mandag den 29. august 2011

Secret Recipe Club August: Uber Lemon Ice Cream and Chocolate Coconut Cake

Chocolate coconut cake
Dansk version følger i separat indlæg! / Danish version will follow in a separate post!

I learned about the Secret Recipe Club through a fellow Danish blogger, and just made it to join the August round - my first assignment was Cheap Ethnic Eatz, written by Evelyne in Canada.
This was a perfect beginning for me, since Evelyne writes about food from basically all over the world - she seems to have a very varied taste, just like me.
Besides from posting interesting recipes (among others for some quite untraditional ice cream - luckily, I love ice cream), Evelyne is also very good at explaining where certain ingredients or meals come from, and it has been fun reading stories about things you use, but didn't know the origin of.
Apart from that, she also participates in a lot of different challenges (like SRC), where she has to cook with certain ingredients, and that also results in some interesting projects.

I spent a few days looking for THE recipe to try out, and finally I ended up with 2 that I had a difficult time choosing from.
The first one was the Uber Lemon Ice Cream. We recently bought an ice cream machine, one of those with a compressor so we can make ice cream whenever we want, without having to wait for the bowl to freeze for a day and eternity first. Lemon ice cream has been on my to-do list since we got the machine, so this was a good excuse to finally get around to it. 
The second one was the Chocolate Coconut Cake. I don't really bake a lot of cakes, but I would like to do it more. And since all the ingredients were already available in the pantry, and I like coconut - and chocolate/cocoa - this seemed to be a good choice.

Choosing between the 2 recipes turned out to be so hard that I decided to make them both. and serve them together. Evelyn mentions in the ice cream recipe that the lemon flavour is very strong, so I thought it might be a good idea to serve something with it, in case it was too tangy for my guest (another food blogger - the perfect guest for a SRC project!) - and lemon and coconut/chocolate seemed to be a nice match.

So - here are the recipes, with the changes I made.

Uber lemon ice cream (using ice cream machine):
 - adapted from Cheapethniceatz
approx. 3/4 liter

Notes:
- I followed the recipe when it comes to ingredients, but used normal whipping cream instead of heavy cream, as we don't have anything with that name in Denmark. Whipping cream in Denmark has a fat content of 38% and no additives - I am not really sure about the heavy cream, as I have found different explanations. But anyway, I always use whipping cream when an ice cream recipe calls for heavy cream, with excellent results so far.
- Evelyn doesn't specify which kind of milk she uses, so I just used milk with 0,5% fat, which is what we normally have in the fridge.
- I wasn't exactly sure if everything should be wisked together before putting it in the ice cream maker, or just mixed lightly, or if the sugar should simmer with the milk to properly dissolve - but I was afraid the sugar wouldn't dissolve if not heated. So I warmed the sugar with the milk, cream and lemon peel (to extract as much flavour as possible) until sugar was dissolved, and then let it cool a bit, before I added the lemon juice. 
- I let the mixture rest in the fridge overnight to allow the flavours to develop.

Ice cream and cake served with some blueberry syrup
1 cup sugar
1 cup milk - 0,5% fat
1 cup whipping cream (or heavy cream if available) - 38% fat
1/4 tsp fine salt
finely grated peel from 1 organic lemon (like Evelyn, I used a Microplane grater for this - and I love it too!)
juice from 3 lemons, a little less than 2/3 cup (doesn't have to be organic, but that's what I always buy in order to be able to use as much as possible from the lemons, so organic juice is what I used)
4-5 drops of yellow food colouring (optional - I used it)

Bring sugar, milk, cream, salt and lemon peel to a simmer in a saucepan, and let it simmer at low heat until sugar is just dissolved. Let the mixture cool a bit, and then mix with the lemon juice.
Let cool completely in the fridge overnight to allow the flavours to develop. Mix in the yellow colour, if using it, until the colour is the way you like it. (I think I used approx. 1/4 teaspoon, but it didn't really get all that yellow).
Prepare the ice cream maker according to directions, and pour in the mixture. Let it freeze in the machine until it becomes thick and creamy, and either serve it immediately, or freeze it in a closed container until solid. 
It can easily be scooped directly from the freezer (actually it will start to melt quite quickly), so no need to take it out before you want to serve it.

