Saturday 19 March 2011

Super gingery ginger crunch and Hug-Your-Kitchen Day



I declare today to be Hug-Your-Kitchen Day.

Go on, give you kitchen a hug, polish the bench tops a little, give it a little loving, just to let it know you appreciate its hard work.

If my old kitchen could talk it would probably be a little grumpy with me and feeling just a little under-appreciated and used.

Not that I was ever rough with my kitchen, I would lovingly clean it when it got splattered with grease and diligently put things away so its benches were clear.  But it's only coming to live in a someone else's house and using someone else's kitchen that I realised I actually did take my old kitchen for granted.

You take for granted that the oven will cook at a certain temperature, that the pantry has certain things in it, that the elements on the stove would light up when you turn them on and that your baking pans are in a certain place.  It's only when you cook and bake in an unfamiliar kitchen that you realise that your own kitchen wasn't just a room you go into to make food - you and your kitchen are a partnership, working in synergistic harmony to make beautiful food together.

Dear Kitchen, 

Sorry old friend.  I do appreciate all the lovely meals and baking we made together as a team.  I miss you and I promise to make sure I take special care of you next time I'm up.  

Love Nessie.

I only came to this epiphany when one of my first baking forays down in Dunedin ended up being a bit of a disaster.  Half the pan turned out delicious Super Gingery Ginger Crunch and the other half ended up as Ginger Charcoal.  Cooking in an unfamiliar kitchen is a lot harder than it looks on Masterchef.




It wasn't even that I hadn't made ginger crunch before but several things conspired against me. I hadn't brought down the pan I normally used and so had to use a bigger pan making the base a little thinner than normal.  The oven here also must run hotter than my oven at home as the base was on the far end of golden brown five minutes before minimum bake time.  And to top it off, the elements were ceramic and I couldn't tell that I had accidentally left one on when I put the baking tray on the stove top to pour the icing on base and alas turned half the slice to ginger charcoal.  Not so delicious.

You could say I should have proceeded more gingerly.



The parts that didn't turn to charcoal were really tasty.  You must be a ginger fan though and have a sweet tooth.  I got a sugar rush just tasting the icing!

I doubled the icing amount from the original recipe as my baking pan was a little bigger than prescribed but I think the more icing the merry really.  Just cut the pieces a little smaller than you would normally (say half the size of a ginger crunch you would get at a cafe) and they are just perfect with a steaming hot cuppa.



Super Gingery Ginger Crunch

adapted from Julie le Clerc's @ Home With Love.

Makes ~ 30 pieces

Base
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoons baking powder
3 teaspoons ground ginger power
1/2 cup caster sugar
125 g butter, softened and cut into cubes

Topping/Icing
300 g butter
1/2 cup golden syrup
4 cups icing sugar, sifted
2 Tablespoons ground ginger powder
1/2 cup crystallised ginger chopped into little bits (you can double this to 1 cup if you are a ginger nut - haha get it?)
optional: 1/2 - 3/4 cup roasted pistachio nuts roughly chopped to sprinkle on top.

1. Preheat your darling oven to 180oC. Line a 20 cm x 30 cm deep sided baking tray with baking paper, making sure the paper goes right up the sides of the tin.

2. To make the base, in a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, ginger powder.  Then using your fingers rub the cubes of butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture looks like bread crumbs.

3.  Press the mixture evenly into the lined baking tray.  Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. Take out of the oven and leave to cool slightly in the tin.

4. To make the icing topping, gently heat the butter and golden syrup in a saucepan over medium heat until melted.  Add the sifted icing sugar and ground ginger power and heat for 1 minute, whisking till smooth.  Take off the heat (turn off your element!) and add the crystallised ginger.

5. Pour the icing over the baked base (sprinkle over roasted pistachios) and leave to cool in the tin.  When the mixture is cool, the icing will have set.  Take the slice out of the tin and cut into squares. Will keep for up to a week in an airtight container.

14 comments:

  1. My mouth is watering just reading this! :)

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  2. Oh my sainted aunts and tighter pants! I've been pottering through food blogs all morning without any particular sense of direction. And then I found this, and am now beset by a sticky gingery craving and a desperate need to Eat. This. Now! Thanks for a deliciously indulgent recipe. And making me feel better about temperamental kitchens, too.

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  3. New to your blog but really enjoy your photos and writing.
    I posted about your blog on mine. :)
    I'm looking forward to trying this out!

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  4. You are so right. When I left my kitchen for 2 months while traveling, I left a list of kitchen quirks for the house-sitter. Funny things like how the stove elements do not work if the oven is turned on. Infuriating if you didn't know. My kitchen and me have a funny relationship. I know it could be better, but I love how it's really is just mine. It's like family.

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  5. Pretty. Good. Food: Thanks lovely! Ginger baking is just one of those things I can't stop eating. So addictive.

    Sticky Penguin: Sticky Gingery Craving is EXACTLY what I get...specially on a chilly day. You get the ginger pangs and then go out and eat a whole packet of gingernuts or those amazing new ones covered in dark chocolate. Then feel sick. Or is that just me??

    jacksta: Thanks heaps! The icing was to die for...I licked the whole bowl...om nom nom.

    Halley G.: Oh wow thanks so much for your lovely comment! You are so sweet! Love your blog...so styley :)

    bunnyeatsdesign: Hahaha I so know what you mean!!! The kitchen is totally like family - you are grumpy to it when things go wrong but they know you will always love them :)

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  6. Looks devine! Even if you say its a little urgh... crunchy. :)

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  7. Isn't that the truth! There is nothing like your own kitchen!

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  8. Chloe: Thanks Chloe! Hehe yes so crunchy its burnt is def less than ideal - although I like to call it...texture :)

    foodies at home: Amen to that! As much as I do love my old kitchen though - is it just me or do other people dream of their perfect dream kitchen, then feel bad for *cheating* on your own kitchen?? :P

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  9. oh my god, nom nom, looks LOVELY!! i've just discovered your blog & i'm bookmarking practically all the recipes, hehe!

    Katie x

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  10. Katie: Aw thanks lovely!!! Stoked you like the recipes...I loved baking them! :) xox

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  11. Quite possibly the best ginger crunch I've ever had. Thank you!

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  12. Oh wow thanks heaps Kania!! Super glad you liked it! :)

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  13. Hola Muchacha: just QUADRUPLED your ginger crunch goodness for lola's kindy fundraiser tomorrow- blessings on your blog! xxxx hope you are well

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