homemade – My Whisk and I

Carrot-Pineapple Cake

August 25, 2024August 19, 2024by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

625ml flour
10ml baking powder
7,5ml bicarbonate of soda
15ml ground mixed spice
5ml salt
375ml brown sugar
310ml sunflower oil
62ml smooth apricot jam
4 eggs
500ml grated carrot
1 x 440g tin of crushed pineapple, drained
125ml pean nuts, chopped

Preheat your oven too 190℃ and spray a ring tin with cooking spray. Coat the sprayed tin with dried breadcrumbs and shake out the rest. Set aside.
Sift the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, mixed spice and salt into a bowl. Set aside.
Add the sugar and oil to the bowl of a stand mixer fitter with the paddle attachment and beat on high speed for 2 minutes.
Add small amount of the apricot jam to the mixture with the machine running on medium speed.
With the mixer still running, add the eggs one-by-one.
Scrape down and mix on high speed for a minute or so.
Add the carrot, pineapple and nuts and mix on a low speed until the ingredients are well incorporated.
Take the bowl from the mixer and add the flour mixture.
Fold together until fully incorporated.
Pour the batter into the prepared baking tin and bake for 45 minutes.
Remove from the oven and allow to stand on a cooling rack for 10 minutes before inverting the cake onto a serving platter.
Cool the cake completely before icing.

Cream Cheese Icing:
60g butter, room temperature
125g cream cheese, room temperature
30ml milk
2,5ml vanilla
125g icing sugar, sifted

Beat the butter and cream cheese together until soft and fluffy, scraping down every now and then.
Keep the mixer running and drizzle in the milk and vanilla.
Add the icing sugar a spoonful at a time until you have a smooth mixture.
Spread the cream cheese icing on the cake and scatter a handful of pecan nuts over.

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Blood Orange Cordial

August 20, 2024August 19, 2024by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

the zest of 3 oranges
1 litre freshly squeezed orange juice, strained
500ml sugar
4 bay leaves

Add all the ingredients to a saucepan placed over medium heat. Stir until the sugar has dissolved.
Turn the heat down to low and simmer the mixture for one hour – you want a syrupy consistency.
Cool the liquid completely and strain into a glass bottle.
Serve the cordial over ice and sparkling water.
Store in the refrigerator.

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Pea and Bacon Soup

June 30, 2024June 28, 2024by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

400g smoked streaky bacon
15ml olive oil
2 onions, finely chopped
3 cloves of garlic, minced
650g frozen peas
750ml vegetable/chicken stock
15ml butter

Place a saucepan over medium-high heat and pour in the olive oil.
Cook the bacon until crispy. Set aside.
Add the onion to the same saucepan and cook until soft.
Add the garlic and stir-fry for one minute.
Add about three quarters of the peas and all of the stock.
Bring to the boil and then turn the heat down to a low simmer for 15 minutes.
Blitz the soup with a plunge blender until smooth.
Now add the peas that you kept aside, break the bacon into pieces and add those and the butter.
Gently simmer the soup for 5 minutes.
Serve with bacon and cheese toasties.

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Milktart Cake

June 29, 2024June 28, 2024by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

250ml + 30ml + 30ml granulated sugar
2,5ml + 2,5ml + 2,5ml ground cinnamon
1litre + 250ml milk
125g butter, cubed
125ml cornflour
125ml self-raising flour
5ml salt
6 eggs, separated

Preheat your oven to 180℃ and line the bottom and sides of a 22cm diameter loose-bottom cake tin, with baking paper. NB: the paper should stick 10cm above the rim of the cake tin as the cake will rise up.
Sprinkle 30ml of the sugar and 2,5ml of the ground cinnamon on the bottom of the baking tin and then set it aside.
Place a saucepan on medium-high heat and pour in the 1 litre milk, butter, 250ml sugar and another 2,5ml cinnamon.
Remove the saucepan from the heat as soon as small bubbles start appearing on the sides of the pan.
Add the cornflour, flour, salt, egg yolks and 250ml milk to a bowl and whisk together.
Drizzle the milk into this mixture while whisking.
Pour the mixture back into the saucepan and place it over medium heat. Stir the mixture until it thickens and has a custard consistency. Remove from the heat.
Whisk the egg whites to stiff peaks and fold it into the custard.
Gently pour the custard into the prepared cake tin.
Sprinkle the leftover 30ml sugar and 2,5ml cinnamon over the batter.
Bake the military in the oven for 50 minutes.
Remove and cool completely before serving.

