Daring Bakers: Cannoli

The November 2009 Daring Bakers Challenge was chosen and hosted by Lisa Michele of Parsley, Sage, Desserts and Line Drives. She chose the Italian Pastry, Cannolo (Cannoli is plural), using the cookbooks Lidia’s Italian-American Kitchen by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and The Sopranos Family Cookbook by Allen Rucker; recipes by Michelle Scicolone, as ingredient/direction guides. She added her own modifications/changes, so the recipe is not 100% verbatim from either book.

Hurumph, I thought when I saw this challenge. Not really interested in this. It looks complicated and difficult and time-consuming. Maybe I'm not really a Daring Baker's kind of girl, I thought to myself. All this business of being told what to bake, perhaps it's just not for me. Grumble, grumble... But if there is a moral to this post, it is to keep going with things that seem outside your comfort zone. Because this was a great thing to make and I'm so glad that I did it.

There was no way I was going to buy the special metal tubes for this recipe, so my cannoli, rather than being tubes of deep fried Italian pastry, were stacked. (This is an acceptable variation according to the Daring Baker rules, I can assure you.) I decided to make a Christmassy star version, which I think worked beautifully. Actually, with the orangey and chocolatey flavours, it's not an unChristmassy pud. Just the ticket for a festive dinner party, perhaps.

So, if you're not familiar with the world of the cannolo, basically you thinly roll out a dough, shape it, either around a metal tube or by cutting it out and deep fry it. Then you fill it with ricotta, beaten until creamy and then mixed with chocolate, orange zest and toasted pistachio nuts. Doesn't that sound fab? I went a bit Masterchef on mine and drizzled it with melted chocolate, extra orange zest and pistachios. And it was a very fine dessert indeed. It is a little bit time consuming but I'd highly recommend you gave it a try.

Lisa Michelle's recipe

Equipment:
Cannoli forms/tubes - optional, but recommended if making traditional shaped cannoli. Dried cannelloni pasta tubes work just as well!
Deep, heavy saucepan, enough to hold at least 2-3-inches of oil or deep fryer
Deep fat frying thermometer. although the bread cube or bit of dough test will work fine.
Metal tongs
Brass or wire skimmer OR large slotted spoon
Pastry bag with large star or plain tip, but a snipped ziplock bag, butter knife or teaspoon will work fine.
Cooling rack
Paper bags or paper towels
Pastry Brush
Cheesecloth
Sieve or fine wire mesh strainer
Electric Mixer, stand or hand, optional, as mixing the filling with a spoon is fine.
Food Processor or Stand Mixer – also optional, since you can make the dough by hand, although it takes more time.
Rolling pin and/or Pasta roller/machine
Pastry or cutting board
Round cutters - The dough can also be cut into squares and rolled around the cannoli tube prior to frying. If making a stacked cannoli, any shaped cutter is fine, as well as a sharp knife.
Mixing bowl and wooden spoon if mixing filling by hand
Plastic Wrap/Clingfilm
Tea towels or just cloth towels

Lidisano’s Cannoli
Makes 22-24 4-inch cannoli
Prep time:
Dough – 2 hours and 10-20 minutes, including resting time, and depending on whether you do it by hand or machine.
Filling – 5-10 minutes plus chilling time (about 2 hours or more)
Frying – 1-2 minutes per cannoli
Assemble – 20–30 minutes

RECIPE NOTE: THE EQUIVALENTS FROM THIS RECIPE WERE PREPARED USING THIS CONVERSION SITE: http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/index.asp.

CANNOLI SHELLS
2 cups (250 grams/8.82 ounces) all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons(28 grams/1 ounce) sugar
1 teaspoon (5 grams/0.06 ounces) unsweetened baking cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon (1.15 grams/0.04 ounces) ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon (approx. 3 grams/0.11 ounces) salt
3 tablespoons (42 grams/1.5 ounces) vegetable or olive oil
1 teaspoon (5 grams/0.18 ounces) white wine vinegar
Approximately 1/2 cup (approx. 59 grams/approx. 4 fluid ounces/approx. 125 ml) sweet Marsala or any white or red wine you have on hand
1 large egg, separated (you will need the egg white but not the yolk)
Vegetable or any neutral oil for frying – about 2 quarts (8 cups/approx. 2 litres)
1/2 cup (approx. 62 grams/2 ounces) toasted, chopped pistachio nuts, mini chocolate chips/grated chocolate and/or candied or plain zests, fruits etc.. for garnish
Confectioners' sugar
Note - If you want a chocolate cannoli dough, substitute a few tablespoons of the flour (about 25%) with a few tablespoons of dark, unsweetened cocoa powder (Dutch process) and a little more wine until you have a workable dough (Thanks to Audax).

CANNOLI FILLING
2 lbs (approx. 3.5 cups/approx. 1 kg/32 ounces) ricotta cheese, drained
1 2/3 cups cup (160 grams/6 ounces) confectioner’s sugar, (more or less, depending on how sweet you want it), sifted
1/2 teaspoon (1.15 grams/0.04 ounces) ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon (4 grams/0.15 ounces) pure vanilla extract or the beans from one vanilla bean
3 tablespoons (approx. 28 grams/approx. 1 ounce) finely chopped good quality chocolate of your choice
2 tablespoons (12 grams/0.42 ounces) of finely chopped, candied orange peel, or the grated zest of one small to medium orange
3 tablespoons (23 grams/0.81 ounce) toasted, finely chopped pistachios
Note - If you want chocolate ricotta filling, add a few tablespoons of dark, unsweetened cocoa powder to the above recipe, and thin it out with a few drops of warm water if too thick to pipe.

