I've created this one for reader Peggy Lin, who wrote asking for more low-fat, low-sugar recipes. This chocolate cake still has a rich, deep flavour, a delicate, moist texture, but very little fat or refined sugar, and it's quick to make. If you cut it into 10 slices, it works out about 220 calories a serving, with only half the fat and a quarter of the carbs of a typical un-iced cake. Up the calories a little by serving with a spoonful of low-fat crème fraîche and chocolate shavings.
One 415g tin pear halves in juice
75g cocoa powder
125g caster sugar
3 tsp vanilla extract
50ml walnut oil
1 large egg
225g plain flour
2½ tsp baking powder
Drain the pears, reserving the juice. Measure the cocoa, sugar and 125ml of pear juice into a saucepan, madly whisk it all together and bring to the first 'plop' of a boil. Spoon this mixture, along with the pear halves, into a mixing bowl and leave to cool for 15 minutes.
Meanwhile line the bottom and sides of a 20cm round cake tin with non-stick baking paper and preheat the oven to 170C (150C fan-assisted)/ 325F/gas mark 3. Spoon the chocolate mixture, vanilla and oil into a blender, and purée until smooth. Pour this back into the bowl, then beat in the egg. Stir together the flour and baking powder, sift into the bowl and beat until smooth.
Scrape the mixture into the cake tin and bake for 40 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean.
There’s a double hit of malt in this sweetly chocolatey layer cake – first from the malt extract folded into the cake batter and through the buttercream, and then from the Maltesers crushed and strewn between the layers. You can find malt extract in any high-street health food shop, and in a few of the larger supermarkets, too: it’s sold in jars, has a rich brown colour and a consistency somewhere between the sticky thickness of honey and black treacle.
Serves 10 For the cake 250g salted butter, softened 200g soft light brown sugar 125g malt extract 2 tsp vanilla extract 4 large eggs 300g plain flour 3 tsp baking powder
1 Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Grease two round 20cm cake tins and line their bases with baking parchment.
2 Beat the butter and brown sugar together for a good 2-3 minutes, until smooth and light. Stir in the malt extract and vanilla, then add the eggs one at a time, whisking well between each one. Don’t worry if the mixture is a little curdled at this point – it’ll come together smoothly as soon as the dry ingredients go in.
3 Mix the flour and baking powder together before adding to the wet mixture. Beat briefly to combine and give a smooth, loose batter. Divide the batter between the two prepared cake tins and bake for 25-35 minutes, or until the cakes are well risen and golden brown. A small knife inserted into the centre of each cake should emerge with no more than a crumb or two stuck to it. Leave the cakes to cool for 10 minutes in their tins before unmoulding them and transferring to wire racks to cool completely.
4 Once the cakes are completely cool (and you really do need to be patient here, because if cut while warm they’ll just crumble), slice each layer horizontally in half to give a total of four thin layers.
5 For the buttercream, beat the butter, cocoa powder, malt and vanilla extracts until smooth. Add the icing sugar a little at a time (add it all at once and it’ll take forever to work the ingredients together) and mix until the buttercream is thick and well combined. Add enough milk to loosen the buttercream to a lighter, spreadable consistency – it ought to be soft enough to spread over the delicate cake layers without ripping them.
6 Spread a fifth of the buttercream over each of the four cake layers. Sandwich the sponges together, sprinkling a few crushed Maltesers between the layers. Spread the remaining buttercream around the sides of the cake in a thin layer. Decorate the top of the cake with crushed or whole Maltesers however you want.
At this time of year, fruit falls into one of two categories: the bright imports and the familiar home-grown. Personally, I prefer to buy more Britishapples and pears than kiwi fruits and pineapples.
This cake only takes 15 minutes to prepare, and comes from my friend Bob's mum, Gudren – a lovely Swedish lady who, before she died, made sure she left her son the recipes of his maternal heritage. It's fabulous and foolproof, and fills any gap from pud to tea time to elevenses – perfect for this time of year when cooking energy levels aren't running very high.
Makes 10 healthy slices (takes 15-20 minutes to prepare plus 40-50 minutes in the oven)
3 eggs
150g caster sugar
250g flour
1½tsp baking powder
150g butter plus a couple of knobs
3 bramleys, cut into large bite-sized chunks
¼tsp cinnamon
3tbsp golden granulated sugar, for the top
▶ Pre-heat the oven 175ºC/350ºF/gas 4. Whisk the eggs and caster sugar, either by hand or in a food mixer until it is thick and pale.
