This brownie is rather rich. The first time I tried it, Sylvia and I shared it. It wasn't quite enough. The next time I had it all to myself and it was a little too much. So I have reduced it to two thirds of the recipe I found in The Kitchn. Now it is just right. Unlike the Kitchn version I make mine vegan and I don't usually have cream or ice cream with it. It is a great recipe because we have everything in the house but I don't usually have ice cream or cream. A bit too easy sometimes .....
Saturday 29 August 2020
Brownie in a mug (vegan)
This brownie is rather rich. The first time I tried it, Sylvia and I shared it. It wasn't quite enough. The next time I had it all to myself and it was a little too much. So I have reduced it to two thirds of the recipe I found in The Kitchn. Now it is just right. Unlike the Kitchn version I make mine vegan and I don't usually have cream or ice cream with it. It is a great recipe because we have everything in the house but I don't usually have ice cream or cream. A bit too easy sometimes .....
Sunday 23 August 2020
Candy Cane Pizzas
I have a favourite fast track sourdough recipe that I have used. In my
usual pizzas the dough is so sticky you couldn't knead it. It is helpful
to be able to knead the dough to shape candy canes so I add an extra 1/2 cup
flour. It is still quite sticky but with some flour will be
manageable. The most recently candy cane pizza dough was made by
substituting some beer for water. It really bubbled up and had a lovely
crinkly look with the yeast and sugar. What I loved about this pizza
dough is that it is quick and easy. Everyone appreciates a Christmas
recipe to make in the festive bustle. Especially if you are making
separate meals for the kids.
As I mentioned, getting the cheese to melt just right is quite
challenging. So many times it has pooled beside the pizzs in an oily
mess. So when I made the pizza in July I decided I would time it for 5
minutes to melt. Woah! That was too much. Next I tried 1
minute. Still too much melt. Then I tried 10 seconds (check out
top picture) and see that it perhaps could have melted slightly more for most
pieces but slightly less for a few. Getting an even melt is another
challenge.
In addition to the cheese melt, there are a few other issues to note. I use a ruler to measure each sausage of dough to make sure it is 30cm long. It often takes a little more time to get the right length than I would expect. I try and shape the pizzas by placing them like a candy cane pressing them to be a bit flatter, try shape the ends to be squareish and make sure of a bit of space in the crook of the cane. It will expend slightly when it bakes. I find a knife best for spreading the pizza sauce on (ie not a spoon). When I spread pizza sauce on a round pizza I don't worry about the sauce much and just spread it with a spoon and don't worry about the edges. For candy cane pizzas I trie to make it on neatly so it is straight along the edges and square on the edges. When I bake it, I try and make sure it remains red and does not urn, Spacing the cheese slices evenly on the
Even when I made the candy cane pizzas most recently and tried to get a good melt on the cheese, it melted too much and so I put some more cheese on it and did it again. In the photo above you can see the melted cheese under the less melted second go. However these are made for kids who are pretty forgiving of imperfections.
And now that I have this recipe on my blog, it is much easier to refer to than searching drafts for my instructions. You might not feel in the mood for it now, though this wet Melbourne lockdown weekend is the perfect time for fun pizza. But otherwise, just keep this recipe in mind for Christmas. You wont regret it. I am sure there are quite a few more candy cane pizzas in my future!
More fun festive kids food on Green Gourmet Giraffe:
Cheesmas Tree (gf)
Christmas bauble ornament biscuits
Christmas royals
Fruit Christmas tree (gf. v)
Gingerbread men
Lebkuchen
Potato parsley stars (gf, v)
Zimsterne (cinnamon stars) (gf, v)
Candy Cane Pizzas
Adapted from Green Gourmet Giraffe
fast track sourdough pizza dough
1 cup sourdough starter*
1 cup warm water
1 1/2 tsp dried yeast
1 1/2 tsp sweetener
3 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 tsp salt
3 cups flour
Tomato sauce (or pizza sauce - not too thin)
Cheddar cheese
Place the sourdough starter, yeast, sweetener and warm water. (Optionally, leave a few minutes
to check the yeast is blooming into small white bubbly bursts of
activity.) Mix to make sure the starter is well combined. Stir in the
oil and salt, then add the flour to make a sticky dough. Sprinkle flour on dough and lightly knead either in bowl or on a floured surface to make a ball. Cover and set aside for 30-60 minutes.
Preheat oven to 220 C with a couple of pizza stones in the oven. Line two rectangular baking trays with baking paper (the non-stick type).
