I was recently asked to take the Blogger's Challenge by Billington's, the sugar company.
Refined versus unrefined sugars
Which is best?? Is there any marked difference between the two??
I was allowed to choose a recipe to cook from their recipes and I was sent the sugar to use in the recipe. All of the other ingredients were my own.

I chose the Muscovado Pudding recipe.



Making "Refined" Cane Sugar involves a two stage process, designed to produce bulk white sugar as efficently as possible. Brown sugars are then manufactured by "surface coating" refined white sugar with syrups. Industrial raw cane sugar for refining is transported in bulk to European refineries, where they are further refined to produce bulk white sugar.

So . . . "Refined" cane sugar is made by processing the sugar cane until it becomes white sugar, then gradually adding molasses, a dark coloured by-product of the processing of sugar cane, to make the different types of brown sugar."

"Unrefined" Sugar is different. How so???
Unrefined Cane Sugar is made using a careful one stage process, converting perishable sugar cane into finished sugar products, in the country of origin.
Minimally processed . . . not remelted, not refined. Packed into bags ready for consumption.
Simply produced with the aim of locking in . . . rather than refining out natural molasses of sugar cane.



What does all of this mean???? Quite simply this, not all brown sugars are the same: many are only brown on the outside; underneath they are really refined white sugar which has been coated to add colour and some flavour.

Billington’s sugars are different. They are unrefined, so the sugars are very simply produced with the aim of locking in, rather than refining out the natural molasses of the sugar cane. It is this difference that gives unrefined sugar its superior flavour and natural colour.

But can it live up to it's promise??



I took two teaspoons of brown sugar. One teaspoon held the Billington's Light Muscovado brown sugar. The other one held an ordinary brand of soft light brown sugar. (Thankfully they had sent me a small amount of an ordinary brand of soft light brown sugar. I quite honestly never have anything but muscovado sugar in the house.)The visual difference between the two is quite noticeable to me.

Can you spot the difference???



Yes, the Billingtons is the one on the left. It's much darker than the other one and looks quite a bit moister to me. You can see white granules in the ordinary brown sugar too, which is not altogether that appealing in comparison. But how does it taste??? Is there a definite taste difference??? Let's see . . .

I tasted each on it's own, and I did wash my mouth out between tastes. I truly found the Billingtons to have a richer, more caramel-like flavour. I much preferred it to the other. The other one kind of just tasted like sugar . . . with no real depth. It was sweet, but that's all. Hmmm . . . was I being biased by having known which was which to begin with?? I decided to ask someone who was completely un-biased and did not know which sugar was which.



Yes, it's a cheesy "thumbs up" picture, but I think you can see that the Toddster clearly agreed with me in finding the Billington's to be superior in flavour, texture and looks than the other brand. He thought the Billington's tasted a lot nicer. More substantial he said, and less "anemic." Richer. Spot on!

Now . . . on to the recipe. (Which is why you're here, right?? )



I have made many similar puddings through the years to this recipe, using ordinary brown sugar. Would this one made with the Billington's taste any different?? Let's see . . .



Going into the oven this pudding didn't look any different than any other chocolate pudding cake recipe I have used. In fact I believe you would be hard pressed to see the difference.



Neither did it look much different coming out of the oven . . . it looked every bit as ugly as any other chocolate pudding cake that I have ever made, in all truth.



The real difference was noticeable as soon as I spooned some of it out into my bowl. HEY!! This pudding was considerably lighter than any other one I had ever made . . . it was not in the least bit heavy . . .



and yet . . . the cake part was incredibly moist, a marked difference . . . and the sauce was really light and rich looking . . .

And it was really light and rich tasting too . . . oh my . . . it's some good. Let's try it with a bit of cream shall we???



Oh yes . . . that is definitely gilding the lily . . . just when you think something can't taste any better . . . you add cream and like magic . . . it does! You're definitely going to want to make this rich and lucious pudding and if you can get the Billington's to make it with DO use it. There is a marked difference . . . both in texture and in taste.



*Billington's Muscovado Pudding*
Serves about 9 people
(depending on how greedy you are)
Printable Recipe

A deliciously light chocolate pudding cake, which bakes it's own chocolate sauce in the oven. Scrumdiddlyumptiously good!

150g plain white flour ( generous 1 cup, or 1 cup +2 TBS)
40g of cocoa powder, not chocolate drink mix (6 TBS), divided
2 TBS baking powder
pinch fine seasalt
110ml of milk (7 1/2 TBS)
175g of golden caster sugar (superfine unrefined sugar, scant cup)
(I used Billington's)
2 TBS corn oil
2 large free range eggs
50g of toasted walnuts, chopped (scant 1/2 cup)
225g of Light Muscovado Sugar (Billingtons) (unrefined cane sugar, 1 cup plus 2 TBS, packed)
425ml of hot water (1 3/4 cup)

Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Butter a 9 inch square baking tin or dish. Set aside.

