This is the perfect salad to serve as a first course when you are having people over for a summer meal.  When I worked at the manor my boss was always very fond of layered first courses, and they always got ooh and aahd at the table from the guests.


Really they are not a lot of trouble to make.  I have my own stainless steel ring that I use to layer things up in, but you could use clean and empty tin cans that you have carefully removed both ends from as well if you wanted to.  They would actually also work very well.


This delicious salad has all the flavours of your traditional cob salad, except they have been layered to form a delicious looking stacked salad . . .

 
Crisp ice berg lettuce  . . .  creamy ripe avocado . . .


 
Chopped sweet tomatoes  . . .  crisp smokey bacon  . . . .


 
Tangy blue cheese crumbles  . . .  and a deliciously creamy low fat dressing which is nicely flavoured with lemon . . .


Cracked black pepper to serve  

First make the dressing.  Combine all of the ingredients in a jar and shake well together.  Taste and adjust seasoning as required.  You can use this dressing right away, or store, covered, in the refrigerator for up to one week.


Brown the bacon in a large skillet, over medium heat, until crisp.  Scopp out and drain.    Set aside.  Taking four metal rings or clear glass dishes, layer up the salad ingredients, tossing the lettuce first with a small amount of dressing.  Do this on individual chilled salad plates.  I like to layer them with the lettuce first, then the avocado, then tomatoes, spring onions, cheese and bacin last.   Press gently to compact, then carefully remove the rings.  Drizzle with a bit more dressing, dust with some cracked black pepper and serve.

 
Of course if you don't want to go to all the trouble of layering things up, you can just combine them all in a salad bowl and serve as is!!


You will still be enjoying one mighty delicious salad!  Bon Appetit!

I am not a vegetarian but this delicious looking book with all of its  fabulously tasty sounding recipes have me thinking I could quite easily be and not be missing out on anything!  Beautifully photographed and wonderfully presented, this is a book that will please the keen cook, veggie or not!

• Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0804185409
• ISBN-13: 978-0804185400 

Note - I was sent a copy of this book free of charge for review. I was not required to write a positive review. Any and all opinions are my own. I think it is a beautiful book and belongs in any kitchen where people are wanting to eat healthier and better without it costing them an arm and a leg! Many thanks to Jacqui Small for sending me this copy.

 
I think one of our favourite meals has to be Roast Chicken.  That sweet moist meat . . .  the crisp and moreish skin . . . so tasty.  One might think that in the summer it is just too hot to roast a chicken, and most days that would probably be so, but what if I told you that you could roast a chicken in a fraction of the time that it normally takes and that you would end up with succulent meat and crisp skin?   Here's my secret . . .

 
Its called Spatchcocking, and it really isn't much of a secret.  Good cooks have been applying this cooking method to chicken and other birds for a very long time.  And it is such a simple thing to do.  All you need is a whole chicken and a good set of kitchen shears!


Spatchcocking involves removing the backbone of the chicken and then flattening it out, exposing more of the chicken to direct heat and ensuing that both the dark and white meat cook in approximately the same time and that the skin all over the chicken gets nice and crispy!



Removing the backbone is a relatively easy thing to do.  You just cut down the backbone of the chicken on both sides of it.  You can save the backbone for making stock later on down the road, so nothing is really wasted.  Once the bone is removed . . .


You make a little snip in the white cartilage at the tip of the breast and then the bird quite simply loses all of its resistance and you can flatten it out just like a butterfly . . .


The chicken cooks much quicker, with a smaller bird, in as little amount of time as half an hour, but in a larger bird, about an hour tops.  Its a simple thing but it works well.


Today I chose to slash my chicken all over by making cuts in the legs, thighs and breast with my kitchen scissors . . .


After that I rubbed it all over with a mix of olive oil and oregano leaves and a healthy sprinkling of seasalt and coarse black pepper.


Once it was done and resting, I roasted halved plum tomatoes in the pan juices for a further 15 minutes . . .  so good . . .  tomatoes roasted in chicken juices, until they are slightly soft and sticky . . . but the flavour doesn't stop there.  The finished dish gets accented by mix of lemon zest, chopped parsley and fresh garlic . . .  in other words . . . a gremolata.

 
 There is no gravy needed with all of that.  The sticky sweet roasted tomatoes . . .  that oregano rub which roasts right into that chicken and those cuts . . . that tangy, herby, spicy gremolata . . .  this is sooooooo good.  You won't want to miss out on this one!



I don't slice the chicken when I go to serve it.  I simply tear off pieces with a couple of forks.  So tender and so tasty.  Potatoes go well, but today I chose to serve it with some brown and wild rice and of course a tasty green salad on the side.

 

1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed


 
Note - To spatchcock a chicken, place the chicken breast side down with the bottom of the bird facing up. Using a sharp pair of kitchen shears, and beginning at the neck end, cut down along one side of the back bone.  Repeat on the other side.  Discard the back bone, or freeze for future use in making stock. Open the chicken and slice through the cartilage at the tip of the breastbone.  Turn cut side down and give the bird a firm push with the flat of your hand to flatten it out.  Your chicken is now spatchcocked. A spatchcocked chicken exposes more chicken to heat, resulting in a bird which will cook slightly quicker, with both the dark and white meat cooking in approximately the same amount of time.  It also results in lovely crisp skin.


