Continuing the Dessert Development, Vanilla Black and Oklava (2 Awesome Restaurants)

Posted on November 11, 2017 by julianrolfe

The continuing saga of dessert development goes on! The 1st bash had gone ok, but there is much work to do to get things to the point I would be happy, and make a completed version of Pistachio Dacquoise, Roasted Pineapple Jelly, Kerisik Mousse and Chocolate Glaze, for friends to try.

From the last session, I had been considering how to notch things up a bit so looking through the various components, Dacquoise, Mousse etc. I decided to focus on the Pineapple and see if I could improve things, so how do you make Pineapple special?The 1st version used Pineapple that had been roasted with some sugar in the oven, it was ok but quite sharp. I could add more sugar, like Muscovado to add more depth but decided I would try something new and make a ‘Spiced Caramel‘ to roast the Pineapple in, never done that before. Adding 2 parts Sugar to 1 part water and slowly bringing to the boil you can start to smell the Caramel aroma fill the kitchen. Looking through various books and posts there are loads of methods published explaining not to stir the mixture as its creates crystals and wiping the sides if the pot with a wet brush to ensure all the sugar is dissolved.The spicing would come from a range of aromats, added once the Caramel is made and cooled a bit to prevent burning the spices, the sugar mixture is EXTREMELY HOT. The Sugar/Water mixture started to boil rapidly and change colour from White, to Tan to Brown, job done. I source my herbs and spices from Steenbergs, my favourite supplier and they were to feature heavily in the added flavours. Organic Lemon and Orange Oil, Cinnamon, Cardamon, Star Anise, Sanscho Pepper (from Japan) and grated Tonka Bean. I did not use the Ginger as shown in the picture above in the end, I might try some fresh Ginger next time round.I let the Caramel cool for quite a while and then added the spices as you can see above, I used about 1/2 a grated Tonka Bean, the flavour is similar to Vanilla but subtly different, buy some to see what I mean. The Japanese Pepper adds a delicious bite to the Pineapple and an extra edge!I used two fresh Pineapples, removed the core and skin and cut into rough chunks as above. The oven was set to 180 deg, I poured the caramel over the apples and mixed well, removing the spices with a sieve beforehand and set the timer to 2 hours. I checked the Apples every 30 minutes and gave then a good mix up to make sure the Caramel was coating them well.It was noticeable that the moisture from the Pineapple had ‘diluted’ the Caramel so unlike last time, the cooking was extended to about 2 hours and 20 minutes, you can see the results above. I think in hindsight I could have taken the Caramel to a much deeper colour in the first stage to make it even richer but thats the point of experimentation in the kitchen.I didn’t go through the jelly stage this time round, we had the Pineapple warmed through with some clotted cream and it was really very tasty. Learnings for next time are:

Take the Caramel much further to a deeper colour
Let the spices steep for even longer to allow the flavours to infuse even more

Next time I will be focussing on getting the Pistachio Dacquoise into better shape, and then looking at the Kerisik Mousse but all this will be when I am back from Malaysia, a trip I am extremely excited about.

In the last few weeks I have had to spend some overnight time in London, and been lucky enough to try out a couple of new restaurants, Vanilla Black and Oklava, both at different ends of the foodie spectrum so here was my experience at both.

A Night at Vanilla Black!

Lets start by saying I am NOT a vegetarian, but Vanilla Black IS a Vegetarian and Vegan establishment situated in Tooks Court near Chancery Lane in London.

So why the hell did I, a meat eating carnivore who loves the finer side of Ox Cheek, Jacobs Ladder, Liver, Heart and who knows what else decide to pay very good money to try this ‘vegetarian’ place out? Because the food looked AMAZING, and other reviews had suggested this was not your run-of-the-mill place to eat Nut Roast, Stuffed Peppers, Vegetarian Lasagne and all the other variations of meat dishes, with the traditional protein replaced by ingredients like Quinoa, Cous Cous, Haloumi or other products that could be used in more imaginative ways, just like Yotam Ottolenghi is pretty damn good at!

So I sat at my table, a little earlier than planned as my 30 minute walk turned out to be only 15 minutes and perused the menu. I had already chosen to be honest, I was going for the Vegetarian Tasting menu with matching wine flight, might as well do things properly. The restaurant was already pretty full and buzzing, most of the eateries I has passed on the way were either empty or only had a very small clientele, a good sign I thought.I was presented with a glass of bubbles shortly after arrival which was a nice surprise, and some home made bread and butter to nibble on to get things going. The 1st of 2 amuse bouche was a delightful mouth cleanser as my waitress explained, a Carbonated Apple drink with small pieces of Celery and a dusting of Parsley powder it certainly did the trick, refreshing with some lovely texture it set me up for what was to come.Hmm, here we go, course number 1: Cucumber, Sticky Rice and Ginger Purée, Pickled Cucumber Ketchup and Seaweed, what the hell was going on in my mouth, it was just stunning. When you read the ingredients and think, sounds a bit, you know…The Sticky Rice was surrounded in a crumb so you got oodles of texture, all the other flavours just danced around, it was very good indeed, the ginger doing a really good job of reminding you it was ever present. The wine that accompanied this dish the waitress explained was a Hattingly Sparkling Wine which really worked very well with the various flavours.So onto dish no.2: Baby Fennel, Creamed Lemon and Toast, Fennel Purée and Ice, Basil and Lime, served with a Tempranillo Blanc. I was writing notes in between each course on my iPhone, to remind me what I was tasting. I particularly remember this dish as the contrasts between the temperatures were a real hit, quite magical on the palate.Things were getting interesting, if not already exceeding all my expectations. The service from the young Hungarian waitress was impeccable, taking time to explain each course, and why the particular wine matched. I asked for a list of the wines as I had not taken detailed notes and she arrived back with a piece of paper with them all written down for me, she was very passionate about the food being served.

