Rhubarb and Custard Swiss Roll - a swoonworthy summery dessert!

Even though my Swiss Roll ended up looking more like a Swiss Fold it tasted just as heavenly as it looks - light, luscious and a perfect summer delight. How could a combination of Genoise Cake, Rhubarb Curd, Pastry Cream and Whipped Cream really be anything but?? 

I made this with my spindly rhubarb which needs thinning and  moving desperately but if it's too late for rhubarb in your area you can use any curd - lemon, lemon and apple, blueberry - there are links to my other curd recipes below. 

I adapted this recipe from one over at Great British Chefs - here is the LINK to their recipe grandly called a roulade because they did their roll right, maybe because they did a longer narrower cake than mine - you can do that too but you just need a small sheet pan for my size recipe - maybe a 9 x 13 :) 

This is a time consuming recipe but if you make enough curd and custard you can use them to great advantage elsewhere - rhubarb curd on buttered toast, custard as a dollop on another dessert - or both just spooned from the reused Bonne Maman jars!!

Get me a spoon and quickly!!

 So let's make the Rhubarb Curd and Pastry Cream first to allow them to cool completely.

THE RHUBARB CURD - you could also make this cake with Blueberry,  Lemon and Apple or any store bought Lemon or other flavour curd - click on the bold type flavours to go to my recipes for these!

This is enough for this recipe plus a bit extra but feel free to make double so you have plenty on hand!
 

1 cup of rhubarb cut into small pieces

2 tablespoons of sugar

 
2 tablespoons of water
 

2 teaspoons of lemon juice

 
Combine these four ingredients in a saucepan, preferably stainless steel, and boil together at med-high until rhubarb goes completely mushy...let it cool then liquidize in a blender or food processor (if you blend when it is hot it could blow the top off the blender and burn you...I have had this happen before so be cautious and let it cool!!)

2 egg yolks
 
6 tablespoons sugar
 
2 ozs butter...again I use salted, if you use unsalted add a pinch of salt
  
Whisk the yolks and sugar together in the top part of a double boiler with simmering water in the bottom pan. 

Add the cooled rhubarb and the butter in pieces and stir, stir, stir until it is all combined and starts to thicken...it should already be quite thick because of the blended rhubarb...but let it thicken up some more. 

Cool completely and again it will thicken some more...this curd tastes infinitely better when it is cold so don't judge the flavour or texture if you taste it when it is warm...when cold it is creamy, a bit caramelly and quite tangy at the end...YUMMY!!!...you can use it for a multitude of things...especially on hot, buttered toast with a spot of tea!!!


Now for THE CUSTARD or Creme Pat, Pastry Cream, Creme Patissiere - ie stiff custard gleaned from Martha Stewart - you have to pay close attention to this recipe as it is easy to curdle the pastry cream if you cook the mix too long or don't stir continually.

3 large egg yolks

2 1/2oz/ heaped 1/4 cup sugar

1 cup of whole milk

a good pinch of salt

1 teaspoon vanilla essence/extract

2 tablespoons of white flour

1 teaspoon of soft butter

1. Whisk the egg yolks and 3 tablespoons sugar together until mixture has the consistency of light ribbons when you lift the whisk from the mix.

 

2. Add the flour and whisk thoroughly to combine. 

3. In a medium saucepan heat the milk with remaining sugar and vanilla essence/extract until it comes just to a boil.

 

4. Remove from heat and slowly pour into the whisked egg yolks and sugar mix then transfer back to the saucepan.

 

5. Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking constantly and allow to bubble for 2 minutes.

 

6. Transfer to a medium bowl and dot the surface with small pieces of butter to prevent a skin from forming. Allow to cool completely before using in the cake.

 

Finally make the GENOISE CAKE - I have learned a great trick to making this rise really well, it can be tricky to make and more than once in the past I have ended up with a pancake instead of spongecake.

HAVE ALL YOUR INGREDIENTS AT ROOM TEMPERATURE AND BAKE ON A DRY DAY.

