Chocolate Fondant Puddings

I know I only just made a chocolate recipe last time Dear Readers, but with post-Easter chocolate still hanging around, I thought I'd use it up with a recipie more suited for our wintery weather and make some Chocolate Fondant Puddings, AKA Chocolate Lava Cakes.


What lovely impressive little cakies these are indeed!

Molten chocolate flowing from the centre, with a raspberry or two on the crest of the wave. Mmmm...


These are perfect desserts for when you want a bit of Wow for a dinner party, and they can even be prepared a few days ahead of time, or frozen for a few weeks if you're really that organised- or like me and just like to have a few things on hand for chocolate emergencies!


It took a few goes to work out the kinks in my recipe, this one was Too Soft- collapsing into a sog on the plate, this one was Too Hard- just a plain old cake, but finally I got it Juuuuuust Right!


I didn't want a light and fluffy version of these that almost souffles up before collapsing, or a plain raw-cake batter mix either (yes, I've been served one of those and it wasn't at all nice) I decided instead to go for a heavier almond meal base that would really stick-to-your-ribs for winter, but be perfect as a small serving to end an elegant meal.

The raw mix sets quite stiffly and the heaviness of the almonds means you need to cook it a bit lower and slower than you might think. I also tried baking these from frozen, to try for the perfect molten centre, but the heavy mix put too much pressure on the softer baked shell.  I timed them exactly for my oven and it's quirks, but you might need to try one out in yours before you want to impress anyone with perfection. That also means that the sacrificial pudding will need eating so it doesn't go to waste- what a shame! I won't tell anyone you got one extra, I promise.


Chocolate Fondant Puddings

makes 4

200g Dark Chocolate (I used Lidnt 85% because that's what I had handy, but really it was very rich and strong. 70% would have been much better)
200g Butter
1/4 cup Almond Meal
1/4 cup Castor Sugar
4 Eggs
Pinch of Salt
Frozen Raspberries
4 1/2 cup capacity ramekins



Melt the butter and chocolate together. You can use a pan, a water bath, or just the microwave, it doesn't really matter as long as they are combined nicely

Add in everything else

then stir really well until smooth and silky looking with no lumps

Grease your ramekins really, really well. You don't want the little Lavas to stick on their way out now.
Fill your ramekins nearly to the top, then pop just a few frozen raspberries into the mixture, and push them into the middle of the cake

Tap the ramekins sharply on a flat surface to remove any air bubbles and settle the raspberries in place

Now you can put the little cakies away in the fridge and forget about them for a few days, or until your dinner party. You can even freeze them if you like, but let them defrost thouroughly before baking


Bake these little lovelies at 180* for exactly 13 minutes. Pull them out, then let them settle for just 2 minutes more before turning them out carefully onto the serving plates

Aren't they just lovely!

I served these with a swipe of raspberry sauce underneath and some extra berries scattered around. If you have some lactose free cream or ice cream around, that would be nice too.

Cut into your little pudding, and watch the magic happen! Oozy, molten middle spilling over the crust of cakiness, Yummo!

More elegant than a self sacing pudding, and a bit of foodie theatre as well. What a perfect ending for a winters evening.

So Dear Readers, what do you think is the perfect chocolate dessert for winter?








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Dark Chocolate Sorbet

I had a lovely Mothers Day last weekend






My family made me breakfast in bed- with home made Hollandaise on my perfectly poached eggs; we went to yum cha for lunch, watched a movie, worked in the veggie patch, had one of my favourite dinners, and of course there were presents!

Look at the load of lovely goodies I received!

A delicious Saffron Syrup, some crystallised violets, a jar of very good quality saffron, 2 dozen plump vanilla pods, and the latest Donna Hay cookbook.

Totally blessed!

While nibbling away at my breakfast, I was flicking through the cookbook and one recipe in particular caught my eye: Chocolate Sorbet.... I knew it was meant to be.

I love Donna Hays fresh and lovely approach to food. Her recipes are delights that have such a universal appeal and can be made easily by home cooks. I own all her cookbooks, as much for the styling ideas as well as the food, and her magazine is one I squeal over every time I find it in my letterbox.

I have had a good chocolate sorbet before, but hadn't been able to recreate it in my own kitchen. I was really overthinking it. No dairy disasters, no eggwhite fluffiness, no glucose viscosity- just 4 simple ingredients. That's it. Would it have the rich mouth feel I was after without fats, would it be gritty and icy or smooth and soft, would it really taste like chocolate? I was about to find out!

