Aubergine Parmigiana (Baked Aubergines)

 

This is the dish that made me fall, utterly head over heels, for aubergines. Before I had this, I always shoved the dark, shiny-skinned veg to one side, probably after one too many gastropub-style Moussakas in the early 2000s.

But this, is something different. And even better, the children lapped it up too. (Bonus veggie points!)

The recipe is Jamie Oliver’s, so I won’t reproduce it here, but you can find it on his recipe page. You basically whip up a quick and easy tomato, garlic and basil sauce, blend it until smooth, and layer it, with griddled or fried aubergine slices in an ovenproof dish, between snowy dredgings of Parmesan cheese. A scattering of breadcrumbs on top (I blitzed the end of a ciabatta for mine) and you’re done. Then it all just goes in the oven to bubble away gently for 30 minutes.

I’m going to cook this again, and it was so good I had to tell you about it. Aubergines on their own have a kind of musty flavour, and the centre can go soggy. But in this sauce, everything works so well. We had leftovers and I think they were even better heated up after a day in the fridge. Jamie says that this can be eaten cold – and I did have a sneaky spoonful from the fridge – but I have to say it’s much better hot.

If you think aubergines are boring, soggy and a pain to cook then try this. I am quite sure you will love it!

What are your favourite ways to use aubergines? I want to hear about them!

Mission Burrito

Sometimes you’re out and you need more than a sandwich. Sometimes you need something really filling and substantial, that’s also not loaded with calories or dripping in fat. And I found it, the other day at Reading’s Riverside: Mission Burrito.

The restaurant is located near the entrance to the Oracle shopping centre; conveniently, some might say, next door to Krispy Kreme. Inside, heavy, rustic-looking wooden benches are sparse except for a pile of napkins, some salt and pepper and a bottle of Cholula Hot Sauce.

Ordering is easy enough, made even easier by the staff, who show you what you can get to fill your burrito or fajita and talk you through the ingredients. And fill it they do.

I chose a burrito, with rice and refried beans, crunchy lettuce, slow-cooked roast pork (“carnitas”), which is seasoned with bay, thyme and orange zest. I asked for a handful of Montery Jack cheese and some Pico de Gallo – a crunchy salsa made with onions, tomato, serrano chillies, lime juice and fresh coriander. After a daubing of sour cream, I chose a trickle of salsa verde – a green-coloured, mild salsa – although you can choose hot or extra spicy if you dare. You’re then given your chunky burrito, wrapped in foil and placed in a little red basket. And then we sat, with South American music in the background, tucking in to our burritos with a slosh or two of that gorgeous hot sauce.

If carnitas aren’t your thing, they will also fill your warm tortilla wrap with chicken, steak or vegetables. And they make mini burritos for the kids, too. Or, you can get a rice box or a salad box instead, or choose tacos if you like.

Mission Burrito claims to be authentic; they say that they’ve brought the real flavour of the burrito from the Mission District of San Francisco “the home of the burrito”. I’ve never been there, so I can’t say. But I will be going back to Mission Burrito. Their emphasis on the flavour of the food over any theatrical gimmicks is fantastic. And some might argue that £5.45 is a bit steep for a wrap. Firstly, when you see what goes into it – I’m talking quality and quantity here – and along with the fact that it will keep you going for most of the day, it’s not bad at all. In fact, is 8am too early for a burrito craving?

Visit the Mission Burrito website (see their menu online), follow them on Twitter at @BurritoHQ or even better, visit one of their restaurants in Reading, Oxford, Bristol and Bath. 

Pong Cheese: Heart-Shaped Cheeses for Valentine’s Day

I was browsing the Pong website, when I found these gorgeous little heart-shaped cheeses that come in a gift box especially for Valentine’s Day. And when I emailed them to ask for a photo, they very kindly sent me some of their cheeses – and a luscious chutney too – to try.

When I opened the box, I found a Godminster Cheddar, White Heart goat’s cheese and a little leafy parcel of Banon. Added to this was a jar of beetroot and apple chutney. When you order the Valentine’s box though, you get the White Heart, Godminster Cheddar, the chutney but also a Neufchatel AOC (also heart-shaped) rather than the Banon. Check it out here.

