MaltEaster Bunny Brownies

I have a total weakness for the MaltEaster bunnies that pop up in the shops around Easter time, so naturally I decided to bake them into a brownie! I used a really basic and quick brownie mix here, but feel free to use any brownie recipe as your base. Just push the little chocolate bunnies into the tray about 10 minutes before the end of baking. It's hardly gourmet, but they are great with a cuppa!

(Makes around 20 brownies)

Ingredients:

400g caster sugar
225g melted buter
60g cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 eggs
225g plain flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large bag of regular Maltesers
3 bags of mini MaltEaster bunnies


1. Preheat oven to 180C.

2. Mix all the ingredients thoroughly in the order listed, apart from the regular Maltesers and MaltEaster bunnies.

3. Add 2/3s of the bag of Maltesers to the mix and gently fold through.

4. Pour the mix into a greased lined baking tray (it should fill a 23x33cm rectangular tray) and smooth out with a spatula. Bake for around 20 mins.

5. Remove from the oven, and push the rest of the Maltesers and MaltEaster bunnies into the brownie crust gently, being careful not to burn yourself.

6. Return to the oven and bake for another 5-10 mins, until just cooked. If you find the top is going too brown, cover with tin foil and continue to bake.

A Trip to the Rhubarb Triangle

A look inside the Rhubarb sheds.....

Last week, despite weather warnings of the 'Beast from the East', I braved the snow and gale-force winds, and headed North to visit Wakefield, part of the Yorkshire 'Rhubarb Triangle', and  conveniently also home to a great friend of mine. Visiting the forced rhubarb sheds has always been on my bucket list, and it transpired that my friends-parents-friends are one of the few remaining true Yorkshire forced rhubarb farmers left. They very kindly allowed me to visit their farm, D Westwood and Son.

Visiting any farm and seeing quality produce being grown or reared, is something I delight in doing. But there's something about the forced rhubarb process that just seems completely magical to me. Perhaps it's because the process itself is somewhat secretive; it being grown in blacked-out sheds, that few can visit, for fear of light damaging the crop. Any more than ten minutes of light is enough to ruin the forcing process. The light bulbs you can see in my images were screwed in especially for our visit- the farmers won't risk leaving them in there in case someone accidentally leaves the lights on!

Or perhaps it's the technicalities of  it. As Jonty (6th generation farmer at D Westwood and Son) explained to me, the process is incredibly precise, with the plant roots or crowns firstly being planted outdoors in fields, where it grows for more than two years. At the start of it's third winter outside, the farmers will wait until the ground has reached a certain freezing temperature, usually when then first frost hits (there's a special thermometer to measure this). It is then up-rooted, and re-planted in the purpose-built sheds by hand. When it's time to harvest, this process is also done by hand, and in candlelight, to avoid damaging the rhubarb at this stage. It ain't easy work producing this stuff, but it's totally worth it!

The alien-like neon green leaves are actually poisonous, so avoid eating them!  

I'm not going to try and do a rhubarb history lesson here, because frankly I'm no expert. But, I was interested to learn that the process of forcing rhubarb - which is growing it in the darkness to produce the sweet-flavoured, bright candy cane sticks - was originally invented in the Chelsea Physic Gardens in London. It became a phenomenon in the Yorkshire areas of Wakefield, Morley and Rothwell during the War, when there were supposedly around 200 farms producing it, due to the ideal conditions and high demand for the stuff.

Today there's only 9 farms producing Yorkshire forced rhubarb, so I feel privileged to be able to visit a farm first hand, and learn about the process myself. Yorkshire forced rhubarb was also given PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) status relatively recently in 2010. This means it can only be sold as Yorkshire Forced Rhubarb, if it's grown from within the Rhubarb Triangle. That's a real testament to a quality product, that's been grown using these ancient methods by generations of Yorkshire farmers. Now I know the effort that goes into it producing it, I have a whole new appreciation for it myself, although I didn't really need converting.

When we got back to the house, we snacked on sticks of newly-cut raw rhubarb, dipped in a little sugar, before turning the rest into a winning crumble. It was such a joy to cook and eat the freshest rhubarb I'll probably ever get my hands on, especially after seeing it growing in the ground just moments before. You can find the recipe for our crumble below, if you'd like to have a go yourself. Just make sure you use Yorkshire forced rhubarb- preferably from Jonty's farm!

Pleased as punch with my harvest! 

Proper Yorkshire Forced Rhubarb Crumble

Because why mess around with such a wonderful raw product? Thank you to Catherine Clark (my friends Mum) for the top crumble recipe- the addition of demerara sugar gives it a wonderful toffee chewiness!

NB. When poaching the rhubarb in step 1, the quantity of sugar will really depend on how sweet the rhubarb you have is initially (it can vary drastically). You can always have a nibble of it raw and if it's lovely and sweet, as Yorkshire Forced Rhubarb is, you really don't need much sugar!

Serves 6 - will make one large crumble, or 2 smaller ones.

600g Yorkshire forced rhubarb, washed and leaves removed
Approx 1 tbsp caster sugar
230g flour
170g butter, cubed at room temperature.
90g demerara sugar
90g caster sugar


1. Preheat oven to 200 C.

2. Chop the rhubarb into 3 inch pieces and place in a sauce pan with the 1 tbsp of caster sugar. Heat on low to medium, and cook for around 10 minutes until the rhubarb is soft, but still holding it's shape (remember it will continue to cook in the oven, so don't over do it). If it looks dry at all, splash a little water into the pan, but rhubarb itself has a high water content, so you shouldn't really need to add much liquid.

