It’s been a hectic few weeks here at Plum Towers and very little sewing has been done, so instead I thought a cheeky mid week post with a sweet treat might be in order. While I truly enjoy my sewing , my first love (besides The Bay City Rollers baby*…) is cooking and baking. So going forward don’t be surprised if a few shorter mid-week posts crop up, with what ever is currently popular at Plum Kitchen
We had a relaxing whanau lunch at the weekend, I made Chelsea Winter’s roast lamb which was hoovered up at pace, I was too busy stuffing my face with it and my body weight in roast potatoes to take a pic but I will next time I make it, promise (and yes, there will be a next time.)
My sister brought along her fabulous Lamingtons , which went down a treat. But is it a Lamington, or a Wellington?
According to this report in The Guardian, what I always thought of as an Australian treat, may in fact originate here in NZ. Who knew? To be honest, I have no wish to cause an international incident (my mother was actually born in Australia and I have plenty of family there for one thing) , and while Pavlova, Crowded House and possibly Russell Crowe are hills I’m prepared to die on, this one isn’t. Besides which the “Wellington” makes me think of Beef obviously…or gumboots.
So for my non-Antipodean readers asking what the heck is a Lamington? A tender sponge cake, cut into squares, dipped in chocolate icing and rolled in coconut. If you want to guild the lily add whipped cream and jam (or in this case, a fresh raspberry coulis) Utterly delicious.
Found in home kitchens and cafes all over the country , a version can also be found with the sponge dipped in raspberry jelly and rolled in the coconut, I personally think this is an abomination but you do you…
Both my sister Lizzie and I use the recipe from the Edmonds cook book, I (bossily) suggest you do the same.
Sponge
1½ cups Plain flour
1 cup white sugar
3 eggs, room temp.
50g butter, melted
2 Tbsp whole milk
2 tsp Baking Powder (of course I use Edmonds)
Preheat the oven to 190ºC. Lightly butter two rectangle tins and line the bases with baking paper.
Put the flour and sugar into a large mixing bowl and combine well.
Break in the eggs, followed by the melted butter and milk.
Beat hard for 3 minutes until the mixture is pale and smooth. I use my Kitchen Aid but a hand mixer or some heavy arm work would do the trick Lastly fold in the baking powder.
Pour into the prepared tins and bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until the cakes spring back when lightly touched.
Leave in the tins for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool.
You can use the sponge when cool, but it’s actually better for lamingtons to leave it for 24 hours , then cut into squares. I like mine slightly smaller , about 5cm sq. but its up to you. Dip into the chocolate icing below , then roll in coconut and leave to dry. Top with a blob of cream and some jam/coulis if you fancy.
Chocolate icing
2 Tbsp cocoa
6 Tbsp boiling water
25g butter, melted
2¼ cups icing sugar
¼ tsp vanilla essence
Dissolve the cocoa in the boiling water and mix in the butter. Sift the icing sugar into a bowl and then pour in the cocoa mixture. Add vanilla and stir until well combined.
Yes your kitchen will be covered in coconut. No, I can’t help you with that. As you can see in the top pic we enjoyed our Lamingtons outside on the deck. This does make cleanup rather easier.
My Edmonds if the copy Mum sent over when I lived in the UK. Actually this is the replacement for the one I took with me which was ancient and had pages falling out.
I fully intend to meet my maker never having cooked Bacon Bananas, with or without salad, but the Dumplings, Scone, Pancake, Pastry and various biscuits recipes are on rotation, it’s a NZ kitchen classic.
I hope you’re having a sweet week
Kristina xxx
*P.S I’m not kidding about the Bay City Rollers, I was in the fan club and everything, I have the badge to prove it! Somewhere…
Plum Kitchen 