When I was young I fancied myself as a bit of a hippy dippy earth mother kind of a person. I wanted to live in an old farm house, and have chickens and a cow, make my own cheese, have bees, grow my own fruit and veg, live by wood fire and candlelight, and just be as self sufficient as possible. I ate yogurt and granola, and believed in a Utopian world filled with love and peace . . . and then I grew up, matured, had a family and realised that it took money to have all of those things, and staying in one place and I had neither. Just a family and a kind heart.
I still believe in a Utopian world filled with love and peace but I am not sure we will ever achieve such a thing in our lifetime, but I like to think that one day, such a thing will exist. And none of that has anything to do with granola, lol, except that a part of that mind frame for me was making my own granola from scratch. Filled with healthy natural ingredients. And this is something I have always done.
It was my friend Mabel who taught me how to make my first granola. I loved the idea that I was feeding my children something which was wholesome and nutritious, plus it was a good way to get them to eat oatmeal, which was something they always turned their noses up at.
Turn oats into granola however, and they couldn't get enough of it. I have played with the recipe oodles and oodles through the years and have my own version of the perfect granola. This is the standard recipe that I normally make. I just love it. It is chock full of nuts.
Today I decided to try a recipe I found in a Dorset Cereals Cookbook that I have had for several years now called The Breakfast Book. I love Dorset Cereals and am a huge fan of their berries & cherries muesli.
This recipe is fairly low in fat, using only 2 TBS of sunflower oil. That was something that really drew me to the recipe.
It relies on two natural sweeteners, and no processed sugars. Pure maple syrup and clear honey. You can't get more natural than that. I like to use the large flake Scottish oats for my granola. They have more substance.
There is also some vanilla in the recipe and a nice mix of seeds and nuts, both of which I love. Sunflower and pumpkin seeds . . . and I used blanched almonds, macadamia nuts and cashew nuts, which are all nuts that I adore.
You don't have to use coconut chips, you can use flaked or dessicated coconut, in which case you will want to hold off adding it until the second stirring, as it will probably get too dark if you add it at the start. Personally, I love coconut chips and its what I always use in my granola.
I quite like this recipe for granola actually. Its simple and its quick. I can't wait to have some tonight with some plain yogurt and maybe some fresh berries!
Yield: 10
Nutty Honey & Maple Granola
prep time: 10 minscook time: 30 minstotal time: 40 mins
A simple to make and delicious granola, chock full of goodness!
ingredients:
2 TBS sunflower oil
100ml pure maple syrup (scant half cup)
4 TBS clear honey
1 TBS good vanilla extract (I used Kirkland)
300g large flake rolled oats (heaped 3 cups)
25g sunflower seeds (3 TBS)
50g pumpkin seeds (6 TBS)
100g flaked or chopped nuts (7/8 cup)
(I like to use whole nuts, cashews, blanched almonds, macadamia)
50g coconut chips (3/4 cup)
To finish:
100g dried fruit (2/3 cup)
(Sultana raisins, dried cranberries, blueberries, etc.)
To serve:
natural yogurt and fresh fruit (optional)instructions:
Preheat the oven to 150*C/300*F/ gas mark 2. Have two baking sheets ready. (I spray with non-stick cooking spray)
Weigh
out the oats, seeds, nuts and coconut chips into a large bowl. Whisk
together the oil, maple syrup, honey and vanilla. Pour this over top of
the dry ingredients and toss together to mix completely. Divide
between the two baking sheets, spreading it out in an even layer. Bake
in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and stir.
Return to the oven, switching the placement of the trays (top to bottom
and bottom to top) and bake for a further 10 to 15 minutes. Give a good
stir and allow to cool completely. Stir in any dried fruit and mix all
well together. Store in an airtight container for up to two weeks, or
freeze in an airtight container for longer.
out the oats, seeds, nuts and coconut chips into a large bowl. Whisk
together the oil, maple syrup, honey and vanilla. Pour this over top of
the dry ingredients and toss together to mix completely. Divide
between the two baking sheets, spreading it out in an even layer. Bake
in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and stir.
Return to the oven, switching the placement of the trays (top to bottom
and bottom to top) and bake for a further 10 to 15 minutes. Give a good
stir and allow to cool completely. Stir in any dried fruit and mix all
well together. Store in an airtight container for up to two weeks, or
freeze in an airtight container for longer.
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I got really fancy with my picture taking today, using one of my Greengate Cappuccino bowls and ceramic spoons, along with my Greengate table cloth/towel. I thought they turned out quite pretty. Ohh, if all my dreams came true I would live in a house styled and totally furnished by Greengate. I guess that's about as far from hippy dippy as you can get! Bon Appetit!
