Chocolate Stollen

As I've mentioned before, some of my childhood was spent living in Germany and I have very fond memories of celebrating Christmas there. During the last few years German Christmas Markets have been springing up in cities over here in the UK. Nothing like the Christkindlmarkets in Berlin, but it's a good start. The biggest Christmas markets here take place in Leeds and Birmingham. We visited the Birmingham market Saturday evening and it was heaving. Unfortunately I was so enthralled with the whole experience I forgot to take photos.

While there we there we ate kartoffelpuffen with apple sauce, kirschkuchen and pretzels. I was boring Hubby with all my explanations for the different foods and getting overexcited every time I saw something I hadn't seen in years. I would have had Glühwein but Hubby was driving and I felt a bit guilty drinking again when he was driving. To make up for it the following night we drank mulled cider while putting up the Christmas tree.

One of the popular German Christmas bakes is Stollen, a yeasty fruit and marzipan bread and I've been told it represents a swaddled baby Jesus. I would go as far to say I prefer it to Christmas Cake. When I came across this recipe for Chocolate Stollen, although not traditional, I knew I had to make it. A few years back I made a traditional stollen using a slightly different method which worked well, but not as good as this chocolate version. Technically this was one of the most demanding cakes I've made. It also turned out to be one of the most impressive and tasty cakes I have ever made. Nigella would be proud. I'll be submitting it to Yeastspotting. Now take a deep breath and prepare for possibly one of the longest recipes I have ever posted.

Chocolate Stollen
Green & Blacks Chocolate Recipes

FOR THE DOUGH
100g mixed fruit
60ml dark rum
zest and juice of 1 orange
50g glace cherries, quartered
100g (1 bar) G&B Maya Gold chocolate (or decent dark chocolate), finely chopped
375g strong white bread flour
25g cocoa powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg, grated
1 tsp mixed spice
2 tsp dried active yeast (not the fast action kind)
150ml milk
125g butter
50g golden caster sugar
2 eggs

MARZIPAN
100g ground almonds
75g icing sugar
25g cocoa powder
a few drops of almond essence (optional)

FOR DUSTING
40g icing sugar
25g cocoa powder

1) Overnight soak the mixed fruit in orange juice, zest and 30ml of the rum. When you are ready to make the stollen stir in the glace cherries and chocolate.

2) Melt together the milk, sugar and 75g of the butter butter. Leave to cool then beat one egg plus one egg yolk into the milky mix. Keep the spare egg white until later.

3) In a large bowl add the flour, cocoa, salt, nutmeg, mixed spice and the yeast then gently pour in the milk and mix until you have a smooth dough. Knead lightly then place in bowl, cover with clingfilm and leave to rise for 30 min. While waiting for the dough to rise make the marzipan, line the 30x20cm baking tray with greaseproof paper and preheat the oven to 190oc.

4) To make the marzipan mix together the icing sugar, cocoa, ground almonds and the egg you saved from earlier (I love very almondy marzipan so also add a few drops of almond essence). Knead until you get a soft, pliable ball.

5) Melt together the remaining 50g butter and 30ml of rum. On a lightly floured board knead the dough then roll out into an oblong shape about 5mm thick (something I'm not very good at!). Brush with the melted butter and rum.

6) Turn the dough so you have a long oblong (rather than a wide oblong) in front of you. On the top cover 2/3 of the dough with half of the mixed fruit mix. Fold the bottom 1/3 two thirds the way up the oblong, then fold down the top third over it. Much like when you fold a letter for an envelope. Press down the open edges to help seal it.

7) Turn the dough 90 degrees clockwise (a quarter turn). Roll out to an oblong shape again. Brush with the butter and rum then repeat step 6 with the remaining fruit.


8 ) Mould the marzipan into an oblong shape just slightly smaller in length than the dough and half the width. Place the marzipan down the centre of the dough, fold the two sides of dough in to meet one another and place join side down in the lined tin. Brush the top with the butter and rum and bake for 35 minutes.

9) As soon as the stollen is baked, brush with the butter and rum (you may need to reheat the butter & rum it to regain the liquid consistency)and dust with loads of icing sugar and cocoa.

Piles of Parkin

Parkin has been on "must bake" list for a while and when Sylvie @ A Pot of Tea and a Biscuit made some for British Food Fortnight I decided I had to give it a go.

Parkin is from Yorkshire and traditionally eaten on Bonfire Night. The principle ingredients of parkin are flour, oatmeal, fat (traditionally lard), black treacle and ginger. Lyle syrups are archetypal ingredients in British baking and the tins are kitchen icons. Black treacle reminds me of cooking Christmas cake with my mum. There was always a fight as to who would lick the spoon clean. As a child I was always intrigued by the lion logo on the tin. Innocent little me thought it was a sleeping lion with stars above it; in reality it is a dead lion with a swarm of bees. No I don't get it either, though wikipedia does go some way to explain it. I perfer to think it is still a lion happily dreaming away!

