Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Scottish Recipes - Pavlova


Pavlova

Pavlova, a crisp, yet chewy meringue, covered in fresh whipped cream and fresh fruit of choice

I chose raspberries, but you can make this with any fruit, strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, kiwi slices, sliced peaches, mango, anything you like

I have made Pavlova many times , its a personal favourite dessert of mine that I usually make at Christmas time but it also makes the perfect fresh, light summer dessert and since I love meringue, any time is a good time for Pavlova

Its made slightly different than basic meringue, with a goal to making the middle chewy using vinegar, its facinating that if you use white vinegar the meringue is creamy or nearly white in colour and if you use malt vinegar the meringue is more brownish in colour

Pavlova, although not entirely Scottish, is loved by us Scots all the same. It originated in New Zealand, in the 1920s after Anna Pavlova the Russian ballet dancer visited New Zealand and Australia and a chef made one in her honour, read more here

Makes one Pavlova


You will need


For Meringue
4 Egg Whites
250g fine Sugar
1 Tsp vinegar
1 Tsp Cornflour or Cornstarch
half Tsp Vanilla 
Ingredients


For topping
200ml Heavy Whipping Cream
Fruit of Choice (I used 6oz of Raspberries)


Ingredients

  • Pre-heat oven to 150C/300F. Place some parchment paper on a baking sheet and turn a dinner plate upside down on top and draw a circle on paper, use this as a guide for the pavlova
use a plate

  • Whisk Egg Whites in a large bowl with an electric mixer until the eggs turn white and form soft peaks (don't use a plastic bowl it makes the meringue weep)
Whisk egg whites

  • Gradually add the sugar a spoonful at a time, still whisking as you go
fluffy egg whites

  • Keep whisking for a further 4 minutes until smooth, shiny peaks form, then add the cornflour , vinegar (this make the center chewy) and vanilla
add other ingredients



  • Spoon mixture onto parchment paper in the circle shape
spoon the pavlova

meringue mixture

  • Place in oven and cook for 1.5 hours. After 1.5 hours turn oven off and leave to cool completely inside (you can make this a day in advance and just turn off the oven after the allotted time and leave the meringue in there overnight to completely dry out)
Meringue

  • Carefully peel off the parchment paper and place on a serving dish or plate

  • Pour cream into a mixing bowl and whisk on high speed until stiffened
Whipping cream

whipping the cream

  • Spoon the cream on top of the meringue 
Add on the cream

  • Add the fruit of choice to the top
Raspberry Pavlova

  • Enjoy


You will be amazed by the crisp outer layer and the chewy soft center

We enjoy this dessert with even more pouring cream poured over the top, yummmmm

Hope you enjoy making this dessert


Angela


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Monday, June 25, 2012

Scottish Recipes - Meringue & Whipped Raspberry Cream

Meringues and Fresh raspberry cream


These are so pretty to look at and even better to eat

I have made pavlova many, many times but I have never made little individual meringues, similar meringues can be bought from local bakers in Scotland, and as a kid these were my first choice, I love fresh whipped cream and I love the sweet crunch of a meringue

On our last trip home to Scotland last summer we stopped by an old haunt of ours called PowMill Milk Bar, below are the homemade meringues that they sold, they are so huge, they can be shared

Me at Powmill Milk Bar, Scotland


Meringues at Powmill Milk Bar

This inspired me to make my own but I wanted to keep with the theme of summer, and summer berries and so I made a raspberry cream instead of just plain cream

Makes 6


You will need


For Meringues
5 Medium Egg Whites
115g Fine Sugar
115g Powdered/Icing Sugar
Ingredients


For Raspberry Cream
200ml Whipping Cream
6oz Fresh Raspberries
1 tbsp Sugar


Ingredients



  • To make the Meringues, Preheat oven to 230F/110C and place a piece of parchment paper into a baking tray

  • Put Egg Whites into a bowl (not plastic - and making sure no yolk is in there or the egg whites wont stiffen)
whisk the egg whites

