Make Your Own,- Welsh Cakes.
These homemade Welsh Cakes are easy to make and are a great addition to an afternoon tea spread. They are a variation of a griddle scone and shortbread, lightly spiced and finished with a coating of sugar.
Author: john.webber22
Stunning, Mango and Coconut Tarts,
Delicious, mango and coconut cream tarts. Great for entertaining. Light,crisp almond pastry filled with fresh mango and coconut cream.
How to use perforated tart rings
How to use perforated tart rings, this method is ideal for contemporary, straight sided tarts. And in my view, this suits the smaller sizes perfectly. The pastry rings I am using are stainless steel 7cm x 2cm perforated rings. The holes allows any moisture to ventilate away and heat to penetrate providing a crisp finish to the pastry. These are ideal served for afternoon tea or as a smaller dessert.
They are also great as a picnic item using basic savory shortcrust or parmesan pastry for a cheese and leek quiche, or red onion and goats cheese tart.
Lining perforated tart rings
For this technique you need a workable pastry such as our sweet rich almond shortcrust pastry which can be used to make a chocolate tart, lemon curd tart, caramel tart etc. Do read our post Blind Baking Made Easy to line a larger tart tart shell for a larger number of people
You will need :-
Pastry rings
A plastic cutting board that fits into the fridge
Rolling mat (optional)
Rolling pin (polyurethane preferably)
Small teaspoon
Small pastry brush
1 Egg yolk beaten with a dash of water
Baking beans (I used dried peas, cheaper, and better)
Greaseproof paper
If it’s a warm day pop your rolling pin into the fridge. I always use a silicone rolling mat, which can go into the fridge, but dry off any condensation before using. Your work surface can also be chilled simply by using a shallow oven tray with some ice and a little water added. Place it on the work surface where you want to work, and it will be chilled down in a few minutes. It’s also a great help to have a small cutting board that will fit into the fridge to rest the pastry later.
Take about two thirds of the chilled pastry and roll it out roughly the thickness of a £1.00 coin. This will be the base of out tarts so make sure the shape will fit four tart rings. Try not to go overboard with the flour when rolling out, a light dusting should be plenty. If you can see flour on the surface of the pastry, brush it off with a soft paint brush. Position the ring on the pastry and press down to cut through the dough.
Remove the scrap pastry between the rings then using a pastry scraper carefully lift the rings on to a lined baking tray and place them to rest in a cool place.
Now for the sides.
Take the reserved pastry and begin to roll it out the same thickness as before but this time we need strip of pastry about 22cm long and cm wide. Using the rolling pin transfer the rolled dough to the cutting board then place the whole board in the fridge for 10 to 15 minutes to rest and firm up.
Once it’s ready take the board from the fridge and using a cook’s knife cut 2cm wide strips down the length of the pastry. Once that’s done square off the ends to give you 22cm long strips.
Now for the tricky bit. Have a thin blunt ended tool to hand, a small teaspoon is good. Lift one of the strips and feed it into the ring wrapping it around the inner surface of the ring and sitting on the pastry base. As the pastry comes together trim off any excess, and join the two ends of the strip together.
Gently push the pastry strip down into the base, but be careful not to press the pastry hard against the ring or the pastry may be forced through the perforations and become welded to the ring.
Using a small brush apply a little of the beaten egg yolk to the bottom seal and press the join together with the tip of the spoon. Again, be gentle or you will break through the pastry. Place the lined shells into the fridge for at least 15 minutes to rest, then we are ready to bake.
Baking the tarts.
Getting ready to bake.
Heat the oven to 180˚c (fan) 200˚(conventional). Remove the tarts from the fridge and transfer them onto a baking sheet lined with greaseproof paper. You will also need discs of greaseproof at least double the diameter of the tart rings you are using.
Take each disc and scrunch it up in your hands. Give it a really good bashing as this allow it to bend into the shape of our tarts. With a pair of scissors make cuts inwards all around each disc leaving an uncut center roughly the diameter of the tart. Line each tart with a disc of paper pushing it down well into the corners then fill each tart with baking beans. I always use dried peas for this, they are cheap and can be used many times.
