Lemon syrup bundt cake

While I'm a fan of pretty much every dessert flavour out there, citrus holds a special place in my heart. While everyone else is struggling with the sourness of a citrus packed tart, I'm the person who always thinks... it needs more lemon.

But really, lemon is such a tremendous flavour, what excuse is there to tone it down? It packs a strong, loud punch - one that I absolutely adore in dessert.

Something that's been on my to-do list for a long time now is a classic syrup cake. As a syrup cake can't hide behind a decadent frosting, I believe the flavours need to be bold. Lemon makes the perfect base, and using syrup to serve will allow diners to ramp up the lemon as much as they wish. 

This delicious, moist cake produces the most incredible aromas once laced with hot syrup. It makes an excellent warm pudding (with some double cream) or a delicious accompaniment to your cuppa.

As this cake easily serves 12 and I live in a household of two, I ate mine both ways today :)

Lemon syrup bundt cake

Serves 12.

Ingredients:

• 2 2/3 cups self-raising flour, sifted
• 2 cups caster sugar
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 250g unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup lemon juice, divided
• rind of two small lemons
• 1 cup natural yoghurt
• 4 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method:

• Preheat oven to 175 degrees C, and grease a large bundt tin.
• Cream butter, caster sugar and finely grated lemon rind until pale and fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. 
• Add flour and natural yoghurt one third at a time, mixing gently after each addition. 
• Add 1/4 cup lemon juice and mix gently to combine. Scoop into prepared bundt tin.
• Bake at 175 degrees C for 45 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean.
• To make the syrup, combine granulated sugar and remaining lemon juice (3/4 cup) in a small saucepan. Cook, without stirring, until syrup reaches 215 degrees F on a candy thermometer. Try not to get curious and dip a finger into the syrup to taste - it hurts (trust me!)
• Once syrup is ready, invert the cake onto a serving platter and poke holes with a skewer. Using a pastry brush, liberally brush approximately half of the syrup onto the cake.
• Serve slices of cake warm with remaining syrup and double cream, if desired.

Passionfruit marshmallow tart

It's been a really overcast, rainy and miserable week here in Brisbane. While it's not even remotely cold (actually it's hideously humid), there's something about this weather that makes me want to believe it's winter and bust out some cold weather cooking.

The best thing about cold weather for me? Dessert. Whether it's a hot or cold pudding (as we call it), it's such a comforting thing to curl up and watch the rain with. Plus, if I crank the air-conditioner up enough, I can almost convince myself it's winter.

The great thing about making a wintry dessert in summer is I can still incorporate the fantastic summer fruits that are about at the moment. While this marshmallow tart is delicious with lemon, or even a layer of caramel,  passionfruit just imparts such a wonderful, summery flavour that really goes beautifully with the coconut-ty base.

On another note - if you've never made marshmallow before, please try! It's such a simple and rewarding sweet treat to make, and it never fails to impress. Plus, it holds up much better than a more traditional meringue topping - it doesn't weep and it stays fresh for several days.

Passionfruit marshmallow tart

Ingredients:

• 1 cup self-raising flour
• 3/4 cup shredded coconut
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 150g butter, melted
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 2/3 cup passionfruit pulp (canned or fresh)
• 2 egg yolks
• 1/2 cup glucose syrup
• 10g powdered gelatin
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup water, divided
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• Passionfruit curd, to serve 
• Toasted coconut, to serve

Method:

• Preheat oven to 180 degrees C. Combine self-raising flour, shredded coconut, brown sugar and melted butter in a bowl. Press into a greased, loose base flan tin and bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden.
• Combine sweetened condensed milk, egg yolks and passionfruit until just combined. Pour over tart base and bake for 10 minutes or until just set. Refrigerate to cool.
• Combine gelatin with 1/4 cup water in a stand mixer bowl. Leave to bloom.
• Combine remaining water, sugar and corn syrup in a small saucepan. Simmer, without stirring, until the syrup reaches 115 degrees C. Once at temperature, pour into prepared gelatin in stand mixer and mix on high speed for 5-7 minutes or until very thick and white.
• Scoop onto the cooling tart, and sprinkle with coconut if desired. Allow to set for 2-3 hours and slice with a warm knife when ready!

Caramel popcorn cupcakes with white chocolate buttercream

These cupcakes were probably the first thing I ever baked that was good, like eat half a dozen at once good. I've always enjoyed baking but I think this was my first invention that really worked out and definitely gave me some confidence to experiment.

The beautiful thing about the base cupcake recipe listed below is that it is gloriously simple. I've adapted this base for mocha, red velvet, hummingbird, matcha, hazelnut, orange - pretty much every flavour imaginable - and it's worked perfectly every time. So even if the caramel popcorn doesn't inspire you, consider taking the basic recipe and making your own modifications.

While I don't bake that many cupcakes anymore, I still whip these ones up from time to time as they are absolutely a nostalgic favourite. My now-boyfriend (previously flatmate) has told me how he used to enviously watch me bake these - occasionally I'd offer him one. Now we're dating. So these cupcakes are pretty special :)

Also, for fairly minimal fuss and effort, they look pretty alright!

