SWEETCORN RELISH/CHOCOLATE AND BANANA BREAD

It's been an odd week or so as His Nibs was off and things are never quite the same when he's around.  I'm so out of kilter, it's untrue.  He went back a week ago and it's taken me this week to crack on and get up to date in the house and garden. But I have managed to sort a fair amount out with regards to seedlings, bulb planting, tidying the shed and prepping for next year.

Kitchen wise, I'd done no baking for about 3 weeks and was beginning to get withdrawal symptoms, so a quick chocolate and banana bread (recipe below) was made on one of the nights I couldn't sleep, which seems to be every other day at the moment (too many things running around in that brain of mine). 

Not me, but definitely how I envision myself
😉

I'll be preserving over the next few weeks and deciding what I'm cooking for Christmas and Halloween.  Both of which are not far away at all.

This week: 

SWEETCORN AND PEPPER RELISH

6 x sweetcorn cobs; stripped and nibs removed.

1 x large onion, finely chopped

3 x sticks of celery, finely chopped

2 x red peppers, also finely chopped

1 pint (0.56 litres) of apple cider vinegar *

0.5lb (250g) granulated sugar

1tbsp mustard powder

0.5tbsp salt

Hot, sterilised jars with good secure lids.  I use kilner type jars, but sterilised jam jars will be fine.

This is such an easy relish to make and the jars will keep for up to a year without heat treating. Great with burgers, hot dogs or just on the side.

1. Prep your veg.

2. Put all the ingredients into a large pan and bring to the boil, ensuring the sugar has dissolved.

3. Simmer for 40-60 mins until the sweetcorn is cooked and the sauce is thick.

4. Pour into your jars, pushing down to ensure there are no air bubbles and seal. I put a piece of greaseproof over mine, but it isn't necessary.

5.  Allow to cool and check seals.  It's ready to use straight away, but it's best left to mature for a while.

* I use cider vinegar as I'm gluten free, but white malt vinegar or any of your choosing will work.

CHOCOLATE AND BANANA BREAD

150g plain flour (I use Doves Gluten Free)

2.25tsp baking powder (again I use gluten free)

0.5tsp salt

0.5tsp ginger powder

50g cocoa powder (not instant hot chocolate)

75g butter or marg

115g caster sugar

3 very ripe bananas (turning black is the best)

2 eggs (beaten)

Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas4/350F and grease and line a 21cm x 11cm loaf tin.

1. Mash the bananas in a bowl with either a fork or a potato masher, leaving some larger lumps if you want.

2. In another bowl, tip all the other ingredients in and beat together, either with an electric hand whisk or a wooden spoon and lots of elbow.  Make sure there are no lumps of butter/marg.

3. Stir in the banana until combined and pour into the loaf tin.

4. Bake for 50-60 mins or until wooden skewer comes out clean.

5. Leave to cool for 15mins then turn out and leave to cool completely.

Enjoy!

VEGGIE CRUMBLES AND PASTA SAUCE

Yay!  Finally managed a Saturday post!

Been a week of ups, downs, outs and headaches.  Oh well, par for the course at the moment until the weather decides what it's going to do. 

A couple of years ago, I discovered vegetable crumbles!  Can't remember where I first found it, but I've been slightly addicted ever since. They are a great way of using up vegetables in the fridge, but are also warming and comforting which we need at the moment.

The recipe I use has cheese in the crumble part, but you can always change it to vegan cheese if you wanted. To be honest, don't be scared to change anything up as they are dead easy to adapt.

MY VEGETABLE CRUMBLE

1 small cauliflower, roughly chopped

1 kohl rabi, cubed

6 carrots, peeled and cubed

bunch of flat beans, cut into approximately 2cm pieces

1 white onion sliced

1 vegetable stock cube (I use Kallo)

1tbsp of butter/marg

1tbsp of wholegrain mustard

1tbsp of Doves Freee From plain flour (use whatever flour you have)

300ml of milk or water or water/milk mixed

For the crumble:

250g of Doves Freee From plain flour (see above)

110g butter/marg

2tbsp freshly chopped parsley (or use dried)

30g of grated cheddar cheese

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas 4/350F

2. Take a large pan and gently fry the vegetables in the butter/marg until beginning to soften, but not necessarily brown.

3. Add the flour and stir to coat the veg, crumble in the stock cube and do the same.

4. Slowly add enough milk or water or milk/water to just cover the vegetables and bring to the boil, stirring until it starts to thicken.

