The temperature gauge read 0.5C as I left on the school run this week. To me, this is officially cold, so i'm breaking out the big guns and have been thinking about #WinterWarmer Recipes this week. So I have used mustard in this Carbonnade of Beef -essentially a stew with a posh French name- as well as in the Damper-Style dumplings that accompany it. Mustard is a great ingredient for adding warmth and flavour to a meat dish, especially meat. … [Read more...]
Carrot and Clementine Cookies
Christmas is coming and the goose is getting fat. Or is it Santa? Or Rudolph? Maybe it's just me. Either way, here's a recipe that offers you the chance to literally have your cookie and eat it: Carrot and Clementine Cookies. Repeat after me: Hidden vegetables. And fruit. You are very welcome. Here's how. Print Carrot and Clementine Cookies Recipe type: Christmas Serves: 12 Ingredients 85g room … [Read more...]
Prawn and Chorizo Gnocchi
I didn't really have the courage to cook gnocchi until I saw Nigella do it. She empowered me to embrace gnocchi and it's my Go To Dinner-in-a-Flash supper these days: it takes moments in the boiling water to be ready so you really can be eating supper fifteen minutes after you start cooking. To make Prawn and Chorizo Gnocchi, you need: 1 red onion 2 courgettes 1 packet cooked prawns- ours were large prawns, about 250g 1 … [Read more...]
Apple and Date Streusel Muffins
Just before half-term we went on a walk down the lane on a sunny Sunday morning and came across a bumper crop of windfall apples (and chestnuts!), which we put in our Foraging Basket to bring home for tea. They were cooking apples, so not much use raw, but DH and The Girls set to work peeling, chopping and coring and we used them to make apple crumble for our supper. The Girls love crumble, especially with custard, so we have it quite … [Read more...]
Cornbread Toad in the Hole
You know how Toad in the Hole goes, right? You bake sausages in batter and they taste delicious. Perfect British Fayre for a winter's night, and particularly good for the Bonfire Nights that we have coming up at the beginning of November. I made our cornbread from an Aunt Jemima's mix which I bought in my local supermarket, but there are plenty of recipes out there if you want to make it from scratch. Ingredients: 1 batch cornbread … [Read more...]
{Recipe} Seriously simple chocolate fudge sauce
I am a purist when it comes to ice-cream. With a few exceptions I like vanilla. But I like it best with chocolate fudge sauce. Fortunately for me when I was working in France as teenager I came across the recipe I use to this day. I always have some in a jar in the fridge. These measurements are approximate because I have been making it for so long I have no idea what the original quantities are. I definitely use two bars of chocolate and a … [Read more...]
{Recipe} Spiced Currant Buns
I have learned, living miles from a supermarket, to always have bread mixes to hand in case of unexpected bread shortage or extra guest arrivals. I am sure that it is just as easy and cheaper to measure your own, but there is always a place for a pre-measured bread mix in my home and it does away with the need to mess around with yeast. A few extra ingredients and you can have currant buns that are perfect for tea time in no time at … [Read more...]
