Sweet Tooth Experiments

Avocado Strawberry Lemon Cake

Posted on July 18, 2020 by Ella Posted in Cakes .

Avocado Strawberry Lemon Cake

In a previous bake I loved the Avo, strawberry and lemon pairing but not the texture the avocado was doing to the cake…a chewy cake is not ideal! That’s what I found on first attempt of making this cake, but I continued to experiment with an Avo Strawberry and Lemon cake as the flavours were so delightful and tasty. Adding in some butter and downweighing the avo quantity slightly was the solution to getting this cake recipe to perfection.

Delicious filling, addictively scrumptious frosting and now a sturdy and delectable base, this recipe ticks all the boxes.

Ingredients:

Cake:

180g caster sugar
180g avocado,
60g butter, softened
½ tsn strawberry essence
½ tsn lemon zest
3 eggs
285g strawberry jam
270g self raising flour

Filling:

90g avocado
90g strawberry jam
30g custard powder

Frosting:

90g strawberry jam
90g butter, softened
150g icing sugar
90g strawberry jam
30g custard powder
½ lemon zest
3 drops pink food colouring

Method:

Preheat oven to 180c degrees and line a 30cm cake tin with baking paper.
Beat butter, sugar, avocado, essence and zest for 5 minutes or until creamy and pale with electric beaters.
Add the eggs one at a time, beating in between each addition.
Puree the jam in a food processor until smooth, leave aside.
Sieve the flour into the butter mix along with the strawberry jam puree. Beat with electric beats until just combined.
Pour the mix into the prepared cake tin and bake in the oven for 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
Wait 5 minutes then invert the cake onto a cake tray to cool completely.
Meanwhile make the filling by beating the ingredients together for 3 minutes.
Next, make the frosting by beating all the ingredients together with electric beaters for 5 minutes until light and fluffy.
Cut the top of the cake horizontally to even the surface (if needed) then cut the cake in half horizontally.
Spread the filling between the 2 cake layers.
Spread a light layer of frosting on the sides of the cake and the remaining on the top – enjoy!

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Avocado Strawberry Lemon Cake

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Chocolate Peppermint and Orange Cookies

Posted on July 11, 2020 by Ella Posted in Biscuits .

Chocolate Peppermint and Orange Cookies

A random but delicious flavour paring, I experimented with chocolate, orange and peppermint cookies recently and as I made the recipe up on the fly I didn’t write down the ingredients or ratios I used. Of course the cookies were absolutely to die for in crunch, texture, taste and satisfaction. Pretty much this recipe took me 5 goes to get the right base cookie dough I was after as well as the right chocolate, orange and peppermint ingredient types (oils, essence, zest, peppermint crisp bars, cocoa, chocolate nibs), then there was the right ratios.

A week of a different recipe each night after work and I finally got to what I think I had in the first place. Lesson learnt – write down recipes when making them up!

Ingredients:

100g butter
110g caster sugar
115g brown sugar
1 vanilla
1 egg
8 drops peppermint oil
100g dark chocolate pieces
1/2 tsn orange essence
2 tsn orange zest
150g plain flour
1/3 tsn baking powder
½ tsn salt

Method:

Pre heat the oven to 180c degrees and line 2 baking trays with baking paper.
Place the butter, sugar and vanilla into a bowl and beat with electric beaters for 5 minutes or until pale and fluffy.
Add the egg and beat until well combined.
Add the orange essence, zest and oil, beat until combined.
In a separate bowl place, the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl and sieve.
Beat in flour mix with electric beaters for 1 minute on slow.
Use hands to fold in chocolate pieces evenly.
Roll the dough into 20g balls and place onto the tray allowing for 5cm gaps between each biscuit.
Bake for 12-15 minutes or until the tops of the biscuits are golden brown.
Leave the cookies on the tray to cool for 5 minutes then place on a cooling rack.
Dust with icing sugar or drizzle with white chocolate for decoration, enjoy!

Note: I have used peppermint oil not peppermint essence. I find the oil is much stronger and richer in flavour with no artificial aftertaste.

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English Tea Passionfruit and Orange Cookies

Posted on July 5, 2020 by Ella Posted in Biscuits .

English Tea Passionfruit and Orange Cookies

These cookies would have to be one of the best flavour combos I have done for a while.

I was making cookies the other day and divided the base mix into 5 portions to try out 5 different flavour parings where I was going to post the best recipe from the experiment (if any were post-worthy).

