Cookie Cake with Chocolate Frosting

I made this cake as a prize for the class at school who returned all their library books first! Bribery works!! It was so delicious and the kids all loved it.

Cookie Cake with Chocolate Frosting
(from Good Food Magazine October 2015 and Sally's Baking Addiction)
(Serves 8-10)

175g unsalted butter, softened
200g light soft brown sugar
1 egg, plus 1 yolk
2 tsp vanilla extract
250g self-raising flour
2 tsp cornflour
2 tsp baking powder
100g milk chocolate chips
50g white chocolate chips

For the frosting:
210g icing sugar
32g cocoa powder
115g unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
2 tbsp double cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
salt, to taste

Preheat the oven to 200C and grease a 22cm springform cake tin.

Beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl until pale and fluffy, then mix in the egg, egg yolk and vanilla.

Combine the flour, cornflour and baking powder, then fold into the butter mixture until fully incorporated – it will be quite thick.

Add the chocolate chips and mix until evenly distributed. Spoon the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for 20-25 mins or until light golden brown. Leave to cool for 5 mins.

Whilst the cake is cooling make the chocolate frosting. Beat the butter with a hand held mixer on a medium speed until creamy - about 2 mins. Sift the icing sugar and cocoa powder into the bowl alternating with the cream and vanilla. Beat on a low speed after each addition. Once it is all added, beat on high speed until creamy and combined for at least 2 mins. Add a pinch of salt if the frosting is too sweet. Decorate the cooled cookie cake with frosting. Cut into slices and serve.

Chocolate Beetroot Cake

I made this chocolate beetroot cake for a staff meeting a couple of weeks ago. I had a lot of beetroot that needed using and this was perfect. This is a picture before I added the icing. It was very rich and you'd definitely only need a small piece!

Chocolate Beetroot Cake (from Delicious Magazine)
(Serves 10-12)

250g plain chocolate, broken up
3 large eggs
200g light muscovado sugar
100ml sunflower oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
100g self-raising flour
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
½ tsp baking powder
50g ground almonds
250g raw beetroot

For the icing
150g plain chocolate
100g icing sugar
100g soured cream

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease a 22cm round, loose-bottomed cake tin with a little butter and line the base with baking paper.

Place the plain chocolate in a bowl and set over a pan of gently simmering water. Allow the chocolate to melt slowly until smooth, then set aside to cool.

Place the eggs, sugar and sunflower oil in a large mixing bowl and whisk together, using an electric hand whisk, for about 3 mins until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Stir in vanilla extract, then sift over self-raising flour, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder and gently fold in, together with the ground almonds.

Peel and grate the beetroot, then squeeze out the excess liquid. Fold the beetroot into the mixture with the cooled chocolate, until thoroughly mixed.

Pour the mixture into the cake tin and bake for 50 mins-1 hr. Cover with foil if the cake browns too quickly. Test the cake by inserting a skewer into the centre to see if it comes out clean. Cool for a little while, then remove from the tin and leave to cool completely on a wire rack.

For the icing, place the plain chocolate in a bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water. Allow to melt gently until smooth. Set aside to cool, then beat in the icing sugar and soured cream until you have a thick, creamy and spreadable icing. Spread it over the top and sides of the cooled cake and serve.

Banana Mug Cake

I had a very brown looking banana in my kitchen and the only thing to do with brown bananas is make cake. So I made another mug cake. This one is more pudding like than the previous two recipes but none the less it hits the spot.

Banana Mug Cake (from Pass The Sushi)
(Serves 1)

Non-stick cooking spray
3 tbsp flour
1 tbsp sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1/8 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 egg
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp milk
1 ripe banana, mashed
1 tbsp chocolate chips

 Spray a microwave safe mug with cooking spray.

Add the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, and soda to the mug and whisk to combine. Add the egg and combine until just incorporated with dry ingredients.

Mix in the vanilla, oil, milk, banana and chocolate chips. Pop into the microwave for up to 3 mins, stop and check after 90 secs to see how done it is.

Leave it for a few mins and then top with ice cream and devour.

Oatmeal Brownie Bars

I made these delicious bars to take to the last Staff Meeting of term as my team was on snacks. They went down really well and are a lovely variation on a brownie.

