As you know I occasionally get sent a cookbook to test out and review . . . I know . . . it's a hard job but somebody's got to do it!! I'm always more than happy to help out in that way!

This week I was sent the Cookie Doug Lover's Cookbook, by Lindsay Landis. You may already be familiar with her blog, Love and Olive Oil. (Lucky girl to have a publishing deal! Buck up Britain, there's lots of fab food bloggers over here who should have cookbooks published!)

Lindsay has invented the perfect cookie dough. It tastes great. It's egg free and perfectly safe to eat raw. it mixes up quick and easily, and, best of all, you can use it to make dozens of delicious cookie dough creations, from cakes, custards, and pies to candies, brownies, and even granola bars.



Included are recipes for indulgent breakfasts (cookie dough doughnuts!), frozen treats (cookie dough Popsicles!), and outrageous snacks (cookie dough eggrolls! cookie dough fudge! cookie dough pizza!). If your mom ever caught you with your finger in the cookie dough bowl and if raw cookie dough is your secret indulgence . . . then this book is for you!



It's a beautifully laid out book with clear instructions, beautiful full colour photographs to accompany each recipe . . . I love that it is coil bound, so that the pages stay open with no problem at all. It's a great size, not too big, not too small . . . just perfect for having on the countertop next to you while you cook, but it also stands up really well on it's own, which is also a bonus! There are also lots of nice tips on ingredients, equipment, packaging ideas, etc.



As you know I would never review a cookery book without trying out some of the recipes and I have done just that, with fab results! Today I made the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bread Pudding. We are bread pudding nuts in this house!



It was so easy to put together. All of the instructions were clear and easy to understand. Even though there were three separate components of the recipe . . . it was neither long, nor hard to execute, nor really long winded. It went together lickety split really.



Oh my but it smelled gorgeous when it was cooking . . . I could hardly wait to get it out of the oven. It was just beautiful when it was done.



I did make a few modifications. Because there are only two of us, I cut the recipe down by a third and baked it in two individual pie dishes . . . with each dish being cut in half to serve two people . . . but let me tell you, this was soooo good I could easily have eaten one all by myself. Dangerous stuff indeed!



The only thing that could have made it any better would have been a nice scoop of vanilla ice cream crowning it. I didn't have any. Boo Hoo!! Anyways, if this recipe is any indication of the ease and perfection of the rest of the recipes in this delightful little book, it's a winner winner chicken dinner!!



Buy it NOW! You won't regret it. It has a wonderful variety of recipes to please just about anyone, and would make a nice addition to anyone's collection! I am so glad I didn't make the full recipe . . . this one is pretty hard to resist and reduced my will power to just about N-I-L!!



*Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bread Pudding*
Serves 12 (I have successfully cut this down to a third of a recipe)
Printable Recipe

Three little words . . . deliciously decadently MOREISH! May I add Nom Nom!!

For the Bread:
1 (1 pound) loaf of brioche or French bread cut into 3/4 inch cubes
(About 7 cups, or 455g)
1/4 cup of unsalted butter, melted (57g)

For the Custard:
3 large free range eggs
3 cups of half and half (675ml of a mixture of half cream and half milk)
1/2 cup of granulated sugar (95g)
1/2 cup soft light brown sugar, packed (100g)
1/8 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla extract

For the Cookie Dough:
1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature (57g)
1/4 cup granulated sugar (48g)
1/2 cup soft light brown sugar, packed (100g)
1 TBS half and half or cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flour (99g)
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup mini chocolate chips (180g, I used Green & Blacks milk chocolate, chopped)

Pre-heat your oven to 200*C./400*F/ gas mark 6. Toss the bread cubes with the melted butter and spread them out onto a couple of large rimmed baking sheets. Bake in the preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes until golden. Remove from the oven and reduce the oven temperature to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4.

Place the bread cubes into a 13 by 9 inch baking pan. Whisk together all of the custard ingredients. Pour this over the bread. Let stand for 30 minutes, giving it a turn every so often so that the bread absorbs the custard evenly.

