07939907371 mike@takefood.co.uk
lemon drizzle

lemon drizzle

by | Apr 20, 2019 | Room in my Larder

Lemon drizzle loaf serves 8

ingredients

250ml double cream
225g caster sugar
225g organic self raising flour ( I use duchy)
4 medium eggs
1 large lemon
50g icing sugar

METHOD

Start by beating the cream in the food mixer with the K beater on low until it starts to thicken and then turn up the speed until its over whipped. Keep your eyes on it as it will start sloshing around as the solids start to separate.
Take the solid lump out and squeeze as much liquid out as you can back into a jug reserving all the liquid.

Save a little butter to grease the loaf tin and put the rest of the freshly churned butter back into the mixing bowl with a pinch of sea salt, the flour, sugar and eggs. Put the flour in first so everything else sits on top. This is to weigh the flour down so when you turn your mixer on it doesn’t eject the flour out of the bowl all over your kitchen. Pulse the mixer a few times to make sure the flour doesn’t fly everywhere then turn on high to quickly bring together. If the batter is thick add some of the liquid you reserved from making your butter.

Grate the zest into the batter and fold in evenly.

Grease and line the loaf tin with parchment paper. Pour the batter in to the tin and flatten out with a spatula and bake for about 40 minutes or longer depending on how much of a crust you like.

While you’re waiting for the loaf to bake mix the lemon juice and icing sugar together and mix well to create a runny paste. Once your loaf is ready prick all over with the skewer and evenly drizzle the lemon sugar all over. You can do this whilst still in the tin or if your brave enough, take the hot loaf out of the tin and place on a cooling rack and drizzle all over allowing to drip down the sides creating a nice effect.

Serve with clotted cream and fresh blueberries.

mini english muffins

mini english muffins

by | Apr 20, 2019 | Room in my Larder

Ingredients

300g of ’00’ flour
6g yeast
6g malden sea salt
15g caster sugar
15g soft butter
1 egg
170ml milk
Rapeseed oil
15g semolina

Method

Place all of the ingredients in your mixing bowl making sure you keep the salt and the yeast separate to begin with. If using a food mixer use the dough hook and blend for 10 minutes on a medium speed occasionally checking to see that its not just spinning on the hook.

If not using a food mixer knead on a floured surface for 10 minutes.

Lightly grease a glass bowl and place the dough inside. Cover with cling film and leave for an hour to double in volume.

Tip the dough out onto a floured work surface and roll out to a thickness of 1 inch.

Dust 2 baking trays with polenta, cut out rounds with a 6cm cutter or which ever size you have. Place on the tray and leave to prove for 30 minutes covered with oiled cling film.

Heat up a heavy based pan on the stove on a medium heat and once ready start dry frying your muffins for about 5 or 6 minutes on each side.

Allow to cool, slice, toast and butter. Serve with bacon and eggs.

Lemon posset with blueberry jam and almond biscuit crumble

Lemon posset with blueberry jam and almond biscuit crumble

by | May 30, 2018 | Uncategorized

This is my absolute favourite dessert! It’s easy to make in no time at all and is really refreshing.

To make the blueberry jam

100g of blueberries
50g of caster sugar

add the above to a pan and cook on a medium heat until the fruit breaks down and it starts to look like jam. Put a small blob on a plate and put in the freezer for a short while, check it to see if it is thick. If not return pan to the heat for a while longer. This will become easier with practice.

For the set lemon cream you will need

600ml of double cream
150g of caster sugar
2 lemons

Bring the cream up to the boil then add the sugar, stirring well and simmer for about 3 minutes or until the sugar has completely dissolved. Take off the heat and squeeze the juice form 1 lemon and check the taste add more lemon if you like it lemony. Pour the mix evenly into 6 bowls, spoon in a heaped teaspoon of jam into the centre of the cream and set in the fridge for at least 5 hours.

to make the biscuit you will need

250g of unsalted butter
125g of caster sugar
1 egg yolk
200g of plain flour
100g of plain oats
50g of sliced almonds

Soften the butter overnight, beat the butter and sugar together in a mixing bowl with a wooden spoon until well combined. Beat the yolk in to the mix and toast the almond slices in the oven for a few minutes or in a pan on the stove. Cool and mix into dough. Then add in the flour, almonds and oats and mix with your hands to get a really good mix. Place some parchment paper on a baking tray and with a quarter of the mix just crumble lumps on to the tray. Roll up the left over dough into a long sausage shape in parchment paper. Put in the dough in the freezer for future use or after the dough has chilled for an hour slice into 1cm cookies and bake along with the crumble to enjoy with a nice cuppa.

Take the possets out of the fridge and top with the cooled biscuit crumble, fresh blueberries and black berries. Dust with icing sugar to serve. If you prefer you can omit the crumble from the topping and serve the mini cookies on the side.

Party for 14

Party for 14

by | May 29, 2018 | Recent Events

For a recent house warming party we served a hot menu which consisted of midi beef burgers and mushroom burgers. Nduja sausage roll, pork, fennel and chorizo brochettes with chilli jam and soured cream plus a Greek salad and celeriac remoulade to name a few. Served as a table buffet in the garden.

Free nibbles for local school.

Free nibbles for local school.

by | May 29, 2018 | Latest News

I’ve been asked to provide a local school in a not so well off area with free nibbles for their maths event. I’m going to make pastry number shape straws with cheese, tomato and onion flavours and some cheese numbers… hmmm, and what ever else I think of.

It’s a good excuse for a bit of fun and great to help people out.