Thanksgiving Pudding, Pals, Poetic Justice

This is beginning to get a bit same-y as an intro sentiment, however 'I am getting really behind' on the story telling. Iceland and Barcelona (again) are patiently waiting in the wings, and to be honest, were such fab short bursts that I don't know where to start. So will stick with Thanksgiving and a recipe.

 

Last night we did Thanksgiving dinner. Not that anybody at the table was even from a country that 'does' Thanksgiving but like Halloween, and Christmas, and chestnuts on an open fire on street corners, Thanksgiving makes sense to celebrate up here in the dark Northern Hemisphere. With darkness hitting around half four, a great meal, some old fashioned champagne cocktails, and bottles of delicious wine are really what is required on the eve of the first official day of winter. The bonus factor of not having any emotionally attached Thanksgiving traditions is that we can do it our way, i.e. take the bits we want (pumpkin pie), leave others (sweet potato and marshmallows) and add our own takes (luxurious Beef Wellington).

 

A veritable feast was prepared by Hannah, who of course made things look very effortless having gone down the pub to watch the league at 2pm - sounds a bit like chalet girl Christmas - it is all in the preparation. Beef Wellington was taken to some very impressive heights (seared eye fillet, which was wearing a reduction of assorted mushrooms, encased by a layer of prosciutto, before being baked in pastry), served with celeriac remoulade, baby carrots, roast baby onions and potatoes and an incredible festive salad of kale, cranberry, sweet potato, pecan and feta salad with homemade vinaigrette. Shouldn't have touched the cheese and crisps. Good health and good friends and the opportunity to live in such a dynamic city, were the general consensus of what we had to be thankful for. Lucky us.

stolen from Hannah's Instagram

Lots of wine chat (merci recent subscription to wine society by Adrian), thanking, and playing Poetic Justice, among catching up on holiday stories and planning potential Christmas feasts. I made pudding, which we eventually got around to deciding was necessary.

 

Pumpkin Pie - Jamie Oliver's recipe

 

500 g ready-made dessert pastry - I actually used Jamie Oliver's sweet shortcrust pastry recipe for this, as a former male colleague whose wife was the Australian ambassador to NZ once convinced me how easy pastry is to make. Click here for that recipe

 

 

1 large butternut, quartered  (pumpkin isn't as available in the UK as NZ, so I think in NZ you could use a flavoursome pumpkin in place of butternut)        

¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

¼ teaspoon ground ginger

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon        

4 tablespoons maple syrup

6 tablespoons caster sugar

3 large free-range eggs, beaten

200 ml double cream (same as normal cream in NZ I think)

 

Preheat the oven to 200ºC/400ºF/gas 6. Roll the pastry to the thickness of a pound/dollar coin. Get a 22cm loose-bottomed tart tin, line with the pastry and bake blind for 20 minutes. Set aside. Poundland didn't have tart tins, so I used a 18x28cm slice tin lined with baking paper, pricked with a fork and then poured rice over another piece of paper on top of the base, to 'bake blind'. I think the idea is the rice weighs the pastry down, though mine still puffed up a bit.

Lay the butternut in a baking tray. Don't use a crusty tray that you wouldn't want to eat the sugary bits from when it is cooked - cover with foil if this is the case. Sprinkle with the nutmeg, ginger and cinnamon and drizzle with the maple syrup. Cover the tray tightly with a double layer of tinfoil and bake for 45 minutes until soft. Reduce the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/gas 4.

Allow the pieces of butternut to cool, then scoop out the flesh, discarding seeds and stringy bits. You should have about 600g of cooked flesh. I would bother to weigh this, as I really dislike eggy flavoured puddings. You want it to taste like its name! Don't forget to scrape out the bits in the tray and the maple syrup. Put in a food processor and whiz until smooth (I used a wand hand mixer, and at a push I reckon a masher and a sieve would do the job more slowly, but still effectively - you want puree). Add 3 tablespoons of the sugar and the eggs. Mix well and stir in the cream.

Fill the cooled tart case with the mix and bake for 45 minutes. I didn't read the part about cooling the tart case first, so impatiently gave it about 15min before pouring the filling in and patiently baking it. You know when it is done because it is just firm and slightly resistant to a light touch.

 

I left the tart in the tin for a few hours until cooled to room temp after dinner. Jamie sprinkles the seeds of the butternut mixed with sugar on top (Google his recipe), but I went for mixing cinnamon and icing sugar together then sifting over the top, before lifting the tart onto a board and slicing with a sharp knife. Doesn't really need anything to go with it, we had cream and yogurt that barely got touched. Good vanilla ice-cream would be delicious. 

