Bon Appétit

Salmon and Corn Chowder – baby and you

2012-02-06T15:55:00.000Z

I’ll begin by telling you that this is not a meal I would ever choose to make, or indeed eat. Having said that, once I’d put all the effort in (although there’s not too much of that if I’m honest) I grudgingly sat down to eat it. And was pleasantly surprised. So much so, in fact, that instead of freezing the remainders, we had them the next night, and I’ll definitely be making it again. Especially since Frankie also gobbled down a rather large left-over portion that wouldn’t fit in any of her freezer pots!

Again, if you don’t want all the peeling and chopping, which really doesn’t take too much time at all, you can always buy ready prepped veg. I like to add cheese to some of the meals to make sure the Little One gets some dairy too, and in this dish, it makes it creamier, but you could always leave it out if you’d prefer. As salmon is an oily fish, you should serve this to girls no more than twice a week, and boys up to four. (Big girls and boys can eat it as often as they’d like!) And for a completely veggie version I’d simply leave out the salmon and replace with a variety of beans.

Ingredients:

leeks

celery

potato

carrots

crushed garlic

sweetcorn (I used a tin)

peas (frozen is fine)

salmon (or any other fish)

water (twice as much than the milk)

whole milk (half the quantity of the water)

mascarpone

Method:

Pour a little rapeseed oil into the pan. You’ll need something fairly deep, I used a wok, as it filled up quite quickly! Most pure vegetable oil in the UK is rapeseed so just check the back and it’ll tell you what it’s made from. Rapeseed is one of the better oils to use.

Peel and chop the leeks, celery, potato and carrot into small pieces and fry off until beginning to soften. Add the garlic too.

Pour in enough water to just cover them and leave at a simmer until the potato and carrot are cooked through. Depending on the sizes of the cubes, this will probably take about 15-20 minutes. If the pans begins to look dry, add more water.

Add the corn, peas, salmon (chopped into chunks and checked carefully for bones) and milk. Again, enough milk to cover the ingredients.

Leave to simmer until the salmon is cooked though, probably no longer than 10 minutes, stirring in the mascarpone along the way.

Now, your baby portions are ready.

Baby:

Depending on which stage of weaning you’re at, either use a hand blender to mush baby’s portions until smooth, or simply fork the fish into small pieces and mash the rest. You can then freeze in individual portions.

Grown-Ups:

This recipe is one that definitely needs pepping up as is quite bland as it is, however, salt and pepper will do the trick perfectly.

Labels: salmon, corn, chowder, soup, fish, oily, weaning, recipe, ideas, vegetarian, baby, babies, family, meals

The best things in life…

2012-02-04T14:19:00.001Z

…include a dippy egg laid by the hens that morning with homemade bread toasted soldiers!

I hadn’t made bread for ages and didn’t have any shop-bought stuff in, so wanted to quickly whip up a batch loaf, knowing that we’d be having dippy eggs in the morning as Teddy, the Heritage Skyline hen, has just started laying blue eggs (only on the outside!)

Jules kindly came up with a recipe for me and I gave it a go. Well, with the weather being pretty darn chilly, and me not leaving it enough time to prove, and also not following the method (I kneaded for ten mins, then left as really didn’t have enough time to do it properly whilst looking after the little one) it was, to say the least, heavy. Although the OH did comment ‘Not as heavy as some you’ve made!’ Talk about a back-handed compliment! I was also surprised by the lack of something sweet in the recipe to help the yeast along its way, but that’s more likely to be my lack of bread baking knowledge that brought me to that thought.

Anyway, the long and short of it is that the bread did the trick for toasted soldiers to dip into the freshly laid eggs, cooked til just dippy! Thanks Teddy.

Labels: dippy eggs, eggs, heritage, skyline, blue eggs, toasted, soldiers, breakfast

All in One Fish Pie – a meal all the family can enjoy!

2012-02-03T16:01:00.001Z

This turned out to be a real winner. My little one is like a bird with a constantly open mouth when she has this for her tea and really can’t get enough of it, which very much surprised me the first time I tried it.

Again, it’s very simple and really doesn’t take long to prepare and only really needs a little salt and more pepper to change it from a weaning recipe to one for grown-ups!

Ingredients

leeks

cauliflower

potato

parsley

whole milk

water

cod or any other white fish

spinach

cheese

Method

Slice the leeks, cut the cauliflower into small florets and peel and cube the potatoes.

Add a little unsalted butter or light oil, such as rapeseed, to the frying pan or wok and fry the above until browned and beginning to soften.

Sprinkle parsley into the veg mixture.

When browned, add a combination of whole milk and water until the veg is just covered. If your baby is under 6 months old, just add water. Simmer on a medium heat until the potatoes are cooked through.

Check the fish thoroughly for bones, ensuring they are all removed, then cube.

Add the cod and spinach to the pan and stir in. Leave to simmer until the fish is cooked through and the spinach wilted, probably about 10 minutes.

Grate some cheese, I used Cheddar, over the top and stir in. Don’t use too much for your little one though! A small chunk is plenty. You can always add more to the grown-up portion!

Baby:

Grown-Ups:

This recipe is tasty just as it is, but for extra flavour, add a little salt, pepper and lemon juice. You could always pop into an oven-proof casserole, top with potatoes (cooked sliced or mashed) and put into the oven for a tasty fish pie. Or separate the mixture before adding the fish and throw some prawns into the grown-up portion too!

Labels: weaning, baby-led, family, recipe, fish, white, cod, pie, meals, blend, bake

Beef Hot Pot

2012-01-31T13:02:00.001Z

Another great one to share with everyone, even if baby’s version does look a little like cat food! I promise it doesn’t taste like it, as far as I’m aware! Again, you can substitute ingredients for those in your fridge if you’d like, and change the herbs, flavourings as desired.

Ingredients:

extra lean beef mince

leeks – chopped

sweet potato – half cubed, half sliced

parsnips – cubed

water

flour / cornflour

thyme

grated cheese

Method:

Add a little unsalted butter or low fat oil to the pan and fry off the leeks, sweet potato cubes and parsnips.

Remove from the pan and fry off the mince until browned all over. Pop the thyme, dried or fresh, over the mince.

Add the vegetables back to the pan. Sprinkle everything with a little flour or cornflour and stir in.

Cover everything with hot water until the vegetables are just submerged, then cover with a lid (a piece of foil will do!) and leave for at least 20 minutes. The vegetables need to be soft. If you’re not sure, stick a knife into one of the biggest pieces to check.

Once cooked, baby’s dinner is now ready.

Baby:

Depending on which stage of weaning you’re at, either use a hand blender to mush baby’s portions until smooth, or simply mash with a fork. You can then freeze in individual portions.

Grown-Ups:

Steam or briefly boil the sweet potato slices. I popped mine in the microwave with a little water for a few minutes.

Crumble a beef stock cube into the meat and vegetables pan and stir through. If you like it spicy, either add some hot smoked paprika or a few chilli flakes.

Transfer the whole mixture to an oven-proof dish and cover with overlapping sweet potato circles. Grate cheese on top if you’d like.

At this point, you can leave to cool and freeze if you’d like or pop into an oven ay 180 degrees for about 25 minutes as everything is already hot and cooked through.

Or you can refrigerate it over night: I made one on Saturday to eat on Monday evening. To reheat, pop into a hot oven (180) covered, for about 30-40 minutes, then uncovered for the cheese to brown for the last 10 minutes.

Labels: baby, weaning, mash, food, baby-led, beef, minced beef, mince, pie, hot, pot, hotpot, hot-pot, casserole

One-pot chicken stew – for baby and you…

2012-01-26T11:15:00.001Z

This is the first of the ‘meat’ recipes I tried for weaning as I thought that chicken is quite bland on its own, so there’s really nothing not to like. I combined it with tried and tested flavours, including something sweet, and herbs to give it some decent flavour. Then I crossed my fingers!

The recipe is incredibly simple and something you can prepare in about 10 minutes, then leave to cook until you’re ready. It’s also something that you can easily adapt, for example, substituting the parsnip for squash, or the pear for apple: simply use whatever's in your cupboard or fridge. there really is no excuse that there isn’t enough time on this one. If it helps, why not buy bags of ready prepared vegetables, such as cubed carrots and parsnips?

Those of you who read regularly will know I very rarely add quantities to my ingredients list as with many of my recipes, you can simply use as much or as little as you like according to taste.

Ingredients

leeks

parsnips / squash / carrots

broccoli

chicken (the best quality you can afford)

thyme

water

grated pear / apple

Method

First, peel and cube the veg. Use just one or a variety of the above. Cut the broccoli into small florets. Skin the chicken and cube.

Add a small spoon of either unsalted butter or light cooking oil (such as rapeseed) to the frying pan or wok and turn on the heat to medium – hot.

Fry off the leeks and veg until beginning to soften. Remove from pan.

Fry off chicken until beginning to brown, then add the veg back to the pan. Turn down to low – medium heat.

Sprinkle some herbs (I used thyme) and pepper over, add the grated fruit and pour over hot water until all the ingredients are just submerged.

Leave to simmer until veg are soft and chicken is cooked through. Obviously, the smaller you cube ingredients, the quicker this will be. I’d say for about 20 minutes.

When everything is cooked through, this is the point at which you split the mixture into baby and adult portions. If you prefer your veg a little crunchy, simply remove your portion and continue to cook baby’s until soft. When done, meter out as much as you’d like to blend for baby. Try to include some of each ingredient and a few spoonfuls of stock from the pan as this will make it easier to blend.

Baby:

Depending on which stage of weaning you’re at, either use a hand blender to mush baby’s portions until smooth, or simply cut the chicken into small pieces and mash the rest with a fork. You can then freeze in individual portions.

Grown-Ups:

This recipe is tasty just as it is, but for a little extra flavour, stir in a stock cube or a little salt and more pepper. If you’d like, add a sprinkle of chilli flakes too. Serve with brown rice for a super-healthy dinner!

(I usually like to add a few pictures to posts, but we ate it before I remembered! Will post if I remake!)

Labels: weaning, baby-led, family, recipe, chicken. root veg, meals, blend, stew, one-pot

Recipes to share with your baby…

2012-01-22T20:01:00.001Z

Those of you who are regular readers will know that nearly 7 months ago, I had a baby. This has led to a severe dearth of blog posts, generally due to lack of time! It has also, sadly, led to a considerable drop in the quality and quantity of home-cooked meals.

I’ve never been one to buy jars and packets, always preferring to begin from scratch, believing that it’s a healthier and cheaper option. Also, often quicker, I know, but despite this, I have rarely cooked anything of note from start to finish in the last few months. Now, however, my baby is eating, and by eating I mean, stuffing her face with anything she can get her hands on. I wanted to wait until she was 6 months to use the baby-led weaning approach ( a la My Daddy Cooks), but was advised, since she was premature and still so small, to wean her early, therefore I decided the mushy food route would be a good start, with finger foods thrown in along the way.

We’ve been ‘eating’ now for 10 weeks, and began with pureed sweet potato. I found she enjoyed it more if she also had a spoon, so when I say ‘eating’ what, perhaps, might be better descriptions are: painting her face; having a food fight; dying her hair…well, you get the picture!

Very quickly we worked our way through other fruits and veg, including finger sticks of ripe fruits, steamed veg, rice cakes and rusks and as soon as she was 6 months, moved onto everything else. Full meals, with herbs and spices, still pureed but far more tasty. And what I found was that I soon began cooking again. While making chicken stew, I kept some aside for us and after removing baby’s portion, added a little salt, a few chilli flakes and served with brown rice…it was remarkably yummy! I’ve done that several times in the last few weeks and each time, the result has been a hearty, family meal. Little Frankie has wolfed down everything and so has my husband. I began by looking at several ‘weaning’ recipes, include those from Annabel Karmel, and adapted them to what I actually had in the fridge. I really used them as an idea, to see the types of flavours that might appeal.

So, the next few posts will be recipes for, literally, all the family! I’ll be making a chicken stew, cod bake and minced beef hotpot, along with some old favourites, such as cauliflower cheese, and showing how easily you can adapt them from ‘baby-mush’ to grown up food.

Labels: weaning, recipes, baby, led, baby-led, ideas, cooking, family, favourites, annabel, karmel, puree, my daddy cooks, chicken stew, cod, bake, hotpot, minced beef

Giraffe, Chelmsford

2011-11-28T12:08:00.000Z

We were recently invited to attend the soft opening of the new Giraffe in Chelmsford, and never having set foot inside a Giraffe restaurant before (I know…) was keen to try it out.

Now, before I begin, let me tell you a little about the town. Chelmsford has, unfortunately, lost it’s charm from the ‘old days’. Photos from the Victorian era show many independent shops, including butchers, grocers, etc., all in lovely terraced buildings. Now, some town planner, around the 1970s is my guess, decided it would look much better with large, grey concrete buildings instead and knocked it all down. Since then, I really feel that Chelmsford ‘could do better’. In the restaurant sphere, were have any Italian chain you could care to mention, hundreds of curry houses and several Chineses. All the big chains are here, leaving room for very few independent ventures to make a go of it. For example, there is only one place I know of to pop into for a tea and scone or homemade cake, pitted against several large coffee chains, (Cherry on Top if you’re interested, which not only serves afternoon tea, but deliciously huge salads and lunches too!)

Sorry, but I’d really love some independent shops to really go for it and persuade everyone else that this is what we need. Anyway, back to trying Giraffe. As you can tell, I’m not enamoured with commonplace restaurant chains, but end up often eating in them due to lack of alternative choices, and to be fair, you know what you’re paying and you know what you’re going to get for it, which I found to be the case with Giraffe.

My husband and I took our baby along and, as it was my first ‘go’ at one of these things, we were quite excited. I arrived to find my husband sitting in the window seat, already having made friends with the staff, who were super friendly, drinking a beer. The words ‘This is wicked’ may have even fallen out of his mouth at one stage!

As it was a trial night, the staff were incredibly attentive, a little too much so at some points, but all very willing to please; they really couldn’t have been more helpful. My husband already knew he was having the burger, I chose the quesadillas and we shared a nachos with crispy chorizo to begin.

The starter was good, although some tortillas were on the chewy side and the 5 thin slices of chorizo were not crispy, but still delicious. The burger and chips arrived and looked lovely. We were asked if we’d like it cooked medium or well done (no option of rare at all? There is, I know a bit of a debate already about this, certainly on twitter) and, to be honest, I saw no hint of pinkness in there despite asking for it medium. I was assured, however, that it tasted good!

My quesadillas were crispy round the edges, which was lovely and again, were very tasty. The smoked chicken flavour really came through and with the addition of the aioli and minty, chilli tomato relish, were scrummy. I do, however, think that they use the same sauce for the Quesadillas as they do for the Nachos, as there was a chicken option too for these. A shame, I thought, as it wouldn’t have taken much to vary the ingredients and flavours.

While my OH then tucked into a couple of cocktails, the baby began to scream. So much so, in fact, that I was forced to make a rather hasty retreat. We’d finished our meal, but the ambience, lighting and buzz of the place was so relaxed, I’d have liked to stay on to chill for a while longer.

In short, it’s definitely somewhere to which I’d return, if only to try the baby back ribs and the steak and lamb, which were, unfortunately, sold out by them time we ordered! It’s vibe is calm, certainly in the evenings, and the staff were friendly and keen to please. It’ll be filled every night, of that I have no doubt, and the food is of a good standard.

I still have have that niggling doubt, however, that I’d have preferred something less predictable and more authentic.

Labels: Giraffe, restaurants, Chelmsford, eating out, food, review

Oxtail Stew

2011-11-25T18:21:00.001Z

Unfortunately, we don’t have a local butchers, so whenever we’re out and about, tend to find an odd farm shop to pop into to pick up a bit of local meat. My husband is always on the lookout for oxtail, although rarely does anything with it (!) and happened to find one pack of three small frozen pieces at the ‘we sell everything under the sun’ amazing Upsons Farm Shop near Hatfield Peverel. In fact, we bought it the same day we picked up three new hens!

So, left in the fridge for two days as it was, I decided I’d better use it up! A really simple recipe that would also work brilliantly with lamb shanks. Simply dice carrots and onions and pan fry. Fry off the oxtail to brown and crispen the outside and pop everything into the slow cooker. If you don’t have one, use an ovenproof dish. Cover with a mixture of red wine and stock, throw in a few herbs and leave on high, or put into a low oven, for several hours.

