Showing posts sorted by date for query sandwich. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by date for query sandwich. Sort by relevance Show all posts
One of the secrets of a happy life is
continuous small treats!
~Iris Murdoch
Today is my Birthday! I am turning 67 today and am grateful for every moment that got me here. I think every birthday deserves a treat, a cake, a pie, something to celebrate it with!
With that in mind I have had my heart set on baking a Scandinavian Almond Cake ever since I saw my friend Noelle post a photo of one on her Facebook page the other day. It looked so delicious!
Traditionally a Scandinavian Almond Cake, or Norwegian Almond Cake as it is also known, would be baked around the holidays when people are celebrating. If a Birthday isn't cause for celebration I don't know what is and so I decided that I would bake it for mine!
One of the things on my bucket list was always to visit the Scandinavian countries while I was in the UK. I never did get there, but I think one of the best ways to visit a country is through its food. I love Swedish Meatballs and Swedish Butter Cookies that you buy in the tins at Christmas.
So today I am going to pop on a travel show, and sit down with a hot drink and a piece of this cake and go arm chair travelling. (I think I'll watch Somebody Feed Phil, the Copenhagen episode.)
Traditionally this cake would be baked in a special pan such as the one you see above. It is called a Scandinavian Almond Cake Pan. I bought mine on Amazon. I know it will come in handy for all sorts of bakes.
I love the half moon shape. I can see it done in chocolate with a chocolate glaze and slivered almonds sticking out all over like a hedgehog. Fun fun!
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I have a special weakness for foreign dessert, especially cakes, and I have to say that this is one of the most delicious almond cakes I have ever baked and eaten.
It boasts a beautiful almond flavor throughout, from that beautifully textured cake to the sweet almond glaze which gets drizzled on top. There is even more almond flavor if you choose to scatter it with toasted flaked almonds.
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Its not hard to toast almonds. A few minutes on a baking sheet in a moderate (350*F/180*C) oven does the trick perfectly. I would say five to six minutes. You don't want to burn them.
(Although I have to say there used to be a burnt almond chocolate bar that I really loved to eat. I have not seen it in years.)
This is a light and springy cake which is quite unlike most European cakes which are, generally speaking, quite a bit more dense.
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WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE SCANDINAVIAN ALMOND CAKE
Other than a special pan, you only need every day ordinary ingredients. I am also quite sure you could bake this cake in a loaf tin or a deep 9 inch round tin. Not sure on the timings however.
For the cake:
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 1 large free range egg
- 1 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 2/3 cup (160ml) whole milk
- 1 1/4 cups (175g) plain all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 cup (120g) butter, melted
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For the icing:
- 1 1/2 cups (195g) icing sugar, sifted
- 2 to 3 TBS heavy cream
- few drops of almond extract
- flaked almonds to decorate, toasted or not
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I used Watkins pure Almond extract for my cake and large free range organic eggs. I buy my eggs at a place just around the corner from where I live. You can see the chickens running around in the yard.
They have a refrigerator on the porch of the shed with the eggs in it and an honesty tin. $5 a dozen for the most beautiful eggs with the brightest golden yellow yolks!
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I use whole full fat milk and plain all purpose flour. Robin Hood is what I always buy. I like it. My sugar is organic unbleached sugar, so it is a bit brown in color, but as you can see that doesn't show in this cake.
I use salted butter because I cannot afford to keep both salted and unsalted butter in my house. There is no salt in this recipe, but generally speaking I will cut back on the salt in a recipe a bit anyways. You do need a little bit most of the time, but not a lot.
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HOW TO MAKE SCANDINAVIAN ALMOND CAKE
This really is one of the easiest cakes to make. You can have it mixed and in the oven in about 10 minutes or so. I melt the butter in the microwave while I am mixing together everything else.
Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Spray the cake tin really well with baking/cooking/canola oil spray. Dust lightly with flour, shaking out any excess. Place onto a baking sheet.
Beat the sugar, egg, almond extract and milk together with an electric hand whisk until smooth.
Whisk together the flour and baking powder. Beat this into the liquid mixture.
Continue to beat with the electric mixer whilst drizzling in the melted butter until thoroughly incorporated. Pour into the prepared pan.
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Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Cool in the pan for five minutes, then tip out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
To make the glaze, whisk the icing sugar, almond extract and cream together until smooth. You should have a mixture that makes for a drizzle. If it is too thick, add a few drops of milk.
Drizzle this over top of the cake and scatter with flaked almonds if desired. I added a few cake sprinkles because, its my birthday and sprinkles on a birthday cake are a must!!!
Cut into slices along the ring lines. Will that be one ring or two?
