Roasted Spring Vegetables

A good roasting in a hot oven brings out the best in most vegetables. Theoretically a side dish, I love a plate of these for a vegetarian main course. When you add a garlicky dressing, your roasted spring vegetables can be elevated to center stage.

This week my Sunday Supper group is sharing easy spring recipes. Which puts me in mind of baby vegetables and spring lamb. Fortunately a nearby supermarket that always has a stock of baby veg so I picked up a selection. I ended up not using them all because my pan was full and if you want caramelized roasted spring vegetables, it is key not to crowd them in the pan.

If the baking pan is too full and there’s not room for air to move between the vegetables, they’ll just steam together and will not roast. Left behind were tiny bulbs of fennel and baby corn. Now I need to think of another recipe to make with those!

Ingredients
For the roasted vegetables:

7 oz or 200g each assorted baby vegetables
(I used small pickling onions, baby leeks, new carrots, baby zucchini and patty pan squash.)
1/4 cup or 60ml extra virgin olive oil

For the dressing:
Leftover oil from the vegetables

2 cloves garlic

2 tablespoons cloudy apple cider vinegar or your favorite good quality vinegar
1 teaspoon honey

Fine sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Method
Preheat your oven to 400°F or 200°C. I have a convection fan that I like to use for roasting as it circulates the heat more evenly. If you don’t, you can turn the oven up a few degrees to compensate.

Trim the vegetables of stems and scrub them clean. Since they are tiny, leave them whole. Pile them in a large mixing bowl.

Drizzle the olive oil over them and toss to coat. Sprinkle on some fine sea salt and give the veggies a couple of good grinds of black pepper. Toss to disperse the salt and pepper. You can use salad spoons but clean hands work the best. Plus, you are going to use your hands in the next step so might as well get them dirty. 

One by one, transfer the vegetables to a large baking pan, spacing them evenly. 

Put the vegetables in the oven to roast for 30-35 minutes or until they are golden and possibly a little charred in places.

There will be seasoned oil left in the bowl. We are going to use it for the dressing.

Grate or mince the garlic cloves into the oil. 

Add in the vinegar and honey and whisk to combine. Add another good pinch of salt and more freshly ground black pepper. Set aside. 

When the roasted spring vegetables are ready, remove them from the oven and scrape them and any sticky bits from the pan into the bowl with the dressing while they are still hot. 

Toss or stir to coat the vegetables with the dressing. Serve warm or at room temperature. 

Enjoy!

As I mentioned, this week our Sunday Supper tastemakers are sharing easy spring recipes. Check out this fabulous link list. Many thanks to our host, Anne of Simple and Savory and our event manager, Cricket of Cricket’s Confection.

Breakfast

• Broccoli and Asparagus Frittata by A Mind "Full" Mom
• Herb and Leek Frittata by My Imperfect Kitchen

Main Courses

• Creamy and Tangy Avocado Chicken Salad by Cooking On The Ranch
• Grilled Lamb Lollipops with a Lemon and Pea Dip by Sprinkles and Sprouts
• Lemon Quinoa Salad with Asparagus and Tomatoes by Hardly a Goddess
• Pad Thai Spring Rolls by Brunch-n-Bites
• Parmesan Crusted Pork Tenderloin by Sew You Think You Can Cook
• Spring Pizza with Goat Cheese & Asparagus by Wholistic Woman
• Spring Power Bowl by Simple and Savory

Veggies and Sides

• Alfredo Scalloped Potatoes with Ham by Fantastical Sharing of Recipes
• Asparagus Ham and Swiss Danish Braid by Crazed Mom
• Asparagus Soup by Bottom Left of the Mitten
• Cheesy Potato Asparagus Tart by Sunday Supper Movement
• Herbed Lemon Potato Salad by Cosmopolitan Cornbread
• Microwave Carrots and Peas by Cricket’s Confections
• Roasted Spring Vegetables by Food Lust People Love
• Shaved Asparagus Salad by A Day in the Life on the Farm

Pastas

• Crab and Asparagus Pasta by My Savory Spoon.com
• Lemon Garlic Shrimp and Asparagus Rotini Pasta by Recipes Food and Cooking
• Pasta Salad with Artichoke Hearts & Feta by Soulfully Made
• Simple Pasta with Peas, Ham and Cream by Cooking With Carlee
• Spinach Artichoke Pasta Recipe by Life Tastes Good

Seafood

• Baked Swordfish and Asparagus with Lentils and Chermoula by Caroline’s Cooking
• Flaked Salmon Arugula Spinach Watercress Salad by Cindy’s Recipes and Writings
• Prosciutto-Wrapped Salmon with Brie by Books n’ Cooks
• Red Snapper in a Saffron-Tomato Broth with Artichoke Hearts & Potatoes by Gourmet Everyday
• Roasted Shrimp and Asparagus Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette by Jersey Girl Cooks
• Salmon with Parsley Pesto and Peas by Cooking Chat

