Cranberry and Almond Granola

I've been on this 1500 calorie a day thing for a few weeks now, and plan on keeping it up for a long time so I've been trying to find ways to manage my snacking - which really is the biggest problem area for me! Some of the stuff I've done is swapped out all milk chocolate for dark chocolate only (lucky I already love dark choc!), cutting out cakes and cookies that I don't know for a fact are totally worth the calories (you know what I mean? Only the great stuff!), and no sweet, flavoured or sugary drinks. 

Last night I decided to make some granola for my night time TV snacking (in our house it's Netflix and Snack) and I have to say I'm really pleased with this specific mix and baking times. The last time I made my own granola it was a bit too crunchy and I think I burnt some of the components. 

Without further ado, here's the recipe for my Cranberry and Almond Granola:

Yield: 3 cups granola

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup pure maple syrup
• 3 tbsp melted coconut oil 
• 2 tbsp honey 
• 1 + 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract 
• 1/4 tsp sea salt 
• 1 + 1/2 cup sliced almonds 
• 2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
• 1 cup dried cranberries*

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 150°C/fan and line a baking tray with parchment paper
2. In a large bowl, whisk the maple syrup, coconut oil, honey, vanilla and salt until thoroughly mixed 
3. Add the rolled oats and sliced almonds and stir to coat everything in the maple mixture
4. Spread the mix out on the prepared baking tray (I just used a standard cookie sheet) and pop in the oven for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven at the 20 minute mark and toss the granola with a forked spatula to "turn" them in a way, and then put it back in the oven for 5 - 10 minutes*
5. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes before adding the cranberries, use a fork or spatula to stir so that it mixes well. Then store in an airtight jar or container and it should keep for 2 weeks max 

*Notes:

• You can use other dried berries of your own preference, I've also done this with chocolate chips and coconut flakes!
• For step 4, if you feel after 20 minutes that it has toasted to your preferred crispiness, then stop there.

Raspberry Brownie Cheesecake

I've been quite ill these past few weeks, and have only just begun feeling a bit like my old self. So to celebrate, I baked up one of my favourite treats, a recipe I've wanted to share since the first time I tried it out of the Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook over two years ago.

This recipe combines three of my favourite things: chocolate brownies, baked cheesecake, and raspberries. When I first tried a slice of this from the London store many, many years ago (gosh... it's been so long since uni), I feel completely in love with it. So when my friend, Jimmy, came back from a holiday in the States with a copy of the Hummbingbird Bakery Cookbook for me, it was the first thing I searched for. And lo, there it was!

It's a simple enough recipe to whip up on a night in, assuming you have all the ingredients on hand. So turn on the telly, watch a couple episodes of The Voice, and bake away! Yes, that's exactly what I did on Saturday night after attending a friend's wedding with my boyfriend, and I can't think of a better way to spend a night in.

Raspberry Brownie Cheesecake
from The Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook

Brownie ingredients:

• 200g chopped dark chocolate
• 200g unsalted butter, softened
• 250g confectioner's sugar
• 3 eggs
• 110g all purpose flour

Cheesecake ingredients:

• 400g cream cheese
• 150g confectioner's sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 eggs

Raspberry cream ingredients:

• 300ml whipping cream
• 100g confectioner's sugar
• 150g fresh raspberries, plus extra to decorate

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C and line a 9x6 baking tin
2. Melt the chocolate over a bain-marie, and while waiting for that, beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl. Beat the eggs in, one at a time, then incorporate the flour and mix on medium speed. Pour the chocolate in and gradually increase speed to get it all combined. Pour the batter into the prepared tin and set aside.
3. To prepare the cheesecake layer, put the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl and beat until creamy, then add the eggs one at a time and increase speed of the mixer to ensure everything is mixed thoroughly. Spread the batter over the brownie batter, then bake for 35-40 minutes until the edges are golden. Remove from the oven and let it cool to room temperature before refrigerating for at least 2 hours (I like to leave it overnight at this point and finish in the morning)
4. When ready to serve, prepare the raspberry cream. First chill your mixing bowl and whisk attachment in the freezer for 5 minutes (I can't remember where I learned this trick, but have always done it for whisking cream). Whisk the cream and sugar until stiff peaks form, then whisk in the raspberries. Spread or dollop the raspberry cream over the brownie cheesecake, and serve with fresh raspberries! 

Lemon Almond Biscotti

For most of my life I was confident in the knowledge that I don't like biscotti. I just don't. It's just a damned hard biscuit, and often lacking in flavour. Like... why would I choose to go for a hard bread to soak up my coffee? Where's the fun in that?

