Shadow Shot Sunday, Pan Forte and Door 12

My colourful Artful Blogging and Where Women Create magazines made a shadow this morning. The sun comes through the front window for about ten minutes in the morning at a low slanting angle and dramatically lights the everyday things in the bedroom. For more shadows from around the world, visit HeyHarriet here.

Here is the Pan Forte as promised! I cooked it just before we went out last night, so when I got to it this morning to take it out of the tin and cut it up, it was very difficult. It is basically a kind of toffee recipe, as the main ingredients apart from the fruit, nuts and spices are sugar and honey. I think I slightly overcooked it (followed the recipe but would do less time if I do it again)
so it was very hard to cut. It is tasty though-very rich, chewy and nutty, and goes very well with coffee.

Here is the recipe-with my provisos!

edible wafer paper

75g blanched almonds

75g blanched hazelnuts

50g unsalted shelled pistachios

225g mixed dried fruit-dates, figs, apricots, candied peel

(roughly 55g each)

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon each of ground ginger, ground cloves, ground nutmeg (I just grated some), freshly ground black pepper

75g plain flour sifted

1 tbsp cocoa

200g clear honey

200g caster sugar

icing sugar to serve

The recipe says about 10 minutes preparation time and 1hour 10 minutes to cook-preparation took me about half an hour.

1. Preheat oven to 180C, 160C fan oven, Gas 4. Toast almonds and hazelnuts for 5-7 minutes-till golden.

2. Oil an 18cm square loose bottomed tin (did not have this-just used a square tin) and line with edible paper.

3. Once nuts done, lower oven temp to 150C, 130C fan (I misread this and did 150-may explain over cooking!) Gas 2

4. Cool nuts, chop roughly. (Not good at nut chopping-they spring away, so didn't bother too much!)

5. Chop all fruit.

6. Mix fruit and nuts.

7. Mix spices, flour and cocoa in another bowl.

8. Mix spices etc with fruit and nuts.

9. Medium pan-mix sugar and honey, heat until sugar dissolved, bring slowly to boil, bubble for two minutes. (Do not put your finger into the pan you think has cooled to try the delicious sugary mixture. If you do, run swiftly under cold water) Seriously, it is very hot and dangerous!

10. Mix quickly with fruit and nuts-otherwise it is very difficult! Pour into tin. Press flat with spoon. (I couldn't do this-too solid a mixture and too sticky-but it flattens out in the oven as it cooks)

11. Cook for 1 hour ten minutes-or possibly slightly less considering overcooking.

12. When cool, cut into small squares and dust with icing sugar. It was a two handed job cutting mine!

I think if I do it again, I would try adding orange zest, and slightly less cloves as I think they dominate a bit.

The recipe was from Sainsbury's Magazine though not the issue shown here.

Today's door is Christmas stamps.

I have posted the photo so you can see the little idyllic Christmas snow scene. Sweet!

Thanks to Kim Klassen for yet another lovely texture! I have bought quite a few, but she also sends out free textures very generously, if you join her texture lovin' list. This one is called lyrical.

Make gif