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Cinnamon Rolls

May 23, 2024May 16, 2024by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

125ml milk
5ml instant yeast
5ml sugar
830ml flour
7,5ml baking powder
7,5ml salt
190ml yoghurt
1 egg

Cinnamon paste:
113g butter, melted
310ml brown sugar
30ml ground cinnamon
a pinch of salt

Icing:
30ml cream cheese, room temperature
1,2ml almond extract
1,2ml vanilla
a pinch of salt
250ml icing sugar, sifted
30ml milk

Warm the milk until tepid and pour it into a small bowl.
Sprinkle the yeast and sugar over, stir to dissolve and set aside until bubbly.
Add the flour, baking powder and salt to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook and mix together.
Add the yoghurt and egg to a small bowl and whisk together.
Add the milk mixture and yoghurt mixture to the mixing bowl and mix on medium speed until a ball of dough forms.
Place the dough in an oiled mixing bowl, cover with a tea towel and leave to rise for about 2 hours.
Lightly oil a clean work surface. Roll the dough on the oiled surface until it is a large rectangle.
Mix the butter, sugar, cinnamon and salt in a bowl and spread it evenly over the dough rectangle – spread it right to the edges.
Roll the long side of the dough up and cut rolls from it: divide the roll in half; divide the two half in half; etc.
Grease a 22cm round cake tin and place the rolls cut side up in it. Cover and set aside to rise for an hour or refrigerate overnight.
Preheat your oven to 190℃.
Bake the rolls for 25 minutes before removing and placing it on a cooling rack.
Add the cream cheese, almond essence, vanilla and salt to a small bowl and whisk together.
Now add the icing sugar and stir through.
Add the milk a little at a time so that the mixture is thick.
Drizzle the icing over the rolls while warm.

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Pear and Honey Cake

May 21, 2024May 20, 2024by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

3 pears
125ml sugar
45ml water
220g butter
340g honey
190ml cultured buttermilk
3 eggs
150g sugar
5ml vanilla
300g flour
10ml baking powder
5ml ground cinnamon
2,5ml ground mixed spice
10ml salt

Preheat your oven to 170℃ and spray the sides of a fixed-bottom cake tin with cooking spray.
Peel the pears and slice them into 8 wedges each.
Arrange the wedges on the bottom of the cake tin and set aside.
Add the sugar and water to a small saucepan set over medium heat.
Do not stir but swirl the mixture from time-to-time until you have a caramel.
Remove from the heat and pour the syrup over the pear wedges in the cake tin. Set aside.
Add the butter to a small saucepan set over medium heat and gently simmer it for 5 minutes or so.
Pour the browned butter into a large mixing bowl and add the honey, buttermilk, eggs, sugar and vanilla. Whisk the mixture together.
Now sift in the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, mixed spice and salt. Mix until you have a smooth batter.
Pour the cake batter onto the pears wedges and bake in the oven for 1 hour.
Remove the cake from the oven and invert it onto a plate – leave the upturned cake tin for a few minutes before removing it.
Serve the cake with a dollop of cream, ice cream or yoghurt.

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Almond Pastries

May 5, 2024May 3, 2024by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

Almond cream:
215ml almond flour (125ml + 60ml + 30ml)
125ml sugar
2,5ml vanilla
2,5ml almond extract
15ml flour
1 egg
30ml milk

2 x rolls puff pastry
egg wash: 1 egg yolk + 15ml water/milk
100ml slivered almonds
45ml icing sugar

Preheat your oven to 180℃ and line a baking sheet with baking paper.
Add the almond flour, sugar, vanilla, almond extract, flour, egg and milk to a mixing bowl and mix together. Set aside.
Lightly flour a working surface and lay out one sheet of puff pastry.
Spread the almond cream onto the pastry in an even layer.
Lay the second sheet of pastry on top and lightly press down onto it.
Slice into 2cm wide strips.
Twist the strips and then twist it again and bring the ends together to form a circular shape.
Press the ends together and lay each pastry circle on the prepared baking sheet.
Brush the pastries with the egg wash and sprinkle over the almond slivers.
Bake in the oven for 25 minutes.
Dust the hot pastries by sieving over the icing sugar.
Set aside to cool slightly.

