Recipe of the week - 12 November 2012 - Roasted honey apples

• 4 medium Bramley apples , each weighing about 200g/8oz
• 4 tbsp clear honey
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• finely grated zest and juice of 1 large orange
• 250g blackberries

This guilt-free pudding tastes wonderful served with low-fat fromage frais, mixed with a little honey

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1. Preheat the oven to 180C/gas 4/fan 160C. Core the apples so you have a hole the size of a pound coin in each one. Make a cut just into the skin around the middle of each apple.
2. Stand the apples in a shallow baking dish large enough to take all four. Mix together the honey, cinnamon and orange zest, put an equal amount into the cavity of each apple, then pour the orange juice into the dish.
3. Roast the apples for about 40 minutes, spooning the juices over them occasionally. Then, when the apples are almost ready, spoon the blackberries around and over the top of each apple. Return to the oven for 10 minutes or until the juices start to run. Spoon the blackberries and juices over the apples to serve.

Harvest Tart receipe - recommended by gourmet Nick Elcombe of Jenkins Farm (here's hoping he will make one for a our Harvest Festival Meeting on 23 Oct)

Harvest Tart

One 9- to 10-inch (23 -25 cm) tart

Recipe from Kate Hill, of Kitchen at Camont

For the dough

2 3/4 cups (400 gr) flour
1 tablespoon sugar
pinch of salt
9 ounces (250 gr) unsalted butter, chilled
2 large eggs (total)
3 tablespoons water

For the filling

2 1/4 pounds (1 kg) apples, peeled and cored
12 figs, halved
1 small bunch (2 to 4 ounces, 60 -120 grams) fresh grapes, stemmed
1/3 cup (65 gr) sugar, plus additional sugar for sprinkling
a big handful of whole walnuts
1 1/2 tablespoons Armagnac (or brandy, or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract)
1 cup (250 g) crème fraîche
1 large egg

1. To make the dough, in a large mixing bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, and salt. Cut the butter into cubes and mix together with your hands or using a pastry blender until it’s in small pieces no larger than the size of corn kernels.

2. Add one egg and the water, and mix until the dough holds together. Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface until it’s about 18-inches (45 cm) round.

Brush off any excess flour and fit into a 9- or 10-inch high-sided round baking dish or cake pan; the edges will overhang the sides quite a bit. (If using a springform pan, double wrap the outsides with foil to avoid leaks.)

3. Beat the remaining egg in a small bowl with a fork, then brush the insides of the dough with the egg.

4. Prepare the filling by slicing the apples into eighths. Mix them together with the figs, grapes, 1/3 cup (65 g) sugar, and Armagnac, then transfer the filling into the tart dough. Strew the walnuts over the top of the fruit.

5. In a small bowl, mix together the crème fraîche with the egg and pour it over the fruit and nuts. Lift the edges of the dough and cover the fruit, then sprinkle a good amount additional sugar over the top of the dough.

(When making tarts like this, I brush the dough with melted butter to help it stick.)

6. Put the tart on a baking sheet and bake in a 425Fº (218ºC) oven for 55 minutes to 1 hour, until the top of the dough is browned and the fruit is cooked through, which you can verify by poking the center with a paring knife; when done, it should meet no resistance.

(Note: During baking, the walnuts may darken, as shown. This is a rustic touch and typical. If you are concerned, you can drape the tart with foil if they become too dark for your taste.)

7. Remove the tart from the oven and let cool down a bit before serving.

Serving: It might be hard to get a clean slice from this juicy tart, so feel free to serve slabs into bowls. Kate serves the tart with sweetened crème fraîche fortified with a shot of Armagnac or brandy. Vanilla Ice Cream or regular whipped cream are other possible accompaniments.

Beetroot Chutney - Member Ang Cass

Ingredients:
1 kg uncooked beetroot
500g onions
750g cooking apples
500g seedless raisins
3 tbs ground finer
1 kg granulated sugar
1 ltr malt vinegar


Peel and grate beetroot, apples and onions.  
Put in pan with other ingredients.
Bring to boil
Simmer until thick.


Pot up in previously sterilised jars.


Eat


or why not buy some at the Blackwater Country Show on 24 June 2012!