Belleau Kitchen

spicy parsnip and cauliflower soup

2012-02-15T12:54:00.000Z

... it being soup season, i've made quite a bit of the stuff recently and I've been doing a lot of 'just chuck it in the pan and add stock' kind of soup making... there's nothing particularly wrong with this method but you do sometimes end up with green sludge and everything tastes the same... and yes, sometimes it really doesn't work... there's a reason that cabbage smells and has been sulking in the back of the fridge and no, making soup out of it won't be a good thing...

... the point being that I had some parsnips and a few other veg that needed eating but this time I stopped myself and turned to the cook books instead... and boy am I glad I did... and so with a little help from Sir Jamie of Oliver I present to you...

Spicy Parsnip and Cauliflower Soup
this is one of those delightful, thick, creamy and sweet little soups that has a gentle heat behind it that's really not too overpowering...

1 medium onion - finely chopped
4 medium parsnips - peeled and diced
half a medium cauliflower - chopped into pieces
2 cloves of garlic - finely crushed
a thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger - finely chopped
1 tablespoon garam masala
butter and olive oil
1 pint of milk
1 pint of good vegetable stock

- in a heavy pan, melt a little olive oil and butter, add the onions, ginger, garlic and garam masala and saute gently for 10 minutes until the onions are soft

- add the parsnips and cauliflower, turn the heat very low, place the lid on and sweat gently until nearly soft, about 5 mins

- add the stock and the milk and with the lid on, simmer gently for 30 minutes

- liquidize with a hand-held thingy and serve with a swish of garlic olive oil.

eat and of course, enjoy!

slow sunday - 10 hour chicken

2012-02-12T17:43:00.000Z

just look at those succulent juices

... sometimes, when you're feeling super-lazy and the best you can do is stay in your pyjamas all day, what you really want is for someone else to come into the house and cook a glorious roast chicken for you... and then clean the kitchen afterwards whilst you lay groaning on the sofa rubbing your belly... this rarely happens and short of starting my own 'meals on wheels for the bone idle'... which, believe me, I have thought long and hard about... I don't think will ever happen...

... I do however, have a very lazy alternative, which is this 10 hour roast chicken... for which I cannot take the credit, it comes from Gwyneth Paltrow and I have blogged about its genius before... and planned correctly you can have an amazing plate of glorious, moist, fall-off-the-bone chicken... you will NOT believe how much tasty juice comes out of one bird... and all you've really done is turned the oven on... oh and get your home-slave to make the vegetables...

10 Hour Roast Chicken
this is my ultra-slow Sunday dish, going out to the wonderfully succulent Karen who does a regular Slow Sunday feature on her blog Lavender and Lovage... my trick with this dish is to do all the prep the night before because then all you have to do is wake up, shuffle downstairs, switch the oven on, bung the chicken in and go back to bed...

1 regular, free-range chicken
1 onion - roughly chopped
1 stick of celery - roughly chopped
a handful of fresh thyme
salt and pepper

- boil the kettle and then once boiled, place the chicken into the sink and pour the water over it

- place the chicken into an roasting dish, scatter the veg around and within, place the thyme inside the cavity, season and then wrap tightly in foil.

- place in your oven at 110C for nice and a half hours

- after this time, take the foil off, turn the oven up to 180C and brown the chicken... you will not regret this method, if only for the pint or so of the most wonderful juicy gravy...

eat and of course, enjoy!

my bloody valentine cupcakes

2012-02-10T09:11:00.000Z

... when i was a teenager at school... way back in the 1980's... the teachers would place a special 'Valentines' post-box in the main entrance where all the love-struck girls (and some of the boys) could put their secret cards and notes... the cards would then be handed out at the end of the day and everyone would giggle and gossip about who fancied who...

... back then Valentines was all about giving an anonymous card to a secret love, not sure what it's about these days but I remember it as being yet another bloody day in the year when the popular kids could brag about how popular they were, as if John Smith (I've changed his name to protect his identity... fuck knows why... he knows who he is...) needed an excuse...

bloody valentine cupcakes
these cupcakes go out to all of us who've had an unrequited teen love... it's more than likely they're fat and bald now... i'm entering these into this months Teatime Treats brought to us as always by Kate from What Kate Bakes and Karen from Lavender and Lovage... the theme this month is of course, Romance...

makes 6 large heart-shaped or 12 regular cupcakes
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup caster sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 tbsp milk
a few drops vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups self raising flour
a heck of a lot of red food colouring

- pre-heat the oven to 190C (170C fan)

- bung the whole lot in a bowl and mix it up to a smooth batter

- remove 3 tablespoons of batter into another bowl and stir in as much red food colouring as you dare... as you can see I didn't use quite enough for a dark blood red but you get the idea...

- fill the cupcake cases with one third regular batter, then dollop a teaspoon of the red batter in the middle and cover it over with another third of the regular batter, don't worry about being too precise here

- bake for 15-20 minutes until risen and firm

ice with your favourite icing... i've used my classic double cream-cheese icing... a heck of a lot of red food colouring... and a knife!

eat and of course, enjoy!

hot tomato jam and pea risotto

2012-02-08T16:09:00.000Z

... we've had quite a bit of Persuaders work on recently, we're celebrating 15 years of creative event production and also preparing ideas for two big pitches and with deadlines fast approaching it means we've been doing a lot of work from home... food can get quite dull when you work from home on a regular basis and sometimes, when time is tight, you tend to grab something quick and easy and this usually means something not that nutritionally beneficial...

... today at about 12:30pm The Viking started shuffling towards the kitchen and was making noises about the cold and needing something warm in his belly... I told him that instead of making the same-old same-old I could rustle up something within 20 minutes that was warming, hearty and better for us than the average cheese on toast...

tomato jam and pea risotto (serves 2 hungry workers)
i'm not professing to some kind of Jamie Oliver style 30 minute meal here but believe me when I say, other than the tomato jam, nothing was prepped in advance, it all just happened at the stove in about 20 minutes...

1 medium onion - finely chopped
1 glugg of white wine
250g arborio risotto rice
1 tablespoon hot tomato jam
1 pint vegetable stock
fresh rosemary and thyme
grated strong cheddar
a handful of frozen peas

- heat some butter and a little olive oil in a large pan, then add the onions and saute with the herbs until tender (no longer than 5 minutes)

- add the rice and stir it around so it soaks up the buttery, oniony juices

- add the wine and stir until the rice absorbs it, then add the tomato jam and stir again

- add the stock, a little at a time, always stirring, until all the stock is gone and the rice has absorbed it all and is now pump and tender - this should take no longer than 15 minutes

- take it off the heat, add as much grated cheese as you like and a handful of frozen peas and stir again.

eat and of course, enjoy!

Chicken Thigh Yakitori

2012-02-07T11:29:00.000Z

... a recent visit over to Lou's blog Please Do Not Feed The Animals and her entry for last months Random Recipes, reminded me how much I love Chicken Yakitori... its a classic Japanese dish usually served as little strips of grilled chicken with leeks on a skewer... it's the sweet combination of sugar and soy sauce that gets the back of my mouth watering and the heady scent as it cooks in my kitchen is driving me to the point of insanity...

... of course i've given it my own twist and am cooking it Belleau Kitchen style using my beloved chicken thighs, baked on a bed of leeks, spring onions and fine green beans... i've also used honey instead of sugar but the essence of the Yakitori is still there... driving me wild with anticipation as it bakes...

Chicken Thigh Yakitori

4 chicken thighs
1 large leek - sliced lengthways and into batons
4 spring onions - chopped into batons
a handful of fine green beans
100ml dark soy sauce
100ml Mirin (or just use regular white wine)
2 teaspoons runny honey
1 teaspoon sesame oil

- mix the liquids and honey in a jug.

- place the vegetables into a baking dish, lay the thighs, skin side up, on top and pour the liquid on top.

- bake in a hot oven for at least an hour, turning the chicken after 30 mins and then back again 10 mins before the end of the cooking time. (the honey will make the chicken skin go a little black but don't worry, this is how it should look and will add to the incredible taste)

eat and of course, enjoy!

hot tomato jam

2012-02-05T15:58:00.002Z

here's the recipe for the hot tomato jam you've all been raving about... it's very good for so many things; and i've used it as a base on a pizza, as a sauce in a courgette pie, as a filling in an omelet or just as a plain old spread in a sandwich... so versatile and so damned tasty... in this version i've included a small red chili to heat things up a little but you could easily leave it out... or add even more depending on your predilection!

this will take a good few hours, at least four, so prepare this in the morning on a lazy Sunday...

2 onions - finely chopped or finely sliced
3 400g tins of chopped tomatoes
2 gloves of garlic - finely crushed
1 medium red chili - finely chopped and deseeded
2 teaspoons tomato puree
a glugg of red wine
a glugg of balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
salt, pepper, rosemary and thyme
2 bay leaves

- heat some butter and olive oil in a pan and on a medium heat slowly caramelise the onions for about 30 minutes

- after about 20 Min's add the garlic, rosemary, thyme and chili and turn up the heat a little but make sure you don't burn anything

- add the tins of tomato, the puree, the sugar, the bay, the red wine and balsamic vinegar, give it a good stir and then, with the heat turned down to its very lowest and the lid off, let it bubble gentle away for at least four hours... you will need to stir it occasionally just to make sure its not sticking.

- use it straight away or bottle it and keep it in the fridge for at least a month although i'll doubt it'll last that long!

eat and of course, enjoy!

three egg omelette with hot tomato jam

2012-02-04T10:47:00.000Z

... there is an art to making omelettes and, as i've learnt to my detriment, it's not something you can just do naturally... of course i'm not saying you can't just pick up a frying pan, crack some eggs and make a decent omelette, in fact i'm sure you can... what i'm saying is, that to make a knock-out omelette, every time, one that people actually say... 'wow, now that's a good omelette' you have to learn a few simple rules... and if you follow these rules you will laugh at how easy, fast and damned good it really is!

rule 1... do yourself a favour and buy a decent omelette pan... this should be small, for one omelette... the very nature of the omelette is that it keeps its heat and they are so fast to cook you can do them one at a time without anyone eating alone... the pan should be a heavy, deep, non-stick pan... roughly 20cm across.

rule 2... don't over-beat your eggs... you need to have bits of white and bits of yellow in there and if you over-beat you create a denser texture... keep it loose man...

rule 3... hot pan, hot butter... fast wrist... get that pan nice and hot before your pour the eggs in, you'll then seal the omelette quicker...

rule 4... your omelette should be eggs and a little milk or cream only... the fillings or flavours get folded inside once the omelette is cooked...

... ok, enough rules, let's get on with the main event...

three egg omelette with hot tomato jam
i'm entering this omelette into the Breakfast Club challenge, this month hosted by the lovely Karen over at Lavender and Lovage. Breakfast Club was started by Helen from Fuss Free Flavours and has a different theme each month, with this month's being eggs... of course!

... I made the tomato jam for my Star Trek Pizza last week, it is a genius tomato jam, thick with caramelised onions, garlic, tomatoes and a little chilli for that heat... and it is stunning oozing out of an omelette!

3 large eggs
a small splash of milk or cream if you're feeling a little luxurious
butter
a little strong cheddar cheese
hot tomato jam

- crack the eggs into a bowl, add the milk and fork it through a few times until the yolk and white are mixed but not entirely combined

- heat the butter in the pan until it bubbles and then pour the egg in. Let it seal for 30 seconds and then, using a spatula, gently push the outer edge of the omelette into the centre of the pan allowing the liquid egg to run into the space you've created. Slowly work your way around he pan until you're back where you started and then leave it well alone for a minute or two. You may have to repeat this technique again depending on how solid or runny you like your omelettes.

- once you're happy with the solidity of your omelette and are ready to serve, grate some strong cheddar on top and then spoon in the tomato jam

- now, take the pan to your plate and shimmy half the omelette from the pan onto the plate, folding it in half as you finish

eat and of course, enjoy!

mini toad-in-the-hole

2012-02-02T12:27:00.001Z

first a warning... the next paragraph is jam-packed with saucy 'Carry-On' style innuendo and euphemism... if you think you won't be able to make it, skip down to the recipe... you have been warned...

... I was in the supermarket the other day and whilst cruising the meat counter, I picked up a packet of delightful looking chipolata sausages, stuffed with succulent British pork... I always love a little sausage and there is no better home for a little sausage than a little hole... or a mini toad in the hole... if you will... what is it about making things smaller that makes them automatically darling looking... I mean you could take one of these home and hug it its so cute...

mini toad in the hole
i've used a 6 hole deep muffin tin which produce the best Yorkshire Puddings. If I had another 6 hole tin I could have probably got a further 4 mini toads...

12 pork chipolatas
1 egg
3 fl oz milk
2 fl oz water
3 oz plain flour
1 teaspoon salt
olive oil

pre-heat the oven to 180C

- cut the chipolatas in half, place them in a roasting tin, drizzle them with a generous amount of olive oil and roast them in the oven until just beginning to brown (about 10 good minutes.) It may seem like a lot of oil but you'll need it for the batter to rise.

- meanwhile make the batter by sieving the flour and salt into a bowl and mixing in the egg, flour and water until you have a thick cream consistency, pour this into a pouring jug so you're prepared.

- 5 minutes before the sausages are done pour the excess oil from the roasting tin into the muffin tin, you want just under a third of each muffin bowl filled with oil, place the muffin tray and the sausage tin back into the oven for 5 more minutes

- open the oven and take out the sausages, pull the muffin tray out on its oven shelf and place 2 or three sausages into each muffin bowl then pour the batter mix on top of the sausages... you want to fill each muffin bowl

- bake in the oven for 10 minutes or until darkly golden and risen

eat and of course, enjoy!

Random Recipes 1st Birthday

2012-02-01T08:13:00.000Z

... can you bloody believe it... Random Recipes is 1 year old today... and what a year it's been folks...

... i've absolutely loved hosting this challenge and seeing all the random recipes you've come up with... and I know that sometimes my challenges have been a bit hard but what's the point of making everything easy in life eh? the whole point of this challenge is exactly that... a challenge, to get us all to use our cookbooks more and really expand our culinary horizons...