I could only think up 4 combos thus left the remaining cookie dough in the fridge to come up with something once I had a think about a pairing. I actually ended up not happy with any of the 4 cookies I had created so gave up on the bake session.

A few days later I saw the cookie dough in the fridge and threw a few ingredients into the mix I had in the pantry.

As I added the tea, orange and passionfruit pulp I started to play with the ratios until I got to a point that I was eating the dough raw as the flavour combo was so delicious. I baked the cookies and though I think the unbaked dough is more addictive, these cookies were simple and absolutely delicious either with a cup of tea or solo as a treat.

Ingredients:

100g butter
1/2 cup caster sugar
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 egg
½ heaped tsn orange zest
2 tbsn (fresh) passionfruit pulp
1 + ½ tsn loose English tea leaves
1 cup plain flour
1/3 tsn baking powder
1/3 tsn salt

Method:

Pre heat oven to 180c degrees and line 2 baking trays with baking paper.
Place the butter and sugar into a bowl and beat with electric beaters for 5 minutes or until pale and fluffy.
Add the egg and beat until well combined.
Add the zest, pulp and tea and beat until combined.
In a separate bowl place, the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl and sieve.
Beat in the flour mix with electric beaters for 1 minute on slow.
Spoon 20g portions of the dough onto the tray, allowing for 5cm gaps between each biscuit.
Bake for 12-15 minutes or until the tops of the biscuits are golden brown.
Leave the cookies on the tray to cool for 5 minutes then place on a cooling rack.
Dust with icing sugar or drizzle with white chocolate for decoration, enjoy!

Tip: As soon as they came out of the oven I used a cookie cutter to cut heart shapes in each cookie (while still soft and pliable).

Passionfruit Orange Blossom Vanilla Cake recipe

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Pink Strawberry Almond Cake with Rosé Frosting

Posted on June 21, 2020 by Ella Posted in Cakes .

Pink Strawberry Almond Cake with Rosé Frosting

I’ve done many baking experiments in the past with alcohol, spirits, liquors, cider, beer you name it but one alcohol beverage I have struggled with is wine. Don’t get me wrong, my Red Wine Chocolate Cake is to die for but champagne, white wine and sparling…I have tried these beverages in recipes and every time have failed.

You would think vanilla and champagne cupcakes would work well…but they taste as bland as plain cupcakes can be.

The main issue is I don’t really like wine so when the idea of wine in baking keeps getting thrown at me I continually experiments and am not left impressed with the result.

For something different this time I decided on Rosé. Knowing the flavour profile and complementary ingredient possibilities I managed to get it right this time with baking success.

The success funnily enough has come from the wine itself. I don’t even like Rosé but this icing was absolutely decadent and moreish.

Pink Strawberry Almond Cake with Rosé Frosting

Ingredients:

Cake:

375g strawberry jam
285g butter, softened
240g caster sugar
4 eggs
75g almond meal
250g plain flour
½ tsn bicarb of soda

Frosting:

500ml pink rosé
125g strawberry jam
130g butter, softened
250g icing sugar
3 drops pink food colouring

Method:

Preheat oven to 180c degrees and line a 30cm cake tin with baking paper.
Beat butter and sugar for 5 minutes or until creamy and pale with electric beaters.
Add the eggs one at a time, beating in between each addition.
Puree the jam in a food processor until smooth, leave aside.
In a separate bowl combine the almond meal, flour and bi-carb of soda, stir.
Sieve the flour mix into the butter mix along with half the strawberry jam puree. Beat with electric beats until just combine.
Pour the mix into the prepared cake tin and bake in the oven for 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
Wait 5 minutes then invert the cake onto a cake tray to cool completely.
Meanwhile make the icing by place the wine in a saucepan on medium heat until it reduces to 25ml, set aside to cool.
Using electric beaters whisk the butter, sugar, colouring, remaining strawberry jam puree and rosé reduction for 5 minutes until light and fluffy.
Cut the top of the cake horizontally to even the surface then cut the cake in half horizontally.
Spread the icing on the bottom cake layer, place the 2nd layer on top, ice the top cake layer and sides – enjoy!

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Pink Strawberry Almond Cake with Rosé Frosting

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Peach and Basil Tarte Tatin

Posted on June 14, 2020 by Ella Posted in Tarts .

Peach and Basil Tarte Tatin

Yes baking with canned peaches instead of fresh in a Tarte Tatin is very odd, some may think sinful, but the challenge ingredient I was given for this bake was canned peaches.

