Peppermint crisp tart milkshake

You may have noticed that I LOVE taking traditional South African recipes and giving them a fresh new twist. There isn't a South African worth their slip slops that will refuse a scoop of peppermint crisp tart at a braai and when I tried to explain this to Italian boyfriend his reaction was 'What is peppermint crisp?' All of my outrage aside, I had not realised until this moment, that the rest of the earth lives in a world without this glorious confection! Can you just imagine? Shame. 

But don't sympathise too long because what this means, is that there's more for us. Yay. 

 I was given this sexy-looking Zoku Slush & Shake maker in September and have been patiently waiting for the perfect scorcher of a day to take it for a spin. This weekend, it finally happened. Thirty degree heat and I was happy, 'cos I could make my decadent milkshake (which is my take on the peppermint crisp tart) and has been in the back of my mind all along. 

The best part of this milkshake, is that it takes forever to melt because it's made in this clever little gadget. You freeze the core of the Zoku (I just keep it in my freezer so when the urge arises, I can whip up a slushie or milkshake) then just pore in your milk mixture or fruit juice and in minutes, it freezes in front of your eyes. You can even add a little bit of booze... I'll just let that sink in while your mind whirls with all the delicious icy possibilities it can create. Magic stuff. And such a great Christmas gift *hint hint*.

Peppermint crisp tart shakes

Serves 2

1 cup vanilla ice cream

180ml milk

1-2 tbsp caramel

1 peppermint crisp bar, crushed plus extra for garnish

Crushed coconut biscuits, to garnish

Blend the ice cream, milk and caramel until smooth then stir in the crushed peppermint crisp. Pour into the Zoku Slush & Shake and stir until thick. Serve garnished with peppermint crisp pieces and coconut biscuits.

*This post has been sponsored by the awesome people at Zoku who make an array of gadgets to whip up icy delights! Visit their website here or like the Facebook page for more yummy recipes. You can find the Slush & Shake makers at Boardmans, @Home and CNA stores or at Yuppiechef.com

Chocolate millionaire shortbread cake

This is one of those 'I've had a horrific week and I need to eat my body weight in copious amounts of chocolate and sugar to make it better' cakes. The cake itself is my absolute favourite and ticks all the boxes of the perfect chocolate cake: moist, not too sweet and easy. It has an absurd amount of water in the batter but rest assured, this is the secret to a deliciously moist cake as the flour absorbs all the liquid when you give it a chance and that's exactly what stops the batter from being dry. It's perfect for tray-bakes for church bazaars or even as cupcakes. 

As if the cake wasn't good enough on it's own, I've piled it with layers of chocolate, caramel and shortbread, inspired by my favourite millionaire treat. If this cake doesn't have the wow factor then I dunno. 

Chocolate millionaire shortbread cake

Recipe created for October issue of Food and Home Entertaining Magazine

Serves 8-10

Chocolate cake

1/2L water

240g vegetable oil

450g brown sugar

200g dark chocolate, chopped

115g cocoa powder

4 large eggs

325g cake flour

5g baking powder

2g salt

10g bicarbonate of soda

Shortbread

500g butter or margarine, softened

1/2 cup castor sugar

200ml maizena or cornstarch

2 cups cake flour

Chocolate topping

450g dark chocolate

1 cup cream

Salted caramel sauce, for drizzling

Chocolate shortbread biscuits, to garnish

Preheat oven to 160C.

Boil water then add oil and sugar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved and then pour over the chopped chocolate. Stir until smooth. Whisk eggs lightly then stir in the chocolate mixture. Fold in the combined dry ingredients. Let mix stand covered for 1 hour. Place the batter into 2 x 24cm springform cake tins lined with baking paper and bake at 160C for 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.

For the shortbread, cream the butter or margarine and sugar until light and fluffy.  Gradually add the combined dry ingredients to form a soft dough.  Roll out the dough and cut into a 24cm disc. Place on a greased baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes or until crisp and golden. 

Assemble the cake by starting with a shortbread layer, spread some salted caramel on the bottom then place the chocolate cake on top followed by the chocolate topping. Repeat this process finishing with chocolate and a drizzling of salted caramel. Decorate with the leftover crushed shortbread.

TIP: Take a shortcut by buying ready-made caramel and chocolate spread instead of making your own!

