I can remember when I discovered Miss Debbie's Oatmeal Cream Pies.  Oh boy were they some good.  It was in an American Grocery store and it was love at first bite.  Two delicious flattish oatmeal cookies with a layer of marshmallow cream sandwiched in the centre.   *slurp*  I also liked their Star Crunch Cakes.  I think most of them are available in Canada now, but when I first discovered them they were exotic to me!

So here you are. It's boxing day and you have a whole fridge filled with leftovers. What to do . . . what to do . . .

I thought I would give you some tasty ideas this morning to help you use up some of those scrummy leftovers. Of course you could just have a reheat of the leftovers, but it's also nice to dress them up in a few different ways too!

Ham Leftovers:



We like to have ham, cut into thick slices and fried in butter along side of our fried eggs for a special boxing day breakfast. Just melt some butter and add the ham once it begins to sizzle. Cook until it begins to get crisp on the edges, flip over and repeat on the other side.

You can chop it up and add it to your favourite macaroni and cheese recipe, or to a pan of scallopped potatoes.

Combine it with some of the leftover turkey, and some of that Stilton in a tasty salad!

 

*Ham and Mac Bake*
Serves 4 to 6
Printable Recipe

This is a wonderful casserole that is not only very tasty, but also very easy on the budget as well. My children always loved it when they were growing up and it was something different to do with the ham that was leftover from Easter. I often buy a slap of ham at the shops so that I can make this as well.

1/2 pound of macaroni (1 2/3 cups)
1/4 cup butter (2 ounces)
1/4 cup flour (1.5 ounces)
2 TBS Dijon mustard
salt to taste
1/4 tsp pepper
2 cups milk (5ooml)
2 TBS soft light brown sugar, packed
2 cups cubed, fully cooked ham (about half a pound)
2 medium eating apples, peeled and thinly sliced (about 2 cups)
1 cup soft bread crumbs (about 1 1/4 slices)
2 TBS butter melted

Cook the macaroni in lightly salted boiling water until done, according to the packet directions. Drain well, rinse with cold water and drain again. Set aside until needed.

Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ Gas mark 4. Melt the 1/4 cup of butter in a saucepan. Whisk in the flour and cook, stirring, for one minute over low heat. Blend in the mustard, salt, pepper and sugar. In the meantime bring the milk just to the boil. (Just until bubbles appear around the edges) Slowly whisk the heated milk into the flour mixture, cooking and stirring it until thickened, smooth and bubbly. Stir in the cooked macaroni, ham and apple slices. Turn into a greased 2 litre casserole dish.

Toss the bread crumbs with the 2 TBS butter and sprinkle evenly over top of the casserole. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until bubbly and lightly browned on top.




*Boxing Day Salad*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

100g bag of baby leaf salad greens (about 4 cups)
1 head of red chicory
1 TBS extra virgin olive oil
100g of cooked turkey (1/4 pound)
100g of cooked ham (1/4 pound)
50g chopped toasted walnut pieces (1/4 cup)
2 ounces stilton cheese, crumbled
4 TBS reduced fat caesar salad dressing

Place the salad greens in a large shallow bowl. Break up the red chicory leaves and toss into the bowl. Drizzle with the olive oil Tear the turkey and ham into bits with two forks. combine in a bowl along with the walnut pieces and stilton cheese. Add the salad dressing and mix to combine. Pile this mixture on top of the salad leaves and serve.

It's delicious chopped and mixed with grated cheese and then stuffed into a nice big fluffy baked potato.

Turkey Leftovers:



Of course you can have a plain old turkey sandwich, but why not dress it up a bit and serve it open faced on a rustic piece of bread, topped with some leftover cranberry sauce, some of the leftover stuffing heated and crumbled on top of the cranberry, then the heated sliced turkey and some heated leftover gravy ladled over top. Delicious with a few sliced pickles and some potato crisps on the side!

My mom always made Turkey Pot pies, or Beef Pot pies. We loved them! You can follow the roughly outlined recipe below, which is only a rough guideline of what to do. You can adapt it to whatever it is you have in your fridge. If you are using beef, then use the leftover beef gravy of course!



