Tried & Tasted

Sunday Bruschetta

Where is the summer? It’s mid July and we haven’t yet had more than a few days of beautiful weather. I am no way trying to dedicate this post to a rant about the weather, but I am getting just a little sick of waking up and looking out of my bedroom window to a dreary sky filled with dark gray clouds just waiting for the perfect opportunity to soak everyone. 

That is why, after another dull Sunday, I decided I would brighten up my day with some rather indulgent bruschetta. I absolutely love bruschetta and find myself ordering quite often when I go out for dinner. 

A few weeks ago I had the most amazing bruschetta from Jamie’s Italian. It was a ‘tear and share’ kind of dish served on a long slice of grilled ciabatta bread with four different toppings. Pea, mint and ricotta, spinach and chili, mozzarella and lemon and sautéed mushrooms. It was divine, I could have easily eaten a whole one on my own instead of sharing it with my mum! 

Today I decided to make a traditional bruschetta with a little twist just to give it that something extra, in m opinion. I used one small home grown onion from the garden, one beefsteak tomato and a handful of fresh basil, also from the garden. I roughly chopped everything, seasoned with salt and pepper and drizzled and with olive oil and a dash of balsamic vinegar. I used some left over french stick from yesterday, and actually I think the older the bread you use the more it soaks up all the juices. I fried the bread in a griddle plan with a little oil and then for my twist. 

I am absolutely in love with goats cheese right now, so I couldn’t help but incorporate it into my dish. I used a soft goats cheese and spread it on the bread before coating in my bruschetta mix. I sprinkled with a few fresh basil leaves and took a couple of pictures for this post as quickly as I could, because I couldn’t wait to get stuck in. It was absolutely delicious and really brightened up my dull Sunday. I would definitely recommend this. 

Crown Cake

It was my mum’s birthday recently and because it was a big one I figured she needed a big cake. I usually try to make everyone in my family a birthday cake but it is usually a traditional Victoria Sponge with traditional icing on top. This year though I wanted to go all out. Having recently seen the TV series by Lorraine Pascale I saw this amazing cake she made and I just had to try it and what better occasion then a birthday.

I know it is a bit of a risk baking a cake I have never tried before, but I wanted it to be a surprise and couldn’t risk making it twice and my mum seeing it.

I followed the Crown Cake decoration recipe by Lorraine Pascale, but I decided to follow my own sponge recipe and use a macapone filling and topping rather than a butter cream as I feel the flavours work better with the sponge and I know my mum loves it. 

One thing I will say is it is best to make the sugar decoration shortly before you want to serve it as it does not keep for long. You may find the sugar decoration melts slightly after a day, but avoid putting it in the fridge before this happens as this speeds up the process. 

One last thing, this is a very indulgent cake and it is extremely sweet with the mascapone and the sugar decoration that you will not want a large slice. Unless of course you are greedy like me and think you handle it!

Here is the recipe for the cake

For the sponge:

• 200g of self raising flour
• 200g of butter
• 200g of caster sugar
• 4 medium eggs
• 2 table spoons of milk
• 1 vanilla pod

For the filling and the topping:

• 50g of Raspberry Jam for the filling
• 2 tubs of mascapone cheese for the filling and topping
• 50g of icing sugar for the filling and topping 

Crown Cake decoration:

• 150ml of cold water
• 300g of granulated sugar
• 150ml of Golden syrup 
• 5 drops of food colouring 
• Grease proof paper

Mix the butter and sugar until the mixture is creamy and sift in the flour and combine. Add the eggs one at a time and mix. When the mixture is smooth pour into two separate cake tins and bake in the oven for 25- 30 minutes at 180 degrees.

Mix the icing sugar and mascapone sugar together for the filling and when the cakes are cooked and have cooled using a pallet knife spread the raspberry jam on one of the cakes and the mascapone cream onto the other and then sandwich together.  

Coat the cake in the remaining mascapone cream and place in the fridge.

In a saucepan add the sugar water and golden syrup and heat on a medium heat. When the caramel starts to bubble cook for a remaining 10 minutes. Do not stir the mixture, only swirl it with the saucepan. Add the food colouring when the caramel is ready and pour into a jug and leave to stand for 2-3 minutes. 

