Very Quick Thick Pea Soup

Very Quick Thick Pea Soup

This is the sort of soup that sticks to your ribs. Another of my thrown together efforts.

Get a bag of mushy peas from the freezer department in the supermarket, empty it into a large pan, add about 1 litre veg stock.  Bring to the boil, season the soup to your taste and eat.  Thin it down to the thickness you like.

It's nice with mint added, use fresh mint if you have it, but dried will do fine and even a dollop of mint sauce if you want.

Of course, you can fancy it up if you want, by adding spinach or other veg.  

Spiced Autumn Fruit

I love this spicy fruit warm with yogurt.  However, other members of the family are not keen......hence the name "Minging Fruit".  


Spiced Autumn Fruit

Serves 4

6 ripe plums, stones removed and quartered
3 ripe pears, peeled cored and quartered
2 dessert apples, cored and quartered
250 ml diet lemonade
1 cinnamon stick
2.5 cm (1") fresh root ginger, unpeeled and sliced
1 star anise or 3 cardamom pods cracked

Place all ingredients into a saucepan.  Cover, bring to the boil and simmer gently for 10 mins until the fruit is soft and the juices reduced and syrupy.



You can stick it all in a casserole dish and bake, covered in the oven instead of in a pan.

Lemon Curd

Lemon Curd

I first made lemon curd at school but recently revisited it.  This recipe is the one I used at school.

This recipe makes a large Kilner jar.

4 lemons, zest and juice
4 eggs, beaten
100g butter
450g sugar

Put the ingredients into a large basin, on top of a pan of simmering water. Don't let the bottom of the basin touch the water.

Stir constantly until thick and the curd coats the back of a spoon.

Pour into the sterilized jar, cover, seal and label.  Cool then store in the fridge.



This is delicious made with limes, or use a mixture of citrus fruits.

Baked Eggs in Spicy Sauce

Baked Eggs in Spicy Sauce

A Weight Watchers recipe, but don't let that put you off.  Its delicious!

Serves 4

low fat cooking spray
1 small red onion, finely chopped
1 red pepper, de-seeded and roughly chopped
1 courgette, chopped
1/4 tsp chilli powder (or to taste)
300ml vegetable stock
1 x 400g can chopped tomatoes
25g jalapeno peppers, roughly chopped
handful of fresh coriander, roughly chopped
4 large eggs

Preheat oven to Gas 3/160'C

Spray a large pan with low fat spray and fry the vegetables for 5 mins until softened.

Stir in the chilli powder, stock and tomatoes.  Cook for 10 - 15 minutes.

Stir in the jalapenos and coriander.

Spoon into an ovenproof dish or 4 individual dishes and make 4 hollows in the sauce. Break the eggs into the hollows, season with salt and pepper and cook for 15 - 20 minutes or until the eggs are cooked as you like them.

Serve.

You can add more or less chilli powder, or use herbs like oregano and thyme instead, use harissa paste and cinnamon with the chilli for a moroccan style flavour. Try different veg as well, aubergine is good in this mix.

Quick Saucy Chicken Breasts

This is one of those recipes that tastes different every time you make it. There's just so many combinations you can have.


Quick Saucy Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Serves 4

Take 4 chicken breasts and make a little pocket in each one.

Stuff the pocket with cheese...... mozzarella is good, so is a blue cheese.  You can also use a soft cheese like Boursin.

Use a skewer or cocktail stick to close the pocket, or wrap the chicken breasts with bacon or proscuitto/parma ham.

Place the chicken breasts into a baking dish.

Take a jar of your favourite sauce..... I like Reggae Reggae sauce, but choose whatever floats your boat.

Pour the sauce over the chicken, cover and bake for 20-25 mins at Gas 4/180'C 

Remove the foil and cook for another 5 mins or so.

Serve with veg and rice/couscous/potatoes.

Spinach and Cheese Cannelloni

Spinach and Cheese Cannelloni

A nod to healthy eating here, with a tasty recipe originally from Weight Watchers.

Low fat spray (or use a little oil if you prefer)
2 shallots, diced
1 red pepper, deseeded and diced
1 celery stick, diced
1 x 400g can chopped tomatoes
8 fresh sage leaves, chopped, or a pinch dried
475g frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
3 spring onions, sliced finely,
pinch of nutmeg
300g very low fat soft cheese, eg Philadlephia extra light
160g tubes cannelloni (16 tubes)

Preheat the oven to Gas 6/200'C/400'F

Spray a non stick pan with the low fat spray and cook the shallots, pepper and celery for 3-4 mins.  Add the tomatoes, 100ml cold water and the sage and simmer for 12 minutes.

