Showing posts with label Christmas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Christmas. Show all posts

Thursday, December 17, 2015

Hot Buttered Rum Bundt #BundtBakers


Lots of butter and rum in a small Bundt cake, topped with hot buttered rum glaze – it’s perfect for a cozy dinner party this holiday season.

This month’s Bundt Bakers theme is Naughty or Nice! Although I am sure you will agree after taking a look at our link list of recipe titles, even the naughty ones look pretty nice.

The challenge set by our lovely host, Olivia from Liv for Cake, was as follows
Sometimes it’s nice to be naughty! Choose one of these directions for your Bundt this month. For "Naughty” think boozy or things like Devil’s Food Cake. "Nice” Bundts can be of the more traditional, innocent kind — Gingerbread, Peppermint, etc. Naughty or Nice, all Bundts should share the flavors of a WINTER HOLIDAY.

I guess we all know which way I went on the Naughty to Nice scale. Don't you love that sign hanging from my rum bottle? I bought it from a crafty friend at the American Association of Malaysia Christmas Bazaar last month.

Ingredients for a six-inch Bundt cake (I used the Nordic Ware Anniversary pan. <affiliate link)
For the cake batter:
1 1/2 cups or 190g flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup or 150g sugar
1/2 cup or 113g butter, at room temperature
2 eggs, at room temperature
1/4 cup or 60ml gold rum, topped up with milk to equal 1/3 cup or 78ml
3/4 cup or 105g chopped pecans

For the Hot Buttered Rum glaze:
1/4 cup, packed, or 50g brown sugar
1/4 cup or 60g butter
1/3 cup or 80ml whipping (heavy) cream
1/4 cup or 60ml gold rum
Good pinch of sea salt

Method
Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C.  Grease and flour your 6-in Bundt pan or spray it with non-stick baking spray with flour. I often use the baking spray but since more butter in a butter cake is always better, I did it the old fashion way this time.

Sift your flour, baking powder and salt into a large mixing bowl. Add in the rest of the ingredients – except the nuts - and beat for a minute until combined. Scrape down the bowl and beat at high speed for 4 minutes.

Do NOT taste the batter or there won't be any left to bake. You have been warned! 


Fold in the pecans.

Spoon into your prepared Bundt pan.


Bake 30-40 minutes until toothpick comes out clean.


Cool in pan 15 minutes on a wire rack, then turn the Bundt out to finish cooling on the rack.

For the hot buttered rum glaze:
Mix all ingredients in 1 1/2-quart saucepan. Heat to boiling over medium heat, stirring constantly.

Boil 3 to 4 minutes, whisking constantly, until slightly thickened. Allow to cool until it thickens even more, whisking occasionally to check consistency. You don’t want it to drip completely off the cake.

Spoon over cooled cake.



Enjoy!


Have you been naughty or nice this year? Never mind - My Bundt Bakers still have cake for you!
BundtBakers

#BundtBakers is a group of Bundt loving Bakers who get together once a month to bake Bundts with a common ingredient or theme. You can see all of our lovely Bundts by following our Pinterest Board. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme or ingredient.

Updated links for all of our past events and more information about BundtBakers can be found on our homepage.


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Posted by at 12:35:00 AM 0 comments
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Tuesday, December 15, 2015

Gingerbread Biscotti #CreativeCookieExchange

All the spicy flavors of gingerbread, ramped up a notch or two with the addition of chewy crystallized ginger and crunchy toasted almonds, are represented in these very dunk-able biscotti, decorated with the requisite royal icing. They are perfect to enjoy on a winter morning with a hot cup of something special, or to wrap up as gifts. 

When my girls were growing up and we neared Christmas on the calendar – we lived far too near the equator for the other usual harbingers of the season like falling leaves or a nip in the air – I often baked gingerbread for their after school snacks. And we always made some gingerbread men together as a weekend project, decorating them lavishly with royal icing. The smell as the gingerbread bakes is heavenly!

Yes, somehow gingerbread and the Christmas season just go together. How could I resist turning gingerbread into biscotti for this month’s Creative Cookie Exchange? And don't forget, being twice baked and crunchy, biscotti are very good travelers, in case you need a homemade gift for someone far away.

