Every once in a while I get a hankering for this delicious old favourite of ours. It's simple, easy and quite an inexpensive entree if you pick up the tinned salmon when it's on special.
Whenever I see tinned salmon on special, I pick up a few tins. It's a really handy item to have in your store cupboard.
This is quite an old recipe which I have been making for years and years. I love it because it's good, and it's basic . . . and it's simple.
Simple ingredients prepared in a simple way and yet . . . very big on flavor. Delicious does not have to be complicated. I know I say that a lot, but that's because it is true.
Sometimes I serve it with the cucumber sauce, which is quite tasty and refreshing and goes very well with the salmon. Other times I serve it with creamed peas.
It all depends on what's in the freezer or larder and what I am in the mood for. The other day the peas won out!
I suppose you could make this with an equal amount of tuna and it would also be very, very good . . . but we like it with salmon. I always serve it with my stove top mac and cheese as well.
I know . . . it seems kind of crazy to do that, but it's what we like. To me, the two just go together like peas and carrots!
Sometimes you even get lucky and find tins of the boneless, skinless salmon on special! I love that. I am not particularly fond of picking out all the bones and skin . . .
but I do it because I love this dish so very much . . . anything that saves me from having to do that, I love even more! You can use either pink or red salmon. Today I used red Alaskan Salmon.
*Salmon Loaf*
Serves 6
Printable Recipe
This is a wonderful recipe I have been making throughout all of my cooking life. It was my mother’s recipe and most likely my grandmother’s as well. I expect it probably came from off of a tin of salmon at one time. It’s delicious. I like to serve it with a cucumber sauce. (recipe below)
1 large tin of salmon
½ cup milk (125ml)
3 cups soft bread crumbs (180g)
¼ cup butter, melted (60g)
1/3 cup of the juice from the salmon tin (80ml)
3 egg yolks, beaten
2 TBS finely chopped onion ( I grate it on a fine microplane grater)
The juice of one small lemon
½ tsp hot pepper sauce
½ tsp of salt
A good grinding of black pepper
1 tsp dill weed
3 egg whites, beaten stiff
Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 5. Grease a loaf tin really well and set aside.
Drain the salmon, reserving the liquid. Remove as much skin and bone from the salmon as you can and then mash it really well.Scald the milk and add the breadcrumbs. Let it sit for 5 minutes. Add the salmon liquid and melted butter and beat smooth. Stir in the beaten egg yolks, minced onion, lemon juice, black pepper, salt, hot pepper sauce and dillweed. Add the mashed salmon and mix it all in thoroughly. Fold in the egg whites.
Spread into the greased loaf pan. Bake in the heated oven for 50 to 60 minutes, until firm to the touch and a knife inserted in the centre comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let stand for 5 minutes before loosening from the pan and cutting into slices to serve.
Serve with the cucumber sauce below or creamed peas if you wish.
*Cucumber Sauce*
Makes 2 cups
Printable Recipe
This is a lovely sauce that goes very well with fish of all kinds.
¼ cup butter (60g)
¼ cup plain flour (25g)
2 cups milk (500ml)
1 ½ cups grated unpeeled Englishcucumber
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
½ tsp dill weed
Put the grated cucumber into a colander and drain it while you make the rest of the sauce. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium low heat. Whisk in the flour and cook, stirring for about one minute. Gradually whisk in the milk. Stir constantly until the sauce bubbles and thickens. Stir in the salt, cayenne and dill weed. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Add the grated cucumber, blending it in well. Serve.
*Creamed Peas on Toast*
Serves 2
Printable Recipe
When I was a child I hated peas. My mother found a cricket in the bottom of a tin of peas once and that did it for me. I never gave them much of a chance after that. I did like frozen peas though and gradually through the years I have come to enjoy them. Fresh is best, frozen is not bad, tinned is unacceptable. This is delicious in it’s simplicity, no ifs ands or buts about it!
2 TBS butter
2 TBS flour
2 cups whole milk
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 cup frozen peas
4 slices of bread
Softened butter for spreading
Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring, for one minute. Slowly whisk in the milk and cook, stirring, over medium heat until it begins to bubble and is thickened. Season with salt and pepper to taste and turn the heat down to low to keep warm while you cook the peas.
