Chocolate Meringue Cake • Confessions of a Chocoholic

Here I am again, chopping chocolate.

I must be an expert by now, right?  I'm certainly running out of ideas on how to take a picture of it.

Surprisingly the learning curve with chocolate is never ending.  But I'm not complaining.

Apparently there's a scientific explanation behind the mysteries of chocolate.  I watched a video about it the other day.  Personally I still just think it has a mind of its own.  I like to pretend I believe in magic.

This week's cake was a success.  Finally!  I told you it would happen.  Sometimes wishful thinking works!!

Obviously while searching for baking inspiration I started on Pinterest.  And inevitably ended up in my chocolate section.  It is a delicious trap I can't get out of.  I actually landed on this recipe first, found three more, and then ended up back on this one.

I am so happy I tried it.  So is my mother apparently.  I'm home for the week and this afternoon she started chanting "we have a desserrrrt, I don't have to think of one".  I hate to think what goes on around here when I'm gone.  Après-dinner activities involving dancing and a broomstick, no doubt.

There's something oddly sobering about returning home after being away for a long time.  I find memories and feelings from my childhood come flooding back.  I realized that when you are away from your family for so long, you lose sight of yourself a little bit.  Perhaps if everyone lived with their families forever, many of our insecurities would go away, and the world might be a happier place.  But then living with your parents forever would bring about a whole other set of issues, wouldn't it?

Safe to say I think there's a reason it's natural to leave the nest.

Philosophical rambles aside, this week's baking involved a two layer cake.  Essentially a round brownie base, topped with chocolate meringue, and garnished with a heaping pile of fresh berries.  Umm, pass the fork, right?

I guess you could say I was persuaded by the photos on this blog.  They are absolutely stunning, with beautiful artistic proportions.  I aspire to capture the simplistic allure of food like that one day.  Until then I make do, and try not to pretend I am in any way as tasteful as Artful Desperado.  Whoever that is...

Ahem.  I don't think my head is screwed on right today.  First of all, I am late posting this (which I do apologize for!), and second, I keep drifting off on tangents.  Maybe it's the apathy associated with not having to cook or clean for yourself.  Can a person ever be too relaxed? Hmm.

I followed the recipe almost to a tee, but I will write it out for you anyways.

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Chocolate Meringue Cake with Fresh Berries*

Chocolate Cake:
8 oz dark chocolate, loosely chopped

3/4 cup unsalted butter, cubed
2 large eggs
4 egg yolks (saving the whites for the meringue)
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup all purpose flour, sifted
1/2 tsp baking powder, sifted
1/3 cup ground almonds

Chocolate Meringue:
4 egg whites

3/4 cup super fine sugar
1 tsp white vinegar
2 tsps cornstarch, sifted
1 tbsp cocoa
2 oz dark chocolate, melted

2 cups fresh fruit of your choice, for garnishing

icing sugar

Preheat the oven to 325F. Lightly grease an 8-inch springform pan and set aside.

Place butter and chocolate in a small heatproof bowl over pot of simmering water over low heat and warm until melted, stirring occasionally.
In a large bowl whisk eggs, egg yolks, brown sugar, and vanilla for about 5 minutes until the mixture is pale and frothy.  (Be careful not to let egg yolk mix with your whites!!! I had a near catastrophe with this!)  Gently fold in the melted chocolate, flour, baking powder, and almond meal.  Pour batter in the cake tin and bake for about 30 min until just set.  You do not want to overcook this as it will need to go back in the oven once the layered with the meringue (it is actually better if it is slightly under cooked in the centre).

Once the cake is removed from the oven you can start the meringue.  DO NOT start this earlier as it will deflate.

Increase temperature in the oven to 350F.
Place egg whites in a clean bowl and beat until soft peaks form. Gradually add the sugar.  Beat in the vinegar until meringue is nice and glossy.  Fold in cornstarch and cocoa.  Drizzle the melted chocolate into the meringue mixture, and spread over cake.  Do not overmix as you want the natural swirls!
Return the cake to the oven for 20 minutes or until the meringue hardens.  Let cool.

Serve warm or chilled topped with berries and a sprinkle of icing sugar!

*Very slightly adapted from Artful Desperado.

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Now, I have to say I felt that this cake - while still incredibly delicious - lacked a certain kick, which most definitely could be remedied by the addition of alcohol, such as rum or brandy.

So I am going to have to try making it again as an experiment.  Poor me.

Adieu, Adieu (auf wiedersehen goodbye!)

Nicola ♡

Not My Mother's Banana Bread

I learnt a very important lesson today.

When your mother makes it best, don't deviate from her recipe.

Maybe that seems obvious.  But me being me I thought maybe I could improve on my Mum's banana bread (not that there was anything wrong with it in the first place!!).  And surely the banana bread from my very professional-looking Science of Cooking book should be perfect, no??

Well, evidently I was disappointed with the result.

I gave it extra oven time and it still didn't cook properly; undercooked at the base and burnt around the edges.  I would have thrown this loaf out if I wasn't so strictly against wasting food.

I must say I am going through a rather rough baking patch lately!  Terrible news for my tastebuds, but at least I can still try to make it look pretty.

Maybe it's stress. I've always found that stress + baking = DISASTER.  Especially if I try to take my stress out ON baking.  Like, don't come near my kitchen if I'm stressed.  Seriously.  Flour everywhere.  And probably smoke.  Not to mention profanity.

