Pizza

Whilst I do like a Pizza Express pizza, I also like a home made one from time to time.

Today we made mushroom and blue cheese;


onion relish, goats cheese and pepper pizza



anchovy and olive



along with a plain cheese pizza for Mr Fussy. Oh and some dough balls with garlic butter.



From start to finish it took about 90 mins to make the dough, prove it, top them and cook them.

You need:
700g plain flour
2 sachets easy blend yeast
about 350 ml warm water
3 tbsp olive oil

Mix together and knead for 10 mins (or cheat and use a food mixer) then leave to rest for about 15 mins. Roll out and top.

Toppings:
2 cans Provencal tomatoes (or don't cheat and make a sauce by sauteeing an onion and some garlic in olive oil for 10 mins then adding a tin of chopped toms, some sugar, some balsamic vinegar, a sprig of rosemary, salt and pepper. Simmer for 20 mins till thickened then remove the rosemary and blitz to a puree.
Cheese
Vegetables

Bake the pizzas in a hot oven for about 30 mins.

For the dough balls, roll left over dough into balls and bake for about 10 mins. For the garlic butter mix 1 clove crushed garlic into 100g butter. Season to taste.

Ginger and Honey Snaps

I needed something different for Lex's lunchbox next week and fancied giving these a whirl. My mum used to make the most delicious ginger snaps on a sunday and these are pretty close to what she used to make. It's a recipe from Rachel Allen's Bake. If you substitute the butter for vegan marge and the honey for maple syrup or golden syrup then you can make these vegan too. Bonus.

For about 20 cookies you need:
225g self raising flour
2 tsp bicarb
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground mixed spice
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
100g caster sugar plus a couple of extra tablespoons for dusting
125g butter, cubed
100g runny honey

Lob everything apart from the honey into a food processor and blitz till combined. Warm the honey then pour into the dry ingredients. Mix, then press into discs, dust with sugar and bake in a hot oven (180 degrees) for no more than 10 mins (if they go too dark they will taste bitter. Eat.
Next time I make these I am going to omit the ground ginger and add some chopped, preserved ginger to dough. I might also use the syrup for the binding agent to give it an extra ginger kick.

Root Vegetable Hot Pot with Pearl Barley, Herbed Dumplings and Mash

A real winter warmer this one, and dead simple to make too. You can use any combination of root veggies you want to. Today the veg box had left us with celeriac, carrots and jerusalem artichokes. So in they went. The dumplings are nicer with dried herbs (I learnt this today after using fresh...). I also made the mash with vegan marge and soya milk to make the whole meal vegan but you could of course use butter.

Hot Pot
For 4-6 portions you need:
1 large onion, chopped
3 large carrots, diced
1 medium celariac, diced
equiv amount of Jerusalem artichokes to the other veggies, diced
1 tbsp olive oil
750ml stock
2 handfuls (1/2 cup?) pearl barley
2 tsp cornflour slackened with cold water

Saute all the veggies in the oil for about 10 mins to release their juices. Then add the stock and pearl barley. Bring to the boil and simmer for about 40 mins till the barley is cooked. Remove the dumplings and add the cornflour, stir through to thicken, return the dumplings and then serve when ready.

Herbed Dumplings
50g vegetable suet
100g self raising flour
1 tsp dried mixed herbs
salt and pepper
cold water to mix to a dough

Mix everything together into a dough, then divide into 8, roll in to balls and place on the top of the stew. Steam for 40 mins till done.

Mash
Yeah yeah I know you don't really need a recipe for this but seeing as I'm here...
Dice potatoes and cover with cold water. Bring to the boil and simmer for about 20 mins till tender. Drain and mash (I like to use a ricer for creamy smooth mash). Add butter, milk and seasoning, mix well and serve.

Mixed Lentil Stew

If, like me, you're a veggie who misses the rich, dark taste of mince and doesn't necessarily want to use a meat substitute to recreate the taste, then this recipe is for you. It's dark and warming and nourishing and filling and just, well, gorgeous!

For 6-8 generous portions you need:
1 tbsp oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed
300g mixed lentils: I use red, green, puy and brown.
1.5 litres of dark stock (vecon is a good one to use)
2 tbsp tom puree
2 tbsp shoyu/soya sauce
1 tsp marmite

Begin by sauteeing the onion and garlic gently. After about 5 mins add the lentils and fry for a further few mins. Then add the stock and everything else and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for an hour or so. You want the red lentils to be completely mushed into the sauce, thickening it. If you want you can also add diced swede, carrot, parsnips, celariac etc to this. But it's equally nice without. It's lovely served with steamed veggies and mash or you can use it as a base for shepherds pie.

Sticky Date Bars

These contain fruit so they're good for you, right?! They're also deliciously sticky and chewy and moreish. They're a bit like fig rolls but in a good way.

For about 16 bars you need:
250ml water
200g chopped, stoned dates
175g plain flour
1/2 tsp bicarb
175g soft light brown sugar
100g oats
pinch salt
175g butter, diced (or soya marge for a vegan version)

Begin by putting the water and dates into a pan and bringing to the boil. Cook for about 10 minutes and then puree so the mix is very thick and smooth. Blitz the butter and flour till it resembles breadcrumbs and then mix in the bicarb, sugar, salt and oats.
Press half the oat mixture into a lined tin, top with the date puree and then sprinkle over the remaining mixture, pressing down lightly with your fingers.
Bake for about 40 mins till golden brown and set. Allow to cool completely, then turn out of the tin, cut into squares and scoff.

Bananas in Pyjamas

OK OK so this is hardly rocket science but as I've said before this is partly a blog to teach my son to cook. Plus I'm knackered. Rammstein last night was awesome, but at my age it's left me too tired to contemplate much more than comfort nursery food on my return home!

So. For one bowl of yellow nourishment you need a banana and a tub of custard. Chop said banana, cover with custard, nuke till hot and eat. Instant bliss :)

Courgette Loaf Cake

A squidgy, deliciously moreish cake which is a bit like carrot cake, but isn't at the same time. Delicately spiced with a crunchy topping from the demerara sugar it keeps well for lunches and also freezes beautifully allowing you to always have a slice of cake to hand!

For 2 loaves you need:
400g plain flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp bicarb
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
300g caster sugar
100g ounces of demerara sugar
3 eggs, beaten
200ml sunflower oil
2 tsp vanilla extract
400g courgettes, grated (skin an' all)

Lob everything into a large bowl and mix well. Pour into 2 lined loaf tins and bake in a moderate oven for about 30 mins until risen and done. Slice and scoff!

Cream of Mushroom Soup

I really fancied this after a colleague ate some for lunch the other day. I have to say the recipe was a bit disappointing and lacked a really deep mushroom flavour. I think next time I will vary the mushrooms more to add more depth. But it was nice, don't get me wrong!

For 6 servings you need
30g dried porcini mushrooms soaked in 1 litre of boiling water for 30 mins
400g mixed mushrooms, roughly chopped
1 onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, crushed
3 oz butter
300ml milk
200ml double cream
100ml white wine
salt and pepper
chopped parsley to serve.

Begin by sweating the onions and garlic in the butter over a low, gentle heat. Let them get really soft but don't let them colour at all. Add the mushrooms and continue to sweat for another 20 mins or so. Strain off the dried mushrooms (reserving the liquid) and chop before adding to the pan with the onions and fresh mushrooms. Add the mushroom liquid, wine, milk and seasoning and simmer for 30 mins. Add the cream, check the seasoning and serve in hot bowls scattered with the chopped parsley.

Lemon and White Chocolate Puddings

Another recipe inspired by Denis Cotter. His called for lemon verdanna but I had none. I also didn't have enough white chocolate to make the full amount so improvised. The result is a lovely light lemony pudding.

For about 6 puddings you need
100g ricotta
150g white chocolate, melted
2 whole eggs
1 eggs white
75ml double cream
zest and juice of 1 lemon

Melt the chocolate and mix all the other ingredients together. Once the chocolate has melted mix into the batter and then pour into greased ramekins. Bake in a bain marie for about 25 mins till risen and set. Serve au naturel or with some fruit compote. A lovely refreshing and light end to a meal.

Leek and Blue Cheese Tartlets

A Denis Cotter recipe this one (from the Autumn and Winter Paradiso Year book). And OMG it's lovely. I really should make pastry more often as it always seems to work well. Then again it's not really the best thing in the world to eat is it?! If you don't like blue cheese, don't be put off making these as they have a lovely salty savoury flavour rather than a "THIS CONTAINS BLUE CHEESE" flavour!

For about six tartlets (or one big one) you need:
300g plain flour
150g cold salted butter
enough water to mix to a dough
400g finely shredded leeks
100g blue cheese (I used Blackstick White, yum yum yum)
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1/2 tsp french mustard
large knob butter.

Begin by sweating the leeks and garlic in the butter over a gentle gentle heat for about 30 mins till they are meltingly tender and moist.

Meanwhile make the pastry. Blitz the butter and flour in a food processor then add the water to make the dough. Roll out and line the tins. Prick and bake blind for 15 mins or so. Fill with the leeks and then top with the crumbled cheese. Bake for about 30 mins till the cheese had melted into the leeks. Serve hot, warm or cold. They're delicious with a glass of cold dry sherry and some semi dried tomatoes.

Banana Cake

I have to admit, I have sort of gone of this recipe, but only cos I've made it sooooooo many times. It was a staple of my pregnant/maternity leave days, and my secret confession is that I do prefer the raw batter to the finished article. But that's just my opinion. Everyone else seems to love the cakes. I've just eaten too many of them...!

This is a Nigella recipe from Domestic Goddess.

You need:
175g plain flour
125g butter, melted
100g sultanas (I used mixed berries and cherries today)
60g chopped walnuts
80ml brandy
2 eggs
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarb
150g vanilla sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 very ripe bananas, mashed

Begin by heating the dried fruit in the brandy and leaving aside for 10 mins to absorb the liquid. Melt the butter. Mash the bananas and then add everything else to the mashed bananas. I prefer the batter poured into individual cases but you can also bake it as a loaf. Either way bake in a moderate oven for 15 mins (fairy cakes) or 30 mins (loaf tine). The cake will rise and a skewer will come out clean when they're done (if you use silicone cases then the cake will have shrunk away from the sides a little when it's cooked.

