Choux buns with white chocolate ganache, raspberry and salted pistachio

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Crackling for choux

Baking tip:
The secret to these sumptuous choux buns is the crunchy ‘crackling’ topping made with flour, demerara sugar and butter. Make this beforehand and freeze to harden then cut out 4cm discs to pop on top of the buns just before baking.

  • 160g demerara sugar
  • 160g plain flour
  • 135g butter

Mix the sugar, flour and butter together to make a dough. Roll into thin sheets, 3m thick between grease proof paper and freeze to harden. Then cut out discs 4cm diameter and keep in the freezer until you are ready to use them.

Choux bun

  • 225g medium egg (5 eggs)
  • 125g water
  • 125g milk
  • 100g butter
  • 150g flour
  • 5g salt
  • 5g sugar

Put milk, water butter sugar and salt into a sauce pan and bring to the boil so that the butter has melted. Mix in the flour and cook out for a few minutes.

Transfer this to the mixer and using the paddle attachment start adding the eggs. You might not need all the egg!

Pipe out onto flat trays lined with non-stick paper or a mat and then place a disc of crackling on top of each. Bake at 180c, ESSE dial guide top end of MODERATE for 20 mins, vent closed. Open the door to let the steam out. Then a further 10 minutes with vent open.

White chocolate ganache

  • 250g white chocolate
  • 200g double cream

Heat the double cream to a simmer and pour onto the white chocolate to melt. Stir until melted and fully emulsified then cling film directly against the mix and cool.

Salted pistachios for choux bun

  • 50g pistachio nuts
  • 0.5g sea salt
  • 3 egg white10g sugar

Roughly chop the pistachios and mix with the other ingredients. Spread out onto a non-stick mat and bake at 160c, ESSE dial guide middle of MODERATE, until golden and crisp when cool. Re chop if necessary.

Chantilly cream

  • 250g double cream
  • 25g caster sugar
  • 0.5tsp vanilla essence

Whisk together until cream is stiff enough to hold its shape.

Cut cooked and cooled choux bun in ½. Pipe some of your white chocolate ganache into the bottom, followed by your crème Chantilly. Decorate cream with berries of your choice and finally add the salted pistachios and then your choux pastry lid. Dust with icing sugar and serve.

Recipe by Dominique Ashford, Pastry Chef.

Eccles Cake

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Eccles cake filling

  • 150g muscovado sugar
  • 150g light brown sugar
  • 600g currants
  • 300g sultanas
  • 5g ground cinnamon
  • 5g mixed spice
  • 300g grated Bramley apple (skin on)
  • 2 each grated. Lemon zest
  • 2 each grated orange zest
  • 2 lapsang souchon tea bags (or earl grey)
  • 100ml water

Boil the water and infuse the tea bags for 10 minutes. Remove bags and then mix everything together. Leave to infuse for a few days in a lidded container. Give it a shake each day so that liquid infuses evenly through the fruit. Can be kept in the fridge for several weeks.

Quick flaky pastry – makes about 12 Eccles

  • 225g plain flour
  • 175g unsalted butter
  • Pinch of salt
  • Cold water (roughly 150ml)

Place the butter in a freezer for an hour or so. Sieve the flour and the salt then grate the butter into it, covering with the flour as you go to keep the butter strands separated. Make a well in the middle and add the water, stirring with a spoon until it comes together. Finish off with your hand to form a soft dough. Add a little more water if necessary. Cover and chill for 30 mins.

To make the Eccles

  1. Roll out dough on a floured surface to 2-3mm thick and cut out 10cm discs.
  2. Place 35g (approx.) of filling into the centre of each. Use a pastry cutter placed upside down to keep filling neat.
  3. Brush around the filling with a little egg white and then carefully pinch pastry up around the fruit. Then press flat with your fingers and turn over and place onto a lined baking tray.
  4. Rest in fridge, then make 2 small incisions in the centre of each Eccles. When ready to cook (not too long before) brush with egg white and sprinkle with demerara.
  5. Bake 180-190c, ESSE dial reading low end of HOT, for about 20 mins

Baking Tip

To achieve the amazingly crunchy finish, just before placing them in the oven, brush the finished cakes with egg white (not egg wash) then sprinkle with a generous quantity of granular demerara sugar.

