Chow Down to Eurovision 2015 - Slovenia

What is Slovenian for we have arrived at the final country for Semi Final Two in Chow Down to Eurovision 2015?

Well according to google translate this is:

Kaj je slovenska ker smo prispeli v državo končnega za polfinale dva v Chow navzdol na Evrovizijo 2015 ?

I'm sure my Slovenian friend will let me know how well it did.

So if you are still unsure we are "in" Slovenia with a pretty easy tray bake of almond squares.

These dense almond morsels will always be Here For You when you need something full bodied and not too sweet that go perfectly with a strong coffee.

Slovenian Almond Squares
Ingredients

• 70g butter
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp. almond essence
• 140g plain flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 100g icing sugar + dusting
• 100g almond meal
• 50g chocolate chips (the type that hold their shape when baked)

Method

• Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C fan)
• Line a 20cm square cake tin (shallow)
• Melt butter
• In a large mixing bowl beat the eggs till thick and fluffy
• Add cooled butter and almond essence to eggs
• Combine remaining ingredients in a bowl
• Fold into eggs mixture
• Pour into lined cake tin
• Even the batter out with a spoon, it will look lumpy but will spread
• Bake for 20-25 minutes (the top will still look bumpy)
• Flip onto a wire rack to cool
• Dust with icing sugar
• Cut into 2-3cm squares
• On a serving plate pile into a replica of Mount Triglav...Slovenia's highest peak   (optional)

Maraaya made up of married couple Marjetka and Aleš "Raay" Vovk represented Slovenia in Vienna and placed a respectable 14th in the final.  They came 5th in their semi final but scored 1st performance position in the final so it was always going to be an up hill battle, even with a futuristic air violinist...

I was very happy that the hop on hop off bus in Dusseldorf had joined the Maraaya trend!

Previous Chow Down to Eurovision Slovenia:

2014 Slovenian Cheese Cones

2013 Turkey Schnitzel with Gorgonzola Sauce

Let's Get Technical - Great British Bake Off Series 5 Cake Week

 

Firstly I should apologise for the title of this series because Let's Get Technical fits perfectly to ONJ's Let's Get Physical.....and will be stuck in your head for days.

 

Let me hear Mary Berry talk! (warned you)

 

The Great British Bake Off started again this week for a 5th series which means my obsession will be flamed for another 11 weeks.

 

Previously I've written about my love of the Bake Off in all it's international guises in these posts: My Own Private Bake Off, My Bake Off Birthday and 200 Odd Years And Still Pinching Bread.

The main reason for my enjoyment of Bake Off is that it is a show based on skill rather than personality, bitchy tactics, or relying on family tragedy to have a good enough back story so the audience can cry through and forget that you're actually a bit rubbish at cooking.

I have learnt so much just from listening to the judge's critics, the baker's explain their methods and seeing the successfully and sometimes not successful results.

Though the best way to learn is with practice so over the next few weeks I'm going to be baking the technical challenges that are in the show each week.

I of course have the massive advantage of seeing the show first, having the recipe, and not having a camera crew just waiting to see my every mistake. I will stick to the time limit that is allocated in the challenges and if you follow me on twitter @dbtsauce you will be able to follow the bake in real time. (Sunday afternoons)

I'll then photograph the result, good, bad or ugly, it will be honest but let's hope there's no major disaster...

The first challenge was Mary Berry's Classic Cherry Cake (recipe here)

I do love Mary Berry, but hate glace cherries though I soldiered on.

So with two hours on the clock all that was needed was for someone to yell:
On your mark, get set, BAKE! (ok I did it and I'm not ashamed either)

Oh Mary why?? ewwww I hate glace cherries, even just touching them.

I suspect I was a little heavy handed with greasing the tin which I think has made it darker.

 

It did just slide out of the tin though.....and almost onto the floor.

 

Those icing lines aren't even, Paul won't be happy!

It's all about your cherries being suspended....

 My nuts are quite large as I'd forgotten flaked almonds so flaked some whole almonds myself

 

 Well if I'm going to do this, I'm going to do it properly!

 

And amazingly my cake was ranked number one, ok it was the only one but work with me here.

 

The verdict is I'm quite happy with this as a first attempt at this cake. I think it's quite achievable in the time frame but would be so much better without those vile glace cherries!

 

So that's one technical challenge down, let's see what biscuit week brings??

 

Have you been baking this weekend? Have you tried Mary's Cherry Cake?

If you need more cake and well the answer to that is always yes,  Lucy at Supergolden Bakes is hosting My Great #GBBO BAKE ALONG

Blueberry crumble tray bake

Last Sunday's Bake Club theme was tray bakes so my contribution was a blueberry crumble tray bake.

There were a few decisions about where the berries should go while testing but in the end I opted for a layer between the sponge and the crumble.

Given the current conversations around the health benefits of whole foods I also went with a wholemeal flour.

I have since learnt that the whole foods philosophy does not extend to whole cakes, whole pizzas, or whole buffets which is a shame as I thought they may have been onto something there........


