One thing I really enjoy after a roast dinner is hash. In fact I enjoy the hash I made from the leftovers more than the main meal itself.
I searched my whole page to see if I had a Roast Beef Hash Recipe on site and was surprised to find that I didn't! How did that happen. It is a regular meal in my home!
I am often thinking about the hash I am going to be able to enjoy with the leftovers as I am refrigerating the leftovers right after the meal.
Hash is one of those leftover meals that manages to turn all of the ingredients into something buttery, crisp and indulgent. In short, delicious!
As it is something which I make quite often, I really was surprised to not see a version of it on here. I have recipes for Hash in a Bun, old fashioned Baked Hash, Post Christmas Hash, Oven Hash, Turkey Hash, Corned Beef Hash, etc.
Recipes for all sorts of hash's, everything but good old fashioned easy to make roast beef hash! I decided it was time to rectify that!
In a way, hash is the North American equivalent of the British Bubble and Squeak! A mash up of leftover meat and veg, fried in butter and oil the day after the roast.
Whereas Bubble and Squeak traditionally contain cabbage of some sort, a North American Hash can contain whatever meat and vegetables you have leftover.
Generally speaking however, it will always have potatoes, meat and onions. Everything else is optional.
You can use leftover roast potatoes, diced up, diced boiled potatoes, crumbled mashed potatoes, etc. All work very well.
WHAT DO YOU NEED TO MAKE ROAST BEEF HASH
Its quite simple really:
- cold leftover cooked potato (roasted, boiled or mashed)
- cold leftover cooked roast beef
- cold leftover cooked vegetables
- chopped onion and garlic
- oil and butter
- thyme and seasonings
- a splash of Worcestershire sauce and Hot sauce (tabasco)
The vegetables can be anything you choose to have, or just what's leftover. Today I had leftover mashed potatoes, carrots, yellow beans and roasted squash.
Everything worked together beautifully. That's the thing about hash. It works with just about anything under the sun.
That is the nature of the dish. No haste, no waste. Everything just hashed up together in a pan and cooked in some butter and oil until its all moreishly crispy and delicious!
HOW DO YOU MAKE ROAST BEEF HASH
You want to start with everything being cold from the fridge. If I am using leftover roasted or boiled (or even baked) potatoes, I chop them up into a small dice. If I am using leftover mash potatoes, I crumble it.
You want to cut your meat also into a small dice. I tend to cut it to somewhere between a 1/4 inch and a 1/3 inch in cubes. This is really easy to do if your meat is cold. I trim off any fat and discard.
I like to chop my onion into a 1/4 inch dice. This is very easily done. Peel your onion and cut it in half lengthwise.
Place the halves onto the cutting board and make a series of cuts from the tip to the root end horizontally at 1/4 inch intervals and then do the same again from the top cutting from the top to the root end.
Once you have done this, it is a simple matter of cutting the onion crosswise into 1/4 inch slices. Presto! 1/4 inch dice!
I also like to chop up any other vegetables into a small dice. It works best if everything is about the same size.
Heat the butter and oil in a heavy bottomed skillet. The heavy bottom means you can achieve a more constant and even temperature and the pan holds the heat better, which means you don't have to turn it up so high.
As soon as the butter begins to foam, I know it is time to start adding things. I add the potato and the onion first. Its all about getting a crunchy edge on the potatoes.
If you are using a heavy bottomed pan, this is really easy to achieve without burning them. You don't want to burn them. If you think they are getting too brown too fast, lower the heat.
Once your potatoes and onions are starting to brown and crisp you can add everything else. Because everything is cold, it will start to brown up nicely without burning, or at least it should do!
Leave everything undisturbed for as long as you can to get a nice golden brown crispness and then start to scramble fry everything. I like to add a splash of Worcestershire and Tabasco hot sauce to give it a bit of zip!
Don't worry, it won't make your hash soggy. The liquid evaporates almost immediately, but the flavor stays behind. Trust me on this!