Lay out a sheet of grease proof paper and using a swirling action, pour the mixture onto the paper. Once it has cooled and is easy to peel off, peal it away and wrap the crown around the cake. Cut off any remaining toffee with kitchen scissors. 

When in Roma

For my 21st Birthday present, my boyfriend Dan surprised me with the most amazing gift. A weekend away in Rome. I couldn’t wait to leave and indulge in fine Italian cuisine and a wealth of culture.

Known as ‘la Citta Eterna’ (the Eternal City), few other cities boast such historic beauty. Each turn of a corner unveils a spectacular sight and I found myself living up to the eager tourist stereotype with my map in hand, head titled up to the sky with my mouth wide open. I couldn’t help myself though, as I found myself imagining the stories that were created before me. 

For our first full day in Rome we decided to head to Vatican City, which certainly needs a few hours of unhurried exploration. To save time and avoid the endless queue, we decided to book a tour, and it was certainly worth it. 

That evening we decided to head to the Trevi Fountain. Meandering through the backstreets with washing lines strung between two balconies, we knew we were nearing because the air got colder and the crashing of water could be heard. As we turned a corner, there it was. The fountain was surrounded by lots of tourists, eager to get to the front to get the best shot of the fountain. 

If you are an ice cream lover like myself be sure to try some of the softly whipped peaks from San Crispino just off the Trevi Fountain.

The Colosseum is absolutely outstanding. The eeriness of the structure reeked death yet I couldn’t help but delve into its history and find myself being absolutely fascinated by it.

It is no secret that Italians love food and when we were presented with a menu offering five courses we couldn’t help but let ourselves indulge. Ristorante Di Rienzo offered a traditional Italian meal with locally sourced ingredients and handmade pasta. We enjoyed bruchetta to start followed by a pasta dish, then a meat dish, with a light fruity dessert for afters then a strong Italian Coffee. The meal was amazing and I was completely stuffed, but to top it all off we were casually eating our dinner in the square overlooking the Pantheon. The view was breathtaking. 

My Journey to Beijing

As a student, to be get given the chance to go to Beijing for six days, I jumped on it. It turned out to be one of the most insightful, fascinating and amazing experiences of my life. I saw some of the most breath taking views and tasted food unlike anything I have ever tried before.

Let me take you on my journey…

We arrived in China, a little tired to say the least after the overnight flight from London to Beijing. The jet lag was kicking in after very little sleep on the plane, but the adrenaline soon pumped as I was so excited to get out and view this spectacular city.

The array of colour from the lanterns and flashing lights that illuminated the city piercing through the smog that cast a grey haze was unbelievable. Such a decadent and colourful place. It reached minus 16 degrees while we were there, and the many rivers running through the city had turned to solid ice with people brave enough to ice-skate on them. 

Every where you turned, there was a new picture opportunity. The colour, the architecture and the history radiated from every direction and it was mesmerizing. The forbidden city, the Temple of Heaven and the Summer Palace truly are some of the most beautiful places I have ever been to. The work that would have gone into creating such beauty through the design and the artwork painted on the beams is astonishing.

 

Climbing the great wall was such an achievement and the views we were rewarded with after climbing so many stairs made it completely worth it. 

(These padlocks are locked on to iron bars at the great wall for good luck.)

Away from all the tourist attractions, we also got to experience the traditional Chinese way of life as we visited the Hutong area in the heart of Beijing where many people still live today. 

The food I ate whilst in Beijing has definitely got to be some of the best food I have ever sampled. Not like the kind you order from the Chinese take away, but fresh food, oozing flavour and vibrant colours. Most nights we had a sampling meal where we got to try many traditional chinese dishes. 

I was completely fascinated by the wealth of different street foods that was sold all around the city, that when we arrived at the commercial shopping district of WangfuJing I was completely in my element. 

Tucked down a side street just off the main shopping district lies the biggest street food market in Beijing. Lined with many different stools with the vendors offering different culinary delights, I knew I couldn’t leave Beijing having not tried something out of the ordinary.  

