Winter Treats and Wanderings in Great Britain

My apologies for the extended lack of postings! The past six months of my life have been dominated by academics and assorted personal problems, and I just could not find the time to update. Needless to day, in the midst of all the chaos, I actually did manage to find time to eat, so I've got a bit of a back log.

After the insanity of last semester, I decided that I needed more, and so planned a trip to the UK and Scandinavia over winter break.

The journey began in Southampton, where I was reminded of the true meaning of love with the best homemade full English breakfast the UK has ever seen. (See my prior post for details of what this consists of).

Stuart and I then made our way to Horsham, where Stuart's mother entirely outdid herself, and prepared a Hogwarts-scale Christmas dinner with all the English classics.

The centerpiece of the meal was a free range turkey from the local butcher. Beautifully cooked and absolutely splendid with gravy, roast potatoes, parsnips, and carrots. It was great to be able to have turkey both for Thanksgiving and for Christmas!

Desert is where things got really classically English, however. Homemade minced pies with vegetarian mincemeat. Mincemeat generally consists of dried fruit, spices, and brandy. Stuart's mother used Grand Marnier which embellished wonderfully upon the fruity flavor of the pies. These were a mere appetizer to the Christmas pudding that followed.

The Christmas pudding was, like the mince pies, replete with dried fruit and nuts. Soaked in brandy and warmed by a quick flambe, this was a gorgeously rich winter desert. It was only made better by the addition of clotted cream, custard, and brandy butter.



My sister Becca flew over to join us in time for Boxing Day, and soon we were off to Wales with Stuart and friends! Wales is a truly beautiful place: Rolling green hills, castles, and pristine beaches. We were privileged enough to be able to explore the countryside; visiting the Holy Wells of Gumfreston, scaling the walls of Carew Castle, and gallivanting off to Tenby.
Of course all of these adventures made us hungry, and Will's mother was kind enough to feed us! The one bit of Welsh cuisine that is unforgettable is the cheese. In particular, a cheese from Snowdonia called Red Devil. This cheese is so sharp and spicey that it makes your mouth itch and your cheeks sweat...A truly welcome experience given the monotony of Wisconsin's mild cheddars.
After our sojourn to Wales, we headed off to London for New Years. After a night of revelry with Four Tet and Nathan Fake, Becca got to have her first ever full English breakfast. (Photo courtesy of Becca herself).

"It is an awesome feeling." She said. When asked how it compared to American diner food she responded, "It's much more of a unified vision of breakfast than American diner food. The variety is more subtle and dependent on location and chef rather than the elements themselves." In terms of its healing properties, she replied that, "It's excellent for recovery after a long night out...the lack of options is great...it's like 'yes, this is what will heal you!'"

Again, I really cannot comprehend why English cuisine has such a bad rap. Sure, some of it is a bit heavy, but isn't that what one craves for their physical fortitude winter? As an objective newcomer to English food, Becca offered her opinion, "I was surprised by how different than American food it is...It really is its own distinct cuisine. There are flavors you don't find at all in American cuisine. More emphasis on the savory, which is a good thing."

Ginger Peachy

Hello hello!

I am back in Madison, after a quick trip to the UK. There will be a post regarding that soon, but for now, here's a quick post with another easy custard tart recipe! It's basically the same recipe as the earlier recipe for strawberry and earl grey custard tart, but with peaches and ginger custard.

I also tried out a different crust, which is absolutely perfect: Buttery, crumbly and firm.


Follow the recipe above, and allow dough to cool before pouring in custard. The custard recipe is as follows:

3 cups whole milk
1 3 inch piece of fresh ginger, grated
1/3 tsp salt
3/4 cup of sugar
4 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
3 large eggs
6 tbsp unsalted butter




1. Grate about 1 inch of ginger.
2. Heat milk together with ginger, both grated and whole in a pan on the stove to before boiling point.
3. Whisk together sugar, cornstarch, and eggs until smooth.
4. Remove whole ginger and pour about 1 cup of hot (NOT BOILING) milk into the egg mixture. Whisk until the mixture is smooth and has thickened slightly.
5. Pour the egg/milk mixture slowly into the heated milk. Whisking constantly, bring the mixture to the boiling point.
5. Once the mixture has thickened to the consistency of custard remove from heat and quickly strain it through a sieve into a bowl (you can skip this if you don't have a sieve.)
6. Add the butter in chunks to the warm custard and cream until combined.
7. Put custard in the refrigerator to cool, covering it so that the plastic wrap is touching the surface of the custard. (This prevents a skin from forming.)

Once the custard is cool, pour it into the tart crust and let it settle in the fridge. In the mean time,attend to the peaches:

4-5 Ripe peaches, thinly sliced
1 tbs apricot preserves
water

1. Slice peaches, removing skin if desired.
2. Toss peaches with apricot preserves diluted with a little water, so that the are evenly coated. This will prevent them from drying out.
3. Arrange peaches on top of custard and replace in refrigerator to cool.

Enjoy!

C-Town (Cake Town)

I went to see my sister over the weekend in Chicago for her birthday and because I'm such a good little sister I baked her some confections to go with her birthday.

I cannot begin to describe what a pleasure it is to work in a fully equipped kitchen after being stuck with the inferior one in my dormitory. It's also a delight because the produce store that my sister's boyfriend owns, Open Produce, is only a few steps away from the apartment so I'm never at a loss for ingredients when I'm cooking there.

