Chocolate Madeleines

If you know me at all you would know that generally I like easy- to -prep recipes. Being a busy mom of 3 and holding down a full-time career does not always support hours in the kitchen. But in addition to easy-to-prepare, I also look for recipes that call for top notch ingredients and have a flair about them. Madeleines have quite the flair. Make them into chocolate ones and boom - fireworks.

Usually madeleines are time consuming little baked cakes to make but then I found a recipe that stood out as being the opposite to the norm. No pan prep-time (some require the pan to be placed in the freezer before filling), no lengthy batter wait-time....just mix it up and go. I figured why not try it out and see if they are , at best, edible. Well yes, they were edible. In fact, they were quite lovely. Eat them plain, sprinkled with powdered sugar, or better yet, dunk the tips in rich chocolate ganache.

I recently purchased my first madeleine pan and was eager to test it out. In doing so I learned a few valuable lessons. 1. Avoid greasing the molds with cooking spray. It scorches at high heat and in turn, burns the edges of the madeleines. I ruined my first batch this way. With the second batch, I didn't grease the molds at all. My pan has a lovely stick-free surface and I hoped it would remain that way through the baking process. It did. No greasing necessary and no burnt edges! 2. Be careful with the oven temperature and baking time. I ended up reducing the oven temperature and baking for less time. I ended up with perfectly baked madeleines. 3. Let the batter for this recipe sit for about 5 minutes. It allows the baking powder to take effect and the batter thickens somewhat. As a result, they rise more uniform in size and shape during the baking process.

So take heed, my fellow bakers, to those little tips and let's get the party started shall we?

RECIPE:
*adapted source recipe: Chocolate Madeleines, Something Sweet, Food Lovers

WHAT YOU NEED

100 grams unsalted butter
100 grams good quality dark chocolate (I used Lindt)
2 eggs
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder

MAKE IT

PREHEAT oven to 210C
HAVE madeleine pan ready - this makes approx. 16 regular sized madeleines

IN DOUBLE BOILER, melt chocolate and butter until both are fully melted. Stir together to combine thoroughly and remove from heat
IN BOWL OF STAND MIXER, fitted with paddle attachment, whisk eggs and sugar on high speed for 3 minutes
GENTLY stir in flour and baking soda
ADD melted chocolate/butter and fold together until well combined
SET ASIDE for 5 minutes
FILL madeleine molds 3/4 full with batter. Do no smooth out
BAKE for 5 minutes
REDUCE temperature to 180C and bake for another 7 minutes
REMOVE from oven, let sit in molds for 2-3 minutes then remove madeleines and place on cooling rack.

If you want, make a quick ganache or just dip ends in melted chocolate.



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Vanilla Cupcakes with Lemon Curd Buttercream

Another easy-to-make yet utterly delicious gluten-free cupcake recipe. This one again hails from my most beloved cookbook Gluten-Free Cupcakes by Elana Amsterdam. As usual, I did adapt it as I went along. Fact is, I prefer the sweetness and moisture honey brings to these baked goods far more than agave nectar. So I always swap out the agave for honey (1:1 ratio). I also LOVE vanilla. So instead of sticking to just vanilla extract, I added part extract and part vanilla bean paste. Worked like a charm to give these cupcakes a rich and sweet , bursting with vanilla, flavor.

Again, this recipe's key component is coconut flour. Keeping in mind that coconut flour acts like a sponge and can be drying if not balanced well with other ingredients, Elana adds plenty of "moisturizing" ingredients to this recipe. Though I did opt for honey, I stuck with her directions for adding grapeseed oil and plenty of eggs. 4 eggs for 8 cupcakes ( the recipe says 9 cupcakes but I only managed to get 8) is quite a significant amount ! All together, these ingredients work to bring you one lovely, moist and heavenly vanilla flavored baked goodie.

Of course, no cupcake is truly a cupcake without a kick-ass frosting. I, for one, really enjoy the combo of lemon and vanilla. So I figured why not enhance my usual buttercream with some added lemon curd. I did not make the lemon curd but if you want, go for it. I opted to purchase a top quality imported brand - quality counts here. Only 3 tablespoons is added to the frosting and that is all you need. If I do say so myself - PERFECTION.

So let's get baking, shall we?