Bake in the center of the oven for 10-12 minutes when they should be golden brown on top. Remove them from the oven and take out the baking beans and paper disks. Return the tarts to the oven for three minutes to dry out the insides, then let them cool on the baking sheet.
To simplify things all this can be done the day before they are needed. Make sure they are completely cooled and store in an airtight container. Alternatively, the shell could be frozen in the box to use at a later date. Just be careful not to shake the box about and break up the contents. To defrost place then on a cooling wire in a warm place.
Enjoy Life !
John.
Hi, my name is John Webber, award winning chef and tutor, now retired to the west coast of Scotland. Welcome to our blog focusing on food, cooking, and countryside. My aim is to pass on my years of skills and knowledge together with an appreciation of the countryside.
Join us to experience the beauty of the west coast, cook some great food and be at ease in the kitchen.
If you enjoyed your visit with us, please subscribe up to our newsletter to receive regular updates of what’s new and upcoming at The Westcoaster. Subscribe Here
©John Webber. 2023
Make Your own Ghee at home.
Make your own ghee at home. It’s easy to do and very versatile. You will get better quality for less money.
Make your own, Indian flavouring Pastes .
Make these essential Indian pastes at home. To make you a master of the curry.
Make your own, – Easy Chaat Masala and Tandoori Spice Blends
Both Chaat Masala and Tandoori spice blends are easy to make, and a useful addition to any store cupboard. They are equally at home with a summer barbeque of for a curry night in with friends. Do read our post on Make your own Garam Masala to get an understanding on how I use spices and the correct way to toast them.
Chaat Masala – – – – – Tandoori Spice Blend
Chaat masala is a spice blend commonly used with fruit salads, vegetables, and street food snacks. Try it on a dal or finish your tandoori chicken with a dusting. Eggs, paneer, even your basic side salad will benefit from a sprinkle for a full on hit of flavour.
Chaat Masala uses chilli powder, cumin, amchoor, (dried, unripe mango powder), coriander, ginger, fennel, black salt, black pepper, and ajwain seeds. The flavour is spicy, salty, and tangy with a little tartness from the amchoor. The black salt brings a sulfuric scent a bit like overcooked hard-boiled eggs. In current terminology you might say it’s a bit ‘Marmite’ if you find it distasteful just substitute a flaky sea salt in its place.
Black salt is a volcanic Indian rock salt mined around the foothills of the Himalayas. It’s not actually black but greyish when ground. Using a smoked sea salt could be interesting. Black lava salt also known as Hawaiian black salt is also available which used to be mined but now is normally sea salt with activated charcoal added. Its it a much darker colour that the Indian version.
Chaat Masala
Makes roughly 10 tablespoons of spice blend
Stage one
2 tbsp cumin seeds
1tsp fennel seeds
1tsp ajwain seeds
1tbsp coriander seeds
1tsp black salt
1tsp black peppercorns
Stage two
½ tsp fresh nutmeg (grated)
4tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
1tsp ginger powder
3tbsp mango powder (amchoor)
1tbsp dried mint
Take a small frying pan and add the ingredients in stage one apart from the peppercorns and salt. Place the pan over a medium heat and gently toast the spices. If you haven’t already, read our post on understanding and toasting spices.
When almost ready add the peppercorns and salt to the pan and toss together.
Cook for another one to two minutes then trip the spices into a cold plate to cool down.
When cool, grind the spices to a fine powder and add the ingredients in stage two then store in an airtight container ready for use
Tandoori spice blend
The classic flavour of Indian cooking. Use as a marinade with yoghurt, ginger-garlic paste, salt, and lime juice, coat the meat well and marinade for at least four hours. I like to leave mine overnight and cook it on the BBQ when possible. This blend gives a natural colour to the meat, unlike the brilliantly red colour often served up in the local takeaway. If you wish to replicate the colour, simply add some food colouring to the marinade when you make it.