... so to mark this first birthday I am going to ask you to go back one year and choose again from that first random book... for those of you who took part in that first challenge it's pretty simple... for those who joined in later-on do exactly the same, that first book you used to enter my challenge... and for those Random Recipes Virgins out there... simply choose one of your cookbooks at random...

... my first Random Recipes cookbook was the most excellent tome of Italian cooking Made In Italy by Giorgio Locatelli, it is such a beautiful book with the most divine photography but it does sadly sit, unloved on my shelf... I rarely cook from it, in fact the last time I did was a year ago... which is such a shame because many of he recipes are very simple and wonderfully homely food such as my random selection this month of Calves Liver with Balsamic Vinegar... god I cannot wait to tuck into this..!

... as if you need reminding the rules are:

1. randomly select a cookbook (or use the book as described above)
2. randomly open the book at a random page
3. cook the EXACT recipe on that page
4. do NOT cheat... you are only cheating yourself... blah blah blah...
5. write up the whole thing on your blog, linking back to my blog and use the logo too
6. email the link to me at dominic@belleaukitchen.co.uk
7. and finally... as a mark of respect to your cookbook authors bank balances, please don't copy the recipe verbatim into your blog... change it up a little, encourage others to purchase the book... maybe add a little link to Amazon...

good luck and happy random choosing!

Random Recipes #12 - Round Up

2012-01-30T10:28:00.003Z

what a month it's been eh...? scandal, death and destruction and you've still all managed to come through for me... and even though I say so myself, I just love this challenge... I never know what i'm going to get sent and reading every one is so interesting... some of you are so guilty for not following the rules to the letter (for which only your god will punish you...) and others of you seem to take it all in your stride... I love you all...

...first out of the starter gate this month was the very eager Jo from Comfort Bites with this rather tasty looking Coffe-Iced Cardamom Cake taken from the interesting The Flavour Thesaurus by Niki Segnit

next is Debbie from the brilliantly witty Cooking up a Storm in a Teacup with this delicious looking Salmon and Rocket Pasta taken from the BBC Good Food 101Fish and Seafood Dishes

next is lovely Ruth from Makey-Cakey with a Pasta with Raw Tomatoes taken from the encyclopedic Veg Every Day by HFW

here's Jean from Baking in Franglais with her very sumptuous Tarte aux Poires Frangipane... one of my favourite cakey things... randomly taken from The French Country Table by Laura Washburn

the wonderfully witty woman who has a way with words over at Little Macaroon made this Spiced Pumpkin Muffin taken from a set of mini Chef Wan cook books... it wasn't what she wanted to make but stuck to the rules none the less!

our first virgin for Random Recipes this year is laura from Laura Loves Cakes who made this weight inducing just if you stare at it Summer Fruit Cream Slice taken from the McDougalls Better Bakers Guide

and another RRV... this time from Charlotte over at Charlotte's Kitchen Diary with these really lovely looking Sweetcorn Fritters taken from Entertaining at Home by Rachel Allen

next up is the mega-talented Karen Burns Booth from Lavender and Loveage with this darlink of a Mushroom Stroganoff taken from the Quorn Kitchen Cookery Book of all places!

onwards ahoy to Phil from As Strong As Soup with these rather spiffing Pecan Puffs taken from Sophie Grigsons', Sophie's Table... and bah humbug to you!

please make room for the very wonderful GG from Glamorous Glutton, another RRV with this very brave for a first attempt, Hot Smoked Salmon, Beetroot Relish and Dill Cream taken from Jamie at Home

next is Victoria from 21st Century Urban Housewife who was lucky enough to have had to choose from Dan Lepard's excellent Short and Sweet and ended up with these marvellous Bourbon and Pecan Brownies

next up is dearest Manu from Cooking Manu with this very simple but rather cheeky Easy Cheesy Cauliflower Cheese Soup taken from Soup for All Occasions by The New Covent Garden Soup Company

next is Alice from Italian Inspiration who's having a Sicilian fantasy as she cooks this rather nice braised chicken taken from Georgio Locatelli's Made in Sicily

and here's Selina from Yummy Choo Eats with a rather wonderful Moroccan Spiced Lamb Shank taken from my favourite Nigel Slater's Real Cooking.

next is another Random Recipes Virgin (why do I feel like Dracula... counting them off... 'one... one random recipe virgin... ah ha ha!'...) its Natalie from Hungry Hinny with some Curried Naan Breads taken from Paul Hollywood's 100 Great Breads... please welcome Natalie into the playing field nicely now...

and another RRV... ah ha ha!!... (stop it!) this time its Harriet from Food Love Food with a Szegediner Goulash taken from a natty little book called Austrian Specialities, again, please make room in the play ground for Harriet...

next is Corina from Searching for Spice with these very scrumptious Leek Fritters chosen randomly from the excellent Plenty by Ottolenghi

next is the adorable Helen from Fuss Free Flavours with a really wonderful Sticky Orange Marmalade Cake taken from the BBC Great British Bake-Off How to Bake

lovely kate from What Kate Baked made this delicious Marbled Chocolate Crumble Cake from Short and Sweet by Dan Lepard... and she started a new job the very next day!

next we have that brilliant Baking Addict with these fabulous Checkerboard Cookies... aren't they fabulous..? taken from the Williams Sonoma Essentials of Baking

next we have Random Recipes stalwart Gary from Exploits of a Food Nut with this rather wonderful Chicken Tikka Chicken Thighs... inspired by my love of the thigh and taken from River Cottage Meat and Fish

another curry next from Nikki or Chef Chipmunk from Food Glorious Food with a Spicy Lamb Potatoes and Peas taken from Madhur Jeffries 100 Weeknight Curries

next we have the rarely seen but glad she's here now, Louise from Please Do Not Feed The Animals with a superlative Chicken Yakitori, taken from Everyday Harumi which I adore and will be stealing this weekend.

I always love it when Lyndsey from Vanilla Clouds and Lemon Drops takes part in Random Recipes as she's always so dreadfully truthful and her recipe of Orange and Sumac Scented Quiona, taken from Full of Flavour by Maria Elia really proves how dedicated she is!

next up is self-confessed chocolate bitch (maybe not self-confessed but I know she wont mind...) Choclette from Chocolate Log Blog with this 'to die for' Coconut Cream Pie chosen from the book of the moment, Tea with Bea.

here's a wonderfully ruby red entry from Janice over at Farmersgirl Kitchen with this Beetroot and Black Cumin Soup taken from the new Moro cookbook by Sam and Sam Clark

next is C from Cake, Crumbs and Cooking with this simply marvellous Peaches and Cream Upside Down Cake taken from The Boy Who Bakes by Edd Kimber

lovely to see the return of the gorgeous Lucy from The KitchenMaid with these yummy Wonder Day Biscuits taken from Dan Lepard's Short and Sweet

next is the enchanting Eleanor from BrownieVille Girl with the cake of the moment, the Alchemists Chocolate Cake taken from the surely soon to be a millionaire, Dan Lepard's Short and Sweet

here's Sarah from What I Baked this Weekend with a stunning hot apple flan, randomly chosen from 80 Recipes Brasseries Bocuse, very elegant don't you think?

and finally, check out these stunning Pomegranate Daiquiri Mini Cupcakes over at Nicola's brilliant blog 41 Feasts, she randomly chose this recipe from the Hummingbird Bakery Cake Days

a sudden last minute entry from Mel at Sharky Oven Gloves with these divine Goats Cheese and Rosemary mini-croissants...

so, that's it for January... and a great kick-off for the new year... however most importantly, Random Recipes is one year old next month and what a birthday treat I have in store for you all... eat and of course, enjoy!

pizza trek

2012-01-29T20:25:00.000Z

... or, to boldly go where no pizza as gone before... which is not entirely true but I needed to link this post to the most incredible Christmas gift ever... my Star Trek USS Enterprise Pizza Cutter... oh yes, she is a thing of beauty... look at her glistening chrome nacelles, her beautifully formed observation deck and the pure genius that is her pizza cutter saucer section... if ever the twinning of food implement and science fiction were more elegantly or obviously matched... here the proud bastard of that sordid joining holds its head above the crowd and screams... 'behold me... for I am a thing of beauty, pathos and grace...'

... in the nearly two years that i've been blogging i've only made traditional pizza twice, which leads me to believe that this very generous gift from The Viking is more about form over function... of course he is aware of my love of the Star Trek universe and he'd have to be blind or dead not to know I like food, so for him this gift must have been like the opening of the clouds on a rainy day when the fingers of sunshine stream down from the heavens and choirs of angels sing... 'ahhhhhhhh'

the one important rule for pizza is a bloody hot oven... thank you new kitchen (mum)... and if you can get one, a large pizza stone, which I do not have but a baking tray with holes is a good second... it allows the air to flow through and the heat turns the pizza dough crisp, so you don't end up with a soggy bottom... or an upturned ceramic flan dish seems to have worked well... although I did have a bit of bother transferring it from the board which is why it looks a little crumpled..!

... other than that, there are no rules... if, like me you have plenty of time on your hands and it's a Sunday and you can get up and get a tomato sauce on which you can leave bubbling away for the day, then please do so... but to be honest you can go with any kind of topping you desire... whatever takes your fancy, or is in the fridge...

Spinach, Mushroom and Olive Pizza

for the base
1/2 teaspoon fast action dried yeast
300g strong white flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
150 ml water

for the tomato sauce
3 tins of good quality chopped tomatoes
2 medium onions - finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic - finely chopped
1 sweet chilli - finely chopped
a glug of white wine
balsamic vinegar
salt, pepper and sugar
rosemary and bay leaf

- start with the tomato sauce if you can, it tastes good after 8 hours, any less and there's no point making it.

- gently saute the onions, garlic and chilli in a little olive oil for about 10 minutes until tender and starting to brown gently

- add the rest of the ingredients, turn the heat to very low and let it simmer for 8 hours.

- for the pizza base, combine the ingredients, knead to bring together and then leave for 30 minutes for it to rise

- once risen, roll it out nice and thin, or stretch it in the air if you dare, and place it on the pizza stone / oven tray

- pre-heat the oven to at least 220C

- spoon the sauce on top and any toppings you're going with... i have gently steamed my spinach first and sauted the mushrooms too as I don't want the pizza to be in the oven for too long...

- bake for 15-20 mins or until crispy

if you wish to buy your own USS Enterprise Pizza Cutter it can be purchased on the brilliant Firebox website

eat and of course, enjoy!

Smoked Trout Fish Cakes

2012-01-27T13:46:00.003Z

BelleauSmokery Fish Cakes

With my visit to the wonderful Belleau Smokeryfresh in my mind I wanted to cook something using some of their incredible hotsmoked trout and Ginny Harrop has been kind enough to give me her recipe forfish cakes for me to share with you. I've adapted them slightly from her original and you can add any ingredients of your own but these are delightfully fresh and light and a great way to kick off anyNew Year diets without compromising on taste.

450gLincolnshire potatoes - peeled anddiced

500gBelleau Hot smoked trout fillets - flaked

1 lemon, zested and juiced

ahandful of parsley, dill or tarragon leaves,chopped - I’ve used dill as I think it works so beautifully with fish

75gmelted butter

75gcrème fraiche

2medium eggs - beaten

50gbreadcrumbs

- cook thepotatoes in boiling water for 10 – 15 minutes or until tender. Drain well,steaming off any moisture so they are completely dry. While still hot, mashwell and then set aside to cool. (try and do the potato mashing stage in the morningand refrigerate as they make a better cake once cooled)

- break thetrout into flakes, check for any stray bones.

- in a largebowl, mix the potato, lemon zest, lemon juice, crème fraiche and herbs into theflaked fish, together with the melted butter. Season well. Shape into 4 largeor 8 small, neat patties then shape by rolling into a ball then pressing downwith a flat board so they are flat on both sides.

- dip theflat sides into the beaten egg, then the breadcrumb, just so the breadcrumbs areon the flat sides.

- to cook,heat a shallow layer of oil in a wide frying pan. Fry the fishcakes for 4-5minutes until golden brown, then flip over and fry the other side for 2-3minutes. If the sides look uncooked, roll them gently through the hot oil tobrown. (or you can cook them in the oven, lightly oil a baking tray and ensureboth sides of the fishcake are coated with a fine oil layer then bake in thehot oven (190 degrees) for about 20 mins, maybe turning once half way and thencheck golden brown on both sides and hot throughout.

I've served these with a sweet chilli sauce.

If you live in the UK you can purchase any of their wonderful fish products on-line

Eat and ofcourse, enjoy!

Belleau Smokery and Trout Farm

2012-01-25T15:20:00.000Z

... i'm very proud to say that I have been commissioned to write a series of articles on Lincolnshire Food Heroes for Lincolnshire Life Magazine. The first of which comes out in the February edition, which should be on the shelves this weekend. Here is a sneak peek for those of you not in Lincolnshire...

BelleauSmokery

words by Dominic Franks

photography by Dave Moss

Food lovers and particularly food writers willoften wax lyrically about 'local'. In fact over the past few years it has becomea little over-used and whilst the sentiment is there, for many of us it is nighon impossible to shop exclusively locally. It is often impractical, let alone expensive. I am guilty of using theword myself, however one of the many glorious things about living in theheart of the Lincolnshire countryside is exactly that, being at the very pulseand life source of the produce that eventually makes its way to your table.

Belleau Bridge Trout Farm was established in1975 supplying live fish for restocking reservoirs, waterways and rivers foranglers. The Smokery itself was formed in 2008 to run alongside the livefish business and is a dream come true for Simon Harrop, 3rd generation fishfarmer who runs the business with his wife Ginny and the farm could not be morelocal for me as it is quite literally on my doorstep.

I met with Ginny on a cold, rainy December afternoon,not the most evocative kind of weather for viewing a trout farm but I quicklylearn from her that the farm never stops working, apart from a few days overChristmas, as the trout need constant attention; from receiving the eggs whichare purchased in the USA via the internet to the hatching, to the final guttingand gilling.

