Sticky Pecan and Raisin Buns

Gosh, these are good!  Puff pastry rolled around brown sugar, cinnamon and raisins, sliced, then baked on a bed of butter, more brown sugar, and chopped pecans.   Another contribution to the charity cake sale today, and everyone enjoyed them heated very briefly in the microwave, when they emerged squidgy, fragrant and buttery (the buns, that is, not my colleagues, though they ended up that way after eating them).  I broke the low(er) fat regime by sharing one with a colleague.  Unfortunately, I also shared a chocolate danish, a slice of the Lemon and Apple Tart, a piece of Apple and Blueberry Cake and half a Raspberry and White Chocolate Brownie through the course of the day.  My maths isn't very good, but even I know that adds up to ......errr.....rather a lot of cake :-)

Anyway, make these buns, and they will make you smile all day.  based on a recipe by Ina Garten, they can be found on any number of blogs, but here is a link to the Food Network recipe from her show.  Follow the advice in the comments boxes - cut back the amount of butter and sugar a wee bit, and I reduced the cinnamon too - 3 teaspoons would be overwhelming.  Also, DO NOT let them sit for too long before turning out, as the molten butter and sugar quickly sets rock hard, and you will be chipping them out with a pick-axe.

Delia's Flaky Fish Pie

I wonder why this recipe has eluded me until now?  It is in my battered and well-thumbed copy of Delia's 'Complete Cookery Course' which is well over 20 years old.  Perhaps it is the lack of a photo?  Anyway, it is supremely good, using puff pastry rather than mash (I used a sheet of bought puff rather than the home-made flaky in the recipe).  I can do no better than point you to the recipe on her website, and use her picture - mine was pretty-much like hers but without the fancy pastry shapes on top - couldn't be arsed.

Rhubarb Pie

A pie stands or falls (literally) on its pastry crust, and this, if I may say so, is a very good one.  Actually, it is a Nigel Slater recipe, and I first used it in his Apple Shortcrust Pie.  For a 7inch pie dish, you need 100g each of butter and caster sugar, 175g plain flour and an egg yolk mixed with a couple of teaspoons cold water - keep the egg white.  I blitz the sugar and butter in a food processor, then add the flour.  Pulse until crumbly (you might need to scrape down the sides of the processor) and add the egg yolk and water.  Pulse again to mix, tip out onto a sheet of cling film and knead LIGHTLY and briefly into a dough.  Flatten, cover and rest in the fridge for at least an hour.  Cut in half, roll out one piece into a disc between sheets of clingfilm and line the pie dish.  Fill generously with your chosen fruit - in this case, lots of finely sliced rhubarb mixed with sugar and a tablespoon of cornflour - and then top with the remaining pastry, rolled out.  Brush the edges with lightly beaten egg white first to seal the two edges.  Now brush the surface with more egg white, sprinkle with a teaspoon of granulated sugar, and bake at 170C (fan) for 40 minutes.  If it browns too much cover loosely with foil.  Simple, crumbly and delicious.

Swiss Chard and Parmesan Tart

This is adapted from a recipe in Raymond Blanc's new book 'Kitchen Secrets' - a treasure trove of (mostly) accessible recipes from the great chef.  His original recipe used just the chard stalks and Comte cheese.  I decided to use the chopped leaves as well, and substituted Parmesan and some Cheddar.  It was still very delicious!  Dead simple too.  Line a loose-bottomed metal flan tin with shortcrust.  No need to pre-bake.  Sweat the finely chopped stems and leaves of a bunch of chard in a good knob of butter until tender and place in the base of the pastry case.  Sprinkle a couple of ounces each of grated Parmesan and Cheddar (or other cheese of choice) over.  Now, whisk 3 eggs and about 80ml of double cream (or just milk) together, season well and add lots of freshly grated nutmeg.  Pour over the cheese and chard, sprinkle a little more Parmesan over, and bake on a pre-heated baking sheet for around 30 minutes (at 170C fan) until the pastry is crisp and golden and the tart has puffed up and browned.  Allow to cool for about 5 minutes.  Lovely.  Will eat the rest on a picnic tomorrow.

