Coffee and Cardamom Instant Soft Serve

Coffee and Cardamom Instant Soft Serve

by | Mar 1, 2018 | 0 comments

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No-churn ice cream recipes are my favourite. Not only because, let’s face it, who can afford to buy an ice cream machine?! But secondly, they are so much more flexible when it comes to getting creative with flavours. Making your own soft serve is as easy as heating everything together, freeze it in ziplock bags then blend it up in a food processor and voila! Soft serve!

Coffee and Cardamom Soft Serve in a glass tumbler with pistachios sprinkles

Although soft serve ice cream reminds me of trips to the beach as a kid I wanted to give it a very grown up flavour – coffee, cardamom and the deliciously malty flavour of Natura Sugar’s Unrefined Molasses Sugar.  The molasses sugar doesn’t just add sweetness, but loads of flavour which is so important when you have only a handful of ingredients! Many of you have asked where you can find the Natura Sugars range – find them in Clicks, Checkers, PnP and Spars (Hint: Clicks are having a 3 for 2 special on the sugar at the moment!). Or alternatively you can shop them online here.

If you’d rather make the flavour of the soft serve a bit more traditional, replace the espresso with fruit puree and change up the spice. Give my no-churn watermelon sorbet a whirl too – it’s perfect for summer!

Molasses sugar spilling out on a pink surface

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Coffee and Cardamom Instant Soft Serve

Ingredients

  • 1 tsp ground cardamom
  • 90ml hot espresso
  • 1 cup milk
  • 300g (1 cup) Natura Sugars Molasses Sugar
  • 3 cups (750ml) cream

Instructions

  1. Place the cardamom, espresso, milk, Natura Sugars Molasses Sugar and cream in a pot and stir gently over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved completely. Divide the mixture between two ziplock bags and press out as much air as possible. Place each bag flat on a baking tray and freeze until solid. Remove the ice cream from the freezer, break into pieces and place in the bowl of a food processor until smooth. Working quickly, place the soft serve in a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle and pipe the soft serve into waffle cones or cups.
https://thekatetin.com/coffee-cardamom-instant-soft-serve/

 

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

by | Jun 27, 2017 | 0 comments

It’s hot, steamy, busy, friendly, vibrant, most of the time stinky but ridiculously delicious. Vietnam is not on most people’s honeymoon destination short-list (it was at the top of ours!) but it should be! It’s cheap, which for our poor Randela (ZAR) is a blessing, way less touristy than places like Thailand and it has the most fascinating food culture. Make a cup of tea, find a cosy spot and let me tell you about my adventures in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam…

Scooters. So. Many. Scooters. And no road rules – somehow it all works and during our 5 days in Ho Chi Minh, we saw just one minor accident. Crazy. It’s a cheap way to get around and by the 3rd day, it felt so normal that I put aside my fear and got on the back of one, for what was to be one of the highlights of the trip; a street food tour.

Yes, I closed my eyes for 90% of the time. I held on for dear life while we whizzed through the streets of Ho Chi Minh, weaving through traffic was terrifying, but the food was oh-so-worth it! Noodles in pork broth, crispy rice pancakes wrapped in betel leaves stuffed with bean sprouts and spicy peanut dipping sauce, Vietnamese BBQ (I ate frog. It was good!) and coconut ice cream for dessert, which was (weirdly) served with sweet corn, pumpkin and red beans. Not sure how I felt about that.

Book: Saigon Food Tour www.saigonfoodtour.com

The markets – oh, the markets! There are so few supermarkets in Vietnam that I didn’t see one during the 10 days we were there. Not one! Everyone buys fresh ingredients (and everything else they need) from the markets and who can blame them – the produce is just incredible. Walk into the market and your senses will be assaulted. The smell of fish paste and fish sauce is overwhelming (don’t worry, after a day, you don’t notice it anymore), it’s steamy and you’ll sweat a lot and feel completely out of your comfort zone but your eyes will be feasting on fresh wasabi, mountains of herbs, wriggling crabs and you’ll want to Instagram everything.

