Beetroot Chocolate Brownies

When you have giant beetroot to use up (some weighing up to a kilogram), you have to get creative with this beautiful purple root. And man is it versatile. I am constantly trying to convince people to let go of their adversion to beetroot which stems from memories of cheap jars of harshly pickled slices (which I happen to love too) and taste it in it's natural form, maybe roasted, steamed or boiled. 

If that doesn't entice you, how about something like these?

Who can resist BROWNIES!? Evidently I can't as I've eaten a chocolatey gooey lump the size of my head over the last few days.

It's like looking at the surface of some delicious uninhabited chocolate moon.

Chocolate and beetroot is a tried and tested cominbation and you will find lots of recipes online for cake, muffins, brownies etc. I adapted a recipe from old reliable BBC Good Food. The cooking time given on the original recipe is 25 minutes but I think you would have to be using quite a shallow tray to achieve this. If you are using a loaf tin like I did, the cooking time is 55 minutes.

I used raw beetroot and steamed it before adding to the mix. You could use shop bought vacuum packed cooked beetroot but be aware that it has to be hot for the recipe so the chocolate will melt.

Using a food processor and hand mixer will make your work a lot easier but it is possible to do this without appliances. You would have to melt the butter and chocolate over the hob and grate the beetroot before adding. 

Ingredients

500g raw beetroot

100g butter cubed plus extra for greasing

200g dark chocolate chopped into small pieces (as always I used Madagascar chocolate from Lidl)

1 tsp vanilla extract

250g caster sugar

3 eggs

100g plain flour

25g cocoa powder (I used Bournville)

Method

Pre-heat the oven to Gas 4/180C/350F

Grease and line your tin - I used a 2lb loaf tin

Peel and cube the beetroot and steam until tender

Turn on your food processor and add the hot cooked beetroot, chocolate pieces, cubes of butter and vanilla extract

Blend until the mix is smooth - the hot beetroot will melt the butter and chocolate.

TASTE IT - it is to die for. To be honest, I wouldn't blame you if you just abandoned the rest of the recipe and decided to eat the whole bowl with a spoon.

In another bowl, beat the eggs and sugar with a hand mixer until they are pale and frothy. 

Into the eggy sugary froth, fold the chocolate mix slowly until blended. Try not to mix too long or hard so you conserve the air.

Into this mix, sieve the flour and cocoa powder and slowly blend everything with a fork. This is a bit time consuming as the flour tends to sit on top of the liquid but it will all come together nicely.

Pour the finished mix into your prepared tin

Bake for 55 minutes if using my 2lb loaf tin - less if you are using a more shallow tin. The best way to gauge is to cook until the top has crusted but there is still a very slight wobble underneath.

Cool completely and cut into slices.

Store in an airtight lunch box and they will keep moist up to a week. Although I've never known a brownie that lived a week.

Banana And Chocolate Muffins

These luscious muffins are a sticky gooey unhealthy treat, not for everyday eating. The ingredients are minimal and are common kitchen stock. These little cakes are a great way to use up over-ripe bananas. They are best served warm when the chocolate is still melted.

Ingredients makes 12

2 eggs

90ml milk

150g butter melted

225g plain white flour

1 tsp baking powder

150g golden caster sugar

150g chocolate broken into chunks

2 ripe bananas mashed

Method

Pre heat the oven to gas mark 6\200°C\400°F

Line a muffin tin with 12 cases

In a jug, mix the eggs, milk and melted butter until thoroughly combined.

Sift together the flour and baking powder into a separate bowl. Add the sugar, chocolate and bananas to the flour mix.

Stir gently to combine, gradually stirring in the milk mixture, but do not beat it.

Spoon the mixture into the cases.

Bake for 20 minutes until risen and golden.

Allow to stand for 5 minutes and leave to cool on a wire rack.

Enjoy!

Breakfast Muffins

Breakfast can be a temperamental meal for many people, especially if you have to leave the house first thing in the morning. You're sick of breakfast cereal but there's not enough time to cook something decent, it's too early to eat, you're not hungry yet... which inevitably leads to eating out which can be expensive and unhealthy. Such are the reasons I am always on the lookout for tasty, healthy, portable breakfasts and the following muffins fulfill all three requirements. They are also a good way to use up some possibly forgotten ingredients in your cupboard including honey, apple sauce and porridge oats.

