Apples in Autumn

I've just checked the date of my last posted recipe and can't believe that it was in February!  Now I know that I usually go a bit quiet on my kitchen blog through the summer months but I can't use the garden and summer sun as my excuses this year.  The summer has been dreadful and the garden has not drawn me in this season; so no excuses, just life!

So what's brought on this return to the kitchen; well, a belated birthday present, a few ripening apples on the trees and a(nother) dull and drizzly Sunday encouraged me to get the baking ingredients out.

From my new addition to the cookery bookshelf; Cake Days from the Hummingbird Bakery...

bit more cake than biscuit, but delicious none the less!

Apple and Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
135g unsalted butter
80g caster sugar
80g light soft brown sugar
1 large egg
1/2tsp vanila essence
190g plain flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/4tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
2 small or 1 large apple (I used 1 Cox's Orange Pippin from our tree in the garden)
60g rolled oats

Method
Preheat oven to 170C; gas mark 3 and line 2 baking sheets with baking parchment.

Cream the butter and sugars together until light and fluffy, then beat in the egg and vanilla essence.  Sift together the dry ingredients and then add in 2 batches to the creamed mixture mixing thoroughly.

Peel and finely grate the apples and squeeze all of the liquid out of them and discard the liquid.  Add theoats and 60g of the grated apple to the cookie dough and mix together by hand.

Break of pieces of the dough (about 2 tablespoons in size) and roll into balls.  Place the balls about 3" apart on the baking trays.  Place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes until light golden brown.  Remove from the oven and leave to cool for 10 minutes on the baking trays and then move to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Thinking Time

I often find myself either in the garden or the kitchen when I have a decision to make and today is no different.  Two months ago I took the decision to leave behind a career of 17 years with the same company - time to move on and I haven't regretted my decision.  Now I have the offer of two new jobs to consider, so, as it's too cold for me in the garden it must be the kitchen for pondering my choices...

...and whilst in the kitchen what better than a bit of baking.  It relaxes me and allows thoughts to mull around in my head.   And the resulting cake will ensure that I take some time to sit with a coffee and do some more thinking.

So what's a tempting bake...how about some ginger slices or little jammy oat squares or how about both!  These little bakes make a good addition to a lunch box (for the Handyman) or to morning coffee (for me).  So two recipes today, starting with...

crunchy and plummy

Jammy Oat Squares
Ingredients
3 ozs soft brown sugar
5 ozs self-raising flour
8 ozs oats
4 ozs butter
10 ozs jam (I used Holly Grove Victoria plum jam)

Method
In a large bowl rub the butter into the flour and oats until you have a mix like fine breadcrumbs - don't do  this in a food processor as it will chop up the oats.  Add the sugar mix thoroughly.  Add 2tbsp cold water and mix together.  Press half of the mixture (it will be very crumbly) into an 8" x 12" baking tin.  Spread the jam evenly over the base.  Now cover with remaining oat mixture, pressing down evenly and gently.

Bake at 200C for 25 minutes.  Allow to cool in the tin then cut into squares.  Store in an airtight tin.

...followed by...

soft and sweet

Sesame and Ginger Slice
Ingredients
4.5 ozs plain flour
half a tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp ground ginger
quarter tsp mixed spice
2 eggs
5 ozs soft brown sugar
4.5 ozs unsalted butter, melted
2 ozs chopped crystallised ginger (I used stem ginger as I didn't have any crystallised)
2 ozs of sesame seeds, toasted

Method
Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda, ginger, mixed spice together, add quarter tsp salt.  Beat together the eggs and brown sugar until thick and creamy.  Add the melted butter to the egg mixture, then gently fold in the flour mixture.  Add the crystallised ginger and 1 oz of the sesame seeds and mix together gently.

Put the mixture into greased and lined 8" x 12" baking tray, sprinkle over the remaining sesame seeds.  Bake at 180C for 20 minutes.  Leave in the tin for 10 minutes then lift out and finish cooling on a wire rack.  Cut into squares to serve.

Back to Baking

I've really enjoyed the focus on fish in my recent posts and still have the sardines from my delivery to eat - they're in the freezer at the moment.  My thoughts now turn to some more home baking. 

Last night I made a Victoria sponge using Holly Grove bramble jam instead of the more traditional raspberry or strawberry jam.  The bramble jam was made from hedgerow blackberries growing in the lanes around Holly Grove - very satisfying to make something so delicious from free fruit!

The cake makes a lovely light, sweet offering with a cup of tea or coffee as an afternoon treat or served with cream or ice cream as a light pudding.  Good use of the larder full of homemade jam!

Today I've adapted a recipe for shortbread biscuits to incorporate some essence of orange flower water that I bought on impulse a few days ago.  These, like the sponge, make a lovely accompaniment to afternoon tea or morning coffee or with some stewed fruit and ice cream make a quick dessert. 

Orangish Shortbread Biscuits
Makes about 35
Ingredients
325g plain flour
200g chilled unsalted butter, diced
125g caster sugar
2 tsp essence of orange flower water
2 egg yolks
icing sugar, for dusting

Method
Set the oven to 180C.  Put the flour and butter into a food processor and pulse until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.  Add the sugar, orange flower water and the eggs and mix to a smooth dough.

Roll the dough into a long sausage shape, wrap in cling film and chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour.

Lightly grease 2 baking sheets.  Cut the dough into 5mm thick slices and arrange them on the baking sheets spacing them slightly apart.  bake for about 20 minutes until pale golden in colour.  Place biscuits onto a wire to cool and then dust with icing sugar. 

Note: The 'orangish' in the recipe title is because the biscuits didn't taste very orangey, perhaps next time I'll add some grated orange zest?  Despite that the biscuits were crisp and lovely with my latte.

Baking Day

Aah, the appeal of a warm kitchen, Rayburn running and the prospect of homemade biscuits and cakes - a real tonic on a Winter Sunday!

I don't often use the oil-fired Rayburn in our kitchen but with snow outside and time to spend a day in the kitchen I thought the prospect of baking in a warm kitchen was irresistable, so I fired up the Rayburn, put a pot of soup on the hotplate and a gammon joint in the oven and headed for the baking tins.

Ginger Choc-Chip Cookies
Ingredients
8 ozs butter, softened
3 ozs light soft brown sugar
9 ozs SR flour
2 tbsps golden syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 ozs dark chocolate drops
2 ozs preserved ginger, roughtly chopped

Method
Butter 2 large baking sheets and cover with baking parchment. Beat the butter and sugar together until pale and creamy. Stir in the remaining ingredients to make a soft dough. Roll the dough into walnut-sized pieces and space out generously on the baking sheets. Chill for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 200C/Gas Mark 6. Bake the cookies for 12-15 mins, until light gold in colour -they will still feel quite soft in the middle. Leave on the baking tray for about 5 mins then transfer with a palette knife to a wire rack to cool completely.