Pick and Mix Pancakes! Porridge, banana and coconut

Posted by aroundtheworldin80bakes in Around the World in Eighty Bakes, baking with baby, breakfast and tagged with baby friendly, baby led weaning, banana pancakes, banana porridge pancakes, breakfast, coconut, coconut milk, coconut oil, coconut pancakes, gluten free, healthy, paleo, pancakes, porridge, porridge pancakes, recipes, sweet potato pancakes, weaning recipes 25/01/2016

Not exactly a bake or a cake but I’m currently going through a bit of a pancake obsession. Mainly due to entering into the whole baby led weaning adventure. I wanted to find something nutritious, tasty and sugar free that we could all enjoy together.

Pinterest vs. Real life. Scrambled banana pancakes #babyledweaning #pinterestfail #pinterestvsreallife #bananapancakes #pancakes #blw

A photo posted by Aroundtheworldin80bakes (@princelauren) on Jan 10, 2016 at 2:41am PST

I attempted (and burnt) a lot of banana pancakes first. They’re sweet but have more of a frittata taste and texture to them than I like in my pancakes. However they went down a storm!

Petite sweet potato pancakes for little hands. Got to move quick in this house to get a photo of them! #breakfast #sweetpotatopancakes #cleaneating #gf #delicious

A photo posted by Aroundtheworldin80bakes (@princelauren) on Jan 20, 2016 at 1:19am PST

Next up sweet potato pancakes. Really easy to fry up and rather tasty! They could be served as a savoury side dish or with fruit and yoghurt to sweeten them up further. Again the baby loved them so we’re onto a winner

The quest for perfect pancakes continues… Porridge pancakes just what we need for snowy days! #porridge #pancakes #breakfast #babyledweaning #porridgepancakes #blw

A photo posted by Aroundtheworldin80bakes (@princelauren) on Jan 14, 2016 at 3:53am PST

Porridge pancakes were by far my favourite. They’re more savoury than the others but they’re fluffy and the perfect companion to fruit and yoghurt to increase the sweetness (and a good drizzle of maple syrup for me of course!). I then attempted a banana porridge pancake hybrid which was all the more delicious.

Pancakes! Pancakes! Pancakes! This time coconut flour and they're a hit! Not so sure about the coconut matcha latte however… #coconutpancakes #babyledweaning #pancakes #breakfast #gf #matcha #matchalatte #coconutmatchalatte #coconut #coconutoil #coconutmilk #coconutflour #sugarfree

A photo posted by Aroundtheworldin80bakes (@princelauren) on Jan 21, 2016 at 12:38am PST

Coconut pancakes were also extremely popular in our house. Fluffy, light and sweet.

All of these pancakes require very little effort, are pretty simple to make and can be frozen for future snacking. I have a small bowl attachment for my hand (stick) blender which works wonderfully to blend the ingredients together for all 4 types of pancake.

The trick to good pancakes is getting the temperature right when frying them. I use a large non stick frying pan on an induction hob with coconut oil as it has a high smoking point. Setting 5/6 on the hob seems to have enough sizzle to it.

I use an ice cream scoop to put the batter into the pan which helps to make mini round pancakes.

Flipping the pancakes as soon as the edges are cooked (not wet or runny) and using a two palette knife approach to gently lift and flip them over means they’re easier to handle and much less likely to end up a scrambled mess. *I learnt the hard way.

Depending on the thickness of your pancakes they take a minute or two on each side to cook through. The sweet potato pancakes take a little longer (about 4 mins each side) but if you’re making mini pancakes you can squeeze about 6 in one pan and cook them in batches.

Ingredients
Banana pancakes
Makes approx. 10-15 mini pancakes
Freezer friendly
1 banana
1 egg

1. Blend the banana and egg to make a runny batter.
2. Heat coconut oil in the pan in a medium heat
3. Spoon batter into small rounds in the pan. About 5cm diameter.
4. Cook for about 1/2 mins and flip over for another minute.
5. Remove from heat carefully using two spatulas (they’re a delicate pancake!)
6. Leave to cool on kitchen paper and serve still warm.

They freeze really well too and baby enjoyed them cold from the fridge the next day too!

Sweet potato pancakes
Makes approx. 15 mini pancakes
Freezer friendly
1 large sweet potato
2 eggs
Coconut oil to fry pancakes in
Optional 1tsp cinnamon

1. Peel and cut sweet potato into small chunks. Steam until cooked and soft
2. Whizz up the sweet potato and egg in the blender to make a thick runny batter.
3.. Spoon batter into hot greased pan.
4.. Cook for about 5 mins each side or until golden brown.
5. Serve as savoury snack or with yoghurt and fruit.

Porridge Pancakes
Makes approx. 20 mini pancakes
Freezer friendly

1 1/3 cup porridge oats – blended to a fine flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup natural/greek yoghurt
2 eggs
1/2 cup whole milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1tsp cinnamon
1tsp mixed spice
1/2tsp ground ginger
*Optional Blueberries/raspberries to drop into the batter as pancakes are cooking to make fruity porridge pancakes
Coconut oil (to fry the pancakes in)

1. Blend oats to a fine flour
2. Add baking powder
3. Blend in rest of ingredients
4. Leave batter to thicken for a couple of mins.
5. Cook in hot greased pan until golden brown on each side. (2/3 mins each side)
6. Serve with yoghurt and fruit or as a hand held snack.

