Farmersgirl Kitchen

Thursday, 18 December 2014

Bring us a Figgy Pudding (with chocolate)

This is a very simple dessert, the sauce is sweet and a good contrast to fleshy figs, the flaked almonds add texture and crunch to an otherwise soft dish.

Poached Figs with White Chocolate Sauce
Serves 4

6 fresh figs, stalk removed and halved
1 dessert spoon of honey (I used Scottish Heather Honey)
100ml water
50g good quality white chocolate (I used Hadleigh Maid white chocolate buttons)
25g flaked almonds

1. Place the figs cut side upwards in a pan, add the water and the honey, poach gently until the fig skin is soft, it won't take to long about 8-10 minutes.
2. Remove the figs to a plate, increase the heat and reduce the honey sauce by half.
3. Remove from the heat and add the white chocolate buttons, stirring until they have melted and combined with the honey sauce.
4. Pour a little sauce in each bowl, top with three fig halves and sprinkle some flaked almonds around the figs.

I'm am entering this dish for the December We Should Cocoa, the monthly blog event run by Choclette at Chocolate Log Blog. The theme this month is figs which are paired, of course, with chocolate. If you would like to join in, the linky is open until 28th December.

Labels: almonds, figs, honey, poached, We should Cocoa, white chocolate

Tuesday, 20 November 2012

Who says Vanilla isn't sexy? Pure Vanilla - A review

Pure Vanilla by Shauna Sever with photographs by Leigh Beisch

It says something that a whole book can be devoted to one flavouring ingredient . Vanilla is the world’s most universally loved flavour and for good reason. No flavour is more widely recognised, used and enjoyed across the globe.

This book aims to show the versatility of vanilla and tell the story of vanilla from its start as a green pod nestled inside a tropical flower to its transformation into the fragrant beans we all recognise and love.

The comprehensive Introduction starts with a brief history of vanilla tracing the history of vanilla from 1519 up to the present day. The history is told in a very accessible way in short ‘bites’ of readable story.

In From Orchid to Extract, Shauna explains how Vanilla is produced and why it is so expensive.

There is also information about vanilla in all its forms. An exploration of the different forms of vanilla you can use in your cooking and baking.

I had no idea there were different varieties of vanilla with different subtle tastes, but all is explained in the section: Vanilla origins, Varieties and Tasting notes . The introduction concludes with ‘Vanilla FAQs’ to answer any remaining questions.

Salted Vanilla Chip Oatmeal Cookies

Makes 3 dozen cookies (I reduced the ingredients by a 1/3 to make 1 dozen)

3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

3/14 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 tbsp pure vanilla extract

2/3 cup dark brown sugar, packed

2/3 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs, at room temperature

8oz white chocolate, chopped

2 tbsp Vanilla Fleur de Sel (make it like vanilla sugar, but with flaky sea salt) for sprinkling

Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat oven to 350F, line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

In a large bowl, whisk oats, flour, baking soda, and slat to blend well.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and vanilla extract on medium high speed until blended and creamy. Add sugars and beat until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. I don't have a stand mixer so used an electric hand mixer.

Beat in the eggs 1 at a time. Reduce mixer speed to low and gradually add oat mixture, then white chocolate.

Scoop batter, 2 tbsp at a time, onto prepared baking sheets, about 8 cookies to a sheet, Sprinkle a bit of vanilla fleur de sel onto each cookie.

Bake until cookies are golden around the edges but still a bit soft in a centres, 12 to 14 minutes, rotating sheets from front to back and top to bottom half way through baking. Do not over bake. Let cookies cool on sheets for 2 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

I'm not a huge fan of salted with sweet, so didn't bother with the Vanilla Fleur de Sel, the cookies went down well with my visitors and were the first to be chosen. They have a nice texture, slightly soft and chewy. I realise I have chosen two recipes with oats in as well as vanilla, not deliberate just what appealed to me! There are lots more recipes with different ingredients, I've given you a taster of some of the titles below.

The Recipes

There are 80 recipes in the book divided into the following chapters:

Breakfasts including Vanilla Brown Sugar and Black Pepper Bacon, Slow Cooked Vanilla Spice Oatmeal* and Buttery Baked Vanilla Bean French Toast.

