Rhubarb Meringue Puddings

This is a good midweek pudding, which could be made with most fruit.
Serves 2

230-55g/1-2oz sugar
4 sticks rhubarb, diced
1 orange
2 tbsp icing sugar
2 egg whites

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 220C/425F/Gas 7.2. Gently heat the rhubarb and sugar in a pan with the juice of half the orange and the zest of the whole orange until the mixture is soft and starting to go syrupy. Taste and sweeten more as necessary.
2. Pour the stewed rhubarb into two ovenproof ramkins.
3. Place the egg whites and icing sugar into a large clean bowl and whisk together to form soft peaks.
4. Spoon the meringue on top of the rhubarb and then bake in the oven for 3-4 minutes, or until golden brown.
5. Serve.

Chicken in Saffron sauce - Gallina en Pepitoria

This recipe is from "The complete spanish cookbook" by Jacki Passmore. It is good to cook for 4-8 people, and could be served with rice.

to serve 4:

1.5kg chicken
salt and pepper
90g plain flour
90ml olive oil
2 large onions
4 cloves garlic
2 bay leaves
250ml dry white wine
450ml chicken stock
80g ground almonds
10 threads saffron
chopped parsley

1. Cut chicken into serving portions ( or get your butcher to), season with salt and pepper and coat lightly with flour.
2. Fry in the oil for about 10 mins until well coloured, then remove and pour off most of the oil.
3. Fry the onions until golden and soft;add garlic and bay leaves and fry briefly.
4. Add wine, stock, ground almonds and chicken, cover and cook over low heat for about 20 mins, stirring occasionally to keep the sauce from sticking to the pan.
5. Wrap saffron in a small square of aluminum foil and tast for 2 mins in a dry pan.
6. Grind in a mortar then add 2-3 tablespoons boiling water, stir well and pour over the dish.
7. Cook a further 15 minutes
8. Transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle with parsley.

Valentine's chocolate truffles

I made these today....I made the white ones with Grand Marnier, and the dark chocolate ones with calvados....


175g white/dark chocolate, broken into small pieces
65g unsalted butter
45 ml double cream
1 tsp liqueur of choice


1. Put the chocolate, butter and double cream in a bain marie or bowl over a saucepan of barely simmering water, making sure that the base of the bowl does not touch the water . White chocolate will separate if it is melted over too high a heat. Stir until the ingredients are melted and the mix is smooth.
2. Remove from the heat, add the liqueur and mix well.
3. Refrigerate bowl for several hours until set firm.
4. Remove from the fridge and pull off small pieces and roll into balls. Once the truffle mix becomes too soft to work with place it back in the fridge for 30 minutes to chill and set again.
5. Once the truffles are formed then they are ready to have the coating applied. Put the icing sugar onto a plate and then gently roll each truffle in it, alternatively lightly dust the chocolate truffles with sieved icing sugar.

Mango, raspberry and orange smoothie

I got a free bag of frozen mango chunks with a supermarket promotion. I wouldn't usually buy them, but they proved ideal for smoothies, as they cool the drink down without having to use extra ice. The smoothie is a really pretty sunset orange colour

1 bag of frozen mango chunks
1 orange ( I used a blood orange)
1 handful of raspberries

Peel the orange and blitz in a blender with the other ingredients until smooth. Enjoy!

The Best Brownies

These are the best brownies. They are so easy, and have just the right chewy consistancy...

150g Butter, Chopped
125 Dark chocolate, broken in to small pieces
3 eggs
375g sugar
1 tea spoon vanilla essence
125g plain flour
30g cocoa powder

1. Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease a 20cm square tin with oil, then line with greaseproof paper.
2. Put the butter and chocolate in a pyrez bowl and heat over a pan of water until melted and smooth. Don't let the bottom of the bowl touch the water. Remove from the heat and cool slightly.
3. Use a whisk to beat the eggs, sugar and vanilla together in a large bowl. Add the chocolate-butter mixture and whisk together. Stir in the combined sifted flour and cocoa. DO not over mix. Pour in to the tin and bake for 40mins until slightly risen and firm, but still squidgy in the middle.

