Foodie Christmas Gifts 2013 - Part Two

No.3 London Dry Gin
No.3 London Dry Gin is owned by Berry Brothers & Rudd, Britain’s oldest wine and spirit merchants (established in 1698) and the Wine & Spirit Merchants by Appointment to both HM The Queen and The Prince of Wales. It was created with the aid of the holder of the only PhD in gin flavour - and has been crafted to 'taste as gin should' and to be the perfect gin for a G&T or Martini. With an ABV of 46%, it has a heavy 'punch' of juniper and just five other botanicals present (the flavourings which all gins contain) - which is in stark contrast to many other gins which can have ten or more.  A top notch Christmas Gift for someone special.
Available from Waitrose, Sainsbury's, Selfridges £35.00/70cl.

Lindor Collection Gift Box from Lindt
The Lindt Master Chocolatiers have created this beautiful box of luxurious Lindor chocolate truffles. There are 20 smooth truffles in five delicious flavours - milk, hazelnut, white, extra dark and Irish cream. Also included in the box are three heart shaped milk chocolates.  Beautifully presented - the perfect Christmas gift.
Available from lindt.co.uk  - rrp £9.95 - 285g

Lindt Stracciatella Truffles
Especially for Christmas the Lindt Master Chocolatiers have created a limited edition flavour - the Lindor Stracciatella truffles taste just like cookies and cream - they have a smooth creamy white praline centre and there are crunchy cocoa nibs in the chocolate shell.  I would buy two of these, one as a gift and one for me - they will also look fabulous as luxurious cake decorations or as a hidden filling inside cupcakes.
Available from lindt.co.uk - rrp £4.59 - 200g

BAKE
Foodies have gone baking crazy and are always seeking out the next recipe whether this is sweet or savoury. A delicious book for inspiration and encouraging us to get baking. There is something in the book for everyone from beginners to the more experienced cook.  Recipes from around the world including classics such as English Victoria Sandwich from here in the UK to further afield including a Fraisier cake from France, Danube Wave cake from Germany, Maple and Pecan Bundt cake from America and Princess Cake from Scandinavia. There are 384 pages and illustrations for every recipe including step by step photographs.
Price: £25.00 Bake published by Parragon Books is available from Amazon, Debenhams, Sainsbury’s, WH Smiths and other outlets across the UK

Cambrook - Brilliantly Caramelised Nuts
Using traditional artisan techniques each nut is coated in a fine golden glaze and has a distinctive crunchy texture with a hint of salt. The recipe was perfected using a French copper roasting pan.  Artisan methods used on the Continent were borrowed and their own distinctive brand of caramelised nuts were created using a fine layer of sugar and honey with a pinch of salt. The new Cambrook caramelised nut range includes Cashews, Sesame Peanuts, Macadamias and Mixed Nuts. The perfect gift for the foodie who has everything.
Prices from £1.79 RRP to £2.99 per 80g bag; available at delis, farm shops and speciality food stores, including Fortnum & Mason, Selfridges, Harvey Nichols and Wholefoods.
For further information, visit www.cambrookfoods.co.uk

Divine After Dinner Ginger Thins and Mint Thins
Delicious 70% dark chocolate Divine After Dinner Ginger Thins are filled with soft ginger jelly. The After Dinner Mint Thins are chocolate squares filled with soft natural mint fondant covered in 70% award winning dark chocolate. Divine is the only fair trade chocolate company which is owned by its cocoa farmers. Both ginger and mint are said to aid digestion and I would happily share these chocolate squares after an indulgent Christmas dinner.
Available at Waitrose, Booths and Ocado RRP £3.50 - 200g boxes

Walkers Shortbread Scottie Dog Tin
Scottie dog shaped butter shortbreads fill this beautiful rectangle tin. The melt in the mouth shortbread is made using just four ingredients, flour, pure butter, sugar and salt.  No additives or preservatives are used. They are baked in the village of Aberlour, Speyside, in the heart of the Scottish Highlands. Christmas wouldn't be the same without a tin of Walkers shortbread.
Available from Cargo Home Shop £10 -220g

Thank you to everyone for the fabulous samples.