Recipe by Dominique Ashford, pastry chef.

Vegan Coconut Cookies

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Serves

Makes 20 cookies

Ingredients

  • 115g vegan margarine
  • 200g caster sugar or coconut sugar
  • 5g vanilla essence
  • 160g plain flour
  • 5g baking powder
  • 1g salt
  • 105g desiccated coconut
  • 100g plant based milk

Method

  1. Cream the margarine and sugar together.
  2. Add everything else and mix well.
  3. Wet your hands a little and then form small balls (roughly the size of 10p) and roll. Place on a tray lined with a baking mat or parchment, leaving about 5 cm between each and press down a little to flatten.
  4. Bake at 170c / ESSE dial reading middle of MODERATE for approximately 18 minutes until golden.
  5. For an extra special treat – sandwich together with some delicious vegan chocolate cream.

Chocolate and Tofu Cream

  • 250g of dark chocolate
  • 300g firm silken tofu (ambient tofu)
  • 30g Golden syrup

Melt the chocolate, stir in the Golden syrup. Put tofu in blender and blend whilst adding chocolate until smooth. Add a little warm water if necessary.

Baking Tip

To make the luxurious, smooth dairy-free vegan frosting that sticks these cookies together, it’s really important to find the right kind of tofu. You need to use undrained and unpressed ‘ambient’ or ‘silken’ tofu which is widely available online and in health food shops.

Recipe by Dominique Ashford pastry chef.

Vegan Chocolate Cookies

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Serves

Makes 20 cookies

Ingredients

  • 115g vegan margarine
  • 100g caster sugar
  • 100g light brown sugar
  • 125g plain flour
  • 55g cocoa powder
  • 5g baking powder
    1g salt
  • 100g dark chocolate (buttons or a bar chopped into small chips)
  • 25g plant based milk

Method

  1. Cream the margarine and sugar together.
  2. Sieve the cocoa, flour, baking powder and salt together and add to the butter mix along with the milk and chocolate
  3. Wet your hands a little and then form small balls (roughly the size of 10p) and roll. Place on a tray lined with a baking mat or parchment, leaving about 5 cm between each and press down a little to flatten.
  4. Bake at 170c / ESSE dial reading middle of MODERATE for approximately 18 minutes.
  5. For an extra special treat – sandwich the cookies together with some delicious vegan chocolate cream. (See the below chocolate and tofu cream recipe).

Chocolate and Tofu Cream

  • 250g of dark chocolate
  • 300g firm silken tofu (ambient tofu)
  • 30g Golden syrup

Melt the chocolate, stir in the Golden syrup. Put tofu in blender and blend whilst adding chocolate until smooth. Add a little warm water if necessary.

Baking Tip

To make the luxurious, smooth dairy-free vegan frosting that sticks these cookies together, it’s really important to find the right kind of tofu. You need to use undrained and unpressed ‘ambient’ or ‘silken’ tofu which is widely available online and in health food shops.

Recipe by Dominique Ashford, Pastry Chef.

Tart Chiboust with Summer Fruits

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TECHNICAL but still within the realms of the domestic cook. You will need a 22cm plain or fluted tart ring.

Start by making the sweet pastry.

Sweet pastry

Ingredients

  • 235g soft flour
  • 25g ground almonds
  • 160g butter
  • 1 whole medium egg
  • 90g icing sugar

Method

  1. Chop butter and place with all dry ingredients in mixer.
  2. Using the paddle, mix until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.
  3. Add egg and mix until thoroughly combined.
  4. Cover and chill before use.
  5. When the pastry has had at least 1 hour in the fridge, roll it out and line your tart ring. Rest again in the fridge, then blind bake.
  6. Once the tart is cooked and has a nice golden colour, egg wash the inside of the tart whilst it is still hot and place back in the oven to dry for a couple of minutes. Then allow to cool.

