Vanillla and Passion Fruit Cheesecake

It's SUMMER!!
Wow the weather has been amazing the last few weeks. This weekend has been a bit dull though so I thought I'd brighten up with a little summer bake! I have a new found love and it's with passion fruit.. I am obsessed! It all started with a passion fruit martini and then suddenly passion fruit began dominating my dessert selection when eating out. I cannot get enough of it so I thought I had to try a dessert with passion fruit and that's just what happened today. I am staying with family this weekend in a house where cheesecake is always a winner in the dessert stakes and this time I decided to mix it up a bit. Instead of doing a baked cheesecake which I have done in the past I decided to do a no bake cheesecake. I have to say it was absolutely delicious and so easy to make. The creamy sweet cheesecake with the bite of the passion fruit is in my opinion my yummiest bake I've made this summer! I hope you guys get a chance to try it and like it as much as I do!

Ingredients:

100g Butter

350g Digestive Biscuits

250g Mascarpone Cheese

80g Icing Sugar

2 tsp Vanilla Extract

400ml Creme Fraiche

300ml Double Cream

5 Passion Fruit

Caster Sugar (amount determined by fruit of Passion Fruit)

Prepare:

Grease and line a 9" Springform Cake Tin with parchment baking paper.

Method:

Begin by breaking up your digestive biscuits. You can do this by putting all your biscuits in a ziplock or freezer bag and bashing with a rolling pin (as you can see below). Alternatively you can break them into a food processor and blitz them until they are a sandy consistency.  

Place your butter into a microwaveable bowl and melt in the microwave. This should take about 1-1.5 minutes depending on the wattage of your microwave. When melted combine the butter with the biscuit and mix until you get a wet sand consistency to the biscuit. Then transfer biscuit mix into your cake tin and press firmly down into the base to create an even layer. Leave to set in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

While your base is setting you can prepare the filling. Using a hand held whisk or electric mixer beat your mascarpone cheese and icing sugar until soft then stir in your creme fraiche and vanilla extract until well combined. If you have a free standing mixer you can use this with the paddle attachment on a low speed.

In a separate bowl whisk your double cream until you get soft falling peaks. Be careful not to over mix!! Fold this cream into your cheese and creme fraiche mix. This mix is now ready to spread over your biscuit base. Spread evenly and place in the fridge to set for at least an hour.

You can now begin your coulis. Cut your passion fruits and scrape out the juice (pips included) into a cup or mug. Place this juice into a small saucepan and measure roughly the same amount of caster sugar into the mug. I used a white mug today and filled half the mug with the passion fruit juice so it was pretty easy to see how much caster sugar I needed. Place the sugar into the saucepan with the juice and bring to the boil, stirring often. Once it has come to the boil bring down to simmer and leave for 3-4 minutes. Then turn off the hob and leave to cool. Once the coulis has cooled you can spread it over the cheesecake. I made this a couple of house in advance so I put the coulis over the cheesecake while still in the tin and placed it back in the fridge. If you're stuck for time though the coulis is fine poured over the cheesecake right before serving.

I would love to hear from you if you try this recipe. Take my word for it (and my family's) it was delicious. If you have any questions you can find me on facebook, twitter and instagram. I hope you are all having a lovely summer so far. If you have any requests for summer bakes don't hesitate to contact me and just ask!

Happy Baking,

O x

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Any of you that follow me on Twitter / Instagram will have seen that it was my birthday last month. When I moved to London and started my first job over here I found it very odd that on your birthday you are the one that brings in the cake to work. Very funny tradition I thought but ok! Although I work in a big and busy office I work on my own tucked away from everyone so last year I didn't tell anyone it was my birthday. On the day itself though word got out that it was my birthday and everyone was asking "Where's the cake??". I had only just started working in this job at the time so I just shrugged it off "What cake? Oh I was meant to bring in cake? I didn't know, I'm new to this country..!!" This year I obviously couldn't use that excuse having been in the UK for nearly 2 years now. I also have gotten to know everyone I work with better and vise versa so they all knew I loved to bake.. I had to bring in something I baked myself. I decided to do a chocolate cake and carrot cake. They went down a treat and when I mentioned the cakes I baked for my birthday on Facebook I was asked could I put up my carrot cake recipe up here so here it is.

I was going for dinner in a friends house on Saturday night so I thought it would be the perfect excuse to bake a cake. I try not to bake too much when I have nobody to give it to or somewhere to bring it as the temptation at home is just too much!! It went down very well and everyone loved it. There were two friends of mine who are coeliac at dinner so I made my cake gluten free but as I previously mentioned in my lemon slices post you can use either gluten free or regular self raising flour in this recipe. I used a cream cheese frosting with this recipe (my all time favourite frosting).