About half an hour before serving, mix up a paste of flour, mustard and redcurrant jelly, although I used quince jelly as I had some made up. Add a little of the juice from the pot to loosen the mixture, then stir into the stew. Leave to thicken.

Serve with a crispy jacket potato, creamed leeks and a hearty glass of red.

Labels: oxtail, stew, winter, warmer, recipe, upsons, farm, shop, hatfield, peverel

Northcote Manor

2011-11-18T19:23:00.001Z

Having recently had a birthday and a baby, not in that order, I was lucky enough to visit Northcote Manor for a night, while Frankie’s grandparents had an opportunity to spend some quality time looking after their granddaughter for the night!

This is a place I’ve wanted to visit for a long time, being only an hour or so from where I grew up. Nigel Haworth and Craig Bancroft are joint proprietors with Lisa Allen doing much of the cooking. We arrived on a Friday afternoon and were shown straight to our room: a beautiful large corner room overlooking the gardens and fields. we had booked a gourmet break (dinner, bed and breakfast for £335 in a superior double) and were invited for drinks in the lounge, complete with roaring fires, pre-dinner. The price included a half bottle of champagne, canapés, a 5-course seasonal menu, breakfast, and of course the room (with free minibar stocked with (unfortunately no alcohol but) locally produced soft drinks and the cutest little glass bottle of milk from a local dairy.

We settled in quickly, and went straight out to explore the herb and vegetable garden, then went for a short drive to the village of Whalley, then on for an afternoon drink at Mitton Hall (well worth a visit, if only to look over the Ribble river with a glass of something chilled in your hand!) We returned and had the most luxurious bubble bath imaginable before dressing for dinner. (In the bathroom, even the mirrors are heated so they don’t steam up – clever huh?!)

A warm welcome awaited us from the staff downstairs, and our drinks and lovely canapés were served in front of the fire. It is over a month since we went, and I can’t remember what they were, but I know they tasted delicious!

The meal, too, was very tasty. I'm not going to comment on every course, suffice to say, the combination of flavours and textures was excellent.

The amuse-bouche deconstructed blt had, to quote Gregg, bags of flavour and interesting textures to make it taste ‘just right’.

I’d make a special note of the lemon caviar (no idea how it was done, but resembled caviar with little bursts of lemon flavour). It’s floating at the bottom of the tomato consommé, somewhere!

As usual, we opted for the local cheeses rather than dessert; simply can’t resist a good cheese board, especially as I’d saved a glass of red to go alongside.

Finished with petits fours and a special birthday message. What more could I ask?

Northcote Manor
Northcote Road
Langho
Blackburn
Lancs
BB6 8BE

Tel: 01254 240555
Fax: 01254 246568
E-mail: reception@northcote.com

Labels: northcote, manor, nigel haworth, lisa allen, great british menu, review, lancashire, hotel, gastro

Stuffed Mushrooms a la Nigel Slater

2011-11-15T18:23:00.000Z

Along with the vast array of cookery books I own, I also thoroughly enjoy watching a good food programme on tv. One of my favourites is Nigel Slater’s newest series, Simple Cooking. Some people believe it to be rather over-produced, but I love the natural feel to it and the fact that all his produce lives wrapped in waxed paper, or is poured into thick glass bottles. I’d like my fridge to look like his but, unfortunately, mine is more usually a few leftover things hanging around in the salad compartment at the bottom feeling unloved and forgotten.

One of the recipes that looked really delicious was these stuffed mushrooms. Its a classic sausage-meat stuffing but with the crispiness on top and the chunks of chestnut therein. You can find the ‘proper’ recipe here, or follow my quantity-less version below.

Pop some large mushrooms in a roasting tin and a blob of butter in each. Pour over some olive oil and a splash of Madeira wine. Now, I had none, so used Port as Nigel suggested. I think, though, that Madeira wine would work better. Throw in a few sprigs of thyme too. (Again, I substituted for parsley as I didn’t have any.)

Bake in the oven for about 20 mins. Meanwhile, make the stuffing. Chop and fry gently some onions. Mix the inside of some tasty sausages, some breadcrumbs, chopped chestnuts, salt and pepper and add to the onions. Fry off for a short while.

Top the mushrooms with the stuffing mixture and return to the oven for about half an hour.

Now, I found that I could have added more oil, butter and Madeira at some point as the final mushrooms, although delicious, were on the dry side. I enjoyed the crispiness of the topping but maybe a lower oven and longer cooking time would have done the trick? I’ll leave you to play around with your own ideas for keeping them moist.

Labels: Nigel, Slater, stuffed, mushrooms, chestnut, sausage meat, simple, cooking, stuffing, recipe, starters

Apéritifs – Figs with cream cheese wrapped in Parma ham

2011-11-13T17:50:00.001Z

I’m always on the look out for new and interesting apéritifs / amuse bouche ideas to go with that pre-dinner drink, as these are usually my favourite part of a meal. I have been known to simply eat rather too many and not have room for any dinner at all (although my OH might suggest the cocktails consumed alongside them may have also been to blame!)

These were brought to me via my mum, whose friend (bizarrely, my old English teacher and form tutor at high school) makes these as one of her amuse bouche, and they really are delicious: a simple combination of sweet and salty makes them irresistible, and you’ll have to refrain from going to make more. In fact, I suggest you use the whole pack of figs as you’ll always want / need more!

They are incredibly simple, and you’ll only need ripe figs, cream cheese and dry-cured ham, such as Parma. Writing that has just reminded me of a limited edition cook book produced by the regions involved in the Discover the Origin campaign which coincided with Fair-Trade fortnight back in February.

“ ‘Discover The Origin’ was created by the EU to make consumers more knowledgeable about what they are buying and where it comes from. They want to support local artisans who use traditional methods that have been handed down from generation to generation to create delicious food. These are people who care passionately about what they do. The result is natural products containing no artificial additives or preservatives, simply good honest food and wines that have not been tampered with.

In short by buying protected destination of origin stamped food (PDO) you are supporting honest trade/ craft/ tradition and means you get to eat and drink better! ”

Anyway, like I said, it’s the saltiness of the Parma ham against the sweetness of the figs and the creaminess of the cheese that really makes this work. Simply quarter the figs, spoon a little (or a lot) of cream cheese onto each piece and wrap in Parma ham. Serve with a chilled class of Chablis.

Labels: figs, ham, cream cheese, cheese making, philadelphia, recipe, idea, aperitif, aperitifs, Parma, Parma ham, Discover the Origin, campaign, Valentine Warner, Chablis

Slight teething issues!

2011-10-25T16:51:00.001+01:00

Having decided to resurrect the blog, I now find the power source for the laptop has failed...

I'll be with you shortly, when a new one has arrived in the post!

Back to the Blog

2011-10-19T17:54:00.001+01:00

You may have noticed I’ve been away for a little while…well, here’s the reason why:

She arrived 6 weeks early at the end of June and is called Frankie (Francesca) Anouk. Now she’s older, I find I have a little more time to both write and cook after surviving on pre-made, stick-it-in-the-oven food and veg. for the last few months.

So, look out for mushroom bhaji and teriyaki salmon recipes. I’m also fairly certain there’ll be some weaning inspired mashes along the way!

Thanks for sticking with me.

Labels: teriyaki, salmon, weaning, recipe, food, bhaji, bahji, bajhi, mushroom, curry

Drinking in Pregnancy?

2011-04-05T20:46:00.001+01:00

Only the soft stuff I’m afraid, and an odd slurp or small mouthful of wine with dinner every so often! So someone offering to send me a bottle of a new bottlegreen green tea & elderflower sparkling pressé. According to the press release,

“bottlegreen has selected the finest handpicked elderflowers and combined them with infused green tea and lightly sparkling water to create the perfect summertime drink. Made with only natural ingredients with no added preservatives or sweeteners, bottlegreen green tea & elderflower sparkling pressé brings together two traditional summer flavours in an unusual but tasty combination that provides instant refreshment on lazy days in the sunshine or at alfresco parties.”

Well, since the sun came out last week, and I’m still looking for different flavours to enliven my ‘in-between meal’ drinks, I was happy to review a bottle. The OH was particularly interested as we normally buy the Lemongrass and Ginger cordial, and mix it with sparkling water, so this was a nice change. The tea flavours certainly drifted through and I’m guessing the unusual aftertaste was the elderflower. Although I’d never normally buy an Elderflower pressé, usually being a bit flowery for my tastes, the tea in this calmed down the flavours and they were much more subtle, almost being a more refreshing and lighter version of iced-tea.

I’ve always liked the shape and design of the bottlegreen bottles, but this has been contradicted by the fact that if it’s not a cordial that I add to, there just isn’t enough in it at 750ml. Especially as this is a drink for a warm summer’s day with friends: You’d need several. The OH alone drinks half the bottle in one large glass. Retailing from £2.30 a bottle, other bottlegreen pressés are currently retailing at around £2.20, but I can’t yet find this particular one on the supermarket shelves. It could end up costly, and I’d rather buy a cordial and add my own sparkling water, thus bringing the price down somewhat. Having said that, compare it with other similar drinks, it’s probably priced about right.

A refreshing and summery drink no doubt, but goes down too quickly: a victim of it’s own success!

Labels: bottlegreen, bottle green, presse, elderflower, summer, drink, green tea

March’s Fresh from the Oven Challenge – Hot Cross Buns

2011-03-27T19:37:00.001+01:00

An apology: since the chickens arrived at the end of October, I’ve been a little obsessed with building them a palace! Then in November, we discovered we were expecting a baby, so this then took control of my life for a short while! Now, half way through my pregnancy, I am beginning to return to my ‘normal’ self (!) and am taking up blogging again! To get me started, I thought a return to the Fresh from the Oven challenges might be just the thing!

This month’s challenge, hosted by Helen from Fuss Free Flavours and was a little different. It asked us bake something yeasted, using flour where you know either where it was grown or where it was milled. I’m a little spoilt for choice in Essex, but opted for pure and simple plain flour from Marriage’s. No more than 3 miles from where I live, it seemed the perfect choice to help begin the Easter campaign: Hot Cross Buns.

I used a basic Delia recipe which you can find in full here, but the yeasty bit didn’t do what it was meant to, and despite them proving well, the buns were a little on the solid side! (My OH compared them with the use of a Christmas Pudding as a cannonball in Marriott Edgar’s poem, ‘Old Sam’s Christmas Pudding’!) If, however, you have your own way of making your yeast starter, I suggest you use it and adapt as necessary!

You need flour, sugar, currants, mixed peel, mixed spice. butter, eggs, yeast and salt.

Measure out your ingredients as per Delia recipe.

Combine into ‘buns’ and leave to prove.

I opted to make flour and water crosses, although I’d roll them out as thin as you can or then end up rather chewy!

Bake and glaze with a sugar syrup mix when done!

Have a look at what everyone baked at the Fresh from the Oven website – can’t wait to see how we all used our local flour!

Labels: marriages flour, flour, fresh from the oven, ffto, hot cross buns, easter, recipe, ideas, toasted teacakes, teacakes, delia smith, delia

Farmhouse Breakfast Week

2011-01-30T17:29:00.001Z

What makes the perfect bacon sarnie?

You may, or may not, have known that this past week has been Farmhouse Breakfast Week. I read an article recently that said something along the lines of (bear in mind I can’t remember where I read it, or what the actual figures were) that in the 1950s, over half of us began our day with a cooked breakfast but today it’s dwindled to less than 5%. Now, I have just plucked those figures out of thin air, but am fairly certain they aren’t that far off. It’s probably done wonders for our cholesterol as a nation, but I’m sure we’ve made up for it in other ways, such as eating fast junk food.

Everyone has an answer to the above question of bacon sarnies: some prefer white bread, others brown, and others still have theirs toasted. We argue over brown or red sauce, if any, or a combination of the two. Butter, marg. or none at all? But surely the most important question is the bacon we use? The other peripherals are simply the detail.

I was recently sent some bacon from Denhay Farm, including their own label dry and Wiltshire cured, and their Spoilt Pig range. Reviews suggested that this tasted ‘like bacon used to taste’. Now, since I’m not, perhaps, old enough to know what that actually means, I can hazard a guess. So I began the task of creating my perfect bacon sarnie:

Sunblest white bread

Heinz tomato ketchup

Lurpak spreadable butter

Spoilt Pig smoked bacon

I enjoy the fact that the fat from the bacon melts into the butter and combines with the ketchup to dribble out as you take that first bite!

I spread the bread thickly with the butter, and one side with the ketchup. Grill the bacon until the rind is crispy, and place three piping hot rashers into the sandwich. Slice so you have two rectangles and devour with a cup of coffee whilst still hot and oozing! I couldn’t take a picture because by the time I had done, my sandwich wouldn’t have been piping hot, and that's the pleasure of it! If you’re using a good quality bacon, and by this I don’t mean a supermarket’s finest, I mean a butcher’s cut or Denhay farm, you’ll find it hardly takes any time at all to grill, mainly due to the lack of added water. Within minutes the bacon is cooked and a quick turn-up of the grill will ensure the fat is crispy and you’re ready to go.

As for my cooked breakfast, well, I’m usually just a sausage and grilled tomatoes girl with white toast dipped in, but the OH likes the full works. So it was that this weekend, he managed a plate of bacon, sausages, beans, eggs, tomatoes, mushrooms and toast with orange juice and coffee. I never do black pudding, or hash browns, but this did hit the spot!

Labels: Farmhouse Breakfast Week, bacon, sarnie, sandwich, Lurpak, Sunblest, bread, full english, Denhay farm, spoilt pig

Cherry Plum Gin–a homemade Christmas

2010-12-24T12:04:00.000Z

Left it too late to get to the shops? If you’re anything like me, you’ll have used the snow as an excuse to stay in, keep warm in front of the fire and eat comfort food. What you won’t have done is brave the elements to finish the Christmas shopping. What I did do, several months ago however, was use the last of the cherry plums from the garden and pop them in a jar with some gin and sugar to make Cherry Plum Gin. At the time, it seemed the day would never arrive where I could actually open it again to see if it had worked, but that time has come. It’s not as sweet as I’d thought it would be, but the little sourness is actually quite nice, and I could always add more sugar if needed.

Usually, the girls and myself agree not to ‘do’ presents, but go out somewhere together instead. This year it was all planned, but we really couldn’t be bothered by the time the date came, so instead, I decanted the gin and gave a small present to each: perfect!

And it really is Christmassy, especially the colour!

Labels: cherry plums, gin, cherry, plum, sloe gin, make your own, how to make, vodka, christmas, presents

The Snow Day Bake-Off: Banana and Walnut Tea bread

2010-12-21T15:44:00.001Z

I was recently invited to join Julia Parsons’ event, and since we’ve had many snow days, have regularly made this very easy and delicious tea-bread. It does taste best straight from the oven smeared with butter, but is equally as good a day later with a nice cup of tea. And it’s easy to make.

Ingredients:

3oz butter

6oz sugar

1lb bananas

2 eggs

7oz self raising flour

1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1/2 tsp salt

4oz walnuts

Method:

Combine the butter and sugar until soft and creamy.

Mash the bananas and add to the butter mixture.

Beat the eggs and add gradually, stirring thoroughly every time. It will curdle at this stage if your bananas were quite runny! Don’t worry.

Stir in the walnuts, then the flour, bicarb. and salt until just combined.

Tip into a well buttered loaf tin, lined with greaseproof paper.

Put into an oven at about 165 oC for about an hour. If if starts to brown too much on top, cover with foil. After an hour, turn the oven up to 180oC and leave in for another 15 minutes.

Turn out onto a wire cooling tray and see if you can resist until cooled!

Labels: snow day bake off, bake off, snow day, banana, bread, cake, tea bread, julia parsons, a slice of cherry pie

Jamie’s 30 minute ‘ Sea bass & crispy pancetta, sweet potato mash, Asian greens, 1-minute berry ice cream, sparkling lemon ginger drink’ meal!

2010-11-19T22:00:00.000Z

This was a task for which I was thoroughly prepared: I’d bought all the ingredients (taking a list as long as my arm!); I’d watched the TV programme for the recipe I was going to do so I could visualise everything I should be dong and when; I had the book open at the right page; I placed ALL my equipment, and I mean all, out ready to use; the pan of hot water and warm frying pan were on and ready to go.

