Fat Friday #25 Mini Florentine Bites





 

Yay its Friday! Its time for this weeks Fat Friday. This week its a petit four called Mini Florentine Bites. Most of us know that Florentines are caramel that traditionally have almonds and cherries in. However, this recipe calls for a sweet pastry which provides a base for the Florentine mix. Also, the pastry is covered in a layer of dark chocolate, this makes it look very impressive.

 

Florentine Bites  (recipe kindly provided by my pastry chef)
Recipe: Makes 40 small pieces (depending on cutting size)

For the pate sucre

· 260g plain flour, plus a little extra

· 100g icing sugar, plus a little extra

· 30g ground almonds

· 125g unsalted butter

· 2 eggs

· 1 tsp milk

Florentine mixture

· 52ml Whole milk
· 79g granulated sugar
· 42g glucose
· 42g honey
· 105g unsalted butter
· 126g sliced almonds
· 42g pistachios
· 42g Candied peel
· Pinch of salt

Equipment:
· Saucepan
· Whisk
·  Mixing bowl
· Fork
· Wooden spoon
· Sieve
· Rolling pin
· Knife
· Baking sheet lined with silicone paper
· Baking beans
· Saucepan
· Sugar thermometer
· Wooden Spoon

 For the pate sucre:
1. Place the flour, icing sugar, almonds and butter in a mixing bowl, rub the mixture together
2. Add the 2 eggs and mix well. Cover and rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.
3. Preheat oven to 180c/350f/ Gas Mark 4.
4. Dust the work surface with icing sugar. Roll out the pastry to about 2mm thick.
5. Line the tray with the pastry, letting it hand over the sides. Cover with silicone paper and fill the tart base with baking beans.
6. Bake blind for 20 minutes or until the case is cooked through and lightly golden. Remove the baking beans and silicone paper.

 

For the Florentine mixture:

1. Combine the milk, sugar, honey and glucose in a saucepan and heat to dissolve the sugar.

2. Heat until the mixture reaches 120c on a sugar thermometer. Remove from heat.
3. Stir in the butter and salt until completely melted.
4. Stir in the almonds and pistachios and peel.

To assemble:

1. Pour the florentine mixture into the blind baked pastry and bake in the oven for 20 minutes.
2. Turn the cooked Florentine out onto parchment paper and a chopping board.

3. Melt some dark chocolate and smooth on top of the pastry and using a textured buttercream smoother, swirl a design on it.
4. Place in the fridge to set.
5. Once set cut into pieces.

What is your take on these updated Florentines? Would you make them?

Have a great weekend!

Fat Friday #19 Hazelnut Cake with Pistachio Ice-Cream & Cream Toasted Almond Cream

December. You know what that means right? Its shopping time! Lucky enough for me, I've finished all my Christmas shopping now which is a big relief. In the next couple of weeks there will be a some Christmas recipes coming up soon. Maybe on Fat Friday or who knows. Its my most busy time of year but I hope your not too busy enough to make this restaurant dessert.

Its a nut themed dessert with a sweet hazelnut cake, savoury pistachio ice cream and a luxury almond cream. Its a fairly simple dessert which takes minimal effort with maximum 'wow' reaction at all that 'effort'.

Recipe: Makes 8 servings 

Cake:

·       225g ground hazelnuts, sieved

·       50g plain flour, sieved

·       1 teaspoon baking, sieved

·       3 eggs

·       200g castor sugar

·       200g butter, melted and cooled

·       Juice of 1 lemon

Pistachio ice-cream:

·       200g pistachio’s

·       300ml milk

·       7g milk powder

·       200ml double cream

·       6 egg yolks

·       60g castor sugar

·       10ml glucose

Toasted almond cream:

·       700ml double cream

·       100ml milk

·       75g toasted sliced almonds

·       110g sugar

·       3 gelatine leaves

Equipment:

·       Mixing bowl x 2

·       Sieve

·       Saucepan x 3

·       23 inch cake tin lined with silicone paper

·       Baking sheet

·       Whisk

·       Fine sieve

·       Ice cream machine

·       Small bowl

·       Small mould

·       Liquidizer

·       Sugar thermometer

For the pistachio ice cream:

1.    Bake pistachios in an oven 170c/Gas Mark 3/ 325f for a few minutes to release some of the nuts oils.

2.    Place the milk, milk powder, and cream into a pan. Bring gently to the boil, add the pistachios. Wait until cooled and then liquidize until smooth.

3.    Return to the plan and bring back to the boil.

4.    Meanwhile, whisk the eggs, glucose and sugar.

5. Pour half the pistachio mix into the eggs, whisking constantly.

6.    Return the pan to the heat. Heat to 84c using a sugar thermometer.

7.    Strain immediately through a fine sieve and cool.

8.    Place into an ice cream machine.

For the cake:

1.    Pre-heat oven to 170c/Gas Mark 3/ 325f.

2.    Melt the butter in a pan and allow to cool before using.

3.    Mix the ground hazelnuts, flour and baking powder together.

4.    Whisk the eggs and sugar together until pale, then slowly whisk in the melted butter.

5.    Fold in the hazelnut mixture followed by the lemon juice.

6.    Pour the mixture into the lined cake tine and bake for 40 minutes.

7.    Remove from oven and leave to cool on a wire rack.

For the Almond cream

1.    Toast the almonds like the pistachios as above. Put cream, milk, almonds and sugar into a pan and bring to the boil.

