Dorset Apple Cake

Having FINALLY got around to baking the Dorset Apple Cake that I'd been threatening to bake for around a month, I'm really not too sure about the results.

You see, the photograph of the Dorset Apple Cake on the recipe (which was given to me by a friend and I've no idea where it originates from) didn't look even a tiny bit like the cake that I wound up with.

My cake batter appeared to be more of a shortbread biscuit type of mixture - very dry and almost crumbly.  The recipe states "don't worry if the mixture is a bit stiff, keep mixing and it will come together".  Well, I mixed and mixed and added a tiny bit more liquid and it stayed looking a bit like a damp shortbread mixture, so I shrugged my shoulders and used it.

For all that the end result didn't look like its picture, it looked interesting and indeed was very nice to eat.

However, I'd consider it more of a dessert than a "cake" as such.  The cake part of the thing was (not surprisingly) very dense, although with the apple pieces throughout and with apple slices on the top, it avoided being dry.  The lemon zest came through in the cake mixture with a lovely little tang and I saved a few calories by using 40/60 Splenda sugar substitute and caster sugar.  I guess that could be part of the reason why the cake mixture was so dry, as sugar would have dissolved into syrup whereas the Splenda just sort of fizzes.

When served, the slice was just begging for cream, or greek yoghurt, or ice cream or even custard - so we sidetracked a little of the cream meant for the following day's trifle. 

We did eat all but one slice (although not all at once, she hastens to add!) - which got overtaken by other events and when I finally got back to it with intentions of eating it up, discovered a neat little round of mould on one apple slice.  Harumph!  Rats!

Hence, if you're planning on making the cake, I'd recommend not trying to keep it beyond two days - just to be on the safe side.  Ordinarily, of course, we'd have eaten it all up within those two days, but Mother's Day got in the way!

DORSET APPLE CAKE    (serves min. of 8)

Ingredients :

225g self raising flour
25g cornflour
1 tsp baking powder
110g butter
110g caster sugar (or 60g sugar plus 2 tbsp Splenda)

zest of 1 lemon
225g peeled, cored and diced cooking apples (weight following preparation)
1 large egg
2 tbsp milk
1 cooking apple, peeled, cored and sliced thinly, soaked in lemon juice
2-3 tbsp soft brown sugar.

METHOD :

1.  Pre-heat your oven to 170degC/325degF/Gas 3.

2.  Butter and line an 8" round cake tin with removable base.

3.  Sift flour, cornflour and baking powder into a large mixing bowl.

4.  Cut the butter into small pieces and rub in, until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.

5.  Stir in the caster sugar, diced apple and lemon zest.

6.  In a separate bowl whisk together the egg and milk.

7.  Bind the mixture together with the egg/milk mixture.  Don't worry if it is a bit stiff, keep on mixing and it will come together.

8.  Pour into the prepared baking tin and level the surface.

9.  Arrange the apple slices on top, then sprinkle the brown sugar all over to make a crusty glaze.

10.  Bake in the oven for around 35-40 minutes, or until a cocktail stick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean.

11.  Cool in the tin, then turn out onto a cake plate and serve with a dollop of cream.

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Ham & Apple Pie : Arthur Potts Dawson, you're a genius!

I can remember saying to a Twitter friend of mine, earlier in the week, that a good time to come round for dinner would (hopefully) be on Thursday, when we were having Arthur Potts Dawson's Ham & Apple Pie.

Well, owing to a miscalculation on the "time in which to cook it" front, it happened on Friday (so it's a good job you didn't show up, @JackKnightCooks!) - but how right was I, that it was going to be a goodie?  Ooooh yes.  A goodie and then some.

I chose to make this pie this week because it uses Bramley apples - and it is currently Bramley apple week.  However, just a quick look at the recipe will tell you that this stands the chance of being a very successful combination for use at any time.

The pie filling is a combination of ham, cheese and apple, all held together and seasoned by a béchamel sauce made with cream and a pinch of nutmeg.  Encased in a puff pastry shell, just the idea of it was making my mouth water.