Cakes and Pies Including Vanilla Cloud Cake, Twinkie Bundt Cake and Vanilla Cream Pie

Cookies and Bars including Vanilla Latte Cookies, Mini Vanilla Eclairs and Salted Vanilla Chip Oatmeal Cookies*

Candies and Confections including Vanilla Bean Marshmallows, Golden Pear-Vanilla Jam and Vanilla Lollipops

Custards and Creams including Warm Vanilla-Rum Rice Pudding, Australian Vanilla Slice and Favourite Vanilla Ice Cream

Drinks including Vanilla Mojito, Fruity Vanilla Iced Tea and Melted White Hot Chocolate

Resources

Unfortunately, as this is an American book, the speciality stores are all in the US.

Conversion Chart

I was pleased to see there was a conversion chart in the back of the book and I used it to reduce the ingredients for the Vanilla Chip Oatmeal Cookies

Who is it for?

This book is for anyone who loves vanilla. The recipes are all cakes and desserts, but the two that I tried were not over-sweet, with much of the sweetness coming from the vanilla itself. There are a number of interesting and different recipes, the drinks chapter was a bit of a revelation and there are lots of interesting new ideas to try in the Candies and Confections chapter.

Pros and Cons

If you read all the information in the introduction you will be much better informed about vanilla and how to use it to full advantage. The quantities for some of the recipes are huge, I don't usually make 3 dozen cookies at a time.

Ease of use

The recipes are varied, some very simple and others more challenging. The recipes are well laid out and I found them easy to follow.

Slow Cooked Vanilla Spice Oatmeal

Serves 4

1 cup steel-cut oats

1/2 vanilla bean , split length ways

2 tablespoons light brown sugar (optional) plus more for serving

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1/8 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

1/8 tsp ground cardamom

single or double cream for serving

Coat the sleeve of a 5 quart slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray. Place sleeve in slow cooker and combine all ingredients in it; add 3 1/2 cups water and stir to blend. Set slow cooker to low and cook for 8 hours. Remove vanilla bean and scrape any remaining caviar into oatmeal. Stir well and serve with brown sugar to taste and a drizzle of cream.

I don't have a slow cooker, but wanted to try this, so this is what I did:

I only used half the quantity and cooked the oatmeal with the water in the microwave for 1 minute until hot, add the other ingredients,except the cream, and pour into a wide mouthed vacuum flask Leave overnight and serve with Greek yogurt or creme fraiche.

It worked brilliantly, the oatmeal could have been a little warmer but had absorbed all the vanilla and spice flavours and had a lovely texture. I would definitely make this again.

Worth buying?

It’s a surprising book, with so many different ways to use vanilla. However, I am not sure that I would buy a book that focused on one flavour, but if you really love vanilla then I’m sure you would have a lot of fun making these recipes.

Published by Quirk Books

Available at On line bookshop from £10.71

I received a copy of Pure Vanilla to review, I was not paid to review this book and all opinions are my own.

Labels: book review, chocolate, cookies, oatmeal, oats, Porridge, Pure Vanilla, review, Vanilla, white chocolate

Friday, 12 October 2012

Seasonal Cheese and Leek Flatbread Sandwich

Jacqueline has set us a slightly different challenge for this month's No Croutons Required, she says "I would like to focus on what is often served alongside soup or a salad. I am thinking of the humble sandwich. Toasted or plain, I would like you to come up with an interesting sandwich. The only stipulation is that it must be suitable for vegetarians."

Too few people understand a really good sandwich.James Beard

My Mum probably makes the best sandwiches, she always ensures that there was plenty of filling and that the filling goest right to the edge of the sandwich, the best way to achieve this is by cutting off the crusts. But I'm not going to make that kind of sandwich because ever since the early stages of the Great British Bake Off, I've been hankering to make some flatbreads.
I used the recipe for 'Magic Bread Dough' from Hugh Fearnly Whittingstall's River Cottage Veg Everyday.It's an interesting mix of strong and plain flour and something I haven't tried before.

There is plenty of dough to make several different flatbreads. For the dough for my sandwich I added some chopped rosemary. You can cook the flatbreads on a griddle but I put them in a hot (240C) oven for about 5-10 minutes.

This one is more like a pizza. I spread the dough with, one of my favourite sauces, Maggi Chilli and Tomato Sauce straight from the bottle. Then sprinkled over some grated Lockerbie Cheddar Cheese.

For the sandwich filling, I adapted Hugh F-W's Leek and Cheese Toastie from River Cottage Veg to lower the calorie count.

