Fat Friday #21 Salted Buttered Toffees

Christmas is fast approaching. Have you finished that shopping yet? Better get a move on. If you planning to make some small gifts to give out to friends and work colleagues may I suggest these buttery soft toffees? They want to be caramels but are more toffee like. Or are they more caramels who wants to be more like a toffee? Either way, they make great gifts once you've wrapped them up in cellophane bags with a cute little ribbon plus a cute little tag (thanks Chloe!) and they are extremely addictive. Be warned...addictive!!



 

Recipe: Makes 40 soft toffees (depending on how big you cut the pieces) (Recipe adapted from Sweet Things by Annie Rigg) 

Ingredients:

·       150g Demerara sugar

·       125g golden syrup

·       100g unsalted butter, diced

·       250ml double cream

·       150g caster sugar

·       ½ teaspoon of sea salt, plus a little extra for garnish

·       ½ vanilla pod seeds

Equipment:

·       Baking tray greased with sunflower oil and lined with silicone

·       Sugar thermometer

·       Small saucepan

·       Rubber spatula

·       2 litre saucepan

·       Knife

·       Extra baking paper

·       Airtight container

Method

1.    Grease the tin with sunflower oil and line the tin with silicone paper.
2.    Put the Demerara sugar, golden syrup, butter, double cream in a small pan and place over a low heat.
3.    Stir the mixture until smooth and once the mixture is hot, remove the pan from the heat.
4.    Place the caster sugar in a 2 litre pan with the 2 tablespoons of water and place over a low heat. Don’t stir the mixture but swirl the pan from time to time. Continue to cook until the mixture turns an amber colour.
5.    Slide the pan off the heat and really carefully pour the hot cream mixture into the caramel mixture. It will hiss and spit so do be careful. Return the pan to a medium heat and place a sugar thermometer into the mixture and cook in 121c/250f.
6.    As quick as you can add the vanilla seeds and sea salt and stir briefly to combine and pour into the prepared tin.
7.    Leave to cool completely for at least for 4 hours or overnight.
8.    Cut into little pieces with a hot knife, sprinkle with a little sea salt and wrap in silicone paper in cute twists and store in an airtight jar.

 

Banana and Salted Caramel Soy Smoothie

I found out recently that fruit smoothies are meant to be bad for you. I mean, just when you find an easy way to get 1 of your 5 a day or is it 1 of your 7 a day now? When you blend fruit together in a smoothie, all the sugars in the fruit go directly into your blood stream and gives you a sugar rush... and then a sugar crush. Its always better to eat the whole fruit, unblended.  In the meantime this smoothie will have to do, its not good for you but its very tasty and good for a chocolaty fix. I used Hotel Chocolate's Salted Caramel and Pecan Spread because its so tasty blends really nicely into a smoothie.

Recipe: Makes 4 little smoothies to drink or 2 for very greedy people

·       400ml Soy Milk
        2 teaspoons matcha green tea powder (I use teapigs Matcha)

·       4 teaspoons of dissolvable fibre power (I used Benefibre)
        5 tablespoons Hotel Chocolat Salted Caramel and Pecan Spread/(or peanut butter).
        2 Bananas, chopped and frozen 
       (if using peanut butter blend 2 tablespoons of cocoa power to add some chocolatey goodness) 

Equipment:

·       Blender
        Freezer

·       Teaspoon

·       Tablespoon

·       Chopping Board
        Knife
        Baking Sheet lined with baking paper/silicone paper
        Glasses

1. Cut up the banana and place on a lined baking sheet and place into the freezer and leave for 3 hours or until frozen.
2.Put all the ingredients into a blender and whizz until fully combined and thick.
3. Pour into glasses and slurp.

Have you ever used up some bits in the fridge to make a smoothie or shake?

No Bake Rice Crispie Pops

A cake pop mould, lots of cereal, and a desperate need for a break from university work. This recipe was born with a mad idea that you don't want to get too much into baking because work is waiting... I must thank one of my work colleagues who was the inspiration behind it. Many thanks Ali, Fab idea! 
This is what you get, a crispy, chocolately pop of goodness sprinkled with goodness (or sprinkles or whatever you have at hand.) It doesn't take that long and its ideal for kids to make as well as there's no oven involved. 

Recipe: Makes around a generous 14

·       95g Rice crispie cereal

·       453g Good quality milk chocolate, plus 735g good quality milk chocolate for dipping

·       Sprinkles like popping candy, heart sprinkles glitter its up to you completely.

