Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Scones. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Scones. Sort by date Show all posts
Irish Apple Cake. Apple Cake has to be one of the most delicious cakes a person can bake. You cannot beat a cake that is filled with sweet tender slices of apple and warm baking spices. Unless you are talking about an "Irish" Apple Cake.
And then the combination becomes absolutely unbeatable. Tender apple slices baked in a cake batter and then topped with a wholesome oat streusel. Add flaked almonds to that streusel and you have one very delicious cake!
Every year I like to bake an Irish Apple Cake for Saint Patrick's Day. The first time I made it, I made a recipe adapted from a recipe I got from a Rachel Allen Cookery Book. If you are not familiar with who she is, she is the daughter in law of Darina Allen, the doyenne of Irish cookery.
They run the Ballymaloe House, Restaurant and Cookery School in Ireland. I had always wanted to go to this cookery school, but never got there.
I am not sure what makes this an Irish Cake. I would say more that it is a cake in the European tradition, in that it is somewhat denser than North American Cakes, and the manner of putting it together is also somewhat different.
It is kind of done in layers. You make a cake batter, which you spread in the pan and top with sliced apple, topping that finally with a streusel layer. This year I added some flaked almonds to the streusel to amp it up. Lovely-icious!
The cake itself is moist and delicious, lightly spiced with cinnamon. You put it together in a way that is very different than North American cakes. You rub the butter into the flour, almost like you would do if you were making scones.
North American cakes are a lot sweeter than European cakes. I have to say, not trying to be rude, but I prefer the lesser sweetness of European styled cakes.
We North Americans make and use far too much sugar I think. Living in the UK, I got used to their way of doing things. Even the bread in North America is too sweet for my taste. I had noticed that the last time I was home with mom.
Most of the sweetness in this cake comes from the apples and the streusel topping. You want to use a nice cooking apple for the filling. Cooking apples are a bit more tart than regular apples. You could use Granny Smith or a Cortland.
These are tossed with some sugar and cinnamon before laying them on top of the cake base in the pan. Sometimes I will add a bit of nutmeg. The warm flavour of nutmeg goes very well with apples and you don't need a lot of it. A little bit always goes a long way.
More sweetness comes from the streusel topping. It is sweet and wholesome and adds a lovely crunch to the top of the cake. Oats make it really wholesome, but adding flaked almonds made it nice and crunchy.
Apple and almond is a very quintessentially moreish combination. But then again, so is apple and oats.
This not too sweet cake goes excellently with a nice hot drink. (Also a European tradition.) Hot cups of tea if you are so inclined or Coffee both go very well. That makes it the perfect cake for a mid morning or mid afternoon treat.
It also makes for a fabulous dessert however. Especially when paired with a custard sauce/creme anglaise in the European fashion. You can find my recipe for the custard sauce here.
Serving this warm with custard sauce is a very British thing to do. I can remember when I first moved to the UK, we were taken out for dinner by the people in our church to celebrate our wedding. At the end of the meal I was asked what I wanted for pudding.
I was thinking pudding . . . hmmm . . . butterscotch, vanilla or chocolate. I like all three, but the word Pudding has a totally different context over there in the UK.
In the UK the term "Pudding" is meant to mean a course, ie. dessert. So when they ask you if you want pudding, what they really mean is do you want dessert?
And then, once you get the dessert, do you want it with lashings of cream or custard, or . . . both! Believe it or not I know people who would choose both.
And the cream is never sweetened, or whipped, just poured. Even the custard is not overly sweet in comparison to our puddings/desserts. And lashings . . . means poured liberally over top.
In restaurants your dessert will often come with its own little jug of each. I do love either one. But the North American in me will always love Ice Cream most of all and with a cake like this is has to be vanilla ice cream.
You don't want to serve it with anything that is going to detract from the lush flavors of the apple and the cinnamon and the streusel. Vanilla works best with all those things.
But its your dessert, so you go ahead and have whatever you want. I am thinking Maple Walnut would be nice, but then I am nuts for Maple Walnut ice cream! But again, not very Irish.
In any case, if you are looking for a fabulous dessert to serve with your Saint Patrick's day dinner on the 17th of March, you can't go far wrong by serving this!
