In Praise of Spain - CREMA CATALANA

Mon, 12 Jul 2010 20:25:39 +0200

Vanilla custard with a burnt sugar crust – what’s not to love? The Spanish (and French and British) & South Africans love it, too.
One may suppose Catalonia gave birth to this custardy treat, but its provincial origins, and even its national identity (but more on that later), are unclear.
Traditionally, crema Catalana or crema de Sant Josep, as it is parochially referred to, was made by grandmothers and maiden aunts and served in a shallow earthenware dish only on Saint Joseph’s day on 19 March, the Spanish equivalent of Father’s Day. Today, the dessert is enjoyed year round in Spain, and its preparation is no longer the sole domain of grandmas and single aunties. There are many commercial powdered custard preparations on the market but, as many a chef will argue, there is no substitute for an old-fashioned stove-top custard.
Both the French and British also lay claim to the origins of similar, better-known, versions of the dessert, crème brûlée and burnt cream respectively. Anecdotal evidence suggests that the Catalan cream predates the French and British versions, which both make an appearance in literature during the 17th century. The main difference between the Spanish recipe and that of the French and Brits is that crema Catalana is made from a mixture of milk and cream with a distinctive spicing of citrus peel and cinnamon and the custard is set by chilling, while crème brûlée and burnt cream are made from cream alone and set by baking in a bain-marie.
Regardless of the dish’s etymology, the key to all three is to set the custard in a shallow enough dish to ensure an even ratio of crackly burnt sugar to gooey custard.
Crema Catalana
Serves 8
Cooking Time Prep time 2 mins, cook 30 mins (plus cooling, setting)
750 ml (3 cups) pouring cream
750 ml (3 cups) milk
4 pieces each lemon and orange rind, removed with a peeler
2 cinnamon quills
2 vanilla beans, split lengthways and seeds scraped
10 egg yolks
160 gm (2/3 cup) caster sugar, plus extra for dusting

Combine cream, milk, lemon and orange rinds, cinnamon and vanilla bean and seeds in a large heavy-based saucepan over medium heat and bring just to the boil. Cool and strain through a fine sieve, discarding solids.

Whisk egg yolks and sugar until thick and pale, then gradually whisk in cooled cream mixture until combined. Return mixture to a clean heavy-based saucepan and cook, stirring continuously, for 30 minutes over medium heat or until mixture is thick and coats the back of a wooden spoon.

Cool slightly, then strain into a jug. Pour custard into ¾ cup-capacity shallow ramekins and refrigerate for 3 hours or until set. To serve, scatter tops of ramekins evenly with sugar and caramelise sugar using a blow torch or by placing under a very hot grill. Serve immediately.

Chocolate Thanks

Sat, 19 Jun 2010 16:48:54 +0200

Get creative in the kitchen this Father's Day with a simple but tasty recipe sure to suit dad’s taste. It’s a great treat for your favourite taxi.
The idea for creating a day for children to honor their fathers began in Spokane, Washington. A woman by the name of Sonora Smart Dodd thought of the idea for Father's Day while listening to a Mother's Day sermon in 1909.

Having been raised by her father, William Jackson Smart, after her mother died, Sonora wanted her father to know how special he was to her. It was her father that made all the parental sacrifices and was, in the eyes of his daughter, a courageous, selfless, and loving man. Sonora's father was born in June, so she chose to hold the first Father's Day celebration in Spokane, Washington on the 19th of June, 1910.

In 1926, a National Father's Day Committee was formed in New York City. Father's Day was recognized by a Joint Resolution of Congress in 1956. In 1972, President Richard Nixon established a permanent national observance of Father's Day to be held on the third Sunday of June. So Father's Day was born in memory and gratitude by a daughter who thought that her father and all good fathers should be honored with a special day just like we honor our mothers on Mother's Day.

CHOCOLATE DROPS
150g pot natural yogurt
3 eggs beaten
1 tsp vanilla
175g golden caster sugar
140g self-raising flour (swap 1 tbsp of flour for cocoa powder)
100g ground almonds
175g unsalted butter , melted

FROSTING
100g chocolate (milk or dark)
140g unsalted butter
140g icing sugar

Line a 12-hole muffin tin with paper cases and heat oven to 190C.
In a jug, mix the yogurt, eggs and vanilla extract.
Put the dry ingredients, plus a pinch of salt, into a large bowl and make a well in the middle.
Add the yogurt mix and melted butter, and quickly fold in with a spatula or metal spoon - don't overwork it. Spoon into the cases (they will be quite full) and bake for 18-20 mins or until golden, risen and springy to the touch.
Cool for a few mins, then lift the cakes onto a wire rack to cool completely. Keep in an airtight container for up to 3 days or freeze as soon as possible.

Chocolate frosting:
Melt the chocolate in the microwave on High for 1½ mins, stirring halfway. Leave to cool. Beat the butter and icing sugar in a large bowl until creamy. Beat in the chocolate.
Cover and chill for up to one month. Up to 48 hrs before serving (or the day before if it's really hot), bring back to room temperature, then spread over the cakes.
Put the chocolate buttons on. Keep cool, out of direct sunlight.

Sweet. Like Bafana Bafana.

Sun, 13 Jun 2010 17:26:47 +0200

What is about cold weather and a good chocolate frosting that just seems to lighten the load and helps to keep the kids happy and smiling? This is a goodie!! Try it on any good cake that you have made or even as a topping on our Dark Chocolate Torte.