  This Swiss Roll serves 4 portions for genteel people or for James and I, who like our puddings most enthusiastically, it serves 2!

THE CAKE:

2 large eggs separated

1/2 cup/ scant 4 ozs sugar 

1/2 cup/ 2 ozs white flour sifted 

METHOD:

1. Preheat the oven to 350F

2. Butter and line a 10" square x 1" deep baking pan - do not butter the parchment again - the butter underneath is to anchor it to the pan.

3. Beat egg whites until soft peaks then gradually add half the sugar until peaks are stiff but not dry.

4. Whisk the egg yolks with the other half of the sugar until light and fluffy (that's THE trick - don't just whisk the whites, whisk the yolks too and the sugar helps with the volume!!! TA DAH!!!!) 

5. Fold the yolks in to the whites very gingerly until just combined.

6. Gently fold the flour into the egg mixture and mix very very delicately until blended.

7. Gently spread into your prepared pan and smooth the top - the batter doesn't spread during baking so if you want a smooth top you need to do that before it goes in the oven.

8. Bake for about 10-12 minutes until golden in colour, springy to the touch and sightly coming away from the side of the pan as below. 

9. Have a fresh sheet of parchment paper underneath the cooling rack - I snipped a lot of holes in the sheet so as to let the steam out of the cake and not have it go soggy - you'll see what all this oddness if for very shortly! 

10. Remove from the oven, allow to cool for a couple of minutes in the pan - then invert onto the cooling rack and peel off the paper - don't worry if some of the sponge surface comes off with the paper - the cosmetic look of the sponge is irrelevant in the final pudding.

The next bit is the tricky part - only allow to cool slightly you need to work as quickly as possible whilst the cake is still warm and flexible...invert the cake onto the fresh parchment and roll gently - this is to help the cake roll again when the curd and cream have been applied to the cake - somehow the cake keeps the memory of the roll as it cools - but beware it can still crack or end up looking folded instead of rolled as mine did - I think you have to do this a lot to get the rolling part perfect!

Allow the cake to cool and when you ready to assemble unroll and cover with the rhubarb curd and then the pastry cream/whipped cream mixture:
 

Before you assemble the cake whip 3/4 cup/ 6 fl. oz heavy/double cream to stiff and fold in an equal amount of the patsry cream - mix well together

A MISTAKE I made which you can see in this pic above was that I spread the curd and cream too close to the bottom of the cake...leave more room at the bottom and when you roll your cake less of the filling will fall out thus:

I used extra whipped cream and pastry cream mix to pipes rosettes hither and yon - to cover any cracks etc and to make people think you really worked hard on this cake - the addition of piped rosettes always make a dessert look ever so special don't you think? 

FINALLY sprinkle with confectioner's/icing sugar and TA DAH!!! your glorious Rhubarb Curd and Pastry Cream Swiss Roll is ready for the eating.

***If you at all intrigued by the simple, watercolour Blue Gingham fabric in these pics. (also available in wallpaper and wrapping paper) - you can find it in two different sizes in my Spoonflower shop***
One inch HERE
Half inch HERE

HAPPY BAKING!!!

On a design note - for as you know I bake for fun and design for my career - I am thrilled to announce the recent addition of fantastic, large, beautifully printed and fabulously priced Chiffon Scarves to the coterie of offerings in my online shops. 

Westminster Mandala on Black - available HERE

Gilding the Lily Scarf - on a windy day - available HERE

My next blogpost will be about all the wonderful, recent new item additions to my Society6
(there's free worldwide shipping there right now, on most of my items, until midnight West Coast June 7th 2015) and Redbubble online print on demand shops. Stay tuned! 

Thanks for reading and please be in touch

Patricia

Prune, Ginger and Lemon Teacake and a new pink design at Society6

Ahhhh - lovely, delicious, delightful Prune, Ginger and Lemon Teacake - what a wholesome and satisfying treat on a cosy autumn day. The poor beleaguered fruit known as 'prune' is a star in this tangy, spicy sweet, fruit cake - I love prunes and always wonder why they have such a bad reputation - maybe 'they' are on to something by trying to change the name to dried plums?

