Cornish Saffron Cake #BundtBakers

Cornish Saffron Cake is a traditional bake from Cornwall, made with an enriched yeast dough, flavored with saffron and sweetened with sugar. It is generally served plain or with lashing of butter or even some clotted cream.

This month my Bundt Bakers group is being hosted by Felice of All That’s Left Are The Crumbs. Her theme and in this case, challenge, was to bake a Bundt cake that uses yeast for leavening. I must confess that when I started scouring the internet for ideas, Cornish Saffron Cake came up after a simple search for yeast cakes.

“Excellent!” I exclaimed, making my furry sous chef jump to alertness, and wrote it down in my notebook. Just from the title, it sounded like a winner. I have saffron, some really good quality saffron, and I’m sure the good people of Cornwall would not have kept making Cornish Saffron Cake for all these centuries if it wasn’t good.

But here’s the rub. When it came time to bake and I actually started reading the (many!) recipes, it turns out that Cornish Saffron Cake isn’t really cake at all, but more of a sweet bread, with mixed dried fruit. The dough is traditionally baked into buns or in a loaf pan.  So, would it qualify for the challenge?

I headed back to our Facebook group to ask and saw that someone else had just asked a question about the nature of our yeasty Bundts: Could the Bundt be savory? When Felice said “sure,” (and I saw that her own recipe title was Hot Cross Bun Bundt) I knew that my sweet bready “cake” would probably be fine as well.

I ended up slightly adapting the ingredients from this recipe on Baking for Britain.

Ingredients
1/2 teaspoon saffron strands
1 1/4 cup or 295ml whole milk
4 cups or 500g unbleached white bread flour, plus extra for kneading
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
2/3 cup or 150g unsalted butter, cubed, plus more for baking pan
1/2 cup or 115g light muscovado sugar
1/4 oz or 7g rapid rise yeast
3/4 cup or 115g mixed dried fruit and peel

Note: Back in the old days, when sterilization was an issue, every bread recipe included the instruction to scald the milk first. I won’t go into the reasons why or explain the method because my friend, Jenni, at Pastry Chef Online has done a remarkable job with both in this Fundamental Friday post, if you are interested. But since I was going to heat the milk to infuse the saffron, I thought, might as well scald it.

Method
Start by scalding your milk, which is to say, bringing it almost to a boil either on the stove or in the microwave. (See more precise instructions in the link above.)

Liberally butter a 12-cup Bundt pan and set aside.

Put the saffron in the milk and leave to infuse for an hour or two, or even overnight, in which case, put the milk in the refrigerator after it has cooled off so it doesn't spoil.

When you are ready to bake, warm the saffron milk up again to about 110–115°F (115°F=46°C.) Put 1/4 cup or 60ml of it in a bowl and add the yeast and a tablespoon of the sugar.

When the yeast is activated and bubbling, you can add it back into the rest of the saffron milk.

Measure your flour into the mixing bowl of your stand mixer and add the butter cubes. Use a pastry blender or your hands to mix the butter into the flour until it resembles sandy crumbs.

Stir in the sugar and salt.

Make a well in the middle of the flour/butter mixture and pour in the yeasty saffron milk.

Use the bread hook on your mixer – or indeed, your hands, but this is a wet sticky dough so if you have a mixer, that’s a good thing – to combine the milk and flour until you have soft dough.

Knead the dough for about five minutes with the mixer or 10 minutes by hand. Sprinkle on a little more flour, if necessary.

Add in the mixed fruit and peel and keep kneading until it’s all incorporated.

Roll your dough into a fat log and fit it into your buttered Bundt pan, overlapping the ends. Cover lightly with cling film and set in a warm place to rise for about an hour.

After one hour, start preheating your oven to 350°F or 180°. Once the oven has reached temperature, put the Cornish Saffron Cake into the oven and bake for about 50-60 minutes, until the outside is golden and it sounds hollow when tapped. If it looks like it’s browning too quickly, you can cover the top with foil.

Remove from the oven and allow to rest for a few minutes before turning it out onto a wire rack to cool.