Many thanks to Laura from The Spiced Life for organizing us each month and for coming up with this great theme!

This recipe is adapted from one at Christmas Cookies.

Ingredients for about 55-60 biscotti
For the biscotti dough:
1 cup or 150g almonds, blanched
3/4 cup or 150g sugar
1/2 cup or 113g butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup or 120ml dark molasses
3 eggs
3 cups or 375g flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup or 75g candied ginger, coarsely chopped

For the royal icing:
1 1/2 cups or 190g icing sugar
1 egg white (Do not serve raw unpasteurized eggs to persons with compromised immune systems.)
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
Pinch salt

Method
Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C and line two cookies sheets with baking parchment or silicone baking mats.

Toast your almonds for about 10-15 minutes in the preheated oven using a small baking pan where they can fit in one layer. Keep an eye on the almonds and shake or stir the pan at about the five-minute mark to make sure they aren’t scorching on one side. You are looking for a nice golden color.

Let the almonds cool, chop them very coarsely, and set aside. Turn your oven temperature down to 300°F or 149°C.

In large bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the sugar, butter and molasses until smooth.

Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Your batter may look a little curdled at this point but it's nothing to worry about.



In another mixing bowl, sift together your flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, allspice and salt.

Add the candied ginger to the dry ingredient bowl and use your fingers to separate the pieces and coat them with the dry ingredients so they don’t stick together again.



Add in the almonds to the dry bowl and mix well.



Tip the dry ingredients into the egg mixture; mix well to combine. The dough is going to be quite sticky.

Divide your dough up into four equal pieces and wrap each in a large piece of cling film. Use the cling film to shape the dough into four flat loaves, about a 1/2 in or 1 1/4cm thick and 2 inches or 5 1/2 cm wide.



Turn your dough loaves out on to your prepared pans, leaving plenty of room between them for expansion as they bake.



Dampen your hands with water so they won't stick to the dough and to pat the loaves into shape, if necessary.



Bake in your preheated oven until browned at edges and springy to touch, about 25 minutes. Depending on how well your oven circulates, you might need to rotate the pans midway though the baking time so everything gets evenly browned.

Leave the loaves to cool for about 15-20 minutes on the baking sheets.



Remove the loaves to a cutting board and use a serrated bread knife to cut them into long, 1/2-inch or 1 1/4cm thick diagonal slices.



Return the slices to the baking sheets, with one of the cut sides down.



Return to the oven and bake about 15 to 18 minutes longer, turning the biscotti over once halfway through the baking. Once again, rotate the pans if necessary to get an even bake. They should be slightly more brown around the edges.


Transfer biscotti to racks and let cool completely.

To make the royal icing, sift your sugar into a small bowl, then add the pinch of salt, the lemon juice and the egg white. Mix together until smooth.



Spoon the icing into a piping bag and use a small tip to decorate the biscotti.



Serve, or store in an airtight container of up to 1 month; wrap well and freeze for longer storage.

So much gingerbread biscotti! 
Enjoy!



Biscotti (or mandelbrot or any other twice baked cookie by any other name) are one of the perfect Holiday tin cookies! They last forever, and there are so many ways to make them festive. So Creative Cookie Exchange has got you covered--sweet, savory, low fat, loaded with decadence, you name it, we’ve got it! Happy Holidays!


Creative Cookie Exchange is  a great resource for cookie recipes! Be sure to check out our Pinterest Board and our monthly posts (you can find all of them at The Spiced Life). We post together the first Tuesday after the 15th of each month!


Looking for more gingerbread deliciousness?

Check out my Rich Gingerbread Muffins with Honey Ginger Glaze

Or my Dark Chocolate Gingerbread Muffins. Both perfect for a special tea or breakfast!

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Posted by at 3:58:00 AM 0 comments
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Tuesday, December 8, 2015

Christmas Morning Muffins #BreadBakers


With just a little preparation the day before, your family can enjoy freshly baked cranberry orange muffins on Christmas morning, with the bonus of filling your house with Christmasy baking aromas. What a joy to wake up to these!

