The citrus fruit is so lovely this time of year! Our grocery shelves are stocked with lovely oranges and lemons from Spain. It is the perfect time to make marmalade too . . . I have never made my own marmalade. I really should give it a go. I fear I would never be happy with store bought stuff again. I do love a nice piece of toast in the morning . . . spread with lots of butter and orange marmalade.
Any other time of the year I would not think of using precious oranges in cakes and the like, but at this time of year . . . when they are so abundant reasonably priced, I do love to indulge myself in this way.
This week I decided to bake us a lovely spiced orange cake, which was filled with lots of beautiful orange flavour . . . both from the juice and the finely grated zest . . . mixed with lots of cinnamon, cloves and ground cardamom. Just delightful!
I created a lovely icing sugar and cinnamon/orange glaze to spoon over top of the warm cake as it cooled. I like to do this on a rack placed over a large piece of foil. I keep scraping the glaze which over-runs the up with a spoon and spooning it over again . . . I don't want to waste even a fraction of all those lovely flavours.
And I think it makes the glaze look even more interesting in the process . . . but that may just be me. Do try not to over bake the cake . . you want it to keep all of that buttery moistness . . . You could add a bit of texture by stirring some juice plumped raisins into the batter. I'd just pour some warm orange juice, with maybe a touch of Cointreau over top of the raisins and let them stand for about 15 minutes to make them all plump and juicy . . .
Do feel free to frost with a spiced vanilla butter cream instead of the glaze if you wish . . . instead of . . . or even on top of the glaze. This also tastes lovely when sliced warm and served with a nice scoop of vanilla ice cream, or even some softly whipped double cream.
It's just a simple cake . . .
I like simple things, don't you?? Quite often it is the simple things in life which bring us the most joy.
*Spiced Orange Cake*
Makes one 9 inch square cake
Printable Recipe
A good way to use up some of the oranges left from Christmas. Smells fabulous when it is baking.
170g of butter, softened (3/4 cup)
190g of golden caster sugar (1 cup)
2 large free range eggs
60ml vegetable oil (1/4 cup)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp orange extract
the finely grated zest of two well washed large oranges
60ml of orange juice
175g of plain flour (1 3/4 cup)
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
To glaze:
60ml orange juice (1/4 cup)
130g of sifted icing sugar (1 cup)
1/4 tsp cinnamon extract (optional)
Preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 5. Butter a 9 inch square pan. Line with baking paper. Butter the paper. Set aside.
Cream the butter, orange zest and sugar together until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Beat in the orange juice, oil and extracts. Sift together the flour, baking powder, soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves and cardamom. Beat this into the creamed mixture in thirds, making sure it is smooth after each addition. Spread the batter in the prepared pan, smoothing the top. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes until risen, golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.
Remove from the oven. Let stand for five minutes before lifting out of the pan and onto a wire rack. Place the rack over a large piece of foil wrap. Whisk together the glaze ingredients until smooth. Pour the glaze over top of the warm cake. In order not to waste too much of the glaze, I scraped it off the tin foil and kept spooning it over top of the cake. It made for a nice rustic look. Cut into squares to serve. Store in an airtight container.
One of the things I love to make are Pierogi's. If you are not familiar with what they are . . . they are an Eastern European Dumpling with is made with a type of pasta dough covering and a potato based filling.
The filling can have mushrooms in it with the potato, or meat, sauerkraut, cabbage or cheese, or sometimes even a mixture of several of those . . . but almost always it will have potato.
They are kind of like Eastern European Ravioli . . . and you boil them in lightly salted water and then fry them in butter with onions. Served up with a dollop of Sour Cream, they are a real treat!
I normally make my own from Scratch following a recipe given to me by a Hungarian friend many, many years ago. (If you click on that it will take you to the recipe and some tasty photos of them.)
We enjoyed making them together on my first Christmas in Calgary Alberta. It was my first ever Christmas far away from my family.
Pierogi for Christmas was a family tradition of hers. It was really a lot of fun for me to learn how to make them from scratch, being taught not only by a person who knew what she was doing but who was a good frien.
I have had this Pierogi Lasagne recipe in my to do file for quite some time now. I think I originally printed it out from the Mr Food site, but I can't be sure, as it was a copy and paste job.
I finally got around to making it the other day and let me tell you . . . it was F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S!! It tasted just like the real thing, with a lot less faff!
There was no rolling out and filling dumplings, or boiling them. There was no frying them in butter. You simply fry some onions, boil some lasagne noodles and make some mashed potatoes.
The potatoes are mixed with cheese and some of the fried onions, and then layered with the noodles in a baking dish, and baked. It was really easy!
The recipe does make a rather lot and it says you can freeze it, but in all honesty . . . I have never actually tried to freeze it. I have to say up front, I have never liked the texture of potato dishes once they've been frozen.
