Family Food

June 29, 2013

Chicken and Mushroom Lasagne (Great British Farmhouse Cookbook)

Weekends are for leisurely cooking, the kind that allows you to pull a cookbook from the shelf, put a little more time into something and maybe try a recipe you haven’t tackled before. There’s something about country cooking or farmhouse cooking that particularly lends itself to the weekend, too. Flicking through The Great British Farmhouse Cookbook by Sarah Mayor, my thoughts look forward again to summer holidays in Wales, to being woken up by the sound of free-roaming sheep or cows in the fields surrounding us and of fresh, local produce in abundance. Cookbooks always take us somewhere; whether to foreign lands, a family farmhouse or even just to a pantry stocked with homemade jams and preserves. This particular cookbook took me straight to the West Country with fresh British produce at the heart of the adventure.

Yeo Valley Orange Cheesecake — Photo credit Andrew Montgomery

Sarah Mayor wrote The Great British Farmhouse Cookbook from her family home in Somerset, England. Her family have been farming there historically since 15th Century. Sarah’s parents bought Holt Farm in 1961 and later opened up a small tea room. Since there was plenty of skimmed milk leftover from creating clotted cream, they started to produce yoghurt and ‘Yeo Valley’ was born – the largest organic business in the UK. Produce is made with an astonishing 2 million litres of milk per week, some of which comes from the families own British Friesian herd.

The cookbook tells lots of stories from field to fork, taking in The Dairy, The Farmhouse Kitchen, The Veg Garden, The Farmyard, The Pastures, The Woods, Hedgerows, Fields and Streams and The Fruit Garden. Even before you are introduced to any recipes, the scene is set, with photographs of fresh produce, vintage farmhouse crockery, baby lambs, British seasonal fruit and family gatherings inspired by the great British outdoors. Its ‘wellies’ all around and the food is hearty and welcoming.

In the first few pages, Sarah focuses on milk, the staple ingredient of the farm, with recipes for your very own DIY Dairy including yoghurt, ricotta, butter, cream cheese, crème fraiche, clotted cream and the all-important milkshakes. So, if you fancy trying your hand at becoming an artisan for the day or even for longer, dip in and give these recipes a go.

Whether you are making your own diary produce or simply buying the freshest ingredients that you can get your hands on, you can look forward to trying Sarah’s Orange yogurt cheese cheesecake (photo above) or a Poppy seed and lemon ice-cream cake with stewed blackcurrants, or our very favourite, Lemon curd and raisin bread and butter pudding for a zesty twist on a great British classic.

A friend of mine recently said that she acquired a glut of broad beans via a local delivery scheme, so I pointed her in the direction of Sarah’s Broad bean paté on toast with torn mozzarella, basil and lemon oil. These would make a great addition to an outdoor lunch or a summer family picnic.

Yeo Valley Broad Bean Pate — Photo credit Andrew Montgomery

Whilst we were still in the mood for a spot of comfort cooking and so made Sarah’s Chicken and mushroom lasagne, with chestnut mushrooms, leftover chicken, Parmesan, thyme, cream and the addition of seasonal leeks.

I also spotted a lovely list of top ten foods to forage, including wild garlic, blackberries, wild plums and elderflowers, with which you could make a Spinach, wild garlic and filo pie or Elderflower rhubarb and jelly creams. I don’t think there is a single recipe in this book that I wouldn’t be tempted to make and as clichéd as it will sound, The Great British Farmhouse Cookbook immediately made me want to plan my own escape to the country!

You can find the recipe for Sarah’s Chicken and mushroom lasagne here.

Yeo Valley Family Farm The Great British Farmhouse Cookbook by Sarah Mayor is published by Quadrille Publishing, RRP £20.00

With many thanks to Quadrille for my review copy.

June 26, 2013

Salted Caramel Chocolate Oatmeal Bars and Bake Sale Ideas

The sun is shining! I’ve been busy developing and photographing lots of exciting recipes for a new platform (more news to come) as well as writing and baking and making these (slightly addictive) Salted Caramel Chocolate Oatmeal Bars.

Recently, a recipe from one of my favourite blogs, Pinch of Yum, popped into my inbox and I knew instantly that I had to make it. The recipe was for Chocolate Caramel Oatmeal Bars. Since I had half a jar of Bonne Maman Confiture de Caramel left over, having made The ‘Big Daddy’ Salted Caramel Fudge Cake last weekend, I knew this would be the perfect recipe to make for a girls night in. I had actually been instructed to come with salad, but these were too good not to bring instead! Mine turned out a little more crumbly than on Pinch of Yum, as I had to convert measurements, plus I had an extra little pair of helping hands (which meant half the flour was all over the floor!) but they were equally tasty. Having made them once, I made them again to take to our summer fair, along with a big batch of cupcakes and as I type, I’m seriously craving them again…

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Find the original Pinch of Yum recipe adapted by Lindsay here – with US measurements.

More Bake Sale Ideas

We’ve had our school summer fair, but if yours is still to come pop over and read my latest piece for JamieOliver.com on Bake Sale Ideas, too.

Happy Baking!

May 7, 2013

Recipe: Turkey and Leek Meatballs with Tomato Tagliatelle

We love meatballs! If you make your own at home, you know exactly what’s gone into them and you can add lots of lovely flavours, too. They are easy to make and the kids love them.

These are really tasty, I used turkey mince (very lean and great value) and added leeks and freshly grated Grano Padano cheese for extra flavour to make turkey and leek meatballs. Serve with lots of tagliatelle pasta and tomato sauce and everyone is happy! If you wanted to, you could use an onion, but my kids prefer leeks. You can also add a teaspoon of mustard or even a tablespoon of ketchup for something a bit different.

I’m really pleased to be taking part in the Lean on Turkey recipe challenge, as we’re really keen to eat more turkey, instead of beef or pork and red meat. This time, the challenge was to create a pizza or pasta meal for the family for under £10.