They freeze very well, and it does keep but gets stickier and stickier (and smellier and smellier!) as it matures! Makes about 30 individual cakes.

Cheats Vegetable Tikka Masala

It was very nearly eggy bread with beans for dinner tonight it's been that long a week. But after bland dinner yesterday and even more bland lunch at work today I fancied a curry. So a cheats curry (i.e. one using a jar of sauce) we had.

For 2-3 servings you need:
1 jar Mumtaz tikka masala sauce
Mix of veggies we used:
cold, cooked new potatoes
2 carrots, diced
1 head broccoli
2 onions, diced
1/2 pack spinach (tho I forgot to add this d'oh!)
5 tbsp oil
4 tbsp ground almonds

Put the sauce into a pan and add another jar of water. Add the veggies and oil and bring to the boil. Simmer till the veggies are tender and the oil has split a bit (you'll know what I mean cos it'll look like a takeaway curry sauce). Then stir in the almonds. Serve with rice/naan/chips. Whatever!

Creamy Spinach and Mushroom Pasta

Today was supposed to be vegan day. But nothing inspiring jumped out of the fridge tonight so we had a veggie dish instead. N declared it a bit bland and samey towards the end but perfectly edible. Maybe it would have been nicer with blue cheese or some chilli. Will try those variations next time...

For 2 generous servings you need:
200g pasta
2 tomatoes, skinned and diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 bag baby leaf spinach
2 tbsp olive oil
6 tbsp mascapone
75ml white wine
125g sliced mushrooms
Parmesan
Pepper

Cook the pasta. Meanwhile sautee the onions, garlic and mushrooms in the oil. After about 5 mins add the tomatoes, mascapone, ground pepper and wine. Simmer for a further 5 mins or so then add the spinach and wilt. Drain the pasta, toss through the sauce and top with parmesan. Perfect post ride fuel!

Vegetable and Chickpea Stew

I was going to make some tomato based stew but N really isn't that keen on the whole beany-tomatoey stew thing any more so I ditched that at the last minute and produced this instead. It was yumsome and filling. Cool.

For 3-4 servings you need:
1 tin pulses (we had chickpeas)
1 onion, chopped
1 medium sweet potato, diced
1 large carrot, diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 litre veggie stock
2 tsp cornflour slackened with some cold water
handful roughly chopped fresh parsley.

Begin by sauteeing the onion in some olive oil then add the carrot and sweet potato and continue sauteeing for a few mins. Add the stock and bring to the boil then simmer for about 15 mins till the veggies are tender. Add the cornflour and parsley, heat through and serve. We had it with broccoli and new potatoes. Even Lex had some, wonders will never cease!

Macaroni Cheese

Mmmmmm a total comfort food staple and a classic recipe! However it took my years to figure out that you need a runnier sauce than normal to make it on the right side of creamy rather than claggily heavy. I like to top mine with breadcrumbs and cheese. N prefers tomatoes. I do the cooking so we have breadcrumbs and cheese ;-) It's nice served with something green to offset the fat and richness of the cheese.

For 4 servings you need:
200g pasta (use something that the sauce will cling to like fusilli or spirili)
30g butter
30g plain flour
1 pint milk
1 tsp french mustard
1 tsp mustard powder
125g grated cheese (a mix of emmental, gruyere and cheddar is nice)
2 handfuls breadcrumbs
2 tbsp grated parmesan

Begin by cooking the pasta. Whilst this is boiling away make the cheese sauce: put the milk, butter and flour into a pan and heat till thickened. Add the mustards, all bar 2 tbsp of the cheese and mix well. Drain the pasta and mix in to the sauce. Pour into a baking dish and top with the crumbs and remaining cheese. Bake in a hot oven for 20-30 mins then serve.

Thai Style Citrus and Coconut Broth

A variation on a HFW (huge furry whipping tool as he is known in our house) recipe for Thai Style Chicken Noodle Soup. It was delicious, but L and N found it a bit too sour. I loved it however.

For 4 generous portions you need
2 bundles rice noodles
1 can coconut milk
1 carton coconut cream
1 litre vegetable stock
1 packet frozen quorn pieces
2 inch piece ginger, grated
2 cloves garlic, sliced
Grated zest of a lemon and lime
Juice of a lemon
1 chilli, finely chopped
1/2 cabbage, shredded
1 large carrot, sliced
Chopped corriander to serve
2 tbsp soya sauce plus extra to garnish
1/2 tbsp rice vinegar
1/2 tbsp mirin

Place everything into a pan and bring to a simmmer. Cook for 5-10 mins until tender and serve in deep bowls topped with the corriander and some extra soya sauce.

Cheesy Potato Twists

Lex made these at school last week, and having brought the recipe home was desperate to make them with me. So we did.

You need:
100g plain flour
65g butter
50g grated cheese
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp mustard powder
50g mashed potato
1 tbsp water (I had to use about 2)

Blitz the flour, salt, mustard and butter till they resemble breadcrumbs. Then add the potato, cheese and water and mix to a dough. Roll out till about the thickness of a £1 coin then cut into strips. Twist the strips and lay on a baking sheet, brush with a little milk and bake in a hot oven for 10 mins. Leave to cool and then eat. Delish!

Sweet Potato Wedges

A health(ier) alternative to chips, and one that counts towards your 5 a day...

Take a sweet potato, peel and slice into wedges. Place on to a baking sheet and add a drizzle of vegetable oil. Sprinkle over some salt and pepper and bake at 180 degrees for about 20 mins till soft and starting to crisp up. Allow 1 potato per person. They're nice as a side to most things or dipped into different sauces e.g. blue cheese dip; curry sauce; sweet chilli sauce. You can also add different spices to them before you cook them e.g. baharat; cumin; smoked paprika etc.

Houmous

A classic recipe this. I like mine garlicky. And lemony. And with tahini. Frankly you can experiment and design your own flavours depending on what you like. This is what was produced last night for lunch today:

For 3-4 servings you need:
1 can chickpeas
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp tahini
2 tbsp olive oil
4 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp water
pinch salt

Blitz everything together in a food processor, adding more water if you need to make it thinner. I made this batch up smooth but it's also nice chunky. Serve in 1000's of different ways. Today it's a lunch dish with crudites and pitta bread.

Tofu Patties

I hesitate to call these burgers cos they're not really. But they are quick and easy to make.

For 4 patties you need:
1 pack tofu
1 onion
1 clove garlic
1 tsp miso
2 tbsp sesame seeds

Bung everything in to a food processor and blitz till smooth. Add the sesame seeds and form into 4 patties. Place on a baking tray and bake at 180 for 15 mins till golden brown. Serve with relish and other burger things!

Fruit and Nut Muesli

I used to make loads of home made muesli, but then an incident with too much bran put my off (no, you don't want to know!). But recently I haven't been able to find a brand that I like, and the ones that are OK are very expensive for what they are so it's prompted an interest again.

This recipe uses up a packet of Jordan's fruit and nut muesli which had too many bran flakes in it for me, and not enough soft oats.

For about 20 servings you need:
1 box Jordan's muesli (or any other luxury brand muesli)
2 cups economy oats (i.e. small, soft oats)
1 cup hazlenuts
1 cup mixed dried fruit (I mainly used apples as they needed to be used up).

Mix everything together in a large tub.

I like to serve it soaked:
put 1/3 cup muesli in a tub/bowl and add 2/3 cup soya milk. Leave to soak overnight.

Vegetable and Bean Cheesy Gratin

OK OK so it's another variation on an old favourite but it tastes goooooooood!

For 4-6 servings you need
Leftover cooked veggies (we've got cabbage, broccoli and carrots)
1 tin pulses - black eyed beans here tonight
1 quantity thin cheese sauce (30g butter, 30g flour, 500ml soya milk, 1 cup grated cheddar)
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
3 tbsp grated parmesan

Layer the veggies and beans in a gratin dish. Make up the sauce and pour over. Top with breadcrumbs and parmesan and then bake in a hot oven for 25 mins till bubbling, crispy and browned on top. Scoff with leftover roast potatoes and cold quorn roast. I love leftovers!

Sweetcorn Noodle Soup

A variation on miso this one. But a yummy one "Mmmmmm mummy, sweetcorn marinaded in miso, I'm in heaven" as Lex summed it up lol!

For 3-4 generous portions you need:
1 tin sweetcorn, drained (or equivalent amount of frozen kernels)
2 bundles ramen noodles
1 large onion, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
2 inch piece ginger, grated
3 tbsp miso
1.5 litres boiling water
3 carrots, thinly sliced
Chopped corriander to garnish
soya sauce to garnish

Fry the onion gently in 1 tbsp sunflower oil then add everything else. Cook for 5 mins and then serve topped with the corriander and soya sauce.

Puy Lentil and Semi Dried Tomato Salad

I saw this in Febs Delicious magazine and decided it was worth a try. It smells good!

For 2 portions you need:
200g puy lentils
1 red onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
olive oil
1 tub semi dried toms/mozz salad
Lemon juice (1/2 lemon)

Cook the onion and garlic till soften in some olive oil. Add the lentils and just cover with hot stock. Cook till tender (about 20 mins). Drain and then add the lemon juice and a touch more olive oil. Once cooled a bit add the mozz/toms and leave to marinate overnight. Serve topped with salad leave and feel virtuous. For a vegan version omit the cheese and either serve as is or add some sliced marinated or smoked tofu for extra protein.

Quorn Roast

I love a roast dinner and so does Lex. Plus cooking one gives me leftovers for a quick lunch or dinner after work.

The quorn roast is pretty straight forward - take it from the freezer and put it in the oven for 45 mins! It's being served with steamed veggies (also easy, wash, prep and steam for 10 mins or so) and roast potatoes (peel, cut into chunks, par boil for 10 mins then roast in butter/oil for an hour till crispy). Serve with gravy and feel the warm glow of a Sunday roast.

Meal Plans for Next Week

Forgot to do this earlier in the week and it shows as there's a lot of food to be used up by the middle of the week. Ho hum.