Ingredients

Cake
190g Self Raising Flour / Gluten Free Self Raising Flour
300g Caster Sugar
1.5 tsp Cinnamon
250mls Vegetable Oil
3 Eggs
250g Carrots (grated)
100g Chopped Walnuts

Cream Cheese Frosting
75g Unsalted Butter (at room temperature)
450g Icing Sugar (sifted)
180g Cream Cheese (Philadelphia- Full fat- From fridge)
1 tsp vanilla extract

Prepare

Pre-heat your oven to 180C or 170C Fan assisted oven. Grease and line two 8" round sandwich cake tins.

Method

In a large mixing bowl mix your flour (sifted), sugar and cinnamon. Add your oil and eggs to your dry ingredients. Stir until well combined. I just used a hand held whisk. These ingredients mix very easily. Once well incorporated stir in your carrots and walnuts. Divide your mixture between the two prepared baking tins and place in your preheated oven for 30-35 minutes or until a skewer placed into the middle comes out clean. You should also be able to press down the top of the cake and have it bounce back. Leave to cool in their tins on a wire rack and prepare your icing.

For your icing mix your butter and icing sugar with a hand held electric whisk or in a free standing mixer with paddle attachment on a low speed to begin with (unless you want a face full of dust) and slowly increase to medium speed. Once well combined add your philadelphia and vanilla extract in one and turn up speed to medium-high and leave to mix for about 5 minutes. Frosting will be light and fluffy. Be careful not to over mix as it can become runny quite quickly. Fill and ice your cake covering the top and sides if required. As you can see in the first picture above I decorated the carrot cake on my birthday with walnuts but for this one I left it plain. Decoration is optional!

As you can see there was nothing left on the plates.. this cake is an all round winner. Let me know if you try it out and if you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask me. You can find me on twitter, facebook and instagram and I love to hear from you when you try out my recipes so feel free to contact me via any of those links or comment below. Requests for recipes are always welcome- I love a challenge!

Happy Baking,
O x

25% off BBC Bakes and Cakes Show, London!

The BBC Good Food Bakes & Cakes Show, sponsored by Lexus, launches at the beautiful Business Design Centre in Islington, London from 25-27 October 2014.   Bringing the popular BBC Good Food Bakes & Cakes title to life, the show will be packed with baking, bread-making and cake-crafting demonstrations, free master classes, and hundreds of products to get you baking like a pro. I for one cannot wait to attend and have it marked in my diary with months!! Find out more details at www.bbcgoodfoodbakesandcakesshow.com .

 Don't miss out on seeing your favourite baking stars, LIVE at the show!  Every full day adult ticket includes a seat for the Bakes & Cakes Theatre, where you can watch Mary Berry, Mich Turner, John Whaite, Paul Hollywood, and other expert bakers in LIVE 30 minute baking and technique demos (my idols.. so excited!!).

Whether you're new to baking or a seasoned baking veteran, the BBC Good Food Bakes & Cakes Show is the perfect place to meet bakers, cake-crafters and confectioners, learn new skills, and pick up all the essentials you need to develop your home baking hobby.

Tickets are now on sale now and you can get 25% off tickets just by quoting EBPAR1 when purchasing your tickets from the link below!

 http://www.bbcgoodfoodbakesandcakesshow.com/?utm_source=BreakingIntoBaking&utm_medium=Blog&utm_campaign=BreakingIntoBaking

I hope to see some you there!

O x

(Images via BBC Good Food Bakes and Cakes Website)

Lala's Lemon Slices

Lala's Lemon Slices (Gluten Free)

As I have mentioned previously in my blog my Grandmothers were both wonderful bakers. One thing I always remember about visiting my 'Lala' in Dublin was the constant supply of lemon slices in the press. They didn't last long when we were around but she would whip up a batch as quickly as we had them eaten! I recently asked my Aunt to send me on the recipe and I tried to recreate them myself. They are so light and fluffy with the bite of the lemon complimented by the sweetness of the caster sugar. They could not be any easier to make and are a perfect treat to have in the house for spring and summer.

I have been wanting to bake with Gluten Free Flour for some time now and thought these lemon slices would be perfect to try it out with. I recently moved house and one of my new housemates in Celiac so I made a promise to her to try out the gluten free flour she had in her press. There were no complaints from any of my housemates about these lemon slices.. they were consumed for breakfast, lunch and dinner so they must of been good! You can of course use regular self raising flour if you wish. 

