Quite often by the time we get home from church on Sundays, it's far too late to cook much of a supper so we usually have something quick. I make it a habit now to cook what would normally have been our Sunday lunch on Saturday evenings, and we have leftovers for Sunday.



Some weeks we've been really busy on Saturday too, and so there are no leftovers to warm up. What to do . . . what to do . . .



You might be forgiven if you look at these as a North American and think right away, those are pancakes! Well, yes, they are very similar to pancakes, but in reality they are something known as Drop Scones, or as you get further up North . . . Scotch Pancakes.



In the olden days these would have been cooked on a solid metal griddle over an open fire. Today we are blessed to have lovely non-stick frying pans.



Blessings come in many guises. Like sweetly spiced, soft drop scones. These are particularly wonderful when you get home from church late on a Sunday afternoon and you are literally starving! Quick, easy and very, very tasty. What's a girl to do?



I decided to add a little Christmas warmth and spice to these with the grated rind of several oranges, a little mixed spice and the juice of the oranges.

They were delightful . . . especially with a bit of butter and golden syrup on top.



Sticky fingers never tasted so good . . . neither did Sundays . . . ☺





*Christmas Drop Scones*
Makes about 24
Printable Recipe

Serve these as soon as they are made with oodles of butter and golden syrup. If you can get the festive flavoured golden syrups so much the better, but really plain old golden syrup tastes just wonderful. If you do need to make these in advance, arrange them in a single layer on an ovenproof plate, cover tightly with some foil wrap and when ready re-heat in a 160*C/325*F oven for about 10 minutes.

2 large oranges
a little whole milk
6 ounces self raising flour (about 1 1/4 cups, 170g )
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp mixed spice
1 1/2 ounces golden caster sugar (3 1/2 TBS)
1 largefree range egg
oil for cooking
golden syrup and butter for serving

Grate the rind from the oranges and set aside.  Squeeze the juice and put into a measuring jug.  Add enough whole milk to measure up to 200ml. (200ml is the same as 7 fluid ounces, or 13 1/2 TBS) Set aside

Measure the flour into a bowl. Whisk together with the baking powder, mixed spice and caster sugar, combining well. Make a well in the centre of the flour and then add the egg and half of the orange juice mixture. Whisk together well to make a smooth thick batter, then wisk in enough of the remaining orange mixture to make a batter which has the consistency of thick cream.

Heat a large nonstick skillet or griddle over medium heat. Grease with a little bit of oil. Using a dessertspoon, drop spoonfuls onto the hot pan, spacing each about 2 inches apart. When bubbles appear on the surface, flip them over with a spatula and cook on the other side for about 30 seconds to one minute, until golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack and keep warm with a clean tea towel over top, while you cook the rest.

Cook the remaining batter in the same way. Serve these lovely scones warm with butter and golden syrup for spreading. Delicious!

Moving to a new country there are lots of things one has to adjust and learn to adapt to.
Things like different plugs on the ends of electrical appliances.



Smaller fridges and stoves.

Rain . . . umm . . . lots of rain . . . wet Christmas's instead of white Christmas's . . . and men wearing bowler hats and carrying umbrellas . . . waiting in queues.



Looking left instead of right before you cross the road . . . and minding the gap between the platform and the train.


Sometimes there are things that you just can't find a substitute for . . . things like A&W Rootbeer, Hot Dog relish, Sweet Mixed Pickles, Cap'n Crunch Cereal and Butterfinger chocolate bars . . . some things are just sacred and irreplaceable . . . end of.

Then there are other things that somehow the substitutes for actually end up being better than the original.



Like subbing digestive biscuits for graham crackers. Digestives are sooooo much tastier.

No, they are not square . . . they are round.




And so that means that your s'mores take on a different attitude altogether . . . well rounded, I'd say . . . but your pie crusts and cheesecake bases are . . . waaaaaay tastier! Trust me on this.




And these lovely Christmas Treats??

Outstanding.

Truly. This is a recipe one of my dad's old girlfriends gave to me about 10 years ago. Easy, quick and outrageously addictive. You can NOT eat just one . . . ever. And it wouldn't be Christmas in my house without a tin or two of them kicking around somewhere . . .



*Almond Florentine*
Makes about 24 round biscuits

It just wouldn't be Christmas without a plate of these to help us trim the tree properly. Seriously.

1 package of digestive biscuits
(alternately can use graham crackers)
8 ounces butter (Use only butter and nothing else)
170g soft light brown sugar
150g flaked almonds, toasted

Take a couple of large baking sheets with sides. Line with aluminium foil and lightly butter. Lay the digestive biscuits out in a single layer across the baking sheets.

