Afternoon Tea - Alice in Wonderland

I love afternoon tea, whether it's at home with friends or out somewhere to be spoilt.

For my mum's birthday I treated her to an Alice in Wonderland themed tea at the Sanderson Hotel in London. The magic and mystery didn't disappoint. From riddles on napkins, beautifully mysterious china, exotic teas to try (we opted for strawberries and cream!) to a drink me potion on the table the scene was set. 

The sandwiches and cakes weren't the best I have ever eaten but their charm certainly was. Highlights included ham sandwiches with a twist on sundried tomato bread. A chocolate tea cup filled with green tea mouse and a vanilla cheesecake with hidden mango centre. 

The tea also included a glass of fizz and a jelly bar! I definitely recommend! 

Carly xx

Birthday Cakes - Part 3 - Rose and pistachio sandwich cake

This rose and pistachio sandwich is a simple elegant cake, not crying out for attention but effortlessly pretty. Very fitting for Carly's birthday cake! Pistachio and rosewater is a cake flavour combination I’ve been wanting to try out for a while. But, although I’m a big fan of rosewater I'm also aware that there are many who aren’t and so I was a bit apprehensive about how it would turn out, hoping I’d get the balance of rosewater right; not overpowering, but still present in a pleasant sort of way. If you are not a fan of rosewater, I would recommend reducing the quantity to about 1 tbsp in the cake and then it will be almost non existent.

INGREDIENTS:

Cake:
225g unsalted butter, cubed and softened, plus extra to grease
225g white caste sugar
3 tbsp rose water
4 eggs, beaten
225g self-raising flour, sifted
1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt

Pistachio Brittle:
100g golden caster sugar
65g chopped pistachios

Buttercream Filling:
80g soften butter
115g icing sugar

METHOD:

· Preheat oven to 180C/gas 4. Grease and line the bases of 2 round 20cm sandwich tins.
· Cream together the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl until pale and fluffy. Mix in the rose water.
· Gradually mix the beaten eggs into the creamed mixture. Fold in the flour, baking powder and salt with a large metal spoon until just incorporated.
· Evenly divide the cake mixture between the 2 cake tins and bake in the oven for 25 minutes, until golden and cooked through.
· Leave to cool in the tins for 5 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely. In the meantime you can make the filling.
 · Gently melt the sugar in a nonstick pan over a medium heat, without stirring. When the sugar is a golden caramel, sprinkle in the chopped pistachios and quickly pour into a lined baking tin. Leave to cool. Bash the pistachio brittle so you have a mix of big chunks and finer bits.
 · Cream the softened butter and sifted icing sugar with an electric mixer or spatula until you have a smooth, creamy butter cream. Add a splash of rose water and beat for a further minute. Taste and add more if needed; the strength of rose water varies a lot.
 · Place one cake on a board, gently spread with the rose buttercream and sprinkle over the pistachio brittle. Top with the second cake and dust with icing sugar.

Biting into this cake, with it’s hint of fragrant rosewater and crushed pistachio nuts, I really did feel like I was having afternoon tea in a garden of roses!

Charlotte x

Birthday Cakes - Part 2 - Sticky stem ginger cake with lemon icing

I recently made this cake for my Gran’s birthday; a huge lover of ginger cake. In the past I have always ended up with ginger cakes tuning out slightly on the dry side but with this cake, wow, it was so moist and tasty - it’s definitely a winner!

The recipe is listed on BBC Good Food, here.

I mostly followed the recipe spot on except I used semi skimmed milk instead of whole. I also reduced the amount of treacle used and substituted with syrup from the stem ginger instead. The recipe states to grate the drained stem ginger but I just chopped this and added a little extra. I was worried by how wet the combined mixture is and suspected it would leak out of my loose bottom tin, as comments left on the site also mentioned this, so do make sure you have a good tin that doesn’t leak - I placed a tray under my cake tin to catch the few drips and will look to buy a better cake tin soon.

I iced the following morning after baking and the lemon was such a nice contrast to the ginger, it did not last the day! Both my Gran and husband, who is not a keen ginger cake lover, loved this!

Catherine x

Birthday Cakes - Part 1 - Lemon, lime and white chocolate mud cake

For my mum's birthday this year, I was keen to find a lemon cake which is her favourite but with a twist. The Women's Institute of Australia's lemon, lime and white chocolate mud cake certainly provided that - Link here.