What more could I do? Well, little things did come up but I’ll tell you about those as we go!

So, the timer was at the ready to begin! And so was I!

I worked quickly and methodically through the instructions but soon confused myself. Actually, it wasn’t me that caused the confusion, it was Jamie! His TV show told me to do the pudding of frozen berry yoghurty ice-cream first, whereas that certainly wasn’t the first step in the book, but the last. I decided I’d like to get that done and get it in the freezer to chill, so I slotted that in earlier in the instructions. It also meant I didn’t have to do it when everything else was hot and ready to be served.

The second thing I soon realised was that having to read the instructions as I went along really slowed me down: moving the cookbook from surface to surface as I chopped, added to a bowl, popped into a pan, etc.!

As I chopped, sliced, stabbed, opened, threw, yelled and grated, I was desperately trying to think of things I could do to save even more time so I’d definitely make the 30 minutes deadline: peeling the little stickers off the lemons and limes, for example! One thing I hadn’t considered was the mess, and when I say mess, think every surface covered with a mixture of unopened and unused ingredients, bits of chopped off sweet potato, chilli seeds, the ends of the asparagus, empty packets of fish and pancetta, opened jars and bottles with their lids strewn around (probably on another surface or, indeed, the floor), splashes of berry and yoghurt mixture across the floor…you get the idea! It’s a good job I’ve got a kitchen with quite a lot of surface area as it really did cover the place. One reason is you can’t use the same table spoon twice, for example. It’s been dipped in honey and is then used for fennel seeds. Now normally, we’d wash it in between, but there simply isn’t the time – and I admit it, I didn’t count the amount of spoons I would need before beginning so found myself woefully short, using up valuable time to retrieve some from the dishwasher and hope they were clean.

The timer was still ticking as I turned the fish over to ensure the flesh was just cooked and as I began to plate them on top of the mash, it sounded its final bell.

Beaten.

Fortunately I’d also set the stopwatch, which was still going strong, so I continued. We sat down to eat 33 minutes after beginning the cooking process. The flavours themselves, as usual with any Jamie recipe, worked beautifully. With the addition of sesame oil, soy, ginger, lime and chilli, the meal was definitely Asian themed and although quite strong, complemented the fish rather than overpowered it, but one less wouldn’t have been missed. The OH actually went so far as to say that it was one of the best meals I’ve ever cooked and I must admit, it was very tasty.

As I’d worked quite quickly, it was hard to actually relax into the meal, and when I looked across at the kitchen, even less so. Although the dinner was very tasty and didn’t take that long, I didn’t enjoy the experience of eating it. A real shame. It is, however, easy and if you didn’t push yourself, (say, went for 45 minutes) cleared up as you went along , knew the recipe and flavour combination so you didn’t have to read as you went and peeled the sticky fruit labels before beginning (!) it would be a far more pleasurable meal!

If you’d like a go, why not see if you can beat my time? I’d be interested in knowing what you’d do differently to try to save valuable minutes. Watch the recipe at jamieoliver.com before you begin and see what you think! Read about the experience of others at the Guardian’s TV & Radio blog – I only found this as I was writing this post!

Labels: jamie, jamie oliver, 30 minute meals, dinner, time, quick, recipe, ideas

(Apologies for the quality of some of the pictures – the camera had a little tantrum!)

Findus Fresher Taste

2010-11-16T21:50:00.001Z

I recently picked up some vouchers for this new Findus range and thought, ‘Why not?’. I am, after all, human and don’t have time, or the inclination, to cook from scratch every night, even though it’s my downtime. So, last night, my relaxing was done in a hot bath and I opened one of the new products to see if it really was as good as a fresh meal.

The promotional text on the website assured me I’d want to ‘savour every mouthful’ of the Tender Chicken Breast with Vintage Cheddar and Bacon sauce – so did I? The chicken was moist, not dry after the recommended cooking time, and the sauce was tasty, but looked nothing like the think, oozing sauce on the picture: It was much, much runnier. The ‘buttery seasonal vegetables, which count as two of your five a day’ sort of made up for it as I rarely get my 5 a day, even on a good day!

The OH’s piece of ‘Flaky Cod Fillet’ was a remarkably small piece, and all I can say is that they must use side plates in the pictures on the website! His 1 of the 5 a day packet contained ‘a medley of crisp vegetables (which) completes this beautifully balanced dish’. There was a small piece of butter in with the vegetables to keep them moist and it did it’s trick, but unfortunately, this also meant the potato pieces were soft rather than crispy: you could always remove them from the pack for the last five minutes to crispen up in the oven, but that does of take the convenience aspect out of the equation.

Does it do ‘what it says on the tin’? Is it actually a fresher taste? My first question was exactly what I was supposed to be comparing the fresher taste with. If we’re talking about whether it tasted as if it was fresh produce rather than frozen, then yes, it most definitely did. The meat / fish was always cooked to perfection, never overcooked or dry, and the vegetables just past biting point. The only thing that gave it way was the slightly watery sauce. For taste alone, the flavours were strong and you could easily swap the vegetable packets over to put the greens with the fish and the potato and root vegetables with the meats, which I feel would work better. The addition of peppers to a white fish with a cream mornay sauce also seemed a bit of a strange combination, but maybe that’s just me?

As mentioned, I used vouchers to purchase my packets, but out of interest, wonder what you’d pay for this as a ‘ready-meal’ alternative? You get a small piece of meat or fish, a sauce, and a packet of vegetables that counts as one or two of your 5 a day. Very easy to prepare, either in the microwave or in the oven, you simply put two short cuts into the top of each ‘bag’, and they’re ready from anywhere between 7 (ish) and 25 minutes.

So have a think…my OH decided he’d pay up to £2.50, but then never does the shopping so doesn’t know the price of things! I’ll put the answer after the tags on this post to give you time…

Labels: Findus, fresher taste, cod, salmon, chicken, frozen, food, ready, meal, quick food, ideas

£3.99 a pack. From a personal viewpoint I’d never pay this when you could make it from fresh ingredients for less, but it did take the phaff out of cooking one night from five, and tasted nearly as good!

(I have amended this blog after double-checking my facts and realising that the packs are on sale at £3.99, not £4.99 as I currently stated. I apologise for that: my memory obviously cannot be relied upon!)

Autumnal Treats–Pumpkin Pie

2010-11-07T17:04:00.000Z

As you may know, over the last few weeks the OH has been improving his Sunday Lunch skills for friends. This week, Jamie’s roast chicken was accompanied by all the usual, and some of the unusual! Our friend, Neil, offered to bring a Pumpkin Pie for dessert. Now, if you’re like me, you may be forgiven for thinking that pumpkin pie should be savoury, but apparently not! As with many things American, this is a sweet, sticky, and most definitely desserty pudding.

It’s a combination of all things yummy and, topped with a splash of double cream, really can’t be good for you, but then, one slice of what you like never does you any harm. (If I keep telling myself that, I may eventually believe it!)

The recipe was taken from the Guardian Word of Mouth blog and looks relatively simple, though I can’t comment on that as I wasn’t the one who actually did the baking! Neil decided life was too short to make pastry, and I usually agree, so used ready-made and the edges were beautifully crispy.

For the filling, you mash and strain a small pumpkin, ensuring the excess liquid has fully drained off. Stir in 145g maple syrup, 3tbsp of golden rum and the spices (1tsp cinnamon, ½ tsp ground ginger,
½ tsp ground cloves). Taste for sweetness, then mix in 2 large beaten eggs. Stir 150ml evaporated milk in gradually until you have a thick, creamy consistency – you may not need it all. Pour it into the pastry case and bake at 200oC for 40 minutes (checking occasionally after half an hour) until the filling is set but still slightly wobbly in the middle.

Leave to cool on a wire rack for at least an hour before serving. A splatter of cream really mellowed the sweetness, and although I only had half a slice to begin, I soon dug into the other half! Delicious and one I’ll definitely be giving a try this bonfire night. Thanks Neil.

Labels: pumpkin, pie, american, cream, recipe, food, ideas, cooking, pumpkin pie, sticky

Merlotti vs Domino’s

2010-11-05T16:45:00.001Z

As promised, I, (just so you didn’t have to, you understand) made my own version of a home delivery pizza, and now is the time to order the real thing and compare the two!

Now, the OH is always asking to order a pizza, and I always say no, having either begun dinner or thinking that the takeaway option is a bit of a cop-out. But, having completed one side of my ‘challenge’, it was only fair that I also completed the second half. Usually, we would choose a deep pan base (I always think that if you’re having a take away you may as well go the full hog!) but the Basil Burst Double Decadence is simply a layer of pesto sandwiched between two thin crust bases.

For comparison purposes, we opted for the same toppings as I had made: tomato passata, pepperoni, peppers, onions and mozzarella. You can choose all this and order via the website, but when I tried to ‘customise’ the Create Your Own pizza, the page wouldn’t load. If you’d rather telephone to order, then you’ll find your local Domino’s number displayed helpfully on the order page, but I stuck it out and, eventually, managed to complete my order, adding a tub of coleslaw, just because it’s yummy!

I followed our order with interest as, half an hour from delivery (eta 20.45), it was claimed that the preparation hadn’t yet begun! 20 minutes later, however, at 20.35, 4 out of 5 steps were complete and the order was at the delivery stage! The question is, would it be on time?

2 minutes to go and still no sign…

It’s now 20.47 and I’m writing this…

15 minutes so far between Stage 4, ‘Quality Control’ and delivery – will the cheese be chewy?

20.50 – Pizza’s here! Not bad…now, just a moment while I eat…

Erm…not sure what to write. We encountered a problem. Delivered wasn’t the Double Decadence with basil burst pesto sandwiched between two thin bases, but was a deep pan with no sign whatsoever of any basil pesto. When I phoned (half way through digging in as we were starving) they explained they had tried to phone but it wasn’t answered (I left the house for ten minutes to pick up husband from the station) to say that they had run out of the pesto sauce. To be fair, the pizza we ate was very good, but not ideal for comparison purposes! And I’d been charged for the DD Pesto base, not a cheaper deep pan. What to do?

~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^

So, more than a week later, the promised voucher for a free pizza was, finally, dropped onto the doormat. Being one not to let things slide, I ordered immediately, by phone this time to check the sauce was in stock, and arranged for an 8 o’clock delivery.

Which arrived at two minutes to! I handed over the voucher, rushed to check it was the correct pizza, took a quick photo and settled down with the OH to get tasting.

It looked fantastic with much pesto sandwiched between the two thin bases as stated. It also had (according to the OH) that Domino’s smell! What that is I’m not sure, but it did, apparently, have it. The first bite was very pesto-y and the flavour and taste really came through. As I munched my way through another slice, however, the taste became less, just my senses getting used to it, and, after two slices, the base became harder to chew your way through. Maybe a single thin base coated in pesto before adding the tomato sauce would work better, but then you wouldn’t have the excitement of a ‘double decadence’ and all that jazz! I think this was because the two bases had little texture: They were cooked ‘flat’ like tortillas for quesadillas, so had no bubbly crusts. The toppings of pepperoni, peppers and onions were distributed nicely around so every bite and slice had something different and the pesto added to those flavours, so much so that I didn’t even have any of my usual ‘coleslaw’ additional topping!

So, what was my verdict?

Domino’s – wins for flavour of pesto

Merlotti – wins for texture of base (and, therefore, the ability to eat more of it!)

I know you were all hoping for an outright winner, but there really wasn’t one. I much preferred the base of mine as it had air bubbles, crispy bits and was only one layer thick, but the flavour of the basil pesto from Domino’s was much richer and more moist.

(If I had to choose an winner between mine, the DD Pesto and the Deep Pan Pepperoni, the Deep Pan would win every time!)

Labels: Domino's, pizza, double decadence, basil burst double decadence, basil burst, recipe, ideas, make your own

alice’s Cook Book - review

2010-10-31T19:20:00.001Z

Some cookbooks are really just for looking at: browsing through whilst snuggled up in the front of the fire on an autumn afternoon. Alice’s, however, despite having many beautiful photographs and a casual, retro, arty layout, is all about the recipes. Each new chapter is introduced with a photograph and there are a couple more strewn throughout, but the real focus is food for friends.

With 5 chapters, including ideas for Sunday lunch, Camping and Open Fire cooking and Supper ideas to share, the recipes themselves are grouped into whole meal ideas for up to 6 people. Each idea also has a ‘hands-on’ time, making it easy to flick through and find something you can do in the time you have. Many of the smaller ingredients that create the flavour, however, aren’t the regular run-of-the-mill store cupboard options you might have in all the time and I feel a specific ‘shop’ to ensure you have everything you need would be in order before attempting some of these. Examples you might not have (certainly I don’t) include mustard seeds, elderflower blossoms, curry leaves, tahini, and chick-pea flour. And although I have red and white wine vinegar, I’d also need to add sherry, cider and rice vinegar to my collection.

Feeling peckish later in the evening after a Sunday dinner of ‘Very Garlicky Roast Chicken’ , a very moist and easy to prepare garlic and lemon chicken, I decided to use up some leftover roasties to make the Woodland Hash from the Picnics and Happy Camping chapter. This really simple recipe didn’t need an extra shop and said it would only take 10 minutes. I was very tempted by the Stickiest Gingerbread on the next page, but not having any stem ginger in syrup, I made the choice to stick with savoury rather than sweet.

The ingredients are simply potatoes, mushrooms, eggs and a flavoured oil, the preparation of which isn’t included in the 'hands-on’ time, but also, could be done much more quickly and simply if you were in a hurry, or, as Alice suggests, adding a few sprigs of thyme and cloves or garlic to the mushroom pan will do the job. The idea is to cube and gently fry the potatoes, turning up the heat to brown off when they’re cooked through. Use the same pan to fry the mushrooms, then move to the side of the pan and fry your eggs. I was asked to use ‘very fresh free range’ so used the last two laid earlier today from the hens! Plate up the fried eggs then pop the potatoes back in with the mushrooms to heat through.

The recipes are presented simply and are very easy to follow, written in short paragraphs so you can do one thing at a time without becoming confused as to what you’re meant to be concentrating on! There are also ‘short cut’ ideas throughout, from breakfast to tips for making life easier as you cook.

And the taste of our Woodland Hash? Well, I sat in front of the wood burner, not in a wood, with a plate of hot, warming and tasty food that I’d whipped up using leftovers, and a tasty recipe: Simple yet flavoursome. Thanks Alice!

Labels: Alice Hart, Quadrille, Alice's Cook Book, publishing, new voices in food, review

Post Script: As a full-time teacher in my ‘real life’, I do think that your ‘sense of advanture’ (Page 53) when playing with the quantities for Damper Bread Sticks, should perhaps read ‘adventure’, but I know what she means!

Cooking made Easy–well, easier!

2010-10-30T17:06:00.000+01:00

Having recently adopted three rather lovely hens, I’ve, I’m ashamed to say, been a bit lax with the cooking, and especially the writing about food that I so loved. Well, now the hens are settled in their purpose built run, I can, one again, continue with the cooking and writing that I so enjoy! I began with trialling a ‘basil burst’ pizza, but the recent star of the show has been the OH, who has discovered a liking for cooking Sunday Lunch.

Pizza Toppings – I didn’t chop the pepperoni – Tesco’s did that for me!

Now, this is something we don’t usually have, well, not in terms of a sit down roast dinner, normally opting for a bacon buttie and coffee, or similar. So this has been quite a treat, with him insisting he do all the work: He even cleans the kitchen after!

I must say though, that his life (and, therefore, mine too!) has been made a little easier with the recent present of a Jamie Oliver Knife block set, and all-purpose peeler from his new ‘Kitchen Kit’ range of all those basic tools that speed up the preparation tasks. The knives, in particular, are brilliant! They’re weighted just right and have a comfy grip you can really hold onto if needed, although the sharpness of them will mean that little effort is needed to cut through most things! Whilst preparing the roast, the OH used the paring knife to prep. small veg, then the utility knife for larger potatoes and parsnips. When the chicken was cooked (free range only in celebration of our new girls!), he even used the carving knife to serve up! As of yet, we’ve only used the basic peeling blade on the peeler as we haven’t found a need to peel tomatoes or julienne carrots and the suchlike! I’m sure there’ll come a time though.

