Shortbread for the genealogically challenged

Have you ever noticed how if you bring up the subject of shortbread in a social situation (and lets face it, who hasn't?) everyone instantly claims to have the bestest, most original, perfect textured, age-old, genuine recipe. Then they yell at each other about how their recipe is superior because it was handed down through generations from their great great great great great great, three times removed step-aunt who was, in fact a Scottish mountaineer who lived in a stone cottage and ate nothing but haggis and that shortbread? Whatever.

Photo by Leslie, hand by me

This recipe is not one of those. It hasn't been handed down to or from anyone as far as I'm aware. I can't even remember where I got it. All I can tell you is that it's in my cook book, written by my own 12-year old hand and that it's excellent.

This recipe is seriously difficult to stuff up and you can pretty well make it in any format. Personally, I prefer to cut out shapes and sprinkle liberally with sugar to make them sparkly but it's also good pressed into two 18cm square/round cake tins. Just make sure you cut it before you bake it, otherwise it crumbles after it's cooked.

One cautionary note, it doesn't really work with gluten-free flour, it gets too short.

Basic Shortbread
2 tbsp rice flour or ground rice (I prefer the flour)
1/3 cup icing sugar
2 cups of plain flour
250g salted butter, cubed & cold

Oven @160c                                        2 x 18 cm round/square cake pans, greased with butter,        
                                                             or use cookie cutters & trays covered with baking paper                                                                          
Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl and then rub in the butter until the mixture is even.
Press together and then knead on a lightly floured surface until smooth.


Then either:
Press into the two pans and cut into wedges. Bake 30-35 minutes until lightly golden, do not over-bake.
or 
Roll out to about 8mm thick between two sheets of baking paper and use a cookie cutter to cut dough into shapes. I like to press caster sugar onto the top but that's optional. Bake for 5-10 minutes until lightly golden. Do not over-bake.

This recipe is quite nice with macadamia pieces, 2 tsp of lemon zest, or with one side dipped in chocolate but it has a beautiful flavour so I usually leave mine plain.

And so it begins

Now that it is actually December, I can happily admit that it's time to start doing Christmasy things.
I started making Christmas truffles, slices and biscuits years ago and it's nice to know that people look forward to them. I thought I'd put a few favourites up cause I guess none of them are family secrets or anything... I don't think.

The first thing I've made is almond clusters because they'll keep longest. These babies are awesome because they're ridiculously easy and everyone likes them. The only bad thing is you'll need mini patty papers but they seem to be popping up in shops much more than they used to.

Almond Clusters
200 - 250g slivered almonds
200g dark chocolate (about 40% chocolate)
Mini patty papers

Pour the almonds into a large tray and bake in the oven at 160c until they're lightly browned (about 8 minutes but keep an eye on them). Allow to cool.

Melt the chocolate in the microwave or a double saucepan then stir in the almonds. Spoon teaspoons of the mixture into the patty papers and allow to set. Don't put them in the fridge to set unless it's really hot, the chocolate won't be as shiny.

Pretending it's not "that time of year"

It's not that I want to look like some kind of Dickensian character or anything, I've just been super busy and not ready to do all the Christmasy stuff I usually do. Plus, I do get kind of shat off by carol overload before December even starts. To get in the spirit I bought some bonbon bangers today so I'm getting there.

Anyway, when I do finally get into Christmas mode, the plan is to post a bunch of seasonally-appropriate recipes on here (I'm thinking mini puddings, shortbread, almond splinters and Italian almond biscuits this year... yum!). Until then, I thought this'd be a good segue into the season, both Christmasy and brownie! My flatmate also thinks they would be awesome with 1/2 cup of white chocolate bits but it's raining right now and I'm not wearing any shoes.

These brownies are more cakey than my usual recipes and originally come from Taste, though with a tiny bit of tweaking.

Chocolate Cranberry Brownies
175g butter, chopped
200g dark chocolate
4 eggs
3/4 cup dried cranberries
3/4 cup brown sugar

1 1/4 cups plain flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/3 cup cocoa


Oven @ 170c                                                     20cm square cake pan lined with baking paper

Melt butter and chocolate together in the microwave. Stir to combine and allow to cool slightly.

Mix in eggs, brown sugar and cranberries and then the flour, baking powder and cocoa. Stir until just combined. Spread into prepared cake pan and bake for 35 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out slightly sticky. 

Set aside in the pan for 10 minutes to cool before turning out.

The thing about low fat...

I've spent the past three days trying to come up with some sort of witty anecdote to go with this recipe... I got nothin'.

I guess the reason I made it was to try to find a recipe for some health-conscious friends that wasn't entirely loaded with calories. While it's true that this recipe has about half the butter that a normal brownie recipe has, I can't pretend it isn't laden with sugar. Still, you could probably imagine you're getting extra roughage or something.
Of all the "healthy" brownie recipes I tried, this one seemed the best - it has a nice texture and isn't rubbery like some fruit brownies can be. It's also quite bittersweet and larger than a few others I have on here. I would recommend aiming for a slightly undercooked result to avoid it getting dry.

Just to prove how hypocritical I am, I've written this while stuffing my face in a  chocolate cafe.

Apple Sauce Brownies
250g dark chocolate
100g butter
150g unsweetened apple sauce
1 cup caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 tsp instant coffee powder
1 tbsp coffee or chocolate liqueur

4 eggs
1 cup plain flour
1 tsp cocoa powder
1 cup dark chocolate chips (or walnuts)

Oven @ 160c                                   23cm square cake pan lined with baking paper

Melt the chocolate, butter and apple sauce together. Allow the mixture to cool slightly.

Stir in the sugar, essence, coffee and liqueur.
Add the eggs and mix in well, then stir in the cocoa and the flour and stir until just combined.
Spread mixture into the lined pan and press chocolate chips or nuts on top.