5. Stir in the wholegrain mustard and transfer to a tin or tray that can go in the oven.

6. Make the crumble by putting the flour and butter/marg into a bowl and, using your fingers, rub together to form a very lumpy mixture.  It does not have to be fine breadcrumbs!!!

7. Stir in the parsley and grated cheese and sprinkle over the vegetables.

8. Cook for 30mins or until the topping is beginning to brown.

NB: Any combination of vegetables can be used although root vegetables and squashes make the best base.  Add beans, onions, leeks, whatever you have but avoid watery veg like tomatoes. Although you can use a tin of tomatoes and reduce the stock/milk. 

Swap up your mustard to whatever you like and your herbs to go with whatever your vegetables suit.  It really is up to you. Enjoy!!

..............

I'm getting a glut of tomatoes at the moment; too many to use up quickly.  Tomatoes should also be fairly cheap to obtain from shops too.  If you fancy making your own pasta sauce, try this:

HOME MADE ROASTED TOMATO PASTA SAUCE

You'll need a large pan for this.  I'm lucky in the fact that I have a large jam pan and a couple of large saucepans. You'll need them for the heat treatment afterwards. Also a few kilner jars or large pickle jars are a good idea. Oh and a blender or food processor or big muscles and a masher 😄.

1kg of ripe tomatoes, halved or quartered depending on size

1 red pepper, coarsely chopped

1 red onion, coarsely chopped.

1 chilli, deseeded and finely chopped (optional)

Salt and Pepper

Basil (either fresh or dried; I used dried)

1tbsp olive oil

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas 4/350F

2. Take a roasting tin and tumble in the chopped tomatoes, red pepper, red onion and chilli.

3. Sprinkle on the dried basil (miss this step if using fresh)

4. Pour over the olive oil, get your hands in and toss until everything is coated.  Add a little more oil if you think you need it.

5. Roast in the oven for 20-30mins until the tomatoes are squishy and the red pepper and onion are soft.

6. While this is happening prepare your jars. I used 3 IKEA kilner jars (medium size).  Wash in soapy water, rinse through and then place in the cooling oven once you've removed your tomatoes. You need the jars to be hot!! As in hot that you cannot touch with bare hands.  10 mins on 100C/Gas 1/250F should be enough, but if you put them in the oven when the tomatoes come out, turn the oven off and let them sit until you are ready to use them; at least 10 minutes.

7. Blitz your tomato mixture either in a food processor, blender or by mashing the hell out of it (this will give a chunkier sauce).

8. Taste and season.  This is when you would put your fresh chopped basil in. Stir.

9. Take a large pan and put either a grill in the bottom or a folded tea-towel.

10. Remove the jars from the oven carefully and fill almost to the top.  Seal.

11. Wrap each jar in either layers of newspaper if you have it or another tea-towel each as I did.  Place in the pan and fill with water until the jars are covered.

12. Bring the water to boil and boil for approximately 20-30 mins.

13. Remove the jars. If using kilners you can test the seal by removing the clip and gently lifting the lid.  The lid should NOT OPEN!!!!!!! Jars with tin lids should dent in the top as they cool.

NB: You do not have to heat treat, but the sauce will only last 1-2 weeks in the fridge. If heat treated, it should last a year, so make sure you put a date on the label.

Good Luck!!!

BIT LATE!!!!

Sorry a bit late; was a busy weekend. We've been clearing the back bed in the garden which has, basically, been left for a few years because of the complete change round in the garden since my son has grown up and I've decided what I want.

We've removed the Dogwood completely as it was never looked after properly, outgrew itself and was slap bang in the middle of the bed.  We salvaged the 99p honeysuckle which had managed to survive even though it was buried under a load of weeds and lavatera and found two tiny oak saplings which we have also rescued and put in a pot until we can decide where to put them. Also cut back the buddleia, pond plants and lavender.  Now got lots to burn, which we started on on the Sunday just so we could sit outside and celebrate our hard work.

So, back to last week. Quiet week at home, pottering about, catching up on household bits including finally getting around to spray painting a brown metal lamp into a silver metal lamp which goes much better in the room it's now in. Plus I got round to planting up a metal basket in the garden which my daughter bought me and had found itself buried under a pile of stuff in the shed after taking the old shed down.