Melt the butter over medium heat. Stir in the sugar and cook for 5 minutes, without allowing it to boil and stirring constantly. Spoon the mixture over top of the digestive biscuits. Probably about 1 dessertspoonful on each. Sprinkle with the flaked almonds.

Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/350*F. Once it is hot place the baking trays inside and bake for about 10 minutes. Turn the heat out, prop the door open and allow them so sit into the oven for 45 minutes to an hour. Store in a tightly covered container.



Know what? This stuff is even fabulous baked on to those lovely rectangular buttery Italian Crackers . . . mmmmm . . . I discovered this new addiction this afternoon . . . God help me.

Here in the UK, we have some of the finest cheeses in the world.

Cheddar immediately springs to mind of course, and if you are thinking that there is only one kind of cheddar, then you would be sadly mistaken. There are as many types of cheddars as there are areas over here, each area seemingly having taken to producing their own variety and some of them are very good indeed. I love a good farmhouse cheddar myself.



Besides Cheddar, which ranges in strength from mild to very strong, there are lovely cheeses such as Wensleydale, which comes from the Wensleydale region in the Yorkshire Dales. (We were fortunate enough to have visited the factory there a few summers back) Red Leicester, which is a beautiful orange colour and wonderfully rich and creamy. Cornish Yarg, Double Gloucester, Sage Derby, Shropshire Blue, Lancashire . . . to name but a very few.

In truth, my absolute favourite has to be Stilton . . .



Quite rightfully known as the "King" of British Cheeses, Stilton claims it's name from a village just South of Peterborough . . . Smooth and creamy, with a beautifully complex flavour, this is one of our favourite cheeses to serve here at Oak Cottage during the Christmas season, indeed during any season.



It turns up in all kinds of shapes and forms . . . tis absolutely lovely nibbled with some crispy crackers, or on a cheese tray along with some sliced apples and golden pears. Crumbled into a tasty cauliflower soup, or on top of a cauliflower cheese . . . folded into a golden Potato Gratin . . .

Oh . . . it is so very lovely in all sorts of ways, hot or cold . . .

but . . . none lovelier than this wonderfully unique nibble, which combines some purely British tastes and textures . . .



A crispy, buttery and tangy stilton flavoured shortbread base, filled with the toasted crunch of rich walnuts . . . then, topped with creamy philadelphia cheese and a tasty dollop of sweet and spicy mango chutney . . . a leftover taste from our Colonial days in India. The toasted walnut garnishing the top is the perfect capper.



You will really enjoy these. You can bake the little shortbreads well ahead of time and keep them in the freezer, warming them up and topping them with the cream cheese and chutney just prior to serving.

These are fabulous, simply fabulous. These will truly be the jewels of your Holiday Nibble Trays.



*Stilton and Walnut Shortbreads with an Indian Twist*
Makes 36
Printable Recipe

These tasty and savoury shortbreads are truly delicious even on their own, but when you marry them with the soothing creaminess of soft cheese and the tangy spicness of a good mango chutney, well, it truly is a marriage made in heaven! These are always the first to dissappear off the Hors D'oeuvres trays.

4 ounces of Stilton cheese at room temperature
3 TBS unsalted butter, at room temperature
70g plain flour
30g corn flour
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp sea salt
50g chopped walnuts
3 TBS cream cheese
3 TBS good quality mango chutney
36 small walnut halves, toasted (for garnishing)

Put the blue cheese and butter into the bowl of a food processor. Process together until creamy. Whisk the flour, corn flour, pepper and salt together in a small bowl. Add to the creamed mixture in the food processor and pulse to combine. Add the chopped walnuts and pulse just until incorporated. You still want there to be little discernable chunks of walnuts. Do NOT overprocess.

Remove the mixture from the food processor and shape into a flattened disc. Wrap well in cling film and chill in the refrigerator for at least one hour, or until firm.

Pre-heat the oven to 160*C/325*F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

Place the chilled dough on a piece of cling film. Cover with another piece of cling film. Roll the dough out to about 1/4 of an inch thick. Remove the top piece of cling film and cut into 1 inch fluted circles with a sharp cutter. Place on the prepared baking sheet. Gather the dough scraps together and press back into a disk, roll out and repeat until all the dough is used up , placing each on the baking sheet, leaving about 1/2 inch of space between each one.

Bake until lighty brown, about 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and place on wire racks to cool. You can do this much several days ahead if you wish.