Move inside (even more steamy and stinky) and you’ll find bustling food stalls making everything from Pho (the national dish of fragrant broth, thinly sliced beef and rice noodles) to sticky, tender pork grilled over coals served with sticky rice, spinach and spinach water on the side (nothing goes to waste here!).

TIP 1:  As a tourist, you’ll be urged by stallholders to eat their food (they can be quite persistent), but try and suss out where the locals are eating and head there. That’s where the freshest, most authentic food is.

Find it:  Ben Thanh Market, District One

 

TIP 2:  Sometimes the best food is down the side-street from a popular tourist spot, so explore the area and get lost. Case in point: This lady who makes the most mind-blowingly delicious crab and noodle broth down a side street from the Ben Thanh Market. Yes, we had to sit at the tiniest table in the world with itty bitty chairs, yes we probably looked silly, yes it was in a tiny corridor down some back alley that was hot as hell. No, at the time we didn’t know what we were eating, but it was the most flavourful broth we had on our entire trip – so we didn’t care. Worth it!

Find it: 24-22 Phan Bội Châu, Bến Thành, Quận 1, Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam

 

TIP 3: For some odd reason, diners at street food spots throw all their rubbish on the floor during the course of the meal – squeezed limes, napkins, bones. Not normal for us, normal for them – don’t say I didn’t warn you. But don’t worry, it’s all cleaned up at the end of each evening. We came to realize that the dirtier the floor, the better the food (ie. The more locals had been eating there that night).

Chocolate. Yes, cocoa grows in Vietnam! Bean-to-bar producer Marou Chocolate’s café is a clean, modern boutique-style shop, which is a stark contrast from the chaos outside the door on Ho Chi Minh’s streets – and it’s not just because it’s (thankfully) air conditioned! Their frozen hot chocolate was refreshing and I could’ve easily had three. I stocked up on all of their single origin bars and some of their flavoured slabs – the cashew praline and coconut milk were my favourites. They also do a stunning range of pastries which will make you want to stay forever – if only to avoid returning to the hot steamy city streets aside.

Where? Marou Chocolate 167-169 Calmette, Nguyễn Thái Bình, Quận 1, Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam

If there is one Vietnamese food I miss, it’s the Banh Mi. Crusty, freshly baked baguette slathered with rich liver pate, mayonnaise then stuffed with coriander, pork cold cuts, roasted pork, pickled daikon and carrot, chilli and, if you’re lucky, crispy fried shallots, to finish. It’s the perfect sandwich and there were days I had 3 – they were that good. But with so many spots selling the famous sandwich, which is the best? Trip advisor told me that ‘The Best’ was 200m from our hotel – yasss!

 

TIP 4: 200m doesn’t sound far, but when it’s 40 degrees celcius outside, it’s FAAAAAR! FYI Ho Chi Minh has Uber Moto (scooter) which is super cheap and faster than walking.

Where? Banh Mi Hoang Hoa 26 Lê Thị Riêng, Bến Thành, District 1, Hồ Chí Minh city

The queue spilled out onto the street, and we joined the line of tourists instagramming and Snap-chatting their experience. It was delicious! But….

 

But it was not as delicious as the place we found around the corner (remember tip #2?), which, it turns out bakes the bread for ‘The Best’. Cheaper, more fillings (crispy shallots!) and, the locals were buying 4 at a time (tip #1). Tick, tick, tick! My advice? Go to both and decide for yourself.

Where? Hong Hoa Bakery, Bến Thành Quận 1 Vietnam, 62 Nguyễn Văn Tráng, Bến Thành, Quận 1, Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam

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While we found that the best food is to be found on the streets (the few restaurants we ate at were disappointing), there was one that I’d go back to in a heart-beat. A bowl of fresh rice noodles with thin slivers of raw beef is placed in front of you before being drowned in a piping hot, fragrant, spectacular broth (Bun Bo Hue, it’s called).