Lined with carrier bags

Cooking wise it's been a bit of a play with spices as I bought a jar of Fajita seasoning from the wonderful Steenburgs spice company. So a meatball recipe and seasoned wedges:

FAJITA SPICED MEATBALLS

500g British minced beef

3-4 spring onions

2-3 cloves of garlic

400g tin of kidney beans, drained

Squirt of tomato puree

1 egg

1tbsp fajita seasoning

Salt and pepper

Dip: 1tbsp sweet chilli sauce, 2tbsp mayo

Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas 4/350F

Mash the kidney beans roughly leaving some slightly chunky.

Finely chop the spring onions and the garlic and add to the beans along with the minced beef, tomato puree and seasonings.

Get your hands in and squidge together or use a wooden spoon 😂 and then add the egg and do the same until combined.

Make golf ball sized balls and brown off in a frying pan before placing in a roasting tin and cooking for approximately 15-20mins until cooked through.

Mix 1tbsp of sweet chilli sauce with 2tbsp mayo and use as a dip.

Serve with salad and potato wedges which have been seasoned with salt, pepper and more fajita seasoning.

This week it'll be more gardening and getting ready for Spring!!!!!  Bulb planting, wildflower seed sowing and generally tidying up.

Cooking experimentation will have to wait for a while. 

BACK TO NORMALITY WITH A JOLT!!

Hello, anyone else not quite ready for normality yet?  I feel like I'm wandering around in a bit of a fog if I'm honest. I was happily pootling along every day doing whatever I fancied and now it's "BANG" we're back to appointments and shopping and haircuts. I'M NOT READY!!!! 😄

Anyway, this week was second trampoline lesson for my son, osteopath for me and haircut for him. I seem to have spent half my time up the high street shopping and had to rearrange mine and his prescriptions as our chemist is closing down at the end of the month. Good thing is I finally got my parcel delivered which has taken 3 re-deliveries booked, 2 phone calls to office, 1 to post office, multiple non deliveries and a moan on facebook page. It turned up on the day before I had re-booked it, so it was lucky, once again, that I was in.  People moan about Hermes; Parcelforce has been a whole lot worse.

Cooking has been a bit same old, same old and I've been dragging out old favourites just because my poor lockdown brain hasn't wanted to resurface into anything even remotely creative.

The garden has been worked on a fair bit with dead veg plants removed, unused beds composted and covered, and new seedlings thinned. A general tidy up has been done and a fair amount of clearing and burning of garden rubbish (not actual rubbish). It's bulbs and wildflower sowing next week.  And buddleia pruning - job and a half on it's own.

Tomato harvest

Heritage carrots

Chillies

Anyway, I'm going to be meal planning for next week in a minute so I'm going to quickly do my favourite cooking from this week which isn't much to be fair.

I'm going to have to admit to preferring my rehash of corned beef hash (see what I did there?) It tasted a lot better than normal, went further and was incredibly quick and easy.  Perfect for Friday's fast food friday.

REHASHED CORNED BEEF HASH

A couple of onions, sliced

Approx 6 potatoes (or more if you need to); I had Pink Fir Apple Potatoes and used them all, cubed.

1 tin of corned beef; chopped

1 tin of baked beans

1 tin of chopped tomatoes

Handful of frozen mushrooms

I heated some olive oil in a roasting tin and placed this onto the gas hob. Oven was heated to 180C/Gas mark 4

Chuck in the onions and potatoes and cook, occasionally stirring, until the onions are translucent and the potatoes are beginning to brown.

Then the really easy bit: chuck in the corned beef, the tomatoes (I added a few chopped fresh ones as well), baked beans and mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper and any other spice you fancy. Then cook until it's bubbling.

Put the roasting tin into the oven and cook for approximately 25 minutes. You could add grated cheese on top if you really wanted to, but I seriously couldn't be bothered to grate any so my mice of men went without.

NB: You can add anything you like really to this.  Maybe a handful or two of frozen peppers or sweetcorn; as long as it's already cooked it can go in.  The point of this is that it's quick; little or no prep and it's mainly shove it in the oven and let it do it's thing.  No faffing allowed.

I'M BACK!!!!!!

It's been a while, so bear with me.  Totally forgotten how to use this thing, haha. But I need to get back on it so I can link it in my Instagram and Facebook page.

So, I'm going to start off with a weekly blog.  Quick rundown of what's been happening with some photos and then write out one or two favourite recipes of the week.  Hopefully one sweet and one savoury.  Hmmm!

So last week was the first week of things being sort of back to normal. We had my son's telephone assessment for his ESA, my oven was cleaned and my son's trampolining lessons started again.

