Well, its the weekend and I always like to share a new baking recipe with you at the weekend. This week I am sharing an easy shortcake recipe, which has a very autumnal feel to it.
Apple & Blackberry Shortcake. Apple and Blackberry season is upon us now and this is a really delicious way to use some of those lovely fruits.
I have always felt that there is a very good reason that certain fruits, vegetables, proteins, etc. come into season at the same time. That is because they are a perfect fit for each other.
Or maybe we have made them into a perfect fit for each other because they come into season at the same time. Whatever it is, apples and blackberries go together like peas and carrots.
Although apples do stay with us throughout the winter, blackberries are with us for only a short time. I try to use them as often as I can when they are in season.
I was very spoilt in the UK as they grew wild and free for the picking in all of the hedgerows! This time of year you will often see people standing by the hedges with buckets picking berries to their hearts content.
They are called Brambles over there and there are only two rules to follow when picking them. One wear a long sleeved shirt and gloves if you have them. This protects you from the prickles. Two soak them in water when you get them home. This helps to remove any worms or insects. They float to the top.
We are all familiar with strawberry shortcake. Every year we treat ourselves to that old favorite and enjoy it immensely.
This year I thought why not an apple and blackberry shortcake? Why not indeed!!
It puffs up golden brown on top of that biscuit dough and provides a beautiful backdrop for the apples and berries as you can see.
Some other recipes you can use it in include:
In fact you could serve this with any fruit topping. I cannot think of any fruit or berry it would not go with. Use your imagination!
Peaches and raspberries would be lovely! Roasted plums! Pears and cranberries. Mango, pineapple and banana . . . just pick any type of fruit you enjoy!
You do need a six inch round cake or pie tin to bake it in, however. That is the only drawback, unless you double the recipe and bake it in a 9-inch pan. Its up to you.
The recipe cuts into four nice slices, which is enough for two with leftovers for another night. Or for a small family of four on the night.
The biscuit base is very easy to make and uses a boxed biscuit/baking mix, or you can make your own baking mix as I usually do.
I have included the recipe for that. I often have a container of it in my freezer ready to use when I need it. It comes in really hand for all sorts.
One way that this recipe for the shortcake base differs from others is that it boasts a sweet meringue topping. It bakes on top of the biscuit base.
It puffs up nice and brown and goes really well with whatever fruit you are using.
It puffs up nice and high in the oven, but don't worry, it does sink as it cools.
It just give a lovely crisp yet marshmallow-like base in addition to the biscuit. Something a tiny bit different.
The fruit topping is also very easy to make. Its as simple as sautéing some apple slices in some butter in a skillet, along with some brown sugar and warm baking spices.
Once they have softened slightly and begun to caramelize you throw in some blackberries and take it off the heat. The blackberries cook only the slightest in the heat of the pan, maintaining the integrity of their shape, etc.
I have kept the fruit topping a bit on the tart side because of the sweetness of the base with the meringue and all.
There is such a thing as too much sweet.
This was beautiful served with some vanilla ice cream on the side. Whipped cream or clotted cream would also go very nicely.
Oh my, I miss the luxury of clotted cream. I am going to have to try to make my own sometime, but I do have my doubts about that. Somehow I don't think it will ever taste the same.
Anyways, if you are looking for a nice, quick and easy dessert to serve this labor day weekend, you cannot go wrong with this one!
Blackberry & Apple Shortcake
Yield: Serves 2 with leftovers
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 20 MinTotal time: 30 Min
This autumn shortcake is a beautiful dessert, with a quick and easy biscuit base topped with a meringue topping prior to baking. Served with lush blackberries and apples spooned over top, a scoop of ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream goes very nicely with this dessert!
Ingredients
For the shortcake:
- 1 1/4 cups (160g) baking mix (see my recipe or use a brand like Bisquick)
- 1 1/2 TBS granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 TBS melted butter
- 1/4 cup (60ml) milk
- 1 large free range egg white
- 2 TBS granulated sugar
- 2 TBS icing sugar
For the fruit topping:
- 2 sweet eating apples, peeled, cored and sliced
- 1 TBS butter
- 1 TBS soft light brown sugar, packed
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- Pinch each of ground cardamom and grated nutmeg
- pinch of salt
- 1 cup (145g) blackberries
Instructions
- First make the shortcake base. You will need a six inch round cake tin. Butter it well and line with two strips of parchment paper, in a cross shape. (Leave an overhang to lift the cake out with when done.)
