Sunday, July 23, 2017
Baking with Honey III: Gooseberries, mint and honey
I got a punnet of gooseberries from the vegetable share (well, fruit share) on Wednesday, and decided to bake them with a bit of honey and some mint, inspired by this recipe. I just put the gooseberries, honey and mint in appropriate-looking quantities into a ceramic baking dish, then baked at about 200C for c. 15 min. We ate it together with skyr.
Baking with Honey II: Cinnamon honey fruitcake
This was the second of my two cakes last weekend featuring honey (I wanted to have one to keep at home as well as one to take to C's). It uses a lot of dried fruit - we had quite a lot around, I don't think I've been eating as much of it as usual. The recipe was one I'd cut out of the Guardian years ago, and caught my eye when I was browsing my ancient recipe folder. I'd never made it, but why not now? It's one of Dan Lepard's - I used to really like his recipe column.
200 g raisins
200 g dried apricots, chopped
200 g dried figs or prunes, chopped
75 g light soft brown sugar
75 g unsalted butter, softened
75 g honey
50 g treacle
2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 large eggs
75 ml brandy or cold tea (used a mixture of honey rum and cold Earl Grey)
200 g plain flour
1½ tsp baking powder
Line the base and sides of a 20 cm round cake tin with baking parchment. Weigh out the fruit. Substitute depending what you like / what you have in the cupboard - and include 100 g whole almonds if you like (I used a mixture of dates, apricots, raisins, sultanas and figs).
Heat the oven to 170C/325F/gas mark 3. Beat together the sugar, butter, honey, treacle, cinnamon and one of the eggs until creamy and smooth. Add the other egg, along with the brandy or tea, and beat well. The mixture will look dark and curdled, but for this fruit cake that's quite all right.
Mix the flour and baking powder with a fork, then fold the flour mixture into the fruit and nut mixture until evenly combined. Spoon into the tin, smooth the top, and bake for about an hour and a half.
200 g raisins
200 g dried apricots, chopped
200 g dried figs or prunes, chopped
75 g light soft brown sugar
75 g unsalted butter, softened
75 g honey
50 g treacle
2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 large eggs
75 ml brandy or cold tea (used a mixture of honey rum and cold Earl Grey)
200 g plain flour
1½ tsp baking powder
Line the base and sides of a 20 cm round cake tin with baking parchment. Weigh out the fruit. Substitute depending what you like / what you have in the cupboard - and include 100 g whole almonds if you like (I used a mixture of dates, apricots, raisins, sultanas and figs).
Heat the oven to 170C/325F/gas mark 3. Beat together the sugar, butter, honey, treacle, cinnamon and one of the eggs until creamy and smooth. Add the other egg, along with the brandy or tea, and beat well. The mixture will look dark and curdled, but for this fruit cake that's quite all right.
Mix the flour and baking powder with a fork, then fold the flour mixture into the fruit and nut mixture until evenly combined. Spoon into the tin, smooth the top, and bake for about an hour and a half.
Baking with Honey I: Honey-Lavender Cake
We harvested honey a couple of weeks ago - T and me, plus S and T's friend. It was a lot of fun, if somewhat improvised... My estimate was that we got 18 kilos of honey - so I guess I ended up with about 8 kilos. I still have some from last year, so realized I'd better start experimenting more with baking and other projects using honey. Last weekend, I tried two quite different honey cake recipes. This is the first (Ottolenghi - full recipe here). It is very similar to a cake I made with L, back at Mill Hill Road in
Norwich,
when we had a teaparty - it was a different recipe (I still have it in
my recipe folder but we were never quite sure about the quantities) - we
were very proud of it then, but I never made
it since. I always thought about it, so it sprang to mind instantly
when I was thinking about honey recipes. I used lavender from the garden as well. I took it for C's birthday party/dinner, and it ended up being her birthday cake, with candles and all!
For the cake:
225 g unsalted butter, at room temperature
115 g sugar
115 g honey
3 eggs
245 g flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp chopped dried lavender, plus more for garnish (used fresh)
1/2 tsp grated lemon zest
110 ml sour cream (used yoghurt instead)
For the glaze:
4 tsp lemon juice (one lemon is enough)
2 tsp honey
100 g icing sugar
Heat the oven to 325F / 163C. Grease a 9-inch cake tin, line the bottom with parchment paper, and butter and flour the base paper. Cream the butter, sugar, and honey together until light and fluffy. Beat the eggs lightly together and slowly incorporate into the butter mixture. Mix the dry ingredients together (all remaining ingredients but the sour cream / yoghurt) and stir well. Fold 1/3 of the flour mixture gently into the butter base, then about 1/3 of the yoghurt. Repeat twice more until all ingredients are just incorporated. Turn the batter into your prepared cake tin and bake in the oven for about 50 min, or until a cake tester comes out clean.