Rhubarb and Strawberry Crostata

English strawberries are in the shops now - I worry about the environmental impact of all that heated polytunnel growing, and then - hypocritically - go and buy them.  I am always a little disappointed, as the flavour is never going to be as good as the ones in May and June grown in the sunshine and open air.  But, they are fine for cooking, and go so well with rhubarb.  I love crostatas which is just a posh way of saying tart!  They are so easy to make and look so pretty.  I chopped the rhubarb and cooked it with sugar.  Make sure it goes into a puree.  When cool, mix with sliced strawberries and a couple of teaspoons of cornflour, then pile in the middle of a round of shortcrust pastry and bring the edges up around the filling.  Bake in a medium oven (on baking parchment) for 35 minutes or so until the pastry is crisp and the filling has cooked into a delicious sweet jamminess.  Serve with clotted cream for a real Easter treat.

Flamiche

........which sounds better than leek and cheese pasty, which is essentially what this northern French dish is.  Here is a good recipe, although you will find lots of variations.  I didn't have Gruyere so used good Glastonbury cheddar instead.  Yum!  This is so cheap and filling, and was delicious served with baked mushrooms and stir-fried spinach.

Tomato Mozzarella Tarts with Mushroom and Thyme

I was so busy last night, baking for a charity cake sale, that I wanted something super-quick and easy.  I know a take-away would have been many people's choice but I resent the cost.  So, a sheet of puff pastry was halved, and each piece spread with some tomato puree and pesto.  Next came a layer of sauteed mushrooms, then some sliced cherry tomatoes from the Riverford box, and then half a ball of mozzarella from a meal earlier in the week.  A couple of sprigs of thyme, and a grating of parmesan, and the lot went into the oven for about 20 minutes - the oven was on anyway for baking.  Result - light, crisp, savoury pastry 'pizzas', on the table before a take-away would have turned up, and more yummy, to boot.

Mushroom and Parma Ham Pastries

These lovelies are perfect with cocktails before dinner - smoking jacket optional.  You can make it veggie by leaving out the ham.  Basically, you make a 'duxelles' of mushrooms, a punnet of them, any sort will do, by blitzing in a food processor or chopping very finely on a board with a big knife.  Do the same with a small onion, and also blend 3 or 4 slices of Parma Ham if using.  In the food processor, after all the other chopping has been done, blitz a slice of bread to crumbs - white or wholemeal, no matter.  This will also 'clean' the bowl and make it easier to wash.  Now, slowly cook the mushrooms and onions in about 25g of butter until quite dry - this will take a good 20 minutes over a lowish heat.  Mix in the ham, the breadcrumbs, an egg, some fresh thyme and a little salt and pepper to taste - I add a splosh of sherry too which deepens the flavour.  Allow to cool completely.  Now, assemble 'sausage rolls' using the cold mixture, by spooning it down the length of a strip of puff pastry, fold the edge over to seal, and cut on the diagonal to make little mushroom rolls.  Brush with another beaten egg, and bake at 180C until lovely and brown and crisp.  Any leftovers freeze really well, either cooked or raw.

Gruyere Cheese Straws

We had a small quantity of puff pastry, about a third of a rolled sheet, sitting in the fridge, so I rolled it out thinly, covered it with grated Gruyere and quite a bit of cayenne pepper, then folded it in half and rolled it out agai.  I then cut strips, twisted them into little corkscrews, and baked at about 180C for 10-12 minutes, until crisp and cheesy.  Delicious with the cocktails.

Leek, Cheese and Potato Pie

Based on a recipe from Nigel, this is hardly diet food, but it warms the cockles and used up lots of odds and ends from the fridge.  Cut a medium peeled potato into small cubes and steam until tender.  Meanwhile, gently sweat a couple of cleaned, sliced leeks in about 20g of butter until soft, but not browned.  Turn off the heat and allow a dessertspoon of creme fraiche to melt through the leeks.  Cool a little, then gently stir in the cooked potatoes, about 50g of strong cheddar cheese, and I added a couple of slices of ham that needed using up.  Season well with black pepper.  Unroll a sheet of ready-rolled puff pastry and place on a baking sheet.  Spread the cooled filling on one half, leaving a centimetre border around the edge.  Brush the exposed border with some milk and bring the other half of the pastry over, sealing the edges.  Make a steam-hole in the top of the pie, brush with more milk, and cook at around 170C for 30 minutes or so until lovely and brown and crisp.  Would serve 4 at a pinch we we devoured it between two.  But we are pigs, after all.

