Recipes: Cornflake Tart

When people talk about the 80's I still think it was only about 10 years ago, and don't even get me started on the 90's.  It seems like only yesterday I was whizzing around on a little skateboard, pretending to be Marty McFly. Where does the time go?  One of the memories I hold dearest was going to school, I went to primary school in Sunderland and boy was it a beautiful building. A huge red brick Victorian number which still had the segregated boys and girls entrances, though we didn't use them.  I'm not that old.  Sadly it was pulled down to make way for a new modern school, a travesty if you ask me.  

One of my favourite things about school was the school dinners, well the desserts more than the dinners. You can't really look back on liver and onions with much fondness.  The anticipation as we entered the dining hall was always high. Would there be any strawberry milk left, what sweet treats awaited our eager selves or would we be stuck with a crappy portion of spotted dick?  There was one pudding that we always crossed our fingers for, the magestic cornflake tart. Always served in squares cut from a huge silver tray and drenched in thick creamy custard, it was the king of the school dinner. 

I completely forgot about this childhood treat until a few weeks ago my bestie brought up the subject of school dinners at work. We started discussing our favourite meals with childish nostalgia, and the ones that left a bad taste in our mouth. There was one thing we both agreed on, cornflake tart was the best.  Somehow she convinced me to whip one up and bring it into work for us to enjoy over a cup of tea, I mean it didn't really take much persuarion if I'm honest. I went home and made it that very night. What a great friend I am!

If, like me, you look back on this tart with fondness, or if you've never had it. Maybe you were a packed lunch kid? I can highly recommend reliving a little bit of your childhood and spending an afternoon in the kitchen recreating a little bit of your school days. 

Cornflake Tart

Ingredients:

• For the pastry :
• 125g plain flour
• 50g ground almonds
• 100g butter, cold from the fridge and cut into cubes
• 25g caster sugar
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 small lemon, zested


• For the tart :
• 75g butter
• 150g golden syrup
• 50g caster sugar
• pinch salt
• 150g cornflakes
• 25g desicated coconut
• 100g good quality raspberry jam

Cooking Directions:

1. To make the pastry, put the flour, ground almonds and salt into the bowl of a food processor, sprinkle in the butter and pulse until you get a breadbrumb like consistency. Add in the sugar, lemon and the egg yolk and pulse again until the pastry comes together in a ball. If it isn't quite coming together add a tsp of cold water until you realy the right consistency.
2. Tip the pastry onto a lightly floured workbench and bring it together into a flat disc. Wrap in cling film and chill in the fridge for 1hr minimum or up to 12hrs.
3. Preheat the oven to 180°C fan. Roll out the chilled pastry on a lightly floured work surface to about 3mm thick. Line a 23cm tart tin with the pastry, trim any excess, prick the base with a fork and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
4. Line your chilled pastry base with greasproof paper and fill with baking beans. Blind bake the case for 20 minutes, remove the paper and beans and bake for another 10 minutes until golden brown. Allow to cool.
5. For the filling combine the butter, syrup, sugar and salt in a saucepan set over a lowheat and melt, stirring slowly. Remove from the heat, then tip in the cornflakes and coconut and mix in gently ensuring to give everything a good coating of syrup.
6. Spread the raspberry jam over the bottom of the cooked pastry case and top with the cornflake mixture. Pop back into the oven for 15 minutes, until golden brown. Allow to cool slightly before serving warm with lashings of vanilla custard.

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Lemon Meringue Pie - Revisited

Recently, on Facebook, I was asked to share the very first post I wrote for my blog. It was for a blogging group I'm part of and it was such fun to see how much everyone has changed over the years, especially me. Dark images taken at night on my little point and click digital camera, I truely had no clue. I bet you're desperate to see it, well here you go, Lemon Meringue Pie. My favorite dessert in the whole world and the very first recipe posted on this here blog.

When I looked back on this sad excuse for food blogging a thought hit me, I haven't made a lemon meringue pie since that day back in 2008! That is something I had to rectify immediatly.  One thing hasn't changed, I still prefer a buttery biscuit base, but this time I went for gingersnaps rather than digestives. The ginger crust is just the perfect acompanyment to the zingy lemon custard.

This recipe is addapted from Gorgeous Cakes, which is one of the very first baking books I ever bought and one I still refer back to today.

