Bara Brith recipe

This is my version of the Welsh Bara Brith (Speckled Bread) that my mum used to make.

Ingredients:
1 lb self raising flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
pinch of salt
1 teaspoon of mixed spice
4 oz margarine
5 oz soft brown sugar
1 egg (beaten)
12 oz mixed dry fruit
1 desertspoon each of syrup and black treacle
3 tea bags
300ml boiling water
Milk if needed.

Method:
Add 3 tea bags to 300ml freshly boiled water and allow to steep for about five minutes.
Remove tea bags.
Place dried fruit into a jug or similar container and add the hot tea mix - add the sugar and stir well.
Add the syrup and black treacle to the warm fruit/tea mix and stir well to dissolve.
Leave mix overnight for fruit to absorb liquid ( I left it for almost 24 hours to ensure the dried fruit really 'plumps' up!)
Next day, sift flour into bowl and add mixed spices, salt and baking powder and stir ingredients.
Rub in the margerine until you achieve a crumbly mixture.
Add the beaten egg and fruit/tea mixture and stir well. 
Add a splash of milk if the mix is on the dry side (if you leave fruit to absorb liquid for a long time then the milk may be needed to moisten the cake mix).
Pour mixture into a cake tin measuring approx 9.5"x4.5"x3"
Bake in oven at gas mark 4 for 1-1.5 hours. 
Cover with a sheet of foil if top is starting to burn.
Check with a cake tester to ensure it is baked through.

Leave to cool (overnight is best!).
Serve sliced and with lashings of butter (Welsh, if you can get it)!!!! 
Try and make it last more than a couple of days!!!

Mwynhau!

A grinding matter...

Having appreciated the presence of the Aeropress on a two week self catering holiday recently, I wondered if there was any portable grinder that could compliment the Aeropress.
A little research pointed me to the Porlex Mini Grinder, a Japanese burr grinder (burr is good!).
It arrived today and while the instructions are completely in Japanese, a quick online search found a couple of sites that provide a translation of the instructions.
The device is easy to use and an initial grind of some beans produced a even quality of ground coffee. Filling the lower part with 17g of beans (the amount recommended by some users for the Aeropress) turns out to be enough to fill the upper chamber to the lip. So, easy to measure, should you forget your pocket scales!
The Mini version is just the right size to fit into the outer part of the Aeropress to help with packing.

The Lab :: Cold brew coffee

Step 1.
Coarsely grind 1/2lb coffee beans.
Place in suitable container (Kilner Jars seem popular) - I opted for a fridge door sized "Lock&Lock" drink 'jug' to keep the space taken up by this 'lab test' to a minimum!
Slowly add 2.5 to 3 pints cold water and gently stir the mix. (This is using a 1 to 5 coffee to water ratio as suggested on some blogs).
One last stir to ensure a good mix the secure lid and leave for 12-24 hours.

Step 2.
Stay tuned... 

6/10/15: Well, the coffee kept well for the last 3 weeks. It's now finished and have to say it was pretty good to the last drop. No bitterness at all and handy for making a quick cup of decent tasting coffee. Just add hot water/milk to the cold coffee 'shot' and off you go.
I have another 1/2lb bag of coffee to grind so a second batch is just around the corner.
 

After Coffee Jelly we have Bubble Tea!

Having recently being alerted to the location of a Bubble Tea store in town, a visit was made to taste this Taiwanese style of tea drink.
On the left is Matcha green tea with jasmine flavouring and tapioca 'bubbles' and one on right is vanilla, black tea and lychee 'ooballs'

Quite refreshing and it seems to appeal to the kid in me to be sucking up globs of jelly like tapioca through a extra wide straw!
Turns out there is another bubble tea store a matter of yards from this one! Chatime.

Only taken six years...

...for this to hit our shores. Back in July 2009 I was in Singapore and discovered what is a far east drink fad - a coffee jelly frapaccino. First had one in a Starbucks over looking Marina Bay a short walk from the hotel.

Singapore :: July 2009

Actually made my own version when I returned to the UK but missed not being able to order one here when the weather got hot. I don't think they even have this in the US.
Now Starbucks in the UK has brought it over - they are calling it a Caramel Coffee Jelly topped with cream, but you can order it sans the caramel and cream.

UK :: July 2015

Peynirli Revisited...

I was kindly given some Pastourma to try, and decided to use some for another attempt at a Peynirli. Pastourma is a air cured meat similar in appearance to pastrami but is covered in a paste of crushed cumin, fenugreek, garlic and spicy paprika.
LINK

While I stuck with a pizza based dough this time, I will try to follow the recipe from HERE which looks to produce a softer, more bread like, 'boat' and seems closer to the photo sent by our 'reporter' in Greece...

Scottish Morning Rolls

Among the many items of Scottish fare* that I 'hold dear', is the humble Scottish Morning Roll. A good Morning Roll has a light and fluffy interior with a soft but slightly crisp crust. Makes the perfect bacon butty or Lorne sausage bap.

*Scotch Pie, Haggis, Lorne Sausage, Red Pudding, Clapshot, a good single Malt...

I can buy them in some of the supermarkets around here but the quality varies, even between batches, so I can end up with just a white roll.

As my other bread making attempts have worked well (and the pizza dough is a regular success) I thought I would turn my hand to attempting these fluffy white rolls.

Having searched for many recipes online I plumped for this ONE as it seemed to tick all the 'boxes' description wise.

Dough duly made and after an hour to prove then divided into 10 rolls I left them for a further 45mins to rise before baking.

The end result was quite close to the type of roll I was after, certainly light and fluffy. Taste wise they have a faint hint of a Brioche roll (probably due to the inclusion of the egg and sugar) so I will be doing a second batch excluding the egg, vegetable oil and sugar to see how they compare.
Overall though, I am pleased with the result.

Rolls update:
Trying a variation on the above I reduced the sugar to about 3/4 tablespoonful and they were less Brioche like - also only made six large rolls...

 

Hasselback potato

 

Hasselback potato with chicken breast cooked in a ginger, chilli and lime marinade.

This style of baked/roasted potato apparently originated in a restaurant in Stockholm. They involve slicing into the potato to create slits, but making sure not to cut right through the potato. I use a pair of chopsticks either side of the potato to prevent slicing all the way through. Take a slice of the 'bottom' of the spud to ensure you don't cut all the way through (and leave the slice in the baking tray to have a crispy treat when cooked!) 
A sprinkling of parmesan and breadcrumbs halfway through cooking gives them a crispy topping.

I used the recipe here. 

Served with chicken breast cooked in a ginger, chilli and lime marinade.

I Don't Go "Wow" Often...

...but just had my first cup of coffee made in the Aerobie Aeropress.
I'd read a fair bit about this simple plastic french press/plunger coffee maker. Could it really be that good? I was getting a bit frustrated with cup after cup of varying degrees of bitter tasting coffee, no matter what I did.
So I bit the bullet bean and ordered one.
It arrived this morning and after washing the device, I ground some beans and a quick boil of the kettle, pour, stir, press and what followed was one of those "hmmmmmmmmm" moments!

No dregs (I mean zero bits), crystal clear coffee, nuances in the bean I'd not tasted before.

I believe the hype....

Think I'll be taking my stove-top pots and other brewing impedimenta to the charity shop!!!


UPDATE: 12.30pm: Just had a second mug and can confirm the first was not a fluke. Tried using the 'upside down' method this time, as suggested by some owners, and the grounds probably have a bit more of a steep this way. Still a quick and easy way to make a nice cup of coffee.