Baklava

Baklava is a rich, sweet pastry featured in many cuisines in the area once controlled by the former Ottoman Empire, in Central Asia and in the lands in between. It and its variants are thus popular in Turkey, the Balkans, Cyprus, much of the Arab world, Iran, the Caucasus, Afghanistan and the lands of the Turkic peoples of Central Asia. It is a pastry made of layers of phyllo dough filled with chopped nuts and sweetened with syrup or honey.

Baklava

Rick Stein: "I have already mentioned the impressive furore of activity at Imam Cagdas, the kebab restaurant in Gaziantep, and this was especially so on the first floor where they were making baklava. There must have been 50 or 60 people preparing the paper-thin pastry and the bright green pistachios, building up the trays of baklava and baking them in the huge, wood-fired ovens. But only two people, Burhan Cagdas's ageing father and one other, were allowed to apply the boiling hot syrup after baking, which had to be at just the right temperature and consistency. There was so much flour in the air where the pastries were being assembled that everyone seemed to be working in a dream-like haze. The most distinctive elements, apart from the perfect pastry, were the vibrantly green pistachios, harvested when young, and the butter made from ewe's milk. This is their recipe and is still very good even when made with ordinary butter and pistachios, and is just perfect with a cup of strong black coffee - Turkish, of course."

Baklava Recipe (Makes about 20 pieces)

(Adapted from Rick Stein's Mediterranean Escapes)

Ingredients

• 500 g filo pastry sheets
• 150 g clarified butter, warmed (* see note below on how to make clarified butter)
• 250 g shelled pistachio nuts

For the Pastry Cream:

• 300 ml milk
• 40 g Semolina

For the Syrup:

• 600 g granulated sugar
• 1 tsp lemon juice

* To make Clarified Butter: Place butter in a small pan and leave it over a very low heat until it has melted. Skim off any scum from the surface and pour off the clear (clarified) butter into a bowl, leaving behind the milky white solids that will have settled on the bottom of the pan. The butter is ready to use.

Method

1. First make the pastry cream. Put the milk and semolina into a small, non-stick pan and slowly bring to the boil, stirring. Simmer for 1 minute, then transfer the mixture to a bowl, press a sheet of clingfilm onto the surface to prevent it from forming a skin and leave to go cold.
2. Preheat the oven to 160C. Cut down the filo pastry sheets if necessary so they will line a 20 x 30-cm shallow, rectangular, non-stick baking tin. Brush the base and sides of the tin with some of the clarified butter, then line the base with 15 single layers of pastry, brushing each one lightly with butter before adding the next. Don't butter the last sheet of pastry.
3. Mix the pastry cream until smooth, loosening it slightly with a little milk if it seems stiff, then spread it evenly over the top of the pastry. Sprinkle over the chopped pistachios in an even layers. Cover the top of the baklava with another 15 layers of filo pastry, lightly brushing with butter between each layer.
4. Using a larger, very sharp knife, cut the baklava into portion-sized pieces - make 3 evenly spaced cuts lengthways down the tin and then cut across at an angle to make small diamond-shaped pieces (Note: I prefer to cut them into square pieces, less wastage). Drizzle over any remaining butter. Bake the baklava for 1 hour until crisp and richly golden.
5. Meanwhile, for the sugar syrup, put the sugar and 350 ml water into a pan and leave over a low heat until the sugar has completely dissolved and the mixture is clear. Then bring to the boil and simmer vigorously until it reaches 107-108C, the 'thread' stage - you will need a sugar thermometer to check. Add the lemon juice to the syrup and set aside.
6. A minute or two before the baklava is ready to come out of the oven, bring the sugar syrup back up to the boil. Remove the baklava from the oven, quickly and carefully run a knife along the cuts to check the pieces are all separated, then immediately pour over the hot syrup. This will look like a large amount, but it will gradually be absorbed by the pastry as it cools. Leave the baklava to go cold, then carefully remove from the tin to serve.

