Chocolate truffle torte

It was my Grandfather's 'official' birthday yesterday (ie the day he chose for his party!), and I volunteered to help out by making a couple of desserts (watch this space for the other in a couple of days!). The first one I chose was this chocolate truffle torte using a recipe by Delia Smith. You can see the recipe here on her website.

I modified the recipe slightly - I decided to make a more conventional cheesecake type base with hobnob biscuits rather than Amaretti (allergy issues) and because I felt that a second texture to contrast with the rich chocolate would be good. I didn't have brandy so substituted Kirsch. I think theoretically this was a great idea, but nobody could really taste the kirsch. I think if you really like kirsch you should perhaps forget putting it in the cake and just drink it at the same time! (Or as Delia suggests, add some of the kirsch to the cream you are going to serve with the torte).

Chocolate Truffle Cake
Ingredients
200g hobnob biscuits
100g butter, melted
450g dark chocolate (best quality possible)
5 tbsp glucose syrup
5 tbsp brandy (or kirsch)
570ml (1 pint) double cream

Method

- Line the base of a 9" (23cm) springform cake tin with baking parchment and grease the sides of the tin.

- Crush the biscuits and mix with the melted butter. Press this mixture into the tin and leave to set for around 30 minutes in the fridge.

- Melt the chocolate with the glucose syrup and alcohol and leave to cool for 5 minutes or so. (I think next time, I might melt the chocolate in two batches - it took quite a long time to melt and I think some of the chocolate may have overheated).

- In a separate bowl, whip the double cream until it is barely thickened. Fold half of the cream into the chocolate mixture and then fold that into the remaining cream. (I did follow this instruction, but found that my cream was perhaps too cold as the whole lot attempted to set almost immediately, which made it very difficult to smooth into the baking tin. I can't really see how to make this easier though - the only thing I can think is to allow the cream to warm up a little, but I'm not sure how well it would whip at room temperature).

- Put in the fridge and allow to chill overnight.

- Just before serving run a knife carefully around the edges of the tin and release the cake. Another pair of hands (or a can to put under the base while you deal with the sides) is helpful!

- Dust with cocoa powder and serve with extra single or double pouring cream.

This was T's portion of truffle cake - liberally doused in double cream, the only way to go! The cake is very rich and quite bitter so the double cream is a necessity I suppose! The birthday boy enjoyed it very much, and many others told me how much they'd enjoyed it too. Good job really because it's quite a big cake and there was about half left at the end of the evening, so it looks like chocolate truffle cake for breakfast - what a delicious and decadent way to start the day.

Lemon-syrup loaf cake

I love this cake. It's simple, elegant and most importantly, tastes absolutely delicious! The recipe is from Nigella Lawson, and the actual cake part is pretty standard, but drenching the just-cooked cake with a sugar and lemon juice syrup raises this cake from yummy to something really special.

Easy to make, and uses pretty much all storecupboard ingredients too - what more could you ask for?

Lemon-syrup loaf cake
Ingredients
125g softened butter

175g caster sugar

2 large eggs

zest of 1 lemon (preferably unwaxed)

175g self-raising flour

4 tbsp milk

for the syrup:

juice of the lemon

75g icing sugar


Method

-Grease and line a 2lb loaf tin (23x13x7cm) with baking parchment - this is a very moist and sticky cake.

- Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas 4.

- Cream together the butter and sugar and then add the eggs, beating them in well. Add the flour and lemon zest and fold in gently but thoroughly until well mixed. Add the 4 tbsp milk and mix well. (I would recommend adding the lemon zest with the flour rather than beating with the eggs because I found that all my lemon zest attached itself to the beaters and clung on for dear life, rather than remaining in with the rest of the mix - very annoying!)

- Spoon into the loaf tin and smooth the surface. Place into the oven.

While the cake is cooking, make the syrup. Place the lemon juice and icing sugar into a small pan and heat gently until the sugar dissolves (although I don't think mine did completely - it doesn't really matter!).

