Salivating over Molly's Book...

I think it would be fair to say, i have "treated" myself of late. 2010 has, so far, proven to be a pretty nasty year in all. It is only May however and there might be a few months yet to reprieve. I have indulged, with a ting of guilt, in a few treats for myself in attempt to keep spirits from divebombing.......
I bought this book on whim - A HOMEMADE LIFE by Molly Wizenberg. It developed from a blog ORANGETTE (which i have yet to check out myself)
I bought the book thinking it was pricey at £11.99 - but with the hope that it would be filled with glorious photographs and crafty ideas..... that anticipation was so far from what i received.

But what i did discover was an entire book of magical new recipes and engaging writing. Quite honestly, i am HOOKED on Molly. This book is pure joy.

I am falling into bed at present, sooooo tired from what each day is launching at me, and i reach for Molly and slowly read a chapter before sleep. I don't do this with other books - i race through them all in one sitting. Not Molly's Book. It needs savouring....

The above recipe, i did actually buy the ingredients for today. I am hoping to make these tomorrow morning but i'll see how i get on with getting up and dressed first! There are so many great recipes in here and i can't wait to try these out.

AAaaaahh, there she is - Molly. On the back page of her book. She looks quite slim huh? How does that happen when you eat such great food all the time? (Note to self: Cook well, Eat well, Move more)

In the absence of having something good to cook and eat right at this moment, i shall lick the book. I am so needy right now, it's pathetic - but at least i can come back to cookery. The nurturing, soothing, comfort of Making, Baking and Eating xxx

Buy the book - or better still, order it from the library. It is so good!

Sugar Rush... Cinnamon Bagel Doughnut!

Everybody needs a breakfast like this, once in a while....?
Now, i admit - i haven't posted much on our glorious food blog of late and i apologise.
I am on a small-ish diet (although you wouldn't know it from this) and i have huge plans to tell you about the yummy recipes i've been trying.
THIS was a treat for my Girl and Me, who needed a sugar rush for a late Brunch.
Chop the bagels in half.
Whisk up 2 eggs with some milk - soak the bagels in the eggy mix for about 5 mins each side.
Fry them up in a bit of butter.
When they are gently cooked on both sides - pop them on a plate that is covered in sugar and cinnamon (add what you like really)

Sugar, Cinnamon, comfort rush - ahhhh, the joy - accompanied with a large pot of tea!

You can do the above with eggs and cheese to have an eggy cheesy bagel doughnut - just OMIT the sugar stage!!

*note to self* share my new recipes for Sweet Potato Pancakes & Potato-less Fish Cakes.

.....somebody peel me off the wall, iam ZINGING!

MMmmm It's all about CHAI right now!

This is a sight that warms my Mothering Soul: a vintage Peter Rabbit mug filled with sweet warm Chai. And a Jammy Heart shortbread biscuit to dunk. It's ALL about the Chai for me right now.
Strangely enough, i hate sweet milky tea so it is with amazement that i have made, drunk and will talk about this at all. But Chai has this effect....

This Chai recipe, as far as i can tell, is very American. Of course, Chai means 'Tea'. And this method of making / drinking 'Chai' is a highly overcomplicated 'messing around' with our Nations Greatest Love - The humble cup of tea....

I know, it doesn't need messing with. It is already perfect, however you take it. However YOU make it. It is perfect. But this is perfect in it's own unique way too.

A simple jar filled with a can of Condensed Milk (forgive me for buying Nestle? i was blinded by the task of "must buy condensed milk" and temporarily forgot my scruples)

Now: add want you like.... I added:

2 teaspoons of All Spice

2 Star Anise

2 teaspoons Vanilla Essence

1 broken Cinnamon Stick

Grated Nutmeg

(add extra sugar at this stage if you like sweet tea)

And this lot sits in the jar, in the fridge, waiting to be used whenever you want. No need for milk or sugar - perfect for when you need a morning cuppa and no-one remembered to buy milk!

You can add however many spoonfuls you want to make your perfect beverage. I use one small spoon as i want my tea strong and not too sweet or milky.

This is best served with a really good quality strong tea - i use Assam.

I make it with loose leaf tea in my little pot. If, like me, you love tea then you might really like how the subtle chai flavours mix with the flavour of the fresh Assam (It makes me want a cup right now)

Once i have used this 'One Pot' teapot i fill it again with hot water and leave it to steep ready for my second cup.

It is strangely addictive and far more 'soothing' than my old cuppa.

