Showing posts with label dairy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dairy. Show all posts
We had the Sisters for dinner the other nice. I made them my Meat Loaf Pie with these delicious CrunchyCheese Potatoes on the side. Carrots, cauliflower, salad, rolls and my Speedy Berry Cake rounded out the menu.
There were NO complaints. Not that there would be anyways. These girls and guys are always so grateful for the opportunity for a nice homemade meal, and as you know I love, LOVE feeding them.
The whole meal was simple and quick to put together. I like to feed them the comforts of home . . . just like a mom would.
These potatoes are as simple as peeling and slicing potatoes and then stirring them into a sour cream/milk mixture a pouring them into a buttered baking dish.
You tightly cover them with foil and bake, until the potatoes are fork tender . . . the timing depends on the type of potatoes you use. Older potatoes seem to take longer . . .
Once they are tender you just sprinkle some cheese and cornflake crumbs over top and return to the oven to crisp them up. A scattering of fresh chives on top and Bob's your Uncle. They're ready to serve!
These are so good . . . with the creamy sour cream, milk and chive sauce . . . and that crunchy cheesy topping . . its a potato dish that everyone always loves. And no small wonder! They are quite simply fabulous!
*Crunchy Cheese Potatoes*
serves 6 - 8
Spread into the prepared baking dish. Bake in the preheated oven for 50 to 60 minutes, until fork tender. Combine the crumbs and cheese. Sprinkle over top. Bake in the heated oven for an additional 10 to 15 minutes, until the potatoes are golden brown. Sprinkle with the additional chives and serve.
Enjoy! Bon Appetit!
I just love this time of year when my garden is filled to bursting with fresh summer fruits . . . the last of the strawberries, logan berries, raspberries, blueberries, gooseberries, black currants in the main and ripening blackberries in the hedge!
I try to incorporate as many of them as I can into our daily diets. Its such a healthy thing to do!
Crumbles, bakes, cakes, with cream and sugar . . . and one of my favourite ways, for breakfast . . . a delicious fruity breakfast knickerbocker glory.
Crumbles, bakes, cakes, with cream and sugar . . . and one of my favourite ways, for breakfast . . . a delicious fruity breakfast knickerbocker glory.
Perfect for summer! Actually its perfect any time of year. Whenever you are craving something that tiny bit special, but also very easy.
What is a knickerbocker glory? Well, traditionally it is a layered cream sundae that is served in a large tall conical glass to be eaten with a distinctive long spoon . . . a dessert peculiar to the British Isles.
What is a knickerbocker glory? Well, traditionally it is a layered cream sundae that is served in a large tall conical glass to be eaten with a distinctive long spoon . . . a dessert peculiar to the British Isles.
The knickerbocker glory, first described in the 1920s, may contain ice cream, cream, fruit, meringue.
Layers of these different sweet tastes are alternated in a tall glass and topped with different kinds of syrup, nuts, whipped cream and often a cherry.
This is not one of those . . . and actually the only thing which resembles the original is the fact that it's prepared in a tall glass to be eaten with a long spoon.
This is not one of those . . . and actually the only thing which resembles the original is the fact that it's prepared in a tall glass to be eaten with a long spoon.
Not to mention that there is plenty of fruit in it.
Instead of ice cream I use creamy Greek yogurt. You could use frozen yogurt if you can find it.
Instead of ice cream I use creamy Greek yogurt. You could use frozen yogurt if you can find it.
That would be also great! I have also used a mix of berries today . . . raspberries, blueberries and strawberries . . .
These are layered in a tall glass along with some of my homemade granola . . . sooooo good.
These are layered in a tall glass along with some of my homemade granola . . . sooooo good.
(I try not to get any of the dried fruits in the layers . . . so they don't conflict with the fresh fruits if you know what I mean.)
You could also use storebought granola or even crushed granola bars.
With a final sprinkle of granola and a drizzle of liquid honey on top, these really please! We love them!