Lemon Meringue Pie with a Gingersnap Crust

Ingredients

• For the crust:
• 250g gingersnap biscuits
• 110g unsalted butter, melted


• For the topping:
• Zest and juce of 4 lemons
• 1 tin of condensed milk
• 4 large, free range eggs seperated
• 110g caster sugar

Cooking Directions

1. Whizz the biscuits in a food processor untill finely chopped. Put the crumbs in a bowl, add melted butter and mix until the crumbs are evenly coated with the butter. Press the mixture into a 20cm tart tin with a removable base. Start with the sides then move onto the base, using your fingers to press the mixture down.
2. Preheat the oven to 170C. Before juicing the lemons roll them on the counter to release as much juice as possible. Combine the zest and juice with the condensed milk in a bowl, whisking till you have a smooth cream. Now, whisk in the egg yolks and pour onto the biscuit base.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer whisk the egg whites until they rise to a froth. Sprinkle over the sugar 1tbsp at a time, whisking well with each addition until you have a stiff and glossy meringue.
4. Mound the meringue mixture on top of the lemon cream, taking it to the edge of the tin. bake for around 30 minutes or until the surface of the meringue is lightly golden and crusty, and the custard set. Remove from the oven and leave to cool before removing it from the tin.
5. The pie is best eaten on the day it is baked. 

Of course, if you decide to give this a go please do tag me in your instagram posts, I'd love to see. I'm over at Katie_Petlamb.

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Salty Honey Pie

When I visited New York earlier this year I made a big, no huge, list of places I wanted to eat.  You know, important things first.  One of the spots on my extensive foodie inventory was Four and Twenty Blackbirds pie shop in Brooklyn.  I've always wanted to visit a pie shop after falling in love with the Pie Hole in Pushing Daisies, so I was beyond thrilled to find this little beauty.  Doubly so when I discovered it was across the road from The Morbid Anatomy Museum, one of the big stops of our trip.

While indulging in copious amounts of pie I also managed to pick up a copy of the Four and Twenty cookbook, you know, so I could continue to indulge my greedy little face back home.  I decided to take it for a spin recently and just had to make their crowning glory, the salty honey pie.

This pie, ahh man, it's a sweet tooth's dream come true.  Deliciously sweet custard topped with a sprinkle of crunchy salt, it's just perfect.  Irresistible almost!

I've made this pie twice now, the first time I was feeling a little lazy and used shop bought pastry. Boo hiss.  It was a total failure, if you do decide to make this pie I implore you to make your own crust.  You won't be sorry!

Salty Honey Pie

Recipe by Four & Twenty Blackbirds Cookbook

Ingredients

For the crust :
• 120g unsalted butter, cubed
• 360g plain flour
• 2tsp caster sugar
• 80ml buttermilk
• 1/2tsp salt
For the filling :
• 120g unsalted butter
• 100g caster sugar
• 1tbsp polenta
• 2tsp vanilla extract
• 250g honey
• 3 large, free range eggs
• 120ml double cream
• 2tsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 - 2tsp flaked salt

Cooking Directions

1. First of all make the crust. Put the flour, butter, sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl blend together with your fingers until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the buttermilk and stir until the mixture forms a ball. (If the mixture is too crumbly, add cold water as needed to bring it together.) Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and place in the fridge for at least an hour.
2. Unwrap the dough and place it on a lightly floured surface. With a rolling pin, roll out the dough until it’s around 11" round, big enough to overlap your pie dish. Transfer the dough to a 9" pie dish, fold any overlap under itself and crimp the edges*. Cover with plastic wrap and pop in the fridge while you prepare the filling.
3. Heat the oven to 175°C. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Combine the melted butter, sugar, polenta and vanilla extract in a medium bowl. Whisk in the honey, then beat in the eggs one at a time. Add the cream and vinegar and whisk to combine.
4. Pour the filling into the chilled pie crust and bake until the top and edge of the pie are golden brown and the center of the pie is jiggly but no longer liquid, 45 to 55 minutes. Allow to set for a few hours and serve at room temperature sprinkled with flaked salt. 

 *How to crimp a pie crust

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Salted Caramel Chocolate Tort

This is not a desert for the faint hearted, this is a tort for the major leagues!  This is an 'I just got dumped, where's the chocolate' tort, an 'I deserved that promotion more than her' kinda pie or, maybe even a 'I can't believe you made that!' ending to a dinner party.  This will inspire a chorus of oooohs and ahhs and will result in your friends begging you for the recipe. But you'll never tell, for then they'll see how unbelievably simple this tort is.  This one is between you and me, and nobody else!

When my lovely sister in law requested a cheesecake for her birthday celebrations I knew what she really had in mind. Something decedent, something rich and luxurious. A simple cheesecake just wasn't going to cut the mustard, enter salted caramel, the daddy of luxury deserts.

Now this is one rich s.o.b so cut it in slivers and don't say I didn't warn you.  And don't worry, I'll take the calorie content to the grave, brownies honor!

