Tag: Dinner party

September 21, 2015

Crisp autumn pie

I realise it’s been a while since I did something quite fancy, and while people seem to prefer to make the easy ones, there’s definitely some love for the posts with lots of steps too.

With the return of my favourite season (I’m really fair-skinned, so shoot me if I don’t adore summer like the rest of you) and a little dinner party this weekend, I figured the only way to round off my housemate’s uh-mazing main course was with a little homage to the apple.

Without further ado here’s a recipe for a rather yummy apple and frangipane tart.

You will need

For the pastry:

300g/10.5 oz plain flour

170g/6 oz unsalted butter

30g/1 oz golden caster sugar

50ml/1.75 fl oz milk

1 egg yolk

A pinch of salt

For the frangipane:

70g/2.5 oz ground almonds

60g/2 oz unsalted butter

50g/1.75 oz golden caster sugar

40g/1.5 oz plain flour

1 egg

1-2 tsp almond extract (optional, but apple will likely overpower the almond a bit)

For the apple filling:

3 bramley cooking apples

100g/3.5 oz golden caster sugar

10g/0.5 oz unsalted butter

50ml/1.75 oz water

2-3 tbsp clear honey

For the topping:

4-5 braeburn apples (probably any eating apples would work)

2-3 tbsp apricot jam (for the glaze)

(My dish was 25cm and for quiches/pies, but there would be enough pastry and filling to do a slightly larger, shallower tart, perhaps up to 29cm or so).

Step one

Start by making the sweet shortcrust pastry.

First cube the butter and pop that into the plain flour. Using your fingers, rub the butter and flour together to get a crumb-like texture.

The colder your butter the better and the smaller the crumbs you will be able to get. My house is waaaaaaarm, so as you can see, mine was a tad lumpy at this stage.

If you have a food processor I am led to believe you can do this bit in that very quickly and easily. But we can’t all be posh like you so (clean) fingers are just fine too.

Step two

Stir in the caster sugar.

Step three

Make a well in the middle for the milk and egg yolk. Fairly sure you can guess what’s next…put yolk and milk in said well.

Bring the mixture together with your hands. It may be a bit crumbly so you can tip it onto a worktop and knead it together slightly to combine, but be careful not to over work it.

Wrap it in clingfilm and put it in the fridge for at least an hour.

Step four

Frangipane making time. Using an electric whisk (or a wooden spoon and some strong arms) beat together the butter and sugar until smooth and fluffy.

Step five

Add the egg and beat again with the whisk.

Stir in the almonds, almond extract and the flour.

Voila. Set aside.

Step six

Prepare the stewed apple filling. Being by peeling and chopping the three bramley apples. If you have a bit of lemon juice handy a quick squeeze will keep the chopped ones pale while you see to the rest.

Step seven

Put the chopped apples in a saucepan with the butter, honey, water and sugar. Bring to a medium-low heat and stir occasionally until the apples are mostly broken down. You want a pulp really (an appetising thought, I know).

Step eight

Remove the pastry from the fridge (providing an hour has passed). Place onto a lightly floured surface (you don’t want to add much more flour to the mix if you can help it).

Roll the pastry out as evenly as you can, until your chosen dish can sit in the middle with an inch or two on all sides. You don’t really want your pastry to be thicker than 5mm.

Step nine

Transfer your pastry by rolling it at least half of it up onto your rolling pin and unrolling it over the top of your dish.

I then needed to lift the edges back up and place them back in to tease them better into the corners. Do this gently so as not to tear it. Having said that, I was a bit heavy handed and tears can be fixed quit easily by sticking a bit of excess pastry on top.

Step ten

Rip a bit of pastry off the overlap and use it to press the crust further into the crevices.

Use a fork to pierce the base of the pie, this will help the pastry stay flat in the oven.

Pop him back in the fridge for another 20-30 minutes.

Step eleven

While the pastry is chilling again, peel and slice the braeburns/eating apples. You need to do this carefully as it will be the making or breaking of how your pie looks (no pressure). Try to peel nice and evenly and cut the apples as thinly as you can.

Have a large tupperware filled with cold water nearby to put your cut slices into, which will stop them from browning, again, if you have any lemon juice a few drops wouldn’t go amiss but not essential.

Pre-heat the oven to 180C/gas mark 4/350F

Step eleven

Remove the pie from the fridge and trim some of the excess pastry off the sides but still leave an overlap.

Place some baking paper in the pie and fill with baking beans. If you don’t have any then rice works too, and most dried lentils/pulses really.

Place on a baking tray and bake for 15 minutes.

Step twelve

Using a grater remove the excess pastry at this stage. Doing it this way helps to avoid your pastry shrinking in the oven.

Step thirteen

FILL.

First spoon in the frangipane and spread out, followed by the stewed apple puree mixture.