DIRECTIONS FOR SHELLS:
1. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer or food processor, combine the flour, sugar, cocoa, cinnamon, and salt. Stir in the oil, vinegar, and enough of the wine to make a soft dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and well blended, about 2 minutes. Shape the dough into a ball. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest in the fridge from 2 hours to overnight.
2 Cut the dough into two pieces. Keep the remaining dough covered while you work. Lightly flour a large cutting or pastry board and roll the dough until super thin, about 1/16 to 1/8” thick (An area of about 13 inches by 18 inches should give you that). Cut out 3 to 5-inch circles (3-inch – small/medium; 4-inch – medium/large; 5-inch;- large. Your choice). Roll the cut out circle into an oval, rolling it larger and thinner if it’s shrunk a little.
3 Oil the outside of the cannoli tubes (You only have to do this once, as the oil from the deep fry will keep them well, uhh, oiled..lol). Roll a dough oval from the long side (If square, position like a diamond, and place tube/form on the corner closest to you, then roll) around each tube/form and dab a little egg white on the dough where the edges overlap. (Avoid getting egg white on the tube, or the pastry will stick to it.) Press well to seal. Set aside to let the egg white seal dry a little.
4. In a deep heavy saucepan, pour enough oil to reach a depth of 3 inches, or if using an electric deep-fryer, follow the manufacturer's directions. Heat the oil to 375°F (190 °C) on a deep fry thermometer, or until a small piece of the dough or bread cube placed in the oil sizzles and browns in 1 minute. Have ready a tray or sheet pan lined with paper towels or paper bags.
5. Carefully lower a few of the cannoli tubes into the hot oil. Do not crowd the pan. Fry the shells until golden, about 2 minutes, turning them so that they brown evenly.
8. Lift a cannoli tube with a wire skimmer or large slotted spoon, out of the oil. Using tongs, grasp the cannoli tube at one end. Very carefully remove the cannoli tube with the open sides straight up and down so that the oil flows back into the pan. Place the tube on paper towels or bags to drain. Repeat with the remaining tubes. While they are still hot, grasp the tubes with a potholder and pull the cannoli shells off the tubes with a pair of tongs, or with your hand protected by an oven mitt or towel. Let the shells cool completely on the paper towels. Place shells on cooling rack until ready to fill.
9. Repeat making and frying the shells with the remaining dough. If you are reusing the cannoli tubes, let them cool before wrapping them in the dough.


For stacked cannoli:
1. Heat 2-inches of oil in a saucepan or deep sauté pan, to 350-375°F (176 - 190 °C).
2. Cut out desired shapes with cutters or a sharp knife. Deep fry until golden brown and blistered on each side, about 1 – 2 minutes. Remove from oil with wire skimmer or large slotted spoon, then place on paper towels or bags until dry and grease free. If they balloon up in the hot oil, dock them lightly prior to frying. Place on cooling rack until ready to stack with filling.

DIRECTIONS FOR FILLING:
1. Line a strainer with cheesecloth. Place the ricotta in the strainer over a bowl, and cover with plastic wrap and a towel. Weight it down with a heavy can, and let the ricotta drain in the refrigerator for several hours to overnight.
2. In a bowl with electric mixer, beat ricotta until smooth and creamy. Beat in confectioner’s sugar, cinnamon, vanilla and blend until smooth. Transfer to another bowl and stir in chocolate, zest and nuts. Chill until firm.(The filling can be made up to 24 hours prior to filling the shells. Just cover and keep refrigerated).

ASSEMBLE THE CANNOLI:
1. When ready to serve..fill a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch plain or star tip, or a ziplock bag, with the ricotta cream. If using a ziplock bag, cut about 1/2 inch off one corner. Insert the tip in the cannoli shell and squeeze gently until the shell is half filled. Turn the shell and fill the other side. You can also use a teaspoon to do this, although it’s messier and will take longer.
2. Press or dip cannoli in chopped pistachios, grated chocolate/mini chocolate chips, candied fruit or zest into the cream at each end. Dust with confectioner’s sugar and/or drizzles of melted chocolate if desired.

Wednesday Round Up of Deliciousness!

Hallo everyone! It's Jenny from The Red Mangetout here! It's my turn to do a special guest round up, and I have some particularly tasty looking links to share with you this week.

Let's start off with some of the more popular blogs that you may already be familiar with. The ever cheerful Clotilde made Spaghetti Squash Gratin, which looks pretty yummy to to me. I always buy squashes, but never manage to use it up, so this seems like a great way to get rid of leftovers. It also looks like a great warming recipe to eat while it's cold outside. Use Real Butter's Jen gave us these Lion Head Meatballs. They are another perfect winter warmer recipe, and I love the use of mushrooms in the mix. Finally, Joy The Baker made these Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins. I love anything with lemon and poppy seed, and this recipe brings some Californian sunshine to the misery of a British winter!