In the garden we've dug over and replanted the front of the wildlife pond area and removed dead or old fruit bushes from another plot which I'm hoping to use for more veggie growing next year; maybe a smallish polytunnel/greenhouse. Lost two feverfew plants, so out they came and were replaced with a lemon balm.  No big deal, obviously didn't like their new bed. Tomatoes are still doing well and starting to go red, but if not done by the end of the month, it'll be green tomato chutney and green tomato and orange marmalade making. Nothing's going to waste.  The spinach, beetroot, radish and kohl rabi seeds have started growing.  The kale is doing well as is the leeks.

On the kitchen front it was a week of winging it dinners as I didn't recipe plan and the veg box had a strange combination of veggies that wasn't easy to just thrown things together quickly.  But I managed. 

Favourite recipes this week!

Has to be Chocolate and Ginger Brownies; these are adapted from a Nigella Lawson recipe:

150g marg/butter

300g caster sugar

75g of cocoa powder

150g gluten free Dove's Farm plain flour

1tsp bicarbonate of soda

pinch of salt

4 eggs

1tsp vanilla extract

100g plain chocolate chopped into smallish chunks

50g stem ginger in syrup also chopped into smallish chunks

1. Preheat the oven to 190C/Gas 5.  Grease and line a 10 inch square baking tin or use a tin foil tray if you're transporting (works just as well).

2. Melt the marg/butter and then stir in the caster sugar until it's dissolved and blended.

3. Sift together in a bowl the flour, cocoa powder, bicarbonate of soda and the salt then tip it into the pan with the sugar/fat mixture. Stir; it will be dryish and not necessarily combined.  Remove from the heat.

4. In another bowl which the eggs and the vanilla exract together and mix into the brownie mixture in the pan.

5. Stir in the chocolate chunks and the ginger pieces and quickly pour into the prepared tin/tray.

6. Bake for 20-25 mins. The top will be set and slightly cracked but the brownie will be slightly wobbly and gungy, but not too much.  I've allowed my to fully cook with no issues.

7.  Allow to cool and dust with icing sugar and/or edible glitter if for a special occasion.  Hide from everyone so you can munch on them yourselves 😁

NB: The original recipe asks for 150g of chocolate.  I use plain, but you can use anything you like.  Swap out 50g for stem ginger as I have here or glace cherries. Swap out 50g of marg/butter for peanut butter/hazelnut butter and add a handful or two of nuts.  It's an easy basic recipe that can be altered as you like it, which is why it's my go to when I'm stuck for ideas.

EASTER TIME OR JUST ANOTHER BANK HOLIDAY WEEKEND?

Depending on what you believe in and how you celebrate this could be Easter weekend or it could just be an extended weekend.  In this household it's a bit of both!  We do give out eggs but that's only because it's a bank holiday and family is home; I would have normally given out main eggs on 21st March when Spring began and just done an egg hunt this weekend, but I wasn't really with it at the end of March so it's all been delayed until now.

Last week was back to work after having a semi chilled week at home the week before where cooking became simple fare: quick salads, freezer food and using up bits and bobs in fridge.  Back to slow cooking last week for work days and normal cooking for days at home.

Sausage Casserole (I did partially brown the sausages beforehand and this is before cooking)

Good Friday was a lovely day out with a good friend including a drive through the country, a few foraging stops and a lunchtime drink in a pub followed by some charity shop and antique shop mooching.

A drift of wild ramsons (wild garlic)

Ramson flower

Saturday was dealing with foraged goodies and baking ready for next week and Easter Sunday/Monday.  Had a bit of an issue in the kitchen as the food processor broke so had to go 'old school' chopping up by hand with a large knife and grinding with the pestle and mortar.  Forgot I had those muscles in my arms, haha.

Chopping ramsons, hazelnuts and finely grated cheddar

Finished Pesto in sunflower oil and heat treated jar so should keep longer until opened

 Also had a bit of an experiment with mustard seeds, finely chopped ramson flowers, cuckoo flowers, jack by the hedge, sugar and vinegar.  Took a lot of grinding in the pestle & mortar but it does, at least, look like a mustard and blimey does it blow your head off 😃  Very nice with the mashed potato from Sunday's dinner.

Black mustard seed/ramson flower/cuckoo flower and jack by the hedge - HOT!!

Cuckoo flower - tastes like Wasabi!!!