Note - this cake was adapted from a recipe I found here.
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I usually try to bake a delicious cake on most family birthdays. Some of my favorites are:
BUTTERMILK CHOCOLATE CAKE - My brother in law loves this delicious moist chocolate cake. Adapted from a recipe I found in a cookbook by Trish Magwood called Dish Entertains.
RASPBERRY CELEBRATION CAKE - This was a cake developed for the Queen's 60th Jubilee. It is moist and delicious and the cake I chose to bake for my birthday for many years. It is studded and filled with fresh raspberries.
VICTORIA SANDWICH CAKE - This is my all time favorite cake. Plain in looks, but fabulous flavors. Two moist layers of cake filled with sweet red jam and dusted with sugar. It is a real favorite cake for the tea table as well!
Scandinavian Almond Cake
Yield: 18 small or 9 regular
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 40 MinTotal time: 50 Min
This is one of the BEST almond cakes you could ever want to bake or eat. Its also one of the easiest! You do need a special pan, although I am quite sure you could also bake it in a deep 9 inch round cake tin
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 1 large free range egg
- 1 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 2/3 cup (160ml) whole milk
- 1 1/4 cups (175g) plain all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 cup (120g) butter, melted
For the icing:
- 1 1/2 cups (195g) icing sugar, sifted
- 2 to 3 TBS heavy cream
- few drops of almond extract
- flaked almonds to decorate, toasted or not
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Spray the cake tin really well with baking/cooking/canola oil spray. Dust lightly with flour, shaking out any excess. Place onto a baking sheet.
- Beat the sugar, egg, almond extract and milk together with an electric hand whisk until smooth.
- Whisk together the flour and baking powder. Beat this into the liquid mixture.
- Continue to beat with the electric mixer whilst drizzling in the melted butter until thoroughly incorporated. Pour into the prepared pan.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool in the pan for five minutes, then tip out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- To make the glaze, whisk the icing sugar, almond extract and cream together until smooth. You should have a mixture that makes for a drizzle. If it is too thick, add a few drops of milk.
- Drizzle this over top of the cake and scatter with flaked almonds if desired. Cut into slices along the ring lines. Will that be one ring or two?
Thanks so much for visiting! Do come again!
I am a person who is a huge fan of the hot sandwich. Well, in all honesty, I am a fan of any kind of sandwich really, but a hot sandwich gets my taste buds tingling in a really special way.
Especially when you start talking about hot ham and cheese sandwiches in foil. I always used to enjoy making Heavenly Ham & Cheese Hots for the missionaries when they came over to eat. But it is a hot sandwich for a crowd, and I am no longer a crowd.
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I really am a fan of the hot sandwich and actually the sandwich altogether. Some of my favorites are:
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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But why shouldn't single people be able to enjoy the same types of foods as families or crowds? Why indeed! I have been on a quest over these past months to small batch some of my favorite eats for the smaller family.
This hot ham sandwich recipe I am sharing with you today is sized perfectly for one, although if you are more than one, you can certainly multiply it to feed as many people as you like, or even check out the recipe link I dropped above which makes 12 sliders.
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This version is slightly different in that it uses a nice fresh Kaiser roll. Today I chose poppy seed. It also included sweet caramelized onions and crisp slices of smoky bacon.
This is the full deal! And yes, incredibly delicious!
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I do not want to fall into the rut of eating frozen dinners or simply grazing, or eating out just because there is just me in the house. I shouldn't have to wait until I have people invited over to cook a nice meal.
There is no reason on earth why a singleton shouldn't eat as well as a family eats.
This is my quest at any rate and I am sure that there are many of you out there who have the same challenge, which is to cook decent, delicious meals for one or two.
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WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE HOT HAM & CHEESE SANDWHICH
with bacon and caramelized onions
I have managed to downsize the original and make it even tastier with a few special additions.
- 2 slices of bacon, fried until crisp (or as you desire)
- 1 small onion, peeled and thinly sliced
- pinch sugar
- 2 TBS butter, divided
- 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 fresh Kaiser roll
- 4 slices deli ham
- 2 slices deli swiss cheese
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I am often able to buy bacon marked down because it is at its sell by date. I will usually pick up two packages. One package I will cook the whole thing. I then it into an airtight container with wax paper between the layers and freeze it, ready to take out when I have a need or a use for it.
This is much cheaper than buying the already cooked bacon in the shops, which is expensive and incredibly thinly sliced!
The other package I will open up, roll each slice up tightly and pop them all into an air tight zip lock baggie in a single layer, ready to take out one or two slices as and when I need it. It also chops incredibly well when frozen in the way for recipes that require your bacon to be chopped. I chop it while its still frozen!
