I wish you could smell my house right now. It smells really cosy. What is it about the warm baking spices and gingerbread that makes us feel right at home sweet home??
I have been baking these small batch Gingerbread Cookie Bars and let me tell you, our house smells truly A - MAZE - ING! Truly splendiferous!!
These might not look like much, but trust me, they are destined to become a firm favourite. Todd just loves them. He loves anything Gingerbread, as do I.
They are crisp edged and chewy middled. The recipe makes exactly 8 nice sized bars. No more, no less. I suppose you could cut them larger, but there is such a thing as too much goodness, and that would be it.
Eight bars is just the perfect size for us. We are only two. I find these days that if I bake anything in large numbers, it just doesn't get used up.
The empty nest sure takes getting used to. For years and years I cooked for seven people. Now there are only two of us. It has taken me a while to adjust.
I suppose when we do get company (my oldest son and daughter are supposed to be coming over at some point) I will have to try to expand my recipes again!
They were originally supposed to be coming for the month of April, but alas the Pandemic put an end to those plans. Now we are hoping that they will be able to come next year. Fingers and toes are being crossed on both sides of the pond!
These lush bars are buttery and flavoured with molasses and vanilla, as well as plenty of warm baking spices. I do so love the warm baking spices, don't you??
Cinnamon, Ginger, Cloves, Allspice . . . they are all in there . . . you could also add a touch of ground cardamom as well if you wished. It would not go amiss.
The icing is a simple lemon buttercream. Basic buttercream icings are very simple to make. Just pop everything into a bowl and beat on high with an electric whisk. Butter, (I like Lurpak lightly salted) cream, icing sugar and lemon extract.
Just beat them together until the mixture is light, fluffy and smooth. If you want your icing to be a bit thinner, you can add a smidgen more cream, or a small splash of milk.
I think it is pretty perfect just as it is. Just look there . . . delicious . . .ooey, chewy centred. What a fabulous looking mouthful.
I just adore the crisp edges and I love the chewy middles and I love that frosting. It is sweet and tangy and rich and goes so perfectly with the flavours of gingerbread.
These lush cookie bars are perfectly at home with ice cold glasses of milk or hot cups of tea or coffee . . . whatever it is you personally enjoy with things like these.
I had to have a taste of course, just to make sure they were okay before I fed them to Todd. I wouldn't want him to have to eat anything nasty . . .
Its a tough job but somebody has to do it. I am always willing to take the bullet for just such a cause, and I'm afraid my hips show it!
Moderation is evidentally not really a part of my vocabulary. That's another reason why small batch recipes work well for me. There is far less temptation for me to have to deal with.
Just because you are a small family that doesn't mean you can't enjoy the same things that larger families enjoy. These are perfect.
You can freeze any leftovers, or keep them in an airtight container for about a week, no problem. I am pretty sure, however, that these won't be around that long to worry about their storage.
Lemon Frosted Gingerbread Cookie Bars
Yield: Makes 8 bars
prep time: 10 Mcook time: 25 Mtotal time: 35 M
Todd just adores these soft and chewy Gingerbread Bars. He doesn't like anything too hard. These are crisp edged and chewy middled. With their sweet lemon buttercream frosting, they always go down a real treat!
Ingredients:
For the Bars:
- 1/4 cup butter, softened (60g)
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar (50g)
- 1/4 cup soft light brown sugar, packed (50g)
- 1 large free range egg yolk (freeze the white to make angelfood cake at another time)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 TBS molasses
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- pinch each cloves and nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 cup all purpose flour (140g)
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
For the Lemon frosting:
- 1 cup sifted icing sugar (130g)
- 1 TBS butter softened
- 1 TBS cream
- 1/2 tsp lemon extract
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 160*C/325*F/ gas mark 3. Butter an 8 by six inch baking dish and line with baking paper so that you can remove the bars easily. Set aside.
- Cream together the butter and both sugars. Beat in the egg yolk, vanilla and molasses until light and creamy
- Sift the flour together with the spices, salt and baking soda. Add to the creamed mixture and mix together until combined and there are no longer any white streaks. Press this dough into your prepared pan.
- Bake in the preheated oven for about 25 minutes. It will be golden around the edges and puffed up. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely in the pan. (It will sink in the middle, don't worry that's what is supposed to happen.)
- To make the icing, beat all of the ingredients together until light and creamy. If you think it is a bit too stiff, add a crop more cream. Spread this into the sunken area of the bars once they are completely cold.
