Toad in the Hole

I've just got back from England where I've been staying with my Mum for 4 weeks. While I was away I didn't spend much time on the computer, but I've got a few food photos on my camera to share!

My sister Sarah made Toad in the Hole for us while we were in England.

Our Nannie (grandmother) used to make this for us when we were children, using sausage meat instead of sausages. She called it Sausage in Batter and we always used to eat it with baked beans and mashed potatoes - so we decided to have baked beans with ours too.

It was delicious! For the batter, Sarah uses a recipe from a 1930s Be-Ro (brand of flour) recipe book - the page for the Yorkshire Pudding recipe is below...

The cover of the book:

No-Knead Bread

I read about this bread on Coby's blog and I had to try it because it looked so delicious - a serious, no-messing around Italian type of bread (that I am lucky enough to be able to buy for $2 at our local Italian bakery, but still always wanted to be able to make myself!)

After reading Coby's blog entry (in which she provides metric conversions for the recipe) and watching the video link, I started by mixing 410 g bread flour, 1/4 tsp instant yeast, 1 1/4 tsp salt in a bowl, and then added 430 ml cold tap water, stirring it to a soggy dough with a palette knife.

It looks like this, sort of like a thick paste. Cover it and stand it somewhere at room temperature for 12 to 18 hours. I left mine for about 16 hours in the pantry, after which it looked like this...

...bubbly and very wet-looking.

I put it on a tea towel (with baking paper because I thought it might stick to the cloth) covered with plenty of wholemeal flour. Coby uses polenta, or you can use bran. Fold it into some kind of round shape - which is very difficult as it feels like a flour-covered jellyfish - and cover it over for 2 hours to rise.

I wrapped mine up in the paper and tea towel.

After 2 hours mine seemed to have spread a little and got a bit bigger, although not in an upward direction!

Half an hour before the end of rising time, set the oven to 230 C and add a big pot with a lid to heat up aswell. I used my 7 litre Scanpan casserole.

Somehow get the dough into the (very hot) pot - I ended up half throwing it in off the paper because it was so soft and blobby - then quickly put the lid on and put it back in the oven. Cook for half an hour.

After half an hour, remove the lid and cook for 15 more minutes. (Longer if you want a crunchier, tougher crust.)

It tastes wonderful, and has a slightly 'gluey' texture which must come from the steaming effect on the dough caused by cooking it in a pot with a lid. I was surprised how soft the loaf was and the crust was not brittle or particularly tough - I assume this would change if you cooked it for longer without the lid.

Thanks Coby!

Chocopots

These are 'Chocohotopots' from 'Feast' - but I cooled them quite a lot before we ate them to avoid burnt tongues, so it was more accurate to call them just 'chocopots'. (Or chocowarmopots!)

They are like runny chocolate brownies - the top looks a lot like a brownie, with soft chocolate underneath. Very easy to make, delicious, rich and filling, and everyone loved them. (I have to admit though that I'm not the hugest fan of chocolate desserts, and I'd rather just eat the chocolate un-tampered-with!)

First you melt chocolate and butter over simmering water. The recipe calls for 'semi-sweet' but I couldn't find any - I did find another type of chocolate which is a combination of milk and dark, so I used it instead.

Let the choc/butter cool down a bit, then in another bowl whisk together eggs and sugar, and add some flour. Fold the chocolate mixture in, then divide between four (I used 5) buttered ramekins or oven-proof cups. Stand the cups on a tray and cook for 20 mins at 200C.

Ingredients:
125 g semi sweet chocolate (I used milk and dark mixture)
125 g unsalted butter, soft
2 eggs
150 g caster sugar (I used 100 g)
3 tbsp plain flour

Oaty Chocolate Cookies

I was looking for a quick and easy recipe for my 10 year old son to make, and he asked if it could include chocolate chips.

I found this on the choc chip manufacturer's website, and they were very easy to make, just mix everything in a bowl.

I like cookies that include oats because I think it makes them more filling, and they were a great snack for the boys after swimming thismorning.

I have to admit I would have liked sultanas in them, but I'd have sultanas with almost anything! I might add them next time.

Just mix all the ingredients in a large bowl, and put blobs of the mixture on a baking tray. Bake at180 C for 20 - 25 mins or until golden.

Ingredients:
180 g butter, melted then cooled
2 cups rolled oats
1 1/4 cups self-raising flour
1/2 cup caster sugar (this makes a pleasantly un-sweet cookie - add a bit more if you like)
1 cup choc chips (I used milk choc)
1 egg, lightly beaten

Beef Casserole

I saw this casserole on 'Nigella Feasts' although I can't find the recipe in the book 'Feast'.

I've never used Guinness or orange in a casserole before, so this recipe appealed to me. Normally I would add lots of other vegetables too, but I decided to follow the recipe exactly today.

In a casserole, fry the onion and carrot gently in some oil for several minutes until softened a little.

Meanwhile, shake the beef in the seasoned flour. Remove the veg from the pan and fry the beef in batches in some more oil until browned (more or less) then remove the beef from the pan.

