Bonfire Cracklers

This recipe is again from Biscuits by Miranda Gore Browne. I picked this one as I do not tend to do chocolate biscuits much but, these looked really nice. I changed the recipe a tiny bit by leaving out the coffee and chilli and if I were to do it again, I would increase the cinnamon a bit to make up it.

Ingredients:

175g dark chocolate 70% coca solids
50g unsalted butter
100g hazelnuts toasted
175g plain flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 large eggs
150g caster sugar
50g granulated sugar
50g icing sugar
Icing sugar/cocoa powder to dust

Equipment:

2 Baking trays
Non stick baking paper
Small ice cream scoop if you have, not essential if you have a teaspoon and hands
Food blender/bag and something heavy to bash nuts
Hand held whisk/Stand alone mixer

Makes about 30-35ish

First thing, put the chocolate and butter into a heatproof bowl, and place over a pan of gently bubbling water. Once melted put to the side to cool a little bit.

Now, put the hazelnuts, (to toast put nuts in oven for 10 minutes, take out, cool and then skins should peel off easily ready to use) flour, salt, cinnamon, and baking powder into a blender and whizz till ground finely. If you are like me on the nut texture thing, then whizz till very fine. Also, I found half a hazelnut that is shaped depending on the mood, like a heart or an arse. Just thought I would share.

Next, whisk the eggs and caster sugar on a high speed for 5ish minutes till it has gone pale and increased in size to be all moussey. Add the chocolate and whisk again on slow till it is just combined.

Fold the egg mix into the dry ingredients, cover and then put in the fridge for at least an hour. The book says you can also leave it overnight.

Just before taking the mixture out, preheat the oven to gas mark 3/160°C and line two baking trays with non stick baking paper.
Set up a little station with one bowl of  granulated sugar, and another of icing sugar. Then, using whatever you have, ice cream scoop, spoon, hands, feet, whatever, make little balls and roll in the granulated first, then the icing and place on the baking tray.

Put in the oven for 12-15 minutes till the tops crack and once done, cool on the trays.

Just before serving you can dust with icing sugar or cocoa powder. I used icing because I like the contrast of colours.
I really liked these treats. They go very well with a glass of cold milk.

Jam Roly Poly Biscuits

I got a new biscuit book for my birthday, Biscuit by Miranda Gore Browne who was on the Great British Bake Off. There are quite a few I want to try but the first I started with is the Jam roly poly biscuit.

Ingredients:

250g plain flour
1/2tsp baking powder
125g unsalted butter, cubed, room temp
125g caster sugar
1 vanilla pod
1 large egg gently mixed
8ish tbsp raspberry jam (you can pick which ever jam you want)

Equipment:

Baking tray
Cling film
Non-stick baking paper
Food mixer if you have (I do not) or just use your hand

Makes about 25ish

Start by sifting the baking powder and flour into a bowl, then add the sugar. Now put in the cubed butter and using your finger tips rub till you have a breadcrunb texture.

Next, add the seeds from the vanilla pod into the bowl, then slowly pour in the whisked egg a little at a time with one hand, and stir with the other. (If you have a food mixer put it on slow to mix). Once a dough starts to form stop and empty onto a baking tray lined with baking paper. Knead for a minute till it all comes together, then shape into a rectangle and cover with cling film. Put it in the fridge for an hour to chill.

Next, turn the dough onto cling film and roll it till it is about 5mm keeping it rectangular. I did end up cutting it a little around the edges to make it a better rectangle. I used the left over bits to do some more biscuits. Spread the jam all over and roll the dough up into a log. Use the cling film to help roll it. When done cut in half and wrap in cling film, and again pop in the fridge for an hour.

Preheat the oven to gas mark 4/180°C and then line your baking tray with non stick paper.
Take the logs out of the fridge, unwrap and then slice 1cm wide. Place on your tray and pop in the oven for 10-15 minutes till they become golden coloured.

When done, take out and sprinkle with a little caster sugar and then leave to cool.

These really do taste like Jam roly poly, especially if you nibble them straight out of the oven. I found they did not keep too well over night even though in an airtight tin. Any tips as to why? But other than that, I would deffo try again as they are fun to make and taste great.

Rules Restaurant, Covent Garden

We had been to Rules restaurant once before about five years ago, and since then have said we should go back rather a lot. Well, it was my birthday so Mr P decided to treat me and what a lovely treat it was. We really do love this place. The history, the cocktail bar, the fact that although it is a posh restaurant it is not stuck up, (they quite happily give a jug of tap water and do not push bottled) and of course, the food. Oh good lordy lord.

So we started by getting there a little early so we could go for a drink in the cocktail bar upstairs. Even if you are not staying for a meal, I absolutely recommend a drink in the bar. There is a separate entrance that the door man takes you to, swipes his card and up the stairs you go, into a traditional oldie world. The restaurant/bar is all about its game so expect to see, stuffed animals, paintings of that nature, wooden panels, paintings/drawings of people from the past. You get the idea.