For the real ‘knife’ fans amongst you, I’ve taken the details below from the Jamie website:

“This knife block set includes five knives: 11cm/4” Paring knife, 15cm/6” Utility knife, 19cm/7 ½” Chefs knife, 22cm/8 ½” Bread knife, 20cm/8” Carving knife. Each knife has a stainless steel blade and chunky bolster that provide superb balance and extra weight for easy chopping and slicing. Each knife is named at the handle so they can be easily identified in the knife block. Full tang MoV stainless steel blade.”

The one other feature that is so useful and often forgotten is that each knife is named on the end of it’s handle so that when they are in the block, you know which one to take without having to remember or guess!

Last night I had mum over and she took one of my old serrated knives to slice an onion. Since her eyes were watering, I took over the task and couldn’t believe how much effort was required to simply chop it up! Now all I need to remember is to keep them sharp – I’ll be needing one of his ‘Really Sharp Knife Tools’ then!

Labels: jamie oliver, kitchen kit, knife block, 3 in 1 peeler, knives, pizza, roast dinner, sunday

As good as Domino’s Basil Burst Double Decadence?

2010-10-26T10:26:00.001+01:00

I’m afraid, since ‘tasting’ through the wireless waves hasn’t yet been invented, you’ll have to take my word for it when I have firstly, made my own version to see how easy it might be, and secondly, ordered an online pizza from Domino’s!

I was asked if I’d like to take on the challenge to make my own version, and who am I to turn down a culinary opportunity?

I began by hunting out one of the only pizza base recipes that I’ve felt actually turned out as I like it – Gino D’Acampo’s from his ‘Fantastico’ book. It really is simple:

Add a teaspoon of dried yeast to 140ml warm water. Pour into 180 g strong bread flour, along with a tablespoon of olive oil, and combine. Work for 5 minutes until stretchy and smooth then cover with a tea-towel and leave to rest for at least 45 minutes.

When rested, split into two balls and push outwards to form thin circles.

Now to make the pesto. Toast some pine nuts in a dry pan. Meanwhile, add basil leaves, salt, pepper and a drizzle or two of olive oil to a ‘whizzer’ (baby food processor!). Once the pine nuts are beginning to brown, remove from the heat and leave to cool. Add to the processor and blitz until smooth. Taste and add more of whatever you think it needs!

Now, this is the part where I wasn’t sure what to try. Should I aim to create an exact copy of the Domino’s version, sandwiching a homemade pesto between two thin bases? Erm…no. The reason? 1 – Worry over whether the base would be thin and crispy enough once layered, 2 – the oil from the pesto might leak into the dough and make it oily and sticky, not crispy, 3 – too messy!

So, option number two was to work the pesto into the dough itself, but I wasn’t honestly sure if people would like to eat green dough that might go that mushy brown colour once cooked. I decided anyway that one of the bases would have the pesto mixed into things, if only a little so the above didn’t happen!

There was one more option, however, which was a stuffed crust. This seemed a good compromise between the two: I might still get a crispy bottom, so to speak, and have the pesto combined with the dough in some way.

Before you begin topping your pizza, ensure everyone is nearly ready to eat so the toppings don’t make the base soggy, and that your oven is heated to at least 200 oC. Next, move the bases onto oiled baking trays because (and take it from me) if you try and move them after you’ve topped them, you’ll cry. Spoon a little of the mixture around the edge of each pizza and fold the crust over on itself – you can ‘stick’ down with a little milk if you’re worried about it coming undone!

Ensure the oven is up to temperature, top with a tomato salsa, mozzarella and whatever else you fancy. To make the tomato sauce, combine a can of chopped tomatoes, dried herbs, a pinch of sugar, a splash of red wine and seasoning, then bubble until it’s thickened.

Gino says to cook for 20-25 minutes, but use your common sense and remove before it’s burnt!

You should end up with something along these lines:

And the taste? Well, it depends upon what you’ve topped your pizza with, but speaking solely for the ‘basil burst’ part of it…with pizza 1, you could taste the herbs but only mildly and not when coated with tomato, cheese and pepperoni! Pizza 2’s stuffed crust was much tastier, although could have done with more oil in the pesto as it dried out in the heat of the oven. I was pleased that both of the bases cooked through well and were crispy underneath as well as at the edges, and that the herby pesto addition was not wasted and could actually be tasted! I do think it would work better with a more moist crust as mine was rather dry, but overall, I was quite pleased with the result, especially since I don’t often make pizza and was really keen on completing ‘the challenge’!

Labels: Domino's, pizza, gino d'acampo, fantastico, herb crust, basil, pesto, thin crust, basil burst double decadence, basil burst, base

Mushroom Loaves

2010-10-08T12:00:00.000+01:00

These were what I wanted my bread rolls for: based on a recipe from Elizabeth Raffald's recipe for Mushroom Loaves from The Experienced English Housekeeper. Luckily, after asking my foodie Twitter friends, GoodShoeDay (whom I have discovered, has a vast collection of cookery books!) came up trumps with the recipe from the 1769 edition, as re-printed by Southover Press in 1997. It’s from the ‘Little Savoury Dishes’ section. You can also find it here, from Google’s library, P264!

I, however, didn’t use that recipe as I didn’t have button mushrooms or cream, and wanted to do it right the first time. So instead, I used tips from my River Cottage mushroom course and simply fried torn mixed mushrooms with olive oil and butter, and a little garlic and thyme tipped in towards the end. Leave the heat as high as you can stand without shaking the pan, then, as they start to brown, you can start to move them around a bit more! Take off the heat and add some crème fraiche. Season, scoop out the rolls (the recipe for which you’ll find here), and dollop the mixture inside. Top with the ‘lid’ and a few fresh herbs and tuck in!

Labels: elizabeth raffald, experienced english housekeeper, good shoe day, with knife and fork, mushrooms, loaves, spelt, rolls

Seeded Bread Rolls

2010-10-04T19:33:00.001+01:00

First of all, can I apologise? It seems to have been nearly a month since I last posted, and I can only blame this on my sudden addiction to hens. Let me explain:

Over the last year I’ve hinted, cajoled, mentioned, left reminders about and, basically, begged to keep chickens, well hens. And for this birthday, all my hard work finally paid off…I’ve been allowed them, providing, they are "all my responsibility!” With this in mind, I’ve made quick work of acquiring said hens. Three, or possibly four, are arriving on the 16th, and we were completely unprepared. So, I’ve been ordering Eglus, runs, feed, woodchips, and all the equipment for a walk-in run so we can leave the little darlings outside during the day and they can have a bit more space! To hear more about it, have a look at The Cabbage Patch!

Anyway, apart from becoming slight obsessed, I think we’re virtually ready so I can, once again, pick up where I left off and continue my writing!

I had some spelt flour that I’d bought to make yummy rolls in the cupboard and also wanted to try out a ‘mushrooms in bread’ type recipe, so began. I looked and a couple of recipes: Hugh FW’s and Nigel Slater’s to be precise, then made up my own, using 500g flour to 300ml water, give or take a splosh.

The problem I find with bread-making in the Autumn is that the conservatory isn’t hot or sunny enough for the proving, and it’s not quite time to light the woodburner. So, to cut a long story short, the dough didn’t really rise, but I went ahead anyway…leaving to prove again after making the rolls.

Before baking, I sprinkled them with mixed seeds, although should have brushed them with beaten egg first to act as a glue, then baked for about 20 minutes until done!

They were, unsurprisingly, very heavy, but also tasty, and served their purpose of holding a mushroomy stroganoff well!

Labels: bread, spelt, flour, rolls, hugh fearnley whittingstall, nigel slater, baking, great british bake off

Let’s Get Baking

2010-09-16T20:45:00.001+01:00

As I bake more and more, (I’m now the proud owner of many types of flour and yeast!), I find that I’m slowly learning the art of remaining patient: something I haven’t formerly shown a leaning towards. It’s all in the stretching and proving, and a hot conservatory certainly helps that. Along with this, and the running of The Great British Bake Off, I may even contemplate making my own pastry, something which I’ve previously always stated that life is too short for. The programme has, for me, been a nice combination of watching people like myself ‘having a go’ at something, and teaching me the skills to do so along the way: Learning why bread dough has to be kneaded and stretched and tips for an ‘unsoggy’ bottom to your pie!

So I’m going to use today’s post as a little ‘aide-memoir’.

I’d like to bake:

A proper pie with homemade cheesy short crust pastry

Cornish Pasties

A cob loaf

Seeded spelt bread rolls (although any recipes for such would be greatly received!)

One thing I can’t seem to find, though, are links to the recipes from the programme. Obviously, Paul and Mary’s are up on the bbc food site, but the contestants recipes are strangely absent, (or maybe I just haven’t found them yet!) If you do find them, feel free to comment under this post and add the link!

So, I’m definitely giving some of the ideas a go and will post again when I have been a busy baker in the kitchen.

If you haven't seen it, and are watching it solely for cooking tips, I’d recommend beginning with the Bread episode. Otherwise, as stated by the singing nun, start at the beginning!

Labels: bbc, great british bake off, pies, pastry, baking, cooking with, recipe, ideas, cornish pasty, cob loaf, mary berry, paul hollywood

L’Univers, Nice, France – Christian Plumail

2010-09-12T16:15:00.001+01:00

Being a regular visitor to France, Nice in particular, then I thought it was about time we compared the Michelin Starriness of haute-cuisine to it’s English competitors. Over the last few years, we’ve been lucky enough to visit several starred restaurants in the UK but our visit to Christian Plumail’s L’Univers was our first European experience.

The restaurants is tucked just outside of the old town and facing the Place Massena with it’s strong, structural fountains (and the trams). It doesn’t look like anything special from the outside, or inside, with a series of bright, but slightly strange paintings are displayed: Those ‘love or hate’ types of slightly overweight figures.

To have with our aperitifs, we were served a slice of traditional pissaladiere and some lovely, small black Nicoise olives.

We were seated quickly at a lunch service and began choosing our food! They offer a fantastically priced lunch menu of two courses for just 20 Euros, but since it was our first visit, we opted for more varied dishes on the Menu Saveurs d’Ete, Flavours of Summer.

I’m not going to comment on the plates individually, except to say it was delicious. The flavours were fresh and local, textures well combined, and all beautifully presented.

Amuse-bouche were small raw scallops served with a crab foam. A little too ‘fishy’ for me, but loved by the OH.

To begin, the OH opted for Courgette with courgette mousse, a vegetable type salad and crispy sea food. Mine was the more conservative Crab and tomato roll with a citrus fruit summer salad, comprising grapefruit and fennel!

Main courses were Monkfish served with a Mushroom Fregola Risotto (sort of a Sardinian pasta risotto!) and Iberian Pork Chip topped with onions and cheese, served with a puree of Cocos de Paimpol, a type of bean.

The cheese course was a simple (I say simple, but would find it difficult to make!) goat’s cheese panacotta served with cereal toast and Muscat grapes.

Puddings were excellent: Figs wrapped and toasted in gingerbread, a nutty nougat and rhubarb sorbet, or in my case, Lemon Verbena cream with brandy snaps, poached white peaches and lemon sorbet. Mmmm…

Served with coffee were a few other delights and the chef even came out for a chat, before, strangely, getting involved in some broadcast with sound people all over the place! Service was good, but not excellent, then, we are in France, and it was at least very friendly! I’m not sure the Michelin inspectors would have appreciated the phaff at the end of the lunch service with the sound men, wires, headphones and general kerfuffle that went on, but we certainly did!

There is a more expensive menu (ours was 44 Euros) at 70, with a great choice and based around flavours from the market in the Cours Saleya, but ours was perfect for a lunchtime treat. With a bottle of Rose to counteract the heat of summer, it was a perfect introduction to the starred restaurants of the South of France. Now, where next?!

Labels: L'Univers, the universe, universe, Christian Plumail, plumail, Nice, France, Michelin, restaurant, star, review, good, food

Chutney, Pickle, Jams and Jellies – Autumn Delights

2010-09-05T14:25:00.001+01:00

Autumn has officially begun when you start to collect all the gluts of abandoned fruit and veg. and preserve them in some form or other! We, as usual, have had many plums and a few errant courgettes that sort of expanded unnoticed to marrow-size! The tomatoes, as usual, were planted on the late side and were pushed into a shady spot by the need to replant broad beans in their original spot after the snow. So add green tomatoes to the mix and what can you make?

This year, I began with the early cherry plums, making a clear cherry plum jelly to add to stews and casseroles, have with cheese or simply spread on toast, and an infused gin. I borrowed the recipe from The Cottage Smallholder blog, and it’s a case of boiling the fruit half covered in water, then strained overnight. Add a pound of sugar for each pint of juice, simmer gently until setting point is reached.

My next cherry plum adventure is still steeping, as I decided on an infused gin, the recipe of which you can find here. It is, at present, sitting in my garage and being swished around if and when I remember! We’ll see how it turns out nearer Christmas!

On returning from holidays, I couldn’t wait to climb the plum tree and harvest all the scrummy fruit, well, those that hadn’t already been stolen in part by the wasps. As usual, I chose to follow Delia’s advice and turn them into a Windfall Spiced Plum Chutney. I find that the longer you leave this, the more it becomes a pickle, and is more delicious than ever. Another quick and easy way of using up plums is a simple plum jam. For every pound of plums, add a pound of sugar and 1/4 pint of water. Boil until set. I added a little sprinkling of cinnamon too!

Further investigation proved there were overgrown courgettes and green tomatoes to use up too, so for the first time, I tried Hugh F-W and River Cottage’s Glutney. It’s quite similar to the Windfall recipe above, but uses vegetables instead of plums.

Use a kilo of overgrown courgette, or marrow, cooking apples and plums or green tomatoes. Half a kilo of onions, sultanas and soft brown sugar. 3/4 litres of cider of white wine vinegar, topped up to a litre with water, and as many chilli flakes as you dare. Dice all into cm cubes. Make a spice bag to include a few strands of mace, 12 cloves and peppercorns, a teaspoon of coriander seeds, and roughly chopped thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger.

Bring slowly to the boil so the sugar dissolves, then simmer for about three hours, until you can see the bottom of the pan when you drag a wooden spoon through the mixture.

As with all chutneys, jams, etc. make sure you sterilise your jars first. I pour boiling water into each, leave to warm, then pop into a warm oven to dry. I also put the filled jars back into the oven to help seal them.

Now the only thing to do is wait. Most of the above take time to mature, so don’t be tempted to open the chutneys too early – wait and let the flavours mellow, unless, of course, you prefer a sharper taste!

Labels: chutney, jam, jelly, pickle, plum, cherry plums, cherry, glutney, hugh, fearnley whittingstall, river cottage recipe, recipe, river cottage, courgette, green, tomatoes, autumn

Fennel, Asparagus and Caerphilly salad

2010-09-02T19:42:00.001+01:00

Easy, healthy and delicious! I know we’re at the end of the asparagus season now, but I’m late in posting this so apologise. Hopefully, you may still be able to find some local spears.

Shave the fennel, slice asparagus really thinly on the diagonal, add some salad leaves and dress with lemon and olive oil. A few gratings of cheese over the top and a sprinkling of herbs! I used this recipe from Mark Hix.

Labels: Mark Hix, caerphilly, sorrel, salad, asparagus, fennel

Rabbit Stew

2010-08-25T18:43:00.000+01:00

Again, this post isn’t one for the squeamish. It was a challenge I wasn’t sure I could do, since it involved furry, cute animals, and I’d never eaten rabbit before. But, being one who believes that if we eat meat, we should have a full understanding of how it gets to our table, I gave it a go, and successfully too!

Again, this is something that is done easily without a knife. Initially, the guts need removing immediately the rabbit is killed as they deteriorate very quickly. Once the stomach area is slit, reach in and remove things such as the kidneys and heart. Interesting fact: you can tell the difference between a skinned rabbit and a skinned cat because the kidneys of a rabbit are not directly opposite each other; one is higher than the other!

First, squeeze down the rabbit’s front to remove anything nasty. Then, bend the rabbit’s legs back at the elbow joint and snap them.

Next, reach inside around it’s middle and using your fingers, get between the skin and the flesh, peeling away round the saddle of the animal. The fur should now be loose all across the back of the rabbit. Then remove the legs from the skins, as you would a baby from a baby-grow. Now, going from the tail, pull the skins up the rabbit and over the head. (The head will come off along with the skins, and if it doesn’t simply twist and discard.) At this point, push your finger (and this isn’t nice but really needs doing,) down through the rabbits bum to get rid of any rabbit poo! You’ll find the little round pellets strung together!