Caramel popcorn cupcakes with white chocolate buttercream

Makes 12.

Ingredients:

Cupcakes:

• 1 cup self-raising flour, sifted
• 3/4 cup caster sugar
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup thickened cream, approx
• 1 teaspoon vanilla (I used 1/2 vial butter vanille)

Frosting:

• 1/4 cup rice bran oil
• 1/3 cup popping corn kernels
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 250g butter, divided into 2 x 125g
• 120g white chocolate
• 2-3 cups pure icing sugar, approx

Method:

• Preheat oven to 170 degrees C, fan-forced.
• Crack two eggs into a one-cup measuring cup. Fill measuring cup to top with thickened cream and add to bowl of stand mixer. Beat for 3 minutes.
• Gradually add in 3/4 cup caster sugar and vanilla, beating well after each addition. Sift in flour and fold until just combined.
• Divide between 12 cupcake cases and bake for 13-15 minutes, or until cooked and golden.
• Cover a large baking tray with non-stick baking paper. Heat 1/4 cup rice bran oil in a heavy bottomed saucepan with tight lid. Once hot, add a corn kernel. If it starts to 'move' in the oil - it's hot enough. Tip all the corn into the pan and cover with the lid. Allow corn to pop, shaking frequently and tip into a large bowl once popped.
• Combine 3/4 cup sugar, 125g butter and 3 tablespoons honey in a small saucepan over low heat. Cook, swirling until mixture is boiling. Allow to boil, without stirring, until golden brown. Pour over popcorn and quickly mix together. Tip coated popcorn out onto the large baking tray, and press into a single layer of popcorn. Allow to cool.
• Whip remaining 125g butter until pale and creamy. Slowly sift in the icing sugar and continue whipping until a light, creamy buttercream is achieved. Melt white chocolate on a low heat in the microwave, pour into the buttercream and fold through.
• To assemble: top each cupcake with a generous swirl of buttercream and some caramel corn kernels.

White chocolate hazelnut berry muffins

Today, I caught up with a couple of friends who are heading off to the USA in three weeks. As I'm also penny pinching for my trip in July, we decided to do brunch in and try and save a few dollars.

I'm always tempted by a good old pancake stack whenever I make a nice breakfast - the lure of warm, fluffy pancakes dripping in butter and maple syrup is hard to resist. However, the thought of standing over a hot stove in 35 degree heat wasn't overly appealing, so I decided to do something I rarely do and make muffins. I threw them in the oven and hid in the airconditioning for 25 minutes - happiness.

Ok - so they aren't the most breakfasty of flavours - but they are seriously delicious. While my recipe calls for mixed berries, white chocolate and hazelnuts, almost any combination of chocolate/nut/fruit would work spectacularly. Adding a crumb, or streusel, makes the muffins look even more appetizing.

White chocolate berry muffins with hazelnut streusel

Makes 12.

Ingredients:

Muffins:

• 2 cups self-raising flour, sifted
• 2/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 3/4 cup white chocolate chips
• 1 cup mixed berries
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup rice bran oil
• 3/4 cup buttermilk (or whole milk with 1 teaspoon lemon juice)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Streusel:

• 1/2 cup plain flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup hazelnuts, crushed
• 50g butter

Method:

• Make streusel: combine dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Rub in butter until mixture resembles crumbs.
• Preheat oven to 180 degrees C. Mix together flour, sugar and chocolate chips.
• Lightly beat the egg. Stir egg, oil and buttermilk into dry ingredients, being careful not to overmix. Fold in berries.
• Divide among a greased 12-cup muffin tray, and top with one teaspoon of streusel per muffin.
• Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.

These muffins are wonderful warm, but will keep in an airtight container for a couple of days.

Honey roasted pumpkin risotto

In an effort to save for our next holiday, our household has jumped on the meat-free Monday bandwagon.

While my carnivorous boyfriend wasn't thrilled by the idea, I've been trying to convince him that yes, it will still taste good and no, you won't wake up ravenous in the middle of the night and proceed to die of hunger due to a lack of steak in your dinner. Despite his irreverence, I faithfully ploughed on with the cause and decided some carbo-loading might help change his mind.

To try and win him over, I made one of my favourite dishes - honey pumpkin risotto. This delicious dish combines roasted butternut pumpkin with flavours of ginger, lemon, honey and sage. To top it all off, it's got a naughty splash of thick cream and a sprinkle of parmesan. It's a wonderfully satisfying meal that even my in-house carnivore devoured with happiness.

Honey roasted pumpkin risotto

Serves 3-4.

