Chow Down to Eurovision 2014 - Austria

Guten Abend this is Austria calling, we hope you are enjoying this really really wonderful show.

Last year Austria provided us with a delightful lamb cooked in hay which bought them a place in the Final

As I've previous mentioned, many of this year's contestants have provided the inspiration for their countries' Chow Down to Eurovision dish.

So while I had thoughts of cooking my way through My Favourite Things, I couldn't go past this year's contestant for Austria Conchita Wurst and putting her song into a cake.

This torte is loosely based on a recipe for Linzer Torte from the Austrian National Tourist Office though I have added a touch more glamour.

Austria's highest placing act in the recent times was Alf Poier with Weil der Mensch zählt they came 6th and it's guaranteed to have you singing along by the end.

 

Conchita's Phoneix Linzer Torte

• 250g butter
• 250g plain flour
• 150g hazelnut meal
• 100g icing sugar
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 egg
• 1 egg white
• 750g raspberry jam approx. (recipe at bottom)
• 150g marzipan
• Gold lustre dust (from some supermarkets or cake decorating suppliers)
• Black food colour

Method

• Place butter, flour, hazelnut meal, icing sugar, cinnamon in the bowl of a food processor
• Pulse to crumbs 
• Add egg and process till it starts to come into a ball
• Shape into a ball and cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes-1 hour
• It is a very soft dough
• Line a 25cm tart tin with the pastry, it may be too soft to roll completely but it can be pushed into shape in the tin
• The left over pastry will be the border and the bird (or lattice if not making the phoenix)
• Brush the inside of the tart with egg white
• Preheat oven to 180°C
• Fill the tart with raspberry jar (stir it up so its easier to spread)
• Roll some of the remaining pastry into a sausage and place around the inside edge of the tart
• Roll out a small piece of pastry and use a cutter or free hand to shape the phoenix body
• Place on top of the jam
• Refrigerate the tart for 15 minutes
• Bake for 35-40 minutes
• Let cool in the tin
• Once cold place on serving plate and decorate

My phoenix is made from an Easter cookie cutter and silicon feather press, cake decorating shops would have similar or ebay...always ebay!

To let the phoenix rise

• Press a small amount of marzipan into the feather press
• It is easier if you dip the press in icing sugar and shake off the excess first
• Make about 25-30 feathers
• Using a small paint brush dust the feathers with gold lustre dust
• Dust the pastry with lustre dust, if you have left your tart in the oven for 2 minutes too long like I did....oops
• Arrange the feathers over the tart like a phoenix, the jam will help secure them
• It's optional, but you can add a beard to your phoenix with black food colour and a paint brush, If Conchita has taught us anything it's everything is better with a beard!

 

To make the jam

• Put 1kg of raspberries into a saucepan
• Add 700g sugar and the juice of 1 large lime
• Stir over low heat
• Heat to 105°C and stir for about 5-10 minute
• Test the jam by placing a spoon full on a plate that has been in the freezer.
• Let it cool
• If it wrinkles up when you push your finger through it, it's ready
• Store in sterilized jars
• This makes more than is needed for the tart but there are always, toast, muffins, scones, or crumpets needing to be eaten!

Wurst, Conchita Wurst will ignite Copenhagen like the love child of James Bond and Shirley Bassey with Rise like a Phoenix.

Will she set fire to the stage and fly straight into the final?

Viel Gluck!

Strawberry and Blood Orange Jam

 

Way back in October's In My Kitchen I wrote about Strawberry and Blood Orange Jam, well all things come to those who wait, so here is the recipe.

 

I make jam in small batches rather than having jars and jars of it, as I don't eat jam every day and I like to have varieties when I do.

 

This batch has also made it's way into my Christmas cake!

 

The combination of the berry and citrus flavours reminds me a little of fruit cup cordial.

 

Strawberry and Blood Orange Jam

Ingredients

• 500g whole strawberries, washed and hulled
• 2 blood oranges*
• 250g sugar

Method

• Zest and juice the blood oranges (I like long strands)
• In a large saucepan add the strawberries, zest and juice and sugar
• Stir occasionally
• Simmer on low to medium for about 45 minutes to 1 hour
• Test the jam is ready by putting a couple of small plates in the freezer, add a tsp. of jam to the frozen plate, if it sets, you're done.
• I like the slow gentle approach to keep the strawberries intact
• Now just to whip up a batch of scones and cream, bliss!

*Redbelly Citrus supplied the blood oranges for this recipe.

 

 

 

Store in a sterilised jar in the fridge, my small batches are usually gone in a month.

 

Chow Down to Eurovision 2013 - France

Bonjour, bonsoir, bienvenue Madame et Monsieur, while French is an official language of Eurovision if I keep going on with this things could get messy.
France is famous for its cuisine and today's recipe comes from a Frenchman I worked with several years back, let's call him François shall we.

He was 6 foot, early 40's salt and pepper hair with more salt than pepper and always dressed with such style people would actually swoon.

I used to find it hilarious that when he spoke, not a word of a lie, there were times when people audibly gasped. One day while dodging lusty bypassers we were discussing offal as one does.

He told me of a childhood treat of pan fried liver with raspberry jam, I told him he was nuts but as adventurous as ever I had to try it.
While his voice did nothing for me I did love his liver, you know what I mean.

Catherine Ferry sang Un, Deux, Trois with such energy in 1976 that she came 2nd and made it to the Chow Down to Eurovision 2013. No matter how hard I try I just can't get the clap, I hope you have better luck.

Liver and Jam

Ingredients

• 1 small liver (lambs fry)
• Seasoned flour
• 2 tbsp. butter
• 2 tbsp. oil

Method

• Cut liver into thin slices
• Coat in the seasoned flour
• Pan fry in butter and oil on medium heat for about 1-2 minutes till cooked through
• Serve spread with raspberry jam, just trust me, oh and François.

Raspberry Jam
Ingredients

• 300g raspberries
• 150g sugar
• Juice of ½ a lemon

Method

• Simmer on low for about 30 mins, till the jam holds it shape on a chilled plate.
• Too simple!

 

 

Amandine Bourgeois will try her best for France on Saturday night with L'enfer Et Moi.

Bonne chance!

 

To top it off

With all the excitement of bread I needed something to top it. I had a pineapple in the fridge with screamed at me “make me into jam”.

I’ve only made few jams but the concept is pretty simple, fruit, sugar and a setting agent (juice of a lemon) you then just let if simmer away till it is soft and will set when cooled. I’ve never made it in batches big enough to keep to worry about it going off or the need to wax the top of the jar.

I remember a dinner with my partner's parents where we had some a bread roll or scone (see the memory is going) and his dad asked if we had any jam, “no but I can make some”. Frozen blueberries, a squeeze of lemon, sugar, 20mins and hey presto jam.

Minted Pineapple Jam

·         1 small pineapple about 300grams, peeled, cored and finally chopped.

·         150grams sugar

·         Juice of 1 small lemon

·         60ml water

·         2 large sprigs of mint

I just added this all together and simmered on low for about 45-55mins.

The mint was added for the last 10 minutes and then taken out.

The pineapple will soften and it will be ready once it thickens and set on a plate when cooled.

If it just to be eaten fresh, it doesn’t really need to set. Next time i mignt wiz 1/4 of the pineapple in the food processer to change the texture.

Hmmm it would be nice over ice cream or a pancake.

Most jam recipes have equal amounts of sugar to fruit but I have learnt from my best friend who is the queen of jams that half sugar is much nicer. This will of course depend on how sweet your tooth is, I don’t mind the odd tart every now and again.