To fillet him, cut through the flesh at the shoulder joints for the legs, then twist off. Chop the saddle into two large chunks for the pot. Add carrot and parsnip, spelt, stock and season well. Cook in a Dutch oven above an open fire.

Labels: rabbit stew, rabbit, stew, filleting, fillet, how to, woodland ways, camping, dutch oven, open fire

Damper Bread for Breakfast

2010-08-21T18:14:00.000+01:00

A simple, unleavened bread with many names, this originated in the outback of Australia. And is perfect as a quick breakfast fix to toast on a hot skillet when out in camping.

There’s really nothing to it: take a handful of self-raising flour (or plain with baking powder), and pour in water until you get a dry dough. Add more flour if it becomes too sticky.

Throw in chocolate chips, chopped mars bar, or redcurrants, blackberries, etc. foraged from the woodland, then pat into a very thin circle. The thinner it is, the less doughy the inside one the outside is cooked.

Place on a floured skillet and cook until the outside is golden. Eat while hot!

Labels: damper bread, recipe, ideas, cooking with, bread, damper, unleavened, flat bread, camping, woodland ways, open, fire

Rainbow Trout – skewered over a fire…

2010-08-18T18:06:00.000+01:00

And for lunch the next day? Well, after building a shelter, we all felt we had deserved a good lunch, but first we had to prepare it. Now, there are not many fish around in the woodland so these were ordered in from the local fishmonger, but that didn’t detract from the excitement of preparing it ourselves.

Now, I’ve often filleted my own fish, even a whole salmon at times, but never removed the guts or done so without the main use of a knife!

You use the knife to begin, scoring around the head, without going through the bone, and the tail. Then, it’s simply a question of running your thumb and forefinger down the backbone of the fish, squashing against the bone as you go and thus, pulling the bone away from the fish. I’m not sure it’s a method that John and Greg would think orthodox, but it certainly works and leaves not a shred of flesh left on the bones, even ensuring the pin bones are extracted! I’m giving it a go next time I buy my fish whole!

When done, skewer the double fillet on two small, sharpened stick and wedge into a long, split stick of hazel. Toast over an open, smoky fire, then turn to crispen the skin.

Serve with new potatoes smothered in butter, salt and pepper.

Labels: rainbow trout, smoked, trout, rainbow, how to, filleting, fillet, without a knife, bushcraft, survival, woodland ways, food, recipe, ideas

Chinese Pigeon Stew

2010-08-15T17:50:00.000+01:00

Having recently been on a Woodland Ways weekend to learn some bushcraft and survival skills, I couldn’t help but want to write about the food aspect. After setting up our shelters, well our bashers (a piece of waterproof material with holes in the corners!) on the first evening, dusk was falling nad we still hadn’t prepared our meal, to be cooked over the open fire in two huge cast iron cooking pots, or Dutch ovens.

So, as the sun set we were introduced to the wood pigeons, shot by the gamekeeper of the farmer’s woodland in which we were sheltering. And our first lesson was how to prepare one of these without using our knife. If you’re squeamish, I suggest you don’t read on, or scroll down the page!

First it’s a case of twisting off the wings, then pulling off the head. Next push both thumbs down inside the neck, one hand at the front, the other at the back, then push upwards and sort of turn the pigeon inside out. Peel the breast bone away from the skin and then prise the flesh away from the bone.

Chop into pieces and season. We then added Five Spice, ginger, onions, olive oil and mushrooms, and stewed over the fire.

In the woods, (and because the instructors have to be safe rather than sorry,) the pigeon was cooked until very well done and served with rice.

What more could you want? Home prepared, home cooked, local produce: and when I say local, I mean from the actual wood you’re camping in…perfect!

Labels: pigeon, wood, wood pigeon, recipe, ideas, chinese, ginger, five spice, 5, spice, stew, woodland ways, woodland, camping

Cheddar Cheese Soufflé

2010-08-13T12:00:00.000+01:00

The idea of savoury cakes has always excited me: such things as cheese and bacon muffins just sound so yummy. I’ve had this soufflé recipe for quite a while now and simply haven’t got round to making it. It was emailed to me from Acer Suppers and is originally a Delia recipe.

This is a Delia recipe, and although she uses Roquefort cheese, it works equally as well with a strong mature cheddar.

(Serves 6)
6oz (175g) Mature Cheddar.
8 fl oz (225ml) Milk.
¼ inch (5mm) onion slice.
1 bay leaf.
Grating of nutmeg.
6 whole black peppercorns.
1 ½ oz (40g) butter.
1 ½ oz (40g) plain flour.
4, large eggs, separated.
5 fl oz (150ml) double cream.
Salt and freshly milled black pepper.

You will need six ramekins with a 3 inch (7.5 cm) diameter, 1 ½ inches (4cm deep) lightly buttered.

Preheat the oven to gas mark 4, 350F/ 180oc.
Begin by heating the milk, onion, bay leaf, nutmeg and peppercorns in a medium-sized saucepan till it reaches simmering point, then strain the milk into a jug, discarding the rest.

Rinse out the saucepan then melt the butter in it. Add the flour and stir to a smooth, glossy paste, and cook this for 3 minutes, still stirring, until it turns a pale straw colour. Then gradually add the strained milk, whisking all the time, until the sauce is thick and cleanly leaves the sides of the pan. Then season lightly and cook the sauce on the gentlest heat possible for 2 minutes, stirring now and then. (I thought mine was too thick and added more milk, but it should be a stiff roux.)

Next remove the pan from the heat and let it cool slightly, then beat in the egg yolks one at a time. Now crumble 4oz (110g) of the cheese into the mixture and stir until most of it has melted - don’t worry if some of the cheese is still visible. Put a kettle on to boil and, in a spanking clean large bowl, whisk the egg whites to the soft peak stage, then fold a spoonful of egg white into the cheese sauce to loosen it. Now fold the sauce into the egg white using a large metal spoon and a cutting and folding motion.

Divide the mixture equally between the ramekins. Put them in a baking tin and place it on the centre shelf of the oven and pour about ½ inch (1cm) of boiling water into the tin. Bake the soufflés for 20 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack (using a fish slice) so they don’t continue cooking.
When they are almost cold, run a small palette knife around the edge of each ramekin and carefully turn the soufflés out onto the palm of your hand, then place them the right way up on a lightly greased, shallow baking tray. They can now be stored in the fridge for up to 24 hours, lightly covered with cling film if you wish.

When you are ready to re-heat the soufflés, pre-heat the oven to gas mark 4, 350F (180o/c) and remove the soufflés from the fridge so they can return to room temperature. Dice the remaining cheese and sprinkle on top of the soufflés and place them in the oven for about 30 minutes.
2 or 3 minutes before serving spoon a tablespoon of cream over each soufflé and return them to the oven. Serve the soufflés immediately on warm plates.

They really are very tasty, and although quite ‘phaffy’, very easy too. Just don’t make the mistake I did of making a little hole in the middle of each to pour the cream into – they deflate rather quickly!

Labels: delia, cheese making, souffle, twice baked, roquefort, cheddar, recipe, idea

Goats’ Cheese Mediterranean Tart

2010-08-11T11:05:00.001+01:00

This is really one of my ‘bottom of the fridge’ dishes, along with Spanish Omelette, as you find you can use up most veggies with this. The only ‘extra’ you need is puff pastry; it’s just a case of remembering to remove it from the freezer in time!

Simply fry off any hard vegetables you fancy. I usually use red onion and red pepper, but will happily griddle asparagus, fennel, etc if I’ve got any. Season as you cook. Roll out the pastry and cut into squares. Run your knife around each square (about a cm from the edge) but don’t go through the pastry. This will help achieve a nice puffy edge to your tart. Place the squares on a baking tray so you don’t need to move them once they’re covered. Add the cooked ingredients to the middle of the tart and add any soft leftovers such as tomatoes and mushrooms. Top with slices of goats’ cheese, drizzle olive oil over and sprinkle with herbs.

Pop into the oven at about 180 o/c. It’s cooked when the pastry is puffy and golden.

Labels: puff pastry, pastry, tart, mediterranean, leftovers, recipe, ideas, goats cheese tart, goats cheese, pepper, tomato

Mackerel with Courgette Salad

2010-08-07T12:00:00.000+01:00

Having rather a glut of courgettes this year, a new one seems to appear every day, then I’ve been eagerly searching for something to do with them, something more than making fritters or deep frying them that it. So I was delighted to find this lovely recipe in my Jamie book, ‘Jamie at Home’.

It’s really very easy (as are all the Jamie recipes I try!) and very delicious! Basically you need:

courgettes or pattypans

fresh red (I used green) chilli

rocket

basil leaves

salt and pepper

zest of 1 lemon, juice of half

olive oil

whole mackerel, scaled and gutted

Finely slice your courgettes into ribbons.

Make your dressing combining the lemon zest and juice, salt and pepper and olive oil to your liking. Add finely chopped chilli.

Make incisions along the mackerel and season. Rub with olive oil and put a piece of rosemary inside each one. These can now either be cooked on a bbq or under a hot grill until the skin is crispy and the flesh falls away form the bone.

When the fish is cooked, combine the dressing with the courgettes and salad leaves and plate up alongside the mackerel.

Mop up the dressing with some soft whole-wheat walnut bread.

Labels: Jamie, Jamie Oliver, Jamie at home, mackerel, courgette, courgette salad, grilled mackerel

Il Bordello, Wapping

2010-08-05T12:00:00.000+01:00

My husband knows this place well and although I’ve never been before, I’d always heard good things: the position sizes are infamous! So where better than for our first wedding anniversary? It’s a local Italian on Wapping High St. and is well known in the area especially. As well as good quality, home cooked pizzas and pastas to eat in, they also make these delicious dishes to take away. (If I lived locally I don’t think I’d ever cook again!)

As we walked in, there was a huge lasagne on the pass ready to be delivered and I knew then that I wouldn’t need to look at the menu! Now, when I eat out, I usually choose something I’d never make or eat at home if possible, and lasagne is something I make with my eyes closed. But this just looked so delicious I couldn't resist.

The garlic mushrooms had also been recommended so I though what the hell and ordered.

And the rumours were correct…portion sizes were huge and they don’t skimp on the fat content either! The mushrooms did need seasoning with more slat and pepper but were coated in a rich garlicky oil that made you want more! The OH chose baked avocado with tomato sauce and mozzarella, which again was very rich.

My lasagne duly arrived in good time and I got stuck in. One flavour which really shone through, unusually for lasagne I thought, was fennel, but it was a welcome addition. I did, however, have to give up after only managing a third. Some people have suggested that the huge portions are a waste of food and that they should make them smaller, but the waiter was more than happy to pop the rest into a takeaway carton for me to have for lunch the next day though!

The OH ate all of his Pasta with Salmon and wiped the bowl clean.

With a bottle of red, a simple bottle of house Italian, two starters and two main courses, and service, the total bill came to £50. £25 a head…consider what you pay for a sandwich / salad and drink at lunch every day, £7? With home-cooked, delicious food, and a lively and friendly atmosphere, I’d love to have this on my doorstep.

Labels: Il Bordello, wapping, high street, Italian, restaurant, review, London

Cherry Plum Gin

2010-08-03T13:14:00.001+01:00

Having recently discovered a Cherry Plum tree at the bottom of the garden, (I say recently discovered…what I mean is, I knew it was there but not what it was!) I couldn’t wait to get started on some recipes; and what better way to start than with a version of sloe gin.

I’ve been wanting to do something like this for ages, but my regular readers will know that patience is not a strong point of mine, so am not sure I’ll manage to leave the mixture for three whole months, but I’ll give it a go!

I searched several recipes, and sort of combined them all. Quantities varied, and more sugar can always be added later to taste. Basically you need gin (although vodka would also do), fruit (I used cherry plums not sloes, but you could add what you wanted I suspect,) and sugar.

Simply prick the skins of the fruit – put several in your hand at a time and stab each one quickly with the tip of a knife – then put them in a sterilised jar and top up with the gin. I used 1 litre of gin and nearly a kilo of cherry plums. Pour in the sugar, preferably caster sugar as it’ll dissolve more quickly, seal the jar and shake.

Place the jar in a dark, cool place and remember to shake every so often.

Leave for at least 3 months (if you can) then you can strain and enjoy. If it needs more sugar, add some, if there’s not much taste, leave it to mature for longer. Strain the mixture when you’re happy with the taste and re-bottle, adding a few pieces of the fruit for aesthetic value. You can always use the leftover fruit to make fruit liqueur chocolates!

Labels: sloe gin, gin, vodka, liqueur, fruit, cherry plums, flavoured, sloe, berries, recipe, drink, glut

Walnut Bread - July’s Fresh From the Oven Challenge

2010-07-28T10:44:00.000+01:00

I know patience is a virtue, but it’s one thing, among many others granted, that I’m really not very good at. Once I have an idea, or begin something, I need it to be done speedily. So this month’s challenge was really a challenge: making a starter for the bread. A challenge I didn’t really succeed in, well, I did to some extent, but my patience and the need to wait for 8 hours seemed too long!

This month’s challenge was hosted by Sarah from Simply Cooked. She chose a whole wheat walnut bread from one of her cookbooks, The Neighborhood Bakeshop by Jill Van Cleave. The recipe below is as she wrote it, and the only thing I did different was to use wholemeal flour rather than whole-wheat, although I’m not sure if it’s the same or different, and to only leave my starter for an hour, but you can see by my pictures that by that stage, it was ready to go!

Whole Wheat Walnut Bread
adapted from The Neighborhood Bakeshop by Jill Van Cleave
makes 2 loaves

1 t active dry yeast, divided
2 c (500 ml) lukewarm water (95 - 110F, 35 - 45C), divided
3 c (380 g) plain bread flour, divided
1 T honey
1 T olive or walnut oil
1 1/2 c (180 g) stone-ground whole wheat flour
1/4 c (40 g) semolina flour, or more whole wheat flour
1 t sea salt
1 1/2 c (175 g) coarsely chopped walnuts, toasted

First prepare the sponge starter. Dissolve 1/2 t yeast in 1 c (250 ml) lukewarm water in a medium bowl. Let proof until bubbly, about 5 minutes.
Add 1 1/2 c (190 g) bread flour and stir until a thick batter forms.

Cover the bowl and leave at room temperature to rise and bubble for 6 to 8 hours. The starter is ready to use now or can be put in the fridge overnight. (Bring it back to room temperature before using.)

Dissolve the remaining 1/2 t yeast with the 1 c (250 ml) lukewarm water in a large bowl. Let proof for about 5 minutes.
Add the sponge starter and mix well. Stir in the honey, oil, whole wheat flour, semolina flour (if using), and salt.
Add 1 1/4 c (160 g) of the remaining bread flour gradually to form a stiff dough.
Add the walnuts.

Turn out onto a floured surface and knead for ten minutes, adding as much of the reserved flour as needed to keep it from being too sticky. Knead until the dough is smooth and elastic.

Grease the bowl and return the dough, turning it to coat it in oil. Cover the bowl and allow the dough to rise until it is doubled in size, about 2 hours.

Divide the dough into two pieces and form into loaves. Place on a baking pan and leave them to rise again, about 30 minutes.

Bake at 400 F/205 C for 30 to 40 minutes, until the loaves sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.
Cool on a wire rack.

Again, an easy recipe I’d make again, although they were a bit flat when I took them out from the oven so I might use a tin next time. Delicious though, and great to dip in rich tomatoey sauces or spread as little tartines for aperitif or amuse bouche. Have a look at how we all did at Fresh from the Oven.

Labels: fresh from the oven, challenge, walnut bread, july, simply cooked

Broad Bean and Pea fritters

2010-07-23T15:31:00.001+01:00

Having a few broad beans left in the veg. plot, I eagerly looked for something a little more exciting to do with them, rather than the ‘add to salads’ usual. My first thought, as is so often the case, was to turn to Jamie, who, never failing, had a great Broad Bean Fritter recipe from his Jamie at Home book. It’s really simple, but don’t make the mistake I did of not adding enough flour.

Simply whizz together the beans, after blanching and removing the skins if necessary, coriander, chopped mint, sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper, 1 level teaspoon ground cumin, ½ a fresh red chilli deseeded and finely sliced and the zest of 1 lemon. When combined, add enough flour to dry out the mixture, then form into quenelles, or balls as is your preference!