The method itself was a little unusual in that you had to melt in a pan, the butter, sugar, white chocolate and lemon and lime rind. I would definitely advise good quality white chocolate here and to stir regularly to avoid the mixture splitting. To cool it down so it could be mixed with the eggs and flour in good time I cooled the mixture in a larger bowl of cold water. The cake itself was a triumph, moist, sticky and delicious. I used smaller tins than recommended cutting each half to make a four layer cake.

Buttercream filling wasn't needed in the original recipe but I just made a simple buttercream using butter and icing sugar and added some of the passion fruit syrup that Cat and I discovered at the recent food festival. I followed the white chocolate and coconut ganache which made a delicious but sickly topping. I could only get hold of solid coconut cream which wasn't easy to work with. I would recommend using the liquid version if possible. To change the texture I added dedicated coconut which I think added to the presentation.

Overall I was very pleased with the result and a great variation of a lemon sponge!

Carly x

Catherine's Baby Shower

In the last two posts, Carly and Charlotte shared their recipes for the lovely cakes they made for my recent baby shower.  It was a great Sunday afternoon spent with friends and family at The Feathers, Taplow. A lot more cake was provided by guests and my sister also ordered a Welcome celebration baby cake from Kelly Rose Cakes - It was very yummy! Light sponge with a tasty vanilla buttercream filling and the icing was nicer than any shop bought ones! It all went down well.

With cake on the mind, there's a few birthday cake posts on their way.

Catherine x

Catherine's Baby Shower - Cranberry, Orange & Macadamia Nut Cupcakes

I love the flavour combination of cranberry and orange and by incorporating toasted nuts and white chocolate, these cupcakes make a decadent treat!

For the cupcakes:
225g unsalted butter
225g caster sugar
225g self-raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla essence
50g white chocolate chips
50g dried cranberries
1 tbsp orange zest

For the icing:
200g white chocolate chips
5 tbsp milk
175g icing sugar, sieved
3 tbsp chopped toasted macadamia nuts

Preheat the oven to 175C/gas mark 4. Place 18 paper baking cases in muffin tins. Combine all the cupcake ingredients, except the chocolate chips and dried cranberries, in a large bowl and beat until smooth and pale, about 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the chocolate chips and cranberries.

Spoon the batter into the cases. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove tins from the oven and cool for 5 minutes. Then remove the cupcakes and cool on a rack.

To make the icing, melt the chocolate and milk in a medium bowl over a pan of simmering water, stirring frequently, remove from the heat and beat in the icing sugar until smooth. Spread over the cupcakes and sprinkle with the nuts.

Charlotte x

Catherine's Baby Shower - Carrot Cake

I love baking cakes. I remember being in my grandmother's kitchen stood on a foot stool so I could reach the work top to sieve the flour, cream the butter and sugar and of course lick the spoon when Nanny Jones wasn't looking :)

I agree with Cat about Mary Berry's cake recipes. Simple with stunning results and her carrot cake recipe  is no exception. I did however add some vanilla essence, cinnamon and nutmeg to my cake as I love those flavours in carrot cake. I also found the frosting worked better with a large tub of cream cheese instead of mascarpone. The addition of bananas makes it so moist and tasty.

The finished cake looked pretty with some white chocolate carrots on for Cat's lovely vintage afternoon tea baby shower!

Carly x

Easter Baking - Part 4 - Pudding

My ham, vegetables and mash was followed by the classic bread and butter pudding however I used leftover panettone that had been given to me in January and I’ve still not managed to finish it.
This was so easy to make after dinner, with the family chilling, I through this together in about 10 minutes - recipe here.  Delicious served with ice cream!

Lots of cake recipes and reviews to come next week.

Have a good bank holiday weekend!

Catherine x

Easter Baking - Part 3 - Another Ham

Like Carly, I also cooked a ham for Easter Sunday, but in Cider. The recipe was very similar to her ham in coke but instead of coke, a litre of cider and once slow cooked in a pan, I spread wholegrain mustard, dark muscovado sugar, cinnamon, mixed spice and a little honey swell as being studded with cloves, before going into the oven for 15/20 minutes, spreading any leftover glaze halfway. It was nice but out of the two options, I would prefer the coke option for its extra sweetness, but none of the ham went to waste, the leftovers were used in a mash topped pie and a simple ham and leek pasta bake later on in the week.