Stage 1
1tbsp cumin seeds
2tbsp coriander seeds
3 cardamom pods
2 cloves
1tsp black peppercorns
4 leaves of mace
4cm cinnamon stick
Stage 2
1tsp ground turmeric
½ tsp ground ginger
1tbsp paprika (I use the smoked picante version)
1tsp garlic powder
3tsp mango powder (amchoor)
2tsp Kashmiri chili powder
Take the cardamom pods and crack them open with side of a cook’s knife. Pop them into a frying pan and add the cumin and coriander seeds.
Toast the spices as outlined above then add the peppercorns, cloves, mace, and cinnamon to the pan.
Cook for two minutes more turning the spices all the time then tip them onto a dish to cool.
Finely grind the spices then add in the spices in stage two. Mix well and store in an air-tight jar ready for use. If the jar is well sealed, they should keep for a few weeks but the fresher they are used the better.
I can’t wait to get the BBQ going, and in a later post I will cook some Tandoori Chicken with Basmati rice and Masala sauce. But don’t wait for me, get your spices ready and look up How to Portion a Chicken on the bone in The Food Files pages.
Enjoy life!
John.
Hi, my name is John Webber, award winning chef and tutor, now retired to the west coast of Scotland. Welcome to our blog focusing on food, cooking, and countryside. My aim is to pass on my years of skills and knowledge together with an appreciation of the countryside.
Join us to experience the beauty of the west coast, cook some great food and be at ease in the kitchen.
If you enjoyed your visit with us, please subscribe up to our newsletter to receive regular updates of what’s new and upcoming at The Westcoaster. Subscribe Here
©John Webber. 2023
Make your own Garam Masala.
Make amazing Indian Garam Masala home. Easy to do and packed with flavour.
HOW TO MAKE INDIAN ONION PASTES
The making of Indian onion pastes. Often used in restaurants to enrich and thicken a curry. Easy to make at home and give your curries a professional finish.
My Christmas Ultimate Chestnut Stuffing
This Christmas ultimate chestnut stuffing goes right back to my younger days working at the Dorchester Hotel in park Lane. Christmas there was a grand affair with lobster, caviar and truffles featuring on menus. The main event was quite traditional with turkey and all the trimmings, and this was the stuffing served with the bird. Not a packet of Paxo in sight!
I resurrected the recipe for the family many years ago and it has always been a big hit. My youngest daughter craves it so much we have even sent it down to her if she can’t make it up to us at Christmas. It freezes well so it’s a good idea to make it well ahead, then simply bake it in the oven while the turkey is resting. And if you haven’t already read our post Cranberry and Whisky Luxury Mince Pies to complete the Christmas experience.
Ingredients
1 medium onion
450g skinned herby sausages
200g cooked fresh (see below) or tinned chestnuts
1 clove garlic
1 tbsp chopped flat parsley
½ tsp chopped fresh sage
½ tsp chopped fresh thyme
¼ bay leaf
180ml dark chicken stock or diluted low salt cube
salt (taste first)
mill pepper
130g white breadcrumbs (approx.)
Making the stuffing.
Choose a pan that is wide enough to take the volume of stuffing you wish to make without been too deep. If the stuffing is cooked in a narrow deep pan, it will increase the chance of it burning on the bottom.
Peel and finely chop the onion and place into the pan with a dash of olive oil then gently fry the onion until soft and golden. When ready remove the pan from the heat a let it cool down a little then add the herb sausage meat. Don’t add any seasoning yet. Once the meat is cooked, we can adjust the seasoning
I have chosen to use finished sausages rather than buying a pack of sausage meat. I find the sausage meat sold for stuffing at Christmas can be inferior to actual sausages and it also gives you a better choice of quality and flavour.
Cooking the stuffing.
Put the pan back onto a low heat and mix together with the side of a silicone spatula to break up the meat. You can then add a little stock to help smooth everything out. Don’t be tempted to fry the sausage meat or you will end up with meatballs not stuffing.
Work in the balance of the chicken stock, garlic and bay leaf and mix well bringing up to the simmer and pop on the lid. Now you can ether place the pan into a low oven to braise for 20 minutes or cook slowly on the hob keeping a close eye on the bottom of the pan. (During the braising process the sausage meat should be checked periodically and any excess fat removed from the surface with a small ladle or spoon).
Finishing the stuffing.
