How To Make Cake Flour At Home

                                                     

Cake flour is a finely milled white flour made from soft wheat. It has very low protein content, between 8% and 10%(lower than regular all-purpose flour), making it suitable for soft-textured cakes and cookies. The higher protein content of other flours would make these soft-textured cakes tough. You can buy it ready made at a well stocked grocery store, or you can make it at home yourself. Here's how:

YOU WILL NEED:
-6 cups regular all-purpose flour (white or wheat).
-12 tablespoons of cornstarch (cornflour).

INSTRUCTIONS:

-Measure out the amount needed for your recipe.
-For every 1 cup of  all-purpose flour called for, remove 2 tablespoons of flour.
-Now replace those 2 tablespoons of flour taken out with 2 tablespoons of cornstarch (cornflour).
-Sift 5-6 times and your cake flour is ready to use (this will prevent clamping when incorporated into a recipe as the flour is very fine).

 

Mango Lassi Inspired Posicles

                              

                                                         

                                               

                                                          
A lassi is a popular and traditional yogurt-based drink which originates in the  Punjab region of India. Mango Lassi is made from yogurt, water and mango pulp. It may be made with or without additional sugar. It is widely available in  many other parts of the world with an Indian population. Kenya has a large Indian population and that is how I familiarized myself with this delectable treat. Traditionally, this drink is served cold in a tall glass with a straw, often with ground pistachio nuts sprinkled on top.

Now that Summer is here and making no apologies about the heat it brings with it, I have been on a mission to make some home-made cold treats for the family. I remembered how delicious mango lassis were and that was my only drink of choice whenever my family would go out to eat at Indian restaurants in Kenya. So I thought I'd convert the lassi into a Popsicle. I tweaked the traditional recipe a bit to get a creamy consistency that would still hold it's shape while frozen. I used sweetened condensed milk in place of regular milk, I used thick, creamy, thick Greek yogurt in place of regular plain yogurt so that my inserted Popsicle sticks would stay put before I refrigerated the mixture. I skipped out on the sugar and used sweetened condensed milk instead for the added creaminess and the little bit of sweetness. The result? You be the judge. here's what you'll need to make these beauties...

SERVING SIZE: Makes 9 Popsicles.

EQUIPMENT:
-Popsicle moulds or 5 OZ. paper Dixie cups (I bought my Popsicle moulds at the dollar store).
-Regular blender or immersion blender.
-Large measuring or mixing bowl with a sprout (makes it easier to pour mixture into the moulds).
-Medium or large sieve (optional).
                                                      

INGREDIENTS:
-1 cup plain Greek yogurt (its creamy and thick).
-The pulp of 2 ripe mangoes, cubed (though not too ripe or it will make stringy Popsicles).
-1/2 cup sweetened, condensed milk (NOT evaporated milk).
-1/4 teaspoon cardamom powder.
                                                    

                                                          

 

 

INSTRUCTIONS:
-Place all the ingredients in the cup of your blender and puree until smooth for about 5 minutes (stop half-way through this process and use a wooden spoon or spatula to scrape any yogurt off the sides of the blender jug). Make sure everything is well combined and there are no lumps. the mixture will be thick, but creamy as shown in the video.
-Place your sieve over a bowl and pour the pureed mixture into the sieve. Use a spoon to assist the mixture through the sieve and into the bowl. This step helps get rid of the fibres of the mangoes. If these fibres don't bother you, you can skip this step.
-Pour the pureed mango mixture into your bowl or cup with a sprout and pour it into the cavities of the Popsicle moulds.
-Insert your Popsicle sticks in the center of each cavity of the mould. make sure they are all upright.
-Place the moulds into a container where they won't shift around as they set.
-Place the container with the moulds into the freezer and let it set for about 5hrs. I left mine in the freezer overnight.
-Once set, to unmold the Popsicles. place some hot water in a deep dish and insert the whole mold (with the Popsicles in them still), into the hot water for no longer than 10 minutes.
-Then gently lift the Popsicles out of the mould using the Popsicle stick as a handle. And there, you're done! Now how simple was that?!? Enjoy :)
                                                   

