Recipe For Love

Suger Free Spiced Fruit Cup Cakes

Ingredients:

100 grams butter

100 grams agave syrup

2 large eggs

100 grams plain flour

half teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

zest of lemon

zest of orange

handful of dried fruit

teaspoon cinamon

half teaspoon all spice

3 heaped teaspoons apricot jam

Mix the butter and Agarve using electric whisk, add the zests. Mix the flour with the bicarb and the spices. Add sifted flour and beaten eggs to butter mix a little of each at a time. Stir in the apricot jam, just the dried fruit with a little of flour and stir that in. Spoon mixture into six muffin cases, bake in pre heated 180 degrees oven for about 20 minutes, until the tops are firm.

Runner Bean and Broccoli with Soba Noodles

I love buckwheat Soba Noodles, I normally have them with Broccoli and Red Pepper but today I had to use up some Runner Beans from my vegetable box, it was delicious. The beans were quite young so there was no need to take the stringy side bits out. I just cut them up into one inch pieces, quartered and onion, cut the broccoli into small pieces, a little bit of ginger and two cloves of garlic. Put the kettle on to boil plenty of water for the noodles.

Stir fried the vegetables for the five minutes that the noodles boiled in the salted water. Towards the end of frying I added some sesame oil and some Soyu, japanese soy sauce. Drained the noodles, rinsed them under cold water and then fried them for a minute in some more sesame oil in a frying pan.

Served.

Yum.

Runner Beans

Broccoli

Onion

Ginger

Garlic

Sesame Oil

Soyu, Soy Sauce

Buckwheat Soba Noodles.

Sausage with Buckwheat Pancake

I love buckwheat pancakes and I love sausages! The sausage I used for this dish was a cumberland sausage cut into half. There is also a bit of Beetroot and carrot salad. I’ll make a separate entry for the salad but will give the pancake recipe here.

eggs

buckwheat

milk

I break the eggs into a bowl, sometimes two sometimes three then ad the flour bit by bit until it becomes a thick paste, stopping before it becomes a dough. I then ad milk a little at a time so that lumps don’t form. How runny to make the batter is a question of taste I think.  It needs to maintain some gloopiness or the pancakes won’t work.

I then heat a non-stick frying pan, ad a nob of butter and then ladel some batter into the pan, holding the pan, leaning it from side to side to make sure the batter covers the base. When the edges start to brown I use a plastic spatula to flip that pancake.

The second side should’nt take so long and then it’s ready to fill with whatever you fancy. Maybe some cumberland sausage and beetroot and carrot salad.

Yum.

Sausage and Pasta

Out door reared sausages

2 celery sticks

one chilli

One medium onion

2 cloves Garlic

Brown Pasta

Boil plenty of water for the pasta

Chop the onion, garlic, chilli and celery and start to soften in olive oil in a frying pan. Chop the sausages and ad to the frying pan, keep on a medium heat.

Pour the boiling water into a large saucepan,  return to the boil, salt and ad the pasta.  Set a timer for the time given on the packet. I normally use wholemeal pasta because I think it is better for my energy levels.

Courgette and Pasta

1 Clove of Garlic

2 Courgettes

1 Chili

a good squeeze of lemon

200 grams of pasta

Put the kettle on with some water for the pasta, chop the courgette, chilli and garlic. Heat plenty of olive oil in a lidded saucepan, put in courgette, chilli, garlic, season with salt and pepper then cover with lid.

Put the boiled water in large saucepan, return to boil add salt and pasta.

From time to time, stir the courgette, gradually breaking it up. It will start to become a bit like a sauce, at which point add a good amount of parmisan and some lemon juice.

When pasta ready, (according to pack instructions) drain throughly and add to the courgette, stir and serve.

Braised Pig Cheek & Black Beluga Lentils

6 Pig Cheeks

One Medium Onion

2 Cloves of Garlic

60 grams black beluga lentils

100ml Dry Vermouth

100 ml Water

2 Medium Carrots

2 bay leaves

Preheat oven to 140C

First brown the pig cheeks in a heavy oven proof casserole dish using plenty of olive oil.  As soon as the the surface of the meat has changed colour turn over to ensure that the whole thing browns, this should only take about 30 seconds a side. Then remove from dish, and place on a plate.

Next slice and ad the onion, carrot and garlic to the dish, stir occasionally and allow to soften for about 10 minutes.  Then return the meat to the pan, ad the lentils, the vermouth, the water and two bay leaves.  Season, put the lid on the dish and place in the oven for two hours.

When complete the lentils will have absorbed all or most of the liquid, the meat will be fall apart tender and you will have an unbelievably satisfying bit of comfort food. I served mine with some sautéed cabbage seasoned with smoked paprika. Yum.

Chicken Soup

Chicken

3 Sticks Celery

3 Carrots

2 Bay Leaves

2 Medium Onions

2 Cloves Garlic

You will need a big pot or casserole for this dish.  Finely chop the vegetables and soften in olive oil on a low heat for about 10 minutes. Cut the breasts of the chicken and then put the remaining bird and cut breasts into the pan. Cover with boiling water, season and ad the bay leaves. Simmer on a low heat.

After about 5 minutes remove the breasts from the water and put to one side, you might want to check that they are cook through.  Let the rest of the bird cook for another 40 minutes.

I serve the soup with the bird separate on the table, for people to take of meat as they please. The breasts I might serve also or keep for another dish.