But what am I stressed about??!  Its summer.  Geesh.

Clearly I do not feel it is necessary to include this recipe.  I hope you are OK with that.

I promise next week's baking will turn out better.  There.  Now it has to.  That's how it works right?

On the bright side, my stash of bananas is no longer taking up the majority of the freezer!  My housemates will be happy to hear there is actually room for their food now too.

Ohhhhhh where does time go!? (A voice in my head says: nowhere, you idiot, time is not a living thing - it can't go places.  Also, where did this thought come from?  It is completely random. -10 points for essay flow.)

In parting, I will leave you with a feel good song.  I don't know about you, but I could use a good pick-me-up.  If anything is going to cheer you up, this will for sure.  Just look at the getup on these dudes!  People in the seventies were definitely not afraid of a little sparkle.  Must have been a fun decade.

Is it reasonable to ask for a time-travelling machine for my birthday?

Cheers,

Nicola ♡

A late-night raspberry quickie

That title probably implies something way more interesting than what I'm about to show you.

Last week, I made raspberry jam squares.  I know, I know, why didn't I post on Sunday?!?  Well the truth is, this weekend I was a hippy with no shoes, internet, or cares in the world.

In other words, I was camping out at a music festival.

I made the squares ahead of time to bring as a snack, but as it turns out, thirst was a priority in the heat, so I still had a few left over for a photoshoot.

 

If you ever need a snack that has endurance, jam bars are the way to go.  These things made it all the way to an island and back in the bottom of a ludicrously heavy back pack.  AND they survived the greenhouse effect of the tent we were in.  Which melted the granola bars, I might add.

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Oatmeal Raspberry Jam Bars*

1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup + 2 tbsps brown sugar, lightly packed
1 cup + 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
pinch of salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 cup old fashioned oats
Scant 1 cup raspberry jam

Preheat oven to 350F.  Line 8x8 inch pan with parchment paper, set aside.  In large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Beat in flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.  Stir in oats.

Press just over half the mixture into a flat layer on the parchment paper.  Spread with raspberry jam.  Sprinkle remaining mixture on top.  Bake for 30 minutes or until top is golden.

*Recipe adapted from Chelsea's Messy Apron.

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Camping out at a music festival made for a wildly wonderful & relaxing weekend.  I highly recommend experiencing it if you haven't yet.

If the weather's nice, make an excuse to get outside.  I guarantee you won't regret it.

That's all from me for now,

Ciao,

Nicola ♡

Chocolate-Cherry Pudding Pie!

Chocolate.  Again.  SOMEBODY STOP ME.

Might as well call my blog Chocolate, and Variations Thereof.  Or Baking with Chocolate: The Only Real Dessert.  Or simply The Chocolate Blog: Nicola's Quest to Satisfy Cravings and Drain Her Pocket Money on Weekends.

I know there are other desserts out there.  But I can't help it that chocolate is one of the few things that conveniently doesn't need an oven most of the time AND always tastes good.

Admittedly the quantity of chocolate I bought at the grocery store this week was borderline embarrassing.  There were only five things in my cart: chocolate, chocolate, chocolate, cocoa powder, and a pack of gum.  And an expensive five things they were.  The feeling of judgment emanating from the cashier was terribly uncomfortable.

At least I share my desserts.  Because if I were to eat today's pudding all by myself, you'd know there was something mentally wrong with me.  Although perhaps the fact that I'd rather spend my money on chocolate than clothes is already evidence enough...Hmm.

So, preamble aside, I spent several hours in a coffee shop yesterday afternoon trying to come up with something to bake.  There are SO MANY good things out there that I want to try.  They just all require oven time which is NOT happening in the heat with no AC.

Eventually, I decided on this recipe for a no-bake chocolate strawberry pie.  And then swapped cherries for strawberries because they're in season.  And I like them better.

There was also this weird (in my opinion) part of the crust recipe which required 30 wafer cookies.  Ummmmm what???  I will just use my leftover graham crumbs instead, thinks Nicola without going home first to check if she does indeed have the correct amount of crumbs to make an adequate substitution.

You will not be surprised then when I tell you that I was short on graham cracker crumbs this morning, and what was supposed to be a crust turned into a very dense base layer which I was barely able to spread thin enough to cover the 9" pan.  But I'm sure it will still taste fine.

The recipe also calls for a 1/2 tbsp of bourbon, and after purchasing all that chocolate I didn't think bourbon was in my budget, so I omitted that.  I also used dark chocolate instead of bittersweet for the pudding as I thought it would compliment the cherries better.

I had NO IDEA what I was getting myself into when I decided to use cherries.  Pitting and slicing them was a nightmare.  It looked like there had been a massacre in my kitchen.

And MY NAILS.  They are still stained.  If this were a murder-mystery I would be the red-handed suspect.  Literally.

Several hours later, the verdict is in! The test kitchen says:

1.  DA-YUM.  That is great pudding.  It is so much better than a pudding mix.  If you can afford to lose six egg yolks I highly recommend giving it a go.  (I will be eating egg whites for a week).

2.  It is all pudding.  Where's the base?!?!?!?  I knew this would happen.  Oh well, the taste of the pudding overwhelmingly makes up for the lack of crust.

So who's still in Kingston and wants a slice?

Happy long weekend,

Nicola ♡