Ginny had originally studied catering andbusiness studies at Leeds and had a successful career in property PR but inanswer to the recession she and husband Simon started the smokery business. Her dedication to creating the perfect smokedtrout saw her spend a week as an apprentice at a smokery in Somerset beforefinding Malcolm Middleton an expert smoker and designer of a new style of smokemachine who gave them their first smoker. They took a table at a food fair in Market Raisen and sold out in thefirst hour!

From these humble beginnings they have quicklybecome one of the largest trout farms in the Britain, supplying not only livingtrout to restock rivers for fishing across the UK but also fresh and smoked productsto local restaurants, hotels and caterers.

For those of you unaware of this hidden part ofthe County, Belleau, a small hamlet of 12 houses, is situated on theSouth-Eastern edge of the Wolds, off the A16 between the market towns of Alfordand Louth with the Trout Farm nestling in 5 acres of bucolic countryside.

The life of the trout at the farm begins in The Hatchery at Belleau, itis rather unique as it has a gravity fed water system starting with the naturalmineral spring pond filtering the water directly into the troughs of tiny pinktrout eggs. These eggs are all manually cared for by Simon who picks them over byhand to make sure any empty or dead shells are discarded to avoid contaminationto the others.   Once the eggs are hatched they are moved progressively intolarger tanks and raceways that are all spring fed.

In fact in the summer of2007 Simon decided to open some of the original stone raceways first built byhis grandfather when they moved from Yorkshire and bought the farm back in the1970’s. I have often walked past these raceways myself, always wonderingwhat they were used for and remember seeing Simon that summer, busy clearingand preparing them for use. Sadly, itwas only a few weeks after they had finally opened these old raceways that wehad the dreadful floods that decimated the area, ruining many businesses, withrivers bursting their banks and flooding the land. The Harrops lost thousands of small fish andI even remember a few very large trout gasping for life as they lay trapped innewly formed ponds in the middle of the meadow opposite my house.

After 3 months in the tanks the trout are then transferredinto earth dug ponds and graded by size to ensure they have the space to growand are hand fed the correct balance of food which is supplemented by theabundance of fresh watercress and the natural flora of the river and springsystem.

Once the fish are up to size (it takesapproximately 14-15 months for a trout to grow to over one and half pounds inweight) they are again graded by hand and transported in oxygen filled tanksfor live delivery to the fishing lake or river. For the smokery the same fishare used in various sizes and are taken to the processing room on the farmwhere they are prepared for smoking or packed in ice for sending out to themarkets, shops and wholesalers.

The Belleau Smokery make a small but well chosenselection of produce that can be purchased direct from the farm or via theirexcellent website and includes such delicacies as Hot and Cold Smoked Trout,Fish Cakes and what I consider their piece de resistance, the Smoked Trout Pate. The dedication and passion with which theHarrops run their farm is reflected in the quality of this incredible, naturalfood and should be celebrated as a local produce worthy of a place at yourdinner table.

Order direct on-line: belleausmokery.co.uk

I will post a lovely recipe for Smoked Trout Fishcakes in a couple of days

totally fucking crap

2012-01-22T19:25:00.000Z

I think, without trying to sound too melodramatic, I can honestly say this has been one of the worst weeks of my life...

... and it's taken me a while to get back into the kitchen and be bothered to cook... I have that feeling in my throat, like when you've cried too much and you can't breathe any more... except I haven't cried... there's been too much anger and I've had to much to do to think about crying...

... now I don't want anyone to feel sorry for me, that's not why I'm posting this, I simply wanted to explain why I've been so quiet this week...

... and you may think it odd that I've chosen to bake a triple layer chocolatey celebration cake after such a tough week but you see the thing is I deserve this. I have triumphed over despicable evil and even though I've come through this a little broken I can see the light at the end if the tunnel and it is rather wonderful...

... what do you mean you can't see the wonderful triple layered chocolate cake with lusciously thick American Frosting... ? is that because to round off my fucking crap week, I dropped the bloody thing on the floor...?

I managed to save some of the stuff but it was so smooshed up I just smooshed the whole lot up and squidged it into these little tea-cups... it tasted divine, very thick and sweet but quite light and fluffy too... one cup was probably just too much but what the heck eh?

... and yes, I realise I've been entirely vague in detailing this weekus horribilis but I expect you, dear reader, to accept the fact that it was bad and move on with me without any pity...

... i'd like to thank Katie from Matcha Chocolates for providing the incredible dark chocolate for this smoosh... I doubt it would have tasted quite so good without it...

eat and of course, enjoy!

pork belly and chorizo stew

2012-01-17T11:35:00.000Z

... this is pure heaven in a bowl... heady... hot... tender and deeply full of flavours well needed during these wintery days...

... I still have 3 large portions of the pork belly I received from my dear friend Zena back in November and I want to make sure that I do something special and different with each of them... I made a traditional thyme and salt rub, slow roast, with one portion on New Years Day but today i wanted something really, deeply luxurious... simply to satisfy me in a purely culinary way you understand...

my New Years Day slow roasted pork belly

.. I also have two pigs trotters and the lovely Shu Han from Mummy I Can Cook has advised me of what to do with them... although I'm not quite ready for that yet...

pork belly and chorizo stew
I was inspired by a recipe I found on the ever reliable BBC Good Food website which i've adapted a little to suit my tastes and what I had in the cupboard... apart from the chorizo, this stew was basically made from stuff I had in the house... which isn't half bad for a meal in mid January!

a pork belly portion - cut into large chunks, with the skin removed (perfect excuse to make crackling!)
1 large onion - chopped
2 garlic cloves - finely crushed
1 red chilli - finely chopped
2 medium chorizo sausages - cut into cubes
1 tsp hot smoked paprika
400g tin of chopped tomatoes
150ml red wine
400g tin of chickpeas

- heat little oil in an oven proof casserole and brown the pork belly in batches, then set-aside.

- gently saute the onions, garlic and chilli until the onion is soft, then add the chorizo and paprika and and saute for a further 5 minutes

- add the pork belly back into the pot and pour over the tomatoes, wine and enough water to just cover the pork, give it a good stir and place it in the oven, on 160C fan for at least 2 hours.

- after 1 and a half hours add the chickpeas and let it cook for the last 30 mins with the lid off

the house will smell divine as you eat and of course, enjoy!

mini raspberry and rhubarb crumble tarts

2012-01-14T16:52:00.000Z

... I awoke this morning to a wonderful frost... the fields lay glistening in the glorious dawn sunshine, their usual emerald green sprinkled in a spiders-web crochet of diamonds... and that etherial pale blue light you only get on a frosty morning was piercing the bedroom... it filled me with hope whilst the air froze my little toes as they peeped out from the end of the bead-spread...

... I love a winter morning and it's days like this, when you notice for the first time the daffodil shoots pushing out through the frozen earth, that make me glad to be healthy and alive... despite the rather tumultuous few weeks... when you have pastry in your life how bad can it be?

mini raspberry and rhubarb crumble tarts

I've decided to make these because they feel very Spring-like especially as you can now purchase wonderful British forced rhubarb in some shops and I like to start January with a fresh clean taste of the goodness of what's to come. I like the fact that they are small tarts rather than one large one. They remind me a little of those classic jam tarts I used to make when I was a child and I think a little bit of nostalgia when cooking is always a good thing. I'm also using this almond based pastry for extra richness.

For the pastry:

200g plain flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

75g caster sugar

100g unsalted butter

100g full fat cream cheese

75g ground almonds

1 egg yolk

a little milk to bind

- sift the flour baking powder and sugar into a bowl, add the butter and rub until it resembles breadcrumbs

- add the cream cheese, ground almonds and egg yolk, take a knife and mix until it comes together into a dough, you may need to add a little milk here, as I did.

- chill the dough for at least 30 mins before rolling out.

For the filling:

3 medium sticks of rhubarb – finely chopped

1 packet if raspberries

2 tablespoons caster sugar

1 dash of orange liquor

a few tablespoons of home-made plum, vanilla and star anise jam.

- gently heat the rhubarb with the sugar and orange liquor and a small splash of water. You

want them to keep their shape and have a gently bite to them. If this can be made in advance

and stored in jars it will taste more intense but it's not essential

for the crumble topping:

4oz flour

2oz butter

2oz demarera sugar

lots of cinnamon

- mix together into crumbs before using.

To construct the tarts:

- roll out the pastry

- use a fluted cutter for that old school look, use one larger than the holes in the pie tray and

cut out as many as you need.

- paint the inside of each tart with jam (this will seal the pastry)

- fill each tart with a mixture of raspberries and rhubarb, don't make it too neat, you want it

to look like they're pushing to get out of the tarts!

- spoon a generous portion of crumble mixture on top

- bake at 180C for roughly 20mins or until the pastry and topping is golden.

I am of course, entering these little beauties into this months Tea Time Treats hosted by the superlative Karen from Lavender and Lovage and the stupendous Kate from What Kate Baked. The theme this month is Sweet Pastry and Breads...

eat and of course, enjoy!

Honey and Walnut Bread

2012-01-10T14:52:00.001Z

...after my recent funk I woke up this morning with the urge to bake but I wanted something nice and safe to get me back into the kitchen... I opened the cupboards for some inspiration and a bag of walnuts fell out and scattered everywhere giving me a sign to use it as an ingredient and also a not so subtle nudge to have a tidy up...

... I decided to go for a walnut and honey loaf which i've based on Dan Lepards Easy White Bread from his brilliant Short and Sweet book... he does have a separate recipe for honey and walnut bread but I didn't have all the required ingredients and anyway, I know this bread works well for me and I reasoned that it was the kind of recipe I could add to without compromising the texture... and boy was I right... i've ended up with a glorious loaf that is just the right side of sweet without making it a tea-time treat (sorry girls) and nutty enough to satisfy my cravings for texture...

Honey and Walnut Bread

400g strong white flour

1 teaspoon fast action yeast

1 teaspoon fine salt

250ml warm water

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 tbsp runny honey

2 tbsp crushed walnuts

oil for kneading

- put the four, yeast and salt in a bowl, add the olive oil, honey and nuts, pour in the warm water and stir everything together into a sticky, shaggy mess, cover the bowl with a cloth and leave it for 10 minutes

- lightly oil your work surface, turn the bowl over and empty the dough onto the surface and very gently knead the dough 8 times (that's 8 classic 'stretch then heel of hand then quarter turn... repeat...) then cover and leave for 10 minutes.

- repeat this gentle 'knead and leave' technique 3 times

- then after the last gentle knead return the dough to the bowl, cover with a cloth and leave it to rise for 45 minutes or until doubled in size.

- pre-heat the oven to 200C fan

- sprinkle your work surface with flour, turn the dough onto the surface and pat it down into an oval shape. Roll it up tightly and lay it seam down onto a floured baking tray. Let is rest again for a further 45 minutes.

- brush the top of the dough with beaten egg, sprinkle with crushed walnuts and bake for 35-40 minutes.

eat and of course enjoy!

Fresh Linguini, Shredded Brussels Sprouts, Sage and Pine Nuts - A Random Recipe

2012-01-08T13:00:00.000Z

...my Random Recipes book this month is wild garlic, gooseberries and me, by Dennis Cotter... I'm so pleased I reached for it... it is simply wonderful and packed with such inspiring recipes... i'm not saying i'm quite over my dark mood but if anything can drag me kicking and screaming out of this funk, this is the book to do it... there are combinations, ingredients and ideas here that I would never normally try and home, which is why I love this challenge so much... just a flick through the book and I can conjure up... Beetroot and Pomegranate Tabbouleh with Orange-marinated Feta... Pan-fried Artichokes with Lemon Cream and Baked Semolina Gnocchi... or Nettle Risotto... it's all very seasonal and a lot of it is foraged food, which I love the idea of... I think this book may become my seasonal bible this year...

... my random recipe uses up that perennial favourite the Brussels Sprout... i don't hate them so much as don't care for them with the love of a chicken thigh for instance...

... and it's funny because neither The Viking or myself care hugely for tomato based sauces either, preferring its creamy cousin but this one was just superb which makes me all the more happy that Random Recipes came into my life... have you done your Random Recipes yet...?

Fresh Linguini, Shredded Brussels Sprouts, Sage and Pine Nuts
I followed this recipe exactly except I cooked everything for a lot longer to make it into more of a ragu which I think has created a really rich and unusual sauce... just follow the recipe but turn the heat down and let it simmer gently for about an hour.

9 oz Brussels Sprouts - shredded
2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion - very finely chopped
12 fresh sage leaves - finely sliced
4 garlic cloves - crushed
1 400g can of chopped tomatoes
finely grated zest of 1 orange
1 tbsp pine nuts - lightly toasted
1lb fresh linguini (the original recipe called for tagliolini but I couldn't find any)
2oz butter
2oz Lincolnshire Poacher or other hard cheese - grated

- saute the onions and garlic gently in a pan, add the sprouts and sage and cook for 2 minutes

- next add the tomatoes, orange zest and pine nuts, season and simmer for 2 minutes more

- boil some water and cook the pasta, drain well

- add the pasta, cheese and butter to the sprouts and serve

eat and of course enjoy!

small pleasures

2012-01-06T14:35:00.000Z

... i'm feeling thoroughly fed up and totally un-inspired...

I know it happens to the best of us, particularly during these winter months but i've got a real funk on... I'm staying out of my wonderful kitchen as much as possible...I don't even feel like cooking... i know, I can't believe I've actually written those words either...!

... I go to bed every night with that dreadful Sunday night feeling and I can't seem to shake the mood of impending doom... I know I sound frightfully dramatic but i'm finding it hard to be enthusiastic about it all... I know it will pass and I do have some exciting stuff to look forward to this year... i'm just in some need for inspiration and i'm not finding it in the pages of my cook books...

... this morning The Viking suggested I make myself bacon and eggs to cheer me up... and it's always the small pleasures that give us a lift don't they? As you can see by the picture, i'm going for a carb-free diet at the moment and for this reason i'm also entering this post into this month's Breakfast Club. Founded by the wonderful Helen over at Fuss Free Flavours and hosted this month by Food Je t'Aimee the theme is January Detox.

I realise that this doesn't seem particularly detoxifying but believe me this is detox for the soul...

