Toffee, Apple & Pecan Steamed Pudding

After being very quick off the mark making my Caramel Stroopwafels following last week's Bake Off, I've slipped back into 'just making it in the nick of time' for pudding week. Once I'd clapped eyes on those mouthwatering steamed puddings I knew exactly what I was going to make at the weekend.

We have a small apple tree in the garden, and it's always produced a bumper crop of eating apples. We have no idea what variety they are but they're a really crisp and tart red skinned apple that are great for eating. They're not so great in a pie as they hold their shape a little too well, unlike a Bramley, but are really good in cinnamon apple cakes, toffee apple cinnamon buns or apple custard tarts. Saturday morning I picked a couple of apples from the tree & added them to these extremely simple to make steamed pudding. My family don't usually have the patience for a proper steamed pudding, so I often end up 'steaming' them in the microwave instead (like my 'mum's emergency chocolate cake'), but this time I gave myself plenty of time for steaming, and left it simmering away for an hour and a half. The pudding smelt amazing when I turned it out, and the apples had dispersed themselves nicely throughout the cake, and softened nicely, but not turned to mush. The toffee sauce was also really simple to make, and was adapted slightly from the caramel that I used in my Stroopwafels.

This recipe was a total win, and the family loved it, although they weren't all keen on having pecans on the top so I ate most of those!

Banoffee Apple Pie

This week is British Pie Week, and what better way to celebrate than with a big fat homemade apple pie. This one has a bit of a twist though as it's also loaded with bananas and caramel sauce. It's double crusted (no soggy bottoms here), with a light crisp and flaky pastry that's easier to make than puff pastry, and tastier than shortcrust.

    

Find the full recipe here

this recipe has been commissioned by Great British Chefs

Quick and Tasty All-in-One Cinnamon Apple Cake

It's not often that I buy sweets, cakes or junk food so it's rare that there's something 'naughty' in the house, unless it's been a birthday, Christmas, Easter or I've gone shopping whilst hungry and been led astray by special offers, or of course when I've been baking. So when the kids ask for pudding, and the cake tin is empty, this is my go to quick recipe for a delicious dessert that can be eaten straight from the oven, drowning in custard.

It takes a matter of minutes to prepare in the food processor attachment on my Kenwood Chef Sense, and 20-25 minutes to bake. You don't even need to have your ingredients at room temperature, and they can all be weighed straight into the bowl together, to save on washing up. I also use cake tin liners, which is another great time saver.

Quick and Tasty All-in-One Cinnamon Apple Cake - makes 1 x 8" cake

2 medium free range eggs (weighed in their shells)

equivalent weight (approx 115g) of :

self raising flour

butter

caster sugar

2 tsp cinnamon

2 tbsp natural yogurt or coconut cream

1 eating apple, cored & sliced

1 tbsp demerara sugar

• Add the eggs, flour, butter, caster sugar, cinnamon and yogurt to the bowl of the food processor
• Pulse until fully combined, scraping down the bowl once or twice
• Add the apple and pulse a few more times
• Pour the batter into a greased and lined 8" sandwich tin
• Scatter the demerara sugar evenly over the batter
• Bake in a preheated 180C oven for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown & springy to the touch
• Eat warm or cold

Crispy on the top, and moist and fruity in the centre.

If you want to see more recipes that can be made in a Kenwood Chef Sense then check out these videos, where you might just spot little old me! *runs and hides*.

More videos like these can be found on the Kenwood You Tube Channel and Kenwood website.

Bramley Apple, Cheese & Bacon Tarts

This week it's Bramley apple week (2nd to 8th February), so I've been busily cooking up lots of recipes using these deliciously tart apples. Bramley apples have a higher acid content and lower sugar levels than eating apples, which produces a stronger, tangier tasting apple whose flavour is retained when cooking. I love using Bramley apples in cooking as they 'melt' down, and are great for making apple sauce too. 

The smell of freshly peeled Bramleys always reminds me of my childhood visits to a friend of my dads. He lived with his mum and she would either be in the kitchen baking an apple pie or picking fruit and vegetables from her garden when we visited on a Sunday.

These savoury tarts have a herby apple puree on the base, topped with cheese and bacon, which is a really tasty combination. They are easy to make using ready made (unsweetened) Bramley apple sauce, although it's really simple to make your own.

