baking partners

Dutch Apple Tart – BP Challenge

~ Huma ~ 11 Comments
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A little late for the post, but this was the month’s challenge for our BP group suggested by Kaveri of Palakkad Chamayal. She had suggested two recipes Dutch Apple Tart & Coffee Buns.


I chose to go for Dutch apple tarts

& have halved the entire recipe.


Makes four 4 ” Tart

For the Base
1 cup Flour
90 gm Butter
1/4 cup + 4 tbsp Sugar
2 tbsp cold milk
  1. In a food processor pulse the flour , sugar & salt. Add in chilled butter & pulse 3 times.
  2. Remove & keep the mix on the plate add 2 tbsp of milk & knead lightly to bring together for a dough
  3. Cover with cling film & refrigerated for an hour.
  4. After one hour remove dough from fridge & make 5 parts
  5. Grease with butter the 4 tart pan & press in the kneaded dough with your hand on the bottom & sides.
  6. Roll the fifth part of the dough & cut in stripes. Refrigerated this stripes (This is for the lattice)

Filling

2 Apples
1 tsp Lemon Juice
1/2 cup Raisins soaked in apple juice
1/2 tsp Speculass Spices
1 tbsp semolina
6 tbsp of sugar
1 pc White Bread crumb
  1. Peel and slice them.
  2. Mix in lemon juice, soaked raisins, semolina , speculas mix & sugar.
Prepare the Tart
  1. In the prepared tart pan, spread the bread crumb.
  2. Not add in the filling.
  3. Remove the prepared strips from the fridge & do the lattice.
  4. Brush with milk & sprinkle some sugar on the top.
  5. Bake @ 225 degree C for 60 minutes.

The speculaas spice mix: Ground to powder the below.
7 gm cinnamon
3 gm cloves
3 grams nutmeg
1 gm white pepper
1 gm coriander seed
1 gm aniseed


Bûche de Noël – Baking Partner Challenge

~ Huma ~ 16 Comments
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December  is always too challenging for me.  Schedules are tight , deadlines are to be met. And every one  wants their work to be completed first. I just see around me a pile of uncompleted work.   And yes I am one of them who is running too much behind schedules.
I have made this log in a real hurry. To be frank , I didn’t want to miss the BP challenge this time. In short, I like this group and if you are one of them who loves to experiment baking stuff than this is one group to join. This time we had 3 recipe  suggested by Tanushree of Ma Niche.
 
 I opted for the simplest one. Remember tight schedules. I have chosen William Sonoma but while discussing on  our FB page , many had faced the difficulty in texture of the cake. So I have gone with my never fail swis roll recipe. Rest of it, I have followed omitting the  Rum but with half measurements.
 

Ingredients

For the Roll:
I
3 eggs separated
90 gm Flour
90 gm Powdered sugar
1 tsp BP
1  tsp vanilla
1 tsp warm water

II
Kitchen towel
4 tbsp of icing sugar or powder sugar

For the Syrup

 1/4 cup water
1/4 cup granulated sugar

For the Frosting

 

5 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1  cup heavy cream
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

Method:

Bake the roll:

  1. Line the tray with butter paper
  2.  Sift  baking powder & flour
  3. Beat egg white to form stiff peaks. 
  4. Add yolk & beat. Now add sugar.
  5.  Fold in sifted  baking powder ,flour & essence. 
  6. Now add warm water.
  7.  Pour the batter on the lined try.
  8. Bake at 180 degrees for 15 20 min or till done.
  9. Lay the kitchen towel. Sprinkle sugar on it.
  10. Invert the roll from the oven when done and remove the parchment paper. 
  11. Roll to form a log.
  12. Keep aside to cool.

Make the syrup

  1. Combine sugar & water.
  2. Heat to make a syrup.
Make the Frosting
  1. Prepare the double boiler. 
  2. Combine the chocolate and cream 
  3. Set the pan over it. Remember it should not touch simmering water in the bottom pan 
  4. Whisk until well blended. 
  5. Keep aside to cool
Assembling 
  1. Unroll the cake & brush liberally with the sugar syrup.
  2. Spread the thin layer of frosting and roll again.
  3. Frost the top and sides of the roll with the remaining frosting, using long, rough strokes.
  4. Garnish with strawberry & njoy. 
 

Ginger Pumpkin Bread with Golden Syrup Icing – BP Challenge

~ Huma ~ 11 Comments
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Well, its time again for our BP challenge. Due to my India visit , I was late posting this month challenge. But better late than never.
This month challenge was suggested by Tamy of www.threesidesofcrazy.com. She had given us two recipes to choose from. Pumpkin Yeast Bread & Ginger Pumpkin Bread. Since few months, yeast is triggering my migraines so I have opted for Ginger pumpkin bread from Simply Scratch. 

What I mostly like about this recipe is the combination of pumpkin with ginger. While baking my home was full in aromas of ginger.

I did not have maple syrup, so I added a bit of golden syrup and it complemented nicely with the bread.

This recipe is worth a try. Specially for those who are not much into pumpkin.

