Pear and frangipane tart

Honour demanded that I made a fabulous dessert last week; I had pears (not Conference, maybe Comice?) and so I found this on the web.  It was sensational.  I made TC's standard pastry (100g butter, 200g flour), though I can see that made with egg it would be even richer and more scrumptious. I also forgot the flour in the frangipane, so no idea whether it was important!

INGREDIENTS

For the pastry

• 225g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
• 110g butter
• 110g caster sugar
• 3 medium egg yolks, lightly beaten

For the frangipane

• 125g butter, softened
• 125g caster sugar
• 2 eggs
• 125g ground almonds
• 1 tbsp plain flour

For the poached pears

• 250g caster sugar, plus 2 tsp extra
• 4 good-sized pears
• 1 cinnamon stick, broken in half
• 3 cloves
• 1/2 lemon
• 2-3 strips thickly pared orange zest
• 1/2 vanilla pod

METHOD

1. Make the pastry. Tip the flour onto a work surface. Cut the butter into cubes and dot over the flour. Sprinkle with the caster sugar. Using your fingertips, rub the butter, flour and sugar together until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Make a well in the centre, add the egg yolks and, using your fingers, gradually draw in the flour. Knead lightly, until it comes together in a smooth ball – you might need to add 1 teaspoon cold water if the dough is very crumbly. Wrap in cling film and chill for at least 30 minutes. (Angela Hartnett’s tip: I make the pastry on a floured work surface in the traditional Italian way, but feel free to do it in a bowl if you prefer.)
2. Make the frangipane filling. Cream the butter and sugar together in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in the eggs, one at a time, then fold in the ground almonds and flour. Mix well and chill until needed.
3. Make the poached pears. Put the sugar in a saucepan, pour in 500ml water and place over a medium heat. Stir until the sugar has dissolved. Peel the pears and add to the pan, along with the cinnamon and cloves. Squeeze the juice from the lemon into the pan and add the squeezed lemon and orange zest. Split the vanilla pod in half, scrape out the seeds and add to the pan with the pod. Add some more water to just cover the pears.
4. Cut out a circle of baking paper large enough to fit inside the pan, and lay on top of the pears. Weigh down with a saucer or small saucepan lid so that the pears stay submerged in the poaching liquor. Simmer for 20 minutes, then remove the pears to a plate with a slotted spoon and discard the liquor and solids. Set aside for 15 minutes, or until cool enough to handle. (Angel Hartnett’s tip: Don’t overcook the pears – a knife should just pierce them easily. Remember – they will continue to cook in the oven.)
5. Preheat the oven to 190°C/fan170°C/gas 5. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the pastry to a circle large enough to line the tart tin. Don’t worry if it breaks up, as this is a very short, crumbly pastry – you can just patch it together in the tin and mould it up the sides, making sure it is even all over. Trim off any excess pastry and spread the frangipane evenly on top.
6. Cut the pears in half lengthways and, using a teaspoon, scoop out and discard the core from the centre. Cut each pear half in slices, widthways, then lift onto your knife and push down on the pears slightly to fan them out. Lift into the pastry case and arrange in a circle. Fill in the gaps between each pear half with a few more slices and arrange some in the centre. Bake for 55 minutes to 1 hour, until the pastry is golden and the filling is set. Sprinkle with the extra 2 teaspoons caster sugar and bake in the oven for a further 15 minutes to finish off the browning. Cool in the tin slightly, then remove and transfer to a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature with a dollop of crème fraîche.

Filo hors d'ouvre cups

I have been wrapping salmon (with a topping of grated ginger, grated lime zest, cumin, coriander, salt and pepper) in filo for a picnic supper tonight. I had a bit of filo left so made some of these for future use.

You need filo and fiddly fingers.
Jus Rol filo is the right size. Cut into strips, then into squares about 60 mm. Take two squares, and put one in front of you straight and put the other over it at an angle. Carefully push them into a non stick mini-muffin pan that takes 24. When you have filled the tin, put them in the oven for 7 minutes, maybe 8. DO NOT BURN! Keep the rest of the squares covered while they await their turn.
Put the finished cups in a tin (they keep for ever), and the next time you have to take a plate of canapes (which happens to me quite a lot) fill them with a fish (or meat) pate, egg mayo, or anything else that you can think of that will fit but is not too wet. 

Roger's Famous Flatbreads

Of course these are really Paul Hollywood's flatbreads, as brought to you by Nigel Slater, but they were introduced to us by Roge.

Recipe on the Guardian website

TC's list of things to cook

Chicken and aubergine curry

Oreos

Strawberry and rose cake

Choux pastry

Mini Frittatas

Apparently I only post chocolate cake recipes at the moment!  But we are in the middle of weaning A, who does not yet eat chocolate cake, and so the task of thinking of suitable things that she can manage herself is at hand.

I love making (and eating) these mini frittatas.  They are so easy and can use up any veg in the fridge that is looking past its best, and any little bits of cheese that need eating too.  A has been hoovering them up.

3 courgettes, grated (if you have time to squeeze out some water all the better, but I don't salt them for the baby's sake)
5 eggs
Some crumbled feta
A few cherry tomatoes cut into quarters
Some chopped parsley is nice too
Some grated cheddar

Mix all of the ingredients except the cheddar, and season if desired.  Put into a well oiled muffin tray, and sprinkle over the cheddar.  Bake for about 15 mins at 160C until just set and browning on top.

Prize-winning Chocolate Quinoa Cake

Edited to add: This cake won the Earlsfield Bake-Off!

This cake sounds weird but tastes yummy.  No one knew it had quinoa in it.  I made it as cupcakes, but forgot to take a picture.  Annoyingly it is an american recipe using cups.

Quinoa Chocolate Cake

2 cups cooked quinoa
1/3 cup milk
4 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
3/4 cup butter, melted
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

Preheat the oven to 160F and grease two 23 cm round cake pans; line the bottoms of the pans with parchment paper – this cake is very moist, and it will make removing them much safer.

In a food processor, combine the milk, eggs and vanilla; add the cooked quinoa and the melted butter and blend until smooth.  Add the sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt and pulse until well blended.

Divide the batter evenly between the pans and bake for 40-45 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool completely in the pans before running a thin knife around the edges and inverting them onto plates.

(recipe from Dinner with Julie)