Date Slices

Mama often made these.  She used to buy dried dates in a block which was just the right amount and a lot cheaper than whole dates.  However  I have not seen these for sale for ages.

Ingredients

  • Filling
  • 225g stoned dates
  • Juice & rind of 1 lemon
  • Water – to add to juice to make 250ml
  • *
  • Crumble Mixture
  • 110g plain flour
  • 110g semolina
  • 110g butter
  • 80g granulated sugar

Method

  • Chop the dates.
  • Add water to the lemon juice to make up to 250ml of liquid.
  • In a small saucepan gently heat the dates and the rind with the lemon liquid.
  • Stir and heat until you have a soft pulp and all the liquid has been absorbed.
  • Leave to go completely cold before using.
  • *
  • Pre-heat the oven to GM5 – 190°C.
  • Grease a 21 x 26cm shallow baking tin.
  • Use a piece of grease-proof paper to line the two long sides and base  of the tin.
  • Mix the flour and the semolina.
  • Rub the butter into the flour mixture until you get breadcrumbs.
  • Stir in the sugar.
  • Put half of the crumble mixture into base of the tin.
  • Pat down with a spoon.
  • Place spoonfuls of the date pulp evenly across the crumble mixture.
  • Spread the rest of the crumble mixture over the top.
  • Pat this down with a spoon.
  • Bake for 30-35 minutes.
  • Leave to cool in the tin.
  • Cut into squares or fingers to serve.

Johnson Brothers Ironstone Snowflake – Green Pear – 1960 – 1979

Note

Do not store these in an airtight box or they will go soggy.  Use a mesh cover or a cotton or linen tea towel.

Haslet

I have been looking at old North of England recipes and came across haslet – which reminds me of Polish pasztet or paté.

  • The name haslet or acelet – comes from Old French – hastilles which means entrails.
  • Traditionally it was made with a mixture of offal such as heart, kidney, liver, and sweetbreads.
  • Liver is most popular and pig’s liver most of all.
  • Oatmeal is used – one of the staples in the North of England.
  • Sage* is used –  a very popular herb in England
  • Originally the mixture would have been cover in caul – a thin lacy looking membrane of animal fat – and then cooked.
  • Nowadays this is hard to find – so butter or lard can be used in adapted recipes.
  • Haslet is usually eaten cold, in slices, often with pickles.

Ingredients

  • 500g pig’s liver
  • 2 onions.
  • 100g oatmeal or rolled oats blitzed
  • Lots of fresh sage
  • Salt & pepper
  • 50g butter or lard.

Method

  • Peel the onions – leave them whole.
  • Place in a saucepan with a little water and with the lid on – gently simmer till soft.
  • Leave the onions until they are cold.
  • Mince (or use a mini-chopper) the liver and onions.
  • Add the liver mixture to the oatmeal in a bowl – mix and leave for around 10 minutes.
  • Pre-heat the oven to GM7 – 220°C.
  • Line a small roasting tin with foil and grease well.
  • Chop the sage and add with salt and pepper to the mixture.
  • Place the mixture in the roasting tin and dot the top with the butter or lard.
  • Bake for around 35 minutes.

 

*Sage – Salvia officinalis –  szałwia – in Polish – was brought to Britain by the Romans. It was a popular cooking herb in Tudor times.

Salvia comes from the Latin word salvere, which means to heal and it is known for its antibacterial properties.

Sage is a member of the mint family and is a Mediterranean herb.

 

Serving dish – Blue Mist – Burleigh Ware by Burges and Leigh Ltd from the 1930s.

Zakwas – Sourdough

I have been on a long quest to find out how to make a really good sourdough bread.

I have make various rye bread versions, the easiest being a no knead version.

What I wanted was a recipe that used a sourdough starter, zakwas – in Polish,  for a wheat flour loaf that was a “classic” shape.

I wanted a loaf that looked right, tasted good and had a lovely crispy or chewy crust.

Every book or article that I read had loads of advice much of it contradictory.

I tried different methods with different degrees of success and several complete failures!  Sometimes I knew what had gone wrong sometimes I just did not know.

I was getting the taste most of the time but getting the shape without an exploding crust was more difficult.

I kept wondering how my grandmother and others in generations past had made this type of bread with ease without the aid of books, articles and videos found on the internet.

