Dark Chocolate Fudge Cake September 13, 2015

Rich, soft, moist and fudgy.

After taking the photo of this I thought, it could also be covered in a lovely ganach, or maybe not, maybe that would make it too rich and chocolatey. Hmmm is there such a thing? It would also be nice if you zapped a slice of it in the microwave then topped it with ice cream and raspberries…Oh yessssssssss!

 

Ingredients

 

2/3 cup milk

1 1/2 tsp vinegar

1/2 cup honey

1/4 cup of oil, I used olive oil

1 tsp vanilla bean paste or you could use extract

1/3 cup cocoa powder

1 cup plain flour

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 cup chocolate chips

 

Method

 

Preheat oven to 175C/gas 4.

Line an 9” round or square baking tin.

Whisk together the first 5 ingredients, and set aside for at least 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, stir together the remaining ingredients in a separate bowl until well-mixed.

Pour wet into dry, stir just until evenly mixed, and transfer to the prepared tin.

Bake 25-30 minutes on the middle rack, or until cake is light and fluffy and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Tip: the chocolate chips can be stirred into the mixture or scattered on top.

 

Strawberry Tarts September 12, 2015

These are a lovely tasty way to say goodbye to Summer and they’re easy to make too.

If you’ve visited my blog before you’ll most probably know I’m useless at making pastry, so I bought ready made all butter pastry cases. But go ahead and make your own if thats what your good at 😉 I used 8 pastry cases but you could use mini ones or make one large tart.

 

Ingredients for the strawberry filling

 

2 cups of washed, hulled and roughly mashed strawberries

1/2 cup granulated sugar, plus 3 Tbsp

zest of one lemon

3 tsp cornflour

 

Ingredients for the vanilla cream topping

 

1/2 cup soured cream

2 Tbsp soft dark brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla bean paste or 1/2 a vanilla bean, seeds scraped out

small srawberries for garnish, optional

 

Method for the strawberry filling

 

In a small saucepan, combine all of the ingredients and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.

Continue to cook for about 5 minutes, until thickened.

Allow to cool for 15 minutes, then divide into the tart shells. Place in the fridge to chill.

 

Method for the vanilla cream topping

 

In a small bowl stir together the sour cream, brown sugar, and vanilla, until smooth.

Dollop onto the chilled tarts, and top with a mini strawberry.

Tip: This vanilla cream topping does not go thick like whipped cream. Best not to put on top of the tarts until your ready to serve. This cream is also delicious used for dipping fruit into.