Baking & Two Recipes

I've been spending a bit of time in the kitchen of late. Mary-Jane sits in her high chair and watches the proceedings. I enjoy this time. It is a calming time for me (as long as everything is going as it should!) and I want MJ to get used to spending lots of time in the kitchen.

I made a pastry plait. This is a new-ish type of thing for me to make, and will make it again. Okay, so I cheated and used a pack rather than all from scratch. The pastry is made, then left in a warm place to prove. The poppy seed mix is made seperately. The pastry is then rolled out, the poppy seed mix spread on top, this is then all rolled up longways. It is then cut length ways in two then plaited and put in the oven. Simple when you know how! Oh and when it is cooled, a thin icing glaze is poured over it. Thumbs up to this one! One evening I made some muffins, Now I was very pleased with the outcome of these. I had made one of my trusty banana loaves a few days before and added chocolate chips - an idea passed to me by my friend Lauran in the US of A. Chocolate chips will be added again, trust me. I was still in the mood to bake something banana-ry, I had this recipe in a book HK got me for Chirstmas. The original recipe includes apricots, but I'm not a big fan of apricots, so I added chocolate chips instead (thanks Lauran!). Again I was chuffed with the results. The recipe is straightforward:

Banana and Chocolate chip Muffins

(Makes 12)

3oz butter, melted and cooled

10oz plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

pinch of salt

4 oz castor sugar

2 bananas

5 fl oz milk

2 eggs

Preheat the oven to GM 6/ 200.c. Place muffin cases in muffin tin. Sift together flour, baking powder and slat into a large bowl. Stir in the sugar.

Mash the bananas, place in a measuring jug then add enough milk to make the puree up to 9 fl oz.

Beat the eggs lightly, then beat in the banana puree mixture and the melted butter. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and add the liquid. Stir until just combined; do not over mix. Spoon the mixture into the muffin cases.

BAke in the preheated oven for 20 minutes or until goled brown and firm to the touch. Leave to cool in the tin for 5 mins then either serve warm or transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

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Yesterday I baked a Baked Apple and Sultana Cheesecake. Now this is scrummy whilst still warm, just as good cool. I served it with double cream (poured). One of the nice things about this cake is that it is not overly sweet to the taste.

Baked Apple & Sultana Cheesecake

6 oz white self raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

3 oz soft brown sugar

6 oz sultanans

2 oz hazlenuts, flaked (you can omit these)

1 lb desert/eating apples, peeled, cored & sliced

2 eggs, beaten

3 fl oz oil

8 oz wensleydale cheese

icing sugar

Grease a 9" round loose based cake tin

Sift the flour & baking powder, stir in the sugar, sultanas, hazlenuts & apples

Combine the eggs with the oil and add the dry ingredients. Mix well together

Turn half the mixture into the tin and level. Crumble the cheese evenly over then cover with remaining mixture. Roughly spread the mix to the edges of the tin.

Bake in preheated oven at GM 4 for approx 1 hour until golden and just firm. Leave to cool in tin for 10 minutes then transfer to wire rack.

Serve warm, sprinkled with icing sugar.