- Cut into 8 bars to serve. Store any leftovers in an airtight container.
Make sure you come to visit me on Monday, I have a fabulous Giveaway to share with you for something that is really REALLY delicious!
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One thing which we really enjoy eating in our home are curries. Before I moved over to the UK, I had no idea that there was any more than just one kind of curry. I had been introduced to curry by a British friend in Alberta back in the early 1980's.
It was love at first bite, but it was a rather limited introduction I have to say, especially when compared to what I have come to since learn about curries and such after moving here! And not all of them come from India! There are many, many varieties to enjoy from many Asian nations.
This Chicken/Butternut Squash Samla Curry recipe I am sharing today comes from Vietnam! I was recently send a box of spices and some recipes to try from the Embracability Charity.
In my lifetime, I have been really lucky. Although I did not grow up in a wealthy home, I have never known a time of true hunger or need. Never. This has been one of my life's greatest blessings.
Unfortuntately that is not so in much of the world. I have read statistically if you go to bed tonight safe, warm, fed and adequately clothes, then you are amongst the top 2% wealthiest people in the world, which kind of helps to put things into perspective.
It was love at first bite, but it was a rather limited introduction I have to say, especially when compared to what I have come to since learn about curries and such after moving here! And not all of them come from India! There are many, many varieties to enjoy from many Asian nations.
This Chicken/Butternut Squash Samla Curry recipe I am sharing today comes from Vietnam! I was recently send a box of spices and some recipes to try from the Embracability Charity.
In my lifetime, I have been really lucky. Although I did not grow up in a wealthy home, I have never known a time of true hunger or need. Never. This has been one of my life's greatest blessings.
Unfortuntately that is not so in much of the world. I have read statistically if you go to bed tonight safe, warm, fed and adequately clothes, then you are amongst the top 2% wealthiest people in the world, which kind of helps to put things into perspective.
Cambodia has one of the highest disability rates in the developing
world. Disability and poverty are inextricably linked. Statistically
speaking, families with even one disabled family member are highly
likely to be more disadvantaged and poorer than their non-disabled
peers.
In a country where there is limited access to health care and
relatively few disabiliy rehabilitation centres, this puts them at an
great disadvantage.
The charity EmbraceAbility
is a not for profit charitable organisation who provide therapy,
education and support to children with disabilities and their families
in Cambodia.
A short distance from the capital city of Cambodia, Koh Dach, or Silk
Island, is its own world of farmers and floodplains; silk weavers and
shortfall.
It is here that EmbraceAbiliy has made its home, providing
services aimed at empowering children with disabilities and their
families to lift themselves from poverty; promoting their dignity and
independence so that they may participate fully in their communities.
EmbraceAbility will be opening a daycare centre on Koh Dach Island, the
first of its kind, to provide a safe space for children to receive
rehabilitation and education tailored to their needs and abilities.
Malnutrition remains critical in Cambodia, with stunting affecting 332%
of children under the age of 5, among the highest rates in the region.
Your donation can help play a vital part of tackling food insecutiry by
providing two nutritious hot meals a day alongside a healthy snack at
the daycare centre.
If you would like to find out where and how you can make a difference to these children in need check out the EmbraceAbility website to learn more. Just a small amount can make a huge difference to these children.
For a small donation you can receive a box of spices and recipes to use them in. You can click here to buy one for yourself. The Spices from Silk Island Spice Box contains four delicious and authentic Cambodian recipes with the spices delivered straight to your door.
All proceeds will go towards EmbraceAbility, with £5 from every box providing nutritious meals for children at their Community Daycare and Rehabilitation Centre, the first of its kind, opening soon. Cook for a cause with EmbraceAbility!
This curry was meant to be either a vegetarian Butternut Squash curry or a Chicken curry. I decided to use some of both.
This is a Vietnamese/Thai style of curry in that it used lemon grass and curry leaves as a flavouring along with fish sauce. Most curries from that area of the world will contain these.
Indian curries are completely different in many ways. Some of the same spices will be used of course, but there is a distinct difference.
Both are delicious in their own unique ways, and we do love them all in our home. Just the smell of one cooking makes me feel hungry.
This curry is rich, colourful and very fragrant . . . and the coconut rice is the perfect accompaniment.
You could of course do a simple steamed rice is coconut is not your bag, but if you like coconut, I highly recommend making it as per the recipe.
Just looking at these photographs has me craving it all over again! I will have to make sure that I have everything in to make it again for us really soon!
