Dessert – Journey From A Polish Kitchen

Kisiel – Apple

My mother never made kisiel with apples, she always used the red fruits in our garden.
I came across this recipe in my favourite old Polish cookbook (from 1956).
The recipe says to use sour apples.
I made it with Granny Smiths as the Bramley apples in my garden are not yet ripe.
I will make it again later in the autumn when they are ready.
A lemon is also used or a packet of citric acid crystals – these are nearly always for sale in Polish shops – quite handy for the stock cupboard.
This is a lovely delicate dessert.

Put the grated apples in a small saucepan with 350ml of water.
Simmer gently, stirring with a wooden spoon and cooking until the apples are a thick pulp.
Remove from the heat.
Add the juice and lemon zest.
Add the 150ml of water.
Add the sugar to taste.
Mix the potato flour with 4 tablespoons of water (60ml) to give a thick paste.
Add the potato flour mixture to the apples and stir well.
Put back on a gentle heat and stir well until you get a thick mass.
You can add a little more water if this is too thick.
Pour into a large glass bowl or into individual serving glass dishes.
Chill well before serving.

A Polish lady that I had not seen for many years came to visit me.
We sat in the garden chatting over coffee and cake.
She mentioned a cake she had not had for ages – Tort Melba.
She told me it was based around Pêche Melba – Peach Melba
However she could not remember the recipe.
I said I would look the recipe up and make it for her.
I have done and tried several different versions, which will be posted soon.
*
First here is a little history about Peach Melba.
*
Dame Nellie Melba (1861–1931) – born Helen Porter Mitchell – was an Australian operatic soprano.
She became one of the most famous singers of the late Victorian era and the early 20th century.
She took the pseudonym “Melba” from Melbourne, her home town.
In 1892 Nellie Melba was performing in Wagner’s opera Lohengrin at Covent Gardens.
The Duke of Orléans gave a dinner party at the Savoy Hotel in London to celebrate her triumph.
For the occasion, Escoffier created a new dessert Pêche Melba – Peach Melba.
He used an ice sculpture of a swan, which carried peaches resting on a bed of vanilla ice cream and these were topped with spun sugar.
In 1900, he created a new version of the dessert at the opening of the Carlton Hotel where he was head chef.
The ice swan was not used and the ice cream and peaches were now topped with a purée of sugared raspberries.
*
Below is an easy recipe for Peach Melba using tinned peaches.

An easy raspberry sauce can be made from good (home-made) raspberry jam.
Put around 4 to 5 tablespoons of raspberry jam and 2 tablespoons of water in a small saucepan.
Heat gently, stirring with a wooden spoon, until you have a pouring sauce.
If your jam is very sweet and a little lemon juice.
Leave to cool.
Allow two peach halves per serving and arrange these on a flat plate.
Add two scoops of vanilla ice cream next to the peaches.
Pour some raspberry sauce over the ice cream and peaches.
Serve any remaining sauce in a little jug.

This dessert is one I make when I do not wish or have time to to make a layered torcik.
The jelly and twaróg mixture is left to set in a bowl and scoops are then put into individual serving dishes.
The more twaróg you use the softer will be the mixture.
As I do not really like to drink milk using twaróg ensures I get calcium in my diet.
The flavours and fruits used here are just an example – use the flavours of jellies that you like as well as the fruit.