Sliced pie

I made Chalet Joseph brownies  in case the pie was a disaster, they were delicious too, but it was a success. Would make again!

Poetic Justice (think literary Pictionary), Pumpkin Pie, Brownies

Happy 1st December! Let the countdown to Christmas begin. I promise Emma's guest appearance in Barcelona, and a storm on Icelandic horses, are coming soon.

Pear and Brazil Nut Brownies

If you know about UK supermarket hierarchies, you can probably guess that Waitrose is the supermarket most likely to publish a brownie containing posh additions, adding pears and brazil nuts to the mix. I found this handwritten at a friend's place last week, tucked into their copy of the Riverford Farm Cook Book (amazing, will probably document later). Although it almost seems cliché and 'so 2001' now to be 'fascinated by recipes containing fruits and vegetables', I couldn't get these out of my mind. I love Brazil nuts, and pear studded dark chocolate was a revelation when I first discovered it in France, so these had to be winners.

Nice, tidy architect handwriting

The sweetness and fleshiness of the pears add a nice jube-like touch to the brownie, while brazils offer a slightly softened bite and distinct nuttiness. In all those years of the Pandoro brownie, I never thought I could be a convert to brownies with additions, but the success of Nigella Lawson's delicious and large yield recipe which is divinely fudgy and studded with walnuts has opened my eyes to the potential of added flavours.

 

I don't tend to keep a load of baking stuff on hand but having the basics, I worked it out to be an extra £6 for the pears, brazil nuts, eggs, butter and chocolate that I didn't have to hand. Not too shabby, although next time will splash out for slightly better chocolate as I did not heed the instruction to get 70% dark chocolate, and couldn't be bothered walking to big Tesco for it (regret). If you have a crack at this, by no means would you need to get posh chocolate but I would recommend that 70% cocoa solids is required (i.e. follow the instructions).

 

Recipe

 

250g butter

200g 70% dark chocolate

250g caster sugar

3 large eggs

175g self raising flour (use plain flour and add about a teaspoon and a half of baking powder)

3 teaspoons cocoa

2 ripe pears, peeled and diced

100g brazil nuts, chopped

 

Preheat oven to 180 / gas mark 4. Grease a 20 x 30 slice tin or brownie pan.

 

1. Melt butter and chocolate together over a low heat.

2. In a separate bowl, beat eggs and sugar together until light and fluffy, then slowly pour in the melted butter and chocolate.

3. Fold in the flour and cocoa, then stir in the pear and brazil nuts.

4. Bake in greased tin for about 35 minutes, the trick being not to over cook so that it retains some fudginess.

 

Fresh out of the oven.
Would be better if this was nice and dark brown from full 70% chocolate

 

In the chalet, we served brownies with ice cream on top, though obviously not necessary.
You can see the delicious morsels of pear in the brownie.
Again, good quality vanilla ice cream would be the best accompaniment if using for dessert - I just used whatever we had here to tart up the plain plate a bit.

 

 

Slutty Brownies by The Londoner

Another blog I enjoy following for the food and photos of her apparently fabulous lifestyle, is The Londoner http://www.thelondoner.me/ The images are gorgeous and accompanied by a refreshingly down to earth writing style she somehow makes a seemingly glamorous existence seem slightly accessible, if only through something humble like trying out recipe or a new food place in London.

I'm not surprised that Slutty Brownies seem to be one of the most popular posts. I tried out the recipe for a team BBQ while working on the Olympics and they were devoured!
A+ for novelty value too.

Betty Crocker-licous

This recipe is low on ingredients and effort (though definitely not calories). Simply make up a packet of chocolate chip cookie dough from a box, pour into a 20cm x 20cm tin, cover with a layer of Oreo biscuits, then cover that with a made-up box of brownie dough and bake.

Here is the recipe from the source: http://www.thelondoner.me/2011/06/slutty-brownies.html

Just don't be counting any nutritional elements, aside from the yum-factor.

Savoury Cakes - Rachel Khoo

Whatever about the digital world and the fabulousness of the internet, one of the great bonuses of living in the UK is the affordability of beautiful cookbooks. To celebrate this discovery when I first arrived last year, and jump on the bandwagon of personal-mail-delivered-to-work I ordered Rachel Khoo's 'The Little Paris Kitchen' from Amazon. Somewhat of a sentimental purchase too, as I discovered Rachel in my first couple of weekends in London, watching her BBC season of The Little Paris Kitchen on back to back episodes I when I was too jetlagged and overwhelmed to venture beyond the Holiday Inn Canning Town.

Just checked and you can currently get this online in NZ for between $37-$55NZD

While I have made very few of her recipes so far, this book is a delight to read and devour the photography. Rachel has a great website www.rachelkhoo.com and blog and is a great follow on Instagram (rachelkhooks) as well, inducing not insignificant pangs of I-want-your-life-and-at-the-very-least-your-entire-wardrobe.