Irish Apple Cake
Yield: 6 - 8
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 50 Mininactive time: 10 MinTotal time: 1 H & 10 M
A delicious version of an apple cake, baked with tasty apple slices sandwiched in the center. Serve warm with or without custard, or a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 2 cups (280g) self raising flour (You may need extra, see note below to make your own)
- 1/2 cup (125g) butter
- 1 large free range egg, lightly beaten
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar (use caster sugar in the UK)
- 1/3 cup (80ml) milk
For the filling:
- 2 cooking apples, peeled and sliced
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 4 1/2 TBS soft light brown sugar
For the Streusel Topping:
- 3/4 cup (105 g) plain flour
- 1/4 cup (20g) old fashioned oats
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar (in the UK use caster sugar)
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 6 TBS butter, cut into bits
- 4 TBS flaked almonds
To serve:
- Icing sugar to dust
- Custard sauce or vanilla ice cream
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/350*F. Butter a deep flan tin, with a loose bottom, roughly 9 inches in diameter. Set aside.
- Make the Streusel. Measure the flour and oats and sugar into a bowl. Stir in the cinnamon. Drop in the butter. Rub together with your fingers until it clumps together and you have a crumble mixture. Stir in the flaked almonds.
- Place the flour and butter into a large bowl. Rub the butter in with your fingertips to form a breadcrumb texture. Stir in the sugar. Add the beaten egg and milk and mix together with a round bladed knife.
- If the dough seems a bit too sticky add a bit more flour. You want a soft dough.
- Spoon the dough into the prepared pan, making it higher around the edges, about 1 inch into the center with a hollowed out space to put the apples.
- Spread the apple slices evenly over the center of the base. Press them down lightly. Sprinkle with the soft light brown sugar and the cinnamon.
- Sprinkle the streusel over top. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until well risen and golden brown.
- Let stand in the tin for about 10 minutes before removing the sides.
- Place the tin on top of a jar and push the sides of the pan down and remove. Place the cake on a wire rack to cool to warm.
- Dust with icing sugar before cutting into wedges to serve, with or without ice cream or custard.
Notes:
Make Your Own Self Raising Flour:
You can make your own self raising flour by adding 1 1/2 tsp of baking powder and 1/4 tsp of salt to every cup of plain flour.
One of our favourite things to eat here in the UK at this time of year are blackberries and they are pretty much free for the asking, as they grow wild in the hedgerows all across the country. They are quite prolific and need little or no care really, which is probably why they can be found in such abundance. They can be somewhat of a nuisance to home gardeners whose aim is to have a very manicured garden, as they do have a habit of popping up in the most diverse of places, their canes travelling beneath the ground. I, for one, don't really mind. We love blackberries and cannot get enough of them when they are at their best, eating them fresh as often as possible . . . and I try to freeze as many as I can as well, for winter time treats. We grown our own in our garden . . . well, I say that. We actually planted tayberries, but they've become blackberries for the most part. The blackberries which grow in the hedgerow bordering our property have taken over somewhat and intermingled with them, so what we have now is a happy mixture of them both.
Most Sunday afternoons I bake something scrummy for a light supper late in the afternoon. We are usually starving when we come in from church and so have a quick bite then . . . so we're not really all that hungry when the evening rolls around. Just a bit peckish . . . a quick scrummy bite is usually all we want.
Sometimes it's a fruity quick bread, or scones . . . or cakes. (I know naughty me!) Today it was these lovely Cranberry, Orange and Pistachio Muffins.
This folks is precisely why I stock up on fresh cranberries when they are abundant in the shops before Christmas. I just throw them in the freezer bag and all. That way I have lots of cranberry scrumminess to look forward to in the winter months . . .
. . . those dark and dull days that are so grey and gloomy . . . with not much to brighten them up. Damp and blah . . .
These lovely little muffins are like pretty little jewels in a winter wasteland! So bright with the cheery red cranberries and green pistachio nuts! Almost Christmassy . . . but they're not for Christmas coz it's January.
Light and moist and oh so yumbly tumbly good Good GOOD!
You can store any that you don't eat right away in a tightly covered tin and refresh them for a few seconds in the microwave before eating. Not that you will have much left over . . . but you might. You never know. Miracles happen every day.
*Cranberry, Orange and Pistachio Muffins*
Makes 6 large muffins, or 8 medium
Printable Recipe
Moist and flavourful muffins with just the right amount of tang and sweetness. The cranberry and pistachio topping is so pretty!
