Horno

Hay recetas que las ves y mueres de ganas por hacerlas alguna vez en tu vida. El resultado de las fotos en las webs es tan perfecto que te resulta imposible creer que puedas conseguir que te quede algo, al menos, similar. Pues bien, eso me pasó a mí con estos increíbles bollos suizos del blog de María Lunarillos y he de decir que lo conseguí: quedaron sencillamente espectaculares. Os pongo la receta tal y como yo la hice, ya que los tiempos de levado difieren mucho de la receta original. Vamos, que no es para unas prisas pero merece la pena…

¿Qué necesitamos?

• 500 g de harina de fuerza
• 250 g de leche entera
• Dos huevos
• 90 g de azúcar
• 5 g de sal
• 3 g de levadura seca de panadería
• 80 g de mantequilla pomada
• Un huevo batido para pintar
• Azúcar y agua para decorar

 ¿Cómo lo hacemos?

1. En primer lugar, disolvemos la levadura en 100 g de leche templada y añadimos 100 g de harina de fuerza. Mezclamos bien con una cuchara de palo, tapamos el bol y dejamos que fermente hasta que le salgan burbujas.
2. Tras el tiempo necesario de reposo, añadimos todos los demás ingredientes, excepto la mantequilla. Empezamos mezclando con la cuchara de madera y finalmente con las manos. Dejamos reposar 10 minutos y amasamos de nuevo simplemente cogiendo un pellizco de la masa desde fuera y plegándolo hacia adentro. Repetimos este tiempo de reposo y pequeño amasado otras dos veces. Notaréis que la masa se vuelve menos pegajosa y más elástica.
3.  Añadimos la mantequilla en pomada y volvemos a amasar. En este caso yo lo hice con las varillas de amasado pero puede hacerse perfectamente a mano. Tiene que quedar una masa bastante lisa.
4. Untamos un bol limpio con un poco de aceite de girasol y colocamos la masa tapada con film transparente. Dejamos reposar hasta que doble el volumen. Como hacía bastante fresco en mi cocina, yo la tuve toda la noche (en total, la dejé levando unas 20 horas).
5. Cuando haya doblado el volumen, sacamos la masa sobre la encimera enharinada y la aplastamos con las manos para quitarle todo el aire. Vamos formando bolitas de 60 gramos.
6. Para formar las bolas perfectas, las pellizcamos para formar una especie de hatillo y luego las boleamos. Como una imagen vale más que mil palabras, podéis ver esta técnica en el vídeo de María Lunarillos.
7. Dejamos reposar las bolas en una bandeja de horno con papel vegetal tapadas con film transparente hasta que doblen su volumen. En mi caso, las dejé casi 4 horas y no llegaron a doblar el volumen pero fue suficiente.
8. Precalentamos el horno a 210ºC y vamos pintando los bollos con huevo con cuidado de no aplastarlos. Los pintamos dos veces dejando unos 10 minutos entre mano y mano para que se seque ligeramente la película formada por el huevo.
9. Con un cuchillo de sierra muy afilado hacemos un corte profundo en el centro y echamos azúcar humedecida con agua (como la que usamos para los roscones de reyes).
10. Metemos en el horno en la parte más baja (calor arriba y abajo sin aire), bajamos la temperatura a 200ºC y horneamos 12 minutos. Por último, horneamos 1 minuto más con el aire encendido.
11. Sacamos y dejamos enfriar todo lo que vuestras ansias por hincarle el diente os permitan.

Consejos:

– No es una receta difícil pero requiere tiempo y paciencia. Es preferible fiarse del aspecto de la masa que de los tiempos que os indico, ya que dependiendo de la temperatura ambiente y otros factores estos pueden variar considerablemente.

– En muchas recetas hay ingredientes fácilmente sustituibles por otros pero en esta ocasión, no podéis cambiar la harina de fuerza por harina normal ni la levadura de panadería por levadura química.

There are recipes you see and immediately you're dying to try at least once in your life. The results in the photos online look so perfect it seems impossible you'll ever get something even remotely similar. Well, that's exactly what happened to me with these incredible Swiss buns from María Lunarillos's blog, and I have to say I pulled it off: they came out simply spectacular. I'm sharing the recipe just as I made it, since the proofing times are quite different from the original. Be warned, this isn't one for when you're in a rush, but it's totally worth it…

What do we need?

• 500 g (4 cups) bread flour
• 250 g (1 cup) whole milk
• Two eggs
• 90 g (about 1/2 cup) sugar
• 5 g (1 tsp) salt
• 3 g (1 tsp) active dry yeast
• 80 g (about 1/3 cup) softened butter
• One beaten egg for glazing
• Sugar and water for decorating

How do we make it?

