Italian Cardamon Chocolate Torte (soft and super yummy)

Well this is one of my best recipes that will be making it’s way into the recipe book, but a rather lovely customer is utterly desperate for it and so, as I am the ‘Queen of Customer Happiness’ I am sharing it for you all to enjoy.

This makes a nice deep uber chocolate cake which is utterly lovely with just a dust of icing sugar. But if you like and you fancy something a little more lavish I suggest you divide the mix between two pans before cooking (don’t even bother to try and cut the cake in two once it is cooked – you’ll end up with lots of very delicious choccy cake chunks) and once it is cool fill and top with 16 oz/ 450g of cream cheese mixed with 2 oz/ 50 g of icing sugar and 4 tablespoons of vanilla paste – no messing 😀

Italian Chocolate Cake

Makes a good 10 slices

140g/5 oz butter or a non hydrogenated vegetable fat

252g/
9 oz chocolate (min 70% Cocoa solids), chopped

3 tablespoons water

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

105g/3.75 oz cocoa powder

5 eggs, separated

224g/
8 oz sugar

12 cardamon pods

2 teaspoon vanilla paste

1/2 teaspoon Sea salt

Heat oven to 350˚F 180˚C Gas 4

Roast the cardamon pods for 5 minutes until fragrant and starting to colour.

Allow to cool then grind in a coffee grinder, liquidiser, food processor or pestal and mortar.

Parchment line a 23 cm or 9″ cake pan, but make the sides at least 4 cm 2″ high.

Line the bottom of the baking pan with a round of parchment paper.

Melt fat in a large bowl over a saucepan of hot water (don’t let the bowl sit in the hot water)

As it melts stir in chocolate until melted and then remove from heat.

Stir in the water, set to the side.

Whisk together the baking powder, salt, cardamon and cocoa until just combined.

In another bowl, whisk egg yolks with half the sugar and the vanilla paste until pale and fluffy.

In another very clean larger bowl, beat egg whites until stiff, then add the final sugar and beat again.

Now everything gets folded into the chocolate, keep going until well mixed.

Tip into the waiting pan (pans)

Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, it should look shiny on the top and feel firm at the edges. If you’ve done as I’ve said it should be ready – you aren’t getting a dry toothpick out of this cake 🙂

Remove from oven and allow to cool for a minimum of 30 minutes before you turn it onto a cake plate.

Dust with a little icing sugar or fill with the cream cheese as I suggested earlier.

Eat warm or cold.

Do not refrigerate this cake – it will go hard and only popping into the oven will retrieve that lovely tender crumb.

Come and see me on Saturdays’ at Bermondsey Square Farmers Market in Southwark. It’s just off Tower Bridge Road, a short walk from The White Cube, Southbank and Borough Market.

email me scarletrositafood@gmail.com

phone or text 0792 310 9170

Facebook http://www.facebook.com/ScarletRosita

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https://www.instagram.com/scarletrosita/

Peanut & Chocolate Fudge Cake

As at the moment I do not have a camera I am a little stuck for posting in this blog. So sorry that once again it is just a single photo … but you can see it’s a good ‘un 🙂

This is a lovely cake, unapologetic of its nuts and dairy and sugar. But for a celebration or general gathering it is always a delight to see.

I hope you enjoy it.

Peanut & Chocolate Fudge Cake

360g / 12 oz sifted self-rising flour
120g / 4 oz cocoa

1/2 tsp baking powder (or baking soda)
1/2 tsp sea salt
240g / 8 oz butter, at room temperature

