Apple Pie with Lattice Top

Before I went on holiday I went through the fridge and tried to use up anything that would go off before we went away, or throw out anything that I couldn't use but would go bad. I had a bowlful of apples on the table that I hadn't gotten around to eating and as they were already going a little soft, I knew they wouldn't be any good by the time I came back from holiday (not to mention the fact that I am going to Edinburgh for work for a couple of days as soon as I get back!).

One of my favourite things to make with apples is apple pie, and as I was recently sent this lattice pastry cutter from CakeMart, I was excited to try it out. I've often wondered how you create a perfect lattice effect in pastry on top of a pie and if it takes ages - now I know, and I can tell you that it doesn't! Read on to see what you have to do....

Apple pie with raisins, by Caroline Makes

6-8 eating apples, peeled, cored and sliced
100g caster sugar
100ml water
handful of raisins or sultanas
250g plain flour
140g cold butter, diced
1 egg, beaten

First stew the apples, by heating in a pan with the sugar and water - the water stops them sticking and you can add more or less as you like. I did this over a medium heat for about 20 minutes; it depends how soft you like your apples as mine retained the sliced shape but you can also cook them until they are soft enough to mash.

To make the pastry, rub the cubes of butter into the flour with your fingers until you have a dough. Add a couple of spoonfuls of water so you have a pliable dough. It's a good idea to put this in the fridge wrapped in clingfilm for about half an hour, which you can do while your apples are cooling. Preheat oven to 180C.

Roll out half the pastry dough on a lightly floured surface and use to line your pie dish.

Add the raisins or sultanas into the apple mixture and spoon into your pie base.

Roll out the remaining pastry and roll the lattice cutter over it. You'll see that the lines are broken by parts where the cutter doesn't cut through and the pastry stays joined together. I couldn't figure out initially what to do so had to watch a video on YouTube - carefully take each end of your pastry and pull apart and the lattice should open like a concertina!

Brush the top of the pie with beaten egg and bake in the pre-heated oven for 20-25 minutes until the top is golden brown.

 

Unfortunately mine didn't quite work perfectly. I blame the fact that my pastry was overworked; it took me several attempts to figure out how to do this as there were no instructions with the lattice cutter and it was only later that I resorted to YouTube. I wasn't sure whether my pastry was getting too sticky so I kept adding flour, which was probably a mistake; once I had figured out how to use the lattice cutter and tried to pull my pastry apart, it was too dry and broke in several places. So you can see the idea but it doesn't look perfect - next time I think I might try with ready made pastry!

I'm sharing this with the No Waste Food Challenge, hosted by Elizabeth's Kitchen, since I made this to use up fruit that would otherwise go to waste while I was away.

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Green Flower Friendship Card

 

This birthday card was made for a female friend and uses a variety of toppers. To start with I chose a square card blank and a piece of paper from a pack of different prints. It is green with daisies, and has a border along one side with a large white daisy on it. I positioned that on the right hand side of the card to draw the eye to the opening - you could also turn the paper the other way up and use it along the bottom.

In the upper third of the card, just inside the border, I placed a yellow die cut that I thought went with the yellows and greens of the backing paper. It has a lace edge and I think is from the Stephanie Weightman collection - I got it in a mixed pack from Ebay where I buy a lot of my card making supplies.

I had another pack of die cuts which had different messages inside banners, circles and squares, on white card with silver lettering I used one of these on a banner that said 'on your birthday' along the top and a circle with 'may all your wishes come true' in the middle. From another pack- which I also got on Ebay - I used a banner saying 'for a special friend' on white card mounted on green, which again went with the colours of the card. I was quite pleased with the overall colour scheme and style.

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Gardening Grandad Birthday Card

I made this birthday card for my granddad as he enjoyed gardening though does find it more difficult these days. The section down the centre of the card is all one sticker, and the shape lent itself to a tall thin card in my opinion. The two round stickers of the chicken and bird came from the same set and I thought were very appropriate for my granddad as he used to keep chickens. The leaves also came from the same set and I added a 'grandfather' outline sticker from a sheet that had names of various relatives, and a 'happy birthday' from another outline sheet. Unfortunately the last part of the word went a bit wonky when I put it on the card but it was too fragile to take off and start again!

