Bramble Jelly

Such a deep colour.

Yo, Dear Reader, this is a twin of the Apple Jelly Recipe, they’re very similar, this uses the natural pectin in both fruits to allow you to just use granulated sugar, but the apples will likely be the main source, if you’re playing around with other fruits you can just use jam sugar, either completely or as an addition, you’ll learn to play with ratios, I did, Dear Reader, the raspberry took mostly jam sugar and granulated topped it up. These are for selling so I’ll make sure they’re the best they can be, but the best part of small batches of jam made with various fruits harvested at different places and times means each is wholly unique. If you take your time and follow the steps you can’t go too wrong and any failure can be a teaching moment.
The Raspberry Variation.

The only thing here that might be new is the microwave sterilising, an Uncle told me about it, an avid and practiced Jam maker, and it has stood me well in my years of makin jams. It ensure the jams are piping hot and freshly cleaned, but gets them done faster than heating an oven. Remember to check for cracks at each stage, I clean these several times, when I take them out I check, wash and check, rinse and wet and then heat and recheck before adding jam or jelly. Everything should be hot. Be mindful of how hot boiling jam is too, you’ll get burned once or twice and never want to have that happen in the extreme. Best advice is to have everything ready, hot water to easily rinse out the pots is handy too. You work fast with jam and when it’s all sealed up and cooling you may hear the seals popping when the vacuum is formed. That’s what keeps it fresh. I see people take a jar from me and open it, if you do that then refrigerate it, the seal is broken and the jam will not stay fresh. I also see people tilting fresh jars and no, don’t, just don’t. The pectin forms overnight, but can take a few days and some jams and jellies can be a looser set, some firm up fully after weeks. Respect the art that goes into it and enjoy it is my advice, Dear Reader.
A good day’s effort.

So, this is my last batch, I have grown so, so much this year, Dear Reader, where one fruit failed another made up for it tenfold. The birds have been dropping seeds for me and I now have a rasp[berry plant and a blackberry plant, both wild, I have ideas about those, but that’s for another time. It’ll be unlikely that I’ll see more apples, how this person had so many is a mystery because everyone is struggling to find any, so I can be free for a while. I’ll carry on composting everything leftover and add it to the bushes again as I have year after year. It pays off, Dear Reader and likely makes a lot of people, myself included, happy. Oh, in talking about happy people, I gave jam to the kids, they’re great kids, and it was two melted together, not ideal for selling, but a delicious way to use up the leftovers if you haven’t enough to fill a jar. You can stack and refrigerate, if they aren’t sealed then storing unrefrigerated wouldn’t be safe, or melt them down as one jam. As I say it’s not perfect, but useful and the kids won’t mind as it won’t last the day likely! I’ll be back again soon, Dear Reader, until then stay safe and take care.

Ingredients

1100g Blackberries, Fresh or Frozen
500g Cooking/Windfall Apples
Granulated Sugar As Needed
500ml Water
Optional: Teaspoon of Butter

Method

Place a plate or saucer in the freezer before starting.
Use strongly flavoured fruits.

1. Cut up the Apples without Coring or Peeling and add to a large pot with the Blackberries, add water and then cover and cook gently, stirring occasionally, until the Apples and Blackberries are mush.

2. Remove from the heat and mash using a potato masher until everything has been reduced to pulp. Pour the mixture into a straining bag and let drip overnight.

3. Weigh the juice and add it and equal weight in Sugar to a large, deep pot, cook on a gentle simmer, do not boil, until the Sugar has dissolved.

4. Add the Butter and bring to a rolling boil. Boil for five minutes and test for set (see Below)

(Alternatively alternate stirring clockwise and counter clockwise while boiling to help break up the scum.)

Drop a little of the mixture on a chilled plate and run a finger down the middle, if the Jelly stays divided then it’s ready, if it rolls back then boil again for a minute and retest until desired set has been achieved.

5. Wet Clean Jars and heat in the microwave for one to two minutes until dry. While they sterilise soak the lids in boiling water for a minute or two. Pour the warm Jelly into the prepared Jars while they’re hot then screw on lids and let rest at room temperature overnight.

6. Store in a cool dark place and refrigerate once opened.

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Apple Jelly

It was so thick it started to set as I was pouring, no harm, but you have to work so fast.