Folded Eggs and Baked Bacon
i'm not going to be impertanent enough to teach you how to suck eggs... or scramble eggs... but may I explain my method for folded eggs and baked bacon...

to feed 2 hungry mouths:

5 eggs
a splash of milk
a large knob of butter
6 rashers of streaky bacon

- start with the bacon as this will take the longest...

- pre-heat the oven to 160C and line an oven proof dish with foil

- lay your bacon strips into the dish and bake for 10-15 minutes or until nice and crispy

- my rule for eggs is 2 per person plus one if there's more than one of you

- break the eggs into a large bowl, add a dash of milk and beat with a fork until bubbly

- put the heat on high, take a large heavy bottomed frying pan, add the butter and teeny drop of olive oil and once it melted add the beaten egg mix

- let it sit in the pan for a moment or two... it needs to catch, a little like an omelet.

- take a wide spatula and gently push the egg mix from the edges into the middle, again like you would with an omelet but let it tear as you push, almost folding the eggs as you do it. Work your way around the pan and very soon the eggs should begin to solidify. I like mine still slightly soft but keep going for as long as you like... the eggs should be soft and light and beautiful...

... i'm already slightly more inspired...

eat and of course, enjoy!

Banana, Walnut and White Chocolate Loaf - We Should Cocoa

2012-01-04T16:41:00.000Z

...you probably think I've got some kind of banana loaf fetish, which I do... but I hate to see a banana go to waste and anyway work with me here... banana is a fruit... walnut's are full of vitamins and protein... a loaf is NOT a cake... this surely equals a healthy snack right..? okay, so the added chocolate may be a little off the scale but it's not my fault... for that the blame lays squarely at Chele from Chocolate Teapot's feet... oh and her cunning partner in crime Choclette from Chocolate Log Blog... evil twins that they are made me do it....

... the theme for this months we should cocoa challenge is health... I suppose it's Chele's idea of being cruel to be kind... whatever it is and however I kid myself about this banana loaf being healthy The Viking and I devoured it in one sitting, which I'm not sure counts as portion control let alone healthy eating... ah well, it was damn fine which really is the point isn't it?

Banana, Walnut and White Chocolate Loaf
if you get a chance to refrigerate this loaf for 24 hours before you eat it you will enjoy a denser, moister loaf

8oz self raising flour
4oz butter
4oz brown sugar

2 ripe bananas - mashed
2 large eggs - beaten
2 oz chopped walnuts
100g white chocolate -chopped into chunks

- in a large bowl, mix the flour butter and sugar into breadcrumbs

- add the bananas, eggs, walnuts and chocolate and mix together

- pour into a loaf tin and bake in the oven for 45 mins at 170c

eat and of course, enjoy!

veggie mince lasagne with a mustard cheese sauce

2012-01-03T12:18:00.000Z

isn't it funny how we react to the words 'veggie mince'... as though the very thought would turn our masterful culinary stomach... when actually, eaten in moderation, it's rather healthy and the stuff hits the spot quite well, especially when you're in need of bulk and want to make something that looks like a traditional lasagne... it is also a great meal to prepare for this time of year when you need something that anyone can eat regardless of meat-eating persuasion and can either last for a couple of meals or feed the hoards should they decide to swing by...

... I tend to make my bolognese type sauce in the morning and then construct the lasagne once i'm ready to eat, this way the sauce has time to cool and then re-heat which always adds to the flavour of the final dish.

veggie mince lasagne
I'm using Quorn mince but there are many brands out there... or if you're feeling that it just has to be meat, why not try a turkey mince which is very lean and extremely kind to the budget...

for the bolognese sauce:
1 medium onion - chopped
2 garlic cloves - finely crushed
1 celery stick - finely chopped
2 packets of 300g frozen Quorn Mince
a handful of chestnut mushrooms - finely diced
1 large 250g tin of chopped tomatoes
1 large 250g tin of vegetable stock
2 teaspoons tomato puree
1 courgette - diced
1 glass of white wine
fresh rosemary and thyme
2 bay leaves

for the mustard cheese sauce
75g unsalted butter
1 tablespoon plain flour
1 pint of liquid made up of half milk and half vegetable stock
8oz of strong cheddar - grated
1 teaspoon of French mustard

- to make the 'bolognese' sauce, gently saute the onions, garlic and celery in a large heavy pan until the onions are translucent, add the mushrooms and let them sweat until tender, then add the mince, stir and let the whole lot sweat gently for about 5 minutes as the mince soaks up all the vegetable juices

- add the tomatoes then refill the tin with hot vegetable stock and add that too, then add the rest of the ingredients, stir and let it simmer very gently for at east an hour

- to make the cheese sauce, melt the butter over a gentle heat, remove the pan from the heat, add the flour and stir with a wooden spoon until all the butter is absorbed

- place the pan back onto the gentle heat and add a little of the milk/stock and stir continuously until it becomes a smooth paste. Slowly add a little of the liquid whilst stirring until all the liquid has gone and the sauce becomes nice and thick, then let the sauce cook a little.

- after about 5 minutes add the grated cheese and mustard and stir until melted

- pre-heat the oven to 180c

- take a large ovenproof dish and layer the lasagne, bolognese sauce first, then pasta, then cheese sauce... I try and go for 3 layers, finishing with white sauce and topping with freshly torn mozzarella and a little more grated cheddar

- bake in the oven for 30 minutes or until beautifully golden on top

eat and of course, enjoy!

Random Recipes #12 - New Year... New Book...

2012-01-01T10:02:00.001Z

... firstly may I wish you, from Belleau Kitchen, a very Happy and Healthy New Year... I hope all your dreams come true in Two Thousand and Twelve... Olympic year for lucky Londoners, Golden Jubilee Year for the rest of us British lot and something for everyone to celebrate... the 100th anniversary of the Titanic disaster... what a year it will be...

... so let us kick it off in wonderful style with a nice and easy Random Recipe challenge... New Year... New Book is all about cooking something random from your newest cookbook... I realise we've done something similar before but the concept is a moveable feast for everyone and seeing that I could, with impunity, guess that we all received at least one new cookbook for Christmas, it shouldn't be too hard to want to join in...

... my new book is Wild Garlic, Gooseberries and Me by Dennis Cotter... a book written in 2007 but unknown to me until now but it's a fascinating vegetarian cook book about eating off the land... full of lovely tales and delicious recipes... i've not really had time to study it properly but I am very excited about giving it a good read... and my random recipe...Tagliolini with shredded Brussels Sprouts, Sage and Pine Nuts... oh yes, just as thought it was safe to steer clear of the dreaded Brussel it rears its ugly head once more... bloody random recipes... who's stupid idea was this...?

rules are pretty simple...

1. select your newest book
2. shut your eyes and randomly open the book
3. cook the recipe found on the opened page
4. write it up in a blog post, including a link back to my blog and the random recipes logo
5. email me a link to your entry to dom@thepersuaders.co.uk
6. do NOT cheat... you're only cheating yourself
7. you have until the 30th Jan to enter the challenge

eat and of course, enjoy!

Random Recipes #11 - Round Up

2011-12-31T09:09:00.000Z

... wow... last day of the year... and what a month eh...? this thing called Christmas just loomed out of nowhere, rearing its ugly head from behind a cloud of tinsel and fairy dust... but you still found time for a bit of charity this month and I'm so glad you did... you all get a gold star and one step nearer to heaven... which, believe me I really need right now!

kicking us straight of is the brilliant Phil from As Strong As Soup with this funny recipe for Microwave Chocolate Fudge taken from the dreadful (I know, I have it) Microwave Cookbook by the people at Good Housekeeping

next out of the charity bag is the lovely Karen from Lavender and Lovage with this Goat's Cheese Salad with Quick Cranberry Chutney taken from The Readers Digest 30 Minute Cookbook

next we have these stunning Lebkuchen chosen from Gifts from the Kitchen by Annie Rigg made by the wonderful Yummy Choo

lovely Jo next from Comfort Bites with this rather nice Pork, Apple and Sage Kebabs taken from Gary Rhodes' Great Fast Food

next is the wonderful Ruth from Makey-Cakey with this perfectly un-Christmassy Rocket, Parmesan and Pear Salad (without the Parmesan...) taken from the rather odd World Cuisine Italy (1)... better at the charity shop I say!

next is a virgin entry for Random Recipes by Laura from How to Cook Good Food... who we welcome heartily with this very good Three Cheese Ravioli and Walnut Sauce taken from the intruigingly titled Wraps Around the World!

lovely Kate from What Kate Baked is next with this very Christmassy looking Panna Cotta taken from the Hairy Bikers 12 Days of Christmas

next up is Gill from Tales of Pigling Bland with this bloody amazing looking Madiera Cake WITH hocolate lid... of all things!...taken from Good Housekeepings Cakes and Pastries

and now onto Lucy from The KitchenMaid who is pretty much acting as superwoman at the moment with a big house move and still had time to join in the random recipes madness with this Krummeltorte taken from Sophie Gray's painfully titled Stunning food from Small Change

next up is Farmersgirl herself Janice with a very inventive Turkey and Cream Sauce Bake taken from The Book of Pizza and Pasta... it should have been salmon but for some reason she had some left-over turkey...

next is lovely Lou from Please Do Not Feed The Animals who made this rather healthy Poached Salmon with Herb Dressing taken from Everyday Food by Martha Stewart

and of course, let's not forget little old me (from Belleau Kitchen) with a rather nice as it happens Creamy Vegetable Curry taken from the now greatly missed, Practical Low Fat

so thank-you once again for the lovely entries... wishing you all a very happy and healthy 2012... see you in the New Year with a new Random Recipes challenge and plenty of new recipes and fun!

eat and of course, enjoy!

Turnip, Watercress and Blue Cheese Soup with Linseed Rolls

2011-12-27T15:31:00.000Z

so the big day is over... and with all those left-overs still in the fridge, meals are becoming predictable to say the least... not that I mind, there's nothing I love more than a turkey, stuffing and coleslaw sandwich... its just that we're in that in between time where, if you're anything like me, you'll have gorged yourself on so much food you can barely look into the kitchen without feeling nauseated... the only thing is... I am still hungry... not sure what that's all about but I'm just so into my food right now... and i'm craving stuff packed with flavour but easy to make...

Turnip, Watercress and Blue Cheese Soup

This soup is something my Grandma used to make and it’s a wonderful old recipe I’ve not seen anywhere since. For 3 simple ingredients it’s amazingly tasty and is great for using up any Silton or other blue cheese left-over from Christmas.

1 medium onion – chopped

7 medium turnips – peeled and chopped

2 large bunches of watercress

2 pints of good quality vegetable stock

blue cheese to taste (I’m using a local Cote Hill Blue)

butter and olive oil

- melt the butter with a little olive oil in a large pan, add the onions and let them sweat for 5 mins until translucent

- add the turnips, stir and cover and sauté gently until soft

- add the stock and simmer for 20 mins, then add the watercress and blue cheese and simmer for a further 5 mins

- wiz in a blender or use a hand blender until smooth

The bread rolls are made using Dan Lepard's Easy White Loaf recipe but i've used some wonderful golden linseeds to top them... perfect in-between food...

eat and of course, enjoy!

a christmas banana loaf - Forever Nigella

2011-12-23T20:51:00.000Z

... not quite sure where this one came from but it was those two very brown bananas staring at me from the bowl that inspired me to get busy... and at this time of year it's all mince pies and eggnog so I thought a little banana bread would shake it up a little... as you know, i'm a regular banana bread maker but for this one I turned to Nigella so I could enter this into the last ever Forever Nigella, hosted by the miniature muffin-sized Sarah from Maison Cupcake under the theme of Christmas Presence... which meant I needed to give it Christmas twist... easily done with the addition of candied peel and dash or four of wonderful Glenmorangie whisky...

Christmas Banana Loaf

this recipe (and method) is adapted from one I found in How To Be A Domestic Goddess and because i've adapted it I am showing you the recipe here...

8oz self raising flour
4oz butter
4oz brown sugar

In a large bowl, mix the above into breadcrumbs then add a teaspoon of cinnamon

2oz sultanas, 1 oz of candied peel and 2oz of pre-toasted almond slivers go in next

next mash 2 ripe bananas with 2 beaten eggs and a good glug of whisky and add these to the bowl and mix it all together.

Pour into a loaf tin and bake in the oven for 45 mins at 170c

eat and of course, enjoy! and a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS to you and all your loved ones xx

10 hour honey and orange chicken thighs

2011-12-22T18:45:00.000Z

... it's odd, this lull time between now and The Big Day... I kinda feel like I should be eating sparingly... salads and soups... and it's weird because with all the planning and lists i'm not that hungry... well my sweet tooth has gone completely out the window... but I still need to eat...

... I thought I'd give my beloved chicken thighs the Gwyneth Paltrow 10 Hour treatment...it's so simple with barely anything to do but leave it in the oven for 10 hours... giving me plenty of time to do some last minute shopping, wrap prezzies and generally enjoy a couple of good old-fashioned Christmas movies... I wasn't quite sure how they'd turn out, not being the whole bird but boy oh boy are these babies good... succulent, tender to the point that they're falling off the bone and they have the most intense chicken flavour... and the juices that have come out of the thighs are so clear and full of wonderful richness... i'm considering doing a Christmas Turkey this way just to see how it comes out!

10 hour honey and orange chicken thighs

the original recipe calls for lemons but I only had oranges, so added a little honey too...

8 chicken thighs

1 orange - quartered

1 tablespoon honey

1 large carrot - roughy chopped

1 stick of celery - roughly chopped

1 medium leek - roughy chopped

a lot of thyme

salt and pepper

- place the veg and orange pieces into a large oven-proof dish or casserole pot, place the chicken thighs on top, skin side down, sprinkle with herbs and seasoning and drizzle with honey

- wrap very tightly with foil and bake in the oven, set to 100C for 9 and a half hours

- after the 9 and a half hours, remove the foil, turn the heat up to 190C and bake for a further 30 mins or until the chicken is golden

eat and of course enjoy!

mince pies

2011-12-20T10:30:00.000Z

... something odd is happening to me... I have a tingly feeling all over... I go outside and the crisp cold air wraps me in its icy grip... but I don't feel the cold... I feel warm from head to toe and as I breath out, the air turns to glitter and covers my path in fairy dust... I hear bells jingle as the last of the leaves rattle together on the trees... could this be the JOY OF CHRISTMAS...?