This is where I made my mistake: I popped them straight into the hot oil and because they weren’t dry enough, they fell apart. So, I’d suggest you coat each ball in flour again before dropping into the hot oil.

Fry until golden and crunchy, make a mint, lemon and yoghurt dressing and dip!

Labels: Jamie, Jamie Oliver, broad beans, fritters, pea, mint, sauce, yoghurt, lemon, at home with, at home, food, recipe, summer

A Taste of Cherry Pie

2010-07-17T18:52:00.000+01:00

I couldn’t resist using inspiration from Julia’s blog, A Slice of Cherry Pie, for this post, as every time I think of Cherry Pie, I now think of her so, I hope she doesn’t mind! As a teacher, you often get unusual gifts: think homemade, painted, chipped, cracked, etc! But this week, I have been the lucky recipient of two bags of cherries from a garden – now what better present? After eating several, I refrained from gobbling any more as I thought I could have a go at making a pie, not something I often do.

Cheating, I used readymade sweet short-crust pastry and popped it into two smallish pie tins lined with flour I then stewed the cherries with a little water and sugar, destoned them and popped into the cases. After stewing, the volume of cherries seemed to have decreased, so I topped with a few fresh raspberries fro my own garden, fitted the lid, glazed with milk, made a hole and popped into a hot oven until the top was brown and crisp.

Simply serve with natural yoghurt of a dollop of crème fraiche and enjoy!

Labels: cherry, pie, cherries, baking, recipe, food, ideas, fruit tree

Fresh from the Garden

2010-07-15T18:43:00.000+01:00

With the little rain that we’ve had recently, the showers this week were welcomed by the garden, and in turn, by us! Everything decided upon a growing spurt and have burst into larger than life plants. The courgettes are huge, well, the plants and leaves…but the actual courgettes are getting there, and we’ve even had stuffed courgette flowers on top of salad from fresh spinach and chard with Nasturtium flowers: amazing!

Other things, despite flourishing and looking fantastic, are very sour indeed, especially the cherries from the young tree above! They take the enamel coating off your teeth, I’m sure!

The raspberries, however, are fruiting and fruiting, growing and flowering, and fruiting again…and are scrummy. So delicious, in fact, that I barely get any back to the house without stuffing them one after another into my mouth as I pick. the pink tinge around my mouth is the giveaway though! A bit like when I was little: I used to sneak out of the front door if I woke up early in summer, creep down to the nets at the bottom of the garden and cram strawberries in before I was found out!

Labels: fruit, garden, how to grow, raspberry, cherries, courgettes, flowers, nasturtiums, edible flowers, chard, spinach, cooking with

Fleurs de Courgettes Farcies (stuffed courgette flowers)

2010-07-13T20:50:00.001+01:00

First, take some flowers from the garden: courgette, nasturtiums and thyme should do it.

Then make some ricotta stuffing from Jamie, (5th recipe down). Combine ricotta, grated nutmeg, grated parmesan, lemon zest, chopped mint and finely chopped red chillies, then season with salt and pepper. Put all the ingredients into a freezer bag, then squish together. Next, cut the corner off and pipe into the courgette flowers, removing the stamen first.

Make a light tempura by whisking self-raising flour with cold, fizzy water, until it reaches the consistency of double cream. Coat all the flowers in the batter and deep fry in hot oil.

Serve on top of a fresh, green salad and top with sweet chilli jam! Mmmmm!

Labels: cougette, zucchini, fritters, flowers, stuffed, ricotta, jamie, jamie oliver, at home with, fleurs, courgettes, farcies, fromage, recipe, idea, food, summer

The Ledbury, London

2010-07-11T11:45:00.001+01:00

With two Michelin stars, and much hype via foodie friends on Twitter, it was with excitement that we dined at The Ledbury last Saturday evening. The day was hot and sunny and on arrival, we were given the option of sitting outside.They only book the interior, and if it’s a nice night, you have the option of eating on the terrace under the large parasols, which makes for a super setting and ambience. Something to bear in mind if you’re happy to eat indoors and wanted to make a late decision for a good meal out.

Girls were given a bag hook to store their handbag securely – a nice touch I thought!

We began with a pre-amuse bouche of, well, we called it fish and chips, but it was essentially a crab (I think) puree on fried, crispy potato. Simple and tasty.

The menu was as follows so I don’t have to remember the specifics of every course!

Amuse bouche was marinated salmon chunks with watercress ‘pods’ on something similar to crème fraiche. Whatever it was, it was topped with a little wild-flower, and in one case, a tiny wriggling caterpillar too! Something I’m certain wasn’t meant to be on the menu! The waiter looked mortified when we told him, after he’d gone tot he trouble of explaining the dish in detail, and quickly returned said dish to the kitchen! We thought it was hilarious so I think he was quite pleased he’s got us as a table rather than others who may have been less than impressed! Oh well, if you will use wild, fresh flowers…

3 out of 5 of us also had the win tasting menu, and the sommelier was excellent although sometimes to food was going cold while he explained the wine match to us. A shame this wasn’t always served before the food. The wine choices were varied and smooth.

The mackerel had come highly recommended and we were not to disappointed. No minibeasts this time though; just a delight of textures and flavours. The little stuffed parcel gave a different dimension to the dish and everything just fit perfectly together. Yum!

The squid risotto was very clever and was, in fact, just tiny pieces of chopped squid with no rice at all. Rich, creamy, and yes Chris, we’ll allow the foam just this once!

Chicken wings were next, and though they looked nothing like you’d expect, the skin was salty and crispy and the meat cooked to perfection. The white asparagus was particularly good.

This was a favourite amongst our table: monkfish with oxtail, a rich man’s ‘surf and turf’! The meatiness of the fish stood up to the delicious oxtailness of the jus and the green padron peppery sauce on which it was placed added yet another notable flavour.

Aubergine seems to be one of those things that when you had as a child you hated, and so never eat again. Well, yes, if you cube and boil them they’re flavourless and grey, but if you cook them with a little more thought and imagination, they really are wonderful! Even a simply char-grill with olive oil, salt and pepper will do the trick! This one, tough, had been glazed with black sugar and garlic, and, whilst being quite sweet, had an undertones of charred-ness and complimented the fall-apart lamb beautifully.

We couldn’t resist paying a little extra for the cheese, having seen the selection as we first walked into the restaurant. I chose several soft cheese and a blue. They were laid from left to right, and are meant to be eaten from mildest to strongest, which I indeed did! The grapes and walnuts worked well, especially with the goat’s cheese and by now, we were getting full!

A pre-dessert of cherry sorbet on something creamy (bear in mind, we'd had a new glass of wine with each course!), was scrummy! Although the dessert on the menu was Crème Caramel, we were offered the choice of any dessert off the a la carte, partly, I think, as we were virtually the only ones left outside, and maybe because of the caterpillar! Whatever, the reason, we tried to choose different things, my favourite being the gingerbread soufflé below. So light it literally melted in the mouth.

The Crème Caramel was also very tasty…

And a selection of all things chocolaty!

Whilst the food was delicious, it was also the banter and service that impressed. I’d definitely return…again, and again, and again. I just wish it was closer to home.

Labels: The Ledbury, michelin star, 2, 2010, Notting hill, West London, fine dining, Chris Pople, Brett Graham

Burger and Chips

2010-07-04T20:17:00.001+01:00

After speak to the butcher, I really had to agree with him. I too don’t know why people buy burgers rather than make them. At their simplest, they are squashed minced beef, or lamb as you prefer. But it takes only another 3 minutes or so to spice them up a little. And if you make them yourself, you know they’ll have fresh ingredients and no preservatives or added water and salt.

I use Jamie’s ‘Botham Burger’ recipe as an idea and play with it according to what I’ve got in the fridge and cupboard.

You’ll need:

minced beef or lamb

fresh breadcrumbs

an egg

crushed coriander seeds

cumin seeds

Dijon mustard

finely chopped onions

Method:

Simply combine all the above ingredients in the quantities you prefer. I used a small pack of mince with one egg, breadcrumbs to fill a large, open handful, a dessertspoon of coriander seeds and mustard with a teaspoon of cumin. Get your hands in and really squash it together.

If the onions are finely enough chopped, the mixture should hold together well. Form into balls or more traditional burger shapes. You can either brown them off in the frying pan in hot oil, or simply pop onto a tray and stick in the oven. Cook for about 20-30 minutes at 180 deg. c, depending on how you like your beef cooked.

For a twist, push a small cube of cheese (something that will melt!) into the centre of each ball before forming and add some chilli!

Labels: beefburgers, burgers, beef, ground, mince, lamb chops, Jamie Oliver, jamie, Botham Burger, Botham, Ian, recipe, ideas, cheese, chips

World Cup Recipe Ideas

2010-07-03T10:40:00.001+01:00

So, it’s quarter final time, and there have been a few surprises: England weren’t one of them. I really never thought we’d even make it out of the group stages, and was not very surprised when Germany whooped us!

Oh well, there’s still the next stages and the excitement of having a World Cup Final party…and if you do, you’ll need the food for it!

Netherlands, Brazil, Uruguay, Ghana, Argentina, Germany, Spain and Paraguay are your teams and, let’s face it, some of them don’t exactly inspire me and get my foodie brain working overtime, thought I fear that’s what it’s going to have to do! Now, I looked through the many recipes on my blog, and, to be honest, not many (read: maybe one?) came from, or could be attributed to any of the above countries. So I’ve gone with what I know as a first idea.

Spain:

Spanish Omelette / Frittata

Tapas or Tapas with a twist

Argentina:

Steak and Red wine

I’ll come back to you when we reach the semi-finals and hopefully have a few more!

Labels: world cup, recipes, ideas, food, eating, 2010, fifa, spanish, argentinian, spain, argentina

Pide – June’s Fresh from the Oven challenge!

2010-06-28T17:00:00.000+01:00

This month’s challenge was hosted by Pei Lin, a.k.a Mrs Ergül who can be found here! And the challenge: Pide, a Turkish bread. In fact, Iffet from My Turkish Kitchen explains it well:

Pide is the special Turkish bread for Ramadan. During the holy month of Ramadan, you could see long lines in front of bakeries. Those people wait to have one of these breads to break their fast with it. The smell of pide 'force' you to get one even you don't think about buying it.

I basically stuck to Iffet’s recipe, using a mixer and dough hooks, because, as mentioned, the dough was sticky, but the tip to set your hands really did the trick and stops this! The original recipe used American cups and after looking up several conversion sites, no-one seemed to agree, so I sort of made it up! Below are the original measurements with mine in brackets.

Ingredients:

4 cups (to 5 cups) All Purpose Flour (450g-500g plain flour)
1 and 3/4 cups Warm Water (400ml-450ml)
1/2 stick Butter ( melted ) (65g)
1/2 tablespoon Instant Yeast
1 tablespoon Sugar (I’d reduce this to half if I made it again!)
1/2 tablespoon Salt
Topping:
Black and White Sesame Seeds

In a large mixing bowl, mix all of the dry ingredients.
Add the melted butter and warm water into this mixture. I then used a hand mixer with dough hooks to combine for several minutes, until the mixture becomes springy. The dough should be sticky.

Cover the bowl with a plastic wrap and keep it in a warm place to rise to double its size.
Knead the dough again until it is bubble free.
Place parchment paper on a 13" by 10.5" baking tray then cover with the dough. Try to flatten it to cover the surface, and, if your fingers stick, wet them first: A great trick!
With a knife, draw around the edge of the dough, cutting deeply. Then cut into squares, again, ensuring the knife goes nearly all the way through.

Sprinkle some sesame seeds on top.
Preheat the oven to 350F
Let rise the dough for half an hour in the tin
Bake it for 30 minutes or until it turns light brown
Take the pide out of the oven and let it cool for 20 minutes; cover it with a clean kitchen towel to keep it soft.

This is the first bread I’ve made that actually stays nice and soft and has lots of good air bubbles inside it! I was really impressed with how simple it was, but wouldn't use so much sugar next time. You could even turn it into a focaccia type bread easily by adding chopped sun-dried tomatoes and olives to the mix before you pop it in the tine, and making little dimples by poking your fingers in! Then covering with a drizzle of olive oil before baking.

I served it alongside a bowl of Chorizo, Red Pepper and Tomato pasta, rich and tomatoey with a kick – a perfect summer recipe - and the bread was beautiful alongside it.

Thanks for finding this one Pei Lin, I’ll definitely be making it again as it was so easy and worked brilliantly. Don’t forget to look at the round-up of all our trials and tribulations with this one at Fresh from the Oven!

Labels: fresh from the oven, June, challenge, breadcrumbs, pide, Turkish bread, Turkey, Iffa, chorizo, tomato, red pepper, pasta

Aubergine Wraps with Mushroom and Tomato stuffing!

2010-06-24T17:00:00.000+01:00

This was another Something for the Weekend recipe stolen from Simon Rimmer and is absolutely delicious. It, basically, does what it says!

You’ll need:

2 aubergines, cut into long strips the thickness of a pound coin

2 tbsp vegetable oil

100ml/3½fl oz extra virgin olive oil

250g/9oz button mushrooms, or chestnut mushrooms, halved

1 onion finely chopped

1 garlic clove, crushed

2 tbsp tomato puree

100ml/3½fl oz red wine

100ml/3½fl oz vegetable stock

4 tomatoes chopped

1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves

200g/7oz buffalo mozzarella torn into pieces

green salad, to serve

To make:

Griddle or grill the slices of aubergine after having brushed with oil. Set aside.
Meanwhile, heat a little of the olive oil in a frying pan and fry the mushrooms for 3-4 minutes, or until cooked through.
Heat a little more of the olive oil in a frying pan and fry the onion and garlic for 2-3 minutes, or until softened.
Add the tomato purée and cook for a further 5-6 minutes, then add the remaining olive oil. Add the wine and stock, bring the mixture to the boil, then simmer for 5-8 minutes.
Stir in the cooked mushrooms, tomatoes and thyme.
Now to make the rolls! Lay out the aubergine and top with a little of the stuffing mixture. Roll nad secure with cocktail sticks.
Preheat the grill to the highest setting.
Lay the aubergine rolls in a baking dish, top with the mozzarella and grill for 1-2 minutes, or until golden-brown. I prepared mine earlier in the day and popped into a hot oven to heat through.

Serve with a green salad.

Ok, it’s a bit phaffy having to griddle the aubergines, then use another pan for the mushrooms, then yet another for the rest, and the OH wasn’t too keen on cleaning all these after! You could remove the mushrooms and use the same pan for the rest, and grill the aubergine slices if you wanted, but some of that delicious burnt griddleness would be lost. It’s up to you, but if you can be bothered with the phaff, and actually remembering to buy aubergines, it’s well worth it!

Labels: vegetarian, starter, main course, recipe ideas, recipe, ideas, food, mushroom, tomato, aubergine, wraps, stuffed, something for the weekend, bbc, simon rimmer

Chorizo, Red Pepper and Tomato Pasta

2010-06-21T18:58:00.001+01:00

With sausages too if you’ve got any!

This is definitely one of my every-day, easy, tasty summer dishes as I usually have all the ingredients in the fridge. And if you let it take its time cooking, rather than hurry it along, the flavour improves no end!

You’ll need:

chopped onions

chopped garlic

chopped red pepper

cubed chorizo

sausages, cut into chunks

dried herbs

tomato puree

can of chopped tomatoes , or fresh tomatoes roughly chopped

red wine

water

salt, pepper and a little sugar

First, fry off the onion in a little oil.

Add the chorizo and chopped sausage and brown until getting crispy.

Add the chopped pepper and soften in the chorizo and sausage fat!

Once the meat is browned and the vegetables softened, add a large splash of red wine whilst on a high heat. Let it bubble quickly, then stir in a spoon of tomato puree. Let this cook out for a couple of minutes so its not bitter, then add the herbs, chopped tomatoes and half a can of water. This way, its the water that evaporates, not the tomatoey sauce, well, that’s what I was told after a cookery course in Italy anyway!

I always sprinkle in a little sugar, just to take the edge of the tomatoes, then salt and pepper. Now’s the time to be patient. You have to let it bubble away gently on a low to medium heat until the sauce starts to thickens and becomes stickier. This should take about 40 minutes, if you can wait that long!

