Category Archives: Recipes

Recipes inspired from our research

Recipe review: Raspberries and blueberries

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Here are 2 summer recipes that M&S asked us to review.  Featuring fresh berries they are both quick and simple to assemble. The salad in particular is exceptionally good and a great way to use up the glut of fat berries in my fruit bed.

 Raspberry, melon and feta salad with mint and lime dressing

M_S raspeberry salad

 

This salad makes the perfect starter for a summer dinner or as a light lunch. Using ready prepared melon saves a huge amount of prep time and by using a mixed pack you get added variety and stunning colours. The beauty of this really lies in its simplicity and it looks beautiful too. A dressing of lime juice and honey coats the fruit and a large bunch of fresh mint adds a refreshing tang. Tossed together with some crumbled feta the saltiness of the cheese gives a savoury kick from a dish that could otherwise be a dessert. Last time I made this I added blueberries and a freshly picked sliced cucumber too which we all loved.

Verdict: A fanstastic summer salad which lends itself to adaptations – try different berries, herbs and cheese.

Download the original recipe for  Raspberry feta salad

 

Blueberry and lemon meringue semi-freddo 

M_S_blueberry

 

Apart from whipping the cream this is a super easy dessert to make – and as you freeze it its perfect to make ahead of time. It’s presented as a semi freddo style dessert which means taking it out of the freezer 30 minutes before eating. I would normally do this just after serving the main course unless you don’t mind a longer break between courses. Although we loved the flavour of this dessert and the half frozen texture of the blueberries it was very rich. I would make this again but probably use half fat creme fraiche mixed with some thick fat free Greek style yoghurt. You could also get away with using less lemon curd as you already have the sweetness of the meringue and doubling up the fruit would also work. Another plus here is format, the original recipe uses a loaf tin but I used a loose bottomed cake tin. You can also use individual dishes providing they are suitable for the freezer.

Verdict: Very rich and calorific but with a few sensible tweaks to the ingredients a great recipe to have in your repertoire.

Download the original recipe for blueberry and lemon meringue semi-freddo

Text and images Shirlee
Text and images Shirlee

 

Strawberry Vanilla Muffins

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The current unsettled weather finds us tripping in and out of our gardens snatching minutes of warming sun and hiding from sudden showers. Next time those grey clouds make an appearance  rustle up a summery  batch these light fluffy muffins for tea. With any luck by the time they are ready the sun will be back.

strawberry muffins 2042

You can download a printable version of the recipe Strawberry Vanilla Muffins here.

Ingredients  (Makes 8 large or 12 medium muffins)

60ml sunflower oil
120ml semi-skimmed milk
1 medium egg
Pinch salt
1 x 5ml spoon baking powder
100g vanilla castor sugar * or plain sugar and a tsp of vanilla essence
220g fine plain flour
150g fresh strawberries, de-hulled and finely chopped
2 strawberries, de-hulled and finely sliced for decoration

Pre-heat the oven to 190ºC / 170ºC fan / gas mark 5.

Whisk the oil, milk and egg together in a small mixing bowl. Place the salt, baking powder, sugar and flour in a large mixing bowl and stir together.Add the chopped strawberries and mix to coat with dry ingredients. Pour in the milk mixture and stir together quickly. The mixture will be slightly lumpy. Layout 8 large or 12 medium size muffin cases in a muffin tray. Using 2 metal spoons divide the muffin mixture equally between them.Place slices of fresh strawberry on top of each muffin.

Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden and firm to touch.

Delicious eaten while still warm!

These will keep for a couple of days in an airtight cake tin but are best eaten on the day of baking.

Variations: try using fresh raspberries or blueberries in place of strawberries or a mixture of all three.

*Vanilla sugar; if you have a couple of spare vanilla pods sitting in a tube, stick them in a large jar and top up with caster sugar (I use golden brown). This gives an extra flavour layer to your baking. Simply top up the jar with sugar each time you use some.

Mushroom paté

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We served this rich meaty vegan paté at our pop-up café last June on our vegetarian Surrey Platters. Much lower fat than meat based paté makes it a healthy option too. Providing you use some field mushrooms in your mix you will achieve the rich coloured mix shown here. Use a low salt yeast extract at it develops the meaty flavour without escalating the sodium content.