Cream together the butter and sugars for the cookie dough until light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla and cream. Mix in the flour and salt until incorporated. The dough should come together in large clumps. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Crumble half of the cookie dough over the bread in the dish and gently fold together until the dough is covered with custard and evenly distributed. Crumble the remaining dough over top.

Bake the pudding for 1 hour, or until the top is puffed and golden brown and a silver knife inserted near the centre comes out clean. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 to 15 minutes before serving.

Adapted from the Cookie Dough Lover's Cookbook by Lindsay Landis





The Cookie Dough Lover's Cookbook, ritten by Lindsay Landis and published by Quirk Publishing
ISBN 978-1-59474-564-5

US $18.95/$19.95 Canada/£11.69 UK

Many thanks to Matt and Quirk Publishing for sending me this lovely book to review. I give it 10 out of 10!

We may not be having dry weather here at the moment . . . and it's not really been warm . . . it's probably the nicest weather for Wimbleton . . . but that hasn't stopped the Strawberries from ripening . . . and it hasn't stopped me from indulging!



SCRUMMO!! I love, Love, LOVE Strawberry Season. I keep myself from eating them the whole of the year so that I can enjoy them even more in the summertime.



And this was the perfect way to welcome in the first day of summer . . .



Gently roasted summer strawberries, lightly sweetened with a mixture of butter, brown sugar . . . and lightly spiced with some ground cardamom . . .



Roasted just long enough to make them even sweeter, but not long enough to make them mushy . . . they still retain a bit of their bite . . .



Spooned into your prettiest dishes and then topped with some lovely softely whipped cream flavoured with honey and vanilla . . .



Sigh . . . this is summer in a bowl. The rain may fall and the wind may lash against the window panes . . . but summer is here . . .



and it comes in a plump juicy berry, wearing a little green cap!



*Roasted Summer Berries, with Honey Whipped Cream*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

One of the tastiest of summer treats!

500g of English Strawberries (about 1 pound)
2 TBS butter
4 TBS soft light brown sugar
1/4 tsp ground cardamom

For the Cream:
225ml of double or whipping cream (1 cup)
2 TBS runny honey (I like wildflower or clover)
a few drops of vanilla extract

Preheat your oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 5. Wash and then gently dry the berries with some paper towelling. Hull them and if they are large, cut in half.

Whip the cream with a wire wisk until it just starts to peak. Stir in the honey and vanilla. Set aside and keep cool.

Melt the butter in an ovenproof skillet. Add the sugar and cardamom and stir to melt the sugar. Once the sugar is melted, turn off the heat and add the berries, tossing them gently to coat them in the mixture. Bang the pan into the oven. Roast for 2 to 3 minutes, give them a stir, and roast for a further 2 minutes. Remove from the oven.

Spoon the roasted berries into serving dishes and top each serving with a dollop of the honey cream. Drizzle any juices over top. Serve immediately.

Now I have never been to Greece, but it is a place I have always wanted to go . . . since I was about 10 years old and saw Haley Mills in the Moon Spinners. It looked like a fabulous country to visit and it is still my dream to one day visit. I am sorry they are having so many problems at the moment. I hope that they are able to work their way through this hard time they are having.



I have had a kebab though . . . a kebab is a very popular takeaway dish here in the UK. (Especially when all the pubs and bars start to empty out on a Friday and Saturday night!)You see them in all of the takeaways . . . big slabs of mystery meat, on a huge skewer, rotating in front of a heat lamp thingie. They slice the meat off onto a pita bread and cover it with salad and sauce. They sell tons of them . . . I have had a chicken one before and it was quite good. I have never had a mystery meat one though . . . and I somehow don't think I ever will . . .



And really . . . after having watched The Food Inspector the other week . . . I doubt that I ever will have a chicken one again either. UGH!!



These tasty Souvlaki are so much nicer . . . and healthier too. Plus you know exactly what is in them.



You are supposed to zip open the pita bread and pile all the fillings inside . . . but in all truth that has never worked for me . . . they always fall apart. I would rather just put the warm pita bread on a plate and pile everything on top of it and eat it with a knife and fork.



I know. Me = party pooper! Nevermind . . . it doesn't matter how you eat it. It's delicious. End of.