Banana Porridge Pancakes
Makes approx 20 mini pancakes
Freezer friendly
1 1/3 cup porridge oats – blended to a fine flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 ripe banana
2 eggs
1/2 cup whole milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp mixed spice
1/2 tsp ground ginger
Coconut oil (to fry the pancakes in)

Coconut pancakes
Makes approx 15 – 20 mini pancakes
Freezer friendly

2 eggs
1/4 cup coconut flour
1/8 cup (or I used half of a 1/4 cup of milk as my cups don’t come in 8th measurements) cup coconut milk (hardly seems worth opening a can for such a small amount but it really enhances the coconut flavour)
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/8 cup (or I used half of a 1/4 cup) wholemeal flour
2 tbs melted coconut oil
*plus additional coconut oil for frying pancakes

1. Beat eggs together
2. Beat in coconut milk
3. Beat in the rest of the ingredients
4. Let the batter stand for a minute or two to thicken.
5. Heat oil in pan and spoon batter into small rounds.
6. Cook for 1-2 mins each side.
7. Serve with fruit and yoghurt as you like 🙂

The Best Banana Bread I’ve ever made

Posted by aroundtheworldin80bakes in Around the World in Eighty Bakes, Baking, Bread, cake, Cookery, England, Everday Cooking, Food, healthy baking, leftovers, recipe and tagged with around the world in 80 bakes, baking, Bread, brown bananas, cake, christmas, Cinnamon, coconut, coconut flour, cooking, dessert, flours, Food, gluten free, health cake, home baking, how to freeze bananas, how to use up leftovers, low gluten, low sugar, recipe, reduce food waste, rye, spelt 31/03/2014

My Bestest Banana Bread

I’m going to let you into a secret. I’ve been experimenting in the kitchen, trying new combinations of flours and flavours to make some tasty, healthy (ish) cakes using up food that would otherwise go to waste. And what did I conjure up? My bestest banana bread recipe, with coconut, pistachio and rye. Additional bonuses include an extra cake! This recipe is enough for 2 cakes, so you can freeze one for later or give it to a friend who needs a nutritious energy boost. It’s also low in sugar and gluten. (You could choose gluten free flour if you prefer.)

Bonus Banana Bread

When my bananas are on the turn and almost ready for the bin I throw them in the freezer in their blacken skins to save for a later date. (Yes you can freeze bananas. Feel free to peel them first and pop them in a tupperware container first if you want to use them from frozen for smoothies or milkshakes, then you don’t even need to add ice cream for a chilled drink).

Once I have 3 black bananas stockpiled I whip up my Banana Bread. Leave your bananas to defrost for an hour or so before you peel them to make your banana bread, as if they’re too cold it will make your butter solidify and could give you denser cake and an uneven bake.

This is really quick to make. Basically beat the butter and sugar together until fluffy. Followed by your bananas, vanilla and eggs, then the combination of flours and baking powder. Finally beat in a handful of sultanas and chopped walnuts. This takes about 15 minutes with an electric mixer.

I use two 6 inch round tins to bake this recipe, or you could bake one large banana bread loaf if you prefer. Liberally sprinkle the cakes with chopped nuts (whatever you have to hand is fine). I use pistachios which gives you gorgeous green flecks singing out in between the flaked almonds and hazelnuts.

As the cake bakes the batter rises up and supports the nuts, holding them in place for the final cake. It’s also the perfect way to disguise any uneven finishes on your cake, if like me you have an unpredictably hot oven.

My initial experiments involved using 100% coconut flour, but this ended in disaster. I think coconut flour needs to be balanced against other nuttier flours (I like using rye flour but spelt or wholemeal would work well too) to absorb some of the natural oils and sugars and avoid the quick to burn, blackened mess that I made.

In less than an hour (50 minutes at 150 degrees c to be precise) you will produce two beautifully moist banana cakes, that are perfect accompanied by a large mug of strong tea, perhaps after a bracing stroll by the coast. I’m drooling just thinking of that sweet sponge and nutty crunch of a cake. Wonder how many bananas I have lurking in my freezer today…

Perfect Cake spot: A blustry day by Alnwick Castle

Perfect Cake spot: A blustery day by Alnwick Castle

Things I used to make my Bestest Banana Bread

125g margarine (or butter)
250g caster sugar
3 over ripe bananas
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla paste
100g coconut flour (or finely ground dessicated coconut if you can’t find the flour)
90g Rye Flour (or spelt or wholemeal) -NB: Spelt and Rye flours are not gluten free but may be more suitable to those who have a wheat intolerance. Use a wholemeal gluten free flour if you want to avoid gluten in this recipe.
60g plain flour (feel free to use gluten free flour)
3 1/2 tsp baking powder
1tsp ground cassia (or cinnamon or mace)
Handful of chopped sultanas
Handful of chopped walnuts
* Topping: (2 handful of chopped/flaked nuts: almonds, pistachio, walnuts, hazelnuts

