Hello all
Talking of roses I crystallised some petals last weekend, along with sun flower petals, lavender, purple campanula and a few skullcap flowers, all picked from my garden.
I've been finding it a little hard to relax lately, so doing this while listening to some classical music was so therapeutic! Here are a few of the songs I was listening to and a little how to so you can crystallise your own flowers.
Mum x There is a link for you at the end of this post…
Crystallised flowers
Crystallised flowers
What you will need:
1 egg white
bowl of caster sugar
baking parchment
small paint brush
1. Add a few drops of water to the egg white to loosen it up a little.
2. Paint the egg white onto the petals or whole flowers if your'e using them.
3. Holding the stem or tiny corner of a petal, sprinkle caster sugar all over the flower and leave to dry on some baking parchment. Repeat process until they are all done, then leave to dry completely before using.
* Tip *
In fact, this isn't a tip this is a must! Make sure you have identified the flowers you are using and that they are edible. Some flowers can be poisonous and will make you very ill.
*
I used the crystallised flowers to decorate a birthday cake I was making for my friend but it took me a few ideas to decide what I would bake. I went from a very indulgent coffee, walnut and almond cake with white chocolate and brown butter icing to lime, orange and pistachio loaf with orange, white chocolate and yoghurt icing.
What with it being summer and all I thought the latter was a much better option, plus the recipe included spelt flour and the use of honey as a sweetener and I love experimenting with these sorts of alternative ingredients.
I found the recipe here, it's by Amber Rose:
As usual I got distracted by my own ideas while trying to follow someone else's recipe. I added some icing and changed a few of the ingredients, which I will list below in my own version of this lovely cake.
8. In a separate bowl measure in the yogurt, orange zest and icing sugar then give it all a good mix. Once the white chocolate has melted pour it into the bowl with the rest of the ingredients and mix until combined.
9. Spoon the icing on top of the sponge and smooth it out with a small spatula.
If you're using crystallised flowers to decorate the cake carefully place them on now so that they stick to the icing before it sets.
You could do it afterwards if you keep a little of the icing aside and use it to stick them on one by one, but this will take a while. (Trust me… I know… It's all still trial and error!)
I also made some candied limes which I laid around the base of the cake. I was going to put them on top but there wasn't really enough room and the flowers looked so pretty on their own anyway. The candied limes do make a great addition though as they're super tasty! Here's a quick how to…
Lime, Orange and pistachio loaf
Ingredients
225g white spelt flour - sifted
2 tsp baking powder
80g ground almonds
100g pistachios - toasted and chopped
pinch salt
2 eggs
250g honey
250ml Greek-style natural yogurt
150ml coconut oil
½ unwaxed orange - zested
1 unwaxed lime - zested
Syrup
150ml boiling water
100g honey
1 lime
Icing
100g good quality white chocolate
60g low fat natural yogurt
180g icing sugar
½ unwaxed orange - zested
You will also need a 9x5" loaf tin -
(although I did have enough mixture left over to fill a small 10cm cake tin, which was brill as it meant the boyf and I could have our own mini version!)
1. Preheat your oven to 180C/160Fan/350F/Gas 4 and grease and line your loaf tin with baking parchment.
2. Measure and sift the spelt flour into a large mixing bowl, followed by the baking powder, ground almonds, toasted/chopped pistachios and a pinch of salt. These are all of your dry ingredients. Give them a stir until evenly distributed (this will help to give an even bake).
2. In a second bowl add the eggs and whisk until pale in colour with a little foam on top, now add the honey, yogurt, orange and lime zest and the coconut oil.
As coconut oil has a higher melting temperature than olive or sunflower oil for example, you may need to gently melt it in a small pan over the hob before adding it to the rest of the wet ingredients. This will take less than a minute.
Don't let it get too hot though, as you want all of your ingredients at room temperature.
3. Make a well in the dry ingredients and carefully pour in the wet ingredients. Beat using a hand mixer on a slow speed until just combined. You could also do this with a big spoon.
4. Now pour the mixture into your prepared loaf tin and bake for about 30-35 minutes, or until the sponge springs back when you press your finger lightly on the top and it's coming away from the sides of the tin slightly.
**Note that the original recipe calls for 50 minutes baking time, this is because she is using a larger round cake tin. If you are using a loaf tin like me, please don't bake it at 180C for 50 minutes or else you'll end up with a crumbly burnt mess!
Syrup
5. Meanwhile pour 150ml boiling water into a pan along with the honey. Boil until reduced by half, this will take about 5-6 minutes. Now add the juice of one lime and boil for another minute.
6. When your cake is done, take it out of the oven and while it's still warm and in the tin poke little holes all over it with a skewer or tooth pick then pour the syrup all over the top.
Leave it to cool for a while then take it out of the tin and leave it on a wire rack to cool completely.
Orange, white chocolate and yogurt icing
7. Melt the white chocolate in a bowl over hot water.
9. Spoon the icing on top of the sponge and smooth it out with a small spatula.
If you're using crystallised flowers to decorate the cake carefully place them on now so that they stick to the icing before it sets.
You could do it afterwards if you keep a little of the icing aside and use it to stick them on one by one, but this will take a while. (Trust me… I know… It's all still trial and error!)
I also made some candied limes which I laid around the base of the cake. I was going to put them on top but there wasn't really enough room and the flowers looked so pretty on their own anyway. The candied limes do make a great addition though as they're super tasty! Here's a quick how to…
Candied limes
Ingredients
1 lime - sliced
35ml water
35g caster sugar
1. Blanch the sliced limes for 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.
2. Pour the water into a pan and add the sugar bringing to a boil over a high heat. Add the limes and simmer until the pith has turned translucent, this should take about 10 minutes or so.
3. Drain them and leave them to cool on baking parchment.
***
I just want to say thank you for some really lovely feedback regarding my first few blog posts. It's really encouraging x
Also, don't forget there is space to comment at the end of every post, so if you want to know anything more about what I've been writing I'm more than happy to answer anything you like, or even if you just want to say hi!
I'll be bringing some savoury bits for you soon, and maybe even some crafty makes too! One step at a time though :)
Lastly, this is a message for my Mummy x I know you can't see the playlist but I want you to know what one of the songs I was listening to was. Go to the link below.
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