Leek and Cottage Cheese Flatbread Sandwich

15g butter
2 medium leeks, trimmed and finely chopped (white and pale green part only)
A couple of sprigs of thyme, leaves only
3 tablespoons of cottage cheese
1 tsp cornflour
50g cheddar
1 large rosemary flatbread
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Melt the butter in a frying plan and add the leeks. Cook gently until softened. Stir in the thyme. Mix the cornflour with some of the liquid from the cottage cheese and add to the pan, add the cottage cheese and warm through. Take off the heat and add two-thirds of the cheese .

Pile the leek and cheese filling onto one half of the flatbread and fold over, sprinkle over the rest of the cheese and place under a hot grill for a couple of minutes until the cheese melts.

Serve with salad

I served my sandwich with a Carrot, Cucumber and Apple Salad with chopped Pistachio nuts

To finish off, I'd like to show you the sweet flatbread that I made, using the basic dough a few dried apricots, chopped white chocolate and ground almonds.

After it was baked, I glazed it with honey and put it back in the oven for a couple of minutes.
I'm entering this for No Croutons Required run by Jacqueline at Tinned Tomatoes and Lisa from Lisa's Kitchen.

Herbs on Saturday run by Karen at Lavender and Lovage

and also for Simple and in Season, a seasonal challenge created by Ren Behan at Fabulicious Food, this month hosted by Franglais Kitchen

Labels: apples, apricots, carrots, flatbread, ground almonds, Herbs on Saturday, Leeks, No Croutons Required, salad, sandwiches, Simple and in Season, white chocolate

Saturday, 25 August 2012

White Chocolate and Strawberry Cream Cake

I've had a birthday recently, yes another one, they definitely come round quicker every year. Quite often I end up with a bought cake from M&S but as I was on holiday at home, I decided to make my own cake.

I chose this White Chocolate and Strawberry Cream Cake from the Great British Bake Off book from 2011, the recipe is widely available on the web so I've linked to one which is a reliable source.

The cake was relatively easy to make although it did stick to my tins a little bit, so make sure you grease them very well or use cake release spray. I probably slightly overbaked my sponges too as they seemed to still be wobbly in the middle. However, it didn't affect the taste or moistness of the sponge they are just a little darker than I would have liked. Putting the cake together is 'a piece of cake' and the 'value' strawberries I used were ideal, being smaller but packed with flavour rather than water.

As most of you know I like to enter cooking/baking challenges and was rather perplexed because this didn't fit any of them. Then I remembered Bookmarked Recipes run by Jacqueline from Tinned Tomatoes and founded by Ruth from Ruth's Kitchen Experiments.

I'm hoping that I can just sneak in as this is the last Saturday of the month and the round up is due.

Labels: birthday cake, Bookmarked Recipes, cake, cream, Great British Bake Off, strawberries, Tinned Tomatoes, white chocolate

Wednesday, 22 August 2012

Introducing Cocoa Boutique!

Do you like chocolate? Daft question, I know, most of us like chocolate a little too much but often I find that boxes of chocolates are a little disappointing. The chocolate is not always good quality and the centres are either very samey or sickly sweet. So I was delighted when I was approached by Cocoa Boutique to review their luxury artisan chocolate selection.

All of the chocolates are hand made by award winning Master Chocolatiers such as; Barry Colenso, Pierre Ledent and Claire Hicklin to name but a few. Plus there’s a few hidden gems in each box from up and coming British chocolatiers to stretch your taste buds and give you a truly artisan experience.

Here is what Cocoa Boutique promise:

No mass production - quality instead of quantity
Super fresh - handpicked within days of delivery
Fine ingredients - using high quality cocoa beans
Signature creations - from Master Chocolatiers
Handmade chocolates - in every single box

The Cocoa Boutique approach is to let world class chocolatiers create their own delicious signature chocolates for you. Creating a truly unique selection, not available anywhere else.

So what are the chocolates like?

They arrive perfectly packaged in a distinctive sturdy cardboard box which pops through your letterbox, underneath the white box is revealed.

Here you see The Pink Champagne Truffle (with the little bits of raspberry on white chocolate), fresh and deliciously light, these truffles almost float into your mouth. Behind it is the White Strawberry Cream, another creamy morsel, I found it a little bland but if you like white chocolate mousse it is certainly beautifully made with no artificial strawberry taste. On the left is Raspberry with a Hint of Orange which bursts with zesty fruity flavours.

