apple and marzipan crumble cake

This recipe is inspired by one of my Christmas presents, The Kitchen Diaries II by Nigel Slater. I’ve always had a soft spot for crumble topped cakes, I love the combination of textures. The inclusion of apples in a cake also reminds me of the kinds of cakes my gran used to make that would have large pieces of tart plums or apples nestling in the soft, sweet sponge.

Ingredients

250g apple, peeled, cored and cut in to small pieces

175g softened butter

175g caster sugar

2 eggs

255g plain flour

2 ¼ tsp baking powder

pinch ground cinnamon

few drops vanilla extract

Finely grated zest of one lemon (optional)

100g marzipan broken into small pieces

Crumble topping

110g Plain flour

75g butter

2 tbsp demerara sugar

1.  Preheat oven to 160C. Grease and line the base of a 22cm round cake tin.

2. Beat the butter and sugar for 3-5 minutes until light and fluffy.

3. Break the eggs into a separate bowl, beat them gently then add to the butter and egg mixture.

4. Fold in the flour, cinnamon, vanilla extract and half of the apples and marzipan pieces then transfer the mixture to the prepared tin. Spread it out evenly with the back of a spoon or spatula.

5. Scatter the remaining marzipan and apple pieces on top of the cake mixture.

6. Quickly blitz together the crumble ingredients in the food processor or bring together by hand in a large bowl. You want the consistency of coarse breadcrumbs. Add a couple of drops of water to the mixture so that the crumbs look more like gravel then scatter over the cake with a little extra cinnamon and demerara sugar if you like.

7. Bake for about an hour in the oven or until a skewer comes out clean.

8. Remove the cake from the oven and leave it to cool before cutting into slices and enjoying with your cuppa.

potato, bacon and red onion crispy pizza

I love this pizza. It's a little bit unusual but then most of the best things in life are. I like that is doesn't have the classic tomato base but it still has lots of great flavour. You could by all means make a deep pan version of this pizza but I feel the crispiness of a thin base is what's needed here.
These quantities give you enough for two 25cm thin based pizzas. I started with raw potatoes for this one but you could just as easily use up some left over roast potatoes with this pizza. I used my trusty cast iron skillet as the cooking pan for the pizza. It is the perfect size for a single serve pizza.


Ingredients
1/4 basic pizza dough (approx 300-400g)
1 small potato peeled and very finely sliced (a couple of millimeters is best)
50g finely diced smoked prosciutto or bacon
1 small red onion finely sliced
couple of tsps pesto (optional)
1 sprig of fresh rosemary, chopped
1 ball of mozzarella
Salt and pepper to taste.

1. Place your sliced potatoes in a bowl and pour over some freshly boiled water from the kettle. The aim is to scald them slightly so that they are not completely raw before going on the pizza. Leave for around 10-15 minutes then carefully drain off the water and remove the excess water from the potatoes with absorbent kitchen paper. Set to one side until ready.
2. Place a small frying pan over a gentle heat and crisp up your bacon/prosciutto pieces. Don't go too far as they will continue to cook in the oven later.
3. Preheat your oven so that it is pretty much as hot as it will go. I generally go for 220C. Put your baking sheet/stone/skillet in the oven and leave to heat up.
4. Once the oven has reached full heat, roll out your dough to the size of your cooking pan. 
5. Place the dough in your pan taking care not to touch it as the pan will be super hot.
6. Put half the potatoes on each base in a thin layer. You want a single layer of potato across the whole base. Scatter over the bacon, rosemary and onion slices then dollop on a little pesto if you're using it. Finally add the mozzarella and a little salt and pepper. 
7. Bake in the oven for around 13 minutes or until the pizza is a nice golden brown.

deep pan margherita pizza

This is my version of a very simple and straight forward pizza. Perfect for 'meat-free Mondays' or for when you've got some left over bread dough to use up. By all means feel free to add what ever toppings you want. I find the best pizzas are often the most simple but go with what your heart desires. I have even made an awesome pizza using some left over dr pepper shredded pork as the base. It truly rocked. You can use a baking sheet, pizza stone or cast iron skillet. The secret to having an evenly cooked pizza with a crispy bottom is to make sure the oven and sheet/stone/skillet is preheated completely. I use a cast iron skillet that's approximately 25cm diameter as I don't yet have a pizza stone.


