Monday, 14 November 2011
HELLO!
As much as I am sure no-one ever reads my blog I would like to apologise for not being here lately. I had no internet access for what felt like a century and then have just been busy with other things but now I am back and ready to blog again. Oh how I have missed thee! I have managed to obtain several new beautiful cookbooks during my absence and can't wait to review some of them. Within the next week I shall be reviewing one of my most favourite cookbooks - stay tuned foodies! x Tania
Thursday, 8 September 2011
Excitement!
Friday, 26 August 2011
Some of my Favourite Things
I eat a lot. And when I'm not eating I think a lot. About food. Literally every minute of every waking day I am thinking about food. It is an obsession, my life really does revolve around food. I go with the old saying 'everything in moderation' and eat fairly healthily most of the time but of course everyone needs the odd treat! Here are some of my favourite things to eat, in no particular order. Except the top one - I think that really is my ultimate culinary conquest.
1. Cheese. Cheddar, brie, gorgonzola, feta, halloumi, parmesan, mozzarella, stilton, camembert (oh camembert! Bake in its box with some garlic and thyme until seductively oozing and use big chunks of crusty bread as a vehicle to transport the melting cheese to your excited mouth. Sorry - that actually sounds like food porn. But I like it!) Any cheese is good cheese. I love to eat a thick slice of super mature cheddar when it's so strong that it makes the back of your jaw tingle. Or I love melted cheese on pizza, pasta and mashed potato. And then there are soft cheeses - I often stuff chicken breasts with cream cheese and herbs then wrap in Parma ham and bake in the oven, simple yet delicious. And I love carrot cake topped with cream cheese frosting laced with a hint of orange. And don't forget cheesecake! In short, I love cheese.
2. Chocolate. I think chocolate would be in most people's top ten foods and I am certainly no exception! I could (and often do) eat chocolate every day but I must confess that I don't really go in for the posh stuff - give me a toffee crisp any day and I will be happy as a kid in Willy Wonkas chocolate factory. I love chocolate biscuits too: Maryland cookies, chocolate digestives, bourbons and chocolate hobnobs will always be invited to take a seat next to my cup of tea. (Though I will leave my ULTIMATE favourite biscuit till later on.) Even when cooking, I often prefer to use milk chocolate in recipes (shock horror say the food snobs) as I find sometimes dark chocolate can be a little too bitter, though sometimes of course that is precisely what you need. I will post my favourite chocolate recipe at a later date. It is a chocolate and salted caramel torte and is, in my humble opinion, a mouthgasm.
3. Tomatoes. I eat tomatoes nearly every day, raw or cooked, they are a deliciously healthy and versatile superfood. Little fact for you, lycopene, an antioxidant found in tomatoes, has cancer fighting properties and is more prominent when the tomatoes are cooked. So do yourself a favour and make up some pasta sauce! I eat tomatoes grilled for breakfast, sliced in a salad or chopped into some couscous for lunch, baked with balsamic vinegar and herbs as a flavoursome side dish, roasted and blended into soups, sauces and marinades or added to pizzas, lasagnes and roasted vegetables for dinner. The list of uses for these cheap and cheerful little red fellas is endless and I love to find new ways of using up some rogue tomatoes lying sadly in the bottom of my salad drawer. Sun dried tomatoes are also a fabulous store cupboard ingredient as they are so packed with intense flavour and I would be lost without a tube of tomato puree.
4. Salt and Vinegar Crisps. Yes, very specific here, not just any crisps but salt and vinegar flavoured crisps. McCoys are my brand of choice but they are terribly high in calories for something that only fills you up for a short while. I only have 'proper' crisps as a treat, sticking to low fat versions such as skips on a regular basis. I only have to sniff a salt and vinegar crisp and I'm a dribbling wreck. I also use crisps to crumble on top of mashed potato with cheese before baking in the oven. Yum!
5. Custard Creams. The ultimate biscuit. I love the look as well as the taste of custard creams. Those lovely tactile indentations on the biscuit look so posh. Marks and Spencer sell a tin of these biscuits in a tin that looks like a custard cream - genius! I love these dunked in tea, but only a little dip is needed, no long hot soaks for these babies. I did once sit with a cup of tea in my lovely Cath Kidston mug and made my way through a whole packet of these without hesitation. Though, rightly so, felt pretty guilty afterwards. It wasn't my fault though, these biscuits should never be allowed to be sold, its just too dangerous!
