Showing posts with label Mixed Dried Fruit. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mixed Dried Fruit. Show all posts

Friday, 14 December 2012

Chocolate Chip Brioche Bread and Butter Pudding with Nutella®

 

Date: 14/12/12

Background: Basically, because I cannot get back to Rugby for Christmas Day, my parents decided to come up to Brum to visit, and to deliver and return presents for extended family, friends and loved ones. I cooked them a yummy Roast Chicken Dinner, and to accompany it, a very Winter Warming dessert. The general principle is from the delightful Mary Berry, but the additions and adjustments are my own Smile.

What: Chocolate Chip Brioche Bread and Butter Pudding with Nutella®


Ingredients:

  • 6 Chocolate Chip Brioche buns2012-12-14 16.00.56
  • 2 tbsp. Nutella®
  • Handful/30g dried mixed fruit
  • 2 eggs
  • 600mls milk
  • Half tsp. Cinnamon
  • Butter for greasing
  • Ice cream/Cream to serve

Method:

  1. Pre heat oven to 200C, Gas Mark 5
  2. Grease a 10inch/Equivalent ovenproof dish with butter
  3. Slice each Brioche bun horizontally in half
  4. Melt the Nutella® in the microwave for 10secs to make it easy to spread
  5. Spread a thin layer of Nutella® onto each brioche bun half
  6. Layer the bun bases onto the bottom of the dish, Nutella® side up
  7. Top the bun bases with the Brioche tops, Nutella® side down, slightly off centre to the bases, so that all gaps to the dish are covered
  8. In between the layers and on top, scatter the mixed fruit2012-12-14 16.22.54
  9. Mix together the eggs and milk
  10. Pour the custard mixture over the Brioche buns
  11. Sprinkle the cinnamon of the top of the pudding and leave to stand for at least an hour to allow the bread to soak up some of the custard mixture
  12. Cook in the pre-heated oven for 40minutes, or until the pudding is golden on top, and the custard mixture is set completely
  13. Serve immediately with cream/ice cream


What was Good: Oh my days. It was so satisfying and warm! With the weather being anywhere between –4 and 6C, a cockle-warming dessert is just what the metaphorical doctor ordered! I am not normally a massive bread and butter fan, but with the flavour of the warm brioche, and melted Nutella®, oozing throughout the pudding, this was a definite winner for me. Served with the cold ice cream, the hot and cold combo was as always a box ticker in my eyes! The fruit was a bread and butter pudding must have, and because they had had around 2 hours to soak up the custard mixture, they had become plump and juicy. It was also surprisingly light, it was not overly cloy-y and it did not stick to my stomach lining like some traditional puds. I would happily make this dessert again, and I look forward to eating the cold left overs tomorrow!

What was Bad: There is something about the texture of a bread and butter pudding that does not float my boat… But the flavour of this particular confection made it a winner despite this!

Would I Make It Again?: Yes I would!

Waffle-O-Meter:

WAFFLEWAFFLEWAFFLEWAFFLE

2012-12-14 16.09.15

Reference:

Berry, M (2012) Mary Berry’s Complete Cookbook. 3rd ed. London: Covent Garden Books. P399

Saturday, 24 November 2012

Mary Berry’s Christmassy Mincemeat Buns! [How to Make]

 

Date: 24/11/12

Background: Ever since Stacey bought me Mary Berry’s Complete Cookbook, I have had a hankering to make something from within it’s glistening shimmering colourful pages. So with the Christmas Spirit ebbing towards us like a cheerful festive fog, I decided to make Mincemeat Buns, a recipe encompassing that Crimbo-In-A-Jar wonder, mincemeat, if you hadn’t already guessed.

What: Mincemeat Buns


Ingredients:

  • 375g (12oz) Mincemeat
  • 250g (8oz) Currants (I used mixed fruit)
  • 2 eggs
  • 150g (5oz) Caster Sugar
  • 150g (5oz) Soft Butter or Margarine
  • 250g (8oz) Self Raising Flour
  • 32 cake cases (Or in my video, 12 silicone cake cases and a sandwich tin!)

Method:

  1. Measure out all the ingredients into one bowl
  2. Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and beat well for about 2 minutes
  3. Divide the cake mixture evenly among the cake cases. putting them in bun tins if preferred
  4. Bake in the pre heated oven for 20-30mins or until golden and springy to the touch
  5. Transfer the cakes to a wire rack and leave to cool


Video: Once again courtesy of the wonderful StaceyRaver’s Youtube

What was Good: OMG the smell! It filled the house with a spicy, mince pie like, winter-y aroma! It literally filled the very bricks of my home with Festive cheer! The cakes themselves are sweet and dense. Dense does not sound very attractive, but trust me, when you expect to devour a light fluffy fairy cake, and the weighty fruit and flavour filled nommable fills your hand, it is a happy moment. The cake itself is packed with so much fruit that it adds a real moist chew with every bite. For those that don’t like mincemeat, Stacey being a prime example, TRUST ME, it is nothing like eating a mince pie! The flavour is aromatic and intense, but the actual flavour of mincemeat is very subtle. Even Stacey is a convert now!

What was Bad: We both felt it lacked a variety of texture or flavour… So we were considering making an icing sugary cinnamony dust for the top? Or even a liquid fondant icing. What do you think? But all in all… Loved these buns of steel!

Would I Make It Again: YES!

Waffle-O-Meter:

WAFFLEWAFFLEWAFFLEWAFFLE

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Reference:

Berry, M (2012) Mary Berry’s Complete Cookbook. 3rd ed. London: Covent Garden Books. P465