PIneapple Whip with Longans, Toasted Almonds, and Wafer Cookie
It’s been just too hot to cook or even bake. It’s been so hot I haven’t needed to bring butter to room temperature for creaming. I just put it straight from the fridge in the mixing bowl and let Gracie (my Kitchenaid mixer has a nickname) aerate the butter! The temperatures here in Thailand have been in the 40s as mid-summer scorches on. We’re in the middle of a drought, too.
So when I came across this recipe in Detoxinista for whipped pineapple, it sounded so cool and refreshing, and since fresh pineapple is no trouble at all here–I decided to give it a try. All you need is one whole fresh pineapple, cored and chopped. Freeze the pineapple. Put frozen pineapple with a cup of whole milk (you can substitute non-dairy milk), and honey to taste in a food processor. Process the ingredients until smooth and eat at once. I liked it with little bits of pineapple still in it. It didn’t come out as yellow as Detoxinista’s, probably because of the whole milk (and it’s melting already!) but it had a wonderful sweet-tart flavor of fresh pineapple.
No dome, no crisp edges, even browning and baking all over! So easy to use–just soak a strip in water then pin it around the sides of the cake pan, pop it in the oven, and wait for cake. Today, I made a Cocoa Layer Cake for Lek’s birthday.
170g or 3/4 cup butter at 60˚F
281g caster sugar or 250g (1 1/4 cups) granulated sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
150g or 1 1/2 cups cake flour
4 oz or 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (volume)
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk
Preheat oven to 350˚F/180˚C. Butter and flour two 9 inch round cake pans.
Cake Baker’s Notes: To prepare the pans I melted 1 tablespoon butter and mixed in 1 tablespoon flour. I brushed this mixture all over the bottom and sides of the pans. You can also use two 8 inch round pans or one 13×9 inch oblong cake pan.
In a large bowl, beat butter 10 seconds on medium high speed. Scrape down the bowl. On medium speed, gradually add sugar (1 minute). Increase speed to medium high and continue beating 5 minutes or until light and fluffy. Scrape down the bowl once halfway through. Slowly (1-1 1/2 minutes) beat in eggs and vanilla until blended.
Sift flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl. Add flour mixture to egg mixture alternately with milk, starting and ending with flour. Beat until blended. Pour batter into prepared pans. Gently tap on the counter-top to eliminate air bubbles. Smooth tops.
Bake in preheated oven 25-35 minutes or until the centers spring back when lightly pressed. Cool in pans on wire racks 5 minutes. Remove from pans. Cool completely on wire racks. Fill and frost as desired. I recommend half a recipe of Ina Garten’s chocolate buttercream frosting.
It’s mango season, and our backdoor neighbors had given us 6 green mangoes from their tree. I decided to ripen them in a paper bag with a large apple. It took about 3 days for them to turn a greenish yellow. At that point I decided they were ripe enough and began preparations to make chutney. Then I found I’d forgotten to get raisins so I substituted dried cranberries instead. The chutney did not set after the 20 minutes stated in the recipe. I increased the cooking time in 20 minute increments then checked that the chutney had set. Altogether it took an hour. The result is sweet yet tart with an interesting top note of curry. If I made this again I would reduce the curry powder by half or leave it out altogether.
3 medium apples, peeled, cored and chopped
4-5 medium half-ripe mangoes, peeled and chopped
1/2 medium sweet red pepper, chopped (optional)
1 1/2 cups (375 ml) granulated sugar
1 cup (250 ml) finely chopped onion
1/2 cup (125 ml) golden raisins (I used dried cranberries)
1/2 cup (125 ml) white vinegar
1/4 cup (50 ml) ginger root, finely chopped
1 tablespoon (15 ml) lemon juice
2 teaspoons (10 ml) curry powder
1/2 teaspoon (2 ml) each: ground nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt
1. Pour hot water into half-pint (250 ml) jars and put lids in a pan and cover with hot water. Set aside.
2. Combine apples, mangoes, red pepper (if using), sugar, onion, raisins, vinegar and ginger root in a large pan. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce heat to simmer and boil gently, uncovered, for 20 minutes or until fruit is tender and mixture is reduced and thickened, stirring occasionally.
Cook’s Note: It took 1 hour for the liquid in the chutney to reduce and thicken. Apple is a natural pectin so it takes time to set the chutney. To check that the chutney has set, put 2 or 3 metal tablespoons in the freezer. Take one out and dribble some liquid on the surface. Draw your finger through it. If it leaves a track, then the chutney is set. If the liquid runs back together, it needs to cook some more.
3. Add lemon juice, curry powder, nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt; boil gently for 5 minutes.
4. Pour out hot water from the jars and ladle chutney into jars to within 1/2 inch (1 cm) of the rim (this is head space). Screw the lids on tight. Eat within a week or freeze until ready to eat.
Serving Suggestions:
accompaniment for Jamaican curry lamb, roast chicken, and pork roast
Roast Chicken, Roasted Vegetables, Salad and Mango-Apple-Cranberry Chutney
This is a cool treat on a hot summer day: freezer banana cream pie with whisky sugar topping. It’s sweet and crunchy but also cold and refreshing. Creamed frozen banana is like eating ice cream–it’s smooth with that melt-in-the-mouth feel.
Freezer Banana Cream Pie (adapted from Shine Food and Everyday Food)
For the base:
1 1/2 cups crushed digestive biscuit crumbs (can use graham crackers)
1/4 cup butter, melted
For the filling:
3 small-medium bananas
1/3 cup condensed milk
1/4 teaspoon Maldon sea salt or coarse salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup heavy cream whipped until stiff peaks form
For the topping:
3 small-medium bananas, sliced
Whisky sugar or plain demerara sugar for sprinkling
1. In a 9-inch pie plate, mix the crumbs and butter. Press into the bottom and sides of the dish. Bake in a 350˚F/180˚C oven for 12 minutes. Set aside to cool.
2. In the work bowl of a food processor, process the bananas, condensed milk, salt, and vanilla. Fold in the heavy cream. Pour into the cooled crumb base.
Freeze 12 hours.
3. Layer the sliced bananas on top of the frozen filling. Sprinkle whisky sugar on top or just plain demerara sugar. Slice and serve. Keep leftovers in the freezer.
Foodie Joanie 