Sunday, June 27, 2010

Recipe of the Week - Eclairs

I had lots of custard cream left over from these, so I thought I would make some eclairs. Printable Here
You Will Need..

For the Custard Cream
Ingredients and how to here.

For the Pastry

For the Chocolate Topping

First make the custard cream.
Then make the pastry.
Place the butter and water in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to the boil
Remove from heat and quickly stir in flour, creating a ball of mixture.
Transfer mixture to a bowl and beat in egg until mixture is glossy.
Place mixture into a piping bag with a plain tip.
Pipe out mixture into approximately 5 cm strips.
Place in the oven at 200 degrees celsius for 7 minutes. Decrease the heat to 160 degrees celsius and bake for a further 10 minutes.
Remove from the oven and cut in half. Scoop out any mixture that is still doughy.
Place back in the oven for 5 minutes. Remove and let cool completely.
Once cool, place the custard cream in a piping bag and pipe mixture into 1 half of the eclair.
Place the chocolate and butter in a saucepan over low heat and melt the chocolate.
Spoon chocolate mixture over the eclairs.

Saturday, June 26, 2010

Sheep and Ships

I made these for my last day of work back in April. Sheep & Ships..
They kind of look like cruise ships, which is probably what the exporting industry wants you to think the sheep/cattle are travelling in.
Banana Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing and fondant decorations.

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Recipe of the Week - Blueberry Custard Cream Cupcakes

After a brief break, Cupcake Hero is back! Yay!! There are new rules this time around. The winner from last month, is the next month's host. So this month (June) the host is Dorothy of Kitchen Koala. I think it is a great idea.
It gives all different blogs some exposure, and lets everyone see the amazing talent that is out there. Dorothy picked Blueberries for the ingredient this month.

So my entry for this month's challenge is Blueberry Custard Cream Cupcakes.
You Will Need..
For the Custard Cream
For the Blueberry Sauce
(save 50 grams for topping at the end)
For the Cupcakes
First make the custard for the custard cream. You need to let it set in the fridge for 30 minutes or so.
This will make a bit of filling, so you can use the remainder for eclairs or profitoroles. Or use it as an addition to apple pie or dessert.
Place the custard powder and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat.
Gradually add the milk while constantly stirring.
Keep stirring until mixture thickens.
Once thick, remove from heat and pour mixture into a heatproof bowl. Cover with glad wrap so the glad wrap is touching the custard. This will prevent any skin from forming.
Place in fridge to cool.
Once cool, remove from fridge and beat until smooth. Once the custard is smooth, add the cream and continue whipping.

Next make the blueberry sauce. There will be quite a bit leftover, so put it in a jar in the fridge and use it next time you have pancakes or waffles.
Place the sugar, lemon rind, lemon juice, corn flour and water in a saucepan over a medium heat.
Once the mixture starts to bubble, add 100 grams of the blueberries.
Continue stirring, until mixture starts to bubble again.
Remove from heat and place in a heatproof jug to cool.

Next make the cupcakes.
Line a cupcake tray with cupcake liners and preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius.
Place the eggs, butter and sugar in a bowl and beat on high until creamy.
Add the flour and the vanilla essence and beat until combined.
Once mixed, spoon a tablespoon of mixture into the prepared cupcake tray and place in the oven on 180 degrees celsius, for approximately 15 minutes.
Once the cupcakes are cooked, let them cool completely. Cut out a small hole in the top of the cupcake.
Spoon in the blueberry sauce, enough to fill the hole completely.
Spoon on dollops of the custard cream.
Drizzle with more blueberry sauce and top with extra blueberries.
I just realised they might not LOOK the best, but they do definately TASTE amazing.

Update: I forgot to send my email to Dorothy to let her know that I was entering. Next time I will definately remember!! Go here to vote for your favourite. You only have until Friday.