Apricot Cardamom Pistachio Ice Lollies Recipes

APRICOT-PISTACHIO LAYERED ICEBOX COOKIES

Steps:

• Shape dough into 2 disks. Wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.
• Roll out each disk to a 1/8-inch thickness on a floured piece of parchment. Cut into 2-by-9-inch strips. Spread 2 teaspoons jam onto 1 strip; sprinkle with 2 tablespoons ground nut filling. Repeat, layering 3 to 5 more strips, ending with a plain strip.
• Wrap in parchment. Refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours. Slice dough crosswise slightly thicker than 1/8 inch. Bake at 350 degrees on parchment-lined baking sheets until firm, 12 to 14 minutes.

PISTACHIO-APRICOT GRANOLA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees. In a large bowl, combine oats and pistachios. In a small saucepan, combine butter, honey, cardamom, and salt over medium. Cook, stirring occasionally, until butter melts, about 2 minutes. (Or, place ingredients in a medium microwave-safe bowl and microwave until butter melts, 1 to 2 minutes; stir until combined.) Pour butter mixture over oat mixture and toss until oats and nuts are completely coated. Transfer to a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet and spread in an even layer. Bake until oats are lightly golden, 30 to 35 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Let cool completely on sheet on a wire rack, 20 minutes, then stir in apricots.

APRICOT, CARDAMOM & PISTACHIO ICE LOLLIES

Steps:

• Put the apricots in a blender and process until smooth. Pour the mixture through a fine mesh strainer, measuring out 500ml of purée. Add the honey, sugar, 100ml water and the cardamom, and mix together until smooth and evenly combined.
• Divide the mixture between the 10 cavities of your ice lolly mould (see below for where to buy). Put the mould in the freezer and chill for 30-45 mins or until just starting to freeze. Insert the lolly sticks and leave to freeze for at least 4 hrs or until frozen solid.
• To remove the lollies, dip the mould in hot water for a few seconds, then carefully remove the lollies, dipping each into the chopped pistachios to serve.

PISTACHIO, CARDAMOM AND SAFFRON COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a multi-cavity cookie tray (e.g. mini muffin tray, a muffin-top tray or a hemisphere pan) with the 1 tablespoon butter and set aside to chill.
• Combine the warm milk with the saffron threads, stir and set aside for 5 minutes until the saffron threads begin to bloom and the milk takes on a golden hue.
• Cream the remaining 1/2 cup butter with the granulated sugar in a large mixing bowl for 2 to 3 minutes until the butter is soft and the sugar has melted in. Add the crushed cardamom pods, finely chopped pistachios, the saffron milk with the saffron threads and a pinch of grated nutmeg if using and the pandanus water. Mix until well combined. Slowly add in the all-purpose flour and salt and mix well again. The mixture will be sandy in texture. Use a spatula to break up any lumps and stir it all until well combined and there are no dry spots.
• Portion the cookie mixture using an ice cream scoop and scoop it directly into the prepared chilled cookie tray. Lightly compress the mixture into the cavity using the back of a spoon. Fill each cavity to the top as these cookies will not rise. Chill any unused cookie mixture between bakes.
• Bake for 12 to 14 minutes or until the edges begin to lightly brown. The cookies do not change color or rise during baking. Carefully unmold from the cookie tray. Place them on a wire rack and allow them to cool completely before storing in an airtight container in a cool place until ready to decorate.
• To decorate: Arrange the cookies on a wire rack with a drip pan or cookie sheet underneath.
• Bring a few inches of water to a simmer in a medium saucepan. Place the melting white chocolate wafers in a heatproof bowl over the simmering water. The bottom of the bowl must not touch the water. Maintain a slow simmer and do not let the water boil. Using a silicone spatula, stir until the chocolate is melted. Quickly stir in one pinch of saffron threads while the chocolate is warm.
• Carefully pour the white chocolate over the cookies or dunk cookies into the chocolate. Alternatively, use a spoon to drizzle the melted chocolate over each cookie. Sprinkle the pistachio slivers, gold dust or sprinkles and more saffron threads before the chocolate hardens. Cool completely.
• Serve when the chocolate is firm.
• Store in a cool, airtight container for up to a week.

