Hi everyone, I am hitting the books and trying to pass the last exams of year 11. Can you believe there will only be one more year of school left then? I am SO stoked 😀 😀
Anyway, a couple of months back, I asked for your guest posts during this period and I was lucky enough to get a huge response – thank you all so much!
I promise you will not miss me, in fact, you will groan when I come back, becase I have so many wonderful guestposts lined up for you all! I hope you discover some wonderful new bloggers who tantalise your tastebuds like they do mine! Enjoy mes amis!
Should you need to contact me, I am more than at service through my email: gobakeyourself@yahoo.com.au or just leave a message on my facebook page: Go Bake Yourself
Also a significant note, I lost over 60-70 followers through some freak wordpress issue so please, if you were one of them and you have recently visited again, resubscribe – thank you!
Now I leave you to it… 🙂
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I may be getting a little ahead of myself with this guest post but I think you will all appreciate the change and use of alcohol in baking 😛
This lady is sophisticated, caring and someone I see who appreciates every little wonder and beauty in life. Is it not apt that her blog’s name is mybeautifulthings? 😀
She is truly a gem in the kitchen, and in knitting, and in sightseeing – ok so multi-talented 🙂
Introducing to you all a very close blogging buddy of mine, the wonderful Sally!
Take it away my friend and I know everyone will enjoy!
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I am so thrilled to be doing this Guest Post for Choc Chip Uru! My name is Sally and I have a blog mybeautfulthings in which I write about three things each day which please me in some way – people, food, art, nature, words, music and anything that makes me smile and I hope will make my readers smile too.
I love cooking for friends and family – it is one of the ways I show them I love them – and I’m told I started baking at 2 years old with scones! I learned the art of cooking from my Mum who was way ahead of her time, making risotto, pasta dishes and curries in the 1950′s. All my friends were on ‘meat and two veg.’ She took great pride in serving up something different for each day of the long summer holidays and I continued to do this for my four. My Dad was the marmalade maker and he taught me that skill which I put to use every February. He also made the bread for the family. They were my inspiration.
Mum and I catered my wedding completely and I have since gone on to make a couple of wedding cakes for family. I have an enormous cookery book collection including hand-written recipes from my Mum and my Grannies and I cannot resist new recipes from blogs, magazines and internet searches. My list of ‘to cook soon’ gets longer and longer!
When I started my blog, I knew food would be in there somewhere but as I began posting photos of our meals as some of my beautiful things, people began asking me for the recipes and so I have a Recipes page with fifteen recipes so far and many more to share! They range through simple suppers to gorgeous puds.
I’ve been following Choc Chip since I started blogging about 10 months ago and so admire her blog, her inventiveness with food, and her story tellling so when she invited Guest Bloggers to help her out over her exam period, I was over the moon!
I’ve chosen something chocolatey (of course!), a family favourite that we have for all family celebrations the most recent of which was last July when three generations of us had a week together. The last time we were all together was in 1993 and then, of course, our children had not had children!
So, this is a special dessert for special people and that is why I’ve chosen it for Choc Chip Uru too!
Chocolate Amaretti Torte
**We first got this from Delia Smith who had been given it by Derek Fuller. We’ve made several small changes over the years
Ingredients
- 475g good dark chocolate
- 5 tbsps brandy
- 140g liquid glucose
- 600mls double cream
- 100g Amaretti biscuits
- a flan dish or shallow cake tin 27 cms across (We like this dessert wide and shallow. You could certainly use a smaller tin and have the whole thing deeper as Delia Smith suggests, a 23cm tin))
- some cling film or parchment to line the dish with.
Method
- Line your dish with cling film or parchment. If your tin has straight sides you can just line the base
- Put the biscuits into a strong plastic bag and crush them lightly with a rolling pin. You can leave some of them a bit bigger to add to the texture. Cover the base of the dish with the biscuit crumbs
- Put a bowl over just simmering water and add the chocolate, broken into pieces
- When it is just melted, add the glucose syrup and the brandy and stir until blended and glossy
- Leave the chocolate mixture to cool down. You need it just warm
- While it does so, whip the cream. I was always taught, that to whip successfully remember the following “Cold cream, warm whites” For this recipe that does not apply! You need to have the cream at room temperature
- Fold 1/3 of the cream into the chocolate mixture
- Now fold that mixture into the rest of the cream – It’s almost impossible not to taste at this point! Please do! It’s delicious! 🙂
- When it is all smoothly blended pour it over the crumbs
- Spread out the mixture evenly. Cover with cling film and chill overnight or freeze
- When it comes to serving, just upend it onto your chosen dish and peel off the cling film. If you used a straight sided tin and lined only the base, run a knife around the side and upend it as before. It is a well-behaved dessert and will allow you to do this!
