All posts tagged: food photography

Twice Cooked Butternut Squash Pasta

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I woke up to the sound of lovely bird song this morning, the sun was shining, and on closer inspection, the daffodil heads had come up from between their green shoots. How exciting, spring will come again! And after a long walk with the dog, I fancied a pasta dish I made for Kitchen Garden Magazine back in November. For this deliciously heart-warming dish, use either pumpkin or butternut squash. They both work well, but sometimes pumpkin can be hard to find out with Halloween, unless you have a farm shop near by. What makes this dish a little different is the pan-frying of the pasta. This merges and melts all the flavours into a mouthwatering lunch or dinner. ___________________________________________________________ Ingredients Serves 4 1 medium butternut squash 1 large onion, peeled and diced 3 cloves garlic, minced a dash of olive oil 1 small handful fresh sage leaves 500g pasta 50g pumpkin seeds good quality hard cheese , grated for the top salt and pepper to taste ______________________________________________________   Pre heat the oven to 200C/fan …

Homemade Organic Tomato Ketchup

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This summer has produced a fabulous amount of tomatoes in my greenhouse. We have been eating fresh organic tomatoes in our salads all summer long. But about 3 weeks ago, I just couldn’t keep up with the bumper crop, so I took to slow roasting my tom’s at 50 degrees for 2 hours in the oven with garlic and olive oil, and then freezing them for sauce later on in the year. We ate tomato pasta…tomato tarts..and finally I also made two large batches of tomato ketchup, one yellow and a classic red. And they are amazing! This homemade tomato ketchup recipe is sweet, tangy and very aromatic. Adding star anise, cloves and fennel seeds makes this ketchup sit in a league of its own. Since making this delicious condiment, I’ve been looking for excuses to make all kinds of breakfast eggs, just so we can have more of this wonder sauce! And of course you can add it to veggie burgers, hot dogs and other things too. But it is best served over eggs, with …

Pumpkin Seed Pesto Pizza with Yellow Squash and Goats Cheese

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  Pumpkin Seed Pesto Pizza with Yellow Squash, Goats Cheese and Dill My garden is thriving, as the summer is at last here for definite! I’ve got various salads, including hot and peppery rocket, butter lettuce, chard, spinach..to name a few. And of course dill, which I use as a salad ingredient most days. Freshly picked, nothing beats the aromatic flavour of dill. It adds depth and contrast to this pizza, and is a match made in heaven with goats cheese. This pizza came about as Al Fresco dining was on the cards last week, as it had been a hot afternoon, and the promise of a warm evening was guaranteed! But after the decision had been made that pizza was on the menu, I realized I didn’t have my store cupboard staple – Pesto. But as I mentioned above, my rocket and spinach was doing well, so I quickly threw one together. The lack of pine nuts didn’t put me off, I just substituted them with pumpkin seeds, they do the job nicely! Here’s …

Pear, Leek and Veggie Sausage Stuffing

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So we have started the new year, and the festive season is over. We can all breathe easy again! I made it through the holidays in good health, and just as new year passed, I got a big old nasty cold! I think the whole country has a cold this week. So, I thought I’d share with you a recipe that I did for Kitchen Garden Magazine this month, on juicy pears. And this stuffing is perfect for enjoying under the covers on the couch, watching daytime TV, and generally feeling sorry for yourself….! When its cold outside, and you’re stuck indoors, comforting food is the way forward, especially when you have a cold! With sweet pear, and tangy leeks, it’s a delicious winter warming dish to try out. I use veggie sausages, but if you eat meat, try using free-range pork sausages. Serve as a side dish, or as a main. _____________________________________________ Pear, Leek and Veggie Sausage Stuffing Serves 4   4 free range pork sausages, or 4 vegetarian sausages, chopped 2 slices of …