With a final sprinkle of granola and a drizzle of liquid honey on top, these really please! We love them!
They are a great weekend breakfast which feels like a bit of an indulgence, but which is actually really quite healthy! I hope you will give them a go! Simple. Easy. Delicious.
A really delicious way to eat a healthy breakfast which is loaded with fruit and goodness.
4 TBS granola (can also use crushed granola bars)
a handful each of blueberries, raspberries and strawberries
(Or whatever berry you have to hand)
8 TBS low fat greek yoghurt
2 TBS clear honey
Sprinkle
1 TBS of granola in each of two tall glasses or knickerbocker glory
glasses. Top with some blueberries, 1 TBS yogurt,some raspberries, 1
TBS of yogurt, some strawberries, 1 TBS yogurt 1 more TBS of granola and
the remainder of the yogurt. Sprinkle with a bit of granola, drizzle
with honey and serve immediately. Delicious!
Note - Quantities are given to make two servings, but the recipe can easily be multiplied to serve more.
*Breakfast Knickerbocker Glories*
Serves 2
a bit of granola to sprinkle
Note - Quantities are given to make two servings, but the recipe can easily be multiplied to serve more.
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I guess I didn't check the size of the bag of onions I was buying in that online grocery order too closely . . . because it ended up being huge! I decided to create something with some of them that we would both find delicious. We love gratins . . . and so I thought an onion gratin type of dish would work really well.
I have to say up front that one of my absolute favourite flavours has to be ginger. I love it in any way shape or form. It's wonderful, dried and powdered . . . and sprinkled into spicy cake and cookie batters. I love it freshly grated . . . and cooked up into wonderfully fragrant stir fries and sauces. I also like to make a delicious lemon and ginger tea with the fresh ginger root. (It's just wonderful steepedin boiling water, along with the juice and zest of half a lemon . . . and then served with a bit of honey and a great cure all for when you have the sniffles . . .)
I sure am enjoying the The Froothie Optimum 9400 Blender which I was sent a few weeks back. It has really been making short work of all of the blending and blitzing in my kitchen, and it especially shines when it comes to make something as delicious as these milkshakes which I am showing you today.
Strawberry season is almost upon us now and I wanted to use up some of the frozen berries that I had in the freezer from last year before I start picking the new crop! I decided to make us some delicious milkshakes for breakfast.
Milkshakes are not something which I have very often. They are usually really high in fat and calories, and to be honest you can pay a lot for one in a restaurant . . . I wasn't ever sure either about making them at home. Would my old blender be up to the job? Would I end up with anything even remotely resembling a milkshake? I had my serious doubts.
I am trying to eat healthier lately and so I decided that I would just throw some frozen berries into the Optimum 9400 along with some milk and a bit of honey, plus some vanilla. A milk shake has to have vanilla! I also added a bit of lemon juice to keep the colour nice and pink.
In less than two minutes I had the most delicious, creamiest milkshake I have ever eaten. No kidding! It had a beautiful thick texture.
Just look at that . . . and the taste. It was seriously delicious! I haven't enjoyed my breakfast so much in a long time and I absolutely loved the fact that I was drinking/eating something which was quite healthy and yet seemed totally luxurious!
You can be sure that now that I know it's so easy to have something this delicious in my hands at almost the blink of an eye . . . okay flick of a switch . . . I will be enjoying these tasty milkshakes a lot more in the future. I can't wait to try out some other flavours. Peach. Nectarine. Blueberry. SUMMER BERRY! OH my . . . cherry! *Slurp!* There is no end to the possibilities!
*Low Fat Strawberry Milkshakes*
Serves 2
These are delicious. Feel free to use a milk substitute for the milk in this recipe. Coconut milk is good and results in a lovely creamy milkshake. You could also use an almond or an oat milk.
Goats milk, etc.
