Sugar Free Fairy Cakes

Back in April our 15 yr old son was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes, and as a result is now insulin dependent 😦

He absolutely loves fairy cakes and if you are a follower of my blog then you will already know this with the amout of different variations I make.. well I decided to experiment a bit, and this morning I made them sugar free

I recently discovered a product called SPLENDA®  it is an alternative to sugar ..here’s what it has to say on their website…

“Whilst a healthy lifestyle is recommended for everyone, it is especially important for people with diabetes. SPLENDA® is suitable for people with such a condition, as it contains only a fraction of the calories and carbohydrates of sugar. Sucralose, the sweetening ingredient in SPLENDA®, is not recognised by the body or broken down for energy, so it has no effect on insulin or blood glucose levels.”

Sugar Free Fairy Cake Recipe:-

• 4oz low fat margarine
• 8 tablespoons of splenda which is the equivalent to 4oz
• 4oz Organic Wholemeal self raising flour
• 2 medium eggs (organic from my own chickens)

Makes 6 muffin sized fairy cakes – I use a muffin tray and muffin paper cases

Method :-

1. Cream the margarine and splenda together until light and fluffy
2. add the eggs and mix well.. I added a little flour as the mix started to split
3. add the remaining flour and mix well
4. Divide the mixture into the cases.muffin tin
5. Bake at 180 degrees C for 20-25 mins
6. Allow to cool slightly then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Update… I just tried one and boy are they sweet! but its a different kind of sweetness if you know what I mean, they leave a sweet after taste in your mouth, they turned out ok, before they cooled down I thought they were going to be dry and grumbly, but they were soft and moist inside just like a fairy cake…

I am going to need to make more of these in the future so will try tinkering around with the recipe a bit and add less of the splenda the next time.

Peppercorn Sauce

We are having Balmoral Chicken for our tea tonight so I made this Peppercorn Sauce to go along with it, for those of you wondering what the dish is… it’s Haggis wrapped in Chicken Breast smothered in a Peppercorn Sauce … YUM!!

Peppercorn Sauce Ingredients

• 170ml Double Cream
• 2tsp Dijon Mustard
• 2 beef oxo cubes
• A good splash of white wine
• A good splash of hot water
• 2tsp of crushed peppercorns (or more according to taste)

Method

1. Add the cream to a small saucepan and heat gently.
2. Crumble the oxo cube into the cream
3. Add Dijon mustard, and most of the peppercorns leaving some for the steak
4. Add wine and water stirring all together
5. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper
6. keep stirring until quite hot

Dirt Baths, Spiders & Cakes.

Phew!

Its been one busy day!

I started this morning, woke up at 7am, made myself a cup of tea and some toast.

Up went the ironing board and I did 2 solid hours of ironing, mount everest no longer exists in my kitchen! its a great feeling getting it up to date.

Then, once the troops surfaced and were fed, I had a power of shredding to do, I kept all the shreddings as next thing on my agenda was cleaning out the cheeps… Grace, Gloria and Brenda, whom, I still have to introduce to you all! (i apologise).   I let them roam around the garden until their coop and run was fresh and sparkly. 

 

I let Daisy out for a wander too and she headed up to the far corner of the garden for her daily dirt bath… chicken little didnt join her, she is broody at the moment and chose to keep her butt glued inside the Eglu.

I then had a few things to store away in the greenhouse, when I opened the door, this little lady was sprawled out on her web right across the front door.. I’m not particularly fond of spiders, I dont mind taking pictures of them but dont ask me to shift one (shudders).. so the stuff that needed to go in the greenhouse had to wait until my OH came home .. he’s the big and brave spider shifter of the household 🙂

We have friends coming over to visit us tonight, so my next job was to head into the kitchen, where i made a huge big lasagne, I must remember to post my recipe on here for it.  I also made some chilli cheese potato skin thingies 

I also made this nice Pink & White topped Sponge Cake

I’m off for a shower now before our friends arrive tonight ….

Have a lovely weekend everyone 🙂

Chorizo and Chicken Casserole

Chorizo and Chicken Casserole

Chunky pieces of chicken cooked slowly in a rich tomato sauce, spiked with fiery chorizo. The hotter the better, served with buttery cheesy mash… yum.

Ingredients:

• 4 Chicken breasts, skin removed
• 500 g fresh, hot chorizo
• 2 – 3 slices smoked bacon, rind removed and finely sliced
• Half a bottle of red wine
• 2 onions, finely diced
• 2 carrots, finely diced
• 250 g of small baby onions, peeled
• 1 tablespoon tomato puree
• 1 large can of chopped tomatoes
• Pinch of thyme and oregano
• Paprika (optional)

   

Method

• Use a large, oven proof casserole (with lid)
• Fry the onions and carrot in olive oil, after a few minutes add the bacon and soften for 5 minutes
• Remove the vegetables/bacon and turn the heat up
• Add the chorizo and chicken and brown (do this in batches so that the bottom of the pan is not covered)
• You may want to drain excess oil from the chorizo
• Return the vegetables/bacon and add the wine, simmer vigorously for a few minutes
• Add the peeled baby onions, tomato puree, tomatoes and herbs
• Bring to a simmer, put the lid on and cook in a low oven for 1 hour
• Check seasoning (may not need any as the sausage will season for you). If needed add a pinch of paprika for more smoky heat.
• Serve with buttery cheesy mash.

 

Old Fashioned Rice Pudding

I picked up a big carton of organic milk at my local supermarket last night, a bit of a bargin as it was half price.  It didn’t take me long to think what I was going to do with it….. A rice pud 🙂

On the rare occassions that my mum baked it was always Apple Pie or Rice pudding, and although i never really liked rice pudding, my favourite part was the skin that covered the top, this was my treat 🙂 It just goes to show how your tastes change as you get older, I now love rice pudding and I’m not fussed for the skin… wierd eh?

We are all full of the cold here at the moment, the kids were full of it last week, and they are just starting to feel better, now they have kindly passed their germs on to my other half and I, we’re now sniffing and snottering all over the place, all we want is comfort food, and rice pudding hits that spot.

Anyway, here is the recipe, the one I opted for was from Delia Smith Online .

Ingredients:

• 4oz / 110g Pudding Rice
• 14.5oz / 410g evapourated Milk
• 1 Pint / 570ml Whole Milk
• 1.5oz (40g) Golden Granulated or Caster Sugar
• 1 Whole Nutmeg
• 1oz / 25g Butter

Method:

• Pre-heat the oven to has mark 2, 300F, 150C
• You will also need a round ovenproof dish with a diameter of 9 inches (23cm), 2 Inches (5cm) deep, lightly buttered.
• Mix the evapourated milk and whole milk together in a jug, then place the rice and sugar in the ovenproof dish.
• Pour in the liquid and give it all a good stir.
• Grate the whole nutmeg all over the surface (it may seem a lot but it needs it), then finally, dot the butter on top in little flecks.
• Next just carefully pop the dish in the oven on the centre shelf and leave it there for 30 minutes, then  30 minutes, then slide the shelf out and give everything a good stir.
• Repeat the stirring after another 30 minutes, then pop the dish back in the oven and cook for another hour, this time without stirring.
• At the end of this time the rice grains will have become swollen, with pools of creamy liquid all around them, and, of course all that lovely skin.

  

Above : Freshly Grated Nutmeg (mind your fingers, nails and knuckles when grating)

 

Above : Pudding Rice

Delia’s serving suggestion : Wonderful served with Plums in Marsala