Note that honey browns very quickly in the oven, so if you notice this happening, you can tent your cake with foil for the duration. When the cake is done, remove it from the oven and allow it to cool for about ten min, then place on a rack to cool.
When cool, transfer to a plate and make the icing: whisk the lemon juice and honey together, then whisk in the icing sugar (ideally pre-sifted to remove lumps). Drizzle/spread over your cake, allowing the icing to trickle down the sides. Sprinkle with additional lavender flowers. Allow icing to set, and serve.
I thought the lavender might be a bit subtle, but it was a nice, moist cake. It went down pretty well (I think). The icing got good feedback too - it was thick and spreadable and maintained a good layer - it's perhaps a good idea to use for other cakes too!
For the cake:
225 g unsalted butter, at room temperature
115 g sugar
115 g honey
3 eggs
245 g flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp chopped dried lavender, plus more for garnish (used fresh)
1/2 tsp grated lemon zest
110 ml sour cream (used yoghurt instead)
For the glaze:
4 tsp lemon juice (one lemon is enough)
2 tsp honey
100 g icing sugar
Heat the oven to 325F / 163C. Grease a 9-inch cake tin, line the bottom with parchment paper, and butter and flour the base paper. Cream the butter, sugar, and honey together until light and fluffy. Beat the eggs lightly together and slowly incorporate into the butter mixture. Mix the dry ingredients together (all remaining ingredients but the sour cream / yoghurt) and stir well. Fold 1/3 of the flour mixture gently into the butter base, then about 1/3 of the yoghurt. Repeat twice more until all ingredients are just incorporated. Turn the batter into your prepared cake tin and bake in the oven for about 50 min, or until a cake tester comes out clean.
Note that honey browns very quickly in the oven, so if you notice this happening, you can tent your cake with foil for the duration. When the cake is done, remove it from the oven and allow it to cool for about ten min, then place on a rack to cool.
When cool, transfer to a plate and make the icing: whisk the lemon juice and honey together, then whisk in the icing sugar (ideally pre-sifted to remove lumps). Drizzle/spread over your cake, allowing the icing to trickle down the sides. Sprinkle with additional lavender flowers. Allow icing to set, and serve.
I thought the lavender might be a bit subtle, but it was a nice, moist cake. It went down pretty well (I think). The icing got good feedback too - it was thick and spreadable and maintained a good layer - it's perhaps a good idea to use for other cakes too!
Friday, July 14, 2017
Melon, feta and toasted almond salad with honey-miso dressing
The last few months, I have made a lot of delicious salads, but rarely remembered to write them down here. This one I have made again and again. It's simple, but really refreshing.
1-2 little gem lettuces (or butter lettuce, or similar mild/crisp lettuce)
1/2 a small Galia melon (or canteloupe)
1/2 of a 200 g pack feta
approx. 1/4 cup almonds, chopped
For the dressing:
2 tsp white miso
1 tsp honey
2 1/2 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
black pepper and a little salt (not much, the miso is salty)
Wash and chop the lettuce and put it in a medium sized bowl. Remove the peel from the melon, chop it into bite-sized chunks and add to the bowl. Crumble in the feta. Toast the almonds in a frying pan over a medium-low heat until lightly browned (or in the oven, if you feel like switching it on)
In a separate, small bowl, beat together the dressing ingredients. When ready to serve, add the toasted nuts to the salad, then pour over the dressing and toss.
Notes: sometimes I like to add a little chopped mint - not always though, often it's good in it's simplest form. This dressing is in very regular rotation in our kitchen - over all kinds of salads - it's very adaptable - sometimes just a hint of miso, sometimes some mustard too, sometimes lemon juice instead of vinegar, sometimes without honey...
1-2 little gem lettuces (or butter lettuce, or similar mild/crisp lettuce)
1/2 a small Galia melon (or canteloupe)
1/2 of a 200 g pack feta
approx. 1/4 cup almonds, chopped
For the dressing:
2 tsp white miso
1 tsp honey
2 1/2 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
black pepper and a little salt (not much, the miso is salty)
Wash and chop the lettuce and put it in a medium sized bowl. Remove the peel from the melon, chop it into bite-sized chunks and add to the bowl. Crumble in the feta. Toast the almonds in a frying pan over a medium-low heat until lightly browned (or in the oven, if you feel like switching it on)
In a separate, small bowl, beat together the dressing ingredients. When ready to serve, add the toasted nuts to the salad, then pour over the dressing and toss.