A Love for Food by Daylesford - Book Review

Carol Bamford, the founder of  Daylesford, came to Gloucestershire in 1992 and the start of the journey was to convert the land to become organic to produce local, seasonal and sustainable foods. A step back in time - I can remember my grandparents having a huge allotment, no pesticides were ever used and the fresh produce meant that there was always good food on the table. There were also a few hens in the garden at the back of the house which meant lots of fresh eggs for eating and baking.

I've spent a good few weeks reading A Love for Food and because it is so much more than recipes it has taken me a while to write a review.....

Throughout the book we are introduced to some of the team who are passionate about their work at Daylesford, reading their stories and how they came to be part of  the journey. Jez Taylor - The Market Gardener,  John Longman - The Cheese Room, Eric Duhamel - The Bakery,  Richard Smith - The Livestock and Andy Wheeler - Black Barn Chef.

I can't resist a great chilli recipe and this one from the book is a winner.

Looking down the ingredients list, using instant coffee in the recipe caught my attention, interestingly it is used for richness and depth of flavour and colour, this was new to me because it is usual for me to add a square of dark chocolate. A small amount of beef marrow is in the ingredients list but I was unable to buy this. Shin of beef is the star of this dish and it is cooked slowly until meltingly tender. I stored my cooked chilli in the fridge for a couple of days before we reheated it and this makes a huge difference because all the strong flavours of coriander, smoked paprika and chilli powder blend together and it's even more delicious - the best recipe ever declared my hubby.

There are many seasonal recipes throughout the book including rhubarb queen of puddings - smashed broad beans with peas - mint, tomato and feta salad with a mint and lemon dressing.

Some of the recipes which caught my eye are roast rib of beef with Dijon mustard and balsamic vinegar, cod with lemon, parsley and tomato butter, Bledington Blue Cheese and brocolli tart, blood orange and polenta cake with orange whipped cream, chicken casserole with a splash of brandy and salted ginger treacle tart. Christmas mince pies and a Christmas Cake recipe from the family of Carol Bamford are also included.

Chapters and notes within the book include from the market garden - salads and vegetables.  The cheese room - savoury tarts and pies.  Meat - with notes on casseroles and notes on roasts with useful guidelines.

I particularly enjoyed the bread chapter with notes on ingredients and technique. There is also a day by day guide outlining how to make natural leavens with grapes and recipes for sourdough once you have made the natural leaven.

The sign of a good cookery book in my house is one that has sticky notes attached to the tops of pages to help me find recipes that have caught my eye - this book has many sticky notes attached.....

There are family recipes and also recipes that will be familiar with foodies who visit the farmshop and cafe, but for those of us who have yet to visit, we can now make these award-winning recipes in our own homes.

This is a substantial book with 424 pages, seasonal recipes and a general mix of recipes from savoury to sweet, not all recipes are accompanied with a photograph of the finished dish. All of the recipes are easy to follow and are written thoughtfully with a guiding hand. A cookery book for foodies, those who grow their own fruit and vegetables and cooks who use local organic produce.

Price £30
Published by Fourth Estate

Thank you for the review copy.

Fresh Berry Scones - Great British Bake Off Everyday

The crunchy demerara topping on the lid is the best part of the scones
 and I eat the lid first!

I have a passion for scones but so much the better if berries are incorporated into them. Blueberry scones are my favourite but here we have both blueberries and raspberries.  The beauty about these scones is they bypass the usual jam then cream or cream and then jam debate that goes on and on...... My scone recipe is from The Great British Bake Off Everyday cookery book.

All they need is a dollop of cream

The book is full to the brim with very tempting cakes, bread and bakes - I was spoilt for choice. I've been baking quite a lot recently, in fact more than I intended to. I'm still getting to know my new oven and it's a good excuse to bake, bake, bake.

My kitchen posting has had to be delayed - the work seems to just go on and on and on. Everything seems to take ages, electricians coming and going, the fitter still doing small bits and pieces and then there is the glass man who has ordered the glass but this takes a few weeks to be made and then he has to come and fit.  Guess what, after the glass has been fitted the electricians have to come back to fit new socket covers and then the installer has to come back to do a few more bits and pieces........Shoo workmen, shoo........

There are still fresh berries on the shelves and using frozen for the scones unfortunately won't work because the frozen fruit will release too much liquid whilst the scones are baking.

