As my foodie friend, Pierre from Little Hungry Heart has kindly pointed out, St Patrick's Day is over but this is my chance to do a St Patrick's week & the week ends tomorrow. So one more day of basking in Irish culinary bliss!
To that end I went on the hunt for a traditional Irish dessert. Our St Patrick's week's menu is rooted in peasant history and I wanted a dessert that reminds one of rich loam soil, of farmlands and nature's rich bounty.
As it happens I thumbing through Ethel Minogue's, Modern and Traditional Irish
cooking and I had stuck a post it on her Apple and Barley pudding way back when & forgotten all about it. Pudding sounded good but I wanted to keep on looking a bit more.
Now I knew I didn't want anything with alcohol or Bailey's (though I'm addicted to the stuff) or stout. A rampage of stout muffins, cake and cupcakes seem to have flooded the cyberspace and I neatly wielded my way around these in search of that perfect dessert.
As I was going internet loafing I stumbled upon this website called European Cuisines and lo and behold, they were also talking about Ethel's Apple & barley pudding but were discussing presenting it in layers with cream and I thought to myself - ooohh now that sounds good!
The recipe struck the right note with me - a quick & easy recipe, using seasonal fresh apples & pearl barley (oh so very rustic) and slow cooking it. The pectin from the apple will infuse the barley but the layers of fresh whipped cream will add that modern upmarket twist and take it up just the right notch. Don't you think? Then there is the added bonus of eating a healthy dessert!
However as you have all figured by now, off I go tinkering again so I've decided to channel my Dixie chick past and add a wee bit of ground cinnamon & brown sugar to the apples. Also I'm adding some pure vanilla extract and sugar while doing the fresh whipped cream.
The ingredients for this dessert
are golden delicious apples (yellow),
ground cinnamon, lemon, pearl barley, brown sugar, pure vanilla extract,
unsalted butter & heavy whipping cream.
I feel like such a good girl for using the pearl barley today. Growing up I'd see my maternal grandparents cook & drink the barley water every morning. They'd always explain to me the benefits of barley as it washes out your kidneys & gives you excellent bladder health. Was I thinking of them today!
Prepare the ingredients -
Apples - Peel & core. Discard the core and halve the apples. Slice as thin as possible. No need to be very careful since its all going to be cooked down to a mush.
Lemon - Freshly squeeze the juice and set aside.
In a sauce pan add 3 cups of water(make sure the top of the apples are covered with water)and pearl barley.On medium heat,cook until the water starts to simmer.
Add the sliced apples and cook for about 30 minutes or until the apples are & barley are both soft. Drain away excess water in a sieve.
With a hand immersion blender, blend the apples to a mush.
Add the butter, lemon juice, ground cinnamon and brown sugar. Stir and taste. Adjust seasonings as needed.
Cook's Note - You want it tart & sweet but neither flavor should be overpowering. However, definitely have it sweeter than tart because once it chills the sweetness will reduce.
Set aside to cool. Once cool refrigerate for a couple of hours to chill.
An hour or so before serving, measure out the chilled heavy cream. You'll need 2 cups for 4 servings.
Add 3 tbs powdered sugar & 1 tsp vanilla extract to the cream. Whip up the heavy cream in a food processor until soft peaks form.
Assembly -
Layer 1 - Add about 3-4 tbs of the apple mixture to give it a thick bottom layer.
Layer 2 - Add whipped cream about 1/2" thick (about 2 tablespoonful)
Layer 3 - Add more of the apple mixture to about 1/2" thickness.
Layer 4 - Add another 1/2" thick layer of cream followed by another 1/2" thick layer of apple.
At this point you should have a nearly filled wine glass.
The touch is a dollop of cream.
Refrigerate for at least 1/2 hour before serving.
Just before serving, decorate with a stick of cinnamon and mint leaves. And what you get is this -
This just went to the top of my dessert list!
I can't even begin to tell you what a fabulous surprise this dessert ended up being. The words that were on all our lips as we were polishing it off was - refreshing, delicate & light.
The tart from the lemons and apples, the crunch from the barley (that was my favorite part) was the perfect contrast to the rich, smooth velvety mellowness of the cream.
Even my 8 year old son said, "Mom, these are awesome". So there you have it, straight from the lips of a budding connoisseur! I really hope you make these. You won't be disappointed!
Recipe for
Farmhouse Apple & Barley Parfaits
Preparation time - 15 minutes
Chilling time - 3-4 hours
4 large golden delicious apples (yellow)
4 tbs pearl barley
2 tbs freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tbs unsalted butter
2 cups heavy whipping cream
3 tbs powdered sugar for the whipped cream
mint leaves & cinnamon sticks for decoration
Preparation -
Apples - Peel & core. Discard the core and halve the apples. Slice as thin as possible. No need to be very careful since its all going to be cooked down to a mush.
Lemon - Freshly squeeze the juice and set aside.
Cooking method -
In a sauce pan add 3 cups of water(make sure the top of the apples are covered with water)and pearl barley.On medium heat, cook until the water starts to simmer.
Add the sliced apples and cook for about 30 minutes or until the apples are & barley are both soft. Drain away excess water in a sieve.
With a hand immersion blender, blend the apples to a mush.
Add the butter, lemon juice, ground cinnamon and brown sugar. Stir and taste. Adjust seasonings as needed.
Cook's Note - You want it tart & sweet but neither flavor should be overpowering. However, definitely have it sweeter than tart because once it chills the sweetness will reduce.
Set aside to cool. Once cool refrigerate for a couple of hours to chill.
An hour or so before serving, measure out the chilled heavy cream. You'll need 2 cups for 4 servings.
Add 3 tbs powdered sugar & 1 tsp vanilla extract to the cream. Whip up the heavy cream in a food processor until soft peaks form.
Assembly -
Layer 1 - Add about 3-4 tbs of the apple mixture to give it a thick bottom layer.
Layer 2 - Add whipped cream about 1/2" thick (about 2 tbsfull)
Layer 3 - Add more of the apple mixture to about 1/2" thickness.
Layer 4 - Add another 1/2" thick layer of cream followed by another 1/2" thick layer of apple.
At this point you should have a nearly filled wine glass. The touch is a dollop of cream.
Refrigerate for at least 1/2 hour before serving.
Just before serving, decorate with a stick of cinnamon and mint leaves.
Enjoy!
