Monday, March 28, 2016

Crusting Cream Cheese Frosting recipes

Crusting Cream Cheese Frosting
from theflavorblender


Ingredients
  • ½ cup (125g)  veg­etable short­en­ing softened
  • 1.25 lb (567.5g) cream cheese, soft­ened
  • 4 oz (113g) softened butter
  • 1 tbsp vanilla extract
  • 3 lbs (1360.76g) sifted confectioners sugar
  • 1 tea­spoon salt
  • 1 tbsp Lime/Lemon Juice
Instructions
Beat the but­ter, short­en­ing, cream cheese, lemon juice and salt till they are creamed well.
Mix in the vanilla.
Gradually add confectioners sugar a little at a time while the mixer is on low. Once all the Icing sugar is added and mixed - increase the speed to medium till the mix is smooth and fluffy.
For a fluffier consistency you can add less sugar, and for a stiffer frosting add more confectioners sugar.


Crusting Cream Cheese Icing/Frosting
from food.com
 

Ingredients:

Instructions
Cream butter, shortening, cream cheese and extracts. Gradually add confectioner's sugar and salt. Beat on low speed until nice and creamy. If you want whiter icing, try to use butter without dyes available at most health food stores. 
This recipe is for a stiff consistency. For a thinner consistency, use 3 pounds of powdered sugar instead. 
If you want a very smooth cake, let the cake sit for 15 minutes after icing (longer for a thinner icing). Then using your spatula or fondant smoothing tool (this works best) smooth it with the non-printed side of a Viva paper towel. To do this, take your paper towel and lay it on your icing (after it crusts) and lightly rub over the paper towel with your spatual or fondant smoothing tool to get a smooth surface. If the icing sticks to the paper towel, you didn't let it "crust" long enough. Stick it in the fridge for 20 minutes or so to let it "crust" then try again. Don't let it set too much tho then it will be difficult to smooth it.
This recipe will ice, fill and decorate an 8" double layer cake with icing left over.


Crusting Cream Cheese Icing

Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter (250g), softened
  • 1/2 cup (125g) solid vegetable shortening
  • 1 pound (2 (8 ounce) blocks) cream cheese, softened
  • 1 tablespoon clear vanilla extract
  • 3 1/2 pounds(1587.56g) sifted confectioner’s sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

Instructions

  1. Cream butter, shortening, cream cheese and extracts. Gradually add confectioner’s sugar and salt. Beat on low speed until nice and creamy. If you want whiter icing, try to use butter without dyes available at most health food stores.
  2. This recipe is for a stiff consistency. For a thinner consistency, use 3 pounds of powdered sugar instead.
  3. If you want a very smooth cake, let the cake sit for 15 minutes after icing. Then smooth with the non-printed side of a Viva paper towel.


Crusting Buttercream: How to Make Buttercream That Sets Firm
from Craftsy

Ingredients:

  • 907.18gms (2 pounds) sifted icing sugar
  • 113.4gms unsalted butter, softened and cut into ½-inch cubes
  • 307.5gms solid vegetable shortening
  • 1 ½ tablespoons vanilla extract
  • ⅛ to ½ cup whole milk (to desired consistency)

Instructions

In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter, shortening and vanilla extract until smooth, 3 to 5 minutes on medium speed. Stop the mixer.
Add about ¼ of the confectioners’ sugar. You need to add this gradually, or you might have a sugary snowstorm in your kitchen when you start to mix.
Mix on low speed until incorporated. Pause to scrape the sides of the bowl down with a rubber spatula and add another ¼ of the confectioners’ sugar. Continue mixing and pausing down to scrape the sides of the bowl and add more confectioners’ sugar until you’ve added it all. This mixture will likely be quite thick.
Add ⅛ cup of the milk and mix at low speed until incorporated. At this point, it’s up to you whether or not you’d like to add more–it’s a matter of your preference for the consistency.
Ice your cake. Try to apply the icing as smoothly as possible.
Let set for 20-30 minutes to form a “crust”.
If you’d like a flat surface on your cake, once it has crusted, you can use a square of un-patterned paper towel (or, if you don’t have that, a sheet of clean, white paper or parchment paper will do). Lay the paper on the area of the cake you want smoothed and using your hand, a spatula, a fondant smoother or even a clean and unused credit card, smooth the icing.
Once smoothed, decorate in any way you’d like!

