8 Oct 2007

FRUIT PASTRY CASES WITH COX'S APPLES



The theme for Sugar High Friday hosted by Andrew over at Spittoon Extra is Drunken Apples. My vine fruits and apples were very happy to have a couple of tablespoons of Calvados poured over them! I was even happier to be the lucky one to get to eat them.
Waitrose October Recipe cards were the inspiration for this event.
On the recipe card it says to use wholesome vine fruit mix, but I had some Waitrose luxury dried fruit left and so used this instead. The 'Wholesome' area in Waitrose is fairly new and the vine fruit mix they suggest looked wonderful, as indeed did all the other goodies on the shelf.
This recipe would be appropriate for the Christmas season, in fact, it felt that I was making and eating it a few weeks too early!

Serves: 4

You will need: A large pot of pouring cream to drizzle over the cases.
125g Waitrose Wholesome Vine Fruit Mix, 2 tablespoons of brandy or Calvados, half a 375g pack chilled ready rolled puff pastry, 25g flaked almonds, 2 Cox's apples, 25g butter, 2 tablespoons dark muscovado sugar, ½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg, 2 tablespoons double cream.

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/390°F/Gas 6. Place the dried fruit in a bowl, add the brandy or Calvados and set aside.
2. Unroll the pastry and cut into 4 rectangles. Put on a baking sheet then score a line 1cm in from the edges of each piece, without pressing all the way through. Cook for 10 minutes, then remove the top layer of loose pastry to make a lid, leaving some on the base. Place on the side of the baking sheet and cook for a further 10 minutes until golden.
3. In a small frying pan, dry-fry the almonds for about a minute until golden, remove from the pan and reserve.
4. Cut the apples into quarters, discard the cores, then thinly slice. Melt the butter in a large frying pan over a medium heat, add the apple and sprinkle with the sugar and nutmeg. Saute for 4-5 minutes until golden on both sides. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the apple to a plate.
5. Return the pan to the heat and add the mixed fruit and brandy. When syrupy, stir in the cream then spoon into the pastry cases. Top with the apples and scatter over the flaked almonds. Place the pastry lids on each case, dust with icing sugar.
6. Serve with lots of pouring cream.