Carwyn Jones or growing ...

... jalapeño peppers on the window cill, well during the past 4 months the peppers have proved to be far more exhilarating.


My only problem was how to make a good sauce, the best to date has been :


Sweet and hot chilli sauce .......


Ingredients

5 tbsp. white vinegar
3 tsp. red chilli flakes
8 cloves garlic
Pinch of salt
2 fresh red chilli peppers, seeded and sliced
1 c. whole canned tomatoes (with juice)
12 oz. Red Plum jam
9 oz. pineapple juice
4 tbsp. apple juice concentrate

Method

... put the first 7 ingredients in a food processor or blender and blend to an even consistency. This will take several minutes and require stopping occasionally to scrape down the sides.

Place the remaining ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat. Pour the blended ingredients in the saucepan. While stirring, let this mixture come to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook for 20 more minutes.

Store in air-tight, sterilized jars. It will keep for at least 2 months, refrigerated.

I chose to freeze in portion sizes .................... compliments to Cooks (dot) com.

Carwyn came a very second place in the race, the remainder of the Assembly gang behind him ...........

Braised Beef & Shallots ,,,

... a slow-cooked dish such as this one is perfect for cheaper and tougher cuts of beef. Not only will the gentle and steady cooking over a longer period soften the meat, but the red wine will also add a richness that simply melts in the mouth.

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 3 tbsp sunflower oil
• 900 g (2 lb) piece stewing beef (such as topside or chuck) (Irish beef is champion), well-trimmed and cut into thick slices
• 1 large onion, roughly chopped
• 2 carrots, roughly chopped
• 2 tbsp plain flour
• 1 litre (1 ¾ pints) beef stock
• 200 ml (7 fl oz) red wine
• 1 tbsp tomato purée
• 1 fresh thyme sprig
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 12 shallots, peeled
• salt and freshly-ground black pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 180℃/350℉/Gas 4. Heat two tablespoons of the oil in a frying pan. Season the beef and fry in batches for 3-4 minutes until golden brown on both sides. Remove with a slotted spoon and transfer to a casserole dish with a lid

Add the onion and carrots to the same frying pan and cook for 4-5 minutes until lightly brown. Using a slotted spoon, add to the beef. Sprinkle over the flour, tossing until evenly coated, then place in the oven for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring the stock and wine to the boil in a separate pan. Whisk in the tomato purée and add the herbs and garlic. Pour over the beef and vegetables so that they are nicely covered. Bring back to the boil, then cover with a lid and place back in the oven for about 1 hour or until the beef is tender but still holding its shape.

Strain the beef from the sauce and place in a clean casserole dish. Cover with cling film and reserve. Pass the sauce through a fine strainer and remove the fat. Return to a pan and bring to the boil, then season to taste. Pour back over the meat; reserving some sauce to cook the shallots in.

Heat a frying pan with the remaining oil. Add the shallots and cook over a fairly high heat until lightly coloured. Pour over the reserved sauce until just covered, then simmer gently for 10-15 minutes until tender. Stir into the beef casserole and reheat gently.

Spoon the braised beef and shallots onto warmed plates and serve with the creamy mashed potatoes and buttered swede.

Fagiolini in umido ...

... or braised beans with tomatoes in the vernacular, is a classic Tuscan summer dish from River café that should be doable all year round.

Ingredients for 6

• 1 500g jar of peeled plum tomatoes
• 1kg waxed yellow beans, tailed
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 bunch fresh basil leaves
• extra virgin olive oil

 
Method

• Blanch the beans in salted boiling water until tender. 
• Drain and set aside. 
• Heat the olive oil in a thick-bottomed saucepan and add the garlic. 
• Gently fry before adding half of the basil and season. 
• Add the tomatoes, and keeping the heat high, cook to reduce to a thick sauce, which should take 10 minutes. 
• Add the beans, stir to combine and season with black pepper. 
• Add the remaining basil leaves and serve drizzled with extra virgin olive oil.

... alternatively you might like to read Betsans blog, it will bore you to tears, Welsh politics is so sleep inducing.

Welsh poltroon or pudding, ...

... the crème catalana gets our vote, another superb recipe of Bill Granger, one of Australia’s top chefs.