Annoyingly, I was so wrapped up in the ‘vegetarian’ experience I forgot to capture the 2nd Amuse Bouche which was based on Buratta, I’ve had the pleasure of a private trip to an artisan cheese producer in Puglia and tasted it fresh along with Mozzarella and Ricotta, still warm from the production process it’s fabulous.

So dish no.3? Tomato Shortbread, Sheep’s Milk and Brocoli, Gem Lettuce and Egg Yolk, served with a Sancerre. This was frustratingly good, warm Shortbread, sorry no, Tomato Shortbread it was warm and delish with the Sheeps Milk Centre (Cheese of course), again with different texture and flavours bouncing all over the place.It was all going very well, nothing to get the slightest bit ‘oh, not sure about that’, and before too long it was course no.4: Baked High Cross and Charred Spring Onions, Roasted Onion Purée served with a Rioja Promesa, very nice too. The only ‘minor’ challenge with this dish was the Spring Onions which were slightly stringy, but otherwise another amazing piece of food engineering.Unfortunately it was time for dessert, and I am Type 1 diabetic, but on occasions and this was to be one of the them (two actually, more in a moment) I thew caution to the wind as the Cep Mushroom Fudge, Roasted Cocoa and Honey Ice Cream, Salted Lavender Honeycomb and Brioche landed in front of me, complete with a Tokaji Dessert wine. Bugger, it was so so so delicious, I could argue at least one of my five a day was on the plate. Cep Mushroom Fudge WTF!! Just Brilliant, the sweet wine a perfect match that was me done for the evening, or that’s what I thought!Next thing I knew I was presented with another dessert, this one from the Vegan menu! Coconut Sorbet, Toasted Rice Mousse and Coffee Coconut Crumble and Coffee Sponge, thank-you Chef a really nice touch it was another stunner, but for me the Cep Mushroom Fudge is definitely the winner on this occasion.

So, I guess you can tell I am now a Vegetarian! No, not quite but the evening at Vanilla Black was beyond outstanding, why, because it was Vegetarian and everything I was served was amazing (spring onions excused), I went in with an open mind and came out astounded at how they could produce some of the best plates of food I have ever eaten, so thank-you Andrew, and your brilliant team.

If you fancy trying something a little different and prepared to have your mind messed with, I whole heartedly recommend the tasting menu for a whole new experience, it was awesome.

Now on to Oklava!

Selim Kiazim was on Saturday Kitchen this morning on BBC1, she is a fantastic Chef and I was lucky enough to get a place at her restaurant Oklava a few weeks back, with a book recently published of the same name it sits proudly on my shelf nestled amongst Yotam Ottolenghi, Sabrina Ghayour and Bethany Kehdy, to name a few middle eastern favourites.

Turkish Cypriot food is on the menu, with the option of a table or sitting at the ‘pass’ watching the food being prepared it’s a very warm and open environment.

This was my second night in London, and after Vanilla Black, was looking for something different, and Oklava hit the mark. I managed to get a booking the day before and also managed to arrive 45 mins early this time, the underground was running very well and walking distances on my side had been completely over estimated. The place was buzzing just like the previous evening which again bode well for a great night to come.

This evenings menu included meat and fish too but strangely, I did opt for a Vegetarian option for one of the courses, more of that in a moment.

I was given the option of sitting at the end of the bar and had a fantastic view of all that was going on, which was really great. Seeing Selim and her all female team in action was really interesting as the orders were placed, and the food prepared in front of me, the open fronted oven in the background used for roasting various menu items.

There is a nice menu selection which should cover most tastes, mine was to start with the Spiced Chicken Parfait, Cracker and Pickled Apricots which I watched being prepared before me.

Really very nice indeed the Parfait was very smooth and packed full of flavour, the spicing tickling the tastebuds enough to say ‘hello, i’m here’! The home made cracker was an interesting addition, replacing the usual heavy bread which can fill you up too much before a main course.I was being looked after by a lovely American lass, who had arrived in the UK about 3 months previously and certainly knew the menu well, making recommendations and suggestions as to what would work. To go with the food i picked a Turkish Wine from Northern Anatolia, Diren Collection 2015 which is made from a grape i had not heard of, Narince which was very tasty.

My next dish was a bit unusual, in that it was that ‘vegetarian’ feeling taking over me again, Chilli Roast Cauliflower, Red Onion, Parsley and Pistachios was ordered and arrived after getting the roasting treatment from the open oven. It’s in Selim’s book, also called Oklava so i am looking forward to having a go in the future myself. I reckon it could stand up as a main course all on it’s own with maybe some salad as a side. It was very rich and packed full of flavour, i am glad i picked a lighter main course.For the main even i went for Lahmacun, something i have wanted to try since seeing Rick Stein munch through one on his series Mediterranean Escapes in 2010! Spicy lamb mince on a home made wood fired flat bread, topped with a zesty salad and lemon juice then rolled and eaten it was very very nice indeed.