Cut the dough into 6 or 8 (I usually do 6 but found 8 was better for cooking the dough through and the smaller candy cane is plenty for kids). Knead each piece briefly on a lightly floured surface into a round ball of dough. Roll out to make a 30cm long thin sausage. I use a ruler to measure it and try and keep it fairly even. Place sausage on the lined baking tray with the top curved to make the candy cane shape. Flatten slightly and shape the ends to be squareish. Make sure there is room inside the crook of the cane fr the dough to expand slightly. Repeat with remaining pieces of dough.
Use a knife to spread tomato sauce over each candy cane neatly with straight sides and square ends. Bake for 15-20 minutes until dough is baked but tomato sauce retains its colour.
While the pizza bakes, slice cheese into rectangles to be placed on pizza as candy cane slices. They should be thick enough not to melt straight away. When the pizza is cooked, arrange slices of cheese evenly apart to look like candy cane stripes. Bake for 20-30 seconds or as long as you need for the stripes to melt but keep their colour. Eat warm or at room temperature. If you wish to reheat, cool pizza slight, and place uncooked cheese slices on to melt.
White Christmas: Bing Crosby
Sunday 16 August 2020
Olive, Pineapple and Cheese Scones International Scone Week
Scones are so easy to make. They are part of my heritage. Often when I visit my mum she has a batch of scones with jam and cream. I don't make them that often but I do love them. So during International Scone Week each year, I have the fun of trying a new scone recipe. This year for #ISW2020 I looked in the fridge and, no doubt thought of our Friday night pizzas, and decided to make olive, pineapple and manchego cheese scones.
I had other plans but Sylvia was around telling me what she would and
would not eat. I had a jar of salsa needing to be used which I thought
might make a nice addition to the flavour. Unfortunately I ditched it
so that Sylvia might try the scones. By that time I had noticed that my choice of add-ins reminded me of my favourite pizza, I wished I had pizza sauce instead of salsa. Maybe another time!!!
We ate the scones on a winter Sunday afternoon with nowhere to go. It is still lockdown and the weather forecasters has promised rain and gloom but it was tantilising sunshine instead. (At least the diagnoses are on the way down.) The scones cheered me up. They spread a lot and were quite flat but tasted light and tasty.
My recipe I created was based on the basic scone recipe that is like the ones I grew up with. It was quite sticky to handle and required a lot of flour to be able to knead it. Even then the dough was very fragile. But the flavour was good and I liked the contrast of the bitter olives and sweet pineapple. As opinion seems divided about pineapple on pizza, I could imagine not having full support for the combination but I recommend it.
I am sending these scones to Tandy for International Scone Week 2020. Thanks to Tandy for continuing to bring together scone baking bloggers. Check out her post for a list of scones sent to Tandy this week.
More scone recipes on Green Gourmet Giraffe:
Beetroot, apple and walnut scones (v)
Gruyere scones
Kale scones (v)
Pumpkin scones
Pumpkin, pecan and poppyseed scones (v)
Strawberry marscapone scones
Walnut, brie and apple scones
Olive, Pineapple and Cheese Scones
An original Green Gourmet
Giraffe recipe
Make 12-15 scones
2 cups self raising flour
3 pinches of salt (about 1/4 tsp) salt
2
tbsp butter or margarine (I used nuttalex)
1/4 cup chopped olives
1/4 cup diced fresh (or tinned) pineapple
1/4 cup manchego cheese (or other firm cheese)
1 cup milk (I used soy)
Egg and/or milk for glazing
Preheat oven to 220 C. Lightly grease a baking tray (or line with baking paper).
Place flour
and salt in a mixing bowl. Rub in butter with your fingertips (or as you
normally would do – pastry cutters, food processor etc) til it resembles
fine breadcrumbs.Toss olives, pineapple and cheese with flour mixture. Pour in milk and mix in gently til it forms a soft
and sticky dough.
Turn out dough onto lightly floured surface
and knead lightly til smooth. Press dough out to a 2cm thickness. Dip
biscuit cutter or glass in flour and cut as many scones as possible from
dough. Place scones on a baking tray. Lightly knead off cuts into a
ball and press out again and cut more scones. Repeat until all dough is
used.
Brush the scones with a little milk or egg (I mixed milk and egg yolk). Bake in over for
about 12-15 minutes until lightly browned and sound hollow when tapped on
top. Remove from tray and wrap in a clean teatowel. Best eaten warm or on day of baking.