Plans are:
Italian feast for my birthday
Pizza (cheated and went out for lunch to Pizza Express!)
Roast dinner with steamed veggies and roast potatoes
Puy lentil salad with seni dried tomatoes and mozzarella
Tofu satay and stir fried veggies
Leftover veggies in cheese sauce with roast potatoes
Caesar salad
Cous cous salad with dried fruits

Mozzarella with Chillies and Basil

Again, in honour of eat something hot and spicy day, a variation on the classic mozzeralla, tomato and basil salad.

For 2 servings you need:
1 ball fresh, good quality mozzarella
handful torn fresh basil leaves
1/2 finely chopped chilli
pepper/chilli flakes
6 cherry tomatoes
good quality olive oil

Slice the cheese and lay on a plate. Add slices of tomato. Top the cheese with the chilli then basil and finish with the pepper/chilli flakes and the fresh basil. Drizzle over the oil and serve either on its own or with some italian crusty bread to mop up the lovely juices.

Spaghetti and Meat(less)balls

Today is eat something hot and spicy day. Apparently. So in honour of this we hat spicy meat(less)balls and spaghetti for dinner.

For 3-4 portions you need:
300g spaghetti
1 tin chopped toms
1 large onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 whole chili, deseeded and finely chopped
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp stock powder
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper
1 packet quorn swedish style meatballs
freshly grated parmesan

Begin by sauteeing the onion in some olive oil. After about 5 mins add the garlic and chillies. After a couple of mins add the oregano and fry for 1 minute. Then add everything else apart from the pasta and parmesan. Cook, covered, for about 15 mins till the sauce is reduced and the meatballs cooked. Check the seasoning.

Meanwhile cook the spaghetti. When cooked drain and add to the sauce. Mix till the pasta is covered then serve with a grating of cheese on the top.

Tiramisu

This is a different version to normal as Tescos helpfully delivered me two tubs of ricotta with only a 1 day shelf life. Remind me again why I shop online?! Anyway. It seems to have worked and tastes nice.

You need
2 tubs ricotta
1 tub mascapone
250ml strong fresh coffee with 1 tbsp vanilla sugar added to it
1/4 cup kahlua
2/4 packet sponge fingers
2 tbsp cocoa
1/4 cup vanilla sugar
1 tbsp vanilla paste (or same quantity of vanilla extract if you can't find it)

Begin by making the coffee. Once it's brewed add 1 tbsp vanilla sugar to it along with 1/4 cup kahlua. Leave to cool. Meanwhile mix the ricotta with the mascapone, 1/4 cup vanilla sugar, vanilla paste. Soak the spong fingers briefly in the coffee and layer into a serving dish. Spoon the cheese mixture on top, dust over the cocoa and leave to chill before scoffing. Inauthentic, calorific and lovely.

Birthday Pancakes

Well, pancakes made with a different recipe to normal at any rate. And served on my birthday so therefore birthday pancakes.

This is a tweaked Jamie Oliver recipe.

For about 15 or so pancakes you need:
1 cup milk
1 cup self raising flour
1 egg
1 apple, grated (skin, core and all)
a pinch salt

Mix everything together into a batter and then pour, a ladle at a time, into a hot pan. Cook for about 1 minute before flipping over and cooking the other side. Serve with maple syrup and sit back and hear the moaning that these aren't the usual pancakes, why are there bits in them whilst enjoying them yourself.

Garlic Bread

Well this is cheats garlic bread really but it still tastes good. Take a part baked baguette and slash slices into it (being careful not to cut all the way through). Fill with garlic butter made with 100g butter and 1 large crushed garlic clove. Bake in the oven (uncovered) for about 10 mins and scoff. Then feel sick and mourn all the buttery calories consumed. Oh dear!

Garlic Bread

Well this is cheats garlic bread really but it still tastes good. Take a part baked baguette and slash slices into it (being careful not to cut all the way through). Fill with garlic butter made with 100g butter and 1 large crushed garlic clove. Bake in the oven (uncovered) for about 10 mins and scoff. Then feel sick and mourn all the buttery calories consumed. Oh dear!

Pasta Mozzarella Tomatoey Thing

I am sure there is a better name for this, but this is the name it has had in our house for years! It's a simple tomato and garlic sauce, which pasta is added to and then it's topped with fresh mozzarella and baked in the oven till it's crispy and crunchy on top. Lovely.

For 2 people you need:
200g pasta, fusilli or rigatoni is best
1 tin chopped toms
pinch sugar
salt and pepper
fresh basil, roughly shredded
2 cloves garlic, crushed
125g mozzarella, diced
2 tbsp olive oil

Begin by putting the pasta on to cook. Meanwhile put the toms into a large, flat based pan and heat with the garlic and olive oil. Season to taste with salt, pepper and sugar. When the pasta is cooked drain and add to the sauce. Stir through the basil then top with the mozz and maybe some fresh grated parmesan if you want. Bake in a hot oven for about 15-20 mins till the cheese has melted and the top layer of pasta has gone crispy. Serve with garlic bread and salad.

Steamed Quinoa

I love quinoa, it's the nutty taste and more substantial mouth feel than cous cous that I think is the winner. Plus it's one of those foods that makes you feel healthy when you eat it, even if you've just binged on choccy biccies beforehand ;-)

I prefer to steam mine and follow this rule of thumb for perfect results every time:
Measure 1 cup quinoa into a lidded pan, add just under 2 cups water and a tsp vegan stock powder. Bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer for 10 mins. Turn off the heat and leave to absorb the steam for a further 10-15 mins (you can leave it like this for ages too if you need to).

To serve use like rice or any other grain, or it's also nice dressed with oil and/or vinegar/lemon juice. This amount will do 2 meals, so add more in the same ratio for more people/additional days.

Roasted beetroot, parsnip, carrot and orange salad with onions and honey

I don't particularly like beetroots. Or parsnips for that matter. A while back N found a lovely recipe for a roasted beetroot and orange dish but we can't find it again :( This our recollection of it.

For 2 servings plus a cold lunch the next day you need:
4 beetroots, cut into wedges
2 parsnips, cut into fat fingers
2 large carrots, ditto parsnips
2 red onions, cut into wedges
1/2 cup (125ml) orange juice
1 tbs honey (use agarve nectar for vegan version)
1/2 tsp chilli flakes
3 tbs olive oil
salt
pepper

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl to mix, then turn into a baking dish. Cover with foil and place in a moderate oven for 30 mins. After 30 mins check them and remove the foil. Continue to cook for another 15 mins till the sauce has reduced to a sticky glaze and the veggies are tender.

It's nice served with quinoa or another grain and some feta or goats cheese. For a vegan version use smoked tofu instead.

Veg Box (English) Curry

A curry that worked for once! Normally my try-it-and-see curries are a bit manky, but fed up with yukky curry pastes that taste rank I created this and it was lush. A bit English probably in the taste stakes but curry-ish and yumsome none the less. Result.

For 4 portions you need:
1 onion chopped
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 inch ginger, grated
1 tsp each of ground cumin, corriander, tumeric
5 crushed cardamon pods
1 tin toms
1/2 cup ground almonds
3 carrots, diced
2 parsnips, diced
1/2 pack mushrooms, quartered
1 cup water
chopped corriander to garnish
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1/2 chopped chilli

Begin by frying the onion in some oil. Add the garlic, ginger and spices and cook for a few mins. Add everything else apart from the almonds and corriander and bring to the boil then simmer for 15-20 mins until the veggies are tender. Add the almonds and heat through. Serve with rice/roti and chopped corriander.

Veggie Pasta Carbonara

A yummy, creamy concoction this one which mimics real pasta carbonara well imho.

To serve 2 you need:
150g spaghetti
1 tbsp olive oil
2 crushed garlic cloves
1 small onion, finely chopped
4 slices quorn ham, shredded
1/2 pack mushrooms, finely sliced
125ml white wine
125ml double cream
Chopped flat leaf parsely to garnish
Grated parmesan to garnish

Begin by cooking the pasta. Whilst this is cooking fry the onion and garlic in the oil until soft. Add the mushrooms and continue to fry gently till the water has come out. Then add the quorn ham, cream and wine. Heat through. Drain the pasta retaining a little bit of water. Put the pasta in with the sauce and mix thoroughly. Serve topped with chopped flat leaf parsley and parmesan. Lovely comfort food :)

Peanut Butter and Salad Sandwich

Yes another lunch recipe :-P And another quick and easy one at that. I'd run out of inspiration last night when it got to the lunch making stage and couldn't be faffed with soaking cous cous or anything so made a sarnie. I am not that keen on sarnies for lunch but this one is worth it. And it's healthy. What more do you need...

For one person spread peanut butter on *both* sides of some seeded bread (doing it on both sides eliminates the need for marge/butter and stops the bread from going soggy from the salad). Then layer up some salad veggies on one side. I used carrot strips, corriander sprigs and shredded chinese leaf. Splodge over some tabasco and shove into a plastic tub ready to grab from the fridge the next morning. A perfect low-GI lunch.

Steamed eggs with rice noodles and vegetables

This was my lunch today (Lex had his lunchbox as normal!).

For the eggs you need (per person):
2 eggs, lightly beaten
4 mushrooms, sliced
handful chopped corriander
glug soya sauce
1/2 tsp sesame oil
ground pepper
1/2 onion, finely diced

Mix together and pour everything into a small heatproof bowl. Place in a steamer and steam for about 20 mins till cooked.

For the noodles and vegetables:
Soak 1 bundle of rice noodles per person in boiling water for about 5 mins.

Meanwhile stirfry some veggies (I used courgettes, onion, chinese leaf and sugar snap peas). Add some mirin and soya sauce to the pan to taste. Add the noodles once rehydrated and warm through. Serve with the eggs on the side.

Snowballs and Slushballs

Yes we're sick of the snow too. And another school closure snowday brought the inevitable question of "what the heck do we do today?!". And of course the answer was cook something. These were Lex's idea and recipe. And yummy they are too.

For the snowballs:
Melt as many white chocolate coins as you can find in a double boiler.
Add enough cornflakes to get it to the right consistency.
Spoon in to cake cases and leave to set.
Eat.

For the slushballs (so called cos you use milk chocolate and therefore the snow is all dirty...):
Melt as much leftover milk chocolate as you can find (we used 4 bags of coins and 1 snowman).
Add cornflakes, mix and spoon in to cases.
Eat.