I served the ham with roasted vegetables and cheesy mustard mash which was really tasty - Recipe can be found here . I will definitely be making this version again!

Cat x

Easter Cooking, Part 2 - Beef Brisket

I love American style food for feeding a crowd of hungry people and this beef brisket recipe, which as it cooked made a delicious BBQ sauce, didn't disappoint over the Easter weekend. It is inspired from a Gordon Ramsay recipe.

First you will need a 1.5 kg good quality beef brisket joint from the butchers or supermarket. Start by making a dry fun using 4 tsps of smoked paprika, 2 tsps mustard powder, 2 tsps of cayenne chilli pepper, 2 tsps celery salt and salt and pepper. Rub into the meat.

Preheat the oven to gas mark one, about 110 degrees. In a hot pan using a glug of oil seal the meat on all sides and set aside. Take 3 large onions and slice, fry in the meat juices with 2 tablespoons of light brown sugar and 1 tablespoon of tomato puree until the sugar is caramelised and onion soft. Tip the onions and juice into a large roasting tray and place the sealed meat on top. Next de glaze the pan with 300mls of lager and pour into the roasting tray. Add 2 bay leaves, 350ml beef stock and seal the tray tightly with foil. Cook for 3.5 hours basting occasionally with the juices. When the meat is soft rest it for 15 mins on a plate and reduce the sauce in the roasting tray adding a glug of white wine vinegar. The meat is then ready to slice into chunks, pour over the tasty sauce and serve with homemade coleslaw and potato wedges.

Carly xx

Easter Cooking - Part 1 - Ham

Ham has long been a popular Easter eat with good reason; it's versatile and tasty as both a main meal and for leftovers days after in sandwiches, pies or with the simple egg and chips!

Cat first inspired me to try her version- ham cooked in cider. Me and my foodie partner in crime at home Fallon then discovered Nigella Lawson's ham in coke recipe and our household unanimously voted this recipe as their favourite so now it is a holiday staple.

First select a good quality uncooked smoked gammon joint which will feed everyone at your table. I prefer to buy as big a joint that I can afford as it will then make more than one meal. This Easter I cooked a 2.7kg joint for us ( 2 girls and 2 very hungry men) and a 75g joint for my parents as a gift.

Start by bringing the joint to the boil in cold water. Once the ham is at boiling point drain the water and rinse the scum off. Then place a handful of peppercorns, 3-4 bay leaves and 2-3 quartered red onions in the pan with the ham and cover with coke. The 2.7kg needed about 1.5 litres in my pan. Bring to the boil and simmer, topping up with boiling water from the kettle when required. ( The meat should always be covered).
Allow approximately 30 mins cooking time per 500g.
When ready the meat will have begun to fall off at the edges and be firm. The coke also makes the meat quite dark.
Next if serving straight away or if serving cold, transfer to a baking tray and cover with 3 teaspoons of mustard and 2-3 tablespoons of brown sugar
(depending on size of joint) marinating all over to create the glaze. Bake at 180 degrees for 10-15 mins until the glaze darkens. I find the joint cuts best when cool so allow to rest if serving warm.

To serve we like to make baked Anglesey eggs which is basically hard boiled eggs covered in a cheese and leek sauce topped with mash!

Delicious!

Carly x

Spring Picnic, Part 4 - Easy Lemonade

Oh my gosh, I never realised how easy it was to make your own lemonade and boy was this yummy and refreshing! I found the following recipe on good old BBC Good Food but made a few changes as per suggestions made by reviewers. With just unwaxed lemons, caster sugar and water (I mixed still and sparkling), its unbelievably easy though I think I would try making it with less sugar next time. It will definitely be gracing my table this summer!

Have a good weekend everyone.

Catherine x

Spring Picnic, Part 3 - Sausage Rolls

For my picnic contribution, I decided to make sausage rolls but with a slight difference. I found a recipe for Summer Sausage Rolls on BBC Good Food, and after reading the many positive reviews, decided to give them a go - These have chicken, smoked bacon and sundried tomatoes in and they tasted great. The only changes I made was to use dried herbs instead of fresh basil and I did turn them over 5/10minutes before the end. I did find it quite hard to tell if they were cooked because the tomatoes gives the meat a pink colour, so they were in the oven longer that it states on the recipe…but I will definitely be making these again, they were tasty with great flavour and overall, rather easy.

