Demerara Toffee Fudge Bars with White Chocolate and Sea salt

Should I even bother typing an intro to this? I mean, with a title like that, I know you’re already thinking ‘Get in mah belleh!!!’ and working out how you can get to the shops and back in the quickest amount of time. I’m thinking it too. ‘Cos I know how flipping amazing these are!

For those of you still reading, let me break it down for you: cocoa shortbread, slapped with a thick layer of fudge, slathered with white chocolate and sprinkled with salt flakes. Jip, that’s fat on top of sugar, on top of butter (somewhere a dietician just quit her job cos she discovered what I do for a living… awkward!). BUT the key here is that it’s not just any sugar - it’s scrummalicious sugar (there are just too few food adjectives out there okay - inventing my own starting now).

I’ve used the crunchy caramelly Natura Demerara sugars for the job (Demerara sugars is crystallized from the first press of sugarcane juice). The Light Demerara is perfect for shortbread - the texture is fine (like wiggling your toes in beach sand!) so it dissolves while baking but still adds flavour. The Dark Demerara has gorgeous amber crystals (so pretty I used them as decoration on top of the white chocolate) which are perfect 

for making a kick-ass caramel fudge. I’ve realised that sugar is so much more than 

just adding sweetness and using proper unrefined sugar will add heaps of 

flavour to your baking!

In my opinion, the best part, is the sexy off-cuts! I pretty much spent the entire morning munching on them while shooting - don’t think for a second they made it back into any sort of storage container (what is this ‘storage container’ you speak of? What is it used for?!). 

Well, now my camera is covered in fudge… Wait, my camera is covered in fudge!

Now, go bake yourself happy while I contemplate whether licking my camera is socially acceptable…

P.S. This is what was left of the batch:

Demerara Fudge Bars with White Chocolate and Sea salt

Makes 16-20

Shortbread base

150g cake flour

30g cocoa powder

130g butter, cut into blocks

60g Natura Light Demerara Sugar

Demerara Filling

130g milk powder (full-fat if possible)

150g Light Demerara Sugar

210g salted butter

100g Natura Dark Demerara Sugar

160ml boiling water

Topping

200g white chocolate, melted

Sea salt flakes

Dark Demerara Sugar, for sprinkling

Grease and line a 20 x 20cm baking tray with baking paper. 

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees celsius (160 if you’re using a fan-forced oven).

Combine the flour, cocoa, sugar and butter in a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix until it forms a soft dough. Alternately, get your fingers dirty and rub all the ingredients together until well combined. 

Press the dough into the prepared baking tin and prick the base with a fork. 

Bake for 20 minutes or until golden. Allow to cool completely. 

To make the Demerara fudge layer, place all the ingredients in a  blender and blend for 1-2 minutes or until smooth and combined. Pour into a saucepan and stir continuously over a low heat until all the sugar has dissolved. 

Bring to the boil and cook until the mixture turns golden brown and reaches soft ball stage (118C on a sugar thermometer). To test if it’s ready, drop a small amount into a small cup filled with tap water, it should form a soft, pliable ball. Remove from the heat and immediately pour over the shortbread. Allow to cool completely. 

Spread the melted white chocolate over the top of the toffee then sprinkle with a little sea salt and the Demerara sugar. Allow to set then cut into bars using a hot knife. 

Disclaimer: This post has been sponsored by Natura Sugars who produce a range of really special sugars that are unrefined and made according to traditional Mauritian sugar-making techniques. The sugars are non-GM, non-irradiated and unbleached with no preservatives, colourants or syrups added which basically means they are pure, natural and packed with flavour! 

Quadruple Chocolate Cake

A melt 'n mix white chocolate cake sandwiched together with whipped dark chocolate ganache and drizzled with THREE kinds of chocolate sauce. Why? Because I can. And because 4 types of chocolate exist and I couldn't choose my favourite (it's like choosing a favourite child!) so I used them all. And because it's International No Diet Day. Yes, I know every day on TheKateTin is no diet day... 

I once heard a dietician say (bet you NEVER thought I'd be quoting a dietician - ha!) that if you're going to cheat while on a diet, then do it properly! Half cheating just results in more cheating. But don't fear, there is no half cheating with this cake. I didn't call it a quadruple (bypass?) cake for nothing! 

The melt 'n mix white chocolate sponge is a revelation - it's so delicious and tastes just like a milky bar. YUUUUM! It's quite sweet so I balanced it out with a whipped dark chocolate ganache so there's a bit of bitterness. But all that balance kinda jumped out the window when I got to the top of the cake and decided to go all Jackson Pollock on it with white, milk and caramel chocolate. Oh well. My intentions were good! Does that count?