When you are ready to serve them. Top each biscuit with a tsp of the creamed cheese and then an equal amount of the chutney. Finally place a toasted walnut on top of each. Serve. (Don't top with the toppings until you are ready to serve them)

One of the things I like most about the holidays, is the opportunity I have to pull out all the stops, and to create tasty little nibbles for the people we often have come around to the cottage to visit, or for the various parties we get invited out to.



I am really lucky because I work as a chef in a manor house, and so I have lots of practice making these tasty little tidbits throughout the year. I always create at least 3 or 4 different ones for each dinner party I cook for.

I like for each of them to be a work of art, and incredibly tasty.



A delicious little tidbit, that will whet everyone's appetites, and have them really racing in anticipation for the great dinner event to come.



These are one of my more popular little bites. You can fill them with sweet chili sauce as I have done here, or you can fill them with hot pepper jelly.

Or a mixture of both, as I have done here. That tasty combination of sweet, savoury and heat is really quite delicious to say the least!



Wonderful, absolutely wonderful. Kinda pretty to look at as well . . . and very cheery with the green and the red colours I have used here. Especially festive, don't you think?



First to disappear off of the nibble trays.



Every time.

Trust me.



*Sweet Chili Cheese Puffs*
Makes about 3 dozen
Printable Recipe

Short and savoury with a bit of a bite. These will be really popular on your nibble tray!

8 ounces extra strong cheddar cheese, grated
3 to 4 TBS of softened unsalted butter
145g plain flour
sweet hot chili sauce, or hot pepper jelly


Place the cheese, butter and flour in the bowl of your food processor. Pulse several times until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Once this happens, allow the motor to run for 25 to 30 seconds until the dough forms a ball around the blade. Try not to overwork the dough. Remove from the bowl and chill for about 30 minutes, wrapped in cling film.

Pre-heat the oven to 200*C/400*F.

Pinch off walnut sized balls of the chilled dough and shape into balls, about 1 inch in diameter. Place on a large parchment lined baking sheet. Bake in the pre-heated oven for 5 minutes, until the bottoms are lightly coloured, but NOT browned. Remove from the oven and immediately shape a small depression in the centre of each using the end of the handle of a large wooden spoon. Fill each depression with some chili sauce or hot pepper jelly, if using. Return to the oven and bake for an additional 5 to 7 mionutes, until golden browned on the bottoms. Cool slightly before serving.

Hot jelly and sauce can really burn, so be careful.

Stand back and await the applause.

Have I made you sick of blueberries yet? I sure hope not! They've had a good special on them in my local grocery store this week and so I just had to buy myself a couple of punnets to enjoy!

One for now . . . and one for the freezer to enjoy a bit later on in the year.



I figured that during this busy holiday season, a tasty recipe for a delicious breakfast cake would not go amiss.



Afterall . . . most of us will be hosting guests over the next few weeks, both overnight and otherwise . . . tis Christmas . . . or Hanukka, or Kwanza, or whatever . . . a great time of celebration for many . . .



and it never hurts to have something tasty up your sleeve to delight them with!



*Soured Cream Blueberry Breakfast Cake*
Serves 12
Printable Recipe

This makes a lovely breakfast treat, bringing the tasty anti-oxidant properties of blueberries to your morning. Nestled atop a tasty sour cream sponge, blueberries happily co-exist along with chopped toasted pecan meats, castor sugar and spice. A crowning icing sugar drizzle makes it complete.

For the cake:
4 ounces butter, softened
100g caster sugar
2 large eggs
8 ounces soured cream
1 tsp vanilla paste
the grated zest of one lemon
210g of plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
To top:
225g fresh or frozen blueberries
4 ounces chopped toasted pecans
2 ounces caster sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
To finish:
1 cup icing sugar, sifted
4 tsp milk



Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/350*F. Lightly grease and flour a 9 inch spring form pan. Set aside.

Cream the butter and sugar together until light and creamy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating until smooth. Beat in the sour cream, vanilla paste and lemon zest. Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Stir this into the creamed mixture, beating until smooth. Spread into the prepared pan. Sprinkle the blueberries on top along with the chopped pecans. Whisk together the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle this over top of all. Place in the heated oven and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a well risen and a wooden pick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Whisk together the icing sugar and milk until smooth. Drizzle this mixture over top of the warm cake and serve warm..