Autumn is well and truly upon us now with cooling temperatures and rain. I actually had to put the heat on today for a while to warm things up. But then again, it is October now, so you expect this. This is soup weather! I love soup, and I am so pleased to be at the time of year when I am able to enjoy it again.
One of my favourite simple soups has to be tomato. I adore tomato soup. I only ever had it from a tin when I was a child. The thought never occurred to me that you could make it from scratch. DUH! The first time I experienced tomato soup from scratch was when I was married first time around. A good farm wife my late MIL made excellent tomato soup. (She was a fabulous cook and made excellent everything!)
I was a Campbell's kid when it came to Tomato Soup, because that is what my mother bought. As an adult I tried Heinz and in all honesty liked that variety better. But in reality when it comes to tomato soup, whilst the tinned versions are fine, homemade knocks them right out of the park!
And when it comes to homemade tomato soup, simply roasting your tomatoes first turns what is an excellent bowl of soup into an exemplary bowl of soup! Not to be matched!
It truly is "mmm mmm good!"
Roasting the tomatoes first really enhances and brings out the natural sweetness of the tomatoes. I use my stove's grill/broiler function to do this. Just heat it up and pop them underneath it. Turn them regularly with a pair of tongs as the skin blackens.
The blackened skin should remove very easily once they are roasted all over, but don't worry it you can't get it all off, any skin will be taken care of later on.
There are also plenty of chopped onions, celery and grated carrot in the soup. All of these aromatics add to the flavor of the soup.
If you have homemade stock, that's great, but failing that, use a really good quality stock pot or cube that will give you are really rich flavour. Knorr gel stock pots are the ones I like to use, but you can use whatever it is you prefer.
I always add a bit of rice to this soup. Its not a lot, but it somehow makes it more substantial Funny how that works! Enjoy!
Yield: 6 - 8
Roasted Tomato & Rice Soup
prep time: 15 minscook time: 45 minstotal time: 60 mins
Roasting tomatoes really helps to enhance their flavours. A bit faffy, but well worth the effort.
ingredients:
3 1/2 pounds ripe tomatoes
1 1/2 TBS butter
3/4 pound onions, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 rib celery, coarsely chopped
1 medium carrot, peeled and coarsely shredded
1 1/4 litres of chicken stock (5 cups)
1 1/2 TBS chopped fresh parsley
3 TBS chopped fresh chervil (alternately you can use 1 TBS dried)
3 TBS long grain white rice
salt and black pepper to taste
instructions:
Preheat your oven grill/broiler to high. Place the tomatoes in a
foil lined pan and pop them under the grill/broiler and roast, turning
them occasionally with tongs as the skins begin to blacken. This will
take 10 minutes or so.
foil lined pan and pop them under the grill/broiler and roast, turning
them occasionally with tongs as the skins begin to blacken. This will
take 10 minutes or so.
While the tomatoes are
roasting, put the butter, onions, celery and carrot along with 240ml/1
cup chicken stock into a saucepan. Simmer, covered, over low heat for
about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Don't let
brown.
roasting, put the butter, onions, celery and carrot along with 240ml/1
cup chicken stock into a saucepan. Simmer, covered, over low heat for
about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Don't let
brown.
Remove as much blackened skin from the
tomatoes as you can and add them to the pot along with the remaining
stock. Cover and cook over low heat for an additional 15 minutes. Puree
with a stick blender, or normal blender (with care). Push through a
sieve to strain out any seeds, remaining skin and other solids. Return
to a clean pot. Add the parsley, chervil and rice, along with salt and
pepper to taste. Simmer, uncovered for about 10 minutes, or until rice
is done. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired. Ladle into heated
bowls and serve immediately.
tomatoes as you can and add them to the pot along with the remaining
stock. Cover and cook over low heat for an additional 15 minutes. Puree
with a stick blender, or normal blender (with care). Push through a
sieve to strain out any seeds, remaining skin and other solids. Return
to a clean pot. Add the parsley, chervil and rice, along with salt and
pepper to taste. Simmer, uncovered for about 10 minutes, or until rice
is done. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired. Ladle into heated
bowls and serve immediately.
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You could of
course serve the soup as is for a simple luncheon with crackers or a roll on the side,
but I turned it into a main meal and really waxed nostalgic by serving
it with grilled cheese sandwiches. Tomato Soup and grilled cheese go together like, well . . . peas and carrots!! Bon appetit!
