Showing posts with label Traditional. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Traditional. Show all posts
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.jpg "Traditional British Teatime Bakes")
One thing which I really came to love when I moved to the U.K. was the British Penchant for taking Tea. That wonderful time of the day where everything pauses for a hot cup of tea and a bit of cake or some other sweet to enjoy along with it.
This was a ritual that I wholeheartedly embraced and still do. There is naught for bringing joy into even the worst of days as a cup of hot tea and a biscuit. (A biscuit is known as a cookie in North America.)
When the world is at odds
And the mind is all at sea
Then cease the useless tedium
And brew a cup of tea
I thought it would be fun today to share with you some of my favorite Traditional British Teatime Bakes. This is by no means a total list, just ten of my favorites. All tried and true and all delicious. A tasty combination of cakes, scones, biscuits and a fruited loaf that is made using tea-soaked dried fruits. (A real favorite!)
To be honest I had trouble narrowing it down to just ten favorites! I could have just kept going. There is nothing that I do not love or enjoy about British Teatime Treats!
Here is what I chose. Are any of your favorites here? If not, why not share with me what it is you do like! A joy shared is a joy doubled after all!
Not only is this a delicious quick bread to enjoy with a hot cup of tea but it is made with a beautiful fruit mixture that has been soaked overnight in cold leftover tea. These soaking plumps up the dried fruit beautifully so that you end up with a loaf that is loaded with moist bits of raisins, sultanas. currants, etc. Moist, delicious and fat free. Yes. Fat free. No fat is used in the making of this loaf. You can feel utterly justified in cutting it into thin slices and then spreading it with copious amounts of butter to enjoy.
This tasty bread is a delicious nod to Irish thrift and their ability to not waste anything at all. Not even a cup of tea.
Serve cold (never warm) with butter, cream, jam and hot cups of tea.
Fruity buns, with brown crusts, originally hailing from the Cleveland area between County Durham and Yorkshire, thought to date back to the mid 19th century. They are like a thick pastry, thin scone. Studded generously with dried currants and dusted with a layer of caster sugar.
Delicious served as is with a lovely hot cup of tea.
Before they ever included scones, these lovely light yeasted buns were the original stars of a Cream Tea. Light as air, only slightly sweetened, like soft yeasted pillows of deliciousness. Perfect for splitting and spreading with soft butter and jam, and topped with lashings of clotted cream. Just a slight dusting of icing sugar garnishing the tops.
I have never had anyone turn down one of these. The only drawback is that once they are filled, they must be eaten on the day. Not a problem!
A bit of cake always takes center stage on the typical British tea table. Usually, a Victoria Sponge or Sandwich cake as it often called. This is the epitome of a beautiful tea table. Two layers of a butter sponge cake, sandwiched together with copious amounts of sweet jam. Usually raspberry or strawberry. No icing is needed. Instead, the cake is dusted with a liberal amount of either caster or confectioner's sugar. I prefer the caster sugar myself. Both are very nice.
This is a very easy cake to make.
A firm favorite on the traditional English tea table, this is a very pretty two colored sponge cake, put together in a pink and white checkerboard pattern. I think you may actually be quite surprised as how very easy it is to make one of these delicious cakes!
Sandwiched together with some jam and a bit of buttercream, these cakes are wrapped in a unique layer of thinly rolled out marzipan, which is also dusted with sugar. Very nice. Very elegant. I have also done a Chocolate Hazelnut version, which is delicious. You can find that here.
I just adore this cake recipe which I adapted from a WI cookbook. You cannot beat the Women's Institute for baking tasty things to enjoy with a hot cuppa and this cake is one of the best! This delicious coffee flavored cake comes with their approval so you just know it is great.
With two layers of a moist ad buttery coffee layered sponge, filled with a lush coffee cream and decorated with the same. I have added toasted walnuts and a dusting of icing sugar to dress it up.
Not just delicious, but also beautiful. I have never had anyone turn down a slice of this cake.