The wealth of different foods on offer was unbelievable. Some I could figure out what they were, and others I couldn’t. After wandering to the end of the market, I finally decided I would try the dried insects. I plucked up the courage and ordered three scorpions on a stick as I wasn’t brave enough to try the tarantulas lying next to them. To my surprise they didn’t taste that bad. Sort of like ready salted crisps as they had been plunged into a deep fat fryer and dusted in a coating of salt. 

I also couldn’t leave without trying Tanghulu, a sweet snack local to Beijing. Tanghulu offers a mixture off different fruit stacked on to a kebab skewer and dipped in caramelised sugar. It was absolutely delicious.

Being able to experience a different culture by viewing the many sights, understanding the way of life and sampling traditional food is something I will never forget. Beijing is a fabulous city offering a wealth of memories that I will cherish forever. 

A Winters Morning

Having woken up to a blanket of snow that has frosted the outside white, I decided to bake some winter muffins to enjoy with my brew while I cosy up on the sofa on this cold winters day. 

With not many ingredients stocked in the cupboards, I decided to make some lemon and sultana muffins because I had a couple of lemons that definitely needed using and handful of sultanas left over from Christmas. 

Ingredients:

• 250g of self raising flour
• 1 tsp of bicarbonate of soda
• 100g of butter
• 100g of caster sugar
• 100g of sultanas
• 2 lemons
• 2 eggs
• 200g of natural yogurt
• 2 tbsp of milk
• 12 tsp of Lemon curd

Method:

Preheat the oven to 200C and line the muffin tin with 12 paper cases.

Melt the butter and leave to cool. Zest the two lemons and squeeze the juice. Heat up the juice until warm and poor over the sultanas and allow them to soak up most of the juice. 

Sift the flour and bicarbonate of soda and stir in the sultanas, sugar and lemon zest and make a well in the centre.

Beat the eggs and add the yogurt, butter and milk and stir well. 

Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and try and mix everything in 12 turns. Over mixing the mixture can lead to bad muffins.

Divide the mixture between the 12 muffin cases.

Bake for 15 minutes and take the muffins out and spoon a tsp of lemon curd onto each one and sprinkle with sugar. Place in the oven for a further 5 minutes or until well risen and golden-brown. 

Perfect for a cold winters day.  

 

The Family Recipe

In many homes, the heart of the house is the kitchen. A place where every great meal comes from, the spot where visitors gather around waiting to be served their tea and where families catch up on the days antics whilst sitting around the dinner table eating their meal together. 

Most importantly though, the kitchen is the spot where education is installed within our children. Where mothers teach their children to cook the recipes that their mothers taught them when they were younger.

The education that was installed within myself started by trawling through the pages of my mothers cookbooks. At such a young age, I was never interested in the recipe, probably because I didn’t know what it meant, and partly because I was too engrossed in the picture of the finished product desperately hoping that from all the words of instruction, timing, and ingredients, that somewhere in there it would say it takes seconds to make without any effort. 

Recipes play a big part in cooking and many households have a stash of family recipes that have been passed down through the generations secretly preserved so as not to let slip what the recipe entails. 

After all, many families have a signature dish that has been disclosed to family members only for years, and will continue to do so for years to come as mothers teach their children the sacred family recipe in he hopes that the recipe will be used time and time again. 

This chain of cookery lessons between mothers and their children secures the family recipe and keeps the dish alive. Alterations will be made along the way, but this game of chinese whispers ensures that the basic recipe remains secure within the family.

As the recipe baton is passed from member to member along the way, no member of the family will ever make it quite as well as the original founder of the recipe, but I decided to give my grandmothers rock cakes a go, as they have always been a personnel favourite of mine since childhood where they became one of ‘Grandmas treats’ that would be waiting for my brother and I when ever we would go round.

To avoid disappointment that my rock cakes failed to meet the high standards of Grandmas, I used the basic recipe but decided to add hazelnuts and chocolate to mine as this one of my favourite flavour combinations. 

Ingredients:

• 200g self rising flour
• 100g of sugar
• 50g of currents
• 25g of chocolate ( I added this to the recipe to give my own spin on the traditional family recipe)
• 25g of Hazelnuts ( I added this to the recipe to give my own spin on the traditional family recipe)
• 100g of margarine 
• 1 egg
• 1 - 3 tbsp milk

Method:

Pre heat the oven to 200C, and remove the butter from the fridge to soften.

