Puddings & Cosy Desserts Archives | RecipeTin Eats

Honey Cake

Nagi — Fri, 01 Jul 2022 06:00:00 +0000

This is a Honey Cake made with only honey as the sweetener, no sugar, so you can really taste the honey (such cakes are rarer than you think!). You’ll love how it’s soaked with rich honey syrup, flooding the cake with extra honey flavour and making the crumb beautifully moist.

This sweet gem is brilliant as a pudding-like dessert to finish off a cosy dinner, or served for afternoon tea with friends.

Honey Cake

I had a load of home-harvested honey gifted to me by people in my life who keep their own bees. Thinking how best I could flatter such a lovely ingredient, I developed a slightly mad obsession with creating a cake that used honey and no sugar whatsoever. Sounds simple enough, right?

WRONG!

Turns out, it’s much harder than it seems. For one, sugar plays an important part in making cakes rise. When creamed with butter, sugar creates little air pockets as the cake bakes. When you remove sugar from the equation, cakes have a tendency to be very dense, as I discovered from various honey cake recipes I tried.

The other problem? Pretty much all the ones I tried don’t actually taste of honey. What’s the point then, I ask??! 😂

So I am chuffed to present my own honey cake recipe which I think does the cake justice both in name and the eating! It was broadly adapted from this Greek Honey Cake. If you do an ingredient comparison though, you’ll see that the end result bears little resemblance. The most distinct difference is the absence of sugar in my recipe.

Ingredients in Honey Cake

Straightforward ingredients in this recipe! The key ingredient is of course, honey (imagine that! 😂).

Honey – Not all honey is created equal! The better quality the honey, the stronger the honey flavour and the better the result. To be honest though, while I don’t want to encourage you to use dirt cheap mass-produced honey since it can sometimes be bulked out with sugar syrup, even if you use a regular mainstream brand the honey flavour will still absolutely come through in this cake.
Butter (at room temperature) – When recipes call for butter at room temperature or softened butter, the butter needs to be firmer than you probably think. Ideally it is 18°C / 64°F. This is soft enough to whip, but still cool enough that when you touch it, you don’t end up with a slick of grease on your finger.
Butter that is too soft can lead to greasy cakes that do not rise as well as they should. In fact, this is one of the most common problems in cake making!
Here’s a quick way to bring butter to room temperature: Cut fridge-cold butter into 1.5cm cubes (1/2″ thick slices if you have a US stick of butter). Scatter on a plate. Microwave 2 cups of cold tap water for 4 minutes on high in large mugs or a jug. Remove the warmed water, quickly put the butter plate in its place and close the door. DO NOT turn the microwave back on. The residual heat in the microwave air will soften the butter in 5 minutes.

Large eggs at room temperature – The eggs need to be at room temperature and not fridge-cold, to ensure they incorporate into the batter easily.
A quick way to warm up fridge-cold eggs: Place eggs in a large bowl, cover with warm tap water (just warm, not hot) and leave for 5 min. Wipe dry and use per recipe.
Egg size (“large eggs”): 50 – 55g / 2 oz per egg is the industry standard of sizes sold as “large eggs” in Australia and the US. If your eggs are significantly larger or smaller in size, just crack the eggs into a jug, whisk and measure out 200g / 7 oz.
Flour – Just all purpose/plain flour for this recipe. Self-raising flour will work as a substitute but the cake will contain more baking powder than the recipe calls. This will cause the baked cake to dome a little in the middle.
Baking powder – To make the cake rise. If yours has been sitting in the dark corners of the pantry for a while, test it to make sure its still alive!
Milk – Full-fat is better though low fat is fine too.
Salt – Just a bit, to bring out the other flavours in this cake. It’s generally good baking practice to add a pinch of salt into sweet recipes.
Orange zest (optional) – Recommended but not the end of the world if you skip it. A pinch of orange zest magically enhances the honey flavour in this cake. You won’t be able to taste the zest in the cake unless you have a very refined palette. (I don’t. Hence why the flavours of my recipes are usually kapow! rather than subtle! 😂 )
Flaked almonds – For decorative purposes, for flavour and for shielding the surface of the cake so it doesn’t get too dark when baked (neat huh!)

Next is the honey syrup we use to soak the cake.

Honey – Yes, more honey! I told you, you definitely won’t miss the honey flavour in this cake! 😂
Water – To thin the honey a bit, so that we can safely simmer the honey for 5 minutes without it getting too thick.
Lemon juice – Just the finest touch, 3/4 tsp. It adds a very delicate but welcome hint of lemon freshness. It’s such a small amount you’re probably wondering what’s the point?? But you really can taste the little twang it brings! Having said that though, it’s not a deal killer if you skip it. Not like making this cake without, say, honey. 😂

How to make Honey Cake

The secret to this cake really lies in the balance of ingredients. The cake-making steps themselves are very bog-standard!

First up, making the cake.

1. The cake

Whisk dry ingredients: Place the dry ingredients in a bowl and whisk together.
Cream butter and honey: A standard cake making step often deployed for butter and sugar. But here, we’re doing this step with honey instead! Beat it for a good 3 minutes on medium-high, a bit longer than you usually go for when baking with sugar as the honey is denser.
Add eggs one at a time, alternating with flour – Switch to a wooden spoon. We’re going to mix in the eggs one at a time, alternating with portions of flour. So, add one egg, then mix until incorporated. The mixture will curdle at first, but keep stirring and it will come together after around 30 seconds.
Add flour in four lots – After the first egg is mixed in, add 1/4 of the flour and mix just until you can no longer see flour. Add another egg, mix until incorporated. Then 1/3 of the remaining flour. And so on, with the 2 remaining eggs.
Why switch to a wooden spoon after creaming the butter? Because a beater will aerate the eggs too much, causing the cake to dome rather than finishing with a nice flat surface. This shape will cause the honey syrup to run down the sides instead than soaking into the cake – and we can’t have that 😱!

