Broccoli and Stilton Soup

I was in my local supermarket earlier and I picked up 2 heads of organic broccoli reduced to only £0.03 each!!  …. you know what it’s like, your head starts going through possible yummy recipes… my head was telling me soup! 😉    I nipped round to the cheese counter and picked up a bit of stilton.

|This recipe should serve six.

Ingredients:

• 50g / 2oz butter
• 1 Onion, finely chopped
• 1 Garlic Clove, crushed
• 2 large heads of Broccoli
• 2-3 oz of Stilton Cheese or adjust depending on your preference
• Freshly ground black pepper and sea salt
• 1-1.5 litres boiling water and a stock cube

Method :

• Heat the Butter in a large pan, add the onion and garlic and leave to cook on a low-med heat for 8 mins until they become soft and clear
• Whilst the onion and garlic are softening, chop the broccoli as finely as possible.   Add the chopped broccoli to the onions and pour in 1 litre of boiling water an a stock cube and bring back to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
• When the broccoli is tender, add the stilton cheese.   Whizz the soup well in a liquidiser to give it a really smooth texture.
• Check and adjust the seasoning and reheat if necessary.

Parmesan and Basil Omlette

Parmesan & Basil Omlette

4 tiny pekin bantam eggs
1 small egg courtesy of chicken little
1 large egg from Daisy
2 handfuls of grated parmesan
1 tablespoon of basil leaves ripped up
salt and pepper
a splash of milk

I have to say if was very yummy indeed and my son even comented on how lovely it tasted… miracles never cease 😉

Garlic Mushrooms on Toast

Frugal Jumbo Garlic Mushrooms on Toast.

I popped round to my local supermarket last night as I needed to pick up some cat food, and whilst I was in there I spied some Jumbo Mushrooms reduced to 5p per packet, an absolute bargin! I bought 2 packs.. so on the way home I had plans whizzing round in my head of everything I could make with them…  Garlic Mushrooms on toast…. Cream of Mushroom Soup…. and a mushroom pilaf… yumm..

So.. today I have already made lunch (above) the Cream of Mushroom soup is on the cooker bubbling away as I type this and as for the mushroom pilaf, that will be made tomorrow 🙂

For the Garlic Butter I used :

• Lightly Salted butter softened (at room temp)
• 2 cloves of Garlic, finely chopped
• about a teaspoon of dried oregano
• Mix all the above until combined well
• Turn the mushrooms upside down and Spread the butter all over
• Place in an ovenware dish and bake in the oven at 180 degrees C for 15 minutes
• Place a couple of slices of bread in the toaster
• When the mushrooms and toast are cooked, place the toast on a plate, pour the excess garlic butter from the dish all over the toast, then place a mushroom on each slice and enjoy with a cup of hot tea

Enjoy!

Gingersnaps

Yay! I actually made something different today that doesnt resemble a Muffin or a fairy cake lol…

GINGERSNAPS!

Ingredients: ~

• 90g / 3oz / 1/3rd Cup Unsalted Butter
• 90g / 3oz/ 1/2 Cup Soft Brown Sugar
• 90g/ 3oz/ 1/4 Cup Golden Syrup
• 60g/ 2oz/ 2 tablespoons black treacle
• 250g / 8oz / 2 cups self raising flour
• 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon mixed spice

Method :

• Preheat oven to 180 degrees C 350 degrees F Gas 4
• Butter 2 baking sheets (I used 2 sheets of baking paper instead)
• Put butter, sugar, syrup and treacle into a saucepan, stir over a gentle heat until melted.
• Cool slightly
• Sift flour, bicarbonate of soda, ginger and spice into a bowl, make a well in the centre, then pour in the syrup mixture
• Mix well to form a soft dough
• Weigh dough into 15g (1/2oz) pieces, or divide into walnut sized pieces.
• Roll pieces into smooth balls, place on baking sheets, spacing well apart, flatten each ball to form a neat round.
• Bake in the oven for 15 minutes until very lightly browned.
• Remove the buscuits from the oven, allow to cool for 2-3 minutes on the baking sheets, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely, as the biscuits cool they will become very crips.

