Blue Cheese and Broccoli Mini Quiches with Walnut Pastry

Blue Cheese (Stilton) & Broccoli Mini Quiches with Walnut & Cheese Pastry

These are great make ahead and freeze mini-quiches.  I usually make a huge batch of about 100 or more and pack tightly into boxes of 24 ready for any occasion.  Especially good for drinks parties and the perfect combination of ingredients for that Thanksgiving and Christmas get-togethers.  

Just use whatever blue cheese you like best... I used Stilton or if you're not a blue-cheese fan then a strong cheddar will do nicely.  You could also buy a block of shortcrust pastry if you're in a hurry but remember to use the all butter kind...I really prefer it for texture and flavour. 

For the pastry. 

3oz / 75g self raising flour

3oz / 75g wholewheat flour     you can use just 6oz of plain flour if you don't have any wholewheat

pinch of salt

half teaspoon of dry mustard powder (optional)

(sieve these ingredients together in a bowl)

3oz/ 75g butter

2oz/ 50 g grated cheddar

Rub the fat into the flour then add

1oz /25g walnuts finely chopped

Bind with enough cold water to make a pliable dough.

refrigerate for half an hour.

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The Filling.

1 head of broccoli stalk removed and cut into small pieces then blanched

3 eggs

half a pint of double cream

6 oz Stilton or another blue cheese of your choice.

1 onion finely diced and sauteed in a little butter

seasoning

grated nutmeg

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Put the Stilton or whatever Blue Cheese you prefer, cream, eggs, sauteed onion into a food processor & blitz until it starts to thicken. Season to taste.

Roll out the pastry thinly & use to line around 24 - 36 well greased mini muffin cases. use a cutter large enough so that the pastry comes up to the top of the holes in the muffin tray

Place some blanched broccoli into each case.

Spoon over the cheese mixture taking care not to overfill.

Give the trays a sharp rap on the table to settle the mixture and add a little more filling if needed.

Grate over some nutmeg

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Bake at 180c for around 15 mins or until lovely & golden . Just test to make sure the underneath of the pastry is cooked through. 

remove onto a cooling rack after around 3 mins .

Chocolate Truffle Dessert Cake - Gluten-free

Chocolate Truffle Dessert Cake -Gluten-Free

Like so many of us I have friends and relatives who are Gluten intolerant so I'm always on the look at for recipes that are wheat-free, sometimes experimenting with flour alternatives.  Rice flour works well with sponge cakes but my favourite alternative has to be Almond Flour (ground almonds) as I just love anything nutty..I really don't think that I'm having to compromise at all, in fact it's a real luxury making the dessert rich & delicious.

This dessert is really rich & decadent, it should serve 8-10 people easily as a little goes a long way.  A perfect end to any dinner party.
Serve up with strawberries or raspberries & a dollop of creme fraiche would be a perfect

I always weigh my ingredients but if you prefer to measure here's a handy link Conversion Chart

Grease & line a 22cm Springform tin with parchment paper.
Set to oven to 170c/325f

Ingredients

160gms Ground Almonds
125g unsalted butter
375g 70% dark chocolate
175g muscovado sugar (dark sugar)
2 tbsp double cream  (half and half)
5 eggs
cocoa powder to finish

Method

Break up the chocolate in small pieces and place into a large heatproof bowl
Chop up the butter and to the chocolate along with the cream
Place over a pan of simmering water and gently melt
remove as soon as everything is melted and leave to cool for a few minutes
Add the eggs to the chocolate mix one at a time beating well with each addition
Add the sugar and ground almonds & mix well

Put the mixture in the prepared tin
Top the cake with either some foil or parchment paper, carefully so as not to touch the batter and bake in the centre of the oven for 40 minutes.
Remove from the oven, take off the foil/parchment from the top of the cake  and leave to cool completely in the baking tin.
When cool place in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours before attempting to turn it out.
I left mine overnight.

Carefully remove the paper, turn it upside down to make a nice flat surface onto a plate and dust over liberally with cocoa powder.

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