Oh, how I do love Gratins . . . who wouldn't with their creamy well flavoured base . . . spread out in shallow dishes to maximize all of the golden deliciousness of a crisp topping. I have never met a Gratin I didn't fall in love with, but they can all too often be quite high in unhealthy fat and not needed calories!! It doesn't have to be so however, and I am going to prove this to you today with a fabulous vegetable gratin, that is not only low in fat, but also healthy, Diabetic friendly, contains several of your five-a-day, as well as being deliciously filled with plenty of flavour to boot!
I found myself at the end of last week with some vegetables that needed using up before I went for my next grocery shop, and I wanted to do something that I could use them all up in . . . half a bag of Brussels sprouts, half a savoy cabbage and a couple of lone leeks. Typical vegetables that are abundant at this time of year. Lovely and green and filled with fibre and lots of vitamins. It is common knowledge that vegetables from the Brassica (Cruciferous) family (Sprouts and cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower) are filled with anti-oxidents, and plenty of Vitamin C and Folic Acid.
Leeks on the other hand, a member of the allium family, with their unique combination of flavonoids
and sulfur-containing nutrients, belong in your
diet on a regular basis. There is strong research evidence for including at
least one serving of an allium vegetable in your meal plan every day. Not a problem as I love all of the members of the onion family . . . leeks, onions, shallots, garlic . . .
I think it is safe to say that this lovely gratin is a powerhouse of all things that are good for you! Rather than using fatty cream and whole milk for a sauce . . . I have mixed 2% (semi skimmed) milk and water, along with a stock cube and some flour. Mixing the milk, water, stock cube and flour in a blender, made for a smooth lump free mixture that only needed heating, whilst stirring to thicken up nicely. A smidgen of cheese is added to help create a lovely creamy sauce that is filled with plenty of flavour.
I have used only 6 TBS of cheese for the whole dish, including the topping. I used three different kinds, strong (sharp) cheddar, Parmesan and Swiss . . . all cheeses that are packed with flavour. The more flavour a cheese has, the less of it you will have to use. Fact. I also made good use of some grainy Dijon mustard to impart even more flavour to the sauce along with some black pepper. I found that the sauce was so tasty, that I didn't need to add salt at all, bonus!
Four tablespoons of the cheese go into the sauce, and the remaining two are combined with some whole wheat bread crumbs for the topping. Whole wheat bread crumbs give a lovely nutty crunch. All in all this is a really fabulous dish. I could eat a plate of this and nothing else! I was more than pleased with the results!
*Winter Vegetable Gratin*
Serves 6
Put the flour, milk, water, stock pot, nutmeg, and pepper into a food processor. Blitz until smooth. Pour into the saucepan you used to cook the vegetables in. Cook, whisking constantly, over medium heat until the mixture bubbles and begins to thicken. Cook, stirring, for several minutes. Mix together the cheeses. Remove 2 TBS and mix into the bread crumbs. Set aside. Stir the remainining cheese into the sauce, whisking until it melts. Whisk in the mustard. Remove from the heat.
Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6. Spray a gratin dish lightly with low fat cooking spray. Layer in half of the drained vegetables, half the sauce (making sure you drizzle it evenly over all) the remaining vegetables and then finally the remaining sauce. Sprinkle the breadcrumb cheese mixture evenly over top.
Bake in the preheated oven fore 30 minutes, until bubbling and golden brown. Serve hot.
I am enjoying this challenge of healthier eating. It doesn't have to be boring if you use a bit of ingenuity. We had this with some steamed salmon, and Todd had some baby potatoes with his. It all went down a real treat! Bon Appetit!
I think if I were to have to pick a favourite kind of soup for myself out of all the soups, tomato soup would be right up there near the top. I adore soup, and I especially like homemade soups.
As I have told you in the past my mother made really good soups from scratch, but one kind she never did make from scratch was Tomato Soup. We always had tinned tomato soup, and I was always very happy with that. I still am, having a particular liking for the Heinz brand of tomato soup.
I don't think it ever disappoints. I am trying harder though, these days, to cook everything that I can from scratch and that included Tomato Soup. This Tomato & Rice Soup is a particularly nice one!
It is simple, using nothing at all out of the ordinary, in fact I am guessing that you would have everything in the house right now to make it. Good tinned plum tomatoes. I like Cirio myself.