I had some buttermilk left over from the Blackberry Buttermilk Sponge and used it to make the scones. If you can't locate any buttermilk here is a way of making your own: take 250ml milk (not semi), pour onto 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and leave to stand at room temperature for approximately 10 minutes.  If you have any blackberries left over from making the sponge I think I would be tempted to use these in the scones.  The scones freeze perfectly too, defrost and warm on the defrost setting of the microwave to refresh.

The Great British Bake Off is must watch TV and I for one find myself sitting in front of the TV every week watching, hubby knows he can't get any sense out of me whilst it's on, and now he watches too, eating one of my warm comforting fresh berry scones of course!

Blackberry Buttermilk Sponge

The sponge has a lovely crunchy demerara sugar topping

This easy to make blackberry buttermilk sponge has a lovely tender crumb and if you can get hedgerow blackberries the cake will taste even better. My blackberries came from the supermarket, they were absolutely fine (but make sure they aren't dessert blackberries) or raspberries would be good to use too. The sponge is best served warm and can be reheated gently in the microwave.

I know sometimes it's not convenient to buy buttermilk and a buttermilk substitute can be made by taking 250ml milk (not semi-skimmed) and pouring onto 1 tablespoon of either white wine vinegar or lemon juice and leave to stand at room temperature for 10 minutes.

Recipe is from The Great British Bake Off Everyday cookbook and they recommend serving the sponge with Hot Berry Sauce (recipe in the book). The cake is quite sweet and I think the berry sauce would counteract the sweetness. I served my cake with a dollop of cream.

One Bowl Baking - Book Review

It takes only 15 minutes to make the majority of recipes from this cookery book and no fancy kitchen equipment is required other than a set of scales for weighing out.  Simple to follow recipes and baking from scratch to produce delicious cakes and bakes.

One bowl baking cuts down on unnecessary equipment, less washing up and is a shortcut to making delicious bakes.

There are over 100 recipes in the book with chapters covering muffins, scones, cookies, cupcakes, bundt cakes, party cakes, cheesecakes, tarts, puddings and dessert.  Chapter 1 - Good Baking - is a guide to suggested baking tools, knowing your ingredients and how to use the recipes in the book.

A few of the recipes which caught my eye are Peaches and Cream Streusel Muffins, Juicy Mango-Raspberry Crumble Tart, Glazed Coconut Bundt Cake and Whoopie Pie Trio.  There are lots of hints and tips with each recipe regarding ingredients, cooking and storing.

Delicious Orange-Blueberry Scones

My orange-blueberry scones are perfectly delicious and I loved the use of flaked almonds as a topping. They were quick and easy to make which means less time spent in the kitchen. The scones will freeze too.

This is a useful cookery book and one to turn to when you want to bake something just a little different and with great recipe titles too.

The author, Yvonne Ruperti was a recipe developer for Cooks Illustrated and is a professional pastry chef and recipe developer.  She splits her time between Singapore and New York city.

All of the recipes are in cups, ounces and grams.

Price £14.99
Paperback
Available 12 September 2013
Perseus Books UK

Thank you for the review copy.

Banana Bread - Nigella Lawson Recipe

After cooling cover in cling wrap and place the cake in the fridge,
 slice and open freeze

Good news! I now have a working kitchen, now for the bad news, the kitchen is still to be finished. There is decorating taking place by my husband, a few more electrics to be fitted and various other bits and pieces.

I'm very pleased with the refit, it hasn't been fun being without a kitchen for a couple of weeks or so. I haven't a clue where anything is kept and I'm basically messing about all the time looking for stuff or moving things to another place.

The cooker is taking some getting used to but to be fair I haven't had much time to road test and get to know it.

Fresh from the oven

I thought I would treat my husband to one of his favourite cakes and make this lovely banana bread recipe by Nigella Lawson from 'How to be a Domestic Goddess'. I love the walnuts in the recipe, the heady vanilla extract and the rum soaked sultanas. Those forgotten black bananas in the fruit bowl are best for this to give the cake a light texture.

I've made this cake many times over the years and I definitely prefer to overcook the cake slightly to produce a crust which then softens as the cake becomes sticky. The perfect cake for slicing, lunch boxes and picnics.  This is quite a large loaf cake and I like to slice it and open freeze for another day - the cake is too large for us to get through and I've got my waistline to think of!

The banana bread recipe can be found on Nigella's website.

