Little Chocolate Cakes (Tortino di Cioccolato)

Not for the faint hearted! Warm oozing chocolate from the middle, this is as rich as you can get. I served this after dinner on Squash night, so I'm not sure how the boys felt about it.

170 g ( 6 oz) unsalted butter, chopped, plus extra for greasing
110 g ( 3 3/4 oz) plain (all-purpose) flour, sifted, plus extra for dusting
200 g (7 oz) dark chocolate (minimum 50 per cent cocoa)
4 large eggs
100 g (3 1/2 oz) caster (superfine) sugar
60 ml (2 fl oz or 1/4 cup)
freshly made espresso, cooled

Preheat oven to 220 deg C (425 deg F or Gas 7). Lightly butter and flour six 125 ml (4 fl oz or 1/2 cup) capacity ramekins or moulds.

Place chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir until melted, then set aside to cool.

Place eggs and sugar in a bowl and beat with electric beaters for 6-8 minutes or until thick and pale

Gently fold flour into egg mixture, then fold in cooled chocolate mixture, followed by the espresso.

Divide between prepared ramekins and bake for 8 minutes.

Invert onto serving plates or serve in the ramekins if you wish.

Serves 6.

Vodka Salmon with Mini Rosti

I remember buying this book during my lunch hour, then drawing up my shopping list on the tram home from work. It was one of those moments which I got caught up in, and ending up with a fantastic meal. I was conscious that Nick's not a big seafood fan, but I remembered a can of chicken chunks we had in the pantry, which is almost tuna like, so I substituted his salmon serving for chicken, seen in the background of the photo below. As with meals which involve many elements, be sure to time it well, and have your oven and warmed plates to keep food warm before serving.

Serves 4 (makes 8-12 rosti)

3 desiree or pontiac potatoes (600g total), peeled
200g smoked salmon pieces, or canned chicken chunks
2 tbs vodka
2 tbs finely chopped dill, plus sprigs to garnish
2 tsp wholegrain mustard
1/2 cup (120g) creme fraiche or sour cream
2 eggs, beaten
2 tbs rice flour
2 tbs olive oil
Lemon wegdes, to serve

Simmer the potatoes in a pan of boiling water for 10 minutes to par-cook. Drain and chill for 30 minutes

Place the smoked salmon (or flaked chicken chunks) in a shallow dish. Combine the vodka with 1 tablespoon of the chopped dill, then pour over the salmon (or flaked chicken chunks). Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Combine the mustard and creme fraiche with the remaining chopped dill in a bowl. Refrigerate until needed.

Coarsely grate the cooled potatoes into a bowl. Stir in the egg and rice flour, then season and stir to combine.

Heat the oil in a non-stick frypan over medium heat. Working in batches of 3-4 rosti, add 1 tablespoon of the mixture to the pan for each rosti and flatten slightly. Cook for minutes each side until crisp and brown, then remove and keep warm in a low oven while while you cook the remaining rosti.

Place 2-3 rosti on each plate, top with salmon and drizzle with the creme fraiche mixture. Garnish with extra dill sprigs and serve with lemon wedges.

Basic Bread Recipe

There is truly nothing better than freshly home baked bread. Okay, it's made a little easier with my KitchenAid mixer, but I still love the process of kneading the dough, and leaving it time for proving, letting nature do its work. If you live in a place like cold Melbourne, pre-heat your oven to 100 deg C, then turn it off each time you put your dough in the oven to prove. Do not place any tea towel over your dough when proving, or the weight of the towel will not enable it to rise (I learned the hard way, when I was trying to impress my aunt on her visit). This recipe will yield two loaves of bread, so I usually half the recipe for us. Pre-heat oven to 200 deg C, and bake for 20 minutes for each loaf of bread.

30 g (1 oz) fresh yeast or 21g (3/4 oz dried yeast (3 x 7g sachets)
30 g (1 oz) honey (or sugar)
625 ml (just over 1 pint) tepid water
500 g (just over 1 lb) strong flour
500 g (just over 1 lb) semolina flour (if you can't get hold of any semolina flour then plain flour will do)
30 g (1 oz) salt
some extra flour and semolina for dusting

Stage 1
Dissolve the yeast and honey (or sugar) in half the tepid water.

Stage 2
On your largest available clean surface (even a big bowl will do if surfaces are limited), make a pile of the flour, semolina flour and salt. With one hand, make a well in the centre. (If possible, it is preferable to warm the flour and semolina flour.)

Stage 3
Pour all the dissolved yeast mixture into the centre and with four fingers of one hand make circular movements, from the centre working outwards, slowly bringing in the dry ingredients until all the yeast mixture is soaked up. Then pour the other half of the tepid water into the centre and gradually incorporate all the flour to make a moist dough. (Certain flours may need a little more water, so don't be afraid to adjust the quantities.)

Stage 4
Kneading! This is the best bit, just rolling, pushing and folding the dough over and over for 5 minutes. This develops the structure of the dough and the gluten. If any of the dough sticks to your hands, just rub them together with a little extra flour.

You can do Stages 2, 3 and 4 in a food mixer if you like, using the dough hook attachment.

Stage 5
Flour both your hands now, and lightly flour the top of the dough. Make it into a roundish shape and place on a baking tray. Score the dough with a knife - this allows it to relax and prove more quickly.