Catherine x

Do You Love Food Festival - Great Missenden

Over the Easter weekend, Cat and I had the chance to pop over to the Do You Love Food Festival in Great Missenden.  I have visited a few of the Do You Love Food Festivals in the Buckinghamshire area but its always great to see what new products are on the scene.  The Great Missenden location was small compared to the others in Gerrards cross and Henley but that didn’t stop us from filling up on the free tasters of sweet cheeses, yoghurts, jams and much much more. Its great to be able to chat to the people behind the products and find out what is being produced on our door step!

We didn’t come home empty handed either, I spoilt myself with some passionfruit syrup (by Blossoms Syrup), with no additives, this makes a great addition to yoghurt, cakes and drinks especially prosecco. It is rather thick but it would be great in cocktails! Catherine was even given the tip of adding to water and making ice cubes and using on babies with sore gums.

Catherine - This was one of my first food festivals and I really enjoyed checking out the lovely food products. I decided to buy some scotch eggs, made by Kirsty's Kitchen, for the hubby and I; Smoked bacon and a beetroot and carrot flavour - I must say these were the best eggs that we have ever had.

I also picked up some conserves by The Chef's Pantry, Banoffee and Morello Cherry and Almond conserve.  These are very sweet but are great served with greek yoghurt and fruit.

You can find more information about the upcoming food festivals here.

Still to come:

- More picnic recipes
- What we made over Easter
- Baby Shower cakes

Carly and Catherine xx

 

Spring Picnic, Part 2 - A Frittata Offering

With a love of all things Italian, I couldn't resist making 'La Fritatta’ for my picnic offering. The variations are endless and they’re ridiculously easy and quick to make. Perfect for the cook who is short of time...and ingredients! Fortunately, I had just enough ingredients left in the fridge and cupboard to whip up a favourite recipe which has graced my family table many times; Mediterranean Tuna & Vegetable Frittata.

2 tbsp olive oil
1 courgette / sliced
1 red pepper / sliced
1 Spanish onion / chopped
1tsp herbs de prevance
200g tin tuna in brine / drained
4 eggs
3 tbsp milk
50g mature cheddar cheese / grated

Heat half the oil in a saucepan and add the courgette, red pepper and onion. Sautee over a medium heat for 5 minutes until soft. Stir through the dried herbs and tuna chunks. Heat the remaining oil in a small frying pan and when hot, transfer the vegetable and tuna mix over. Lightly beat your eggs with the milk and a little salt and pepper and pour over the sauteed ingredients, when the egg mixture starts to set, remove from the heat. Sprinkle the cheese over the frittata and place the pan under a pre-heated grill until cooked through and golden in colour. Invert onto a plate and serve hot or cold.

Being a rather un-organised cook though, I hadn't allowed enough time for the frittata to cool completely before having to wrap it up in foil for transportation. The result: A somewhat soggy-centered frittata. It delivered on taste at least...!

Charlotte x

Spring Picnic, Part 1 - A Picnic Loaf

The sandwich; a lunchtime staple for so many but I often wondered if the robust yet simple snack was really worthy of a Great British Picnic! With problematic soggy fillings and uneaten dry crusts, i was delighted to discover an exciting alternative - picnic loaves!

Start by choosing your bread. I went for a French boule but the varieties are truly endless, rye bread, sour dough, poppy seed and nut varieties or even sweet bread! If feeling brave or a clever bread maker like Charlotte you could make your own from scratch! I would advise using a loaf which is fresh, has a firm crust and is an even shape to make life easier.

The first step is to make the lid. Cut into the bread leaving a 1.5-2cm outer edge all the way around. Lift off the lid carefully and remove excess bread stuck to it. Then hollow out the inside. A spoon or your fingers works well to do this to the edges but remember to maintain the integrity of the outside and underneath crust as this will support your many fillings. With the excess bread you can blitz to breadcrumbs to use in other dishes or cut into cubes and bake with good quality olive oil and herbs to create delicious croutons for salads!

Next comes fillings. Again endless possibilities here. This time I went for egg mayonnaise on the base followed by alternate layers of ham, garlic sausage, cheese and finally a top layer of roasted med veg. Delicious!
In the past I have used sauces between the layers such as mustard mayonnaise or pesto. Take care with foods that release water - cucumber and mushrooms or avocados which discolour.

