One for the Kids (Big or Small)

Halloween Gingerbread

Here’s a lovely quick recipe you can make with the children over the holiday, although they disappeared as if by magic from my work when I took a box in the other day...
I’ve made these several times using gluten free plain flour and brown rice flour as the latter gives a nice texture, but all plain flour will work for those with no allergies. The ginger taste is stronger than some bought gingerbread so you may want to adjust a little for a child’s taste.
Makes about 50 small cookies.




Ingredients

175g brown rice flour
450g plain flour (plus extra for rolling out)
175g soft brown sugar
100 butter
1 egg
4 tbsp golden syrup
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
2 tsp dried ginger
Pinch sea salt
Fun cutters of your choice
Icing and sweets to decorate

Method

• Add all dried ingredients and mix to ensure all lumps are removed.

• Melt butter and golden syrup and add to mixture, add beaten egg and mix thoroughly. The dough should be firm and quite dry.

• Leave to chill in the fridge for about an hour before rolling out to about the depth of a £1 coin. Sprinkle with additional flour if the mix sticks to the rolling pin.

• Cut out shapes and place on greased baking tray. I like the reusable silicone sheets you can buy in most cookshops (nothing ever sticks).

• Place in a preheated oven at 180 for about 8 minutes, remove from sheet when warm and leave to cool.

• Decorate as you like and enjoy.

The Wig and Pen

19 St Giles Street, Northampton

Needed to do a spot of birthday shopping this week so combined a mooch around the shops and lunch with a friend. The Wig and Pen is one of a handful of freehouse pubs left in Northampton town centre and it’s concentration on a wide selection of beers and good quality food are just two reasons why they seem to be thriving in terms of customer numbers during a difficult time for many food and drink retailers.
It’s a historic and interesting building, what my mum would call 'a proper pub' with a good sized outside space, lovely for summer eating, drinking and enjoying the live music sometimes on.

Anyway, on to the food. The menu is varied from simple sandwiches, classics like fish and chips, pies to tasty deli boards strewn with delicious cheese and meats. The simplicity of the menu belies the actual dishes appearing from the kitchen, having eaten here several times before I have been impressed by the consistency and quality from a quick snack to a more substantial meal.
An excellent example of this is the sausage and mash ordered on this visit. The locally made sausages are enormous, full of meaty herby flavour, served on a generous portion of well-seasoned mashed potato, surrounded by a moat of light but flavourful onion gravy, then topped with a mass of parsnip crisps. Okay, enough description as I am now salivating as we near tea-time, here’s the picture.



My friend’s choice was a beef sandwich, once again a simple description of a much tastier meal and she has written her own comments below.



Very nice hot beef sarnie with a little pot of gravy... yum!
The Beef inside was very generous in terms of amount and of superb quality. You can tell that this place prides itself on its food, I have never had a bad meal and the place is always busy! Real ales brilliant here too.

In conclusion, a lovely place to eat but it does get very busy and retreating to the outside area may not be an option as the weather turns cooler. They have a very popular and reasonably priced steak night on a Wednesday that I haven’t yet had a chance to try but intend to very soon.

Highly recommended

Chorizo and Chickpea Soup

This is such a simple recipe, so cheap to make too I hesitated to add it to the blog but as I await my online shopping delivery the contents of my fridge is currently somewhat limited, half a chorizo sausage, onions, garlic and tomatoes. With a few basic ingredients you can cook this up in under 30 minutes and it costs about £0.50 per portion, perfect for a not-quite-pay-day-recipe. Top with some grated cheese of your choice and eat, it's delicious, warming and for my non chilli eating friends, deeply flavoured with smoked paprika rather than my kick-ass levels of chilli.