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Meal Planning Monday 2015 - Week 20

I don't want to miss a week of the Meal Planning Monday post on my blog - partly because I will lose track of what number week it is otherwise! But there isn't much to say for this week as I am on holiday in Mexico! If you fancy leaving a comment why not tell me what your favourite Mexican dish is, and I will look out for it when I'm there!

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Restaurat Review: The Breakfast Club

Named after a cult 80s movie, the Breakfast Club near London’s Liverpool Street station is going for that cult, Shoreditch, trying hard to be alternative kind of vibe. Its website is like a computer game – again, an 80s version – and inside, the décor is almost overwhelmingly on trend, from the ‘sex, drugs and bacon rolls’ neon sign in one corner, to the collage of photos as you walk in. There’s even a secret bar that you access by opening a retro fridge – inside the fridge instead of shelves there is actually a flight of stairs leading downstairs.

 

All that was possibly a bit much when I went in one morning for breakfast with colleagues, having already been in the office since 5am. But it is definitely more interesting than your average restaurant!

There's a staircase inside this fridge

 

 

I ordered the apple and cinnamon French toast (£7.50) which was very tasty; thick slices of bread that were not too soggy and served with roasted apples on the side. Next time I’d probably have the posh sausage sandwich which as well as sausage has smoked Applewood cheese, Portobello mushroom (which I’d ask to be left out) and red onion chutney on a crusty roll. Or maybe the American pancakes… or the eggs royale with fried potatoes…. There’s a lot of choice, and that’s just the breakfast menu!

 

The lunch and dinner menu has a wide range from salads (with silly names like ‘You’ve got Kale’) to burritos, pulled pork sandwiches, chilli, lots of burgers (including a vegetarian option called ‘don’t have a cow’) and various late breakfast options (this is the Breakfast Club, after all). I enjoyed my breakfast here and while it didn’t completely blow me away, I would come back for lunch and try something else on the menu some time.

 

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Fashion Mannequin Birthday Card

This card would be great for a girl who loves fashion. I bought the black die-cut mannequins in a pack from Ebay and the dress and handbag stickers are from a sheet of stickers I got in a craft shop (I forget the brand - they are with the outline stickers). I chose a bright and bubbly background to contrast with the black but also to match the pink dress, and simply added a few bags and a dress. There is also a pair of shoes from the same sticker pack on the bottom right of the card, though you can't see it that well in the photo.

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Ham and Cheese Quesadillas

The letter for this month's Alphabakes is Q - a little difficult when it comes to baking (I did a Queen of Puddings when this letter came up last time) - but there are a few savoury dishes and ingredients that begin with Q.

I've made quesadillas before and they are quick and easy; they are a Mexican dish so it was particularly good timing as I was looking for ways to use up ingredients in my fridge before going on holiday to Mexico, and as I was in the middle of packing didn't want to make anything that would take too long.

A quesadilla is basically a tortilla, filled with cheese and anything else you fancy, folded over and fried on both sides or grilled, so the cheese melts, then cut into triangles to serve.

I had some soft flour tortillas in the fridge to use up and a packet of ham, and bought some spicy cheese which I thought would work really well in this recipe.

Heat a frying pan and spray with Fry Light, then place the tortilla in the pan. Place the ham and cheese on top - you only need to cover one side of the tortilla with the cheese. Fold in half and cook for a few minutes, then carefully turn over and cook on the other side.

Slice into half to serve. You can see the melted cheese oozing out here - delicious!

I'm sending this to Alphabakes, the challenge I co-host with Ros of The More Than Occasional Baker, as the letter she has chosen is Q.

As I was using up ingredients before I went on holiday this is perfect for the Kitchen Clearout challenge, hosted by Madhouse Family Reviews.

For the same reason I'm sending this to the No Waste Food Challenge, hosted by Elizabeth's Kitchen...

.. and Credit Crunch Munch, hosted by Baking Queen74, on behalf of Helen at Fuss Free Flavours and Camilla of Fab Food 4 All.

 

The theme for this month's Tea Time Treats is sandwiches, rolls and wraps. Tortillas are used more commonly as wraps but a quesadilla is basically a toasted sandwich. The challenge is hosted by Jane at the Hedgecombers and Karen at Lavender and Lovage.

