Friday, December 16, 2016

English Extravaganza - Heidi & Chandler - November 2016






































Slow Cooker Wassail

8 cups Apple Juice
2 cups Orange Juice
4 sticks cinnamon
12 cloves
¼ tsp. ginger powder
1 orange sliced
1 apple sliced
½ lemon sliced
Cranberries for garnish

Instructions:
1.     Combine all ingredients in the slow cooker.
2.    Cook on High for 3 hours or low for 6 hours.
3.     Strain fruit and spices if desired. 
4.    Serve hot and garnish with cranberries.

Creamed Egg Sandwich

4 hard-boiled eggs, chilled after boiling to prevent green yolks
2 Tbsp. Mayonnaise
2 Tbsp. plain yogurt
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
2 tsp. chopped or dried dill
2 tsp. chopped or fresh parsley
Sea salt and fresh-ground black pepper to taste
8 slices bread

Instructions:
1.       Mash the eggs, mayo, yogurt and mustard with a potato
masher or a fork.
2.  Stir in the herbs and spices.
3.  Spread the egg salad onto four slices of bread.
4.  Top the egg salad with the remaining four slices of bread.
5.  Remove the crusts and slice the sandwiches two times,
diagonally, to make four tea sandwiches from each large
sandwich.
Mint Butter and Cucumber Sandwiches

1 thinly sliced English cucumber (peeling is optional)
8 slices of bread (such as buttermilk bread)
Softened herbed butter prepared with mint.
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions:
1.      For every two slices of bread, spread both slices evenly
and thinly with herbed butter.
2.     Cover one side of the sandwich with sliced cucumber in
one to two layers.
3.  Salt and pepper to taste
4.  Put the slices together, cut off the crusts and slice the
sandwich diagonally two times to create four triangle-
shaped sandwiches.

Proper English Scones
A proper English scones recipe using North American measurements instead
of weight measures. Perfect with thick cream and your favorite homemade
jam.
Serves: 18 one and a half inch scones or 6 ­ 8 large triangular scones.
Ingredients
1
cups all purpose flour
2½ tsp baking powder
3 tbsp white sugar
pinch table salt table salt
3 tbsp butter
½ cup milk
½ tsp vanilla extract (optional)
1 egg
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. In a food processor add the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. Pulse to mix together well. (You can just
mix the ingredients in a bowl if you prefer the manual method)
3. Pulse in the butter until the mixture resembles a coarse meal. (or just use your fingertips to rub the butter
through the dry ingredients until the same texture is achieved.)
4. Whisk together the milk, egg and vanilla. Reserve a few teaspoons of the liquid to brush on top of the
scones. This helps them brown nicely)
5. Add the liquid to the dry ingredients and stir in quickly with a wooden spoon until a soft dough forms. It
should be a little sticky. Don’t over work the dough or your scones will get tough and not rise well.
6. Turn the dough out onto a well floured board or counter top.
7. Lightly sprinkle the top of the dough with flour and just using your hands, form the dough into a round
about ¾ of an inch thick.
8. Using a 1½ inch biscuit cutter, cut out your scones and place them about 2 inches apart on a parchment
lined baking sheet.
9. Re­roll the scraps and cut out the rest of the scones. Brush the tops of all the scones with the reserved milk
and egg liquid.
10. Pop the scones into the hot oven for about 12­15 minutes or until the tops of the scones are evenly
browned. Cool on a wire rack.
11. Serve with thick or clotted cream and your favorite jam.
Notes
I like to make the larger scones if packing them into lunches or picnics

Homemade Clotted Cream

2 pints heavy cream (not ultra pasteurized)
a heavy casserole dish

INSTRUCTIONS

set your oven to 180F
Pour the cream into the casserole dish. It should come up about 1-3 inches on the side.
Set the dish, uncovered, in the oven and leave undisturbed for 12 hours. Be sure to leave the oven on the whole time. I do this overnight.
Remove the dish from the oven and set to cool. Then cover and refrigerate.
The next morning scoop the thickened cream into a jar or jars, and cover and put back in the refrigerator. You can use the leftover cream for baking..
Spread the clotted cream on freshly baked scones.
notes:

An oven thermometer is an essential kitchen tool, and really comes in handy for this project.  If your oven is too cool or too hot your homemade clotted cream will not ‘clot’.
Make sure your cream is not ‘ultra pasteurized’, you will need to find regular pasteurized cream at a Whole Foods or other similar store.