Night and Day Cupcakes

I didn't have any icing sugar, so I had to improvise...luckily I had some mascarpone and white chocolate, and it all turned out fine....

6oz Butter/marg
6oz sugar
3 eggs
6oz self raising flour
50g dark chocolate
vanilla essence

100g white chocolate
250g marscarpone
100g/ml yoghurt

decorations ( I had some cute chocolates from a christmas hamper, minstrels or choclate buttons would look great too)

1. Cream together the butter and sugar
2. Add the eggs and sieved flours alternately , mixing in between, then add the vanilla essence.
3. put the half the mixture in to cake cases in cupcake tines, half filling each case...
4. Melt the chocolate, and mix with the remaining mixture
5. Top the cake cases with the chocolate mixture, making sure no vanilla mixture is peeping through
6. Bake at 180C for 15 mins or until a knife comes away clean when put in the middle of the cake
7. Leave to cool.
8. To make the icing, mix the mascarpone with a little yoghurt to loosen, then melt the white chocolate and stir in quickly and beat with a whisk until soft. it might become a little grainy, but this should smooth out when put on the cupcake.
9. put on the cupcake with a palette knife, keep dipping the knife in boiling water to keep the application smooth.
10. Decorate according to your whim ;-)

Soda Bread

This recipe is the best, I tried a different one this evening and it wasn't nearly as good...I found it on the bbc website


225g whole wheat plain flour
225g white flour
10mL bicarbonate of soda
300mL (one half pint) natural yoghurt
150mL (one quarter pint) warm filtered water
1 pinch salt
This will make two small loaves or one large one.
Method
Preheat oven to 200°C (400°F or Gas mark 6). Sift the flour (it's important to do this, as the bread can be a bit heavy) and mix in the raising agent, then stir in the yoghurt and warm water. Mix together well, then coat the mixture with more flour and liberally flour your work-surface. No kneading is necessary.
If making small loaves, divide the dough into two parts and make them into fairly flat oval shapes. Cut a cross on the top of each loaf. Place the dough on a floured tray and bake for 30 minutes, then turn down to 180°C (350°F or Gas mark 4) for another 20 minutes. To test if the bread is ready, tap the bottom of the loaf and it should sound hollow. Leave the loaf or loaves to cool on a wire rack.

Cassis Cupcakes

I got this recipe from the Cupcake Queen at 52 cupcakes.....

http://www.accordingtolayla.com/pdfs/wk42kirroyalecupcakes.pdf

I missed out the champagne, and just topped them with normal buttercream - they turned out really pretty, with a delicate blackcurrant flavour...

Orange Ginger Muffins

This recipe was adapted from an allrecipes recipe I found...If you haven't got american cup measurements - you so need to get some! they are really easy to cook with...

2 cups plain flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon grated orange zest
2/3 cup orange juice
1/2 cup melted butter
2 eggs
1 tablespoon melted butter
1/4 cup soft brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground Ginger
DIRECTIONS
Combine flour, baking powder, bicarbonate, salt, white sugar and grated orange peel. Stir in orange juice, 1/2 cup melted butter, eggs
Pour into 12 muffin cups.
Blend 1 tablespoon melted butter, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon ginger and sprinkle on top of each muffin. Bake in a preheated 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) oven for 20-25 minutes. Serve hot.

Creme Egg Cupcakes

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1 packet of mini creme eggs

2 real eggs

4oz sugar

4oz butter

4oz SR flour

2oz cocoa

4oz icing sugar

yellow food colouring

1. Cream the butter and sugar together until soft.

2. Add the 2 eggs

3. Sieve the flour and cocoa in to the bowl and mix it all together

4. Spoon one teaspoon in to a paper cup, lie an unwrapped creme egg on top , then spoon another teaspoon on top.

5. Bake at 180C for 15 mins

6. When cooled, make up icing with the icing sugar and enough water for a fairly thick consistancy. Dye 1/3 of the icing yellow. Put a dollop of white on top of each cake, then a little drop of yellow on top to resemble an egg...

