Down, down, down!!

What goes up must come down.

This is a FUNDAMENTAL rule. It's not only gravity that applies.

Am hoping that is applies to overvalued stocks as well. Stocks are trading at well over earnings now and the US unemployment rate is staying stagnant. Where is all this excessive $$ coming from??

Way overdue for a correction, IMHO.

Please happen....I will NOT miss the boat for a second time.

Burnt Butter and Brown Sugar..Nigella Strikes

Nigella does it again! Waaay before the Vogue article on brown butter, Nigella was already advocating it in How to Be A Domestic Goddess - in the form of this aromatic cupcake.

"A mouth-filling nuttiness" is how she described it, I'd describe it as sweet, slightly burnt and caramelly (Ok, so obviously I lack her prose. But it's true). It's hard to describe - it is a complex scent, like a burnt kinda sweet - or sweetness with depth, like palm sugar maybe?

Anyways, they're really worth making for the smell alone. I can't say that I'm really crazy over them (maybe it's my unsophisticated palate - after all, Vogue loves them, for goodness' sake - haha)




The trick with browning butter is knowing when to stop - when the butter reaches the colour of rusty water and there are lots of solids (black) at the bottom. Strain them out (some will fall through the sieve - but that's ok, that's that slightly burnt flavour you want.

I did not make the burnt-butter frosting this time, as my butter is precious and I don't like buttercream frostings anyways. I might give this a try sometime, though, as the reviews are really good and Nigella's taste - well, I've trusted her and it has always paid off handsomely.

Here's the recipe:

150g unsalted butter

125g self-raising flour

60g golden caster sugar

65g light muscovado sugar (Note: I used all brown sugar for this)

2 large eggs

1 tspn vanilla extract

1 tspn baking powder

2-3 tablespoons milk

Preheat oven to 200c and then get on with burning your butter.

Put it in a small saucepan on medium heat, stirring all the time until it turns a dark golden colour. Take the pan off the heat and strain the butter into a bowl or cup, as it will have made a sediment. In other words, this is like clarified butter, but with a smoky note.

Let the butter solidify again, but it must remain soft. (I put it in the fridge for a while).

When the butter is solid but still soft, put all the cake ingredients except the milk in a food processor and blitz to a smooth batter.

As normal, add the milk down the funnel, pulsing sparingly to form a soft, dropping mixture. Divide between the paper cases, and cook for 15-20 minutes