Finally add your eating apples. Start with the outside and work inwards. Make sure your apples overlap each other quite a bit; the cooking process reduces the water so they will shrink and flatten out.

Bake for another hour on 180C/350F/gas mark 4. I advise checking in at regular intervals after 30 minutes as every oven is different.

Step fourteen

Pop a few tablespoons of apricot jam in the microwave for 10-20 seconds (keep your eye on it as it’s sugary and will heat up quickly). Brush over the surface of the tart, being careful not to move the apples around, spoiling your lovely design.

Step fifteen

Get a scoop of vanilla ice-cream on that guy.

You can reheat your pie in the oven or individual slices in the microwave if you aren’t eating it straight away.

Until next time. x

October 27, 2014

Fondoodledoo

This week we found ourselves in a bit of a fix. The plan was fondue, but somebody (Peter) forgot to book it. I was a bit sad when I discovered this (months of over eating to stretch my stomach for the big occasion) still, I couldn’t stay grumpy for long, as the gentleman concerned got himself to John Lewis and bought a fondue set. Sometimes it really pays off to have housemates with ridiculous boyfriends.

When I got word that fondue was back on, I figured I would contribute a little something to the dipping pot. So here’s a double whammy post. My seeded granary wonder bread, Pete’s (mainly Nigella’s) cheese fondue.

You will need

For the bread:

300g/10.5 oz Wholemeal bread flour

200g/7 oz Strong white bread flour

150g/5 oz Mixed seeds

300ml/10 fl oz Cold water

7g Dried yeast

7g Salt

For the fondue:

400g/14 oz Gruyere cheese

400g/14 oz Camembert (although after doing this, P and I think you’re safer with Emmental as it has a more similar melting point to Gruyere)

400ml/13.5 fl oz White wine (just buy the one that is most reduced from the highest price)

4 Tablespoons Kirsch

3 Teaspoons cornflour

Clove of garlic

Some charcuterie, just because.

(Serves 6)

Step one

Combine the two bread flours salt and yeast in a bowl. Keep the yeast and salt as far apart as you can. The salt has a nasty track record for bullying the yeast.

Step two

Add the water and mix with your hand until combined. You don’t need the water to be warm, at least that’s what Paul Hollywood says on EVERY EPISODE OF BAKE OFF. Something about the protein structure. I’m inclined to bow to his superior knowledge.

You may need to add a tiny splash more water if your dough isn’t coming together.

Step three

Lightly cover your work surface with olive oil so that you don’t add loads more flour to the dough as you go. Another Hollywood gem.

Knead the dough by pushing it forward as far as it will go and then folding it back. Turn and stretch again. Repeat repeat repeat.

At first the dough will be fairly brittle and will break as you do this. Don’t worry, it will get softer and more stretchy as you go. It will also merge back together more easily (you’ll know what I mean when you get there)

As it’s wholemeal flour you need to keep going on this for about 15 minutes, it should form a much smoother ball that the one you started with when you’re done.

Step four

Lightly oil a bowl and place dough in. Cover with clingfilm and leave for an hour to rise.

Step five

Turn dough back out onto the work surface (it’s ok if you have an overwhelming urge to put your face in it – I mean, don’t actually do it, but thinking it doesn’t make you weird).

Flatten out with your fingers (or your fist if you need a small moment of therapy). Add the mixed seeds evenly over the surface of the mix. You will feel like you have a lot, but they disappear quite quickly.

Fold the corners and sides back into the middle and knead for a minute or so until the seeds are distributed throughout.

Scoop your hands around the edges to form the dough into a ball.

Step six

Dust a large baking tray with flour and place the dough on top. Slash the top in a criss cross pattern and sprinkle the top with a bit more flour.

Leave for another hour to prove.

Step seven

Bake on 200C/gas mark 6/400F for 40-45 minutes. Keep an eye on it as it bakes incase any of the edge starts to catch.

Turn the bread over when you think it’s done and tap on the bottom. If it sounds quite hollow then you’re good.

Step eight

Try to resist biting right into the loaf. It’s time to make the fondue.

Step nine

Make sure your fondue set is ready to go and the table is set. You’re going to want to eat straight away when you see a pot of melted cheese.

Step ten

Grate the Gruyere and chop up the Camembert (although I really do recommend you use Emmental instead, the Camembert took a loooooong time to melt and was insanely rich). You will have MOUNTAINS of the stuff. Pete’s actually 6’3″…

Step eleven

Put a the wine into a saucepan on a medium heat. Bring this to a point just before it starts to simmer and start adding the cheese, stirring with a whisk and allowing it to melt in stages.

Step twelve

Once all the cheese has melted pop in the garlic and season to taste. Bring the heat up to a bubble and keep whisking until it is combined with the wine (though again – Camembert wasn’t co-operating fully with us on this one). Finally add the Kirsch and cornflour (probably best to mix the two beforehand so the cornflour doesn’t clump up).