6. Cherries. The cutest fruit in the world when you get a double dangler. I love cherries when they are a deep, dark burgundy colour and you can imagine a glamorous Hollywood scarlet sitting in a ball gown seductively eating a bowl of cherries in order to woo a tall, dark handsome detective dressed in a mac and hat. Am I going too far here? My favourite thing to cook with cherries is a clafoutis, basically a sweet Yorkshire pudding batter with cherries baked into it. It is light and fluffy and delicious served hot with cold cream poured over. I also like to make a cherry trifle using a little kirsch to soak the sponge fingers. As well as the fresh fruit I love anything cherry flavoured: cherry jam, cherry and coconut loaf cake, cherry yogurt but most of all those super sour cherry flavoured sweets you get at the cinema pick n mix!
7. Barbecue Sauce. Whenever I go to a grill house I always hope barbecue chicken is on the menu. Normally a chicken breast topped with bacon, cheese (occasionally mushrooms) and gallons of sweet, smoky barbecue sauce is a lovely flavour combination. I often recreate this popular restaurant dish at home, making my own barbecue sauce if I have time, or using a good quality bottle if not. Either way, it is rich and delicious and I could eat it almost every day. I sometimes but cooked barbecue chicken to have with cous cous and salad for a healthy lunch and I also like it rolled up in a tortilla wrap. My favourite pizza is ham and pineapple but my second favourite is barbecue chicken, especially if it also has sweetcorn on and I have extra barbecue sauce to dip my crusts into. You can easily make pizzas at home and these are often so much healthier than those you get from take-away houses. One last thing to do with barbecue sauce - use it as a sticky marinade for sausages.
8. Fresh Crusty Bread. I cannot resist the smell of bread. If I walk past a bakery or even the bakery section of a supermarket my tummy starts rumbling immediately even if I have recently eaten! I love fresh tiger bread carved into thick slices and loaded with good salty butter and if I want something sweet will also spread on some good jam or golden syrup too. There is nothing better than having a lovely fresh loaf on a saturday afternoon filled with your most favourite sandwich ingredients. This varies a lot for me. Sometimes it's ham, cheese and pickle, sometimes egg, cucumber and salad cream, sometimes roast beef, horseradish and watercress, and sometimes fish fingers with salt, vinegar and ketchup. Adding salt and vinegar to a fish finger sandwich is a recent, and utterly delicious, discovery, recommended by my friend Katie. Baking bread is also a marvellous experience, the satisfaction you feel when the house is full of that lovely warm aroma. My favourite bread to make is a focaccia topped with roasted peppers, lovely dipped in a rich extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar combo. I love my weekly bread treat, and after a week of eating brown Nimble bread (two slices are under 100 calories) it is totally deserved and celebrated.
9. Onions. I have to include onions in my favourite foods as I cook with them practically every day. Nearly every recipe I use starts with onions, and although this is the job I hate the most in the kitchen (not yet discovered a way of not crying) I understand that it is totally necassary in order to give the finished meal the best flavour. I like onions raw as well as cooked, but my favourite way of eating them has to be in a red onion marmalade. The sweet, sticky, richly spiced jam is fabulous spooned on top of sausage sandwiches and also with cheese and crackers. I made red onion marmalade as gifts for Christmas last year and it was very much appreciated. For me, a life without onions is just not worth living.
10. Peshwari Naan Bread. Oh the joys! I love an Indian takeaway and this is my favourite part. Soft, pillowy naan bread filled with coconut, honey, almonds and raisins. It is so sweet that I usually eat half of it with my curry, using it to mop up the spicy sauce and save the other half to eat afterwards in place of a dessert. I have to say though, shop bought versions do not measure up, it has to be the real deal. I think I may have to go order myself a friday night takeaway treat now.....