In a soup where the tomato is the star, you want really good ones and I have never made any secret for my love of Cirio Tinned tomatoes. They are . . . simply put . . . the BEST. You can almost taste the Italian sunshine on them . . .
So . . . good tinned plum tomatoes in tomato juice . . . along with some vegetables. Carrots, onions, celery . . . nothing too fancy . . . a clove of garlic . . .
These are sauteed in a bit of butter and olive oil until golden. I then stir in a bit of whole wheat flour and leftover cooked brown rice . . .
I cook that until the rice just begins to brown and then I add the tomatoes, breaking them up with the back of a wooden spoon, into nice chunks.
A bit of chicken stock and some dried herbs . . . basil and oregano . . . salt and black pepper, and my secret ingredient, a splash of hot sauce. Not a lot just a splash.
It then gets simmered, covered . . . for about half an hour.
You could add a handful or two of baby spinach leaves. Its very good with those as well, but today I did not have any to add. Frozen spinach would also work.
At the end of that time you simply stir in a bit of light cream. I tend to use skimmed evaporated milk because it is lower in calories and fat and to be honest you can't really tell the difference.
All in all this is a lovely soup. Toothsome, wholesome, and quite quite delicious!
*Tomato & Rice Soup*
Serves 4 - 6
Heat the butter and the oil in a large saucepan until the butter begins to foam. Add the celery, onion, carrot and garlic. Saute, stirring occasionally over medium low heat until the onion is golden. Stir in the flour and rice, breaking up the rice.
Continue to
saute until the rice begins to brown a bit. Add the tinned tomatoes,
breaking them up with the back of a spoon, the chicken stock, brown
sugar, oregano and basil and a splash of hot sauce if using. Bring to
the boil, then reduce to a very slow simmer.
Cover and simmer over low
heat for about 30 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning with some salt
and black pepper. Stir in the cream and heat through without boiling.
Serve immediately.
I of course enjoy mine with crackers. My husband favours a roll. I tried to tempt him with some hot buttered toast instead today, but he wasn't having it. It was a roll all the way.
I had some nice big whole wheat rolls and he thoroughly enjoyed. I think you will too! This is very diabetic friendly with the use of the brown rice and whole wheat flour, and the extra protein they provide. Bon Appetit!
Some other soup recipes you might enjoy are:
Soup with dumplings? Count me in! Especially cheese dumplings. Simple to make and using simple everyday ingredients. It's also a great way to use up what's in the fridge. This is a deliciously hearty soup with plenty of vegetables, ham and fluffy cheese dumplings. I guarantee your family will love this!
A fabulously tasty soup filled with ham and white beans. You do need to plan ahead as the beans need soaking. One word describes this perfectly. Delicious. This is gorgeous ladled into heated bowls and served hot with some crusty bread.
What would we do without over-ripe bananas to use? I don't know. I have a hard time keeping them in the house long enough for them to get ripe enough to bake with. I always have to tuck a few aside and hide them from my husband so that he doesn't eat them up!
He is also likely to throw them away if he thinks they are too ripe. I keep telling him that is when they are the best for baking, but if I am not quick enough, he tosses them without thinking.
He does enjoy the fruits of my labours however, so maybe with time, he will be coming to me with them saying what will you bake for me! Hope springs eternal!
The more freckled the banana the better, but I would say not much less than this, and I have been known to use bananas that are almost black.
If you can't find a use for them right away, then peel and pop into a freezer container and freeze. Then you will have them to hand when you CAN use them at a later date! YUM!
This is a lovely Tea Loaf, perfect for using up a few overripe bananas, but that's not all it has going for it.
It is moist and rich and very interestingly tasty with a few other bits that add a great deal of interest, flavour and texture to it. I have adapted the recipe from the Carnation Recipe page with a few changes from the original as you will note.
I blitz the bananas in my small food processor attachment for my stick blender, along with a TBS of dark rum. You don't need to buy a big bottle of rum for this. I always keep small sample bottles of alcohol in the cupboard just for things like this.
Also you could use a tsp of rum flavoring added with water to make up a TBS if you wanted to. It would work perfectly.
Aside from that it is filled with lovely pieces of sticky dates, which go very well with the banana and the rum for that matter . . . you add some lemon zest and juice to the dates, along with some bicarbonate of soda and boiling water. It foams.
Soda counters out any tannic acidity from the dates and also evens out their colour. I looked it up because I have an inquiring mind and wanted to know why we always seem to be adding soda to dates . . . with boiling water. Perhaps it even helps soften them a bit so they mix in better.
