There is a thrilling element of danger about a layered dessert that relies on the power of gelatine and your own patience, but your tense, nervous headache is rewarded handsomely when it turns out to reveal its Summer beauty. Having said ‘summer’,it’s worth remembering for the Winter months because it is a great use for frozen berries.

Into a medium saucepan, put your raspberries (last year’s frozen harvest in my case), sugar and cold water.

Bring to the boil and reduce the heat to simmer for 10 mins. (I put a handful of blackcurrants in there too, in case you were wondering)

With 5 mins to go, soak 7 leaves of gelatine in a bowl of cold water.

Squeeze the now floppy gelatine leaves out

and, one by one (but not taking an age over it), add them to the steaming liquid and stir well to ensure they are incorporated fully.
Leave the jelly to one side to allow it to cool to room temperature – I helped it along by sitting the pan in a sink of cold water and stirring occasionally.

Once sufficiently cooled, pour into your tin and/or individual moulds.

Put into the fridge for two hours to set.

After this time has elapsed, you can start on the pannacotta. Do check first that the jelly has begun to set lest you end up with milky pink soup, but don’t expect a firm set just yet. As long as it has set enough on top to allow another layer, it’ll be great.

Put the cream into a saucepan and bring it up to the boil.

Just as it starts to rise, add chopped white chocolate and the seeds of a vanilla pod.

Turn the heat off and stir diligently to melt it.

Once melted, leave it to one side and see to the gelatine again.
This time, soak 3 leaves in cold water for 5 mins, prepare a bowl with 4 tblsp boiling water in it and stir the squeezed gelatine leaves into it to melt them.
Pour the chocolate cream over this and stir thoroughly to incorporate.

Leave the mixture to cool, but do stir occasionally to avoid getting a skin on it.
Pour the pannacotta over the jelly layer and put back in the fridge to set overnight.

When you’re ready to turn it out the next day, fill the sink with hot water and sprinkle cold water on to your serving dish.
Briefly dip the moulds/tin in the hot water, place the serving dish on top and turn over to release the dessert.

Serve as is, or strew with more berries for a more flamboyant touch.

——-

Raspberry Jelly and White Chocolate Pannacotta Terrine

adapted from a recipe in ‘Delicious’ magazine

PRINT THIS RECIPE (opens in a new window)

4 small moulds, 1.5lb loaf tin measuring 32x13x7cm (alternatively, just use the loaf tin, or just fill moulds – you’ll need more than 4 though…)

To make the raspberry jelly:

400g raspberries – fresh or frozen (if frozen, don’t defrost)
170g caster sugar
800ml cold water
7 fine gelatine leaves

Put the raspberries, sugar and water into a large saucepan, bring to the boil, then simmer for 10 mins.
5 mins into the simmer, place the gelatine leaves into a bowl of cold water and let them soak for 5 mins.

Squeeze the excess water from the gelatine leaves and drop them immediately into the hot raspberry liquid. Stir very thoroughly.
Allow to cool to room temperature.
Once cooled, pour into the tin and moulds. Refrigerate for at least two hours.

For the pannacotta:
500ml double cream
seeds from 1 vanilla pod
75g white chocolate, chopped
3 fine gelatine leaves

Heat the cream in a small saucepan over a medium heat.
Just as the cream starts to boil, reduce the heat to low and add the white chocolate and vanilla seeds.
Stir thoroughly with a whisk, removing from the heat once the chocolate has started to melt.
Continue to stir until you are confident the chocolate has all melted (doesn’t take long).
Leave to one side whist you deal with the gelatine.
Soak the gelatine leaves in a bowl of cold water for 5 mins.
Squeeze the excess water from them and add to a medium bowl with 4 tablespoons (60ml) boiling water. Stir well to dissolve the gelatine.
Add the cream mixture to the dissolved gelatine and stir thoroughly.
Leave to one side to cool, stirring occasionally to avoid a skin forming.

Pour the pannacotta into the tin/moulds on top of the raspberry jelly layer.
Return to the fridge and leave it there overnight.

To serve, dip the tin/moulds into hot water briefly and turn out on to a serving dish. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve with additional berries if desired.

www.creamuntilfluffy.co.uk

… walked into a pub.

Actually, they attached themselves to my husbands fishing line. How perfectly marvellous of them!

So we ate them.

To read the finer details of The Catch of The Lobster and The Dover Sole, go ahead and visit the resident angler’s blog.

The lobster was put into sleepy mode in the fridge and was then swiftly despatched with the carefully placed point of a knife before being steamed for 14 minutes.

