All posts filed under: Winter

Healthy Carrot Bread Rolls

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Christmas has passed, although there is still plenty of party spirit left in me, and no doubt some more seasonal indulgence will occur. However, in between Christmas and New Year I’m experiencing a strong need to cook some healthy meals and bake some filling breads. Ive taken my old classic bread roll recipe, and flung a load of carrots, from my garden no less, into the mixture for added natural sweetness and colour. The addition of carrots alowed me to remove the butter/oil from my original recipe, aiding to its health status! Ive also replaced my usual wholemeal flour with the most delicious organic malt house flour, from Shipton Mill. I can really recommend their flours, they’re full bodied and rich, with substance and taste. I have just been eating these rolls with butter, as the bread itself is so flavoursome. _______________________________________________ Healthy Carrot Bread Rolls Makes 6 Bread Rolls 1 tsp easy bake yeast 500g organic shipton mill malt house flour 1 tsp salt 130g carrots, grated 350ml lukewarm water ________________________________________________ In a large …

Merry Christmas Cookies with Cardamom and Lime

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Christmas is here! And there is just enough time to bake a few extra nibbles and homemade treats to serve over the holidays. Or if you have forgotten to buy a gift for a guest, wrap these up with a big bow! I have just gotten a fabby buiscuit stamp in Denmark, so I happily stamped all my disks with ‘Made with Love’, perfect for an edible present, right! I love to combine contrasting flavours, such as lime and cardamom, which I have used to spice these Christmas Cookies with. They have a light crumbly texture that go very well with a cup of tea on a cozy afternoon, after all the gift wrapping is done. Merry Christmas to you all! __________________________________________________ Makes 40 100g unsalted butter, at room temperature 100g caster sugar 1 tsp vanilla extract 2 medium free-range eggs, beaten 1/2 lime, juiced 5 cardamom pods, shelled and crushed 300g plain flour 1 tsp baking powder __________________________________________________ Cream the butter, caster sugar, vanilla, crushed cardamom and lime juice together in a bowl until …

Black Pepper Christmas Biscuits

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  Around Christmas time, I like to make up batches of edible gifts that can be given to friends and family during the festive period. I like the concept of edible presents, as there’s a good chance they will be received gladly. So when you’re next stuck for ideas for someone’s Christmas present, look to your baking books and kitchen cupboards for inspiration! For these cute biscuit houses and trees, I’ve given them a little extra kick by adding freshly ground black pepper and a pinch of cayenne as well as the traditional ginger and cinnamon combo. I also like to make these crunchy treats with a little organic spelt flour, so as not to exclude all nutrients entirely! Wrap the biscuits in a rustic paper box with a little gold tissue for a homemade gift that will bring smiles to faces. The uncooked biscuit dough can be put into a food bag and kept in the fridge for up to a week. Ensuring a steady supply of freshly baked cookies over the Christmas period. …

Christmas Spiced Chocolate Beer Cake

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If I felt that this cake could have handled one more adjectives in the title, I would have called it: Non Traditional Rustic Christmas Spiced Chocolate Beer Cake with a Chai Tea Glaze…! Its non traditional in the sense that it is chocolate instead of fruit, its quick with simple ingredients and rustic in its nature. Sometimes its just nice to not make a big fuss, but know that your cake will turn out great none the less. I served this cake up for our annual Christmas party last weekend, and its no fuss rustic good looks seemed to go down a treat. This recipe features Christmas beer, which seems very fitting, as we have just returned home from Copenhagen where we attempted to sample as many Christmas beers as possible. If Christmas beer isn’t on hand, any dark ale will suffice. ____________________________________________________ Batter: 470 ml Christmas Beer or Dark Ale 180g unsalted butter, plus more for the tin 85g organic pure cocoa powder 3 cloves 3 cardamoms 1 tsp cinnamon 65g whole wheat flour …

Happy Thanksgiving Pumpkin Pie

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Happy Thanksgiving! My dad is over in the states celebrating Thanksgiving with our American family this week. And although its not a date to celebrate in the UK, I couldn’t help my self and had to make a pumpkin pie, nonetheless! One of the crops that I had most looked forward to from my garden this year were indeed pumpkins. I hadn’t grown them before, so I was very excited about the prospect of having my garden completely filled to the brim with enormous orange balls, lighting up the autumn garden when all the other crops had vanished. However..I totally oversaw the need to sever the shoots of the pumpkin plant after the first fruit had started growing, in order for the plant to just concentrate on the one fruit and to get big pumpkins. So instead of a few large pumpkins, I got a lot of small ones…You live and learn. However, here is a tasty and very traditional use of the gorgeous flesh from the iconic pumpkin. To make it a little different …