Then my colleague brought a bag of pistachio biscotti back from Tuscany and I experienced an actual life altering moment. I didn't even want to eat them, but my current team member cajoled and coerced me into having one and boy oh boy, I've been lied to my entire life. The "biscotti" I've been served in the past were all liars and impostors. It's a big change, to now suddenly, after 27 years, be a person who likes biscotti.

Like it enough to actually make my own... who knew? Anyway, my first batch of biscotti is simple and non-intrusive in flavour. Lemon goes well with tea, but I love it with my coffee too. To be honest, I wanted to make orange biscotti, but when I was ready to bake last night, I realised what I thought were oranges in my fridge were actually grapefruit. Sigh. These twice-baked biscuits are ridiculously easy to make though, so I'll likely make a few more batches this week (midweek public holiday, hollaaa).

Lemon Almond Biscotti
Yield: 20 pieces of 3/4 inch thick biscuits

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 3/4 cup caster sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp almond extract
• 2 tsp lemon zest
• 2 eggs
• 1 3/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 cup almond flakes

1. Preheat the oven to 150°C and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper
2. Mix the olive oil and sugar in a large mixing bowl, then mix in the vanilla extract, almond extract, and lemon zest 
3. Beat the eggs in one at a time and beat for a while until incorporated
4. Combine the flour, salt and baking powder in a separate bowl and gradually introduce to the wet mix. Continue to beat on slow-medium until fully incorporated
5. Stir in the almond flakes with a rubber spatula
6. Divide the dough in half and transfer to your prepared baking sheets, shaping the dough into two logs (roughly 4 inches across and 9 - 10 inches long). It's a very sticky dough, and you're welcome to get your hands dirty, but I managed it with just my rubber spatula and a spoon
7. Pop the trays into the oven to bake for 30 minutes (with the fan on), remove from the oven when done, allow to cool for 10 minutes then slice the logs across (3/4 inch slices) and put them back on the trays cut side up 
8. Bake on one side for 9 minutes, then flip the biscuits over to bake for another 9 minutes on the other side. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before dunking in your coffee or tea, or store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks (if it lasts that long)

Cranberry Orange Scones

The first thing I ever baked without mum's supervision, at the age of 18, were scones. Up until that point in my life I never took an interest to baking, but for some reason I was drawn to a picture of scones in one of my mum's cooking magazines and I just wanted to try it. For about a year when I was in college, I made a variety of scones (cheddar and apple scones, buttermilk scones, currant scones, low fat raisin scones, etc.) for various reasons (dad's Monday morning sales meetings, mum's coffee mornings, study group, etc.) but never thought to make anything else.

I don't know why I started baking obsessively, or when exactly I started identifying myself as a baker, but at the end of the day all that matters is that baking makes me happy. Friends often ask if I plan on opening a bakery some day and to be perfectly honest with you, dear readers, I don't. I have no desire to own a bakery and work in the kitchen from 5 in the morning (or earlier) on the same recipes over and over again for the rest of my life. I enjoy baking, I love trying new recipes, and I love taking on the challenges of the occasional order for custom cakes.

Here's one of the things I love about my hobby: fresh, home made afternoon snacks with my flavours of choice. Today I'm going to share this recipe for American scones with you, sweet and fresh with a great hit of citrusy goodness to satisfy the mid-afternoon snack craving. Check out this article on Slate.com for an explanation of British vs American scones. I like both types depending on the occasion; proper plain British scones for tea, and American scones when I'm feeling generous with myself (sugar!).

Cranberry Orange Scones
For the scones:

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 tbsp caster sugar (plus about 1 tbsp for sprinkling on top later)
• 5 tbsp butter, cold and cubed
• 1 1/2 cup fresh cranberries, roughly chopped
• 1 cup heavy cream
• Zest of 1 orange
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C, line a baking sheet with parchment paper
2. I did it the lazy way and used my food processor, so put the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar in the food processor and whizz to combine. Drop in the cubed butter and pulse until it comes together (about 1 round of singing Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star in your head). Transfer the mixture into a bowl and hand stir in the heavy cream, orange zest, and vanilla. Then fold in the cranberries. Once the dough has come together, transfer it to a well floured surface and knead a couple of times. Flatten the dough into a round disc (roughly 9" in diameter, around 3/4" thick) and let it rest for 10 minutes. Then move it to your prepared baking sheet and using a butter knife, just cut across the disc to form 8 wedges. Bake for 18-25 minutes or until it turns golden. Remove from the oven to cool 

Orange glaze

• 1 cup confectioners sugar
• 1 tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice

1. While the scones are cooling on a wire rack, stir the sugar and orange juice together in a bowl. Once the scones have cooled almost completely, drizzle the glaze over the tops and let it harden before serving

If you don't have a food processor, simple combine the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar in a mixing bowl. Then crumble the butter in with the flour mix with your fingertips until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Continue as above instructions with the rest of the ingredients.