To serve 6

Ingredients: 

625ml cream

170ml milk

2 tsp natural vanilla extract

2 cinnamon sticks

Peel from 1 orange

Peel from 1 lemon

6 egg yolks

4 tbsp caster sugar

2½ tbsp soft brown sugar

Method
 

Preheat the oven to 140C/Gas 1. Put the cream, milk, vanilla, cinnamon, orange and lemon peel in a saucepan over a medium heat and bring just to boiling point, then remove from the heat. 

Whisk together the egg yolks and caster sugar in a large bowl. Strain the cream and pour slowly over the yolk and sugar mixture, whisking constantly. Skim off any foam that rises to the top. 

Put six 125ml ramekins or dariole moulds in a large roasting tin and spoon the mixture into the ramekins. Pour hot water into the tin to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins and cover the whole tin with foil. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until just set. Lift the ramekins out of the roasting tin and leave to cool before chilling in the fridge for 2 hours. 

Preheat the grill to its hottest temperature. Put the ramekins on a baking tray, sprinkle brown sugar over the chilled creams and then place under the grill for a couple of minutes until the sugar is melted and dark golden (if you have a chef’s blowtorch, this is the time to use it). Leave for a few minutes for the sugar to cool and harden before serving.

 

Why poltroon you might wonder, Plaid MEP Evans is calling for a mass refusal to pay the TV licence fee (backed by the Plaid machine).  Plaid politicians are encouraging people to replace the £145.50 licence fee with a fine of £1000.  Now I'm sure that an MEP earning close to a hundred thousand pounds can afford such a gesture, it is unlikely she will share a cell with a drug-addict, but the rest ...... 

... this Plaid largess, largess with the earnings of those on minimum wage, might extend to words of encouragement thrown over the jail walls ... it remains for many a choice ...

A choice between a cynical protest advocated by politicians or the antipodean pudding, Australia wins the day, it's no contest .......

Plaid or a little lemon ...

... pudding with yoghurt and blackberries, a gift from Bill Granger of The Times.

 
Ingredients for 4 servings:

50g unsalted butter

Finely grated zest of 1 lemon

115g caster sugar

2 eggs, separated

40g plain flour, sifted

300ml milk

2 tbsp lemon juice

Ingredients to serve:

Plain yoghurt

250g blackberries

Icing sugar, for dusting 

Method:

1 Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas 4. Place the butter, lemon zest and sugar in a bowl and beat until pale and creamy. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Fold through the flour, then gradually add the milk in a steady stream, whisking lightly to combine. Add the lemon juice and mix to combine. The mixture will look slightly curdled.


2 Place the egg whites in a clean, dry stainless-steel bowl and whisk until stiff peaks form. Using a large metal spoon, fold lightly through the pudding batter. Pour the batter into four 250ml oven-proof ramekins or dariole moulds and place on a baking tray. Bake for 15 minutes, or until lightly browned. Place a dollop of yoghurt and the blackberries on top, then dust with icing sugar.

So what is it to be, the Plaid Cymru conference or pudding ...


... the little lemon pudding wins hands down, on a rainy afternoon.

Cobbler(s), Peach and blueberry (blackberry) ....

.... a late summer early autumn treat.

... thanks to Edd Kimber (of The Times) ...... Serves 4-6 

Ingredients
850g ripe peaches
80g blueberries .............. alternative why not use blackberry
2 tsp lemon juice
100g caster sugar
30g plain flour
Single cream or vanilla ice cream, to serve

For the cobbler:
150g self-raising flour
55g butter
100g caster sugar
120ml buttermilk

Method

Preheat oven to 180C (160C fan oven), gas 4. Put peaches into a bowl of boiling water for one minute (very ripe peaches will take less time).

Remove and cool under cold water.

Use tip of a knife to loosen skin, then peel off. Cut peaches in half to remove the stone, then cut into slices.

In a bowl, mix together the peaches, blueberries, lemon juice, sugar and flour.

Tip into a 1-litre ovenproof dish and bake for 20 minutes while you make the cobbler topping.

In a food processor, pulse the flour, butter and sugar together until the mixture resembles very fine breadcrumbs.

Pulse in buttermilk just until you have a soft dough. (Alternatively, put flour into a medium bowl and rub in butter until it resembles fine breadcrumbs, then stir in sugar. Pour in the buttermilk and mix gently together until you have a soft dough.)

Remove dish of fruit from oven and add topping in large spoonfuls.

Bake for a further 40-50 minutes or until cobbler topping has browned and fruit is bubbling.

Serve with cream or a large scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Plums and feta on toast, not my ...