Black treacle has the ability to be explosive (hence why it tells you on the tin not to open it after best before date and dispose of it). Maybe this is why it appears in so many dishes associated with bonfire night!

I think I may have slightly overcooked it, but with a few days of rest it should begin to go stickier. I was also expecting it to come out a bit darker in colour so next time may use soft dark sugar instead of golden caster sugar. Saying that, it still takes very good!

Parkin
from A Pot of Tea and a Biscuit

125 g butter (if using unsalted butter add 1 tsp salt)
125 g golden syrup
125 g black treacle
125 g golden caster sugar
250 g plain flour
250 g medium oatmeal
4 teaspoons ground ginger
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 egg, beaten

1) Preheat oven to 150°C/Gas 2/300°F and line a 10x10 baking pan. Gently heat the butter, golden syrup, treacle and sugar in a pan, stirring constantly until all the sugar is dissolved.

2) In a bowl sift together flour, oatmeal, baking soda, salt (if using), ginger and cinnamon. Make a well in the centre and pour in the melted butter mixture, beat until everything is combined.

3) When combined add the egg and mix until you have a smooth soft batter. If the batter seems to be stiff add 1tbsp of milk.

4) Pour into the tin and bake 50-60 minutes. Allow to cool before removing and cut into squares

Simnel loaf and cupcakes

In England it is traditional to make a simnel cake to celebrate Easter. Similar to a Christmas cake in that it is a spiced fruit cake. It features 11 balls of marzipan which represent the 12 apostles excluding Judas. The cake is thought to have been around since Medieval times and the name comes from the Latin simila meaning fine wheat flour.

Tradition dictates that it should be baked on Mothering Sunday by a daughter. If it is still moist when cut open on Easter Sunday it is a sign of a good cook (and potential wife!) As I only found this information out yesterday, and had missed Mothering Sunday I still decided to go ahead with it.

The original recipe for this Simnel Loaf cake featured in this months GFM, I made some alterations due to ingredients I had available. I also made my own marzipan, which is far better than any shop bought version. It is meant to make 1 2lb loaf, but I was left with loads of extra cake batter so made some simnel cupcakes to go with the loaf. It turned out beautifully moist, I'm glad it did or I would have been proved to be a shocking wife and cook! Method wise it is very similar to a Boiled Fruit Cake. Rather than the important 11 marzipan balls being on the top of the cake they are distributed throughout the cake, a bit like a stollen. You can use this recipe to make just simnel cupcakes (I guess this recipe will make about 18), use the same amounts. The cooking times for the cupcakes are below. I've entered the cakes in to Julia's Easter Cake Bake.

It's snowing here at the moment and we've been predicted heavy snow for tomorrow so we could be in for a white Easter.

Simnel Loaf and Cupcakes
Makes 1 2lb loaf and around 6 cupcakes

Marzipan
Makes 250g

125g ground almonds
60g icing sugar
1 tsp lemon juice
1 egg, beaten well (you won't use all of it)

1) Sift sugar into bowl then mix in almonds.

2) Add the lemon juice then the egg a tiny bit at a time. Beat to a firm paste then knead. It will end up having the texture of grainy dough. If it is too sticky add a bit more sugar and almonds. Wrap in clingfilm and chill in fridge while you prepare the rest of the cake.

Cake

140g unsalted butter, cubed
175g golden caster sugar
250ml orange juice
75g dried apricots, quartered
275g mixed fruit
220g glace cherries
200g marzipan (see above)
300g plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp mixed spice
2 eggs, lightly beaten
50g flaked almonds

Icing
1 egg white
250g icing sugar
50g marzipan

1) Preheat oven to 150oc. Line 2lb with baking parchment. Ensure it goes high up the sides as the cake will rise.

2) In a large saucepan slowly heat butter, sugar, orange juice, dried fruits until boiling. Simmer for 10 minutes then allow to cool for 15 min. While this is cooling shape the cake marzipan into 11 balls around 2cm across.

3) Sift flour, spice and baking powder into the pan, then stir in eggs and almonds until everything is well combined.

4) Spoon cake mix into tin until it is about half full. Arrange the marzipan balls evenly over the cake mix then cover with the remaining cake mix (don't over fill the tin). Smooth over the top. Bake loaf for 1 1/4 - 1 1/2 until a skewer will come out clean. Leave to cool in tin for 15 min, then remove and finish cooling on wire rack. Allow cake to cool fully before icing.

If cooking cupcakes bake for 30 minutes at 150oc.

5) Lightly whisk egg white then beat in icing sugar until you have thick spreadable icing. Spread over the top of cake. Roll remaining marzipan into balls and brown with a blow torch (you could do this under the grill). When the icing is almost set press the marzipan balls along the top.

