Saucy Citrus Pudding

I saw this recipe in the BBC Good Food magazine Jan 2013. I marked it to make as it looked welcoming and comforting. Perfect. It was super tasty and so quick to make.

Serves 4 : Prep 20 mins : Cook 40 mins

50g / 2 oz butter, softened plus extra for greasing
200g / 7 oz caster sugar
Zest 2 lemons / limes or grapefruit juice or mixture
3 large eggs, separated
50g / 2 oz plain flour

250ml / 9 fl oz milk

Icing sugar for dusting

1. Heat oven to 180oC / 160oC fan / gas 4.

Grease medium - sized oval baking dish (approx 22 x 18cm) with butter. Combine the butter, caster sugar and zest in a food processor and whiz until the mixture is pale. Add the citrus juice, egg yolks, flour and milk, and whizz until well mixed - it may look a little curdled. Scrape into a bowl. Boil the kettle.

2. In a large, clean bowl, whisk the egg whites until firm but not stiff, then gently fold into the zesty mixture. Scrape into making dish and put in a roast tin half filled with hot water from the kettle. Bake for 35 - 40 mins until the top is lightly browned and set, but the pudding is still soft underneath. Serve dusted with icing sugar, if you like.

Allspice Brined Turkey - Super succulent

I got this recipe from Nigella's Christmas. Turkey turned out really well, tasty and moist. I had a boned and rolled turkey, definately the way to go.

For the Turkey

• 4-5 kg turkey
• 6 litres water
• 125 g packet of table salt / 1 250g packet Maldon sea salt 
• 3 tbsp black peppercorns
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 tbsp caraway seeds
• 4 cloves
• 2 tbsp allspice berries
• 4 star anise
• 2 tbsp white mustard seeds
• 200 g caster sugar
• 2 onions, quartered
• 1 x 6 cm piece of ginger, cut into 6 slices
• 1 orange, quartered
• 4 tbsp maple syrup
• 4 tbsp clear honey

For the basting glaze

• 75 g butter
• 3 tbsp maple syrup

1. For the turkey: place the water into your largest cooking pot or bucket/plastic bin and add all the turkey ingredients, stirring to dissolve the salt, sugar, syrup and honey. (Squeeze the juice of the orange quarters into the brine before you chuck the pieces in.)

2. Untie and remove any string or trussing attached to the turkey, shake it free and add it to the liquid. Add more water if the turkey is not completely submerged. Keep the mixture in a cold place, even outside overnight or for up to a day or two before you cook it, remembering to take it out of its liquid (and wiping it dry with kitchen-towel) a good 40 or 50 minutes before it has to go into the oven. Turkeys - indeed this is the case for all meat - should be at room temperature before being put in the preheated oven. If you're at all concerned - the cold water in the brine will really chill this bird - then just cook the turkey for longer than its actual weight requires.

3. For the basting glaze: place the butter and syrup into a saucepan and cook over a low heat, while stirring, until the ingredients have melted and combined.

4. Brush the turkey with the glaze before roasting, and baste periodically through out the turkey roasting time.

5. Preheat the oven to 220C/gas 7. Cook the turkey for half an hour at this relatively high temperature, then turn the oven down to 180C/gas 4 and continue cooking, turning the oven back up to 220C/gas 7 for the last quarter of an hour or so if you want to give a final, browning boost to the skin. For a 4-5kg turkey, allow two-and-a-half to three hours in total. But remember that ovens vary enormously, so just check by piercing the flesh between leg and body with a small sharp knife: when the juices run clear, the turkey's cooked.

6. Just as it's crucial to let the turkey come to room temperature before it goes in to the oven, so it's important to let it stand out of the oven for a good 20 minutes before you actually carve it

Christmas Menu

I searched all the food mags and other sources for inspiration for what to cook this Christmas. Our menu was as follows:

Starters

Smoked Salmon, Spiced Smoked Salmon with mustard dressing, Chicken Liver Pate, Sundried Tomato & Roasted Re Pepper Pate served with Crostini.

Main

Hasselback Potatoes, Garlic, Clementine and Thyme Carrots and Butternut Squash and Cheesy Sprouts, Potato and Garlic Gratin, Bread Sauce, Cranberry and Ginger & Gran Marnier Sauce, Spiced Brined Turkey and Aromatic Ham.

I had all my veg prepared the day before and it was so stress free and easy Christmas Day

 

Dessert

Chocolate Yule Log, Panacotta & Cheeseboard. Dessert Wine and Port

Smoked Salmon Gratin

Serves 4 -6 people

Ingredients:

2lb or 1kg slightly floury potatoes
2 garlic cloves, crushed
8oz or 250g smoked salmon flaked
½ pint or 250ml milk /creme fraiche
½ pint or 250ml double cream
2oz or 50g butter (cold) Opttional
salt & pepper to taste

Method:

Preheat the oven to 160°C . Peel the potatoes and slice very thinly. Place in cold water. Butter casserole / baking dish. Put half garlic at the bottom on the dish. Drain potatoes Dry with a cloth and use half of the potato slices to cover a well buttered baking dish and season with salt and pepper.
Distribute the smoked salmon on top of the potato slices in the dish. Cover with the rest of the potatoes and the garlic, and season again.
Mix the milk, cream together. Pour the mix over the potatoes and dot with butter flakes.
Bake for 50 mins - 1½ hours or until the potatoes are tender (a knife through the center should go in easily) and the gratin is golden brown and bubbling.