▶ Sift in the flour and baking powder, and fold gently until it is all combined. Advertisement
▶ Melt the butter in 240ml water and beat into the mixture.
▶ Grease an oven-proof frying pan (25cm x 5cm deep) with a knob of butter, then pour the batter in.
▶ Drop the pieces of apple into the mix – don't worry if it's pretty crowded in there. Brush the top with melted butter and sprinkle liberally with golden granulated sugar and some cinnamon.
▶ Bake in the oven for 40-50 minutes, then take it out and leave to cool in the pan for 10 minutes.
▶ Run a knife around the edge and turn out on to a plate, then flip again so the apples are on top.
▶ Serve hot or at room temperature with a creamy accompaniment of your choice
Makes about 12 balls 500g homemade yoghurt ½ tsp salt Zest of 1 lemon 1 tbsp dried oregano 2 garlic cloves, peeled and bashed Chilli flakes, to taste (optional) Olive oil, in which to submerge the balls of labneh
1 Put a sieve over a bowl and line it with a piece of clean cheesecloth or muslin or any soft cotton fabric.
2 Stir the salt into the yoghurt then pour the yoghurt into the centre of the cheesecloth. Pull the four corners of the cheesecloth up and tie it into a bag with some string. Suspend it over the bowl overnight to allow the whey to drain. If your kitchen is cold enough, you can drain the yoghurt outside the fridge, otherwise do it in the fridge.
3 When it is firm and drained, with wet hands roll the labneh into balls and store in a jar or container. Add the lemon zest, dried oregano, garlic cloves and chilli, if using, and pour olive oil over the labneh balls to marinate.
4 Serve with roasted vegetables as part of a substantial salad, or on bruschetta. The labneh will keep in the fridge for a couple of weeks.
Any tea will do for soaking the sultanas in these lightly spiced rock buns, but I think that Earl Grey sits well alongside the citrussy lightness of the crushed cardamom seeds.
Makes 8 100g sultanas 1 earl grey teabag 150g plain flour 100g wholemeal flour 3½ tsp baking powder 125g soft light brown sugar ½ tsp cinnamon 4 cardamom pods, seeds only, crushed A pinch of salt 125g butter 100g apple (from 1-2 cox or braeburn apples) 1 large egg 2-3 tbsp demerara sugar
1 Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Line a large baking tray with baking parchment.
2 Measure out the sultanas with the teabag in a small heatproof bowl, and add enough boiling water to cover the fruit. Leave the fruit to soak and plump up until the liquid’s cool, then pass through a sieve, collecting the tea in a separate bowl.
3 While the sultanas soak, combine the plain and wholemeal flours, the baking powder, sugar, spice and salt. Cut the butter into chunks and rub it into the dry ingredients between your fingertips until there are no visible pieces left and the flour mixture is coarsely sandy.
4 Peel, core and chop the apples, cutting into ½ cm chunks. Toss the apple and drained sultanas through the flour and butter mix. Lightly beat the egg, then add to the rest of the ingredients. Work the egg in until you’re left with a slightly sticky dough. If you can pick a ball of it up without it sticking a little to your fingers, it’s too dry. Add a splash of the reserved tea if this is the case.
5 Spoon the batter into 8 portions spread well apart across the baking trays. Sprinkle the demerara sugar over their tops, to give a welcome crunch against the buttery softness of the cake. Bake for 20-25 minutes in the preheated oven, until well-risen and golden brown.
Lemon-glazed gingerbread rock cakes
These will spread a little more than the apple spice rock buns above, but that means a softer texture, too. They’re halfway between a soft gingerbread cookie and a traditional rock cake. If the heat of glace ginger isn’t to your taste, try raisins instead.
Makes 12 400g plain flour 5 tsp baking powder 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda 2 tbsp ground ginger 1 tsp cinnamon ½ tsp allspice ½ tsp salt 225g butter 200g soft dark brown sugar 200g chopped glace ginger
2 large eggs 200g icing sugar 50ml lemon juice
1 Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Line a baking tray with baking parchment. Stir the flours, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, spices and salt together in a large bowl. Cube the fat and rub it into the dry mixture. Stir through the dark brown sugar and glace ginger. Stir in the eggs to get a rough, sticky dough. Spoon into 12 equal heaps spaced well apart on the prepared baking tray.