Salted Caramel Chocolate Tort

(adapted from BBC Good Food)

Ingredients:

200g digestive biscuits

100g melted salted butter

1 jar dulce de leche

1 tsp sea salt , plus extra to serve

300g quality plain chocolate (70% solids), broken into chunks

600ml tub double cream

25g icing sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

chocolate truffles to decorate

Method: 

Line the base and sides of a deep, round 20cm loose-bottomed cake tin with baking parchment. 

Crush the biscuits in a food processor or bowl with the end of a rolling pin. Stir into the melted butter, then evenly press into the bottom of the tin. Chill for 10 mins. 

Reserve 2 tbsp of the dulce de leche in a small bowl and add 2tbsp of the double cream, cover and place in the fridge until ready to decorate . Stir the sea salt into the remainder of the dulce de leche and spoon into the centre of the biscuit base. Gently spread so the base is evenly covered but a visible 1-2cm border of biscuit remains around the edge. Chill for 20 mins while you make the chocolate layer. 

Gently melt the chocolate in a large heatproof bowl over a pan of barely simmering water.  Once the chocolate has melted, turn off the heat but leave the bowl where it is, and gradually stir in the remaining cream until you have a smooth, shiny, thick chocolate sauce. Sift in the icing sugar and stir in with the vanilla extract. Lift off the heat and let the mixture cool for 10 mins. 

Ladle or pour the chocolate mixture around the edge of the torte first, so it fills the biscuit border, sealing the caramel in the centre. Then ladle or pour in the rest and gently shake to smooth the surface. Chill for at least 5 hrs or up to 24 hours until firm. 

Remove the torte from the tin, then carefully peel off the strip of paper and transfer to a serving plate. Dot the chocolates on top. Spoon the reserved dulce de leche mixture into a piping bag with a thin nozzel or freezer bag. Snip off the tiniest tip of the corner to make a very small opening, then squiggle lines of caramel over the top. Chill until ready to serve. Scatter with a pinch or two of sea salt before serving, then thinly slice.

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Baking Mad - Key Lime Pie

I'm sure you all ready know I don't have much of a sweet tooth, but I have to admit I have a real weakness for super sweet fruity pies! If you were to ask me my top three favorite desserts I'd have to reply, with no hesitation, banoffee pie, lemon meringue pie and key lime pie.  I see any of these babies on a menu and I just have to have it, maybe even all three if I'm feeling saucy!  A few years ago, a few friends and I were planning a trip to Florida.  In the interest of fairness we created a list allowing each person to choose two things they really want to do while there.  As you can imagine there was a lot of "go to Harry Potter World", "ghost hunting in St Augustine Lighthouse" and "feed the gators", my choice was to eat a key lime pie in an awesome diner as close to the Florida Keys as we could possibly get.  I got my wish, and Miami, you gave me the best key lime pie of my life. Until now...

I was recently asked by the lovely team behind the sauciest baker in the land Eric Lanlards Baking Mad to try out one of the recipes from the show.  When I saw my beloved key lime pie on the list I knew I just had to accept.  A few days later a big box of ingredients arrived at my door, I kindly relieved my friendly postman of the heavy sugar laden package and headed to the kitchen, zester and juicer in sight.  Man alive is this a good key lime pie!  The crust is so delicate without being overly crumbly while the filling was so light it could have floated away in a light breeze.  I was in heaven!

Wanna try this superb pie out for yourself? Well set your Sky + box to stun and get recording the wonderful Baking Mad with Eric Lanlard every weekday from March 5th at 12.05pm.

Please excuse the dark images, the light had gone by the time the pie had finished chilling and the thought of leaving it alone in the fridge, overnight, simply did not register.
*rubs tummy*

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A Recipe For Love

With Valentines Day fast approaching I've found myself in a bit of a tizzy.  So much to do with so little time to do it, running two businesses while trying to maintain a blog and a social life can be quite the task sometimes.  When I was contacted by the lovely Ben from Blend about creating a recipe to celebrate the upcoming release of Katie Fforde's new book A Recipe for Love my first reaction was Eeeeek!!  Valentines is in three days and I've got to find time to bake up something sumptuous!  Then I got to thinking, so many of us run such hectic lives; wouldn't it be great to be able to bake something delicious in no time at all?  So I did, and it was fabulous!  Not only does it look like something you could pick up in your local French Patisserie but it's so super simple to make, anyone could do it.

I already had a batch of sweet pastry chilling in the fridge from a past endeavour but if you don't feel like making your own you can always use store bought, just makes things that much quicker.

Chocolate Raspberry Tart

Ingredients:

375g ready rolled desert pastry

250g raspberries

1tbsp caster sugar

200g good quality dark chocolate
250ml double cream

50g butter

30g liquid glucose

Method:

Pre heat your oven to 170C and find a fluted 20cm tart tin.


