The World's Best Chocolate Ice-Cream

Did I mention that I got myself a Cuisineart ice-cream machine in June? Well, I DID. At a SALE. It was ON SALE. It was CHEAP-er. Such a bargain that there was only 1 UNIT LEFT. My DAUGHTER LOVES ice-cream. Oh....a woman will have every justification possible when she buys something on a whim doesn't she? I've been meaning to shop for one since last year and all I encountered were either the plasticky, toy-like versions or the industrial sizes. I wasn't looking for it this time when I was in Melbourne but as chance would have it, it was there in Essential Ingredients. The one and only unit in the store calling out to me, begging to be adopted. But I was there specifically for ONLY Maggie Beer's Verjuice, a bottle of paella spice mix and Callebaut dark chocolates!! My girlfriend was surprisingly unsurprised when she came back from turning the car around to hear me telling her that I was carting an ice-cream maker back. Mind you, it was quite a large box and I had to re-organise my cabin baggage to accommodate an extra hand luggage. Yes, I had my tote on one arm and the huge 4kg box on the other. I looked ridiculous. Even had to sort of fling it to show the check-in officer that it was simply light plastic ware and my overweight check-in bag could use that allotted 7kg instead of paying a penalty. Story of the ice-cream machine's journey doesn't end there but I'll stop now...we're getting out of context here.

So, the world's best chocolate ice-cream, eh? This recipe was from Nigella Lawson's How To Eat book and she swore that this ice-cream deserved the title. I have by then churned a few rounds of ice-cream and they've all been great. Best be known that homemade ice-cream is nothing like store-bought ones. Not entirely better but entirely different. All depend on what you want from your ice-cream. Our staple brand is Bulla and once in a blue moon, a very expensive and small tub of Haagen-Daaz. But this chocolate ice-cream is truly a class of its own. I used a half of dark chocolate and another half of bitter chocolate. The smokiness from the burnish caramel gave this ice-cream its much-deserved title. It is velvety smooth, creamy rich and.....orgasmic. Beauty of it is you only need a small scoop to get your fix...see how easy it is to satisfy a woman?

Chocolate-Pistachio Cake

This cake came about when I was idling in the kitchen while the boys were watching the Singapore F1 race on the telly and a jar of pistachios on the sideboard threatening to go rancid. Got a kilo of these wonderful nuts from Dubai and we've been popping them till our throats were scratchy. Needless to say, we refrained from them to recover and it's been rendered purposeless since. So, I sat in the kitchen for half an hour just shelling all that were left. Thankfully, there was just enough for this cake. I've resisted baking this cake in the past because pre-grounded pistachios are non-existent and I worry that my food processor may not do a good job. But this old kitchen helper proved me wrong. It did a beautiful job processing the pistachios until dust and it was simply putting the rest of the ingredients after that, to finish off the batter. This flourless cake was moist, yet light and that's all due to the meringue folded into the batter in the last step. So, you have to make sure that you beat the egg whites till they are glossy and firm. I didn't cook the orange-flower-flavoured ganache and this scrumptious cake didn't need any icing to take it to cake nirvana.

Chocolate Cheesecake

We love cheesecakes and we love this Chocolate Cheesecake from Nigella Lawson's Feast. My only gripe is the recipe calls for a couple more ingredients to make up the filling. But then again, it may not be as yummy if it didn't have those extras. Compared to the version from How To Be A Domestic Goddess, this one's smoother and the chocolate flavour is much more intense with a good balance between the sweetness and tang from the sour cream. The two obvious things I did, which probably contributed to its sophistication are (1) using Oreo cookies (no cream) for the base instead of digestive biscuits and (2) Callebaut Dark Chocolate, which reminds me...... I'm out of it!!

Marble Cake

The MOTH finally agrees to this Marble Cake! Over the years, whenever a slice of Marble Cake is presented to him, he'd look at it with disdain. You see, he has very little regard for Marble Cakes...remind him of tuck shop cakes - dry, character-less and plain sweet, just so they can call it a cake. I tend to agree at some point because it really is just a two-colour Madeira Cake where you divide the batter in two and colour one with a tablespoon of cocoa. But this version from Nigella Lawson's Feast is different. Using her moist Madeira Cake as a base, she also gave a small but significant twist to each colour. Citrus zest to add some zing to the plain batter and a little coffee to perk up the chocolate base. The cake is moist, flavourful and you won't stop at one slice. A real comfort cake. No wonder it's in the "funeral" section of that book!

