Nutella Cake - chocolate, hazelnut & other friends

Due to travel and the business of getting back into routine since returning from overseas, I haven't had a lot of time to discuss the Cookbook of the Month, The Flavour Thesaurus by Niki Segnit. However, I could not let the month slip by without sharing with you some of the great advice that this book offers for flavour pairings. No such book would be complete without a decent number of pages dedicated to chocolate and suitable pairings and examples of such delicious duos...

The usual and delightful suspects are there - chocolate & almond, chocolate & raspberry, chocolate & peanut, but there are some suggestions that rouse my curiosity and creativity...

Of course, the pairing of chocolate and its good friend the hazelnut comes as no surprise. The combination is probably known in the best form of the world renowned spread Nutella. It may not be especially daring, but by golly it works... Here is a recipe for a cake that combines chocolate and hazelnut (as well as a little hazelnut liqueur) to make an easy and decadent treat that won't last long! And yes, it's no misprint - it calls for an entire jar of Nutella ;)

Nutella Cake
Adapted Nigella Lawson recipe (serves 8 very generous Nigella portions, or 10 regular portions)

Ingredients
6 large eggs, separated
Pinch of salt
125g soft unsalted butter
400g Nutella
1 tablespoon Frangelico, rum or water
100g ground hazelnuts
100g dark chocolate, melted

100g hazelnuts (peeled weight)
125ml double cream
1 tablespoon Frangelico, rum or water
100g dark chocolate
25g milk chocolate

Method

1. Grease and line a 23cm springform round tin. Preheat the oven to 180ºC/gas mark 4.
2. In a large bowl, whisk the egg whites and salt until stiff but not dry. In a separate bowl, beat the butter and Nutella together, and then add the Frangelico (or whatever you're using), egg yolks and ground hazelnuts.
3. Fold in the cooled, melted chocolate, then lighten the mixture with a large dollop of egg white, which you can beat in as roughly as you want, before gently folding the rest of them in a third at a time.
4. Pour into the prepared tin and cook for 40 minutes or until the cake's beginning to come away at the sides, then let cool on a rack.
5. Toast the hazelnuts in a dry frying pan until the aroma wafts upwards and the nuts are golden-brown in parts: keep shaking the pan so that they don't burn on one side and stay too pallid on others. Transfer to a plate and let cool. This is imperative: if they go on the ganache while hot, it'll turn oily.
6. In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, add the cream, liqueur or water and chopped chocolate, and heat gently. Once the chocolate's melted, take the pan off the heat and whisk until it reaches the right consistency to ice the top of the cake. Unmould the cooled cake carefully, leaving it on the base as it will be too difficult to get such a damp cake off in one piece.
7.Ice the top with the chocolate icing, and dot thickly with the whole, toasted hazelnuts. If you have used Frangelico, put shot glasses on the table and serve it with the cake (this is optional, of course).

If you like chocolate and hazelnut as a pairing, why not consider some of these ingredients as unusual companions to chocolate as suggested by Niki Segnit, author of The Flavour Thesaurus:
- Lemon
- Chilli
- Cardamom
- Ginger
- Pear
- Anise
- Tomato

I endeavour to one day give some of these pairings a try in my kitchen - if only there were more time for cooking in life!

But tell me readers, have you ever tried any unusual flavour combinations with chocolate? And were they successful?


Ladybird x

Piña Colada Ice Cream

Cue the Pina Colada song, kick off your shoes and get that Hawaiian shirt on, it's time for Piña Colada ice cream!

Since I first got my hands on Nigella's latest book, I new I just had to try this ice cream recipe.This is another one of her fantastic no-churn recipes, so it's great if you don't have an ice cream machine (and even if you do have one)! I really love her no-churn margarita and pomegranate ice cream recipes, so I was sure this one would be good too...

No-churn pina colada ice cream
Recipe from 'Kitchen' by Nigella Lawson

125ml pineapple juice, from a carton
80ml Malibu (white coconut rum)
generous few drops coconut flavouring
2 teaspoons lime juice
100g icing sugar
500ml double cream*
75g sweetened shredded coconut (but not dessicated), to serve
* I used thickened cream as double cream in Australia has a much higher fat content than the UK equivalent

1. Pour the pineapple juice and Malibu into a large bowl, and add the coconut flavouring and lime juice.
2. Add the icing sugar and whisk to dissolve.
3. Whisk in the cream and keep whisking until soft peaks form.
4. Taste to see if you need more coconut flavouring or a squeeze of lime juice (and remember it won't be as strong once frozen), then spoon and smooth the ice cream into an airtight container and freeze.
5. Toast the shredded coconut in a dry hot pan until just turning golden and remove to a bowl. Sprinkle a little over each person's portion and leave the rest for people to add as they eat.

