Tomato & Broccoli Salad with French Dressing

Ingredients

• small head of Broccoli
• 8-10 cherry tomatoes
• 100mls sunflower oil
• 50mls olive oil (or you can use a full 150ml olive and leave out the sunflower oil)
• 50mls white wine vinegar
• 3 table spoons of hazelnuts (optional)
• 1 clove of garlic
• 3 teaspoons wholgrain mustard
• 3 table spoons of honey
• 1 teaspoon soya sauce 
• Salt & pepper

Method

1. If using the hazelnuts, place on a flat baking tray and roast in the oven 180oC, for approx 20mins, take out and cool, rub in a teatowel to get the outer skins to break off.
2. Meanwhile put the two oils, vinegar, garlic, mustard, soya sauce and honey into a container (a measuring jug is good as it doesn't splash) Blend them all together with a hand blender until well mixed and slightly thick.
3. Wash and cut the thick stalks off the broccoli then break into small florets, put into a bowl.
4. Wash and cut the tomatoes in half, add these and the hazelnuts if using to the bowl.
5. Put french dressing over the vegetables in the bowl, the amount you use depends on how moist you like the salad, there is no set amount, so perhaps add it little by little (it's easier to add more than take some out!!!). If this amount is too much for this salad the dressing keeps well in an airtight container in the fridge, the garlic acts as a natural preservative for approx 4 weeks.
6. Season with salt & pepper

Baileys Chocolate Cheese Cake

Had this made for me yesterday, thanks Kev!
Ingredients

• 100g butter
• 300g Chocolate digestive biscuits
• 2 tablespoons of honey/golden syrup
• 250g mascarpone cheese
• 225g Philadelphia/cream cheese
• 250g plain Chocolate
• 200g cream
• 200mls Baileys

Method

1. Crush the biscuits into fine crumbs using a food processor or rolling pin.
2. Meanwhile melt the butter. When melted add the honey. Then add the biscuits to the butter mixture and mix well.
3. Press the biscuit mixture into the base of your greased - loose bottom based - cheesecake tin. Leave this in the fridge to set while you make the rest of the cake.
4. Melt the chocolate in the microwave (be careful it burns easily here) or in a bowl over a small pot of water. leave to cool slightly
5. Put the two types of cheese into a bowl and mix well, then add the baileys. If you use an electric whisk it makes a more even and light mixture.
6. Whip the cream in a separate jug until it's stiff.
7. Add the chocolate to the cheese mixture and combine well, then fold the cream lightly into this mixture a spoonful at a time.
8. Pour this over the biscuit base and chill in the fridge for 2/3 hours or overnight is even better, If you can wait that long.

Think I'll have to get another slice after writing all about it................

Chorizo Stew

Ingredients

• 1 onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 potatoes
• 1 red pepper
• 1 ring of chirizo sausage
• 1 tin of tomatoes
• 1 chicken stock cube
• tablespoon tomato puree
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• olive oil, Salt & Pepper

Method

1. Cut the oinion into small dice, and crush garlic
2. heat a little oil in a saucepan and add the onion, garlic, salt & pepper
3. cut the potatoes into small cubes and add to saucepan
4. cut the pepper into small dice and add also
5. Add the tin of tomatoes and then fill the empty tin with cold water and add, bring to the boil, then lower the heat
6. crumble the stock cube into the mixture and add the sugar & puree
7. simmer until the potatoes and peppers are soft approx 20mins

Courgette & Carrot En Croute

Once I start thinking of recipes I can't stop........

Ingredients

• Pkt frozen puff pastry
• 1 small onion
• 3 carrots
• 3 courgettes
• Bag of Basil
• 100g Cheddar cheese
• breadcrumbs (optional)
• thin slices of fish of choice/thin fillets of chicken (optional)

Method

1. Pre-heat your oven to 200oC
2. When the pastry is defrosted Roll it into a rectangular shape (similar to a flat baking tray)
3. Place the pastry onto a flat baking tray, so that the long right-hand edge is more or less down the center of the tray and the left-hand edge is hanging off of the tray
4. Cut the onion into thin slices and place in a bowl.
5. Wash and peel the carrots, then grate them and place in the same bowl.
6. Wash and grate the courgettes and add to the bowl
7. Grate the cheese and add to the bowl
8. Season the ingredients in the bowl to your taste with Salt & Pepper and mix everything well together.
9. Take the basil off the stalks and cut into small pieces add to the bowl and mix well.
10. The ingredients are now going to be packaged up in the pastry. To do this:-
11. Place the breadcrumbs along the length of one half of the pastry eg. the right-hand side of it, but leave about 3cm from the edge at the top and along the side without anything on it.(Optional:- the breadcrumbs are to absorb any moisture the ingredients let out during the cooking and stop the pastry from being too soggy, but if you don't mind this there's no need to use them) 
12. Place the fish/chicken on top of this (Optional:- this can make the package a bit bulky to handle until you get used to doing this with the pastry)
13. Place the vegetable & cheese contents of the bowl along the length of one half of the pastry eg. the right-hand side of it, but leave about 3cm from the edge at the top and along the side without anything on it. 
14. Check that the left-hand edge of the pastry can reach over easily to the edge of the right-hand side, If it  doesn't you may need to shove the contents around a bit, or take some out. If it goes easily past the edge you can add some more of the veg mix.
15. Rub some water along all the inside edges of the rectangle of pastry (this is to make the edges of the 'parcel' stick together) Then press all around the edges with a fork in the same way as you do with an apple tart, the technical term for this is to flute the edges.
16. Glaze the top, by rubbing with a beaten egg, also make some air holes with a fork or knife to let out the steam.
17. Place in the oven for 10mins and then lower the heat to 180oC for another 20mins. (If the fish/chicken is in it and thick it may need an extra 10mins)

Don't worry this is not as complicated as the explanations seem, once you have the mixture made, you'll manage the pastry easily enough.