1. First, dissolve the yeast in 100 g (about 1/3 cup + 1 tbsp) of warm milk and add 100 g (about 3/4 cup) of bread flour. Mix well with a wooden spoon, cover the bowl, and let it ferment until you see bubbles forming.
2. After the resting time, add all the other ingredients except the butter. Start mixing with the wooden spoon and finish with your hands. Let it rest for 10 minutes and knead again, simply pinching a bit of dough from the outside and folding it inward. Repeat this rest-and-quick-knead cycle two more times. You'll notice the dough becomes less sticky and more elastic.
3. Add the softened butter and knead again. In my case I used the dough hooks on my mixer, but you can do it perfectly well by hand. You want to end up with a fairly smooth dough.
4. Grease a clean bowl with a little sunflower oil and put the dough in, covered with plastic wrap. Let it rest until doubled in size. Since my kitchen was pretty cool, I left it overnight (about 20 hours of proofing in total).
5. Once doubled, turn the dough out onto a floured countertop and press it down with your hands to release all the air. Form little balls of 60 g (about 2 oz) each.
6. To get perfect balls, pinch them to form a sort of bundle and then roll them. Since a picture is worth a thousand words, you can see this technique in the video by María Lunarillos.
7. Let the balls rest on a baking tray lined with parchment paper, covered with plastic wrap, until doubled in size. In my case, I left them for almost 4 hours and they didn't quite double, but it was enough.
8. Preheat the oven to 210°C (410°F) and brush the buns with beaten egg, being careful not to flatten them. Brush them twice, leaving about 10 minutes between coats so the egg film dries slightly.
9. With a very sharp serrated knife, make a deep cut down the center and sprinkle on sugar moistened with water (just like the kind we use for roscón de reyes).
10. Place in the oven on the lowest rack (top and bottom heat, no fan), lower the temperature to 200°C (390°F), and bake for 12 minutes. Finish with 1 more minute with the fan turned on.
11. Take them out and let them cool as long as your cravings to sink your teeth into one will let you.

Tips:

– It's not a difficult recipe but it requires time and patience. It's better to trust the look of the dough than the times I give you, since depending on the room temperature and other factors they can vary considerably.

– In many recipes there are ingredients you can easily swap for others, but in this case, you cannot replace the bread flour with regular flour or the active dry yeast with baking powder.

It’s not just that it seems like we haven’t published anything in ages — it’s actually true… almost three months without any blog action on PiC! The summer has been a bit hectic but here we are, back and loaded with new finger-licking recipes. Today I’m bringing you a recipe that could be considered the Nordic roscón de Reyes, and some say its shape is reminiscent of pretzels and the dough is brioche-style. In short, a sweet wonder we pulled from a Thermomix magazine but made without one to prove that any recipe is adaptable.

What do we need?

For the dough:

• 30 g (2 tbsp) sugar

• The peel of 1/2 lemon (yellow part only)

• 120 g (1/2 cup) milk

• 30 g (2 tbsp) butter

• 15 g fresh yeast

• 1 egg yolk

• 300 g (2.5 cups) bread flour

• **1 pinch of salt

For the filling:

• 50 g (3.5 tbsp) butter (room temperature)

• 60 g (1/4 cup) sugar

• 2 tablespoons cinnamon

• 50 g (1/2 cup) chopped walnuts

For the glaze:

• 20 g egg white

• 50 g (1/2 cup) confectioners’ sugar

How do we make it?

• If we have an electric coffee grinder or a food processor, we put the sugar with the lemon peel and grind it well until the lemon is incorporated into the sugar and we get a sort of paste. If we don’t have one, we can just grate the lemon peel and mix it with the sugar.

• We heat the milk a little in the microwave and add it to the bowl with the sugar and lemon peel.

• We add the butter and the yeast and stir until everything comes together nicely.

• We add the egg yolk and mix well again.

• Finally, we add the flour and the salt. We stir with a spoon or fork and then transfer the dough to a floured surface and knead by hand.

• We form a ball with the dough and let it rest in the bowl covered with cling film until it doubles in size.

• In the meantime, we prepare the filling. To do this, we mix the room-temperature butter with the sugar and the cinnamon.

• We preheat the oven to 180°C (355°F).

• Once the dough has doubled in size, we place it on a floured surface and roll it out with a rolling pin until we have a rectangle of about 40 x 50 cm (16 x 20 in).

• We spread the filling cream over it and sprinkle the walnuts on top.

• We roll up the dough (starting from the wider side).

• Once we have a sort of thin Swiss roll, we cut the log lengthwise down the middle, leaving one of the ends joined. When we cut it, we should see the alternating layers of dough and filling.

• We cross each piece of dough to form a kind of braid (always keeping the layered side facing up).

• Once everything is ‘braided’, we form a wreath and place it on a baking tray lined with parchment paper.

• We bake for about 20 minutes.

• While it’s baking, we prepare the glaze. To do this, we beat the egg whites a little with a fork and mix them with the confectioners’ sugar.

• When we take the kringle out of the oven, we brush it with this glaze.

Tips:

• The lemon peel is optional. You can skip it or swap it for orange peel — for sure it’ll be delicious too.

