Gluten Free Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Torte

Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Torte
Serves 6 to 12 (6 large slices or 12 thin slices)

1 Tbs fresh espresso shot, or 1 Tbs instant coffee
1 Tbs greek yoghurt
1/3 cup raw caster sugar
1/2 cup (100g) 70% chocolate, finely chopped (I use Whittaker's 72% Ghana Chocolate)
1 vanilla bean, split lengthways and seeds scraped
50g unsalted butter
3 large (59g) eggs, separated
1/2 cup hazelnuts
1 Tbs Dutch cocoa

Preheat oven to 170C (340F). Line the bottom of a 22 cm (8-inch) springform cake pan with a piece of parchment paper and grease the sides with butter.

Combine the first six ingredients together in a medium heatproof/stainless steel bowl. Place the bowl over a pot of simmering water, turn off the heat. The water should not touch the bottom of the bowl. Stir until all ingredients melt together. Remove the bowl from the pot. Remove the vanilla bean and set aside to cool slightly.

Pulse to roughly ground the hazelnuts in a food processor. Toast the ground hazelnuts in a dry pan over medium heat, tossing several times to evenly toast. Once the nuts have turned golden brown, add to the chocolate mixture with the three egg yolks, blend.

Whip the egg whites in a clean bowl until soft peaks form, sift Dutch cocoa over the egg whites and gently fold to combine. Whisk a third of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture, then gently fold the remaining egg whites into the chocolate mixture to prevent it deflating too much. It will be a thick mixture, and should not contain any streaks or lumps of the egg whites. Spoon into your prepared tin and bake for 20 to 25 minutes. The centre will be brownie-like, and a skewer inserted into the centre should come out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before carefully turning out on a wire rack. I use a plate lined with parchment paper to remove the torte from the pan, then place a wire rack on the base to invert the torte right-side-up.

You may opt to serve it upside down as the base of the torte will be smoother, however I like to serve the torte right-side-up and sprinkled with dutch cocoa. Store in the refrigerator, wrapped in plastic. This torte will become moister as it sits and may be made a day in advance.

This recipe can easily be doubled to produce a higher torte. The cooking time can be increased by 20 to 25 minutes, but watch your torte to make sure it doesn't burn. I've made two separate tortes before and layered freshly whipped cream and fresh blueberries and raspberries between the two to create an impressive cake. You are only limited by your imagination. This torte is delicious served with coffee or traditional chai tea.

Moist, bittersweet, decadent dark chocolate with hazelnuts and dutch cocoa. The perfect chocolate torte to celebrate his birthday.

Love Bella xx

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How to French a Cake

I baked a gluten free carrot and almond cake late last week. Nutmeg and cinnamon aromas swirled around my kitchen as it baked and twice I had to prevent myself from opening the oven too soon because it smelled so yummy.

Fast forward a day or two and gluten free cakes can begin to lose their freshness. When it's just the two of us here, it can be a marathon effort to get through everything that I bake. It's not just that I love sweets, but that I love to prepare all kinds of treats for the joy baking brings me.

The gentle shh-shh-shh as I sift my gluten flours into a deep bowl, the crack of eggshells, the sizzle of a block of bubbling butter in a hot skillet, the satisfaction and work out I used to get from hand beating egg whites with a piano wire whisk until they formed peaks of pearly white glossy meringue. So that last one may have been updated since Santa my mother gifted us with a beautiful Empire Red KitchenAid this Christmas (grinning merrily as I type this). Never fear, I still exercise regularly!

I love the aromas of whatever muffin, cookie, cake, tart or other gluten free treasure I am baking in my small oven. I love the anticipation I feel when my oven timer buzzes, signally my tall frame to stoop down low, open my oven door and gaze inside to pull out said baked treasure using my Donald Duck and Mickey Mouse oven mitt covered hands. The oven mitts were a gift from my mother from our trip to Disneyland in Anaheim when I was 11 years old, talk about a perfect gift!

I love the sense of pride I feel when glazing a cake with zesty citrus drizzle or dusting a tea cake with cinnamon sugar.

But of all the things I love about baking, the things that tops my list is sharing it with friends and family.

What really irks me is having excess that may go to waste. When my gluten free carrot and almond cake began to lose it's magic, I decided to French it.

I woke up early, slipped into my cotton gown (the light summery blue one with the tropical parrots that Mum used to wear when I was barely tall enough to reach her hips) and floated downstairs where I calmly took out my long shiny, sharp kitchen knife and butchered my poor cake.

French Cake

1-2 day old cake that has lost it's freshness (the whole thing or whatever is leftover)
2 large free range eggs
3 Tbs milk
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
Olive oil (be generous)
2 small, sweet bananas
Maple syrup to drizzle

Cut your cake into large rectangular chunks, as thick as cafe style toast slices. Beat the eggs, milk, and spices into a wide-bottom bowl until the eggs have broken up, do not over beat.