Bake for 25 minutes then stand for 10 minutes before turning out. 

So the father grew lemons

And the mother assured the daughter it was easy to make lemon butter in the microwave. And lo, this was true

Microwave lemon butter
125g butter, chopped
3/4 cup caster sugar
4 eggs
Finely grated rind of two lemons
Juice of 2 lemons (about 1/2 or 2/3 cup juice)
Glass jars

Makes approx. 4 cups

Fill the jars with boiling water to sterilise, then allow to dry.

Whisk the eggs until well combined then whisk in the lemon rind and juice.
Meanwhile, combine butter and sugar in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave on high for 2 minutes and stir well.
Stir the lemon & egg mixture into the hot butter mixture and combine well.
Microwave for 4 minutes until thick, whisking well at 1 minute intervals (try not to let it boil or you can end up with lemon scrambled eggs).
Strain if you get any egg lumps then pour into the jars and refrigerate.

Keeps about 2 weeks

The Great Trifle-Off

You know all those long-running family feuds? I'm thinking epic scale, Montagues & Capulets kind of deal? Forget them. The great trifle debate has been going on in my family for as long as I can remember. Nor is the debate restricted to family members. Last week, I was drawn into a discussion at work about how trifle "should" be made which became quite heated. In the end we agreed to all make our version of a proper trifle and the one English person in our office would judge the best one... he seemed quite happy about this.

The debate centers over where exactly the jelly goes in your recipe.  Members of "the other side" foolishly suggest that it should be poured over the sponge on the bottom and then set. People on "the correct side" agree that jelly in sponge is disgusting and the sponge should be soaked in sherry and/or peach juice and the jelly should be carefully set over the top of the custard. Some strange people suggest that there shouldn't be any jelly at all... that just doesn't even make sense!

So, here's the way to do trifle properly. I've added cream to the custard because it makes it yummy but it can also make the layering tricky if it doesn't set hard enough. If you're worried, you may want to leave the cream out of the custard.
If you want to get fancy, you can also put berries on the top of the custard before it sets. Then you can see them through the jelly.

Trifle the Right Way
1 sponge cake
1 large tin of sliced peaches
1/4 - 1/3 cup medium sherry
2 heaped tbsp custard powder
2 tbsp sugar
2 1/2 cups of milk
1 egg
1/2 cup cream
1 packet of red jelly
2 cups boiling water

Cut the sponge into chunks and layer on the bottom of a glass bowl. Pour over the sherry and/or enough juice from the peaches to soak the sponge.

To make the custard: In a small bowl, combine the custard powder, sugar, egg and 1/2 a cup of milk to form a smooth paste. Heat the remaining 2 cups of milk in the microwave until boiling. Whisk in the custard powder mixture. Microwave in 1 minute intervals, stirring in between until custard boils & thickens. Allow to cool.

Once cooled, mix the cream into the custard and beat with an electric mixer for 1-2 minutes. Spread the custard over the sponge and refrigerate to set completely (at least 2 hours but the longer the better).

Make up the jelly according to the instructions on the packet (you may want to add a little more gelatine if you want firm jelly). Refrigerate until it reaches egg white consistency. Pour over the custard and hope like the dickens it stays on top. Refrigerate until completely set.

Memories & Meringue

The last couple of weeks I've been on a bit of a baking hiatus because I've had the plague. Well, my doctor assures me it's far more likely to be a chest infection gone feral but I don't feel that communicates an appropriate level of discomfort... I was somewhere between an 8 and a 9 on Allie's pain scale. Anyway, thanks to a vast arsenal of drugs I'm feeling much better and tonight went to a party to which it was requested that I bring "something lemony". I'd also promised a couple of people that I'd share my lemon meringue pie recipe here, even though it doesn't fit into the brownie brief at all (I've tried, those briefs just get sticky).

I first made this pie for a dinner with some friends from Bakers Delight so now every time I make it I think of our awesome parties. I miss you guys! I've also discovered that having people watch you make this is a really good way to pick up, I've had more than one friend say they found it strangely sexy... I think it's the meringue.

A note on pastry though. Making gluten free pastry is hard and I don't keep wheat flour in the house so I usually just buy the pastry shell. I seriously doubt I could make pastry better than the pros do anyway.

And last but not least, sorry about the photo... I only just managed to get one before it all disappeared.

Lemon Meringue Pie

Pastry
2 cups plain flour
pinch of salt
1 tbsp icing sugar
185g butter
1 tbsp lemon juice
1-2 tbsp water

Filling
4 tbsp plain flour
4 tbsp cornflour
2 tbsp finely grated lemon rind
3/4 cup lemon juice
1 cup caster sugar
1 1/4 cup water
90g butter
4 egg yolks

Meringue
4 egg whites
2 tbsp water
pinch of salt
3/4 cup caster sugar

20 cm pie dish                                                                    Oven @ 180c

Rub the butter into the flour, salt and icing sugar. Add the lemon juice & enough water to form a firm dough. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 mins.
Lightly knead dough then roll out to fit a 20 cm pie dish.
Prick the base all over with a fork and bake for 10-15 minutes. Allow to cool.

For the filling: Combine the flours, lemon rind, juice and sugar in a medium saucepan. Slowly blend in water so there are no lumps.
Stir over low heat until mixture boils & thickens. Reduce heat & simmer for 2 minutes.
Remove from heat and stir in the butter and egg yolks.
Once cool, spread filling into pastry shell.

For the meringue: Combine egg whites, water, and salt and beat until soft peaks form. Gradually add the sugar and beat until completely dissolved and mixture is shiny.
Spoon meringue onto the filling and seal the edges. Bake for 5-10 minutes until just starting to brown.
Cool then refrigerate.