The best advice came from two sources – the book – all you knead is Bread by Jane Mason and several YouTube videos by Tomek Lach – these are in Polish.

  • I am now writing up the results of many months of baking trials.
  • Timing given in the book are often not enough – depends on many factors.
  • I have found that leaving the refreshed starter or the dough for hours longer – even overnight, works.
  • My latest loaf tastes wonderful, the crust is lovely, the shape is nearly right.
  • I am hoping that next time it will be spot on!

Sourdough starter – zakwas

  • To make this you put 50g of rye flour and 50ml of water into a large glass preserving jar on day 1 and stir, cover and leave for 24 hours.
  • On days 2, 3, and 4 you repeat this.
  • On Day 5 it is ready to use.
  • Or you can keep it in the fridge – topping up once a week with a couple of spoons of flour and water.

Day 1 – refreshing the starter

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons of starter
  • 60g of wheat flour
  • 3 tablespoons of water

Method

  • Mix the ingredients together to make a thick paste.
  • Add more water if needed.
  • Place into a bowl and cover – shower caps are good for this.
  • Leave for around 12 hours at least – often I have make this in the morning and then leave it at room temperature or in the fridge overnight.

Day 2 – making the dough

Ingredients

  • Mixture from day 1
  • 300g of strong wheat flour
  • 200ml of water (may need more)
  • 1¼ teaspoons of salt

Method

  • Mix all the ingredients together to form a soft dough.
  • More water may be needed – a wetter dough may be harder to work but better in the long run.
  • Place on a floured board.
  • Knead for 10 minutes (set a timer).
  • Try not to add much extra flour.
  • Form into a ball and place in a bowl.
  • Cover and allow to rest for 1 hour.
  • *
  • Pretend the dough is a clock face-pull a piece of dough out at noon, stretch and fold it back.
  • Repeat going around the clock face.
  • Cover it again and leave to rest for 1 hour.
  • Repeat this resting – pulling – resting twice more.
  • That is 4 rest and 3 pulls in all.
  • *
  • To shape the dough put it gently on to just a very lightly floured surface.
  • Try to use as little extra flour as possible.
  • Stretch and fold the dough to get a round ball shape.
  • Tucking the dough into the the base of the roll with your fingers.
  • Place in a proofing basket
  • I have found it is better to place a cotton or linen floured napkin over the surface.
  • This makes it easier to turn out the risen dough.
  • I now have a special circular piece of cotton specially for this.
  • It is best to wash this without the use of fabric conditioner or perfumed detergent.
  • Place into a large plastic bag or use a shower cap to cover.
  • *
  • Allow to rise until it has grown in size by 1½ times.
  • This can take 2-3 hours or even longer – depends on the heat in the kitchen.
  • *
  • Pre-heat the oven to GM 8 – 230°C.
  • Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with greaseproof paper and sprinkling on semolina or flour.
  • Gently tip out the risen dough onto the sheet.
  • Cut three long slashes in the top with a sharp knife.

 

 

  • Bake for 10 minutes then turn the heat down to GM6  – 200°C.
  • Bake for another 20 minutes.
  • Check the base sounds hollow.
  • Leave to cool completely on a wire rack.

 

Different wheat flours

You can alter the type and proportions of wheat flour and can use whole-wheat or wholemeal flour.

I am trying different versions out and have made a loaf with 60g of whole-wheat in the refreshed starter and 150g whole-wheat and 150g strong flour for the dough. It was a little heavier but tasted super.

There are many  variations to try out!

 

Torcik – with Bottled Blackcurrants

This torcik is a variation on two that I made previously with different fruits and bases.

When making a torcik you need time to let one layer set before starting on the next.

This torcik is composed of 3 layers

  1. Sponge cake base
  2. Sweet curd cheese with lemon jelly
  3. Drained bottled blackberries in blackcurrant jelly
  • For the base I used a kefir sponge cake which I cut into thin slices.
  • I adjusted the ingredients in the lemon/cheese mixture from previous ones and did not use egg whites.
  • I used real fruit juice Polish jellies and bottled blackcurrants.

