Remember this picture from last year??? Yep! It's that time of the year again, the Toddster's Birthday! He is like a good cheddar that just gets better and better with age. He is 73 years young today and doesn't look a day over 63, seriously! It must be all that TLC I give him!

Last year I baked him a delicious Buttermilk Spice cake, which he truly enjoyed, but that really isn't his favourite cake.



Every year I ask him what kind of cake he would like and he always says fruit cake, and so I have fruit soaking in some brandy at the moment so that I can make him one of those, but I also made him his second favourite of all cakes, a Cherry Almond Cake.




It's a delicious family type of cake . . . a teatime cake . . . a buttery rich cake that is chock full of candied cherries and almonds . . . with a scrummy ribbon of marzipan running through the middle of it.



Oh, this cake is just perfect for celebrations of any kind . . . wonderful for tea parties . . . luncheons . . . and birthdays. (Well, if you're a Todd at any rate. I'd still pimp for a chocolate fudge cake myself.)



It's a great cake though and everyone who shares a piece of it loves it. It's not as pretty as a traditional type of birthday cake, but it's what the Toddster wants and so it's what the Toddster gets.



I don't know what I'll make him for supper . . . he has only one request . . . that it not be pasta.



*Cherry and Almond Cake*
Makes one 8 inch round cake
Printable Recipe

This is a delicious family/teatime type of cake. It's dense and buttery and chocker block full of delicious cherries and almonds.

8 ounces butter, at room temperature (1 cup)
8 ounces golden caster sugar (1 cup plus 2 TBS)
4 large free range eggs, beaten
8 ounces self raising flour (2 cups)
8 ounces glace cherries, chopped (1 cup)
4 ounces ground almonds (1 scant cup)
2 to 3 drops of almond extract
9 ounces marzipan (a generous 1/2 pound)
2 ounces flaked almonds (1/2 cup)
sifted icing sugar to serve (optional)

Preheat the oven to 160*C/325*F. Butter a deep 8-inch round baking tin and line the base and sides with parchment paper.

Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Pour in the eggs, a bit at a time, beating well after each addition. Fold in the flour one third at a time. Fold in the cherries, ground almonds and almond extract, mixing all in until evenly combined.

Spoon half of the batter into the prepared tin.

Roll the marzipan into a 7 1/2 inch round. Lay this on top of the batter in the tin. Spoon the remainder of the batter over top.

Smooth over the top of the cake with the back of a spoon and then sprinkle the flaked almonds evenly over top.

Bake in the preheated oven for 1 1/2 hours, covering with foil after the first hour if it appears to be getting too dark. The cake is done when it shrinks away from the sides of the tin and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

Leave to cool in the tin for 20 minutes, before turning out onto a wire rack to finish cooling completely.

Optional: Dust with icing sugar to serve



Over in the Cottage this morning there are some delicious Chicken Fried Pork Chops!

Ocado, a popular shop-from-home online grocery site here in the UK, recently partnered with Carrefour, the world’s second largest supermarket group, to sell a range of French products that it hopes will differentiate it from rival Waitrose in the online grocery market. Ocado now offers Carrefour’s “Reflets de France” range of authentic French products in the UK, alongside its current range of Waitrose and own-branded products.



When we were living down in Kent, we often hopped over to the Continent to do some shopping in France and Carrefour was always the top of my list of shopping destinations. No surprise there as I am a person that treats a trip around the grocery aisles with great delight! Tripping around foreign grocery aisles is even better! I just love to oggle the different things on offer, so you can imagine how pleased I was to discover that my favourite online grocery shop was going to be offering tasty products from my favourite French grocery supermarket!

It gets even better. Nicola from FrankPR recently sent me a few of their products to try out here at home, which included a tasty jar of Reflets de France Campagne Rough Paté , a free range coarse pork paté all the way from Brittany.





These delicious French patés were originally made in a crust. At the end of the Middle Ages the first “mincemeat” was cooked in pots and while the pastry disappeared the paté remained. Inherited from the Breton paté, the Reflets de France coarse paté is renowned for its thick chunks/mince and pieces of meat and fat which appear white.



