Showing posts with label Desserts. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Desserts. Show all posts
What a breathtakingly beautiful country, especially when you get away from the cities and in the Highlands. We stayed at a hotel in the Trossachs National Park which is in the middle of the Highlands and it was gorgeous there.
I remember one day we were driving along this winding road which closely followed the edge of a ravine on one side and we were able to see down into the ravine and see some deer and a stag walking along the side of the creek in the bottom of the ravine. Stunning doesn't begin to cover it.
I am ashamed to say that I did not try Haggis. I was not brave enough, but I had myself a wee bracing bowl of real Scottish oats for breakfast every morning. Did you know that the Scots like salt on their oatmeal? I prefer brown sugar.
One thing that I really enjoyed was the baked goods in Scotland. The Oatcakes were superb, especially with a bit of cheese.
They grow the most delightful raspberries in Scotland and I got to enjoy them in a delicious dessert called Cranachan. Composed of toasted oats, cream, whisky and raspberries, it was a real pleasure.
That was such a fun trip. I loved their sweet also. Of course there was the shortbread, which was magnificent, and Ecclefechan tarts (similar to Canadian Butter tarts, but with more fruit.) My favorite of all, however, was these Scottish Fern Cakes, which are actually not a cake at all but lovely little tarts.
They were very similar to Bakewell Tarts. I do love me a good Bakewell Tart. What you have here is something quite like that with a crisp pastry base, a layer of sweet raspberry jam and then an almond frangipane on top.
After baking, they are glazed over with a thick sugar glaze and then traditionally they have a fern drizzled on top of the glaze of chocolate, but I have chosen to do the fern (however poorly) with a green glaze icing instead.
I adapted the recipe from the original recipe which was found on Christina's Cucina to make a much smaller batch. The original recipe made 12 tarts, I have made only 6.
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE SCOTTISH FERN CAKES
I am thinking that most people will already have what they need in the kitchen to make these. I have taken the liberty of using frozen tart shells to make mine, but feel free to make your own pastry if you wish.
- 6 frozen small tart shells, thawed (about 2 1/2 inches across)
- 3 tsp raspberry jam
- 1/4 cup (57g) butter
- 1/3 cup (57g) sugar
- 2/3 cup (57g) ground almonds
- 1 large free range egg yolk
- 1/8 tsp almond extract
For the icing:
- 1/2 cup (65g) icing sugar
- milk to thin (about 1 TBS)
- drop of green food coloring to make the fern pattern
I used the Tenderflake frozen tart shells. You can find them in the freezer section of the grocery shops here in Canada. You could also use my recipe for butter/lard pastry which is very good. You will probably only need half the recipe to make these tart shells, but you can freeze the remainder in a disc, wrapped tightly in some plastic wrap and popped into a zip lock baggie.
It will keep for about six months and they you will have a single crust pie crust ready to go for whenever.
I did prebake my tart shells prior to filling them. I find it gives the tarts a nice crisp base. There will be no soggy bottoms here! (As Mary Berry would say!)
I used seedless raspberry preserves. I have diverticulitis and can't tolerate the seeds. Blackberry jam is also something with the Scots will use. Both are quite traditional. Don't be tempted to use too much as jam expands exponentially in the oven so a little bit does go a very long way.
I use the ground almonds that you can get at Costco. Kirkland brand. Ordinary salted butter and ordinary organic granulated sugar. For the icing I used the ordinary icing sugar you buy at the shops, and I always have full fat milk in my house so that is what I used in the glaze.
HOW TO MAKE SCOTTISH FERN CAKES
These are a real doddle to make and oh-so-tasty!
Preheat the oven to 400*F/200*C/ gas mark 6. Place the tart shells on a baking sheet and lightly prick the bottoms. Bake in the preheated oven for 6 to 8 minutes while you make the filling.
To make the filling melt the butter in a small saucepan. Remove from the heat and whisk in the sugar, almonds, almond essence and the egg yolk until smooth and well mixed together.
Remove the tart shells from the oven. Reduce the oven temperature to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4.
Place 1/2 tsp of jam in the bottom of each shell and then top with a heaped spoonful of the almond mixture to cover the jam. Do not overfill. It should come just to the rim of the crust.
Bake in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes and golden brown. They should be set and a toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely in the foil tins.
To make the icing, whisk just enough milk into the icing sugar to give you a thick but runny drizzle. Divide the drizzle between each of the tarts to cover the tops. You should still have a bit left at the end.