 

 

Ingredients

  • 500g twaróg or yoghurt cheese (you could use full fat cream cheese)
  • 200g icing sugar
  • 100g butter
  • 4 yolks
  • 1 packet of lemon jelly
  • 1 packet of  blackcurrant jelly
  • *
  • Thin slices of sponge cake – I used my kefir sponge cake
  • *
  • Blackcurrants drained from a jar of bottled blackcurrants (keep the juice)

Method

  • Use a 25cm diameter loose bottomed or spring-form tin.
  • Lightly rub the base and sides with some butter.
  • Using thin slices of sponge cake make a layer on the base of the tin.
  • *
  • Dissolve the lemon jelly in 150ml of boiling water and leave to cool.
  • The tricky bit is having the jelly at the right temperature to use.
  • *
  • Cream together the butter and icing sugar.
  • Add the egg yolks, one by one, alternating with the twaróg.
  • Mix thoroughly.
  • Gently mix in the cool jelly.
  • Pour the mixture over the sponge base.
  • Level the top.
  • Leave to set – best in the fridge – for at least 3 hours.
  • *
  • Mix up the blackcurrant jelly as per the instructions with 500ml of boiling water.
  • Leave the jelly to cool.
  • *
  • Arrange the drained blackcurrants over the lemon layer.
  • Gently put the blackcurrant jelly over the blackcurrants – use one spoon to pour this over the back of a second spoon.
  • Leave it to set again in the fridge – can take several hours.
  • Take great care when removing the torcik out of the tin.

Coffee set & plates – Counterpoint by Royal Doulton  from 1973 – 1987.

Note

  • Next time I would pour several tablespoons of the juice over the sponge base.
  • Here I put a little of the the juice on the serving plate and let it soak in before serving.

 

 

 

Apple Soup

  • I wrote in the summer about 3 fruit soups.
  • Now that it is autumn I have made another fruit soup using Bramley apples from my garden.
  • Use sour apples to make this soup – it should not be over sweet rather it should be slightly tart.
  • Just like other soups this is served as a first course.
  • This soup should be served hot.

Ingredients

  • 700g cooking apples.
  • 100g granulated sugar
  • 1½ tablespoons of potato flour or cornflour
  • Small cinnamon stick
  • 8 cloves
  • 1.5 litres of water
  • *
  • White bread croutons or cold cooked pasta to serve

Method

  • Put the water and spices into a large saucepan.
  • Peel and core the apples, chop into large pieces and add them to the pan.
  • Bring to the boil then simmer with a lid on the pan till the apples are falling apart.
  • Remove the spices.
  • Add the sugar to the liquid and bring to the boil.
  • Leave to cool a little and purée the liquid.
  • Mix the potato flour with a little water.
  • Add this to the soup.
  • Bring to the boil, stirring gently.
  • Simmer and stir until the soup thickens.
  • Serve hot  with white bread croutons or cold cooked pasta.

 

 

 

Kefirowe with Fruit

This cake made with kefir is lovely to make in summer or early autumn with a variety of fresh fruits such as raspberries or whinberries.  Equally you can use frozen fruits later in the year.

Ingredients

  • 350g plain flour
  • 2 teaspoons of baking powder
  • 175g of granulated sugar
  • 2eggs
  • 400ml of kefir
  • 125ml of sunflower oil
  • Grated rind of 1 large orange
  • or grated rind of 2 small lemons
  • or ¼ teaspoon of vanilla essence
  • *
  • Around 300g of fruit such as raspberries, blackberries or whinberries etc
  • Larger fruit such as plums should be stoned and chopped into small pieces
  • Frozen fruit should be part defrosted first
  • *
  • Icing sugar to dust

Method

  • Grease and line with one piece of greaseproof a 32x22cm baking tray.
  • Pre-heat the oven to GM4 – 180°C
  • Mix all the dry ingredients together in a large bowl.
  • In another bowl mix the eggs, oil, kefir and rind or essence together.
  • Pour the kefir mixture into the dry mixture.
  • With a wooden spoon mix well together until you have an even thick batter.
  • Pour the cake batter into the prepared tin.
  • Scatter the fruit over the top
  • Bake for 40 – 45 minutes.
  • Leave to cool in the tin on a wire cake rack.
  • Dust with icing sugar to serve.

Jug by Buchan – Portobello near Edinburgh – 1960 – 1979.