2 large free range eggs
80g caster sugar (scant half cup)
50ml of sunflower oil (1/4 cup)
the finely grated zest and freshly squeezed juice of one orange
150g of plain flour (1 1/2 cups)
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
100g fresh or frozen cranberries (1 cup)
Topping:
50g of fresh or frozen cranberries (1/2 cup)
hand ful of shelled pistachio nuts, chopped
demerara sugar to sprinkle.
Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Line a muffin tray with either 6 large muffin cups or 8 medium cups.
Whisk the eggs, sugar, oil, orange zest and orange juice together well. Sift the flour and baking powder into a bowl. Add the wet ingredients all at once and fold together, just to moisten all. Stir in the cranberries. Spoon into the muffin cups, filling them about 2/3 full. Sprinkle the remaining cranberries on top, dividing them amongst each. Sprinkle each with some chopped pistachio nuts and aa generous sprinkle of demerara sugar.
Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes without opening the door. When they are ready they should be well risen and spring back when lightly touched.
Remove to a wire rack to cool somewhat before eating. Stire in a anrtight container for up to 3 days. (You can refresh them with a quick burst in the microwave.)
Over in The Cottage today, a delicious Deep Dish Salmon Pie.
My kids grew up on homemade granola and homemade granola bars. When you have five children you learn how to do these things yourself! You can't afford the fancy stuff!
I credit my next door neighbour Mabel for teaching me how to make granola. It was a tasty way to get my children to eat oatmeal. They wouldn't touch it cooked, but if I turned it into granola, they didn't mind eating it at all.
As mom's we all want our kids to eat things that are healthy for them, including their breakfast cereals, and especially their snacks.
I heard on the television yesterday that the government was going to be banning eating food on buses to try to combat childhood obesity. I was like what the heck?
How is that going to combat childhood obesity? I may not be a really smart woman but I don't think banning eating on buses is going to do a heck of a lot for childhood obesity!!
How about making healthy food more affordable? There is something wrong when you can buy a package containing half a dozen fatty sausage rolls in pastry for less than you can a pack of green beans or a bag of apples. But that's just my opinion.
How about encouraging them to get off their butts and out the door to play? Too many children spend all of their time in front of a screen. Playing computer games, or watching television.
We liked watching cartoons when I was a child too, but they were only available at certain times of the day and week. Saturday mornings (so our parents could sleep in I guess) and there was a few programs on after school.
The general rule in our house was unless it was raining, you had to be outside playing. End of story. Otherwise you got stuck doing chores and housework. Trust me, we didn't mind being outdoors.
We didn't get bored either, because if we did, my mom soon found something for us to do and it wasn't going to be anything fun to do! Being bored was not an option!
Anyways, I digress. These granola bars make a nice snack for kids. They are filled with less fat and sugar than ready made ones and are filled with plenty of fibre and protein.
You can skip the white chocolate drizzle if you want to, but I think it adds a nice touch. You can also add nuts to the mix, replacing half the dried fruit with them, which would add even more protein. Delicious any way you choose to do it.
Yield: 16
White Chocolate and Cranberry Granola Bars
Making your own granola bars is not that hard and they taste far superior to those you can buy. I like that I can control what is in them.
ingredients:
For the bars:
- 240g old fashioned large flake Oatmeal (3 cups)
- 2 TBS butter
- 2 TBS soft light brown sugar, packed
- 2 TBS pure maple syrup
- 85g liquid honey (1/4 cup)
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp salt (optional)
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
- 115g dried cranberries (3/4 cup)
- 90g white chocolate chips (1/2 cup)
- 35g mixed sunflower and pumpkin seeds (1/4 cup)
You will also need:
- 75g white chocolate (3 ounces)
instructions:
How to cook White Chocolate and Cranberry Granola Bars
- Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Spread the oats onto two baking trays. Toast them in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, stirring them several times, until they are light golden brown and smell toasty.
- Like a 9 inch square pan with some waxed paper or parchment paper. Set aside.
- Melt the butter in a large saucepan on the stove. Add the brown sugar, maple syrup and honey. Cook, stirring until the sugar is melted and everything is amalgamated. Whisk in the vanilla, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamon. Stir in the toasted oats and combine well. Let cool completely. Stir in the chocolate chips, cranberries and seeds. Mix well together and then press into the lined pan. Place another sheet of wax paper or parchment paper on top and compress the mixture really well, until it is of an even thickness all over. Cover and place in the refrigerator overnight.