Conclusion:

Perfect lemon ice cream! Just the right amount of tanginess - at least for me. You have to really like lemons to like this ice cream - but I guess if you don't, you wouldn't be making it in the first place. 
It also has the perfect creamy consistency when made in the ice cream maker, so there is no doubt that I will go back to this recipe if I am making lemon ice cream again.

Chocolate coconot cake:
 - from Cheapethniceatz

Notes:
- I followed the recipe, and again, used 0,5% milk.

Nice and moist
300 g melted butter
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (I used a low-fat version since that's what I had)
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1½ cup sliced coconut + a little extra for top of cake, and for garnish
1½ cup flour
1½ tsp baking powder
3/4 cup milk - 0,5%

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C (350 degrees F).
Mix all the ingredients in a bowl until they are just combined - be careful not to overmix.
Grease a 24 cm spring form with cooking spray or melted butter and pour in the batter. Put some extra coconut slices on top of the cake and bake it for approx. 50 minutes. If the coconut starts to brown too much, cover loosely with tinfoil.
Check with a toothpick in the middle of the cake after 40-45 minutes - if the batter doesn't stick, it is done.
Let the cake cool a bit in the spring form and then remove it to cool completely on an oven rack. Garnish with coconut slices and serve.

Conclusion:


As Evelyn also concludes, the texture of the sliced coconut adds a lot to this cake, as opposed to using shredded coconut.
The cocoa taste is great, and you wouldn't really know that there isn't any "real" chocolate in this cake (that is, if you use a proper quality of cocoa powder). 


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33 kommentarer:

  1. The ice cream and the cake both look great. I'm sure they tasted fantastic!

    SvarSlet
  2. What a great combination of flavors. This is my kind of dessert. Yum!

    SvarSlet
  3. Hej! Great combo! I love the idea of having lemon ice cream and coconut&cocoa cake together... they must be an explosion of flavours in the mouth!!

    SvarSlet
  4. Two recipes - how wonderful and on your first assignment, too! I love anything lemon. I really like that you used the sliced coconut as opposed to shredded. I'm always using the shredded, but will now have to try using the other! Great job!

    SvarSlet
  5. Love it! I had problems picking between multiple recipes for my SRC too! You really went the extra mile! These look beautiful.

    SvarSlet
  6. I'm so jealous of your ice cream machine! Doing two recipes and putting them together, brilliant. You can't go wrong with cake and ice cream.

    SvarSlet
  7. absolutely love this!!! gloria

    SvarSlet
  8. Bra jobbat! Nice work on the SRC.

    SvarSlet
  9. Both recipes look amazing! Nice job!

    SvarSlet
  10. I love lemons and know that this is a recipe I will be trying. The chocolate cake looks so moist and yummy. Two great recipes!

    SvarSlet
  11. Trisha: They sure did - thanks for commenting!

    Monica: Thank you for your comment - it was indeed a good combination - sweet and tangy all in one bite :-)

    Manu: You are right, an explosion it was! Thanks for stopping by.

    Lynne: This was also my first time using the sliced coconut in a cake, but I will probably do it again. Thank you for commenting!

    Kita: Thanks, it was hard to choose, so there was no other solution than to pick them both :-)

    Rhonda: We do love the ice cream machine, I can only recommend getting one. Thank you for stopping by!

    Gloria: Thank you, it was really nice :-)

    Delishhh: Heeey a fellow Scandinavian! Thank you :-)

    Steph: Thank you, they were!

    Kate: Thanks - I hope you will like it if you make the ice cream - it sure will wake you up :-)

    SvarSlet
  12. This looks amazing. I love the blueberry-lemon combo.

    SvarSlet
  13. The ice cream looks amazing! I love lemon anything. So refreshing. Paired with the chocolate coconut cake is a great idea! Great SRC post!

