Friday, September 6, 2013

Let's get together over High-Tea!

High Tea is often a misnomer. Most people refer to afternoon tea as high tea, generally it is perceived to be regal and lofty, usually taken in a sitting room or withdrawing room. 

My idea of High Tea is to sip a tea/coffee as you watch the evening sunset from your balcony. As I believe ‘Each cup of tea represents an imaginary voyage


Come along inside…
We’ll see if tea and snacks can make the world a better place...


Apple Cinnamon crumbles Bars



Ingredients

450 gms Apples (roughly chopped)
50 gms cup raisins
50 gms castor sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
Zest of one lemon
200 gms all purpose flour
250gms Demerara sugar
½ tsp Baking soda
150gms melted butter
Whipped cream

Method:

  1. Preheat the oven to 190 C/375F/ Gas mark 5, 10 minutes before baking. Place the apples, raisins, sugar, cinnamon and lemon zest into a saucepan over a low heat. Cover and cook for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the apple in cooked through. Remove the cover and well with a wooden spoon to break up the apple completely. Cook for a further 15-30 minutes over a very low heat until reduced, thickened and slightly darkened. Allow to cool
  2. Lightly oil and line a 20.5cm/8 inch square cake tin/pan with grease proof/waxed paper of all baking parchment
  3. Mix together the flour, sugar, bicarbonate of soda, baking soda, oats and melted butter until well combined and crumbly. Spread half of the flour mix into the bottom of the prepared tin and press down. Pour over the apple mixed. Sprinkle over the remaining flour mix and press down lightly. Bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 mints until golden brown
  4. Remove from the oven and allow to cold before cutting into slice
  5. Serve the bars warm or cold with crème friche or whipped cream


Sable




Ingredients

100g plain flour
85g cold butter, diced
Small pinch of mustard powder
Small pinch of cayenne pepper
1 tbsp polenta (this is optional but does add extra crunchiness)
1 tbsp poppy seeds
100g Stilton , crumbled (it's easier to use if taken straight from the fridge)
extra Stilton to top the biscuits


Method
  1. In a large bowl, rub together the flour, butter, mustard powder, cayenne, polenta (if using), poppy seeds, Stilton and a pinch of salt, using your fingers and hands, until the mixture forms pastry dough. Knead the dough briefly until it really sticks together and is very lightly speckled with tiny bits of cheese. You can be quite heavy-handed
  2. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into a sausage shape with your hands, about 25cm long and 4cm in diameter, then wrap in cling film and chill for at least 1 hour. (The pastry can now be chilled for up to 1 week or frozen for up to 1 month. The pastry can be sliced and cooked from frozen but you need to cut it slightly thicker)
  3. To bake the biscuits, preheat the oven to 190C/gas 5/ fan 170C. Slice the dough into rounds just under 1cm thick. Lay the rounds a couple of centimetres apart on a baking sheet (or two, if you are cooking all the biscuits at the same time). Put a very small piece of stilton in the middle of each biscuit, then bake for 10-15 minutes, until the edges are starting to go golden and the cheese is bubbling. Leave to cool slightly before serving. The biscuits will keep for 2-3 days in an airtight tin


Four Quarter Cake



Ingredients

Sugar  600
Butter 600
Milkmaid 600
Salt 12
Flour 600
Baking powder 18
Dark Choc Chop 320


Method:

  1. Take a saucepan and caramelize the sugar, when sugar starts to caramelize turn off the flame and add butter to the sugar
  2. Now add a paddle attachment to the machine and put the sugar and butter mixture
  3. As the sauce cools a little bit still warm enough add milkmaid slowly
  4. Weigh all the dry ingredients, dark chocolate and put it in to the previous mixture
  5. Now bake it in a pre heated oven at 180 C for 35 to 40 mins

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