The total cost of this meal was £9.91 from Ocado, but in fact, the turkey breast mince was on special offer (3 for £10) instead of £4.50 for one 500g packet so I was able to freeze a couple of packets for another time, too. Grano Padano cheese is a great alternative to the slightly more expensive Parmigiano Reggiano, which is worth keeping an eye out for as it brings the costs down a little.

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Costing

£1.99 – tomato and Basil Sauce
£1.75 – fresh tagliatelle
£4.50 – turkey breast mince (500g)
60p – large leek
20p – large egg
10p – garlic (one clove)
12p – bread (2 slices)
65p -Grano Padano cheese (50g)
Olive oil, store cupboard
Salt and Pepper, store cupboard

£9.91 at Ocado

Sponsored Post + cost of ingredients covered

With many thanks to Lean On Turkey for asking me to create a recipe for them

Have you tried making your own meatballs at home? What’s your favourite family meal? Let me know if you try these!

Other family favourites

Easy Macaroni Cheese with Baby Leeks

Easy Peasy Homemade Pizza

April 18, 2013

Fish is the Dish: Whole Wheat Penne with Prawns

It’s always a treat when staying near, or on the coast, to pop into a local fishmonger to pick up some of the freshest fish that you can get your hands on. We spent the second week of our Easter holidays staying near the Llyn Peninsula in North Wales. On our last day, we fancied picking up some fresh prawns from Llyn Seafoods for a simple supper. Had the spring weather been a little kinder, we would have most likely made some prawn skewers to throw on the barbecue. As it happens, it was a little rainy, so I made a big plate of whole wheat penne with prawns instead.

This recipe is very adaptable – if you don’t like mushrooms, don’t add them. You can swap the courgette for peas, or perhaps some asparagus, which should be coming into season in the UK towards the end of April. I added a tiny hint of chilli, but you could add more heat and also some fresh cream; it was our last day, after all. We’ve also switched to whole wheat pasta over white pasta, but any pasta works fine in this dish. Prawns take just a minute or two to cook in a hot pan – don’t forget the garlic and a little lemon zest to pick up the flavours.

As part of the Fish is the Dish #HealthyHappyHearts campaign, we’ve been making an effort to eat at least two portions of fish a week. Adding a handful of king prawns to a dish, such as pasta, a stir-fry or even a risotto is a great way to add extra protein and omega-3 to your diet and they are a great standby for the freezer as they are quick to defrost.

Here’s the recipe

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I’m adding this to Simple and in Season, as the prawns were fresh and in season – hosted here this month.

Don’t forget to join in!

With thanks to Fish is the Dish for a voucher towards our fish for the week as part of the #HealthyHappyHearts campaign. You can also find some of the Healthy Happy Hearts Menus here and follow @FishistheDish on Twitter for more tips.

How were your Easter holidays?

March 29, 2013

Fish is the Dish – Smoked Mackerel Omelette

The Easter weekend is upon us and I am reminded of how, growing up, we would always eat fish on a Friday, not just on Good Friday. And before the chocolate frenzy begins, there is still time to eat simply. We’re starting our day with a Hot Smoked Mackerel Omelette, for a quick and easy omega-3 boost.

For the last few weeks, I’ve been roughly following a plan and a challenge called Healthy Happy Hearts, encouraging us to eat two portions of fish a week. It isn’t a big change for us, as we already try and eat fish once a week, but upping our intake to two portions means that I’ve enjoyed experimenting a little more with fish at different mealtimes. I’ve written about the Fish is the Dish campaign before and was lucky to have had one of my recipes featured in their free family cookbook along with lots of other bloggers.

Dowload the cookbook in the Fish is the Dish site

This time, Fish is the Dish have been working with one family specifically to help them to eat two portions of fish a week, encouraging us all along with extra hints, tips, menus and recipes. There is research to show that eating fish twice a week will help to raise levels of omega-3 in the body. As a ‘good’ fat that is essential to our diets, Omega-3 helps with brain development, joint function, healthy skin and eyes as well as better mental health.

The hardest part of any cooking-based challenge is to find ways of getting the children to eat more healthily, so I came up with this quick and easy recipe, which the kids, to my surprise, devoured. I did think that smoked mackerel would be too strong a flavour for them, but then, they do like smoked salmon and actually tolerate ‘big’ flavours, such as fresh olives, better than I do. So sometimes, kids will surprise us. Mine were even picking the mackerel out of the bowl before we got it in the pan!

Getting them involved in the cooking or preparation process also helps, too and I find that my kids are more likely to try something new if they’ve helped to make it. I came across this infographic this week whilst writing about Cooking with Kids for Great British Chefs, backing up my theory. A survey showed that 84% of parents said that cooking with their children made them more likely to try new food types. Since the Easter holidays are now upon us, we’ll definitely be spending plenty of time cooking together in the kitchen – we’ll have lots of chocolate Easter eggs to use up (great for crispy cakes or fridge cakes) but we’ll also be making some healthy fishy dishes together, too!

Cooking with Kids – find the full infographic here

How to make a Smoked Mackerel Omelette

Making this omelette is quick and simple. We used some ‘responsibly sourced’ Smoked Mackerel fillets, on offer at the supermarket, too. They were in a vacuum sealed packet. Start with one, or even half a fillet if mackerel is a new flavour for your family. Using your fingers, pull the mackerel away from the skin (it will flake up) and put it in a bowl. In another bowl, whisk up two eggs, add an (optional) little swirl of fresh double cream for a little extra decadence. Next, grate up some cheese, Parmesan or Gruyere work well. Switch on the grill and leave it to heat up. Add a small drizzle of olive oil or rapseed oil (extra omega-3) into a small frying pan, pour in the eggs and put the pan on a medium heat on the hob. The egg will start to set, you can give it a little stir at the beginning, then leave it to start setting on a low heat. After a minute or two, add the flakes of mackerel to the pan and sprinkle over some of the cheese. Cook for one minute and then put the frying pan under the hot grill so that the top of the omelette cooks and puffs up a bit. Once it looks golden on the top, take it out and add an extra sprinkle of cheese. Serve and eat straight away.

