Things to do with over ripe bananas!

This recipe comes from the website Love Food Hate Waste. Though it really isn't 'ice cream' because there isn't any cream in it, it is a good frozen dessert.

1. Peel 8 ripe bananas, wrap in cling film and freeze overnight.
2. Allow to soften for 20 minutes then put into a food processor and whiz until thick and creamy. Serve immediately or refreeze.

You could also make banana muffins:

3 or 4 Large bananas, mashed (the more bananas the moister, so I use 4)

1/2 cup white sugar (original recipe calls for 1 cup, but I don’t like them too sweet) (I used 3/4 of a cup and it was still a bit sweet)

1 slightly beaten egg

1/3 cup melted margarine or butter (I used sunflower oil)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups flour

Mix the mashed banana, sugar, egg and margarine/butter/oil together. Set aside. In a separate bowl, mix together baking soda, baking powder, salt and flour. Mix wet and dry ingredients all together, being careful not to over-stir! Pour into greased muffin tins, and bake in 350 F degrees *180 C) oven for approximately 20 minutes. Enjoy!

*These are much more flavourful the next day, and they freeze very nicely too!

*Also, if you like walnuts, you can throw a handful of those in there as well for some added flavour and texture, or try adding chocolate chips, or better yet, both.

If you need a metric recipe, here it is:

Banana Muffins - metric version

3 or 4 large bananas, mashed (the more bananas and the riper they are the moister, so I use 4)

125 g white sugar

1 slightly beaten egg

75 ml melted butter/margarine or sunflower oil

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

225g plain flour

Mix the mashed banana, sugar, egg and margarine/butter/oil together. Set aside. In a separate bowl, mix together baking soda, baking powder, salt and flour. Mix wet and dry ingredients all together, being careful not to over-stir! Pour into greased muffin tins, and bake in 180 C oven for approximately 20 minutes. Enjoy!

Stuffed Lemon Cookies

 

Stuffed Lemon Cookies

Recipe: Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened

• 1 cup granulated sugar

• 2 large eggs

• 2 teaspoons lemon extract

• 2 teaspoons lemon zest

• 3 cups all-purpose flour

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• Lemon curd or lemon filling of your choice

• Powdered sugar, for dusting (optional)

Instructions:

1. Preheat and Prepare: Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.

2. Cream Butter and Sugar: In a large mixing bowl, cream together the softened butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy.

3. Add Wet Ingredients: Beat in the eggs, one at a time, followed by the lemon extract and lemon zest. Mix until well combined.

4. Incorporate Dry Ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing until a smooth dough forms.

5. Form Dough Balls: Roll the dough into tablespoon-sized balls and place them onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving some space between each cookie.

6. Make Indentations: Use your thumb or the back of a spoon to make an indentation in the center of each dough ball. Fill each indentation with a small dollop of lemon curd or your preferred lemon filling.

7. Bake: Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges are lightly golden.

8. Cool and Serve: Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheets for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar, if desired, before serving.

Blueberry Muffins with Oil

Blueberry Muffins With Oil

YIELD: 12 MUFFINS

Blueberry Muffins With Oil

PREP TIME 10 minutes COOK TIME 15 minutes TOTAL TIME 25 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• ½ cup white sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¾ cup + 2 tablespoons whole milk
• 2 eggs
• ⅓ cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Grease a muffin pan or line with paper liners.

In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. 

In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, oil, and vanilla. 

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix with a fork or whisk very briefly until just combined, being careful not to overwork the batter. A few lumps of flour are totally fine.

Fold in the blueberries until just combined.

Divide the batter between wells in the muffin tin and bake until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean, about 15-20 minutes.