RECIPE:
*adapted source recipe for cupcakes only: Vanilla Cupcakes, Gluten-Free Cupcakes..., Elana Amsterdam

MAKE IT

CUPCAKES

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons of coconut flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
4 large eggs
1/3 cup grapeseed oil
1/2 cup honey
1/2 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 tablespoon pure vanilla extract paste

FROSTING
1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
3 cups icing sugar, sifted
2-3 tablespoons heavy cream
3 tablespoons lemon curd

MAKE IT

PREHEAT oven to 350F
LINE 8 muffin cups with liners

CUPCAKES

IN LARGE BOWL, whisk together first 3 ingredients
IN SEPARATE BOWL, thoroughly whisk together remaining cupcake ingredients
FOLD wet ingredients into dry ingredients stirring to remove any large lumps
FILL liners 3/4 full with batter
BAKE 18-20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean
LET COOL in pan 5 minutes then remove from pan and let cool completely on cooling rack

FROSTING

IN BOWL OF STAND MIXER, fitted with paddle attachment, add butter.
CREAM on MED speed until smooth and somewhat fluffy
SLOWLY add in icing sugar and 1 tablespoon of heavy cream
INCREASE SPEED and beat on high 2-3 minutes
ADD lemon curd and continue to beat on high another 2-3 minutes
ADD more cream if you want a lighter consistency

PIPE frosting onto cooled cupcakes

ENJOY !

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Old-Fashioned London Loaf

Recipe test #2 from The Great British Bake-Off - How to Bake... cookbook. This recipe for Old-Fashioned London Loaf lured me in when the description included a close crumb, crisp crust and easy to slice. I have been looking for a more dense-like white bread that would hold up well for sandwiches. I also wanted to move away from the bread maker this time too. This recipe seemed to promise to deliver on all.

Starting out I mixed all the dry ingredients in the bowl of my stand mixer. Then I added the room temperature water. So far, so good. With the mixer fitted with the dough hook, I started off slowly until I felt the ingredients were starting to come together then cranked it up to high speed for 4 minutes. The result was a dough that was not sticky, quite firm but still pliable.

Now the next step was to let it rise...SLOWLY - as in 12 hours. Pay attention to that last word - SLOWLY. And to let something rise slowly, you need to ensure proper cool room temperature. I didn't. I covered my dough with cling wrap and left it on the kitchen counter. Not a good idea as my kitchen tends to be the warmest place in the house. By the time I went to bed after 3 hrs of rising the dough was pretty high and looked great. That was then. By the next morning it had fallen. Clearly it rose too quickly, too fast.

I didn't want to file it all into the garbage and start over. So I prevailed. I kneaded it slightly on a floured board, let it sit another 15 minutes , then braided it and let it rise again another 2 hours. And lo and behold, it rose again quite nicely.

A quick glaze of cream and in the oven it went. There are a few steps with this bread that do stand out as odd. Odd because I have never done it before. But all the quirks are there to lead to a very crisp crust.

The results ? An amazing bread ! No air pockets, no doughy parts, no over-baked areas, no toughness. Granted, not sure why I braided cause it didn't hold its shape. So feel free to omit that step if you like and just shape into a loaf and place in pan.

Overall, this recipe came through on its promises and I couldn't be more delighted. I will make it again and again and again.


So if you are in the mood for a slice of bread that truly does deliver, then give this recipe a try. Just remember, let it rise overnight in a cool room, and you should be fine.

Are you ready? Get out the bread pan and get baking !

RECIPE:
*adapted source recipe, Old-Fashioned London Loaf, The Great British Bake Off - How To Bake...

WHAT YOU NEED

500 grams white bread flour
1 teaspoon sea salt
10 grams unsalted butter, diced
1/2 teaspoon fast-action yeast
300 ml water at room temperature
1 tablespoon heavy cream

MAKE IT

GREASE a large loaf pan with cooking spray or butter

IN BOWL OF STAND MIXER, fitted with dough hook attachment, stir together flour and salt
WITH YOUR FINGERTIPS, rub in butter until it pretty much disappears
STIR in dried yeast
MAKE A WELL in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in water
ON SLOW SPEED, slowly knead in all ingredients until it starts to come together then increase speed to HIGH and let the mixer knead the dough for 4 minutes
COVER BOWL with clingwrap and place in a cool location for no less than 8 hrs and no more than 12 hrs

PUNCH DOWN dough
ON FLOURED SURFACE, KNEAD gently for 1 minute then return to bowl, covered, for 15 minutes
ON FLOURED SURFACE, press dough out into a rectangle slightly larger than your bread pan
LEAVING 1/2 inch on one short end, cut the dough into 3 strips
BRAID together and press ends together to seal
TUCK ENDS underneath and place loaf in bread pan
COVER with clean tea towel and let rest for 2-3 hrs

BRUSH cream over top of risen loaf
PREHEAT oven to 425F
PLACE a roasting pan on bottom shelf of oven
WHEN oven has reached temperature, place bread onto oven rack
POUR 1 cup of water into roasting pan then quickly shut the door. This causes a burst of steam which will help achieve a crunchy crust.
BAKE 30 minutes
REMOVE bread from bread pan and return the loaf back to the oven, directly on the oven rack for 5 minutes
REMOVE bread and let cool on cooling rack before slicing

Ginger Muffins

If you love the taste of gingersnaps then you will adore these muffins. Two types of ginger flavor these rich and glorious baked treats: ground ginger and ginger syrup. The combination, along with a hint of cinnamon and honey, make these an ideal fall treat. I also think these would be incredible warm from the oven on Christmas morning!

