Hummingbird Bakery's Raspberry Cream Cheese Brownies

I've tried a few recipes from the Hummingbird Bakery Cookbook now and a few of them have been a little bit hit and miss.

Not this one though! I was delighted with how these babies turned out. You start off with a layer of brownie. The add a layer of cheesecake.

Bake in the oven...

...and when cool, top with lightly whipped cream mixed with fresh raspberries.

I cut mine into slices and decided not to top them with additional fresh raspberries.

They just didn't need them.

I made these for a party and the whole night Mr G kept on asking if we had any left at home!

I think these are definitely in his top 5 home baked goodies!

(I also got this gorgeous baby pink cake stand from M&S!)

Nxx

Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Brownies

Do you ever have a craving for a baked treat but simply cannot be bothered with measuring out numerous ingredients?

If so, then this is the recipe for you!

These are without a doubt my signature brownies.

Now I am not a total baking snob. Although I don't use cake mixes as a general rule, I am rather partial to a Betty Crocker brownie. I love the fact that you only add three ingredients to the mix and one of those (the egg) you don't even have to measure.

I devised this recipe one day when I had a craving for chocolate and peanut butter.

Simply pour the batter into a lined tray.

Mix two generous tablespoons of cream cheese with two generous tablespoons of smooth peanut butter.

Swirl the mixture together and then add dollops to the brownie batter.
You could at this point swirl the peanut butter / cream cheese mixture into the brownie, but I prefer biting into a big chunk of the mixture.

Wait for the brownies to cool slightly before slicing up......

.....and serving still warm!

DELICIOUS!!!!

A Foodie Tour in the Big Smoke - Part 2

As I was in the area, I decided to stop off at the Hummingbird Bakery in South Kensington.

There were loads of cupcakes to choose from but I knew what I wanted.

I bought a slice of the frosted brownie to take home. The brownie was delicious.

I also bought a black bottom cupcake. It was amazing although the one I got did not have enough of the cheesecake mixture in. I have attempted these at home using the recipe from the Humingbird bakery book but was disappointed with the way the cheesecake mixture turned out. It was far too runny to add to the flavour of the cupcake, but it has inspired me to have another go at making them.

The cream cheese frosting was so delish!

Brown Butter Toffee Blondies

What is brown butter I hear you ask? Brown butter is simply butter that has been cooked until it turns golden brown in colour. The butter takes on a nutty flavour which works well in these Toffee Blondies.
I found the recipe in Martha Stewart's Cookies.
Ingredients:-
1 1/4 cups unsalted butter (at room temp)
2 1/4 cups plain flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 cups packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup toffee bits

I had bought these toffee bits in America on a recent visit and had been waiting to find a recipe to use them in. You could use chunks of regular toffee as a substitute.

Method:-
1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit / 180 degrees centigrade / Gas Mark 4. Grease and line a 9 inch x 13 inch baking tray with greaseproof paper. Grease the paper again and flour lightly.
2. In a saucepan over a medium heat melt the butter until it turns a golden brown colour. Keep an eye on the pan to ensure you do not burn the butter. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
3. In a bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
4. Using an electric mixer, combine the browned butter and both sugars. Add eggs and mix until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and mix until combined. Add the flour mixture, walnuts and toffee bits. Mix thoroughly and pour mixture into pan.
5. Bake until cake tester inserted into the centre comes out clean - about 35 - 40 minutes. Transfer to wire rack and allow to cool before cutting into slices.

This is what the mixture should look like when you mix the butter with the sugars.

Mmm, just out of the oven. The recipe was delicious. I couldn't wait for the blondies to cool so had a couple of slices warm drizzled with cream. Okay, drenched with cream. Yum Yum. The next day the blondies tasted even nicer. Like a really rich chewy toffee cookie.

Hummingbird Bakery Frosted Brownies

For those of you who do not own a copy of the Humingbird Bakery Cookbook - run out and buy it now! This recipe alone is worth the cost! The brownie is rich and gooey and the addition of the chocolate cream cheese frosting makes it divine!

Ingredients:-
5 eggs
500 grams caster sugar
120 grams plain flour
100 grams cocoa powder
250 grams unsalted butter (melted)
30 grams shelled walnuts (chopped)
30 grams dark chocolate (roughly chopped)

Frosting:
200 grams icing sugar (sifted)
75 grams unsalted butter, at room temperature
30 grams cocoa powder (sifted)
150 grams cream cheese, cold



Method:-
1. Pre-heat oven t0 170 degrees centigrade / Gas Mark 3. Grease and line a baking tin measuring 33cm x 23cm x 5cm with greaseproof paper
2. Beat eggs and sugar until light and fluffy.
3. Add flour and cocoa powder and continue to beat until well mixed.
4. Pour in melted butter and mix through.
5. Add chopped walnuts and dark chocolate by hand.
6. Pour into baking tin and cook for about 30 - 35 minutes or until top is firm but centre is still soft. Leave to cool completely.


7. For the frosting, beat icing sugar, cocoa and butter until mixed together. Add the cream cheese in one go and beat until well incorporated. Turn the mixer up to a medium - high speed. Do not overmix as the mixture will become runny.
8. Spead frosting over the cooled brownie.


I couldn't resist taking a bite out of a piece of brownie whilst taking these pictures!!


Next time I think I will leave out the chopped dark chocolate. I honestly don't think the brownie needed it. I think replacing the walnuts with hazelnuts would work really well too.

White Chocolate and Raspberry Blondies

Mr G recently tried a white chocolate and raspberry blondie from 'And the Dish ran away with the Spoon' - a Manchester based cupcake company that regularly have a stall at the Manchester Piccadilly Farmer's Market where Beks occasionally helps out. He was smitten. It was, he declared the nicest blondie he had ever tasted. I think it was the only blondie he had ever tasted, but it appeared to me to be love at first bite.

After a couple of weeks asking Beks to supply him with these treats, I decided enough was enough and it was time to divert his attentions a little closer to home. (As any good wife would do.) I searched various cookbooks and online blogs for a recipe that I thought would suffice.


There were loads of recipes out there, all offering different takes on this popular combination. This was the recipe that I decided to go with which I found on the website 'Good to Know Recipes' (http://www.goodtoknow.co.uk/) :-

150 grams / 5oz white chocolate
100 grams / 4 oz unsalted butter
3 large eggs
175 grams / 60z caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
200 grams / 7oz self raising flour (sifted)
1 teaspoon baking powder
175 grams / 6oz fresh raspberries
75 grams / 3oz white chocolate to decorate (optional)

Method:-
1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit / 180 degrees centigrade / Gas Mark 4. Grease and line a shallow baking tray 18cm x 28cm / 7inch x 11 inch.
2. Melt the white chocolate and butter in a bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy (about five minutes on medium to high speed if using an electric mixer)
4. Once eggs and sugar are mixed, gently fold in the chocolate and butter mixture.
5. Once fully mixed in, fold in the flour and baking powder.
6. Pour the mixture into the lined tray and press the raspberries on top.

It should look something like this.....

7. Bake for 35 minutes until well risen.
Leave to cool in tin and then remove and cut into slices. At this point, you can melt the 75 grams of white chocolate and drizzle over the blondies. I chose not too as I thought it would be overkill, and instead dusted some icing sugar over the top.

Batter mixture in tray

I left mine cooking for about 45 minutes as when I first removed them from the oven, they didn't seem cooked enough in the middle. They were lovely though, and I'm not a huge white chocolate fan. After wolfing down a couple of pieces, Mr G gave them his seal of approval. That's my boy.