I am sure the addiction will pass - but right now.... it is ALL about the Chai x

Marmalade 2 - the revisit....

Batch no.2.
After research, discussion, tips from here :) i made a second batch of Marmalde. Please don't make the assumption that i *think* about anything before i go ahead and try it - the Marmalade being a prime example.... so i tried a completely different method. This is alot cleaner and clearer than before. Sunshiney and bright with some peel included and the odd Star Anise in each jar. The little black specs are vanilla pod seeds....

I boiled up about 7 Seville Oranges and 1 normal in a big ole chutney pan.

Covered the fruit with about 2 litres of water and simmer for 1.5 hours or there-on.

I ADDED to the water, with the fruit, before boiling:

1 Vanilla Pod

A large cube chopped ginger

3 Star Anise

1 Broken Cinnamon Stick

10 - 15 Cloves

Then - i strained the liquid and only put the items BACK into the mix, that i wanted to keep, so:

Scraped out flesh of the oranges to put back in.

Chopped some peel - so nice and soft now they had been boiled and placed back in the pan.

Star Anise back in the pan.


It was a quicker and easier method by far and retained so much of the flavour of my little extras - especially the vanilla. I was scared the soft vanilla taste would get drowned in Seville Orange bittreness but it warms through sensationally.

All the liquid was then boiled up for 20 mins or so? i kept a Jam thermometer in the pan to check. I boiled it up with 1kg of sugar - granulated, as the added pectin in Jam Sugar was uneneccasry for these fruits.

TASTE - done

LOOK - happy with

CONSISTENCY - still a little runny and more sugar would have helped make this thicker but i didn't want the flavour any sweeter.

Friends and family decided they could live with the runnier consistency as opposed to a wobbly jelly type. I caught someone spooning the stuff into their mouth direct from the fridge... i think that was a seal of approval?

Thanks for all your help peoples xxx

St Clements Marmalade...

Orange and Lemon Marmalade = St Clements...
I love to make Jams & Chutneys & Pickles & Cordials... and the more i make them, the less i can bear to buy them from shops. I had a mammoth making session the other day. My nanna is in a position right now where she needs and deserves, a lot of looking after. The first of her favourite things i made was the Marmalade.
Recipe used from my LAKELAND Preserves & Pickles Book (i love it) but it made soooo many jars...

I think this: was one one of my problems. I don't like coarse Marmalade with lots of peel but i know that the peel is what gives it the bitter flavour. So i juiced all my fruits and mixed some of the peel 'waste' into the juice.

This led to much more juice than the recipe anticipated. It was quicker and easier for me this way but i needed more sugar to boil the liquid into a jelly. *lesson Learned*

And i realised too late the recipe made milllllliiiioooonnns ofg jars!

So i will be out and about next week delivering pots of Marmalade to family members (you've been warned family)

OOoohhh the satisfaction....

P.s. On delivery to my nanna she told me about a great product called "marmamaid".... an alternative to all those Seville Oranges. I will investigate.

Emergency Chocolate Cake

MMMmmm, cake.....
MMMmmm, chocolate... So: in just over one hours time, your house will be entertaining 6 children and 4 adults.... i have held birthday parties with fewer guests than this.
But the weather is poor, kids need to play and you can't 'not invite' so and so...
you'll have to invite them all to yours.

Believe me, this is quick and easy. Providing you have a stock cupboard with Cake ingredients.
7oz plain flour
2 tble spoons cocoa powder
1 t'spoon bicarb soda
1 t'spoon baking powder
4oz caster sugar
2 tblespoons Golden Syrup
2 eggs (i only had ONE EGG left!! so i just put one in, and it was fine)
1/4 pint corn oil (i keep a bottle in the cupboard especially for this emergency cake)
just under 1/4 pint milk

Topping / Filling: Some Icing Sugar... a tub of emergency frosting if you have any... good quality chocolate to melt... cream to whip...any combinations of whatever you have really!


Bung all the ingredients in a bowl and mix by hand or machine - it will be pretty runny.
I greased and lined two 8inch sandwich tins. Fill half each with the mixture.
Cook for about 30mins on 160 / 325 (check at 25mins, my oven is pretty rapid)
TThhhhheee lightest sponge ever! and no butter, and ONE egg! surely it shouldn't work? but it does....

The icing was all experimental with what i had left in my kitchen. half a tub of shop bought frosting in the middle - but you could whip up some cream or make some butter icing? it doesn't need much as the sponge is so good alone :)

For the top, i melted a small bit of butter with 2/3rds of a half eaten bar of dark 70% chocolate and literally the dregs of a packet of icing sugar - whisked by hand... And poured it over the cake, allowing it to drip in abandon. I even put this cake in the fridge for 20mins so the guests didn't think it was 'still warm' and 'just made'.

