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Easy to make, too. Use Pink Lady or Jazz (a popular new hybrid) apples, which tend to retain their colour and shape better during baking. Prep and Cook Time: 1 hour, 15 minutes. Note, but you can substitute one-third of a cup of golden raisins for the walnuts if you prefer.
one-third cup of walnuts, chopped medium fine
one-third of a cup of pecans, chopped medium fine
¼ cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
¼ cup rolled oats
4 tablespoons cold butter, cut into small cubes
6 medium Pink Lady or Jazz apples, or other firm baking variety
1½ cups apple cider
1. Preheat oven to 350º. In a small bowl combine walnuts, pecans, sugar, salt, cinnamon, cardamom, and oats. Add butter cubes and toss to combine.
2. Peel the top third of each apple and, using a melon baller, scoop out the stem and enough of the core so that the walls of the apple are about 1/2 in. thick. Take care, however, not to break through the bottom of the apple, or the filling will leak out when baking. Make the hole a bit wider at the top.
3. Using a small spoon or your fingers, generously stuff each apple; mound extra filling on top.
4. Put the filled apples in a 2-qt. baking dish. Pour cider into the pan around the apples, cover the dish with foil, and bake 45 minutes. Remove foil and bake, basting every 15 minutes, for an additional 30 to 45 minutes, until apples are easily pierced with a sharp knife (they may split open a bit at the bottom). Serve apples drizzled with the sauce from the pan and with a scoop of vanilla ice cream alongside.
You will also need a 2 pint / 1 litre pudding basin
Halve and stone the plums. Put them into a stainless-steel saucepan with the sugar and 250ml of water and bring to the boil. As soon as the fruit is soft, tip in the berries. Continue cooking, but now at a low simmer, until the fruit has started to burst and the juice in the pan is a good, rich colour.
Remove the crusts from the bread, cut into thickish slices then into rectangular strips (like soldiers for your boiled egg), cutting one piece into a disc to fit the bottom of the basin.
Tuck the round of bread into the bottom of the pudding basin. Press the fingers of bread all round the sides of the dish, carefully butting them up together so there are no gaps.
Lift the fruit from its juices with a draining spoon and pack tightly into the bread-lined basin. Cut the last pieces of bread to fit the top then put the basin on a shallow dish. Spoon over enough of the juice that it thoroughly soaks the bread, then place a plate on top of the basin. Add a heavy weight – a can of beans will do – then leave in the refrigerator overnight. You can turn the pudding out if you wish, though I'm not sure it's necessary.
Delicious, and pretty on the plate. What nicer than a late summer pudding that's so easy to make?
Fearnley-Whittingstall's Caramelised peaches with raspberry sauce
(His words)
When you get your hands on truly ripe peaches, there's nothing better than devouring them as they are, savouring every luscious mouthful. Try them at breakfast – could there be a more life-affirming way to start the day? Or as a simple and spectacular end to a rich meal. But I can't help myself. When I've consumed more peaches au naturel than one might think possible, I can't resist dabbling with them in recipes, too. It's no crime to cook a peach – and, frankly, it's a kindness to any peach that has not been allowed to ripen fully. Nothing elaborate, though – a simple grilling with raspberry sauce, a salad, a slump, all designed to let their essential peachiness shine.
Serves 4
For the sauce
12oz / 350g raspberries
1 tablespoon fresh lemon or lime juice
About 2 tablespoons icing sugar
To serve
Vanilla ice-cream (optional)
Preheat the oven to 220C / 425F / gas mark 7. Halve the peaches, remove the stones, then place the fruit in an ovenproof dish, cut side up. Brush with the honey and place a scrap of butter in each one. With a small, sharp knife, scrape the seeds from the vanilla pod and smear them over the peaches. Snip the vanilla into eight pieces and put a piece in each peach half. Bake for 15-20 minutes until tender and slightly caramelised.