With all the American blogs gearing up for Thanksgiving tomorrow, it's a good reminder to everyone else that Christmas is exactly a month away! I always mean to be organised, but I never quite make it. For those of you with more forward planning power than me, we have mince pies from Marie's English Kitchen,and gingerbread from Ashley of "Not Without Salt". I love both these recipes, and the photos on Ashley's blog are always superb. I also think these English Muffins by Edward at "He-Eats" would make a perfect festive breakfast, especially with some thick cut smoked salmon and a poached egg...

I'm always on the lookout for new sauces and dips that can liven up meals, and this week there were some great recipes. I particularly love this tomatillo sauce, as blogged at From Chile to Chocolate. Tomatillos can be tricky to find, but you should be able to picked up some canned ones at good world delis. At the Bitten Word, the guys made some Beetroot Chutney for Thanksgiving, but I think it would work well any day! The ginger and cumin make me think this might go well with a mild curry, as well as with cold meats. This is definitely on my "to do" list.

Unfortunately for my waistline, a lot of the recipes that catch my eye are cakes or pies. So look away now if you are on a pre-Christmas diet! This mascarpone cake from I Love Flavour, Me! was originally a family recipe from one of Ruth's Italian students, and is an interesting twist on tiramisu. I am also in love with this Pear Ginger Galette with Pecan Struesel. Sandy's recipes are always delicious looking, but the combination of pear and ginger with a crunchy topping is irresistible! Talking of pears, I also spotted Hugh FW's Greedy Pudding Pear Cake at Tinned Tomatoes. I was tempted when this was on River Cottage the other week, but fellow Scottish blogger Jacqueline's version looks even better. My own baking attempt this week was Orange and Rosemary Shortbread. It's not as crazy as it sounds, and the rosemary adds a nice aromatic accent to orange flavour. They're festive without being too over the top.

So, I think that is about it from me. I hope you've discovered a new blog or two, and been tempted by some of their delicious recipes. I'd also like to say a big thank you to Nora for letting me write on her blog, and I can't wait to see what next week's round up brings...

See you later!

Munching my way through Poznan

'Exactly how big is half a duck?' is not something you find yourself asking at every restaurant outing, I find. But in Poland they really know how to fill a plate. I've just spent a weekend there on a work trip and of course, in between being serious business types attending a conference, we had a few meals. And I was pretty impressed with the food, actually. It was really filling stuff, as expected - all big lumps of meat and dumplings and potatoes. But I think they've been practising this stuff for a while, because, in Poznan at least, they seem to do it damn well.

First meal was the famous pierogi - dumplings, in this case stuffed with meat. Heavy little fellas, but so warming and tasty. Just the ticket for eating with a warm beer while bonding with your workmates in foreign climates. 

On Saturday night, we went to a swanky restaurant en masse. It was one of those places where they fill up your wine glasses constantly - always dangerous! But luckily they feed you enough food to absorb about 3 bottles of wine. I had ...

... a starter of wild boar paté - which was so delicious it converted me to paté immediately. (I was never previously a fan.) Then ...

... half a duck with yeast buns and red cabbage. They couldn't even fit the red cabbage on the same plate and it had to come separately! It was absolutely delicious but it defeated me. (And I HATE to leave anything on my plate!) And to finish ...

...  a slightly unremarkable cheesecake. Ah well, you can't have it all!

We had a quick Sunday lunch in another restaurant on the main square, Brovaria. I had a steak with potato pancake and mashed potato. (You'll never go short of potatoes in Poznan!) It was just delicious - simple but really well done.  

Oh, and the honey beer was pretty good too! 

So, all in all, I ate really well - and also really liked Poznan. I wasn't such a big fan of the 9 hour trip home with the stern air hostess who made me put my chocolate Father Christmas in the seat pocket (just because I happened to be next to the emergency exit), who was then crushed by the bar across the top. Though, to be fair, Mr Splorer didn't seem to mind too much that his chocolate treat arrived in bite size little pieces!

