Malt Loaf and a Cup of Tea

Ahhhhh... one of my most favourite treats today!  And another recipe I can't believe I have never posted on here!  Malt loaf.  Moist, delicious, fruit loaf - perfect in the afternoon, sliced and buttered with a cup of tea.  Thanks Mum for your recipe!

Once again, I did a double batch!  It really was the best thing when I received two new loaf tins for my birthday :-D 

I'll get going on this malt loaf recipe now, and there are a bunch of savoury recipes coming soon to the blog.  I can't wait to share all of the dinners we have been creating using seasonal vegetables from our CSA Winter Box!  Watch this space for some non-baking blog posts soon!!

Ingredients (for just the one loaf!):

8oz self-raising flour
1/2 cup demerara sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup milk
4oz dried fruit (I used raisins and sultanas)
1 egg
1 tbsp golden syrup
1 tbsp black treacle

 

Method:

1.  Soak fruit with a cup of black tea overnight in a jug/bowl.  Enjoy a cup of tea seeing as the kettle is boiling!

 

2.  Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C and grease and line loaf tin (or tins if you are doing a double batch like me!)

 

3.  Mix all of the ingredients together in a bowl.

 

4.  Put the batter into the prepared loaf tin and place in centre of oven.

5.  Bake for 1 hour, until a cake tester/skewer comes out clean.

6.  Leave to cool, then slice and enjoy... With another cup of tea of course!!

That's all for today folks! 

 

Hopefully I'll be back next week with some vegetable inspired recipes for once :-)

Cranberry Frangipane Tart

I am SO excited to be sharing this recipe with you today.  Baked for a family Sunday lunch the other week, I am already looking forward to the next time I can bake this delicious tart!  I LOVE the flavours, the texture and the overall look of the tart and for me at least, the cranberry paired with the almond flavour couldn't be a better combination!

For me, cranberries are the perfect Summer into Autumn fruit, and they're only just making their way onto the shelves freshly picked.  Sadly the weekend I baked this they weren't ready yet and fresh cranberries weren't anywhere to be found, but frozen ones did the job, and next time I'll definitely try fresh ones just to compare!

I used an Anna Olson recipe for this tart, but adapted the recipe a little as I went, as well as making a bigger tart than she did - which meant some maths to figure out ingredients and how much of everything I would need for the tart pan size I had but everything worked out so I guess my calculations were correct!  I used her Cranberry Frangipane Tart recipe along with her Nut-Crust Tart Shell which was delicious, from her 'Back to Baking' book that I love, but I'll share the recipe how I prepared it :-)

For the Nut-Crust Tart Shell (to fit an 11-inch tart pan) -

Ingredients:

1/2 cup ground almonds
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tbsp sugar
3/8 tsp salt
9 tbsp cold and cubed unsalted butter (1/2 cup + 2 tsp)
2.5 tbsp cold water

Method:

1.  In a mixing bowl, mix together the ground almonds, flour, sugar and salt until combined.

 

2.  Add the butter and using a pastry blender (or fingertips...or food processor) combine with the dry ingredients until it has a sandy, breadcrumb texture.

 

3.  Add the cold water and mix together with a fork until the dough comes together in a ball.

4.  Shape the dough into a disc, wrap in plastic wrap (cling-film) and chill the dough until it is firm, at least an hour.

5.  Preheat the oven to 350°F. 

6.  On a lightly floured surface, break the chilled dough into 4 pieces and then push them together, kneading them to soften them slightly (Anna tells me; this will make it easier to roll the dough without cracking it).

 

 

7.  Roll out the dough until it is just under 1/4 inch thick and carefully lift it to line an 11-inch, removable-bottom tart pan.  Press the crust into the corners and trim away any excess dough.  Chill the dough for 10 minutes.

 

 

8.  Pierce the bottom of the dough with a fork, place the tart pan on a baking tray, and bake it for 25 to 30 minutes, until the crust is golden brown around the edges, and the pastry is dry in the centre.

9.  Let the tart shell cool and fill it soon after.

 

When I baked the crust, I was surprised that the edges shrunk lower than how high the actual edges of the pan were.  Next time I try this I will bake it with pie weights to see if that helps it keep it's shape.  

And now, the cranberry frangipane filling!

Ingredients:

1 cup ground almonds
1 cup sugar
1 1/8 cup unsalted butter
1 1/2 eggs
1 1/2 egg yolk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3/8 tsp almond extract
1/8 ground cinnamon
2 1/4 cups cranberries (fresh or frozen - thawed)
1 1/2 tbsp flour (if using frozen)

Method:

1.  Preheat the oven to 350°F.  Place the pan containing the crust onto a baking tray.

2.  Mix together the ground almonds and sugar, and add the butter, egg, egg yolk, extracts and cinnamon and mix until evenly blended.

 

3.  Transfer the almond filling to a bowl.  If using thawed frozen cranberries, toss them with 1 1/2 tablespoons of flour.

 

 

4.  Stir the cranberries into the almond filling and scrape the filling into the cooled crust.

 

5.  Bake on the tray for 50 - 60 minutes, until the filling is set and evenly browned.  Cool to room temperature in the pan before removing the outer ring of the pan.

