Fat Friday #46 Red Berry Brownie

Happy Friday! Nothing better then a sweet, tart and chocolatey brownie to kickstart the weekend! This recipe is adapted as I actually ran out of sugar, so I used icing sugar instead. The result was amazingly fudgey and very chocolately. Give them a bake this weekend!

Recipe (Adapted from Primrose Bakery Everyday by Martha Swift) 
Ingredients:

• 250g unsalted butter
• 75g golden caster sugar
• 75g icing sugar
• 40g cocoa powder
• 150g plain flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 150g dark chocolate chunks
• 150g white chocolate chunks
• 200g fresh strawberries and raspberries (chopped)
• 3 eggs

Equipment:

• Microwave/Saucepan filled with water, with a heatproof bowl on top
• Brownie tin lined with greaseproof paper
• Bowl x 2
• Wooden spoon

Method:

1) Preheat the oven to GM 4/180c/350f. Grease and line with greaseproof paper.

2) Melt the butter on the hob over a pan of hot water or microwave in the oven until completely melted. Set aside.

3) In another bowl, put the sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, flour and chocolate chunks and mix until combined.

4) Pour the melted butter into the dry ingredients, and stir (like a boss) until thoroughly mixed in. 

5) Add the strawberries and raspberries and very gently fold them into the mixture.

6) Pour the batter into prepared tin and spread evenly.

7) Bake for 30-35 minutes. Allow to cool into the tin. 

Happy Friday!

Fat Friday #8 Basic Fruit Batter

That's another week done and over with, of course you know what that means. Its Fat Friday! This week is kind of a throwback day as I've been trying to sort out loads of stuff with my pastry course and moving in my new place with my boyfriend (its been two days and we haven't killed each other...yet...) so its been hard to do something fancy and way cool. So this week you'll have to settle for Basic Fruit Batter. I first made this in my first pastry course and has been sitting idle for about a year unpublished on the blog. Oops on my half. Also I kind of felt that battering fruit was bad for you, but that was back before the time of Fat Friday*

*I'm not saying eat all fruit in batter. Please consume in moderation

Recipe: Basic Batter (My own)

·       450g plain flour

·       Pinch of salt

·       6 egg yolk

·       450ml white wine

·       90ml oil, plus extra for frying

·       Fruit of your choice (We used pineapple, apple, pear and kiwi. Kiwi was the best! Seriously, don't knock it until you try it.)

Equipment:

·       Bowl

·       Whisk

·       Frying pan with oil /deep fryer

·       Fork or a slotted spoon

·       Sieve

·       Jug

·       Knife

·       Chopping board

·       Plate with about 200g of sugar and 20g cinnamon 

    1. Peel the fruit, core the apples, pears etc so that it’s in rings. (Don't do this for kiwis, strawberries or other small fruit.)
2. Sieve flour into a bowl and add salt.
3. Make a well in the middle, and whisk in the eggs. Add the white wine and oil and mix well until it looks like a lumpy but wet mixture.

4.Heat up the oil in a frying pan/fryer to about 180c or until the oil is hot enough for frying. To test if it's hot enough, place a drop of batter into the oil once the batter starts to crisp and bubble, the oil is hot enough.
5. Coat the fruit with the batter, place into the hot oil and cook for 3-4 mins or until the batter has turned a golden colour. (Please be careful at this stage as there is a burn risk.)

6.Place into a plate of cinnamon sugar and roll around to coat. Serve. 

What fruit would you batter? Would you stop at fruit?
Happy Friday and Happy Baking 

Easy Strawberry Cupcakes with a Light Strawberry Icing

Thank goodness for the bank holiday weekend.

3 fab days of sunshine and just taking it easy. 

However the baking itch was too much to bare. I wanted to make something with minimal fuss but yummy too. Because, even for me, there are some days want you just want a lazy day. You know the ones where the dvd box set of Supernatural comes out and isn't switched off until you have watch every single episode, despite knowing them mostly off by heart.

So, going through my recipe books and papers I found the most insanely easy cupcake/old school fairy cake recipe ever. 

I mean it took an hour. For everything. Yups, I talking about getting the ingredients weighed and equipment, baking, etc. It really takes no time at all. 

I have come up with an impromptu runny fairy cake style icing to top the cupcakes with, but honestly the cupcakes are just as heavenly without it. The oil in mixed into the batter, makes the cake moist so don't replace with butter. I know it's a little odd, but just go with it. The theme of this blog post, is take it easy. 

Recipe: Makes 12 Cakes (Adapted from Bake Yourself Happy by Marian Keyes)

•        200g fresh strawberries
•        100ml olive oil
•        90g golden caster sugar
•        2 eggs
•        180g plain flour
•        ¾ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

      

      For the icing: (Optional- Original Recipe by Me )

•      240g icing sugar sieved
•      55g unsalted butter, room temperature
•      110g fresh strawberries

      Equipment: 

•    Masher
•    Sieve
•    Electric hand whisk
•    Muffin cases lined with 12 cupcake cases 
•    Chopping board
•    Sharp knife

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180c/350f/Gas Mark 4 and line a 12 hole muffin tray with cupcake cases.

2. Wash and hull the strawberries and mash until they’re pulpy.

Step 3. Add the oil, sugar and eggs together..

Step 3. And whisk until caramel like.

3.  Beat the oil, sugar and eggs together for a few minutes until the mix starts to look caramelly. Add the pulped strawberries, sieve in the flour and bicarbonate of soda and fold through.

Step 3. All the cake batter with all the ingredients mixed through.

Step 4. Fill the cupcake cases until about 3/4 full 

4. Pour the thinnish batter into the cases and bake for about 20 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

      5.  While the cupcakes are cooling, make the icing by mashing up the strawberries in a bowl and set aside.

     6.  Sieve the icing sugar into a bowl and beat with the warm butter. Add the strawberries to make a runny icing and spoon onto the cupcakes for a traditional fairy-cake style cake. 

I hope that you've had a lovely long sunny weekend!