These biscuits, which are a cross between brandy snaps and florentines, are incredibly easy and quick to make, with a batch made and ready to eat in under 30 minutes. Continue reading “Cashew nut & cocoa nib snaps”
Category: Pastries
Quick & easy Cherry, walnut & maple syrup pastries
These are very quick and easy treats: small sweet pastries that are crisp, buttery and wonderfully sticky: quite fabulous served with coffee or tea! Continue reading “Quick & easy Cherry, walnut & maple syrup pastries”
Sfogliatella pastries with a honey, orange & pistachio filling
This is my first attempt at these challenging Italian pastries – pastries I tried for the first time only a few years ago. It goes without saying that I had to have a go at making these, relying solely on a loose recipe description from a bakery….. Continue reading “Sfogliatella pastries with a honey, orange & pistachio filling”
Luxury orange shortbread mince pies with a macaroon topping
I usually prefer to make mince pies using shortbread dough rather than pastry: it makes them more special than a standard pastry mince pie and it is really no harder to make. Besides, Christmas would not be Christmas without shortbread! And whenever I have made these mince pies, they have gone very quickly. Continue reading “Luxury orange shortbread mince pies with a macaroon topping”
Tarte tatin
After a very inspiring run of many years, bringing so many food bloggers together, the Secret Recipe Club is sadly coming to an end. Continue reading “Tarte tatin”
Beef & ale Cornish pasties
Having not made pasties in a long while, I felt it time to make a batch. Continue reading “Beef & ale Cornish pasties”
Spiced lamb & pistachio rolls with spiced pastry
I am a huge fan of sausage rolls. With a well-flavoured filling and light, melt-in-the-mouth pastry, they never fail to give me a feeling of total satisfaction when eating them! Continue reading “Spiced lamb & pistachio rolls with spiced pastry”
Quick and very easy peach Danish pastries
These are very simple and utterly delicious Danish pastries, made using a short-cut croissant dough, a dough that takes just 20-30 minutes to make, plus time for the made-up dough to chill before using. Seriously, this particular croissant dough is quite fool-proof. Continue reading “Quick and very easy peach Danish pastries”
Easy bitter orange pains au chocolat
England and France unite in this English breakfast variation on pains au chocolat, with the addition of a bitter orange kick from a little marmalade inside the pastries, as well as being used to glaze them. Continue reading “Easy bitter orange pains au chocolat”
The simplest asparagus & chicken tart
This is a very simple tart using what is the last of this year’s allotment asparagus, the rest of some chicken breasts I had gently poached for another dish and some general left-over bits and pieces. Continue reading “The simplest asparagus & chicken tart”
Asparagus wrapped in phyllo dough
I recently joined the Secret Recipe Club – a group of food bloggers, each of whom is secretly assigned a food blog each month from another member of the group, from which you make and post about a recipe of your own choice. Continue reading “Asparagus wrapped in phyllo dough”
Spiced prawn and crab spring rolls
This is my version of spring rolls, using some left-over filo pastry I had made for another dish and ingredients that I adore to eat. The rolls are very easy to make and a large batch can be made up and frozen until you want to cook them. Continue reading “Spiced prawn and crab spring rolls”
Easy ham, cheese & mustard croissant whirls
Although an unembellished home-made croissant is a truly wonderful thing to eat, savoury variations excite me hugely! Continue reading “Easy ham, cheese & mustard croissant whirls”
Passion fruit & peach tarts (lower-fat!)
Inspired by a passion fruit pannacotta I had a few months ago, these are very simple tarts that I made for a friend’s birthday: the tarts have a full-on passion fruit flavour, a kick of rum-soaked peaches and the richness of white chocolate. Continue reading “Passion fruit & peach tarts (lower-fat!)”