The pie itself is a complete doddle to make.  The thing that I had forgotten - and what stopped me making it on the Thursday when I miscalculated my timings - was that you don't serve the pie hot.  It has to cool down and be served at either room temperature or cold.  In fact, I have since had a slice of it that I heated up in the microwave, just to see how it would be hot - and it was fine.  The reason you need to allow it time to "rest" (and thus cool down a bit) is because of the cheese and the béchamel sauce.  When the pie is fresh from the oven, these two ingredients are very fluid and - once it is cut - stand the chance of flooding out of the pie, taking the apple and ham with them.

It even looks great, unbaked!

I suspect, though, that if you allow the pie time to calm down - and if you've put a hole in the top to allow steam to escape, you can tell when it has calmed down as the filling subsides away from the pastry casing - it would be perfect to cut and eat with some light vegetables.

So basically, this is one very flexible pie.  It can be eaten hot with vegetables, or warm with potato wedges and baked beans, or cold with a salad or on a picnic.

The very best thing about it, though, is that it is completely gorgeous and moreish!

We rejected the parsnip mash & peas in favour of potato wedges!

I bought some puff pastry to make it with and because my pastry sheets were rectangular and not round, my pie wound up being rectangular instead of the "tourtiere" shape shown in the original recipe (which I found on www.lovefood.com).  It also wound up being completely enormous - and I only included one apple!  Goodness only knows how small Arthur Potts Dawson's apples must have been, as mine was the regular size for a Bramley.

I was also a little bit concerned about the pastry on the bottom of the pie cooking properly and not going all soggy, so I brushed a little egg yolk across it before I started to build the pie.  Goodness knows if that helped, but the bottom pastry cooked perfectly - so I can only think it must have done.  It is easy for pastry to be soggy when the first layer of filling is something squishy like the béchamel sauce.

Regarding the bechamel, I was glad that the recipe brought together a sauce that was quite thick and substantial, as I didn't want a river of pie filling as soon as the pie was cut.  I have had that happen in the past with meat pies that have contained apple and cheese - and it's not a good look!

So, the upshot of all this was a gloriously golden baked massive pie that was impressive to present at the table and tasted every bit as good as it looked.  You can't ask for more than that!

I have detailed below how I made the pie, but do please feel free to go to the original recipe and make it from that.  The only things that differ are the quantities of ingredients.  The method is exactly the same.

HAM & APPLE PIE   (serves 6)

Ingredients :

25g butter
25g flour
150ml milk
50ml double cream
a pinch of sea salt
a pinch of black pepper
a pinch of nutmeg
425g puff pastry sheets (frozen, but defrosted)
1 egg yolk, for brushing
180g mature Cheddar cheese, grated
1 large Bramley apple (or 2 medium), cored, peeled & sliced thinly
500g gammon ham (I used Gammon rounds, chopped into small pieces).

Method :

1.  First make the béchamel by melting the butter in a small saucepan.  Stir in the flour and cook for a minute or so, then slowly, bit by bit, whisk in the milk and then the cream until you have a lump free sauce.  Bring to the boil, stirring all the time and season with the salt, pepper and nutmeg.  The sauce should thicken.  Once that has happened, set it aside to cool.


2.  Pre-heat the oven to 190degC/375degF/Gas 5.

3.  Take your pastry pieces and unroll the first onto your baking sheet.  With a sharp knife, lightly mark (without cutting through the pastry) a line some 3cm inside of the edge to mark the boundary over which the filling must not stray.


4.  Taking your egg yolk and a brush, lightly brush this boundary with egg to provide a sealant once the top layer of pastry is in place.


5.  Begin building the pie's filling by placing a blob of béchamel in the middle of the pastry piece and spread it out until the base is covered by a light coating.


6.  The next layer is a little cheese, followed by some ham and then the apple - which I recommend you place neatly in little rows, as it can easily get out of control and start sliding everywhere or poking up out of the pastry!