1. Cheese. Cheddar, brie, gorgonzola, feta, halloumi, parmesan, mozzarella, stilton, camembert (oh camembert! Bake in its box with some garlic and thyme until seductively oozing and use big chunks of crusty bread as a vehicle to transport the melting cheese to your excited mouth. Sorry - that actually sounds like food porn. But I like it!) Any cheese is good cheese. I love to eat a thick slice of super mature cheddar when it's so strong that it makes the back of your jaw tingle. Or I love melted cheese on pizza, pasta and mashed potato. And then there are soft cheeses - I often stuff chicken breasts with cream cheese and herbs then wrap in Parma ham and bake in the oven, simple yet delicious. And I love carrot cake topped with cream cheese frosting laced with a hint of orange. And don't forget cheesecake! In short, I love cheese.
2. Chocolate. I think chocolate would be in most people's top ten foods and I am certainly no exception! I could (and often do) eat chocolate every day but I must confess that I don't really go in for the posh stuff - give me a toffee crisp any day and I will be happy as a kid in Willy Wonkas chocolate factory. I love chocolate biscuits too: Maryland cookies, chocolate digestives, bourbons and chocolate hobnobs will always be invited to take a seat next to my cup of tea. (Though I will leave my ULTIMATE favourite biscuit till later on.) Even when cooking, I often prefer to use milk chocolate in recipes (shock horror say the food snobs) as I find sometimes dark chocolate can be a little too bitter, though sometimes of course that is precisely what you need. I will post my favourite chocolate recipe at a later date. It is a chocolate and salted caramel torte and is, in my humble opinion, a mouthgasm.
3. Tomatoes. I eat tomatoes nearly every day, raw or cooked, they are a deliciously healthy and versatile superfood. Little fact for you, lycopene, an antioxidant found in tomatoes, has cancer fighting properties and is more prominent when the tomatoes are cooked. So do yourself a favour and make up some pasta sauce! I eat tomatoes grilled for breakfast, sliced in a salad or chopped into some couscous for lunch, baked with balsamic vinegar and herbs as a flavoursome side dish, roasted and blended into soups, sauces and marinades or added to pizzas, lasagnes and roasted vegetables for dinner. The list of uses for these cheap and cheerful little red fellas is endless and I love to find new ways of using up some rogue tomatoes lying sadly in the bottom of my salad drawer. Sun dried tomatoes are also a fabulous store cupboard ingredient as they are so packed with intense flavour and I would be lost without a tube of tomato puree.
4. Salt and Vinegar Crisps. Yes, very specific here, not just any crisps but salt and vinegar flavoured crisps. McCoys are my brand of choice but they are terribly high in calories for something that only fills you up for a short while. I only have 'proper' crisps as a treat, sticking to low fat versions such as skips on a regular basis. I only have to sniff a salt and vinegar crisp and I'm a dribbling wreck. I also use crisps to crumble on top of mashed potato with cheese before baking in the oven. Yum!
5. Custard Creams. The ultimate biscuit. I love the look as well as the taste of custard creams. Those lovely tactile indentations on the biscuit look so posh. Marks and Spencer sell a tin of these biscuits in a tin that looks like a custard cream - genius! I love these dunked in tea, but only a little dip is needed, no long hot soaks for these babies. I did once sit with a cup of tea in my lovely Cath Kidston mug and made my way through a whole packet of these without hesitation. Though, rightly so, felt pretty guilty afterwards. It wasn't my fault though, these biscuits should never be allowed to be sold, its just too dangerous!
6. Cherries. The cutest fruit in the world when you get a double dangler. I love cherries when they are a deep, dark burgundy colour and you can imagine a glamorous Hollywood scarlet sitting in a ball gown seductively eating a bowl of cherries in order to woo a tall, dark handsome detective dressed in a mac and hat. Am I going too far here? My favourite thing to cook with cherries is a clafoutis, basically a sweet Yorkshire pudding batter with cherries baked into it. It is light and fluffy and delicious served hot with cold cream poured over. I also like to make a cherry trifle using a little kirsch to soak the sponge fingers. As well as the fresh fruit I love anything cherry flavoured: cherry jam, cherry and coconut loaf cake, cherry yogurt but most of all those super sour cherry flavoured sweets you get at the cinema pick n mix!
