Autumn leaves – soup and a cobbler

My soup comes from the back catalogue and I make no apology for repeating it – if you'd like the recipe check out the Soup label Sunday 3 February 2019 Veggie or not – take 2! - Carrot, Coriander and Chickpea Soup is the perfect vehicle to “hold” a cobbler or a dumpling for that matter – it's thick, rustic and substantial and called a “rib sticker” from my neck of the woods.

I found the cobbler recipe – tweaked – in the September issue of Waitrose Food :

Cheese & Onion Cobbler

2 medium onions, finely diced

15g of unsalted butter

1

dessertspoon of rapeseed oil

a pinch of salt

The cobbler topping

375g self raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp sea salt

75g unsalted butter – diced and chilled

250ml milk – I used semi-skimmed

125g Gruyere, coarsely grated

Method

For the onions

Using a medium sized frying pan, melt the butter and rapeseed oil, add the onions and salt and cook on a medium to low heat for 15 minutes, stirring until soft and golden. Set aside to cool.

For the cobbler

Using a large mixing bowl add the flour, baking powder, salt and butter and rub in with your fingertips until you've got a breadcrumb texture. Add the milk, cheese and onions and stir with round bladed knife until just combined. Spoon large blobs on to the top of your gently simmering soup. It will help if your blobs are of a similar size so that they cook consistently. The recipe says 14 – cook for 25-30 minutes until the cobbler is golden brown.

Sounds like a great theory, now it's time to put it into practice!

The Autumn leaves …

… are beginning to fall – chillier earlier in the evening as the nights draw in.

More comfort food is required and I think warrants another search for favourites in the back catalogue. I don't need to look in the back catalogue for what comes next – I immediately think of soup. You may think boring but as with lots of dishes it's what you serve with that elevates. In my opinion soup on its own just isn't right – it needs zhuzh and by that I mean either good rustic bread, garlic or otherwise for dunking purposes or a step up, either a dumpling or a cobbler.

What's the difference? A dumpling usually contains suet (veggie or not) although it's true you can make them using self raising flour, whereas a cobbler is a scone based mix. Cobblers can be both sweet or savoury. I thought we'd have a change and make a cheese and onion cobbler to adorn the top of the soup.

Before I begin with the recipe for the cobbler I think it's worthwhile repeating a tip I gave in April relating then to dumplings but which will be equally useful for the cobbler.

“Traditionally dumplings are placed on top of a casserole with a tightly fitting lid. Casseroles have a thicker consistency than soup and obviously, usually, slow cooked in the oven. Soup simmers on top of the hob and saucepan lids “sit” on top of the pan and are not what I'd describe as “tightly fitting”.

Here's my tip - tear off a sheet of foil large enough to overlap the pan, push down slightly and then secure with the lid. Make sure your soup is simmering gently before you add the dumplings and seal with foil. 20 minutes later you'll have dumplings the size of which you wouldn't believe!”

A bowl of soup with cheese and onion cobbler – bring it on!

Here goes …

Baked apples and sultanas – ready to eat and serving suggestions

The beauty of this dessert is its ease – the apples are cooked, the sultanas steeped and the crumble is cooked too. All you have to do once assembled is to pop it into a pre-heated oven 150fan/170c/Gas 3 for 10/15 minutes whilst you're tucking into your main course. Note to self – set your timer and take it to the table!

Here it is :

ready to eat!

A serving suggestion – or two. I had a batch of sticky toffee sauce in my freezer so added a spoonful on top – decadent I know – it's a treat! Any “sweet side” would work from custard to cream, clotted or not, to ice cream.

If you want the sticky toffee sauce recipe you can find it on the Sweet Sauce label – Dids – the sprinkles and the sauce for the Susan.

Finally, I gave Margaret a portion – there has to be a “takeaway” sweet treat, topped with the sticky toffee sauce and she ate it cold – and loved it – it would appear that the Baked Apples and Sultanas is versatile too. Can't say I'm overfond of cold desserts that I always think should be served warm or hot. However, as that old proverb says, “the proof of the pudding (is in the eating)” – in other words you can only judge the quality of something after you've tried it!

Coming up … the Autumn leaves are beginning to fall

Baked apples and sultanas – the sweet surprise, assembly and photos

It just goes to show what you can do with fruit in your bowl that is surplus to requirements or may be not as fresh as you'd like. Similarly if you're a fan, like me, of always making more stuff than you need – in this instance the crumble mix – and stashing it in the freezer, here's the result!

from the oven – you can see the

syrupy juices – cover and leave to cool then

fridge until you're ready

with the sultanas added and folded through

remember the “make ahead” crumble from The back

catalogue – an ice cream and a new crumble? Here

it is again, proving its use, sprinkled over the apples

and sultanas!