• If you want a whiter, thicker glaze, you can beat the egg whites with the sugar using an electric whisk. That’s how we made it, and that’s why the glaze looks like it does in the photo. If you beat it just with a fork, it’ll give the kringle a certain shine but it won’t be white and as thick.

• Starting from this base, you can fill the dough with other nuts or even jam.

[English version] ESTONIAN KRINGLE* *Ingredients: For the dough:

• 30 g sugar

• 1/2 lemon peel (only the yellow part)

• 120 g milk

• 30 g butter

• 15 g fresh yeast

• 1 egg yolk

• 300 g strength

• 1 pinch of salt

For the filling:

• 50 g de butter (room temperature)

• 60 g de sugar

• 2 tbsp cinnamon

• 50 g chopped walnuts

For the icing:

• 20 g egg white

• 50 g confectioners’ sugar

• If you have a coffee grinder or food processor, place the sugar and the lemon peel on it and grind it until getting a sort of paste. If you don’t have a grinder, just mix sugar with grated lemon peel.

• Heat the milk in the microwave and pour over the sugar.

• Add the butter and yeast and stir well.

• Add egg yolk and stir well again.

• Then, add flour and salt. Mix with a spoon and fork and then knead the dough on a floury surface.

• Make a dough ball and leave to rise into the bowl covered with cling film (until the dough has doubled in volume).

• In the meanwhile, prepare the filling. Mix butter (room temperature) with sugar and cinnamon.

• Preheat oven at 180º.

• When the dough has doubled in volume, place on a floury surface and roll it out with a rolling pin until getting a rectangle (40 x 50 cm aprox.)

• Spread the filling and sprinkle with chopped walnuts.

• Roll up the dough (starting by the wider side).

• Cut the log in half length-wise leaving one edge uncut.

• Start braiding the two pieces, trying to keep the open layers exposed so the cut ends remain on top.

• Pinch the ends together and form a wreath.

• Bake for 20 minutes.

• Prepare the icing. Whisk white eggs with a fork and add confectioners’ sugar. Mix well.

• Out of the oven, brush the kringle with the sugar icing.

• *Tips: - Lemon peel is optional. You can leave it out or use orange peel. For sure, it will be delicious too. - If you want a thicker and whiter sugar icing you can use an electric mixer with whisk attachment. The result will be more similar to our kringle shown in the picture. If you whisk only with fork you will have a lighter and clearer icing. - You can change the filling and use any nuts or jam you like.

No solo es que parezca que llevamos siglos sin publicar sino que es cierto… ¡casi tres meses sin actividad bloguera en PiC! El verano ha sido un poco ajetreado pero aquí estamos de vuelta cargaditos con nuevas recetas para chuparse los dedos. Hoy os traigo una receta que podría considerarse el roscón de Reyes nórdico y que algunos dicen que su forma recuerda a los pretzels y la masa es tipo brioche. En fin, una maravilla dulce que hemos sacado de una revista de Thermomix pero que la hemos hecho sin ella para demostrar que cualquier receta es adaptable.

¿Qué necesitamos?

Para la masa:

• 30 g de azúcar

• La piel de 1/2 limón (sólo la parte amarilla)

• 120 g de leche

• 30 g de mantequilla

• 15 g de levadura prensada fresca

• 1 yema de huevo

• 300 g de harina de fuerza

• **1 pizca de sal

Para el relleno:

• 50 g de mantequilla (a temperatura ambiente)

• 60 g de azúcar

• 2 cucharadas de canela

• 50 g de nueces picadas

Para el glaseado:

• 20 g de clara de huevo

• 50 g de azúcar glas

¿Cómo lo hacemos?

• Si tenemos un molinillo eléctrico de café o una picadora, ponemos el azúcar con la piel de limón y trituramos bien hasta que el limón se integre en el azúcar y quede una especie de pasta. Si no lo tenemos podemos rallar la piel del limón y mezclarla con el azúcar.

• Calentamos un poco la leche en el microondas y la añadimos al bol donde tenemos el azúcar con la piel de limón.

• Añadimos la mantequilla y la levadura y removemos hasta que se integre bien.

• Agregamos la yema de huevo y volvemos a mezclar bien.

• Por último, incorporamos la harina y la sal. Removemos con la cuchara o tenedor y luego pasamos la masa a una superficie enharinada y amasamos con las manos.

• Formamos una bola con la masa y la dejamos reposar en el bol tapado con film transparente haste que duplique su volumen.

• Mientras tanto, vamos preparando el relleno. Para ello, mezclamos la mantequilla a temperatura ambiente con el azúcar y la canela.

• Precalentamos el horno a 180º.

• Cuando la masa ya haya duplicado su volumen, la ponemos sobre una superficie enharinada y la extendemos con un rodillo hasta obtener un rectángulo de 40 x 50 cm aprox.

• Untamos la crema de relleno sobre ella y distribuimos las nueces por encima.

• Enrollamos la masa (empezando por la parte más ancha).

