Fig, Lardon and Dolcelatte Tart

I watched Eric Lanlard demonstrate this recipe at the BBC Good Food Show and J has been asking me to bake this ever since. My Christmas party seemed like a good time to try it out. I made a vegetarian broccoli and red pepper quiche and I thought that this might appeal to the carnivores. I don't have a rectangular tart tin which is what Eric used so I used my normal round pie dish. I definitely need to buy a rectangular tart tin as it looks more impressive with the figs sticking out. Unfortunately the fresh figs I found were quite small and they got lost in the pie. However, the flavour was absolutely delicious. The combination of the lardon, blue cheese and mascarpone cheese with the figs was heavenly. The thyme complemented the tart and rounded out the flavours nicely and the walnut crust was tasty and smelt amazing whilst baking. It's no surprise then that this is one of Eric's favourite recipes and he describes it as his dream light lunch or starter. 

 making the walnut pastry 

 layer the figs and bake for 10-12 minutes 

 adding the dolcelatte cheese and cooked lardons 

 

Recipe availabe from the baking mad website

I used 4 figs instead of 8 as that was all I had but otherwise I followed the recipe exactly and it worked perfectly. I can't wait to try it again using a rectangular tart tin.

Chocolate and Fig Panforte

We Should Cocoa is one of the first blog challenges I got involved in and I try to enter every month if possible. This month Choclette has chosen the theme of figs which is perfect for the festive season. Personally I'm not a huge fan of figs but just about everyone I know is so I knew I would not have any trouble getting taste testers. I chose a recipe from BBC Good Food and it worked beautifully. I had lots of positive comments and repeat requests for this particularly for our upcoming work Christmas lunch. It's really quick and easy to make and I am already thinking about substitutions with brazil nuts and adding in dried cranberries for the extra festive touch. 

These little treats are sweet but not overly so considering how much honey and sugar went into it! It's soft and sticky from the figs and the almonds give a lovely crunch to it. I've been told that they are quite more-ish as it's difficult to stop at just one! I've cut mine up and sprinkled liberally with icing sugar and it looks really festive and pretty.

As mentioned I'm sending this to We Should Cocoa hosted by Choclette from Chocolate Log Blog. The theme this month is figs, 

I'm also sending it to AlphaBakes hosted by Caroline from Caroline Makes and myself on alternate months. The letter this  month is 'X' and Caroline is accepting everything Christmas related. 

These little treats would also be perfect for Treat Petite hosted by Kat from the Baking Explorer and Stuart from Cakeyboi. The theme this month is Christmas.

These look really festive especially with the sprinkling of icing sugar on top so I think it will also fit in nicely to Festive Family Foodies hosted by Vanesther from Bangers & Mash and Louisa from Eat Your Veg.

 melt honey and sugar 

 Ready to be sliced 

 with some icing sugar and Christmas ribbon

Recipe from BBC Good Food

Fig, yoghurt and walnut cake with pomegranate and pistachio

July is a busy month for me as I am off travelling ... again! So I wanted a versatile recipe that I could enter into multiple blog challenges and came across this amazing recipe on dailydelicious. I modified the recipe a tiny bit and the result was sheer perfection. The cake was moist and flavourful and I love the toppings on this cake! It's visually stunning and would be perfect for a party as it looks like you've spent hours in the kitchen but in reality it's fairly simple and straightforward to put together.

I'm entering this to AlphaBakes which is hosted by Caroline from Caroline Makes and by myself on alternate months. The letter this month is F for figs.

Next to Tea Time Treats hosted by Karen from Lavender and Lovage and Kate from What Kate Baked. Karen who is hosting this month chose Fresh Fruit Treats as the theme for this month. This cake contains figs, pomegranate and lemons so I think it definitely counts!

Fortunately for me, Calendar Cakes hosted by Laura from Laura loves Cakes and Rachel from Dolly Bakes chose fruity bakes for their theme this month. As mentioned the cake is full of fruit so I think it would definitely qualify.

As this cake is made with fresh ingredients and with plenty of love, I am also sending it to Made with Love Mondays hosted by Javelin Warrior.

Addendum 4/8/13 - Fiona from London Unattached has created Fabulous First Fridays - a linky to share your special/significant/favourite post from the previous month so in this case July 2013. I'm submitting this lovely cake as it's really quick and easy to put together especially if you need something with a wow factor but don't want to spend hours in the kitchen.

 main ingredients 

 ready to go in the oven 

 cooking the syrup for the cake 

 cooking the pomegranate syrup 

 fresh from the oven with syrup glaze

 with toppings - love the vibrant colours! 