Notes: sometimes I like to add a little chopped mint - not always though, often it's good in it's simplest form. This dressing is in very regular rotation in our kitchen - over all kinds of salads - it's very adaptable - sometimes just a hint of miso, sometimes some mustard too, sometimes lemon juice instead of vinegar, sometimes without honey...
Wednesday, July 12, 2017
Chard, herb and feta pide-pie
Recently, when I've gotten something in my head I want to eat, I want to eat that thing and only that thing. Yesterday, it was pie - something like the multitude of greens+cheese pies we ate in Greece. We had a big bunch of chard in the fridge, and with some feta and a selection of herbs from the yard, this seemed like it (I used this recipe and this one as guides for the filling). But then, pastry - I never really make pastry, I definitely don't have a go-to recipe. I also have a distinct aversion to going to the shops for a single ingredient - I'd always rather improvise with the contents of the fridge. And I don't currently own a pie dish, so I had to find something that could be free-shaped and plonked on a baking sheet. It turns out that thing can be called a galette, and I liked the idea of a dough with yoghurt in it (I'd like it even more if it had olive oil instead of butter, will have to investigate), so I thought I'd try this recipe. When S got home, he thought the idea came from the tasty pide I have sometimes been buying from a Middle Eastern bakery on the way home, and it's true - they were pretty much pide-shaped and filled, and pide are also a freeform shape like what I was looking for - next time, I'll have to look up pide dough recipes.
(Make sure to start the dough an hour before you want to shape and bake the pies - it needs to rest in the fridge. I made two medium sized pies that fitted comfortably on my baking trays, but the recipe could easily make one big pie or four smaller pies)
For the dough:
160 g (1 1/4 cups) plain flour (definitely needs more - at least 200g)
1/4 tsp salt (don't use if using salted butter)
115 g (8 tbsp) cold unsalted butter (don't add extra salt if using salted)
60 g (1/4 cup) yoghurt
2 tsp lemon juice
60 ml (1/4 cup) ice water
For the filling:
big bunch of chard (c. 250 g - or beet greens)
olive oil
3 large spring onions, chopped
2 tbsp chopped parsley, chopped
1 tbsp chopped oregano, chopped
2 tsp chopped mint, chopped
2 tsp chopped sage, chopped
2 tbsp grated parmesan
1/3 of a 200g pack of feta
1 egg, and the white of another left from making the pastry glaze, beaten
salt+pepper
For the pastry glaze:
1 egg yolk (put the rest in the filling), beaten with
1 tsp water
First, prepare the dough: put the flour (and salt, if using) into a large bowl, then chop the butter into small dice and add to the bowl. Rub the butter into the flour as if making crumble. Mix the yoghurt, lemon juice and water in a small bowl, then add to the flour-butter crumbs and mix until the dough comes together into a ball. Add a little more flour if it doesn't stick together in a ball. Wrap the ball in clingfilm and put in the fridge for at least an hour (up to two days).
While resting the dough, prepare the filling. Wash chard and separate stems from leafy parts. Chop the stems, and tear the leafy parts into pieces. Heat olive oil in a large frying pan and add the spring onions and chard stems. Fry reasonably high for a few minutes. Add chard leaves and herbs and saute for a few minutes, until the chard collapses. Let cool a bit in the pan, then transfer to a colander. When cool enough to handle, squeeze out as much liquid as you can and discard the liquid. Transfer the mixture to a bowl, crumble over the feta, then add the parmesan and egg, mix up, and season with salt and pepper. This should be about the right time to start the oven - heat to 200C / 400F.
To assemble, split the dough in half. Roll out one half into an approximate circle on a well-floured work surface. It should be about the size of a large plate, about 3 mm thick. Fold lightly in half, then in quarters, and transfer to a baking sheet lined with baking paper. Unfold. Spread half the filling in the middle, out to about 1 1/2 inches from the edge. Then fold in the edges to overlap the outer part of the filling, pleating and crumpling to make it fit. Brush the exposed pastry with egg glaze, then put the pie in the oven. Repeat with the other half of the dough and filling.
Bake for approximately 25-30 minutes, until the pie is golden. Take out and eat pretty much immediately with a simple salad, or let cool and take for lunches (it's fairly robust and travels well).
