Community Fridge

Today I visited our local Community Fridge for the first time.  This is run by a local Community Enterprise, run by volunteers who are passionate about keeping food (and other things - I'll post about the paint hub another day) out of landfill and looking after the community.  At the end of each day they go around the supermarkets and collect food which would otherwise be thrown away because it's at the end of it's shelf life.  Every morning at 10am, they give it out in return for a £1 donation.

I decided this warranted further investigation, so this morning I took the wiggly dog for a walk down to the community fridge venue.  

There was a queue outside the building, so I tied the dog to a post, and joined the back of the queue, which was made up of 18 people.  They were an interesting mix: young and old, with children and without, well-off and not so well off.  A lady came around exchanging a ticket for each £1.  Once everybody had one, she offered a second ticket (one ticket = 1 basket) to anybody that wanted one for another £1.

Then the queue began to slowly move forwards.  The ladies brought out baskets that had already been sorted.  They share out the food evenly into the baskets before you arrive so you don't end up with the people at the front of the queue grabbing all the good stuff.  Then you pack your basket into your bag.  They also give a choice of white bread or brown bread, veggie or meat, and if they have lots of something, you can take as much as you want (in this case - bread rolls and past their best bananas).  The lady in front of me explained that the numbers today were about average, and that what you get each time is a bit of a lottery, but it usually contains fruit and veg and bread.  She said sometimes you get a bit less, and sometimes a bit more - depending how many people are queueing and how much has been donated by the supermarkets.

I was amazed by how much I got - and soon realised that if I was coming back I needed a bigger bag (the lady in front had a spare thank goodness!) and should definitely bring the car.  I came home with two loaves of bread and three packs of bread rolls, cherry tomatoes, salad tomatoes, a pepper, 2 punnets of strawberries, 2 figs, a satsuma, some apples, slightly past their best bananas, green beans, salad, parsnips, carrots and potatoes.  A veritable haul of freshness and all for just £1!  

When I got home, my first job was to hull the strawberries and chop the bananas and chuck them in a bag in the freezer so they are ready for Miss Busy to whizz into smoothies whenever she wants one.  I then chose which bread to put in the bread bin and which bread to put in the freezer.  Everything else went in the fridge but has helped me determine what to cook over the coming days.  Some batch cooked sauces and things like that seem a good bet.

I am delighted with this find.  Not only will it save money on the groceries, but it's making good use of food that would almost certainly end up in landfill.  It also benefits those in the community who really need that help with the cost of food - they do also have a weekly "food club" (food bank) with donated non-perishables which gets given to those who need it in addition to the fresh food.

Bravo to Remake: Cornwall!

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

 

Anybody here like cake?

Hands up?

Yes, me too. And this particular cake is a bit of a sweet-toothed 80s bright coloured throwback, to a time when exotic fruit in a tin was the highlight of the week.

Making this seems a long time ago now, as it's two weeks since I last ate. 

(Not strictly true, but I am sticking to the diet pretty well and cake is not currently happening).

This cake is the perfect comfort food for a winter's evening.  Enjoy with custard.

Ingredients

butter (melted)                   100g

brown sugar                       1/2 cup

pineapple rings (drained)     440g can

Pineapple juice                    2tbsp

Cream cheese                    125g

butter (softened)                150g

caster sugar                        1 cup

rind and juice of 1 orange

2 eggs (lightly beaten)

self-raising flour                    1 cup

Method

1. Preheat over to 180 degrees Celsius.
2. Tip the melted butter into a 24cm round cake tin, brushing it up the sides to grease. (If you're using a loose bottomed tin, like me, be aware that it will ooze out in cooking).
3. Sprinkle brown sugar over the butter and then arrange the pineapple rings over the base of the tin.  I popped glace cherries in the centre of each one for a really vivid pop of colour.
4. Mix the cream cheese, butter and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.  
5. Add the orange rind and juice, 2 tbsp of pineapple juice, eggs and flour.  Mix well until smooth.
6. Spoon the mix into the prepared tin over the pineapples.
7. Put the cake into the oven for 40-50 minutes until a skewer comes out clean.
8. Leave to cool for 10 minutes and then turn out carefully onto a wire cooling rack.

This is one of my creative endeavours this month in my year of creativity.  Considering I had five creative things to do this month I've made a remarkably slow start. 

