Tag: baking

My Luxurious Warm Walnut and Apricot Tart

My Luxurious Warm Walnut and Apricot Tart

My Luxurious Walnut and Apricot Tart is a variation on a classic Scottish Ecclefechan Tart. Its quite indulgent, yet easy to make. The addition of vinegar in the filling may seem a little strange, yet it is the perfect foil for the richness of the butter and sugar custard the holds the tart together.

How to make a Pastry Cheese, and Rosemary Christmas Tree

How to make a Pastry Cheese, and Rosemary Christmas Tree

This Cheese, and Rosemary Christmas Tree is a terrific addition to any Christmas party, and best of all its quick and easy to make. Use it to form a centrepiece for your party table. Each branch of the ‘tree’ breaks off to become a cheese straw ready to be dipped into a suitable sauce. I like to use my Tomato and Chilli jam as a dip. But it could be anything you like.

Make our Stunning Christmas Pudding Soufflés.

Make our Stunning Christmas Pudding Soufflés.

Serve these Christmas Pudding Soufflés to you guests and you will instantaneously be seen as a culinary genius. People are always impressed by a served a souffle, in fact they are a lot easier than people imagine.

There are a few key points to souffle success, and I will explain all of these and highlight them at the end of the blog. This is a long post, but don’t be put off. I have tried to go into a much detail as possible to explain what is happening at each stage.

You can ether serve these on Christmas day or use them as a way of using up leftover pudding. I think Christmas pudding falls into the same trap as the turkey and the Christmas cake. We always buy one that is too large!

My advice is to make things as easy as possible and make the pastry cream the day before. That only leaves you to mix the base and whip the egg whites and you are ready to go.

You will need.

  • 4 x 9cm ramekins
  • Small glass bowl
  • Medium glass bowl
  • Large metal bowl to whip the whites
  • Small whisk
  • Large whisk
  • Spatula
  • Dusting sieve
  • Scales
  • Baking tray

Christmas Pudding Soufflés.

Makes 4 souffles.

Christmas Pudding Soufflés - ingredients
Christmas Pudding Soufflés – ingredients
  • 130g                                       crumbled Christmas pudding
  • 40ml                                       dark rum
  • 155g                                       pastry cream
  • 5                                             egg Whites
  • Pinch                                     cream of Tartar
  • 20g                                         caster sugar
  • Soft butter and castor sugar, to line moulds

To make the pastry cream.

Pastry cream, ingredients
Pastry cream, ingredients
  • 170ml                                     whole milk
  • 25g                                         dark brown sugar
  • 25g                                         plain flour
  • 10g                                         cornflour
  • Good dash                            vanilla essence
  • Pinch                                     salt
  • 2                                             large egg yolks

To serve the souffles.

  •                                                 Icing sugar, to dust
  •                                                 Vanilla ice cream, to serve

Oven temperature 200˚c – 400˚f.

Christmas Pudding Soufflés- Making the pastry cream.

Place the egg yolks into a medium sized bowl and beat in the dark brown sugar with a small whisk. Add the vanilla essence, flour, salt, and cornflower and mix together.

Adding warm milk to the eggs
Adding warm milk to the eggs

Mix in just enough of the milk to form a batter, then put the remaining milk on the stove to heat up. Have a small bowl, icing sugar and some cling film ready to receive the finished cream.

When the milk is hot, but not boiling, slowly add the milk to the bowl containing the egg yolks and flours. Make sure to whisk continually as you add the milk. When all the milk has been added, tip the contents of the bowl back into the pan, use a spatula to make sure all the ingredients have been transferred to the pan.

Cooking the pastry cream.

Return the pan to the heat and use the whisk to keep the contents moving. As the pan gets close to boiling the cream will begin to thicken. Give the cream a good whisking then switch to the spatula reducing the heat a little. Cook the cream over the heat for two to three minutes, when it should be thick enough to stand up on its own.

Scrape the pastry cream into a small bowl, levelling it off a little.

CHEF’S TIP!

