Hi and welcome to my blog! My name is Karen and I love cooking simple, uncomplicated, flavourful food. My cooking is inspired by seasonal ingredients, punchy flavours, an awareness of sustainability and of course by the likes and dislikes of my family and friends that sit around my table as well as you, the virtual guests around my table!
I am a chef, recipe developer and food stylist and generate my own content. I am also completely addicted to recipe books, of which I have an extremely large collection but the essence of my food is about celebrating life and all the fabulousness that we can add by creating good food.
Thank you for reading my blog. Please keep on giving me feedback and may your kitchen, as mine, be filled with joy and the best tasting food!
These roll-ups are the kind of food we graze on in summer. Pack a huge platter full of them, mix an exotic cocktail and sit back and relax.
4 tortilla wraps 250g cream cheese 190ml pickled sweet peppers, chopped 500ml grated cheddar cheese 625ml finely shredded chicken meat (leftovers are perfect!) a small bunch of chives, chopped salt and pepper
Add the cream cheese, pickled peppers, cheddar, chicken and chives to a mixing bowl and mix together. Divide the mixture between the four wraps and evenly spread it right to the ends so that it is completely and evenly covered. Roll the wrap as tight and evenly as you can and slice into discs. Arrange on a platter to serve.
50ml sugar 50ml water 125ml grenadilla pulp and seeds 250g grenadilla flavoured yoghurt 6 vanilla cupcakes
Add the sugar and water to a small saucepan and set it over medium heat. Stir until the sugar has dissolved and then allow to simmer for 1 minute without stirring. Take from the heat and allow the sugar syrup to cool. Pour about a third of the sugar syrup onto the grenadilla pulp and mix vigorously so that you end up with a saucy consistency. Set aside. Half the cupcakes horizontally and place one half in a serving glass. Top the cake with a spoonful of yoghurt and a spoonful of the grenadilla sauce. Repeat the layer with the rest of the ingredients. Bon appétit!!
Baked Camembert: 1 roll puff pastry 1 Camembert cheese egg wash: an egg yolk + 30ml water whisked together 125ml fruit jam of your choice (I used strawberry) 45ml water
Preheat your oven to 190℃ and line a baking sheet with baking paper. Place the puff pastry on the prepared baking sheet and sit the camembert on top. Cut a circle around the cheese with a border of about 1 cm. Lay the rest of the pastry on a work surface and cut into 1cm wide strips, about 15cm long. Now lay the strips over the cheese so that it forms a latticed pattern. (See video). The pastry should cover the cheese without any gaps. Trim off the excess pastry and brush the covered cheese with the egg wash. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes. Add the jam and water to a small saucepan over a low heat. Stir the jam and allow to melt so that it easily runs off a spoon. Pour/drizzle the sauce over the baked cheese and serve with crackers or a crusty bread.
Brûleé Camembert: 1 camembert cheese 30ml – 45ml brown sugar fresh grapes, halved 125ml fruit jam of your choice 45ml water
Cut away the top rind of the cheese so that it lifts off like a lid. Remove this rind and discard. Sprinkle the brown sugar over the cheese and brûleé with a blow torch until it bubbles. Place the camembert on a serving plate and pile the grapes on top. Melt the jam and water together and drizzle over the grapes and cheese. Serve with crackers or a crusty bread.
Preheat your oven to 200℃ and line a baking sheet with aluminium foil. Stand a metal cooling rack in the baking sheet. Spread the rashers on the metal rack in the baking sheet and salt them on both sides. Set aside. Mix together the brown sugar, paprika and chilli flakes and spread it evenly onto each rasher. Bake in the oven for 8 minutes, remove and flip the rashers. Spread this side with the rest of the sugar mixture and immediately place it back in the oven for another 8 minutes. Flip the rashers once more and bake for another 5 minutes per side, until beautifully browned and crisp. Serve warm.
This recipe was developed by chef Khanya Mzongwana from Woolworths. I added a crumb to the original to add some texture but whether you have it in its “original” form or with the crumble is irrelevant …. you will love it!! The tray bake may be served as is South African tradition, as a side dish to meat or with the crumble and ice cream, as a dessert.
For the crumble: 135g flour 50g oats 62g brown sugar 112g butter, melted
For the caramel sauce: 200g sugar 100g butter 125ml cream
Preheat your oven to 180℃ and spray a 20cm x 20cm baking tray with cooking spray. Add the flour, baking powder, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt to a mixing bowl. Add the pumpkin mash, milk and eggs to another bowl and whisk together. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir through. Do not over mix. Scrape the batter into the prepared baking tray and set aside.
Prepare the crumble by adding the flour, oats and brown sugar to a mixing bowl and mix together. Stir in the melted butter and mix together until the mixture forms large crumbs. Sprinkle the crumble all over the pumpkin batter. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes.
Make the caramel sauce by adding the sugar and butter to a small saucepan and wait for the butter to melt. Simmer over a medium heat until it starts to turn a caramel colour. DO NOT STIR THE MIXTURE! Whisk in the cream and allow to bubble for 1 minute. Pour the sauce over the tray bake as soon as you take it from the oven.
Serve the pampoenkoekie tray bake as a side dish to meat or with ice cream, as a dessert.
