December 2013, Kuratiwhiti Street, Greytown

Meeting number 6, Maria was the host, the theme was economical Christmas fare...

3 comments:

  1. Galette de trois rois – (as done by Ruth Pretty – Dominion Post, Weekend Magazine, Saturday December 7, 2013. P 23)

    This is traditionally eaten on the 6th of January which is the Feast of the Three Kings (Trois Rois). It is also a tradition to have a wee token inside – usually a fava bean or piece of silver. This is also the recipe closest to the one served in Provencal homes.


    165g unsalted butter, diced and softened
    165g sugar (3/4 cup and 1 ½ Tbsp)
    3 eggs lightly whisked
    35g (1/4 cup) flour
    165g blanched almonds (by whole and coarsely grind)
    35ml (2 Tbsp + 1 tsp) dark rum (I used Brandy)
    2 tsp finely grated lemon zest
    15ml (1 Tbsp) lemon juice
    220g puff pastry (1st measurement)
    280g puff pastry (2nd measurement) – pastry is best if all butter.
    Flour for rolling
    1 egg yolk mixed with 2 Tbsp water to make egg wash
    Lemon glaze
    Vanilla Whipped cream – to serve

    Filling:
    Place butter and sugar in abowl and beat until creamy and yellow. Gradually add eggs, beating between additions. Add flour, almonds, rum or brandy, lemon zest and juice and beat until combined.
    Lightly grease a low-sided baking tray with butter or baking spray (I used a roasting dish) I lined the bottom of the tray with baking paper too which proved to be advantageous later!
    On a lightly floured bench, roll 1st measurement of pastry to a 25cm round (2-3mm thick) to make base. Place this onto prepared baking tray.
    Place filling in the centre of the pastry base, leaving a 1.5cm rim around the sides. Brush the outside rim with cold water to help seal the top to the bottom securely.
    Place a 28cm pastry top (rolled from 2nd measurement of pastry) on top of almond mixture and pull edges in so they meet. Seal edges firmly using your fingertips. If possible, cut around the outside edge with a pastry wheel. Using the tip of a small sharp knife, draw a decorative pattern on top of the galette. Glaze with egg eash and refrigerate for 30minutes to rest.
    Preheat oven to 210C.
    Using the tip f a small knife make four to five small holes in the pastry top for air vents. These should prevent the galette from bursting….
    Bake for 15-18 minutes or unitl pastry is golden. Remove from oven and glaze generously with Lemon Glaze. Return to oven and bake for a further 5-6 minutes or unitl pastry is dark golden and filling is set.
    Remove from oven and cool until lukewarm.
    Serve with vanilla whipped cream if desired….

    Lemon glaze
    30ml (2 Tbsp) water
    45ml (3 Tbsp) lemon juice
    1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
    50g (1/4 cup sugar)
    Place all ingredients in a small pot over a low heat and stir until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and cool.

    Vanilla Whipped Cream
    250ml (1 cup) cream
    1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
    1 Tbsp vanilla sugar

    Whip together until soft peaks form. Serve with the warm galette…

    Result:
    I found it authentic to those I have eaten in France. Very sweet and rich to my palate. I would do again….

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  2. This was Annabelle's dessert:
    Chocolate Hazelnut Meringue with Frangelico Cream-

    This recipe I selected for the economical xmas recipe theme. I had every ingredient on hand apart from the cream. This recipe came from an old copy of Cuisine.

    Serves 10-12 people. (I halved the recipe)
    Meringue
    8 egg whites 300g castor sugar,( I used less sugar),1tblspn cornflour, 2tblspn cocoa powder, 120g hazelnuts roasted skinned and lightly crushed

    Whisk the egg whites in a mixer on medium to high until stiff. Add sugar in three separate additions, whisking for two minutes between each addition. After the last of the sugar is added continue to whisk for a further 2 minutes.
    Remove the mixing bowl from the beater and add the cornflour, cocoa and hazelnuts. Gently fold ingredients together until just combined. (Over folding will knock out too much air).
    Divide the mix between three baking trays lined with baking paper and marked out with a 28cm circle on each piece of paper. Spread merginue mix evenly around the circle with a spatula, bake in a cool oven 100o C for one hour before turning down to 80oC for a further 2 hours. Turn oven off and allow meringues to cool completely.

    Ganache & to assemble

    Make the ganache by melting chocolate in a bowl over simmering water. Remove from the heat before stirring in cream and finally rum. When the ganache is still slightly runny but almost set, pour half the ganache onto the first meringue. Spread evenly over the meringue before placing the next one on top. Pour the last of the ganache on the top. Allow one hour for the ganache to set before cutting.

    Frangelico cream & to serve

    600mil cream ½ cup icing sugar 30mil-45mil frangelico Dutch cocoa & icing sugar to dust.
    Whisk the cream sugar and frangelico together to a soft peak. To serve cut meringue into 10-12 pieces, garnish with frangelico cream on top dust with cocoa & icing sugar.

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  3. Christine’s recipes:
    December (Greytown)

    Thai peppercorn chicken with hot and sweet dipping sauce and cucumber and peanut salad:
    4 tsps black peppercorns
    2 tsps cumin seeds
    2 tsps coriander seeds
    1 tsp caraway seeds
    ½ cup chopped coriander roots and stems
    8 cloves garlic chopped
    2 Tbsps grated fresh ginger
    2 Tbsps fish sauce
    ½ tsp salt
    3 Tbsps peanut oil
    1 chicken – cut into 16 pieces

    Hot and sweet dipping sauce:
    1 cup cider vinegar
    1 cup sugar
    4 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
    ½ tsp salt
    1 ½ tsps dried chilli flakes

    Salad
    1 lge telegraph cucumber
    2 Tbsps rice vinegar
    1 Tbsp sugar
    2 Tbsps peanut oil
    2 large mild red chillies, finely chopped
    ½ tsp salt
    ½ cup raw peanuts, roasted and roughly chopped
    ¼ cup packed roughly chopped coriander leaves
    Spring onions and parsley mixed into rice
    Method:
    Toast and grind all the spices.
    Place the coriander, garlic and ginger in the food processor and blend to a paste. Add the spices, fish sauce, salt and peanut oil and blend again. Scrape into a large bowl.

    Toss the chicken pieces in the paste and set aside, covered, at room temperature for ½ and hour or refrigerated for several hours.

    Sauce: Place the vinegar and sugar in a small saucepan and bring to the boil/ Stir until dissolved and then simmer for 5 minutes. Place the garlic and salt in a mortar and mash to a paste. Add the chilli flakes and blend well. Pour the vinegar mixture into a bowl and stir in the garlic paste. Cool.

    Salad: Peel the cucumber, leaving a few thin strips of skin on for colour. Cut in half lengthways and scrape out the seeds. Cut into 5cm lengths, and then cut each piece into batons. Mix the vinegar and sugar in a bowl, add the cucumber and mix well.
    Heat the peanut oil in a small skillet. Add the chilli and cook for 20-3- seconds. Pour this over the cucumber, sprinkle over the slat and mix well.
    Toss through the peanuts and coriander and transfer to a serving bowl.

    To serve: cook the chicken on the barbecue at medium heat for approximately 20-25 minutes or start on a grill plate and finish in the oven – 12-15 minutes at 180C in either case cook until the juices run clear.
    Rest for 5 minutes, place on a platter and serve with the sauce, the cucumber salad and sticky rice….(serves 6).

    It was delicious! 

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