- Preheat the oven to 375*F.
- Stir the baking mix, 1 1/2 TBS of sugar, melted butter and milk together until a dough forms. Press the dough into the bottom of the cake tin.
- Whisk the egg white together until foamy. Keep whisking adding both the granulated and icing sugar, a bit at a time, until stiff peaks form and the mixture is glossy.
- Spoon this mixture over top of the biscuit base, swirling it decoratively.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, until golden brown and puffed.
- Remove from the oven and let sit in the pan for 10 minutes before loosening the edges and lifting out onto a cooling rack or a plate.
- To make the fruit topping, place the apples, butter, brown sugar, spices and salt into a small skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally over medium high heat until the apples are somewhat softened and beginning to caramelize, but are still holding their shape. Remove from the heat and stir in the blackberries. Let cool to room temperature.
- Cut the cake into wedges and serve with some of the fruit topping spooned over top, along with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. Delicious!
Homemade Baking Mix
Yield: Makes about 6 cups
This is so easy to make. I like to keep mine in the freezer, but you can keep it at room temperature for several months.
Ingredients
- 700g plain flour (5 cups, all purpose)
- 3 TBS baking powder
- 2 tsp salt
- 220g of solid white vegetable fat (Crisco or Trex, 1 cup)
Instructions
- Put the flour, baking powder and salt into the bowl of a food processer and blitz for a couple seconds. Add half of the fat and blitz for about 30 seconds. Add the remaining fat and blitz again for about 30 seconds. The mixture should resemble fine bread crumbs. Store in an airtight container.
- Use as per any recipe requiring a baking mix.
Notes:
Note: You can also do it by hand using a pastry blender.
One thing which I am really going to miss here in Canada is the beautiful fish that I had access to in the UK. I am sure that I will be able to source some somewhere, but so far haven't really been able to.
I used to get my fish in the UK from an online fish monger and their products were excellent. I was always really happy with what I received.
I was spoilt for choice when it came right down to it. I truly was. Salmon, Cod, Halibut, shell fish, etc. Everything I ever received was truly beautiful!
I did find some frozen cod loins in the Superstore the other day. Two in a package, the photograph on the outside looked promising, and I am happy to say that what was inside was not in the least bit disappointing.
They were lovely and thick and wild sourced, which is what I look for when it comes to fish. Wild sourced fish is superior in flavor to farmed.
I have been waiting for just the right moment to cook it and today was the day. It was raining cats and dogs outside. The remnants of that hurricane which is blowing through. We are really blessed in the Valley I live in. We don't really get much in the way of extreme weather.
This recipe today is for a delicious Lemon Butter Cod, with Asparagus and Orzo pasta. It is a lovely recipe, all cooked in one pan. No fuss no muss and perfectly sized for two people.
The cod loins were individually wrapped and frozen in a small sealed bag, which is perfect for thawing out your fish. I just took the bag of fish and popped it into a pan of cold water and within an hour had a perfectly thawed piece of fish.
One thing to note when you are cooking fish, especially nice fish like this, is that there are two sides. I know, duh. Hear me out.
One side is called the presentation side, or the side that you will want to place right side up on the serving plate.
This is the best looking side of the fish, the other side will not be quite as attractive, or be flat, etc. The domed side is usually the presentation side.
You will need to dust your fish with some seasoning and salt and pepper before browning it to perfection in a bit of light olive oil over medium high heat.
You can add the fish as soon as the oil starts to shimmer. Be careful that the oil is not too hot or the fish will over cook on the outside but still be raw on the insides.
Three minutes on both sides, for fish that is about 1 inch thick, is the perfect amount of time needed to cook the fish to perfection. You will end up with tender, moist fish that flakes beautifully and is not dry in the least.
Take the fish out and keep it warm under a sheet of foil on a plate while you cook the remainder of the recipe.
Fresh slices of lemon are added to the pan along with some butter and browned quickly on both sides, before removing them to sit with the fish.
This helps to flavor the remainder of the dish and also provides for a delicious garnish with the finished dish.
Next you will be adding cuts of asparagus, some garlic and dry orzo pasta to the pan. Cooking and stirring until the garlic gets really fragrant and the orzo begins to brown.
Finally some chicken stock and a bit of lemon juice is added. The mixture should be cooked at a slow boil, stirring frequently, until the orzo is al dente.
It will take about 10 minutes altogether.