The crochet is going well, but I'm not sure if I'll finish this month.  I have at least bought the bottles I need to make the wine. I haven't even begun to think about the cushion covers or the macrame and the stuff to make the little dolls is just sitting there waiting for some attention! 

On the other hand, I have been running two Beaver meetings and two Cub meetings via Zoom, I have a lot of Phonics videos on my YouTube channel, and the children are getting on well with their home learning. There's certainly been some creativity going on in the house, even if it hasn't all been mine.

Endangered animals masks made with Beaver Scouts

I really don't know the purpose of the cardboard fort or the Harry Potter x Victorian costume - sometimes it's best not to ask.

Charlie's tin can tealight candle holders that he made with Scouts.

Charlie's pelican, penguin, cat mash-up that he did for an Art lesson.

A Mediterranean Diet

Turn on the news these days and nearly every week you'll find some advice on what you should or should not eat - much of it contradictory.  Fad diets - 5:2, superjuice, "you are what you eat" (I know a brilliant joke about that one),carb free, gluten free, red and green days and all the rest make me want to go and stick my head in an oven.  I really like food - tasty and delicious food.  Some foods I like are healthy, some are very unhealthy (chip shop chips, blackforest gateaux etc.).  

I don't want to feel guilty about any food.  I want to nosh it down whenever I feel like it... within reason.  

I also want to be healthy.  

I accidentally lost quite a bit of weight between the Summer and Christmas.  I just lost my appetite through some combination of Vasculitis or the drugs I'm on to treat it, and managed to shift some weight that I've been trying to get rid of for about ten years.  Now that the appetite has come back, I'm keen not to pile the weight all back on if possible.  Hubby is also conscious that he's approaching half a century at the end of this year, and is anxious to lose some weight and live a healthier lifestyle.

One type of eating that we keep hearing about in a positive light is the "Mediterranean Diet".  Nobody is quite sure what it is about this diet that appears to have health benefits and support longevity - whether it's the red wine, the olive oil, the abundance of tomatoes, fruits and vegetables, the sea food, the cheese, the nuts and pulses, the convivial shared eating experience of "picking at" dishes or whether its some combination of all the above (or more sunshine), we just don't know.  What we do agree on is that both Hubby (and usually the children) love the flavours.  Spanish, Provencal, Greek, Turkish, Moroccan, Italian - all are food cultures that we thoroughly enjoy. 

This January I've heard Hubby harping on about extolling the virtues of both smaller portion sizes and "a more Mediterranean diet" a lot so on a trip to Waterstones decided to see if I could find a suitable new cook book to support the crusade.

Enter...

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mediterranean-Cookbook-Marie-Pierre-Moine/dp/1409347249/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1483903522&sr=8-2&keywords=mediterranean+cookbook

It's always a good sign when reading the cookbook makes your mouth water and you can't wait to get to the shops and buy in some of the ingredients you need to get started.  In this family there will always be room for Pie and chips or Staffordshire Oatcakes, but maybe we'll insert a bit more pitta with houmous, prawns dripping with garlic and chilli, olives and delicious salads in between and just possibly be a little healthier for it.  Or we'll have friends queueing up to partake of a bit of convivial red wine, cheese and garlic, and we won't care how healthy we are!

What's your latest new cookbook and what will you be cooking from it?

My Bake Off Challenge - Week 2 - Biscuit Week

 Everybody loves the wonderful Great British Bake Off, right?  I do, and I had a plan to spend ten weeks setting myself my own Bake-Off challenges based loosely on the challenges set in the marquee.  Week One was cake week.  Of course, I then immediately failed, because by setting myself a one per week timetable, I didn't stick to it.  Even if I did bake every week, I certainly didn't post about it!

So here we are with Week 2 (two months later).

I love the idea of cookies, particularly since one day an American pupil gave me a gift of hand-made cookies, including a recipe, for Christmas.  What a lovely gift!  I've occasionally repeated the gesture, and given cookies and a recipe, since then.

Anyway, here's this gloriously simple recipe:

1) Preheat the oven to 190C and line two baking trays with greaseproof paper.
2) Beat 150g of softened butter with 80g light brown sugar and 80g granulated sugar until soft and creamy.
3) Beat in 1 egg and 2 tsp of vanilla extract.
4) Sift in 225g of plain flour, 1/2 tsp of bicarb of soda and a pinch of salt and then mix with a wooden spoon.
5) Stir in 200g of plain chocolate chips.
6) Put teaspoon sized blobs on the baking tray (leave plenty of space between them as they spread!)
7)  Bake for 8 to 10 minutes - they'll be golden brown but still soft in the middle.
8)  Leave on the tray for a couple of minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Yum yum, they don't last long!

