Halloween has become a total sugar fest, and not everyone has a sweet tooth
If you’re having a Halloween party and don’t want your little humans bouncing off the walls off their t*ts on sugar then try these.
They might look creepy but they’re pretty tasty and are easy to make (you might even get your tiny humans to help). Even better you’ll only need 3 ingredients.
I used string cheese for this, but you could also use hard cheese like cheddar cut into batons. For the meat part I used Parma ham but use any deli meet you like.
Makes 8
8 Cheese strings/batons of hard cheese
8 Slice of Parma ham or Prosciutto (or other deli meat)
8 Almonds
Method
Cut a 1cm slit in one end of the cheese stick and wedge the almond in the slit.
Wrap the cheese stick with the meat, leaving the almond showing so it looks like a finger nail.
I was lucky enough to visit Mauritius last year and stayed at the amazing Outrigger resort. While there, their very sweet and super talented Chef Matthieu showed me how to make this fantastic curry.
Mauritius was populated largely by slaves and indentured servants brought from India and the Asian sub continent to work on the sugar plantations. So their food is highly flavoured and draws influence from many different cultures.
Ingredient for the curry paste.
Now that the cold wet weather is back I needed a little reminder of lush and beautiful place I visited and the warm friendly people who were kind enough to share this recipe with me.
This curry is usually eaten with roti flat breads, but nan bread or rice are also great with it.
Ingredients
500 Grams Chicken breast or thigh meat (cut into bite sized chunks)
1 Onion (finely chopped)
1 Tbsp Minced garlic
1 Tbsp Minced ginger
1/2 Tbsp Chilli powder
Juice of 1 lemon
1/2 Tbsp Salt
2 Tbsp Oil
1 Tbsp Garam masala powder
For the curry paste
1 Onion (finely chopped)
100 Grams Dessicated coconut
2 Tbsp Fennel seeds
5 Cloves of garlic
2 Cinnamon sticks (or 1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon)
Method
Marinade the chicken with the minced garlic and ginger, salt, chilli powder and lemon juice for 30 minutes
Heat a large frying pan before adding the coconut to toast until light brown, stirring regularly (don’t take your eyes of this, as it can burn in a second). Remove from the pan a set to one side (or else it will keep on cooking with the heat of the pan)
Add 1 Tbsp of oil and cook 1 chopped onion over a medium until it starts to caramelise.
Add the toasted coconut, caramelised onion, garlic cloves, fennel seeds and cinnamon to a blender and blitz until you have a crumbly paste
Heat a tablespoon of oil in a large pan, before adding the diced chicken and finely sliced onion and seal over a high heat for 1-2 minutes. Reduce the heat and add the paste, cook this for 5 minutes before adding 500ml (1 pint of water) and the garam masala powder and mix well.
Simmer gently for a further 20-30 minutes. Adding more water if you think it needs it. It should be quiet a loose curry, as the sauce is the best bit for mopping all the delicious flavours with flat breads.
Soup is virtually impossible to mess up. So when it’s cold and wet outside its the ideal thing to make that’s cheap and easy. Its also a great filling lunch to bring to work if you’re on a budget.
This soup is vegan friendly, but if you need a meat fix, you can also add some cooked chorizo or smokey bacon and reduce the amount of smoked paprika.
Ingredients
1 Small Leek (roughly chopped)
2 Handfuls of either cabbage, kale or cavelo Nero (shredded)
3-4 Small potatoes (skins left on, and cut into 3-4cm cubes)
1 Vegetable stock cube
1 Tsp Smoked paprika
1 Can Black beans (you can use any type you like)
3 Cloves of garlic (finely chopped)
1 Tsp Chilli powder (optional)
Large sprig of rosemary, or thyme
1 Tbsp Vegetable oil
500ml Carton of passata
1 Tbsp Tomato puree
Salt
Method
Heat the oil in a large pot over a medium heat and add the leek. Fry until the leek starts to soften
Add the potatoes, tomato puree, chilli powder, rosemary and paprika and cook for 2-3 minutes
Add the crumbled up stock cube, pasatta, garlic, 1 litre of water, and bring the soup to the boil. Add your greens and beans, reduce to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are soft
Check the seasoning and add salt if you think it needs it.
When it comes to comfort food apple crumble is in almost everyone’s top 10.
I was gifted a giant bag of apples from a friend with a tree in her garden. One particularly shitty wet Sunday this was exactly what I wanted.
I think traditional crumble topping can be a bit Meh. I like to include some porridge oats and nuts for some extra texture. The apples I used were pretty sweet so I didn’t use any extra sugar, but if your apples are on the sour side, sprinkle with 1-2 tablespoons of sugar before adding the topping.