*Souvlaki in Pita*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

This is considered to be the Greek Equivalent of the Kebab! We sell enough Kebab's in this country on Friday night. I reckon this is a much healthier option and a lot tastier as well!

4 large pita breads
water and olive oil to moisten
2 tsp chopped fresh oregano
2 TBS freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 medium onion, peeled and coarsely grated
fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 TBS extra virgin olive oil
500g lean pork or lamb, cut into 1 inch cubes (1 1/4 pound)

For the Salad Bits:
lettuce thinly sliced
cucumber, sliced
red pepper, sliced
tomatoes, cut into wedges
radishes, sliced
1 small red onion, tpeeled and thinly sliced
flat leaf parsley leaves, torn

For the Garlic Dressing:
100ml of thick, strained Greek Yoghurt (about 3/4 cup)
4 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed
3 inches of cucumber, coarselyated and then squeezed dry
1/2 tsp fine sea salt

Metal skewers for grilling



Sprinkle the pita breads with water and olive oil. Either grill them, or bake them at 180*C/350*C/ gas 4 for 3 to 5 minutes, just long enough to soften them, but not dry them out. Place them in a warm place and cover with a tea towel to keep warm.

Put the oregano, lemon juice, grated onion and some salt and pepper in a bowl. Whisk in the olive oil. Add the meat cubes and mix them into coat them completely. Allow to sit and marinate for at least 20 minutes. Drain and then thread onto metal skewers. Cook on a preheated barbeque, or on a stove top grill pan, turning occasionally until golden outside and cooked through. (5 to 8 minutes)

While they are grilling toss together your salad choices in a bowl. Set aside.

Whisk together the yoghurt, garlic, cucumber and salt in a bowl.

Add a dollop of this to each warmed pita bread. Top with some salad and push the meat off of the skewers on top. Drizzle with a bit more of the garlic dressing if you want. Serve immediately, while the bread and meat are hot, but the dressing and salad are cool.

PS - I don't want a lot of Greeks messaging me and telling me this isn't authentic. It's not supposed to be. This is The ENGLISH kitchen. 'Nuff said.

I was recently contacted and asked if I would like to try out some recipes which have been created by the acclaimed TV Chef Sophie Michell, to promote the new Blue Nun wines. (She is noted for Chanel 4's program, "Cook Yourself Thin.")

I was sent several recipes. There was one called Gold Leaf Sparkling Jellies with Iced Frozen Grapes and Creme Chantilly (using Blue Nun Sparkling Gold), as well as another one called, Cumin, Coriander and Ginger Marinated Lamb Cutlets with Saffron Rice and Pistachio Crumbs to be served with the Reisling. There wsa also a delicious looking Reisling Braised Chicken with Artichokes and Shallots and a Barbequed Sticky King Pao Chicken with Cashew, Carrot, Radish, Cucumber and Spring Onion Salad.

I chose the oriental recipe . . . the Barbequed Sticky Kung Pao Chicken. It looked tasty and we like a good Chinese dish. The recipe was missing the amount of radish to use, or how to use it, so I just sliced a few radishes into the mix.



This is a YouTube video that you can watch to see how she did it.

This is how mine turned out! Delicious!!



*Barbequed Sticky Kung Pao Chicken*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

A beautiful chicken dish, spicy and finger lickin sticky good!

8 boneless & skinless chicken thighs, trimmed

For the Marinade:
2 TBS dark soy sauce
1 TBS Sherry, or for a lower sugar marinade use Blue Nun River Riesling
1 tsp honey
1 tsp hot chili flakes

For the Salad:
1/2 head of Chinese white cabbage
3 spring onions
1 carrot
1 red chili, depending on how much heat you like
50g of roasted cashew nuts, roughly chopped

For the Dressing:
4 tsp soy sauce
2 tsp Chinese rice vinegar
1 tsp sesame oil



Whisk together all of the marinade ingredients in a deep tray or dish. Add the chicken thighs. Open them up and turn them around to coat and cover them in the marinade. Cover and place in the refrigerator to chill for as long as possible. (Up to 24 hours and no less than 1 hour.)

