December 24, 2015 - 10:31am
Xmas tree Chelsea buns..
From an idea I saw on TV recently from Paul Hollywood: (Although I'm sure its not new!):
All for a party this afternoon - the rest of the spread just to make you wish you'd been here :-)
Now to wash up..
-Gordon
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Wow! that looks wonderful (love the tree, too). Now I'm really sorry my invitation to your party arrived too late for me to have time to renew my passport. I'll be willing to bet not a single crumb was left!
Gordon, it looks wonderful.
I'm assuming that is humus upper right by the chips and tho I wouldn't dare to guess the cheeses, from the proscuitto and gherkins to the dates and around, most things are recognizable (I hope I got them right).
If I'm allowed to ask, I have a few questions.
What is the dark loaf above the baguettes? Then, what are the 'snowflake' crusted tarts bottom center? Which begs the question, what is the sliced fruit bread just below and to the right of that, and what is that disc running thru the center? Beautiful stuff.
And of course, just from ignorance of having ever heard of 'Chelsea buns' what is the filling? Also, they look like they were proofed in a form but baked free. Is that so?
Also, what is the white sausage on the far right proscuitto tray? Is that a blood sausage?
I noticed a lot of 'Devon' on the labels and as I recall you said it was mostly locally sourced, so no wonder.
It looks like a very nicely balanced menu of sweet and savory, veg and meat and bread.
I wish I were there.
dobie
So... Got a few moments before todays feasting starts, so ...
Humus - Yes. Home made. It's a bit green as there's fresh coriander in it.
The charcuterie - The plate in the foreground is Spanish Serrano ham. We got a whole leg and carved it. One day we might get the knack of doing it thin enough to read newsprint through, however its good enough for now. We used to wet cure our own every year, but fancied a change this year. The other plate is various continental cured meats. The white sausage is some other cured meat like a salami - not 100% sure exactly what it was as my wife bought it.
The dark loaf is 100% rye. It's my "Dark Rye No. 3" recipe which is based on my Borodinsky recipe but with caraway and not coriander in it. (and maybe a little more malt extract). Goes well with savourys - meats & cheese. We're having the remainder today with smoked salmon and meats for starters.. (my mother in-law is wheat intolerant but loves this stuff which she can eat)
The snowflake tarts - Mine Pies.... See here
The sliced fruit bread is Stollen. A "Dresdener". I've made (& sold) a dozen of these over the past few weeks. Marzipan in the middle.
chelsea buns - snail buns. cinnamon swirls - all the same idea. Roll out sweet bread dough, cover it with "stuff", roll up and cut unto slices. The filling here is mincemeat which I've enriched with cranberries and cinnamon. Topped with a cherry and a brushing of icing - just assembled into a tree-like shape.
the cheeseboard is entirely made in Devon (with one exception; stilton)
I'm getting better at baguettes - I just don't make them regularly enough really. (however some folks from one of the local shops I supply visited and suggested the shop might take them, so who knows) Behind that are some fat bread sticks and more swirls - these made with an olive oil+semolina based dough with some of the serrano ham inside with parmesan cheese.
Today we're having roast duck plus veggies for the main - xmas pudding, home made vanilla ice cream, etc. for pudding. just me & wife and my in-laws.
-Gordon
Thank you Gordon
The details are even greater than I imagined. You really went over the top this time (but you usually do).
I thought the dark loaf would be a 'Borodinsky' type, but I dared not utter the phrase.
Thanks for the link on Mine Pies, I will check it out once the festivities die down for the day.
Marzipan, wow. My favorite (not chocolate) confection.
And Stilton (King of the Blues) is my favorite of them all. On occassion I can find the true PDO stuff here (and pay dearly for it, but so worth it). As I recall, it can only be called 'Stilton' if made in just a few counties in England. The only one I recall is Nottinghamshire, for obvious reasons (merry men and all that).
And not to disparage any of the rest, but the baguettes look fine and I'm sure would sell well.
Sounds like you have another busy but wonderful day planned.
Thanks for sharing that and Merry Christmas to you all.
dobie