Quadruple Chocolate Loaf Cake

We had this for breakfast on Monday. What's with the "quadruple" you ask? Well, Nigella Lawson explains that this cake is made up of cocoa, chocolate chips, chocolate syrup and grated chocolate. Love this cake for its simplicity to bake the loaf. Put everything into the food processor , blitz and pour. Easy-peasy. BUT...cooking the chocolate syrup is a whole other thing. You want the syrup to be syrupy, not just melted sugar with cocoa. For that, you'll need to stir consistently over low heat for the liquid to turn caramel-y...if there's such a word. Easy if it's just sugar and water but with cocoa added, looking for the colour change is impossible. Doesn't help that it's simmering. It basically has to reduce to turn into this yummy thick syrup. Anyway, if this is going to be daunting, forget it. In my opinion, the syrup didn't really enhance the loaf nor did the flakes of chocolate on top. Purely aesthetic, I feel. The top did look shiny and chocolate flakes inviting but other than that, the loaf itself was to die for. Rich, moist and flavourful. Maybe it was the Valhorna Manjuri cocoa I used and the 75% dark chocolate chips? Well, Young Master's mates wiped out whatever that was left from breakfast for tea, so I didn't get a second slice to have it 'dance in my mouth' - quoting Manu Fidel.

Big Pasta with Mushroom, Parsley, Garlic & Thyme

I know...the title itself is a mouthful. I would have just called it plain Vegetarian Baked Pasta. This recipe came from Nigella Lawson's Feast and it ensues the baked rigatoni for meat-lovers from the previous page. Our family love butter-sautéed mushrooms with garlic on toast. So, baking this for Sunday lunch was a no-brainer. But working out the right quantity was a lot of brain. Nigella's recipe was to feed 16! I halved the béchamel and mushroom mixture recipes, and used only one 500gm packet of pasta (recipe called for three). I ended up baking the pasta in a 20cm dish and six large ramekins. If you're going to do this, make sure you have a large party or freeze the rest (like I did) for a weekday lunch. Cooking the white sauce may be a bit daunting for beginners but you have to start sometime because lots of comforting food involves béchamel...and even better, cheesy béchamel. Always get the roux right first. Set the stove on low fire, melt the butter and add the flour. Sprinkling them into the pan while constantly whisking helps. When you see a nice paste, add the milk. Never stop whisking. No need for vigorous whisking just a gentle and steady hand will do. Increase the heat a bit and continue whisking till it thickens. Let it come to a boil but not over-flowing it and take the sauce off the heat. You'll have a beautiful sauce for your pasta. The other thing I changed here was using three cheeses to top the pasta mixture instead of one. Less salty with less parmesan, richer with cheddar and great browning with stringy mozarella.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Squares

I've been on sabbatical from "commercial" baking for 2 weeks now and will continue for another 2 weeks to purportedly help with Young Master's year 6 SATs equivalent. Well, I don't know how much I'm helping when I've been cooking and baking up a storm in lieu of cake decorating! Must be a stress reaction or instinctive mothering...you know, cooking for his brain? Just this morning, a friend updated her Facebook status saying her son's teacher recommended fruit juices to help them. She said sure, will get some Peel Fresh (packaged juices) later. Son replied, "no mum, fresh juice"...You can already see good ol' mumsie skinning oranges. Frankly, I've been doing the same. The MOTH (who'd reason with you that fishes are friends not food if he can have his say in my meal planning) have been scrunching his face a lot lately. Yes, if you don't know, yet, fish is brain food....yeeeesss.
So, Chocolate Peanut Butter Squares - brain food or not? Well, chocolate sharpens the mind and peanut butter nourishes the brain! See? I knew I had a reason for putting this together...*snigger*. These fudgy squares are divine. By using dark chocolate and a smooth peanut butter, the match was made in heaven. They just melt in your mouth. Think these squares have been helping Young Master keep his anxiety level low?