You know . . . salad just isn't for summer. It took me a long time to convince Todd of that fact . . . almost as long as it took me to convince him that salads weren't just for ladies and that they could be quite delicious and interesting, given half the chance. I don't think salads were something the British did very well actually, until recent years. In the past I think they mostly consisted of a few lettuce leaves on a plate with possibly a few anemic looking slices of tomato and some cucumber thrown on top for a bit of colour . . . no dressing much to speak of . . . but perhaps a bit of salad cream, and from a little plastic squeezeable packet, which is alright . . .

but let's face it . . . quite, quite . . . b-o-r-i-n-g.



In truth, the one thing that I love most about salads, is they are really quite versatile and can be wonderfully innovative, and really . . . as fascinating, delicious and interesting as your mind, talents and bulging larder can allow them to be. They are not boring at all once you use your imagination and decide to go with the flow! They need not even be reserved just for hot days and summer!



Kind of like potatoes really.


I mean . . . look at the humble potato. Ordinary potatoes are not really all that interesting to look at on their own . . . but let's try to look at them with an open mind . . . and put aside boring for a few minutes.

There are big ones and small ones. Smooth ones and knobbly ones. Long skinny finger shaped ones, and there are brown ones, and pink ones . . . even purple ones, and the flavours !!!

Why, the the flavour of the humble potato alone, can range anywhere from earthy and spicy (and I'm talking plain and unadulterated here, with nothing added) to sweet and nutty!! What's so bland, dull and boring about that???

Don't even get me started on the different textures . . . soft, light, fluffy and dry and everything in between all the way up to waxy, with a bit of a bite . . . and that's just for starters!!!

I think you are beginning to get the picture here. . . the potato is one of the tastiest and most versatile vegetables around . . . a virtual canvas just waiting for you to paint a picture on it with your culinary wand!



So . . . . if the humble potato can be as exciting and interesting as all that, with nothing added . . . just imagine how wonderful they can be when you start to add in a few different flavours and textures . . . when you start to up their game a bit.

It's not all that hard to do.

I mean . . . tossed with a bit of oil, garlic, salt and pepper . . . and then roasted until the edges get all golden brown and caramelized and . . . it's like . . . wow!



Now, add some herbs and a tasty mustardy vinaigrette, along with some chopped onion and some crispy baby spinach leaves . . .

It's like . . . DOUBLE wow!

But . . . why stop there. Let's throw in some crispy smoked bacon, and call it a warm salad!!!!

Well . . . we just died and went to heaven . . .

right???

So what are you waiting for?



*Warm Roasted Potato Salad*
Serves 6
Printable Recipe

Crisp roasted potato chunks combined with a tangy basil and lemon vinaigrette dressing make for a very tasty winter salad!!

For the potatoes:
1kg of rooster potatoes, washed, dried and cut into chunks
1 TBS oil
sea salt and cracked black pepper

For the dressing:
the juice of one large lemon
2 heaped TBS of finely chopped fresh basil leaves
1 TBS Dijon mustard
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
5 ounces extra virgin olive oil

for the salad:
1 small red onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 bag of baby salad spinach, stems trimmed and discarded
1 200g package of dry cure smoked bacon lardons

Pre-heat the oven to 205*C/425*F. Place the potatoes onto a roasting pan. Toss with the oil, salt and pepper. Roast, stirring occasionally, for 20 to 25 minutes, or until they are tender and golden brown. Keep warm.

Cook the bacon lardons in a hot skillet until they are crispy. Set aside and keep warm.

Whisk together the lemon juice, basil, dijon mustard, salt and black pepper. Slowly whisk in the olive oil in a steady stream until completely amalgamated. Stir in the basil.

Wash and dry the spinach leaves. Trim and discard any stems. Place in a large shallow salad bowl. Toss the warm potatoes with the onion and about 4 ounces of the salad vinaigrette. Drizzle the remaining vinaigrette over the spinach leaves, and then top with the potato mixture. Sprinkle the bacon lardons over top and serve immediately.

Buttermilk is one of my favourite ingredients to bake with. Cakes, muffins, breads . . . all benefit greatly from the addition of buttermilk, with moist and delicious results.

Some people like to drink buttermilk. It's known to have some great benefits and can immunize against such toxins as poison oak and ivy . . .

Who knew???



Buttermilk pancakes and biscuits are fabulous, and not to be outdone by any other kinds.

Soaking chicken in buttermilk before frying is a well known southern trick in the US. Buttermilk fried chicken is supposed to be incredibly delicious.



I'd like to stand up and be counted here . . . chicken baked in buttermilk is mighty fine as well! This is a real winner.