Oatmeal Brownie Bars (from The Sweet's Life)

For the oat layers
155g cups plain flour
90g rolled oats
200g packed light brown sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
75g cold butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

For the brownie layer
40g butter
85g dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
125g plain flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
250g caster sugar
2 large eggs
2 tbsp water
1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease and line a 23 x 33 cm baking pan with baking parchment.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, oats, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt. Cut in the butter and rub with fingertips until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Set aside one third of the mixture and press the remaining mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan.

Bake crust for 10 minutes. Allow to cool slightly while you make the brownies.

Heat a pan of boiling water. Add the butter and chocolate to a bowl and put the bowl on top if the pan, making sure the bowl does not touch the water. Leave the mixture to melt, stirring occasionally until smooth. Allow to cool slightly.

In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. 

In a separate bowl, beat the eggs, sugar, water, and vanilla until well combined. Mix in the chocolate/butter mixture and continue beating to combine.

Using a metal spoon, add the flour mixture, mixing until combined. Spread the brownie batter over oat crust, using a spatula to spread evenly. Sprinkle the remaining oat mixture over brownie layer. Bake for 18-20 mins, until the edges are set. Allow to cool completely before cutting into bars.

Graham Cracker Cake with Chocolate Frosting

This is the cake I made to take into work for my birthday this year. It was absolutely fantastic but very rich, you definitely only need a small piece. I found myself eating it at 8.30am just to check that it was edible for the rest of the staff!

Graham Cracker Cake with Chocolate Frosting (from Better Homes and Gardens and BBC Food)
(Serves 12)

3 eggs, separated
24 squares graham cracker, finely crushed
30g plain flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch salt
113g butter
225g sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
180ml milk

For the frosting:
100g dark chocolate
200g butter, softened
400g icing sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
milk, to loosen

Take the eggs out of the fridge and leave at room temperature for 30 mins.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 170C and grease and line two 8 inch round baking pans.

In a medium bowl stir together the graham crackers, flour, baking powder, and salt and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl beat the butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for about 30 secs. Add the sugar and vanilla and0 beat until well combined. Add egg yolks; beat until combined. Alternately add the flour mixture and the milk, beating on low to medium speed after each addition just until combined.

Thoroughly wash the beaters. Beat the egg whites with an electric mixer on high speed until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter. Spread batter into the prepared pans. Bake for 20 to 25 mins or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool on wire racks for 10 mins and then remove from the pans. Cool the cakes completely on the racks.

While the cake cooks; Melt the chocolate in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Allow to cool until the chocolate no longer feels hot to the touch.

Beat the butter in a bowl until soft, then gradually beat in the icing sugar. Add the vanilla extract and beat again. Fold in the melted chocolate until completely incorporated (add a few drops of milk if the mixture is a little stiff).

Place a cake layer, bottom side up, on a serving plate. Spread the frosting on top of cake. Top with the second cake layer, bottom side down. Spread sides and top with the chocolate frosting. Cover and chill until serving time.

Chocolate Mug Cake

I had a hankering for pudding again, so I whipped up another mug cake. This time a chocolate version. I used butterscotch chips, but you could use chocolate chips. This was bigger than the other mug cake I made and definitely more filling but yummy!

Chocolate Mug Cake (from Food Network)
(Serves 1)

3 tbsp plain flour
3 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1/4 tsp baking powder
pinch salt
3 tbsp milk
3 tbsp vegetable oil
splash vanilla extract
3 tbsp butterscotch chips

Put the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt in a large mug. Mix well with a fork. Add the milk, vegetable oil and vanilla if using and mix until smooth. Stir in the butterscotch chips.

Microwave on high for 90 secs. Do not overcook or the cake will be dry. Leave to cool for 2 to 3 mins before eating.

Chocolate Chip Mug Cake

I fancied a tasty treat to round off my meal last weekend and what better than a 1 person serving mug cake. This is the first time I've tried making them and I made 2 over the weekend. The first one I cooked for 2 mins because it didn't look cooked on top after 1 min, but it went dry very quickly and was definitely overcooked. The second time I did it for 1 min 15 secs and that was definitely better. I tried mint chocolate chips and cinnamon chips, bother delicious.