What's your favourite biscuit recipe?

My Bake-Off Challenge - Week One - Cake Week

Everybody loves the Great British Bake Off, right?

And, always up for a challenge, I'm going to endeavour, over the next ten weeks, to post my own Bake-Off Challenges based loosely on the challenges set in the Bake-off marquee.

Week One was cake week.

I was thinking about starting this challenge, and wondering what cake to make for my first challenge.  C helped me out:  "Mummy, there's not much in the sweet treat box" (they can have something from the sweet treat box in their packed lunch each day).  "No, I was thinking of making a cake in the next day or two."  Without a moment's hesitation he replied, "Yes, a pineapple upside-down cake please.  I've seen a tin of pineapple in the cupboard."  I couldn't argue with that now, could I?

Here's my recipe:

Set the oven at 180C.

Beat 50g butter and 50g soft brown sugar together and spread over the bottom and up the sides of the tin.

Lay out your pineapple slices over the bottom of the tin, filling any gaps with smaller pieces of pineapple or some glace cherries if you prefer.

Beat together 100g butter, 100g caster sugar, 100g self-raising flour, 2tbsp baking powder, 2 eggs, 1tsp vanilla extract, and 2 tbsp pineapple juice or syrup from the tin.  Spread this mixture evenly over the pineapples in the tin.  

Bake for 35 minutes.

Notes - if you have an awful oven (that heats from top and bottom rather than sides) then be prepared with some foil to cover the top once golden brown to prevent it burning.  Don't use a loose-bottomed tin as the sugar/butter topping will seep out.

Christmas is coming!

Yesterday on Facebook I saw a post from a friend saying that his wife had the Christmas cake in the oven, and we get to the sudden realisation that Christmas must be coming. 

I remember as a child that Christmas was not allowed to begin (i.e. talking about it, shopping for it, getting excited about it) until after Dad's birthday (20th November), which held back the craziness nicely.  We have a similar rule here chez Inkspots - Hubby's birthday is the 29th November.

Not quite that easy though.  Here are the things that thrust Christmas earlier onto our conscience:

• THE SHOPS.  Yes, the Christmas things came out as soon as the Back to School things went away, shoulder to shoulder with Halloween delights.  Now that Halloween is out of the way they can go at Christmas with gusto!
• MAIL ORDER.  Many of us now do the bulk of our Christmas shopping on-line, preferring an evening with the laptop and a glass of wine to the hot shops/ cold outdoors crush of pre-Christmas shopping (except maybe as a one-off to buy a couple of things and smugly sample the Gluwein at a Christmas market while raising your eyebrows at the antics of the non-mail-order shoppers).
• CRAFTING.  Anybody who plans to make gifts for Christmas, table decorations, Advent calendars and so on will should already be well underway with their endeavours to have any hope of getting it all done in time.
• SCHOOL.  If you're a parent you may well be aware that the children are already practising Christmas songs (that's me doing that!) and the Christmas play - all that starts straight after half term.  If your school is one of the many that sells Christmas cards designed by the children themselves, then your child will have designed their card weeks ago and you'll probably already have had to submit your order.  Teachers are right now planning what Christmas delights they will be making to send home with the children so that they can squeeze it all in with the Christmas play, carol concerts and maybe even a bit of reading and writing. 
• FAMILY PLANS.  I've had the message from one sister asking for ideas for the children's gifts, to which I have duly responded, keeping a few ideas back for when my in-laws ask the same question nearer December, and one or two for me too.  We've made our plans of when we are visiting each part of the family over the Christmas period and where we'll be on Christmas Day, and have also got another invitation to reply to.

So far I've got as far as: 

• preparing the Christmas songs to inflict on the children at school, 
• contributed to the ideas for the Christmas production at school, 
• planning the school PTA Christmas fair,
• making a list of what I am going to gift each member of my family, highlighting things that need making,
• planning our Christmas, including trying to work out when the best time will be to go to the supermarket... too early and the food will go off while we're away visiting the in-laws, leave it until we get back and it's OMG CHRISTMAS EVE AT THE SUPERMARKET!

