Chocolate-filled Rolls


Sadly, I'm going to have to give these chocolate-filled rolls a fail.  Not only were they too much dough and not enough chocolate, but they also took a lot of effort

as well as three expensive bittersweet chocolate bars.  Wasted.  Grrrrr.

If you want chocolate bread, try this chocolate chip bread recipe instead.

Meanwhile, I'll be trying to figure out how to get rid of 18 of these.

Lemon Cheesecake

I'd like to welcome a guest poster today, a new friend from No Reason Needed blog.  We decided it would be fun to do a blog post swap (you know, kind of like a cookie swap only via the magic of the internet).  Here, then, is Carol's post, a yummy looking cheesecake made with lemon curd -- doesn't that sound heavenly?  Take it away, Carol:

Hello, Queen of the Castle readers. Carol from NO REASON NEEDED here, popping over from my blog to share a Lemon Cheesecake recipe.

Originally obtained from Veronica’s blog, La Recette du Jour it was previously unknown to me that cooks in Europe measure dry ingredients by weight, not volume (i.e. cups). Many of her recipes use European standards for measurement; weights are in grams or kilos, volumes are in litres, centilitres, or millilitres, and oven temperatures are in Celsius.

Fortunate for me, Ivy from Little Ivy Cakes had used the same recipe previously and had converted the measurements to American standards...THANK YOU!!!

I L♥VE all things LEMON and wasn't in the least bit apprehensive to try her Lemon Cheesecake.

LEMON CHEESECAKE

the bottom crust:
1 1/4 cup shortbread biscuits (I used Arrowroot's)
1/2 cup butter


the filling:
1 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
1 1/2 cup cream cheese
3/4 cup sugar (I used 1/2 cup caster sugar & 1/4 cup granulated sugar)
3 eggs
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon, plus the juice of half of it
3/4 cup lemon curd

-Preheat the oven to 350F. Have a large spring-form pan ready
-Put the biscuits in a plastic bag and crush with a meat tenderizer or roll with a rolling pin. Don't reduce them to powder leave some biggish lumps, otherwise the base will be too stodgy. Melt the butter, mix with the biscuits, then spread the mixture over the base of the tin, patting it down firmly,
-bake for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 280 F.
-Meanwhile, put all the cheese in a bowl and beat with an electric whisk for 30 seconds to make it smooth and light. Beat in the sugar, then the eggs, one by one, followed by the lemon zest and juice.
-Swirl in half the lemon curd
-Pour into the tin and bake for about an hour (I baked for 1 hour at 280F and an additional 15 minutes at 300F). The filling should be only just set and still a little bit wobbly in the middle. Turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake in it to cool.

- When it's completely cold, unmould it and put it on a plate.

- Spread the rest of the lemon curd over it and decorate.

LEMON CURD
Juice of 2 lemons
1 large strip lemon peel
2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
5 Tbs. butter cut into little pieces
Mix all ingredients in a saucepan and cook on medium-low heat until mixture thickens and starts to bubble a little(5 mins), mixing occasionally. Remove saucepan from heat immediately and press through a sieve. Stir and then store in a container. Chill at least 1-2 hours before serving. I stored mine in the fridge until I was ready to use.

Aside from Dalton (my picky eater)... Dakota, John and I LOVED it. Dakota even went on to declare it being "a little taste of heaven", and somewhat "similar to Lemon Meringue Pie, 're-arranged'"

That said, I was impressed with how EASY this cheesecake was to make and how well it held up, without crumbling upon being sliced.

This recipe is a DEFINITE keeper!!!

Orange Snowball Cookies

Today I'm guest posting over at No Reason Needed blog.
The topic? you ask.

Christmas cookies.  These orange snowballs, in fact.

Recipe snagged from this delightful book, for which Frosty and I have made further plans.  Many further plans.
How about you?  Any Christmas baking going on at your house?
Fill me in.  I am dying to know.

Fabulous Dinner Rolls

Are you looking for an out-of-this-world roll recipe to add to your Thanksgiving menu?  Look no further.

This yeast roll recipe comes courtesy of Meg from Little Bit of Life blog.  She got it from her great-grandmother Lola. 

And I ask you, does anyone make rolls better than a great grandma?

I think not.