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The only faffy bit about this is caramelizing the onion. I suppose if you wanted to and were thinking straight, you could slice up a whole lot of onions and caramelize them, and then freeze them in small containers for later use.
Or, if it was available to you, you could use a caramelized onion chutney. Now that would be especially good. I miss all the different chutneys that were available in the UK. There are not a lot on offer here in Canada, although I suppose I could make my own.
I actually have plans to make a mango chutney next time mangos are on offer. I love mango chutney. Its one of the first things we learned how to make in Culinary College.
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HOW TO MAKE HOT HAM & CHEESE SANDWICH
with bacon & caramelized onions
These really are very easy to make. Probably the most time consuming part is the caramelizing of the onions. If you are not keen you can always leave them out, but I highly recommend you do make them as they really add to the deliciousness of this tasty sandwich!
Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4.
While the oven is preheating, melt half the butter in a small skillet. Once it begins to foam add the sliced onions and a pinch of sugar. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions have begun to caramelize.
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Melt the remaining butter in a small dish in the microwave. Whisk in the mustard and Worcestershire sauce. Have ready a large square of aluminum foil.
Cut your bun in half through the middle, horizontally. Brush both sides of the bottom half of the bun with some of the butter/mustard mixture.
Layer as follows. ham, cheese, onions, bacon.
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Brush both sides of the top half of the bun with the butter/mustard mixture. Place on top of the sandwich, cut side down.
Place into the middle of the square of foil. Bring all of the sides of the foil up to cover the bun completely and twist to close.
Place onto a small baking sheet and bake in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes, until the sandwich is heated through and the cheese has melted.
Enjoy it while its hot.
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This really is a delicious sandwich. I love the combination of salty and sweet. The saltiness of the bacon and the ham, the sweetness of the caramelized onions and the swiss cheese.
If you wanted to you could use honey mustard Dijon instead of plain Dijon. That would also be incredibly tasty!
You need only add some crisp vegetable sticks on the side and you have a really decent meal. Hearty and delicious and very easy to make!
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ITALIAN BAKED SANDWICH -These are so delicious and easy to make. You can make one large one, or small individuals. Tasty either way you do it! With mayonnaise, mustard, layers of Italian cold cuts and cheese. All baked together in a toasty bun. Yummilicious!
ULTIMATE MEATLOAF SANDWICH - Not just any old meatloaf sandwich but a delicious combination of slices of leftover meatloaf, browned in a skillet and tucked between slices of crusty bread with lettuce, cheese and homemade onion rings. Delicious!
BBQ CHICKEN SANDWICH - Leftover cooked chicken, heated up in some BBQ sauce and piled between layers of toasty bun with some crisp, cool and creamy coleslaw. Fabulously tasty!
Hot Ham & Cheese Sandwich with Bacon & Caramelized Onions
Yield: 1 sandwich
Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 25 MinTotal time: 40 Min
Quantities are for one delicious sandwich, but can be easily multiplied to feed more!
Ingredients
For one sandwich:
- 2 slices of bacon, fried until crisp (or as you desire)
- 1 small onion, peeled and thinly sliced
- pinch sugar
- 2 TBS butter, divided
- 1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 fresh Kaiser roll
- 4 slices deli ham
- 2 slices deli swiss cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4.
- While the oven is preheating, melt half the butter in a small skillet. Once it begins to foam add the sliced onions and a pinch of sugar. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions have begun to caramelize.
- Melt the remaining butter in a small dish in the microwave. Whisk in the mustard and Worcestershire sauce.
- Have ready a large square of aluminum foil.
- Cut your bun in half through the middle. Brush both sides of the bottom half of the bun with some of the butter/mustard mixture.
- Layer as follows. ham, cheese, onions, bacon.
- Brush both sides of the top half of the bun with the butter/mustard mixture. Place on top of the sandwich, cut side down.
- Place into the middle of the square of foil. Bring all of the sides of the foil up to cover the bun completely and twist to close.
- Place onto a small baking sheet and bake in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes, until the sandwich is heated through and the cheese has melted.
- Enjoy it while its hot.
Thanks so much for visiting! Do come again!
What I am sharing today is not a recipe per se. I am sure you don't really need a recipe for a tomato sandwich, and we all probably have our own ideas of what is the best tomato sandwich recipe.
I think my mother was the Queen of Tomato Sandwiches. I believe she had a tomato sandwich for her lunch almost every day of her life. She loved them and it is a love I very much share, however I probably would not have one every day for lunch.
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To my way of thinking you need only very simple things to make a great classic tomato sandwich! Basically only 4, and if you make sure those are the best, then you are in for a real treat.