Jellied red fruits for Tart Chiboust

Ingredients

  • 300g frozen fruits of the forest
  • 50g strawberries
  • 100g caster sugar
  • 2 leaves of gelatine

Method

  1. Mix the fruits of the forest with the sugar and defrost.
  2. Strain the liquid from the fruits and measure. You will need 200 ml. Discard any excess or add a little water if not enough.
  3. Soak the gelatine in cold water until soft, then dissolve in a little of the fruit liquid that has been heated up. Add this back to the rest on the liquid.
  4. Mix this into the forest fruits and add your strawberries that have been topped and cut into pieces similar in size to the rest of the fruits. Chill in the fridge until the jelly is just setting

Then make your pastry cream

Ingredients

  • 500ml milk
  • 6 egg yolks
  • 125g sugar
  • 50g flour
  • ½ split vanilla pod

Standard method of preparation

  1. Boil the milk with the split vanilla pods.
  2. Whisk the eggs with the sugar thoroughly until it is a shade paler in colour. Then whisk in the flour. If the eggs, sugar and flour are not mixed well your cream will be lumpy.
  3. Pour the boiling milk on to the egg mix, stir then return to the pan and bring to the boil, stirring continuously. Let the mixture bubble for at least 2 minutes.
  4. When pastry cream is ready place in a suitable container, cling film directly onto the cream to stop it getting a skin and cool quickly.

Once your tart case is cool you can fill ½ way with your jellied fruits, taking care not to have any gaps.

Then make your Chiboust cream.

Chiboust cream

  • 250g pastry cream (room temp)
  • 125ml double cream
  • 45g caster sugar
  • 75g egg whites
  • 2.5 leaves gelatin
  • ½ vanilla pod (split and seeds scraped)

Standard method of preparation

  1. Semi whip the cream with the vanilla seeds.
  2. Soak the gelatine and then dissolve in a little water. Whisk the egg whites to soft peaks adding the sugar gradually until a soft meringue consistency is formed.
  3. Whisk the hot gelatine into the pastry cream. Fold in the semi whipped cream and then the meringue.
  4. Fill your tart to slightly over the top with the Chiboust cream and using a palette knife, smooth it over so the top is slightly domed in the middle. If you can’t do this just smooth it flat. Chill in fridge until set, then dust with icing sugar and glaze with a blow torch so the top is slightly caramelized.

When you are ready to serve cut portions using a hot knife.

Chef’s tips

With the berries holding a lot of moisture, I brush the tart bottom with egg yolk whilst still hot and place it back in the oven for a few extra minutes. This helps to seal the pastry and preserve the crispness of the tart. This is also a useful technique when making different tarts where you are pouring in a liquid such a lemon tart, as it acts as a waterproof membrane.

Before making the Chiboust cream, ensure you have all of your ingredient preparations ready before you add the gelatine otherwise things will start to set.

Only heat a small portion of the liquid fruit as heating fruit affects the flavour. The heated fruit liquid will thicken the berries and make a nice jelly

Make sure to give the pastry bottom a good working before rolling otherwise it will crack. Use as little flour as possible.

Recipe by Dominique Ashford, pastry chef.

Almond cake with strawberries (gluten free and fat free)

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Ingredients

  • 5 eggs
  • 8 oz caster sugar
  • 1 tbsp self-raising flour / gluten free
  • 4 oz of fresh ground almonds
  • ¼ tsp baking powder
  • 1 tbsp brandy
  • Almond essence
  • Double cream

Method

  1. Whisk egg whites to a soft peak add ½ the sugar.
  2. Add remaining sugar to the egg yolks then combine with the whites. Achieve volume.
  3. Be careful that you don’t over mix your egg, as that may take some air out of your mixture.
  4. Add the small amount of flour to hold the egg.
  5. Add almonds, baking powder, brandy and essence.
  6. Pour into a greased and lined cake tin.
  7. Bake at 175°C (Aim for the ESSE dial reading to be in the middle of MODERATE) for 35 – 40 minutes.