Apple and Ginger Buns: Bread Machine Recipe

Fresh from the oven and brushed whilst hot with a sugar glaze

I've had my bread machine for years now, it makes perfect dough or a perfect loaf of bread, except for the annoying hole in the base of the loaf where the paddle comes out. You either love your bread machine or put it at the back of the cupboard for the rainy day that never comes.

The buns in the middle are the best because they are fluffy on all four sides.  Best eaten warm on the day you bake them but we couldn't get through all that lot and I froze the majority which is a shame.  Defrost and reheat gently in the microwave to refresh.

Diced fruits cooked with a minimum of liquid 

Cooled fruit spread over the dough 

The risen dough spirals before baking

Makes: 12

You will need:  2 beaten eggs, 175ml milk, 2 tablespoons room temperature butter, ½ tsp salt, 500g strong white flour, 50g caster sugar, 1¼ tsp fast-action dried yeast.

Filling: 400g cooking apples (peeled, quartered, cored and diced), 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 2 tablespoons water, 50g caster sugar, 125g mixed dried fruit, 50g quartered glace cherries, 2 tablespoons ready-chopped glace ginger.

Glaze: 2 tablespoons caster sugar, 4 tablespoons milk.

1. Add the dough ingredients in the order specified in your instruction book.
2. Place the pan into the bread machine.  Shut the lid and set to the dough setting.  Press start.
3. For the filling: place the apples into a saucepan with the lemon juice, water, sugar, dried fruit and half the cherries.  Cover the pan and simmer for 5 minutes or until the apples are starting to soften. Remove the lid and cook for 3-5 minutes or until the liquid has evaporated and the apples are tender.  Stir in the ginger and leave to cool.
4. When the dough programme has finished, remove the pan from the bread machine, scoop out the dough and knead.  Press out the dough using the fingertips to stretch out into an oblong. Roll out to an oblong measuring 37 x 30cm.
5. Spread the cooled mixture over the dough to within 2cm of the edges.  Roll up starting from one of the longer edges.
6. Cut a slice of dough off both ends and then cut it into 12.  Place the dough spirals onto a greased roasting tin measuring 30 x 20cm.  Cover the dough coils with oiled clingwrap and leave to rise in a warm place for 30 minutes.
7. Remove the clingwrap and bake in a preheated oven 200ºC for 20-25 minutes or until golden and the centre coils sound hollow when you tap them.  Sprinkle over the remaining chopped cherries.
8. Make the glaze.  Heat together the sugar and milk until the sugar has dissolved.  Boil for 1 minute, watching it very carefully, brush over the hot bread.  Leave in the tin to cool.

Soft fluffy dough

Recipe taken from Bread Machine Easy by Sara Lewis.

Recipe: Chocolate and Beetroot Cake

Chocolate and Beetroot Cake - I have held back making this, even though it has been a popular bake with food bloggers.  The thoughts of a beetroot splattered kitchen and the earthiness I associate with beetroot had no appeal.

After feeling 'so last year' or is it the 'year before last' I decided Chocolate and Beetroot Cake should appear on the blog. After some research, the recipe in Fiona Cairns book Bake & Decorate appealed, mainly because the cake is made with vegetable oil which gives a light cake.

No grating, no mess. Simply cut the beetroot into chunks (I bought prepacked), place in the food processor and blitz to a puree = no splattered kitchen.

I made the cake in a springform tin because I didn't want to chance spoiling the cake when turning out. Some retained beetroot juice from straining the pureed beetroot is the natural food colouring for the icing. The icing is a lovely pink colour and it doesn't taste of beetroot.

Fiona suggests drizzling and flicking the melted chocolate over the cake to make an abstract design.  Is this something you learn at a chocolate masterclass?

The sensible persons guide is to drizzle the melted chocolate over the cake, I always put the cooled melted chocolate into a ziplock food bag and cut a tiny corner off the base of the bag. Or simply dip a teaspoon into the melted chocolate and drizzle over the cake, not my choice because I make chocolate blobs and somehow my drizzles don't happen.

The cake is a winner, easy to make, deep chocolate flavour, moist, has a tender crumb, cuts well and is a keeper.  This is a large cake and would easily feed twelve people. If you are looking for a cake recipe to feed a crowd then look no further.

I am entering my cake into the January Calendar Cakes Challenge. This is hosted by Dolly Bakes and Laura Loves Cakes - Laura is hosting this month.