Put a drop of green food coloring into the icing that is left. Using the tip of a spoon drizzle some of the green icing over the top of each tart in a fern pattern. Leave to set completely before serving or storing in an airtight container.
These are really REALLY delicious and such a simple bake. I enjoyed one with a hot cup of Mint Tea and then took some across to my friend Glenna across the road (who is also my cousin). She really enjoyed them also!
These would be perfectly at home on any tea time table, or for the holidays, or even for even "just because."
Some other Scottish treats I have baked here in my English Kitchen are:
SCOTTISH STEAK PIE FOR TWO - Tender chunks of beef in a rich beef gravy, topped with a beautifully flaky crust. This is delicious served with some parsley buttered boiled potatoes and a vegetable on the side.
SCOTTISH DUNDEE CAKE - This is one of my favorite fruit cakes. Rich and buttery with a white batter and filled with lots of dried currants. Flavored with orange zest and mixed spice and topped with blanched almonds, you can make this as either small cupcakes or a full sized fruit cake. Delicious!
Scottish Fern Cakes (small batch)
Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 20 MinTotal time: 35 Min
A Scottish bakery classic, downsized for the smaller family. Delicious with a hot cup of tea!
Ingredients
- 6 frozen small tart shells, thawed (about 2 1/2 inches across)
- 3 tsp raspberry jam
- 1/4 cup (57g) butter
- 1/3 cup (57g) sugar
- 2/3 cup (57g) ground almonds
- 1 large free range egg yolk
- 1/8 tsp almond extract
For the icing:
- 1/2 cup (65g) icing sugar
- milk to thin (about 1 TBS)
- drop of green food coloring to make the fern pattern
Instructions
- Preheat the oven t 400*F/200*C/ gas mark 6. Place the tart shells on a baking sheet and lightly prick the bottoms. Bake in the preheated oven for 6 to 8 minutes while you make the filling.
- To make the filling melt the butter in a small saucepan. Remove from the heat and whisk in the sugar, almonds, almond essence and the egg yolk until smooth and well mixed together.
- Remove the tart shells from the oven. Reduce the oven temperature to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4.
- Place 1/2 tsp of jam in the bottom of each shell and then top with a heaped spoonful of the almond mixture to cover the jam. Do not overfill. It should come just to the rim of the crust.
- Bake in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes and golden brown. They should be set and a toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely in the foil tins.
- To make the icing, whisk just enough milk into the icing sugar to give you a thick but runny drizzle. Divide the drizzle between each of the tarts to cover the tops. You should still have a bit left at the end.
- Put a drop of green food coloring into the icing that is left. Using the tip of a spoon drizzle some of the green icing over the top of each tart in a fern pattern.
- Leave to set completely before serving or storing in an airtight container.
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When I was a very little girl I can remember singing a song in Kindergarten called Billy Boy Billy Boy. It was all about a boy named Billy looking for a wife.
One verse went like this:
"Can she bake a cherry pie, Billy Boy, Billy Boy? Can she bake a cherry pie charming Billy. She can bake a cherry pie, quick as you can wink your eye. She's a young thing and cannot leave her mother."
This was one of my favorite songs to sing and I can remember singing it with great joy, largely because it involved cherry pie and cherry pie was one of my favorites! (You can find all of the lyrics here.)
Cherry pie remains a firm favorite pie in my books! Occasionally I will make one from scratch, but I'll be honest here, more often than not, I will use a tin of cherry pie filling.
It tastes good and is a lot quicker and easier to use. There is no faffing about with pitting cherries and the like. No having to cook it up, just open the tin and spoon it out. Easy peasy lemon squeezy.
I refuse to feel guilty about it either. I know I am not alone in this. Most people use tinned cherry pie filling when they go to make cherry pie and similar things. Unless you have a cherry tree right in your back yard, fresh cherries are one of those prohibitively expensive things.
Oh how I miss the cherries we used to get this time of the year when I was living in Kent, in the UK. The cherry sellers would come over from France and they would set up tables and stalls at the side of the roads.
You could buy 1 kg bags of ripe cherries, for a pretty affordable price, and they were always incredibly delicious. I would always buy two bags whenever I had the chance. One to eat in the car and the other for baking with.