• Cuando tengamos una especie de brazo de gitano delgado cortamos el rollo por la mitad (de forma transversal) y dejando uno de los extremos unidos. Al cortarlo, tendremos que ver las capas de masa y relleno que se alternan.

• Cruzamos cada parte de la masa para hacer una especie de trenza (siempre con la parte de las capas visibles hacia arriba.

• Cuando esté todo ’trenzado’ formamos una rosca y la colocamos en una bandeja de horno con papel de hornear.

• Horneamos durante 20 minutos aproximadamente.

• Mientras se hornea, preparamos el glaseado. Para ello, batimos un poco las claras con un tenedor y las mezclamos con el azúcar glas.

• Cuando saquemos el kringle del horno lo pintaremos con este glaseado.

Consejos:

• La piel del limón es opcional. Podéis omitirla o cambiarla por piel de naranja, seguro que también está riquísimo.

• Si el glaseado lo queréis más blanco y consistente podéis batir las claras con el azúcar con una batidora de varillas eléctrica. Así es como lo preparamos nosotros y por eso el glaseado se ve en la foto. Si lo batimos simplemente con un tenedor le dará cierto brillo al kringle pero no será de color blanco y tan espeso.

• Partiendo de esta base podéis rellenar la masa con otros frutos secos o incluso mermelada.

[English version] ESTONIAN KRINGLE* *Ingredients: For the dough:

• 30 g sugar

• 1/2 lemon peel (only the yellow part)

• 120 g milk

• 30 g butter

• 15 g fresh yeast

• 1 egg yolk

• 300 g strength

• 1 pinch of salt

For the filling:

• 50 g de butter (room temperature)

• 60 g de sugar

• 2 tbsp cinnamon

• 50 g chopped walnuts

For the icing:

• 20 g egg white

• 50 g confectioners’ sugar

* *

• If you have a coffee grinder or food processor, place the sugar and the lemon peel on it and grind it until getting a sort of paste. If you don’t have a grinder, just mix sugar with grated lemon peel.

• Heat the milk in the microwave and pour over the sugar.

• Add the butter and yeast and stir well.

• Add egg yolk and stir well again.

• Then, add flour and salt. Mix with a spoon and fork and then knead the dough on a floury surface.

• Make a dough ball and leave to rise into the bowl covered with cling film (until the dough has doubled in volume).

• In the meanwhile, prepare the filling. Mix butter (room temperature) with sugar and cinnamon.

• Preheat oven at 180º.

• When the dough has doubled in volume, place on a floury surface and roll it out with a rolling pin until getting a rectangle (40 x 50 cm aprox.)

• Spread the filling and sprinkle with chopped walnuts.

• Roll up the dough (starting by the wider side).

• Cut the log in half length-wise leaving one edge uncut.

• Start  braiding the two pieces, trying to keep the open layers exposed so the cut ends remain on top.

• Pinch the ends together and form a wreath.

• Bake for 20 minutes.

• Prepare the icing. Whisk white eggs with a fork and add confectioners’ sugar. Mix well.

• Out of the oven, brush the kringle with the sugar icing.

* *Tips: - Lemon peel is optional. You can leave it out or use orange peel. For sure, it will be delicious too. - If you want a thicker and whiter sugar icing you can use an electric mixer with whisk attachment. The result will be more similar to our kringle shown in the picture. If you whisk only with fork you will have a lighter and clearer icing. - You can change the filling and use any nuts or jam you like.

As part of the campaign “No newly-independent young adult shall go hungry, even if they don’t like cooking,” here’s another easy recipe — one of those that almost everyone knows, but just in case, I don’t want to hear that you’re not eating well just because you couldn’t be bothered to do a couple of little things in the kitchen.

What do we need?

For the shortcrust pastry:

• 200 g (1 ⅔ cups) flour

• 100 g (7 tbsp) cold butter

• 1 egg

• A pinch of salt

• A pinch of sugar

For the filling:

• 200 g (7 oz) bacon

• 100 g (3.5 oz) emmental cheese

• 50 g (1.75 oz) mushrooms

• 200 ml (¾ cup) heavy cream

• 4 medium eggs

• Half an onion

• Salt and pepper.

How do we make it?

• As you know, for the shortcrust pastry you can check here.

• While we’re making the dough, preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F).

• Once the dough is ready, place it in a baking pan and pop it in the oven for about fifteen minutes. Before putting it in the oven, prick it with a fork so it doesn’t puff up.

• With the pastry in the oven, heat a frying pan with a splash of oil. When it’s hot, add the onion and mushrooms, all sliced beforehand. Once they’ve softened a bit, add the bacon cut into strips and cook to your liking. Set aside.

• Beat the eggs in a large bowl and mix them with the cream. Season with salt and pepper.

• Add the sautéed ingredients to the bowl.

• When the pastry is partially cooked, take it out of the oven and pour in the mixture. Spread it evenly across the surface and sprinkle the cheese on top.

