An invitation to experiment with shortcake desserts

Press, 13 June 1979, Page 15

An invitation to experiment with shortcake desserts

When I think about shortcake fillings my mind gees first to apple mixtures, then to spicy mixtures based on thickened apple, with dried fruit added as well. There are however many other mixtures which can be used for shortcake fillings. Soft fruit, or fruit which cooks quickly, can be used in a shortcake U-ithout being cooked previously — for example, bananas, strawberries. rhubarb, kiwifruit and tamarillos. When you use raw fruit you must consider how much liquid will form as the fruit cooks, and add something with the fruit so the juice will thicken and the shortcake, base will not become soegy. You can mix with the raw frqit cornflour, custard powder, crumbled cake or biscuit crumbs, crushed breakfast cereal Or coconut. When you add sugar, you usually add more than you would use

when stewing the same fruit. When cooked fruit is used as a filling it is usually drained to get rid of excess liquid, or it is thickened, then cooled. For example, to crushed pineapple I add extra sugar and custard powder and cool the mixture before spreading it on the base. If you use fruit without a definite flavour, or if you do not have much filling, you can add a layer of jam as well, choosing one which will complement the fruit. Shortcakes filled only with jam have a firmer texture and are usually iced, cut into smaller pieces, and served cold, instead of being' sprinkled with icing sugar and served warm for dessert. Spices and other flavourings like cocoa apd instant coffee may be added to the filling, or to the crust. When it comes to cooking shortcakes, you again have a choice — ’a shortcake using two cups of flour can be cooked in a shallow sponge roll tin if you have the patience to roll the dough out thinly and have plenty of filling; or it can be made in a tin as small as 20cm (Bin) round, straight-sided cake tin. I usually make my shortcakes between these two extremes. I have a straight low sided tin 23em (9in) square, with a removeable bottom. Depending on the depth of the filling I cut a shortcake made in this tin into nine squares, or into 12 rectangles. If 1 want my shortcake to look more attractive I make it in a round 23cm (9in) tin with slanting deeplv fluted sides and a removeable bottom. This 1 can invert on a round serving plate, dust generously with icing sugar and cut tn wedges, like a pie. It looks much more spectacular than the rectangles. and in fact takes no longer to do — it is just a matter of owning a suitable tin, and making sure the dough doesn’t stick to the fluted sides. After reading this, I hope you will rush off to experiment with your own shortcake variations. To start you off, here is my recipe for spiced Camarillo shortcake: 400 g tamarillos (4-5 fruit) 1 cup crushed cornflakes or other precooked breakfast real } cun brown or white sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla (optional) IOOg butter 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1 teaspoon mixed spice j teaspoon ground cloves J cup sugar 1 egg 1 cup Alison Hoist’s baking mix 1 cup flour Dip the tamarillos into boiling water for one minute, then cool in cold water and peel, or halve them and scoop out the centres with a teaspoon. Chop the pieces roughly and mix' them with the crushed breakast cereal, the sugar and the vanilla. Melt the butter in a me-dium-sized saucepan. As soon as it is liquid remove it rom the heat and add the spices. Add the sugar and egg and beat, with a fork, then stir in the baking mix and flour. Divide the dough' in two pieces — one slightly bigger than the other. Grease (or spray) the tin in which you will bake your shortcake. If you are using a small tin. pat out the larger piece of dough ■in it, pressing it up the sides, too. If you are using a large

tin cool the dough in the refrigerator then roll it out on a well-floured board with a well-floured rolling pin. Spread the prepared filling on the bottom layer of shortcake. Roll out the remaining dough to the shape of the tin. (You may find it easier ter roll it out on greaseproof paper or plastic, then invert this over the tin.) For a change, chill the dough for the top crust in rhe freezer, then grate it over the filling. Bake the shortcake at 1800 deg C to 190 deg C (350 deg F to 375 deg F) for 30 to 45 minutes, depending on the size of the tin and the thickness of the filling. Notes: To avoid the problem of soggy bottomed shortcakes, I usually cook them for five minutes after they look cooked, and I invert them on a rack or ovenproof plate, removing the base of the tin, before they are quite cold. Shortcakes freeze* well. This mixture can be made in two rectangular foil tins. You can then eat one now, and freeze one for use in a few weeks time.