Well this past week we saw all the children heading back to school. I loved back to school time when I was a child. It was so very exciting. New shoes, new scribblers and pencils, new teachers, and I got to see some of my friends that I hadn't seen all summer!
Two of my seven Grands at the end of their first day of school. I think it went well. They look happy enough anyways!
It was pretty exciting for me when I was raising my family also! I was excited for them and the new year they were beginning, plus there was the fact that by the end of the summer they were getting pretty bored with being home and getting on my very last nerve more often than not! Five children with all of their personalities and quirks. Lets just say, they did not always get on, but happily for the most part they do now. Whew!
I was a cookie baking mum. I loved to bake cookies and each day when my children arrived home from school, there would be a delicious after school snack waiting for them. If I was lucky I would have enough for them to each enjoy some on the day and then to pop into their sack lunches the next day.
This recipe I am sharing today is adapted from one I found in a cookie book by GBB finalist Miranda Gore Browne, entitled Biscuit. (If I am not mistaken, she was in the first series, but I could be wrong!)
Suffice it to say I never made these cookies for my kids. I didn't have the recipe back then, but I know they would certainly have loved them!
What child wouldn't enjoy a cookie almost as large as their heads!
Studded with candy covered chocolate drops! YES! (That was the child in me trying to escape!)
Perfect for the child in your life, or yes . . . the child in you!
Meant to be enjoyed with a nice tall cold glass of milk!
Buttery and crisp edged . . . slightly chewy in the middle, the recipe only makes about a dozen cookies, but they are LARGE cookies.
They do spread a LOT when they are baking, so it is no exaggeration to say you will only get maximum of six on a large baking sheet, and even then, they may run together a tiny bit at the edges. Mine did, so bear this in mind. The more air that can circulate around them, the more crisp those edges will be!
Yield: 12 large cookies
Polka Dot Two Handers
prep time: 10 minscook time: 15 minstotal time: 25 mins
Just what the title suggests. Large buttery crisp edged cookies studded with colourful candy coated chocolate drops, that you will need to hold and eat with two hands. (Well if you are under 10 anyways!)
ingredients:
225g butter, softened (15 1/2TBS)
175g caster sugar (14 TBS)
100g light muscovado sugar (1/2 cup)
2 medium free range eggs, beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
300g self raising flour (2 cups plus 3 TBS)
175g candy coated coloured chocolate buttons (approximately 3/4 cup)
instructions:
Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Line several large baking sheets with baking paper and set aside.
Cream
the butter and both sugars together until light and fluffy. Beat in
the eggs, a bit at a time, until totally amalgamated. Fold in the
vanilla. Sift the flour over top and fold in with a metal spoon.
the butter and both sugars together until light and fluffy. Beat in
the eggs, a bit at a time, until totally amalgamated. Fold in the
vanilla. Sift the flour over top and fold in with a metal spoon.
Dollop
six dollops of batter, well spaced apart on each baking sheet. (These
really spread). Bake for about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and
lightly press the chocolate buttons into the tops, spacing them out
decoratively. Return to the oven and bake for a further 4 to 5
minutes. Allow to cool completely on the baking sheet before removing.
six dollops of batter, well spaced apart on each baking sheet. (These
really spread). Bake for about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and
lightly press the chocolate buttons into the tops, spacing them out
decoratively. Return to the oven and bake for a further 4 to 5
minutes. Allow to cool completely on the baking sheet before removing.
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Friday was just one of those days. It was my husband's 80th birthday and I wanted to bake him a really nice cake. He loves Maple and so I decided to make him a Maple Cake. I found a really good recipe on the Betty Crocker site. And went with it. I had very high hopes.
Can you say "CAKE FAIL?" Not the recipe's fault. The recipe is a sound recipe and I will try it again another day. For some reason my cake stuck to the pan very badly, despite all my efforts and this is what I ended up with. *Sniff *Sniff Crumbs, loads and loads of crumbs.
Its a good thing I had a back up plan! Pumpkin Pie Roll Ups! Is it ever too early for a Pumpkin dessert? I THINK NOT! Especially when it is as delicious as this one!
Pumpkin Pie Roll Ups! I did a recipe for Apple Pie Roll Ups a number of years back, which proved to be very popular and even won an award. They are really good! I am happy to say that these are every bit as tasty, and maybe even more so! (as if that's possible!)
Maybe we will call it a draw. One is as good as the other!
It uses simple ingredients. First, tinned cooked pumpkin puree, which is a lot easier to find over here now than what it used to be. You can get it in most of the shops and from Amazon.
