I love oat cakes and these are incredibly easy to make. I have flavoured these with onion seeds because I think they taste great with cheese. Cumin or fennel seeds also work really well if you fancy changing things up, or just leave plain if you prefer.
Ingredients
1/2 Tsp salt
150 Grams Porridge oats
1 Tsp Onion (Nigella) seeds
20 Grams Butter
125ml Boiling water
Plain flour for rolling out
Method
Add the porridge oats to a food processor and whiz until the oats are finer, then pour into a bowl with the onion seeds and salt
Add the butter to hot water stir until it has melted
Add the hot water and butter to the oats and mix well. Allow to stand for 5 minutes
Preheat you oven to 160 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment
Flour your work surface and roll the oat mix out until it’s 0.5cm thick. Use a cookie cutter to cut out oat cakes to the desired size. Reform and roll out again to use up any remaining mix
Bake for 20-25 minutes and cool on a wire wrack. Keep in airtight box for 3-4 days
You can make an almost infinite variety of rocky road bars. The key thing is include lots of different textures.
I used mini eggs because they are basically my crack cocaine. My other more recent addiction is Bishoff biscuits. I’ve used these here, but you can use any type of crunchy biscuit or cookie you prefer.
Ingredients
400 Grams Chocolate (I used half milk and half dark chocolate, but use what you prefer)
125 Grams Bishoff biscuits
100 Grams Marshmallows
250 Grams Mini Eggs
3 Tbsp Golden Syrup
50 Grams Butter
Method
Break the chocolate in to chunks, and add to a microwave proof bowl along with the butter and golden syrup. Microwave for 30 seconds at a time until the butter and chocolate have melted
Place the biscuits in a freezer bag any bash with a rolling pin (if you don’t have one a tin can will do). The biscuits should be be broken into bits but not too small or all crumbs. Put the broken biscuits in a large bowl
Add half the mini eggs to the freezer bag and bash these too. Add to the broken biscuits and add the Marshmallows
Pour two thirds of the chocolate mix into the bowl and stir until combined. Line a 12cm X 18cm dish with baking paper and transfer the rock road mix into it. Spread evenly.
Cover the rocky road mix with the chocolate you held back. I use a wet palate knife to smooth the top (an ordinary knife is fine if you don’t have one, as rocky roads are bumpy)
Sprinkle the remaining half of the crushed mini eggs and refrigerate for a minimum 1-2 hours before cutting into slices
I’ve loved this cake ever since I tasted it in the States years ago. Not only does it have a cool name but your house will smell unbelievable.
This is also a good way to use up over ripe bananas if you can’t face banana bread (this is much nicer). Cinnamon can be swapped for ground ginger if you’re not a fan.
Ingredients
For the cake
130 Gram Tin of pineapple in natural juice (chop the pineapple finely, and keep the juice)
2 Ripe bananas (mashed)
280 Grams Caster sugar
210 Grams Self raising flour
2 Tsp Ground Cinnamon
60 ml Pineapple juice (from the tin of pineapple)
170 ml Oil
2 Eggs
For the frosting
60 Grams Butter
120 Grams Cream Cheese
180 Grams Icing sugar
75 Grams Pecan nuts (Chopped)
Grated zest of one lemon (optional)
Method
Preheat your oven to 180 degrees. Lightly grease a 20 cm (8 inch) cake tin and line with baking paper
Add the banana, chopped pineapple and sugar to a large bowl and mix until combined. Add the flour and cinnamon and mix well
Whisk the oil, eggs and pineapple juice together before adding to the banana mixture. Stir until properly combined
Transfer the cake mix to the baking tin and bake for 1 hour or until you can insert a skewer in the centre and it comes out clean. Allow to cool in the tin for another 15 minutes. Allow to cool completely before topping with icing
To make the icing, whisk the butter and cream cheese together (I use an electric whisk). Gradually add the icing sugar and orange zest.
Spread the icing evenly over the top of the cooled cake and sprinkle with pecans
If you aren’t confident with desserts this is really easy. All the ingredients for the sponge are dumped in a bowl and whisked together before being baked. The topping is simply ready made jam and coconut.
The sponge also freezes really well, so if you’re super organised make a double batch of the mix. Bake two sponges, and when completely cool, wrap one one of the sponges in cling film and freeze, top with jam and coconut once thawed.
I’ve used margarine in this (Mary Berry claims it’s better for sponge cakes, and who am I to argue), it’s also cheaper. Feel free to use butter if you prefer
Serve custard with for the perfect comforting dessert.