There is something about this time of year that makes me want to indulge in all things apple and pumpkin . . . and spice. Its only natural I guess since this is the time that those things are coming into their own and are available in abundance. One thing I like to make is applesauce, and once I have made my applesauce, then I like to make an Applesauce Nut Bread or an Applesauce Cake.
I basically make two kinds of applesauce. One with sugar and one without sugar. The one I make with sugar is to eat as is, and the one without is to use in baked goods, where there will be sugar added to the batter. Both freeze very well. I freeze it in one cup amounts which is perfect for either use.
Today I decided to try out a new Applesauce bread/cake recipe. I have a cookery book entitled, Recipes Worth Sharing, recipes and stories from America's most-loved Community Cookbooks.
This particular recipe is attributed to The Bells are Ringing: A Call To Table by the Mission San Juan Capistrano Women's Guild. It looked good. I did make a few changes from the original, which I will detail, and of course have also converted it to British measurements for the British kitchen.
The original recipe called only for the use of cinnamon and nutmeg. I added some cloves. Cloves go very well with the flavour of apple and my husband loves cloves. He is always banging on about his mom's apple pie and how she used cloves, so the cloves were a love note to him.
There was also a rather abundant amount of cinnamon sugar nut sprinkle in the original recipe which was to be sprinkled on top. I thought it was a bit much for just on top so I divided it in three and sprinkled it between two layers and only added the final third for on top, which . . .
As you can see was more than ample!
I also toasted my pecans. I toast all of my nuts prior to baking with them. It just makes them taste nuttier and I love the smell of them toasting. About 6 to 8 minutes in a moderate oven on a baking sheet does the trick.
The end result was a very delicious loaf. There is no need for a drizzle or frosting on top as the brown sugar adds the perfect amount of sweetness for that purpose.
The loaf itself is not overly sweet, which I liked. As a Diabetic, I am not supposed to eat a lot of sugar, so this isn't exactly on my list of things I can eat, but if I was tempted it is not the worst thing I could eat either.
Its not quite as moist as some applesauce breads I have made in the past, but I think that a slice of this warmed and spread with butter would be excellent with a nice hot cup of tea, herbal or otherwise.
When I was working at the Manor the Mr used to like me to toast the quick breads and butter them when I was serving them to him. It actually really is quite nice to do that with a quick bread, and I strongly suspect that this bread will be lovely toasted as well.
I am also thinking it might make a great bread and butter pudding when it gets to being a bit stale. If you have never tried that with a quick bread, then you don't know what you have been missing out on!
Bread and Butter Pudding made with sliced quick bread is magnificently delicious . . . I have done it with my cinnamon loaf, banana bread and gingerbread in the past and all versions were drool-worthy!
You don't want to do it with really crumbly quick breads, but sturdier ones like this one are perfect for that purpose!
Yield: 8 - 10
Applesauce Nut Bread
prep time: 15 minscook time: 1 hourtotal time: 1 hours and 15 mins
Tasty tasty. Moist and delicious. Tis the season.
ingredients:
For the Pecan Topping:
100g soft light brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
30g chopped toasted pecans
For the loaf:
245g smooth unsweetened applesauce (1 cup)
190g sugar (1 cup)
120ml vegetable oil (1/2 cup)
2 large free range eggs
280g plain flour (2 cups)
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 baking powder
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/3 tsp grated nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp salt
30g toasted pecans (1/4 cup)instructions:
Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Butter a large loaf
tin, or two smaller ones and then line with baking paper. Set aside.
tin, or two smaller ones and then line with baking paper. Set aside.
Mix the topping ingredients together in a bowl and set aside.
Whisk
together the applesauce, sugar, vegetable oil, and eggs. Sift together
the flour, soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt.
Stir in the pecans. Add all at once to the wet ingredients. Mix well
together. Spread 1/3 of it into the prepared loaf tin (s) sprinkle with
1/3 of the topping. Spread another 1/3 of the batter on top. Top with
another 1/3 of the topping. Spread on the final 1/3 of batter. Using a
round bladed knife swirl the topping through and then sprinkle the
remaining topping on top of the loaf.
together the applesauce, sugar, vegetable oil, and eggs. Sift together
the flour, soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt.
Stir in the pecans. Add all at once to the wet ingredients. Mix well
together. Spread 1/3 of it into the prepared loaf tin (s) sprinkle with
1/3 of the topping. Spread another 1/3 of the batter on top. Top with
another 1/3 of the topping. Spread on the final 1/3 of batter. Using a
round bladed knife swirl the topping through and then sprinkle the
remaining topping on top of the loaf.