The Dover Sole was seasoned with freshly milled salt and pepper, then fried in a drop of oil for about 4-5 minutes each side.

I would have taken step-by-step photos, but I didn’t deem it necessary really. If you want to see a fish being fried, have a look at the fried mackerel fillets post. The Sole had already been gutted before being brought home and there was no point in filleting it, so I literally seasoned it, heated the oil in the pan and laid it in there.

I have a Kenwood electric steamer and the lobster fitted into the largest basket perfectly. Fill the reservoir with water and turn the timer on. When it pings, it’s done.

The other reason for not taking pictures was that I was simultaneously cooking meatballs and spaghetti for Alex’s dinner. He wouldn’t eat the lobster. I told him when he’s old, he’ll tell his children how his old Dad used to bring home lobster that he’d caught and that the foolish child Alex would never try it and now lobster costs at least £200/200000 cubits and if he could only go back in time, he’d eat every scrap of that lobster.

He frowned at me. I’m wasted on that kid, I tell you. How can a five-year-old be so dismissive of time travel?

Anyway, as I missed photos of the cooking and the actual flesh (oh yes, Eddy from the Tackle Box rang just as we were serving it all, too), I thought I’d share pictures of the resulting shrapnel with you…

This is what you could have won.

Yumm.o.

Now, I know and you know that this is an odd recipe to share in the height of a very warm Summer, but there is method to my madness.
1. We had had a salad week – that is, one piece of protein and lots of salad. I wanted something filling, darn it.
2. I fancied a substantial pudding but couldn’t bear the thought of an oven blasting away.
3. I saw a pot of tres posh ‘made-with-the-eggs-of-a-golden-hen-and-milk-from-the-Queen’s-cow-and-a-pod-of-vanilla-plucked-by-a-tame-cheetah’ custard and it was cheap. If someone else had bought it, they might have poured it over something horrible.
4. I had a dreg of raspberry jam in the bottom of the jar and the jar was annoying me in the fridge. It kept getting in the way. It even fell out of the fridge that morning, so its fate was sealed.

So, actually, this is an extremely sensible recipe for the height of Summer because it takes moments to make, doesn’t require an oven or hob and is jolly nice to eat after endless days of what is essentially the ritual munching of humans on glorified grass otherwise famed as ‘seasonal eating’. Seriously, I am this close to going off beetroot again. Don’t even talk to me about feta.

If you cannot stand the thought of eating a hot pudding in this weather, then be kind to yourself and print it out for Autumn. Having such a quick option for a pudding that usually takes hours to steam is invaluable.
-

Put the butter, caster sugar, eggs, flour and baking powder into the food processor, switch it on and blend to mix

Give it a scrape to get the stuff that always, but always, hides under the blades, then add the zest and juice of a lemon and a drop of milk – around a tablespoon – to get a nice dropping consistency.

Grease a 2 pint pudding basin and put about 3-4 tbsp raspberry jam in the bottom of it

Spoon/pour the mix on top and cover with clingfilm, but be sure to leave one part naked for the steam to escape

I have an 800watt microwave and full power for 4 minutes turned it into this bouncy, golden offering:

Leave it to stand for a good couple of minutes to allow the radiation to disperse (I don’t buy the ‘continuing to cook’ theory – if it ain’t witchcraft, then it’s radiation in my book), then do the ‘plate on top and wahay! flip it over’ trick. In fact, I generally do the ‘wahay! flip it over trick’ into a bowl to catch the scalding jam, but I’m cautious like that.

Cut a wedge, serve with custard and…

enjoy.

—-

Speedy Sponge Pudding

adapted from a Gary Rhodes and a James Martin recipe – I’m thorough.

PRINT THIS RECIPE (opens in a new window)

150g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
125g butter, melted or extremely soft (plus some to grease the pudding bowl)
125g caster sugar
2 eggs
zest and juice of a lemon (very nice ineed, but it wouldn’t be the end of the world if you didn’t have one to hand)
a drop of milk
4+ tbsp raspberry jam or any other jam, or lemon curd, or golden syrup…

Grease a 2 pint/1.2 l pudding (pyrex, in my case) bowl. Spoon 3-4 tbsp raspberry jam into the bottom.

Put the melted/very soft butter, sugar, eggs, flour and baking powder into the food processor and blend to a paste.

