0 Gluten free scones

Luxury afternoon teas are popping up all over the place, however even before I became gluten free I used to find that some of the scones which formed part of the afternoon tea disappointingly dry and crumbly and not that pleasant to eat even when ladled with obscene amounts of jam and cream.

Mr LF loves scones with jam and cream, particularly home baked scones with homemade jam, so the challenge was set as to create a gluten free scone. I must say that actually prefer the gluten free version, yes they don't rise as much but they are more moist and a lot less crumbly, they are also the perfect vehicle for large dollops of cream and jam.

After lots of research on the internet and baking up several storms (well disappointing versions) here is our current favourite recipe.

What you need

• 1.5 cups of gluten free self raising flour (if using plain add 1 tsp baking powder)
• 2 tsp xanthum gum
• 1 tsp fine sea salt
• 4 tbsp caster sugar
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter - cold
• 2 eggs free range
• 2 tbsp Greek yogurt - made up to 5 fl oz with skimmed milk

What you do

• Preheat the oven to 220c
• Prepare your baking tray - I used a non stick silicone sheet, you could used non stick baking paper
• Sift the dry ingredients together in a large bowl
• In a measuring jug or separate bowl mix the yogurt/milk mixture with the eggs
• Rub the cool butter into the dry ingredients until the texture of knobbly breadcrumbs
• Add the milk/yogurt/egg mix to the large bowl and mix until well incorporated
• Leave for a few minutes to allow the flour mixture to swell (this is necessary due to the gluten free flour)
• Using an ice cream scoop, create even sized blobs on your baking sheet
• Brush the top with the remnants if the egg/yogurt/milk mix
• Bake in the hot oven for 10-12 minutes until golden and well risen
• Cool for 5 minutes or so on the tray before removing to a cooling rack
• Serve sliced with lots of jam and a cream

Detail: Gluten free scones

0 Lekue - meringue roulade with blackcurrant and mint couli

Over the Easter weekend we had friends visiting and for a while now I had been wanting to use my Lekue Swiss roll mold , so I thought I would give a meringue roulade a go. I also had ulterior motives to use a excess of homelaid eggs and meringue recipes uses loads of eggs don't they (well whites anyway).

I decided to plump for making a plain cream roulade which could  then be served with anything from fresh fruit, fruit couli (using frozen homegrown fruit) or chocolate or caramel sauce. Choices choices......

I am mighty pleased with the resultant soft billowy marshmallowy meringue and the performance of the Lekue mold, the only downside being that the mold is rather flexible so it tooks some nifty handling of the oven shelf to turn the meringue out of the mold onto the cooling rack.

To ensure a smooth glossy well airated meringue ensure your mixing bowl is clean and free from grease, as a precaution I always wipe round with some lemon juice on some kitchen paper.

What you need

• 6 egg whites
• 275g caster sugar
• 50g flaked almonds

To fill the roulade I used whipped double cream sweetened with a good slug of vanilla paste, you could use whipping cream, marscapone or yogurt or even a sweetened cream cheese mixture. For a roulade this size I used a 300ml pot.

What you do

• Preheat your oven to 180c fan
• Place the egg whites in the bowl of your mixer (I used my trusty Kitchenaid) and mix until very stiff and well airated
• Add the caster sugar a little at a time, whislt continuing to mix until all added and the meringue is very stiff and glossy
• Scoop into your lekue mold (or if you haven't got one then a lined swiss roll tin) and smooth level
• Sprinkle with the flaked almonds
• Place in the pre heated oven and bake for 10 minutes until golden
• Turn the oven down to 140c and bake for a further 15 minutes or so until crispy to touch
• Take the meringue out of the over an tip out onto a baking paper covered wire rack to cool for 10 minutes or so
• Then fill with your chosen filling and roll using the baking paper to assist your roll.
• Remove the ends (chefs treats) and serve decorated with fruit or fruit couli or sauce.
• The roulade freezes well when filled with cream and rolled.

For the couli I used some of the last frozen homegrown blackcurrant I had in the freezer , sweetened with caster sugar (1/2 the weight of the blackcurrants) scented with a generous spring of fresh peppermint from the garden.

I am entering this post in Cooking with herbs challenge as I used this months featured herb - mint is in my recipe, the challenge was created by Karen over at Lavender and Lovage and she is hosting this month too.

                                                              

I was kindly provided the roulade mold by Lekue for testing and review purposes. 

Detail: Lekue - meringue roulade with blackcurrant and mint couli

0 Blackcurrant Trifle

Now that I've got attention ! An easy seasonal dessert loved by all, we are lucky enough that we have a blackcurrant bush in the garden and its been laden this summer with a bumper crop of dark juicy berries. Lucky for us the birds seemed to have bypassed the bush and instead snaffled my small crop of redcurrants that grow nearby. 

This is a recipe where you can go the whole hog and be very chefy making your own sponge and custard from first principles or use a few sneaky cheats, on a hot summer's day I opted for the cheats version.

First we are going to make a blackcurrant compote, this works with any soft fruit by the way in case you were wondering. Take you fruit and half the quantity by weight in caster sugar and warm gently in a saucepan until the sugar has melted and the juices are starting to run from the fruit. Taste for sweetness if necessary add a little more sugar. Fruit compotes store well in a covered dish in the fridge and are great in cakes (see blackcurrant and cassis cake post for clandestine cake club), swirled over yoghurt or with a pannacotta. Chill your compote before making your trifle.

What you will need

• Blackcurrant compote
• Cake sponge (homemade if you wish) or sponge fingers (boudoir / langue de chat) for the cheat
• Custard (homemade if you wish, or custard powder or ready made) ideally thick
• Cream ( whipping or double cream) for garnish - whipped to soft peak stage
• Booze - sherry, cassis, etc (optional) I didn't use

What you do

• Locate your nice glasses that will show of this lovely dessert in all its glory
• Carefully spoon a layer of compote into the glass
• Then layer broken up sponge pieces and custard
• Another layer of blackcurrant compote, keep layering until you are nearly at the top of the glass, finish with custard.
• Now finish the trifle with a sexy dollop of cream and a few reserved berries.

Detail: Blackcurrant Trifle