Refrigerated Croissant Roll Dough, which is very similar to the Refrigerated Crescent Roll Dough that you can get in North America. It might be a bit flakier, and more pastry like, but the NA version will also work very well.
Cream cheese . . . easy enough and Pumpkin Pie Spice. Say what??? Not something we can find here in the UK, but not a problem really. I make my own from scratch, and it is probably better than what you could buy.
Yield: approximately 1/2 cup
Pumpkin Pie Spice
prep time: 10 minscook time: total time: 10 mins
Make your own Pumpkin Pie Spice from scratch. Its easy and its probably tastier than the ready made you can buy at the shops. I grate my own nutmeg for this and grind my own cloves.
ingredients:
45g ground cinnamon (1/3 cup)
1 TBS freshly ground nutmeg
1 TBS ground ginger
1 1/2 tsp ground allspice
1 1/2 tsp ground cloves
instructions:
Stir all of the ingredients together and store in an airtight jar in a dark place for up to six months. Use as needed. You can freeze it and t will keep longer if you wish.
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Pumpkin pie spice has always been impossible to find over here in the UK, but it is so easy to make your own so I highly recommend doing so. I make most of my own spice blends actually. That way you know just how fresh they really are. I grate my own nutmeg from scratch and I even pulverise my own cloves, etc. It doesn't take a lot of effort and more than makes up for it in flavour and freshness.
You make a buttery sugar streusel using both brown and granulated sugar, some of the pumpkin pie spice and some butter. Easy peasy.
Putting them together really is a breeze. Unroll the roll dough, divide into triangles, top with . . . first the pumpkin puree . . .
Next the cream cheese and then some of the sugar/spice mixture. Then you roll them up. Its that simple. Make sure you tuck in the edges. You don't want any of that lucious filling escaping!
Pop them into a buttered dish, sprinkle the remaining sugar mixture on top, drizzle some apple juice over all and then bake. Bake until they are puffed and crisp . . . and cooked through. Like magic, you will find a centre which is just as tasty, or even tastier than a pumpkin pie!
Serve them warm with your favourite accompaniments. Todd likes warm custard with his, but ice cream would be lovey as would pouring cream. Or, dare I say it . . . whipped cream! YUMM!
Yield: 6 - 8
Pumpkin Pie Roll Ups
prep time: 20 minscook time: 32 minstotal time: 52 mins
All I can say is OH MY GOODNESS! If you only bake one pumpkin dessert this autumn. Let it be this!
ingredients:
50g soft light brown sugar (1/4 cup)
45g granulated sugar (1/4 cup)
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice (see my recipe)
75g cold butter (1/3 cup)
1 can refrigerated croissant roll dough (crescent dinner rolls)
6 to 8 heaped TBS tinned pumpkin (not the pie filling)
6 to 8 TBS cream cheese
3 TBS apple juice
To serve:
creme anglaise (Custard), vanilla ice cream or pouring cream
instructions:
Pre-heat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Butter am 8 inch square baking dish or spray with low fat cooking spray.
Measure the sugars, pie spice and cold butter into a bowl. Cut together with two knives or a fork until crumbly. Set aside.
Open
your croissant dough. Divide into 6 or 8 triangles, depending on where
you live. Spread 1 TBS pumpkin onto the wide end of each triangle.
Top the pumpkin with a TBS of the cream cheese and then 1 TBS of the
sugar mixture. Roll up to the opposite point and tuck in the edges.
Place into the baking dish. Repeat for the remaining Croissant rolls.
Sprinkle the remaining sugar mixture over top of the croissants and then
pour the apple juice over top evenly.
your croissant dough. Divide into 6 or 8 triangles, depending on where
you live. Spread 1 TBS pumpkin onto the wide end of each triangle.
Top the pumpkin with a TBS of the cream cheese and then 1 TBS of the
sugar mixture. Roll up to the opposite point and tuck in the edges.
Place into the baking dish. Repeat for the remaining Croissant rolls.
Sprinkle the remaining sugar mixture over top of the croissants and then
pour the apple juice over top evenly.
10 minutes prior to serving. Serve warm with your favourite
accompaniments. Stand back and take a bow.
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When I put a bowl of this in front of Todd, he really didn't mind not having a cake. He snuffled it up and went back for seconds. (Oh how I wish I had his metabolism! ) I am not surprised really. They are fabulous! Happy almost Autumn y'all and Happy Birthday Todd! Bon Appetit!
