Vodka and cake?

Late last year, someone gave me this recipe and I just had to try it........  I mean, Christmas pudding?  vodka? what's not to like?


Christmas Pudding Vodka


300g mixed dried fruit
75g caster sugar
2 cinnamon sticks
2 tsp ground mixed spice
6 cloves
1/2 whole nutmeg
zest of 1 orange and 1 lemon
750 ml vodka


I used a Rumtopf to make this drink in but you can do it in a large jar or bottle.


Mix everything together and keep in a cool dark place, shaking daily to help dissolve the sugar.  The longer you keep it the better but at least a couple of months is good.


Strain the vodka from the fruit and put it into a bottle. (I used the original vodka bottle).  You might like to strain it through a very fine cloth to get rid of the grains of spice.


Now at the end of all this, you are left with a lot of very boozy fruit.  You could have it over some ice cream, or do as I did.


I picked out the cloves, cinnamon sticks and nutmeg and then used the "Orange Tea Bread" recipe (February 3rd 2012) as a base for a cake.


Boozy Cake


The fruit left from the christmas pudding vodka minus whole spices.
1/2 pt milk
450g self raising flour


Mix together and place in a greased and lined (2lb) loaf tin or 8" cake tin.


Bake at 180'C/Gas 4 for about 2 hours until a skewer stuck into the middle of the cake comes out clean.

Crispy Topped Cumberland Pie

Last night we tried this recipe from the March 2012 issue of BBC Good Food Magazine. We all enjoyed it, so no doubt it will be made again.

Crispy Topped Cumberland Pie

Serves 5

2 celery sticks, cut into 1cm pieces
1 onion, chopped
2 large carrots, sliced into chunky pieces
5 bay leaves
3 sprigs thyme (or 1/2 tsp dry)
2 tbsp oil
1 tbsp butter
2 tbsp plain flour
2 tbsp tomato puree
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 beef stock cubes, crumbled
850g feather blade beef or other braising cut
850g large potatoes
25g each mature cheddar cheese and Parmesan cheese

Heat oven to 160'C/140'c fan oven/Gas 3.

Heat 1 tbsp oil and the butter and soften the celery, onion, and carrots with the bay leaves and 1 thyme sprig (or half of the dried) over a low heat for 10 mins.

Stir in the flour, puree, Worcestershire sauce and stock cubes.  Cook 1 min then gradually add 600ml hot water.  Tip in the beef and bring to a gentle simmer.

Cover and cook in the oven for 2 hrs 30 mins.  Uncover and cook for 30 mins to 1 hour until the beef is really tender and the sauce thickened.

Meanwhile cook the potatoes in a pan of boiling water until they are about 3/4 done. Slice into thick rounds about 1cm thick and toss with the remaining oil and thyme.  Layer onto the beef, scattering with the cheese as you layer*.

Increase the oven to 200'c/180'C fan/Gas 6 and bake for 30-40 minutes until golden and crispy.

* you can cover and chill at this point.  Keep in the fridge for 1 day or freeze for up to 3 months.

Chipotle and Tamarind Glazed Prawns

We're having a Mexican night at the weekend and this is a recipe I will be making. It comes from the BBC Good Food magazine of July 2008. 

Chipotle and Tamarind Glazed Prawns

Serves 4-6

100g golden caster sugar
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 and 1/2 tbsp chipotle paste  *
2 tbsp dark rum
2 tbsp tamarind paste  *
1-2 tbsp olive oil
30 large raw peeled prawns, defrosted if frozen

Put the sugar into a saucepan over a medium heat, add the garlic, chipotle, rum, tamarind and 2 tbsp water.  Stir then simmer for 5 mins until you have a thick, dark sauce.  Season to taste.

The sauce can be made a few hours ahead.

Heat a wok or large frying pan.  When it is smoking hot, add the oil.  Add the prawns and fry for 1 minute then add the sauce. Cook for 2-3 mins until the prawns are pink all over and the sauce has turned into a sticky glaze.

Serve with wedges of lime. (or lemon as above)

How to make Tamarind Paste

Soak a 14 oz block of tamarind in 14 fl oz lukewarm water for 15 to 20 minutes.

Now take handfuls of the tamarind pods and keep squashing and squeezing the now softened pulp to separate it from the veins, seeds and tough membranes.  You can do this through a sieve if you prefer. Discard the veins, seeds and membranes and keep the puree.

The ratio of one block of tamarind to 14fl oz water will yield approximately 16 fl oz concentrated tamarind pulp, ready to use in your recipe. It will keep in the fridge for a couple of weeks and will also freeze.

How to make Chipotle Paste

This is an adaption of a recipe in Mexican Food Made Easy by Thomasina Miers.

50g chipotle chillies

1/2 small onion roughly chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1/4 tsp dried thyme

1/4 tsp cumin seeds

1 tbsp olive oil

80 ml white wine vinegar

15ml balsamic vinegar

1 tbsp tomato puree

2 tbsp demerara sugar

1/2 tbsp sea salt.

Wash the chipotles and snip off the stalk. Cover with water in a small pan and simmer 30-40 minutes until completely soft.  

Put the onion, garlic, herbs and cumin into a blender with 200ml water and the chillies and any liquid left in the pan.  Blend until smooth.

Heat the oil in a large pan, add the chilli paste and fry for about 3 mins.  Add the remaining ingredients and another 100ml water and cook for 15-20 minutes, stirring.

Store in a clean sterilised jar in the fridge.  This will keep for months.

Orange tea bread

Another blast from the past (1973), an advertising book from Homepride featuring Fred and his flour graders.