Ingredients

100g chorizo, chopped into bitesize pieces
1 large onion, chopped finely
2 cloves garlic, grated
3 tsp smoked paprika
1 red chilli, whole, spiked to release flavour without heat
1 tin chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 large potato, cut into chunks
750 ml chicken stock
1 tbsp tomato puree
2 fresh tomatoes, chopped
1 red pepper
Handful of chopped parsley
Salt and pepper to taste
Grated cheese to taste

Method

• In a tiny amount of oil fry off chorizo until crispy around the edges and remove from the pan.
• In the residual oil fry off the onion until translucent, then add garlic and smoked paprika, fry for a further 2 minutes.
• Add the cubed potato, whole red chilli, red pepper, tomato puree, chickpeas and tomatoes, cook on medium heat for 5 minutes.
• Add chicken stock and half the chorizo and let simmer for about 30 minutes or until potatoes are fully cooked.
• Remove whole chilli and discard
• Season to taste, top with remaining chorizo, add herbs and serve in bowls with grated cheese.

Saffron

21 Castillian Street, Northampton

Northampton is not short of Indian restaurants some of which are standard fare, others offer a little more specialising in particular cuisines such as Bangladeshi and Nepalese meals alongside more familiar dishes. Some time ago we had ordered a takeaway from this restaurant but were not impressed enough to switch allegiances from our more local favourites however colleagues and friends suggested we gave it another go.

The restaurant’s own advertising states ‘...you are sure to receive the warmest of welcomes whatever time you dine.’ Unfortunately this proved the first in a series of uncomfortable events throughout our short meal. When asked if they had a table for two advising we hadn’t booked, the waiter seemed unsure before he led us to a table, half-heartedly pulled out a chair and wandered off. We seated ourselves as another server wrestled with pulling ornately folded napkins out of their rings before unceremoniously launching the now unfolded masterpieces vaguely towards our lap areas.

By then we’d had chance to consider the decor which was modern, clean and appealing but we felt, somewhat spoilt by the amount of self serving press clippings bearing the endorsements of past local panto stars; as if no curry could garner our favour had it not passed muster with Bobby Davro having a post show bhaji.

Drink orders were taken and menus provided we settled to choose our dishes, I for one feeling awkward was not inclined towards a starter, already feeling like the uninvited guest turning up at dinnertime.

My partner chose the cinnamon duck with a keema nan, I opted for a dish described as their ‘best selling’, a Chicken Hariyo Khursani, chicken pieces marinated in green chillies and cooked in a spicy sauce with a side of pilau rice. The chicken dish was a generous serving but the flavour was that of a spicy generic tikka masala with a touch of a well known brand of tomato soup to the sauce, albeit the chillies gave it a firmer kick. The duck however was a delight, beautifully spiced and served in a wonderful silky smooth sauce with the excellent keema being both crispy and moist.

Somewhat off putting was the intimacy to the couple next to us, pleasant as they appeared the enforced intimacy hindered conversation, particularly as my next door companion ordered the Naga and with every mouthful of this hot dish sniffed as the inevitable nose run began.
Meal finished we requested the bill. While I was underwhelmed enough with the service to leave just the cost, my partner had enjoyed the duck so we placed our money in the folder on the table. My partner had already walked toward the door while I was putting my coat on so didn’t witness the strangest part of the evening. The server in his haste to retrieve our payment pounced towards our table requiring me to jump out of his way. Horrified I joined my partner outside too stunned to go back and complain.

So would we go back? In short, no. There are very good Indian restaurants providing exciting authentic dishes where the service is as important as the food however I think my partner may find a way of getting the duck dish without me.

Skatnetti Omelette..

A delicious alternative to a basic omelette kindly  submitted by Matt, a lovely supper dish that I can't wait to try, it may even be tonight's dinner if I can get hold of the ricotta.
I'll add my comments when I've made the dish but I can't see what's not to like. Now off to buy some cheese...

