Wednesday, 20 November 2013

Choux Pastry

 


So.........."Choux pastry is a light pastry dough used to make profiteroles or eclaires.
Choux pastry has a high water content. The water in the mixture creates steam during cooking which forces the pastry to expand in volume, leaving it with a hollow centre and a light texture.".......

Wow! theres a lot of science in baking and I think I have learnt more than just how to make them.
These were on my to bake list and to have made two bakes in one, I'm pretty chuffed.

Apple Crumble Muffins


These are really good muffins. I cannot tell you how delicious these are.
They are really moist and stay soft for days (if they last that long)
If you love apple crumble then these are like a dessert in a cake.

Muffins are my favourites as they are effortless to make, the only fiddly part is making the crumble.
Here's the recipe and I recommend using sharp apples like Granny Smith's, the sourness really brings out the flavour.

 Topping:
60g caster sugar
90g plain flour ...
60g butter
Pinch of salt
(Rub ingredients together and set aside)

Muffin:
In Bowl A;
120g butter (melted)
120g light brown
sugar
2 eggs beaten
150g sour cream
(All in one bowl and mix to combine)

In Bowl B;
250g plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp cinnamon powder
A pinch of salt
(In another bowl and sifted together)
100gm diced apple.

You can add raisins if you wish but I left them out because I don't like them.

Bowl B (dry ingredients) make a well and pour in Bowl A. Then in goes the fruits.
Mix about 10 times or until mixture is lumpy. Split mixture 3/4 full into muffin cases and spoon generous amount of crumble on each muffins. 

It's that simple!


 *Don't over mix it would make the muffins chewy and firm.
*Some flour is still visible but don't worry, it will all come together once in the oven.
Bake 180 for 20-25mins. Remember oven varies so test it with a skewer to see if it comes out clean.

 This recipe makes 12 - 14 muffins.



 You can use blueberries or other fruits and it will still taste amazing!