*Turkey Pot Pie*
Serves 4 to 6
Printable Recipe

2 mugs full of leftover turkey, chopped
2 mugs full of leftover cooked vegetables, chopped
(peas, carrots, corn) If you haven't got any, then you can
use 2 mugs of frozen mixed vegetables, thawed
a handful of roasted potatoes, chopped
1 mug full of leftover turkey gravy
1 mug full of milk
1 small onion, peeled and chopped
1 tsp summer savoury
salt and black pepper to taste
Pastry to cover
milk and beaten egg yolk

Mix together all the ingredients except for the pastry in a large bowl, seasoning to taste with salt and black pepper. Spread into a large round, or oval shallow casserole dish. Roll out your pastry to cover and place over top, venting to allow steam to escape. Brush with a bit of milk and beaten egg yolk. Bake for about 35 to 40 minutes in an oven which has been preheated to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6. Serve warm.

I think one of the most popular things to do over here in the UK with the leftover turkey is to make a Turkey Curry, but how about Coronation Turkey Salad! Yummo!!

*Coronation Turkey*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

1/2 onion, peeled and chopped
1 clove of garlic, peeled and minced
1/2 TBS vegetable oil
1 TBS curry powder
1/2 tsp each ground cumin, ground coriander and ground turmeric
125ml of coconut milk (1/2 cup)
125ml of chicken stock (1/2 cup)
200g of mayonnaise (about 1 cup)
425g of leftover turkey (1 pound)
2 TBS dessicated coconut, toasted in a dry pan until golden brown, then cooled
fresh coriander leaves to garnisn (optional)

Fry the onion and garlic in the oil, until lightly browned. Mix in the spices and let them sizzle for about a minute. Add the coconut milk and chicken stock. Let simmer for about 20 minutes over low heat until the mixture has reduced and you have a thick, creamy, spicy onion mixture in the pan. Allow to cool completely. Whisk in the mayonnaise. Cut the leftover turkey into cubes and place in a large bowl. Pour the curry mayonnaise over top and toss to mix. Sprinkle with the toasted coconut, and garnish with a few torn coriander leaves.

Serve with warmed Chapattis, sliced tomatoes, sliced onion and torn lettuce. 

This recipe below calls for leftover cooked chicken and stuffing, but it is equally as good with leftover turkey!

 


*Chicken and Stuffing Pie*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

This may not look like much, but this is absolutly delicious!

2 celery ribs, trimmed and chopped
1 small onion, peeled and chopped
2 TBS butter
8 ounces stuffing crumbs, or crushed croutons (2 cups)
1/2 tsp rubbed sage
1/4 tsp thyme
1/4 tsp marjoram
pinch ground nutmeg
1 TBS parsley flakes
salt and black pepper to taste
1 large free range egg, beaten
375ml of warm chicken broth (1 1/2 cups)
2 cups of chopped cooked chicken
To serve:
Creamed peas and carrots (optional)

Melt the butter in a frying pan. Add the onion and celery. Saute without colouring until soft, stirring frequently. Set aside to cool.

Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Butter a 9 inch pie dish. Set aside.

Tip the bread crumbs into a bowl along with the sage, thyme, marjoram, nutmeg and parsley flakes. Mix together well. Stir in the broth, beaten egg and sauteed vegetables. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in the chicken. Mix well. Spread this mixture into the buttered pie dish.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until set and lightly browned.

Serve cut into wedges along with some creamed peas and carrots spooned over top if desired. A tossed salad goes very well with this.

 


*Creamed Peas and Carrots*
Serves 4
Printable recipe

Delicous served over crackers, biscuits, toast, fish cakes or my tasty Chicken Stuffing Pie.

2 TBS butter
2 TBS plain flour
1 pint of milk
salt and pepper to taste
cooked peas and carrots to taste
(I like a larger ratio of sauce to veg, but some people like more veg than sauce)

Melt the butter in a saucepan. Whisk in the flour. Slowly whisk in the milk. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly until thickened. Reduce the heat to low and allow to simmer for about five minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in the vegetables and heat through.



Deliciously different Barbequed Turkey Pizza, with a tangy barbeque cranberry sauced base!  





*Barbequed Turkey Pizza*
Makes 1 (12 inch) pizza
Printable Recipe

A delicious pizza that is perfect for using up some more of that leftover Christmas Turkey!