7. Barbecue Sauce. Whenever I go to a grill house I always hope barbecue chicken is on the menu. Normally a chicken breast topped with bacon, cheese (occasionally mushrooms) and gallons of sweet, smoky barbecue sauce is a lovely flavour combination. I often recreate this popular restaurant dish at home, making my own barbecue sauce if I have time, or using a good quality bottle if not. Either way, it is rich and delicious and I could eat it almost every day. I sometimes but cooked barbecue chicken to have with cous cous and salad for a healthy lunch and I also like it rolled up in a tortilla wrap. My favourite pizza is ham and pineapple but my second favourite is barbecue chicken, especially if it also has sweetcorn on and I have extra barbecue sauce to dip my crusts into. You can easily make pizzas at home and these are often so much healthier than those you get from take-away houses. One last thing to do with barbecue sauce - use it as a sticky marinade for sausages.
8. Fresh Crusty Bread. I cannot resist the smell of bread. If I walk past a bakery or even the bakery section of a supermarket my tummy starts rumbling immediately even if I have recently eaten! I love fresh tiger bread carved into thick slices and loaded with good salty butter and if I want something sweet will also spread on some good jam or golden syrup too. There is nothing better than having a lovely fresh loaf on a saturday afternoon filled with your most favourite sandwich ingredients. This varies a lot for me. Sometimes it's ham, cheese and pickle, sometimes egg, cucumber and salad cream, sometimes roast beef, horseradish and watercress, and sometimes fish fingers with salt, vinegar and ketchup. Adding salt and vinegar to a fish finger sandwich is a recent, and utterly delicious, discovery, recommended by my friend Katie. Baking bread is also a marvellous experience, the satisfaction you feel when the house is full of that lovely warm aroma. My favourite bread to make is a focaccia topped with roasted peppers, lovely dipped in a rich extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar combo. I love my weekly bread treat, and after a week of eating brown Nimble bread (two slices are under 100 calories) it is totally deserved and celebrated.
9. Onions. I have to include onions in my favourite foods as I cook with them practically every day. Nearly every recipe I use starts with onions, and although this is the job I hate the most in the kitchen (not yet discovered a way of not crying) I understand that it is totally necassary in order to give the finished meal the best flavour. I like onions raw as well as cooked, but my favourite way of eating them has to be in a red onion marmalade. The sweet, sticky, richly spiced jam is fabulous spooned on top of sausage sandwiches and also with cheese and crackers. I made red onion marmalade as gifts for Christmas last year and it was very much appreciated. For me, a life without onions is just not worth living.
10. Peshwari Naan Bread. Oh the joys! I love an Indian takeaway and this is my favourite part. Soft, pillowy naan bread filled with coconut, honey, almonds and raisins. It is so sweet that I usually eat half of it with my curry, using it to mop up the spicy sauce and save the other half to eat afterwards in place of a dessert. I have to say though, shop bought versions do not measure up, it has to be the real deal. I think I may have to go order myself a friday night takeaway treat now.....
Tuesday, 23 August 2011
Lunch Today...
I made a tortilla pizza by spreading tomato puree on a tortilla wrap, topping with grated cheese, sliced ham and a sliced tomato with a sprinkling of oregano to give an authentic pizza taste. I baked it at 180 for around 10 minutes until the cheese was melted and the edges were starting to brown. Had it with a side salad for a lovely filling and healthy lunch!
Almond Cloud Biscuits - My Recipe
Inspired by Nigella Lawson – How To Be A Domestic Goddess
Makes around 15
Ingredients for the biscuits:
• 250g soft unsalted butter
• 125g caster sugar
• 330g self raising flour
• few drops vanilla extract
Ingredients for the buttercream:
• 100g soft unsalted butter
• 200g icing sugar
• few drops almond essence (go easy!)
• splash of milk
1. Preheat the oven to 170°c. Beat together the butter and sugar for the biscuits until pale and fluffy then gradually stir in the flour and vanilla until you have quite a dry dough.
2. Use your hands to roll teaspoons of the mixture into balls and place on greased baking sheets, leaving plenty of room for spreading. Wet a fork in a little water then use it to lightly press down on the biscuits to flatten them slightly and give them a nice finished look.
3. Bake the biscuits for around 20 minutes. They are done when they are lightly golden but will still feel soft when you take them out. Leave on the baking sheets for a minute or two to firm slightly then cool on a cooling rack.
4. Now make the buttercream by beating the butter and icing sugar together till thick and creamy. I find it best to add the icing sugar a little at a time and always sieve it first. Loosen the mixture slightly with a tiny splash of milk and add the almond essence, going carefully as it can be overpowering.