Ingredients
For the sponge
225 Grams Self raising flour
225 Grams Sugar
225 Grams Margarine
4 Eggs
For the topping
200 Grams Jam
25 Grams Dessicated coconut
Method
Add all the ingredients for the sponge in a bowl. Mix with an electric whisk for 5 minutes until light and fluffy
Pre heat your oven to 180 degrees
Line a 30cm x 18cm square cake tin with baking parchment. Transfer the sponge mix into the tin and spread evenly with a spatula
Bake for 25 – 30 minutes, and allow to cool
Stir the jam and if it’s too thick to spread add a table spoon of hot water and mix well
Spread the jam evenly across the sponge and sprinkle with coconut
I hate food waste, but like everyone else I’m not perfect.
One of the things I always ended up throwing out was Greek yogurt. The small pots weren’t enough, and the larger containers meant I always had some left over.
A friend told me about this recipe and I love it. Most people are put off making bread bread because it can take time to prove, knead etc. This couldn’t be quicker or easier.
Equal amounts of flour and yoghurt, and like making scones these rolls benefit from not handling to much. This recipe makes 4 rolls, but you can double the recipe if you want more. You can brush the uncooked rolls with egg or melted butter if you want a glazed top, but I just sprinkled with flour.
Soft and fluffy rolls
I haven’t given exact weights. I literally just used a mug to ensure I was measuring equal amounts.
These also freeze really well.
Ingredients
1 Cup self raising flour 1 Cup of Greek yogurt (I used full fat yoghurt as this is what I had, it also gives a softer texture, but use what you have)
Method
Measure out the flour and yoghurt and add to a bowl.
Pre heat your oven to 180 degrees
Stir with a wooden spoon until the dough is combined and turn onto a lightly floured surface
Divide the dough into 4 equal parts and roll into balls
Place on a baking sheet and bake for 25 minutes or until the bottoms sound hollow when tapped
I love the spring rolls I usually get from my local Chinese take away, but am conscious that they are deep fried and probably not great for my first waistline.
I wanted to make a slightly healthier version, so these are packed with vegetables and using filo pastry which can be baked rather than deep fried. This version is vegan, but you could also add cooked chicken or prawns if you wanted to add more protein. I used shop bought filo pastry which makes things quicker (anyone who makes their own probably needs to get out more), and is a great way to use up left over veggies.
Stir fried veggies
The dipping sauce was a bit of store cupboard throw together, (my favourite dip is usually shop bought sweet chilli sauce). I have a friend who is much more experienced cooking Asian cuisine and she told me that all good dipping suaces should include sweet, sour, salt, and heat. I’m definately making this again. These are great as a starter or side dish, but I enjoy them as a snack along with a cold beer.
Ingredients
For the spring rolls
270 Gram Pack Filo pastry
1 Onion (finely sliced)
1 Carrot (cut into matchsticks)
1 Red Pepper (finely sliced)
2 Handfuls Cabbage or any greens you prefer (I used some left over cooked cabbage I had, but if using raw cabbage make sure it’s very finely sliced)
4-6 cm Knob of ginger (grated)
2 Cloves of garlic (grated or finely chopped)
1 Tsp Chinese 5 spice powder
2 Tbsp Oil
1 Tbsp Sesame seeds (optional)
For the dipping sauce
1 Tbsp Sesame oil
1 Tsp Chilli flakes/fresh chilli
1 Clove of garlic (grated or finely chopped)
1 Tsp Honey
1 Tsp Soy sauce
1 Tbsp Warm water
1 Tbsp Vinegar (if you have rice wine vinegar is probably best, I didn’t have this so used red wine vinegar and it was fine)
Tuck and roll
Method
Heat a tablespoon of oil in a pan/wok, and add the vegetables, cook lightly for a few minutes and add the Chinese 5 spice powder, garlic and ginger, fry for another minute or two until the vegetables start to soften. Remove from the heat and allow to cool completely before trying to assemble the spring rolls
Preheat your oven to 200 degrees. Open your packet of pastry, most packs recommend that you cover the pastry with a slightly damp tea towel if you are not able to work quickly. This prevents the pastry from drying out and becoming brittle and difficult to work with
I cut sheets of around 8-10 cm long and 6-8 cm wide (you can make smaller rolls if you prefer). Lay a sheet on your work surface and brush or spray with oil (those low cal oil sprays now a available are really handy, but just brush lightly with oil if you don’t have this) and top with another sheet of pastry, and repeat until you have 3 layers of filo pastry
With the pastry lengthways in front of you, lay a good heaped tablesoon of your vegetable filling and place near the right hand corner of the pastry. Tuck short corner of the pastry over the vegetables and tuck on the sides and roll (as shown in the photo)
Brush/spray the rolls with oil and sprinkle with sesame seeds if you are using them and place on a baking tray. Place in your heated oven and bake for 15-20 minutes until crisp and golden
The dipping sauce is strainght forward, simply combine all the ingredients in a bowl and stir before checking the taste (you mighy want more heat, sweetness etc). Put into separate serving bowls, Serve along side the spring rolls
Some ingredients are just made to go together and pears and almonds are two of the them.
