Apple & Blueberry Tarts November 29, 2009

These are really simple, look cute and are delicious.  They also make great lunchbox snacks.

Ingredients:
3 apples
handful of frozen blueberries
2 tb raw sugar
1 tb cornflour
1/2 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp mixed spice

Method:
Peel and core the apples, and chop into small pieces.  Put them in a saucepan with enough water to cover them by about 1cm, and simmer until the apples are soft.  There should be only a small amount of water left at this point.

Roughly mash the apples to remove most of the lumps.  Then mix the cornflour with a little water and add this to the pot, over heat, until the mixture thickens.  Add the blueberries and sugar.  Mix well and the blueberries should squash a bit and turn the apple mixture into a purple colour while still leaving lots of whole blueberries (you could mash them together if you don’t want to have whole blueberries)

Set aside to cool.

Lay out sheets of shortcrust pastry, and cut them out with a scone cutter.  Grease muffin tins and lay a pastry circle into each one, to make a tart case.  I used these silicone mini tart cases to get that wavy  tart shape (minus the tomatoes of course LOL). Spoon about a tablespoon of mixture into each one.

I like to cut a small star or other shape from the scraps of pastry, it’s less fiddly than making a full lid, and seems to give them a nice finished look (and makes them stackable!)  You can brush this with milk, but it’s not necessary.

Bake for around 15-20 mins at 200ºC.  Set on a wire rack to cool, or eat while still warm.  Makes about 24 small tarts.

Apple Tarts November 29, 2009

These are really simple but look cute and are yummy.  They also make great lunchbox snacks.

Ingredients:
5 large apples
1 tb cornflour
1/2 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp mixed spice

Method:
Peel and core the apples, and chop into small pieces.  Put them in a saucepan with enough water to cover them by about 1cm, and simmer until the apples are soft.  There should be only a small amount of water left at this point.

Roughly mash the apples to remove most of the lumps.  Then mix the cornflour with a little water and add this to the pot, over heat, until the mixture thickens.

You may add sugar to this mixture if you like, but I have found if you use sweet apples, it isn’t needed.

Set aside to cool.

Lay out sheets of shortcrust pastry, and cut them out with a scone cutter to get that wavy edge.  Grease muffin tins and lay a pastry circle into each one, to make a tart case.  Spoon about a tablespoon of mixture into each one.

I like to cut a small star or other shape from the scraps of pastry, it’s less fiddly than making a full lid, and seems to give them a nice finished look.  You can brush this with milk, but it’s not necessary.

Bake for around 15-20 mins at 200ºC.  Set on a wire rack to cool, or eat while still warm.

Chocolate Self Saucing Pudding August 9, 2009

Ingredients:
1/2 cup melted butter
3 tb cocoa powder
1/2 cup milk
1 cup SR flour
1/2 cup raw sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup raw sugar additional
2tb cocoa powder additional
1 1/4 cups boiling water

Method:
Mix the flour, sugar and first lot of cocoa together. Add the egg, melted butter and milk, and beat until smooth. Spoon this mixture into a greased baking dish (needs to be about a 6 cup capacity) and smooth off the top. Mix together the additional sugar and cocoa, and sprinkle this ontop of the pudding mixture, then carefully pour the boiling water over the back of a large spoon (this helps to stop the water creating holes when you pour it on). Bake at 180ºC for about 30 mins (until the top bounces back when pressed)

Mashmallow Choc Tarts November 16, 2008

Ingredients:
1 packet of biscuits (Butternut, Choc ripple etc.)
1 pack of large marshmallows
Chocolate

 
Method:
heat biscuits in the oven, then while still warm press carefully into a patty pan/muffin tray to form a cup shape (you need to do quickly, or they harden again & break). Melt the chocolate, and use a little to stick a marshmallow into each biscuit. Holding the biscuit part, dip the marshmallow part into the chocolate to coat it, then sprinkle with 100s & 1000s or coconut. Leave to set.

 
(Originally from Super Food Ideas magazine)

Apple Tarts November 16, 2008

Ingredients:
4 red/sweet apples
1 sheet short pastry
1/2 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cardamon
Cream to serve

Method:
1). Peel and cube the apples. Put the apples and spices in a saucepan with enough water to cover. Simmer until the apples are soft and the liquid has almost all disappeared.
2). Mash the apples until the consistency you like (some like some chunks, some like a puree – it’s up to you).  You can thicken the mixture by adding about a tablespoon of cornflour to about 2tb water, mix well and add enough of this to the simmering apple mixture to thicken it to your desired consistency.
3). allow to cool while you prepare the pastry. I use frozen, but you can make your own. Once the pastry has defrosted (if using bought pastry sheets), cut out circles with a scone cutter.  If you like a decorative top, cut stars or other shapes from another sheet of pastry.
4). Press each circle into a muffin tray which has been lightly greased. Fill the pastry base with the apple mixture to the top of the pastry.  Pop a star (or whatever shape) on top.  You can brush this with milk and add some raw/coarse sugar for a nice look, or leave it plain.
5). Bake in a preheated oven at about 200ºC until the pastry is browning (about 15 mins).

Serve either warmed or cool, with cream, custard or on their own.  Makes about 12

Apple Pie November 16, 2008

Ingredients:
3 – 4 Apples (depending on size). Granny Smiths are best… If you can’t get those, some green, slightly tangy apple is good. Or use red sweet apples and you can leave out the sugar.
1 teaspoon (approx) Cinnamon
3 tablespoons (approx) Sugar
15 whole Cloves (or about 1/4 teaspoon of ground cloves)
Short pastry

 
Method:
1). Peel and chop the apples. Put these in a pot with the whole cloves (not the powder if you are using that) and enough water to cover the pieces, and bring to the boil. Simmer until the apples are soft and mushy.
2). Drain the apples to remove excess water, and fish out the cloves (It helps if you remembered exactly how many you put into the pan, so you can make sure you got them all). Mash these apples. I like to have some slight chunks in my apple pie…. so don’t go mad smashing them… just a rough mush will do.
3). Add the cinnamon and sugar (and ground cloves if you’re using these) and mix well. You can do this to taste… if the apples aren’t very tart then you might not need so much sugar. If they are really tart you might need more.
4). Leave this mixture to cool while you make the pastry.
5). Divide the pastry in half and roll out both pieces. Alternately, you can make a latticework top for the pie – if you don’t have enough pastry to do a lid, or you prefer the look. If so, you’ll need only about 1/4 of the pastry for the strips, and the rest for the pie crust.
6). Grease your baking pan/dish and place the pastry bottom into it. Fill the dish with your apple mix, and put the lid on top. If making a latticework top, cut equal strips and lay these along the top of the pie. You’ll have to keep lifting the strips up to make the under/over patterns – so do so carefully.
7). You can finish the edges off by using the prongs of a fork to make a ||||| pattern along the edges (this also helps to stick the two halves together) If you are feeling creative (and have spare pastry), you could make some leaves or other decorations for the top.
9). Using a pastry brush, lightly coat the pastry top with milk (this stops it burning and makes it a bit shiny). You can add egg to this milk too if you like (but it just tends to waste a lot of egg). I like to sprinkle raw sugar over the top for a bit more sweetness, and a nice country look.
10). If you have a solid top, carefully (with a sharp knife) cut a line or two in the top, to allow the steam to escape as it is cooking (or the pie will blow up).
11). Bake at a fairly high temperature until the pastry is browning. Serve hot or cold.

 

You could add raisins or sultanas to this if you wish. Perhaps rhubarb… You could also make it using peaches or some other fruits instead.