 

Monday, March 14, 2016

Tonight's dinner with Vegemite

I love vegemite! Who doesn't...
Well, I have compiled a few recipes that I can use for the next few nights.


Vegemite Basted Chicken

Ingredients
  • 1 lemon
  • 1 Size 15 chicken
  • 1 tablespoon VEGEMITE, combined with
  • 1/4 cup butter, softened
  • 1 tablespoon chopped thyme


  • Instructions
    Place lemon inside cavity of chicken. Secure legs and wings with string or skewers and place on a rack in a roasting pan. Brush with mixture of Vegemite*, butter and thyme.
    Bake in a moderate oven 180°C, allowing 30 minutes per 500g (1 hour, 30 minutes). Baste at least twice during cooking with remaining Vegemite* mixture.


    from Everyday Delicious Kitchen

    Vegemite and Rosemary Cutlets

    Ingredients
  • 1 tablespoon VEGEMITE
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 2 tablespoons rosemary leaves, finely chopped
  • 2 tablespoons oil
  • 12 lamb cutlets, trimmed


  • Instructions
    COMBINE the Vegemite, honey, rosemary and oil to form a marinade. Pour over the cutlets and refrigerate for 2 hours.
    BARBECUE the cutlets over a medium heat for 3-4 minutes each side or until cooked to your liking.


    from Everyday Delicious Kitchen

    Vegemite and Honey Marinated Drumlettes

    Ingredients
  • 1-1/2 tablespoons VEGEMITE
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1 tablespoon sherry
  • 3 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 2 teaspoons sesame oil
  • 1kg chicken drumlettes
  • 2 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
  •  barbecued vegetables, for serving
  •  crusty bread, for serving


  • Instructions
    COMBINE the Vegemite, honey, sherry, garlic and sesame oil to form a marinade. Pour over the chicken and refrigerate for 2 hours.
    BARBECUE the chicken over a medium heat for 8-10 minutes, turning occasionally until cooked through, sprinkle with sesame seeds .


    from Everyday Delicious Kitchen


    Beer Marinated Steaks

    Ingredients
    6 x 200g scotch fillet or sirloin steaks
  • 1/2 cup beer
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons seeded mustard
  • 1 tablespoon white vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon VEGEMITE
  • 2 teaspoons chopped rosemary


  • Instructions
    Place steaks in a single layer in a dish. Combine the remaining ingredients and pour over steaks. Marinate for 2 hours or overnight in refrigerator, turning steaks occasionally.
    Remove the steaks from the marinade and reserve.
    BBQ the steaks over a medium heat for 3-4 minutes each side, basting occasionally with the reserved marinade until cooked to your liking. Serve immediately.


    from Everyday Delicious Kitchen

    Wednesday, March 9, 2016

    Tonight's dinner - Potato gratin and Heston Blumenthal's roast chicken

    I like using the oven to cook dinner. It is so easy and all I need to do is to prepare the food and pop them into the oven.
     

    Potato Gratin from Taste.com.au

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    Directions   
    Preheat oven to 180C. Lightly grease four 1-cup capacity ramekins. Thinly slice potatoes and onion. Arrange some of the potato over the base of each ramekin and top with a little onion. Sprinkle with a few slices of garlic and season with salt and cracked black pepper. Continue layering with the remaining potato and onion, adding garlic every second or third layer. Combine cream with cheese. Pour into the ramekins then bake for 45 minutes or until potato is cooked through and top is golden. Stand for 5 minutes before serving.