I still need to:

• plan what and when I'm going to cook or bake,
• actually do something to help with the Christmas fair.
• Sing the Christmas songs with the children at school so that we don't deafen the old folks at the residential home we are visiting at the beginning of December.
• make stuff on my list,
• buy stuff on my list,
• write Christmas cards, and oh... everything else.... jingle, jingle... Christmas is a-coming!
  

Chocolate corn flake nests and a couple of cloaks - Monday's make

Today I've made two more reversible play capes from "Growing Up Sew Liberated" by Meg McElwee.  I had a special request for this colour combination on my Etsy shop (link on right), and always make two things rather than one (economies of scale!), so I've already dispatched my commissioned order, and have a spare in stock.

I also made a dozen of these cornflake confections with the children just now:

I wanted to include some information on my decoupage experiments, but since they aren't finished yet, I'll post on those at a later date, and you can just get a sneak preview:

What have you been making this week?

Feed your family for under £50 in February - Conclusion

If you're a regular reader of this blog you'll know that during the month of February I was attempting to reduce my weekly shopping bill for a family of four to £50 per week.

I started the challenge, and outlined a few ideas of how I might achieve it here.

I detailed progress in Week 1 here, Week 2 here and Week 3 here.

Now it's time for the conclusion.

It's safe to say that I didn't once achieve my £50 target.  Here's why:

• my family likes meat, and meat is expensive.  If it isn't expensive, you start to wonder whether it's fair on the farmer or whether the animals were treated well.  Where possible I buy organic and free-range meat.  That makes it even more expensive, but I feel strongly about it so the only way to cut down on the meat bill is to cut down on meat eating.
• We all have home-made lunches.  The cost of Hubby's lunches has dropped considerably since he started taking a packed lunch (although he's occasionally admitted to "topping up" at the canteen at work!).  C could be having a free school-dinner (all Foundation and KS1 in England are entitled) but for some reason prefers to have a home packed lunch.  Bug either eats at home or has a packed lunch, and I always eat at home.  The costs of packed lunch items probably adds about £10 to the weekly bill, if not more.
• We're food snobs.  Lets face it, we like freshly made granary loaves, nice continental meat selections, artisan cheeses, real ales and local ciders, olives and balsamic vinegar.  I make home made casseroles, lasagnes, cakes and so on, and really enjoy cooking and trying new recipes.  I'm certain that we would spend a lot less on our shopping if I bought a cheap sliced white loaf, mild cheddar, value meat and chips and cheap packaged cakes... but we like it our way.

We did spend a lot less on food during February, and crucially we threw less away as well.  I went shopping more often but bought less, focusing on the next few meals and buying what we were actually going to eat.  In some ways that put the bill up, because using the village shop for things like milk and meat was more expensive than going to the supermarket, but it was also local meat and milk, so I didn't begrudge that at all.

I do think it's been a worth while exercise, because its shown me what is important to me when it comes to buying food - and it isn't the cost.  I do think I'll continue buying little and often, which allows me to pop to the local market and pick up a few things, to visit the butcher and to pick up a bargain when I spot one, without worrying that I'll end up chucking out excess. 

Feed your family for £50 in February - week 2

I set myself a challenge for February to try to do all my weekly grocery shopping for under £50 per week for my family of 4.

We're now at the end of the second week and I think it's fair to say that I am failing miserably!

In Week 1 I did my usual weekly shop on the Tuesday (but did spend a lot less than usual), and then my usual top up shop for the weekend - totalling about £65.

I decided that for Week 2 I was not going to do a large weekly shop (with the waste entailed as things start to get a bit manky towards the end of the week).  Instead I was only going to plan the menu a couple of days ahead, using things that I already had in the kitchen as much as possible, and was going to do small regular shops using the town-centre, butchers and grocers a bit more and avoid the supermarket.

That's all well and good, but small children seem to do very odd things to toilet rolls, soap dispensers and toothpaste - and I always seem to need those things.  Supermarkets are the cheapest and most convenient source of those items, so instead of skipping the supermarket this week, I seem to have gone there every day or two for small shops instead!  Looking now at my receipts for the week (and because I've been doing small shops I've paid cash a couple of times) I've spent at least £65 this week.