 

Apple Tart

                                                                               

I couldn't pass up the incredible sales on apples that they had at my neighbourhood grocery store. The result? I ended up with a bunch of apples that I needed to use. I had this recipe for an apple tart from year's back that I had stashed away. I decided to put it to use. I made an apple tart that was not only tasty, but oh-so pretty!! it looks like a delicate rose. The crust is flour, butter, salt and sugar based. There's an apple compote filling that holds the "petals" in place. The petals are thinly sliced apple wedges sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar and lightly glazed with warm apricot preserves. Now if that does not get your taste-buds going, you might need to check your pulse. LOL! Here's how to make it...

SERVING SIZE: Feeds 8 people sufficiently (1 slice per person).

EQUIPMENT:
-A 9-inch tart pan with a loose bottom.
-Rolling pin.
-Food processor (to mix your dough).
-Dough cutter (if you decide to mix the dough manually).
-Mixing bowl (if you decide to mix the dough manually).
-Medium sized pan (to cook compote).
-Sharp knife.
-Cutting board.
-Mandolin slicer (helps you achieve very thin slices). If you don't have one, use a very sharp knife.
-Potato masher or fork (to mash the cooked apples). 

-Parchement paper.

-Cling/plastic foil.

-Pie weights OR 300g of uncooked beans eg. Kidney beans.                                                                                                                                    

                                   

INGREDIENTS FOR THE CRUST:

-2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour.

-1 teaspoon salt (I used Kosher salt).

-3 tablespoons granulated sugar.

-2 sticks of unsalted butter, cubed and refrigerated (if you're using salted butter, skip the salt)

-1/2 cup of ice-cold water.

                                                       

                           INSTRUCTIONS FOR MAKING THE CRUST:

-In the cup of a food processor, add the flour, sugar and salt; pulse to mix the ingredients well.
-Add the cubed cold pieces of butter to the flour/salt mixture. Pulse the processor until coarse crumbs the size of peas form.
-Through the feed-tube of the processor, slowly add in the ice-cold water as you continue pulsing just until the dough begins to form a ball. Stop the food processor.                                                        

**If you are making the crust manually, add your flour, salt and sugar into the mixing bowl and stir well. Use your dough cutter (like the one pictured below) OR a fork to cut the cubed butter into the flour. Do not use your bare hands at this point or it will melt your butter!   

                                                                                             

With this method too, the dough should form coarse crumbs the size of peas. Slowly add the water and mix with a wooden spoon just until the dough forms a ball.
Now continue with the rest of the steps below (using cling foil and refrigerating).**

-On a cling foil that's been laid on your work surface and lightly sprinkled with flour, dump the dough and work it with your hands into a ball.                                                          

-Cover the ball of dough with the cling foil and flatten it into a disc as you cover it.                                                        

-Place the disc of dough in the refrigerator for 30 minutes as you work on the compote for the tart.

INGREDIENTS FOR THE APPLE COMPOTE:
-3 apples, peeled, cored and diced into 1-inch cubes (I used 2 granny smith and 1 golden delicious apples for the compote).
-1 cup frozen 100% apple juice concentrate.
-3 tablespoons granulated sugar (optional).
-1/2 teaspoon cardamom powder.
-1 teaspoon ground cinnamon.
-1/4 teaspoon salt (to balance the flavors).                                                  

 

INSTRUCTIONS FOR MAKING THE APPLE COMPOTE:
-Bring your pan to medium heat.
-To the pan, add the apple juice, apples, sugar (if using),salt, cardamom and cinnamon. Cook until the apples are fork-tender (about 10-15 minutes).  

                                                

-Drain most of the syrup that forms in the pan from the apples (leave very little).