Sieve the flour and baking powder into a bowl and add the softened butter. Mixing with your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.

To the breadcrumb mixture add the sugar, currents and anything else you are adding to the mixture and mix well. 

Add the egg and the milk until the mixture is of a dough like consistency. If the mixture is to stiff just add more milk. 

Cover two baking trays with grease proof paper and divide the mixture into bite size heaps.

Bake in the oven for 15 minutes or until golden brown and enjoy with nice cup of tea. 

Tried and Tested…

I have waited over a month to get to this point. The taste test! After bottling up my beer and leaving it to ferment, I finally got to taste my efforts. 

It was a darker then I expected, but it is a clear beer with a slight fizz, which is definitely a good thing. 

The beer has a strong malty flavour and is very bitter, and you can ever so slightly taste the hazelnuts running through the background.

Being a dark beer, it would be perfectly suited to a hearty winter stew because of the dark sauce and meat used. 

I decided to make a stew and not only to compliment my beer, but to use my beer in the cooking process. 

Following my mums stew recipe I adapted it slightly; instead of adding stock, add beer. Find the recipe here. This stew is a perfect winter warmer to be enjoyed on a cold evening.

Looking back, this is exactly the position I wanted to be in a month later. Nestled on the sofa enjoying my home-brewed winter beer and devouring a hearty stew. 

 

A match made in food…

Like wine, beer to can compliment the flavours of food. Knowing what makes a perfect match involves a lot of tasting, but who wouldn’t enjoy consuming copious amounts of beer and food for the sake of finding the ideal partner?

Considering the key flavours in the food and beer is imperative. The predominant flavours you will taste in food range from spicy, sweet, sour, salty, citrus, rich and creamy. In beer you will taste, hoppy, sweet, dry, fruity, malty, citrus and spicy. 

If you are a lager drinker, the thirst quenching nature of the beer makes it best suited to hot and spicy food, to cool and cleanse the pallet. 

                                            

Bitters are best paired with smoked, boiled or steamed seafood because the bitter taste running through the beer will compliment a light fish dish. 

                                 

Fruity or sweet flavoured beers compliment a fruity sweet dessert perfectly because of the citrusy sweet background to the beer. 

                                               

Dark Ales suit most meat dishes or anything with gravy or a dark sauce should be served with this beer. 

                                

When you next have a pint with dinner, consider the flavours in the beer and food. They could be a match made in heaven or just a complete disaster. 

All pictures are sourced from www.sxc.hu

 

Fermenting Well…

The Home Brew…

The ingredients arrived within a few days of me ordering it, so, with my Dad’s help I started my brew. Luckily for me my Dad had already brewed his own beer before so he had a slight inclination about what he was doing, and already had all the equipment that was needed for the brewing process so I only needed to order the ingredients.

The recipe I had chosen was enough to make 40 pints of beer, but I only ordered enough for 20, just in case it turns into a complete and utter disaster and I am left with 40 pints worth of foul tasting beer. 

Equipment and Ingredients:

Heat five litres of water in a large saucepan until it reaches 60 degrees Centigrade. Place the large teabag in the water and let the mixture steep for 45 minutes making sure that the water does not go past 65 degrees Centrigrade. 

 

After 60 minutes, you should end up with what looks like a big cup of tea without the milk. Add half the can of amber and dark malt extract to the mixture, and stir well.  This is called the wort.

Pour the wort into the brewing machine and add 1 oz of the weighed out Fuggles hops. Let the mixture boil for an hour then add the rest of the hops and the irish moss. Make sure the mixture is stirred every so often. (This process is best done outside, as the smell it emits is not to everyone’s taste!)

Once the mixture has boiled for another 15 minutes or so, strain the mixture into a sterilised fermenting bin and leave to cool. 

Mix the yeast with a small cup of water, and add to half a pint of the beer mixture. Once the mixture has started to ferment and the wort has cooled to 25 degrees Centigrade add the yeast mixture, and leave in a dry, warm place for a week to ferment.