Serve with either a green salad or green cooked vegetable and a glass of Sauvignon Blanc for the adults.

Enjoy

Crumbly Butter Fudge

2lbs caster sugar (use brown sugar for a richer / darker colour)
1/4lb butter
1 cup of whole milk
400g tin of condensed milk
Teaspoon vanilla essence

• In a heavy based pan slowly melt sugar, milk and butter. Please be careful as sugar will be very hot.
• Once it comes to the boil add the condensed milk.
• Slowly bring to the boil again, stirring constantly.
• Still stirring carefully, boil for 15 minutes or until mixture darkens to a butterscotch colour.  (This can take much longer in some cases – no idea why)
• To test if mixture has boiled for long enough drop a teaspoon full into a glass of cold water.  If it’s ready it will form a ball.
• Remove from heat and add vanilla essence.
• Beat until your arm nearly falls off and the mixture has thickened to a very thick custard-like state (approx. 15 mins).
• Pour into a greased tin and cool.
• Cut into squares.  Store in an airtight container

Cranberry Ginger and Gran Marnier Sauce

Serves : 8
Prep: 5 mins
Total time : 15 mins
Get ahead: Make a few days ahead and chill. This recipe freezes very well.

350g cranberries
175g caster sugar

Juice and zest of 1 large orange

50ml Gran Marnier or Port

2 tsp grated root ginger

1. Heat all the ingredients in a pan, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to the boil, then simmer rapidly for 5 minutes until most of the cranberries have burst. Taste for sweetness, then leave to cool. Spoon into a dish.

Creamy Mango Chicken Korma

I got this recipe from the good food magazine. Absolutely delish, food was gone in seconds and I didn't even get a chance to take a picture of it and all the accompaniments. Enjoy x



Serves : 6 - 8
Prep time : 10 mins
Cook : 1 hr

12 boneless, chicken thighs
2 tsp turmeric
2 tbsp sunflower oil
2 onions, 1 chopped, 1 quartered
2 large rip mangos (if u can't find use canned)
6 tbsp good Korma paste ( I used Pataks)
100g / 4oz ginger, roughly chopped
2 tsp black onion seeds ( kalonji / nigella )
400g can light coconut milk
600ml / 1pint chicken stock

To serve:
Few coriander sprigs, basmati rice, navan bread, mango chutney, lime pickle

1. Toss the chicken with 1 tap of turmeric and some salt. Heat oil in a big frying pan or wide flameproof casserole and brown thighs well on both sides. Remove from the pan. Add the chopped onion and cook for 5 mins until softened.

2. Roughly cut all the flesh from one mango, scraping as much as you can from the stone. Put into a food processor / hand blender with Korma paste, ginger and quartered onion. Whizz to a paste then tip into pan and cook until softened.

3. Stir in remaining turmeric, cumin and onion seeds and turn up heat for a couple of minutes. Return the chicken to the pan. Stir in coconut milk and stock. Bring to a gentle simmer then cover and cook for 20 mins.

4. Uncover pan and cook for another 25-30 mins until the chicken is really tender. Add water if you need to.

5. Slice the remaining mango and stir in to heat through while you shred the chicken (using two forks). Season and serve with scattered coriander and other accompaniments. What ever you enjoy.

White Chocolate Lolliops

For my daughters 2nd Birthday, I decided to make these. Quick and super simple. I got the recipe for this from Lorraine Pascale's latest cook book. The kids loved them. Makes about 10 large lollipops. I doubled the recipe.

All you need is 100g white chocolate
1 tbsp dried cranberries chopped

I also used dried apricots, you can use anything you like sprinkles etc...

Line a large tray or baking sheet with baking parchment so the paper is flat (make sure it can fit in the fridge). Lay the cocktail or lollipop sticks out on a sheet, spaced well apart.

Snap the chocolate into bits in a medium bowl and either melt in the microwave in 30 sec blasts, stirring between each addition, or set over a pan of simmering water, making sure that the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water.

White chocolate is more difficult to melt than dark or milk. There is a fine line between it being just melted and it burning and drying out ( where it becomes thick and doughy) keep a close eye on it and as soon as it starts melting, stir for a few seconds and remove from the heat.

Place a spoonful of melted chocolate on top of each end of sticks to give a 4cm disc. ( I used teaspoons for toddler size and a tablespoon for the bigger discs). Scatter cranberries or other over the top.

Place in the fridge for 15 mins or until set. Very carefully peel the lollipops off the paper and serve. They will keep for a month in the fridge ( but probably won't last that long without being eaten)