Salted caramel is very 'on trend' and this selection includes three Cocoa Dusted Dark Chocolate Salted Caramels, I found that they weren't too sweet although I think I would have liked a little more salt. The pretty coloured chocs are called 'Pamela' and this was one of my favourites, crisp dark chocolate filled with cassis-pear ganache, subtle and not too sweet. Possibly my favourite of all the chocolates was the Milk Chocolate Almond Praline. I'm not usually a big fan of milk chocolate, but the almond praline was outstanding, really full of flavour, you can see them on the right of the photo above.

On the left is the Vanilla Irish Cream, pleasant but nothing to write home about. In the centre, the Rum Cafe Cream, another lovely choc which is a mixture of dark and milk chocolate with a rum flavour.

Something for all the family, my grandson enjoyed one of these giant chocolate buttons and they are ideal for anyone who doesn't like truffles or filled chocolate. The chocolate is good quality and melts in your mouth.

I liked the idea of these little nibbly treats. Top to bottom, Dark Chocolate Coffee Beans, I cannot tell a lie, these were my absolute favourites, really intense flavours of crunchy roasted coffee bean covered in the darkest chocolate, love them. In the centre, Milk Chocolate Honeycomb little nuggets of honeycomb covered in milk chocolate, very moreish. Finally a section filled with little 70% Equador Dark Chocolate Buttons. I've missed a couple of truffles, Dark Chocolate Brandy Truffles (on the right of the dark choc buttons) and Milk Chocolate Truffle both of which were lovely and creamy.

If you would like to taste Cocoa Boutique chocolates, they are offering the Best of the Best Introductory Selection for £34.95 with free postage and packaging. Definitely worthwhile for a special occasion.

Disclaimer: I was supplied with a Cocoa Boutique luxury artisan chocolate selection. I was not required to write a positive review and any opinion expressed is my own..

Labels: artisan, chocolate, Cocoa Boutique, dark chocolate, lime, luxury, milk chocolate, orange, raspberry, review, strawberry, white chocolate

Tuesday, 23 August 2011

How Blondie became Barbie!

The 'We should Cocoa' challenge for the last couple of months has been nice and easy, chocolate and strawberries - tick, chocolate and apricots - tick (I even managed to make that one low fat!

But when I read the August challenge I was horrified, Chocolate and ROSE, what on earth was I going to make with rose, where (in the depths of south west Scotland) was I going to get rose water or rose flavouring of some kind?

I've been pondering the challenge for a few weeks now and considered all sorts, I managed to find a bottle of Thorncroft Rose Hip Cordial at a deli in Kirkcudbright.

As I am on holiday at home this week, I started to look seriously at some of my cake recipes to see if I could incorporate the rose flavour into one of them.

What I came up with was a recipe for Peanut Butter & White Chocolate Blondies from Rachel Allen's Bake. It called for a teaspoon of vanilla essence which I replaced with a teaspoon of the Rosehip Cordial. I also added half a teaspoon of red food colouring to 'rose' it up a bit!

Ooh look, pink blondie mix. And that's when Blondie became 'Barbie'

I melted the rest of the white chocolate and topped the 'Barbies' with the melted choc then sprinkled it with pink sugar, now totally Barbie. I even had time for a bit of photo dressing with some rose petals and a little rose - awww pretty! OMG they are delicious, I'm not saying you can taste much in the way of rose in there, and this is certainly NOT the low fat option - but then, it is my birthday this week, I think I'm allowed.

Peanut Butter and White Chocolate 'Barbies'

125g (4.5oz) plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

100g (3.5oz) butter, softened

150g (5oz) crunchy peanut butter

175g (6oz) soft light brown sugar

1 egg, beaten

1tsp rosehip cordial

1/2 tsp red food colouring

75g (3oz) white, chocolate, chopped

20 x 20cm (8x8") square cake tin

1. Preheat the oven to 170C (325F) Gas Mark 3. Butter the sides of the cake tin and line the base with baking parchment.

2. Sift the flour and baking powder into a small bowl and set aside.

3. In a large bowl, creamthe butter and peanut butter together until very soft. Add the sugar, egg and rosehip cordial and beat until combined. Add the flour, baking powder and the chopped chocolate to form a dough.

4. Place the dough in prepared tin and bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown an almost firm in the centre.

5. Allow to cool in the tin, before removing and cutting into squares.

Optional

Melt 75g (3oz) white chocolate with a knob of butter in a bowl over a pan of hot water, spread over cooled cake and sprinkle with pink Barbie sugar before the chocolate sets. Cut into small squares.

Labels: blondies, brownies, chocolate, Rachel Allen, rosehip cordial, We should Cocoa, white chocolate

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