To make the salad, peel and cut the carrot into very thin strips. Add to a large mixing bowl. Cut the spring onions thinly on a sharp diagonal. Add these to the bowl as well. Cut the Chinese Cabbage down the middle, core and then slice thinly. Add to the mix. Deseed the cucumber and thinly slice as well. Add this to the bowl and mix all of the ingredients together well.

Whisk together all the ingredients for the dressing and set aside.

When you are ready to eat, heat up a grill to very hot. Take the chicken out of the marinade. Discard any marinade left in the dish. Place the chicken onto the hot grill tray and cook for 8 minutes per side, until cooked throughout and nicely caramelized.

Add the dressing to the salad and toss all together. Divide the salad amongst 4 plates and top each with the grilled chicken, and a sprinkle of the chopped nuts. (She used peanuts in the video)

A glass of Rivaner Reisling (Fresh, Crisp and Fruity) is recommended as a good wine to serve with this dish.

Of course as a Mormon, I really can't give an opinion on how this wine is as a drink, but here is what Sophie had to say:

The Rivaner Riesling is really a super match for most types of Asian and oriental style dishes, which I find can be really hard to match a wine with and a glug of this fresh, fruity wine is great in the marinade too.

There is a big trend for lower alcohol drinks at the moment, but some that I've tried are rather watery. However, the Blue Nun Delicate drinks (5.5% alcohol) however are packed with flavour and taste. They're ideal for the lazy summer days, picnics and bbq's. Or to serve as an aperitif when you want something refreshing and light to serve to guests.

They are made with full bodied aromatic wine and delicious fruit flavours such as white peach, mango, raspberry and lychee which taste delicious.



*Gold Leaf Sparkling Jellies with Iced Frozen Red Grapes and Creme Chantilly*
Makes 6

Ingredients:
600ml of Blue Nun Sparkling Gold White Wine
50ml of Elderflower cordial
1 TBS sugar
6 sheets gelatine
200g of red or green seedless grapes
200ml of double cream
2 tsp icing sugar

Firstly take the grapes and cut into little branches with 3 grapes per set, then place on a tray and pop into the freezer.

Soak the gelatine sheets in a small bowl of cold water for about 5 minutes until softened. Meanwhile, put 100ml of the Blue Nun Sparkling Gold and sugar into a small saucepan and bring to the boil. Squeeze the gelatin sheets to remove any excess water and stir into the wine mixture until dissolved.

Then mix the heated wine mix in with the rest of the wine (500ml), pour into a large bowl and place into the fridge. Leave for at least an hour, then check and stir. Basically you keep doing this until the mix has thickened enough for the gold flakes to not sink to the bottom.

When ready pour into four individual metal pudding moulds, about 200ml/7 fl oz/ generous 3/4 cup capacity if you want to turn the panna cotta out onto dessert plates, or into four pretty serving bowls. Put into the fridge to set for at least 2 more hours, or overnight. Then pour the cream and icing sugar into a bowl and whip until soft peaks form.

If the Panna Cottas are in metal molds, pour boiling water into a bowl and quickly dip the moulds into the water before turning them upside down on to dessert plates. Then add a dollop of the cream and some of the frozen grapes.

Serve with a glass of sparkling gold.

Sophie says: The Gold Flecks were such a talking point for my girl friends and I. I just adore the way the bubbles rise the gold flakes to the surface. Very Glam!

You can check out her other videos on YouTube as well. The Lamb one looks delicious as well.

Many thanks to Megan for sending me this lovely wine to cook with and to Blue Nun Wines.

Make sure you check out their page online, there's a lot of information there on the wines and stockists, etc. Also be sure to check out their Facebook Page!

Blue Nun Rivaner Riesling is available to buy in most UK supermarkets including Asda, Co-op, Morrisons, Nisa and Tesco with an RRP of around £5.99 for a 750ml bottle.

Blue Nun Medium White is available in Tesco and J Sainsbury.

Blue Nun Medium Red, White and Rose are all available in Nisa.

Blue Nun Sparkling Gold edition is available to buy at £9.59 on-line from www.drinksdirect.co.uk

Blue Nun Delicate Stills have a recommended retail price of £3.99 and the Blue Nun Delicate Sparkling have a recommended price of £5.99, both for a 750ml bottle. All of the Blue Nun Delicates are currently available to buy from Home Bargain stores across the UK only www.homebargains.co.uk

Please do remember that if you are going to drink, you should so so responsibly.