Recipe by Frances Atkins (Yorke Arms Nidderdale)

Lemon soufflé

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Serves

Makes 4 individual

Ingredients

  • 2 lemons, grated zest and juice
  • 110ml milk
  • 15g cornflour
  • 45g caster sugar
  • 2 large eggs

For the ramekins:

  • A little softened butter
  • Extra caster sugar

Method

  1. Preheat ESSE to 200C/ESSE dial guide HOT, aim for the dial reading to be in the middle of HOT (ESSE oven steam vent closed).
  2. Melt a little butter in a saucepan, (use the induction hob, ESSE setting 1) and brush thoroughly the ramekin dishes. Then coat with the extra caster sugar.
  3. Mix the cornflour with the milk in a saucepan. Heat and whisk until thickened.
  4. Remove from the heat and cool.
  5. Separate the eggs.
  6. Whisk the egg whites with the caster sugar until medium-stiff peaks.
  7. Beat the egg yolks into the cornflour mix, together with the zest and juice of the lemons. (If it has become very stiff put in a food processor until blended and smooth).
  8. Fold one third of the egg whites into the mixture to lighten it, then the other two thirds.
  9. Fill the prepared ramekins with the soufflé’s mixture to the top and use a palette knife to level the tops.
  10. Place the ramekins on a baking tray and bake in the ESSE for about 10 minutes or until cooked and risen.
  11. Remove from the oven and sift a little icing sugar over the tops and serve immediately.

Happy cooking on your ESSE

Baking Tips

Put the soufflé ramekins in the fridge to get cold as it’s easier to brush melted butter around the inside of the ramekins. Keeping the vent closed when cooking the soufflés is a must.
Using large fresh eggs and making sure you only whisk the egg whites until stiff but as stiff as a meringue.
Gently fold in the beaten egg whites as you don’t want to get rid of all that air from the beaten egg whites, (that is what makes the soufflé rise as well as cooking them in an ESSE)

Advantage to cooking them in an electric ESSE!
Practice makes perfect!

Recipe by Philippa Vine at Bluebell Farmhouse Kitchen

Chocolate Fondants

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Little chocolate ‘fondants’ – oozy-middled chocolate puddings – are divine, if somewhat ubiquitous these days. I love the combination of chocolate, prunes and brandy so I doctored the original idea a little. Timing is important here – a minute too long in the oven, or even waiting around to be served, and these little puds lose their lovely gooey centres. But you can prepare them in advance, ready to bake when you want to serve them.

Serves

6 People

Ingredients

  • 100g prunes, roughly chopped
  • 40ml brandy
  • A little cocoa powder for dusting
  • 150g dark chocolate, broken into small pieces
  • 150g unsalted butter, diced, plus extra for greasing
  • 3 large eggs
  • 75g caster sugar
  • 35g plain flour

Method

Soak the prunes in the brandy in a small bowl for at least 2 hours (overnight is fine), to absorb most of the liquid.

Preheat the oven to 200°C/ESSE dial guide HOT (aim for the dial reading to be at the top end of HOT) and put a baking tray inside to heat up. Butter 6 dariole moulds well and dust with cocoa.

Melt the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water. Stir gently to blend and leave to cool a little.

Beat the eggs and sugar together with an electric whisk for at least 5 minutes until the mixture is thick and moussey and ‘holds a trail’ (when a little is dropped from the whisk it should sit on the surface of the mixture and only slowly sink back in).

Fold the melted chocolate and butter lightly into the egg mousse. Sift the flour over the mixture, then fold it in carefully. It needs to be thoroughly incorporated, but don’t overwork the mix. Fold in the prunes and brandy – again, carefully.

Divide the mixture between the dariole moulds. You can prepare the puds ahead to this point, if you like, and refrigerate them for up to 2 hours.

Bake the puds on the hot tray in the oven for 10–12 minutes. Go for the shorter time if your oven is very efficient or if your puds will be sitting around for a few minutes before serving. Go for the longer time if your oven is on the cool side or if they have been in the fridge. Turn out immediately into shallow bowls and serve at once, with chilled cream.

Swaps – Soak raisins in whisky, dried cherries in Calvados, or even dried cranberries in vodka to replace the prunes in brandy.

Recipe demonstrated on an ESSE 990 ELX at River Cottage HQ.

Sourdough

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This is not a true sour dough as we do not have the time but it does contain some sour “leaven” which is the fermentation culture made ready for bread making. This will give extra depth to the dough, and heighten the flavour considerably, as well as helping to moisten the end result.