Bring a small pot of water to the boil and add the peas. Bring the water back to the boil and cook them for only a few minutes, no longer. Drain them well. Stir them into the white sauce and keep warm.
Toast the slices of bread and butter them. Lay them on two plates and spoon the warm sauce with the peas over top. Serve.
PSST - Just FYI, the leftover salmon loaf (if you have any) is really delicious sliced cold and then fried in butter until golden brown on both sides and served up burger style, or quite simply with some scalloped potatoes and peas and carrots. Just so you know. ☺
When I am upset or get bad news, I tend to cook . . . I find it to be great therapy. I just get stuck in and lose myself in my labors . . . and if there is something tasty to eat at the end of it all, well . . . so much the better. I know psychologically it's not good to sooth yourself with food, but sometimes you just have to do what you need to do and this morning it was to cook.
I have seen a lot of Cinnamon Roll Pancake recipes over these past few years, each one looking taste temptingly delicious and decadent. Something to sooth . . . I love Cinnamon Roll anything . . . and so this morning I thought I would make some of these pancakes to surprise the Toddster when he got up.
I found this recipe on Recipe Girl, and it looked pretty good to me. I made a few adaptions and before I knew it I was cooking something which looked decidedly scrummy, and they weren't as difficult as they seemed either.
It's a basic simple pancake batter, with a buttery cinnamon swirl piped over top while you are cooking the first side. Then you just flip them over and cook the under side and slip the finished pancake onto a warm plate. You can use a plastic squirt bottle to pipe on the cinnamon swirl, or you can use a plastic baggie.
I have a squirt bottle . . . but I used a small teaspoon. It worked well for me. Just make sure your mixture stays warm and somewhat liquid. If it begins to harden a bit on you . . . nuke it in the microwave for about 10 seconds.
I chose to use my own Cream Cheese Syrup recipe for mine, because . . . one I like it and two . . . the other recipe seemed too much like a frosting and I didn't want that. But you can look at her recipe and make up your own mind.
These were fabulous. I would make them again. As a once in a blue moon treat, they went down very well, and the Toddster . . . well, he quite simply thought he'd died and gone to heaven!
*Cinnamon Roll Pancakes*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe
Not as hard as one might think. Definitely scrummilicious! We won't think about the calories. A once in a blue moon treat for sure.
For the filling:
4 TBS unsalted butter, melted
6 TBS soft light brown sugar, packed
2 tsp ground cinnamon
For the pancakes:
100g plain flour (1 cup)
2 tsp baking powder
pinch salt
250ml of whole milk (1 cup)
1 large free range egg, beaten
1 TBS sunflower oil
For the Glaze/syrup:
1 250g package of cream cheese, softened (8 ounce pack)
250ml of maple syrup, warmed (1 cup)
First make the filling. Whisk all of the ingredients together until smooth. Place them into a plastic squeeze bottle if you have one. If not, then you will need a heavy duty plastic food bag, small. Put it into that and squish it down into one corner. Cut a tiny piece off the tip. Set aside.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt for the pancakes. Beat together the milk, egg and oil. Add to the dry ingredients and whisk together until smooth. Set aside for about 5 minutes.
To make the glaze/syrup, whisk the cream cheese and maple syrup together until smooth. Set aside and keep warm.
Spray a nonstick frying pan with cooking spray and heat. Pour in one eighth of the pancake batter. (I use a measuring beaker for this. It helps to make nice round pancakes.) You want your pan not to be hot. You will want to cook these on a low heat. Your patience will be well rewarded. Using the plastic bottle of filling, or the plastic bag, pipe a coil of the mixture onto the pancake, starting at the middle and working your way out. Try not to hit the outside edge. Cook until bubbles break across the whole surface of the pancake, and it is lightly browned, then carefully flip the pancake over. Cook for an additional 2 minutes, until lightly browned on the bottom side. Slide out of the pan onto a warm plate. Place in a warm oven while you cook the rest of the pancakes. Wipe the pan clean between each pancake and respray with cooking spray.