Harissa Spiced Carrot and Spinach Soup

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There is at last hopeful signs that spring is on its way up here in Scotland, with the snowdrops glistening amongst the frosty undergrowth and the shoots of the daffodils appearing. But a warming spicy soup is still a welcomed thing, as the days are still chilly, and the nights even more so. I really enjoy carrot soup, with its slight sweet notes and simple preparation. It also lends itself quite well to be spiced up with a little harissa paste for extra warmth. ____________________________________________________________________________________ Serves 3-4 4 medium organic carrots 1 large white onion 3 handfuls of spinach 1 tsp harissa paste 1 tsp cumin seeds 500ml organic vegetable stock a drizzle of olive oil salt and pepper to taste plus a little cream for the top ____________________________________________________________________________________ Prepare the veg, by washing and peeling the carrots, chop alongside the onion. In a large pan, heat  the olive oil and toast the cumin seeds for 30 sec on medium heat. Then add the onion and soften for 5 min, then add the harissa paste …

Baked Brie with Yellow Plum Compote

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; Is there a better combination, than cheese and fruit? Well, maybe baked cheese and fruit! I was in my local shop the other day and fell upon  a punnet of beautiful yellow plums. I had to think for a few days about what to turn them into, until I remembered there was a big wedge of brie in the fridge, just waiting of a sweet companion. This is so easy to make, but looks and tastes impressive. Perfect if you are having fiends over for lunch. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ‘ Serves 4 5-6 yellow plums 4 tbsp sugar 1/2 a lemon, juice and zest of   ;And a 250g wedge of brie _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Wash the plums, half them and remove the stones. Place in a small saucepan along with the lemon zest. Bring to a simmer and boil for 5-7 min, until the plums are soft. Add the sugar and stir in, then add the lemon juice. Simmer gently for 5 min. Set aside to cool. In a preheated oven set to 200 °c / 400 …

Wild, Hot Smoked Salmon with Egg, Potato and Apple.

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Wild, Hot Smoked Salmon with Egg, Potato and Apple. / We are in the middle of packing up our house, getting ready to move to a new one.(one with a rain-proof roof) So dishes that can be made in one pan are very welcome indeed. I came up with this dish, for that very reason! I made it in my Le Creuset pan, as it can be safely put in the oven, with no danger of melting plastic handles! Its a thoroughly satisfying dish to prepare and eat,  as it leaves you feeling that you have had a hearty meal, but all done in 20 min. Splendid! ____________________________________________________________________________________ Serves two (just make more and add extra eggs in you are more than two!) / Half a head of white cabbage 1 large red onion 1 apple 150g wild hot smoked salmon. (go out of your way to get the wild kind. I don’t think salmon have much fun swimming round in a circular tank their entire life..They need to leap and spawn, and be shared …

Chunky Peanut and Almond Butter by Miss May

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Since starting this blog, I have wanted to feature Guest Bloggers that could contribute with their own recipes and photography. So I am super excited to be able to share this latest post with you, written by my talented and good friend Victoria May. Miss May is a fellow blogger from chimneystack.wordpress.com and a world traveler, whizzing from continent to continent with her ‘old school’ film camera- all along the way cooking, baking and eating her way through her journey. “ This is her recipe! _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ; I love peanut butter. It’s both a comfort food (smothered on hot toast) and an energy bomb (whizzed up with banana, muesli and yogurt in a breakfast smoothie), and never fails to remind me of my time in the States. Americans really know how to harness the full bad-ass potential of P.B. ‘ This is my throw-it-together recipe. ____________________________________________________________________________________ Makes 1 large Jar or 2 small ones ‘ 3 cups peanuts (unsalted) 1 cup almonds 50ml organic rapeseed (olive is too over-powering a flavour) salt to taste ____________________________________________________________________________________ In a …

Jerusalem Artichoke and Goats Cheese Tart with Pine Nuts and Homemade Pesto

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Jerusalem Artichoke and Goats Cheese Tart with Pine Nuts and Homemade Pesto Jerusalem Artichokes, a relative of the Sunflower, are in season during the winter months from October to March and are therefore a great vegetable to enjoy right now. They are rich in vitamin C and K and originate from Mexico, but thrives in the British garden. In this recipe I have combined a sharp counterpart in form of the Goats Cheese, to the mild tasting Jerusalem Artichokes. And adding homemade pesto gives the whole dish a rich feel. I also used my ‘birthday present eggs’! They were a gift from my good friends’ chickens! ____________________________________________________________________________________ Short Crust Pastry 200g plain flour 100g butter, cubed 2-3 tbsp cold water pinch of salt Filling 400g jerusalem artichokes, peeled 3 large handfuls of spinach 2 eggs 150g goats cheese 250ml single cream tsp ground nutmeg half a lemon, juiced 3 tbsp homemade pesto, recipe here pinch of salt and pepper ____________________________________________________________________________________ In a large bowl, use your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour until …