... idea of a comfort food as feta is not a cheese made in my particular heaven, but I like a mature cheese, and not quite on our doorstep we have a wonderful Caerphilly cheese as a substitute, ...


for the feta devotee ...

Plums and feta on toast serving 4

Ingredients

Ciabatta or other rustic bread
Extra-virgin olive oil
200g feta, broken into chunks
2-4 ripe plums, stoned and quartered
A handful or two of rocket
A few mint leaves
Sea-salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper

Method

Toast the bread (if you’re using ciabatta, you will need either a horizontal half, cut into 4, or 2 ciabatta rolls, each sliced horizontally). Splash each bit of toast with extra-virgin olive oil while it’s still warm. Arrange the feta, plums, rocket and mint on top. Season with salt and pepper and splash with a bit more oil before serving.

The Ciabatta bread is definitely the right choice, wonderful, we made rolls using our favourite Wrights bread mix,   though as I hinted at the beginning, adjusted the cheese using a mature Gorwydd Caerphilly made by Trethowan's Dairy, but for us bought from Caesar's Arms Farm Shop Cardiff, amazingly the cheese is exported around the world such is its reputation.

Use the best olive oil available, as always the better the oil, the better the gastronomic experience ...

... I can still taste the olive oil dip at Bravo Indianapolis, I think it was Castleton, but a decade is long time ago,just goes to show what good experiences can leave in the memory, and the Prawn Pennette Rigate with a hot pepper sauce was to die for.

Perfect peppers, in an imperfect world, ...

... roast with a vinaigrette dressing, served with just about anything, though a newly baked crusty loaf would do very nicely, try a Garlic and Rosemary Focaccia made with Wrights bread mix.


Ingredients for 6 ... maybe 2 if the peppers are on the small side, and you are having lunch and the bread has just left the oven.

Extra virgin olive oil
6 red pepper, tip, as the peppers are for cooking you can use less than perfect examples.
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp red wine vinegar

Method ...

1 Rub a little olive oil over the peppers, put them in an oven dish, then slide under a hot grill, turning regularly until they blister and blacken on all sides.
2 Put the peppers in a plastic bag (I used a large roasting bag left over from Christmas) tied at the end. Leave for 20 minutes to steam, then remove them from the bag, peel off the skins, slit them open and remove the seeds, reserving the cooking juices.
3 Spread the peppers out on a large serving dish and season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Mix the cooking juices with an equal quantity of extra virgin olive oil and the vinegar and pour over the peppers

Thanks to Rowley Leigh of The Times, it is taken from a recipe that included eggs and anchovies.

Eggs and anchovies are not my ideal combination ....

From Santa Monica, a treat, from Y Teifi of the separatist ...

... agenda a cup of vinegar for all those who might cheer for Britain and the British, but first the treat ...

Huckleberry's whole-wheat apple butter cake,  total time: 2 hours, 20 minutes, servings: 16 to 20
Adapted from Huckleberry Bakery & Café

Ingredients ...

Cooked apples

2 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 pounds apples (about 3 large), peeled and cut into large chunks (about 4 cups)
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt 

In a large sauté pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in the apples, then the sugar and salt, tossing to coat completely. Cook, stirring often, until the apples are just softened, about 6 minutes. Remove from heat and spread out the apples on a rimmed baking sheet to stop the cooking process. Set aside to cool.

Cake assembly

2 lightly packed cups (7 ounces) almond meal
1 cup (4.5 ounces) whole-wheat flour
3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon (3.5 ounces) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon (2.5 ounces) cornmeal
2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 pound butter
2 1/4 cups (1 pound) sugar, plus 3 tablespoons, divided
8 eggs
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
Cooked apples

Method

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 10-by-3-inch round cake pan and line bottom with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, sift together the almond meal, whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer using the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl using an electric mixer, beat the butter until softened. With the mixer going, beat in 1 pound sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until combined, then beat in the vanilla.
4. Beat in the dry ingredients, a spoonful at a time, just until incorporated. Be careful not to over-mix.
5. Fold in the cooked apples by hand. Spoon the mixture into the prepared cake pan and sprinkle over the remaining 3 tablespoons sugar.
6. Bake the cake in the center of the oven until the cake is risen and a rich golden brown on top, springs back when touched, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 11/2 hours. Check the cake after 1 hour; if it browns too quickly, loosely tent the top with a piece of foil.
7. Remove the cake to a rack. Cool for 15 minutes before removing the cake.

