I make - apple frangipane tart

How can Autumn go without apple tarts? Our neighbors gave us a bagful of apples a week ago. It seems like a perfect excuse (not that I need any) to make one of my favorite dessert combos, apples and frangipane with my favorite dessert tart dough.

Apple frangipane tart

For tart dough:

- 120 g plain flour
- 120 g bread/strong flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tbsp sugar
- pinch of salt
- 100 g melted unsalted butter
- 40 g room-temperature water

For apple filling:

- 5 to 6 medium size apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
- 100 g sugar
- 100 g ground almond
- 100 g melted unsalted butter
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 tsp almond extract
- melted butter to brush the apple slices
- 1-2 tbsps demerara sugar
- warm apricot jam to glaze the finished tart

Preheat the oven at 180C. Grease and flour a 9x13in tart tin.

To prepare the tart dough, mix both flours, baking powder, sugar, salt together in a bowl. Stir in melted butter, mix lightly with a rubber spatula, and then drizzle in water. Mix until the dough is well combined. Tip the dough out onto a large piece of cling film. Gather four corners to help form a ball.

Roll the dough out between two sheets of baking paper to a thickness of 50p coin (2mm). Transfer the dough onto your prepared tart tin. Ease the dough into all slides and four corners. Pierce the tart base with a fork. Cover the tart tin with a grease-proof paper followed by baking beads. Blind bake for 20 minutes, with the last 10 minutes grease-proof paper and baking beads removed. Remove the tart tin from the oven. Keep the oven heat on.

Prepare the frangipane filling by mixing sugar, ground almond, melted butter, eggs and almond extract together. Spread the frangipane all over the tart shell. Arrange the apple slices in a decorative manner. Brush melted butter on top of apple slices and scatter demerara sugar on the top. Bake the tart at 180C for 40-50 minutes, until the edge of apple slices starts to brown. Turn the tart case 180 degrees halfway through.

When the tart is baked, remove it from the oven. Brush apricot jam all over on top of the apple slices. Cool before serving.

Second week of November 2016

What. a. week.

After what has happened this week, I am beyond sadness. Bewildered, even a bit frustrated, then I played Anthem by Leonard Cohen, over and over again.

I thought it was not possible to bring so much hope with so few words after Leonard Cohen's Anthem

There is a crack in everything
That's how the light gets in.

- Leonard Cohen, 1992

But Hilary Clinton did it for me this week.

Many of you are at the beginning of your professional, public, and political careers — you will have successes and setbacks too. 
This loss hurts, but please never stop believing that fighting for what's right is worth it.
It is worth it.

- Hilary Clinton, 09 November 2016

I will do what Dear Polly Heather Havrilesky suggested, stay away from social media, peer away from newspaper political columns for a while. Just remember what's truly mattered in life and do your bits, even though some may not join, for a world which belongs. to. everyone.

Bonfire night 2016

With firework sound lively at the background, I made us something which tasted pretty amazing tonight. It's worth making a note.

Slow-roasted lamb shoulder

I got a carvery ready lamb shoulder, about 1.2 kg. Seasoned the lamb inside out with a mixture of olive oil, garlic powder. thyme and oregano leaves, black pepper and salt. Put the lamb in a wide and shallow casserole on top of 3 red onions and pour 1 cup of liquid consisting of half sherry and half water. Cover the casserole with a lid and roast the meat at 160C for 4 hours. The lid is on for the first three hours but off for the last one for the meat to crisp up. Before serving, I reduce the pan juice with a tiny amount of sugar and vinegar. Best lamb I've ever had.

Carrot puree

Boil 500g carrots in chunks for 30 minutes (or until they are tender). Drain the carrots (save 1 1/2 cup of water for couscous later) and let them steam dry for 5 minutes. Put 2 tablespoons of butter in and mash the carrots. Adjust the taste with salt and a pinch of sugar. I usually further season the carrot puree depending on what goes with it. For the roast lamb tonight, I added 1/4 teaspoon of homemade Baharat spice (see below). Harissa is a good substitute or just cumin powder. It's a nice and different way to serve carrots as a side dish.

Baharat spice mix by Melissa Clark: combine 2 tablespoons sweet paprika, 1 tablespoon ground coriander, 1 tablespoon ground cumin, 1 tablespoon ground turmeric, 2 teaspoons black pepper, 1 teaspoon grated nutmeg, 1 teaspoon ground cardamom and 1 teaspoon allspice.

Couscous with raisins and peas

Boil 1 1/2 cup of water (I used the water saved from cooking carrots) in a saucepan. Season the water with 1/4 teaspoon of Baharat spice and a pinch of salt. When the water comes to boil,  add in a handful of raisins and half cup of frozen peas. Bring the pot back to boil and pour in one cup of couscous. Stir, cover and turn the heat off. After 10 minutes, remove the lid and fluff the couscous with a spoon/fork.

Apricot and brioche tart

This dessert makes use of store-bought brioche and canned apricots. The preparation is merely an assembly job, layering the brioche slices, spreading the filling and topping with apricot slices. I added two tablespoons of amaretto to the filling. The brioche remains soft but firm enough to be a tart base. The taste is simple but elegant, a very good dessert indeed.