Recipes 2020

July 2020

This is the time in the year when we can be surrounded by soft fruit, and looking for something slightly different to make, so here is a suggestion. I used Jostaberries, but Blackcurrants would work just as well. It is a actually a very old recipe, with the quantities given in Imperial volume measures, and huge amounts too. I have adjusted it somewhat to make it more appropriate for use today, and it came out rather well

Jostaberry Conserve - makes 3lbs 

It is excellent as a cake filling, or delicious on hot buttered toast, but my favourite way to eat it is with really thick plain Greek yoghourt

What You Need:

4 cups of Jostaberries, stalks removed

1 cup of raisins or sultanas

1 large orange, peeled and the flesh chopped

1/2 cup roughly chopped pecans (you coud substitute any nuts you have)

6 cups of white granulated sugar

2 star anise

What To Do:

1. Sterilise your jars and lids.. 6 small jars or 3 1lb jars... and keep these warm

2. Put the berries in a large non-stick pan with a splash of water, and cook slowly until soft

3. Add the sugar, maintaining a low heat, until it is dissolved

4. Add the remaining ingredients, bring uo to a boil and cook until thickened .. you wnat it to be slightly softer than a jam set. I used the traditional saucer from the freezer to test the set

5.Take out the star anise

6.Using a funnel, ladle into sterlie warm jars, make sure the edges of the jars are clean and put on lids straight away. 

7. Leave to cool and ensure lids are fully tight. Don't forget to lable the jars

This will store in a cool dark place for at least a year. You could add a few tablespoons of port, or even gin right at the end of the cooking time if you wished. Is this the time to stat thinking of seasonal gifts?

Cheddar Apple Cake

I fondly remember my Mother's Apple Cake, and she did once make a version which had cheese in the topping, Cheshire, I think it was. I can recall it not being a normal cake batter, but quite stiff. I had a search round today for a recipe, and found a version published by the Womens' Institute back in 1988, using Wensleydale cheese. As I only had Cheddar, I was unsure of the amount to include, it being much stronger in flavour than either of the other two, so here is my slightly adapted version

What you Need:

225g self raising flour

2tsp baking powder

115g caster sugar

115g cold butter

1 egg

4-5 tbsp milk

3 medium sized dessert apples, sliced, with core removed (no need to peel)

100g grated Cheddar cheese

For topping:

2stp ground cinnamon

25g caster sugar

50g cold butter

What to do:

1. Turn on oven to 170C (fan oven)

2. Line a 20cm baking pan (I use the pre-formed liners, like giant muffin cases)

3. Put flour and baking powder in mixing bowl, cut in cold butter and rub in until the texture of breadcrumbs. Mix in the sugar

4. Break in the egg and add 4tbsp milk. Mix until it is a soft dough. You may need the extra tbsp of milk. It will not be like cake batter!

5. Put half the dough into the lined cake pan, spread and level, using the back of a wet spoon

6. Layer half of the sliced apple onto the dough, and then cover with the second half of the dough, levelled as before

7.Now layer the remaining apple slices onto the top, and evenly sprinkle on the cheese

8. Mix the cinnamon and sugar for the topping and sprinkle evenly across the cheese, dotting the cold butter on (It may seem a lot, but the quantity is correct at 50g)

9. Bake in the oven for 40 minutes until mid-brown and firm when pressed gently

10. Leave the cake in the tin for at least 20 minutes before taking it out and allowing to cool fully on a wire rack

I had friends to visit today, we sat in the garden rather than indoors, as per Lock Down expectations, and the cake was very much enjoyed, with a request for the recipe too. Part of the top was quite dark but apparently that just made it deliciously crispy!

The cake does keep for a few days, well wrapped in foil, but to be honest, by the time my neighbours had some too, I shall not have all that much to store past tomorrow