Finish batter – Lastly, stir in the milk and orange zest. The finished batter is quite thick and will look a bit like whipped cream rather than completely smooth, as per the photo.
Scrape into pan – Scrape the batter into a baking paper-lined pan and smooth the surface. Even if you have a non-stick pan its best to line it with baking paper to ensure the cake doesn’t stick.
Sprinkle the batter surface with the flaked almonds.
Bake for 45 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Then take the cake out of the oven but leave it in the pan, and cool for 15 minutes. This is an important step, to let the cake settle before soaking in syrup. If you skip it, the cake ends up too dense (impatience is a virtue rarely rewarded in baking, as I often discover to my detriment!).

Next, we’re going to SOAK it in honey syrup! Make the syrup while the cake is resting.

2. Soaking in Honey Syrup

My favourite step is here. Nope, not the soaking part. I mean the cake-poking part! So satisfying … 😂

Make the Honey Syrup while the cake is cooling for 15 minutes.

Simmer the honey and water for 5 minutes to reduce. This concentrates the honey flavour, while heating the honey thins it so it gets absorbed more readily by the cake.
Add lemon juice and simmer for a further 2 minutes. Then cool the syrup for 5 to 10 minutes.
Poke holes in the cake, after it’s rested for 15 minutes. Bamboo or metal skewers work well. Poke with gusto, all the way down to the base – around 30 or more holes. Poke between the almonds so you don’t disturb them. (See … it’s a game … hence the appeal! 😂)
Honey syrup – Pour over the honey syrup in 4 goes, waiting between each pour for the syrup to soak in before doing the next. Use a spoon if needed to spread the syrup evenly across the surface. Then leave to soak for a good 15 minutes.
TIP: If your cake has a slight dome on it, lightly press the dome down with a spatula after baking to flatten the surface, else the syrup tends to just run off the cake and down the sides. Not the end of the world as it then gets absorbed by the base and sides of the cake. But it is nicer when the syrup has soaked the middle of the cake too.

And we’re done! See the section below for serving suggestions …

Serving and storing Honey Cake

This Honey Cake is best served warm because the cooler it gets, the denser it becomes. So serve it freshly made or else leftovers also reheat perfectly, making it ideal for making ahead too. To reheat, just 30 seconds in the microwave for a slice will do, or covered in the oven for around 15 minutes.

With its honey syrup-soaked crumb and crunchy toasted almond topping, I like serving this cake plain because there’s plenty of taste and texture going on here already. However, if you want to jazz it up, I would never discourage that! Try a big dollop of cream or vanilla ice cream (or BOTH!) with a an additional sprinkle of lightly toasted almonds (flakes or slivered), and a drizzle of extra warm honey. SO GOOD!

I think I just talked myself out of serving it plain – Bring on the toppings, on second thought!!! 😂 – Nagi x

Watch how to make it

Video typos I need to fix! Oven baking time is 45 minutes, not 50 minutes. And 15 minutes is enough for the honey syrup soaking step though you can leave it for the 30 minutes indicated in the video.

Honey Cake

Recipe video above. All too often, honey cakes lack any discernible honey flavour. But you can't miss the flavour in this one, that's for sure! You'll love how this is made only using honey, no sugar at all, and how the soft cake gets soaked with honey syrup hot out of the oven.

Serve warm for the best eating experience. Brilliant as a pudding-like cake dessert to finish off a cosy dinner.

Course Cake

Cuisine Western

Keyword honey cake

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes

Servings

Calories 376cal

Author Nagi

Ingredients

Honey cake

1 cup plain flour (Note 1)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cooking salt (kosher salt)
225g (1 cup) unsalted butter , at room temperature (Note 2)
2/3 cup honey
4 large eggs , at room temperature (Note 3)
3 tbsp milk , preferably full-fat, slightly warmed
1 pinch orange zest , optional (brings out honey flavour)
1/3 cup almond flakes

Honey syrup

2/3 cup honey
1/4 cup water
3/4 tsp lemon juice (recommended but optional)

Topping options for serving

Vanilla ice cream, cream, lightly toasted almond flakes or slivered almonds

Cups – Metric

Instructions

Honey Cake:

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan).
Prepare cake pan: Butter and line a 20cm/8" round pan or springform pan with baking paper (base and sides).
Whisk Dry ingredients: Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl.
Cream butter and honey: In a separate bowl, cream the butter and honey for 3 minutes, scraping down the sides halfway, until smooth and fluffy. (Speed 7 handheld beater or stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment).
Add eggs and flour – Add one egg, mix with a wooden spoon for 30 seconds until mostly incorporated into the batter (mixture will looked curdled). Then add in 1/4 of the flour and mix until the batter comes together. Repeat again – mixing in 1 egg, then a portion of flour – until you've used all the eggs.
Milk and zest: Stir in the milk and orange zest, stir until the batter is almost completely smooth. The batter should be quite thick, but soft.
Bake 45 min: Scrape batter into the prepared pan, smooth the surface and sprinkle with almonds. Bake for 45 minutes or until a knife inserted into the centre comes out clean.
Cool 30 min: Remove cake from the oven. Cool for 30 minutes in the pan – don’t skip this else the cake gets too dense when soaked with syrup.
Honey Syrup: Meanwhile, make the syrup. Bring the honey and water to a gentle boil for 5 minutes over medium-low heat. Add the lemon juice and boil for 2 more minutes. Remove from heat, cool for 10 minutes then use per below.
Poke and soak: Poke about 30 holes all across the surface using a skewer (between the almond flakes). Pour 1/4 of the warm Honey Syrup across the surface (if using a springform pan, put it on a plate in case it leaks). Once it mostly sinks in, repeat 3 more times, waiting between pours for the syrup to soak in. Then leave the cake to soak for 15 minutes.
Serve: Serve warm. Remove the springform pan sides, or serve it straight out of the cake pan (Note 4 for removing from cake pan). I typically serve it plain. However Topping Options suggested above would never be turned away!

