Backstage baking - sweet and savoury

The backstage baking roster begins with a scrap of paper with dates and times for people to add their names. When performing with West Australian Ballet or WA Opera at His Majesty’s Theatre there is often two intervals, so baking duties are rostered for each. Some nights it might be chips and dips while others its delicious cakes and slices to keep their energy up, giving everyone something to look forward to in the break.

Lorna Cook, Clarinet - Florentines

“This recipe is based on information from a Cornflakes packet, although I swap sultanas for cranberries, and added peanuts. This makes approximately 20, however I make at least double the amount for the Orchestra.”

Ingredients:

½ cup of cranberries

½ cup of chopped glacé cherries

½ cup of chopped unsalted peanuts

2/3 cup of sweetened condensed milk

2½ cups cups of cornflakes

200g dark chocolate

Method:

Combine all of the ingredients, except the chocolate, in a large bowl.

Put tablespoon sized drops of the mixture onto a baking tray lined with lightly floured baking paper, and cook in a 180 degree oven for 15-20 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Once the Florentines have cooled, melt the chocolate and dip the underside of the Florentine in the chocolate.

Place them upside-down on a wire tray until the chocolate sets.

Dave Evans, Principal Horn - Sourdough Bread

Ingredients:

400g white baker’s flour

100g wholemeal flour

360ml lukewarm water

10g salt

100g (approx.) active* starter

Method:

After reserving a small portion of starter for next time, add the water to the starter, then add the flour, and finally sprinkle the salt on top of the flour.

Don't let the salt make direct contact with the starter, or it will kill the natural yeast.

Mix it all up to form a rough dough, then cover and leave for 20-30 minutes.

With wet fingers, stretch and work the dough in the bowl for around one minute to develop the gluten, then rest for 15 minutes.

Repeat this cycle every 15 minutes or so for five-six cycles.

The dough will become noticeably more shiny and elastic after each stretch.

Leave the dough for about six hours or until doubled, this will depend on the room temperature. Turn out onto the floured bench and shape the loaf, then proof for a further hour while the oven heats to 220c.

Turn the heat down to 200c and cook for 45 minutes, then cool on a wire rack.

*To “activate” the starter, take your reserved portion from the fridge, and mix with 100g flour and 100g water. Mix into a thick batter and leave for about five hours. When it's bubbly and doubled in size its “active” and ready to raise a loaf.

Cerys Tooby, Violin - White Chocolate and Raspberry Blondies

Ingredients:

360g white chocolate

150g butter, roughly chopped

3 eggs

100g (½ cup, firmly packed) brown sugar

190g (1½ cups) plain flour

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

100g frozen raspberries

Icing sugar, to dust

Method:

Preheat oven to 170c.

Grease and line a 20cm square cake tin.

Roughly chop 260g of the chocolate and melt it with the butter in a saucepan over low heat, stirring occasionally. Set aside.

Whisk the eggs and sugar until just combined. Stir in the chocolate mixture. Sift together the flour and baking powder, and fold into the mixture.

Chop the remaining chocolate and gently stir through the blondie mixture with half of the berries.

Pour into the prepared tin and press the remaining raspberries onto the top of the mixture.

Bake in preheated oven for 40-45 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Cool in the tin. Cut into squares and serve dusted with icing sugar.

We hope you enjoy these recipes as much as our musicians enjoy making them to share!