As soon as the pastry cream is levelled off, sprinkle a layer of icing sugar on top, then tightly cover with cling film.

As the cream cools, steam will turn the icing sugar into a syrup which will prevent a tough skin forming on the surface. The pastry cream can now be allowed to cool and will keep three to four days in the fridge.

Christmas Pudding Soufflés Serving

Lining the ramekins.

This is one of the key stages in producing a good souffle. Look for ramekins with straight sides, (curved ones don’t work that well) and that are not too thick and heavy.

Heavier ramekins do work, but the souffle won’t begin to cook until the heat as penetrated the walls of the ramekin.

Coating the ramekins
Coating the ramekins

Have some soft, not melted butter, and caster sugar to hand. Using a pastry brush, coat the insides of the ramekin with the butter. Spoon some caster sugar into the ramekin, then holding the ramekin on its side rotate it letting the sugar spill back into the container. Have a good look at the inside and the rim of the ramekin, if you see any uncoated areas have another go.

For this I’m using 9cm / 175ml ramekins, but you can use smaller ones if you wish.

Christmas Pudding Soufflés – Whisking the egg whites.

Turn your oven on to 200˚c – 400˚f. I prefer to use a standard oven for souffles as I find some fan ovens can cause the souffles to lean over, like a tree in a strong wind.

Place a baking tray onto the middle shelf of the oven to pre – heat making sure there is enough hight above it to allow the souffles to rise.

Just before you begin to tackle the whites, have a bowl ready to mix everything together. Check the Christmas pudding and pastry cream are warm enough to work with. Particularly if you made the pastry cream the day before. A few seconds in the microwave will help. They need to be just warm and soft – not hot!

Beating the base ingredients together
Beating the base ingredients together

In a large clean bowl whisk the egg whites a little then add the cream of tartar. I prefer to whisk the whites by hand, so I can feel when they are ready. When you have light snowy texture begin to sprinkle in the sugar. This will stabilise the meringue and make it easier to mix in later.

Soft Peaks.

Use a machine by all means but be careful not to over whisk them. We don’t want the whites to be fully whipped, we are looking for what’s known as soft peak. The best way to judge this is to lift the whisk vertically out of the white then quicky turn it over. A peak of whites will be left on the end of the whisk. If the point of the peak has fallen over, that’s soft peak. If the peak sits firm and proud, that’s stiff peak.

Think of the egg white like a balloon. If they are over inflated by too much whisking as they rise in the oven they will inflate even more and like a balloon, burst. You will see your souffle rise in the oven, and just as you begin to congratulate yourself it will deflate and collapse in front of you.

Whisking up the egg whites
Whisking up the egg whites

Lightly whisk one-quarter of the whites into the souffle base to loosen it slightly, and then carefully fold in the remainder. Make sure that you do not overwork the mixture – this is to ensure you do not knock out all the air previously whisked in.

Christmas Pudding Soufflés – Mixing the souffle.

Take the mixing bowl and add the Christmas pudding and rum. Using the spatula, beat the two together to soften the pudding. Add the pastry cream to the bowl and beat the two together to combine.

Now take roughly a quarter of the whites and beat them into the base you have just made. This is to soften up the mixture even more.

Add all the remaining whites to the bowl, but now gently fold the white into the base with the spatula.

The technique we use is called, Cut and Fold. Hold the spatula at the far side of the bowl, toughing the bottom of the bowl, with the edge facing towards you. Bring the spatula towards you and as you reach the edge of the bowl twist your wrist and lift the spatula. This will lift the mixture at the bottom of the bowl to the surface and fold it into the souffle mix. Give the bowl a slight turn then repeat the process.

Keep folding and turning the bowl until the whites are incorporated into the souffle.

CHEF’S TIP.

Over folding will spoil the souffle. So, if you’re not sure when to stop, look at the mixture. When you have thin streaks of egg white still visible it ready. If the egg whites have completely disappeared, its overmixed. Don’t worry the streaks of egg white will disappear in baking.