Chocolate Chip Mug Cake (from Kirbie's Cravings)
(Serves 1)

4 tbsp plain flour
2 tbsp brown sugar
1/4 tsp baking powder
3 tbsp low fat milk
1/8 tsp vanilla
1/2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp chocolate chips

Combine all the ingredients except chocolate chips into a microwave safe mug. Mix with a small, whisk until a smooth batter forms and no lumps remain.

Stir in half of the chocolate chips. Sprinkle remaining half over surface. Cook in on high in the microwave for about 1 min. Let cool a few minutes before eating.

Triple Ginger Cake

So this formed part of the cake bit of the afternoon tea we made for my Mum on Mother's Day. It was delicious, lovely and moist. 

Triple Ginger Cake (from Good Food Magazine October 2006)

250g pack butter
250g dark brown muscovado sugar
250g black treacle or molasses
300ml milk
2 eggs
100ml glacé ginger from a jar, finely chopped
375g plain flour
2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp allspice
2 tsp ground ginger

For the icing
3 tbsp ginger syrup from the jar
5 tbsp icing mix

Butter and line a 23cm square baking tin (or use a shallow roasting tin, approx 30 x 20cm). Preheat the oven to 160C.

Put the butter, sugar and treacle into a saucepan and heat gently for about 5 mins until the butter and sugar have melted. Stir in the milk. The mix should be just warm to the touch; if not, leave to cool a little longer, then beat in the eggs.

Mix the chopped ginger and dry ingredients together in a large bowl and make a well in the centre. Pour the melted mix into the well, then gradually draw the dry ingredients into the wet with a wooden spoon, until you have a thick, smooth batter.

Pour the batter into the prepared tin, then bake for 1 hr until risen and firm to the touch. Poke a skewer into the centre to check that it's cooked - it should come out clean. If not, give it 10 mins more and check again. Leave the cake to cool in the tin. Once completely cool, turn out of the tin ready for icing.

To make the icing, sift the icing sugar into a bowl and add the gingery syrup. Beat well until you have a smooth, runny icing. Once the cake has cooled, drizzle with icing and cut into squares. If you're planning to let the cake mature for a while, make the icing on the day you want to cut it.

Parsnip and Maple Syrup Cake

This was the second cake I made for the staff meeting and it went down a treat. Everyone really loved it. I swapped out the pecans as I can't take nuts to school and added raisins instead. The frosting was delicious, a definite success and you can't taste the parsnips at all!

Parsnip and Maple Syrup Cake (from Good Food Magazine November 2009)
(Serves 8)

175g butter, plus extra for greasing
250g demerara sugar
100ml maple syrup
3 large eggs
250g self-raising flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp mixed spice
250g parsnips, peeled and grated
1 medium eating apple, peeled, cored and grated
50g raisins
zest and juice 1 small orange
icing sugar, to serve

For the filling
250g tub mascarpone
3-4 tbsp maple syrup

Preheat oven to 180C. Grease and line 2 x 20cm sandwich tins.

Melt the butter, sugar and maple syrup in a pan over gentle heat, then cool slightly. Whisk the eggs into this mixture, then stir in the flour, baking powder and mixed spice, followed by the grated parsnip, apple, raisins, orange zest and juice.

Divide between the tins, then bake for 25-30 mins until the tops spring back when pressed lightly.
Cool the cakes slightly in the tins before turning out onto wire racks to cool completely.

When the cakes are cool, mix together the mascarpone and maple syrup. Spread half the mixture over one cake and sandwich with the other. Spread the rest of the mixture on top of the cake and serve.

Dark Chocolate Rocky Road

I made these cakes for a staff meeting, they are very rich so you only need a little piece, but they are yummy.

Dark Chocolate Rocky Road (adapted from BBC Food)
(Makes 24)

125g soft butter
300g dark chocolate, broken into pieces
3 tbsp golden syrup
200g digestive biscuits
100g mini marshmallows
80g crystallised ginger, chopped

Heat the butter, chocolate and golden syrup in a saucepan over a gentle heat.

Place the biscuits into a plastic freezer bag and crush them with a rolling pin until some have turned to crumbs but there are still pieces of biscuit remaining.

Fold the biscuit pieces and crumbs into the melted chocolate mixture in the saucepan, then add the marshmallows and ginger.

Tip the mixture into a 24cm x 24cm baking tin and smooth the top with a wet spatula.