I am a little house proud and did wash the bowl before they arrived (you could hide the dirty utensils in a cupboard if you're in a hurry)

I was just sweeping the floor as they arrived....

Emergency! and oh sooooo good x

(a recipe given to me as a teenager the Mum of a good friend, an adapted for circumstances)

I got a Bread Maker Machine!!!

Forgive the photos - the nights are drawing in and light seems scarce...
so, BREAD MAKER! it isn't actually mine. On the last visit to my parents house, i just grabbed it. My dad hasn't used it for a while so i put it under one arm and exited the building...... my dad caught me, with one foot out of the front door, but i convinced him - THIS machine needed a temporary new home. It is really versatile and the number of functions it has.... woah! Baking / half bake / knead / Raisin and nut dispenser... the list goes on.

I started with a basic loaf. I think this macine and i will need to get to know each other over time. I am not sure which the best recipes are or 'settings' that will suit me better.

Excellent fun though! i lurve a new gadget - MrsB turned in her kitchen when i told her and began some long talk about the "joy of kneading bread" / "traditions" etc... i love her and i'm sure she is right, but.... i have fresh bread in 1h 56mins and it tastes YUMMY!

I put a few bags together of the dry ingredients ready to just add whenever i liked instead of getting all the ingredients out EACH time i wanted a loaf.... i am super organised liked that :)

My first loaf: not bad.... needed more salt. A lighter crust setting. I prefer nuts and seeds in my bread. BUT.... overall, not bad.

Do not doubt me cookery friends, when i tell you..... there is plenty more where that came from!!

p.s. A general hit with the FishFamily and my dad did get a loaf made especially for him too.

Cheese Fondue Express... a quick kitchen Supper

Family Food / Social Food / Food for you and a friend / Food for you and a lover.... Cheese Fondue ticks every box.
I kid you not - i opened the fridge for dinner last week and there was very little in there to excite. 3 open bottles of White Wine in various degrees of 'full-ness' and varied quality.
There was a block of Cornish Brie, some hardening Edam and a bunch of celery. Even the breadrolls in the basket were only fit for toasting. Then my memory taste-buds kicked into action.... i had the makings there of a terrific CHEESE FONDUE and even a glass of good White to accompany it! happy :)

Boil up all the cheese and a good sloshing of wine (or cider) in a heavy bottomed pan and add a garlic clove for flavour.

To thicken it, i slaked some Cornflour in some wine and chucked that into the pan a few minutes before it was ready.

I can't really give quantities as i did it by sense of feel and memory, but if you've had Fondue before, you know what it is supposed to look and feel like.

I don't bother to use the real Fondue Dish but keep it in the hot pan over a couple of small candles / nightlites. Then, if it begins to go cold, you can whip it back over to the stove top for a few minutes to heat up again.

To dip??? Anything goes! we had toms, fresh from our own plant. We had stale rolls that were toasted and a few sticks of wilting celery and cucumber. JOY my friends.

A real stand by supper for us... i confess that Cheese, White Wine and Stale bread are ALL readily available in my kitchen.

I'm no Nigella, with an ever ending 'larder' but i rival her in the Kitchen Supper stakes i'm sure x

Granola....

You have to say it with an American accent "Granola".... I don't think we have an equivalent name for it in the UK? it isn't muesli, because muesli is loose and not toasted. So we must call it Granola!?

I am not going to repeat this recipe verbatim as it is in NIGELLAS CHRISTMAS book and it doesn't seem necessary as i didn't alter it much from there. Also because, granola really is just toasted seeds, nuts, oats and spices so you can add what you like.

Mine is a few 100g rolled oats with blanched almond / normal almonds / banana chips = but i put all these in a plastic bag and smashed them all into tiny pieces as i don't like BIG bits in my cereals.

Then i mixed the oats with this smashed mixture in a big bowl with a spoon of sunflower oil + 2 large spoons of honey + tiny sprinkle of cinnamon + couple of spoons brown suger + poppy seeds + pumpkin seed. I turned it all and mixed it wearing plastic gloves and gave gloves to my daughter and her friend too so we all had a good 'hands on', gooey experience.

It was toasted for about 50mins on a low heat in a large oven tray - turning every 10 mins till it was brown and toasted all over.

