My British grandmother was a wonderful cook, especially when it came to desserts. Before she emigrated to America, she worked as a housekeeper for a well-to-do manor house in Sheffield, England. She would tell me many stories about England and how much she missed it. I loved hearing them and found myself pining for the green hills of Yorkshire with her. Many years after her death I was able to travel to her birthplace and saw why she missed it so. My latest paranormal novel, Whispers in the Wood, is a nod to her as it takes place in England.
This was one of my favorite childhood recipes she taught me how to make. If you don't wish to venture into homemade pastry, frozen sheet pastry will do (buy enough for two pies). Enjoy!
Ingredients
Pastry
2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
2/3 cup vegetable shortening
5-7 T cold water
Cut shortening into flour and salt mixture until it resembles small peas. Add cold water, one tablespoon at a time, until pastry sticks together. Roll out into a thin sheet and cut into 4 squares.
Apples
4 large Granny Smith apples, peeled and cored
Fill each core with a pat of butter, a teaspoon of sugar, and a sprinkle of cinnamon
*Wrap each apple with pastry, closing the top like a drawstring purse, and set in a baking pan.
Sauce
Mix:
1-3/4 cup water
3/4 cup white sugar
3T butter
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Boil mixture for 3 minutes and pour over pastry wrapped apples.
Bake uncovered at 500F for 5-7 minutes.
Reduce heat to 350F and bake for 35-40 minutes more. Enjoy with tea (of course!) and a good book.
Fall is here! With the cooling of the weather comes a yearning for warm and yummy things. My British grandmother couldn't go a day without her tea and scones, regardless of the weather. I'm unsure what she'd think about this recipe, as it's not traditional, but the ginger is a nice touch and one of my favorite spices. Enjoy!
Honey-Ginger Scones
3½ cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ cup sugar
½ cup honey
1/2 cup butter, cold and cut into cubes
1 cup crystallized ginger
¾ cup heavy cream
¾ cup buttermilk
Preheat the oven to 375˚F.
Sift the flour, baking soda, and baking powder into
a large mixing bowl. Add salt, ground ginger, and
sugar and stir well. Using a pastry cutter, work the cubed butter into the flour mixture
until reduced into very small pieces. Chop the
crystallized ginger and add into the bowl along
with the cream, honey, and buttermilk.
Mix briefly just until the ingredients come
together—don’t overwork.
Shape the dough into individual 2-inch balls (or) one flattened ball and place on a baking sheet lined
with parchment paper.
Topping
¼ cup sugar
⅛ teaspoon ground ginger
Mix together sugar
and ground ginger and sprinkle on top of the dough.
Bake at 375˚F for about 25 minutes until golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack and cool.
Top with clotted cream, jam or enjoy plain with your favorite cup of tea.
This recipe is versatile because the vegetables can be adjusted to what you like or what you've got "on hand." It may seem like a complicated recipe but it's actually easy: make your mashed potatoes and set aside, saute veggies of choice, mix in the gravy with the veggies, top the veggie mixture with the mashed potatoes and bake. Enjoy!
Versatile Vegetarian Shepherd's Pie
Mashed potato layer:
1-1/2 lbs (about 6 potatoes) Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into quarters
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons heavy cream
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon milk (or more)
1/2 cup Cheddar cheese
Directions:
Place the potatoes in a pot, cover with cold water, and bring to a boil. Turn the heat to medium-low, and boil the potatoes until tender, about 25 minutes; drain.
Stir in cream, butter and salt. Mash with a potato masher, adding the milk, until smooth and fluffy. Set the potatoes aside.
Cheddar cheese will be used as topping later.
Vegetable layer:
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 teaspoon basil
1 clove garlic, minced, or more to taste
1 tsp ground black pepper
6 cups of chopped fresh vegetables of your choice.
Some to consider are: mushrooms, carrots, corn, celery, green beans, zucchini or squash of any kind, red peppers, green peppers, parsnips, peas, and/or spinach.
Directions
Heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onions, basil, garlic, pepper and sliced vegetables of choice. Cook until vegetables are softened but not overdone.
1. Saute the onions, mushrooms and garlic with the butter.
3. Make a roux by gradually adding the flour. Make sure you continuously whisk to avoid lumps!
4. Still whisking, add soy sauce and water to the mixture.
5. Add salt and pepper and cook until it reaches the desired thickness.
Add to vegetable mixture
To assemble:
Preheat oven to 400F and spray a 15x10 glass baking dish (or 3-qt casserole dish) with cooking spray.
Spread bottom layer mixture into the the baking dish and top with the mashed potatoes, smoothing them into an even layer.
Sprinkle the potatoes with 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese.
Bake in the preheated oven until the cheese is melted and slightly browned and the casserole is hot, about 20 minutes.
The photos this week are my own. I had the stories in my head when I took them. This particular story came to me complete with music. Hit play (down at the bottom) and read on...
Phone Boxof the Dead
The door wouldn't budge. Desperate, she pounded on it. Peering down the empty alleyway, she was doubtful anyone would be coming by soon. It was late and the shops had been closed for hours. Outside the phone box, the night was still.
She rooted in her purse for a coin and came up empty-handed. "Figures," she murmured. She could call 999. But this hardly ranked as an emergency, the door to the phone box was merely stuck. She pushed on it again to no avail. An icy breeze slipped through the cracks, chilling her to the core. Her breath plumed in the night air.
A distant sound of music broke the silence. Mournful, the music threaded its way down the alleyway.
Pressing against the glass, she tried to see where the music was coming from. Maybe a car or someone's iPhone? "Hello?" she called. Thank God. I thought I'd be trapped here all night.
The movement began far at the end of the dark alleyway. Mere glimpses at first; the curl of a fingertip and the flash of pale skin. But slowly, the movement coagulated into something tangible. A form emerged from the darkness like a moth from its cocoon, followed by another, and another. Moving in slow motion, they drifted with the music in an unspoken unity.
Bare feet skimmed over puddles of rain, leaving not a trace. Vestiges of cloaks, tattered like spiderwebs, clung to what was left of their ghostly bodies. The music increased in tempo. The procession danced in joyless abandon as they continued past her, their faces contorted in sadness and despair.
"What the hell?" she murmured.
A tall, shadowed figure trailed in their wake. Gently guiding those that strayed off the path, he seemed to be herding them towards their destination.
She backed up as far as she could inside the phone box. Hoping the door remained stuck, she jammed it shut with her foot. He didn't seem to notice her, at least she didn't think he did. The others continued in their unearthly procession. The icy breeze continued to blow through the cracks of the phone box, bringing with it the smell of stone, decay and ashes.
The tall figure's stride was seemingly pensive. Shadows curled around his feet like smoke. His cloak dragged behind him with a tangible heaviness. Walking past the phone box, he kept his distance.
She was about to breathe a sigh of relief...when he suddenly turned to face her.