Yo, Dear Reader, I honestly could’ve sworn I had this recipe typed up, but apparently not. Ah, well, I have now and I’ll have another very similar one following. This is the most basic, traditional recipe for apple jelly, it comes from my own experience and and old book about preserves. It’s one of the more time consuming recipes, but also one of the best to use windfall or sour apples, every batch is as unique as the combinations of fruits. Being able to throw all the apple in, this is important as it is the main source of pectin, I’ll skip the science, I’m not filling a word quota, Dear Reader, just passing on what I know. I’ll copy and paste between recipes, there isn’t much difference and you can mess around with other fruits, just keep the pectin levels of the fruit in mind.
Had some leftover, added it to another later to give to the kids.

The only thing here that might be new is the microwave sterilising, an Uncle told me about it, an avid and practiced Jam maker, and it has stood me well in my years of makin jams. It ensure the jams are piping hot and freshly cleaned, but gets them done faster than heating an oven. Remember to check for cracks at each stage, I clean these several times, when I take them out I check, wash and check, rinse and wet and then heat and recheck before adding jam or jelly. Everything should be hot. Be mindful of how hot boiling jam is too, you’ll get burned once or twice and never want to have that happen in the extreme. Best advice is to have everything ready, hot water to easily rinse out the pots is handy too. You work fast with jam and when it’s all sealed up and cooling you may hear the seals popping when the vacuum is formed. That’s what keeps it fresh. I see people take a jar from me and open it, if you do that then refrigerate it, the seal is broken and the jam will not stay fresh. I also see people tilting fresh jars and no, don’t, just don’t. The pectin forms overnight, but can take a few days and some jams and jellies can be a looser set, some firm up fully after weeks. Respect the art that goes into it and enjoy it is my advice, Dear Reader.

In between drippings I harvested more squash. Three slightly different types.

The great thing about this is it can be made more savoury, the addition of fresh herbs, either boiled with the jam and strained, dipped in boiling water and placed into the jar or chopped and sprinkled before sealing. You can use any apple you like, cooking apples, the harder green apples, I don’ know how universal the name is, crabapples, I’ve used small orange coloured crab apples that made the sweetest jelly. Like I say, have fun with it, Dear Reader, any jam or jelly that fails to set is still edible and if you’re unsure start by using jam sugar to get the method down, knowing both ways is useful. I’ll be back later, Dear Reader, until then stay safe and take care.

Ingredients

Cooking Apples, As Needed or Enough to Fill A large Pot
Granulated Sugar As Needed
Optional: Teaspoon of Butter

Method

Place a plate or saucer in the freezer before starting.
Use strongly flavoured fruits.

1. Cut up the Apples without Coring or Peeling and add to a large pot, add just enough water to cover the base by a few inches then cover and cook gently, stirring occasionally, until the Apples are mush.

2. Remove from the heat and mash using a potato masher until everything has been reduced to pulp. Pour the mixture into a straining bag and let drip overnight.

3. Weigh the juice and add it and equal weight in Sugar to a large, deep pot, cook on a gentle simmer, do not boil, until the Sugar has dissolved.

4. Add the Butter and bring to a rolling boil. Boil for five minutes and test for set (see Below)

(Alternatively alternate stirring clockwise and counter clockwise while boiling to help break up the scum.)

Drop a little of the mixture on a chilled plate and run a finger down the middle, if the Jelly stays divided then it’s ready, if it rolls back then boil again for a minute and retest until desired set has been achieved.

5. Wet Clean Jars and heat in the microwave for one to two minutes until dry. While they sterilise soak the lids in boiling water for a minute or two. Pour the warm Jelly into the prepared Jars while they’re hot then screw on lids and let rest at room temperature overnight.

6. Store in a cool dark place and refrigerate once opened.

Mincemeat Loaf Cake

If it sinks a little just fix it up. This actually rose at the edges only, it never sunk, just never rose. Might’ve been the almonds in the middle.

Yo, Dear Reader, before I start in on this I want to say that because I’m using a preblended flour your luck will vary, this isn’t the worse commercial flour blend, but it’s not the greatest, your list of allergens will vary wildly so I’m trying to be cautious with the tags. These are the ingredients in his blend, it might help you decide whether to try this out.

Maize Starch, Soya Flour, Rice Flour, Modified Maize Starch, Raising Agents: (Acid Calcium Phosphate, Sodium Bicarbonate), Egg Albumin (contains Acidity Regulator: Citric Acid, Foaming Agent: Triethyl Citrate), Salt, Calcium Carbonate, Anticaking Agent: (Tri-Calcium Phosphate), Stabiliser: (Methyl Hydroxypropyl Cellulose), Vitamins: (B1, B2, Niacin & C), Iron.