Quick Portuguese Tarts - Jamie's 30 Minute Meals

A few weeks ago I went on holiday to Madeira, and as usual when I am away from home, I like to experience local cakes and pastries, especially sitting outside a cafe on a fabulous sunny day. Cinnamon is a popular ingredient used in cakes and pastries - apple and cinnamon cake, banana and cinnamon cake and Portuguese Tarts, to name a few.  There were quite a few happy cake and pastry tastings, together with far too many cups of amazing coffee.

Whilst Jamie's Quick Portuguese Tarts aren't the same as we were served in Madeira, the filling is light, the orange caramel topping is superb and I could quite happily have eaten the lot!

I didn't cook these against the clock, I can't do it, won't do it - otherwise we end up with car crash food.

There are plenty of great recipes in the book, although if you wish to cook only one of the suggested meal plans the method layout can be frustrating.

I hope you have a go at making these delicious tarts.

Chilli Con Carne Meatballs - Jamie's 15 Minute Meals

I challenged myself to make Chilli Con Carne Meatballs from Jamie's 15 Minute Meals, after seeing him on TV effortlessly produce this recipe.

Jamie has a team who do all the prep - I have just me and distractions. Everything started off well and I thought it would be a doddle, but then the washer finished, more washing to put in, next the tumble dryer to fill. Couldn't find the blender, found the blender, struggled to assemble the blender. Where is the bulgur wheat hiding?  I forgot to buy the preserved lemons. Why are there only a few cumin seeds left in the jar? It was all going wrong.......

I wasn't sure about cooking the meatballs for such a short time and cooked these for longer, I thought the quantity of bulgur wheat might not be enough and then cooked too much - I should have trusted Jamie:)

Would you like to know how long all this took me? - I lost the will, and have absolutely no idea.  The photograph tells the story........

Hubby thought the meal was very tasty and he particularly enjoyed the meatballs. He would have liked less bulgur wheat and more meatballs, not the huge plate of bulgur wheat I gave to him, and as for me, I will always prefer traditional chilli con carne.

I plan to cook a few more recipes from the book, perhaps this time I might manage to cook something without so many distractions.

The book - bursting at the seams with tasty healthy recipes, great food styling and photographs, and each recipe gives calorie, fat, sugar and saturated fat details.

Please Note:  This blog post isn't to be taken seriously - ok!

Coffee, Walnut and Raisin Cake - Recipe

I've always enjoyed coffee and walnut cake, and this recipe by Tana Ramsay from her book I Love to Bake! is perfect.  I particularly liked the addition of raisins and used huge plump raisins. It's best to dust the raisins with flour before stirring into the cake otherwise they may well sink to the bottom, which is exactly what happened to me.  I turned my cake over, and now the raisins are at the top of the cake, and I then happily slathered over the buttercream and sprinkled with chopped walnuts. I wasn't too sure about the coffee, walnut, raisin combo before I made the cake, but it works beautifully.

The cake doesn't need dressing up with a circle of neatly placed walnut halves, a scattering of walnut pieces is the way to go.  After all, the best dressed cake doesn't necessarily mean the cake is a winner.

Fortunately, not an overly sweet cake because the coffee butter cream is only on top, it is best not to be  tempted to cut it in half.  I used half the amount of butter cream suggested in the original recipe and found it was ample, and light brown sugar instead of caster sugar in the recipe, to give the cake more depth of flavour.

I've eaten the good, the bad and the disappointing coffee and walnut cake in coffee shops - this is the perfect coffee shop cake, it is moist, has a tender crumb, not too much topping and keeps well too. I cut mine into slices and popped it into the freezer and then kept going back to the freezer and taking out another slice, it is that good!  Hubby thought this was a great cake too, he isn't very keen on cakes buried beneath a mound of sweet buttercream, and he said the cake/buttercream ratio I used was perfect for him. Phew!

Many of the bakes in I Love to Bake! are cooked at 200ºC or 220ºC which is something to be aware of - the suggested temperature for this cake is 200ºC and the timing is 35 minutes - if I cooked a deep cake at this temperature my cake would burn, peak and the batter would be a horrible volcanic mass.  A few years ago I went on a Patisserie Course at the local college and they cooked everything, including cakes, at almost maximum temperatures. A Victoria Sandwich at college in commercial grade ovens cooked in 10 minutes!

Adapted recipe.

You will need:  a 20cm round cake tin 5cm deep (I used a springform tin), greased , floured and base lined with parchment paper.