I do like the just shopping for the next couple of days thing though, as long as I'm going to be passing a shop at some point each day, and am not having to make a special journey for it.  I do like a nice full fridge, it somehow tells you that you're not going to go hungry; but I also like that I'm not digging through manky salad and having to throw things out.  I can see what I've got and what I need.  This week, so far I'm doing okay.  I popped to the supermarket yesterday for things for last night and some other essentials, costing £22, and then I topped up for lunch today and dinner tonight for just £6.  I'm definitely going to take the children to visit a real greengrocer and butcher in the next couple of days too.  I'll let you know how that goes next week.

Cooking with toddlers - thumbprint cookies

We tried this recipe for the first time today, and it was very successful.  It's from the brilliant "Kids First Cookbook:

You get 4 ounces of light brown (or muscovado) sugar and 4 ounces of butter and beat them together until light and fluffy. 

Mix in one egg.  C is just learning to crack an egg into a bowl at the moment, and loves any chance he gets to practice this new skill.

Stir in 2 ounces of plain flour, 1/2 tsp bicarb of soda, 2 ounces of cocoa powder and 4 ounces of oats until really gooey.

Now get your hands in there and roll into sixteen little balls.  Lightly press them on to your baking tray, leaving plenty of space for expansion.

With a thumb dipped into flour, press a dent in the top of each one.

Bake at 180 C for ten minutes, then leave on the tray to set for a couple of minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

Use two teaspoons to put a blob of chocolate spread into the dent in each cookie.

Lick all bowls and spoons because they are all delicious!

Try very hard to wait until after dinner to devour your treat.

Cooking and Baking with Little People

Oh dear, where have I been again this week?  I've just had yet another of those chasing my tail without actually getting anything done, children-sticking-to-me-like-velcro type of weeks.


As I love involving my children in cooking with me, I thought I'd share how we do it, for those a little nervous of plunging in with the aprons and wooden spoons.

Setting up
I open out the table in the kitchen and put the high-chairs and a chair for me around it so that we can sit down.
I also have a small step-ladder in the main part of the kitchen so that C can stand up at the kitchen counters and help wash the dishes etc.
I aim to get as much equipment and as many ingredients as possible out before C comes to join in, that way I can concentrate on him and Sis without having to dart into the pantry to find something - or worse still get halfway through a recipe and find I don't have something vital.

What to do with the smallest one.


Mine is just coming up to 9 months, and if yours is anything like mine at this age, she doesn't want to be left out of anything!


I put her in her high-chair, and leave within reach only what I don't mind her eating or throwing on the floor.  She gets to play, investigate etc. and can also see what we are up to.  On this cooking occasion we were making chicken stew, rock buns and soda bread.  She got to eat a bit of chicken and raw carrot, investigate the leek trimmings and some ice from the freezer, explore a sieve, some measuring spoons and a jug, and join in licking the spoon from the rock buns.  She also got a bit of packaging.

Before we start
We wash or wipe our hands and put our aprons on.  Then we look at the recipe, check through the ingredients and equipment list (I call it out and he checks to see if we have it on the table).  I usually put a little plate or bowl out next to him into which we add a few bits of interesting ingredients for him to taste - that way we aim to stop him tasting the mixture or stealing all the chocolate drops or whatever before it goes in the oven.

Two options
You choose from these two options depending on the age, experience and temperament of your child, and also on the recipe.  The two options are:
- The "I Can Cook" method (named for the CBeebies programme on which it is based.  In this one you split your ingredients in half and double up on equipment.  You make half with your equipment and your child copies you and makes the other half with his equipment.  The advantages are that it's entirely their own work and they really get stuck in with all the processes.  They get the pride in their finished article.  The disadvantages are that if they do a major step wrong it's ruined, and while they may learn from it, they would inevitably be disappointed.  Not all recipes work this way, it's tricky to divide an egg in half for example, or you might not have two small loaf tins (for which the cooking time would probably also be different than a large loaf tin).
- The second option is probably more common, particularly with younger or more excitable or easily distracted children.  It's the partnership approach.  This is where you work together.  You give your child as much involvement as possible, but step in where needed to "help".