Mustard Chicken

This was something I made up, from store cupboard stuff, as I had only 2 chicken breasts to feed 31/2 people! It would be nice with diced pork too. I served it with whole grain rice, but it would work with mash too. Have some veg of choice with it too.

Feeds 3
olive oil
2 Chicken breasts or diced chicken
1 onion or a couple of shallots
1/2 pint chicken stock
1 glass white wine
2 teaspoons mustard ( whole grain or dijon, a mixture of both is nice)
100ml cream ( single, creme fraiche or double)


1. Chop the onions finely and fry in the oil until soft and a little brown.
2. Dice the chicken and brown off until cooked through.
3. add the glass of wine and reduce off
4. add a little stock at a time, then when that has reduced off, add some more.
5. add the mustard and stir in. Add black pepper too.
6. When is all the stock is used and reduced off, so you still have some liquid in the pain, take off the heat and add the cream. heat through until a little thickened.
7. Serve up ;-)

Red and Blue Muffins

I adapted these from a blueberry muffin recipe, they have bran in so you can pretend they're healthy!

75g butter
200g plain flour
75g wheatgerm
1/2 teaspoon Bicarbonate of soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
75g caster sugar
100g yoghurt
100ml semiskimmed milk
1 large egg
100g blueberries
100g cranberries
2 tbsp maple syrup

Melt the butter and leave to cool. Preheat oven to 200 C.
Combine all the dry ingredients in a bowl and in a measuring jug beat together the yoghurt, milk, egg and melted butter. Cook the cranberries over a low heat with the maple syrup for 10 minutes or until the cranberries start to go a little soft. Using a wodden spoon, pour the wit ingredients in to the dry and mix gently to combine. Don't worry about lumps, the important thing with muffins is that the mixture isn't over worked. Fold in the cranberries and maple syrup, and the blue berries. You can add orange zest here as well. The mixture should be quite sloppy, loosen with a little milk of orange juice if it is too claggy. Spooon in to muffin cases, overfilling more than for fairy cakes so they puff up over the top of the cake case.Sprinkle with a little of a mixture of caster sugar and wheatgerm in desired. Bake for 15-20mins until golden.

Cheese and courgette muffins

These are fantastic for toddler lunches, my daughter loves making them too...

300g (10oz) Self-raising Flour
3 Tsps Baking powder
75g (3oz) Grated Cheese
1 Courgette about 200g
150ml (5floz) Natural yoghurt
3 Tablespoons Oil
3 eggs
3 tbsp Milk
1/2tsp mustard (optional)
a few leaves of basil (optional)
black pepper (optional)

Preheat oven 220C (gas 6)
Put flour, baking powder and cheese in a mixing bowl. Grate Courgette and add to bowl along with yoghurt, oil, eggs, milk and optional ingredients ( if desired). Fork together until just mixed.Spoon in to paper muffin cases, two-thirds full. Put a little grated cheese on top. Bake for 15 mins until golden.

Cheese scones - adapted from Nigella's Lily's Scones recipe

These are great - once you've made scones with cream of tartar you will never not again! My little girl loves these for lunch.

500g Plain flour
2 teaspoons bicarb
4 and a half teaspoons cream of tartar
75g salted butter diced
300ml milk
150g cheese
round cutter
baking tray

Preheat oven to 220 degrees C
Sift the flour, bicarb and cream of tartar into a large bowl.Rub in the butter til it goes like damp sand. Add milk all at once and100g of the grated cheese,mix briefly and then turn out on to a floured surface and knead lightly to form a dough. Roll out to about 3cm thickness. Stamp out the scones with the cutter. Place on a greased baking sheet, egg wash if you want, sprinkle with the rest of the grated cheese and bake for about 10 minutes uptil risen and golden.