Chicken Butternut Squash Samla Curry
Yield: 2
prep time: 10 Mcook time: 20 Mtotal time: 30 M
A curry with a really delicious combination of spicy and creamy. You can make with either chicken or butternut squash, or both. Sized just for two.
Ingredients:
- 1 red pepper, trimmed and cut into strips
- 1 garlic clove, peeled
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 fresh lemongrass stem
- 3 dried lime leaves
- 1 tsp dried chili
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 large chicken breast fillet/medium sized butternut squash cut into squares
- 2 TBS roasted peanuts (25g)
- 1/2 cup fine green beans (80g)
- 1/2 cup Basmati rice (125g)
- 2 1/2 tsp fish sauce/vegetarian fish sauce (15ml)
- 2 ounces coconut cream (50g)
- spring of fresh coriander
Instructions:
- Remove the outer layer of lemongrass and chop the soft inner stem into fine pieces.
- Add the basmati rice, 1 cup (250ml) cold water, the outer lemongrass layers and a pinch of salt to a saucepan wih a lid and bring to the boil over high heat. Once boiling, reduce heat to very low and cook, covered for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the water is absorbed. Once cooked, remove from the heat and keep covered until serving.
- Dissolve the coconut cream in 1 cup (250ml) boiling water and add the lime leaves, fish sauce and sugar. This is your coconut stock.
- Heat a large pan with a drizzle of oil over medium high heat. Add the chicken/butternut squash and turmeric and cook for 1 to 2 minutes.
- Once fragrant add the red pepper, garlic, ginger and lemongrass and cook for a further 2 to 3 minutes.
- Cut the green beans in half.
- Add the coconut stock, green beans and a pinch of salt to the pan and cook for 10 minutes, or until the sauce has thickened to a curry-like consistency.
- Roughly chop the peanuts, or bash in a bag with a rolling pin.
- Serve the curry hot, with the lemongrass rice and garnish with chopped/bashed peanuts and fresh coriander.
I do hope that you will want to try some really tasty recipes and in the process help to support this very worthy cause!!
4 x Traditional Cambodian recipe cards
- 3 x Refillable jars containing:
- Turmeric (40g)
- Ground Ginger (40g)
- Dried chilli (40g)
- Fresh Lemongrass (40g)
- Cambodian Chicken/Butternut Squash Curry
- Coconut Cream Bananas and Tapioca Coconut
- Shrimp/Tofu Soup Lemongrass
- Chicken/Tofu Skewers
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The
English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are
reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you
may report it to me at: theenglishkitchen@mail.com
I saw a recipe the other day for Cherry and Almond Muffins which quite took my fancy. It was on a blog called Pretty Sweet Simple.
They looked right up our alley, however I did not feel that we could eat 12 muffins between us, and I don't have a lot of room in my freezer.
Todd is always complaining that I have our freezers filled to the hilt. What can I say?? Guilty as charged, but it has saved our bacon more than once.
You never know when a calamity is going to arise and having a bit of
food storage to fall back on is pretty helpful under those conditions. When this Pandemic hit for instance.
We were unable to go to the shops and it was really difficult to get a slot for online shopping. Having a bit extra (not hoarding) made all the difference in the world to us and kept us going until we could get a delivery slot worked out.
So, with no room in my freezer, today I decided to small batch the recipe, making only six medium sized muffins. If you want the full size recipe, do check out the original recipe.
I also decided not to add the flaked almonds to the batter. I didn't see where they would add anything to the muffin. I could be wrong of course, but I made the choice not to add them.
I did add a few extra cherries, but not many as I didn't want soggy muffins. I used frozen pitted cherries, which I cut in half.
There is always that temptation to want to add extra fruit, etc. when you are making baked goodies. In most cases however, you will run the risk of ruining your bake. Less is often more in many instances.
I was really suprised when I saw how tall they rose! I think the initial baking at the high temperature is responsible for that.
It gives them an extra boost. Just don't forget to turn the oven down after the initial five minute bake or you will have burnt muffin tops!
The muffin top has always been my favourite part of any muffin, but in a case like that, I highly doubt it would be!
These are nice and moist. They do run just this side of being a cupcake. That's a risk when it comes to muffin making. The difference between the two textures are very different things.
Cakes have a much lighter texture. You don't want many holes in a cake. Muffins are denser and you do want lots of holes in a well baked muffin. These were very close to being cake-like, but thankfully still muffins.
There is yogurt in the muffins, which adds to their moistness and also helps to get that high rise, especially when combined with baking soda.