2 3/4 cups Water
1 cup Castor Sugar
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
1 cup good quality Cocoa







Place the sugars and water in a saucepan on high heat, stir until dissolved, and bring to a boil

Whisk in the cocoa powder and reduce heat to medium

Leave on a high simmer for 14- 17 minutes, until the mixture is thick and syrupy and hits 96*C on a thermometer

Let it cool

Process mixture in an ice cream churner, then freeze until firmed up and ready to serve. Alternatively, place cooled mixture in a shallow dish in the freezer, stirring it vigorously about every half hour or so until ready

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Scoop out into delicious dollops of dark delight

The sorbet was exactly what I had been trying for- smooth and very, very chocolatey. I really didn't think I could have achieved that result with just cocoa alone, and I would certainly have thought that I'd need an amount of fat to achieve such full bodied richness. Boy, was I glad to be wrong.
The sorbet scooped very well and also held it's shape nicely, having a nice thick syrup is really the key here. If you didn't let it reduce far enough I don't think it would have enough viscosity to maintain it's structural integrity once frozen, or achieve such small, smooth crystals.

I'm so happy to have found this recipe, it's perfect for InTolerances and vegetarian/vegans, and trust me, so very, very delicious!

So Dear Readers, how did you celebrate Mother's Day and spoil your Mother?
















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Rhubarb and Custard Muffins

You know Dear Readers,






 I really thought I was onto something unique.



I was processing all the  goodies I picked up at the Farmer's Markets, and having a lovely time planning out all the recipes that they would turn into when I had a flash of inspiration amongst the rhubarb -      Rhubarb and Custard Muffins.

I don't think I've ever seen these before, but what a great idea! I mixed and stirred, baked and tasted, and was feeling very pleased with myself... until I thought 'I'll just Google these' - Oh dear, 886 000 results!

Oh well, they still taste good, even if they aren't as unique as I had hoped.

Muffins are so nice and easy. You really should mix the wets into the drys, but I like to save on washing up and add the drys into the wets instead. The secret to a good muffin is not to overmix the batter. Fold them together nice and loosely, some small lumps aren't a problem. I use a spoon with hole in the middle to help keep the batter light, but just don't get too carried away.

I have a real fondness for rhubarb, and have hopefully solved the problem of my green only stems for good by the simple solution of finding a mature RED rhubarb and splitting and planting the crowns in my garden. I now have 8 new little babies growing, and need never be embarrassed by my lack of culinary colour again.

This is a great basic muffin batter, feel free to add whatever flavours you wish to it, rhubarb and leftover custard is just what I happened to have on hand

3 cups gluten free Self Raising Flour
2 1/2 cup lactose free Milk
2/3 cup Sugar
2 Eggs
1/4 cup Oil
pinch of Salt

1 cup stewed Rhubarb
1 cup really thick gluten free Custard made with lactose free milk- you want it to hold it's shape when spooned

Whisk together the milk, eggs, salt and oil in a large bowl until well combined (as you'll see, I used a small bowl and made a mess)

Mix together the flour and sugar then stir briefly into the wet mixture

Marble through the three quarters of the rhubarb and about a quarter of the custard mix spooned into little clumps of yumminess

I used 1 cup capacity pans, so that means I'll use 1/2 cup of batter for each. Start with 1/4 cup in each

Pop a good spoonful of custard on top of the batter, trying to keep it in the middle

Top them off with another 1/4 cup of batter

Finish the lovelies with a little splodge of rhubarb for prettiness and an extra hit of flavour

Bake at 200* for about 25 minutes, allow to cool in the pans for just a few minutes then place on a rack

These are most yummy served warm with lovely lava like custard in the middle with of course, a nice cup of tea

So my Dear Readers,





have you ever created something you thought was unique, only to discover it's been made before?
















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Ploughman's Pate

When we were younger Sunday lunch wasn't a roast, it was often a great platter of cold meats, cheeses, pickles and salad- basically a delicious Ploughman's Lunch.

A traditional Ploughman's Lunch is definitively English, but  does seem to vary according to region. Some include pork pie, sliced ham, or other meats, but what they all have in common are cheese, pickles and bread, usually washed down with an ale (or two)

I really like a snacky, nibbly meal like this that I can mix and match to suit my mood and what I happen to have in the refrigerator at the time.
My fridge is usually pretty well stocked with all sorts of odds and ends, and  today I just happen to have a packet of chicken livers in my fridge that are crying out to be made into a heart, rustic pate that will be perfect on my luncheon platter.

Offal is really nothing to be afraid of. It's cheap (500g of livers just $2ish), great protein, and actually quite yummy.
This recipe is a really easy way to try it out without too much effort or ickiness factors if you're squeamish.

500g fresh Chicken Livers
200g Speck or Streaky Bacon
2/3 cup lactose free Cream
2 tab Brandy
3 cloves Garlic
Salt and Pepper
Fresh Herbs





This is one of  your lovely fresh chicken livers.

See how shiny and glossy it is, quite pretty isn't it? They aren't slimy or gross, and they don't smell at all.

All you need to do is cut off any of the white bits, then cut the larger part in half. Easy peasy.