  • Whisk egg whites on medium with an electric hand mixer, or you can beat by hand if needed, until egg whites become stiff and peaks can be formed
egg whites

  • Turn speed up slightly and add fine sugar a spoonful at a time, while continuing whisking (you need to add this slowly so your meringue doesn't weep)

  • Turn off mixer, Next sift a third of the powdered sugar into the mixture and fold in gently and slowly with a metal spoon, don't over mix, repeat with the next 2 thirds until all powdered sugar is mixed and the mixture is fluffy and smooth
Sift the powdered sugar

  • Using a dessert spoon, scoop into the parchment paper, making little round shapes
folding in the powdered sugar

raw meringues

  • Bake in oven for 1.5 hours, until a dry, smooth and shiny in appearance, leave to cool on tray
Cooked meringues

  • To make the raspberry cream, pour cream into a bowl and add raspberries and sugar
Raspberries and fresh cream

  • Using a potato masher, crush the raspberries
blending the raspberries and cream

  • Next, using your hand mixer on medium, whisk the cream and raspberries until blended and thickened
Raspberry Cream

  • Sandwich two meringue halves together with the raspberry cream
Meringues with Raspberry Cream

Meringues with Raspberry Cream

  • Enjoy

Scottish Meringues with raspberry cream

Meringues


Scottish Meringues with raspberry cream

The Meringues can be stored in an air tight container for up to 2 weeks, if they last that long, I mean seriously... no storing going on around here

I hope you love making these and love eating them even more

Thanks for stopping by

Angela




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Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Scottish Recipes - Scotch Eggs

Many things in Scotland are deep fried

We are a nation of deep fryers

The most notorious of all being the deep fried Mars Bar (a mars bar in Scotland is the same as milky way in USA)

So, the other day I bought a deep fryer.

Yes I did.

I haven't owned one of these since I was first married, I remember tossing out my old one and saying that I will never deep fry anything again, it has been nearly 15 years since I owned a fryer. Yes I know, a long time.... so now that I have one again I get to make all the deep fried stuff...

Will I make deep fried mars bars? Oh, You know I will.....

But today I am making Scotch Eggs

Scotch Egg

For those who don't know what a Scotch egg is, its a hard boiled egg, shell removed, wrapped in sausage meat and dipped in breadcrumbs and fried. Oh yes, doesn't that sound dreamy, kind of Breakfasty sounding actually, but us Scots eat these for dinner

I love Scotch Eggs, they serve them here in Texas in our local British pub, and I would get them from time to time but I have never actually made a Scotch Egg from scratch, as they are everywhere in Scotland, in supermarket deli's,  so here goes....

This is a recipe my mum and dad sent me from a local Scottish newspaper pull out (Thanks Mum and Dad)

Makes 4


You will need


4 Large eggs (hard boiled)
300g/10oz sausage meat (Scottish sausage meat would be ideal and authentic but I used American breakfast sausage)
1tbsp Plain or All-purpose flour
1 egg, beaten
100g/3oz fresh breadcrumbs
Vegetable Oil, for deep frying

Ingredients



  • First, hard boil the eggs, cool under running cold water

  • Peel carefully, making sure no shell is left

  • Mix flour, salt and pepper and turn out onto a plate
Flour, salt, pepper

  • In a separate small bowl, beat the other egg. In another larger bowl, pour in the Breadcrumbs(I used store handmade breadcrumbs)

  • Separate sausage meat into 4 equal parts and flatten on a floured surface
breakfast sausage

  • Drop the eggs, one at a time, into the flour, covering egg, then work the sausage meat around the egg until its a good shape
egg rolled in flour
egg covered with sausage

  • brush with beaten egg
brush with egg

  • then roll in breadcrumbs until evenly covered
roll in breadcrumbs

  • Heat oil to a temp of 150C/300F

  • Fry the eggs for 6-8 minutes until golden. remove and drain well on kitchen roll
deep fried Scotch Egg
Scotch Egg

  • Slice in half and enjoy with a nice side salad or indeed Scottish Brown Sauce 

Scotch Egg



Scotch Eggs are great for breakfast, lunch and dinner and for picnics, snacks and parties

These are so good, why oh why is it that deep fried food tastes so flavorsome?

