Boiled Fruit Cake

As time goes by, my Christmas baking leisure, is going with it!  Time is my most rare commodity so I try to find short cuts and cheats to overcome this annoying problem.  Boiling process saved me from long hours waiting for dried fruit to steep in alcohol.  Adding butter while the mixture is still warm saved me from creaming it with sugar and I used the same pan!.  Texture came out just as good and I cannot tell you if it keeps long or not as it has already disappeared! I gave this cake the dundee finish of almond topping for that little bit of crunch.

500g dried mixed fruit

250g glaced cherries

100g chopped dried prunes

250g dark muscovado sugar

1/2tsp ground cinnamon

1/4tsp ground cloves

1/4tsp ground allspice

Juice and rind of 1 clementine

Juice and rind of 1 orange

1 cup whiskey

225g butter

300g self raising flour

3 eggs

2tbsp honey

2tbsp cocoa powder

200g almonds

Add mixed fruit, cherries, prunes, sugar, cinnamon, cloves, alspice, rind and juice of clementine and orange and whiskey to a medium pan.  Bring to a boil and simmer for just 5 minutes stirring so that sugar dissolves.  Turn off heat and cover with lid till mixture cools down to medium warm.

Pre heat oven to 165c. Line a 10inch cake tin with baking paper. 

Chop butter into small cubes and add to fruit mixture and stir till it melts into the mixture.  Add eggs, flour, cocoa and honey and stir till all is incorporated into the fruit mixture and form a nice cake mix. Do not overmix.

Pour mixture in prepared baking tin, arrange almonds on top and bake for approximately 1 hour.  Test with skewer in the centre, and when this comes out clean remove from oven and let it cool in the tin.

Artichoke and Ricotta Ravioli with Hazelnut and Radicchio dressing

I bought the Ravioli freshley made from l'Italiano -https://www.facebook.com/italianomalta, you can do them yourself  by following my recipe http://marthesefood.blogspot.com/2012/01/smoked-salmon-and-prawn-ravioli.html but as filling use 200g fresh ricotta, 1 egg, 2 tbsp pecorino cheese, 4 preserved artichokes, and some grated nutmeg.  Radicchio is the star in this recipe and with some clementine juice and hazelnut it taste divine!! 

500g fresh ravioli

1 small radicchio

2 tablespoons crushed roasted hazelnuts

Juice of 1 clementine

1 tsp honey

2 tbsp olive oil

1/4 cup white wine

Salt and Pepper

Bring a large pan of salted water to boil.  Boil ravioli for just 3 minutes drain.  Reserve 1 cup cooking liquid.  In a large frying pan heat 1 tbsp olive oil, add clementine juice, wine, honey salt and pepper.  Boil till mixture reduce by half.  Add back ravioli, cooking liquid and toss.  Add radicchio and give few more turns. Do not overcook.  Add crushed hazelnuts and serve.

Celery and Jerusalem Artichoke Shot

This concentrated soup is ideal to be served in shot glasses before any meal.  Serves as a winter warmer and a great appetizer! Enough to fill 10 shots

3 celery sticks
1 medium Jerusalem Artichoke
1 small potato
2 spring onions
Small sprig of Rosemary
1/4 tsp Grated Lemon Rind
2 cloves garlic
Salt & Pepper
2 tbsp Clotted Cream
30g butter

Peel and Roughly chop potato and Jerusalem Artichoke. Chop celery sticks, spring onions and crush the garlic.  Add all vegetables to medium saucepan with enough water to cover.  Bring to boil and simmer for 30 minutes.  Using a hand blender blend to a smooth soup.  Add finely chopped rosemary, lemon rind and season with salt and pepper stir and simmer for further 15 minutes.  Right before serving whisk in the chopped butter.  Serve in shot glasses and add small teaspoon of clotted cream on top.

Mince Pies

Mince Pies brings the smell of Christmas and it keeps lingering in your kitchen for quite a while.  Cinnamon and grated clementines are magical.  I used vegetable suet as the proper beef suet is not available on this island!  Came out just right and somehow the indulging guilt is slightly less...
Recipe makes about 24 small mince pies.

Mince Filling
250g Sultanas
100g Dried Cranberries
100g dried blueberries
100g candied peel
50g chopped almonds
100g vegetable suet
75g sugar
1/2 cup whisky
grated clementine rind
juice of 1 clementine
1 cinnamon stick
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground allspice

Food Processor Short Pastry
300g plain flour
75g butter
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp sugar
pinch salt
2 eggs
2 tbsp cold water

Put sultanas, dried cranberries, blueberries, candied peel in a glass bowl.  Heat whiskey, clementine juice, cinnamon sugar, ground cloves and ground allspice in a small saucepan. Stir until sugar dissolves and when mixture boils pour over the dried fruit.  Give a quick stir, cover with cling film and leave to stand over night.  

The following day return the fruit to a saucepan, add the vegetable suet and stir over medium heat till suet melts and the fruit plump up.  Remove from heat and add the chopped almonds. Leave to cool.

Meanwhile prepare the short pastry by adding plain flour, baking powder, butter and sugar to food processor and mix till butter crumbs in flour.  Add lightly beaten eggs and give few pulses to mix.  Add two table spoons of cold water giving few more pulses.  Remove pastry from food processor, bind together with your hands to form a ball, cover with cling film and chill for few minutes in a refrigeraor.

Heat oven to 180c.  Roll out pastry and using proper round cutter cut rounds that fit in a 12 whole mince pie tin.  Spoon mince filling and top with a pastry star.  Brush with a little beaten egg and bake for about 30 minutes till golden.  Dust with some icing sugar.  

Mince pies keep well for over a week, but they can be frozen and thawed 30 minutes before serving.

Fresh Pasta with Aubergine and Chorizo Salsa

Recipe is enough for four main portions

600g Fresh Pasta
1 medium Aubergine
250ml chopped tomatoes
100g sliced Chorizo sausage
2 cloves garlic
chopped fresh basil
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp olive oil
Salt & Pepper

Cook pasta for 3 minutes in boiling salted water, leave it al dente.  Drain and reserve 1 cup of the cooking liquid.

In the same pan heat olive oil, add cubed aubergine, crushed garlic and fry gently for about 6 minutes.  Add chorizo and continue to stir for about two more minutes.  Add fresh chopped tomatoes honey and seasonings and cook till aubergines are just soft.  

Add pasta to pan with sauce togethe wih the reserved pasta water. Stir till sauce thickens around pasta.  Add chopped fresh basil and serve.  Grated Parmesan or Pecorino cheese make a wonderful topping.