Nutty Carrot Cake with Buttercream Frosting

It's the last post of the year and wow, what a year it has been; full of trials, tribulations and triumphs. This last stretch has been somewhat challenging, but I've been determined to have a positive outlook. I recently unearthed my diary that I started at the beginning of the year and although it is very much incomplete and was abandoned back it March - the page on my new year resolutions shed some much needed light on some of my achievements of the year. 
As for my hopes for 2019, I pray for happiness in abundance, peace, prosperity, health, opportunities, adventure, the good type of change and to become the best version of myself possible إن شاء الله‎

Now as for last recipe of the year, I wanted it to be something familiar and comforting and nothing expresses that better for me that this carrot cake. This particular recipe is from an old book that my dad got for my mum years and years ago (I think its older than me!). Some of my earliest baking memories are linked to this book, I remember I would love to flick through the pages and devour all the beautiful pictures - the first recipe I ever tried (oatmeal cookies) was also from this cookery book, so it will always hold a special place on my shelf.

I couldn't even tell you the number of times we have made this carrot cake over the years, its featured at many a teatime table and even as a birthday cake - its really that good. 

So without further ado, to make this Nutty Carrot Cake with Buttercream Frosting you will need the following ingredients:

- Carrots
 - Caster sugar
- Brown sugar (soft or granulated)
- Plain flour
- Baking powder
- Bicarbonate of soda
- Eggs
- Sunflower oil
-  Cinnamon / mixed spice
- Walnuts, almonds, cashews
- Raisins

Begin by grating 290g of peeled carrots, the original recipe suggested a larger quantity so feel free to increase if you so wish. I try to reduce the amount of liquid in the cake so that the end cake is not quite so 'wet'

Then using at electric mixer beat together 4 eggs, 2 tsp vanilla essence, 55g caster sugar, 115g of brown sugar and 195 ml of sunflower oil. Sift in the dry ingredients - 220g of plain flour, 2 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda, 2 tsp cinnamon and 1 tsp salt, fold in well.

Mix in the grated carrots, 115g of nuts (walnuts, almonds, cashews etc.) and 70g of raisins. Pour the mixture in to lined baking tin and bake in a Gas Mark 4 oven for around 40-45 minutes until cooked and springy to the touch. 

To make the buttercream icing with an electric mixer beat 70g of butter until pale and soft, add 140g of sifted icing sugar and combine with a few tablespoons of milk (or water). Beat on a high speed until well combined and soft. Spread this onto the top the cooled cake and make ridges using a pallet knife, sprinkle on some chopped pistachio nuts.

Slice into squares and serve with tea or coffee

This cake also tastes amazing the next day when the flavours have settled and intensified. 

😋

Enjoy!
Q x
P.S - I had such issues with this post! The lighting was awful when I wanted to take pictures because winter. I wrote the draft when we had no electricity/gas (renovation struggles) and when I was trying to post it the internet wasn't working. My cousin's baby was also over at our house so it was a bit chaotic and to top it of, I really wan't feeling well! However I preserved because I really wanted to get it up before the 1st. So to anyone still reading.. Happy Near Year! I hope it is everything you wish it to be x 

Pecan Chocolate Brownies

This year marked the first time I ever made brownies. I'm not too sure why but I always approached 'chocolate baking' with slight trepidation, maybe because its such a strong flavour that it'll turn out delicious or not so (also I'm not the biggest chocolate fan, I have to admit). However, I have overcome this small cooking hurdle of mine due to my little brother's insistence that I never make food he likes aka chocolate flavoured anything. 

Thus began the mission to create a decent brownie and after searching high and low and surfing (or should I say sifting) through a ton of recipes, this one caught my eye and it was love at first bite. Chewy, fudgy, melty and of course chocolatey - these are the ideal brownies, also they're ridiculously easy to make, I didn't even have to bring out the stand mixer, just a bowl and some good old elbow grease (disclaimer: other utensils and ingredients required!)

Funnily enough I ate some of these brownies with tea from a flask on a sand dune, which I highly recommend. This was on a day-trip to the coast and these brownies tasted particularly good after trekking across a windy beachfront and walking through pinewoods where the red squirrels live. Although I know that they will taste just as good cosied up on the sofa with blankets and a mug of tea.