• Sugar free
• Butter free
• Wholemeal flour

Makes 12

Ingredients



Wet

2 eggs beaten
150ml natural yogurt
50ml olive oil
100g applesauce
1 ripe banana mashed
4 tbsp honey
1 tsp vanilla essence

Dry

200g wholemeal flour
50g porridge oats with a bit extra for topping
1.5 tsp baking powder
1.5 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1.5 tsp cinnamon
100g dried fruit [I used cranberry, sultanas, raisins and goji berries]
2 tbsp mixed seeds [I used pumpkin and sunflower]


Method

Preheat the oven to Gas 4/180C/350F

Mix the wet ingredients in a jug




Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl




Pour in the wet ingredients, combine but don't overmix




Pour into twelve muffin cases and sprinkle the seeds and oats on top










Bake for 30 minutes and once baked, allow to cool on a wire rack and enjoy!



These will freeze well.

Raspberry and Ricotta Chocolate Cake

This is a simple and moist cake that improves with age. If kept in an airtight container, it retains its sticky texture for five days, easily. I got the recipe here.

Ingredients

• 190g plain flour
• 60g cocoa
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 130ml oil
• 250g sugar
• 2 eggs
• 125g ricotta
• 60ml milk
• 125g raspberries

Method

Pre-heat the oven to Gas 4/180ºC/350ºF



Blend the eggs, sugar, oil, milk and ricotta





In a separate bowl, sift the flour, salt, baking powder and cocoa, then blend it into the wet mix



Mix in the raspberries by hand, reserving a few for the top



Pour into a greased tin [I used a 2lb loaf tin] and decorate on top with some reserved raspberries




Bake for 40 minutes, or until a skewer pushed into the cake comes out clean



Allow to cool and enjoy!

Rhubarb Scones

These easy scones are so moist from the rhubarb that they can be eaten without adding butter and jam. I've made them with fresh and frozen rhubarb. The fresh definitely works better as frozen rhubarb can be quite soggy once defrosted, but either way still tastes good.

I usually freeze most of the batch and take one out the night before. I find they actually taste better after a spell in the freezer.

Ingredients [makes about 12 medium sized scones]

• 4 stalks rhubarb
• 320g plain white flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 100g butter
• 100 granulated sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 250ml cream

Method

Preheat the oven to Gas 7/425F/220C

Slice rhubarb into small chunks and toss in a bowl with the sugar
Sieve the flour, baking powder and salt into a mixing bowl
Rub in the butter [I grate it in using a cheese grater and then use my finger tips to mix]
Mix in the rhubarb
Mix the cream and vanilla essence, add to the dough and mix using hands [quite messy] or a fork until you have a nice soft dough
Shape into scones and place on a lined baking tray








Bake for twenty minutes, allow to cool slightly and enjoy!

Autumn Breakfast: Homemade Brown Bread and Strawberry Jam

I can't think of a better breakfast for a lazy wet Autumn morning. I have frozen multiple unbaked batches of this bread. Take a portion out of the freezer the night before and next morning you are less than a hour away from fresh brown bread. It's a great way to get out of the habit of buying white sliced pan for that addictive but destructive toast!

Brown Bread

Ingredients

125g plain flour

1 heaped tsp bread soda

1 level tsp salt

350g whole wheat flour

30g bran

1 level tsp caster sugar

25g butter

150g natural yogurt

1 egg

Buttermilk

Method

Pre-heat the oven to Gas 7/220C/425F

Use a 2lb loaf tin lightly greased

Sieve the plain flour, bread soda and salt into a large mixing bowl.

Add the whole wheat flour, bran and sugar and mix thoroughly with your hands.

Rub in the butter.

Beat the yogurt and egg together and add enough buttermilk to make up to 425ml.

Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour in the milk mixture. Mix quickly with a fork.

Turn out onto a board or surface dusted with flour and knead lightly.

Shape and place into the tin and make three shallow cuts with a knife.

Bake in the pre-heated oven for 40 minutes, until risen and golden brown.

A cooked loaf will sound hollow when the bottom is tapped.

**If freezing, just prepare the bread up to stage of kneading. After this, I usually shape into a ball and put into a plastic sandwich/freezer bag and into the freezer. It can be re-shaped for the tin once defrosted**

Now that's the bread sorted, lets move onto the jam. The recipe I have chosen is from Pam Corbin's The River Cottage Preserves Handbook. It makes 4-5 340g jars.

Strawberry Jam

Ingredients

1kg strawberries with tops removed - larger ones may need to be halved or quartered

500g granulated sugar

450g jam sugar [has added pectin]

150ml lemon juice

Method

*Before you start, put a saucer in the fridge to allow to chill - this will be used to test for jam setting*

Put 200g of the strawberries in a pot with 200g of the granulated sugar

Crush to a pulp with a potato masher/fork

Place the pot on a gentle heat and when warm, add the rest of the strawberries

Gently heat to simmering point, stirring to the bottom of the pan so the fruit doesn't begin to stick

Simmer for five minutes to allow the fruit to soften a little

Add the remaining granulated sugar, and jam sugar and stir gently to prevent the sugar sticking and burning

When the sugar has dissolved, add the lemon juice

Increase the heat and when the mix has reached a full boil, boil rapidly for 8-9 minutes

Test for setting point by putting a little on the chilled saucer and pushing with your finger. If it crinkles, the jam is ready. If not, boil for a little longer, constantly checking for a set.