- When the cake is cooked (45 minutes or so until golden and risen in the middle with a cake tester/skewer coming out clean - Nigella notes that it will sink a little on cooling, but I didn't really notice this) stab the cake repeatedly, all over the surface and right down into the cake. This is good fun! Carefully pour the syrup mixture over the cake, trying to make sure that some is absorbed in the middle of the cake, rather than just running down to the edges of the tin.

- Leave in the tin until completely cold, then carefully remove and slice.

This is an incredibly moist cake and the syrup adds a delicious sweet-tart tanginess.

Cut up and ready to go into work, where it was well received. If you look at the slices you can see where the syrup has penetrated the cake. Yum!

Purple porridge!

I enjoy eating porridge for breakfast, but for all the low-GI slow release energy it's supposed to give you, I'm usually hungry far sooner than if I have a different breakfast. All the same porridge is good, and very healthy so I sometimes have it anyway (and remember to take more snacks with me!). I had blueberries in the fridge and had read a recipe a while ago in one of my multitudes of cookbooks that suggested using frozen forest fruits in porridge. I reckoned fresh blueberries would be just as good so used them instead.

I'm sure you know how to make porridge, and everyone differs slightly but here's how I did it (with thanks to Fiona Beckett who blogs here as the frugal cook, and has a student cooking website here at Beyond Baked Beans for the original idea).

Ingredients: 35g porridge oats, 50g blueberries.

Method: Weigh oats in a mug (I use a full espresso cup of oats) and put in a saucepan with the blueberries. Add 2.5-3 times the volume of water to oats (which is why measuring in a cup is handy) and bring to the boil. Turn down and let it erupt volcanically (you'll know what I mean if you've made porridge before!) for 5 minutes (or as long as your oats recommend on the pack). Pour into a bowl and enjoy! Quick and good for you.

I mashed my blueberries quite hard to get them to explode and turn the porridge my desired purple colour. It might be nice to stir in some more fresh blueberries after you're done, but mine were a little on the tart side.

I like crunchy demerara sugar on my porridge too!

Fabulous double chocolate and pear brownies

Ahh, the chocolate kick intensifies. Still wanting, craving chocolate (well, who doesn't really) I decided that brownies were the way to go because it's been ages since I made them. I do have a particular recipe that I like making, but was on the lookout for a new (perhaps even better) one and came across this one, on the Waitrose website. If you haven't yet found the Waitrose recipe website, please do take a look. There is always loads of inspiration there and it's free! (And you don't have to shop in (admittedly quite expensive) Waitrose to make the recipes - they don't specify loads of own brand stuff that can't be substituted, there are quite often nutritional breakdowns of the recipes, which is always handy).

Anyway, these brownies caught my eye because you don't often see fresh fruit and brownie recipes and it appealed. I could just imagine the refreshing slight crunch of the pear and the softly yielding gooeyness (if that's a word, and if it's not, it should be!) of the cakey part. I had to sub out the Brazil nuts (allergic) and decided that 100g dark chocolate, chopped would be a great substitute, which it was!

Uncut brownies. I don't know why they look marbled like that, I didn't do anything special to them! Anyway, the recipe. This was really easy. So there's no excuse not to make them pronto.

Double chocolate and pear brownies
Makes 24
Ingredients
250g butter
200g Dark 70% Chocolate, roughly chopped
250g Caster Sugar
3 large (free range) eggs
1 large ripe pear, peeled, cored and diced
100g Dark 70% Chocolate, roughly chopped (sub white or milk if you prefer)
175g self raising flour, sifted
3 tbsp Cocoa Powder, sifted

Method
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas mark 4. Line a 30cm x 20cm x 4cm rectangular tin with baking parchment.
- Put the butter and 200g dark chocolate in a small pan and place over a very low heat until melted, stirring occasionally.
- In a large bowl, beat the sugar and eggs together until pale and fluffy, using an electric whisk for speed. Gradually pour in the melted chocolate mixture and continue whisking until combined.
- Fold in the flour and cocoa then stir in the pear pieces and the remaining chocolate pieces.
- Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for 30-35 minutes, until the brownies are just set.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tin. Cut into 24 squares before serving.