Beat together sugar and butter until fluffy
Beat in bananas
Beat in eggs one by one
Beat in vanilla paste
Beat in coconut, plain, rye flours and baking powder and spice
Beat in sultanas and walnuts
Pour into 2 greased 6 inch round tins (or one large loaf tin)
Cover the top of each cake entirely with a layer of chopped nuts
Bake for 50 mins at 150 degrees c (or until a skewer comes out clean)

My other banana based recipes are Fanny and Otto’s Fijian Banana Cake

60. Japanese Matcha Green Tea Mochi – Gluten Free

Posted by aroundtheworldin80bakes in Around the World in Eighty Bakes, Baking, cake, Food, gluten free, Green Tea, healthy baking, ice cream, international baking, Japan, pandan, traditional food, Travelling and tagged with aduki beans, anko paste, around the world in 80 bakes, azuki, baking, cake, dairy free, dessert, egg free, Food, gluten free, glutinous rice flour, Green Tea, healthy, Japan, japanese, Matcha, Matcha Mochi, mochi, mochi filling, mochi flavours, recipe, red bean paste, rice flour, snacks, vegan 07/03/2014

Mochi are like no other cake I’ve ever tasted. At first I thought I didn’t like them, with their chewy jelly exterior and smooth paste interior, that’s just not as sweet as I’m used to in my sugar spiked desserts. However once you get past your preconceptions of what a cake should taste and feel like, you’re going to love Mochi. I can guarantee it.

Matcha Mochi

The first time I experimented with Mochi was on a food adventure around Hong Kong. (Although they are a traditional Japanese sweet treat.) My friend Bobo and her Mam took us on a whistle stop tour of the real Hong Kong. Rolling from Dumpling Soup and Dim Sum, to Duck and Eel banquets. Sampling Chinese Milk Tea, Egg Tarts and Pineapple Cakes and everything in between. Including impressive dry ice tapioca desserts presented with a flourish of icy smoke clouds. This was my kind of trip! Although I must admit I didn’t manage to eat noodles for breakfast. A regret I still carry with me today. Unfortunately I’m much more of a tea and toast kinda gal!

Golden Temple – Hong Kong

Bobo and me catching the rays in the temple gardens

Delicious fried rice and dumplings

The Japanese English Breakfast – I’ll have a salad with my toast please

Snow Cones in Japan

But Mochi were something else. Deceptively bland on the outside in their floury cloak. When you tentatively choose your mochi you immediately realise how soft and squidgey they really are . Take a bite and there’s a perfect balance of sweet bean paste to rice gel dough. I always thought that Mochi would be difficult to make at home, when in fact they are possibly one of the quickest bakes I’ve ever made! The assembly is the trickiest bit and even then it’s a bit like playing with Play Doh so it’s actually quite fun!

My Mochi Mountain at Confidential Canapé Collective

You can apparently buy red bean paste (also called Anko) pre made (if you can find it!). I couldn’t find any so made my own, and as per usual, made it up as I went along! I chose dried Aduki beans from my local health food shop. These beans are also know as Azuki or Adzuki beans. They are much smaller than kidney beans and apparently rather good for you. They’re classed as a ‘superfood’ which is a bonus. (Just in case you’re interested they are high in soluble fibre, and rich in other nutrients such as B vitamins, potassium, magnesium, zinc, iron, copper and manganese.)

Tender Aduki Beans after 2 hours simmering

You do need to plan this one in advance if using dried aduki beans. You must soak them overnight in cold water. Change the water the next day, then bring them to the boil and simmer them for 2 hours. Once they are tender they’re ready to make into a paste. I didn’t realise that you’re supposed to remove the skins by passing them through a sieve, so I ended up with rather more textured paste than some Japanese confectionery would use… This is called Tsuban (red bean paste). If you sieve your beans you’ll end up with smooth Koshian paste. Once you’ve mastered Anko making, you can use it to fill lots of other Japanese desserts such as Dorayaki (Japanese Red Bean Pancake) or Red Bean Ice Cream (I’m adding these to my list right now!).

Anko – Aduki Sweet Red Bean paste

Once your beans are tender, drain the water and stir in the sugar. Then add a splash of water (half a cup) and allow to simmer . As the water evaporates the paste thickens. When you can draw a line along the bottom of the pan with a spoon the paste is ready. Allow it to cool and blend with a hand blender to a smooth paste. If you make too much you can freeze it for future use.

The very runny rice flour sugar and water batter ready for microwaving

Technically this is a non-bake bake. You only need to microwave the glutinous rice flour, sugar and water for 3 minutes 30 seconds to produce a wonderfully gelatinous dough! It’s amazing how many Mochi you can eek out of the small amount of flour, water and sugar.

The very hot and thick gel dough. You can see my fingermarks where I tried to remove the piping hot dough out of the bowl with my bare hands. Be careful!