Here’s a run down of the cheeses I tried.

White Heart

 

This is described as a ‘stunning bloomy semi-hard goat’s cheese’ and we absolutely loved it. It was light and creamy, as you would expect from goat’s cheese and you can slice it up and balance on a cracker. This cheese was light and really easy to eat.

 

Godminster Cheddar



 

My favourite. I’m a sucker for a really good Cheddar and this one is tangy, smooth and also organic. Full of flavour, when cut thinly, the slices actually melt in your mouth. The cheese is also wax coated in the shape of a heart. Aww. 

 

Banon

 

This soft, creamy French cheese comes wrapped in a bundle of chestnut leaves, which help to protect and also flavour the cheese. It has a mild flavour and spreads nicely on crackers or bread. Definitlely a bit moreish. 



 

 Beetroot and Apple Chutney

 

We loved this tangy, dark-coloured chutney with its chunks of apple and beetroot. It goes well with any of these cheeses and would be great in salads, ploughman-type affairs or slathered in a leftover roast chicken sandwich. Loved it. 

  

For more information on any of these cheeses, including the heart-shaped Valentine box, visit the Pong website.

 

What do you think? Does cheese make an ideal gift for Valentine’s Day? 

Cut Waste: Ideas on How to Use Up Leftover Cheese

Do you throw away anything that’s just passed it’s ‘best before’ date, regardless of its condition? If you do, you’re not alone. Research suggest that 55% of us Brits do exactly that. And according to The British Cheese Board, a stinky £240m worth of cheese is thrown away each year.

But cheese company Pong thinks that’s a huge waste. On their website they say: “If a cheese is thrown away in the days after its Best Before date then two heinous acts are committed: firstly all of that hard work and care that the producer has put in are in vain and secondly a perfectly good and healthy cheese, most likely in the very peak of its condition is lost.” (A ‘Use-By’ date is different to a ‘Best Before’ date, remember).

It’s tempting to throw away the ends of cheese wedges, but as long as you store them correctly, you can help cut waste and use them all up in gorgeous recipes!

The British Cheese Board’s Tips for Storage

• Although cheese is generally best enjoyed fresh, it can be stored in a cool environment for anything from a couple of days to several months, depending on the type of cheese.
• Some softer cheeses such as Brie and Camembert actually improve with age, so you can buy them in advance and give them a chance to ripen. Just keep an eye on the ‘use before’ dates.
• When storing cheese, either wrap it tightly in foil or cling film and if possible, keep in an airtight container in the bottom part of the fridge.
• If you’ve bought more cheese than you can eat, it is possible to freeze certain open textured cheeses such as Stilton very effectively as the texture allows the ice crystals to form in the tiny gaps. Once defrosted in the fridge overnight, the texture and flavour is not affected.
• With hard cheese like Cheddar the dense nature of the cheese means the ice crystals force the hard cheese apart, so when hard cheese defrosts it becomes crumbly. You can solve this problem to a large extent by grating hard cheeses prior to freezing then defrosting before use. It defrosts quickly at room temperature.

Recipes for Using Up Cheese

• Soups: A chunk of Stilton or other similar blue cheese melted into a broccoli soup is heaven; it provides just the right amount of creaminess and tang. Or chuck a Parmesan rind whole, into a tomato soup. It won’t melt – it’ll just go a bit rubbery – but it will infuse it with a deeply savoury flavour. Remember to take it out before you blend it!
• Veggies: Crumble blue cheese or Cheddar onto mushrooms and grill or bake them until it’s all melted. My Mum actually told me this week that she makes a kind of ‘courgette pizza’ (her words, not mine) by slicing a courgette lengthways, topping with a tomato-based sauce and grating over some cheese before popping in the oven for 15-20 minutes.
• Sandwiches: Mozzarella in Carozza, anyone? If that seems like too much hard work, try cheese with chopped red onion, tuna mayonnaise or chilli jam. Or if you have some soft cheese left over, make Poor Knights of Windsor; or, as we call it Posh Eggy Bread.
• Bread: You can knead gratings or pieces of cheese into bread dough before proving. Try grated Parmesan, Cheddar, Mozzarella or crumbled goat’s cheese. Or, make a folded bread antipasti thing, a la Jamie; by using up all your leftover ham, olives and roasted veg, too.
• Other favourites, such as pile little heaps of cheese on a baked potato (or baked sweet potato), stuff into aracini, scatter over pasta or cous cous or stir into a risotto. And don’t just think Parmesan: one of my favourite risottos is a take on the classic comforting Mac and Cheese – and uses a sharp, tangy Cheddar.
• A ‘Leftover Cheese’ Tart – use whatever cheese you have handy – ends of wedges and all – the recipe is here.
 

