Kitchen Experiment: Baked Milk Tart

Wil jy graag melk tert? Here is my take on the traditional South African treat, Milk Tart!

I have done a milk tart on this blog before, but not like this. Usually, milk tart is made with a cornflour thickened custard, somewhat like a crème pâtissière, but this time I thought I'd do a little experiment...

I've been interested in trying a baked custard for quite some time, and I thought this would be a good excuse. I've been doing a lot of research on baked custard and my findings have shown that generally for one UK pint (580 millilitres) of milk, you add four eggs, and four ounces (115 grammes) of sugar. My first attempt obeyed this ratio, scaling down to three-quarters of the quantity.

The first one I did had a little too much of an eggy taste for my liking, and had too firm a texture. Once I looked up why this may be, I found that egg white adds egginess and rubberiness. As such, I adjusted the ratio of egg white to egg yolk, by removing two of the egg whites from the eggs to make it smoother. It worked quite well!

I also learnt from reading a lot of South African blogs that milk tart should be made with puff pastry. I'll give that a try next time and see what it's like. This tart, however, is made with shortcrust pastry.

INGREDIMENTS
For one 9 inch (22 centimetre) tart

• One blind-baked 9 inch (22 centimetre) deep tart crust, still in its tin
• 5 UK fluid ounces (140 millilitres) whipping cream
• 10 UK fluid ounces (285 millilitres) whole milk
• 2 whole medium egg
• 1 medium egg yolk
• 3 ounces (85 grammes) caster sugar
• 1 vanilla pod, or 1 tablespoon (15 millilitres) vanilla essence
• Ground cinnamon

METHOD

• On a cutting board, slice the vanilla pod lengthwise, leaving a little at the top to hold the two sides together. Using the back of the knife, scrape the seeds out of both sides of the pod.
• Put the vanilla seeds, empty vanilla pod, cream, and milk into a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring, until it it begins to simmer. Remove from the heat. If you don't have a vanilla pod, just mix in the vanilla essence after cooking.
• Separate one of the whole eggs, putting the yolk into a medium mixing bowl, and keeping the white aside for later. To this egg yolk, add in the other whole egg, and the egg yolk, and sugar. Whisk together well. 
• Constantly whisking, very slowly pour in the hot cream until fully whisked. Make sure to add it slowly so the eggs don't cook.
• Pour the custard through a sieve into a jug with a spout, and then throw away whatever is left behind in the sieve.
• Preheat the oven to 150°C (300°F, Gas Mk.2). Whisk the leftover egg white until broken up, then brush it onto the inside of the tart crust. Place the tart tin on a flat sheet, and gently heat the blind-baked crust in the oven for about 5 minutes on the centre shelf.
• Once the egg white is set, pull the oven shelf out slightly to get better access to the tart crust. Slowly pour the custard into the crust, then sprinkle ground cinnamon all over the surface.
• Bake in the oven for 45 to 50 minutes, until the custard is set on the surface,but still jiggly underneath.
• Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before chilling for at least an hour before serving.

THIS TIME IN 2016: Confirmation Day! (I'm Getting Good at Jam and Cream Gâteaux)

THIS TIME IN 2013: Fool-Proof Meringue (Unless You're a Really Foolish Fool)

No blogs on this day in 2015 nor 2014

2-Ingredient Chocolate Mousse

Bonjour, mes amis! Encore, un dessert Français: mousse au chocolat!

I absolutely love chocolate mousse! It has such a pleasing texture, and feels really indulgent, despite its lightness. What I love more about it is that it only uses two ingredients.

For those who are not fans of raw egg, however, I've got bad news for you: one of those ingredients is indeed raw egg. At its simplest, chocolate mousse is made by mixing melted chocolate with whipped egg, at a ratio of an ounce (30 grammes) of chocolate per egg. Mousse can also be made with the addition of butter and cream, but I find that makes it unnecessarily laden with calories. Give it a go if you like!

This is such a simple treat that it's a great one to do with children as one of their first forays into the kitchen.