For the dough:
250ml warm water ( 1 cup)
2 TBS olive oil
1 TBS sugar
1 tsp salt
2 tsp active dry yeast
13 ounced white bread flour ( 3 cups)

For the caramelized onions:
2 red onions, peeled and thinly sliced
a glug of olive oil
seasalt and freshly ground black pepper
1 TBS balsamic vinegar

For the sauce:
4 fluid ounces of barbeque sauce
a dessertspoon of whole berry cranberry sauce

To Top:
8 ounces cubed cooked turkey breast (1/2 pound)
8 ounces mixed grated cheeses (mozzarella, gouda and cheddar)
2 ounces freshly grated Parmesan cheese



Put the dough ingredients into your automatic breadmaker according to the directions for your particular breadmaker, following the dough cycle. In the meantime heat a bit of oil in a frying pan. Add the onions. Cook and stir over medium heat until they begin to wilt. Add some seasoning and the balsamic vinegar. Turn the heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally until golden and caramelized. Set aside to cool.

Once the dough cycle has completed on your machine, remove the dogh and punch down. Let rest for 10 minutes. Roll the dough out to fit into your pizza pan leaving a bit of an overhang. Butter the pan with some white vegetable shortening. Sprinkle with some fine polenta or cornmeal if desired. Place the crust in the pan, and fold the edge over to make a lip. Stir together the barbecue sauce and cranberry sauce. Spread over the top of the crust. Top with the caramelized onions and chopped turkey breast. Sprinkle with the cheeses and Parmesan.

Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 5. Bake the pizza on the bottom rack of the oven for about 15 minutes, then move it to the top rack and bake for 10 to 15 minutes longer until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbling. remove from the oven and allow to rest for about 10 minutes before cutting into wedges to serve.

Optional Topping additions:
Slivered green peppers
sweetcorn kernels
sliced mushrooms
chopped roasted green chillies

Leftover Roast Beef??  

A tasty Cottage Pie with a Potato and Parsnip Mash Topping fits the bill perfectly!  




*Cottage Pie with Potato and Parsnip Mash Topping*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

This is a delicious way of using up some of the leftovers from your Sunday Lunch. You can make this with fresh ground beef of course, but we love it made with chopped leftover roast beef. I also like to use any leftover cooked vegetables in the filling as well. Usually it's just peas and carrots, but sometimes there is some swede as well. Just make sure you chop your cooked carrots and or swede into roughly the same size as the peas. French beans chopped are also nice. You can use leftover gravy if you wish, but I normally don't have any leftover so have made my own sauce.

2 large baking potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
3 large parsnips, peeled and cut into coins
1 spring of thyme
a knob of butter and a splash of milk
salt and pepper to taste
For the filling:
2 cups chopped leftover cooked roast beef
1 cup leftover cooked vegetables, chopped into small bits
2 medium onion, peeled and chopped
1 clove of garlic, peeled and crushed
2 TBS plain flour
4 cups boiling water
3 to 4 beef bouillion cubes
1 tsp worcestershire sauce
1 heaped dessert spoon of tomato ketchup
1 TBS horseradish sauce
Salt and black pepper to taste



Place the potatoes, parsnips and thyme into a saucepan of slightly salted water. Bring to the boil. Cook until the potatoes are soft, then drain well, discarding the stem from the thyme. Mash well, adding a knob of butter and some milk. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Place the leftover roast and onions in a large skillet, with any beef drippings that you may have. If not you may need to use a bit of oil. Cook and stir until the onions are softened. Stir in the garlic and cook for a further minute or so until fragrant. Sprinkle with the flour and stir it in. Stir in the boiling water until the sauce thickens. Crumble the bouillion cubes in, stirring until they are completely melted. You may need the full 4 depending on how much of a beefy flavour you want. Stir in the worcestershire sauce, ketchup and horseradish sauce. Mix all in well. Season to taste with some salt and pepper. Pour this mixture into a shallow baking dish.

Spoon the parsnip mash over top in a rustic manner.

Bang into a pre-heated 200*C/400*F oven and bake until the filling is bubbling and the mash is beginning to brown. Remove from the oven and allow to sit for 5 minutes or so before serving. Delicious!





Leftover Vegetables:

We can't be forgetting the leftover Christmas Veg!! I know we all buy in far more than we need, and then end up with it hanging about the fridge. Here's a few different recipes for some dishes using some of that leftover veg so it doesn't get all wilted and go to waste!