... the aroma of baking mince pies has filled the house with its heady scent and as though it has triggered something in the deepest, darkest recess of my mind, I finally feel in the Christmas Spirit... all our events have at last finished for this year... now is the time for me to relax and enjoy the nothingness of it all...

... I made mince pies last year but they weren't a patch on these... I've heard it said up and down the land that once you make your own mincemeat you'll never go back to shop bought... and it is most definitely true... nothing beats it... this pastry is also utter perfection and I have to nod to the wonderful Dan Lepard for this one... it calls for cream cheese to be added into the pastry mix and although I used cottage cheese instead of cream cheese, it really is a most excellent and complimentary pastry...

My Mince Pies
i'm entering the top picture into Jac's No Crouton's Required who's theme this month is Festive Photo's... and I really do feel festive when looking at its pure Christmassy essence... I hope she likes it.

for the filling
I urge you to make your own... check out my very simple whisky mincemeat

for the pastry
300g plain flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
112g caster sugar
150g unsalted butter
100g full fat cream cheese (I used cottage cheese which was excellent)
75g ground almonds
1 egg yolk
a little milk to bind

- sift the flour baking powder and sugar into a bowl, add the butter and rub until it resembles breadcrumbs

- add the cream cheese, ground almonds and egg yolk, take a knife and mix until it comes together into a dough, you may need to add a little milk here, as I did.

- chill the dough for at least 30 mins before rolling out.

- use a fluted cutter larger than the holes in the pie tray and cut out as many as you need, remembering to leave enough pastry for the lids.

- bake at 180C for roughly 20mins or until the pastry is golden.

eat and of course enjoy!

caramelised onion and mushroom layered suet pudding

2011-12-18T10:43:00.000Z

i've been reading a lot of blog posts and magazine articles recently about what to serve vegetarians for Christmas Lunch... as though its the most dreadful problem to have at this time of year... world economy gone to pot... children starving in Africa... war in the Middle East... all major issues yes, but what the FUCK do we serve those god forsaken vegetarian wankers?

well i've talked about this before... and I speak from experience... there is nothing a vegetarian hates more than being made to feel 'different' or 'special'... they want what we're having just without the meat... I know it sounds like a cop-out or like you've not made any effort but I PROMISE you... give the vegetarian the choice of a special tomato gloop thingy or a plate of roasted potatoes, freshly steamed vegetables, stuffing, maybe a Yorkshire Pudding and some yummy veggie gravy and they will go with the veg plate every time...

... but if you're really not satisfied with that answer, then make this...

caramelised onion and mushroom layered suet pudding

could there be anything more Christmassy than a suet pudding...? and yes I did make this for him last year but what better compliment that being asked to cook it again so clearly i'm making this for The Viking on Christmas Day but i'm going to add a third layer of sage and onion stuffing to really enhance the Christmas Spirit.

For the filling:

4 large onions - finely sliced
8 large field mushrooms

1 packet of good quality sage and onion stuffing

For the suet pastry:
150g vegetarian suet
300g self raising flour
200ml cold water
fresh herbs and seasoning

- with plenty of butter, slowly caramelise the onions in a deep pan with a couple of teaspoons of sugar, this should take about an hour on a low to medium heat but turn them very frequently until they are golden

- meanwhile bake the mushrooms in a hot oven with plenty of oil and rosemary until they are tender, (roughy 20 mins of 180C) they could also be turned once or twice

- make the stuffing mix

- in a large bowl mix the flour, suet and water to form a dough then roll it out, nice and thick and line a well greased pudding basin, making sure you leave enough pastry for the lid

- begin to layer the pudding, onions then mushrooms, then stuffing until full, you may have to cut some of the mushrooms to fill the layers, then place the pastry lid on top and seal with water

- cover in foil with a pleat in the top of the foil to allow for air to expand and steam for 2 hours

eat and of course, enjoy!

chocolate orange roulade for Eric Lanlard

2011-12-16T15:12:00.000Z

so... in my continuing effort towards world domination (oh god Dom, not that AGAIN...) I have been asked to audition for the second series of Baking Mad with Eric Lanlard ... it's quite exciting as I get to go down to the Big Smoke and meet the gang, charm the pants off them, get on the show, which is showing on one of the main UK channels this time and not some kind of obscure off shoot of BBC Bristol, make them fall in love with me so much that they offer me my own TV show, become a huge star... a few simple steps to world domination which start with this chocolate orange roulade...

... now I realise that I only very recently made a chestnut cream roulade but the team at the TV production company asked me to bring something along that I am proud to have baked and shows off my skills and so I thought of this little beauty... of course I couldn't just rustle up the same old same old so i've given it a little twist by using the wonderful chocolate orange fairtrade chocolate I used recently when I made my honey buns, plus I have used just a little of the wonderful syrup in the whipped cream to add even more of an orange hit... and I have to say I have hit jackpot here, even if I do say so myself!

chocolate orange roulade
I am of course entering this into this months we should cocoa, as my second entry, thank you very much...

For the roulade:

4 eggs - separate yolks and whites

150g good dark chocolate (at least 80% cocoa)

4oz caster sugar

For the filling:

300m tub of double or whipping cream

2 tablespoons of wonderful orange honey syrup

grated orange zest

- In a large bowl, beat the yolks with the sugar until soft and light.

- Melt the chocolate (I do this gently in the microwave but if the idea sends shivers up your spine, then use the classic bowl over simmering water method...) at this stage add 1 and 1/2 tablespoons of hot water to the choc mix, then add it to the egg and sugar mix.

- Next beat the egg whites till stiff and then carefully fold them into the mixture.

- Line a large Swiss roll tin with tin-foil which you should then grease well with butter or margarine.

- Pour the mixture into the tin and bake in the oven at 160C for 20 minutes then a further 10 minutes at 90C.

- Whilst it’s baking, grease another large sheet of foil and place it on a flat surface where it won’t have to be moved for a while.

Now the tricky bit...

- Once baked, take it out of the oven and immediately turn it over onto the greased foil and leave it, with the baking tin still on top for at least 8 hours... so bake in the morning and get on with making the soup, or bake in the evening and leave it overnight.

- Now you're ready to assemble; whip the cream and stir in the syrup and grated zest.

- Take off the baking tin and carefully peel off the foil that lined the tin.

- Spread the cream mixture evenly onto the surface of the roulade and then, using the excess foil, roll the roulade into shape. It should be able to be slipped neatly onto a plate.

one step nearer world domination... eat and of course, enjoy!

Creamy Vegetable Curry - a random recipe

2011-12-15T11:07:00.000Z

it's odd that I don't make more curry... I have, in this last year made more curry than ever before but it is still amazing that it's not regularly on my list of things to cook as I completely love it... not only does it taste so good and so much better than anything shop or take-away bought but, after you have all the essential ingredients in your store cupboard, which then seem to last forever, it is so easy to do... no more complicated than a stew in fact but packs far more of a punch!... plus it's so thoroughly un-Christmas I find it a perfect antidote to the cloying sweetness of what's to come...

... plus I was recently fortunate enough to bag myself a jar of this incredibly hot Sweet and Hot Lemon Pickle made by the lovely Kavey from Kavey Eats... (well I think it's actually made by her Mamta, which who i'm sure is just as lovely) which i've used in place of the Mango Chutney called for in the recipe.

... this is my entry for this months Random Recipes and true to my word I took this cookbook down to the charity shop, along with some other, never-used books and the dear old lady was very pleased to receive them... I left with a lovely feeling of charity, knowing that whomever bought this book would be slimmer and more practical because of it...

Creamy Vegetable Curry - page 136 of Practical Low Fat (available in the Louth branch of the British Heart Foundation...)

2 tbsp sunflower oil
1 onion - sliced
2 tsp cumin seeds
2 tbsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground turmeric
2 tsp ground ginger - I used fresh, grated
1 tsp chopped fresh red chilli
2 garlic cloves - finely crushed
400g tinned chopped tomatoes
1 tin of coconut milk
1 small cauliflower - broken into florets
2 carrots - sliced
1 potato - diced
1 tin of chickpeas
150ml thick natural yoghurt - I used 2 tbsp cream cheese
2 tbsp mango chutney
3 tbsp chopped fresh coriander

- heat the oil in a heavy pan and fry the onions until soft, then add all the spices, garlic and ginger and fry for a further minute

- add the tomatoes and coconut mil and stir well

- add the veg then cover and simmer for at least 20 minutes

- add the yoghurt or cream cheese

serve with whatever takes your fancy, eat and of course, enjoy!

mincemeat scones - a Christmas tea time treat

2011-12-13T12:24:00.000Z

I was whipping up a batch of scones last night, as you do... trying out a new recipe, as you do... and at the moment of adding the sultanas a thought struck me... what if I throw in some mincemeat at this stage instead of the dried fruit... surely I would have something rather yummy and wonderfully Christmassy too..?

the recipe i'm not so impressed with... it was a little shaggy... but I coped... the concept however is well up there along with other Christmas miracles including the Star of Bethlehem, The Virgin Birth and even the Little Baby Jesus...

... blasphemy aside, I used my recently made whisky mincemeat, which I hadn't tasted until now and is bloody amazing, even if I say so myself... but it also really added something special to the mix...

... i'm entering these little nuggets of Christmas joy into this months Tea Time Treats, hosted so wonderfully by the divine Karen over at Lavender and Lovage and the stunning Kate at What Kate Baked.

Mincemeat Scones
even though i'm not crazy for this recipe, it did work and they tasted very good... and as with all scone recipes, lightness of hand is of the essence...

400g plain flour
1/2 pint milk
25g caster sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons creams of tartar
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
50g butter
4 large tablespoons of home made whisky mincemeat

- place the sugar into the milk and stir until dissolved

- sieve the dry ingredients into a bowl and rub in the butter as lightly as possible

- add the milk and mincemeat in alternating spoon-fulls, bringing it all together with a knife until you form a sticky dough

- flour your work surface and pat down the dough onto it, till the dough is just thinner that the depth of the cutter you're going to use.

- cut out your scones with a sharp slap and bake on a pre-lined baking tray in a hot oven (200C) for 12-14 minutes or until golden

eat and of course, enjoy!

chestnut soup

2011-12-11T10:48:00.000Z

i have quite literally eaten my own body weight in canapes...!

... this time of year... other than the frantic running around to buy Christmas prezzies, send out cards, prep The Big Meal and deal with the hoards of family and friends... most people start to wind down and relax... unfortunately for me and many of us in the event world, now is our most frenzied moment of the year... it's Christmas party after Christmas party and no, not the kind we can enjoy but the kind with moody, miserable and drunk clients who think they're hysterical, particularly after their 8th champagne cocktail and seventeenth time at Maria Carey's 'All I Want for Christmas' on the karaoke machine...

... I hardly eat because once I get home at midnight i'm either too tired or too sick from the delicious but too rich canapes i've snuffled in the kitchen thinking I better grab something or die standing up... I guess my point is that i'm not around to do much cooking of my own and when I do it has to be fast, simple, healthy and as comforting as possible...

Chestnut Soup
I will be making this as a small starter for our Christmas meal. It has the most wonderful Christmas taste and is a great way to ease you into the spirit of what's to come. It's also one of my mum's best soup recipes, she often made it for dinner parties when we were growing up at home and the smell reminds me of sitting on the stairs waiting for her friends to arrive before going off to bed, knowing what deliciousness they were about to enjoy!

1 large onion – finely chopped

1 celery stalk – finely chopped

2 large carrot – finely chopped

roughly 10 chestnut mushrooms – chopped

1 250g tin of chestnut puree (not the sweetened kind)

2 pints of good quality vegetable stock

- in a large pan, sauté the onions, celery and carrots in butter until soft and the onions are beginning to turn translucent

- add the chopped mushrooms, stir and then place the lid on the pan and let them sweat down for 10 minutes

- add the stock and then the chestnut puree, let it simmer for 25 minutes before blitzing with a hand-blender.

Serve with a swirl of single cream and some caramelised onions, eat and of course, enjoy!

chocolate orange honey buns - we should cocoa

2011-12-07T12:51:00.000Z

it may seem as though i've just gone back on my word re Christmas baking but what the heck... you only live once, what can i say...?

oh yes... the house is filled with the glorious sticky aroma of oranges and sweet sweet honey... there's even the hint of cinnamon thrown in there for good measure... the fire is roaring in the log burner... the dog is upside down on her bed... and I am baking the most wonderful chocolate orange honey buns for this months we should cocoa challenge hosted by Choclette over at Chocolate Log Blog, who's theme, as if you haven't guessed, is orange...

... as a kid my grandpa Henry, who's family owned a fruit wholesalers on the Humber docks, used to come down to visit in the holidays and bring with him trays of fruit. They were those old fashioned trays where each piece of fruit would be individually wrapped in fine tissue paper, you rarely see it now but it was a lovely thing and made eating each orange or apple like opening a present... and always, without fail, my grandma Jennie would have placed a Terry's Chocolate Orange amongst the fruit. One for me and one for my brother. I simply love the chocolate orange combination and still regard a Terry's Chocolate Orange as a special treat to be savoured... each individual segment a thing of beauty.

these honey buns are adapted from a recipe by the brilliant Valentine Warner and they are simply adorable...