It is quite frustrating when you come up with a recipe idea and have to wait months for the fruit to be in season. So the challenge was to come up with a recipe that would combat seasonality as well as be unique in flavour and of course super tasty.

This recipe needed to produce a bake that gave the illusion of fresh and ripe peaches being used.

I have been thinking of creating a recipe with peaches and basil for a while, so I thought this was a good opportunity for me to do some experimenting.

Why Tarte Tatin? I honestly cannot remember now…maybe because it was so unconventional…

A few trials to get it to the right bake outcome and below is how to make a delicious Peach Tarte Tatin all year around!

Peach and Basil Tarte Tatin

Ingredients:

1 sheet puff pastry
280g drained peaches from a can
80g caster sugar
80g butter
1 tsn vanilla essence
¼ tsn salt
1 tsn lemon juice
1 tsn basil, chopped

Extra:

6 ripped basil leaves
Double cream

Instructions:

Oil a 25cm cake tin lined with baking paper on the base, allowing for a 1cm border of no paper around the edge.
Pre-heat oven to 190c degrees.
Place butter, sugar, salt, vanilla and lemon juice into a saucepan and stir on low heat until the sugar is dissolved.
Increase temperature to high and allow to boil until a candy thermometer hits 90c degrees.
Pour the caramel into the prepared tin base.
Add the peaches in a spiral pattern ensuring the based is covered with the fanned fruit.
Sprinkle the chopped basil over the peaches evenly.
Cover the peaches with the pastry, tucking in the sides to ensure full coverage and poke a few holes to let the steam out during the bake.
Bake for 30 minutes, allow to cool for 15 minutes before inverting onto an oven safe plate, remove the baking paper.
Place the tart under a hot grill for 5 minutes or until golden and bubbly.
Top with the extra ripped basil and a good dollop of cream to serve.

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Peach and Basil Tarte Tatin

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Peach and Basil Tarte Tatin

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Butterscotch Macadamia and Mango Scrolls

Posted on June 9, 2020 by Ella Posted in Bread .

Butterscotch Macadamia and Mango Scrolls

Butterscotch, macadamia and mango…this flavour combo does not seem too out of the norm right? I’d have to agree with you actually…but using dried mango and custom-made butterscotch as a ‘coffee scroll’ is a twist on the traditional glazed cinnamons scroll. In fact my recipe doesn’t even have glaze at all!

This recipe came about as I was experimenting with different butterscotch recipes and thought that using butterscotch in a scroll instead of butter and sugar would produce an interesting texture from the usual, whilst still satisfying the sweet and buttery taste buds.

Instead of the sometimes walnuts and sultanas in scrolls I replaced them with a more decadent nut and dried fruit.

This recipe has had a few alternations to get to where it currently is, where dried paw paw and jackfruit with coconut were also played with.

I know mango, macadamia and butterscotch is not reinventing the wheel but these scrolls straight out of the oven with a little double cream poured across them are sooo moreish. I couldn’t stop at one!

Ingredients:

Dough:

160ml warm milk
7g yeast
45g caster sugar
1 tsn vanilla essence
2 eggs
450g plain bread flour
¼ tsn salt
120g butter

Butterscotch:

2 tbsn butter
½ cup sugar
1 tsn vanilla essence
½ tsn salt
90g cream

Extra:

120g macadamia nuts
100g dried mango
Double cream (optional)

Method:

Place the milk, yeast and vanilla in a bowl, mix and leave for 10 minutes to bubble.
Place the flour, sugar, salt, eggs, butter and the yeast mix into a mixer with a dough hook and mix on low for 1 minute.
Increase speed to high for 8 minutes.
Oil a bowl and place the dough in the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap for 90mins or until doubled in size.
Oil a 20cm x 30cm tin lined with baking paper in the base, allowing for a 1cm border of no paper around the edge.
Meanwhile make the butterscotch sauce by placing the butter, sugar, vanilla and salt in a pan on a medium heat, stir until the sugar has dissolved.
Turn to high and allow the butterscotch to reach 90c degrees on a candy thermometer, stir in the cream and set aside.
Pour half the butterscotch into the prepared tin base.
Dice up the macadamia and dried mango into small pieces.
Roll the dough with a rolling pin on a benchtop into a 60cm x 25cm rectangle.
Spread the remaining butterscotch sauce with a pastry brush onto the dough leaving a 1cm border around the edges.
Sprinkle the nuts and mango evenly.
Roll the dough into a log starting with the longest side, rolling tightly to enclose the filling.
Trim the edges and cut the log into 12 even pieces.
Place the pieces side by side in the prepared tin, cut sides up.
Cover the tin with plastic wrap for 1 hour or until it has doubled in size.
Pre-heat the oven to 180c degrees and bake for 25 minutes.
Cover the tin with aluminium wrap and bake for a further 15 minutes or until golden.
Allow to cool for 5 minutes then invert into a cake rack to cool.
Top with double cream as desired.