Christmas Pudding Soufflés – Baking

Filling the ramekins
Filling the ramekins

Contrary to common belief, the souffles do not need to go into the oven immediately. So, relax, you can leave the filled ramekins ten minutes or so without problem. However, when they come out of the oven, we need to serve them at once. If you are serving a number of people, appoint somebody to be ready and help carry them to the table when they are ready.

Make sure you have your serving plates ready. If you are serving ice cream, have it already scooped back in the freezer, and have an icing sugar sieve ready to dust the cooked souffles.

Open the oven, and quickly place the souffles onto the pre-heated tray, closing the door as quickly as possible. Don’t be tempted to have a peep at them while they are cooking, set a timer for 12 minutes. Go round and top up the drinks, put anything like ice cream of cream ready onto the table, and wait.

Christmas Pudding Soufflés
Christmas Pudding Soufflés

When the timer goes off you should have well risen light brown souffles. Lift the tray from the oven, dust the tops of the souffles with icing sugar and serve.

Souffle Making- The Key Points.

Have well coated serving dishes.

It’s crucial that the mixture can rise within the dish it’s been baked in. make sure the whole of the interior of the dish is coated as well as the rim. If your souffle only rises at one side, its because you missed coating a bit of the inside.

Pre-heat your baking tray.

For the souffles to rise we need to get heat into the ramekins as quickly as possible. Using a cold baking tray will slow down the cooking process resulting in in a souffle that is cooked on top, but raw underneath.

Don’t over beat the egg whites.

Less is more here, if you’re not sure on how to whisk the whites have a practice beforehand. A couple of wasted egg whites could save you a whole batch of souffle mix.

Gently fold the white into the souffle base.

Folding the whites into the base, using cut and fold retains the air beaten into the whites. Why go to all that bother to whisk in all that air, then beat it back out again.

F.A.Qs.

My ramekins are different to yours; how do I know how many this recipe will fill?

There is an easy way to compare the capacity of dishes like ramekins. Place the dish onto the scales. Set the scale to zero and to read in grams. Fill the dish with water and when its full, note the weight. One millilitre of water weighs one gram, so if the scales show 140 grams that’s 140 millilitres. This recipe filles 4 x 175ml ramekins, that’s 680ml. divide that by 140 and its 5. So, the recipe will fill five of your ramekins.

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.

Dusting with flour

Join The ‘Westcoaster Newsletter.

Sign up to our newsletter to receive regular updates of what’s new and upcoming at ‘The Westcoaster.’

Click Here

© Copywrite, John Webber. 2024

Baking Simple Scones, Everything you Need to Know, 4 Recipes.

Baking Simple Scones, Everything you Need to Know, 4 Recipes.

Baking Simple Scones at home is easy and very rewarding.  Homemade scones are always a winner whatever time of year. But particularly pleasing enjoyed in front of the fire when the weather is disappointing.

How to Make Cheese, Bacon, and Red Onion Muffins.

How to Make Cheese, Bacon, and Red Onion Muffins.

Cheese, Bacon, and Red Onion Muffins are great served as finger food or taken on a picnic. In fact, they are great all year round and are one of my regular contributions to village social events.

Muffins are easy to make, and once you have mastered the basics there is a wealth of ingredients that can be added, both sweet and savoury. Let me take you through the process, and lets get baking!

How to make, Individual French Apple Tarts

How to make, Individual French Apple Tarts

These French Apple Tarts are a real celebration of apples. When discussing fruit tarts, the British focus is as much on the pastry as the filling. The French aspect is all on the filling with the pastry been a necessary adjunct. That’s not to say that the pastry can be of poor quality, but its there to showcase the main product.

For these tarts we are using two distinct types of apples. Bramley apple for full on flavour, backed up with a dash of good cider. Green apples, Granny Smiths of French Golden delicious provide texture and a hint of freshness to the tarts. These tarts can be made the night before and stored in the fridge. The trick is to glaze and seal the apple with melted butter and lemon to stop the apple discolouring.

You will need.