480g / 1 lb Muscavado Sugar

120g / 4 oz 85% chocolate
4 eggs

250 ml / 8 fl oz milk
2 tsp vanilla paste

Set oven to 350˚F/180˚C/Gas 4 .
Parchment line three 23cm round cake tins.
Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder/soda and salt into a large bowl.
On a stand mixer with the paddle attachment beat the sugar and butter for about 5 minutes, until nice and fluffy.
Whilst that is happening put the chocolate into the top of a double boiler (or like I do, a bowl over a small pan of hardly simmering water) and gently stir as it melts.
As soon as it is melted remove it from the top of the pan. And set to one side.
Beat together the vanilla paste and the eggs just to break them up.
Add slowly into the butter and sugar as it mixers. This can easily take another 5 minutes to do well.
Once that is done turn the beaters to slow and pour in the chocolate and allow it to barely mix together.
Add into the flour mix and along with the milk stir and fold until well blended.
Divide among the 3 prepared cake pans.
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a skewer comes out almost clean.
Cool in the pans for about 20 minutes. Then turn onto wire racks.
Do not peel off the paper on the bottom cooled completely (they will be too fragile).
Fill and coat with the Peanut Butter Topping (recipe below) however you particularly like. I generally like to leave the sides bare as people like to see that there are ‘layers’ 🙂
Then make up the Peanut Fudge Ganache and make into balls or quennels to top the cake (these are fab, like a really good peanut truffle – try not to eat it before using what you need for the cake.

Peanut Butter Topping


210g / 7 oz cream cheese
210g / 7 oz butter (at room temperature)

480g / 1 lb icing (confectioners) sugar
120g / 4 oz smooth peanut butter

On a stand mixer with the paddle attachment beat the cream cheese, peanut butter and butter until light and fluffy.
Turn the beaters to slow and slowly mix in the icing (confectioners) sugar.
Turn the speed up again and allow to beat for another minute or so until light and fluffy

Peanut Fudge Ganache

3 oz dark chocolate

1 tbsp smooth peanut butter
1 tbsp golden syrup
In the top of a double boiler or in a bowl set over simmering water, stir together the chocolate, peanut butter, and golden syrup as it melts together.
Remove from the heat and beat until just thickened.
You need to shape this whilst it is warm 🙂

Chocolate & Apple Cake

I have had so many people contact me recently because they are suffering from a wheat and/or gluten sensitivity. I have suffered this at various points in my life and I know how miserable and difficult it can make life. But unless you are allergic or a Coeliac, it can get better and as long as you do not eat gluten strengthened bread, pastries, biscuits etc, you will be able to eat wheat again. After all it is a lovely sweet grain, but I know I can never eat cheap bread, or anything from a high street or supermarket bakery (just set me off again). So no Cheese and Onion Pasty for me, but I can very happily make Cheese and Onion Pie at home (Oooh now there’s an idea!)

I made this as a practice recipe, but it turned out really well. I put the photo onto Facebook and it was really well received, so I said I would blog it today.

So not the usual amount of photos but you can see what a lovely moist cake it is.

If this is too large a cake then halve the recipe and bake in a 23 cm cake tin.

Chocolate & Apple Cake

180g / 6 oz Butter
180g / 6 oz Muscavado sugar
6 Eggs
7 oz Gluten Free Self Raising Flour
90 g / 3 oz Cocoa powder
240g / 8 oz sweet eating apples
a pinch of sea salt
1 teaspoon of baking powder

Set oven to 350˚F/180˚C/ Gas 4.
Parchment line or greaseproof paper or butter and flour a 29 cm cake pan.
Wash the skins and then grated the apple on a large hole.
Break the eggs and beat with a fork to break up.
Sift together the flour, salt, cocoa and baking powder.
Melt the butter in a large pan.
Cool slightly then beat in the sugar.
Add the egg and beat to incorporate.
Add in the flour mixture and grated apple then fold to mix.
Divide between the pans.
Bake for 1 hour and 10 -15 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean.
Turn onto a cooling rack (make sure you turn it again so that the bottom of the cake is on the rack as the top will still be a little tender and a little stickier than a usual sponge).

If you like you can top with a Chocolate butter cream

120g / 4 oz Butter
240g / 8 oz Icing sugar
90 g / 3 oz Cocoa powder
60 ml / 2 fl oz strong black coffee

Have the butter at room temperature.
Beat until soft. then sift the icing sugar and cocoa and start to fold, stir and then beat it into the butter.
Finally add the coffee and beat until very light and fluffy.