In any case the loaf is nicely studded with them, and the toasted walnut pieces. You don't have to toast the walnuts first, but I always do.
They just taste nuttier and nicer if they are toasted first! Eight to ten minutes on a baking sheet in a hot oven does the trick. (375*F/190*C) Let them cool before using.
I always let it sit and ripen overnight before I cut it. Sure you can eat it right away, but it cuts nicer if it has been allowed to get really cold and set overnight.
I am not sure why this happens, but it does. When you try to cut tea loaves not too long after baking they always seem to crumble. Letting them age is best.
The Canadian in me loves them sliced thinly and spread with softened butter. I can't seem to help myself. Sure it is great without it, but it is even better with butter!
Say that really fast three times, better with butter, better with butter, better with butter! Most things like this are. Mmmm . . .
Some other Banana loaf recipes on here that you might enjoy are:
BANANA AND GOLDEN SYRUP LOAF - Moist, rich and sweetened with lush golden syrup for a nice hint of light caramel flavor.
BANANA, CRANBERRY & WALNUT LOAF - My all time favorite banana loaf, and that is saying a lot. This is a fabulous combination and a lovely moist loaf.
*Banana, Rum, Date & Walnut Tea Loaf*
Makes 1 large loaf
2 TBS boiling water
the finely grated zest and juice of one lemon
(also known as Sweetened Condensed)
2 large free range eggs, lightly beaten
Place the dates into a bowl along with the boiling water, lemon zest, lemon juice and bicarbonate of soda. Stir and then set aside to cool completely.
Peel the bananas and put into a mini processor with the rum. Blitz until smooth. Stir this mixture into the date mixture.
Cream together the baking spread, brown sugar and condensed milk until smoothly combined. Gradually mix in the eggs and then the date mixture. Sift together the flour and baking powder. Stir into the creamed mixture until well combined and there are no dry streaks of flour. Stir in the walnuts. Pour into the prepared baking tin. Smoothing over the top.
Bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour 15 minutes, until risen, set and golden brown. A toothpick inserted in the centre should come out clean. Let sit in the tin for 15 minutes before lifting out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Cut into slices to serve with some softened butter. Store any leftovers tightly wrapped.
This was a really great way to use up the remainder of my condensed milk from yesterday. I enjoyed a thin slice with some lemon and rose tea. Oh boy but it was a pleasant way to spend some of my Saturday afternoon! Bon Appetit!
I am an oatmeal cookie afficionado. I have never met an oatmeal cookie that I didn't like, including these cookies that I am showing you here today.
They are incredibly crisp edged and yet chewy middled, and stogged full of lovely sweet raisins.
It uses condensed milk, which I always have in the cupboard. This, I believe, is the secret behind their delicious moreishness.
I had used some condensed milk earlier in the day to make my husband a simple milk shake, and so these cookies were the perfect way to use up some of the remaining milk in the tin.
Both Condensed and Evaporated milk are forms of concentrated milk, (available in tins) in which a bit more than half of the water content has been removed, with the main difference between the two milk products being sugar content.
Condensed milk is always sweetened whereas evaporated milk is unsweetened. It was only since moving over here to the UK that I came to understand that Condensed milk always refers to the sweetened variety. (Sweetened Condensed Milk.)
Evaporated milk is created by heating milk until about 60% of its water content has evaporated. It is then homogenized, packaged and sterilized. It is creamy, dense and ultra concentrated and when you chill it really well (ice crystals present) you can whip it like cream.
It comes in several varieties including skimmed, lower fat and full fat. I always have tins of it in my larder and I use it a lot in both sweet an savoury dishes. I keep both the low and full fat to hand, and often use the low fat in the place of cream in dishes where I am wanting to have something creamy, but not necessarily with all of the fat and calories of cream. It is a great store cupboard item!
Condensed milk (or Sweetened Condensed Milk as it is also known) is also a concentrated milk product where 60% of the water content has been removed, after which sugar is added before canning.
It contains as much as 45% sugar and is rich and thick with a slightly caramel colour and super sweet flavour. When it is cooked even further you end up with dulce de leche, or caramel.
It is used in kitchens throughout the world, most commonly being used in baked goods, pies, ice creams, puddings as well as being used as a sweetener in coffee and tea.
I used some Sweetened Condensed Milk today to make my husband a delicious milkshake, which is not only very quick and easy to make, but very delicious.