  • 15cm diameter plate or ring
  • Small knife
  • Slicing knife or mandolin
  • Chopping board
  • Shallow pan with lid for the puree
  • Small pan for the cider syrup
  • Small dish and pastry brush
  • Dessert spoon
  • Fish slice

French Apple Tarts.

French Apple Tarts, ingredients
French Apple Tarts, ingredients

Makes 4.

  • 400g                 ready rolled butter puff pastry (1pack)
  • 6                      granny smith or golden delicious apples
  • Icing sugar to sweeten
  • 30g                  unsalted butter
  • 2tsp                 lemon juice

For the apple puree.

  • 20g                   unsalted butter
  • 1 large              bramley apple
  • 1tbsp                 caster sugar
  • 40ml                 dry cider
  • Squeeze of lemon

Cider syrup.

  • 6tbsp                 dry cider
  • 3tbsp                 caster sugar

To serve.

  • Icing sugar with a pinch of cinnamon mixed in.
  • 4 balls               vanilla ice cream
  • 1tbsp                 chopped pistachio nuts

The first job is to make the apple puree. This needs to be cold before use so its an ideal job to do the night before you intend to make the tarts.

French Apple Tarts -Making the Apple Puree.

Adding the cider
Adding the cider

Peel and core the apples then cut into thin slices. Put the slices into a shallow pan with the butter then place the pan over a low to medium heat. Sprinkle the apples with the sugar, cider, and lemon juice, then pop on a lid.

The Bramley Apple Puree
The Bramley Apple Puree

Cook slowly, removing the lid and stirring from time to time. Once the apples have softened and become a puree remove the lid and cook for a further three or four minutes to dry the puree a little. Have a taste and add a dash of sugar if you think the puree needs it, but don’t let it become too sweet   Scrape the puree into a clean bowl and let cool completely.

French Apple Tarts – dealing with the pastry.

Find yourself a small plate approximately 12cm in diameter. Next cut some squares of baking paper just a little larger than the size of the plates.

The pastry disks
The pastry disks

Open the puff pastry and carefully unroll onto a chopping board. Place the plate onto one edge, then using the point of small knife cut around the plate for form a disk of pastry. Use a fish slice to lift the disc into a square of baking paper, then place a second square on top. Its important not to crush the edge of the pastry, or the cooked tart will rise unevenly.

Repeat this process, laying each disk on top of the first with a sheet of paper in between. Lift the stack onto the plate then refrigerate for ½- 1 hour.

French Apple Tarts – Construction.

Before you start, melt the 30g of butter in a small dish and work in 2tsps of lemon juice, keep that handy to glaze the finished tarts.

Slicing the Golden Delicious Apples
Slicing the Golden Delicious Apples

Cut a granny Smiths apple in half from the stem downwards, then cut out the core. Then take a slice off one side and starting at the side you have just cut slice the apple into 2mm thin slices. You can do this with a knife or use a vegetable mandolin as you wish. Only cut one or two apples at a time, or they will discolour before you can use them.

Take a disk of pastry, keeping the paper base in place and set in onto the chopping board. Set a mound of apple puree into the centre of the disk.

French Apple Tarts – Adding the apple slices.

Arranging the apple slices
Arranging the apple slices

Lay a slice of apple on the pastry, sitting with one end on the puree and the other end about 6mm in from the edge of the pastry. Add a second slice, overlapping the first by approximately a third and keeping in from the edge. When you have completed the circle, tuck the last slice under the first take a small knife and gently score a grove into the pastry around the circle of apples. This will allow the pastry to rise up around the apples and form a rim. Brush the tart all over with the melted butter / lemon mix. Then transfer the tart onto a tray, and place in the fridge while you work on the next one.

Cider syrup.

To make the cider syrup simply pour the cider into a small pan and add the caster sugar. Bring the pan to the simmer and simmer gently until most of the cider has evaporated and you have a thick, but still runny syrup. Watch out as the syrup will thicken as it cools, a dash of hot water will thin it slightly if needed.

French Apple Tarts – serving.

