A pear cake for Autumn

 Pears, a most perplexing and petulant fruit; one day they are hard enough to knock someone out at 100 paces, the next they are the fruit equivalent of a tumbling toddler - soft, squidgy, bruised and in need of immediate attention.

And so it was that the 2 pears that had been ripening gradually in our fruit bowl, suddenly accelerated towards fruit fly Heaven and were caught at the very last moment.

Too soft for poaching in red wine or lemon and cinnamon scented sryrup, too little space in the freezer for a granita, so they headed into a cake.  And, quite frankly, I think this is the best cake of 2020, so far.

120g butter

120g soft brown sugar

90g marmalade - I uised home made, but if you don't have homemade, try to use one that is not overly sweet.

2 eggs

120g self raising flour

4 tsp of ground ginger (more or less to taste)

2 large ripe pears, cored and chopped (no need to peel, although you can if you wish.  Mine were beyond the point at which peeling was an option)

Heat the oven to 170ºC and grease a 1lb loaf tin

Beat together the butter, sugar and marmalade until very light, then add the eggs and beat again, as hard as you like.

Fold in the flour and ginger and finally, the chopped pears.

Spoon the mix into the loaf tin and bake for around 40 minutes, until a skewer poked into the centre of the cake comes out clean.

If the top of the cake is browning too quickly, cover with a piece of foil, baking parchment or a discarded butter wrapper.

Leave aside until the tin is cool enough to handle without an oven glove and then turn the cake out onto a cooling rack.

When cool, dust with icing sugar and tuck in.

Whilst nice on its own, I reckon this would also make a good dessert with ice cream, whipped cream or yogurt.

Netherton Foundry Shropshire 2020 ©

www.netherton-foundry.co.uk

New shape, new recipe - loaf tin cake

You may have noticed that we have changed the shape of our 1lb (½kg) and 2lb (1kg) loaf tins.
This is response to a number of requests from people who love the characteristics and performance of the tins, but who wanted the shape to be more like a sandwich loaf.
So we obliged.  In every respect, other than the squarer shape, these are just the same as the old ones.  So, the same made to last appeal, natural non stick properties, heavy black iron material for great cooking characteristics and wonderful crusts; just as useful, equally beautiful.

And to prove the point, here is a recipe cooked in the new 1lb loaf tin

120g butter
50g sugar
50g lime marmalade*
2 eggs
50g dried cranberries
120g self raising flour.

80g icing sugar
Juice of half a lemon

* I used home made lime marmalade, which is what you would describe as "soft set".  If you use a well known brand such as Roses, which has a much firmer set, then I would advise adding the juice of a lime or a couple of tablespoons of milk to the mix to loosen it a little.

Pre-heat the oven to 170ºC and lightly grease your loaf tin.  This would also work in our cake tin, but you may need to reduce the cooking time. 

Cream the butter, sugar and marmalade together until well blended and light in colour.  Beat in the eggs.

Fold in the flour and the cranberries and spoon the mixture into the greased loaf tin.

Bake for 30 minutes and check that it passes the skewer test.  If the top is browning too quickly, cover lightly with foil or a used butter wrapper.

Leave in the tin for around 10 minutes and then turn out on to a cooling rack.

Put the icing sugar into a bowl and gradually add the lemon juice until you have a thick icing.  Drizzle artistically over the top of the cake. 

Pop the kettle on and make a cup of tea, to be enjoyed with a thick slice of cake.

Netherton Foundry Shropshire 2020 ©

www.netherton-foundry.co.uk

The smell of baking

You cannot beat the smell of baking.  There is something so comforting about the aroma of bread and cakes wafting from a warm oven.  And the fug of condensation on the windows on a cold November baking day instantly transports me back to my childhood.  I remember baking with the children when they were small, and then not so small - they have inherited my love of the mixing bowl and wooden spoon.

There is always a cake in our house, rarely elaborate, but a welcome addition to a cup of tea and always, but always a key part of packed lunches.

The thinking behind this one was triggered by the unexpected treat of Jaffa cakes in the workshops, brought in by Carl, and Neil's sudden whim for toast and marmalade late one evening.
Apparently marmalade sales are on the decline, but there seems to be an ever growing band of marmalade makers, so it would appear that news of its demise is greatly exaggerated.  We are very partial to home made marmalade here, tangy and not over sweet, and definitely containing peel!

Not only have slices of this been wrapped in beeswax wrap for packed lunches, it has also been dressed up with poached quince and Greek yogurt as a dessert.

120g butter
120g orange marmalade, something robust and dark is best
2 nubbles of preserved ginger, chopped
1 teaspoon crushed fennel seeds
2 eggs
120g self raising flour

Pre-heat the  oven to 165ºC 
Cream the butter and marmalade with the chopped ginger.  Beat in the eggs and then fold in the flour and fennel seeds.

Spoon the mixture into a greased 1lb loaf tin and place in the oven.
Cook for around 30 minutes, until a skewer inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean.
Turn out on to a cooling rack.

Netherton Foundry Shropshire 2018 ©

www.netherton-foundry.co.uk

Cranberry and marmalade cake

I have never been one for the type of resolutions that see you having to give up something pleasurable during the grey days of January.  Admittedly the days are technically getting longer, but you'd be hard pushed to admit that that's what it feels like.
There is, I have no doubt, a different shade of grey for every day of the month and yet they all merge into one long, washed out blur of monochromatic misery.  Not quite 50 shades, but let's not go down that road.