The staff in the bar seat you and take your order from the table which was nice, and we found them very attentive and charming. They had some special cocktails for the Queen's jubilee so we tried a couple of those. Queen of Saint Kitts & Nevis Rinquinquin Peach, Pisco & Champagne (bottom) and Queen of Saint Lucia Chairman’s Reserve Spiced Rum, Picon & Citrus (top). Both really lovely drinks to set off the evening.

                                                       

So, it was time for our meal and a waitress came to let us know our table was ready. As we entered the restaurant downstairs you are hit with the busyness on the wall. I loved it. Certainly an aquired taste but it was interesting to see all the different items.
We started off by ordering an aperitif. I had the Royal 29, sipsmith, pinky vodka, lillet, crystallised violet and rose petals, and Mr P had the Ale & Guinness served in a silver tankard. How cool is that! My cocktail  was fruity and sweet. Just how I like them and Mr P's drink given a lighter quality due to the ale mixed with the guinness.

Now onto the food. (Some of the photos are not very close up but you get the idea). I chose to start with crispy lamb sweetbreads with breast of lamb & caper mayonnaise.

Well all I can say is that starter was utterly Oh. My. Gawd. The sweetbread cooked perfectly with the breadcrumbs golden and crunchy. This contrasted with the soft sponge like sweetbreads and dipped in the caper mayonnaise, added a salty vinegary accompaniment. The breast of lamb was tasty and as you can imagine a delight when combined with the little cubes of mint jelly. Honestly, I cannot recommend this dish enough.
Mr P had potted shrimps with granary bread. He said the bread was still warm and seasoned beautifully. The potted shrimp all buttery and within a sauce which he was unable to describe other than sauce. I tried to get more out of him, but he just kept saying saucy. I gave up. However, he loved it and recommends.

Main courses were a little bit of a mixed bag. I originally was going to get the calves liver but at the last moment changed my mind, and I do regret it I must say. I ordered roast leg of rabbit with puy lentils and dandelion salad. Mr P ordered pork cheeks, pork belly & black pudding with leeks & apricot puree. We also greedily ordered a portion of mash potato, creamed spinach and buttered green beans.

So, I love potato. I specifically love mashed potato so eating Rule's mash was pure bliss. It was creamy, rich, smooth and awesome as hells bells. The creamed spinach gorgeous, the buttered beans were crunchy and just beautiful. Now the rabbit itself was nice, but I do not feel like I can say more than that. It did not feel like it had been cooked as well as other dishes and the dandelion and lentil salad was bitter and dull. The dandelion leaves not enjoyable at all. Even though I am being negative about this particular dish, I still love the restaurant because everything else was perfect and I feel I can forgive it. Plus it means I have to go back and try the other dish.

Mr P's pork dish, he said he is not normally a fan of pork belly but the layers were succulent. They had trimmed the fat so as not to be too fatty and the cheek very tender. He did think the apricot puree got a little lost in the porkiness but the star was the black pudding. Really light and full of flavour. It was quite a large portion but he did not complain over that.

And finally, dessert. I had the strawberry ripple arctic roll and Mr P had, and I say this with a great sigh, he had cropwell bishop stilton with a selection of biscuits. I personally do not understand cheese for dessert. I DO NOT UNDERSTAND. Don't get me wrong, I love cheese but not at the end of a big meal. I feel it should be rounded off with a nice bit of sweetness. So anyway, rant over, he had some cheese.

My arctic roll was covered in almonds and I am not a fan of nuts in my food. If they are crushed up so I cannot see them (yes like a child), then I don't mind the taste, it is more the texture but, BUT, I can honestly say they were great with my pudding. The cold centre and then the chewy meringue surrounding the ice cream. All this accompanied with fresh berries that helped cut through the sweetness. It was great.

I did have a bit of Mr P's cheese and I must say, it was just what you would want from a bit of stilton. When served the waitress brought over a whole cheese wheel and started digging in. She only stops when you say stop which Mr P only realised after the third giant spoonful, oh how we chuckled to ourselves. A slice of quince jelly and butter to go with an a ray of crackers, if you do like a cheese dessert then this was perfect.

So, twas the end of the meal and we enjoyed it very very much, even though I had a slightly dud main course. I still loved the evening. The service was smooth, our waiter could have a been a little more friendly perhaps if being picky. We also found ourselves sat next to an american couple who chatted to us a bit which was actually quite nice.

Price for two including booze in the bar was £170. Yes this was pricey, but it was my birthday dinner! Would I go back? Abso-blooming-lutely!

