Parsnip, Leek and Apple Cakes

Now, these were so much nicer than they sounded!  They are, essentially, bubble and squeak but made with mashed parsnips instead of potato, and leeks instead of cabbage, with a little grated apple to sharpen and freshen things.  I adapted a recipe that came in Riverford's handy little recipe folder this week.  To serve 2 generously, simply peel and chop 2 good-sized (and in our case, frankly whiskery) parsnips and steam until tender.  At the same time, finely slice a washed leek, including as much of its green top you consider to be edible.  Saute in a tablespoon of oil and a knob of butter.  I will leave you to decide how big a knob is, using your own benchmark.  When softened, but not browned, add a small grated apple and cook for another minute or so.  Add to the cooked parsnips in a bowl and mash well with a fork, along with a tablespoon of grated parmesan and lots of pepper and salt to taste.  I added a little chopped red chilli too, 'cos parsnip loves chilli.  If it is a bit sloppy add a teaspoon or 2 of flour to bind it all.  Allow to cool, then shape into 4 patties, dust in flour and saute in a little butter until browned nicely.  Serve with poached eggs, and we also baked a couple of field mushrooms and some cherry tomatoes.  Cheap as chips - well, cheap as parsnips.

Frosted Cupcakes

I was so impressed by the Hummingbird Bakery vanilla cupcakes that I made last week for the Red Nose Day cake sale that I whipped up a batch this afternoon, to take to our friends with whom we are staying this weekend.  I decorated half with vanilla cheesecake frosting in a piped 'rose' pattern, and the other half with chocolate frosting.  The chocolate looked - erm - how shall we say, like a joke-shop dog's doo-doo, so I ended up smoothing it out and dusting with grated white chocolate.  Whatever they look like, I know they'll taste yummy!  The Hummingbird recipe is as follows: in a mixer, blend 120g plain flour, 1 and a half teaspoons baking powder, 140g caster sugar and 40g of soft butter, until the mixture goes 'sandy'.  In a jug, whisk together 120ml of milk, 1 egg and a teaspoon of vanilla essence.  With the mixer going, add the wet mixture to the flour mix, and beat for a further minute.  Don't over-mix.  Divide amongst 12 paper cases in a bun tin, and cook for 20-25 minutes at 160C fan oven or 180C non-fan.  Don't over-bake either - if the sponge is a light gold and springs back lightly to the touch, then it is ready.  Over-baking will dry the sponge out, and the benefit of this recipe is its lovely light, moist crumb.  Decorate however you like, but probably best not to go for the dog poo look!

Majorcan Cauliflower and Leek Soup

I got this recipe from a blogger in Majorca called Immaculada - it uses white bread to thicken the soup rather than potato or flour, which is a very 'Spanish' thing.  Cauliflowers are excellent at this time of year, and the leeks are nearing the end of their season, so are coarse, but very flavourful - best used in soup.  You'll need:
2 large leeks and an onion
1 large cauliflower
3 or 4 cloves of garlic
A thick slice of good quality white bread - crusts removed
4 tablespoons olive oil plus extra to serve
Sweet smoked paprika to serve
a Litre of either veg or chicken stock
So simple to make.  Remove the green tops from the leeks, wash well and slice finely.  Peel and finely chop the onion.  Heat the olive oil in a pan and saute the leek and onion over a gentle heat for 10 minutes.  Whilst this is happening, remove the leaves from the cauli, break into florets and slice the stem thinly.  Add to the leeks and onion, along with the peeled garlic cloves, and allow to sweat, with the lid on, for a good 15 minutes.  Don't let the vegetables brown.  Now, make breadcrumbs from the thick slice of bread - it should be a good inch thick slice. Or just tear it into small chunks if you can't be bothered to get the processor out.  Add to the veg with the hot stock, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer for about 20 minutes.  Blend with a hand blender or in a processor.  Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and plenty of black pepper (or white, if black flecks in a white soup bothers you!).  This soup tastes best served warm rather than hot - garnish each bowl with a good drizzle of your best extra virgin olive oil and a sprinkle of smoked sweet paprika.  Immaculada suggests chives too, but I only had a couple of spring onions - they added a nice fresh crunch.