Do you have any other suggestions for using up cheese?

For more information about cheese and for more recipes, visit The British Cheese Board website.

Walkers Crisps Mystery Flavours: The £50,000 Challenge

You may remember my recent post when I tried out some ‘mystery’ flavours of crisps from Walkers. Well, Walkers have now told me what this is all about; and it’s all pretty cool.

It’s basically a competition, called What’s That Flavour? – three new flavours of crisps have been launched in the UK and it’s up to us to guess, armed with only our tastebuds – what the flavours are.


If you guess a flavour correctly you can enter the competition and be in with a chance of winning £50,000.


Look out for the ‘What’s this flavour?’ mystery packs in shops; guessing starts 23rd January 2012. Happy munching, and good luck!


Check out the website and the Facebook page for more details.

Carbs with Carbs…. Carbfest

 

 

 

When I was about 20, I remember every time I went out for dinner I would order lasagne. With chips. Maybe it was a late-1990s thing, but every menu offered the two together as if they were inseparable. And even though the lasagne was cheesily stodgy, it seemed to work, probably because of the contrast in textures. But only if the chips were crisp. Big fat soggy chips were a no-no with a wodge of oozy lasagne.

 

And the other day I found myself reading Nigella Lawson’s recipe for Pasta Alla Genovese, which incorporates spaghetti and diced potatoes. The potatoes actually break up in the pan and give the pasta a grainy, starchy coating. I tried it and it is unbelievably good.

 

And then, I noticed Adam Richman, the host of Man Vs Food sometimes orders a side of fries when he has to eat something sweet – like a huge ice cream, because he says you taste the crisp saltiness and then instead of just getting full up on the fries, you feel like eating more ice cream (I wouldn’t advise on doing this, by the way; leave that to him…). So we could crave carbs because they offer a contrast in taste, as well as texture.

Chip butties, pasta with potato, spaghetti hoops on toast -there’s a lot to be said for some carb on carb action, if only for a treat every now and again.

 

What are your favourite carby foods? What are your favourite carb on carb combinations?



New Mystery Walkers Crisp Flavours

Just before Christmas, I was contacted by Walkers to ask if I wanted to be one of the first people to try out the new flavours of crisps to be launched this year. I said yes I would, and I couldn’t wait to try them. But when they arrived, they didn’t have names and were described as ‘mystery’ flavours. I can never resist a challenge, and so couldn’t wait to open the first bag.

‘Meaty’
A big sniff into the crisp packet and these smelled just like sausages. But as I took the first bite, I immediately sensed that the smoky, sweet flavours meant that it had to be a frankfurter. I’m not sure if it’s ‘hot dog’ flavour as such, I couldn’t detect any mustard flavour in there, but there was a lot of paprika-sweetness and I absolutely loved them.

‘Dairy’
These pale, green-speckled crisps tasted like cheese. Definitely cheesy – and I wondered at first if they were sour cream and chives. But then, as I kept munching, I got the taste as if I’d just smeared a big fluffy blob of Boursin over some crusty bread. It tasted creamy, like soft cheese – and I could taste garlic and herbs, I think. It’s all quite confusing for your tastebuds, because while you’re tasting soft, creamy cheese, you are feeling ear-shattering crunch. These would be lovely with a toasted sandwich.

