Profiteroles

These profiteroles are extremely fun to eat, but we can guarantee they are just as much fun to make! The pastry on profiteroles is unique, coupled with the thicker cream and chocolate sauce, you have the perfect dessert. Profiteroles are ideal to make if you are having family and friends around for a party, as people can just help themselves!

After seeing profiteroles on the Great British Bakeoff final earlier in the week, we haven’t been able to stop thinking about these fantastic little desserts. So here is a recipe for profiteroles courtesy of BBC Good Food, what could be better than homemade profiteroles!

 

Ingredients:

For the Pastry

  • 50g butter
  • 2 tbsp caster sugar
  • 75g white flour with a pinch of salt
  • 2 lightly beaten eggs
  • 300ml double cream
  • Vanilla Extract

For the Sauce

  • 50g cocoa powder
  • 175g caster sugar

Instructions:

Step 1-Preheat your oven to 220 degrees celcius/200 degrees celcius in a fan oven/Gas Mark 7. To start making the profiteroles, add the butter, 2 tbsp of caster sugar, and around 150ml of water on a saucepan. Leave the mixture to melt and bring to the boil. Take the mixture off the heat and add the flour, then beat together quickly until the dough starts to come away from the edges of the pan.

Step 2-Let the dough cool for 5 minutes then add the eggs in gradually using a food processor until the dough turns glossy. Then take two baking trays and rinse them with cold water and shake them to leave them slightly damp (to help the dough rise). Then start placing spoonfuls of the mixture on the baking trays and place in the oven to bake for around 20 minutes. Once baked, remove from the oven and cut a small slit in the base of each profiterole to ensure that they don’t sink.

Step 3-Once cooled, whip the cream and add the remaining sugar and vanilla extract to your taste. Cut each profiterole in half and add a generous amount of cream to each one and pile them up on a plate. Refrigerate them for around 1-2 hours to chill, but no longer as the pastry will go soggy.

Step 4-To make the chocolate sauce, add the caster sugar and 100ml of water to a pan and warm until it is fully dissolved. Bring this to the boil and add the cocoa powder to the dissolved mixture and stir in until it is smooth.

Step 5- Set aside the sauce for about 15 minutes, then remove the profiteroles from the fridge. Drizzle the chocolate sauce over the profiteroles, and that’s it! All that is left to do is to enjoy your very own homemade profiteroles!

Source: BBC Good Food 

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If you want to bake a delicious treat for someone special, or whether you enjoy a bit of variation in what you bake, this chocolate heart cake recipe is guaranteed to satisfy your every baking need.

Valentines Day is a special occasion, as it is a great excuse to show the special person or people in your life how much you care about them, and this Chocolate Heart Cake will do exactly that! The combination of flavours will leave your mouth watering and it doesn't even take that long to bake!

 

Ingredients:

  • 180g soft butter
  • 180g caster sugar
  • 180g self-raising flour
  • 30g of cocoa powder
  • 3 large eggs
  • 2 tbsp of milk

For the Filling

  • 200ml of double cream
  • 150g of raspberries

For the Icing

  • 100g of dark chocolate
  • 30g unsalted butter
  • 2 tbsp of raspberry jam

Instructions:

Step 1- Preheat your oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4/160 fan.

Step 2- Grease the base of an 8 inch heart shaped tin. A round cake tin is fine if you don’t have one.

Step 3- Mix the soft butter, caster sugar, self-raising flour, cocoa powder, eggs and milk in to a mixing bowl using a whisk, or if you are feeling particularly fancy, an electric whisk. Once it is all mixed together, empty the mixture in to the heart shaped tin. Bake the cake for 35-40 minutes until it rises well, and remove it from the tin and place on a cooling rack.

Step 4- Cut the cake in to two pieces so you are able to include the filling. To make the filling, whip the double cream until thick, and fold in the raspberries. Spread the mixture of the cream and raspberries over the bottom half of the cake, then add the top layer of the cake.

Step 5- To make the icing, add the 2 tbsp of raspberry jam to a pan and melt until it is runny, and then spread over the top layer of the cake.

Step 6- Then add the chocolate and unsalted butter to a small bowl and melt it over hot water. Ensure that the bowl doesn’t come in to contact with the water. Once this is complete, allow the mixture to cool.

Step 7-Once the mixture has cooled, spread it over the top of the cake ensuring that none of the mixture goes on the side of the cake. Let the icing set for an hour or so, and then you are ready to serve.

Step 8-We recommend serving with some double cream, or ice cream, enjoy!

Source: Annabel Karmel 

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Victoria Sponge

When you think of something to bake that is quintessentially British, you don’t need to go any further than a delicious Victoria Sandwich Cake.

To celebrate all things British, and the launch of the latest series of the Great British Bake-off, we give you this fantastic Victoria Sponge cake, an extremely easy recipe that will have your taste buds tingling from the moment you start preparing it until the moment you have your first bite!

