Becs: A tucked away gem in Dunedin is the Highgate Bridge Bakery (known mostly as 'The Friday Shop'). A team of chefs cook up a storm all week - prepping pastries, pies, tarts, braises and other delicious take-home meals - and open the doors bright and early on Friday mornings only to sell out a few hours later. We love their family-sized chicken and mushroom pies, homemade down to the chicken stock in the sauce and the butter puff pastry. Big thanks to Caroline for delivering a couple while visiting this weekend!
Libby: That big white blob is mascarpone! I had a go at making some myself over the weekend and was pleasantly surprised by how successful it was. I consulted the internet and went with the following method: heat 1 litre of cream to 85 degrees Celsius (in a double boiler), add 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, keep at a constant 85 degrees C and stir for five minutes. Cool to room temperature then pour into a cheesecloth (or in my case chux cloth) lined sieve and leave to drain overnight or until firm. I ended up with 700g of mascarpone and used about about third in a filling for fresh ravioli... now what to do with the rest? Give it a go yourself... the only "special" equipment you need is a thermometer and a couple of unused chux cloths.
Oh wow, the layers on that pastry mean business! Wish more pie makers paid attention to the crispness of the pastry, that looks splendiferous.
ReplyDeleteI've never tried it before but mascarpone can be good in cheesecakes. Or you could go a fairly simple route and do tiramisu. I can imagine it would make a very luxurious icing for a grand cake too...oh the possibilities! Also I hear lots of people use the whey for soups, any word on whether it imparts any weird flavours?
Yum!! I loved the Friday shop when we lived in Dunedin. The only problem as a student was getting up in time to get there before it sold out. I purchased our first ever duck confit from there!
ReplyDeleteRe the marscapone. It is also nice with just blue milk or silver top, and if you don't use a double boiler and add the acid and salt at the start you get ricotta!! I'm so into cheese making at the moment it is not funny! I have been using marscapone instead of icing for cakes - it is really nice mixed with cocoa powder and icing sugar as a lovely chocolate cake topping.
These lolly postings are intriguing. I showed my lolly-loving husband the picture of your yummy nibbles on a platter last week and now he eats his lollies from ramekins!!
Yay the Friday shop gets a mention! Such a Dunedin institution, croissant from the friday shop, coffee, and watching the sun rise from st clair ;-)
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Zo - I just tipped the whey out as it drained but should have kept it. What a waste! I think you can use it to make ricotta but the soup idea is a good one too - would give it a good protein boost.
ReplyDeleteMake-do mum - I must try it with blue top milk sometime. Would be cheaper than making with cream too, though homemade mascarpone is so so much cheaper than the bought stuff. And good to hear your husband has discovered lollies are even better when eaten from little dishes!
Georgi - yes, yay for the Friday shop! I have only ever had their chicken pie but I bet the croissants are amazing too.
well one pie has just been consumed and it was even better than i remembered!! Pastry so very light and flaky and filling just delicious...bex
ReplyDeleteThe whey can be re-boiled with a little blue top to make ricotta - I can send you a recipe if you'd like. It is good in soup, bread (particularly scones and pizza dough) and some even use it as the basis for a protein rich drink/ smoothie.
ReplyDeleteMake-do mum - I will never waste whey again! So many uses. Would be great if you can email the ricotta recipe to lovelyweedays [at] gmail [dot] com Thanks!
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