As winter arrives with full arctic force, I thought this cold snap called for some quality baking time in the kitchen. Forget stews and soups, I crave crumbles, muffins and light, yeasted buns this time of year. It must be the Scandinavian in me, all we want to do come November-December time is bake. Our tradition of Christmas baking is certainly one I miss most about living in Norway.
Be that as it may, winter is not all about baking sweet treats, delectable though they are! It’s always great to branch out, and savoury baking offers as much joy as sweet baking. As anyone who knows me will tell you I am a self-confessed cheese lover, curd-nerd, caseophile, call it what you will, I absolutely LOVE cheese. So when the nice people at Davidstow called and offered me the opportunity to create new recipes using Davidstow’s delicious, creamy Classic Cheddar and the robust, piquant Crackler Cheddar, my imagination, as you might imagine, ran wild…
Pumpkin, Davidstow Crackler and sage spelt muffins are inspired in part by American Thanksgiving, when pumpkin pie is a traditional holiday treat after gorging on roast turkey. I love the colour and slight sweetness in these pumpkin muffins, tempered by fragrant sage and a full savoury hit of the Crackler Cheddar. I promise you won’t be disappointed.
While muffins might be quick n’ easy to bake, Davidstow Classic Cheddar buns with apple, and caramelised onion chutney buns demand a little more patience. Eat them as they are, warm and oozing with Classic Cheddar, or alongside a roasted winter vegetable soup, a winter salad or a warming stew.
Cauliflower cheese is one of winter’s finest veggie dishes, simply add Davidstow Crackler, leeks, bacon and perfectly crisp crumble and you have a winter crackler of a dish. Be warned, this is not for the calorie conscious (none of my cooking is) but trust me, this cauliflower crumble is a mighty fine way to savour all that is great about winter cooking. Ploughing snow, after all, demands energy, and this dish will give you energy in spades.
Velbekomme! As we say in Norway. Eat Cheddar and be merry.
Cheers,
Sig x
Pumpkin, Davidstow Crackler Cheddar and Sage Spelt Muffins
Makes 12 generous muffins
Ingredients:
125g plain, unrefined spelt flour
125g wholemeal spelt flour
3 heaping tablespoons of oats
2 tbsp Light Muscovado Sugar (I used Billington’s)
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cayenne pepper
3 sprigs of sage, roughly torn
275g pumpkin puree (I used Libby’s tinned pumpkin)
100ml plain yoghurt
50g melted butter
2 eggs
1 tbsp English mustard
100g finely grated Davidstow Crackler Cheddar
30g coarsely grated Davidstow Crackler + 30g oats for sprinkling on the muffins before baking
Method:
Preheat the oven to 190 C. You will need a 12x muffin tin, make sure it’s a medium-large one, not the smaller one for fairy cakes. If you have a smaller one do bake these muffins in two batches. Line the muffin tin with little squares of parchment paper or paper muffin cases.
In a large bowl mix sieve all the dry ingredients and stir through with a large spoon to distribute the raising agents. In a medium bowl mix the pumpkin puree, yoghurt, and melted butter. Crack the eggs into a cup and beat with a fork, then add this to the pumpkin mixture. Finally add mustard and the finely grated cheddar.
Make a well in the middle of the large bowl of dry ingredients and pour in the liquid ingredients from the medium bowl. Stir through using a large spoon about 12 times, using figure of eight motions to reach the bottom of the bowl so all the ingredients incorporate together.
Using an ice cream scoop or a tablespoon place an even amount of mixture into each muffin case. They dome quite high when baking so you can be generous with filling the cases.
Sprinkle each muffin with coarsely grated Davidstow Crackler and some extra oats for garnish.
Bake on the upper middle shelf of the oven for 20-25 minutes or until the muffins look golden-brown and feel quite firm to the touch. Eat while warm or keep for lunchboxes, as accompaniments to soup and what you don’t use simply freeze for occasions when you don’t have time to bake!