Flourless Lemon Polenta Cake

For the cake

225g caster sugar

225g butter

200g ground almonds

125g fine polenta

1 tsp baking powder

3 eggs

1 lemon (juice and zest)

For the syrup

200ml lemon juice

150g sugar

METHOD

1. Pre-heat the oven to 160°C
2. Butter two 6” cake tins and flour with polenta
3. Cream the butter and sugar until white
4. Beat the eggs and add them little by little
5. Gradually add the lemon juice and grated zest
6. Sieve the dry ingredients and fold them into the mixture
7. Divide the mixture between the tins
8. Bake at 160°C for approximately 30 minutes
9. Boil the lemon juice and sugar then pour the mixture over the cake as soon as it comes out of the oven
10. Once cooled, remove the cakes from the tins, dust with icing sugar and serve with fresh fruit and crème fraiche

Cheese Biscuits (American Style)

Easy recipe that makes a really nice flaky American style cheese biscuit (kinda like a scone). Great with soup. Best served straight from the oven with a little butter on top.

Ingredients:

2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
5 tbsp butter (roughly 75grams)
1 cup milk
1 cup grated cheddar

Sift together flour, salt and baking powder.
To this add in the butter in cubes and combine until you get coarse cumbs.
Mix in the milk and cheese. Make sure you combine all the ingredients well but don't over mix the batter.
Drop heaped tablespoons of batter on to a greased baking sheet.

Bake for 15-20 minutes on 220C.
Makes 10-12 biscuits

Sausage, bean, and cabbage casserole

It may not sound exciting but this recipe is a firm favourite in our house. Searching for new recipes for sausages, my husband found this online. I've adapted it for our tastes. 

Ingredients: 

6 Lincolnshire sausages (or any other sausages you like really)
1 onion
1 can black beans
1 can butter beans
(you can use whatever beans you like. We just happen to like these)
Rosemary (fresh or dry) - 1 tbsp
Sour cream - 200g
Apple cider vinegar - 2-3tbsp
Whole grain mustard - 1tbsp
Water

Cut the onion in half, and then slice it into long thin strips. Fry these off until soft then put aside. 

Cut the sausages in half, and then in half again but this time length ways. You want to end up with four pieces from one sausage. Make sure that you leave the skin on as this helps to keep the pieces together as they cook. 

Using the same pan you cooked the onions in, place the pieces of sausage in skin side down. You want to cook them on a high heat until they are really crispy on all sides. The skin will shrink and crisp up, and make the sausage pieces curl over slightly. That's fine. 

It should end up looking like this: 

There might be quite a bit of fat from the sausages left when this is done. I would advise to drain some off. 

Add the onions back to the pan with the sausages. Then add in the two cans of beans (drained), the apple cider vinegar, the whole grain mustard, and the rosemary. Mix these all together and cook on a low heat for a few minutes. 

At this point I usually take the pan off the heat for a couple of minutes to allow it to cool before I add the sour cream. I've had it curdle before when I added cold cream to a hot pan. If your sour cream is at room temp then you should be fine to add while on a low heat. 

Once the sour cream is added, mix thoroughly, coating all the ingredients. At this point I usually add a little bit of water just to thin the cream a bit and help to coat everything. You will want to taste the sauce to see whether it needs more vinegar. I usually end up adding a little more vinegar, water and sour cream before the end to get the flavour and consistency just how I like it. I would suggest you do the same for your taste. 

Take your half cabbage and chop it finely. Place the cabbage on top of the mixture and put the lid on your pan for a few minutes. Once it's softened a little, mix it into the sausage casserole and replace the lid. Cook until the cabbage is to your preferred softness. I like mine to still be a little crunchy. 

Before you serve, taste the sauce again to make sure it's as you want it. Add more of whichever liquid it needs. 

Your casserole should end up looking like this: 

Enjoy!!

Hummus

A friend of mine is allergic to sesame seeds so doesn't eat hummus.  I came across these recipes recently and thought of her.  None of them have sesame in them!

Hummus

Ingredients

For the hummus...

300g freshly cooked chickpeas
3cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated
2 T (tablespoons) olive oil
1 small clove garlic
2 lemons (shave off five thin strips of peel, then juice, to get 3 T
Flaked sea salt

For the fried aromatics...

4 T olive oil
1 red chilli, deseeded and finely sliced
1 large clove of garlic, peeled an thinly sliced
2cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and julienned
1 cinnamon stick, lightly crushed
5g coriander stalks (cut into 4cm lengths, plus 2 T picked leaves

To make 300 g cooked chickpeas

1. Soak 125g dried chickpeas in plenty of cold water and half a teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda overnight.