• Put it back in the oven and bake for around half an hour.

Tips:

• Just like we mentioned here, you can pick any kind of cheese you like or whatever you have at home.

• Shortcrust pastry isn’t hard to make, but if you’d rather, you can buy it pre-made at any supermarket. That way we make sure “No newly-independent young adult goes hungry, even if they don’t like cooking.”

[English version] QUICHE LORRAINE* Ingredients: *Shortbread pastry:

• 200 g flour

• 1oo g cold butter

• 1 egg

• A pinch of salt

• A pinch of sugar

Filling:

• 200 g bacon

• 100 g emmental cheese

• 50 g mushrooms

• 200 ml cream

• 4 eggs

• 1/2 onion

• Salt and pepper

• *Prepare the shortbread pastry. You can see here our recipe. *

• Preheat oven at 180º C.

• Roll out the pastry and place into a baking pan. Bake for 15 minutes. If we bake directly with the filling on it, the pastry will be underdone. To avoid the pastry to ‘grow’ in the oven, you can place a baking paper and fill up with baking beans. You can also pierce the pastry with a fork.

• While the pastry is baking in the oven, heat a bit of olive oil in a frying pan. Chop onion and mushrooms and place them into the hot frying pan. After a few minutes, add the bacon cut into strips and keep stir frying for a few extra minutes. Take it out from heat and set aside.

• In a large bowl, beat eggs and cream together. Add salt and pepper.

• Add the stir fried ingredients and mix well.

• The pastry will be already slightly cooked, so take it out from oven and pour evenly the cream mix inside. Sprinkle with some cheese on the top.

• Bake into the oven for around 30 minutes.

Tips:

*- As we said before here you can choose any kind of cheese you like. *

- Shortbread pastry is not a difficult task but you can also buy it in any supermarket.

Comments

yolanda del pozo (2013-04-19 09:44:08):

All the recipes on this site are easy, cheap, quick and tasty — what more could you ask for? And the photos are amazing too, just looking at them makes you want to make the dish and, above all, eat it. Congrats, great work!

silvia (2015-01-14 20:34:14):

The other day I bought shortcrust pastry by mistake… so checking out this great website, I’m bookmarking this recipe.

Just one question: what’s that about pricking the pastry before baking… do you have to pierce it? And what kind of pan works best? Like a non-stick one?

Kisses

Dentro de la campaña “Que ningún emancipado pase hambre aunque no le guste cocinar” os presento una nueva receta sencilla, de esas de las que casi todos sabemos, pero por si acaso, que no me entere yo que por no hacer dos cositas en la cocina no te vas a alimentar bien.

¿Qué necesitamos?

Para la masa quebrada:

• 200 gr de harina

• 100 gr de mantequilla fría

• 1 huevo

• Una pizca de sal

• Una pizca de azúcar

Para el relleno:

• 200 gr de bacon

• 100 gr de queso emmental

• 50 gr de champiñones

• 200 ml de nata

• 4 huevos medianos

• Media cebolla

• Sal y pimienta.

¿Cómo lo hacemos?

• Ya sabéis, para hacer la masa quebrada podéis consultarlo aquí.

• Mientras vamos haciendo la masa ponemos el horno a precalentar a 180º C.

• A continuación, una vez terminada la masa, la ponemos en un molde y la metemos en el horno unos quince minutos. Antes de ponerla en el horno la pinchamos con un tenedor para que no se levante la masa.

• Con la masa en el horno, calentamos una sartén con un chorrito de aceite. Cuando esté caliente echamos la cebolla y los champiñones, previamente todo cortado en láminas. Cuando estén un poco hechos añadimos el bacon cortado en tiras y hacemos al gusto. Reservamos.

• Batimos los huevos en un bol grande y los mezclamos con la nata. Salpimentamos.

• Incorporamos los ingredientes pochados al bol.

• Cuando la masa esté un poco cocida, la sacamos del horno y añadimos la mezcla. Repartimos por toda la superficie y añadimos el queso encima.

• Volvemos a poner en el horno y dejamos hornear en torno a media hora.

Consejos:

• Al igual que os dijimos aquí podéis elegir cualquier tipo de queso que os guste o que tengáis por casa.

• La masa quebrada no es difícil de hacer pero si queréis la podéis comprar hecha en cualquier supermercado. Así nos aseguramos “Que ningún emancipado pase hambre aunque no le guste cocinar”.

[English version] QUICHE LORRAINE* Ingredients: *Shortbread pastry:

• 200 g flour

• 1oo g cold butter

• 1 egg

• A pinch of salt

• A pinch of sugar

* ** * Filling:

• 200 g bacon

• 100 g emmental cheese

• 50 g mushrooms

• 200 ml cream

• 4 eggs

• 1/2 onion

• Salt and pepper

* * * *

• *Prepare the shortbread pastry. You can see here our recipe. *

• Preheat oven at 180º C.