You can cook the chicken/fish separately in the oven until you get used to making the dish and then add them to the parcel to have an all in one dinner......

Courgette & Mint Soup

Got some feedback about bumper crops of courgettes in the gardens and shops this year so here's a way to use them up

Ingredients

• 2 small onions
• 1 clove of garlic
• 2 small potatoes
• 3 med courgettes
• 1 stock cube
• Olive oil, salt & pepper
• handful of mint

Method

1. Cut the onions into dice, crush the garlic
2. Heat a little oil in a saucepan and add the onions, garlic, salt & pepper, turn down the heat (2)
3. Wash & peel the potatoes and cut into dice, add to the saucepan and stir well
4. Wash top & tail the courgette, cut into chunks and add to the saucepan, stir well
5. Add enough water to cover the vegetables and bring to the boil.
6. Crumble the stock cube into the saucepan and lower the heat, simmer without a lid until the potatoes are soft.
7. Add the washed mint and immediately liquidize the contents of the saucepan, if it's too thick for your liking add more water.

Warm chicken salad

Just about time to get a salad meal in before the warm(ish) weather leaves us for a while!
Ingredients

• 1 clove of garlic
• half and inch fresh ginger
• 2 teaspoons turmeric
• 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
• 2 fillets of chicken 
• mixed salad & herb leaves : lettuce, rocket, spinach, parsley etc
• 1 carrot
• 1 sml courgette
• sml red pepper
• 30mls olive oil, 10mls lemon/lime juice, salt & pepper

Method

1. Grate the carrot and courgette and add to the washed & dried mixed leaves. 
2. Thinly slice the pepper, add to the other veg along with the olive oil and freshly squeezed juice, mix well.
3. Cut the chicken into bite size portions and place in a bowl, add crushed garlic, grated ginger, turmeric, sesame seeds, salt & pepper and mix evenly.
4. Heat some oil in a wok or frying pan, add the chicken to this and cook turning constantly on a relatively  high heat (3) for about 10mins. To check if it's done cut the largest piece in half and if there is no pink colour it's done.
5. Serve with the warm chicken on top of the leaves and with crusty bread, baked potato or rice.

Let me know how you get on.....

Sweet potato & spinach Omlette

I had some sweet potato and spinach left over from the previous recipe, so to use them up I made this
Ingredients

• 1 onion
• 1 clove of garlic
• 2 med sweet potatoes
• handful of spinach
• 4 eggs
• olive oil, salt & pepper

Method

1. Peel, wash and then cut the sweet potato into small dice
2. Heat olive oil (enough to just cover the base of a good non-stick frying pan), then add the sweet potato  and season well with salt & pepper. Cover the frying pan with a lid.
3. Peel and cut the onion into small dice and add to the potato, mix well and cover again
4. Crush the garlic and add to the pan
5. Break the eggs into a mixing bowl and beat well with a fork
6. Remove the large stalks and cut the spinach leaves into small pieces and add to the eggs stir well
7. when the potato and onion mix are soft add to the egg mixture in the bowl and mix well
8. Add a little oil to the frying pan and heat well.
9. Add all the mixture to the pan and lower the heat to 1/2 on the ring. leave until the base is set and golden brown
10. Put a large dinner plate over the top of the pan and flip the pan over so that the omlette is now on the plate, add a little oil to the pan and heat it again. then slide the omlette back onto the pan with the uncooked side touching the pan. leave until set and golden brown. ( If flipping the pan is too difficult at the start you could place the frying pan under the grill to set the top of it ) 

Let me know how you get on making it and if you have any questions....

Quick Bruchetta

Ingredients

• 1 demi - baguette
• 1 clove of garlic
• 12 fresh basil leaves
• 8 fresh cherry tomatoes
• 10mls extra virgin olive oil

Method

1. Cut the baguette length ways. lightly grill on the outside
2. Peel the garlic, add this the basil leaves and tomatoes into a jug and liquidize with a hand blender
3. Rub the olive oil over the inside of the baguette, then spread the tomato mixture over it.
4. place under the grill and toast until golden brown

(you could add olives before blending if you like, and you could avoid step 1 and put the whole thing into the oven to bake until golden)

Enjoy.........

Salmon and roasted veg

For 2 people
Ingredients
-2 darns of salmon
-1 onion & 1 clove of garlic
-handful of spinach
-140ml tub creme fraiche
-8 cherry tomatoes
-3 med sweet potatoes
-1 sml squash
-olive oil, salt & pepper

Method
Heat an oven to 190oC

1. cut the onion into small dice, add to a tablespoon of heated oil in a small saucepan & saute until soft
2. crush the garlic and add to onions
3. Add the creme fraiche
4. chop the spinach, add this and the tomatoes to the saucepan heat gently
5. Put the salmon pieces into a small oven proof dish and pour the contents of the saucepan over it
6. peel the sweet potatoes and the squash then cut into small cubes. season with salt and pepper and cover lightly with olive oil. Place these on a flat baking tray.
7. Put both the veg and the salmon dish into the hot oven and cook for 30 minutes. The veg may need a little longer to become golden brown

All's that's left to do then is tuck in and enjoy