INGREDIMENTS
For four servings of mousse

• 4 ounces (115 grammes) your favourite milk or dark chocolate
• 4 eggs, separated
• 1 teaspoon (5 millilitres) vanilla essence

METHOD

• In a heatproof bowl, melt the chocolate gently over simmering water or in the microwave until fully melted.
• Working very quickly, beat the egg yolks into the warm chocolate, beating vigorously so that the egg yolks don't cook.
• In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites to firm peaks. Take about a third of the egg white mixture and mix it fully into the warm chocolate.
• Pour the chocolate mixture gently into the rest of the egg whites, and fold through gently until there are no streaks of egg white left.
• Divide the mixture between four ramekins, tumblers, or other kind of serving vessel. Chill for at least 4 hours before serving chilled.

THIS TIME IN 2015: Experiments in Homemade Soft Drinks: Raspberry Lemonade and Orange Cream Soda
No blogs on this day in 2016, 2014, nor 2013

Something Savoury: Bacon and Onion Quiche (Wheat Free)

Bonjour, mes amis! Aujourd'hui, j'ai un repas pour vous: quiche, au bacon et onion!

I did French to leaving cert when I was 17, so by now it's a little rusty. However, my delight in French cuisine has not faded.

Having said that, I've never been the world's biggest fan of quiche. I've always been fed shop-bought varieties that are somehow simultaneously gelatinous and dry. But, my companion loves to eat it as a lunch.

Quiche is something that is quite present in the lives of English (and somewhat English) people, as English cookery is actually quite heavily influenced by French and German cuisine. Seeing that English renditions of European foods tend to be quite heavy and stodgy, I assumed that it was the same for quiche.... until I saw a quiche being made by a French woman.

I have a close friend who I visit often, and her housemate it French. I saw her making a quiche for herself, and when I asked her how she was making it her response was quite simply: It's like omelette in a pastry, and the pastry it has to be made with butter, otherwise it's not good. She didn't seem to be using any scales or measurements either, except to say that you use roughly twice as much milk as egg, and the quiche that resulted looked quite tasty!

Turns out that French people also like stodge, it seems. And it also seems that quiche is quite forgiving, and doesn't need precise measurements.

Although I heard straight from the horse's mouth that the pastry has to be made with only butter, I've never been the biggest fan of all butter pastry in savoury food. It's something I associate with sweet tarts, and find way too heavy going for a savoury dish, especially something as heavy as quiche (sorry, French housemate). As such I use a shortcrust pastry made in part with sunflower oil, which I know it completely blasphemous, but hey ho.

INGREDIMENTS
To make one 9 inch (22 centimetre) quiche

For pastry,

• 10 ounces (280 grammes) white spelt flour, cold
• Pinch of salt
• Pinch of sugar
• 2½ ounces (70 grammes) butter, cold
• 2½ fluid ounces (5 tablespoons, 75 millilitres) sunflower oil
• Cold water, to combine

For the filling,

• 4 ounces (115 grammes) bacon rashers cut into little pieces, or lardons
• 1 medium red onion, sliced thinly
• 2 ounces (55 grammes) medium chedder cheese, grated
• 3 medium eggs
• Half an imperial pint (1¼ cups, 285 millilitres) whole milk
• Salt and pepper, to taste

HOW-TO

First, make the pastry

• In a large mixing bowl, mix the flour, salt, and sugar together. Grate in the butter, dipping it in the flour every few strokes and tossing the flour around to stop everything from sticking. Once the butter is grated in, gently rub with your fingers until it looks like breadcrumbs. Alternatively, which is what I do, you can keep running handfuls of the mixture through the grater instead of rubbing with the fingertips.
• When the butter is rubbed in, add in the oil. Rub again gently, only to mix the oil through.
• Mixing with the tip of a knife, add the water gradually until it forms a nice soft dough.
• Form into a disc, wrap in cling film, and refrigerate for an hour.

Next, prepare the fillings

• In a non-stick frying pan set over the hob with the heat off, add the bacon and turn the heat onto medium.
• Once the pan has fully heated, cook the bacon until well browned and all visible fat is thoroughly cooked.
• Remove the bacon from the pan, leaving the oil it has rendered behind in the pan. Add in the onions and cook over medium heat until well browned and fragrant.
• Allow the bacon and onion to fully cool.

