When I saw that the We Should Cocoa Challenge for this month, hosted by Shaheen of Allotment 2 Kitchen, was to bake with chocolate and mango, I was sure that I would not be taking part. I’m not really a mango kind of person.
I do like mangoes, but I can probably count on the fingers of one hand the number of times I have bought a mango in the last five years, maybe even ten years. Then I remembered a bag of dried mango lurking in the cupboard, left over from baking a cake using “exotic dried fruits”. As I was looking at it I remembered baking cranberry blondies a couple of years ago and wondered if I could use the dried mango instead of dried cranberries. It was worth a try anyway. Blondies are essentially brownies made with white chocolate instead of dark chocolate.
My original recipe makes a lot of cake so I hunted around and came across this one on the Stork website, which I thought I could adapt quite easily. It makes a smaller cake and is also quick to make.
The recipe states a baking time of 35-45 minutes. My cake was slightly overdone after 35 and I was a bit annoyed with myself for not checking after 30. The phone rang and I forgot until the timer beeped. Still, although it was a bit crozzled at the edges it was still nice. The cake was moist and crumbly and it was nice to get a bit of chocolate and chewy fruit with every mouthful.
Ingredients
115g Stork block margarine
115g caster sugar
2 medium eggs
125g plain flour
200g white chocolate, chopped, or chocolate chips (I used half of each, as that’s what I had in stock)
115g dried mango pieces
Method
Preheat the oven to 190°C / 170° fan / gas mk 5. Grease and line the base of an 18cm square baking tin, or similar.
Put the Stork into a small saucepan and melt over gentle heat. Remove from the heat and stir in half of the chopped chocolate, reheating as necessary, until the chocolate has melted in and the mixture is nice and smooth.
In a large bowl whisk together the eggs and sugar with an electric whisk until thickened and creamy. Sift over the flour and fold in with the chocolate mixture.
Add half of the remaining chocolate and half of the dried mango. Stir gently until combined and pour the mixture into the baking tin.
Scatter the remaining chocolate and mango over the top and bake for 30-35 minutes until nicely golden. Remove from the oven and cool in the tin. Cut into squares when cold.
Makes 16 small blondies.
Now if only I was not trying to get weight off before the cruise....... Have a good weekend Diane
ReplyDeleteMmmm, I hadn't really thought of using dried mango, but like your idea of baking it into blondies. It's annoying when cakes overbake, but as you say, they are usually good to eat anyway. I'm glad you decided to take part as these do sound like something I might like to try. Thanks for playing along.
ReplyDeleteOh I am so glad that you participated, loving your creation and its one I am going to steal and make. Your entry has also intro'd me to your blog, so hello and I am sure this will be the first of many visits here.
ReplyDeleteI like the word 'crozzled'.
ReplyDeleteI'm feeling a bit that way, perhaps I'd feel less crozzled after a blondie or three... ;o)
Gaynor, definitely !!
Deletestunning (and that's just the dog) beautiful blondies and such a great idea!... shame you weren't crazy for them but you can send them my way!
ReplyDeleteDried mango and white chocolate sounds like a brilliant combo to me -- and a clever substitution.
ReplyDeleteI have never baked with mango - it's funny, isn't it, how we get stuck with the same flavours time and time again?
ReplyDeleteYour cake looks lovely - I rather like some crozzled edges although I didn't know that's what they were till today. Your site is educational!!!
It's amazing how few people use the word "crozzled", but it is in the dictionary - it usually refers to slightly over-crisp bacon I think!
DeleteThey look like they'd make a nice change to the usual brownie and an interesting combination of flavours.
ReplyDelete