Add the zest and lemon juice and mix, add a drop of milk to achieve a nice dropping consistency.
Spoon/pour the mixture on top of the jam – the jam will try to move around, but just ignore it. Cover it with clingfilm, leaving a gap at one edge for the steam to escape.
Microwave on full power (my microwave is 800 watts) for around 4 mins, until the sponge is bouncy and has pulled away from the sides of the bowl.
Let it stand for a couple of minutes, then turn out.
Add some extra jam on top if you like, then serve in slices with custard, cream or ice cream.

Cheesecake! With raspberries from our garden no less! I was hoping this one I slightly fiddled with from Olive magazine would be a very dense cheesecake, but it wasn’t quite dense enough for my liking. Everyone else said it was perfectly dense thankyouverymuch and that the problem laid not with the cheesecake but with my insistence that it should be denser. It was very, very nice though. I inhaled more than one slice and even had a little weep when Alex ate the last sliver. I was so sure that he wouldn’t want it. If you can smell burning, that’s my martyrdom ablaze. No darling, really… you enjoy it.

I will tell you this though. I have a new favourite ever in the whole world alcoholic beverage. My heart truly belongs to Muscat de Beaumes de Venice, but there is a contender for the crown. A serious contender. Chambord. Black raspberry liqueur.
I can’t rave about this enough. It is the most intensely flavoured liqueur; it’s heady with fragrance and every single person I have forced to sniff the bottle has said ‘mmmmmmmmmmmm!’. I rarely let them taste it because it is so expensive, but a fingerdip usually has them reeling. I defy you not to run out and buy an orb-shaped, golden belted bottle should you be offered a sniff.
Anyway, I added a mere 1 tablespoon of Chambord to the cheesecake and it seriously propped up and enhanced the raspberry flavour; next time I might even add two. Scandalous.

No, what really is scandalous is that when I added the tablespoon to the cheesecake and flung the spoon to one side to be washed up, there was a microscopic film of it covering the spoon so I licked it clean. Better than necking it straight from the bottle, but barely.

Buy a bottle and rave about it with me would you? Please?

The usual base of digestive biscuits and melted butter. Yum.

Pressed into the base of an 8″ springform tin and baked for 5 minutes then cooled.

Blend the cream cheese and add a couple of tablespoons of flour and the sugar

then add the eggs

*clouds part to reveal the blazing sun, the sound of a heavenly chorus and a shaft of light falls upon the bottle of Chambord*

A tablespoon of the liqueur and some soured cream

Then add 100g of raspberries (grew them I did – grew them!)

Then pour it on top of the cooled base and bake in the oven for around 40 mins

Golden around the edges and a bit jiggly in the middle. The cheesecake too.

Cooled… and cracked. I always wanted to see the Grand Canyon – don’t need to spend all that money on travelling now, luckily.

Oooooh squidgy!

By this time, the family are telling me to hurry up and pass the slices round before they snap at me like a teased dog.

Very, very nice.

—–

Raspberry baked Cheesecake
(adapted from an ‘Olive’ magazine recipe)

PRINT THIS RECIPE (opens in a new window)

8 digestive biscuits
50g melted unsalted butter

600g cream cheese
2 tbsp plain flour
175g caster sugar
2 eggs, plus 1 extra yolk
142ml pot soured cream
1-2 tbsp Chambord liqueur
100g raspberries

Preheat oven to GM 4/350F/180C
Base line an 8″/20cm springform tin.

Crush the biscuits and mix with the melted butter.
Press into the base of the tin – and just slightly upwards to create a tiny edge.
Bake for 5-10 mins until (more) golden, then remove from oven and cool to room temperature.

Beat the cream cheese until smooth, then add the flour and sugar. Combine.
Beat in the eggs.
Add the liqueur and soured cream. Combine.
Fold in the raspberries.

Bake for around 40 minutes. It should be golden around the edges and still a bit jiggly in the middle – not sloshing liquid – just jiggly.
Cool in the tin for 5 mins then carefully run a spatula around the edge. Leave in the tin to cool completely, then transfer the tin to the fridge.

Run the spatula around the edge again once chilled and ready to serve, then unspring the tin.
You can transfer it it to a plate still on the tin base, or have a go at removing it. I had very little problem getting it off the base – even managing to leave the parchment lining at the base behind, but don’t panic about it. FYI, I used a large fish slice and as I lifted it, could peel back the parchment base.
Having said that, at the first sign of doom, I wouldn’t have hesitated to lower it back on to the base.

Serve – with additional raspberries on each plate if you wish.

—-

Oooh I love the sharpness of lemon drizzle cake – the sharpness contrasting with the sweet tender crumb, the sticky syrup that drenches it and I’m helpless to resist crystallised rose petals and violets. This is a Nigella Lawson recipe and it works perfectly every time.