Notes

1. Flour – Self-raising flour can be substituted but the cake will dome more (as it contains additional baking powder). After baking, lightly press down on the dome to flatten the surface so the honey syrup doesn’t completely run off! Cake flour is not suitable, it will make the sponge too soft.

2. Softened butter – Don’t let the butter get too soft. This is a common error with baking recipes that call for butter to be creamed. Target 18°C/64°F for the butter. This is soft enough to be whipped, but you should not be left with a thick, shiny slick of grease on your finger when you poke it. Greasy fingers = butter too soft = greasy cake that doesn’t rise well.

If the butter is >20°C/68°F, I would chill the butter a bit before using else your cake may end up greasy.

3. Eggs – 50-55g / 2 oz per egg is the industry standard of sizes sold as “large eggs” in Australia and US. Eggs need to be at room temperature so they incorporate properly into the batter. Quick way to warm up fridge-cold eggs: Place eggs in a large bowl, cover with warm tap water (just warm, not hot) and leave for 5 min. Wipe dry, then use per recipe.

4. To remove from a cake pan – cover the almond surface with baking paper (the surface is tacky and will stick to the plate) then invert onto a plate then invert again so it’s right side up.

5. Leftovers will keep for 4 days in the fridge. Warm before serving as the crumb firms up when cold!

Serve this for dessert after….

Roast Chicken

Sautéed Green Beans with Garlic

Potatoes au Gratin (Dauphinoise)

Vegetarian Lasagna

Better-Than-Dominos Garlic Bread

The Garden Salad

Nutrition

Life of Dozer

When Dozer went to the Grounds of Alexandria. He can’t read.🤷🏻‍♀️

The post Honey Cake appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.

Thai Black Sticky Rice Pudding

Nagi — Fri, 27 Aug 2021 06:00:00 +0000

Thai Black Sticky Rice Pudding is a traditional Thai dessert that is favoured by upscale modern Asian restaurants for its striking jet black colour. It’s hard to believe you can make something so delicious that is fundamentally, made with just rice, water and sugar!

Welcome back to THAI WEEK!

Welcome back to the final instalment of THAI WEEK, a week where I’m sharing 3 recipes to make your very own Thai feast at home!

Every now and then, I like to do a recipe theme week. This week it’s THAI week, with three classic recipes to make your very own Thai feast at home:

Thai Yellow Curry – Made from scratch, this is flavour you literally cannot buy in a jar!
Green Papaya Salad – Great as side, yet substantial enough as a starter.
Black Sticky Rice Pudding (this recipe) – Dessert!

Thai Black Sticky Rice Pudding

Black sticky rice is a type of glutinous whole grain rice used to make desserts in Thailand and a number of other South-East Asian nations. It has an eye-popping, natural ink-black colour, and when cooked has a nutty flavour with a creamy and sticky pudding-like texture.

Hence the name of this dish – Black Sticky Rice Pudding!

While white sticky rice pudding may be the more well-known Thai dessert, here in Australia upmarket Thai and Modern Asian restaurants tend to favour black sticky rice, for its exotic and eye-catching appearance. It’s not all looks though – it also has a better flavour!

Just like Western puddings, fresh fruit and a creamy sauce are the perfect accessories to complete the dessert. Sticky rice puddings are frequently finished with good drizzle of coconut cream, and sliced tropical fruit of some kind – usually juicy mango.

Rich but not cloying, and shining with the flavours of South-East Asia, this is the quintessential Thai dessert!

(PS. Despite the name, glutinous rice is actually gluten-free. It is rice starch that is responsible for the stickiness. In fact, this dessert is also vegan, nut-free and lactose-free. This might just be the one dish everyone on the planet can happily enjoy!!! 😱🤣)

What you need to make Black Sticky Rice Pudding

At its simplest, you only need sticky rice, sugar, salt and water to make a really delicious sticky rice pudding. Everything else just makes it even better, but is still entirely optional!

Sticky rice – Usually labelled “glutinous rice”, this rice becomes sticky when cooked which is what gives a creamy texture to this pudding. Black sticky rice has a wonderful nutty flavour already so we only need water to cook it. See below for more on sticky rice.
Find it in Asian and Thai grocery stores, or online such as here and here (Australia).
Pandan leaves – Known in English as screwpine, this is a plant native to South-East Asia that looks similar to a palm tree. The long leaves are added to cooking for their coconut-like scent and flavour for both savoury and sweet applications – especially cakes and desserts. Pandan can be used in powder form, for wrapping things (usually steamed or fried), or just added whole into cooking liquids to infuse like we do in this rice pudding.
It’s sold fresh and frozen in Asian stores and sometimes (🤞🏻) at Harris Farms in Sydney & Queensland.
Can’t find it? Leave it out. This dish is still worth making without it!
Palm sugar – Extracted from palm trees (wait, did the name give it away?😂), this sugar is used in South East Asian cooking for its intense caramel sweetness. Substitute with brown sugar, preferably dark brown sugar for better flavour.
Salt – A distinct flavour in black rice pudding is a noticeable amount of salt. It’s not a dominant taste, like Salted Caramel. But you can definitely taste it and it’s much needed to balance the sweetness.

Optional toppings

Coconut cream – This is used to drizzle on top of the finished dish for serving. It not only adds a lovely touch of rich coconut flavour but also adds a pretty visual flourish to an otherwise very black bowl of rice! Highly recommended but not essential.
Coconut flakes – Lightly toasted for a garnish. This is optional!
Fresh fruit (not pictured above) – Asian tropical fruits are the most authentic choice. I used mango – a classic – but because it’s not mango season, I just used canned mangoes which these days, are actually very, very good! Other fruits that would go brilliantly are papaya, lychees, longan, durian (!!!), mangosteen, dragonfruit etc. If these are hard to source, summer stone fruit, melons or even sweet citrus fruits would also be absolutely lovely.
These toppings are purely optional. Black rice pudding is absolutely worth making with no toppings at all!