Today this went down a real treat and I have plenty of tender juicy chicken leftover to make another meal with tomorrow . . . I can't wait!  Bon Appetit!

I am a HUGE fan of salads, and vegetables and pasta.  Todd, not so much . . . but I am slowly converting him, and bringing him around to my way of thinking.  Actually in all truth he loves my salads because, as he says, they are never boring!

 
I wish I had a pound/dollar for every time I have made Crispie Bars through the years.  I would be able to retire to a tropical island, I have made that many!  I am sure that I made them at least once a week, ir not more often,  the whole time my family was growing up! They were a favourite of my ex husband and my children! They never lasted very long!  They used to inhale them.

 
I never made unsual flavours or added anything to them.  I just made the basic crispie bar.  Marshmallows, butter, vanilla and the cereal.  Easy peasy.


The kids loved to clean the pot out afterwards.  They would all gather around it with spoons and fingers and lick/scrape that pot clean!


I was quite intrigued when I saw this recipe for Cappuccino Crispies in one of my Cooking Light Cookbooks.  (I think it was The Lazy Gourmet!)


This is a crispie bar for adults, with adult flavours  . . .  coffee . . . milky marshmallows . . .  and not a scrap of fat in sight!

 
Which also makes it quite adult friendly.  Most of us are watching our waistlines.  (Unless you are very lucky.)  Some of us are also watching our sugar intake, so I have to say upfront, this isn't for those people.  Lots of sugar in the marshmallows, I'm afraid.  So if you have to watch your sugar (like I do) these are not for you.


But if you are one of the lucky ones who doesn't need to watch their sugar intake, then you are sure to enjoy these quick and easy bars!  The dusting of cocoa powder is my addition.  Most times coffee shops dust cocoa powder over their cappuccino drinks! It added another grown up touch to these!



Spray a 9 by 15 inch tin with some cooking spray.  Set aside.  Mix together the coffee granules vanilla and boiling water.  Set aside. Place the marshmallows into a large glass bowl and cook on high in the microwave for 1 1/2 to 2  minutes, until melted.  Stir until smooth.  Stir in the coffee mixture to combine well.  Working quickly, stir in the rice cereal to combine thoroughly and then press into the prepared baking dish with fingers you have sprayed with some low fat cooking spray. (This helps to keep the mixture from sticking to your fingers.)  Press in firmly and evenly.  Let stand for at least an hour before dusting with cocoa powder and cutting into squares to serve.  Store any leftovers in an airtight container.

Yep, these are definitely for the grown-ups.  Bon Appetit!

 
Ever had a night when you are decidely lacking in inspiration, and time . . .  not to mention ingredients and yet you are starving?  I reckon we all have nights like that!  This recipe is perfect for those kinds of nights.  A bit old fashioned, yes.  A really old recipe, yes, undoubtedly.  Delicious, yes!  Its also quick and very easy to make.



I have long been a lover of tinned tomatoes.  I could just sit down and eat a tin with a spoon with only a piece of buttered white bread on the side.  This recipe speaks to that deep rooted love.  Simple ingredients put together magically to create something that is quite, quite tasty, and surprisingly hearty.

 
The original recipe called for finely chopped fresh tomatoes, two medium, and their juices.  I did not have any, and so I used the tinned tomatoes.  I am not overly fond of tomato skin in my food, so if that is you, and you are wanting to use fresh tomatoes, skin them first. You will thank me for that hint.


I am not sure what purpose the baking soda provides, so I left it in.  In the original recipe it was stirred into the chopped fresh tomatoes. In my version, I just stirred it into the tinned tomatoes.

 
I suspect this is quite British in its roots.  The Brits love meals served on toast.  Scrambled egg on toast, tinned tomatoes on toast, beans on toast, poached eggs on toast, spaghetti on toast, mushrooms on toast.  They just love to plunk things down on toast and then dig in.  Small wonder.  Toast, in my humble opinion, just makes most things taste even better!

 
Note - any leftovers are great mixed with cooked macaroni.  Place into a casserole dish, cover with more grated cheese and bake until heated through and the cheese on top is melted and bubbling.



This is the type of dish we both love very much.  Simple, delicious and comforting.  It's perfect for a weeknight, and it doesn't heat up the kitchen.  All you need is a simple salad on the side and dinner is served!  I had mine on whole wheat toast. Todd had his on white toast.  Both are good. Bon Appetit!

Note - The tomatoes I used for this are the Cirio Polpa Fine chopped tomatoes.

Round tomatoes, deseeded, peeled, finely cut into pieces. This exquisite range offers four recipes, all with the taste and bouquet of Cirio’s authentic Italian tomatoes. They are all perfect as a base ingredient to prepare pasta sauces and enrich other recipes:

• Finely chopped tomatoes with a pinch of salt
• Finely chopped with a pinch of salt and a hint of basil
• Finely chopped tomatoes with a pinch of salt and chilli
 • Finely chopped tomatoes with a pinch of salt, garlic and onion.

The small, lightweight light Tetra carton allows for easy stocking in your kitchen cupboards and it’s easier and safer to open than glass bottles or tin cans. Plus, as well as being convenient, the packaging is eco-friendly and reduces waste, which is in tune with today’s environmentally conscious consumer.