Serve warm with the warmed syrup drizzled over top. Try not to think about the calories. Remember this is a once in a blue moon treat. ☺
I make no secret of the fact that lemon is one of my absolute favourite flavors. It has ever been so. In fact if I had to choose between a piece of chocolate cake and a slice of Lemon Meringue Pie . . . I would have a very difficult time choosing. In the end I fear the Lemon Pie would probably win out big time! I just love lemon anything.
I have a Lemon Drizzle Cake recipe that I think is the perfect lemon drizzle cake. It's perfect for a couple of reasons. One, it's incredibly moist and two . . . it's the easiest lemon drizzle cake you could ever make. You just bang all of the cake ingredients into the food processor and then blitz them together for 2 minutes. Easy peasy, lemon squeasy. (Yes, that was intentional, lol)
Today though, I decided to add a little twist to it. I was sitting and thinking about how I could make an incredible cake even more incredible and then the lights went on and I thought . . . streusel . . . buttery, crunchy streusel, but not just any streusel . . . a lemon streusel!
Bingo! I decided to incorporate lemon flavours into my favourite streusel recipe . . . by the use of some lemon extract and candied lemon . . . but I wanted another flavour as well . . . GINGER. Yes, I also added some candied gingerroot, because lemons and ginger are just the perfect marriage you know.
I made the streusel first and then sprinkled it over the top of the loaf just before it went into the oven. About 40 minutes later we were rewarded with a beautifully moist lemon loaf . . . covered in a buttery, crunchy streusel, flavoured with lemon and ginger.
But wait . . . there's more. I then made a lemon drizzle icing and drizzled that all over the top of the streusel once the cake had cooled.
Oh boy . . . some good, but don't take my word for it. Bake it for yourself and see if I'm not telling the truth. I am. It's gorgeous. Totally gorgeous.
*Lemon Streusel Drizzle Cake*
Makes one medium loaf cake
Printable Recipe
An easy and delicious lemon loaf, with a lemon streusel topping and glaze!
5 ounces self raising flour (1 1/4 cup)
4 ounces softened butter (1/2 cup)
4 ounces caster sugar (generous 1/2 cup)
2 heaped dessertspoons of good quality lemon curd
2 large free range eggs
the finely grated zest of one unwaxed lemon
the juice of 1/2 lemon
for the streusel
3 TBS granulated sugar
6 TBS plain flour
2 TBS cold butter
few drops lemon extract or lemon oil
1 TBS chopped candied lemon zest
1 TBS chopped candied gingerroot
for the glaze:
130g sifted icing sugar (1 cup)
the juice of 1/2 lemon
Preheat the oven to 180*C/325*F/ gas mark 3. Butter a medium sized loaf tin. Line it with baking parchment. Butter the paper. (I like to leave an overhang so that I can just lift the finished cake out.)
Put all of your streusel ingredients into a food processor. Blitz until it clumps. Remove and set aside. Wipe out the processor. Add all of the cake ingredients and blize for 2 minutes. Scrape this mixture into the prepared baking tin. Smooth over the top. Sprinkle with the streusel.
Bake for 30 to 45 minutes until the cake is well risen and golden. A toothpick inserted in the centre should come out clean. Allow to cool completely in the tin. Once it is cool, lift out onto a wire rack. Whisk the glaze ingredients together only adding enough lemon juice to give you a drizzable consistency. Drizzle this over the top of the cake. Allow to set completely before serving.
Because I have cheated a little bit the past couple of days and given you compendiums of things I have already done I thought I would give you a little bit of a bonus today and throw in an extra taste sensation for you to enjoy! Food doesn't have to be complicated to be delicious or fun and so today I am going to show you how I make what I consider to be the World's Best Fish Finger Buttie! (Or sandwich to you North Americans!)