Then, blind bake the pastry case

• Roll out the dough on a floured surface and fit into a 9 inch (22 centimetre) straight sided pie dish. My one is ceramic, but a metal or glass one would work so much better.
• Trim the edges, and prick the base and sides all over with a fork. Put in the fridge for about half an hour. 
• While it's chilling, preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F, Gas Mk.7), with a flat baking tray in the oven on the centre shelf. Make sure the tray is large enough to accommodate your pie dish.
• Now it's time to blind bake the pastry case. Take out of the fridge, and line the whole case with a piece of tin foil, pressing it into every nook and cranny. Crumple any excess into the middle, making sure the foil is still covering all the pastry.
• Place in the oven directly on top of the preheated tray, and bake for about 15 minutes.
• After 15 minutes, remove the foil and bake for a further 8 to 10 minutes, or until the crust is lightly golden and fully cooked.

Finally, assemble and bake the quiche

• Remove the blind baked case from the oven and let stand for about 5 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 180°C (350°F, Gas Mk.4).
• Sprinkle the bacon and onion evenly on the bottom of the quiche, then top with about half the cheese.
• In a jug, beat together the eggs and milk, and season it to taste (I personally have no problem with tasting raw egg, but that's up to you).
• Pour the egg and milk mixture into the quiche, and then sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.
• Return to the oven, on top of the tray as before, and cook for 35 to 45 minutes, or until the top is lightly browned and crispy, the filling is slightly puffy, and when you touch the centre it feels set and no longer liquid.
• Remove from the oven and cool for about 20 minutes before serving, to let it set a little more. Or, you can let it cool to room temperature, chill it, and serve it cold.

THIS TIME IN 2016: American Style Chocolate Chip Muffins (Wheat Free)

THIS TIME IN 2015: Treacle Tarts, without Breadcrumbs (Wheat Free)

No blog from this time in 2014

THIS TIME IN 2013: Gingerbread of the Gingeriest Proportions (Wheat Free)

Fool-Proof Meringue (Unless You're a Really Foolish Fool)

Apologies for lack of photos! That will be amended tomorrow when the camera is out of camera hospital (ie. my Dad's workshop).

How to make meringue; the ultimate question. For something so simple in theory, it is notorious for going very, very wrong very, very often. It's either too dry, or too sticky, or it gets too burnt, or melts all over the oven, sets too hard, sets too soft among other numerous problems.

I have found, however, that once you conquer a few little factors the perfect meringue will materialise as if by magic! The two factors are, like with any recipe under the sun, the recipe itself and the method by which it is made. I know I sound like Captain Obvious, but making meringues can be a delicate process that can be very easily upset if handled to roughly. So, onto my own personal recommendations:

INGREDIMENTS

The most basic formula for meringues, which is a time-tested staple to any cookery book, is 2 ounces (55 grammes) of caster sugar to 1 large egg white; 1 large egg white weighs roughly 1 ounce (30 grammes). That simple. However, there is a small issue with using just these two ingredients: it's not stable enough.

Have you ever made a meringue that collapses after baking, or one that goes all soggy a few hours later, or one that's crisp outside but wet and gummy in the middle? These are all results of the meringue separating during cooking: the sugar, water and protein have not bonded properly, meaning that the protein contracts, squeezing all the water out, and the sugar crystallises. This is bad juju.

The way to stop a meringue from separating is to stabilise it using one simple ingredient: an acid of any kind. The acid breaks down the protein allowing it to hold onto the sugar and water more easily, and then cook into shape while in the oven. For each egg white, use 1 pinch of cream of tartar, 3 drops of lemon juice or 3 drops of white vinegar. That's all that's needed.

If you want to make it even more stable, you can also add ¼ teaspoon cornflour. But, more on that in the...

METHOD
That there are two methods that work every time, no matter what you're doing.

METHOD A
Method A is the traditional French meringue. Because it's still technically raw on going into the oven to bake and needs to cook for quite a while, it is best suited for little meringues or pavlova bases.