Cinnamon Chicken and Pine Nuts Pastries

I always count my blessings and look at the positive side of life. I must be thankful for everything positive in my life. I must look to where my life is and why it is where it is. It is amazing, whether you believe in God or not, there is an energy we dispel into the world that somehow comes back to us.

Cinnamon Chicken and Pine Nuts Pastries

Christmas is right around the corner. As I was baking these delicious pastries, I can't stop smiling and feeling so blessed.

Cinnamon Chicken and Pine Nuts Pastries

This is a great appertizer, cocktail or canapes recipe for your Christmas party.

Cinnamon Chicken and Pine Nuts Pastries

(Adapted from BBC Magazine: Rick Stein's Summer Meze)

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for brushing
• 450 g / i lb onions, finely chopped
• 600 g / 1 lb 5 oz skinless chicken breast, chopped into 1 cm pieces
• 3 tbsp pine nuts, lightly toasted
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground allspice
• 1 1/2 tsp sumac or 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 500 g pack chilled puff pastry
• A little plain flour, for dusting

Method

1. Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-based frying pan over a medium heat. Add the onions and cook for 10-15 minutes, stirring now and then, until they are very sweet, soft and slightly caramelised.
2. Add the chicken to the pan and cook for 5 mins. Stir in the pine nuts, cinnamons, allspice, sumac or lemon juice and some salt and pepper, then cook for 2 mins more until most of the excess liquid has evaporated. Check the seasonings.
3. Heat oven to 200C. Roll out the pastry thinly on a lightly floured surface, then cut out 25 x 8 cm discs using a plain pastry cutter. Working with one pastry disc at a time, dampen the edge with a little water. Place a heaped tsp of the chicken mixture into the centre of the disc, then fold the sides, pinching together in three places to create a triangular shaped parcel, leaving about 1.5 cm of the filling showing in the centre. Repeat with the reamining discs. Place on baking trays lined with non-stick baking paper and brush each one lightly with olive oil. (Can now be frozen for up to a month.)
4. Bake for 20 mins until crisp and lightly golden. Serve warm.

Belinda Jeffery's Flourless Chocolate, Pecan and Raspberry Torte

I love this cake. It fills all the criteria for a wonderful holiday dessert. It's rich and sophisticated, keep exceptionally well, is very simple to make and, all-important for a special occasion, look spectacular. The iced cake, minus the raspberries, keeps well in the freezer for up to a month.

Belinda Jeffery's Flourless Chocolate, Pecan and Raspberry Torte

Belinda Jeffery's Flourless Chocolate, Pecan and Raspberry Torte Recipe

(Adapted from AWW Christmas and Holiday Entertaining Cookbook)

Ingredients

• 250 g unsalted butter
• 250 g good quality dark chocolate
• 3/4 cup (75 g) sifted Dutch processed cocoa powder
• 1 2/3 cup (200 g) roasted pecans
• 6 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups (330 g) caster sugar
• 1/3 cup (80 ml) brandy or cognac
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2-3 punnets raspberries
• double thick cream, for serving

Chocolate Glace:

• 250 g good quality dark chocolate, chunks
• 125 g unsalted butter, chopped
• 2 1/2 tbsp water