Unroll your pastry and use to line your tin and trim any ragged edges.  Place a circle of baking paper over your pastry and fill with baking beans.  Any old dried beans will do if you don't have baking beans.  Place tart in the oven for 20 minutes then remove the paper and beans and allow to bake for another 10 minutes.  Remove the tart from the oven and allow to cool completely.  


Pick out a few of the best looking raspberries and set aside, you'll use these for decoration.  Mash the remaining raspberries with the sugar and spread over the base of your cooled tart.  Set aside.

In a small saucepan bring the double cream to the boil.  Remove the pan from the heat and add your chocolate.  Stir to melt slightly then add the butter, piece at a time stirring constantly till melted and smooth.  Squirt in the liquid glucose and mix till combined.  Pour your ganache over the raspberries making sure you don't over fill the tart.  Any left over chocolate can be chilled and used to make chocolate truffles!


Allow the tart to cool and set in the fridge.  Serve at room temperature piled high with raspberries and dusted with cocoa!

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The cutest pies you ever will see

Last weekend I decided to bite the bullet and start the arduous task of clearing out my kitchen cupboards; if you know me and my love of kitsch kitchenalia, you can imagine the task I was facing.  As I was routing around, deep within one particular cupboard, I unearthed these adorable pocket pie moulds I bought while in America last year.  Rather than place them neatly back in their dark coffin, I decided to dust them off and utilise the blackberries and apples currently residing in my fridge and make me some pocket pies.

Now, I know apple and blackberry are an autumnal match made in heaven but judging by the weather we've been seeing in Newcastle lately it looks like September has graced us with her presence early this year.

Aren't they just the sweetest? I can't believe I went for so long without using these adorable little things.  Now, if you excuse me, I think I have some peaches and cherries begging for a new pastry based home...

Blackberry & Apple Pocket Pies

(Adapted from BBC Good Food Magazine)

Ingredients:

425g pack ready-rolled shortcrust pastry (I made my own)

2 Bramley apples , peeled, cored and chopped

2 tbsp light brown sugar plus extra for sprinkling

150g punnet blackberries 

thick cream, to serve 

  

Method:

Heat oven to 200C or fan 180C.  Dust a work surface with icing sugar, then unroll the pastry and using your pie moulds cut out four pie cases.  If you don't have pie moulds you can cut out four circles using a small side plate as a template.

Combine the apples, sugar and blackberries and put a small pile on each pie or pastry circle. Dampen the edge of the pastry, then fold over to encase the fruit. If not using a mould pinch and fold the pastry over along one edge to make a pasty shape. Slash each pasty 3 times, lift onto a baking sheet and bake for 20 mins or until puffed and golden. Serve with cream. 

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And we're off

Oh Sweet Melissa, how I've missed your presence in my kitchen during these cold and snowy weeks. It feels like forever since we last danced, don't ever leave me again. Deal? Deal!

Our first recipe of 2010 is an exciting one, a creative opportunity even. Donna of L'Amour de Tarte chose the chocolate pie crust but the filling was to be left up to us. Decisions decisions. Dozens of combination's flooded my mind, peanut butter, lemon curd, toffee, even a chocolate version of the English classic bakewell tart. The possibilities were endless. Eventually I settled upon one filling, something that marries perfectly with chocolate and one of my very favorite combination's, chocolate, cherry and cream tart.


Like most other Melissa bakers I found the crust quite a disappointment. It was difficult to work with, cracking at every given opportunity and had quite a bland taste despite me subbing the shortening for an all butter version. Oh well, the search for a delicious chocolate crust continues and for now I'll stick to crushed oreos :)

Check out the other SMS girls to see how they decided to fill their pies.

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Butternut Squash and Goats Cheese Pie

As my Sunday tradition details, when going to a friends house I must always have some sort of baked good on my person. The odd few times I've turned up at said friends house empty handed the mood instantly dampens and the guilt trips commence. Since the last few trips have been of the empty handed persuasion I felt I should really make it up to my wonderful chums in the shape of a pie. Nothing says I love you like a pie!

What I love about pies is that anything and everything goes. Got some potatoes and cheese that needs using up, make a pie. Some berries threatening to go bad stashed at the bottom of your fridge, make a pie! It really is the ultimate fridge clear out meal.

I happened upon this glorious specimen as I was casually leafing through the latest copy of Delicious Magazine last week at work. I flicked past the page and paused, I had that feeling. You know the one, when you know you're missing out on something good. So, I turned back the page and gasped at the beautiful image I was confronted with. Unfortunately, I was far too eager to play with my new camera to allow the pie a proper cooling period and attacked it while still warm. This resulted in the sloppy filling rather than the perfectly layered rainbow of yumminess in Delicious, but hey, I'm an impatient child at heart.

