Homemade oatcakes with beetroot, apple, crème fraîche and mint
There is little I enjoy more than hosting a dinner party. From table setting to pudding making. I love it all! My golden rule is to make sure that everyone has a drink in their hand and a little bite to eat. It doesn’t need to be complicated; crisps and nuts will do but I do like to go that little bit extra and make a canapé when I can. They needn’t be fussy and I am a big advocate for anything that involves a do ahead. These oatcakes can be made up to a week ahead of time and bar peeling the apple and beetroot there is very little handy-work involved in the recipe. Home-made oatcakes, Ive learned, are seen as quite impressive which I feel incredibly chuffed about given that they are so easy to make. I like to add a few chopped almonds and herbs to mine for added crunch and flavour but you could keep it incredibly simple and stick to oats and water too. My last piece of advice would be to pair your canapés with a good cocktail. I like a classic and can never resist a good Martini. I like mine made with Greygoose Vodka, dry and with a twist.
Ingredients
Makes roughly 30 canapés
250g rolled oats
60g almonds
1tbsp dried herb (rosemary, thyme, oregano)
1 tsp salt
3 tbsp olive oil
200 ml boiling water
For the beetroot
2 large beetroot, peeled and roughly chopped
1 granny smith apple, peeled and roughly chopped
1 garlic clover, crushed
1 bunch of mint, leaves finely chopped (plus extra to garnish)
6 tbsp olive oil
salt, pepper
small pot of crème fraîche to serve
Method
Preheat your oven to 180° and line two baking trays with parchment paper.
In the bowl of your food processor pulse the oats until the resemble a rough flour. Then transfer them to a medium sized mixing bowl.
Next place your almonds in the food processor and pulse until well broken down. You want them to be uneven sizes to add texture to the oat cakes but they should be no bigger than about 1/3 of an almond. Add these to the mixing bowl with the oats.
Add your salt and chopped herbs and stir everything together to combine. Next add your boiling water and olive oil. Stir until you have a collected dough.
Roll out the dough with a floured rolling pin until it is about the thickness of two one pound coins. Use a 4cm cookie cutter cut out rounds. I like to roll the dough on a silicone baking sheet or some parchment paper to avoid having to add more flour to the dough.
Once you have stamped out as many oatcakes as you can collect the dough together and roll out again. Repeat until all the dough has finished.
Place your oat cakes onto the prepared baking sheets and bake for 35-40 mins turning and switching oven shelves half way to ensure an even bake.
Remove and allow to cool.
To make the topping place your beetroot, apple, garlic and mint into a food processor and pulse until it is well broken down but still a little textured. Transfer it to a sieve placed over a bowl and let it drain for about ten minutes before discarding the liquid.
Place the beet mix into the bowl and stir through your olive oil and a good dose of salt and pepper. Season to taste. Set aside somewhere cool until ready to serve.
To serve place about a teaspoon full of the beetroot apple onto each oatcake. Then using the handle ends of two teaspoons scrape small collops of crème fraîche atop followed by a little shredded mint.