Think there might be a few more deep fried things coming your way

I need to get use out of my new fryer, right?

Angela




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Saturday, June 16, 2012

Scottish Recipes - Summer Pudding

Summer Pudding


Its June already

Summer is Here....

Right?

Not in Scotland yet?

I saw this and being Scottish, it made me laugh, it's so true

There are two seasons in Scotland, June and Winter - Billy Connolly
Source - Scottishactors.blogspot.com
But wait a minute my Scottish chums, I have heard about the record heat and glorious sunshine that has hit Scotland so far this year, many a Scottish Sausage was sizzling on a barbecue from what I heard, perfect, not now?

You know, I don't want to go on and on about how hot it is already in Texas, because it is. You know what they say, everything is bigger in Texas, even the heat, yes BIG Heat. Big humid, sweaty, hair destroying, make up melting Heat. Honestly its not much fun.

I crave cooler weather already. Wait, it has happened...

I have turned into that annoying pain in the butt of a person that Scottish people roll their eyes at, because it is unfathomable to us Scots that anyone would crave cool weather, crazier still that they would crave Scottish weather. Well people do. Honestly Scotland, the rest of the southern hemisphere love your weather even if you don't, even the rain!

Just before I left Scotland to come to Texas nearly 10 years ago, a girl just started where I worked who had lived in South Africa for years before returning to the cooler climes of Scotland. She bugged the living daylights out of me by constantly going on about how she loved the cold. Yes the COLD. I used to think, Wheesht you crazy person you are bugging me... I was such a sun worshiper and a heat craver and used to think she said that just to annoy me. Now with nearly 10 years in Texas with crazy heat, I get where she was coming from

So summer is here, school is out, watermelon is flying off the shelves and water parks across the State are open

So its time for Summer recipes and this pudding has the best name ever

Summer Pudding

It's made with summer berries (preferably Scottish berries, but that ain't gonna happen here in Texas) and is perfect for this time of year

Makes one Pudding that needs to be refrigerated overnight


Serves 6


You Will Need


1lb/500g Fresh Berries (Strawberries, Raspberries, Cherries, Brambles etc)
About 6-8 Slices of White Bread (crusts removed)
1 fl oz/30ml Water
5oz/150g Sugar
Mixed Summer berries


Bread



  • Remove the crusts from the bread
Cut off the crusts

  • Wash and trim fruit, cutting strawberries in half (ensure Strawberries make up half or more of the fruit amount)
Prepared Berries

  • Carefully line the base and sides of a 900ml/1.5 pint Bowl with the crust less bread
Bowl lined with crust less bread

  • Put water and sugar in a pan and bring to the boil until sugar dissolves and a somewhat thick syrup is made
sugar and water
sugar and water syrup

  • Add fruit into pan in order of speed of cooking, strawberries first then ending with raspberries, Stir and Cook for a few minutes then remove from heat
Strawberries first
Strawberries and syrup

Strawberries and blueberries in syrup

Strawberries, raspberries and blueberries in syrup

  • Transfer fruit into a separate bowl with a slotted spoon to drain the syrup (Keep the Syrup)
slightly drained fruit

  • Spoon fruit into the prepared bowl, then spoon a little syrup in there too
fruit in bread bowl

  • Cover with more bread to form a lid 
bread lid

  • Put a small saucer on top with a weight on top to press saucer down (about 1lb weigh, I used a paper weight)
haha, doesn't this look like a crystal ball, its a globe paperweight !

  • Refrigerate overnight, also refrigerate the syrup in a separate container

  • Loosen pudding gently with a blunt knife, carefully turn out onto a plate and pour rest of syrup on top
Scottish Summer Pudding

  • Cut into wedges and serve cold with whipped cream

Summer Pudding

Enjoy a little piece of Summer, wherever you are and whatever the weather


Warning, when you make this your whole house and yourself will have the aroma of sweet syrup, yum!




Angela



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