If you are a fan of light fruit cakes then get thee to the kitchen pronto, and best to have all your ingredients at room temp!

This recipe is for my usual 6 inch cake - you can double for a 9" pan but will have to bake longer and check more often for 'doneness'

First you must start by soaking your prunes in good strong tea - I use Earl Grey for that extra lovely, flowery bergamot flavour - but use whichever tea you like.

5 ounces of prunes chopped into 1/2 inch chunks - don't chop too fine or they will turn to mush in the hot tea.

4 fluid ounces strong tea 

1. Put the two together in a small saucepan and heat through 'til almost bubbling for a few minutes - maybe three - then allow to cool completely

Pre heat the oven to 350F, butter and line with parchment paper a small, tall 6" diameter baking pan lightly rebutter the parchment after lining the pan. 

INGREDIENTS:

5oz white flour/ 1 1/4 cups with 1/2 teaspoon baking soda whisked in 

2oz/ 1/2 stick salted butter

I always use salted but you can use unsalted if you prefer

3oz chopped crystallized ginger

2 tablespoons freshly grated ginger

2 tablespoons freshly chopped lemon zest - chopped works better in this recipe better than grated - the slight tooth gives an added dimension

4 oz / slightly mounded half cup sugar

1 egg lightly beaten

1. Cream butter and sugar 'til light and fluffy .

2. Add egg in three goes and beat each time to incorporate fully.

3. Fold flour and baking soda in in two goes until well blended and smooth.

4. Fold in the prunes with tea, blend, fold in the lemon zest and two gingers and blend.

5. Dollop the thick batter into your prepared pan and smooth over.

6. Pop into the pre heated oven and bake for 45 mins, then add a parchment or foil hat over the cake to stop it from burning and bake for another 30 mins checking at 15 mins for doneness with a toothpick which should come out of the cake clean after being deftly plunged into the centre of the cake. When the toothpick comes out clean your cake is done.

Mine did sink a little in the middle after it came out of the oven but it was fine - not sticky in the middle at all.

Allow the cake to cool for about 15 mins before removing from the pan to a cooling rack - allow to cool completely before eating.

This is definitely one of those improves with age cakes so if you can wait til the second day the flavours will have married to a point of complete perfection.

Get the kettle on!!!

If you are interested in the watercolour blue and white gingham fabric pictured above you can find it in my Spoonflower shop HERE
and the Homespun Patchwork design - in fabric, wallpaper and wrapping paper too, is available HERE

Usually I flip flop my posts between design and recipes but this time I am combining the two.

My latest design to be added to my print on demand online Society6 shop, I give you Country Days Patchwork on Pink - if you know my work you know how much I love the colour pink :)

To this design in my Society6 shop HERE

I don't know why I love painting patchwork designs in watercolour but I do, there's something very satisfying about it for me. I originally created the motifs in this design for a competition at Spoonflower - here is a LINK to that design in a different format.

And here is my new design on various items in my shop with links below to the individual product:

To the iPhone (including iPhone6) and Samsung Galaxy cases click HERE

To the Country Days on Pink mug HERE

To the shower curtain HERE

To the Country Days Patchwork on Pink tote bag HERE

I hope you are having a wonderful Fall/Autumn thus far - we have had some glorious days in Maine and I do hope they continue for a while longer. If you bake my cake please feel free to be in touch and let me know how it came out - you can post pics of such on my Facebook page HERE

Never miss another post - not that I post that often - by following me at Bloglovin - click the button below and receive all my new posts to your inbox - thanks!!

Summer into Autumn Pudding with Wild Maine Blueberries

After not one, not two but three recent blueberries fails I decided to go for something so simple it couldn't go wrong and a recipe which would showcase the humble, subtle blueberry instead of overwhelm it. The flavour is so elusive it can easily get lost in a recipe - or so I have found.

So how does one go from this humble punnet of organic wild Maine blueberries fresh from Bahner Farm....

to this glowing violet delight...

