Category: Apples

Apple & Sultana Tart – 2

  • In England this would be described as a pie.
  • There is no Polish word for pie.
  • This is a tart – tarta  with a lid.
  • It could be a placek if made in a rectangular tin.
  • This is made in a fluted tart tin using shortcrust pastry.
  • The filling was the Apple & Sultana mix that was in a previous post.
  • It was described as ‘gorgeous’ by one of my testers.

INGREDIENTS

  • Shortcrust pastry
  • Apple & Sultana filling
  • Egg white & sugar for the top of the pie.

METHOD

  • Butter the base and sides of a loose bottom tart tin.
  • Pre-heat the oven to GM6 – 200°C.
  • Line the base and sides of the tart tin.
  • Fill the tart with the Apple & Sultana filling.
  • Place a circle of pastry on top and seal the top with the sides.
  • Cut several slashes in the top of the pastry.
  • Brush the top with beaten egg white.
  • Sprinkle the top with granulated sugar.
  • Bake for 30 -40  minutes until the top is golden brown.

Apple & Budyń Cake

  • I have tried out several versions of cake that has apples and budyń – Polish custard in the middle.
  • After many attemps, this is the best for baking and for cutting up afterwards.
  • It consists of 4 parts: – 
  • A shortcrust base and sides
  • Cooking apples – half cooked
  • 500ml of  budyń
  • Kruszonka topping – rich crumble mix
  • I made this in a rectangular baking tin – 26 x 21cm.

INGREDIENTS

  • Shortcrust pastry – enough to cover the base & sides of the tin.
  • 3-4 large cooking apples – peeled and cored – half cooked with sugar and a little cinnamon added.
  • Budyń made with 500ml of milk & 3 egg yolks.
  • Kruszonka – crumble mixture – made with 125g of plain flour, 100g butter and 80 – 100g of granulated sugar. (Will be doing a post on this later)

Royal Doulton, sonnet, tea plate.

METHOD

  • Chop the apples and cook them with the sugar (to taste – not too sweet).
  • Add a little cinnamon.
  • Leave to cool.
  • Make the budyń with 500ml milk, 1 tablespoon of butter, 1 tablespoon of sugar, 3 tablespoons of potato starch & 3 egg yolks.
  • Leave to cool.
  • Make the kruszonka – crumble mixture –  with 125g of plain flour, 100g butter and 80 – 100g of granulated sugar –
  • Rubbing the butter into the flour to resemble bread crumbs and stir in the sugar.
  • *
  • Pre-heat the oven to GM7 – 220°C.
  • Grease and line with one sheet of baking paper – 2 sides and the base of  the 26 x 21cm tin.
  • Roll out the shortcrust pastry to cover the base and all sides of the tin.
  • Piece carefully when needed.
  • Prick carefully with a fork the base.
  • Using baking beans – bake the pastry blind for 15 minutes.
  • Remove the baking beans and flaten the pastry gently if need be and bake for another minute.
  • Remove the tin from the oven and leave to cool a little.
  • *
  • Turn the oven down to GM5 – 190°C.
  • Cover the pastry with the apples – spreading out to cover the base.
  • Cover the apples with the budyń – spreading it out to cover the apples.
  • Sprinkle the crumble mixture over all the budyń.
  • Put back in the oven and bake for around 50 – 60 minutes until the top is golden.
  • Leave to go cold completely before serving.

Testers said they loved the different textures of the crumble against soft custard.

Apple & Sultana Tart

METHOD

  • Use melted butter to grease a 21cm fluted loose bottomed tart dish.
  • Pre- heat the oven to GM7 – 220°C.
  • Roll out the shortcrust pastry to cover the bottom and sides of the dish.
  • Bake blind – with ceramic beans for 15 minutes.
  • Remove the beans and bake for another 5 minutes.
  • Take the tin out of the oven and cool for a few minutes.
  • Lower the oven temperature to GM4 – 180°C.
  • Fill the tart with cold already prepared apple and sultana mixture.
  • Make the meringue in you usual way with 2 egg whites and 100g granulated or caster sugar or 
  • 3 whites and 150g of granulated or caster sugar.
  • Cover the filling with the meringue and bake for 30 minutes.
  • You can turn the oven down to GM1 – 140°C and bake until the meringue is dried out.
  • Leave to cool on a cake rack.
  • Serve cold.

Testers voted this delicious.