Turn the heat down and allow to thicken for a few minutes before removing from the hob and pouring into the fondue pot. Light the burner/candle underneath.

Step thirteen

Sink into a very well deserved and rather disgusting cheese coma.

October 20, 2014

Burning the midnight oil

Winter is fast approaching and it’s time to get cosy. Cosy equals candles. At least it does this week, because I had left over spray paint from my mat making, and I really like spray painting things. Like really like it. In an unhealthy way.

This is a pretty easy quick make, and is satisfyingly effective. I recommend it for adding a bit of pizazz at a dinner party or even for sticking a couple of flower stems in rather than candles.

You will need

Clear glass bottles

White or cream dinner candles

Spray paint of your desired colour(s)

Newspaper and masking/washi tape

Step one

If your bottles have labels like mine did then you need to pour boiling water over them to soak alla that off.

They drink a lot of posh juice at work so I got these bad boys for free. You could also buy some from the home brew section of a Lakeland/Wilko’s; if that’s you, advance to step three and collect £200 as you pass Go.

Step two

If you’re using recycled juice/wine bottles then stick a little screwdriver or a knife in the metal bit and prise it off. It’s worth not being lazy and skipping this step.

Step three

Wrap the tops or bottoms of your bottles in newspaper, securing it with wash tape or masking tape which would be a lot cheaper if you have it to hand. As you can see, I didn’t.

The more care you take over this the better as you want the lines to be as straight as possible. Otherwise your OCD friends won’t enjoy your company at your dinner party; they will be too distracted by your wonky candle holders. They will be totally justified in this.

Step four

Go outside and put down some newspaper. Obviously the best time to do this is on a dry day, but let’s just see how well the British weather co-operates with you…

Shake the can of spray paint and hold about 20cm/8 inches away. Spray thoroughly until the bottle has an even, opaque colour.

Leave to dry.

Step four – bonus tip

If you’ve wrapped the top of the bottle rather than the bottom, I found the easiest way was to hold the neck in my hand and spray while holding it.

In order to dry it you need to find something to wedge between so it’s sides/the bottom won’t touch anything else. You could just hold it as they don’t take long to dry at all, but I found this storage chest/bench in the garden was just the ticket.

Step five

Whilst your bottles are drying you might need to do a little candle whittling. Mine had really handy grooves in them already but unfortunately were still a little on the large side, so I had to trim them down.

Just for the sake of everyone who knows how clumsy I am and would reel in horror at this picture, I still have all ten digits.

Step six

Push candles into the bottle necks and admire.

September 22, 2014

Autumn mess

Chaps! Welcome back, apologies for my prolonged absence. Holidays have been had, possessions been moved, and I’m back online.

Still riding high on my summer vacay, everything I thought of for this post was just not seasonal. Autumn is my favourite season usually, but, quite out of character, I’ve actually enjoyed summer this year. To get myself into a cosy autumnal mood I decided to turn an old summer favourite – Eton Mess – into a pudding perfect for fall.

I present Autumn Mess (or Fall Mess, I guess, if you’re across the pond, but that sounds a bit too much like a road traffic accident).

Things you need

For the meringue:

2 large egg whites

110g/4oz Golden caster sugar (that’s all I had – white would be fine – probably better)

1/4 tsp Ground cinnamon

For the salted caramel frosting:

100g/3.5 oz Salted butter

80g/3 oz Soft brown sugar

100ml/3.5 fl oz Double cream

2 tbsp Golden syrup

2 tsp Salt

For the rest:

50-100g Pecans (chopped)

300ml/10 fl oz Double cream

1-2 Bramley cooking apples

Nutmeg (optional)

Makes 6-8 servings

Step one

Mix together the cinnamon and sugar. I actually used 1/2 a tsp of cinnamon, but felt it was a little strong, others disagreed, so go with your gut. It depends on whether or not you are a cinna-fan.

Using an electric whisk whip the egg whites until they are three times their original size and starting to turn glossy.

Gradually whisk in all the sugar until you have stiff peaks (and can turn the bowl upside-down without the mix falling out).

Step two

Using two teaspoons place blobs of the meringue onto a baking sheet lined with greaseproof paper. Don’t grease this to stick it down. If you need something to stop it curling up, dab a little of the mixture under each corner as glue.

This doesn’t need to be done too carefully as the purpose of this dessert is not to look pretty.

Step three

Bake on gas mark 1/2, 130 degrees C or 250 degree F for an hour. Turn off the oven and leave until completely cool before taking them out.

Step four

While the meringues are in the oven, you can get going on the rest of the components.

Peel and chop the cooking apples into small chunks. Place into a microwaveable bowl.

Step five

Add three tablespoons of water and three tablespoons of caster sugar and place in microwave.