Diplomat Cocktails

A very elegant aperitif, showcasing dry and sweet vermouths, in particular the complex and slightly bitter Antico Carpano - shake 1 part of sweet red vermouth and 2 parts of dry white vermouth, along with a teaspoon of maraschino liqueur, in a cocktail shaker with lots of ice.  Strain into a chilled martini glas, add a maraschino cherry and strip of lemon peel, squeezed over the surface.  Relax, and sip whilst listening to Al Bowlly records and pretending to be Noel Coward and Gertrude Lawrence.  Lovely!

Blueberry and Lemon Surprise Pudding

This is a variation of the well-known 'surprise' pudding, where the mixture goes into the dish as a, frankly, curdled mess and emerges from the oven with a fluffy lemon sponge on the top and a lemony saucy layer below.  I added some frozen blueberries, an idea I got from the splendid cook, Lady Claire MacDonald, who runs the Kinloch Lodge Hotel in the south of Skye - I will stay there one day......

Anyway, to the recipe, and forgive me but it is in Imperial measures, as befits its source: in a bowl, beat 3oz of very soft butter with 6oz of unrefined caster sugar - it won't go fluffy.  Add the zest from 3 organic unwaxed lemons and 3 egg yolks.  Then stir in 3oz flour, the juice from the lemons and 7fl oz whole milk.  It will look very curdled!  Now, beat the three egg whites until the stiff peak stage and fold through the mixture.  At this stage, you will be panicking and thinking it is ruined.  Trust me, it isn't.  If liked, stir through 4oz of blueberries.  Tip into a buttered baking dish, not too shallow.  Bake at 160C fan oven (180C non-fan) for 45 minutes or so until the sponge top is a nice deep golden.  Dish up, making sure you get a spoonful of the saucy bottom layer too.  This is just as nice cold the next day, although the sauce will set into a tangy 'curd' custard.

Chocolate Beetroot Brownies

There seems to be a fashion at the moment for Red Velvet Cake, which is made with worryingly large amounts of artificial red food colouring.  If you want a red(dish) cake, then try this instead - much better for you!  It is a famous recipe from Hugh Fearnly Whittingstall via the Riverford Organics Field Kitchen.  It uses less sugar than normal brownies, and no wheatflour, so is suitable for those on gluten-free diets.  The reduced sugar content, and the addition of ground almonds, makes for a less crisp crust, but it tastes wonderful.  If the beetroot puts you off, please don't let it!  You really can't taste it, but it contributes that red tinge to the batter and adds wonderful moisture to the mix, making this a good 'keeper'.   I have made a Chocolate Beetroot Cake elsewhere on the blog, so do take a look at that as well. Tasting note: these have lasted well into the week, mainly because I forgot to take a whole load of them to my friend Jess on Tuesday - sorry!  However, as the week has progressed, these have just got fudgier and denser and even more chocolatey - definitely a good cake to make in advance of an event to get the full-on experience!  Yummy!

White Chocolate and Raspberry Blondies

These went down very well at the Comic Relief Cake Sale at work on Friday - apparently, anyway, since I didn't get to taste any!  A blondie is like a brownie, but with white chocolate instead of dark and muscovado light brown sugar to give a 'blonde' colour and caramelly flavour.  All its other qualities (or vices, depending on your view) are the same - high sugar, high fat, high chocolate, high squidgyness inside contrasting with crispness without.  Very rich, I imagine, but I guess I'll have to make them again to find out!  The respberries give a lovely colour and testural contrast, and probably introduce a welcome note of tartness - I imagine.  (do I sound bitter at not having tasted any?  Me?).  The recipe comes from the Good Food site, and is a doddle if you have a good electric mixer - the eggs do need to be beaten to quite a volume.

Tomato Mozzarella Tarts with Mushroom and Thyme

I was so busy last night, baking for a charity cake sale, that I wanted something super-quick and easy.  I know a take-away would have been many people's choice but I resent the cost.  So, a sheet of puff pastry was halved, and each piece spread with some tomato puree and pesto.  Next came a layer of sauteed mushrooms, then some sliced cherry tomatoes from the Riverford box, and then half a ball of mozzarella from a meal earlier in the week.  A couple of sprigs of thyme, and a grating of parmesan, and the lot went into the oven for about 20 minutes - the oven was on anyway for baking.  Result - light, crisp, savoury pastry 'pizzas', on the table before a take-away would have turned up, and more yummy, to boot.

