Category Archives: Cakes & Pastry

Chocolate Sugar Cookies (Peeda Party)

Posted on by

(Yields approx 10-12 penguins)

These crisp chocolate wafers may be rolled out and cut into shapes suitable for any festivity. Store the cookies in a tin with a tight-fitting lid to keep them fresh.

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 1/2 cups unbleached white pastry flour
  • 1/3 cup Equal Exchange Organic Baking Cocoa
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

In a medium bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until smooth. Beat in the egg and vanilla until light. Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt.

Stir the dry ingredients into the butter mixture and form into a thick dough. If the dough is soft, wrap it in plastic and chill for 1/2 hour.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and butter a baking sheet.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to about a 1/4 inch thickness and cut into shapes. Place the cookies on the prepared baking sheet, stick in wooden lolly pop sticks if wanted (they need to be soaked in water first so they do not burn) and bake for 15 to 20 minutes until the centers of the cookies are firm. With a spatula, transfer the cookies to a cooling rack.

From the Moosewood Restaurant Low Fat Favorites, published by Clarkson N. Potter, Inc. 1996. http://www.equalexchange.coop/chocolate-sugar-cookies

Icing

(http://allrecipes.com/recipe/sugar-cookie-icing/)

  • 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
  • 2 teaspoons milk
  • 2 teaspoons light corn syrup (I used golden syrup)
  • 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
  • assorted food coloring
  1. In a small bowl, stir together confectioners’ sugar and milk until smooth. Beat in corn syrup and almond extract until icing is smooth and glossy. If icing is too thick, add more corn syrup.
  2. Divide into separate bowls, and add food colorings to each to desired intensity. Dip cookies, or paint them with a brush.
  3. Takes about 6 hours to dry

Easy wholemeal cheese crackers

Posted on by

Ingredients

  • 2 cups cheddar cheese, grated
  • 1 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 tablespoon spike salt-free seasoning (any salt free/herb seasoning will work)
  • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled

Preparation

  1. Preheat oven to setting 7 (400F).

  2. Mix the first three ingredients with a blender (can be a bit messy if the cheese is not yet grated finely)
  3. Add the butter and pulse and until a ball forms.
  4. Roll out dough 1/4 inch thick on a floured or parchment-covered surface. Slice into crackers or cut out shapes with a cookie cutter.
  5. Bake for 15-17 minutes (found about 13 is enough)
  6. Serve.

Link

http://weelicious.com/2012/01/10/whole-wheat-cheddar-crackers/

Comments

Keep them in an air tight container on the counter. I should say they last for 5 days (but, it’s actually much longer). They also freeze after baked and cooled (or before baked) beautifully!

Experiments

Batch one: 17th July, tastes amazing fresh out of oven. Had tasty Bega cheese, threw in a few mixed herbs, and had normal flour and buckwheat flour 50/50. So how do they taste the next days from tupperware (if they last that long!!!). Also brushed egg yolk on them and sesame seeds and sunflower seeds.). Cooking, well cutting out takes long though!

 

 

 

Lemon yoghurt cake

Posted on by

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
  • 1 1/3 cups sugar, divided
  • 3 extra-large eggs
  • 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest (2 lemons)
  • 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

For the glaze:

  • 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
  • 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8 1/2 by 4 1/4 by 2 1/2-inch loaf pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Greaseand flour the pan.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into 1 bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, 1 cup sugar, the eggs, lemon zest, and vanilla. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. With a rubber spatula, fold the vegetable oil into the batter, making sure it’s all incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 50 minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the loaf comes out clean.

Meanwhile, cook the 1/3 cup lemon juice and remaining 1/3 cup sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear. Set aside.

When the cake is done, allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Carefully place on a baking rack over a sheet pan. While the cake is still warm, pour the lemon-sugar mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in. Cool.

For the glaze, combine the confectioners’ sugar and lemon juice and pour over the cake.