This Impossibly Easy Cherry Custard Pie is one of my favorite bakes which uses the tinned pie filling. It also uses some boxed baking mix. In North America is it called Bisquick. They had the big boxes on special at Giant Tiger not too long ago so my sister and I each picked up a box.
She likes to use it in her meatloaf. I like to use it for desserts and things like this. Don't worry if you can't buy it however. I have a darned good recipe for making your own baking mix from scratch that I used to use when I was in the U.K. You can find that one here. Just make it and store it in the freezer, ready to use for recipes just like this one!
I love Impossible Pies. They are taste tempting pies that come in both savory and sweet versions that involve whipping together a few ingredients that somehow magically separate into crust and filling upon baking.
You cannot beat them for ease of preparation. They are quick and very simple to make! I have never met one that I did not like. Seriously! This Impossible Cherry Custard Pie is one of my favorite versions!
I got the recipe from a cookbook I own called Betty Crocker, Bisquick, Impossibly Easy Pies. It is filled with a nice variety of these quick and easy pies. Pies that magically bake their own crusts.
Sweet, savory and everything in between. I love this little book.
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE IMPOSSIBLY EASY CHERRY CUSTARD PIE
Very simple ingredients. This is a real store-cupboard kind of a pie!
For the pie:
- 1/2 cup (60g) dry baking mix (Bisquick or homemade)
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup (180ml) whole milk
- 2 TBS butter, softened
- 1/4 tsp almond extract
- 2 large free range eggs
- 1 can (21 ounces/595g) cherry pie filling
For the cinnamon streusel:
- 1/4 cup (30g) baking mix (Bisquick or homemade)
- 1/4 cup (50g) soft light brown sugar, packed
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 TBS cold butter
As you can see the baking mix is used in both the pie itself and in the streusel topping. You don't really need a lot of it in either one. Make sure your butter is at least at room temperature for the filling. You will want it cold for the streusel topping.
I always use free range eggs. I refuse to use eggs from caged hens. You need to pick your battles and this is one of mine. I think in the U.K. most of their eggs were free range. You could also get RSPCA approved eggs which I would buy if I saw them.
RSPCA Approved means that the eggs have come from farms where the hens are raised according to the organizations very detailed animal welfare standards. Hens on RSPCA Approved farms have nests, perches, litter to dust bathe and enough space to move.
I don't know about you, but I would rather pay a little bit more and support a humane industry. When I was still in high school, my boyfriend was from a farming family. They had caged hens for eggs. I used to grade eggs at the weekend in the hen house battery.
It was a real eye opener and I found the practice to be quite repugnant. It is easy to ignore things like that if they aren't staring you in the face, or if you are ignorant of what is happening, but once you see it, you simply cannot ignore it. I am so grateful we live in a time where there are other options.
HOW TO MAKE IMPOSSIBLY EASY CHERRY CUSTARD PIE
Nothing could be quicker or easier to make than this pie. I threw it together just before I went to take my shower this morning, and it was out of the oven and cooling before you could say Jack Rabbit!
Preheat the oven to 400*F/200*C/ gas mark 6. Butter a 9-inch pie dish really well, or spray with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
Put the baking mix for the pie, sugar, milk, butter, almond extract and eggs into a blender or food processor. Blitz briefly to blend. Pour into the prepared pie dish. Spoon the cherry pie filling evenly over top.
Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 25 minutes. While it is baking make the streusel.
To make the streusel put all of the ingredients into a bowl and rub them together with your fingertips until crumbly. Set aside.
The pie is done when a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and sprinkle the streusel evenly over top.
Pop back into the oven and bake for a further 5 minutes, until the streusel is browned.
Leave to cool for at least two hours prior to cutting into wedges to serve. Store any leftovers, covered, in the refrigerator.
Its really delicious serve cut into wedges with a nice dollop of whipped cream or ice cream on top. Believe it or not, it tastes even better after refrigerating overnight.
You really can't beat it for a fabulously simple dessert for those days when you are really busy and don't want to spend a lot of time faffing about just to get a dessert on the table!
You can use just about any type of Pie filling you like, but don't be tempted to use Blueberry. The pie turns a very unappealing tinge of grey!
Some other impossible pies that I have baked that we really REALLY love are:
IMPOSSIBLE PUMPKIN PIE - This one is completely from scratch and uses no baking mix at all. I don't mind saying that it is my favorite pumpkin pie. Nicely spiced and beautiful cut into wedges and served with whipped cream.