Butternut Squash, spinach and goat's cheese pie with cheesy pastry

Ingredients:

• 2 small butternut squashes, peeled, de-seeded and cut into thick slices
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tsp cumin seeds
• 2 tsp ras el hanout
• Pinch of chilli flakes
• 2 red onions, thinly sliced
• 4 whole garlic cloves, skins on
• 500g baby spinach (I used normal spinach)
• 250g ricotta
• 50g pine nuts
• 200g soft, rindless goat cheese sliced
• 
  
• 350g plain flour
• 50g coarse polenta (I used fine)
• 150g cold butter, diced
• a pinch of salt
• 60g grated parmesan (I used local strong cheddar)

Method:

• For the pastry mix the flour, polenta and salt in a large bowl. Add the butter and rub together till the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add the cheese and 5tbsp of cold water (add the water slowly, you may not need it all) till the dough sticks together. Kneed gently until it forms a ball, wrap the pastry in cling film and leave to chill in the fridge for at least 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 200C. Scatter the butternut squash in a large roasting tray and drizzle with half of the olive oil, scatter over the chili flakes, ras el hanout and cumin seeds and season well with salt and black pepper. Roast in the oven, stirring occasionally for 40 minutes.
• Meanwhile, add the sliced onions and garlic cloves to another roasting tray with the rest of the olive oil. Halfway through roasting the squash add the onions to the oven and cook for 20 minutes. Remove the squash and onions from the oven, squeeze out the garlic from the skins and mash the roasted garlic up with the onions.
• Place the spinach in a colander and pour over a kettle of boiling water. Refresh with some cold water and squeeze out any excess liquid. Mix with ricotta and season with salt.
• On a lightly floured surface roll out 2/3 of the pastry and use it to line a 23cm springform time(I used an 18cm tin and reduced the cooking time to 25 mins). Add half the spinach mixture in a layer, then distribute half of the squash on top of that. Scatter with half of the pine nuts and goat's cheese. Repeat for another layer before adding the garlicky onions on top.
• Roll out the rest of the pastry then lay on top of the pie, pushing the edges to seal well. Make a hole in the centre and decorate the top with the left over pastry. Brush the top of the pie with beaten egg and sprinkle with a handful of parmesan. Bake in the preheated oven for 35 - 40 minutes till golden brown on top. Leave to cool for 10 minutes before removing from the tin.

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Mr Kipling, bah!

I love Bakewell Tarts, they remind me of packed lunches on the school field, the scent of freshly cut grass wafting through the air and sun so blissfully warm you left your coats and blazers inside. Alas, it's mid May and the sun has yet to shine; the cut grass doesn't smell but it does agitate my hay fever, and that school field is nothing but a very distant memory. The only thing I can bring back are those nummy Mr Kipling Bakewell Tarts, except they aren't very nummy, are they? Too small, too sweet and wheres the almonds?! There was only one thing for it, make my own of course!


I found the recipe on the trusty BBC Good Food website, the only thing I altered was rather than topping the tart with toasted almonds I drizeled it with an icing so it replicated the Mr Kipling cakes I loved so much as a child. I loved this recipe, so simple and so very tasty, much better than the boxed version.

125g plain flour
75g unsalted butter, cold and diced
25g caster sugar
1 egg yolk
1 egg white

2 heaped tbsp raspberry jam
150g unsalted butter, at room temperature
150g caster sugar
3 eggs, beaten
1 egg yolk
1 lemon zested
1 tbsp flaked almonds
150g ground almonds

To make the pastry, tip the flour, butter and sugar into a food processor with a pinch of salt. Whizz until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add the egg yolk and 1 tsp of cold water and pulse until the dough comes together (if like me you don't have a food processor, just rub the butter into the pastry with your fingertips). Flatten into a disc, cover with clingfilm and chill for no more than 1 hour. n Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface to about 3mm thickness. Line a 20cm fluted tart tin with a depth of 31/2 cm. Prick the base with a fork and chill for 20 minutes.

Heat the oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4.Line the pastry case with baking parchment and fill with baking beans. Cook for about 20 minutes until the pastry is a pale golden colour. Take out the beans, brush the inside of the pastry case with a little egg white and cook for a further 2 minutes. Cool slightly.

Spread the jam in an even layer over the base of the pastry case. Cream together the butter and caster sugar. Gradually add the beaten eggs and egg yolk. Fold in the ground almonds and lemon zest. Carefully spoon the mixture over the jam and spread level. Bake for 20 minutes. Scatter with the flaked almonds and continue to cook for a further 15-20 minutes until golden and set.

Cool to room temperature, dust with icing sugar and serve with pouring cream or custard.