Cool almost completely before slicing with a serrated knife to serve. It’s perfect just ever so slightly warm so butter will melt into it.

Enjoy!

Many thanks to Felice for this great challenge. My favorite part of these baking groups is the opportunity to explore unfamiliar cuisines and recipes to fit a theme. I’ll definitely be making Cornish Saffron Cake again. It's superb with a cup of hot coffee or tea!

Special thanks also to Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm for creating our updated link list!

Check out all the other yeasty Bundts we’ve baked for you today.

• Bica Bundt Cake by Patty's Cake
• Coconut Spice Mini Yeasted Bundts by Passion Kneaded
• Cornish Saffron Cake by Food Lust People Love
• Czech Poppyseed Crown Coffee Cake by The Queen of Scones
• Guinness Bread Bundt Cake by I Love Bundt Cakes
• Healthy Vegan Bundt Cake by Bizcocheando
• Hot Cross Bundts by All That's Left Are The Crumbs
• Irish Butter Cheesy Bread Bundt by Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite A Whiskered Accomplice
• Jasmine Tea Savarin by Sneha's Recipe
• King's Bundt Cake by Sew You Think You Can Cook
• Lemon and Blackberry Savarin by A Day in the Life on the Farm

 

#BundtBakers is a group of Bundt loving bakers who get together once a month to bake Bundts with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on the BundtBakers home page.

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Soda Bread Farls #BreadBakers

Perfect for a quick breakfast or snack with a cup of tea, soda bread farls are quick bread “baked” on a stovetop griddle, rather than an oven. They are a traditional part of the Northern Ireland breakfast known as the Ulster Fry.

The word farl is pronounced farrel and derives from the old Scots word fardel, which essentially means “a quarter.” The source of the name becomes apparent when you see to make farls you flatten dough into a circle and cut it into four pieces before cooking.

Soda Bread Farls are very similar in texture to American buttermilk biscuits or British scones. The dough comes together quickly with just flour, baking soda, salt and buttermilk.

For this post, I decided to make what I call an adulterated Ulster Fry to accompany the soda bread farls. Properly, that breakfast would include the farls, of course, plus sausage, bacon, black and white pudding, fried eggs and tomatoes. Mine included sausage, black pudding, fried eggs and mushrooms. Totally delicious and perfect for a long weekend morning. We weren’t hungry again till almost suppertime!

Ingredients – for 4 farls
2 cups or 250g all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup or 240ml buttermilk
Lard or oil for frying (I used bacon drippings.)

Method
Measure the dry ingredient together into a large mixing bowl and whisk to combine. This aerates the flour and takes the place of sifting.

Pour in the buttermilk and use a firm rubber spatula to mix it in to make a soft dough.

Flour a clean work surface and scrape the dough out on to it.

Flour the top of the dough and your hands and lightly knead the dough. You may have to sprinkle on more flour to keep it from sticking to your surface. Lightly press the dough into a circle about 8 in or 20cm across and about 1/2 in or 1cm thick. Sprinkle on a little more flour and flip the circle over.

Preheat heavy based flat griddle or skillet on medium to low heat.

Flour a sharp knife and cut the dough circle into quarters.

Add a couple of teaspoons of lard (or oil) to the preheated griddle and transfer the farls to the pan when the lard is melted and hot.

Cook the farls for about 3-4 minutes on that first side, watching carefully that they don’t burn.

Add a little more lard or oil and turn the farls over. Cook them for about 10-12 minutes in total, turning regularly so that they cook evenly.

Serve with just butter and jam or as part of a big breakfast.

We loved these! The only thing I’d do differently the next time is to cut the dough circle into eighths instead of quarters, which would change the name I suppose. Don’t think about it too much. Just make them! They "bake" up nicely.

Our Bread Bakers host this month is Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm. She challenged us to bake an Irish bread since, of course, St. Patrick’s Day is this week. Who knew there were so many? Check them out!