Apple Crumble

I had a craving for apple crumble and custard over the weekend. Normally crumble isn't something I make that often as we're not a big crumble family. But I really fancied it and it turned out really well, if a little souffled in the oven as the apples continued to cook down! Proper winter warming fare :)

For 8 generous servings you need:
900g peeled and chopped cooking apples
100g vanilla sugar
225g plain flour
175g butter
175g demerara sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon

Begin by cooking the apples in a pan over a gentle heat. This will take about 15 mins. You want them mostly pulpy with still with some lumps. Meanwhile blitz the butter and flour in a food processor till it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the sugar and cinnamon to it. Pour into a baking dish and top with the crumble mixture. Bake at 180 degrees for about 30 mins. Serve with custard. Ours came from a tin. I don't do making custard and anyway for comfort food like this you need ambrosia!

Meal Plans for Next Week

New year always sees a return to mostly vegan and usually middle eastern/far eastern meals as a contrast to the rich, UK fare of the festive season.

Next weeks meals are:
Thai coconut broth
Tofu satay and noodles
Dhal, rice and roti
Spaghetti and meatballs
Mexican - fajitas probably with rice, tortillas and chips and dips
Carrot and Jerusalem artichoke soup
Chicken noodle soup
Tortilla soup

Puddings are lemon suprise pudding, apple crumble and custard and syrup sponge and custard.

Grandad's Soup

aka vegetable, lentil, and tomato soup. A winner with Lex, I can hide whatever veg I want in here really and still he'll nosh down a large bowlful. It freezes really well too.

For 6-8 servings you need:
a large onion, chopped (or a couple of leeks, shredded)
whatever veggies you have to hand: I usually make it with 1-2 parsnips, 2-3 carrots, some sweet potato, some swede but butternut squash and celery also work well.
1 cup red lentils
1 tin toms
1-2 litres of stock (depending on how thick you like it).

Begin by sauteeing the chopped veg in some olive oil. There's no need to peel really as it'll all get blitzed. After about 5 mins add the lentils and toms. Then add the stock, bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 20 mins or so until the lentils are cooked and the veggies are tender. Blitz and serve with crusty bread, cheese, nutritional yeast, herbs, pepper etc as a garnish. Simples.

Banana and Cranberry Smoothie

I usually have a banana and raspberry smoothie but this morning we had run out of frozen raspberries so I had to improvise with the other frozen fruit to hand. I thought cherries might be too big to work properly, and didn't fancy the mixed summer berries so decided to risk cranberries. It worked, and was very nice, though not as smooth in texture as the usual mixture.

For one large serving you need:
1 ripe banana
1/2 cup frozen cranberries (using frozen ones helps to thicken up the smoothie)
about 200ml soya milk (I never measure it but do it by eye)
1 tsp agarve nectar

Lob everything into a blender and blitz until smooth. Add some more milk until the consistency is right and add more nectar if it's too sharp. Feel virtuous as you sip it.

Blueberry porridge

I know I know this is hardly a real recipe. But I've run out of inspiration for today, and this is partly supposed to be a blog to teach my son to cook. So here is an easy recipe (to be followed by an equally easy one in a moment!).

For one serving you need:
1/3 cup porridge oats
2/3 cup soya milk
1/2 cup blueberries
Agarve nectar to serve.

Put the oats, milk and berries in to a pan and heat gently. Stir to stop it from sticking. After a few mins it will come to the boil and thicken. Turn down the heat and stir gently for another minute or so. Pour into a bowl and drizzle some nectar on the top. Eat and then exit the house with a warm glow emanating from you...

Quinoa with Smoked Tofu and Stir Fried Veggies

I love quinoa and by stealth have now got L eating it ("what's this mummy?" "erm, rice, different rice"). This is a very quick meal and very tasty too.

For 3 portions and a little bit left over for lunch the next day you need:
1 cup quinoa
scant 2 cups stock
1 pack smoked tofu
selection of veggies to stir fry - I used 1 head broccoli; 1 onion; handful baby sweetcorn
3 cloves garlic, crushed
large knob ginger, grated
1/4 cup sherry
couple of glugs of each soya sauce and mirin
2 tsp chinese rice vinegar
bean sprouts and sprouted seeds to top
sesame oil

Begin by cooking the quinoa. Place it in a pan with the stock and bring to the boil. Cover with a lid and simmer for 10 mins. Turn off the heat and leave to absorb all the liquid (about another 10 mins).
Stir fry the onion for a few mins then add the other ingredients. Cook for about 5 mins with a lid till the broccoli is tender.

Serve topped with the bean sprouts and sprouted seeds and a splash of sesame oil. Very yummy and disgustingly healthy too.

Vegetable Tagine and Couscous

The plan was to blog one recipe a day during 2010, so why am I doing two today? Well mainly cos I'd forgotten I hadn't already blogged the carrot and jeresulam artichoke soup recipe previously and partly cos I created this tagine today and didn't want to forget the ingredients...

So, for 4-6 servings you need:
A mix of vegetables (I used 2 carrots; 1/2 bulb fennel, 1 large parsnip, 2 leeks, 1 onion, half a head celery).
1 tin chopped toms
3 tsp harrisa
1 tbsp moroccan spice mix (or cumin and corriander with some oregano if you can't find any)
1 tin drained chickpeas

Roughly chop the veggies. Saute the onion and leek in some olive oil for few mins till tender. Then add everything else and cover. Sautee for a further 5 mins or so. Then add everything else along with about 200ml water.

Simmer for 20 mins until very tender. Check consistency of sauce. If it's too thin add some tom puree. If it's too thick add some more water.

Serve with couscous and some chopped corriander/mint/parsley. You can add some dried apricots to the stew too if you want but N doesn't like that much and I was planning to serve this with the winter fruit compote for pud so didn't want to overdo the dried fruit!

Carrot and Jerusalem Artichoke Soup

This was our starter for Christmas Day and I have defrosted the leftovers for lunch today as I can't be bothered with cooking and need the space in the freezer!

It's a Delia recipe but in case it disappears...

You need:
1 lb (450 g) carrots
1 lb 8 oz (700 g) Jerusalem artichokes (weight before peeling)
3 oz (75 g) butter
1 medium onion, peeled and roughly chopped
3 celery stalks, chopped
1.5 litres (2½ pints) hot vegetable stock made with Marigold Swiss vegetable bouillon powder
salt and freshly milled black pepper

Roughly chop the veggies and put in a pan with the butter (or use oil if you want a vegan soup. Sautee for about 10 mins and then add the stock. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 mins till the veggies are tender. Blitz, check the seasoning and serve. It's nice topped with parsley and some toasted seeds/nuts and chilli oil.

Kids Christmas Cake

This was a great addition to the Christmas Table this year. Lex really enjoyed making and decorating the cake with me and I liked eating the end result! I'll definitely be doing it again next year. The original idea came from an Asda magazine.

You need:
a 6 egg victoria sponge cake batter (6 eggs; 12 oz SR flour, butter and vanilla caster sugar)
1 quantity green buttercream (follow recipe on back of icing sugar packet) and colour 1/4 of it with 150g melted chocolate. Colour the remaining 3/4 green.
Various sweets to decorate (we used dolly mixture and M&Ms)
Edible glitter
Fondant icing for the parcels
Writing icing to decorate the parcels
Raspberry jam

Begin by placing the cake batter into a lined rectangular tin (about 20cms x 25cms) and bake for 30-45 mins till cooked.

Leave to cool and then cut into an xmas tree shape. Save the trimmings. Split the cake and buttercream and jam the inside. Sandwich together again. Spread green buttercream all over the 'leaf' bit and chocolate buttercream on the 'trunk. Decorate. Cut some of the trimmings into parcel shapes, split and fill with buttercream and jam and then cover with fondant. Decorate with the writing icing. Ration out to one piece per day and watch the sugar rush hit the kids!!!

Merry Christmas lol!

Dried Fruit Compote

A true lentil knitting, sandal wearing veggie recipe this one. But it still tastes nice despite that ;-)

For about 6 servings you need:
500g mixed dired fruits (I used apples, apricots, sultanas, raisins, figs)
250ml apple juice
some spices - I used 1 cinnamon stick, 4 cloves and about 6 crushed cardamon pods

Lob everything into a pan, bring to a gentle simmer and cook for about 15 mins. Leave with a lid on for another 45 mins or so to let the fruit plump up. Serve au natural or with museli, on top of porridge or with a dollop of natural yogurt if you're not vegan (and vegan yogurt if you are!).

Cheesy Potato Pie

My husband hates cabbage. Unfortunately (for him) I happen to like it. A lot. Plus in the winter the veg box always seems to have a surplus. So this was invented as a way of using up both cabbage and last nights mash on the understanding the copious amounts of cheese always makes something taste better. Put it this way, he eats it...!

You need
Leftover mash (about 4 or so potatoes worth)
Leftover cabbage (any amount), shredded
Fried onion or leek if you can be bothered
Lots of grated cheese
A smidgen of mustard - any kind apart from hot dog mustard that is!

Lob the mash, onions/leeks and cabbage into a bowl along with about 1 cup of cheese and mix together. This is easier to do if the mash is still warm. If it's cold from the fridge then nuke it for a bit to soften it up. Once it's all mixed put into a baking dish and rough up the top. Cover with more cheese (as much as you fancy) and then bake in a hot oven for 30-45 mins till bubbling, golden brown and yummy. Enjoy on its own or with other leftovers.

Meal Plans for Next Week

Having mostly finished the xmas leftovers, and with 3 different food mags to ponder over, I think the following will be filling our bellies this week, in no particular order!

Hot dogs
Bangers and mash
Caesar salad
Broccoli and stilton soup with cheese and onion bread
Miso soup (for L when we have the broccoli one!)
Vegetable tagine and cous cous
Quinoa salad with smoked tofu and shoots
Vegetable and tofu stir fry with chow mein
Chinese omelette and sticky rice
Dukkah rolled eggs qith chickpea puree and wilted greens

Quorn Bolognase

Another less than authentic recipe, but seriously I defy any meat eater to know the difference! Even BIL was impressed and liked it when I served it up over the festive season.

