Some thoughts on budget baking
So everyone knows that the best ingredients produce the best results. Or so we are told. However, in these times it's not always possible, is it. I was watching a cooking show today that talked about budget meals, then about how they would also work for dinner parties. I think he missed the point.
So today I'm going to work with some budget ingredients to see if it really does make a difference. I bought a bunch of Asda Smartprice and comparable ingredients and decided to make a baked lemon cheesecake using the following recipe:
250g plain sweet biscuits (39p for 500g)
150g butter, melted (£1 for 250g)
500g cream cheese, softened (62p for 250g)
3/4 cup caster sugar (£1.22 per kilo)
3 teaspoons finely grated lemon rind (2 lemons - 60p)
3 eggs (93p for 6)
1/4 cup lemon juice
Total cost - £2.48 (just over a fiver if you have to go and buy everything on the list). You can get about 12 portions out of this (8 if you like cheesecake!), so it's about 50p a slice. Bargain!
Now I know some people prefer not to use cheap eggs for ethical reasons. If you prefer, you can alter this recipe to a fridge set cheesecake which doesn't call for eggs.
So there weren't any major differences in the way that the ingredients mixed, or in the way that looked or smelled. I supposed a purist might say that the eggs were a little smaller an more uniform than you would get if you went organic, but my primary concern - the cream cheese - seemed fine. It had the same consistency as the more expensive versions and didn't seem to split at all, which I had been worried about.
so -
* Preheat oven to 160°C/140°C fan-forced. Grease a 6cm-deep, 20cm round springform pan. Process biscuits until finely chopped. Add butter. Process until combined. Press mixture over base and side of prepared pan. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.
* Meanwhile, beat cream cheese, sugar and lemon rind together until smooth. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating until combined. Add lemon juice. Beat for 1 minute. Pour mixture into prepared pan.
* Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour or until filling is just set (mixture may wobble slightly in centre, but will firm on standing). Cool in oven with door slightly ajar. Refrigerate for 4 hours or until cold. Dust with icing sugar
Made it, baked it, it cracked (because I'm crap at baked cheesecake).
But it scrubbed up well
But the all important test is how is tastes. And it was actually pretty good. So I don't know if it would have been slightly improved by using higher priced ingredients, but spending twice as much is unlikely to make it twice as good. If your budget will stretch - a once a week treat right here, and the next one will be cheaper cos you already bought half the ingredients.
So today I'm going to work with some budget ingredients to see if it really does make a difference. I bought a bunch of Asda Smartprice and comparable ingredients and decided to make a baked lemon cheesecake using the following recipe:
250g plain sweet biscuits (39p for 500g)
150g butter, melted (£1 for 250g)
500g cream cheese, softened (62p for 250g)
3/4 cup caster sugar (£1.22 per kilo)
3 teaspoons finely grated lemon rind (2 lemons - 60p)
3 eggs (93p for 6)
1/4 cup lemon juice
Total cost - £2.48 (just over a fiver if you have to go and buy everything on the list). You can get about 12 portions out of this (8 if you like cheesecake!), so it's about 50p a slice. Bargain!
Now I know some people prefer not to use cheap eggs for ethical reasons. If you prefer, you can alter this recipe to a fridge set cheesecake which doesn't call for eggs.
So there weren't any major differences in the way that the ingredients mixed, or in the way that looked or smelled. I supposed a purist might say that the eggs were a little smaller an more uniform than you would get if you went organic, but my primary concern - the cream cheese - seemed fine. It had the same consistency as the more expensive versions and didn't seem to split at all, which I had been worried about.
so -
* Preheat oven to 160°C/140°C fan-forced. Grease a 6cm-deep, 20cm round springform pan. Process biscuits until finely chopped. Add butter. Process until combined. Press mixture over base and side of prepared pan. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.
* Meanwhile, beat cream cheese, sugar and lemon rind together until smooth. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating until combined. Add lemon juice. Beat for 1 minute. Pour mixture into prepared pan.
* Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour or until filling is just set (mixture may wobble slightly in centre, but will firm on standing). Cool in oven with door slightly ajar. Refrigerate for 4 hours or until cold. Dust with icing sugar
Made it, baked it, it cracked (because I'm crap at baked cheesecake).
But it scrubbed up well
But the all important test is how is tastes. And it was actually pretty good. So I don't know if it would have been slightly improved by using higher priced ingredients, but spending twice as much is unlikely to make it twice as good. If your budget will stretch - a once a week treat right here, and the next one will be cheaper cos you already bought half the ingredients.