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon each butter and rice bran oil (or similar)
• 1/2 medium size butternut pumpkin, cut into 2cm cubes
• 1 cup Arborio rice
• 1 brown onion, finely chopped
• 2cm piece ginger, grated
• 3/4 cup verjuice or white wine (substitute for more stock if you don’t have any on hand)
• 900ml (approx) vegetable stock
• 1/3 cup honey
• ½ cup cream
• 15 sage leaves, chopped
• Juice of one lemon plus extra, to serve

Method:

• Preheat the oven to 190 degrees C. Place pumpkin on a baking tray lined with non-stick paper and roast for 40 minutes. After 20 minutes, baste with half of honey.
• Heat oil and butter in a large saucepan over a medium heat and add onion. Cook, stirring frequently for 3-5 minutes or until onion is softened. Add ginger and rice and cook until the rice is beginning to turn translucent.
• Add verjuice and cook until absorbed. Slowly add stock, one ladleful at a time, until rice is tender (usually 800-900ml).
• Stir through cream, sage leaves, lemon juice and roasted pumpkin. Season to taste.
• Serve with shaved parmesan and lemon wedges on the side.

Burnt sugar bundt cake

Ahh caramel - you're such a quintessentially autumn/winter food, and yet I love you all year round. I think many bakers share in my madness in heating up the oven and dragging out the cake tins on a 35 degree celsius + day - and for something this beautifully flavoured, being a hot, sweaty mess was completely worth it.

I've done loads of cooking with caramel and caramel flavours, and have developed a real taste for that slightly bitter, dark amber taste that comes with burnt sugar - an unfortunate misnomer for such a delicious taste.

While diluted significantly in this cake, it does really stand out in the frosting (should you choose to use it). You could also cook your caramel to a lighter shade - each to their own :)

Burnt sugar bundt cake

Makes 12 generous servings

Ingredients:
Amber caramel:

• 200g white sugar
• 1 cup thickened cream

Cake:

• 280g salted butter, at room temperature
• 220g white sugar
• 100g brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 cups plain flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 cup amber caramel, as per above

Frosting:

• 200g butter, at room temperature
• 2 1/2 cups pure icing sugar, sifted
• Remaining amber caramel, chilled until thickened
• Toffee shards, to serve

Method:

Let's start with the amber caramel:

• Place your sugar in a medium saucepan and cook, without stirring (swirling the pan gently is fine) on a medium heat until sugar is dissolved and your caramel has turned amber. Slowly stream in cream, while whisking vigorously, to achieve a runny sauce. If the caramel clumps up, keep stirring it over a medium heat until it smoothes out. Place in fridge to cool.

The cake:

• Preheat oven to 160 degrees C. Cream together butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition.
• Sift in flour, baking powder and bicarb soda and stir until loosely combined. Pour in cooled amber caramel and fold gently until mixture is uniform.
• Grease a large (23cm) bundt tin, and pour in batter.
• Bake for approximately 55 minutes, or until skewer inserted into cake comes out clean.

The frosting:

• Beat together butter and icing sugar until very pale and thick. Slowly add in leftover amber caramel, and beat until combined. Cover cooled cake with frosting.

To make your own toffee shards, combine 1 cup castor sugar and 1/4 cup water in a small saucepan on medium heat. Cook, swirling not stirring, until sugar is dissolved and caramel (above 60 degrees C on your candy thermometer). Pour into a baking dish lined with non-stick paper and allow to set for 30 minutes. Smash into pieces and scatter over cake.

Gianduja panna cotta

After a busy, exciting week - nothing seemed more fitting than a special meal cooked in-house. As much as I love to eat out and have others do the dishes, I get immense satisfaction out of cooking something fabulous at home.

So, as a special finale to last night's dinner, I decided to make gianduja panna cotta. This dark, heavenly set cream - rich and extravagant - was the perfect way to end a big week.

I adore panna cotta - really. It's a simple, elegant dessert that has yet to fail me - and that's despite my attempts to tuck every type of ingredient into the cream. In this case, I went for a mixture of dark chocolate and hazelnut ganache - toned down (only ever so slightly) by a tart raspberry sauce.

Gianduja panna cotta

Serves 4.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup thickened cream
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 2/3 cup hazelnut ganache (nutella is great, or better yet - make your own)
• 75g best quality dark chocolate
• 2 scant teaspoons gelatine
• 2 tablespoons boiling water
• Chopped toasted hazelnuts and raspberry sauce, to serve

Method:

• Sprinkle the gelatin over the boiling water and stir gently. Set aside.
• Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, combine cream, milk, ganache and chocolate. Stir over a medium heat until mixture is completely combined and is just starting to simmer.
• Working quickly, whisk in the gelatin mixture.
• Pour into four dariole moulds, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until set (approximately 4-6 hours).
• To unmould, dip moulds quickly into a bowl of boiling water and invert onto plates. Or, run a thin-edged knife around the edge.
• Serve with raspberry sauce and chopped toasted hazelnuts.

To make your own raspberry sauce:

• In a juicer with a coulis attachment: Juice 250g frozen raspberries while still partially frozen. Stir through 2-3 tablespoons of caster sugar, or to taste. Refrigerate until needed.
• In a saucepan: Combine 250g frozen raspberries, 75ml water and 3 tablespoons caster sugar in a small saucepan. Cook over low heat until berries are mushy and breaking down (5-7 minutes). Push mixture through a fine sieve to remove seeds. Refrigerate until needed.