Aunty Ailly came to stay and brought with her pudding bowls and Grandma's recipe
We had a lovely day
Christmas Plum Puddings are supposed to be made with love and the ones we made yesterday, certainly were and it was all really easy too
For a 6lb Pudding - Mix all of the following ingredients in a massive bowl or food processor:
8oz melted butter
12oz currents
8 oz raisins
8 oz sultanas
1 oz almonds (Ailly doesn't like them so she leave them out)
2 oz of dried mixed fruit (Ailly adds halved glace cherries - because she's mad about them)
6 oz of plain flour
6 oz of fresh breadcrumbs (we used spelt breadcrumbs - as I don't eat regular wheat)
2 teaspoons of mixed spice
1 teaspoon of ground nutmeg (Ailly adds cloves, although it's not on the official list)
4 tablespoons of Stout (we used Beamish)
2 tablespoons of Brandy (Ailly used way more than that)
2 eggs (beaten)
Zest and juice of a lemon and orange (the orange is an Ailly addition)
Grease and line the bottom of metal or ceramic pudding bowl(s) with butter - only the very bottom with baking paper
Fill with the mixture and cover with double layered baking paper and fix with tightly tide string, to keep the lid in place, then place the string under the bowl and back over the top, to make a handle that you can pick the whole bowl up securely with.
Leave somewhere cool overnight
The next day make sure that you have 5-6 hours available, as you need to to steam the puddings.
Take a large saucepan, pop the pudding into the saucepan and half fill with water, then bring to a rolling boil with a lid on.
Keep the water topped up and once the cooking time is finished, remove from the heat and leave to cool.
Remove the baking paper lid and replace with another in the same way with the twine
Store in a cool place until Christmas Day
Enjoy!
H&A xx
Wednesday, 9 November 2011
Quick, Tasty & Handy
Fresh and Fragrant Couscous
Boil the kettle and put 2 mugs of couscous in a heat proof bowl
Pour boiling water over the couscous, enough to cover and absorb all the water and a dash of olive oil
The couscous is ready in 10 minutes
Leave to cool
Chop up all the following into weeny small bits:
One third of a cucumber
Large handful of fresh mint leaves
3 spring onions
One sweet red pepper
Then make up some nice French Dressing:
Olive Oil, Red Wine Vinegar, smidge of garlic, dijon mustard
Mix the cooled couscous with the veggies and the dressing (to taste)
Then stick in the fridge and each whenever you fancy
It's lovely served with interesting salad leaves and smoked mackerel and also makes a great packed lunch
Enjoy. Hx
Boil the kettle and put 2 mugs of couscous in a heat proof bowl
Pour boiling water over the couscous, enough to cover and absorb all the water and a dash of olive oil
The couscous is ready in 10 minutes
Leave to cool
Chop up all the following into weeny small bits:
One third of a cucumber
Large handful of fresh mint leaves
3 spring onions
One sweet red pepper
Then make up some nice French Dressing:
Olive Oil, Red Wine Vinegar, smidge of garlic, dijon mustard
Mix the cooled couscous with the veggies and the dressing (to taste)
Then stick in the fridge and each whenever you fancy
It's lovely served with interesting salad leaves and smoked mackerel and also makes a great packed lunch
Enjoy. Hx
Thursday, 3 November 2011
The Man Played a Blinder!
What can I say? The Man played a blinder last night. Not only did he cook a fab meal, but he also managed to cook for 2 little lovely extras that popped by! Very impressive.
He cooked mussles in a red wine, garlic and red chilli sauce
Then we had oven baked trout with crevettes (that were amazingly sweet and juicy), served with baked asparagus, mangetout, french beans and baby mushrooms
Delicious
My turn to take his face in my hands and tell him how totally fab he is!
If you want the recipe, let me know and I'll check with him.
He bought the fish and seafood in a shop in Carrigaline, amazing value
Hx
He cooked mussles in a red wine, garlic and red chilli sauce
Then we had oven baked trout with crevettes (that were amazingly sweet and juicy), served with baked asparagus, mangetout, french beans and baby mushrooms
Delicious
My turn to take his face in my hands and tell him how totally fab he is!
If you want the recipe, let me know and I'll check with him.
He bought the fish and seafood in a shop in Carrigaline, amazing value
Hx
Wednesday, 2 November 2011
Bank Holiday Monday Dinner
The man was working, so I said I'd cook and I really fancied Tandoori Chicken.
So I had a special Murgh Tandoori Mix that I'd bought at the Mahon Farmers Market from the Green Saffron Company and followed the directions and served it with veggie curry and brown basmati rice.
