Apple crisp

So what is the difference between an British crumble and an American crisp ?? It sounds sort of the same, and has the same ingredients....and they are both delicious as I found out making my first American crisp!! (Oh and for the record, aren't crisps ~  chips over here?? Just to complicate the matter....)
   Here is the recipe I followed for Mothers Apple Crisp , the mother in question being Mothers Bistro here in foggy Portland Oregon. I haven't been to the bistro, maybe I should...if this crisp is any indication of their cuisine!!
 

The the apple filling
10 Granny Smith apples
2 tbsps lemon juice
2 teasp cinnamon
1/2 cup granulated sugar

For the crisp topping
1 1/2 cups flour
1 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 to 2 teasp cinnamon
2 sticks butter cut into 1/2 inch chunks


Heat the oven to 350 F.  Spray the bottom of a 13 x 9 inch backing dish with non stick spray.
   For the filling, peel the apples and cut each of the four quarters off as close to the core as you can, this way it's a  bit quicker, and slice the quarters into 1/4 inch slices.

This is quite a dull job , I made a competition out of it by seeing how many apples I could peel in one piece....trickier than you think  and I know what you are thinking...get out more Caroline....
Anyway, put the sliced apples into a mixing bowl and add the lemon juice, cinnamon and sugar , and toss to coat. This mixture can then be put into the prepared dish.

To make the topping ,place the flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar and cinnamon into a food processor and blitz at low speed until small clumps form, about 3 minutes .

Scatter over the apples, squeezing it with your hands as you go to create larger pieces which will cook up extra - crispy and provide more texture. Lightly press the topping down onto the fruit.

 I know that's kind of a weird picture, it makes me feel a bit sea sick the way its orientated...


Bake for about 45 minutes until the topping is brown and filling is bubbly. Cool for 30 minutes before serving, preferably with lashings of whipped cream or ice cream.

 There she is in all her glory.

   Tasting it is the best way to get the difference between the English and American desserts... in this dish the apples are soft but still maintain their shape, and in the other version they tend to be soft and  have a pureed texture.  The topping is different again, with this version  crispy crunchy and almost with a cake like feel, whereas the English version is finer in consistancy and tends to not to be terribly crispy. I think I'm leaning towards the crisp as my fav... sorry Delia Smith !!

Spiced coconut red lentil soup

I know. Its been a while, a long while. Can I blame writers block or something similar  ?? No , not really, life has a way of getting in the way of life sometimes, ok alot of times. So 2012 is here, and I'm determined to cook new and interesting food, and then try to blog  about it .
  So here goes the first entry of the New Year. Spiced coconut red  lentil soup. I love this, its perfect for cold January days, and readers of my previous entries will know how much I like spicy dishes.....  Give it a go. If you have one of those hand held immersion blenders, pureeing the soup at the end will be a snap.

2 teasp olive oil
2 cups chopped onion
1 tbsp minced fresh ginger
1 teasp gound cumin
1/2 teasp ground coriander
1/8 teasp ground cinnamon
5 garlic cloves, minced
3 cups chicken broth
1 cup dried red lentils
1/2 cup water
1 cup light coconut milk
3 tbsps chopped fresh basil
2 tbsps fresh lime juice
pinch salt

Heat the oil in a large saucepan and cook the chopped onion for about 10 mins, until golden . Stir in the ginger , ground coriander, cumin, cinnamon and garlic and cook for about a minute stirring all the time.

Add the broth ,lentils and 1/2 cup water,bring to the boil, cover and simmer for 25 mins or until the lentils are tender.

 Remove from the heat and let it cool a bit, then blend until smooth. Add the coconut milk and remaining ingredients and reheat. Makes about 4 servings.

How simple is that??
 Thats my lunch sorted out then. Yum.

s'mores tart .

Before moving to America, I'd never heard of a "s'more" , so the first summer we were here,  there was much hilarity from friends who realised we did not know what they were talking  about around the camp fire........ It was our duty ,of course ,to get acquainted with such a summer staple...and now we can't have a fire with out the marshmallows and chocolate coming out!! However ,there are some summer days when the weather does not live up to expectations......so when I saw this recipe, it had to be tried, in honor of the summer.

First I made a Graham cracker crust...these a bit like English digestives, but a little drier. Mix 11/4 cups crushed crackers with 1/4 cup  melted butter, and press into the bottom and up the sides of a pie plate. Bake at 350 for about 5 mins until just pale golden brown.
Next ,melt 1 cup of whipping cream with 8 oz bittersweet chocolate, then add a beaten egg and a pinch of salt, and mix until smooth.

Bake this for about 20 minutes, until its softly set, but still wobbles slightly in the middle,.