I hope you have time to try this over the long and lazy Easter weekend. I’ll be back tomorrow with an Easter sweet treat!

With many thanks to Fish is the Dish for sending my family some fish to try as part of the Healthy Happy Hearts challenge. No additional payment was received.

Follow @FishistheDish on Twitter for extra hints and tips or search for the #HealthyHappyHearts challenge.

March 25, 2013

Nigella’s Everyday Brownies (With Leftover Mini Eggs)

I’m re-visiting this post from last Easter. It’s time to get baking again! Not that there really are ever any ‘leftover’ mini eggs…but just in case you have a bag or two around this Easter, I hope you find time to make these.

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March 18, 2013

‘Almost Spring’ Lamb Hotpot

One of our favourite one-pot meals, by far, is a lamb hotpot. It is so easy to throw together and is incredibly warming and comforting. I am desperately willing for it to be brighter and warmer, but we’ve still got frost and grey skies – so an ‘almost Spring’ hotpot is called for. You could make this in a slow cooker, but the potatoes wouldn’t get crispy on top. The lamb and vegetables would be lovely and tender, though. My onions, celery and carrots were all from our veg box and this is a classic, seasonal British dish.

Spring lamb is just coming into season. I usually ask the butcher for British lamb neck fillet, but a traditional ‘hotpot’ can also be made with neck chops, stewing lamb, diced leg or shoulder or something with a bone for extra flavour. For a Lancashire Hotpot, add 3 lamb kidneys, sliced, to the pan at the same time as browning your meat. Leave out the tomato paste and add a teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce instead.

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I’m sending this recipe across to Louisa at Chez Foti who is hosting this month’s Simple and in Season.

I’m also sending this to Credit Crunch Munch hosted jointly by Helen at Fuss Free Flavour and Camilla at Fab Food 4 All – although buying lamb fillet can be pricey, the carrot, onions, celery and potatoes are all in season and were all from my veg box. The stock and tomato puree are store-cupboard staples.

This recipe takes around one and a half hours to cook in the oven. You could follow all the same steps and instead of transferring the lamb and veg to a lidded casserole dish, layer it up in a slow cooker and cook for 3-4 hours on high or 6-8 hours on a low setting. Pop over to Mediocre Mum’s new site Slow Cooker Queen for more slow cooking ideas.

Finally, this is my first entry into Made with Love Mondays, too.

What’s your favourite warming one-pot meal?

February 11, 2013

Polish Sweet Cream Cheese Pancakes (Nalesniki)

I’m excited to share this recipe with you as it’s really delicious and probably quite different to anything you may have tasted before. It’s Shrove Tuesday tomorrow, or Pancake Day here in the UK and this is one of my favourite pancake fillings. Imagine eating a soft and creamy cheesecake, but then imagine that flavour folded inside a thin and delicate crepe or pancake. This is a very well-known dish in Poland, called Naleśnik z Serem or Polish Sweet Cream Cheese Pancakes. They are traditionally made with farmer’s cheese, or curd cheese, which I have seen in the shops. But if you can’t find any, use full fat cream cheese. You can use any crepe or pancake recipe you like. My favourite is a recipe called Make Ahead Pancake Mix from Vanessa Kimbell’s Prepped. You can store the leftover dry mix in a container and then use it for quick suppers.

I mentioned ‘Fat Thursday’ recently in a post, the day when Poles eat lots of doughnuts and sweet things to mark the start of Lent. We don’t have a pancake day, specifically. Naleśniki can be eaten sweet, filled with plum jam, fruit, or sweet cheese,or even savoury, perhaps with wild mushrooms. I’ve shared quite a few Polish recipes recently, which I hope you’ve all liked. I’m currently working on setting up a new site just for my Polish recipes, so that they can have a home of their own. I’ll keep you posted!

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I don’t know about you, but I’m really looking forward to pancake day tomorrow. I’ll be back with some more ideas tomorrow, too.

What’s your favourite filling?

November 25, 2012

Healthy Hot Chocolate Breakfast Smoothies

My children love chocolate and they’d ask for a sprinkle of cocoa every day if they could. Luckily, we manage to avoid most sugary breakfast cereals and instead we go for a bowl of milky porridge or Weetabix, so they are usually allowed a little pinch of cocoa. Breakfast smoothies are a good option, too, if time is tight. I’ve even found a way of making hot chocolate breakfast smoothies, which are always a hit, by blending the ingredients with warm milk. I also add oats and chia seeds for an extra health kick.

When I saw that Helen’s Breakfast Club this month was being hosted by Choclette with a theme of chocolate, I knew that it would be really easy for me to rustle up one of our favourite chocolate-themed morning treats. We’re not talking bars of Dairy Milk here, just a square or two of Fairtrade, organic dark chocolate. We like chocolate orange flavour and we buy ours from The Co-operative Food as their own-brand range is Fairtrade.

Earlier this year I was also incredibly lucky to win a Vitamix machine, by entering my card into a draw at Food Blogger Connect. I’ve learnt that the trick, with any kitchen gadget, it to keep it out on the counter. As soon as it goes into a cupboard, whether its a juicer, blender or food processor, it never gets used again. So my Vitamix has taken pride of place on my counter and we use it most days. It has encouraged me to experiment with extra ingredients in our smoothies, such as adding a handful of spinach, or a ripe avocado, or some super-healthy chia seeds. It would be incredibly difficult to get the children to eat any of these ingredients in large amounts, so blending them with milk and dark chocolate is a great way to sneak in some extras. I’ve also been whizzing up super-fast and healthy soups, sauces (cheesy bechamel in an instant) and you can even make sorbets, frozen cocktails and ice-cream. We no longer have a fridge full of leftover vegetables, they all get whizzed up in some form or another in our Vitamix.