- The next morning, flip them carefully out onto a cutting board and peel off any paper. Cut into quarters with a sharp knife and then cut each quarter into 4 to give you 16 bars. Place them onto a wire rack placed over top of some wax or parchment paper. Break your white chocolate into squares and put into a microwave safe bowl. Melt in the microwave according to package directions. Using a spoon flick the melted chocolate over top of the granola bars. Leave to set before storing in an airtight container. These will keep for about a weeks or so, or you can freeze them tightly covered for longer.
If you are not a fan of white chocolate you can use dark chocolate and semi sweet chocolate chips. I just happen to think that white chocolate goes very well with dried cranberries and pumpkin seeds. These also make for a great breakfast on the go. Just sayin!
Up tomorrow: Carrot Cake Drop Scones
I rcently received the most beautiful cookbook for review, entitled Love, Aimee x by noted crafter and blogger, Aimee Twigger, (Twigg Studios) I love her blog. It's gorgeous. And so is this book. I fell in love with it as soon as I saw the cover, and I think you will too.
As soon as October rolls around I hunker down and start to crave my autumn favourites . . . apple pies, and pots of homemade soup . . . and pumpkin. Pumpkin anything, but most especially these delicious Pumpkin Pie Muffins!
Hooray for autumn and all those lovely apples that are now being offered at road stands and in the produce departments of the local shops. Not French Apples either, but beautiful, sweet delicious fresh British Apples. Perfect for eating out of hand, cooking into sauces and chutnies . . . and for baking into lovely pies, tarts, muffins and cakes. Cakes like this beautiful one I am showcasing here today.
This is a deliciously different cake, baked from an old traditional recipe which is Irish in origin. What makes it different you ask??? Well . . . this is a cake that is a cross between a cake and a scone . . .
The method used to make the cake batter is very similar to the same method you would use when making traditional scones . . . rubbing the butter into the flour with your fingertips until crumbly. Stirring in the wet ingredients with a round bladed knife to make a soft dough . . . but that is where the similarity ends. It bakes up into a deliciously moist cake . . . not a sturdy scone.
I guess you could say that is is also similar to a pie, because you have both a top and a bottom crust, with a delicious apple filling sandwiched in the middle . . . the top and bottom crusts melting together at the edges, and then baking in and around the apples, to form one of the tastiest cakes ever!!
At one time this cake would have been placed into an iron pot oven, with burning coals topping the pot . . . the pot situated close to the open fire on a rustic Irish cottage hearth . . .
Oh what a romantic image that inspires . . . I can almost see it now . . . the flames from the open fire licking up and down the walls . . . the light flickering on the dark cottage walls . . . the smell of smoke mingled with that beautiful smell of baking cakes . . . apples . . . and spice . . .
Alas, we have no open hearth . . . simply an electric oven and a deep flan tin but nevermind . . . it still tastes pretty darn good!!!
Served warm with lashings of warm custard . . . this was the perfect rainy day teatime treat.
*Irish Apple Cake*
Serves 6 to 8
Printable Recipe
A delicous version of an apple cake, baked with tasty apple slices sandwiched in the centre. Serve warm with or without custard.
225g self raising flour (generous 2 cups)
(You may need extra
so don't put the flour away just yet)
115g butter (1/2 cup)
1 large free range egg, lightly beaten
115g caster sugar (9 1/2 TBS)
3 fluid ounces milk
Filling:
2 cooking apples, peeled and sliced
1/2 tsp cinnamon
57g soft light brown sugar (4 1/2 TBS)
Topping:
a little beaten egg
1 level TBS of caster sugar
Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/350*F. Butter a deep flan tin, with a loose bottom, roughly 9 inches in diameter. set aside.
Place the flour and butter into a large bowl. Rub the butter in with your fingertips to form a breadcrumb texture. Stir in the sugar. Add the beaten egg and milk and mix together with a round bladed knife. If the dough seems a bit too sticky add a bit more flour. You want a soft dough, but not a sticky one. Turn out onto a floured board and cut the dough in half. Place half of the dough into the flan tin, pressing it in with floured fingers to evenly cover the bottom of the dish. Spread the apple slices evenly over the base, leaving a bit of an edge all the way around. Sprinkle with the soft light brown sugar and the cinnamon. Carefully roll out the remaining half of the dough into a circle roughly the same size as the dish. Place on top of the apples, pressing the edges together with the bottom crust. Cut several slits in the top of the cake for ventilation.
