A non-pie post: chocolate eclairs

I bake other things too, and on Sunday I had a go at my second batch of chocolate eclairs. They were pretty yummy, but I need a better recipe for my non-fan-forced oven.

Choux pastry rolls with creme patisserie filling (vanilla with a hint of cinnamon because reason I can't recall and I'll leave it out next time) and 70% chocolate ganache (with a hint of golden syrup so it wasn't too bitter). Yum.

A Very Porter Pie

Last weekend was the inaugural PAX Australia! It was three days of gaming awesomeness.

This weekend I bought a really yummy porter style beer called Ass Kisser Smoked Porter. It was so yummy I decided to invent a pie around it. I added some beef, bacon, onion, mushroom, carrot and broccoli (thus making it a well-rounded meal of course). A beef stock cube and some tomato paste rounded out the flavour. As when I've previously made a beef pie I let it simmer for about an hour and a half. I made up some rough puff pastry for the case and top and ended up with a pie that was absolutely delicious.

It's a little lighter on the top than usual because I didn't bother with an egg wash on top.

Using the rough puff for the base had me a little worried as it puffed up much more than when I've previously made rough puff. It ended up not being an issue but I think in the future I'll play it safe and go with the shortcrust instead.

A weekend quiche

Last weekend was the annual Python conference for Australia, PyCon AU. I spoke and had a blast.

This weekend I made a quiche which was a slight variation on the Lorraine recipe. I added mushroom and it was tasty :-)