*Spicy Parsnip and Sprout Hash*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

800g of parsnips, peeled and chopped into chunks (1 1/2 pounds)
300g of brussels sprouts, peeled and finely shredded (1/2 pound)
a large handful of frozen peas
the juice of 1/2 lemon
50g of butter (1/4 cup)
1 TBS cumin seeds
1 TBS garam masala
1 red chili, deseeded and chopped
1 bunch of coriander, chopped (reserve a few leaves to garnish)
salt

Place the parsnips in a pan of cold water to cover. Add a pinch of turmeric and salt and bring to the boil. cook for 12 minutes. While the parsnips are cooking, blanch the sprouts in another pan of boiling water for about 3 minutes, until tender, adding the peas for the final minute. Drain all the vegetables well. Tip the drained parsnips back into the pan along with the lemon juice and half the butter. Mash roughly. Beat in the cooked sprouts, peas, cumin, garam masala, chili and coriander. Season to taste with some salt.

Heat the remaining butter in a medium sized non-stick skillet. When it begins to sizzle, tip in the parsnip mixture, pressing it down to form a flat cake. Cook, until it is browned underneat. Turn over carefully with a fish slice. (It may break up but that's ok) Continue cooking until crisp on this side as well. Keep flipping and turning until you have a nicely crisped cake. Slice out onto a heated plate. Garnish with the coriander leaves. Cut into wedges to serve.

*Roast Vegetables with Stilton and Chestnuts*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

3 TBS French Walnut oil
4 large parsnips, peeled and quartered lengthwise
4 large red potatoes, peeled and cut lengthwise into 6 wedges
4 large carrots, peeled and halved lengthwise
2 large onions, peeled and cut into wedges
200g pack of peeled and ready to use chestnuts (1 cup)
(roughly chop)
the juice of one lime
sea sald and freshly ground black pepper
200g Creamy Blue Stilton cheese, crumbled (1/4 pound)

Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark6. Place 2 TBS of the oil in a large roasting tin and heat in the oven for 5 minutes. Toss iin the prepared vegetables, giving them a stir to coat with the oil. Roast for one hour until tender, turning occasionally.Mix in the chopped chestnuts and cook for a further 10 minutes. Whisk together the lime juice, remaining TBS of oil and a bit of seasoning. Divide the roasted vegetables between 4 heated serving plates. Scatter with the crumbled stilton and drizzle with the lime dressing. Serve immediately.


Leftover mincemeat and cranberries??? 

 Why not a delicious Spicy Cranberry, Mincemeat and Almond Eve's Pudding!



Spicy Cranberry, Mincemeat and Almond Eve's Pudding*
Serves 4 to 6 depending on appetites
Printable Recipe

The perfect way to use up that half eaten jar of mincemeat lanquishing in the back of your refrigerator!

1 large cooking apple, peeled, cored and chopped
2 TBS water
200g of mincemeat (a generous cup)
100g of cranberries, frozen or fresh (1 cup)
100g of butter (7/8 cup)
100g of golden caster sugar (1/2 cup)
2 large eggs, beaten
75g of self raising flour (2/3 cup)
25g of ground almonds (1/3 cup)
a small handful of flaked toasted almonds

Cream to serve

Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Have ready a shallow 11 by 7 baking dish. Set aside.

Place the apple in a pot with the water. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a low simmer, cover and cook for about 5 minutes until softened. Stir in the mincemeat and cranberries. Pour into the baking dish, leveling out.

Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Sift in the flour and stir in along with the almonds. Spread this mixture over top of the fruit in the baking dish. Level off and then sprinkle with the flaked almonds.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the topping is well risen and golden brown, and the fruit is bubbling beneath. Allow to cool for 10 to 15 minutes then, serve warm with some pouring cream. Delicious!

Leftover Christmas Pudding?

 How about a Christmas Pudding Trifle!



*Christmas Pudding Trifle*
Serves 6
Printable Recipe

A delicious trifle which consists of a lovely rich custard baked over top of some crumbled Christmas pudding until wobbly. Chilled and then covered with amaretti biscuits, brandy cream, flaked almonds and silver balls, this is probably one of the nicest trifles I've ever eaten . . .