Dusting the tarts with icing sugar
Dusting the tarts with icing sugar

If you are going to cook the tarts at once straight away sprinkle heavily with icing sugar and place in a hot oven 180° for 35 minutes, then remove and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar or until the pastry is crisp and golden brown and nice the apples have a nice colour. Whilst the tarts are cooking, put the mascarpone in a bowl and beat through the vanilla seeds.

Place the cooked tarts onto a serving plate and place a good scoop of vanilla ice cream, topped with chopped pistachios. Finish the place with a thread of cider syrup around the tart and a sprinkling of icing sugar laced with a pinch of ground cinnamon.

Just baked, French Apple Tarts
Just baked, French Apple Tarts

 
How far ahead can I make the tarts?

I have kept the finished tarts in the fridge for a couple of days without problem. The butter and lemon juice glaze on the apples prevents them from discolouring. You can also freeze the finished raw tarts, and even bake them directly from frozen. You need to be sure they are covered and don’t get damaged in the freezer though. If cooking from frozen allow about an extra 10 minutes cooking.

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.

Dusting with flour

Join The ‘Westcoaster Newsletter.

Sign up to our newsletter to receive regular updates of what’s new and upcoming at ‘The Westcoaster.’

Click Here

© Copywrite, John Webber. 2024

How To Be A Shortbread Expert, 3 Recipes

How To Be A Shortbread Expert, 3 Recipes

How To Be A Shortbread Expert. There are thousands of recipes for shortbread, and an equal number of opinions as to the ingredients, methods, and baking. I suppose really you could think of shortbread as posh pastry, uplifted to celebrity status.

Make Your Own Easy Flatbreads

Why Not Make Your Own Easy Flatbreads at home?  It’s much easier than you think, and makes an impressive addition served with snacks and dips when entertaining

How to make Ricciarelli Biscuits, an Italian Christmas Treat

How to make Ricciarelli Biscuits, an Italian Christmas Treat

How to make Ricciarelli Biscuits, these Italian delicate almond cookies with a melt in the mouth centre are usually enjoyed during Christmas time in Tuscany. Try them out as an alternative to or in addition to mince pies when entertaining guest over the holiday. And note to self, remember to try our Luxury Cranberry and Whisky Mince Pies.

Ricciarelli Biscuits, also make great gifts, wrap them in cellophane bags and hand them out to friends for a very personal gift.

Contents.

Ricciarelli Biscuits

You will need.

  • Small food processor, to grind the almonds.
  • Mixing bowl
  • Stainless steel bowl to whisk the egg white in
  • Whisk
  • Spatula
  • Two dessert spoons
  • Fine microplane grater
  • Baking tray lined with baking paper.
  • Icing sugar sieve

Makes roughly 20-24 Ricciarelli Biscuits.

Ricciarelli Biscuits ingredients
Ricciarelli Biscuits ingredients

Oven temperature 190˚c

  • 190g               whole blanched almonds
  • 4tsp                 plain flour
  • ½ tsp              baking powder
  • 200g               Icing sugar.
  • 1                      fresh vanilla pod
  • 1                      fresh lemon
  • extra icing sugar for rolling

Making your own Ground Almonds.

To get the best flavour we are going to make our own ground almonds. If this is a problem for you, shop bought ground almonds will work. Try and get the best quality you can to get the freshness. I avoid using shop bought almond essence as its closer to paraffin than almonds. You can buy a very good almond oil but its quite expensive, and may be hard to find.

Ready to grind the almonds
Ready to grind the almonds

Using a small food processor, grind the almonds down. This is best done in two batches to avoid the almonds becoming too warm with the friction created. If the almonds are overdone, oils will be released from the nuts and they will begin to form a paste, spoiling the mix.

Ground Almonds
Ground Almonds

Split the vanilla pod longways and using the back of a small knife scrape out the seeds.

Removing the vanilla seeds
Removing the vanilla seeds

Take a mixing bowl and add the vanilla with all the dry ingredients. Using a very fine grater remove the zest from the lemon and add to the bowl. Mix everything together and set aside.