3 cups frozen strawberries
(the unsweetened kind)
225ml milk (1 cup)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
2 TBS liquid honey
Place all of the ingredients into a blender. Plus to break up the berries, stopping to stir with a scraper or wooden spoon as needed. Blend until smooth and thick, then pour into glasses to serve.
Delicious!
This seriously felt like a luxurious treat! I love it when that happens! NO fat. NO sugar. Gluten free and very adaptable to anyone who has a milk allergy! Vegan! Win! Win! Win!
I am really loving having this new toy to play with. I am looking forward to creating a lot of new things with it, especially with the summer months coming up. I see lots of tasty fruit smoothies, salad dressings, sauces, etc. This little baby is going to get a lot of use for sure!
To find out more about this beautiful machine do check out the Froothie Homepage. To find out more about the specifications of it and just what it can do, remember it's not just a blender.
Of course if you are as impressed as I am with what I have done with this machine you can just buy one now.With a one month trial, money back guarantee which includes return postage costs from the UK, you can't lose!
To find out more about this beautiful machine do check out the Froothie Homepage. To find out more about the specifications of it and just what it can do, remember it's not just a blender.
Of course if you are as impressed as I am with what I have done with this machine you can just buy one now.With a one month trial, money back guarantee which includes return postage costs from the UK, you can't lose!
Divo Italiano recently sent me a delicious assortment of exciting new Italian Cheeses to try out. These are thorougly modern cheeses selected by Aldo Zilli specifically for the British Table. They are available in five different varieties and I could not wait to get stuck in. First out of the starting gate was a cheese that I use frequently in my kitchen . . . Italian Parmigiao Reggiano P D O Extra.
Crunchy & crumbly texture, matured for a minimum of 24 months for a sweet & salty taste. I loved it. I just adore Parmesan cheese anyways, and this was exceptional in flavour. Parmesan cheese was the one cheese I did eat outside of processed cheese when I was growing up . . . ok, so it was the stuff that came in the green cylinder from Kraft that you could keep on the shelf without refrigerating, but that was quite bold as far as I was concerned. I am happy to say that my tastes have really advanced since then! This was a lovely cheese. It was rich and crumbly and had a beautiful flavour.
I decided to use some of it in our favourite French Onion Dip.
This is a dip that comes in incredibly handy during the holidays when people are doing a lot of entertaining. Sure, you could just crack open a package of dry French Onion Soup mix, and it would taste alright . . . but trust me when I say . . . ONCE YOU TASTE THIS DIP YOU WILL NEVER SETTLE FOR A PACKAGE MIX DIP AGAIN!
Please excuse me for yelling, but I can't re-iterate enough just how gorgeous this dip is. It has all of the flavours of a good onion soup . . . sweetly caramelized onions . . . cooked slowly in butter and oil until they are golden delish . . . some spice and tang . . . sour cream . . . mayonnaise . . . and a good Parmesan cheese, which is the real star of the dip along with those beautiful onions.
The Divo Italian Parmigiano Reggiano was perfect in this dip. It was lovely and rich and in short . . . perfect. I do hope you will give it a try, and I just know you will agree with me when I say . . . this is the best!
*French Onion Dip*
Makes about 3 1/2 cups
Makes about 3 1/2 cups
(You can also use low fat creme fraiche
with no visible taste difference)
20g of good quality mayonnaise (1 cup)with no visible taste difference)
45g of finely grated Parmesan Reggiano Cheese (1/4 cup)
1 tsp caster sugar
Divo Italian Parmigiano Reggiano P.D.O. Extra Cheese:
Gold and Bronze award winner at the South West Cheese Awards 2013, this Parmigiano Reggiano P.D.O. is graded for quality twice by the Parmigiano Reggiano Consortium before it is selected by Aldo Zilli, to give it the prestigious ‘Extra’ status.
A crunchy and crumbly texture with fruity and nutty flavours, it is matured for at least 24 months from selected mountain dairies where the cattle graze on the lush high pastures and their milk gives this Parmigiano Reggiano outstanding flavour.