Tea plates Las Palmas by Aynsley from the 1960s.

What if you cannot get kefir?

  • Should you not be able to get any kefir you can use 3 parts yoghurt to 1 part milk instead.
  • So in this recipe use 300ml of yoghurt mixed with 100ml of milk.

Tea plates by Colclough from the 1960s

Beetroot Fritters

These beetroot fritters are not from an old Polish recipe.  I got the idea from making Polish potato pancakes and  carrot pancakes and seeing all the new season beetroot.

Ingredients

  • 250g cooked beetroots
  • 1 egg – beaten
  • 2 tablespoons of soured cream or creamed horseradish sauce*
  • 2 tablespoons of plain flour
  • Salt
  • Sunflower oil for frying

* If you have a little fresh grated horseradish that would be super.

Method

  • Grate the beetroots using a coarse grater.
  • Add the beaten egg and the soured cream or horseradish sauce and mix together.
  • Add the flour and mix thoroughly.
  • Heat the oil in a frying pan and use large tablespoonfuls of the mixture to make the fritters.
  • Fry them on both sides.
  • *
  • Keep them on a heat proof plate  in a low heat oven whilst you make the rest.

They can be served with many hot roast dinners or separately with a dollop of soured cream or creamed horseradish sauce.

 

 

Plates

  • Arc – Arcopal  – from the 1970s
  • Royal Bone China – The Poets’ Garden – Columbine & Sweet Amber

 

 

 

 

 

Plain Kefir Sponge

After I made the chocolate cake with kefir, which I posted recently, my Polish friend in Leeds said she had heard of plain versions with fruit on top.

I found many recipes all with varying amounts of the ingredients.

I tried out a few versions and decided on what were the best proportions to make a lovely soft sponge cake.

As well as the base for a fruit topped cake, which will be posted soon, this is a good cake which can be used as a base for torcik or desserts such as English trifle or Italian Tiramisu.

You can portion it up and freeze it for later.

Ingredients

  • 350g plain flour
  • 2 teaspoons of baking powder
  • 175g of sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 400ml of kefir
  • 125ml of sunflower oil
  • Grated rind of 1 large orange
  • or 2 small lemons
  • or ¼ teaspoon of vanilla essence
  • *
  • Icing sugar to dust

Method

  • Grease and line with one piece of greaseproof a 32x22cm baking tray.
  • Pre-heat the oven to GM4 – 180°C
  • Mix all the dry ingredients together in a large bowl.
  • In another bowl mix the eggs, oil, kefir and rind or essence together.
  • Pour the kefir mixture into the dry mixture.
  • With a wooden spoon mix well together until you have an even thick batter.
  • Pour the cake batter into the prepared tin.
  • Bake for 30 – 35 minutes.
  • Leave to cool in the tin on a wire cake rack.
  • Dust with icing sugar to serve.

 

What if you cannot get kefir?

  • Should you not be able to get any kefir you can use 3 parts yoghurt to 1 part milk instead.
  • So in this recipe use 300ml of yoghurt mixed with 100ml of milk.

 

Curd Tart – English Cheesecake

I have been doing some research on old English recipes and looked at curd tart recipes – these are similar to Polish baked sernik .

  • Curd tarts in England originated in the early 17th century.
  • In Yorkshire they were traditionally baked for Whitsuntide.
  • Nutmeg is a very popular spice in English baking.
  • Curds are coagulated milk proteins – casein.
  • Raw milk will coagulate naturally when left in a warm place.
  • Pasteurised milk needs the addition of something acidic such as lemon juice, vinegar or lactobacillus (found in natural yoghurt).
  • You can make your own curds. The following is an easy way to make curds and these are the curds* used in the recipe below.
  • *
  • *Polish twaróg or yoghurt cheese is more tangy.

Making Curds

  • In a deep saucepan put 500ml of milk, 3 beaten eggs and 1 teaspoon of salt.
  • Heat gently until it comes to the boil, stirring occasionally.
  • Curds will form.
  • Put the mixture into a large sieve or muslin bag and leave for a few hours.
  • Leave the curds to go cold.
  • It is often good to make the curds the evening before you need them.
  • 500ml of milk will give around 200-225g of curds with this method.

