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bbc good food

BakingFood

Best Brownies Ever Challenge!!!

by thelifestylelady March 2, 2016

imageHowdy Y’all,

Happy hump day! Who needs a pick-me-up to see them through till Friday? I feel I do this week in particular, after Super Tuesday I think we could all do with a sugary treat. (Who is with me?) I am well aware that I am raising an American daughter and although we try to help her identify with her British culture I do try to learn more about American culture.  One thing I am trying to do is find a recipe to bake the perfect brownie. When home at Christmas a dear friend of ours had us over for lunch and she had the children help make the dessert of brownies and the recipe was called the Best-ever brownies. Could this be the recipe to end all recipe’s which would mean I could serve them to my American friends.  Here is what happened :- 

Prep Notes

  • It was in this post where I made delicious Moroccan Orange cake that I wrote about one of my top tips in making caster sugar, it does make a difference to the texture of the bake.
  • It was when making my famous carrot cake that I wrote about using a whisk instead of a sieve, it makes much less mess!!!
  •  I did not have a 20cm square tin, my tin was nearer 23cm and I rounded up the ingredients but it still worked. If I was looking into investing in a brownie tin – any recommendations?
  • I also did not quite enough dark chocolate so I substituted the difference for white chocolate.

Ingredients 

  • 185g unsalted butter
  • 185g best dark chocolate
  • 85g plain flour
  • 40g cocoa powder
  • 50g white chocolate
  • 50g milk chocolate
  • 3 large egg
  • 275g golden caster sugar Cut 185g unsalted butter into smallish cubes and tip into a medium bowl. Break 185g best dark chocolate into small pieces and drop into the bowl. Fill a small saucepan about a quarter full with hot water, then sit the bowl on top so it rests on the rim of the pan, not touching the water. Put over a low heat until the butter and chocolate have melted, stirring occasionally to mix them. Now remove the bowl from the pan. Alternatively, cover the bowl loosely with cling film and put in the microwave for 2 minutes on High. Leave the melted mixture to cool to room temperature.
  1. While you wait for the chocolate to cool, position a shelf in the middle of your oven and turn the oven on to fan 160C/conventional 180C/gas 4 (most ovens take 10-15 minutes to heat up). Using a shallow 20cm square tin, cut out a square of non-stick baking parchment to line the base. Now tip 85g plain flour and 40g cocoa powder into a sieve held over a medium bowl, and tap and shake the sieve so they run through together and you get rid of any lumps.
  2. With a large sharp knife, chop 50g white chocolate and 50g milk chocolate into chunks on a board. The slabs of chocolate will be quite hard, so the safest way to do this is to hold the knife over the chocolate and press the tip down on the board, then bring the rest of the blade down across the chocolate. Keep on doing this, moving the knife across the chocolate to chop it into pieces, then turn the board round 90 degrees and again work across the chocolate so you end up with rough squares.
  3. Break 3 large eggs into a large bowl and tip in 275g golden caster sugar. With an electric mixer on maximum speed, whisk the eggs and sugar until they look thick and creamy, like a milk shake. This can take 3-8 minutes, depending on how powerful your mixer is, so don’t lose heart. You’ll know it’s ready when the mixture becomes really pale and about double its original volume. Another check is to turn off the mixer, lift out the beaters and wiggle them from side to side. If the mixture that runs off the beaters leaves a trail on the surface of the mixture in the bowl for a second or two, you’re there.
  4. Pour the cooled chocolate mixture over the eggy mousse, then gently fold together with a rubber spatula. Plunge the spatula in at one side, take it underneath and bring it up the opposite side and in again at the middle. Continue going under and over in a figure of eight, moving the bowl round after each folding so you can get at it from all sides, until the two mixtures are one and the colour is a mottled dark brown. The idea is to marry them without knocking out the air, so be as gentle and slow as you like – you don’t want to undo all the work you did in step 4.
  5. Hold the sieve over the bowl of eggy chocolate mixture and resift the cocoa and flour mixture, shaking the sieve from side to side, to cover the top evenly. Gently fold in this powder using the same figure of eight action as before. The mixture will look dry and dusty at first, and a bit unpromising, but if you keep going very gently and patiently, it will end up looking gungy and fudgy. Stop just before you feel you should, as you don’t want to overdo this mixing. Finally, stir in the white and milk chocolate chunks until they’re dotted throughout. Now your mixing is done and the oven can take over.
  6. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin, scraping every bit out of the bowl with the spatula. Gently ease the mixture into the corners of the tin and paddle the spatula from side to side across the top to level it. Put in the oven and set your timer for 25 minutes. When the buzzer goes, open the oven, pull the shelf out a bit and gently shake the tin. If the brownie wobbles in the middle, it’s not quite done, so slide it back in and bake for another 5 minutes until the top has a shiny, papery crust and the sides are just beginning to come away from the tin. Take out of the oven.
  7. Leave the whole thing in the tin until completely cold, then, if you’re using the brownie tin, lift up the protruding rim slightly and slide the uncut brownie out on its base. If you’re using a normal tin, lift out the brownie with the foil. Cut into quarters, then cut each quarter into four squares and finally into triangles. These brownies are so addictive you’ll want to make a second batch before the first is finished, but if you want to make some to hide away for a special occasion, it’s useful to know that they’ll keep in an airtight container for a good two weeks and in the freezer for up to a month.
Ingredients