To that end, I was able to successfully cut the recipe down to a third the original quantity, serving only 4 so that was great! We had it fresh one night, served up with a salad and then we had the leftovers reheated for a quick supper the day after with some vegetables.
It's probably not the healthiest meal in the world. Mostly because of the cheese and fried onions . . . but it's probably a lot healthier for you than regular pierogis because you are not sauteeing anything but the onions in fat.
And in fact, I cut the amount of oil used to fry the onions down quite a bit as well, only using 1 TBS for the whole lot, which divided between 4 servings would be quite considerably less.
Using half fat cheese for the filling, and low fat sour cream for the garnish meant that it wasn't all that bad for us. It was cheap to make, filling and incredibly tasty!
We both enjoyed it very much . . . even the pasta hater in the house!
*Pierogi Lasagne*
Serves 12
Printable Recipe
This is
fantastically delicious! It's also very easy to make and quite
economical. It's also quite easy to cut the recipe down. I cut it
down by a third today and it was fabulous.
1 package of lasagne noodles, cooked as per package directions
2 TBS vegetable oil
5 medium onions, peeled and finely chopped
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
2 dessert spoons of cream cheese
8 ounces grated strong cheddar cheese (2 cups)
6 cups of warm mashed potatoes (seasoned to taste with salt and pepper, a bit of nutmeg, a knob of butter and some warm milk)
Heat
the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped onions.
Cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes, until they are lightly
browned. Don't let them burn. Reserve several TBS to sprinkle over
the top of the casserole. Stir the remainder into the mashed potatoes,
along with 3/4 of the cheddar cheese and the cream cheese. Taste and
adjust seasoning as desired.
Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Butter a 9 by 13 inch glass baking dish.
Cover
the bottom of the dish with 1/4 of the noodles. Top with 1/3 of the
potato mixture, spreading it out with a fork. Top with another fourth
of the noodles. Repeat with 1/3 of the potatoes. Top with another
fourth of the noodles and then the remainder of the potatoes. Top with
the last of the lasagne noodles Sprinkle with the remainder of the
cheese and sprinkle with the last of the sauteed onions.
Bake for
25 to 30 minutes, until heated through and golden brown on top. Let
stand 5 minutes before cutting into squares to serve.
Optional: Garnish each serving with a dollop of sour cream.
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I just love vegetables. They are one of my favorite things to eat. When my dinner comes . . . the vegetables are the first thing I tuck in to. I can honestly say . . . I have NEVER met a vegetable I did not like and fall in love with.
I am an especially big fan of root vegetables . . . beetroot, carrots, parsnips, potatoes, turnips, swede . . . Jerusalem artichokes, sweet potatoes. Oh my . . . I love them all. And they are so very good for you too!
Grown beneath the ground where they are able to absorb tons of nutrients and minerals from the soil, they are a delicious form of complex carbohydrate! They naturally break down as sugars giving your body much needed energy boosts and the ability to function properly. High in fiber they are low in calories and fat, and they are just loaded with lots of tasty vitamins and nutritional goodies!
I really do love them, (I can't say that enough!) but I especially love them roasted! Roasting them helps to bring out their natural sweetness and nuttiness . . . and well . . . I just think it brings out the best in each of them. I have never met a roasted root that I didn't immediately fall head over heels with! 'Tis absolutely true. Cross my heart and hope to die.
I found this delicious recipe in one of my cookbooks, called The Delicious Cookbook. It is a book put out by one of my favourite cookery magazines, Delicious magazine . . . and this book is every bit as good as it's title makes you think it is. It's just chocker block full of tasty recipes! I got mine free for subscribing to a magazine. I can't remember which one, but I just love , LOVE it!
This dish was really easy to throw together and helped to use up some stale sour dough bread I wanted to use up. I always have parsnips and carrots in my vegetable drawer. I also always have walnuts. Who knew that these things would taste so wonderful when put together in such an imaginative way!
The walnut sauce is amazing and so very simple to throw together . . . stale bread, vinegar, oil, fresh parsley, seasoning and . . . toasted walnuts. Fabulous!
It was fabulous hot and freshly made . . . but it also tasted very, very good cold. There are only two of us and I found myself picking at it the whole rest of the day. In short . . . I couldn't leave it alone. This is a new favourite around here and I hope that it will become a new favourite of yours as well!
*Roasted Parsnips and Carrots with a Walnut Sauce*
Serves 6
Printable Recipe
You'll want to use smaller carrots and parsnips for this delicious side dish. Each mouthful brings you the delightful sweetness of the roasted root vegetables, along side the tang of a fabulous dressing/sauce. This is just wonderful!
