From Her Majesty the Queen, Nigella
Makes 35 – 40 canapé
This is a big crowd pleaser for festive get-togethers, not to mention it’s a great “make-ahead” dish. I first saw home-curing on a Christmas special from Nigella Lawson and this year I finally had an excuse to give it a go. Nigella’s recipe calls for mustard, which I am not a fan of. Instead, I added the lime to add that citrus tang.
Recipe:
- 150 grams plain flour
- 75 grams grated parmesan
- 100 grams soft unsalted butter
- 1 large egg yolk
Instructions:
- Mix all the ingredients together – using bowl and spoon, electric mixer or food processor as wished – until a golden dough begins to form a clump.
- Turn it out onto a surface and knead for about 30 seconds until smooth, then divide into two.
- Take the first half and, using your hands, roll it into a cylinder, as uniform as possible without stressing over it, about 3cm / 1¼ inches in diameter. Make sure the ends are flat, too, so that the cylinder resembles a roll of coins. Now roll this up in a piece of clingfilm, twisting the clingfilm at the ends, like a Christmas cracker, and put the roll in the fridge, then proceed in the same way with the remaining half of the dough.
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C Fan/gas mark 4/350ºF while the wrapped cylinders of dough rest in the fridge for about 45 minutes, by which time you should be able to cut them into thick slices easily: aim for about 1cm / ½ inch thick. (I have had the best results when I refrigerate for at least 3-4 hours. Also: use your sharpest knife or you’ll end up with squidged ovals instead of the glorious golden rounds.)
- Arrange on a baking sheet lined with baking parchment, and put in the oven for 15–20 minutes, when they should be just beginning to turn a pale gold at the edges.
- Remove from the oven, then leave to cool (if you can) before eating.