Refrigerate for about two hours or overnight. Cut into bars.

Peach Melba Slice

I made this to take to friends house and ended up giving the rest to some different friends as I didn't want the temptation of it at home! I really liked this cake, I changed the original recipe a little by using tinned peaches instead of fresh and using more than the original recipe stated. I also used more raspberries. I think if I was going to make it again I would use less sugar as I think, maybe 50g less.

Peach Melba Slice (adapted from Good Food Magazine July 2009)
(Serves 12)

250g butter
300g golden caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 large egg
200g self-raising flour
50g ground almonds
2 tins peach slices
150g raspberries

Pre-heat the oven to 180C. Butter and line a 20 x 30cm roasting tin.

Gently melt the butter in a large saucepan, then leave to cool for 5 mins, add the sugar, vanilla and eggs, then beat until smooth with a wooden spoon. Stir in the flour, almonds and ¼ tsp salt.

Tip the mix into the tin, then lay the peach slices evenly on top. Scatter the raspberries over the top. Bake in the oven for 1 hr-1 hr 10 mins, covering with foil after 40 mins. Cool in the tin for 20 mins, then lift out onto a cooling rack, then cut into squares.

Double Chocolate Mint Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake

So, I made a couple of cakes for our staff meeting two weeks ago and one of them was a mint chocolate chip cookie cake. It went down really well and was absolutely delicious. I am definitely going to make more cookie cakes!

Double Chocolate Mint Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake

(from Sweet Annas)

225g butter, softened
200g brown sugar
112g white sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
280g plain flour
30g cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
350g mint and dark chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 180C. Line a 25 or 30 cm frying pan with greaseproof paper.

Put the butter and sugar into a bowl and cream together until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, and the vanilla until smooth.

Fold in the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda until just well mixed and then stir in the chocolate mint chips.

Press the dough evenly into the frying pan and bake in the oven for 25-35 mins, until the cookie is just set and a crisp around the edges.

 Cool and then cut into wedges and serve.

Blackberry and Apple Tray Cake

The Community Centre down the road from me were having a Halloween day and as part of that they had a cake sale. This is what I baked for it. I cut the cake into squares and apparently it was the first cake to sell out :) So I'm very pleased! It was delicious, I saved a small slice for me and it was so crammed full of fruit and moist. The apples of course came from my Mum's garden and the blackberries I picked on Walthamstow Marshes back in August.

Blackberry and Apple Tray Cake (from Good Food Magazine October 2006)
(Serves 12)

175g butter, plus extra for greasing
300g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
4 Bramley apples, (approx 800g/1lb 12oz)
squeeze lemon juice
284ml carton whipping cream
225g golden caster sugar, plus 1 tbsp for sprinkling
3 eggs 300g blackberries

Heat oven to 200C. Grease a roasting tin (30x20cm) with butter, dust with a little flour, then set aside. Peel, core and slice the apples into rings, then toss in a little lemon juice to stop them going brown.

Tip the cream and butter into a saucepan, bring up to the boil, then set aside. Whisk the sugar with the eggs until they thicken and turn pale, about 3 mins. Whisk the buttery cream into the eggs, then fold in the flour until completely smooth.

Pour the batter into the prepared tin and arrange the apple slices over the top. Scatter over the blackberries, then sprinkle with the remaining sugar. Bake for 50 mins-1 hr until golden and beginning to pull away from the sides of the tin. Leave to cool in the tin and serve cut into squares.

Lemon Drizzle Cake with Elderberries

This is the cake I made for my first Mill Bakers. Basically I have been accepted to be one of the bakers for events and bake sales at my local community centre. I set about making it a couple of Saturdays ago and I had some trouble!

First of all it wouldn't cook, I would guess that the added moisture of the berries caused it to cook slower than my normal lemon drizzle cake, and then I turned the temperature up and of course it burnt! So I did what any girl would do in that situation, I rang my Mum! and she suggested I chopped the top off and covered it in a mixture of lemon juice and icing. I did eat the burnt bits and they were very tasty, so definitely a good cake to make in Autumn when the elderberries are ripe.