500g of small carrots (about a pound)
500g of small parsnips (about a pound)
3 to 4 TBS olive oil
sea salt
For the walnut sauce:
1 to 2 slices of stale sourdough bread
2 TBS red wine vinegar
100ml of olive or walnut oil (about 1/3 cup)
100g walnut pieces (3/4 cup)
generous handful of flat leaf parsley leaves
1 clove of garlic, peeled
Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6. Wash and scrub the parsnips and carrots. You can peel them if you like, but it's not necessary. Divide them amongst two large rimmed baking sheets. Drizzle with the oil and sprinkle with some sea salt. Toss to coat. Roast for 20 minutes. Remove them from the oven and give them a stir and then return them to the oven and continue to roast until they are tender and beginning to caramelize. (up to 20 minutes longer.) The oil will be slightly infused with the colour of the carrots and some of the sweetness of the vegetables. Don't discard it. Keep it to drizzle over the finished dish when you serve it. Keep the vegetables warm.
While the vegetables are roasting make the walnut sauce. Tear the bread into bits and place it into a bowl. Mix together with the vinegar and half of the oil. Add about 2 TBS of cold water. Allow to sit for about 10 minutes, until the bread is soft. Squash it with the back of a spoon into a paste.
Place the walnut pieces onto a baking tray. Place in the oven to toast for about 10 minutes. Remove and shake off as much of the skins as you can by shaking them gently in a metal colander. (The skins will fall through the holes, so do it over the sink.) Roughly crush the nuts with a mortar and pestle, or rolling pin. (Don't use a food processor, you want them coarse, not fine.)
Roughly chop the parsley and garlic, Toss it in with the bread mixture along with the nuts, and the remainder of the oil. Season to taste. Place the roasted vegetables along with any of their juices onto a serving platter. Drizzle with the walnut sauce and serve immediately.
If you are looking for a deliciously different type of bread to serve with your winter casseroles, soups or stews . . . look no further! These are fabulous.
These are rich and buttery . . . with a delicious crunchy texture from the cornmeal.
Add to that a delicious tang from the buttermilk, and you have a true winner.
They go together quick and easy and can simply be patted out and cut into squares. I cut the recipe in half because there is only Todd and I, with no problem at all. They turned out perfectly.
Three days later and we had the last of them warmed up with our supper tonight and they were still lovely. I have chosen to brush them with buttermilk and sprinkle them with some flaked sea salt and coarse black pepper, but you could also just brush them with the buttermilk and sprinkle them with some coarse demerara sugar.
They would be fabulous for breakfast done this way and served along with some butter and your favourite preserves.
I do hope you will give them a try. I'm sure they'll become a favourite in your house too!
*Cornmeal Scones*
Makes 16
Printable Recipe
Crisp and lovely. Great with soups, stews and other savoury dishes.
200g of plain flour (2 cups)
170g of cornmeal (fine polenta, 1 cup)
2 TBS granulated sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp fine seasalt
4 ounces cold butter, cubed (1/2 cup)
250ml of buttermilk (1 cup)
More buttermilk to brush on the top, plus some flaked sea salt and coarsely ground black pepper
Preheat the oven to 220*C/420*F/ gas mark 7. Have ready a large baking sheet, lined with baking paper.
Whisk the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, soda and salt together in a large bowl. Drop in the butter. Cut the butter into the dry ingredients using your finger tips or a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Make a well in the centre. Add the buttermilk all at once. Stir with a spoon to moisten. (you may need a bit more buttermilk if the mixture seems too dry.) Tip out onto a floured surface. Gently knead 4 or 5 times. Pat out into an 8 inch square, 3/4 of an inch thick. Cut into 2 inch squares. Place the squares 2 inches apart on the baking sheet. Brush the tops lightly with more buttermilk and sprinkle with sea salt flakes and coarse black pepper.
Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until well risen and lightly browned. Serve warm.
With much of the country blanketed in snow and cold temperatures, today is a the perfect day to cook up a nice pot of soup. Hand warming and soul enriching soup. We haven't gotten any snow here in Chester, not yet anyways . . . but it is wet and it is cold, and a hot bowl of soup is more than welcome.
Back home they laugh at me when I tell them that it's cold here and that it's -2 or -3. Cold to them is -27! I am glad that it doesn't get that cold here, but cold is relative. Cold to me is cold . . . and it doesn't matter if it is -2 or -27. When you're cold . . . you're cold! End of.
This is a simple soup that is prepared quickly using simple ingredients. Leeks, potatoes . . . vegetable stock . . . and the Stilton that I have leftover from Christmas. It's tasty and hits the spot perfectly . . . with a little hint of richness from the cheese, which tips it over from ordinary to extraordinary . . . well it does for me at any rate.
Todd likes to have his with a couple slices of thick white bread . . . I prefer crackers . . . but I also love it with a nice scone or two.