... and then we have the cup of vinegar, the vitriolic Y Teifi writing at Wales Home, read it a different day to eating the apple cake lest you lose your appetite.



In response ...... Y Teifi, let’s be clear about this, my "Britishness" is not a disguise for Englishness, it sits comfortably with my Welshness, neither is it a condition for debate as it is a very personal attribute that I hold dear, it belongs to me.  My wife on the other hand finds her "Britishness" sits well with her "Englishness" and her adopted "Welshness".

... who in their right mind would riot when you can feast on Almond ...

... tart with raspberries and crème fraîche.

Ingredients

For the pastry

125g/4oz unsalted butter
250g/8oz plain flour
25g/1oz caster sugar
1 whole egg
tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp iced water

For the almond filling 

300g/10oz whole blanched almonds
300g/10oz unsalted butter
300g/10oz caster sugar
tsp vanilla extract
6 whole eggs
The zest of one unwaxed lemon

 To serve

1 punnet of raspberries
Crème fraîche 

Method

Start by making the pastry. First, make sure the butter is cold, and dice into small pieces. Sift the flour and place in a food mixer; add the butter, sugar, egg and vanilla extract. Turn the motor on and pulse until you have the consistency of wet sand. At this stage add the water; the pastry will soon begin to come together and form a ball. Turn off the machine and remove the ball of pastry to a work surface; knead lightly once or twice and wrap in parchment paper. 

Place in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes.  Once it is chilled, lightly flour your work surface and roll the pastry into a circle about an eighth-of-an-inch thick. Place as a base into a 10-inch tart tin, pressing the pastry firmly into the side of the tin with your thumbs. Prick the base well all over with a fork and return to the fridge to chill for a further 30 minutes. 

While the pastry is chilling, make the almond filling. Place the almonds into a food processor and pulse until ground. Add the butter, sugar and vanilla extract and purée until smooth. Add the eggs one by one through the funnel in the top and finally add the lemon zest. Remove from the mixer and set aside.

Heat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas6 and blind bake the pastry case for 15 minutes (to do this, lay a circle of greaseproof paper across the pastry and weigh down with dried beans). 

Remove from the oven, discard the beans and fill with the almond paste. Return to the middle shelf of the oven. Turn down the heat to 180C/350F/Gas4 and bake for 30 minutes or until firm in the centre. Remove from the oven and cool to room temperature. 

Serve the tart with a spoonful of crème fraîche and a scattering of raspberries for each person.

... thanks to Skye Gyngell of the Independent, happy days .....

Mocha sherbet ice cream, not the egalitarian ...

... option as an ice-cream maker is needed, however, it is delicious.

Ingredients

560ml strongly brewed coffee or espresso
150g sugar
50g unsweetened cocoa powder
Pinch of salt
180ml whole milk

Method

1 Whisk together the coffee, sugar, cocoa powder and salt in a large saucepan. Bring the mixture to the boil and allow it to boil for 30 seconds, whisking constantly. Remove from the heat and stir in the milk.
2 Chill the mixture thoroughly, then freeze it in your ice-cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Top with whipped cream.

... and you get an indulgent 1 litre, to share or otherwise.

Thanks to Lara Hata.

Watermelon granita, it is similar to

... a sorbet, except it is not churned in an ice-cream maker, an egalitarian end to a summers day.

 

It is chilled in the freezer, and periodically a fork is dragged through the areas that are frozen until what you have are crystal-like granules that are crunchy and sticky. It is a lovely way to use really ripe summer fruit. 

Ingredients.

Watermelon, seeds and white pith removed

1 punnet of ripe English strawberries
1 tsp sea salt
1 cup/240ml/7¾fl oz water
1 cup/225g/7 oz caster sugar
1 tbsp rose water

Method

Chop the watermelon into small pieces, removing the seeds as you do so. Hull and roughly chop the strawberries. Place both fruits along with salt into a blender and purée until smooth. 

Heat the water and sugar in a saucepan and place over a medium heat. Bring to the boil then turn down and cook for 3 minutes before removing from the heat and allowing to cool completely.

Once the sugar syrup has cooled, stir it into the fruit juice along with the rose water. Pour into a roasting tray and place in the freezer.

Chill for half an hour and then drag a fork through the ice, working outside in – the outside will begin to freeze before the centre of the dish. Continue to do this every half-hour until you have a set ice that is crystalline and rough in texture. Serve in chilled glasses.

... thanks to Skye Gyngell of the Independent,