We found the pate to be incredibly moreish! I served it up with chunks of a crusty French Loaf and Todd and I couldn't get enough of it! It disappeared in no time at all! Mitzie was really disappointed we didn't save her any!



We were also sent a jar of the delicious Reflets de France Confiture d'Oranges et de Clementine de Corse. Oh my . . . what a lovely jam it is. This delicious Corsican Orange and Clementine Jam is chock full of lovely bits of orange and clementine peel. Proud of their island, the Corsicans pick the oranges and the clementines with their deep green leaves when they embody the scent of myrtle and citrus fruits. Cooked in a copper bowl with just enough cane sugar, this fruit exudes tons of flavour.



Oh my but it was so delicious spooned out onto that same crusty loaf!! I thoroughly enjoyed, as did Todd!



With over 100 different products to choose from you are sure to find something in the range to please just about anyone's tastes. I know a few things that are going to become a common addition to my weekly grocery shop for sure!

Many thanks to Nicola and Ocado for affording me these tasty little treats!




There is a tasty Hot Bacon Dressing cooking in the Cottage today!

Innocent (The smoothie people) have embarked on a two-week experimential campaign, touring England in a “Hungry Grassy Van” (HGV) to encourage people to eat five portions of fruit and vegetables a day. The HGV ( a take on the traditional burger van) will be serving up alternatives to takeaway food, such as veggie burgers and salad, to help consumers swap fast food for healthier options. (Sounds quite a good idea to me!) Dishes will cost between £2 and £3 and will all count towards the five-a-day quota. A £5 meal deal will also be served each day to allow consumers to eat and drink all of their five-a-day in one go!



The recipes for each dish are based on Innocent’s “Hungry? The innocent recipe book for filling your family with good stuff,"cook book, which was released last May.



The HGV will visit London, Bristol, Manchester and Glasgow and will stop in each city for three days from 9 September on. I was recently contacted and asked would I like to visit the Van on it's Manchester stop, but alas, I will be away on Hols and so I had to decline. I was instead offered the chance to review the cookerybook, which I might add, was a chance I could not refuse!! (You know me and cookbooks.)



I've had a few days to peruse this lovely book and I have been happily flagging recipes to make from it. It's a lovely book and I can see where it would be great for anyone that was trying to encourage their family to eat more good stuff. It's filled with over 100 delicious, simply and healthy recipes, as well as many tips, distractions and ways of inspiring everyone in the family to get involved in the process of turning healthy ingredients into deliciously tasty meals for all. There are breakfast recipes, lunches, snacks, dinners, sides, puddings, bakes and of course drinks, as well as lots of tips and hints to make tasty food fun and even more tasty!



I decided to make the Sausage and Squash Mash for our dinner last night. I had all the ingredients in and of course my Todd is a sausage fanatic. Sausage and mash. Sausage and mash. He'd have that every night for supper if I'd cook it every night.



This is sausage and mash with a difference though . . . with just 2 apples, a couple of sweet potatoes, a small butternut squash, some sausages, honey, mustard and apple juice, I ended up with a deliciously tasty meal that was fit for a king!



Or the King of this castle at any rate! They went down a real treat! I think next up will be the slow cooked beef stew which will really please Todd, and there's an Apple Cake with Honey Icing that's been calling my name.

Hungry? The innocent recipe book for filling your family with good stuff. Published by 4th Estate and available at all good book shops and Amazon. I highly recommend. The English Kitchen gives it 10 out of 10!

Many thanks to the Innocent people and the people at StoryPR for affording me this opportunity!



*Sausage and Squash Mash*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

Adapted from a recipe in the delightful Hungry cookery book, by Innocent.

8 good quality pork sausages
(I used a good Butchers Cumberland)
2 apples, peeled, cored and cut into wedges
(I used Granny Smiths)
2 TBS whole grain mustard
(I used a Grainy Dijon)
2 TBS runny honey
a good spash of apple juice
1 butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into chunks
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
extra virgin olive oil (I used a knob of butter coz I'm a glutton)
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6. Put the sausages onto a baking tray along with the apple wedges.

Whisk together the mustard, honey and apple juice. Pour over the sausages and apples, tossing to coat all over.

Bake in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, shaking stirring now and then to prevent sticking.