The Christmas Day rule of my family growing up was that no presents could be opened before breakfast. I remember being happy with a bowl of cereal - and let’s get this show on the road! - but frustrated by the grownups who wanted eggs or pancakes or, most likely, freshly baked biscuits. Clearly they had their priorities askew! But don’t you know, when I became a mother, I kept the same rule. Turns out that it’s always a good plan to serve a decent breakfast when Christmas dinner won’t be on the table until three or four o’clock in the afternoon.

With just a little preparation, a hot, freshly baked breakfast is a cinch and you can get to the important part: Opening the gifts! This month our Bread Bakers host is Holly from A Baker’s House and she has challenged us to bake breads – quick or yeasty – which can be started one day and baked the next, giving you lots of lovely ideas for a perfectly easy holiday breakfast.

(And don’t forget my friend Donna’s great cookbook, Make Ahead Breads <Amazon affiliate link* which is also a wonderful source of recipes and inspiration for this theme and would make a fabulous Christmas gift for a baker in your life.)

This post is not technically part of Christmas Week but I would be remiss if I didn't tell you to check out my coconut praline post from yesterday, with details on how to enter to win one of three ($500, $250 and $50) Amazon gift cards up for grabs!

These muffins are adapted from this recipe by Nigella Lawson.

Ingredients
2 cups or 250g flour
1/2 cup or 100g sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup or 120ml whole milk
1/3 cup or 75ml canola or other oil
1 large egg
2 clementines (for zest and 1/3 cup or 80ml juice)
1 cup or 140g dried cranberries, plus 12 more for decoration, if desired.

Method
Prepare your muffin pan by greasing it with butter or nonstick spray or lining it with paper muffin cups. I usually line it with the paper cups and give the whole pan a quick spray. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda and salt.

Add in the dried cranberries, mixing well, and cover the bowl with cling film and set it aside with the baking pan.



Measure your milk and oil into a large measuring jug. Add the egg and beat until well combined.

Zest the two clementines with a fine grater or microplane straight into the measuring jug.



Juice the clementines and add 1/3 cup or 80ml of the juice into the measuring jug as well. If you don’t get quite enough juice, top up with more milk to reach your required measurement. Cover the jug with cling film and pop it in the refrigerator.

The next morning, preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C.

Give your liquid ingredients a good mix with a fork and pour them into the dry ingredient bowl.



Fold to combine, being careful not to over mix. If a little flour still shows here and there, that’s a good thing.



Divide the batter between the muffin cups. Add one more dried cranberry to each muffin, if desired. I like to see a little of what's inside on top of my muffins.



Bake in your preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until the muffins are golden and a toothpick stuck in the middle comes out clean. I cannot begin to tell you how wonderful these smell while baking! The aroma will get the laggards out of bed and running to the kitchen.



Leave the muffins to cool for a few minutes in the pan and then remove them to a wire rack. Serve them warm with a hot cup of coffee or a glass of Champagne, if you are so inclined, in front of the sparkling Christmas tree.



Enjoy!

Check out all the other great recipes for Overnight Bread! Which one will you make first this holiday season?

BreadBakers
#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on this home page.

We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.


*Items purchased through an Amazon affiliate link cost no extra to the buyer but earn me a few pennies to buy more bacon. Thanks for the support.


Posted by at 1:25:00 AM 0 comments
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Monday, December 7, 2015

Coconut Pralines

Take a sweet pecan praline and add some coconut for a delicious candy that is easy to make and perfect for wrapping up to bring along to your holiday parties. If you can bear to share them.



I am not a big sweet eater but anything caramel or praline is one of my big exceptions. (Also sweet and salty together!) These things are easy to make and even easier to eat. Make a batch and see if you don't agree with me!

Coconut Pralines

When I was a child, my grandmother made fudge and other candies to give away at Christmas time. I don't specifically remember her making pralines, but since we were in southern Louisiana, it's quite likely. I think she would like my coconut version.

Ingredients- For about 3 dozen pralines
2 1/2 cups or 500g sugar
1/2 cup or 120ml milk
1/2 cup or 120ml corn syrup
1/2 cup or 113g butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups or 270g chopped pecans
2 cups or 175g sweetened shredded coconut

Method
In a bowl, combine coconut and pecans; set aside. Line a pan with nonstick aluminum foil, wax paper or a silicone liner.

Put your sugar, milk, corn syrup, butter and salt in a medium-sized pot and stir well to combine.

