Category Archives: eggs

Aga meringues

Posted on February 8, 2010 by theordinarycook| 4 Comments

Aga meringues with lemon curd

After I made lemon curd, I had five egg whites ready to make meringues.  They are a real treat and are delicious when made in the simmering or warming oven of the Aga. They don’t last long in our house, as the girls both love them, well they are balls of sugar so of course they love them.

You can either cook them in the simmering oven which takes about two hours or you can leave them overnight in the warming oven, which makes life very easy indeed.  I always make my pavlova in this way too.

For every egg white you will need 50g (2oz) caster sugar.  I always use golden caster sugar (which is less refined than white sugar) which gives them a lovely caramel hue.

5 egg whites
275g (10oz) caster sugar

Method

Line a baking tray with silicone paper.

Whisk the egg whites in a scrupulously clean bowl (I always wipe a cut lemon around the bowl to remove every bit of grease) until they form soft peaks when you lift up the whisk.  Add the sugar a teaspoonful at a time, whisking in each addition before adding the next.  The mixture will become stiff and glossy.

Place spoonfuls onto the baking sheet.  Place in the simmering oven of the Aga for about two hours and then place on top of a tea towel on top of the lid of the of the simmering plate to completely dry out.  Alternatively place in the warming oven overnight and they will be perfect in the morning.

Serve with whipped double cream, fruit, chocolate ganache or indeed lemon curd.

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Aga method lemon curd

Posted on February 8, 2010 by theordinarycook| 1 Comment

Regular readers of this blog will know that I made lemon curd a few weeks ago. Very delicious it was too, but as I have an Aga it was quite hair-raising trying to save it from becoming lemon flavoured scrambled eggs.  This was because I was trying to save time and I was making it directly in a saucepan rather than in a bowl over a pan of simmering water.

When I went to judge Shropshire’s Tastiest Sausage, the event was held at an Aga shop and the great  thing about Aga shops is that everyone who works there is very knowledgeable about cooking on an Aga.  I spoke to the Sales Advisor, (who is a trained chef and offers one to one demonstrations on how to use an Aga), about my difficulties with my lemon curd and he suggested I read Richard Maggs’ The Complete Book of Aga Know-How as he has a method for making lemon curd in a jar in the simmering oven.  Now, I have cooked on an Aga since 1995 and so thought I knew quite a lot about the art of cooking on an Aga, but this book has been really useful in revealing tips about conserving and controlling heat that I hadn’t really thought about before.

The Aga method for making lemon curd worked really well.  It isn’t a recipe that is done and dusted in half an hour though, but it is one that means you can just leave it to do its thing and it is great if you are doing other things in the kitchen, so you can be there to add the ingredients and give the jar a shake from time to time.

I used Mary Berry’s recipe from The Aga Book, as I think it is a winner, with just the right amount of lemon.  This time though I used 5 egg yolks and made meringues with the egg whites to eat with the lemon curd.

For this recipe you need a sterile kilner or large jar.  If you are using a kilner jar remove the rubber seal whilst making the curd.  Richard Maggs suggests that you can store the curd in the same jar as you make it, but he obviously isn’t as messy as I am, so if you too are a messy cook I suggest sterilising one or two jars by washing them and rinsing them very well and then leaving them in the simmering oven (or a low oven at about 140°c) for twenty minutes.

100g (4oz) butter
225g (8oz) caster sugar
3 lemons, the finely grated rind and juice
5 egg yolks or 3 whole eggs, beaten

Method

Put the butter and the sugar in the jar, close the lid and place in the simmering oven for 30 minutes.  Take the jar out and add the rind and juice of the lemons.  Put the lid back on and give the jar a good shake.  Put it back into the simmering oven for another 30 minutes. By this time the sugar should have fully dissolved, if it hasn’t help it along by swirling the jar. Now you will need a small hand whisk or a fork and you will need to beat the eggs quickly into the mixture and continue to beat for one minute.  Put the lid back onto the jar and place back in the oven for a further 1 to 1¼ hours.  Give the curd a gentle shake and then leave to cool.  I was concerned that it wasn’t thick enough but it does thicken quite a  bit whilst cooling. When it is cool transfer to clean sterile jars if you feel the one you made it in is just too messy. Store in the fridge and eat within two weeks.

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Scotch egg

Posted on February 5, 2010 by theordinarycook| 13 Comments

The inspiration for making scotch eggs for the first time a few weeks ago was my daughter asking me to buy one when we were in the supermarket.  I didn’t like the look of the orange breadcrumbs and I am fussy about sausages, so I determined to make my own.  Whilst we were making them my daughter insisted that her friend at school had four scotch eggs every lunchtime. Not quite believing this, I told her that no, her friend couldn’t have four scotch eggs, surely she must have only have one.  I had to ask said friend’s mother the next day, and in a way we were both right as she does have four scotch eggs, or at least one quartered, which does look like four.

Anyway, my first attempt was a great success, with Mr O C declaring that they were the best scotch eggs he had ever tasted, which I take as a very big compliment as his Mum used to make them a lot, and it’s always hard for a wife to compare with a mother!

I made them for tea again tonight, with chips and baked beans – now there is a healthy balanced diet for you.  My excuse is that it is winter and it is cold and it is dark – is that enough excuses? Anyway they are delicious.

As they are called scotch eggs I have gone as Scotch as I can and added oats to the breadcrumbs, but feel free to just use more breadcrumbs and leave out the oats.

6 eggs, plus 1 egg for the coating
600g sausagemeat
75g breadcrumbs
25g oats
plain flour

Method

Boil six of the eggs for six minutes.  You want them not quite hard-boiled. As soon as they are done, rinse under running cold water until completely cold to prevent the grey ring between the yolk and white, which will occur if you leave them to cool slowly.  Peel the shell of the eggs.

Divide the sausagemeat into 6 portions.  Take one portion into your hands and flatten into a rectangular shape that is large enough to wrap around an egg.  Take the egg and shape the sausagemeat around it making sure it is well sealed.  Repeat with the rest of the sausagemeat and eggs.

Sprinkle the plain flour quite thickly onto a plate.  Break the remaining egg into a bowl and beat well. Mix the breadcrumbs with the oats and put this mixture into another bowl.  You now need to dip each sausage-covered-egg into the flour until lightly covered, then dip into the egg and then lastly into the breadcrumbs until well covered.

I cook mine in the roasting oven of my Aga, which is equivalent to about 220°c (gas mark 7) placed on a baking tray drizzled with rapeseed oil.  I turn them a couple of times during the cooking and they take about 30 minutes to become golden brown all over. However they are normally deep fried in oil for about 6-8 minutes until golden brown and then drained on kitchen paper.

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