300ml of milk (1 1/4 cups)
200ml of double cream (3/4 cup whipping cream)
freshly grated nutmeg
6 large free range egg yolks
70g caster sugar (about 1/3 cup)
Leftover Christmas pudding (It's up to you how much)
12 crisp amaretti biscuits
150ml of double cream (about 2/3 cup), whipped lightly with a dash of brandy
1 TBS Toasted Flaked almonds
Silver balls

Preheat the oven to 110*C/225*F/ gas mark 1/4. Place 6 200ml containers on a baking tray. Crumble some Christmas Pudding into the bottom of each. You can use as much as you want. I crumbled about 1 TBS of the stuff into each container, so that it was about 1/2 inch deep. Set aside.

Heat the milk and double cream together, along with a grating of nutmeg, just to the boil. Whisk the egg yolks and sugar together until pale. Whisk in the heated milk mixture, whisking constantly. Strain this mixture into the prepared pots, dividing it equally amongst them. Grate a little more nutmeg on top. Bake in the heatred oven for 30 to 40 minutes, just until set. The centre should still have a slight wobble. Remove from the oven. Cool to room temperature and then chill in the refrigerator for a couple of hours.

Just before serving, whip the cream softly along with a dash of brandy, or brandy flavouring. Crumble 2 amaretti biscuits over top of each pudding, then top with some whipped brandy cream. Sprinkle some toasted almonds and silver balls over top of each and serve.

I know that all of my North American friends are cooking their Thanksgiving turkey's today.  I am also cooking a turkey Thanksgiving Dinner this year.   Tomorrow our fridges will be filled with all of the leftovers and we will be scratching our heads and trying to come up with new and interesting things to do with them.  Here are some tasty ideas this morning to help you use up some of those scrummy leftovers. Of course you could just have a reheat of the leftovers, but it's also nice to dress them up in a few different ways too!

You Brits and Canucks might want to bookmark this page as Christmas is less than a month away and you 'll be wanting to figure out what to do with your Christmas Turkey leftovers then!

 

One of the things I like most about being sent different things to try, is the challenge of creating new recipes in order to use them.  I was recently sent two new mustards from The English Provender Co. to try out.  We love mustard in this house, and I especially love grainy mustards. More about my recipe a bit later on, but first . . . let's talk mustard!

Sunday lunch/dinner is a huge tradition over here in the UK . . .  with roast dinners and all the trimmings.  In fact in most pubs on a Sunday you can't order off the menu.  It's roast dinner or nothing.  Mind you, most give you a choice or beef, pork, lamb or turkey, so it's not that bad really.   We don't eat out on Sundays and we never have a roast dinner at home.  We spend half of the day in church and to be honest  . . . when I get home I can't be asked to cook a big roast dinner then.

(The kitchen in my doll house)

Moving onto the second part of my collection of  recipes which you should know by heart.  I know that a lot of us already know these things off by heart and indeed have our own ways of doing most things, but the beginning cook might not know these things and I felt this could be an invaluable resource for them.  

Whilst may of us older guys and gals probably learned these things from our mum's and grandmum's  . . .  the art of cooking from scratch seems to be disappearing these days.   People do rely a lot on convenience foods.  Heck you can even buy frozen mashed potatoes today, which is surely a lot better tasting than dried potato flakes . . .  but when mashed potatoes are so easy to make . . .  why not make your own.   

I know . . . for the working mum, frozen might be more convenient and I can't say that I blame them for using them . . .  but if you are so inclined and have the time to want to do things from scratch, these are the recipes you should know by heart.  You can find Part one  here.



There is nothing nicer on a plate then a perfect pile of soft, creamy and fluffy mashed potatoes. They go so well with many dishes and are the perfect holder to cradle lashings of delicious gravy.

They are not as hard to make as some people would suppose. Simple and straightforward, as long as you follow a few simple rules.

• use the proper potato. You want a floury type of potato, that is to say one that breaks down well once cooked. You do not want a waxy type of potato, or one that holds it's shape well when cooked. Some great examples of floury potatoes are Maris Piper, Estima, King Edward or Desiree (In North America use a Russet, Idaho or baking potato)
• Do not make the mistake of not cooking the potatoes long enough. Better to err on the side of overcooking than undercooking. You cannot mash a hard lump no matter how hard you try!
• Never add cold butter or milk to cooked potatoes. Always use room temperature or melted butter and gently warmed milk or cream
• Add any liquid to the cooked potatoes slowly. Some days you may need more, some days you may need less. How much can only be determined by adding it slowly.  