2 Bake for 15-20 minutes, until the rock cakes have risen, spread and set. They should be reasonably firm, not spongy, to the touch. While they bake, prepare the glaze by stirring the lemon juice into the icing sugar a little at a time until the glaze is smooth and pourable.
3 As soon as they emerge from the oven, brush the rock cakes liberally with lemon glaze. Sprinkle a little lemon zest or extra glace ginger on top of each if you feel like dressing them up. Leave to cool for a while on a wire rack and eat while still slightly warm.M
If the grocery store isn't your favorite place, it should be. We're sleuthing for the best back-of-the-box recipes and each week we'll share our latest find.
Today: The perfect chocolate cake recipe has been sitting in your pantry all along, patiently waiting for you to discover it.
Today feels like the right time to confess that I’ve never been able to bake a good chocolate cake.
I’m a pretty persistent person -- some would say bordering on a perfectionist -- and I’m a very confident baker. Despite all that, chocolate cake has stymied me for years. Mine are either too moist, taste only vaguely of cocoa, or fall apart when I try to frost them.
I want a serious chocolate cake. I want a sturdy crumb, like a 1-2-3-4 cake, but with an intense wallop of chocolate. I want you to be able to close your eyes and think, "Dark and rich." I want it to be tender yet still firm enough to slice and frost. I want it to be just moderately sweet so that it can pair well with Swiss meringue or caramel glaze or coffee buttercream. Oh, and I want to be able to make it in one bowl without needing any fancy, expensive chocolate.
I had gone on a lot of chocolate cake recipe first dates, so to speak, and had yet to enter a serious, move-in-with-me relationship with one -- until I met the perfect chocolate cake from the back of the Hershey’s cocoa box. I think it’s the one! And it was right in front of me all these years.
This dead-simple recipe yields a fantastically rich chocolate cake. It highlights the subtle alchemy of baking, taking a handful of very basic ingredients and turning them into something worthy of celebration. You don’t need any chocolate other than cocoa. There’s no buttermilk, no hot coffee, and no sour cream. Can I get a hallelujah? I've dialed down the liquid slightly from the original recipe to make the cake a little more sturdy, which helps when constructing (and eating) the layers.
More: These Genius brownies also rely only on cocoa powder for their chocolate flavor.
You don’t need the frosting -- the cake is very good plain. But when offered frosting, I usually say yes. Just to be polite. If you’re looking to dress it up differently, I’d suggest a topping of crème fraîche, boiled icing with cacao nibs, or dulce de leche frosting.
Perfect Chocolate Cake
Adapted from Hershey's
Makes one 8-inch double layer cake
For the cake:
2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups flour
3/4 cup cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/4 cup boiling water
For the frosting:
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
2/3 cup cocoa
3 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
Getting a rich chocolate flavour in a soft cake is a touch complex, as it requires tricks to keep the flavour intense while maintaining a delicate texture. I used to half-joke that my favourite was a ready-made packet cake mix with melted chocolate stirred through before baking. Packet mixes use modified starches such as tapioca to form a gel, making the cake moist, and will forgo butter in favour of oil to keep it soft when chilled.
Now, when you try to take your favourite butter cake recipe and add expensive dark chocolate, it can often turn out horribly dry and heavy. The reason for this lies in the type of chocolate you use. If a chocolate contains 70% cocoa, it effectively contains 70% starch. So although dark chocolate appears to be fat – of the most delicious kind – it's only actually about 30% fat and the rest is starch. So adding that expensive chocolate is like adding extra flour, and bitterness, to your recipe. This is fine, just so long as you reduce the flour, and increase the sugar to balance the flavour.
Black Forest chocolate cake
Here is my version of a chocolate packet mix formula, intense with chocolate, and with a texture that stays quite soft and moist in the refrigerator. If you like a slightly lighter flavour you can use half milk and half dark chocolate instead.
For the chocolate mixture 200ml milk 25g plain flour 200g 70% dark chocolate 75ml sunflower oil
For the cake 250g caster sugar 3 tsp vanilla extract 6 medium eggs 175g plain flour 2 tsp baking powder
To finish Kirsch or brandy Cherry cake filling (see below) Sweetened whipped cream Grated chocolate Dan step 1: Line the base of two ungreased deep round cake tins with discs of nonstick paper.
