We had a really lovely day today, which is now threatening to turn to rain. One always takes advantage of sunshine here in the UK. We get so much rain that when the sun shines, everyone is out and about enjoying it.



We took advantage of it by having a cosy dinner a deux on the terrace (aka the paved part of the back garden la-de-dah!). Just a simple supper of a tasty frittata, some salad and hot buttered toast.



I love having a kind of breakfasty supper sometimes. Eggs fit the bill perfectly if you are wanting something quick and easy, that isn't going to heat up the kitchen or be a lot of faff to prepare.



Frittatas are kind of like crustless quiches . . . You just beat together your eggs, with some cream or milk. Add some cheese or other ingredients, and then cook them briefly in a hot skillet until they are golden brown on the bottom and almost set . . . then a brief burst under a hot grill . . . til they are golden brown on top, and "Bob's Your Uncle!!" Dinner is served.



You can just about put anything you want in them, as long as the flavours are ones that go together well. Today I chose to use fresh baby spinach (for colour) sauteed chorizo sausage (heat, flavour and colour) and fresh and milky ricotta cheese (perfect against the heat of the chorizo). You can add herbs, such as the sage I added in mine today . . . they also give a flavour boost and some added colour.



Season them well, according to taste and your ingredients and you are done. I happen to love using leftover roasted veg in my frittata's from time to time. Roasted root veg are excellent, expecially with a bit of strong cheddar, red onions and some summer savoury.



Another favourite is oven roasted Courgettes, peppers, cherry tomatoes and onions . . . with a bit of feta cheese . . . and some garlic and fresh oregano of course. Kind of like a Mediterranean frittata. The leftovers are really tasty too . . . in lunches, on picnics . . . or just as a savoury snack when you are feeling a bit peckish . . .

Something for the weekend??? Perhaps!



*Spinach, Chorizo and Ricotta Frittata*
Serves 2
Printable Recipe

The perfect supper for two on a hot summer's evening. Quick and delicious. Salad on the side, buttered toast. Heaven.

2 chorizo, sliced
1 TBS sage leaves, chopped
80g of baby spinach leaves, washed and dried (about 2 cups loose)
4 large free range eggs, lightly beaten
250ml of single pouring cream (1 cup)
fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
150g of fresh ricotta cheese (about 2/3 cup)

Heat a 9 inch nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add the chorizo and sage and cook for several minutes, until the chorizo is golden and crisp. Add the spinach. Cook and toss it in the pan drippings until it is wilted. Whisk together the cream, eggs, salt and pepper. Pour into the pan. Place spoonfuls of ricotta around the pan. Reduce the heat to low and cook for about 3 minutes. While this is cooking heat the grill to high. Place the frittata beneath the grill and cook for several minutes, just until the frittata is set and golden. Serve with thick slices of hot buttered toast and a tossed salad if desired. Delicious!

Eleanor from Shrewd PR recently sent me a couple of things to try out. Unfortunately since I am not a drinker, I've not been able to test them, but I can tell you all about them!

The first article was the DropStop re-usable Wine Pourer. It was invented by a Danish inventor by the name of Brian Vang Jensen. It is simply a round metallic circle, which you roll up and place into the mouth of your bottle of wine, which then helps to prevent those unfortunate accidents and stains which can occur when you are pouring wine at the table.

Beautiful to look at, simple to use and extremely functional.



It promises no more table cloth stains. You simply roll it up, insert it into the bottle and pour the wine without spilling a drop. Due to its flexible material, the DropStop fits in every bottle, which is pretty amazing!

The shimmery, silvery brilliance of DropStop adds elegance to your favourite bottle of wine and to the pleasure of drinking it. (Not that I would know much about drinking wine.) It is very attractive though and I can see where it would look quite nice.

DropStop is available in a wide range of designs, including abstract, sports, seasonal, wine and tourism related versions. Using digital printing techniques, they can create designs and printing results that are state of the art.