- Dust the top with sieved cocoa powder, over a template if you like as we did here
- Serve with some chilled pouring cream. It won’t last long!
I just want to say thank you again to Choc Chip Uru for the privilege of doing this guest post and to hope that her exams are going well. As an ex-teacher I had another motive for Guest posting: I wanted CCU to have the time to study and to do well! Good Luck and we look forward to your posts again when they are all over.
It was fabulous to have you guest post my friend and I know that this torte blew quite a few minds! Thank you so much!
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Love the torte!! Gorgeous : )
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Another amazing guest post. I could sooo go for a slice of this right now. =)
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Yum! Looks like chocolaty creamy goodness!! 😀
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Nice work Sally!
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Sounds delicious, Sally!
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Thank you Sally for sharing the recipe! Your step-by-step pictures are great and nice tutorial! Love chocolate dessert, and very nice decoration with cocoa dusting too! So neat!
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Beautiful torte, Sally!! Love the flavors…yum! Hope school is going well, Uru!!
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That’s a gorgeous looking torte, simply awesome!
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That looks gorgeous! I really miss chocolate cake! Yum!
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Oh I nearly missed this! Lovely to see Sally on your blog, and do you know that I LOVE amaretti 🙂 Gorgeous recipe Choccy
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I love anything to do with chocolate, though I have not make any tortes yet, but I know it will be soon. This is definitely a winner in my books and Uru, thanks for introducing me to Sally too. Am off to her blog! Hope all is well too. xoxo
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Decadent and delicious !
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Wonderful cake and wonderful guest post! Thank you for sharing!
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She definitely fits in here – look at the Torte!
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Sally that looks great. I love the flavors in this torte! Great post and thanks for sharing a family favorite 🙂
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I’m a huge fan of amaretti cookies! This tart looks fantastic! 😀
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Delicious and easy. That’s my kind of dessert 🙂
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This sounds fantastic! Look at all that chocolate!
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This looks delightful! Thanks for keeping us in desserts while you’re studying 🙂
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what a gorgeous torte! great guest post! I’m loving all your featured guests. 🙂
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Amaretti cookies are an all-time favourite. This dessert looks rich and absolutely decadent. I’m bookmarking the recipe to make when I feel like splurging. Great post Sally!
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Sally, I adore chocolate tortes! Yours looks absolutely divine. Thanks for sharing 🙂
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Sally, what a delectable torte! Nothing with all that chocolate and cream can taste anything less than spectacular. A winner 🙂
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Sally, you have definitely outdone yourself with this dessert. This looks absolutely divine!
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Nice to “meet” you Sally. Your tart looks heavenly. I love that you can keep it in the freezer until it’s ready to be served. How long do you think it would stay safely in the freezer?
Hi Uru! Keep those books cookin’ and yes, we do miss you:)
Thanks for sharing…
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Hello Louise, nice to meet you too!
Thank you for your lovely comments. I have made the torte two months ahead of time and it came of of the freezer just as delicious as when it went in! I wrapped it many times in cling film and then over wrapped it with tin foil so that it was well protected. Hope you do get to make it.
All the best 🙂
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I adore amaretti cookies so these are a must-make!!
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I have never had those cookies before, but I bet they make a delicious crust! This looks so good.
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Oh how I love Amaretti biscuits! This looks lovely.
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I chuckled when I realized she was a teacher. This is a very tempting dessert. Yum, yum!
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My goodness, how super tasty that looks! Off to check out your blog, Sally! Thanks again Uru for setting this cool post up and I hope your studies are going well 🙂
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This just sounds so delicious! I love amaretta cookies and incorporating these into desserts is my favorite as they have such a wonderful intense flavor. Brandy too 🙂 Great guest post!!
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That torte looks amazing! Beautiful!
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looks like a wonderful dessert! i’d love a slice please 🙂
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Really enjoyed the guest post. The combination of chocolate and amaretti cookies looks fantastic!
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Wonderful guest post! The torte looks absolutely delicious!
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This is a torte to be reckoned with, for sure! I love the idea of a chocolate/amaretti flavor combo!
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Love, love this torte and like your idea of using a wide and shallow tin.
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Simply irresistible Sally! Thanks to you for introducing us another great blogger.
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What a great chocolaty guest post! I would finish the filling before finishing the cake!