So, anyway this is a pretty basic recipe, it just takes a few specific ingredients, they’re naturally seasonal in that mincemeat isn’t easy to get year round, you could make it, but eh, the original recipe used brown sugar, but I had issues with burning, ironically these would’ve been very pale, the nature of this flour blend sadly, bar the sheer volume of sugars within the ingredients. Which is actually why I chose it. Compensating for the weakness of the flour is a given, I don’t eat these blends myself, but like any recipe I can vouch for the quality, these won’t be exactly the same as the wheat version, but if you’re used to this type of baking then you’re used to the compromise. As I said above mine just rose at he edges, I find this flour doesn’t get a great rise, but this is a very dense cake anyway so you don’t need much rise, as for the taste if you like sweet mince pies you love this. It’s pretty much just a lazy mince pie. A huge one. I filled the gap with warmed up mincemeat. So, Dear Reader, as promised the start of the blended flour free from recipes begins. I’ll be typing these up as I go, but I’ll try to stagger them to save confusion and overcrowding. Okay, I’ll be back again or I’m already gone, I forget these are all in odd order, I’ll be somewhere, Dear Reader, check the garden if all else, until later or sooner, stay safe and take care.

Ingredients

225g Gluten Free Self-Raising flour
225g Mincemeat
150g Margarine, Soft
150g Caster Sugar
2 Large Eggs
100g Currants
100g Sultanas
Whole Almonds, Cherries and Extra Mincemeat To Decorate

Method

1. Pre-heat oven to 180c (No Fan) and line a loaf tine, bottom and sides.
2. Add everything to a bowl and beat all the ingredients together with an electric mixer until smooth.
3. Spoon mixture into tin, smoothing down with a wet spoon as needed, and bake for about 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes, turning and covering halfway, until brown. Cool in tin for 10 minutes then transfer to a wire-rack to cool completely.

Mochi Pancakes

It’s a resistant batter, feels like rubber.

Funnily after I find this recipe I realise there isn’t anywhere near me stocking standard rice flour, I’m fine for a while, but being able to get glutinous rice flour, which too years, and not being able to get rice flour is, well, it’s peak free-from eating. I think, depending on what your restrictions are, that glutinous rice flour could be a bit of a bust, it’s a really special flour, geared more towards desserts, with a fragrant, slightly sweet taste, but you get on texture and no way to utilize the stickiness in any way other than dumplings and dumpling like textured foods. Still, for a change this is a really unique recipe, you get a texture similar to the boiled dumplings but also get a fluffy pancake that soaks up sauce without getting soggy. I often find many gluten free pancakes can be dry when you’re just using a single flour or two.

Gently press to make sure the centre is done.

Texturewise these are just the right kind of sticky and chewy, I know, if you’re adverse to gooey things like me, lot of bad breads early on, Dear Reader, the stomach remembers, but these have a chewy that’s more like a very soft toffee and a fragrant sweetness that spreads throughout your mouth. They’re also very spongy and absorbent without getting soggy as I’ve said, they’re not just an alternative to wheaten pancakes, hey’re their own creation. The original recipe is here, this hasn’t been changed, for a change, heh. I find with pancakes hat it depends on your pan and what you’re cooking over, my hob needs to be set high, if yours does try to be careful of burning the honey. Make sure the inside is cooked too, I usually flip an extra turn or two just to make sure the whole pancake is coked through. If you like glutinous rice flour treats you’l like these, if you’re unsure I’d say try them if you can get a small bag of the flour, also known as Sweet Rice Flour, if you can tolerate cornstarch you could also make Mochi and variou other Japanese and Asian sweets, the flour is use in so many ways in so many countries so you should find enough uses to use a bag up. Okay, that’s it from me, Dear Reader, until later, stay safe and take care.

Fluffy, chewy and really different.

Ingredients

120ml Low Fat Milk
80g Glutinous Rice Flour
80g Rice Flour
1 Large Egg, Separated
2 Tbsp Honey
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
2 Tsp Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp Baking Soda

Makes 6 Small Pancakes. Can be frozen.

Method

1. Add all the dry ingredients into a bowl or jug and stir together.

2. Mix everything else except the Egg White and add to the Dry Mixture, this will be lumpy, beat the Egg White until frothy and fold that in as well. The Batter will be thick and elastic, but pourable.