Sift one cup of glutionous rice flour (I used my left over Pandan flavoured flour from my Pandan Chiffon Cake. It’s got to be glutinous rice flour as this is the sticky kind. It’s still gluten free despite it glutinous qualities.), followed by 1/4 cup of sugar, 2 tsp of matcha green tea powder, and 1 cup of cold water into a microwave safe bowl. Whisk gently until you have a very smooth thin batter. You could choose other flavourings or colours such as jasmine, taro or coconut. Add your preferred flavouring before cooking!

Sweet treats to eat with Matcha Green Tea at Japanese Tea Ceremony

Kimono dressing

Geisha me before our Japanese Tea Ceremony

Japanese Tea Ceremony – Matcha Green Tea and tiny sugar sweets to help wash down the frothy bitter tea

Cover the bowl with cling film and microwave on high for 3 mins 30 secs. The dough will thicken and inflate. Check it and then microwave for a further 30 seconds if it needed to be a bit firmer. Et voila you have a extremely green jelly dough ready to shape!

The bright green dough scooped safely out of the bowl with a knife

IT WILL BE VERY HOT when you take it out of the microwave! Most recipes tell you to shape it whilst it’s hot. I can assure you it’s much easier to work with when cool and less likely to sizzle your hands, so be careful.

Lots of rice flour everywhere to stop the dough from sticky to everything

Dust your worksurface with rice flour (other recipes say to use potato starch or cornflour, but as I had rice flour to hand I used that and it was fine.) You’re going to want to dust your hands too as the jelly dough sticks to everything! Mine was a vivid green so it looked like I’d been slimed. I’m still finding green goo in my kitchen… Take a small amount of dough (about 1cm x 5cm) and flatten it out using your finger tips on the worksurface. Press it into a round shape about 3mm thick.

Fold in the edges to seal in the red bean paste

Dollop a nice large marble sized pea of red bean paste in the centre of your dough and fold the dough over the paste to seal it in. Turn the Mochi over and roll it in a cupped hand or on the work surface to encourage the sealed edge to stick together and create a smooth round finish. Roll it in a little more rice flour and pop it into a mini cupcake cake case. Roll and repeat until you’ve used all of your paste and dough!

Shape shape shape your mochi

You could choose other pastes or ice cream to flavour your mochi with. Next time I’m going to try matcha ice cream centres!

The finished Mochi sitting pretty

I had to make a second batch of dough as I’d been a bit too enthusiastic with my portion sizes first time round. My Mochi were more dough than paste which isn’t as tasty to eat.

The first batch - I had rolled some too thin so the red bean paste is lurking periliiously close to the surface of some mochi

The first batch – I had rolled some too thin so the red bean paste is lurking periliously close to the surface of some mochi

It could be the complex combination of it’s jelly like texture or the smooth savoury yet sweet paste filling that make Mochi so memorable. Or perhaps it’s the unusually satisfying bite that they possess. Once you’ve tried them I’m sure you’re going to want to try them and experiment with more flavour combinations. They’re small so you probably want to eat at least 2 in a sitting!

A mouthful of mochi! Yum yum yum!

This dough recipe was enough to make 16 small mochi. I had enough paste left to make another batch so made a second batch of dough. Good news Mochi are gluten free and low in sugar so they’re relatively health conscious snack or dessert too. It’s best to store Mochi in an air tight container. They will keep for a couple of days if you don’t eat them all straight away!

You can see the Matcha Mochi are a bit darker in colour and more rounded in shape 🙂 My Mochi Mountain at Confidential Canapé Collective

I made my Mochi to share with friends at out Confidential Canapé Collective which we hosted at my new house. I really enjoyed making and eating these little sweet treats. I definitely prefer my Mochi with matcha in the dough. It gives a richer yet subtle flavour whilst tinting the dough naturally with a dark green hue. I was surprised by how many disappeared that night and some friends even took a couple home for later. Therefore I can confidently declare my Matcha Mochi a success! I can’t wait to attempt Matcha ice cream next!

Things that I used to make my Mochi

Matcha Green Tea Mochi Dough Recipe

Really quick to prepare! Makes enough dough for approx 16 small mochi

1 cup of glutinous (sticky) rice flour – I used pandan flavoured flour but you could use plain and add other flavours
1 cup of water
1/4 cup of caster sugar
2 tsp matcha green tea powder

Mochi Filling Red Bean Paste (Anko) Recipe

Takes a bit of preparation: Soak over night and boil for 2 hours

Makes enough to fill approx. 30 mochi

100g dried Aduki beans
cold water
50g sugar

Red Bean Paste Instructions

Soak the dried beans in cold water over night
Drain the water.
Cover the beans in cold water and bring to the boil. Simmer for 2 hours til tender.
Drain the water. Stir in sugar. Add half cup of water. Simmer til very soft and water is evaporated.
Blend with hand blender to a smooth paste.

Mochi Instructions

Whisk the ingredients together into a thin batter
Cover with cling film and microwave for 3 minutes 30 seconds and then a further 30 seconds if needed to firm the dough up further
Allow to cool before scooping the dough onto a rice floured surface (use more flour as needed to prevent sticking)
Take small pieces (1x5cm) of the dough and shape into rounds
Place a marble sized dollop of your chosen filling in the centre of the dough
Fold the edges over the filling. Press the edges to seal
Turn the mochi over and roll in a cupped hand to seal the edges further.
Dust with rice flour and place into paper case
Leave to set at room temperature for an hour
Eat!