While the sausages are baking place the squash and sweet potatoes into a lightly salted pan of boiling water to cover. Bring back to the boil, then cover and simmerto 15 minutes until tender. Drain well and return the vegetables to the hot pan. I then placed the pan back over low heat and mashed them until they dried out a bit. I stirred in a knob of butter and a good seasoning of salt and pepper.

Serve a generous scoop of mash piled with two sausages, some apples and some of the sticky pan juices to each lucky person.

If you'd like to keep up with the Hungry Van Tour and with the latest goings on of the innocent people be sure to like their Facebook page here!



There is a delicious Paprika, Honey and Lime Chicken recipe cooking over at the Cottage today.

We are real rice pudding fiends in this house. We'll even eat it out of the tin . . . true confession here. There are times when nothing but a rice pudding will do.
It's so comforting and cosy. Nursery food . . . it makes one hearken back to cuddling times on their mama's lap . . . and feeling oh-so-loved up.



Not all rice puddings are equal though . . . the tinned stuff is adequate but not totally scrummy . . . it always tastes a bit like tinned milk to me, but sometimes if that is all you got, it will do.



The baked ones are gorgous . . . with all that lovely skin on top . . . all rich and delish.
Custardy types are fab too. My ex Mother in Law made an absolutely wonderful one, no kidding! One of my absolute favourite versions is this one that I always make at Christmas. It's rich and decadent and totally moreishly delicious!



Today though, I found a recipe in one of my Gary Rhodes cookbooks (Fall into Winter) for a Raspberry Rice Pudding Flan. It looked and sounded good . . . but alas I am rather lazy at times . . . so I pimped it out and skipped the pastry.



Creamy and rich and delicious spooned over fresh sweet raspberries . . . and we have some fabulous ones from Scotland in the shops at the moment. Of course you could also use fresh blackberries . . . now that would be a real treat . . . or maybe some poached apricots . . . or poached plums . . .

One thing for sure is that this rice pudding is one that will have you digging into the fridge long after everyone else is tucked up in bed . . . spoon in hand . . . for just one more taste . . .



*Raspberry Rice Pudding*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

Delicious fresh raspberries, topped with a rich creamy warm rice pudding. Fabulous!

225g fresh raspberries (1/2 pound)
600ml of whole milk (2 1/2 cups)
300ml of double cream (1 1/4 cups)
1 vanilla pod, split
1 TBS finely grated orange zest
50g of golden caster sugar (1/4 cup)
freshly grated nutmeg
100g of Italian Arborio Rice (1/2 cup)
large knob of butter, melted and extra grating of nutmeg to finish (optional)

Pour the milk and cream into a large saucepan. Add the split vanilla pod and bring the mixture to the boil. Remove from the heat, whisk in the orange zest, caster sugar and a generous dusting of freshly grated nutmeg. Allow to influse for 10 minutes.

At the end of that time add the rice to the flavoured milk, return the pan to the heat and bring to a slow simmer. Cook over very low heat for 30 to 35 minutes, stirring occasionally. The rice should be very tender and creamy at the end of that time. Remove the pan from the heat and remove the vanilla pod. (This can be rinsed, dried and then popped into your sugar canister where it will infuse your sugar with vanilla for a very long time.)

Divide the raspberries amongst 4 dessert dishes, reserving a few for a garnish. Spoon the warm rice pudding over top. Allow to sit for 5 minutes or so and then drizzle with the butter if using and a dusting of freshly grated nutmeg. Garnish with a few fresh raspberries and serve whilst still warm. Delicious!

Note: if you have any leftovers and I did because I only made two servings, the leftover rice pudding can be put in a small dish, covered and refrigerated. It's very good cold as well. You are a Saint if you can keep yourself from tucking into it during the evening for just one more spoonful.



Over in The Cottage today we're filling up on Little Lemon Souffle Cakes!

We had such a fabulous sunny day here today! Perfect eating outdoors day. The Missionaries came over and helped Todd to trim the hedge and I thought I would bake them something filling for their lunch. Pasty's are perfect picnic food . . . filling, delicious and great for eating out of hand.



