This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at: mariealicejoan at aol dot com 

This isn't something that I make really often . . . as it is kind of a lot of work . . . but everyonce in a while I love to treat us to it.



Coz, we love butternut squash and we love lasagne. (Ok, so I love lasagne, the toddster just tolerates it.)



It's quite, quite delicious though . . . and he doesn't seem to complain overly much when I make it. To me it is a wonderful treat . . . something special indeed.



The butternut squash gets all caramelized and sweet, along with the onions.
The sage adds a beautiful herby touch, without being over powering.



And that bechamel . . . so buttery and rich . . . all layered with gruyere and Parmesan cheeses.



This just can't get any better. Seriously.



*Pan Roasted Butternut Squash Lasagne*
Serves 6
Printable Recipe

Lasagne is always a bit involved and takes some time and effort to put together, but it is always worth it at the end. This version is truly delicious and worth every precious moment taken. It really doesn’t take that much time if you plan it properly. If you start off by making your béchamel sauce first, you can prepare the vegetables while that is cooking and thickening. The rest is a dawdle, especially if you use fresh lasagne sheets that have no need of cooking!

For the Béchamel:
3 ½ cups milk
1 garlic clove, peeled and lightly bruised
1 thick slice of peeled onion
1 bay leaf
1 sprig of parsley
3 ½ TBS butter
3 ½ TBS flour
Freshly grated nutmeg to taste
½ tsp salt
Freshly ground black pepper to taste

For the Filling:
1 large butternut squash
(3 pounds in weight or a little less)
2 fat cloves of garlic, peeled
20 or so fresh sage leaves, or 1 ½ tablespoons dried
½ cup packed fresh parsley leaves
2 TBS of olive oil
1 large onion, peeled and cut into ½ inch squares
1 cup walnuts, toasted and finely chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup grated Gruyere cheese
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
8 ounces of no boil lasagne noodles

Lightly grease a 9 by 12 inch baking dish and set it aside. Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/375*F. Put the milk, garlic, slice of onion, bay leaf and parsley spring in a saucepan and slowly bring to a simmer. Cover, remove from the heat and set aside to infuse the milk with the aromatics.

Peel the butternut squash and chop it into ½ inch cubes.Chop two of the garlic cloves together with the sage and the parsley, making a kind of an herby mixture redolent of garlic. Heat the 2 TBS of the oil in a large skillet. Add the onion and the chopped squash and cook over high heat for about 15 minutes, stirring frequently. Reduce the heat to medium and continue to cook, stirring occasionally until the squash is fairly tender and starting to caramelise in a few places. This should take about 10 minutes. Add the garlic/herb mixture along with the nuts. Cook for a few minutes longer and then remove from the heat and set aside.

Melt the butter for the béchamel in a saucepan and stir in the flour. Cook for about one minute. Strain the milk and then slowly whisk it into the butter/flour mixture, whisking it until it is smooth and beginning to thicken. Reduce the heat to low and allow it to cook for about 15 minutes or until the flour is well cooked and the sauce is nicely thickened. Stir occasionally. Season with ½ tsp of salt and some black pepper. I also like to grate in a little fresh nutmeg to taste.

Now comes the fun part.

Spread ½ cup of the sauce in the baking dish. Lay 1/3 of the noodles over top. Cover these with half of the squash mixture, 1 cup of the sauce, half of the Gruyere cheese and a third of the Parmesan cheese. Repeat and then add a third layer of the noodles. Spread the remaining sauce over top and then the remaining Parmesan. Loosely tent with foil.

Place in the heated oven and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for 20 minutes longer, until bubbly and golden. Remove from the oven and let rest for about 10 minutes before cutting into squares to serve.

This goes really well with a mixed salad of greens and vegetables.



I was recently sent several loaves of Village Bakery Rye Bread to try out! I am a great lover of Rye Bread and several years ago managed to lose quite a few pounds by substituting rye bread for my normal bread on a diet I was on. Bread is something I just love and I have never been able to give it up entirely . . . so being able to swap rye bread for regular bread was a real bonus for me. The fact is, Rye bread will fill you up, and keep hunger pangs at bay for much longer, so you are less likely to be reaching for a mid-morning chocolate biscuit. It is also the perfect alternative to anyone who needs to cut down on their wheat intake. It's really quite surprising how full you will feel when you eat rye bread versus regular bread. That's a real bonus from where I stand!

It's very dense and I found it to have a lovely flavour . . . we really loved it toasted and spread with butter . . . not sure how that counteracts the weight loss benefits of eating rye, but we did it anyways.