The main advantage to the Vitamix machine over a standard blender is the power of the commercial motor and the blades – the Vitamix will even blitz down peel, pulp and seeds and you can use raw ingredients, too. Unlike a juicer, you don’t lose any of the fibre because it all gets whizzed up. It can also make steaming hot soup in under five minutes and if you use ice-cubs and frozen fruit, you can make instant ice-cream. They are pricey…but if Santa is feeling generous this year…

Back to the smoothies, I think you could make these in a standard blender, too. Just keep whizzing, grate your chocolate and use a very ripe avocado. You could add spinach, a banana and more milk if it is a little thick. If you haven’t heard of Chia Seeds yet, pop down to your local health food shop. They are being described as the new super-food (there’s always a new one, isn’t there?) containing stacks of Omega 3 fatty acids, antioxidants and fibre. They are gluten free and sugar free and were the ancient discovery of the Aztecs.

Healthy Hot Chocolate Breakfast Smoothies

Ingredients:

50g/a couple of squares Fairtrade dark chocolate (grated if not using a Vitamix)
1 avocado – super-ripe, stone removed, scooped out
1 tablespoon Chia Seeds – or you can use flax seeds
1 teaspoon honey, we used local honey
2 tablespoons raw oats or up to one Weetabix biscuit
500ml/2 cups warm milk – we used whole milk

NB You could also use a banana in place of the avocado.

Method:

Vitamix Instructions –

Place all the ingredients together into the Vitamix container and secure the lid. Select Variable 1. Turn the machine on and increase the speed to variable 10. Blend for 30 seconds or until you get the right consistency. Add extra milk and blend again if the smoothie is too thick. Pour into small cups or milk botttles and drink immediately.

Jug Blender/Hand Blender Instructions –

Put all of the ingredients into your jug blender or into a tall container if you are using a hand blender stick blender. Add all the ingredients together (apart from the milk) blend together and then slowly add the warm milk. Blend for another two minutes until the mixture is smooth. Pour into small cups or milk bottles and drink immediately.

Note: I won a Vitamix blender through a random prize draw at Food Blogger Connect – I was not required to write a post about it, but since I use it so often, it was bound to feature! Many thanks to Vitamix UK.

Hope you enjoy these smoothies for breakfast soon!

November 20, 2012

Family Spaghetti Carbonara (ASK Italian Cook Book)

Today marks the official publication of The ASK Italian Cookbook, in support of GOSH – Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity. I’ve had a sneaky peak of the book ahead of the launch and have been busy bookmarking and cooking some of my favourite recipes from it. When I moved to London, aged 18, as a student, the very first job I had was in an ASK Italian restaurant, just off Tottenham Court Road. I have many happy memories of serving (and eating) big plates of pasta and tasty pizzas. Since then, many of the ASK restaurants have had an update. Chef Theo Randall has also been working with ASK to improve the quality of their food and to inspire some of the chefs and team working for the group. Theo has also contributed a number of his own recipes to the book and other collaborators, such as Carla Capalbo and ASK CEO Harvey Smyth have lent a hand, too. As well as giving the home cook the chance to try some of ASK’s favourite recipes at home, part of the proceeds of sale of the book will go towards their favourite charity, GOSH.

ASK’s goal is to raise an ambitious £1 million over the next few years to fund facilities in the new Surgery Centre.

The ASK Italian Cookbook offers a good mix of traditional Italian recipes, including Antipasti, Pasta, Risotto, Pizza, Fish and Meat, Salads and Desserts. There is a section called The Italian Larder, an Italian Wine Tasting Guide and wine recommendations alongside some of the recipes. You’ll also find advice on chosing pasta and making fresh pasta, risotto and pizza dough. Towards the back, there’s a chapter on some of the ASK Italian menu staple sauces and bases.

Photographs from the ASK Italian Cookbook. The photograpy is by Jamie Laing, Sylvie Tata and Carla Capalbo

Last night, I made a big bowl of ASK’s Spaghetti Carbonara, one of the dishes I remember looking forward to eating after a busy shift as a waitress. The purist would never add cream to the eggs, so Theo marks it as an optional ingredient. Other recipes I immediately want to make include –

Penne Con Salsiccia e Porcini (pasta with Italian sausage, garlic, dried porcini, tomatoes and cream) NB The porcini is duplicated in the ingredients list
Penne al Pollo Della Casa – this dish flies off the menu at all ASK’s. Baked, creamy, garlic and mushroom chicken with thyme, cheese and pasta
Lasagna di Caprino, Spinaci e Funghi – Goat’s cheese, spinach and mushroom lasagna perfect for feeding a large crowd
Risotto con Gamberoni e Zucchine – a really flavoursome risotto made with prawn stock, garlic, courgettes, wine, tomato passata and chilli
Spalla D’Agnelo con Olive – Slow-cooked lamb shoulder with anchovies, olives and rosemary (Sunday lunch this weekend)
Torta Morbida di Cioccolato – Theo’s Valrhona chocolate cake made with chocolate, eggs, sugar and cream and cooked in a bain marie

My version of ASK’s Spaghetti Carbonara – Spaghetti with Pancetta, Eggs and Cheese.

Although I have lots of Italian cookery books on my shelf, this book doesn’t over-complicate and makes for easy reading and cooking. It would make a great Christmas present for a young cook, perhaps beginning to dabble in pasta-making or for a student. There are some good cooking tips to be found within the recipes, too, such as buying king prawns in their shells and then using the prawns to make a stock for your risotto by poaching them, taking the prettiest ones out and peeling the rest. You then boil the shells for another ten minutes before straining – you’re left with a really tasty seafood stock for your risotto. Another ASK tip is to use semolina flour to dust the work surface before kneading pizza dough as it will give it a crispier dough.

