Showing posts from 2010

Mexican Bean Stew

In an attempt to utilise what I had in my cupboards, this lovely Mexican stew was created - its amazing what a few spices can do to pep up some tinned beans! Make this the day before you want to eat it for the best flavour. MEXICAN BEAN STEW Vegetarian Yield: 4 Author: Beth Sachs Print Recipe Pin it With Image Without Image Mexican Bean Stew A storecupboard mexican bean stew recipe prep time: 10 mins cook time: 30 mins total time: 40 mins ingredients: 1 TBSP olive oil 1 Red onion, roughly chopped 1 Red pepper, chopped 1 TSP each of Paprika, Cumin, Coriander, Chili and Oregano 1 400g tin of Kidney Beans 1 400g tin of Butter Beans 1 400g tin of Cannellini Beans 400g tin of chopped tomatoes 100ml Vegetable Stock  1 tbsp dark chocolate , chopped Coriander, chopped instructions Step 1: Heat the oil in a large casserole and fry the onion and red pepper until softened - about 5 minutes. Step 2: Add the spices, beans, tomatoes and sto


Plum Flapjacks

A sweet and fruity plum flapjack recipe. Perfect for lunchboxes or grab and go breakfasts.


Sausagemeat and Bramley Apple Stuffing

An easy sausagemeat and Bramley apple stuffing recipe. Great with roast Turkey at Christmas.


The Scandinavian Cookbook: A Review

I have to be honest I'd never heard of Trina Hahnemann before the recently published paperback version of Scandinavian Cookbook dropped through my door. My knowledge of Scandi cuisine extended only so far as knowing herring is pretty popular and cardamom buns are an institution (* hangs head in shame *!). However, thanks to following some Scandinavian foodies on Twitter, such as Scandilicious and Scandinavian Kitchen, Scandinavian cuisine has really come into my radar in the the last few months and I jumped at the chance of reviewing, reading and trying out some new recipes from this beautifully presented book (a book which quite frankly is far too good to be confined to the bookshelf thanks to the stunning photography by Lars Ranek ). So Trina Hahnemann - who is she? Well after a little bit of research I found out she is a leading Danish T.V chef and food writer but her career started over 20 years ago when she co-founded a company that catered for the film and


Molton Chocolate Puddings

I've been looking for an easy warming pud to make for the Christmas pudding haters in our family (there are a few of them!)...and I think I've found it. These are so simple taking just 5 minutes to prepare and about 10 minutes in the oven and taste gorgeously rich and gooey. You could easily double the recipe to serve 8 if you needed to cater for a larger number of people and for an added seasonal twist you could omit the vanilla extract and add the zest of 1 or 2 clementines. I promise you will be impressed by these! MOLTON CHOCOLATE PUDDINGS Chocolate, Dessert Yield: 4 Author: Beth Sachs Print Recipe Pin it With Image Without Image Molton Chocolate Puddings Warm chocolate puddings with an ooozy middle prep time: 10 mins cook time: 12 mins total time: 22 mins ingredients: 125g Dark Chocolate 125g Unsalted Butter 3 Large Eggs 150g Golden Caster Sugar 35g Plain Flour 1/2 TSP of Vanilla Extract Butter and Flour for ramekins instr


Easy Mince Pies ..... for the freezer

Last weekend I made my usual batch of  mincemeat  and decided while I was at it to make some mince pies for the freezer too. The pastry is no effort and is made entirely in the food processor (although you can do it by hand if you wish). It produces wonderfully crumbly pies, with a slight nutty flavour thanks to the ground almonds. You don't have to freeze the pies of course and I give instructions below for baking them straight away, but I like to get ahead at Christmas and stashing a batch of these away in the freezer, I am safe in the knowledge I am just 20 minutes away from a warm homemade mince pie. Perfect for unexpected guests. EASY MINCE PIES Christmas, Baking Yield: 12 pies Author: Beth Sachs Print Recipe Pin it With Image Without Image Easy Mince Pies Mke ahead mince pies for Christmas prep time: 15 mins cook time: 20 mins total time: 35 mins ingredients: 350g  Mincemeat 200g Plain Flour 75g Ground Almonds 40g Caster Sugar