Ingredientsmushroom_pate_6x9
2 tablespoons olive oil
100g butter or vegan margarine
2 red onions, finely diced
4 cloves crushed garlic
500g field mushrooms, finely diced
50g mixed dried wild mushrooms, soaked in enough boiling water to cover
1 teaspoon low salt yeast extract, mix with the mushroom water
2 dessertspoons fresh chopped mixed herbs
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
50g fresh brown breadcrumbs
Some fresh herbs to garnish

Heat the oil and butter in a large pan with a lid. Sweat the onions and garlic until softened and ever so slightly browned. Add the diced fresh and dried mushrooms to the pan and cook with the lid on stirring occasionally for 5 minutes over a low heat. Mix the yeast extract with the reserved soaking water from the dried mushrooms, add to the pan with the herbs and cook gently for a further five minutes.Remove from the heat and stir in the breadcrumbs. Allow to cool, then pulse the mixture in a food processor for a few seconds. Mix thoroughly, adjust the seasoning and place in a serving dish. Garnish with fresh herbs and chill until required.

If you don’t have a food processor just very finely chop the ingredients before cooking.

Serve as a starter or light lunch with salad or use as a sandwich filling.

Download the  recipe for Mushroom Pate

mushroom pate

Text and images Shirlee
Text and images Shirlee

Green bean salad with hot bacon and tomato dressing

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greenbeensaladI grow green beans every summer and love making this keeping salad that tastes just as good the next day as it does freshly made. Picking young tender beans is a luxury so its great to make a fuss of them. If you don’t have any pomegranate molasses you can use balsamic glaze instead but it doesn’t quite bring the same acidic caramel notes to the dish as the former.

Serves 2

Steam around 450g green beans for 8-10 minutes and rinse with cold water to prevent overcooking. Whilst the beans are cooking make the dressing. Heat 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil in a pan and add 2-3 thinly sliced salad onions and 4 rashers of finely chopped smoked bacon. Stir-fry until the bacon is cooked, then add 2 finely chopped tomatoes and cook for a further 1-2 minutes and remove the pan from the heat. Stir in 2 tablespoons of pomegranate molasses and some freshly chopped garden herbs (I used chives and oregano) season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Place some salad leaves in a serving dish and top with the beans. Pour over the hot dressing and finish with 50g crumbled Wensleydale cheese and serve immediately.

bean salad

Plum and cardamom cake

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We wait all year for our home-grown fruit to ripen and when it does you have to act fast! Jane has some plum trees so we have been making sorbets, tarts, cakes, plum butter and roasted-plum crumble. Here cardamom complements the sweetness of the plums. This cake is perfect with a cup of fresh coffee or serve warm with fresh cream or custard for a dessert.

Ingredientsplum and cardomom cake_6x9

200g butter, at room temperature

200g vanilla sugar or 200g castor sugar and 1 tsp vanilla extract

4 eggs, beaten

200g self-raising flour

750g fresh ripe plums, stoned and quartered

seeds from 8-10 cardamoms, ground

1 tbsp golden castor sugar

Line a 22x24cm baking tray and pre-heat oven to 180°C /160°fan/gas mark 4

Cream the butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy. Fold the egg and flour into the mixture a little at a time. Stir in half the plums and the ground cardamom and spoon into the baking tray. Top the mixture evenly with the remaining plums and sprinkle with sugar.

Bake for 30-35 minutes or until firm to touch and golden.

This cake will only keep for a couple of days because of the high water content of plums.

plums

Text and images Shirlee
Text and images Shirlee

Luscious lemon and courgette cake

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(makes 12 generous portions)

This moist veg packed cake is adaptation of Flora’s famous courgette cake featured in Nigella Lawson’s ‘How to be a domestic goddess’. I added lemon zest to the cake mix to give it a citrus kick and tweaked some of the ingredients to fit our food ethos for the Pop up Café we ran in June. This is a great way to use a glut of courgettes when you have run out of savoury ideas and freezes beautifully (un-iced). We sourced our courgettes from Village Greens in Ockley who grow their own. I wanted a more substantial layered cake than the original recipe so increased the amounts given. You can bake this in three tins to give you an extra filling layer if you prefer. Courgettes release water when they are grated so make sure you squeeze them as dry as you can on kitchen towel otherwise it will make the cake mixture too wet. I used some dried cornflower petals to decorate this cake which Jane had bought me as a gift from a range on offer at Secretts farm shop in Milford. A healthy and natural alternative to sprinkles they look stunning.