ASK Spaghetti alla Carbonara

Recipe re-printed with the publisher’s permission

Ingredients:

250g pancetta, cubed (Italian bacon)
1 teaspoon ASK Italian extra virgin olive oil
500g spaghetti
6 large egg yolks
100g Parmesan cheese, finely grated
100g pecorino Romano cheese, finely grated
2 tablespoons finely chopped, fresh parsley
50ml single cream (optional)
freshly ground sea salt and black pepper

Method:

Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Cook the pancetta slowly in a small frying pan in a tablespoon of oil until golden and crispy. Turn off the heat but leave the pancetta in the pan.
Drop the spaghetti into the pan of water and cook according to the packet instructions.
When the pasta is nearly cooked, place the egg yolks in a large warm serving bowl and stir in three-quarters of both cheeses and a tablespoon and a half of parsley. Grind in some black pepper. Turn the heat on under the pancetta pan to keep it hot.
Just before draining the pasta, use a mug to scoop out some of the hot pasta cooking water. Set aside.
Tip the steaming, drained pasta immediately into the bowl with the egg yolks and stir to coat the pasta and cook the eggs.
Add half a mugful of the hot pasta water to the pasta and eggs. Top with the pancetta and its hot oil and stir again. If you want to add cream, do it now.
Serve the carbonara immediately, garnished with parsley and black pepper, and with the rest of the grated cheese on the side.

The ASK Italian Cookbook is available to buy from today in all ASK restaurants. If you buy the book in an ASK restaurant, you can buy it for £10 and £4 will be donated to GOSH.

You can also buy the book online, and a minimum of £1 will be donated to GOSH from all sales. The RRP is £15

With many thanks to Penguin and ASK for my review copy and for permission to print a recipe.

April 30, 2012

Hug in a Mug: Slow Cook Bolognese Sauce

The sunshine has come out today! However, the weekend was a different story with wind, rain and all the garden furniture being blown about! So, it was a weekend of slow cooking, starting with this lovely slow cook Bolognese, which I served with some noodles, in mugs, which made us all feel cosy and warm. This recipe can be made either in an electric slow cooker or it can be cooked on the stove and left to slowly bubble away for up to two hours. I credit my Italian brother-in-law for first showing me how to cook Bolognese sauce when I was a teenager. The longer you leave it the better and using a combination of lean beef and pork mince gives you an even better flavour.

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December 9, 2011

Our Favourite Carrot and Parmesan Risotto

For the last couple of weeks I’ve managed to post a ‘family friendly’ recipe on my blog every Friday. Today we’re having a Carrot and Parmesan Risotto for tea, which we love. Although we try to eat as much veg as possible, sometimes it is easier to keep things very simple with little ones. Ever since we helped my mum pick the carrots she had grown in her garden, my kids have been super keen to eat them, so we now eat carrot risotto at least once a week. It could be worse, I suppose.

I add a little bit of butter in with my olive oil before coating the rice and carrots, as it really brings out the flavour of carrots. You could add chopped onion, garlic and celery, but we prefer just using carrots chopped up into little pieces. The carrots will cook with the rice so they’ll be nice and soft by the time it is all ready. Don’t forget to use hot stock too, I keep a small pan of stock simmering next to my risotto pan and then just keep pouring a ladleful at a time until all the stock is absorbed. At the end, stir in another knob of butter and plenty of freshly grated Parmesan cheese. To make a vegetarian version, of course, you can use vegetable stock and a vegetarian cheese instead.

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I’m also sending this recipe across to the lovely Niamh of Eat Like a Girl, who is judging a Christmas Carrot Competiton on behalf of Love the Garden. Their competition is open until 21st December 2011, so if you have any carrot recipes you’d like to share, send them across too!

And, of course, to Simple and in Season here on Fabulicious Food!

I’m also linking this up to Mediocre Mums’ Slow Cooker Sunday – to cook in a slow cooker, add all the ingredients and set to low for 3-4 hours.

Wishing you all a lovely weekend.

September 19, 2011

British Baby Leek and Mushroom Three Grain Risotto

Having survived National Cupcake Week, my scales are pleased that we are now into British Food Fortnight. Whilst I could continue to bake cakes, I am moving instead, into savoury, autumnal cooking-mode.

I know, I know, I could have chosen a British dish to cook, but I was mainly inspired by the lovely British baby leeks that are in season at the moment and by some British mushrooms (not foraged, this time) and by coming across a ‘three grain’ risotto in the back of my cupboard.

I’ve been buying locally produced organic spelt flour for some time now (made at Redbournbury Mill) and often enjoy spelt bread, but I have never actually cooked with or eaten spelt as a whole grain. So, I was quite keen to try it. The three grains I used included long grain rice, pearl barley and pearl spelt and I cooked them in the same way that I would cook a normal risotto.

The baby leeks and wild mushrooms give this risotto a lovely flavour and if you top it with some vegetarian cheese, it will also tick the Meat Free Monday box. Aren’t we all being so good?

You shouldn’t have any trouble at all finding British produce to cook with if you are in the UK, particularly during British Food Fortnight, but I am finding that generally, shops are very keen to push British produce and the double-bonus is that fresh British produce will most likely be in season too.

As a random aside, if you are interested in hearing more about spelt, catch up with this week’s Nick Coffer’s Weekend Kitchen on iplayer. Nick’s guest was Edd Kimber, the winner of last year’s Great British Bake Off and about half an hour into the show you’ll also hear me talking about spelt flour in my ‘Ren Recommend’s’ slot! If you are into baking, you’ll find a factsheet on the same page with lots of free recipes on it too, including Edd’s Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies and his Orange and Passion Fruit cake.

Over the next fortnight up until 2nd October, look out for ‘meet the producer’ style events, special promotions in the shops and in restaurants, healthy eating activities for kids (or, if like me, you overdosed on cupcakes, then for yourself) and generally for the “Buy British” message that the campaign is trying to push.