3. Heat a non-stick fry pan over a medium high heat and add a little Olive Oil, pour in 1/4 Cup of Batter, around 60ml, and let cook until bubbles appear on the surface, flip and cook for another minute or two. Transfer to a wire-rack and repeat until all the batter has been used up.

Microwave White Teff Flour Mug Cake

A little less rise, but still light.

Yo, Dear Reader, I bought a bag of white teff flour on a whim, I hadn’t found much use for the brown, but I just wanted something to focus on, honestly it’s a heavy flour without much to make it useful in baking or cooking. This recipe has so many versions because it has worked with almost every free from flour I’ve tried, bar amaranth, but that’s such a sticky, strange flour I’m unsurprised, so it’s really useful to know. I made this by reading the back of a commercial mug cake,  I’m stubborn and pretty decent at this. The cake is really a very simple sponge, depending on the flour it might be slightly crumbly, like with teff or rice, dense and fluffy with buckwheat and really light and springy with quinoa, it’s a microwave cake you take what you can get, but it is great for single servings eaten straight out of the mug, stopped with whatever you like from fruit, which can be added into the batter too, to icing sugar to nut butters. Or espresso, if you’re me. With the way things are I figured sharing this might give someone a little boost, I had to carry in the shopping myself again, half a mile, so I bought the strange melon, like honeydew but with a certain other flavour I couldn’t place, and the “Mexican Firecracker” echeveria. Look after your mental health, Dear Reader, this will take a toll on the best of us, which is why I’m purposefully ignoring it here, we all need a space to breathe, both of us that is. I’m just eating by rote, my stomach hasn’t stopped hurting since March, these days so I can’t say when I’ll have a new recipe, but there will be garden posts. I had my first salad of he year, Mizuna, Rocket, Welsh Onion, Chives and Lettuce all fresh from the garden, you can’t beat freshly harvested food. Until later, Dear Reader, stay safe and take care.

Mystery melon, called Ghost Melon, and another plant I have no room for.

Ingredients

45g White Teff Flour
30g Butter
50ml Milk
15g Sugar
1/2 Tsp GF Baking Powder
Dash Vanilla Extract

Method

1. Melt the Butter, in a mug, on a low heat and when cooled slightly mix in the Sugar, with a fork, until dissolved.

2. Add in the Milk and Vanilla Extract and stir until everything has combined. Finaly add in the White Teff Flour and Baking Powder and mix until smooth.

3. Microwave on full heat for 2 1/2 to 3 minutes. Cake should be dry and springy to the touch. Let cool for a few minutes before serving.

Doves Farm Flour Iced Jam Sponge Slice

I have been baking for a local fair and as I wanted to include a few gluten free options I decided to buy some pre-blended flour. I will say right now I can’t eat these, but I wanted to share what can be done with this specific flour blend, your millage may vary as blends vary greatly. I’m still not a fan of these flours or their texture, but I understand how useful they can be. These recipes are in no way sponsored or endorsed by Doves Farm, considering I may run them down they might pay me to stop, and they aren’t regular recipes so please understand that I can’t offer much outside of the recipe here, but I wanted to put them up as an example usage of the flour that may be of benefit to a few of my Dear Readers.

Freshly slobbered with jam. These are rough recipes, Dear Reader.

This is similar to the other recipe, there’s more sponge, but no add-ins, it takes a lot of baking, but thankfully does gain a nice colour. There isn’t a whole lot to add that I have said already in the Chocolate Sponge Slice recipe, this is a dense sponge, really hard to call it a sponge, but it isn’t much of a cake either, I know, Dear Reader, I’m being harsh, but, eh, it’s fine. I wouldn’t share it if it weren’t. You can make half again of the icing if you want a really heavy top, the thicker the icing the easier it is to mound up. I used a spiced plum jam I made myself, the same one seen in the Pastry recipe, I slathered it on while the sponge was hot, but you’d be better to wait for it to cool because he sponge will tear and is slightly crumbly and moist, I don’t get it either, but it is, Dear Reader, but as it cools it’ll firm up. Do be careful moving it as it can crack easily while it’s still warm.

Sink adjacent sponge. Tasty!