A wide range of attractive, contemporary packaging means that they have just the solution you need, whether you wish to give DropStop as a gift or simply use it in your own home. I actually think it would make a great stocking stuffer for a wine enthusiast this Christmas!!



This sure would have come in handy when I was cheffing at the Manor down South. All those wine stains on the table cloths and vintage linens used to give the housekeeper a right headache! Looks like this would have been a simple and attractive answer that would have solved that problem very easily and affordably.



I know that you need to open red wines ahead of time to let them breathe. I did that a bazillion times when I was working at the manor . . . You can read more about the Drop Stop Wine Breather here.

The rain is just pelting down this afternoon . . . bucketing down . . . cats and dogs . . . so hard that the drops are bouncing right back up into the air . . .

This is the kind of day that you want to spend tucked up indoors . . . curled up on the sofa with a good book, a mug of something hot . . . and some scrummy biscuits to much on. There were none to be had in the house, and so I did what any cook worth her metal would do . . . I baked some. (not American biscuits . . . British biscuits . . . aka cookies.)



Real Bourbon Biscuits . . . just like the ones you can buy in the shops, except they're much, much better of course. Homemade is always better. Bourbon Biscuits were created by the same Bermondsey biscuit company as Garibaldis (squashed fly biscuits,) and were named after the Royal French House of Bourbon. Not after the alcoholic drink. Just so you know . . .



A basic Bourbon biscuit is a beautiful thing to behold . . . two thin rectangles of crisp dark chocolate biscuit sandwiched together with chocolate buttercream filling for an altogether . . . elegant . . . chocolaty . . . sandwich type of cookie.



Rich and crisp . . . these are very moreish I think . . . almost dangerous. Simple to make though . . . very easy. A simple chocolate dough, rolled and cut into rectangles, dusted with some caster sugar and then baked. Finally sandwiched together with a rich chocolate buttercream, these are pleasing on many levels . . .



They are soothing, comforting . . . and hit that childish spot in each of our hearts . . . and yet they can be very adult . . . add a touch of bourbon if you wish, to the buttercream. We don't do raw alcohol here . . . so I didn't. I used a touch of vanilla.



Borrowed and adapted from Jamie Magazine. (It also gave me the opportunity to use my new biscuit cutter and word stamp thingie. I got them here.)




*Real Bourbon Biscuits*
Makes about 14
Printable Recipe

Rich dark chocolate biscuits with a creamy chocolate filling. Adapted from Jamie Magazine.

For the Biscuits:
50g unsalted butter (3 1/2 TBS)
50g soft light brown sugar (4 TBS packed)
1 TBS golden syrup
110g plain flour (1 cup plus 1 3/4 TBS)
20g cocoa powder (not the drink mix, scant 3 TBS)
(I used Cadbury's Bournville cocoa powder)
pinch salt
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 to 2 tsp milk
golden caster sugar for sprinkling

For the filling:
50g of unsalted butter, softened (3 1/2 TBS)
75g of sifted icing sugar (generous half cup)
1 TBS cocoa powder, sifted
1 to 2 tsp bourbon



Preheat the oven to 150*C/300*F/ gas mark 3. Line a baking sheet with baking parchment paper. Set aside.

Cream together the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the golden syrup until smooth. Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, salt and soda together in a beaker. Sift this into the creamed mixture. Add the milk a bit at a time, until yo uget a soft even dough. It should be a bit crumbly, but should have the promise of holding together. Tip out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about a minute, until it comes completely together. Roll out with a lightly floured rolling pin about 1/4 inch thick. (I rolled mine out onto baking parchment so that I did not have to use a lot of flour.) Cut out into rectangles. If you like you can dot holes into the dough with the end of a skewer. Sprinkle with caster sugar and then carefully lift onto the prepared baking sheet with a metal spatula, leaving some space in between the biscuits.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, then remove from the oven. Carefully lift onto a wire rack to cool completely before proceeding.

