Bangers and Mash Pie |
Thursday 28 November 2013
Tuesday 26 November 2013
Slow Cooker Chilli Con Carne
Slow Cooker Chilli Con Carne |
There are certain meals that are best
eaten at certain times and on certain occasions. This Chilli Con
Carne has seen many an England footballing failure but more often an
England Rugby success. It's a meal for sharing with friends and
family. Big bowls and happy memories. This recipe serves two but it
has doubled and tripled in order to feed whoever has come round.
The reason it feeds just two is that it
is also a perfect Friday night meal. We don't do takeaways but by
Friday evening quite frankly I've had enough of the week and need a
takeaway meal that is easily made at home. I start by preparing this
dish the night before in order to let all the flavours develop. If
you're not that organized you can just make it up in the morning and
put it straight into the slow cooker. Once Friday night comes and all
the kids have been dispatched to bed all that is needed is to cook
some rice. For an even easier accompaniment simply serve it with some
crusty bread.
I found the original recipe in an OXO
cookbook (hence the use of a stock cube). However, it wasn't for a
slow cooker and involved lots of frying off before leaving it to cook
on the hob. All this sounded very unnecessary and rather labour
intensive. This takes a few minutes to prepare and then the slow
cooker does all the work. Being an authentic recipe it also included
kidney beans but I do use baked beans. I know some people will
shudder at this but once a student and now a mother, there is always
a tin of baked beans in my cupboard. If you want to go back and use
kidney beans please do but you may need to add some more liquid to
replace the bean juice.
Serves 2
Ingredients
1 Onion, chopped
8oz (225g) Minced beef
1 Beef stock cube (to be crumbled in)
1tsp (5ml) Chilli powder
½
tsp (2.5ml) Ground coriander
½
tsp (2.5ml) Ground cumin
½
tsp (2.5ml) Dried oregano
¼
tsp (1.25ml) Garlic granules
400g
tin Chopped tomatoes
400g tin Baked Beans
400g tin Baked Beans
2tbsp
(30ml) Tomato purée
Method
1.
The night before you want to eat this meal place all the ingredients
in a large bowl and mix well until it is all combined. Cover and
refrigerate overnight.
2.
In the morning bring the bowl out of the fridge and set the the slow
cooker to pre-heat on high for 10 minutes.
3.
Put the chilli into the slow cooker and cook on low for 6-8 hours and
serve with rice or crusty bread.
Labels:
crockpot,
recipe,
slow cooker
Monday 18 November 2013
Vegan Chocolate Orange Sponge Cake
Vegan Chocolate Orange Sponge Cake |
I've
obviously changed the lemon to orange and added cocoa to get the
chocolate hit. The original recipe uses Limoncello which is
something that has never entered his house and probably never will. I
substituted lemon extract for it then and used this same trick by
using orange extract this time. I use Sainsbury's Taste the Difference Valencian Orange Extract but
if you can't get hold it then old-fashioned zest and juice of a real
orange could be used. For the soya spread I use Pure Dairy Free which is easily available in supermarkets.
Although this recipe doesn't
have the same light and airy texture of a Victoria sponge made using
eggs it is a pretty good alternative. It's also excellent even if you
are not vegan and find you need to make a sponge cake in a hurry and
you don't have enough eggs. As they say the proof of the pudding is
in the tasting and I came home with just one slice left and
compliments from the owner of
Thyme to Eat.
Equipment:
2 x 8in/20cm sandwich tins.
Ingredients
9oz (250g) Self-raising
flour
1oz (25g) Cocoa
1tsp (5ml) Baking powder
7oz (200g) Caster sugar
3½
fl oz (100ml) Corn oil
7
fl oz (200ml) Cold water
1tsp
(5ml) Orange extract
Filling
4oz
(100g) Soya margarine/spread
10½
oz (300g) Icing sugar, sifted
1tsp
(5ml) Orange extract
Method
1.
Line and grease 2 8in/20cm round sandwich tins
2.
Pre-heat the oven to 200°C/Gas mark 6.
3.
Sift the flour, cocoa and baking powder together and stir in the
sugar.
4.
Add he oil, water and orange extract and fold in until the mixture
is well combined. It should look more like a muffin mix.
5.
Spoon the mixture evenly between the two tins and cook for 15-20
minutes until the sponges are cooked and springy to the touch
6.
Leave in the tins for a few minutes before removing and leaving to
cool completely on a wire rack.
7. For the filling put the margarine/spread in a bowl and then gradually beat in the icing sugar. Add the orange extract and beat well until the ingredients is mixed together.
