apple puff pastries.

so.........still no oven. and hob. and sink. but we're hanging on and patience is a virtue! our house extension is coming along and there is a glimpse of the roof finally coming on. it's all about finding whatevers in the fridge and manipulating it in some way or form till it's edible these days. if you can't find bread, well make-do with instant noodles.

and as for today, i discovered a block of frozen puff pastry and used it to my advantage! this is so so simple to make, considering i managed making it in the one liveable room of the entire downstairs right now.

simply roll your puff out thinly on a floured surface, cut into squares, spread whatever you find on it (nutella/peanut butter/apricot jam), arrange some thinly sliced apples and dust some cinnamon sugar if you're feeling extra fancy! bake for 18-20 mins at 210C until golden and puffed up; finish with a dusting of icing sugar!

i've been missing out on a lot of baking recently, and so took up this rare opportunity to experiment with different pastry flavours, cuts, folds and designs (inspired by pinterest ofc!). what a blessing to be able to have the aroma of fresh pastry wafting round the house after far too long!

Cinnamon swirls

Summer is finally here!! If you live in the UK, you'll totes know what I mean by the rush of happiness you get when you check the weather forecast and all you see is a big yellow sun. The weather has been at the high end of the twenties meaning shorts out sunglasses out! I don't know what has come over me today but I've decided to bake some cinnamon whirls in this "baking" hot weather. Let's blame it on the summery party fever.

The posh name for these are palmiers, but I like to call them cinnamon whirls for the childhood memories they bring back. I remembered these being the best things ever and don't get me wrong, they still are; the smell of sticky sugar with a hint of cinnamon, the golden brown colour. Mmmmm.

I absolutely love the way the whirls have such imperfect looks when they go into the oven but come out as puffed joys. There's always something to rejoice about in baking.

These perfect little treats take no time at all so I can safely say they could make perfect party food. There are also so many possibilities with them - add honey, pecan nuts, try a savoury version!

I have always been a fan of puff pastry if you haven't realised already. Some highlights are my salmon puff pastries and my creamy rhubarb tarts. And I must warn you, it is possible to become addicted to puff.

 Cinnamon Whirls

Ingredients:
375g ready-rolled puff pastry
3 tbsp golden caster sugar + extra to dust
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp mixed spice
1 medium egg, beaten

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 200C/180 fan/gas mark 6. Sprinkle work surface with sugar, roll pastry to 14 x 9 inches. Trim the edges then cut vertically down the middle to make two smaller rectangles.
2. Mix the cinnamon, mixed spice and remaining sugar in a small bowl. Sprinkle half the mixture evenly over the pastry.
3. Fold the top and bottom edges into the middle so they meet at the centre. Sprinkle remaining spice mixture. Fold upper and lower folded edges in to meet in the centre again. Finally, fold in half lengthways to make a log shape.
4. Make sure the seam is faced down then trim edges. Cut 1cm slices and lay spaced well apart onto non-stick baking sheets.
5. Lightly brush each pastry with beaten egg, sprinkle with icing sugar and bake for 20 minutes or until golden. Transfer to a wire rack and leave to cool before serving.

Bakewell tarts - mini.

Ahhh......one of the best of British. Their buttery pastry filled with a soft classic vanilla cake. And just as you think it is good enough, you find the warm apricot jam, snug at the bottom. And even if you don't find the caramelizing jam at the bottom, it may as well give you a sneak peak at the golden brown top! If you remember these little dare-devils, I guess this is a more traditional and simpler version :)

I particularly like these tarts due to the ease in making them and corporating little british bits and pieces into it at the same time. But most of all, they came together SO well! The pastry, cake and jam all cooked at the same time and was ready to be lifted out; how synchronised to they wanna be!? I really do just love their clean finish as well. The thin layer of jam and then the angel white sponge, all layered in a straight line. perfect.

These tarts traditionally incorporate a little cherry on the top or just a simple drizzle of icing but the bakewell tarts just being simple already makes my heart content! I didn't have any flaked almonds on hand either but I'm pretty sure they will go great. Just add before baking!