That's it really. Your hash is done. A final taste and adjustment of the seasoning and its ready to serve. I like to warm up some leftover gravy if there is any. This is delicious spooned over top.
Some people like to enjoy theirs with tomato ketchup or HP sauce. (Brown sauce in the UK)
Still others like to fry and egg and place it on top so that the runny yolk can run down over the hash.
One thing is certain, it WILL be enjoyed no matter how you serve it. I guarantee it with a certainty. Personally I like to enjoy mine with Baked Beans on the side, but where there is only me, I just had some corn, rather than open a tin of beans.
I think I shall miss the snap pots of baked beans which we could get in the UK. Each one held one serving of baked beans. They were perfect!
Roast Beef Hash
Yield: 2 - 3
Prep time: 5 MinCook time: 25 MinTotal time: 30 Min
This makes for a delicious supper using only the leftovers from your Sunday roast dinner. No waste here!
Ingredients
- 1 TBS canola oil
- 1 TBS butter
- 1/2 medium onion, peeled and finely diced
- 1 cup potato (roasted, cubed, or mashed, crumbled)
- 1/2 cup any combination of other leftover vegetables, chopped (I used carrots, beans and squash)
- 1 cup leftover roast beef, diced into 1/4 inch cubes
- 1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
- 1/4 tsp dried thyme
- splash each of Worcestershire sauce and hot sauce
- salt and black pepper to taste
To serve:
- Hot leftover gravy, or tomato ketchup
Instructions
- Heat the oil and butter in a heavy bottomed skillet over moderate heat, until the butter begins to foam. Add the onion and potato.
- Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion has softened and the potato starts to brown. Add the roast beef, garlic, and remaining vegetables, along with the thyme, hot sauce and Worcestershire sauce.
- Fry everything together for about 10 to 15 minutes, until you get some nice crispy bits. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.
- Serve hot with some gravy for pouring, or ketchup for dipping. Delicious!
Is there any combination of flavors better on earth than Chocolate and Peanut Butter? For a person who happens to love chocolate and peanut butter together, absolutely not!
Chocolate and peanut butter are a beautiful classic combination. Think Reeses Peanut Butter Cups here, or Reeses Pieces. Mmm . . . so delicious.
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
After the debacle that was my coffee cake at the weekend, I needed to bake another cake to make up for it. I turned to a book which has never let me down.
Snacking Cakes by Yossy Arefi. I have never baked a cake yet out of that book that has failed me. All have turned out beautifully.
Plus they are the perfect size for a person who lives on their own with only the occasional guest. An 8-inch square cake works for me. I don't need oodles of layers to impress or satisfy me.
She also gives lots of baking options with her recipes, options for other types of tins you can bake them in. Loaf, round, doubled and in a Bundt tin. Something for everyone!
Snack cakes are always a moist and delicious option for the smaller family. Perfectly portable they are great for in bag lunches as well.
I just don't think you can go wrong with a snack cake and this one happens to be a really delicious option. Dark and dense, with plenty of chocolate peanut butter flavor. And that glaze is to die for.
Just a touch of frosting without going over the top. The added crunch of chopped salted peanuts on top is the piece de resistance!
WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER CAKE
Simple every day ingredients from a simple every day kitchen.
For the cake:
- light brown sugar (this is what makes the cake so moist)
- large free range eggs (I only ever use free range)
- smooth peanut butter
- canola oil (you can use any flavorless neutral oil)
- whole milk (full fat milk)
- vanilla extract (I only use pure vanilla extract)
- salt
- cocoa powder (Make sure you sift it to get the lumps out)
- all purpose plain flour
- baking soda, and baking powder
- strong hot coffee (or water. Coffee really helps to enhance the chocolate flavor however)
The frosting also uses only simple ingredients.
For the frosting:
- peanut butter
- icing sugar (also known as powdered sugar or confectioners)
- vanilla extract (again pure)
- hot water
You will also need some chopped roasted and salted peanuts to scatter over the top. She also suggests a smattering of flaked sea salt, but I did not add that.