.JPG "Butterfly Cakes")
How can you not love a cake called a butterfly cake? It's impossible! These lovely little cupcakes have a cone-shaped piece of cake cut out of the tops which is then split in half. Buttercream fills the divots left from the removed cake and those bits are cut in half and reapplied in such a way as to resemble a butterfly's wings. A bit of jam is piped down in between the wings adding another bit of joy!
Dusted with icing sugar, these are as visually appealing as they are delicious! Simple to make as well.
.JPG "Ginger Crunchies")
These crisp moreish biscuits/cookies/bars are one of my favorite Teatime Treats. And no small wonder, with their crisp, crumbly ginger flavored cookie base and sweet ginger glaze topping, they always go down well.
I adore the flavor of ginger, and this is a bar that highlights it really well! I like to decorate the tops of the bars with small bits of preserved stem ginger. This is a British ingredient which consists of knobs of gingerroot which have been poached in a syrup until crispy tender and then preserved in a jar, covered by the same. I do have a recipe where you can make your own, very easily I might add, here. It's not totally necessary, however. You can also decorate the tops with bits of candied gingerroot. Also, very nice.
A petticoat tail is a variety of British Shortbread biscuits, baked in a large buttery round that has been scored and pricked prior to baking so as to make these delightful cookies easy to cut when done. Crisp and buttery, they were called petticoat tails due to the ruffled edges.
You can leave them plain or flavor them with a bit of peppermint for a special touch. I have also made Polka Dot Petticoat Tails, which are dimpled with small bits of jam prior to baking. All very nice.
Again, these are simply dusted with some caster sugar to finish them off. Not totally necessary, but it adds a nice hint of sparkle.
HOW TO BREW THE PERFECT CUP OF TEA
Of course, the pleasure of all of these bakes is greatly enhanced by accompanying them with a hot cup of tea, black, green, herbal or otherwise!
I did a brilliant tutorial here on how to do just that. I take you through all the steps from beginning to end. Sure, you could just throw a bag in a cup of boiling water, but if you have gone to all of the trouble of baking something nice to enjoy with a hot drink, why not spend a few minutes and make a proper hot drink to enjoy your bake with! Why not indeed!
This content, written and photography, is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at mariealicejoan at aol dot com.
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One thing I really love is a good potato pie. Made with creamy mash, loads of cheddar cheese and onions. Cheese and onion are perfect partners. Mix them into potato and you have a truly heavenly trinity of flavors. Truly.
I have made a mashed potato pie on here before and it is excellent. I would say it is my favorite. It differs quite a bit from this one which I found on a page called Krumpli. That is the one I am sharing here today. I was inspired by that one, but I did make a few changes which I felt made this recipe much easier to follow and which worked out much better.
I felt his cooking method was too floofy and complicated. Mine is much more direct and simpler. Simple food doesn't need to be complicated.
For instance, he boiled his potatoes in the skins and then peeled and mashed them. I was not a fan of that. He also boiled the onion whole and then cut it up afterward. Also, not a fan.
I guess potato pie is a dish which is very common and popular in the British West Midlands. It is often enjoyed with baked beans on the side. I have had it in the past with brown bread and pickled beetroot. I had never tried it with baked beans. I did today. They were good.
I love these old traditional recipes. They have a brilliant simplicity that brings a special sort of comfort and good eating to the table. Steeped in family history and sweet memories. You cannot beat them!
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE POTATO, CHEESE & ONION PIE
Just a few simple ingredients. I love it when you can take simple things, put them together and come up with something spectacularly delicious!
- 1 pound (453g) all-purpose potatoes
- 1 medium onion, peeled and coarsely chopped
- 5 TBS (72g) butter plus more to butter the baking dish
- 1 1/2 TBS English mustard
- 1 1/2 cups (181g) grated sharp (strong) cheddar cheese
- 1 large egg
- 1 TBS milk
- 1 tomato, sliced into1/4-inch-thick slices
- salt and black pepper to taste
You can use any potato which is good for mashing to make this casserole. What you do NOT want is a waxy potato, or a new potato. You want old, floury potatoes. They mash up nice and fluffy whereas new potatoes turn to glue when mashed.