When it came out the oven, i added a really generous bag of dried of cranberries and mixed well.

Popped it all in a clean Kilner jar and closed it when cooled.

OH my - what a shame. Now no other breakfast cereal will do!! This made a huge jar but i keep dipping my hand in and stealing little treats like a squirrel. THIS will become a staple in my home from this day forward x

Christmas Cookery...

When i say "i love Christmas" i don't mean i love all the consummerism and commercialism - i think it is really the 'preparations' of Christmas i love. It isn't really about a build up to 'the big day' even... it is just about cooking and baking and sewing and 'being' in the Christmas colours. This Christmas Cranberry Chutney (of sorts) was made a few weeks ago, at the end of the warm Summery days, when the wasps were still menacing my apple store.... and i thought it only right and proper that i play my Christmas Music CD (see picture above, which is the cute CD sleeve) whilst merrily at work.

Of course, the puddings to hang from my ears were a little un-neccesary and, for some, a step too far?

SO: CRANBERRY and RED ONION RELISH

250g Red Onions

250g fresh or frozen Cranberries (red currants would be a suitable substitute)

125g light brown sugar

120ml red wine vinegar

120ml red wine

1tsp ground ginger

1tblsp mustard seeds

Port or Orange Liquer

recipe is from my all time favourite book below.... this makes about 1lb of relish so, if you have a larger family you could double this quantity. It isn't a 'cheap' recipe but that is why it's for a special occasion in my mind.

Thinly slice and chop the onions - into a size you are happy with for a chutney / relish. I like my pieces quite small. Use a smaller sweating pan for this = NOT your bigger chutney pot.

Sweat them through slowly in 2 tblspoons of olive oil - about 15mins with the occasional stir.

Add 2 large spoons of the brown sugar and stir to caramelize the onions, maybe takes 5 mins. Then keep off the heat till needed.

Step outside the back door and cry whilst the onions are stinging your eyes (my eyes are watering at the mere memory)

Then find the bigger chutney pan: add CRANBERRIES into the pan with - remaining brown sugar - Red wine - Red wine vinegar - mustard seeds - ginger.

Heat that lot of mulchy fruit SLOWly until all the sugar has dissolved. Then cover the pan and bring it up to the boil. Once at the boil, turn down and simmer for about 15mins. You want the berries to burst and become very tender... this is why you need the LID on the pan,,,, the hot cranberries have been known to fly out of the pan when bursting and these are HOT wee devils!

ADD ONIONS: you can now stir in the caramelised onions. Take the lid off and keep off whilst you cook for a further 12mins. Season with salt and pepper as it brings out the flavours of the fruit and spices.

JARS: i always sterilize mine fully. Wash them in hot soapy water and leave to drain. Pop them in a hot-ish oven (120-ish) for about 20mins till they are hot.

I also sterilize more than i need as you never really know what yield you might get, even if a recipe tells you "this makes 1lb" you never know...

When your relish is cooled off a bit - spoon it into the warm jars - careful not to touch the inside of the jars or the rims. This is why i use one of those JAM FUNNELS / jar filling thingys (see past posts) to avoid any mess or touching the jars at all. It is quick and clean.

Then, pour yourself and nice glass of the red you opened for this recipe... and DESPAIR as you realise one of those pesky wasps has had the cheek to take a dip in the wine bottle!!

Not content with my apples, they're after the rouge nectar.... luckily he came out as i poured.

OH for sniff-a-vision (as a friend said) this smells superb and it is 'oh so christmassy'. Glossy, shiny, fruity red. It looks so good and bright.

IDEAL RELISH FOR:

Stirring into the rich gravy for Christmas Dinner.

As an additional table sauce for your Christmas dinner - with Turkey, Duck, Goose or Beef.

As a chutney / relish for meaty meals after the day. Sandwiches and salads.

Also easy with cheese but it needs a good strong cheese to make a match for this tart and fruity relish.

Any good relish or chutney, vinegar or vodka, makes a lovely gift for someone. Just label the jar with the date made and 'use by' and what the relish is for. This was made 02/09/09 and it stores for 6 months before use, but this is coming out on Christmas day.

You can keep it in the fridge once opened, for up to 3 weeks.

To serve: ideally plonked on the table, as it is, in the attractive Kilner Jar with a Chutney Spoon inside... the relish keeps better if diners are encouraged NOT to to pop their own cutlery into the jar. Saliva and other foods can contaminate the relish so it goes off before it would naturally.

Any Christmas Cookery to share yet MrsB?? xxx