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Giant Filled Yorkshire Pudding

Many years ago when I was at university I had a meal – probably with my then-boyfriend, or possibly my parents – in the pub opposite the back gate of college. Back then it was called the Bun Shop, but it seems to have changed hands (or name at least) as when I went back to Cambridge this year I saw it was now called the Cambridge Brew House. The meal really stuck in my mind because it was simple, based on something I really enjoyed – a Yorkshire pudding – but a way of serving it that I’d never come across before. Essentially, it was a whole roast dinner – in a Yorkshire pudding.

 

When I recently came across Aunt Bessie’s Giant Yorkshire Puddings in the supermarket I was reminded of this meal and decided to make my own. You can make your own Yorkshire but it needs to be quite deep with a flat base and high sides – so I thought I was better off using one of Aunt Bessie’s!

 

You can put anything in that you like, but it needs to be already cooked through as the Yorkshire only takes about ten minutes in a hot oven. It’s a really good way of using leftover meat from a roast dinner – you can even add any leftover roast potatoes or vegetables, and pour gravy over the top. Alternatively you could fry some chicken and bacon and make a white sauce.

 

 

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Restaurant Review: Poppies FIsh & Chips, Spitalfields

A lunch meeting cancelled at the last minute led to me walking around Spitalfields fairly aimlessly looking for somewhere for lunch. In fact I had somewhere in mind that a colleague had recommended, and relied on his description of the location – ignoring the fact that I have the world’s worst sense of direction – so of course was unable to find it. As I was about to check the map on my phone, I noticed a sign proudly declaring I had stumbled across “The best independent fish & chip restaurant of the year 2014.”

 

Well, that was enough for me – the chip shop is my favourite kind of takeaway and I needed to see for myself just how good this one was. Poppies has branches in Spitalfields and Camden, and offers both eat-in and takeaway – but at the Spitalfields branch, the restaurant area was very small with a long queue, so I plumped for takeaway. Poppies is definitely a cut above other fish and chip shops even in terms of its website – a well designed site, it has information about the origin of the food, facts about sustainability, and a section about the ‘Poppies experience’. I didn’t realise this at the time, but the owner has been serving fish and chips in London’s east end all his life, and the Camden branch has life music going by the hashtag “fish n gigs”. Check out their blog as well with stories about traditional east end cuisine and which celebrities have popped in recently.

 

 

 

The menu is a bit more varied than my local chippy as well, with jellied eels (which I could never bring myself to eat) and desserts including sticky toffee pudding and ice cream from the Minghella family business on the Isle of Wight – my local only offers deep fried banana fritters! The food really isn’t cheap, which I would put partly down to the quality and provenance of the ingredients, partly the Spitalfields location and perhaps partly the restaurant’s reputation – they charge more for their food because they can. I paid £11.40 for a regular cod and chips which is a lot more than my local chip shop would charge. And was it that much better? The fish was tender and flaky, encased in a tasty batter, and the chips were chunky, crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, just how I like them.

 

The takeaway is served in traditional newsprint containers which appeals to the former journalist in me – we always used to say today’s story was tomorrow’s chip wrapper – but would I go out of my way to go here? Perhaps if I was able to get a table, but for a takeaway lunch, it was a bit pricey and actually a lot more filling than I would usually want at lunchtime. But judging how busy they were, a lot of people seem to disagree!

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Meal Planning Monday 2015 - Week 19

A short week in meal planning terms because I am going on holiday to Mexico!

Monday - bank holiday
Lunch: quesadillas
Dinner: Persian chicken steaks

Tuesday
Out for dinner for a belated birthday meal as we had a last-minute change of plan on the day itself

Wednesday onwards: Mexico, Guatamala and Belize!

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Baked Ring Doughnuts

Doughnuts are surprisingly easy to make - at least baked ring doughnuts are! I'd like to have a go at filled doughnuts at some point but the baked kind are definitely healthier than the deep fried ones and you can still make them look really pretty (and they taste good!) so I think this is a good place to start.

I was recently sent a selection of products to review from CakeMart - if you haven't visited their website before I encourage you to take a look around, you might be surprised by what you find! They have a really wide range of products, for instance cookie cutters in every shape you can think of, and all sorts of other baking and cake decorating equipment.

