Blokes Who Bake

A blinding flash of inspiration and the desperate need to use the remaining lemon curd led to this:

Little Gingernut, Superwine cookie cups filled with the delicious lemony loveliness. I don't mind boasting ... These were so good it's ridiculous. So good that even my harshest critic (read: wife) was impressed.

The base is just 100 grams of about a half and half mix of the biscuits blasted and mixed with about 45g melted butter then pressed into a mini muffin tray lined with plastic wrap. Chill the little buggers and fill with good lemon curd.

Serve with whipped cream and/or berries. And a good, big dollop of smug self-satisfaction.

19:43

You think that just because you have good intentions, everything's going to hum along nicely?

Doubt it.

I grabbed a bag of frozen blueberries from the frozen section at the supermarket thinking that a batch of muffins for the neighbours would be a good way of lifting spirits after a tough week. When I got home I realized those blueberries were actually boysenberries.

Shouldn't matter, right? Berries are berries? The recipe will still work, surely?

Nope. Wrong. Uh-uh.

Muffin fail. Instead of cheering up the neighbours, I ended up making the kids miserable by adding stodgy, purple bricks to their lunch boxes.

There's a lesson here somewhere. You'll have to figure out what it is.

11:31

A quick one:

Pancakes and lemon curd. You have to do this.

These are the pancakes:
3/4 Cup standard flour.
1 good teaspoon baking powder
A pinch of salt
1 egg (whisked)
2/3 - 3/4 Cup whole milk
30 grams melted butter.

That mixture only makes 4 - 6 pancakes, but that's enough for my son and I for breakfast. Throw it all and and whisk.When you're cooking here are a couple of tips to make sure they come out perfectly every time:

1. The pan has to be medium - hot. Chuck some butter in. If the butter bubbles and cooks straight away, that's cook. If the butter goes brown or black straight away, that's bad.
2. Go with a smaller pan rather than a bigger one. All cooktops are a bit uneven and a smaller pan gives you a better chance at the pancakes coming out uniform.
3. Use a ladle to put the mixture in your pan. That way you can measure you much is going in and get them near enough to the same size. It's tidier too.
4. Flip the pancakes when they bubble on top.

When they're done, smear them in lemon curd. It'll make you moan. In a good way.

12:58

I'm like Frankenstein, but without the screaming. The evil genius, that is - not the monster.

The kitchen is my lab and today I created something that, when it came out of the oven, looked so perfect I nearly cried out, 'It's alive!'

Okay - I just read those two lines back and it sounds like I really rate myself. So let me cut to the chase:

I made a Louise slice and instead of using jam I used lemon curd. Lemon Louise, oh how I love her. This was an idea that occurred to me a few weeks back and finally I've done something about it. There's a little lemon in the base and the sual coconut in the meringue and it all works perfectly.

Tips:
1. You could blast the base together in a food processor, but I find it just as quick and easy in a bowl. And it saves on dishes cos you have to use a bowl anyway.

2. Softened the butter, but don't melt it. The easiest way to do that is by zapping it in the microwave on the lowest possible setting for a minute or two.

3. I use dessicated coconut, which is a lot finer. I like the lightness it gives the meringue. But you can use the shredded stuff for a more rustic effect.

18:24

I remember apple crumble as being the most delicious treat in the world when I was in my teens. It was something that every good restaurant had on their dessert menu. Fine places like Pizza Hut and Cobb'n'Co, for example.

And I probably haven't eaten it since I was 17.

For some reason, today I got The Hankering. Are you familiar with The Hankering? It's that 'I gotta have it, nothing else can happen till I do' feeling. It sometimes sits at the back of your mind for days until finally you have to do something about it.

I decided not to wait for days.

Much like myself, I discovered, the humble crumble has grown up. Now you put nuts and spice and other stuff in it. This recipe is one I made up this afternoon, based on a little research, what I had in the pantry and the fact that I like a little tang in the apples. I reckon you'll like it. I had seconds ... and thirds.

19:12

It's a genius plan.

Except I'm not the genius, she is. My wife is a high school teacher and every now and then she tells her kids she'll bring in some baking, which is where I come in. The last time that promise was made we had some lemons left in the bowl and I made these lemon muffins as minis with a dollop of lemony icing on top.

Obviously I did quality checking before handing them over for the students. WOW! They pack a lemony punch.

My wife used them as a bribe; a 'work hard, get a muffin' sort of thing. The kids loved them, so she was happy and I earned points for being a good husband. Everyone wins.

See? Genius. Next time I figured I'd go with brownies. That way they'd be brownie points. Mmmm?

10:07

It was my birthday yesterday.

43.

Well, I never saw that coming. That's old. Really old. I remember when I was 11 working out that when I was 30 it would be the year 2000. I never actually thought it would really, seriously happen. Now 30 was 13 years ago. A distant memory.

So here I am; an elderly Bloke who Bakes. I decided to buy myself a little something. Make that a big something. This big something:

And with my new Manly Mixing Machine I made the most manly of all baked goods: vanilla cupcakes. The recipe is from the mega-famous folk at Magnolia Bakery in New York.

To really up the bloke factor I figured pink icing would be the go. I don't have to tell you, they were delicious.

Make them. You won't regret it. And here's a tip (because that's how I roll): Time and full fat milk are the keys to great cupcakes. And more icing than is decent.

19:41

Oh Lordy, have I ever been getting compliments on the chocolate chip biscuits. I can't take credit for the recipe - that comes from our great fiend Janet. All I did was tweak.

But here's the thing: friends have tried to make these using the same recipe and they don't come out quite the same way. So here are a few biscuit making tips. One of which comes from the mighty Pauline Nunns - baker of international renown. the others are either mine or have been stolen fair and square from who knows where.

1. Cream the butter and sugar properly. Best to use a wooden spoon or table spoon. The thing is, the butter needs to be softened right. SOFT, but not melted. Do not use an electric mixer, and if you're going to use a mixing bowl put the paddle on.

2. Cut in the dry ingredients. Either with a flat bladed knife or a metal spoon. That is, fold around and then slice through rather than stir. Give it a crack - you'll get the hang of it.

3. Bake them a minute longer. You'll think they're done, but just leave them to go properly golden brown and you get the right 'snap' to the biscuits. Crunch on the outside, soft on the inside.

Okay. That's it. It's not that hard ... follow the instructions, feel the rhythm, bake. you'll be great.

19:18

A while back my step-mum gave me a mixing bowl that had been my Grandma's. Penny (step-mum) told me she'd never used it because she was afraid she'd break it.

I use this bowl every day.

Every day.

I love it. It's exactly the right size, solid, good weight, microwave safe. It's everything a bowl should be. I just googled the make and reg. number on the bottom. Turns out the bowl is nearly 100 years old! there's a similar one for sale online for $US120.

Not that I'll ever sell this - it was my Grandmother's mixing bowl - but by hokey! Nearly 100 years old!! You can buy new ones. If you get one, in a hundred years your great, great grandkids might blog about it. Or whatever they do in a hundred years.

Today I made chocolate chip cookies in the bowl.

How about that? It was microwave safe about 80 years before microwaves.