Recently I purchased a little gem of a baking cookbook titled Something Sweet and this first tested recipe is a winner. What I really appreciate about this book are all the gorgeous photos (and of course, the super recipes). The recipes are not your usual fare. Oh sure, there are brownies and chocolate cakes but the ingredients list differ compared to the norm. This muffin recipe is a prime example. Rarely do you see ginger muffins on the menu at the local coffee shops or even big name ones for that matter. And ones made with ginger syrup? Nope, that is a rare find indeed.



Now don't feel intimated by ginger syrup. If you cannot find it at your grocery store then have no worries. You can simply use chopped preserved ginger instead. But for me, the sweet and silky ginger syrup surpasses preserved ginger any day. The syrup I use is by The Ginger People. It has a lovely light golden hue and a perfect consistency for baking. I highly recommend you pick up a bottle soon.



As far as making these muffins go, it is a walk in the park. Super easy and they bake up so light and fluffy. I mean look at those muffin tops , people!

So without further delay, let's get to it.

RECIPE:
* adapted source - Ginger Muffins, Food Lovers Something Sweet

WHAT YOU NEED

1 stick (115 grams) unsalted butter, melted
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 heaped cup of fine granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 eggs
3 tablespoons honey
3 tablespoons of ginger syrup (or 2 tablespoons chopped preserved ginger)
3/4 cup hot water

MAKE IT

PREHEAT oven to 350F
SPRAY a 12 hole muffin pan with cooking spray

IN LARGE BOWL, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, ground ginger, and cinnamon
IN MEDIUM BOWL, whisk together melted butter, eggs, honey, syrup and hot water
FOLD wet ingredients into dry just until combined
WITH ICE CREAM SCOOP , fill cups 3/4 full with batter. (an ice cream scoop is your best friend as it is the ideal tool to use for dividing batter !)
BAKE 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean
LET COOL in pan 5 minutes
TRANSFER muffins to cooling rack.

These are incredible still warm from oven but are superb eaten at room temperature as well.

ENJOY !

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Double Chocolate Flapjacks

I have been meaning to make the British treat known as flapjacks for awhile and finally got around to it this week. Now I sit here wondering what took me so long!
I had these prepped and in the oven for baking in under 5 minutes. Yes, they are that easy to prepare.

What I love about these is the fact that they are gluten-free but no special flour blends required. The meat of these gorgeous bar-like cookies is medium or large flake oatmeal (either variety works well). Just ensure your oats clearly state gluten-free if you are concerned about gluten. As for richness, it all comes from plenty of salted butter, golden syrup, brown sugar and 2 kinds of chocolate.

The batter is all made in one pot or skillet - I used my pasta pot. Then you simply spoon it into a prepared 8"x8" baking pan and bake away. How easy is that ?

As these little squares are also nut-free they are the ideal school snack. They store well and keep for days at room temperature. I keep mine in a tupperware container.

So if you want to whip up a yummy treat the kids will love, then give this recipe a try!


RECIPE:
*adapted source recipe: Double Chocolate Flapjacks, Lyle's Golden Syrup

WHAT YOU NEED

175 grams salted butter
100 grams brown sugar
3 heaping tablespoons of Lyle's Golden Syrup
225 grams medium or large flake rolled oats (do not use instant)
30 grams cocoa powder ( I used Cocoa Barry's Extra Brute)
100 grams chocolate chips (milk , semisweet or dark)

MAKE IT

PREHEAT oven to 180C
LINE a 8" square baking pan with parchment paper

IN LARGE SAUCEPAN, over medium heat, melt butter
ADD sugar and syrup blending with a wooden spoon until combined and heated through
REMOVE from heat
STIR in oats, cocoa powder and chocolate chips
SPOON batter into prepared pan and level off with back of spatula pressing gently to ensure there are no large air pockets in the batter
BAKE 25 minutes
LET COOL on cooling rack for 10 minutes
LEAVE IN PAN but cut into 16 squares - don't worry about being perfect here because you finish up all the cutting once cooled
LET COOL completely
FLIP out onto cutting board and finish any more cutting so you have 16 squares

ENJOY !



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