Butterscotch Macadamia and Mango Scrolls

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Butterscotch Macadamia and Mango Scrolls

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Pandan Coconut Mango Sago Pudding

Posted on May 10, 2020 by Ella Posted in Pudding .

Pandan Coconut Mango Sago Pudding

Pandan Coconut Mango Sago Pudding recipe

For so long I have been experimenting with Pandan recipes ever since a friend challenged me to make a desert showcasing this ingredient.

I must say it was a harder challenge that I initially thought. I figured people through random ingredients my way with challenges all the time and I always come up trumps after numerous trial and error recipe attempts. This one though had me stumped – I was just not producing a recipe that was ticking the usual boxes.
I must have experimented with 6 different recipes from cakes, biscuits, ice-cream you name it as well as lots of different flavour combos from almond to pineapple to rice…

I finally landed on pudding, with the flavour combo of mango and roasted coconut.

As the pudding was going down the traditional route with Sago I wanted to modernise the recipe, whilst adding texture layers to the soft pudding pearls. To do this I used dried mango for some chewiness and broken plain sweet biscuits for the crunch.

The outcome, well it took me a looong time but I finally have a Pandan recipe that is scrumptiously satisfying.

Ingredients:

1 cup sago
250ml water
450ml coconut milk
½ cup brown sugar
3 tbsn desiccated roasted coconut
3 tbsn dried mango, diced
1 tsn Pandan paste
50g Arnott’s Nice biscuits, broken into small pieces

Method:

Pour the sago, milk and water into a pot on the stove, stir and leave for 30 minutes.
Put the pot on a medium heat and stir until the Sago has absorbed most of the liquid, is translucent and sticky.
Add sugar and the Pandan and stir to combine.
Spoon into a bowl and place in the fridge for 3 hours.
Get 4 glasses and spoon half the sago mix into the glasses evenly.
Sprinkle with half of the coconut, mango and crumbled biscuits.
Spoon the remaining sago mix into the glasses.
Top the glasses with remaining coconut, biscuit and mango.
Enjoy.

Pandan Coconut Mango Sago Pudding recipe

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Chocolate Coconut Rough Eggplant Slice with Avocado Icing

Posted on September 29, 2019 by Ella Posted in Slice .

Chocolate Coconut Rough Eggplant Slice with Avocado Icing

After recently going on a gut loving and IBS focused diet I have been consuming a lot more raw, natural, seeds, nuts, good fats and vegetables.

If you follow this blog you will know I have baked gluten free many many times as well as used dried fruit instead of sugar and vegetables as the base for my sweet recipes (with taste testers never realising).

This recipe incorporates the above as well as uses coconut oil, almonds and avocado to replace butter, cream and the need for flour.

This recipe is super easy, literally all ingredients thrown into a blender and spooned into a cake tin in the oven, then boom – a delicious slice.

To take this slice to the next level I have made a simple avocado based icing, that just like the cake is made by simply bending the ingredients together.

This slice is rich, decadent and satisfying, without any sign that it’s full of vegetables and fruit.

Chocolate Coconut Rough Eggplant Slice with Avocado Icing

Ingredients:

Slice:

200g eggplant, diced
130g 70% dark chocolate
60g coconut oil
80g almond meal (ground almonds)
70g dates, chopped
30g cocoa powder
¼ tsn salt
1 tsn vanilla essence
60g toasted desiccated coconut
3 eggs
1 tsn baking powder
½ tsn bi-carbonate of soda

Icing:

1 Avocado (seeded and peeled)
20g cocoa powder
20g 70% dark chocolate
20g coconut oil
20g rice malt syrup

Method:

Pre heat the oven to 170c and line a 20cm x 20cm cake tin with baking paper.
Place the eggplant in a bowl and microwave for 4 minutes or until the eggplant is steaming and soft.
Place the chocolate and oil in another bowl and microwave for 1 minute or until the oil is melted.
Remove the bowl from the microwave and stir until the mix is silky smooth and combine.
Place the almond meal, dates, cocoa powder and salt into a food processor and blitz until mix resembles fine breadcrumb texture.
Add the eggplant, chocolate mix, vanilla, coconut, baking powder, bi-carbonate of soda and eggs to the mix and blitz until well combine.
Spoon the mix into the prepared cake tin, flattening the top with the back of a spoon.
Bake in the oven for 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.
Allow the slice to cool in the tin then place onto a cooling tray until cold.
Meanwhile place the icing ingredients into a food processor and blitz until smooth.
Spoon the icing mix into a piping bag fit with a star nozzle.
Cut the slice into pieces and pipe the icing onto each piece.
Enjoy!