Anything which is acidic in bakes, such as yogurt, sourcream, or buttermilk requires the addition of baking soda to help them rise. Its a chemical reaction.
There is baking powder as well, but the acid from the yogurt in these reacts with the baking soda to give you the perfect lift.
Nice and tall. It also helps to not overmix the batter. Many people make that mistake and end up with tough flat muffins. You just want to mix until the dry ingredients are uniformly wet.
A few dry streaks are alright and lumps are absolutely permissable, quite acceptable, and absolutely desirable!
This is very different than making a cake batter when you want everything to be smooth and lump free. Where extra beating actually puts air into the cake and helps to lift it.
Unlike cooking, baking is an exact science, that must be adhered to. I hear so many people complaining when recipes don't work out.
In truth it is not the fault of the recipe, but the result of their playing around with things too much. How often have I seen in different reviews. I added this, and I took away that, and I did this and I did that, but they didn't work out. This is a crummy recipe!!! Not so!! This is a crummy baker!
Not the recipe's fault. Pure and simple. Exact science. Baking is an exact science without much room for play.
So many people try to play around with baking recipes and then they wonder why they don't turn out, blaming the recipe, but really . . . its them . . .
I fancied these muffins up with a light dusting of icing sugar to serve, but you needn't do. They are beautiful just as they are.
Its a bit like wearing a petticoat with a pretty dress, however. You don't really need it, but it adds a special bit of something. A certain "Je ne sais quoi!"
Cherry Almond Muffins
Yield: 6 medium muffins
prep time: 10 Mcook time: 22 Mtotal time: 32 M
These delicious muffins are stuffed with fresh cherries.
Ingredients:
- 1 cup all purpose flour (140g)
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/8 tsp baking soda
- 6 1/2 TBS sugar (75g)
- 1 small free range egg, lightly beaten
- 3 TBS canola oil
- 1/2 cup plain yogurt (125g)
- 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 3/4 cup of cherries, pitted and halved (150g)
- flaked almonds to top
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 225*C/425*F/gas mark 7. Line a 6 cup muffin tin with paper liners. Set aside. (Alternately you can butter them very well.)
- Sift together the flour, soda, baking powder and salt. Make a well in the centre of the ingredients. Whisk together the yogurt, egg, extracts and oil. Add all at once to the dry ingredients and stir together just to combine.
- Carefully fold in the cherries.
- Divide the batter between the muffin cups and sprinkle some flaked almonds on top.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 5 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 190*C/375*F/gas mark 5. Bake for an additional 12 to 17 minutes, until well risen, golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.
- Cool in the pan for 8 to 10 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to finish cooling completely.
- Best eaten on the day but can be frozen for up to two months when properly wrapped.
Cherries can be quite a damp ingredient, so don't go overboard in adding them. I would think that any berry would also work well, like blackberries which are just now coming into season! Things like that you can play with, but again, don't go overboard!
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English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are
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I adore Biscuits, and by that I don't mean cookies, I mean North American style biscuits. Any soup or stew is immeasurably improved by the addition to the table of a nice basket of hot fresh biscuits.
I often have huge debates over the differences between Biscuits and Scones. Some people think that the two are the same thing and interchangeable, but in all honesty, they are two completely different things altogether!
There are some really significant differences between scones and biscuits. Scones typically have eggs in them and biscuits do not. Scones tend to be a little denser, drier, and not as flaky.
Just adding oats, fruit, herbs or anything else to a biscuit dough and cutting them in triangles does NOT make them a scone. Seriously. They may look identical in very many ways, but that is where any similarity stops!
The recipe I am sharing today for Yogurt Biscuits was adapted from the
Book, "Southern Biscuits," by Nathalie Dupree and Cynthia Graubart.
I was intrigued by the notion that you could make delicious biscuits with only flour, salt and yogurt. I just had to try them for myself.
They were incredibly easy to put together. They are basically just salt, self rising flour and yogurt. Do use full fat yogurt. I have it on the authority of Natalie that low fat yogurt does not work well. I believe her.
I did not try them with low fat yogurt, but when a professional tells you not to use it. I listen. They usually know what they are talking about. Trust me on this.
If you don't have self
raising flour, you can make your own. (For every cup of flour, sift
together 1 cup of flour, 1/2 tsp salt and 1 1/2 tsp of baking powder.) It
works a charm.
If I am making my own self raising flour, I will usually make five or six cups of it at a time. You will always use it up. I promise you it won't be a waste of your time or money. I have plenty of recipes on here that use self-raising flour.
