Foodie

ROASTED CRANBERRY MINCE PIES

1 kg cranberries, fresh or frozen
1 Bramley apple, chopped
1 tsp mixed spice
100g unsalted butter
100ml maple syrup
300g soft brown sugar
3 tbsp dark rum or Cointreau
100g candied orange peel
Flour, for dusting
2 rolls ready-made shortcrust pastry
Icing sugar, to dredge

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F).

2. Distribute the cranberries and chopped apple between two roasting tins. Sprinkle over the mixed spice and fleck with the butter. Drizzle the maple syrup over. Roast in the oven for 25-30 minutes, or until the fruit is slightly shrunken with a golden tan.

3. Remove the roasted cranberries from the oven and place in a bowl. Mix in the sugar, rum or Cointreau and candied orange peel.

4. Sprinkle flour onto a work surface and roll out the pastry to a thickness of about 3mm. Using a 7cm cookie-cutter, cut out discs of pastry and place into a greased mince pie tin. Prick the base of each pie with a fork and bake in the oven for 15 minutes.

5. Remove from the oven, and spoon the cranberry filling into each pastry cup. Return to the oven to cook for another 5 minutes.
6. Leave the pies to cool, then dredge with icing sugar.

USE: Eat 1 or 2 pies a day.
STORAGE: Store in an airtight container and eat within 1 week.

ANTI-ANXIETY SAFFRON EGG NOG

500ml whole milk
2 bay leaves
36 threads / 3 pinches saffron
2 strips orange rind
3 tbsp golden syrup
200ml single cream
3 eggs
150ml white rum

Grated fresh nutmeg, to serve

1. Pour the milk, bay leaves, saffron, orange rind, golden syrup and cream into a pan, and simmer gently for 10 minutes. Strain through a sieve.
2. Break the eggs into a glass heat-proof bowl, then slowly whisk in the hot milk mixture.
3. Place the bowl above a pan of boiling water and heat gently, stirring, until the mixture thickens to a custardy consistency. Then take it straight off the heat.
4. Whisk in the rum, then pour the mixture into a jug. Cool, then leave to stand in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours before serving.
5. Serve over ice with grated nutmeg.

USE: Drink no more than 1 wineglass a day.
CAUTION: Contains alcohol.
STORAGE: Keep in the refrigerator. Will last for 2 weeks.

ORANGE-SCENTED BODY OIL

The fragrance of Christmas – orange, cloves and exotic myrrh – in a bottle. This luxury body oil makes the most of myrrh’s anti-inflammatory properties: apply liberally to moisturize and nourish dry skin, or use as a sweet-smelling massage lotion.

Peel of 5 oranges or tangerines
4 tbsp cloves
400ml sunflower oil
1 tbsp myrrh resin

1. Put the orange peel, cloves and sunflower oil into a blender and whizz until smooth.
2. Pour the mixture into a glass heatproof bowl and place over a pan of boiling water. Add the myrrh, then cover and leave to simmer for 1 hour, making sure the pan does not boil dry.
3. Take off the heat and leave to cool. Strain the mixture and bottle up.

USE: Apply as needed to dry skin, or use for massage.

STORAGE: Will keep in a dark cool place for up to 3 months.

Pickled Jalapeños Recipe

Since the arrival of my gifted glasshouse , I now have a glut of Jalapeños , so today I decided to see if I could pickle them, nothing ventured nothing gained.

330g, whole or sliced
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup water
1 tbsp peppercorns
2 bay leaves
3 cloves of garlic, lightly pounded
2 tbsp coarse sea salt
1 tbsp sugar

Pack the jalapeños in a glass jar.

In a saucepan, add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for about 5 minutes.

Pour the hot pickling liquid over the jalapeños and let it rest for a few hours.

Shake it up a little so that the peppercorns are evenly distributed.

For a crunchy bite, you can start nibbling on them within a few hours.

As for softer texture, let this sit for 4-5 days.

Keep refrigerated for upto two months or can it according to jar manufacturer’s instructions.

Courgette glutney

This lovely pickle is a fantastic way to use various summer veg gluts, and overgrown courgettes are one of my favourites. You can alter the recipe according to what you have, and chop and change the spices to suit your taste, too. Makes about 10 jars.