Sift the flour, 2 TBS of the cocoa powder, baking powder and salt into a mixing bowl. Stir in the Caster sugar. Whisk together the milk, eggs and oil. Add to the dry mixture and mix together until smooth. Stir in the chopped nuts. Pour this batter into the prepared baking tin or dish.

Stir together the remaining cocoa powder and the light muscovado sugar. Sprinkle this mixture over top of the batter in the pan. Pour over the hot water. DO NOT STIR!! Leave it as it is and pop it into the heated oven. Bake for 30 to 45 minutes, until the cake is risen and bounces back lightly when touched and the sauce is bubbling up around the edges. Serve warm or cold.

Pouring cream is delicious with this! Nom Nom!!

My thoughts on this sugar are quite simply this. We are all supposed to be cutting back our sugar consumption. That only makes sense health-wise . . . but when we are going to indulge, let it be with a sugar that is less refined and more natural.

You know it makes sense.

In truth I have been a user of the un-refined Billington's sugars for a number of years now. It's all I ever really buy, and for that very reason. It tastes better and it's better for you at the end of the day. TWO THUMB'S UP in my opinion . . . and no, there's no cheesy thumb's up picture of me to share. ☺



Many thanks to Billingon's and the people at Baking Mad.Com for affording me this chance to show you how great these sugars really are.



Note - Todd was a bit disappointed that I had chosen a chocolate pudding to test out the sugars in . . . he hates chocolate puddings. I know . . . twas a tough sacrifice for me to make, but I do what I can!! I did not eat this pudding all on my own. The bulk of it was sent over to our local Missionaries to enjoy and they gave it Two Thumb's up as well! (No picture of them either unfortunately!)

We had a really lovely day today, which is now threatening to turn to rain. One always takes advantage of sunshine here in the UK. We get so much rain that when the sun shines, everyone is out and about enjoying it.



We took advantage of it by having a cosy dinner a deux on the terrace (aka the paved part of the back garden la-de-dah!). Just a simple supper of a tasty frittata, some salad and hot buttered toast.



I love having a kind of breakfasty supper sometimes. Eggs fit the bill perfectly if you are wanting something quick and easy, that isn't going to heat up the kitchen or be a lot of faff to prepare.



Frittatas are kind of like crustless quiches . . . You just beat together your eggs, with some cream or milk. Add some cheese or other ingredients, and then cook them briefly in a hot skillet until they are golden brown on the bottom and almost set . . . then a brief burst under a hot grill . . . til they are golden brown on top, and "Bob's Your Uncle!!" Dinner is served.



You can just about put anything you want in them, as long as the flavours are ones that go together well. Today I chose to use fresh baby spinach (for colour) sauteed chorizo sausage (heat, flavour and colour) and fresh and milky ricotta cheese (perfect against the heat of the chorizo). You can add herbs, such as the sage I added in mine today . . . they also give a flavour boost and some added colour.



Season them well, according to taste and your ingredients and you are done. I happen to love using leftover roasted veg in my frittata's from time to time. Roasted root veg are excellent, expecially with a bit of strong cheddar, red onions and some summer savoury.



Another favourite is oven roasted Courgettes, peppers, cherry tomatoes and onions . . . with a bit of feta cheese . . . and some garlic and fresh oregano of course. Kind of like a Mediterranean frittata. The leftovers are really tasty too . . . in lunches, on picnics . . . or just as a savoury snack when you are feeling a bit peckish . . .

Something for the weekend??? Perhaps!



*Spinach, Chorizo and Ricotta Frittata*
Serves 2
Printable Recipe

The perfect supper for two on a hot summer's evening. Quick and delicious. Salad on the side, buttered toast. Heaven.

2 chorizo, sliced
1 TBS sage leaves, chopped
80g of baby spinach leaves, washed and dried (about 2 cups loose)
4 large free range eggs, lightly beaten
250ml of single pouring cream (1 cup)
fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
150g of fresh ricotta cheese (about 2/3 cup)

Heat a 9 inch nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add the chorizo and sage and cook for several minutes, until the chorizo is golden and crisp. Add the spinach. Cook and toss it in the pan drippings until it is wilted. Whisk together the cream, eggs, salt and pepper. Pour into the pan. Place spoonfuls of ricotta around the pan. Reduce the heat to low and cook for about 3 minutes. While this is cooking heat the grill to high. Place the frittata beneath the grill and cook for several minutes, just until the frittata is set and golden. Serve with thick slices of hot buttered toast and a tossed salad if desired. Delicious!

Eleanor from Shrewd PR recently sent me a couple of things to try out. Unfortunately since I am not a drinker, I've not been able to test them, but I can tell you all about them!