Ingredients:

Sponge

170g Gluten Free Self Raising Flour / Self Raising Flour

170g Butter

170g Light Brown Sugar

2 Eggs

Glaze

100g Caster Sugar

Juice of 1 Lemon

Preheat the oven to 170C and line a baking tray with grease proof paper. I used a 30x22 cm baking tray that I use to bake my brownies in.

Method:

Melt the butter in a heat proof bowl over a ban marie (water bath). When melted remove from the heat and leave to cool slightly. Stir in your sugar and then your sifted flour. If you cannot get gluten free self raising flour use plain gluten free flour with 3/4 tsp of gluten free baking powder. Then beat in your eggs and mix. When it is all incorporated put the mixture into your tin and bake for 25-30 mins. The top of the sponge should spring back to touch and be golden brown in colour. While your sponge is baking you can make the glaze. Simply combine the juice of one lemon to 110g of Caster Sugar to make a thin paste. When you remove your sponge from the oven spread this paste over it immediately. The lemon juice will sink down into the cake leaving the sugar to develop a light crust on top. Cut to your intended size. 

I hope you try out these Gluten Free Lemon Slices and please let me know how they turn out. If you have any questions you can find me on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. This is the lovely lady who owns this recipe. This is on her 90th Birthday in 2012. Such a wonderful woman.

Happy Baking!

O x

Chocolate Fondant Puddings

I'm back! I have just moved house so you have to excuse the radio silence on the blog the past few weeks. This weeks post is again chocolate related but it does date back to Easter Sunday so after my chocolate fast I couldn't help but do a chocolate related desert. I spent Easter in Cheltenham with my sister, Aisling, and her boyfriend, Matt. After having a lovely lunch in a country pub with Matts family we went home to prepare another feast. It is tradition in my family, as I'm sure it is in many other houses, to have spring lamb on Easter Sunday. I requested that this be on the menu Easter Sunday as it was my first Easter away from home. They didn't disappoint. We had the most delicious Spring Lamb with all the trimmings.. Roast potatoes, roasted carrots and parsnips, cauliflower and leek in cheese sauce, gravy and of course mint sauce. I didn't help out for dinner at all.. but I was in charge of desert. 

Which brings me to my choice of desert as you can tell from the title, Chocolate Fondant Puddings. It was actually suggested to me by my cousin a few weeks ago that I should do this recipe on my blog (if you're reading this Ryan sorry you didn't get to sample- next time!). I researched the recipe and tweaked it to my liking. There were three of us for dinner but this recipe made 4/5 depending on the size of your ramekins. I got five out of it because these ramekins were quite small but looking back I probably could have got 6 out of it. I popped 2 of them in the freezer for Aisling and Matt to have at a later date. Again like my cookie recipe you can just pop these in the freezer and take out whenever you need them. Just be sure to wrap well with cling film. I could not get over how simple these were to make. I always wondered when I got this desert in a restaurant how they got the outside sponge cooked so well but the inside to remain all gooey. Well it all comes down to timing. Just follow my recipe below and you too can have perfect Chocolate Fondant Deserts. 

Ingredients

100g Dark Chocolate
100g Butter
100g Caster Sugar
100g Self Raising Flour
2 Eggs
1 Egg Yolk

Extra butter and cocoa powder to prepare the ramekins.

Method

Place the chocolate, butter and sugar together in a heatproof bowl and melt over a saucepan of simmering water. Be sure not to let the bottom of the bowl touch the water. When melted and well combined take off the heat and set aside to cool slightly.

While your mix cools you can prepare your ramekins. Grease the ramekins with butter and then dust with cocoa powder. This will make it easier to remove your puddings from the ramekins to serve.

After your mix has cooled slightly whisk in the eggs. When well combined add the flour. You can add a drop of vanilla extract at this point but this is completely optional. I added a tablespoon of maple syrup to my mix but again this is completely optional.. I just saw it in my sisters cupboard and threw a spoon in for good measure!!

Then divide the mixture equally between the ramekins. If you are preparing these in advance just pop them in the fridge until ready to bake. Ideally they should rest in the fridge for about an hour before baking so ensure you have this time when preparing them. When ready to bake place in the oven at 190C for 13-15 minutes. If cooking from frozen cook for an extra 2-3 minutes. When baked the top of the pudding should have a sponge like texture and springs back to touch.

Once baked remove from the oven and run a butter knife carefully around the edge of the ramekin. What I did was ran the knife along the top of the ramekin and gently pressed into the pudding separating it from the glass. Then you can tip the pudding straight onto a plate or what I did was tip the pudding onto a paper towel in my hand and then placed onto the plate.

These puddings are best served hot so straight to the table with them (or the couch in our case!). Serve with vanilla ice cream or fresh whipped cream.

