How Not To Brine A Turkey

I brined my turkey last Christmas for the first time. I will always brine my turkey. I have never tasted such a moist Christmas Day dinner in my life. There is no great mystery. It is the soaking of meat in a solution of water and salt. Additional flavourings like sugar and spices can also be added, but salt is what makes a brine a brine . This soaking causes the meat to gain some saltiness and flavouring while plumping it up with water so that after cooking it still contains a lot of juices. Anyhow today I lugged my 17 pound turkey home and with some pleasure got it's bath ready with the necessary salt, spices and other additions for flavour. So far so good. I had my grandchildren to stay tonight and as is the nature of young children they are interested in everything. I told my two year old Grandson about the turkey in the bath. He peered at it for quite some time and repeated 'Turkey...bath' a number of times. He toddled back into the kitchen and I was distracted at the cooker. I heard a resounding splash from the utility room followed by the words 'Turkey..........bath' I looked in to find my lovely brining turkey with the rather undesirable addition of a bar of pink soap! I don't think We'll be singing Silent Night on Thursday, more like 'I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles'.

Happy Christmas

My Hundreth Post

I have only just realised that this is somewhat of an event. My poor blog has been sadly neglected this month of December. This is not because I haven't been cooking, quite the reverse. My kitchen is so cluttered with bits of this and that waiting to be made into things I don't have room to take the obligatory pictures. Perhaps next week when everything is finally put together.

I cannot think of a better way to celebrate my hundredth post than to wish all my wonderful Blogging friends and those on the Pantry the most wonderful of Christmases and sweet peace in the coming year. It has been something of a revelation to me to chat to so many of you wonderful people out there. Thank you for the joy and pleasure you have all brought me.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

We are having a challenge on Vi's Pantry at the moment taking recipes from Nigella Express. This cake was one of the challenges set. This cake /dessert is a real retro dish. So easy to make. Tastes and looks wonderful and, if there is any left, keeps well in the fridge I will definitely be making this again and again. so quick to put together and so pretty on the table. I expect you can make this with fresh pineapple but the canned variety of pineapple rings are so even and soft and easy to mould into the tin.. The fresh may be better for you but I think Ill stick with the canned variety.


2 x 15ml tbsp sugar
6 slices pineapple from a 425g can, plus 3 x 15ml tbsp of the juice
11 glacé cherries, approx 75g total weight
100g flour
1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda
100g soft butter
100g caster sugar
2 eggs

Method
1 Preheat the oven to 200C/Gas 6.
Butter a Tarte Tatin tin (24cm wide at the top and 20cm diameter at the bottom) or use a 23cm cake tin (neither loose bottomed nor spring form).
2 Sprinkle 2 tbsp sugar onto the buttered base, and then arrange the pineapple slices to make a circular pattern as in the picture.
3 Fill each pineapple ring with a glacé cherry, and then dot one in each of the spaces in between.
4 Put the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, butter, caster sugar and eggs into a food processor and run the motor until the batter is smooth. Then pour in the 3 tbsp pineapple juice to thin it a little.
5 Pour this mixture carefully over the pineapple rings; it will only just cover it, so spread it out gently.
6 Bake for 30 minutes, then ease a spatula around the edge of the tin, place a plate on top and, with one deft move, turn it upside-down.

Note
I used a 20cm sandwich tin as it is what I had
I used self raising flour and soft marg.

Chilli Jam

My Husband picked up a copy Of Nigella new book 'Nigella's Christmas' for me just after it was published. It is a simply lovely book. As well as the recipes being of the usual Nigella standard the illustrations and ideas for Christmas decorations are wonderful. A beautiful book to simply sit down, read and enjoy. The recipe for Chilli Jam sang to me. It tastes every bit as good as it looks. Not too hot but tongue tinglingly tasty. Just lovely with savoury food. Excellent with cheese and cold meats. A real keeper of a recipe. Easy to make I would highly recommend it. You do need jam sugar/pectin added sugar to make this otherwise it won't set.

150gms/5oz long fresh red chillies de seeded and cut into four pieces each.
150gms/5oz sweet red peppers cored de seeded and cut into chunks
1kg/2.2lbs Jam sugar
600mls cider vinegar

6x250 ml/40z sterilized sealable jars with vinegar proof lids


Put the cut up chillies into the food processsor and pulse until finely chopped. Add the chunks of sweet pepper and pulse again until you have a vibrantly red-flecked processor bowl

Dissolve the sugar in the vinegar in a wide, medium-sized pan over a low heat without stirring. (No I don't know why either)

Scrape the pepper mixture out of the bowl and add to the pan. Bring to the boil and leave it at a rollicking boil for 10 minutes

Take the pan off the heat and allow to cool. The liquid will become more syrupy, then from syrup to viscous and from viscous to jelly like as it cools.