Next press down firmly each layer and make sure each layer of tasty filings reaches the edges. Some recipes say to weight down the loaf for a time before applying the lid and wrapping firmly in cling film or foil but I don't find this necessary. Fill well and evenly and a sharp knife cuts through the layers allowing everyone to enjoy the fantastic sandwich!

Carly x

 

Happy Easter!

Hi, it’s Catherine again - here with a quick review on Easter Biscuits, another recipe from the one and only Mary Berry, found on the BBC Food site; for recipe click here. I must admit I recently made these biscuits for Mother’s day, as I wanted to make a batch of simple biscuits that I could bag up to be given as presents and these looked great.

The recipe was pretty easy and I managed to make more than what was stated. I only made one change which was swapping the currants for sultanas (for personal taste).  For the ones iced, I didn’t have a piping bag so spread the icing with a knife (that’s why there’s some lumps) - They looked great in a little bag, tied with ribbon and went down a treat.

Happy Easter everyone, we'll be back after the weekend with recipes and ideas for a Spring picnic!

xxx

Cut and Come Again Cake

I believe it’s always nice to have cake or biscuits available at the weekends, especially when family and friends could be visiting, and with Easter upon us, what better reason to bake this yummy fruit cake.

The Cut and Come Again Cake, recipe from Mary Berry, from Mary Berry’s Baking Bible is simple and I love simple recipes. I was passed this recipe from Charlotte, as its a regularly requested cake in her household. As you can see from the photo, I believe I may have left it a bit too long in the oven as it came out slightly on the dry side however it was still tasty and all eaten the following day after baking the night before.

What was good about it is you can put all the ingredients in all together, mix and pour into a greased deep tin; ingredients were changed slightly from original recipe: 350g self raising flour, 1 1/2tsp mixed spice, 175g butter, 175g muscovado sugar, 3 large eggs, 375g dried fruit and 3 tbsp milk - I added a little extra cinnamon and also sprinkled some sugar on top before going in to the oven (180oC/ Fan 160oC/ Gas 4) for just under 1 1/2 hours, though I recommend checking after an hour. I think next time, as there will definitely be a next time, I would just go for all sultanas as I’m not a big fan of currants but this recipe is so easy, you can really play around with it.

Catherine x

Welcome to the Local Larder!

Three ladies, three kitchens, one blog!

We hope to talk food, review recipes, check out restaurants and spread the word about local food and what’s going on in the Buckinghamshire area.

Mix in a few visiting guests, some food course reviews and hopefully lots of pretty photos..

A little bit about us..

Carly - With a background in midwifery and forensics, Cary has always enjoyed visiting food markets and trying out new restaurants; checking out those places with Michelin stars (to see what all the fuss was about). Her enjoyment for cooking has since grown due to having her own home, and with now just getting engaged and starting a new job, it’s amazing she still finds time to cook, bake and experiment.

Charlotte - When she's not crafting TV and Film, Charlotte can be found creating new dishes in the kitchen. In fact it was the kitchen that sealed the deal for her in the new home she's just bought! An experimental cook, every time she opens the fridge or cupboards she is wondering what she can make, re-create and re-invent. Always on the lookout to gain inspiration and hone her culinary repertoire, she's attended many cookery courses in and around London and loves nothing more than putting her new found skills to use, cooking for family and friends. Cakes and bakes are close to her heart and with a dream of owning her own coffee shop in the future, she is an avid supporter of local independent bakeries and cafes which she believes have an important place in the community.

Catherine - An illustrator, children’s book reviewer and a creative assistant, married and expecting her first child very soon, Catherine still finds time to bake and try out recipes. She especially likes to find recipes that are simple, often one pot dishes - the simpler the better is her motto. Though not as experimental as the other two, Catherine likes to try out online recipes, often choosing items for their photographic appeal, as food photography is another love of hers, she will often be the photographer for any food outing or occasion.

Coming soon:

- A visit to a local food Festival - Great Missenden 
- Spring Picnic and some simple food/drink suggestions
- Cakes for a Baby Shower
- Easter baking

Hope you enjoy and thank you for visiting,

Love Catherine, Carly and Charlotte xxx