Sunday Bake | Pear and Frangipane Tart

Anyone who knows me well knows that I HATE cooked fruit...so for me eating a poached pear was a big step! Not just eating too, I actually enjoyed it!! Theres no way I'm gonna go on a hot-fruit eating frenzy but if someone offers me a poached pear - I say as if this happens every week - I won't turn my nose up against it!

I'm not one to brag, but this tart is probably one of the best tarts I've ever made. I'm so proud of it, and it tasted delicious too which is always a plus ;). Frangipane is one of my all time favourite fillings and I just love how moist (apologies!) it is.

I made this for desssert after a Sunday roast, and despite the silly amounts of food already consumed the tart was wholfed down! A success in my book! The recipe is from the amazing Patisserie Made Simple by Edd Kimber (as was last Sunday's bake!). I LOVE this book, I have so many recipes flagged to try and the photography is beautiful.

So, on with the recipe!

Ingredients:

For the frangipane:
100g unsalted butter at room temp
100g caster sugar
2 large eggs
100g ground almonds

For the poached pears:
150g caster sugar
1 lemon
2 Conference or Bosc pears

For the pastry:
225g plain flour
pinch of salt
1 tbsp caster sugar
120g unsalted butter, diced and chilled
2 tbsp ice-cold water

For the decoration:
2 tbsp flaked almonds
2 tbsp clear apricot jam

Method:

To make the pastry, put the flour, salt and sugar in the bowl of a food processor and pulse to combine. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles small pea-sized pieces. Add the water 1 tablespoon at a time, pulsing after each addition. The dough needs just enough water so that it starts coming together. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and lightly knead until it forms a uniform dough. Press into a flat round and wrap in clingfilm. Put it in the fridge for at least 1 hour before using.

To make the frangipane, put the butter and sugar in a bowl and beat together for 5 minutes using an electric whisk or until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating until fully combine before adding the next. Add the ground almonds and mix to combine. Set aside until needed.

To poach the pears, put 500ml water and the caster sugar in a medium pan. Using a sharp knife, cut off 3 strips of lemon zest and add to the pan. Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer over a medium heat. Squeeze the juice from the lemon into a bowl and set aside. Peel, halve and core the pears, putting them into the bowl of lemon juice as you work to prevent the fruit from browning. Add the pears and lemon juice to the syrup and poach for 15-20 minutes or until tender. Remove the pan from the heat and set aside while you prepare the tart.

Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured work surface into a rectangle about 2-3mm thick. Use to line a 35x11cm loose-based tart tin, then transfer the tart shell to the fridge for 30minutes or until firm. Meanwhile preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan oven/gas 4.

Line the pastry with a sheet of baking parchment and fill it with baking beans. Bake for 20 minutes then remove the parchment and baking beans and bake for a further 5 minutes or until the base is a pale golden colour. Remove from the oven and leave to cool for 5 minutes.

To assemble the tart, fill with the frangipane, spreading it into an even layer. Press the pears into the frangipane, cut-side down, and sprinkle the tart with the flaked almonds. Bake for 25-30 minutes until the frangipane is golden. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin. While cooling put the apricot jam in a small pan and bring to the boil, then remove from the heat and, while still hot, brush over the tart.

The tart is best served on the day it is made - not too hard an instruction I imagine...;)!

I hope you like this tart as much as I do, and please do let me know if you try it!

Aimée
Xxxx

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adapted from Patisserie Made Simple by Edd Kimber

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Sunday Bake | Milk Chocolate & Hazelnut Praline Buche de Noel

I'm aware a Buche de Noel is a very Christmassy dessert, but while Winter is still in full force I thought it still deserved a feature! I made this first for my Flat Christmas with the guys, and then again for actual Christmas Day as it really is that good!!

The recipe is from Edd Kimber's Patisserie Made Simple which is SUCH a good book for amazing bakes. I highly recommend it! This recipe in particular is quite lengthy, but the steps are all actually quite simple. Everyone loved this dessert, as although it looks quite decadent it tastes so light! Perfect for Christmas Day when you're already stuffed with food....or any food-filled occasion really!

On with the recipe!

Ingredients:

For the chocolate sponge:
butter, for greasing

70g plain flour 

4 large eggs

100g caster sugar

30g cocoa powder

For the decoration:

125g hazelnuts, roughly chopped

For the praline buttercream:

50g milk chocolate 

125g caster sugar

1 large egg

2 large egg yolks

225g unsalted butter, at room temperature diced

4 tablespoons hazelnut praline paste 

For the hazelnut syrup:

40g caster sugar

2 tablespoons Frangelico (I just used Brandy though!)

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180C (160C fan oven/gas 4) and grease a 33x23cm rimmed baking tray and line with a sheet of baking parchment. Grease the parchment and then dust with a little flour, tipping out any excess. 