Mixing the dry ingredients
Mixing the dry ingredients

Adding the egg whites.

Take the stainless-steel bowl and insure it is spotlessly clean. Any traces of fat on the bowl or the whisk will prevent the whites from aerating.

Stiff peak egg whites
Stiff peak egg whites

Separate the eggs allowing the white to fall into the bowl keeping the yolks separately for other uses. Add a pinch of salt to help the whites expand then whisk to stiff peaks.

If you’re not sure how to do this, view the video below to see the process.

Folding egg whites into the dry mix
Folding egg whites into the dry mix

When the whites are ready, tip them out onto the dry ingredients and fold the white into the mix to make a soft paste.

I like to leave the bowl to stand for about 10 minutes at this point to allow the mix to settle. paste.

Moulding the Ricciarelli Biscuits.

Shaping the Ricciarelli Biscuits
Shaping the Ricciarelli Biscuits

Take a large flat plate and add a liberal amount of icing sugar. Using two dessert spoons scoop shapes of dough a little smaller than your thumb onto the sugar. Roll the shapes in the sugar, then transfer each one to a lined baking tray pressing the flat of your finger down to flatten the dough slightly.

Baking.

Ready for baking
Ready for baking

Bake for 10-12 minutes until the edges are a light golden colour and the centres are just soft. Cool the biscuits on a wire then sieve icing sugar over the top.

When complete cooled store in an air-tight container where they should be fine for 3-4 days.

Still not sure? Check out our video below.

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.

Dusting with flour

Join The ‘Westcoaster Newsletter.

Sign up to our newsletter to receive regular updates of what’s new and upcoming at ‘The Westcoaster.’

Click Here

©John Webber. 2023

Irresistibly Easy, Chocolate Custard Cookies

Irresistibly Easy, Chocolate Custard Cookies

These Chocolate Custard Cookies are so easy to make, which is a good job as they don’t last long when people start tucking in. They are great just served as a cookie adults and children both love them.

Want to be Baking your own Bread? Your Questions Answered.

Want to be Baking your own Bread? Your Questions Answered.

Baking your own Bread at home can be a puzzle, let us help you answer your questions. All you need to know to bake great bread at home is here.

Make Your Own Amazing Buttermilk Bread Rolls

Make Your Own Amazing Buttermilk Bread Rolls

These Buttermilk Bread Rolls will really impress your dinner party guests. They go well with most starters that don’t require crispy rolls served alongside.

These rolls are formed with leaves of dough layered with butter. In the oven the leaves swell and open out like a flower. Individual leaves can be torn off the roll and eaten as they are or can be spread with any savoury mousse or pateˊ.

No special equipment is needed, and as long as you can roll out a dough, you can make these rolls. Have a look at our Making Bread at Home pages in the food files to see how easy it is to make your own breads

You will need: –

  • Mixing bowl or food mixer
  • Scales
  • Measuring spoons
  • Small saucepan
  • Pastry brush
  • Rolling mat
  • Rolling pin
  • Pizza cutter
  • Scotch scraper or pallet knife
  • 12-hole muffin baking tray

Buttermilk Bread Rolls.

makes 12.

Buttermilk Bread Rolls, Ingredients
Buttermilk Bread Rolls, Ingredients
  • 750g                 white strong  bread flour
  • 15g                   fast action yeast (2pkts)
  • ½ tsp                bicarbonate of soda
  • 600ml               buttermilk   (room temperature)    
  • 1 tsp                 salt
  • 1 tsp                 runny honey

To form the rolls.

  • 80g                   melted butter
  • 30g                   melted butter to grease the tin

Making the dough.

Fast Action (breadmaker) Yeast
Fast Action (breadmaker) Yeast

I’m using fast action yeast here so we can make the dough by the straight dough method.

Mix the flour, bi-carb and salt together in a bowl. Fold in the dried yeast taking care it doesn’t get into direct contact with the salt.

Make a well in the flour the pour the buttermilk and honey into the well.