Starter

To make sour dough there are three distinct requirements. Firstly you need a starter, this is then fed regularly to keep the wild yeasts inside it alive. A starter can be made simply by mixing flour and water in even quantities and leaving it in a tub at room temperature to begin to ferment as the local wild yeasts start to take effect. Alternatively you can acquire an active starter from someone else who already has some.

Ferment or Leven

The ferment or leaven stage is the preparatory step to making bread. Basically it is a 50/50 mixture of water and flour with some added starter – the starter seeds the fermentation into the new mixture and because of all the available food for the yeasts it ferments rapidly.

Dough

The dough phase is achieved by adding enough flour, salt and water to the highly active leaven to get a nice wet dough to form. This is then kneaded in the usual way, by hand or by machine to make a dough. This is then proved, shaped, proved again and finally baked.

Kit – Mixing bowl, dough scraper, scales, proving tray and blade.

Ingredients

  • 250g leaven
  • 500g strong flour
  • 250g water
  • 12g salt

Method

Make the dough and allow it to rise – this could take 3 or 4 hours or longer depending on temperature and how active your leaven is.

Know it back and shape into a loaf shape or two smaller ones, placing it in a proving basket to support its shape whilst it rises again.

Once fully proved – very delicate and aerated, at least doubled in size – bake in a very hot oven with the ESSE oven steam vent closed for around 28 minutes. Oven temperature around 200 degrees c (ESSE cooker dial guide to be at the low end of HOT).

Tim Maddam’s Top Sourdough Tips

  • Invest the time – it takes between eight and 12 hours to make a good sourdough from scratch. Proving takes four times as long as for a yeast-risen dough
  • Feed your starter or ‘leaven’ regularly – especially if it’s been in the fridge for a while. This is the best way to adjust the sourness to your individual taste
  • The wetter the better – a wet dough mix may be harder to handle, but it will make a better loaf
  • Watch the dough – not the clock. The dough will tell you when it’s ready to bake – it’s just a matter of practice
  • Don’t scrimp on the salt – otherwise your bread will taste bland
  • Respect the dough – handle it gently – take care not to knock the air out of it
  • Use semolina to minimise sticky ‘dough fingers’ without drying out the mixture
  • Make sure the oven is up to temperature well before the bread goes in – between 180˚C and 200˚C (aim for the ESSE cooker dial guide to be at the low end of HOT) – depending on the finish you want
  • Introduce steam to your oven. Close the ESSE oven steam vent.

Crusty Bread

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Wild garlic is only available in the spring. You can substitute with flavouring it with some chopped rosemary and 2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

Ingredients

  • 250g strong white bread flour
  • 150ml warm water
  • 15g fresh yeast
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon honey2 tab
  • lespoons olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons of chopped wild garlic leaves

Method

  1. Preheat ESSE to 200C/ESSE dial guide HOT, aim for the dial reading to be in the middle of HOT (ESSE oven steam vent closed).
  2. Place your flour in a large mixing bowl and add the salt, olive oil and wild garlic if using.
  3. Dissolve the yeast in the warm water with the honey.
  4. Add the yeast mix to the flour and mix with a table knife. Add a little more water if it is too dry or some flour if it is too wet.
  5. Turn it out onto your work surface and knead to a smooth dough.
  6. Put the dough back into the mixing bowl and place a clean cloth over the bowl. Put the bowl at the back of the ESSE on the left hand side.
  7. When it has doubled in bulk, knead until smooth and elastic.
  8. Roll out to a shape that you like and place it on an oiled baking sheet. Put back next to the ESSE to prove again until it has doubled in bulk.
  9. Then place direct on the bottom of top ESSE oven and bake until golden brown all over, approximately 15 – 20 minutes, depending on the shape of your loaf.

Happy cooking on your ESSE.

Baking tip for bread making

Gently warm your bread flour at the back of the ESSE, before you start to make the dough. (Speeds up the proving process)
I love to use fresh yeast, better results.
Cover the bread dough for first proving using a plastic shower cap, it fits perfectly over your bowl.
Let your bread dough prove at the back of the ESSE cooker, left hand side.
Bake your loaf on the base of the ESSE, top oven 200C with the vent CLOSED which keeps all the steam in, perfect for cooking the perfect loaf.
Happy baking in your ESSE.