The first article was the DropStop re-usable Wine Pourer. It was invented by a Danish inventor by the name of Brian Vang Jensen. It is simply a round metallic circle, which you roll up and place into the mouth of your bottle of wine, which then helps to prevent those unfortunate accidents and stains which can occur when you are pouring wine at the table.

Beautiful to look at, simple to use and extremely functional.



It promises no more table cloth stains. You simply roll it up, insert it into the bottle and pour the wine without spilling a drop. Due to its flexible material, the DropStop fits in every bottle, which is pretty amazing!

The shimmery, silvery brilliance of DropStop adds elegance to your favourite bottle of wine and to the pleasure of drinking it. (Not that I would know much about drinking wine.) It is very attractive though and I can see where it would look quite nice.

DropStop is available in a wide range of designs, including abstract, sports, seasonal, wine and tourism related versions. Using digital printing techniques, they can create designs and printing results that are state of the art.

A wide range of attractive, contemporary packaging means that they have just the solution you need, whether you wish to give DropStop as a gift or simply use it in your own home. I actually think it would make a great stocking stuffer for a wine enthusiast this Christmas!!



This sure would have come in handy when I was cheffing at the Manor down South. All those wine stains on the table cloths and vintage linens used to give the housekeeper a right headache! Looks like this would have been a simple and attractive answer that would have solved that problem very easily and affordably.



I know that you need to open red wines ahead of time to let them breathe. I did that a bazillion times when I was working at the manor . . . You can read more about the Drop Stop Wine Breather here.

The rain is just pelting down this afternoon . . . bucketing down . . . cats and dogs . . . so hard that the drops are bouncing right back up into the air . . .

This is the kind of day that you want to spend tucked up indoors . . . curled up on the sofa with a good book, a mug of something hot . . . and some scrummy biscuits to much on. There were none to be had in the house, and so I did what any cook worth her metal would do . . . I baked some. (not American biscuits . . . British biscuits . . . aka cookies.)



Real Bourbon Biscuits . . . just like the ones you can buy in the shops, except they're much, much better of course. Homemade is always better. Bourbon Biscuits were created by the same Bermondsey biscuit company as Garibaldis (squashed fly biscuits,) and were named after the Royal French House of Bourbon. Not after the alcoholic drink. Just so you know . . .



A basic Bourbon biscuit is a beautiful thing to behold . . . two thin rectangles of crisp dark chocolate biscuit sandwiched together with chocolate buttercream filling for an altogether . . . elegant . . . chocolaty . . . sandwich type of cookie.



Rich and crisp . . . these are very moreish I think . . . almost dangerous. Simple to make though . . . very easy. A simple chocolate dough, rolled and cut into rectangles, dusted with some caster sugar and then baked. Finally sandwiched together with a rich chocolate buttercream, these are pleasing on many levels . . .



They are soothing, comforting . . . and hit that childish spot in each of our hearts . . . and yet they can be very adult . . . add a touch of bourbon if you wish, to the buttercream. We don't do raw alcohol here . . . so I didn't. I used a touch of vanilla.



Borrowed and adapted from Jamie Magazine. (It also gave me the opportunity to use my new biscuit cutter and word stamp thingie. I got them here.)




*Real Bourbon Biscuits*
Makes about 14
Printable Recipe

Rich dark chocolate biscuits with a creamy chocolate filling. Adapted from Jamie Magazine.

For the Biscuits:
50g unsalted butter (3 1/2 TBS)
50g soft light brown sugar (4 TBS packed)
1 TBS golden syrup
110g plain flour (1 cup plus 1 3/4 TBS)
20g cocoa powder (not the drink mix, scant 3 TBS)
(I used Cadbury's Bournville cocoa powder)
pinch salt
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 to 2 tsp milk
golden caster sugar for sprinkling

For the filling:
50g of unsalted butter, softened (3 1/2 TBS)
75g of sifted icing sugar (generous half cup)
1 TBS cocoa powder, sifted
1 to 2 tsp bourbon



Preheat the oven to 150*C/300*F/ gas mark 3. Line a baking sheet with baking parchment paper. Set aside.

Cream together the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the golden syrup until smooth. Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, salt and soda together in a beaker. Sift this into the creamed mixture. Add the milk a bit at a time, until yo uget a soft even dough. It should be a bit crumbly, but should have the promise of holding together. Tip out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about a minute, until it comes completely together. Roll out with a lightly floured rolling pin about 1/4 inch thick. (I rolled mine out onto baking parchment so that I did not have to use a lot of flour.) Cut out into rectangles. If you like you can dot holes into the dough with the end of a skewer. Sprinkle with caster sugar and then carefully lift onto the prepared baking sheet with a metal spatula, leaving some space in between the biscuits.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, then remove from the oven. Carefully lift onto a wire rack to cool completely before proceeding.