Ambience:10
Food:9 (one mark off for the bitter dandelion leaves)
Service:9
Value for money:7
Overall:9

Meat Liquor, London

Right then, I know I am probably way behind on the hype of this restaurant but I still wanted to give my two cents on it. We had wanted to go for a while but were put off with the whole no reservation thing, and we are not the biggest fans of queuing. However, we had a week off and decided to go for a late lunch to avoid the busy time, and well, it was great.
I have heard many people say that the food is awesome but the staff are somewhat rude. Now, it is possibly because there were only a handful of customers in there but we found the staff to be polite and helpful. We waited a little bit of time between our burgers and dessert but that is the only thing I can pick at, if I have to.
So the place in itself certainly has a feel of harshness. There is graffiti artwork all over with what I assume is meant to be splattered blood, accompanied with dark lighting. Certainly not relaxing to look at. I think this is the kind of place you get in america, Dive Bars, with informal service and ruddy cracking grub and booze.
In all honesty the decor isnt to my taste but it does add to the atmosphere they are trying to create so I cannot fault it on that.

The food. We started by sharing buffalo wings and deep fried pickles with a blue cheese dip, which were presented on a tray a la american style. OH.MY.GOD. AWESOME. I have never eaten chicken wings like this before. The sauce had a zingy spice that was cooled by the dip. They were just so succulent and tangy and hit everywhere in flavour. Then the deep fried pickles were immense. I love pickles and the batter gave them a complimentary crunch. Not at all greasy and a lovely, not overpowering vinegar taste went well with the dip. Going there for the wings and pickles alone is enough of a reason in my book.

Now for the main event. The burger of all burgers that I had been waiting for and well, it was nice. But was it the best I have ever had? No. I had a cheeseburger and Mr P had the dead hippie. My burger had american cheese and some thickly cut pickles which I love, plus a sprinkling of onion. The burger was succulent and tasty. I just felt like it was not as full of flavour as everyone seems to have made out. The bun on the bottom was also a little over toasted for my liking which is not a big deal but I prefer it softer. Mr P's dead hippie consisted of two patties, sauce, pickles, cheese and onions. He found his burger smokey, juicy and enjoyed it a lot. Good as they were, we both seemed to agree that we have had a better burger at Byrons.

The fries I cannot fault. Perfect little french fries seasoned well. Nice.

Dessert. I did not think we would have room but, well, when in Rome, stuff your face I say. I had the crack pie with flor di latte ice cream and Mr P the pecan pie with woodford reserve ice cream. My word. I have never tried a crack pie and it was moist, luscious and flipping great. The ice cream made a delicate accompaniment and am so glad I managed to fit it in. It is layers of oatmeal cookies which are then squashed down into a pie case. (I am sure there is more to it but that is roughly what the waitress said). She was very enthusiastic about it and explained how she had watched the chef make it. Mr P's pecan pie, not too sweet and the pastry was crisp. I tried some of the ice cream and wow, what a hit of whisky!

So, all in all a great place. Don't go expecting any knives and forks, this is finger food at its best. You are given a whole kitchen roll on the table as it gets a tad messy but this just adds to the fun. We did of course get a spoon for out desserts though!
Would I go again? Yes, for those unbelievable buffalo wings and pickles, yes yes yes. But I would do the same and go off peak.
The price came to £44 including a tip. That was for two drinks, two starters, two mains, and two desserts. Pretty damn good value for the quality and quantity of food we got. Give it a try!

Ambience:7
Food:9
Service:9
Value for money:10
Overall:9

Scones

Mr P and I flipping love cream teas so as it was the Diamond Jubilee bank holiday, I thought I would bake some scones.
I used a recipe from Mary Berry's Baking Bible and it worked really well. At first I thought they were not sweet enough even with the sultanas in but, when adding the jam to them, they are just perfect.


Ingredients:

225g self-raising flour
1 level tsp baking powder
50g unsalted butter cubed
25g caster sugar
50G sultanas
1 large egg
Milk

Equipment:

Rolling pin
Baking sheet
Biscuit cutter 2.5inches (or whatever size your want)

Makes 14-16 depending on size.


Firstly, pre-heat your oven to gas mark 7 and then prepare your baking sheet by lightly greasing it.

Next, sift the flour and baking powder onto a surface or into a bowl and put the butter on top. Using your finger tips rub the mixture till it turns into fine breadcrumbs which takes a few minutes. Then mix it with the sugar and sultanas.

Now, crack your egg into a measuring jug and add milk  to get 150ml in the jug. Give it a mix and then pour over your flour mixture.

Mix the dough with your hand or wooden spoon till it becomes combined. Place on your worktop and kneed just a few times to make a sticky dough.

Sprinkle your surface with a little bit of flour and then roll the ball out so you have the dough about half an inch thick. Then using your biscuit cutter, cut out your scones.

Place the dough onto your baking tray and brush the tops with a bit of milk. Careful not to let the milk drip down the sides otherwise they stick and may not rise very well.
Pop in the oven for 10 minutes. I turned mine about 8 minutes in as my oven is rubbish at cooking evenly.

                                   
When done take out the oven and place onto a cooling rack. Eat while fresh!
Clotted cream and jam on scones are simply one of life's utter pleasures. Especially when home made. Try it!!