Eric Lanlard's Lemon Meringue cupcakes

We had a family tea this week, one of the things that I baked are these Lemon Meringue Cupcakes - an Eric Lanlard recipe.

They are lemony, soft and delicious, but they are not difficult. The Italian Meringue is the hardest part.

Heres the recipe:

Makes: 12 muffins
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 15–20 minutes
You will need
For the cupcakes:
100g unsalted butter, softened
100g golden caster sugar
1 vanilla pod, split
2 eggs
100g self-raising flour, sifted
finely grated zest of 1 lemon
75g ready-made lemon curd
For the meringue:
2 egg whites
100g golden caster sugar

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with cupcake papers.
2. For the cupcakes, cream the butter, sugar and vanilla seeds together in a large mixing bowl, using an electric hand whisk, until pale, fluffy and well combined.
3. Crack in the eggs, one at a time, and beat until both are fully incorporated into the mixture. Fold in the sifted flour and lemon zest until well-combined.
4. Spoon the cupcake batter into the cupcake papers. Add a teaspoon of lemon curd to the top of each cupcake.
5. Bake the cupcakes in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, or until they are pale golden-brown and spring back when pressed lightly in the centre.
6. Meanwhile, for the meringue, whisk the egg whites until soft peaks form when the whisk is removed. Gradually add the sugar, whisking continuously, until stiff peaks form when the whisk is removed. The mixture should be thick and glossy.
7. When the cakes are cooked, turn off the oven and preheat the grill to its highest setting.
8. Spoon the meringue into a piping bag with a small plain tube and pipe some in a spiral on top of each cupcake. Place the cupcakes under the hot grill two minutes to colour (or you can use a kitchen blowtorch to toast the meringue).
Recipe, Home Bake by Eric Lanlard (Mitchell Beazley, £20). Also appears on Baking Mad with Eric Lanlard, broadcast on Channel 4, March 2012.

And here is the best Muffin Tin I have found.

LINK: Lighting design 101

Here is a link to a great article by Craig DiLouie, Lighting Industry Journalist, in Electrical Contractor:


EVALUATING LIGHT SOURCES

Not so technical that a smart layperson can't understand the concepts, Craig does a great job here of explaining what lighting designers try to accomplish in lighting a room, architectural structure or landscape.

More importantly, he teaches us what those cryptic codes on the new lighting labels mean, and how to use them to make better choices at your lighting supplier store.

Also, some fabulous images, courtesy of Peter Ngai, that illustrate the concepts.

Peggy 

Point Source                           Linear Source                              Area Source

 Craig's description:

Electrical Contractor recently published an article I wrote about a simple methodology for evaluating light sources based on a basic series of questions: 

• What is the distribution of the light?  

                                          Distribution is measured in candelas (cd).

• How long does the lamp last?  

                                          Service life is measured in hours.

• How much light does it produce?

                                           Light output is measured in lumens (Lm).

• How much electric power does the system require?  

                                           Power is measured in watts (W). 
 
• How efficient is it compared to others?  

                                           Efficacy is measured in lumens per watt (LPW).

• What is the color appearance of the source?  

                                           Color tone is measured in kelvins (K).

• How well does the source render colors?   

                                           Color rendering is expressed on the color rendering index (CRI).




 

Paneer Bruschetta

I have started loving various international cuisines. I am trying to prepare a fusion dish by blending the Indian vegetables in different recipes around the world. In simple words, an international cuisine fit for an Indian family. A few samples from my stable are the Chickpea Burger, Spinach Pasta and Quick Pizza etc.



Now in a similar manner, I have prepared Paneer (Cottage Cheese) Bruschetta from Anjum Anand's "I Love Curry". This fusion dish came out very well and everyone in my family liked it. Next time, I am planning to make my own Indian version of topping thereby trying to experiment more on fusion dishes.



Bruschetta is an Italian Snack or Appetizer which consists of a toasted bread slice topped with meat or any vegetables. It is very easy to prepare and only the topping differs from one variety to another. You can be creative with the selection of the topping so as to make your own version.

Basic Information:
Preparation and Cooking time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4 (Makes 8 slices)

Ingredients:



Baguette/Ciabatta/Any Italian loaf - 1 no, cut into 1 inch thinkness diagonally

Paneer - 1/2 cup, crumbled

Capsicum - 2 tablespoons, finely chopped

Onion - 2 tablespoons, finely chopped

Coriander leaves - 2 tablespoons , finely chopped

Cherry/Plum tomatoes - 4 nos, quartered

Olive oil - 1 teaspoon + extra for toasting the bread

Pepper powder - 1/2 teaspoon / as required

Salt - to taste

Method:



1) Take the crumbled panner in the mixing bowl.

2) Add onion, capsicum, coriander leaves and cherry tomatoes. Toss it well.

3) Season with salt and pepper. Add olive oil and toss well again. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Keep it aside.

 

4) Coat both the sides of bread slice with olive oil and toast it in the pan/skillet untill crisp and slightly turns brown.

 

5) Place generous a or two tablespoon of mixture on the bread slice and serve.

Note:

1) Instead of toasting the bread, you can also bake them. Place the bread slices in the 180C preheated oven and bake it for 5 minutes or until crisp.

2) Try to use fresh paneer for best results.



I'm linking this recipe to Srivalli's Blogging Marathon #12 under the theme of paneer. Check out what others are cooking by clicking it here.