Sticky Rice for Thai Black Sticky Rice Pudding

Black sticky rice
Labelled “black sticky rice” or “glutinous rice”
Soaking black and white sticky rice before cooking

There are different varieties of black rice, some of which are glutinous (sticky) and some which are not (such as Chinese Forbidden Rice).

The black rice used to make Thai Sticky Rice Pudding is black glutinous rice. Glutinous rice becomes sticky when cooked, which is the consistency you need to make this glossy, creamy pudding. You won’t get the same result with normal non-glutinous rice, regardless of colour.

Here in Australia, the most common black glutinous rice is from Thailand, though I understand it’s also grown in the Philippines, Indonesian and other Asian countries.

Find it in Asian and Thai grocery stores, or online such as here and here (Australia). It’s usually sold labelled as “glutinous rice”.

White Sticky Rice (optional)

Funny as it sounds, in addition to black sticky rice the recipe also calls for a small amount of white sticky rice. Most Thai black sticky rice recipes call for a combination of both black and white sticky rice because white rice is stickier than black rice, which gives the rice pudding a thicker and creamier texture, while the black rice has more flavour.

However, I consider the white rice to be optional. This pudding still has a really lovely creamy texture even without white rice. It’s just slightly better with white rice!

How to make Thai Black Sticky Rice Pudding

It’s soooo easy! Soak → Simmer → Eat (psst! This parts the best!😂)

Soak the rice for at least 4 hours, or overnight. This ensures that the rice cooks through evenly. If you skip this step, you’ll find that the outside of the rice grains becomes overly soft before the inside cooks through.
Drain the rice and shake off excess water.
Combine with water – Place rice in a small pot with water.
Pandan leaves – Fold the pandan leaves so they will easily fit inside the pot. Then tie into a knot. This breaks the fibres and releases more flavour into the rice.
Simmer for 30 minutes on low heat, stirring almost constantly for the last 15 minutes as it thickens to ensure the base doesn’t catch. The liquid will reduce and thicken due to the starch in the rice.
Sugar – Add palm sugar and salt, then stir to dissolve. It will only take around 30 seconds or so.
Thickness – The black rice pudding should be thick, creamy and glossy as pictured above. Not stodgy and gluey! When spooned into serving bowls it should ooze gently, like good risotto.
Serve – Ladle into bowls, then top with a drizzle of coconut cream (highly recommended), toasted coconut flakes (recommended) and diced mango (a lovely extra, but entirely optional), if using.

This is what the consistency should be like – thick and creamy, not stodgy!

In case you are wondering about my hierarchy of topping priorities (highly recommended down to entirely optional), it’s because this rice pudding is so tasty even unadorned that I guarantee you will be tempted to eat it plain, straight out of the pot.

It’s hard to believe that of a rice pudding just made with rice, water and sugar, isn’t it?? But it’s true!

What to serve with Thai Black Sticky Rice

This is dessert! Finally, a Thai dessert to share, after years of sharing Thai starters and main dishes. 🙌🏻

In addition to the Thai Yellow Curry and Green Papaya Salad I shared earlier this week as part of Thai Week, here are some other Thai restaurant favourites to get you inspired:

Thai Green Curry

Thai Chicken Satay with Peanut Sauce

Pad Thai

Tom Yum Soup (Thai soup)

Thai Fish Cakes

Thai Drunken Noodles (Pad Kee Mao)

Southern Thai Tumeric Chicken (Grilled or Baked)

Thai Recipes

And with that, Thai week is done! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did creating, photographing, filming and … oh, who am I kidding? We all know EATING the food tops the list!

Got a request for the next theme week?? Pop it in the comments below! – Nagi

Watch how to make it

Thai Black Sticky Rice Pudding

Recipe video above. Thai Black Sticky Rice Pudding is a traditional Thai dessert that is favoured by upscale modern Asian restaurants for its striking jet black colour. It’s hard to believe you can make something so delicious that is fundamentally made with just rice, water and sugar!

Course Dessert

Cuisine Asian, Thai

Keyword black sticky rice pudding, sticky rice pudding, thai dessert, thai rice pudding

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Rice soaking 4 hours

Total Time 4 hours 40 minutes

Servings – 6 people

Author Nagi

Ingredients

1 cup black glutinous rice (aka black sticky rice) (Note 1)
4 tbsp white glutinous rice (white sticky rice) (Note 1)
4 cups water
2 pandan leaves , folded and knotted (Note 2)
1 cup (loosely packed) palm sugar (or brown sugar), grated with box grater (Note 3)
1/2 tsp salt

Toppings:

1/2 cup coconut cream (very highly recommended)
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 cup shaved coconut , toasted, optional (Note 4)
Mango cubes or crushed peanuts , for topping, optional

Cups – Metric

Instructions

Soak rice: Place both rices in a bowl and cover with water (5cm / 2" above). Soak for 4 hours (up to 12 hours).
Strain the rice and add it to a small pot or large saucepan.
Pandan leaves: Add the knotted pandan leaves.
Simmer 30 minutes: Add 4 cups of cold water. Bring to boil. Turn stove down to low so it's simmering very gently (small, slow little bubbles). Simmer 30 minutes (no lid), stirring frequently for the last 15 minutes and almost constantly towards the end (so the base does not catch).
Consistency: Rice should be soft / fully cooked through, water reduced, and sauce should be creamy not watery (starch from rice thickens water).
Add sugar: Stir in sugar and salt until it dissolves (~20 seconds).
Ladle into bowls – it should ooze slowly, not be runny nor so thick it stays in a mound, see video for consistency. (If it's too thick, add a touch of water and stir).
Toppings: Mix coconut cream with salt. Drizzle onto rice pudding. Top with toasted coconut and mango if using. Serve immediately.