Freeze Note
The ice cream can keep for up to 3 months in the freezer, but will become icy, so it's better up to 1 month only and at its best within 1 week of making.

The Verdict
As with Nigella's other no-churn recipes, this one is quick and easy, and offers a pretty creamy result without the effort of making a creme anglaise and so on. I don't think it's quite as good as Nigella pomegranate ice cream, but this isn't bad at all. Flavoured with Malibu, lime and pineapple juice the ice cream is certainly a good tribute to its namesake cocktail. So if you like Piña Coladas (and getting caught in the rain) I say give this one a go!

Ladybird x

Slut's Spaghetti

(Sorry Mum...)

With a name like that, how could I resist trying this new Nigella Lawson recipe?! Here is what the lady formerly known as the 'domestic goddess' has to say about this dish, the first in the chapter entitled 'Off the Cuff'.

Well how could I resist this translation of pasta alla puttanesca, whore's pasta as it usually is described in English? The general consensus seems to be that this is the sort of dish cooked by slatterns who don't go to the market to get their ingredients fresh, but are happy to use stuff out of jars and tins... Or maybe I should just attribute the name to the fiery tang and robust saltiness of the dish?

The original recipe calls for sardines, but I've made this dish vegetarian by omitting them and amping up some of the other flavours.

Slut's Spaghetti
Adapted recipe from 'Kitchen' by Nigella Lawson
(serves 2-3)

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely sliced, chopped or grated
1/4 teaspoon crushed chilli flakes
250g spaghetti
half 400g can chopped tomatoes
75g (drained weight) pitted black olives, chopped a bit
1 x 15ml tablespoon small capers, well rinsed and drained
1-2 x 15ml tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
salt and pepper, to taste
Parmesan cheese, to serve

Method
1. Put water for pasta on to boil, though you don't need to get started on the sauce until it is pretty well boiling.

2. Pour the oil into a wide, shallowish frying pan, casserole or wok, and put on a medium heat.

3. Add the garlic and chilli flakes and cook, stirring, for a minute. Add the tomatoes, olives and capers and cook for 10 minutes, stirring every now and again, by which time it will have thickened slightly. Taste for seasoning, then stir in the chopped fresh parsley.

4. Meanwhile, salt the pasta water and put your spaghetti on to cook.

5. Just before the pasta is ready, remove about half an espresso cupful of cooking water, and reserve it. When the pasta is cooked as desired, drain and add the spaghetti to the sauce in your pan, adding a little reserved pasta water, if needed, to help amalgamate the sauce.

6. Serve with some shaved/grated Parmesan cheese and tuck in!

The Verdict
Quick, easy and its flavour so punchy, this one is one of my new Nigella favourites. The name gets some giggles too, making it quite the talking point over dinner! ;)


Love,

Ladybird x

South Indian Vegetable Curry

This year has been a bit up and down for me health-wise, and so all things health have been on my mind of late. It will all be fine, but it's been a little emotionally and physically exhausting at times... In the spirit of good health I bookmarked this recipe in this month's Cookbook of the Month, 'Kitchen' by Nigella Lawson. It is a great way to pack loads of vegetables into a delicious curry.

Indian cuisines features regularly in the Ladybird household for two key reasons. First, Mr Ladybird and I both love indian vegetarian cuisine and all of its glorious diversity and, secondly, Mr Ladybird is Indian-Australian so indian food is close to his heart.

For me, dry roasting spices (cumin and coriander in this case) in a pan and then grinding them in the mortar and pestle is well worth the effort. It tastes so much better than packaged ground spices!

South Indian Vegetable Curry (serves 6)
Recipe adapted from Kitchen by Nigella Lawson - items in italics are either new additions, or ingredients where the original quantity has been altered.

2 x 15ml tablespoons canola oil
1 onion, peeled, halved and cut into half moons
1 large garlic clove, chopped
sea salt flakes
1 green chilli, de-seeded and finely chopped
2cm chunk fresh ginger, peeled and cut into fine strips
1/4 teaspoon crushed chilli flakes
good pinch mustard seeds
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 heaped teaspoon ground cumin
1 heaped teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 x 400ml can coconut milk
600ml vegetable stock
approx 2 teaspoons raw sugar
1 x 15ml tablespoon tamarind paste
350g cauliflower, broken into florets
100g fine beans, trimmed and halved
125g baby corn, halved
150g sugar snap peas
2 x 15ml tablespoons chopped coriander

Method

1. Heat the oil in a thick-bottom casserole or large saucepan and add the mustard seeds. Once they have almost finished popping, immediately add the sliced onion and garlic sprinkled with some sea salt and fry until it begins to soften, then add the chopped fresh chilli and ginger strips and stir every now and again while cooking for a minute.