Ingredients Courgette and lemon cake

185ml sunflower oil

3 free range eggs

225g castor sugar

350g self-raising flour

1 tsp of baking powder

The zest of 2 organic un-waxed lemons (juice for the icing)

90g  raisins, soaked overnight in water

375g courgettes, topped tailed and finely grated

For the icing

400g full fat cream cheese (beware low fat doesn’t work here as it breaks down and goes runny)

200g icing sugar

Juice of 1-2 lemons

Dried cornflower petals to decorate and freeze dried raspberry (optional)

Lemon Curd to fill about half a 350g jar

Method

Pre-heat the oven to Gas mark 4/ 180°c /fan 160°c. Line or grease 2 or 3 round 22cm baking tins.

  1.  Place the oil and eggs and sugar in the mixing bowl of an electric stand mixer or use an electric hand whisk and beat until pale and creamy.
  2. Combine the flour and baking powder and fold into the egg mixture.
  3. Now fold in the lemon zest, courgettes and raisins. Divide the mixture between the three lined tins and bake in pre-heated for 30 minutes.
  4. Leave for 5 minutes then remove from the tins and allow to cool on a rack.
  5. Meanwhile make the icing by combining the ingredients until smooth, chill until required.
  6. Place the first layer on a serving platter and spread with lemon curd. Repeat this with the second and third cake leaving the top un-iced.
  7. Using a palette knife spread the cream cheese icing on the top and sides of the cake. Sprinkle the top with petals or a decoration of your choice.

cornfower petals _duo

Text and images Shirlee
Text and images Shirlee

Pop up Café Beetroot Hummus Recipe

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Beetroot hummus with smoked oil and roast spices

I found this lovely recipe in the Guardian food section ‘Cook’, edited by Felicity Cloake.  It’s an unusual take on a dip we love: beetroot gives this version an intense, irresistible, deep-pink hue. Use freshly cooked or roasted beetroot – pre-packs give a watery finish. The original recipe suggests that you peel the chickpeas but buy a good-quality brand so you don’t need to. A food processor or blender gives the best result. We have also used a locally grown and pressed smoked rapeseed oil which adds an additional flavour layer.

Ingredientsbeetroot_hummus_6x9

250g cooked, peeled beetroot, roughly chopped
1 x 400g can chickpeas, drained
75ml tahini
Juice of 2 lemons
1 tsp roasted ground coriander
3 large garlic cloves, crushed
1-2 tbsp smoked rapeseed oil
1 tsp sesame seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Place the beetroot in the food processor with the drained chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice, coriander and crushed garlic. Process until the mixture is smooth enough for you.

Heat the rapeseed oil in a heavy frying pan and fry the sesame and cumin seeds, stirring continuously, for no more than 2 minutes, making sure they don’t catch. Add about two-thirds of this to the food processor, along with some seasoning, and blend.

Place the hummus in a serving dish and make a swirl in the centre. Spoon over the toasted seed-and-spice mix and serve with crudités.

We served this with our Taste of Surrey Platters with beetroot that was grown locally by James and Catherine Dampier and their team at Village Greens. They have two farm shops in Surrey where they sell produce from local producers and from their own land. We used them for all the fresh produce for our event plus tomatoes from Nutbourne.

Beetroot hummus recipe

veg_platter

Tomato spiced cod with polenta and corn cake

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We recently reviewed Sussex Gold, who produce cold-pressed rapeseed oil. They also sell a range of dressings and cooking sauces made especially for them. I tried a spicy tomato sauce, which I used in dressings and to finish a pasta sauce as suggested on the label. After buying some fresh cod from the Chelsea fishmonger I had a creative kitchen moment with a delicious and satisfying outcome. Here it is!

Serves 2cod_sussex_gold_tomato_sauce

For the polenta cakes

4 x 15ml spoons of cooked sweet corn

60g polenta

1 large egg

2 finely chopped salad onions or a handful of fresh chopped chives

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

20ml of rapeseed or sunflower oil

Fish

300g fresh cod loin, cut into 2 cm cubes

2-3 tablespoons of Sussex Gold spicy tomato sauce

To serve: some salad leaves and a spoon of half-fat crème fraîche or Greek-style yogurt

First make the polenta cakes – you can do this in advance and chill until required. Place all the ingredients except the oil in a mixing bowl and stir until combined. Divide the mixture into 4 round cakes and chill for 20 minutes to set.

Meanwhile prepare the fish and the salad. Heat the grill. Place a sheet of foil on to the grill pan with the sides folded up to create an edge to trap the sauce. Add a little of the tomato sauce to the foil and place the fish on top. Brush or spoon over the remaining sauce and grill for 7 – 8 minutes until just cooked.

