27 February 2020

Cornish Splits - Devonshire Splits

Cornish Splits - Devonshire Splits - A British West Country Classic / www.delightfulrepast.com

A Cornish Split - or Devonshire Split - was the original star of the famous "cream teas": of Cornwall and Devon. Though you'll more often find a cream tea with scones, the split is a classic as well.


Cornish or Devonshire Splits - A British West Country "Cream Tea" Classic / www.delightfulrepast.com


No one appreciates a good scone more than I, but this week I was in the mood for a lovely yeast bun for my cream tea, so here they are! Not a crusty bun, it is neither egg-washed nor well-browned. In fact, a tea towel is spread over them as they cool so as to keep them soft.


Cornish Splits - Devonshire Splits - A British West Country Classic / www.delightfulrepast.com
Of course, I had to make a batch of Strawberry Jam and a batch of Clotted Cream 
to fill the splits. But I could spare two berries to "model" for me for this little
watercolor sketch. 


Unlike scones, which are served alongside the accompanying clotted cream and jam (or lemon curd), Splits are served, well, split, and filled with the cream and jam and given a dusting of icing sugar (powdered sugar).

These were so delicious with a pot of Rishi Tea organic loose leaf Earl Grey. Have you ever had Cornish or Devonshire Splits?

Cornish Splits - Devonshire Splits - A British West Country Classic / www.delightfulrepast.com

Cornish Splits - Devonshire Splits


(Makes 18 buns)

The Buns

3 3/4 dip-and-sweep cups (18.75 ounces/532 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 cup (1.75 ounces/50 grams) sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons (1 package/0.25 ounce/7 grams) instant yeast
1 1/4 teaspoons (0.25 ounce/7 grams) salt
6 tablespoons (3 ounces/85 grams) unsalted butter
3/4 cup (6 fluid ounces/177 ml) milk
3/4 cup (6 fluid ounces/177 ml) water

1 large egg (medium in UK), lightly beaten

The Filling

Strawberry Jam 
Clotted Cream

1 In large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, yeast and salt. In small saucepan, heat together butter, milk and water until butter is melted and mixture is very warm, but not more than 130F/54C (a great little thermometer). Line two baking sheets with parchment. I use one half sheet pan and one quarter sheet pan for this recipe. Lightly oil a 2-quart bowl for proofing the dough. I use a 2-quart glass measure, which makes it very easy to tell when the dough has doubled. 

2 With dough whisk or large wooden spoon, stir warm liquid and beaten egg into flour mixture until blended. The dough will be very sticky.

3 Measure out 1/2 dip-and-sweep cup (2.5 ounces/71 grams) of unbleached all-purpose flour to work from while kneading the dough. This will keep you from the common problem of adding too much flour and ruining your dough. Lightly flour the countertop and scrape the dough onto it. Lightly flour the top of the dough and knead for 10 minutes, adding just a bit of flour as needed. You will likely need anywhere from 1/4 cup to slightly less than 1/2 cup.

4 Shape the dough into a smooth ball and place it in a lightly oiled bowl (I use a 2-quart glass measure), cover with lid or plastic wrap, and let rise until doubled, about an hour or so.

5 Deflate the risen dough by pressing your fist into the middle of it. Turn the dough out onto the counter, no need for flour. Divide the dough into 18 equal pieces. I'm pretty particular about my buns and rolls being identical, so I weigh the dough (in this case, my dough was 2 pounds 7 ounces/1106 grams) on my food scale, divide the grams by 18 (in this case, coming out to be about 61 grams per bun), then I weigh each little hunk of dough as I go. Roll the piece of dough between your palms until smooth, then do this to shape it into a nice round bun. Cup your hand over it like a "cage" and move your hand rapidly in an outward motion.



6 Place the buns on the parchment-lined baking sheets and cover with lids or plastic wrap. I don't like using plastic wrap, so I have rimmed baking sheets that come with lids! Let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes or so. During the last 15 minutes, preheat oven to 375F/190C/Gas5.

Cornish Splits - Devonshire Splits - A British West Country Classic (this photo, buns rising on lidded baking sheet) / www.delightfulrepast.com


7 I bake one sheet at a time. Bake for about 15 minutes (you know your oven), until buns are just golden brown and sound hollow when tapped. Transfer to wire cooling rack and cover with a tea towel. Cool completely.


8 When ready to serve, slice the buns diagonally from about a third of the way down in the front to about two-thirds of the way down in the back, but do not slice all the way through. Put in a spoonful of strawberry jam (about 2 level teaspoons works for me) and spread it over both the top and bottom. Then put in a spoonful of clotted cream (about the same amount). Arrange the filled splits on a serving platter or tray, and dust with a little icing sugar.

Disclosure: We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon .com and affiliated sites. We are a ThermoWorks affiliate, earning a small commission at no cost to you on purchases made through our links. This helps cover some of the costs of running the blog. Thank you for your support. 

