Chocolate Cherry Dump Cake

Chocolate & Cherry is definitely a match made in heaven so is this recipe. A quick, scrumptious, yummy "Chocolate Cherry Dump Cake". It is named so because u actually don't mix any of the ingredients and dump everything in a baking dish and after 30 minutes you get this beautiful gooey cake out. This rustic cake can be ideally made with a cherry pie filling and a chocolate cake mix. But I am making it here from scratch for all who doesn't have an access to these ready made mixes near them.

Serve :            2
Preparation time:     45 minutes


Ingredients:

For cherry pie filling:
Cherry:             2 cups (pitted)
Sugar:               1/2 cup
Corn starch:      1 tablespoon
Water:              1/4 cup

For cake mix:
All purpose flour:    1 cup
Butter:                    50 grams (cold cut in small pieces)
Cocoa powder:       1/4 cup
Baking powder:       1 teaspoon
Salt:                         1 pinch
Sugar:                      1/4 cup (fine granulated sugar, I am using Vanilla Sugar)
Vanilla essence:         1/2 teaspoon

To assemble:
Butter:                     1/2 cup (melted)

 Method:

1) For cherry pie filling heat a saucepan and add cherry, sugar, water at medium flame for 5-7 minutes until soft and cooked. Mix cornstarch with 2 tablespoon of cold water and mix it in the cooking cherry mixture. Let it cook for another couple of minute. Set aside.
2) Sieve together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt. Add cold butter and mix it using a back of spoon or finger tip. It should resemble a fine bread crumb after mixing well. Add fine sugar and vanilla essence, mix well. Cake mix will look like a dry brown, crumb like of a powder.
3) Preheat the oven at 190 degree celsius. To assemble take a baking dish spread the cherry pie filling at the base top a thin layer or cake mix evenly.
4) Spread the melted butter over the cake mix using a spoon to make it wet.
5) Bake at 180 degree celsius about 30 minutes. The cherry will be bubbling from inside and cake topping will be hard to touch.

6) Let it cool for 10 minutes before you serve. Serve warm as it is or with a cold vanilla ice cream or cold whipped cream.

BON APPETIT..

Cherry Cobbler

You can never forget the name of this dish because of its uniqueness. Cobbler refers to a variety of dishes, particularly in the United States and United Kingdom, consisting of a fruit or savoury filling poured into a large baking dish and covered with a batter, biscuit, or pie crust before being baked. Some cobbler recipes, especially in the South, resemble a thick-crusted, deep-dish pie with both top and bottom crust.

The scone-topped cobbler predominates and is found in both sweet and savoury versions. Common sweet fillings include apple, blackberry and peach. Savoury versions, such as lamb, beef or mutton, consist of a casserole filling, sometimes with a simple ring of cobbles around the edge, rather than a complete layer, to aid cooking of the meat. Cheese or herb scones may also be used as a savoury topping.

(Source: Wikipedia)

Today's preparation is a yummy, juicy homespun cherry cobbler, where the base is of the soft cherry pie filling and the topping is a hard crusty biscuit. Enjoy this hot and bubbling cherry cobbler directly out from the oven.

Minimally adapted from Joy of baking

Serve:                  2

Preparation time:   45 minutes (including baking)

Ingredients:

Cherry:                300 grams (fresh or canned, about 1 cup after pitted)

Lime juice:           1 teaspoon

Sugar:                  2 tablespoon

Cornstarch:          1/2 tablespoon

Biscuit dough  

All purpose flour:    1/2 cup

Sugar:                     2 tablespoon

Butter:                    2 tablespoon (cold, unsalted, cut into pieces) 

Baking powder:      1/2 teaspoon

Salt:                       1 pinch

Vanilla extract:       1/2 teaspoon

Cream or milk:       1/4 cup (cold)

Method:

1) Cook pitted cherry, lime juice and sugar with 1/4 cup of water together. Let it cook till soft. Add cornstarch mixed with some cold water to the cooking cherries. Cook for another 1 minute at low heat.

Set aside.

2) Preheat the oven at 180 degree celsius. 

3) Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Cut the butter into small pieces and mix into the flour mixture using your fingertips lightly. The mixture should look like coarse crumbs.

4)  Add the cream to the flour mixture to make soft dough. Stir just until combined. Do not over mix. Knead dough gently on a lightly floured surface.

5) Roll the dough into a circle that is about 1/2 inch thick,cut the dough into rounds.

6) To assemble place the cherry filling at the bottom of the ramekin mould. Gently place the rounds biscuit on top of the fruit. Brush the tops of the biscuits with a little cream.

7) Bake for approximately 30-35 minutes or until the fruit is bubbly and the biscuits are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into a biscuit comes out clean.

8) Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool slightly before serving.

9) You can relish it like this or serve with softly whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.  Refrigerate leftovers and reheat before serving.

BON APPETIT..

French Cherry Clafoutis

Living and travelling in Europe has made me fond of lovely, French, Italian and Turkish desserts. From a no sweet person I have become a dessert lover. Today I am trying to make an authentic recipe from French origin.
Clafoutis is a baked French dessert of black cherries arranged in a buttered dish and covered with a thick flan-like batter. The clafoutis is dusted with powdered sugar and served lukewarm.
Traditional clafoutis contain pits of the cherries. According to baking purists, the pits release a wonderful flavor when the dish is cooked. If the cherry pits are removed prior to baking, the clafoutis will be milder in flavor.
(Source: Wikipedia)
You can use any other fruits or pitted preserved cherries for this recipe. Traditionally, what makes clafoutis a clafoutis are the cherries. In fact, purists may say that if there are no cherries, it is not clafoutis, rather a “flaugnarde” or “flognarde".  Adjust the sugar in the recipe according to the fruit you use.

Ingredients:

Cherry:                   1 1/2 cup (pitted) fresh or preserved
Full cream milk:       1 cup
All purpose flour:     1/2 cup
Sugar:                      1/2 cup
Vanilla essence:        1/2 teaspoon
Egg:                         2 medium
Butter:                      1 tablespoon (melted)
Salt:                         1/4 teaspoon
Oil to spray
Powdered sugar to garnish

Method:

1) Preheat the oven at 180 degree C.
2) Spray an oven safe pan with cooking spray. Arrange the pitted cherry in the pan evenly.
3) Mix the remaining ingredients onto a smooth batter, using a whisk. You can use a blender instead for a faster process.
4) Pour the batter over the cherry and let it bake for 25 minutes.
5) Serve it warm or at room temperature with sprinkle of powdered sugar over it.

BON APPETIT...