For the sponge:

175g softened butter, 175g light brown sugar, 3 large eggs beaten, 3 tbsp room temperature milk, 175g sifted self-raising flour, 1 tsp baking powder, 2 tsp instant coffee granules dissolved in 1 tbsp boiling water, 80g walnut pieces chopped, 60g plump raisins dusted in flour.

1. Preheat the oven to 160ºC.
2. Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and milk gradually whilst continuing to beat. Sift the flour and baking powder over and fold into the mixture. Stir in the dissolved coffee granules.
3. Pour the batter into the baking tin and bake for 30-35 minutes. If it isn't cooked through cover with foil and pop back in the oven for 10 minutes or until cooked. Cool the baked cake for 5 minutes, turn out onto a cooling rack.

For the topping you will need:

125g softened unsalted butter, 150g sifted icing sugar, 4 tsp instant coffee granules dissolved in 1 tbsp boiling water(cooled a little), 30g chopped walnuts.

1. Place the butter into a bowl and beat until soft, add the sifted icing sugar and the dissolved coffee granules. Beat with a mixer for 5/10 minutes until light and fluffy.
2. Spread the butter cream over the top of the cake and decorate with the chopped walnut pieces.

What's for Dinner? Second Helpings - Review

What's for Dinner? Second Helpings has been written by mum of four, Romilla Arber.  It is the only cookery book in the UK where all sale proceeds go directly to charity.  The Food Education Trust is a charity, established by Romilla in 2008 to promote the benefits of a balanced home cooked diet, through the teaching of cooking skills to children and adults. One of the projects the Trust has been involved with enabled a school to build and equip a kitchen.  They now have cookery classes where members of the community go into school and help, a cookery club and also a breakfast club for the children.  The Food Education Trust is currently funded by the profits from her previous book What's for Dinner? 

Romilla Arber isn't a chef, she is a busy mum of four children and she recognises the need to cook healthy food for her family.  There are 767 pages in the book and features a recipe for every day, every week and every month of the year.  All of the photographs in the book are outstanding and there is a photograph to accompany the majority of the recipes.  This is a book for the home cook and will help with all the weekly meal plans.  The recipes are put together with a balanced diet in mind - plenty of fresh vegetables, four meat meals a week, regular amounts of fish, pulses and cereals.  Romilla has included lots of fabulous recipes for puddings, cakes and biscuits - home cooked are always best.

The book cover and the image of this raspberry and chocolate cake shows the quality of food styling and photography.  

The hope is that What's for Dinner?Second Helpings will inspire us to cook at home and to also plant the seed in our children's minds that cooking at home every day is a normal part of life and one of it's great pleasures.  As a Mum, albeit of grown up children, I know from experience children will never like all foods we give to them, but the opportunity to eat and experience home cooked food is always best. Romilla is very wise, and planting the seed to cook from scratch, so we know exactly what goes into the food we eat, is something children will take with them into adulthood and then pass on to their own children.

The recipes in the book are to serve six but can easily be adapted.  An example of recipes: Pork with Noodles, Thai Style - Baked Meatballs and Potatoes - Salmon Burgers - Fillet Steaks in Pastry with a Vegetable Medley.  Sunday is pudding and cake day - Baked Peaches and Raspberries with Lemon Mascarpone - Chocolate Gingerbread with Chocolate Icing - Sticky Toffee Pecan Pudding with Toffee Sauce - Chocolate Chip Cookies.

A small selection of easy to follow, everyday recipes, I cooked from the book:

Plum and Raspberry Cobbler

My fruit cobbler tasted delicious and the cobbler was light in texture, although the plums didn't seem to want to cook (ripen at home plums never ripen!),  I covered the cobbler with foil and the plums eventually cooked, my raspberries by now didn't resemble raspberries, but this is home cooked food, it still tasted delicious and was definitely worth the wait. To see the fruit cobbler looking stunningly beautiful I recommend you take a peak at the photograph in the book!

Cod and Leek Gratin

A very easy to make gratin - the sauce is simply creme fraiche and cheddar cheese mixed together. We really enjoyed this quick and delicious meal.

One-Pot Chicken Curry

This was a lovely and tasty mid-week meal. The curry wasn't too hot and adding potatoes made the curry more substantial, the addition of peas and tomatoes is an easy way to get more veg on the plate.