I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with pears. When they are perfect they’re hard to beat. The only issue is that they are like granite and inedible, and then turn to mush within about 20 minutes. They are the ultimate passive aggressive fruit!
Frangipane filling
This recipe is great for using pears that are too hard to eat if you can’t be bothered with the game of chicken involved in waiting for pears to ripen.
This is a pretty rich recipe, but isn’t meant to be eaten every day and looks really impressive if you’re cooking for friends.
It’s important to blind bake the pastry case first
You can make the pastry case and the frangipane filling in advance, which means you can have more time with your guests. You could even use shop bought pastry if you don’t have time (home made is better though). This is really good on it’s own but a little fresh cream or ice cream also doesn’t hurt if you want to be properly indulgent.
Yummy with ice cream
Ingredients
For the pastry case
200 Grams Plain flour
100 Grams Butter (chilled and cut into small cubes)
1 Tbsp Caster sugar
1 Egg yolk
For the frangipane filling
115 Grams Butter (at room temperature)
115 Grams Caster sugar
115 Grams Ground almonds
1 Tsp Vanilla extract (optional)
2 Eggs
2 Large pears
Method
In a food processor add the flour, sugar, and butter. Whizz until the mixture looks like coarse breadcrumbs (you can run the butter and flour in together by hand if you prefer)
Add the egg yolk and a small amount of cold water and whizz again until the mix starts to come together. Start to press the mix together to form a dough, adding a small amount of cold water if necessary. Form into a ball, wrap in cling film and refrigerate for 30 minutes
Grease a 9in x 9 in loose bottemed flan tin. When the pastry has chilled, place on a floured surface, and roll out in a circle approximately 1/2 cm thick.
Lay into you prepare flan tin making sure that it’s pressed into the edges. Place a sheet of baking paper on top and baking beans (I use old dried rice) to weigh down the pastry and blind bake in an oven pre heated to 180 degrees. Bake for 15 minutes before taking the case out if the oven, carefully lift the the baking paper by the 4 corners taking care not to spill any of the baking beans/rice onto the pastry case.
Return the pastry case to the oven and bake for a further 10 minutes before removing from the oven and allowing to cool
To make the filling, add the butter and sugar to a bowl and mix with an electric whisk until light and creamy. Add the vanilla, almonds and eggs and beat in until combined
Peel, core and quarter the pears, before cutting into slices about 1cm thick
Spread the almond mixture into the pastry case. Arrange quarter of the pear so the narrow part is towards the centre of the tin and wider part is towards the outside work as quickly as you can to prevent the pear discolouring
Once you have arranged the pears, return the flan tin to 180 degree oven and bake for 25-30 minutes until the centre is just starting to set (it will continue to cook as it cools). Allow to cool in the tin for another 15 minutes before attempting to cut.
This is another recipe scalped from one of the Great British Bake Off cook books.
I have included the original recipe, but you can change it up. I’ve tried using different fruit like pears or raspberries and it was delicious. You can also add some nuts to the topping for some added crunch, or a teaspoon of cinnamon in the base mix for an extra kick of flavour.
These keep for 3-4 days in an airtight tin
Ingredients
For the topping
50 Grams Porridge oats
50 Grams Caster sugar
50 Grams Plain flour
50 Grams Butter (cut into small cubes)
For the base
250 Grams Plain flour
25 Grams Porridge oats
175 Grams Caster sugar
2 Tsp Baking powder
Zest of 1 Lemon (finely grated)
150 Grams Butter
2 Eggs
100 ml Milk
1 Large eating Apple (peeled, cored and cut into 1.5 cm chunks)
Method
Preheat your oven to 190 degrees, and line a muffin tin with paper muffin cases
In a bowl, add all the crumble ingredients, rubbing in the butter until all the ingredients are combined. Set to one side
In a separate bowl, add the flour, oats, baking powder and lemon zest and mix to combine (dry mix)
Gently melt the butter (either in a pot or the microwave), and allow to cool slightly. In a small bowl beat the eggs and milk together and then add the melted butter (wet mix)
Add the wet mix to the dry mix and stir gently until just combined
Spoon the base mix equally into the muffin cases. Top the muffins with the cubes of apple, and then add the crumble topping (try make sure there is an equal amount of apple and crumble mix on each muffin
Bake for 30-35 minutes and allow to cool on a wire wrack (although these taste fantastic when they’re still warm)
I really enjoy coming up with my own recipes. But, sometimes I just want to make something that I know will turn out well and taste delicious.