***THIS IS A GOOD TIME TO PREHEAT YOUR OVEN TO 425 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT**

-Using the back of a fork or a potato masher, mash the cooked apples into a compote. it does not have to be silky smooth, a few chunks are OK. The compote should be thick enough to stand a spoon/spatula in.
-Set aside to cool.                                                   

BLIND-BAKING YOUR CRUST:

-Remove your dough from the fridge and unwrap from the cling foil.
-On a lightly floured surface, and with a lightly floured rolling pin, roll out the disc of dough (from the center out), to a 12-inches in diameter and 1/4 of an inch in thickness (as shown in the video).
-Using your rolling pin, transfer the dough into the tart pan (as shown in the video) and make sure that it's centered as much as possible.
-Use your hand to smooth the dough in the tart pan (especially along the edges).
-Using your rolling pin, cut off any excess dough/overhang (as shown in the video).
-Using a fork, dock the dough in the tart pan (poke holes all over the base and sides). This will help prevent the formation of bubbles in the crust as you blind-bake it.                                                        

                               

 
-Cut off a piece of parchment paper slightly larger than the tart pan, and place it in the center of the uncooked crust.
-Gently pour some uncooked beans, lentils or pie weights over the parchment paper (as shown in the video), and spread them into an even layer over the parchment paper. These can be re-used for blind-baking pie crusts. They keep for  a LOOONG time! Just don't cook them after you've used them in this way :)

-After blind baking the crust with the parchment paper and beans/pie weights for 10 minutes, lift the parchment paper (with the beans in it), and remove it from the pie crust. Set them aside so the beans cool, ready for use next time. Return the pie crust back to the oven and let it cook for 5 minutes more (just until the crust is golden brown). Remove the crust from the oven and set aside to cool for about 20 minutes (do not remove it from the tart pan).                                                       

ASSEMBLING YOUR TART:

INGREDIENTS FOR THIS STEP:
-4 apples that are not tart (I used gala apples).
-1/4 cup granulated sugar.
-2 tablespoons ground cinnamon.
-Juice of 2 lemons.
-2 tablespoons apricot preserves (for brushing the tart to give it some shine).                                                       

                                                       

                                  

INSTRUCTIONS:
-Using a spatula or a wooden spoon, scoop the cooled down apple compote and spoon it into the cooled down pie crust. Smooth the compote using the back of a spoon or spatula into an even layer. Set aside.

***Pre heat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit before proceeding to the next step***

-This is the time to peel the apples that will form the "petals" of your apple tart. You will need 4 apples for this step (I used gala apples for their sweetness). Peel the apples one at a time, core them (remove the seeds as shown in the video), and use a mandolin slicer to slice them into really thin slices.
-Put the slices in a large mixing bowl and add the juice of two lemons to the apple slices to keep them from browning/oxidizing. Gently toss the slices in the bowl to coat them with the lemon juice (be very gentle or the slices will break).

-Now using the longer apple slices, "implant" them into the apple compote in a scallop fashion as demonstrated in the video. The apple compote will act like the "cement" that holds the apple slices in place. 

-Keep doing this as you work your way towards the center of the tart. Use the shorter petals for the center of the tart. Continue adding the slices until the surface of the tart is covered and resembles a rose.                                                    

-Once you're done assembling your tart, combine 1/4 cup of granulated sugar with 2 tablespoons of cinnamon powder and mix well.
-Sprinkle the cinnamon/sugar up over the tart.

-Bake the tart at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes, then lower the temperature in the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit for an additional 15-20 minutes. 

-Place the apricot preserves in a microwave-safe bowl and heat for 30 seconds to melt it.                                                           

-Using a pastry brush, gently brush the "petals" of your tart with the molten apricot preserves to give it a nice gloss. Let the tart cool for 30 minutes or until the tart pan is cool enough to handle with bare hands.

                                                                                        

-To unmould your tart from tart pan, place your hand under the center of the bottom of the tart pan. The ring around the pan will slip onto your arm (as shown on video).                                                         

-You can leave the unmoulded tart on the bottom of the pan, or you can wait until the tart cools down further (another 20 minutes), and gently pry it away from the bottom of the tart pan using a spatula.

Your tart is now ready to serve. I served mine up with a scoop of some French Vanilla ice-cream. If this tart does not make you look like a culinary god/ess to those you serve it to... I don't know what ever will! Enjoy!