‘Spicy’
First bite in, and I knew that these were curry. But which kind? They weren’t creamy-tasting enough to have been korma and didn’t knock your head off like a Vindaloo would. To me, they tasted exactly like Bombay Mix – mild but really aromatic. I think I also detected some chicken flavour in there too along with the odd burst of coriander – and so I reckoned it was Chicken Tikka Masala. But then, after I finished the packet I was reminded of a Coronation Chicken baguette I used to have at lunchtimes in my old office. So it could be that. Too bad I didn’t have another packet to check…

My favourite? Probably the ‘frankfurter/hot dog’ flavour. If these came out in the shops I’d stock up on them for sure. And the ‘spicy/curry’ flavour left me wanting another packet.  
Loved them, and can’t wait to see what the flavours actually are.

Find out more at www.walkers.co.uk

What are your favourite crisp flavours?

Chocolate and Almond Loaf Cake

I made this for my neighbour on Christmas Eve and it’s a cake that I often make to slice up and plonk into lunchboxes or nibble with a cup of tea. It’s one of my favourites, because it’s really easy and I usually have everything I need to make it in the cupboards. For my neighbour, I ‘iced’ it with melted white and dark chocolate but I usually make it as it is here: plain, moist and chocolatey. I use a silicone loaf ‘tin’, because it makes removing it so easy.

Chocolate and Almond Cake
Cuts into around 10 slices
Ingredients

• 175g unsalted butter, softened
• 130 soft brown sugar
• 40g caster sugar
• 3 eggs
• 2 tsp baking powder
• approx. 130g plain flour
• 85g ground almonds
• 100ml milk (semi-skimmed or whole)
• 4 tbsp good quality cocoa powder (I use Bournville, or Green and Black’s)
• half a teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

1. Preheat oven to 160C. In a bowl, mix the soft butter and the sugars until they are creamy and fluffy. Beat in the eggs.
2. On the scales, tip in your 2 tsp baking powder and then add plain flour untlil it gets to the 140g mark. Stir this into the eggy mixture, along with the ground almonds, cocoa powder and milk.
3. Tip into your prepared loaf tin (mine measures 19cm x 8cm on the base) and bake for about 45 minutes, or until a skewer or cake tester comes out clean.
4. Leave to cool in the tin. Remove, slice into chunks and enjoy.



Flavours That Go (And Don’t Go) With Goat’s Cheese

I love goat’s cheese – it’s tangy, creamy and lower in cholesterol than many other cheeses, so I don’t feel as guilty eating it. But it can be tricky to know what to do with it. I usually eat it on bread, toasted under the grill or scooped into little bite-sized pieces and scattered into a salad. But what else goes with goat’s cheese? Well, round of cheese, knife and board at the ready, I decided to find out:
 

 

Grapes: A classic combination; grapes and cheese. The fruity grape offsets the tart cheese while its fruitiness bounces around the mouth until it settles into a sweet tangy taste at the end. But the grape overpowered the flavour of it for me; I only tasted the cheese at the very end. But being fruity, as with all cheeses, the grape cleans the mouth when eaten together. Refreshing, but not really equally balanced. Verdict: 6/10

 
 

Chocolate: Bear with me. I first came across this pairing in Niki Segnit’s The Flavour Thesaurus, where she remembers attending a tasting session with chocolatier Paul A. Young where goat’s cheese and chocolate were paired together. She claimed that it resulted in a surprisingly pleasant taste. And it’s not actually that bad – in fact it’s very good. Take a square of dark chocolate (I had 72% cocoa Belgian chocolate), top it with a small spoonful of soft goat’s cheese and pop it in your mouth. The velvety chocolate offsets the tangy creaminess of the cheese, and they balance out together, resulting in a kind of chocolate cheesecake flavour. Once I started, I had trouble stopping, until I remembered I had other flavours to try out. Don’t expect to have seen the last of this. Verdict: 9/10

 

Cranberry Sauce: I have, cut out from an old magazine circa 2005, a recipe for goat’s cheese, cranberry and filo tarts. Cranberry sauce was used in the recipe instead of the natural, tart berries and so I tried it for myself. I can see how this could work, but I found the cranberry sauce overwhelmed the flavours of the cheese. I couldn’t really detect the cheese until the end. Might work better with real cranberries rather than the very sweet sauces. Verdict: 5/10
 