These sponges will be sliced up, hence the name, and given away with tea for almost free, I wanted to include a few gluten free options because I know how hard it can be, I know not being able to eat them does put me at a disadvantage in describing them, but I’ve been baking so long I can read a recipe and know how it’ll taste and what texture it;’ll have so you can be sure hat same knowledge can be applied here. I think of these as cake for those who don’t want to learn to bake, as to why, well, mine is not to question why, mine is just to supply easy recipes. These were made in minutes of each other, all off the cuff based on a fairy cake recipe, they’re fine cakes, Dear Reader, but they’re not mine, they’re gluten free but they aren’t for me. Like most food these days. Still, I think of the children that will be excluded because someone couldn’t be bothered to make something to include them. I will never be someone who neglects or excludes, Dear Reader. Okay, that’s it for this flour blend. I’ll be back to normal after this, Dear Reader, until then, take care.

Ingredients

For The Sponge

350g Doves Farm Gluten Free Plain White Flour
250g Caster Sugar
250g Margarine, Softened
4 Eggs
2 Tsps Baking Powder
Water As Needed

For The Icing

200g Icing Sugar
30g Egg Whites, About 1 Egg
Dash Lemon Juice

Method

Sponge

1. Pre-heat oven to 200c (Fan) and grease and line a Square Tin.

2. Add everything to a bowl and beat all the ingredients together with an electric mixer until smooth.

3. Scoop mixture into prepared tin, about 3/4 full, and bake for about 20-30 minutes until firm to the touch. Cool in tin for 10 minutes then transfer to a wirerack to cool completely.

Icing

1. In a clean bowl beat Egg Whites on a slow speed until soft peaks form.

2. Slowly add in the icing sugar 100g at a time and when the Icing starts to thicken increase the speed.

3. When the Sugar has been incorporated completely add in the lemon and beat until a stiff, slightly duller icing has formed.

4. Spread the Icing onto the cooled jam topped Sponge.

Doves Farm Flour Chocolate Sponge Slice

I have been baking for a local fair and as I wanted to include a few gluten free options I decided to buy some pre-blended flour. I will say right now I can’t eat these, but I wanted to share what can be done with this specific flour blend, your millage may vary as blends vary greatly. I’m still not a fan of these flours or their texture, but I understand how useful they can be. These recipes are in no way sponsored or endorsed by Doves Farm, considering I may run them down they might pay me to stop, and they aren’t regular recipes so please understand that I can’t offer much outside of the recipe here, but I wanted to put them up as an example usage of the flour that may be of benefit to a few of my Dear Readers.

This was so impromptu I nearly forgot what went into it.

I don’t know about you, Dear Reader, but this was the standard way cakes and sponges were made when I was growing up, it’s a pretty lazy way to make a cake, but extremely useful as a fast alternative to making it all step by step. It’s not the greatest sponge, but it’s hardly the greatest flour, it’s hard to say what the sponge is, it’s nostalgic, I grew up on these kinds of “cakes” you used what you had and the idea of getting a better recipe or better ingredients was never mentioned. It’s great as a quick cake for an event where they’re being given away or for children that will be so hyper from the icing they won’t care what they’re eating, I didn’t say I disliked them growing up, now, did I, Dear Reader?

I just winged the entire cake.

The chocolate I used is a very sweet salted caramel, now ubiquitous, Dear Reader, unsalted is unheard of, chocolate drink, but the cocoa powder is rather good quality, so there’s no need to add melted chocolate and since I was using up when making this it’d be silly to go too far. As I say you can add whatever you like, this is a leftover ingredient cake, even the icing was made for another sponge, I just added the Cocoa at the end. This one baked faster than the other as it was smaller and because of he extras it has a different texture, it’s a firm sponge, I can’t say anything about the taste, but it’ll be sweet. This is pretty much the standard of blended flour baking, I’ve always been apart from that sphere, Dear Reader, I had to be better to eat, never mind anything else. If you need a quickie cake, this is useful, there are better recipes here, but this will be the fastest. I’m not running the recipe down, I’m just laying it out here without any pretense. I’m not a fan of he flour, but hat doesn’t make it bad. The cake will become more dense as it cools and will be easier to cut, let it cool completely, overnight even, if you need to slice it, Dear Reader, it may crack otherwise. Okay, I’ll be back again soon, these are delayed posts so any discontinuity with he flow of the blog is due to that.