The pasty has been a staple food down South in Cornwall for a very long time. It's been known as many things through the years . .. . tiddy oggy was one name used and hoggen was another name, which was used in particular when they didn't contain potato.



Many things were used as fillings through the years . . . meats, fish, vegetables, eggs and sometimes you would have a savoury filling at one end of the pasty and a fruit filling at the other.



There are pasty shops all over the UK, where you can just about any kind of pasty you could want nowadays . . . steak and stilton, steak and ale, Lamb and mint, cheese and onion, to name but a few. (I confess to having a certain fondness for the steak and stilton ones and the cheese and onion ones. Oh so scrummy!!)



These here today are a traditional, no frills steak, potato, onion and swede pasty. (A swede is a rutabaga, but you could also use turnip.)



Delicious and tender meat and vegetables encased in a delightfully flakey pastry. They're not as hard to make as some would suppose, but are really quite simple to execute. What's not to like!!!



*The Great Cornish Pasty*
Makes 4
Printable Recipe

Buttery Puffed Pastry, all flakey and encasing a delicious filling of beef, potato, onion and swede. Perfect and totally portable!!!

1 3/4 to 2 pounds of puff or shortcrust pastry
1/2 pound of beef skirt or chuck steak, sliced into very thin strips
1 medium potato, peeled and thinly sliced and chopped
1 large onion, peeled and chopped
1 small swede, peeled and thinly sliced and chopped
1 ounce butter (2 TBS), melted
fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 freerange egg, beaten

Roll the pastry out 1/3 inch thick. Cut into rounds approximately 8 inches in diameter. You will need 4. I find a sandwich plate is perfect to use as a template.

Place the potatoes, onions, swede and steak into a large bowl. Season with salt and generously with lots of pepper.. Drizzle the melted butter over all and mix well together.

Divide the filling between the 4 rounds, placing it just slightly off centre. Brush the edges with some beaten egg and fold one half of the pastry round over to cover the filling. Seal shut and then pinch and roll the edges from one edge to the other, giving it a bit of a rope effect. Place onto a lightly greased baking sheet. Pierce the tops in a few places and brush with beaten egg. Place into the refrigerator to ill for about 1/2 hour.

Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6. Place the tray of pasties into the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Lower the heat to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4 and cook for a further 30 to 35 minutes until well risen and golden brown and the filling is cooked through and the vegetables are tender. You can shield with some foil if you think the pastry is getting too dark.

Serve hot or cold as you like. These are great picnic food!



There is a deliciously Creamy Fish Chowder cooking over in Oak Cottage today. If you are a regular reader of A Year From Oak Cottage, you will want to update your bookmarks, as the url has changed! Thanks!

This is one of my absolute favourite salads. It's a little recipe I got from Good Food magazine some 5 or 6 years ago now. The original recipe did not call for any sugar in the dressing, but my Todd hates things that are too sharp and so I added a bit of sugar to the dressing and it turned out just wonderfully! You can leave it out if you wish.

I have tried this with Stilton (Fabulous), gorgonzola (a bit too strong I thought) Cashel Blue (scrummy), Danish Blue (a bit milder) . . . you want a blue cheese with a full flavour, but not too strong. Baby Gems can be a bit on the bitter side, but go perfectly with a nicely flavoured blue cheese. they are a perfect foil for each other!



I cut my finger rather badly this afternoon, well my thumb actually. I was slicing apples for a church function, using my Pampered Chef apple slicer and dummy me . . . a piece of apple got stuck and I tried to push it through with my thumb. YIKES!! Bled like a son of a gun! That apple slicer is fabulously sharp!! I hadn't realized just how sharp. It's a goodun!

I had an el cheapo version before and it wasn't half as sharp. I regularly pushed apples through with my thumbs. Won't be doing that again! Live and learn!!

Anyhow I am giving the old thumb a rest for a couple of days and so . . . you get a simple salad today. It's a tasty one though. Enjoy!



*Baby Gems with a Blue Cheese Vinaigrette*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

This is my favourite salad of all time. I can't get enough of it.

4 little gem lettuce hearts
For the dressing:
2 TBS cider vinegar
2 TBS cream
1 TBS caster sugar (optional)
3 1/2 ounces olive oil
2 ounces stilton cheese, crumbled
2 spring onions, finely sliced
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Make the dressing by whisking the vinegar and cream with a little seasoning,and the sugar, then gradually whisk in the oil and crumble in the cheese.