APRICOT AND PISTACHIO BAKLAVA WITH ORANGE CARDAMOM SYRUP

Steps:

• Thaw the phyllo overnight in the refrigerator. Then put the phyllo box on the counter to come to room temperature, 1-1/2 to 2 hours.
• Make the filling: Put the pistachios, apricots, and sugar in a food processor. Process until the nuts and apricots are finely chopped (the largest should be the size of small dried lentils), 30 to 45 seconds. Set aside.
• Assemble the baklava: Unfold one pack of the phyllo sheets and stack them so that they lie flat on your work surface. Cover the top with plastic wrap, letting some excess plastic fall over all four edges. Dampen and wring out a kitchen towel and drape it on top of the plastic wrap; this will hold the plastic in place and prevent the phyllo from drying out.
• Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Brush the bottom of a 9x13-inch metal pan (preferably with straight sides and a light-color interior to prevent overbrowning on the edges) with some of the butter. Remove a sheet of phyllo from the stack, re-cover the rest (be sure to cover the remaining sheets each time you remove a new one), and put the sheet in the bottom of the pan. Brush the sheet with some of the melted butter but don't soak the phyllo (remember, you'll have about 40 layers of buttered phyllo by the time you're done). Repeat until you have layered and buttered about half the sheets from the first pack-about 10 sheets in all. If your pan has slightly angled sides, arrange the sheets so the excess falls on the same side of the pan and cut the extra off every few layers with a paring knife. Sprinkle about one-third of the filling evenly over the phyllo.
• Repeat layering and buttering the remaining sheets from the first pack and sprinkle on another third of the filling. Open, unfold, and cover the second pack of phyllo. Layer and butter it as described above, sprinkling the remaining filling after layering about half the phyllo, and ending with a final layer of phyllo (you may not need all of the butter). Cover loosely and put the pan of baklava in the freezer for 30 minutes (this makes it much easier to cut the pastry).
• Bake the baklava: Position an oven rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 350°F.
• Before baking, use a thin, sharp knife, preferably serrated,and a gentle sawing motion to cut the baklava on the diagonal at 1-1/2-inch intervals in a diamond pattern. Try not to compress the pastry by pressing down on it with one hand while cutting with the other. Not only are you cutting serving portions, you are also cutting pathways for the flavored syrup to permeate the pastry, so be sure to cut the pastry all the way to the bottom of the pan. If you have an electric carving knife, pull it out and use it now. Bake the baklava until golden, 40 to 45 minutes. Transfer to a rack and let cool completely. Run a knife along the cut lines to help the syrup absorb evenly.
• Make the syrup: Simmer the sugar and orange juice in a small pan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the sugar is dissolved and the liquid is clear, about 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cardamom. Pour the syrup evenly over the entire surface of the baklava, allowing it to run down into the cut marks and along the sides of the pan. Allow the baklava to cool to room temperature before serving.
• Make Ahead Tips. The baklava is at its best about 24 hours after the syrup is added. It will keep at room temperature for up to 5 days, though the texture changes from flaky and crisp to more solid and crystallized as time goes by.

DRIED APRICOT-PISTACHIO ICE CREAM

Steps:

• In a small saucepan, warm the apricot pieces in the wine. Simmer for 5 minutes, cover, remove from the heat, and let stand for 1 hour. Coarsely chop the pistachio nuts.
• Purée the apricots with the wine in a blender with the sugar, half-and-half, and lemon juice until smooth.
• Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions. During the last few minutes of churning, add the chopped pistachio nuts.
• Perfect Pairing
• You can make Apricot-Pistachio Crêpes (pictured) by warming Crêpes (page 233) and serving them, folded, on plates, topped with scoops of Dried Apricot-Pistachio Ice Cream, a drizzling of acacia honey, and a scattering of chopped pistachios.

APRICOT AND PISTACHIO BAKED RICE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Wash rice in 6 changes of cold water in a large bowl until water is almost clear. Drain in a large sieve.
• Bring 6 cups water and salt to a boil in a 4-quart heavy ovenproof pot with a tight-fitting lid, then stir in rice and cook, uncovered, 6 minutes (rice will still be firm). Drain in sieve.
• Heat oil in dried pot over moderate heat until hot but not smoking, then add rice, stirring until well coated, and remove from heat. Stir in remaining ingredients.
• Bake, tightly covered, in middle of oven until rice is tender, about 18 minutes, then fluff with a fork.