To make the filling, cream the butter together with the icing sugar, cocoa powder and enough bourbon to give you a fluffy evenly coloured mixture. Spread a heaped teaspoon onto each of half the baked biscuits and then top with another one, pressing down lightly. Repeat until all the biscuits are filled. Store in an airtight container.

(I did not use real bourbon as we don't do raw alcohol. I used some vanilla.)

 

Normally on my Birthday I would bake myself a cake . . . I do so love a Victorian Sponge. It's my absolute favourite . . . golden brown, moist and stogged full of jam and cream. (I do love my jam too!! If you've been visiting me for a while . . . you already know that!)



This year I decided to have something a little bit different and made myself a cheesecake. Well, i did share it with Todd, I confess . . . I'm not that greedy! I think even I would have a difficult time eating a cheesecake all by myself, but I do think I could give it a good go! (We won't go there . . . )



Anyways, I have this lovely little book called "Easy Desserts" deliciously indulgent treats. It's published by Murdoch Books and is a compilation of a variety of dessert recipes created by different chef peoples. On the back cover it says . . . "No-fuss recipes for irresistible desserts that are guaranteed to bring a smile to everyone's face." I can attest to the truth of that statement. I've made quite a few recipes from the whole of the "easy" books series and they are all good, and . . . as one would expect from their titles . . . easy.



This Vanilla Cheesecake is attributed to Fiona Beckett. I did play with it a bit. I chose to leave off her cooked blueberry topping. I was feeling rather lazy and I quite like this easy topping that I started making years ago using jam for on top of cheesecakes. It's very simply jam whisked together with a bit of honey to loosen it up a bit. I find it goes very well with the richness of the cheese filling. And I am rather lazy . . . I put my hand up . . . anything for an easy life.



I converted the measurements fo North American for my North American Friends and left out her cooked blueberry topping completely. Those are my changes.
The cake itself is rich and yes . . . indulgent, with a creamy cheese filling topped with an even creamier sour cream/yoghurt topping.



The blueberry topping???? Well, it's just the icing on a very delicous and moreish dessert. Do make sure you chill this properly before cutting and do use a wet and very sharp knife to cut. You will have no problems getting perfect slices if you follow those two pieces of advice . . . oh, and line the pan leaving some handles for lifting the ice cold cheesecake out of the pan. I find this works much better than using a springform pan . . .



Oh, and a square pan makes for nice even slices that look very pretty on the plate. I think so anyways. Enjoy! I did! (I am soooo not looking forward to my weigh -in this week!)



*Vanilla Cheesecake with a Simple Topping*
Serves 8 to 10
Printable Recipe

Lush and delicious. I top mine with a mixture of blueberry jam and honey, but you could use any jam you like. It makes an easy topping.

For the crust:
50g of unsalted butter (3 1/2 TBS)
110g of digestive or otehr wheaten biscuits, crushed into fine crumbs
(1 1/4 cup of graham cracker crumbs)

For the first layer:
two (200g) tube of full fat cream cheese (two 7.5 ounce tubs)
2 large free range eggs
100g of caster sugar (1/2 cup of fine sugar)
1/4 tsp vanilla extract

For the Second Layer:
284ml carton of sour cream (1 1/4 cup)
150ml of Greek style yoghurt (2/3 cup)
2 1/2 TBS of caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

To top:
4 to 5 dessert spoons of wild blueberry jam
(I used bon maman)
2 TBS of liquid honey

Preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 5. Have ready an 9 inch square baking tin. Butter it well. Line it with some baking parchment, leaving an overhang, and then butter the baking parchment.
Set aside.

Melt the butter, cool slightly and then stir in the crushed biscuits. Press evenly and firmly into the base of the pan.

Beat all of the ingredients for the first layer together, making sure they are completely mixed and smooth. Pour over the biscuit base. Smooth over the top. Place onto a baking tray and then bake it in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, until just set. Remove from the oven and set aside for a further 20 minutes in order to let it set up.

Whisk together the ingredients for the second layer, until smooth and completely combined. Spoon this mixture evenly over top of the first layer. Return to the oven and bake for a further 10 minutes. Allow to cool completely. Place in the refrigerator to chill overnight.

The next day, gently warm the blueberry jam. Stir in the honey. Set aside to cool somewhat.

When you are ready to serve the cake. Gently loosen the edges with a sharp knife and lift the cake out onto a cutting board. Wet the knife and carefully cut into 8 or 10 narrow slices. Place each onto a chilled plate and then spoon some of the blueberry sauce over top. Serve.

Note: You don't need to use blueberry jam for the topping. Strawberry, Raspberry, Cherry and Apricot are each also VERY good!



The Toddster cooked me dinner and did a pretty good job. I think he had some help from M&S, but that's ok. I enjoyed it anyways, and I appreciated the effort he took . . . not to mention the thought.