Heat a generous glug of olive oil in a skillet or cast iron pan over medium heat. Don't be modest, the oil is the key to enjoying this recipe and you have the entire day to exercise after breakfast. Breakfast is a Guilt-Free zone!

Press the cake chunks into the eggy mixture, allowing each piece to soak up some of the liquid but taking care not to break up the cake pieces. Slide each chunk into your pan and listen as it bubbles and hisses. Delicious. Turn the cake over once the eggy mixture has turned slightly golden and cook the other side, taking care not to burn it.

Serve with slices of fresh banana and a drizzle of maple syrup. Savour the last of your cake, which by now is revived à la French Toast style and ready to be devoured.

That's how you French a cake.

Bella xx

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Orange and Polenta Cake with Glögg

Our friends Christophe and Heli came to visit this past week. They were driving south to the city after spending Christmas along the north coast and stopped in overnight to break up the gruelling ten hour drive.

When they pulled into the driveway I was in the process of removing a moist orange, almond and polenta cake from the oven. I then greeted them outside on the grassy lawn and as they hauled their overnight bags inside they were met with my citrus infused kitchen and one seriously excited puppy.

We went surfing for a couple of hours and Christophe was helpful in pushing me onto some of the waves as I'm not very skilled when it comes to paddling onto my own. Byron and I are enjoying surfing and I was pleased B could join us as he'd only just arrived home following a 14 hour non-stop direct flight from Dubai to Sydney. Jet lagged but happy he persevered and I could see improvements in both of our surfing techniques in the short time we were in the water. We laughed and splashed about until we had goosebumps from being in the sea for so long, then came home to shower and enjoy an apéritif on the steps of our veranda before the mosquitoes joined us.

L-R: Christophe, Bella, Heli, Byron.
L-R: (By country) France, Australia, Finland, Malaysia.

We dined on poached salmon, sweet corn on the cob, potatoes and salad for dinner, then Heli prepared for us a Scandinavian nightcap called Glögg. Glögg is generally prepared in the wintry evenings at Christmas time in Nordic and northern European kitchens as it is a hot, spiced mulled wine. We enjoyed ours on a cool Summer evening from large mugs as we strolled along the beach under a full moon. It was incredible to walk along the beach at night under such bright moonlight and although our dark brown puppy was a mere black ball of shadow that excitedly darted along the sand, I could clearly make out my friends faces and the glitter-tipped edges of the small waves.

Glögg

One bottle of Glögg (750 mL)
(Alternatively you can use a bottle of red wine, but you must also add 3/4 cup of sugar to a 1L bottle of wine)
250-500 mL of vodka (depending on how strong you prefer your drink)
2 cinnamon sticks
1/2 cup of almonds
1/2 cup raisins
peel from half an orange

Place all ingredients into a large saucepan and stir over low heat. Bring to a simmer and allow to bubble for ten minutes. Strain the fruit and cinnamon sticks from the Glögg and pour into mugs to serve. They're are many different variations of Glögg, including the addition of cardamon pods, dried figs and cloves but it's entirely up to personal taste. However, one thing is for certain when you use a bottle of Glögg, the undeniable Christmas scent of cinnamon as the mulled wine simmers.

Moist Orange, Almond and Polenta Cake with Citrus Glaze (Gluten Free)

Cake

2 small oranges or one large orange and 2 mandarines
3/4 cup boiling water
3/4 cup sugar
2 Tbs brandy or orange liqueur
1/4 cup brown rice flour
1/4 cup finely grained polenta
1/2 cup almond meal*
110g unsalted butter
1/2 cup caster sugar
2 eggs

*(Instead of almond meal, you can process 1/2 cup almonds, leaving some large chopped almond pieces for texture)

Citrus Glaze

1 orange (strained juice)
1 lemon (rind and strained juice)
2 Tbs honey
1 Tbs brandy
1 Tbs sugar

Preheat your oven to 180 degrees Celsius (approximately 350 degrees Fahrenheit), grease a 22cm cake tin with butter and line the base with greaseproof paper. Wash and cut oranges and mandarines into pieces, leaving the peel on. Remove pips and process the fruit in a food processor or Thermo Chef blender until you achieve a thick pulpy purée. Transfer the purée to a sauce pan with the boiling water, add the 3/4 cup sugar and brandy and boil for approximately 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent the purée from sticking to the base of the pan. Make sure you wear an apron because the purée may spit, which I discovered when wearing a white t-shirt (Hmmm... Not so white anymore). Remove from heat after the liquid has mostly evaporated and allow to cool.

Into a clean bowl, sift the brown rice flour and polenta together, add the almond meal and stir together. Set aside.

In your new red Kitchen Aid (Oh. My. Goodness. Was Santa aka Mum kind to us this year?!) cream the butter and caster sugar. Gradually add the eggs, one at a time.