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Membrillo / Quince Cheese

April 30, 2024April 24, 2024by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

1kg quince, weighed after peeling, coring
750g white sugar
30ml lemon juice
250ml water

Line a 20cm x 20cm baking tin with baking paper and set aside.
Peel, core and dice the quince into 2cm chunks.
Add the sugar, lemon and water too a saucepan set over medium heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved.
Add the quince, turn the heat down to a low simmer and cook for 1 hour, stirring every now and then.
Take the saucepan from the heat and blitz the mixture with an immersive blender.
Pour into the prepared baking tin and smooth the top.
Set aside to cool to room temperature and then refrigerate for 48 hours.
Invert the membrillo on to a chopping board and slice.
Serve the membrillo on a cheese board and store wrapped in baking paper (not plastic!) in the refrigerator for three months.

Old fashioned quince sweets:
Cut the membrillo into bite-sized pieces and roll it in white, granulated sugar before serving.

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Milktart Muffins

April 18, 2024April 16, 2024by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

Filling:
250ml milk
30ml butter
1 egg
60ml sugar
30ml flour
30ml cornstarch
5ml vanilla

310ml flour
10ml baking powder
2,5ml bicarbonate of soda
90ml sugar
5ml cinnamon
2,5ml salt
1 egg
45ml butter, melted
250ml cultured buttermilk
cinnamon sugar for sprinkling over

For the filling:
Add the milk and butter to a small saucepan set over a low heat. Allow to warm to the point where small bubbles form around the edges of the saucepan, but do not bring to a boil. Take from the heat and keep aside.
Add the egg and sugar to a bowl and whisk together.
Add the flour and cornstarch and whisk again.
Drizzle the warm milk mixture into this while whisking continuously.
Pour the mixture back into the saucepan, place it back on a low heat and simmer for 2 minutes while stirring.
Take from the heat, add the vanilla, stir through and set aside to cool slightly.

Preheat your oven to 200℃ and line a 12-hole muffin tin with paper cups.

Add the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, sugar, cinnamon and salt to a bowl and mix together.
Add the egg, melted butter and buttermilk to a jug and whisk until amalgamated.
Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients and mix through.
Spoon a tablespoon of the batter into each of the paper cups.
Now spoon a heaped teaspoon of the filling in the centre of each muffin and end off with another tablespoon of the batter on top.
Bake in the oven for 15 minutes.
Take the hot muffins from the oven and immediately sprinkle them with cinnamon sugar.
Allow to cool one a cooling rack.

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Pomegranate Scones

April 13, 2024April 12, 2024by Karen ClaassenLeave a Comment

280g cake flour
8ml baking powder
2,5ml salt
100g butter, ice cold
25g sugar
62ml cream
62ml yoghurt
1 egg
45ml pomegranate seeds
egg wash: 1 egg + 15ml water whisked together

Preheat your oven to 180℃ and line a baking sheet with baking paper.
Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.
Grate the butter into the flour.
Now rub the butter into the flour with your fingers.
Add the sugar, cream, yoghurt, egg and pomegranate seeds to a mixing bowl and whisk together to blend.
Cut the mixture with a palette knife to mix together, i.e. cut straight down into the ingredients and turn the bowl. Keep on cutting and turning until the mixture comes together.
Lightly dust a work surface and turn the dough out onto it.
Push the dough together even if there are bits that look dry.
Shape the dough into a rectangle by rolling it out on the surface.
Now turn up a third of the length and then turn over a third of the top part.
Roll this out to a thickness of 3,5cm and then shape the dough into a circle with your hands.
Place the disc on the prepared baking sheet and cut it into 8 wedges.
Brush the top of the scones with the egg wash and bake for 15 minutes.
Remove from the oven and cool on a cooling rack for another 15 minutes before serving.