If you are a tweeter, you can follow @theBritFFGirls and add the hashtag #BritFF to your posts/tweets too.

You can also follow the campaign by ‘liking’ the Love British Food Facebook page.

British Baby Leek & Mushroom 3 Grain Risotto

Serves 4

Ingredients:

300g Three Grain Risotto (I used the Riso Gallo brand)

1 Tablespoon British Rapeseed Oil

1 Small Onion, finely chopped

220g British Baby Leeks, cleaned and finely chopped

150g British Oyster Mushrooms, chopped

50g British Chestnut Mushrooms, sliced

1 Litre Vegetable Stock

For the topping

110g British Baby Leeks, washed and finely chopped

15g Butter

A twist of pepper

A handful of freshly grated vegetarian-style Parmesan cheese

Method:

1. Boil the kettle and make up the vegetable stock to one litre in a separate sauce pan. Leave the pan on a low heat so that your stock is constantly simmering as you add it to your grains/rice.

2. Add the oil to a large heavy-based pan and gently fry the onions and leeks for around five minutes. Add the rice, stir it well until it is coated in the oil and mixed with the onions and leeks.

3. Add the mushrooms and risotto rice/grains, mix well until all the grains are coated. Over a medium heat, add a ladleful of stock to the rice and vegetables and simmer. As the stock bubbles in the pan and is absorbed, add another ladleful and again stir. If your rice/grains are in any way sticking to the pan, your heat is too high. Add more as necessary, until all the stock has been used up and the grains are cooked. The grains should take no more than 25 minutes to cook and should still have some bite to them, but should not be hard.

4. Using your (now empty) stock pan, add the butter and the extra baby leeks and gently fry for three minutes or so. Serve your risotto in bowls and top with the extra baby leeks, a twist of pepper and plenty of grated cheese.

I will be linking this recipe up with Simple and in Season – running up until 15th October.

Don’t forget to leave me comments too if you are writing about or eating British food over the next two weeks.

Thank you for all your help, comments and feedback about my blog name! I am sticking with Fabulicious Food! and the move is happening as I type.

June 13, 2011

Tomato and Garlic Pasta

Last week I posted an interview with Vanessa Kimbell and hosted a competition to win a copy of her new book, Prepped!

As mentioned in the post, Vanessa gave up her job in order to pursue her dream of writing a cookery book, documenting the process through her blog Writing a Cookery Book giving us all a fascinating glimpse into the world of food writing and publishing. Her book offers time-saving recipes and introduces a concept called ‘linked cooking’ as well as double-cooking, incorporating flavoured sugars and syrups that can be made-ahead and ‘mixed and matched’ according to what you have to hand.

Thank you to everyone for entering and telling me which one of the chapters in Vanessa’s book would be your favourite from the inspiring selection on offer including Elderflower, Rhubarb, Lavender, Lemon, Vanilla, Tomato, Plum, Caraway, Chocolate, Cardamom or Orange & Clove.

I’m very pleased to announce that the winner, chosen by a randomiser, is Sally from My Custard Pie who I am sure will love Vanessa’s book and make excellent use of it!

I have to say I am truly torn. Having tested recipes for the book from both the Chocolate and Vanilla chapters I am certainly won over by the ease of Vanessa’s recipes.

I’m also both intrigued and inspired by some of the more unusual flavour combinations in Prepped! – the Victoria Sponge with Cardamom Rose Cream and Rhubarb along with the Chocolate Beef are next on my hit list. However, my favourite recipe so far (and one that, I confess, I am slightly addicted too at the moment) can actually be found in the Tomato chapter, so I’m probably with Sally on her winning choice.

Vanessa’s Tomato & Garlic Pasta, also known as “Garlic Yum Yum” pasta is possibly one the the quickest and simplest recipes in the book. It also happens to be a ‘linked’ recipe, meaning that you can make double the quantity and use it as the base for the Tomato Pizza.

Vanessa has kindly given me permission to share the recipe with you below – I urge you to try it – it is so simple but really delicious and my kids love it too.

Last week also marked the official launch Prepped! It was lovely to be able able to chat and mingle in a very leisurely fashion at Rococo Chocolates with Vanessa, other food writers, bloggers and members of the ‘Prepparati’ including Helen from Fuss Free Flavours, Katie from Feeding Boys and a Firefighter, Jayne from Jaynerly and Becky from Rebecca Bakes Cakes. We also sampled some of our favourite treats and recipes from the book, including Chocolate Chilli Cupcakes, Pink Meringues with Elderflower Cream, Victoria Sponge with Cardamom Rose Cream & Rhubarb, Chocolate Cookies, a Chocolate & Raspberry Cake, the Chocolate, Vanilla & Black Pepper Cupcakes as well as the obligatory taste of some Rococo Chocolates too.

What a clever idea to host a party in a chocolate shop and not just any chocolate shop, Rococo’s was a truly luxurious experience and we all left hideously high on chocolate!

Thank you so much to Vanessa’s good friend Chantal Cody and to all her lovely staff who looked after us so well and of course, to the bright and bubbly Vanessa Kimbell for the kind invitation for us to take part as recipe testers for Prepped! and to the launch.

Prepped! is available on Amazon, currently at £10.48 or at many branches of Waterstones (RRP £20.00) and is published by Spring Hill

Tomato & Garlic Pasta

Posted with the kind permission of Vanessa Kimbell

(Serves 4)

Ingredients:

1 whole medium garlic bulb

500g spaghetti

1 x 200g tube tomato purée (I used a can)

80ml extra-virgin olive oil

120g fresh Parmesan, grated, for serving

Salt

Method:

1. Peel and finely chop all the garlic cloves (I put them in a mini blender but you can just finely chop). Put a pan of boiling water on for the pasta and add a teaspoon of salt to the water before cooking. Cook the pasta according to the instructions on the packet.

2. Heat the olive oil in a saucepan for 1-2 minutes then add the garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes (do not burn!) You are not looking to brown the garlic at all, so you must keep the heat at a medium temperature.