Recipe by Philippa Vine of Bluebell Farmhouse Kitchen.

Iced Chocolate Parfait

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Serves about 10

Ingredients

  • 225g dark chocolate, 70% cocoa solids
  • 2 teaspoons coffee
  • 30g butter
  • 6 eggs separated
  • 80g caster sugar
  • 1 1/2 tablespoon honey
  • 5 sheets of leaf gelatine
  • 110ml double cream

Method

  1. Line a loaf tin (1 litre) with 2 pieces of baking parchment, measuring 19cm x 30cm and 8 x 30cm. Insert them into the tin, one lengthways, one across.
  2. Break up the chocolate and put into a saucepan with the coffee and butter.
  3. On the induction hob (1 setting) melt the chocolate.
  4. Remove from the heat, then beat in the egg yolks while it is still warm.
  5. Stir in 60g of the caster sugar and the honey and set to one side.
  6. Put the gelatine sheets in a bowl and cover with cold water.
  7. Soak for a few minutes.
  8. Put the cream in a pan and heat to almost boiling, but not.
  9. Add the gelatine sheets and stir until they are completely dissolved.
  10. Stir the cream into the chocolate mixture.
  11. Put the egg whites in a bowl and whisk until you have soft white peaks.
  12. Add the rest of the caster sugar and whisk until glossy and firm.
  13. Scrape the chocolate mixture into the egg white bowl, then fold both together well.
  14. Pour the mixture into the tin, right to the top.
  15. Place in the freezer. It will be frozen within 2 hours. To unmould, remove from the freezer 5 minutes before serving.
  16. Serve in slices.

Recipe created by Philippa Vine, Bluebell Farmhouse Kitchen.

Baked Alaska

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Ingredients

  • 1 recipe of vanilla ice cream/ chosen flavour
  • 1 recipe of chocolate or plain sponge

For the meringue

  • 2 free-range egg whites
  • 115g caster sugar

Method

  1. For the meringue, heat the egg whites and sugar together in a bowl over a pan of water until it reaches 75°C. Remove the bowl from the heat and whisk with a hand whisk until thick, glossy and cool.
  2. To assemble the Alaska, cut circles of the sponge cake, place a scoop of ice cream on top, leaving a small border. Spoon the meringue all over the ice cream, ensuring there are no gaps, and use the back of a spoon to make a swirl pattern.
  3. To cook the baked Alaska, preheat the oven to ESSE dial reading middle of HOT / 200°C/400°F/Gas 6 or use the grill place the tray in the oven and keeping an eye on it cook golden-brown all over. Make sure not to melt the ice cream!

Dominique’s Summer Fruit Pavlova

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These pavlovas are so versatile and can be served with many different flavour combinations. Summer fruits are a classic, but you could make a salted pistachio crème fraiche and poached apricots or crush them up on top of your favourite ice cream with some melted chocolate or caramel sauce.

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 150˚C (top end of the ‘Cool’ setting on ESSE dial) and line a baking sheet with silicon paper.

Meringue ingredients

  • 175g caster sugar
  • 3 large (90g) egg whites

The important thing when making meringues is to make sure your mixing bowl is clean and dry and there is no residue of fat.

Whisk the egg whites to soft peaks then start to add a dessert spoon of sugar at a time, whisking the sugar in well each time until all the sugar is fully blended in – the meringue mix should be smooth and shiny – not grainy.

Using a 1cm plain piping nozzle and piping bag, fill the bag with the meringue mix and pipe into nice domes on your prepared tray. If you don’t have a nozzle you can use a metal spoon to make more rustic shapes.

Place the meringues in the oven with the vent closed and turn the heat down to 140˚C (middle of the ‘Cool’ scale on ESSE dial). After 40 minutes, open the steam release vent.

Blueberry and raspberry sauce

  • 125g raspberries
  • 75g blueberries
  • 30g caster sugar
  • 1/2 juice of a lemon

Blend the blueberries and raspberries together in a liquidiser, pass through a fine sieve to remove pips, season to taste with the sugar and lemon juice.

