Month: March 2017

Totes Masc Pizza

| adamcockle

 

This pizza has beer in it, and two kinds of pork.  Eat it while building a bookshelf or watching the sportsball.

Ingredients:

Serves 2

  • 4g instant yeast
  • 75ml warm water
  • 1tbps olive oil
  • 125g bread flour
  • 1tsp table salt
  • 4 rashers smoked streaky bacon
  • 2 of your favourite sausages (skins removed)
  • 20g butter
  • 20g plain flour
  • 100ml of your favourite beer (though ideally a blonde or pale ale)
  • 100ml milk
  • 50g mature cheddar cheese (grated)
  • 50g of that pre-grated mozzarella
  • 2 eggs

Method:

 

For the pizza base:

Put the warm water in a bowl and add the yeast.  Stir until the yeast is dissolved and then add the olive oil.  Add the flour and salt and mix until roughly combined.  Empty onto a floured surface and knead until smooth (about 5 mins).  Put aside in a covered container until doubled in size (about 45 mins).

Pre-heat your oven to its highest temperature.

For the toppings:

Place the bacon in a lightly oiled (cold) pan and turn up the heat to medium.  Turn occasionally until golden and crispy and transfer to some kitchen paper to remove the excess fat.  Chop into rough pieces.

Add the sausage to the same pan and break up with the side of the spoon to form a mince-like texture.  Cook until golden and starting to crisp.  Put aside to cool.

For the beer-cheese sauce:

Put the butter and flour in a pan and cook on medium, stirring constantly to form a smooth golden paste.  Add the beer a little at a time whilst stirring and then add the milk.  Bubble away until thick and smooth and then reduce the heat to low.  Stir in the cheddar cheese and stir until melted.  Season to taste.

To finish:

Press the dough onto a lightly oiled baking tray to form a thin, even layer.  Spread on the beer-cheese sauce and sprinkle with the bacon and sausage bits.  Cover with the grated mozzarella.

Pop the pizza in the oven and keep and eye on it.  Once the sauce is bubbling and cheese is starting to turn golden remove the pizza from the oven.  Using the back of a spoon, make two little wells in the pizza toppings and break an egg into each.  Add a little pinch of salt and a grind of pepper to the yolk of each egg and return to the oven.  Your pizza is ready to go when the white is cooked and the yolk still has a bit of wobble.

Mocha cheesecake

| adamcockle

cheesecakeblog1

I know, I know.  Another coffee flavoured sweet  bake.  Its a disease, I swear, but I just can’t resist this beautiful combination of flavours.  This delicious dessert is Anna Olsons New York cheesecake given a chocolate and coffee twist.

Ingredients:

INGREDIENTS

Crust

150g chocolate digestives (bashed or blitzed into crumbs)

2 Tbsp sugar

60g unsalted butter, melted, plus extra for greasing the tin

Cheesecake

3 x 250 gram packages of cream cheese, at room temperature

1 x 250 gram package of ricotta cheese, at room temperature

250g caster sugar

3 Tbsp cornflour

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp instant coffee

1 Tbsp cocoa

3 large whole eggs

1 large egg yolk

250ml sour cream (not low-fat)

Ganache

250ml whipping cream

150g dark chocolate

1 Tbsp coffee liqueur (optional)

Method:

Crust

Preheat the oven to 180ºC.  In a bowl, stir the chocolate digestive crumbs, sugar and melted butter until evenly combined and press this into the bottom of an ungreased 8-inch springform pan.  Bake this for 10 minutes, then cool. Brush the sides of the pan with a little melted butter.

Cheesecake

In a small bowl, mix together the coffee, cocoa and sour cream.  Stir thoroughly and leave aside for the dry ingredients to dissolve.

Increase the oven temperature to 200ºC.  In a larger bowl, beat the cream cheese and ricotta until light and fluffy. Add the caster sugar a little at a time, and scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl often.  Beat in the cornflour.  Beat in the eggs one at a time, on a lower speed, and scraping after each addition, then beat in the yolk.  Still on low speed, beat in the sour cream, chocolate, coffee mixture. Pour this over the cooled crust.

Bake the cheesecake for 18 minutes at 200ºC and then reduce the oven temperature to 100ºC and bake for 25 more minutes. Turn off the oven, and leave the cheesecake in for an hour, cracking the oven door after 30 minutes.

Allow the cheesecake to cool completely to room temperature, then carefully run a spatula around the outside of the cheesecake to loosen it from the pan.  Place the cheesecake on a wire rack with a plate or baking tray underneath.  While the cheesecake is cooling  break the chocolate into a bowl.  Heat the whipping cream in a pan until just coming to a boil and then pour over the chocolate.  Stir thoroughly until the chocolate has melted and then add in a Tbsp of coffee liqueur (I used ARAKU) .  Leave the ganache aside for a while to cool, when it is thick but still pourable, pour it over the cheesecake and tease dribbles of it over the edges using a spoon or spatula.  Pop covered in the fridge for at least 6 hours to set up before slicing and serving. Enjoy with a strong cup of coffee.

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