Stage 6
Leave the bread to prove for the first time. Basically we want it to double in size. This is probably the best time to preheat the oven (see oven temperatures for each bread variation). You want a warm, moist, draught-free place for the quickest prove, for example near the cooker, in the airing cupboard, in the plate warmer of a cooker or just in a warm room, and you can cover it with cling film if you want to speed it up. This proving process matures the flour flavour and should take approximately 40 minutes to an hour and a half, depending on the conditions.

Stage 7
Right, it's double the size and time to knock it back. Knead and punch the dough, knocking all the air out of it, for about a minute.

Stage 8
Shape the dough into whatever shape you want - round, flat, filled, or whatever - and leave to prove a second time in a warm place until the dough is double its size.

Stage 9
Now it's time to cook your loaf. After all your hard work, don't spoil your efforts. You want to keep the air inside the loaf, so don't knock it, put it vert gently into the oven and don't slam the door. Bake according to the recipe time and temperature given in the variations which follow, or until it's cooked. You can tell if it's cooked by tapping its bottom (if it's in a tin you'll have to take it out) - if it sounds hollow it's cooked, if it doesn't then pop it back for a little longer.

Stage 10
Place the bread on a rack to cool - for cooking time see each recipe variation. You're going to love this bread!

Orange Choc-Chip Muffins

Nick picked this for me to bake because he didn't think the Blueberry, Orange and Pistachio Muffins would be enough for Bake Off. Luckily we had all the ingredients in the pantry that morning.

2 cups plain flour
1/2 cup soft brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup castor sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup orange juice
1/4 cup orange liqueur
1 egg
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips
icing sugar or cocoa, for dusting

Preheat oven to 200 deg C. Grease muffin tins.

In a large bowl sift together flour, sugars, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt.

In a separate bowl mix together oil, orange juice, liqueur, egg, orange zest and vanilla.

Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and add orange mixture.

Stir to combine, then fold in chocolate chips.

Spoon batter into prepared muffin tins and bake for 15-20 minutes.

Serve dusted with icing sugar or cocoa.

Variation
Top with orange butter icing and sprinkle with chocolate chips

Makes 16.

Blueberry, Orange and Pistachio Muffins

I chose this for RSPCA Cupcake Day because it felt right for winter, with the balance of sweet and nutty. The original recipe in the book used Cranberry, but I could only find Blueberry at the shops, which turned out great! Double the portions to fit your 12-muffin tray.

2 eggs

80 g golden caster sugar

50 ml vegetable oil (or groundnut or sunflower)

finely grated zest and freshly squeezed juice of 1 unwaxed orange

150 g plain flour

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

100 g fresh or frozen blueberries (or cranberries)

TOPPING

50 g fresh or frozen blueberries (or cranberries)

a handful of shelled pistachio nuts, chopped

light brown soft sugar, to sprinkle

a muffin tray, lined with 6 large muffin cases

Makes 6

Preheat the oven to 180 deg C (350 deg F) Gas 4.

Put the eggs, sugar, oil, orange zest and juice in a mixing bowl and mix well until you have a smooth liquid. Mix the flour and baking powder together in a separate bowl, then mix into the wet ingredients. Stir in the cranberries until evenly mixed.

Fill each muffin case about two-thirds full with batter. Scatter the cranberries and pistachios nuts for the topping over the muffins and finish with a sprinkling of sugar. Bake in the preheated oven for about 25 minutes. Do not be tempted to open the oven door halfway through baking as it might cause the muffins to sink. When they are ready, they should be well risen and springy to the touch.

Muffins are always best eaten warm from the oven, but if you have some left over you can refresh them with a quick flash in the microwave. Store in airtight container for 2-3 days.

Polish Honey Cake

I remember being very excited about making this cake. It was one of my first issues of Delicious Magazine which I bought, and I couldn't resist trying out all the wonderful recipes. I pushed myself to make this when Eurovision Night came along, and it proved to be a great success, and it's how I love cake: a little sweet, with some hints of spice and nuttiness. My letter about my cake also appeared in the August 2010 issue!

1/4 cup (20g) flaked almonds
400g unsalted butter
1 cup (350g) honey, plus extra to drizzle
1 firmly packed cup (200g) brown sugar
3 cups (450g) plain flour
1 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
300g pitted dates, roughly chopped
2-3 tsp very thinly sliced glace ginger
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 cup (60g) sour cream
1/2 cup (125ml) hot black tea
2 tsp vanilla extract
Thick cream or vanilla bean ice cream, to serve

Preheat oven to 160 deg C. Grease a 25cm non-stick bundt pan well, then press almonds into base and a little up the sides.

Place the butter and honey in a saucepan over low heat, stirring, until the butter has melted. Stir in the brown sugar, then remove from heat and cool slightly.

Meanwhile, combine flour, soda, ground ginger and cinnamon in a large bowl. Add dates and glace ginger and toss to coat.

In a separate bowl, whisk the egg, sour cream, hot tea and vanilla, then whisk the egg mixture into the melted butter mixture.

Make a well in the centre of flour and pour in butter mixture. Lightly whisk to a loose batter, then pour into the prepared pan. Bake for 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted in centre comes out clean. Cool cake in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes, then invert onto the rack and cool completely. Slice and serve drizzled with extra honey, with cream or ice cream.