Cheese Palmiers

These have been around the scene since Delia showed us all how to make them in her Christmas book - the simplest thing in the world, but so good.  Infinitely variable, I used mustard and parmesan, but also regularly use slices of Parma ham along with the parmesan too, or with black olive tapenade and anchovies, or fresh pesto.  You simply spread your ingredients over a sheet of puff pastry, roll up from either side to meet in the middle, cut into slices and bake until crisp.  Hot and crisp from the oven, I challenge you to stop at one!  Great to keep, in the long un-sliced roll, in the freezer ready for Christmas and pre-dinner drinks.

Peach and Blueberry Crostata

If you can't be bothered with all the fuss of lining a tart tin, baking blind etc, then this crostata is the way to go. Roll out the dough (6oz flour, 30z butter, 1oz sugar and an egg yolk, blitzed in the food processor) on a sheet of baking parchment into a large round shape, ignoring any ragged edges. Toss fruit in a tablespoon of sugar and plain flour, pile into the middle and then bring the edges of the dough up around the fruit. It doesn't matter if the edges are ragged, or if the dough tears - just squidge it together again. It won't meet in the middle. Place on a baking sheet, using the baking parchment to lift it on. Brush the pastry with milk and sprinkle with demerara sugar, then bake in a medium oven for 40 minutes until golden, and the fruit has bubbled with the flour to make a lovely gooey filling. A doddle!

Plum Jalousie

What is a jalousie, I hear you ask? Well, in culinary terms, it is a puff pastry dessert with a fruit and almond frangipane. The top layer of pastry is cut to resemble the slatted windows of the same name that you find in tropical plantation houses. This is such a doddle to make: cream together a couple of ounces each of soft butter, sugar and ground almonds with an egg to bind. Roll out a sheet of puff pastry into a rectangle. Spread the almond mixture on one half, leaving a little border all round, then top with some sliced, stoned plums (the English Opals are in the shops now). Brush the border with a little beaten egg or milk. Now with the remaining exposed side of pastry, slash it 7 or 8 times, leaving a border, and carefully flip over the filling, pressing the borders together. The filling will peep out of the slashes - it is meant to. Brush with more egg or milk, sprinkle with sugar, and bake for 30 to 40 minutes at about 170 until puffed, crisp and golden. Lovely Sunday dinner pud. You can vary the fruit, whatever you like. Rhubarb works, so does apple, nectarines, berries. Go with the flow.

Creamy Chicken and Ham Pie [#202]

This recipe came from Alastair Hendy, and is one I've been wanting to cook for a while. It makes for a handsome big dish that gave us a rich, warming supper on such a cold, snowy night, and we'll have the leftovers for lunch tomorrow. There are several stages, so I saved it for a day off!

First, poach a free-range chicken and then strip all the meat. Make a thick,creamy sauce with some of the stock, cream and a butter and flour roux (about 400mls althogether) and I added some chopped chives. Mix into the shredded chicken along with about 150g of finely chopped ham and a handful of button mushrooms, sliced and sauteed. Check the seasoning and allow to cool. Line a loose-bottomed cake tin with good all-butter puff pastry and put the chicken filling in. Top with more pastry, seal well, and bake at about 170C for an hour. Allow to settle in the tin for about 10 minutes and then remove, leaving you with a deep golden pie of deliciousness! As I say, time-consuming but soooooo worth it! The diet can start tomorrow (yeah, right)

Blackberry and Apple Pie [#155]

Oddly, Nigel has this in the November section of the Diaries, when surely the blackberries are finished? No matter, we made it today, with the first of the English Bramleys, sharp and juicy, cooked to a puree first and then united with the berries. For the pastry (which went under AND over the filling), I went back to Nigel's wonderful Apple Shortcake recipe that we had in March, I think. Rich, buttery and very short, it makes for a wonderful tart - I'm sure there is a joke in there somewhere. A pudding like this calls for custard, naturally! Well, I am suffering dreadfully with a cold - feed a cold and starve a fever, they do say.