Davidstow Classic Cheddar buns with Apple and Caramelised Onion Chutney
Makes 8-10 buns
Dough:
250ml whole milk
75g butter
210g refined plain spelt flour
210g wholemeal spelt flour
1tbsp treacle
1/2 tsp salt
10g dried yeast (or 20g fresh yeast)
1 egg, beaten
Filling:
100g finely grated Davidstow Cornish Classic Cheddar
3 heaping tablespoons of apple and caramelised onion chutney (or chutney of your choice)
1 small egg beaten to glaze the muffins
30-50g extra coarsely grated cheddar for sprinkling on the buns
Method:
Scald the milk by heating it in a small pan with the butter until it is almost boiling and then allow it to cool while you assemble the other ingredients. Scalding the milk makes the finished bread softer.
Sift all the dry ingredients together into a large bowl, sprinkle the dried yeast in and stir through. If using fresh yeast, cream it with a teaspoon of sugar in a small bowl and once it is liquid (about 30 seconds) add to the dry ingredients.
Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients, add the beaten egg and then the milk-butter mixture, which should be warm rather than hot to the touch, as otherwise you risk killing the yeast. Stir everything together until the mixture comes off the sides of the bowl and looks – for want of a better word – doughy. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bag or bowl and leave it to rise at room temperature for 30 minutes. It should double in size.
Use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a rectangle of about 40cm x 30cm. Spread the chutney over the dough so it’s evenly distributed and then sprinkle the grated Davidstow Classic cheddar over it. Roll the dough into a wide cylinder, rolling from one of the longer edges of the rectangle, so it looks like an uncooked Swiss roll!
Using a sharp non-serrated knife cut the log into 1.5cm wide slices and place them on a greased baking sheet (if you fancy loaves instead, slice the log in half and pop each half into a lightly oiled bread tin). Cover the dough and leave it to rise again in a warm place for 30-40 minutes until it has doubled in size. You can test it by gently poking it with your little finger – the indentation should stay put.
Preheat the oven to 200ºC. Glaze the risen dough with the beaten egg and sprinkle the extra cheddar over the top, then bake on the upper-middle shelf of the oven. Buns will need 12-15 minutes baking time; loaves will need 30-45 minutes until they sound hollow when tapped on the base.
Allow the cheddar buns to cool on a wire rack. They will last for several days and freeze remarkably well, perfect for lunchtime or brunch emergencies!
Cauliflower, leek and bacon Davidstow Crackler Cheddar crumble
Serves 3-4 as a lunchtime treat or 2-3 as a main course supper
Ingredients:
For the crumble:
75g plain refined spelt flour
75g Davidstow Crackler cheddar
50g cold butter (pop in the freezer for 30 minutes)
25g porridge oats
1/2 tsp sea salt
pinch of paprika
pinch of dry mustard
(you can of course add chopped herbs such as chives, parsley or sage to this crumble mixture for a little something extra)
1 cauliflower head, chopped into florets
200g bacon lardons
1 leek, finely sliced
250g double cream
200g crème fraiche
50g finely grated Davidstow Crackler cheddar
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
salt and pepper
Start with the crumble: In a magimix or blender, blitz all the ingredients together for 30 seconds or until they resemble breadcrumbs. You can of course make crumble by hand but work quickly incorporating the butter into the flour, the cooler crumble mixture stays the more crisp it will be when baking. Keep cool on your windowsill or in the fridge until you’re ready to bake the crumble.
Preheat the oven to 220 C. In a frying pan fry the bacon over a medium heat for 5-10 minutes until crispy but not incinerated please!
Using the bacon fat in the pan, and adding a dollop of butter fry the leeks over a low heat for a few minutes until transparent and soft. Add the garlic, fry a further 30 seconds and then add the double cream and crème fraiche. Bring to a simmer, add the cheddar and then season to taste with salt and pepper.
Pour the cauliflower, sauce and bacon lardons into a medium ceramic roasting dish and sprinkle the cool crumble mixture on top. Bake on the upper-middle shelf of the oven for 15-20 minutes until the crumble is golden brown and crisp to the touch.
Eat as is or with a fresh green salad.