Ingredients

For The Sponge

260g Doves Farm Gluten Free Plain White Flour
180g Caster Sugar
180g Margarine, Softened
2 Eggs
50g Blanched Almonds, Smashed
50g Desiccated Coconut
2 Tbsps Sweetened Cocoa Powder or Drinking Chocolate Mix
1 and 1/2 Tsp Baking Powder

For The Icing

200g Icing Sugar
2 Tbsps Sweetened Cocoa Powder or Drinking Chocolate Mix
30g Egg Whites, About 1 Egg
Dash Lemon Juice
Milk Chocolate for Grating

Method

Sponge

1. Pre-heat oven to 200c (Fan) and grease and line a Square Tin.

2. Add everything to a bowl and beat all the ingredients together with an electric mixer until smooth.

3. Scoop mixture into prepared tin, about 3/4 full, and bake for about 20-30 minutes until firm to the touch. Cool in tin for 10 minutes then transfer to a wire-rack to cool completely.

Icing

1. In a clean bowl beat Egg Whites on a slow speed until soft peaks form.

2. Slowly add in the icing sugar 100g at a time and when the Icing starts to thicken increase the speed.

3. When the Sugar has been incorporated completely add in the lemon and beat until a stiff, slightly duller icing has formed. Finally add in the Sweetened Cocoa Powder and mix until completely combined.

4. Spread the Icing onto the cooled sponge and finally grate some Milk Chocolate a top.

Doves Farm Flour Blend Pastry

I have been baking for a local fair and as I wanted to include a few gluten free options I decided to buy some pre-blended flour. I will say right now I can’t eat these, but I wanted to share what can be done with this specific flour blend, your millage may vary as blends vary greatly. I’m still not a fan of these flours or their texture, but I understand how useful they can be. These recipes are in no way sponsored or endorsed by Doves Farm, considering I may run them down they might pay me to stop, and they aren’t regular recipes so please understand that I can’t offer much outside of the recipe here, but I wanted to put them up as an example usage of the flour that may be of benefit to a few of my Dear Readers.

Yes, Dear Reader, you know honest Jack can’t lie, or won’t rather, I can only tell you about how I feel you might have a completely different reaction to these, a few people tried them and loved them, they fine as far as a pastry hat takes all of fifteen minutes to make with only two, three if you count the water, ingredients to make. They’re convenience and I understand that people enjoy that, not that many understand some of us just don’t have the luxury or convenience when it comes to food.

This is just your garden variety, unsweetened pastry, but I’ll try to help you as best I can. The preparation is the same as usual, from flour and marg to breadcrumbs, to a dough, to an, honestly, weak dough. It rips really easily, Dear Reader, you can see how thick I made it and even then when inserting it into the cases it tore. I warned you I would be honest, despite all the starches this is still an extremely weak flour, you might find that ground chia made into an egg may make it more durable, but I won’t be returning o this, this was a way to use it rather than waste it. It bakes fine, holding its shape well enough, but it has a sickly pallor that I had to disguise as it looked almost raw. I make a buckwheat chia pastry that is far closer to gluten based flour pastry than this ever could hope to be. If you use the flour then fine, I’m not saying you should change that, but I just want to point out hat there are other options. I will have two more recipes using this flour that are better, they’re heavily iced and flavoured to help mask the heaviness  of the flour. I did say it’d be a different kind of post, Dear Reader and I can only be honest. I’ll be back soon, see you then.

I had to coat them in watery honey to get any colour, the bottom is the original colour after a long bake time.

Yes, that is way too much jam, thank you. The kids loved them.

Ingredients

400g Doves Farm Gluten Free Plain White Flour
200g Margarine, Very Cold, Cut Into Cubes
Cold Water as Needed

Method

1. Add the Flour into a bowl. Add the Butter and mash together with your hands until it forms a dry, breadcrumb like mixture.

3. Add a Tbsp of Cold Water and knead together. Keep adding Water and kneading until the Dough holds its shape when pinched together.

4. Form into a flat disc and place in fridge for 15 minutes.

5. Dust a work surface with flour and roll out pastry. If it cracks then it’s too thin, if pastry cracks when inserting into a greased pie dish then cover the cracks with leftover pastry.

6. Bake at 180c (Fan) for about fifteen minutes, until dry to the touch, pastry will still be pale. Brush with Egg or Honey if a browner finish is required.

Royal Icing

Yo, Dear Reader, for a brief time this is turning back into a recipe blog, heh, but seriously I have a few recipes, this one is pretty much the standard for the site, but the others are based on a commercial flower blend and will be slightly different, they’ll be more slapdash and I’ll preface the posts with the fair warning that I can’t eat what I’ve made, but I can stand by it. It may be useful for someone out there looking for a couple of quick and easy cakes, anyways, they’ll use this and you’ll see them later in the week, whatever day it is now, it’ll be later. I could look, but too busy!

