TATIN TART FROM PUFF PASTRY

It might just be the simplest tart in the whole world, but the final effect is incredible, especially when you compare it to the amount of time and effort you need to put into the preparation of this dessert. I prepare this tart quite often these day exactly because I do not have a lot of time on my hands but do have a yearning for something sweet. Moreover, chocolate is now out of the picture because Mr Owl is on a diet. There is not need to prepare the pastry on one’s own as it is possible to buy ready-made puff pastry. It saves a lot of time. Due to the fact that puff pastry and apple desserts are something that I prepare regularly, I was able to try out various versions, but I have to admit that the Tatin Tart is my strong personal favourite. This dessert is especially recommended when we are having unexpected guests and want to prepare something quickly. All you really need is puff pastry and some apples.

 

[caption] small tatin tarts

*recipe*

puff pastry

6 apples

100 g of sugar

50 g of butter

cinnamon (optional)

***

Peel the apples and cut them into quarters, or even smaller slices, taking out the core of course. Melt some butter and sugar on a frying pan and add the apples. What I often do is stew it in a covered pan, especially if the sugar, after turning into caramel, forms larger pieces which are not eager to melt again. Stir from time to time so that the whole apples are covered in caramel. Optionally, add cinnamon, or – as I sometimes do – use vanilla sugar.  Grease the tin with butter and put the apples with caramel inside, covering them in puff pastry and rolling its sides towards the middle. Pierce the pastry with a fork.

 a large tatin tart

Bake in the oven, heated to 200° C, for about 20 minutes. Flip the tart after cooking (using a plate or chopping board).

Bon appétit!

PEARS BAKED WITH BLUE CHEESE AND NUTS

I tried these pears at a party over at Magda’s (my brother’s wife) and was simply enchanted with their fantastic taste. So, I make them from time to time, as an appetizer, because Mr Owl is also eager to bite in. Such pears can be served in a number of different ways: with butter, goat cheese and blue cheeses – whatever floats yout boat. You can also add walnuts, other nuts, or sprinkle some alomnds on top. It does not take more than a couple of minutes to prepare them and they are undeniably terrific!

 

***recipe***

depending on how much one can eat…

2 pears

a piece of blue cheese

one spoon of butter

a handful of walnuts

***

Grind the walnuts, add blue cheese and butter (though it is not a must) and pund it all together carefully.

Cut the pears in half, take out the seed pods and put the filling in their place.

Bake in the oven, heated to ca. 200° C, for about 15 minutes. It is a matter of individual preference whether you like the pears to be more or less baked. 15 minutes and 200° C do not soften them entirely, so if you prefer them more delicate, bake them a little longer.

Bon appétit!

ENGLISH BIRTHDAY CAKE WITH CHOCOLATE AND COFFEE CREAM AND CHERRIES

We will celebrate the second birthday of young Owl in January, 23! It's difficult to believe that the time passes so quickly :) ! This time instead of organizing one big party I will prepare 3 small ones. On Sunday, January 23 we will meet with our family so the birthday cake has to be more dignified ;) That's why I thought about decorating it with roses. The cake is made of sponge cake and this time I decided to soak it properly to make it less dry. I flooded my mother's best jam with vodka so the cake will not be eaten by the young Owl :) (at least the sponge part of it but I prepared a coffee punch, which also contained vodka). Unfortunatelly, a chocolate cream which I was dreaming about, is not good for the basis of the cake. As I was in a need of a basis :) and didn't want it to be a buttery one I added mascarpone cheese with heavy cream. Chocolate cream is coffee-flavoured, I added coffee punch to two sponge tops to make coffee a dominant flavor.