Along with the cooler, more autumnal-like days has come the desire to eat things that are that tiny bit heartier. Delicious savoury dishes such as this Goulash I am sharing today. Goulash is basically just a stew, flavoured with paprika, peppers and tomato. We really love it in this house. It has been a family favourite for many, many years.
Its really a simple stew to make. Most stews are very simple, and have been the food of the common man since time began I suspect. I once read in the old days that the same pot of stew would be kept hanging over the fire with things being added to it daily. I am not sure how much I like that idea, but stew . . . its an old, old thing. Most starts off by browning cubes of beef in some fat. The more brown you can allow them to become, the richer will be the colour of your stew.
Most people are in a rush and they tend to bung too much meat into the pan to brown at any given time. Don't be in a rush, do it in batches if you must . . . trust me, it will be worth the effort in the way and amount your beef browns. I tend to put the meat on to brown while I am preparing the vegetables. That way I am too busy to keep stirring it and ruining the browning process. It really has the opportunity to form a nice crust and that only adds to the richness of the stew. Trust me on this. (Note, browned, not burned, you do need to pay some attention!!)
Once it is browned you remove the meat and you add vegetables . . . peppers and onions, these are cooked just until they begin to soften. Then you add aromatics like garlic . . . . the paprika (two kinds, hot and sweet), and some thyme. Cook only until fragrant and then you return the meat, the liquid and your other vegetables.
Carrots and potatoes. Make sure you use the right kind of potatoes. I used some potatoes we had been given and they fell apart while the stew was cooking, very few pieces remaining whole. Most disintegrated into the gravy, which made for a lovely thick gravy, but left not a lot of whole potatoes in the pot this time. So do choose your potatoes carefully. Waxy or boiling potatoes are best.
You don't want to be using mealy potatoes, or the types of potatoes you would use for mashing. These will tend to disintigrate in the lengthy cooking time. I had a few stay whole, but the majority of them didn't . . . nevermind, it still tasted gorgeous.
But my goulash was not as liquidy as it usually is, which I missed. So be warned. There is usually lots of lovely flavourful juice which is luverly sopped up with crusty bread.
Sour dough, crusty white, whole wheat . . . whatever you desire. All go well. Rye bread goes particularly well, but we just had soft white bread on the day, which was also very good.
Todd really enjoys meals like this. He is a real meat and potatoes kind of a guy. Meat and two veg (one of which is potato) and he is one very happy man. I fished out as many whole pieces of potato for him that I could and he was in man-food heaven!
Yield: 4
Hungarian Goulash
prep time: 25 minscook time: 2 hour and 30 minstotal time: 2 hours and 55 mins
Not sure how authentic this is, but it sure is delicious. I never tire of this simple stew with it's mix of sweet and hot paprika. Hearty and comforting.
ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds boneless beef, cut into cubes
salt and black pepper to taste
1 1/2 TBS vegetable oil
1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 medium green bell pepper, trimmed, seeded and chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 TBS sweet paprika
1 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp hot paprika
830ml chicken stock (3 1/2 cups)
40g tomato ketchup (1/4 cup)
60ml dry red wine (1/4 cup)
1 1/2 tsp red wine vinegar
1tsp Worcestershire Sauce
1 pound waxy potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch chunks
3 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1 inch chunks
instructions:
Preheat the oven to 165*C/325*F/ gas mark 3.
Season the meat all over with salt and pepper. Heat the 1 TBS of the oil in a
medium sized oven and flame proof casserole. Add the meat, in batches
if necessary and cook until well browned on all sides. Scoop out to a
bowl and set aside. Add the remaining oil to the casserole and add the
onion and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened. Add the
garlic, sweet paprika, thyme and hot paprika. Cook until fragrant, then
add the broth, ketchup, wine, vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce,
scraping up any browned bits.
medium sized oven and flame proof casserole. Add the meat, in batches
if necessary and cook until well browned on all sides. Scoop out to a
bowl and set aside. Add the remaining oil to the casserole and add the
onion and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened. Add the
garlic, sweet paprika, thyme and hot paprika. Cook until fragrant, then
add the broth, ketchup, wine, vinegar, and Worcestershire sauce,
scraping up any browned bits.
carrots. Bring to a simmer, cover and put into the preheated oven. Cook until the meat and vegetables are tender. (2 to 2 1/2 hours) Taste and adjust seasoning as required. Spoon into bowls to serve, along with crusty bread if desired.
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One lovely thing about meals like this is they taste even better the day after, which makes this the perfect meal for two. We get to eat it fresh on the day and then again the day after when the flavours have really had a chance to develop overnight. Brown food . . . I love brown food. The camera doesn't, but what does a camera really know about things that taste good! Bon Appetit!