Hot Aubergine Mussaman Curry

I am suffering with a horrible head cold at the moment, so am hoping that some spicy dishes will blow it all away - I have no scientific basis for imagining this will work, it just seems the right thing to do!  I had some Mussaman paste left in the freezer from a chicken curry the other week, and this was explosively HOT with dried chilli, so this has formed the basis of the dish tonight - a good tablespoonful of the mix, fried with another spoonful or two of oil.  I grilled chunks of aubergine and some chopped onion, sprayed with oil, until browned and starting to soften - this uses much less oil than frying.  Then, a tin of chopped tomatoes and a small can of coconut cream (about 180ml) is added to the spice paste, brought to the boil and simmered until reduced and thickened.  As this stage approaches, add the aubergines and let them cook with the thickening sauce for 10 minutes or so - they will absorb the flavour but not break up too much.  Add salt to taste and some lime juice if you have any.  Serve with the creamy Parippu dal (previous recipe) and some nan bread.  Boy was this hot.  My sinuses have cleared a little!

Parippu

This is a warmingly spiced dal from the Kerala region in the south of India.  I came across it in Tamasin Day-Lewis's 'Kitchen Classics', and have a large pot of it bubbling on the stove, filling the flat with an incredible fragrance, and hopefully helping to cure my head cold!  It is simplicity itself.  Toast, in a dry frying pan, 4 teaspoons each of cumin and coriander seeds, until they darken slightly and become fragrant.  Grind in a mill or pestle and mortar and mix with two teaspoons of turmeric.  Finely chop 2 mildish green chillis and finely slice an onion.  Peel and chop 2 cloves of garlic and a 'thumb' of fresh ginger.  If you have a dried curry leaf or two, add that too  Now, bung it all in a pot with 225g or about 8oz of split red lentls, rinsed.  Pour water over to cover the lentils by an inch, and bring slowly to the boil.  Don't add salt yet.  When boiling, stir in a small (200ml) tin of creamed coconut, and a stick of cinnamon.  Turn down and simmer for 30 minutes until the water and coconut is absorbed.  Beat well with a wooden spoon until it is a soft creamy mash.  Taste and season with salt and pepper.  You can add a 'tarka' to this by heating a couple of tablespoons of light oil, popping a teaspoon of black mustard seeds, some garlic and chilli in the hot oil and spooning over the Parippu before serving.  This quantity made loads, so I will thin the rest with stock for a simple soup for lunch tomorrow.  Tasting notes: this makes for a very creamy and comforting version of dal, definitely one to make again.  I suspect this would go down well with kids, as it is spicy and interesting without being at all hot.  Gorgeous scooped up with soft warm nan bread.

Roasted Sausages and Root Vegetables with Sweet Chilli Glaze

A great bung-it-all-in-the-oven main course, this and perfect Saturday night family fodder with a green salad.  You peel and chop root veg - whatever you have in the house, I used a parsnip, a couple of carrots and an onion.  Toss in a tablespoon of olive oil and scatter on a non-stick or parchment-lined baking sheet.  Add some good sausages (we like Porkinson's Bangers, but good butcher's sausages at least, please!) and rub a little oil onto them too - this is fun........Now, bake at 180C for half an hour until the veg is tender and the sausages nice and brown.  Give everything a good stir, turn the bangers over, and then brush on a good couple of tablespoons of sweet chilli sauce to glaze everything.  Return to the oven for a final 10 minutes, then dish up, mixing the melted sauce into everything as you serve.  A dish of crisp, simply-dressed lettuce leaves is a nice accompaniment, as is a glass of Old Noll ale from my boss's own micro-brewery, Cherwell Valley.   photo courtesy of tamarindandthyme.wordpress.com

Broccoli and Watercress Soup

More soup, but this time a lovely vibrant green one for spring. Watercress is supposed to cleanse the blood, and what with the antioxidants and vitamins in the other main ingredients - potatoes and calabrese broccoli - this seems like a good way to detox and fight a bit of a spring cold I have picked up.  Of course, sploshing a couple of tablespoons of cream in probably undid it all, but sod it!  Usual start: large chopped onion or leek, sweated in about 25g of butter (butter has anti-viral properties, so perfectly acceptable!).  Add a good-sized head of calabrese broccoli, stalk and all, chopped.  Now add a couple of medium-sized, peeled potatoes, chopped.  I like a good floury one, like King Edward's.  Stir into the buttery juices for a few minutes then pour in about 750mls of veg stock - Marigold is fine - and quite a bit of black pepper, which echoes the watercress (wait for it!).  Simmer for 20 minutes, then throw in a bunch or bag of watercress, stalks too.  Simmer for another minute or two, then blend with a stick blender until all combined.  Stir in a little cream or milk and serve quickly to preserve the vivid green.