1 Line the base of two ungreased deep round sandwich cake tins with discs of nonstick paper. Dan step 2: Put the milk in a pan with the flour and whisk well, bringing to the boil. Add chocolate dd/dd
2 Put the milk in a saucepan with the flour and whisk well while bringing to the boil. Add the chocolate, broken into pieces, and the oil, then stir occasionally as the chocolate melts and the mixture takes on an oily, split appearance. Dan step 3: Spoon the mix into a mixing bowl, add sugar & vanilla then beat until smooth and glossy.
3 Spoon the mixture into a large mixing bowl, add sugar and vanilla then beat until smooth and glossy. Dan step 4: Beat in the eggs, two at a time, add the flour and baking powder & stir well til smooth
4 Beat in the eggs, two at a time, then add the flour and baking powder and stir well until smooth. Dan Step 5: pour choccy into baking tin.
5 Divide the mixture between the tins and bake at 180C/160C fan/350F/gas mark 4 for about 40 minutes until a skewer poked in comes out clean. While the cakes are warm in the tin, wrap them well (I use clingfilm) then leave until cold. Dan step 6: Take the cakes out of tins. Spoon 2-3 tbsp of kirsch on top. Put cherry mix on top
6 To assemble, take the cakes out of the tins and spoon 2-3 tbsp of kirsch over the top of each if you like. Spread half the cherry mixture over each of the cakes, blob and swirl sweetened whipped cream over one, top with the other cake and spoon more cream over the top. Grate chocolate over to finish.
Cooked fresh cherries combined with cherry jam makes this filling bright and fruit-filled. It keeps well in the fridge for a few days, and doubles as a simple sauce for ice-cream.
400g fresh ripe cherries Juice of ½ a lemon 100ml cold water 150g cherry jam 2 tsp cornflour
1 Pit and halve the cherries then place in a saucepan with the lemon juice and water. Bring to the boil then simmer for about 10 minutes until the liquid has almost vanished and the cherries are tender.
2 Mix the jam with the cornflour, stir in with the cherries and bring to the boil again. Let the filling cool before using.
To decorate, dust with icing sugar and cocoa powder, then add crystallised violets and sugar stars. Photograph: Claire Thomson
With three children, the birthday cakes come
thick and fast. So far, we've had ballerinas protruding from the tops of
panettone, a farmyard with pigs and chocolate fences, a liquorice ladybird, a
Smartie-pebbledashed house and a banana and toffee bear. It's my daughter's
seventh birthday soon. Like most kids, she loves chocolate (less commonly, she
hates icing), and I know she's hoping for something beautiful with flowers. My
take on this River Café recipe for a pressed chocolate cake is perfect.
I've reduced the sugar and rather than pressing the cake with a same-sized
plate, I like to use a smaller plate so the outskirts of the cake remain high,
giving it a lovely raised lip to dust with icing sugar. To decorate, dust the
centre with cocoa powder, then add crystallised violets and white sugar stars.
Simple, stark and very pretty indeed.
Pressed chocolate cake
(Serves 10) 400g good-quality dark
chocolate, broken into pieces 300g unsalted
butter 10 eggs, separated 175g caster
sugar 4 tbsp cocoa powder, plus extra to
decorate Icing sugar Crystallised
violets and white sugar stars
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4.
Butter and line with greaseproof paper a 30 x 7.5cm (12 x 3in) high-sided
spring-loaded cake tin, pressing the paper right into the tin.
Melt the chocolate with the butter in a bowl over a pan of simmering water –
don't let the water touch the bottom of the bowl.
Remove the bowl when the chocolate and butter have melted, and allow to cool
a little.
Whisk the egg yolks with the sugar and cocoa powder, then add to the
chocolate.
In a separate clean bowl, beat the egg whites until they form soft peaks.
Fold into the chocolate mixture, one third at a time.
Pour the mixture into the prepared cake tin and bake for about 25 minutes.
The cake will souffle, set slightly and cracks will appear on the surface at the
edges. The cake should retain a wobble at the centre. Take it out and place two
side plates on top of each other in the centre of the cake to press. Leave to
cool for half an hour.
Release the cake from the spring-loaded tin and, with the plates still on,
dust the edges of the cake with icing sugar.
Remove the plates and decorate with cocoa powder, crystallised violets and
sugar stars.
• Follow Claire Thomson on Twitter or get more
recipes at 5oclockapron.com.
Chilli and chocolate have become a well-loved combination. Thoroughly pureed
chestnuts add a subtle sweet flavour and a grainy texture, similar to ground
almonds.
