Caramel, when you think about it, is an extraordinary thing – it binds dry ingredients together in baked goods and sweets, and bolsters flavour in soups and stews. It is a technique every home cook should master, and what better way to do so than through these glistening creations?
The winning recipe: Butternut squash tarte tartin with pecan and feta
TwinnyDip’s tart is a triumph of triple-caramelisation – the roast onion, the tatin, which exemplifies the technique, and the honeyed pecans – a nod to that ultimate caramelised dessert, the pecan pie. But what elevates it is how handsomely each flavour sits with the other. Handsome too is the tart itself – certainly the prettiest one I’ve made all year.
Serves 4-6
1-2 tbsp olive oil
Salt and black pepper
1 butternut squash, cut into wedges
1 large red onion, cut into rings
Leaves of 4 sprigs of rosemary
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp honey
35g pecan nuts, lightly crushed
250g puff pastry (shop-bought or homemade)
125g feta cheese
1 Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. In a large mixing bowl, mix 1-2 tbsp olive oil with salt and pepper, to taste. Add the butternut squash wedges, onion rings and rosemary. Toss to ensure all the ingredients are evenly coated.
2 Line a baking tray with the onion rings, then add the rest of the vegetables. Roast for about 30 minutes, or until the butternut squash pieces are just soft enough to poke through.
3 Remove any rosemary sprigs, set the vegetables aside and transfer their juices into a jug or a bowl.
4 Heat 1–2 tbsp of the reserved vegetable juice in a large nonstick ovenproof pan (about 20–23cm in diameter) with the butter and honey. Bring to a boil and cook without stirring (tip the pan from side to side to ensure the base is evenly coated) until lightly golden brown, then turn off the heat. Immediately sprinkle the lightly crushed pecans evenly into the pan, then tightly pack the butternut squash wedges in too. Cover with the onion rings.
5 Roll out the pastry to about 5mm thick. Put the pastry on top of the pan. Tuck the edge in around the vegetables. Prick the pastry with a fork several times and make an ‘x’ incision in the middle of the tart (to allow steam from the hot vegetables to escape). Refrigerate the entire pan in the fridge for 15 minutes, or until cool. Set the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6.
6 Bake the tarte tatin in the hot oven for about 30 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown and evenly cooked through.
7 When it’s ready, take the tarte tatin out of the oven and let it cool for 3–5 minutes, then carefully flip it over on to a plate. Crumble feta cheese on top and season with freshly cracked black pepper before serving.
Dulce de leche and pistachio brownies
Caramelised condensed milk is one of life’s all-time highs and, while frankly no recipe will ever beat being 12 and eating it directly from the can with your best friend and two teaspoons at midnight, Bobby Ananta has nevertheless made something mighty fine with it here. Pistachios are not an obvious partner for caramel, and yet their soft tang works with all that buttery, saccharine goo.
Makes 18
200g dark chocolate
180g unsalted butter
50g vegetable oil
200g self-raising flour
50g ground almonds
395g dulce de leche (alternatively, gently boil a 395g tin of condensed milk for 3 hours, ensuring that the water is always 4cm above the tin, then set aside to cool completely before opening)
150g pistachio nuts (blitz 100g into a slightly fine powder in a food processor, keep the rest whole)
1½ tsp sea salt
3 large eggs
250g light brown sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
Cocoa powder and extra pistachio nuts, for dusting and topping
1 In a large bowl on top of simmering hot water, melt the chocolate, butter and vegetable oil into a glossy mixture. Set aside to cool for 5-10 minutes.
2 In a small bowl, mix together the dulce de leche, whole pistachios and sea salt.
3 Using a freestanding electric mixer with the paddle attachment, beat together the eggs, sugar and vanilla extract. Pour in the chocolate mix. Add the flour, ground almond and nearly all the ground pistachio nuts, reserving some for topping.
4 Line a 20-25cm square tin with baking paper and preheat the oven 180C/350F/gas mark 4.
5 Spoon the mixture into the lined cake tin, and add the dulce de leche mix on top. With a fork or chopstick, marble the mixture together then bake for 35-40 minutes. Dust with cocoa powder and sprinkle with the remaining ground pistachios.
Spicy hummus and caramelised onion canapes
Fadime Tiskaya’s spicy hummus is a thing of wonder ... and her onions! Admittedly, onions basically caramelise themselves – it’s hard to screw up a batch. But it’s her dash of pomegranate molasses that pushes these over the edge. I tried the combo on Carr’s Melts originals and simple digestives, and could have happily continued, working my way through our entire set of savoury biscuit recipes from the other week. In fact, I might just.
Makes 20
For the caramelised onions
1 tbsp olive oil
2 red onions, finely sliced
1 tsp brown sugar
½ tbsp pomegranate molasses or balsamic vinegar
For the hummus
½ tsp olive oil
1 tsp smoked paprika
180g hummus
50g sun-dried tomatoes, finely chopped
2 tbsp parsley, finely chopped
20 savoury biscuits
1 Heat the olive oil in a nonstick pan. Add the onions and cook on a low heat, stirring every now and then for about 5 minutes, or until soft and a light golden brown. Add the sugar and molasses, then stir to combine. Cook for another 1-2 minutes, take off the heat and let them cool completely.
2 Combine the oil and paprika, then add to the hummus with the sun-dried tomatoes and mix well.
3 Assemble the canapes by spreading a generous teaspoon of hummus on each biscuit, then topping with caramelised onions and a sprinkle of parsley.