I haven’t got a picture of it sliced because I made it for Alex’s school Summer Fair ‘Guess the weight of the cake’ competition. I was about to start when it hit me. It’s a loaf cake made in a 450g tin. Oh dear. That would kind of give the weight away, non? So I got out my long tin (30x11cm), did 1½ quantity and all was well.

Preheat the oven to GM4/180C/350F and grease and line your tin, bringing the paper just above the top of the tin so you can pull it out when it’s cooked. The original recipe is for a 450g tin measuring 23x13x7cm. Mine is 30x11x7cm and takes 1½ the amount.

Zest your lemon and put to one side. My friend Emily sent me this microplane grater from the States. It’s nice to think about Em everytime you grate something – I recommend it.

Cream together the butter and sugar then very gradually add the beaten eggs and zest

Once that’s all combined, add the flour and a pinch of salt and the milk. Spoon into the lined tin and put in the oven for 45-60 mins, depending on your tin size.

Towards the end of the cooking time, put your lemon juice and icing sugar in a small saucepan

and heat very gently, whisking to dissolve the sugar.

Once the cake is golden brown and a cocktail stick comes out clean, remove from the oven and pierce all over with the cocktail stick or a skewer.

Transfer the syrup to a jug (makes the drizzle more of a drizzle than a dirty great tidal wave) and carefully, evenly pour over the cake. Pay plenty of attention to the middle so that it doesn’t just soak round the sides.

Let it sit in the tin and start to soak all the syrup up

At this point, I decided to harness the power of the sticky syrup and pressed my crystallised rose and violet bits to the top. Let it sit in the tin until completely cold.

A very pretty, very delicious cake.

—-

Lemon Syrup Drizzle Cake
adapted from Nigella Lawson’s recipe

PRINT THIS RECIPE (opens in a new window)

Preheat oven to GM4/180C/350F
Grease and line a tin measuring 30x11x7cm *original quantity for 450g tin at bottom*

190g unsalted butter
265g caster sugar
3 large eggs
zest of 2-3 lemons (depending on size)
265g self-raising flour
pinch of salt
6 tblsp milk

Syrup:
juice of 2-3 lemons
150g icing sugar (in fact, I only had 120g and it made no difference)

crystallised rose and violet petals to decorate

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add the eggs and lemon zest.
Gently add the flour and salt, then the milk.
Spoon into the lined tin and bake for 55-60 mins – until golden and risen.

Towards the end of the baking time, put the lemon juice and icing sugar into a small saucepan and heat to melt the sugar. Transfer to a jug for easier drizzling.

Once the cake is cooked, remove from the oven and pierce all over with a cocktail stick or wooden skewer. Don’t stab it to death, but equally, be sure to pierce it all over.
Carefully, slowly and evenly pour the syrup all over the cake, giving it time to absorb the syrup.
If desired, press pieces of crystallised rose and violet petals on top.
Cool completely in the tin.
This cake keeps well if it gets the chance.

* Original recipe quantities for a 450g tin measuring 23x13x7cm*
125g unsalted butter
175g caster sugar
2 large eggs
zest of 1-2 lemons
175g self-raising flour
pinch of salt
4 tblsp milk

syrup:
juice of 1-2 lemons (about 4 tblsp)
100g icing sugar

Sticky cinnamon buns. A yeasted dough, curled up around a buttery, sugared, cinnamon filling, sporting a buttery, maple and golden syrup top. Did I mention the pecans too? Far, far less intimidating to make than it might appear, these are wow. Just wow.

Combine bread flour, sugar, salt and easy blend yeast in a large bowl.

Melt unsalted butter into milk and let it cool to blood temperature

Add two beaten eggs to the jug and stir it all into the flour mix

Remove from the bowl and on to a floured surface then knead for 10 minutes

until smoother and elastic

Put into a large, oiled bowl. Cover it and let it rise somewhere warm for around an hour.

Whilst it’s rising, make the filling – put soft unsalted butter into a bowl with light brown and caster sugar – not forgetting 1 tablespoon of cinnamon. Mmmmmmmmmm

and mix together to make the most heavenly scented paste

You’ll need a buttery syrup too – this is soft unsalted butter, light brown sugar and maple and golden syrup

all combined and ready to distribute amongst the muffin tins

So let’s do that. Now, depending on how large you like your buns (so to speak), you will distribute the syrup accordingly. The original recipe calls for 12 buns, therefore you would share the syrup amongst the 12 holes of the muffin tin. We, however, (and you won’t see this statement on my website very often) actually find them to be too big.