This delicious cheese is ideal served grated or shaved on salads, soups, or simply broken off in chunks and eaten on its own with balsamic vinegar.
To find out more about these lovely cheeses in the Divo Line click HERE.
Find the DIVO range in Morrisons and online at Ocado.
Many thanks to Divo for sending me these lovely cheeses. Look for more about the other cheeses I was sent soon!
Sometimes I like to make Todd and I an appetizer for a late supper, instead of a meal. Then supper feels like a bit of a celebration. I had made homemade melba toasts yesterday with some stale baguettes and thought it would be a shame not to have something to dip them in, and so I decided to make our favourite Artichoke Dip.
It's not much to look at, but oh baby . . . it's gorgeous and rich and so scrummy to eat! It's a dish I made often for the dinner parties I catered for when I worked at the manor.
You can add cooked shrimp or chicken to it as well, which makes it even more substantial. But we like it just as it is . . . filled with lots of artichokes and cheese . . . three kinds . . .
Mozzarella, Cream and Cheddar . . . and garlic and shallots . . . and sour cream . . . mayonnaise and Dijon mustard . . . and herbs . . .
Did I mention how scrummy it is? I can't overstate this fact. It's incredibly scrummy. Everyone will love it. Seriously. This is the bomb.
1 ounce fresh mozzarella cheese, drained and cubed
1 heaped dessertspoon of sour cream
Preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 5.
Using an electric mixer, combine the cream cheese, cheddar cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise, mustard and Worcestershire sauce until well blended. Stir in the artichoke hearts, garlic, shallot, thyme, oregano and jalapeno pepper if using. Season to taste and mix well together. Spread into a shallow baking dish. Sprinkle lightly with paprika and then bake in the heated oven for 20 to 30 minutes until golden brown. Serve hot with your desired dippers.
One of the herbs I grow in my garden is Lemon Verbena. I just adore it. I love it so much that I cannot resist brushing my fingers up and down it's stems whenever I walk past it. The smell is heavenly . . . and quite intoxicating . . . well, at least it is to me.
It lends itself beautifully to making herbal teas . . . When I worked down South, I often brewed pots of Lemon Verbena Tea for my boss on summer afternoons. It also makes lovely iced tea, or sweet tea . . .
It also lends itself to making beautifully delicious simple desserts . . . such as sorbets and puddings . . . like these delicious Lemon Verbena Custards here today . . .
Steeping the leaves in a mixture of cream, along with some finely grated lemon zest imparts a wonderful flavour to the cream . . . lemony and almost woodsy . . . quite delightful.
Delicious in their own right, but one can't help but partner them with something fruity . . . such as the last of the summer's strawberries, simply mashed with the fingers along with just a touch of caster sugar . . .
A spot of ordinary jam would go well also. It's up to you. The custard is soft and unctuously rich . . . oh so simple to make and ready in half an hour or so . . .
Of course you could just have it plain. That is good also . . .
*Lemon Verbena Custards*
Makes 6
Makes 6
Place the cream into a large saucepan along with the lemon verbena and the lemon zest. Bring to the boil and then remove from the heat and set aside to infuse for 15 to 20 minutes. Strain out the solids at the end of that time. Whisk together the egg yolks. Strain some of the cream mixture into them, whisking constantly to temper the eggs. Whisk in a bit more and then whisk the tempered mixture back into the cream. Whisk in the sugar and a pinch of salt. Taste and add more sugar if needed.
Serve warm with some summer fruits or jam.
Note: You can substitute the verbena with half a scraped vanilla pod if you wish. Or for a spicy twist you can infuse the cream with 3-4 bruised cardamom pods, a cinnamon stick, half a fresh nutmeg grated and/or 20 to 3 whole cloves.
The leftover berries were lovely with some gently warmed brioche buns . . . such a lovely breakfast and so very continental too . . .
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