And, frankly speaking, the cake was wonderful! My mother in law ate 3 pieces of it, which was the best proof that it was good :) And my aunt, who is a Birthday Cake Expert and makes the best cakes ever said that it was delicious, luxurious and exquisite! Enough of boasting the cake, I don't want someone to make it and complain that it wasn't that good :), but honestly, the cake is tasty. It's quite sweet but alcohol and cherries spice the flavor. And don't forget that this cake almost swims in alcohol so after eating it everyone was a bit drunk and the atmosphere became nice and easy-going. Really, a cool birthday cake! :D

* Recipe *

Sponge Cake:

6 eggs

6 tablespoons flour

6 tablespoons potato flour

12 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

*

Chocolate Cream:

300 g heavy cream

200 g of milk chocolate (or bitter, if you like)

2 teaspoons espresso coffee or 2 teaspoons of instant coffee brewed in a small amount of water

*
Mascarpone Cream:

250 g mascarpone cheese

250 g 36% cream

2 tablespoons powdered sugar

*

Coffee Punch:

3 teaspoons instant coffee

1.5 tablespoons sugar

50 ml of alcohol, vodka, brandy, etc.

*

Cherry Punch:

cherry jam flooded with vodka, about 100 ml, or cherry brandy

***

Below are the recipes for sponge cake, mascarpone cream and coffee cream pasted from the previous cake :)

Follow the recipe for the sponge cake, that is: add 1 tablespoon wheat flour, 1 tablespoon potato flour, 2 tablespoons sugar and 1/4 teaspoon baking powder to every egg. I usually do sponge cakes with 6 eggs in a baking tin which diameter is 21 cm, then I need about 500 g of icing to cover the cake (it you cut the sides there will be some icing left).

Whip egg whites to stiff, add sugar and beat it. Add yolks, flour mixed with baking powder and stir it together. Bake the sponge cake in the baking tin of 21cm, for 35-45 mins in 180C, a little stick can help you check whether the sponge is already dry.

And there is famous sponge-dropping after baking it ... I seriously don't know what is all this dropping about but I do it all the time :) For those who are not familiar with sponge-dropping: we drop the sponge (in the baking tin :) on the table from around half meter. It is supposed to prevent sponge from lowering. I always do it and my sponges are fluffy :)

Wait for the sponge to cool down and take it out from the baking tin. Cut it to get 3 pieces.

*
Whip the heavy cream with mascarpone cheese and powdered sugar to make a cream and do the punch: brew instant coffee with sugar and add alcohol when it cools down.

Next comes the chocolate cream: dissolve chocolate in a water bath and cool it down to the room temperature. Whip the heavy cream, add coffee (not necessarily), liquid chocolate and stir it carefully.

No it's the time for cherry punch (if you'd like that :) so mix vodka with jam.

Here we go, we have everything, now we have to put it all together ;)

Soak the top with cherry punch, put cherries on it and cover it carefully with chocolate cream. Put the second sponge top onto it, soak it with coffee punch and put mascarpone cream on it. Put the last sponge top on it. It should be soaked with coffee cream and the soaked part should be below, the cake should not be that soaked on the surface. I cover the surface and the sides of the cake with mascarpone cream.

And it's time to decorate it with icing!

Roasted Turkey Breast with Apples

While roasting turkey breast I always catch myself in the process of wondering how did I do it last time... Therefore it's time to search the Internet and write down my immortal reflections about roasting a turkey... The recipe is easy to change so it can serve as a base to compose your own way of preparing turkey breast. Well, in fact it's really ok, easy and nothing can go wrong.

Recipe

turkey breast

2 large apples

olive oil

butter

spices: vegetable puree, salt, pepper, tarragon, thyme, marjoram, as you like it

I wash the turkey, rub it in seasonings, pour some olive oil on it, put it into a ovenproof dish and leave it for about 1,5 hour.

The oven should be preheated to 180-200C.

I spread the turkey with butter (not necessarily), pour it with sauce in which it has been marinated and put pieces of apples (cut in eights or in slices) on it. I also add half glass of white wine into it, but I'm not sure whether everyone likes it.

I put the turkey in the hot oven for about 45 minutes and I check it from time to time to sprinkle it with the sauce it is roasting in.

And it's ready!

I also recommend turkey in peaches, it is more delicate than the one in apples, it has to be marinated first and then roasted in the peach juice. After adding peaches the recipe is totally the same as the one written above so we should also use spices and olive oil.

I serve the turkey with roasted apples, new potatoes boiled in milk, with dill and garlic.

Enjoy your meal!