While the peaches are cooking, make the raspberry sauce. Purée half the raspberries in a blender with a splash of water. Press through a sieve to remove the seeds, then stir in the lemon or lime juice and icing sugar to taste.
When you're ready to serve, arrange two hot peach halves on each plate, spoon over the raspberry sauce and scatter with the remaining raspberries. If you like, you can also add a scoop of vanilla ice-cream.
Baked peaches with maple syrup and vanilla
Serves 4
4 ripe peaches
4 tbsp maple syrup
a pinch vanilla seeds, about the contents of 1 pod
juice of 1 lime
Set the oven at 200C/gas mark 6. Wipe the peaches and slice them in half. Discard the stones and place the fruit, cut side up, in a shallow baking dish.
Put the syrup in a bowl with the vanilla seeds and the lime juice. Mix well then pour over the peaches. Bake for approximately 35 minutes till the peaches are tender. It is good to baste the fruit from time to time as it cooks.
Blueberry Pie, by Nigel Slater
When you push the soft crust with your knife, the purple juice gushes to the surface like blood from a deep cut, staining the sugar-frost coating. The flavours here are untaxing, a different thing altogether from a blackcurrant pie with its loud, piercing ring. I choose a soft pastry, too tender to transfer from tart tin to plate in one piece. More of a shortcake really.
ENOUGH TO SERVE 6 GENEROUSLY
for the filling
blueberries 500g
lemon juice 2 tbsp
cornflour 1 generously heaped tbsp
redcurrant jelly 1 heaped tbsp
for the crust
butter 150g
golden caster sugar 150g, plus a little more to scatter over the top
plain flour 250g
baking powder 1 tsp
an egg, beaten
a little milk, or beaten egg and milk, to finish
Set the oven at 180C/gas mark 4 and put a baking sheet in it (this will help keep the base of the pie crisp). Lightly butter a 24cm shallow metal pie plate. Put the blueberries into a bowl with the lemon juice, cornflour and redcurrant jelly. Toss gently to mix, then set aside.
Cream the butter and sugar in a food mixer until pale and fluffy, pushing the mixture down the sides of the bowl from time to time with a spatula. Sift the flour and baking powder together. Incorporate the egg, a little at a time, into the butter and sugar mixture, adding a little flour if it starts to curdle. Mix in the flour and baking powder to form a soft dough.
Flour the work surface generously. Bring the dough together to form a ball, then knead lightly for a minute. Cut into two equal pieces and roll one out to fit the base of the pie plate. Line the dish with the pastry, taking care to push the dough well into the corners and to leave some overhanging.
Add the filling. Roll out the remaining pastry. Brush the edge of the pastry lining the dish with a little milk or beaten egg and milk, then lower the pastry lid on top. Press the edges to seal, trim any overhanging pastry and cut two small holes in the top (if you don't, the pastry may split). Brush with a little milk or beaten egg and milk and scatter lightly with sugar.
Bake on the hot baking sheet for 40 minutes or so, until golden. Allow to calm down a little before serving.
Deffy one of my family's faves, only because we have a fig tree growing in our garden ~
~ Baked Figs on Sweet Toast ~
Recipe by Nigel Slater
Serves 4
large, ripe figs 8
white wine 250ml
redcurrant jelly 3 heaped tbsp
sloe or damson gin (optional) a dash
brioche or panettone 4 slices
Set the oven at 180C/gas mark 4. Wipe the figs, slice them in half from top to bottom and place them, cut-side down, in a shallow baking dish. Put the wine in a small pan and add the jelly and, if you are using it, the sloe or damson gin. Warm over a moderate heat until the jelly has melted. Pour the mixture over the figs and put them in the oven.
Leave the fruit to cook for 20 to 30 minutes, or until they are almost jelly soft. Take care that the sauce doesn't overcook and become too jammy.
Lightly toast the brioche or panettone. Place a couple of figs on each slice of toast, spoon over the sauce, and serve.
Today's Toppers
Re: Can anybody cook?