Remove from the oven the pan from the oven and remove any fat floating on the surface. Fold in the chestnuts and two thirds of the breadcrumbs. Now’s the time to have a taste and add some mill pepper and salt if needed. If you have used a stock cube it may not need additional salt at all. Let the stuffing stand for five minutes to let the breadcrumbs thicken then check the consistency and add more breadcrumbs if needed. The stuffing should sit heaped on a spoon without falling off or been overly dry. Finally fold in the chopped herbs and if using at once, transfer the stuffing to a buttered covered oven proof container in readiness for serving. To serve bake the stuffing in a medium oven for 30-40 minutes before use
Cook ahead.
This mixture may be prepared the day before and carefully reheated in its casserole container. If doing this ensure the stuffing is heated right through to a core temperature of at least 70˚c. I normally make it a couple of weeks ahead, store it in tin foil containers and freeze to save time on the day.
To cook fresh Chestnuts.
¼ bay leaf
8 oz skinned chestnuts
20cm celery stick
sprig of thyme
6oz chicken or beef stock
If you want to go the whole hog, why not buy fresh chestnuts and cook them yourself? And don’t forget to buy a few extra and have some roast chestnuts with a glass of wine or two.
You will need a small sharp pointed knife and a great deal of care, it’s quite easy to cut yourself scoring through the skin. You can buy ‘knife safe’ gloves but if you’re not too confident with a knife, buy the pre-cooked ones.
Using just the tip of the knife score through the skin of the chestnut around the equator. Don’t go too deep, a scone on each side of the chestnut should be enough.
There are four ways of removing the skin.
The chefy way, dip the chestnut into a deep fat fryer at 180˚c for about 30 seconds. Works a treat, but not recommended at home as the chestnuts can ‘pop’ spraying hot oil around plus the dangers of deep fat frying.
Microwave. Works well bit a bit of a nuisance if you have a hot to do. Soak the chestnuts in cold water for five minutes. Drain them and pass through the microwave for one minute, if the skins still resist try another minute. It’s a bit of trial and error according to your microwave.
Oven Roasting. Toss the chestnuts in a dash of oil and roast in a 185˚c oven for about 30 minutes. The chestnuts are cooked by the time they are ready and become more difficult to braise, but ideal if you just want to serve them with sprouts. The biggest problem though is I eat too many and are then short for the meal!
Blanching in water. The best option for making at home. Drop the chestnuts into a pan of boiling water for three to four minutes. Using a kitchen spider lift out five or six at a time and place them in a tea towel and the skins should come off easily. If you have a lot to do, blanch them in batches and take the pan off the heat while you are removing the pan from the heat. If tye chestnits become cold and dry out the skins are harder to remove. just popo them back in the water for a couple of minutes to warm through.
To braise the chestnuts, take a shallow pan and place the prepared chestnuts and the stock on to the stove to warm through. Make a bouquet garni by encasing the thyme, bay leaf between the halved celery stick and add to the chestnuts. Bring the pan cover with a disc of grease proof paper and cook in the oven until the chestnuts are tender but not disintegrating, about 15 minutes. Leave to cool. In the stock then drain, the remaining cooking liquid can be used as the stock to make the stuffing.
So what are you waiting for? Get ahead for Christmas.
Enjoy Life! – And Christmas
John.
Hi, my name is John Webber, award winning chef and tutor, now retired to the west coast of Scotland. Welcome to our blog focusing on food, cooking, and countryside. My aim is to pass on my years of skills and knowledge together with an appreciation of the countryside.
Join us to experience the beauty of the west coast, cook some great food and be at ease in the kitchen.
If you enjoyed your visit with us, please subscribe up to our newsletter to receive regular updates of what’s new and upcoming at The Westcoaster. Subscribe Here
©John Webber. 2023
Cranberry and Whisky Luxury Christmas Mince Pies.
The festive period looms and it’s time to begin thinking about my Christmas Mince Pies and organising things to make the period as enjoyable and stress free as possible. And it’s particularly time for me to think about this year’s mince pies filled with cranberry and whisky mincemeat.
A Quick Kale, Egg, and Bacon Supper.