Sandwich, Sarnie, Buttie, Roll . . . whatever you call it, this has to be one of the easiest and tastiest, all round pleasing sandwiches to make. The Golden Arches people (No names here) have been peddling essentially what is the same thing for years and years . . . calling it a Filet O Fish . . . but call it what you like . . . it's a fish finger sandwich, except it has a square fish finger inside
I decided a while back that if I am going to cook something or eat something, I am going to make sure that whatever "something" is . . . I'm going to make it the very best "something" that I can or want to eat! And that means good ingredients from the start. No mystery fish here . . . I only use 100% cod or haddock fish fillets. I don't want fillers, or other unknowns in my fish. I want them to be lightly breaded fish. That's all. I am not a fan of bluefish, or other types. I am a fish finger snob. I also like to use the jumbo fish fingers . . . less breading more fish. You may not get as many servings from a pack . . . but you won't need as many fingers either, because they're umm . . . bigger!! There's also less risk of the larger fish fingers being dry.
The other integral part of a Fish Finger Sandwich . . . is the bread. Some people opt for soft white sandwich bread, others go uber healthy and want a seeded loaf, or a whole grain loaf, or a roll or whatever. I, myself, like a nice chewy bread and so I opt for a fresh Italian Ciabatta roll., and you want it to be really fresh too, if possible baked today. That way it's got a nice crust on the outside . . . but is soft and chewy inside.
Another reason I like a fresh Ciabatta roll is because they have lots of whole in them . . . lots of little nooks and crannies for the tartar sauce to seep into. To me that makes a scrummy sarnie, even scrummier!
I like to make my own tartar sauce (recipe here) but you can use any good quality bottled tartar sauce. I bang the fish fingers into the oven and while they are baking I will make my tartar sauce and then slice the roll in half with a sharp serrated knife. Some people spread their rolls with butter. I don't. I just spread one half with lots of my homemade tartar sauce and then I scrunch the bottom and the top halves together really well so that some of the tartar sauce oozes onto both side and into all those lovely little holes . . . and then, if I'm feeling especially indulgent I will add a bit more.
I add a nice layer of fresh rocket on the bottom of the roll. You can use whatever lettuce you like, or no lettuce at all, but I like rocket. It has a nice bite to it, and it adds colour and flavour.
Your fish fingers will be pretty much done now, so turn out the oven (meaning turn it off). Remove your tray of fish fingers and scrunch them together in groups, roughly the size of the bread or roll you are using, and then lay a nice processed cheese slice on top of each group. This is a time when you don't want to opt for a good cheddar or whatever . . . plain old processed cheese is the best to use here because it melts quickly and looks nice and what the heck, it even tastes nice. Place the tray back into the still warm oven for a few minutes so that the cheese just begins to melt.
Now slide your cheese stacked fish fingers onto that rocket and sauced bottom of your roll, or bread slice or whatever and pop on the top slice. Give it a little smoosh down . . . just to compact it a tiny bit. Now you are ready to eat it with a nice gerkin or pickled onion on the side and perhaps a few potato crisps. (Potato Chips to you North Americans.)
Now doesn't that look nice? Good enough to eat I'd say . . . but I'm going to make it that teensie weensie bit better. Call me hedonistic or whatever you like but . . .
I'm going to pop a few of those potato crisps in there right on top of those cheese slathered fish fingers and then I'm going to cut the whole thing in half . . .
Just look at all those tasty flavours and textures you have going on there . . . the chewy roll, the creamy and slightly tart sauce . . . snappy rocket, flaky meaty fingers of fish . . . oozing cheese and the crunch of potato crisps on top. (I like the salt and malt vinegar hand fried ones myself. We're not talking too healthy here people. It's a fish finger sandwich!)
Now that's what I call a perfectly delicious, scrummily tuck-into-able . . . Fish Finger Buttie. To me, it's the World's Best. You may have another idea of what makes the world's best . . . butter, ketchup . . . pickled onions, sliced tomatoes. What would make this sandwich YOUR world's best? I'd love to hear your ideas!
Good Cooking is all about sharing and eating don't you think?
I thought I would share a few of my favourite ways of using up leftover turkey today. I know I have a lot of American readers who will be wanting to know what to do with it all . . . and of course my Canadian and British readers will be dealing with leftover turkey after the annual Festive feast in just a few weeks time.