There's more …

A savoury weekend treat and a sweet surprise

On my shopping list this weekend was a Pink Lady apple, which I hoped I'd be able to buy loose – wrong – I needed a large one for my treat to myself - beetroot relish and finished up buying four.

I'd also bought Pink Lady fruit juice for a change – not realising how handy it would be.

Here's what happened to the three I had left :

Baked Apples with sultanas and

optional sticky toffee sauce

ahead of the game take two handfuls of

sultanas – place in a box with a tight fitting

lid. Add 150ml of Pink Lady fruit juice,

fridge and steep overnight

Grease a dish that measures 25x17x5cms (10x7x2”)

with 1 tsp of unsalted butter

2 tbsp of soft dark brown sugar

½ tsp of vanilla bean paste

1 tsp of cinnamon – mix all three

ingredients in a medium size mixing bowl

3 Pink Lady apples – peeled, cored and

sliced and add to the sugar, paste and cinnamon

in the bowl together, add 1 tbsp of Pink Lady apple

juice from the steeping - mix well to combine then tip into your

greased dish

Bake for 30 minutes in a pre-heated oven 150fan/170c/Gas 3

turn after 15 minutes and set aside to cool, then cover.

Note : you want the apples to keep their shape, not turn

into mush

Next up – assembly and photo guide

Pasty gate – the verdicts

Margaret reported in as promised – short and to the point … “delicious – again please!” I'll take that, thank you!

Then I had a light bulb moment! In these troubled times I've heard, already, that Christmas celebrations are hanging in the balance. There's also the question of gifts. Off the cuff I asked Margaret what she thought about making a list of her favourite food treats I could give her for Christmas – that went down very well.

I suspect the list already includes, apart from a pasty or two (note to self, halved and easy therefore to freeze and take a portion when the mood takes) lemon drizzle syrup, cheese scones – I could go on, the final choices coming soon!

News just in and a direct quote from my other tester friends - “we saved the precious cargo until today ...”.

“... really loved it, especially the pastry – recipes by email please! I'll try it and let you know how I go.”

I should explain that my friend lives in the USA and is a student too – a very good one – the recipes will be winging their way across the sea to North Carolina. I've taken the liberty of saving him time and sourced a supplier for lard and a veggie shortening alternative in the US – his favourite place to shop – Walmart. I should have known!

If you have spare apples in your fruit bowl …

Pasty gate – vindication!

I appreciate it means work at home in your own kitchen and you might think it defeats the object of a “takeaway” but it's worth it. I'll gladly pay for quality but I hate the anticipation of a treat and being disappointed. More irritatingly these pasties do not contain expensive ingredients.

Despite the fact that I'm recommending making your own pasties you can make it work for you – you can make the pastry on a day when you've time and ditto with the filling, then fridge and use or freeze.

I'm not comfortable criticising M&S but it was such poor quality it had to be done. It shouldn't matter whether it's a humble pasty or a fillet de boeuf en croute – each should be given the same care and attention.

I can only assume that either the test kitchens and/or the quality control departments weren't up to scratch on that day.

Rocket science it ain't!

Then there's the verdict … my elderly friend Margaret visits for coffee once a week – distanced I might add and I gave her a lunch treat taken from my freezer – half a pasty, which, once defrosted in the fridge would be ready to warm so a takeaway treat for her. I unwrapped the pasty parcel to show her and explain warming. I have to say this bodes well – on unwrapping and therefore cold the savoury waft of the pasty made our mouths water. Hold that thought.

It's important to get a tester's opinion. I loved these pasties but that doesn't mean a whole lot – I need to know I'm not on my own.

I then gave a whole pasty to two friends for their lunch treat. This will definitely be the ultimate test – one of my friends is a Northern boy and takes his cheese and onion pasties very seriously so his opinion counts all the more.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed – that's two thoughts to “hold”!

Pasty gate – photo guide

To sum up, this is a Greggs style filling encased in a Cornish pasty pastry but with a thinner crimped crust.

Have a look at the results :

These are large pasties – they measure 22cms/8½” x 12cms/4½” over the middle. Cut in half or leave whole if you're feeding hungry hoards or have a very large appetite!

The bonus – you can make a batch of the pastry, divide, weigh and wrap and treat the filling in the same way. I took my own advice and made two pasties and popped the remaining portioned pastry and filling into the freezer, ready for when I needed a comfort food fix.

I should also say that authentic Cornish pasties are cooked with raw ingredients – I've “borrowed” the pastry, used my own filling and am very pleased that I did!

A small tip - pasties will keep warm for a long time - wrap them straight from the oven in either greaseproof or baking paper and then a clean tea towel. It does work and the pasty will stay warm – it definitely saves burning your mouth when you're itching to devour.

Next – vindication!