• Roll out the pastry and place into a baking pan. Bake for 15 minutes. If we bake directly with the filling on it, the pastry will be underdone. To avoid the pastry to ‘grow’ in the oven, you can place a baking paper and fill up with baking beans. You can also pierce the pastry with a fork.

• While the pastry is baking in the oven, heat a bit of olive oil in a frying pan. Chop onion and mushrooms and place them into the hot frying pan. After a few minutes, add the bacon cut into strips and keep stir frying for a few extra minutes. Take it out from heat and set aside.

• In a large bowl, beat eggs and cream together. Add salt and pepper.

• Add the stir fried ingredients and mix well.

• The pastry will be already slightly cooked, so take it out from oven and pour evenly the cream mix inside. Sprinkle with some cheese on the top.

• Bake into the oven for around 30 minutes.

* *

Tips:

*- As we said before here you can choose any kind of cheese you like. *

- Shortbread pastry is not a difficult task but you can also buy it in any supermarket.

As strange as it sounds, this recipe could pass as an express one, even though we have to make a custard cream. And the secret of today’s recipe lies precisely in making that cream fast, easy, delicious, and in just 10 minutes. The trick: the microwave, that great forgotten appliance we only ever bother with to heat up the morning milk.

What do we need?

For the cream:

• 100 g (1/2 cup) sugar

• 40 g (1/3 cup) cornstarch

• 3 egg yolks

• 1/2 liter (2 cups) milk

• 1 tablespoon butter

For the tartlet:

• 1 sheet of puff pastry

• Sugar

• Cinnamon

How do we make it?

• First we prepare the custard cream. Whisk the sugar and cornstarch together in one bowl, and the egg yolks with the milk in another.

• Then mix everything together and pop it in the microwave for 8 minutes at max power, stopping every 2 minutes to stir.

• Once the 8 minutes are up, add the butter, stir, and you’re done.

• Next, roll the puff pastry sheet out a bit with a rolling pin and sprinkle it with sugar and cinnamon.

• Roll the dough into a log, pressing it with your fingers so it doesn’t end up too uniform.

• Cut it into several pieces and flatten each one to form a sort of mini-pizza.

• Use a muffin tin (the kind with several holes, like little flan molds). Place each circle into one of the cavities and press it in to form a tartlet.

• Pop it in the oven, preheated to 180°C (350°F), for about 12 minutes.

• Keep an eye on it and press the dough down every now and then to keep the hollow where the cream will go.

• Once baked, fill them with the cream, sprinkle with sugar, and brown them in the oven or with a blowtorch.

Tips:

• Microwaves come in different wattages so the cooking time may vary. As you heat the cream, you’ll see it thicken until it reaches the consistency you want.

• If you want to use the custard cream for another recipe that calls for a thinner cream, just cut down on the amount of cornstarch.

Por raro que parezca, esta receta podría calificarse de exprés, incluso teniendo que preparar una crema pastelera. Y es que el secreto de la receta de hoy está precisamente en preparar esta crema de forma rápida, fácil, con resultados deliciosos y en sólo 10 minutos. El truco: el microondas, ese gran olvidado al que sólo dejamos el privilegio de calentar la leche por las mañanas.

¿Qué necesitamos?

Para la crema:

• 100 g de azúcar

• 40 g maizena

• 3 yemas

• 1/2 litro de leche

• 1 cucharada de mantequilla

Para la tartaleta:

• 1 plancha de hojaldre

• Azúcar

• Canela

¿Cómo lo hacemos?

• En primer lugar preparamos la crema pastelera. Batimos bien el azúcar y la maizena por un lado y por otro las yemas con la leche.

• Después mezclamos todo y lo metemos 8 minutos en el microondas a máxima potencia parándolo cada 2 minutos para removerlo.

• Pasados los 8 minutos añadimos la mantequilla, removemos y listo.

• A continuación estiramos un poco la plancha de hojaldre con un rodillo y espolvoreamos con azúcar y canela.

• Hacemos un rollo con la masa aplastándolo con los dedos para que no quede uniforme.

• Cortamos en varios trozos y aplanamos cada uno de ellos formando una especie de minipizza.

• Utilizamos un molde de horno para magdalenas (de esos que tienen varios agujeros como si fueran flaneras pequeñas). Colocamos cada círculo en uno de los huecos y lo acomodamos para formar una tartaleta.

• Lo metemos al horno previamente calentado a 180 grados durante 12 minutos aproximadamente.

• Vamos vigilándolo para ir aplastando la masa de vez en cuando y así mantener el hueco donde luego pondremos la crema.

• Una vez horneados, rellenamos con la crema, se espolvorean con azúcar y se gratinan en el horno o con soplete.

Consejos:

• Los microondas pueden tener distintas potencias así que tal vez el tiempo de cocción varía. A medida que vayáis calentando la crema verás que irá espesando hasta obtener la consistencia deseada.

• Si queréis utilizar la crema pastelera para otra receta que requiera una crema menos espesa, basta con disminuir la cantidad de maizena utilizada.