Blueberry Crumble Tray Bake
Ingredients:

• 125g unsalted butter
• 125g caster sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 430g wholemeal self raising flour
• 250ml cream
• 200g frozen blueberries

For crumble

• 60g unsalted butter
• 40g treacle
• 80g slivered almonds
• 100g rolled oats
• 30g wholemeal self raising flour

Method:

Pre heat oven to 180ºC and line a 27.9cm x 17.8cm x 3.81cm tray (or there abouts) with baking paper

Make crumble:

• Melt butter with treacle in a microwave for 30 seconds (or on stove top)
• Add almonds, oats and flour to a bowl
• Mix butter and treacle through the dry ingredients

Make batter:

• Cream butter and sugar till pale and fluffy
• Add vanilla
• Beat through eggs a little at a time
• Mix in flour and cream
• Spread batter into lined tray
• Evenly sprinkle blueberries onto batter
• Top with crumble
• Press down to even the top
• Bake at 180ºC for 40-45 mins
• Let cool in tin before serving

I over line the tray so the corners can be tucked over to protect the crumble sides from burning.

 



 The cream is just thickened cream with some caster sugar & about 10 blueberries whipped using a hand blender.

My Own Private Bake Off

Seeing the ad for The Great Australian Bake Off - Tart Week, reminded me that I hadn't posted the recipe for the tarts I made for my audition.

 

We had to present 2 bakes a sweet and a savoury. For the savoury I made an olive and parmesan cast iron bread., possibly too simple but my sweet was bigger than Ben Hur.  

 

Being inspired by Minny's chocolate pie from The Help (without the secret ingredient) I went all out and made a trio of tarts.

• White chocolate crème patisserie with a hint of Campari on top of a rhubarb compote adorned with rhubarb leather.
• Blood orange milk chocolate ganache, in a choc chip tart garnished with a blood orange petite macaron
• Dark chocolate mud tart

I may have confused the brief and given them the Olympics of chocolate tarts, gold, silver and bronze.

 

My only regret about the whole process, isn't not being selected but that I didn't take a picture!!

It was back in the my early days of blogging when a simple task like slicing an apple didn't involve a fully staged photo shoot. 

  

I had never heard of the show before my audition but quickly became obsessed with watching the British version and then trying the various technical challenges. If you haven't seen any of the numerous international versions of the show I can't recommend it highly enough, but be warned you will catch the baking bug bad!!

8 plait loaf from Great British

Bake Off 

 

 

Kale and bacon Danish

 

 

Olive and parmesan cast iron bread  

 Blueberry bakewell tart

 Italian pork pie with quail egg

 Chicken, bacon and apricot pie

 

Eyeful cookie

 

When the new oven arrived I will post the recipes for the other tarts but luckily I had photographed a batch of the dark chocolate tarts.

 

Dark chocolate mud tart

Ingredients

• 125g unsalted butter diced
• 125g caster sugar
• 1 large egg (my girls are doing whoppers these days)
• 250g plain flour
• 40g cocoa
• 300ml cream
• 200g dark chocolate (75%-85% is my choice)
• 20g butter
• Whipped cream to garnish

Method

 

To make the tart

• I do this all in the food processor as it is quick and is less handling of the pastry
• Cream the sugar and butter on high for about 30 seconds
• Add the egg and mix through another 30 seconds
• Add flour and cocoa and mix till it comes together in a ball about 1 minute
• Let rest covered in plastic wrap for 1 hour in the fridge
• Grease 6 7.5cm tart tin (or one big one)
• Roll pastry on lightly floured board to 1cm thick
• Line the tart tins with pastry
• Prick base with a fork and line with baking paper
• Blind bake in a 180°C oven for 35-40 minutes
• Let cool in the tin for 15
• Remove from tin and cool completely on a wire rack

To make the mud

• Break the chocolate into small pieces and put in a mixing bowl
• Add butter to chocolate
• Gently heat the cream in a saucepan till just below the boil
• Add cream to chocolate and stir till melted and smooth
• Let cool for a 10 minutes
• Fill the tart cases, wiggle to avoid air bubbles
• Let cool completely
• Garnish with some whipped cream
• Find a quiet space with a coffee away from the world and enjoy intense chocolate heaven 

 

 

Chow Down to Eurovision 2013 - Lithunania

In 2006 Lithuania were the winners of Eurovision, well according to their song anyway but they really came sixth. It is a shame the year I went to Eurovision they sent their worst entry because I normally enjoy what Lithuania has to offer. The biggest mistake ever in any Eurovision song is to try to predict the future. Any time there is a lyric about being the winner it's almost automatically guarantees it ain't gonna happen. So I wont be making the claim that these Lithuanian bacon buns will be the winners of Chow Down to Eurovision 2013, but just as they said in 2006 "you got to vote! Vote! Vote for the winners"
Just a side bar on the voting, it is open now, you can vote for more than one country and as many times as you like. Don't let Lithuania's pleading cries go unanswered.
I found these little gems on lithuanian-recipes.com and based my recipe on that. The recipe there states that they disappear quickly which is no word of a lie, AB and I scoffed them down so that was dinner done. The larger bun I made was perfect for toasting in that bacon and egg all in a piece of toast kind of way. Just writing this I can taste them again and am on the verge of needing a private moment.