Ingredients
1 Kg Eating apples (peeled, cored and sliced into 1-2cm slices)
For the topping
50 Grams Cold Butter (cut into small cubes)
125 Grams Plain flour
25 Grams Walnuts or hazelnuts (chopped)
25 Grams Rolled oats
25 Grams Sugar
Knob of butter
Method
Preheat your oven to 180 degrees (Celsius)
Rub a knob butter around a large oven proof dish (this will prevent the apples from sticking)
In a large bowl, add the flour, sugar, oats and butter and rub the butter into the other ingredients until it resembles large breadcrumbs before adding the chopped nuts
Spread the sliced apples into the oven proof dish, and sprinkle the topping mix evenly across the apples
Bake for 45-50 minutes and serve with custard or cream
I was lucky enough to be given some venison by a friend who’s husband enjoys hunting.
I know looking at this, the meat might be a bit too rare for some people. Venison is super healthy and very low in fat. Due to this it can dry out very quickly and become tough if it’s over cooked. If you enjoy your meat well done you can make this dish with beef which had a higher fat content.
Opaque layer needs to be removed to prevent it toughening while cookingFilm is easily removed with a sharp knife
Sometimes you’ll see a filmy layer on the meat, it’s really important to remove this as it will toughen up when you cook it. The good news is that it’s easy to remove, just slip a sharp knife behind it, it should pull away without too much hassle.
Ingredients
0.75 Kg Daub of venison (allow to come to room temperature before cooking)
1 Large carrot (chopped finely)
1 Large Onion (chopped finely)
Half bottle of red wine (I recommend drinking the rest)
1 Tbsp Olive oil
25 Grams Butter
1 Tbsp Dried thyme
1 Bay Leaf
Method
Heat the oil and half the butter in a large oven proof dish (one that has a lid)
Add the meat and seal on all sides over a high heat
Turn down to a medium heat and add the herbs, vegetables and wine and allow to come to a simmer
Cover with a lid and put in a pre heated oven for 20 minutes
Take the dish from the oven and remove the venison and allow the meat to rest for 10-15 minutes
Over a medium heat the wine and vegetable mix and allow to reduce. Add the remaining butter and stir in until melted and the sauce is glossy
Slice the venison and serve on top of the sauce and vegetables
I recently grew some lion’s mane mushrooms from a kit. Having not used them before I’d no idea what to do with them.
Terry from Hearty Growers told me their texture was similar to lobster so this gave me a idea. On a previous holiday I was at a very fancy restaurant I had lobster tacos which were devine. This inspired me, I decided to cook the mushrooms in a super light tempura batter for a bit of crunch. If you like fish tacos you’ll love these.
If you haven’t made tempura batter before it’s really simple and suitable for vegans because there’s no egg in it. What makes it super light is the use of ice cold sparking water. The bubbles help makes the batter super light, so make this at the very last minute before frying the mushrooms
Serves 2
Ingredients
200 Grams Lion’s Mane Mushrooms (oyster mushrooms would also work well), cut into 2-3cm slices
6 Small tacos
150 Grams Canned black beans (drained)
1 Avocado (skin removed and cut into slices)
100 Grams Cherry tomatoes (halved)
50 Grams Red Onion (finely sliced)
2 Tbsp Mint or Coriander, or mix of both (finely chopped)
1/2 Lime
Salt
Finely chopped chilli or chilli powder
Method
Heat vegetable oil, about 4-5cm deep on a pot, or use a deep fat fryer if you have one. I don’t have a thermometer, so I judge the heat to be OK if I can drop a small junk of bread and it starts to sizzle
Assemble all your ingredients, and evenly distribute the beans, red onion, herbs, and avocado onto the tacos
Add the flour and corn flour to a bowl and whisk in the ice cold sparkling water and whisk quickly (the tempura batter should be about the consistency of cream)
Dip the mushroom in the batter and then add to the hot oil (don’t add too many at once)
Fry the mushrooms until they are a light golden colour. Remove from the oil and drain on kitchen paper before sprinkling with salt
Top the tacos with the mushrooms and sprinkle with finely chopped red chillies or chilli powder depending on how spicy you enjoy your food, and a squeeze of lime
Fried onions are one my favourite savoury flavours. This tart is brilliant hot or cold and many of the component’s can be made in advance and then assembled and baked at the last minute if you’re cooking for friends so you have more time to chat. This tastes great and is a pretty cost effective dish if you want to make lunch for friends for example.
I used ready made pastry to save time (it was reduced in the supermarket, don’t judge sometimes its fine to take short cuts). The onions need to cook long and slow before going into the tart and this can be done a day or two in advance and stored in the fridge until you’re ready to bake it.