 

*Perfect Mashed Potatoes*
Serves 4 to 6
Printable Recipe

Simple and perfect!

2 pounds of large floury potatoes (In the UK a Maris Piper is ideal, in North America
I would use a russet or idaho)
4 ounces unsalted butter (1/2 cup, or one stick)
4 fluid ounces of single cream or full fat milk (1/2 cup) gently warmed
fine seasalt, freshly ground pepper and freshly grated nutmeg

Peel and quarter the potatoes then place the potatoes into a pot of lightly salted water to cover.  Bring to the boil and cook for 20 to 25 minutes until fork tender.  Drain well in a colander and then return them to the hot pot.  Cover with the lid and give them a good shake, which will help to break them up.  Add the butter and warmed cream or milk, adding the latter a little at a time, whilst mashing the potatoes, only adding as much as is needed to give you the correct consistency.  Season to taste with salt, pepper and nutmeg.  The potatoes should be light, fluffy, creamy and  ready to eat.

Note - I often use my electric handwhisk to mash the potatoes.  This helps to insure a smooth mixture without lumps.  I also have a potato ricer, which does a fabulous lump free job. 

Cream Sauce, or  Bechamel (which is the French name for basically the same thing) is the most basic of sauces and the basis for many other sauces such as  cheese sauce, mornay sauce, lemon sauce etc.   Once you have mastered a good cream sauce you are free to explore the many other options available.  I often make it and add cooked baby peas to it and serve it ladled over cooked fish.   It's the basis for macaroni and cheese, and many other delicious dishes, and very easy to make.  These are the quantities for one cup of sauce, to make more just multiply the ingedients.  I normally would not more than double it.

Mornay Sauce - Add 2 TBS of grated Parmesan Cheese and 2 TBS of grated Swiss cheese during the last two minutes of cooking.  Stur until blended.  Just before removing from the heat, beat 2 TBS of the sauce into 1 lightly beaten egg yolk.  Stir the yolk/sauce mixture back into the sauce and add 2 TBS butter.    Continue to cook, stirring, for one minute longer.



There is nothing nicer than a nice plate of warm biscuits,  North American Style (similar to scones) resh from the oven and just waiting for you to spread them with a pat of cold butter and a drizzle of honey.   

These are one of the most basic of the quick breads and I have never known anyone to turn a well made biscuit down.   The important thing to remember about biscuits is to use a light touch with them.   Over working them toughens them.   

Pat them out gently and cut them out with a sharp cutter, using a very sharp quick straight up and down motion and your biscuits will always be perfect!




*Baking Powder Biscuits*
Makes 16
Printable Recipe


Golden brown and crusty outside, meltingly tender inside.

2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
4 tsp baking powder
1 TBS sugar
1/2 cup vegetable shortening
2/3 cup of  milk


Preheat the oven to 220*C/425*F/ gas mark 6.  Grease two 8 inch cake tins. Set aside.

Whisk the flour, salt, baking powder and sugar together in a bowl.  Drop in the shortening and cut it into the flour mixture with two knives or a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  Add the milk all at once and stur just until the dough forms a ball around the fork.  Turn out onto a lightly floured board and knead about 14 times.  Pat out to 1/2 inch thickness.  Stamp out rounds with a 2 inch biscuit cutter, giving it a sharp tap straight down and up again.  Do not twist.  Place touching each other in the cake pans and bake for 15 to 20 minutes.

If you like biscuits with crusty edges all around, place them 1 inch apart on a baking sheet to bake instead.

Blueberry pancakes - Add a handful of fresh berries to the batter.



There is no more welcome or finer dessert cake than the traditional sponge cake, or Victoria Sponge as it is lovingly called over here in the UK.  It needs no more adornment than a dusting over the top with some confectioner's/Icing sugar and a filling of butter cream and jam.  Using equal amounts of butter, sugar, eggs and flour, it is the simplest of cakes, and yet also the tastiest.