I know. Sit down and take a moment. I actually cut them smaller. Not only were they a bit big – that is, it was like having a meal rather than a snack – but in the oven they outgrew the muffin tins to the point of looking, frankly a bit silly and misshapen.

I aim to make the slices about 1″, which generally yields a very precise 17 buns. You have to laugh don’t you?

So, I smear 17 holes of 2 muffin tins with about 1 tsp of butter syrup, then share 100g chopped pecans amongst them. I left a couple devoid of pecans because Alex has taken against nuts.

If you’re not sure how many buns you want to make until you’ve seen their potential size, do this after you’ve sliced the dough.

Here’s the risen dough

Knock it down and on to a lightly floured surface again.

Knead it a few times just to get rid of any big air bubbles and generally smooth it again

Then roll it out into a large rectangle – somewhere in the region of 60 x 30cm – and take your cinnamon butter filling and slather it all over the dough. That sliver of work surface is my only working area and it isn’t 60cm long, so don’t fret over it.

Don’t worry about it not covering – it’s pretty thick

Roll it up into a swirly sausage from the long side and start cutting into slices – either into 12 slices if you want them huge, or into around 1″ slices if you want to get about 17 like I do.

Incidentally, I use a razor sharp knife and a gentle sawing action to avoid squashing the roll.

Sit each slice on top of your butter-syrup-pecan-smeared cup and whilst you’re at it, preheat the oven to GM4.

then cover loosely with some clingfilm and as the oven’s now on, let it sit in the warm kitchen for around 20 mins. It won’t rise tremendously, but it’ll get puffy looking and will fill the cup more fully.

Bake for 20-25 mins and then they’ll look like this…

Oh hello sailor.

That’s not even the business end – just hang on a minute.

Lay a large piece of parchment over the darlings and then cover that with a large roasting tin then flip the whole thing over. You want them upside down, see?

Because when they’re upside down, that means the buttery syrup and chopped pecans that you put in the cups is now on the top.

Golden.

Sticky.

And in this case, nut-free, buns

Licking your fingers afterwards is insufficient. Fainting with pleasure is possible. Giving half of these away was emotionally crippling. Don’t say I didn’t warn you!

——

STICKY BUNS – schnecken

PRINT THIS RECIPE (opens in a new window)

(adapted from a recipe by Nigella Lawson)

dough:

500g strong bread flour

50g caster sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 (7g) sachet easy blend yeast

150ml milk

75g unsalted butter

2 large eggs

syrup:

150g unsalted butter

2 tablespoons soft light brown sugar

4 tablespoons maple syrup

3 tablespoons golden syrup

100g pecan pieces, chopped

filling:

150g unsalted butter, softened

50g caster sugar

100g soft light brown sugar

1 tablespoon cinnamon

2 x 12-hole muffin tins, buttered

parchment lined roasting tin for turning the buns out onto later – big enough to cover the muffin tin

Method:

Combine the flour, sugar, salt and yeast in a large bowl.

Melt the butter in the milk and allow to cool to blood temperature, beat in the eggs and stir into the dry ingredients to make a dough.

Knead for 10 minutes or for 5 in a machine with a dough hook.

When it’s springy and satiny, form into a ball, put in an oiled bowl and cover with clingfilm. Leave in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size.

Using an electric mixer, start the syrup. Beat the butter until soft and smooth and add the sugar, still beating.

Beat in the syrups and then divide the mixture between the muffin cups – about 1 tsp per cup. Smear the butter syrup across the bottom of each cup and half-way up the sides.

Top the butter syrup with the nuts in each cup.

Preheat the oven to 180C/ gas mark 4.

Blend the filling ingredients together in a small bowl.

When the dough’s risen, knock it back, knead once or twice to smooth and roll out into a large rectangle, somewhere in the region of 60 x 30cm. Keep at it – it will stretch eventually.

Spread the butter filling over the dough.

Roll up the rectangle from the long side, maintaining a firm, but not overly tight sausage shape.

You have options here. The original recipe suggests cutting the roll into 12 pieces, but we find that too large. So I cut them into approx 1” slices and pretty reliably get 17 buns. Odd.

Lay each slice swirly cut side up, on top of the nuts and butter-syrup in the muffin cups.

Leave to prove for about 20 minutes and when they’re slightly risen and puffy, then put into the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, by which time they should be deliciously golden and cooked.

