I have a beautiful cake recipe to share with you today that is very seasonal and quite, QUITE delicious! It comes from one of those little cook booklets that you can find near the Grocery Tills all over North America, entitled Fall Baking, Gold Medal, published in the Autumn of the year 2000. I must have purchased it not too long before moving over here. I always loved those booklets that the different companies would put out (like Betty Crocker and Pillsbury, etc.) They were always filled with a lot of lovely recipes and I have a few which I have kept through the years that have become members of my family!
I used to think that it was really difficult to bake a bundt cake that looked terrible, but I think I was wrong . . . haha. This is not the prettiest cake in the world, but what it lacks for in looks, it more than makes up in flavour!
Be warned you will need a LARGE bowl to mix this up in, and it will only use up roughly half a tin of pumpkin, but not to worry, I am sure you will find a use for the remaining pumpkin and if not, you can easily freeze it in a plastic container to use again another day.
The cake itself is moist and delicious . . . moist from both the pumpkin and the use of yogurt/sour cream. Cakes which are baked with even one of those things are moist, but to have both, well, you have got a winner here!
There is a full tablespoon of ground cinnamon in the batter itself. Not to worry . . . its perfect, and you should smell this when it is baking! WOWSA! the smell of this will have the family rushing into the kitchen to see what's up, forks in hand!
Our landlord and the Engineer were here to fix our shower and their taste buds were tingling at the smell. Unfortunately they were gone by the time it came out of the oven. (More for me!)
What makes this cake a bit different from other pumpkin cakes is that there is a fabulous ribbon of spicy brown sugar streusel running through the middle of it.
This adds even more flavour and interested to an already pretty special cake!
It needs no frosting, just a light dusting of icing sugar to dress it up and that is only if you want to. It doesn't really need it.
Interestingly enough when I first moved over here to the UK, it was nigh on to impossible to get a tin of pureed pumpkin in this country, unless you paid a premium price at an American Import company. Thankfully that is not the case any longer and you can find it at most good shops. It is still a bit pricey, but every now and then you luck in. Our local Aldi had it one year and I think I bought 10 tins of it. I think the cashier thought I was nuts.
Its not really difficult to use up 10 tins of pureed pumpkin, especially when you have tasty things to do with it like this cake. (Be sure to use the Pureed Pumpkin and not the Pumpkin Pie Filling.)
This is perfect to be enjoyed on a chilly Autumn day as you sit by the fire drinking a lovely hot drink with the one you love.
You truly can't get much better than that . . .
Yield: 16
Pumpkin Streusel Cake
prep time: 15 minscook time: 1 hourtotal time: 1 hours and 15 mins
A moist autumn cake with a deliciously spiced brown sugar streusel running through the centre.
ingredients:
For the streusel:
100g soft light brown sugar (1/2 cup, packed)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice (see my recipe)
2 tsp butter, softened
For the cake:
420g plain flour (3 cups)
2 tsp baking soda
1 TBS ground cinnamon
1 tsp salt
240g butter, softened (1 cup)
380g granulated sugar (2 cups)
4 large free range eggs
180g pumpkin puree (1 cup, NOT pumpkin pie filling)
120g sour cream or plain yogurt (1 cup)
1 tsp vanilla extract
powdered sugar to dust the finished cake (optional)
instructions:
Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Grease and flour a 12
cup bundt pan, tapping out any excess. Make the pumpkin streusel by
rubbing all of the ingredients together until crumbly. Set aside.
cup bundt pan, tapping out any excess. Make the pumpkin streusel by
rubbing all of the ingredients together until crumbly. Set aside.
Whisk
together the flour, soda, cinnamon and salt. Beat the butter together
with the sugar until creamy, scraping the bowl occasionally. Beat in the
eggs, two at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the
pumpkin, sour cream and vanilla. Gradually beat in the flour on low
speed, until well blended.
together the flour, soda, cinnamon and salt. Beat the butter together
with the sugar until creamy, scraping the bowl occasionally. Beat in the
eggs, two at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the
pumpkin, sour cream and vanilla. Gradually beat in the flour on low
speed, until well blended.
Spread half the
batter in the cake tin. Sprinkle the streusel over the batter making
sure it doesn't touch the sides. Top with the remaining batter, making
sure the batter does touch the sides of the pan.
batter in the cake tin. Sprinkle the streusel over the batter making
sure it doesn't touch the sides. Top with the remaining batter, making
sure the batter does touch the sides of the pan.
for 55 to 60 minutes, until well risen and a toothpick inserted in the
cake comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 30 minutes before removing to
a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar to serve.
Created using The Recipes Generator
It was very gloomy today with the skies threatening of rain all day, but it never quite happened. I had a difficult time taking really appealing photos of the cake. I hope I did it justice. I really did try. Bon Weekend and Happy Thanksgiving to all my Canadian family and friends!