On the Stereo:
Native Place: Railway Children
Tuesday 11 August 2020
In My Kitchen: August 2020
I wish I could be more excited by August but I am wary and tired. July was a very
unsettled month. Our Covid19 restrictions tightened a few times, school
went remote again, masks in public became mandatory, we have an 8pm curfew
(which would bother me more if there was anything to do out of the house in
the evenings), Sylvia had a week of illness, we both got tested for Covid19
(and to our relief were negative), a few people around me worked with people
with Covid19, Sylvia's school had a diagnosis, and the numbers of daily
diagnoses got as high as the 700s. All our relief at Melbourne doing
well in June has dissipated. Compared to may other countries, it is not
so terrible. However, the disappointment of too many people flouting the
restrictions means too many discussions about the whys and whos of
responsibility. No wonder I have so little energy for blogging.
At home, we have been enjoying comfort food (pizza,
sourdough bread,
brownie in a mug), trying to eat more fruit by drinking more
smoothies
and experimenting with some new recipes. Above is a failed experiment
with a an old recipe. I took an
overnight sourdough bread
and tried to pretty it up (inspired by
Lorraine
and
VegHog). I didn't flatten it properly or cook it enough. I will try
again and remember not to prioritise style over substance.
On the same afternoon, Sylvia made a far more successful smaller rosemary and garlic focaccia. She used a corner of my dough and decorated it with rosemary sprigs, gold salt, and crushed garlic. It was cooked until it was lovely and golden brown. I had focaccia-envy!
As I mentioned, face masks are mandatory. Here are mine. I made
one (green), a friend who sews made another (grey), I bought a couple (large
flowers) from
ebay, and a couple (smaller flowers) from the
Johnston Collection
but I am not sure if either are selling any more. They are preferable to
disposables but still fog up my glasses and can be stuffy after being out for
a while.
Last month I mentioned I had dabbled in making kombucha. I confess my
scoby is quite neglected but I am doing a great job of collecting
bottles. Just in case the mood takes me, you know!
I am not cooking that often but I do the occasional big casserole or stew that
can last a few meals. It can take a while to chop the vegies but a
colourful pile of vegies always makes me happy. These vegies were
chopped up for Jacqueline's
Roasted Vegetable and Rice Bake. It lasted quite a few meals but was not quite right for me. Possibly
due to my changes!
Aldi supermarkets recently had a special on British foods and Sylvia brought
home some wine gums. They were not quite the rght texture. So when
I saw a packet in a local supermarket I bought them for her. These were
the real deal, soft but slightly chewy. Unfortunately they have gelatine
in them (ie not vegetarian) so we had them for a treat but are unlikely to
have them much.
A photo of the garden before we used quite a bit of parsley. I have had
so much bad luck with parsley that I still get excited when it regrows.
And the straggly baby leeks above have hung around for a few years and
continue to help out when I need spring onions or chives.
I made cauliiflower cheese recently because it is great winter comfort food and I had a cauliflower that needed using. Then i ate some as a side dish but one or two nights I just piled cauliflower cheese on toast with a bit of extra cheese and put it under the grill on low so it heated through. A great lazy but warming meal.
Sunday 2 August 2020
Lockdown Christmas in July
The cauliflower bites seemed a bit fragile, especially when they were hot out of the oven. It helped to Squeeze out as much liquid as possible and press them down firmly in the muffin tin. This was the last of my Saturday work and I was up late because I am a night owl and I knew I would not be able to do much in the morning.
The last item I made was a Gluten Free Christmas Cake that I baked a week before the lunch. More about the cake in another post. Sylvia decided to make Christmas bags for the kids. We wrapped the pizzas in foil, and put the meringues into popcorn boxes. I found some old takeaway boxes and used more popcorn boxes to package up the food. Then I packed everything for one family and had two bike rides with food in my panniers that I dropped off during the ride. I was pretty behind but by about 3 we all joined in a Zoom video chat to talk about the meal, sewing masks, wearing masks, contact tracing, remote schooling and our families.
- I used cherry roma tomatoes which were so small I did not cut in half but they would explode with burning juices in my mouth so I think perhaps halving the cherry tomatoes would help.
-
I only used 2 sheets of puff pastry because it was all I had but I was able
to get about 20 x 7cm diameter circles and then about 4 x 6cm diameter
circles.
- I used silicone mini muffin tins and the puff pastry cases did not get golden and crisp. I think a metal tin might help crisp them up.
-
I find the best way to line mini muffin tins is to cut circles of baking
paper for the bottom of the tin (by folding a piece of baking paper into a
small square and cutting the circle out of it so you cut all many circles at
once) and if it is silicone I don't grease but if it is metal I grease
it.
- I made one for Sylvia with no onion marmalade and sprinkled some parsley so I could tell which one it was. She enjoyed it.