This is another recipe I like to bake each Christmas. It just wouldn't be Christmas without a plate of these on offer. Simple to make and yet so very impressive. Perfect for a holiday breakfast or brunch, or even for coffee breaks or elevensies.
This is a tasty little gem I clipped from an old issue of Good Food Magazine yonks ago! It looked fabulously delicious and very simple to make. As you know I can be rather lazy sometimes and simple and delicious are what works best for me!
Look at what I recently got in the Post. A Joseph Joseph Nest 7 Plus from Red Candy. For those of you not familiar with the company, Red Candy is an online mail order gift site here in the UK that specializes in Funky Home Accessories and ravishing Red Kitchen Accessories. If you are a fan of kitchen reds, then this is the place for you!
I picked up a beautiful big cauliflower at the shops this afternoon and so I decided to make us a delicious cauliflower soup for our supper. We had rather a big lunch and so we didn't really want anything too heavy.
I sometimes make a Roasted Cauliflower Soup, which is excellent! Other times I do a fantastic one with a Garlicky Brioche Bread Crumb topping, which is also very good. Today though . . . we just wanted something simple.
Christmas is fast approaching, so why not get into the festive spirit by trying your hand at these Jolly Rich Fruit Snowmen Cakes? These cute little characters have been created by Juliet Sear, exclusively for the Dr. Oetker Even Better Baking Team. At the forefront of modern cake design, Juliet aims to encourage home bakers to get into the baking spirit this Christmas and create these jolly treats. I think they aer just ADORABLE!
This isn't something that I make really often . . . as it is kind of a lot of work . . . but every once in a while I love to treat us to it.
As you all know I am a big fan of The English Provender Co. products. I often use them and tell you about my experiences. I just adore their chutneys and their luxury curds and of course their dressings and condiments. I'm really excited because they have given me an opportunity to run a Giveaway here on The English Kitchen where one of my readers will be able to win a lovely prize just in time before Christmas!
One lucky reader will win:
A beautiful Le Creuset Condiment Pot! Isn't it cute. Just the perfect way to serve your condiments at your holiday gatherings. I think this is a fabulous prize. I am as fond of Le Creuset as I am of The English Provender Co.!
As well as this lovely condiment pot you will also receive three chutneys from The English Provender Co Range. They actually have two new flavours at the moment.
Hot Chilli & Red Pepper Chutney - Naturally delicious for adding a kick to cheddar & heat to cold meat - or anything else that takes your fancy!
Moroccan Spiced Chutney - Naturally delicious for adding a touch of the exotic. Perfect with kebabs and couscous, or mix with crème fraiche for a dip with a difference.
Both sound delicious and I love the idea of mixing that Moroccan one with some creme fraiche for a tasty dip, don't you?
Anyways, in order to be in it to win it, simply leave a comment at the end of this post. I will announce a winner on Monday the 8th of December, and with any lucky the winner will be able to use this for their Christmas festivities!
Giveaway is open to entrants from the UK only. Sorry about that, but that's the way the cookie crumbles. If you are in the UK however, please enter and be in it to win it! Thank you so much!
I love it when I get to give something away!
GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED.
The race is on now for me to develop a tasty trifle recipe for my Christmas lunch this year. Other years I have done different versions such as:
Turkish Delight Trifle Very good and very sweet. Not for the faint of heart or those who are not fond of Turkish Delight.
Turkish Delight Trifle Very good and very sweet. Not for the faint of heart or those who are not fond of Turkish Delight.
What with Thanksgiving and everything I am only getting to show you this fabulous banana bread now. It is a little bit different than my usual favourite banana bread recipe, in that it has a lovely crumb topping.
My usual one is stogged with nuts and dried cranberries. This one is quite plain except for the crumb topping.
Other than the topping, it is exactly what you would expect a banana bread to be . . . dense, moist, almost fudgy.
Other than the topping, it is exactly what you would expect a banana bread to be . . . dense, moist, almost fudgy.
Perfect for toasting under the grill and spreading with butter . . . or just eaten out of hand. Our little Spanish girl quite enjoyed this.
My husband quite enjoyed this.
I quite enjoyed this . . . and sometimes, that is enough. Three ten out of tens can't be bad.
My husband quite enjoyed this.
I quite enjoyed this . . . and sometimes, that is enough. Three ten out of tens can't be bad.