Notes

1. Black sticky rice – Usually sold labelled as “glutinous rice”, this is a black Thai rice that becomes sticky when cooked and creates a creamy sauce from the starch. Tastes nutty. Find it in Asian and Thai grocery stores, or online such as here and here (Australia).

White sticky rice – The white rice equivalent, does not have same nutty flavour as black rice but it is stickier. So black pudding traditionally uses a combination of both for the best consistency.

Despite the name, glutinous rice contains NO gluten and this dish is gluten-free – not to mention vegan, nut-free and lactose-free!

No sticky rice? Unfortunately there is no substitute. If you only have ordinary white rice, I would recommend making this Rice Pudding instead which is made with ordinary white rice. Use the COCONUT version (note 1) and omit the cinnamon and raisins, add coconut cream and coconut flakes for topping + mango for Thai version.

2. Pandan leaves – Herbaceous plant that looks like palm trees used in South East Asian cooking. Imparts a distinct fresh earthy flavour into dishes, there is no substitute. They are usually around 30 – 50cm / 12 – 20 ” in length.

To prepare just fold as needed so it fits into the pot, then tie a knot in the middle to hold it together and release a bit of extra flavour.

Sold fresh and frozen in Asian stores and sometimes (🤞🏻) at Harris Farms in Sydney & Queensland.

Best substitute – Kaffir lime leaves. Slightly different but distinctly South East Asian with similar tones. Use 2, crush in hand and drop into water.

Don’t have either? Be generous with the coconut cream topping. It adds a good hit of Asian flavour!

3. Palm sugar – Sugar extracted from palm trees that has a wonderful caramel flavour. It comes in blocks, and needs to be grated using a box grater so it will dissolve easily. Sold at large grocery stores in Australia (Coles, Woolies, Harris Farms) and Asian stores.

Substitute with brown sugar, preferably dark brown sugar for better flavour.

“Loosely packed” means you spoon the grated sugar in but don’t push it down to pack tightly.

4. Toasted coconut flakes – Spread on tray and toast in an 180°C /350°F oven for 5 to 8 minutes, stirring once, until light golden brown.

Life of Dozer

The moment when Dozer discovered the fridge was full of French cheese… (for care packages for my team going out shortly!)

And the moment I realised it:

Not sure who was happier…

The post Thai Black Sticky Rice Pudding appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.

Peach Cobbler

Nagi — Fri, 23 Jul 2021 12:00:00 +0000

This Peach Cobbler recipe comes to you from a Southern lady I know who is everything you imagine a Southern lass to be: a big personality, big laugh, big heart, and a very (very!) big appetite for life and food.

You’ll love how the syrup is made using peach juices, rather than just a plain sugar syrup. Peach flavour to the max!

Peach Cobbler

Fruit cobbler is a traditional American dessert that pushes everybody’s comfort food-lovin’ buttons. Peach cobbler especially is a solid favourite, particularly in the Deep South.

There’s two main types of peach clobbers – those with a batter topping, and the ones with the American biscuit / Aussie scone type toppings.

I way prefer the latter. It’s kind of crumbly on the outside and fluffy on the inside, wafting with the smell of cinnamon. The topping is a perfect match for soft, juicy and warm peaches swimming beneath in a peach syrup that’s not too sweet!

What you need for the Peach Cobbler Filling

First up, here’s what you need for the peach filling (hint – it involves big fat juicy ripe PEACHES! 😂):

Peaches – As emphasised above, ripe and juicy is the key here!
This recipe will work beautifully as written with other stone fruits, including white peaches, nectarines and plums.
As for canned peaches (because I do not blame you if you can’t wait until summer to try this!), they will work just fine too. Just read the recipes notes for how to adjust the recipe to use canned peaches.
Sugar – This is tossed with the peach slices to make them sweat so they drip peach juices. The juices are then used to make the syrup for this Peach Cobbler. Because a peach syrup that tastes of peaches trumps plain and bland sugar syrup any day … and twice over during summer!
Cornflour / cornstarch – This is used to thicken the peach juices to turn it into a syrup that coats the peaches.
Lemon – For a touch of tang that balances the sweetness. It doesn’t make the syrup sour, it just adds freshness.
Salt – As with almost everything sweet just a touch of salt brings out the flavours.

Ingredients for Peach Cobbler Topping

And here’s what you need for the topping for the Peach Cobbler:

Flour – The recipe calls for plain flour but you can substitute with self-raising flour if that’s what you’ve got. Just skip the baking powder and baking soda.
Baking powder and baking soda (bi-carb) – Yes, this is one of those irritating recipes that calls for both but for good reason. I personally think the combination makes the topping lighter and better than just using one or the other. The baking soda is more powerful than baking powder so it gives a boost to the rise when it first goes in the oven.
Butter – OOPS! Missing from the photo! Cold cubes of unsalted butter are rubbed into the flour to make the topping dough. It’s just as you would do for Southern biscuits / Aussie scones which is essentially what the topping for this peach cobbler is.
Yogurt – Adds wetness into the batter without making it thin. We want a really thick batter so it can be “crumbled” across the surface of the cobbler.
Sugar – For sweetness. Not too much, just 1/3 cup. We’re mainly relying on the natural sweetness from the peaches!
Demerara sugar – This is a larger-grained type of sugar with a light toffee taste, sprinkled across the surface to add a nice textural crunch! If you don’t have it, any sugar you have is fine.
Cinnamon – Also for the topping. The hint of cinnamon here is just divine!

How to make Peach Cobbler

The nice thing about this peach cobbler is how the peach juices are used to make the syrup for the dish. There are easier and quicker recipes out there that don’t do this step but believe me when I say it makes it taster!!