To make the filling, cream the butter together with the icing sugar, cocoa powder and enough bourbon to give you a fluffy evenly coloured mixture. Spread a heaped teaspoon onto each of half the baked biscuits and then top with another one, pressing down lightly. Repeat until all the biscuits are filled. Store in an airtight container.

(I did not use real bourbon as we don't do raw alcohol. I used some vanilla.)

 

Normally on my Birthday I would bake myself a cake . . . I do so love a Victorian Sponge. It's my absolute favourite . . . golden brown, moist and stogged full of jam and cream. (I do love my jam too!! If you've been visiting me for a while . . . you already know that!)



This year I decided to have something a little bit different and made myself a cheesecake. Well, i did share it with Todd, I confess . . . I'm not that greedy! I think even I would have a difficult time eating a cheesecake all by myself, but I do think I could give it a good go! (We won't go there . . . )



Anyways, I have this lovely little book called "Easy Desserts" deliciously indulgent treats. It's published by Murdoch Books and is a compilation of a variety of dessert recipes created by different chef peoples. On the back cover it says . . . "No-fuss recipes for irresistible desserts that are guaranteed to bring a smile to everyone's face." I can attest to the truth of that statement. I've made quite a few recipes from the whole of the "easy" books series and they are all good, and . . . as one would expect from their titles . . . easy.



This Vanilla Cheesecake is attributed to Fiona Beckett. I did play with it a bit. I chose to leave off her cooked blueberry topping. I was feeling rather lazy and I quite like this easy topping that I started making years ago using jam for on top of cheesecakes. It's very simply jam whisked together with a bit of honey to loosen it up a bit. I find it goes very well with the richness of the cheese filling. And I am rather lazy . . . I put my hand up . . . anything for an easy life.



I converted the measurements fo North American for my North American Friends and left out her cooked blueberry topping completely. Those are my changes.
The cake itself is rich and yes . . . indulgent, with a creamy cheese filling topped with an even creamier sour cream/yoghurt topping.



The blueberry topping???? Well, it's just the icing on a very delicous and moreish dessert. Do make sure you chill this properly before cutting and do use a wet and very sharp knife to cut. You will have no problems getting perfect slices if you follow those two pieces of advice . . . oh, and line the pan leaving some handles for lifting the ice cold cheesecake out of the pan. I find this works much better than using a springform pan . . .



Oh, and a square pan makes for nice even slices that look very pretty on the plate. I think so anyways. Enjoy! I did! (I am soooo not looking forward to my weigh -in this week!)



*Vanilla Cheesecake with a Simple Topping*
Serves 8 to 10
Printable Recipe

Lush and delicious. I top mine with a mixture of blueberry jam and honey, but you could use any jam you like. It makes an easy topping.

For the crust:
50g of unsalted butter (3 1/2 TBS)
110g of digestive or otehr wheaten biscuits, crushed into fine crumbs
(1 1/4 cup of graham cracker crumbs)

For the first layer:
two (200g) tube of full fat cream cheese (two 7.5 ounce tubs)
2 large free range eggs
100g of caster sugar (1/2 cup of fine sugar)
1/4 tsp vanilla extract

For the Second Layer:
284ml carton of sour cream (1 1/4 cup)
150ml of Greek style yoghurt (2/3 cup)
2 1/2 TBS of caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract

To top:
4 to 5 dessert spoons of wild blueberry jam
(I used bon maman)
2 TBS of liquid honey

Preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 5. Have ready an 9 inch square baking tin. Butter it well. Line it with some baking parchment, leaving an overhang, and then butter the baking parchment.
Set aside.

Melt the butter, cool slightly and then stir in the crushed biscuits. Press evenly and firmly into the base of the pan.

Beat all of the ingredients for the first layer together, making sure they are completely mixed and smooth. Pour over the biscuit base. Smooth over the top. Place onto a baking tray and then bake it in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, until just set. Remove from the oven and set aside for a further 20 minutes in order to let it set up.