 

Ingredients

  • Around 200g of curds (as above)
  • 110g granulated sugar
  • 2 eggs – beaten
  • 60g currants
  • Grated nutmeg
  • *
  • Shortcrust pastry or a richer pastry such as  kruche ciasto

Method

  • Grease and line the base of a loose bottomed tart tin.
  • Pre-heat the oven to GM5 – 190°C.
  • Roll out the shortcrust pastry thinly and line the tin with it.
  • With a fork, chop up the curds into small pieces.
  • Whisk together the curds, sugar and eggs.
  • Stir in the currants.
  • Pour the mixture into the lined tart tin.
  • Sprinkle liberally with freshly grated nutmeg.
  • Bake for around 30 minutes.
  • Leave to cool on a wire cake rack.

Served on tea plates by Royal Doulton, Counterpoint, 1973 – 1987

 

Kefirowe

My Polish friend who lives in Leeds sent me a copy of a recipe from an old Polish cookbook for kefirowe – this is a cake made with kefir.

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • I tried it out and it is super – a soft moist cake made with sunflower oil and cocoa as well as kefir.
  • I made it twice, once with a darker chocolate icing and the second time with a milkier chocolate icing.
  • It would be good with a wide range of different flavoured icings.

Ingredients

  • 350g plain flour
  • 2 teaspoons of bicarbonate of soda
  • 200g granulated sugar
  • 5 tablespoons of cocoa
  • *
  • 2 eggs – beaten
  • 500ml of kefir
  • 250ml sunflower oil

Method

  • Grease and line with one piece of greaseproof a 32x22cm baking tray.
  • Pre-heat the oven to GM4 – 180°C
  • Mix all the dry ingredients together in a large bowl.
  • In another bowl mix the eggs, oil and kefir together.
  • Pour the kefir mixture into the dry mixture.
  • With a wooden spoon mix well together until you have an even thick batter.
  • Pour the cake batter into the prepared tin.
  • Bake for 30 – 35 minutes.
  • Leave to cool in the tin on a wire cake rack.
  • *
  • Ice with the icing of your choice.
  • Cut into squares, rectangles or lozenges to serve.

 

Coffee set and tea plates – Greenway by John Russell 1960s

Chocolate Icing Ingredients

  • 100g butter
  • 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder
  • 1 tablespoon of water
  • 200g icing sugar

Method

  • Melt the butter gently in a small saucepan.
  • Stir in the cocoa powder and the water.
  • Mix and cook gently for a couple of minutes.
  • Remove from the heat.
  • Mix in the icing sugar, bit by bit until you have a thick icing.
  • Ice the top of the cake.

Milk Chocolate Icing Ingredients

  • 60g butter
  • 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder
  • 3 tablespoons of hot milk
  • 250g icing sugar
  • 1-2 drops of vanilla essence

Method

  • Heat up some milk in a small pan (I use a bit more than is needed and measure it out after heating).
  • Melt the butter in a pan.
  • Blend in the cocoa powder.
  • Stir in the icing sugar, milk and essence (I add the sugar in stages -aiming  for a slightly runny icing) and beat until it is thick and smooth – adjusting with icing sugar and extra milk as necessary.
  • Ice the top of the cake.

 

 

Tea plates are Las Palmas – Aynsley from the 1960s

Jug by Buchan Pottery, Portobello near Edinburgh from the early 1960s.

What if you cannot get kefir?

  • Should you not be able to get any kefir you can use 3 parts yoghurt to 1 part milk instead.
  • I tried this out in the recipe and used 375ml of yoghurt mixed with 125ml of milk.
  • It worked very well.

I used a white chocolate icing on this cake.

White Chocolate Icing

  • 100g of white chocolate (I like Green & Black best)
  • 3-4 tablespoons of hot milk
  • 200g icing sugar (you might not need it all)

Method

  • Melt the chocolate in a glass bowl over a pan of hot water.
  • Heat up some milk in a small pan (I use a bit more than is needed and measure it out after heating).
  • Mix 3 tablespoons of the hot milk into the heated chocolate.
  • Stir in the icing sugar (I add the sugar in stages – aiming  for a slightly runny icing) and beat until it is thick and smooth – adjusting with icing sugar and extra milk as necessary.
  • Ice the top of the cake.

Tea set by Royal Doulton – Carnation 1982 – 1998