I make fried rice a lot. We usually don't have it as a side dish, but as a main dish and I have always found it a great way to use up leftover cooked meats, along with any bits and bobs from the vegetable drawer that are not enough on their own, but when put together go fabulous in this!
I actually didn't use chicken today, but some turkey that I had which was on the verge of going out of date, which makes this a great dish to make after Thanksgiving or Christmas.
I love the flavour of Chinese Five Spice Powder. Five-spice powder is a spice mixture of five or more spices used predominantly in Chinese and Taiwanese cuisine. It is also used less commonly in other Asian and Arabic cuisines, and can be used for cocktails as well.
The spices traditionally used are Sechwan peppercorns, star anise, ground cloves, cinnamon and ground fennel seeds. On the surface they don't like much like things that would go together, but trust me when I say that together these are like umami magic! I have also seen turmeric, ginger root and cardamom used.
When I made my fried rice these days, I most often use the precooked packages of brown rice. Each pouch serves 2 people generously, and it is perfect for this use. My MIL who taught me how to make fried rice (and she learnt from a neighbour many moons ago) used Minute Rice. I have always used regular rice, and now . . . the precooked rice, and these days I use brown rice instead of white as it is more nutritious.
I grate in my carrot and any other root vegetables I am using. I like to use Swede. It works great in this. And I always use finely shredded, chopped white cabbage as I like the flavour it gives to the dish.
Can you see my every present kitchen companion in this photo? Mitzie is never far away when I am cooking, ever hopeful that I will drop something or let her taste something. I often give her carrots ends and stuff like that. She loves raw vegetables. (Never feed dogs, corn or potato or onion.)
You can use all peas or a mix of peas and corn. I like both for the extra colour they bring to the dish.
Chopped red pepper also adds colour, but you can use any colour of pepper you have. Green is nice and I have always liked to add chopped celery as well, although today I did not.
I always add some beaten egg which I scramble right in the pan, along with some soy sauce. A splash of toasted Sesame oil is also a tasty addition if you have any.
Todd always likes an extra piece of chicken with his. I cooked him a breaded chicken breast which he enjoyed along with some of my homemade Ketjap Manis drizzled on top!
Yield: 4 - 6
Five Spice Chicken Fried Rice
prep time: 15 minscook time: 15 minstotal time: 30 mins
Quick and easy to make, and delicious. I use ready cooked rice and leftover cooked chicken for this.
ingredients:
2 pouches cooked brown rice (each with 2 servings)
250g cooked chicken, cubed (2 cups)
2 tsp Chinese five spice
2 TBS sunflower oil
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
1 red pepper, deseeded, trimmed and diced
1 small carrot, peeled and diced
150g frozen baby peas (1 cup)
(Can use a mix of corn and peas if you wish)
2 large free range eggs, beaten lightly with 2 TBS cold water
1 TBS soy sauce
3 to 4 spring onions, washed, trimmed and thinly slicedinstructions:
Toss the chicken with the five spice mix. Stir fry to
heat through in half the oil for a few minutes until fragrant. Add the
garlic and vegetables. Stir fry til cooked through and crispy tender,
about 5 minutes Push to one side. Put the oil in the clear space and
add the eggs. Scramble lightly, then mix into the vegetables along with
the rice and soy sauce. Cook, stirring, until all are heated through.
Stir through the spring onions. Serve immediately.
heat through in half the oil for a few minutes until fragrant. Add the
garlic and vegetables. Stir fry til cooked through and crispy tender,
about 5 minutes Push to one side. Put the oil in the clear space and
add the eggs. Scramble lightly, then mix into the vegetables along with
the rice and soy sauce. Cook, stirring, until all are heated through.
Stir through the spring onions. Serve immediately.
Note
- You can add some thinly sliced cabbage, diced swede, chopped broccoli
stems, etc. to the vegetable mix. Just choose what you like. You can also use the equivalent in leftover cooked turkey for this, or fresh boneless skinless chicken breast cubed. In the case of the fresh chicken chicken breast, cook it with the five spice until the juices run clear.
- You can add some thinly sliced cabbage, diced swede, chopped broccoli
stems, etc. to the vegetable mix. Just choose what you like. You can also use the equivalent in leftover cooked turkey for this, or fresh boneless skinless chicken breast cubed. In the case of the fresh chicken chicken breast, cook it with the five spice until the juices run clear.
You can also use 300g uncooked rice (1 1/2 cups) cooked in the place of the ready cooked rice.
Created using The Recipes Generator
If you are looking for a quick and easy supper dish, you can't go wrong with this. You can use leftover cooked chicken, pork, dry scrambled ground beef, lamb or turkey. Its really very adaptable! Happy Friday and Bon Appetit!
No English Tea Party would be complete without a tray of beautiful Scones. Is it scone that rhymes with "on", or is it scone that rhymes with "stone"?? Who knows for sure!!