I've gotta tell you, I am a staunch believer in my own garlic cheese rolls, a family favorite for a number of years.  Every roll I bake is measured against the venerable GCR.  Very few make the cut.

These?  Well just look at them.  I think, rather than Yeast Rolls, they should be renamed Mile High Rolls.  One roll stretches from chin to eyebrow.  Eating one is like eating buttery air.

This year, for Thanksgiving?  I will make two kinds of rolls.  My garlic cheese rolls (because we want no serious pouty-faces around here).  And these.

They are that good.

Five-Minute Christmas Food Gift

Got my scented candle burning,

my Big Band Christmas CD blasting (this one is outstanding, btw),

the dough for my rolls percolating in the trusty bread machine -- it's a great homemaking day here at the castle.

It seemed like the perfect day to power up my brand new super-duper whizmo blender that Kahuna got me for my birthday.

I think he may have gotten a tad tired of the BANG BANG THWAP of me pulverizing coffee ice cubes with a meat tenderizer for my mocha frappuccinos. 

Which leads me to:  strawberry butter.  Yes indeedy, a five-minute food gift idea that is truly stellar.  So what if you didn't make any homemade jams and jellies this summer?  All you need for this is frozen strawberries, butter, and powdered sugar.  Get a cute little ramekin and add a wooden spreader, and you've got a wonderful, quick Christmas or hostess gift.

STRAWBERRY BUTTER

10-oz. package frozen strawberries

1 c. butter, softened

1 c. powdered sugar

Let strawberries thaw and take butter out of fridge to soften.  Put all ingredients in blender and blend away until mixture is smooth.  Pack in cute little containers.  Makes 2 1/2 c.

Note:  I cut this recipe in half and it blended perfectly.  I also cut the butter into about 10 or 15 pieces before plopping it in the blender.  Recipe came from Better Homes and Gardens Gifts from Your Kitchen.

Have you ever made any special flavored butters?  I would love to hear about it.

Winter's coming

We are in winter preparation mode around here.  Step one:  Get these very green Roma tomatoes picked before they freeze on the vine; wrap them in newspaper, as shown here, so they'll ripen up.

Step two: Start pulling out tired gift bags emblazoned with random store logos and see if you can spruce them up with scrapbook supplies languishing under the bed because you last worked on your scrapbook in 2002.

Step three:  Get so inspired by your own creativity that you start splattering paint on brown paper lunch  bags.

Follow that with a raid on your grandma's button box.

Proceed with an episode of glitter.

Or two.

At which point you realize you have perhaps gone a little too far in winter preparation mode while completely neglecting to make any actual food for dinner.

Green tomatoes, anyone?

NOTE:  For more great ideas, go check out Works for Me Wednesdays at We Are THAT Family blog.

Whole Wheat-Molasses Bread

In my quest to find a recipe delicious enough to give away for Christmas food gifts, I came across this:  a dark, slightly sweet, very tasty yeast bread that's studded with caraway seeds.

Yum.  I do believe we have a winner.

The original recipe gave directions by hand, and yielded two loaves.  I cut it in half so I could use my handy dandy little bread machine.

Aren't bread machines wonderful?

WHOLE WHEAT-MOLASSES BREAD
7/8 c. water
1/4 c. molasses
1 T. shortening
1 1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1 c. white flour (and maybe a little more)
1/8 c. packed brown sugar
1 T. caraway seed
1 1/2 t. salt
2 1/4 t. yeast (or one package)

Pop all the ingredients into machine in order listed, press the "dough" setting, and start.
Check on the dough as it starts to knead; you want to make sure it is stiff.  If it looks too wet, add more flour until it's the right consistency.
When the machine beeps, shape dough into a slightly flattened 6-inch ball and place on a greased baking sheet.  Cover and let rise until doubled (maybe an hour?).  Bake at 375 for 30 - 35 minutes, until browned and sounding kind of hollow when you tap  it.  (I took mine out at 28 minutes).  Yields one loaf.

The recipe came from this book, which used to belong to my husband's grandma.  My own grandma is the one who gave me my first bread machine.  So it seems to me this loaf is truly a family effort. 

Happy holiday baking.  Any ideas for great Christmas food gifts coming out of your kitchen?