This no-fuss recipe is definitely a winner. The pastry cases don't even need to be blind baked. All you do is get the parts ready, slap them on top of each other and shove it in the oven! PLUS...there are so many variations - a different flavour pastry, substituting a bit of cocoa powder for flour or even using lemon curd or custard instead of jam! Here is a previous chocolate adaption from the recipe. Mhmmm........just looking at these photos make me wanna lick the sticky apricot jam :P

Here's the recipe for those eager jam lickers! And be surprised - it doesn't take much to make these.

 Bakewell Tart recipe

Ingredients
Shortcrust pastry
Make your own using:
150g plain flour
75g hard margarine
Approx 7 tbsp cold water
OR
use 200g ready made short crust pastry

Filling
About 4-5 tbsp jam, flavour of your choice
OR
Fruit - 4-5 tbsp stewed apple or small amount tinned peaches well drained etc.

Cake
60g soft margarine
60g caster sugar
60g self raising flour
1 egg
10ml water

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 190C/gas 5
2. Make the shortcrust pastry if not using ready made - rub margarine into flour and add water to bring it together.
3. Grease individual metal cases with a little oil. Roll the pastry out thinly and cut circles out of them. Line them in the cases, gently pressing them down.
4. Divide filling amongst cases
5. Make the cake mixture by placing all ingredients into a medium bowl and beating until light and fluffy. Spoon and divide amongst tarts, layering over the jam.
6. Place individual tarts onto a baking tray and bake for 20-25 minutes.
7. Leave to cool for 5 minutes then take out of cases and cool on a wire rack.

Choco Orange Tarts

I have happened to make these tarts during the week as a light dessert. These came out better than I had expected to be honest. They weren't as sweet as I thought they were going to be and they had a delicate orange scent to it.

In the recipe, it suggests to use Grand Mariner or Cointreau but I've substituted it with concentrated orange juice for a non-alcohol dessert. I'm sure these little choc treats would look more dainty if they were to be "dusted with icing sugar"!

The recipe yields a large tart however I made them again the following day as they were so well loved. However, this time I experimented with them a bit more and created little mini tartlets - excellent for parties! 

Chocolate Orange Tart
Ingredients:
1 block of ready made sweet shortcrust pastry
a little beaten egg to seal the pastry case
icing sugar to dust
Filling:
175g plain chocolate (at least 50% cocoa solids), chopped
175ml double cream
75g light muscovado sugar
2 medium eggs
1 tbsp Grand Mariner or Cointreau or concentrated orange juice

Method:
1. Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface and use to line a 8 inch loose-based tart tin. Prick the base all over with a fork, put the tin on a baking sheet and chill for 30 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 190C/170 fan/gas 5. Bake the pastry blind for 15 mins, removing the beans and baking for another 5-10 mins. Then brush the inside with egg and put back in the oven for 1 minute to seal.
3. Remove from the oven and lower oven temp to 170C/150 fan/gas 3.
4. For the filling, melt chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. (make sure the bowl doesn't touch the water) Remove the bowl from the pan and cool for 10 minutes.
5. Put the cream, muscovado sugar, eggs and liquer into a bowl and stir with a wooden spoon until mixed thoroughly. Gradually stir in the chocolate and then pour into the pastry case and bake for 20 minutes or until just set.
6. Serve warm or cold, dusted liberally with icing sugar.

Creamy rhubarb tarts

I know; I know. It's rhubarb again. But its amazing! I love that bit of zing to tickle your taste buds once in a while!

I've decided to place rhubarb on puff pastries this time. and yes - I've already figured out that I am obsessed with puff pastry too. I came across this recipe the other day as I was looking for ways to finish off my rhubarb from the muffins I made before they started to go bad :(

For this recipe, it states to use crème fraiche as its base to give that extra "creaminess" to indulge you into rhubarb tart land. It has certainly worked in making the puff pastry less dry and adding some texture to it. Also, it hasn't seem to make my base "soggy".

