Nutty Chocolate Traybake

 

 Whilst on what seems like a regular rummage through the many recipes we have, we spotted a printout from Delicious Magazine called "Gluten-free nutty chocolate traybake recipe". A quick scan of the ingredients and we realised we actually had all the items required... so, the plan to make them was feasible.

Sous Chef J gathered together the following:-

100g dark choc chunks
3 med eggs, separated

70g caster sugar

75g ground almonds

1 teaspoon fresh ground coffee (we used the innards of a one cup coffee bag!)

25g pecans, chopped

The ground almonds, chopped pecans and coffee were put in a bowl.   

Next, the egg yolks and sugar were mixed til light and creamy.  Whilst this was happening, we melted the choc chunks over a bowl of boiling water. 

Once the chocolate was melted it was mixed into the sugar/egg and the dried ingredients were added as well.

After the egg whites had been whisked to stiff peak state, they were combined with the chocolate mix.  Combining the egg white gently by folding it in resulted in a similar mix texture to that of a roulade.

Pouring the mix into a greased and lined baking tray, it was then placed in a pre-heated oven at 170C for 12 minutes when it was checked (we used a larger tray than recommended in the recipe so the mixture was thinner). Having checked the surface still had a spongy feel, the cake was removed from the oven and left to cool in its tray.

Once cooled, the traybake was turned out, sliced and stacked for storage.

It has a light, spongy texture and is good as a snack with a cuppa or be great as a dessert with creme fraiche, cream or vanilla icecream.  Even though it's been packed for storage, it won't last long here!

Making Yogurt and Creme Fraiche

The way we make yogurt is very simple indeed.  We use UHT milk as that means there's no need to scald the milk to rid it of any unwanted bugs that may be lurking within.

So, with our one litre of milk and a small carton of fresh, live, natural yogurt ready for action, this is what we do....

We start by adding about a dessertspoonful of the fresh yogurt to the yogurt maker's pot.  Then the milk is added and lightly stirred.

This is then put into the electric yogurt maker and left for 24 hours.  The maker we use is a bulk one from Lakeland and here is a link to their site.


After this time, the yogurt starter has worked its magic on the lactose in the milk and we have a lovely pot of home made yogurt.

To make it thicker, it can be left to strain through a sieve lined with muslin /jelly bag which makes a Greek style yogurt.

 

We also make creme fraiche in a similar, although more labour intensive, way.  We place double cream in a lidded saucepan and bring it to just boiling point (this needs watching carefully as it will boil over very quickly, usually at the moment you look away!)  It is then taken off the heat and allowed to cool to about 40C.  Then the same method as for yogurt is used... that is, we add the scalded cream to the yogurt starter, place in the yogurt maker and leave for 24 hours.  Et voila!

Doughnut Sticks

 When @CoeliacStudent Saara posted that she'd made some Gluten Free Sticky Doughnut Sticks on her blog  it was only a matter of time before Sous Chef J and I were having a go at making them!

The recipe calls for very few ingredients which is always something that catches our eye.  As a tester batch, we decided to make half the quantity the Saara used.


So, we gathered together flour (65g Plain and 65g Self Raising from Dove's Farm and, of course, in this recipe we use gluten free) and 15g caster sugar.  Weighed out 200g water (yes, really) and added a Tablespoon of oil.

The water had the oil added to it and was then put into a pan and brought to the boil.

This hot water/oil  mix was then added, gradually, to the flour/sugar bowl which had also had a pinch of salt added.

 The mixture was brought together with a fork until it formed a rough dough ball.

Next, small amounts of the dough were rolled into stick (we used a silicone sheet and a little flour for dusting).  We were as quick as possible and, whilst this was happening, we had a small frying pan heating with oil on the hob.

 Once the oil was heated to 'bubbles when you drop a bit of dough in temperature' we carefully added the dough sticks, in batches, to cook (remembering to turn them) til lightly browned.










The cooked sticks were drained on kitchen towel and cooled slightly before being rolled in granulated sugar.

Finally, the Doughnut sticks were served ... and they didn't last long!  

 Thanks again, Saara for sharing your recipe... we think we'll be making these quite often from now on.