Plum and Hazelnut Puff Pastry Tart:

First post of 2014 and it's one of my favourite family recipes. This dish is one we'd have every summer when our plum tree would be so laden down with plums and it'd become a race between us and the blackbirds as to who could eat them the fastest.

So this year as I'm visiting my parents over the summer, I made sure to get in before the birds and collect a giant basket of these gorgeous Black Doris plums and finally put pen to paper and document my mum's recipe.

We usually call it by a Swiss name so I was unsure what to title it in English. It has a puff pastry base and a thin layer of ground hazelnuts on which the plums sit enveloped in a custard. So is that a flan or a tart or or pastry or pie? No idea, alls I know is that it's delicious. And thankfully that's all that really matters.

PLUM AND HAZELNUT PUFF PASTRY TART

Ingredients:

400g flaky puff pastry
100g hazelnuts, finely ground
approx 23 'black doris' plums
4 eggs
2 tablespoons sugar
300ml cream

Method:

Preheat oven to 210 Celsius.

Roll out the pastry to fit a roasting tray approx 34cm x 24cm. Needs to come up the sides a couple of centimetres.

Using a fork, prick the base of the pastry several times. This is to stop it puffing up randomly during baking.

Sprinkle the ground hazelnuts evenly on top.

Chop the plums in half, remove the stones, then make another slice 3/4 the way through each half, like so:

Then place the plums in the tray, overlapping them ever so slightly, as in the picture above.

Next, whisk together the eggs, sugar and cream. Mix for a minute or two until the eggs are completely beaten in. Pour the mixture evenly onto the plum tart.

Place in oven preheated to 210 Celsius and bake for approx 30 minutes until the pastry browns and the custard is set. Just jiggle the tray or poke the custard to test if it has set.

Can be served warm or hot. we love to eat it with a sprinkle on cinnamon sugar and a dollop of whipped cream.

Will serve at least 8, depending on choice of serving size. So can serve up to 16.

Bircher Muesli

Muesli is a Swiss creation, and Bircher Muesli is a variant invented in the 1900s. Growing up with Swiss parents it's not surprising then that I grew up eating the stuff. Religiously. It wasn't strictly a breakfast item for us, it was a delicious snack at any time of the day, even as a dessert. We'd even often eat it with lashings of whipped cream. Probably not such a healthy addition, but bloody delicious nonetheless. These days I skip the cream, but I have fond memories.

Over the past few years I've seen Bircher Muesli pop on cafe menus, I'm not surprised though as it's a nutritious and satisfying dish. However, it's ridiculously easy (and cost effective) to make at home.

Now that summer is basically here, and seasonal summer fruits are plentiful, I've started making my usual weekly batches of it. You think I'd be sick of eating the stuff all through my childhood, but no, it's a summer staple. You can use different fruits, and different yogurts, and different additions such as nuts or dried fruits etc. So no batch ever has to taste quite the same. But every time you'll still have a wonderfully soft and creamy Bircher Muesli.

So today I'll share the way I make it, which is pretty much how my mum would traditionally make it, only difference being I like to add nuts and no cream. There are no hard and fast rules about measurements, but I've given a basic guide. And ingredients can easily be customised to your tastes. Just never skip the grated apple, that is sacrosanct!

BIRCHER MUESLI

Ingredients:

1 and 1/2 cups rolled oats
No more than 1 and 1/2 cups milk
juice of one lemon
splash of fruit juice (amount depends on how thin you want your muesli)
yogurt of your choice, approx 3/4 cup, mum would always use 'fruit of the forest'
one apple, grated
any other fruits of your choice, chopped
optional - chopped nuts, eg almonds or hazelnuts

Method:

To prepare the muesli you need to soak some oats in milk overnight. I like to make a decent quantity, a few days worth, so I use an old 2 litre ice cream tub as my container. I use approx 1 and 1/2 cups of rolled oats and just over one cup of milk. I never measure it though but I did on this occasion to give an example. You don't need to measure because basically you just want to slowly pour milk over your required amount of oats until you see the milk just rising above the top layer of oats, then stop. This will give you the right amount of liquid no matter your quantity. The oats will soak up that milk. No need to stir or anything, just leave the container in the fridge overnight.

Tip: you can replace the milk with fruit juice if you wish.

Next day, add the juice of a lemon and pour in a wee bit of fruit juice to loosen up the oats. Stir well. Next, stir in the yogurt. Now add the fruits:


 

You really can just add any of your favourite fruits. Personally I would never skip the grated apple though, it just would not be the same without it, to me it's a traditional must-have.

Finally you can add any other embellishments you like, such as chopped nuts or even a dash of cinnamon.

I find my batches keep well in the fridge for up to 5 days at most, but obviously will depend on the freshness of your ingredients. Also, some added fruits like bananas or apples will not be looking their best after a day or two. If this kind of thing bothers you then you may want to only add the fresh fruit to the batch on the day/s you plan to eat it.

Smoky Chilli Beef with Bacon and Beans

I go through phases where I get addicted to using certain ingredients. A few weeks ago my addiction was citrus, in fact I'm still obsessed; a few days ago I made my first ever marmalade. It was delicious (fun and easy too) but I'll share it in a future post when I have a few more experiments under my belt.

But as for this week I thought I would share a recipe featuring my new latest obsessions: smoked paprika and Sriracha chilli sauce. These ingredients seem to find their way on to my lunch and dinner plates every day at the moment. From quiches to pizza, I can't help but sneak these ingredients in.

One place they were most suited to, not surprisingly, was in my chilli beef and beans recipe. It's a simple dish, yet still wonderfully hearty, and and has an awesome smoky flavour thanks to the paprika and bacon. It also has an adaptable hit of heat from the chilli powder and chilli sauce. Fantastic comfort food. It's great served with rice, tortillas, crusty bread, or my lazy day favourite: corn chips.

Anyone else have flavours or ingredients that they seem to be addicted to at the moment?

SMOKY CHILLI BEEF WITH BACON AND BEANS

Ingredients:

250g bacon, chopped (I prefer to use smoked manuka bacon)
2 onions, chopped
1 tablespoon cumin seeds, crushed (or use a couple of teaspoons of ground cumin)
3 cloves of garlic, crushed or chopped
1 teaspoon chilli powder (this gives mild heat, add more if you prefer)
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon salt
ground pepper
400g minced/ground beef
330ml beer
400g tin of kidney beans
400g tinned tomatoes (with juice), chopped
140g tomato paste (optional, but creates a much richer tomato flavour)
A few generous squirts of Sriracha sauce, or other chilli sauce of your choice

Method:

In a large pan, fry bacon until cooked. Then add the onions, and fry until soft. Add cumin, garlic, chilli powder, oregano, paprika, salt and pepper to the pan. Stir, then add the beef. Fry until the beef has cooked. Now stir in the beer, beans, tomatoes, and tomato paste. Simmer on a low heat for 1 - 2 hours, depending on how reduced you want it. Longer cook = thicker and richer flavour. Finally, squirt in some chilli sauce and give it a mix. Give the mixture a taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.