Empire Biscuits

Continuing with the theme of nostalgia, last year whilst watching TV the increasingly annoying Hairy Bikers had a show called 'Mum Knows Best'. The particular show I was viewing was based in God's Country known as Scotland and one recipe caught my eye, Empire Biscuits.
These creations really took me back to my childhood and now I could make my own as they don't exist here south of the border. Having never attempted shortbread before, I imagined that it was a simpler process than I had believed.

Using my partner's Granny's shortbread recipe I endeavoured to give it a go and I must say they are absolutely delicious!!

Weighing the ingredients into a bowl and working them in with your fingers it's amazing that after some minutes the alchemy begins. The ingredients first form like bread crumbs, it then starts forming in to larger and larger pieces until it combines in to a large bowl.

Then on a floured surface I work the dough for a very short time and then with a floured rolling pin roll the dough to the required thickness. Then with a cooking cutter commence cutting the dough in to circles and transfer to a baking tray. Be careful not to use to large a cutter as these delicious biscuits are extremely filling as well as very, very sweet. Repeat the process until all the dough is used up.

Simply place in the preheated oven and bake for 10 - 12 minutes, if like me you have a fan assisted oven be aware that they will bake a little faster and you do not over bake.

Remove from the oven when they begin to turn golden and leave to rest for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Meantime mix the icing sugar with water to desired thickness. When biscuits are completely cool spread one biscuit with jam then top with another and so on. I never use an icing bag just two spoons to apply the icing which works pretty well although not to neat and tidy still has desired effect. Place a glace cherry on each biscuit or you can use candied peel, I have even seen a jelly tot or even a small liquorice allsort used to top these wonderful treats.




Ingredients (for about 20 biscuits)
250g unsalted butter
250g plain flour
125g icing sugar
125g corn flour
Strawberry or raspberry jam
24 glacé cherries


Icing:
Icing sugar
Water


Method
1. Mix the ingredients into a bowl until you have a ball of dough in your hand.
2. Roll the dough with a floured rolling pin and create a circle about ¼ inch thick.
3. Use a cooking cutter to prise out 40 circular shapes.
4. Place the 40 pieces on a baking tray.
5. Place in oven at 180ºC for 10-12 mins.
6. Remove from oven before golden brown.
7. Leave to cool.
8. To ice the biscuits mix icing sugar and water in a bowl.
9. Put strawberry or raspberry jam on 12 of the pieces and top with the other 20 pieces.
10. Ice the biscuits, using an icing bag.
11. Pop a glacé cherry on the top of each biscuit for decoration.

Autumn Apple Pie with sweet shortcrust pastry

A few years back, on a crisp Christmas morning in my abode in Twickenham my partner, Audrey and I were preparing our vegetarian Yuletide feast. The main part was to be a Mushroom Wellington, which required the making of shortcrust pastry made from scratch. Bear in mind this was a good few years ago and at this time your writer had never embarked on something quite, in his mind, such a complicated alchemic process as pastry making. On this particular day readers, I was up for the challenge, it must have been fate or a universal alignment.

Shortcrust Pastry

300gms plain flour
½ tsp salt
160gms unsalted butter cut into 1cm dice
70ml ice cold water

Sweet Shortcrust Pastry

330gms plain flour
100gms icing sugar
Grated zest of ½ lemon
¼ teaspoon salt
180gms unsalted butter cut into small cubes
1 free-range egg yolk beaten
2 tbsp ice cold water

Audrey duly measured out the ingredients and explained what was needed, forgive the pun, in the process. Combine the butter into the flower by rubbing it through your fingers so that after a while you end up with a texture reminiscent of breadcrumbs, make sure you have no lumps of butter, the finer the texture the better.

She then told me to slowly add the ice-cold water, as you didn’t want to make the texture too damp. Work until dough comes together and wrap in cling film and allow to rest in the fridge for at least an hour. The dough will keep for up to 5 days in the fridge or maybe a month in the freezer.

To cut a long story short we made the Mushroom Wellington with my attempt at pastry. We sat down to dinner and Audrey turned to me and I will always remember what she said, ‘Are you sure you have never made pastry before? This is the lightest, flakiest pastry I have ever tasted!’