Ingredients:
900g or 2lb small potatoes.
1 tbsp olive oil.
1 large onion.
2 garlic cloves.
6 or so sun dried or vine tomatoes cut into small strips.
1x 400g artichoke hearts, drained and halved (definitely optional!)
250g/9 oz ricotta cheese.
4 large beaten eggs.
2 tbsp milk.
50g parmesan cheese.
3 tbsp chopped thyme.
Step 1. Peel potatoes and cut into thin slices, then place in a bowl of cold water to prevent turning brown.
2. Bring large pan of water to the boil + add potato slices and simmer for 5-6 mins until tender.
3. heat oil in large pan or skillet. Add chopped onion and garlic to pan and cook stirring every now and then for max 3-5 mins.
4. Add sun-dried (or alternative) tomatoes and cook for further 2 mins.
5. Place potatoes at the bottom of a deep, ovenproof dish. Top with layer of onion mix, (artichokes) and ricotta. Then repeat layers in same order ending with a potato top.
6. Beat eggs and milk + half of the parmesan, add thyme + salt + pepper to taste and pour over the potatoes.
7. Top it off with the rest of the parmesan and bake in a pre-heated oven for 20-25 mins at 190 degrees C or until golden brown. 
Serve and then get full up!!!

By Matt Ling... 

I promised I'd make it, wow it was tasty but I had to make it difficult for myself. Despite visiting 3 supermarkets I failed to get hold of ricotta. What does one do at times of culinary crisis, I turned to the internet and made my own. 

Really simple too, milk, salt and lemon juice. That's it, oh okay you do need a thermometer but I'd made this in 20 minutes, it was very mild but as it was being used in cooking it worked perfectly.

Matt, here's my finished dish, loved the layered potato and I did add some pancetta as you suggested.

Moroccan Lamb and Butternut Squash Tagine

Whilst doing my latest internet shop I made an error in ordering a very small amount of diced lamb, despite years of cooking, weighing and measuring I still manage to over or underestimate the amount of meat required particularly when I’m trying something new.
However this small amount of meat led me to cook a favourite as when combined with the butternut squash this tiny bit of a baby sheep will go a long long way.
I don’t as yet have the tagine pot (I’ve asked for one for Christmas) but I do this in the slow cooker or in the oven in a casserole with a lid, either way is fine but the tagine will look lovely when taken to the table.
Unlike some of our other recipes the tagine is not too chilli-hot, definitely spicy but warming and comforting.
Serve with cous cous or try with rice, chilli minted peas and flatbreads for a real feast sure to impress.

Ingredients

300g diced lamb (large chunks if possible)
1 tsp cayenne
2 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp paprika
1 tbsp ground ginger
1 tbsp turmeric
2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 large onions, cut into half moons
2 cloves garlic, crushed
500ml chicken stock, or lamb stock if you can find it
1 tin tomatoes
300g butternut squash, peeled and chopped into large chunks (similar to size of lamb pieces)
2 tsp harissa paste
pinch of saffron strands
Handful chopped flat leaf parsley
½ squeezed lemon
Salt

Method

• Mix the dried spices in a bowl and coat the meat with the mix, cover and put in the fridge to marinade overnight or at least 4 hours.
• In a little oil fry off the meat in batches until browned and add to casserole dish/ slow cooker.
• Add onions, crushed garlic, butternut squash chunks, stock, tomatoes, harissa and saffron. Place lid on casserole/ slow cooker and leave to cook on low oven, medium setting on slow cooker. Oven cooking 2 hours, I leave it simmering for at least 6 hours in the slow cooker.
• Just before serving add lemon juice, parsley and season to taste.

Just a pic of chilli minted peas, they are as easy as it sounds, blanched peas, olive oil, fresh red chilli and finely chopped mint, really refreshing and perfect as a side to this tagine.

Margarita Ice Cream

This is one of those recipes that looked like a complete failure, in fact it was initially supposed to be a mousse not an ice cream but it did not set as expected, largely due to the immense amount of alcohol used. When frozen it became a soft scoop style boozy delight full of citrus and not too sweet, definitely an adult dessert that doesn’t require an ice cream machine..

Beware! There is no cooking involved so the alcohol is potent and the mix contains uncooked egg whites.

Ingredients

50 ml tequila
50 ml triple sec
3 limes zest and juice
90g caster sugar
300ml double cream 2 egg whites

Method

• Mix tequila, triple sec, zest and juice of limes and sugar and stir, leave for about 20 minutes for the sugar to dissolve.