Honey: Honey works so well with other cheeses; I love it drizzled over some manchego for example, or over some baked Tunworth. But drizzle a little runny honey over a blob of soft goat’s cheese and you’ll struggle to taste the goat’s cheese at all. The flavours become lost amongst all that sweet, sticky honey. Not a bad flavour, but apart from in texture, the goats cheese might as well not be there. Verdict: 5/10

 

Apricots: Again, back to The Flavour Thesaurus. Niki Segnit suggests a ‘kitchen snack’ of goat’s cheese with a dried apricot. I tried this, and the perfumed flavour of the apricot worked really well with the goat’s cheese. Not sure how I would use this (in a salad, perhaps?) but it was good. Verdict: 8/10

 

Chilli: The heat and pepperiness of chilli works so well with any cheese really, so this isn’t much of a surprise. You still get the individual flavour of the cheese, but you also get a peppery kick from the chilli. I’d have a goat’s cheese salad with a chilli oil dressing any day, or stuff the cheese into those little spicy ‘peppadew’ peppers. Come to think of it, that goat’s cheese and Sweetfire Beetroot salad I made last year was pretty good. Verdict: 8/10 (Which leads me on to…..)

   
 

Beetroot: I love how the sweetness of beetroot calms down the tang of the goat’s cheese, but how they both mingle in a flavour combination of their own. The rooty beetroot comes through equally against the soft, tart cheese. And I also like how it stains the innocent, white cheese with a fuschia bloom. A bit like a lipstick mark on a freshly-washed collar. Naughty beetroot. But I like you. Verdict: 9/10

 

Garlic: One of my all-time favourite snacks is a baguette, with roasted garlic and goat’s cheese, toasted under the grill and then dribbled with a little olive oil. Shame it takes nearly an hour to get it ready. I first made it with Nigel Slater’s recipe, which is what got me hooked onto goat’s cheese in the first place. Garlic has a really sweet flavour once it’s roasted, and it works so well with the goat’s cheese, especially when the cheese has that golden, toasty crust on top. *rushes into kitchen to find baking tray and bulb of garlic* Verdict: 10/10.

Red Onions: TGI Fridays do a burger that comes topped with a slice of goat’s cheese and a tangle of sticky balsamic red onions. It’s my favourite burger there, and my favourite bit is not necessarily the chargrilled beef, but the acidic, sweet onions against the melted, creamy cheese. Especially when dipped into the garlic mayo that arrives alongside it. Verdict: 9/10.

 

Do you have any favourite flavours that go with goat’s cheese? Or any cheese, in general?

 

Chocolate and Orange Trifle with Cardamom Cream

After the success of the Coffee-Iced Cardamom Cake, I was spurred on to use cardamom in other sweet recipes and so I thought I’d try my hand at a trifle.

Now I think about it, I was probably being a little too cautious with the cardamom in the cream, so feel free to taste and add more if you like. The quantities below will give a subtle spiciness to your trifle, and the citrus in the cardamom complements the orange and chocolate used here, too. Make a large trifle or individual ones, I just think an individual serving looks really pretty; the scented cream layered amongst all that dark chocolate sponge. Oh, and I’ve gone a bit OTT with the pistachios again.

Chocolate and Orange Trifle with Cardamom Cream
Makes 2 individual trifles

Ingredients

• 100ml double cream
• 1 tablespoon caster sugar
• contents of one green cardamom pod, crushed until finely ground
• 2 slices of chocolate loaf cake (plain, no choc chips etc)
• chopped pistachio nuts for sprinkling
• zest of one orange
• juice of one orange

Method

1. Tip the double cream into a bowl and add the caster sugar and ground cardamom. Whisk, until it thickens, and just holds soft peaks.
2. Cut thin slices of the chocolate loaf cake and arrange in the bottom of each serving glass. You can cut them up to fit, no one will notice.
3. Trickle over a tablespoon of the orange juice (I don’t see why you couldn’t use Cointreau, if you wanted to here instead), and a little orange zest.
4. Smooth a spoonful of the cardamom cream over the top of the orangey chocolate slice. Repeat, building up the layers until you’ve used up the cake. Finish with a layer of the cream.
5. Grate over any remaining orange zest, and top with some chopped pistachios, for colour. These little trifles are quite rich, and you only need fairly thin layers of cream between the chocolate cake slices.