After about 40 minutes, or once the red flecks are more or less evenly distributed in the jelly (as the liquid firms up, the bits of chilli and pepper start being suspended in it rather than floating in it), ladle it into your jars. If you want to stir it gently at this stage it will do no harm. Then seal tightly.

Make the jam up to one month before using or giving.
Store in a cool dark place for up to a year.
Once opened store in the fridge and use within a month

From Nigella Christmas-Nigella Lawson

My Tip :If you don't have vinegar proof lids line the lids with a wee circle of grease proof paper.

Daring Bakers- Caramel Cake

Thank you to Dolores Natalie Alex and Jenny who provided November's challenge which was Caramel Cake with caramelized butter frosting from Shuna Fish Lydon. There was an optional recipe for Golden vanilla bean caramels
The recipe for the cake can be found at the above link.
I made the caramel syrup first which I thought would be difficult but was in fact very easy. I then made the frosting. There was so much for one cake and it was far too sweet and thick for me I didn't use it. I made my own butter cream recipe and used the caramel syrup in it. It was still a bit on the sweet side but the texture was a lot lighter.

The Cake.
I reduced the sugar by 3 oz and I am glad I did. I made it as a sandwich cake but there really wasn't enough mix for that.
The cake had a nice moist texture and I liked the caramel drizzled over the top. The syrup seems to keep well so it will be nice to have some on hand to use on other cakes. I didn't get time to make the caramels The recipe for them can be found in
Golden Vanilla Bean Caramels from Pure Dessert by Alice Medrich, Artisan Press, Copyright 2007, ISBN: 978-1579652111

Rosemary Remembrance Cake

I have looked at the recipe for this cake for the longest time in 'Feast' by Nigella Lawson. The rosemary always put me off for some reason. I made it finally for a memorial cook-in we were having for our dear departed friend Pi on Vi's Pantry. As it was Remembrance week end it seemed appropriate for that too. It is a very easy cake to make. I am just sorry I have not made it sooner. It is wonderfully moist with a madeira like texture and just a slight taste of Rosemary which complements so well. This amazed me as I was convinced it would make the cake taste strange. Even if you don't like rosemary I urge you to try it. It is a lovely cake with or without the herb.


Rosemary Remembrance Cake


Makes approx. 10 slices

Ingredients
1 eating apple (approx. 180g /6-7oz in weight)
1 small sprig and 1 long sprig rosemary
1 teaspoon caster sugar
Juice and zest of ½ lemon
1 teaspoon butter

For the cake batter
225g /8 oz butter
150g /5 oz caster sugar plus 1 tablespoon
3 eggs
300g /11oz plain flour
2 teaspoons baking powder

Peel, core and roughly chop the apple and put into a saucepan with the small spig of rosemary, the teaspoon of sugar, the lemon zest and juice, and butter. Cover the pan and cook on a low heat for 4-8 minutes until the apple is soft. How long this takes really depends on the variety of apple you’re using. Coxes cook the fastest, and are good here. Leave to cool, and fish out the rosemary sprig when it is cold.

Preheat the oven to 170.C/325.F/Gas 3. Line a 2 lb loaf tin with a loaf tin liner, or butter and line the bottom with baking parchment.

Put the cooled apple into a food processor and blitz to a pulp.
Then add the butter, 150g sugar, eggs, flour and baking powder and process to a smooth batter. Spoon and scrape into the loaf tin and smooth the top.
Sprinkle the surface with the remaining tablespoon of sugar and then lay the long sprig of rosemary along the centre of the cake.
On baking, the rosemary sheds its oil to leave a scented path down the middle of the cake.

Bake the cake for 50 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean, then leave to cool on a rack. Slip the paper-lined cake out of the tin once it is cool.

Note

This is also lovely if the Rosemary is left out and a good teaspoon of cinnamon is cooked with the apples instead.

Toffee Apple Pork Chops

Why is it sometimes when you throw something together without any particular plan it turns out really well. Other times you plan a meal with such attention to detail and it is just so-so. This came about as I had two pork chops and a cooking apple that needed using. It was so tasty I had to record it.

Put the chops in a roasting pan.
Peel core and slice the apples in a little lemon juice to stop the apples browning and lay them on top of the chops
Pour some apple juice into the roasting pan.
Sprinkle the top of the apples with dark brown sugar.
Drizzle over some maple syrup.(I like quite a lot)
Cook in the oven for about half an hour.
Et voilà - dinner is served.