Chantilly cream

  • 250g double cream
  • 50g caster sugar
  • 1/2 a vanilla pod or a tsp vanilla essence

Whisk the cream with the vanilla and sugar to soft peaks.

To serve, pipe or spoon the cream into the centre of your serving dish, pour a small amount of the sauce around, garnish with some berries and top with a pavlova. I also used some wild sorrel I picked in the woods and dusted with some freeze-dried raspberry powder.

Recipe provided by Dominique Ashford, pastry chef

Oaty Drop-Scones with Honey

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Ingredients

  • 100g organic oats, soaked in just enough water to cover for 10 – 15 minutes.
  • 100g organic spelt flour
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon of baking powder
  • Enough whole milk to make into a thick batter

Method

Beat the ingredients together, rest the batter for 10 minutes.

Heat a frying pan you can trust to a moderate heat, add a little butter and then add spoonful’s of batter to the pan. Cook until they are risen and well set on the bottom. Flip them over and cook for another minute.

Pop the drop scones onto a warmed plate and keep warm on the stove top until you have cooked all the batter.

Drizzle the drop scones with honey, and serve – they are lovely on their own or with lemon, alternatively they work very well with fruit and yoghurt.

Recipe demonstrated by Tim Maddams on the ESSE electric range cooker at ESSE Factory Cafe.

Rhubarb and Orange Cranachan

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This is a traditional Scottish dessert that we make frequently at River cottage. It’s usually made with fresh raspberries, however in February; I like to use Rhubarb with its bright pink colour and sharp edge.

Serves

4 People

Ingredients

  • 1kg forced rhubarb, trimmed and chopped
  • Juice and finely grated zest of 1 orange
  • 125g caster sugar
  • 50g rolled oats or medium oatmeal
  • 284ml carton double cream
  • 2 tbsp whisky or cider brandy
  • 3-4 tbsp honey

Method

Put the rhubarb, orange juice and caster sugar in a pan. Bring to a gentle simmer, and then cook for about 5 minutes, until soft. Don’t stir it too much and it will retain some of its shape.

When it’s cooked use a sieve to strain off a little of the juice, (which is delicious mixed with sparkling white wine).

Let the compote cool completely.

Spread the oats or oatmeal out on a baking tray, toast in the hot oven until golden. 3- 4 mins. Combine the cream, orange zest and whisky or brandy and whip until the cream holds soft peaks.

Loosely fold in the honey, the toasted oats and the rhubarb compote.

Serve straight away trickled with a little more honey.

Saffron Focaccia

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This is a great variation on the classic Italian bread – you have to use a LOT of oil… no, really.

I stole this recipe wholesale from my good friend Robin Rea at the Rusty Pig in Ottery St Mary, Devon. I’ve tweaked it a little to make it mine, but Robin still deserves credit for giving me the idea.

Ingredients

  • 450g strong white organic flour
  • 75g fine organic semolina
  • 10g salt
  • 350ml water
  • 15g dried fast action yeast organic
  • 10 strands good saffron
  • Sea salt, rosemary and really good olive oil.

Method

Soak the saffron in the water and add the yeast – leave for at least an hour.

Mix the flour with the semolina and add the salt – now add the yeast and saffron water and work into a soft and lightly sticky dough.

Allow the dough to rise once for two to three hours depending on room temperature, then carefully transfer it to a non-stick baking surface.

Lightly oil your hands and shape the dough so that all its edges are tucked under.

Now oil the dough well and cover lightly as it proves again.

When the dough has proved almost to the point of collapse, add a little more oil and gently tease the dough outwards using your finger tips to create indentations and stretch the dough. Imagine you have an elastic band holding all your fingers together and you need to push them apart – that’s the motion to use.

Oil yet again (yes, really) and sprinkle with sea salt and chopped rosemary then leave to stand for just another few minutes before baking in a fierce oven at 220 ˚C/ESSE dial guide HOT (Aim for the dial reading to be at the top end of HOT) without steam for 21 minutes.

Recipe provided by Tim Maddams.

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