Panettone

The best thing about any festive occasion is family/friends get-togethers. Since I live abroad away from my beloved family, every year we try to spend Christmas & other festivals with friends. Each of us make a dish and gather around, eating and drinking all day, playing games, watching some good old movies. Tasked as the official Baker, I bake batches of traditional fruit cake, along with festive favourites like panettone or stollen, christmas pudding, steamed ginger pudding. I make this bread every year and we like this for breakfast on holidays. Trust me , it is not as hard as it looks, do give this a go.

Panettone

For the Biga*

Ingredients

200g strong breadfFlour

½ cup cool water

1/16 teaspoon instant yeast

Method:

Combine the flour, water and yeast, stirring with a wooden spoon to make stiff dough. Place the

dough in a lightly greased bowl, and allow it to rise overnight or until it become bubbly.

For the Bread:

Ingredients

300g strong bread flour, plus extra for dusting

2 whole eggs + 6 (med) egg yolks, beaten

2 sticks softened butter, plus extra to grease

½ cup caster sugar or mixed spice sugar

7g instant yeast

1/3cup jumbo golden raisins

1/4 sultanas

1/3 cup mix of cranberries, blueberries, sweet morello cherries & inca berries

1/4 cup candied peel, finely chopped

seeds scrapped from 1 vanilla pod

1 tsp vanilla extract

Lemon Extract 1tsp

grated zest of 1 large orange

grated zest of 1 lemon & 1 lime

¼ cup warm milk

1 tsp salt

pinch of freshly ground nutmeg & cinnamon

3 tbsp dark rum or brandy

1 tbsp Amaretto

1 yolk+1tbsp olive oil, beaten together for glazing

1 tbsp vanilla sugar to sprinkle on top

Method:

Soak the fruits in a bowl with both rum/brandy & amaretto. In the bowl of an electric mixer, fitted with dough hook, combine all of the ingredients except the dried fruit. Knead the dough till it's combined; it will be very sticky at first, but should come together eventually as you knead. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, and allow it to rest for an hour. Knead the raisins, sultanas and candied peel into the dough gently, until evenly distributed. Form the dough into a ball and place it in 8 inch springform tin or a ready-made panettone mould. Cover with cling film or towel and leave to rise for 2 hours in a warm place until the dough has tripled in size. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180°C. Brush the top with egg wash and sprinkle vanilla sugar. Bake the panettone for about 40-45 minutes, covering it with aluminum foil for the final 15-20 minutes of baking if it browns too quickly. A skewer inserted in the middle should come out clean without any crumbs or wet dough. Allow panettone to cool and then brush with melted butter. Dust liberally with icing sugar on top before serving.

Note: Panettone can be served toasted with Zabaglione or with coffee. Stale panettone can be used to make bread & butter pudding or French toasts.

* Biga is a type of starter used to make traditional Italian breads. It gives bread a light, open texture with holes.

Note: Yeast & flour measurements are in grams to be precise.

Change... This 5 letter word is a biggie. Something that is hard to accept, but inevitable. You know its coming, but still afraid of it. This happens to me every year. The change sets in so quickly, it gets harder to accept Summer is no more. As I look out of the window on my drive to work,   it seems only yesterday the leaves turned from green to mellow yellow. But today its various shades of yellow, auburn, burnt orange and reds covering the ground. The days have gone shorter and the long sunny days replaced by chilly autumn evenings. The weather’s unpredictable, it’s cold one day and colder the next. Berrymania replaces the grocers by Pumpkinmania. And before you know it its Halloween. 
In the hope that Summer is not far-off, I embrace this change,  welcoming it with these Pumpkin cupcakes and more such cosy comfort food (soon to follow). 

I find comfort in food, so I know I will wade through this season with steaming mugs of home-made soup, freshly baked bread, these cupcakes curled on the sofa...staying cozy, safe & warm. 

Happy Halloween!

Pumpkin Cupcakes (Adapted from Martha Stewart)

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour 
1 teaspoon baking soda 
1 teaspoon baking powder 
1 teaspoon salt 
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
1 teaspoon ground ginger 
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg 
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice 
1 cup packed dark-brown sugar 
1 cup caster sugar 
1 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled 
4 large eggs, lightly beaten 
1 can pumpkin purée 
Handful of white chocolate chips 
Method: 
Preheat the oven to 180C & line the cupcake tins with liners. I have used gold here. In a bowl mix the dry ingredients and in another bowl mix all the wet ingredients. Add the dry ingredients slowly into the wet ingredients with the mixer running on low. Stir in the white chocolate chips. Carefully ladle the batter onto the liners and bake for 20-23 minutes. Cool Completely. 
Icing: 
1(300g) pack cream cheese (philadelphia) 
1 cup double cream 
Pinch of nutmeg, cinnamon & all spice 
1 tsp vanilla extract. 
Method: 
Whisk everything together until smooth and has reached a soft peak stage. Either pipe or spread liberally on the cooled cakes.

*I have used home-made roasted pumpkin purée. The result is a much sweeter & dark coloured purée.

*Chuck in some pecans for added texture & flavour.
I also made made these from the leftover puree. 