Brown stew chicken
Despite the fact that the finished dish is as far removed from a sweet as you’re likely to get, it is definitely the caramel you start with that sets the tone here. LoveLoretta’s recipe for this Caribbean stalwart is rich and light, bright and hot, sour and sweet: a culinary kaleidoscope.
Serves 4
4 pieces of skinless chicken on the bone (such as thigh)
Juice of 1 lime
For the marinade
6 garlic cloves, crushed
1 ½ tbsp minced ginger (about an 8cm piece)
½ scotch bonnet, finely chopped
Juice of 1 ½ limes
2 tsp salt
For the stew
2 tbsp oil (for frying)
½ onion, finely sliced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 halves of green and yellow pepper
4-5 sprigs fresh thyme
2 tbsp white sugar
1 whole scotch bonnet
2 fresh bay leaves
Salt and black pepper to taste
½ chicken stock jelly
240-360ml water
1 First, wash the chicken with the juice of 1 lime, then place it in a Ziploc freezer bag along with the garlic and ginger paste, scotch bonnet pepper, salt and the remaining lime juice. Make sure the chicken is smothered in the marinade, then transfer to the fridge overnight or at least 4-6 hours.
2 When ready to cook, add a little oil to a deep saucepan and fry the onion, garlic, sweet pepper and thyme. When the vegetables have softened, transfer them to a separate bowl.
3 Add the rest of the oil to the saucepan, along with the sugar. Allow it to caramelise to a deep brown colour. Remove from the heat and place the chicken pieces one by one into the caramel (remove any excess marinade before doing so to minimise burning, but keep the seasoning to add later).
4 Cover the saucepan with a lid and gently swirl to help submerge the chicken in the caramel. Return the saucepan to a medium-low heat, remove the lid and spoon the caramel over the chicken pieces.
5 Add the onions and peppers with the scotch bonnet, thyme, bay leaves and seasoning from the chicken. Stir gently, then cover with the lid again for about 5 minutes to allow the chicken time to cook and soak up the colour and seasoning from the caramel.
6 Turn over the meat pieces, then add the chicken stock jelly. Then add 240-360ml of water to the stew, as necessary.
7 Allow it to simmer for 20 minutes more over a medium-low heat. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Serve with rice and peas, or plain white rice.
Salted caramel fudge
JammyDodging’s fudge is perfectly salted – and sweetened, I hasten to add. Golden syrup and light brown sugar were made to make this, with their built-in caramel notes.
Makes 30-40
150g caster sugar
150g light brown soft sugar
100g butter
100g double cream
1 tbsp golden syrup
1 tsp vanilla bean paste or extract
1 tsp fine sea salt
1 Line the bottom of a tin measuring approx 25cm x 15cm with baking parchment.
2 In a heavy-based saucepan melt the butter, cream, syrup and sugars over a low heat, stirring gently but constantly. (Make sure the pan is no more than a third full as the mixture bubbles up when it boils.)
3 When the sugar has completely dissolved and no crystals are visible on the back of a spoon (this takes about 20 mins) bring the mixture to a rapid boil. Using a sugar thermometer, boil until the mixture reaches soft ball stage – 116C.
4 Take the pan off the heat and leave to stand for 10 minutes. Then add salt and vanilla and, using a handheld electric mixer, beat until the mixture becomes grainy, matt in appearance and starts to come away from the edge of the pan.
5 Pour into prepared tin, smooth over and leave to set for a few hours. When set, remove the fudge from the tin and cut into bitesize pieces.
Gateau de semoule au caramel
Detoutcoeur Limousin rewrites another French classic with a splash of lemongrass and star anise.
Serves 6-8
1 tsp mild flavoured/vegetable oil
1 litre milk
125g caster sugar
1 star anise
1 lemongrass stalk, roughly chopped
125g fine semolina
For the caramel sauce
6 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp water
1 Lightly oil a 23cm-diameter shallow ovenproof dish.
2 To make the caramel sauce, gently heat up the sugar and water and simmer until a golden brown caramel colour. Watch carefully, but don’t stir the mixture to avoid the sugar crystallising.
3 When the caramel sauce is ready, pour it carefully into the oiled serving dish.
4 Bring the milk to the boil with the sugar, star anise and lemongrass stalk and simmer for a few minutes before taking off the heat and sieving out the lemongrass and star anise.
5 Bring the milk back up to a gentle boil and add the semolina, stirring/whisking constantly for 6-7 minutes or until the semolina is cooked and thickened up.
6 Pour into your dish on top of the caramel, smooth the top and leave to cool for at least 4 hours, or overnight, in the fridge.
7 To serve, turn out the semolina cake using a plate held over the top of the dish. Serve in slices with spoonfuls of the caramel sauce and some creme fraiche on the side, if you like.
Sweet potato with honey and cinnamon
Anna Thompson has a knack for making the simplest ideas shine, and while she doesn’t claim to have invented this excellent sweet, it sits so well with the other recipes she’s submitted so far, I’m declaring it hers.
Serves 4
2 sweet potatoes, cut into 2 cm thick slices
Butter
Honey
Cinnamon
1 Steam the sweet potato slices until almost done, leave to cool.
2 Heat the oven to 220C/425F/gas mark 7. Generously grease a large baking tray with butter. Fill the tray with the sweet potato slices in one layer; use an additional tray for any that don’t fit. Top each slice with a knob of butter and then drizzle the whole tray with honey – sparingly, as the potato already gives enough sweetness. Place in a hot oven, and bake, turning once or twice, until the sweet potato is nicely caramelised
3 Finish with a dusting of cinnamon, and serve hot, warm or cold.