It sounds mighty delicious no matter which way you say it.
If asked what the difference between a scone and a North American
baking powder biscuit is, I would have to say first and foremost, it is
in the preparation. I thought it would be fun today to do a tutorial for you on how to prepare and bake the classic English scone.
North American baking powder biscuits generally use all vegetable fat, and sometimes
cream. Scones usually use all butter, and sometimes butter and cream.
The two things are not the same thing at all, no matter how similar they might look. Scones are sweeter as well, which makes them perfect for enjoying with a hot cuppa. Biscuits are flaky and Scones are crumbly. They really are not the same thing at all, no matter how similar they may look.
When making scones, the first thing you will want to do is to sift your flour baking powder and salt into a bowl I find that aerating the flour in this way makes for a lighter scone. Sifting it together with the baking powder and salt ensures that all are mixed together evenly.
I do this from about 6 to 8 inches above the bowl, which really helps the air to get in there. I also always use self raising flour. You can buy it ready made or make your own. I give instructions on how to that on the main page.
Once you have done this it is time to add the butter. I will be honest here, I have never really been able to tell much difference between using sweet or salted butter.
But then again, I use Lurpak, lightly salted and that is not very salty to begin with. I love Lurpak. It is a danish butter and is always my butter of choice.
Make sure your butter is really cold. right from the refrigerator. Cut it into cubes quickly. I just measure it and then using a sharp knife cube it right into the bowl. Remember you want it to stay as cold as possible.
If you think it has warmed up too much, stick it onto a plate and pop it back into the refrigerator or even into the freezer for a few minutes. Warm hands can be somewhat of an enemy here, as well as when you are making pastry.
Once you have the butter in the bowl take your thumb and first two fingers on each hand and rub the butter into the flour using a snapping motion. Snap, snap, snap. Use the tips of your fingers.
When you are done it will look like fine dry bread crumbs. You really don't want any larger bits if you can help it. It should also look a bit like wet sand.
It is then that you can take a round bladed knife and stir in the sugar. You might think it is strange stirring the sugar into the flour mixture like this. It does seem a bit backwards.
But trust me when I tell you to do it this way. Scones have been made this way for years and years with great success.
It is now also that you will stir in the raisins. I like lots of raisins in mine. But people also use dried currants (which are smaller) and sometimes other dried fruit and berries. Stir them in with the round bladed knife also.
If you are not fond of raisins you can use another dried fruit such as dried blueberries or dried cranberries. Chopped dried dates also work well. For this particular recipe you do not want to use wet fruit.
Then you are going to make a hollow in the middle of this mixture and pour in your wet ingredients, stirring them in once again with a round bladed knife, to give you a soft, slightly tacky dough that holds well together.
Don't be afraid or think you have done something wrong because the dough is tacky or a bit sticky. This is as it should be.
Tip this out onto a lightly floured board and knead gently for a couple of turns. Lightly floured is best. You don't want to add to much additional flour to the dough by using too much.
You also only knead it for a very few times. If you overhandle any dough such as scones or pastry (or even biscuits) you run the risk of toughening them.
Once it has all come together nicely you can then pat it out to a one-inch thickness. I favour patting it over rolling it.
Its time to cut them out now. I use a 2 or 3 inch sharp round cutter, and I prefer the straight edge rather than the fluted edge of the cutter. Using a sharp up and down tapping motion, cut out as many as you can from this first patting out.
Once you have cut them out, you can gently rework the scraps and cut out more, but bear in mind that they will not be as nice as the first cut, so do try to get as many as you can from the first cut.
DO NOT twist the cutter. If you twist the cutter when you are cutting them, your scones will bake all lop-sided.
Place them evenly spaced on a paper lined baking sheet. I brush the tops lightly with an egg beaten with a tiny bit of water.
Make sure you only brush the tops and don't let the egg wash drip down the sides. This will hamper the rise.
That's it. Its all up to the oven now. Just pop the scones on the baking sheet into the pre-heated oven and bake as per the recipe.
If you look at the sheet of finished baked scones above you can clearly see which ones were from the first cut and which from the second. (I would never cut three times.) The first cut are even. The second cuts a bit rougher looking.
At the end of the day perfect or rough, these scone, no matter how they look, they will be delicious. You will want to enjoy them with some cream and jam, for the ultimate English experience.
Over here tea-rooms make a good business out of serving scones with cream and jam. Clotted cream if you can get it is beautiful, but you can also use whipped heavy cream.
That's what they call a "Cream Tea" over here in the UK, and there is much debate about which goes first onto the split scone . . . the cream or the jam.
Wars have been fought over that choice. Just kidding, however there has been some very heated discussions about this topic!
This can vary greatly according to which part of the country you come from. Each county has their own idea of what is proper and what is right. It is a subject of much debate.