2. Next day, drain, put in a pot with 900 ml water and a quarter teaspoon of bicarb, bring to boil, then simmer for 30 minutes (or longer, depending on the freshness and variety of the chickpeas), until very soft but still retaining their shape, then drain.

(I can't help but think that it might be easier just to buy a can of chickpeas!)

To make the hummus

1. Put the first 4 ingredients for the hummus in a small bowl of a food processor with the lemon peel, two T of lemon juice, 1/2 t (teaspoon) of flaked salt and a T of water.  Blitz for about 2 minutes, until you have a smooth paste. 

2. For the fried aromatics, heat the oil in a medium pan on a medium heat, then gently fry the chilli, garlic, ginger and cinnamon for 5 minutes, stirring every once in a while, until the garlic is just starting to brown.

3. Add the coriander stalks and fry for a minute or two more, until the garlic is golden brown and the chilli aromatic.

4. Transfer the solids to a plate with a slotted spoon and reserve the oil.

5. Sprinkle generously with flaked salt.

6. Spoon the hummus onto a large plate, creating a large well in the centre with the back of a spoon.

7. Spoon the oil into the well and drizzle over the remaining tablespoon of lemon juice.

8. Top with the fried aromatics and fresh coriander, and serve.

And for a slightly simpler hummus...

Ingredients

200g freshly cooked chickpeas

1/2 garlic clove peeled and crushed

1 lemon - the zest finely grated, to get 2 t. and juiced to get 1 T.

1T olive oil

5-6 T Greek-style yoghurt (not low fat is possible)

Flaked sea salt and black pepper

Instructions

1. Combine the ingredients in a food processor and blitz smooth

Another Blueberry Muffin Recipe...but with frozen blueberries

Blueberry Muffins

Ingredients
4 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 cup milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups frozen unsweetened blueberries
TOPPING:
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg


DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, milk and vanilla; mix well. Stir in dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in frozen blueberries.
Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full. Combine sugar and nutmeg; sprinkle over muffins. Bake at 375° for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack. Yield: about 2 dozen.

Pumpkin Cake

Pumpkin Cake



Ingredients for Pumpkin Cake:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1½ cups granulated sugar (This may be too much sugar and so I will try it with various amounts)
1 tsp baking soda (sifted to get rid of lumps)
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
3 large eggs, room temp
1 cup oil (extra light olive oil, vegetable or corn oil will work)
1 can (15 oz) pumpkin puree
Prep: Preheat oven to 350˚F/ 180 C. Grease a 9x13 non-stick baking pan or a Glass pyrex dish.** In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: 2 cups flour, 1½ cups sugar, 1 tsp baking soda, 2 tsp baking powder, 2 tsp cinnamon.
In a second medium bowl, whisk together wet ingredients: 3 large eggs, 1 cup oil and 1 can pumpkin, until well combined.
Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and whisk until smooth. Transfer to prepared baking dish and bake at 350˚F for 35-40 min (my oven took 35 min), or until a toothpick poked in the center comes out clean.

Black pepper beef stir fry with egg fried rice

Recipe by James Martin


Ingredients

For the black pepper beef
1 tbsp light soy sauce
2 tbsp dry sherry
2 garlic cloves, peeled, finely chopped
1 tbsp freshly cracked black pepper
1 tbsp cornflour
500g/1lb 2oz beef fillet, finely sliced
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 red peppers, seeds removed, finely sliced 2 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 tbsp sesame oil
50-75ml/2-3fl oz water

For the egg fried rice

2 tbsp groundnut oil
200g/7oz basmati rice, cooked according to packet instructions, drained and cooled completely
2 large free-range eggs, lightly beaten
2 tsp sesame oil
4 spring onions, finely sliced
3 tbsp finely chopped fresh coriander leaves