Need - Marinating time a couple of hours (although I think overnight is better, so it can really soak in through the meat)
So, in a bowl I put 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil, 4 crushed garlic cloves, 60g grated fresh ginger with the skin on, 300 mls Plain Natural Yogurt, 4 tablespoons single cream, 3 tablespoons tomato puree, juice and zest of a lemon and the Murgh Tandoori Mix and mixed it up. Then I dunked a whole chicken into the bowl and shoved the marinade into every crevice and under the skin on the breast and legs and into the cavity.
Once the chicken has had it's marinade time, pre-heat the oven to 200oc or Gas Mark 5 for an hour and a half for a 2kg bird (4 x15 mins plus half an hour cooking time)
Once cooked, leave to rest for 20 minutes, then serve
Because it's dry, I like a juicy veggie curry with it
Use whatever veg you have in the fridge. I used:
1 small butternut squash
1 red onion
1 large courgette
1 large sweet red pepper
1 garlic Clove crushed
Half a packet of fresh Coriander, or the equivalent from a growing plant
Medium Curry Powder 3 tablespoons
Vegetable Oil
Knorr Vegetable Stock Pot or whatever vegetable stock you have
2 tins of tomatoes
1 tin of chickpeas
Then all I do is heat a tablespoon of vegetable oil in a large saucepan
Add the curry powder to the hot oil to make a fragrant paste
Add the chopped veg and saute for 10 minutes
Add the stock, tomatoes and chickpeas
Leave to simmer on a low heat for 10 minutes, then turn off and leave until you're ready to reheat it later.
Just before you're ready to take the chicken out of the oven to rest, boil the kettle and make your basmati rice and put the Vegetable Curry on a low heat to finish cooking and to heat through.
All I know is, that when we had dinner that night, The Man was really impressed. He took my face in his hands and said that he could see how much time and effort I had put into the meal and how wonderful I was.
I smiled sweetly!
Hx
So I had a special Murgh Tandoori Mix that I'd bought at the Mahon Farmers Market from the Green Saffron Company and followed the directions and served it with veggie curry and brown basmati rice.
Need - Marinating time a couple of hours (although I think overnight is better, so it can really soak in through the meat)
So, in a bowl I put 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil, 4 crushed garlic cloves, 60g grated fresh ginger with the skin on, 300 mls Plain Natural Yogurt, 4 tablespoons single cream, 3 tablespoons tomato puree, juice and zest of a lemon and the Murgh Tandoori Mix and mixed it up. Then I dunked a whole chicken into the bowl and shoved the marinade into every crevice and under the skin on the breast and legs and into the cavity.
Once the chicken has had it's marinade time, pre-heat the oven to 200oc or Gas Mark 5 for an hour and a half for a 2kg bird (4 x15 mins plus half an hour cooking time)
Once cooked, leave to rest for 20 minutes, then serve
Because it's dry, I like a juicy veggie curry with it
Use whatever veg you have in the fridge. I used:
1 small butternut squash
1 red onion
1 large courgette
1 large sweet red pepper
1 garlic Clove crushed
Half a packet of fresh Coriander, or the equivalent from a growing plant
Medium Curry Powder 3 tablespoons
Vegetable Oil
Knorr Vegetable Stock Pot or whatever vegetable stock you have
2 tins of tomatoes
1 tin of chickpeas
Then all I do is heat a tablespoon of vegetable oil in a large saucepan
Add the curry powder to the hot oil to make a fragrant paste
Add the chopped veg and saute for 10 minutes
Add the stock, tomatoes and chickpeas
Leave to simmer on a low heat for 10 minutes, then turn off and leave until you're ready to reheat it later.
Just before you're ready to take the chicken out of the oven to rest, boil the kettle and make your basmati rice and put the Vegetable Curry on a low heat to finish cooking and to heat through.
All I know is, that when we had dinner that night, The Man was really impressed. He took my face in his hands and said that he could see how much time and effort I had put into the meal and how wonderful I was.
I smiled sweetly!
Hx
Monday, 31 October 2011
Quick & tasty food when you're too tired to cook: Dinner in 15 minutes max!
Quick & tasty food when you're too tired to cook: Dinner in 15 minutes max!: Well, after successfully finishing my painting, I then prepared a well earned dinner, to be eaten on a tray, on my lap in front of the fire ...
Dinner in 15 minutes max!
Well, after successfully finishing my painting, I then prepared a well earned dinner, to be eaten on a tray, on my lap in front of the fire and X Factor. Heaven.
Sister Kate had given me a recipe for her favorite dinner, but as I couldn't get all of the ingredients in my local shop, I had to improvise, so this is the improvised version.