To make the sponge, put the eggs and sugar in a large bowl and, using an electric whisk, beat until pale and thick, so that when the beaters are lifted from the bowl the batter leaves a trail. Put the flour and cocoa powder in a bowl and mix together. In three additions, sift this mixture over the egg mixture, gently folding together with a spatula until fully combined. Pour this batter into the prepared baking tray and gently level out. Bake for 10-12 minutes until the cake springs back to the touch. 

Meanwhile, put a tea towel on a work surface and cover with a piece of baking parchment. Remove the cake from the oven and immediately turn it out onto the parchment. Peel off the parchment from the base of the cake, and then carefully roll the cake tightly, with the parchment and tea towel inside. Leave to cool, wrapped inside the tea towel, for 20 minutes. This will help the cake to unroll and re-roll later without cracking.

Put the hazelnuts for decoration on a baking tray and toast them in the oven for 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Set aside to cool.

To make the buttercream, melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a pan of gently simmering water, making sure the base of the bowl doesn't touch the water. Leave to cool slightly. 

Meanwhile, put the sugar and 75ml water in a small pan over a medium high heat and bring to the boil. When the sugar has dissolved, cook until the syrup reaches 120C on an instant-read thermometer. When the syrup is around 115C, put the egg and yolks in a bowl and using an electric whisk, whisk until pale and thickened. Once the syrup reaches 120C, and with the whisk still running, carefully pour the syrup into the egg mixture. Continue whisking until the egg mixture has cooled to room temperature. 

Add the butter, a few pieces at a time, beating until you have a silky smooth buttercream. Once all the butter has been added, add the praline paste and the melted milk chocolate, mixing to combine. 

To make the syrup, put the sugar and 40ml water in a small pan and bring to the boil over a medium heat, then cook for 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and pour in the Frangelico...or brandy! 

To assemble, unroll the sponge and remove the baking parchment, then brush liberally with the syrup. Spread three-quarters of the buttercream evenly across the sponge, then carefully roll it up tightly. Carefully lift the roll onto a serving plate and spread the remaining buttercream in a thin layer over the outside of the cake. To make the decoration, press the nuts into the buttercream, coating the cake. 

And voila! 

Let me know if you give it a try! Whats your favourite Christmassy dessert?

Aimée

Xxxx

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Recipe adapted from Patisserie Made Simple, by Edd Kimber

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Recipe | Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate

 Way back in January, I posted about a handmade birthday box I made for my best friend, (check it out HERE) and I included some home-made Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate. I promised to post the recipe on here, and its taken me till April to do so! I'm such a good blogger, clearly. But, seeing as its still hardly summer weather I think hot chocolate is still called for. :)

Firstly ingredients wise you need -

2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
3 tablespoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups cocoa powder
1/3 tablespoons sea salt
1 cup dry milk powder
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar (I realise I used dark - I can't read okay..)
10oz dark chocolate

The recipe I used is American, hence the measurements being in cups but there are lots of conversion tables on the interweb. Or if you're lucky enough to have measuring cups like me, you're winning!

Firstly line a rimmed (very important!) baking tray with baking paper and set aside. Then you need to make the caramel, prepare for really pretty swirly colours and an amazing smell! Heat the sugar in a large pan over a medium heat, without stirring. Be patient with it and when the sugar begins to melt, slowly swirl the pan around to melt it without burning. Keep your eye on the pan, as it can burn in an instant! As soon as its melted to a deep amber colour remove the pan from the heat and carefully add the vanilla. It will spit, so wear an apron just in case! Whisk the caramel until smooth again and immediately pour onto the lined baking tray. You then leave it  to cool for around an hour and the hard part is over!

If you find that some caramel gets stuck to your pan, pour in some water and put it over a gentle heat. Once its warmed a little, the caramel should come off easily and melt in to the water meaning you can just pour it away and be left with a shiny pan. :)

Once its completely cooled, you need to snap it all into tiny pieces. I found the best way to do it was to jab at it with a knife - its quite a good stress reliever actually! You then need to turn a food processor on, and while running feed the caramel pieces in so they are ground into a fine powder. The food processor starts to ooze a caramel smoke at this point and makes a god awful racket, so you might want to warn anyone in the vicinity beforehand. Once its completely pulverised, it should look a bit like this:

You then need to add the rest of the ingredients, aside from the chocolate, to the food processor and whizz until smooth. Finally, add the chocolate to the mix and process until the mixture is a fine powder.

And, voila! You've made your own salted caramel hot chocolate powder! Which sounds mega impressive, but as you've just witnessed, is ridiculously easy! I hope you enjoy it :) The original recipe states to use three tablespoons mixed with milk - but I find that wayyy too much. So, I'd say its just up to personal preference. Also, side note - this recipe makes LOADS. Like LOADS. So make sure you have enough jars :)

Aimée
Xxxx

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Source: Adapted from Seeded At The Table.

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