Welcome to Kitchen Queries, where the nigella.com team will answer your cooking or food related questions.  We’d love you to submit some of your recipe problems, dilemmas or queries for us to get our teeth into!

Please note, we are only able to answer questions selected for publication and aren't able to enter into personal correspondence.

• Cutting Peanut Butter Squares.

  I adore the recipe for Nigellas Peanut Butter Squares (Domestic Goddess, p.223), and they are always a yummy treat that are perfect to bring to parties. However, I always find it a challenge to cut them. My best effort so far has been to use a warm knife to slice through them. However, this can be smudgy and messy. If I cut them with a room temperature knife, the chocolate starts to fracture and break. Would you have a solution to this problem?

  Posted by hibini. Answered on 18th May 2011 at 12.00

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• Help with Carbonnade a la Flamande!

  I have been so looking forward to making Carbonnade a La Flamande (Kitchen, p330) but it seems to have gone horribly wrong! I have followed the recipe to the letter but firstly it is swimming in liquid and secondly incredibly bitter. Any suggestions how I can remedy it? I used Leffe - was this a poor choice? I can't say I'm that au fait with my beers. I would really appreciate your help!

  Posted by Tobytoes. Answered on 17th May 2011 at 12.00

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• Buttercream Made With Icing Sugar

  Most of the time I make my buttercream with a Swiss meringue (sugar and egg white whisked together over boiling water untille sugar is dissolved). I never have proplems with this icing but it takes a long time to make. I made Nigella's Malteser Cake (Feast, p283). Here the buttercream is made with butter and icing sugar (powdered or confectioners' sugar). I've tried buttercream with icing sugar already a lot of times but everytime I have the same problem - and again with the Malteser Cake. The recipe states that you should mix until smooth. But how long is this - I leave it for quite a while in a stand mixer and still everytime the buttercream has kind of a crunch. Like the powder sugar has crystallized, Have I beaten it for too long? Is it supposed to have this granulated texture? The taste is great but the texture is quite strange.

  Posted by Ilseke77. Answered on 16th May 2011 at 12.00

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