Lay a large piece of parchment paper the muffin tin to completely cover all the buns and place the roasting tin on top. Turn the whole thing the other way up and let it sit for a minute. Remove the muffin tin and reattach any stray nuts.

Serve whilst still warm. Any leftovers are best reheated in a low oven (or a quick blast in the microwave for the odd one or two).

]]> http://www.creamuntilfluffy.co.uk/sticky-buns/feed/ 4 http://www.creamuntilfluffy.co.uk/peach-pie-perfect/ http://www.creamuntilfluffy.co.uk/peach-pie-perfect/#comments Fri, 18 Jun 2010 15:39:33 +0000 Anna http://www.creamuntilfluffy.co.uk/?p=1909
The problem is that I rave about pretty much each new recipe I make, so how to convey the deliciousness of peach pie? Hmm, that’s not such a toughie; it’s deliciously peachy.

The pastry is a recipe of Nigel Slater’s – he calls it Shortcake pastry and it certainly is. It’s more of a batter than a dough and is as delicious as the filling.
I didn’t want a run of the mill pastry because early peaches can be a bit tart and I don’t really care for unsweetened pastry with fruit. Equally, I didn’t want to go the whole hog and make the shortbread pastry – too much of a treat and flavoured in its own right. So this pastry is the perfect compromise. A slight crumbly quality to the edges and a melt in the mouth joy to the middle.

Peaches, well the scent of peaches is the most evocative of Summer smells. Impulse buys used to be handbag and shoe related, now they consist of punnets of peaches. My, how this woman has changed.

Cream together 150g unsalted butter and 150g caster sugar until light and fluffy *wink*

Add one beaten egg and beat that in too.

Next, add 250g plain (all purpose) flour and 1 tsp baking powder and combine that in.

Turn out on to a floured surface and very lightly knead and squish it to make it smooth

Halve the dough

and roll one half out between two pieces of baking parchment. Don’t even think about rolling it out straight on to the surface – it’s way too soft for that.

Use the rolled out piece to line your 9″ pie tin, then wrap the other half in parchment and stick both that and the lined tin into the fridge for around 30 mins.

To the peaches. They seduced me shamelessly.

I used a punnet of 12 peaches that weighed around 1kg. I also threw in a couple of wizzened ones from the fruit bowl.

Remove the skins; some pulled off easily, but the firmer peaches were resistant so I cut a cross in the stem end and blanched them in a bowl of boiling water for around 40 seconds. The skins came away easily then.

Slice them up into a bowl.

Put 50g unsalted butter into a large frying pan on a medium heat, then place the peach slices into it and add a tablespoon or two or sugar.

You don’t want to cook the life out of them, but just cook them down a little.

Remove the peaches to a sieve over a bowl and collect the juices. Return the juice to the frying pan and simmer enthusiastically until they go syrupy.

Retrieve your lined tin and reserved half of dough from the fridge and place the peach slices into it

and drizzle the reduced juice over them.

Roll the second half of the dough out between your parchment until it is large enough to cover the top of the pie.

Pinch or flute the edges together – patch any pieces where necessary, it’s an easily damaged dough, but utterly forgiving when it’s in the oven so fret not.

Brush lightly with milk (I forgot) and sprinkle with some sugar.

Bake at GM4 for around 40 mins (it might take as long as 55 mins)

Mmm, golden with that fantastic crumbly look to the edge of the pastry. Go a shade darker than mine if you dare, because the bottom was a little less cooked than I would have liked.

Now, I have zero problem with adding cream, custard or ice cream to a slice of pie, but believe me when I say you don’t need to with this pie. I’m not saying you shouldn’t, just that you don’t have to.

Quite simply, it stands very nicely on its own two feet.

As the boy in the local Co-op says, ‘Enjoy’. (Dude, I just bought toilet paper and a pack of bacon..really? Enjoy?)

————

Peach Pie Perfect

adapted from a recipe in Nigel Slater’s ‘the kitchen diaries’

PRINT THIS RECIPE (opens in a new window)

150g unsalted butter
150g caster sugar
1 egg
250g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
milk and caster sugar to glaze the pie

1kg peaches, skins and stones removed, sliced
50g unsalted butter
1-2 tblsp sugar

9″ pie tin (that is, 24cm across the top and 18cm at the base), lightly buttered.

Cream the butter and sugar until fluffy and light.
Add the egg and beat to combine.
Add the flour and baking powder, combine.
Turn the dough out on to a floured surface and lightly knead until smooth.

Cut the pastry in half.
Roll one half out between sheets of parchment paper and use it to line the tin.
Wrap the remaining half in paper and put in the fridge along with the lined tin for around 30 mins.