Makes approx 30

Recipe courtely of “The Book of Biscuits” by Pat Alburey – ISBN 0-86101-282-8

Hearty Scotch Broth Soup

Hearty Scotch Broth Soup.

I have been cooking and baking for a long time now and I am embarassed to admit that I have never ever made a pot of Scotch Broth Soup before {hangs head in shame} … that was until thursday last week 🙂 !  I always had this strange idea that it would turn out to be a disaster and never bothered to make it, but…..  

Whilst I was in the supermarket last week, I picked up a couple of bags of vegetables from the reduced counter,an absolute bargin @ £0.10 pence a bag, and locally grown.. In the bag I got a couple of handfuls of carrots, 2 Onions, a leek and a small turnip, the plan was to make a stew and some soup, so I toddled round to the pulses and dried foods section and picked up a 500g bag of Vegetable Broth Mix.

Ingredients :

• 2 oz Vegetable Broth Mix
• 1 Medium Onion, chopped finely
• 3 Medium Carrots, Grated
• 1 Leek, halved and sliced thinly
• 1 chicken or vegetable stock cube
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• A Tablespoon of Oil and a knob of butter
• About 1 – 1.5 litres of water

Method:

• Soak the broth mix overnight, in a bowl cling filmed and in the fridge.
• Next day rinse the broth mix under cold running water and set aside
• Take a heavy based saucepan and add to it the oil abd butter and melt
• Add the finely chopped onion and cook int he pan until translucent/softened
• Add the grated Carrot and sliced leek
• Add the broth Mix and combine
• then add enough water to cover everything in the pan and loosen it all off, you can always add more water to loosen it off should it get too thick
• Add the stock cube/boullion or granules, Salt & Pepper and mix well
• Simmer until everything is cooked and the pulses softened…. I left mine cooking for a couple of hours and it was fine.

Verdict : 8/10 – It tasted fab and I would make it again but experiment with adding a diced potato and diced turnip 🙂

Pineapple & White Choc Chip Muffins

I’ve been making rather a lot of Muffins lately….

But there is a genuine reason for this muffin overdose on my blog, my daughter.. she needs to practice making muffins, she has an exam this friday coming.

So instead of baking different things at the weekend, as I love to do, we have been making mostly….. the humble muffin 🙂

My daughter will be making Strawberry and White Choc Chip Muffins on the day of the exam, today we bring to you……….

Pineapple and White Choc Chip Muffins

Makes 12

Ingredients :

• 4oz – 115g Butter or margarine, at room temperature
• 2 1/2 oz – 70g caster sugar
• 1oz – 30g dark brown sugar
• 2 eggs, at room temperature
• 7 1/2oz – 215g Plain Flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 4fl oz – 125ml Milk
• 4oz White Choc Chips
• 5oz Fresh Pineapple, chopped small.

Method :

• Cream the butter until soft and add both the caster and the dark brown sugar and beat until light and fluffy.
• Beat in the eggs 1 at a time
• sift together the flour and baking powder, then fold into the butter mixture, alternating with the milk then fold in the pineapple and the choc chips.
• Divide the mixture equally between the 12 muffin cases/tin
• Bake for 25 minutes @ 375 degrees F – 190 degrees C or Gas Mark 5
• Once baked allow to stand for 25 minutes before turning out.

Verdict : My daughter gave it 8/10 because of the lack of choc chip in the one she ate and my son gave it 9/10 loved the taste combination.