Just use an ordinary cooking onion. Peel it and cut it into coarse chunks. It is going to be boiled with the potato, so you don't want the pieces to be too small.
I used salted butter.
English mustard really makes this dish. It is hot and sharp without a strong vinegar taste. Whatever you do DON'T use North American mustard. It is not the same. If you must substitute use Dijon. It won't give you as much of a kick but it will still be good.
I used a sharp cheddar cheese from Prince Edward Island. (Oh, how I miss the flavor of a beautifully aged British Cheddar.) Use a good, creamy, well flavored cheddar and make sure you grate it yourself.
HOW TO MAKE POTATO, CHEESE & ONION PIE
This really is not that difficult to make. I switched out the directions completely from the original recipe. I think my way is much better and much easier to follow. I can't be doing with peeling hot potatoes and mashing them. None of his way of doing it made sense. It was far too convoluted.
Peel the potatoes and cut into large chunks. Place them in a lightly salted saucepan of water, along with the onion, and bring to the boil. Cook for 15 minutes until they are tender when pierced with the tip of a knife.
Drain well in a fine sieve and then return to the pan. Preheat the oven to 400*F/200*C/ gas mark 6. Butter a one liter/qt baking dish.
Mash the potatoes together with the onion until fairly smooth. Alternately you can put them through a potato ricer first.
Stir in the mustard, butter and almost all of the cheese, mixing everything well together. Taste and adjust seasoning as required.
Beat the egg together with the milk and beat this into the potato mixture. Spread the potato mixture in the buttered baking dish, smoothing over the top.
Sprinkle the remaining cheddar cheese over top evenly and top with the sliced tomatoes.
Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown around the edges.
Serve spooned onto plates along with some baked beans, pickled beats and buttered brown bread. Ketchup is optional.
This was surprisingly hearty. I enjoyed it as suggested, as a main along with some baked beans (Heinz in tomato sauce of course). I also added some pickled beetroot and buttered sour dough bread.
This was super delicious as a main dish. Rich, creamy, cheesy. It really went down a real treat. I really hope that you will be inspired to want to make it and that if you do, you enjoy it, either as a tasty vegetarian main, or satisfying side dish for the meat lovers in your life! You choose!
Is the potato your favorite vegetable? If so, you might also enjoy the following recipes which could double either as a main dish, or as a side.
POTATO & CHEESE PIE - This dish makes an excellent vegetarian main, or a side for those who eat meat. It is filled with lovely flavors and textures. This tasty one dish supper makes good use of leftover cooked potato. You can also cook potatoes fresh to use in it. You can leave it just as it is, with just the potatoes, onions and cheese. You can also amp it up a bit by adding some other vegetables to it. I like to add green beans. Simple and delicious.
ENGLISH JACKET POTATOES - One thing they do better in the U.K. than they do anywhere else in the world is the Jacket Potato. (Baked Potato) They even have restaurants that serve just jacket potatoes with your choice of topping. A perfectly baked potato with a fluffy interior and crisp skin makes a beautiful canvas for just about anything you want to top it with.
Yield: 3 as a main, 4 as a side
Potato, Cheese & Onion Pie
Prep time: 20 MinCook time: 25 MinTotal time: 45 Min
Delicious comforting food made from simple ingredients put together in the tastiest way possible.
Ingredients
- 1 pound (453g) all-purpose potatoes
- 1 medium onion, peeled and coarsely chopped
- 5 TBS (72g) butter plus more to butter the baking dish
- 1 1/2 TBS English mustard
- 1 1/2 cups (181g) grated sharp (strong) cheddar cheese
- 1 large egg
- 1 TBS milk
- 1 tomato, sliced into1/4-inch-thick slices
- salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Peel the potatoes and cut into large chunks. Place them in a lightly salted saucepan of water, along with the onion, and bring to the boil. Cook for 15 minutes until they are tender when pierced with the tip of a knife.