7.  Press down the three layers lightly, then season with a little freshly ground black pepper.


8.  Add small blobs of béchamel as the beginning of the next batch of layers and smooth them out as best you are able.  Follow this with the cheese, ham and apple, then press, then pepper - until you run out of ingredients or the pile is getting rather too big!


9.  Take the remaining piece of pastry - which should be lightly rolled out until it is slightly larger than the base piece - and lay it over the top of the filling pile.


10.  Gently press around the edges to form a seal between top and bottom pastry which will prevent the filling from escaping.  Take care not to pierce the pastry.


11.  I then crimped the edges like you would a cornish pasty, just to ensure the filling stayed where it was and to make an attractive edging.


12.  Cut a hole (or two) in the top of the pastry to allow steam to escape when cooking, and give the whole thing a good egg wash with the remains of the egg yolk.


13.  A light sprinkle of black pepper over the lot, then place into the oven for 40 minutes (remembering to turn the pie if your oven is prone to cooking one side more than the other, after 20 minutes).  Once the 40 minutes is up, reduce the oven temperature to 150degC/300degF/Gas 2 and bake for 10 minutes more.


14.  Allow to rest for 15 minutes before serving hot, or allow to cool.


Printable version.
  

Bramley Apple, Bacon & Black Pudding Risotto - it's Bramley Apple Week!

Yes folks, the next week has been dedicated to the lovely Bramley Apple.  Seems a bit of an odd time, if you ask me, as it's not the beginning of the season for Bramleys but instead coming to the end of their season - but then, they're available in the shops any old time of year if you're prepared to accept Bramleys from abroad.

Good old English Bramleys are still available in the shops now, though, so make the most of them while you can buy British!

Knowing that Bramley Apple Week was rolling towards us, I was having a bit of a brainstorm with hubby about what we could cook to honour our lovely Bramley.  We went through all the usual Apple Cake, Apple Muffins and Pork with Apples ideas but they all seemed so predictable.  Nice, but predictable.  We wanted something different.

So, we started thinking along the lines of what flavours go particularly well with apples.  The first one is the obvious pork.  So, what types of pork are there?  Loads of types of pork, loads of types of bacon, loads of types of side products from pork.  Hmmn.  That's not helping much.  Okay, so what sort of recipe don't you see very often, that includes pork products and apple?  Casseroles?  Loads.  "In sauce"?  Loads.  "Chinese?".  Quite a few.  Italian?  Hmmn, not so many.  Risotto?  ~thinks~  Nope, can't remember seeing any.  ~goes to internet to ask Google~  Nope, just one from Jamie Oliver.  Aha!

So, risotto.  Well, we know that bacon goes well with risotto, so that's a given.  What about the apple, though.  Hubby was warming to the theme by this time and came up with the ruse that if the apple was diced and pan fried to begin with, then included at the last minute to ensure that it didn't disintegrate, it could work.  But what else to put with the bacon and apple?  Sage?  Well yes, but he didn't want it to go along too herby a route.  (Hubby is the Chief Risotto Maker, so the end decision as to the recipe was his).  I began to think along sausagey routes and remembered the Black Pudding I'd used for the English Farmhouse Breakfast recently.  Done similarly, I felt sure it would stand up to a risotto. Hubby liked the idea and the Bramley Apple, Bacon & Black Pudding Risotto was born.

Now I really, really like risotto - and I really, really like hubby's risottos, as they're always very creamy (without the use of cream), moist and unctuous with some quite complex flavours.  This risotto, however, knocked them all into a cocked hat (as we say in the U.K.).

The first forkful immediately gives you that salty hit of the bacon with the background hint of sage.  Then, with something of a double-act, the Bramley apple comes in.  First sweet, then sour, it gets the music pumping and the stage set for the Black Pudding, whose earthy spiciness just gets that party going on your tongue.  And that's just the first forkful.