Pasty gate – assembly and crimpinology

If you'd like to create a perfect circle of pastry the simplest way is to use a 20cm cake tin upside down, on top of your rolled out portion of pastry, using a round bladed knife trim off any excess and there you have it.

Edge your circle of pastry with the egg wash then place your filling in the middle of the circle. Here's where a cool filling comes into its own – you are able to mould it to suit the size of the pastry then fold to glue the edges and bring together. Press down the edges, giving yourself enough pastry edge to crimp – as a guide 1.5cms/½” approximately.

If you'd like to see how this is done have a look at the Crimpinology link which will give you a photo guide. You don't have to give yourself a hard time – it's not compulsory to crimp, edge the pasty with a small fork as an alternative option.

Place your past(ies) on a baking sheet lined with baking parchment. Bake in a pre-heated oven 180fan/200c/Gas 6 for 30 minutes.

Here's the story so far :

the pasty, crimped before the egg wash

the pasty, after the egg wash, ready for

the oven

Stand by for photos of the finished product!

Pasty gate – hints and tips

It may seem a bit of a faff but I'd recommend weighing both your pastry and your filling, you don't have to be obsessive about it – an “ish” will do.

As a guide you'll have 1lb 13oz or 840g of pastry – divide into four weighing approximately 7oz ish/210g each. Place each portion on a sheet of cling film, gather and wrap, moulding into a ball shape. Bag all four and fridge.

Treat your filling in the same way. It's much easier to deal with the filling when it has cooled – it won't interfere with your pastry and you won't scald your hands! You should have 1.346g of filling, divide into four portions of 11½oz ish/ 336g each, cling film and mould in the same way as the pastry.

Here's a couple of photos :

By weighing, wrapping and moulding your pasties are of a similar size so no arguments!

Now for assembly and crimping.

Pasty gate … the filling

Cheese, potato and onion pie filling

gives generous filling enough

for four large pasties

700g of Maris Piper (or similar variety)

potatoes, boiled and then mashed

2 medium onions, finely diced and

sautéed with a knob of unsalted butter and

a drop of rapeseed oil until softened – 5 minutes

2 teaspoons of Dijon mustard

150g of Mature Cheddar cheese, grated

75g each of Red Leicester and Gruyere cheese, grated

Black pepper

1 egg, beaten for egg wash

Baking sheet, lined with baking parchment

Boil the potatoes until cooked – test by using a paring knife which will pass through easily. Drain and then mash roughly, add the Mature Cheddar cheese, mustard and black pepper. Add the sautéed onion and remaining grated cheese, mix well. Set aside to cool.

The advantage of using a rough mash and adding the cheddar cheese before the onion and remaining cheeses gives you a stiff filling and one that is easy to control which is essential when assembling and completing your pasty. You are able to mould the filling easily – it remains firm and doesn't spill all over your worktop.

Just in case you might be tempted – do not add any “liquid” i.e. milk or an egg – to the mash, it needs to be firm, adding liquid will turn your filling into mush!

Be patient, it's important to let the filling cool completely, you'll be pleased with the result.

Next up – hints and tips for the pastry and the filling.

Back to the back catalogue – the pasty test!

Moving on from “pasty gate” it's my turn to put my pastry and filling where my mouth is.

Let the test begin!

Here's the basic pastry recipe :

Pasty pastry

This recipe will give you four eight inch (20cms) pasties

450g/1lb strong white bread flour

large pinch of salt

100g/4oz of margarine (or unsalted butter)

100g/4oz lard (or Trex or Cookeen)

175ml/3^rd pint water

cling film

Place the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl. Add 25g/1oz of lard and rub into the flour. Grate or slice the rest of the fats into the bowl and stir, using a round bladed knife. Pour all the water into the bowl and mix together with the knife. Keep the dough in the bowl and using your hand bring the dough together and knead using the heel of your hand. Tip the dough onto a sheet of cling film and use the film to bring the dough together in a fat circle. Wrap the dough twice in cling film, bag and fridge. Chill it for at least 30 minutes.

You don't have to use lard, for me and other vegetarians out there, use either Trex or Cookeen. The lard is part of the original recipe. I used unsalted butter instead of the margarine.

For those who are used to making pastry, no matter how basic, this will seem an odd method. I promise you it works. Not only does it work I'd say it's the best result I've ever had.

For example, it doesn't matter if you fridge it to chill for 30 minutes and, surprise surprise, you get distracted and remember two hours later. It does not affect the end result.

You can freeze the pastry if you want to make ahead. Take the frozen pastry out of the freezer the night before required and fridge it. It behaves impeccably – just as if freshly made.

If you'd like some help there's a photo guide on the blog – see Cornish Pasty Pastry guide link.

Then there's the filling ...

x

Back to the back catalogue … pasties

Before the damson diversion I was talking about portable/picnic food. I can't believe it's nearly September and with the unreliable weather and Autumn approaching so the opportunities for picnics and al fresco dining diminishes.