BAKED COCONUT CUSTARD PIE - This one is also made completely from scratch, using no baking mix at all. It is rich and creamy and filled with loads of coconut flavor. I love this with a dollop of whipped cream also. If you love coconut pie, you will adore this one!
Yield: 8
Cherry Custard Pie
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 40 MinInactive time: 2 HourTotal time: 2 H & 50 M
Rich and delicious, creamy filling with loads of pockets of cherry pie filling, and a moreish cinnamon brown sugar streusel on top. Quick and easy to make as well. This is destined to become a favorite!
Ingredients
For the pie:
- 1/2 cup (60g) dry baking mix (Bisquick or homemade)
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup (180ml) whole milk
- 2 TBS butter, softened
- 1/4 tsp almond extract
- 2 large free range eggs
- 1 can (21 ounces/595g) cherry pie filling
For the cinnamon streusel:
- 1/4 cup (30g) baking mix (Bisquick or homemade)
- 1/4 cup (50g) soft light brown sugar, packed
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 TBS cold butter
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400*F/200*C/ gas mark 6. Butter a 9-inch pie dish really well, or spray with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
- Put the baking mix for the pie, sugar, milk, butter, almond extract and eggs into a blender or food processor. Blitz briefly to blend. Pour into the prepared pie dish. Spoon the cherry pie filling evenly over top.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 25 minutes. While it is baking make the streusel.
- To make the streusel put all of the ingredients into a bowl and rub them together with your fingertips until crumbly. Set aside.
- The pie is done when a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and sprinkle the streusel evenly over top.
- Pop back into the oven and bake for a further 5 minutes, until the streusel is browned.
- Leave to cool for at least two hours prior to cutting into wedges to serve. Store any leftovers, covered, in the refrigerator.
Notes
You can make a low fat version of this by using reduced fat baking mix and low fat milk/skim milk. Substitute 3 egg whites for the whole eggs.
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Its been really sticky and humid here these past few days. We have had an awful lot of rain, which doesn't help. Rain and warm temperatures = high humidity! I am so NOT a fan!
I wanted to make a fresh dessert that didn't involve a lot of work and that would not involve me turning on my oven. I also had a quantity of lemon curd that needed using up.
I love lemon curd. Generally speaking I like to make my own. I use it up in all sorts and to be honest, it is so good I could eat it with a spoon. Yes, I am that much of a lemon curd freak!
I had seen a Lemon Cheesecake Mousse Recipe on Pinterest that looked promising. It was from a blog called Somewhat Simple by Alicia Skousen. It looked incredibly simple and used a very few ingredients.
All plusses in my books. It did make six servings however and I just didn't want that much of such a decadent dessert in my house!
I love Lemon desserts however. They are so refreshing, especially in the summer time. And refrigerated no-cook desserts are even more so. I decided I had to make it, but not as written.
It was a very simple effort on my part to downsize the original recipe to make only 2 delicious servings. It ended up that 1/3 cup of all the major ingredients was all that was needed. (Don't worry I give both metric and North American measurements as always.)
This is the best lemon cheese cake mousse! I was really pleased with how quick and easy it came together. I always like to have my recipes done and photographed by noon. This literally came together in 10 minutes.
I had to go out and pick up a few things for my sister who is nursing a very sick cat so I was able to do that, drop them off, and visit for a bit and still be home in enough time to put this together and photograph it by noon. I call that a win!
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE LEMON CHEESECAKE MOUSSE (FOR TWO)
Just a few very simple ingredients. Simple is my preference most of the time!! Life is too short to do complicated!
For the mousse:
- 1/3 cup (60ml) whipping or heavy cream
- 1/3 cup (105g) good quality lemon curd
- 1/3 cup (80g) full fat cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1/3 cup (43g) icing sugar
- 1/8 tsp vanilla
For the crumb crust:
- 3 TBS of graham cracker crumbs (in the UK use Digestive biscuit crumbs)
- 1/2 TBS sugar
- 1/2 TBS butter, melted
You can use either homemade or ready made lemon curd. If you are using ready made make sure you use one which has a rich lemon flavor and that isn't neon yellow. My favorite purchased lemon curd is Tiptree Wilkin and Sons. You can find it on Amazon, or in any good British grocery supply shop.
Today I used my own homemade curd. I did a tutorial on how to make your own here. It does make about 3 cups, so be warned. Having said that however, I have never had a person turn down the gift of a pot of lemon curd, so making your own is a great way to treat yourself as well as make friends!