Stir in the sifted dry ingredients, then the orange purée. Spoon the mixture into your prepared cake tin and bake for 35 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow to cool in the tin for five minute before transferring to a wire rack.

For the glaze, carefully cut the rind from the lemon, remove any white pith from the fruit and rind, then slice the rind into long, thin strips. Strain the juice from the orange and lemon into a saucepan, add the lemon rind, honey, brandy and sugar and boil to reduce the mixture slightly. The glaze should be thick and syrupy.

Remove from the heat, allow to cool slightly before serving the warm glossy syrup over a generous wedge of cake, whipped cream optional. I skipped the cream and enjoyed this moist orange cake on our veranda in the late afternoon sun with a cup of hot tea and Maxi cat curled up on my lap.

Did I mention I love the Summer time?

Bella xx

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An Autumn Picnic with Bubbles...

A vast and beautiful green park, somehow magically placed beside a humming city was the scene for our autumn picnic yesterday afternoon. Our picnic site was on top of a grassy knoll, beneath giant old oak trees through which honey-coloured rays of sunlight shone. The grass was soft and cool to walk on with our bare feet as we set down a large colourful beach towel to serve as a picnic blanket. My good friend Nicole, whom I met in Kindergarten a very long time ago accompanied me with her beautiful three and a half year old daughter, Adannaya.

Nicole began to unpack her large hamper immediately, first the chilled drinks and dip and crackers, then the beautiful freshly roasted chicken and avocado lunch wraps she had prepared. Ada assisted by unpacking all of the cutlery in one neat pile, before skipping and jumping around on the grass happily to her own playful chatter.

I peeled the lid from a warm potato salad I had literally finished preparing the moment before I hopped into Nicole's car when she collected me from home. The creamy salad was filled with golden roasted potatoes, fetta cheese, grilled chorizo and whole egg mayonnaise, with oregano and cracked pepper (I have another variation of this 'comfort-food', which I cannot wait to share with you very soon!). I then unclipped the lid of the mini quiches Byron had baked especially for our lunch.

Very soon the aromas of our food saw Ada bounding back for something to nibble on, and of course a few gulps of cool, sweet orange and mango mineral water.

It was at this point that Nicole presented Ada with a long plastic tube filled with liquid.

'Bubbles!' Ada squealed, and for the next two hours Ada blew bubbles with us and tried to catch them in the breeze.

We laughed and played as Ada took a million (or more) pictures on Nicole's Canon G11. Ada captured images of bubbles...

...trees, grass, birds, her fingers, her toes, Nic and I chatting (I think Ada did very well for this photo)...

...and just about everything else you can imagine, which Nicole fondly named 'pictures through innocent eyes'.

It was a perfect Autumn afternoon, cool and a little cloudy, with just the perfect amount of sunlight and I have to admit, it was very special for me to see how Ada and her loving mother played together.

After our lunch had settled, I brought out the mini gluten free pear, hazelnut and cinnamon cakes I had baked earlier that morning and as Nic and I chatted away our afternoon very happily, I was amazed at how quickly the time passed.

It wasn't long until the sky grew a little darker in the late afternoon and a shiver prompted us to slip our cardigans back on that we realised it was time for us to begin to pack away our picnic.

Just as we were about to leave, we had an unexpected visitor. It simply wouldn't be a picnic without one of these little guys!

We piled everything back into the car and Nicole drove me home, where we parted ways after possibly the best picnic I have ever been on.

I will share the picnic recipes during the week but for now, I'm going to have a glass of red to accompany a gluten free italian pasta I whipped up in 15 minutes. Minimal effort, plenty of flavour and I think... Perhaps a feel-good movie will provide the ideal end to a relaxing and fun weekend.

Bella xx

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Reine De Saba- Chocolate and Almond Cake

Ok so here is the delectable Chocolate and Almond cake I baked from my new 'Mastering the Art of French Cooking' book.

Although it didn't rise to any great proportions, it certainly did satisfy my sweet cravings for the week. Imagine a cake with a soft, moist chocolatey centre, covered in the smoothest, creamiest chocolate butter, adorned with slivered almonds. It was like a chocolate tart, but softer and covered in what could be described as a chocolate mousse cream.

This cake was a treat. What made it more enjoyable was the fact that I had the kitchen to myself to create it and all the while I hummed along to my record player belting out some perfectly crackly Simon and Garfunkel vinyl goodness... Oh one more thing! I bought a new digital Casio watch. A friend of mine had one and I quite fancied it. My good watch finally said 'Goodbye, it's been swell, Bella' and Hey Presto! I was on the market for something small and practical. Cue eBay for a significant reduction in retail price and this is the result. A rather sweet addition to my wrist, don't you think? I can even set it as a cake timer. More gadgets for the kitchen and everyday use, Julia! Are you proud?

Bella xx

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