This is the true truncated story of my emerging love of the alchemy of baking.

Now for the Autumn Apple Pie, delicious with custard, also can be transported easily for picnics, gifts, etc.




Apple Pie Filling

3 – 4 Bramley Apples peeled, cored & roughly chopped.
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp water
Castor sugar to taste
Pinch Cinnamon or nutmeg for Autumnal taste (not too much to overpower)
20gms unsalted butter

See above for Sweet Shortcrust Pasty recipe, can also be made with normal shortcrust pastry.

Pre heat oven at 170 C / Gas Mark 3

Sift flour and icing sugar into a bowl add lemon zest, salt. Rub ingredients with fingers and hands until you have a coarse breadcrumb texture though be absolutely sure no butter lumps remain.
Add the beaten egg yolk and the water then mix just until the dough comes together, you may need a smidgen of extra water though be careful not to make to wet.
Remove dough from the bowl and knead very lightly for not too long, just long enough to split in two. Then shape in to two discs 5 – 6cms thick you will need a top and bottom. Place in the fridge and allow to rest.

Meanwhile put roughly chopped apples in a pot along with lemon juice & water. Stir and cook quickly over fairly high heat for 5 or so minutes being careful not to scorch or burn. Add sugar, cinnamon / nutmeg & butter stir until combined the set aside to cool.

Whilst apple filling is cooling remove pastry from the fridge and on a floured surface roll out the pastry enough to cover a 20cm greased pie dish line with greaseproof paper. Cover base and sides of the tin fill with dry beans or rice enough to support sides that they won’t collapse (I always place parchment paper between the pastry and the beans / rice). Blind bake for 25 – 35 mins. Remove from the heat and take out beans / rice and allow cooling.

Once cooled add the apple mixture to the base, roll out pastry top and cover the dish. Make sure pastry top is properly sealed down usually I do with a fork. Trim of any excess pastry with a knife in a downward motion. Prick all over with a fork to allow steam to escape as exploding apple pie is neither good for you or your oven. Place pie in the oven and allow to cook for 25 – 30 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and sprinkle with sugar.

Enjoy hot with custard or cream, but this pie can also be enjoyed cold in a picnic with a lovely hot mug of tea or coffee.

(Reference Ottolenghi The Cookbook for pastry recipes.)

Scottish Sultana Cake

Have you ever awoken with a thought of a taste of your childhood? I often have these thoughts and want to research and find the recipe that is close to that memory.
One weekend I awoke with a memory for the taste of a Sultana Cake that my Granny McKenzie used to make. A moist succulent creation that seems to improve day after day (if it lasts that long that is) stored in a tin.  Now we Celts have a love of sweet things, cakes, biscuits, puddings, sweets (have you ever tried tablet?) as well as the unhealthy love of fried fatty food. Going on a visit to Gran’s was always something to look forward to as there, if memory serves me well, seemed to be freshly baked scones, pancakes, sponge of some delight and you were always encouraged to go back for seconds and thirds.

The beauty of preparing this sultana cake is that it is all mixed together in a single pot.

Ingredients:
170gms sultanas
1 Earl Grey Tea Bag
110g unsalted butter (cut up into small pieces)
170g sugar
170g self-raising flour
2 eggs (beaten)
A few drops of vanilla essence

Method: 
Cover the sultanas with water in a pot and pop in Earl Grey Tea Bag. Bring the water and sultanas to boil then simmer for 10 – 15 minutes and then strain off the water. Mix in the butter while the sultanas are still hot.
Mix in the sugar, beaten eggs and vanilla essence. Sift in the flour and mix well.
Grease an 8" / 20cm round baking tin and line the bottom with greased, greaseproof or parchment. Pour in the cake mixture and smooth the top.
Bake in a moderate oven at 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4 for 30 minutes. Reduce the heat to 150C/300F/Gas Mark 2 until the centre is firm to the touch. Empty cake; from the baking tin sprinkle top with a little sugar allow cooling and storing in an airtight container.

Once this cake is tasted it is never to be forgotten! I was immediately transported back to childhood, and is so morish you will want to devour the whole thing in seconds. I often make sultana cake to take with me when visiting friends or on picnics as it is such an easily transportable cake.