Sunday, July 22, 2012

Personally I find this to be a perfect flavor combination, although for those who don't like crystals in their parfait I suggest that 5gr of gelatin sheets are added in the recipe for the yogurt mousse and chilling is omitted.

                           Lemon cake
                           250gr                                                             flour
                           68gr                                                               butter
                           68gr                                                               yogurt
                           205gr                                                             sugar
                           4                                                                    small
                           85gr                                                               lemon juice
                           1 tsp                                                               baking powder
                           2                                                                     zested lemons
                          40gr                                                                 coarsely chopped almonds
                          480gr +                                                            apple pie filling
                         
                          Crumble
                          100gr                                                                flour
                          80gr                                                                  sugar
                          80gr                                                                  melted butter
                          80gr                                                                  almond powder

                          Frozen yogurt mousse
                          400gr                                                                strained yogurt
                          80gr                                                                  powdered sugar
                         150gr                                                                 heavy cream
                         (5gr                                                                   gelatin sheets)
      

For the yogurt mousse mix half of the sugar with the yogurt and whip the rest with the cream until almost hard peaks are formed. Fold the whipped cream into the other mixture and freeze until set. Alternatively add the gelatin to the yogurt after dissolving it in a minimum amount of hot water and finally refrigerate. To prepare the crumble just combine the ingredients and refrigerate until hard. For the bars, beat butter until soft, add sugar, zest and yogurt and keep beating until homogeneous.

apple and lemon bars

Add the eggs one at a time, pour in the lemon juice and shift in the flour and baking powder. Mix at medium speed for a few seconds for the ingredients to come together and stir in the almonds after roasting in the preheating oven.Spread the batter in a 22cmx24cm pan and bake at 180C for 25min. Then remove from the oven, spread the apple filling on top and use a grater to brake the crumble and cover the surface. Return to the oven at 190C and bake for another 20min until golden on top. Let cool and cut to individual pieces.

Monday, July 16, 2012


                               Pate sablee
                               100gr                                                       butter
                               60gr                                                         sugar 
                               33gr                                                         cocoa powder
                               1                                                              egg
                               160gr                                                       flour
                               as preferred                                             vanilla

                               Cream
                               45gr                                                          caster sugar 
                               60gr                                                          sour cream
                               100gr                                                        heavy cream 
                                4                                                              eggs
                                as preferred                                             vanilla
                              
                               Caramelized bananas
                               350gr                                                         bananas
                               40gr                                                           caster sugar
                              
                               Banana and chocolate mousse
                               56gr                                                           sugar
                               24gr                                                           butter , room temperature
                               24gr                                                           milk, room temperature
                               240gr                                                         bananas
                               8gr                                                            lemon juice
                               200gr                                                         heavy cream whipped to soft peaks
                               150gr                                                         chocolate 70%


For the crust beat butter with sugar and vanilla until fluffy, beat in the egg and then add the flour. Shift in the cocoa powder and give the dough a quick stir until the ingredients are well combined. Refrigerate for an hour and meanwhile prepare the bottom filling. Slice the bananas and put the sugar in a pan over high heat . When the sugar starts to melt move a few times the pan so that the caramel spreads and doesn't burn locally and when it gets a dark orange color add the bananas and caramelize.  

chocolate and banana tart

After an hour in the fridge remove the dough and roll it enough to fit a 12cmx26cm form or a pan with the same area. Cover with foil and rice or beans and bake at a preheated oven to 170C for 15min. Then remove the covering and put it back in the oven for 10 more minutes. Meanwhile prepare the cream filling by simply bringing all the ingredients together and when the crust is done, spread a layer of caramelized bananas on the bottom and cover with the cream. Continue baking at 180-190C for about 25min, remove and let it completely cool.


For the chocolate mousse make again a caramel with the sugar and add in consecutively the butter and milk. When the mixture is homogenous bring the chopped bananas to the saucepan and cook until the fruit has soften. Remove from the heat, let cool for a while and add the chocolate. Smooth with a blender and when the mixture has completely cooled, fold in the whipped cream. Refrigerate the mousse until set, cut the tart to individual pieces and garnish them on top with the chocolate mousse. 

Saturday, July 7, 2012

I may have fallen behind with posting for more than a week and  even have gone quite far with improvisation but despite some mishaps (including underbaking the cake) and the final appearence that didn't exactly meet my expectations, I am overall really satisfied and happy to have taken this month's challenge. So a big thanks to Mandy for sharing the recipe and her perfectly illustrated instructions and I hope you enjoy this version (with also a small fat reduction) either in this or a less time-consuming construction.

                              Chocolate cake
                              25gr                                                      cocoa powder
                              80gr                                                      self-raising flour
                              70gr                                                      butter
                              40gr                                                      cream cheese
                              105gr                                                    sugar
                              2                                                           eggs
                              40gr                                                      almond powder
                              0,5 tsp                                                   baking powder
                              as prefered                                            vanilla

                              Orange cake
                                        210gr                                                     self-raising  flour
                              140gr                                                     butter
                              70gr                                                       cream cheese
                              190gr                                                     sugar
                               4                                                           small eggs
                               80gr                                                      almond powder
                               1tsp                                                      baking powder
                               1 orange                                                orange zest

                               Connective paste and frosting
                               100gr                                                     apricot jam
                               400gr                                                     chocolate
                               200gr                                                     water or strained orange juice

For a 26cmx7cmx7cm cake arrange a size-variable rectangle utensil at 27cmx21cm and cut two parchment paper cases measured 7cmx27cm and 14x27cm each. Remember to let a 7cm height on each dimension and after folding the paper into a three-dimensional rectangle form, place the cases in the pan. Starting with the recipe, beat the butter needed for both of the cakes with a hand mixer until fluffy and separate the quantity asked for the chocolate one in a different bowl. Add there the cream cheese and sugar and continue beating for a couple of minutes. Mix in the vanilla, eggs and almond powder and whisk until homogenous. Finally shift in the flour and baking powder and beat for the ingredients to come together.

chocolate and orange battenberg

Spread equally the batter in the smaller paper case and support the side that doesn't lean to the wall of the pan to avoid leakage in the other case. No needing to wash out the mixer attachments, beat the butter, cream cheese and sugar asked for the orange cake and then add eggs, almond and zest as previously. Finish with the flour and baking powder and pour the batter in the case left. Straighten its surface and bake at a preheated oven at 170-180C for 30-35min until the batter of both of the cakes in the center of the pan rises to a small peak. Removing from the oven test doneness with a toothpick and let the cakes cool completely. 


Take a ruler and trim the sides of the cakes to get a 5cmx3cmx26cm piece for the chocolate and a 12cmx3cmx26cm piece for the orange one. From the first one cut 4 2cmx1cmx26cm and 5 1cmx1cmx26cm bars and from the other cut 8 3cmx1cmx26cm, 4 1cmx1cmx26cm and 4 1cmx1cmx26cm bars. Remember to use the chocolate frosting and not the jam for gluing together the bars that should show the overlap part of this pattern (as you can see in the image above I have quite messed up with the possition of the 3cmx1cmx26cm pieces in the upper right and lower left corner of the cake) .For the frosting make a ganache with the water and chocolate, use as much as is needed for bringing the pieces together and refrigerate the rest for a couple of hours until set. When ready, whip with a mixer at high speed for a few minutes to soften and add some volume to the mixture and spread the frosting on the sides and top of the cake.