Mother's Day Feast & Kinder Bueno winner

Today is Mothering Sunday (or Mother's Day) in the UK. Yesterday evening my sister, brother(who took the photos) and I managed to pull off quite a feast. As our mum is jetting of to New Zealand next week for a month, rather than going out for a meal on Mothering Sunday, (which is usually a guaranteed sign for having a terrible meal, poor service and longs waits for the meal) we decided to have a go at cooking a 3 course meal. With my sister doing the starter, me the main and brother making the pud, the kitchen was quite a scene.

As we live a 2 hour drive from my parents we decided to have the meal Saturday night meaning we could all drink and have a leisurely meal. Original intentions was for it to be a Welsh themed meal as we were eating on St Davids Day, but I'm not too confident with roast lamb, and we couldn't think of a quick easy Welsh dessert. However sis did manage to get Welsh goats cheese into the starter.



Sis made Goat's Cheese and Cranberry Parcels on a bed of leaves dressed with blackberry vinaigrette. They were delicious and I'll certainly be making them at home.



For the main course Hubby and I cooked topside of longhorn beef with mustard crust from Quenby Hall, honey roasted parsnips, roast potatoes, Yorkshire puds, cauliflower cheese and purple sprouting broccoli. The smell of the beef cooking filled the house and mum commented on how good the beef was. It tasted like beef should taste. It was rarer than the photo shows. This was the first time I've cooked roast for 7 people and I must say myself we didn't do too badly! Sis made the gravy as I just can't make it.



For pudding my brother made strawberry gratin. We found the recipe in Sarah Raven's Garden Cookbook. It was really easy to make and delicious. It tasted a bit like cheesecake with a creme brulee sugar topping.



I was a really enjoyable evening and it was all washed down with various liquor coffees and Hotel Chocolat truffles. It was far better (and cheaper) than any meal we could have had if we had gone out for Mother's Day lunch.

Congratulations to Barbara Ghezzi from Suffolk who won a years supply of Kinder Bueno. The prize should be with you by the end of the week.

Suet-free mincemeat

It's official, I now feel Christmassy. First thing this morning we were in Derby for Hubby to do an exam so I took the opportunity to visit the huge new shopping center there and found a fab cook shop, so naturally had to buy a new sieve and silicon pastry brush. I could have spent a great deal more if Christmas wasn't just around the corner. The Salvation Army band were playing Christmas songs which gave a great festive air.

On the way home we picked up our Christmas tree...which strangely smells of Gin & Tonic (not that I'm complaining!) and decorated it while drinking mulled wine.

Then this evening, at our local National Trust park, they had an illuminated Christmas tree trail. During the day families had decorated various trees with decorations made from recycled products (e.g. CD's, plastic bottles) then as night fell candles were lit everywhere. It looked beautiful. I didn't take my camera as usually photography isn't allowed, but I noticed loads of people were taking pics so I might go back with my camera Sunday night.

Today I eventually got around to make my mincemeat ready for the marathon Christmas baking fest on Sunday. I don't know why, but I'm funny about suet in mincemeat so I was really happy when I came across this recipe in Nigella's How to be a Domestic Goddess a few years back. The only alteration I made was to add cranberries.

Hettie Potter’s suet-free mincemeat
Makes about 2kg

250g soft dark sugar
250ml medium dry cider
1 kg cooking apples, peeled, halved and quartered
1/2 tsp mixed spice
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
250g currants
250g raisins
250g cranberries
75g glace cherries, roughly chopped
75g blanched almonds,
finely chopped rind and juice of 1/2 lemon
6 tbsp brandy or rum

In large saucepan, dissolve the sugar in the cider over a gentle heat. Add the roughly chopped apples to the saucepan. Add all the ingredients, apart from brandy/rum and simmer for around 30 min until everything has a pulpy consistency. Take off the heat and when it has cooled slightly stir in brandy/rum.

Bonfire Night

We're back from our Bonfire party weekend in Warwickshire, that involved copious amounts of mulled wine and fireworks. In the UK 5th November is Guy Fawkes Night (also known as Bonfire Night) where we celebrate the fact that Guy Fawkes failed to blow up the House of Parliament. We didn't have the traditional bonfire, but did set alight a "Guy". Traditionally there is many foods surrounding Guy Fawkes Night including toffee apples, cinder toffee, bonfire toffee, jacket spuds, soup and mulled wine. The apples and cheesecake we made went down very well.

In the West Midlands it is traditional to have Faggots with mushy peas on Bonfire Night. I have to admit I've always been a bit nervous about trying faggots due to the cuts of meat they contain (pork - offal, heart, liver) but it didn't taste like I was expecting. To me they tasted of strong sausagemeat, not sure I would eat them again though!