I received this Wilton-branded doughnut pan from them to review and I knew immediately from the Wilton name that it would be good. I sprayed the pan with Cake Release and the doughnuts came out so easily and were perfectly shaped and golden brown. The only downside is that you can only make six at a time so you have to do a few batches -but I think I prefer these to the mini doughnut size and the pan is actually a good size to put away in the cupboard.

The pan comes with a recipe inside the card and that's what I used to make these doughnuts, though I used self-raising flour instead of 'cake flour' (it's an American recipe) and baking powder, used caster sugar as I don't keep granulated, and I didn't have any buttermilk so I made my own from milk and a squeeze of lemon juice.

This quantity made 14 doughnuts:
2 cups self-raising flour
3/4 cup caster sugar
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
2 tbsp. butter, melted
to decorate:
icing sugar and water, sprinkles
100g milk chocolate

Preheat oven to 180C. Spray a doughnut pan with Cake Release or similar.

Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl and beat until well combined. Using a teaspoon carefully spoon the mixture into the pan making sure you don't cover the centre of the doughnut.

Bake for 7-9 minutes until golden brown. Remove from the tin to cool and repeat with the remaining mixture.

I decorated half of the doughnuts with white icing (icing sugar mixed with water) and coloured sprinkles from Dr. Oetker which looked really pretty. I decided the ones with the thicker icing looked better.

I then melted 100g milk chocolate in a bowl in the microwave and took the remaining doughnuts and dipped them directly into the melted chocolate. This gave a very even coating and I thought they looked really good.

I was going to visit some friends and meet their new baby at the weekend so I decided to take these doughnuts - well, most of them - as a gift.

Thanks to CakeMart for sending me the doughnut pan to review.

These doughnuts are quite cake-y and I think they are pretty, particularly the ones with the sprinkles, so I am sharing these with Love Cake, hosted by Ness at JibberJabberUK, as the theme is 'colour me pretty'.

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Butternut Squash, Fennel and Goat's Cheese Quiche

I made this quiche for our new year's day buffet party and it uses winter vegetables, but they are ones you can also find at this time of year - at least, I certainly did the other day. As a quiche is a light dish that can be eaten cold, while it is great for buffets that you need to prepare ahead, it is also really good for picnics and al fresco lunches.

 

I based my quiche this Linda Barker recipe on Good to Know; I used my giant pink pie dish which I love but don't have reason to use very often. You can make your own pastry but I used ready-made as the recipe suggested, as I had a lot of food to prepare for the buffet!

 

Roll it out and line the pie dish and then fill with baking beans - this weighs the pastry down while you bake it blind.

  

I had a lovely selection of vegetables to use for this including some fennel, butternut squash (one of my favourite vegetables), red onion and spring onion.

You do have to pre-cook the vegetables so chop them up, lay out in a roasting tray and drizzle with a little bit of oil. Bake at 180C for about 20 minutes and allow to cool a little, then sprinkle over the baked pastry crust. I then sliced up some goat's cheese and laid it on the top.

Beat 3 eggs with 300ml milk and season and carefully pour into the quiche making sure it doesn't spill over the edges. Bake in the oven at 180C for 25-30 minutes.

The top is a lovely golden brown when cooked; I don't have a picture of the whole quiche but you can see a lot of the ingredients inside in this slice. I thought the quiche was lovely - the butternut squash and fennel went really well together and the goat's cheese gave a really nice depth of flavour.

I'm sending this to Alphabakes, the blog challenge I co-host with Ros of The More Than Occasional Baker, as the letter she has chosen this month is Q.

 

 

The theme for this month's Pastry Challenge, hosted by Jen's Food, is picnics, and this quiche is perfect for a picnic.

 

Butternut squash is one of my favourite vegetables - it's so versatile, as it can be roasted, mashed, used in soups, and goes well with salads as well as hot meals. I also like the fact that it's a really robust vegetable and quite difficult to overcook, and the colour always adds something nice to a plate. So I am sharing this with Vegetable Palette, hosted by Shaheen at Allotment 2 Kitchen, as her theme this month is 'your favourite vegetable'.

 

 

 

 

This also fits in with the Simply Eggcellent challenge hosted by Dom at Belleau Kitchen, where eggs take centre stage, as his theme this month is savoury dishes.

 

 

 

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