Butter Cookies and Mac & Cheese very grown-up style

I am really truly disappointed that I was unable to get any spare time, in the past few months, to do a blog post :-(. I so wanted to, but working full time equated to it being really impossible. I am in the process of organizing work + studies in the next few weeks, which means I can find more time to update the blog with some interesting posts. I did manage to bake some cookies for a 14 month old angel & some cakes for work/friends that I never got a chance to click! I made these butter cookies recently, a fairly straight forward recipe, but you can jazz it up as cookie kisses by sandwiching them together with butter cream or melted chocolates; A very chic after dinner coffee nibbles. I also have to share this very grown up Mac& Cheese I made for dinner on a Friday, with veggies and chilli cheese for a spicy kick . I know what you'd think when I say Mac & Cheese..but this one you've gotto like. Its baked in a very cheesy white sauce with a bread crumb topping that turns crispy and golden on baking! Finally, I have also included a Biscotti recipe that is definitely a keeper, turns out awesome every-time! Happy Long Weekend and Happy Baking!!

Butter Cookies

Ingredients (Adapted from Donna Hay)

175g Butter

1/4 cup Icing Sugar

1tsp Vanilla

1 cup Flour

1/4 cup Corn-starch

Pinch Salt

Method:

Preheat oven to 180C. Beat the butter and sugar till light and fluffy and gently fold in the vanilla & flour. Put the dough in a piping bag with star nozzle and pipe rosettes onto a baking tray lined with silpat. Bake the cookies for 12-14 minutes. Let it cool. Once cooled store them in an airtight container or if you wish to sandwich them together, pipe a little  butter-cream onto two matching cookies.

Variation:

Lime-Vanilla: Fold in some lemon zest into the above mixture.

Coffee-Kisses: Add a tsp of espresso powder to the above mixture and pipe some  butter-cream with a dash of espresso in it as well.

Chocolate: Add a tsp of cocoa to the mixture and sandwich them with some melted chocolate or chocolate ganache.

Raspberry/Strawberry: Add a tsp of freeze dried raspberry/strawberry powder to the mixture and sandwich them with vanilla butter-cream.

Grown-Up Mac & Cheese

Ingredients

Cooked Macaroni according to packet instructions (I use 75g per person), tossed with a little olive oil

Mix of vegetables like carrots, leeks, broccoli, cauliflower, peppers, corn..

1 clove of garlic chopped

For the cheese sauce:

75g Grated Chilli Cheddar Cheese

100g Vintage Cheddar

75g Parmesan

Salt to tast

500ml Milk

80ml Cream

Bay Leaf

Pinch Nutmeg

1tbsp Flour

1tbsp Butter

Method:

Preheat oven to 190C. Heat some butter in a pan and stir in the flour and cook till the raw smell is out. Slowly whisk in the milk, bay leaf, nutmeg and cream. Let thicken. Stir in the grated cheese. Toss the pasta and the vegetables into the sauce and sprinkle some bread crumbs and extra cheese on top. Bake in a greased tin/bowl for 20 minutes until its bubbly and golden. Serve with a crunchy salad.

Vanilla-Almond Biscotti

Ingredients

250g flour plain or wholemeal or a mix of plain & cornmeal

180g caster sugar/vanilla sugar

11\2 tsp. baking powder

150g blanched almonds

2tsp vanilla extract or 1 tsp vanilla paste

3 large eggs

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180C. Mix everything together in a hand mixer or with a wooden spoon. It will be sticky dough, just dust the kitchen top with flour and knead the dough slightly and form 2 logs. Bake them for 40 minutes. Allow to cool completely and then cut them using a sharp knife and bake the slices again for about 15 minutes. Allow to cool and store in an airtight container.

For the coffee-chocolate-hazelnut Biscotti

Use 220g flour, 1tsp instant coffee and 30g cocoa & used a handful of dark chocolate chips. Replace the almonds with hazelnuts.

Carrot Cake

I am not a big fan of carrot cake but there are worshipers here who absolutely love carrot cake. One of them happens to be S, who loves only this cake in the whole world. Even the sexiest of chocolate cake doesn't make him go week-on-the-knees. I make the carrot cake every year for his birthday with little variations, but since the past few years, I've been making it with whole-meal flour. I make them with fresh pineapple & frost it with toasted coconut cream cheese icing or a simple carrot cake with hazelnuts/walnuts/pecans (like here) & lemon cream cheese icing. This year I adapted Donna Hays recipe and the cake was fabulously moist and perfectly balanced. This one is for keepers!!

Carrot Cake
 Ingredients
220g brown sugar
185ml vegetable oil 
3 eggs 
225g whole-meal or AP flour 
1½ teaspoons baking powder 
1 teaspoon baking soda 
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
½ teaspoon mixed spice 
½ teaspoon ground ginger 
About 5-6 med sized carrots grated 
60g chopped pecan /hazelnut or walnut 
60g sultanas 
Cream Cheese Icing 
250g cream cheese/mascarpone, softened 
3-4 tbsp icing sugar, sifted 
zest & Juice of ½ a lemon or 1-2tbsp lemon curd 
Method: 

Preheat oven to 180°C . Place the sugar and oil in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat for 2–3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time and beat well after each addition. Sift the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, cinnamon, mixed spice and ginger over the sugar mixture. Add the carrot, nuts and sultanas and mix until just combined. Pour into 2 greased 8 inch-round cake tin lined with non-stick baking paper and bake for 35-40 minutes or until cooked when tested with a skewer. Cool in tin. 
 For the cream cheese icing: Beat the cream cheese in a food processor until smooth. Add the icing sugar and lemon juice/lemon curd and process until smooth. Spread frosting on the cooled cake as desired. I simply used it to sandwich the layer and just on top.