2.    Remove and infuse the almonds for 40 minutes.
3.    Place the gelatine in cold water until gooey.
4.    Bring the cream mixture back to the boil and remove again from the heat.
5.    Add the gelatine and sieve to remove the almonds.
6.    Pour into small moulds of your choice and set for 4 hours.

To complete:

1.    Cut the cake into 8 pieces.
2.    Dip the mould into a little hot water to realise the almond cream.
3.    Scoop a little of the ice cream on top of the cake.  

Are you nuts over this dessert? Would you order it at a restaurant?

St Patricks Day Soda Bread and Pistachio Cupcakes

Happy St Patricks Day! Coming from an Irish family, we celebrate in a wonderful way... with food of course! In this case, bread. 

When I think of Ireland, I think of my Grandad, potatoes, green shamrocks, Mrs Brown's Boys and Leprechauns of course. But when I think of Irish food, my bread brain always thinks of soda bread. However, other countries have there own claim on the soda bread, but its mainly associated with Ireland. 

The Plain Soda Bread I made in pastry class.

My Grandad, (aka Gramps) is your typical, stereotypical Irish man and so he has to share his memories with me constantly. He told me that his granmother (my great-great granmother) would make her soda bread with currents to make it sweet. 

When I told him that I would be publishing a soda bread, which you can add cheese to. 

He looked mortified. 

So in this recipe, you can add currents or cheese and a little paprika (Just don't tell my Gramps!)

Ingredients: (Recipe Inspired by my Gramps and My patisserie tutor Faye)

·       300g Strong Flour

·       4g bicarbonate of soda

·       15g baking powder

·       15g Sugar

·       4g Salt

·       30g Unsalted butter

·       210ml buttermilk

(Add about 75g currents or 80g of a cheese of your choice with a pinch of paprika but this is optional)

Equipment

·       Sieve

·       Bowl

·       Jug

·       Baking sheet covered with silicone paper

Great with cheese or currents baked in it.

    1.    Sieve all the dry ingredients into a bowl.

    2.    Rub the butter into the mix until it resembles breadcrumbs

    3.    Make a well in centre and add most of the buttermilk but not all of it. Only add the last part if it’s too dry.

    4.    Mix all the ingredients together to form a dough. (Add the currents or cheese at this stage)

    5.    Turn out onto the table and knead until the stickiness has gone. Mould into a round and place on a baking sheet.

    6.    Make a cross with a very sharp knife almost cutting all the way through. Dust with a little flour.

    7.    Leave to rest in a proofer for 10 minutes then put into a hot oven 230c/450f/ Gas Mark 8 then turn the oven down and finish cooking for 25 minutes.

   8.    When cooked, it should appear golden brown and sound hollow when tapped when tapped on the bottom. 

    The next recipe is not traditional, in fact when I saw it, I went: “Huh, this is erm.. different? At least it's green.”

     In fact, I didn't think it would work! But the saltiness of the pistachios contrasted with the sweetness of the icing. It is a combination that will make your tastebuds dance a little Irish jig! 

    Recipe: Pistachio Cupcakes Makes About 16 (Adapted from Cupcakes Galore by Gail Wagman)

·       150g plain flour

·       1 teaspoon baking powder

·       1 teaspoon salt

·       190g unsalted butter, softened

·       150g dark brown sugar

·       3 eggs

·       1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

·       125ml natural yogurt

·       150g salted pistachios, roughly chopped

       Recipe: Green Icing

·       20g unsalted butter, softened

·       4 tablespoons hot milk

·       220g icing sugar

·       2 drops of Peppermint flavouring

·       Green food colouring paste (I used Gooseberry Green)

·       Green sugar

·       Gold and green glitter or other decorations.

       Equipment:

·       Knife

·       Chopping board

·       Bowl x3

·       12 hole muffin tray filled with cupcake cases x2

·       Electric whisk/handheld whisk

·       Scales

·       Spoons

·       Small palette knife

1.    Preheat oven to 180c/350f/Gas Mark 4

2.    Mix the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, and salt in a bowl and set aside.

3.    Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition and add vanilla. Alternately beat in the flour mixture and the yoghurt. Fold in the pistachios.

4.    Spoon batter into cupcake cases, filling about 2/3 full. Bake for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack.

Green icing was used to top the cupcakes

5.    For the icing: Mix the butter and milk together in a large bowl. Slowly beat in the icing sugar until the icing is of a good spreading consistency. (You may need to add a little more milk depending on how runny you want your icing, but it should but thick but spreading).

6.    Add the food colouring and the peppermint flavouring, mix well and spread on cooled cupcakes. Decorate as desired. (Glitter and tried to do some shamrocks.)

Have a Happy St Patricks Day and Bake On!