Cakes, Pies, and Sweets

• Coconut Custard Pie by Renee's Kitchen Adventures
• Fresh Strawberry Meringue Cake by That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Mango Banana Bread by Asian in America
• Meyer Lemon Panna Cotta by Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
• Upside Down Brown Sugar Apricot Cake by The Bitter Side of Sweet

Cookies and Bars

• Carrot Cake Oatmeal Cookies by Pies and Plots
• Coconut Mango Chia Pudding Parfait by The Crumby Cupcake
• Maple Syrup Madeleines by The Finer Cookie
• Oatmeal Rhubarb Bars by Turnips 2 Tangerines
• Pistachio Lemon Bars by From the Bookshelf

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Cornish Saffron Cake #BundtBakers

Cornish Saffron Cake is a traditional bake from Cornwall, made with an enriched yeast dough, flavored with saffron and sweetened with sugar. It is generally served plain or with lashing of butter or even some clotted cream.

This month my Bundt Bakers group is being hosted by Felice of All That’s Left Are The Crumbs. Her theme and in this case, challenge, was to bake a Bundt cake that uses yeast for leavening. I must confess that when I started scouring the internet for ideas, Cornish Saffron Cake came up after a simple search for yeast cakes.

“Excellent!” I exclaimed, making my furry sous chef jump to alertness, and wrote it down in my notebook. Just from the title, it sounded like a winner. I have saffron, some really good quality saffron, and I’m sure the good people of Cornwall would not have kept making Cornish Saffron Cake for all these centuries if it wasn’t good.

But here’s the rub. When it came time to bake and I actually started reading the (many!) recipes, it turns out that Cornish Saffron Cake isn’t really cake at all, but more of a sweet bread, with mixed dried fruit. The dough is traditionally baked into buns or in a loaf pan.  So, would it qualify for the challenge?

I headed back to our Facebook group to ask and saw that someone else had just asked a question about the nature of our yeasty Bundts: Could the Bundt be savory? When Felice said “sure,” (and I saw that her own recipe title was Hot Cross Bun Bundt) I knew that my sweet bready “cake” would probably be fine as well.

I ended up slightly adapting the ingredients from this recipe on Baking for Britain.

Ingredients
1/2 teaspoon saffron strands
1 1/4 cup or 295ml whole milk
4 cups or 500g unbleached white bread flour, plus extra for kneading
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
2/3 cup or 150g unsalted butter, cubed, plus more for baking pan
1/2 cup or 115g light muscovado sugar
1/4 oz or 7g rapid rise yeast
3/4 cup or 115g mixed dried fruit and peel

Note: Back in the old days, when sterilization was an issue, every bread recipe included the instruction to scald the milk first. I won’t go into the reasons why or explain the method because my friend, Jenni, at Pastry Chef Online has done a remarkable job with both in this Fundamental Friday post, if you are interested. But since I was going to heat the milk to infuse the saffron, I thought, might as well scald it.

Method
Start by scalding your milk, which is to say, bringing it almost to a boil either on the stove or in the microwave. (See more precise instructions in the link above.)

Liberally butter a 12-cup Bundt pan and set aside.

Put the saffron in the milk and leave to infuse for an hour or two, or even overnight, in which case, put the milk in the refrigerator after it has cooled off so it doesn't spoil.

When you are ready to bake, warm the saffron milk up again to about 110–115°F (115°F=46°C.) Put 1/4 cup or 60ml of it in a bowl and add the yeast and a tablespoon of the sugar.

When the yeast is activated and bubbling, you can add it back into the rest of the saffron milk.

Measure your flour into the mixing bowl of your stand mixer and add the butter cubes. Use a pastry blender or your hands to mix the butter into the flour until it resembles sandy crumbs.

Stir in the sugar and salt.

Make a well in the middle of the flour/butter mixture and pour in the yeasty saffron milk.

Use the bread hook on your mixer – or indeed, your hands, but this is a wet sticky dough so if you have a mixer, that’s a good thing – to combine the milk and flour until you have soft dough.

Knead the dough for about five minutes with the mixer or 10 minutes by hand. Sprinkle on a little more flour, if necessary.

Add in the mixed fruit and peel and keep kneading until it’s all incorporated.

Roll your dough into a fat log and fit it into your buttered Bundt pan, overlapping the ends. Cover lightly with cling film and set in a warm place to rise for about an hour.

After one hour, start preheating your oven to 350°F or 180°. Once the oven has reached temperature, put the Cornish Saffron Cake into the oven and bake for about 50-60 minutes, until the outside is golden and it sounds hollow when tapped. If it looks like it’s browning too quickly, you can cover the top with foil.

Remove from the oven and allow to rest for a few minutes before turning it out onto a wire rack to cool.

Cool almost completely before slicing with a serrated knife to serve. It’s perfect just ever so slightly warm so butter will melt into it.

Enjoy!

Many thanks to Felice for this great challenge. My favorite part of these baking groups is the opportunity to explore unfamiliar cuisines and recipes to fit a theme. I’ll definitely be making Cornish Saffron Cake again. It's superb with a cup of hot coffee or tea!