As for those of you who are feeling any sort of guilt at eating said cake? I'll leave you with this sweet quote from Jeanne Ray: 

"A slice of cake never made anyone fat. You don't eat the WHOLE cake... You have a slice and what it reminds you of is someplace that's safe, uncomplicated, without stress. A cake is a party, a birthday, a wedding. A cake is what is served on the happiest days of your life"

Quadruple chocolate cake

Because just 3 types of chocolate isn’t enough. A super-easy melt ‘n mix white chocolate cake topped with whipped dark chocolate ganache and caramel-chocolate sauce.

Serves 12

Recipe by Katelyn Williams

Melt ‘n Mix White chocolate cake

185g butter

1 cup (250ml) milk

1 cup (250ml) castor sugar

150g white chocolate, chopped

2 cups (500ml) cake flour

1 ½ tsp baking powder

2 large eggs

Whipped ganache

100ml cream

200g good-quality dark chocolate, chopped

50g milk chocolate, melted

50g white chocolate, melted

50g caramelized white chocolate, melted (see TIP)

Preheat the oven to 160C. Grease and line 2 x 15cm cake tins.

For the cake, combine the butter, milk, sugar and chocolate in a saucepan and melt over low heat.

In a separate bowl, mix the cake flour and baking powder.

Add the chocolate mix to the dry ingredients and whisk well, then whisk in the eggs.

Divide the batter between the two cake tins and bake in the preheated oven for 40-45 minutes or until golden and springy to the touch. A skewer inserted into the middle should come out clean.

Turn the cake out of the tins and allow to cool completely, then slice each cake in half horizontally.

For the whipped ganache, heat the cream until boiling then pour over the chopped chocolate. Allow to stand for a few minutes then stir until melted.

Allow to set completely then using a hand mixer, whip the ganache until light and fluffy (careful not to overwhip or it will split!)

Assemble the cake by layering the white chocolate cake alternately with whipped chocolate ganache.

Decorate the cake by drizzling with the 3 different types of chocolate.

TIP: To make the caramelized white chocolate, place broken up good-quality white chocolate on a baking sheet and drizzle with 1 tbsp vegetable or canola oil. Place in an oven preheated to 150C for 1 hour, stirring every 10 minutes until a rich caramel colour is achieved. If the chocolate is lumpy, simply blend it in a food processor or pass it through a sieve. If it’s too thick, add a little more oil.

Lemon white chocolate melting moments

Rich and buttery, these pretty shortbreads are delicious with a touch of zesty lemon. They earn their name from the large amount of fat they contain, which allows them to almost magically melt in the mouth. Orange or lime zest would make a great variation in place of the lemon zest, as would swopping the white chocolate filling for sweet raspberry jam, chocolate spread or flavoured butter creams like passionfruit or lime. They would also be mind-blowing with my caramelised white chocolate! I adore this recipe so much and shamefully often forget about it when I'm making a batch of cookies to fill the tin. They are just to-die-for and I don't think there is a person on this planet that would not close their eyes in sheer bliss when biting into one. A melting moment indeed.

Photography by Christelle Botha for Zone magazine

Lemon white chocolate melting moments

Makes 12

175g butter or margarine, softened slightly

1/4 cup icing sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup cake flour, sifted
1/4 cup corn flour sifted

Zest of 1 lemon

100g white chocolate, melted

Preheat oven to 180°C. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Cream the butter, icing sugar and vanilla in a bowl until light and fluffy. Stir in the flour and corn flour until combined and soft. Place the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a fluted nozzle. Pipe 3 cm rounds onto lined baking tray, allowing room for spreading. Place the tray of biscuits into the fridge for 30 minutes for the butter to chill then bake for 12-14 min or until golden. Cool on the tray. Sandwich the cookies together with the melted white chocolate. Store in an airtight container.

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OTT chocolate brownie cookies (with caramelised white chocolate)

One of the greastest pleasures in life is a good midnight snack. It’s not often I wake up with the urge to visit the kitchen but I’ve always loved the idea of creating a culinary masterpiece in the dim light of the open fridge door. This weekend I found myself baking a batch of totally OTT (over the top) brownie cookies at 11pm on a Saturday night (don’t judge me), not because of insomnia but rather because my neighbours were throwing what felt like the biggest trance party in the Southern Hemisphere. And I’m not exaggerating. Okay maybe I am but still. And BTW it had nothing to do with the fact that I wasn’t invited okay? The occasion warranted a totes innapropes (totally innapropriate) amount of chocolate because that was all that was standing between me and dialling the po-po (police). The caramelised white chocolate filling is honestly the best thing that has ever graced my taste buds. How I have lived this long without it in my life, is a mystery and if I ever meet the person responsible for its glorious creation, my brain will explode from wonder. The white chocolate turns a beautiful golden brown in the oven and develops a toasty flavour. A pinch of sea salt flakes is all that’s standing between this stuff (I’m nicknaming it white chocolate crack) and a stint in rehab. Caramelised white chocolate FTW (for the win). Now smother gooey dark chocolate brownie cookies with the chocolate crack (warning: this will annihilate your diet but, hey, YOLO [you only live once] and all that) and you have a midnight snack that will solve all the world’s problems. After all, my neighbours will tell you that it contributed to the best party ever. True story.

