Daily Archives: 7 November 2014

Luxury Eccles Cakes recipe

Luxury Eccles Cakes

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Luxury Eccles Cakes

Time 40 minutes.
Per portion: 223 Kcal, 13g fat (5.7g saturated)
Makes 12
Suitable for vegetarians
Suitable for freezing

Luxury mixed dried fruits 175g (6oz)
Dark muscovado sugar 50g (2oz)
Ground mixed spice 1 tsp
Grated nutmeg ½ tsp
Lemon 1, finely grated zest only
Butter 40g (1½oz), melted
Ready-rolled puff pastry 375g packet
Egg 1, beaten
Caster sugar for sifting

1 Preheat the oven to 220°C/425°F/Gas 7 and grease two baking sheets. In a large bowl, mix together the dried fruits, sugar, spices, lemon zest and the butter.

2 Lay the pastry on a lightly floured surface and using a 9cm (3½in) plain round cutter, stamp as many rounds as you can from the pastry and set aside.

3 Re-fold the pastry trimmings, in layers, and then re-roll and stamp out more rounds until you have 12 of them.

4 Dividing evenly, place a rounded teaspoonful of the fruit mixture in the centre of each pastry circle. Brush the edges with cold water, then bring the sides of the pastry up and over the filling and pinch firmly together to seal. Turn over and gently flatten with your hand.

5 Place the Eccles cakes on the greased baking trays and brush lightly with beaten egg, then lightly score the tops, diagonally, three times. Bake for 12–15 minutes until the cakes are well risen, golden brown and crisp to the touch.

6 Sift the Eccles cakes with caster sugar while they are still hot. Eat warm, or leave until cold.

 

Recipe taken from the new Fantastic Food For Less cookbook.

Chocolate Brownies recipe

Chocolate brownies

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Chocolate Brownies 

Time 55 minutes.
Per portion: 122 Kcal, 4g fat (1.6g saturated)
Makes 16
Suitable for vegetarians
Suitable for freezing

Prunes in fruit juice 410g can
Eggs 2
Caster sugar 110g (4oz)
Cocoa powder 50g (2oz)
Plain flour 50g (2oz)
Baking powder 1 tsp
Cook’s dark chocolate 75g (3oz)

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas 4. Line an 18cm (7in) shallow square tin with greaseproof or non-stick baking paper. Snip the paper at the corners, press it into the tin and secure the corners with paper clips.

2 Drain the prunes, remove the stones and put the fruit into a liquidiser or food processor. Blend to a purée.

3 In a bowl, whisk the eggs and sugar until they are pale and frothy and the whisk leaves a trail of mixture when lifted above the bowl.

4 Fold in the prune purée, then sift in the cocoa, flour and baking powder and carefully fold in.

5 Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and tilt to level the mixture. Cook for 30-35 minutes until the cake is well risen and a skewer comes out cleanly when inserted into the centre. Leave the cake to cool in the tin.

6 Meanwhile, break the chocolate into pieces and place in a heatproof bowl. Stand the bowl over a barely simmering saucepan of water, ensuring the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the water. Melt the chocolate, then spoon it over the cake and spread in a thin layer. Leave to set.

7 Lift the cake out of the tin, peel off the paper and cut into 16 squares.

 

Recipe taken from the new Fantastic Food For Less cookbook.

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