Top Tips

• Only ever bake or cook with your children if you have plenty of time and you are feeling chilled out and relaxed.  A frazzled temper will only ever escalate when cooking is involved.
• Don't worry about mess.  In the grand scheme of things how important is it?  They will learn so so much from cooking, and it's always inevitable to do some clearing up after a messy activity - they should learn to help you clear up - part of the learning experience.
• Be aware of safety at all times.  Don't stop your child from handling knives or glass bowls or stirring hot food - but introduce these aspects at an appropriate stage for your child and ensure that you teach them safety first, and are always there to supervise.

Easiest recipe ever - cheesy pastry shapes

This is the easiest recipe ever.


All you need is some shop bought shortcrust pastry, some margerine, Marmite and grated cheese (I used Cheddar and Parmesan).


Roll out the pastry.  Spread with margerine and Marmite, sprinkle with grated cheese, then fold and re-roll.  We repeated this process about three times.


Then use the shaped cutter to cut out the pastry shapes and then re-roll and cut some more.


Lay out the shapes on a floured baking tin, and then spread about half of them with a bit more Marmite and sprinkle with a little more cheese.


Bake at 180C for 20-30 minutes.


Yum, melt in the mouth deliciousness, and it's all easy enough for a toddler to get stuck in with.

The poetry of spice racks

I think you can tell a lot about a person by looking at their spice racks.  I'll describe a couple and you'll see what I mean.


First, there's the spice rack that has barely been touched since the day it was received as a wedding gift.  The occasional foray into the Mixed Herbs or even occasionally into the Ginger, Cinnamon or Mixed Spice on occasional domesticated baking days.  I have to say that I think there are one or two spice racks like these among my sisters and parents.  The spices and herbs are rarely refreshed or used, and are just there because that's what you're supposed to have in your kitchen.  Check out this Michael McIntyre clip for a more eloquent way of describing it - I love it, it's so true!

Second, there's the spice rack belonging to a child of the war era (my in-laws).  A fabulous cook, the herbs and spices are well used.  The rack is customised to personal cooking, with home made labels.  However, the range is limited to spices for baking, and a few herbs.  Adventurous and experimental cookery are definitely not the name of the game here.  There are no exotic spices, and definitely no garlic.


Finally, there's a spice rack like this:

This spice rack oozes character.  As you can see the conventional spice rack with space for 12 jars just doesn't cut it.  I want my spice rack to inspire me to culinary adventures.  The contents are a cacophony of smells and heady aromas.  Opening a jar takes you instantly to the souks of Istanbul, to the herb patch in the garden, to a favourite restaurant.  The names are evocative - Ras el Hanout, paprika, saffron and cinnamon - I am transported to the early explorers and the huge trade built up around these valuable commodities.  It may look chaotic (and poor Big C would have to hunt to find what he wants) but there is an organisation in place, though throwing jars back on the shelves as I cook with a toddler means that it frequently needs to be tidied.  Top shelf - bicarb of soda, baking powder, cream of tartar, food colourings, vanilla essence, bouquet garni, birthday cake candles etc.
Second shelf - short jars arranged alphabetically, and paper cake cases
Third shelf - tall jars arranged alphabetically and tomato puree
Bottom shelf - big tubs and pots, Calpol, Marmite, stock cubes, Tobasco, mustards and gravy granules.


I love my spice rack.  It takes central place in my kitchen and I think it tells anybody who sees it that I love to cook.  I'd love to see photos of other people's spice racks, so post a link to a photo below, and we'll draw some conclusions about what kind of cook you are...

Recipe time - Easy chicken stir-fry

A totally delicious recipe that is fabulously easy to make.

Ingredients (to serve 4): 
3 chicken breasts (chopped into strips), 3 tbsp dark soy sauce and 3tbsp light soy sauce, 2 garlic cloves (finely chopped), 1 cm fresh ginger (finely chopped), 250ml chicken stock, 1 red chilli (cut into rings), 1 red pepper (cut into strips), 200g sugar snap peas (topped and tailed), 1tbsp cornflour (mixed with a little water), dry egg noodles (3 blocks).

Method:

• First, make sure your toddler is stationed ready for action.
• marinate the chicken in the soy sauce for at least five minutes
• start cooking the noodles
• heat some oil in a wok and fry the ginger and garlic for a minute.
• Add the chicken and marinating juices and cook for a further couple of minutes.
• Add the chicken stock and cook for another 2 minutes.
• Stir in the cornflour paste and then add the pepper, chilli and sugar snap peas and cook for another 2 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.
• Serve on a bed of noodles.

