Chocolate Pudding Pots

Welcome to the Enchanted Stove where everyday the stove top is full of delicious things to eat. Let's cook something magical. The recipes on this blog have been tested in my kitchen.

Chocolate Pudding Pots

A healthy, creamy chocolate pudding made with 2% fat milk.
 These pudding pots are a easy to make.  As a kid I remember buying those boxes of Jell-O pudding mixes.  This is a microweable alternative using cornstarch, sugar, cocoa and 2% fat milk.  Chocolate pudding is the ideal comfort food.  I make them in 1/4 pint jelly moulds that I bought from Lakeland.


_____________________________________________________________________________

                                   Chocolate Pudding Pots

Minutes to Prepare: 5

Minutes to Cook: 6

Number of Servings: 3

Ingredients

1/2 cup grandualted sugar
2 1/2 TBS corn flour
3 TBS cocoa
2 cups 2% fat milk
1 teaspoon Vanilla extract

Directions

Into a microwaveable bowl mix all dry ingredients. Pour in milk and vanilla. Microwave on high for six to 10 minutes, stirring half way through the cooking time until pudding thickens. Pour pudding in individual 1/2 cup custard dishes. Refrigerate.

Serving Size: 1/2 cup

Tips

Each microwave is different. I have an 800 Watt microwave; I stir pudding at 1 minute intervals. It is done in six minutes in an 800 Watt microwave.

Nutrition Facts
Servings Per Recipe: 3
Serving Size: 1 serving
Amount Per Serving
Calories		231.1
Total Fat		3.5 g
	Saturated Fat	1.7 g
	Polyunsaturated Fat	0.0 g
	Monounsaturated Fat	0.1 g
Cholesterol		11.4 mg
Sodium		83.6 mg
Potassium		258.7 mg
Total Carbohydrate		43.4 g
	Dietary Fiber	0.0 g
	Sugars	35.1 g
Protein		5.5 g

Vitamin A	5.3 %
Vitamin B-12	0.0 %
Vitamin B-6	0.0 %
Vitamin C	0.5 %
Vitamin D	14.3 %
Vitamin E	0.0 %
Calcium	16.3 %
Copper	0.1 %
Folate	0.0 %
Iron	0.4 %
Magnesium	0.1 %
Manganese	0.9 %
Niacin	0.1 %
Pantothenic Acid	0.0 %
Phosphorus	0.2 %
Riboflavin	0.2 %
Selenium	0.0 %
Thiamin	0.0 %
Zinc	0.1 %

Jenny Colgan's Lemon ' Getting What you Want ' Cake

Welcome to the Enchanted Stove where everyday the stove top is full of delicious things to eat. Let's cook something magical. The recipes on this blog have been tested in my kitchen.

Jenny Colgan’s Lemon ‘Getting- what- you- want’ Cake

    Midway into JennyColgan’s book, MeetMe at the Cupcake Cafe, I ran across a delightful recipe.  The title of the recipe caught my attention.  It was a recipe for ‘Lemon ‘Get what you want’ cake that appeared in one of the chapters.  Most of the chapters of the book start off with a recipe. This particular recipe caught my eye.  I decided to give it a whirl.  It’s not a particularly pretty cake to look at, but let me tell you, in the taste department, it really packs a punch.    I don’t guarantee that you’ll always get what you want after serving this cake, but you will certainly make your guests happy.  There will not be anything left of this cake when you serve it.

Lemon ‘Get what you Want Cake’.

  The book’s main character, Issy Randall, has been made redundant from her city job and loses her boyfriend, Graeme, in the process.  She loves baking so she came up with the idea of opening her own Cupcake Cafe.  After presenting her idea to her bank manager, Austin, to persuade him to lend her the money to open up her own Cafe in Stoking Newton, Issy opens up the cafe of her dreams. She finds the business a bit challenging but meets very interesting people and in the end gains a new relationship.  Read my review of the book here:  My Review of Meet me at the CupcakeCafe.