• Mix egg whites until firm peaks.

• In a separate bowl whip cream until it holds its shape.

• Combine tequila mix and cream and gently fold in egg whites keeping as much air in the mix as possible.

• Put in container with a lid and place in the freezer. Leave to freeze for 6 hours or overnight.

Mr Dutchy

77 Kettering Road, Northampton

In a small takeaway on the Kettering Road there is a small ray of sunshine bursting through the gloom of autumn, sunshine brought about by the delicious Caribbean food served and the friendly service from the staff.

We are hugely spoilt when it comes to takeaways living close to both the Wellingborough and Kettering Road, some great, others not so good but in the last two years Mr Dutchy has been a constant favourite when we’ve lacked the inclination to cook.

I apologise for the lack of photography for this post, my hunger took over and I dived straight in. Maybe next time I’ll add a picture or two but I just couldn’t wait.

The menu serves Caribbean favourites, goat curry, saltfish, fried chicken and the like but our particular favourite is the peppered steak with rice and peas. It’s a popular choice with many as often they sell out quite early in the evening. The rice and peas is flavourful and feels like it does you good while the peppered steak was spicy, rich and warming with a depth often missing from lesser takeaway offerings.

We also had sticky jerk wings, a side dish that on occasions seem hotter than I remember, it’s like a delicious chicken russian roulette as you risk getting a really hot one but the sweet and hot jerk sauce is addictive.
Prices are very reasonable, another reason for it’s popularity as portions are generous and filling it doesn’t leave you hungry again two hours later like some fast food options.  

The takeaway has won awards for their food, including best takeaway in 2010 at the Food and Farming Awards, much deserved in our opinion. While I say if you haven’t tried it yet, you really should get down there, I do so with trepidation, it means my beloved peppered steak may well sell out quicker than ever.

Gluten Free Bread Part 2

Today my brown rice flour and ground almonds arrived meaning I now have all I need to continue my experiment into gluten free bread-making following the recipe provided by ‘friend’s dad’. Ever the optimist I want this to work. I do need the occasional bread fix as I was tempted yesterday to rip the white crusty roll out of my partner’s hands that he was using to soak up the gravy from the stew in our last post.

Ingredients mixed, it does look a bit cakey but stickier it did require some rough handling to force it into the newly acquired loaf tin. Proving time is 1 ½ hours so enough time to nip off to the gym. Back soon folks.

There has been little in the way of rising but I have learned with previous gluten free attempts at baking this is not unusual so I optimistically put the mix in the oven, set the timer for the allotted 30 minutes and wait.






So for the results. The loaf itself is not the prettiest I’ve ever seen but looks aren’t the name of this game, its all about the taste and texture and a close resemblence to the real thing. The loaf is very dense, oh yes, another cake like loaf but one that smells of ground almonds. The taste does not improve my mood, there is no eureka moment here, too cakey, taste non descript and bland. I tried the usual toasting test but it just burnt the crust. Sorry 'friend's dad', this one's not for me.
I fear this one may be put out for the birds but my mission will continue...

If anyone else has a recipe for gluten free bread please let us know through the comments section

The Joy of Stew

The Joy of Stew

I love the summer with the variety of salads, many barbeques and last minute picnics are a pure joy but this summer has largely been a washout. However as we dive headlong into autumn I can’t help myself willing it along. I was introduced to the joy of a slow cooker last year, not having used one before they seemed like a kitchen gadget best left in a different decade. But no, I love it. To be sure there is often some preparation prior to bunging in all the ingredients, browning the meat and the onions definitely improves the flavour of a good stew but from then on a slow cooker makes it all so simple.

Coming home from work and opening the front door the smell of a good beef stew or rich lamb shanks in red wine that have been bubbling away merrily for eight hours or more is hard to beat. The depth and richness of the sauces from any of the above cannot be rushed and although all can be cooked adequately on the hob or in a conventional oven, I didn’t quite believe leaving a meal alone for that long without intervention, not even a stir could produce such results.