For about8 portions you need:
1 packet frozen quorn mince
1 large finely chopped onion
4-6 cloves garlic, crushed
1 pack mushrooms, finely diced
3 large carrots cut into a small dice
2 tins chopped toms
1 small tin tom puree
250ml red wine
1 stock cube
2 tsp dried oregano
2 bay leaves
2 tbsp each of soya sauce, mushroom ketchup and henderson's relish
1 tsp sugar

Begin by sauteeing the onion in olive oil. After about 10 mins add the carrots and mushrooms. Sautee for another 20 mins or so till the mushrooms have cooked down. Then add everything else. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 mins. Check the seasoning and serve over spaghetti with loads of fresh parmesan and cheddar to top it!

Egg Fried Rice

Not authentic, I know. But a yummy way to use up leftover rice and a speedy meal to make.

For one person you need:
1/2 a chopped onion
1 cup cooked rice
1/2 cup frozen peas
1 egg, lightly beaten
3 mushrooms, sliced

Sauce: soya sauce, mirin, sesame oil
Toasted sesame seeds and chopped corriander to garnish

Begin by making an omelette with the egg. Cook it lightly in a small pan/bottom of a wok and once it's done, put it onto a board and shred into ribbons. Then fry the onion in a wok and add the other ingredients. Fry till the rice is thoroughly reheated and the other ingredients are cooked. Add the soya sauce, mirin and sesame oil after a few mins. Top with the sesame seeds and chopped corriander and scoff.

Watercress, Apple and Stilton Salad

This was our starter for Christmas Day. And so nice was it that I had it for my supper on Xmas day too!

To serve 4 people as a starter you need:
1 large pack of watercress (preferably organic) washed and drained
1 apple, julienned
100g crumbled stilton
handful walnut halves
1 tsp french mustard
2 tbsp walnut oil
2 tbsp light olive oil
2 tbsp white wine vinager
salt and pepper

Scatter the leaves on the plate and then scatter over the cheese and walnuts. Drizzle over some dressing on each plate and scoff. Simple yet light and delicious at the same time.

Stilton & Onion/Cranberry & Cambozola Breads with Apple, Date and Nut Salad

Leftovers, Leftovers (cheese and salad in this case). What to do with all those pesky leftovers? I am determined not to toss too many of them this year, so am trying to be inventive. Today's lunch was toasted stilton and onion breads, cambozola and cranberry sauce breads served with an apple, date and nut salad and celmentine & chilli dressing. Quantities are approximate and can be varied depending on what you have left.

For the breads:
Slice a day old baguette into thin rounds and then top with stilton or cambozola as below

Stilton: mash/whizz stilton with a couple of tbsp of milk until smooth. Spread on to the sliced baguettes and then top with a tsp of onion relish.

Cambozola: spread cranberry sauce onto the bread and then top with a slice of cheese

Bake the breads in the oven for 15-20 mins until melted and warmed.

For the salad you need:
Salad leaves (I used a rocket salad mix)
An apple, juilienned
4 dates, thinly sliced
a handful of mixed nuts (unsalted)
1 generous tbsp of chilli jam
juice of 2 clementines
a good glug of olive oil (3 tbsp or so)
salt and pepper

Mix up all the salad ingredients apart from the leaves in a bowl and stir thoroughly to combine and to break up the sticky slivers of date. Place the leaves on a plate and then top with a stack of the dressed fruits in their sticky sauce. Place the warm breads in each corner and devour. Leftovers never tasted so good!!

Christmas Food Reflections

Having never hosted a 'proper' Christmas I thought it would be a good idea to review what went well so I can mosey on back to this post next year and see what I don't want to do again!

The highs
Delia's Cheese and Onion Sausage Rolls. Yum yum indeed and everyone enjoyed them
Home made mince pies with with homemade mince meat
The Christmas cake was pronounced a success by all who tried it. I've got a little bit left but to be honest am all Xmassed out now and don't fancy eating it. Maybe next week once I am back at work...

The big meal itself went well. I served a delicious watercress, apple and stilton salad with a walnut dressing. Those who didn't want it were given smoked salmon with lemon and brown bread and butter. The main course was scoffed and I was pleased to be able to fit everything in to the oven. Using the steamer for the veggies was a good idea as it left more space on top. I also steamed the pudding early and left it in the pan to stay warm whilst we ate the first two courses.

The pudding was not a success! I think the taste/smell from the pudding basin had somehow leached into it and it tasted strange :( The texture was lovely - really light and had it not been tainted with odour of plastic I am sure it would have been great. But it wasn't! I'll try making xmas pud again next year but will use a ceramic basin instead of a plastic one in the hope that it won't taste the same. I'll also tweak the recipe a bit and use darker sugar as the pudding itself was very light and I think it would need to be moister. Setting indoor fireworks off on it pleased the children (and inner child!) as did pouring flaming brandy over the top after the fireworks!

My trifle didn't work very well either. I'd gone upmarket and used no jelly as I couldn't find any veggie jelly crystals. I'd also used nice custard rather than the more gelatinous ambrosia which meant the cream sank into it too much. The cream, whilst lovely and airy the first day I whipped it, also sank so the result was very watery by the time we ate it. It tasted OK but didn't have the right trifle consistency imho.

Delia's Chocolate Truffle Torte was a pig to make but tasted lovely and was a success with everyone who had some. I'll definitely make it again but will leave out the liquid glucose as it didn't seem to do anything to the texture and just left me with a shiney oozy mess of chocolate before I mixed it with the whipped cream.

As always we're left with far too many leftovers, mainly in the cheese and cream department. Am off to google for some recipes to use up the leftovers now starting with stilton...

Happy New Year!

Change of Plans...

For xmas eve that is. I was going to do salmon, but there seems to have been a world shortage of salmon round here. Either that or it's all got stuck in the snow. Plus I've re-discovered my inner veggie again and the thought of handling, smelling, cooking, eating fish is leaving me cold. So we're having souffles instead. Yummy, oozingly melting cheese souffles served with new potatoes, tomato salad and salad leaves with a walnut dressing. And before you all gasp in shock and amazement that I am planning to serve souffle to my in-laws it's not that hard. Honest. But it tastes divine :) The recipe is a Rose Elliot one.

To serve 4 people as a light main or 2 hungry people as a substantial main you need:
50g butter
50g plain flour
225ml milk
150g cheese, preferably gruyere
4 eggs, seperated
salt and pepper
1/2 tsp english mustard powder
1/2 tsp french mustard

Pre-heat the oven to 190c and grease a 1 pint souffle dish.
Melt the butter in a pan and add the flour to make a roux. Cook gently for a few mins to cook out the raw taste from the flour. Then add the milk a drop at a time and beat till smooth. Leave to one side to cool a little.
Whisk the egg whites till stiff. Mix the cheese and egg yolks and seasoning into the roux. Slacken off the mix with a spoonful of the whites and then fold in the rest of the whites. Pour into the prepared dish and then place in a bain marie in the oven. Cook for 20-40 mins. If you like it runny in the middle then err on the shorter side of cooking time. Serve with a tomato and onion salad, new potatoes and salad leaves with a walnut and sherry vinegar dressing.

Mince Pies

OK OK so you don't really need a recipe for these given that it's mincemeat in pastry but OMG I didn't think I liked mince pies really. I used to force them down out of a sense of misplaced xmas duty, but having finally made my own mincemeat for the first time I am a convert. These truly are delicious.

You need
1 quantity of homemade mincemeat
1 quantity of home made pastry

Roll out the pastry and then line cupcake tins with it. Fill the pastry cases with a scant amount of mincemeat and top with a decorative top (I like my snowflake, xmas tree and star cutters for this!).
Brush the tops with milk and sprinkle on some sugar. Bake in a hot oven for 10-20 mins till done and then leave to cool. Scoff.

The pastry recipe is very easy but is one of those I only know in imperial. You need half the amount of flour in fat and then mix together with cold water. To make 24 mini cocktail mince pies, and about 18 bigger ones along with 8 jam tarts I used 10oz plain flour and 5oz butter.

Mousse au Chocolat

My mum's friend gave her this recipe yonks ago and I still make it often. It's an authentic French mousse au chocolate - rich with chocolate, light with airy bubbles and delectably decadent. Just ignore the calories ;-)

You need:
6 eggs, separated
300g chocolate. I use a mix of plain and milk if making it for all of us. If it's just adults then I only use plain
3 tbsp sugar
a good slug of alcohol - usually grand marnier or cointreau

Begin by melting the chocolate slowly over a saucepan of simmering water. Meanwhile whisk the egg whites till floppily stiff. Don't over beat or it's hard to mix them into the chocolate mix. Mix the yolks with the sugar and booze. Once the chocolate has melted let it cool for a few mins then combine with the yolk mixture. Slacken it off with a spoonful of the whites and then carefully fold in the remainder of the whites. Pour into serving glasses and leave to chill for a couple of hours.

Nut Koftas

Another miracle meal tonight - something we all ate and enjoyed! I am so relieved that Lex's fussier days are behind him and we can all sit down to one meal! These nut koftas are a piece of cake to make and good for you too. Plus they're very very speedy :)

You need:

1 onion, diced
4 coves garlic, crushed
1 tbsp curry powder
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1 tin cannelloni beans, rinsed and drained
125g ground almonds
75g salted peanuts
1 egg

Fry off the onion in some oil for a few mins till soft then add the garlic, curry powder and chilli. Fry for a few mins longer. Then lob everything into a food processor and blitz till smooth. Form into sausages wrapped round a skewer and then grill for a few mins on each side till golden brown.

Serve with cous cous, flat breads, olives and a yogurt dressing made from a couple of tbsps greek yogurt, seasoning, 1 tbsp mint sauce, some chopped cucumber and chopped corriander. Scrummy.

Menu Planning

After much angst I think the following menus will be served. Recipes for items to follow over the weekend...