1kg courgettes, unpeeled if small, peeled if huge, cut into 1cm dice (or use pumpkin later in the season)

1kg red or green tomatoes, scalded, skinned and roughly chopped (or 1kg plums, stoned and chopped)

1kg cooking or eating apples, peeled and diced

500g onions, peeled and diced

500g sultanas or raisins

500g light brown sugar

750ml white-wine or cider vinegar, made up to 1 litre with water

1-3 tsp dried chilli flakes

1 tsp salt

For the spice bag

1 thumb-sized nugget of fresh or dried ginger, roughly chopped

12 cloves

12 black peppercorns

1 (generous) tsp coriander seeds

A few blades of mace

Put the vegetables and fruit in a large, heavy-based pan with the sultanas or raisins, sugar, vinegar and water, chilli flakes and salt.

Make up the spice bag by tying all the spices in a square of muslin or cotton. Add the spice bag to the pan, pushing it into the middle.

Heat the mixture gently, stirring occasionally to dissolve the sugar, and bring slowly to the boil. Simmer for 2-3 hours, uncovered, stirring regularly to ensure it does not burn on the bottom of the pan. The chutney is ready when it is rich, thick and reduced, and parts to reveal the base of the pan when a wooden spoon is dragged through it. If it starts to dry out before this stage is reached, add a little boiling water.

Pot up the chutney while still warm (but not boiling hot) in sterilised jars with plastic-coated screw-top lids (essential to stop the vinegar interacting with the metal). Leave to mature for at least two weeks – ideally two months – before serving. ·

New Organic Recipe : Inferno Harissa Paste

Tomatoes and chillies unite to form these small yet explosive delights.

Been busy trying to take my mind off of incredibly dark places , so this week I’ve been mostly making Elderflower Cider, Sugar wash , Summer Ale , Whispering Wheat Ale , Souper Mix , Rhubarb Ketchup , Cauliflower A La Greque and this little recipe of fire.

Transplanting seeds etc etc.

Liquorice Basil , Genoan Basil , Purple Cherokee Tomatos , Wormwood , Chamomile, Blue Hopi Corn , Gourds a plenty. : Giant African , Birdhouse and small ornamental. Enorma Beans.

Not my normal , because I’ve made a rough tomato sauce to make it go further.

It’s flaming hot.

Makes 2 x 112g jars

Ingredients

• 250g tomatoes
• 100g hot chillies, such as Scotch Bonnets
• 1 tsp caraway seeds
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp coriander seeds
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 4 fat garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
• 100g shallots, peeled and roughly chopped
• ½ tsp salt
• 50ml olive or hempseed oil

Directions

Drop the tomatoes into a pan of boiling water for 30 seconds, then scoop them out.

Peel off the skins.

Remove the stalks and calyxes from the chillies.

The seeds and membranes inside the chilli contain most of the heat: you can choose to leave all the seeds in or, for a less intense paste, halve the chillies and cut at least some of the seeds out.

To be honest, if you use Scotch Bonnets, the paste will be pretty fiery whatever you do!

Chop the chillies roughly.

Put the caraway, cumin and coriander in a dry frying pan and toast for a couple of minutes, shaking the pan to make sure they don’t burn.

Put the skinned tomatoes, chillies, toasted spices, garlic, shallots and salt in a food processor and blitz until well blended.

Tip into a small saucepan and heat until boiling then simmer for about 10 minutes until reduced and starting to thicken.

Leave to cool.

Pack into warm, sterilised jars, leaving a 1cm gap at the top.

Pour oil over the paste to completely cover it.

Seal the jars.

Store in the fridge and use within 4 months.

If you want to extend the shelf life of the paste, pack in small, sealable containers and freeze.

Once opened, keep in the fridge, making sure the paste in the jar is completely covered by a layer of oil.

TTFN

Double Chocolate Brownies

Ingredients

Makes 9 large or 16 small squares

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for pan
6 ounces coarsely chopped good-quality semisweet chocolate
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch-process)
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Line a buttered 8-inch square baking pan with foil or parchment paper, allowing 2 inches to hang over sides.

Butter lining (excluding overhang); set pan aside.

Put butter, chocolate, and cocoa in a heatproof medium bowl set over a pan of simmering water; stir until butter and chocolate are melted.

Let cool slightly.

Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl; set aside.

Put sugar, eggs, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, and beat on medium speed until pale, about 4 minutes.

Add chocolate mixture; beat until combined.

Add flour mixture; beat, scraping down sides of bowl, until well incorporated.

Pour batter into prepared pan; smooth top with a rubber spatula.

Bake until a cake tester inserted into brownies (avoid center and edges) comes out with a few crumbs but is not wet, about 35 minutes.

Let cool slightly in pan, about 15 minutes. Lift out brownies; let cool completely on a wire rack before cutting into squares.

Just to make it different than normal , I added some orange zest and some white choc chip chunks and so now it tastes like a Terry’s choccie orange.

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