Vanilla Cake with Butter Icing

When making cakes, I always use real butter.  It gives the cake a wonderful taste and moisture.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
125g unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup full cream milk


Method:

Heat the oven to 200C (400F). Lightly coat a 20cm (8") cake pan with butter and dust with flour.
Sift the cake flour, baking powder, and salt into a large mixing bowl.
Beat in the butter one heaping 1/4 teaspoonful at a time, using an electric mixer set on low speed, until the mixture resembles coarse sand.
Beat in the sugar a tablespoon at a time, until the mixture resembles fine damp sand.
Beat in the eggs one at a time.
Add the vanilla and milk, and beat on medium-high, just until blended. Do not overbeat.
Pour into the prepared pan and bake until a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean — 30 to 35 minutes.
Cool cake in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes.
Un-mold and cool completely.
Cut horizontally into two halves
With a palette knife, smear butter icing onto one half and  then sandwich the two halves together
Decorate the top and sides with remaining butter icing.

Butter Icing

Ingredients:

120g butter
300g icing sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla essence

Method:

Sieve icing sugar to break lumps.

In a separate bowl, cream butter till soft. Add icing sugar, a little at a time, beating continuously. Add vanilla and continue beating until icing is creamy and fluffy.

Variation:

Chocolate butter icing:
Add 3 – 4 tsp of sifted cocoa powder to the icing above and beat until the cocoa powder is well blended in the icing.

Coffee butter icing:
Prepare the butter icing as above, but omit vanilla essence. Instead, add 1 tsp of instant coffee powder diluted in ¼ tsp water into the icing. Beat well.

Mocha butter icing:
Add 4 tsp of sifted cocoa powder into the coffee butter cream above. Beat well.

Prawn Risotto

My friend Errolene asked me to post a recipe for seafood Risotto, so here goes.


Ingredients:

2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 knobs of butter
1 1/2 cups Arborio rice
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
half an onion, finely chopped
small glass of white wine
2 cups stock, gently simmering in a pot ( I use - 1 cup chicken stock and 1 cup of the liquid from the cooked prawns)
10 cooked tiger prawns
50g frozen peas
2 green onions, finely chopped  (scallions for my US friend)
4 Tbsp freshly grated Parmesan cheese
salt and black pepper

Method:

Heat the olive oil and 1 knob of butter in a large pan. Gently fry the garlic and onion over a medium heat, until the onion is softened and translucent.
Add the rice and coat with the olive oil, garlic and onion mix. Cook for 2 minutes.
Pour in the white wine and cook until the liquid is absorbed. Once absorbed, add a ladle of the simmering stock and cook until absorbed. Continue until all of the stock is absorbed. Stir in the remaining butter, the Parmesan cheese, prawns, green onions and peas and seasoning. Cook gently for another 3 minutes to warm the prawns and cook the peas.
Serves 2.

Creme Caramel

When I was growing up, there always seemed to be enormous competition amongst the Portuguese ladies to see who could come up with the perfect Creme Caramel.  Don't ask me what that was all about, but seems like that's the yard stick to deciding who is the perfect housewife.  This is my version, I bastardized my mother's recipe cos she makes it way too sweet.


Ingredients:

1 1/4 cups sugar
1 cup cold water
250ml cream
1 1/2 cups milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 egg yolks

Method:

Combine 3/4 cup of the sugar and the water in a pot and cook whilst on low heat. When the sugar has melted, increase the heat until the syrup boils and turns golden in colour. (Take care that the sugar doesn't burn). Pour into an ovenproof ceramic dish and set aside to cool.


Combine the cream, milk and vanilla in a pot and heat through.  (just warmed, not hot) Remove the pot from the stove and set aside for 5 minutes.  Beat the egg yolks and sugar together in a bowl until frothy and the mixture is almost white. Add the cream mixture to the eggs and whisk well, pour back into the pot. Return to the stove and heat through (do not boil, cook or allow to thicken) while stirring. As soon as you see little bubbles forming on the side of the pot, remove from the heat. Pour the mixture through a fine sieve into the dish of sugar caramel.

Place the ceramic dish into a large oven baking dish and place in the oven. Pour hot water into the oven dish until it comes half way up the side of the ceramic dish.  (This called a Bain Marie)

Place into a preheated 180C (350F) oven and bake for 30 minutes. Allow to cool and refrigerate until totally cold. Carefully turn into a serving dish - Enjoy

Serves 6

Fried Chicken

Is there anything better than fried chicken?  It's the ultimate in comfort food.

Ingredients:

500ml buttermilk
A dash of Worcester sauce
A few drops of hot sauce
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp salt

8 pieces of chicken
2 cups of flour
2 Tbsp chicken stock powder
2 tsp lemon pepper
2 tsp paprika
1/2 teaspoon chili (or peri-peri)
2 eggs beaten
Oil for frying

Method:

Mix the buttermilk, garlic powder, Worcester sauce, hot sauce and salt. Pour into a large zip lock plastic bag and put the chicken pieces into the bag. Shake the bag to cover the chicken and place in the fridge for 4 hours to marinate.

In 2 separate plastic bags - divide all the dry ingredients equally.

Beat the eggs in a bowl

Heat the oil.

Remove the chicken fro the marinade. Put the chicken pieces in the 1st bag and coat (I just shake the bag). Put the chicken in the beaten egg and then into the second bag of flour mix. Carefully drop into the hot oil and fry until golden brown.  Remove and drain on paper towels on a cooling rack.

Banana Bread

Ingredients:

4 ripe bananas, smashed
1/3 cup melted butter
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups of cake flour

Method:


With a wooden spoon, mix butter into the mashed bananas in a large mixing bowl. Mix in the sugar, egg, and vanilla. Sprinkle the baking soda and salt over the mixture and mix in. Add the flour last and mix. Pour mixture into a buttered 10 x 20cm loaf pan.
Place in preheated 180C oven. Bake for 1 hour.  Cool on a rack.  Remove from pan and slice to serve.

Spaghetti Carbonara

Ingredients: 

1 packet streaky bacon
2 cloves freshly chopped garlic
4 large eggs, beaten
1 cup freshly-grated Parmesan or Pecorino cheese
500g spaghetti, cooked al dente
salt and pepper to taste.

Method:
 
In a large pot, fry the bacon strips until crispy, remove from the pan and place on paper towels.  Break the bacon in pieces.  Drain the bacon grease, leaving about 2 tablespoons in pot. Add the garlic and lightly fry. return. to the pot. Turn off the heat.

While the bacon is frying - in a separate pot, cook your pasta as per packet instructions and drain. Add the pasta to the bacon and stir to coat the pasta. remove the pot from the stove and swirl in the eggs and cheese. Make sure the eggs and cheese coat the pasta. Leave to stand for 5 minutes. Serve immediately.


Enjoy.  Serves 4-6

Blueberry Muffins

Ingredients:

2 cups self raising flour , sifted
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg, beaten
125g melted butter, cooled
3/4 cup milk
1 cup blueberries

Method:

Sift the flour and add the sugar.  Mix well. In a bowl combine the egg, butter and milk.  Add to dry ingredients. Add the blueberries and gently fold into the mixture.

Line a muffin pan with muffin paper cups and fill 3/4 way with the mixture.  Bake in a preheated 180C oven for 25 minutes.

Makes 6

TIP:  Use an ice cream scoop to fill the cups, this ensures all your muffins are the same size.