Don’t worry about the butter, we are going to that later.

Bring the dough together, tip it out onto the rolling mat and knead for five minutes. Clean out the bowl, rub it inside with a little vegetable oil then return the ball of dough to the bowl.

Proving the dough.

Cover the dough with cling film, and leave the dough in a draft free place until doubled in size.

Put the butter into a small pan and gently melt. We want the butter to be just liquid not separated out. Alternatively pop the butter into a small bowl and stand the bowl in warm water until melted.

Rolling out the dough.

Turn the dough out onto the mat once more and kneed three or four times.

There is no need to kneed this dough much. We want the dough to be light and airy.

Lightly flour the mat then roll out the dough. The aim is to create a rectangle of dough until approximately 6-8mm thick. If the doughs not behaving itself. Let it rest covered with a cloth for five minutes then gently pull the dough into shape with your fingers. You can finish the rolling with the pin.

Brush the surface of the dough liberally with the melted butter. Add the 30g of butter to the pan and use this to grease the baking tray.

Forming the rolls.

Using a pizza wheel cut the dough into approximately 6cm wide strips and then cut these strips across giving approximately 9cm inch by 6cm rectangles. The dough should separate easily, but be carful not to cut into the rolling mat or your table.

Using a scotch scraper or pallet knife pick up a rectangle of dough and place it on the top of another. Pick up another rectangle and place it carefully on the stack. Keep going until you have a stack of rectangles five strips tail.

Keep repeating this until you have used all the dough and made ………

Lift one end of a stack with the tips of your fingers and crimp one of the narrow sides of the dough together. Lift the stack and set into the Muffin tray with the crimped end down at the bottom of the depression.

It is essential during this operation to take great care not to seal the sides or top of the rolls the individual leaves of dough should open up during the second proving and crispen up during baking to produce a light roll in which the individual leaves may be broken off.

Final Proving.

Leave the tray to stand in a draft free place until the rolls have roughly doubled in size. And the leaves of dough are starting to separate.

Baking the rolls.

Bake the rolls in the tray in a 200˚c oven for 10-l5 minutes.  The leaves of the dough should open up and take on a golden-brown colour.

When ready remove the tray from the oven and let the rolls cool in the tray for 10 minutes before attempting to remove them.

Serve warm with plenty of unsalted butter.

If you want to push the presentation even further the rolls can be baked and served in flower pots!

You need small terracotta flower pots which need to be sealed in the oven.

Wash the pots and dry them in a low oven. Increase the heat of the oven to 180˚c then brush the inside of the pots with vegetable oil. Return the pots to the oven and bake for an hour brushing the inside of the pots with move oil every 15 minutes.

When done remove them from the oven and let cool, the pots can now be used repeatedly just with a light greasing before filling. Don’t wash the pots after use, just wipe out with a damp cloth.

Can I replace the buttermilk with anything?

Yes if butter milk is unobtainable try using 550ml of plain yoghurt with 50ml of milk whisked in.

Can I flavour the rolls?

If you want to give the rolls a more savoury aroma add a bruised clove of garlic and some thyme or rosemary to the butter as it melts. You can also sprinkle chopped herbs between the layers of dough as you from the rolls. Keep the herbs towards the bottom of the rolls where they are less likely to burn in the oven.

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.

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©John Webber. 2023

Easy, Spiced Carrot and Walnut Cake, With Mascarpone Cream

Easy, Spiced Carrot and Walnut Cake, With Mascarpone Cream

This Easy Spiced Carrot and Walnut Cake is one of my favourite cakes. Great for making in advance as the flavour develops over a couple of days. The cake also becomes moister as the sugar in the cake absorbs moisture from the air. I sometimes make two at once and freeze one for later use.

Indulgent, Chocolate Brownies, easy to make, easier to eat.

Indulgent, Chocolate Brownies, easy to make, easier to eat.

These Chocolate Brownies never fail to please and rarely are there any leftovers. They are easy to make for a great dessert. Or afternoon treat.