(Serves 10)
4 medium eggs
140g caster sugar
250g dark chocolate
250g unsalted butter
1-2 teaspoons chilli powder, to taste
250g cooked chestnuts
275ml milk
2-3 drops almond essence
Preheat the oven to 170C/325F/gas mark 3. Grease and line a 23cm springform
cake tin with baking parchment.
Separate the eggs. Beat the yolks with the caster sugar.
Roughly chop the chocolate and put it into a small saucepan with the butter.
Gently melt the chocolate and butter together. Stir in the chilli powder and mix
well to avoid any lumps. Leave to cool a little, then stir into the egg yolks
and mix thoroughly.
Peel the chestnuts if they still have their outer skins on. Roughly chop and
put them into a small saucepan with the milk. Bring to the boil, stir in the
almond essence and leave to cool for a few minutes before transferring to a food
processor. Process until smooth and add to the chocolate mixture, mixing well to
prevent any pale streaks in the cake.
Beat the egg whites to soft peaks and gently fold them into the chocolate
mixture. Spoon the mix into the prepared tin, smooth the top and bake for up to
45 minutes – it may still be a bit wobbly. Leave to cool before taking the cake
out of the tin and slicing to serve.
• Extracted from the Vegetarian Year by Jane Hughes (Modern Books, £20). To
order a copy for £16, go to bookshop.theguardian.com or call the Guardian
Bookshop on 0330 333 6846. Free UK p&p over £10, online orders only. Phone
orders min p&p of £1.99.
My two-year-old is increasingly keen on baking when it’s just us at home and
her older sisters are at school – she knows she’ll have the spoon and bowl to
scrape out all by herself when the cake goes in the oven.
My local fruit and veg shop had raspberries piled high just at her eye level.
She demolished one punnet in her pushchair on the way home; the second was
earmarked for a cake. I’ve had a split packet of desiccated coconut sitting in a
tub on my shelf at home for more months than I can remember – baking with it
seemed a fitting end to this storage annoyance. And the lemon? Simple: lemons
make everything better and brighter. Time for cake! Photograph: Claire Thomson/Guardian
(Serves 6-8) 160g butter 120g caster sugar 2 eggs 100g plain flour 1 tsp baking powder 80g desiccated coconut, plus extra to decorate 2 tbsp milk 80g raspberries For the lemon syrup: ½ lemon, juiced 2tbsp caster sugar Add the raspberries. Photograph: Claire Thomson/Guardian
Preheat the oven 180C/350F/gas mark four, and line and grease a 900g loaf
tin.
Cream together the butter and sugar in bowl with an electric whisk until pale
and creamy – this should take a good five minutes of mixing.
Whisk the eggs and, with the beaters running, add a little at a time to the
butter and sugar. When you have added half the egg, add a tablespoon of flour to
prevent the mixture from curdling.
Add the rest of the egg with the beaters running, then sift in the flour and
baking powder and beat briefly with a large spoon.
Stir in the coconut and milk. The mixture should be loose enough to drop off
the back of a spoon; if not, add a little more milk.
Spoon half the cake mix into the prepared loaf tin. Spread the raspberries
evenly over the surface, then add the remaining cake mix.
Bake for 40-50 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake
comes out clean.
Meanwhile, make the lemon syrup. Put the lemon juice and sugar in a pan and
boil rapidly over a high heat for two minutes, until the mixture thickens and
turns syrupy.
Take the cake out of the oven, spoon over the syrup and sprinkle over the
extra coconut.
Cool on a wire rack before serving.
Ah, nectarines, the smooth-skinned sibling
of the fuzzy peach. Though rarely quite as sweet or juicy as the peach, the two
are often interchangable in cooking. The 1938 edition of Larousse Gastronomique
– the culinary equivalent of going to your nan for relationship advice (wisdom
tempered with intransigence) – says simply, and dismissively, "Voir pêche", so
directing the reader to a million variations on peaches poached in vanilla
syrup, served with raspberries and sweetened cream, and often named after some
early 20th-century starlet.
Well, nectarines also have a great affinity for that triumvirate, while
almonds, aromatic wines and prosecco (think bellini) are also classic pairings.
But if you happen to land some perfectly ripe examples, you could do much worse
than serve them sliced, dusted with a warming spice such as pepper, nutmeg or
clove, and topped with air-dried ham or gooey blue cheese. Fresh, young cheese
works well, too – burrata, say, is gorgeous with nectarine.