Beetroot and Orange Salad with Goats' Cheese

Beetroot and orange go so well together, and the juice from fresh oranges makes a lovely dressing mixed with some grain mustard and good olive oil.  Lovely fresh Batavia lettuce and watercress arrived in the Riverford box today, and I had beetroot from a delivery the other week.  So, simply boil the beets in their skin until tender, about an hour.  Cut the peel from a couple of oranges (a navel and a blood orange was what I had), saving any escaped juice for the dressing.  Cut some cucumber (also in the box) and slice or crumble a small goats' cheese - as fresh or as whiskery and goaty as you like.  Simply layer it all in a bowl or on a large platter with any other greens you have about (some rocket in our case), whisk up your dressing and pour over.  I meant to make croutons for a crunchy element, but forgot - never mind, still lovely and fresh and light to follow the spicy soup.  If you don't like goats' cheese, lots of others would work - Wensleydale, a good cheddar or even some blue cheese if that rocks your boat.

Moroccan Chickpea and Squash Soup

This is a little like the famous Moroccan soup, Harira, which is used to break fast during Ramadan.  I make no claims for its authenticity, but this version, made with odds and ends from the fridge, was most delicious.  It would be great to give to a vegan, but very nice for everyone else, too, especially if you suspect you might be coming down with a cold!  Simply sweat a large onion in some olive oil, and stir in the following spices: ground cumin, ground coriander, ground ginger, paprika and chilli powder - a teaspoon of each, and a half teaspoon of ground cinnamon.  Add a tin of tomatoes and a couple of cloves of garlic, chopped.  Now, add some butternut or other squash - a small one, or in my case, half of a 'sweet mama' squash used in a risotto earlier this week.  Add a tin of drained chickpeas, and a litre of water mixed with a couple of teaspoons Marigold stock powder.  Simmer all nicely for 20 minutes or so, blend half of it and return to the pot, with lots of chopped fresh coriander leaf and a spritz of lemon juice.  Yummy!

Apple and Ginger Shortcake Slices

I had a nice surprise at work the other day when the lovely Ady left a jar of 'Ginger Preserve' on my desk, hinting to a colleague that, should I want to make a sweet treat that he could share in, he wouldn't say no - so how could I say no?!  The ginger preserve is, effectively, chunks of preserved ginger set in lemony jam.  Very nice - so, I mixed several tablespoonfuls with a couple of grated eating apples and layered this with a shortcake mix I found online - US measures, I'm afraid.  A stick of butter (about 100g), melted.  I egg, beaten.  1/2 cup caster sugar, 1and 1/2 cups of plain flour with a teaspoon and a half of baking powder.  Mix these together, and press a little over half over the base of a parchment-lined 20cm square baking tin.  Spread the apple ginger mix over.  Now, mix the remaining shortcake mix with two tablespoons of chopped nuts.  Sprinkle this in clumps over the top, then bake at 170C (fan) for 30-35 minutes.  Allow to cool in the tin, then cut into 16 squares.  Yummy!  Hope you like it, Ady.  The rest of the jam will be mixed with rhubarb for a steamed pud on Sunday with custard.

Cauliflower and Chard Cheese with Ham

Cauliflower Cheese is such a comforting old stalwart, and I 'pimped' this one a little today with some chopped chard and little pieces of chopped ham.  A creamy cheese sauce, enlivened with a good 'poke' of hot English mustard, and cheesy breadcrumbs on the top make for a warming and tasty supper!

South Coast Cocktails

A recipe from the great Dale DeGroff, in his book 'The Craft of the Cocktail', this is a variation on a whisky sour but without egg white - Dale (who can be trusted in all things cocktail) insists egg whites are wrong.  I quite agree.  This consists of (for 2 people): 4 parts blended Scotch ( a good brand, please, we use Grant's Family Reserve), 1.5 parts curacao (i.e. Cointreau), 1 part fresh lemon juice, 1/2 part gomme syrup, and 2.5 parts soda water.  These should be stirred in a mixing glass over ice (not shaken) and strained into 2 chilled martini glasses.  Serve with an orange twist.  Very nice, and deceptively 'quaffable' because of the soda water.  Beware, though, it packs a punch!