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Happy spring day CCU 🙂
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isn’t it just? So exciting 😀
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
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This looks so very tasty and chocolatey! Very nice to meet you Sally!
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Lovely torte, I love simple yet elegant desserts… 🙂
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This looks beautiful! Yum!
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That’s a beautiful looking torte. The flavour would be incredible. Love the story of how you started cooking at the age of two and how your father made the marmalade. I think great cooks always have parents and grandparents who teach teach, lead and guide them from a young age xx
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Lovely recipe, Sally. Chocolate is always a good choice. I’ve been to see your blog and have signed up for email notification. CCU, thanks for featuring Sally.
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This looks amazing. A great post Sally.
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Wow Sally this looks amazing.
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Hi Guru Uru, I get your posts in email but when I click on to actually see the post it says the page not found. then I go on your sidebar to actually read the post.
This chocolate amaretti torte is the kind of sweet things I relish on your blog. a wonderful guest post by Sally.
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Hi my friend – sorry about that, I have been posting for the wrong date and having to change it – since these have been in my drafts since June the publishing date is not current 😛
I will take more care now to change it!
Keep enjoying the guest posts my friend 🙂
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
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Wonderful guest blogger! A decadent torte and easy to make, a definite can- do, will-do. thanks so much for the recipe.
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Amazing flavors going on in this torte, Sally. Thanks for sharing 🙂
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Great flavor combo Sally! Hi to you, Uru dear!
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This looks fantastic! Great guest post, I must make something like this soon!
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Hope the studying is going well! Great guest post – such a delish looking dish. Good stuff – thank you.
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Good luck with school! You’re getting close. 🙂
Loving these guest posts – such a tasty-looking torte!
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Hello everybody, just to say too, this post was posted on my parents’ Wedding Anniversary which I find very pleasing!
Thank you for all the lovely comments. 🙂
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I am so so happy you posted my friend, it is an incredible dessert that everyone loves 😀
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
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Thank you again for the honour! The comments have been lovely and I’ve met lots of delightful bloggers through the posting. 🙂
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Thank you Uru and Sally, this recipe is wonderful!
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This torte looks absolutely decadent!!Love the flavors going in here 🙂
Best of luck with your exams and hope to see you soon 🙂
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PS… I nominated you for a Very Inspiring Blogger Award. Come check out my post dated 9-2-12. 🙂
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Thank you so much my friend, I promise to pass it on after my exams 😀
Too sweet!
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
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good luck in your exam… a wonderful cake to keep you will good grades.
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So good to meet you, Sally … What a beautiful torte 🙂
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Good luck on your exams! That’s weird you lost subscribers 😦 bummer. Looking forward to guest posts!
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It was indeed very weird! But glad you are enjoying the guest posts!
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
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What a delicious (and decadent) torte!
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hope your exams go well! what a great dessert!
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Mmmmm, what a beautiful and decadent guest post!! Thank you ladies! 🙂
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Lovely and nice, what more with brandy added inside.
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Thanks for this post CCU and Sally.Looks delicious!
Cheers
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How yummy! I really liked the dusted cocoa on top especially 🙂
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This torte looks amazing! It’s been on my must bake list for way too long now..I will have to sort that out! Lovely guest post. Good luck with the exams Choc Chip 🙂
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Thank you, Sally, for sharing this rich and irresistible chocolate torte! Truly a perfect one to celebrate!
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That is quite the torte and I’m sure tasty too. Thanks for introducing us to Sally.
-Gina-
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Looks like an amazing torte. Love anything chocolate…
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What a beautiful torte and so nice to meet Sally too 😀
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What a decadent torte! It sounds insanely delicious! Hope your exams are going well!
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Thoroughly enjoyed this post, Sally. How incredibly interesting and what wonderful parents! The dessert looks over-the-top delicious!!
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I’d be tasting with a big spoon 🙂 What a lovely dessert and excellent guest post!
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That chocolate filing is seriously amazing!! Brandy and chocolate are perfect together. Wish I could grab a huge slice off the screen.
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Delicious guest post!
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Oh, that looks wonderful and decadent!
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This looks so good, I love cake!
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Loved reading your story, and a perfectly lovely dessert. Simple and elegant. Just beautiful!
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Yum! What a deceptively simple recipe! It looks to die for!
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This cake looks wonderful! I enjoyed your guest post and will visit your blog soon!
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Wonderful cake Sally! I love amarettis and brandy of course, and have a bucket of glucose (I´m not kidding) just waiting for good recipes. This is perfect! Cheers to both of you. Uru, I hope the books are being nice to you!
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