Serves 4

Method

1. For the black pepper beef, whisk together the light soy sauce, dry sherry, garlic, cracked black pepper and cornflour in a bowl. Add the beef slices and stir well to coat the beef in the marinade. Cover and set aside in the fridge to marinate for at least 30 minutes.
2. At the end of the marinating time, remove the beef from the marinade (discard the marinade). Heat a wok until nearly smoking, then add the vegetable oil and beef. Stir fry for 1-2 minutes, or until just browned all over. Remove the beef from the wok and set aside.
3. Add the peppers to the wok and stir fry for 1-2 minutes, then add the oyster sauce, dark soy sauce, sesame oil and water. Cook for one minute, then return the beef to the wok and stir fry for a further minute. Keep warm.
4. For the egg fried rice, heat a clean wok until hot and add the oil. Add the cooked, cooled rice and stir fry for 2-3 minutes to heat through.
5. Lightly mix the beaten eggs and sesame oil together, then pour over the rice. Continue to stir fry for 2-3 minutes, breaking up any large lumps of egg and rice with a wooden spoon, until the egg is set. Season, to taste, with salt and freshly ground black pepper, then stir in the spring onions and coriander.
6. To serve, spoon the black pepper beef onto serving plates and pile the egg fried rice alongside. 

Tomato and Broccoli Crustless Quiche

Ingredients:

1 Can salmon

2 medium tomatoes, sliced

2 cups chopped broccoli, steamed 

6 eggs

½ cup milk

½ teaspoon salt (I used sea salt)

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

½ teaspoon dijon mustard

1 cup grated strong cheddar cheese

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C

2.  Coat a 9-inch + quiche dish with oil or coking spray.

3. Layer broccoli, tomato slices and salmon in prepared dish, and top with the cheese.

4. Whisk together the eggs, milk, salt, pepper, and mustard, and pour over the ingredients in the dish 

Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until egg is cooked through and top is browned.

Serves: 4-6

Boxing Day Chelsea Buns

500g/1lb 2oz strong white flour, plus extra for dusting
50g/2oz caster sugar
10g/¼oz salt
40g/1½oz unsalted butter cut into small pieces, plus extra for greasing the tin
2 free-range eggs
2 x 7g sachets fast-acting dried yeast
150ml/5fl oz lukewarm milk
90ml/6 tbsp lukewarm water
280g/10oz cranberry sauce
300g/10½oz roast turkey, shredded
200g/7oz leftover sage and onion stuffing

Preparation method

1. Place the flour, caster sugar and salt into a large mixing bowl and stir to combine. Add the butter, eggs, yeast, milk and warm water.
2. Mix the ingredients with your hands until a rough dough is formed.
3. Tip the dough onto a well-floured surface and knead well for ten minutes, or until the dough is smooth and elastic.

Watch technique0:00 mins

1. Place the dough into a clean, oiled bowl , cover with a damp tea towel and leave to rise for one hour.
2. Tip the dough out onto a very lightly floured surface.
3. Roll out the dough into a rectangle about 50x28cm/20x11in. Turn the dough so that the longer edge is closest to you and “tack” the dough to the work surface by pressing it down firmly with your finger.
4. Spread cranberry sauce onto the surface of the dough with the back of a spoon. Sprinkle the shredded turkey and stuffing on top.
5. Roll the long side of the dough towards you quite tightly, forming a spiral inside. When rolled up, release the tacked edge and place it onto a floured part of the surface. With a sharp knife cut the sausage shape into 5cm/2in rounds.
6. Place all spiral rounds, swirly side up, into a large, deep roasting tin or baking tray greased thoroughly with butter, leaving a 1cm/½in space between each one. You want them to be close enough so that they will bake with their sides touching.
7. Cover with a damp tea towel and set aside in a warm place to rise for an hour. They should have expanded and be touching each other.
8. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6.
9. When the buns are ready, put them in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes.
10. After removing the buns from the oven, let them cool slightly before removing them from the tin and placing on a cooling rack.
11. When ready to eat, pull the buns apart to reveal the soft edges.

Mince pies (or is it tarts?)

These easy deep mince pies with readymade mincemeat are so delicious. No soggy bottoms, please.

Equipment and preparation: You will need a deep muffin mould with 12 holes, a round pastry cutter and a fluted pastry cutter.