2. Now add the crushed chilli flakes, the turmeric, and ground cumin, coriander and ginger. Stir well and cook for another minute or so before pouring in the coconut milk, stock ,sugar and tamarind paste. Stir to combine.

3. Bring to the boil, add the cauliflower florets and baby corn first and cook for 10 minutes, then add the other vegetables. Check the vegetables after about 5 minutes or so to see if they are almost done, letting them cook for longer if they need it.

4. Once the vegetables are tender season well to taste with salt (and sugar if needed). Sprinkle with the fresh coriander, in a bowl on top of some basmati rice or with some warmed Indian flatbread on the side for dunking.

The Verdict
I tweaked this recipe quite a bit because I felt that it needed a bit more 'oomph'... not that it wouldn't have been nice otherwise, but because I personally found it slightly insipid without the extras. Everyone's palate is different though...


Till next time...

Ladybird x

Venetian Carrot Cake

Reading Nigella Lawson's book Kitchen is turning out to be quite an educational experience. She has certainly packed a lot of recipes in there, but there is also plenty of great tips, and very interesting facts about food.

For example, while reading this recipe for her Venetian Carrot Cake, I learnt that it was not the Americans that invented carrot cake, but rather, it was the Venetian Jewish community who made the first carrot cake. Unlike the American version which is usually quite big and accompanied with heavy cream cheese frosting, this cake is not a lot to look at. However, as Nigella promises "it is divine to eat". I couldn't agree more, but I'll give you more on my verdict a bit later.

The other great thing about this cake is that it is gluten free AND dairy free! Great to have another allergy-friendly recipe up my sleeve that isn't chocolate or orange and almond :)

First, here is the recipe for the cake, as well as the mascarpone cream to have alongside the cake if you wish.

Venetian Carrot Cake
(From 'Kitchen' by Nigella Lawson)

3 x 15ml tablespoons toasted pine nuts
2 medium carrots (200-250g)
75g golden sultanas
60ml rum
150g caster sugar
125ml regular olive oil, plus some for greasing
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 eggs
250g ground almonds
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
finely grated zest and juice of half a lemon

For the mascarpone cream (optional):
250g mascarpone
2 teaspoons icing sugar
2 x 15ml tablespoons rum

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius/gas mark 4. Line the base of your cake tin (Nigella suggests 23cm round springform tin, I used a 20cm tin) with reusable silicone liner or baking parchment and grease the sides with olive oil. Toast the pine nuts by browning in a fatless pan; the oven alone is not enough to scorch out the paleness.

2. Grate the carrots in a food processor (for ease) or with a coarse grater, then sit them on a double layer of kitchen roll and wrap them, to soak up the excess liquid.

3. Put the golden sultanas in a small saucepan with the rum, bring to the boil, turn down and simmer for 3 minutes.

4. Whisk the sugar and oil - I use my freestanding mixer, but it wouldn't be much of a faff by hand - until creamily and airily mixed.

5. Whisk in the vanilla extract and eggs and when well whisked, fold in the ground almonds, nutmeg, grated carrots, golden sultanas (with any rum that clings to them) and, finally, the lemon zest and juice.

6. Scrape the mixture into the prepared tin and smooth the surface with a rubber spatula. The batter will be very shallow in the tin.

7. Sprinkle the toasted pine nuts over the cake and put into the oven for 30-40 minutes or until the top is risen and golden and the cake tester comes out sticky but more or less clean.

8. Remove from the oven and let the cake sit in its tin on a wire rack for 10 minutes before unspringing and leaving in on the rack to cool.

9. Remove the cake to a plate to serve; mix the mascarpone with the icing sugar and rum and put in a bowl to spoon alongside, for those who want.

The Verdict

Delicious! This cake might not be the prettiest cake around, but what it lacks aesthetically it makes up for in flavour and texture. It is wonderfully moist, and the flavour is superb - not obviously carroty, and with a hint of lemon. This recipe is definitely a keeper!


Ladybird x

The perfect chocolate chip cookie (?)

Here is the first instalment of the featured Cookbook of the Month for October - 'Kitchen' by Nigella Lawson. I have been busy bookmarking all the recipes I'd like to try this month and there are so many that I had to get started early! What better time to start than a long weekend

These cookies seemed like a good place to start after I read what Nigella had to say about her pursuit of the perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe:

I've tried. I can't tell you how often I've tried. Many cookies have been baked, and many have been eaten. What do they say? Dirty work, but someone's got to do it. And the cookie recipe that follows i happy evidence that my hard work has not been for naught.