No dessert for me that evening as the night before had taken my quota for the month, it was a great evening with lovely food, the service was very good, attentive and unfussy Oklava deserves the positive accolades it receives, highly recommended and one to return too in the future.

Selim kindly signed a menu for me to take home during service to keep with the Oklava book I proudly own.

……………………………………….Until nest time…………………….L8ers………………………….

Half Sphere or Dome, it’s up to you? My 1st Attempt at proper Patisserie

Posted on April 13, 2017 by julianrolfe

Having recently attended a Chocolate School with the very talented Mark Tilling, I was encouraged to ‘stretch’ myself a little bit and broaden my skills beyond making a properly tempered bar of Chocolate!

This is a personal thing, learn something new and then keep going until I get to a point where I cannot go any further and call it a day. I am still on that journey and each month find myself picking up a new skill or learning about a new ingredient or technique in the international world of food.As my regular readers will know, I was diagnosed with Type I Diabetes last year so I have made subtle changes to my diet, no Sugar in Tea is the main one, and Desserts are an occasional treat, which to be honest is the way it has always been, I don’t have a really sweet tooth. So I was looking to stretch myself again and decided to have a go at a ‘Dome’ cake, they look a bit challenging and having tried one of William Curley’s from his Boutique in Richmond a while back, if I was 50% as good it would be a result.

Looking through various sources like William Curleys’ Chocolate book, the internet etc. I could not find a complete recipe for the flavour profile I wanted to achieve so decided to have a go at designing my own, but using snippets from all the resources I could. I was learning on the way as much of what was required I had not done before. There was also an issue of equipment, I did not have much as I am a ‘savoury’ person so started to research what would make life easier and the essentials I needed and looked to find out where It could be purchased.

Please Read the whole blog post 1st as I have split it into the elements that make up the complete Dome Cake. Each Section will describe what it is, the ingredients, what equipment I used (so you might need to buy) and the technique. It IS my longest post… through necessity though.

It wasn’t easy, my other half though I was having a mid life crisis but if you take it step by step it can be achieved by anyone who is methodical and can follow recipes. The results are well worth it as my testers said when they sampled the results earlier this week, one asking for the recipe. Have a read and if you feel like a challenge, have a go.Sablé Breton

350g Flour
250g Butter (Salted)
20g Baking Powder
3 egg Yolks
125g Sugar

I decided I wanted a texture on the base, not sponge or a variant of which there are several so went for a french version of shortbread, Sablé Breton. On it’s own its a lovely buttery slightly salty biscuit, utterly delicious. Mine has an added edge of Pistachio nuts that have been through a processor, and ‘glued’ around the edge with some Chocolate, yumm. The recipe is from my good friend Richard Bertinet, published in his book Pastry, which is well worth getting.If you have warm hands I would wash them under cold water, we want to grate all the Butter into the Flour which has been sieved with the Baking Powder and Sugar. Do it in stages so you can lift the flour with your hands and coats the butter so they become like breadcrumbs, as in the picture. Someone in the house had used the Brittany Salted Butter I had planned to include so had a ‘lightly’ Salted Butter and just added a little extra.

Add the eggs yolks and combine carefully, you don’t won’t to work the mixture too much, it should combine together if you apply some gently pressure into a dough and end up like below.Stick it into the fridge wrapped in clingfilm overnight, or for at least 4 hours. You can then gently roll it to a thickness of 3-4mm and cut with a 6mm round cutter and place on a lined baking tray. This is where I made my 1st mistake, it needs to go back into the fridge to firm up and I used a fluted cutter that was slightly bigger.

After cooking at 180 degrees for 18 minutes they ‘spread’ out a bit and ended much larger than I wanted, you can see this in the picture of the final product, the visible gap between the dome and the edge of the Pistachio crumb, it’s all part of the learning!Mango Créme Brûlée

A Mango (not 2 as in the picture)
200ml Whipping Cream
3 Egg Yolks
2 Tbl Caster Sugar

I made the Brûlée the same day as the biscuit base as they both need some time to rest, or in the case of the Brûlée, freeze in little moulds. The moulds are 15 Cavity 3D Semi Sphere Silicone 29.8*17.4*1.9cm and available from Amazon for about £4. They took several weeks to arrive so you need to get an order in quick.We need to cook the Mango after it has been peeled and sliced. Mine took about 40 minutes on a low heat, I added a dash of Water half way through to stop the Mango sticking and burning on the base. We do this because Mango is quite fibrous and we want to break it down as much as possible. Brûlée’s should be smooth and silky so we will be sieving the final product anyway, but it’s worth going through this stage to get a much flavour as possible.Once the Mango is cooked it needs some serious blitzing. We have a ‘Ninja’ which made the Mango into a puree in no time at all. Brûlée means burnt or scorched Cream so we have to heat the Cream, Mango and Sugar up to a point that it has just boiled and started to rise up the sides of the pan, then take it off the heat.

We can then tip a little of the mixture into the Egg Yolks and whisk fast, and then add that mixture into the remaining Cream and Mango, like making a Custard. We have to be careful that we don’t end up with scrambled eggs so take time over this.

You then have to pass the mixture through a sieve, it will need some help with the back of the spoon, you need a smooth silky texture so we have to remove all the fibrous Mango from the mixture otherwise it will be grainy. As we have in effect made a custard, we need to GENTLY cook it so set the oven to about 130-140 degrees add some water to the tray like a Bain Marie, and cook for about 18 minutes. Don’t overcook or it will split and you will end up with scrambled eggs!Then, pop in the fridge to set. After an hour or two, pop into the Freezer, we need them frozen to get their White Chocolate and Lime coating before going into the Coconut Mousse.