If you've never experienced black pudding before and have been cautious about doing so, this is the perfect recipe for you.  Because of the accompanying flavours, your tongue is allowed to taste the black pudding without it becoming dominant (as it so often can).

Do, please, try this recipe.  It really is completely gorgeous.

BRAMLEY APPLE, BACON & BLACK PUDDING RISOTTO  (serves 3)

Ingredients :

300g Arborio (or another risotto type) rice
30g unsalted butter
125ml white wine
1.2l vegetable or ham stock
30g Parmesan, very finely grated
8 rashers smoked back bacon, cut into small squares
1 large Bramley Apple, skinned, cored and cut into ½cm cubes
4" (yes, four inches) Black Pudding, skinned and cut into ½cm cubes
1 large Banana shallot (or 2 small), very finely chopped
1 tsp fresh Sage, finely chopped.

Method :

1.  In a large frying pan, fry the bacon pieces until crispy.  Set bacon aside on a plate and pour any bacon fat into a large saucepan.

2.  Add half of the butter (15g) to the frying pan, turn the heat to high and then fry the apple cubes for no longer than two minutes or until slightly coloured.  It is vital to not allow the apples to cook through and dissolve.  Remove from the pan and reserve.

3.  Immediately - and without cleaning the pan, toss the black pudding cubes into the frying pan and fry for two minutes.  Set the black pudding cubes aside and pour any remaining juices from the frying pan into the large saucepan.

4.  Add the remaining 15g of butter to the saucepan and gently saute the shallot until soft but not coloured.

5.  Turn the heat to high and then add the rice, toasting it in the butter and oils until each grain is well coated and hot.

6.  Pour the wine into the pan and stir.  Turn the heat down and continue gently stirring until the rice has absorbed the wine.

7.  Add the sage and the cooked bacon pieces before pouring a ladleful of stock over the rice.  Stir gently until the stock is almost absorbed and then add another ladle of stock.

8.  Continue adding the stock, a ladleful at a time until the rice is tender and 'oozy'. Remember to allow the rice to absorb each ladle of stock before adding the next.  This requires patience, but a true risotto cannot be made without following this rule.

9.  Once the rice is tender, add the parmesan and the cooked black pudding and continue to cook for another minute or so.

10.  Finally, gently stir in the apple cubes and then remove the pan from the heat immediately.

11.  Place a lid on the pan and leave it, off of the heat for a couple of minutes, to relax and to allow the flavours to  mingle.

12.  Serve onto hot plates.


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A new risotto through to meatballs and Yorkshire Pudding day - the meal plan

I have made a new resolution.

Yes, I know it's not the right day for new resolutions, but I figure it's better late than never.

My new resolution is to knuckle down to telling you all about what's on the menu plan for the coming week, on a Tuesday - the beginning of that week.  Now obviously, it's not going to happen that way every week, because my life just doesn't allow things to be that organised.  However, the intention is there - and it's a good place to start.

So, here's what's on the list :

Tues : Pizza (spot the cop-out!)

Weds : Bramley apple, black pudding & bacon risotto

Thurs : Turkey & chorizo meatballs with pesto spaghetti

Fri : Minced beef, mashed potato & vegetables

Sat : Spicy chicken wraps, mexican hash browns & coleslaw

Sun : Toad in the hole with vegetables

Mon : Chilli-con-healthy with soda bread rolls.

Yes, tonight's dinner of Pizza is a total cop-out - but sometimes you just want to have a break from all the preparation and the washing up.  As much as I enjoy creating dishes, cooking them and most importantly, eating them, sometimes you just have to have a day off.

We're back in harness again on Wednesday, or more to the point, hubby is back in harness.  He's cooking a new risotto, one which we dreamt up in honour of Bramley Apple Week.  We devised the ingredients and contemplated the cooking method and after a bit of to-ing and fro-ing, came up with this recipe for Bramley apple, black pudding & bacon risotto.  I think it sounds completely delicious, but you'll just have to wait for the blog post to find out whether it was or not!