I used Philadelphia Cream Cheese, full fat. This is readily available in the UK also. I would not use the lower fat one as I don't think! Icing sugar is also known as powdered sugar or confectioners sugar.
If you don't have any, you can whiz regular granulated sugar in a food processor until it is really fine.
It is very easy to make your own graham cracker or Digestive biscuit crumbs. You can either whiz them in a food processor or pop a few into a zip lock baggie and run a heavy rolling pin over them several times until they are crushed fine. Easy peazy!
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HOW TO MAKE LEMON CHEESECAKE MOUSSE (FOR TWO)
This is one of the quickest and easiest desserts to make. I guarantee!
To make the crust, whisk together the melted butter, sugar and crumbs until well combined. Divide between two dessert glasses and press into the bottom of each. Set aside.
Pour the whipping/double cream into a chilled bowl and beat until stiff with an electric hand whisk. Set aside.
Beat the cream cheese and lemon curd together in another bowl until smooth. Beat in the icing sugar and vanilla. Using a small spatula, gently fold in the whipped cream until everything is blended.
Divide the mixture evenly between the two dessert glasses, spooning it over top of the crumb mixture, and giving the top a nice swirl. Cover and chill until ready to eat.
Garnish as desired and serve. (I garnished with some lemon bits and served it with crisp little lemon biscotti.)
This was delicious right out of the bowl. I could not stop from licking off the spoon and scraping out the bowl with my spatula and licking off the spatula. Yes, I am a bit of a glutton, especially when it comes to lemon anything!
Lemon desserts are my favorite desserts of all!!
This was FAB-U-LOUS! Rich and cream. Cool and decadent, with just the right balance of tart lemon flavor and sweetness! Some lemon desserts can be too tart. They can also be over-compensated in sweetness. This was just right!
I adorned the top of each mousse cup with some chunks of fresh lemon and I served it chilled with some crisp lemon biscotti on the side. Nonni's Limoncello Biscotti from Costco.
The two together were fabulously tasty! I will be making this again, and I would love to make the full version sometime when I am having family over! I highly recommend. I think fresh raspberries would also go with this beautifully.
If you love lemon desserts as much as I do, you will probably also love the following:
CREAMY LEMON PIE FOR TWO - Tart and refreshing, rich and creamy, this lovely pie is sized very generously for two people. It boasts a rich lemon filling and a delicious gingersnap crust. There is no cream cheese or condensed milk in this pie. The filling literally takes only two ingredients. Sour Cream and lemon curd. The crust is nice and snappy and I garnished it with whipped cream rosettes and some candied ginger.
LEMON CURD DRIZZLE CAKE - You will need to turn the oven on for this delicious cake! This is my favorite of all the lemon cakes. Dense and moist with a lovely crumb and beautiful lemon flavor! Its also very simple to make. Just bang everything into a food processor and give it a quick blitz together before scraping the batter into a loaf tin and baking to lush lemon perfection! A lemon glaze finishes it off in a most beautiful way.
Lemon Cheesecake Mousse (for two)
Yield: 2
Prep time: 10 MinTotal time: 10 Min
Quick, easy and incredibly delicious. If you like lemon desserts, you will simply love LOVE this one!
Ingredients
For the mousse:
- 1/3 cup (60ml) whipping or heavy cream
- 1/3 cup (105g) good quality lemon curd
- 1/3 cup (80g) full fat cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1/3 cup (43g) icing sugar
- 1/8 tsp vanilla
For the crumb crust:
- 3 TBS of graham cracker crumbs (in the UK use Digestive biscuit crumbs)
- 1/2 TBS sugar
- 1/2 TBS butter, melted
Instructions
- To make the crust, whisk together the melted butter, sugar and crumbs until well combined. Divide between two dessert glasses and press into the bottom of each. Set aside.
- Pour the whipping/double cream into a chilled bowl and beat until stiff with an electric hand whisk. Set aside.
- Beat the cream cheese and lemon curd together in another bowl until smooth. Beat in the icing sugar and vanilla. Using a small spatula, gently fold in the whipped cream until everything is blended.
- Divide the mixture evenly between the two dessert glasses, spooning it over top of the crumb mixture, and giving the top a nice swirl. Cover and chill until ready to eat.
- Garnish as desired and serve. (I garnished with some lemon bits and served it with crisp little lemon biscotti.)
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