Meanwhile, place the drained spinach into a bowl and mix in the spring onions, nutmeg, cheese and some salt and pepper to taste.

Stuff the cannelloni tubes with the spinach mixture.  Spoon quarter of the tomato mixture onto the bottom of an ovenproof dish. Place the stuffed cannelloni on top and pour over the remaining sauce.

Bake for 30 mins and serve straightaway.

For the weight watchers amongst you, this is 3.5 points per serving. (Thats UK points and not propoints)

Chilli Jam

Chilli Jam

Nigella Lawson made this on one of her tv shows.  I think it was Nigella's Christmas. I made it the next day and have made it a couple of times since. 
You can make it as hot as you like by adding more chillis, but to be honest it's quite hot as it is.  A bit like sweet chilli sauce, but instead of a stingy bottle, you get a whole big jar (or maybe more).

If you like sweet chilli sauce, give this a go, its fab.

http://www.nigella.com/recipes/view/chilli-jam-2692

Chicken Breast stuffed with Haggis

Chicken Breast Stuffed with Haggis

This is a recipe I made up as I went along. I don't suppose it's unique but it was very tasty with some mash, turnip/swede and gravy.

Break up the haggis. Make a pocket in the chicken breast and stuff it with some of the haggis.  Wrap loosely in foil and bake at about 180'C for 20-25 mins until the chicken is thoroughly cooked. Open the foil and cook for about 5 mins further to slightly brown the chicken.

Porridge with Maple Bananas and Greek Yogurt

Porridge with Maple Bananas and Greek Yogurt

This recipe caught my eye one day as I browsed the Great British Chefs website.  It was a tasty breakfast.

Thank you Marcus Wareing for the recipe:

http://www.greatbritishchefs.com/recipes/porridge-recipe-maple-bananas-greek-yoghurt

Orange and Cranberry Drizzle Cake

Orange and Cranberry Drizzle Cake

Another tasty cake from Simon Rimmer on "Something for the Weekend"

http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/orange_and_cranberry_08976

Cheese and Olive Loaf

Cheese and Olive Loaf

This recipe is quick to make as it doesn't use yeast.  It is great with my Tomato & Pepper Soup.

For the loaf:

100ml olive oil
250g self raising flour
100g cheese,  try mozzarella or gruyere, cut into cubes
100g cooked ham, diced
50g stoned olives, sliced
black pepper to taste
3 eggs

Heat your oven to 200'C/400'F/Gas 6

Grease a 22cm x 12cm loaf tin (thats a 2lb/1kg one)  I also line the base.

In a mixing bowl, mix the flour, cheese, ham, olives and pepper.

Beat the eggs and oil together.

Mix the wet ingredients into the dry.  Spoon into the tin and bake for 30 mins.

Tomato and Pepper Soup

This soup is a bit of a throw together affair.  Add the bits you like and leave out the bits you don't. 

I throw into a pan, 1 jar tomato passata, 1 tin chopped tomatoes, 1 chopped onion, 1 red pepper from a jar of peppers in vinegar, some salt and pepper. Add stock or water if it is too thick for you.

Heat to boiling, then simmer until the onions are soft.  Add a pack of fresh basil (about 30g) stalks and all.  Let the basil wilt in the soup for a minute or two then blitz the lot to a nice smooth soup.

If you want to be posh for a dinner party, pass it through a sieve.

You could add chilli, or Worcestershire sauce.

Pork with Smoky Pepper Sauce

Pork with Smoky Pepper Sauce

This is one I made up as I went along.

400g piece pork for roasting or a pork fillet

3 slices serrano ham

Sauce

2 roasted red peppers from a jar (the vinegary ones)

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

1 clove garlic

1 spring onion

about 1 tbsp vinegar from the jar of peppers

1 tsp olive oil

Wrap the pork with the ham.  Heat a non-stick fry pan and brown the piece of pork on all sides then put into a dish in the oven.  180ºC/Gas 4 for 25-35 mins.