P.S.  The lovely blogger, Bitterroot Mama, posted this review yesterday of Queen of the Castle.  Thank you, Bitterroot Mama!

Pear & Ginger Upside Down Cake

This is a variation to the previous blog Pear upside down cake, the cinnamon is optional.
A delicious dessert with custard on the freezing snow filled Bulgarian nights, The villagers love it too!

3 pears, peeled, cored & sliced

175g butter
175g caster sugar
3 eggs
175g self-raising flour
1tsp cinnamon
1 - 2tsp Ginger
2dsp Golden Syrup or Honey
3 tbsp milk
Grease a 8” deep cake tin.

Toss the pears in the ginger & arrange the pears over the bottom of the prepared tin. Swirl over the syrup.
Using an electric beater or a wooden spoon, cream the butter and sugar together in a large bowl until the mixture is light and fluffy.
Beat in the eggs, adding them one at a time and mixing well after each one.
Add the flour & cinnaman to the bowl, gently fold it into the mixture, then stir in the milk.
Spoon the cake mixture evenly over the pears and smooth the surface.
Cook in a preheated oven at 160c fan or 180C for 45 minutes, until the surface is firm, and the cake comes slightly away from the sides of the dish.
Remove from the oven, let it cool, then turn onto plate.

Pear Upside Down Cake

It's pear season here in Bulgaria & my crop has been null & void, literally bare trees then i found a handful that had fallen from the top I have managed to get this one dish from them! The good old favorite upside down cake my favourite while growing up then like all the really good puds relegated to the "do you remember when"  & only dragged out every ten years! Well I can't think of anything better to do with a couple of pears
3 pears, peeled, cored & sliced
2 tbsp runny honey optional
175g Margarine
175g Sugar
3 eggs
175g self-raising flour, sifted
3 tbsp milk
Grease a cake tin. If using honey line with baking paper
Arrange the pear over the bottom of the prepared tin and set aside. If using honey spread this over bottom of tin first

Using a wooden spoon, cream the butter and sugar together in a large bowl until the mixture is light and fluffy.
Beat in the eggs, adding them one at a time and mixing well after each.
add the flour to the bowl, gently fold in, then stir in the milk.
spoon the cake mixture evenly over the pears.

cook in a preheated oven at 180C or fan 160c for 45 minutes, until the surface is firm and the cake comes away from the side of the dish.

remove from the oven, leave to cool , then turn onto plate.

Serve warm with custard, cream or icecream

Saucy Apple Peach & Plum No Onion Chutney

Chutney is my new favourite thing to make & eat & I enjoy the fact you can make your own recipes easily & they work! I always thought people who made chutneys were something special but that is rubbish, its so easy, its a shame I have wasted years not making them! Well now I have so much fresh produce to hand its great making all these lovely flavoursome jars of fruit & veg mixes. I just need the room now to store them!
This is a lovely fruity chutney its a bit runny but makes a beautiful sauce to have with meat or salads.  Especially nice with Banitza.
This recipe uses Garlic instead of onion as I am intolerant but you can use onions instead!

Peaches
Apples
Plums
Fruit to weigh total of 6lb
500ml Apple vinegar
1tbsp Ginger
2tsp Cinnamon
2tsp 5 Spice
1tsp Nutmeg
500gr Sugar
5 heads of Garlic,  if you are not intolerant use 1lb onions instead.
2tsp Salt
 Peel core & chop the apple, de stone the peaches & plums & chop these too. In a very large pan combine all the fruit spices garlic salt & vinegar, cook till fruit has softened, mashing the fruit on the sides of the pan so its smoother.

Add the sugar & stir till it has disolved bring to boil slowly then simmer till thickened & you can see the bottom of the pan when you run a spoon through it.