I hope you try this recipe. If you do please let me know how it turned out. You can find me on instagram, twitter and now facebook too! Quick disclaimer.. I would like to thank Matt for the use of his camera and photography skills for the pictures on this post. If it was possible I would do all my baking in Cheltenham for pictures like these!

Happy Baking!

O x

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

So this post is a bit late.. Sorry I was MIA last week. Work got a little crazy and the weekend got even crazier!! So this week I baked Chocolate Chip Cookies. I found it very hard to get the consistency just right in these cookies but finally managed to get a winning combination. These cookies are what I call 'Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies' as they have a crisp edge but a yummy chewy centre. I have always been a fan of cookies or 'biscuits' as we call them at home. I remember in both my grannies houses there was always a stash of biscuits in the biscuit barrel when we went to visit. The poor women would barely get a hello from me and I was off in search of the sugary goodness! I remember my Lala always had 'Club Bars' in hers and with my Nana it was a variety but I always remember there being 'Fig Rolls' left at the bottom when all the chocolate covered ones were gone!! Such great memories..! 

Anyway what I am trying to say is in an Irish house hold there is always a stash of biscuits in case 'visitors' called unexpectedly and the "mortification" if someone calls unexpectedly and you have nothing in the house.. I can hear my own mother now "And I haven't a bit here to offer you with the tea". Well, my cookie recipe is perfect for freezing. No I don't mean freezing the baked cookies but freezing the dough. So if someone calls to say they'll be over in 20 mins there is no excuse for not having the house smelling like freshly baked cookies when they arrive!

Just follow my simple recipe for the dough and how to bake them, then at the end I will show you the best way to freeze them.

Ingredients

325g Plain Flour

1tsp Bicarbonate of Soda

1tsp Salt

200g Butter (Soft, at room temp)

150g Caster Sugar

150g Soft Brown Sugar

1tsp Vanilla Extract

2 Eggs

300g Dark Chocolate Chips

Prepare

Preheat oven to 190C / Gas Mark 5. Line a baking tray with Parchment Paper.

Method

Begin by combining the flour, bicarb and salt in a bowl. In a separate bowl (if using a free standing mixer use this bowl here) add the butter, caster sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract and mix to combine. If you're using a free standing mixer use paddle attachment or use hand held whisk and beat until creamy.

Then beat in your eggs. Once eggs have been incorporated gradually beat in your flour. I had my mixer at a medium speed for all these steps. Be sure to stop mixing every once in a while and scrape down any ingredients that may be stuck to the side of the bowl and scrape the bottom of the bowl too.. any places the mixer may have missed. Once flour has been combined stir in your chocolate chips (do not beat or whisk as you don't want them breaking). I have mentioned in my recipe 'Dark Chocolate Chips' .. You can use whatever type of chocolate you prefer. I just prefer the dark chocolate chips because I like the sharp taste of the dark chocolate against the sweetness of the cookie. So now you should be left with a nice pliable dough like below. 

Now, what you can do here is split the dough into two halves and roll out into large sausage shapes and cut accordingly. These rolls can be wrapped in cling film and placed in the fridge until ready to use. They are easier to cut went they have been in the fridge for about 20-30 mins. For me, using an ice-cream scoop, I scooped out equal (ish) portions and placed on the baking tray as seen below. 

I placed them in the oven for 9-11 mins. Be careful not to over cook as they will be very hard and you won't have that yummy chewy consistency. Be sure to leave plenty of space between them as they will spread!!

If you want to freeze your dough all you have to do is place the tray into the freezer when you have the cookies placed on it. You can obviously place more cookies on the tray if you're freezing them but just make sure they're not touching.

Place in the freezer for about one hour. When they have frozen just take the tray out of the freezer and place your cookie dough balls into a zip lock bag and put back into the freezer. They will not stick together when they have frozen. When you want to bake them from frozen just take them out of the freezer, straight onto a baking tray and place into your preheated oven. 

Alternatively if you used the rolled dough method you can just placed the wrapped roll of cookie dough in the freezer and take it out of the freezer and put into the fridge a couple of hours before cooking or until soft enough to cut.

If frozen they will obviously take a little longer to cook; about 13-15 minutes. Just keep an eye on them. You will know they're done because they will look a lovely gold brown colour all over.

Perfect with a cup of tea or coffee or you could do it like the Americans do have it with a nice cold glass of milk.

These cookies are honestly so so easy to make and very handy to have in the freezer whenever you have guests coming around. I hope you enjoy making them. Please let me know if you try them and what you think of them. If you have any questions just comment below or you can find me on instagram or twitter.

Happy Baking!

O x

(I just love the tulips this time of year..!!)

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