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A short recipe free interlude……

So 2014 has been pretty rubbish so far and last weekend, just as I had eggs and butter coming to room temperature for a baked blog post to get back into the swing of posting regularly again, I decided to put a wash on before commencing baking. Only I bent down and couldn’t get back up again….for 90 minutes… and then managed to drag my sorry self onto my bed where I have largely stayed all week. I’m not sure what I have done to my back but it’s not happy so this is once again going to hamper the frequency of my posting.

The last thing I photographed before putting my back out were my baking jars complete with newly acquired hand made porcelain labels by London ceramicist Jo Heckett so I thought I would share them with you and let you know she has a great range of these labels in her Etsy store and even better, some are included in a current sample sale

I have never intended to advertise or review items on my blog and I was a regular paying customer (albeit at sample sale prices) so have not been asked to blog about these labels but I thought they were too gorgeous not to share with you all especially given my current baking hiatus.

Possibly the Best Buttery Sultana Flapjacks

After chatting with my cousin last month regarding his flapjack disasters, he reminded me how tricky I found flapjacks when I was tasked with making them for the first time for the stall I baked for. I think it took me 5 attempts to end up with the following recipe and I learnt the hard way (sometimes quite literally) how crucial the oven temperature is to the finished consistency. Too high and you could break your teeth, too low and the oats won’t hold together.

Many recipes call for brown sugar but I found by caramelising the butter and white sugar mixture while it’s molten gives the same flavour. I also recommend using an oven thermometer as the in built gauges can not always be relied upon.

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Sticky Toffee Pudding

Apologies for the lack of posts so far this year, my mum has been extremely unwell since Christmas and I’m not sure when I will be posting regularly again as I am still in Cornwall.

To tide you all over until normal service is resumed, here is the Sticky Toffee Pudding recipe I was saving for the end of January when everyone’s resolve had waned due to the cold and wet weather.

I absolutely love this recipe and once again the BBC Good Food website is the source of this fabulous dessert. I often make this when people are coming over in winter as the puddings and sauce can be made the day before and reheated when ready to serve. Below you will see I used rectangular 200ml ‘mini loaf’ cake pans as I don’t have proper pudding moulds so I have included the quantities and timing for different sized tins.

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Lebkuchen

Here is a last post of 2014 before I head to Cornwall for the holidays. This is another good edible gift idea which I like to present in glass jars with a ribbon or great to offer to guests who pop in for a cuppa over the festive period. Lebkuchen are a traditional German soft spiced gingerbread biscuit glazed with icing sugar and water. You can also dip the bottoms in dark chocolate to make them even more yummy.

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Danish Rum Balls (Romkugler)

These Romkugler are not rum truffles in the conventional sense, I guess they are most likely the original cake pop. Created by Danish bakers as a way to use up left over cake, this recipe uses porridge oats instead of cake but you can substitute the oats for cake for a more authentic rum ball. These are quick to whizz together if you have a processor and are easy – if a little messy – to make. This recipe is taken from Signe Johansen’s book Scandilicious Baking.

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Incredibly Tasty Mince Pies

I have adapted the pastry from this BBC Good Food recipe ‘Unbelievably Easy Mince Pies’ by adding some egg to make it possible to roll out. It is a very short sweet pastry but it is very forgiving. If you have problems with pastry, my method does require some patience when rolling out as it can’t be too cold or too warm and it does have a tendency to crack/stick if not well floured. By all means follow the original recipe which is not meant to be rolled out but formed freehand in the patty tins by pressing a ball of dough into shape which will result in a more rustic looking pie. That method is also great if making these with children.

For anyone not familiar with mince pies, the modern day version we enjoy in the UK does not contain any meat. It is a mixture of brandy soaked dried fruits and you can find the recipe I use here or use a good supermarket mincemeat and stir in a splash of brandy or rum before spooning out into the pies.

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Chocolate and Mulled Cider Cake

As soon as I spotted this recipe for chocolate and mulled cider cake by Will Torrent in the December issue of Jamie Magazine, I knew I was going to have to give it a try. It would make a great alternative to christmas pudding and has the wow factor in both looks and taste. It keeps well for several days in an air tight container. Most supermarkets sell mulled cider or make your own by heating apple cider in a saucepan with a mulling spice sachet or star anise, cloves, a cinnamon stick and a squeeze of orange.

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Boozy Cider and Brandy Mincemeat

Jars at the ready it’s another Christmas jarring recipe……I have scoured the recipe land in search of the perfect mincemeat and a few years ago think I found it! After trying various traditional suet mincemeats, baked mincemeats and veggie mincemeats, Hettie Potter’s suet-free mincemeat from Nigella Lawson’s How to be a Domestic Goddess has got to be the best. Not least because it contains half a bottle of cider which is always going to win a Cornish girl over but it is the juiciest fruitiest mincemeat going with a satisfying boozy kick.

I use the large glass jars that supermarket own brand golden syrup comes in and find this recipe perfectly fills 3 of these 680g jars. Each jar makes about 2 dozen mince pies.

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Caraway Seed Cake

Winter is drawing in and I’m feeling less and less like going out at the weekends. There is something so comforting about tucking yourself up at home away from the elements and this caraway seed cake by Nigella is perfect for cold winter weekends with a cup of tea or an indulgent hot chocolate. The ground almonds make it very moist and buttery and it will keep wrapped in an airtight container for up to 7 days.

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Caramelised Red Onion Chutney

Of all the chutneys I make at Christmas time this caramelised red onion chutney is the one that people are still talking about in summer, so much so that I have had to start making a mid year batch to tide people over, myself included! Aside from pairing it with cold meats or a cheese board, its excellent at pepping up cheese on toast, on pizza with goats cheese or in a quiche. I found this amazing recipe courtesy of the Guardian website and the recipe is by Fraser Doherty of Super Jam fame.

I use large red onions so find that makes approximately 1.4 litres which is roughly enough for 3 medium 300ml jars and 3 small 180ml jars. The recipe isn’t specific on what sort of brown sugar so I use 100g light brown and 100g dark brown sugar to cover all bases. And again, as per my other chutney post, your house will smell of onions and vinegar for a good few days after making this.

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