Wednesday round-up of deliciousness

Firstly, I must thank Chele from Chocolate Teapot for such a stupendous round-up last week, without which this Jaffa Drizzle Sponge Cake would have passed me by. A potential tragedy, I'm sure you'll agree!
So, this week I'd like to start you off with possibly the cutest pudding ever seen in blogsville - the Teacup banana pudding. Patricia at Technicolor Kitchen made them to deal with her too quickly ripening bananas in Sao Paulo. Never a problem in blustery Cambridge, I can tell you, but when I get hit with a serious case of the winter blues, I think I will turn to these caramely banana puds baked in tea cups to cheer me up! And while we're in Sao Paulo, I suggest you also check out this Choc chip salted butter caramel ice cream. It looks oh so creamy and and sweet and scrumptious!
I was also excited to see a fab looking recipe for Irish Soda Bread from The Greasy Spoon. Soda bread has always been a highlight of visiting my Northern Irish relatives, but apparently it's easy, quick and never goes wrong, so it's about time I made some of my very own. There's another fab looking bread recipe at Life's a feast - Oat Bread with Maple Syrup. It looks really soft and tasty.
Then there's this delectable Peas keema, an Indian dish with lamb and peas and all kinds of flavoursome Indian ingredients. And keeping with the Indian theme, check out this Bombay-Style Chicken with Red Lentils from Dinner Diary. It sounds like such a great combination of ingredients with Indian flavours.
If you haven't seen lobstersquad's winning combination of drawings and food bloggery, I suggest you head over there, not least for her recipe for Oven baked breaded fish. A simple recipe, but as Ximena says that it's just as good as fried, I think it's definitely worth bookmarking.
There continues to be lots of marvellous warming food around. Let's start with Carrot soup and Welsh Rarebit from Foodycat - a stupendous combination if ever there was one. Then there's a couple of more manly options: A proper beef stew from Domestic Goddess in Disguise and Minced beef hotpot from What Do I Want To Cook Today? As fine a pair of meaty dishes for a chilly November night as I think you'll find. And, as I can never ever get enough chicken soup recipes, here's a particularly inviting one: Chicken noodle soup from Never Enough Thyme.
And the warming pud I offer you today is this Spiced pear, blackberry and pistachio crumble from Cook sister. A fine way to deal with unpromising pears, apparently, and definitely a fantastic way to end a meal.
Next, take a look at this Home-made pizza from My Food and Life Encounters. It looks so cheesy and tasty and comforting. I want to make it right now!
And just to prove that I also enjoy vegetables (and not just meaty stews and meaty pizzas!), I am also determined to make Julia Moskin's Caramelized corn with fresh mint from The Wednesday Chef. Luisa has been converted to using frozen sweetcorn with this recipe, and as it's something I've never really thought I've using that, I'm dying to give it a try. It looks like such a simple recipe, with just four ingredients.
Finally, there's a couple of suggestions for edible Christmas presents. (I put off mentioning it until now, but Christmas has well and truly arrived in blogsville!) I want to produce some this year and among the possibilities are these two marvels: Nutella and dark chocolate truffles from Sunita's World and Fresh cranberry and chestnut cantucci from The British Larder. Both of those look so delightful - I think anyone would be happy to receive them. I certainly would!
Oh and we have a late entry. This Pumpkin, spinach and goat's cheese tart has just arrived in my Google Reader and it looks fantastic. Nice timing Hilary!

Chicken, ham and leek pie

After the pear and ginger tarte tatin, here's another Rachel Allen triumph. I picked up Bake because it was cheap in TKMaxx (who knew they had cookery books?!), but it's looking like a sound investment. I had been put off by her totally smug TV demeanour but I must remember in future how smug Nigella is on TV, yet how stupendous her recipes. Maybe these girls just can't keep the self-satisfied smiles off their faces because they have heads full of amazing recipes.
Anyway, the pie! I made a few small changes, adding some ham and carrot to the original recipe. And I think it was one of the most successful, tastiest recipes I've made in a quite a long time. It did have rather impeccable ingredient credentials - home-made chicken stock; chicken and vegetables from Cambridge farmer's shop (which had somehow been hiding from me for the last year or so - glad to have finally find it though!) and ham from another local shop. And oh, how right they are, those chefs who line up to tell you that it's all about the ingredients. Because this was so, so yummy. A perfect November Sunday lunch to make you warm and happy.

Chicken, ham and leek pie (adapted from Bake, by Rachel Allen)
Serves 2 generously!

400g chicken breast, chopped into bite sized portions
200g ham, chopped into small pieces
300ml chicken stock
100ml white wine
2 sprigs of thyme or tarragon
15g butter
1 small carrot, thinly sliced
2 leeks, cleaned and sliced into 1cm slices
1 tbsp plain flour
100ml double cream
200g puff pastry, rolled out to 5mm thickness
1 egg, beaten

Preheat the oven to 230C/450F/Gas mark 8.
Place the chicken in a large saucepan with the stock, white wine, herbs and a pinch of salt and pepper. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the chicken is cooked.
Meanwhile, melt the butter in another saucepan. Add the leeks and carrots. Season with salt and pepper, cover and cook gently until the vegetables have softened. Remove them from the pan with a slotted spoon and put to one side.
Add the flour to the buttery juices (I had to add a little more butter) and stir over a medium heat for 1 minute to make a roux.
When the chicken is cooked, take it out of the saucepan and bring the liquid to the boil. Add the cream and boil for about 5 minutes to reduce. Whisk into the roux. Add the chicken and vegetables to the sauce. Put into a pie dish and cover with the pastry. (For full impact, add a word or picture on top!) Brush with the beaten egg and cook in the oven for 10 minutes. Turn the temperature down to 200C/400F/Gas Mark 6 and cook for 15 - 25 minutes or until the pastry is golden and the mixture is bubbling. (I know that's quite a big range of time, but Rachel says 20-25 mins, but mine only took about 15 before it was golden and bubbling over. So keep an eye on your pie!)