Irish Stew

It is always a bit risky posting a recipe for something like Irish Stew.  As soon as you commit your recipe to virtual-paper, a whole load of people are bound to say "that's not how you make Irish Stew"!  Well, it's how I make it, so there!  I brown cubes of lamb leg in batches (about 750g for four servings), and then add loads of sliced leek, whole onions or shallots, carrots and swede.  Then I stir in a little flour and a pint of lamb stock, mixed with a teaspoon of tomato puree, some fresh rosemary and thyme and a couple of bayleaves.  It is baked in a covered Le Creuset casserole for an hour, then peeled potatoes are added, the dish covered again and cooked for another hour.   Perfect with some simple green cabbage or kale.  I sometimes add a tablespoon of barley to it at the start which thickens things nicely.

Banana Cake with Chocolate and Walnuts

If you can measure and stir, you can make this cake.  It is possibly the simplest cake I've ever made, and is low in fat, to boot, using just 3 tablespoons of light olive oil and a couple of eggs.  So, if you have three bananas browning accusingly in the fruit bowl, make this.  You could use other nuts if you prefer, but I think walnuts and bananas go together well.  Set the oven to 180c or 160c fan.  Grease and line with parchment paper a 2lb loaf tin.  Mash 3 ripe bananas and 160g caster sugar in a bowl.  If the bananas are a wee bit lumpy, it doesn't matter.  Stir in 3 tablespoons each of light olive or sunflower oil and milk, along with 2 beaten eggs.  Stir in 185g of SR flour, 100g of dark chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate, and 90g of chopped walnuts.  Stir well, pour batter into the lined tin and bake for 55 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.  Cool on a wire rack. 

Chocolate Lace Crisps

I made these for a cake sale at work today to help a very worthy local cause.  It is an Australian recipe - they are such good bakers!  They were a nice texture - crisp on the outside, a little chewy within, and very chocolatey.  A bit sweet for my taste, though - I will experiment with 150g of sugar rather than the 220g.  The success of the crackled 'lacy' surface does depend on a thick coating of icing sugar before they are baked.  A pretty biscuit and worth trying again.
The recipe, taken from Australian Women's Weekly's 'tray bakes and slices':
100g dark eating chocolate, chopped coarsely
80g butter, chopped
220g caster sugar
1 egg
150g plain flour
2 TBSP cocoa powder
¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda
¼ cup (40g) icing sugar
Melt the butter and chocolate in a large bowl over hot water or carefully in the microwave, add all the other ingredients (except icing sugar) and mix until combined.  Cool in the fridge for 20 minutes.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment and set oven to 180C.  Take flat dessertspoons of the mix and roll into balls.  You should get around 26 biscuits.  Roll each ball well in icing sugar and place on the baking sheets, spacing well apart.  Don't flatten them.  Bake for 15 minutes.  Leave to set and cool on the baking sheets.  Eat.  Go and lie down after the sugar rush.  Eat some more.

Refried Bean Tortilla Cake

Well, whodathought that the recipe I have referred to for years as "that baked thing with tortillas and refried beans" had a name?  Nigella calls a similar recipe 'Mexican Lasagne'.  Whatever, this has been an old favourite for a long time - cheap, veggie, filling and delicious.  However, a plea - do NOT use tinned refried beans which smell, look, and probably taste like dog pooh.  Your own will be so much nicer.  For 2, fry an onion and then stir in a large tin of drained, rinsed kidney beans.  Another plea: try to get the 'East End' brand - brilliant, soft mealy beans, and only 49p a can.  Their chickpeas are the best too.  Now, use a wooden spoon to mash the beans into the pan with the onion, so as many break up as possible.  Add a teaspoon each of ground cumin, paprika, chilli powder (or to taste) and dried oregano.  Now add half a large tin of tomatoes - or a small tin! - and the same in volume of water.  Add salt if liked and stir an mash until the mix has reduced.  Now, simply layer up between flour tortillas with grated cheese - I used 4 tortillas - and put cheese on the top.  Bake for about 15 minutes and serve in quarters.  This quantity should really serve four, but we are greedy pigs and eat the whole lot.