It's hard to feel cheerful faced with the monotony of bad, but rarely so bad you can't go to work, weather; the comedown after Christmas, when you no longer have the tree, but the pine needles keep turning up under the sofa, the last of the slightly dodgy chocolates that you received in the secret Santa sack, the sad resignation of not being able to gorge yourself on mince pies for another 10 months, at least;  eating the last slice of Christmas cake; acknowledging that a nice glass of sherry mid afternoon is no longer acceptable; higher heating bills that coincide with the arrival of the Christmas credit card bill. April is most certainly not the cruellest month.
January is not the month to be contemplating fresh starts, it does not live up to the promise of a new year, new start -  more like new year, let's just pull the blankets over our heads and wait for Spring.

But there are reasons to be cheerful - no more bloody trite TV ads for a start and no more celebrities smugly telling us about their perfect Christmas,when we all know that they pay someone else to decorate their tasteful tree, cook their dinner and wrap their overindulgent, social media friendly presents.

Bah humbug indeed.

Mid way through the morning of my day at Otter Farm, Claire presented us with a slice of still warm, marmalade, polenta and thyme cake.  Divine.
I also have my own, slightly different and seasonal marmalade cake, which I shall share with you.
This is a perfect January dish, when you still have cranberries hanging around after Christmas and the first Seville  oranges are in the shops.

I used the last of the cranberry sauce I had made at Christmas, which had been decanted into a jar and stored in the fridge.
You can, of course, use commercially made sauce, but it will be too sweet and sticky without a little adulteration. I suggest that you warm 2 tablespoons of sauce gently over a low heat and add the juice of 2 Seville oranges.
If you want to start from scratch, measure out enough fresh cranberries to cover the base of your loaf tin and then transfer them to a pan. Add the juice of an orange and cook gently until they start to burst and the juice starts to run. Add sugar to taste, but go carefully, this will be the topping for a cake, so don't overdo it or the end result will make your teeth ache.

Pre heat the oven to 180ºC

Weigh 2 medium size eggs, in their shells and then measure the same weight of butter, marmalade and self raising flour.
You will also need ½ tsp fennel seeds, although I know opinion is fiercely divided on this subject, so feel free to omit them if you are not a fan and 2 tablespoons cranberry sauce

Beat butter and marmalade together.  Add the eggs and beat thoroughly.  A food mixer or processor is best for this, you want as much air in the mixture as possible.
Sift in the flour and fennel seeds.

Grease a 1lb loaf tin and spread the cranberry sauce over the base.

Top with the cake mix and spread evenly.

Place in the oven and bake for approx 30 minutes until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.
Leave to stand for 10 minutes

Run a knife around the edge of the cake and invert the tin onto a serving plate.

Serve with creme fraiche, mixed with grated orange zest and a sprinkle of icing sugar, or simply eat as it is with a cup of coffee.

© Netherton Foundry Shropshire 2017

www.netherton-foundry.co.uk

Chocolate orange ice cream

"It's not Terry's, it's mine", said Dawn French, referring of course to the irresistible Terry's chocolate orange; a perfect piece of chocolate desirability, whose popularity spans all boundaries.

Chocolate and orange is, of course, a classic combination, so when we were given a bottle of chocolate red wine, it seemed like a good idea to chuck that into the mix as well.... But what to make?

The answer is chocolate orange ice cream and it is the simplest thing to make:

1lb Marmalade, homemade if you've got it

Large tub of double cream

Chocolate - take your pick, I used a 100g bar of milk chocolate, because that's what I had in the cupboard, but I reckon dark chocolate would be even better.

Optional extras - Chocolate red wine, Cointreau, Drambuie

Tip the marmalade into a mixing bowl and stir until it's soft and malleable - warm it slightly if needed.

Chop the chocolate into small chunks.

Whip the cream.

Fold all three ingredients together and stir in a splash of booze.

Pour into a plastic container and place in the freezer.

The great thing about this ice cream is that there is no need to churn it and stir it, just leave it to freeze.

© Netherton Foundry Shropshire 2015

Not just for toast..

It's Seville orange time again, I have already made several jars of marmalade and am sorely tempted to make some more, while they are in season.  Apparently marmalade sales are falling, so this is part of my attempt to re-popularise this delicious spread.

I love the stuff, but not just on my toast.  Did you know that you can make absolutely gorgeous ice cream by mixing equal volumes of whipped cream and marmalade and simply putting it in the freezer?  You don't even have to get it out and beat it during the freezing process and it stays wonderfully "scoopable".  Delicious with a hot chocolate fudge cake!!

The following recipe combines the richness of shoulder of pork with the tang and acidity of Seville oranges, which cut through the fattiness with zest and zing.  Shoulder of pork is a fantastically economic cut and this is a ridiculously easy recipe, which makes a superb meal served with mashed potatoes and wilted spinach.

1kg shoulder of pork joint
2 dessertspoons fennel seed
2 tablespoons marmalade - doesn't have to be home made
200ml water
Salt and pepper



Put all the ingredients into the slow cooker bowl.
Put on the lid
Place the bowl on the heater base.
Cook for 3 hours on HIGH or 5 hours on LOW or 8 hours on KEEP WARM.

Enjoy!!

Netherton Foundry Shropshire © 2013
www.netheron-foudnry.co.uk