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Caramel Apple Turnovers with Sweet Ricotta Filling

Wowsers! This really is something I would never have picked out of this book if left to my own devices but I sure am glad someone else had the amazing sense too. That someone is Tracy of the fabulous blog Tracy's Culinary Adventures . I love these turnovers, they were so unbelievably simple to make and they make for a killer breakfast!!


Like the recipe stated, I drained the ricotta 24 hours in advance but when I awoke the following morning, there was no excess moisture in the bowl. How odd, I thought, so proceeded to squeeze my cheese cloth till a little of the water dribbled out. I left the bowl a satisfied woman. The apples were also super easy, I've never made caramel before but found it quite an easy process, even leaving it to catch a little bit of Scrubs on TV. I had to force myself to leave the caramelized apples alone at one point, it looks so delicious I was itching for a little spoon full.


They browned a little more than I would have liked but that's all down to my vanity and wanting to be washed and dried for my boy coming home from work. They toasted up a little while I was soaping myself in the bath, ooops. Although I really enjoyed these turnovers I think I'd prefer something in place of the ricotta, maybe a mascarpone based filling would be nice. I just think it needs to be a little creamier, maybe that's just me.


I will definitely make these again, so easy, so tasty, so satisfying. Check out the Sweet Melissa Sunday blogroll for everyone else's attempts :)

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Cottage or Shepards?

I can never remember the difference between a Cottage and a Shepard's Pie. I know one is made with lamb and one with beef but for the life of me I can never remember which is which. As I prefer the name Cottage Pie, that's what I choose to call the one I made today. Yep! To hell with convention!

Today was a pretty normal Sunday, lie in, visit to the local farm shop, nip into a boot sale on the way home. Quite a nice way to spend a day, there was just one difference, we weren't hungover. I think we're finally beginning to grow up. Hurrah! One thing I never realised is how cheap farm shops can be, I always had them pegged for expensive but that's just down to the sheer amount of stuff I buy :D I just wish it was a little closer. One thing I noticed was their 'BBQ in a Box' deal, I've stored that one away for Kris' birthday in June. A huge box filled with 1kg of your choice of Sausage, 10 Mixed Burgers, 10 Kofta Kebabs, 1 kg Rump Steak, 1kg Chicken Fillets, 10 Pork Spare Ribs. Perfect for a bunch of greedy boys and girls :D

I decided to put some of the massive potatoes, carrots and onions I bought to good use today and make a warming Cottage Pie (or whichever it really is). Normally I'd add some mashed turnip to the potato but Kris' face turned a fetching shade of green when I mentioned it so I just mashed a small amount and stuck it on the side of my plate. I'll convert him, one day.

Cottage (?!) Pie

2tbsp Vegetable Oil
500g Minced Lamb
2 Large Carrots, diced
1 Large Onion, diced
1 Clove of Garlic
300ml Beef Stock
Glug of Worcester Sauce
1tbsp Tomato Puree
350g Potato
Glug of Milk
Knob of Butter
50g Grated Cheese
Pinch of Nutmeg
Salt and Pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a large pan over a medium heat. Add the onion and carrot and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes. Add the mince, turn up the heat and cook for 5 minutes, stirring until browned. Add the tomato puree, cook for 1 minute, then pour in the stock, Worcestershire sauce. Bring to the boil, then cover and reduce to a simmer for 20 minutes. Uncover and cook for 5-10 minutes, until most of the liquid is absorbed. Season, then spoon into a 2-2.5-litre ovenproof dish.

For the mash, cut the potatoes into medium-size chunks and put into a large pan of cold salted water. Bring to the boil and simmer for 15 minutes, or until tender. Drain and return to the pan to heat for 30 seconds to drive off the excess moisture. Mash with the milk and nutmeg. Season and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 180C/fan160C/gas 4.

Spoon the mash onto the mince. Rough up with a fork and sprinkle with the cheese. Bake for 25 minutes, until the mash is golden and crisp in places.

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Snow, sleet and rain

It seems the majority of the country has been snowed in these past few days, and for once, we're not getting the worse end of the weather stick up here in Newcastle. But I'd rather that were the case. The most we've had to deal with is a thin veil of snow and tonnes of rain so unfortunately, life must go on.

I have to admit, I'm much more of a winter baby than a sun worshiper. Cold>warm in my humble opinion, it could be the love I have for woolly tights, mittens and hats that sway me, but I'd much rather bundle up than dress down. This being said, I was obviously super jealous when I heard the excited cries of 'Snow Day, Snow Day'. Excitedly, I rang work and checked my uni emails on the off chance we also were to grind to a stand still but, no such luck. Damn! So, I bundled up and headed to my soggy doom ... a literature lecture. Stupidly I accentuated the curls in my naturally dried hair, by the time I got into university the words hedge and backwards ran through my drenched head.

What else do you need on a day like that but pie?! It's the only thing comforting enough to make a soggy Katie smile again.


