We have a new addition to the family…
It's a Kitchen Aid…an incredibly overpriced but very sexy mixer. We have always walked through kitchen stores admiring them from afar (they are always placed on the top shelves) and mildly arguing about what colour we would choose if we ever won the lottery and could afford one.
But now a bright red mixer is sitting proudly on our bench. We don't technically own it … we are looking after it for a friend who has decided to move back to LA for a while but we will certainly be putting it to good use while it resides under our roof.
It's a Kitchen Aid…an incredibly overpriced but very sexy mixer. We have always walked through kitchen stores admiring them from afar (they are always placed on the top shelves) and mildly arguing about what colour we would choose if we ever won the lottery and could afford one.
But now a bright red mixer is sitting proudly on our bench. We don't technically own it … we are looking after it for a friend who has decided to move back to LA for a while but we will certainly be putting it to good use while it resides under our roof.
At first I was a little scared to use it…it just looks so good and I'm always ruining things much to Sim's eternal frustration…a little scratch here, a bit of food there that no matter how hard you try just can't be removed. But after a batch or two of dough for bagels, I'm starting to relax (and hopefully Sim is too!)
What I really like about it, is it's simplicity. It's solid and heavy and only has two levers. I hate it when you buy something and it feels plasticky and light and eminently…well…breakable…usually just as soon as the warranty has run out. This mixer feels like it will be around for a while. Which is lucky as Sim went and bought the pasta making attachments for it! We haven't had a chance to try them out yet, but look out for that post…we'll probably be singing it from the rooftops.
Sim did make a delicious chocolate cake on the weekend with the help of our new friend and in typical fashion muddied around slightly with the recipe and pulled out an absolutely stunning rendition. It was warm and delicious and comforting and just so…indulgent. I had four pieces in a row and now I feel like I have to go running every night for a month…but hell it was worth it.
Old fashioned chocolate cake
Adapted from the Good Taste Collection - Chocolate by Anneka Manning
185 g butter at room temperature, cubed
155 g dark brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla essence
2 eggs at room temperature
200g self raising flour
35 g cocoa powder
125 ml milk
50g dark cooking chocolate
50g dark cooking chocolate
Icing
1 ½ tblspoons cocoa powder
1 tbs warm milk
75g butter room temperature, cubed
125g icing mixture
1/2 vanilla essence
Preheat oven to 180 degrees celcius. Brush a round cake pan with melted butter to grease and line the bottom with baking paper.
Use electric beaters (aka Kitchen Aid) to beat butter, sugar, vanilla essence until mixture is pale and the sugar dissolves. Melt the chocolate and add at this stage.
Add eggs one at a time, beat well after each addition. Sift cocoa and flour and add half to the butter mixture, then half the milk. Fold together [ no Kichen Aid required :( ] until well combined. Repeat with remaining flour and milk.
Spoon mixture into cake tin and bake for 40-45 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Set aside for 5 minutes and then turn onto a wire rack to cool completely.
To make the icing, combine the cocoa and milk (in the Kitchen Aid!) Add butter, icing sugar and vanilla essence and mix until the mixture is well combined. Spread the icing over the cake and try not to eat too much in one sitting.
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