Strawberry Tarts September 12, 2015

These are a lovely tasty way to say goodbye to Summer and they’re easy to make too.

If you’ve visited my blog before you’ll most probably know I’m useless at making pastry, so I bought ready made all butter pastry cases. But go ahead and make your own if thats what your good at 😉 I used 8 pastry cases but you could use mini ones or make one large tart.

 

Ingredients for the strawberry filling

 

2 cups of washed, hulled and roughly mashed strawberries

1/2 cup granulated sugar, plus 3 Tbsp

zest of one lemon

3 tsp cornflour

 

Ingredients for the vanilla cream topping

 

1/2 cup soured cream

2 Tbsp soft dark brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla bean paste or 1/2 a vanilla bean, seeds scraped out

small srawberries for garnish, optional

 

Method for the strawberry filling

 

In a small saucepan, combine all of the ingredients and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.

Continue to cook for about 5 minutes, until thickened.

Allow to cool for 15 minutes, then divide into the tart shells. Place in the fridge to chill.

 

Method for the vanilla cream topping

 

In a small bowl stir together the sour cream, brown sugar, and vanilla, until smooth.

Dollop onto the chilled tarts, and top with a mini strawberry.

Tip: This vanilla cream topping does not go thick like whipped cream. Best not to put on top of the tarts until your ready to serve. This cream is also delicious used for dipping fruit into.

 

 

 

 

Lemon Drizzle Traybake August 14, 2014

This is always a favourite.A nice moist cake with a lovely crunchy top.

 

Ingredients

225g butter, softened

225g caster sugar

275g self-raising flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

4 eggs

4 tablespoons milk

finely grated rind of 2 lemons

For the topping

175g granulated sugar

juice of 2 lemons

 

Method

Line your tin/dish with baking parchment to fit the base and sides, I used a Pyrex dish 30 x 23 x 4 cm.

Pre-heat the oven to 160°C/Gas 3.

Measure all the ingredients for the traybake into a bowl and beat well for about 2 minutes until well blended. Turn the mixture into the prepared tin. Level the top gently with the back of the spatula.

Bake in the middle of the pre-heated oven for about 40-45 minutes or until the traybake springs back when pressed lightly with a finger in the centre and the sides are begining to shrink away from the dish.

Allow the traybake to cool in the tin for a few minutes while you make the topping.

To make the crunchy topping, mix the lemon juice and granulated sugar in a small bowl to give a runny consistency. Spoon this mixture evenly over the traybake whilst it’s still just warm.

Cut into about squares when cold.

The cake needs to be still warm when the topping is added so that it absorbs the lemon syrup and leaves the sugar on top. Do allow the cake to cool a little though – if it is too hot the syrup will run straight through.

Salmon with veggies September 14, 2013

Ha! Yes I do make savoury dishes too!  😉

This all-in-one parcel is a really easy way to cook and serve dinner.

 

Ingredients

 

200g new potatoes

120g mixed frozen veggies

2 salmon fillets, skinned

zest and juice of a lemon

25g butter

 

Method

 

Pre heat oven to 200C/gas 6. Cut 2 large squares of kitchen foil, about 30cm by 30cm each.

Boil the potatoes until just tender. Drain and halve or quarter, depending on size. Boil the veggies for 3 – 4 minutes, then drain.

Divide the potatoes and veggies between the squares of foil. Put a piece of salmon on top. Add lemon zest and juice and a small knob of butter to each. Season to taste with black pepper.

Wrap up the foil to make 2 parcels, leaving room inside for the air to circulate. Fold to seal the edges tightly.

Put the parcels on a baking tray and cook in the oven for 20 minutes or until the salmon flakes easily.

Serve in the parcels.

 

Serces two.

 

 

 

 

Lemon Sponge Birthday Cake August 2, 2013

A Gerbera flowering birthday cake for my daughter in law. Happy birthday Beth!

 

Ingredients for the cake

 

175g butter, room temperature

175g caster sugar

3 eggs

175g self raising flour

pinch of salt

zest of 1 lemon

3 Tbsp lemon curd

 

To decorate

lemon buttercream

500g white ready to rool fondant

small amount of red, yellow & green fondant, to make the flowers and leaves

 

Method

 

Preheat the oven to 180C/gas 4.

Grease and line with baking parchment paper, two sponge tins.

Cream the butter and sugar together until pale, light and fluffy.

