Cherry torte with a crumble topping

So I have 2 lovely cherry trees in my garden, one is for eating!! nomm nomm and one for cooking (if you accidentally eat a cooking one you realise why, just a bit bitter!)

This year is a bumper crop, in one picking I gathered (see am a hunter gatherer type) a colander full of cooking cherries.

 What to cook, don't fancy a cherry pie nor a cake! hmmm lets try a torte

Cherry torte with a crumble topping

Ingredients:

• 140g self-raising flour
• ½ tsp mixed spice
• 50g caster sugar
• 1 egg
• 4 tbsp milk
• 85g butter, melted
• 350g juicy, ripe cherries

Topping:

• 25g plain flour
• ¼ tsp mixed spice
• 25g golden caster sugar
• 25g butter, at room temperature, diced

Method:

Preheat oven (I have an electric fan) 160 (conventional 180C/gas 4), grease and line your tin, go with what ever tin you have, cook longer if deeper, less if wider.

 I had to hull my cherries.

Bung (yup a very technical term) self raising flour, caster sugar, egg, mixed spice, (cooled) melted butter into the mixer and whisk, adding the milk spoon by spoon, if mixture is non-batter like add extra milk.

 Spread batter into the lined cake tin.

 Then layer cherries on top.

 In a food mixer, blitz the topping ingredients into a breadcrumb like mixture (or do it by hand if you don't have a blender)

 Then spread the "crumb" on top of the batter/cherry base.

Cook in the oven (middle is best) for 25-35 mins (depending on thickness of cake/oven type) until that darn skewer come clean.

Serve warm with ice cream or cooled with cream xxx

Puff, puff, puff and more puff (pastry and all things sausage)

Sausage rolls

Now why?, when they can be bought in the shop (pretty much all shops at that)

a) these taste better

b) not difficult to do

c) really!

Soooo ingredients (be prepared to write this mammoth list down!)

• Packet of puff pastry (pre rolled, lighter fat one available if desired)
• 6 sausages (I go for premium, minimum of 75% meat content, check those ingredients peeps)
• 1 egg beaten (thrashed, whisked what ever one prefers)

Method:

Strip the skin off the sausages

  

Roll pastry out of the packet and split horizontally in half, lay 3 on each half in a line up to the front, leaving enough to roll. Egg the back and roll back wards.

Cut into desired size.

Spray a tray with cooking spray (saves the faff of greaseproof/baking paper) and align rolls and egg wash.

Now I have a fan assisted electric oven and find 170 plenty hot enough and place the tray in the bottom 3rd so pastry cooks but does not burn, for 30 mins.

Now you can get as creative as you like, I have added stuffing, grated apple, cranberry sauce, cooked chopped bacon, fried onion and so on with the sausage meat. You can roll them smaller and use chipolata sausages for a finer roll. You can use flavoured sausages, made some cracking ones using pork and chili sausages.

Enjoy xxxx

(oh and a quick by line costings, 12 pack sausages £2.55, pack of puff pastry £1, 1 egg 35p = makes 12 rolls approx 0.22p per roll!!) 

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Liebster Award I was nominated!

agh agh agh free fall panic the lovely Martha Mother  has nominated me for this, agh agh agh!

I am simples - I have a simples blog (and a very very very new one at that), erm just recipes (unless you find my work blog, but that is no way a massive literary addition to the blogerty world!)

sooooooooo

Being lazy I will quote Martha Mother " had nominated me to take part in this fun set of questions, so people can get to know us bloggers a little bit better and just spread the love a bit"

and just to plagiarise some more!

Here are the rules for all those taking part:

1. Acknowledge and thank the person that nominated you.
2. Use an award image to add to the post.
3. Answer 11 questions given to you
4. Nominate up to 11 blogs
5. Don't forget to let them know!
6. Give them 11 questions to answer.

1. Why did you start blogging?

I have always had a work blog, this is a fun/playful way of keeping my mindees families updated, giving access to family members in far flung corners. My food blog is totally different. I am an avid cook (not chef) and fairly accomplished (i.e. I can read and work an oven!), a few friends (don't have that many tbh) often ask me what I am doing for tea etc. One day a couple of them (well maybe my 2 only friends) suggested I blog what I do, so hence the incarnation of this very brand new blog.

2. Which one of your posts is your favourite and why?

Erm not one, but all so far, as they are food related, unless I pop a wine related post up, until then!

3. Sweet or Savoury?

Savoury!

4. Tea or coffee?

Duh Tea! 

5. If you could meet one person past or present who would it be?

I am a deep, thoughtful and intellectual person, I procrastinated over this for hours (hahahaha maybe not), I have no idea, never ever given it any thought tbh. So erm no one really.

7. Are you a working parent or a stay at home mum?

I am both, I am a childminder, I work with children at home (awesome!), my PITA's are now 21, 18, 13. However I am living my Lego dreams vicariously though others offspring now! love it x

8. If there was one piece of advice you could give your 18 year old self, what would it be?

Not a lot (as really don't know that much). However the advice I would give anyone is life is too short at that age, we live longer and longer, will be working till much later, go and have some fun.

9. Do you have any regrets?

Nope

10. 'When I grow up I want to be...' What did you want to be?

An Olympic swimmer! or an Olympic equestrienne 

11. Do you have a secret talent? 

Erm no I have no talents :) 

Gee now time to nominate (ARRRRRRRRGH)
 
Talya at motherhoodtherealdeal
Becky at cuddlefairy
Lucy at occupationmother
Trista at domesticatedmomster
Tim at slouchingtowardsthatcham
Deardads at deardadsblog
Steph at  diaryofamidlifemummy
Martyn at insidemartynsthoughts

MWAHAHAHA HAAR (evil laff!)