 

The Great Big Butter Debate: Butter vs Low Fat Spread

I imagine that the debate on which is healthier for you – butter or low-fat spread – will continue for years and years. It’s something that often crosses my mind, as I smear a golden blob of butter across my toast in the morning or lop off a slab destined to end up in a cake. I’ve tried margarines and low-fat spreads (both in baking and on my toast) and despite all the technology out there, nothing is yet able to really compare to butter.

 

But I still feel guilty, as I nibble on my buttered toast. We’ve been eating the stuff for thousands of years but only in the last century or so have we seen a rapid rise in heart disease and diet-related cancers. Butter is natural, right? And some people believe that low-fat spreads and margarines are actually worse for you than butter. So what’s going on? 

Butter comprises of about 80% fat. And because that’s animal fat, a large amount of this is saturated fat and we all know what that eventually does to our arteries. Between the two World Wars, butter was hard to source and so an imitation butter was produced. The imitation butter was eventually marketed as healthier than butter and lower in saturated fat, and subsequently we all panicked and started buying it up. It was made by hardening (hydrogenating) vegetable oil into a spreadable form. The problem with this, is that manipulating vegetable oil in this way resulted in creating trans fats, which started to raise concerns of their own. Studies began to show correlations between eating trans fats, with increases in coronory heart disease, Alzheimer’s and diabetes. A study by Professor Walter Willett in 2004 found that nurses who ate trans fats were more likely to have a heart attack than those who didn’t, leading him to comment that the turn to trans fats from butter was “a disastrous mistake” (read Felicity Lawrence’s brilliant article on the whole subject here). A study published only last week also hints that trans fats might even cause brain shrinkage.

So, low-fat margarines are bad then, right? Wrong, according to dietician Catherine Collins, who wrote in the Daily Mail in 2009. She said: “virtually all spreads – and foods made with these – are trans fat-free.” She goes on to explain that the industry has now changed the way they make these spreads and says that butter is the one natural food she still does not recommend her clients eat. 

So how much faith do we have in these low-fat spreads? Not much, according to a quick Twitter poll I drew up last week. I asked which spread people preferred, and why. The replies came pinging in. “I wouldn’t touch low fat spread with a ten-foot bargepole. Why should I pay more for air/water?” replied one. “Always butter, don’t like taste of spread or see the point… but thinly and not if you don’t need it”, responded another. The Pump Street Bakery responded with: “BUTTER. No question. L’Escure at the bakery, any decent one at home. For flavour reasons, also because less processed.” Not one Tweet favoured spread, for health reasons or for anything else.

And it could be that margarine  and similar spreads are just scapegoats for the rise in health problems many people are now experiencing. Maybe we’re dwelling too much on this issue and not the real problem at hand. Felicity Lawrence writes, in the article above: “it is the shift to an overwhelmingly industrial fast-food diet that really needs to be addressed.” After all, trans fats have appeared in many other processed foods.

But no one can deny that there is a lot of saturated fat in butter. And while one camp urge us to abandon it completely, or at least limit our consumption of it; the other say that at least it’s pure, often citing the French, who are said to eat lots of butter, cream and red meat but have low incidences of heart disease.

Me? Well, I’m beginning to think twice before baking a cake. I’ve baked with so-called baking margarine, but often found the cakes greasy and oily in taste. I’ll still be baking (and cooking) with butter, but perhaps once a week, instead of two or three times a week. And on my toast? Well, as Gizzi Erskine tweeted about butter last week: “For most people it might be a scraping on toast which is barely going to break the bank.” So a scraping, rather than a lashing, perhaps.

What do you think? Butter or low-fat spread? And what do you think is the real issue here? What we choose to spread on our toast or the increasing reliance on fast ‘industrialised’ food?

Chocolate Fruit and Nut Crisp Bars

I’ve been following the We Should Cocoa blogging challenge for quite a while, but always seemed to run out of time to take part. But when I read this month’s theme, I couldn’t wait to get started. The January challenge, hosted by Chocolate Teapot, was to create a chocolate-based recipe that was actually healthy. 