A quick kale, egg, and bacon supper for the chilli Autumn – Winter nights. And learn to master the skill of poaching an egg.
Blind Baking Made Easy, perfect results every time.
Blind baking made easy, this is not an overly arduous process but following a few basic steps will ensure perfect results every time. We will show you how to create a blind baked tart shell ready to be used with a variety of fillings. This is quite a long explanation but it’s worth the effort in reading all the way through.
Tips,
I would always recommend baking using metal tins and rings for blind baking. Silicone containers can also a be used for general baking. But I think the robustness of metal give a more reliable result for tarts and flans. I’m not a fan of ceramic quiche or flan dishes. The material is too thick for fast heat transfer and it’s very difficult to remove the finish article from the dish.
For deeper robust tarts I like to use a 23cm x 3cm loose bottomed tart shell. The ones made by masterclass are excellent quality and will last for years.
Baking sheets should be robust enough not to bend or warp in the oven. An increasing number of chefs are using perforated baking sheets or baking mats which allow the hot air to circulate around the pastry more efficiently.
As to the baking-
Remember all ovens are different, some run a little hotter some cooler. Some ovens they will have one side hotter than the other. This requires you to turn the food around to even things out half way through cooking. Trust yourself, you know your oven better that anybody. Don’t be a slave to a recipe – even mine! If you find your food over colouring turn the oven down a little. And if you need to turn the food around, do it quickly without leaving the oven door open for ages.
Now if you haven’t already done so, look up our post Getting to Grips with Pastry to discover how easy it is to make your own pastry.
Lining a loose bottomed tart shell.
Now we have our pastry well chilled, but if you’re trying to use any pastry in a hot kitchen or at home on a warm summer’s day it’s a great help to chill anything in contact with the pastry.
Work surfaces can be cooled by placing a baking tray where to plan to roll out and throwing some ice cubes into the tray. As they melt it will cool the work surface for you. Make sure you dry off the surface before you begin.
While the surface is cooling pop the rolling pin into the fridge to cool down. I prefer to use a polypropylene pin that is easy to keep clean but also will stay chilled for ages it left in the fridge overnight.
I would always recommend baking using metal tins and rings for blind baking. Silicone is also a great material for general baking, but I think the robustness of metal gives a more reliable result for tarts and flans.
I’m not a fan of ceramic quiche or flan dishes, the material is too thick for fast heat transfer and it’s very difficult to remove the finish article from the dish.
Down to work. Lightly flour the work surface and place your pastry in the centre. Begin to roll gently with the pin, turning around the pastry as you go to even out the stress. Keep rolling and turning dusting with a pinch of flour if needed but don’t use handfuls of it.
Once you have a circle of pastry large enough to fill the tart shell and about 5mm thick roll the pastry around the pin. Bring up the tart tin then carefully unroll the pastry allowing it to drop into the shell taking care not to cut the pastry off on the edges of the tin.
Now for the clever bit!
Take a small piece of spare dough and wrap it in cling film. Use this to press the dough down into the corners of the shell and around the fluted edges. Using your fingers will cut through the pastry. But the soft ball of dough will gently form the pastry to the shape of the shell. If the tart is to be filled with a custard base like a lemon tart don’t remove the excess pastry from the top. Carefully fold it over the rim on the outside. This will stop the pastry shrinking down inside the rim during baking. And prevent any liquid seeping down between the cooked shall and the tin when the tart is filled for its second bake.
If the shell is to be filled with a firmer filling after baking. Trim off the excess pastry and pinch up the rim with the fingertips to fix it to the top of the tin. As soon as the tart is completed place it into the fridge to rest for at least an hour before baking.
Baking the shell.
Its fairly frequent practice in commercial kitchens to use several layers of cling film to line the shell before adding weight to hold the pastry down. It works very well and produces very neat straight sides as the film moulds to the shape of the shell. This keeps pressure on the pastry preventing it from lifting or swelling while in the oven. If your pastry shell is to have a dry or thick filling added you can lightly prick the base with a fork to release steam.
If, however if you’re using a thin custard like filling, I would avoid this as the filling may leak though to the meatal shell and weld the pastry to the shell.