You will notice one of the Brûlée missing in the picture below, although I only needed 7 Dome cakes I made 12 and had some spare Mango inserts as I wanted to test each stage in case I went wrong, and have a couple spare for the family of course!These are the Sable Bréton after 18 mins at 180 degrees, golden and delicious they need to cool right down and go into an air tight tin as we won’t need them for a day or so.So we have our Frozen Brûlée. You could miss this next step but I wanted to add another textural component into the dish along with a subtle surprise of citrus in the form of Lime.

Firstly, Let’s talk Chocolate, well actually Couverture. Couverture chocolate is a very high-quality chocolate that contains a higher percentage of cocoa butter (32–39%) than baking or eating chocolate. This additional cocoa butter, combined with proper tempering, gives the chocolate more sheen, a firmer “snap” when broken, and a creamy mellow flavour.

I get my Chocolate from Chocolate Trading Co, they have a good deal on at the moment HERE 3 x 1Kg Callebaut Plain, Milk and White (really good Chocolate) for just over £21.

The plan was to coat the frozen Brûlée in a layer of tempered White Chocolate with the addition of some Lime Zest. Using a wire cooling rack, demould the Brûlée and place the rack over a baking tray to catch the drops and stick back into the freezer until the Chocolate is ready.The tempering process used provides the textural ‘snap’ that would not happen if you just ‘melted and poured’. Traditionally quite complex tempering has been simplified by the use of something called MyCryo, which is readily available online and is in reality powdered Cocoa Butter.

You need to use 1% of MyCryo by weight so as you can see above, 195 Grams of Chocolate needs 1.95 Grams of MyCryo, hence the ‘posh’ scales which allow really small measurements to be made. The scales are an investment and cost about £30 but will last you a lifetime if looked after and can manage 0.01 gram increments which is also useful if you are looking at using MyCryo or agar agar gelling agent.As you can see from the notes above, for White Chocolate we need to heat to 40-45 degrees, err on caution and keep to the lower end. Use a Metal bowl over hot water, a Digital Thermometer is needed to do this properly, again easily available online for a few pounds.

Stir the Chocolate with a spatula not forgetting to add some Lime zest until the Temperature drops to 33-34 degrees, add the MyCryo and keep stirring. When the Chocolate reaches 29-30 degrees grab the frozen Brûlée from the freezer and gently pour over. It’s a bit fiddly as the Chocolate wants to set straight away but persevere and it will be ok, albeit maybe a little thick (2-3 mm).

Next time I will probably paint on using a small pastry brush to ensure a thinner layer, unless I can work out how to thin the chocolate without affecting its flavour and setting strength (i.e. not runny)!

Time to take a break until the following day……………………………………….

Coconut Mousse

6-7 Sheets Gold (Bloom 200) Gelatin (Available from Sous Chef online)
300 ml Double Cream
300 ml Tin 70% Minimum Coconut Milk (Needs to be in the Fridge Overnight)
1 1/2 Tbls Malibu
2 Tbls Castor Sugar
Pinch Salt

Apologies but I didn’t manage to capture a couple of the pictures for the next stages as I was partly doing things as I went and it was becoming a bit mentally challenging. I had to convert American cup measures and work out how to use professional gelatin which I had not done before, and some of the volume calculations were interesting!

Searching the web, the majority of Coconut Mousse recipes also contained Chocolate something I didn’t want as it would be too sweet so ended up looking at a couple of ideas and ‘knocking up’ my own! The Gelatin Sheets I used from Sous Chef are 23cm x 7 cm and weigh 2.5 grms (approx). Each sheet can set 100ml of fluid into a soft texture, but are affected by milk products, sugar (sets firmer) and alcohol (too strong sets looser).

You may recall in the recipe the Coconut Milk needs to go into the fridge, this helps the Cream rise to the top and the Water to the bottom. Carefully remove the Cream from the top into a measuring jug as we need to know the quantity to work out how much Gelatin we will add. Note the Cream quantity add the Coconut Cream quantity round up to the nearest 100ml and use 1 sheet per 100ml plus 1 extra to take into account of the alcohol we are using, we will end up with a firm set Mousse (hopefully)!

Whisk 3/4 of the Double Cream with the Sugar, Malibu and Salt until firm, over whipping and you will have Butter! Fold in the Coconut Cream and put into the fridge. The Gelatin needs to ‘bloom’ or swell in cold water (5 times its weight) for 5- 8 minutes before squeezing and adding to a small pan with the remaining Cream on a low heat to melt. Heat to 37-40 degrees stirring all the time. Take off the heat and let it cool for a few minutes, then fold into the Coconut Cream mixture and put back in the fridge.You can see in the picture above the Mousse layer, with the White Chocolate covered Mango Brûlée in the centre of the cake. You will now need 2 x Large Hemisphere dome silicone pan 6 holes 29.5 x 17.5 x 3.3cm, about £3 from Amazon.

Take the Brûlées out of the Freezer, lay your moulds on a baking tray and 1/2 fill with the Mousse. Place a Brûlée dome side down in each ‘hole’ and fill to the edge with the Mousse. Be CAREFUL not to overfill as thy will not sit on the base properly as some of mine didn’t. Place in the Fridge for an hour or two until set, then into the Freezer overnight.