Luckily I decided to nip into Marks and Spencer on my way home and the little bloody mind readers made my day in the form of a recipe card for Chicken and Leek Pie. Thank you M&S! I had the majority of ingredients to hand at home so I grabbed some leeks, apple juice (oh apple juice, how I love thee) and went back to brave the rain.

I added bacon and mushrooms to the recipe and boy, did it turn out well. I was loving the addition of mascarpone instead of a stock base, it gave the pie a beautifully rich tang.

You can find the recipe here on the M&S site along with the rest of the series. Check out the rhubarb meringue tart, I'll be giving that a go very soon!!

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Brrrrrr

I'm sure you're all very aware of the Geordie stereotype? Those of you who've ever read an issue of Viz will know what I'm talking about. Nighttime rolls around, the pubs begin to fill and thousands of coat-less and, when a lady, tight-less people emerge upon the streets in the depths of Winter, ring a bell? Well, I'm sorry to say that the majority of the time, it's true! There's nothing more sobering than driving through the centre of Newcastle on a Friday night witnessing gaggles of Bigg Market girls in dresses small enough to be my dish cloth in the middle of bloody January. Compare that to little me, snug as a bug under many layers of winter woollies (2 pares of 100 denier tights, thicker than the average pare of trousers. Oh yes!). Madness, utter madness! I'm all for looking pretty, but I'm a firm believer in comfort over fashion....at least at this time of year ;)

As cold as it is, winter is my very favorite time of year, if only for the big stodgy meals you allow yourself to gouge upon. Beef, pastry, potato, massive loaves of sourdough bread...bring it on, all of it, at once! I find myself, all through the British Summertime (what little of it we get up here), wishing the leaves would hurry themselves up and change from green to yellow, all the while pacifying myself on boring sandwiches and dull salads. But, as soon as the very first leaf flutters gently to the floor, the rolling pin is out, the potato masher is liberated and I'm ready to tackle the mountains of winter veg coming my way. I'm all about the comfort food and I live by the moto, bigger is always better, especially when it comes to food!

This January has been the coldest month so far and has left me craving one thing, pie! A steak and ale pie to be precise. I was originally going to use Newcastle Brown Ale as the base but Kris was adamant that Brown gives you a horribly bad tummy if consumed warm. I later discovered that Brown Ale is beautiful in pies and the bad tummy only occurs if drinking it below the recommended temperature, or if the lil star on the bottle hasn't yet turned blue.

I used the recipe from an episode of Jamie at Home I found on the Sky+

Jamie's Steak and Ale Pie:

3 onions
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1 handful of rosemary
3 cloves of garlic
2 carrots
800g Stewing steak, diced
1 pint of Guinness (I used locally produced ale)
1 heaped tablespoon of flour
300ml vegetable stock (I found this to be too much so I only used about 150g of it)
500g puff pastry
100g cheddar cheese (I used mature)
1 egg

Peal and slice the carrots and put them aside for later.
Chop the onions and fry them in a large pan with the olive oil.
Finely chop the rosemary and crush the garlic. Add these to the onions.
Add the carrots, beef, ale and flour to the pan.
Add salt and pepper then pour over the stock, but only add enough so that the meat is not quite covered.
Put on the lid on and put into the oven for 2 hours.
Grate the cheese and after the 2 hours take the pan out of the oven and stir in the grated cheese.
Roll out a third of the puff pastry and use it to line a pie dish.
Pour in the mixture. You can also add a bit of extra cheese on the top.
Roll out the remaining puff pastry for the lid. Carefully score it and brush with the beaten egg before putting on the pie.
Put back in the oven for another 40 mins, or until golden and bubbling.

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Tartaholic

Having a boyfriend who isn't really the biggest fan of fruit means I'm always trying out new ways of incorporating it into my baking, combining them with his favorite ingredients so he'll ignore the 'horrible texture of the flesh' and eat it all up! This Chocolate, Almond and Pear tart has been on my to do list for a while so I set about it!

Now, I've made this tart twice as the first attempt didn't really turn out too well. Through no fault of my own, may I add....well, maybe it was a little my fault. The recipe doesn't call for blind baking the case so when the whole thing goes into the oven, the base doesn't actually cook through leaving a big soggy ring in the middle, yack. Also (this is the part that is just down to my own stupidity) once you cream the butter and sugar the recipe calls for you to just add the eggs. Silly me, didn't stop to think and just dumped them straight into the buttery mixture. Needless to say, it curdled more than I've ever seen anything curdle before, and no amount of me furiously adding flour could fix it. So there I was, trying to cover up my lumpy brown mixture with slices of tinned pear. Sure, it tasted fine, but all I could think of was the little curdled lumps. This simply wouldn't do!


