7 of your 5 a day!

It can sometime be tricky to get the recommended 5 A Day into the family and especially the children but I have to say this pasta sauce fits the bill perfectly!
I start my sauce off with the obligatory finely chopped onion and garlic and as it starts to pick up a bit of colour I then add a pack of chopped bacon.

 

I have probably mentioned before about the bacon that I buy but I will reiterate.  If you are going to cook with bacon and cut it up you do not need to buy those lovely slices.  I buy packs of cooking bacon pieces from Morrison’s or Sainsbury’s and they cost around £1.00 for two or three times the amount of perfect bacon.  You don’t know what you will get inside the pack and it can be a mixture of smoked and non-smoked and different sized pieces.  A kind of bacon pot luck.  The pack I used for this meal had loads of small bits and mostly smoked but there was also a big and thick piece which I have popped into the freezer and will use to make a lovely white bean soup.

 

To my frying pan I added the bacon chopped up, two finely chopped courgettes, half an aubergine, peeled and finely chopped, two large grilled red peppers, a handful of sliced mushrooms, and seasoned to taste with salt&pepper, dried oregano, dried basil (you can use fresh of course but I didn’t have any to hand), tomato puree, smoked chipotle Tabasco sauce and about 2 Tablespoons of pesto. To all of this I added two tins of plum tomatoes and let it all simmer for about 30 minutes.

 

 

I served the sauce on spaghetti and a little grated cheese.

Mr R thought this was a really delicious meal and was making plans to take some for lunch the following day even before he finished his meal!

 

 

 

It's meatloaf tonight!

I love those winter weather days when you want some comfort food and what is better than something your mother used to cook!

My mom's meatloaf was legendary. There was always too much to finish for dinner which meant meatloaf sandwiches for lunch the next day! Hooray!

I follow my mom's recipe which is basically a list of ingredients and you use the quantities to taste and depending on how much mince meat you use.

I get my ingredients out ready and assemble in a large bowl.

I start with lean mince beef. Today I used about 1/2 lb to which I added two eggs, one onion finely choped, 4-5 mushrooms sliced, one tin of plum tomatoes, worcestershire sauce, tomato puree, dried oregano, salt&pepper, a good handful of porridge oats and a few drops of Tobasco sauce (the smoked chipotle variety).

When it is all mixed up thoroughly put into a loaf tin.

I lay slices of streaky bacon on top, tucking the edged in slightly and place on a baking sheet in a pre-heated oven (180o) and bake for about 30-45 minutes depending on the size.

 

Tonight I served the meatloaf with boiled potatoes but mash or noodles work really well too.  A bottle of Waitrose Beaujolais went down a treat tonight too.

 

 

My only regret is that it was so good that we ate it all and there was none left for sandwiches tomorrow!!!

 



American 1-2-3 Cake

I often make a soup on a Sunday afternoon but every now and then I make a cake instead.

I recently saw an interesting recipe on Facebook for a layered cherry cake but the recipe used tinned cherry pie filling and since I do try not to use tins and since I was given loads of apples this autumn I decided to make an apple cake.

The reason I suggest it is a 1-2-3 cake is that the main ingredients, butter, sugar and flour are in 1 cup, 2 cups and 3 cups measurements. As it is an American recipe it is important to keep to the cup measurements, trying to convert to metric doesn't really work.

I like to get all my ingredients weighed out and dry ingredients mixed and ready to go.

Ingredients:

Cake:
1 cup softened butter
2 cups caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla bean paste (the original recipe used vanilla extract but I like the little flecks from the vanilla bean paste)
1/4 tsp almond extract

4 eggs
3 cups Self Raising Flour
1 tsp salt
2-3 cups home made apple sauce or 2 tins of pie filling

Glaze:
1 cup icing sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste
1/2 tsp almond extract
2 Tbsp milk

Preheat oven to 180oC/350oC. Grease a 9" x 13" pan

Method:
Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (the more you cream the lighter and more voluminous your cake will be).

Add the eggs one at a time and beating each one really well. If you want you can add 1 Tbsp of the flour after each one to stop them splitting. Then add the vanilla bean paste and almond extract.

Gradually add the flour and salt and beat until really well combined. If you want you can add a tablespoon of milk at this point.

Put about half of the cake mixture into the prepared pan. Spread the fruit mixture over the top and then dollop the rest of the cake mixture onto the fruit. You don't need to spread this top.

Bake for approximately 35 minutes although mine took another 10 minutes (ovens do vary).

Allow the cake to cool to just warm and then make the glaze by mixing the four ingredients together

and drizzling over the top.

Then all that is left to do is ...... ENJOY!

I got this recipe from a Facebook friend and made the small changes. I will be trying different fillings in the future.

Bailey's Pouring Creams

I really love all the Christmas food, much of which comes out only at this festive time of the year, the cold turkey (although I often cook a turkey for Easter Sunday), the pickles, chutneys and special cheeses.

However I do have a guilty pleasure! When the creams with alcohol are available I buy loads (they usually have long ‘use by’ dates) and revel in putting them on my puddings and desserts long after Father Christmas has been and gone!

What can equal a last minute mince pie early January slghtly warmed and a Bailey’s Extra thick cream poured over it!

Before Christmas this year I attended an event organised by Bailey’s Irish Cream featuring their range of creams with Bailey’s.  Bailey's Irish Cream is synonymous with winter and holidays and I was very pleased to discover their Original Pouring Cream and Original Extra Thick Cream.