Jean

13 February 2020

French Almond-Rum Cake - Gateau Nantais

French Almond-Rum Cake - Gateau Nantais / www.delightfulrepast.com

Gateau Nantais (pronounced GAT-toe nahn-tay, sort of) is a traditional cake of Nantes, a city on the delta of the Loire in western France. The city is famous for its fleur de sel and its salted butter, so its inhabitants might be outraged that I have made the famous cake with unsalted butter, but organic unsalted butter is the only kind of butter I ever use.

If you make this recipe with salted butter, reduce the salt from 1/2 teaspoon to 1/4 teaspoon. Most versions of the recipe call for a good deal more rum than I've used, though I think I've used a drop more of it than did Phil, from whose blog, As Strong As Soup, I first heard of the cake some years ago. So I'll leave the amount of rum up to you.


French Almond-Rum Cake - Gateau Nantais / www.delightfulrepast.com


With mostly almond flour and just a tiny amount of wheat flour, the cake is so close to gluten-free I thought I'd just use a gluten-free flour blend and make it a cake I can serve to my GF friends. But you can just use regular all-purpose flour as well. It's lovely and delicious with toasted sliced almonds on top, but I went traditional with this one.

Of course, you can eat it right away, but this cake is even better the next day. So do make it the day before you plan to serve it. And, if you like, please Pin it and share it. This was a lovely cake to celebrate my 10th blogiversary!



French Almond-Rum Cake - Gateau Nantais / www.delightfulrepast.com
  

French Almond-Rum Cake - Gateau Nantais


(Makes one 7-inch round cake)

The Cake

1/3 dip-and-sweep cup (1.67 ounces/47 grams) gluten-free 1 to 1 Baking Flour or unbleached all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon non-GMO baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs (medium in UK)
1 stick (4 ounces/113 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup (5.25 ounces/149 grams) sugar (I use 1/2 cup)
1 1/4 cups (4.5 ounces/128 grams) almond flour*
1 to 2 tablespoons (0.5 to 1 fluid ounce/15 to 30 ml) dark rum

1/8 teaspoon almond extract

* I use Bob's Red Mill Super-Fine Almond Flour From Blanched Whole Almonds

The Syrup

1 1/2 tablespoons (0.64 ounce/18 grams) sugar
3 tablespoons (1.5 fluid ounces/ml) water
1 tablespoon dark rum

The Glaze

3/4 packed cup (3 ounces/85 grams) powdered sugar
1/16 teaspoon (a pinch) salt
2 teaspoons dark rum

2 teaspoons water, a bit more if needed

The Optional Garnish

1/4 cup (1.125 ounces/32 grams) sliced almonds, toasted



1 Preheat oven to 350F/180C/Gas4. Generously butter a 7-inch/18 cm round cake tin or removable-bottom pan. Put a round of baking parchment paper in the bottom and butter it as well. 


2 In a small bowl, vigorously whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. In a 2-cup glass measure or small bowl, lightly beat the eggs.

3 In a stand mixer, or using an electric hand mixer and large bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 3 to 5 minutes. Scrape the bowl, then add the almond flour, beating on medium speed just until incorporated, about 1 minute.

4 Add the eggs, about a third at a time, beating for about 20 seconds after each addition. On medium-high speed, beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. On low speed, gradually mix in the flour just until incorporated. With silicone spatula, stir in the rum and almond extract and scrape the bowl. 

5 Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the surface. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, until golden brown. 

6 During the last 20 minutes of baking, make the syrup. In 1-quart saucepan, combine the sugar and water. Bring to a boil, stirring until the sugar is dissolved, then boil for 3 minutes. Off heat, stir in the rum. Then simmer for 2 minutes.

7 When the cake is done, cool in pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes then turn it out onto a wire rack, bottom side up. Immediately peel away the baking parchment paper and brush the top and sides of the cake with the rum syrup. Cool completely, about 1 hour. Transfer to serving platter.


8 Make the glaze in a 1.5-quart mixing bowl. Vigorously whisk the powdered sugar and salt and smoosh out the big lumps, then whisk in the dark rum. Gradually whisk in enough water to make a rather thick (not too runny), smooth glaze. Pour the glaze onto the center of the cake, then spread it out toward the edges, letting a bit drip down the sides. An offset spatula (OXO Good Grips calls theirs a bent icing knife) is handy for the task. 

9 Optional: Sprinkle top with toasted sliced almonds. Let stand at room temperature for at least an hour. Cover with a cake dome and store at room temperature. Will keep for a few days, I suppose; but I don't know because I put half the cake in the freezer.

Disclosure: We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon .com and affiliated sites. We are a ThermoWorks affiliate, earning a small commission at no cost to you on purchases made through our links. This helps cover some of the costs of running the blog. Thank you for your support. 

Jean