• First of all, prepare your mixing bowl. Don't use plastic, as the surface can be too uneven; the best materials to use are either glass or metal. Take some kitchen roll, dampen it with a small amount of lemon juice or vinegar, and clean the inside of the bowl. This is to remove any shred of any trace of oil, which is the enemy of a successful meringue.
• Separate the eggs, put the egg whites into the bowl, and leave to sit at room temperature for an hour. If you can do this step a few days before you need to make the meringue, even better (obviously, keep them in the fridge until the aforementioned hour before cooking). The older the whites, the bigger the fluff.
• Before you begin preparing the meringue, preheat your oven to 120°C (250°F, Gas Mark ¼, very slow)
• Mix the lemon juice and cornflour together, and mix into the egg whites until fully mixed in.
• Using a balloon whisk (for masochists) or an electric hand mixer, beat the egg whites on high speed until they reach the soft peak stage. Soft peaks stage is where the egg whites have turned completely into a dense foam, leaving no liquid behind, and on pulling out the whisk, a little peak is left behind that flops over.
• At this stage, running the mixer on medium speed, add in the caster sugar 1 tablespoon at a time until fully mixed in.
• Halfway through adding the sugar, add in the cornflour and acid (whether it be cream of tartar, lemon juice or vinegar). Continue adding the sugar as you were.
• Continue whisking the mixture until stiff peaks stage is reached. Having added the sugar, the dense bubbly foam that you had should have become a shiny, thick, glossy mass, and on pulling the whisk out of the mixture, a peak should be left behind that stands up completely straight. This might take a while to achieve, so don't feel like it's taking too long.
• You now have meringue mixture to do with whatever you will (see baking instructions below)

METHOD 2
Method B is known as Swiss meringue. This is partially cooked over a bain-marie, which makes it suitable for recipes where the meringue isn't cooked for very long such as lemon meringue pie or baked Alaska. This method is a little trickier, but makes a more sturdy meringue. 

• Like with the first method, separate the eggs, leave them, and preheat the oven. You can slow cook this like in method A, or you can set your oven to up to 180°C (350°F, Gas Mk.4, or moderate) to toast it quickly for a pie topping or Baked Alaska.
• The next step is to set a medium saucepan to simmer gently with about 2 inches (5 centimeters) of water in it. If you're afraid of cooking the egg whites, you can actually bring the water to a rough simmer then turn the heat off altogether.
• Into the eggs, add all the sugar and mix until the sugar is incorporated. Place the bowl on top of the saucepan and mix the eggs and sugar gently with a wooden spoon until the sugar has dissolved. Don't allow the water in the saucepan to boil, or you'll end up with sweet scrambled egg-whites.
• Once the sugar has dissolved into the egg whites, remove the bowl from atop the saucepan and beat relentlessly with a balloon whisk (for masochists) or electric hand mixer until the stiff peaks stage is reached. This can take from ten minutes to fifteen, depending on the strength your hand mixer; using your hand will take substantially longer, something more like the rest of your life.
• Once soft peaks are achieved, add in your cornflour and acid. Continue beating until firm peaks are formed, which is a tiny little bit floppier than firm peaks. Because the mixture is slightly warm, full stiff peaks cannot be achieved using this method; believe me, I've tried.
• You now have meringue mixture to do with whatever you will (see baking instructions below)

PREPARATION FOR BAKING

• Line your baking tray(s) with non-stick paper, like waxed or silicone paper, and prepare your meringue mixture however you want, just make sure the meringue is no deeper than 1 or 2 inches (2.5 to 5 centimeters), otherwise it won't cook properly.
• You could also put the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a 1/2 inch (1 centimeter) nozzle.
• Cook for at least 30 minutes, until dry. The larger ones will obviously take longer, and I have notes on that below.

BAKING TIMES
Baking times depend on how dry you want your meringues to be. If you want them a little soft in the middle, bake them for the shorter time, but if you like them almost completely dried out, bake them for the longer time. Obviously, the higher you make your piles of meringue will increase the baking time: a thin meringue cooks faster than a fat one, no matter how wide it is. The best way to tell if the meringue is cooked is:

• Fully dry and matte on the outside.
• Hollow sounding when tapped on the bottom.
• Not in any way sticking to the paper, almost as if it's just resting on the paper.

However, for the pedantic, here are some rough guidelines:

• Little meringues, about 2 inches across, take about 45 minutes to an hour.
• Medium sized meringues, about 4 or 6 inches across, take anywhere from an hour to an hour and a half.
• Large, pavlova sized meringues 6 or more inches across, can take an hour and a half, but try not to leave it in any longer as it'll begin to colour too much.

COOLING
Take the meringue(s) off the tray and cool on a wire rack to cool completely. Because the meringue(s) is quite porous, it won't take long to cool, maybe 20 minutes.

WHAT THEN?
What you do with your meringues now is completely up to you! Smother them in cream and coat them with berries, or drizzle them with melted chocolate, the possibilities are endless. They're even pretty nice on their own!

I hope this little thesis answers all the questions you have on baking meringues, however if there is any base I have left uncovered please do not hesitate to ask me any questions!