This recipe was made time and time again back in the day.

ORANGE TEA BREAD

8 oz (250g) sultanas
8 oz (250g) currants
8 oz (250g) light soft brown sugar
finely grated zest of 1 orange
1/2 pt (300ml) strong tea
1 lb (450g) Homepride self raising flour
4 tbsp buttermilk, (or yogurt or milk)

Put sultanas, currants, sugar, orange rind and tea into a mixing bowl and leave to soak overnight.

Preheat oven to 180'C/350'F/Gas 4

Grease and line a 6" x 10" (2lb) loaf tin.

Add flour and buttermilk to fruit and tea mixture.  Mix well and spoon into tin.

Bake in the centre of the oven for 2 hours 10 minutes or until well risen and firm to the touch.  A skewer inserted into the centre will come out clean if the cake is ready.  Remove from the oven and cool.


This is lovely on it's own or spread with butter.

Supercook; a blast from the past

"Supercook" was a part work collection from the 1970's, a bit ahead of it's time as many of the ingredients were not available locally at the time. Fresh ginger ? cardamom pods ? cumin seeds ? commonplace now but in the 70's in the north east of england, pretty much unheard of.

However, I have made many of the recipes and today it's this one...

Biryani

Described in the Supercook as "a North Indian dish of Moghul origin, Biryani is a fragrant mixture of meat, spices, nuts and saffron rice.  The traditional meat in Biryani is lamb, but today prawns, chicken or other meats are used by Indian cooks. It is a main dish, the quantity of lamb being double that of the rice, and so it may be served alone with a yogurt salad or as part of a much larger and elaborate meal, consisting of other meat and vegetable dishes with chutneys and pickles".

For 6 servings:

8 tbsp clarified butter or cooking oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1" piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 & 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
2lb (900g) lean lamb boned and cut into 1" cubes
4" piece cinnamon stick
10 cloves
8 peppercorns
1 tsp cardamom seeds
10fl oz (300ml) yogurt
2 tsp salt
1lb (450g)basmati rice, washed and soaked in cold water for 30 mins and drained
1/2 tsp saffron threads soaked in 2 tbsp boiling water for 10 mins
2 onions, thinly sliced
1 & 1/2 oz (40g) almonds, blanched & slivered
1 &/2 oz (40g) pistachio nuts
2 oz (60g) sultanas or raisins

In a large pan, heat 4 tbsp clarified butter or oil over moderate heat.

Add the garlic, ginger, cayenne pepper and cumin seeds to the pan.  Fry for 3 mins.  Raise the heat, add the lamb cubes and fry well for 10-15 mins or until the meat is lightly browned on all sides.  Stir in the cinnamon, cloves, peppercorns, cardamom, yogurt and 1 tsp salt.  Mix well and add 5 fl oz (150ml) water.  Bring the mixture to the boil.  Lower the heat and simmer for 35 mins or until the lamb is tender.

Fill a large pan with boiling water and add the remaining salt.  When it is boiling, add the drained rice.  Boil briskly for 1 1/2 minutes.  Drain and set aside.

Preheat oven to 180'C/350'F/Gas 4

Put 1 tbsp clarified butter or oil into a large ovenproof casserole dish.  Put 1/3rd of the par-boiled rice in the bottom.  Sprinkle 1/3rd saffron water over it. Now add 1/3rd lamb cubes. Put in another 1/3rd rice and again sprinkle with 1/3 rd saffron water. Put the remaining lamb on top. Finish with the remaining rice, the remaining saffron water and any liquid left from cooking the lamb.  Cover well, place in the oven and cook for 20-30  minutes until the rice is cooked and has absorbed all the liquid.

In a small frying pan, heat 3tbsp clarified butter or oil over high heat. Add the onions, lower the heat to moderate and, stirring frequently, fry for 10 mins, or until they are golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside on kitchen paper to drain.

Add the almonds, pistachios and sultanas or raisins to the pan.  Fry gently or 3 minutes until the nuts are lightly brown.  Remove from heat.

Pile the rice and lamb on a large, heated serving dish and sprinkle with the onions, nuts and sultanas or raisins.

Enjoy.

Raita

I make this my mixing natural yogurt with chopped cucumber and fresh mint or mint sauce if I have no fresh mint.

Notes.

You can add fresh chopped chilli with the garlic and ginger.
Nice garnished with fresh coriander, sliced tomato and hard boiled egg.

A recipe from 1684

Today, I have been given a recipe which was written in the Felton Parish Registers of 1684.  It is not easy to read and the spelling is as it is written, but this is the gist of it.......

How to make a  ? of rabbits or chickens

Take chickens or rabbits after they are cleaned, cut them in little pieces, fry the boney parts of them in butter, strew a little nutmeg and salt upon your meat, when you lay it into the frying pan and dredge a little flower upon it. When it is a little browned but not enough, take it out of your pan, put it with the other parts of the meat into a stew pan with a small quantity of white wine or a little plain water, a bunch of sweet herbs such as parsley , sweet marjoram & time a little whole pepper, half an onyon, a little piece of mace and a little grated nutmeg.  Let it stew until the meat be enough and the broth fairly stewy (make not too much broth) thenhave ready a few capers, small shred and one in 2 yolks of eggs well beaten, then just put your meat into the frying pan with the broth it was stewed in and allsoe that which the meat was fryed in,a spoonful of the caper vinegar or other vinegar to make it tart to your taste, if it be not salt enough a little salt, give it a little warmer the fire put in your yolks.

Maybe I'll give this a go some day.