Whisk together the ingredients for the second layer, until smooth and completely combined. Spoon this mixture evenly over top of the first layer. Return to the oven and bake for a further 10 minutes. Allow to cool completely. Place in the refrigerator to chill overnight.

The next day, gently warm the blueberry jam. Stir in the honey. Set aside to cool somewhat.

When you are ready to serve the cake. Gently loosen the edges with a sharp knife and lift the cake out onto a cutting board. Wet the knife and carefully cut into 8 or 10 narrow slices. Place each onto a chilled plate and then spoon some of the blueberry sauce over top. Serve.

Note: You don't need to use blueberry jam for the topping. Strawberry, Raspberry, Cherry and Apricot are each also VERY good!



The Toddster cooked me dinner and did a pretty good job. I think he had some help from M&S, but that's ok. I enjoyed it anyways, and I appreciated the effort he took . . . not to mention the thought.

There's not many of us that are not watching our food pennies these days. I know I am feeling the pinch, which means I am working hard to economize and to stretch my food pounds as far as they will go. Making what I do have stretch as far as possible.Economizing doesn't mean that you have to compromise on quality though. Take minced beef for instance. Lots of people will opt for a cheap mince, thinking they are saving money. In reality, this is just a false economy . . . as all of your savings gets poured down the drain in liquid fat . . .

You get what you pay for. I'd rather pay a bit more and have meat that is not only better quality . . . but healthier for my family. You can always stretch it out with other things to make it go that little bit further and save you that little bit extra.

I will always opt to buy a lean or an extra lean packet of beef mince. What I have here today is one recipe for cooking several packets of extra lean mince, that you can then use in several different ways, feeding a family of four each time . . .

In truth, you could probably divide the finished cooked mince into three portions (instead of two) and get three meals out of it, but I have done just two here today. Both are delicious, economical, quick and easy, and (I am hoping) quite different than anything you may have tried before.

First the cooked mince recipe. You can cook this up and then divide it into two or three portions depending on how much you want to economize, then wrap and freeze one (two) portion (s) for use at a later date, (just thaw out overnight in the refrigerator), and one for use today.

This delicious mixture has all of the flavours that you would find in a hamburger, minus the bun . . . there is pickle relish, fried onions, mustard, steak seasoning, etc. And it's fabulous all on it's own . . . truly.

*Burger Mince*
Makes 8 servings worth
(so enough for a casserole and four cheeseburgers!)
Printable Recipe

Delicious minced beef sauteed with all the seasonings and flavourings you might have in a hamburger, cept it's not in a burger. Ready to use in grilled cheese sandwiches and casseroles.

2 pounds extra lean steak mince
1 TBS steak seasoning (Montreal Steak seasoning, or something similar)
1 large onion, peeled and finely minced
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
2 tsp liquid beef bovril
2 TBS of hamburger relish (the pickle stuff you put on burgers)
mild mustard to taste (about 2 tsp does it for me)
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Spray a large nonstick skillet with some nonstick cooking spray. Heat it over medium heat until hot. Crumble in the steak mince. Cook stirring and mashing until it is cooked through completely. (I use my potato masher to cut down on the lumps. That is just my personal preference.) Add the onion and garlic, and continue to cook and stir until the meat is beginning to nicely brown and the onions are softened. Stir in the bovril, hamburger relish, mustard and worcestershire sauce. Cook for several minutes to meld flavours. Taste and adjust seasoning as required with some sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

The mince is now ready to use as you wish.

I was sitting here the other night kind of craving a grilled cheese sandwich . . . and yet at the same time I was wanting a burger. You know how it goes . . . at least I hope you do. Tell me I'm not the only glutton in the crowd! Say it ain't so!!

Anyways, I had seen on the telly one day a Grilled Cheese Sandwich Burger . . . that is an actual hamburger which has been grilled in the middle of two Grilled Cheese Sandwiches.




