Posh cheese on toast with onion marmalade

This is a twist on a welsh rarebit recipe, a thick cheesy sauce grilled over toasted bread. Basically a posh cheese on toast. Apparently it is Britain's version of the continental European fondue. It works really well with the onion marmalade. The sweetness of the marmalade cuts through the creaminess of the cheese. This recipe will make for 2 slices of toast.

Onion Marmalade

1 Large Onion sliced finely

1/2 Cup of Balsamic Vinegar

2-3 Tbsp Brown Sugar (Add enough to suit your taste)

Olive Oil

1-2 Tsp Chilli Flakes

Over a medium heat fry the onions in a little olive oil until softened and lightly browned. Stir in the sugar, chilli flakes and vinegar. Bring to a slow simmer stirring occasionally until the marmalade begins to get thicker. This should take approx 20-25 minutes. Allow the marmalade to cool slightly.

Cheese Sauce

3/4 Cup Grated Cheddar

1/3 Cup Sour Cream

1 Tsp Mustard

Pinch of Salt and Pepper

1 Egg Yolk

Into a bowl add the sour cream, mustard and egg yolk. Whisk to combine. Add the cheese and mix well.

Now its time to assemble. Toast thick slices of good quality bread on both sides. Spread a good spoonful of the onion marmalade on one side of the toast. Top with the cheese sauce mixture, then grill under a medium heat until the cheese sauce begins to brown and bubble. Remove from grill allow to cool for 30 seconds before delving in.

Citrus Marmalade

A couple of days ago I had a go at making citrus marmalade. I spent two hours zesting and slicing 41/2 lbs  of mixed citrus fruit before watching everything boil together to make a lovely orange sticky goo. The original recipe called for a sugar thermometer. Something that I don't possess, so I was very nervous when testing to see if the marmalade was done. I once tried to make marmalade about 7-8 years ago, which did not turn out well at all. It smelt great and tasted great but was more like a thick sticky syrup. I did not want this to happen again and thank goodness it didn't. I chilled my plate and every so often I dropped a large dollop of hot runny marmalade onto the plate...waited a few minutes and pushed my finger through it to see if it was firm enough. After three attempts I was happy.

After canning the marmalade I couldn't wait for it to cool to see if my creation had turned out OK. I prepared my toast and began to spread my homemade marmalade over top. It was lovely. The only criticism I had was that I had probably boiled it for a few minutes too long as it was more firmer than I would have liked. But for my first attempt it was great. It took Ian and I three days to finish off one jar. I even traded a jar of marmalade for a large bag full of organically grown beet greens from our neighbor. How perfect is that.

Citrus Marmalade (Adapted from www.foodinjars.com)

41/2 lb Citrus Fruit.(Grapefruit, Navel Oranges, Lemon, Limes-weigh with peal on)

I used 3 Grapefruit, 4 Oranges, 1 lemon and 1 lime.

6 Cups Sugar

4 Cups Poaching Liquor

Wash fruit thoroughly. Using a vegetable peeler slice the rind off all the fruit, then slice these thinly into medium size shards. (I used a zester as my vegetable peeler is useless) Add these shards with six cups of water to a pan set over a medium heat and allow to simmer for 30 minutes. Meanwhile remove the pith and membrane from the fruit (I slice the top and bottom of the fruit and then using a sharp knife I cut down the sides of the fruit removing the pith and membrane). Once removed cut the fruit segments out over a bowl reserving the membranes and pips. Wrap all the reserved membranes, pith and seeds together in a piece of cheesecloth and secure tightly. Next drain the zest reserving the poaching liquor.

In a large stainless steal pot or enameled cast iron pot combine the citrus fruit, 6 cups of sugar, 4 cups of poaching liquor and the cheesecloth package and boil vigorously for approximately 30-40 minutes, until the marmalade reaches a temp of 220 degrees. (I kept stirring it every 5 minutes or so to stop it from potentially burning at the bottom) You can test whether the marmalade is ready by dropping some onto a cold plate. Once it cools you should be able to push your finger through the marmalade to see if it is firm enough or not. If not boil for another few minutes.

While the marmalade is boiling you can prepare your jars. I washed mine is hot soapy water and then boiled them in a large pan for ten minutes. The snap caps were place in the water once boiling had finished. This just softens the seal. Once the jars are air dried and still warm ladle your marmalade into them add the snap cap and secure with the screw ring. Lower these into a water bath and boil for 5 minutes. Remove and allow to cool for 12-14 hours and voila, fresh yummy marmalade.

Marmalade Cake

The weather is warm, the sun is shining and I have been happily having fun times in the kitchen making salsa verde, caramelized onion tart and marmalade cake. My house smells gorgeous, the aroma of a cake baking cannot be beat. I sit here with a cup of tea not only wishing I was having a huge slice of my marmalade cake but thinking about lighter menus for this spring season. Salads, tarts and lighter dishes will be replacing the stews and soups which have been abundant this winter. I can picture Ian and I sipping on ice cold white wine tucking into seasonal dishes.

Anyway enough of my day dreaming. I was lucky in inheriting a work colleagues cookery book collection, mainly a collection of Nigel Slater's cook books. Although I knew of him I can't say that he would be a cook/chef I would automatically think of if I had to relay who inspired me. Having spend some time reading through his books I can say that I love his ideas and style of cooking. He like me wants to use fresh seasonal ingredients and believes that less is more. The only one thing I prefer to do is make some things from scratch but this is only because I like to experiment, but if in a hurry I would definitely buy pre-made items.

There were quite a few recipes that I wanted to try and today I wanted to make cake. I really am not much of a cake baker. I can make one chocolate sponge cake and a variety of muffins and thats about it, so I chose a marmalade cake from Nigel Slater. Like him I used his recipe as a guide and added a few different ingredients. The cake turned out awesome, light and airy with some yummy chewy pieces of marmalade dotted throughout. Mmm mmm, I was impressed with my creation.

Marmalade Cake

(Adapted from Nigel Slater|)

11/2 Sticks Butter

3/4 Cup Granulated Sugar

1 1/2 Cups All purpose flour

3 large Eggs

1/2 Cup Chunky Marmalade

1/4 Tsp Baking Soda

1 Tsp Baking Powder

1/4 Tsp Vanilla Extract

1/4 Cup Orange Juice plus extra for icing

Icing sugar

Firstly grease a loaf tin or line it with parchment and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Meanwhile using an electric mixer cream together the sugar and butter until light and fluffy. In another small bowl break the eggs and whisk with a fork lightly. Once done add in stages to the creamed sugar/butter mixture and mix well on a medium speed between each addition. Then add the marmalade and mix to combine. Fold the flour, baking powder and soda in using a spatula until no flour can be seen, then fold in the Orange Juice and vanilla. Pour into the loaf tin and bake for approx 30 -40 minutes. Check the cake after 30 minutes of baking by poking a scewer into the middle of the cake. If it comes out clean it is cooked. Once cooked remove from the oven and allow to cool then turn it out of loaf tin. When fully cooled make the glaze by combining some Orange Juice into some icing sugar. The icing should fall into ribbons when lifted up with a spoon. Spoon the icing over the cake allowing it to drip down the sides. Once set cut and serve.

I got to eat this cake with a cup of tea and it was superb.