Chocolate Orange Honey Buns

for the buns
150g plain four
1/2 teaspoon flaked sea salt
20g caster sugar
1 x 7g sachet of fast action yeast
3 large free-rage eggs, lightly whisked
75g diced butter - softened
100g co_operative Fair-trade Ghanaian dark chocolate with spices and orange oil - finely chopped

for the syrup
500g caster sugar
4 long strips of orange rind
the juice of one orange
500ml cold water
100g runny honey - I used a Mexican Orange Blossom Honey
4 tablespoons orange liqueur

- mix the flour, salt, sugar and yeast in a large bowl, add half the eggs a whisk together until sticky

- gradually add the remaining eggs, alternating them with the btter and mix to a soft dough, then beat with a wooden spoon until soft

- add the chocolate pieces and beat until mixed through

- spoon the mixture into a 12 hole muffin tray... i've used some heart shaped silicone moulds and some mini round cupcake trays... leave to rise in a warm place for an hour or until doubled in size

- make the syrup by heating the sugar and water in a pan with the orange peel - bring to the boil and let it bubble for 3 minutes

- take it off the heat and add the honey and the liqueur and let it cool

- meanwhile bake the honey buns in a hot oven (200C) for 12-14 minutes then set aside to cool

you can bottle the buns in the liqueur and eat them gradually over Christmas but I would put 4 or 5 aside, drench them in syrup and eat them fresh... they are sublime!

eat and of course, enjoy!

bangers and three vegetable mash

2011-12-05T17:36:00.000Z

'bangers and mash'

'minestrone'

'bangers and mash'

'macaroni'

'give us a bash at the bangers and mash me mother used to make'

is there a more comforting food that good old fashioned bangers and mash..? methinks not...

...as an addendum to my recent post about my wonderful neighbours and that amazing delivery of pork belly... a few nights ago Zena the pig farmer came back to Belleau Cottage with a kilo of the most delicious, succulent and sweet sausages i've eaten in a long time. Made 24 hrs earlier by her fair hand they were pretty simple things with a smattering of sage and cracked black pepper but they were so juicy and alongside the three vegetable mash and onion gravy they were the perfect winter evening dinner...

bangers and three vegetable mash with onion gravy
i've never been one for regular mashed potatoes... it must be something to do with memories of lumpy mash served by the giant and very scary dinner ladies at school but this triple veg mash, made up of swede, carrot and parsnip is light and sweet and very very creamy... and it may seem a bit anal that i'm giving you a recipe for mash but I do it this way and it works beautifully for me...

... and a note on choosing sausages... if you can buy hand-made from a local source then all the better... but at the very least please try and buy Farm Assured British Meat... (if you're in in the UK obviously) and be sure to check out the 'filler' ratio... there's nothing wrong with a little rusk but you don't want to get anything with too many bread crumbs as they bulk out the sausage and add preservative you just don't need... if you're still unsure then see page 54 of this weekend's Guardian Magazine where they list the best of the best...

for the mash (serves two)
1 large parsnip - peeled and roughly chopped
1 medium swede - peeled and roughly chopped
1 large carrot - peeled and roughly chopped

- steam the vegetables, starting with the swede which takes about 10 minutes but add the carrots after 6 minutes and the parsnips after 8 minutes

- when completely soft, shake off any excess steam water and transfer to a large bowl, season with salt and pepper and a large knob of butter, cover with a tea towel and let it rest for 5 minutes before you blitz with a hand blender until its at a consistency you're happy with.

- transfer to an oven-proof dish and pop into the oven for the last five minutes of the sausage roasting time.

for the sausages
some sausages (I would say 3 per person but that would probably be a lie...)

- I always roast my sausages in a hot oven...they take longer than a grill or a fry but I always think they taste so good like this...

for the onion gravy
1 medium onion - peeled, halved and very finely sliced
a glug of red wine
a pint of very good vegetable stock
1/2 teaspoon tomato puree
1/2 teaspoon mustard powder
butter
a little flour if needed

- with plenty of butter and a little olive oil, gently saute the onions for at least 30 minutes or until gloriously golden ( a teeny pinch of sugar can help here)

- after 30 mins whack up the heat and pour in a large glug of red wine, let this reduce till almost gone and nice and sticky in the pan

- gently add the veg stock, stirring all the time, a teaspoon or two of flour can help thicken it but I find I don't always need it.

- add the tomato puree and mustard powder and let it reduce again by a third.

poor helplessly over the bangers and mash and consume with gusto!

eat and of course, enjoy!

whisky mincemeat

2011-12-04T10:16:00.000Z

... if i'm honest with you, dear reader, which I try to be... I get quite bored of the blog world at Christmas... it's all preserving, gingerbread houses and snow-flaked shaped cookies... it's enough to make the ordinary Joe on the street feel quite inadequate... it's as though we're all supposed to turn into mega-Martha-Stewart's and create this perfect, totally unachievable Victorian Christmas... plus it all becomes rather repetitive as though we're all happy to sit back and slip into some kind of brandy induced Christmas coma and just except yet another blogger smooshing up a cake, sticking it onto the end of a lolly-pop stick and call it baking...

that said, i've just made a fabulous batch of whisky mincemeat, something i've never made before so i'm pretty happy with myself... it is truly one of the most satisfying things to have been produced in my kitchen... the intense aroma that filled the house was pure Christmas and I am now a total convert to the process... plus I cannot wait to make mince pies with my own mincemeat, something that will no doubt give me proper self-satisfaction... oh and I promise to blog about them... and bore you all to death!

Whisky Mincemeat

1lb cooking apples (I used the last of the Gunby Apples)
8oz vegetarian shredded suet
12 oz raisins
8oz sultanas
8oz currants
8oz whole mixed candied peel - finely chopped
12oz soft dark brown sugar
grated rind and juice of 2 oranges
grated rind and juice of 2 lemons
2oz almond slivers
4 teaspoon ground mixed spice
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
6 tablespoons whisky (I used the amazing Glenmorangie Finealta)

- in a very large bowl, mix all the ingredients together except for the whisky, cover with a cloth and leave for 12 hours

- transfer to a baking tray, cover loosely in foil and place in a very low over (120C) for 3 hours

- allow it to cool, stir in the whisky and transfer to sterilised jars

eat and of course, enjoy!

and of course i'm entering this into Vanessa's fabulous Let's Make Christmas event because quite frankly my kitchen deserve that goddam Kenwood K-Mixer thank you very much!

coconut choc-chip cookie tray bake brownie thingy...

2011-12-02T09:37:00.000Z

the urge overtook me last night for something desperately sweet... it may have been this self-imposed, pre-christmas diet i'm pretending to be on... or it could have been the coconut and rum triple layer wedding cake I made at the weekend that I keep having to stare at but not able to eat...

... so I thought i'd rustle up some cookies... fast and simple... with whatever ingredients I could find in the cupboard... and of course I had some left-over dessicated coconut from said triple layer cake and I also had some very smooth Montezuma's dark chocolate and the combo was calling to me... annoyingly, trawling my recipe books I could only find coconut macaroon recipes or cookies with rolled oats in them... rolled oats is something i've never had in my cupboard... so I trawled the internet and found an American recipe for this interesting tray bake thingy... so I apologise for the cups measurements... although it made me feel very 'Martha Stewart' and was very very quick to knock together...

coconut choc-chip cookie tray bake brownie thingy
the recipe calls for a square tin but I used a round cake tin, which isn't so bad as it looks like one giant cookie...

1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup melted unsalted butter
1 egg

1 cup plain flour

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp fine sea salt

1 cup dark chocolate chips (I used a roughly chopped bar of dark chocolate)

1 cup dessicated coconut

- preheat oven to 350°F

- lightly grease a 8×8″ baking tray (although I used a 20cm round cake tin cos i'm like that..)

- gently melt the butter in the microwave and then add it to the sugar in a large bowl and mix together.

- add the egg and the vanilla and mix again

- sieve the flour, baking powder and salt into the mixture and stir until fully combined.

- flop it into a baking tray, smooth it out and bake for 20-25 minutes.

cool on a rack and eat whilst its just a little warm...

... eat and of course, enjoy!

Random Recipes #11 - make space for some Christmas charity...

2011-12-01T13:51:00.001Z

... it's been a really tough one deciding what we should all do for Random Recipes #11... it being December the obvious choice would be to chose a Christmas recipe... but I find the randomness factor rather limiting... plus I also imagine that a lot of you are getting a bit sick of the big day... it's all Christmas Christmas Christmas everywhere you look and a little break would do us all a favour... after-all we still need to eat... it's not like we're sitting around waiting for the big day and just eating mince pies and pickles... well i'm sure some of us are but i'm not pointing fingers...

... and then I got thinking... I get at least 2 new cookbooks each Christmas and my bookshelves are beginning to groan under the strain and it's very possible that there are one or two books I never use, that I could, in fact, take down to the charity shop to make space for my new books... and a little charity for this time of year is always a good thing... so, for this month's Random Recipes i'd like you to look at your bookshelves and find that book that you just never use and would happily give away (come on, we all have one...) and it's from this book I'd like you to choose your Random Recipe and cook at least one last dish before you give it away.

... for me its a toss-up between The Complete Book of Home Freezing by Audrey Ellis. I mean COME ON... how have I ended up with this book? Published in 1973 it has many super-useful tips on how to freeze pies... the 'model' used in the pictures is wearing a fabulous blue smock, so its possible I may be throwing out a hidden gem here... and the other book, which I think wins hands down is Practical Low Fat... no author (no surprises there!) which is a yummy book telling me how to cook low fat food practically... so very useful...

... and my Random Recipe, which falls open at page 136 is Creamy Vegetable Curry... I can feel my waist-line shrinking as I type...

... as usual the rules are pretty simple

1. select your give-away book
2. randomly select a recipe from the book (get a friend, neighbour, lover, pet to do it for you if you don't trust yourself)
3. write your post, including a link to my blog and the snazzy logo
4. take your book to the charity shop and feel happy in the knowledge that you're not only making space for your next book but also helping others with your kind generosity

and may I add an addendum to this post by letting you know that we've recently had a huge donation of books to Gunby Hall amongst which are a few fabulous cook books, so if you don't have any books you want to give away, I can always pick one from our collection and then take it to the charity shop myself...

you have until the last day of the year to post your recipe...

Random Recipes #10 - Round Up

2011-11-30T12:47:00.000Z

well... what a month eh? I realise that for some of you, soup would never be on the menu but for many of you it seemed to have hit the jackpot with these cold wintery days approaching... I know Jac and I had some great fun reading all your wonderful entries... it is amazing how many recipes there really are out there for such a simple dish... so thank you all... sit back with a warming bowl of the good stuff and enjoy your reading...

... first out of the kitchen was Manu from Cooking Manu with a lovely recipe for Pea and Pesto Soup or Zuppa di Piselli e Pesto which I think sounds so wonderful as it rollllllls off the tongue, the soup was randomly selected from Nigella Express.

next up is Random Recipes Virgin, Nikki from Food Glorious Food who has made one of my favourite soups, Spiced Parsnip, selected from The New Soup Bible, welcome her nicely kids...

Lovely Lou from Please Do Not Feed The Animals has made this really intoxicating Roast Onion Soup with Thai Spices taken from Nigel Slaters Real Cooking.

and next a surprisingly nice Spiced Citrus Bean Soup from Gary at Exploits of a Food Nut who went for a web-search on BBC Food Website.

next up we have Ruth from Makey-Cakey with this very warming Lentil and Pasta Soup taken from the Soup Bible.

the lovely Victoria from 21st Century Urban Housewife made this wonderful Butternut Squash and Apple Soup taken from Elana's Pantry

well, next up we have the rather wonderful Little Macaroon with a double soup combo, one savoury in the form of this 'Duffer' soup (don't ask, just go visit...) taken from Jamie's Ministry of Food

and the other this rather special sweet Kheer, taken from the depths of Macaroons untidy brain!

now, new to RR but not to NCR is Emma from A Splash of Vanilla who made this Tomato Tuscan Bread Soup from How to Cook Italian by Giuliano Hazan

next is Michelle from Food, Football and a Baby with this yummy Roasted Tomato Soup with Spicy Croutons, taken from the gloriously titled, Ultimate Cooking Course and Kitchen Encyclopedia

and next up for your delectable delights, we have the glorious, the glamorous Lucy The KitchenMaid with her Hassan's Celery and White Bean Soup with Tomato and Carraway taken from the Moro East book.

let's not forget about me... i'm quite nice, with my yummy White Bean, Tomato and Sage Soup, taken from the New Covent Garden Company, Book of Soups

next up we have the lovely Jean from Baking in Franglais with this very wintery Spices Root Soup taken from 101 Soups and Sides from the BBC Good Food

and next we have the lovely Susan from The Spice Garden with this very nice Roasted Pepper Soup with Garlic Toasts, taken from... you guessed it... the ever popular Soup Bible

new to RR but not to NCR is Janet from The Taste Space with this stunning Brazilian Black Bean and Vegetable Stew taken from The Tropical Vegan Kitchen

next up we have Janice from Farmersgirl Kitchen who has been busy making a batch of this wonderfully rich and thick Easy Tomato Soup taken from Rose Elliot's The New Vegetarian Cookbook

lovely Michael from Me, My Food and I has whipped up another tomato soup but this time with a twist, its a Hot and Spicy Bloody Mary Soup from Loraine Pascal's Home Cooking Made Easy and it look bloody fabulous!

and now on to my darstardly partner in crime for RR does NCR, Jac from Tinned Tomatoes with this unusual soup of Fresh Ginger and Parsnip taken from the 30-Minute Vegetarian by Johanna Farrow

a welcome return to RR for Mel from Sharky Oven Gloves with this really lovely celeriac soup taken from HFW... I love celeriac but Mel says it was rather bland... maybe you could suggest some ways for her to perk it up?

next up is lovely Phil from As Strong As Soup (rather appropos) with this unusual Feta, Almond and Fennel Soup taken from Classic Bull by Stephen Bull

this month, Debbie from Cooking Up a Storm in a Teacup went all North Africa on us with this wonderful Spicy Moroccan Squash Soup taken from the old favourite New Soup Bible

next in is Lyndsey from Vanilla Clouds and Lemon Drops with what she calls a recipe fail but what I call divine, with this amazing Pumpkin Rice Laksa taken from her best friend Jamie Oliver...

next we have the delightful Eleanor, the BVG herself, with a very warming Tomato Soup taken from Catherine Fulvio's Family Kitchen

dearest Karen from Lavender and Lovage ... 'randomly' selected this celery soup from a rather old-fashioned but lovely Complete Farmhouse Kitchen cookbook

Lisa from Lisa's Kitchen made this divine Tangy Red Lentil Dal with Goda Masala

next we have Vicky from Cake Fairy Blog with this lovely recipe for Get Better Soup... it wasn't quite random, other than randomly chucking things in from the fridge... but we'll forgive her...

next is Sweatha from the fragrant Tasty Curry Leaf with this wonderfully classic Mulligatawny Soup taken from Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian

and all the way from India with her lovely Pea Green Soup is Rudra from Mom's Corner, taken from Tarla Dalal

next is this wonderfully unusual African Peanut Soup from Emily at Triumph Wellness

and now on to Aveen from Baking Obsessively who has made perhaps one of my all time favourite soups, good old Leek and Potato, taken from A Celebration of Soup by Lindsey Bareham

another RR virgin but not to NCR is Shaheen from A2K Allotment 2 Kitchen with this very good Bajan Gungo Pea, Squash and Coconut Soup taken from the brilliantly titled Lean Bean Cuisine

here's Gill from Tales of Pigling Bland with this really yummy looking Pea, Lettuce and Lovage Soup taken from the River Cottage Cookbook... what exactly is Lovage she asks...?

and finally onto the hardest working mummy in blog-land, Nazima at Working London Mummy with this delightful Butternut Squash Soup taken from the River Cafe Cookbook

In our infinite wisdom and the massive influx of entries, Jac and I have chosen 2 winners; because of his bravery with unusual ingredients we're happy to announce that the first is Phil from As Strong As Soup and the second is Shaheen from A2K Allotment 2 Kitchen . Jac will send you both out a special badge for your blog...

and don't forget to look out for the December Random Recipes... it's not what you're probably not thinking it might not be...

for the love of pig

2011-11-29T14:13:00.000Z

when we first moved into Belleau Cottage nearly 10 years ago I had no idea of the wonderful community I was entering... of course as a fully fledged, born and bread city boy I had my fantasy imaginings of what the bucolic life would bring... pear-hipped, lavender scented old ladies preserving rhubarb in jars on their sun drenched window-sills... sun-kissed, craggy skinned farmers driving hay-stack laden tractors along hedgerow shrouded country lanes... tea and scones in the local village hall... cattle lowing gracefully in the fields...