Lemongrass custard tarts
These delicately spiced puff pastry custard tarts are very much in the Portuguese custard tarts area. They might not be traditional flavour-wise but they certainly don’t hang around long! Continue reading “Lemongrass custard tarts”
Hot-smoked salmon & horseradish tart (low-fat)
This is a very simple, low-fat tart using hot-smoked salmon: one of my favourite ways of eating salmon! With its rich, deep, smoky flavour a little goes a long way: about 200g of the salmon will make this tart, with generous chunks of salmon in each bite. Continue reading “Hot-smoked salmon & horseradish tart (low-fat)”
Warm crab choux bites
This is my version of a canapé I had in a restaurant ages ago. These are simple, but highly effective little savoury bites: light choux pastry, flavoured subtly with cheese and mustard, and filled with a simple fresh white crab meat sauce. Continue reading “Warm crab choux bites”
The simplest cheese, caraway & walnut biscuits
These are very simple and tasty savoury biscuits that are an ideal vehicle for a gutsy dip, eaten with a cheese and chutney, or munched on just as they are. Continue reading “The simplest cheese, caraway & walnut biscuits”
Mustard & caramelised onion sausage rolls
A slight variation on one of my favourite savoury bakes, sausage rolls. See my earlier post for the main recipe: The very best sausage rolls…. Continue reading “Mustard & caramelised onion sausage rolls”
Rough-puff pastry & other laminated pastries
I love the process of achieving those buttery, light layers that melt in the mouth, especially with rough-puff pastry, a much simpler cousin to puff pastry. In this post I give the recipe for a fool-proof rough-puff pastry, along with recipe ideas for using the pastry. Continue reading “Rough-puff pastry & other laminated pastries”
Chorizo & fennel sausage rolls in a spiced rough-puff pastry
Rather than go for full-on chorizo sausages encased in pastry I added some finely chopped chorizo to the sausagemeat filling that I always use for my sausage rolls. Now I love chorizo, but not in hefty quantities you would have if you just encased chorizo in pastry! Continue reading “Chorizo & fennel sausage rolls in a spiced rough-puff pastry”
Earl Grey scones
I love scones so much: with a little clotted cream and jam or home-made fruit curd they are divine. Earl Grey tea scones are one of my favourites and make a perfect accompanyiment to any cream tea – or simply eaten in the garden on a warm day with a pot of tea! Continue reading “Earl Grey scones”
Spiced smoked haddock scones
Try to imagine me screaming from the rooftops that you absolutely must try this recipe: I am so proud of it and I really do think they need making and devouring. Continue reading “Spiced smoked haddock scones”
Mince pies with pistachio Viennese biscuit topping
I do like to take a humble mince pie to a level that is so much more than what commercially is usually just indifferent pastry with a fairly non-descript filling. So I often vary things a little so that the mince pie is that bit more special. Continue reading “Mince pies with pistachio Viennese biscuit topping”
Chocolate & salted caramel éclairs
Salted caramel and chocolate éclairs: nothing too extreme flavour-wise, but two flavours that are nonetheless stunning together. A white chocolate crème pâtissière and a little salted caramel make a lovely filling here but you can, of course, use whipped cream. Continue reading “Chocolate & salted caramel éclairs”
Spiced cranberry & orange baklava
A Christmas-inspired baklava that is simple and very tasty. Ok, it doesn’t skimp on the calories but this is, after all, an indulgent treat rather than a staple bake! Continue reading “Spiced cranberry & orange baklava”
Blackcurrant & raspberry éclairs
It is never less than a joy to eat a crisp éclair that is filled with a well-flavoured centre and topped with a sticky icing! While chocolate éclairs should never be turned down, fruity éclairs are delightful to eat. Continue reading “Blackcurrant & raspberry éclairs”
Spiced smoked cod & fennel tart
This is a lightly spiced tart with rich, smoky cod and the subtle aniseed flavour of fennel. It is very much a comfort-eat and makes a satisfying light meal served warm or cold. Continue reading “Spiced smoked cod & fennel tart”
Treacle tart with a hint of orange
For me, a treacle tart is the epitome of comfort food, especially with the nights drawing in and the temperature outside dropping of an evening! Continue reading “Treacle tart with a hint of orange”
Coronation chicken vol-au-vents
While vol-au-vents are wonderfully retro, using Coronation Chicken as a filling makes them even more so! But Coronation Chicken is such a great thing to eat. Continue reading “Coronation chicken vol-au-vents”
Spiced smoked haddock vol-au-vents
Vol-au-vents never fail to excite me when I eat them! For me they have always been absolute must as part of a buffet. Continue reading “Spiced smoked haddock vol-au-vents”
chicken, tarragon & roasted onion pithivier: a feast using left-overs!
Essentially a posh “roast dinner in a pie”, this is made using left-over roast chicken flavoured with an instant tarragon sauce and filled with other extras from a roast dinner made the day before. Continue reading “chicken, tarragon & roasted onion pithivier: a feast using left-overs!”