Nectarines are sold at such varying degrees of ripeness that one purchase
rarely resembles another; there are even often variations within the same bag of
fruit. To give a few options, today's recipes deal with the fruit at different
stages.
Seared scallops with nectarine and burnt butter
You can get away with under-ripe nectarines here, but the riper the fruit,
the more intense the puree. The dish looks very simple, but the flavours are
rich and interesting. Works with apricots, too. Serves four. 1kg nectarines, halved and stoned 250g unsalted
butter, plus extra for frying 8 large diver scallops (or 12
medium) Sunflower oil, for frying Lemon
juice Sea salt
Stew the nectarines in a splash of water until soft enough to push through a
sieve. Pass through a fine sieve into a jug and set aside.
Heat the butter gently in a pan until it's a deep golden brown and stops
foaming. Tip through a fine sieve into another pan, then leave to cool ever so
slightly. With a hand blender, slowly blitz the still hot butter into the
nectarine puree (much as you would oil into eggs for a mayonnaise). Once all the
butter has been emulsified into the puree, check for sweetness – add a tiny bit
of honey or caster sugar if it's overly sour – then cover with clingfilm and set
aside: keep warm (stand the jug in a pan of hand-hot water) or refrigerate if
making ahead of time.
Heat a nonstick frying pan on a very high flame. Roll the scallops in oil,
then lay a few at a time flat-side down in the pan. Leave for one to two
minutes, depending on size, until nicely caramelised, then flip. Cook for just a
few seconds more, then add a small nugget of butter and a good squeeze of lemon
– this whole post-flip operation should take all of 30-40 seconds, so the
scallops don't overcook. Transfer the scallops to a tray or plate, pour the
juices over the top, wipe the pan clean and reheat the pan for the next batch.
When all the scallops are cooked, season both sides with salt.
To serve, put a generous tablespoon of warm puree on each plate and place the
scallops on top.
Nectarine and almond tart
Concentrated
flavour: Mary-Ellen McTague's nectarine and almond tart. Photograph: Deirdre
Rooney for the Guardian
Again, you can get away with under-ripe fruit here, because roasting
concentrates the flavour. This can be made with gluten-free flour and/or
dairy-free butter, which makes it a winner in my family. Serves six. 750g nectarines 75g butter at room
temperature 60g sugar (caster is fine, demerera or soft
brown even better) 1 level tsp cinnamon or
nutmeg 20g almonds 20g
sugar 10g water
For the pastry 75g butter at room
temperature 150g flour 10g fresh yeast,
or 5g dried 5g sugar 1 large
egg 2g salt 1 vanilla pod (or 2 drops
extract)
For the pastry, in a large bowl beat the butter into the flour. In a small
bowl, beat the yeast and sugar into the egg, then stir into the flour. Add the
salt and vanilla, and knead briefly until smooth – it will start off very
sticky, then come together all of a sudden. Roll into a ball, transfer to a
lightly oiled bowl, cover with clingfilm and leave in a warm spot to double in
volume (one to two hours).
Halve and stone the fruit. Line a baking dish with nonstick baking paper
(optional, but it will make life easier later on) and dot all over with butter.
Sprinkle sugar on top, then lay in the halved fruit flesh side down.
Bake at 200C/400F/gas mark 6 for 15 minutes. The nectarines should be
softened but not mushy, with the skin lifting away from the flesh, and the
butter and sugar nicely caramelised. If the fruit was very under-ripe, it may
need a few minutes more, otherwise remove and set aside until cool enough to
handle, but still warm; turn down the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Peel the
fruit, keeping it as intact as possible, then set aside.
Lightly butter or oil a 20cm tart case, tip in the dough and with oiled or
floured hands flatten and press out to fill the tin right to the edges. Arrange
the nectarines on top and scatter over the spices, caramelised sugar, butter and
juices from the oven dish. Leave to prove for 15 minutes, then bake for 20
minutes. Mix the almonds, sugar and water, scatter over the top of the fruit and
bake for a further 20 minutes.
Remove, leave to cool for five to 10 minutes, and serve with vanilla
ice-cream, creme fraiche or a raspberry and almond chantilly: whip 200g cream
with 20g caster sugar and a drop almond extract, then stir in 50g crushed
raspberries.