    Heston Blumenthal's roast chicken

    Ingredients
    • 1.5–2 kg whole chicken
    • 6 % brine (300 g salt dissolved in 5 litres water)
    • 1 lemon
    • 1 bunch thyme
    • 125 g unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus extra for rubbing into the skin
    • 30 ml dry white wine
    For the gravy (optional)
    • 20 ml dry white wine
    • 250 ml (1 cup) chicken stock
    • 1 tsp Dijon mustard
    • 1 sprig tarragon
    • 1 sprig parsley

    Instructions

    Resting time 45 minutes
    Brining time overnight
    Warning In this recipe, while Heston cooks his chicken to an internal temperature of 60°C, if you want to stick to safety guidelines your chicken should reach 75°C in the thickest part of the breast.
    Remove the trussing from the chicken then place it in a clean container. Pour over the brine, ensuring that the chicken is submerged, then cover the container with plastic wrap and place in the fridge overnight.
    Remove the chicken from the liquid and dry well with paper towel. Remove the wishbone and place on a wire rack set over a tray.
    Preheat the oven to 90ºC (about 70°C fan or gas mark ¼, but use an oven thermometer to get an accurate temperature).
    Roll and pierce the lemon, then place it in the cavity of the bird with half of the thyme. Rub some butter on top of the skin.
    Place the chicken on the rack in a roasting tray and place in the oven. Roast the chicken for about 3–4 hours or until the internal temperature in the thickest part of the breast is 60ºC.
    Remove the chicken from the oven and allow to rest for 45 minutes. Turn the oven temperature as high as it will go.
    In the meantime, melt the butter in a pan and add the wine and a few sprigs of thyme. Bring to the boil then remove the pan from the heat and use the melted butter to baste the chicken before and during browning.
    Once the resting time has elapsed, put the chicken back in the roasting tray and return it to the oven for about 10 minutes or until golden brown, taking care that it doesn’t burn.
    Once coloured, remove the chicken from the oven and place on a cooling rack.
    To carve the chicken, remove the legs by slicing down where they meet the breast and splaying them outwards to expose the joint, which you can then sever.
    Remove the breast by running a sharp knife deeply into the flesh along one side of the centre bone that extends the length of the bird, making a deep vertical cut. Then cut horizontally through the flesh at the bottom of the breast until the horizontal cut meets the vertical, separating the breast from the ribcage. Repeat the procedure on the other side of the centre bone. The breasts can then be laid cut-side down on the chopping board and sliced.
    Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
    If making the gravy, when the chicken has been browned and removed from the roasting tray, place the tray containing the juices on the cooktop over medium-high heat. Add the white wine and scrape and stir to deglaze the pan. Add the chicken stock and cook until reduced to a sauce. Strain into a small saucepan.
    Before serving, stir in the mustard and warm through. Finish with freshly chopped tarragon and parsley and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

    Monday, March 7, 2016

    Tonight's dinner - Roasted garlic and rocket chicken with Cauliflower Gratin

    My favourite dinner combo for my family. It is simple and easy to prepare and it tastes great!

    Cauliflower Gratin by Martha Stewart

    Ingredients 
    • 1 large head cauliflower, cored and cut into florets
    • 1 cup heavy cream
    • 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
    • 1 cup grated Parmesan
    • Coarse salt and ground pepper
    • 1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs
    • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into small pieces


    Directions   
    Preheat oven to 400 degrees(204c). In a large bowl, combine cauliflower, heavy cream, flour, and 3/4 cup grated Parmesan. Season with salt and pepper and toss to combine. Transfer mixture to a 2-quart baking dish, cover tightly with foil, and bake 30 minutes. In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup grated Parmesan and breadcrumbs. Sprinkle over cauliflower. Dot with butter and bake, uncovered, until topping is golden brown and cauliflower is tender when pierced with a knife, 10 to 15 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes before serving.

    Roasted garlic and rocket chicken by Donna Hay

    • 3 small heads garlic, cloves separated
    • 2 tablespoons olive oil
    • sea salt and cracked black pepper
    • 1 x 1.6kg whole chicken, butterflied (see cook’s tip, below)
    rocket dressing
    • 1 cup baby rocket (arugula) leaves, finely chopped
    • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
    • ¼ cup (60ml) extra virgin olive oil