These quantities make one approximately 25cm diameter pizza.

Ingredients
1/4 quantity of basic pizza dough (approx 300-400g)
400g tinned chopped tomatoes drained of excess liquid
2-3 tbsps pesto (homemade is best)
1 ball of mozzarella
salt and pepper to taste

1. Preheat your oven so that it is pretty much as hot as it will go. I generally go for 220C. Put your baking sheet/stone/skillet in the oven and leave to heat up.
2. Once the oven has reached full heat, roll out your dough to the size of your cooking pan. 
3. Place the dough in your pan taking care not to touch it as the pan will be super hot.
4. Spread the pesto over the base followed by the chopped tomatoes then tear the mozzarella with your hands and scatter over the top. Season with salt and pepper to taste then bake in the oven for around 13 minutes or until golden brown on top.

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basic pizza dough

Use this dough to make pizza, lahmacun, pide or any other pizza type dish.

Ingredients

1 kg strong white bread flour
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
14g fast action dried yeast
4 tbsp olive oil
approx 600-700ml warm water

1. Put all the dry ingredients into a large bowl, make a well in the centre and pour in the oil, Using a butter knife or your hands start to bring the ingredients together. Gradually add the water, little by little, until you have a rough dough. You may not use all the water or you may need to add a little more. Knead the dough in between each addition.
2. Once you have a rough dough turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for around 10 minutes or until you have a smooth springy dough. 
3. Place dough in a bowl, cover with lightly oiled cling film then leave in a warm place to rise for about and hour or so.
4. In the mean time combine all the topping ingredients in a large bowl until evenly mixed. Cover and set to one side until needed.
5. Once the dough has risen uncover it, knock it back and divide into your required number of portions. I split mine into four balls. One ball will make one 25cm deep pan pizza or two 25cm thin crust pizzas.

turkish pizza

This is a wonderful pizza style dish inspired by the Turkish pide and lahmacun. I am led to believe from my Turkish friends that you place your salad on top of the pide/lahmacun then roll it up. A variation on this recipe would be to break an egg on to the top of the lamb mince a few minutes before it has finished cooking. Also, if lamb isn't your thing you would no doubt get some excellent results using minced beef, perhaps even minced turkey. You could use any basic bread or pizza dough for the base, mine is below.

The dough
1 kg strong white bread flour
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
14g fast action dried yeast
4 tbsp olive oil
approx 600-700ml warm water

Topping
500g minced lamb
1/2 red pepper, finely diced
1/2 large onion, finely diced
1/2 green pepper, finely diced
4 small tomatoes, skinned and finely diced
bunch each of fresh parsley and dill (about 3 tbsps of each when chopped)
1 tsp chilli flakes
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp all spice
1 tsp ground cinnamon
pine nuts (optional)

Salad
Roughly equal quantities of the following, all finely diced/sliced according to your preference:
1/4 cucumber
10 radishes
5 tomatoes
2 spring onions
large bunch of flat leaf parsley
Juice of half a lemon
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper

1. Put all the dry dough ingredients into a large bowl, make a well in the centre and pour in the oil, Using a butter knife or your hands start to bring the ingredients together. Gradually add the water, little by little, until you have a rough dough. You may not use all the water or you may need to add a little more. Knead the dough in between each addition.
2. Once you have a rough dough turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for around 10 minutes or until you have a smooth springy dough. 
3. Place dough in a bowl, cover with lightly oiled cling film then leave in a warm place to rise for about and hour or so.
4. In the mean time combine all the topping ingredients in a large bowl until evenly mixed. Cover and set to one side until needed.
5. Once the dough has risen uncover it, knock it back and divide into your required number of portions. I split mine into four balls. Each ball will serve 2-3 people generously. Roll the dough out as thin as you can, 2mm is ideal, place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, brush with a little olive oil then leave to rise for another 15 mins. In the mean time preheat the oven to 210C.
6. Cover the dough base with an even scattering of the mince topping, sprinkle over a few pine nuts if you wish then bake in the oven for 15 minutes or until golden and cooked completely.
7. Prepare your salad while the pizza is in the oven. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl then set to one side.
8. Serve topped with salad, roll it up and eat with your hands. Delicious.