Pear and ginger tarte tatin

St Hugh of Fearnley-Whittingstall was on TV the other night, promoting pears, in between dropping lentils all over the ground, being duped by free divers and filling a pot full of tongue, heart and other unappetising bits of meat. Life in F-W land is obviously never dull!
Anyhoo, he made quite a stupendous looking Pear and almond cake. And his enthusiastic little face convinced me that I've been neglecting the humble pear. But I decided I didn't want to make a cake. I always make cakes. So a dessert of some kind was what I was after. And, digging about in the bookshelf, I found a recipe for tarte tatin in Bake by Rachel Allen with a pear and ginger variation. Yum!
You can find the recipe for the Tarte Tatin here. To make the pear and ginger version, use 4-5 pears instead of the apples and add 1 teaspoon of grated root ginger in with the batter.
Though the recipe is obviously a cracker, there is always room for improvement in my execution! The pears weren't as caramelised as I'd have hoped, so I think in future I'd be a bit braver about caramelising them (was a bit worried about burning). Next time around I'll be fearless! And I think I'd also put more ginger in, as it didn't taste very gingery to me. But despite these small quibbles, it was absolutely delicious. Mr Splorer said, and I quote, that it had made his day. Which is what you want to hear, really, isn't it, on production of a pud?
And, having some pear quarters and soured cream left over, breakfast the next morning was pancakes with pears cooked with sugar and soured cream, which also went down pretty well. So, I promise, St Hugh, never to neglect pears again. I might even have to get around to that pear and almond cake before too long.

Indian Food Made Easy

I hadn't intended to write a cook book review, but as I've spent the week mentally sizing up Indian Food Made Easy by Anjum Anand, I thought I might as well share. I took the book out of the library, having made a great meal from her recipes in delicious magazine. I found that knowing you have to take the book back after a few weeks rather concentrates your mind, and we ended up having a very Indian Food Made Easy week (interspersed with a couple of culinary triumphs from Mr Splorer - turns out he makes a mean cottage pie and kedgeree!).
I made:

Beef Burgers with Herbed Yoghurt and Smashed-fried Potatoes

Classic Northern Chicken Curry and Naan Bread

Green Fish Curry and Simple Pilaf

So, I think I really put the book through its paces! And the verdict? A bit lukewarm, to be honest. It was all quite tasty, but I think maybe I was after something a bit more exciting. I'm certainly not any kind of expert in Indian food, but I felt that this was a little bit safe for me. There are lots of fairly standard curries and international dishes such as the burgers with an Indian twist. The pilaf recipe was a great guide to cooking successful basmati rice (not one of my strengths), but as the naan bread wasn't as successful (it didn't really rise, so it was crisp rather than soft) it wouldn't earn a place on my shelves as a guide to the basics. I think this book would be great as as introduction for someone who really wasn't familiar with Indian food or how to cook a curry, as the recipes are pretty simple and easy to follow. And I think that's who the book is aimed at, really. So maybe it's just not the book for me. I would like to investigate some of her other works, though, as I do think her recipes are easy to follow. But, Indian Food Made Easy is heading back to the library, I'm afraid.

Wednesday Round Up

Hi Everyone. Nora has very bravely handed the task of this Wednesday's round up to me, Chele from Chocolate Teapot! Just between you and me I'm feeling a wee bit nervous and have everything crossed that I can do her justice! Eek.


Anyhoo, no better way to start than to launch myself right in, the round up this week has a very serious sweet side. The post that has called to my sweet tooth the most is from Leave Room For Dessert, a wonderful White Chocolate and Strawberry Cake served with Ice Cream! The photos to accompany the post had me drooling all over my keyboard. White Chocolate and Strawberries would have to be the all time best flavour combo!


Apple and Spice has spent some quality time in the kitchen this week and made some delish looking Mini Fruit Cakes and Chocolate Truffles served on very delicate Tulle Biscuits for afternoon tea. Such a decedent way to spend an afternoon! The best British Afternoon Tea I've ever had was at the Balmoral here in Edinburgh, crustless sandwiches followed by scones and petit fours with whipped cream, but I would travel great distances to be able to sink my teeth into Chocolate Truffles!


Still on the subject of cakes Baking Obsession has made a wonderful Frog In A Pond Cake for babies birthday. No recipe to accompany the post but some truly fantastic photos and equally impressive cake decorating to oh and ah over.


Tartelette has got to be the site I go to for 'Food Porn'. The latest sample from this fantastic blog is Chocolate Wontons served with a 'bean' Ice Cream. If anybody in Edinburgh has ever been to Sygn (my fave place to eat and sip cocktails!) you'll know how good Chocolate Wontons are. I don't think I would ever have the courage to attempt to make these myself, but this is a blog to aspire to and never fails with the virtual sugar rush.


Another of the blogs that I wouldn't be able to start the day without is The English Kitchen. Marie has got to be one of the luckiest people in the world, getting to be Chef for a family in a Manor House. My idea of heaven! The recipes on this blog never fail but impress and Marie's open and honest approach to the food she cooks always helps spur me on with my own cooking. This week Marie has made a wonderful pudding for Autumn - Apple and Blueberry Pudding. The description alone helped warm my insides, then I got to the pictures. This one is already on my 'Must Try' list ... it is ever expanding!


The recent British Food Fortnight has been marked over at Rosy Lips and Lavender with another Autumnal inspired cake Blackberry Upside Down Cake. Yum! Not had enough of cake yet? Then head over to Tinned Tomatoes where Jacqueline has made a decedent looking Jaffa Drizzle Sponge Cake, Hubby has added this to his list of things I 'Must Try' for him!