I've tried a lot of chocolate chip cookie recipes too (but probably not as many as Nigella though!) and I'll give you my review shortly, but first here is the recipe!

Chocolate chip cookies
(from Kitchen by Nigella Lawson)

(makes approx. 14)

150g soft unsalted butter
125g soft light brown sugar
100g caster sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 egg, fridge-cold
1 egg yolk, fridge-cold
300g flour
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
326g milk chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 170 degrees Celsius/gas mark 3. Line a baking sheet with baking parchment.

Melt the butter and let it cool a little. Put the brown and white sugars into a bowl, pour the slightly cooled, melted butter over them and beat together.

Beat in the vanilla, the cold egg and cold egg yolk until your mixture is light and creamy.

Slowly mix in the flour and bicarb until just blended, then fold in the chocolate chips.

Scoop the cookie dough into an American quarter-cup measure or a 60ml round ice-cream scoop and drop onto the prepared baking sheet, plopping the cookies down about 8cm apart. You will need to make these in 2 batches, keeping the bowl of cookie dough in the fridge between batches.

Bake for 15-17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are lightly toasted. Cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to wire racks.

Make ahead note
The cookies can be made up to 3 days ahead and stored in an airtight container. Will keep for a total of 5 days.

Freeze Note
Unbaked cookie dough can be scooped onto parchment paper lined baking sheets and frozen until solid. Transfer frozen dough to resealable bags and freeze for up to 3 months. Bake direct from frozen, as directed in recipe but adding extra 2-3 minutes to baking time.

The Verdict

These cookies were tasty and I really enjoyed the texture - crisp on the edges with a slightly squidgy interior. Flavour wise they were good, a choc-chip cookie that I imagine children would devour. But for me I prefer a more grown-up chocolate taste, so I think I'd replace the milk chocolate chips with either semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips next time. Everyone's palate is different though, so you'll have to give these a go yourself!

Also, a note on the size of these cookies... If you follow Nigella's ice cream scoop tip (which is undoubtedly handy and quick, I cannot deny that), you will end up with HUGE cookies (pictured above). Some love the sort of cookies that are as big as your palm, but I myself am not a huge fan of this. I find them too much to eat, so I made some big ones, as well some smaller ones with my tablespoon scoop. Smaller ones (pictured below) of course cook quicker, and they fit a lot easier in my cookie jar :)

Stay tuned for the next instalment of Nigella's latest work!

Ladybird x

Cookbook of the Month - October

  It is with great pleasure that I announce this month's Cookbook of the Month - Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home by Nigella Lawson.

Yes that's right, Nigella, is back with one beautiful, engaging and tempting compendium with 190 recipes, including over 60 express-style at 30 minutes or under.

Here is what Nigella's website has to say about 'Kitchen':

“…this book is simply the story of my love affair with the kitchen. Whatever the opposite of the currently still fashionable genre, the misery memoir, might be, this is it: a comfort chronicle.”

Kitchen: Recipes from the Heart of the Home is Nigella’s first book since seasonal bestseller, Nigella Christmas, was published in 2008. In true Nigella style, Kitchen is about the food we eat now, the way we eat and live today; feel-good food from the most important room in the house.

Informative and engaging, Kitchen offers food for both cooks and eaters that is comforting but always seductive, nostalgic but with a modern twist, from “express” style recipes for the time-strapped, hectic week or leisurely slow-cook dishes for weekends and special occasions. It answers everyday cooking quandaries – from how to rustle up a meal for friends in moments to what to do about those black bananas – and since real cooking is so often about leftovers, Nigella makes “leftovers right”, by showing us how to morph one recipe into another, from ham hocks to peas soups and pastries, braised chicken to Chinatown salad.


As well as offering the reader an array of inspired new recipes – from clams with chorizo to Guinness gingerbread – Nigella rounds up her no-nonsense kitchen kit must-haves in the way of equipment and magical standby ingredients. Above all, she reminds the reader how much pleasure there is to be had in real food and in reclaiming the traditional rhythms of the kitchen.

