Category Archives: recipe

Happiness is homegrown

Posted in food, food is medicine, fruit, functional food, healthy eating, home cooking, home grown, home produce, recipe, Uncategorized by

I don’t have a very large back garden – about a fifth of an acre  – but the space is put to good use. Because the house is up for sale, I haven’t planted the vegetable plot this year…probably should have done as we haven’t sold yet!!  The garden has a variety of fruit trees – Victoria Plum, Grenadier Apple, Egremont Russet and James Grieve  desert apples, Damson, Bartlett and Conference Pear, Gooseberry, Red / Blackcurrant bushes and Rhubarb. Each year these wonderful plants provide a vast quantity of fruit – so much last year that I had to buy another chest freezer! This year, due to the odd weather, the gooseberry bushes have borne little fruit and the plum tree is clearly resting after a bumper crop last year. However, all other trees are covered in ripening fruit.

The chickens indicated this morning that the red and black currants were ready for picking – red and black juice stained beaks were a real give away!  So… half an hour later 2 bowls were filled…still masses left to pick off the laden stems 🙂

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and so begins the making and baking…pies, cakes, puddings, cassis, flavoured vodkas, jams etc.

 

Rhubarb and ginger gluten free cake

Posted in cake, eggs, food, functional food, ginger, gluten free, healthy eating, home baking, recipe, Uncategorized by

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I think this is one of my favourite flavour combinations. Because there are pieces of ginger around the top of the cake it means you get a delicious ginger hit with every mouthful.

This works best with fresh rhubarb which is in plentiful supply at this time of year.

Preheat oven to 180c  / gas mark 4. Prepare an 18 cm round tin. I use Prestige cookware

Ingredients:

170 g gluten-free self-raising flour        150 g light muscovado sugar

170 g softened butter   4 eggs (3 if using non gf fl)

1 stem of rhubarb chopped and each chunk split in half lengthways then softened by roasting in oven.20160717_094255

3 pieces of stem ginger – 2 finely chopped and 1 chopped in to larger pieces for the top of the cake.

Method:

Mix all ingredients (except rhubarb) together until smooth.

Fold in rhubarb half the rhubarb and the finely chopped ginger..

Arrange the remaining rhubarb and ginger around the top of the cake.

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Bake in centre of the oven for about 20-25 mins.

Courgetti, spring onion and cheese frittata 

Perfect for a light supper on a hot summer’s day 🙂 . The wonderful thing about this dish is that it is delicious both hot and cold.

The number of servings depends upon what is served with the dish – serves 2 if on its own or with a small salad or 4 if served with additional vegetables and new potatoes. Gas mark 5 / 190 c   Oven proof pan

Ingredients:

1 spiralised courgette                      6 eggs – beaten and seasoned with pepper

2 spring onions finely chopped         handful of grated cheese    olive oil for frying

Method:

Gently fry the courgetti and onions for a couple of minutes. Add the grated cheese and beaten egg. Put the pan in the oven for 10 – 15 mins until the frittata is just set.

 

Chicken stock

Posted in food, food is medicine, gluten free, healthy eating, home cooking, recipe, Uncategorized by

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Put the carcass and remains of the chicken in to a large pan – I use my Prestige Pressure cooker.

Add a couple of pints of water. Put on the hob  – Pressure cooker middle weight and stream for 20 mins once pressure reached – only sufficient heat to cause a gentle steam. (in a pan – simmer for 40 mins.

Sieve the contents to separate the stock from the solids – if the chicken pieces are wnted – sift through the solids.

 

 

Smoked mackerel, Greek yoghurt,  cucumber,  spring onions and dill

This only took a couple of minutes  to prepare…my favourite sort of meal😀

Serves 3 as a main dish with new potatoes. Would serve 4 – 5 as a starter.

Ingredients:

Large handful of spinach and watercress for each person

4 spring onions – chopped

Large piece  (10-15 cm) cucumber chopped in to cubes

Greek yoghurt

3 smoked mackerel fillets – skinned and flaked

Handful of dill – chopped

Pomegranate seeds to garnish.

Method:

Put prepared onions,cucumber and mackerel in a bowl and add 3-4 heaped tbsp of yoghurt. Mix together. Add most of the dill – keep some back to sprinkle over as a garnish.Serve out on to watercress/spinach  and top with dill and pomegranate seeds.  New potatoes complement this dish very well 😀

 

Guacamole 

The perfect companion for a chilli con carne.

Serves 2

Ingredients:

1 large ripe avocado – coarsely chopped

10 plum tomatoes – finely chopped

4 spring onions – finely chopped

Juice of half a lemon

3-4 drops of tabasco sauce

Method:

Put all the prepared ingredients in to a bowl and mix gently.

 

Quail eggs and halloumi salad

Posted in coeliac, eggs, food, food is medicine, functional food, healthy eating, healthy fats, mains, recipe, salad, specialised diet, superfood, Uncategorized, vegetarian by

So many people still think a salad consists of iceberg lettuce, tomatoes and cucumber.  Glances of pity are thrown in the direction of my husband when he states we had a salad for lunch!!

This delicious salad was simply a combination of soft boiled quail eggs, chopped avocado, chopped plum tomatoes and grilled halloumi sitting on a bed of watercress 🙂

Ginger sponge pudding (GF) filled with Greek yoghurt mixed with chopped stem ginger

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Serves 4/6

Microwave  2-3 mins on full power  4/6 individual large ramekins e.g. Prestige /souffle dishes

Ingredients:

For the pudding:

100 g gluten-free self-raising flour       100 g butter

100 g light muscovado sugar         3 eggs (2 if not using gf flour

3 tsp ground ginger

For the filling:

6-10 tbsp Greek yoghurt                  4 pieces of stem ginger coarsely chopped

Method:

Put all the ingredients in to a bowl and mix well until smooth. Divide equally between the ramekins. Put in the microwave for 2 mins – test with skewer. Cooked when skewer comes out clean.

Mix Greek yoghurt with the chopped stem ginger. Scoop the centre of the pudding out and fill with yoghurt mixture and pop ‘lid’ back on.  Serve whilst puddings still hot.

Smoked mackerel and rice noodles

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Serves 3    Preheat oven to 180c / gas mark 4

Ingredients:

1/2 butternut squash deseeded and chopped in to small chunks

plum / cherry tomatoes

3 smoked mackerel fillets torn into large pieces

300 g rice noodles

rocket

tamari (soy sauce if non gf)

Olive oil

Method:

Put butternut squash on a baking tray and drizzle with olive oil. Roast in oven for about 30 mins until cooked and edges crisping.

Put a drizzle of olive oil in a frying pan and, once hot, add the rice noodles. Stir for a minute. Add the tomatoes and fry for a further minute. Drizzle with tamari. Add the fish and heat through. Finally add the roasted squash, stir  and serve on a bed of rocket.