Do you all remember a while back when I was sent a lovely hamper and asked to create a special recipe using the ingredients in the hamper?? You can read more about that experience here.

I had a lot of fun with those ingredients (it really was a lovely hamper) and I came up with this tasty recipe for a A Spring Salad of Mixed Greens & Goats Cheese Bakewell "Truffles", with a cherry balsamic dressing.



I really enjoyed the challenge, and in a lot of ways it reminded me of my days working at the Manor and cooking for the Mr and Mrs there. I do miss it sometimes, so this was a wonderful opportunity for me to stretch my wings again and go out on a limb! (I do love doing that!)

Capricorn Somerset Goats Cheese, quite happily has chosen me to be their first finalist in their Goat's Cheese Challenge! Yay me!! You can read all about that Here. My recipe is on their page and everything! To say that I am quite, QUITE thrilled is to say the least. I am simply over the moon, and honored to have been chosen!



Dear old Ethel has even blogged about it here! So I guess I can stop pinching myself now. It's actually true! I am in the running! It wasn't a dream!

Do pop on over and take a gander. It's a really cute site!

Many thanks to Ethel and the Capricorn Team for choosing lil' ol' me!! I can die happy now!

There is one thing that the British do very well . . . and that is the good old British Banger! (Sausage to you non-Brits! Of course, it is also something that they do really poorly too . . . but we won't talk about those!) You just can't beat a good old fashioned, meaty, top quality, Butcher's thick sausage banger . . . avoid the cheap ones at all costs. They are just plain nasty and filled with fillers and other ucky stuff that you don't want to be eating.



I picked up some really nice smoked ones at the shops the other day. I wasn't sure what to expect . . . as they did not look like the smoked sausage that I am used to from back home. These looked just like regular bangers . . . upon reading the ingredients though, I learned that they were composed of uncooked smoked and regular pork. I thought they would be worth trying. They looked quite good.



I decided yesterday that I was going to braise them . . . I had some open cider that I had used last week and I wanted to use it up and so I decided that it would be just the thing for braising these sausages in . . .



And then I decided to add some thyme and some honey . . . because thyme and honey go very well together and I thought those flavours would be fabulous with the pork and the cider!

Know what??? I was RIGHT!



These were fabulous. They had my meat and potatoes loving hubster salivating as soon as he saw his plate. He could not wait to tuck in.



I do love it when my man is happy. It makes me happy too.



*Cider and Honey Braised Bangers*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

Easy and delicious. This is a meal that cooks itself.

8 good quality thick and meaty sausages
225ml of Apple Cider (1 cup)
2 TBS runny honey
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 small cabbage, trimmed, cored and cut into wedges
a knob of butter

Melt the butter in a skillet large enough to hold your sausages and the cabbage. (You will need one with a lid.) Once the butter begins to foam, add the sausages. Brown over medium heat on first one side, and then the other. Once they are browned, tuck in the wedges of cabbages wherever they will fit. Sprinkle all with the thyme. Drizzle with the honey and pour over the cider. Cover tightly and turn to low. Braise for 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the lid and scoop out the cabbage wedges. Cover and keep warm. Turn up the heat under the skillet and continue to cook the sausages, as the liquid bubbles away, turning them occasionally, until they are nicely glazed and the pan has some nice thick juices in it. Divide the sausages and cabbage amongst 4 heated plates and drizzle with some of those scrummy pan drippings.

Potatoes go very well with this, either steamed new potatoes or mash. It's up to you!

My friend Eleanor from Shrewd PR sent me the neatest little packet the other day. Inside it was a packet of these new egg cookers called "Poachies!"

Poaching eggs can be a real hassle for some people, and even I don't get it right all of the time . . . it can be really difficult keeping them into a tidy little parcel . . . perfectly rounded and ready to set on a crisp piece of buttered toast! And there is no end to the hints and techniques bandied about on how to perfectly poach an egg. Let's face it . . . it's not as simple as just cracking an egg into a frying pan filled with sizzling butter and cooking it.