... and of course, anyone who lives in the countryside knows it is everything like that... and more!

what I wasn't really expecting was the true sense of community... a community that expects you to put in much time and effort but with rewards that are many-fold. At first it was hard to do as we were really using Belleau Cottage as a bolt hole from the city and never expected the need to make friends... but as our love for it grew and our time here increased it was inevitable that we were already a welcomed and excepted part of a loving community... and one, luckily for me, that has a real passion for food and produce...

... we are surrounded by the most incredible artisan food producers... we are at ground zero for many of those amazing products you see in Waitrose... but better than that we are at the heart of a community who rear their own free-range meats and organic vegetables and many of these producers and growers are good friends...

... last week Zena my dear friend from Troutbeck Farm turned up our doorstep with a whole belly of pork... as you can image it caused mixed reaction in our household but joy outweighed The Viking's feigned fainting as I handed over just £12 for the best part of the pig... this belly is from pigs I helped feed this spring, pigs I knew had a happy life snuffling around a wonderfully happy farm.. this is not the time or place to debate the death of one animal to feed the belly of an other but I do consider myself a very very lucky man...

Roast Belly of Pork
with all this wonderful pork belly i'm starting with the classic, slow roast and i've got about 7 great recipes for roast pork belly in my many cookbooks and most of them are pretty similar, here i've combined three... one from HFW for the method and two from both Gary Rhodes and James Martin for the technique of roasting over a rack of vegetables... I am in hog heaven!

... i'd love you to suggest any other pork belly recipes you may have... I have a lot to get through...

at least 1kilo of pork belly
fresh thyme leaves
salt and freshly ground black pepper
an assortment of root vegetables - peeled and roughly chopped (I used carrots, swede and parsnip)

- pre-heat the oven to 200C

- place the pork belly skin side up on a rack over a baking tray

- rub the scored skin with plenty of salt, pepper and thyme leaves

- roast in the oven for 30 minutes, then turn the heat down to 160C and roast for a further 2 hours

- in the last hour, take the pork and tray out of the oven, drain half the fat out of the tray and place the veg into it. Then return the whole lot back into the oven.

- serve with some of Zena's wonderful mulled apple jelly (more of which later...)

eat and of course, enjoy

rum and coconut triple layer cake

2011-11-27T10:34:00.000Z

our friends Paul and Roz went on a cruise to New Zealand a couple of weeks ago and secretly got married... bless em... and to celebrate they invited the whole gang to the pub on Saturday night to have a bit of a shindig...

... Roz was kind enough to bake me a fabulous birthday cake for my 40th last year so I returned the favour with a wedding cake of sorts... something pretty in white... with a bit of a kick for Roz who likes a tipple or two!

this is another fabulous recipe taken from Dan Lepard's Short and Sweet with a wonderful buttercream icing taken from the same book... i've added lime juice and the grated peel to the buttercream icing to give it a little zing and then covered the icing with shredded coconut to add a little drama. Unfortunately I don't have a good pic of the inside as it was dark in the pub but needless to say it looked very pretty with its three layers and it tasted divine and rather velvety...

eat and of course, enjoy!

a loaf by any other name

2011-11-26T14:42:00.001Z

...don't tell The Viking but i've fallen in love with Dan Lepard... the man is a god... he knows it... I know it... everyone knows it... and don't let anyone tell you otherwise...

... Dan has managed to turn simple ingredients into a thing of beauty... well, I did the turning, he told me the method via his fabulous new book Short & Sweet... which I recently won in a book giveaway by the lovely Choclette via her Chocolate Log Blog... not that I need to tell you because the book is everywhere, on every blog in the UK and in every book store, but if there is one book you buy this Christmas make it this book...

... because its not just the fabulous recipes... it's the method... ahh the method... you read it and it makes perfect, clear, sense... like a veil of cloud is lifted and you think to yourself... 'of course.. makes perfect sense to do it that way...' or 'so that's how it's done'... and if you follow the method you will not fail...

... and I thought I knew my bread making... I started this bog a year and a half ago with what I thought was a pretty decent loaf... but I had no idea that with the same ingredients and less kneading... yes, less kneading... I could get a spectacular, artisan loaf, like the kind you pay top dollar for in those fancy bakeries, full of air, with a crusty crust... and you can sit back and proudly say...'I made this... and it was fucking easy!'

Easy White Bread
I realise the protocol is a little blurry over reproducing recipes from books but i've decided to go ahead with this one as it's pretty much a basic bread recipe, flour water and yeast... but you really must go and buy this book, I cannot stress enough that you need to read about the method, something I can barely touch upon here.

400g strong white flour
1 teaspoon fast action yeast
1 teaspoon fine salt
300ml warm water
oil for kneading

I doubled the above recipe and made 1 large loaf and 10 small rolls

- put the four, yeast and salt in a bowl, pour in the warm water and stir everything together into a sticky, shaggy mess, cover the bowl with a cloth and leave it for 10 minutes

- lightly oil your work surface, turn the bowl over and empty the dough onto the surface and very gently knead the dough 8 times (that's 8 classic 'stretch then heel of hand then quarter turn... repeat...) then cover and leave for 10 minutes.

- repeat this gentle 'knead and leave' technique 3 times

- then after the last gentle knead return the dough to the bowl, cover with a cloth and leave it to rise for 45 minutes or until doubled in size.

- pre-heat the oven to 200C fan

- sprinkle your work surface with flour, turn the dough onto the surface and pat it down into an oval shape. Roll it up tightly and lay it seam down onto a floured baking tray. Let is rest again for a further 45 minutes.

- flour the top of the dough, cut a slash down the middle and bake for 35-40 minutes.

serve it warm with scrambled eggs and mushrooms... it's the law... oh and eat and of course, enjoy!

quick fire jewish penicillin

2011-11-23T19:17:00.000Z

... I have been gripped by a nasty dose of old-fashioned cold... not the 'man-flu' stay in bed, can't move kind of affliction, more a blocked nose, sore throat, painful sneezing kind of cold... I'm happily going about my business spreading disease wherever I choose... so don't feel sorry for me... it's just rather annoying and i am beginning to feel a little fed up... what I need for my old-fashioned cold is a dose of good old-fashioned jewish penicillin... or chicken soup to give it its formal name...

... back in the old days a 'boiler' chicken would have been purchased from the kosher butcher and the giant pan taken down from the cupboard and the long slow process of making heaven in a bowl would have taken place... much skimming of fat would have happened and knadels would have been made to float like fluffy succulent clouds on top of the golden liquor...

... this is not that... this is the quick fire version, made for those on the run or too poorly to be bothered... but give it long enough on the hob and I promise you, if not an instant cure then a definite lift of spirits...

Quick Fire Chicken Soup
i've put a dash of white wine in the soup plus half a lemon to really add a little vitamin c zing... eliminate or include at your own whim...

2 chicken breasts - chopped into large chunks
1/2 a medium onion - roughly chopped
1 celery stalk - roughly chopped
1 medium carrot - roughly chopped
1/2 small leek - roughly chopped
about 10 whole black pepper corns
1/2 a lemon - roughly chopped
2 pints water or vegetable stock
a splash of white wine
a bay leaf and some rosemary

- put it all in the pan, add the stock or water and bring to the boil

- turn the heat down and let it simmer gently for as long as you've got... a least an hour if not two. (ok, so this bit is not so quick-fire but getting the ingredients into the pan should take you less than 60 seconds...)

put Fiddler on the Roof or Yentl on the DVD player, sit back, relax, eat and of course, enjoy!

Food Bloggers Unplugged - a little bit of me on a plate

2011-11-21T17:52:00.000Z

... lovely lovely Susan from A Little Bit of Heaven on a Plate has nominated me to take part in a bloggers infomercial, for want of a better phrase... it's called Food Bloggers Unplugged and the idea is to answer some questions that give you, the reader, a little bit of an insight into who I am and what i'm all about... not that I think there's much left for you to know but here goes...

1. What, or who inspired you to start a blog?

believe it or not but it was the film Julie and Julia... I watched it one rainy day on DVD and the next day I became a food blogger!

2. Who is your foodie inspiration?

there are many who inspire but I guess the list begins with my mother...

3. Your greasiest, batter - splattered food/drink book is?

Delia's Complete Cookery Course... If I had to throw away all my other books things would be slightly less colourful but i'd be ok with it...

4. Tell us all about the best thing you have ever eaten in another country, where was it, what was it?

ahhhh... twas a burger and massive bowl of fries in the restaurant in the sky called Nepenthe on Highway 1 in California... I had spent the previous year on The Atkins diet so this was the first fries I had eaten in a year... they were incredible... and I went back this year, you know, to check that it wasn't just the Atkins that made those fries taste so good and I wasn't disappointed, they were spectacular!

5. Another food bloggers table you'd like to eat at is?

no hesitation... Susan from The Spice Garden... I would move in tomorrow if she'd have me...

6. What is the one kitchen gadget you would ask Santa for this year (money no object of course)?

i'm afraid it would have to be a Kenwood Mixer in the same blue as my kitchen...

7. Who taught you how to cook?

uh... hello... mother...

8. I'm coming to you for dinner what's your signature dish?

uh... hello... chicken thighs...

9. What is your guilty food pleasure?

Haribo Tangfastics

10. Reveal something about yourself that others would be surprised to learn?

I was one of the chosen few who took part in Anthony Gormley's 4th Plinth project and had my hour on the plinth in Trafalgar Square

and now, as tradition dictates I must nominate 5 food bloggers to pass this on to and take part... they are:

Susan from The Spice Garden

Lucy from The KitchenMaid

Celia from Purple Podded Peas

Elaine from Applebees at Pear Tree

The Veg Box Boy

happy blogging... eat and of course, enjoy!

sunday roast chicken stew with chicken livers

2011-11-20T20:02:00.001Z

... you must all know by now how much of a lazy cook I am... but you know what its like... you finally get home after a long day at work and all you want is that warm comforting feeling of something lovely on the table... a nice juicy roast chicken perhaps, with all the trimmings and a nice rich gravy... is that too much to ask?

... i've had one of those Sunday's... the morning at work meeting with a lovely couple who plan to get married at Gunby in 2013, followed by planning the next few months, including starting to think about Valentines dinner parties at Gunby Hall... I know, it's not even Christmas and I'm planning Valentines Day!

... we also have thick thick fog over much of the UK today (well, it seems that way from what I read on twitter...) and its the kind of fog that lingers in cold patches over the hills, all at once mystical and eerie together... sometimes the sun breaks through to reveal the folding landscape in front of the cottage or at other times it rolls in in thick layers, back-lit by the sky as if on a theatrical stage set...

... so when I got home, in from the cold, I had a desperate pang for roast chicken... but alas I had missed the supermarket... I did of course have a pack of my trusty chicken thighs in the oven and quite a few of the trimmings to make up a traditional Sunday roast... in a stew... I also had a packet of chicken livers, which I bought frozen and should have gone into the freezer but I totally messed up and miss-placed them... ever done that?... so I have added them in right at the end to create a really rich and luxurious element to the stew... heavenly!

Sunday Roast Stew

4 chicken thighs - on the bone, skin on
1 medium onion - roughly chopped
1 medium celery - roughly chopped
1 carrot - chopped into batons
1 parsnip - chopped into batons
5 chestnut mushrooms - quartered
1 glug or two of white wine
salt and pepper
fresh rosemary and thyme
1 pkt chicken livers - optional

- pre-heat the oven to 180c

- throw all the veg, herbs, olive oil and seasoning into a roasting pan, place the chicken thighs on top, add the wine and a cup of veg stock and roast slowly in the oven for 1 and 1/2 hours, turning the chicken every half hour.

- the veg should sweat and soften at first but will eventually begin to roast and crisp up.Keep another cup of stock handy just in case it's looking dry.

- in the last 10 mins add the chicken livers, they will cook really quickly and you want them to stay a little pink.

eat and of course, enjoy!

Power-cut Parkin - a teatime treat

2011-11-19T19:59:00.000Z

... The Viking often tells tale of his mothers infamous ginger parkin... so incredible was this cake that, over the years, like stories of hidden gold or mystical fire-breathing dragons, it has worked its way into legend in his family... not only is it legend but like much folk-lore, the recipe is missing, presumed lost for ever... taken to the grave with his dear old ma...