• Apple, Beer, and Cheddar Soda Bread by A Baker's House
• Blaa by Sara's Tasty Buds
• Caraway Rye Soda Bread by A Salad For All Seasons
• Carrot and Dillisk Bread by A Shaggy Dough Story
• Cheddar and Herbs Soda Bread by Ambrosia
• Currant Drop Scones by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Egg Free Irish Raisin Tea Scones by Gayathri's Cook Spot
• Four leaf Clover Rolls by Cook's Hideout
• Guinness Bread Rolls by The Bread She Bakes
• Guinness Buckwheat Bread by Baking Sense
• Irish Amber Ale Pretzels by Cindy's Recipes and Writings
• Irish Barmbrack by The Schizo Chef
• Irish Freckle Bread by Mayuri's Jikoni
• Irish Freckle Bread by Passion Kneaded
• Irish Multigrain Bread by What Smells So Good?
• Irish Soda Bread by Herbivore Cucina
• Irish Soda Bread by Sneha's Recipe
• Irish Soda Bread Scones by Spill the Spices
• Irish Soda Buttermilk Bread by Sizzling Tastebuds
• Oat and Potato Bread by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Potato Clover Leaf Rolls by Spiceroots
• Soda Bread Farls by Food Lust People Love
• Soft Wheat Irish Soda Scones with Raisins (Spotted Dog) by The Wimpy Vegetarian
• Super Easy Potato Roll Recipe by Hostess At Heart

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. You can see all our of lovely bread by following our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated after each event on the #BreadBakers home page. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.

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Soy Glazed Sugar Snap Peas

A favorite at our house, these soy glazed sugar snap peas are quick and tasty, the perfect side dish when time is short.

We eat these every week or two as a side dish with pan-fried salmon and these fresh bright crunchy green peas go perfectly with that tender, rich fish. But I’ve got to tell you that these are so tasty you can even set them out as an appetizer, kind of like the fried Padrón peppers so popular at tapas bars.

Sometimes I add cherry tomatoes or those little fresh baby corn on the cobs often used in Asian cooking, or even some chopped carrot, depending on what’s in the vegetable drawer. Of course, the soy glazed sugar snap peas are perfect on their own as well.

Ingredients
1 lb or 450g sugar snap peas
2 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce
8 oz or 226g baby roma or grape tomatoes

Method
Remove the strings from the sugar snap peas by bending the stem end and pulling gently so the strings on both sides peel off. Discard the strings.

Mince your garlic finely.

In a large frying pan, drizzle in the sesame oil and add the sugar snap peas. Cook over a high heat for about 3-4 minutes, tossing or stirring the peas to coat them with the oil. They should start browning in spots.

Add the minced garlic and soy sauce to the pan. Turn the heat down to medium high and continue cooking until the soy sauce has almost all evaporated, tossing the peas or stirring them frequently.

Add in the baby roma tomatoes and cook for a further 5 minutes or until the tomatoes are just toasted and the sugar snap peas are cooked but still crunchy. Stir or toss frequently to prevent them from scorching on only one side. A little all over scorching adds flavor.

Enjoy!

This week my Sunday Supper group is sharing healthy green recipes for St. Patrick’s Day, but really, from the looks of the list, I could eat these all year round!

Best Breakfasts

• Get Your Greens Smoothie by Hardly A Goddess
• Green Breakfast Omelet Bites by Momma’s Meals
• Green Eggs and Ham by Feeding Big
• Green Scrambled Eggs with Ham by Cricket’s Confections
• Kuku Sabzi – Persian Herb Frittata by Caroline’s Cooking
• Matcha Overnight Oats by Brunch-n-Bites
• Southwest Breakfast Spinach Wrap by The Freshman Cook
• Super Green Smoothie by Simple and Savory