It's easy with just some slices of bread, sugar, the addition of apples and a few hours of patience. Let me tell you how!

THE RECIPE:
12 ounces of blueberries  - preferably wild Maine ones

2 tasty apples - sweet or tart your choice - I go with tart because I like a little tang

4oz / 1/2 cup of sugar

about 4/5 slices of good white bread...something with a bit of backbone not the squushy stuff

THAT'S IT for the ingredients!!...well and also some lightly sweetened whipped cream to finish. 

FYI my pudding bowl is quite small - 3 cup size, 4" tall with a 6" diameter - enough for 4 genteel servings or 2 normal Patricia and James sized servings!

1. Peel and grate the apples into a small pan with some water and sugar, or not, to taste and cook until soft - some apples will turn to sauce others will retain their structure - either is fine for this recipe. Allow to cool.

2. Combine the blueberries and sugar in a heavy pan and bring to a slight boil, stir gently and simmer for a few minutes. Take off the heat and allow to cool.

  3. Cut the crusts off the white bread slices and line a medium sized pudding bowl with them...I did this in a rather haphazard manner but if you are somewhat organized you can cut the bread into triangles and apparently that'll make your life easier with the fitting of the curves, leaving no gaps and saving one slice each for the middle of the pudding and one to top the pudding with.

3. Spoon half the berries and stewed apples with juice into the lined pudding basin, then add some of the crusts if you like - or just the fruit is good - I found the crusts gave a little more structure and were delicious...

4. Tear a circle of bread to fit into the half filled pudding... 

5. Fill with the rest of the fruit - save a bit of the juice...tear another bigger circle for the top of the pudding...

6. Pour the final juices over the pudding.

7. Now find a saucer - or the bottom of a flat bowl that fits the top of the pudding and a weighty thing like a jar of beans and set these atop the pudding thus:

 8. Pop into the 'fridge overnight.

9. Take the pudding out of the fridge a few hours before you want to serve it - it really does taste a LOT better if it is at room temperature and when you are ready run a knife around the outside of the pudding to release it from the bowl - you may have to do a fair bit of wiggling to get it out after it's been weighted overnight but finally you should get this:

 Now whip up some cream with sugar to taste, or just use pouring cream over your lovely violet pudding and enjoy this great little treasure.

This is a fun pudding to make - a very old

fashioned and traditional British pudding - other than using blueberries and apples - that's not at all traditional - forgive me dear purists!! It is quiet in flavour but quite miraculous in the transformation of so few simple ingredients to such a whacky looking dessert - you will impress your friends with it's look alone.

Have a lovely Labor Day/Bank Holiday weekend and let me know if you make this pudding - please feel free to post pics of such on my FACEBOOK PAGE - thanks!!

If you like my gingham fabric in the pictures here is the LINK to it in my Spoonflower shop.

Here's a link to my traditional SUMMER PUDDING

Eccles Cakes perfected - my they're good!

...

 Ahhhh - a picture of my perfected Eccles Cakes which went through a variety of stages before ending up like this crumbly luscious raisin studded delight you see glowing happily above. My first attempt was on a way too hot and humid day where I added just a tad too much water to the dough, for indeed one needs so much less water in one's pastry on such a day, and I didn't keep my pastry cool so it was a very soft texture thus instead of attaining said Eccles Cakes, and no they are not actually what one would think of as a cake but more of a self contained mince pie - but I digress - I ended up with Eccles Biscuits/Cookies:

...which tasted great but were not what I had in mind. SO I thought I have all these amazing strawberries....

 ...with many more to come from our neighbour - I should make strawberry biscuits/cookies like my failed Eccles Cakes - and so I made them on a less humid and hot day and guess what - I ended up with Strawberry Eccles Cakes - ha ha!!!

James loves "water icing" drizzle so I doused them with said delight and they were very, very good. The recipe for them is the same as that below for the actual Eccles Cakes but instead of the raisiny mix you macerate strawberries in sugar until soft and having given up a lot of their juices strain them - use the resultant juice for a nice refreshing drink, perhaps watered down some, and also use the juice to rub on the 'cakes' thus before baking before the necessary sprinkling of sugar!