Jenny Colgan’s  Lemon'Getting- what- you- want’ Cake
Ingredients		Notes  This cake is mentioned in Jenny Colgan’s book, ‘Meet me at the Cupcake Cafe’.
For the cake 4 ounces sifted self rising flour 4 ounces unflavoured butter 4 ounces sugar 2 whole eggs 1 teaspoon baking powder Juice of 1 lemon Zest of 1 lemon     For the glaze 4 ounces confectioner’s (icing) sugar Juice of half a lemon 2 TBS water	softened	Cooking Time: 20-35 minutes	Prep Time 10 minutes
			Ready in: 30 to 45 minutes
Method
1.       Preheat the oven to 180 C. 2.       Grease and line a 9 inch loaf tin. 3.       In a mixing bowl combine sifted flour, baking powder and lemon zest. 4.       In a separate mixing bowl mix butter, sugar, lemon juice and eggs.  Using an electric mixer beat the wet ingredients well. 5.       Gradually add the sifted flour mix into the wet ingredients. Beat well but don’t over mix. 6.       Pour batter into the prepared tin. 7.       *Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes or until golden brown.  You’ll know when it’s done when you insert a cake tester or toothpick and it comes out clean. 8.       Make the icing/glaze:  Into a mixing bowl add l lemon juice, 2 TBS water and icing sugar.  Mix well. 9.       Remove cake from oven.  While cake is still warm, pour icing/glaze over it. Let cool completely before serving.
		Additional notes
		*Ovens do vary.  The original recipe says to bake for 20 minutes.  My oven, which is a fan oven, baked the cake in 35 to 40 minutes.  It’s a good idea to bake the cake as indicated in Jenny’s book and see if it’s done; then if it isn’t, bake a further 10 minutes, then check again.  The cake should be golden and spring back when touched. The centre should be firm, not wobbly. I added the juice of 2 lemons because I like mine lemony.  I also like my cakes sweeter, so I put in an extra 2 ounces of sugar in the cake mix and an extra 2 ounces of icing sugar for the icing/glaze.  (I have a renowened sweet tooth). To prevent cake from burning cover the tin with foil for the first 10 minutes; then uncover and bake for the additional cooking time stated in the recipe.

Today's Breakfast

Welcome to the Enchanted Stove where everyday the stove top is full of delicious things to eat. Let's cook something magical.The recipes on this blog have been tested in my kitchen.

Egg in the Basket with bacon

Java

 

Welcome to the Enchanted Stove where everyday the stove top is full of delicious things to eat. Let's cook something magical.The recipes on this blog have been tested in my kitchen.

Flan (Cream Caramel)

Welcome to the Enchanted Stove where everyday the stove top is full of delicious things to eat. Let's cook something magical. The recipes on this blog have been tested in my kitchen.

             Flan (Crème Caramel)

M

Y  Mother was the Queen of  Flan. She used to make it for every occasion at our place.  She even began to make it upon request by the neighbours.  I wondered why she never thought to sell her flans or start her own franchise.........she could have made a fortune; Although, my Dad often jested that the quality ingredients she uses and the slices she serves she would lose out on the profits.  For Mom always cut thick slices of flan for my Father and I and would use the finest ingredients she could get, always using up to 12 free range eggs  per flan and used Carnation® Evaporated milk, Carnation® Sweetened condensed milk and 8 ounces of fresh whole milk....and the finest vanilla essence she could find.  This was just to make the egg custard for the flan.  She made her caramel with granulated sugar and same ratio of water as sugar.

F

Lan has been around for centuries.  The dish was first found in ancient Rome.  The Romans used eggs to make custard-like savoury dish which was baked.  The Romans loved eel flan. They learned to make sweet flan as well which they sweetened with honey and sprinkled, not with sugar, but with none other than....pepper! Spain later adopted the Roman egg custard dish, using caramelized sugar as a base topping for the custard. This was the birth of the modern flan. 

F

lan, in the British connotation of the word means a sweet or savoury pastry case used to fill with whipped cream, strawberries and other fruits.  To the British, what Spain calls Flan is known as Crème Caramel.   The French use both the pastry case and egg custard meaning of the word flan, baking their egg custard in little moulds in a Bain Marie.

F

rom Spain and throughout Europe the idea of this sweet decadent dessert travelled to the Americas and Caribbean.  In my parents’ native country of Cuba, there is a mirage of ways of making flan.  Some Cuban cooks make chocolate flan, other Cuban cooks make pumpkin flan, coconut flan, coffee flan, and even one flavoured with orange.

T

he word flan evolved from the old French word, Flaoun which they adopted from the Latin ‘Fladon’, which means ‘custard’.

                                                    Flan

Ingredients

4 whole eggs

2 egg yolks

2 egg whites

1 can (8oz) evaporated milk

1 can (8 oz) sweetened condensed milk

8 oz whole milk (You can substitute skim milk)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 US cup (8 ounces) granulated sugar

1 cup water

1.      Method Make the crème caramel. In a heavy-bottomed saucepan pour the cup of sugar and water over high heat. Let the sugar caramelize and turn a lovely amber colour, for about twenty minutes. Don't let it burn.  Shake the pan from side to side occasionally, but be careful not to burn yourself for the mixture can get extremely hot.

2.      Have ready a deep Pyrex dish ready; alternatively, you can use small glass ramekin dishes for individual flans.  Once the crème caramel sauce is done remove from heat and (VERY QUICKLY) pour the sauce into the Pyrex dish or individual ramekin dishes.