59. Pandan Chiffon Cake – South East Asia & Gluten Free

Posted by aroundtheworldin80bakes in Around the World in Eighty Bakes, Baking, cake, Cookery, Food, Green Tea, pandan, recipe, The Great British Bake Off, traditional food, Travelling and tagged with #foodie, aroundtheworldin80bakes, baking, cake, chiffon, clandestine cake club, exotic cakes, gluten free, glutinous rice flour, Great British Bake Off, Indonesia, international, malaysia, malaysian, pandan, Pandan Cake, pandan chiffon cake, pandan essence, recipe, singapore, South east asia, technical challenge, traditional food 09/02/2014

Huge and Fluffy Pandan Cake

Searching for a suitably exotic and challenging recipe I remembered a wonderful recipe I was given by a fellow cake clubber. Her family recipe for Pandan Cake. Not to be confused with Panda cake. Although a Panda Pandan Cake would be immense.

The Great Reveal! (Probably not the best photo that I could have got of the delicate Pandan Chiffon Cake but it shows how brightly coloured it is on the inside!)

Pandan is a traditional flavouring used in South East Asia. (You might find Pandan Cake in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.) It comes from the leaves of the Pandan plant. It is also used to help flavour dishes such as jasmine sticky rice. If you can get a hold of some Pandan leaves you can make your own extract by boiling the leaves in a small amount of water. Pandan cake is usually green because of the chlorophyll from the leaves but as the leaves aren’t readily available everywhere most Pandan essences contain some bright food colouring to help recreate the glorious green sponge at home.

Gloriously Green Pandan Essence and Pandan infused Glutinous Rice flour

In search for Pandan paste I found Pandan essence and Pandanus Glutinous Rice flour which contained the elusive Pandan extract. As rice flour behaves in a slightly different way to normal plain flour I had to modify my recipe to accommodate the changes. You don’t have to use the green flour if you can’t find it. You can use self raising or plain. But if you prefer gluten free go for rice flour. Glutinous rice flour (despite it’s name) is gluten free. The glutinous bit means the rice belongs to the sticky rice family.

The Pandan Chiffon Cake in amongst the stunning array of Clandestine Cakes

Now upon extra research I realised that this is a chiffon cake. Those Great British Bake off fans will remember this as one of the technical challenges that was a bit tricky to bake! And considering my oven’s unpredictability this may not be the best choice to bake for our first Clandestine Cake Club gathering of 2014. But I do like a challenge!

Whisk 8 eggs yolks with the sugar

This has a lot of eggs in it so you will need 2 big bowls but doesn’t take as long to make as you might think. (Only if you stop to take photos along the way does this take a long time! ). Whisk 8 egg yolks with 100g of sugar until light and fluffy

Whisk in the coconut milk and oil

Whisk in the coconut milk along with the pandan essence/paste/extract. If you’re worried it’s not going to be green enough add a dot of green food colouring gel. It will soon become a frothy fluid batter with a green tinge to it.

Adding the fluorescent Pandan Essence

Sift in the flour ( whatever type you prefer) along with the baking powder and bicarbonate of soda. If using self raising flour you will not need as much raising agent. Whisk a third of the flour into the batter followed by a third of the oil. Repeat until it’s all combined.

Whisking in the glutinous rice flour – How bright is the batter!

Whisk the egg whites until frothy. Then gradually add 100g of sugar and continue to whisk on high until stiff peaks form.

Whisk the egg whites (adding the sugar gradually) until stiff peaks are formed

Fold a dollop of egg whites into the green batter to loosen the mix and then carefully fold the egg whites in to preserve the air in the mix and help the cake rise evenly.

Carefully fold in the egg whites – Love how green the batter is!

As uncomfortable as this seems (it screams against all baking experience) pour the mix into a NON GREASED tube pan (looks like a flat topped Bundt tin). Apparently chiffon cakes need to cool upside down and grip the sides of the tin so they slowly slide out of the tin as they cool. If removed straight away the cake will concertina up and end up as a dense pancake. Greasing the tin would make the cake slip out too quickly so try not to grease it

Chiffon batter ready to bake in it’s un greased tube pan

Now with all that wonderful air in the cake the sponge springs up magnificently in the oven almost escaping the tin. With the hole in the middle the cake will cook quicker and more evenly which can only be a bonus in my oven.

The enormous Pandan Chiffon Cake!

You will need to keep an eye on the cake to make sure it doesn’t burn. Bake it for 50 mins at 160 degrees c ( fan) but if it is cooked through sooner take it out (or leave it longer if it needs it.) I made the mistake of sticking cocktail sticks into the cake too often to check that it was cooked. This meant I deflated the cake slighty. Also pausing to mess around taking photos of the cake meant that I didn’t invert the cake tin quick enough and to my horror saw the cake sag down inside the tin. You can see on the cooled cake that it has a little ridge around the bottom of the cake (a bit like a muffin top over spilling someone’s jeans). Note to self: check it’s cooked and tip the tin upside down immediately when taking it out of the oven!