Squash & Apple Soup

  • Having a bumper crop of apples this year, I have been looking for new apple recipes.
  • I came across this one and it turned out so delicious – a lovely slightly sour taste.
  • I think you could use pumpkin instead of squash but I have not tried this out.

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 butternut squash
  • 1 onion – chopped
  • 2 medium to large cooking apples
  • 1½ litres of vegetable stock (I used Marigold powder)
  • A little butter to fry the onions
  • Salt & Pepper to taste.
  • *
  • Soured cream or yoghurt – optional

METHOD

  • Slice the butternut squash into large pieces.
  • Place on a baking tray and put in an warm oven and roast till the flesh is soft.
  • Leave to cool and then remove the flesh from the skin.
  • Fry the onion in the butter till golden.
  • Peel and core the apples.
  • Chop the apples into small chunks.
  • Put everything into the vegetable stock.
  • Bring to the boil and then simmer till everything is soft.
  • Use a stick blender to make thick liquid.
  • Season to taste
  • *
  • OPTIONAL
  • Add a tablespoon of soured cream or yoghurt to each serving.
  • *
  • Good served with toasted sourdough toast.

Apple & Sultana Filling

  • This is a filling based on one I found in an Austrian cookery book.
  • It is similar to the one I used in  Apple cake with sultanas.
  • This filling is one you can prepare seperately and use in a variety of cakes and pastries.
  • Unlike my previous recipes the apples here are cooked until they are a purée.

INGREDIENTS

  • 750g of cooking apples
  • 100g granulated sugar
  • 50g sultanas
  • Grated zest of 1 lemon

METHOD

  • Cook the apples with the sugar in a saucepan with a lid.
  • Keep checking and stirring so they do not burn.
  • Keep stirring until the apples are a purée.
  • Leave to cool.
  • Mix in the sultanas.
  • I think it is best to add the lemon zest just before using the filling BUT
  • You can add it now if that is easier.
  • You can leave it covered in the fridge for the next day.

Recipes using the filling will be coming up soon.

Rowan, Apple & Pear Jam

  • This has been a bumper harvest for apples and pears.
  • My rowan tree – jarzębina -has also had loads of berries.
  • I found this recipe which used all 3 of these fruits.
  • *
  • NOTE – Never eat raw rowan berries.
  • *
  • The quantities of each fruit and sugar were exactly the same.

INGREDIENTS

  • 1kilo of rowan berries – cleaned from stalks
  • 1 kilo of washed and peeled cooking apples
  • 1 kilo washed and peeled pears
  • 1 kilo of granulated sugar
  • 500ml of water & water for washing the rowan berries
  • Piece of cinnamon
  • 6 whole cloves.

METHOD

  • Prepare your jars and sterilise them in a low oven,
  • Put the berries into hot water and bring to the boil.
  • Leave to one side and then sieve the berries.
  • Chop the apples and pears into small cubes.
  • Bring the 500ml of water to the boil with the sugar.
  • Add the cinamon bark and the whole cloves.
  • Add the rowan berries, apples and the pears and bring to the boil.
  • Lower the heat and simmer till the apples and pears are translucent.
  • Fill the jars with the hot jam.
  • Cover with the lids when theses are cold.
  • *
  • Excellent with meats, fish, paté and cheese.

Apple Cake with Sultanas

  • I have a bumber crop of Bramley apples this year.
  • I know I watered the fruit trees early on in the year before we had our hosepipe ban.
  • This recipe is my Mama’s best recipe with added sultanas.
  • My father did not like this addition so it was a version she did not make.
  • It is equaly delicious.
  • *
  • I will be trying out new apple recipes this year – look out for them soon.

Apple & Sultana Filling – Ingredients

  • 5 to 6 Bramley Apples
  • Granulated Sugar to taste – keep it slightly tart
  • A little water
  • 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
  • 100g of sultanas
IMG_20151212_061813444_HDR

Method

  • Make the apple filling first, even the day beforehand as it needs to be cold before you use it.
  • Peel and core the apples and cut them into thick slices or chunks.
  • Stew the apples gently with some sugar and very little water. You can make this in a saucepan on the stove or place the apples and sugar in a dish in the oven.
  • Do not add a lot of sugar at the beginning as it does not want to be too sweet, you can adjust the sweetness at the end.
  • Do not make it too much of a purée, cook so that you have some soft apples but with some harder less cooked chunks as well.
  • Leave the mixture to cool and then add the ground cinnamon. 
  • Add the sultanas and leave for at least 30 minutes so the sultanas plump up.