Yes, folks, it does exist. I think this picture is one from Friendly's. One can scarce imagine just how many calories are in one of these babies . . . and I dare say it's not for the faint of heart! Now that's what I call a real mouthful! I was intrigued. It did look rather good . . . and I was betting it also tasted really good . . . but could I dare to ingest that much fat and calories??? Never ever in a million years. I value my life too much!



And so I decided to compromise on something somewhere in the middle . . . and I put together a Grilled Cheese Sandwich which had all of the flavours of a burger . . . kind of like a Grilled Cheese Burger . . . but with only two slices of bread and half the cheese of the restaurant version. Definitely healthier and . . . if you use low fat cheese, not really all that bad for you.



The difficulty comes in trying to photograph it in a way that is actually looks as delicious as it tastes. I am no food stylist when it comes down to that sort of thing . . . but even so, this looks pretty good to me.



You've got all the flavours of a traditional cheeseburger . . . fried onions, sweet pickle relish, mustard . . . ground steak and a few other bits and bob's . . . sandwiched between two tangy slices of strong cheddar, tucked into two buttered slices of bread, (If you really wanted to be a glutton you could butter the sandwiches with garlic butter, but . . . I just couldn't do that to my arteries!) and then grilled until the bread is all toasty . . . the cheese is all gooey . . . and the three together just taste blissfully scrumdiddlyumptiously fabulous!!



As a once in a bluemoon treat this went down really well. I served them up with homemade oven fries . . . sweet potato and baking potatoes cut into half moons, tossed with a bit of olive oil and some herbs and spices and then baked in a hot oven until they were crispy. "Diner" food . . . cept it's at home.

Go on . . . tuck in . . . you know you want to. Just one bite, ok? (With a bit of ketchup on the side for dipping. Nom Nom!)



*Grilled Cheese Burgers*
Makes 4
Printable Recipe

Deliciously different.

8 slices of a sturdy white bread
8 slices of sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 of a recipe of Burger Mince
softened buttter
4 slices of streaky bacon cooked crisp (optional)

Lay half of the bread slices out onto a cutting board. Cover each with one slice of the cheese. Top each slice of cheese with 1/4th of the cooked mince and then another slice of cheese. Top with the final four slices of bread. Spread the outsided with softened butter. Heat the oven to low and have a baking pan ready.

Heat a large nonstick skillet. Cook two sandwiches at a time until they are golden brown on one side, flipping halfway through the cooking time to brown the other side. Place in the warm oven to keep warm. Repeat with the remaining two sandwiches. Cut each sandwich in half on the diagonal to serve.



I used the other half of the mince recipe to make a delicious casserole to take to a pot luck supper we were having at the church last Friday evening. I couldn't really spoon into it to show you just how delicious it was . . . but I did manage to take a few tasty pics of the outsides of it I think . . .



I tucked this fabulously flavourful beef mixture into the centre of two lucious layers of homemade macaroni and cheese . . . rich and creamy . . . cheesey delish! Then I topped it with some more cheese, buttered bread crumbs . . . and to make it even scrummier several slices of semi crisp bacon . . .



Baked in the oven for about 20 minutes so that the crumbs got all crispy and the bacon got all crisp-ier . . . and the meat mixture melted into all that mac & cheese surrounding it . . .

F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S!!! Dare I say that??? It was though . . . I would call this "empty dish delish" . . . because that is what I brought home . . . an empty dish. (I love it when that happens!!)

That can't be bad! You're family will love this, and so will you, because not only is it extra scrummy . . . but it's also quick and easy . . . perfect for those nights when you are just too pooped to work very hard at cooking a meal. A bit of a green salad on the side, and perhaps a french loaf and . . . easy peasy, lemon squeasy . . . you've fed the family a delicious meal.



*Cheeseburger Mac & Cheese*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

Macaroni and Cheese with a delicious burger layer in the centre and topped with crispy bacon.