More work than just water and icing, but much more attractive.

Do raw egg whites freak you out? Well, the sugar denatures the eggs making them safe and I’m sure the lemon plays a part too, it’s still a pretty simple icing despite the many steps, I had to use a brand of icing I can’t eat, but a tester called it delicious. I’m making for a fair and am using ingredients I can’t use myself. This is something I’ve meant to make for years and it really only take a few minutes to come together, you can adjust the consistency with a little water, this was thick, but easily spreadable. I didn’t add any vanilla extract as to keep it white. There really isn’t much to it, Dear Reader, it’s setting up nice and firm, still pliant as I put it on very heavy and thick, you can adjust the thickness to change the firmness of the icing, thinner will have more of a shell like consistency. I have a few posts to type up so I’ll leave it at that, simple recipes like this are great for combining with others. Until later, Dear Reader.

Ingredients

400g Icing Sugar
60g Egg Whites, About 2 Eggs
Dash Lemon Juice

Method

1. In a clean bowl beat Egg Whites on a slow speed until soft peaks form.

2. Slowly add in the icing sugar 100g at a time and when the Icing starts to thicken increase the speed.

3. When the Sugar has been incorporated completely add in the lemon and beat until a stiff, slightly duller icing has formed. Use immediately or put into an air tight container and leave in the refrigerator.

I made a wheat flour tea brack too.

More Coconut Macaroons too.

Mincemeat loaf cake too (Wheat).

Glutinous Rice Balls Rice Balls (Tang Yuan) With Rice Flour

Whatever else this is it’s the nicest dough I’ve ever kneaded.

The original is here, Dear Reader, I haven’t altered this at all, just halved it. Yes, Dear Reader, I read about this flour at the start of my journey, heard it made a roux, yes, I’ll get to that too, and here I am way too many years later, but i’m here. I have to say there’s no gluten in this despite the name, hey, blame all the other recipes thinking you’re an idiot and I’m one too, we know better, Dear Reader, Sweet Rice flour is something rarely seen here, but is extremely common all across the vast continent of Asia, I have very little knowledge to impart, but when searching for mochi, which I can’t make because I can’t tolerate the cornflour used for rolling and that I can wouldn’t work for dusting, but I did remember seeing this recipe before and curious quester that I am, Dear Reader, I had to try it when I came across this flour on Amazon. It sounds too good to be true and only myself and my nephew took to it with qualms and I tell you, Dear Reader, I have been missing out.

I was going to fill them, but I was interrupted, but I did end up with a tester.

Two ingredients, one is water and the other would lead you to believe it’d be a heavy, stodgy mess, but, no, Dear Reader, whatever properties this rice gets when being ground, this is a fast version, I think it’d use pounded cooked rice otherwise, it becomes something greater than it should be. The dough is so light and elastic, but it stretches too, it seems impossibly good as a sweet, different definitions of sweet wherever you go, Dear Reader, big world and all that, base because it has the perfect texture, when cook it becomes somewhere between a turkish delight and a marshmallow, but even hat can’t do it justice. My nephew and I ate them unsweetened and loved them, with a little honey they became even more amazing. They’re surprisingly light and airy, not to chewy, but wit just enough bite and a little natural sweetness, but they would be better in something or filled with something. They’re eaten warm, they don’t heat too much, but let them cool a little. They stick to you and stretch they’re an honest joy, Dear Reader, they’re happiness encapsulated in a squidgy little ball. I haven’t much of the flour, I don’t want to make all sweets either, but I’m going to see what I can do with this curiosity. Until later, Dear Reader, take care.

Next time I try them in a syrup.

Ingredients

70g Glutinous Rice Flour
60ml Water, More As Needed

Method

1. Add the Rice Flour to a bowl and add Water, mix with a fork until a mallable dough has formed. Add more water, a teaspoon at a time, if too dry and more flour, a pinch at a time, if too wet. Knead into a ball.

2. Bring a pot of water to a boil. While the Water is boiling pinch off a teaspoon of dough and roll it into a ball, place onto grease-proof paper and continue until all dough is used up. Keep covered until water is boiling.

3. Add Balls to pot and cook until the Balls rise to the top and float. Scoop out and let cool for a minute before eating.