However, the court is out relating to the possibility of plasticiser leaching into the pastry with the heat of the oven. The film won’t melt it, needs a bit over 200˚c to do that, and we are generally baking at about 175˚c – 180˚c. Commercial film is stronger and thicker than the type to use at home. And with the possible plasticiser problem I recommend using greaseproof paper at home.
Using greaseproof paper
Cut off a square of greaseproof at least 6cm larger than the diameter of the tart shell. Fold it in half then turn 90º and fold in half again to form a square. Find the corner of the square that was the centre of the sheet. Hold the corner between finger and thumb then fold the opposite end of the paper over a little like making a paper plane. Keep repeating the folds until you have a thick wedge shape. Now using scissors trim the open end of the paper wedge in a curve to remove all the loose sections. Open out the paper and with any luck you will have a circle of greaseproof large that the pastry shell.
Before using the paper to line the shell scrunch it up in your hands. In fact, it’s best to squash and crush it two or three times before use. The idea is to make the paper a forgiving as possible and mould itself to the pastry without forming gaps or cutting through the pastry.
Getting ready to bake.
Before we get to the next steps turn on the oven to, we are going to bake at 170ºc -180º (fan) 185˚c – 200˚c conventional but I want you to turn the oven up another 20˚c. then place your baking sheet into the oven to heat up.
Take the lined tart shell and carefully place the paper on top of the pastry. Press the paper into the corners of the shell and add some weight into the paper to hold the pastry down.
Using dried peas as weight.
Personal preference here is simply to use dried peas. They are cheap, work well and can be re-used many times. Ceramic baking beans don’t do a better job and cost a fortune and please don’t use rice! Some people advocate rice, but I think it’s a nightmare. Its difficult to remove the rice neatly with the paper after baking, it falls all over the place. Also, and more importantly it can find its way between the paper and the pastry during filling. If that happens the rice sinks into the pastry during baking and is exceedingly difficult to remove. Fine if you like crunchy pastry!
Clever baking.
When you are ready to bake open the oven and slide the tart shell onto the pre-heated baking sheet. Turn the oven down to the correct baking temperature and set a timer for 12 minutes.
The idea is quite simple, the act of opening the door and putting in the tart cools the oven down this means the pastry begins to cook at the correct temperature, not sitting in too cool an oven and melting before beginning to set.
If we put the tart into the oven on a cold tray it will take ages for the base of the tart to heat though and again it will be soft, and none of want a soggy bottom, do we….
After the 12 minutes remove the tray from the oven and SHUT THE OVEN DOOR! I don’t know how many times I have watched somebody checking their baking with the oven door wide open. Then they can’t understand why they get poor results.
Carefully lift one edge of the paper and have a look at the base of the shell. If it looks uncooked return the tray to the oven for 3-4 minutes more. If the pastry looks cooked but moist lift the paper and beans out of the tart the return it to the oven for another 3 minutes to dry the base.
And bingo… you should have a blind baked tart shell to fill or use as you wish. This process is the same for large or small individual tarts, give it a go. Check out our post on a Pear and Blueberry Frangipane Tart to test out your new skills.
There is of course an alternative option of using bottomless tart rings. these are often perforated to allow moisture to escape the pastry during baking and give a crisper finish. Once you have had a chance to practice the basics have a look at our post on how to use perforated tart rings.
Enjoy Life!
John.
Hi, my name is John Webber, award winning chef and tutor, now retired to the west coast of Scotland. Welcome to our blog focusing on food, cooking, and countryside. My aim is to pass on my years of skills and knowledge together with an appreciation of the countryside.
Join us to experience the beauty of the west coast, cook some great food and be at ease in the kitchen.
If you enjoyed your visit with us, please subscribe up to our newsletter to receive regular updates of what’s new and upcoming at The Westcoaster. Subscribe Here
©John Webber. 2023
Pear and Blueberry Frangipane Tart with the best custard sauce.
How to make a pear and blueberry frangipane tart with fresh custard sauce.
Fantastic Garlic and Chefs Secrets – Oils
Time to get planting next years garlic crop ready for the Spring. Also learn how to make a Chefs Secret – chive oil.