Peel and slice peaches – Peel then halve the peaches. Remove the stone and cut each half into 4 wedges (so each peach gets cut into 8 wedges in total);
Macerate – Toss peaches in sugar then leave for 40 minutes to let them sweat. This is called macerating. If they are ripe and juicy, they should drop plenty of juices!
Drain – Drain peaches in a colander set over a bowl.
1/4 cup peach juice – Measure out 1/4 cup of the peach juices and pour it back into the bowl. If you are short, top it up – preferably with peach juice, otherwise with water. But if you used ripe peaches, you should not have this problem!
Syrup for cobbler – Mix the reserved peach juice with cornflour and lemon juice.
Toss peaches in syrup – Then add the drained peaches and toss to coat.
Baking dish – Pour the peaches and juice into a medium glass or ceramic baking pan – mine is a 28 x 18cm / 11 x 7″ oval. It is best not to use a metal pan as it may turn the peaches brown.
Parbake – Bake for 12 minutes, then remove from the oven. The purpose of this step is to give the peaches a head start because they take longer to cook than the topping.

While the peaches are in the oven, get started on the topping!

Topping and assembling

The topping for this Peach Cobbler is made much in the same manner as American biscuits / Aussie scones. Because that’s essentially what it is!

Rub in butter: Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to combine. Then rub the cold butter in with your fingers until it resembles breadcrumbs.
Alternatively, use a food processor – about 10 x 1 sec pulses.
Mixture after adding butter: This is what it should look like after rubbing the butter in.
Gently fold through yoghurt: Add yoghurt and gently mix through with rubber spatula until dough is formed. Stop mixing when the yoghurt is mostly mixed through with some streaks of flour still visible (they will disappear when topping).
Use a light touch. Not overworking the batter is essential here so you don’t end up with a tough, dry topping!
Top peaches: Crumble big lumps of the topping across the surface. Don’t fully cover the surface or else the syrup won’t reduce and thicken.
Sprinkle with demerara sugar and cinnamon.
Bake for 20 minutes, then remove from oven. The cobbler is done when an instant-read thermometer shows the centre of the biscuit topping as 95°C/203°F and the top is a lovely golden colour.
The exact cook time depends on how thick the biscuit layer is so it is best to use a thermometer. But if you don’t have one, just check by breaking the topping open in the middle.
Rest for 20 minutes to allow syrup to thicken. Don’t worry, it will still be perfectly warm for serving.

Peach cobbler ready to be baked
Peach cobbler fresh out of the oven

As with all warm pudding-like desserts, serving with ice cream is absolutely not optional! I pretend that cream is an acceptable alternative (I even suggest it in the recipe to tick that box), but it’s a filthy lie. Cream is a poor substitute.

Because nothing, I repeat nothing, can beat the combination of creamy, cold ice cream melting all over a warm dessert. Especially when that warm dessert is a Peach Cobbler! – Nagi x

PS. Just a reminder to fellow Aussies and others shivering through winter with not a local peach in sight, this can be made with canned peaches! Otherwise, try my other warm winter puddings: Apple Crumble, Butterscotch Pudding, Sticky Date, Chocolate Self Saucing Pudding, Baked Apples or Rice Pudding!

Watch how to make it

Peach Cobbler

Recipe video above. The ONLY pudding I make on warm summer days!

There's peach cobblers with batter toppings, and the ones with the Amercian biscuit / Aussie scone type toppings. I way prefer the latter. Crumbly on the outside, fluffy and moist on the inside, wafting with the smell of cinnamon, covering juicy, warm peaches coated in syrup.

You'll love how the syrup in this peach cobbler is made using the juices of the peach, rather than just a plain sugar syrup. Peach flavour to the max!

Serving with ice cream is not optional. (Well, ok, cream will do if that's all you've got!)

Course Sweet Baking

Cuisine American, Southern

Keyword peach cobbler, peach pudding

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Macerating & resting 1 hour

Servings – 6 people

Calories 465cal

Author Nagi

Ingredients

1.5kg / 3lb (8) yellow peaches (ripe and juicy!), peeled, stone removed, cut into eight wedges (Note 1)
1/4 cup caster / superfine sugar
1 tsp cornflour / cornstarch
1 tbsp lemon juice (plus more as desired)
1/8 tsp salt

Cobbler topping:

1 1/4 cups flour , plain/all purpose
1/3 cup caster / superfine sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda (bi-carb) (or extra 1 1/2 tsp baking powder)
1/4 tsp salt
85g / 6 tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 cup plain yoghurt (or sour cream), full fat

Topping:

1 tsp demerara sugar (Note 3)
1/2 tsp cinnamon powder

Serving:

Ice cream or whipped cream

Cups – Metric

Instructions

Macerate peaches: Put peaches and sugar in a large bowl and toss together. Leave for 40 minutes to macerate, to let the peaches leach juice and sweat.
Preheat oven: Partway through the maceration, preheat oven to 210°C/410°F (200°C fan).
Drain peaches: Drain in a colander, saving the juices.
Syrup: Measure out 1/4 cup (65ml) juice and put in a large bowl. Add cornflour, salt and 1 tbsp of the lemon juice to the peach juice. Mix well.
Mix with peaches: Pour peaches into the syrup, toss to coat. Taste – it should be a bit tart, slightly sweet, but not overly sweet. Add more lemon or sugar to adjust to your taste (fresh peaches always vary in sweetness!).
Parbake peaches: Pour the peaches and juice into a medium glass or ceramic baking pan. Mine is a 28 x 18cm / 11 x 7" oval dish (Note 2). Bake 12 minutes, then remove.

Cobbler topping:

Rub in butter: Meanwhile, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to combine. Add butter and rub it in with your fingers until it resembles breadcrumbs (Alternatively, food processor via 10 x 1-sec pulses).
Gently fold through yogurt: Add yogurt and gently mix through with rubber spatula until a dough is formed. Stop mixing when yogurt is mostly mixed through with some streaks of flour still visible (they will disappear when topping).
Top peaches: Crumble lumps of the topping across the surface. Don't fully cover the surface, to let some heat through else the syrup won't reduce and thicken.
Sprinkle with demerara sugar and cinnamon.
Bake for 20 minutes, then remove from oven. The cobbler is done when an instant read thermometer measures the centre of the biscuit topping as 95°C/203°F and the top is a lovely golden.
Rest to thicken sauce: Rest for 20 minutes to allow syrup to thicken – it will still be perfectly warm for serving.
Serve with a dollop of ice cream or whipped cream!