If you are like me you will be a fan of crispy chicken. Chicken that is pounded until tender, coated in panko crumbs and lightly fried . . .
I just love the stuff. Crispy on the outside and tender and juicy on the inside. It is one of my weaknesses! (And yes, I know I have many!)
Once again it is the time of year where I struggle with the natural
light when it comes to taking photos of my recipes. You wouldn't think
the time of year would make much of a difference but it really does.
I
really should be taking my food outside to photograph it now, but lately
I have been feeling very tired. I'm not sure what's up with that. I
just take my pictures on my dining room table in front of the back
window.
That's the place that gets the most natural light for most of
the day. I can't be bothered with light boxes and the like. What you
see is what you get!
Don't let the photos put you off of making this chicken. Its so, so, SO delicious! A little bit of a faff with the breading, but believe me, that is the worst of it.
Once you have them breaded and the breading has set, the worst part is over.
The rest is simple and easy to do . . . just heat some oil and fry them, 4 minutes on each side will do it.
Then they will be crisp, golden and tender . . . juicy and perfectly cooked.
The sauce could not be any simpler . . . it uses only a few ingredients.
Butter, garlic, cream, lemon juice and zest, and some grated Parmesan cheese . . . simple.
Rich and creamy, and yes . . . something you would only want to make once in a blue moon as it is rather high in fat and calories . . . but oh boy, is it every tasty!
Altogether with the frying of the chicken and all that butter and cream, this is one dish you will want to reserve for special occasions, or for when you have company.
If you are on a diet, you won't want to be indulging in this for sure . . . sad but true.
But if your only concern is taste, then . . . Dig IN! and ENJOY!
In retrospect I am thinking you could also use ready breaded chicken breasts if you wanted to. The frozen ones.
That would save a lot of time really . . . but for myself, I prefer to do it myself. So I know exactly what I am eating.
Yield: 4
Crispy Lemon Chicken
prep time: 15 minscook time: 20 minstotal time: 35 mins
Crisp golden, moist chicken served with a luscious creamy lemon sauce. This goes great with rice or pasta.
ingredients:
For the chicken:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, pounded to an even thickness
salt and freshly ground black pepper
45g plain flour (1/4 cup)
2 medium free range eggs
125g of Japanese Panko, or other fine dried bread crumbs (1 1/3 cups)
60ml of vegetable oil for frying (1/4 cup)
For the sauce:
4 TBS of butter
1 tsp minced fresh garlic
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 medium unwaxed lemon, zest and juice
240ml double cream (1 cup, heavy cream)
90g freshly grated Parmesan cheese (1/2 cup)instructions:
Season the pounded chicken breasts with some salt
and pepper. Place the flour on a plate. Beat the eggs in a shallow
bowl. Place the Panko into another shallow bowl. One at a time,
dredge the chicken breasts into first the flour, then the eggs, and
finally the Panko, coating them evenly and pressing the crumbs on to
adhere. Set aside on a lined baking sheet while you heat the oil.
and pepper. Place the flour on a plate. Beat the eggs in a shallow
bowl. Place the Panko into another shallow bowl. One at a time,
dredge the chicken breasts into first the flour, then the eggs, and
finally the Panko, coating them evenly and pressing the crumbs on to
adhere. Set aside on a lined baking sheet while you heat the oil.
the oil in a large frying pan until very hot, but not smoking. Add
the chicken breasts and reduce the heat to medium. Cook, turning once,
until the crumbs are golden brown and the chicken feels firm when
pressed in the centers, about four minutes per side. Adjust the heat
as needed so that the crumbs don't burn. Keep warm in a low oven until your sauce is made.
To
make the sauce melt the butter in a saucepan. Once it begis to foam,
add the garlic and cook until fragrant, stirring constantly. Do not let
brown. Whisk in the cream and black pepper. Reduce heat to very low.
Whisk in the lemon zest and juice. Turn off the heat and whisk in the
cheese until melted.
make the sauce melt the butter in a saucepan. Once it begis to foam,
add the garlic and cook until fragrant, stirring constantly. Do not let
brown. Whisk in the cream and black pepper. Reduce heat to very low.
Whisk in the lemon zest and juice. Turn off the heat and whisk in the
cheese until melted.
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This goes great with either some pasta or steamed rice. I like brown rice myself. A green vegetable also goes well.
Crisp, tender and filled with rich tangy flavour. This is a real winner/winner chicken dinner! Bon Appetit!
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 Thanks so much for visiting. Do come again!
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