You can see the pear pieces better in this last picture. How were they? Well, fabulous! However, I found that the pear didn't work quite as well as I had hoped - my pear was perhaps a little too soft, or it cooked too much in the oven as it was soft in texture. All down to personal taste though. And the brownie part was seriously good stuff. I will make these again but will probably use 100g of 70% dark and 100g of really good (not too sweet) white chocolate like Green and Black's. They went down a storm at work.

Make them though - they're seriously good!!!

Chocolate, Orange and Banana Loaf

Welcome to this month's Sweet and Simple Bake recipe. This event is run by Rosie of Rosie bakes a 'peace' of cake, and Maria of The Goddess's Kitchen. Each month members bake the given recipe and report back on how it went. There is a round-up of the recipes on the Sweet and Simple Bakes blog, and the recipes for all the challenges can be found on Sweet and Simple recipe blog.

January is traditionally the month of making resolutions to lose weight, live more healthily and generally be a better person (or is that just me?). As such, a few of my colleagues are on diets at the moment (I'm not - I subscribe to the view that January is cold and cold weather requires lots of warm food and is not a good time for dieting!) and so although I want to keep baking, and try new and extravagant recipes I'm attempting to limit the number of calories and fat in some of what I make. This recipe fitted in perfectly. The bananas help to keep the cake moist and allow a lower proportion of butter to be used than is usual in a cake. I halved the recipe given because I didn't want a large cake. It worked really well and I have given the half measurements below. The full recipe can be found here.

Banana, Orange and Chocolate Bread

Makes 10 slices

Ingredients

125g (4 1/2oz) self-raising flour
Pinch of salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
75g (2 1/2oz) caster sugar
50g (2 oz) butter, softened
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Finely grated zest of 1/2 orange
200g (7oz) whole bananas (about 2 small ones, or 1 large), peeled
40g (1 1/2oz) dark chocolate chips

1 lb loaf tin (mine is 9x18cm measured at the top)

Preheat the oven to 170°C (325°F), Gas mark 3. Lightly butter and line the loaf tin with parchment paper. Sift the flour, salt and baking powder into a large bowl. Add the sugar and butter and, using your fingertips, rub it in until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Whisk the eggs, vanilla extract and orange zest in another bowl. Add the bananas and mash very well with a potato masher or a fork. Add the chocolate chips. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in the banana mixture. Gently but thoroughly bring all the ingredients together with a wooden spoon, then pour into the prepared loaf tin. Smooth the top and bake in the oven for 45mins-1 hour or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Allow to cool for 5 minutes before removing the cake from the tin and leave to cool on a wire rack.

I have calculated the Weightwatchers (UK) points for this recipe, but am making no claims whatsoever that they are 100% accurate (although I used the points from J's weightwatchers book) and I am not affiliated to WW or anything like that. With these provisos:

WW points = 3/slice (if cut into 10)

WW points = 3.5/slice (if cut into 8)

NB: If you don’t have a 1lb loaf tin, the recipe can be doubled and baked for 1-1 ¼ hours in a 2lb loaf tin (measurements 13x23cm (5x9”) loaf tin).


This was quick and easy to make, and turned out really well. I was worried that the banana and egg mixture wouldn't be sufficient liquid for the dry ingredients, but my fears were unfounded.


It was a really successful cake. The banana helped to keep it moist, but wasn't at all heavy or dense, as banana cakes can sometimes be. The orange zest can clearly be seen in the top photograph, and the loaf was really fragrant. I would say that if you're looking for a subtle orange flavour that you'd need to reduce the amount of zest, but in combination with the chocolate it made the cake taste like eating Terry's Chocolate Orange or Green and Black's Maya Gold chocolate. Never a bad thing in my book.


It was very well received at work, with everyone enjoying it (even those on diets) and requests for the recipe.