3. Stir in the tomato purée and turn the heat down to a slightly lower temperature. Keep stirring. As the tomato cooks it incorporates most of the oil and turns from a fresh red into a deeper, darker red. After 5-7 minutes the sauce is cooked. The pasta will be ready too.

4. Drain your pasta and add it to the tomato sauce, stirring well. Serve immediately with fresh parmesan.

There won’t be any left as it is so delicious but you could make double the quantity of sauce, as Vanessa suggests, and use it as a base for Vanessa’s Tomato Pizza and Oregano Bread

May 27, 2011

Fresh Pasta with Asparagus, Goat’s Cheese and Lemon

I was challenged by the lovely Giulia of Juls’ Kitchen to make fresh pasta for this month’s Monthly Mingle. This was such an exciting challenge for me, since I recently took a pasta class with Katie Caldesi to learn exactly how to make it although since taking the class I hadn’t put my new found skills to the test. So, the question for me was whether I had actually retained any information from that day?! My first stop was a visit to Buongiorno Italia, an award-winning local Italian food store close to my home. With Giulia as our judge, I was determined to do this the Italian way!

Established over 30 years ago, Buongiorno Italia is exactly the type of food store you want to have on your doorstep. Tony, the owner, goes to Covent Garden Market to bring back the best seasonal produce every week as well as stocking a huge array of authentic Italian food, including cheese, cured meats, olives, pasta, cakes, wine and lots more (including a small selection of Polish food which I was also pleased to spot!) Tony was lovely to chat to and he showed me his plans for expanding the store so that by the summer he will have some outdoor seating and an authentic cappuccino bar.

I was immediately inspired by the fresh produce on offer, finding some lovely bundles of British asparagus, new season’s garlic (the best I’ve ever seen) and even more exciting some goat’s cheese made on a local farm called Childwickbury by Liz and David Harris, nestled alongside the Italian cheeses. I think it is really nice to see local produce being showcased as well as Italian produce and of course, I couldn’t resist buying some Polish pasta, pierogi since they were there.

This is exactly what I love about local food shopping – you don’t always find the obvious, but in many cases you stumble across some real treats. I also picked up some ’00’ grade Italian pasta flour, some fresh, large free range eggs and a very fragrant tub of fresh basil.

I have no idea whether Italians would put asparagus, garlic and goat’s cheese together but I do know that Italians are very keen to use local produce and that they let the flavours of fresh food do the talking, so why not? I also had some lemon-infused olive oil at home, though regular olive oil would have been fine, perhaps just with a grating of fresh lemon zest at the end. As it’s National Vegetarian Week it was also nice to create a meal without using meat.

Back at home, the next challenge to overcome was the fact that I had not managed to find a pasta machine. A quick phone call to a friend out in town revealed only one machine which was £60 in a cook shop. It may have been the crème de la crème of pasta machines, but I think it is a lot of money to spend especially if it is not something you will use every day. Though we had been taught how to make pasta using a machine in the class, a quick flick through ‘The Italian Cookery Course’ by Katie Caldesi (which I very much enjoyed reviewing recently for The Foodie Bugle) suggested that I could make and cut fresh pasta entirely by hand so I decided to give it a go without the machine.

I’m relieved to say that it worked just fine, though I will look into buying a pasta machine in the long run as I think you are able to get your pasta slightly thinner (it should be almost see-through) – although not having one shouldn’t deter you as my hand-rolled, hand-cut pasta actually tasted delicious. Next time I will try experimenting with beetroot to make lovely purple beetroot pasta.

To roll and cut by hand, you go through the basic stages of making a pasta dough and then you roll it on a floured surface until it is as thin as you can get it. You then roll up the two edges until they meet in the middle and using a sharp knife cut the pasta into the width you want it. You can then slide your knife beneath the pasta and as you lift the pasta up the rolls unfold.

I also found a handy step-by-step guide by Jamie Oliver – How to make fresh pasta

I used one egg to 100g of flour and that made enough for about two portions. If you make more, you would have to split the dough into smaller portions (and keep it covered) to have enough room to roll it all out.

The pasta making was fun and I ended up with a really delicious meal – definitely superior to any shop-bought pasta though of course, you could make this recipe by using any type of pasta you fancy. I’m so pleased I did give this a go myself at home and that I had remembered everything that Katie had taught me!

Pasta with Asparagus, Goat’s Cheese & Lemon

Serves 4

Ingredients:

Fresh pasta (use 6 eggs and 600g of flour for four people)

OR – the best pasta you can buy if not fresh

2 bundles (500g) fresh Asparagus

4 cloves garlic

A drizzle of lemon-infused olive oil

OR plain olive oil plus a tablespoon of fresh lemon zest

140g Goat’s Cheese

A handful of fresh basil leaves

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method:

1. Pre-heat your oven to 200 degrees Celsius

2. If you are making fresh pasta it would be better to do this first as the pasta should be left to rest for around thirty minutes.

3. Chop your asparagus into bite sized/2cm pieces and put them in a baking tin along with the cloves of garlic (no need to peel), a sprinkling of sea salt, fresh pepper and a drizzle of lemon or plain olive oil. Roast in the oven for 20 minutes.

4. Boil a large pan of water, add a tablespoon of salt and cook your pasta according to the instructions (fresh pasta doesn’t need long at all so keep testing it to see if it is cooked.)

5. Drain the pasta, saving about two tablespoons of the pasta water.

6. Take your tray of asparagus from the oven and pick out the garlic cloves from the roasting tin (they will have infused the oil enough) and tumble the pasta into the tin with the roasted asparagus. Drizzle with more olive oil so that all the pasta is coated.

7. Crumble over the goat’s cheese, sprinkle with fresh lemon zest and a handful of basil leaves. Serve!

“Buon Appetito!” – I am looking forward to seeing how every one else got on with this month’s slightly more challenging mingle!

