salted caramel chocolate brownies

shopping list

200g unsalted butter
100g 70% cocoa chocolate
100g 50% cocoa chocolate
397g can of Carnation Caramel (I used tesco finest Salted caramel sauce)
1 tsp flaky sea salt (I did not include)
200g golden caster sugar
 4 medium eggs
130g plain flour
50g cocoa powder

method

1. preheat oven to 180, grease and line 23cm square tin
2. melt butter in a pan and add all chocolate and allow to melt off the heat
3. half the caramel, 4 eggs and caster sugar in a bowl and whisk
4. whisk in chocolate/butter mixture to egg mixture
5. sieve flour and cocoa into mixture
6. pour half the mixture into the tin, blob caramel on top, then the other half over the top and decorate with remaining caramel
7. bake for 25-30 minutes, leave to cool and cut into squares
8. eat with a cuppa tea and some vanilla ice cream = HEAVEN

twelfth craft of christmas: christmas pudding semifreddo

i have the pleasure of making the dessert for christmas day this year, i don't know about you but after a huge turkey christmas dinner, I can never quite face christmas pudding as its too heavy, so I decided to give this recipe for christmas pudding semifreddo a whirl, having recently tried this at the union chapel in islington, i thought it would be a winner, i will let you know how it went down in the new year.....

ingredients

600ml double cream

300g creme fraiche

250ml cognac spiced cream

2 tsp cinnamon

2tsp vanilla extract

250g christmas pudding crumbled

9 egg yolks

250g caster sugar

topping

200g christmas pudding crumbled

50g demerara sugar

20ml brandy

method

1. whip double cream, creme fraiche, spiced cream, vanilla extract and cinnamon until soft peaks

2. whisk the egg yolks and caster sugar over a suacepan of boiling water till pale and thickened (4-5 minutes), then mix with electric mixer till cool

3. combine the cream mixture with the egg mixture and add the christmas pudding.

4.sprinkle christmas pudding crumbs with sugar and brandy and bake for around 10 minutes

5. line tin with christmas pudding crumbs and then fill with ice cream mixture, freeze for 6 hours minimum