SO - to the recipe - I have not made pastry with spelt flour until very recently and now I am a convert - it crumblified and toothified the pastry to a divine extent and I am not sure I will ever make all white flour pastry again:

 THE FANTASTIC PASTRY:

3ozs white flour and 3 ozs regular spelt flour (the brown not the white) mixed together - 3/4 cup each
(the addition of brown spelt flour makes the pastry more sandy/crumbly delicious but you can use all white to very good effect also)

1oz/ 1/8 cup sugar

4 oz/ 1 stick very cold salted butter

1/8 to 1/4 cup - a few liquid ounces of very cold water

1. Put flours in a mixing bowl and grate very cold butter on top - I am not a technical baker but have read the grating is integral to achieving a wondrous texture in your pastry)  - if you keep dipping the chunks of cold butter into the flour to coat it will be easier to grate

2. Rub butter into flours until it looks like breadcrumbs (you can do this in a cuisinart but I like to do everything by hand)

3. Add some of the water and start squushing the pastry and keep adding bit by bit of water until it can be formed into a non-sticky ball - less water is better so squush hard until it comes together: 

5. Put into the fridge to rest for at least one hour - or as long as you like. 

Now to the yummy filling:

First make some hot tea to soak the raisin and currants in - you'll need about 8 fl ozs/one cup - good and strong and soak them for about 2 hours

1 1/2 ozs/about 1/4 cup each of currants and raisins

soaked in hot tea for 2 hours and drained

2oz Golden Syrup

if you can't get GS do 3 ounces total of sugar but GS makes the cakes sing!!

1oz/ 1/8 cup sugar 

1 1/2 ozs/ 3 tablespoons salted butter 

1/2 teaspoon each of nutmeg and cardamom

NB Many recipes add lemon zest or candied lemon peel but I preferred mine without - of course you may add it to yours!

1. Put all these ingredients in a pan and melt til bubbly and stir frequently until juices/butter has thickened. 

2. Allow to cool. 

3. Strain the above and save the sauce - which also tastes great on it's own!!

YOU CAN PUT YOUR OVEN ON NOW TO 400F

4. Roll out the dough nice and thin and cut into 4 inch rounds - I got 9 out of mine after rerolling the scraps a couple of times.

5. Dollop about a good teaspoon of currant goodness in the middle, it doesn't sound like much but it works and if you do more you can't close the cakes, and dot saved sauce around the edges to help stick the cakes together.

6. Fold the dough over the filling thus - all the way round and then squush and squish as necessary to make sure there are no holes on the bottom for the juices to leak out, this pictures a less juicy example but you may experience the juices running out - don't worry everything will be fine, you just get sticky hands!! - beauty is not an important aspect of the cakes at this point - or any really!!

7. When it's all battened down the bottom of the cake should look like this:

8. Turn it over and flatten a little and very gently between your palms then place on a parchment sheet on your baking tray.

The slits on these Eccles Cakes are too long - make sure yours are shorter!

9. Now cut two SHORT slits in the top of each Eccles Cake - I realized too late my cuts were mostly too long and they made the cakes open up too much so maybe only about 1 inch long.

10. Spread some of the leftover sauce on the tops - this will help achieve the lovely browning on the tops - and then sprinkle with sugar before bobbing into the oven for about 20 minutes until golden brown and lovely:

These slits on the top of these 3 were perfect!

OH MY GOODNESS - these are so good - I poured any leftover sauce in the slits when the cakes were still hot to make them even more juicy.

Allow to cool before you enjoy them with your feet up, a nice cuppa in hand and a good read of the latest British Country Living in your near future!!

 

I do hope you make these and if you do please post pics and comments on my Facebook page HERE - thanks!

Next up on the blog is a whole bunch o' new designs at my Spoonflower and Society6 online shops so please stay tuned!!

Happy Baking from Patricia