Chocolate Brownies

Chocolate Brownies

You will need:

• 250 g caster sugar • 180 g plain chocolate drops • 180 g soft butter • 110 g plain flour • 1 vanilla extract • 3 eggs • some butter for greasing • 150 g walnuts • Baking parchment • Baking tin • Oven gloves • Heatproof bowl • Small saucepan • Wooden spoon • Large mixing bowl • Teaspoon • Tablespoon • Spatula • Whisk • Sharp knife • Pallet knife 

Serves: 10

Oven Temperature: 160° c - 320° f
    

1. Grease the side of the tin by rubbing with a kitchen towel dipped in a little soft butter, line with a square of baking parchment. 

Turn on the oven, and set it to 160 degrees Celsius, or 320 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Fill the saucepan with a little water, and sit a heat proof bowl on top. The bottom of the bowl should not touch the water, and definitely not the bottom of the saucepan. Remove some of the water if this is the case. 

Cut the butter up into small pieces. Place them in the bowl and add the chocolate.

3. Put the saucepan over a low heat. Make sure the saucepan handle is facing away from you, so you don't knock it. The chocolate and butter will gently melt over about 10 minutes. Don't be tempted to stir! This will solidify the chocolate, and you won't be able to melt it again after that.

4. When completely melted, stir gently with a wooden spoon. Turn off the heat, remove the bowl from the pan and leave it to cool.

5. Put the 3 eggs, 250 grams of sugar, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract into a large bowl. Whisk together.

6. Fold in the cooled chocolate mixture.

7. Now add 110 grams of plain flour. Use a method called cutting and folding to mix it, moving the spoon in a figure of 8. This helps to keep the mixture light and airy. If you would like, add 150g chopped walnuts, again using the cutting and folding action.

8. Put the mixture in a tin and smooth the top over evenly. Bake at 160 degrees Celsius for 20 to 30 minutes. If you can, set a timer to make sure they don't overcook. Check after 20 minutes. The chocolate brownies should still be soft but not springy.

9. Remove the chocolate brownies from the oven and leave to cool in the tin for at least 30 minutes.

10. Cut into squares with a sharp knife. Lift the baking parchment from the tin, and use a pallet knife to transfer the chocolate brownies to a serving plate.

Source - Yahoo

Easy red Thai chicken curry

Simple spicy Thai curry dish…

Preparation time: 3 mins

Cooking time: 10 mins

Serves: 4 people

Ingredients 

• 1tbsp vegetable oil

• 3tbsp red Thai curry paste

• 4 chicken breasts, around 600g (1lb 5oz), sliced

• 400ml can coconut milk

• 300ml (½ pint) hot chicken or vegetable stock

• Juice of 1 lime

• 200g pack of mixed baby corn and mange tout

• 2tbsp freshly chopped coriander

Directions
1. Heat oil in a wok or large pan; add curry paste. Cook for 2min, add chicken and brown. Add coconut milk, stock, lime juice and baby corn.
2. Bring to boil, add mange tout, reduce heat and simmer for 4-5min until chicken is cooked. Add coriander. Serve immediately.
Cooks tips
If your curry ends up too thick, thin it down with 300ml (½ pint) of water or stock and heat gently to serve - Thai curries are meant to be more soup-like. Keep the pan covered and don't let the sauce evaporate. Simmer only for as long as the meat takes to cook.

Source: - Yahoo Recipes.

Chocolate marble cake

Chocolate Marble Cake

 Ingredients:

• Softened Butter  - 225g 
• Caster Sugar - 225g 
• Eggs - 4 
•  Self-Raising Flour - 225g 
• Milk - 3 tbsp. 
• Vanilla Extract - 1 tsp. 
• Cocoa Powder - 2 tbsp. 

Method of Preparation:

1.   Heat oven to 180C/gas 160C/gas 4. Grease a 20cm cake tin and line the bottom with a circle of greaseproof paper. If you want to make life easy, simply put all the ingredients (except the cocoa powder) into a food processor and whizz for 1-2 mins until smooth. If you prefer to mix by hand, beat the butter and sugar together, then add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Fold through the flour, milk and vanilla extract until the mixture is smooth.

2.   Divide the mixture between 2 bowls. Stir the cocoa powder into the mixture in one of the bowls. Take 2 spoons and use them to dollop the chocolate and vanilla cake mixes into the tin alternately. When all the mixture has been used up (and if young kids are doing this, you'll need to ensure the base of the tin is fairly evenly covered), tap the bottom on your work surface to ensure that there aren't any air bubbles. Take a skewer and swirl it around the mixture in the tin a few times to create a marbled effect.

3.   Bake the cake for 45-55 mins until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Turn out onto a cooling rack and leave to cool. Will keep for 3 days in an airtight container or freeze for up to 3 months.

