Ren Behan - Author Wild Honey and Rye

Food Writer

Snacks

Make-Ahead Leek and Poppy Seed Sausage Rolls

Sausage Rolls

We’ve only recently started making our own sausage rolls at home, but now that we’ve tried them, there’s no going back to the shop-bought variety. The homemade version is altogether a different thing – flaky pastry, good quality sausage meat of your choice (I get mine from Hedges Farm in St Albans) and a few optional extras, like some softly cooked leeks (there was a lone leek in my veg box), or caramelised onions, and a sparkling of poppy seeds, or even sesame seeds. We look forward to having these as an after-school snack (they are super-quick to whisk out of the freezer) or as party food and they’d certainly be great for serving up as a homemade canapé to Christmas visitors. Here’s my recipe, hope you get to try them….

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3 Quick Cheese Snacks for the Good Food Channel

Today is officially the last day of National Vegetarian Week 2014. In case you’ve taken the challenge and are in search of some simple and tasty recipes to round off the weekend, I thought I’d highlight three recent quick cheese snacks, created for the Good Food Channel. Really though, who needs an excuse to indulge in a little melted cheese?! Of course, you can also use any of your favourite vegetarian alternative cheeses in these recipes…

Three Cheese Snacks
3 Quick Cheese Snacks created for the Good Food Channel

Firstly, a super-quick Mexican inspired snack – my Cheese Quesadillas with tinned black beans, tomatoes, spring onions and grated cheese. Use a chilli cheese if you fancy, and any beans – black, pinto or fava beans – drained and washed.

Cheese Quesadillas

Cheese Quesadillas {Recipe Here} for the Good Food Channel

Next, one of our favourites for a quick cheese snack, are my Three Cheese Toasties, with leek, garlic and thyme on sourdough. They take around ten minutes to make, and I simply used a griddle pan to make mine, weighed down a little with a heavy lid. If you have a panini machine or a toastie maker, you can use that instead. I usually like to use a combination of cheddar, mozzarella and Gruyère or Comte – but really, use any cheese that you like or have in the fridge to use up – or a vegetarian alternative.

Three Cheese Toasties

 Three Cheese Toasties {Recipe Here} for the Good Food Channel

Finally, if you have hungry kids, you can’t go wrong with these Cheese and Marmite Swirls. Simply keep a packet of ready rolled/ready to use puff pastry in the fridge or freezer, then unroll, spread with Marmite, sprinkle over the granted cheese and roll up. Once sliced, place them on a baking tray lined with paper, brush with a little beaten egg and bake for fifteen minutes. Serve when warm, but not too hot for little fingers!

Cheese and Marmite Swirls

Cheese and Marmite Swirls {Recipe Here} for the Good Food Channel

I hope that’s given you a little inspiration for the Bank Holiday weekend, or perhaps, for an after school snack or quick lunch.

How did you get on with the challenge to “go green” for National Vegetarian Week?

Recipes commissioned by the Good Food Channel – recipes, styling and photography by Ren Behan. 

New Summer Blog Event: Sporting Snacks on Fabulicious Food!

So far, it has to be said that the weather in the UK has been dismal. I have been hugely excited about our ‘Summer of Sport’ getting underway and have been waiting for it to really get into full swing, but it has been a little bit like a damp firework that has failed to go off!

This is all about to change!

Link up your exciting world/sporting snacks here…

 

After the excitement of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in England, I feel there hasn’t been much mention of any food worthy of winning an Olympic Gold! I have spotted a couple of baking events, but nothing in the way of sustenance or ‘snack food’ to keep us entertained while all this sport is going on! My plan is that if we get behind our Summer of Sport, the fair weather will emerge and the sun will start to shine brightly. 

So, perhaps you are going to be watching the Wimbledon tennis, in which case, a glass or two or Pimms might make an appearance… 

 

Or perhaps a lovely bowl of fresh Strawberries and Cream will hit the spot while you take your seat on the sofa…

Or maybe, you are working your way up to serving some tasty hot dogs for more football matches during the Olympics…

 

Better still, you might be venturing out to watch the Olympic games or another summer event and are taking a picnic, or attempting some world food, or making some snacks from your own country…there are over 230 countries taking part in the games!

Whatever you are eating or drinking, write a post about it on your blog (the post doesn’t have to include a recipe) link up to this page and add your page link below and you could be in with a chance of winning this glorious Prosecco hamper from Hotel Chocolat  worth £75.00 to help you celebrate our ‘Summer of Sport’ in style!

The Chocolate & Prosecco Collection

 

This is a rolling summer event and will be open until 31st August 2012. On 1st September I will post a round-up post including all the entries and author and broadcaster Nick Coffer of My Daddy Cooks will pop over and pick a winner. The Hotel Chocolat hamper will be sent out to the winning gold medalist shortly after.  

Here’s to an entertaining Summer of Sport!

Which sporting events are you looking forward to the most? Will you be joining me with some Sporting Snacks?!