If I had it available to me I would use Skippy peanut butter. I don't however, so have used Kraft smooth peanut butter. Don't be tempted to use an all natural peanut butter. You will not get the same results.
You can also use Dutch process cocoa powder. Not this is cocoa powder, not chocolate drink mix. You would be surprised at home many people think they are the same thing. THEY ARE NOT!
Cocoa powder is a chocolate powder made from grinding roasted cocoa seeds. Cocoa drink mix is cocoa powder mixed with things like powdered milk and sugar.
You could eat a tsp of cocoa drink mix and it wouldn't taste too bad. You could not eat a tsp of cocoa powder. Yossi suggests using Dutch process cocoa powder. I have just used regular cocoa powder.
Natural cocoa powder (what I used) is untreated, so it maintains its light brown color and is slightly acidic, with a pH between five and six.
Dutch-processed cocoa powder (also referred to as Dutched chocolate, European-style or alkalized) is made from beans that have been washed with an alkaline solution that neutralizes that natural acidity and raises their pH to closer to seven.
The process gives the powder a darker color and a smoother, softer flavor. Dutch cocoa is also not quite as chocolaty as natural cocoa. It’s milder overall (but still tasty).
Dutch cocoa powder is also a lot more pricy than regular cocoa powder. Its also not that easy to find in most places. At least not here anyways.
If you have it, by all means use it!
HOW TO MAKE CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER CAKE
This is a really easy cake to make. Most snack cakes are. You can of course beat it all together by hand, but I think an electric hand mixer makes putting it together a lot faster and easier.
You begin by beating the brown sugar and eggs together until they are light and frothy. I always use free range eggs. This is because I can afford them, and I refuse to support an industry which is cruel to its animals.
Once you have done this you beat in the peanut butter and remaining wet ingredients, beating them only until everything is smooth and well mixed together.
I like to sift all of my dry ingredients together so that they are evenly mixed. I especially want the baking powder and soda to be mixed into the flour properly.
The dry ingredients get stirred in next. You can do this by hand with a wire whisk. Finally you whisk in a cup of hot coffee or water. I used coffee because coffee greatly enhances the flavor of chocolate.
Pour the batter into a square pan that you have buttered and lined with baking paper and bake for the required amount of time. Once done it will be risen, spring back when lightly touched, and a toothpick inserted in the centre should come out clean.
You then leave it to cool in the pan for fifteen minutes, sitting on a wire rack. I think this adds to the moist texture of the cake. After that you can lift it out of the pan and onto the wire rack to cool completely.
The drizzle/frosting/ glaze is an easy make as well. As simple as whisking together icing sugar, creamy peanut butter, vanilla and hot water. Add the hot water a bit at a time. First 1 TBS and then, if its too thick, add the remaining TBS in small bits until you get the consistency you want.
This then gets spooned/drizzled/poured over the cooled cake. I used the back of a metal spoon to spread it out to the edges.
Once spread out you can scatter it with the chopped peanuts. They make a lovely touch and look really nice.
Yossy's options for other pans include a 9 X 5 X 3 inch loaf tin. A 9-inch round tin. The loaf tin will require approximately 60 minute to bake and you will only need half the amount of glaze. The round cake will take the same time as the square.
Altogether this is a really delicious snack cake. Its dense and moist with a rich chocolate flavor. You cannot taste the coffee at all. Its just chocolate.
The frosting is its crowning glory and enhances the peanut butter chocolate flavor. I loved the crunch of the salted peanuts on top, but I am thinking chopped or mini peanut butter cups would also be incredibly lush and delicious.
One thing is certain, this is destined to be a much requested snack cake in your repertoire of snack cakes!
Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake
Yield: 9
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 55 MinTotal time: 1 H & 4 M
This moist and dense cake is a classic combination of flavors that your family are sure to enjoy!