Ingredients

For the pastry

375g/13oz plain flour
250g/9oz butter, softened
125g/4oz caster sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
1 medium free-range egg

For the filling

2 x 400g/14oz jars mincemeat
2 tangerines, zest grated and flesh chopped
1 apple, finely diced

Preparation method

1. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6. To make the sweet pastry, rub the flour, butter, sugar and egg together with a splash of cold water until it just comes together as a dough. Do not over work the dough. Wrap the pastry in cling film and set aside to chill in the fridge while you make the filling.
   Technique: Rubbing in
   Watch technique0:46 mins
2. To make the filling, turn the mincemeat out into a bowl, grate the zest of the tangerines into the mincemeat, then peel and chop the fruit. Throw the tangerine and apple pieces into the bowl and blend by hand.
   Technique: Grating lemon zest
   Watch technique0:38 mins
3. Roll out the pastry to a 3mm/1/8in thickness. With a round pastry cutter, cut out 6 x 9cm/3½in discs of pastry. Press the pastry into the muffin cups and fill each one with a good helping of the mincemeat mixture, so that it reaches three-quarters of the way up the side of the pastry-lined cup.
   Technique: Rolling out pastry
   Watch technique0:32 mins
4. With a fluted pastry cutter, cut out 6 x 8cm/3¼ in pastry circles for the lids (slightly bigger than the top of the muffin cups). Place a lid on top of each pie and gently push down. Sprinkle with caster sugar.
5. Bake for 20 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool. Dust with icing sugar and serve warm with fresh cream.

Cranberries Plus an Apple Cake

I Call it Cranberries Plus an Apple Cake

Am sharing an easy recipe from Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa.  It's an almost pudding-type cake baked in a pie plate. 

 

It's just December 1 and I've already made this "Christmasy" (or whatever winter solstice time holiday you celebrate) treat four times.  I've cut back the granulated sugar a bit each time I've made it and been happy with the results.

 

The cake cuts well into wedges and I can attest that its tartness goes well with morning coffee.  If you want to balance out the tartness for a sweeter dessert, you can make a bit of topping with the leftover sour cream, a spoonful of concentrated orange juice, a spoonful of brown sugar or maple syrup and a drop of vanilla 

 

Maybe yoghurt could replace the sour cream in the recipe and for the topping?  

Maybe rhubarb could replace the cranberries?

Might try those options.

 

Am pasting the recipe below.  If you want to go to its source, here's the link:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/easy-cranberry-and-apple-cake-recipe.html

 

Barefoot Contessa's Easy Cranberry and Apple Cake

• 12 ounces fresh cranberries, rinsed and picked over for stems
• 1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and diced
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
• 1 tablespoon grated orange zest (2 oranges)
• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
• 1 1/8 teaspoons ground cinnamon, divided
• 2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
Combine the cranberries, apple, brown sugar, orange zest, orange juice, and 1 teaspoon of the cinnamon in a medium bowl. Set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs on medium-high speed for 2 minutes. With the mixer on medium, add 1 cup of the granulated sugar, the butter, vanilla, and sour cream and beat just until combined. On low speed, slowly add the flour and salt.
Pour the fruit mixture evenly into a 10-inch glass pie plate. Pour the batter over the fruit, covering it completely. Combine the remaining 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar and 1/8 teaspoon of cinnamon and sprinkle it over the batter. Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean and the fruit is bubbling around the edges. Serve warm or at room temperature.

 

Pork Stir Fry with Mild Spices

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• 350g pork fillets (tenderloin), cut into thick strips
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 225ml chicken stock
• 100g frozen peas
• 1 rounded tbsp Greek yogurt
• handful coriander, roughly chopped

Method

1. Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a wok or large frying pan until very hot. Add the pork and stir fry for 3-4 mins until it starts to brown. Remove from the pan, set aside and wipe the pan out with a piece of kitchen paper.
2. Pour the remaining oil into the pan and tip in the spices. Cook over a medium heat for a minute to release their aromas. Pour in the chicken stock and cook for about 3-4 mins over a high heat until reduced by about half. Toss in the peas. Take it off the heat and stir in the yogurt. Season if you want to. Add the pork and warm through, then scatter over the coriander. Serve with some rice.