Chocolate Fudge Cake

This past weekend was one of those weekends that are just a little bit too crazy. Adrian was organising a Regional Youth Rally at Church and with a friday night program the evening before we didn’t end up getting into bed until 2am Saturday morning. The rally was fantastic but needless to say I wasn’t surprised to find Adrian dead to the world when I called him to lunch at about 2pm that afternoon!

It’s weekends like these that require some very necessary self medication in the form of sugar and chocolate. What better way to give a much needed boost to my worn out Pastor husband than a delicious fudgey chocolate cake and this fudgey chocolate cake is unapolagetically opulent. Its a very simple recipe and within the hour our serotonin levels had peaked with the sugary goodness. What better way to relax on a Sabbath afternoon then with a steaming hot cuppa and deliciously decadent choccy cake.

The best part is enjoying the leftovers now with a nice little cup of tea.

Chocolate Fudge Cake
(adapted from Women’s Weekly Classic Cakes)

Ingredients:
250g Dark Chocolate
125g Butter
150g Caster Sugar
100g Plain Flour
2/3 tsp baking powder
4 eggs, lightly beaten

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 180 and line a lamington tin (20x30cm) with baking paper.
2. Melt butter and chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of boiling water.
3. Combine chocolate mixture in remaining ingredients in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat on medium until smooth and changed colour.
4. Bake for 20 minutes and allow to stand for 5.

Just what you need on a cool winters arvo…

Dark Chocolate and Plum Clafoutis…

 

I’ve been completely addicted to stone fruit recently… not just because they are naturally sweet and succulent.. but they are also very much seasonal which equals very much affordable… something that has been especially important since the move down to Sydney where grocery prices are exorbitant to say the least… luckily I had an excellent excuse to bake this week… worship ministry meeting!

 

 

 

Worship ministry is a ministry in our church that is responsible for the inspiring church services every week… and as corny as it sounds work a little bit like this tasty clafoutis… separately all the ingredients are pretty bland (except maybe the plums and chocolate)… but by bringing them all together using the right processes and finesse… equal a truly remarkable experience!

 

 

Clafoutis is originally a french dish from the Limousin region… traditionally made with dark, sweet cherries (pips left in for added flavour) this twist on a classic takes these beautiful ruby blood plums and transforms them into a concentrated little gem perched in a moussy and rich chocolate pillow… this recipe is so simple to make and yet the results are truly incredible… I expected a light sponge style cake but was surprised to cut into a spongey, thick and warm dessert with the consistency of thick double cream… this ones a keeper so get in quick while the plums are fresh and frugle…

 

Dark Chocolate and Plum Clafoutis
Adapted from: Donna Hay’s Seasons
Serves: 8

Ingredients
1/3 cup plain flour
1/4 cup cocoa
1/3 cup castor sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 eggs
1 cup cream
175g dark chocolate, chopped
20g butter
5 blood plums

Method

1. Place dry ingredients into a large bowl and mix wet ingredients in a jug.
2. Whisk the wet ingredients in the dry and stir in the dark chocolate.
3. Melt the butter in an oven proof fry pan then fill with the batter.
4. Slice the plums in half and top with the plums.
5. Bake in a preheated oven at 180 degrees for 30 minutes or until puffed up and cooked through.

Happy Baking!

My dream… God willing…

Ministry and Cooking are my two greatest passions…. you may have read the about section of this blog and understand that I’m attempting to merge the two… It has been a dream of mine for some time now to make a Ministry out of Cooking and I wanted to share this dream with you… I was stumbling around some wordpress blogs the other day and found a post that is a good example of what I wanna do in the future… at some point in my life… if it’s in Gods plan.. I’d love to open a Church Cafe… It’s an interesting concept… The cafe wouldn’t actually be a church but would operate out of a church building.. or vice versa.. basically a cafe in a high traffic area that closes on Sabbaths for Church, has community programs during the week and evenings and is a place for Bible studies and small groups to operate… all the while still running as a secular cafe during the day… a cafe where mums come after dropping the kids of at school… business men and women come to grab a foccacia for lunch… grandmas and grandpas come in the afternoons for a cup of tea… and kids come after school for milk shakes.. a cafe that is a community as well… that builds a relationship with the customers and provides services and programs at the cafe to meet their needs… a place where people feel comfortable to come to their local cafe for church.. obviously it’s a work in progress.. but this is my dream!

Would you come to my cafe?

Welcome to my Blog…

“Nothin’ says lovin’ like something from the oven…”

Pillsbury Doughboy

Welcome to my blog…

For those of you who don’t know me, I’m a 22 year old student that is desperately trying to finish her final year of theology/ministry (and graduate – God willing – with honours) which can be… quite taxing (to say the least). Never before have my beliefs, my character or my purpose in life come under question… it’s a risky business following the will of God.

Thus, I bake to escape.

Welcome to my escape. BUT like any other OCD, type A, overachieving, perfectionist female, my baking needs to have a purpose.

My purpose at this stage of my life is ministry, and it would only make sense that my baking were a ministry also.

Thus, Bake, Share, Love…

A movement that aims to inspire the baker within to focus on the people without and use your gifts and talents to bring joy to others. Bake something, share it and feel the love.

It’s quite simple really… together, I believe, we can bake a better world.

Feel like baking yet?