Notes:
Shaping the dough was super straightforward, and nothing annoying happened whatsoever. And the pies came out great - prettily crumpled and golden, crisp tasty pastry (no soggy bottom), stored well in the fridge for a few days and nice cold (although I have actually been reheating in the microwave at work for c. 15 sec). Could maybe have done with a little more filling, but it was sufficient - never underestimate how much greens collapse when cooked! So many other filling ideas now! And, I would like to try with an olive oil pastry.
* I used the gram measurements from the original recipe, but it came out a little wet and I had to add a bit more flour - my guess is it should be approx. 200 g flour instead of 160 g
(Make sure to start the dough an hour before you want to shape and bake the pies - it needs to rest in the fridge. I made two medium sized pies that fitted comfortably on my baking trays, but the recipe could easily make one big pie or four smaller pies)
For the dough:
160 g (1 1/4 cups) plain flour (definitely needs more - at least 200g)
1/4 tsp salt (don't use if using salted butter)
115 g (8 tbsp) cold unsalted butter (don't add extra salt if using salted)
60 g (1/4 cup) yoghurt
2 tsp lemon juice
60 ml (1/4 cup) ice water
For the filling:
big bunch of chard (c. 250 g - or beet greens)
olive oil
3 large spring onions, chopped
2 tbsp chopped parsley, chopped
1 tbsp chopped oregano, chopped
2 tsp chopped mint, chopped
2 tsp chopped sage, chopped
2 tbsp grated parmesan
1/3 of a 200g pack of feta
1 egg, and the white of another left from making the pastry glaze, beaten
salt+pepper
For the pastry glaze:
1 egg yolk (put the rest in the filling), beaten with
1 tsp water
First, prepare the dough: put the flour (and salt, if using) into a large bowl, then chop the butter into small dice and add to the bowl. Rub the butter into the flour as if making crumble. Mix the yoghurt, lemon juice and water in a small bowl, then add to the flour-butter crumbs and mix until the dough comes together into a ball. Add a little more flour if it doesn't stick together in a ball. Wrap the ball in clingfilm and put in the fridge for at least an hour (up to two days).
While resting the dough, prepare the filling. Wash chard and separate stems from leafy parts. Chop the stems, and tear the leafy parts into pieces. Heat olive oil in a large frying pan and add the spring onions and chard stems. Fry reasonably high for a few minutes. Add chard leaves and herbs and saute for a few minutes, until the chard collapses. Let cool a bit in the pan, then transfer to a colander. When cool enough to handle, squeeze out as much liquid as you can and discard the liquid. Transfer the mixture to a bowl, crumble over the feta, then add the parmesan and egg, mix up, and season with salt and pepper. This should be about the right time to start the oven - heat to 200C / 400F.
To assemble, split the dough in half. Roll out one half into an approximate circle on a well-floured work surface. It should be about the size of a large plate, about 3 mm thick. Fold lightly in half, then in quarters, and transfer to a baking sheet lined with baking paper. Unfold. Spread half the filling in the middle, out to about 1 1/2 inches from the edge. Then fold in the edges to overlap the outer part of the filling, pleating and crumpling to make it fit. Brush the exposed pastry with egg glaze, then put the pie in the oven. Repeat with the other half of the dough and filling.
Bake for approximately 25-30 minutes, until the pie is golden. Take out and eat pretty much immediately with a simple salad, or let cool and take for lunches (it's fairly robust and travels well).
Notes:
Shaping the dough was super straightforward, and nothing annoying happened whatsoever. And the pies came out great - prettily crumpled and golden, crisp tasty pastry (no soggy bottom), stored well in the fridge for a few days and nice cold (although I have actually been reheating in the microwave at work for c. 15 sec). Could maybe have done with a little more filling, but it was sufficient - never underestimate how much greens collapse when cooked! So many other filling ideas now! And, I would like to try with an olive oil pastry.
* I used the gram measurements from the original recipe, but it came out a little wet and I had to add a bit more flour - my guess is it should be approx. 200 g flour instead of 160 g
Rhubarb, strawberry and walnut loaf
We planted our first rhubarb last year (purchased from a big kræmmermarked at Bellahøj). And then tried to ignore it for while, since I read it is better not to pick any the first year.
Having patiently waited for what felt like ages, I picked the first of it in late Spring. It was a bit pathetic: about six sticks as thick as my finger. Perhaps it needs some compost? But anyway, I was determined to celebrate it, and decided on a cake, to try and make it go as far as possible. I didn't originally intend to combine it with strawberry, but felt like the cake could maybe use a bit more fruit and we had some in the house, so strawberries got in there too, and streusel topping seemed like a good idea, so here we go. I used this recipe.