I made a couple of changes to this recipe:  

• I used frozen stir-fry chicken from Tesco, so took it out of the freezer a couple of hours before cooking and put it with the soy sauce to let it start defrosting and marinade at the same time.  This also meant that I fried the chicken for a few minutes before adding the garlic and ginger, and then added the marinading juices.
• I also used some chopped chilli that I keep in a small zip-lock bag in the freezer rather than cut into rings - you know how supermarkets only sell chillies in packs and you only ever need one or two so the rest go manky, I just chop them up and stick them in the freezer to use as and when required.
• I cooked for longer than specified, partly because of the frozen chicken, and partly because I have a baby and toddler, and don't like to be rushed because you never know what might happen to interrupt everything!

My little monkey, part way through cooking, spotted a box of Jacobs biscuits for cheese - the cheeky monkey looked at them, looked at me and came out with, "Would you like some biscuits?" (read - I would like a biscuit mummy, but this is a cunning way around it!)  He's not even two yet - how did he learn such cunning?  Of course I gave him a kiss and a biscuit!  Here he is enjoying the biscuit, and below, stirring the cornflour paste.

Lovely dinner party

As usual I forgot to take photos, but last night we had some friends over for dinner, which was lovely and something I'd like to do more often.  Next time, once Little Sister settles more consistently in the evening, we're going to invite some of our neighbours over. 


I carefully selected my menu so that I could do as much prep as possible at nap time, leaving me little to do when little people needed feeding and putting to bed.  I also took my guests up on their offer to provide dessert, which was a spectacular pavlova (I'm still drooling just thinking about it!).  Of course, it didn't quite work out as planned.  To start with I was up at 5.30am yesterday feeding Little Sister, so by nap time I definitely needed to lie down for a bit of sleep too - so the food prep was hurriedly completed after nap time, while Little C played and Little Sister watched me, before a hurried walk with  the Waggy-Tailed-One.  Incidentally, no walk in  this village can be hurried - after I'd stopped to chat with neighbours three times before I even got to the bottom of the road I gave up on the idea of Little C having a bath before his tea and just relaxed and enjoyed a stroll punctuated with neighbourly chats. 


Anyway, here are my recipes:


Starter - Salmon and Chorizo fishcakes
These were delicious and I hope that they'll become one of my signature dishes (you know, the ones that people talk about and ask you to make again... so far I only have a signature pudding - chocolate bannoffee pie - mmmmm).


250g peeled chopped potatoes; 250g salmon fillet; 75g chorizo; zest of 1/2 lemon; 4tbsp veg or sunflower oil; 1 egg - beaten; 100g fine breadcrumbs;

• Boil the potatoes for 10-15 minutes, and grill the salmon for ten minutes;
• Chop the chorizo into small pieces (a decent pair of scissors does a treat) and fry until crispy, then drain on kitchen paper.
• Drain the potatoes, flake the salmon and mix with the chorizo and lemon zest - a food processor mixed it all up much more effectively than I was managing by hand, though obviously involves more washing up.
• Shape into small fishcakes (it should make about 20), and chill for at least 30 minutes (or as long as required to walk dog).
• Heat the oil in a pan. Dip each fishcake in egg and then breadcrumbs and fry for 30 seconds to a minute on each side.  If you are doing this ahead of time you can then just reheat in a moderate oven for ten minutes before serving.
• Make a dip by mixing 6tbsp of Greek yoghurt with a crushed clove of garlic, zest and juice of half a lime and some salt and pepper.  Serve on a bed of salad leaves with the dip on the side and a wedge of lemon or lime.

Main course - Roasted lamb steaks with herbs and garlic

Perfect springtime flavours.  I liked this but the presentation wasn't great.  I served it with roast potatoes and fine beans.

4 boneless lamb leg steaks; 1 bulb garlic, split into cloves but unpeeled; 2 shallots - peeled and finely chopped; 4tbsp chopped herbs - you can use lemon thyme and parsley, but I used lemon balm and golden thyme; a handful of chopped mint; 3 finely chopped anchovies; zest of 1 lemon; 75g pitted kalamata olives; 2 tbsp olive oil;

• Mix together all the ingredients except the mint, and allow to marinate (while you walk the dog, cook tea for your kiddies and greet your guests).
• Cook at 200 degrees C for 20 minutes, then cover with foil and allow to rest for 10 minutes.  Sprinkle with mint and serve.