Ham Cullen Skink

1 package Bear Creek Creamy Potato Soup Mix
1 package cubed ham
1 can of corn

Instructions:
1.     Bring 8 cups of water to a rolling boil.
2.    Whisk in soup mix. 
3.     Reduce heat to medium and simmer uncovered 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4.    Add ham and corn and stir together.
5.    Salt and Pepper to taste.


I like to move it to my crock-pot and set it on “keep warm.”  This lets it stay warm, but not reduce and thicken too much.  



Smoked Salmon Bites

Spread
8 oz cream cheese, softened
½ cup sour cream
½ tsp garlic powder
Zest of 1 lemon (large) - more is better, adjust to taste
½ tsp salt
¼ cup dill, chopped
Assembly
3 soft large tortillas, like Mission brand large and soft style
12 oz smoked salmon slices
Table butter, softened

Instructions:
1.  Mix Spread ingredients together.
2.  Spread half on a tortilla in a square shape.
3.  Top with half the smoked salmon.
4.  Spread a flatbread with butter - just thinly, like buttering a piece of bread. Place the butter side down onto the salmon.
5.  Spread remaining Spread on tortilla, again in a square shape. Top with remaining salmon. Butter 3rd wrap and place butter side down onto the salmon.
6.  Use a large flat object, like a cutting board, and press down lightly to smooth the surface and compress everything.
7.  Cover with cling wrap and refrigerate for 4 hours (up to 48 hours) so the filling sets.
8.  Using a serrated knife, trim edges to make a square. Don't cut down - filling may squirt out, cut back and forth in a sawing motion.
9  Cut square into 6 or 7 even strips, then each strip into squares. Serve with toothpicks, wedges of lemon and extra dill for garnish.


Individual Beef Wellingtons
Serves 6 generously

6, 6oz beef tenderloin (filet mignon)
2 Tablespoon vegetable oil
6 Tablespoons unsalted butter
18 ounces finely-chopped baby bella mushrooms
3 Shallots
3 large clove garlic, minced
10 oz. Spinach
1 teaspoon kosher salt, or more to taste
Freshly-ground pepper, to taste
2 large sprig fresh thyme
2 puff pastry boxes (They have 2 sheets/box and each sheet
makes two Wellingtons.)
1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
Egg wash (1 beaten egg + 1 tablespoon milk)

Instructions:
1.     Heat a stainless steel pan or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add the vegetable oil and heat until just starting to smoke.
2.     Rub the meat generously with salt and pepper.
3.     Once the pan is very hot, sear the filets very briefly on each side. You don’t want to cook the interior of the meat at this point, so it shouldn’t be more than a minute or two per side. Remove the filets from the pan and place on a plate in the freezer while you make the filling.
4.    Take puff pastry out of freezer to thaw, while you chop vegetables and make the filling. 
5.     Let the pan cool slightly and turn the heat down to medium. Add the mushrooms, onion and garlic to the pan, and sprinkle on salt and pepper. Cook until the mushrooms release all their water and the onion is translucent.  About half way through add the thyme and spinach.
6.    Remove from the heat and refrigerate until cold.
7.     Roll out one puff pastry piece and cut in half, so you have two rectangular strips of dough.
8.     Remove the steaks from the freezer and brush with the Dijon mustard on both sides.
9.     Put a scoop of the mushroom mixture in the middle of one piece of the puff pastry. Top with one steak, then add another scoop of the mushrooms. Repeat with the other steaks, puff pastry piece and mushrooms.
10. Fold the long sides of the pastry over the steak, tucking in and tightly sealing all the edges so the juice doesn’t escape. Wrapping it all in plastic wrap.
11. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit and line a sheet pan. While the oven preheats, put the wrapped beef in the freezer.
12. Once the oven is hot, remove the beef from the freezer and plastic wrap and put on the lined sheet pan. Coat with the egg wash.
13. Bake for 25 minutes, until a thermometer inserted into the middle of the steak reads 135 to 140 degrees Fahrenheit (medium-rare) and the pastry is a deep golden brown.
14.  Take out of oven and let rest for 10 minutes.  Cover with tin foil to keep warm.
15.  Cut in half so you can see the intersection of steak, pastry and mushrooms, and serve.