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180C. Butter a 23 cm springform cake pan and line the base with buttered baking paper. Dust cake pan with flour or rice flour (if you're avoiding wheat) and tap out the excess. Set it aside.
2. Melt the butter in a medium-sized saucepan over low heat. Add the chocolate and whisk until melted. Take the pan off the heat, then add the cocoa, stirring it in until the mixture is thick and smooth. Set it aside to cool a little.
3. Meanwhile, whiz the pecans in a food processor to chop them as finely as possible. Stop the machine every so often to check them so they don't become oily and form a paste. Set them aside.
4. In a large bowl, whisk eggs and sugar with a balloon whisk until they are just blended together, then whisk in the warm chocolate mixture until it's well combined. Mix in the brandy and vanilla. Finally, stir in the ground pecans - the batter will look very loose and sloppy, but don't worry, it's fine.
5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake the torte for 40-45 minutes or until the side is set, but the middle 15 cm or so of the torte is still a bit wobbly when you gently shake the pan.
6. Cool the torte completely in the pan on a wire rack. Once cool, release the sides of the pan and carefully invert the torte onto the rack. Remove the paper.
7. Chocolate Glaze: Put the chocolate, butter and water into a medium-sized, heavy based saucepan over low heat. Let the chocolate and butter melt, stirring regularly, until they are smooth. (A small, flat sauce whisk is ideal for this, as it gets right into the corners of the pan where the chocolate tends to clump a bit.) The most important thing to keep in mind when you're making the glaze is that it mustn't get too hot and boil; If it does, it becomes oily and grainy and there's not much chance of salvaging it. Once it's silky smooth, take it off the heat. Let it cool until it's barely warm and a thick pouring consistency before using it.
8. To ice, place the torte on the rack over a plate to catch any drips, then pour a good amount of the barely warm Chocolate Glaze into the middle of the torte. Tilt the rack so the glaze flows evenly over the top and runs down the sides (for the smoothest finish, don't run a palette knife over it). If your room is cool, you can leave the glaze to set at room temperature. However, where I live, summer is hot and humid, so I generally transfer the lot - the torte on its rack on the drip plate - into the fridge to set. Once set, slide the torte onto a serving plate and cover it in plastic wrap - it will keep well like this for at least a week. Before serving, remove the wrap and return the torte to cool room temperature.
9. To finish off, sit a tightly packed layer of raspberries all over the top, then dust them very lightly with icing sugar. Serve with cream.

Pom Poms

Pom Poms

Saturday movie night? Do you need some bites to go with it?

What is the goodness you get by combining dulce de leche caramel, chocolate, popcorn, toasted coconut and peanuts? You get Pom Poms!

Pom Poms taste like Snicker Bars - the candy bars with chocolate, nougat, peanuts and caramel - according to my taste tester, Mr J. Only slightly more chewy.

It's extremely easy to make these cute little gems.

First, you got to have a can of Dulce de leche caramel. It can be easily made at home by simmering a can of condensed milk in a pan of boiling water for 3 hours. You can get the detailed recipe from my earlier post HERE.

But if you don't have the patience or time to simmer the condensed milk for 3 hours, there is an easy way out. Combine 1 can (395 g) of condensed milk with 30 g of butter in a large heavy-based saucepan; cook, stirring, over medium heat, about 10 minutes or until mixture is caramel colour.

Voila! You get an express version of dulce de leche caramel.

Don't say I didn't warn you, Pom Poms are super additive. You won't be able to stop at 1, or 2, or 3....

Pom Poms Recipe (Makes 40)

Ingredients

• 1 can (395 g) sweetened condensed milk
• 1 cup (140 g) finely chopped roasted unsalted peanuts
• 4 cups (40 g) air-popped popcorn
• 1/2 cup (40g) toasted shredded coconut
• 200 g milk eating chocolate, melted

Method

1. Line two trays with baking paper.
2. Make the Dulce de leche caramel: Put the can of condensed milk into a pan of boiling water and let it simmer away for 3 - 3 1/2 hours, topping up with more water if necessary.
3. Remove from heat and open the can; pour the caramel into a bowl, quickly stir in nuts, popcorn and coconut.
4. Working quickly, roll walnut-sized pieces of mixture into balls. Dip balls in chocolate; place on trays. Refrigerate until firm.

Choco-Coconut and Pistachio Brownies

What do you do when you have a sick child and you are home bound on the weekend?

Choco-Coconut & Pistachio Brownies Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 cup shredded coconut
• 1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/3 cup cocoa
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup pistachio nuts, roughly chopped

Method

1. Heat oven to 175C.
2. Grease and line a slice tin.
3. Combine butter, sugar, egg and vanilla essence in a bowl.
4. Sift together flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt.
5. Add with 3/4 cup shredded coconut and chopped pistachio nuts to butter mixture.
6. Mix together well.
7. Spread mixture evenly over base of tin.
8. Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup shredded coconut over top.
9. Bake 25 - 30 minutes or until brownies begin to pull away from sides of tin.
10. Cool completely in pan.
11. Cut into squares. Makes 16.