All posts tagged: camera and clementine

Homemade Red Onion Marmalade

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As a vegetarian, I eat a very varied diet. Not only is that a good thing, ensuring I get all the nutrients needed, but it also makes me happy. I couldn’t eat the same thing every day. But having a few preserves on hand to brighten up a sandwich, pop into a tart recipe, or add to other dishes, really does make a lot of difference in the flavour department. As I work from home most of the time, that means I eat from home most of the time. So I like to have a fridge full of ingredients that I can whip up fast into something tasty for lunch, without having to drive into town to pick things up. This Red Onion Marmalade is up there with the best preserves I’ve made, sweet sticky and perfect with a ploughman’s lunch, a slice of quiche or topped on crisp bread.   Red Onion Marmalade Makes 4-5 x 370g jars 2kg red onions   4 garlic cloves, minced  150g butter  160g golden caster sugar  1 tbsp fresh thyme leaf   375ml …

Danish Strawberry Tart – Jordbærtærte

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Strawberry Tart – Jordbærtærte. When I think of Denmark I think of red things – the flag, the Christmas Nisse and of course Strawberries! Groundberries as they are known as in Danish are synonymous with summer in Denmark. They are a treasured fruit, savoured by all and made into many delicious dishes. But none come as close to perfection than the majestic Jorbærtærte, ie a Strawberry Tart. It is perfect in every way. It is fruity, sweet, tart, chocolatey, creamy, light and crisp. The only drawback is it does need to be eaten the same day as cooking….What a shame! Despite not being in Denmark, but rather Scotland, and despite not having as good a summer here than in Scandinavia, I did have a fantastic crop of strawberries this year. The birds and the mice also took a fancy to my red berries, but I still got a few kg for myself. And what better dish to serve my homegrown fruit in, than this summer desert. If you don’t have strawberries growing in your garden, (do it …

Portuguese Chickpea Salad

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For the first two night of our Portuguese Honeymoon we stayed in Caldas de Monchique, a mountain spa town, nestled into a lush green subtropical jungle – a perfect get-away for a newly wed couple. It’s a little rough round the edges, but it is full of charm and amazing flora and fauna. We took the time there, to just decompress after a very busy 3 months of wedding arrangements. We loungeing by the pool, had massages and romantic dinners in the 16th century courtyard. We also sampled a delicious Cod & Chickpea Salad in their tapas bar, which is a traditional Portuguese summer dish, served with crusty bread and lots of wine! After our stay in the mountains, we travelled to the south coast of Portugal where my criteria for accommodation included a kitchen. I can’t not cook on holiday..!       And the first thing I whipped up was a vegetarian/vegan version of that delightful Chickpea Salad we sampled in Monchique. Everywhere you go in Portugal you’ll see orange sellers, and often they will also be …

Blueberry, Lemon and Buttermilk Cake

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Ever since my mum brought back a small vintage cake tin, from Canada, I’ve been on the lookout for a recipe to test it out on. It’s probably the top tier from a wedding cake pan set, somehow separated from the rest, but as it turns out, is the perfect size for two or three people. There is something so pleasing about making small individual cakes, like this one. And very manageable too. But it did make me think of a book Delia Smith wrote back in the 80’s called One is Fun! But seriously, if you like baking, and don’t need to feed a crowd, I can highly recommend getting a small tin like this one, and start making smaller cakes. (otherwise you just end up eating 8 pieces..) I have been on a mission lately looking for lemon inspired recipes, for my very soon to be wedding. Lemons and all things Tuscan & Botanical seems to be my theme for the wedding, so as the desert option, I have roped in all my …

Kale Gnocchi in Herb and Anchovy Sauce

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“What is a weather bomb!?” I asked a few weeks ago, after hearing the term on the news. Well we sure did find out! We have had weather bomb after weather bomb for the past three weeks. A high altitude black doughnut shape emerges on the horizon, slowly eating the daylight as it moves across the landscape..Then bang, throws all kinds of weather at you – snow, sleet, hail, rain..and a few 100 mph winds too. I had a terrifying experience creeping out into my garden two days ago, to see 2 large panes of glass from my greenhouse had taken flight and landed 10 meters away! They had smashed into hundreds of shards that had penetrated deep into the frozen grass! So, its time to just stay indoors and eat good food, and drink cheap wine until the weather bombs return to just being ‘bad weather’. And what better to that with, that a hearty portion of winter kale from the garden and morish gnocchi. This is one of my favourite food right now, …