It was a combination of the loaf part of this recipe and the topping part of another recipe. Together they made a scrummy recipe.
200g sugar (1 cup)
125g of butter at room temperature (1 stick or 1/2 cup)
1 tsp vanilla
120ml of buttermilk (1/2 cup)
2 overripe bananas, peeled and mashed
280g of plain flour (2 cups)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
Crumb Topping
2 Tbsp light brown sugar
3 Tbsp flour
1/8 tsp cinnamon
3 Tbsp white chocolate chips or chopped toasted pecans or walnuts (optional)
1 1/2 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
Preheat oven to 180*C/350*F/gas mark 4. Butter a 9″ x 5″ loaf pan and dust lightly with flour, shaking out any excess.
Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg in a large bowl. Make a well in the center of the mixture. Cream together the butter and sugar, until light and fluffy. Beat in the banana, buttermilk, egg, and vanilla. Add to flour mixture all at once and stir just until combined. Pour batter into prepared pan and smooth top with the back of a spoon.
For the crumb topping, combine brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Add melted butter and toss mixture with a fork until crumbly. Stir in the chocolate chips or nuts if using. Sprinkle over batter and bake, rotating pan halfway through, for about 53 to 54 minutes. If bread is browning too quickly, cover with foil. The bread is done when golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs attached.
Remove from oven and cool in pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Remove bread from pan, and cool completely before slicing and serving. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 2 days; serve warm.
A deliciously different and moist banana bread with a crumb topping which adds a touch of crunch.
Delightful!
1 large free range egg, beatenDelightful!
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
pinch allspiceCrumb Topping
2 Tbsp light brown sugar
3 Tbsp flour
1/8 tsp cinnamon
3 Tbsp white chocolate chips or chopped toasted pecans or walnuts (optional)
1 1/2 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
Preheat oven to 180*C/350*F/gas mark 4. Butter a 9″ x 5″ loaf pan and dust lightly with flour, shaking out any excess.
Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg in a large bowl. Make a well in the center of the mixture. Cream together the butter and sugar, until light and fluffy. Beat in the banana, buttermilk, egg, and vanilla. Add to flour mixture all at once and stir just until combined. Pour batter into prepared pan and smooth top with the back of a spoon.
For the crumb topping, combine brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Add melted butter and toss mixture with a fork until crumbly. Stir in the chocolate chips or nuts if using. Sprinkle over batter and bake, rotating pan halfway through, for about 53 to 54 minutes. If bread is browning too quickly, cover with foil. The bread is done when golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs attached.
Remove from oven and cool in pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Remove bread from pan, and cool completely before slicing and serving. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 2 days; serve warm.
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at mariealicejoan at aol dot com.
I always like to offer something light for dessert over the holidays. We are eating such rich foods and to be honest after a heavy meal I often don't have enough room for cake or puddings . . . I find this delightful jelly mold fits the bill perfectly!
I have been making it for years and years. I think I got the original recipe from one of the Kraft folders you used to be able to pick up or have sent to you in the post.
They came in colours like yellow, blue and pink and the print and photographs were always in black and white.
They used to give the address to write for them on their advertisements and they always sent them to you for free! I have quite a few of them that I saved through the years.
They are good reliable recipes and have become old faithfuls for me! It often wouldn't be the holidays without making at least a few of them!
This makes the perfect holiday dessert with it's two layers. All you need is four packets of lemon jelly (jello) a tin of sweetened condensed milk and some sour cream.
Oh yes, and some fruit. I used grapes, both green and red.
It goes together quickly and simply and is so easy to dress up. I simply plunked a Christmas package decoration down in the middle of this and it looks fabulous don't you think?
And it tastes gorgeous. It was dark by the time we cut into this but trust me when I tell you it sparkles like a jewel . . . a bit of softly whipped cream to adorn each portion and you got a well impressive dessert that most will enjoy!
*Creamy Layered Lemon Dessert*
serves 16
Have
ready a large gelatin mold which you have sprayed with nonstick cooking
spray. Stir two packets of the gelatin together with 345ml of the
boiling water (1 1/2 cups). Stir for about two minutes until the
gelatin is completely dissolved. Pour into the prepared mold and place
in the refrigerator to chill for about 5 to 8 minutes. Remove and
press the grapes down into the mixture. Return to the fridge for 20
minutes or until set, but not firm.