 Perfect for my glass cake stand :) 

Recipe modified slightly from dailydelicious

75g plain flour
80g fine semolina
¾ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda
100g walnuts, roasted, finely ground
2 eggs
260g caster sugar (divided into 110g,110g & 40g)
70g unsalted butter, melted
30ml  vegetable oil
2 tsp vanilla extract
150g plain yoghurt
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
Juice of 1½ lemons

90ml + 2 tbsp water
1 stick of cinnamon
1 pomegranate, seeds removed
4 green figs, quartered

1-2 tablespoons of pistachios to decorate 

• Preheat the oven to 170C. 
• Roast the walnuts in the oven for approximately 8-10 minutes then set aside to cool. Grind the nuts into fine pieces. 
• Sift the flour, semolina, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda into a bowl.
• Whisk 2 eggs with 110g caster sugar until thick and pale.
• Add in the flour mixture then the ground walnuts. 
• In a jug, mix the butter, oil, vanilla extract and yoghurt and pour into the egg and flour mixture and mix well. 
• Pour into a greased and lined cake tin and bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes until the cake is golden brown and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. 
• Now make the syrup by placing 110g sugar, 90mls water, zest and juice of 1 lemon and 1 cinnamon stick in a saucepan over medium heat.
• Stir continuously until the sugar has dissolved.
• Allow to simmer for 5 - 10 minutes.
• In a separate saucepan, place 40g caster sugar, juice of 1/2 lemon and 2 tbsp water and stir over low heat until the sugar dissolves.
• Add the pomegranate seeds and continue cooking for a few minutes.
• Once the cake is ready, remove from the oven and prick holes all over the top with a fork or skewer (do not remove from cake tin yet).
• Gently pour the spiced syrup all over the cake and allow to cool in the tin. 
• Once completely cool, place cake on a cake stand and slowly pour the pomegranate syrup on top.
• Sprinkle with pistachios and place the quartered figs on top. 

Bacon, Brie and Fig Muffins

I've been on a muffin spree lately. They are so easy to put together and are great for breakfast on the go. As part of my baking for my birthday last week, I wanted to make something savoury as some of my colleagues have less of a sweet tooth than me and I often get requests for savoury bakes.  I came across these bacon, brie and fresh date muffins and decided to give them a go. I changed the dates to figs so I could enter them into the one ingredient blog challenge hosted by Laura from How to Cook Good Food and co-hosted by Nazima from Working London Mummy.

My colleague who requested savoury bakes described these as the "bee's knees" and declared them the best thing I'd baked all year! I have to say that I was really impressed with the muffins - the flavours worked well together and it required no additional seasoning.  They were best eaten warm but still delicious at room temperature. Would you believe this is my first time cooking bacon and using fresh figs? 

I'm also entering this to Simple and in Season as figs are in season. I got mine fresh from the market and I really like the colour of the fruit inside. Simple and in Season was created by Ren from Fabulicious Food and this month is hosted by Katie from Feeding Boys and a Firefighter 

As figs are fruits, I'm also entering them to the Breakfast Club where the theme this month is fruit. This challenge was created by Helen from Fuss Free Flavours and this month is hosted by Urvashi from The Botanical Baker.

 figs, brie and bacon

 bacon fried to a crisp and cut into small pieces

 mash the brie into the milk 

 adding the gorgeous figs to the flour mixture 

 end result 

 my new muffin cases 

 yum! 

225g plain flour
pinch of salt
2 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoon caster sugar
3 fresh figs (or 12 fresh dates, pitted)
2 tablespoon olive oil, for frying
15g butter, for frying
12 rashers smoked, streaky bacon
75g brie cheese, diced
150mls milk
50g butter, melted
2 eggs, beaten

• Preheat the oven to 180C. 
• In a large bowl, sift the flour, salt, baking powder and sugar and set aside.
• Using a knife dusted with flour, chop the figs (or dates) into small pieces and add to the flour mixture. 
• In a frying pan, heat the oil and butter over a medium heat and fry the bacon until crisp. 
• When it's cool enough to handle, cut the warm bacon into small pieces and stir it back into the warm juices in the pan.
• Cover with foil and set aside. 
• Mash the brie into the milk, then mix it into the dry ingredients along with the melted butter, eggs, fried bacon and any juices from the pan. 
• Mix lightly until just combined. 
• Fill the muffin cases and bake for 18-20 minutes until risen and golden. 
• Best served warm.