Slice your baby gems into quarters and place on chilled salad plates. Drizzle each with one quarter of the dressing and then sprinkle an equal portion of spring onions over each.
Season to taste with a bit of sea salt and a good grinding of black pepper.

Note: any good quality blue cheese is fab in this. Irish Cashel Blue is wonderful!

As soon as this month's Delicious Magazine (October 2011)slid through my mail box onto my front hall floor, and I saw it's cover, I just knew I had to make this recipe!



Calling something the "World's Best Crumble" is quite a bold statement to make and I have to say that the cover certainly had a very scrummy looking crumble on it! (I have to say that Delicious is one of my favourite three cooking mags over here, right up there with Good Food and Sainsbury's.)



They are declaring the 24th of September as "Share The Love" day, and suggest that to be a part of it we all bake two apple crumbles instead of one, keep one to eat and then pass the other on to someone you don't know, someone you wish you knew better, or someone who needs cheering up! Not a problem for me, as I am always sharing MY baking love with someone!



I baked this delicious crumble today and divided it amongst two containers, with just enough in each for Todd and I to enjoy two servings each of it's deliciousness and for a friend in need and her carer to share some of it's deliciousness as well.



This crumble is pretty amazing to be sure, but . . . you know how it is . . . I just had to make some revisions, and I am declaring them, here and now, even better than the original! I added more spice to the fruit. Their version called only for cloves and ginger. I added some cinnamon and nutmeg. They also had chopped skin on almonds in the crumble topping . . . I think the flavour of buttery toasty oats cannot be beat, and so I substituted the nuts with oats.



Oh my, this was deliciously scrummy! (no pun intended!) The tartness of the fruit, all spicy and slightly sweet . . . the colour . . . ruby and deep purple . . . the moreishly tasty pockets of marzipan which melts down into all that ruby tart/sweet goodness . . . and that buttery oaty crumble topping . . . G-O-R-G-E-O-U-S!!



If you only make one crumble this autumn (and you really should) let it be this one. Seriously. It is the world's best!



*The World's Best Crumble*
Serves 6 to 8
Printable Recipe

According to Delicious Magazine, this is the World's Best Crumble. I changed a few things. I added more spice to the fruit and I substituted the skin on almonds in the topping for rolled oats. My changes will be reflected in brackets.
All in all though, I would say this is one very scrummy crumble!

3 Bramley apples (large cooking apples)
2 eating apples (they suggest Cox, but I used Discovery
as that's what we have on our tree)
the juice of one lemon
200g blackberries (about a heaped cup ful)
4 to 5 whole cloves
1/2 tsp ground ginger (I didn't use the whole cloves. I used a pinch of ground cloves, 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg, 1/2 tsp of ground cinnamon and 1/2 tsp ground ginger)
100g demerara sugar (1/2 cup)
200g marzipan (about 1/2 lb crumbled)

For the topping:
200g chilled butter, diced (about 7 ounces)
250g plain flour (2 1/2 cups)
50g demerara sugar (1/4 cup)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
the grated zest of two unwaxed lemons
75g skin on almonds, chopped (about 3/4 cup)
( I used 100g or 1 cup of rolled oats instead of the almonds)

To serve:
pouring cream
warm Custard
or Ice Cream

Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6. Peel, core and dice all of the apples. Place into a large baking dish. (1.6 litre or 2 quarts) Squeeze the lemon juice over all. Stir together the sugar and spices. Stir into the apples and then gently fold in the blackberries. Set on a baking sheet.

Measure the flour into a large bowl. Whisk in the cinnamon. Rub in the butter to make a coarse crumbly mixture. Stir in the sugar, almonds (oats) and lemon zest. Set aside.

Chop up the marzipan and sprinkle evenly over top of the fruit. Crumble the flour mixture evenly over top.

Bake for 45 minutes, until the topping is golden and the fruit is juicy, tender and bubbling. Allow to sit for 5 to 10 minutes to cool, then spoon out into serving dishes and serve warm with pouring cream or custard. (or ice cream!)