Come and see me on Saturdays’ at Bermondsey Square Farmers Market in Southwark. It’s just off Tower Bridge Road, a short walk from The White Cube, Southbank and Borough Market.
All new customers will get a lovely washable cotton shopper as a ‘Thank you and please come again next week’ (Whie stocks last!)

Every Friday at about 6 pm GMT I publish photos of the items I have cooked for market. Have a look at the Facebook page.

email me scarletrositafood@btinternet.com
phone or text 0792 310 9170
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/ScarletRosita
or follow me on Twitter

Tweets by ScarletRosita

Italian Pear & Chocolate Cake

Monday was my birthday and I spent the day in an oddly snowy London (for March!) with my two daughters.

When I was little my Mumma would make us this birthday cake every year. In rural England in the 1960’s and ’70’s Vanilla was not obtainable so she flavoured the cream with lemon. In the method I have made a few nods to the way my mum made it, which is what I do when I make it.

It is a super cake. I really hope you like it as much as I do.

Have a great weekend.

🙂

Italian Pear & Chocolate Cake
360g / 12 oz butter, at room temperature
360g / 12 oz sugar
5 eggs
360g / 12 oz sifted self-rising flour
250 ml Strong coffee
1 tsp sea salt
Preheat oven to 350˚F/180˚C/Gas 4.
Grease and line a 29 cm cake tin.

Cream butter and sugar.
Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.
Sift the flour and salt and add together with the coffee and fold until mixed.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
Bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until a tester or toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Remove from the oven and transfer to a cooling rack.

Vanilla and Chocolate Pastry Cream
6 egg yolks
120g/4oz sugar
2 tbsp plain (AP) flour
2 tbsp cornflour
600ml/40fl oz milk
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
30g/1oz butter
240g/8 oz plain chocolate

In a large saucepan, beat together the eggs, flours, vanilla and sugar until nicely combined.

Set aside.
Heat the milk in a separate saucepan, bring just to a simmer.

Pour the hot milk onto the egg mixture, whisking all the time, then turn the heat on under the pan and whisk to the boil.

Remove from the heat and stir in the butter.

Add the chocolate to a small bowl.

Pass the cream through a sieve to remove any eggy pieces or lumps of flour.

Pass half of it directly onto the chocolate. This will encourage it to melt just right.

Give it a good stir to make sure it is all melted.

Give the surface a spray with some bland oil, then cover with a piece of cling film (touching onto the surface) to prevent a skin forming.
Place it somewhere to cool as quickly as possible.

Filling
10 pears (poached until tender) or 2 tins of pears.
Amaretto or Limoncello

Slice the Pears into 3 -4 mm slices.

Assembly

Slice the cake in two.

Sprinkle the base with some of your chosen alcohol (don’t worry if you don’t want to use any, you can add a few spoons of the pear juice)

Spread the base with the vanilla pastry cream.

Cover this layer with the sliced pears.

Add the top layer of sponge.

Spread the top with the chocolate pastry cream.

I like to sieve a spoon of icing sugar and cocoa powder right on top.

Enjoy

🙂

email me scarletrositafood@btinternet.com
phone or text 0792 310 9170
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/ScarletRosita
or follow me on Twitter

Tweets by ScarletRosita

Come and see me on Saturdays’ at Bermondsey Square Farmers Market in Southwark. It’s just off Tower Bridge Road, a short walk from The White Cube, Southbank and Borough Market.
All new customers will get a lovely washable cotton shopper as a ‘Thank you and please come again next week’ (Whie stocks last!)

Every Friday at about 6 pm GMT I publish photos of the items I have cooked for market. Have a look at the Facebook page.

Pistachio Cake (Vegan)

On the market at Bermondsey Square one of the most popular items I make is the layer cake. They always look so beautiful and inviting and there is something of the celebration about them. With all cakes there is a sense of a special occasion but a home made cake, from those first efforts made by children through to a family favourite made by the Nonna, gets everyone going. Let alone a four layer colourful beast with ganache and almond cream!