Christmas Eve

To Start
Carrot and Jerusalem Artichoke Soup with Foccacia

To Follow
Salmon cooked in Champagne or Gammon served with Swede Gratin,
Hassleback Potatoes and Broccoli
or
Baked Camembert with Bread

To Finish
Chocolate Truffle Torte

Christmas Day Lunch

To Start
Watercress, Stilton and Apple Salad
or
Smoked Salmon with Lemon and Brown Bread

To Follow
Roast Turkey, Pigs in Blankets
Quorn Roast
Chestnut Roast
Veggie Pigs in Blankets
Roast Potatoes & Parsnips
Brussel Sprouts, Carrots & Peas
Cranberry Sauce
Bread Sauce
Gravy

To Follow
Christmas Pudding
served with Brandy Sauce, Brandy Cream and Brandy Butter
or
Chocolate Truffle Torte

To Finish
Petit Fours, Liqueurs and Coffee

Christmas Day Tea

Cold cuts (turkey, ham, quorn roast and chestnut roast) with Salad
Selection of chutneys and pickles
Bread and cheese
Christmas Cake, Mince Pies
Trifle

Boxing Day Dinner

Cold cuts (turkey, ham, quorn roast and chestnut roast)
Cheese and Vegetable Bake
Potato Wedges

Leftover Puddings

Let the feasting commence!!

Mini Xmas Cakes

My poor team! I am too tight to buy them each a present, so I make things. This year I've made mini xmas cakes, a la bubble and bake recipe from Good Food. They worked really well and look pretty too (well I think they do!).

You need
# 200g dark muscovado sugar
# 175g butter , chopped
# 700g luxury mixed dried fruits (I used a mix of currants, raisins and sultanas and added some chopped mixed peel too)
# 50g glacé cherries
# 2 tsp grated fresh root ginger
# zest and juice 1 orange
# 100ml brandy
# 85g roughly chopped almonds
# 3 large eggs , beaten
# 85g ground almonds
# 200g plain flour
# ½ tsp baking powder
# 1 tsp mixed spice
# 1 tsp cinnamon
# 250g pack marzipan
# icing sugar
# 2 tbsp warmed apricot jam
# 1 tub pre-made royal icing
# jelly diamond to decorate

Place the sugar, butter, dried fruit, cherries, ginger, brandy, orange zest and juice into a large pan. Heat and slowly bring to the boil. Reduce heat and bubble gently, uncovered for 10 mins, stirring every now and again to make sure the mixture doesn't catch on the bottom of the pan. Leave to cool.

Add all the other cake ingredients to the pan and stir well. Spoon into 24 muffin cases and then bake at about 150 for 35 mins or so. Leave to cool.

Paint apricot jam on to the tops then add circles of marzipan. Leave to dry. Top with royal icing and a jelly diamond. Give to people and stand back for the oooooh and ahhhhhhhs.

Coconut Ice Snowballs

Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without either coconut ice or snowballs. Here the two are combined!

You need
250g sifted icing sugar
200g sweetened condensed milk
175g dessicated coconut

Mix everything together then roll into balls and place into cases. How easy?!

Chocolate and Brandy Truffles

These are grown up truffles, so eat in moderation if you can!!

Recipe is taken from the January Delicious magazine.

You need:
300ml double cream
400g dark choc broken in to teeny tiny pieces
2 tbsp brandy or cointreau or other booze
Cocoa powder

Place the broken chocolate into a bowl. Bring the cream to the boil, then pour over the chocolate. Mix well till combined and the choc is melted then add the booze. Stir again then tip into a lined tin to set. Leave for at least 4 hours in a cool place (but not the fridge). Then cut into squares, dust with cocoa and place into petit fours cases. Scoff. Simples.

Peppermint and Orange Cremes

Christmas is coming... and so it's time to make lots of yummy sweet things.

These cremes are very easy and are destined for the present hampers we're doing this year. Assuming Lex and I don't eat them all first that is!

You need:

250g sifted icing sugar. It's really REALLY important to sift it so don't be lazy like I was one year or you'll end up with lumpy, bumpy nice tasting gloop.
2 1/2 tsp egg white made with dried egg powder
2 tsp lemon juice (or orange juice for the orange cremes)
1 tsp orange or peppermint flavouring
some food colouring if you wish

Begin by sifting the icing sugar in to a bowl. Then make a well in the middle and add the wet stuff. Mix thoroughly. Don't be tempted to add more liquid as it is enough. Knead a little until soft (you're basically making a flavoured, coloured fondant icing). Then roll to about the thickness of a £1 coin. Stamp out shapes and leave them somewhere cool (but not the fridge or they will sweat) to harden a bit. Best tip is to leave them on a cling film lined board.

Cheese and Onion Sausage Rolls

I've never made sausage rolls before, I'd always thought they would be tricky and fiddly. These ones aren't however, but they are divine. St Delia comes up trumps as per usual!

The original recipe can be found on St Delia's site.

But in case it gets moved you need:
1 block ready made puff pastry
275g fresh breadcrumbs
225g mature Cheddar cheese, grated
1 large onion, grated
3 tablespoons double cream
1 level tablespoon fresh chopped herbs (chives, parsley, thyme, etc)
1½ level teaspoons mustard powder
pinch cayenne pepper
salt and freshly milled black pepper

Make up the filling by mixing everything aside from the pastry together. Add some more cream if it doesn't bind well enough. Roll out the pastry then decide if you want dainty or chunder rolls. Place the filling in the middle of the pastry strips, brush beaten egg round the sides, roll over and then cut into slices. Brush with egg glaze and the snip the tops a couple of times. Bake in a hot oven for about 25 mins.

Florentines

I absolutely adore the Florentines that Betty's sells. OMG they are seriously divine, but seriously expensive! So when I found a recipe for florentines in Good Food this month I thought I'd give them a go. I couldn't believe how easy they were, or how good they taste.

The original recipe can be found on the BBC Good Food website but in case they remove it it's below too...

You need
* 140g light muscovado sugar
* 100g clear honey
* 200g salted butter
* 100g desiccated coconut
* 140g flaked almonds
* 300g glacé cherries , sliced
* 4 tbsp plain flour
* 250g dark, milk or white chocolate , or a mix

Melt the sugar, honey and butter in a pan. Meanwhile slice the cherries. Once the butter mix has melted, add everything other than the chocolate to it and then pour into a lined tin (30x40cms) and bake at 180 for 12 mins (it needs to be golden and bubbly all over). Remove from the oven and leave to cool. Whilst it's cooling melt the chocolate. Turn the cooked and cooled florentines on to a board lined with more baking paper and then spread the melted chocolate on the back. Leave to set. Then cut into shapes and scoff. Then go to the gym. Lots.

Next time I make them I will omit the coconut I think and add some peel to make them more like Bettys ones. But these are pretty good!

Thai Tofu 'fish'cakes

Ever since I saw the F Word a few weeks ago where two Thai restaurants took each other on I have been craving thai fish cakes. This is somewhat of a problem given that I don't really eat fish anymore... So I invented these. They're nothing like real Thai fishcakes of course but they hit the spot and even better everyone ate them. They're nice hot and cold.

For about 12 patties you need:
1 packet firm tofu
2 stalks lemongrass
4 fat cloves garlic
1 egg
about a cup of fresh breadcrumbs (depends on how sloppy the mix is)
1 fat chilli
2 inch piece of ginger
2 large handfuls fresh corriander
1 tbsp soya sauce
1 tbsp mirin

Lob everything into a food processor and blitz till mushy. Don't over process or it'll go too sloppy. Once it's done, place in the fridge for a bit to firm up. After at least 15 mins, heat some oil in a frying pan and then form patties about the size of an egg. Put these in the oil and lightly fry until crispy and golden brown. Turn over half way through cooking. Serve with a corriander salad and sweet chilli sauce/soya sauce to dip.

Vegan Club

Created this today so I could use up some avocados and also enjoy some more yummy chilli jam.

Take 3 thin slices of bread, and lightly toast them.

On the bottom one spread a generous dollop of chilli jam and then top with half an avocado cut into thin slices. Top this with a large handful of alfafa sprouts.

Place a 2nd piece of bread on the top of this and spread with vegan mayo. Add sliced tomatoes, and then hot vegan bacon. Top with the third slice of bread, cut in half and scoff. Want another one now...

Minestrone Soup

Or Mr. Strone as we know it (gro-o-o-an). My better half doesn't really like this so I didn't make it yesterday when I was trying to use up the last of the veg box. However the new veg box came today full of perfect ingredients for this recipe and he's out so L and I tucked in.

I used:
1 onion, roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
6 large leaves of calvero nero, cores removed and roughly shredded
1/2 large red pepper, roughly chopped
3 carrots, peeled and sliced
3 mushrooms, sliced
1 can toms
1 can butter beans
about 1 litre of stock
1/2 tsp of sugar
1 tsp dried oregano
handful fresh basil, roughly shredded
2 large handfuls soup pasta

Start by sweating the onions in some olive oil. Then add the carrots and garlic and continue to sweat with the lid on over a gentle heat for about 10 mins. Then add everything apart from the basil and mushrooms. Bring to the boil and then simmer for 10 mins or so until the pasta is done. About 3 mins before the pasta is cooked add the mushrooms. When it's ready, stir through the basil and serve in large bowls with lots of crusty bread. It's nice to add a generous shaving of fresh Parmesan over the top too. Perfect winter central heating!

Chestnut Roast

I adore nut roast and think it should be obligatory for veggies to have one at Xmas. None of that soggy filo pastry and goats cheese nonsense for me! A roast is all about a roast. And a good nutty one at that. This recipe is from my mum and it's delicious :) Amounts are loose as it depends on what you like in terms of balance.

You need:
6oz dried chestnuts, soaked overnight and cooked for 30 mins (am not sure on equiv amounts for vacuum packed ones, but I'd guess about 3-4 tins/packs)
8oz breadcrumbs
250g mushrooms, chopped small and sauteed in butter
1 onion, chopped small and sauteed with the mushrooms

Lob everything into a food processor and blitz roughly along with dried herbs, 1tbsp tom puree, a couple of cloves of garlic some stock powder and an egg.

Pop into a lined loaf tin and bake for about an hour at 180 degrees. Can be made up to 3 days before hand and kept in the fridge. Also works as a nice stuffing for meat eaters. If you're vegan then ditch the egg and maybe add some stock/wine/water to get it to the right consistency.

Yum yum.

Pancakes I didn't make today

But I have done in the past! Blogging this to avoid a repeat of this morning: flicking through umpteen magazines trying to find a recipe and then giving up!!