(makes one normal-sized loaf cake)
For the cake:
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/3 cup veg oil
1 egg
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tbsp honey rum
1 cup flour
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/4 cup yoghurt
1/2 cup chopped rhubarb
1/2 cup chopped strawberries
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
For the crumble topping:
1 tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
3 - 3 1/2 tbsp flour
2 tbsp butter, melted
1/4 cup chopped walnut
Heat the oven to 350F / 176C. Grease a loaf tin and line the base.
Beat together the brown sugar, veg oil, egg and rum. Mix the flours, ground ginger, salt and bicarb with a fork in a large bowl. Add wet to dry, and also add in the yoghurt. Mix until just combined, stirring in strawberries, rhubarb and walnuts in the final strokes. Dollop into the loaf tin and smooth out the top.
Combine topping ingredients except the walnuts: it should be thick and clumpy. Mix in the walnuts. Sprinkle topping evenly over the loaf.
Bake for 55 - 65 min, or until a skewer comes out clean.
NB: a second harvest of rhubarb became rhubarb, strawberry, ginger and almond crumble - pretty much like this one, except using real butter and chopped whole almonds instead of flaked (again, included strawberries because didn't have enough rhubarb for crumble).
Having patiently waited for what felt like ages, I picked the first of it in late Spring. It was a bit pathetic: about six sticks as thick as my finger. Perhaps it needs some compost? But anyway, I was determined to celebrate it, and decided on a cake, to try and make it go as far as possible. I didn't originally intend to combine it with strawberry, but felt like the cake could maybe use a bit more fruit and we had some in the house, so strawberries got in there too, and streusel topping seemed like a good idea, so here we go. I used this recipe.
(makes one normal-sized loaf cake)
For the cake:
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/3 cup veg oil
1 egg
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tbsp honey rum
1 cup flour
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/4 cup yoghurt
1/2 cup chopped rhubarb
1/2 cup chopped strawberries
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
For the crumble topping:
1 tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
3 - 3 1/2 tbsp flour
2 tbsp butter, melted
1/4 cup chopped walnut
Heat the oven to 350F / 176C. Grease a loaf tin and line the base.
Beat together the brown sugar, veg oil, egg and rum. Mix the flours, ground ginger, salt and bicarb with a fork in a large bowl. Add wet to dry, and also add in the yoghurt. Mix until just combined, stirring in strawberries, rhubarb and walnuts in the final strokes. Dollop into the loaf tin and smooth out the top.
Combine topping ingredients except the walnuts: it should be thick and clumpy. Mix in the walnuts. Sprinkle topping evenly over the loaf.
Bake for 55 - 65 min, or until a skewer comes out clean.
NB: a second harvest of rhubarb became rhubarb, strawberry, ginger and almond crumble - pretty much like this one, except using real butter and chopped whole almonds instead of flaked (again, included strawberries because didn't have enough rhubarb for crumble).
Wasabi yoghurt
We went to a wannabe Michelin vegetarian restaurant in Copenhagen. It was a looong dinner, with some serious ups and downs. Some things were delicious, others were just ridiculous. And there were some very long breaks between courses...
One of the things we really liked, and seemed like a simple but effective idea, was a thick wasabi - yoghurt paste. We made a simple version of it at home as a dip: skyr mixed with wasabi paste. And it was good. The amount of wasabi is down to personal taste. We used skyr so we wouldn't have to strain yoghurt. But that was it - a two-ingredient recipe.
One of the things we really liked, and seemed like a simple but effective idea, was a thick wasabi - yoghurt paste. We made a simple version of it at home as a dip: skyr mixed with wasabi paste. And it was good. The amount of wasabi is down to personal taste. We used skyr so we wouldn't have to strain yoghurt. But that was it - a two-ingredient recipe.
Wild garlic and edamame pesto
We secretly replanted some wild garlic into the wilder parts of our garden last year. As usual with suchlike, I didn't touch it for a year so it would have a chance to settle in. So, first harvest: wild garlic pesto; full of green stuff; garlickiness slightly dispersed by edamame content.
1/2 cup edamame, defrosted
c. 15 leaves wild garlic
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
3-4 tbsp olive oil
salt+pepper
Put all ingredients into a blender and blend. Taste for seasoning and acid (add a little more salt, pepper, lemon juice, olive oil if it needs it). Store and eat as normal pesto.
1/2 cup edamame, defrosted
c. 15 leaves wild garlic
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
3-4 tbsp olive oil
salt+pepper
Put all ingredients into a blender and blend. Taste for seasoning and acid (add a little more salt, pepper, lemon juice, olive oil if it needs it). Store and eat as normal pesto.
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