Photo by Raz Gasparyan (view original here)

 

Ingredients:

  • 3 eggs, beaten
  • 175g unsalted butter
  • 175g self-raising flour
  • 175g caster sugar
  • 3 tbsp of strawberry jam
  • 500ml of double cream

Instructions:

Step 1- Preheat your oven to 180C/350F or gas mark 4.

Step 2- Spread butter in two sandwich tins, preferably with a diameter of 20cm (8 inches).

Step 3- Add the unsalted butter and caster sugar to a mixing bowl, followed by the 3 beaten eggs.

Step 4- Add the self-raising flour (this should have been sifted), and put the cake mixture in to the two sandwich tins.

Step 5-Place in the centre of your oven and bake for around 20 minutes until the mixture turns golden brown. Remove the cakes from the tins and place on a cooling rack to cool.

Step 6-Take the 500ml and whip it using a manual whisk or an electric one if you want the machine to do the work! This should be done until the cream is thick.

Step 7-Spread the jam on one of the cakes and the whipped cream on the other before combining. Dust the cake with icing sugar before serving.

Step 8-That’s it, you’re done, all you have to do now is enjoy your delicious British classic cake!

Source: Good Food Channel 

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Baking is a fun and exciting family-friendly activity that all ages can enjoy, especially when the end product is so delicious. That's why we love this BBC Good Food recipe for Delicious Sweet Buns. It's a great way to get children excited about cooking and the sweet buns are simply delicious!

These Delicious Sweet Buns are soft, tasty and filled with a delicious filling; the perfect after dinner treat.

Ingredients:

For the Dough

  • 250g plain flour
  • 5g yeast
  • 25g sugar
  • 1/2tsp salt
  • 110ml warm water
  • 1 whole egg, beaten and then divided
  • 25g butter, softened

For the Filling

  • 1/4 cups strawberry jam
  • 1/4 cups candied mixed fruit

Instructions:

Step 1: In a large mixing bowl add the flour, yeast, sugar and salt. Mix for 1 minute (by hand or using an electric whisk). Add the water and half of the beaten egg mixture. Mix once again until you get a thorough consistency. Add butter and mix in until combined. Knead by hand until smooth and elastic. This should take about 10 minutes.

Step 2: Cover the dough and pop it in a warm place for about 30 minutes to let it rise. After that, punch the dough down and roll out 8 balls. Allow them to rise for 10 minutes.

Step 3: Take each ball and roll out with a rolling pin until you have a nice thin disk (roughly 3 inches in diameter and a 1/4 inch thick).

Step 4: Place some strawberry jam and sprinkle some candied mixed fruit on the top of the disk. Wrap and cover the filling from all sides with the dough before pinching the seams to close. Next shape the dough into a ball shape. Using shark scissors snip the top surface of the dough a bit to form petals shaped like a flower (see picture). You can use the scissors to form a variety of fun shapes, all of which look great!

Step 5: Place buns on a greased metal tray and allow them to rise for 20 mins. Then brush the remaining beaten egg over the top of the buns. Bake at 200c for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Source: http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/1913636/homemade-sweet-buns 

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Millionaire's Shortbread

Millionaire’s shortbread is a delicious, three-level treat: rich chocolate, creamy caramel, and a pleasantly crunchy layer of biscuit, all in one amazing package!

Why is it called Millionaire’s shortbread? Because the ingredients are rich, and it tastes like a million dollars! Still, it won’t taste like two cents unless you make it right, so follow our easy recipe and make sure that your shortbread is as sumptuous as it should be!

Photo by Aurore D (view original here)

 

Ingredients:

  • 100g chocolate (milk or dark)
  • 120g caster sugar
  • 170g flour
  • 240g butter
  • 2tbsp golden syrup
  • 400g condensed milk

Instructions:

Step 1 - Preheat your oven to 170oC.

Step 2 - Grease a square cake tin with butter or margarine.

Step 3 - Sieve the flour into a bowl, along with half (60g) of the caster sugar.

Step 4 - Using your hands, rub half (120g) of the butter into the bowl until the mixture forms into dough.

Step 5 - Spread this dough evenly across the base of your square cake tin. Prick the dough all over using a fork.

Step 6 - Put the dough in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. It should be golden brown by the end of the cooking period.

Step 7 - Once the cake tin is in the oven, it's time to make the caramel! Place your condensed milk, your golden syrup, and the remaining sugar and butter in a saucepan. Use a low flame and stir continuously.

Step 8 - Is the caramel properly mixed? If so, remove it from the hob and - once your dough is out of the oven - pour it into the cake tin, covering the dough evenly. Leave to cool for half an hour.

Step 9 - While the caramel cools, boil some water on the hob. Break your chocolate into small pieces and place these pieces in a glass bowl. Set the bowl over the boiling water to melt the chocolate.

Step 10 - Once your caramel has cooled, pour the melted chocolate over the top to form that delicious third layer. Pop the finished product in the fridge for a while, and when it's cooled down properly, cut into squares.

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