If you put the jam first, the cream tends to slide off . . .
I like to put the cream on first myself, as it helps to cradle the jam and keep it in place . . . but at the end of the day it doesn't really matter I don't think.
It all ends up in the same place. Jam first or cream first.
They are delicious no matter which you put on first. I personally like strawberry jam with mine, but lemon curd is also very nice. Some people like cherry jam, others honey.
The sweetness of whatever you choose to use helps to accentuate the richness of the cream. And of course all of it goes beautifully with those rich crumbly fruit studded scones.
I don't think there is a prettier or a more delicious sight than a fabulously light and perfectly baked scone topped with cream (clotted or whipped) and some jam. This is heaven to me!
Put the kettle on for there is only one perfect thing to enjoy with these delicious delights! A pot of hot teas, steaming. Will that be one lump or two?
Yield: 10
Classic English Scones
prep time: 20 minscook time: 10 minstotal time: 30 mins
These are buttery and flaky tender with just the right amount of sticky sultanas. Serve with cream and jam for a real treat!
ingredients:
350g self raising flour ( 2 1/2 cups)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
75g of cold butter (5 1/2 TBS)
30g Caster sugar (2 1/2 TBS, superfine sugar)
75g sultana raisins (1/2 cup)
approximately 150ml milk (scant 2/3 cup)
2 large free range eggs, beaten
granulated sugar to sprinkle plus flour for dusting
75g of cold butter (5 1/2 TBS)
30g Caster sugar (2 1/2 TBS, superfine sugar)
75g sultana raisins (1/2 cup)
approximately 150ml milk (scant 2/3 cup)
2 large free range eggs, beaten
granulated sugar to sprinkle plus flour for dusting
instructions:
Preheat the oven to 220*C/425*F/ gas mark 7. Butter a large baking tray. Alternately line it with greaseproof paper.
Measure
the flour into a bowl along with the baking powder. (Pour the flour in
from on high to aerate it.) Whisk together. Drop in the cold butter
in bits. Using your fingertips rub the butter in quickly until the
mixture resembles fine dry bread crumbs. Stir in the sugar and
raisins.
Beat the eggs. Remove and set 2 TBS aside. Add
100ml (scant 1/2 cup) of the milk to the eggs and beat together. Add
this to the flour mixture. Mix together with the rounded end of a
butter knife to form a soft but slightly tacky dough. Only add the
remainder of the milk if your dough is too dry and you want to absorb
any dry bits in the bowl. The dough should NOT be too wet, but not too
dry either. Tip out onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently a
couple of times to bring well together. Gently pat out to 1 inch
thick. Using a sharp round 3 inch cutter, cut out rounds, using a
direct up and down motion. Do not twist the cutter. Place the cut out
scones an inch or so apart on the baking sheet. Gather any trimmings
together and repeat until you have 10 scones.
Brush the
tops of the scones with the reserved beaten egg and sprinkle with a bit
of granulated sugar. Don't let the egg drip down the sides.
Bake
for about 10 minutes, until risen and golden on top and bottoms.
Remove to a wire rack to cool. Store in an airtight container. Best
eaten on the day. Any leftovers can be frozen for several months.
Measure
the flour into a bowl along with the baking powder. (Pour the flour in
from on high to aerate it.) Whisk together. Drop in the cold butter
in bits. Using your fingertips rub the butter in quickly until the
mixture resembles fine dry bread crumbs. Stir in the sugar and
raisins.
Beat the eggs. Remove and set 2 TBS aside. Add
100ml (scant 1/2 cup) of the milk to the eggs and beat together. Add
this to the flour mixture. Mix together with the rounded end of a
butter knife to form a soft but slightly tacky dough. Only add the
remainder of the milk if your dough is too dry and you want to absorb
any dry bits in the bowl. The dough should NOT be too wet, but not too
dry either. Tip out onto a lightly floured surface and knead gently a
couple of times to bring well together. Gently pat out to 1 inch
thick. Using a sharp round 3 inch cutter, cut out rounds, using a
direct up and down motion. Do not twist the cutter. Place the cut out
scones an inch or so apart on the baking sheet. Gather any trimmings
together and repeat until you have 10 scones.
Brush the
tops of the scones with the reserved beaten egg and sprinkle with a bit
of granulated sugar. Don't let the egg drip down the sides.
Bake
for about 10 minutes, until risen and golden on top and bottoms.
Remove to a wire rack to cool. Store in an airtight container. Best
eaten on the day. Any leftovers can be frozen for several months.
Created using The Recipes Generator
If you follow my directions and use a light hand in the preparation you are going to be rewarded with beautifully risen, light and fluffy scones. With jam, honey or lemon curd, you are in for a real treat.
These are perfect for teatime, coffee break, breakfast, elevenses, etc. In short, they are perfect for enjoying ANY time!
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