Must Make Main Dishes

• Chicken Paillard Arugula Truffle Salad by Family Foodie
• Gambian Spinach with Peanut Sauce by Tara’s Multicultural Table
• Pan Roasted Cod on Spinach Basil Risotto with Lemon Butter Sauce by Positively Stacey
• Poached Cod with Pesto Wine Sauce by Life Tastes Good
• Potato Leek Skillet Pizza by A Kitchen Hoor's Adventures
• Sautéed Garlic and Parmesan Chicken With Spinach by My Sweet Savings
• Skinny Reuben Wraps with Homemade 1000 Island Dressing by For the Love of Food
• Tequila Chicken Salad by Cosmopolitan Cornbread

Scrumptious Salads

• Brussels Sprout and Kale Salad by Pies and Plots
• Green Goddess Bibb Salad by Palatable Pastime
• Pixie Dust Salad with Avocados, Pixie Tangerines and Radishes by Shockingly Delicious
• Quinoa Tabbouleh by That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Sesame Wedge Salad with Key Lime Vinaigrette & Pickled Green Tomatoes by Gourmet Everyday
• Shades of Green Salad by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Zucchini Carpaccio Salad by The Bitter Side of Sweet

Stunning Sides

• Colcannon by Wholistic Woman
• Green Goddess Dip by From the Bookshelf
• Grilled Cabbage with Spicy Lime Dressing by Sew You Think You Can Cook
• Irish Cabbage by Turnips 2 Tangerines
• Miso Roasted Broccoli by Life Currents
• Pistachio Parmesan Oven Fries by Cindy’s Recipes and Writings
• Roasted Brussels Sprouts by Books n’ Cooks
• Soy Glazed Sugar Snap Peas by Food Lust People Love
• Spinach Tots by A Mind “Full” Mom
• Warm Brussels Sprout Slaw by Jersey Girl Cooks

Dreamy Desserts

• Matcha Mint Coconut Candy by My Life Cookbook
• Super Lime Bars by What Smells So Good?

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Easy Mixed Paella #FoodieExtravaganza

This easy mixed paella takes the guesswork out of cooking rice on the stovetop by moving it to the oven in a covered pan. Add in chicken, chorizo and shrimp for flavor, plus saffron and peas for color and flavor. 

Spanish purists may recoil in horror at 1. cooking paella in the oven instead over a wood fire, 2. covering the pan and 3. the lack of the traditional semi-burned crusty rice at the bottom of the paella, but I’m not even a little bit apologetic. My easy mixed paella tastes delicious. And that’s more than good enough for most of us.

I’ve heard paella called Spanish jambalaya and jambalaya called Cajun paella. Whichever side you hail from, it’s all about the rice on center stage with the other ingredients varying from household to household, recipe to recipe, cook to cook. Even in Spain, there are as many differences of opinion about what must be - or cannot be - in paella as there are for jambalaya in southern Louisiana.

What that tells me is that these are dishes you can feel free to make your own. Whenever I think of paella, I imagine three ingredients. Chicken, shrimp and, of course, chorizo. For that gorgeous saffron-hue, only the best saffron will do. In my case, I was lucky enough to be invited to a cooking class by the Spanish saffron, Taj Mahal, which is sold here in Dubai. It puts the saffron I’ve bought before to shame with its vibrant, brilliant yellow. I used to think that Iranian saffron was the best but I am now a convert to the Spanish stuff.

This was right after I poured in the hot water. Check out the image below where I add this to the pan. So much darker! 

Note: I just checked and you can buy it on Amazon! Here's the affiliate link for anyone who is interested. This is not a sponsored post, by the way. I just mention the brand because I love it.

Ingredients
1/2 teaspoon Spanish saffron
1/4 cup or 60ml hot water
6 small chicken thighs (about 1.1 lbs or 500g)
Salt
Black pepper
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
250g pack chorizo sausage
1 1/2 cups or 300g paella rice (Good sub: Arborio rice)
1 onion, sliced
1 large ripe tomato, chopped
3 3/4 cups or 890ml hot chicken stock
1 cup or 130g freshly podded or frozen peas
12 medium shrimp, peeled and cleaned (about 5 1/3 oz or 150g)

Method
Pour the hot water over the saffron and leave to steep. Preheat your oven to 325°F or 165°C.