Excellent Creme Caramel

Ingredients

110g (4 ounces) caster sugar

2 tablespoons tap hot water

150ml (1/4 pint) milk

275ml (10 fl oz) single cream

3 tablespoons brown sugar

4 eggs

3 drops vanilla essence Preparation method 1. Preheat the oven to 150 degrees C (Gas Mark 2). 2. To make the caramel, melt the caster sugar in a medium saucepan until it bubbles and darkens, a little darker than golden syrup. Take of the heat and stir in the water, CAUTIOUSLY! IT WILL SPIT. Stir until smooth and pour to coat a 1 1/2 pint souffle dish, swirl round the sides. 3. To make the custard, heat milk and cream in a saucepan until steaming hot. Meanwhile whisking the brown sugar, eggs and vanilla in large bowl. Whisk the steaming hot milk into to the mixture. 4. Pour custard mixture into the souffle dish. Place souffle dish in a roasting dish in oven and pour hot water into it to make a 'bath'. 5. Bake for 1 hour in the preheated oven, or until the custard has an even jiggle. 6. Cool to room temperature, then chill in refrigerator, preferably overnight. Run a knife around the edge, give it a little shake to loosen. In one movement (with plate over top of dish), turn out.

Creme Caramel (With Milk only)

Ingredients
4	eggs	egg	(200 grams)
125	grams	caster sugar
1	pod	vanilla	(6 grams)
600	mls	milk
	For the Caramel
50	mls	water
45	grams	caster sugar

Salt content: 0% (by weight, not counting salt in other ingredients)

You can use vanilla extract instead of real vanilla if you want to spare the expense. It does taste and look nicer with real vanilla, though.

Method

Pre-heat the oven to 150 degrees Celsius / 300 Fahrenheit / Gas Mark 2.


This is the point where I have to confess that I made the batch in the photos below with vanilla flavouring as I didn't have a vanilla pod at home. If you can, use real vanilla, as you really can taste the difference!


1.  We make the creme. Take 1/3 of the milk, cut open your vanilla pod lengthwise and boil it in the milk. Keep just below boiling for 10 minutes so that the vanilla flavour can enter the milk. Cool down a bit, then mix in the rest of the milk, the caster sugar and the eggs. Beat well. If you are using vanilla flavouring, you don't have to heat up the milk.


2. Now we are making the caramel. This takes a bit. Put the caster sugar and the water into a small saucepan. Now boil the mixture up so that the sugar dissolves and keep at a bubbly boil like in this photo. Occasionally stir with a fork, but don't overdo it.


3. After some time (this can take a good 10 minutes or longer), you will notice that the sugar turns golden brown.


4. Now you have to watch the caramel as you don't want to burn it. Stir it with a fork and brown it to your liking - don't go too dark as it will add a burned taste to the caramel. Quickly put the bottom of the saucepan into cold water (just very briefly, we only want the caramelising to stop).


5. Now you have to hurry - pour equal amounts of caramel into the ramekins and swirl the ramekin in your hand to distribute the caramel at the bottom so that it touches the sides.


6. Within minutes, the caramel goes solid. This is the degree of caramelisation that I prefer - dark golden brown.


7. Now add the creme mixture into the ramekins.


8. Put the ramekins into a roasting dish and fill with boiling water so that the water goes half way up the ramekins. Put into the pre-heated oven and leave for 45 minutes.


9. Now the creme has set. Let the creme caramel cool down, then cover in cling film and put them in the fridge. You will have to leave them for 24 hours in the fridge so that the caramel is dissolved and enters into the creme a bit.

Chicken Curry - In Coconut Milk

Chicken Curry

Ingredients:

Chicken breast – ½ Kg – cut into cubes

Onions – big 1 (small 4 or medium 2) – chopped

Garlic – 4 cloves – cut into tiny bits

Oil – 2 tbsp.

Tomato Paste – half pack (4 tbsp.)

Maggi Chicken Cubes - 2

Coriander powder – ½ tsp.

Cumin Powder – ½ tsp.

Pepper powder – 1 tsp.

Turmeric Powder – ½ tsp.

Chicken Masala Powder (mild) - ½ - 1 tsp.

Coconut milk powder – 7 tbsp. (heaped)

Water – 2 Cups (luke warm)

Fresh Coriander leaves – handful

Preparation:

1.       Heat oil in a curry pan, add onions & garlic fry for half a minute, add chicken and fry for 4 – 5 minutes. Add tomato paste and Maggi chicken cubes and fry again for a minute. Add coriander powder, cumin powder, pepper powder, turmeric powder & chicken masala and fry for another half minute.

2.      In a bowl add water & coconut milk powder and mix to prepare coconut milk.

3.      Add this coconut milk to the chicken mixture and boil it for 10 minutes.

4.      Add fresh coriander leaves just before you turn of the flame.

5.      Done.