At the moment The Village Bakery is running a Try Rye weight loss challenge and you can download a two week eating plan here. Why not give it a go! Don't forget to let me know how you get on. I'm going to be trying the diet plan in January when I know that I will be wanting to lose some extra Christmas pounds. I'm afraid there won't be any butter on my toast then¬

Village Bakery rye bread is totally organic, and is in three varieties Rossisky, Seeded and Coriander. Download your diet plan at www.village-bakery.com. Available in Waitrose, Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Ocado ranging from £1.10 to £1.80! Many thanks to The Village Bakery and Andrew for affording me this tasty opportunity!



Cooking in The Cottage today, a delicious Celeriac and Potato Crush.

It's that time of the month again, Visiting Teaching time. I just love visiting with the sisters in my care and helping them when and where I can.



I also never like to go empty handed. I usually have a handout to give to them that may or may not correlate with the month's message, and I usually bring a goodie to share. Today I had made them bookmarks to go with the newest handbook which we were given last month.



I also baked them some of these delicious Spicy Gingerbread Muffins. I don't know anyone that doesn't love themselves a bit of Gingerbread.



It just ain't human ya know! Ok, so maybe there are a few people who might not like Gingerbread . . . I just don't happen to know any.



These muffins are fabulous. They look really plain and simple . . . humble even, but it's the plain and simple things in life that are often the nicest things in life. You just have to dig a little deeper than the surface to find them.



These are moist and spicy and oh so scrummy.



Especially when slathered with fresh Lemon Curd. 'Nuff Said.



*Spicy Gingerbread Muffins*
Makes 12 large muffins
Printable Recipe

Huge and moist and chock full of the spicy gingerbread flavour that we all love so much!

200g of dark brown sugar (1 cup packed)
350g of plain flour (2 1/2 cups)
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 tsp salt
1 large free range egg
125ml of mild molasses ( 1/2 cup, or a mixture of dark and light treacle to make up the same)
250ml of buttermilk (1 cup)
125g of butter (1/2 cup)

softened butter or lemon curd for spreading

Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Butter a 12 cup large muffin tin, or line with paper liners. Set aside.

Place the butter and molasses into a small saucepan and heat over gentle heat until the butter has melted and the two are amalgamated. Set aside.

Sift the flour into a bowl. Whisk in the sugar, soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, allspice, cardamom and salt. Whisk the buttermilk and egg into the molasses mixture. Add this all at once to the dry ingredients. Fold together to just moisten. Spoon into the prepared muffin cups, filling about 3/4 full.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until well risen and the tops spring back when lightly touched or a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Let stand in the muffin cups for about 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack. Serve warm with butter or lemon curd for spreading.



My offering over in The Cottage today, Pork Chops Romano. Delicious!

Colemans, the mustard people, recently launched an innovative Instant Gravy Paste range consisting of Beef, Chicken and Onion flavours. I was sent a few tubes to try out.

Colman’s Instant Gravy Paste comes in a new tube paste format which has been designed to be both quick and easy to use, allowing customers to make homemade gravy in an instant.

Having used Gravy Powders in the past it was an opportunity for me to try something new. The Toddster is a real gravy man and there is nothing he likes more with his spuds and meat pies than a tasty gravy.

We had some today with plain old Bangers and Mash, the Toddster's favourite meal and I have to say I was very impressed with the ease of use. I just squirted two teaspoons of the paste into a measuring jub and then added boiling water, which I vigourously whisked in using my trusty little whisk. There was no messy powder, or bits that clung in the corners of the jug, and within 30 seconds or so I had a delicious thick and glossy gravy that went very well with our dinner.



I say . . . move over Bisto, there's a new Kid in town and he's out to impress! Coleman's Instant Gravy Paste comes in three delicious flavours, Beef, Chicken and Onion. Beef and chicken are made with real meat juices, and the onion flavour uses real roasted onions.

Just perfect to serve with a multitude of dishes . . . here's a few suggestions to get your tastebuds tingling!



Roast Chicken Pie



Brussel Sprouts and Mushroom Ragout with Herby Dumplings



Slow Roasted Lamb Shoulder



Roast Pork with Crispy Cracklin



Maybe a Pork and Roots Tray Bake with an Apple Relish.



Perfectly Cooked Roast Beef.



Mini Meatloaves and Mash.



Meatballs and Gravy



Sausage and Bacon Toad in the Hole



Lemon and Garlic Roast Chicken



Pot Roasted Chicken



The Whole Christmas Feast (or even Thanksgiving!)