Stephen must have got wind that something tasty was going to be dished up chez Helen, as he text to say he'd be arriving in time for dinner and X Factor too, nice one!
Anyway, on to dinner:
Boil kettle and put the oven on to a low heat (just to keep things warm)
Chop and mash the following all together; half a green chilli, juice of half a lime, a garlic clove, handful of fresh coriander leaves and stalks, teaspoon of thai fish sauce and half a teaspoon of Chinese 5 spice mix (Kate's recipe had fresh ginger and mint leaves also and no Chinese 5 spice).
Spoon the fragrant mix over your flesh side up salmon (supermarket had a great deal on, so I bought a lovely load of salmon), again, as much as you fancy - but I used 2 large darnes. Then just leave, flipping over after 5 minutes (don't leave too long, as the lime juice will 'cook' it).
Dissolve half a stock pot (jellied stock) into a pint of boiled water and add enough thick rice noodles to satisfy 2. They'll be cooked in 10 minutes.
Sister Kate had given me a recipe for her favorite dinner, but as I couldn't get all of the ingredients in my local shop, I had to improvise, so this is the improvised version.
Stephen must have got wind that something tasty was going to be dished up chez Helen, as he text to say he'd be arriving in time for dinner and X Factor too, nice one!
Anyway, on to dinner:
Boil kettle and put the oven on to a low heat (just to keep things warm)
Chop and mash the following all together; half a green chilli, juice of half a lime, a garlic clove, handful of fresh coriander leaves and stalks, teaspoon of thai fish sauce and half a teaspoon of Chinese 5 spice mix (Kate's recipe had fresh ginger and mint leaves also and no Chinese 5 spice).
Spoon the fragrant mix over your flesh side up salmon (supermarket had a great deal on, so I bought a lovely load of salmon), again, as much as you fancy - but I used 2 large darnes. Then just leave, flipping over after 5 minutes (don't leave too long, as the lime juice will 'cook' it).
Dissolve half a stock pot (jellied stock) into a pint of boiled water and add enough thick rice noodles to satisfy 2. They'll be cooked in 10 minutes.
I had leeks in the fridge, so I chopped half a leek finely and a shallot (Stephen can't cope with Onions, but we wont go into that), half a bag of beansprouts and the other half of the bag of watercress, spinache and chard left over from lunch.
Heat up your wok or frying pan, add a small amount of light oil (vegetable, sunflower or grapeseed) then add a couple of drops of sesame oil (not too much as it can be overpowering). Once it's nice and hot, add your leeks and shallots and toss around until they're nice and cooked a crispy. Put aside on a warmed plate and leave to keep warm in the oven.
Make sure the pan is nice and hot again and add your salmon, skin side down, for 2 minutes, then flip over and put a lid on and turn the heat down and leave for 5 minutes.
Your noodles will be well ready by now.
Spoon your cooked noodles into your 2 bowls (the ones you'll be eating out of) and put those in the oven to keep warm too.
Remove the salmon (once cooked) and place on the leeks to keep warm in the oven.
Add the beansprouts and greens to the pan, toss them around to scoop up all the flavours, then add a little soy sauce and the stock from the noodles. Cook for 2 minutes and hey presto, you're done!
Take out your noodle bowls and salmon from the oven and assemble.
Layer the leeks and shallots over the noodles, then the beansprout mix, then place the salmon on top and spoon the juices over.
Load up tray with food, white wine and water and don't forget napkins, as this is a bit gloopy and you don't want to wreck the sitting room.
Enjoy!
Hx
Sunday, 30 October 2011
5 Minute Lunch
It's a bank holiday w/e and I've decided to get the paint pots out. Starving at lunch time for something tasty. Rice noodles it is!
Boil kettle. Disolve half a vegetable stock cube to a saucepan with half a pint of boiled water. Add a fist full of thick rice noodles. Bring to the boil and then turn down the heat and let simmer until the noodles are soft (5 mins or so). Add a half bag of washed watercress, spinache and chard (or whatever bag of yummy greens you have in the fridge) for a couple of minutes, then serve in a big bowl.
Then get back to painting and turn Will and Grace off!
Hx
Boil kettle. Disolve half a vegetable stock cube to a saucepan with half a pint of boiled water. Add a fist full of thick rice noodles. Bring to the boil and then turn down the heat and let simmer until the noodles are soft (5 mins or so). Add a half bag of washed watercress, spinache and chard (or whatever bag of yummy greens you have in the fridge) for a couple of minutes, then serve in a big bowl.
Then get back to painting and turn Will and Grace off!
Hx
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