Notes

1. Other fruits – white and yellow peaches, nectarines and plums will all work well here. The essential thing is that they be ripe and juicy!

For canned peaches, skip the macerating step. Use the can juices for the syrup. Cans will state how much of the content is peach fruit, so based on this calculate how may cans you need, eg. If 60 – 70% peach fruit, then you’d need about four to five 400g cans.

2. Baking pans – mine is a 28 x 18cm / 11 x 7″ oval shape which is a good size for topping coverage and peach depth. You want one that is a little larger than a square 20cm / 8 inch baking pan which is a little too small. Glass is best as metal can react and turn the peaches brown.

3. Demerara sugar is a large grain brown sugar that gives baked goods a nice crunch when sprinkled. Substitute with any sugar you have – even if you not large grains.

4. Source: This Peach Cobbler recipe comes to you from a Southern lady who is everything you imagine a Southern lass to be: big personality, big laugh, big heart, and a very (very) big appetite for life and food.

This Peach Cobbler recipe comes to you from Heather Hancock of Baptiste & Wilson, born and raised in the South, now living right here in Sydney! Baptiste & Wilson is a catering company I use for events from time to time when I can’t manage the cooking myself.

Nutrition

Life of Dozer

Just another Friday morning in the Life of Dozer – at the park with his mates!

The post Peach Cobbler appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.

Molten Chocolate Cakes – with real chocolate centres!

Nagi — Fri, 12 Feb 2021 01:50:00 +0000

What’s the one thing that makes these Molten Chocolate Cakes stand out from the crowd? The oozing chocolate centre. It isn’t raw cake batter, it’s chocolate ganache. No more stressing about overcooking and losing the chocolate lava – because melted chocolate will always ooze!

Molten Chocolate Cakes

Molten Chocolate Cakes, also known as Lava Cakes, are warm individual-size chocolate cakes with oozing chocolate centres.

Most recipes will simply have you undercooking a chocolate cake batter, so the outside is set like cake but the inside is raw batter that pours out like lava when you cut into it. Hence the name!

But why settle for cake batter when you can have the real thing? I’ll take molten real chocolate over raw cake, thanks!

What you need for Lava Cakes

Here’s what you need to make Molten Chocolate Cakes:

Dark chocolate / semi-sweet chocolate chips – for both the cake batter and the chocolate ganache filling. Anything up to 50% cocoa will work here. Do not use chocolate with a higher cocoa %. The cake isn’t as soft and also it’s quite hard to make a small batch of ganache with a high cocoa % chocolate;
Flour – A surprisingly small amount, just 2 tablespoons for 4 cakes! Are you shocked? These babies are literally mostly chocolate – and we’re all very happy about that!!
4 eggs – We’re using 2 whole eggs and 2 yolks.
Leftover egg whites – Here’s my list of what I do with them and all my egg white recipes can be found in this recipe collection;
Sugar – White caster sugar / superfine sugar. The finer grains make it easier to incorporate into the batter;
Butter – Unsalted; and
Cream – Heavy / thickened cream to make the ganache filling.

If you’re short on time, you can just use Lindt balls instead of making your own ganache!

How to make Molten Chocolate Cakes

You’ll need a few hours for the ganache to set so you can scoop up balls to drop into the batter. But once that’s done, the cake itself is a 10-minute hand-mixing job, and a 20-minute bake.

1. Ganache for molten chocolate filling

This ganache is thicker than traditional ganache. Ordinarily, a ratio of 1:1 chocolate to cream is used. For Lava Cakes, I use less cream so the ganache oozes more thickly and slowly. Otherwise it runs out of the cake too quickly.

Ganache – First, make the ganache. Traditionally ganache is made by pouring hot cream over chocolate, letting it stand to make the chocolate melt then stirring until it’s smooth and combined.
For this recipe, we only need a small batch of ganache. This doesn’t work so well using the hot cream method. So we’re doing it the old-school way: put chocolate and cream in a bowl, microwave in 20-second bursts to melt, then stir until combined and smooth; and
Chill ganache – Once melted, refrigerate until it’s firm enough to scoop into balls. For a small bowl, it shouldn’t take longer than 2 hours or so.

Remember: If you’re short on time, you can just use a Lindt ball instead of making ganache!

2. Molten Chocolate Cake batter

Start the batter once the ganache is firm:

Grease & dust moulds: Grease 4 x 170ml / 5.75 oz dariole or pudding moulds with butter then dust inside with cocoa powder. This ensures the cakes slip right out. You’ll see me demo how I do the dusting in the recipe video below.
No moulds? No problems! Just use ramekins or muffin tins. The puddings won’t stand as tall, but it will taste just as good! Bake times in recipe notes.

Melt chocolate: Melt the chocolate and butter in the microwave in 30-second bursts, stirring in-between. Then leave to cool for 5 minutes to ensure it doesn’t cook the eggs!
Finish Batter: Whisk the eggs and sugar first, then add the chocolate mixture and finally fold through the flour.
Avoid vigorously mixing. There’s not much flour in this, but we can still over-work the gluten which will make the cake less tender. Once you can no longer see flour and the batter has come together and is smooth, stop mixing;

Fill moulds: Fill the prepared moulds ⅓ of the way with the batter;
Drop in ganache: Drop in one generously-heaped teaspoon of ganache and cover with more batter until it reaches 1.5cm below the rim;

Bake for 20 minutes, feeling confident in the knowledge that you needn’t worry about an overcooked molten centre that doesn’t ooze! Because ganache will always ooze!
Turn out: Stand for 2 minutes to let the cake stabilise a bit so it won’t collapse when you turn it out. Then place the mould upside-down on a plate. Give the base a solid tap with a spoon, and gently slide mould off. Voila!