They didn't win.

Lithuanian Bacon Buns
Ingredients

• 500g bacon rindless
• 250g ham finely diced
• 1 large onion
• 2 cups milk
• 250g butter
• 7g yeast
• 5 eggs
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 6 cups plan flour
• egg wash

Method

• Finely dice the bacon and the onion
• Add to a frypan with 3/4 of a cup of water
• Simmer till the water has reduced to nothing
• Transfer into a glass bowl and refrigerate to cool
• When cooled add the ham
• Put 1/2 cup of milk and the butter into a glass bowl and microwave for 1-2 minutes till the butter is melted.
• Pour into the bowl of a stand mix and add remaining 1 1/2 cups of milk
• Make sure the milk/butter is only lukewarm and not too hot
• Add the yeast, eggs, salt and flour
• Mix using a dough hook for about 3-4 minutes to combine, it will be a wet dough
• Transfer into an oiled bowl and cover with cling wrap
• Let prove for about 2 hours
• Punch down the dough and leave it in the fridge over night
• On a floured surface roll out to about 1-2cm thick
• Use a 6-7cm cutter (or glass) to cut circles out of the dough 
• Fill each circle with 1 tablespoon of the meat mixture
• Gather the edges together and seal
• Roll in a cupped hand on the bench to form the bun
• Put buns on a greased baking tray
• Allow to rise for about an hour
• Brush with egg wash (1egg, 1 tablespoon water, pinch of salt)
• Bake in a 170°C oven for about 20 mins
• If you make a mega loaf as I did it takes about 45 minutes. To shape the loaf I rolled out the dough and cover with the meat mixture. Rolled it into a log, then rolled in like a snail.
• Try to save some to toast the next day, so yum!

Andrius Pojavis will preform the song Something in Malmö.

Sėkmės!

 

Chow Down to Eurovision 2013 - Russia

Russia has only been in the contest since 1994 but when the first entry they sent had a dress that moved every which way but loose you knew they were a country to watch out for. Historically Russia has pulled out some great Eurovision moments, Alsou and her butch jazz ballet backing dancers, Parliament the anti boy band, Dima Bilan with his ballerina stuffed piano and Olympic ice skater. The over hyped controversy of Tatu did little for the contest apart some mild childish comedy. If you listen to the Russian song as though they were singing in English it sounds like "how many guys in your brassiere, He was my boy scouts" I never promised to be high brow.



However in 2012 they struck Eurovision gold, by sending the Bashuski, the grandmas. Who doesn't love a grandma? I think it was just that they had those little faces you just want to squeeze. I know I shouldn't have a favourite, but I think Natalie was everyone's favourite, she even made it to onto our Christmas tree.

 

The act even featured baking!

 

 



I have based this recipe around the Rum Baba in Great British Bake Off: How to Bake: The Perfect Victoria Sponge and Other Baking Secrets by Linda Collister.

Don't you just want to eat that little face?

Vodka Babushka
Ingredients

• 60g black cherries (about 7)
• 1/2 cup of vodka
• 5 tablespoons of lukewarm milk
• 3 eggs
• 250g strong flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 table spoons caster sugar
• 7g dried yeast
• 100g soft unsalted butter room temperature

For the syrup

• 2 cups water
• syrup from the tin of black cherry
• 1 cup sugar
• Reserved vodka from the cherries

Method

• In a small bowl soak the whole black cherries in the vodka
• Into the bowl of a stand mixer add the milk, eggs, flour, salt, caster sugar and yeast.
• With a dough hook knead until smooth and elastic, scrap down the side to ensure that all the flour is mixed in. Should only take about a few minutes.
• Cover the bowl in cling wrap and let rise to almost double, about 1 hour. (I transferred into a glass bowl because I needed to use the mixer for something else)
• Grease and flour the babushka moulds or muffin tray. It is recommended that you chill the moulds after you grease them to stop the butter being absorbed into the batter. I didn't do it but it's a handy hint to know if you find things are sticking.
• Mash the butter with a fork to obtain a smooth consistency
• Beat the butter into the batter till it is incorporated and not showing through, no butter streaks.
• Drain the black cherries from the vodka, but reserve the liquid for the syrup.
• Finely chop the black cherries finely and stir through the batter.
• Fill the moulds half way, allowing room to rise. Less is more as they will grow, also spread the mixture out evenly so that you don't end up with a babushka with a bigger behind than the others, or have to deliver the terrible news that 1 babushka didn't make it.
• Let rise again for about 30mins till they have doubled.
• Bake at 200°C  for about 20 mins till they are golden and are a bit loose in the tin.
• When baked, remove from mould and let cool on a wire rack
• To make the syrup put the water, black cherry juice and sugar in a saucepan and bring to the boil for about 3 mins (it's a syrup, not a sauce so it's ok to boil on this occasion) Remove from the heat and add the reserved vodka.
• Soak each Babushka in the syrup before putting on a serving plate. You can give them a good soaking, I was frightened they would break up but it is amazing just how much vodka syrup one Babushka can hold.
• Serve with double cream and extra cherries

No Grandmothers this year but Dina Garipova will perform What If.

удача!