Where? 110 Lý Chính Thắng, ward 8, District 3, Hồ Chí Minh City

 

 

TIP 5: Each table is set with chilli, lime, fish paste and fish sauce – use these condiments to season your broth to your liking. Most dishes are served with a giant pile of fresh herbs (morning glory, sawtooth coriander, finely sliced banana flower, bean sprouts) which you add to your broth. If you’re unsure, watch the locals and copy them.

Coffee culture is huge in Vietnam and most days you’ll find locals sitting on tiny chairs, sipping iced coffees watching the crazy scooter traffic go by. I became addicted to cà phê sua đá, or Vietnamese iced coffee. A dark-roast coffee which is slowly dripped over ice with a layer of condensed milk in the bottom, it’s the only way to start a (very hot) day.

Next, we headed off to Hoi An, the ancient town – stay tuned for the post!

 

Warm Tahini Oats Smoothie Bowl with Cocoa Nib Crunch and Date Balls

Warm Tahini Oats Smoothie Bowl with Cocoa Nib Crunch and Date Balls

by | Jun 26, 2017 | 0 comments

Want to eat dessert for breakfast but not feel guilty? Answer: Warm smoothie bowls! This steaming bowl of tahini oats is rich creamy and comforting and when you sprinkle it with crunchy rubbly things like cocoa nibs and fig chips then well, it basically feels like you’re eating dessert! Forget cold smoothie bowls, this is where it’s at, people. Yes, it may require a little bit more effort than pouring muesli in a bowl, but why do we put effort into all our other meals and not go all-out on breakfast? The fig chips, cocoa nib crunch and date balls can be made ahead of time and stored for up to a month – ready to take your oats from breakfast to dessert with a few sprinkles. Spike it with espresso and basically have a balanced meal!

WARM TAHINI OAT SMOOTHIE BOWL WITH COCOA NIB CRUNCH, DATE BALLS AND ESPRESSO

Recipe originally created for Food & Home Entertaining Magazine

Serves 2

 

FIG CHIPS

4 large figs, thinly sliced

60ml (¼ cup) icing sugar

 

CACAO NIB CRUNCH

30g salted butter

30ml (2 tbsp) soft brown sugar

5ml (1 tsp) vanilla extract

50g The Kate Tin Cocoa Nibs

15ml (1 tbsp) poppy seeds

25g whole almonds

1 tbsp (15ml) sesame seeds

 

TAHINI OATS

3 tbsp (45ml) tahini (sesame) paste (You could also use peanut butter or any other nut butter)

2 cups (500ml) whole milk

2 tbsp (30ml) honey

2 cups (180g) instant oats

 

DATE BALLS

45g oats

100g dates, chopped

 

1 shot espresso, to serve

 

To make the fig chips, preheat the oven to 70˚C. Slice the figs to about a 0,2cm thickness. Lay the slices out on a greased and lined baking sheet and dust with icing sugar. Leave to dehydrate in the oven, 1 – 2 hours, until crisp but not browned. For the cacao nib crunch, preheat the oven to 180˚C and place a sheet of baking paper on a baking tray. Melt the butter and the soft brown sugar in a pot over low heat and stir until the sugar has completely dissolved, then take off the heat and add the vanilla extract. Combine the remaining ingredients in a bowl, pour in the melted butter and stir to combine. Spread the mix evenly onto the baking paper and bake in the oven, 10 – 15 minutes. Allow to cool. In a small saucepan, combine the tahini paste, milk and honey. Bring to a boil, then add the 2 cups instant oats while stirring. Cook, 5 minutes, then remove from heat and keep warm. Blend the 45g oats and dates together in a food processor to form a thick paste. Roll tablespoonfuls of the mixture into walnut-sized balls. Set aside until needed. Serve the oats in bowls, sprinkle the cacao nib crunch over the top, along with the fig chips and the date balls. Drizzle over the shot of espresso.