The amount of ingredients required is relatively few.

Caster Sugar

TLL quick spin of turning regular sugar into caster sugar

cjoc

The smaller the lumps of butter and chocolate the quicker it is to melt.

melting choc

Melting- smells so yummy

MeltChoc

All melted and so glossy

Sugarandeggs

This is the sugar and eggs after 7 mins on high in my Kitchen Aid mixer

ChoppedChoc

So hard to resist a little nibble! I love white chocolate

Sieve

Another LL top tip using a whisk instead of a sieve

Mix

Adding the melted choc to the aired mixture, such a marbled beauty

Folding In

I used the figure of eight method as I did not want to loose air in the mixture, it took a while to mix in but it does come together I promise

Before Oven

The finished mixture so pretty and glossy

Yummy

The finished brownie served warm with ice-cream. Is there another way??

Tastetester

My cute chief taste tester giving her verdict, what is she thinking?

I think this recipe was a real hit, the brownies are simply delicious. Gooey and fudgy on the inside and crisp and hard on the outside. I loved them and served warm with yummy ice cream. How do you like yours? I urge you to give this a try they are well worth it. I now need to test on an American audience for verdicts. Who wants to volunteer?

Ta ta for now,

TLLx

March 2, 2016 5 comments
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Food

High-Five Monday – Summer Puddings (Fruit)

by thelifestylelady July 27, 2015

Good Morning Y’all,

Hope your weekend was super fun and relaxed and you’re starting your week raring to go! Summer means heat which means grill and pool season and often getting together with friends and family. Now Mr L and I have always loved to entertain, but moving combined with the arrival of Little L meant it was on the back burner. However, we are getting our “mojo” back and enjoy nothing more than opening our home, sharing our table and creating great memories with loved ones. So this week’s high-five is for summer puddings or desserts that have, over time, become tried and tested crowd pleasers. Light – who wants heavy when it’s hot – and most importantly easy/entertaining friendly (meaning able to be made ahead.) So if you’re heading to a potluck or hosting a party, all these desserts can be made as sophisticated or simple as you like! These recipes are all yummy, approved by toddler and adult!

1. Pavlova, now Mummy L introduced me to the beauty of this dessert. It is named after the Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova; it is a meringue cake topped with whipped cream and fruit. I believe the dessert was created in her honor when she visited Australia and New Zealand during the 1920’s. It is often served as a celebratory cake in both countries and its popularity has crept to the UK. Unless Mummy L discovery it from my Aussie family – I will have to check. I have used many different recipes although they are all very similar. LL top tip is whisk the egg whites to stiff peaks; don’t stop too early. My other tip is to add a mix of sugar to the egg whites, divide the sugar requirement so it’s 50% caster sugar and 50% light brown sugar (if you struggle to find caster sugar in U.S. fine granulated works great.) It makes the meringue more marshmallow-like. Another tip is don’t assemble till before serving, so it doesn’t go soggy or crack. You can have fruit chopped and cream whipped, ready to assemble when needed. Plus it can be made with fruit of the season or whatever your family likes. This is really light and yummy, it’s an absolute LL favorite. Please give it a go and let me know all about it.

