Baked Camembert Cranberry Burst

Baked Camembert Cranberry Burst

• 2 packs ready rolled puff pastry 
• Tub of freshly made cranberry sauce
• 1 Camembert for baking
• Pack of bacon lardons
• 1 beaten egg

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees (fan assisted) line a baking tray with foil and grease the foil with some olive oil.  

In a small frying pan heat some oil and fry the bacon lardons until crisp.  Place one sheet of the pastry onto the baking tray.  Line up the Camembert in the middle of the sheet and spread the cranberry sauce around the cheese and place the bacon lardons on top.  Remove the cheese and place the second sheet of pastry on top of the first then place the Camembert back in the centre and cut around the base with a sharp knife.  Remove the pastry from  beneath the cheese and return the Camembert to the centre.  Make cuts across the top of the cheese just to break through the top layer of the skin.

Working around the cheese, using a sharp knife cut down from the centre to the edge of the pastry (start the cut about an inch from the cheese) leaving a gap of about two fingers between each cut.  Twist each piece of the cut pastry around in a spiral.  Brush the pastry with the beaten egg and place into the oven for around 20 minutes until the pastry is nice and crisp and golden.

This recipe makes full use of the square of pastry, I don't like to waste unless really necessary, hence mine doesn't resemble the snowflake version that is doing the rounds. The end result is perfect for an informal buffet get together with friends and family and looks pretty stunning to boot.  Just tear off each segment of the pastry and dip into the molten gooey cheese and enjoy.  

Bloody Mac

Bloody Mac

• 1 x portion starter sauce (see The Don Macaroni)
• 250g cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 tbsp Tabasco sauce
• 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 400g macaroni
• 230g mature cheddar, grated
• 90g Monteray Jack, grated
• 30g Parmesan, grated
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 sticks celery, cut in half and slice lengthways, to serve

Method:
First make the topping.  Pop the tomatoes into a small bowl along with the Tabasco, Worcestershire sauce and olive oil and mix gently so all the tomatoes are lightly coated.  Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and cook the pasta according to the pack instructions, until al dente.  Tip into a colander and leave to drain completely.

In a heavy bottomed pan, make the starter sauce, then reduce the heat to low.

Add all the cheese and stir until melted.

Add the drained pasta to the cheese sauce and mix thoroughly.

Divide the Mac n cheese into 4 serving bowls.  Spoon the tomatoes evenly over each one along with a little of the dressing from the bowl.  Stand a couple of celery pieces in the Mac and season with freshly ground pepper and a dash more Tabasco, to taste.

Recipe courtesy of Anna Mae's Mac N Cheese

For those who know me, I am a huge lover of Mac N Cheese, receiving a copy of Anna Mae's cook book for Christmas tipped me over the edge.  I am in Mac N Cheese heaven, I seriously recommend this cook book if you are a fellow lover of the cheesy goodness!  The sauce in the dressing really sets this off, every mouthful had a kick to it, pure bliss!  Excuse me whilst I calm myself down!!!

The Don Macaroni

The Don Macaroni

I am one of the biggest lovers of MacNCheese and to say I was chuffed to bits to receive  "Anna Maes Mac N Cheese" cookbook for Christmas is an understatement.  Anna Mae has a food van and they sell Mac N Cheese, that is it, but oh my god, the variations on such a simple recipe is amazing.  I am going to work my way through the recipes and thought I would start with their most popular dish, The Don Macaroni.  I will detail the starter sauce within this post and will refer back to this when posting further recipes.  Anyone interested in obtaining a copy of the cook book, visit Amazon, the book is amazing, not only a cook book but funny as well, enjoy.

Starter Sauce

• 600ml whole milk, at room temperature
• 50g unsalted butter
• 50g plain flour
• A pinch of salt

Place two heavy bottomed pans over a medium heat.  Heat the milk in one pan until hot, but not boiling.  At the same time melt the butter in the second pan, then reduce the heat to low and gradually stir in the flour using a wooden spoon until you have a paste - this is a roux.  Continue to cook, stirring continuously, for 3-4 minutes, or until the roux turns golden in colour, being careful not to over brown and burn the mixture.

Add the hot milk to the roux a little at a time, stirring vigorously.  Once the mixture is fully combined, turn up the heat to medium and cook for a further 5-8 minutes, or until the sauce is thick enough to coat the back of the wooden spoon.  Make sure you stir continuously to keep the sauce smooth and so that it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan.  Season with salt.

Now for the ingredients for The Don Macaroni

• 400g macaroni
• 1 portion starter sauce
• 230g mature cheddar, grated
• 90g Monteray Jack, grated
• 30g Parmesan, grated
• 8 rashers of dry-cured streaky bacon
• Freshly ground black pepper

For the pesto

• 75ml good quality olive oil
• 25g grated Parmesan
• 25g pine nuts
• 1 garlic clove
• 10 fresh basil leaves, plus extra to garnish
• A squeeze of lemon

Method:-

First make the pesto.  Pop the ingredients into a small bowl and blitz with a hand blender or bash in a pestle and mortar until lovely and smooth.  Set aside.

Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and cook the pasta according to the pack instructions, until al denote.  Tip into a colander and leave to drain completely.

In a heavy bottomed pan make the starter sauce, then reduce the heat to low.  Stir in all the cheese and leave to melt, stirring occasionally to stop the mixture sticking to the pan.  Add the drained pasta to to the cheese sauce and mix thoroughly.

Meanwhile fry the bacon until crisp, pouring any fat that collects in the pan into the cheese sauce, mixing well.

Spoon the Mac n cheese into 4 serving bowls, drizzle the pesto over the top and place two of the bacon rashers across each dish.  Garnish with the basil and season with freshly ground pepper.

This was a truly amazing comfort food dinner, I can't wait to get stuck into more of the recipes.

Recipe courtesy of Anna Maes Mac N Cheese cookbook, well worth a buy if you are a lover!