Andalusian Pork

This has some great flavours and the meat is kept really moist from the dried fruit. It would be really nice with a saffron rice, but the people I made it for wouldn't have gone for that, so we had it with potatoes and veg...I got the recipe from the bbc website, its one by James Martin

Serves 6

Ingredients
3 medium to large pork fillet (800g)
4oz prunes, chopped
40z soft dried apricots,
handful chopped parsley,
3 tbsp paprika
2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried or fresh chopped thyme
2 clove garlic, crushed
1 tbsp coarse salt
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 lemon, cut into wedges, to serve
Method
1. Cut the pork open with a sharp knife and open the fillet out along its length, being careful not to cut all the way through the fillet.
2. In a bowl, mix together the prunes, apricots and parsley and insert along the length of the fillet. Season well.
3. Roll the fillet up and securely fasten with string.4. Mix up the paprika, the remaining herbs, the garlic, the salt and the oil to make a thick paste. Spread over the surface of the meat, and leave it in the fridge, ideally overnight, but don't worry if you don't have time, 1/2 hour was delicious too
5. Preheat the oven to 200C/400C/Gas
6. Season the meat and sear on all sides in a heavy pan. Place in the oven for 25 minutes.
6. Rest the meat before serving with lemon wedges.

Beef Wellington, prepare in advance method..

I found this method by Luiska on the BBC forum website, it worked a treat and led to a lot less stressful Christmas day! I had served it with chunky ovenbaked chips, which I guess some people would see a travesty, but it was yum! I used onions instead of mushrooms as I'm allergic to mushrooms...

Fillet or sirloin beef
2 chopped onions
200g pate
2 packets ready made puff pastry..


Fry up the onions until caramelised, and when cold ( this is really important for food hygiene)., mix with the pate. then follow the method below...
Sear the outside of the beef & then put it on a rack to cool and drain. Roll puff pastry, cut a piece somewhat bigger than fillet, prick with fork and bake until crisp & golden. Cool. Spread cooked pastry with half paté-onion mix, top with fillet spread with remainder, cut off excess cooked pastry corners & cover with raw pastry sheet, tucking edges underneath, making sure that the tuck-in is fairly minimal or it gets stodgy. Decorate with pastry strips or leaves or whatever, but don't glaze. Refrigerate overnight. Bring to room temp somewhere dry, make a couple of steam holes, then glaze with egg wash and bake.

Christmas baked ham

I used this recipe for our baked ham for Christmas Eve, which I found on the bbc website, but which I modified a little. It was delicious. I got all our Christmas meat from Harveys, the organic butcher in Norwich...http://www.puremeat.org.uk/. It was just as good, hot as cold..

Ingredients
4.5-5.5kg/10-12lb gammon joint - unsmoked
1 pint of dry cider
2 carrots, chopped into chunky pieces
2 onions, peeled and studded with cloves
4 bay leaves
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp brown sugar
12 peppercorns
1 orange, cut in half
For the glaze:
cloves for spiking
8 tbsp shredless orange marmalade
juice of half a lemon
Method
1. Soak the gammon joint overnight.
2. Drain and discard the water and pat the gammon dry. Place the gammon in a large pan and then pour over the cider and enough water to cover the joint.
3. Add all the other ingredients to the pan. Bring to the boil then reduce the heat and gently simmer for 3 - 3 ½ hours. Skim off any scum during the cooking.
4. When cooked, remove the ham from the pan and place in a roasting tin. Let it cool slightly and then peel away the skin.
5. Preheat the oven 190C/375 F / Gas 5.
6. Score diamond shapes on the fat and stud each diamond with a clove.
7. Heat the marmalade and lemon juice in a pan for a few minutes until it thickens to a sticky glaze. Brush the marmalade glaze over the surface of the ham.
8. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes until the glaze has set.