Special thanks also to Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm for creating our updated link list!

Check out all the other yeasty Bundts we’ve baked for you today.

• Bica Bundt Cake by Patty's Cake
• Coconut Spice Mini Yeasted Bundts by Passion Kneaded
• Cornish Saffron Cake by Food Lust People Love
• Czech Poppyseed Crown Coffee Cake by The Queen of Scones
• Guinness Bread Bundt Cake by I Love Bundt Cakes
• Healthy Vegan Bundt Cake by Bizcocheando
• Hot Cross Bundts by All That's Left Are The Crumbs
• Irish Butter Cheesy Bread Bundt by Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite A Whiskered Accomplice
• Jasmine Tea Savarin by Sneha's Recipe
• King's Bundt Cake by Sew You Think You Can Cook
• Lemon and Blackberry Savarin by A Day in the Life on the Farm

 

#BundtBakers is a group of Bundt loving bakers who get together once a month to bake Bundts with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on the BundtBakers home page.

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Soda Bread Farls #BreadBakers

Perfect for a quick breakfast or snack with a cup of tea, soda bread farls are quick bread “baked” on a stovetop griddle, rather than an oven. They are a traditional part of the Northern Ireland breakfast known as the Ulster Fry.

The word farl is pronounced farrel and derives from the old Scots word fardel, which essentially means “a quarter.” The source of the name becomes apparent when you see to make farls you flatten dough into a circle and cut it into four pieces before cooking.

Soda Bread Farls are very similar in texture to American buttermilk biscuits or British scones. The dough comes together quickly with just flour, baking soda, salt and buttermilk.

For this post, I decided to make what I call an adulterated Ulster Fry to accompany the soda bread farls. Properly, that breakfast would include the farls, of course, plus sausage, bacon, black and white pudding, fried eggs and tomatoes. Mine included sausage, black pudding, fried eggs and mushrooms. Totally delicious and perfect for a long weekend morning. We weren’t hungry again till almost suppertime!

Ingredients – for 4 farls
2 cups or 250g all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup or 240ml buttermilk
Lard or oil for frying (I used bacon drippings.)

Method
Measure the dry ingredient together into a large mixing bowl and whisk to combine. This aerates the flour and takes the place of sifting.

Pour in the buttermilk and use a firm rubber spatula to mix it in to make a soft dough.

Flour a clean work surface and scrape the dough out on to it.

Flour the top of the dough and your hands and lightly knead the dough. You may have to sprinkle on more flour to keep it from sticking to your surface. Lightly press the dough into a circle about 8 in or 20cm across and about 1/2 in or 1cm thick. Sprinkle on a little more flour and flip the circle over.

Preheat heavy based flat griddle or skillet on medium to low heat.

Flour a sharp knife and cut the dough circle into quarters.

Add a couple of teaspoons of lard (or oil) to the preheated griddle and transfer the farls to the pan when the lard is melted and hot.

Cook the farls for about 3-4 minutes on that first side, watching carefully that they don’t burn.

Add a little more lard or oil and turn the farls over. Cook them for about 10-12 minutes in total, turning regularly so that they cook evenly.

Serve with just butter and jam or as part of a big breakfast.

We loved these! The only thing I’d do differently the next time is to cut the dough circle into eighths instead of quarters, which would change the name I suppose. Don’t think about it too much. Just make them! They "bake" up nicely.

Our Bread Bakers host this month is Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm. She challenged us to bake an Irish bread since, of course, St. Patrick’s Day is this week. Who knew there were so many? Check them out!

• Apple, Beer, and Cheddar Soda Bread by A Baker's House
• Blaa by Sara's Tasty Buds
• Caraway Rye Soda Bread by A Salad For All Seasons
• Carrot and Dillisk Bread by A Shaggy Dough Story
• Cheddar and Herbs Soda Bread by Ambrosia
• Currant Drop Scones by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Egg Free Irish Raisin Tea Scones by Gayathri's Cook Spot
• Four leaf Clover Rolls by Cook's Hideout
• Guinness Bread Rolls by The Bread She Bakes
• Guinness Buckwheat Bread by Baking Sense
• Irish Amber Ale Pretzels by Cindy's Recipes and Writings
• Irish Barmbrack by The Schizo Chef
• Irish Freckle Bread by Mayuri's Jikoni
• Irish Freckle Bread by Passion Kneaded
• Irish Multigrain Bread by What Smells So Good?
• Irish Soda Bread by Herbivore Cucina
• Irish Soda Bread by Sneha's Recipe
• Irish Soda Bread Scones by Spill the Spices
• Irish Soda Buttermilk Bread by Sizzling Tastebuds
• Oat and Potato Bread by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Potato Clover Leaf Rolls by Spiceroots
• Soda Bread Farls by Food Lust People Love
• Soft Wheat Irish Soda Scones with Raisins (Spotted Dog) by The Wimpy Vegetarian
• Super Easy Potato Roll Recipe by Hostess At Heart

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. You can see all our of lovely bread by following our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated after each event on the #BreadBakers home page. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.

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