When its done, pile 2 cups of mini marshmallows over the chocolate, and broil for a few minutes, you need to watch it like a hawk, as  it colors really quickly... How pretty is that!!!
  Thats it...no camp fire to worry about... but still that tradtional summer feel of a s'more....just one that you cut into slices....

The teenager went into ecstasies about this one..... rapidly becoming American I think.....what will Grannie think.....

Royal chocolate biscuit cake

There was a wedding last week. Some of you may have watched it. I most certainly did, along with a group of local ladies who dressed to the nines and drank Champagne with me whilst ooing and ahhing over the dress, the hats......  I laid on the full English spread, cucumber sarnies, clotted cream scones, Corination chicken, the works....it was ,however ,the chocolate biscuit cake that stole the show.

Here it is in all its wickedness......

  Actually its really simple to make...just need a few English (or ethnic !!!) ingredients and Bob's your Uncle.


6 oz butter
2 tbsp Golden Syrup
9 oz dark chocolate
10 oz digestive biscuits
3 oz raisins

Lightly grease a 9 inch tin.

 Melt the butter ,golden syrup and chocolate together in a heavy pan,and stir until smooth.

I've found this locally in Fred Meyer and even Albertons.....

These were a little more difficult to track down, but Fred Meyer and Lady Di's came up trumps...tr

Crush the biscuits with a rolling pin, leaving some decent chunks,and add the chocolate and raisins, stirring well.   Pour into your tin and refrigerate until its firm.....cut into what ever size  portions you can decently get away with.

Easy.

 Here a few pics of the other goodies we enjoyed....

A right British knees up!!!!

An interview with McVitie's: The Royal Wedding reception cake

ganache stuffed chocolate chip cookes

This is one heavenly sandwich cookie .....and I need them like I need a whole in  the head....but the weather is miserable on Portland Oregon and we all need a little cheering up....!!

Cookies.
1 cup plus 2 tbsp plain flour.
1 teasp baking soda
1/4 teasp salt
1 stick butter
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teasp vanilla extract
1 egg
1 cup chocolate chips

Ganache.
4 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped
5 tbsp heavy cream
2 1/2 tbsp light corn syrup

To make the cookies,  first preheat your oven to 375. Cream the butter and sugars in a standing mixer fitted with a paddle, for about a minute.
    Beat in the egg ,then add the flour, baking soda, and salt. Add the chocolate chips.

Spoon level tbsps of the dough onto an ungreased baking sheet and refridgerate for about 20 mins until firm

Meanwhile make the ganache.  Put the chopped chocolate in a bowl. In a saucepan,bring the cream and corn syrup to the boil and pour over the chocolate. Whisk until smooth. Put this into the fridge too and leave until its thick and spreadable, about an hour.

Bake the cookies for 12 minutes, until golden, let cool on the baking sheet for 2 mins ,then transfer to a rack to cool completely .

Sandwich the cookies with the ganache ,and kiss goodbye to wearing a bikini this summer.....!!

Sticky toffee banana pudding

The English Sticky toffee pudding has to be my most favorite dessert of all time......I will always order that over anything else on a menu. Always.  We visited the English village of Cartmel a few times where a very delicious S T P is made....they even present half marathon finishers with a pudding in that town. Maybe I could be persuaded to run???  In fact Travelling man made one for me once, and that's a big feat for him. This is a variant on the theme, and was enjoyed by us all......

For the toffee sauce
11/4 cups heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup dark corn syrup
1/4 cup unsalted butter

For the cake
2 cups flour
11/2 teasp baking powder
11/2 sticks butter
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 large very ripe bananas
11/2 teasp vanilla extract


For the toffee sauce, bring the cream,brown sugar

corn syrup,butter and 1/8 teasp salt to the boil in a pan,stirring until the sugar dissolves. Reduce the heat and continue to cook until the sauce has thickened and reduced a bit. This can be made ahead...if you dare.....

For the cake...
  Oven at 350. Grease an 8 x 8 metal baking tin.  Whisk the flour,1/2 teasp salt and the baking powder together. In a mixer, beat the butter and sugar together until well blended,then add the eggs, one at a time. Add the mashed bananas and vanilla, then add the dry ingredients slowly.

Spread the batter into the tin and bake for 30 minutes or until a tester inserted into the middle comes out clean. Spread 1 cup toffee sauce evenly over the cake and continue to bake for another 5 minutes,when the sauce will be bubbling thickly.  

And there it is. The rest of the toffee sauce can be served along side.   Even more decadence would be achieved by also serving some sliced bananas on top.

    I know this the first day of Lent, so bad timing on my part for some, but try this one when you can!!