Remove from the heat and stir to disperse any scum that may have formed on the surface.

Pot into sterilised jars and seal. Use within twelve months.

The perfect couple....

Banana Bread

This sweet, moist loaf is extremely easy to make and a great way to use up over-ripened bananas. It is taken from the Ballymaloe Bread Book.

Ingredients

225g self raising flour

1/2 level teaspoon salt

110g butter

170g caster sugar

110g sultanas

25g chopped walnuts

100g glaze cherries halved

2 eggs

450g very ripe [black skinned] bananas

Method

Preheat the oven to gas 4/180C/350F

Grease and line a 2lb loaf tin

In a large mixing bowl, sieve the flour and salt.

Rub in the butter [I grate it in and then crumble with my fingers]

Stir in sugar, sultanas, walnuts and cherries

In a separate bowl, mash the bananas, add eggs, mix well and add to main bowl

Mix everything well until the consistency is soft and slightly runny

Pour into the tin and spread evenly

Bake for 1.5 hours in the centre of the oven.

DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN DOOR DURING THE COOKING TIME OR THE BREAD WILL COLLAPSE. 

Cool before removing from the tin and ENJOY

Apple and Cranberry Muffins

I was gifted a muffin recipe book for Christmas and it lay there unloved until recently, when I finally gave it some attention. I had fallen into the bad habit lately of buying a scone for my breakfast at Nash 19 in Cork city, and even though they are one of the best scones I've ever tasted, it was totaling almost €7 a week and was going against my do-it-yourself-as-much-as-possible ethos. So I paid particular attention to the breakfast muffins chapter of the book and tried out the following recipe. The result was a lovely moist and sticky cake that tasted great even after freezing and thawing:

Apple and Cranberry Muffins

Ingredients [makes 6 mini loaves]:

1 egg

50g butter melted

100g caster sugar

Grated rind of one large orange

Juice of that orange

140g plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/5 tsp ground cinnamon

1/5 tsp grated nutmeg

1/5 tsp ground allspice

Pinch ground ginger

Pinch salt

2 small eating apples peeled, cored and finely chopped

170g cranberries [I used dried]

55g chopped walnuts

Method

Preheat the oven to Gas 4/180/350 and grease and line muffin tin

In a bowl, whisk the egg with the melted butter. Add sugar,orange rind and juice. Whisk to blend and set aside.

In a large bowl, sift the flour, baking powder and spices and salt.

Make a well in centre and add the egg mixture, and softly blend with a spoon.

Add the apples, cranberries and walnuts and mix lightly.

Three quarter fill your tins

Bake for 30 mins or until golden brown, and leave to cool before removing. Enjoy!

Seasonal Pie: Rhubarb and Blackberry

Following the fabulous summer we had, fruit harvests are bountiful and beautiful and if you know the right people, there are plenty of freebies to be had from people with a glut of produce. So I've had plenty of rhubarb given to me to compliment the blackberries that can be found almost anywhere.

So today I made a pie.

Pastry

225g butter

50g castor sugar

2 eggs

300g white flour

Cream the sugar and butter by hand. Add the eggs and beat together for a few minutes. Add the flour and combine until you have a nice ball of firm pastry. Chill in the fridge for at least two hours.

Filling

As much blackberries and chopped rhubarb as you can fit!

Sugar [completely personal choice - I prefer a tart taste so added about 150g]

Pie

Preheat the oven to 180C/370F/Gas 4

Divide your chilled pastry in half, and line your pie tin with one rolled half and fill with fruit

Sprinkle with sugar

Roll the second half and cover your pie

Rub a dash of milk on top, sprinkle with sugar and cook for 45 mins - 1 hour

EAT ALL THE PIE!!!!!!!

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

These intense and crumbly cookies will satisfy even the strongest chocolate craving.

Ingredients

• 150g dark chocolate
• 150g plain flour
• 30g cocoa powder
• 1 tsp bread soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 125g soft butter
• 75g brown sugar
• 50g white granulated sugar
• 1 egg beaten
• 125g chopped milk chocolate

Method

• Pre-heat the oven to gas 3/170C/325F
• Melt the dark chocolate over boiling water
• Cream the butter and sugar together in a bowl
• Mix in the melted chocolate and beaten egg
• In a separate bowl, sieve together the flour, cocoa, bread soda and salt
• Combine both mixes and stir through the chopped chocolate

On baking trays covered with greaseproof paper, divide the mix into 18 rounds, allowing room to spread

Bake for twenty minutes, allow to cool and enjoy!