Thursday is another of our dreamt up recipes, which evolved from wondering what to do with two chicken breasts - and wound up with turkey mince and two chorizo sausages that are lurking in the fridge.  The obvious answer was to make them into meatballs and serve them with pesto coated spaghetti.  Simple - except we've still got the two chicken breasts hiding out in the freezer.

Now I do try to schedule in at least a couple of meals that son & heir is guaranteed to like, per week.  Poor soul, as a bit of a picky teenager (one of the worst times for food likes & dislikes, I think), he is often faced with his worst nightmare where food is concerned but will generally give it a go.  This is why I try to schedule in a couple of his favourites.  This week, the first of these is good old minced beef, mashed potato and vegetables.  He would, of course, prefer to abandon the vegetables part of the meal altogether, but my insistence on his not being 99% carnivorous, 1% mashed potato-ist, ensures that at least a few veggies disappear down his gullet occasionally.

The next son & heir friendly meal is the Spicy Chicken Wraps.  These consist of shop-bought chicken in a spicy coating which is oven baked then sliced and put in a wrap along with some lettuce, salsa and sour cream.  Hubby has had an idea where the current favourite of hash browns are concerned and is intending on Mexican-ing them up with the addition of a sprinkling of chilli powder, cumin and salt.  I shall be abstaining from this delicacy and going for the coleslaw option.

Sunday, believe it or not, is Yorkshire Pudding Day.  Now I'm not guaranteeing that we stay with this plan, but currently we're intending on having a Toad in the Hole, which hubby has agreed to make as his Yorkshire is a whole lot more reliable than ever mine has been.  There is an outside possibility that we might flip this to one side in favour of a different incarnation of Yorkshire Pudding meal, but at the moment, the Toad is a goer.

Monday brings the re-submission of the Chilli con healthy from last week.  Because of a sudden yearning for a Doner Kebab, this got bumped from last week's menu list - but not before I'd bought all the ingredients for it.  I'm looking forward to it, as although it has an anxiety inducing name, the method is exactly how we'd produce a chilli - except the spicing is slightly different.  Should not only be interesting, but nice!

I've a number of extra cooking projects in mind, too.  Because of Bramley Apple Week, I'm intending on making an apple cake - maybe the Dorset Apple Slab, which I've been intending to make ever since we arrived in Dorset and found out about it!  I've also got a recipe for Maple Apple Muffins formulating in the back of my head.  We'll see whether it makes it to daylight or not!

National Dairy Week is supposed to kick off on the 3rd February (Friday).  Currently, I can't see that anyone (the Dairy Council, National Cheese Board - always makes me smile, that one) is doing very much in relation to that, but I've got ideas for a Greek Yoghurt and Passion Fruit dessert, plus some yummy Cheese Scones, at the very least!

Oh - and don't forget, Valentine's Day is trotting into view!  I've got some recipes up my sleeve with this in mind, but maybe it's too early to reveal, just yet.

I just have to share something, before I go, which is that Sainsbury's (following on from their featuring Rhubarb & Ginger on their Family Finance Blog) have invited me to be a member of the Sainsbury’s Finance Family Blogger Network!

 

The network is an informal network of family friendly bloggers that they think share Sainsbury’s values.  Apparently, this will mean I'll have an entry to their Best Family Blog Award and an opportunity to guest blog on their Finance blog, Money Matters.

I'm currently quite ridiculously excited by this - and am very much looking forward to finding out more!

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Cinnamon Plum & Apple Crunch

Remember the Baked Cinnamon Plums & Cranberries I made recently?

This is another dessert dish, created both from memories of a dish my Mum used to make (with buttered bread on top, which toasted in the oven) and further ponderings on what to do with lovely purple plums.

I think I was as pleased with this one, as I was with the first - although they are quite different in character.  Both hubby and Son & heir enjoyed this, more crunchy, one and gave it a "thumbs up" and would be happy to have it again.