For the sauce, put everything into a blender and blend until smooth.  Warm gently in a pan and serve with the pork.

Sizzling Garlic Prawns with rice and peppers

SIZZLING GARLIC PRAWNS WITH RICE AND PEPPERS

This is a quick recipe from Weight Watchers.  

For the weight watchers amongst you it serves 2 at 9 propoints a serving.  For anyone else, it's a very tasty dish so don't be put off by the WW tag.

20g butter
1 clove garlic crushed
1 tsp chopped fresh parsley
200g raw King Prawns
spray oil
1/2 onion chopped
1 medium green pepper, finely chopped
1 medium red pepper, finely chopped
250g bag Tilda Brown Basmati Steamed Rice
1 tsp cayenne pepper
4 tsp lime juice, fresh
1 spring onion, sliced

Very gently melt the butter, add the garlic and gently cook the prawns for 2 mins each side until pink and cooked through.

Mist a separate pan with spray oil ad cook the onion and peppers until soft but not coloured.

Cook the rice in the microwave according to the pack instructions, then add to the pan with the onion and peppers. Add cayenne pepper, lime juice and spring onion. Stir in parsley and serve topped with the prawns.

You can use already cooked prawns, just make sure you don't overcook them or they will be rubbery.

Cook your own rice if you prefer.

Courgette and Soft Cheese Frittata

COURGETTE AND SOFT CHEESE FRITTATA

This recipe came from a weekly booklet given out at weight watchers, so for those ww amongst us it serves 4 at 5 propoints per serving.

Ingredients

Cooking spray
1 small red onion, sliced thinly
1 garlic clove, crushed
200g courgettes, chopped into chunks
4 heaped tbsp sweetcorn
handful of chopped fresh parsley
6 large eggs, beaten
100g weight watchers soft cheese with roasted onion and chives or use as I did, Philadelphia extra light

Mist a frying pan with spray oil, add the onion and cook for 5 mins or until softened. Add the garlic and courgettes.  Cook stirring occasonally for 6-8 mins until golden.

Add the corn and parsley.  Season beaten eggs with black pepper and pour over vegetable mix, then add the soft cheese in spoonfuls.

Cook over medium heat for 4-5 minutes until the bottom is set, then transfer to a preheated grill and cook 5-8 mins until set.

Cut into 4 wedges and serve.

Good hot or cold.

Malteser and Mars Bar Slice

Now I am not going to claim this recipe as my own.  I got it from Facebook and just had to keep it. Thanks to the originator of the post.

This is the version my nephew made:

I will testify that it is very sweet and chocolatey.  Nuts or dried fruit would be a great addition, especially dried fruit which is less sweet like sour cherries.  You could use Snickers instead of Mars Bar and any biscuits of your choice to make it your own.

MALTESER AND MARS BAR SLICE

I will start with an apology – this possibly is the most amazing and naughty slice I have ever made, and if you can stop after just one piece you have more will power than me.

INGREDIENTS:
1 cup of Maltesers plus extra to decorate (grab a 280g pack)
4 Mars Bars (4 x 53g bars)
1/2 cup Condensed Milk
1 pack of Chocolate Ripple Biscuits (250g) / Most people seem to think Maryland Chocolate Chip Cookies are the nearest alternative so I'd put them tho we used double choc digestives and they were scrummy!
2 blocks of Cadbury Milk Chocolate
100g unsalted butter
1 teaspoon vegetable oil

DIRECTIONS:
*Line the base and sides of a slice tin with baking paper.
*Finely crush the Chocolate Ripple Biscuits. You can use a food processor or the end of a rolling pin if you are like me!
*Roughly crush 1 cup of Maltesers.
*Dice the Mars Bars into small pieces.
*In a small saucepan over a low heat, melt the butter and condensed milk, stirring until combined.
*Add the roughly crushed Maltesers and Mars Bars to the crushed biscuits and stir through.
*Then add the melted butter and condensed milk and stir until combined – it will be very sticky!
*Pour the mixture into the slice tin and flatten with the back of a metal spoon. Pop it in the fridge for approximately an hour until it has completely cooled.
*Melt both of the blocks of chocolate and add 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil to the melted mixture, making sure you stir it in.
*Pour the melted chocolate over the cooled slice and then decorate with remaining Maltesers.
*Put the slice back into the fridge and cut into pieces before it has completely set.