Next day……………………………..

The Dome Cakes need a glaze, a shiny coating to finish them off. I looked at several, White Chocolate, Milk Chocolate, Cocoa based but opted for a recipe in William Curleys‘ Book ‘Patisserie‘, this time using the Callebaut Dark Chocolate. It’s a brilliant book, buy it!

Dark Chocolate Glaze

260 ml Whipping Cream
50 grm Caster sugar
40 grm liquid glucose
250 grm dark chocolate (chopped)

Add the Sugar, Cream and Glucose to a pan, heat until boiling, slowly add the Chocolate stirring all the time until melted, pour into a jug and put in Fridge to cool a bit. That’s it.Let’s sort out the Sablé Breton next. Take a good handful of Pistachio Nuts and blitz them in a blender, not too fine as we want a bit of texture. I use Pistachios a lot, in Middle Eastern Cooking and find the ones in the shops are ‘ok’ but usually have a brown skin which will not look (or taste) nice. They are also quite expensive so I made an investment and purchased a Kilo of skinned Iranian Pistachios as in the picture above, again from Sous Chef who are a very good online supplier.

Melt a handful of Milk and White Chocolate and gently roll the edge of each biscuit in the crumb, press gently and set aside to set. They are moorish on their own, you could also use Hazelnut’s but the flavour profile will be different, this is a sort of Far Eastern concept.This bit was challenging as I had never done it before. The glaze needs to be at about 70 deg F (runny but not hot). Take the domes out of the Freezer, de-mould and place flat side down on a cooling rack over a baking tray. I had a sheet of baking paper underneath to capture the excess. Gently pour over, I started at the middle and used a gentle circular motion slowly moving to the outside. Put back into the Freezer for 5-10 minutes. Repeat the the process and back into the Freezer. Almost done!!!To serve I put a bit of the leftover glaze in the middle of the Sablé Breton and using a small offset stepped palette knife gently placed the dome on top. Then Enjoy.

At the beginning of this exercise I was hoping to achieve 50% of what William Curley does with his amazing patisserie, and think I was pretty close. Lots of learning on the way which is always good and the end result is quite impressive in looks and tastes delicious.

……………….Until next time……………….L8ers…………………..

Kringle Version 1 (Not a complete Failure) – Danish Pastry Bliss

Posted on April 4, 2014 by julianrolfe

The last couple of weeks have been challenging and being struck down with flu has just added to the frustration, not feeling particularly inspired to get into the kitchen. Until recently I have not been a fan of Twitter, my Facebook account was deleted some time ago as it became too distracting, Twitter, due to its limited message size, seems to provide a source of inspiration on the foodie front and is the reason for this latest post.

I am a massive fan of Yotam Ottolenghi, and Middle Eastern inspired food in general. Yotam recently ‘tweeted’ from Copenhagen a picture of an interesting looking pastry called KRINGLE, I saw this post and decided to do a bit of detective work, and see what this treat was all about.

The word originates from the Old Norse kringla, meaning ring or circle and denotes the traditional shape of this pastry, made using either Puff or a Yeast based dough. Trying to find some recipes and guidance for making Kringle I looked to Google and found a number of different approaches and shapes to this tasty pastry, mostly by clicking through the ‘images’ search results, rather than web which did not seem to have so much too offer.

If you decide to investigate as I did, you will find variations from many countries including Denmark, Estonia, Holland & Wisconsin (home to many Danish people apparently), here is my 1st attempt which did not go quite to plan!!

The recipe I used is HERE, and is based on a combination of Puff Pastry but INCLUDES yeast, be prepared to be patient as it will take 3 days to make, most of this is resting time and should not be hurried if you are to get the best results. You might note an extra spice in the heading picture, Mahleb, an aromatic spice made from the seeds of a species of cherry, Prunus mahaleb the St Lucie cherry, which I added to the pastry mix.

I must have been tired when I started the construction element of my 1st Kringle as I go it completely wrong! You follow a similar method to making Puff Pastry, flattening Butter and folding it into the Dough mix, and leaving it to rest in-between folds in the fridge overnight. This is where I made my 1st mistake and things went downhill from here. If you compare mine, to the instructions on the web links on this page you will see where I went wrong.

There are a number of interesting variations on preparing Kringle, I used one HERE to get an idea on the techniques to create interesting shapes.

You need to treat this beast with respect, and timing/resting is important. You can see the butter beneath the surface after the third day, but you will also notice ‘islands’ of butter which is not what you are looking for. This happened as a result of not doing the folding correctly and trying to fix the problem in a hurry!!!!

After the resting and rolling you can cover the centre of the Kringle with whatever you wish, I opted for a Butterscotch, Sultana and Pecan Nut mixture. I had originally intended to add some Apple, but it was getting late in the day and decided to omit this ingredient at the last minute. The Butterscotch was made from Egg Whites, Light & Dark Muscovado Sugar and Butter.

Now for my next mistake, this was not going to plan at all!

My Butterscotch mixture was way to0 wet, and I should have chilled the pastry further to make it less pliable. Once you have applied the filling you roll lengthways (front to back looking at the picture above), and then cut down the middle to create two tales. Don’t cut all the way as the next stage is to plait the two ends top to bottom and then join together. The technique is in the link above and should create a ring of Pastry, with the cut sides facing upward.