Culinary Concoctions By Peabody reminded us all on Monday that there are only 45 days left to make sweets for Christmas. Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeek! So just in case you haven't started your Christmas preparations yet here is another one to add to the list, Peppermint Bark. Think of white chocolate and crushed candy canes. Yes - this one has also been added to my 'Must Try' list. See what I mean about ever expanding?!?!?! Cookie Madness is another of the American food blogs I like to regularly check into. The most recent addition is Scotcheroos and is a Rice Krispies bar made with peanut butter, golden syrup (called Corn Syrup in the good ol' U S of A) and topped with chocolate and butterscotch chips. If anybody knows where to get a hold of buttersctoch chips please let me know. So many of the nicest sounding and scrummy looking American recipes call for this delicacy which no amount of searching in the UK has managed to turn up so far.


My last two entries for this week's round up are for cupcakes. The craze just doesn't seem to be letting up anytime soon which is fine and dandy by me. I love the idea of a mini, iced cake treat all just for me. Individual portion me sized treats! Bliss in a paper wrapper. The first treat comes from Australian food blog Raspberri Cupcakes (not every post is about cupcakes, honest!) and involves a childhood flash back - popping candy! I think we used to call it Moon Dust or something like that. These cupcakes are made with one of Nigella's chocolate cake recipes, set into ice cream cones, iced and sprinkled with the most fun food stuff I've ever been allowed to sample. Click here for the post and the recipes.


Last but by no means least is Devil's Food Cupcakes with Salty Mascarpone Icing and is courtesy of Vanilla Kitchen. I'm a relative new comer to the whole salty/sweet revolution, salted caramel has been popping up on loads of food blogs for quite some time now and it was only at the Good Food Show last week that I actually manged to try the combo for myself for the first time. I now understand why it has been so popular, not quite as fun as popping candy but the flavour is quite a treat for the taste buds in a very grown up kind of way.


So that's my wrap up for the week. Hope there is something in my ramblings that sets your sweet tooth alight ;0)

Anjum Anand's veggie feast

This menu is apparently just the ticket for celebrating Diwali. Well, I can't comment on that, but I can assure you that it's also fantastic as a Friday night meal with which to greet your lucky Mr Splorer or equivalent when he returns from work. (My domestic goddess moments are few and far between, but they all revolve around providing him with food!) I snaffled the recipes from the November issue of delicious. magazine. They were from Anjum Amand, whose rather photogenic face was vaguely familiar, but based on these recipes, I've just got her Indian Food Made Easy out of the library in order to investigate her work more fully. For these were fab, fab dishes, which worked wonderfully in combination. The quick spiced cashew nuts were easy peasy but just delicious - the ideal way to stop the boy from snacking on Nutella while dinner was cooking! The pilaf is going to become a regular fixture, as the rice was cooked perfectly, something I don't always find easy to achieve.
There was only one really unusual ingredient, which was the carom seed in the spinach. I found them in my local exotic food emporium, labelled arjwain seeds, but as the taste was so very similar to thyme, I wouldn't trek across town to seek them out, if I were you.

All these recipes serve 8.

Quick spiced cashew nuts

1 tsp butter
200g cashew nuts
¼ tsp each salt and pepper
½ tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp ground cumin

Melt the butter in a frying pan over a low heat. Add the nuts and sauté until lightly roasted. Take off the heat and mix with the other ingredients in a bowl. Cool a little and serve.

Spiced pea and cashew pilaf

6 tbsp vegetable oil
50g cashew
1½ tsp cumin seeds
1 cinnamon stick
6 cloves
6 green cardamom pods
2 bay leaves
2 small onions, finely sliced
400g basmati rice, washed until the water runs clear and soaked for 15 minutes
175g frozen peas

Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a large wide pan with a tight fitting lid. Add the nuts and fry until golden. Remove with a slotted spoon and set to one side. Add the rest of the oil to the pan and when it's hot add the whole spices and bay leaves and cook for 10 minutes. Add the onions and fry until soft. Drain the rice, add to the pan with the peas and stir to coat in the oil.
Pour in 700ml boiling water and season. Bring to the boil and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Turn the heat down to low, cover and cook for 7-9 minutes. Check after 7 minutes to see if the rice is cooked and cook for another 1 or 2 minutes if necessary.
Take off the heat, add the cashew nuts and fluff up the rice with a fork as you stir them in. Leave for 4 minutes for the excess water to evaporate and serve.

Carom seed sautéed spinach

1½ tbsp vegetable oil
4 large garlic cloves, finely sliced
1 red chilli, deseeded and finely sliced
¾ tsp carom seeds (also known as ajwain seeds) or a few sprigs of fresh thyme
800g spinach
1½ tsp ground coriander
40g butter


Heat the oil in a frying pan over a low heat and add the garlic, chilli and carom seeds. Cook until the garlic smells all lovely (which is indeed a technical term!) and is browned around the edges.
Add the spinach, coriander and some salt and pepper. Turn the heat up to medium and cook until the spinach is wilted and the liquid has evaporated. Stir in the butter and serve.


Paneer with a creamy tomato and cardamom sauce

6 tbsp vegetable oil
2 medium onions, chopped
5 large tomatoes
18g fresh ginger, roughly chopped
4 cloves of garlic
12 black peppercorns, crushed
seeds of 6 cardamom pods, crushed
1 rounded tsp garam marsala
1 tbsp ground coriander
1 tsp hot chilli powder
140ml double cream
450g paneer, cut into 2.5cm cubes
coriander leaves, to garnish

Heat the oil in a medium pan. Add the onion and cook over a medium heat, while stirring, until browned around the edges. Meanwhile, skin the tomatoes by covering them in boiling water for 1 minute, then draining, rinsing with cold water and peel. Quarter the tomatoes, then purée with the ginger, garlic and a splash of water. Add to the onions with the all the spices, a little salt and stir over a medium-high heat for about 15 minutes.
Add the cream and cook for a minute. Add 500ml cold water and blend into a purée. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 5 minutes. Add the paneer and cook for 10 minutes until it is soft and creamy. Garnish with coriander and serve.