Ingredients
For the Cake:
- 1 cup (200g) light brown sugar
- 2 large free range eggs
- 1/2 cup (125g) smooth peanut butter
- 1/2 cup (120ml) canola oil
- 1/2 cup (120ml) whole milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup (45g) cocoa powder (not drink mix), sifted
- 1 cup (140g) plain all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking power
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 cup (120ml) hot water or coffee
For the glaze frosting:
- 1 cup (130g) icing sugar, sifted
- 2 TBS smooth peanut butter
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 to 2 TBS hot water
- 1/2 cup (55g) chopped roasted peanuts
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Butter an 8-inch square baking tin. Line with baking paper leaving an overhang on two sides for lifting out. Set aside.
- Using an electric mixer, beat the eggs and brown sugar together until frothy and pale. Beat in the peanut butter, milk, oil and vanilla until smooth and mixed well together.
- Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, salt, soda and baking powder. Stir into the creamed mixture until well combined and smooth. Stir in the hot coffee or water, again mixing it together until well combined and smooth.
- Pour the batter into the prepared baking tin. Give the tin a light tap on the counter a few times to let out any air bubbles.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 45 to 55 minutes. The top should be well risen and a toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean. Remove from the oven to a wire rack and allow to cool for 15 minutes on the rack, before lifting out the cake and leaving on the rack to cool completely.
- For the frosting/glaze, whisk together the icing sugar, peanut butter, hot water and vanilla until you have a smooth mixture which you can spread easily over the top of the cake. Spread onto the cake and scatter the chopped peanuts over top.
- Cut into squares to serve.
I am going to my sister's for supper tonight for cabbage rolls. She is making them from scratch. We have both been craving them. I am really looking forward to them myself! Homemade Cabbage Rolls are the best!
I said that I would bring dessert. I never like to go anyplace to eat empty handed. Desserts are always welcome and to be honest, I think they take a bit of stress off of the hostess.
We all enjoy apple pie and this is the height of apple season. The shops are filled with an abundance of different varieties. I love the smell in the produce aisle at this time of year.
Heck I love the smell outdoors this time of year, it is all drying leaves, and ripe apples, and pumpkin . . . . soon to be burnt pumpkin!
The recipe I am sharing was one from the cookbook entitled The Complete Book of Baking by Pillsbury. I had originally gotten this book back in the mid 1990's.
We were living in Meaford, Ontario at the time. There was a book shop at the edge of town that dealt in lots of books, mostly out of print, etc. You could get books for a really reasonable price.
I picked this one up and it was destined to become one of my favorite ones. I was unable to take it with me when I moved over to the UK, so when I was there I procured another copy.
Yes, I did like the book that much! Of course I was unable to bring it back with me when I returned to Canada last year. Thankfully my father still had my old copy and he wanted to give it back to me. (He doesn't cook at all these days.) I happily accepted his offer.
It is filled with a multitude of baking recipes. Everything from the very basics to the more elaborate. If you are looking for a good every day baking book, I highly recommend it.
There are eight different apple pie recipes in it, each one sounding more delicious than the last. This is one of them. Apple Cobblestone Pie.
A delicious single crust apple pie, filled with quartered apples and topped with a crisp, sweet and buttery coconut streusel topping. What's not to love about that!
WHAT ARE THE BEST APPLES FOR BAKING WITH
Not all apples are created equal. Some are great for eating out of hand, but not so good for baking. Some are good for baking, but not so good for eating out of hand.
Apple varieties good for baking and cooking have a tart flavor and firm texture. In North America for successful results choose Jonathan, McIntosh, Winesap, Granny Smith, Rhode Island Greening, Rome Beauty, or Northern Spy varieties.
In the UK, Bramley apples are top of the list, followed by Granny Smith, Braeburn, Cortland, Pippins, and Blenheim Orange.
One pound of apples s the equivalent of 3 medium apples and will yield 3 cups of slices apples.
WHAT DO YOU NEED TO MAKE APPLE COBBLESTONE PIE
Simple wholesome ingredients, except for the sugar that is.