And now, for that moment everybody been anticipating … when you crack into the cake and see that hot chocolate lava come pouring out. Ooof … Surely one of the greatest chocolate theatre moments in living history!

Backtracking a bit now to plating up. A scoop of ice cream or dollop of whipped cream is sensational here. The whole hot vs cold and creamy thing is amazing. Finish with a dusting of cocoa powder to pretty it up.

A splash of colour and freshness is always nice, whether it be strawberries, raspberries or perhaps some little edible flowers for looks.

Hmm, it looks like quite a frightful mess once you start digging in, doesn’t it? But a deliciously frightful mess, right?? – Nagi x

PS Extra bonus: keeps 3 to 4 days and you still get the molten centre because reheating won’t cook the chocolate ganache inside! I just reheat in the microwave for 45 seconds, and it is as good as new. If you try reheating the raw cake batter Lava Cakes, the inside cooks.

Watch how to make it

Molten Chocolate Cakes

Recipe video above. The one thing that sets these Lava Cakes apart from the rest? The molten centre isn't just raw cake batter, it's melted chocolate. No more stress about overcooking the molten centre – because chocolate will always ooze. And chocolate trumps raw cake batter in the texture and taste test, always!

Shortcut tip: Use a Lindt ball in place of the ganache. I'd use the dark chocolate balls (blue wrappers). Readers have tried and LOVE this!

Course Dessert, Sweet

Cuisine Western

Keyword lava cake, molten chocolate cake

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Ganache chilling 3 hours

Servings

Calories 695cal

Author Nagi

Ingredients

Molten Chocolate Ganache Centre:

1/2 cup dark chocolate chips or melts/ semi sweet chocolate chips (Note 1)
4 tbsp cream , heavy/thickened

Cake Batter:

1 cup dark chocolate chips or melts/ semi sweet chocolate chips (Note 1)
100g / 7 tbsp unsalted butter , cut into 1cm / ½" cubes
2 eggs , at room temperature
2 egg yolks , at room temperature (Note 2)
1/2 cup caster/superfine sugar (sub ordinary white sugar)
2 tbsp flour , plain / all purpose

To Serve:

Ice-cream or cream (highly recommended!)
Cocoa or icing sugar / powdered sugar , for dusting
Strawberries , raspberries or edible flowers, optional decoration

Cups – Metric

Instructions

Molten chocolate ganache:

Place chocolate and cream in a microwave-proof bowl. Microwave on high for three 20-second bursts, stirring in between, until chocolate is melted and smooth.
Let cool on the counter for 10 minutes, then refrigerate for 3 hours or until firm enough to scoop into balls. (Note 3)

Cake:

Preheat oven to 200°C / 390°F (180°C fan).
Grease & dust moulds: Grease 4 x 170ml / 5.75oz dariole or pudding moulds with butter then dust insides with cocoa powder, tapping out excess. (Note 4)
Melt chocolate and butter: Place chocolate and butter in a bowl. Microwave in 30 second bursts, stirring in between. Stir well until smooth, then leave to cool for 5 minutes.
Whisk eggs and sugar: In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg yolks and sugar.
Combine with chocolate: Add the melted chocolate into the eggs, and mix until combined.
Fold through flour: Add flour and fold through until just combined. Do not over-mix.
Fill moulds: Pour or scoop the batter into prepared moulds until it reaches ⅓ of the way up.
Drop in ganache: Place one generously-heaped teaspoon of ganache into middle of batter. Top with more batter until it reaches 1.5cm / ⅗" from the top rim. Repeat for remaining moulds.
Bake 20 minutes: Place the moulds on an oven tray and bake for 20 minutes, or until the pudding tops spring back when gently touched.
Turn out: Stand for 2 minutes, then turn onto plate. Tap base then gently remove each mould.
Serve with ice-cream or cream, dusted with cocoa powder. Decorate with strawberries!

Notes

1. Chocolate – Use dark chocolate chips or melts, aka semi-sweet chocolate chips (US). Do not use a dark chocolate with more than 50% cocoa, as it changes the texture of the cake batter and makes it too firm (as I found out first hand!). Also, the ganache will not be molten enough.

2. Egg yolks – Separate the eggs while the eggs are fridge-cold because it’s easier. But then cover and leave separated eggs for 15 minutes to take the fridge chill out of them so they incorporate more easily with the other ingredients.

Leftover egg whites – Here’s my list of what I do with them and all my egg white recipes can be found in this recipe collection.

3. Chocolate ganache firming – Do not be tempted to shortcut by freezing it! To speed things up, transfer the mix into a shallow dish so it cools faster.

Note: This recipe makes more ganache than you need, as it’s hard to make less. I’m sure you don’t need me to tell you what to do with the ganache!

4. Moulds – Muffin tins or ramekins work fine too, they just won’t come out as tall as pictured. A standard muffin tin makes seven to eight cakes, fill to 1cm from the rim and bake 17 minutes. A large muffin tin could also be used – this will make four and take 20 minutes to bake.

5. Storage and reheating – keeps 3 to 4 days and you still get the molten centre because reheating won’t cook the chocolate ganache inside! (If you try reheating the raw cake batter Lava Cakes, the inside cooks). I just reheat in the microwave for 45 seconds. Haven’t tried freezing – only concern is whether than makes the ganache seize so it won’t ooze when reheated, it will be more like a thick chocolate paste instead.

6. Nutrition per lava cake, assuming ⅔ of the ganache is used (see Note 3 re: makes more than you need).

Nutrition

Life of Dozer

Every year, I vow that this is the year I will teach Dozer to hold a rose in his mouth for a sweet Valentine’s Day photo!

I continue to fail.

Please just pretend I’m not there, holding his snout closed around what turned out to a rather thorny rose. Oops! 😂

The post Molten Chocolate Cakes – with real chocolate centres! appeared first on RecipeTin Eats.