Plus, of course, there has to be cake and as I had a bit of a glut of bananas left I made 2 banana breads (1 for now, 1 for the freezer) so son will be happy for a while and the infamous Barmbrack which has now become my favourite fruit cake ever and it doesn't contain any marg/butter.  Tried something different with the banana bread as I had a kitchen that looked liked a bomb had hit it and I didn't have room to get any more gadgets out, so tried rubbing in the butter to the dry ingredients and then adding the eggs and bananas which I'd mushed by hand (nothing like getting your hands in food, hehe; they were clean!); worked fine and meant a lot less washing up, so will probably continue to do this in future.

Banana Bread, Banana Bread, Barmbrack!

So no more time in the kitchen this weekend as His Nibs will be cooking including tomorrow so I have an extra day off - whoop whoop!  Back to normal on Tuesday.

Cya and hope you've had/are having a very Happy Easter! 🐰

IT'S THE WEEKEND - HOORAH! (Recipe included)

So how did my pre-planned meals go?  Well the mixed bean chilli was ok, but wasn't chilli enough for me!  I need to remember that my slow cooker is a big one and so I need to put more in than I think; in fact when I think I've put enough in, put in at least an extra teaspoon.

I ended up discovering a half chorizo sausage in the fridge on Wednesday so I finely chopped that and fried it off before adding the pre-cooked tomato/pepper mixture that I'd prepped on Monday and then once heated through, added two tins of tuna, mixed in cooked pasta and covered in grated cheese before shoving in the oven to make a pasta bake.  That disappeared pretty quick!

Thursday I fancied a curry; too be honest I often fancy curry! Managed to get a 800g deboned leg of lamb from Aldi which didn't cost that much and put that, whole, into the slow cooker on a bed of peppers and onions.  Mixed a load of spices together (see below's recipe) and rubbed that into the top of the meat and around the side and poured on a tin of coconut milk and left it to cook on low for 8 hours! Unfortunately, I was at work when it was ready and it had been pretty much devoured by the time I got home meaning I only have the below 'before' photo and not an 'after' one.  Those large white chunks are coconut milk solids and not, as they look, huge lumps of feta cheese 😄

However, this is what it should and partially did look like; courtesy of the cookbook that I based the recipe on although our meat was shredded and not in chunks:

One thing I did do this week was spend a happy 45mins in front of Netflix grating fresh ginger into a jar!  I then covered with sunflower oil, so that I now have a jar in the fridge all ready to go for whenever a recipe requires it.  I also want to do this with the ton of garlic I currently have.

Freshly grated Ginger in Sunflower Oil ready for use

And I've recently discovered fresh turmeric!  It's a root not dissimilar in looks to ginger and I use it in exactly the same way except I don't peel it, I just grate it straight in.  The first time I used it I did peel it and then walked around for a few days with fingers that looked like I had a severe nicotine addition, so have now learnt my lesson and will never peel again! The flavour is far better and less earthy than dried turmeric.  It also means that I have a dish free in my indian spice tin; bonus!

Turmeric!!

No cooking on Friday as partner takes over for weekend and I was working anyway doing an extra shift.  Shamelessly treated myself to chinese takeaway chicken curry and chips on way home and snuggled on the sofa by myself to munch my way through it in peace.

Today me and son were at local Comic and Screen Festival and as partner got called into work today we've been really naughty and had pizza tonight!  So I have not exactly eaten that healthily over past couple of days.  Hey ho!  Back to proper food tomorrow.

What do you call a group of Ghostbusters?  A Gaggle?

BEST SLOW COOKER CURRY EVER!
3 red peppers (or any colour you prefer except green) cut into chunks
2 onions, cut into chunks
800g lamb (I used whole, but you could use ready diced)
1 tablespoon cumin powder
1 tablespoon coriander powder
1 tablespoon paprika
1.5 teaspoon turmeric powder (or 2in 'finger' grated fresh)
1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
3 large cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1.5inch thumb of fresh ginger, grated
1 level teaspoon of chilli flakes (change up or down depending on heat required)
1 400ml can of coconut milk

Place the onions and peppers into the bottom of the slow cooker and sprinkle the chopped garlic, grated ginger and grated turmeric, if using, on top.
Then place the lamb on top of the veg.
Mix the powdered spices and the dried chilli together in a bowl and rub into the top of the meat or sprinkle on top if using diced meat.
Pour on the coconut milk.
Cook on low for 6-8 hours depending on the size/type of meat; stir half way through to incorporate the melted coconut solids.
If you have it, chop up some fresh coriander and stir in once cooked.
Serve with rice!