Chocolate Coconut Rough Eggplant Slice with Avocado Icing

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Chocolate Coconut Rough Eggplant Slice with Avocado Icing

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Millet Chocolate Chili and Cinnamon Cupcakes recipes

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Coconut Lime and Peanut Bites

Posted on June 1, 2019 by Ella Posted in Truffles .

Coconut Lime and Peanut Bites

Coconut, lime and peanuts…when you say this combo to most people they envisage adding some soya sauce and chilli and ‘boom’ you have a homemade satay sauce!

So we know these flavors work together, who says that they need to only work together in a savoury sense. All 3 of these key ingredients are used in sweet dishes just as much as savoury.

I contemplated what format this sweet treat would work best in, a cake, slice, biscuits, flan, ice-cream, you name it. In the end I decided to play with a few options and ended up happiest with coconut lime and peanut balls.

These little treats are really moreish with a lovely lime tang, while the coconut adds a tropical undertone and the peanut butter brings it all together.

Ingredients:

240g plain sweet biscuits
45g desiccated coconut
220g condensed milk
4 tsn lime zest
60g peanut butter
1 tsn coconut essence
40g peanuts

Method:

Place the biscuits, coconut, milk, zest, peanut butter and essence in a food processor and blitz until a dough is formed.
Roll the dough into 25g balls.
Place the peanuts into the food processor until fine like breadcrumbs.
Roll the balls into the peanuts then place in the fridge for 1 hour to set.

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Orange and Blueberry Polenta Cupcakes with Lemon Icing

Posted on May 18, 2019 by Ella Posted in Cupcakes .

Orange and Blueberry Polenta Cupcakes with Lemon Icing

For a variation from the usual cupcake I have incorporating polenta into the mix, while still including self raising flour to allow the cupcakes to rise.

The mix of blueberries, orange and lemon pairing with a hint of almond works a real treat, while the texture of the polenta makes the cupcakes very satisfying.

A welcomed tasty alternative to the usual vanilla or chocolate cupcake that’s for sure!

Ingredients:

Cake:

110g instant polenta
200g self raising four
150g sugar
½ tsn baking powder
140g butter, softened
½ tsn almond essence
½ lemon zest
1 orange
1 egg
260g blueberries

Icing:

300g thickened cream
1 tsn lemon zest
1 tbsn icing sugar

Method:

Pre-heat the oven to 160c degrees and place large cupcake patties in a cupcake tray.
Place the polenta, flour, sugar, baking powder, butter, zest of a whole orange and zest of half the lemon in a bowl and rub to combine with hands until a dough is formed.
In a separate bowl place the egg, almond essence and 2 tbsn of orange juice. With a hand whisk combine the wet ingredients then pour into the dry ingredients.
Beat with the hand whisk to combine.
Place 45g of batter into each cupcake case.
Push 10 blueberries into the batter of each cupcake.
Bake in the oven for 30 minutes of until a skewer in the center comes out clean.
Remove the cupcakes from the tin and leave aside to cool.
To make the icing whisk with electric beaters the butter for 5 minutes until creamy.
Add in the cream, icing sugar and lemon zest and beat until peaks form.
Using a star nozzle and piping-bag pipe each cupcake with icing.
Decorate with extra orange zest and a blueberry on the top.

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« Previous Page

Unusual sweets and global treats

Avocado Strawberry Lemon Cake

Chocolate Peppermint and Orange Cookies

English Tea Passionfruit and Orange Cookies

Pink Strawberry Almond Cake with Rosé Frosting

Peach and Basil Tarte Tatin

Butterscotch Macadamia and Mango Scrolls

Pandan Coconut Mango Sago Pudding

Chocolate Coconut Rough Eggplant Slice with Avocado Icing

Coconut Lime and Peanut Bites

Orange and Blueberry Polenta Cupcakes with Lemon Icing

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