What comes next is from the back catalogue and was to be part of the portable/picnic food, fortunately it qualifies on many other levels and so ticks several boxes.

My favourite savoury guilty “take away” pleasure is a pasty and it has to be cheese, potato and onion. During lockdown the “takeaway treat” became known as a “make at home treat”!

Imagine my joy on discovering an M&S version of said treat – here's a photo :

They looked so tempting I couldn't resist. The filling wasn't generous and the tiny pieces of potato were undercooked. It may be that I was unlucky and got a “Friday afternoon pasty”.

I thought they looked very much like Cornish pasties. However Cornish are made with specific pasty pastry – puff pastry didn't work – when you got towards the crimped edge the pastry was rock solid with little or no filling – to be specific over 2cms/¾”.

Have a look :

It's rare for me to criticise M&S, believing their products to be a cut above and not objecting to paying over and above other similar versions available. In fairness I should have taken them back but with the present situation being as it is I didn't think that was particularly sensible. I've no doubt I'd have been given a replacement sadly if you'd had to go to the bother of returning you've definitely lost the thrill of a treat.

There's confusion with this pasty – it is clearly intended to be a variation on a theme of the Cornish classic which, for the reasons explained, didn't hit the spot for me. It's time to put this to the test – a marriage of pasty pastry with a cheese, potato and onion filling.

Fingers crossed!

A gin update and the final figures!

As the recipe for the damson gin said, shake every day for a week. Day 4 through to day 7 the colour becomes darker and cloudier as the sugar, fruit and alcohol does their thing!

The stash has now been “put to bed” in the cool, dark garage.

Watch this space - later on in the year it will be filtered and then left to settle in time for the Christmas holidays.

Finally the damson harvest figures … I knew it was going to be a good year but this was beyond anything I'd had in previous years. Indeed for the last couple it had been sparse and hardly worth harvesting at all.

I'm glad that I decided to keep a check on how many kilos of fruit I picked. It made sense to bag it in kilos – it made life easier whichever recipe I chose. Thank goodness I have like minded friends who were delighted to receive a small gift – the total came to 28kgs! That total does not include windfalls - I could not keep pace since the weather took over and storms and strong winds won – it would have been more.

I now have a stash of jam, ready to deliver when I can. A freezer full of roasted damsons to use as the mood takes and a supply of Asian plum sauce for stir fries too.

I love it when a plan comes together!

The final back catalogue – the Harvest Pudding photo guide

Here's a step by step guide :

the basin lined with cling film, then

lined with cake and filled with the roasted

damsons – looking good

the pudding topped with cake and wrapped

up in the cling film – you can see the syrup at

the base of the basin, just as it goes into the fridge

24 hours later – see how the fruit syrup has

absorbed into the cake

the Harvest Pudding inverted and ready

to cut

even with the first slice cut the pudding

keeps its shape

Verdict? Silence is the best comment. By the way I reserved a small jug of syrup to drizzle over the pudding. Serve with clotted or double cream and/or ice cream – whichever is your pleasure!

Next up – a gin update and the final figures.

The final back catalogue damson recipe …

The pleasure of roasting and freezing your treasure trove of roasted damsons now comes into its own.

There are recipes on the blog for a traditional Summer Pudding and an Autumn version too.

This is another great way of using the fruit either freshly roasted or from your freezer. As a guide 1kg of roasted damsons will give you 870g of fruit and delicious syrup – perfect for a roasted damson or harvest pudding - “harvest” sounds appropriate.

Harvest Pudding

Equipment

1 litre (1¾ pint) basin

plain sided cutter slightly larger than the

base of the basin – measuring 6cms in diameter

cling film and a drop of vegetable oil to wipe

the basin

Ingredients

870g of freshly roasted damsons or from your

freezer stash – defrosted

Madeira cake

I use inexpensive supermarket own brand cake

weights vary – you'll need approximately 10 slices of cake

I'd err on the side of caution and use two cakes if they weigh

265g – the cake should be sliced lengthways into quarter

inch slices and neatened at the edges

Wipe the basin with a drop of vegetable oil – use a sheet of kitchen roll, then line the basin with the cling film, ensuring that it overlaps the basin.

Cut out a circle of cake for the base and place it in the bottom of the basin. Line the rest of the basin with sliced Madeira cake, overlapping the cake which will give you a great looking pudding when turned out.

Spoon the roasted damsons into the cake lined bowl. Top with slices of cake to cover completely. Fold the cling film over the pudding to seal.

Place a slightly smaller plate or saucer on top of the basin and weigh down with a jar. Fridge it for 12-24 hours.

To serve, remove the jar and plate, unwrap the cling film and cover the basin with a large plate or bowl. Invert the pudding and peel off the cling film.

Photo guide up next!