At the end of that time you can add the fish back to the pan along with the lemon and any accumulated juices.
It only needs to heat through. A final dusting of dill weed and your dinner is served!
It truly is delicious. I love all in one meals like this where everything cooks all in one pan. Only one pan to wash up.
Food doesn't get much better than this. You can serve extra lemon with this for squeezing over top if you wish, and if you are really lucky and have fresh dill, you can simply garnish it with a few springs of the fresh dill.
I am a person who really loved cod and haddock, well any mild flavored white fish really. I do like salmon also, but to a lesser degree.
Some of my favorite fish recipes are:
Gremolata Baked Cod - Oven baked cod loins with a crisp gemolata breadcrumb topping. Quick, easy and delicious.
Pan Fried Cod - my favorite. Cod loins pan fried in butter with some fresh sprigs of thyme.
Lemon and Garlic Butter Baked Cod - This involves seasoning the fish and popping it into a baking dish. You can butter the baking dish if you wish, but I never do. Spooning a simple lemon, olive oil and garlic sauce over top, dotting it with cold buter nd a few lemon slices and then baking it to perfection.
Cod Fillets with Chili and Lime - moist, flaky and beautifully flavored. Quick and easy too. But the again most fish cooks very quickly.
So there you have it, fish for Friday with a beautiful all-in-one dish of cod, asparagus and orzo pasta. All beautiful flavored with lemon and garlic.
Fish for Friday never tasted so good!
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Lemon Butter Cod
Yield: 2
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 20 MinTotal time: 30 Min
This simple dish of pan fried cod with lemon, asparagus and orzo pasta is perfectly delicious!
Ingredients
- 1 TBS light olive oil
- 2 (6 ounce) wild cod loin fillets
- fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1 1/2 TBS all purpose flour
- 1 TBS butter
- 1 small lemon sliced
- 1 small clove of garlic, peeled and grated
- 8 spears of asparagus, washed, trimmed and cut into 1 inch pieces
- 1/2 cup (60g) of uncooked orzo pasta
- 1 1/3 cups (320ml) chicken stock
- 1/2 TBS lemon juice
- dried dill weed to sprinkle on top
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a heavy bottomed skillet over medium high heat. Season the fish all over and dust with the flour.
- Once the oil begins to shimmer, add the fish, presentation side down. Cook for three minutes. Carefully turn over and brown on the other side, another 3 to 4 minutes.
- Remove from the pan to a place, lightly tent and keep warm.
- Add the butter to the skillet and then add the lemon slices as soon as it begins to foam. Brown the lemon for one minute each on both sides. Remove from the pan to the plate with the fish and keep warm.
- Add the garlic, asparagus cuts, and orzo to the pan drippings. Cook, stirring until the garlic is very fragrant and the orzo begins to brown. Add the chicken stock and lemon juice.
- Increase the heat to high and cook, stirring occasionally until the orzo is just al dente, about 10 minutes.
- Return the fish to the pan, along with the lemon slices and any collected juices. Heat through. Sprinkle with some dill weed and serve immediately.
This cheesy, creamy broccoli and cauliflower casserole makes the perfect side dish for any meal and it is perfectly sized for just two people! What's more it uses no cream soup.
Instead the creamy cheesy sauce is made completely from scratch. You get crispy tender cauliflower and broccoli florets, in a rich, yet simple sauce, topped with a buttery cheesy crumb.
Broccoli and Cauliflower are two of my favorite vegetables, making this one of my favorite vegetable casseroles! Combine that with simple methods and ingredients, and you are on to a real winner here!
In fact I love this so much, I often eat it as my main course. Because, although it is sized for two people, they are very generous servings.
Broccoli and Cauliflower were not vegetables that we ever had in our home when we were growing up. Largely because my father was not overly fond of them, and also because they were not as readily available then as they are now.
I am sure I eat one or the other of them at least two or three times a week, usually broccoli. Over in the UK we had tender stem broccoli as well as purple sprouting broccoli. I have not seen those here yet, so I expect they are not available.
I think I was rather spoilt in the UK as far as what was available to me to use food-wise. I sort of took it for granted I'm afraid.
With the UK being the gateway to Europe we were blessed to have some of the nicest produce, cheeses, and meats available to us. People like to complain about English food, but really, I never found there to be anything to complain about!
I still have yet to find Parmesan cheese that I can grate myself. Maybe I am not looking in the right places. I am sure it is much easier in larger urban centers.