The cake is turned green by the pistachios which also add that lovely flavour and when eaten with a fork in a crowded room all your attention will be on the delicious flavours playing across your tongue.

Great cake turns any gathering into an event … prepare to party!

😀

Pistachio Layer Cake (Vegan)


The Cake
180g /6 oz shelled pistachio nuts

360g /12 oz Self-Raising Flour
180g / 6 oz Gluten & Wheat Free Self-Raising Flour
390g / 13 oz Caster Sugar
240ml / 8 fl oz Sunflower Oil
390ml / 13 fl oz water
1 tsp Sea salt

The Filling
9 dssp apricot preserve
120g / 4 oz ground almonds
120g / 4 oz granulated sugar
120g / 4 oz margarine
60g / 2 fl oz soya milk

The Ganache

480 g / 1lb 85% Cocoa solid chocolate (chopped)

310 ml / 10 fl oz soya cream


Preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C/Gas 4.
Parchment line four 8-inch round cake pans.

The Cake
Take 30g / 1 oz of the pistachios and set them aside for decoration.

Grind the rest of the nuts with the sugar in a food processor.
Sift the flour and salt.

Add in the sugar/pistachio mix and dry whisk to mix well.

Mix the water and the oil together in a jug, and then whisk into the dry mix until fully combined.

Divide the batter among the 4 prepared pans.
Bake for about 25 minutes, or until a cake tester or wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Allow the layers to cool in the tins for 10 minutes.
Turn out onto wire racks, peel off the parchment and let them cool completely.

The Filling.
Add the margarine, almonds and sugar into a stand mixer (or you can beat it by hand with a wooden spoon). Beat really thoroughly until it is light and fluffy, you may need to add in the soya milk to help with the fluffiness.

It must be fluffy as the cake is very fragile, utterly delicious to eat 🙂

Spread each cake layer with the apricot conserve.

Make sure you take it right to the edge.

Then onto three layers carefully spread that lovely, fluffy almond cream.

Assemble so that the top layer is only covered with the conserve, you are about to add the ganache.

The Ganache
Pour the soya cream into a small pan and bring up to the boil (just bubbles breaking at the edge of the pan). Remove from the heat and stir in the chopped chocolate and stir until all melted.

Allow it to cool for 10 minutes.

I make a collar of greaseproof paper around the cake that extends a couple of centimetres above the top.

I then pour in the ganache and swirl it nicely. Add the remaining pistachios to make a nice design however you like.

N.B. Beware, serve this to a group of friends and they will be back next week for more

😀

Come and see me on Saturdays’ at Bermondsey Square Farmers Market in Southwark. It’s just off Tower Bridge Road, a short walk from The White Cube, Southbank and Borough Market.
All new customers will get a lovely washable cotton shopper as a ‘Thank you and please come again next week’ (Whie stocks last!)

Every Friday at about 6 pm GMT I publish photos of the items I have cooked for market. Have a look at the Facebook page.

email me scarletrositafood@btinternet.com
phone or text 0792 310 9170
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/ScarletRosita
or follow me on Twitter

Tweets by ScarletRosita

Super Sweet Blogging Award

Super Sweet Blogging Award

I am so happy and excited to have been given the Super Sweet Blogging award!

Thank you so much to Chef Randall at http://savorthefood.wordpress.com/

I have been inspired by his mouthwatering ideas and to have him feel strongly enough to nominate me makes me very happy.

I really did start cooking when I was little (like you do with your Mumma) and I still have the first cookery book that my Mum bought for me. (Well first book of any sort but that’s another tale!)

I still look through the floury (sometimes sticky) pages with the quirky, funny line drawings, and remember the excitement I would feel as I read a recipe and would then go on to try and make it.