Cake – Ingredients

  • 300g plain flour
  • 3 teaspoons of baking powder
  • 200g butter
  • 75g caster sugar
  • 1 egg yolk (save the white for the topping)
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons of lemon juice and water
  • Method
  • You need a round tin with a loose base or a spring form tin or you will not be able to get the cake out.  I always use an loose base anodised aluminium tin, 22cm in diameter and 8 cm deep, which does not rust.
  • Grease the tin well.
  • Rub the butter into the flour to make fine crumbs and add the sugar and baking powder.
  • Add the egg yolk and the lemon juice and water as needed and mix together to make a soft “dough” (try not to add more flour),  handle it as little as possible.
  • Leave it to chill for about ½ an hour as this makes it easier to handle.
  • Pre heat the oven to GM5 – 190oC.
  • Take slightly more than half the dough and press it into the cake tin.
  • Spoon the apple & sultana mixture on top of this.
  • The rest of the dough will go on top of the apple & sultana mixture.
  • I use a rolling pin to make a circle that is smaller than the tin diameter and then place this on top.
  • Do not worry if the dough falls apart, just place it on with the breaks nearly touching.

Topping – Ingredients

  • 1 egg white and caster sugar
  • Slightly beat the egg white with a fork and brush this over the top of the dough.  You will not need it all.
  • Liberally sprinkle caster sugar over the egg white.
  • Bake for around 45 to 50 minutes until the top is a golden brown.
  • I tend to check the cake at 40 minutes and will cover the top with greaseproof if it starts to brown but is not yet cooked through.
IMG_20151214_172844872
  • Leave to cool before getting the cake out of the tin.
  • Loosen the side with a spatula.
  • Use a tin can and put the cake tin on this and slide the side of the cake tin down.
IMG_20151214_192920220_HDR
  • Do not put the cake in a air-tight covered container as the apples absorb moisture and you loose the crispness of the cake.

Beetroot & Apples – 2

  • The first beetroot & apple recipe was one that contained horseradish and was usually served cold.
  • I bought some organic beetroots and steamed them but thought they did not have much flavour.
  • The Bramley apples in the garden are just becoming ripe so I decided to use these as well.

INGREDIENTS

  • 4 steamed beetroots
  • 2 large Bramley apples
  • A teaspon of sugar – optional

METHOD

  • Coarse grate the beetroots.
  • Peel and core the apples and coarse grate them too.
  • Mix the two together and heat gently till the apples are cooked.
  • You might want to add a little water.
  • Check on tartness – you might want to add a little sugar.
  • Serve hot with roast meats 
  • Or cold with salads or smoked meats.

Fruity Rice Salad

  • This salad is super on a warm day – good to be eating it outside.
  • I have served it up with cold meats, Polish sausage or roast chicken or pork.
  • It is a cold salad 

INGREDIENTS

  • Cold cooked rice
  • 1 tin of pineapples – chopped
  • 1 red skinned apple – Pink lady is good – chopped
  • 80g of raisins or sultanas
  • *
  • Mint leaves to garnish

Method

  • Drain the pineapples – keep the juice.
  • Soak the raisins in the pineapple juice for at least 20 minutes.
  • In a large bowl – mix the rice, pineapples, apples and soaked dried fruit.
  • Include all the juice from the soaked dried fruit.
  • Add a touch of ground black pepper – optional.
  • *
  • Garnish the salad with some fresh mint leaves.

 

Herring Salad – 2

This is another version of herring salads.

  • INGREDIENTS
  • 1 packet of Matjes style herrings
  • Milk for soaking
  • 2 small onions peeled and thinly sliced
  • 1 or 2 eating apples – cored and chopped into small cubes
  • 2 gherkins – chopped into small pieces
  • Juice from 1 lemon 
  • Dollops of soured cream or yoghourt – Optional

METHOD

  • Remove the herrings from the packet (keep the liquid).
  • Place the herrings in a shallow dish of milk.
  • Soak in the milk for several hours.
  • Dry with them off with kitchen roll.
  • Cut them into small chunks.
  • Layer up the ingredients on the long plate.
  • Pouring the herring liquid over the onions.
  • Pour lemon juice over the apples.
  • Place some dollops of soured cream on the top.