As everything was too soft and wet, my effort to create a beautiful masterpiece failed miserable and I ended up creating what looks like a pair of trousers!

Despite the odd shape and bungled folding the end result tasted absolutely fantastic which was a relief, considering the multiple mistakes I had managed to accrue over the weekend!

This pastry is well worth having a go it, you can play around with the flavours to your hearts content, or go for some simpler shapes to start off with, just put Kringle into Google and select the images to find loads of information on how to make them.

Till next time,

L8ers

Pistachio Cardamom & Polenta Cake – Cooking for Coeliac’s (Gluten Intolerance)

Posted on January 18, 2014 by julianrolfe

2014 has arrived and there is much excitement in my world. Last year I drove miles, thousands of them and it meant having to stay away more often than I preferred, which reduced both family and kitchen time. This year I am looking after a another team based in the south, so less travelling and some more excuses to adventure with food (and spend time with the family!).

I met the southern team last week, and decided to treat them to some home made baking, BUT one of them is a Coeliac which is an intolerance to Gluten. The only known treatment for this is a Gluten-free diet which is a bit of a challenge, if you check the packets of many ingredients the number that claim Gluten free is not massive especially if baking cakes and desserts!

I did some research and found a suitable replacement for flour was Polenta, which is Maize (Corn) ground into a meal (course Flour). Its not the same as conventional Flour so baking with Polenta requires some thinking. You have to be careful with other ingredients too, Baking Powder which is used as as raising agent can contain Gluten so check your packets 1st before embarking on this particular cake.

I made this in between customer meetings and conference calls so apologies as there are not too many photographs in this particular post (2 to be precise)!

I decided to bake a Pistachio and Cardamom Polenta Cake with a hint of Rose Water & Lime Butter Frosting, Middle Eastern inspired and something which was an ongoing development during the cooking process, here’s the final version, which was AMAZING, your will need the following ingredients!

Cake Ingredients

8 cardamom pods, seeds only
150g pistachios, shelled
100g ground almonds
1 tsp rose water
175g polenta
1¼ tsp baking powder
300g unsalted butter, at room temperature
325g caster sugar
4 medium eggs, lightly beaten
1 unwaxed lime, grated zest, plus ½ lime juice
½ tsp vanilla EXTRACT

Soaking Syrup

120g Castor Sugar (Mine has Vanilla Pods in it to infuse)
1tsp Rose Water
80ml Lemon Juice
30ml Lime Juice
1tbsp Pomegranate Molasses (This is critical as it provides a unique Middle Eastern Flavour)

The basis of the recipe were a couple of cakes I found on the Internet which had Semolina as the base and quite a lot of Rose Water, but could not be used as Semolina contains Gluten, hence the Polenta replacement.

I was a bit nervous about introducing too much Rose Water into the cake, as I think its definitely an acquired taste. I decided to add some further adaptions and significantly reduced the Rose Water component, but introduced some more Middle Eastern flavour in the form of Pomegranate Molasses. I also increased the Cardamon and added Lime reducing the quantity of Lemon, which I prefer……….. YUMMMMMM…!

Lime Butter Frosting

250g Unsalted Butter
256g Icing Sugar
2 Limes Zested
½ Lime Juice

The Cake Process

Grease a round, 23cm, loose-bottomed cake tin and line with baking parchment.
Preheat the oven to 170°C/gas 3 (If using a FAN oven, drop the temperature a bit).
Extract the Cardamom seeds from their pods and grind to a powder in a pestle & Mortar.
Put Pistachios in a food processor and grind for a few seconds, you don’t want a powder but pieces around 2-3mm so there is still texture.
Add the ground Almonds, Cardamom, Polenta, Baking Powder and 2/3rds of the Pistachios and mix briefly. The remaining Pistachios are sprinkled on the Lime Butter Frosting to finish.
Beat the Butter and Sugar until pale and fluffy. Add the Egg in small amounts, incorporating it well. (A Kenwood is good for this with the beater).
Fold in the mixed dry ingredients, then the Lime Zest and Juice, Rose Water and Vanilla extract.
Put it into the lined tin, level and bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour until a skewer comes out oily but dry. (Mine took slightly longer, about 1 hr 10 mins)

The trusty Kenwood Chef was used to beat the Sugar/Butter, and also used to mix in the eggs. You might find the mixtures splits during this process, adding a small amount of Polenta will bring it all together.

Put all the ingredients for the Syrup in a small saucepan; bring to the boil to dissolve the sugar, then remove from the heat.Remove the cake from the oven; while it is still hot, spoon the Syrup over the cake, I used about 4 Tbsp, judge with the eye.

Allow the cake to cool, then take out of the tin. Coat the top of the cake with the frosting, sprinkle with the remaining Pistachios and gentle press in to fix.

I had one challenge whilst trying to find the Polenta in the shops, a large chain had some Corn Meal, but looking on the side of the Packet, there was the label ‘May Contain Traces of Gluten’. This brand was very cheap and obviously processed in a factory grinding flour and other Gluten laden products. Another higher end shop had Polenta, but it was Organic and very expensive. Eventually I gambled and went for Polenta Express, Gluten Free but apparently the dry grains had been pre-cooked in some way, it still looked and felt like flour/meal and worked a treat.

The cake is quite (well very actually) moist and sticky, great on its own (as my new friends found out), but also goes really well with a serving of Crème Fraiche or Double Cream.

