Just a quick baking post, because I’m so proud of these florentines I made following Sian’s simple recipe on Domestic Sluttery. Instead of chopping my own nuts, I used about 120g of “Berry and Nut Sprinkle” from Waitrose – a handily pre-chopped medley that it also awesome sprinkled into yoghurt.
I also added the leftover glace cherries from my Christmas cake, and didn’t put in any mixed peel, because I didn’t have any. Like Sian, I also coated the backs of them in Maya Gold choc for a spicy finish.
Be warned – florentines overcook in a flash, and the first batch I made were definitely well-browned. But it’s such a simple and tasty recipe, I certainly think I’ll be practising a bit more 🙂
I also knocked up these tasty cheese bites, using some leftover pastry from a cherry pie.
The pastry is amazing – light and flakey, and dead simple to create – made by whizzing 100g chilled butter with 125g plain flour in a food processor, then mixing in 60ml soured cream until it clumps into pastry. I used most of it to cover the pie, but cut the scraps into rounds, and sprinkled them with grated cheddar mixed with a little bit of mustard powder and black pepper. Yummy!
WOW. I must make these. I love florentines – my grandma used to make them every Christmas and now my mum does, but with being away I missed out this year. They look so delish and well worth losing a few fillings for.
They’re really easy. Though it’s also easy to over/undercook them – keep a hawk’s eye on them while they’re cooking. I cooked them on non-stick baking liners on baking trays, and quickly pulled the whole liner onto a rack so they could cool without cooking any more from the heat of the tray – Don’t try to move them off the liner until they’re cool, or they’ll just bend or break up. Also they really do spread, so make small ones and only put a few on each tray.