Source: SimplyScratch
Ingredients

 I

2 1/2 cups flour
2 ts BP
2 ts ground ginger
1 ts salt
 
II
12 tb  unsalted melted butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup  light-brown sugar
1 3/4 cups pumpkin puree
3 large eggs
 
For the glaze
3 tbsp Golden Syrup
1/8 ts  Vanilla 
2 tb Unsalted Butter
1/3 cup icing Sugar
1 tb heavy Cream
 
A pinch of  Salt
 
Method:
 
  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease the loaf pan.
  2. Mix together dry ingredients:flour, baking powder, ginger, and salt.
  3. In another bowl, mix all the wet ingredient:sugars, pumpkin, melted butter & eggs. 
  4. Add in the flour till combined.
  5. Pour the batter into prepared pan & bake for an hour until the cake stick inserted in the center comes clean.
  6. Cool for 10 minutes & invert on a wire rack. Cool completely.
For the Glaze:
  1. While the cake is cooling prepare the glaze.
  2. Heat a pan, add in the butter. Butter will start melting & turn brown.
  3. Remove from heat & add in golden syrup & vanilla whisking continously.
  4. Next add in the icing sugar.Mix well.
  5. Add in cream & salt. Whisk till you get the pouring consistency.
  6. Drizzle this icing on the cooled cake. Slice & Njoy!!

Notes:
* After drizzling the icing , cover & keep to avoid cracks & dryness.( I forgot mine in on the counter top overnight), though it doesn’t change the taste but the nice shiny icing would be nice.
* I would increase the quantity of ginger powder  by 1/2 tsp , as the taste of pumpkin is bland more ginger would have made it more delicious. But again it is a personal preference.

 

MEDOVIK / RUSSIAN HONEY CAKE – BP Challenge

~ Huma ~ 18 Comments
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Time flies too fast. Its been a year for our Baking Partner group. Though I am  six month old in this group, but I feel real close to this close knit family. I have made very good friends through this group & Swathi you are the best. Love your openness, helpful nature. Thanks for making me a part of this celebration.

Happy Anniversary.And hope we go stronger with each month.

This month was very hectic as Ramadan was starting & I was shifting my office base to home.In between I just forgot to prepare for our Baking Partners Challenge. I thought of dunking it. But then realized how can I ?? I am the host this time.  Well this time Swathi asked me  & Saraswati to give some challenge to our wonderful group of Bakers. I suggested Medovik / Russian Honey Cake & Saraswati suggested  Lemon Glow Shiffon Cake.
So here’s my Russian Honey cake for the  celebration of  Baking Partners first anniversary.

MEDOVNIK (in Check & Slovakian), translated as HONEYCAKE or HONEYBREAD, is more than a cookie cake. This cake has its origin in Russia. This cake is known for its simplicity in terms of decoration.
 
 

Recipe adapted from AZ Cookbook & Momdish

Serves 12 persons makes 2  6″cake (with 4 layers)
 
For the Dough:
I
1 cup sugar
3 tbsp honey
80 gm unsalted butter, cut into cubes
II
1  tsp level baking soda
3 eggs


III
3 cups all-purpose flour

 
 
Method:
 
For the Dough
 
 
1.  In a separate bowl, mix together eggs & soda.
2.  Prepare the double boiler in such a manner that the bowl doesn’t touch the water
3.  In a heat proof bowl bring  together sugar, butter & honey. Stir continuously till it is melted & blended about 5 -6 minutes
4.  Pour the egg mixture into it stirring continuously
5.  At this stage the mixture will whiten & increase in quantity. 
6.  Remove the bowl from the heat & add in the flour gradually mixing with a spoon after each addition. Dough will sticky at this stage.
7.   Let it cool a little.
8.   In the meantime prepare the baking sheet.
9.   Now divide the dough into 8 equal parts
10. Roll each part. Place it on the baking sheet &  now place a 6″ plate on it. Trim the edges with a knife. Don’t remove the edges from baking sheet
11. Bake in the middle rack @ 180 degrees for 4 – 5 minutes till light brown.
12. Loosed the baked cookie with a spatula. & keep on the wire to cool
13. Repeat with all the remaining layers.
14. Keep the trim edges. this will be used to decorate the cake.
 
For the Filling & Icing:
I have not followed any measurements for the filling but gone just by adding here & there the below ingredients. But for the reference, I am adding the measurement or check this link
 
200 gm Butter (I used  50 gms )
225 gm / 8 ounce cream cheese ( I used around 125 gm)
450 gm / 16 ounce whipping cream (I used 125 ml)

1 tin condense milk / 12ounces

  1. Mix  all the ingredients to make the icing
  2. Take a layer of the cookie cake. Spread the icing on it.
  3. Top with other layer of cookie cake. Repeat for all the layers
  4. Lastly cover the cake with the filling
  5. Finely crush the trim of the cookie cake in the food processor. 
  6. Cover  the cake with the crushed trims 
  7. Cover the cake with the cling film & refrigerate overnight.
  8. This cakes serves best after 24 hours as it will absorb all the cream & become soft.
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