  [English version]  CUSTARD CREAM TARTALETTES* *

For the cream:

• 100 g sugar

• 40 g corn flour

• 3 egg yolks

• 1/2 l milk

• 1 tbsp butter

For the tartalette:

• 1 sheet of puff pastry

• Sugar

• Cinammon

* *

• Firt prepare the custard cream. Mix corn flour and sugar. In a different bowl, beat egg yoks with milk.

• Mix everything and put into microwave for 8 minutes (maximum power). Stop microwave every 2 minutes to stir well the mixture and keep cooking.

• When time is over, add butter, stir well and set aside.

• Roll out the puff pastry with the rolling pin and sprinkle with sugar and cinammon.

• Make a roll and press with your fingers to have irregular shapes.

• Cut several thick slices and press with the fingers to get a flat circle.

• Use a baking tray for muffins and place each pastry circle in a hole. Create a tartalette using your fingers.

• Bake in the oven (preheat at 180ºC) for around 12 min.

• Keep an eye on it to press the pastry with a spoon to keep the hole where the cream will be placed later.

• Once baked, stuff with cream, sprinkle with some sugar and burn it with a kitchen blowtorch or in the oven.

* *

Tips:

- Microwaves have different power so time may differ. You’ll see how the cream gets thicker and thicker when cooking.

- If you want a smoother cream, reduce the amount of the corn flour used.

* *

Whole Kitchen, in their Sweet Proposal for January, invites us to make a Scottish classic: Scones

We almost ran out of time with this recipe because — unusual for us — we made it the same day it was published. Luckily, it’s super easy and takes very little time. As usual, the baking time is what stretches the recipe out the most, but hey, the little wait is well worth it. We followed the recipe from www.joyofbaking.com

What do we need?

• 260 g (2 cups) all-purpose flour

• 50 g (¼ cup) sugar

• 1 sachet of Royal baking powder

• a pinch of salt

• 75 g (5 tbsp) very cold butter, cubed

• 1 beaten egg

• 120 ml (½ cup) heavy cream

How do we make it?

• Preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F).

• In a bowl, mix the flour with the sugar, baking powder and salt. Add the butter and rub it in with your fingertips — it should look like crumbs. Set aside.

• In a separate bowl, mix the egg with the cream.

• Combine both mixtures until well integrated, but don’t overwork the dough.

• Roll out lightly until you have a fairly thick dough (about 1.5 cm / ½ inch). (Our first ones came out too thin.) Using a cookie cutter or a glass, cut out circles about 6 cm (2.5 inches) wide.

• Place them on a baking tray lined with parchment paper and brush with a little milk.

• Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, until golden.

• Take them out of the oven and let them cool on a wire rack.

Tips:

• We forgot to brush the scones with milk and they still turned out delicious, so if you forget too, it’s not the end of the world.

• You can add chocolate chips, nuts, raisins… to the dough. This time we used dried cranberries.

• To eat them, just split them in half and spread on butter and jam, whipped cream, lemon curd or anything else you fancy.

[English version] SCONES* Ingredients: *

• 260 g all-purpose flour

• 50 g granulated white sugar

• *1 sachet baking powder *

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 75 g cold unsalted butter

• 1 large egg

• 120 ml milk, half-and-half, or heavy cream

• *Preheat oven to 190 degrees C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. *

• In a large bowl, whisk or sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut the butter into small pieces and blend into the flour mixture with a pastry blender, two knives, or with your fingertips. (The mixture should look like coarse crumbs.) In a small measuring cup whisk together the milk or cream and beaten egg. Add this mixture to the flour mixture. Stir just until combined. Do not over mix.

• Transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead the dough gently four or five times and then pat into a 1,5cm of thickness. Then, using a 6 cm round cookie cutter, cut the dough into rounds. Place the rounds on the prepared cookie sheet, spacing a few centimetres apart. Brush the tops of the scones with a little cream.(This helps to brown the tops of the scones during baking.)

• *Bake for about 15 -18 minutes or until nicely browned and a toothpick inserted into the center of a scone comes out clean. Remove from oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool. *

Tips:

*- We forgot brushing the scones with milk before baking. The result was wonderful anyway, so in case you forget it too, don’t panic! *

- You can add to the dough chocolate chips, nuts, raisins… We used dried cranberries.

*- You can serve them with butter and jam, marmalade, whipped cream, lemon curd or anything you like. *

Comments

Marivi (2013-01-26 00:39:22):

They look fantastic, and with the filling I’m sure they were even better.

Cristina (2013-01-26 00:55:54):

I really like your version, with cranberries they must be really good ;) and judging by the photos they look delicious!

A kiss!

PIlarHG (2013-01-26 00:59:03):

The same thing happened to me! I ended up making the recipe today too! Lucky it’s a quick one! They turned out great! ;)

Apfelstrudelkuchen (2013-01-26 01:55:06):

Hi!!!