Brush with a little beaten egg and sprinkle the TBS of caster sugar evenly over top. Bake for 35 minutes, until well risen and golden brown.
Place the tin on top of a jar and push the sides of the pan down and remove. Place the cake on a wire rack to cool to warm before cutting into wedges to serve.
If there's anything else that goes very well on a rainy day with a cake such as this, it is a nice hot cup of herbal tea. Today we were supping on beautiful cups of Fruit Medley Tea which was sent to us from Adagio Teas. A delicious herbal blend of rose hips, hibiscus, apple pieces, natural strawberry flavour and strawberries, orange peel and natural wild cherry . . . soooo good, almost addictive and soooo good for you! A wonderfully aromatic and flavourful blend which contains nothing artificial, no sweeteners, and totally caffeine free.
Adagio Teas recently sent me a lovely assortment of their herbal tea range . . . all lovely. We've really been enjoying these lovely blends . . .
Lemon Grass . . . with a delicate Meyer lemon taste, as well as a slight hint of sweet ginger, and very aromatic floral fragrance. Smooth and fragrant. It felt very soft in the mouth, not astringent at all with a lovely clean finish. Very Thai . . . an uplifting, yet naturally caffeine free tea.
Blood Orange . . . another favourite with a deep vibrant colour and sweet tangy flavour . . . and yet without sugar. It's a combination of orange peels, hibiscus flowers, rose hips and natural orange flavour. Very, very rich and tangy . . . just lovely. (I used to love Constant Comment tea when I drank black teas . . . and this really reminded me of that.)
Rooibos Vanilla . . . this lovely rooibos tea combines that beautiful and rich sugary scent of vanilla, combined with the fruity juiciness from the rooibos, altogether almost dessert-like . . . but without the calories. A cookie you can drink, and not gain an ounce on your hips.
White Blueberry . . . you know how much I love Blueberries . . . a premium white tea, combined with the taste of juicy blueberries. The Canuck in me loved this both warm as a hot drink . . . but also cold as an iced tea. It had a clean refreshing taste . . . most delectable.
You would think that all those lovely herbal blends would be enough . . . but no, they also sent me a beautiful little gift set of "Love Petals." This is a sweetly presented set of three delicious sounding teas in gorgeously romantic looking rose printed tins . . . Ripe for Romance (a mix of black tea, cocoa nibs, raspberry leaves, raspberry pieces, and natural chocolate and raspberry flavours. Sounds nummy.) Sweet Nothings (a mix of white tea, sunflower petals, lavender buds, apricot bits, and natural peach flavour) Hugs and Kisses (A mix or rooibos, rose petals, cornflowers, and natural vanilla, almond, cream and caramel flavours.) I have not tried these yet, but they do sound delicious and those tins are just beautiful. I think these would be a lovely gift for someone special.
Wow, nice . . . I can hear you thinking that. But that is not all . . .
They also sent me this really neat little tea steeper! The ingenuiTEA is a really nice looking piece of kit which promises to be the most convenient tea pot you will ever find anywhere.
From their page: The most convenient teapot you will find anywhere - we guarantee it. When tea is ready, simply place it atop your cup. This will cause a valve at the bottom to release: crystal-clear tea flows down, while the mesh filter retains all the leaves with one of the best infusers on the market. Super easy to clean and dishwasher safe - perfect for the office or the road. You will wonder how you got along without one.
Can it live up to it's promise??
Very simple, easy to read and great instructions on it's use clearly printed on the side
of the box.
Boiled water added to the tea.
Steep for the required time.
Placed over the cup, it empties itself into the cup. Just make sure your cup is large enough to take the amount of liquid in the teapot . . . or else it will over flow! (That happened to me the first time I used it! DUH!)
A beautiful, well steeped, delicious flavoured cup, of hot, warming, comforting tea.
What more could you want??
Many thanks to Stepas and Adagio Teas for affording me this lovely chance.
What can I say . . . I'm hooked. These herbal blends are quite, quite fabulous!
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