I would love to pass that idea on … we try, sometimes it works and sometimes it’s more of a lesson 😦 but if you are just starting on your cookery journey then every recipe is a wonderful milestone.

The rules for Super Sweet Blogging Award include:

1 Visit and thank the blogger who nominated you.
2 Acknowledge that blogger on your blog and link back.
3 Answer the “Super Sweet” questions.
4 Nominate a “Baker’s Dozen” (= 13)** blogs the award, a link to their blogs in your post, and notify them on their blogs.
5 Copy and paste the award on your blog somewhere.

Super Sweet Questions:

1. Cookies or Cake?

Cake

2. Chocolate or Vanilla?

Shock news ‘Vanilla’!!

3. What is your favorite sweet treat?

Hazelnut Biscotti (home made only … ever)… oh my!

4. When do you crave sweet things the most?

At the end of a lovely meal.

5. If you had a sweet nickname, what would it be?

There is a little boy that comes to the market where I sell my food. Every time he looks at me he throws his arms in the air and says ‘Cake!’ I’d proudly have that as my name 🙂

😀

Here are my nominations for The baker’s dozen:

http://pudhogblog.wordpress.com/
http://sweetlittlethang.wordpress.com/
http://pineapplest.wordpress.com/
http://tabletalkblog.net/
http://greenandleithy.wordpress.com/
http://lefoodsnob.wordpress.com/
http://glitterspice.com/
http://chitchatandallofthat.wordpress.com/
http://foodandforagehebrides.wordpress.com/
http://invegetableswetrust.wordpress.com/
http://coriandercumin.com/
http://intuitiveapproach.wordpress.com/
http://foodiejoanie.wordpress.com/

They are all really great blogs, really diverse and worth having a read.

I hope you enjoy and appreciate them as much as I have.

😀

Mexican Chocolate Coffee Cake

I had never heard of this cake until I read a ‘WordPress’ post ( Please see comments boxes for http).

And it wasn’t like any recipe I had tried before, so I thought I needed to give it a go.

If you look at the original recipe you’ll see I’ve made a few changes and I hope these are for the better. I have taken out the butter and this makes for an ethereal, soft cake which works really well with the Cream Cheese.

The praline is easy to do. Please go here for the recipe.

This is now one of my favourites – really great for a ‘Grown Up’s’ Birthday.

🙂

Mexican Chocolate Coffee Cake

375 ml cup strong coffee
120g / 4 oz cocoa

Heat the coffee and stir in the marshmallows to melt them.
Set aside to cool.

500g / 1 lb Self Raising flour
740g / 1lb 4 oz sugar
1 tsp. nutmeg
3 beaten eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
250ml vegetable oil
185ml live yogurt

Line a 3 x 21cm cake tins with parchment paper.
Preheat the oven to 350˚F/180˚C/Gas 4.
Combine flour, sugar, nutmeg.
Whisk together the eggs, vanilla, oil and yogurt. Whisk in coffee mix.

Pour the wet into the dry and fold together quickly.
Divide between the 3 parchment lined tins.
Bake for approximately 30 – 35 minutes.
Allow to cool in the tins.
This is a delicate cake.


360g / 12 oz. Cream cheese, room temperature
6 oz. powdered sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
90g / 3 oz melt chocolate
Empty the cheese into a bowl add the sugar and vanilla and mix well to form a nice soft icing. No need for over vigorous beating.
Spread over the cooled cake. On each layer add a drizzle of the melted chocolate.

I added the almond praline as a dramatic finish.

Almond Praline

Come and see me on Saturdays’ at Bermondsey Square Farmers Market in Southwark. It’s just off Tower Bridge Road, a short walk from The White Cube, Southbank and Borough Market.
All new customers will get a lovely washable cotton shopper as a ‘Thank you and please come again next week’ (Whie stocks last!)