Feedback from my new team was VERY encouraging, a couple of them have vowed to make it themselves, they loved it so much. Its definitely an ADULT cake, the Pomegranate Molasses used in the Syrup really adds an amazing flavour dimension, the Rose Water is very subtle, and tends to stimulate the nose rather than the taste buds which is what I was hoping for. The Lime Butter Frosting adds another texture and all the flavours work together really well.

Pomegranate Molasses and Rose Water is readily available, I use Steenbergs and Ottolenghi’s to source mine along with the Cardamom.

So there we go, if you know someone with a Gluten Intolerance, and Dairy is not an issue, have a go at this, you will be pleased you did.

L8ers……

The Christmas Challenge Part Deux – KugelHopf My Way

Posted on October 13, 2013 by julianrolfe

The last couple of weeks have been challenging, lots of travelling and fighting a virus which is not very pleasant, and particularly hideous when its your birthday. I had planned another baking session but did not feel up to it, so postponed the event for a week hoping the virus would have started to clear. I had already starting preparing by putting Raisins and Kirsch In a bowl and covered with cling film, which would macerate for 1 week in the fridge to seriously plump up! So back to the Christmas challenge and another recipe, this time modelled on the ‘Alsacian Kugelhopf‘, an enriched cake made with yeast and butter, and in my case a number of spices and fruits. I have recently acquired a ‘Bundt’ baking tin, a round tin with a hole in the centre and fluted edges, and intended to put it to good use with this recipe. You can see it in the picture below, with most of the ingredients.

The process to make this recipe is quite long, you will ideally need to prove the dough mixture 3 times so allow plenty of time, the 1st proving stage can take 2 – 3 hours, with the 2nd and 3rd another 1 1/2 – 2 hours each. For this recipe you will need the following ingredients:

3 Cups Plain Flour
120 Grams Butter
3 Large Eggs
1/4 Cup Warm Water
1/2 Cup Warm Full Fat Milk
I Sachet Dried Fast Acting Yeast (7 Grams)
1/2 Cup Castor Sugar (preferably Vanilla infused)
1/2 Tsp Vanilla EXTRACT
3/4 Cup Raisins (Preferable Soaked for a week in 1/4 Cup of Kirsch)
1 Teaspoon Maldon Sea Salt
Zest of 1 Lemon
Zest of 1 Lime
Zest of 1 Orange
75 Grams mixed Peel (Orange & Lemon)
2 Cloves ground in pestle & mortar
1/2 heaped Tsp Ginger
1/2 heaped Tsp Ground Allspice
1/4 Grated Fresh Nutmeg
30 Grams chopped Hazelnuts
30 Grams flaked Almonds

Firstly, put the Milk and Water into a jug, add the Yeast and stir. Leave in a warm place for 10-15 minutes until a froth starts to develop on the surface.

Put the Butter, Orange, Lemon, Lime Zest, and Sugar in the bowl of a Kenwood Chef with the Dough Hook attached and mix on a medium speed until pale in colour. It takes between 5 & 10 minutes depending on how cold the butter is.

Now add the Eggs, Vanilla and Yeast mixture and mix thoroughly, then add about half the flour, with the Kenwood set to medium speed. Don’t forget to add the ground Cloves, Ginger, Ground Nutmeg and Ground Allspice at this stage.

It should resemble something like above at this stage, once combined, wipe the side of the bowl down with a spatula and add the rest of the flour, and thoroughly mix for a good 10 minutes, you should end up with a soft sticky dough like the picture below.

Now the mixture needs to be left in a warm place covered, until doubled in size, this takes 2 – 3 hours. I put mine by the fire to help the process along.

After the 1st rise, your should end up with silky smooth mixture that looks like the picture above. You can just see flecks of zest dotted about. The next stage is to ‘knock back’ the mixture to get rid of some of the air, I used a spatula to assist with the process. The mixture will deflate and look like the next picture.

Now repeat the process, covering the mixture with a tea towel and again, the rise should double in size just like before.

Whilst the rising is happening, heavily butter the Bundt Pan, and sprinkle with the flaked Almonds, once the 2nd rise has completed, you need to knock back the mixture and add the Hazelnuts and Fruits making sure they are evenly distributed.

The Mixture needs covering again, and left in a warm place to rise for the 3rd time. It should look like the picture above.

When its done, it should be close to the surface of the tin. You need to bake the Kugelhopf for approximately 35 Minutes at 160 deg (Fan Oven), or 180 deg (Convection Oven). After 15 Minutes cover the top with some tin foil to prevent it from browning too quickly, a side effect of the quantity of butter in the mixture.

When its cooked, leave to rest for 5 – 10 minutes, it should ease away from the sides of the tin, then release from the mould and allow to cool on a wire rack. You can see the effect of putting the flaked Almonds on the tin before adding the mixture in the picture above.

You can decorate the Kugelhopf with plain icing sugar, or make a icing drizzle by adding Icing Sugar to Orange or Lemon Juice, depending on your preferences.

You can find out what it tastes like by having a go at making one yourself, Now I have tested the recipe I will be making another one for my colleagues at work later this week, I hope they enjoy it As I much as I enjoyed creating my own version of this spectacular cake.

Freaky Freekeh & A Dessert Invention

Posted on September 28, 2013 by julianrolfe

This week saw the arrival of some new cookery books, Pitt Cue Co, based on an up and coming restaurant in Soho, London, and focussing on barbecue, My Vietnamese Kitchen by Uyen Luu and Dos Caminos, Mexican Street Food by Ivy Stark and Joanna Pruess. Flicking through the pages has whet the appetite even more to experiment with different textures and flavours.