    SvarSlet
  14. Looks delightfully delicious.

    If you haven't already, I'd love for you to check out my Group 'A" ~ SRC recipe this month: Cilantro Lime Chicken

    Lisa~~
    Cook Lisa Cook

    SvarSlet
  15. I adore lemon ... can't wait to make this ice cream!

    SvarSlet
  16. It's me, Evelyne. WOW, your did 2 recipes. And great choices. You results look fantastic and now I am craving the ice cream again.

    Thank you for all the kind words you said about my blog. oh and yes I use skim milk too, no fat ;-)

    SvarSlet
  17. You know anything withe lemons is going to be good. Thanks for sharing

    SvarSlet
  18. Lemon ice cream sounds amazing! I can't wait to try out this recipe. Thanks so much for sharing. :)

    SvarSlet
  19. wow, 2 recipes, tangy ice cream and coconut cake, must be very delicious, Lemon ice cream is a very interesting recipe love to try this out!, a great job for SRC

    SvarSlet
  20. This ice cream sounds incredible! And paired with that cake?! I'd be in dessert heaven!

    SvarSlet
  21. I'm loving the sound of that uber lemon ice cream! Yum

    SvarSlet
  22. The lemon ice cream sounds so so good. And I love the way you displayed it in the pic. I bet some raspberry sauce on top would be amazing.

    SvarSlet
  23. So fun having an international blogger.

    Here is my two posts for Secret Recipe Club: Group B. I hope you have time to check them out, if you haven't seen them already.

    http://momscrazycooking.blogspot.com/2011/08/cucumber-salad-secret-recipe-club.html

    http://momscrazycooking.blogspot.com/2011/08/raspberry-nutella-pizza-secret-recipe.html

    SvarSlet
  24. Yum! I am a sucker for lemon ice cream and your cake looks delicious!

    SvarSlet
  25. Both of these recipes sound delicious and I'm sure my family will love them. This is my first visit to your blog, so I've taken some time to browse through your earlier entries. I'm so glad I did that. I love the food and recipes you feature for your readers and I really enjoyed the time I spent here. 'll be back. Ihope you have a wonderful day. Blessings...Mary

    SvarSlet
  26. Awesome recipe!! Love the post! Glad to have you in Group C :)

    SvarSlet
  27. Eliotseats: Thanks, the blueberry syrup added a nice twist to the cake.

    BigFatBaker: Thank you for commenting - it was a nice match :-)

    Lisa: Thank you :-)

    Kimberly: You should - thanks for stopping by!

    Cheap Ethnic Eatz: You're very welcome, it was fun browsing through your blog, and I have saved some more recipes I'd like to try!

    Veronica: You're welcome, and thank you for commenting!

    E.K.R.: My pleasure - hope you'll like it if you try!

    Jayasri: Thank you, I can only recommend you try it!

    Peggy: Cake and ice cream heaven - not the worst place to end up!

    Kristy: Thanks, you should try it!

    Jeanie: Thank you - I'm sure raspberry would be good too!

    Tina: Thanks, I'll check out your contributions!

    Jey: Thank you - you should go ahead and try the ice cream.

    Mary: Thank you very much for your kind words! I hope you found something you like, and hope you will come back :-)

    BigBearsWife: Thank you - I'm glad to be here :-)

    SvarSlet
  28. Ice-cream and cake both look delicious .Nice combination.

    SvarSlet
  29. Welcome to the group Heidi, it's a great place to be. Looks like you picked some great recipes :)

    SvarSlet
  30. simply.food: Thank you, they were!

    Avanika: Thank you - I love being a part of this :-)

    SvarSlet
  31. What a tasty summer treat, it looks wonderful.

    SvarSlet
  32. Great flavors in this cake. Love the lemon ice cream.
    Awesome to be in the Secret Recipe Club with you. Here is my post for September :) http://su.pr/1Sizv9

    SvarSlet
  33. Cindy: Thank you, it was delicious :-)

    Marla: Thanks, and the same to you!

    SvarSlet