Chocolate Heaven Cake (piled high with summer berries)

Ooooh! What a delight this cake is!

Sometimes I'll make a cake and it does exactly what I expect. It's comforting or tasty or pretty etc... and serves it's purpose. Then occasionally, I'll play around with a recipe and something really special comes out of it. I can always tell when this happens because it gets consumed very quickly, without thought of greediness or calories or even fullness, because people seem to like it so much!!

This is one of those happy accidents.

A flourless chocolate cake, inspired by the delightful recipe of Sophie Dahl, who I believe was inspired in turn by the Chocolate Nemesis cake at The River Cake (yet to go there to eat but desperate to!!). I've made some feedahappylife alterations with a strawberry cream rather than creme fraiche, slightly less chocolate and the removal of the coffee from the ingredients.

Please, please, please make this at some point!! You wont be disappointed!

Chocolate Heaven Cake (piled high with summer berries)

Ingredients

• 200g best dark chocolate
• 250ml double cream
• 400g frozen berries (defrosted)
• 200g fresh strawberries
• 140g caster sugar
• 4 eggs (separated)
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp strawberry conserve

Step 1: Preheat oven to 180c/ GM 4 and butter and line a cake tin (medium size - suggest 20cm - also suggest springform due to delicateness of cooked cake)

Step 2: Use a food processor to create a powder out of the chocolate and caster sugar. Add 120ml of boiling water and stir through. Then add the egg yolks and vanilla extract and stir to combine.

Step 3: Whisk the egg whites and then fold into the chocolate mixture.

Step 4: Pour into the cake tin and back for 50 minutes (test with a skewer). The top will be cracked.

Step 5: Allow the cake to cool for about 45 minutes and then fridge

Step 6: Before you need to serve, whip your cream until thick and stir through your strawberry conserve. Spoon the cream over the chocolate cake.

Step 7: Drain the frozen berries and mix with the fresh strawberries. Tumble over the cream and pile up in the centre

Step 8: Serve and slice your cake to hungry friends!

Enjoy!
Helen

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Strawberries, cream and crunch!

British strawberry season is in full swing and supermarkets are bursting with half-price berries. I often grab these berry-bargains, only to get home and think what do I do with them?!

They generally end-up in muesli or fruit salad, missing out on their dessert potential.

Strawberries are a pretty unique fruit...

• the only fruit with seeds on the outside (200 on average)
• a member of the rose family
• used in medieval times to symbolise purity and prosperity
• splitting a double strawberry and sharing it with someone from the opposite sex will make them fall in love with you for life (I think this may be folk lore!!)

..given this, they really do deserve special treatment some times, and this dish is for those times! I've chosen to serve my strawberries with ice cream and black pepper shortbread. The warmth of the pepper complements the flavours and the mix of textures is a nice touch too.

Once you've made the shortbread (which you can do 24 hours in advance), it's quick and easy to plate this up. Great for a summer dessert in the garden. If you're feeling really adventurous, you can make your own ice cream too, but on this occasion I've gone for shop bought...

Strawberry, Ice Cream and Black Pepper Shortbread (Serves 4)

Peppered Shortbread

• 60g plain flour
• ¼ tsp baking powder
• ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda
• ½ tsp all spice
• pinch of salt
• 30g butter
• 25g sugar
• 10ml double cream
• 1 tsp coarsely ground black pepper

Filling

• Strawberry Ice Cream (I used Carte D'or Strawberry Delice - low fat!)
• Strawberries (sliced - about 3 strawberries per serving needed)

Step 1: Preheat oven to 160c

Step 2: Cream the butter and sugar in a food mixer


Step 3: Mix flour, bicarbonate, baking powder, pepper, salt and allspice in a bowl

Step 4: Add cream and butter mix to dry ingredients and mix to form a dough

Step 5: Roll into a log, wrap in clingfilm and chill for 30 minutes

Step 6: After chilling time, roll out onto a lightly floured surface about 0.5cm thick. Use a pastry cutter to create 8 rounds

Step 7: Place the shortbread onto a lined baking tray in the oven for 15 minutes. Remove and leave to cool

Step 8: Assemble dessert. Take one shortbread and scoop the ice cream on top. Sandwich together with a round of shortbread on top and place the sliced strawberries around the edge

The final step is a little fiddly and you'll need to move quickly to stop the ice cream melting. I'll be making this lots moving until the strawberry season is done!

Hope you enjoy,
Helen x

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Basil Ice Cream & Elderflower Spiked Strawberries!

It may not surprise you to know that I am an avid food magazine reader. I buy about 5 a month, read them front to back, back to front and then rip pages out of everything that tempts me to try.

I have a big folder bulging with these ripped out bits of paper. They are also spread around the kitchen, in various handbags, almost everywhere in my house in fact! Whilst I love and treasure my cookbooks for classics, I think magazines are great for focusing recipes on seasonal food and popular dishes.

Right now, it would appear that homemade ice cream is the dish du jour! I have held back from buying an ice cream machine as my kitchen is already bursting at the seams with cooking equipment (and aforementioned bits of paper). So, it's been a relief that many of the recipes have included instructions for making it without one. I've tried a few different recipes now (see Lemon and Rosemary ice cream on earlier post) and they've all worked really well.

I was intrigued by a recipe in Delicious magazine for basil ice cream. I've never tried this before and love the fragrant herb in savory dishes so a sweet dish seemed like a great alternative. I served it with fresh British strawberries, which I'd soaked in my new Elderflower liquor (read about this on the July Love List).

The recipe is really easy to follow, but I'd advise making it 24 hours before you need it so it freezes fully. Once the ice cream has been made, you can easily serve this as a quick, crowd pleasing dessert for several people without much hassle at all.

Elegant, British and intriguing - a great summer dessert!

Basil Ice Cream with Elderflower Spiked Strawberries (serves 6 - 8)

50g basil leaves
330g caster sugar
170g mascarpone
830g Greek yoghurt
1 punnet strawberries
1 bottle Elderflower liquor or cordial (optional)

Step 1: Chop your strawberries and leave to marinade in a good splash of elderflower liquor/cordial

Step 2: Place basil leaves in food processor with the caster sugar and pulse under a paste has formed

Step 3: Add the mascarpone and yoghurt and pulse to combine

Step 4: Pour into dish/tub and place in freezer. Remove after 90 minutes and stir briskly with a fork (this removes any ice crystals and ensures you end up with a super smooth ice cream). Repeat this twice more after 90 minute periods.

Step 5: Spoon your beautiful ice cream into bowl, top with your strawberries and serve!

Hope you enjoy!
Helen x

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