Equipment:

·       Heatproof Bowl x 1

·       Bowl for various sprinkles

·       Wooden spoon

·       Lolly pop sticks

·       Cake pop mould

·       Microwave  

·       Greaseproof paper

1.    Break 453g of the chocolate into pieces and place in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of barely simmering water. Stir occasionally until completely melted. Set aside to cool. Alternatively microwave for 30 seconds bursts until completely melted.

2.    Mix the rice crispies into the chocolate.

3.    Spoon the mixture into one half of the cake pop moulds. Do the same for the second half.

4.    Quickly sandwich the two halves together and stick the lolly sticks in the top where the hole it. Freeze for about 30 minutes.

5.    While waiting set up your sprinkles into a bowl and greaseproof paper ready for the chocolate pops to dry. So you've got a little production line going.

6.    Pop the chocolate pops out carefully.

7.    Melt the 735g of chocolate, in the same way for step one.

8. One at a time, dip the pop into chocolate and wait until the excess has come off.

    9. Dip into your sprinkles and place onto greaseproof paper until completely dry.

Bake on (or No-Bake On...in this case)

Mallow Crisp Delight No Bake Recipe

It's been my first official week of uni. This is my final year, so better make this one count. After studying hospitality management for most of my adult life (I know 16 is meant be adult but I was still in childish mode) and when it comes down to one last year.

One year. Just one more year! One mind imploding, coursework writing, all nighters, handing the stupid essay in right before the undergraduate centre closes to the minute panic moments.

And I haven't even mentioned the ridiculous exams.
The pressure is on. The pressure is most assuredly on. But when its all said and done I'll be coming out with a shiny degree and I get to throw one of those hats that you wear for graduation. I call them frisbee hats but I think there called 'mortar boards'.

Back to to the subject in question, im a little under pressure (yeah you've mentioned that) but not to worry I'll be delivering the goods (baked) on here when I can because as said before, for me, baking is a good stress outlet. Also its fun and yummy. Can't beat that combo. So all in all I will be posting still.

Then it struck. It hit me suddenly. I got a cold. I'm not a sicky person but when I get ill, its just awful. So I haven't been able to get into the baking spirit this week, because no one wants to be baking and then you get snot bungee out your nose! Gross image. Yuk. 

Moving on very swifly! As I promised so long ago for a no bake recipe. I finally typed it out with some time to spare to sit in bed and sneeze in between researching about GM foods for a university assignment... here's that recipe:

This recipe was one of those recipes: "that you make up as you go" and so its all about being creative and using common sense. This is why there is a lack of pictures because we had to move fast to get this batch ready to out on display at work. 

Recipe Name: Mallow Crisp Delights (Recipe created by Louisa L and Penny H) 

For the Squares: Makes about 12

·        600g Mini Marshmallows

·        150g butter (plus a little extra for greasing)

·        510g Rice Cereal

·        Assorted chocolate buttons (we used a mix of milk and dark chocolate)

·        Your choice of decorations-more chocolate buttons, melted chocolate. Anything you like.

Equipment needed:

•  Flat tin greased with butter or oil (foil works as well but is fiddley to get the squares off)
• Bowl x2
• Wooden spoon
• Microwave
• Sharp Knife

1.     Line a flat tin sheet with foil or grease with oil or butter.

2.     Put the cereal into 2 separate bowls.

3.     Melt half of the mini marshmallows and half of the butter in the microwave in an appropriate bowl for 30 second bursts or until you have a gooey marshmallow mess.

4.     Very quickly pour the marshmallow butter mix into one of the bowls of cereal and mix with a spoon until completely coated.

5.     Pour this into the lined flat tin sheet and flatten with a spoon.

6.     Scatter the chocolate buttons on top of the marshmallow cereal. This will create a layer of chocolate.

Step 7. Repeat steps 3-5 to get a really nice layer of marshmallow

7.     Repeat steps 3-5, so you have a layer of marshmallow on top of the chocolate buttons. (So it should be marshmallow cereal layer/ chocolate buttons/ marshmallow cereal-3 layers in total)

Step 8. Decorate to your liking

8.     Put your choice of decorations on top. Smarties, more marshmallows, glitter, jelly babies, more chocolate buttons. We opted for more melted chocolate, lightly drizzled on top.

9.  Score lines into mallow treats with a knife. So you should have even mallow squares (we got about 12 squares). Don’t cut all the way through. This makes it easier to get the squares out of the tin more easily. 

10.  Let the squares set for about 2 hours and cut into squares and stuff your face!

Have a good week baking lovers (Oh and are you watching GBBO? Dont forget to tune in!)