Nectarine chutney
The traditional way to preserve nectarines and peaches involves dipping them
in boiling water to release the skins, spiking with cloves and covering with
brandy, à la Monet's Jar Of Peaches. My way may involve more work, but it goes
with most cured meat, pâtés and cheese. 1g nutmeg 1g allspice 3
cloves 1g cinnamon 2.5kg nectarines,
stoned, skinned and chopped into 1cm-square dice 150g
white-wine vinegar 125g caster sugar
Grind the spices, and put in a heavy-based pan with the other ingredients.
Cook on a low heat, stirring regularly, until thick and jam-like. Pour into
sterilised jars, seal and keep in a cool, dark place or in the fridge. Unopened,
it keeps for up to two years, and improves with age.
Nectarine and basil ice lollies
This is lovely way to use up wrinkly and over-ripe nectarines – you know, the
ones that have gone so soft, you can squish them between your fingers. Push the
stoned fruit through a sieve (this purees the flesh while keeping the skin in
the sieve), then blitz smooth. Finely shred a handful of basil (or mint) and
add. Stir in whole raspberries (optional) and a splash of water or a slug of
prosecco, depending on your target audience, then check for sweetness. Add sugar
to taste, and freeze in lolly moulds.
Baking is a small and everyday act that
shows someone you care. As a child in the 1970s, I lived in a commune in
Copenhagen. My parents were very busy changing the world so, at eight years old
in our big communal kitchen, I baked my first cakes. I did not read recipes. I
just mixed everything together, poured the resulting batter into a tin and baked
it. At some point, somebody explained to me that if I started a cake by beating
eggs with sugar, or butter with sugar, I would find I baked lighter,
better-tasting cakes.
My baking developed over the years. As a young woman, studying literature and
being at home with my newborn son, I bought a baking book and worked my way
through it. For my son’s first birthday, we were in the UK and I couldn’t
imagine us all celebrating that milestone without real Danish pastries. So I
learned how to make them, too. Over the years that developed into a set of
recipes that are all part of our family life. I wrote the baking book during an
unsettling year for me and my family. Despite the fact it expanded to take more
time and work than I had ever imagined, the baking became part of a healing
process. Baking can be like that.
Jens Jørgen Thorsen meringue
Jens Jørgen Thorsen was a famous Danish painter. Feel free to use other fruit
instead of figs, if you prefer. Serves 8.
For the caramel cream: demerara sugar 100g
double cream 500ml
For the meringue: egg whites 6 caster sugar
300g salt a pinch
For the topping: figs 6, fresh good dark
chocolate 50g, at least 60% cocoa solids
The day before you need the cake, make the caramel cream. Spread the sugar in
a heavy-based saucepan. Cook over a medium heat until the sugar melts and starts
to colour: it should turn into a light brown caramel. Add one-quarter of the
cream and bring to the boil, stirring constantly. It takes time, be patient.
When the mixture is fully combined, turn off the heat, stir in the remaining
cream, then pour it into a bowl. Cover and chill in the refrigerator
overnight.
For the meringue, preheat the oven to 140C/gas mark 1. Using an electric hand
mixer or a food mixer, whisk the egg whites until stiff, then whisk in half the
sugar, one tablespoon at a time, until very stiff. Fold in the remaining sugar
and add the salt.
Line two baking trays with baking parchment and draw, in pencil, a 24cm
circle on each. Turn the baking parchment over so the pencil marks are
underneath, but still legible. Spread the meringue inside the circles. Bake for
one hour, then let them cool down on a wire rack, still on their baking
parchment.
Remove the paper from the meringues and place the least attractive disc on a
serving plate.
Whip the chilled caramel cream until it is light, fluffy and billowing, then
spread it on the base meringue. Place the second meringue on top. Cut the figs
into quarters and place them on top of the cake.
Break the chocolate into pieces, place in a small heatproof bowl and fit over
a saucepan of simmering water – the bowl should not touch the water. Melt the
chocolate, then remove from the heat.
Dip a tablespoon in the chocolate, then throw it at the cake, channelling
Jackson Pollock (and Danish painter Jens Jørgen Thorsen), until you have a wild
decoration. Serve the cake as soon as the chocolate has set.