8. Spread the top of one of the sponges with the filling and carefully place the other sponge on top.
9. To finish off dust the top with either icing sugar or cocoa powder.
Labels:
baking,
cake,
chocolate,
Clandestine Cake Club,
dairy free,
egg free,
eggless,
recipe,
vegan
Friday 15 November 2013
Pancetta & Onion Applewood Tart
Pancetta & Onion Applewood Tart |
It is a truth universally
acknowledged that it is perfectly fine for a food blogger to use
ready made puff pastry, especially for a quick family supper. I
usually like tomato purée or crème fraîche
as a base but as you have probably realised by now I have recently
been introduced to a new spread. Applewood Spreadable is made by the same company who made the Applewood
Smoky Cheddar Cheese. It obviously tastes terrific just spread on
some bread or crackers but it forms the basis of many a quick family
dish.
I've been fortunate enough
to receive a lovely hamper of goodies from Applewood Spreadable in
order to create some recipes. This is one of those recipes but fear
not the ingredients list is very short, the skill level extremely low
but it will still be gobbled up by all the family. I've used onions
but you could substitute spring onions or leeks. To add another taste
and texture you could layer some slices of tomatoes on top.
Equipment: 1 baking
sheet - I used my Swiss Roll tin which measures 13” x 9”, rolling
pin if using block puff pastry, frying pan.
Ingredients
100g Pancetta
1 Onion, chopped
500g Pack Puff Pastry (mine
was a block)
5 tbsp (75ml) Applewood
Spreadable
Method
1. While you prepare the
other ingredients get the puff pastry out of the fridge and leave it
to rest.
2. Start to cook the
pancetta in a frying pan.
3. When some of the fat has
been released from the pancetta add the onions.
4. Cook until the onion has
softened and starts to colour.
5. Transfer to a plate with
a piece of kitchen towel to mop up some of the excess fat.
6. Pre-heat the oven to
200°C/Gas
mark 6.
7. Roll out the puff pastry
block to the size of your baking sheet.
8. Put the pastry on the
baking sheet and prick all over. I like to fold a bit of each side
over in order to make a bit of a lip or crust.
9. Spread some Applewood
Spread all over the base.
10. Cover the base with the
pancetta and onions and cook for 20 minutes.
Great served with potato
wedges or a selection of your favourite vegetables.
Applewood Spreadable send
me the hamper and its contents for free. No payment was made for this
post. All words, photos and recipe are my own.
Wednesday 13 November 2013
Beer Cake
Beer Fruit Cake |
Beer Cake! Yes, that's got
your attention. However, you may be asking what the teetotal Ness is
doing baking a beer cake. I'm a member of a number of Clandestine
Cake Club groups and each meeting gives a new theme and hence the
opportunity to make new cakes. The Chesterfield group held a meeting
with the theme of 'Festival' in conjunction with the Chatsworth Road
Festival. For those not local to area Chatsworth Road is a long road
running from the bottom of Chesterfield out into the Peak District
and onto the magnificent Chatsworth House. Our lovely organizer Fiona
has arranged a number of our gatherings on the Chatsworth Road due to
its abundance of thriving independent businesses.
While most of the other
attendees focused on the 'Festival' theme I was immediately drawn to
the Chatsworth Road element. Another reason Chatsworth Road is
well-known is due to the the high volume of pubs situated along it.
On its way out to the Peaks it runs through an area called Brampton
and this is the inspiration for the challenge that is the Brampton
Mile. Whilst the number of pubs has decreased over the years many a
stag or hen night has started at one end of Chatsworth Road with the
intention of having a drink in each of the pubs along the way down.
With this in mind I decided to make a cake with beer and found one
from the appropriately local Thornbridge
Brewery, based near Chatsworth House.
According to Thornbridge
Brewery, “Five malts and six hops combine for bitter chocolate
flavours with dark roasted fruits,” for the Wild Raven IPA. This
seemed perfect for adding to a fruit cake. At ABV 6.6% it also had
the strength to hold its own when cooked. Since the recipe calls for
just 150ml of the 500ml bottle you may be wondering what happened to
other 350ml. Sadly my CAMRA
member husband had been temporarily stuck down by a particularly
nasty affliction which had rendered him teetotal. So 50ml went in the
Christmas pudding (next year's vintage) while the remaining 300ml
formed the basis of a beef in beer casserole in the slow cooker.
As this recipe uses dried
fruits I am entering it for this month's Tea Time Treats hosted by
Karen at Lavender
and Lovage and Kate at What
Kate Baked as the theme is dried fruit.
Vine fruits is also the theme this month for One Ingredient run by Laura at How To Cook Good Food and this month's host Nazima at Franglais Kitchen.