Thank you Giulia for setting this challenge – it was exactly what I needed and has definitely encouraged me to experiment more and continue to make fresh pasta at home.

May 21, 2011

Pull Apart Spring Shoulder of Lamb

There’s something about weekend cooking that normally means the pace is a lot slower and you may have a little bit more time to spare to cook a family meal or even a Sunday roast – though having more time doesn’t mean it needs to be hard. This week I came across a lovely shoulder of lamb at my local butcher, which is usually a bit cheaper than leg of lamb but tastes great slow roasted – the meat can literally be pulled off the shoulder with a spoon and fork.

Look out for rare breed, new season spring lamb for great flavour. Grass-fed will mean that the lamb will also be higher in omega-3. Also, keep an eye out at your local farmers’ market or ask your butcher whether he has any locally reared lamb, as you’ll also be helping local farming and agriculture whilst at the same time capturing that really good British spring lamb flavour at its best.

For a really seasonal Sunday lunch try slow roasting your lamb with garlic, herbs and wine(see below) and serving it with Jersey Royal new potatoes and British asparagus, both of which can be par-boiled and then just roasted in the lamb juices – almost a one-pot meal. I also used the stock cube trick Marco Pierre White recently showed us to season the meat – seemed to work a treat. You’ll see it in the method below.

Don’t forget to keep sharing your seasonal recipes in my Simple and in Season linky-up, there are now quite a few great looking seasonal treats to try (not just from the UK!) I’ll be rounding-up in a separate post at the beginning of June and sending out a book to the winner.

Slow Roasted New Season Shoulder of Lamb,

with Jersey Royals & British Asparagus

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 x 1.3kg shoulder of lamb or leg of lamb
2 white onions, sliced
3 cloves garlic
Olive oil
1 lamb stock cube
3 tablespoons fresh or dried rosemary
Salt and freshly milled black pepper
250 ml of white wine, water or stock
Jersey Royal New Potatoes (as many as you need to feed your crowd)
1-2 bunches fresh British asparagus

Method:

1. Pre-heat your oven to 160 degrees celcius

2. Take a tin or casserole dish large enough to fit in your leg or shoulder of lamb, put your sliced onions and garlic in the bottom of the tin and lie your shoulder or leg of lamb on top

3. Crumble a lamb stock over the shoulder or leg or or put your stock cube in a small bowl and pour in a small amount of olive oil, mix this together with your finger to form a paste (a la Marco Pierre White). Spread this paste all over your leg or shoulder of lamb, season all over with salt and freshly milled pepper and scatter some rosemary all over the top

4. Pour over your white wine, water or stock and cover with a tightly fitting lid or with tin foil

5. Cook in the oven for 3 hours basting occasionally. If your liquid runs dry, add in some more wine, water or stock

6. Wash and boil your new potatoes for fifteen minutes and set aside. Blanch your asparagus for around three minutes and rinse under cold water

7. After three hours of cooking, take off the lid or foil and throw in your par-boiled new potatoes and asparagus. Coat everything in the liquid in the tin/dish and cook, uncovered for a further 45 minutes

8. After 45 minutes, take out your shoulder of lamb and place on a plate, covered to rest (for fifteen minutes.) Check your potatoes are soft, if not put them back in the oven for fifteen minutes. Pull the lamb apart (I usually throw it back on top of the veg) and serve.

January 31, 2011

Easy Macaroni Cheese with Baby Leeks

It’s Meat Free Monday again which means I have a really lovely, easy recipe to share. This one is great for a quick kids’ tea as it really should take less than twenty minutes from chopping to serving. We really love macaroni cheese, it is lovely and warming and cheese melting under the grill really makes the house smell yummy!

Although making a roux (flour and butter based white sauce) isn’t difficult, even an expert roux-maker can have issues with lumps so I make a really easy alternative with cream, crème fraîche and cheese. You can use half-fat versions if you prefer. I also add a touch of Dijon mustard and an egg yolk, just for flavour.

This is a really versatile sauce and can be added to any pasta dish (try adding chopped smoked or poached salmon, chopped bacon and peas or chopped left-over chicken for a non-Meat Free Monday alternative) or just make a veggie version, as I have, adding any vegetables you like. You can also skip the pasta altogether and just use it as a sauce for pouring over cauliflower or broccoli.

I have used baby leeks this week, which are in season and make a more colourful alternative to onions. They also have a much subtler and sweeter flavour, don’t make your eyes water and are a great source of Vitamin C as well as iron and fibre. Go for small or medium sized leeks, as the larger ones can be a bit woody. You can remove the outer layer if you need to and give them a good wash removing and grit.

Easy Macaroni Cheese with Baby Leeks

Ingredients

250 g macaroni pasta
One tablespoon olive or rapeseed oil
6 or 7 baby leeks or 3 medium-sized leeks

200 ml double cream
50 g crème fraîche
75 g grated Gruyère cheese
1 free-range, organic egg yolk
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

75 g grated cheddar for the topping

Salt & Pepper

Method

Pre-heat your grill.

Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Add your macaroni or other shaped pasta to the pan, stir and cook according to the packet instructions (firmer/al dente is best)

Finely chop your leeks, add a tablespoon of olive or rapeseed oil to a frying pan and gently fry your leeks for a few minutes until they soften.

Pour the cream and crème fraîche into a pan and gently bring to the boil. Once it is very gently bubbling, add the grated Gruyère cheese and mix well. (For extra flavour you could add some extra cheddar too)

Add the Dijon mustard and mix again. Take off the heat and add your egg yolk. Season with salt and pepper and stir again keeping it off the heat.

Drain your pasta and add it to the pan of cheese sauce, tip in the cooked baby leeks. Mix well until all the pasta is coated.

Sprinkle over the cheddar cheese (or use more Gruyèreor any firm cheese) and place it under the hot grill just until the cheese starts bubbling and melting.

Serve and eat as soon as possible.

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