Christmas gingerbread biscuits

125g soft butter
100g firmly packed brown sugar
75 ml runny honey or golden syrup
50ml black treacle ( substitute for honey or golden syrup if you don't have any, or prefer a lighter taste)
1 egg yolk
375g plain flour
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon mixed spice
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
silver balls and /or edible glitter

Royal Icing:Royal icing sugar is very good and easy to use...
METHOD
Beat butter and sugar in small bowl until light and fluffy;
beat in treacle golden syrup/honey and egg yolk.
Transfer mixture to large bowl, stir in sifted dry ingredients.
Knead dough on lightly floured surface until smooth; wrap in clingfilm and refrigerate 30 minutes.Roll dough until about 5mm think.
Cut shapes from dough using Christmas cutter.
Cut a small hole in shapes for hanging, if desired.
Place shapes 3cm apart on greased oven trays.
Bake at 180C for 10 minutes or until lightly browned (time depends on the size of the shapes). Transfer shapes to wire racks to cool.
Spread or pipe royal icing onto shapes, and decorate with silver balls and/ or edible glitter...

Risotto Tricolore

This is a simple risotto, with the colours of the italian flag, hence the cheesy name ;-). You can make the base for the risotto with celery, which is more authentic, but i didn't have any last night...The basic risotto recipe is Jamie's but the additions are made up by me!


Feeds 2
500ml chicken or vegetable stock
1 onion
150g risotto rice
butter
oliver oil
10 cherry tomatoes ( I used the baby plum ones)
garlic
1 glass of white wine
1/2 packet of watercress, rocket, and spinach salad
a few sprigs thyme
100g taleggio cheese ( you could try brie or camembert)
50g grated parmesan

Make the stock up with boiling water , or heat up ready made stock
Heat the olive oil in a pan. Add the onion, and fry gently for about 5 minutes until softened. Add the rice to the pan and turn up the heat. Cook for a minute or so, stirring constantly, until the rice looks slightly translucent. Add the wine and keep stirring - any alcohol flavours will evaporate.Once the wine has been absorbed by the rice, add your first ladle of hot stock and a good pinch of pepper and the thyme leaves. Turn the heat down to a simmer so the rice doesn't cook too quickly on the outside. Add the stock, a ladleful at a time, stirring constantly and allowing each ladleful to be absorbed before adding the next, until the rice is cooked but still holds its shape - this takes about 15 minutes.

While you are doing this, fry the cut in half tomatoes and 1 crushed clove of garlic together until the tomatoes are soft and brown.

Cut up the salad and when the risotto is ready stir in until wilted. Add the tomatoes and taleggio, and stir until you see the taleggio start to melt. Serve in bowls, with the parmesan sprinkled on top...

Pear Tarte Tatin

I made this for the inlaws on Saturday night... It was fantastic. You will need a dish you can move from hob to oven. I have a le creuset tatin 10" dish...
Sweet shortcrust pastry
200g (7oz) plain flour
Pinch salt
125g (4 1/2oz) butter
50g (2oz) caster sugar
1 egg yolk
Tablespoon cold water
3 large pears
about 2oz Butter
3 heaped tbsp soft brown sugar
cinnamon

Make the pastry by sifting the flour and salt into a bowl. Add the butter, cut into small pieces and rub in with fingertips til it resembles breadcrumbs. Add the sugar, mix in and add the egg yolk and enough cold water to make a stiff dough.
Melt the butter in the bottom of the pan and add the sugar. Heat gently and allow the sugar to melt. Peel, core and cut the pears into quarters and lay across the bottom of the pan and sprinkle the cinnamon over. The pears don't need to cook at this point as they are soft enough to cook in the oven, and you don't want them too mushy. Roll the pastry out into a circle that is slightly bigger than the pan, to cover the pears. Lay it over the top and allow the edges to turn up the side of the pan. Be careful, the pan will still be hot. Put into a hot oven 200°C/390°F/gas 6 for about half an hour, or until the pastry is golden. Serve warm with crean or ice cream. Even better the next day for breakfast ;-)