Cook over a medium-high heat and continue stirring until the mixture comes to a full rolling boil.



Let it boil while stirring for 5 minutes. If you want to use a candy thermometer, you are looking for the mixture to reach almost 230°F or 110°C.

Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract, then tip in the coconut/pecan mixture and stir well until everything is coated with the syrup.



Drop the mixture by large spoonfuls on your lined pan.



Leave to cool until the pralines harden completely.  This could take several hours or even overnight, depending on the temperature of your home.



Enjoy!






Recipes from Christmas Week Bloggers



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Posted by at 4:08:00 AM 0 comments
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Wednesday, December 2, 2015

Aussie Boiled Fruitcake #FoodieExtravaganza

Since the dried fruit and candied peel are first boiled with sugar, water and butter, they turn plump and juicy, filling the cake batter with tender bits of fruit. This makes for such a moist fruitcake that even non-lovers would like a slice.

Happy Christmas month! We are finally into December and while I’d like to say, “Let the holiday baking begin!” I know for many of you it started ages ago. Meanwhile, my Foodie Extravaganza group is getting their fruitcake on. Growing up, the only fruitcake I would eat was my grandmother’s because it wasn’t dry and hard as so many are. Nowadays I am a little more flexible but since the dry cakes still aren’t a favorite, I was intrigued by recipes that kept popping up on the Australian websites. Called variously boiled fruitcake, Australian fruit cake or quick-mix fruitcake, the fruit mix is first boiled with sugar, water and butter then set aside to cool, allowing time for the dried fruit to be rehydrated in a most delicious manner.

I think you’ll find that this version isn’t dry at all and may even win over some fruitcake naysayers.

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups or 375g mixed dried fruit
1/2 cup, firmly packed or 100g soft brown sugar
1/2 cup or 100g sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup or 240ml water
3 1/2 tablespoons or 50g butter, plus extra for buttering the pan
3 tablespoons brandy
3 tablespoons golden syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups or 280g flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons honey
To decorate:
1/2 cup or 80g whole blanched almonds
1 candied cherry - optional

Note: The Australian tablespoon is four teaspoons to the US tablespoon’s three. Amounts given here have been converted from the original recipes to match the US standard, where appropriate. Also, the Australian cup is 250ml to the US cup’s 240ml. This has likewise been converted when necessary or the recipe has been adapted to compensate.

Method
Place mixed dried fruit, soft brown sugar, sugar, water, butter and salt in a pot.

Bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the brandy. Set aside to cool. This can even be done a day ahead.

The fruit will plump right up as it cools.



When you are ready to bake, preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C. Grease a 9in or 23cm springform pan with the softened butter and line the base and sides with parchment baking paper.

First cover the buttered bottom with a circle of parchment and cut a long strip for the sides.

Use the long strip to cover the buttered sides from top to bottom.


To the cooled fruit mixture, add the golden syrup and vanilla extract and give it a good stir.

Sift the flour, baking powder and baking soda straight into the fruit mixture.

Stir again until well combined.



Spoon the mixture into your prepared springform pan and decorate the top with the blanched almonds and the cherry.



Bake in your preheated oven for 55 minutes or until the top is dark golden and a skewer comes out clean when inserted into the center of the cake. Cover the top with foil if it’s browning too fast before the cake is baked through.



Remove the fruitcake from the oven and brush it with the honey while hot.



Wrap the pan in 2 clean tea towels and set aside until cool. Remove the cake from the pan. Store in an airtight container. You don’t want it drying out at this point!


Enjoy!



Many thanks to our host this month, Laura from Baking in Pyjamas, who says that fruit cake, soaked in brandy, is an absolute must for Christmas to be Christmas. From the looks of our link list this month, the rest of the Foodie Extravaganza group agree!




Foodie Extravaganza celebrates obscure food holidays or shares recipes with the same ingredient or theme every month.

Posting day is always the first Wednesday of each month. If you are a blogger and would like to join our group and blog along with us, come join our Facebook page Foodie Extravaganza. We would love to have you!

If you're a reader looking for delicious recipes, check out our Foodie Extravaganza Pinterest Board! Looking for our previous parties? Check them out here.

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