- Drain well in a fine sieve and then return to the pan. Preheat the oven to 400*F/200*C/ gas mark 6. Butter a one liter/qt baking dish.
- Mash the potatoes together with the onion until fairly smooth. Alternately you can put them through a potato ricer first.
- Stir in the mustard, butter and almost all of the cheese, mixing everything well together. Taste and adjust seasoning as required.
- Beat the egg together with the milk and beat this into the potato mixture. Spread the potato mixture in the buttered baking dish, smoothing over the top.
- Sprinkle the remaining cheddar cheese over top evenly and top with the sliced tomatoes.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown around the edges.
- Serve spooned onto plates along with some baked beans, pickled beats and buttered brown bread. Ketchup is optional.
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com
Thanks for visiting! Do come again!!
If you like what you see here, why not consider signing up for my newsletter and/or subscribing/following me on Grow. You can also bookmark my recipes via the Grow platform. Check out the heart on the right hand side of the screen.
I wanted to crank out one more recipe for Saint Patrick's Day. Traditional Irish Boiled Fruit Cake is a timeless classic! It's a real keeper. Moist and stodgy, this ic a cake that will keep in the cake tin for quite a while.
This is a plain and a simple cake. Country fare. The type of cake that might be offered to you along with a nice hot cup of tea if you were to go visiting of an afternoon, along with copious amounts of butter for spreading.
It is nothing fancy.
I don't really know how I came upon the recipe. It is handwritten on a piece of foolscap paper in my Big Blue Binder and is one which I have been making now for quite some time. I can remember making this when my children were small. We are lovers of anything with raisins in it in my family. Currants too.
You begin by boiling some dried fruit with sugar, syrup and butter in a saucepan for about five minutes, after which it is left to cool before proceeding.
The smell of the raisins cooling in the saucepan along with all that butter and syrup is quite intoxicating. I have a hard time not to sneak a spoonful . . . just to make sure it's okay so you know. I don't, but I am tempted.
A bit of ginger and spice, flour, an egg. Thats all you need employ. I baked mine in a glass baking dish this time, but it did get a bit dark around the edges, so I don't really recommend using glass. Never mind, the edges are lovely cut off and dunked into hot cups of tea. Nothing goes to waste here.
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE TRADITIONAL IRISH BOILED FRUIT CAKE
Just some very basic baking ingredients. The Irish are able to do wonderful things with very simple and basic ingredients.
- 1/4 cup (60ml) golden syrup (See here to make your own)
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (120ml) cold tea
- 1 cup (150g) sultana raisins
- 1 cup (150g) dried currants
- 1/2 cup (115g) butter
- 2 cups (227g) all-purpose plain flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp mixed spice (see notes)
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- pinch of salt
- 1 medium egg, beaten
If you don't want to use golden syrup you could use dark or light corn syrup. If you can get it though, golden syrup is the way to go.
Just use any kind of tea. Make a strong cup and let it sit with the tea bag in it until it gets cold. Nicely steeped and strong.
If you don't have sultana raisins and currants you could just use raisins. I wouldn't use any other kind of fruit, however. To do so would mess with the integrity of it being an Irish recipe.
I used salted butter. That is all I keep in the house.
I used a large egg myself because all I have is large farm fresh eggs. There is not a lot of difference in a recipe such as this one between a medium and a Canadian large egg. In the U.K. North American large eggs are considered medium.
HOW TO MAKE TRADITIONAL IRISH BOILED FRUIT CAKE
This is very simple to make. Its dense and fruity and oh so delicious served buttered with a hot cup of tea. It does take a bit of time to make, but it is well worth it.
Place the golden syrup, sugar, cold tea, dried currants, sultana raisins, and butter into a saucepan. Bring to the boil. Boil for 5 minutes and then set aside to cool.
Preheat the oven to 325*F/160*C/ gas mark 3. Butter an 8-inch square cake pan/dish and line the bottom with baking paper. Butter the paper.
Sift the flour, baking powder, mixed spice, ground ginger and a pinch of salt together.