Leek and Blue Cheese Risotto

I love risotto, it's a great standby and can be made from just a few ingredients.  Providing you have arborio rice in the store cupboard, then recipes like this can easily be adapted. The risotto was really tasty and a winner.


Price:  £25.00
ISBN No. 978-0-95709-350-8
Park Family Publishing

Thank you Li.

Review: The Hairy Bikers' Big Book of Baking and Scandinavian Tea Ring

Si King and Dave Myers, The Hairy Bikers', have been touring Europe on a bakeation. They went on a four month, 7,000 mile journey to discover European baking. The Hairy Bikers' Big Book of Baking is a wonderful collection of recipes and many are classics of their country.

If you have been watching the TV series to accompany the book you will be inspired to try many of the recipes you have seen the Hairy Bikers' baking.
I made a Scandinavian Tea Ring, and as the Hairy Bikers' say, it tastes as good as it looks. This tea ring is made with a sweet bread dough, rolled out, spread with a cinnamon infused butter containing ground and flaked almonds, glace cherries, candied peel (I used sultanas), rolled up as you would a swiss roll and then baked. After baking, the ring is decorated with glace cherries, flaked almonds and icing - delicious.

The book covers both sweet and savoury baking with recipes from Norway to Spain. There are recipes for biscuits, breads and rolls, cakes, puddings, sweet tarts, savoury bakes, pies, tarts and snacks.

Limoncello Babas from Italy, Hazelnut and Chocolate Vacherin from France, Lazybones Buns from the Low Countries, Black Forest Gateau from Germany and Grandma Bonka's Apple Streudel from Austria are just a few of the recipes which will inspire us to get busy in the kitchen.

This isn't just another baking book, but one which you will turn to time and time again. The book is a source of inspiration for everyday baking and baking to impress friends and family. There are recipes for the beginner through to the more experienced. The recipe is accompanied by a stunning photograph of the finished dish and every chapter has a collage of photographs taken during their tour.

The Hairy Bikers' provide a fascinating insight into some of the beautiful baking across Europe and I will use this book many times. My husband already has his eye on the Black Forest Gateau......

Thank you Waterstones for the review copy.

Plum, Apple and Blackberry One Crust Pie

I really like these one crust pies, they always look so comforting and inviting. This recipe is by the Hairy Bikers' from their book Perfect Pies - some may say it isn't a pie because it hasn't got a lid but Delia Smith has a similar recipe in The Summer Collection, she also refers to this as a very easy one-crust pie, and so pie it is.

The pastry is brushed with egg and dusted heavily with golden caster sugar to give a sweet crunch when you bite into the buttery pastry. The mix of fruit is a perfect balance, but the recipe only gives 3 tablespoons of caster sugar to sweeten the fruit and I was a little concerned this was going to give a tart fruit mix. I used about 5 tablespoons of sugar and the sweetness was perfect.

The Hairy Bikers' omitted to say the size to roll out the pastry and so it was left for me to guess. Ha ha but I didn't, this is where Delia came in, in her book she says to roll the pastry out to a round of approximately 35cm and if you pile the fruit onto a 25cm circle and then turn the edges of the pastry up everything will be fine. The pastry needed a few more minutes to cook than the time specified in the book, but the buttery pastry was fabulous and the filling was perfect. A perfect pie for Mr W and myself, and so I'll give it 5/5.

The Hairy Bikers' have a huge smile on their faces on the front cover of the book and this book makes me smile too:) I don't normally give books a score but this one definitely deserves 5/5.

Book Recommendation: Tarts with Tops On, the title always makes me laugh, is written by Tamasin Day-Lewis, it is a brilliant book, well worth seeking out and I would recommend this book for more really good pie recipes.

Crafty Cupcakes by Ann Pickard

I know you shouldn't describe the contents of a book as cute but I am going to say it anyway, the decorated sugarpaste cupcakes are very cute. There are 30 cupcake projects including a smiley snake, bunny rabbit, cute dog, new baby and wedding cupcakes.

The author shares with us her knowledge to make fabulous sugarpaste novelty models in ten easy steps, with photographs to accompany each stage. There are also recipes for making cupcakes, buttercream and royal icing. For each cupcake project there is a materials list and reference to techniques, templates, equipment, ingredients and stockists.

This is an inspirational book for beginners and those of us who would like to achieve professional looking cupcakes with the wow factor.