Serve over hot pasta, preferably one with ridges that the sauce can stick to, and top with a mound of grated cheese! You could even go the extra mile and bake some fresh bread to go along side. Look out for this month’s Fresh from the Oven challenge to find a perfect recipe!

Labels: pasta, tomato, sauce, pepper, red pepper, chorizo, sausages, penne, Italian, cookery, course, recipe, ideas, bread, fresh from the oven, challenge

Jamie’s Tomato and Chorizo Salad

2010-06-14T20:02:00.001+01:00

I’ve been desperate to try this recipe for ages and despite the ingredients list being pretty short and everyday items, I still hadn’t got round to it. So, with several spring lamb cutlets from Allen's, and the requisite items, I finally began the making! Easy and quick, with beautiful, fresh ingredients; you really couldn't ask for a more summery accompaniment!

You need:

chorizo sausage (raw)

ripe tomatoes – roughly chopped

cherry tomatoes, halved

spring onions or shallots

salt and pepper

olive oil

sherry vinegar (though I used red wine)

fresh flat-leaved parsley

garlic

I haven’t included quantities as I feel it really is a ‘throw it all in’ type salad so use the quantities you fancy! It’s basically a combination of ingredients with a vinaigrette dressing, but the flavours combine so well, you can’t go wrong!

Fry the slice chorizo with olive oil. Stir and leave to crisp while you prepare your tomatoes and spring onions.

Put them into a bowl with a pinch of salt and pepper, olive oil and a splash of vinegar. Sprinkle over the chopped parsley, toss together, and leave to the side. I actually left this overnight and the flavours infused lovelyly!

If the chorizo is getting crispy and fatty (in a good way!), add you sliced garlic. As soon as you can smell it, and before it burns, (a fine line, I can tell you) remove the pan from the heat and add a splash of vinegar to stop the cooking process. Spoon the sausage and its oil over the tomatoes.

Toss and serve immediately. while the chorizo is still hot. Jamie suggests you serve with some nuggets of goats’ cheese and a few slices of pata negra ham, or do what I did and use as a summery salad to accompany cooked or barbequed meat! Perfect for a summer’s day!

Labels: Jamie, Jamie Oliver, tomatoes, chorizo, salad, best chorizo and tomato salad in the world, recipe, ideas

World Cup Cooking Disaster!

2010-06-13T11:47:00.001+01:00

The thing is, Heston made it look so easy. He uses fructose and dry ice (neither of which were freely available chez moi) to create a delicious looking raspberry sorbet and devised white chocolate tubes, coating them easily without sticky, chocolaty fingers that burn when the heated cocoa butter drips down the wrong side of the tube. I can’t find a cropped version of him just making the tubes, but you can find the episode it’s from here: Baked Alaska

I began by asking my Twitter friends if anyone had a good recipe for raspberry sorbet. Having left my brain in bed that morning, it soon became obvious that a sugar syrup and raspberries were all I would really need. Thanks go to goodshoeday and jorsodoni for that! I don’t have an ice-cream maker so after mixing fairly equal quantities of frozen ‘from the garden’ raspberries and sugar syrup, (I used 500g raspberries, 200g caster sugar, 150ml water and a good splosh of raspberry liqueur) I strained it though a sieve, pushing the pulpy bits through too, and popped into the freezer, mixing it every half an hour or so. It came out beautifully, if a little squidgy – perhaps I over mixed and didn’t give it enough standing time to actually chill properly – but it did taste delicious!

For the tubes, I simply melted white cooking chocolate over hot water (not boiling, and don’t let any water get in there or it’ll turn grainy very quickly!). I made some tubes from acetate plastic, then attempted to pour the chocolate inside each one…there are no photos of this stage, surprisingly, as my hands were covered in the mixture. It certainly wasn’t as easy as Heston made it look. They did, however, cool brilliantly in the fridge and look good when I unwrapped them, after filling with the raspberry sorbet: I spooned the sorbet into a freezer bag, cut the corner off and used this as a piping bag to fill each tube.

I wanted an England theme, it being the first of our matches, and all that, to them, so used a little of the raspberry sorbet mixture, unfrozen, to draw St George’s cross on the top.

We watched the match with friends and Angela kindly made a fantastic curry. All other guests obviously didn’t talk to each other as we each brought a pudding! I also made a Banoffee pie, while Alex made a scrummy pavlova and Jo opted for a chocolate, orange and chilli marble cake! Everyone’s looked and tasted good, and although my Raspberry Sorbet White Chocolate Tubes tasted good…well, you can see how they turned out! Messy, sticky and ugly! Looking like something from a vampire horror flick. So although not suitable for a posh dinner party, or indeed, after watching the match with friends, they would be perfect for Halloween!

Labels: World Cup, food, pudding, recipe, ideas, England, England World Cup, football, halloween recipe, white chocolate, tubes, Heston, Blumenthal, raspberry, sorbet

The Hawksmoor – The best steak in town?

2010-06-06T20:59:00.001+01:00

It had been promised so. Rumours throughout the foodie land say that this is the one place for steak in London. Well, they actually say it’s the one place for burger in London, made from said steak…nevertheless, I was a little over excited as we made our way through the fading summer evening sunshine to lose our Hawksmoor virginity: I think I must be one of the last foodies in the South-East of England to do so, but following the trend has never been my thing!

A friendly welcome greeted us, and we were taken through the ‘font room’, which was open, light and airy to the rather darker, dimmer area at the back of the restaurant. The atmosphere was not, however, any less amiable and we quickly ascertained that the choice of sizes of steaks was from the chalkboard on the wall, and ranged from 750g to 1.1kg (just how big is that, we wondered…well, a pack of mince is 500g so we compared it to that!)

It took us less than 3 minutes to decide on food and wine, and after several recommendations from other Tweeps, we chose a 750g prime rib of beef on the bone, triple cooked chips, macaroni cheese, fried eggs and a portion of bone marrow, all to share. For starters, I opted for Yorkshire potted beef while the OH went for Tamworth Belly Ribs.

It began well: the water glasses were filled, the wine (a delicious £26 Rioja) poured and the starters polished off rather quickly. Sticky and full of meat, the ribs were incredibly tasty, and my potted beef was presented in its own little pot smeared over with butter and crispy bread. If anything, it lacked a little seasoning, something which wasn’t going to be repeated in the rest of the meal.

The piece de la resistance arrived in good time and looked delicious, just cooked to rare (if a little on the side of medium) and in a hot skillet. Side orders appeared simultaneously and we eagerly dug in.

As expected, the quality of the steak was superb and the smokiness and charring from the grill really expanded the flavours. Served in a little tin, the chips were also done to perfection; crispy on the outside while soft in the middle. As for the other side dishes, well, I don’t want to say it, but we were underwhelmed. Very.

The bone marrow was, admittedly, our own fault. We’d both been wanting to try it for ages, and, now the opportunity presented itself, we took it. It tasted very nice, but I couldn’t get over the jelly fat texture of it. As for the macaroni cheese and fried eggs…(takes a deep breath)…they were both hugely over-salted. And the mac cheese was also incredibly over-cooked and stodgy. I know you come to The Hawksmoor for the steak, and quite rightly so. Perhaps we should have stuck to chips and a green salad, but seasoning and cooking pasta is so easy to get right, I felt it let the meal as a whole down. A shame after all the hype I’d heard.

Would I return? Yes: I’d love to try the burger on the brunch menu, but would definitely stick to salad and chips. No extras.

Hawksmoor

www.thehawksmoor.co.uk

157 Commercial Street
London E1 6BJ
020 7247 7392

Labels: The Hawksmoor, steak, London, best steak, grill, macaroni cheese, triple cooked chips, bone marrow, review, steak and chips

Pizza Napoletana – May’s Fresh from the Oven Challenge.

2010-05-30T12:53:00.001+01:00

I know this post is slightly later than expected, but having been away with 58 Year 6s for 8 days in Liege, I think I can be forgiven for not writing in the last week or so. Anyway, during that time, I realised I should have already posted my entry to this month’s Fresh from the Oven challenge, hosted by Lauren from Coffee Muffins. So, upon returning, decided that it would be better late than never, so got on with the initial stage of dough making. The recipe is taken from Peter Reinhart's The Bread Baker's Apprentice and makes 6 9-12 inch pizzas so the recipe below has the amount for 1/3 quantities given in brackets.

4 1/2 cups or 20.25 ounces (6.75 ounces) of unbleached high-gluten bread flour
1 3/4 teaspoons or 0.44 ounces (0.14 ounces) of salt
1 teaspoon or 0.11 ounces (1/3 tsp) of instant yeast (if using active dry yeast you will need to increase this by 25%)
1/4 cup or 2 ounces (0.67 ounces) of olive or vegetable oil, optional
1 3/4 cups or 14 ounces (4.67 ounces) of ice cold water

Stir together the flour, salt and instant yeast in a large bowl. Then stir in the oil and water until all the flour is absorbed. Mix by either hand or a mixer with dough hooks and you should end up with a smooth dough which is a little sticky. It should clear the sides of the bowl but not the bottom. If it isn't clearing the sides then add a little more flour and mix again. If it clears the bottom then add a couple of drops of water, and mix again. This was a tip I hadn’t heard before, but worked a treat.

The finished dough should be springy, elastic and sticky but not tacky. If you use a thermometer it should register somewhere between 50 to 55 oF.

Now prepare a sheet pan with baking parchment and spray oil. Flour your counter and remove the dough on to the counter. Using a metal dough scraper (or your hands) create 6 equals sized pieces of dough. Or 2 if you’re using third quantities.

Flour your hands and shape each into a ball, if your hands stick add more flour and try again. Place each ball onto your sheet pan, spray each piece of dough with oil. Once all pieces of dough are on the tray, enclose it in a food-grade bag and pop it into the fridge, or spray the inside of separate bags and place one ball in each.

The next day, a couple of hours before you want to cook them, remove the dough from the fridge. Dust your counter with flour (and your hands) then spray oil on top. Place each ball on the counter and gently press each into a flat disc about 1/2 inch thick. Top each with a little flour and oil and cover with another bag. Let rest for 2 hours.

At least 45 minutes before cooking put on your oven on at it's maximum temperature up to 800oF. If you have a baking stone put it in the oven now. If you don't have a stone then you can use a normal baking sheet, just don't preheat it first.

Now comes the tricky part: stretching out your dough, dust your peel or sheet pan with semolina flour or cornmeal. Coat your hands in flour including the backs and your knuckles. Gently lay the dough on to the top of your fists and carefully stretch it by bouncing the dough in a circular motion. As it starts to spread out you can move to the full toss method. If it sticks to your hands at any point lay it out flat and re-dust your hands, continue stretching until it is the desired width.

Once you have reached the desired width, place the stretched dough on the peel or baking sheet, top with your preferred ingredients and flavours (I made a tomato frito to use as the tomato base, then topped with thinly sliced chorizo and cheddar cheese), and transfer the pizza to your oven.

It should only take between 8 and 10 minutes to cook. You might want to turn it 180 degrees after 2 minutes, if you think it might over cook on one side.

Despite the oven being on its hottest, my dough was, unfortunately, not cooked properly in the middle, while the topping was bubbling and close to burning. I covered the tops and left them in for another 5 mins or so, but couldn’t quite get it right. Like I said, it may have been to do with the oven not being hot enough, or the fact I topped them, then waited 15 minutes before putting them into the oven, so the base had the chance to get a bit soggy. Whatever the reason, the pizza was still tasty, with crispy, crunchy edges, and I’ve eaten worse than uncooked dough!

Jules is posting the round-up shortly, so don’t forget to go Fresh from the Oven to check it out.

Labels: fresh from the oven Challenge, challenge, ffto, may, pizza, napoletana, dough, yeast, chorizo, jules

Pea Shoots

2010-05-29T16:55:00.001+01:00

I’ve recently been inspired by BBC’s The Edible Garden programme and couldn’t wait to try growing the pea shoots from a packet of dried peas. And how easy it was. Have a look at The Cabbage Patch if you don’t believe me!

I simply popped them into compost, quite close together as I’d be using them when they were very small so they don’t need much room, and within 14 days they were the perfect size!

Now the question was how to use them? What I really wanted to do was have them over my Scallops with Chorizo and pea puree, but, not having any scallops in, I opted for using them to garnish our grilled salmon with warm potato salad. They’d be perfect with any fish (hot-smoked trout or mackerel pate), or on top of a risotto to add a new texture and fresh flavour.

Why not use the comments feature under this post to add you own ideas for using them?

Labels: pea shoots, peas, fresh, salmon tartare, fish and chips, risotto, recipe, ideas

Asparagus Season

2010-05-19T21:28:00.001+01:00

Yep – we’re in silly season again. One of the shortest, surely, harvesting seasons of the year, but also one of the most delicious! Now, asparagus, as it turns out, isn’t that easy to ‘get going’, as you’ll see if you read ‘How to Plant Asparagus’, but once it’s had its few years settling in period and you’ve done all the hard work, it really couldn’t be easier! The season begins, generally, in May and lasts until mid-June. You shouldn’t pick after then as the plants need time to regenerate and get ready for the next year, so leave any spears to grow tall and into foliage.

The main reason I planted more this year was because I was fed up of only having one or two spears ready at a time: who can make a meal out of that? So I’ve planted several crowns in the hope that not next year but the year after, there’ll be an abundance, all in one go!

As I’m still waiting, I bought two large bunches of asparagus grown on the south coast as soon as it came into the supermarkets this year. The first bunch I served simply pan-fried with salt and pepper and drizzled in mayonnaise. For the second bunch I opted for a Nigel Slater recipe from ‘Tender’ (Volume 1). It’s called simply Asparagus with Pancetta.

First, cook your asparagus in boiling water until just tender. Then place in a shallow ovenproof dish.

Next, fry off either pancetta, or chopped smoked bacon, in a little butter and olive oil until crispy and the fat is rendered. I found I had to pour out the water from mine and melt a little more butter in later. Once crunchy, tip them over the asparagus.

Grate some Parmesan over the top and pop into a hot oven (200 degrees c) for 10 minutes or until the cheese is crispy and bubbling.

Ok, not very healthy I know, but really delicious!

Labels: asparagus, season, bacon, pancetta, recipe, nigel slater, tender, food, ideas, starter, cheese, Parmesan, cheddar

Meat for a Week, from Allens of Mayfair

2010-05-15T11:53:00.001+01:00

Those of you who are regular readers may remember that late last year, the OH visited Allens of Mayfair for a butchery course and arrived home with many delicious looking cuts of meat. Well, since I don’t line or work in London nad can’t just pop along to Borough Market, or into a restaurant quality butchers, the nearest I can get is ordering meat online and this week was the first time I’d done it. I was prompted by an advert in Good Food magazine which had an extra discount with Allens for their Meat for a Week box. SO, what do you get? Is it really meat for a whole week? Well, yes. You get enough meat for two for a meal a day, plus extra. For example, the mince pack is plenty for four servings and the beef joint enough to serve at least four for Sunday lunch. On top of this, you know the meat is of excellent quality.

If you ordered over £70 worth, the delivery is free, so, since I had (read: made) space in the freezer, I decided to order two boxes, each box being £36. Originally £59.65 if bought separately, then reduced online to £45 as a box and with an extra discount, this really was excellent value for money. Jut to compare prices, I put all of the items into a supermarket price comparison site and the baskets ranged from about £34 to £39. With the extra quality and source knowledge of Allens, you really couldn’t get better. Contents comprised of:

2 x 200g Sirloin Steaks
2 x 220g Pork Cutlets
2 x 190g Cornfed Chicken Breasts - skin on
5 x 120g Lamb Loin Chops
6 x Cumberland Sausages (454g pack)
950g Beef Topside Roasting Joint
454g Steak Mince

The chicken that arrived was actually supreme of chicken, so you had the extra advantage of the wing )?) as well, and the whole breast. I was a little disappointed the sausages didn’t appear to be their own, but haven’t investigated fully to find out if the meat is from Allens and made elsewhere under a different company. I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt.

The box was ordered on Sunday and arrived Tuesday morning, before 8.30 am to the delivery address requested. No hassle, no worrying if and when it would arrive. Perfect. Inside was a leaflet recognising that the polystyrene box and ‘keep cold’ strips did constitute rather a lot of packaging but that one could recycle the box and reuse the cold strips. Not actually being able to chat to the butcher himself, I did find myself wondering where the meat was sourced. It would have been lovely if, alongside each package of meat, there was a little card or note explaining which farm it came from, what breed the animal was, etc. Just for interest really and to know a little more about what we were going to be eating.