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 …

Spiced Pumpkin Bread

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Its been longer than usual since I last posted any tasty recipes, tut tut! Recently I feel like I’ve been chasing my tail, trying to catch up on to many things all at once! However, it’s pumpkin season! And I have made pumpkin jam, pumpkin pasta, pumpkin pie and in this recipe- Spiced Pumpkin Bread! And believe it or not, Im not pumpkined out yet! I thought I’d share this recipe with you, that I created for Kitchen Garden Magazine last month, as its super seasonal and delicious. Its a lovely moist cake and surprisingly filling, which I think makes a good cake for taking on a trip, up a hill or into an Autumn forest. Or simply enjoy with a hot cup of tea in a warm cosy spot! And as I wait for next weeks pumpkin pie entry to bake in the oven, I’ll try and catch up on some of those many lists that need doing…. ______________________________________________________ Spiced Pumpkin Bread  Makes 2 loaves (suitable for freezing without the icing) 225g butter, melted, …

Fig and Honey Yoghurt with Poppy Seeds and a Taste of Portugal

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  I am back from a most wonderful time in Portugal. The weather was magnificent, gifting us with pleasant warm breezes and cloud free skys. It wasn’t easy adjusting back to the autumn weather up here in the more northern latitudes of Scotland, but I can comfort myself with the knowledge, that under this thick fisherman’s sweater, I do indeed have a tan! The best thing about taking a trip away, for me, is forgetting all the everyday tasks of home life and work, and allowing yourself to fall into a new more relaxed routine. Our routine whilst away, was to be woken up at dawn by the local cockerel, make our sleepy way to the balcony and watch the sunrise over freshly made coffee. When I’m on holiday, breakfasts are my favorite meal, they are a chance to sample the county’s freshest produce, usually in a way which requires little preparation or cooking, and usually in its most simple of forms. I spent lost of time traipsing through local vegetable markets, and filling my …

Scones and Rose-hip Jam

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All week, I have been foraging for wild food. Mushrooms, brambles and rose-hips have been picked, prepared and stored for winter. I am off down to the sun kissed shores of Portugal tomorrow, so I have been in a whirlwind mode to gather and store all that this bountiful season has to offer before I fly off. I am away to unwind, eat, hike, swim and gather a diary full of colourful inspiration from my trip. I will no doubt have a few recipes to share on my return. In the meantime, I will leave you with two delicious recipes for Rose-hip jam and scones. Rose-hips are not used to a great extent in the UK, but in Denmark, they are widely eaten and used both at home and also commercially. So don’t be a stranger to this beautiful fruit! _____________________________________________________ Makes 8 scones 175 g self raising flour 1 tsp baking powder 50g butter 125g porridge oats 150g whole milk 1 egg beaten ____________________________________________________ Sift flour and baking powder in a large bowl, rub …

Wild Garlicky Mushroom Toast & Wild Mushroom Foraging

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With autumn comes a whole range of new foraging opportunities, including bramble picking, rose hip picking and mushroom foraging. I have in fact never foraged for mushrooms before, largely due to my fear of picking something poisonous as I think a lot of mushrooms look like all the other mushrooms! But ever since I met my good friend Helle, who’s husband happens to be a Mycologist, that’s a fungi specialist to you and me, I have been interested in trying my hand at scouting out those little fungi’s. Helles husband, Nevil Kilkenny is at the centre for Scottish fungi research and runs mushroom forays at Shepherds Cottage each year teaching people how and where to forage, and most importantly- how to do so safely. Please do not use my limited knowledge as a guide to identify mushrooms, rather get a good book and go on a course if you are keen on experiencing how fun finding mushrooms really is. On our little outing we managed to find, Hedgehog Mushrooms, Chanterelles, and Purple Deceivers, all of …

September Lagkage – Danish September Birthday Cake

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  The brambles are thriving this year in the woodlands by our house, a lovely sight reminding us that there is still food to be found during the seasonal change from summer to autumn. And so, for the birthday cake I made last week, brambles seemed a fitting ingredient, providing tangy notes to an otherwise very sweet Danish cake. Lagkage translates as Layer Cake, and consists of 3 thin sponges, layered up with either a whipped cream filling or a custard filling. In addition to that, fruit and jam are added to make this cake a special occasion cake, not only for the time involved in making it, but for the sheer number of calories! No birthday in Denmark will usually go without a Lagkage, and neither does a birthday in our house. _____________________________________________________ Ingredients 150g plain flour 150g butter, softened 150g sugar 3 eggs 1 tsp baking powder Filling 700 ml whipping cream 250 g amaretto biscuits, crushed 3 tbsp brandy 1 mango, diced 100g brambles 4 tbsp icing sugar For the top 75g …