I love in a very small somewhat rural area, with a small population. The shops tend to get in only what sells. And obviously people are more than content to use already grated cheeses.
Thank goodness I do have more to use than the Parmesan in the green plastic container! That is a blessing in and of itself. But I still have only ready grated to use. Sigh . . .
Oh how I miss the smell of freshly grated Parmesan and having Parmesan rinds to add to my soups and sauces. Oh well, such is life and there are a great many other blessings I do have to enjoy.
I am really enjoying fresh local vegetable season. I frequent a farmer's market close to my home called Gouchers and they have beautiful fruits, vegetables and even eggs, jams, jellies, and frozen meats, etc. raised and produced by local farmers.
I have never been disappointed. I bought my bean bacon there the other week to make my homemade beans and it was lovely. Home smoked.
This week I bought this broccoli and cauliflower to use in this tasty and easy cheesy broccoli cauliflower casserole.
You will need to steam your vegetables. This is very easily done in a steaming basket over boiling water. It will take about 6 minutes to get the proper crispy tender.
Alternately you can boil them, which won't take quite as long, but you will really have to drain them well so your casserole doesn't end up watery. There is nothing more unpalatable than a watery vegetable casserole.
The creamy cheesy sauce is also very easy and quick to make. I have given instructions on how to make it in a saucepan, but truth be told, I normally do it in the microwave.
In a saucepan, if you have the burner temperature turned too high, you can end up with a sauce that scorches on the bottom if you aren't careful. You need to be constantly stirring it or else it will catch.
In the microwave there is not that problem. First I melt the butter in a large glass beaker, and then whisk in the flour. Microwave it again for 30 seconds, I then slowly whisk in the butter.
Return to the microwave and cook for about 3 minutes on high, whisking the sauce every 30 seconds. Cook only until the sauce bubbles and begins to thicken.
Do keep a close watch on it and make sure you use a large enough beaker to cook it in as milk doubles in size very quickly once it boils!
Once the sauce is thickened you can slowly whisk in the remaining ingredients. I add the cheddar a bit at a time, whisking it in with each addition until it melts into the sauce. If you think your sauce is too thick, you can add a bit more milk, or cream if you want a really rich sauce.
Once you have your sauce cooked, you can fold it together with your vegetables, working gently until everything is combined and then pour the whole lot into a buttered baking dish.
That crispy topping is this tasty casserole's crowning glory! Its crispy and buttery and cheesy. Nothing complicated about it. Its just panko, melted butter and grated parmesan.
You could also use regular dry bread crumbs or even cracker crumbs. I use panko because I always have it in my kitchen, but really, just use what you have. Cornflake crumbs also work.
That's the fun thing about cooking. I like to use simple ingredients that can easily be switched out if need be.
I pride myself on always cooking a delicious and edible meal and this tasty casserole can be just that or at the very least a part of that! It goes really well with chicken, fish and pork. Heck, it goes really well with anything!
Broccoli and Cauliflower Casserole
Yield: 2
Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 30 MinTotal time: 45 Min
Cheesy, creamy broccoli and cauliflower casserole, perfectly sized for two people. A crunchy butter topping adds extra texture!
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound (226g) cauliflower florets
- 1/4 pound (113g) broccoli florets
- 1 TBS butter
- 1 TBS flour
- 1 cup (240ml) milk
- 2 TBS cream cheese
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp onion powder
- pinch black pepper
- pinch salt
- 1/2 cup (60g) grated sharp cheddar cheese
For the topping:
- 30g (1/4 cup) panko bread crumbs
- 1/2 TBS butter, melted
- 2 TBS grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375*F/ 190*C/ gas mark 5. Butter a small shallow casserole dish or a 9 inch glass pie plate. Set aside.
- Mix all of the ingredients for the bread crumb topping together and set aside.
- Steam the broccoli and cauliflower in the basket of a steamer until al dente, about 6 minutes. Set aside.
- Melt the butter in a saucepan. Whisk in the flour and cook for about a minute. Slowly whisk in the milk, whisking constantly. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly until the mixture bubbles and thickens. Whisk in the cream cheese, onion and garlic powders and seasoning. Gradually add the cheddar, whisking well after each addition.
- Remove from the heat. Fold in the vegetables and turn the mixture into the prepared baking dish. Sprinkle the crumb evenly mixture over top.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden and bubbly. Let stand for five minutes then serve.
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