Hands down, these would be the greatest peanut butter cookies you ever make – dense and chewy, but additionally ridiculously straightforward,” says Edd Kimber.
“As a further treat, I also dip these in chocolate, because everything is better dipped in chocolate, right?”
Chocolate peanut butter cookie
Makes: 6
Ingredients:
175g gentle brown sugar
1 massive egg
½ tsp vanilla extract
Pinch of tremendous sea salt
225g clean peanut butter, at room temperature
Sea salt flakes, for sprinkling
100g darkish chocolate, melted
Method:
1. Place the sugar and egg in a big bowl and whisk collectively briefly till mixed. Add the vanilla and salt and once more whisk briefly to mix. Now add the peanut butter and whisk till a thick however clean dough is fashioned.
2. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for half-hour. Line a baking tray with parchment paper. Using a 60ml mechanical ice cream scoop or your arms, place six scoops or balls of cookie dough on the ready tray, spacing them effectively aside. Transfer to the freezer for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180C (160C fan) 350F, fuel mark 4.
3. Sprinkle the chilled cookies with sea salt flakes and bake for 20-22 minutes, or till the cookies have unfold just a little and the sides are frivolously browned. Set apart to chill fully.
4. To serve, dip the cookies midway into the melted chocolate after which place again on the lined tray. Refrigerate till the chocolate has set. If saved in a sealed container, these cookies will hold for 4 to 5 days.
Bakery-style blueberry muffin
“These muffins are the result of challenging myself to see just how many blueberries I could pack into one muffin without it falling apart,” says Kimber.
“Being bakery-style, they are big and generous, packed full of fruit and have a great crunch from the streusel topping. If you want to make the muffins even simpler, you can skip the streusel and sprinkle with demerara sugar instead.”
Makes: 4
Ingredients:
35g unsalted butter, diced
50g caster sugar
Zest of ¼ lemon (non-compulsory)
80g bitter cream or buttermilk or yoghurt
1 massive egg white
85g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp tremendous sea salt
170g blueberries
For the streusel topping:
60g plain flour
35g caster sugar
40g unsalted butter, melted
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 180C (160C fan) 350F, fuel mark 4. Place 4 paper circumstances in a muffin tray.
2. First make the streusel: place the flour and sugar in a small bowl and drizzle over the melted butter, stirring with a knife till the combination clumps collectively. Use your arms to type it right into a ball of dough, then refrigerate till wanted.
3. To make the muffins, soften the butter, then pour right into a mixing bowl. Add the sugar, lemon zest (if utilizing), bitter cream and egg white and blend till clean. In a separate bowl, whisk collectively the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the butter combination together with the blueberries and stir gently and briefly, simply till a thick batter types. Don’t fear about it being completely clean; it’s vital to not overmix, as it will possibly simply turn into powerful.
4. Divide the batter evenly between the paper circumstances. Crumble the chilled streusel excessive and bake for about 25 minutes, or till golden brown and a skewer inserted into the muffins comes out clear. Set apart to chill within the tray for 10 minutes, earlier than rigorously transferring to a wire rack to chill fully
Classic pretzels
“Although supposedly invented by an Italian monk, pretzels are most associated with Germany, where they are often eaten with mustard and a pint of beer,” says Kimber.
“Germany is also where pretzels began to be dunked in a lye (caustic soda) solution before baking, to give them their characteristic colour and flavour. Thankfully, bicarbonate of soda can be used instead of lye, and if you bake it first, the results are surprisingly good.”
Makes: 4
Ingredients:
250g sturdy white bread flour
½ tsp tremendous sea salt
3g dried fast-action yeast
25g unsalted butter, at room temperature
130ml lukewarm water
1 tbsp barley malt extract or honey
Vegetable oil, for greasing and brushing
Sea salt flakes, for sprinkling
For the pre-baking resolution:
1L water
50g barley malt extract
50g bicarbonate of soda
Method:
1. Place the flour, salt and yeast in a big bowl and stir collectively. Add the butter and rub into the combination till there aren’t any seen lumps. Make a effectively within the centre and pour within the water and malt extract. Mix collectively to type a shaggy dough, then tip onto a piece floor and knead till clean and elastic, about 10 minutes. Place the dough in a frivolously greased bowl, cowl with clingfilm and put aside for one to 2 hours, till doubled in dimension.
2. Divide the dough into 4 equal items and roll them into balls. Cover and depart them to chill out for 10 minutes. Line a big baking tray with parchment paper and brush with oil or mist with just a little non-stick cooking spray.
3. Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll it right into a clean rope roughly 60-65cm lengthy, leaving the centre of it just a little thicker than the ends. Arrange the rope in a U-shape with the ends dealing with you. Take each ends, cross them over as soon as, then elevate up and press onto the curved a part of the rope on the high, forming the normal pretzel form. Transfer to the ready tray and canopy frivolously with clingfilm when you make one other three pretzels in the identical manner. Set apart for half-hour, earlier than transferring to the fridge for one hour.
4. Preheat the oven to 200C (180C fan) 400F, fuel mark 6. To make the pre-baking resolution, convey the water to the boil in a medium saucepan. Add the malt extract and bicarbonate of soda and whisk to mix. Turn the warmth off, then place one pretzel at a time place within the liquid for one minute. Lift out with a slotted spoon, return to the baking tray and sprinkle liberally with sea salt flakes.
5. Use a pointy paring knife to slit alongside the thicker a part of the pretzels, then bake for 15-18 minutes, or till a wealthy mahogany brown. Leave to chill for a couple of minutes earlier than consuming. The pretzels will hold for as much as two days after baking, and might be frozen for as much as a month.
‘Small Batch Bakes’ by Edd Kimber (revealed by Kyle Books, £18.99; images by Edd Kimber), accessible 25 August.
Source: www.unbiased.co.uk