While the fish is cooking, heat the oil and pan fry the polenta cakes for 3-4 minutes on each side until golden. Place the cakes on a plate with the salad leaves and top with the cooked fish and sauce.  Serve with a dollop of crème fraîche.

You can buy Sussex Gold in farm shops and direct from the producers at farmers markets

Text and images Shirlee
Text and images Shirlee

Sussex Gold oils

Roasted rhubarb with mascarpone

Roasted rhubarb and muffins

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After a cold spell it’s warming to see the first show of forced rhubarb heralding spring. Intensely pink and wooingly desirable it’s a fabulous ingredient. Here are two simple but rewarding rhubarb recipes to inspire.

Roasted rhubarb with light lemony mascarpone

3 large stems of rhubarb cut into 10 cm sectionsroast_r_whole
2-3 dessertspoons of maple syrup or a good sprinkle of light brown sugar
1 x 250g tub of light mascarpone (full fat if you prefer)
2-3 tablespoons Greek yogurt
Zest of 1 lemon
a little sugar to sweeten
Edible cornflower petals to decorate (optional)

Pre-heat the oven to 190˚C/170˚C fan assisted/ Gas mark 5.
Place the rhubarb in an ovenproof dish and drizzle with syrup. Roast for 15-20 minutes and cool slightly.
Mix together the rest of the ingredients except the flower petals.
Divide the rhubarb between 4 plates and serve with a spoonful of mascarpone cream. Sprinkle with a few cornflower petals to serve.

To enliven this recipe, make a delicious, tart yet almost toffee-like sauce. In small pan heat 1 dessertspoon of pomegranate molasses and 2 dessertspoons of date syrup. Let the mixture just come to the boil then remove from heat and cool. Serve a spoonful with each plate.

Roasted chopped rhubarbRhubarb and ginger muffins
I saw this recipe ages ago on the Village Greens website. This is my variation.

2 free-range eggs
150g golden caster sugar
50ml sunflower oil
125ml natural yogurt
1tsp grated orange zest
½ teaspoon vanilla essence
300g sliced roasted rhubarb
300g plain flour
2tsp baking powder
½tsp bicarbonate of soda
½tsp salt
1tsp dried ginger
a few chunks of crystallized ginger, finely chopped

Pre-heat the oven to 190˚C/170˚C fan assisted/ Gas mark 5. Fill a muffin tin with 9 deep liners or 12 muffin cases.
Combine the eggs, sugar, oil, yogurt, rhubarb, orange zest and vanilla. Mix well. In a separate bowl, stir all the dry ingredients together thoroughly. Then mix the wet and dry ingredients together until just mixed.
Spoon into muffin cases and top each muffin with some ginger and bake for 25 minutes. Remove and cool on a rack.

At their best served while still warm

Roasted rhubarb and muffins

Red Beef Noodle Soup

Red Beef Noodle Soup

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When I lived in Taiwan it got a bit cooler after Christmas and street food vendors started producing warming soups. My favourite was an aromatic beef noodle soup made with hand-pulled noodles. My version uses some lovely braising beef from Joe’s farm shop in Sutton Green, who sell free-range locally reared beef and pork. You can buy Taiwanese noodles from many Chinese food shops but egg noodles work just as well. This is perfect for an evening meal when there is a snap in the air.

Red beef noodle soup (serves 4)
Ingredients

1 dessertspoon sunflower oilRed Beef Noodle Soup
6 spring onions, sliced
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
2 thumb-sized pieces fresh ginger, cut into julienne strips
1 teaspoon crushed Sichuan peppercorns
6 star anise
6 cloves
1 cinnamon stick
500ml fresh beef stock
75ml Chinese rice wine
50ml naturally brewed soy sauce
2 teaspoons grated palm or light brown sugar
500g braising beef cut into small chunks

4 portions ready-made egg noodles, cooked according to instructions

Heat the oil in a large heavy-based pan over a medium heat. Add the spring onions, garlic, ginger and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes. Add the Sichuan peppercorns, star anise, cloves, cinnamon stick, stock, rice wine, soy sauce and sugar. Bring to the boil, then turn down the heat and simmer for five minutes.

Reduce the heat, so the mixture is barely simmering and add the beef and cook (lid on) for 35 – 40 minutes until tender.

Divide the hot noodles into four bowls and spoon over the beef and soup serve immediately

Towards the end of the cooking time feel free to add vegetables such as spinach, peas or green beans. Add carrots and other root vegetables a bit earlier.

Text and Images Shirlee
Text and Images Shirlee