Fold the dry ingredients into the cooled fruit mixture, then stir in the beaten egg.
Turn into the prepared baking pan/dish. Smooth over the top.
Bake in the preheated oven for 1 1/2 hours, or until the cake tests done. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean. If you think it is browning too quickly, cover the top loosely with a sheet of foil.
Leave to cool in the tin for 5 minutes before lifting out to a wire rack to finish cooling completely.
Serve sliced with or without softened butter for spreading. Store any leftovers in an airtight container. This keeps very well.
Make Your Own Mixed Spice:
You can easily make your own mixed spice: Combine 1 TBS ground cinnamon, 1 tsp each of ground coriander and nutmeg, 1/2 tsp of ground ginger, 1/4 tsp each of ground cloves and all spice. Mix well and store in an airtight container out of the light for up to 6 months.
This is sticky and sweet, stodgy and dense. It is just loaded with fruit. Sliced into thick slices, buttered and served along with a nice hot cup of tea and you are in a little bit of Irish heaven.
Heat the kettle, pop on The Quiet Man, make yourself a hot cup of tea and cut yourself a piece of this. We all can dream, can't we . . .
Are you looking for some delicious and traditional Irish Recipes to make for your family for Saint Patrick's Day. You might also want to consider the following tasty options!
TRADITIONAL IRISH SODA BREAD - A simple classic bread in Irish households. This yeast free whole meal bread is perfect served with soups and stews, salads, etc. It's also pretty delicious served sliced and spread with butter and jam, marmalade and honey.
TRADITIONAL BOXTY - These delicious potato bread/potato cakes are also known as Potato Farls. This is a very simple recipe and very authentic in its simplicity. Composed of only three ingredients. Potatoes, flour and salt. These are traditionally cooked on the stove top in a flat surfaced griddle pan. At one time they would have been baked on a grill pan over an open fire.
Yield: one 8-inch cake
Traditional Irish Boiled Fruit Cake
Prep time: 30 MinCook time: 1 H & 30 MTotal time: 2 Hour
This is a wonderfully tasty and simple fruited cake, meant to be enjoyed sliced and buttered, along side a hot cup of tea. Humble and delicious.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup (60ml) golden syrup (See here to make your own)
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (120ml) cold tea
- 1 cup (150g) sultana raisins
- 1 cup (150g) dried currants
- 1/2 cup (115g) butter
- 2 cups (227g) all-purpose plain flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp mixed spice (see notes)
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- pinch of salt
- 1 medium egg, beaten
Instructions
- Place the golden syrup, sugar, cold tea, dried currants, sultana raisins, and butter into a saucepan. Bring to the boil. Boil for 5 minutes and then set aside to cool.
- Preheat the oven to 325*F/160*C/ gas mark 3. Butter an 8-inch square cake pan/dish and line the bottom with baking paper. Butter the paper.
- Sift the flour, baking powder, mixed spice, ground ginger and a pinch of salt together.
- Fold the dry ingredients into the cooled fruit mixture, then stir in the beaten egg.
- Turn into the prepared baking pan/dish. Smooth over the top.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 1 1/2 hours, or until the cake tests done. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean. If you think it is browning too quickly, cover the top loosely with a sheet of foil.
- Leave to cool in the tin for 5 minutes before lifting out to a wire rack to finish cooling completely.
- Serve sliced with or without softened butter for spreading. Store any leftovers in an airtight container. This keeps very well.
Notes
Make Your Own Mixed Spice:
You can easily make your own mixed spice: Combine 1 TBS ground cinnamon, 1 tsp each of ground coriander and nutmeg, 1/2 tsp of ground ginger, 1/4 tsp each of ground cloves and all spice. Mix well and store in an airtight container out of the light for up to 6 months.
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com
Thanks for visiting! Do come again!!
If you like what you see here, why not consider signing up for my newsletter and/or subscribing/following me on Grow. You can also bookmark my recipes via the Grow platform. Check out the heart on the right hand side of the screen.
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