As someone who always (muffled, between bites) insists to everyone else that chocolate actually really does have its health benefits, I got quite excited about this challenge. Think of these bars as a flapjack, crossed with a Rice Krispie cake, studded with little orange morsels of sweet, dried apricot and then drizzled with 72% cocoa Belgian chocolate. You need a little bitterness with those apricots in there, and it’s better for you too. I got the idea of using Rice Krispies and oats together from a recipe by Cookin Diva. And it really makes the bars so light to eat.  

The chewy syrup that holds everything together is made with honey instead of golden syrup, contains no butter, and has a good dollop or three of almond butter – less fatty than peanut butter. And before the chocolate could set, I scattered over some chopped pistachios – mostly because I like the vivid green against that dark chocolate, but also because I like their nutty, creamy crunch. There’s no real cooking either – just heat up the syrup in a small saucepan – and then combine the ingredients and press into a tin to set. I hope you enjoy.

Chocolate Fruit and Nut Crisp Bars
Cuts into about 20-24 squares
Ingredients

• 100g Coco-Pops, or other chocolate crisped rice cereal
• 200g rolled oats
• 160g dried apricots, chopped into small pieces
• 25g light brown sugar
• 120ml runny honey
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 100g almond butter
• 60g good quality dark chocolate (I used 72% cocoa solids)

Method

1. Line a square brownie tin with greaseproof paper, so that is covers the base and comes up the sides too. This will help you lift the finished cake out.
2. In a large bowl, combine the Coco-Pops, rolled oats and dried apricots and stir to mix.
3. In a saucepan, pour in the honey, sugar, vanilla essence and almond butter and bring to a gentle boil over a medium heat. Stir to combine. When it starts to boil, turn off the heat.
4. Pour the hot syrup mixture into the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix well. At first, it will seem as if it won’t combine, but keep stirring and it will.
5. Tip out into your prepared, lined tin. Press down well with the back of a spoon or your spatula so it has an even surface and is densely packed. Leave to one side in a cool place (30 minutes or so) until set.
6. Melt the chocolate and drizzle over the cake. Just a drizzle here and there is what you’re after, nothing too thick. Scatter over the chopped pistachios. Leave to cool until the chocolate is set.
7. Cut into bars and serve.

 

Home-Made Arancini: Deep-Fried Risotto Balls

 

I’d read about arancini (pronounced ‘aran-chi-ni’) for ages, but was never able to have the discipline to leave any risotto left over to make them. This time, though, I made loads of risotto so I knew that the next day we would have these little babies.

 

 

They’re so cute; little balls of fluffy rice coated in egg and hreadcrumbs with a cube of cheese pushed into the centre. They’re deep-fried for about 4-5 minutes and the rice heats up, the cheese in the middle melts and the breadcrumbs go really crunchy. They are also really low effort, which I love.

All I can say is, if you’re cooking risotto for dinner one night, you owe it to yourself to make a couple of extra portions and make these the next day. Just put the leftover rice in a bowl, cover with cling film and place in the fridge.

Here’s how you make them. They’re made with a Bolognese-style filling too, instead of cheese, or you can use any kind of cheese you want. I think mozzarella is most often used but I used little cubes of Cheddar because that’s what I had. I have given the technique below, rather than a proper recipe because it will depend on how much rice you have leftover.
 

 

  

Arancini

  Ingredients:

• beaten egg
• breadcrumbs
• leftover risotto rice
• cubes of cheese
• oil for deep frying 

 

Method

 

First, pour the oil into a medium sized saucepan and start to heat it up.

 

Pinch an apricot-sized blob of the cooked and chilled risotto rice and form it into a ball. Push in the cube of cheese and then fill over the gap it’s made by pushing on more rice, if you need to.

 

Dip in the egg and then in the breadcrumbs. Repeat for the rest of the rice.

 

The oil should now be hot. Drop in (carefully) a cube of bread, to see if it sizzles and turns golden. If it does, it’s ready.

 

Deep fry the arancini in batches, for about 5 minutes, until they are golden and crisp. You will need less cooking time if your arancini are smaller.