Hope this wets your whistle for some good eats and that you will give the Coleman's Gravy Paste a try. It is nice to make gravy from scratch of course, and nothing tastes better than homemade, but if you are looking for a delicious and quick, almost instant low fat and natural alternative, Coleman's Gravy Paste is just the ticket!

Many thanks to the people at Coleman's and Anya for having sent me some to try. (Psst! It also uses up next to no room in the kitchen cupboard, unlike those bulky jars and boxes. That's a real bonus for me and my tiddly kitchen!)



The new Coleman's Beef Gravy Paste Advert. Cute



And cooking in The Cottage today, a delicious French Canadian Tortiere.

The people at Eddingtons recently sent me a few articles from their newest Christmas Baking line to try out and review. I had my pick of pretty much everything and it was very difficult to choose, everything was so cute.



One of the things I chose was the Silikomart Let's Celebrate Snowflakes silicone muffin mould. The Snowflake Muffin Mould is made from flexible silicone, making it easy to pop out the finished goods, and has a unique Safe Ring support which helps to improve the stability of the mould.



I have to confess that I don't have a lot of experience in cooking with silicone moulds, and am somewhat of a novice with them. I did find though that this was very easy to use and the safe ring support system was really good. I can see where it would make for a much easier and safer baking experience than a silicone pan without one.



I confess I was a little disappointed in the end results though . . . and this was not down to the silicone. Getting the cakes out was very easy. I waited until they were completely cold and they just popped out. What I was disappointed in though, was the fact that the snowflake design didn't really show up at all. In the picture on the box and on the site, the snowflake design was very clear and obvious. This wasn't the case in reality.



I saw not much more than little dimples etc. and even when I added the glaze the snowflake relief did not really show up. Perhaps this is just in baked goods . . . I would have to say that if you are looking for little cakes that look like snowflakes this isn't your pan . . . but they were not entirely unattractive either, as you can see. The packaging did include a recipe for a white chocolate blanc mange, so perhaps I will try again with something like that instead of using it for baking anything.



I don't normally show cake two days in a row, but today is an exception. I chose a lovely nutmeg cake recipe to showcase these little cakes . . . because I thought it would be a nice colour and that the glaze would help to show off the little snowflake branches really well.



It's a delicious cake . . . moist with the addition of buttermilk . . . old fashioned and redolent with lots of nutmeg flavour.



Glazed with a simple lemon glaze and then dusted with even more freshly grated nutmeg . . . it's quite heavenly . . . if you happen to like nutmeg, and we do . . . if you don't then . . . well, this is NOT the cake for you, coz it's definitely nicely nutmeggie.



*Nutmeg Cake*
Makes one 9-inch two layer cake
Printable Recipe

A cake stogged full of nutmeg flavour and covered in a lemony glaze and dusted with more nutmeg. If you don't like nutmeg, this isn't for you.

2 ounces butter, softened (1/4 cup)
2 ounces shortening, soft (1/4 cup)
10 1/2 ounces caster sugar (1 1/2 cups)
3 large free range eggs
8.5 ounces of plain flour, sifted (2 cups)
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 teaspoons freshly grated nutmeg
250ml of buttermilk (1 cup)
1/2 tsp vanilla

Jam for sandwiching

For the lemon glaze:
8 ounces of sifted icing sugar (2 cups)
the juice of one lemon
freshly grated nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Lightly butter 2 9-inch round cake tins and dust lightly with some flour. Set aside.

Cream together the butter and shortening until light and fluffy. Slowly beat in the sugar, a little at a time, until well blended. Beat in the eggs, one at a time until amalgamated completely.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, soda, salt and nutmeg. Blend together the vanilla and buttermilk. Add the buttermilk and flour alternately to the creamed mixture, beating after each addition only until blended.

Pour into the two prepared pans, spreading out evenly.

Bake for 25 minutes, or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan on a rack for 5 minutes before turning out to cool completely. Sandwich the two layers together with some jam in the middle.

Whisk together the glaze ingredients and spoon over top of the cakes.



Whilst they didn't actually look like snowflakes, the little cakes were kinda cute and just the perfect size for two bites. If you are looking for a pan that makes nicely sized little bites this is the pan for you . . . but if you are looking for a pan that bakes nice snowflakes, I think you better keep looking. Sorry Eddingtons, but many thanks for affording me this opportunity all the same! (Honesty is always the best policy isn't it. I wouldn't want to tell you something was great when I didn't think it was.)



Over in The Cottage today, French Biscuits, a family tradition.