... knowing a little of the woman she was, where food was fuel and the glamour and reverence we give food today didn't even cross her mind, I doubt she ever wrote the recipe down, rather she had it stored in the deep recesses of her mind along with her infamous suet dumplings and ciabatta-like bread rolls...

... can I just mention that at this point, whilst writing this post, with the ginger parkin in the oven, the whole of my village has been plunged into darkness with a power cut... not sure if I can save her...

... 35 minutes later, oven back on and we can continue...

...where was I...? Oh yes... The Viking's mum's infamous ginger parkin... and so I often think about trying to recreate some of her magic and have scoured the internet and my cook books for a traditional Yorkshire Parkin recipe, which I've adapted and made my own...

... and I think i've captured a little of the hidden dragon in this fire-breathingly hot cake... and for my nuggets of hidden gold i've added some crystalized ginger into the mix... well The Viking seems to like it.

I'm entering this into the brilliant new bloggers challenge Tea-Time Treats hosted on alternative months by Karen from Lavender and Lovage and Kate from What Kate Baked, with this months theme being ginger and bonfire night.

Ginger Parkin
I think like many a secret treasure there must have been a curse attached to trying to re-create this because as well as the power-cut I managed to burn the bottom of the oven!

8oz self raising flour
4oz dark Muscovado sugar
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 egg
200ml milk
2oz butter
4oz golden syrup
1 tablespoon glace ginger

- preheat the oven to 150C/300F/Gas 2. Line a 22cm/8in tin.

- sieve the flour, sugar, ginger and bicarbonate of soda into a large bowl, throw in the glace ginger

- in a small pan gently heat the butter and syrup until melted.

- eat the egg into the milk.

- gradually pour the butter and syrup into the flour and stir. The mixture will be thick and lumpy

- pour in the egg and milk and whisk until smooth then pour into the lined tin.

- bake for 1 hour

eat and of course, enjoy!

puff pastry pizza

2011-11-15T16:24:00.001Z

... there i go again with my food alliteration...

... it's all about fast food with me at the moment. I'm very time poor but still keen on eating some decent grub... and it's so frustrating as I have a heap of fabulous new cookbooks to read and cook from but its all stressing me out a little as I read post upon post about how wonderful Dan Lepard is... well, quite frankly he'll just have to wait... I need to dedicate some proper time to Mr Lepard and his wonderful ways with pastry... roll on those long Christmas evenings in front of the fire eh?

... so for now, it's shop-bought and to hell with it!.. and the great thing about pizza is that you pretty much can throw anything at it that you like and it'll taste great with all that pastry beneath it... oh and if you're anything like me who loves their puff pastry just slightly undercooked and gooey in places, this is the dish for you!

Puff Pastry Pizza with Roasted Tomatoes, Peas and Basil
the other thing I love about this pizza is how it brings the Summer back into my kitchen... much need at this time of the year...no?

1 sheet of puff pastry
2 medium tomatoes - finely sliced
1 packet of fresh buffalo mozzarella
a handful of frozen garden peas
a few torn basil leave

- in an oven proof dish, lay your tomatoes out, sprinkle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar and roast for 30 minutes in a low oven. (do this in advance if you want to bung the pizza together quickly)

- the pastry sheets I use usually come large enough and thick enough to roll flatter and divide into tow, so you can make 2 pizzas, so do that.

- score an edge around the pizza and then place all your ingredients within this edge, tomatoes first, then the cheese, then the peas

- brush the un covered edge in a little olive oil and then bake in the oven for 20 minutes until the pastry has risen and is golden and the cheese is bubbling

eat and of course, enjoy!

White Bean, Tomato and Sage Soup - RR does NCR

2011-11-14T11:05:00.002Z

i'm not a huge fan of plain old tomato soup, I find tomatoes quite acidic and in a soup they can become rather bland... spoonful after spoonful of blah... so it was with slight trepidation and a little annoyance when I hadn't picked one of many of the the other amazing soups in the brilliant New Covent Garden Book of Soups... but as I further read the ingredients I could really see how the beans in the soup would add a lovely, rich and thick element making it very filling and rather more interesting...

... which is lucky because this month the devastatingly handsome Dominic from Belleau Kitchen and the breathtakingly beautiful Jac from Tinned Tomatoes have teamed up for .... oh you know the rest...

White Bean, Tomato and Sage Soup
It was a lovely soup but a bit of a faff to cook with all the soaking and I cant really see how using tinned, pre-soaked beans, could make it taste any different but save a heck of a lot of time!

150g dried butter beans - soaked in 200ml water for 1hr
60g dried haricot beans - soaked in 75ml water for 1hr
25g butter
1/2 medium onion - finely chopped
1 garlic clove - crushed
2 pints vegetable stock
1 heaped teaspoon tomato puree
150g tinned chopped tomatoes
1 teaspoon demerara sugar
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh sage
salt
150ml milk
1 tablespoon double cream

- melt the butter and cook the onion and garlic gently until soft, in a covered saucepan without colouring

- add the stock, tomato puree, butter beans and tomatoes, cover, bring to the boil and then simmer gently until the butter beans are tender

- cool a little, then whizz with a hand-blender

- add the haricot beans, sugar, sage and salt to taste, simmer for a further 45 minutes until the haricot beans are tender.

- cool and stir in the milk and cream

oh and one last thing, can i ask that you take a look at The Viking's blog... his most recent post, about his mum and food, is rather wonderful x

eat and of course, enjoy!

chestnut cream roulade

2011-11-12T09:47:00.000Z

I made this beautiful roulade in the summer for the we should cocoa 'roulade' and 'strawberries' challenge but that was not its original recipe ... more of a tasty alias version of its true self...

... its true-self is this stunning chestnut cream roulade... smooth... silky... creamy... nutty... deeply, darkly chocolatey... and just a little Christmassy, which is helpful as it's one of the dishes i'm cooking for my Christmas dinner this year and am making it now to photograph for my December article in Lincolnshire Life Magazine...

... I urge you to take a little time out of your lives and make this divine dessert... but a word of warning... follow the recipe to the letter and you cannot fail... diverge from it even slightly and on your own head be it!

chestnut cream roulade

For the roulade:

4 eggs - separate yolks and whites

150g good dark chocolate (at least 80% cocoa)

4oz caster sugar

For the filling:

300m tub of double or whipping cream

1 x 250g tin of sweet chestnut spread

- In a large bowl, beat the yolks with the sugar until soft and light.

- Next beat the egg whites till stiff and then carefully fold them into the mixture.

- Line a large Swiss roll tin with tin-foil which you should then grease well with butter or margarine.

- Pour the mixture into the tin and bake in the oven at 160C for 20 minutes then a further 10 minutes at 90C.

- Whilst it’s baking, grease another large sheet of foil and place it on a flat surface where it won’t have to be moved for a while.

Now the tricky bit...

- Now you're ready to assemble; whip the cream and stir in the chestnut spread.

- Take off the baking tin and carefully peel off the foil that lined the tin.

- Spread the cream mixture evenly onto the surface of the roulade and then, using the excess foil, roll the roulade into shape. It should be able to be slipped neatly onto a plate.

- Sprinkle with icing sugar for a classic Yule Log look and then don’t forget to eat and of course, enjoy!

an old man and his dog

2011-11-10T09:32:00.000Z

he rides the wolds on his push-bike,

the old man and his dog

i've seen him up hills and down hills

the same old man and his dog

over the years through rain, in summer, winter and spring

the old man and his sweet, happy old dog

his dog once ran by his side as he cycled

that sweet old man and his dog

and when he grew tired, in a back-pack he placed him

the old man and his brave little dog

over the years through rain, in summer, winter and spring

the old man and his sweet, happy old dog

as I pass him I wave and often wonder

the story of the old man and his dog

where does he come from, where does he go to

that crazy old man and his dog

over the years through rain, in summer, winter and spring

the old man and his sweet, happy old dog

the years pass me by and I still see him

that very old man and his dog

now the dog rides in a trailer behind

the strong legs of the old man and his dog

over the years through rain, in summer, winter and spring

the old man and his sweet, happy old dog

and I know that one day I wont see them

either the old man or his dog

and I cried today when I saw them, tears for the the future of

the old man and his dog

and a chicken stew with Borlotti beans and caramelised onions to keep me warm and cheer me up...

chocolate apple charlotte - we should cocoa

2011-11-08T09:20:00.000Z

... now that i've been given the extra time, i've decided to use the next couple of days to make Christmas Lunch... no, i've not gone completely barmy, it's just I have a deadline to meet and the lovely Caroline from Lincolnshire Life Magazine has given me a double page spread for Christmas... so i'm cooking 3 courses... all vegetarian... as I have a whole load of veggies coming and I want to impress!

... not that this has anything to do with the Apple Charlotte, it's just that I had all my Christmas cookbooks out last night and HRH Delia's book happened to fall open at her infamous Apple Charlotte recipe and my mind started to whir... what if I used my left-over Challah bread, which is remarkably like Brioche... and then what if I coat the bread with chocolate butter..? I will have fulfilled this months We Should Cocoa brief of cooking apples with chocolate... and created possible the most heavenly dessert ever!

... my pudding basin was out anyway, as i'm going to make the layered caramelised onion and mushroom suet pudding which I made last year for Christmas... so as usual there are about a hundred dead birds in the kitchen and only the one stone!

Chocolate Apple Charlotte

1lb apples - peeled and chopped (I used half Bramley cooking apples half Cox's)
1 tablespoon caster sugar
4oz butter
2 teaspoons cocoa powder
roughly six slices of thick cut white bread with the crusts removed - i used challah, with crusts on
1 egg yolk

You will need a 1pint pudding basin

- using a tablespoon of water, gently simmer the apples in a pan with the 1oz of the butter and all the sugar until mushy. If using more than one apple variety they may take different lengths of time to mush but this is ok as it's good to have texture in the pudding. Once mushed, set aside to cool.

- melt the butter gently in the microwave and then add 2 large teaspoons of dark cocoa powder, stiring until melted together

- brush both sides of each slice of bread with the chocolate butter and line the pudding basin with it, making sure there are no gaps

- stir the egg yolk into the mushed apple and then pour this into the pudding and then place on a bread lid

- take an oven-proof plate or dish and stand this on top of the pudding with a weight on top... I didn't have either so used a bowl with a Kilner jar filled with water as the weight... worked just fine!

- let it sit like this for 20 mins, then bake in the oven, with the plate and weight for 30 mins, then, remove the plate and weight and bake for a further 10 minutes until the top is crispy.

serve with lashings of cream... eat and of course, enjoy!

chollah bread

2011-11-06T08:28:00.003Z

... so my trip to Edinburgh was crudely cancelled yesterday... it's a long story... but it feels so weird to be packed and ready to go with tickets in hand only to find yourself back in your kitchen...

... turning it into a blessing, this gives me a few days breathing space to gather my thoughts and recharge the batteries. I can spend some much needed time with The Viking and catch up with all those niggling little chores that need doing around the house...

... and last night, instead of driving down to the airport I made bread, chollah to be precise... I was inspired by Susan from The Spice Garden who recently made a wonderful batch of chollah breads that somehow called out to me...

... ive tried a new recipe here taken from the WI book of Bread, of all places but I've adapted it slightly after reading up on baking cholla on a Jewish food website. This cholla takes 3 rises, the last one overnight in the fridge.

Chollah Bread
i've made one flat on the oven tray and the other in a loaf tin just to see how they come out...

700g strong white bread flour
1 and a 1/2 teaspoons salt
80g unsalted butter
2 generous teaspoons of honey
2 teaspoons fast action dried yeast
3 large eggs - beaten
8ft oz warm milk
1 egg beaten for the glaze

- place the flour and salt in a bowl and rub in the butter

- stir in the yeast

- place the honey into the milk and warm it gently, then add this and the beaten egg to the flour

- using a rubber spatula, bring it together until a dough forms, then turn it our onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 10 minutes until soft.

- place it into an oiled bowl or bag and let it rise until doubled in size

- knead again for 5 minutes, then place it back in the bowl or bag and let it rise again, till doubled

- once risen, gently divide it into 2 halves, then split each half into three equal portions.

- gently roll each portion into a long sausage shape and plait into a loaf.

- brush with egg and then refrigerate over night.

- in the morning, brush with egg again and then bake on 190c for 15-20 minutes until golden and risen

eat and of course, enjoy!

chunky vegetable soup

2011-11-04T17:16:00.000Z

i've been very busy recently, we had a mammoth Halloween weekend at Gunby Hall last weekend where we all dressed up as ghost characters of the Hall's previous inhabitants and essentially spent 48hrs shouting, in scary make-up... Christmas is coming and is looking to be one of our busiest periods so it's non-stop... i've barely had time for any life of my own let alone visit a supermarket or think about cooking fabulous stuff in the kitchen... i'm regularly going without breakfast and lunch and then, in a starving mad dash around the kitchen, stuffing all kinds of crap into my mouth... for lunch today I had a mini bag of Haribo and 6 apples...

i'm also off to Edinburgh on Sunday for 3 days of work, so forgive me if I go off piste for a day or two!

... so last night when I finally got home I was desperate for some decent grub which included nice, healthy vegetables... and I literally opened the fridge and cupboard, pulled out the first things that caught my eye and bunged it into a pot... and surprisingly good it was too!

chunky vegetable soup with chickpeas

1 large onion - finely chopped
2 medium leeks - finely chopped
1 large carrot - chopped
2 medium potatoes - chopped
2 medium vine tomatoes -chopped
1 tin of chickpeas
1 cup of frozen peas
2 pints of good vegetable stock
rosemary

- in a large pan, saute the onions and leeks in plenty of butter and olive oil and let them sweat for 5 mins, add some rosemary

- add the carrots and potatoes and let them sweat for a further 5 mins or until soft

- tip in the chickpeas and the tomatoes and stir it all around, then pour on the stock, cover and simmer gently for at least 20 mins.

- add the peas and then let it cool and sit for a while (i think the cooling/sitting process really lets the flavours mingle)

- serve with a grating of strong cheese

eat and of course, enjoy!