Lemon Drizzle Cake with Elderberries
(Makes 1 2lb loaf tin sized cake)

225g unsalted butter, softened
225g caster sugar
4 eggs finely grated
zest 1 lemon
225g self-raising flour
200g elderberries

For the drizzle topping juice
1½ lemons
85g caster sugar

Heat oven to 180C. Beat together the butter and caster sugar until pale and creamy, then add the eggs, one at a time, slowly mixing through. Sift in the flour, then add the lemon zest and mix until well combined. Add in the elderberries and mix carefully to combine.

Line a loaf tin (8 x 21cm) with greaseproof paper, then spoon in the mixture and level the top with a spoon. Bake for 45 mins - 1 hour until a thin skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. 

While the cake is cooling in its tin, mix together the juice of the lemons and the caster sugar to make the drizzle. Prick the warm cake all over with a skewer or fork, then pour over the drizzle – the juice will sink in and the sugar will form a lovely, crisp topping. Leave in the tin until completely cool, then remove and serve.

 

Coffee Meringue Brownie

I went to my parents house for the weekend and on Friday night my sister, godmother and her husband came over too. We had a lovely chicken casserole and then for dessery my Mum made a Coffee Meringue Brownie, it was delicious., the brownie lovely and fudgy and the meringue adding that mallowy squishiness. Probably one of the best things I've eaten in a while, nothing could stop me from going back for seconds!

Coffee Meringue Brownie
(Serves 8)

For the brownie
200g dark chocolate chopped
250g butter
150g caster sugar
175g brown sugar
4 eggs
200g plain flour
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1 tbsp coffee liqueur/Kahlua

For the meringue
4 egg whites
220g caster sugar
1 tbsp corn flour
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 tsp coffee liqueur/Kahlua

Preheat the oven to 160C.

Place the chocolate and butter in a saucepan over a low heat, stir until smooth and then allow to cool slightly.

Place the caster sugar, brown sugar, eggs, flour, cocoa powder and liqueur into a bowl with the cocolate misture and mix well.

Pour into a lighly greased 11cm x 34cm tin and bake for 25-30 mins. Allow to cool.

Preheat the grill to high.

Place the egg whites into a mixer and whisk until soft peaks form. Add the sugar and whisk until thick and glossy. Then add the cornflour, vinegar and liqueur and mix until well combined.

Spoon the meringue over the brownie and grill for 1 min until golden. Serve drizzled with coffee liqueur.

Glace en Surprise or Baked Alaska

This is the first time I have ever eaten baked Alaska, it's one of those nursery puds from people's childhoods, it was really good but I think I over did it a bit as we had a whole small tub of ice cream between three of us! But we demolished the lot!!

Glace en Surprise (from Cordon Bleu Cookery Course)

(Serves 4)

2 eggs

butter

sugar

flour

For the meringue

2 egg whites

4oz caster sugar

2-3 drops vanilla essence

Caster sugar for dusting

Preheat the oven to 180C.

Weight out the ingredients so that each weighs to the same as the two eggs. If you have digital scales weigh the egg and then weigh each the butter, flour and sugar to the same weight. Cream together the butter and the sugar and then beat in the eggs. Fold in the flour with a metal spoon and bake for 20 mins until golden brown.

Have the sponge cake and the ice cream ready made. Choose a plate or silver dish and chill it well.

To prepare the meringue: whisk the egg whites stiffly, add 2-3 rounded tsp of the caster sugar and vanilla essence and whisk again until stiff. Fold in the remaining sugar. Fill into a piping bag.

Place the sponge cake on the dish, scoop out the ice cream and arrange in top of the sponge. Pipe the meringue over the ice cream to cover it completely. Dust the meringue well with caster sugar, leave for 1 min, then put the cake into the oven and cook for about 4 mins or until the meringue is lightly browned. Serve at once.

Chocolate Krispie Marshmallow Sandwich

I've had a packet of Rice Krispies sat on my side for ages and I was fed up of looking at them. I didn't want to make just ordinary Rice Krispie cakes, I thought I'd add an element of marshmallow to the mix! These were really yummy and the addition of dark chocolate meant that they weren't ridiculously sweet.

Chocolate Krispie Marshmallow Sandwich
(Makes many)

200g milk chocolate
100g dark chocolate
100g butter
8 tbsp golden syrup
270g rice krispies
1 jar marshmallow fluff

Line a 23cm x 23cm pan with greaseproof paper.

Bring half a pan of water to the boil and put a bowl over the top, ensuring that the bowl doesn't touch the water.