I would, however, change one aspect of the recipe - and have reflected that in the recipe below.  I used dark brown muscovado sugar to make the cinnamon sugar for the toasts.  However, it over caramelised in the oven and was just short of burning.  With the oven at only 160deg F, I was surprised by that.  So I reckon if I was to use a soft brown demarara sugar instead, it would keep more of its character for longer.  The dark brown sugar is so close to being toffee already, it obviously doesn't take long for it to get there!

Again, it's a recipe that can be adapted to use any fruit that bakes well - the world is your oyster, where that's concerned.  So don't think you're constrained to use just Plums & Apples - I would imagine that a Strawberry & Rhubarb version would be absolutely divine.

CINNAMON PLUM & APPLE CRUNCH  (feeds 4)

Ingredients :

4-5 fat purple plums, de-stoned and sliced finely
1 Bramley Apple, peeled, cored and sliced finely
2-3 tbsp water
a splosh of spiced rum2-3 tbsp runny honey
3 slices of bread, buttered quite thickly
1 tsp cinnamon (or any other Christmas spice)
1 tbsp soft brown demarara sugar.

Method :

1.  Take a fairly deep baking dish and add the sliced plums and apples to it, spreading them out until you've as much of a level surface as you can get.

2.  Add the water, rum and drizzle the honey over the top of the fruit.

3.  Take the buttered bread and cut each slice into four triangles. 

4.  On a plate, mix the cinnamon (or spices) with the sugar and dip the buttered side of each bread triangle into the mixture.

5.  Place each triangle on top of the fruit mixture, crust side down and point end up, laying them slightly backwards.  Place another triangle in front of the last, so that you wind up with two lines of interlinked triangles which should cover the top of the fruit.

6.  Place into a pre-heated oven at 160deg C/325deg F/Gas 3 for 20-25 minutes, or until the bread has firmed up and toasted and the fruit is tender.

7.  Cool slightly and serve with double cream or a blob of greek yoghurt.

Scrummy!

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Let down by Celery Soup, bonus Baked Apple & an unexpected supper

With roasted butternut squash - just in case you wondered!

You might remember that I was, last week, planning on making a Chicken Supreme.  The intention was to use (as per the recipe) a tin of Cream of Mushroom Soup to make the sauce.  What happened though, was that I picked up the tin of Cream of Celery Soup instead (in error) and had opened it before I realised my mistake.

I was committed to using the Celery soup then, as I wouldn't be able to use it the following day for lunch (I had half a stir-fry mix to use up).  I had a bit of a ponder and thought it might do.  So I put the mushrooms and garlic back in the fridge and went with chicken and sweetcorn.


Oh dear.  Well, it wasn't disgusting or unpalatable - but it was bland.  Very, very bland.  Oddly, it seemed to be quite rich as well because both hubby and I had problems getting through our chicken ration.  I'm sure we wouldn't have had those problems with the mushroom version.

So, there's two lessons learned.  One, look before you open the can and two, Cream of Celery Soup needs some help when used as a base for a sauce.

One day last week, I forget which now, we had our lunch and dinner upside down (lunch at dinner time and dinner at lunch time), which meant I missed out on my dinner (for some reason which I've also forgotten!).


Later on that evening, after sitting for a while listening to my tummy growling, hubby went out in the kitchen and rustled and clanked with packets and plates.  Eventually, this is what he turned up with :

Isn't it just lovely?  He'd tried to keep it all within the anti-inflammatory diet guidelines and did so very well with that.  From the top, we've got smoked salmon & capers on rice cakes, then a blob of taramasalata with two celery sticks with which to eat it.  A pickled gherkin, some pickled onions, cucumber, cherry tomatoes and a piece of cheese.  Gorgeous!

Something else that wasn't especially planned, was the two baked Bramley apples that I made for Son & heir's (and my) dessert recently.  Hubby doesn't like baked apple, so he abstained.