Soft butter goes very well with hot biscuits and if you are serving biscuits on their own, why not make it a flavoured butter. Today I made Honey Cardamom Butter. Honey and Cardamom have a natural affinity for each other.
Both have incredible warmth. Its difficult to put into words, but both feel like hugs and kisses and home sweet home to me.
This natural affinity between honey and cardamom is almost as strong as the one for biscuits and any butter! What is a biscuit without butter? No quite the same.
Look at the height of these biscuits. These rise really, really high. Quite surprisingly high when you consider that there is only a few basic ingredients in them.
That's what you get when you use a very light touch and you don't twist the cutter when you are cutting. So many people end up with lopsided biscuits.
That can be prevented by cutting them out by tapping straight up and down with a sharp edged cutter. Straight up. Straight down. No twisting at all.
I used a 3 inch cutter, patting my dough out to 1-inch thickness. I got 8 lovely big biscuits. Eight big, lovely, fluffy, beautifully textured biscuits.
These are as light as a cloud. They almost float off the plate. Like an angel's wings or an angel's kiss. They are amazing.
If you use a 2 inch cutter you will get more biscuits obviously. I like my biscuits to be a bit of a handful most of the time. They are perfect for filling with things.
Smaller ones also have their uses however. Smaller ones are perfect for grouping on a plate and can trick people into thinking they are not quite eating as much as they would be were the biscuits larger in size.
You can cut biscuits rally small, like one inch in diameter and that size is perfect to be used filled with ham or smoked salmon as appetizers or pre-meal nibbles, meant to be served with drinks
These, however, were perfect just as they are . . . tall and light textured . . . with a beautifully flaky crumb. Mean to be enjoyed.
In short . . . biscuit perfection. Whether you are enjoying them with butter and something sweet, or sitting next to a hot bowl of soup or stew.
Obviously with a soup or stew you may want to leave off the Cardamom Butter, unless it is a creamy soup such as a roasted butternut squash or pumpkin. It might go rather well with those.
In any case, I really hope you will want to bake these. I am absolutely positive that you will enjoy them as much as we did.
Yogurt Biscuits & Honey Cardamom Butter
Yield: 6 - 8 (3-inch) biscuits)
prep time: 15 Mcook time: 15 Mtotal time: 30 M
Make sure you use full fat yogurt for these deliciously light and fluffy biscuits. If your yogurt is especially thick you can thin it with a bit of milk. These are fabulously tall, crisp on the outsides, tender inside, and go perfectly with the honey butter!
Ingredients:
For the Honey Cardamom Butter:
- 1/2 cup butter at room temperature (120g)
- 2 TBS honey
- 1 1/2 TBS icing sugar
- 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
For the Biscuits:
- 2 1/4 cups of self raising flour (315g)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup full fat yogurt (245g)
- softened butter for brushing (optional)
Instructions:
- To make the honey cardamom butter, beat all of the ingredients together in a bowl until evenly mixed. Scrape into a serving bowl. Cover and chill until needed.
- Preheat the oven to 225*C/450*F/ gas mark 7. Line a baking tray with baking paper.
- Measure (280g) 2 cups of the the flour into a bowl along with the salt and make a well in the centre. Add two thirds of the yogurt into the well, reserving the rest along with the remaining (35g)1/4 cup of flour. Use a spatula to mix the flour and yogurt together just until he mixture comes together and the dry ingredients are moisened and a sticky dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl. If you think the dough is too dry, add the remaining yogurt. If your dough is too wet, use more flour when shaping.
- Lightly sprinkle a board with some of the reserved flour. Turn the dough out and using floured hands, fold the dough in half and pat out to a 1/2-inch thick round using only as much flour as is needed. Flour again and repeat, patting the dough out to 1/2 inch thick for a normal biscuit, and 1 inch thick for a tall biscuit. (I like them tall.)
- Using a floured 3-inch cutter stamp out 8 biscuits. Take care not to twist the cutter or your biscuits will be lopsided. Try to get as many cuts as you can from the first cutting. Gather, pat out and recut the scraps. (These will be tougher which is why you want to get as many as you can from the first patting out.)
- Transfer all the biscuits to the lined baking tray.
- Bake the biscuits on the top rack of the oven for 6 minutes. Rotate the baking pan, back to front and then bake for a further 4 to 8 minutes until well risen and golden brown.
- Brush the tops with softened butter if desired. Serve warm with the Honey Cardamom Butter.
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The
English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are
reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you
may report it to me at: theenglishkitchen@mail.com
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