Oaty Hotcakes (Bill Granger)
You need:
* 185g plain flour
* 1 1/2 tsp Baking powder
* 1 tsp ground Cinnamon
* pinches freshly grated Nutmeg, (optional)
* pinch sea salt
* 1 tbsp caster sugar
* 25g oats
* 375ml Buttermilk
* 1 medium Egg
* 35g Butter, plus extra for greasing

Mix all together and then pour, a ladle at a time on to a hot griddle pan or frying pan. Cook till bubbles appear on one side (about 30-60 secs) then flip over for another 30 secs or so. Serve with maple syrup. Yummy.

Spiced Beetroot and Orange Chutney

I saw this recipe in the Xmas Good Food magazine and thought it looked nice. We also had some beetroot left from the veg box and seeing as we never ever eat it thought it would be a good thing to make. Wrong! You need 1.5kg for it and the beetroot we had only weighed a measley 500g!!! So I ordered some more (for the first time ever) and it arrived today. The finished product looks pretty nice but I haven't tasted it yet seeing as I loathe the red stuff..!

For about 4 1lb jars you need
1.5kg raw beetroot, peeled and diced into a .5cm dice
3 eating apples, peeled and grated
zest and juice of 3 oranges
3 onions, diced
700g sugar
700ml red wine vinager
2tbsp mustard seeds
1tbsp ground cloves
1tbsp ground cinnamon
1tbsp corriander seeds

Gently roast the mustard and corriander seeds in a dry frying pan until they begin to pop. Lob everything into a preserving pan and bring to a boil. Simmer over a moderate heat until the liquid has reduced and the beetroot is tender. This was supposed to take an hour but actually took more like 3. You don't want much juice left at the end, it mostly needs to have reduced down. Once the chutney is cooked put it into sterile jars and leave somewhere dark and cool to mature for about a month.

Quick lunch cous cous

Bored of sarnies and determined not to buy something at work again I threw this together this morning and the result was mighty fine.

For one portion of scrummy lunch you need:
1/3 cup cous cous
2/3 cup boiling water
handful raisins
3-4 dried apricots, chopped into little pieces
handful toasted pine nuts
1/4 tsp veggie stock
1 tsp toasted pumpkin seed oil
1/2 tsp moroccan spices
couple of large handfuls of spinach, watercress and rocket salad.

Place the cous cous in a tub with all the other ingredients minus the salad. Pour over the boiling water, mix a little and leave to soak for 10 mins. Serve warm or cold with the salad on the top. Also nice with some fried haloumi or crumbled feta on the top or with some chunks of roasted squash/carrots/parsnips in it. In the summer it's also nice with roasted veggies and peppers in it too. The combinations are endless!

Vanilla Poundcake

I suddenly realised late this afternoon that we had no cakes again for lunches so decided to rustle up something quick and easy but which would last for the week. After flicking through the Hummingbird book I decided on a simple pound cake. This is a slightly adapted recipe as I had no buttermilk, but it doesn't seem to have suffered from being made with milk alone.

You need:
330g vanilla sugar (yes really! I know it's a lot)
120g butter, softened
200g plain flour
1/4 tsp bicarb
1 tsp vanilla
3 eggs
120ml milk
3 eggs

Cream the butter and sugar till combined, then add the eggs one at a time. Mix well between each egg. Once this is done, add the flour, bicarb and vanilla and milk. Pour into a lined loaf tin (I used a 2lb loaf tin and also made 6 cakes from left over mix). Bake for about 30-45 mins till done. Leave to cool and then enjoy. The outside is very crunchy from all the sugar. Next time I make it I think I will reduce the sugar as it's very sweet and I think would survive with a little less in the batter.

St Clements Posset

I always make this with both orange and lemon juice and I find just lemon to be too acidic. It's like the worlds *easiest* pudding but tastes like you have slaved for hours over it :)

You need:
1 large pot double cream (600ml or thereabouts)
150g caster sugar
juice of 1 orange and 1 lemon.

Place the sugar and cream into a large pan and bring to the boil. Once it boils, turn down to a simmer and simmer for 3 minutes. Make sure you stir the cream/sugar a couple of times to make sure it doesn't catch and to dissolve the sugar.

Once the cream has been heated for long enough, pour it into a large jug with the juices and stir. Pour into little serving dishes/glasses and chill for at least 3 hours. Delish. Am toying with the idea of making lavender scented creams in the summer...

Cheese and Onion Sausage Rolls

I adore sausage rolls, and cheese and onion rolls, so the thought of combining the two is pure genius imho. This is another St Delia recipe, taken from her Christmas book.

Defrost one 500g pack of puff pastry (or make your own but frankly life is too short...)
Meanwhile make the filling:

grate 225g cheddar
grate 1 large onion
mix together with 275g fresh white breadcrumbs, 3 tbsp double cream, 2 tbsp mustard powder, 1 tsp cayenne, 2 tsp oregano, salt and pepper. Squish into sausage shapes and leave to chill for a bit.

When you're ready to make the sausage rolls, roll out the pastry to about 35x40cms. Trim into 3 lengths and lay the filling on the pastry. Egg wash the sides and roll over to seal. Cut into bite size chunks, egg wash again and snip twice in each to let the steam out.

Place on a greased baking sheet and cook for about 20 mins in a moderate (180 degrees) oven till risen, puffy and golden. Leave to cool on a rack and try not to scoff in one go. Mine are currently residing in the freezer waiting patiently for Christmas Day...

Chilli Jam

I can't believe how easy this recipe is, and how tasty it is too. I think there will be another batch cooking before the end of this year!

This is from Nigella's Christmas, but a similar recipe can also be found in the River Cottage Preserves book.

You need
150g big fat red chillies (prepared weight so 4 supermarket packets), deseeded
150g red pepper (about 1 fat pepper)
1kg jam sugar
600ml cider vinegar

Put the sugar and vinegar into a preserving pan and slowly heat to dissolve the sugar. Meanwhile, prepare the pepper and chillies by chopping roughly and removing the seeds and membranes. Then process *very* finely in a food processor. Once the sugar has dissolved, add the pepper and chilli mixture, bring to the boil and then boil FAST for 10 mins. Pour in to sterilised jars and seal. Try not to eat all in one go!

Christmas Chutney

One of my staple gifts to people is to make a mini home made hamper full of goodies. The process for this starts in the summer when we go blackberrying and I make a batch of blackberry jam. This year they'll also contain (look away now if you're related to me or teach my son ;-)):

Christmas chutney
Chilli jam
Orange and peppermint cremes
Blackberry jam
Chocolate truffles
Fudge or peanut brittle (haven't decided yet and it depends on storage/ease to make!)
Christmas biscuits
Mincemeat

The chutney recipe I made was maybe in hindsight not the best as it looks very much like mincemest. But it tastes lovely so it can't be all that bad...

Yet again it's a tweaked Delia recipe. It should have contained prunes but stupid me got stone in prunes that were a royal pain in the backside to prepare for the pudding so I ditched the rest of the packed. After a rummage through the cupboard for some other dried fruits I found a packed of dried nectarines. Excited by this discovery I thought they would make a good substitute for the prunes. Until I opened them and found them a bit past their best. Not suprising really given that they were sell by August 2008. Oops. A packet of dried pears went similar and I finally settled on the following combination...

You need
300g ready-to-eat dried apricots
350g dried cranberries
250 pitted dates
450g onions, peeled
570 ml cider vinegar
50g salt
2 tablespoons grated fresh root ginger
1/4 grated nutmeg
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 tsp ground mace
1/2 tsp ground cloves
450g demerara sugar

Lob the fruit and onions into a food processor and blitz till mushy (you don't have to do this with the cranberries if you prefer lumps in your chutney). Meanwhile heat the vinegar, ginger and salt in a preserving pan till boiling. Add the mushed fruit and onion mix and the spices and bring to the boil. Turn down to a simmer and cook for about an hour. You can tell when it's ready as there will be a clean line left in the pan when you scrape a wooden spoon through it. Bottle into sterilised jars and leave to mature for at least a month. Excellent served with cheese and cold (fake) meats.

Christmas Cake

I like a traditional, light Christmas cake. Full of fruit, yes, but not too dark and sticky. A lot of my friends rave about Nigella's black cake, and I admit I like the way she soaks her fruit for ages before hand. But I am not a fan of prunes or treacle or dark muscavado sugar all mixed together. I find the combination too heavy. My staple recipe recipe for Christmas cake is usually a last minute Sainsbury's one as I can't be faffed with feeding a cake either. But this year I have decided to try a variation of Delia's classic cake. I'm soaking the fruit for a week or so as per Nigella and using light brown sugar and golden syrup rather than the suggested treacle. The soaking fruit smells divine at the moment ;-)

250g sultanas
250g raisins
300g currants
100g glacé cherries cut in half
50g mixed candied peel
1/8 cup each of brandy, whisky and rum
225g plain flour
½ level teaspoon salt
¼ level teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
½ level teaspoon ground mixed spice
225g butter
225g soft light brown sugar
4 large eggs
1 level dessertspoon golden syrup
grated zest 1 lemon grated zest 1 orange

Put the fruit and booze into a clean plastic tub, mix thoroughly and leave to soak for at least 24 hours, ideally a week or so. Stir every so often to ensure all the fruit soaks up the booze.

Soften the butter and then cream with the sugar. Add the eggs one at a time, then the golden syrup, then the flour, spices, zest and finally the soaked fruit. Mix well and pour into a prepared 7" square tin (or 8" round one) and bake at 140 degrees for 4-5 hours. Make sure you place a double layer of baking paper on the top of the cake, with a small hole cut in the top to allow the steam to escape.

Once the cake is cooled, wrap in baking parchment, then foil and store in a cool dark place till you want to ice it. You can feed it if you want but I won't be bothering.

Countdown to Christmas

Well, it's begun. The cooking for the festivities kicked off with a vengeance with the start of the annual Christmas cake making preparations.

For a change this year I am also making the pudding and mincemeat. I have never made a pudding before, and have always been put off by the steaming process. But I thought what the heck seeing as we're hosting Christmas this year...

The mincemeat recipe I am using is a tweaked St Delia's one. I've never really made mincemeat before either and don't particularly like mince pies it has to be said, but Christmas isn't Christmas without them, and I do sort of like them warmed up and slathered in brandy butter and cointreau cream...