Despite it's saggy ridge the Pandan Chiffon Cake was amazing!

Despite it’s slightly saggy ridge the Pandan Chiffon Cake was amazing!

Once the cake cooled completely I found that it didn’t slide out of the tin as easily as I had hoped, as the cake was clinging on a little too tightly to the tin. I coaxed it gently out of the tin using a sharp knife and running it around the edge of the tin, allowing gravity to do the rest of the job. This meant that the cake didn’t have a shiny finish to it, but I think this is how it’s supposed to look.

The Magnificent Pandan Chiffon Cake

What a magnificent cake the Pandan Chiffon Cake is! It is extremely light and soft to the touch, more like a tasty pillow than a cake. I’ve never eaten a cake that actually melted in my mouth before until now. It’s moist and airy and keeps for at least 3 days after baking it. (That’s as long as I managed to save my final piece until.) It’s worth slicing the cake with the sharpest knife that you have to preserve it’s shape as much as possible as it is very delicate. (I may have been a tad heavy handed when slicing it up as I squished it slightly.)

A slightly squashed slice of Pandan Chiffon Cake

Pandan is an unusual flavour. It perfumes the air whilst managing to taste both sweet and savoury at the same time. It’s similar to Green Tea (Matcha) cakes but like nothing else that I’ve ever tasted before. I will surely be baking this again. It really doesn’t take as long as you might think, perhaps 30 minutes to prepare and as it doesn’t need any dressing up, you don’t need to spend time decorating the cake. Icing would be overkill. It’s a deceptive cake. It looks rather plain and boring from the outside, but that first slice releases the pandan perfume and the glorious green chiffon . It’s a much more complex and interesting cake than you might initially think. If you’re going to attempt an exotic cake I can’t recommend the Pandan Chiffon Cake enough!

An empty plate speaks for itself! – The Pandan Chiffon Cake disappeared very quickly

Things I used to make my Pandan Chiffon Cake

Batter

8 egg yolks
100g sugar
140ml coconut milk
1/4 cup olive oil
170g pandan flavoured glutinous rice flour (you can use plain rice flour if you prefer)
3 tsp pandan essence (1tsp paste)
3 1/2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
(Green food colouring if you wish)

Egg whites

8 egg whites
100g sugar
1/2 tsp cream of tartar

Method

Whisk the eggs yolks with the sugar until light and fluffy
Whisk in the coconut milk, pandan essence (and a splash of green food colouring if you would like it extra bright)
Sift the bicarbonate of soda and baking powder and flour together
Whisk in a third of the flour mixture followed by a third of the oil until it’s all incorporated
In a separate bowl beat the egg whites until frothy, then gradually add the sugar and cream of tartar
Beat until the eggs whites are they reach stiff peaks
Fold the egg whites into the batter gently
Pour into a non greased tube pan
Bake at 160 degrees c fan for 50 minutes
When fully cooked invert the tin immediately over a cooling rack and allow the cake to slide gently out of the tin as it cools
Slice with a very sharp knife and store in an airtight container

Cooker Chaos and the Fiery Beast in my Kitchen

Posted by aroundtheworldin80bakes in Around the World in Eighty Bakes, Bread, cake, cake decoration, Cookery, Everday Cooking, Food, gluten free, healthy baking, iranian cake, recipe, traditional food and tagged with armenian orange cake, Around the world, around the world in eighty bakes, baking, Bread, burnt cakes, cake, cakes, cooking, fail, Food, fougasse, gluten free, iranian, layer cake, new house, orange and almond cake, Orange Blossom icing, oven, oven too hot, Pistachio Cake, recipe, Turkish Delight 27/01/2014

An Armenian Gluten Free Orange Cake with Orange Blossom icing and candied peel

January has been a busy month filled with baking and frustration with the new-to-me-yet-old-to-our-house oven which has no temperature or oven settings remaining on it. Leaving the delicate science of oven temperature in the lap of the gods or in my case the sizzle of the grill.

This month I have successfully

set fire to my oven gloves and a pan lid!
grilled a puff pastry pie
charred a cake that took me 4 hours to make
threw 5 inedible cakes away – even Super Hans turned his nose up at them and he has been know to eat raw sourdough starter when it’s been dropped on the floor
and sobbed silently at the oven window glued to my newly purchased thermometer checking the temperature hasn’t yet reached ‘towering inferno stage’ and frazzled my Madelines.

Grilled pie anyone?

I must admit I considered throwing the fiery beast in the bin, but the bin isn’t quite big enough… so back to patiently burning my cakes and starting over, and over, I went.

Charred Challah

Challah – not so charred on the inside

I guess this oven is a bit like baking with an Aga? (Having never used an Aga I may be making this up) I put my limited Aga knowledge to good use and attempted to control the heat by placing extra baking tins in the oven, to protect my precious cakes from the uncovered elements in the oven and ward off the extra hot spots. Adding tin foil hats to my cakes wherever possible to guard against the scorch. If you have any suggestions on how to bake in a small, yet very hot, electric fan oven please send them my way!

