Authentic Italian pizza, the way it should be

The misconceptions of authentic cuisines are rife in the uk, like the recipe magpies that we are, we borrow a great dish from a country in which their cuisine has made an impression on us, then we adapt it to our British palate, now in theory this may seem like a good idea at the time, but years after we have borrowed such dishes and now made them our own it means that the UK's top ten favourite foods now consist of tikka masala, stir fries, spaghetti bolognese and pizza sigh....

This is why I have decided to go back WAYYYY back, to the land where pizza originated, Italy, the one place where pizza remains the harmoniously humble meal it always has been, where the key is not too load hideous toppings of beef burgers, donner meat or an inch of melted plastic cheese, but it is all about the base and toppings are kept to a minimum, tomato, mozzarella and basil, the colours of the Italian flag. I know that we don't all have wood burning ovens in our back gardens, but there are ways to get around such obstacles, we can recreate culinary heaven. A lot of recipes that I have researched are very quick to do but by allowing your dough a little time to ferment the flavours of the dough develop significantly, some call for 72 hours of slow rising in the fridge but I have tried this and truly feel that you can get the same results by leaving the dough for eight hours at room temperature.Humour me if you will, I came, I tried and I think I conquered what is true and splendiferous about the great Italian pizza.

1kg 00 flour

2 tbsp Maldon salt, if it's table salt use half the quantity

6 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil

600ml lukewarm water

2 tsp dried fast action instant yeast

3 tsp sugar

Place the flour in a large bowl, electric mixer with a dough hook or pour it directly onto the work bench, add in the salt and mix the salt through the flour. In a jug measure out 600ml of blood temperature water, you should be able to dip your fingers into the water and not notice a temperature change. 

Add in the sugar and yeast and allow the yeast to dissolve, mix the water into the flour and salt, when you have a rough dough add the olive oil to the dough and then knead the dough for 10-15 minutes until the dough becomes elastic and stretchy, place the dough into a large container or into a bowl covered with cling film, let it rise for 8 hours at room temperature. 

 Meanwhile make the passata.

You will need:

6 large plum tomatoes

A tbsp of extra virgin olive oil

A tsp of Maldon salt

Place everything into a pan and cook the tomatoes until they break down entirely! Allow to cool.

Get your toppings ready.

For pizza neapolitana I have buffalo mozzarella that has been well and truly dried, fresh basil, grated pecorino (it's a personal preference I prefer it to Parmesan) and the passata.

N'duja pizza, this is my favourite, a few blobs of Calabrian chilli spiked n'duja sausage, fresh mozzarella, black olives, pecorino cheese and fresh basil.

The last pizza was a prawn and garlic pizza, king prawns, freshly chopped garlic, oregano, mozzarella and pecorino.

I know what you are thinking, how can you replicate the cooking of a wood burning pizza oven, you cannot replicate it but you can get very very close. Either use a cast iron flat grill, or turn a cast iron pan upside down, heat the oven as hot as it will go with the cast iron pan inside for at least half an hour.

This dough made six wonderful pizzas.
 When the dough has risen divide the dough into six, on a very floured surface with a handful of semolina in the flour to soak up the moisture, start by using your finger tips flatten the dough into a disc, you can then pick up the dough and rotate it letting gravity do it's work, it will stretch the dough but will still leave a lip around the edge.
 These pizzas must be thin, never thick, each dough ball should stretch to roughly 10-12 inches.

 Remove the cast iron pan from the oven and working quickly place the disc onto the pan, spread a thin layer of tomatoes, and then top with your choose toppings, no beef burgers or donner meat allowed! Cook the pizza in the Oven for 6-9 minutes until the base is crisp and the cheese has melted. Serve immediately.