Bramley Apple, Cheese & Bacon Tarts - makes 4 tarts

2 Bramley apples
tbsp Balsamic vinegar
2 tsp dried thyme
2 tbsp water
320g sheet of ready rolled puff pastry
75g Wensleydale, grated
4 rashers dry cured streaky bacon, each cut into 3 pieces
pinch of dried thyme

• Peel, core and chop the apples
• Add them to a saucepan with the vinegar, 2 tsp thyme and water
• Place the lid on & heat gently for around 10 minutes, until the apple has cooked down to a sauce. set aside
• Lay the pastry sheet out and cut into four
• Score each sheet approx 1cm from the edge and prick the centre gently with a fork
• Spoon some apple sauce onto each sheet of pastry and smooth to the edges
• Sprinkle the cheese over the sauce, and top with the bacon and sprinkle with a little thyme
• Bake in a preheated 200C oven for approx 25 minutes

more apple recipes

more Bramley apple recipes

This recipe has been commissioned by Bramley Apples

Sugar & Gluten Free Apple & Almond Cake

The husband was diagnosed with diabetes just over two years ago, and since then he's cut down on biscuits and other sweet things, lost some weight and taken more exercise. His sugar levels then went back to normal for a while, but he started to get a little complacent, and whilst he didn't turn back to the custard creams completely, he perhaps ate more of the sweet stuff than he should, which ultimately led to a rise in his sugar levels. Being the good wife that I am, I experimented with recipes that use natural sweeteners rather than added sugar and came up with a cake that's sweetened with dates and Bramley apples. I also decided to use ground almonds instead of flour, which also makes this suitable for those following a gluten free or Paleo diet too.

The almonds and fruit make this a very moist cake, and whilst it's not as 'cakey' as one made with flour, it is very moreish.

Sugar & Gluten Free Apple & Almond Cake

100g dates

1 medium Bramley apple, peeled, cored & chopped

100ml water

juice of 1 lemon

175g butter, softened

3 eggs

185g ground almonds

tbsp. cinnamon

a few flaked almonds for topping

• Place the dates, apple, lemon juice and water in a pan
• Cook over a medium heat until the apples have softened completely
• Remove from heat and beat until as smooth as possible
• Place the butter into a bowl and beat in the apple/date mixture until well combined
• Beat in the eggs one at a time
• Beat in the ground almonds and cinnamon until combined
• Grease & line a loaf tin & pour in the batter
• Smooth the batter over & scatter with flaked almonds
• Bake in a 180°C oven for 30-35 minutes, until the top is browned & when a skewer is inserted it comes out clean
• Remove from the tin and allow to cool fully on a wire rack

Bramley Apple Crumble Slices

Since the new year there hasn't been much baking going on here. That way there are no temptations to sabotage my diet, but of course, the blog starts to suffer. I'm currently waiting for my new oven to be fitted, which I'm hoping will be this week, so this could be my last bake in my old oven. I have no sentimental connection to my old oven, and can't wait to get my long awaited new and shiny model fitted.  The old one has done well though, and has been put through it's paces for the past 11 years, despite being a bit crooked, hotter on one side, not having a functioning light & worn away temperature controls. The main difference will be my hob, as I'm getting rid of my gas one and having an induction fitted. This is going to make a huge difference in terms of speed - the gas hob takes an age to bring water to the boil - as well as giving me an extra work surface and be easier to clean. I'm just a little bit excited..

Onto the Bramley apple crumble slices, which were a Sunday morning bake, eaten as an afternoon snack after working on a fence in the garden (husband & Jack) and going for a run (myself & Hanna), as well as dessert after a big roast.

Bramley Apple Crumble Slices

shortbread base
150g plain flour
50g caster sugar
85g butter

apple centre
2 medium Bramley apples, cored & peeled
tsp cinnamon
handful sultanas
tbsp caster sugar

crumble topping
100g plain flour
50g butter
25g demerara sugar
tbsp cinnamon
30g almonds

• Make the base by adding the flour, sugar & butter to a food processor.
• Pulse until everything starts to come together
• Press into the base of a greased & lined tin (28cm x 17cm)
• Slice the apples into wedges and then slice thinly
• Scatter the apple over the base
• Sprinkle over the cinnamon, sultanas and then the sugar
• Make the crumble topping by adding all the ingredients to a food processor & pulse until it resembles breadcrumbs
• Scatter crumble over the apples & press down
• Bake in a preheated 180C oven for approx 30-40 minutes, until the apples are softened and the topping has browned
• Allow to cool fully before slicing 

Bramley Apple week is 2nd-8th February 2015

Apple Custard Tarts

We're still ploughing through our bumper crop of apples, and have so far made, crumbles, pies, cakes, chutney and tarts, including these little beauties.

They have a digestive biscuit base, custard filling and a sweet apple topping, and are really quick and easy to make.

You can find the full recipe on the Great British Chefs website here.

This recipe was commissioned by Great British Chefs

entered into the Rix October draw

Caramel Apple Choux Buns

What do you do when you have more apples than you can possibly eat and there's no more room in your freezer? You cook with them and make dessert, of course.