Anyway I first baked her this delicious blood orange cardamom upside-down cake. I followed the recipe and it turned out splendidly. Perfectly caramelized on top with a delicious kick from the cardamom and the orange rinds.

I also baked her something of my own experimental invention: A strawberry tart with earl grey custard and almond crust. It was delicious (better than the orange cake, according to the tasters,) so I thought I would share the recipe:

Allison's Strawberry Tart

Almond Crust
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup confectioners sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 stick plus a little more frozen unsalted butter cut into small pieces
1 large egg yolk
almond extract
Marzipan (optional)

1. Combine dry ingredients in a bowl. Add butter pieces, mashing with a large fork or pastry cutter until the dough has a flaky consistency.
2. Add egg yolk and almond extract and mix until combined (try to continue using a utensil so the mixture remains chilled.)
3. At the last knead until the dough can be pinched. If it's too dry, add ice water slowly until the consistency seems correct. Press into 9-inch pie/tart pan and freeze (25 minutes or more) before baking.
4. Bake at 375º for 30 minutes, covering the crust snugly with foil. After 30 minutes remove the foil and bake until the crust is light brown (about 5 minutes.) All ovens are different, and my sister's is a little cranky so make sure you keep an eye on your pastry while it bakes.
5. When the crust is cool spread a thin layer of marzipan over the bottom (you may want to roll it out) for some extra almond joy!

Earl Grey Custard Filling
3 cups whole milk steeped in 3-4 earl grey tea bags.
1/3 tsp salt
3/4 cup of sugar
4 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
3 large eggs
6 tbsp unsalted butter

1. Heat milk and tea in a pan on the stove to before boiling point.
2. Whisk together sugar, cornstarch, and eggs until smooth.
3. Remove tea bags and pour about 1 cup of hot (NOT BOILING) milk into the egg mixture. Whisk until the mixture is smooth and has thickened slightly.
4. Pour the egg/milk mixture slowly into the heated milk. Whisking constantly, bring the mixture to the boiling point.
5. Once the mixture has thickened to the consistency of custard remove from heat and quickly strain it through a sieve into a bowl (you can skip this if you don't have a sieve.)
6. Add the butter in chunks to the warm custard and cream until combined.
7. Put custard in the refrigerator to cool, covering it so that the plastic wrap is touching the surface of the custard. (This prevents a skin from forming.)


Strawberries
1/4 cup white wine
sugar to taste

1. Remove the stems and leaves from 20-30 strawberries, and slice them thinly.
2. Add about half of the slices to a bowl with white wine and sugar.

3. Put the other half of the slices into a bowl.
4. Let both chill in the refrigerator.

I like this recipe because you can prepare the ingredients and combine them the next day.

1. When you are ready to put the tart together, add one layer of wine strawberries to the bottom and cover with custard up to the mid-point of the crust.
2. Add a layer of fresh strawberries to the layer of custard and cover with more custard.
3. Complete by covering the top layer of custard with the rest of the strawberries.

Yum.

Hot Potato Pie

Today was a beautiful fall day in Wisconsin. The kind of crisp weather that makes you crave a warm stew...As I sat in my math lecture day dreaming about dinner, inspiration came to me.

One of the foods that is conspicuously lacking in commonplace American cuisine is the savory pie. Sure we have quiche, and chicken pot pie...But nothing like the rich comfort of an English steak and kidney pie. But with my limited pantry, how was I to create such a dish? That's when I realized that the beauty of a pie is that the ingredients don't need to be complex, they just need to match each other well.

The following is a recipe for what I have now dubbed Hot Potato Pie:

Crust:
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) of butter
2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup (or so) water
1 tbsp grated cheese

Filling:
6-7 medium yukon gold potatoes
2 cups mushrooms
1 medium red onion
2 tbsp butter
2 gloves garlic
3 tbsp (or so) milk
1 cup (or so) cheese

For the pie crust, in a bowl mix the flour with the butter until it has the consistency of wet sand. Then add cold water until it becomes malleable enough to roll flat. Place flattened pie crust in tin, and prebake at 375ºF (with pie weights if you have them) until crust is slightly browned and firm to the touch.

While the pie shell is cooking you can begin to make your filling.



First take your potatoes and halve them before putting them into salted boiling water. Cook until soft enough to mash. Add butter, 1 clove of garlic, 3/4 cup (or more) of cheese (I used local goat cheddar and feta, but I think any flavorful cheese will work) and milk. Combine until smooth.

Then place onions and garlic in a pan with a pat of butter. Cook until somewhat droopy, then add mushrooms. For this pie I used button and oyster mushrooms. Cook until at least 1/4 cup of liquid has been released. The reason for cooking these ingredients prior to adding them to the potato mixture is to ensure the pie will not become too liquidy.

I couldn't resist posting these pictures of the exotic oyster mushrooms I cooked. Too pretty!


Combine sauteed mushrooms and onions with mashed potatoes. Add enough excess mushroom juice until the potatoes become smooth. Then transfer the mixture to the pie shell. Finish off by grating the rest of the cheese on top. Place in oven and bake at 375ºF until the cheese topping melts and begins to brown.

Remove, and serve!

Judging by my accomplice's reaction: "This is like quiche, only orgasmic." I would say this experiment was a success! It is a nice simple savory meal for a blustery fall day. Creamy and flavorful, and altogether comforting.
Just to spice it up, I ate mine with kimchi on the side, but broccoli or spinach would also go well with (or in!) this dish.