We began with the chicken and made a Mediterranean-type dinner as I hadn’t much time, and tonight it’s the turn of the pork chops, smothered with apple sauce and sprinkled with cheese! Lovely.

Labels: allens of mayfair, allens, chicken, mediterranean, meat, meat for a week, meat box, steak, lamb, sausages, beef, mince, London, London butcher, butchery courses

Grahams on the Green - Writtle

2010-05-09T15:26:00.001+01:00

Having parents over for the weekend does have its advantages, the main one being you can eat loads of food without feeling guilty. And you can go out for a meal so no-one has to cook!

Grahams on the Green has been in the heart of the pretty village of Writtle for several years now, and their newest addition is Grahams @ The Woodpecker in Hutton. The food at Grahams has always been good quality, and the service friendly; last night was no exception. An eclectic mix of staff, from a range of times and cultures (when you visit, you’ll understand what I mean!), all with a friendly attitude to their work and polite manners serve, what is still, excellent food and value for money.

We opted for a main course each, and puddings to share. Mum went for calves liver, despite saying she didn’t really like eating baby cows and refusing to ever eat veal, (no, I couldn’t see the logic either);

Dad had the ever popular fillet steak and chips;

The OH went for seafood thermidor;

Whilst I opted for a starter of scallops on pea puree with crispy bacon and a side of tomato and onion salad.

Bread sticks and cheesy crème fraiche dip was served as an apero and a range of bread. Tap water was, as you’d expect but often don’t find, served for free and the range of wine available by the glass was good. The light and fresh Pinot Grigio was soft and fruity and cut through the salty bacon and sweet balsamic dressing well.

Always good quality at a fair price for the ingredients and portion sizes, service with a smile and a hubbub of activity giving a great atmosphere means that this pretty Essex village of Writtle is lucky to have such a restaurant. And not only that, there’s another good find across the road…but more of that one at a later date.

Labels: food, recipes, grahams, grahams on the green, writtle, grahams at the woodepcker, review, restaurant, dinner out, essex, good food

Salmon with Ginger and Soy

2010-05-04T22:12:00.001+01:00

If you’re looking for a quick eat with whatever’s around, then this is for you: the OH cooked it up when we had ‘all that salmon’, and not a lot else in the house. He combined soy, salt and pepper and ginger jam, (yes, I know it sounds odd, but we had a lovely jar of ginger preserve and he, quite rightly, thought it would ‘go’ beautifully).

He then emailed me the concocted recipe, from work, so I could get it ready while he was on the way home, so we didn’t eat at a stupid time! What did I do? Marinated the salmon in soy, then sat and caught up with Corrie. It’s such a quick dish that as soon as he walked through the door, I got started and it was on the table when he’d changed. Simple!

You’ll need:

light soy sauce

ginger preserve

sesame seeds

salmon fillets

rice

onions

eggs

sugar

Method:

Marinate the salmon fillets in a very generous splash of soy sauce and leave for as long as possible.

Once ready, sprinkle a few sesame seeds over the salmon, then spoon on a thin layer of the ginger preserve. Coat again with the sesame seeds and pour over any remaining marinade. If you wanted, you could spice it up even more with chillies, spring onions and lime juice too at this point.

Bake in the oven for between 15 and 20 minutes, depending on the thickness of the salmon.

Meanwhile, cook the rice as per the instructions on the pack.

Whilst the rice is boiling, pan fry the onions, adding in a dessertspoon of sugar, to speed up the caramelisation process.

Once cooked, break in a couple of eggs and stir through so the eggs break up and cook too. Mix with the onions.

Drain the rice and stir it into the onion and egg mixture. This is basically a sort of egg-fried rice! Add a glug of olive oil, turn up the heat, and fry for several minutes.

Serve alongside the salmon, with a flash-fried halved Cos lettuce.

It can all really be cooked once the salmon is in the oven, so should take no longer than 20 minutes, plus spooning things onto the salmon and the time it takes to marinate. Call it half an hour all in – perfect for a weeknight treat.

Labels: fish, salmon, sesame seeds, Eastern, sticky rice, rice, onions, ginger, ginger jam, ginger preserve, cos lettuce, soy sauce, marinade, marinate, recipe, ideas, food, tea time, dinner party, quick, easy

Cheese making for beginners!

2010-04-30T19:12:00.000+01:00

The fault lies purely with a colleague. You see, she happened to have a pint, well litre, of full fat, rich and creamy, Jersey and Guernsey cow milk, or should I say cream? Being used to skimmed milk, I was desperate to at least try some of this but needed a valid excuse really, as I couldn’t justify simply drinking a whole litre of this divine looking stuff.

So, what to do with it? My thoughts happened to coincide with Linda of withknifeandfork ‘s latest blog post ‘In Season: Cheese and Onion’, one of the idea being to cover homemade curd cheese with said leaves and flowers.

She used an adapted recipe from the Casa Moro Cookbook by Sam & Sam Clark, and I again adapted this via a River Cottage recipe, combining the two.

I used:

750ml milk – I used full-fat ‘posh’ stuff from nice cows!

1 tbsp essence of rennet

1/2 tsp salt

Don’t forget, this is already diluted, and can be bought in the baking department of Waitrose! Thanks again Linda!

Method:

Warm the milk to between 32-40C. I don’t have a cooking thermometer, so tested it on my wrist and when it was slightly hotter than my wrist, continued as below! Not very scientific I know but it seemed to work!

Remove from the heat, add the rennet and stir. Then cover and leave in warm place for the curds to set. You’ll know they’re done, as when you stick a skewer or knife in, it’ll come out clean. This should happen between 30 minutes and an hour.

Next, cut the curds into a ‘grid’ and leave for another hour or so.

Pop it all into a cheese-cloth, or a piece of muslin and set over a bowl overnight so the whey to fully drain. Again, I used a clean j-cloth in a sieve! And again, it seemed to work!

When the curds are no longer watery, mix with the salt, then push into a ramekin or mould, and leave in the fridge to take its shape.

I felt it really needed the salt to give it some flavour as it’s a very mellow cheese. If you’re using it in cooking or stirring into some hot pasta, then salting the food would be enough rather than the cheese as well. I chose to make 5 very small ‘individual’ portions, each rolled in a different flavour, Just to see! So, we had one in freshly ground pepper, one in chilli flakes (!), one in freshly cut chives, one in other freshly cut herbs, and one left plain, so we could actually taste the cheese itself. To follow etiquette, before just diving in, which was what I really wanted to do, I arrange them from mildest to 'hottest’ so no flavours would be lost: plain, herbs, chives, pepper and chilli. The chilli flakes ‘pat’ ended up bitter and slightly chewy (?), the plain one was just that, and the chive one was half-way to Boursin – now I need to read the ‘real’ ingredients to see what to add! My favourite was definitely the pepper coated, while the OH decided upon the mixed herbs one, particularly liking the lemon-thyme flavour. I was also pleased I added in the salt too. They were all washed down with a large glass of red, needless to say. Well, you can’t just have cheese: the wine improves the flavour surely?!

Labels: cheese, cheese making, beginners, curd, cruds, whey, river cottage recipe, recipe, ideas, how to, river cottage, withknifeandfork, with knife and fork

Croissants – April’s ‘Fresh from the Oven’ Challenge!

2010-04-28T19:00:00.000+01:00

Things were never going to be good from the start. Regular readers will know my fear of sticking to recipes, but also that, when baking, I try to make a concerted effort, in the hopes it will turn out as it should. This method seemed to work well for March’s challenge, Kringel, but I chose to make this when visiting mum and dad up in Chester. My first question of, do you have any bread flour or yeast was met with ‘No, but Sainsburys do’, so that was our first port of call. After returning home, I asked where the dough hooks were…or perhaps a set of scales…in metric rather than imperial?

Oh well, we tried our best to convert, then half, then weigh the ingredients, as 24-28 croissants between 3 of us seemed a bit greedy to be honest! We thought we were on to a winner when we had a measuring jug and it was even marked in the correct units; until, that was, we noticed that having halved the ingredients, the measurement we needed on the jug was rather worn.

So, I’m writing this between days: the dough is resting overnight in the fridge after ‘Part 1’ of the method. We’ll see how it turns out tomorrow!

In the mean time, this month’s challenge was hosted by Corrie from Hot Potato. She swears by River Cottage’s Bread Handbook, by Dan, and it was there she found this recipe.

Makes 24-28 croissants
1 kg strong white bread flour, plus extra for dusting
20g salt
330 ml warm water
330 ml warm milk
10g powdered dried yeast (instant/bread machine yeast)
140g caster sugar/white sugar
500g unsalted butter
For glaze:
2 medium egg yolks
50ml milk

Mix all the ingredients, except the butter, into the mixer bowl and fit the dough hook. Knead on low to medium speed until the dough is soft, stretchy and satiny – about 10 minutes. Put the dough in a decent sized polythene bag (it needs room to rise), suck out the air, tie a knot in the bag and put it in the fridge to rest over night.

First thing in the morning, get the butter out of the fridge. When it becomes easy to roll out, lightly flour the butter, lay it between two sheets of cling film and bat it out with a rolling pin to a fairly neat square about 1cm thick. Take your time to get the thickness and shape as even as possible, then put it to one side. (I just battered it until it looked like a cross between an oblong and a square.

Take your dough out of the fridge, flour it and roll out to a rectangle, a little more than twice the size of the butter (allow a couple of centimetres extra all around). Now lay the butter on one half leaving a border, fold the other half over and press down all the way round to seal the butter in.
Next roll the dough away from you until it is twice its original length, then fold the top and bottom edges in by one sixth. Fold them in again by another sixth, so the folds meet in the middle, then fold one on top of the other.

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Give the dough a quarter turn and roll it out again to about the same size as before, fold the top and bottom edges in to meet at the middle, then fold one on top of the other. Roll this out slightly and seal the edges with the rolling pin.
Put the dough back in the plastic bag and return it to the fridge to rest for an hour or so. I left mine overnight as recommended by Corrie.

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In the meantime, you need to cut a template from a piece of cardboard (the back of a cereal box or something similar). You want an isosceles triangle, measuring 20cm across the base and 25cm tall. (The easiest way is to draw an upside down capital T and join the points, like a cartoon sail).

When your dough has rested, unwrap and roll it out to a neat rectangle, a little larger than 140cm x 50cm. Now trim the rectangle to these measurements leaving perfectly straight edges. Cut the rectangle in two lengthwise, to give two 25cm wide strips. Now using your template as a guide, cute 12-14 triangles from each strip.

Lay each triangle away from you and roll it up from the base. Wet the pointed end and seal it.

Curl the tips around to form a crescent and pinch them together to hold them in place; or you can leave them straight if you prefer. (At this point you could freeze some if you like. Space them out on a tray and freeze, then pack into bags. Allow an extra hour for rising when you come to use them).

Lay your croissants with the sealed point underneath, on baking trays lined with greased baking parchment or (better still) silicone mats. Cover with cling film or a bin liner and leave to rise until doubled in side. As the dough is cold, this could take a couple of hours, or longer. I was surprised how much my croissants enjoyed this part, they sort of spread themselves out to fill the tray, which, in turn, led to not very croissanty shaped croissants. Tasty nonetheless!

When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 200C/400F /Gas Mark 6. Beat the egg yolk and the milk together, then gently brush all over the croissants.

Bake for about 10 minutes, then lower the setting to 170C/325F/Gas Mark 3 and bake for a further 10-15 minutes until they look beautifully golden. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool slightly, while you make coffee.

I took each part stage by stage, and, as Corrie says, each part is easy and quick; it’s the waiting for it to rest in between that takes the time. And unless you actually get up very early for the last stage, in order to give the dough time to prove and rise before popping in a hot oven, you’ll have to have them for afternoon tea instead! Which isn’t really a problem! We saved a batch once risen in the fridge to bake the next morning. After all the difficulties of actually making the original dough, I was amazed how well they turned out: even dad wanted to know if I’d actually done it all myself. Tips for next time? Smaller triangles and less rising time (not in hot conservatory for the whole day)! This ‘following recipes’ idea is a really good one. I’ll try it again next month. Have a look at Fresh from the Oven for the round-up of our bakers’ efforts!

Labels: Fresh from the Oven Challenge, FftO, croissants, french pastries, cooking, recipe, baking, ideas, Corrie, hot potato, Fresh from the Oven

Leftover Amuse Bouche – Mushroom and Potato a la Crème

2010-04-25T19:00:00.001+01:00

Having made the Veau a la Crème after our lovely visit to Ludlow, I had a little of the ‘crème’ leftover, and couldn’t bear to throw it away as it was so thick, sticky and yummy. So, I scraped it from the pan and put it in a pot, doing to same with the leftover roast new potatoes.

The next morning, the OH ‘found’ said pot, and looked in disgust: “What’s This? Are we going to eat it?” After being convinced it would actually be ok, and that I wasn’t going to force it down his throat for breakfast, his worries receded. So, before our evening meal (I can’t say dinner, as I’m a Northerner and haven’t worked out yet if, ‘down here’, Dinner is lunch or tea, those being my two preferred words. Again though, just to stray from the original point a little more, when I ask friends to come for ‘tea’, I have to qualify that with “You know, your tea – food,” otherwise they turn up having eaten or prepared a dinner, thinking ‘tea’ was just that!)…I’ll begin that last sentence again so you don’t have the struggle of finding whence it began!

So, before our evening meal, I chopped the new potatoes, spooned them into the sauce, and reheated the lot in the microwave until bubbling. If you’re making this from scratch, simply fry off some sliced mushrooms in butter until browned, remove from pan and fry finely chopped shallots. Return the mushrooms, add a splash of dry sherry, or white wine, lots of salt and pepper and double cream, or crème fraiche for a lighter version. A sprinkle of freshly chopped parsley will lighten it further. A small blob of each went onto each amuse-bouche server and was promptly delivered to the table. The OH’s reaction was much better than the original, and it was a great way to use up that little drizzle of sauce and three new potatoes that would otherwise have been wasted. Not a great waste I know, but better to use it up, all the same.

Labels: amuse-bouche, amuse bouche, new potaotes, potato salad, creme fraiche, a la creme, creamy, veau, veal, mushrooms, recipe, ideas, food, starters, leftovers, left overs, left-overs

Cod with Herb Crust and warm potato salad

2010-04-23T19:59:00.001+01:00

Again, the OH brought home a huge, fresh side of cod from Aldeburgh so it seemed that was on the menu, despite all the food I’d filled the fridge with the day before! Well, you can’t let fresh fish, brought in on the early morning boat longer than absolutely necessary. But, what to do with it? I needed something quick and easy as I’d brought yet more work home, so decided up Cod with a herb crust. I found the recipe online from The Times, and it’s a very basic, but delicious crust.

You’ll need:

Firm white fish

Lemon – juice and zest

Chopped chives

Chopped parsley

Butter

Country bread – a crust end will serve two portions

salt and pepper

Dijon mustard

olive oil

peeled and chopped potatoes

Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees c.

Combine the bread, lemon zest, half the herbs, butter, salt and pepper in a processor.

Brush a light coating of mustard on to the top of each fillet.

Form the butter crust into suitable sized ‘pats’ and lay on top of each fillet.

Place in a roasting tin and pop into the oven for about 20 minutes, depending on the thickness of your fillets.

Boil the potatoes and leave to cool slightly.

Meanwhile, mix up the dressing for the potatoes: Combine the lemon juice, other half of the herbs and salt and pepper.

Pour the dressing over the potatoes while they’re still hot.

Serve the fish on top of the potatoes and drizzle and remaining dressing around the plate.

Not only did I manage to prepare this in about 10 minutes, it also tasted really good! The tang of mustard alongside the zesty lemon flavour and the delicate cod was a great combination. Whilst the crunchiness of the crust added a much needed crispness to the dish. The verdict – perfect for summer as it is, or for a more wintery version, roast new potatoes whole.

Labels: fish, white fish, cod, haddock, crust, herb crust, herb, herby, new potatoes, recipe, ideas, food, breadcrumbs, potato salad, Aldeburgh fish, fresh, Aldeburgh