The Chablis Challenge Menu

I was recently sent 2 bottles of chabilis and the challenge was to pair it with the kind of food I would serve typically with the wine. I am not a big wine-cheese-food pair-er but do generally serve light creamy food with whites and tomato based food like pasta with reds. 

A little about the wine:
Product details: Domaine Bois d’Yer Chabilis 2007
Style: Dry
Grape variety: Chardonnay
Country of origin: France
The wines from this region of France, are a touch more austere mainly as the soils here are composed of light, sandy topsoil with the Kimmeridgian (limestone-rich) subsoil. The cool climate produces wines with more acidity with a beautiful fresh minerality which makes them the best wine with seafood. The wine has a pale yellow-green tinge, plenty of lovely green apple fruit on the palate, with notes of smokiness & zesty lime but still crisp. 
Product Details: Chabilis J. Moreau & Fils 2009
Style: Dry 
Grape variety: Chardonnay 
 Country of origin: France
 These grapes grow on Portlandien limestone plateaus which is essentially a cool, cloudy climate. Hence the wine is golden in color, tangy with flavors of green apple and honeydew. Very fresh, lite bodied and round mouth with a tangy and lightly spicy finish.
 I paired the Chabilis J. Moreau & Fils 2009 with cheese & the Domaine Bois d’Yer Chabilis 2007 with risotto.
 Cheese Platter with Cheese Ball, Grapes and Wine (Chabilis J. Moreau & Fils 2009)
 The cheese ball forms a perfect hors d'oeuvre along with crunchy vegetables,bread & cheese crackers. It is packed with flavors from mustard & herbs and has the crunch from chopped nuts.

 
For the Cheese Ball

Ingredients  1 tub of cream cheese/drained greek yoghurt
 mix of cheese or a sharp vintage cheddar
 (I have used a mix of Goats cheese, Pié d’Angloys, Camembert)
 50-80g butter
 1tsp of dijon mustard or horesradish
 touch of honey if using horseradish or any spicy mustard
 a little grating of garlic
 chopped fresh herbs like basil or chives
 grated zest of 1/2 a lemon
 toasted walnuts
 Method:
 Bring all the ingredients to room temperature and whip together in a mixer until light & creamy. Wrap in a cling and place into a deep bowl and refrigerate for a couple of hours before un-moulding. Serve with sour dough/rye bread along with cheese crackers and some fresh grapes or figs.

Chabilis-Butternut Squash Risotto
 Yes, I used chabilis instead of the usual wine and absolutely loved the result. The general rule is to use the wine that you'd drink  to cook . Instead of standing & stirring the risotto, I baked it (tip from Donna Hay) as I enjoyed my wine with the cheese board.
 For the Risotto
 Ingredients
 1tbsp butter
 300g carnaroli or arborio (i used carnaroli)
 1 onion and a clove of garlic, chopped
 500g chopped butternut squash
 one glass of chabilis or any white wine
 700ml of stock
 couple of sage leaves
 zafferano a pinch
 freshly grated parmesan
 20g butter
 touch of cream
 salt & pepper to taste
 Method:
 Preheat the oven to 200C. Heat a heavy bottomed pan saute the onions & garlic in the butter. Add the rice, zafferano & sage leaves and coat well till transparent. Now add the wine and stir till it has evaporated. Now transfer the contents to a oven safe pot and pour the hot stock. Season well, give it a stir and bake for about 30min. At this point the risotto will look watery but put it back on heat and add the butter, parmesan & the cream and simmer for 5 minutes. It should be ready tender & creamy but the grains still firm in the center. Serve with more grated parmesan, fried sage leaves & wine.

We finished the meal with a very light but very decadent Deconstructed Eton Mess with berries. Meringue topped with dollops of thick and light cream and fresh berries.
 For the Deconstructed Eton Mess
Ingredients
 2-4 meringue
 handful of fresh berries
 creme fraiche/sour cream/cream/greek yoghurt
 vanilla extract
 honey
 some chopped pistachios or grated chocolate
 Method:
 Whip the creme fraiche/sour cream/cream/greek yoghurt lightly, with vanilla. I used a mix of creme fraiche and diary free cream. Place the meringue onto a plate, spoon the cream mixture and serve with fresh berries, nuts/grated chocolate and a drizzle of honey, just enough to sweeten the palate. 

Disclosure: I am not a wine expert or sommelier and all my views  on the wine-food pairing, are my idea of how it works best for me. I was sent 2 bottles of the wine mentioned here as a part of the challenge. Many thanks for sending the wine.