3.      In a large bowl pour the evaporated, sweetened condensed milk and whole milk and stir to combine.  Add  the eggs and the vanilla. With an electric beater beat this mixture until well combined.  Pour the mixture into the prepared Pyrex or individual ramekins. 

4.      Prepare a Bain Marie.  Get a large roasting pan and place the Pyrex (or ramekins) in this pan. Pour enough water till the water comes about 1 inch from the sides of the Pyrex/ramekins.

5.      Bake in oven for 2 hours if making a large flan or 55 minutes respectably if making individual ramekins.

6.      Once the flan is cooked remove from oven and let cool for 15 minutes...then refrigerate for at least 2 hours or preferably overnight. 

7.      Once the flan has set in the fridge you want to unmold it.  To do this first run a butter knife around the perimetres of the flan to loosen it.  Give the mold a gentle shake.  Carefully put a serving platter over the Pyrex/ramekins and with one fast move invert the plate so that the flan is resting on the plate and the Pyrex/ramekin is on top.  Let the melted caramel sauce drip unto the platter.

Welcome to the Enchanted Stove where everyday the stove top is full of delicious things to eat. Let's cook something magical. The recipes on this blog have been tested in my kitchen.

Marshmallows
Ingredients		Notes
3 sachets Dr Oetker unflavoured gelatine 2 cups granulated sugar 4 cups icing sugar 1/4 cup water 157mils (2/3 cups) Dr Oetker liquid glucose (Corn syrup) ½ cup of water (to rehydrate gelatine) Red food colouring (This is optional) 1 teaspoon vanilla extract		Cooking Time:	Prep Time
			Ready in:
Method
Have all ingredients ready. You’ll need a 9inchx9inch square pan lined with parchment or wax paper sprinkled with icing sugar, a candy thermometer, mixing balls, a large 4qt pan, an electric mixer and some spatulas. 1. Prepare equal amounts of cornstarch and icing sugar into a bowl. Set aside. 2. Pour gelatine into a mixing bowl. Add ½ water. Give it a stir and set aside. 3. Combine 2 cups of granulated sugar, 1/4 cup water and 2/3 cups corn syrup in a small saucepan. 4. Bring mixture to a boil. Insert candy thermometer and let it register 244ᴼF. 5. Immediately remove from heat and pour sugar mixture into the gelatine mixture. Add a pinch of salt Mix thoroughly for about fifteen minutes. 6. Once mixture is fluffy, add vanilla extract and food colouring. Pour the mixture onto the prepared square tin. 7. Leave to set overnight at room temperature. In the morning, once set, cut into squares. Dip the squares of Marshmallows in 4 cups of icing sugar and place in a container.
		Additional notes
		Tip: It’s a good idea to oil spatula, spoon and hands to smooth the marshmallow fluff in the pan. To cut your marshmallows into squares you can use a pizza cutter or large kitchen scissors. I find these tools great to cut marshmallows, especially the scissors. Marshmallows make a wonderful gift. You can also use cookie cutters to cut the marshmallows into all sorts of whimsical shapes.

Marshmallow facts:
Did you know that Marshmallow is actually a plant? No? Well it actually is. The scientific name for the marshmallow plant is Althea Officianalis, a plant that originated from Africa. The plant was mainly used for medicinal purposes. The plant was a great anti-inflammatory. The Egyptians used the roots of the plant to make a confection in medieval times that led to our modern day Marshmallow.
Leave it to the French in the 19^th century to come up with this fluffy confection we now call Marshmallow. The French made the first Marshmallow as a throat lozenge that resembled a bon-bon. French cooks used the fluffy root extract of the Althea Officianalis plant and combined it with egg yolks and sugar to make a pasty, fluffy confection. In later years French cooks replaced the plant roots and used gelatine instead. Thus, the modern-day Marshmallow—that soft, fluffy, ‘melt-in-your-mouth’ confection we have grown to love was born. In 1917 Marshmallow crème was invented by Archibald Quakery

who sold his recipe to two confectionary makers in Massachusetts. Marshmallow Fluff, the first stage in the life of a Marshmallow, was invented in 1920 in Massachusetts and sold in glass jars.
The Moon Pie, a chocolate-covered graham cookie with marshmallow fluff in the middle, was invented in the 1925 and helped to glamorise Marshmallows. The Fluffer nutter sandwich was invented in 1925 along with the invention of Marshmallow Fluff. This sandwich consisted of two whole wheat slices of bread. One slice is  topped with peanut butter and the other with Marshmallow Fluff. It wasn’t until the 1960’s, however, that the Fluffer nutter spread like wildfire amongst the people of the United States.