With the local beer this
recipe has to go over to Elizabeth at Elizabeth's
Kitchen Diary for her Shop Local challenge which highlights the
use of local produce.
Equipment: 1 7in (18cm) cake tin (I used my Lakeland deep fancy tin), electric whisk/beaters
Ingredients
8oz (225g) Self-raising
wholemeal flour
½
tsp (2.5ml) Baking powder
4oz
(110g) Unsalted butter, softened or baking spread
4oz
(110g) Demerara sugar
1tsp
(5ml) Mixed spice
Zest
of 1 Lemon
¼
Pint (150ml) Beer (Real Ale)
2
Large eggs
12oz
(350g) Mixed dried fruit (including citrus peel)
Method
1.
Prepare the tin by greasing it.
2.
Pre-heat the oven to 170°C/Gas
mark 3.
3.
In a large bowl put all the ingredients except for the dried fruit
and beat well using an electric whisk or beaters.
4.
Stir in the dried fruit and then transfer the mixture to the tin.
5.
Cook for 45 minutes and then check to see if the top is cooking too
quickly. Cover with greaseproof paper if it is.
6.
Cook for a further 45 minutes until a skewer comes out clean.
7.
Leave to cool in the tin before turning out.
This
cake is best left a few days to mature if you can bear to leave it.
Just make sure it is covered with foil or greaseproof paper and
stored in an air-tight tin.
Labels:
baking,
cake,
Clandestine Cake Club,
recipe
Monday 11 November 2013
Vegetable Bake with Applewood Mash
Vegetable Bake with Applewood Mash |
There's
no denying that it is now the time of year for comfort food. It's
dark in the morning, dark by late afternoon and grey, raining and
blustery inbetween. Comfort food usually points to something that is
tasty but actually not that good for you. This dish is different.
It's full of vegetables to fill you with vitamins and minerals but
hearty enough to warm you through. I made this on Halloween evening
while my little monsters were out trick or treating. It can be
prepared in advance and then simply put in the oven to heat through.
This
recipe was inspired by the lovely hamper sent to me by Applewood Spreadable. As part of their blogger challenge they have
asked a number of food bloggers to create dishes using their
delicious smoky cheddar cheese spread.
Since
there is a large amount of vegetables in this dish I would recommend
you prepare all the vegetables first before you start. The list of
vegetables is what I had to hand and what was sent to me by Applewood
Spreadable. By all means do your own fridge raid and add or
substitute whatever vegetables you like. If you wish to bulk it out
further I would suggest adding a tin of beans such as butter beans or
cannellini; baked beans would also work. If you don't have fresh
basil use dried basil or mixed herbs.
One
note on the amount of potatoes used. My oven-proof dish is deep with
a small surface area so if your dish is bigger you may need more
potatoes in order to cover the top. Add some more Applewood
Spreadable if necessary.
Serves: Generously
serves 4 as an accompaniment or 2 as a main meal
Equipment: 1 large
frying pan, 1 oven-proof dish
Ingredients
2 tbsp (30ml) Olive Oil
1 Carrot, diced
1 Parsnip, diced
1 Leek, chopped
1 Onion, chopped
1 Courgette, diced
1 Aubergine, diced
3oz (85g) Mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves Garlic, crushed
12oz (350g) Potatoes, diced
400g tin Chopped Tomatoes
2tbsp Tomato purée
Black pepper, to taste
Handful fresh basil leaves,
torn
2 tbsp (30ml) Applewood
Spreadable
Method
1. Pre-heat oven to
180°C/Gas
mark 4.
2.
In a large frying pan heat the olive oil and start to sauté the
carrot, parsnip, leek and onion.
3.
When the onion starts to soften add the courgette, aubergine,
mushrooms and garlic.
4.
Put the potatoes onto boil while the vegetable mixture keeps cooking
gently.
5.
When the vegetables start to brown slightly add the chopped tomatoes,
tomato purée, black pepper and basil.
6.
Continue to cook until the potatoes are well-cooked and ready to
mash.
7.
Drain the potatoes and start to break down with a masher.
8.
Add the Applewood Spreadable and stir into the mash.
9.
Transfer the vegetable mixture to the oven-proof dish and the spread
the mash on top of it.
10.
Cook in the oven for 10 minutes or until the mash starts to brown.
I was sent the Applewood
Spreadable and hamper for free. No payment was made for this post.
Recipe, words and photographs are my own. Please note that Applewood
Spreadable is not suitable for vegetarians but Applewood (hard)
Cheese is.
Labels:
bake,
vegetables
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