We have loads of apples at the moment - you may have noticed a few apple recipes this month - Toffee Apple Cinnamon Bun Rings, Toffee Apple Cobbler, German Apple Streusel Cake and Cinnamon Apple Breakfast Rolls, but you can never get fed up of eating apples if they're smothered in a caramel sauce, like these choux buns.

 

You can find the full recipe on Great British Chefs here.

This recipe was commissioned by Great British Chefs


entered into the Rix October draw

Toffee Apple Cinnamon Bun Rings

After watching Bake Off last night I knew exactly what I was going to bake this week, and it wasn't going to be 36 doughnuts or Povitica. I love making cinnamon buns, but as they don't have fruit in, and I have a load of windfall apples to use, I decided to pimp up my regular cinnamon buns with an apple & raisin filling and a toffee drizzle.

Toffee Apple Cinnamon Bun Rings - makes 2 rings / 12 buns

500g white bread flour
1/2 tsp salt
50g caster sugar
50g butter, softened
7g yeast
225-250ml milk
1 egg

filling
4 apples
Juice of half lemon
75g raisins
25g butter
25g soft brown sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
extra butter for greasing

Toffee sauce - recipe here

• Add the flour, salt, sugar, butter & yeast to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a flat beater
• Add the egg and 225ml of the milk with the motor running, until it all starts to come together, adding more milk if necessary
• You want the dough to be slightly sticky, but not wet
• Turn out onto a floured surface & knead for 5-10 minutes, until soft, stretchy and smooth
• Place the dough in a greased bowl and cover with clingfilm
• Leave to double in size for approx 2 hours
• In the meantime peel, core & slice the apples
• Add the apples to a pan with the lemon juice, raisins, butter, sugar and cinnamon
• Heat until the butter has melted, and mix well
• Place a lid on & cook gently for 10 minutes, until the apple has softened but holds its shape
• Leave to cool & then drain any excess juice
• Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and roll out into a large rectangle
• Cover evenly with the apple mixture
• Roll up tightly into a long sausage
• Slice the ends off and then slice into 12 equal pieces
• Grease two 8" sandwich tins with butter
• Lay 6 slices into each tin
• Cover with clingfilm and leave to prove for an hour
• Brush the tops of the dough with melted butter
• Bake in a preheated 200C oven for approx 15 minutes
• Allow to cool in the tins for 10 minutes before turning out & drizzling with toffee sauce

Toffee Apple Cobbler

The nights are starting to draw in, the evenings are becoming cooler and the apples are beginning to fall from our tree. Jack collected a couple of boxes full of windfall apples whilst helping his Dad tidy up the garden at the weekend, and after a bit of a clean up and chopping out the bugs and bruises, I had enough for a pie. I didn't have any cream cheese in to make cream cheese pastry, I wasn't going to risk a rubbish shortcrust, and I've exhausted crumble recently, so a cobbler it was to be - kind of a cross between pastry, cake and scones.

It was to be a caramel apple cobbler, but the caramel sauce didn't go exactly to plan, although it did have a very happy ending and the result was a lovely smooth and dark toffee sauce. You only really need around 5-6 tbsp of toffee sauce in this cobbler but the recipe below makes a full jar full, leaving plenty to pour over ice cream or use in other recipes (if it lasts that long!)

Toffee Apple Cobbler

100g butter
200g self raising flour
1 tsp cinnamon
75g caster sugar + 1tbsp for sprinkling on top
1 egg, beaten
enough peeled, cored & sliced apples to fill your pie dish
5-6 tbsp toffee sauce

toffee sauce - makes enough for this recipe + 1 jar extra
400g caster sugar
40g butter
200ml double cream
pinch of sea salt (optional)

• Rub the butter into the flour, until it resembles breadcrumbs
• Stir in the cinnamon & caster sugar
• Mix in the egg until everything starts to come together - if it's too dry, add a dash of milk
• Fill the pie dish up with apples and pour over the toffee sauce
• Roll some of the dough into a ball and flatten between your palms, and lay on top of the apples
• Repeat with the remaining cobbler dough
• Bake in a preheated 170C oven for approx 45 minutes, until cobbler topping is cooked all the way through and the apples are soft, and the toffee sauce is bubbling.

To make the toffee sauce

• Add the sugar to a large frying pan or wide saucepan
• Heat over a medium heat until the sugar has dissolved and turned a rich silky brown liquid (if you want a lighter caramel sauce then don't leave it as long - my toffee sauce was completely unintentional but completely delicious!)
• DO NOT STIR THE SUGAR - instead, keep shaking the pan
• Once you have reached your desire brown-ness then remove the pan from heat
• Whisk in the butter and then the cream, and salt (if using)