Bake for
30 minutes. Cover loosely with foil to help prevent over-browning. Bake
for 15 to 30 minutes longer (depending on pan(s) used). When the bread
is done a toothpick inserted in the centre will come out clean. Cool
in the pan for several minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool
completely.
30 minutes. Cover loosely with foil to help prevent over-browning. Bake
for 15 to 30 minutes longer (depending on pan(s) used). When the bread
is done a toothpick inserted in the centre will come out clean. Cool
in the pan for several minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool
completely.
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The added bonus of this lovely bread is the wonderful smell it leaves in your house while it is baking . . . cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves . . . smells like Home Sweet Home to me! Bon Appetit!
If you are looking for a lovely cookie to bake for your loved ones this weekend, you can't get much nicer than Easy Jam Hearts. These lovely jam filled butter cookies are simple to make and quite delicious!
They are so easy to make that the children will want to get in on but business of helping you with them. Children do so love to help out with baking don't they! I sure wish I lived closer to my grandchildren . . .
You don't need to be rolling out or cutting out these cookies. They are pretty much faff free. You simply pinch off pieces of dough and roll it into 1 inch balls with your hands. These get placed onto the baking sheets, lightly smashing two together next to each other, and then you pinch them out into a heart shape, leaving two rounded bits at the top. Flatten them slightly with the palm of your hand and then use your thumb to make a heart shaped depression in each, which you fill with jam.
Take care not to overfill them or the jam will overflow the cookies when they are baking. A little bit goes a long way when you are cooking with jam. Also, if you are working with children, make sure they don't touch the baked cookies until they are cooled. Hot jam can easily little fingers and lips!
You bake these in a moderate oven for 10 to 12 minutes and then let them cool right on the baking sheet. Once they are completely cold you ice them with a lemon drizzle icing.
Do be sure to use fresh lemon juice in the icing. I have used lemon flavouring before, and it is just not the same. It lends an almost perfume-like taste to the icing, which I didn't care for. Fresh lemon juice is the only way to go.
Today I used Raspberry jam, because that is what I had in the refrigerator. Run a fork through your jam to loosen it up nicely. Seedless jam is best, but any jam will work really. I think the red jams look the nicest.
Lemon curd is also very nice in these, in which case you might like to add a pinch of ground ginger to the flour. Lemon and ginger are a marriage made in heaven!
These are just so, so, SO pretty!
Why not invite them to your next tea or children's party???
They look so fancy, and yet . . . they are not . . . fancy that is . . . just a simple butter cookie, hand shaped . . .
filled, baked and . . . drizzled, with love . . .
The child in me wishes so much that I could indulge . . . sigh . . .
Alas all the sins of my misspent youth are coming back to haunt me and all I can do is look and dream . . . never mind, the Toddster enjoys them, and that is what counts!
Yield: Makes approximately 24
Easy Jam Hearts
prep time: 15 minscook time: 12 minstotal time: 27 mins
No cookie cutter needed for these sweet jam filled heart shaped butter cookies. If you can roll dough into a ball, you can make these.
ingredients:
250g butter (1 cup + 2 tsp)
140g sugar (3/4 cup)
2 tsp vanilla extract
300g plain flour (2 cups + 2 1/2 TBS)
1/4 tsp salt
your favourite red fruit jam
instructions:
Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Line a couple of large baking sheets with baking paper. Set aside.
Cream
the butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy. Beat in the
sugar. Stir in the salt and flour to make a dough. Pinch off pieces of
the dough and roll into 1/2 inch balls.Squash two balls together on the
baking sheets, leaving rounded ends a the top and tapering bottoms to a
point. Flatten slightly with the palm of your hand. Leave plenty of
space in between. Using your finger, make a heart shape indentation in
the centre of each. Fill with some jam, making sure that you don't
over-fill it.
the butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy. Beat in the
sugar. Stir in the salt and flour to make a dough. Pinch off pieces of
the dough and roll into 1/2 inch balls.Squash two balls together on the
baking sheets, leaving rounded ends a the top and tapering bottoms to a
point. Flatten slightly with the palm of your hand. Leave plenty of
space in between. Using your finger, make a heart shape indentation in
the centre of each. Fill with some jam, making sure that you don't
over-fill it.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Leave to cool on baking sheets.
together 130 g/1 cup of sifted icing sugar and enough lemon juice to make a drizzle
icing. Drizzle decoratively over the cookies and leave to set. Store
in an airtight container with wax paper in between the layers.
Created using The Recipes Generator
Note, it is perfectly possible to divide the recipe in half if you wish. I did so today with perfect results. Happy weekend and Bon Appetit!
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