Tips
·      Make the puff pastry easier to work with by keeping it cold. That’s why this recipe calls for chilling the meat and filling in between steps.
·      The pan needs to be very hot in step 3 because it’s the key to searing the meat and subsequently adding flavor. If the pan isn’t hot, the meat either won’t brown, or it will take too long to brown and the middle will start to cook.
·      You can make this recipe ahead of time by following it up to step 9, then freezing until ready to bake. When you’re ready to cook, just put it in the oven directly from the freezer without thawing, and cook until the interior temperature of the meat is 135 to 140 degrees Fahrenheit (for medium rare), which will take longer than the 25 minutes.  I also made ahead and just refrigerated over night.


Scottish Rumbledethumps

(I added the sour cream and cream of mushroom soup to make this dish a little creamier- the traditional Scottish recipe doesn’t use these)

8-10 potatoes (peeled and chopped)
1 and half sticks of salted butter
Half green cabbage (shredded/chopped small)
1 yellow onion (sliced thin and chopped)
¼ c milk
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1 cup sour cream
Salt
Shredded cheddar cheese (about 2 and a half cups)

Directions:

Boil the chopped potatoes in salted water until soft.
Saute the onion and cabbage until tender (salt to taste).
Combine the milk, sour cream, and cream of mushroom soup.
Strain the potatoes and then add the butter and gently stir the potatoes.
Then add the milk mixture and gently stir.  The idea is to keep some of the chunkiness of the potatoes unless you want more of a mashed potato dish.
Then transfer the potatoes to a large baking dish and sprinkle the cheese on top.
Bake at 350 degrees until cheese is melted and the potatoes are hot and bubbly.

Bakewell Tart

Tart Shell
2 cups all purpose flour
Pinch of salt
1 stick butter
1 tsp sugar
4 to 5 TBSP ice-cold water
Filling
3 to 4 TBSP raspberry jam, or any other flavor
1 1/2 stick butter
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup ground almonds
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 tsp. almond extract
1/2 cup flaked almonds
Icing
2/3 cup confectioner’s sugar
2 to 3 tablespoons water or milk

Preheat the oven to 400F

PASTRY-
1                . Place the flour and salt into a bowl and rub in the butter with your fingers until the mixture looks like fine breadcrumbs. Add the water, and mix gently to make a soft dough.
2               . Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface, then line a 9"in tart tin. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
3               . Using a fork, press the tines into the bottom and sides of the pastry in the tin, then bake for about 15 to 20 minutes, until cooked, but not completely (it's going back in the oven.) Remove and set aside.
FILLING
. Spread the jam on the bottom of the crust then make the filling.
. Melt the butter in a pot, remove from heat and stir in the sugar, ground almonds, egg and almond extract. Pour the mixture over the jam or mincemeat and sprinkle the flaked almonds on top.
. Bake for about 35 minutes. If the almonds begin to brown too quickly, cover the tart loosely with aluminum foil.

ICING
1                . Place the confectioner's sugar into a bowl. Stir in cold water or milk. Using a knife or spoon, drizzle the icing all over the cooled tart (make sure it isn't warm or the icing will not look as pretty as it should.) Allow the icing to set before serving.  Cut into slices and enjoy!

Perfect English Sticky Toffee Pudding

Author: Barry C. Parsons

Serves: 18 muffin sized puddings

Ingredients
For the pudding
8 ounces chopped pitted dried dates
1½ cups water
cup butter
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 extra large eggs
3 tbsp molasses
2 tbsp golden syrup (or substitute dark corn syrup)
1
cups all purpose flour
1½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
For the toffee sauce
½ cup whipping cream
¼ cup butter
¼ cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 tbsp molasses
2 tbsp golden syrup
2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
To prepare the pudding
1. Add the dates and water to a small saucepan.
2. Bring to a boil and simmer over low heat for only a couple of minutes. Let stand for a few minutes while
preparing the rest of the batter.
3. Cream together the butter brown sugar and vanilla.
4. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
5. Add the molasses and golden syrup and beat well.
6. Sift together the flour and baking powder.
7. Add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture in three equal portions mixing until smooth after each
addition.
8. Puree the date mixture in a food processor or blender before mixing in the baking soda.
9. Add this hot mixture immediately to the batter and mix until smooth.
10. Pour batter into well greased and floured muffin tins and bake for about 18 – 20 minutes at 350 degrees F
until the center is just firm.
11. Serve warm with Toffee Sauce.
To make the toffee sauce
1. Bring all of the ingredients to a slow rolling boil for about 2 min before serving over the baked puddings