Mincemeat
450g Bramley apples, cored and chopped very small
225g vegetarian suet
800g mixed dried fruit - I used a mixture of Waitrose luxury mixed vine fruits, raisins, sultanas and currants
225g candied peel
350g soft dark brown sugar
grated zest and juice 2 oranges
grated zest and juice 2 lemons
50g glace cherries, cut into quarters
4 level teaspoons mixed ground spice
½ level teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 whole grated nutmeg
1/8 cup each of brandy, whisky and rum (add another 1/8 cup each once the mincemeat has been cooked)

Lob everything into a large, clean plastic tub and mix well. Leave to steep for at least 24 hours, up to a week in a cool place. Stir a couple of times a day to mix and plump up the fruit.

When it's finished steeping, transfer to an oven proof dish and heat through at 120 degrees for 3 hours. This melts the suet to ensure the mincemeat doesn't fermet in the jars. Transfer to sterilised jars and leave somewhere cool and dark for at least a month.

Swede Gratin

Had some swede in the veg box, and no masher to mash it with! So created a gratin to use it up and served it with bangers, potato mash and steamed veggies. Even Lex liked it.

You need:

1 large swede, peeled and finely sliced
2 onions, finely sliced
salt and pepper
1/2 milk
butter for greasing
grated cheese

Begin by greasing an oven proof dish with the butter. Put one layer of swede into the bottom, then add a layer of onions, some salt and pepper and a sprinkling of cheese. Continue until everything s used up, finishing with a neat layer of swede and a sprinkling of cheese. Gently pour over the milk, cover with foil and bake in a moderate oven for 45-60 mins. Remove the foil, turn the temp up a a bit and finish off for another 15-40 mins until bubbling and crispy. Lovely and warming.

Muddas (Rice with Lentils)

A middle eastern staple that originates from Saudi Arabia. Cheap, filling and good for you.

You need
2 cups basmati rice
1/2 cup brown or green lentils
1 large onion, chopped
1/4 cup oil/ghee/butter
4 cups boiling water
salt

(FYI a cup = 250ml)

Heat the oil in a large pan and fry the onions. Add the lentils and rice and fry for 5 mins or so. Add the water and bring to the boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover with a lid and cook for 45 mins (cook over a very low heat).

Serve as is, or with roti.

Akara with Pili Pili

or Bean Cakes with Chilli Sauce

A traditional Nigerian recipe from Celia Brooks Brown's World Vegetarian Classics

For the akara:
2 x 400g black eyed beans, drained
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1 egg
4 rbsp plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
Oil for frying

For the Pili Pili
2 red peppers, de-seeded and chopped
1=2 hot fresh chillies
1/2 tsp salt
1 garlic clove, crushed
Juice 1/2 lemon

Place the beans and onion into a foodprocessor. Blitz to a smooth paste. Add everything else and pulse till mixed.

Heat a shallow pan with the oil. When it's hot enough drop spoonfuls of the batter into the oil. Cook till brown and flip over halfway. Drain on kitchen paper.

Mix the ingredients for the sauce and serve with the bean cakes.

Delish.

Things to Make This Week

I have long been a subscriber to BBC Good Food magazine but I have to say I am usually more than disappointed with the recipes in the magazine. They taste bland and there's not a lot of veggie choice. November's edition is providing me with lots of inspiration, so well done to the team.

I am planning on making the following from the issue:
p122 toffee apples (done and they taste fab!)
p33 Chicken Chow Mein (using marinated tofu not chicken)
p35 One pan chicken couscous (using quorn)
p36 Spicy tofu kedgeree
p43 wintry rice salad
p45 Chargrilled turkey with quinoa tabbouleh and tahini dressing (using quorn again)
p52 tangy carrot, red cabbage and onion salad
p52 creamy baked leeks with citrus crumbs (I will bulk this out with some gnocchi)
p54 sweet potato and lentil soup
p55 Indian style chickpea soup
p73 custard tart with nutmeg pastry
p110 creamy gratin of butternut squash
p120 mulled apple juice
p120 rarebit toasts
p120 crisp baked potatoes with sour cream
p159 coffee semi-freddo

Next step, finish reading Delicious and Cook Vegetarian and add the recipes to try from there too!

Tangy Orange Bread and Butter Pudding

Cycling to work this week had worked up an appetite for stodge. I haven't made bread and butter pudding for years but was flicking through Delia's Winter Collection and came across the recipe for marmalade bread and butter pudding and decided to give it a whirl. It was lovely, and smelt so good that even Lex tried it and liked it. Result.

You need:

6 slices white bread
75g softened butter
2-3 tbsp marmalade
3 eggs
325ml milk
grated zest of an orange
3 tbsp demerara sugar

Butter the bread on one side, then spread the marmalade on 3 of the slices. Make 3 sandwiches and butter the top side of each sarnie. Slice into 4 triangles and lay in a shallow baking dish.

Mix together the milk, eggs and orange zest and pour over the sandwiches. Sprinkle over the sugar and leave to soak for 30 mins if you have time. Bake for 30 mins at 160 degrees, make sure you don't over cook it so it gets burnt. Scoff and hide the leftovers from your family so you can eat them all by yourself later on mwahh!

Cauliflower Cheese Soup

I made this on Friday and thought it was worth blogging it to remember for next time I have a surfeit of cauli in the veg box.

Sweat 1 large onion in some butter till soft. Add a head of cauli cut into florets and 900ml light veggie stock. Simmer for 30 mins till very tender and then blitz to a puree. Add some milk/more stock if it's too thick. Re-heat with 100g grated cheddar and season with salt and pepper. Serve topped with nutritional yeast and some chopped chives. And lashings of bread of course.

Blackberry and Apple Crumble

I am not a big crumble fan - I usually like the idea of it more than the reality. But I have to say tonight's offering was lovely. My FIL enjoyed it enough to give me a compliment!

You need:
4 large cooking apples, peeled and roughly chopped
1 tbsp water
3 tbsp vanilla sugar

150g plain flour
75g cold butter
25g oats
75g cinnamon sugar

2 cups blackberries
2 tbsp vanilla sugar

Start by putting the apples, sugar and water into a pan and cooking for 10 mins till soft and fluffy. Pour into a shallow baking dish and top with the scattered blackberries. Add the extra vanilla sugar on to this.

Blitz the butter and plain flour in a food processor until it's like find breadcrumbs. Tip into a bowl and add the sugar and oats. Mix and then scatter over the fruit in the dish.

Bake at 180 degrees for 15 mins then turn up the heat to 200 and bake for another 10-15 mins till bubbling and browned and crispy on top.

Serve with custard for a proper english treat, or mascapone/creme fraiche if you fancy something more continental. Delicious either way. The leftovers will be my breakfast tomorrow.

There's a Chill in the Air...

...and the nights are beginning to draw in and after not wanting winter to come, I am now enjoying cooking with the lovely root vegetables in my veg box and eating carb laden puds!

Tonight we had beef in ale again but I made a few tweaks to make it go further as we were feeding 5 not 3, and also to get over the saltiness we had last time.

I added 500ml water to the stew, and substituted pickling onions for the celery and used leeks instead of onions. It was bloody gorgeous and my meat eating ILs were very happy with the savoury, meaty feel of the stew.

Pudding was crumble which I will blog separately to make it easier for me to find next time.

Roll on real winter!

Spiced Red Lentil Soup

OK so this could easily be 'very thin and runny dhal' but somehow it's not. It's a soup in it's own right and delicious.

You need
1 onion, roughly chopped
1 cup red lentils
1 tin toms
1 litre stock
1 tbsp curry powder/garam masala

Saute the onion in some oil for a few mins. Then add the curry powder/garam masala. Cook for a further few mins to take away the cupboard taste. Add the lentils and stock and simmer for 20 mins or so. Blitz and serve with naan or crusty french bread. Don't forget to add some nutritional yeast too to add further depth of flavour!

Green Lentil Soup

I love soup, and we do tend to eat a lot of it. It's cheap, quick and easy to make and I can also hide all manner of veggies in it that Lex might not otherwise eat! We often have soups made from pulses, and this is a very tasty one using green lentils.

You need
2 onions, sliced
175g green lentils
1 litre veggie stock (use a light one or it'll overpower the lentils and spices)
1 tsp tumeric
small handful of corriander, roughly chopped

Begin by sauteeing the onions in some oil for a few mins. Then add the lentils and stock/tumeric. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 mins or so until the lentils are tender.

Blitz with a stick blender (or leave chunky) and serve with the corriander scattered on the top.

If you want to serve a spiced butter with it, then blend 1 clove garlic into 50g butter and add 1 tsp paprika, cumin seeds and chilli to it. Chill to re-set and then slice into the soup and let it melt. Very good with soft naan. Yummy!

Autumnal Beef Stew

Mmmm beef stew. Beef stew? Yes beef! I love all the veggie substitute meats you can get, and fancied something like Bœuf borgognone for dinner tonight. Unfortunately DH had drunk all the mini bottles of red wine I had stashed away for cooking purposes so I had to raid the beer larder instead! This is what I created, and by gum it was good! I challenge a meat eater to know the difference!

You need:
2 medium onions, roughly chopped
3 sticks celery, cut into inch long chunks
4 carrots, cut into inch long barrels, and then sliced diagonally
1 packet beef style pieces (quorn or asda or tescos sell them)
large handful frozen bacon style pieces (NOT dried bacon bits!!)
couple of good glugs of quality olive oil
1 bottle dark beer (I used Manchester Brown Ale)
1 bay leaf
1 tsp dried oregano
ground pepper
good glug light soya sauce
good glug mushroom ketchup
good glug henderson's relish
good glug mirin
2 tsp vecon vegetable stock (or marmite!)

Start by sauteeing the onions in the olive oil. Add the bacon bits once the onions are lightly browned. Then add the celery, carrots and beef bits. Saute for a few mins before adding everything else. Bring to the boil and then simmmer for 30-45 mins until the veggies are tender and the sauce had developed.

If you want to thicken the sauce I'd recommend using a beurre manié to avoid lumps. But I like a thin sauce to soak into flattened roasted potatoes. I served the stew with roasties and steamed romanesco cauliflower. Yum yum yum!