The Bells of St. Clement's
Last Thursday I left work and hopped on the tube to Brixton. I was meeting the girls to see Ben Howard live at the 02 Academy; needless to say he was amazing. But as one of my friends was driving back home, I jumped in with her to enjoy a lovely 3-day weekend with the fam. So Friday was bake day! I have been desperate to get back in my apron for weeks now, but due to work, graduation and general busyness I simply haven’t had the time. So on Friday that’s exactly what I did.
After looking over my blog, I realised that it’s very cake-heavy, but I want to branch out in my baking skills, so this was my chance. I practised meringue making and pastry baking! Initially I had just planned to make a Strawberry Pavlova, but as it was a fairly quick bake, I rummaged around in the kitchen and found just enough ingredients to make a Lemon and Orange Zest Tart.
It was a fabulous day filled with repeated Christmas songs and delicious food. To polish off the day’s festivities, my Mum made mulled wine!
The Pavlova was one of culinary marvel, Delia Smith’s recipes. It was a very simple recipe to follow and the turn-out’s rather impressive. The Tart was a recipe by the bald one from Masterchef (the one who likes pudding – the name I can’t remember, Greg something?) But I felt that the presentation needed a touch more excitement, so I added a sprinkling of lemon and orange zest on top.
The following day, I was to meet my family for lunch in Harrow. We as a family love a lemon, so ‘my Tart and I’ travelled together in the backseat en route to Northwest London to share the desert with my fellow citrus-fans. After the customary lasagne was devoured – a dish my Mum always makes for these visits - the Tart was brought out and shortly after all plates were clean. Success!
So it’s not long until the Christmas holidays commence. For me, this means two full weeks of baking everyday and getting pissed most nights! MERRY CHRISTMAS.
For the meringue:
3 large fresh egg whites
6 oz (175 g) caster sugar
For the topping:
10 fl oz (275 ml) whipping or double cream, whipped
12 oz (350 g) Fruits such as raspberries, strawberries and redcurrants (or just one of these)
Plus a little icing sugar
1. Place the egg whites in a large clean bowl and have the sugar measured and ready. Now whisk the egg whites until they form soft peaks and you can turn the bowl upside down without them sliding out (it's very important, though, not to over-whisk the egg whites because, if you do, they will start to collapse).
2. When they're ready, start to whisk in the sugar, approximately 1 oz (25 g) at a time, whisking after each addition until all the sugar is in. Now take a metal tablespoon and spoon the meringue mixture on to the prepared baking sheet, forming a circle about 8 inches (20 cm) in diameter.
3. Then spoon round blobs next to each other so that they join up to form a circle all around the edge. Now, using the tip of a skewer, make little swirls in the meringue all round the edge, lifting the skewer up sharply each time to leave tiny peaks. Now place the baking sheet in the oven, then immediately turn down the heat to gas mark 1, 275°F (140°C) and leave it to cook for 1 hour.
4. Turn the heat right off but leave the Pavlova inside the oven until it's completely cold.
5. To serve the Pavlova, lift it from the baking sheet, peel off the paper and place it on a serving dish. Then just before serving, spread the whipped cream on top, arrange the fruit on top of the cream and dust with a little sifted icing sugar. Serve cut into wedges.
250g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
70g icing sugar
125g unsalted butter, cubed
2 egg yolks
5 eggs
140g caster sugar
150ml double cream
Juice 2-3 lemon (about 100ml/3.5fl oz) and 2 tbsp lemon zest, plus extra to decorate
1 tsp orange zest to decorate
1. To make the pastry, mix the flour and icing sugar in a bowl. Rub the butter into the flour with your fingers until crumbly. Mix in the egg yolks. If the pastry is still too dry, add 1-2 tbsp water until it comes together. Roll into a ball and divide in half (freeze one half for another recipe). Flatten out the pastry with your hands, wrap the dough in cling film, then chill for at least 30 mins. While the pastry is chilling, make the filling. Beat all the ingredients, except for the zest, together. Sieve the mixture, then stir in the zest.
2. Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface to about the thickness of a £1 coin, then lift into a 23cm tart tin. Press down gently on the bottom and sides, then trim off any excess pastry. Stab a few holes in the bottom with a fork and put back in the fridge for 30 mins.
3. Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Line the tart with foil and fill with rice or dried beans. Bake for 10 mins, then remove the tart tin from the oven, discard the foil, and bake for another 20 mins until biscuity. When the pastry is ready, remove it from the oven, pour in the lemon mixture and bake again for 30-35 mins until just set. Leave to cool, then remove the tart from the tin and serve at room temperature or chilled.
Original Recipe Find:Delia Smith's Pavlova & Greg's Lemon Tart