Banana Bread

I had some bananas in the kitchen that were starting to go spotty, and knowing that no-one would eat them, I decided to make Banana Bread with them… then everyone would eat that 🙂

I have featured a banana bread/loaf in my blog before, but it was a different recipe…so thought I would give this one a try, it is from the following book …

Tamasin’s Kitchen Bible – ISBN 0-297-84363-X

Here’s the ingredients : –

• 225g/8oz Self-Raising Flour
• 3/4 level tsp Ground Mixed Spice
• 1/2 tsp Sea Salt
• 100g / 3 1/2oz Vanilla Caster Sugar
• 100g/ 3 1/2oz Unsalter Butter, cut into small pieces
• 1 tbsp good Runny Honey
• 100g / 3 1/2oz Sultanas
• 450g / 1lb Organic Bananas, peeled and mashed with a fork.
• 2 Eggs
• The Juice of a Lemon

Method :

• Preheat the oven to 180 Degrees C / 350 Degrees F / Gas Mark 4
• Sift the flour into a bowl and add the mixed spice, salt and sugar.
• Add the butter, beat in all the remaining ingredients and pour the batter into a greased loaf tin.
• Bake for one hour, then turn the heat down to 270 Degrees C / 325 degrees F / Gas Mark 3 for a further 10-15 minutes.
• Check with a skewer which should come out clean.   Cool in the tin on a rack before turning out.   Eat warm with creme fraiche or on its own.

Chocolate and Banana Muffins

These tasty muffins got the thumbs up from the kids, they turned out very well indeed 🙂

Makes 12-14

Ingredients:

• 225g / 8oz self raising flour
• 55g / 2oz cocoa powder
• half a teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• 225g / 8oz caster sugar
• 2 ripe bananas, mashed
• 85g / 3oz plain chocolate chips
• 1 egg, beaten
• 30g / 1oz unsalted butter, melted.
• 225ml / 8fl oz milk, warmed to blood temperature.

Method:

1. Heat the oven to 190 degreec C / 375 Degrees F / Gas mark 5.   Line a muffin tin with paper muffin cases or grease the tin well and line with greaseproof paper discs.
2. Sift the flour, cocoa powder and bicarbonate of soda together into a big bowl.   Add the sugar.   Make a well in the centre and add the banana, chocolate chips, egg, butter and milk.   Mix well and pour into the muffin cases.
3. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the tops spring back when pressed lightly with a finger.   Cool on a wire rack.

Recipe courtesy of : Leith’s Baking Bible – ISBN 0-7475-8189-4

Couscous and Sausage Salad

The kids had been up at their grans for their tea tonight, so I didnt need to cook this evening for them, and I fancied something light to eat.

I had been flicking through a mag that I had picked up at my local supermarket and this recipe caught my eye, a quick check to make sure I had all the ingredients, yep, had everthing… and off I went 🙂

  

(For a veggie meal, you can use Feta instead of sausage)

• Serves 4
• Ready in 25 minutes
• Price Per Serving £1.60

Ingredients :

• 400g Sausages
• 200g Couscous
• Juice and zest of 1 unwaxed lemon
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 4 tomatoes, roughly chopped (I used about 12 cherry tomatoes)
• 4 Spring Onions, sliced
• 3 tbsp chopped parsley
• 3 tbsp chopped mint leaves (I didnt put them in)

Method:

• Grill or fry the sausages until cooked, then thickly slice
• Pour 250ml boiling water into the couscous in a bowl, cover and leave for 10 minutes
• Whisk the lemon juice and zest with the olive oil and season, then stir into the couscous (after its 10 mins cooking time)
• Stir in the tomatoes, spring onions, parsley and mint
• Add the sausages and serve.

 

 

 

Sunday Brunch…

We love doing our lunches like this… put everything on plates and then dig in and enjoy 😉

Roast Chicken, Lovely Ham, Cheddar Cheese, Slices of Smoked Cheese with ham bits inside, and some Bavarian Smoked Cheese….

Lovely fresh Crusty Bread and beautiful sweet cherry tomatoes…

The fruit Platter… Melon, Pineapple, MacIntosh Red Apple, Red grapes and Strawberries.. yum!