Heat oven to GM4/180C/350F

Skin and stone the peaches, then slice the flesh into a bowl.
Heat the butter in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Add the peaches and 1 tblsp sugar. Taste and increase the sugar as necessary.

Cook the peaches down a little – turn them to encourage the sugar to melt – for just a few minutes.
Remove the peach slices to a sieve over a bowl, then return the juices to the frying pan.

Simmer the juices at a lively rate to reduce them down to a lovely syrup – only takes a minute or two.

Remove the lined tin and reserved pastry from the fridge.
Place the peach slices into the pastry-lined tin and drizzle the syrupy juices over them.

Roll out the remaining half of pastry between two pieces of parchment and cover the top of the pie.
Pinch, flute or crimp the two edges of pastry together – patching if you need too.
It’s not the kindest pastry to handle at this point – it’s prone to tearing – but it sorts itself out in the oven, so don’t get cross with it.

Gingerly brush it with milk (I usually do it with my fingertips) and scatter with a little sugar.
Bake for around 40 mins. If you’re happy for it to go a little darker than golden, give it some extra time – the peaches, although half cooked, are still juicy and the extra time will insure you against a soggy base. Having said that, it is a silky pastry so you don’t get that nasty uncooked dough taste anyway.

Let it sit for a few minutes to catch its breath before serving. Hot, warm or cold, it’s a winner.

This Chinese recipe is one of my Dad’s. We always call it BBQ Chicken because the idea was that you marinate the chicken then cook it on the barbecue. Inevitably, the English climate dictated that he adapt it to be roasted in the oven – either that or stand by the BBQ holding an umbrella.

Salty with dark soy sauce, fragrant with the distinctive Chinese Five flower spice, warmed with garlic and sticky with a little sugar, this marinade is simple but incredibly effective in delivering extra flavour to chicken. What a reward for such minimal effort.

Combine the marinade ingredients in a dish large enough to house the chicken pieces. Oil, dark soy, five flower spice, sugar and crushed garlic.

Add your chicken pieces (I used 3 drumsticks and 2 thighs, but there was enough marinade for a couple more of each) to the marinade and coat well. Cover and allow them to marinade for as long as you have – 30 mins in a pinch, 2 hours if you can.

Preheat the oven to GM6/200C/400F.

Put the chicken pieces (I use drumsticks and thighs) in a roasting tin – spoon residual marinade over them – and roast them initially for around 25 mins. In they go…

You can turn the drumsticks over halfway through if you like.

Check after 25 mins that they are cooked through or nearly there. If you like the skin crispy, increase the oven temperature to a good GM7 for another 10 mins.

Serve with Jersey potatoes and a lovely salad. Delicious.

——-

Chinese BBQ Chicken

PRINT THIS RECIPE (opens in a new window)

2 tbsp oil
2 tbsp dark soy sauce (I wouldn’t use light soy sauce for this – you want the syrup quality of dark and it’s less salty than the light)
1 tsp five flower spice
1 tsp sugar
2 cloves garlic, crushed

up to 5 chicken drumsticks and 4 thighs – if in doubt, just double the marinade quantity

Method:

Combine all ingredients in a dish large enough to house the quantity of chicken you are using (alternatively, put the lot in a large freezer bag).
Marinade the chicken for 30 mins-2 hours.

Place the chicken pieces on the BBQ until cooked through or put in a roasting tin and roast at GM6/200C/400F for 25 mins, then increase the oven temperature to GM7 for another 10 mins to crisp the skin a little.
Check that the chicken is cooked through to the bone, then serve with new potatoes and salad.

—

Or should it be Muesola?
Yes that’s right – granola meets muesli.
Before now, I have made muesli and I have also made granola. Muesli is great, fine, but I’m not the biggest fan of dried fruits, so my options are limited. Granola is great, very nice in fact, but can be too hard or too chewy and I hate the thought of over-developed jaw muscles. So unseemly…
Wouldn’t it be nice, I pondered, to have the concept of Granola in a more muesli form…

So I tried and I liked it. Oh, yes, I liked it. Slightly sweetened with that toasted oat flapjack aroma; it’s nutritious and tasty. It’s versatile too – change the fruit, increase or omit the nuts, change the sweetness… whatever rings your bell.

Heat oven to GM3/160C/325F

Fetch a large, shallow roasting tin (mine measures 13″ by 11″ – the larger surface area the better)

Into your tin, place porridge oats, desiccated coconut, chopped pecans, soft brown sugar and cinnamon.

