Home cooked Paella – steaming up the camera lens! 

The last day of winter seemed more like the first day of spring. We were treated to bountiful blue skies, a light breeze and cheery sunshine that cleared away any trace of yesterday’s ominous rain clouds. A perfect day to be out of the house and a perfect day to celebrate my daughter Jana’s 13th birthday. 

I was thrilled that my no longer pre-school, primary school or even pre-teen daughter still wanted me to make her birthday cake. Jana was so excited when she opened the fridge this morning and spotted her special occasion Chocolate Sour Cream Cake (recipe posted on the 20th January 2014) covered with hand tinted vanilla fondant, edible rose petals and strawberry chocolate buds. Although it took several hours to bake and decorate, her absolute delight and gratitude made my efforts well worth it. 

Make a wish Jana. 

I usually host birthday parties at home, complete with entertainment of some kind, themed decorations and tables laden with home cooked food. This year however, Jana’s siblings, her two sweet natured nieces and a group of girlfriends, watched a “flashback movie” at Palace Cinemas, followed by wood fired pizza and pasta on the outdoor verandah at Leichhardt’s Caffe Moretti. Their professional and friendly staff, consistent quality food and relaxed surroundings made for an easy and enjoyable birthday lunch. 

Despite demolishing the dozen handcrafted pizzas, pastas and fresh garden salads, my children still looked forward to the Paella I made for our immediate family’s dinner (recipe posted on the 8th June 2013). Jana had requested this dish, citing it as one of her favourites. Since we had eaten a fair bit today (over indulging is expected on a birthday!) dessert was a simple and delicate glass of Vanilla Scented Cream, Strawberries and Raspberries. Again, another of Jana’s favourites. Actually she pretty much eats everything with great enthusiasm. Happy birthday my gorgeous girl. 

Vanilla Scented Cream, Strawberries and Raspberries
Even the “I can’t cook” individual can manage this one. 

Ingredients for 8 portions
600 ml thickened cream
freshly scraped seeds from 1 aromatic vanilla pod
1 heaped tablespoon of icing sugar
2 punnets plump ripe strawberries cut into quarters
2 punnets fresh raspberries left whole

Using an electric beater or mixer, beat the cream, vanilla pod seeds and icing sugar until soft peaks form. Do not over-whip or you will end up with butter. 

Dollop a couple of spoonfuls into a tall glass. Add chopped strawberries and whole raspberries. Add more cream and repeat with the fruit. Include a favourite fancy chocolate like a Lindt ball. Refrigerate until needed. 


White Chocolate Ganache

This is sublime. Smooth and velvety, with just the right melting point as it hits the tastebuds. Creamy and enticing, but not all over sweet. Highly recommended as a filing and covering for a lightly textured chocolate cake, like the chocolate sour cream cake I used as the base of Jana’s birthday creation. The recipe is another reliable one from The Australian Women’s Weekly cooking team. Try it, you won’t be disappointed. 

The quantity below will make enough to cover the top and sides of a deep 20cm cake. I doubled this amount to fill the inside and cover the outside of my 20cm and 15cm cakes. Next time I’m going to triple the quantity and eat the left over portion perched on the stepping stool inside my pantry. The extras are simply too good to share!

Ingredients
360 g good quality white eating chocolate. I used the Lindt brand. 
125 ml pouring cream. 

Break the chocolate into a food processor and chop finely. Scrape this into a large glass bowl. 

Place the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water on the stove. Pour in the cream and stir continuously until the chocolate has melted and combined with the cream to resemble a thick, smooth consistency. 

Remove the bowl from the saucepan, wipe the base dry and place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. Stir the contents a couple of times while it is setting. 

Just before you are ready to fill and cover the cake/s, remove the bowl from the fridge and using electric beaters, whip the ganache until it is white and fluffy. If you want to tint the ganache then add the colour at this point and beat until completely absorbed. 

Working quickly, ice the cake/s. The ganache will set rapidly so you need to complete the icing in one session. If the ganache does start to become hard, just whip it briefly with the electric beaters once again. 

If you are covering the ganache with fondant, brush lightly with sugar syrup in order for the fondant to adhere.