Happy Little boy

Sichuan Twice cooked belly pork (Huí Guō Ròu)

 A 2012 survey conducted in the UK confirmed that Britain's favourite meal was a stir fry, yes you read me right a stir fry. I'm not entirely sure what the heck that means in all honesty, to me a Stir fry is not a dish but a cooking method.
 Unfortunately real Chinese food in this country is extremely difficult to find, us Brits associate Chinese food with gloopey bright red sweet and sour sauces, and the very westernised Chow mein, that I can only presume is an invented western version of Chinese bubble and squeak. In Chinese culture gastronomy has always been highly regarded, they pride themselves on eating a wide variety of foods, whilst still keeping true to the traditions of their food culture, I often wonder what they think to our adaptations of their prized cuisine.

 I first tried this wonderful dish with my husband, we had stumbled by a restaurant that was very dark and dingy, and full of homesick Chinese students which I suspect where missing their home cuisine. You know when you are eating somewhere authentically Chinese when you are a)The only westerners there b)the menu is not in English and you have to point to an image c)you can hear the gently clattering of tea cups and a murmur of mandarin tongue. This is when I know I am on to a good thing. 
 My husband being the very smart man he is always leaves it up to the waiter to recommend an authentic dish and this is what were served, Huí Guō Ròu simply means returned to the pot, meltingly tender fiery strips of belly pork cooked with ramps, leeks or baby leeks. At first glance it seems as though replicating a dish like this is utterly incomprehensible, but it was actually much easier than I thought, and was utterly delicious. This is one for all you chilli lovers out there.

You will need:

1 1/2 kg pork belly

3 red chillies

5 baby leeks

3 tbsp Sichuan chilli bean paste

1 tbsp tian Mianjiang or hoisin sauce 

1 tbsp black bean paste

2 spring onions (dark green part only)

1 tbsp veg oil

2 tsp sugar

1 tsp soy sauce

This dish is far to easy to make, the only complicated step is the twice cooking of the pork and that is really a doddle! Place the pork in a very large pan of boiling water  so that the water covers the pork and boil for 25 minutes, remove from the pan and refrigerate overnight, this will allow the fat to solidify making it easier to slice. 

The following day slice the pork belly as wafer thin as you can manage and set to one side. Make sure that you slice your ramps (or leeks) chillies and spring onions so that you are ready to go, this really helps when cooking Chinese food.
 Firstly heat the oil in a wok until it is smoking hot, then stir fry the pork only, until each piece is slightly crisp and golden, it will also help to render the fat of the pork. Remove the pork with a slotted spoon from the wok and let it drain slightly in a colinder, you don't want to remove all the fat but too much is not good either so a little can be drained away with the meat.
 To the residual oil add the chili bean paste, tian Mianjiang, black bean paste, sugar, chillies and soy, allow this to cook for a minute before returning the pork back to the pan with the leeks and spring onions, allow all the ingredients to cook together for a couple of minutes until the leeks are just softened, serve immediately on clouds of fluffy steamed rice!
 Heaven on earth.

Cardamom, white chocolate and salted cashew nut cookies

I had to blog about these cookies, partly to show that baking with children does not have to be as difficult as people think and partly in protest against pointless cupcake packet mixes for kids, I just think opening a packet teaches your children absolutely nothing about ingredients or food, what's worst is that you have no idea what is in those packets.
 Every once in a while I have no problem with my son having a little treat especially when I know what has gone into it, what's more is that my son absolutely loves to bake with his mum, when I show him his apron he gets so excited that I think he may actually take off like a rocket. 
 Regular readers will know that I'm not about to hang up my gourmet apron, just because they are cookies it doesn't mean to say that they have to be conventional or boring, I have to put my little gourmet twist on everything! 
  My son adores white chocolate and I think that cardamom and white chocolate are the best of friends also it's a little nod to my Swedish family who like me are cardamom crazy, the salted cashew nuts help to balance the sweetness and add texture to the cookie!
 I have to say they were absolutely fantastic, I think my son has great potential, Jamie Oliver in the making possibly? Get ready Jamie we are coming for you! 