Add the egg, one at a time, beating after each addition.

Sift in the flour and salt, and beat again.

Add the lemon zest and fold in.

Divide the mixture between the tins and smooth over with a spatula.

Bake for 25 – 30 minutes until well risen, golden brown and begining to shrink from the sides of the tin.

Allow to stand for 5 minutes then place on a wire rack to cool completely.

Once cold, spread one cake with lemon curd, the other with half of the lemon buttercream and sandwich together.

Crumbcoat the whole cake with the rest of the lemon buttercream and place in the fridge for an hour.

Roll out the white fondant and cover the cake, smoothing over as you go.

Using flower cutters, cut out flowers from the red and yellow fondant, leaves from the green fondant, attach these to the cake with a tiny dab of water.

Prefferably keep the cake under a food net or cardboard cake box rather than a plastic container.

 

Lemon buttercream

 

110g butter, room temperature

2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

2 tsp lemon zest

500g icing sugar, sifted

 

Method

 

Beat the butter, lemon juice, lemon zest and half the icing sugar until smooth. Gradually add the remainder of the icing sugar and beat until smooth and creamy.

 

 

Classic Christmas Cake November 30, 2012

This is a nice easy cake to make if you don’t have the time to be cutting out, shaping & making fondant items to decorate it with.

Just pop to the shop and buy some plastic ones, along with a cake frill to wrap around and a Christmas themed cake board  😉

This is an 8”/21cm cake.

 

Ingredients

 

1 lb (450g) currants

6 oz (175g) sultanas

2 oz (50g) glace cherries

2 oz (50g) candied peel

8 oz (225g)plain flour

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon ground mixed spice

8 oz (225g) unsalted butter

8 oz (225g) soft brown sugar

4 large eggs

zest of 1 lemon

zest of 1 orange

You will also need an 8 inch (21cm) round cake tin

500g marzipan

500g ready to roll fondant

6Tbsp apricot jam

 

Method

 

You need to start this cake the night before you want to cook it. All you do is weigh out the dried fruit and mixed peel, place it in a mixing bowl and mix in the hot tea. Cover the bowl with a clean tea towel and leave the fruit to absorb the tea for up to 12 hours.

Next day pre-heat the oven to gas mark 1, 275°F (140°C). Then measure out all the rest of the ingredients. The treacle will be easier to measure if you remove the lid and place the tin in a small pan of barely simmering water. Now begin the cake by sifting the flour, salt and spices into a large mixing bowl. Next, in a separate large mixing bowl, whisk the butter and sugar together until it’s light, pale and fluffy. Now beat the eggs in a separate bowl and add them to the creamed mixture a tablespoonful at a time; keep the whisk running until all the egg is incorporated. If you add the eggs slowly by degrees like this the mixture won’t curdle. If it does, don’t worry, any cake full of such beautiful things can’t fail to taste  good!

When all the egg has been added, fold in the flour and spices, using gentle, folding movements and not beating at all (this is to keep all that precious air in). Now fold in the fruit, peel and treacle and finally the grated lemon and orange zests. Next, using a large kitchen spoon, transfer the cake mixture into the prepared tin, spread it out evenly with the back of a spoon.  Finally cover the top of the cake with a double square of baking parchment with a 50p-size hole in the centre (this gives extra protection during the long slow cooking).

Bake the cake on the lowest shelf of the oven for 4½-4¾ hours. Sometimes it can take up to ½-¾ hour longer than this, but in any case don’t look till at least 4 hours have passed. Cool the cake for 30 minutes in the tin, then remove it to a wire rack to finish cooling. When it’s cold ‘feed’ it – make small holes in the top and base of the cake with a cocktail stick or small skewer, then spoon over a few teaspoons of brandy, wrap it in foil secured with an elastic band and store in an airtight container. You can now feed it at odd intervals until you need to ice it.

This particular cake has no alcohol in it. You don’t have to add alcohol if you don’t want it.

To decorate, melt 3 Tbsp of jam in the microwave and brush all over the cake. Roll out the marzipan to fit over and around the cake and place onto the cake, smoothing down with your hand.

You now need to leave it to dry, for about least 2 days.

Again, melt 3 Tbsp of the jam. Roll out the fondant, as you did the marzipan. Place the fondant onto the marzipaned cake.

Attach your plastic decorations and cake frill.