So into the kitchen and this week we are going to be trying some new grains, Freekeh (or farik) and Mograbieh. Freekeh is a green wheat that is roasted and Mograbieh, a giant cous cous that has a soft chewy texture.

Both are available in the UK from Ottolenghi’s online store and are being served as an accompaniment to Lamb Shanks, slowed cooked in Vegetable stock with Shallots, Aleppo Pepper, Allspice, Bay Leaves, Coriander Seeds, Garlic, Ginger, Almonds, pine nuts, Coriander, Pomegranate Molasses and Barberries.

The recipe is a subtle variation on Bethany Kehdy’s Freekeh with Lamb & Rhubarb, in her fantastic book ‘The Jewelled Kitchen’. I could not get any fresh Rhubarb so substituted dried Barberries which I had in the store cupboard.

The process is quite straight forward, rub Lamb with Aleppo Pepper, Allspice, Salt & Pepper, brown some button onions or shallots, remove from pan, add lamb, brown all over, remove from pan, add spices and cook till the aroma fills the room, add the lamb and onions back and Vegetable stock, cover and cook long and slow.

I cooked mine at 130 degrees for 4 1/2 hours. The Freekeh is boiled in stock for about 45 minutes, it has a delicious nutty texture when cooked and is completely different from any other grain I have tasted. The Mograbhieh is steamed initially for about 30 minutes and then simmered in stock and a tablespoon of pomegranate molasses. The Mograbhieh and Barberries were to provide the sour note that the rhubarb would have provided, along with some different textures.

The dish is finished with some toasted Pine Nuts, Almonds and fresh Coriander, it was awesome, the boss loved it a lot as it tasted so different from anything either of us has eaten before. Its not a difficult dish to prepare, the ingredients are available from Ottolenghi’s and Steenbergs, go buy Bethany’s book and create some masterpieces to set your taste buds on fire..

Christmas Dessert No.1

I have been set a challenge by the boss, create some desserts of your own for Christmas! Not one to turn such challenges down here is my 1st attempt, Its Mango with Lime, Cardamom Panna Cotta, Pistachio Dust and Super Short Shortbread!

Its relatively easy to make and I can honestly say, its original as anything can be these days. A couple of you that know me have asked why I don’t publish prescriptive detailed ingredient lists, this is mostly due to copyright infringement, and the fact I am trying to encourage people to have a go, like many other food bloggers. As this is my invention, I will list the Ingredients and process.

You will need.

1 Can Mango (I could not get fresh at the time, the supermarket had sold out)
1/2 Cup Pistachios, ground in a blender
330 ml Double Cream
2 Sheets Gelatine
200 grm Plain Flour
170 grm unsalted butter
140 grm Castor Sugar (Mine is infused with Vanilla pods and a Jar is always in the cupboard)
1 Lime
Maldon Sea Salt
12 cardamom pods

To make the Mango base

1. Put 4 Martini Glasses in the fridge to cool down

2. Put the Mango in a saucepan with Half a Squeezed Lime and the Zest.

3. Add a couple of good tablespoons of water and bring to a gentle heat.

4. After approximately 15 minutes, using a hand blender puree till smooth.

5. Add 1/2 sheet of Gelatine, soaked in cold water and squeesed.

6. Split the puree across the 4 Martini glasses, put a 5 mm layer of Pistachio dust in each glass and put back in the fridge. It should look something like this.

To make the Panna Cotta

1. Pound the Cardamom in a pestle & mortar and add to the Cream to infuse for at least an hour.

2. Put 1 1/2 sheets of Gelatine in cold water.

3. Strain the cream after an hour and put into a saucepan with 55 grm of castor sugar and bring to the boil, remove from heat.

4. Squeeze the Gelatine, add to Cream and stir.

5. Put the saucepan in a larger pan with some cold water and continue to stir to cool the cream, about 5 minutes and then transfer the cream to a pouring jug.

6. Take each glass and VERY slowly pour in the cream mixture, taking care not to dislodge the Pistachio too much, and then return to the fridge for at least two hours.

To make the Super Short Shortbread

1. Stick a block of butter in the freezer for about an hour to harden.

2. Sift Flour, grate in Zest of 1/2 Lime 75 grm Sugar and mix, put in fridge.

3. After an hour, grate the Butter into the Flour mixing gentle as you go, the gentle squeeze the butter and flour bringing it together into a dough, press gentle into a baking tray, it should look like this after 40 minutes at 140 deg (fan), and a dusting of castor sugar.

Leave the short bread to cool for a couple of minutes, then take a sharp knife and cut into pieces whilst in the tin, and leave to cool for a couple of hours before carefully removing. Don’t be tempted to try some at this stage, honestly it will all be gone before you can serve with the rest of the dish its so tasty. I made a variation of this the other day, with Pistachio Nuts and Lime Zest, slightly less butter and cut into biscuit rounds, also worth a go.

So here is dessert No.1 Mango, Lime, Pistachio with Cardamom Panna Cotta and Super Short Shortbread, what’s really strange and unusual when you combine the layers, is that there is a distinct taste of Mint, quite unusual and I guess a combination of the different ingredients.

Till next time, happy cooking.

Julian Rolfe

My Foodie Life

Category Archives: Desserts