Good soft white bread. That is the first thing. You don't need anything fancy. No sour dough, or brioches, etc. Just good old plain soft white bread.
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Some people swear by mayonnaise and that is surely an excellent choice. Myself, I love miracle whip on my tomato sandwiches. Its a personal preference really. I think miracle whip is slightly sweeter and it goes really well with tomatoes. In my opinion it brings out the best in a tomato.
I also like a nice fresh crisp lettuce on my sandwich, although certainly I have enjoyed tomato sandwiches without lettuce as well. For me it has to be simple, crisp, plain, old fashioned iceberg lettuce.
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And finally you need a nice big fat ripe fresh tomato. I think beefsteak tomatoes make the best tomato sandwiches, but, having said that, I have been known to enjoy a tomato sandwich made with just about any fresh tomato.
Mom always kept her tomatoes on the counter top (before she cut into them). There was always one or two fresh tomatoes ripening on the counter top. Tomatoes are one fruit (and yes they are a fruit, not a vegetable) that continues to ripen at room temperature.
If you keep your tomatoes on the counter top when you bring them home from the shops, you will find that their flavor improves immensely after a day or so.
I think that they pick tomatoes just short of their prime so that they have a longer shelf life, and then they keep them really cold so that they stay that way. Leaving them on the counter for a day or so, improves their taste and texture greatly.
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There is really only one way to make this sandwich. You can butter your bread or not, as you wish. I choose to butter because my tomatoes are usually really ripe and that helps to prevent the sandwich from being soggy.
You don't need a lot of butter, just a light covering.
Onto that I place a hefty schmear of Miracle Whip or mayonnaise. Only on the tomato side, but you can do both if you want to. I like to taste my spread and so I do spread it on rather thickly. I probably use about 2 tablespoons. (Don't judge me.)
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Onto the plain buttered side, I layer the lettuce. I like to leave the lettuce in nice crinkly leaves. And I am not stingy with it either. I use a fair amount of lettuce.
On the miracle whip/mayo side I layer the tomatoes. I like to cut the slices of tomato fairly thin and use a lot of them, layering them on top of each other haphazardly. I like to cover all of the spread with a nice layer of ripe tomatoes.
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Finally I season the tomatoes with plenty of freshly ground black pepper and a sprinkling of freshly ground sea salt. I love the pure flavor of sea salt. Call me a salt snob. I like sea salt.
And I have my favorites there as well. Maldon is my clear cut favorite. And I like it flaked.
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Once you have both slices of your bread loaded you can slam them together. Here is when you will be glad that you buttered the lettuce side because your lettuce will hold in place and not slip and slide all over the place.
Press the bread down a tiny bit to make everything stick together. Don't smash it. Just press it down gently.
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Its up to you whether you choose to cut it in half or not. Sometimes I do. Sometimes I don't. It all depends on how juicy the tomatoes are and how generous I have been with the miracle whip/mayonnaise.
If your tomatoes are really juicy you probably want to keep it all in one piece so that it isn't too overly messy. I like to enjoy my sandwich, not wear it. And, unfortunately, tomatoes can stain.
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When I first moved over to the UK, I worked in a Care Home. I did some hours cleaning and I was also a kitchen assistant. This was while I was taking my college training as a Chef. There I learned to love cheese and tomato sandwiches.
I had never heard of a cheese and tomato sandwich before. It was, to me at any rate, an unusual combination.
But it was another, no bells and whistles needed, delicious simple sandwich. Buttered bread. Thinly sliced seasoned tomato, and freshly grated medium cheddar cheese. Delicious! Which reminds me I haven't had one of those in a while either.
The British love their sandwiches and they do sandwiches really well. So well that they have shops that are dedicated to just producing and selling them, and spots in the chiller cabinets of all their other shops dedicated to just sandwiches.
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Maybe tomorrow. Today I am enjoying my classic, simple, delicious tomato sandwich. Every single mouthful. Oh how I love the summer months when we can enjoy an abundance of freshly grown local tomatoes.
They do have a huge edge flavorwise against their nursery farmed counterparts.
One final word. The best tomatoes I have ever eaten in my life were from the Isle of Wight in the UK. I used to get a box of them delivered to me every couple of weeks from a place called The Tomato Stall. They were absolutely lovely. Was I ever spoiled!
When it comes to home delivery of food the UK really does it well. I could get just about everything (Quality meats, cheeses, poultry, fish, vegetables, fruits, etc.) delivered right to my door, and quite affordably too. I miss that.
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@aol.com
Thank you so much for visiting! Do come again!
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