Double stuffed chocolate chip cookies

What's better than a chocolate chip cookie? A chocolate chip cookie 

with another cookie inside. Duh. 

The moment my little cousin posted a pic of this concoction that she 
created on Facebook, I fell in love. 
Why has no one thought of this before I ask?! It's just genius. 

A cookie inside of a cookie? Get out. 

Photograph by Gunther Schubert of Vorsprung Studio

To fast-forward to the eating part, I used a super easy chocolate chip cookie mix 'cos incase you needed permission, it doesn't matter how you get there, people. I'm here to tell you that sometimes, cheating is okay. Especially when there is eating involved. Now, excuse me while I go figure out what else I can stuff into the middle of a chocolate chip cookie...

Double stuffed chocolate chip cookies
Makes 24

1 x 500g Sasko Quick Treats Cookie Mix
140g butter
1 extra large egg
1 cup chocolate chips
24 chocolate sandwich cookies

Preheat oven to 180C. Grease and line 2 baking trays.Place the cookie mix into a mixing bowl and rub in the butter until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs.Whisk the egg then mix into the flour to form a soft dough. Stir in the chocolate chips.Form the dough into golf-sized balls then press flat in your hand, insert a cookie into the middle and wrap the dough around it. Place on the lined baking trays and bake in the preheated oven for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.

TIP: For chewy cookies, remove them from the oven before they turn golden brown then cool on a cooling rack. If you prefer your cookies crunchy then bake a little longer and cool them on the baking tray.

Caramel macarons with chocolate sea salt

I've made no secret of my love of the flavour and have been on a serious caramel kick lately but when I heard about chocolate sea salt, my heart skipped a beat and I instantly knew that it would be to caramel what strawberries are to cream. Having had some time to master the macaron since I last openly confessed that they make me crazy - and a little bit religious (you can read more about that here), I think I have finally cracked these babies.  

This chocolate sea salt is also a keeper. I can imagine it sprinkled on really rich decadent brownies, or on top of an uber sweet caramel tart, or liberally scattered over a beautiful piece of ribeye steak (swoon!). Hmm, pretty jars filled with chocolate sea salt could make for awesome Christmas gifts, but then again, that would involve sharing it... 

Caramel macarons with chocolate sea salt

Makes 12

120g sifted ground almonds
200g icing sugar
100g egg whites (about 3 large eggs)
35g castor sugar

1/4tsp cream of tartar

Caramel colouring or sucre brûlée*

Chocolate sea salt

¼ cup good-quality sea salt

1 tbsp cocoa nibs, ground

1 tbsp grated 95% dark chocolate

Caramelised white chocolate, for sandwiching

Line 2-3 baking sheets with silicone baking sheets. Preheat the oven to 130C (fan-forced) or 150C (no-fan).

Sift together the ground almonds and icing sugar to remove any clumps. Blend any leftover mixture then sift again until nothing remains. Begin beating the egg whites and cream of tartar on low speed. Once the egg whites are very foamy, begin sprinkling in the sugar as you beat. Increase the speed to medium, if necessary, and beat the meringue to stiff glossy peaks. Add about 1/4 of the almond/sugar mixture and fold until no streaks remain. Continue to add the almond mixture in quarters, folding until incorporated. Pour the batter into a piping bag fitted with a fluted nozzle and pipe rows of batter onto the baking sheets, giving them space to spread. Tap the pan on the counter to bring up any air bubbles and quickly pop them with a toothpick. Allow the cookies to rest on a level surface for 30-60 minutes until they are no longer tacky to a light touch.  While they rest, place an oven rack in the lower 3rd of your oven and preheat to 150C.  Bake the cookies for 16-20 minutes. (I always make a small tray with one or two on so I can do a test batch first). Allow to cool. 

To make the chocolate sea salt combine the salt, nibs and dark chocolate and mix well. 

Spread a little of the caramel white chocolate onto the tops of half the macarons and sprinkle with the salt before sandwiching together. Store the leftover salt in an airtight container and use to flavour steak, desserts etc. 

*Italian boyfriend/pastry chef extraordinaire tells me that sucre brûlée is an old-fashioned method for caramel colouring. To make, place a tablespoonful of sugar in a pan and allow to caramelise until a deep almost burnt colour. Add 2-3 tablespoonfuls of water and simmer to incorporate the caramel. Allow to cool then use a few drops to achieve the desired colour. 