You will need:
125g of salted butter
100g of light brown sugar
125g of caster sugar
1 egg
200g of white chocolate
75g of salted cashew nuts
1/2 tsp of maldon sea salt
1 tsp of vanilla bean paste
1 1/2 tsp of freshly ground cardamom seeds 
225g of self-raising flour


First preheat the oven to 180 degrees c.
Cream together the butter and sugars, this can be done in a machine or in a bowl with a hand whisk, once combined add the egg and vanilla, once the egg has been incorporated add the flour, cardamom powder and salt and mix until just combined.

 Lastly chop the white chocolate into chunks and roughly chop the nuts, add this to the cookie batter and mix until well distributed.
Divide the dough into 10 balls, this will make huge cookies, if you want something more delicate then divide the batter into twenty balls.
place the cookie balls onto a line baking tray, do cook any more than four at a time as they do spread out quite a lot. Bake for ten minutes. Allow to cool a little, I know it's hard, but patience is a virtue in this case.

Coconut cake

 I wanted to make a celebration cake for a few reasons, I have made it to celebrate 
my first birthday of blogging(I know I thought I would never get there), I have also made it passed my target of over 10,000 views (thank you regulars readers!), also because my wonderful husband has FINALLY finished his long awaited first album, which ironically is call "Ett" meaning one in Swedish! It only seemed that such achievements deserve a double celebration, (however small my achievement may be, there is always reason for cake)! For those of you who read regularly you will know that I am usually the face behind the lens, I prefer to let the food do the talking, but because it is a special occasion my husband insisted I step out of the shadows and show that there is a head attached to these typing hands! No longer am I an illusive blogger, I am Annika Wardale, food junkie and all round babbler!   

The image that you see is my light as a feather coconut cake, the best part is that it is fat free! Yes you heard right, it most certainly is not calorie free, so do not 
expect to eat six slices and lose the pounds, it ain't going to happen, but I suppose it is half way between virtuous living and gluttony! So here is my light as a feather coconut cake in honour of my hubby and my first year of blogging! Happy birthday  Annika's Apron, skål! 

You will need:

For the sponge:

100g of plain flour

100g of corn flour

1 tbsp of baking powder

6 eggs

250g caster sugar

2 tsp of vanilla extract

60ml of coconut flavoured liqueur 

1 tsp coconut extract or essence

Preheat the oven to 170 degrees c. Grease and line two eight inch cake tins with grease proof paper or baking parchment! Make sure to line the sides too. 

Whisk the eggs and sugar together until it has turned pale and thick, it will double in volume and create a ribbon effect as the mixture falls back on its self. Sieve together the flours and baking powder into a bowl and set to one side. Whisk the extracts into the voluminous egg mixture followed by the dry ingredients, only mix until just combined, finally add the liqueur and give the batter one final mix. Divide the batter between two tins and bake in the oven for 35-40 mins or until you can insert a skewer and it comes out clean.

For the frosting:(7 minute frosting)

You will need:

Five egg whites

200g of caster sugar

60ml of coconut liqueur

1 tsp of vanilla bean paste

This particular icing is done using a double boiler or Bain Marie, this basically is a bowl sat over a pan of simmering water, take care now to let the bowl touch the water! 
 Place the eggs and the sugar in the bowl and begin to whisk the ingredients with an electric whisk until the mixture has reached firm peaks, this should take 7 minutes, when the frosting is thick and glossy and can hold a firm peak whisk in the vanilla and liqueur. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.

Finishing touches:

1 cup of freshly grated coconut (you can buy this frozen, just make sure it is well dried) 

100ml of coconut liqueur 

To assemble:

Place one of the sponges onto a cake platter and pour 50ml of the coconut liqueur onto 

the sponge to moisten it, then spread a quarter of the frosting onto the sponge.
 Top with the second sponge and pour the remaining 50ml of coconut liqueur onto the second sponge, spread a scant amount of the frosting all around the cake, this is called a crumb coat, then apply a thicker coating of the frosting, the crumb coat will help the second layer to adhere to the cake and leave a smooth finish. 
Finish with the cup of freshly grated coconut, the coconut will be a little wet so dry it well on kitchen paper, then sprinkle it onto the top of the cake and press in onto the sides.