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+ Making Whoopie !! (18/04/2010 - 14:59:50)
Making Whoopie !!
According to the newspapers & TV, the craze for cupcakes is over. No longer will people be eating these very pretty to look at but often over-sweet confections.
So, you may ask, how should I satisfy those cakey cravings?
The answer is -- the whoopie pie!!
Despite its name, the whoopie is not a pie - no pastry is involved at all. It consists of two cakey-biscuity rounds, sandwiched together with buttercream.
As I was on the lookout for new items to add to my Farmer's Market Stall, I decided to give them a try this weekend. They sold pretty well -- many people having seen them on TV during the week and so recognised the name.
The recipe said it made 6 large (ie cereal-bowl sized) whoopies. I decided to make them a bit smaller, so I got 9 whoopies about 3 - 4 inches out of the mixture:
So, you may ask, how should I satisfy those cakey cravings?
The answer is -- the whoopie pie!!
Despite its name, the whoopie is not a pie - no pastry is involved at all. It consists of two cakey-biscuity rounds, sandwiched together with buttercream.
As I was on the lookout for new items to add to my Farmer's Market Stall, I decided to give them a try this weekend. They sold pretty well -- many people having seen them on TV during the week and so recognised the name.
The recipe said it made 6 large (ie cereal-bowl sized) whoopies. I decided to make them a bit smaller, so I got 9 whoopies about 3 - 4 inches out of the mixture:
the unbaked mixture
they spread a bit in the oven -- next time I might use some of my jumbo muffin cases to keep them nice and round!
However, once sandwiched with buttercream, they didn't look too bad! And tasted even better !:)
My first batch followed the recipe and so were a chocolate "pie" with vanilla buttercream, but they lend themselves well to many combinations of flavours. I am thinking of a lavender pie with lemon buttercream for the summer -- or maybe strawberries & cream for the Wimbledon fortnight!
Posted @ 14:59:50 on 18 April 2010 back to top
Autumn - a busy time in the kitchen
Autumn -- when all the fruits ripen -- is a busy time for keen makers of preserves. I pity the cooks of long ago for whom a good harvest meant long hot days stirring pans of boiling fruit to make delicious additions to the winter diet. Nowadays the use of freezers means that the cooking can be spread over the many weeks or months to come. But even so, the best preserves are made with fresh fruit as soon after picking as possible.
So what have I been busy with? First came a trio of apple-based jellies:
Jelly making is a time consuming task -- but the resulting beautifull clear jars of jelly are almost an art exhibit in themselves! First many pounds of apples ( I had 23 lbs to deal with!) are boiled with water and then strained through a jelly bag or fine muslin -- the finer the bag the longer the straining will take but the clearer the end result!
Then the juice is boiled up with sugar and the flavourings added. This year I made the ever-popular mint jelly plus two more spicy varieties -- ginger and chilli. The chilli in particular came out a bit hotter than I intended -- a little will go a long way with this one!
Potting the jelly has to be judged carefully -- too soon and the flavourings will float to the top, too late and the jelly has set too much to flow into the jars evenly and is too cool to acheive a proper seal when the lids are tightened. When just right you have a lovely clear jelly with the flavourings suspended evenly throughout the jar.
Next came some Victoria Plum Jam.
Victoria plums - a lovely orangy red variety - are a favourite tree in many cottager gardens and are a lovely versatile plum. They are just as nice eaten raw as cooked in a multitude of different ways. I made mine into the ever popular jam:
Posted @ 10:35:18 on 14 September 2009 back to top