Mix it up and drizzle in some maple syrup, some oil and melted butter.

Stir it up (little darling) and bake for 30 mins – stir once or twice during this time to even out the cooking.

Deep golden. Now let it cool completely.

So that’s the gran, now add some more (raw) porridge oats and raisins for the uesli.

Stir well and keep in an airtight box to ensure a tasty breakfast.

Have a very good morning!

—-

Granuesli

PRINT THIS RECIPE (opens in a new window)

500g / 6 cups porridge oats – half for the gran, half for the uesli
75g / 1 cup desiccated coconut
90g / 1 mean cup pecan halves, chopped
50g / 1/3 cup light brown soft sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
100g / 2oz salted butter, melted
2 tbsp oil
a drizzle (2 tbsp) maple syrup

150g / 1 cup raisins

Preheat oven to GM3/160C/325F
Into a large roasting tin, place HALF the oats – that is 3 cups -, coconut, chopped pecans, sugar and cinnamon. Mix.
Drizzle over the melted butter, oil and maple syrup. Mix.
Bake for 30 mins, stirring once or twice during this time to ensure even cooking.

Remove from oven and cool completely.

Once cold, add the remaining 3 cups porridge oats and raisins. Stir to combine, then store in a airtight tin/box/whatever.

Variations
Well, this can be varied as much as your preferences dictate.
If you want proper granola clumps, then increase the butter to about 5 oz and be sure to squeeze lumps together prior to cooking.

Vary the sweetness – cut it down if you want more uesli than gran, or change the sweetness – reduce the sugar, but increase the maple syrup. Use honey instead or maple syrup. Hey, use Agave nectar if you like. Ooh! Use golden syrup – that’ll nod nicely in the direction of the flapjack.

Don’t like nuts? Leave them out. Live for nuts? Put more in.

Hate raisins? Use a different dried fruit or leave it out altogether and just top your bowl with some fresh fruit instead.
Dollop some spooky yogurt on there too, whilst you’re at it.

—

Because sometimes you want a simple, quick, delicious cake and this recipe fits the bill. Not too large with umpteen layers to negotiate, not small and fiddly; just the right size.
With grated carrot, crushed pineapple and warm spices, this cake is moist, flavoursome and topped with the most moreish of all icings – cream cheese.

Grease and line an 8″ square tin. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/GM 4.

Into a medium bowl, place the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and pinch of salt. Stir it with a hand whisk to combine and de-lump. Add the brown sugar and stir again to combine.

In a small bowl, place the oil and eggs, then whisk together well.

Make a well in the flour mix and add the egg/oil mixture.

Stir to combine.

Add the crushed pineapple and grated carrot

Stir in with a spatula and pour into the lined tin.

Bake for 35-40 mins.
Once baked – check by using a wooden toothpick and ensuring it comes out clean – cool in the tin for 5 mins, then remove from the tin and cool completely.

Now the frosting.

Blend together the orange zest, cream cheese and unsalted butter,

then add the icing sugar and orange juice or vanilla.

Beat together with an electric whisk until creamy and just holding its shape.

Swirl over the top of the passion cake.

Devour. Passionately.

———–

Carrot and Pineapple Passion Cake
PRINT THIS RECIPE (opens in a new window)

1 cup plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon (I made that a generous 1/2)
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
pinch of salt
2/3 cup soft light brown sugar, lightly packed
1/4 cup oil
2 eggs
1 cup grated carrot (2 medium carrots)
432g tin crushed pineapple, drained

Icing
3oz unsalted butter, softened
3 1/2 oz cream cheese
grated zest 1 orange (optional)
1+ cup  icing sugar
1 tsp orange juice (or vanilla extract if you’re not using orange zest)

Preheat oven to 180C/350F/GM4. Grease and line an 8″ square tin.

Combine flour, baking powder and soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in a medium bowl. Stir with a hand whisk to combine.
Add the sugar and stir again to distribute.
Make a well in the middle of the flour.

In a small bowl, whisk together the oil and eggs until well combined. Pour into the well and stir to combine.
Add the carrots and pineapple and stir in.
Pour into the prepared tin and bake for 35-40 mins. Check it is baked by inserting a wooden toothpick – it should come out clean.

Cool in the tin for 5 mins, then remove from the tin to a wire rack to cool completely.

Icing:
Beat the orange zest, butter and cream cheese together until smooth.
Add the icing sugar and juice or extract and beat well until smooth. Add more icing sugar if you like it sweeter and/or thicker.

Swirl on to the passion cake.

—