Season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a skillet that has a tight-fitting lid and can go from stovetop to oven.

Brown the chicken on both sides in the hot oil – this takes just a few minutes. You’ll know it’s ready to turn when it releases easily. Remove the chicken from the pan to a deep plate that will catch any juices that run off.

While the chicken is browning, use the tip of a sharp knife to cut open the casing on the chorizo and peel it off. Slice the chorizo into circles.

Once the chicken has been removed from the pan, add the chorizo and fry until it releases its oils. Scoop the chorizo out and add it to the chicken plate.

Stir in the rice to coat it with the oils, then add the onions. Cook a few more minutes, until the onions soften.

Pour in the saffron water and stir.

See what I mean about the color?!

Add the chopped tomato. Tip the peas in along with the chorizo and any juices that have accumulated on the chicken/chorizo plate. Give the whole thing a good stir.

Now put the chicken in the pan, gently pushing it down into the mixture a little bit. Pour in the stock and raise the heat a little bit under the pan.

Bring to a boil, cover tightly and put in preheated oven for 25 minutes.

Remove from the oven, add the shrimp and put the lid back on the pan. Do not stir.

Turn the oven off and return the covered pan to the oven for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and leave covered until ready to serve.

Enjoy!

Many thanks to our Foodie Extravaganza host, Sue of Palatable Pastime. Check out the other creative paella dishes we have for you today:

• Arroz Negro (Spanish Black Rice Paella) from Caroline's Cooking
• Chicken, Sausage and Shrimp Paella from Cookaholic Wife
• Easy Mixed Paella from Food Lust People Love
• Paella Bogavante from Palatable Pastime
• Veg Paella from Sneha's Recipe

Foodie Extravaganza celebrates obscure food holidays or shares recipes with the same ingredient or theme every month.

Posting day is always the first Wednesday of each month. If you are a blogger and would like to join our group and blog along with us, come join our Facebook group Foodie Extravaganza. We would love to have you!

If you're a reader looking for delicious recipes, check out our Foodie Extravaganza Pinterest Board! Looking for our previous parties? Check them out here.

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Strawberry Yogurt Muffins #MuffinMonday

Just the right sweetness and oh, so tender, these strawberry yogurt muffins are a great breakfast or snack. Decorate them with sliced strawberries for an extra pretty touch, especially if you bake them on National Strawberry Day.

Happy National Strawberry Day and Muffin Monday to you all! In honor of convergence of these two special days, I've baked you some delicious golden muffins. And while these are perfect with strawberry yogurt, I should point out that you can easily substitute your favorite yogurt flavor.

Make sure you scroll down to see what my fellow Muffin Monday bakers are sharing! After you make these strawberry yogurt muffins, of course.

Ingredients - 12 muffins
2 cups or 250g all purpose flour
1/2 cup or 100g sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup or 60ml milk
3/4 cup or 185g strawberry yogurt
1/2 cup or 113g butter, melted and cooled
1 large egg

Optional, for decoration: 3 red strawberries, cut into four slices each

Method
Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C and prepare your 12-cup muffin pan by greasing it or lining it paper muffin cups.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, the sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In another bowl, whisk together the milk, yogurt, butter and egg.

Pour your wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and fold them together until just mixed.

Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups and top each with strawberry slice, cut side up, if using.

Bake in the preheated oven about 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Cool on a rack for a few minutes and then remove the muffins to cool completely.

Enjoy!

Check out all the other delicious muffins my Muffin Monday bakers are sharing today:

• Apricot Pistachio Matcha Muffins by Farm Fresh Feasts
• Blueberry Buttermilk Muffins by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Cherry Chocolate Muffins by Sew You Think You Can Cook
• Garlic Onion Muffins by Passion Kneaded
• Muffins Florentine by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Strawberry Yogurt Muffins by Food Lust People Love

#MuffinMonday is a group of muffin loving bakers who get together once a month to bake muffins. You can see all our of lovely muffins by following our Pinterest board.

Updated links for all of our past events and more information about Muffin Monday, can be found on our home page.

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