 Pour into sterilised bottles with plastic lids & seal for at least two months more if possible as chutneys get better with age. I always end up with a small jar of leftovers & have this if I cant wait for it to mature :-)

Plum & Apple Crumble or Sliven s Yabulka Sladkish

Normally a Bulgarian village meal does not end in a dessert unless its a special occasion then the cakes come out or it will be finished off with a cheese banitza. The funny thing is they have a very sweet tooth as you will find out when you buy a tray of tiny little cakes or biscuits! I have spent my time here introducing them to puddings they love them all & eat loads but never ever make them themselves. I have only had two desserts in two years & both were questionable & too sweet! One was bought to a meal & one was from next door as a thank you! I make desserts that can be easily made using everyday foodstuffs or using goods from the garden or small holding for instance there are lots of bees kept in the village so honey & the obvious fruit grown in all our orchards So here we are with our two most prolific crops this year, plums & apples………

This is a very popular dessert here & I hear lots of murmurings of mnogo hubovo mind you for the English it’s a bit like teaching your nana to suck eggs. Where did that saying come from my nana never sucked eggs or my mum, at least I don’t think so!

675gr Apples peeled cored & thickly sliced
12ish Plums lg purple like Victoria stoned & quartered
25g Sugar
1 tsp Cinnamon
2tbsp Water
Topping
280gr SR Flour
140gr Butter/margarine
140gr Sugar
70gr Oats
Pre heat your oven to 200c or fan 180c
Grease a baking dish
Put all the fruit in a pan with 25gr sugar, cinnamon & the water & heat gently till the fruit is soft & juicy.

Put the fruit in the greased dish

Mix flour butter & sugar together then stir in the oats. Make sure all the ingredients are combined well. Sprinkle crumble over the fruit & cook for 30 minuets.

Serve with custard or squirty cream (Bulgaria) If you are fortunate enough serve with single cream Mmmmm!

Traditional Bulgarian Banitza (Bahnitza) or Cheese Pie!

Banitza is one of the most eaten dishes here in Bulgaria. You can buy it everywhere, eat it hot or cold & it has many varieties of filling but most traditional is the cheese banitza. I have waited almost two years to make it because I didn't have a proper pan & didnt want to fudge it up. It is eaten as breakfast, main meal, dessert & a snack. I have had many, some have been dreadfull while others amazing. For dessert I have been given cheese banitza spinach banitza & pumpkin banitza.
I am pleased to say my recipe turned out to be amazing! If you like cheese you will love this. Why not use your favourite cheese instead of these & let me know how it turns out!

1 pk Filo pastry (you can also use the puff filo)
200gr Kashkaval or yellow cheese such as cheddar, chopped into small pieces
500gr Sirene cheese or Feta
7 eggs
100gr butter/margarine
1/2 cup Lemonade
1 cup Milk (you can also use yoghurt)
Preheat oven 200c or fan 180c

Mix 6 eggs blobs of butter/margerine, crumbled sirene & kashkaval cheeseswith the milk.

In a large buttered pan lay 3 leaves of filo greasing each piece before the next.

then spoon in a layer of the mixture. continue with this layering, doing three layers in all. Finishing with a layer of filo.

Lightly whisk the remaining egg  pour in the lemonade & pour the whole lot over the pastry making sure to get it all wet

Bake for 40 minuets or until golden

Ratatouille

Summer may officially be over, but the weather here is finally starting to feel summerish, and the garden is liking it.

I mentioned here that our most pleasant garden surprise this year was the eggplant.  Absolutely every recipe I tried with it was scrumptious. 

Who knew we even liked eggplant?

I tried another recipe today, with the last of our cute little eggplant.  It, too, was outstanding.

If you aren't sure you even like vegetables, you might want to give this one a taste.  Yowzer, it's good.

RATATOUILLE
2 1/2 c. diced eggplant (leave the peels on)
3/4 c. thinly sliced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 T. olive oil
3 green peppers, cored and thinly sliced
(recipe called for 3 c. zucchini, thinly sliced, but I didn't have any so omitted)
2 c. tomatoes, coarsely chopped
2 t. fresh basil, chopped
salt, pepper to taste
plain yogurt (optional)

Put eggplant in colander (in sink) and salt lightly.  Leave for 30 minutes to drain.
Meanwhile, in large, deep-ish non-stick skillet (one that has a lid), over medium heat, saute onion and garlic in olive oil until golden.  Add peppers, zucchini if you're using it (I didn't), and tomatoes.  Add drained eggplant and basil and simmer, covered, over low heat for 45 minutes.  Uncover and cook 15 minutes more to reduce liquid.  Add salt & pepper to taste; serve warm or cold with a dollop of plain yogurt, if desired.

The recipe claims this serves eight, but it really serves two.  Insert smiley face here.