Chocolate Marzipan Tarte with sweet almond pastry

Homemade Turkish Delight!

Cramming many international elements into one cake: A 4 layer Iranian Pistachio Cake, with homemade lemon curd, Turkish Delight and Rose Italian Meringue

A proper Carrot Cake with cream cheese frosting

Mini Rosemary, Parmesan & Onion Fougasse

52. An Armenian Gluten Free Orange Cake with Orange Blossom icing and candied peel

Undeterred I continued and eventually managed to bake some edible and rather lovely cakes, although I had to admit defeat on some of the more delicate bakes. It seems I shall be baking only robust cakes and breads that can withstand the heat until I can get to grips with the animal in my kitchen.

This month I’ve taken the opportunity to recreate some of my most favourite around the world in 80 bakes with a slightly new twist. Mainly that I have crammed as many international elements and Middle Eastern flavours that I could possibly think of into one cake. And the result? My 4 layer Iranian Pistachio Cake with cardamom; home made lemon curd, Turkish Delight and Rose Italian Meringue. Which means I finally conquered the ever elusive Turkish Delight using a very good Ra chel Allan recipe. I even treated myself to 2 new cake tins that are the same size! Unheard of in my house, so now I can actually make cakes that sandwich together. Hurrah! I predict there will be many more layered cakes in my future.

Cramming many international elements into one cake: A 4 layer Iranian Pistachio Cake, with homemade lemon curd, Turkish Delight and Rose Italian Meringue

I also re imagined my Armenian Gluten Free Orange and Almond Cake into a bundt cake with ribbons of orange blossom icing and home made candied peel. Much less syrupy than my last attempt with thick piped glace icing which gave a great sweet contrast to the slightly bitter orange and almond cake.

An Armenian Gluten Free Orange Cake with Orange Blossom icing and candied peel

Thanks for reading and I hope January is treating you well. I’m looking forward to hopefully baking not burning some new and exciting international recipes very soon.

52. Armenian Orange and Almond Cake (incidentally also Gluten Free)

Posted by aroundtheworldin80bakes in @laurenprince, Armenia, Around the World in Eighty Bakes, Baking, cake, cake decoration, Cookery, dessert, Everday Cooking, Food, gluten free, healthy baking, international baking, Lauren Prince, recipe, sugar tourist, traditional food, Vintage and tagged with almond, armenia, armenian orange and almond cake, around the world in eighty bakes, aroundtheworldin80bakes, baking, cake, cake mould, cake moulds, cake recipes, candied peel, competition, dessert, exotic, Food, giveaway, gluten free, healthy cake, heart cake, heart shape, heartyslice, i heart cake, icing sugar decoration, international baking, orange and almond cake, pudding, quick bakes, recipe, silicon bakeware, traditional Armenian food, unusual cake, vintage, whole orange in a cake 27/07/2013

Armenian Orange and Almond Cake

This Armenian Orange and Almond cake almost screams health (in a rather pretty way). It contains 2 whole oranges! (yes that’s right the pith and peel and everything), no butter, a relatively small amount of sugar and a whole bunch of almonds. Of course almonds are full of minerals and vitamins (vitamin E and Bs) and healthy fats that you need to live a lovely life, so surely this is a cake that you should be eating as part of you balanced healthy lifestyle! Oh and I did I mention it’s also gluten free? No flour required so even better for those with gluten intolerances/allergies too.

A very moist slice of Armenian Orange and Almond Cake

We’re flying into the final 28 bakes of my aroundtheworldin80bakes adventure now and what a cake to take us up to bake 52. This recipe was very kindly given to me by a fantastic lady that I work with who is from Armenia. I asked if she had any traditional cake recipes that I could try as it’s another country that I’m still yet to visit and she produced this from her repertoire.

I Heart Cake. Do you? You could win a lovely cake mould if so!

I lovingly recreated the handwritten recipe in my kitchen using a pretty heart shaped mould that Mustard Gifts sent me to try. Thank you very much! I love my heart shaped cake mould. Next on my list of things to try is a heart shaped jelly. Not only does it look pretty whole (part of me wanted to decorate it like a flower!) but when you cut yourself a nice wedge it comes out as a perfect heart shape. The cake will make 6 heart shaped slices or 12 finger shaped sliced (depends on how much you love your friends and family as to how big a slice you’d like to give them…) You could also win one of these gorgeous cake moulds worth £15! (Competition has now closed.)

My orangey bakey heart

I knew I had to bake this cake to take along with me to the Clandestine Cake Club gathering this week, at the Knit Studio at Blackfriars. Our theme this week was history. I thought the Armenian Orange Cake would be a great recipe for me to use, full of Armenian tradition and handed down to my friend through her family. It did not disappoint. I managed to work my through the entire cake collection sampling a wonderful array of cakes along the way. I love Cake Club!