- one 9-inch unbaked deep pie crust
- 6 to 10 medium apples
- granulated sugar
- all purpose flour (plain flour)
- ground cinnamon
- ground nutmeg
- lemon juice
- coconut
- butter
If you are looking for a good pastry recipe, I highly recommend my butter and lard pastry. You can find the recipe for that here. You will need to scroll down the page a bit.
HOW TO MAKE THE FILLING FOR APPLE COBBLESTONE PIE
This has to be one of the simpler fillings to make for an apple pie. I used 6 medium to large apples for my pie. You will need to remove their peelings and then cut them into quarters. Once you have done that it is very easy to remove and discard the cores.
A mixture of flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and sugar is put into a bowl. Add the apple quarters and toss everything together to coat along with a tablespoon of lemon juice.
These get laid out into the pie crust, rounded sides up. I started at the outer edge and worked my way inwards, overlapping them a tiny bit to get them all in.
Once you have made and placed the filling you can make the streusel topping.
HOW TO MAKE THE STREUSEL TOPPING
Streusel toppings are usually fairly easy to make. They are as simple as stirring together some dry ingredients and rubbing in butter until you have a crumble mixture.
This streusel contains coconut. I used unsweetened shredded coconut. The recipe did not specify sweetened or not, but with sugar in the base/filling as well as in the streusel, I figured I could not go wrong by using unsweetened.
I always put my fruit pies onto a aluminum foil lined baking sheet to bake. You never know if a fruit pie is going to bubble over. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
Or in this case it helps to prevent you from having to clean up burnt on sticky fruit juices and sugar from the floor of your oven.
This pie bubbled over the edge only a little bit, but I was still happy that I had used a baking sheet beneath the pie to catch it.
Because of the sweet nature of the streusel topping and the coconut it contains you may be worried that the topping will get too dark or even start to burn. The oven temperature is fairly high. (375*F/195*C)
Do keep an eye on the pie and check it about half way through the bake time. If you feel it is getting too dark, place a sheet of aluminum foil loosely over top. This will help to prevent the topping from burning.
You can always remove it for the last five minutes of bake time to crisp things up again if you are worried about that!
It is one thing to cut a piece out of a pie you are going to serve at home, but something else to cut a piece out of a pie you are bringing to someone else's home!
This would be delicious served warm or at room temperature with a scoop of ice cold vanilla ice cream on top or in the British way with some custard sauce or pouring cream!
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
Apple Cobblestone Pie
Yield: 8 servings
Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 38 MinTotal time: 53 Min
This single crust apple pie boasts a coconut streusel topping. The pie itself is said to look like cobblestones. Its delicious no matter how it looks!
Ingredients
You will need:
- Pastry for one 9-inch unbaked single pie crust.
For the Filling:
- 6 to 10 medium apples, peeled, cored and quartered
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 3 TBS all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 TBS lemon juice
For the streusel topping:
- 2/3 cup coconut (50g) (the recipe did not specify sweetened or unsweetened. I used unsweetened)
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour (35g)
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar (50g)
- 2 TBS butter at room temperature
Instructions
- Prepare the pastry and use it to line a 9 inch deep pie dish, taking care not to stretch or tear the pastry and fluting the edge all the way around.
- Preheat the oven to 375*F/190*C/gas mark 5. Place the pastry lined pie dish onto a foil lined baking sheet. Set aside.
- Peel, quarter and core your apples. Mix the flour, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and apples together in a bowl along with the lemon juice. Combine well the apples are well coated.
- Arrange the apples in the pastry lined pie dish, rounded sides up, so that they resemble a cobbled street. Sprinkle any sugar mixture remaining in the bowl over top.
- Combine all of the topping ingredients together in a bowl, rubbing them together until crumbly. Sprinkle evenly over top of the apples.
- Bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the apples are tender. If you think the streusel is getting to dark, cover lightly with a piece of aluminum foil, removing it for the last five minutes.
- Cut into wedges to serve. Ice cream goes very nicely!
Notes:
Large apples can be substituted for medium apples, peel and core as above, but cut each into 6 pieces.
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