5. Once the biscuits are totally cool sandwich pairs of them together with a little of the buttercream. I finished up with some buttercream left but this is delicious spread on a slice of shop bought Madeira cake. Perfect with a cup of tea to get you through a rainy afternoon.
These biscuits have a soft, melting texture and are rich and buttery, made even more intense by the gorgeous buttercream. They do not keep well, however, as they go rather soggy after a day so I would recommend to make them on a day when they are sure to be eaten.
Sunday, 21 August 2011
Recipe Review - Rocky Road
From How To Be A Domestic Goddess by Nigella Lawson
Rocky Road (p224)
Makes 24
Ingredients:
• 200g milk chocolate
• 25g dark chocolate
• 75g brazil nuts
• 75g mini marshmallows
• One baking sheet, lined with greaseproof, Bake-O-Glide or oiled foil
Melt the chocolates either in the microwave or using a bowl over a pan of barely simmering water. Roughly chop the brazil nuts, and mix into the chocolate with the mini marshmallows.
Drop heaped teaspoons onto a lined baking sheet, and leave to cool in a cold place, though not the fridge if at all possible; it will take some of the gleam from the chocolate.
VARIATION
You could chop these up and stir into slightly softened vanilla or chocolate ice cream.
This is such a simple recipe, it is barely even a recipe but I wanted to review it as it is one that I use most often and can be so easily adapted. I went through a phase just after Christmas last year where I made rocky roads every week, using up the abundance of chocolates, sweets and nuts that were left over after the festivities. These also make great little Christmas presents when piled into a cellophane bag and tied with a pretty ribbon and a hand made label. (I know it’s only august but is anyone else super excited for Crimbo? I am!!!) Anyway….This recipe works really well, the brazil nuts give a fabulous crunch in a way that a lot of nuts fail to, so I urge you to use brazil nuts before experimenting with others. Salted peanuts are also delicious though – salt and chocolate is my idea of heaven! Oh and chopped up Crunchie bars, also wonderful. Whenever I make these everyone loves them, they are addictive! I have never asked anyone to give these a rating but am pretty confident that everyone would give them full marks.
Nigella Lawson - How To Be A Domestic Goddess
Published: 2000
Overview: A beautiful book that deserves a place on any domestic goddess’s bookshelf. A complete guide to wonderful home baking by the most glamorous TV chef ever!
Review: Nigella Lawson (or Nige – as she is affectionately known by myself) is my ultimate culinary idol so this review is always going to be somewhat biased. I love her persona and she writes beautifully, making her foodie descriptions both articulate and down-to-earth. I have read this book over and over, drooling over the recipes and letting my imagination transport me into a huge country kitchen where I bake scones and layer cakes ready for afternoon tea. Nige introduced me to the fabulous world of baking. This was one of the first cookbooks I purchased and it has come in very useful on so many occasions. I use her fairy cake recipe to make my own cupcakes and her buttermilk birthday cake never fails. If I ever feel the need to pop on a pinny and knock up a batch of something delicious, this is the book I turn to. There are nine chapters, which focus on different branches of baking such as cakes, biscuits, puddings and Christmas. Each chapter has a vast selection of recipes, many accompanied by the most beautiful, gold tinged images which are light, bright and good enough to eat. The glossy pages are bursting with deliciousness, you cannot skim through this book without feeling a burning desire to be stove-side providing home made goodies for your loved ones. Anyone with a passion for baking MUST buy this book! Some recipes I would recommend are: Butterscotch layer cake (p20); Fairy cakes (p39); Sweet and salty peanut biscuits (p55); American breakfast pancakes (p77); Brownies (p193); Granny Boyd’s biscuits (p204); Buttermilk birthday cake (p210); Rocky road (p224); Mini pavlovas (p239); Christmas cake (p248); Pink grapefruit marmalade (p351). Nigella’s recipes are clear, concise and easy to follow and generally never go wrong. The only time I have ever had an issue with a recipe from this book was her Cornish pasty recipe, where the pastry went too crumbly and was very difficult to eat. I only tried the recipe once so it could have been a mistake that I made rather than a fault with the recipe. Overall, I simply cannot fault this book, it is possibly my favourite cookbook ever!
Rating: A rather biased 10/10! I heart Nigella!
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