Photo courtesy of Daily Mail, UK


Over the next month, I'll be bringing you recipes from Nigella's latest book and I simply cannot wait to get started. There are some absoultely fantastic recipes in there that I just have to try and share with you all. Venetian carrot cake, Butternut, rocket and pine nut salad, Chocolate peanut butter cheesecake, Haloumi with Beetroot and Lime, Pina Colada ice cream .. it certainly is going to be a difficult task choosing the recipes, but I think I'm up to the challenge ;)

Photo courtesy of Daily Mail, UK



 'Kitchen' has just been released in Australia and Nigella is currently filming the latest BBC series to accompany the book. So.. by following this month's Cookbook of the Month you could well be some of the first people anywhere to get your hands on these recipes, and that just has to be a good thing! Hopefully then by the end of the month you'll be able to make up your mind as to whether or not this book has a place in your collection of cookbooks (but something tells me this one is a no-brainer!)

Stay tuned...

Ladybird x

Ricotta Hotcakes with Berry Compote and Maple Syrup

In the year and a bit that I have been writing Diary of a Ladybird, I don't think I've ever used the term 'food porn', simply because it makes me blush! Don't get me wrong, I think it's a great term to use but look - I'm just not that type of girl, ok!

However...

if there was ever an occasion fitted to use it...

This is it.

This gratuitous close up you see here... that right there is my food porn.

There. I said it.
Let's move on, shall we?

For me, fluffy ricotta hotcakes with a beautiful compote and maple syrup is the ultimate brunch. So much so that if I order them in a cafe, I invariably decide whether or not I'll be returning based solely on the ricotta hotcakes. Surprisingly, a lot of places don't make them very well... there's nothing worse than dry, rubbery ricotta hotcakes. Yerghkk!

This is certainly not an everyday breakfast, but they are superb treat when you do have them. Better still, they are quick and easy to make, so you don't have to go out to a cafe for them. You can prepare these bad boys in the comfort of your own home and even (if you dare) in your pyjamas! And... all within 30 minutes :) Perfect for a slothful Saturday/Sunday at home.


Ricotta Hotcakes with Berry Compote and Maple Syrup
Ricotta Hotcakes recipe from Forever Summer, Nigella Lawson

First start with the compote. Place 2 cups of frozen mixed berries (I used Creative Gourmet) in a small saucepan. Sprinkle over 2 tablespoons over caster sugar and place on low heat. Stir occasionally, being careful not to break up the berries. Once the berries are defrosted and the sugar dissolved, remove from the heat and cover. Set aside.

Next, start on the hotcakes.

Ingredients

250g ricotta cheese*
125ml semi-skimmed milk
2 large eggs, separated
100g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
pinch salt
2 teaspoons vegetable oil

* I purchase ricotta from the deli rather than the pre-packaged tubs. The stuff from the deli is much fresher, and a far better consistency for use in dishes like this.

Method

1. Mix the ricotta, milk and egg yolks. Don't worry about any lumps, they will be a joy to come across in the finished product.

2. Stir in sifted flour, baking powder, and salt.

3. Beat egg whites until foamy and fold gently into the mix.

4. Heat oil in a pan and drop heaped tablespoons of batter into pan. Cook over low-medium heat for about 1 minute per side, until little bubbles start to form.

5. Serve along with the berry compote, a drizzle of maple syrup and a sprinkle of icing sugar. Enjoy!

So tell me, lovelies, what's your ultimate brunch dish?


Ladybird x

Pomegranate Ice-cream

Hi everyone :)

Hope your new year is off to a great start! I have been having a great time getting back to cooking since returning from holidays.. although I am still nursing my strange summertime cold/flu symptoms. Ice cream probably isn't the best thing for it, but what the heck! I saw this recipe on a cooking channel while sitting in a hotel room in Delhi and I promised myself I'd make it upon my return to Sydney.

Although I do love using my new ice-cream maker machine, the great thing about this recipe is that I don't have to get it out! This is a 'no-churn' recipe from Nigella Lawson, and I think it's a great way to use the beautiful pomegranates that are available at the moment. Plus, did you know that pomegranates contain more antioxidants than green tea or red wine?!

Ingredients
2 pomegranates

1 lime

150g powdered/icing sugar

2 cups double/thickened cream

Method

1. Half the pomegranates and reserve and few seeds for decoration. Squeeze pomegranate halves over a sieve in a bowl.

2. Squeeze lime into same bowl.

3. Put icing sugar in medium to large size bowl, and gradually whisk in juice.

4. Add cream and whisk until 'billowy' or 'floppy' as I would describe. So the cream should hold its shape loosely - it should not have reached the 'peaky' stage.

5. Pour into freezeable container and freeze overnight.

So, the result? Soft, creamy and delicately flavoured ice-cream. I am so impressed with this no-churn method of Nigella's, I will definitely be trying some of her other no-churn recipes.

Take care for now!

Love,

Ladybird x