Yeah, it’s true that nothing happens if you don’t brush them, because those scones look absolutely delicious.

A little kiss, Sandra von Cake

Palstelera (2013-01-26 12:48:42):

The truth is they were really tasty, and since I used the leftover cream to whip it up with a bit of sugar, even better. :-)

Palstelera (2013-01-26 12:49:39):

So glad you like them. The cranberries were a last-minute decision and they worked out really well.

Palstelera (2013-01-26 12:50:13):

Yes! Thank goodness they were quick :-)

Palstelera (2013-01-26 12:51:02):

Although now I’ll have to make them again to make them thicker and brushed with milk to see how they turn out :-)

Gri (2013-01-28 11:20:08):

I love your scones… they look fantastic!

A hug Gri http://eltallerdelosviernes.blogspot.com.es/2013/01/hoy-toca-receta-del-cwk.html

mara (2013-01-28 16:49:19):

They turned out so well and look so good with cranberries. I made mine plain because my daughters don’t like them. Here’s my version http://masdulcequesaladopuntocom.blogspot.com.es/2013/01/scones.html

zordor (2013-01-30 05:45:23):

This had a rhyme to it, but honestly I can’t remember what it was right now… :P

guillus (2013-02-27 20:27:45):

Scones! Do we also have to explain how to eat them? :P

guillus (2013-02-27 20:28:47):

Scones! Do we also have to explain how to eat them? :P And with clotted cream they’re even better…

Whole Kitchen en su Propuesta Dulce para el mes de enero nos invita a preparar un clásico escocés: Scones

Casi nos pilla el toro con la preparación de esta receta porque, raro en nosotros, pero la hemos hecho el mismo día de su publicación. Por suerte, la elaboración es sencillísima y se tarda muy poco tiempo. Como de costumbre, el tiempo de horneado es lo que más alarga nuestra receta pero bueno, la pequeña espera merece la pena. Hemos seguido la receta de www.joyofbaking.com

¿Qué necesitamos?

• 260 g de harina

• 50 g de azúcar

• 1 sobre de levadura Royal 

• una pizca de sal 

• 75 g de mantequilla en cubitos muy fría 

• 1 huevo batido 

• 120 ml de nata

¿Cómo lo hacemos?

•  Precalentamos el horno a 190ºC.

• En un bol mezclamos la harina, con el azúcar, la levadura y la sal. Añadimos la mantequilla y mezclamos con ayuda de los dedos, deben parecer migas. Reservamos.

• Por otro lado mezclamos los huevos con la nata.

• Mezclamos ambos preparados hasta que estén bien integrados pero sin amasar demasiado.

• Estiramos ligeramente con el rodillo hasta tener una masa más bien gordita (1'5 cm aprox.). (A nosotros nos quedaron los primeros demasiado finos). Con un cortante o un vaso cortamos círculos de unos 6 cm.

• Colocamos en la bandeja del horno forrada con el papel para hornear y pintamos con un poco de leche.

• Horneamos de 15 a 18 minutos, hasta que esté dorado.

• Retiramos del horno y dejamos enfriar en una rejilla.

Consejos:

• A nosotros se nos olvidó pintar los scones con leche y quedaron igualmente ricos así que si se os olvida no es el fin del mundo.

• A la masa podéis añadirle pepitas de chocolate, nueces, pasas… En esta ocasión le hemos puesto arándanos rojos deshidratados.

• Para comerlos, basta con abrirlos por la mitad y untar mantequilla y mermelada, nata montada, *lemon curd *o cualquier otra cosa que os guste.

[English version] SCONES* Ingredients: *

• 260 g all-purpose flour

• 50 g granulated white sugar

• *1 sachet baking powder *

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 75 g cold unsalted butter

• 1 large egg

• 120 ml milk, half-and-half, or heavy cream

* *

• *Preheat oven to 190 degrees C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. *

• In a large bowl, whisk or sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut the butter into small pieces and blend into the flour mixture with a pastry blender, two knives, or with your fingertips. (The mixture should look like coarse crumbs.) In a small measuring cup whisk together the milk or cream and beaten egg. Add this mixture to the flour mixture. Stir just until combined. Do not over mix.

• Transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead the dough gently four or five times and then pat into a 1,5cm of thickness. Then, using a 6 cm round cookie cutter, cut the dough into rounds. Place the rounds on the prepared cookie sheet, spacing a few centimetres apart. Brush the tops of the scones with a little cream.(This helps to brown the tops of the scones during baking.)

• *Bake for about 15 -18 minutes or until nicely browned and a toothpick inserted into the center of a scone comes out clean. Remove from oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool. *

Tips:

*- We forgot brushing the scones with milk before baking. The result was wonderful anyway, so in case you forget it too, don’t panic!  *

- You can add to the dough chocolate chips, nuts, raisins… We used dried cranberries.

*- You can serve them with butter and jam, marmalade, whipped cream, lemon curd or anything you like. *