Recipes: Peyton and Byrne
Valentine’s Jammy Dodgers (pictured above)
Ingredients125g unsalted butter, softened
60g caster sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
125g plain flour, plus extra for rolling
60g fine semolina flour
6 tsps Peyton and Byrne strawberry jam
Makes 4 large jammy dodgers
Prep time - 40-45 minutes
Cook time - 12-15 minutes
Equipment Large, heart shaped pastry cutter about 8-10cm in diameter
Method
Line a baking tray with baking paper, and set aside.
In a bowl, beat the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add both flours at once and beat just until incorporated and the dough comes together in a ball. Lightly dust a work surface with flour and roll the dough out into a large circle about 5mm thick.
Using a large, heart-shaped cutter, cut out 8 biscuits. Place 4 of the biscuits on the prepared baking tray. With the remaining 4 biscuits, cut a 2cm heart out of the centre of the dough.
Sprinkle these with caster sugar and then carefully add to the baking tray.
Place the baking tray in the fridge for 15-20 minutes to firm up the dough.
Whilst the dough is chilling, preheat the oven to 180C. Bake the chilled biscuits for 12-15 minutes until they just turn a golden colour. Remove from the oven and let the biscuits cool completely on the baking tray.
When cool, spread 1 1/2 teaspoons strawberry jam on the surface of each of the 4 solid biscuits, leaving a 1cm border around the edge. Sandwich the cut-out biscuits in top, sugar side-up, and press together. The biscuits will keep in an airtight container for up to a week.
Oaty date and ginger slice
Ingredients
180g unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing
30g caster sugar
6 tbsp golden syrup
100g dates, de-stoned
20g fresh ginger
275g rolled oats
1/4 tsp salt
Makes 12 slices
Prep time - 10 minutes
Cooking time - 30 minutes
Equipment
20cm square baking tin
Method
Preheat the oven to 180C. Butter a 20cm square baking tin and line the bottom of the tin with baking paper.
In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, gently melt the butter, sugar and golden syrup together, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, then remove the pan from the heat. Chop the dates into thumbnail-sized pieces with a sharp knife, and grate the ginger. Stir the chopped dates and grated ginger into the butter mixture. Add the oats and salt and mix well.
Spoon the mixture into the prepared tin and spread evenly with a spatula or palette knife to level the mixture.
Bake for 30 minutes or until golden at the sides. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely in the tin before turning out and cutting into slices. They will keep for up to a week in an airtight container.
Simnel Cake
Ingredients
175g unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing
175g soft brown sugar
3 eggs
175g plain flour
1/4 tsp ground all spice
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
Pinch of nutmeg
Pinch of salt
350g mixed raisins, currants and sultanas
55g chopped mixed peel
55g glace cherries
Grated zest of 1 lemon
Icing sugar for dusting
Decoration 2 tbsp smooth apricot jam
1 egg, beaten for glazing
Serves 8-10
Preparation 40 mins
Cooking time 50-60 mins
Equipment
20cm round cake tin, about 7cm deep
Method
Preheat the oven to 140C. Butter the cake tin and line the bottom of the tin with baking paper.
Make the marzipan and divide it into 3 balls. On a surface dusted with icing sugar, roll out one ball to make a circle 18cm in diameter, using the cake tin as a template. Chill the remaining 2 balls of marzipan in the fridge.
In a bowl, beat the butter and sugar until pale and creamy. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing in each until well incorporated before you add the next.
Sift the flour, spices and salt together and gently fold into the butter and egg mixture. Finally, add the mixed dried fruit, peel, glace cherries and lemon zest and stir to combine.
Spoon half of the mixture into the prepared tin and smooth the surface. Lay the rolled-out disc of marzipan over the top and then spoon in the rest of the mixture to cover the marzipan.
Bake for 50-60 minutes until a skewer inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let the cake cool slightly in the tin, before transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Take the 2 remaining balls of marzipan out of the fridge and roll one ball out into a circular disc large enough to generously cover the top of the cake. Divide the second ball into 11 smaller balls. Brush some of the jam over the top of the cake and lay the disc of marzipan over it, so that it covers the top of the cake with a little hanging over the sides.
Dab 11 blobs of jam around the edge of the cake and place a ball in each blob. Brush the marzipan topping and balls with the beaten egg then place under a hot grill for 1-2 minutes to brown and glaze the surface.
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