Chouxnuts 2: chocolate & cherry flavour
I made a savoury version of these deep-fried choux pastry doughnuts a while ago (recipe here) but this time I felt like going down the sweet route. I always have jars of dried cherries, some macerating in Amaretto and some in other liqueurs, and there is always chocolate to be found around the kitchen(!!), so a chocolate-cherry version was called for. Continue reading “Chouxnuts 2: chocolate & cherry flavour”
Salmon & mushroom coulibiac
A very firm nod towards the classic dish of a few decades ago, this is an easy bake to throw together and is excellent served for a special occasion. Wonderful served warm with a salad or steamed vegetables, it is also excellent served cold; I must confess, I often make this for picnics. Continue reading “Salmon & mushroom coulibiac”
Chouxnuts 1: cheese & chives flavour
What with cronuts, maclairs and other arguably gimmicky – but oh-so-delicious – food hybrids, I fancied seeing what would happen if I deep-fried choux pastry. I had never deep-fried choux pastry before but deep-frying here gives amazing results: these chouxnuts, as they are now known in my house, really do give a terrific doughnut effect. Continue reading “Chouxnuts 1: cheese & chives flavour”
Easy orange & rhubarb Danish pastries
These very easy Danish pastries, using quick croissant dough, are an excellent approximation to Danish pastries that are made with traditional croissant dough. Continue reading “Easy orange & rhubarb Danish pastries”
Lemongrass & ginger canelés
Canelés have somehow escaped my foodie radar; the first time I ate one – a traditional vanilla flavour – was just a few weeks ago, served with an Afternoon Tea. However, I was so taken by them that I couldn’t wait to make a batch, and have since made several batches of differing flavours! Continue reading “Lemongrass & ginger canelés”
Piccalilli & black pudding pork pie with a cider jelly
Using black pudding and piccalilli gives one of my favourite flavour combinations for a pork pie, resulting in a hearty but very easy-to-eat pie. The jelly is flavoured with cider and chicken stock which, in the absence of making a stock from pigs trotters, works so well in a pork pie. Continue reading “Piccalilli & black pudding pork pie with a cider jelly”
Spanakopita with caramelised onions & pine nuts
I adore making pastry: it is up there on an equal footing for me with bread. Filo, however, is the pastry I find challenging: while I can make it, I just don’t seem to have enough hands to get full stretching without tearing, so it sometimes becomes a frustrating affair. But it is nonetheless fun to make. Continue reading “Spanakopita with caramelised onions & pine nuts”
Shortcrust pastry & fool-proof blind-baking
It might be easy to feel daunted when it comes to making pastry, but I hope this post will go some way towards facing any doubts you might have when it comes to shortcrust pastry. I have also included what I think is the most fool-proof way to blind-bake the pastry, giving perfectly cooked pastry and a neat finish. Continue reading “Shortcrust pastry & fool-proof blind-baking”
Passionfruit & strawberry custard slices (gluten-free)
Custard slices are one of my favourite teatime sweet treats, even though I don’t have a very sweet tooth! I love the crispness of the pastry, the richness of the crème pâtissière and the stickyness of the fondant topping. Continue reading “Passionfruit & strawberry custard slices (gluten-free)”
Gluten-free choux pastry: mini BLT éclairs
These are great gluten-free mini bakes that highlight the fact that gluten-free food need not have the texture and flavour of cardboard or be at all boring! And these were quick to make, with a batch ready to be eaten within 1 hour. Continue reading “Gluten-free choux pastry: mini BLT éclairs”
The quickest & easiest croissants: 20-minute lamination!
Quicker croissants: 20-minute lamination!
A batch of traditionally made croissants can take the best part of a weekend with all the resting and chilling in between the turns and at other stages.
Don’t get me wrong, making croissants this way is one of the top baking pleasures for me, but there are certainly times when effective shortcuts are called for. And this shortcut is certainly effective in that it gives excellent results and is easier to achieve than traditional croissants. Continue reading “The quickest & easiest croissants: 20-minute lamination!”
Kouign-amann pastries
This is my version of this buttery, caramelised pastry, Kouign-amann: roughly pronounced “queen ah-marn”. Oh, and these really are truly buttery and flaky, with a nice salty kick and terrific caramelisation all over. Continue reading “Kouign-amann pastries”
Canapé selection: mushroom; smoked aubergine
I adore nibbly food and am always trying out ideas and flavours to ring the changes. These two different canapés use a very light and crumbly shortcrust pastry, made with just a little Parmesan cheese. I filled half of the cooked pastry shells with a rich, smokey aubergine filling (baba ghanoush) and the rest with an intensely flavoured mushroom filling (recipe below). Continue reading “Canapé selection: mushroom; smoked aubergine”
Sour cherry & white chocolate pastries
These are very light pastries with the wonderful combination of both sweet and sharp flavours. The sour cherries, having been steeped overnight in rum or Amaretto, pack a lovely punch; the fragrant sharpness of a passion fruit crème pâtissière, enriched with a little white chocolate, offers an indulgently soft filling for the crisp, buttery pastry. Continue reading “Sour cherry & white chocolate pastries”
Vegetable suet puddings with a cheese & mustard sauce
Steamed suet puddings (whether sweet or savoury) are up there among my top 5 all-time favourite dishes: they epitomise comfort eating for me. These savoury steamed puddings are packed with a variety of vegetables in a light cheese and mustard sauce that oozes out as you cut into them. Continue reading “Vegetable suet puddings with a cheese & mustard sauce”
Simple Crab & Asparagus Tart
Wonderfully simple and very quick to prepare, this is a recipe in a similar vein to my salmon and asparagus tart, created with the aim of using the asparagus from my allotment in different ways. Continue reading “Simple Crab & Asparagus Tart”
Crab Canapés
A very simple canapé: small discs of puff pastry, topped with crab meat that has been mixed with a little fresh mayonnaise, a spritz of lemon juice, some chopped chives and just a little grated Gruyère cheese. Continue reading “Crab Canapés”
Poached Salmon & Asparagus Tart
I adore tarts: served warm with a good salad, perhaps with some cheese, a few pickles and some good bread they make for a satisfyingly light meal. Continue reading “Poached Salmon & Asparagus Tart”
Phil's Home Kitchen 