Put half the chocolate, butter and golden syrup into the bowl and leave to melt, stirring occasionally. Take off the heat and add half the Rice Krispies. Stir well until combined.

Spread half the krispie mixture over the bottom of the prepared pan. Put into the fridge, whilst you make more of the krispie mixture.

Melt the rest of the chocolate, butter and golden syrup in the same bowl over a pan of water. Once again, take off the heat and stir in the Rice Krispies.

Take the pan out of the fridge and spread the marshmallow fluff over the slightly set krispie mixture. Then top with the second bowl of krispie mixture to make a marshmallow sandwich

Elderberry Muffins

This was the second lot of cakes that I took into work. I picked elderberries from my parents garden last year and froze them. They were really lovely but went very moist and sticky very quickly, so best eaten quickly! I made lots of little muffins instead of big ones, more to go round!!

Elderberry Muffins (from Becky Doughty)
(Makes 12 large muffins)

113g butter or margarine
200g caster sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
125ml milk
250g self-raising flour
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
140g elderberries

For the topping
113g demerara suagr
42g plain flour
60g butter, softened, cubed
1½ tsp ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 180C. Line a muffin tin.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Add the milk and vanilla and mix well.

Sieve in the flour, baking powder and salt and then fold into the wet ingredients with a metal spoon. Carefully fold in elderberries.

Spoon into the muffin tins and sprinkle with the crumb topping.

Bake in the oven for 20 mins, or until a skewer comes out clean.

Rhubarb and White Chocolate Blondies

Oh my goodness these were good! I took them into work as a thank you to the staff as I was leaving my job and they went down really well. I loved the combination of the rhubarb and white chocolate and they were perfectly cooked in the middle. I thought 45 mins was too long for such a small pan but actually it was perfect.

Rhubarb and White Chocolate Blondies (from Hummingbird High)
(Makes an 8x8inch pan)

450g rhubarb, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces

2 tbsp granulated sugar

zest of 1 lime

113g butter

100g packed dark brown sugar

67g granulated sugar

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

125g plain flour

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp salt

260g white chocolate chips, divided into 175g and 85g portions

Preheat the oven to 200C.

 

In a baking pan, toss together the rhubarb, sugar, and lime zest. Set aside for about 10 mins until a little syrup starts to appear.

 

Once the rhubarb is a little syrupy, cover the baking pan with aluminium foil and roast in the preheated oven for 10 mins until the sugar is melted. If the sugar isn’t melted, continue roasting for another 2 mins or so, before removing the foil completely and roasting for another 2 mins uncovered until the syrup is bubbling. Remove from oven and allow the rhubarb to cool to room temperature

 

Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease and line an 8 x 8in baking pan.

 

Melt the butter over a medium low heat until it starts to brown, foam slightly and emit a nutty aroma. Set aside and allow to cool slightly.

 

After around 5 mins, whisk the butter and sugars together until smooth. Whisk in the egg and vanilla until fully incorporated.

 

Sprinkle the flour, cinnamon, and  salt over the liquid mixture and use a metal spoon to fold in the dry ingredients until just combined. Fold in the chocolate chips.

 

Pour the batter to the prepared baking pan. Spread the roasted rhubarb on top of the blondie batter evenly until most of the batter is covered, before scattering the leftover 1/2 cup white chocolate chips over the rhubarb.

 

Transfer to the oven and bake for 40 to 45 mins, or until the edges are golden brown. If the rhubarb and white chocolate looks like it’s browning too fast, create an aluminium foil tent over the pan.  Once the blondies are cooked, leave to cool completely and then cut into pieces.

Lemon Icing

As part of my leaving do at Mad Hatters, one of the girls made cupcakes with lemon icing. Oh my goodness they were so good that I had to ask for and post the recipe. So what is below is what she sent me! The cupcakes were just vanilla cupcakes so use whatever recipe you choose.

Lemon Icing (from Mary Berry)
(For 12 cakes)

75g unsalted butter, softened

250g icing sugar

4 tbsp milk

3 tbsp lemon curd

Beat butter until creamy, gradually beat in the icing sugar and milk, when the mixture is light and smooth beat in lemon curd, put it on cake, distribute to distraught innocent library children you are mercilessly leaving!! :D