Living in France in 2004, I first encountered savoury cakes ('cakes salés'), that featured as an aperitif at drinks parties. Yes, went to quite a few Rotary-related drinks parties. According to Rachel, these cakes now appear frequently as a light lunch menu with a side salad and are great for picnics. A really good use of leftovers too, which is what lead me to having a go.


Page 109: 'Cake au saucisson sec avec pistaches et prunes'

Cured sausage, pistachio and prune cake - customised

250g plain flour
15g baking powder (I used 3 tsp)
150g French sausage or salami (leave out for vege option - I used a combo of olives, goat cheese and chopped fresh seed-free tomato flesh to make up the weight. Mixed cheese-only would be great)
80g pistachios, roughly chopped (I used chopped almonds)
100g prunes, roughly chopped
4 eggs
100ml milk
150ml olive oil
50g plain yogurt (about 1/4 cup)
1 tsp salt
pepper

Preheat oven to 180. Line a medium sized loaf tin.

1. Mix together flour, baking powder, sausage (equivalent), nuts and prunes.
2. In another bowl, whisk the eggs until thick. Gradually whisk in milk, oil, yogurt, then add salt and pepper.
3. Fold the flour mix into the wet mix gradually, taking care not to over-mix.
4. Pour into tin. Bake for 30-40 minutes until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Leave in tin to cool.
5. Serve cold, cut into generous doorstop slices. A wine in hand wouldn't go astray.

Next time - prunes and tomato were a bit of a strange mix which is why I have suggested that all-cheese would be great with the nuts and prunes, if you want to leave out meat.

I am looking forward to the release of Rachel Khoo's next book, in October in the UK. Titled  My Little French Kitchen, it will apparently showcase recipes from outside the confines of her mini Parisian kitchen.



The Whitechapel version

Black Magic Chocolate Cake

I have been making this cake for probably about 14 years as that is how long it has been since 5th form (!), when we all used to go crazy and produce flowers, cakes and sweets for each other on our birthdays at school.

Cake = cheap option, merci in no small part to a well mum-stocked pantry of ingredients.

Although Dr Google suggests this recipe has its origins chez American chocolate brand, Hersheys, it  first came to me via a Ponsonby Primary School cookbook that somehow ended up in our house (nowhere near the cool 'burb of P'by) and ever since, I have rarely used any other recipe with such popular results.

In March, a chalet guest and I shared a birthday so I whipped this up and topped it with ganache and some imported strawberries left behind by a previous week's guest. It was a hit. Most recently, in my temporary London flat, I was excited to discover 2 identical round cake tins so I doubled the recipe and made a decadent 4 layer version for my gorgeous friend Sal's birthday.

Quick scribble to prevent cake-hands on electronics while baking


Black Magic Chocolate Cake

2 cups sugar

1 3/4 cups plain flour
3/4 cup cocoa
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

2 eggs (please use free range)

1 cup buttermilk (who ever has this on hand?! I always use natural yogurt, or milk soured with a dash of white vinegar in a cup before you start - you want it to curdle and go lumpy*)

2/3 cup strong coffee, made up* - this does not mean 2/3 cup granules! (top up an espresso with boiling water if you are fancy and have a coffee machine, or use instant which is perfect)

1/2 cup cooking oil

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

*Pre steps: prepare your sour milk if not using buttermilk or yogurt; make the coffee so it can cool a bit.

Turn oven to 180c, grease cake tin/s. Round 23cm is ideal or 2 x 20cm if you want it to have layers.

1. Sift your dry ingredients

2. Mix your wet ingredients together in a jug

3. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients then add the wet ingredients.

4. Beat until smooth (electric beater if you have one, otherwise a pretty half-pie arm action with a whisk will do the job)

5. Pour into the tin/s, and bake until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. 45 minutes if doing 2 x 20cm, closer to an hour for a larger single cake.

6. Leave in tin about 10 minutes then turn out to cool.

7. When cool ice with icing or ganache. If making a layer cake, I recommend icing to glue the layers and ganache (or more icing) for the top.

Saturday-in-the-chalet ganache: Melt 200-300g plain chocolate and some fresh cream in a bowl over simmering water on the stove. Mix until combined and allow to cool to desired thickness before spreading over the cooled cake.

Icing: freestyle! Start with a big scoop of soft butter, about 2 cups icing sugar, few spoons of cocoa and drop of vanilla. Beat to icing consistency, adding drops of boiling water as required.

Decorated in Dalston after surviving trek from West London in 30 degrees