Buñuelos de Calabaza

Dieters, this is not the post for you. People who don't keep sugar in the house can tootle off somewhere else. (A couple of people have admitted to this to me in a very smug fashion of late - as if it's something to proud of!) And if deep frying is against your principles, buñuelos de calabaza are not the snack for you.

But if you have a bit of pumpkin left over from Hallowe'en and you want something filling and slightly naughty, I would highly recommend buñuelos. When I lived in Valencia, these pumpkin doughnuty things were a highlight of Fallas, the massive firework-ridden fiesta in March. Here's a fella making them:

(And the belly on him is a lesson on what happens if you eat too many.)

But I'd rather forgotten about them until I saw this post for (pumpkin free) buñuelos on The winter guest. So, with a bit of pumpkin purée left over from my cupcakes, the search was on for a recipe for buñuelos de calabaza (calabaza = pumpkin). There were a few on Spanish language food blogs, such as here and here, but I wasn't sure about translating ingredients, especially yeast. So I kind of made it up. And was so, so chuffed when they turned out well!

There are still a few tweaks to be made, but I thought I'd share what I did, in case anyone else wants to have a go, or even offer advice. The texture of the cooked dough felt pretty spot on, but it was very sticky before I cooked it, so it was impossible to shape them with a hole in the middle, as is traditional. They just got rather dumped into the oil as I got the mixture off my fingers. Hence the lumpy shapes you can see here:

So, maybe next time around I'd try and make the mix a little less liquid. And I think a pinch of salt would work well and maybe just a little sugar. But this is what I did...

I activated 7g dried active yeast with warm water and sugar, according to the instructions on the packet. (i.e. sprinkled the yeast and 1 tsp sugar over 150ml warm water and left to develop about 2cm of foamy business at the top). I then mixed the yeast with 250g pumpkin purée and then mixed in 300g plain flour. I left the mixture to rise for about 2 hours - and it rose beautifully!

Then I just deep fried them in sunflower oil until they were golden. And dipped them in cinnamon sugar. Mmmmm, cinnamon sugar. It's the secret that transforms a nice deep fried breadish product into a thing of soft and crunchy sweet deliciousness.

Wednesday round-up of deliciousness

There's something special, don't you think, about someone sharing their family recipes? Knowing that something has been a family favourite, honed and perfected over the years, gives a recipe an aura of tried-and-testedness and enduring popularity that I find very reassuring. One such that I spotted was Erica's Mom's Colombian Tamales. No doubt one of these days I'll be spending Christmas making these meat and cornmeal parcels with the Costa Rican in-laws, so I'd better get practising. Not to mention they look pretty damn yummy!
Meanwhile, another way to attract my attention and wangle your way into the Wednesday round-up of deliciousness is by using a cheesy pun. Julie of dinner with Julie made Ghoulash over the Hallowe'en season. Ghoul-ash, you see! Mwa ha ha. And she produced not only a fab cheesy pun, but also a delicious deep coloured pork stew with a bright white dollop of sour cream on top! 
And check out this Tea-smoked salmon from The winter guest. I love, love, love smoked salmon and so the idea of smoking it myself is very exciting. Miriam uses green tea, but I'm so tempted to give it a try with Earl Grey, or PG Tips, perhaps! And while we're on the subject of fish dishes, this Mackerel à la Lyonnaise from Hollow Legs looks delicious - mackerel with butter, white wine and vinegar. Oh, and I'm intrigued by Olive oil poached cod from Kali Orexi. Maria promises tender, moist fish every single time - it's a very forgiving method of cooking, apparently. 
Also this week, we have two different scrumptious things to do with potatoes. Firstly, there's these Pommes de terre boulangères from the Wednesday Chef. They're basically fried spuds served with vinegary caramelised onions. (I seem to be all about the vinegar this week!) But if you're after something a bit cheesier, how about this Gratin Dauphinois from Gratinée? Crunchy bits on top, creamy cheesiness underneath - yum! 
Now, here's a couple of cupcake recipes it would be a shame to restrict to Hallowe'en. These pumpkin cupcakes from Apple & Spice are a lot more successful than my attempt, complete with fabulous fondant pumpkin decorations. And these Crunchie cupcakes from the Caked Crusader look so delicious. The buttercream has Crunchie bar crumbs in it - isn't that a great idea? These Blueberry and lemon muffins have no Hallowe'en connection, but I'm just including them because they look so cute and delicious! 
Meanwhile, yet another delicious meatball recipe sprang out at me this week. This time it was Baked chicken meatballs from Smitten kitchen. They look so tasty, but I'm also dying to try them because Deb says they taste cheesy, despite containing precisely no cheese. Intriguing, I think you'll agree! Deb also had my mouth watering with her decadent, old school chocolate mousse. It's very 80s, apparently. I'm pretty sure I've been eating chocolate mousse all through the 90s and 00s, but then I never was the most fashionable of girls! 
Next, we take a quick moment to appreciate the humble cauliflower. Not particularly inspiring by itself, it's true, but here's a couple of great recipes to liven them up a little. Firstly, we have a Cauliflower risotto from What Rachel ate today. The topping of stale bread, anchovies and chilli looks just the thing to add a bit of texture and heat to a creamy, rich risotto. If you want an Indian, rather than Italian, influenced flavour to your cauliflower, I'd suggest this Roasted cauliflower with cumin and coriander butter from seven spoons. Dear God, that sounds good! 
Oh, and if you have any pumpkin leftover from Hallowe'en, there's a few options. I might well be adding to them in a day or two, but in the meantime, the Duo Dishes have a whole extravaganza of pumpkin recipes! But if one pumpkin recipe is enough for you, I think this Streusel-topped chocolate chip pumpkin bread from CookiePie looks like such a stupendous recipe - easy to make and lots of fun to eat. 