The kids are sure to love these and the recipe amounts can very easily be increased to serve more than one person. They are a real treat. You could use vanilla instead of the orange blossom water for flavouring if you wished.
I used some of the remainder of the milk to make these very tasty cookies. (My husband was not complaining!)
I did cut the recipe in half because there are only the two of us and I am not supposed to be eating anything like these, and believe it or not, most of the time I try really hard to stay away from the sweet stuff.
I cannot punish him for my misspent youth however. That would be a form of cruel and unusual punishment for the stick man who does really enjoy a sweet cake or biscuit, and has no health problems in doing so.
He spent so many years on his own that I do like to spoil him a bit every now and then if I can! He never complains!
*Oatmeal Raisin Cookies*
Makes approximately 2 dozen
Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Line two large baking sheets with baking paper. Set side.
Cream the butter, sugar and condensed milk together until pale and light. Mix in the flour, oats and cinnamon to thoroughly combine. Stir in the raisins. Shape into golf-ball sized rounds and place onto the prepared baking sheets leaving plenty of space between (at least 2 1/2 inches).
Bake for 15 to 18 minutes until golden edged. (Rotate the baking sheets halfway through the baking.) Leave on the baking sheet to cool for about 5 minutes before scooping off onto wire racks to finish cooling. Store in an airtight container.
And I still had some condensed milk in the tin to use, so tune in tomorrow to find out what I did with that! You are going to love it, I guarantee! Happy Saturday!
You are absolutely going to love this fantastic dish I am showing you today. It has been taken from my Big Blue Binder, and it is easy to make and very, very delicious . . . . using simple ingredients that you probably already have in your kitchen. There is nothing out of the ordinary . . . rice, chicken pieces, raisins, dried apricots, onion, chicken stock and some curry powder.
The Big Blue Binder is a recipe binder that I have been carrying around the world with me for all of my late teens and adult life. It is bulging with handwritten recipes gleaned from friends and family through the years, newspaper and magazine clippings, along with recipes laboriously copied by hand from books I had borrowed from the library through the years. With a large family to take care of, I never had the money to purchase cookbooks way back in the day. I only wish I had had the forethought to cite the sources back in the day! Hindsight is indeed very much 20/20. I would have never thought that one day I would have the ability to share my findings and experiences with quite literally thousands of people. I hope you will forgive me my lack of ability to tell you exactly where this recipe comes from.
Chicken pieces are sauteed in a bit of oil until golden brown on both sides. Do try to trim off as much fat and skin as you can before doing this. You could remove it completely if you wanted to, but it wouldn't be half as attractive. Better to remove the skin just prior to eating. I used chicken thighs, but drumsticks would also work very well. I do not recommend boneless, skinless chicken breasts, as they would overcook and end up quite dry.
After you brown the chicken off, I drain off as much of the fat in the casserole as I can, leaving only a minimal amount and then you saute the onion until soft over low heat. If you really wanted to cut the fat you could do this in a bit of chicken stock in a clean casserole dish.
Once you have the onion softened, you stir in the curry powder, some salt and pepper and the raw rice, stirring to coat it really well with the curry and any pan juices.
Next you add some chicken stock and the apricots and raisins. I am not sure what the reason is for this, but the flavour of curry goes really well with fruit, and with chicken for that matter! Once you have brought the stock to the boil, you return the chicken pieces to the pan, placing them on top . . .
Tightly covered, it is then finished off by roasting the whole dish in a moderate oven. It is almost like a fruity pilau rice with chicken pieces and it is very, very, VERY good! Not a lot of fussing or mussing and clean up is easy because it is all in one pan!
*Curried Chicken Casserole*
Serves 3
Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4.
Add the raw rice, curry powder, remaining salt and black pepper. Stir to coat the rice. Add the dried fruit, chicken stock, and lemon juice. Top with the chicken pieces. Cover with a sheet of foil or baking paper and then the lid. Bake covered for 45 minutes. Serve hot.
This is a great weekend dish to share with the family. You could serve it with some Naan bread, or poppadoms and a salad on the side. I am betting you won't have any complaints! Any leftovers keep well, covered tightly, in the refrigerator for a few days. What I did was to remove the skin from the chicken, and cut it into bits, stirring it into the rice and I can tell you it was even more delicious the day after. Funny how that goes. It is often the case that food gets better tasting if left to "ripen" overnight! Bon Appetit!
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