The recipe is very similar to my Rum Soaked Baked Apples, in that I drizzled rum over them before baking, but this time I filled them with sultanas and glace cherries (2 at the bottom, 3 at the top), then added the brown sugar and butter.

Half an hour in a medium oven (mine was 180deg C) and they're bursting with juice and delightfully foamy.


Somehow - goodness only knows how (hollow legs, I think!) - son & heir managed to eat his entire apple in one sitting.  Mine lasted for two and was just as good second time around as it had been the day before.


I tend to forget about baked apples, but I really should make them more often.  Son & heir loves them - and I really enjoy the smell of them baking, as well as the eating part!


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Rum-soaked Baked Apples



I only wish you could smell how glorious these are!

I'd had two Bramley Apples roosting in the fridge, looking for something to do, for far too long.

So, in the face of hubby's dislike of Baked Apples, I thought I'd give myself a treat and see whether our son was going to come down on his father's side, or on mine, as regards the loveliness that is the baked apple.

I find it very difficult to understand hubby's dislike of the humble baked apple, although I do recognise that some people just don't like certain textures, or flavours, or looks of food.  Personally, there's little I don't like sufficiently to make me avoid it, so understanding someone else's dislikes is particularly difficult.

For me, the sight of a couple of lovely Bramley Apples just out of the oven, brimming with mixed fruit, covered with brown sugar, trickles of butter running down their foamy sides, glistening with juice and just asking to be paired with a dollop of cream, is one of life's joys.

For hubby, he sees nothing appealing in this picture at all.  He prefers his apples to be crisp and sharp rather than cooked and foamy, the sugar to be cooked (as in melted) rather than crunchy and just can't relate to the pairing of butter with apple.

So, with instructions not to say anything that will put son off trying them, we sallied forth into dessert.  Son had seen the apples just out of the oven and by the size of his eyeballs and the watering of his mouth, the signs were good.  Not only did he clear his bowlful, but he came back for seconds and ate the remainder for dessert the following day.

I have to admit, it was good to have him follow his Mum in something - for once!

RUM-SOAKED BAKED APPLES (feeds 3-4)

Ingredients :

2 large Bramley Apples
4-6 tsp soft brown sugar
4 tbsp dried mixed fruit
1 lemon, zested
half a tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp spiced rum
butter

Method :

1.  Place the mixed fruit, cinnamon and lemon zest into a small bowl and pour the rum over.  Leave it to soak for 2-3 hours.

2.  Remove the cores from the apples, without cutting them in half.

3.  Score around the middle of the apple, so that when it cooks, the peel can rise.

4.  Score two lines from the top to the first score line.  This will help when it comes to serving half an apple.

5.  Place the apples into a baking dish.

6.  Fill the cavities with the soaked fruit & divide any liquid between them.

7.  Place a knob of butter on top of the fruit, and press down.

8.  Fill the remaining cavity (to overflowing) with the brown sugar.  Sprinkle the remainder around the apples.

9.  Add a tbsp or two of water (the amount depends on the size of your dish and the amount of rum you've included) to ensure the apples don't dry out.

10.  Bake at 180deg for 35-40 minutes or until a knife runs through the apple (via the centre split) easily.

Serve with cream, creme fraiche, or greek yoghurt.

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Pirozhki, Sweet Potato Wedges with Red Cabbage & Apple

I had been looking forward to this dinner ever since we'd decided to include it on the Menu list.  Hubby - who was cooking it - was losing faith in it the closer he got to the day.

However, for me, it turned out to be a complete triumph and I would be very happy to see any one of the three recipes he used, trotted out for another go.  I think Hubby would agree that, for him, the Pirozhki's were a bit disappointing as he'd expected the pastry to be lighter and more flaky than it was, plus the filling was a tad on the bland side for him.  Mind you - I had the leftover filling on toast for breakfast this morning after we'd been shopping.  With a teensy bit of Ancona Chilli Sauce, it was gorgeous!  Son loved the Pirozhki's, liked the Sweet Potato Wedges and hated the Cabbage.  That's not altogether surprising though, as son has a marked sensitivity to anything (that's not a pickled onion) that involves vinegar.