Crafty Cupcakes is written by the very talented Ann Pickard who qualified as a baker and cake decorator in 1983, and opened her own shop The Icing Centre, in 1986. Ann runs a successful cake decorating business in Weston-super-Mare in Somerset and has written two other books for GMC publications, Cake Characters and Cakes for Occasions.

ISBN 9781861088536
Price: £9.99
Publisher: GMC
Publication Date: March 2012
Available from Amazon

Thank you GMC for the review copy.

Jamie Oliver's Cauliflower Cheese Soup

Love cauliflower cheese? Hopefully cauliflower cheese soup which is made with a few extra added veg, a good quality cheddar cheese and a dollop of English mustard will become one of your favourites.

It has been so cold where I live, the snowman the children next door made last Saturday, has only just started to melt. I didn't make a snowman but made this fabulous soup instead in the warmth of my house. The soup is easy to make, extremely tasty and can't be found in a carton in your local supermarket! All you need is some good bread, preferably not the plastic stuff, and you've got yourself a lovely lunch.

I made some crispy bacon to garnish the soup but the majority of it sank to the bottom of the bowl whilst I was trying to set up the camera, it was no bad thing though because the crispy bacon went with the soup beautifully and added some texture.

The recipe comes from Jamie Oliver's Cookery Book Ministry of Food.

2 carrots, 2 sticks of celery, 2 medium onions, 2 cloves of garlic, 800g cauliflower, olive oil, 200g Cheddar cheese, 2 chicken or vegetable stock cubes, salt and black pepper, 1 teaspoon English mustard.

1. Dice the carrots, celery, onions and garlic. Cut the cauliflower into florets.
2. Into a large pan add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and put over a medium heat, add the diced vegetables. Cook for 10 minutes with a lid partially placed over the pan or until the carrots have softened and the onion is lightly golden.
3. Grate the cheese. Put the stock cubes into a jug and pour in 1.8 litres of boiling water from a kettle. Add to the vegetables in the pan. Stir and bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes or so until the vegetables are cooked.
4. Remove the pan from the heat and add the cheese and mustard, season with salt and pepper. Use a hand blender and pulse until silky smooth - if using a liquidiser let the soup cool down, never put hot liquid into a liquidiser.
5. Top with more grated cheese and some crispy bacon.

Kitchen Delights Christmas Gift Ideas

A list of Christmas Gift Ideas from Kitchen Delights!


Saeco Lavazza A Modo Mio Extra Coffee Machine - I use my coffee machine a few times every week, it is very convenient and no mess involved. Coffee lovers will really appreciate one of these stylish machines.


SodaStream - Get Busy with the Fizzy - This gadget is good for the environment and both children and adults will enjoy using it. Simple and convenient, you will be able to make sparkling water on Christmas Day for all of your guests to enjoy.

Forman and Field Gift Hamper - Foodies will love this, a perfect gift for those who have everything!


Hungry? a book by innocent - the perfect family cookbook and a great way to get all of the family involved in cooking.

DK Step-by-Step Baking - Beautiful baking book, fabulous photographs, a huge array of techniques are covered with clear step by step photographs and recipes for every day of the year. All fans of the Great British Bake Off and those interested in applying to take part in the show will definitely appreciate this book.

MasterChef Kitchen Bible - This is one of the must have books for those aspiring MasterChef's and also fans of the television programme. There are techniques with clear photographs and includes Classic recipes and MasterChef contestants recipes.


Find Me A Gift - Joseph Joseph Baking Set - Baking is back and both the novice and the experienced will love this stylish and practical set.

Tala Retro Range - Icing Set and Dry Measure - Retro products are very popular at the moment and both of these are practical too.

Tefal Sensorielle Cookware - Tefal's toughest pans yet and can withstand metal utensils on the non-stick coating. The pans are light to pick up which is a very useful feature.


Jamie Oliver Tefal Hand Blender - I think this is a present for men because it is quite heavy but all Jamie fans will love this. It not only looks good but performs well too.


Hotel Chocolat - These chocolates have the wow factor and will definitely please both children and adults.

Lucky's Chocolates and Cake - Are for foodies who appreciate the finest and can afford it too!


Prestat The Mint Box - Prestat are Chocolatiers to Her Majesty The Queen and these will make the perfect after dinner mint.

Back soon!