 


*Traditional Victoria Sandwich Cake*
 Makes one 7 inch cake
Printable Recipe  


Popular during the reign of Queen Victoria, this cake remains popular to this day, which is a huge testament to it's taste and ease of baking!  Don't be tempted to use all butter.  This is one recipe that is better for the use of a mixture of butter and margarine.

3 ounces of butter, softened (6 TBS)
3 ounces soft margarine (6 TBS)
6 ounces caster sugar (1 cup)
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
3 large eggs, beaten
6 ounces self raising flour (a scant 1 1/2 cups)

To finish:
3 TBS raspberry jam
buttercream to fill (optional)
icing sugar or caster sugar to dust the top


Butter and base line two 7 inch sandwich tins.  Set aside.  Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4.

Cream the butter, margarine, sugar and vanilla together until light in colour and fluffy.  Gradually beat in the eggs, a little at a time, beating well after each addition.  If the mixture begins to curdle, add a spoonful of the flour.

Fold in the flour with a metal spoon, taking care to use a cutting motion so as not to knock out too much of the air that you have beaten into the batter.  Divide the batter evenly between the two cake tins, leveling off the surface.  Make a slight dip in the centre of each.

Bake on a centre rack of the oven for about 25 minutes, or until the sponges have risen well, are golden brown, and spring back when lightly touched.  Allow to cool in the pan for five minutes before running a knife carefully around the edges and turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Once cooled, place one layer on a cake plate. Spread with raspberry jam and buttercream (if using).  Place the other cake on top, pressing down lightly.  Dust with icing or caster sugar and serve.


I will be back tomorrow with a new and fresh recipe.  I hope you have enjoyed these tried and true recipes and that you have found them useful.  It's a start at any rate!

I can still remember the first time I tasted French Onion Soup.  It was 1974 and I was attending Acadia University with my then husband.  We had a friend named Geoff and he had a girlfriend named Julia who was from Quebec City and who loved to cook.  She had a fancy dinner party one night for the four of us,  and the first course she served was French Onion Soup.  I couldn't tell you what anything else was that she served, but the French Onion Soup bowled me over completely.  (No pun intended!)

Don't think I'm getting all hoity toity on you now . . .  this really is just a glorified open faced tuna sarnie!   But Tartine sounds very special doesn't it?  Okay so maybe it is a bit hoity toity . . .  but sometimes it's okay to expand your horizons a tad.  That's my story anyways and yes, I'm sticking to it!

One thing I have always been fond of is tinned salmon and tuna, not so much other tinned fishes myself, but the Toddster really loves Sardines and Mackerel.   I was really pleased recently to receive a fabulous Bumper Pack  from the people at John West containing a lovely variety of their newest products.  I used some of them to make these lovely Salmon Melt Sliders,  the recipe of which I will share with you today, but first  . . . a little  bit about what was in this truly fab hamper!

John West offer a range of succulent fish products soaked in different flavours including tuna, salmon, mackerel, sardines and crab amongst others. We’re also excited to introduce our season and stir; tender chunks of fish with a flavour to add taste to your dish as well as our brand new steam pots. These are the perfect lunchtime snack for work or home.

I think most of the schools here in the UK are back in session today, with possibly a very few exceptions.  They went back to school in Scotland last week.   The summer seems to have passed by very quickly.  It seems it no sooner started and it is now ending . . .  sigh . . .

 



One of the most popular series on British Television over these last few years has to be the Great British Bake Off. Running over a number of weeks, it takes a group of ordinary baking enthusiasts through a series of baking challenge.  It is the ultimate Bake Off Battle.  Each week the bakers tackle a different baking skill, which become progressively more difficult as the competition unfolds.  As the shows go on, bakers are eliminated with one finalist being crowned the winner at the very end.   It is compelling viewing to say the least, especially if you like baking!  (And who doesn't!)

 

I have to admit, that of all the sandwiches out there, and all the sandwiches I have eaten in my lifetime, my favourite has to be the good old fashioned Cheese Toastie, or Grilled Cheese as it is also called.  Over here they call sandwiches sarnies in some places.  Or Baps . . . 

Bap. Sarnie.  Toastie.   Sandwich.  Truth be told no matter what they are called this carb loving heart of mine just adores them whatever they be called, and the grilled cheese is my most favourite-est indulgence of all!