Add the remaining
water to the other two packets of gelatin. Stir for another two minutes
to dissolve. Whisk in the condensed milk and sour cream to combine
well. Allow to cool and slightly thicken and then pour this mixture
over the other mixture in the mold. Chill for at least 2 hours or
until completely firm before serving.
It's really easy to switch the flavours around with this dessert simply by swapping out the flavours of jelly and type of fruit. Try using chopped tinned peaches in stead of the grapes, beautiful with the lemon. Or using a cherry jello and drained fruit cocktail or pears. You could also use orange jelly and drained mandarins. Use your imagination!
I was recently sent some Stella Artois Cidre Raspberry and challenged to come up with a recipe using it. As you know I love nothing more than a challenge, especially when it is a challenge which involves food and recipes. This was particularly challenging as, being a Latter Day Saint . . . ie. Mormon, that means I do not drink alcohol, which meant that whatever I used it in would have to be cooked so that the alcohol would cook off.
Stella Artois Cidre Raspberry is made using a Belgian recipe, for a sophisticated taste. Hand-picked apples are pressed and combined with crushed raspberries to create a cider bursting with fruit flavour.
"The new Stella Artois Cidre Raspberry has been carefully crafted according to a unique Belgian recipe, which uses hand-picked, crushed raspberries to deliver a sophisticated fruit cider with a refreshing, crisp tast."
I decided to try something savoury . . . and since we eat a lot of chicken in this house, chicken was the natural choice for me to choose to work with.
I was recently contacted by the people from Assisted Living at Sunrise of Mobberley and asked if I would like to try cooking one of their healthy living recipes. Sunrise Senior Living provides senior living communities, assisted living, and senior care services such as Alzheimer's and dementia care in the US, Canada, and the UK. Here in the UK, they have 27 facilities providing award winning care here for over 30 years.
There was a wide variety of healthy recipes to choose from . . . at Sunrise Senior Living, they prepare all the meals in their own kitchens each and every day. The menus are varied and designed to be nutritionally balanced. In fact, they even provide you with a nutritional breakdown of each recipe that they use, so that you can see exactly how much protein, fat, fibre, calories and so on is contained in the meals they serve. I was well impressed. It was difficult for me to make up my mind.
I printed out several of their recipe cards and this is the first one I cooked. It was really delicious and it was nice knowing that it was nutritionally balanced and designed to be healthy.
*French Onion Soup*
Serves 4
Serves 4
1 tsp gravy granules
5 ml of Worcestershire Sauce (1 tsp)
Heat
the oil in a pan. Add the onions and saute for two minutes. Add the
sherry and thyme. Reduce by half in order to cook off the alcohol. Add
the butter and the stock. Bring to the boil and then reduce to a
simmer, covered, for 30 to 35 minutes.
Cut the ciabatta roll into 4 slices and grill both sides until golden in colour. Top with the parmesan cheese and grill for 1 minutes until golden and melted. Serve the soup topped with the cheese croutons and garnished with parsley.
Nutritional Info:
(per serving)
Energy - 140kcals
salt - 0.9g
fat - 7.1g
saturated fat - 2.5g
sugars - 1.2g
As I have reiterated on numerous occasions, the potato is my most favorite of all vegetables. A day without a potato in it in some way, shape or form is just not a day worth living!
It's hard to believe that Christmas is now less than a month away. I don't know about you, but this year the holidays have crept up on me seemingly overnight. I know, I know . . . I say that every year, but it's true! It's down to the crunch time now, and I can tell you that I will be using whatever I can to help to make the holidays go as smoothly as I can in the kitchen over the coming weeks!
I know that all of my North American friends are cooking their Thanksgiving turkey's today. I am also cooking a turkey Thanksgiving Dinner this year. Tomorrow our fridges will be filled with all of the leftovers and we will be scratching our heads and trying to come up with new and interesting things to do with them. Here are some tasty ideas this morning to help you use up some of those scrummy leftovers. Of course you could just have a reheat of the leftovers, but it's also nice to dress them up in a few different ways too!
You Brits and Canucks might want to bookmark this page as Christmas is less than a month away and you 'll be wanting to figure out what to do with your Christmas Turkey leftovers then!
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