So to make these pecan chocolate brownies you will need the following ingredients:

- Margarine (or butter)

- Eggs

- Granulated sugar & brown sugar

- Plain flour

- Cocoa powder

- Vegetable oil

- Chocolate; milk/dark

- Pecans

To began with melt 230g of margarine in the microwave in a heatproof bowl, to this add 180g brown sugar, 240g granulated sugar and 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil and beat until well incorporated. The oil ensures the brownies stay soft and moist.

Crack in 4 eggs and 1/2 tsp of salt, whisk until the mixture is even in colour. The salt is optional but recommended as it enhanced the chocolate flavour, similarly you can add in around 3 tsp of vanilla if desired.

Then sift in 150g plain flour and 115g unsweetened cocoa powder, fold into the wet ingredients until well mixed but take care not to over beat the mixture as it can result in tough brownies.

 Chop up around 150g chocolate and 120g pecans - alter the amount depending on your preference. You can use milk, plain or white chocolate and substitute walnuts for the pecans.

Fold this into the brownie batter but set some aside to sprinkle on top. Note that the mixture will be very thick, this is to be expected.

Spoon and spread the batter into a greaseproof paper lined baking tin - use whatever tin you have but note that the smaller it is, the taller/thicker the brownies will be. Sprinkle on the chopped nuts and chocolate.

Place the tin into a oven preheated to Gas Mark 4 and bake for 30-35 minutes.

The amount baking time required will vary depending on your oven, but as a reference the tray should be removed from the oven once the top looks cooked and when touched it is well set. Take care not to over-bake as this will change the texture of the brownies. Leave in the tin to cool for around 15 minutes.

Chop into squares or cut smaller pieces to create brownie bites. These taste delicious with vanilla icecream, cold milk, whipped cream or hot tea.

I hope you give this recipe a try! Oh and here's a snap of the coastal pinewoods because look how pretty.

😋

Enjoy!

 Q x  

*recipe adapted from Gemma's Bigger Bolder Baking

Coconut & Jam Traybake

☼ Happy Sunday! ☼ 
First things first, lets address the elephant in the room.. I know I've been MIA for a while, in truth I'd found myself in a bit of a bad spot but I'm finally ready to think positive and get back to things I enjoy. To be a little philosophical, we as humans are hardwired to be persistent, which is great when life is treating you well but can really sabotage your happiness if things are moving in a negative direction and it can be difficult to pull yourself out of the rut.

And with that lets conclude my melancholy musings and discuss happier things, like this delicious cake. Now I know that desiccated coconut is not everyone's cup of tea (p.s. this cake is amazing with a brew) but this ingredient was hovering near the top of my list of 'things to bake with'. Although I personally don't like dried coconut chips either because I imagine its akin to chewing on sawdust, I did have a pretty amazing coconut cake this one time and I've been meaning to recreate it ever since. 

If I'm honest, this turned out even better than I could have hoped! I added in some strawberry jam to the cake batter which adds a unique element to the standard coconut cake and the sweet strawberry flavour cuts through the fragrant coconut perfectly. Also because I was feeling a little fancy I made a strawberry icing to drizzle on top and then I sprinkled on some more desiccated coconut because why not. 
I've actually made this cake in its big traybake form twice now and both times the entire thing has been consumed in a matter of days and I'm making it again this weekend for my mum's friend's uncle (no joke). Apparently he said its best coconut cake he's ever had (once again, no joke), a glowing recommendation which I was more than chuffed with. Therefore ♪ if you like pina coladas and getting caught in the rain ♪ (sorry, couldn't help it) then do give this recipe a try. 

To make the coconut and jam traybake you will need a few ingredients:

1.   Butter

2.   Caster sugar

3.   Self-raising flour

4.   Eggs

5.   Vanilla

6.   Desiccated coconut

7.  Strawberry jam

8.  Coconut milk

9.   Baking powder

Measure out 262g of margarine and 262g of caster sugar - this is the ideal amount for this traybake, however the recipe can be easily doubled if required.

Beat the butter/margarine until pale and fluffy which will take around 3 minutes, thats why I love using a stand mixer because you just leave it to do all the work whilst you prepare the other ingredients. P.s. this is the KitchenAid that I use, I got it for my birthday and its my absolute favourite thing.