There's so much more to do with it than the annual turkey/cranberry and stuffing sandwich, as good as they are and it just wouldn't be Thanksgiving or Christmas without imbibing at least one of those after the main meal!
In truth I am probably even more fond of the leftovers than I am of the actual turkey dinner! Well, almost at any rate!
Here's a few taste tempting dishes to prepare that I am sure will help to insure that your turkey leftovers this year will be neither boring or tasteless!
Turkey Oven Bake - A tasty casserole which goes together quick as a wink, with rice, broccoli, turkey and a few other things. A real family pleaser!
Barbequed Turkey Pizza - Another favourite with a sauce base of cranberry barbeque sauce and a topping of Balsamic Caramelized Onions, cooked turkey and cheese of course! Who says leftovers have to be boring!
Turkey Cobb Salad - Chock full of the super foods, turkey, avocado, tomatoes . . . bacon and blue cheese, with a scrummy vinaigrette dressing!
Turkey Pot Pie - An annual favourite for many years!
Turkey and Stuffing Pie - This version is made with chicken, but you can very easily substitute the chicken with leftover turkey and stuffing from your holiday dinner!
I don't really have much in the way of food to show you today, except for some scrummy turnips I cooked the other day, which I'll save til the end. I thought it would be fun to share my Christmas Wish List with you though. I could spend hours surfing the web and digging up neat things that would be really fun to own . . . of course I pretty much have everything I need, but it's nice to dream sometimes . . .
I am just loving this new Magimix Cuisine Systeme 5200XL in pink! It comes in a lot of other colours too. It has three bowl sizes, an extra large feed tube and a metal dough bowl, with a guaranteed 20 year lifespan on the motor. I wonder if I put it on my wish list if Santa would bring it to me this year . . . I don't think I've been too naughty!
I also love these cute little singing bluebird measuring spoons that I found on Rex London. Add them to my wish list too. (I know . . . I don't really need any more measuring spoons, but can you ever have too many???)
While I'm making my list and checking it twice, I would love to include this beautiful domed cake stand that I found on Not On The High Street. I have never had a proper cake plate actually. When I worked at the manor my boss had about 20 of them, each one very beautiful, cut glass, crystal, etc. I really like this one. It looks really oldfashioned and antiquish. I like old things . . .
I love these little egg cups I found on Not On The High Street as well. They're so cute. I like cute things . . .
And doesn't a hat on your boiled egg make them even tastier? Also Not On The High Street. These are so cute. I guess I better dig out the knitting needles huh?
Isn't this Jewelry Holder beautiful. It's from contemporary Home. Of course a jewelry holder would mean that I'd need something for it to hold, right? Anything gold with sparkles will be fine dear Santa!
Do you think he would fit in my stocking???
I suppose he's out of the question too . . . guess I'll just have to settle for turnips . . .
Acutally I rather like turnips. They're one of my favourite vegetables, not to be confused with Swede or Rutabaga, which is also a favourite vegetable of mine.
These are especially nice . . . they braised until they are tender and sweet in a mixture of chicken stock, honey, butter and thyme.
*Turnips Braised with Honey, Butter and Thyme*
Serves 6
Printable Recipe
An easy and delicious way to get everyone to eat their turnips! I've never had anyone turn these down!
3 medium white turnips
250ml of chicken stock (1 cup)
(You may not need it all)
a knob of butter
1 dessertspoon of liquid honey
1/2 tsp dried thyme
fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Peel the turnips. Cut them into like sized fingers, about 2 inches long and 1/2 inch wide. Place them into a deep skillet. Add half of the chicken stock, the butter, honey, and thyme. Bring to the boil, then cover and reduce the heat.
Cook at a quick simmer for about 8 to 10 minutes until they are almost tender, adding additional chicken stock if needed. Once they get to that stage, remove the cover, season to taste with some salt and pepper, and then turn up the heat beneath the pan. Continue to cook, gently stirring occasionally until all of the liquid has evaporated, and they are quite tender and glazed with the honey butter mixture. Serve hot.
HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL OF MY AMERICAN FRIENDS!
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