Microwave on a medium-high heat until you have a pulpy consistency. This took about 10 minutes with fairly regular stop and stirs.

Step six

If you are thinking you have seen these pictures before, I’m sorry, I’m plagiarising myself. I know I know, in the very next post too.

In a saucepan add together the butter, brown sugar, golden syrup and salt. Heat gently until melted and then bring to a simmer.

Simmer for 10 minutes. Stir regularly so that it doesn’t catch and burn. Leave to cool for about half an hour.

Step seven

Stir in 100 ml of double cream and leave to cool.

Step eight

Whisk the remaining double cream until thick and gloopy.

Step nine

Once everything is cool combine the meringues, cream, caramel and apple to taste. I let everyone do this to their own preferences in individual bowls which worked really well.

Sprinkle chopped pecans and grate nutmeg over the top (if you like it) to finish.

It’s great to have you back.

January 13, 2014

White chocolate and lime moussabub

Hello friends!

Riding on the success of a chocolate orange mousse I made for Ma’s birthday I thought this weekend would be a perfect time to flex my culinary muscles and invent a new recipe of my very own. It didn’t quite have as many bubbles as the other one I made (you know, from a recipe book by a French pastry chef…) but it was much lighter and fluffier than any syllabub I’ve ever seen. Hence the White Chocolate and Lime Moussabub was born.

A word of caution – make the day before your soiree, or early morning, as it needs a good few hours to set. Also, if you’re thinking to invite the kind of people who choose a cheeseboard rather than dessert then, a) you probably want to save this one for the sweet tooths instead, and b) de-friend them – there are better people in the world.

You will need:

200g White chocolate

110ml Double cream

40ml Full fat milk

3 eggs (or 2 if on the large side)

55g/2 oz Caster sugar

A lime

(Serves 4-6 depending on the size of your pots and tummies)

Step one

Chop chocolate finely. You will hear this time and again if you decide to follow this blog but it really is easiest to use a bread knife/one with a serrated edge for this. The smaller you can chop the better, as you will be using the cream mix to melt it. Place in a large bowl.

Step two

Place milk, cream and lime zest in a small saucepan and heat gently on a low heat. If you want to use a strip of the zest for decoration then put to one side now rather than covering in cream… nobody wants that on their pudding.

Once the mixture has started to boil, pour it through a sieve over the white chocolate and stir until fully melted. If the mix cools down before it fully melts the chocolate then you can place the bowl over a pan of boiling water to melt any stubborn bits.

Taste.

I added some lime juice at this stage – just under half the lime. It depends how much of a citrus taste you want, but I found that to be just right. Stir through thoroughly (and now say that out loud ten times as quickly as you can).

Step three

Separate the egg whites into another bowl. Glass or ceramic is best for this, as plastic bowls can tend to retain some grease, and that will scupper your efforts to whip up your whites.

I tend to crack the egg on the side of the bowl and pass the yolk from shell to shell until all the white has drained away, but whatever works for you.

Keep yolks to one side.

Step four

Whisk! If you don’t have a hand held whisk or a fancy stand mixer then hopefully the Lord blessed you with strong arms.

When the eggs start to fluff up, add the sugar and keep whisking until they are stiff and glossy. People are a bit precious about egg whites but generally I don’t think there’s anything to freak out about, just slow down a bit when they start to stiffen up – the sugar will help stabilise them and it’s unlikely you’ll go over if you’re looking at what you’re doing.

Step five

Whisk the egg yolks in. Your mixture should yellow a bit, and will loose a little of its structure – don’t panic!

Step six

Put a scoop of your eggs (up to a third) into the chocolate mix and fold in to loosen it up (middle photo). This will help you to not knock out all the air from your moussabub, if you do it all at once you’ll lose your bubbles.

Add the rest of the eggs and gently fold the mixture together. Turn the bowl as you do so it to help you get everything together without flattening it. Patience is a must here.

Step seven

Spoon into serving dishes and put in the fridge (allow at least 4 hours I’d say). Try not to disturb them too much, and no poking, those bubbles are precious!

Step eight

Remember that bit of lime peel you put aside? Well, it makes lovely whirly bits for the tops. If you have one of those fancy zester tools then you won’t need my hillbilly method, but this is the best thing I could think of!! If you know how the professionals do it then answers on a postcard please.

At least 20 mins before serving make thin strips from your piece of peel. Curl them up and put them in the handle of a peg as shown above. Leave them to sit until you are ready to rock and roll. Place on top of each dessert.

NB: If you make your mousse the night before then either keep your peel in a bit of water and take out to dry an hour before serving, or wrap in tinfoil and put in the fridge. Don’t cut up and coil until just before you want to use it as they will dry out and shrink.

You might also try breaking up a biscuit (ginger would work well) or grating some chocolate on top for a bit of a different texture.

Step nine

Indulge.