 

We received an introduction to the creams and recipes to make two fun ideas for when entertaining over the holidays.

Not a great photo but my first attempt at burning the sugar with a little blow tourch on the creme caramel, I usually pop it under the grill.

 

We were taken through lots of possibilities of pudding making and encouraged to fall in love with puddings all over again.

 

These creams turn any ordinary pudding or dessert into a masterpiece!

 

If you are making a Tiramisu it is a great idea to use the creams giving it a wonderfully different edge to the traditional recipe.

 

Notes:

• Baileys Extra Thick Cream should only be consumed chilled, and not used in cooking

 

Don't forget to have the little Baileys minis in the fridge at all times over the holidays and beyond and the Baileys chocolates are a must!

 

 

I enjoyed attending this event and received samples of the creams.  Try them, I am sure you will love them too.

Pub review - The Rose & Crown, Sandridge

St Albans has become the 'in' place to find the bigger names in restaurants (Jamie's Italian, Brasserie Blanc, Prezzo, Zizzi's to name a few) as well a plethora of coffee places. It is therefore exciting when you find a hidden gem and even more exciting when it is on your doorstep!

We often walk the dog to the end of the lane but turn around and come home without going the extra few hundred yards to the pub (although we often say we will ) and I drive past frequently on my way to somewhere else . Today Mr R said lets have a quick lunch out and we were near Sandridge so opted to try this pub.

The Rose & Crown in the village of Sandridge, Nr St Albans, Hertfordshire is a small and welcoming gastro pub. All the food is locally sourced where possible and home made including home made bread and a wonderful treat of home made pork scratchings on the bar!

There were two fireplaces and small, cosy rooms

with an extensive menu of daily specials, British Tapas menu and an interesting menu featuring daily home made soup and a roll - £4.50, Steak and Kidney pudding & mash - £9.00 and other great warming and filling meals along with bar snacks of pies, olives and nuts.

We just wanted a snack and chose a Festive Ploughmans.  Mr R had the mixed cheese

and I had the home made ham hock terring and sliced loin of pork, both with home made bread and chutney with a small well dressed salad.

Mr R was very happy with the beers on tap and had a pint (or two!) of the local Hertfordshire Ridgeway bitter from the Tring Brewery (need to arrange to review the brewery this spring!).

 

 

We didn't receive anything for free and were not asked to write a review of our visit so all opinions are our own and information is factual.

We will however be visiting again with the dog in the summer.  They have a lot of tables outside for fine weather visits but allow well behaved (that includes our Jonty) dogs inside.

 

 

You can check them out on their website or follow them on Facebook.

 

 

 

 

 

A Quick Quiche - Using Up Bits-n-Pieces

Tonight I fancied making something different from all the festive food we have been eating.  I also wanted to use up some things in the fridge. I like to start the New Year with a clear fridge.

I had some pastry in the fridge so decided on a quiche.  I always like to prepare all the components and then put them into the pastry and straight into the oven.

I sautee my onions, boil and chop the broccoli, grate the cheese and anything else that needs preparing.

I use a stoneware dish to cook and like to use 8 eggs for this size quiche.

I had a small piece of broccoli in the fridge as well as a small piece of cheddar and a small bit of Long Clawston stilton.  I grated them both.

Then the layering starts.  First the sauteed onions followed by the cooked broccoli.

Next layer I tore up some Parma ham and dropped that on top.

then the Stilton cheese,

I poured the egg mixture on top (I had about 100ml of double cream left over and added about the same amount of milk to the beaten eggs), then topped it all with the grated cheddar cheese. This is the point where I trim around the sides and fold a flap of pastry to give a raised bit of crust.

Into a pre-heated oven about 180-190oC for approximately 40-45 minutes.  I always check the middle with a sharp knife and if it comes out dry then it is done.

Tonight we had the quiche warm with a salad and freshly boiled beetroot but once cooled it also makes a great lunch item.

Mr R and his father thoroughly enjoyed their 'end of year' quiche and both look forward to more tomorrow!

Sunday Soup - Fava Bean and Ham

I like to make a pot of soup on a Sunday afternoon.  This week I used the stock I made from boiling the Christmas gammon I got from Aldi to cook and review.

This gammon has fed us on Christmas Day, cold cuts on Boxing Day, creamy cheese and ham noodles and now a lovely fava bean and ham soup. That's pretty good going for one gammon.

I was given a box of split, dried fava beans in the summer in my Food Blogger Connect goodie bag.  They are from Hodmedod's and the box comes with a mini recipe book and a good description of the beans.

Fava beans are tasty and very good for you and really easy to cook with.  Basically cover with water or stock, bring to the boil and boil for 10 minutes then simmer for 20-30 minutes.

For this week's soup I started by chopping and sauteeing an onion, two garlic cloves and two sticks of celery.  Instead of using butter or sunflower oil, this time I used some of the goose fat I received from Cooks&Co before Christmas.

Whilst this was getting some colour I put about half of the package of fava beans in another pot and boiled following the instructions on the pack.  When they were cooked I put about 2/3 of the beans in the soup pot and liquidised it all.  I seasoned the soup with black pepper, Tabasco sauce.  I didn't add salt because the gammon was pretty salty in the first place.

I added the last 1/3 of the fava beans to the soup so there is a little texture.

 

The finished soup - this will keep me and Mr R in lunches for the week - if it lasts that long!!

I didn't receive any payment for writing this post.  I used leftovers from our Christmas gammon and was not required to write this post.