I used Gruyere cheese because I felt like being fancy, but a well flavoured cheese like cheddar or even parmesan would also work well.
Serves 6-8
Ingredients
300 Grams Ready made short crust pastry
1 Kg Onions (finely sliced). This will look like a lot, but it will cook down.
2 Tbsp Oil (Or you can use half butter half oil if you prefer)
2 Eggs
50 Grams Gruyere (finely grated)
300 ml Double Cream
Flour for rolling out the pastry
Salt and pepper
Method
Add the oil to a large frying pan to heat before adding the onions. Cook over a medium heat for 45 mins stirring occasionally to make sure they don’t burn. Remove from the heat and allow to cool
Preheat your oven to 180 degree (Celsius).
I used a 12in loose bottom flan tin, make sure that this is well greased so that the flan will come out if the tin easily
Dust a counter with lightly with flour and roll out the pastry in a circle fit big enough to fit the flan tin. Make sure the pastry is pressed well into the edges of the tin. Lay baking parchment on top of the pastry and pour on baking baking beans (I use old rice/dried beans that I keep in a jar, its cheaper than buying the fancy clay versions). Bake for blind 15 minutes, before removing from the oven. Carefully remove the baking parchment so you don’t drop the baking beans (or what ever you’re using) into the pastry
In a large bowl beat the eggs, cream, and cheese together in a bowl (add salt and member if you think it needs it). I have French friend who worked as a pastry chef, and her top tip is to put the eggs through a seive to ensure that the mix will be smooth and you have any spots of egg white, but this isn’t essential. Stir in the fried onions and mix well before spooning into the pastry case
Bake for 25-30 minutes until the tart is golden brown and lightly set
Corn on cob makes a great side dish, and is low effort and tastes great cooked on the barbecue or in the oven.
I used fresh mini corn cobs, but you can also use frozen ones that you have defrosted. There’s no need to blanch the corn first, it can go straight in the oven or on the barbie (just remember to turn occasionally).
Serves 2-4
4 Mini corn cobs
1-2 Tbsp Oil
1 Tsp Smoked paprika
1 Tsp Salt
Method
Preheat your oven to 200 degrees (Celsius).
Add the salt, oil, and paprika to a bowl an stir well
Roll the corn cobs in the oil mix and place on an oven proof dish
Bake for 15 minutes (don’t try to eat immediately as they’ll be piping hot)
If you have watched The Bear recently, its a fairly accurate representation of the highly stressed shouty nightmare that a professional kitchen can be.
I made this version shown in the TV show and am slightly addicted to it. A simple omelette with a Boursin cream cheese filling and a handful of crushed sour cream and chive crisps over the top is amazing.
You can go down the chefie route and and sieve the eggs first to make the omelette super smooth, but if you can’t be bothered it won’t affect the taste. In the TV show the chef also piped the cheese onto the omelette, but really who has the time, just spread it , it will taste the same.
Give this a try, and I guarantee you’ll make it again.
Serves 1
Ingredients
3 eggs
Large knob of butter
50 Grams Boursin garlic and chive cream cheese
Salt and pepper
Handful of crushed sour cream and chive potato crisps/chips
Method
Whisk the eggs together (you can put them through a sieve if you want a really smooth omelette but it isn’t essential)
Heat the butter in a pan over a medium/high heat
When the butter has started to foam slightly (don’t let it brown), add the eggs.
Roll the eggs around the pan and with a spatula move the cooked parts towards the centre of the pan so that runny bits run out to the edges and cooks. It doesn’t have to be perfect it just has to be cooked
Spread the Boursin on one half of the omelette and fold over. Cook for another minute to allow the Boursin to warm through
Top with the crushed crisps (you can also used chopped chives or herbs of you have them) and devour immediately
Proper cakes are amazing, but the last time I bought fresh crab I almost had a coronary because it was so expensive.
To make a cheaper version I tried using seafood sticks (little bars of processed fish my nephew refers to as fish sausages).
While using proper crab is preferable, if you’re on a budget these are still really tasty. They make a great lunch or starter, and you can serve them with tartar sauce or just a squeeze of lemon. It’s also a good way to use up left over mashed potato
150 Grams Breadcrumbs (seasoned with salt and pepper)
Method
Add all the ingredients (except the oil for frying and breadcrumbs) in to a large bowl and mix with your hands until well combined
Divide into 8 patties, and coat these with seasoned breadcrumbs
Heat the oil in a large pan over a medium heat and fry them 4 at a time for 5 minutes on each side each or until golden brown. You can also cook these in an air fryer or bake in the oven at 200 degrees (Celsius) if you prefer not to fry them
Seaneen's Sunnyside Kitchen 