 

Drain on kitchen paper, and eat, safe in the knowledge that you will never throw away leftover risotto again.

 

 

Coffee-Iced Cardamom Cake: Random Recipe 12

On a sleepless night at around 2am, some time at the end of December, I bought myself a late Christmas present on my Kindle. It was The Flavour Thesaurus by Niki Segnit. It’s not a cookery book as such, more a collection of ideas for ingredients that go together, with a few recipes scattered in the text, throughout. The author suggests, amongst other things, that we try goat’s cheese with chocolate, ginger with coffee and make Rice Krispie cakes with chilli flakes (she calls them Krakatoa cakes). The odd recipe is mentioned, and so, sticking to the rules of this month’s Random Recipe challenge (your newest cookery book) this is the book that I used.
 

 

I don’t know if it’s easier or more difficult to pick a random recipe on a Kindle; you don’t have pages to flick through as such, but at least the pictures don’t tempt you along the way. Bit more cold and clinical, tapping the clicky little button. 

  

Anyway, I picked a random location and looked for the nearest recipe. It was one for Coffee-iced Cardamom Cake. I was relieved: after a random creamed cabbage recipe and some rather 1990s-style pork kebabs, I was really looking forward to this one. I scanned through and realised I had all the ingredients I needed. So, with a clutter of bowls and spoons I set to work.

 

The cardamom was fragrant and aromatic and I was relieved that, once in the oven, it didn’t smell like curry. It just smelled like an eggy, slightly citrussy vanilla cake.

 

The coffee icing was poured and drizzled over and I couldn’t wait for it to set, to cut into it with a crackling of icing, and see what it would taste like.

With the seeds from 12 cardamom pods, it does taste strongly of the stuff, which is lucky as I love it. And the roasted flavour of the coffee worked brilliantly with the heady, spiced-citrus of the cardamom. It tasted and looked elegant; the kind of cake you’d be served in dainty little wedges at a posh tea party.

 

If you’re looking for some inspiration for different food pairings, and if you can get your hands on this book, do. I’m not even half way through and it’s giving me lots of ideas already. Now. Krakatoa cake, anyone?

 

 

 

New Year’s Day: Sausages and Lentils

We have often enjoyed this dish, and not only on New Year’s Day either. It’s an Italian tradition to eat pork and lentils at New Year; according to this article the pork symbolises the fat of the land and the flat, coin-like lentils are symbolic of money. And so, it’s eaten to usher in a prosperous year ahead.

I make mine with smaller, chipolata sausages – firstly because the children love them, and secondly, they take less time to cook. I also use tinned (or cartoned) green lentils, again for speed and convenience. Lentils are so good for you (rich in iron, amongst other things) and I’m going to make a real effort to eat more of them.

This is a quick, effortless dish, cooked in one pan – meaning a rich, tasty and healthy meal with a minimum of washing up. We love eating ours with the dark, squeaky leaves of a savoy cabbage, tossed lightly in salted butter.



 

Italian Style Sausages and Lentil One Pot
Serves 3-4

Ingredients

• Olive oil
• 12 good-quality chipolata sausages
• 2 chunky cloves of garlic, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 400g (or thereabouts) tin/carton of lentils
• 3 large carrots, sliced on the diagonal
• 3 bay leaves

Method

1. Trickle about 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large frying pan, and fry the sausages, turning a few times, until they are browned all over.
2. Once the sausages are browned, push them to one side, turn down the heat slighhtly and throw in the onion and garlic. Cook, on a medium heat until the onion is soft, but not browned. 
3. Now, add the carrots, lentils and tuck in the bay leaves. Pour in a splash of water from the kettle until it just covers. You could use stock if you like, but I find that the water mingles with the flavour of the tinned lentils and incorporates the sticky sausage residue in the pan, so I don’t. Throw in a good pinch of salt and a generous grinding of black pepper.
4. Leave to bubble, until the carrots are tender (but still with a ‘bite’) and the sausages are cooked through.
5. Serve, with some shredded, buttered savoy cabbage if you like.

Do you enjoy any traditional New Year foods?