Trust me. (Sometimes even I cheat and use tinned soup. Don't hate me for it . . . this is incredibly easy, in-expensive and delicious. Win . . . Win . . . Win.)




*Buttermilk Chicken*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

I'm not sure how it works, but the buttermilk in this recipe helps to create chicken that is moist and very tender. This is delicious!

2 ounces butter
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder
2 heaped TBS of plain flour
2 284ml containers of buttermilk
1 (285g) tin of Batchelors condensed cream of mushroom soup
chopped fresh flat leaf parsley to garnish

Pre-heat the oven to 205*C/425*F. Melt the butter in a 13 by 9 inch shallow baking dish. Set aside.

Sprinkle the chicken breasts on both sides with the salt, pepper and garlic powder. Place the flour in a shallow bowl and one container of the buttermilk in another shallow bowl.

Dip the breasts, one at a time, first into the buttermilk and then into the flour, shaking off any excess, but coating it well. Lay good side down in the melted butter in the baking dish. Repeat until all four have been coated.

Bake in the pre-heated oven for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and flip over. Return to the oven and bake for 10 minutes longer.

While the chicken is baking whisk together the other container of buttermilk and the undiluted mushroom soup.

Remove the chicken from the oven and pour the soup mixture over top. Return to the oven and bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes, until nicely browned. Remove the chicken pieces to four warmed plates. Stir the soup mixture in the pan and then spoon equally over top of the chicken pieces. Serve immediately with some parsley sprinkled over each.

Desperate times call for desperate measures . . .

Yes, I've spent most of the afternoon packing up pressies to pop into the post tomorrow for Christmas overseas . . . (I hope that they get there in time . . . please pretty please, fingers crossed!)



Not to mention the oodles and oodles of Christmas Cards that needed to be handwritten and addressed.



I fear I have writer's cramp and dead head now . . . I fear my penmanships is deteriorating actually into an illegible scrawl . . . dare I blame too much typing on the computer instead of wrestling with a pen??? Every year I swear that I am going to get it all done nice and early . . .
and every year, it ends up being the last minute. I am such a procrastinator! Bad me.



After the penmanship workout I just had, I need sustenance . . .

I need a tasty steak, oh and a baked potato and salad. T'would do very nicely I think.

I already told you how to cook the perfect steak . . . HERE.



Now here's a recipe for a tasty sauce to go with it. Oh, you just can't beat grilling a delicious steak for your supper. mmm . . . it's the best!

(My brain cells are too fried to be witty today . . . just like the steak . . . fried to perfection?)



*Steak with Bearnaise Sauce*
Serves 2
Printable Recipe

This is one of our favourite special dinners. You just can't beat a nice steak with a tasty sauce. mmm...mmm...good!

2 x 200g/7oz sirloin steaks, at room temperature
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Worcestershire Sauce
1 tbsp butter

For the Bearnaise sauce:
250g/8¾oz butter
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp tarragon vinegar
2 egg yolks
splash of water
1 tbsp fresh tarragon, roughly chopped
1 tbsp fresh flatleaf parsley, finely chopped

First make the sauce. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Place the lemon juice and vinegar into a small dish and bring to the boil in the microwave by blitzing on high for about 1 minute depending on the strength of your microwave. Whisk this into the hot butter. Place the egg yolks and the water in an electric blender or in the cup of your stick blender. Blend the ingredients together, slowly adding the hot butter to the mixture, a little at a time. Continue to blend until the sauce thickens. Stir in the tarragon and the parsley.

Sprinkle the steaks with the salt, pepper and some Worcestershire sauce, patting it into the steaks with your fingertips. Melt the butter in a skillet until foaming and hot. Add the steaks and cook for 2 minutes on each side for medium rare. Hold them up with the fat down on the pan with a pair of tongs for several minutes, to crisp up the fat. Remove from the heat to heated plates and serve with the bearnaise sauce.

By the way someone asked the other day what I used to substitute for alcohol in recipes. I am a Mormon as you know and we don't really do alcohol. Often, if it is a sweet dish or dessert where the alcohol is not heated or cooked, I will use fruit juice. Apple, pear, pineapple etc. In a savoury dish Isometimes use fruit juice as well. Apple juice goes particularly well with pork as does most citrus juices. Also, to counter balance the sweetness, I will add a bit of balsamic vinegar . . . red for meat dishes and white for poultry and fish. Sometimes I just go ahead and add the wine, be it red or white, because the alcohol cooks out right? (Don't burst my bubble if it doesn't. I don't want to know. In this case ignorance is bliss.)