If you are still a bit worried about the flavour being strong and iron-y, just soak them in some lactose free milk or even water, with a decent pinch of salt for a couple of hours then dry them well

Cut the speck or bacon into thick slices, then slowly cook them and the garlic without oil,
over a low heat until cooked and lots of the lovely smokey fat is rendered out

Pull out the speck and garlic, but keep the fat in the pan and turn to high heat

Pop in the herbs-  I used sage, thyme and bay, then add in the dried chicken livers

Cook on high heat turning quickly. They aren't very big and won't take long at all to cook, only about a minute. You want them to be lovely and browned on the outside, but still just slightly pink in the inside.
If they are over cooked they go really sawdusty instead of soft and juicy

Once just about done, pour in the brandy to deglaze the pan, then pull off the heat

Take out the hard herbs and stems, then pop the lot into a blender.
Include all the pan fats and scrapings- they're full of yumminess. Add in the speck and the cream as well

Blend until nice and smooth

Put into containers, smooth the top, then place into the fridge.

The pate will firm up a lot once it's chilled, so if you want a softer consistency like peanut butter, add in some more cream, or even a chunk of butter.
I think it's definitely rich enough without it, and like to spread mine nice and thickly onto my bread















I went for so many yummy goodies with my Ploughman's Lunch- a semi hard earthy goats cheese, a crisp, sharp apple, some sweet, sour gherkins, warm crusty gluten free bread, and my lovely, silky pate, still slightly warm , and all washed down with a glass of Apple and Elderflower Cider.

Perfect for a picnic or Sunday Lunch.

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So my Dear Readers, what do you think of offal, and what did you eat for Sunday Lunch when you were growing up?










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Lamb and Plum Stew

The other day,
BigJ bought me home a present.








Most wives get maybe a bunch of flowers, box of chocolates, even some perfume.... I got a bag of prunes.

A big bag.

He assures me he didn't just see a bag of prunes and think of me, or that he thought I may need some intestinal toning, but that he purposely went looking for a treat that would make me happy.

I guess that makes it better.


He's right actually. If he had bought me chocolates I would have been a bit frustrated as I'm trying to lose weight, if he bought flowers I would have been touched but I'd rather he got me a punnet of seedlings, if he bought me perfume.... well, he learnt the hard way about me and my itching, sneezing, puffing, perfume InTolerances. And I do love prunes. So sweet and soft, perfect with yoghurt, cereals, cheese, hard fruits, on their own for a snack, or cooked up with savoury ingredients for a tagine, casserole or stew. What's not to love?


Littlej has been reading the Hunger Games Trilogy. She is a rather reluctant reader, preferring little bites of reading than sitting down and devouring a whole novel at once. She had heard lots about the books from her school mates, and the movie had rave reviews too, so we made a deal- if she read the whole book, I would take her to the movie. I knew that may not win out over her dyslexia reading reluctance, but she did it! And then begged me for the rest of the series too! I bought them the next day, and of course we went to the movie as well.
As further encouragement, I decided to use some of my stash of prunes in a Lamb and Plum Stew as mentioned in the Hunger Games. The heroine loved it, and I figured as the book had already influenced littlej in reading and hairstyle (we are now braiding it like Katniss) maybe it would help with eating the prunes as well, as littlej has never been a fan of any dried fruit either.



Lamb and Plum Stew

1kg lamb, cubed
2 onions
1/2 lemon
Garlic
Coriander bunch
1/2 cup Honey
1 tab ground Coriander seeds
1 tab ground Cumin
Prunes
Carrots
Pumpkin
1/2 cup toasted Pinenuts
Oil


Cut the lamb into nice big cubes. I used lamb leg as its nice and chunky and works out much cheaper to do it yourself than buying it pre chopped

Cut the stems off the bunch of coriander, and roughly chop the lemon, one of the onions and as many cloves of garlic as you prefer- I used four

Throw them all into a blender with a pinch of salt and about 1 tablespoon of oil

Blend to a nice smooth paste

Mix the lamb and paste together and let it marinate for a couple of hours to let the flavours develop

Scrape most of the paste off the meat- but save it, then brown the lamb in batches in a bit of oil

Sweat off the onion in a splash of oil, and when it starts to go translucent add in the other veggies and the cumin and coriander. I had these gorgeous little carrots from the garden, and some home grown pumpkin to use up as well- lucky me!

Coat them nicely in the oil and spices, then put back in the lamb and reserved marinade paste

Pop in the prunes and honey, and season with salt and pepper, stir well and add in a small amount of water- I used about 1/2 a cup

Put the lid on your pot, bring to the boil, then simmer for about an hour and a half or until the meat is meltingly tender and soft. Don't forget to stir now and then so it doesn't stick

Check your stew for seasoning and honey sweetness, adding a bit more if you need too. Thicken up with some arrowroot if a bit runny, but it should have cooked down nicely

Sprinkle your meal with toasted pine nuts and coriander leaves for an extra burst of flavour and freshness and to make it look pretty.

I served our stew on some cooked quinoa to match in with the grain it was served with in the book. And the verdict? littlej loved it too, and has dibbsed the leftover for tonights dinner as well. What more could I ask for!

So Dear Readers, are you a fan of the humble Prune, and did any novels influence you when you were younger?











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