Photography and styling by Katelyn Williams

Chocolate brownie cookies with caramelised white chocolate

I've used Fairtrade chocolate in honour of Fairtrade week - nothing better than eating chocolate with a clear conscience! 
Makes 12

Caramelised white chocolate

300g Fairtrade white chocolate, chopped*

1-2 tbsp vegetable oil

200g Fairtrade dark chocolate, chopped

50g Stork Bake

2 eggs

2/3 cup Selati castor sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

¼ cup Sasko cake flour

¼ tsp baking powder

pinch of sea salt

To make the caramelised white chocolate, preheat the oven to 120C. Spread the chocolate on a baking sheet and drizzle with the oil. Place in the preheated oven for 10 minutes then remove and stir with a clean, dry spatula. Continue to cook for 30-60 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Don’t worry if the chocolate looks lumpy and chalky at some stage, it will smooth out and caramelize.

Once the chocolate is golden brown, stir in a pinch of salt. If it’s still lumpy you can place it in a food processor to smooth it out and add a little cream or oil if necessary. Store in a jar at room temperature.

To make the brownie cookies, melt the chocolate and Stork Bake together gently.

Beat the eggs, sugar and vanilla in an electric mixer for 15 minutes or until pale and creamy.

Fold in the flour, baking powder, chocolate mixture and allow to stand for 10 minutes.

Spoon tablespoons of mixture onto a lined baking sheet and bake at 180C for 8-10 minutes or until puffed and cracked.

Allow to cool completely then sandwich together with the caramelized chocolate.

*use a white chocolate with a minimum of 30% cocoa butter content for the best results

Caramelised white chocolate aka 'White chocolate crack'

And here's the clip of me making these yummy cookies on Expresso Breakfast Show this week:

My famous baked white chocolate cheesecake

I’m not one to hold on to so-called ‘secret’ recipes but this one, I keep close. In fact I’ve been prolonging the day I’d share this recipe with anyone because it is just that good. How good? Well, good enough to help in winning over a boyfriend or two. After all, the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach and anyone who contests that, hasn’t tasted my cheesecake. But speaking of ‘secret’ recipes, I’m reminded of a story my grandmother used to tell of a dear old friend of hers who was known for her outstanding bakes at the church bazaar. To everyone’s amazement, she would willingly hand out her ‘secret’ recipes with a smile to any avid baker who asked for them. However, her ‘secret’ recipes never seemed to emerge from other’s oven’s quite as perfectly as it did from hers. You can only imagine the scandal and sordidness of it all when it was discovered that she would leave out an ingredient or two when passing on the recipe. With that in mind though, rest assured that my precious, velvety, rich white chocolate and cardamom-laced cheesecake recipe below, features in all it’s original glory. No recipes were harmed in the posting of this blog. Enjoy!

Cardamom and white chocolate cheesecake

(serves 10-12)

Cheesecake

400g coconut biscuits

100g butter or margarine, melted

800g cream cheese, room temperature

300g crème fraîche, room temperature

180g castor sugar

40g cake flour

4 eggs

200g white chocolate, melted

1/4t ground cardamom (optional)

zest of 2 lemons

Combine the biscuits and butter in a food processor and press into a 20cm lined cake tin.

TIP: If using a springform tin, cover the outside of the tin in one large sheet of foil to prevent the water from the bain marie entering the cake tin.

Mix the cheese, crème fraîche, sugar, flour, eggs, white chocolate, cardamom and zest together until smooth and pour into the crust.

TIP: Don’t beat or whip the mixture – filling should be creamy and smooth not aerated.

Bake in a bain-marie at 100°C until just set with a slight wobble in the middle.

TIP: Don’t over bake the cheesecake or it will become crumbly instead of smooth and velvety.

Allow to cool at room temperature then refrigerate until set.

VARIATIONS

SAFFRON NEW YORK CHEESECAKE:

Mix 120ml sour cream and 2T castor sugar with a pinch of saffron that has been steeped in 1t hot water for 10 minutes. Just before the cheesecake is ready, remove from the oven and carefully spread the saffron mixture over the cheesecake and bake for an additional 10 minutes.

MARBLED CHEESECAKE:

Combine all the ingredients except the white chocolate and divide into two. Add 100g white chocolate to the one batch and 100g dark chocolate to the remaining batch. Pour the white chocolate mix into the crust and drizzle with the dark chocolate mix. Swirl with a skewer to create a marble effect before baking.

FRUITY CHEESECAKE:

Add a handful of raspberries, blueberries, gooseberries or any other fruit into the cheesecake mix once it has been poured into the base, before baking.