Every Friday at about 6 pm GMT I publish photos of the items I have cooked for market. Have a look at the Facebook page.

email me scarletrositafood@btinternet.com
phone or text 0792 310 9170
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/ScarletRosita
or follow me on Twitter

Tweets by ScarletRosita

Scarlet Rosita’s Sachertorte

When I was training we spent a lot of time making the classics, perfecting them. And rightly so. When done well these cakes, that you have heard of from your tiniest childhood, have their place in bakers and patisserie windows for good reason. They have a certain something, a combination that can at once contrast, accentuate and compliment.

We also spent a huge amount of time making Bavarois … oh the torture of the things, and I am telling you right now (Mr Carter and Mr Dobbs) I have never ever in any establishment at any time been called upon to make one. But really I blame Escoffier (feel very naughty writing that hehe). We were aiming for Haute Cuisine.

I am very lucky to have had a chance to learn such things and then off I go and play about with the recipe and make something that is still the classic but with (what I call) knobs on!

With this recipe I add a lot of very dark chocolate and some apricot conserve into the batter before baking and finish it with cream cheese as part of the filling. I like the way the very dark, sweet chocolate cake melt in with the vanilla cream cheese as you eat it. I have served this as a supper party pudding but it is so lovely on a sun dappled, breeze freshened afternoon in the garden with friends and a large pot of something refreshing.

This is a big cake, if you want to make it smaller you can quarter the amounts and cook the cakes in 2 x 15 cm/6″ sandwich cake pans.

Scarlet Rosita’s Sachertorte

250 g/ 9 oz Unsalted butter
200 g/ 7 oz 85% chocolate
600g/ 21 oz Apricot conserve
300g/ 10 oz Muscavado Sugar
1 tsp seasalt
4 eggs
300g/ 10 oz Self Raising flour
For the Fillings
6 tbsp Apricot conserve
600g/21 oz Cream Cheese
90g/ 3 oz Icing Sugar
4 tsp Vanilla Extract
130g/ 4 oz 85% Chocolate
250 ml/ 1/2 pt Double Cream

Pre heat the oven to350˚F/ 180˚C or Gas 4.

Line 2 23cm or 9” deep sided cake pans with greaseproof paper, give it a little spray with oil.

Melt together the butter and apricot conserve.

Once melted add the chocolate and mix until that is all melted.
Add the sugar and mix well.

Add the eggs and give it a good whisk.

Sift in the salt and flour and fold carefully.
Divide between the pans and level the tops

Pop into the oven and bake for 35 minutes, or until the tops look glossy and spring back when pressed lightly with a finger.

So to prepare the fillings (couldn’t be easier)

To make the ganache, pour the cream into a medium sized pan over a medium heat and allow it to come just to a simmer (bubbles breaking right at the edge of the pan). Remove from the heat.

Tip in the chopped chocolate and carefully and gently use a spatula (or a wooden spoon) to stir until all the chocolate has melted into the cream. Set it to one side to cool to just warm.

For the cream cheese frosting, (please make sure the cheese is at room temperature) just tip the cheese into a mixing bowl, sift in the sugar and add the vanilla and starting slowly start to mix, ending with giving it a glorious beating!

Once they are done allow the cakes to cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then turn them out, carefully remove the paper and allow them to cool fully on a rack.

Once they are cooled use a large knife to split each cake in two. So now you have 4 rounds of cake.

I like to place the first cake layer onto the serving plate and use half the cream cheese mix to spread over its top surface. Add another cake layer and spread with half the apricot conserve. Another cake layer, the remaining cream cheese. The final piece of cake, add the conserve and spread and then add on the lovely topping of chocolate ganache.

Pop it into the fridge to firm up for an hour or two.

When you want to serve it take it from the fridge for 20 minutes to allow it to take the edge of the firmness of the ganache and also to allow all the flavours to sing out, sometimes a through chilling can mute the flavours, and this is subtle and delicious and worth the effort.

Come and see me on Saturdays’ at Bermondsey Square Farmers Market in Southwark. It’s just off Tower Bridge Road, a short walk from The White Cube, Southbank and Borough Market.
All new customers will get a lovely washable cotton shopper as a ‘Thank you and please come again next week’ (Whie stocks last!)