Sweet potato galettes

Firstly, thanks to Hilary for such a fab Hallowe'en themed round-up of deliciousness. I don't know about you, but there's a few blogs in there that I'll be going back to again and again. And as well as that, she was also holding the fort while I was on a work trip to Italy for four days.
It was a speedy tour of Northern Italy - Turin, Bergamo and Milan. While obviously I was extremely busy doing worky things, I did of course have to eat! However, although the standard was generally pretty high, I wasn't totally bowled over by much of the food. (I know, I know, it's sacrilege, but what can you do?) In Turin I had a pretty good pumpkin risotto that weirdly had amaretto biscuits crumbled on top, which didn't really do it for me. (No photo I'm afraid, as I was attempting to appear a serious professional type, not a geek who photographs their every meal!) In Bergamo I had a local pasta dish, casoncelli alla bergamesca, with bacon and sage, which was tasty but rather swimming in lard. The food highlight was a spaghetti alle vongole in Milan, which was everything you hope for in an Italian pasta dish - perfectly cooked and bursting with flavour.
But the most surprising dish I spotted (though didn't partake of) was pizza with chips on top! And in two different places, so it must be a fairly standard dish. Well, I suppose it must get pretty chilly round those parts, so they need some carbohydrates to keep them going through winter.

Meanwhile, no sooner had I got back to normal life in Cambridge than I found myself arranging a last minute Hallowe'en gathering round mine. We had some excellent games - pumpkin bowling, mummy race and, of course, apple bobbing. (And if anyone needs a Hallowe'en pub quiz, just let me know and I'll send you mine!) I also made a few nibbles, some snacks from the Ottolenghi cookbook and some pumpkin cupcakes from the Hummingbird Bakery cookbook.

These sweet potato galettes were supposed to fit in with the Hallowe'en them by having orange sweet potato, like in the picture, but my sweet potatoes were more of a, well, potatoey colour. (Anyone know how to tell if a sweet potato's orange on the inside?) But they were pretty tasty little numbers and have potential for any number of variations. For a start, I used sesame seeds instead of pumpkin seeds, but you could mess about with this to suit your tastes, or in my case, what you can find in the cupboard.

Sweet potato galettes

(The recipe says that this makes four, but I made about fourteen out of 250g puff pastry and they weren't unreasonably thin)

3 sweet potatoes, weighing about 350g each
250g puff pastry
1 egg, lightly beaten
100ml soured cream
100g goats cheese (although next time I think I'd double this - the more cheese the better, in my opinion!)
2 tbsp pumpkin seeds (though sesame seeds worked well, I think)
1 medium hot chilli, finely chopped
1 tbsp olive oil (I needed a lot more than this, because I ended up with lots of galettes)
1 crushed garlic clove
2 tsp chopped parsley

Preheat the oven to 200C/Gas Mark 6. Bake the sweet potatoes in their skins for 35-45 minutes. When they are cool enough to handle, peel and cut into thin slices.
Meanwhile, roll out the puff pastry to about 2mm thick on a floured surface. Cut out rectangles of about 7cm × 14cm and prick them all over with a fork. Put the rectangles on a baking sheet lined with baking parchment or greaseproof paper and leave to rest in the fridge for half an hour.
Take them out and brush with the beaten egg. Spread a thin layer of soured cream on the pastries, leaving a 5mm border around the edge. Arrange the potato slices on the pastry on top of the cream and crumble on the goats cheese, sprinkle on the seeds and chilli and season with salt and pepper. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the underneath is golden brown.
While they are cooking, mix the olive oil, garlic, parsley and a pinch of salt. Brush this over the galettes when they come out of the oven. These can be served warm or at room temperature - perfect for a party!

Meanwhile, my pumpkin cupcakes were a little less successful. I had to scour the streets of Cambridge to find pumpkin purée, but I got it in a health food shop in the end. The cupcakes rose and rose and looked all golden - and then sank! The mixture seemed very liquid, so I don't know if that had something to do with it (all advice welcome), but I still have half a jar of purée to play with, so maybe I'll have another go. They tasted pretty good though - the spicy cinnamon flavour was yummy.
PS The icing was supposed to be green and orange. The orange was a little more orange (and less pink!) than it looks in the picture, but it did go a bit fluorescent. Ah well, I'll get it right next year!