3. Spoon the rhubarb into the bottom of your chosen crumble dish, and allow to cool while you make the crumble.

4. In a bowl, mix the flour and sugars, and then add in the cubes of butter. Rub together with the tips of your fingers to create a rough bread crumb consistency (any lumps will add texture!).

5. Spoon the crumble mix generously over your rhubarb. I personally like a crumble-to-rhubarb ratio of around 50:50. Definitely don't skimp on the crumble.

6. Bake in the oven for 30-35 mins, until the top is lightly golden and crisp.

7. Serve hot with cold cream or custard.

Flourless Beetroot and Chocolate cake

Photo by Ryan Ball (www.ryanballphotography.com), Food Styling and recipe my own. 

In this recipe, beetroot acts in the same way carrot does in a carrot cake; it adds moisture, natural sweetness and earthiness to a wonderfully gooey chocolate cake base. This cake is incredibly easy to make, and you can make it even simpler by buying pre-cooked beetroot, which is available to buy in many shops (just make sure it's plain boiled beetroot you are buying, as opposed to anything in vinegar!).

It's best made the day before you want to serve it, as it benefits from a night in the fridge, to firm up the sponge. If you're feeling adventurous, have a go at the candied beetroot too- it's sure to take your cake to the next level!

Ingredients

For the Cake:
300g beetroot, peel and chopped into 3cm chunks
350g dark chocolate, broken into pieces (I like 70% cocoa variety)
185g butter, cubed
6 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
220g soft brown sugar
100g ground almonds

For the Vanilla Creme Fraiche:
360g creme fraiche
2 tbsp icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

For the Candied Beetroot:
230g caster sugar
150ml water
2 small beetroots, peeled and sliced as finely as you can
1 tbsp lemon juice

Method

1. Start with the cake. Boil your beetroot in a small pan of water until tender (around 45 mins). When cooked, blitz in a blender to create beetroot pulp.

2. Preheat oven to 160°C / 325°F. Grease a 9 inch cake tin and line with grease proof paper. 

3. Put the butter and dark chocolate in a small saucepan, and melt over a low heat, stirring occasionally until smooth.  

4. Meanwhile, crack the eggs into a bowl, and add the vanilla extract, soft brown sugar and ground almonds. Whisk together, then add the beetroot pulp and the melted chocolate and butter mixture. Mix well.

5. Pour the mix into your pre-prepared baking tin, and cook in the middle shelf of the oven for about 1 hour. After about 45 mins you can check it, and if the top is going too dark, just cover it with some tinfoil and continue to bake. You will know the cake is ready when the edges look cooked, and the middle still has the slightest wobble to it. Remove from the oven and allow to fully cool, before placing in the fridge for atleast 3 hours or overnight ideally. This will help to firm up the cake, and make it easier to get out of the tin.

6. For the candied beetroot, add the water and sugar to a small sauce pan and slowly heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Once it has dissolved, bring to the boil gently, and add the thinly sliced beetroot. Simmer for around 15 minutes, until the beetroot is softened and slightly translucent. Remove each slice from the pan with a fork, and lay flat on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Leave to cool. If you want to caramelise and crisp them further at this point, you can pop them in the oven at 180°C for 5-10 minutes, just keep an eye on them as they can quickly burn at this stage.

7. When you are ready to serve the cake, make the icing by beating the creme fraiche, vanilla extract and icing sugar together. Have a little taste and add more sugar or vanilla if you like. When you're happy with the flavour, simply spread on top of the cake. Top with your candied beetroot pieces, and drizzle with the reserved syrup. Voila! 

Poires Belle Helene

Poires Belle Helene (or poached pears with chocolate sauce) is a totally indulgent and beautifully simple dessert. We are lucky enough to have a little pear tree in our garden, so when that bears fruit we tend to eat a lot of pear-based dessert like this, as well as pear and almond tart, another family favourite.

You can poach the pears in advance, and then store in the fridge in an airtight container in the sugar syrup for a few days. The cold pears, combined with the hot chocolate sauce is just heaven!

Ingredients:

4 Pears

4oz or 115g golden caster sugar

zest and juice of half a lemon

1 vanilla pod

Chocolate sauce:

150g good quality dark chocolate

100ml double cream
2 table spoons of Poire William liqueur (not essential, but adds a nice dimension to the sauce)

Method:

1. Fill a medium-sized saucepan with just over 1 pint of water. Pour in the golden caster sugar, lemon zest and juice. Slice the vanilla pod lengthways, just to split it open, and add that to the water too. Give it all a stir, and heat until it is nearly simmering, and all the sugar is dissolved.

2. In the meantime, peel the pears, leaving the stalks on. Slice the very bottom of the pears off, to create a firm base on which they can stand upright. 

3. With the sharp end of the peeler (if your peeler has one- if not use an apple corer or a small sharp knife), carefully remove the core of the pears, leaving the stalks on.

4. Place the pears in the saucepan upright, and make sure all the pear flesh is submerged in the liquid (if not, add a splash more water). Poach for 20 mins, or until the pears are soft through. When they are cooked, remove from the heat, and just leave them to cool in the syrup.

5. To make the chocolate sauce, break the chocolate into a heat proof bowl, and add the cream and pear liqueur if you are using it. Place the bowl on top of a saucepan filled with a couple of inches of water. Place on a gentle heat, so that the water is just simmering. Don't allow it to boil, or touch the base of your bowl with the chocolate and cream in it. Stir every now and again, making sure it doesn't catch on the bottom, until your sauce is silky and smooth,

6. To serve, scoop your pears out of the syrup, drain and put in your serving bowl. Pour over the chocolate sauce and serve with vanilla ice cream or cream (or both!).