 

 

Chocolate Tiramisu Cake

Chocolate Tiramisu Cake

by | Jul 11, 2014 | 2 comments

Tiramisu, meet chocolate cake.
Why it’s taken me this long to introduce these two decadent desserts to each other is beyond me because they are sweet soul mates. Meant to be. BFF’s. You get the point. The secret to making ANY cake special (and I’ll even go out on a limb and include box cake mix here) is to soak the cake in a simple syrup – even the driest sponge can be magically transformed with a slathering of flavoured (and liquored) syrup. And of course, tiramisu has sponge soaked in espresso syrup – coincidence? I think not. All that’s missing is the light and fluffy mascarpone which I transformed into a not-too-sweet frosting and a generous dusting of cocoa powder and it’s like the two were destined to live happily ever after…
Chocolate Tiramisu Cake

Serves 10-12

 

3 large eggs

3/4 cup (180ml) melted butter or oil

3/4 cup water

1 tsp vanilla

375ml (1 1/2 cups) cake flour

180ml (3/4 cup) cocoa powder

7,5ml (3/4 tsp) bicarbonate of soda

pinch of salt

410ml (1 2/3 cups) brown sugar

 

Espresso syrup

250ml sugar

250ml water

125ml espresso coffee, cooled

80ml coffee liqueur (optional)

 

Mascarpone frosting

250ml cream

1 tub (240g) mascarpone cheese

½ cup icing sugar, sifted

1 tsp vanilla extract

Cocoa powder, for dusting

 

Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease and line 2 x 22cm springform cake tins. Beat the eggs and oil for 3 minutes on high speed. Add the water and beat for 1 minute on high speed.  Sift the flour, cocoa, bicarbonate of soda and salt together. Add the sugar and mix into the wet ingredients.  Divide the batter between the tins and bake for 55 minutes or until cake is cooked when tested with a skewer. If the skewer comes out clean, the cake is cooked. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes. Remove from the tin and place on cooling rack, cool completely before cutting each cake in half horizontally with a sharp knife. To make the syrup, gently heat the sugar and water together and stir until melted then bring to the boil and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool slightly before adding the coffee and liqueur. Allow to cool completely. To make the frosting, whip the cream and mascarpone together until stiff peaks then whisk in the icing sugar and vanilla. Place in a piping bag with a fluted nozzle. To assemble the cake, place a cake layer on a serving plate or cake stand, soak the cake in the espresso syrup then pipe frosting on top. Repeat the layers with the cake, syrup and frosting finishing with a layer of frosting on top. Pipe dollops on top of the cake to decorate and dust with a little cocoa powder.

Double Chocolate Mocha Cookies

Double Chocolate Mocha Cookies

by | Mar 10, 2014 | 0 comments

Want to know the best part about these cookies? Except for the fact that they are deliciously dark, decadent with just the right ratio of crunch vs. gooeyness? It’s the fact that they’re Fairtrade.  It’s Fairtrade week which means we should all be focusing on looking out for that little (but very important) black logo and popping that product in our trolleys. Chocolate and coffee are two of my favourite things in the world and I use them in stacks of recipes and they also happen to both be Fairtrade products. To find out more on what Fairtrade means you can check out their website: www.fairtradelabel.org.za but basically, it’s all about looking after the farmers and the people that work so hard to harvest and grow those coffee and cocoa beans! And I like the sound of that.  Something I also like is the idea that I can dig into a warm, melty batch of these cookies, and know that somehow, I’m contributing to making the world a better place.  Now, go forth and bake up a batch so you can too!

Double Mocha Chunk Cookies

Makes 20

 

1 cup cake flour

1/2 cup The Kate Tin Cocoa Powder

½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

½ tsp salt

250g Fairtrade dark or milk chocolate, chopped

125g butter

1 tbsp Fairtrade ground coffee

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 eggs

1t vanilla extract

 

Sieve flour, cocoa, bicarbonate of soda and salt together. Melt half the chocolate with the butter and ground coffee in a saucepan over a low heat and allow to cool. Beat melted chocolate mixture, sugar, eggs and vanilla together and gradually add flour mixture. Stir in the rest of the chopped chocolate. Use an ice cream scoop to drop lumps of dough onto lined baking sheets. Bake at 180C for 12 minutes until cookies are flat and cracked but slightly moist inside. Allow to cool then store in an airtight container.