Clandestine Cake Club Newcastle - History theme

A fine selection of cakes at our History themed Clandestine Cake Club Newcastle, at the Knit Studio, Blackfriars

One of my favourite things about this cake is that it’s really quick to make. Boiling the whole oranges is the most time consuming part of this entire cake. They need to be boiled for 2 hours, covered in water and with a lid on the pan to help retain the heat. I boiled my oranges the day before so I was extra prepared.

Boil 2 whole oranges for 2 hours. Simple

Once the oranges have reached boiling point allow them to simmer on a low heat for the full 2 hours. The oranges smell amazing, and it floats around the house carried by the steam from the pan. Leave them to cool (so you don’t burn yourself) and then blend them up to a pulp.

Soft boiled oranges

They’re so soft and tender they pretty much fall apart in your hands. I used a stick blender to blitz mine into a thick smooth orange paste. You could also use a food processor.

Blitz the boiled oranges to a smooth paste

Next thing is to basically whisk all of the eggs together with the sugar until frothy and a little air is incorporated. Then whisk in the ground almonds and baking powder. Then whisk in the orange paste. No fuss, just whisk the entire thing in one bowl. Even better there’s not a lot of washing up involved in this cake!

Whisking up all the eggs and sugar

The cake batter doesn’t take long to whisk together. Whisk it until it is a beautifully smooth, thick and glossy. You will see the gorgeous orange flecks throughout the batter. It’s very easy to pour and spread into the shapely mould.

A thick, glossy smooth orange flecked batter. Easy to pour and spread into the shapely mould

Once everything is fully incorporated simply pour it into your greased baking tin/mould and bake in a preheated oven for 30-45 minutes at 200 degrees C /400F

Thoroughly greased I Heart Cake Mould

I like to use spray on cake release to grease my cake tins and having not had much success with silicon bakeware in the past I may have gone a tad overboard with the old grease spray here. The I Heart Cake mould worked like a dream, the cake baked evenly and not a single bit of the cake stuck to the mould. Success!

Ready for the oven on a pre heated baking tray

One way to ensure your silicon mould is supported and heated evenly I’ve found, is to pop it directly on to a baking tray that has been heated as the oven warms. This makes it even easier to lift the supple mould in and out of the oven and ensures the heat touches the mould evenly.

Fresh from the oven – Armenian Orange and Almond Cake

Now I did think when I read the recipe that 200 degrees C is rather a high temperature for a cake, normally a sponge with baking powder might bake at 180 C as a maximum. 200 C is more like a bread baking temperature which can take that kind of heat, however I wanted to follow the recipe to the letter. I was slightly alarmed to see how dark the cake had turned in the oven however it didn’t make the slightest bit of difference, it tasted perfect and was moist all the way through. Not a dry edge in sight, but just for peace of mind I might reduce the heat next time to 180 after the first 15 minutes of baking.

Cooling gently on a greaseproof covered cooling rack

I left the cake to cool slightly in the mould to retain it’s shape and merely tipped it out onto a greaseproof covered wire cooling rack (to stop the cake marking or falling through the gaps). It’s quite a robust cake with all of the almonds in so it can take a bit of handling. The cake slid smoothly out of the mould and looked impressive before I even added a layer of icing to it.

A good layer of Orange Blossom Water sugar icing

I’ve never really been successful with making my own glaze icing and yet I continue to persevere. I decided to add a layer of icing to the cake to add a little more sweetness. I clearly got the measurements wrong (yet again when will I learn!) as the icing wouldn’t set despite being left over night!) so I ended up scraping it off and leaving the cake with the syrupy goodness from the icing seeping into every pore instead. This made one extremely moist cake. Similar to some of my other Arabic creations Baklava and Basboosa.

One orange blossom water syrup soaked Armenian Orange Cake

Icing sugar is probably not the best choice of decorative tool when dealing with a syrup soaked cake, however I wanted a quick white decoration to contrast with the golden sponge. Armed with a paper doily, icing sugar and my trusty tea strainer I placed the doily on the cake and dusted it liberally to ensure the cake got a good coating. I think its a brilliant (and cheap!) way to create an impressive decoration. I think I may be a little obsessed with this now as you can see with my Crack Pie stencilling

Doily decorations all round – Armenian Orange and Almond Cake (ps. no one will notice the dent I put in the top of the cake when scrapping off the icing with a spoon will they…)

To continue the heart theme I sliced up some homemade candied orange peel into dinky heart shapes and placed one in the centre. As Mary Berry always says it’s good to decorate your cake with a little of what’s on the inside to give a hint of what it’s offering

Practice makes perfect – slicing candied peel into hearts. No fingers were lost in this process

Armenian Orange cake is the most intensely orange cake I’ve ever tasted. Perfect if you like a fruity cake that’s not too sweet. The almonds give it a wonderful texture and the added sweetness from the icing lifts the slightly bitter tang of the orange peel. An interesting cake with a healthy twist, it’s a wonderfully moist and light summery bake. The full oranges give the cake a whole other level of moisture and depth of flavour. Another cake that would be perfect with a strong cup of tea or an espresso. This is great cake for those who enjoy a good pound cake and who aren’t a great fan of buttercream icing. Although you could ice this in any which way you prefer if you’re a buttercream fan go for it. I heart all cake! Yum!