CHOCOLATE ICING
100 g dark chocolate, chopped 50 g ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped 230 g unsalted butter, room temperature 3 cups icing sugar, sifted twice 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 3 tablespoons milk

In a microwave-safe bowl, combine chocolates.  
Heat in microwave at medium heat at 30-second intervals, stirring in between, until chocolate is melted.

Set aside to cool. 
In a large mixing bowl fitted to your food processor, beat butter on medium high speed for 4 to 5 minutes, scraping down sides of the bowl occasionally, until very creamy. 
Add the cooled chocolate mixture to the butter and beat until thoroughly incorporated. 
Add two cups of sifted icing sugar and beat on medium high speed to incorporate thoroughly, scraping down sides occasionally.  
Add remaining icing sugar and mix until all of the sugar is completely incorporated. 
Add vanilla extract and milk and beat for an additional 3 to 4 minutes. The frosting should be very creamy. 
Cover tightly with plastic wrap until ready to use.  
If preparing the frosting 1 day ahead, cover the frosting tightly with plastic wrap but do not refrigerate.  
When ready to use, beat the frosting again adding additional milk until the frosting reaches the desired consistency.

Kiss our Koeksisters.

Tue, 8 Jun 2010 14:23:12 +0200

It’s getting crazy in Cape Town. Flags everywhere. LOTS of visitors. And an energy that is totally infectious. To celebrate all things South African I decided to look at the trusty old Koeksister for some love. As all Pleezer’s products do, koeksisters also freeze extremely well and they look a treat on a well laid table for tea.
 The secret of the crisp syrupy outside of koeksisters is that they are taken straight from hot oil and dipped into ice-cold syrup. This seals the syrup outside and leaves the inside dryish in contrast.
Koeksisters  375ml water 800g sugar 2ml (1/2t) cream of tartar 2ml (1/2t) ground ginger 3 cinnamon sticks 500g cake flour 30ml (6t) baking powder 2ml (1/2t) salt 50ml (4T0 butter or margarine 2 eggs 250ml milk oil for deep frying  To make syrup, heat water in a saucepan, add sugar and stir until dissolved. Add cream of tartar, ginger and cinnamon. Boil, uncovered, for 5 minutes. Do not stir, remove from stove and chill. While syrup is chilling, make koeksisters. Sift flour, baking powder and salt together. Add butter and rub in with fingertips until mixture resembles fine crumbs.  Beat eggs and milk together and add to dry ingredients. Mix dough well, then knead lightly for 2 minutes to make it pliable. Cover basin with wax paper and leave for 1 hour.  Roll dough to a thickness of 7.5 to 10mm. Cut into strips about 8 cm long and 2.5 cm wide. Cut each strip into three lengthwise, leaving one side uncut. Now plait the three pieces and press ends together firmly. Heat oil to 190ºC and deep-fry koeksisters for 1 minute. (Do not fry too many at once) The syrup

In praise of our favourite flavour...

Sat, 15 May 2010 12:48:55 +0200

Yes, dark chocolate is good for you, but with a few reservations. The good news is that regular consumption of dark chocolate can decrease blood pressure and probably reduces the risk of heart disease, primarily due to the flavinols the chocolate contains. The reservations are that you mustn’t have too much of it, and it needs to be the right kind of dark chocolate. The bad news is that dark chocolate isn’t as good for you as broccoli.
Researcher Dirk Taubert from the University of Cologne Medical College found that people who consumed 100 grams (3½ ounces) per day of dark chocolate showed lower blood pressure after ten days. This effect only occurred if they ate polyphenol-rich chocolate. If they consumed the same amount of polyphenol-free chocolate, there was no significant change in their blood pressure. (Polyphenols are a type of antioxidant flavinol found in cocoa extract, of which there is a lot in cocoa-rich types of dark chocolate.)
Diane Becker, who is studying the effects of dark chocolate consumption at Johns Hopkins, says that regular dark chocolate consumption makes your blood platelets less sticky, your blood pressure a little lower, and makes the lining of your blood vessels function slightly better. A Yale University study reached a similar conclusion, finding that dark chocolate or cocoa consumption improved endothelial function (functioning of the lining of the blood vessels).
Another class of antioxidant found in dark chocolate is catechins, also found in black tea. Studies suggest that catechin consumption can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and possibly also cancer. Although the studies were done with tea drinkers, the catechin levels are over three times higher in dark chocolate.
The Zutphen Elderly Study followed 470 elderly men for fifteen years. The third who consumed the most cocoa products had approximately half the death rate over the fifteen years as the third who consumed the least cocoa products.
Researchers in Dusseldorf found that consuming cocoa increased the pool of bioactive nitric oxide in smokers, which is thought to reduce the risk of vascular disease in smokers.
Here’s a 2005 review of the evidence which comes to the conclusion that “the compiled data supports the premise that the consumption of cocoa flavonoids is beneficial to human health”.
Strong, bitter, dark chocolate is an acquired taste. But once you adapt to it, you wonder how you ever enjoyed the weak, milky, sugary varieties compared to the richly flavorful ones.

In the supermarket, look for dark chocolates with 70% or more cocoa solids and with no dairy ingredients, that are described as “bitter”.
Or head to the broccoli aisle. Of course a Pleezer’s Black Chocolate Torte may be just the thing...