Next add in 4 eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition - you can add in a small amount of flour if the mixture starts to separate. Stir in 2 tsp of vanilla extract.

Then mix in the dry ingredients - 300g of sifted self raising flour, 1.5 tsp of baking powder and 115g of desiccated coconut. Alternate with 3 tblsp of coconut milk, although whole milk can be substituted here if required.

Grease and line a traybake tin then spread out half of the cake batter. Follow this with some strawberry jam (you can spread it out or have a few dollops so you get a jammy surprise now and then) - I warmed my jam up in the microwave slightly, which loosens it up. Then pour on the remaining batter and spread it out so the jam is all covered. 
Pop this into a oven preheated to Gas Mark 4 and bake for around 35 minutes or until golden brown and springy to the touch. 

To make the strawberry icing, stir together 200g of icing sugar and 2 tbsp of boiling water followed by 1 tblsp or jam. Alter the amounts depending on the consistency of icing you want.

Leave the cake to cool slightly, then drizzle on the icing topped with a final flourish of desiccated coconut. To serve, slice into squares and get your hands messy.

😋

Enjoy!

 Q x 

Brown Butter Fruit Bars

Here's a fun fact that you didn't know about me, I'm actually a recipe hoarder. 

In truth, I only came to this realisation quite recently after it was pointed out to me that I have one too many notebooks with a bizarre amalgamation of 'recipes' i.e. scribbled ingredients with notes in the margins that make little to no sense even to me. But what the lovely aforementioned individual did not know is that I also have a collection of magazine/paper clippings of recipes that I know I'm never going to make like 'Golden Snitch Cake Pops' (I hate cake pops, why would I make a cake only to crush it to smithereens and mix with icing/coat with chocolate/put it on a stick?!). My camera roll also has a worrying number of screenshots of random recipes I've found online and my computer is similarly plagued (a whole dedicated folder). 

My point being that I try a lot of recipes, some turn out not so great, some are decent, some are one hit wonders (great but too much effort/not enjoyable to make) and very few make it into my cooking repertoire. Those that do I notice have a few things in common, they're relatively easy to make, use no fuss ingredients and they're delicious. These 'brown butter fruit bars' tick all the boxes and no lie, I make these very often!

These bars are a combination of wonderful flavours and are somewhat adaptable! Let me explain.. the base is golden buttery shortbread topped with a generous scattering of chopped fruit encased in a brown butter cake batter. 
All of which sounds incredible right? as for the resilience to adaptability, the fruit you use depends on what you like, you could also experiment with the biscuit base and tinkle with the batter topping. However I should tell you that this combination is gold and I would highly recommend that you give it a go!

To make these brown butter fruit bars you will need a few ingredients:

1. Butter/margarine
2. Caster sugar
3. Vanilla essence
4. Plain flour
5. Fleshy fruit
6. Eggs

To start with preheat your oven to Gas Mark 5, then we can make the base by mixing together 115g of melted butter/margarine, 85g sugar and 1 tsp of vanilla (or more!)

To this add 190g of plain flour and stir together until well combined, the 'dough' will stick together and should leave a clean bowl when inverted.

Press the resulting mixture into a greaseproof paper lined tray, you can use the back of a spoon to ensure that it is all smooth. Also if you want a thicker base, double up the mixture or just use a smaller tray (but you will get less bars, compromise). Pop this into the oven and bake for around 15 minutes.

Meanwhile chop up your fleshy fruit, I've used a variety of fruits in the past including cherries, plums, nectarines. You could experiment with other berries, citrus fruit or even mango, whatever you have to hand.  

For the brown butter batter (say that five times really quickly!), on medium heat slowly melt 115g butter in a pan, keep heating/stirring until it starts to get frothy and takes on a golden brown colour, you'll also notice a warm nutty smell. Leave this to cool before you use it.

For the remainder of the batter you need to whisk together 115g caster sugar and 2 large eggs.

To this add 55g plain flour, 1 tsp vanilla and then slowly stir in the browned butter.

Now to combine everything together - onto the shortbread base, scatter on the fruit, then pour on the brown butter batter.

Bake this for 40 minutes in a Gas Mark 5 oven until everything is golden brown.

Slice into bars or squares and serve. Hope you give this recipe a go, its one my all time favourites.

😋

Enjoy!

 Q x