I don't think hubby would be too keen on reproducing the three recipes all in one go again - as he needed a lie down in a darkened room by the end of it.  However, he'd be keen enough to make the Pirozhki's again for a buffet supper, the Cabbage dish would be divine with sausages or gammon ham and the Sweet Potato wedges would go with just about anything and were decreed to be streets ahead of a normal potato wedge.  All in all, pretty darned successful.

If you don't find the recipe you're looking for straight away, keep on scrolling down, as all three are in this post.

PIROZHKI (could make from 15-30, depending on how big you make them)

This is an adaptation of one of Silvena Rowe's recipes, taken from her book "Feasts".

Ingredients for sour-cream pastry
225g plain flour
half a tsp salt
half a tsp baking powder
100g butter, chilled and cubed
2 large egg yolks, beaten
125ml sour cream

Ingredients for filling
200g minced cooked chicken (we used the other half of a roast chicken)
your choice of vegetables like onion, celery, swede - whatever you want, but diced finely
or - and this is what we used - some leftover Spicy Red Lentils.
Salt & Pepper.

To make up the filling, saute your vegetables until soft and add any herbs or spices you might want.  Chop the chicken until it is in fine dice, but not a paste, to retain some texture.  Combine the chicken with your vegetables, season to taste and leave to cool.

To make the pastry, place the flour, salt and baking powder in a large mixing bowl.  Add the butter cubes and, using your fingers, mix it all together rubbing the butter into the flour until it resembles breadcrumbs.

Add the beaten egg yolks and sour cream to the pastry a little at a time, working it all together to achieve a smooth and elastic pastry.  Knead for 2-3 minutes then wrap in clingfilm and refrigerate for an hour.

Preheat the oven to 190deg C/375deg F/gas mark 5.

When ready to make the pirozhki, roll out half the dough to abut 3-4mm thick.  Using a pastry cutter or a glass about 8cm (3 inches) in diameter, stamp out as many rounds as you can.

Brush the edges of the pastry rounds with beaten egg yolk, and place a spoonful of filling in the middle of each.  Press the edges gently together to make a half-moon shape.  Repeat with the rest of the dough and filling.

Place the pirozhki on a baking sheet, brush the tops with egg yolk and bake for 25 minutes.

SWEET POTATO WEDGES

Ingredients :

Sweet potato, enough for your purposes
Olive oil
Salt & pepper
Seasonings of your choice, such as garlic & herb, cajun spices or cumin & coriander.

Method :

Peel the sweet potato and cut into wedge shapes of around 1 cm at their widest part.  Place into a bowl.

Add 2 tbsp or so of oil, sufficient to coat each wedge.

Add your seasonings of choice and thoroughly mix to ensure every wedge has a good coating.

Tip onto a roasting tray and roast at min. 190degC, max 200deg C, for 25-30 mins or until the potato feels tender to the knife tip and the edges appear caramelised.

BRAISED RED CABBAGE WITH APPLES & CARAWAY SEEDS

Recipe is adapted from Orangette blog.

Ingredients :

2 tbs olive oil
3 tbs finely chopped red onion
1 small head red cabbage (about two pounds), quartered, cored, and very thinly sliced
1 large Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and diced
3 tbs apple cider vinegar
2 tbs honey
1 tsp salt
1/8 to ¼ tsp caraway seeds

Method :

Heat oil in a large, nonreactive saucepan over a medium-low heat.

Add onions and cook until translucent and slightly golden.

Add cabbage, apple, vinegar, honey, salt, and caraway seeds; then cover pan and cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage is very soft but not falling apart, about an hour.

Serves roughly 4. Delicious warm, at room temperature, or cold, straight from the fridge.
Oh - and I can verify the "cold, straight from the fridge" thing, as I had the leftovers for my lunch today.  Delicious!