The second attempt proved much more successful. I baked the tart blind for 20 minutes with foil and dried pulses then for another 5 minutes without to colour the base. I reduced the final cooking time by about ten minutes to compensate, basically I just kept an eye on it till the filling was risen and darker in colour. Also, I substituted the tinned pear for fresh, which I don't think worked as well. Maybe next time I'll try poaching them in an amaretto mixture.


I'm still not totally happy but Kris has begged me to leave it alone for the time being. Poor lamb is all peared out! I'd defiantly recommend making this tart, if only for the smell! It fills the whole house with the wonderful aroma of almond, which I just find divine.

Here's the recipe:

For the pastry:

100g plain flour
25g ground almonds
60g margarine, plus extra for greasing
approx 3tbs water

For the filling:

50g butter (I used unsalted)
50g caster Sugar
2 eggs, beaten
100g ground almonds
2tbs cocoa powder
a few drops of almond extract
400g tinned pear halves in natural juice, drained

Preheat the oven to 200C and lightly grease a 20cm tart tn.

Sift the flour and ground almonds together in a bowl then rub in the margarine with your fingertips until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add the water, a little at a time till the dough starts to come together. Wrap in clingfilm and chill in the freezer for 10 minutes. Roll out pastry to about 5mm and use to line your tart tin, prick the base with a fork and chill again.

(this is where I opted to bake the base blind, but you can go with your instincts)

To make the filling, beat the butter and sugar together till light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs (GRADUALLY!! haha) then fold in the ground almonds, cocoa powder and almond extract. Spread the mixture in the pastry case. Thinly slice the pears and arrange on top of the tart, pressing down lightly. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until the filling has risen. Allow to cool before transferring to a plate or tray.

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Oh, it's a classic....

I remember as a child lemon meringue pie was one of my favorite deserts. I was obsessed with the crispy meringue, the sharp tang of the custard and the crumbly biscuit base. Then, for some reason, my mum decided to get a job and hang up her domestic housewife apron so sadly I said goodbye to freshly baked goods and in turn, my favorite pie :( Till now!

Pretty much every recipe I've come across for this wonderful tart has had a pastry crust, which in my eyes just doesn't cut the mustard...or lemon custard in this case! A lemon meringue pie just isn't the same without a high digestive crust. For some reason, they just don't look as pretty. But a few weeks ago I came across a previously overlooked recipe in one of my favorite cookbooks, Gorgeous Cakes. A lemon meringue pie with my biscuit crust! Hurrah!! I instantly grabbed my coat and bag and set off into town, a girl on a mission you might say! Several hours later, armed with many heavy bags, I burst through my front door ready to bake!

Now usually I don't have any luck with meringue, either they just don't rise or they fake it in the oven and flop into a crusty mess the second I remove them. Crafty buggers. But for the first time in my life, they turned out perfect, if I do say so myself!






Oh it was divine! Next time I think I'll invest in some small tartlet tins and make a few smaller versions. Only because my Kris told his, and my mum about this delightful pie and they both demanded I make one for each of them. Sigh, a girls work is never done!

Recipe taken from Annie Bells Gorgeous Cakes!

225g digestive biscuits crushed (I stuffed them in a plastic bag and attacked them with a rolling pin)
110g unsalted butter, melted
Finely grated zest and juice of 4 lemons
1 400g tin of condensed milk
4 large eggs at room temperature, separated
110g caster sugar

Makes 1 20cm pie :)

Whizz the biscuits in a food processor till fine, or do as I did, beat them within an inch of their lives with a rolling pin! Put the crumbs in a bowl, add melted butter and toss until the crumbs are evenly coated. Press the mixture into a 20cm cake tin, 9cm deep with a removable base. Start with the sides then move onto the base, using your fingers to press the mixture down.

Preheat the oven to 170C fan/190C/gas mark 5. Before juicing the lemons roll them on the counted to release as much juice as possible. Combine the zest ad juice with the condensed milk in a bowl, whisking both till you have a smooth cream. Now, whisk in the egg yolks and pour onto the biscuit base. Whisk the egg whites in a very clean bowl until they rise to a froth. Sprinkle over the sugar 1tbsp at a time, whisking well with each addition until you have a stiff and glossy meringue. Normally more sugar would be used in a meringue, this is to account for the sweetness of the base. You don't want a sugar overload...or do you??

Mound the meringue mixture on top of the lemon cream, taking it to the edge of the tin. bake for around 30 minutes or until the surface of the meringue is lightly golden and crusty, and the custard set. Remove from the oven and leave to cool. run a knife around the collar of the pie to loosen the sides then remove it completely.

The pie is best eaten on the day it is baked. If you do decided to chill it, as I did, remove it from the fridge for about 30 minutes before serving.

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