Every Friday at about 6 pm GMT I publish photos of the items I have cooked for market. Have a look at the Facebook page.

email me scarletrositafood@btinternet.com
phone or text 0792 310 9170
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/ScarletRosita
or follow me on Twitter

Tweets by ScarletRosita

Roasted Hazelnut & Browned Butter Cake

I am such a fan of Hazelnuts and this cake is made all the nuttier because of the browned butter. Plus it has Muscavado sugar and it’s Gluten and Wheat Free. This has to be tried with a small strong coffee (you chose the origin of the style), just give yourself those 5 minutes to enjoy it and all memories of nasty, stale nuts in and on cakes will waft away on the perfumed breeze of your joyous exhalations  … no really, it’s true 🙂

Roasted Hazelnut & Browned Butter Cake

210 g / 7 oz hazelnuts

240 g / 8 oz butter

2 tsp vanilla extract

180 g / 6 oz Muscavado sugar

120 g /4 oz Gluten & Wheat Free SR flour

8 egg whites

3 tablespoons granulated sugar

Preheat your oven to 350˚F, 180˚C or Gas 4.

Grease enough parchment paper to line a 29 cm /12″ round cake pan. Parchment paper is best as this cake sometimes sticks.

Spread the hazelnuts onto a tray and pop them into the oven for 5 – 10 minutes, stay alert as son as you smell them they are done (the more you do this the more confident you’ll become in trusting your sensesas you cook).

Put them on the side to cool.

src=”https://scarletrosita.files.wordpress.com/2012/12/dscn4388.jpg?w=300″ width=”300″ height=”225″ />

Now put the butter into a medium sized saucepan and set to melt over a moderate heat. Once it is melted, stand by the cooker, turn the heat up and watch it as the butter rises and you start to notice the foam in the centre change colour from yellow, to amber to a deeper brown. It’s done! Take it off the heat and allow it to settle and cool for 10 minutes.

Now put the nuts into the food processor and milled to a fine crumb, or chop on a board, it will take a little longer but is perfectly fine.

Stir together the nuts, flour and sugar (squeeze any lumps of sugar between your fingers and they will break down.

Whisk the egg whites. Add the granulated sugar and whisk until very stiff peaks.  Transfer the whites to the large mixing bowl with the sugary, floury nuts.

Pour the butter into the bowl too and make sure to tip in the browned sediment, I have photographed it so you can clearly see it. This is all the lovely flavour. Now add the vanilla too.

Fold together the dry ingredients, the brown butter, vanilla and egg whites.

Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan, and bake for 50 minutes.

Cool on a rack 30 minutes.

Now lift the cake out and remove the paper and set the cake onto a plate.

Chocolate Ganache 

120 g /4 oz 70 % Cocoa solids Chocolate, chopped
60 ml / 2 fl oz double cream

Put the cream into a small saucepan and over a medium heat just bring it to simmering point (where you can see a few bubbles forming at the edge.

Turn off the heat and add the chocolate in one go and stir quickly until it has melted, thickened and glossed up, beautiful.

Pour it over the cooled cake. I like to cress it with a few chocolate dipped coffee beans 😉

 This cake is available to order from me (UK Mainland) for £26  + £8 P&POther countries then please contact me for more information :)http://www.facebook.com/ScarletRosita

or email scarletrositafood@btinternet.com

Come and see me on Saturdays’ at Bermondsey Square Farmers Market in Southwark. It’s just off Tower Bridge Road, a short walk from The White Cube, Southbank and Borough Market.
All new customers will get a lovely washable cotton shopper as a ‘Thank you and please come again next week’ (Whie stocks last!)

Every Friday at about 6 pm GMT I publish photos of the items I have cooked for market. Have a look at the Facebook page.
email me scarletrositafood@btinternet.com
phone or text 0792 310 9170
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/ScarletRosita
or follow me on Twitter

Tweets by ScarletRosita

Banana Bread

This is such a great cake, the fact that on a normal day it has bananas in it is a bonus.