I've tried all sorts of methods . . . using vinegar, salt . . . and even soda . . . you name it. I've tried dropping the eggs into a little whirlpool of simmering water (said to keep it in a neat and tidy little parcel) and slipping it from a bowl into simmering water, without the whirlpool . . . you name it, I've tried it and it's always hit and miss. Sometimes you get it right . . . and sometimes you don't.

Well that doesn't have to be a problem any longer. These fabulous revolutionary little things have just taken all the guess work and hassle out of making perfectly poached eggs! I kid you not!

It's as easy as cracking an egg into a little paper sac and lowering the sac into simmering water. The paper keeps the egg intact and still allows the water to penetrate it, cooking them in the perfect little poached egg shape . . . kind of like a tea bag . . . for eggs, if that makes sense!



The package comes with fabulous instructions printed on the back. It's very hard to get it wrong if you follow them. I've tried them a few times now . . . and every time has resulted in perfectly poached eggs . . . with no hassle and no fuss!

Easy peasy, lemon squeasy and so much healthier for you too than fried eggs!



And they were soooooo easy to use! I found a neat really neat video of the process on You Tube!! (What can't you find on You Tube!) I thought it would be great for you to see them in action, so click away!

I think I have found a brand new favourite kitchen tool!

Proper water poached eggs, perfect every time. You can't beat that!



Poachies are available at Waitrose, Cook Shops Department Stores, retailing at the very affordable price of £2.99 for a packet of 20.

You can read more about them here, and there is even a buy now button on that page which offers free delivery!



Many thanks to Eleanor and Poachies! I just love them and highly recommend! They take all the guess work and hassle out of poaching eggs! I'm all for that!!

I've seen a few salads similar to this floating around. In fact I think my sister has one that's very similar to this on her blog, Flat Belly Files. She uses wheat berries though. Love her dearly . . . we are a bit like chalk and cheese food-wise. She's like the good angel and I'm like the devil, tempting you with decadance . . .



I think there's room for a bit of both . . . probably would be better if you ate more like she does . . . with the occasional treat. That's what I am aiming for anyways . . . most of the time.



Ok, ok . . . so, in all honesty . . . it only appears to be some of the time. I try, that's what counts!



This salad is loosely based on a waldorf chicken salad . . . with apples, nuts, celery . . . but with no thick mayo gunking it up . . . it has a lovely honey/lemon dressing, which is . . . juuuussssttt right! (as Goldilocks would say!)



It's a great way to use up leftover roast chicken and I think it looks rather pretty on a plate. I have mine here on a bed of watercress . . . but any greenery will do.



I think that looks rather healthy, don't you??



*A Salad of Chicken, Couscous and Fruit*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

A wonderful marriage of flavours, colours and textures that comes together beautifully. I quite, quite like this . . . and it's kinda healthy too!!

For the dressing:
the juice of 1/2 lemon
2 TBS extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp runny honey
pinch of ground cinnamon
pinch ground cardamom
pinch salt
a good grinding of black pepper
2 TBS chopped flat leaf parsley

For the salad
100g uncooked Israeli Whole Wheat Coucous (1/2 cup)
1 vegetable stock pot
boiling water
1 eating apple, washed, cored and chopped
1 stick of celery, washed, trimmed and chopped
2 cooked skinless boneless chicken breasts, chopped (about 2 cups)
a handful of dried sweetened cranberries
a handful of toasted pecan nuts, chopped

Whisk together all of the ingredients for the dressing in a medium sized bowl. Set aside.

Drop the vegetable stock pot into the boiling water. Add the couscous and bring back to the boil. Cook for 6 to 8 minutes and then drain. Do not rinse if you can help it. Drop the drained couscous into the bowl with the dressing. Stir to coat and leave set to cool in the dressing.

Once the couscous is cold and most of the dressing has been absorbed add the chopped apple, celery, chicken and cranberries. Toss together. Taste and adjust seasoning as necessary. You may need a bit of salt, depending on the strength of your stock. Stir in the toasted pecans just before serving.

Serve on a bed of salad greens, rocket or watercress. Delicious!