Equally at home in a mug as it is in a bowl . . . I like to crumble my scone over top. My ex boss would call that being common.
I'm not bothered. I don't mind being common. I'm just happy I have soup . . . and a scone. So there!
*Potato, Leek and Stilton Soup*
Makes 4 to 6 servings
Printable Recipe
Proof positive that the humblest of ingredients can be simply turned into some very special.
25g butter (2 TBS, scant)
2 medium leeks, trimmed, thinly sliced and washed thoroughly
250g floury potatoes (the type of potatoes you would use to make mash. 4 -5 medium potatoes)
(Peel and cut into thick slices)
1/2 litres of hot fresh vegetable stock (generous 5 cups)
2 bay leaves, broken in two
100ml single cream or evaporated milk (scant half cup)
fine sea salt and ground white pepper to taste
125g Stilton cheese, rind removed and crumbled (plus extra to serve) (1/2 cup)
Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium/low heat. Add the leeks. Cook, stirring occasionally, without browning until softened. Add the potatoes, stock and bay leaves. (I crumble the bay leaves slightly to release more flavour.) Season to taste with fine seasalt and white pepper.
Bring to the boil, cover and reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are well softened. Remove from the stove. Fish out and discard the bay leaves. Add the stilton and cream. Blitz with a stick blender, or in a regular blender (in several batches and with care) until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired.
Ladle into heated bowls. Crumble some additional Stilton over each bowl. Serve.
It's always very handy to have a few recipes in your recipe repertoire for easy do ahead meals. I especially like these types of things for Sundays, because I am usually starving by the time I get home from church. Sundays is normally the day I make a do ahead casserole that I can just heat up . . . or I use the slow cooker. It's what works for me!
This is one of my favourite make ahead casseroles. It is not Todd's favourite make ahead casserole . . . because, as you know . . . the silly man HATES pasta! (I think it's a texture thing, but don't quote me on that!) I LOVE pasta, as you also know . . . and so every once in a while I just have to have some! Yes, today was torture Todd with pasta day!
Actually I do try not to torture him with it very often . . . and usually when I do make pasta, I am sure that I have something in the cupboard I can just heat up for him like a steak and kidney pudding (YUCK!) which he adores. It's only fair.
There is this program on Saturday mornings called oddly enough, Saturday Kitchen! (Took a genius to name that I think!) They usually have a celebrity guest on board, and they are asked what is their food heaven and food hell. Then they draw and it's up to the draw whether they will have to experience their food heaven or hell.
I would hate that myself . . . although I am thinking that pretty much anything would be food heaven in James Martin's presence . . . but I digress. (Look at those eyes ladies! Now that's what I call a tasty dish . . . and he is the master of desserts!)
My point is . . . Pasta is Todd's food hell and my food heaven . . . and steak and kidney pie would be his food heaven and my food hell, coz there would be no way on earth you could EVER tempt me into eating kidney. Sorry. I'm squeamish about that. After learning about them in cooking school, I am never eating a kidney.
Anyways . . . this casserole is my idea of food heaven. It's make ahead. It's easy. It's pasta. It's cheesy. It's delicious. What more could you ask for! It's like an easy, meatless lasagne . . . without any fuss.
*Tasty Pasta Bake*
Serves 8
Printable Recipe
A delicious pasta bake that you put together the night before and then bake the next day to serve. The perfect make ahead dish.
16 ounces of uncooked pasta
(1 pound)
1/4 cup of sour cream
8 ounces cottage cheese (1 cup)
4 ounces cream cheese (1/2 cup)
1 small onion, peeled and minced
1/2 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
1 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp black pepper
28 ounces pasta sauce (tomato and basil, Bolognese, whatever you have. Homemade is best
but jarred works well also) (2-400g jars)
1 cup of chopped vegetables (peppers, mushrooms,olives etc.)
4 ounces grated cheese (a mixture of cheddar and mozzarella works fine) (1 cup)
Cook your pasta in lightly salted water, just until al dente. Drain well, rinse, drain again and then set aside.
Stir together the sour cream, cottage cheese, cream cheese, onion, Parmesan cheese, garlic salt and pepper. Set aside.
Butter a 9 by 13 inch glass baking dish. Layer in the ingredients as follows. 1/'2 of the cooked pasta. The cottage cheese mixture. Any vegetables you are using. The remainder of the pasta. Pour over top the pasta sauce. Sprinkle with the grated cheeses. Cover tightly and place in the refrigerator overnight. Remove from the refrigerator 1/2 hour before you want to cook it.
When you are ready to cook it, preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Place the casserole dish into the preheated oven and bake for approximately 45 minutes, or until bubbly and golden brown. Let stand 5 to 10 minutes before serving. Delicious!
Note: the leftovers taste even better and if you wish you can make this in two casseroles and freeze one for a later date.
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