This is the cake that I use in the Winter Semifreddo (without the chocolate topping), it gives the best texture and a stable consistency to the pudding in a way that no other cake does.

I am giving the recipe twice as one is perfect for Vegans, or if you need to avoid eggs for any reason, but a good cake recipe that doesn’t contain all the typical cake ingredients is turning into something of a speciality for me.

I promise you, once again, this is a very simple and straight forward recipe that will produce no gnashing of teeth in frustration 😀

Banana Cake (Like you’ve never had before)

6 large ripe bananas (at least as ripe as in the photo, even blacker is better for flavour but less black is Okay too)

2 egg

160 ml / 6 floz olive oil

140 ml / 5 floz honey

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp fine sea salt

420 g/14 oz  Gluten Free Self Raising flour

90g / 3 oz 70% Cocoa Solid Chocolate

6 slices of dried Banana Chips (Optional)

or

*Vegan Banana Cake (Like you’ve never had before)

6 large ripe bananas

2 tbsp Vinegar (Balsamic is best (the flavour is great with the Banana but Malt is fine too, whatever you have in the cupboard- all the acid smell will be gone once it is cooked)

160 ml / 6 floz olive oil

140 ml / 5 floz Golden Syrup or Agave Nectar

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp fine sea salt

420 g/14 oz Self Raising flour

90g / 3 oz 70% Cocoa Solid Chocolate

6 slices of dried Banana Chips (Optional)

*asterixed points are for Vegans only to follow

# hashtagged points are for the non Vegans to follow

Preheat your oven to 350˚F, 180˚C or Gas 4.

#Butter a piece of greaseproof paper or parchment.

*Vegans: Brush with a little oil a piece of greaseproof paper or parchment.

Use it to line a 23 cm/9” bundt pan. Or a round cake pan, I like the look of it in the Bundt, but keep it 23 cm/9”. This is a nice big cake and the cake will either need the whole in the Bundt or else to be thinned a little with the extra width.

Sift together baking soda, salt and flour.

  

Mash the bananas until liquid. You can do this in the food processor or with a potato masher or just a fork, they are all fine methods.

  

#Add to the bananas the eggs, oil, honey and vanilla extract and either give it a quick blitz or whisk to get it all well blended.

*Vegans: Add to the bananas the vinegar, oil, Golden Syrup/Agave Nectar and vanilla extract and either give it a quick blitz or whisk to get it all well blended.

Pour the banana ‘smoothie’ into the flour mix and stir with a whisk until just combined.

Pour mixture into prepared pan and bake until a tester comes out clean, about 40 to 50 minutes.

Cool the cake in pan on rack for 10 -15 minutes.

Turn it out and allow to cool completely.

Bring a small pan of water to the boil, pop a heatproof dish on top of the pan and turn the heat off (the residual heat should be sufficent to melt this tiny amount of chocolate).

Use a butter knife and gently poke and stir the chocolate until it is melted. Now use a cloth to take the dish off the pan. Just wipe away any drips from the bottom of the bowl so they don’t drip onto the cake and spoon and tip the chocolate all over the top, let it dribble . I like to add a few Banana Chips but that is up to you.

I like the strong chocolate and I have often used the 85% Cocoa Solids Chocolate but you can use milk chocolate or white chocolate, or no chocolate at all.

Needless to say the cake I used in the Semifreddo did not have a chocolate topping

Enjoy 🙂

 

 

 

 

Come and see me on Saturdays’ at Bermondsey Square Farmers Market in Southwark. It’s just off Tower Bridge Road, a short walk from The White Cube, Southbank and Borough Market.
All new customers will get a lovely washable cotton shopper as a ‘Thank you and please come again next week’ (While stocks last!)

Every Friday at about 6 pm GMT I publish photos of the items I have cooked for market. Have a look at the Facebook page.

email me scarletrositafood@btinternet.com
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