A Slice of Cherry Pie: A Review

As a UK Food Blogger it was with great excitement I received my copy of ‘A Slice of Cherry Pie’ written by the founder of the UK Food Bloggers Association, Julia Parsons. Julia, who has run a successful food blog (also entitled ‘A Slice of Cherry Pie’) since 2006 and more recently set up the UK Food Bloggers Association to act as a community hub for like-minded foodies, is now officially a published author too (is there no end to this woman’s talents?). Julia has been releasing snippets of the book on her blog in the run up to its launch and I, like many bloggers have been eagerly counting down the days to its release. Well, it finally landed on my doorstep last week and I spent a lovely evening curled up on the sofa reading it from cover to cover – ideally it would have been with a glass of wine, but due to the flooding I hadn’t been able to get the shops so I had to make do with a can of hubby's lager – which somewhat ruined the image of a dark autumn evening, fi


Turkey Bolognese

My hubby almost refused to eat this turkey bolognese...not because it used turkey mince, but because I served it with penne pasta. According to him, bolognese HAS to be served with spaghetti! Despite this 'oversight' on my part it turned out to be a deliciously rich bolognese, not dry as I often worry with turkey.  TOP TIPS FOR MAKING TURKEY BOLOGNESE Substitute with pork or beef mince if you prefer. Add more veggies  - courgettes would work well. Make double and freeze half. OTHER PASTA RECIPES YOU MIGHT LIKE Slow Cooker Bolognese from Jam and Clotted Cream White Ragu Sauce for Pasta from Jam and Clotted Cream Saucy Sausage Pasta from Jam and Clotted Cream TURKEY BOLOGNESE Yield: 4 Author: Beth Sachs Print Recipe Pin it With Image Without Image Turkey Bolognese prep time: 10 MINS cook time: 1 hour and 15 MINS total time: 1 hours and 25 mins A rich turkey bolognese recipe using turkey mince. ingredients: 1 Onion,


Easy Christmas Cake

I finally got around to making my Christmas Cake last weekend. I was beginning to panic a  bit as I've never left it this late before. Instead of the usual pre-soaking of the fruits in alcohol, I decided to simmer the fruits in Cherry Brandy for 10 minutes, which meant I could get the whole cake made and baked in a couple of hours. The cake is now safely wrapped in a double layer of baking paper and a layer of foil, ready for its weekly feedings of cherry brandy - it's going to be a boozy one! In terms of the decoration, this year I am opting out of icing and instead going to go for a simple apricot glaze (warmed apricot jam brushed onto the cake) with brazil nuts and candied fruits on top. EASY CHRISTMAS CAKE Christmas, Cake Yield: 10 slices Author: Beth Sachs Print Recipe Pin it With Image Without Image Easy Christmas Cake An easy Christmas Cake recipe prep time: 20 mins cook time: 1 hour and 45 mins total time: 1 hours and 65 mins ingredi


Leon: Naturally Fast Food - A Review

Following on from their best-selling cookbook Leon: Ingredients and Recipes , Henry Dimbleby and John Vincent have recently published their latest offering– Leon: Naturally Fast Food . Leon  (Carnaby Street) opened in 2004 by Dimbleby, Vincent and Allegra McEvedy had within 6 months been named the Best New Restaurant in Great Britain at the Observer Food Monthly awards. With a prestigious judging panel containing names such as Gordon Ramsey, Rick Stein, Nigel Slater and Jay Rayner it was bound to go far and far it has gone – with 9 restaurants and counting! Leon's ethos is based on the twin principles that food can both taste good and do you good and the offerings in this cookbook certainly respect the founding aims. But far from being boringly healthy, this book exudes fun, quirkiness and above all is a very useful tool in any cooks kitchen. The book is split into two halves. The first half contains fast food recipes, recipes for all types of occasion that take less t


Pumpkin, Apple and Sage Soup

A very large pumpkin had sat staring at me for quite a number of days in my vegetable rack so when Friday came (my day off) ... and it was raining, I thought I'd better turn the monster into something edible. Despite the time it took to chop up all the pumpkin flesh (a job I very much dislike!), it was on the table in less than an hour, so not bad really. The apples were a bit of the spur of the moment thing, but they really worked and the cider vinegar gave it a tangy edge. I served it with some cheesy toasts using some of the Dorset Blue Vinney I was kindly sent from The Cheese Shed. TOP TIPS FOR MAKING THE PUMPKIN, APPLE AND SAGE SOUP If you like it very spicy, add another teaspoon of chilli flakes. Substitute the pumpkin for sweet potato or do half and half. If you don't have any Bramley apples, some tart eating apples would work just as well. OTHER SOUP RECIPES YOU MIGHT LIKE Creamy Chicken Soup from Jam and Clotted Cream Sweet Potato and