Coconut Bundt Cake

Today I was in the mood for baking and one of the goodies that I like to bake is bundt cakes. I recently purchased this book called "One Bowl Baking: Simple, From Scratch Recipes For Delicious Desserts" and I have to admit I became hooked on the premise. It basically is from scratch baking but doing it simply with just one bowl. So not such a big mess and definitely fewer steps. That's never a bad thing.

Coconut is one of my favourite ingredients. I adore in both savoury and sweet applications. If I visit a sweet shop or Patisserie I always have a predilection for anything with coconut. Coconut cake is quite possible one of the best cakes every invented and today I made a really simple one but with huge results. This cake was ultra moist, not overly sweet and full of coconut flavour. There is a chocolate pound cake recipe that I have my eye on so look out for the post on that one.

Get this book and don't let the simple title fool you. This one is a treasure of yummy baked goods. I highly recommend it to the busy mums who try to cook from scratch. It's a keeper. Enjoy!

Glazed Coconut Bundt Cake (recipe adapted from "One Bowl Baking: Simple, From Scratch Recipes For Delicious Desserts by Yvonne Ruperti)

Cake Batter:
20 tbsp unsalted butter, softened, plus more for greasing the pan
1 3/4 cups plus 2 tbsp granulated sugar
3/4 tsp salt
3 large eggs
1 1/4 cups coconut milk
1 cup shredded sweetened coconut
1 tbsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups cake flour plus more for dusting
2 1/4 tsp baking powder

Glaze:
1 cup confectioner's sugar, sifted
2 tbsp full fat coconut milk
1/3 cup shredded sweetened coconut

Place an oven rack in the middle position. Preheat oven to 350. Butter and flour a 12 cup bundt pan.

To make the cake: In a large bowl, whisk the butter, sugar, and salt until creamy.
Whisk in the eggs, one at a time, until each is incorporated.
Whisk in the coconut milk, coconut and vanilla.
Add the flour and baking powder to the bowl, then stir until just combined.
Spoon the batter into the pan and bake until golden, just firm and a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean, about 40 to 45 minutes.
Set the pan on a wire rack to cool for about 30 minutes, then remove the cake from the pan to cool completely before glazing.

To make the glaze: Stir the sugar and coconut milk together in a bowl until smooth. Spoon over the top of the cooled cake, letting the glaze drip down the sides. Sprinkly the coconut over the top.

Chicken Shawarma Wraps

This is my kind of food. Bright, colourful and bursting with the gentle fragrance of spices contrasting with the coolness of the yoghurt garlic sauce. I firmly advocate preparing food from scratch and today I did just that. I decided on an Arabic supper so I prepared wraps, chicken shawarma, Arab salad and garlic cilantro yoghurt sauce. It may seem laborious but it actually didn't take that long to prepare as I prepped the chicken the day before as well as the sauce.

The important thing to note when making Arabic food is that marinating enhances the flavour of the spices. Yoghurt aids in tenderising meat as well. So plan a full day ahead of time when preparing this meal. I also find the salad should be made right before the meal as salting it makes the vegetables sweat. You can however dice all the veggies beforehand then season right before eating the meal. As always I don't really like to give a specific recipe but a guide. Feel free to add as much or as little spice as you wish.

So this is my gift to you if you adore mystery meat gyros but want a healthy option then try this recipe for chicken shawarma. It will get rave reviews. This one is a feast for your taste buds yet your health will benefit from it as well. Enjoy!

Chicken Shawarma (serves 4)
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
Spice mix (recipe follows)
Scant 3/4 cup yoghurt (full fat)
8 cloves garlic finely minced
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt and pepper to taste

The night before you plan to make this marinate the chicken. Toss the chicken with the spices and season with salt and pepper or chile flakes. Add the yoghurt and olive oil and give it a good toss. Place the chicken in a non reactive bowl ( my preference is glass) and cover with kling wrap. Marinate this overnight at least in the refrigerator.

1. Preheat the oven to 350.Take the chicken out of the refrigerator and let it come to room temperature.
2. Once the chicken is at room temperature place it in the oven and bake for half an hour. After baking leave the chicken in the dish to cool down completely. This step is very important.
3. Slice the chicken across the grain into thin slices and toss it gently in the roasting juices. Preheat a nonstick skillet to a medium high heat.
4. Coat the skillet with about 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil . Once the oil is hot enough add half the chicken to the pan. Don't overcrowd the pan as this impairs it from browning and crisping up. Once the first set is browned add the rest until you have cooked all the chicken a second time.

Assemble your wraps now. Place some chicken in the wraps then some salad then drizzle with the garlic sauce . Enjoy!

Spice mix:
3 tbsp coriander seeds
1 tbsp cumin seeds
5 whole green cardamoms
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground allspice
1 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp hot smoked paprika or to taste

Heat up the whole spices in a pan until you start to smell their fragrance. Grind in a coffee grinder then add the ground spices. Whisk to combine thoroughly.

Arab Salad
2 medium tomatoes diced
2 medium cucumbers diced
1 small onion (red preferably) diced
1 bunch of Italian flat leaf parsley finely chopped
Juice of 1 lemon or to taste
Extra virgin olive oil to taste
Salt and pepper to taste

Toss everything together in a non reactive bowl.

Wraps (adapted from Paul Hollywood's "How To Bake")
I used this recipe and it yielded 10 wraps

500g strong white bread flour plus more for dusting
10g salt
30g caster sugar
30g extra virgin olive oil
320ml cool water (tap water)

1. Tip the flour into a large mixing bowl and add the salt and sugar to one side of the bowl and the yeast to the other. Add the olive oil and 3/4 of the water, and turn the mixture round with your fingers. Continue to add water a little at a time until you've picked up all the flour from the sides of the bowl. You may not need to add all the water, or you may need to add a little more - you want dough that is soft, but not soggy. Use this mixture to clean the inside of the bowl folding the edges into the middle. Keep going until the mixture forms a rough dough.
2. Tip the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead well for 5 - 10 minutes. Do not add too much flour to your surface as this will make the dough too dry.
3. When the dough feels smooth and silky, put it into an oiled large bowl. Cover with a tea towel and leave to rise until at least double in size - at least 1 hour, but it's fine to leave it for 2 or even 3 hours.
4. Dust a work surface lightly with flour and tip the dough onto it. Fold it inwards repeatedly until all the air is knocked out and the dough is smooth. Divide into 10 pieces.
5. Preheat the broiler and place rack on the first shelf in the oven. Working one piece at a time roll the dough into a ball with your hands then roll it out as thin as possible with a rolling pin. Place one wrap at a time on a baking sheet and broil the dough for 1 minute per side. I broiled my first few for 2 minutes on 1 side and 1 minute on the next but I found that wrap got crispy which was lovely but not suitable for wrapping.