One four serving recipe of macaroni and cheese
one half of the Burger mince recipe
4 slices of streaky bacon, partially cooked and cut in half
1/2 cup of soft white bread crumbs
1 TBS melted butter
4 ounces of strong cheddar cheese, grated (about 1 cup)

Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Butter a square casserole dish. Layer it in the following manner: 1/2 of the mac and cheese, the burger mince, the remaining half of the mac and cheese.
Combine the bread crumbs with the melted butter. Stir in the shredded cheese. Sprinkle over top of the casserole. Top with the bacon slices.

For this casserole today I used my Cheater's Mac & Cheese Recipe, which worked very well, but you can use any Mac & and Cheese recipe you want to use.

Bake in the heated oven for 25 to 30 minutes, until nicely browned and heated through. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

Another good way to use this cooked mince mixture it to make up a recipe of biscuit or scone dough. Pat it out to a large rectangle and then spread the dough with some mustard and ketchup. Sprinkle with half of the cooked mince (4 servings) and then press the mince in slightly. Roll up in a tight roll and then cut into 1 inch slices. Bake in a hot oven until golden brown. You can also sprinkle the tops with cheese before baking. Delicious!

I normally like to bake us something special to have with our breakfast at the weekend. Some weeks it may be a special breakfast cake, or cinnamon buns . . . and other's it will be muffins. We are quite fond of muffins actually . . . they are quick to throw together, they bake up likety split, and the leftovers freeze very well! (It's nice to have some muffins in the freezer to hand when unexpected company comes. They are very easily re-heated in the microwave in just seconds!)



Don't let the fact that I have combined cranberries with cheese throw you off here . . . cheese and fruit are a magic combination, and in fact there are many cheeses available over here that have fruit in them . . . Wensleydale or Stilton with cranberries, or apricots instantly come to mind. Fabulous on a cheese tray, especially when served with digestive biscuits. Delicious!



I am rather fond of cheese muffins you know . . . they're not quite savoury . . . not quite sweet . . . yet altogether scrummy . . . with little gooey flecks of cheese spread throughout . . . wonderful when served warm with soups or stews in a savoury way . . . or warm with jam as a sweet treat.



You can chop up bacon and add it to the mix when making cheese muffins, or onion, or chives. They are even more delicious that way . . . when you are looking for something savoury . . .
But when you want a sweet treat . . . try adding some dried fruit. Most will work well . . . dried apple, chopped for that quintessential combination that is notoriously loved. Apple pie and cheese, who doesn't love it. Dried cherries are nice as well . . . even sultanas, chopped figs, or apricots. All work splendidly . . . I think it's that sweet/savoury combination that is a the real winner here.



Our favourite combination though . . . is dried cranberries with the cheese. Oh my . . . the cranberries add just the right amount of sweet texture . . . that goes so very well with the sharp savouriness of the cheese. I use a mixture of white and dyed cheddar . . . for contrast and colour. You can use only white . . . if you prefer. It makes no difference.



These are moreishly scrummy no matter what. We rather love them a lot!

Especially with lashings of butter spread and melting into all those lovely little baked crevices. Oh, yes . . . I am a naughty girl at times!



*Cranberry and Cheddar Muffins*
Makes 12 medium muffins
Printable Recipe

Delicious flavour combination. Don't knock it til you try it!

150g of plain flour (1 1/2 cups)
1 1/2 TBS caster sugar
1 TBS baking powder
1/2 tsp fine seasalt
240g of grated strong cheddar (A mix of the white and the orange for colour purposes, 2 cups)
150g of dried cranberries (1 cup)
250ml of milk (1 cup)
1 large free range egg
60g of butter, melted (1/4 cup)

Preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 5. Butter a 12 cup muffin tin and dust with flour, or line with paper liners. Set aside.

Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder and seasalt together in a bowl. Drop in the cheese and cranberries. Mix together again to evenly distribute both. In a separate measure, beat together the egg, milk and melted butter Tip this into the dry ingredients and mix with a spoon, just to combine. Spoon into the prepared muffin cups, dividing the mixture equally amongst them.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until well risen, golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the centre of one comes out clean.