No one ever eats quite as much cheese and fruit over Christmas as they imagined when they did last week’s big food shop. So what to do with all these leftover wedges of stilton, cheddar and parmesan, not to mention the bowls of dates and apples? My solution is to incorporate them into a bit of baking: after the recent flurry of kitchen activity, there’s something hugely calm and welcoming – meditative, even – about the simple act of baking. Fill your home with lovely smells – and have a very happy new year.
Spiced apple cake
Serve this just as it is, slightly warm or at room temperature, or as a pudding with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream. Once made, it’s best eaten the same or the next day. Serves 10.
130g unsalted butter, room temperature and cut into cubes
150g caster sugar
3 eggs, lightly whisked
2 tsp vanilla extract
300g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
⅓ tsp salt
200g soured cream
For the apple topping
2 large bramley apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1.5cm-wide wedges
1 granny smith apple, peeled, cored and cut into 1.5cm-wide wedges
130g demerara sugar
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground clove
Heat the oven to 160C/320F/gas mark 2½. Brush a 23cm round cake tin with a little oil, then line with greaseproof paper (the oil will help the paper stick).
Put the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer with the paddle attachment in place. Beat on a medium speed until light and fluffy, then add the eggs and vanilla a little at a time, beating them in until well incorporated. Sift the flour, baking powder, bicarb and salt into a bowl, then add to the cake mix in a couple of batches, alternating with the soured cream. You don’t want to overwork the mixture, so turn off the motor as soon as everything is amalgamated. Spoon the batter into the prepared cake tin and set aside.
Put all the apple wedges in a bowl, add the sugar and spices, and toss to coat. Spoon the apples on top of the cake batter, then bake for an hour, until the mixture has risen up around the apple and the top is crisp, firm and golden-brown. The skewer test won’t work with this cake: the apples are wet, so it won’t come out clean. Instead, test that the cake is ready by giving the tin a little shake: if the top doesn’t wobble, it’s cooked.
Leave the cake to cool for about 30 minutes, then remove it from the tin. Serve either slightly warm or at room temperature. When cutting the cake, use a serrated knife, otherwise the apples might tear.
Stilton and date biscuits
These are as lovely before a meal, served warm with a glass of red wine, as they are after a meal, to snack on with cheese. You can make them well in advance (they keep for four days in an airtight container) and gently heat them through for a few minutes in the oven. Big thanks to Alison Chrystal for sharing her recipe. Makes about 30 biscuits with a 6cm-wide cookie cutter.
About 12 medjool dates (200g), stones removed, flesh quartered
200g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
100g unsalted butter, fridge-cold, cut into 2cm dice
130g mature blue stilton, broken into 1cm pieces
⅓ tsp cayenne pepper
⅓ tsp salt
1 egg, lightly whisked
To assemble
100g mature blue stilton, crumbled into small pieces
1 egg, lightly whisked
2 tsp poppy seeds
Put the dates in a small saucepan, cover with 250ml cold water and turn the heat to high. Once boiling, turn down the heat to medium-low and leave to simmer gently for 20 minutes, until there’s only about a tablespoon of liquid left in the pan. Spoon into the small bowl of a food processor and blitz for a minute, until the mix is the consistency of smooth jam, then set aside to cool.
Put the flour, butter, stilton, cayenne and salt into the large bowl of a food processor. Pulse for 30 seconds, until it’s the consistency of fine breadcrumbs, then add the egg and carry on pulsing until the pastry comes together into a ball. Turn out on to a clean work surface and bring the dough together with your hands, forming it into a 3cm-thick disc. Wrap in cling-film and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes, to rest.
Heat the oven to 170C/335F/gas mark 3. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the pastry into a 50cm-diameter circle about 2mm thick. Using a 6cm fluted pastry cutter, cut out circles from the dough. Gather up the pastry scraps, roll again into a round, then cut out more circles, and repeat; you should end up with about 60 pastry circles.
Spoon just under a teaspoon of the date paste in the centre of half the pastry circles, then spread out with the back of a spoon, taking it right to the edge of the biscuits. Sprinkle crumbled stilton over the paste, then top with the unused pastry circles and press down gently. Line two oven trays with greaseproof paper, then divide the 30 biscuits between them.
Brush the top of each biscuit lightly with egg wash and sprinkle with a pinch of poppy seeds. Bake for 12 minutes, until golden-brown on top and slightly puffed up, then leave the biscuits to cool for five minutes before serving warm or at room temperature.
Cheddar, mustard and caraway straws
Don’t be daunted by the number of straws this makes: they are very moreish. Unbaked, the straws freeze very well, and will be ready to be baked fresh when you next fancy a snack to have with drinks. (If you do this, freeze them on the tray first, then transfer to a zip-lock bag.) And if you don’t want to freeze them, but still want to get ahead, you can make the dough and keep it in the fridge for up to two days. Makes about 75 straws.
250g plain flour
50g parmesan, finely grated
35g mature cheddar, finely grated, plus 75g extra for sprinkling
2 tsp caraway seeds
1 tsp English mustard powder
¾ tsp salt
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
160g unsalted butter, fridge-cold and cut into 2cm cubes
60g soured cream
1 tsp olive oil
1 egg yolk, plus 1 whole egg, beaten, for glazing
¼ tsp smoked paprika, for sprinkling
¼ tsp cayenne, for sprinkling
Put the flour, parmesan, cheddar, caraway, mustard, salt and pepper in an electric mixer with the paddle attachment in place. Mix on a low speed for one minute, then add the butter and work until there are no lumps left and the mixture is the consistency of breadcrumbs. (Take care not to over-mix, or the dough will become very sticky.)
Meanwhile, whisk together the soured cream, oil and egg yolk in a small bowl, then pour into the flour mix, and mix again on a low speed until the dough just comes together. Turn up the speed to medium, beat the dough for another 30 seconds, then tip out on to a work surface. Press together into a disc, wrap in cling-film and flatten with the palm of your hand, then put in the fridge for half an hour, to firm up.
Line an oven tray that fits in your fridge with baking paper. Divide the dough into three pieces weighing 190g each. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out each portion into a rough 10cm x 25cm rectangle about 4mm thick, patting and shaping the dough as you go. Carefully transfer the pastry rectangles to the prepared tray, lightly brush with the beaten egg, then sprinkle the remaining cheddar liberally on top, followed by the smoked paprika and cayenne. Refrigerate again for at least half an hour. (At this stage, you can keep the pastry in the fridge for up to two days, though if you do so, you’ll need to wrap it in cling-film first.)
Heat the oven to 170C/335F/gas mark 3. Use a sharp knife to cut each rectangle widthways into 25 10cm-long and 1cm-wide strips.
Line two oven trays with greaseproof paper and arrange the straws on top spaced 1cm apart. Bake for 12 minutes, then lower the temperature to 150C/300F/gas mark 2, and cook for six minutes more. Serve warm straight from the oven, or leave to cool completely and store in an airtight container, where they will keep at room temperature for up to five days.