For these Blondies I’ve used a recipe featured one of the Great British Bake Off cook books. I don’t know who the contestant was who came up with these beauties, but they taste fantastic.
Ingredients
175 Grams White chocolate
150 Grams Pecans
115 Grams Butter
100 Grams Caster Sugar
2 Eggs
1/2 Tsp Vanilla extract
125 Grams Plain flour
1/2 Tsp Baking powder
Method
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees, and line a 9in x 9in brownie tin with grease proof paper
Cut the butter and chocolate into chunks and add to a heat proof bowl. Put the bowl over a pot of warm water and stir until melted
Add the sugar, (it might look curdled but don’t panic). Allow to cool.
While the chocolate mix is cooling, put the eggs and vanilla in a separate bowl and beat with a fork until frothy, and stir in to the cooled chocolate mix
Sift the flour and baking powder together and mix into the chocolate mix along with 100 grams on the pecans
Transfer the mix to your baking tin and top with the remaining pecans
Bake for 25 minutes, allow to cool in the tin
These should stay fresh for 3-4 days in an airtight tin
I think we’ve established I love a galette. What’s better than a galette, a galette with my two other great loves cheese and mushrooms.
This is definately a pure filth recipe, yes it’s rich but it’s not the type of thing you’re going to make every day.
Don’t be tempted to fry too many mushrooms at once, and don’t move them about too much
When cooking for vegetarians I often feel bad that the main course can look a bit lacklustre. This looks good when you bring it to the table and tastes amazing.
Cover the top of your cheese sauce with cling film so it does not form a skin
If you are making this, it’s really important that the filling is totally cold before you assemble the galette (otherwise you’ll end up with pastry that will melt and be impossible to handle).
Add the cold cheese sauce and mushrooms to the centre of the pastry, leaving a 3-4 cm border
The good thing is that if you are making this for a special occasion you can prepare all the elements in advance and assemble the elements just before baking.
Brush the pastry with egg yolk, and sprinkle grated cheese over the mushrooms
Ingredients
For the pastry
200 Grams Plain flour
100 Grams Butter
1 Egg yolk
1/2 Tsp Salt
1/2 Tsp Cayenne pepper (optional)
Additional egg yolk to brush the galette with before baking
For the filling
500 Grams Mushrooms (sliced)
25 Grams Butter
1 Tbsp Olive oil
Salt and pepper
25 Grams Grated cheese
Cheese Sauce
25 Grams Butter
25 Grams Plain flour
250ml Milk
25 Grams Grated cheese (I used Cheddar but you can use other cheeses)
Method
To make the pastry, and the flour, butter, salt, egg yolk and Cayenne to a food processor and whizz until the mix resembles breadcrumbs
Gradually add some small amounts of very cold water until the mix starts to come together
Turn the mix onto a floured surface and form into a ball before wrapping in cling film and chilling for at least 30 minutes
For the cheese filling, melt the butter over an even heat and stir in the flour to create a soft paste
Add the milk and stir continuously until the paste in combined and the sauce starts to thicken.
Cook over a low heat stirring regularly for another 10 minutes until the sauce no longer tastes floury. Stir in the cheese, once it has melted remove from the heat and place a sheet of cling film on the surface to stop a skin forming
In a large frying pan’ heat the oil and butter together, and half the mushrooms (if you add all the mushrooms in one go they steam not fry). One of the best pieces of advice I ever received from a chef is not to stir mushrooms too often, as it makes them release water which makes them soggy. So fry for 5 minutes each side without stirring too much, set to one side and allow to cool
Roll out the pastry on a floured surface in a circle that is about 1cm thick. Transfer to a sheet of baking paper and place on a baking sheet
Spread the thick cheese sauce in the centre of the pastry leaving a 3-4cm border around the edge of the pastry
Place the fried mushrooms on top of the cheese sauce. Brush edges of the pastry with the remaining egg yolk and pleating the edges inward
Brush the outside of the galette with egg yolk and sprinkle grated cheese over the top of the mushrooms