Beetroot and bacon muffins
Savoury treat: beetroot and bacon muffins.Photograph: Columbus Leth
Makes 10–12 spelt flour 50g, wholegrain and stoneground plain
flour 150g jumbo oats 50g baking powder
2 tsp bicarbonate of soda ½ tsp salt
8g black pepper 1 tbsp, freshly
ground eggs 3 yogurt 250ml, full
fat olive oil 4 tbsp beetroot 200g, raw
and finely chopped bacon lardons 100g, cooked (or walnuts
100g, toasted) thyme leaves 1 tbsp
Preheat the oven to 200C/gas mark 6. Mix the flours, oats, baking powder,
bicarbonate of soda and salt and pepper in a bowl. In another bowl, beat the
eggs with the yogurt and oil. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry, then fold
in the beetroot, bacon (or walnuts) and thyme.
Cut out 15cm squares of baking parchment – you will need 10 to 12 – and fold
each into a muffin mould. Divide the batter between the moulds and bake in the
hot oven for 20-25 minutes.
Serve warm for lunch or dinner, sprinkled with a little more thyme if you
like, with a crisp green salad dressed with a mustardy vinaigrette.
Rye crispbread
Strip teas: rye crispbread.Photograph: Columbus Leth
Makes 40 strips water 150ml, lukewarm yeast 15g, fresh
(or 2 tsp dry yeast) rye flakes 60g rolled oats
50g stoneground rye flour 50g, plus more to
dust polenta 50g, or use cornmeal olive
oil 75ml, plus more to brush salt 4g
Pour the water into a bowl and add the yeast, stirring to dissolve. Stir in
the rye flakes and oats. Leave to rest for 30 minutes. Now mix in the remaining
ingredients. Mix really well, then knead on a floured work surface.
Preheat the oven to 200C/gas mark 6. Divide the dough into four. On a floured
work surface, roll each piece out as thinly as possible into a rectangle about
25x20cm. Cut each into 10 strips. Lay the strips on baking trays lined with
baking parchment and brush with oil. Bake for 10-12 minutes. You will probably
have to bake these in batches.
Leave each batch to cool on a wire rack while you bake the rest.
Kringle
Roll of honour: kringle with flaked almonds.Photograph: Columbus Leth
Makes 3
For the kringle: whole milk 100ml,
lukewarm yeast 50g, fresh (or 1 ½ tbsp dry yeast)
eggs 3, lightly beaten caster sugar
100g salt ½ tsp butter
350g 00 grade flour 550g
For the filling: almonds chopped, 150g caster
sugar 200g butter 250g rosehip
jam (or apple compote, see below) 300g egg 1,
lightly beaten almonds 50g, flaked
For the apple compote: vanilla pod 1 tart
eating apples 2, such as Cox’s Orange Pippin, peeled, cored,
chopped caster sugar 100g
To make the compote, slit the vanilla pod in half lengthways and scrape out
the seeds with the tip of a sharp knife. Put the apples in a saucepan with the
sugar and the vanilla seeds and bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and
leave to simmer for 20 minutes. Stir the apple mixture together to create a
thick sauce, then leave to cool.
For the kringle, pour the milk into a bowl, add the yeast and stir to
dissolve. Add the eggs, sugar and salt, cover and leave for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, cut the butter into cubes and, with your hands, rub them into the
flour. When the 30 minutes is up, mix the yeast mixture into the flour mixture.
Knead on a floured work surface until you have a smooth dough. The dough is very
delicate, so you might have to use a bit more flour and handle it with care.
Place in a bowl, cover and leave to rise at warm room temperature for about one
hour.
For the filling, mix the chopped almonds into a paste with the sugar and
butter. Set aside.
Return to the dough. Roll it out on a floured work surface into a rectangle.
Fold it into three, crossways, like a business letter then turn it by 90˚, roll
it out and fold it once more, in the same way.
Now divide the dough into three and roll each out into a rectangle.
Divide the filling into three. Spread each portion along a 4cm strip down the
middle of each dough rectangle. Spread the rosehip jam or compote on top. Fold
the short ends up over the filling and then the long sides, first one side over
the filling and then the other, so they overlap by 1cm. Place on baking trays
lined with baking parchment, cover with tea towels and let rise again, in a warm
place, for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 220C/gas mark 7. Brush each pastry with the egg and
sprinkle with the flaked almonds. Bake for 15-20 minutes, keeping an eye on them
so they don’t turn too dark. If they are looking too dark, reduce the oven
temperature to 200C/gas mark 6.
Cool on a wire rack and serve warm or cold. More baking next week with Trine Hahnemann. To order a copy of her book,
Scandinavian Baking (Quadrille, £25), for £20, go to
guardianbookshop.co.uk or call 0330 333 6846. Nigel Slater returns in a fortnight