Recipe and picture Greg Wallace BBC Good Food.

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/711658/strawberry-pavlov

Pavlova Time

2. Summer Pudding, this pudding is bread, fruit and juice. It doesn’t sound that yummy but it’s a fav in this house. It also requires being made the day before, just to ensure the bread is suitably soaked. It also taste heaps better if you use stale bread. Which is great because sometimes we struggle to get through a loaf. LL top tip is to double-line the tin with cling film or glad wrap, so you ensure no leaks. I also find a loaf tin works very well as you can slice pieces with a bread nice. Another thing I do if I am serving without children or with a teething toddler (joke) is add a tipple of Ameretto or liquor of your choice. It makes it seem more grown up. Again super yummy, light, and a great way to enjoy fruit in a dessert. Let me know how it works for you? I love the color.

http://coffeemorning.macmillan.org.uk/tips-ideas-and-recipes/Recipes/MoreCelebrityRecipes/mary-berrys-summer-pudding.aspx#.VbV6TFg8KrU.

Recipe, Mary Berry. Picture and link courtesy of Coffee-morning Macmillan charity.

Summer Pudding

3. Tarte au Citron – lemon tart. Now when dealing with French dessert one should use a French Recipe and the Roux brother recipe is outstanding but I could not find a link. My mother in law also makes a wonderful lemon tart. It’s light and tangy and really cleanses the palette. Its a summer must. LL top tip, if you are not great at making pastry, why not buy it? Supermarkets make great pastry now, and I find it’s often more time and cost efficient to buy it, although I do like to make my own occasionally. Another great thing is buying a super zester which makes the job easier and certainly get more from the lemon. You can also make individual tarts which looks super impressive and helps with portion control. Plus the smell and color scream summer. Enjoy and tell me how you find it.

Recipe and picture courtesy of GoodtoKnow

http://www.goodtoknow.co.uk/recipes/270447/lemon-tart

Lemon Tart

4. Strawberry Shortbread Frozen Yogurt. Now Mr L doesn’t like yogurt but he loved this. I received the recipe in my monthly magazine subscription and thought I must try it and now it’s a permanent favorite. The shortbread adds a little sophistication and strawberries are always glamorous and this again is light and yummy. LL top tip (the recipe has this covered) I used freeze-dried strawberries from Trader Joe but am sure they can be found at various supermarkets. I echo bringing out early to soften before serving. No soft scoop here.

Picture and recipe courtesy of BBC Good Food

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/strawberry-shortbread-frozen-yogurt

Strawberry Shortbread Frozen Yogurt

5. Baked Raspberry Cheesecake, I had to have a cheesecake on here. This recipe is a keeper, easy to prepare and follow with great results, a real crowd pleaser. Mr L loves everything raspberry so always win win in my house. LL top tip: watch while it bakes in the oven. Baked cheesecakes have a habit of getting caught and you want the top to look inviting and not overdone.

Recipe courtesy of Olive magazine. Image courtesy of secretkitchen.wordpress.com

http://www.olivemagazine.com/recipes/baked-raspberry-cheesecake/4533.html

baked-cheesecake-with-raspberries

I have noticed as I conclude that all my recipes are fruit-based. I love fruit, and summer fruits in particular, and sometimes you can’t beat a lovely fruit salad as a dessert offering. I hope you don’t think these recipes are too fruity! I shall try to think of some alternatives as a post later on. Why not give some of these a try and please tell me what you think, I would love to hear! Any family favourite recipes you can recommend? Happy grilling and dessert-eating, and please remember sun cream.

Ta Ta for now,

TLL x

July 27, 2015 6 comments
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ABOUT ME

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Hi I'm Kate, Thanks for stopping by my small corner of the web, here at TLL I indulge my love of all things lifestyle, from cooking to travel and fashion to interiors, all served with a healthy dose of British sarcasm. So pour yourself a glass of something delicious, put your feet up and take a nose about. Enjoy Kx

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