No doubt over the next few months there will be a few stew recipes posted on this blog but with temperatures dropping quickly by early evening, here’s one of our favourites. I’ve written this recipe for a slow cooker but once prepared this can be placed in a casserole with a lid and cooked in a conventional oven for 2 ½ hours.  There’s a little preparation to do at the start and adding the dumplings for the last hour of cooking (30 mins for oven cooking) but other than this, it cooks itself.

Beef In Red Wine Stew with Parmesan Herbed Dumplings

Serves 6

For the Stew

2 large onions cut into chunky pieces
2 cloves garlic sliced
2 bay leaves
spring of thyme and fresh oregano
600g stewing steak or other braising cut cut into 1 inch large-ish chunks
1 tbsp plain flour
1 tsp paprika
salt and pepper
4 medium carrots, cut into big chunks
500ml good quality beef stock
300ml full bodied red wine
1 large potato, diced into 1cm cubes
1 tbsp redcurrant jelly

For the dumplings

50g vegetable suet
50g plain flour
1 tsp mustard
Few sprigs of fresh chopped herbs, I used thyme and oregano
20g grated parmesan
Milk to bind (amount will vary depending on flour)
Salt and pepper

Method

• In a frying pan, saute onions, garlic and bay leaves until golden. Add to slow cooker pot.
• In a bowl mix flour, paprika and salt and pepper and coat meat thoroughly.
• Heat oil in frying pan, brown meat in small batches and add to onions with all the juices..
• Add carrots, potato chunks, herbs, beef stock, wine and red currant jelly, leave to cook on low setting for at least 6 hours.
• Season stew with salt and pepper as necessary.
• In a bowl, add suet, flour, mustard, herbs and parmesan and mix. Add enough milk to shape into sticky golf ball sized dumplings, add to stew. Baste with sauce after 20 minutes.
• The dumplings should double in size and be slightly firm to touch after 40 minutes. Serve in deep bowls with creamy mash or crusty bread.

Sweet Potato and Pepper Enchiladas

This is a favourite veggie dish of mine and when I served this at a Tex-Mex night recently, it went down a storm with the vegetarians and meat eaters alike. I generally make a large amount of the enchilada sauce, it can be used as a base for pasta dishes and is handy to keep in the freezer. Once again, this is quite spicy so reduce the amount of chilli to your own taste.


Serves 4

6 corn tortillas
2 large sweet potatoes (about 400g when peeled and chopped)
2 red and 1 yellow pepper
2 large onions, 1 diced, 1 chopped into half moons
1 bay leaf
2 cloves garlic
2 birds eye chillies
Handful chopped coriander
Salt and pepper
50g goats cheese
100ml red wine
1 tin tomatoes
1 tbsp tomato puree
Dried oregano
Grated cheddar to serve

First make the sauce;

• Fry onion, garlic, bay leaf and 1 birds eye chilli until the onion is softened and slightly golden.
• Chop 1 red pepper into small chunks and add to the onion mixture, cook for further few minutes until pepper begins to soften. Do not worry about chopping too finely as sauce will be blended when finished.
• Add 100ml red wine, 1 tin tomatoes and 1 tbsp tomato puree, season to taste and allow to simmer for 5 minutes. Add tsp of honey or sugar if necessary. Set aside to cool.

For the filling;

• Meanwhile boil sweet potatoes until cooked, drain, mash until smooth with a little butter.
• Fry remaining onion, chopped chilli, red and yellow peppers (cut into strips) in a little olive oil until softened, add 1 tsp dried oregano and cook gently for 2 minutes. Add to mashed sweet potato and season well. Add coriander and leave to cool.
• Remove the bay leaf from the enchilada sauce and blend well.
• Once cooled, add chunks of goats cheese to the sweet potato mixture. Spoon some of the mixture down the centre of each tortilla and roll, placing each stuffed tortilla into a baking dish.
• Top with the enchilada sauce and grated cheese, bake in a preheated 180c oven for 20 minutes or until cheese is bubbling and molten and serve.