1 store bought puff pastry 125g cream cheese, I use chive flavoured 250g smoked bacon, cubed/chopped 200g mushrooms, sliced a handful of thyme leaves 5 courgettes, cut into 3-4cm long sticks egg wash: 1 egg yolk + 30ml water whisked together
Preheat your oven to 190℃. Roll out the pastry and cut as large a circle from it as the diameter allows. Spread the cream cheese on the pastry, leaving a 3cm border on the outside. Place a pan on medium-high heat and fry the bacon pieces until cooked. Spoon into a bowl. Add the mushrooms and thyme leaves to the pan and fry until golden. Add the courgette sticks to the mushrooms and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Spoon into the bowl with the bacon and mix through. Now spoon this mixture onto the cream cheese. Fold the 3cm border of pastry over the filling and brush with the egg wash. Bake the galette for 40 minutes. Serve warm.
This tiramisu is made with thin layers of chocolate cake and the traditional mascarpone-cream filling and sprinkled with grated chocolate!! Serves 6.
Cake batter: 190ml flour 190ml sugar 2,5ml salt 120g butter 80ml cocoa powder, sifted 120ml hot water 2 egg yolks 50ml buttermilk 2,5ml baking powder 2,5ml vanilla
Preheat your oven to 180℃ and line a 27cm x 37cm baking tray with baking paper. Select 6 glasses or straight-sided bowls in which you are going to assemble and serve the tiramisu. Set aside. Add the flour, sugar and salt to a mixing bowl. Set aside. Add the butter, cocoa powder and hot water to a small saucepan set over medium-high heat. Stir the mixture until the butter melts. Bring to a boil, remove from the heat and pour over the dry ingredients. Stir to combine. Add the egg yolks, buttermilk, baking powder and vanilla and mix together. Pour the batter into the prepared baking tin and bake for 15 minutes. Cool completely. Remove the cake and cut 12 rounds using one of the serving glasses as a guide. Set aside until needed.
Add the mascarpone and cream to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Add the espresso powder, vanilla and sugar and beat on medium-high speed until very thick – be mindful not to over whip!
Assembly: 80g coffee flavoured, dark chocolate, grated
Layer a spoonful of mascarpone-mixture, grated chocolate, a cake disc and repeat until you have used 2 cake discs and have three layers of mascarpone. Sprinkle with grated chocolate to finish off the tiramisu. Refrigerate for 2 hours. Either sprinkle with more chocolate or sift over some cocoa powder before serving.
1 bagel per person 2 eggs 30ml milk a pinch of salt
cinnamon-sugar
Add the eggs, milk and salt to a bowl and whisk together. Slice the bagels in half horizontally and dip each half in the egg mixture. Place a frying pan on medium-high heat and add a splash of vegetable oil. Fry the egg-soaked bagel for about 2 minutes before flipping it and frying for another 2 minutes. Generously dish the warm bagel halves with cinnamon sugar and serve while warm.
I am simply putting this idea of a very, very sweet dessert board out there because of the many requests I have had after the delicious cream cheese board……
Nutella spread Banana Strawberries Nuts Marshmallows Astros Almond syrup Sprinkles small biscuits to scoop up all the sweetness….
It has been said that a Viennese Sachertorte is a cake worth fighting over….! Hopefully without the fighting, you will bake this labour of love and indulge in the best chocolate cake in the world! Traditionally the cake is served with Chantilly cream on the side so that every bite may be dipped into the cream before eating. If you want a higher cake like the one in my photographs, bake the cake twice – the apricot and chocolate glaze is sufficient to cover a higher/larger cake.
Chocolate glaze: 220g sugar 125ml water 200g dark chocolate, chopped
Place an oven rack in the centre of your oven and preheat to 180℃. Lightly butter 22cm springform tin with butter and line the bottom with a round of baking paper. Dust the sides of the tin with flour and tap out the excess. Add the chocolate to a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water and allow to melt. Remove from the heat. Stir the chocolate often until tepid but still fluid. Add the butter to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium-high speed for 1 minute. Turn the mixer to low speed and beat in the icing sugar. Set the mixer back on medium-high and beat until light in colour and texture. (about 2 minutes) Beat in the egg yolks, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl. Now beat in the chocolate and vanilla with the machine running. Remove the bowl from the mixer. Add the egg whites and granulated sugar to a mixing bowl and beat with a hand-held electric mixer on high speed just until they form soft, shiny peaks. Do not overbeat. Stir about a fourth of the whites into the chocolate mixture to lighten it. Now fold in the remaining whites, leaving a few visible whisps of whites. Sift half the flour over and fold in with a spatula. Repeat with the remaining flour. Scrape the batter into the prepared cake tin and spread it evenly. Bake until a wooden toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Remove the cake from the oven and cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove the sides of the tin and invert the cake onto the wire rack. Remove the baking paper. Re-invert the cake on another rack to turn it right side up and leave to cool completely.
For the apricot glaze: Melt the jam in a saucepan over medium heat, add the rum and pass through a sieve. Set aside to cool slightly.
Trim the top of the cake to make it level. (Optional) Cut the cake horizontally into 2 equal layers. Brush the top of one cake layer with a third of the apricot glaze. Place the second layer on top and brush the top and sides of the cake with the remaining glaze. Allow to cool until the glaze is set/less sticky. Half an hour in the refrigerator should be sufficient.
For the chocolate glaze: Bring the sugar and water to a boil in a saucepan. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Add the chocolate, remove from the heat and stir until the chocolate has melted and you are left with a smooth, glossy glaze.|Set aside to cool and thicken slightly.
Transfer the cake to a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet. Pour the slightly warm chocolate glaze over the cake. Take care to cover the entire cake and the sides. Allow to cool and set completely – 2 hours minimum. Trim away any hardened glaze on the bottom of the cake and transfer it to a serving plate. Serve each slice of sachertorte with a generous dollop of cream so that each bite may be dipped in the cream before eating.
My Whisk and I 