These immensely easy peasy to make tea-time treats are great for desserts or parties. They are also super quick to make!

Here's the recipe; from BBC goodfood:

Creamy Rhubarb Tarts
Ingredients:
375g all-butter puff pastry
1 egg, beaten
1 tbsp demerara sugar
1 tbsp creme fraiche
2 sticks rhubarb, thinly sliced on an angle
2 tbsp icing sugar

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 220C fan/200C/gas 7. Roll the pastry out thinly and using a cutter, cut out 4 circles about 14cm in diameter. Using a slightly smaller cutter, cut out a circle out of the middle and trim away the outside border, reserving these trimmings.
2. Lay the 4 circles on a baking sheet, prick all over with a fork and brush the edges with egg. Use the pastry trimmings to make a border around the edge like a vol-au-vent and press down gently with your thumb. Chill until needed. This can be done up to 1 day ahead or frozen for up to 1 month.
3. In a small bowl, mix the demerara sugar with the crème fraiche and spread a thin amount over the base of each tart. Neatly arrange the slices of rhubarb, overlapping in a floral pattern (I was too lazy to do this and just slapped everything on!) over the crème fraiche. Dust generously with icing sugar. Bake the tarts for 20 mins until puffed and golden. leave to rest for a few minutes and eat warm. Delicious with a scoop of ice cream!

Salmon Puff pastry

Ahh..puff pastry is tooo cool~!! Its perfect for a late dinner when you're not bothered to cook anything!

I topped the pastry triangles with some luscious salmon and fresh salad this time. Amazing!! - I think I will prefer these ones than the chicken one; theres something to it that makes it ever so indulging.
Heres a picture to get your mouth watering :P

Chicken puff pastry

Nom nom nom....It has been a tiring week and mum wasn't too bothered to make dinner and so I stepped in and made her a lovely, hot chicken pastry (: Puff pastry came out puffy and perfect like always and every bite was sensational. 

Be sure to slice the the chicken thin enough  so it can cook before the pastry starts to burnt. Top the pastry up with some lovely sweetcorn and tomatoes and kick in a handful of parmesan cheese. Add some lemon juice to "zing" up the flavours; and you're done!

Puff pastry frisbees

Doesn't EVERYONE just LURRRV puff pastry?! It's the easiest thing to use and guides you to baking lovely homemade goods in no time. Another +ive is that it goes well with sweet AND savoury foods! In this case, I've used it to make these lovely fruit frisbees; looking delicate and a piece of food thats taken ages to make - but really, literally 2 minutes! And the best thing about it? - nothing will ever go wrong with this recipe!

Fruit Frisbees
Ingredients:
225g ready-made puff pastry
A sprinkle of caster sugar
Apricot jam, warmed, sieved
A pear
Sliced peaches
2 plums
A glace cherry
A banana
Melted butter

Method:
Set oven to 220C/425F/gas 7. Lightly grease the baking tray with some melted butter. 
Roll out the pastry to about 3mm thick. Cut circles using a cutter/circular lid. Cut around the banana twice to make two banana shapes.
Slice the plums and pear thinly and arrange as "fans" onto the circular pastries. 
Cut the banana in half and lay onto the "banana-shaped" pastries. Brush the fruit with some melted butter and sprinkle the sugar on top. 
Bake the tarts for about 20 mins until the pastry is crisp and the fruit is cooked. Put on a wire rack to cool.
When the tarts have cooled, brush the fruit with a little apricot jam, to glaze the tarts.

Chocolate goes first!

I got inspired by bakewell tarts on Saturday. and, of course, chocolate! Bakewell tarts are made up of a pastry on the outside, and a nice cake as the filling.

They are mainly garnished with a drizzle of icing and a cherry-on-the-top. BUT I thought I should be healthy this time and so kicked in some strawberries instead.

and BECAUSE chocolate goes first..the pastry was made out of chocolate and the cake was...chocolate flavoured!

*Remember remember: add some icing sugar into your pastry - they would turn out awful otherwise - i mean, savoury chocs?!