Caramel latte loaf cake

Caramel is the new vanilla. The food world has fallen in love with the flavour and though it will never be better, caramel is rather like chocolate's sexy cousin. It's headily sweet and totally decadent. Add a pinch of salt to the mix and you have an earth-shattering combination that is basically the crack cocaine of the culinary world. The reason for this? Consuming fat, sugar and salt all together is a serious sensory overdrive for our brains - it releases dopamine and adrenaline and totally gets our neurons fired up. Exactly the way drugs do.

 And before you feel guilty about shovelling another spoonful of caramel straight out the jar, don't, because genetically we're supposed to be attracted to foods with this tantalising trifector. It's a matter of survival people. We need salt because we can't produce our own. We need fat for energy and our sugar cravings are linked to being able to tell which foods are edible. So, make this caramel latte loaf cake and then enjoy every morsel guilt-free, because you can't fight genetics. 

Caramel latte loaf cake

Makes 2

230g Stork Bake margarine, softened

230g sugar

4 eggs

250g cake flour

1 tsp baking powder

pinch of salt

½ cup tinned caramel

2 tsp corn flour

30ml espresso

Caramel cream cheese frosting

240g cream cheese

4 tbsp Stork Bake margarine, softened

½ cup tinned caramel

1 tsp vanilla

3 ½ cups icing sugar

pinch of salt

Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease and line 2 standard loaf tins.

Cream the margarine and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs slowly, one at a time until completely incorporated. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt then stir into the margarine mixture. Divide the batter in two and mix the caramel, cornflour and espresso into one batch. Spoon alternate types of batter into the loaf tins to create a blotchy affect. Then, using a skewer, gently swirl it around in the batter to marble the cake. Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.

To make the icing, cream the cream cheese and margarine together until light and fluffy. Then add the caramel, vanilla, icing sugar and salt. Use to ice the cooled cake.

Can't get enough of caramel? Try this Sticky caramel pudding, or classic creme caramel or how about some caramelised chocolate?

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Chocolate red wine toffee marshmallows

A girl only needs two things in life; chocolate and red wine. 

But a little toffee and marshmallow can't hurt either so I've thrown those in here for good measure. I've been wanting to create some 'gourmet' (I really despise that word but there really aren't enough food adjectives in the English language) marshmallows for a while now since they're so trendy and all but I didn't want to make just any marshmallows. These needed to be very special marshmallows. For grown-ups!

Then a box full of beautifully-wrapped red wine toffees from Sweet Temptations landed on my desk. It was a sign. 

Obviously this toffee HAD to go into my marshmallows. The recipe I've used is based on Eric Lanlard's cocoa marshmallows and it is so incredibly simple and easy you'll wonder why you've been eating those horridly squishy store-bought pink ones all along. How amazed would your guests be if you whipped these out for after-dinner sweets?!! I know, you're welcome.

Chocolate red wine toffee marshmallows
Recipe adapted from Eric Lanlard's 'Chocolat'
Makes 24 squares

2 Sweet Temptations red wine toffees, thinly sliced lengthwise*
150ml water
2 tsp sweet red wine
200g sugar
2 tbsp gelatine powder
1/4 cup glucose
1/4 cup honey
125g dark chocolate, chopped and melted
Cocoa powder, for dusting

Line a 20cm square cake tin with baking paper. 
Place the thinly sliced toffee pieces on a piece of baking paper and roll out using a rolling pin to the size of the cake tin. Cut to fit the base and place in the bottom. 
Place the water, red wine, sugar and gelatine in a saucepan over low heat and stir until the gelatine and sugar is dissolved. Do not let the mixture boil. Remove from the heat and stir in the glucose and honey. Place in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat on high for 8-10 minutes or until the mixture is thick and holds it's shape. Fold in the cooled melted chocolate and pour into the lined baking tin. Smooth the surface using a hot knife, cover and allow to set in the refrigerator for an hour. Once set, unmould and using a hot or oiled knife to cut into squares. Dust with cocoa powder and store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks. 

*You could use any very soft toffees here (make sure they're pliable) otherwise, leave out the toffee and sprinkle the base with a dusting of cocoa. 

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