If ever there was a time to drink, eat and be merry, it’s now. And on the menu? A feast of baked cheese, glazed ham and chocolate tart.
Baked cranberry Camembert
You’ll need: 100g frozen cranberries; 150g Staffords cranberry jelly;
1 tsp chilli flakes; one 250g wheel of Camembert or Brie cheese; 50g walnuts; 3 sprigs rosemary.
To make: Preheat oven to 180˚C. In a small saucepan combine the frozen cranberries, 100g Staffords cranberry jelly and chilli flakes. Cook over low heat until the cranberries are soft and the sauce has thickened slightly, about 5 minutes. Set aside.
On a baking tray, score the wheel of cheese in a 2cm by 2cm pattern. In the grooves insert the rosemary leaves… do this evenly throughout the wheel. Spread 50g of Staffords cranberry jelly evenly over top of the wheel. Tie a piece of kitchen twine around the outside to prevent it breaking apart too early. Sprinkle the walnuts around it.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until it has become soft in the middle. This will vary depending on the age of the cheese. Remove from oven and place on a serving dish. Spoon over some of the cranberry chilli sauce and place the rest in a dish to serve on the side. Sprinkle with toasted walnuts and more fresh rosemary if desired.
Serve immediately with crusty sliced bread like sourdough or baguette.
Honey mustard glazed ham
You’ll need: 3kg leg of ham, trimmed and skin removed; 1 cup smooth orange marmalade; quarter of a cup Staffords honey; half a cup orange juice; 3 tbs Staffords Dijon mustard; cloves for studding; sage for garnish.
To make: Preheat oven to 180˚C. In a saucepan combine the marmalade, honey, orange juice and mustard. Cook over low heat until the glaze has thickened slightly – around 5 to 7 minutes. Set aside but do not allow to cool completely. If needed reheat over low heat for 1 to 2 minutes.
Score the trimmed leg of ham into a 2cm diamond pattern. Push a single clove Into the centre of each diamond. Only stud the top of the ham, or whichever side you’ll be presenting. Place on a rack above a lined baking sheet. Generously brush ham with glaze and place on the lowest rack of the oven. Every 10 minutes remove it from the oven, rotate and brush on more glaze. Repeat this until the ham is golden brown, about 40 to 60 minutes, depending on the oven.
If the top begins to brown too quickly, loosely place a piece of tinfoil over top. Once cooked, remove from oven and allow to cool slightly. Sprinkle with sea salt flakes and serve on a large dish (sliced or whole) and garnish with fresh sage.
Chocolate raspberry tart
You’ll need: Chocolate pastry – 170g cake flour; 50g icing sugar; 60ml cocoa powder; 2ml salt;100g cold butter, cubed; 1 egg yolk; 60ml water. Filling – 200g raspberries; 500ml cream; 60g caster sugar; 100g Staffords milk choc disks; 150g Staffords dark choc disks; 5ml Staffords vanilla extract with seeds; 3 eggs, lightly whisked; 10ml cocoa powder, for dusting.
To make: For the chocolate pastry, sift the flour, cocoa powder and icing sugar into a mixing bowl and add salt. Add cold butter and work into the flour, using your fingertips, until mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Beat egg yolk with water, add to the flour mixture and mix until dough comes together. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead briefly until smooth. Wrap in clingfilm and place in the fridge for 20 minutes. Then roll the pastry out on a lightly flour-dusted surface and line a 25cm loose-bottomed tart tin. Chill in the fridge for 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 190°C. Blind bake the pastry case for 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool.
To make the filling, reduce the oven temperature to 160°C. Reserve a third of the raspberries for decoration and use remainder to line the baked tart case. Place the cream and sugar in a pan and gently bring to the boil. Stir until sugar dissolves, then remove from heat, add milk choc disks, dark choc disks and vanilla extract with seeds and stir until smooth. Allow to cool for 5 minutes, then stir in the eggs. Transfer the tart case to a baking sheet and pour chocolate filling over raspberries. Bake the tart for 25 to 35 minutes, or until the filling is cooked but still slightly wobbly in the middle. Allow to cool at room temperature until set. Decorate with remaining raspberries and a dusting of cocoa powder round the edges.
For more holiday recipes, visit getitmagazine.co.za
Festive cooking – hells bells, any cooking – is easier (and tastier) when you use the condiments, baking and specialty products from the Staffords range. From baking to braaiing, going fancy or keeping it simple, there’s a Staffords product that will add a little extra punch. You’ll find them at your local supermarket.