Chocolate Scribble Cake

Mmmm, my mouth is watering just recalling this incredibly easy cake, most of which is in the cake tin in the pantry waiting for an opportunity to jump out and pop into my unsuspecting mouth!


Okay, ingredients:
50g butter
50g dark chocolate
2 eggs
150g soft brown sugar
50g self raising flour
icing sugar and food colouring or writing icing

• Preheat the oven to 180 degrees
• Melt the butter and chocolate together.  You can use the bowl over a pan of boiling water method, or use the microwave.
• Break the eggs into a mixing bowl and get your assistant to vigorously stir the sugar in.  Then sift the flour in and stir some more.  If your assistant is anything like mine then they love to shake the sieve, but need some help with the stirring.  
• Stir in your melted chocolate and butter mixture to make a chocolate goo.
• Prepare a baking tray (20cm square and 2cm deep is about right) with greaseproof baking paper in the base.  Pour in the goo, using a spatula to get all of it.  You can now allow your assistant to lick the bowl (but unless you have a bath prepared try to discourage them from actually putting their head in it).
• Put the tray in the top shelf of the oven for 20 minutes until the surface is slightly springy to the touch.
• Allow to cool in the tray and then cut into 9 or 12 squares.
• Make a little thick icing with icing sugar and a tiny bit of water and divide into 3 or 4 small dipping bowls (about 1 tbsp in each).  Add a drop of different food colouring to each and stir.  Ask your assistant to drizzle the coloured icings over the cake with a tea spoon.  (You can also use writing icing, but for younger assistants I think they find it quite difficult to squeeze from the tubes).
• Now remove the squares from the baking tin and try not to eat them all at once.

Breakfasts

Big C handed me a little insert from The Guardian called "Quick and healthy breakfasts".
Here's the list:

• grilled sourdough with ricotta and herb paste
• fruit salad in cardamom and lime syrup
• sweetcorn cakes
• grilled pink grapefruit with star anise
• bircher muesli
• mushrooms with sourdough croutons
• irish oat porridge with banana, mango and coconut milk
• chickpeas on toast
• congee
• braised eggs with tomato, spinach and yoghurt.

The sad thing is that none of these things looks even remotely appealing to me.  If you do fancy one of them though, the recipes are on this link. 

So anyway, I do like a bit of variety at breakfast time, and the idea of being stuck in a rut with the same boring breakfast every day is terrible to me.  I also like to try to include one of the 5-a-day in breakfast.

So here is my list of tasty breakfasts:

• cereal - yes, we do have it, especially if I'm having a tired or struggle-to-get-out-of-bed morning, but I try to vary it, and also to include a handful of fruit, even if it's just a chopped half banana or handful of raisins.  My absolute favourite is Kellogs Start, but I'm also happy with Bran Flakes or Corn Flakes or their shop brand alternatives.
• toast - again, this is one to alternate with cereal on days when doing anything more interesting is a challenge, and preferably with a piece of fruit or glass of orange juice to accompany.  I have mine with marmite, jam or marmalade.
• toast with either fried mushrooms and scrambled eggs, or tinned tomato and bacon.
• eggy bread (with cinnamon) and slices of apple lightly fried in butter (yum!)
• pancakes (with fruit or stewed fruit)
• scotch pancakes (as above)
• porridge (with fruit stirred in) - I'm not averse to Oat so Simple, and have had a bit of a Readibrek craving just lately too.
• Fruit smoothie.
• Fruit salad with yoghurt and a sprinkle of toasted oats.
• Fresh bread with home-made nut butter (made with cashew nuts, sunflower oil and honey mashed up in a pestle and mortar) and sliced banana.
• Of course the traditional Scottish or English breakfast sometimes on the weekends
• Sausage or bacon butties

There, I feel much better now!

Chocolate butterfly buns

It's still cold, snowy, icy and beautiful out here.  What else is there to do but get on and do some baking?  After all the Christmas gluttony has made short work of all those extra treats, and when it's cold and you're pregnant who wants to start the New Year on a diet or health kick?


Recipe for Chocolate Butterfly buns

Ingredients
Bun: 
110g margarine
110g caster sugar
2 eggs
85g self raising flour


Butter icing:
60g margarine (I needed a little more than that)
110g icing sugar
85g cocoa powder (I used drinking chocolate powder and needed less than this)

Method