6.  When fully cooled, carefully transfer the tart onto a serving platter and slice - serving at room temperature. 
 

I did find that there was some leakage of the tart filling - perhaps my cranberries were too big and I ended up with too much volume in the tart, or maybe it was because of my shrinking tart crust edges that it wouldn't hold as much, but luckily it didn't effect the taste or texture, there was just a little I had t cut off the edge of one section of the tart edge before serving, but no big deal!  I wont add it all next time if I think it may happen again.

 

 

My parents will be visiting us in October, and a request was already made on my Instagram sneak peek for a re-bake of this, and I loved it so much I will definitely bake it again for them to try ... and for me and Jonathan to enjoy again as well!!

Strawberries and Cream Lemon Scone Dessert

 

Summer is on it's way, and to celebrate the long weekend I created a super yummy dessert that wasn't just baking, but actually something that was served in a bowl - not just a cupcake liner like usual these days! 

 

I was excited to put together this dessert using fresh strawberries, whipped cream and, my favourite part - home baked lemon scones.  In my mind, I think perhaps this is similar to the American dessert Strawberry Shortcake, but well... In British style, I decided to go with a basic, but delicious scone recipe with some added lemon zest to please my citrus taste buds, and also give a good twist to match the flavours of the strawberries.

 

 

What better time of year to create this dessert... It was Victoria Day, and then Canada Day is coming up on July 1st - could the colours of strawberries and cream be any more Canadian?!... Wimbledon is only a month away as well, and endless strawberries and cream will be eating in England during the tennis tournament!  ... Another thought I had was for my American readers, add a sprinkling of fresh blueberries to go with the strawberries and you have a perfect mix of red, white and blue, just in time for Memorial Day and Independence Day!  So however you choose to create this dish, I'm sure it will pair well with any Summer party theme :)

 

 

The dish didn't need too much preparation.  Each element needed some preparation, but scones are an easy bake and the rest was easy peasy too.  I'm sure anybody reading this could recreate the dessert!  You probably have all of the scone ingredients in your cupboards too, go take a look now, and get baking!  They'll be fresh out of the oven in just a few minutes!

Here's my recipe for the lemon scones, and some step by step pictures to help along the way...  The recipe will make enough for 8/9 scones, thick enough to cut in half and smother with whipped cream and syrupy strawberries. 

 

We had friends over for dinner one evening of the long weekend, and then headed over to a friends place on the final night of the bonus day off work and got to share the dessert with each of them!

 

Ingredients:

 

10oz plain flour (all-purpose)

3 oz granulated sugar

1 tbsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

4 oz unsalted butter, cold

1/2 cup whole milk (3.25%)

2 large egg yolks

Zest of 1 lemon

 

1 large egg

1 tbsp whole milk

Sprinkling of sugar

 

Method:

 

1.  Preheat your oven to 400°F/205°C and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

 

2.  Place the flour in a mixing bowl, and grate or cube unsalted butter in with it.

 

 

3.  Using a pastry blender, and/or your fingertips, rub together the flour and butter until it resembles breadcrumbs.  You could also use a food processor for this.

 

4.  Add the remaining dry ingredients to the bowl - baking powder, sugar and salt.

5.  Warm the 1/2 cup milk for 30 seconds in the microwave, and add the beaten egg yolks to the jug.  Once combined, pour into the bowl of dry ingredients and mix to combine.

 

The dough will come together into a ball that may still feel sticky. 

 

6.  Flour your hands and the surface and knead the dough a little before patting it into a round shape, around 2-3cm thick.  I thought a rolling pin may be needed here, but in the end, my hands were the only thing required!

 

 

7.  Using a cookie cutter cut out scone rounds and place on the lined baking sheet.

 

 

8.  Beat together the 1 egg and tablespoon of milk, and using a pastry brush, spread over the tops of the scones.  Sprinkle sugar on top and place in the oven.

 

 

9.  Bake for 9-12 minutes, until the tops are golden brown, and until a cake tested comes out clean.

 

If at this point, you're making lemon scones for scones sake - then dig in while they're still warm and fresh, but otherwise, leave them to cool and get started on preparing the strawberries and cream.

 

I used a box of strawberries per 4 lemon scones, one for each night of the long weekend where we ate with friends!  I cut each strawberry into 8 and placed them in a bowl along with a spoonful of sugar (to help the medicine go down!?)... Leaving it for a few hours, the strawberries tasted deliciously sweet and even a little syrupy!  Perfection!

 

 

For the whipped cream, take a carton of 35% whipping cream (500ml), along with 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract and a tablespoon of sugar and whip together until stiff.  This, like the strawberries, can be prepared a few hours before guests arrive meaning this is nice and easy to put together even perhaps after the main course as all of the elements of the dessert would be ready.

 

The soft cream paired well with the freshly baked scones - and all went down a treat with a cup of coffee or tea!

 

 

Super easy, but good looking!  And lucky us getting to eat it twice in two nights, sharing with different friends along the way!  I hope you get to try out these lemon scones - they're a really great basic recipe that can be put together and baked in just 30 minutes.  Halve and butter them and they're a great bake to share... And whether it's a traditional clotted cream and jam, or my take on freshly whipped cream and fresh fruit to go along with it - it's sure to go down a treat in these Summer months!