I'm posting a cake I made for work this week, to celebrate St. Patricks Day. Or so was my rationale for making a cake mid-week anyway. It's a recipe from BBC Good Food, where I find a lot of good cake recipes, and I decided to half it to not be too overwhelming for a Tuesday. I also put it in a smaller tin (7inch/18cm) to make it look neater. I switched walnuts for pistachios to keep to a green theme, and added green food paste colour to the icing. Both of these are optional for an everyday cake of course, like an un-St.Patricks Day Wednesday.

Carrot and Pistachio cake

Time: About 2 hours

Oven: 160C/325F/Gas 3

Tin: 18cm/7inch

Ingredients

For the carrot cake

200ml vegetable oil

200g plain flour

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

275g sugar

3 free-range eggs

1/4 tsp salt

1 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon

260g carrots, grated

75g shelled pistachio nuts, chopped

Handful pistachios for decoration

For the icing

150g caster sugar

100g/3½oz butter, softened

200g/7oz cream cheese

(This is enough to ice the entire cake)

Preparation method

For the carrot cake

Preheat the oven to 160C/325F/Gas 3. Grease and line a 18cm/7in cake tin. Mix all of the ingredients for the cake, except the carrots and pistachios, together in a bowl until well combined. Stir in the carrots and pistachios.

Spoon the mixture into the cake tin and bake for 1 hour 15 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Remove the cake from the oven and set aside to cool for 10 minutes, then carefully remove the cake from the tin and set aside to cool completely on a cooling rack.

Meanwhile, for the icing, beat the cream cheese, caster sugar and butter together in a bowl until fluffy. Spread the icing over the top of the cake with a palette knife. Decorate with pistachio nuts.