To the pan, add the water and Guinness, the herbs and the orange zest and juice. Increase heat, add the vegetables and beef and once it has come to the boil, put a lid on and simmer for 2 1/2 hrs either on stove top or in oven at 150 C or so. (Once my Scanpan casserole is heated through I can simmer stews at 110 C.)

Richly flavoured with a slightly bitter tang, although pleasantly so - and it was the first time my children all ate up their casserole without fuss!

Next time I'll be adding more vegies (green beans and sweet potato would be nice).

Ingredients:
1 large onion, chopped
2 large carrots, sliced
1 kg chuck/stewing steak, diced
1/4 cup flour, with salt, pepper, good sprinkling of allspice
1 cup water
1 cup Guinness/stout
1/2 orange (zest and juice)
2 bayleaves, couple of leaves of sage or sprinkling of dried sage

Hot Cross Buns

This is the first time I've made hot cross buns, and they turned out quite well!

I have to admit I wouldn't have bothered with any decoration if I hadn't been taking photos, but I think the crosses worked out reasonably well too! I just 'drew' them on in flour paste with the edge of a small palette knife.

I normally would use fresh yeast but I ran out, so I used the instant yeast and it worked fine.

Ingredients:
500 g bread flour
2 tsp easy blend yeast
100 g sugar
pinch salt
2 tsp or more of ground cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves (mostly cinnamon)
3/4 cup sultanas, soaked
40 g butter, melted
250 ml milk, lukewarm
2 eggs, lightly beaten

paste for crosses:
1/3 cup flour
4 tbsp water

Happy Easter!

Milo Biscuits

I originally found this recipe on the internet after doing a search, because I had a tin of Milo that was well past its use-by date and was trying to find ways of using it up. I've changed it slightly since, and these biscuits are worth making even if your Milo isn't a bit old!

Cream together butter and sugar, then add an egg and some Milo. Stir in oats (and some sultanas if you like), then flour to make a slightly crumbly dough.

Make little balls of dough, put on a baking sheet not too close together, and flatten slightly with a fork. Cook for 12-15 mins at 180 C. Leave to cool on tray for a while to become firm before moving to a cooling rack.

Ingredients:
125 g butter, soft
1/2 cup caster sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup Milo
1/4 cup porridge/quick oats
1 1/2 cup self-raising flour

For another way of using Milo in a biscuit, see Oaty Cranberry and Milo Cookies

Golden Polenta Cake

Polenta Cake with ice cream and blackberries

This is a lovely cake designed to be eaten with fruit - and ice cream goes really well too. I found it in a book called 'Trattoria' and assumed it would be very similar to Nigella's Orange Cornmeal Cake, also for eating with fruit. Instead this cake is more like a sponge whereas Nigella's is more moist and dessert-like.

It is very easy to make - you gently mix wet ingredients (egg, oil and milk) into dry (polenta, 00 flour, caster sugar and baking powder) then pour into a loaf tin lined with a strip of baking paper.


Bake in the middle of a 200 C oven for 50-55 mins until top is golden and a skewer comes out clean.

The cake is very plain if eaten on its own, but goes really well with fruit and ice cream, the polenta adding a slight crunch and nuttiness. My children all demolished a healthy-sized bowlful each for dessert today!

Ingredients:
175 g Italian '00' flour
175 g coarse polenta
150 g caster sugar (I used 100 g)
2 tsp baking powder
1 large egg, lightly beaten
175 ml whole milk
6 tbsp sunflower oil (I used olive oil)

Cherry Ripe and Banana Muffins

I made these muffins the using the Nigella Express recipe Banana Butterscotch Muffins, replacing the butterscotch drops with chopped Cherry Ripe bars.

Stir flour, sugar, bicarb and baking powder in a large bowl, then fold in whisked together oil and eggs. Add mashed banana and chopped chocolate bits. Put in muffin cases and cook at 200 C for 15 - 20 mins depending on size (I usually make smaller, cup-cake size muffins).

These rose well, better than my usual banana muffins, and were nice and crispy on the top. I'll be using this recipe from now on, with or without the chocolate.

Some of the chocolate made it into the muffins, but lots didn't!

Ingredients:
3 very ripe bananas
125 ml veg oil (I used olive oil)
2 eggs
250 g flour
100 g caster sugar (I used 70 g)
1/2 tsp bicarb
1 tsp baking powder
150 g choc drops/chopped chocolate

Bacon, Tomato and Cheese Quiche

Mum and baby quiche

I know a lot of people make quiche, but I decided to blog about this one because it's so quick and easy and uses an olive oil pastry.

When I was 14 I went on an exchange trip with a school in the French Alps, and stayed with Jo, who I am still friends with lots of years later. Her family and mine became friends too. Her mum (Marilou) is a wonderful cook, and taught my mum how to make this quiche, which uses a very simple olive oil pastry that's just stirred to a dough in the bowl.

In a bowl put 8 well heaped tbsp flour (I use 6 of plain flour, and 2 of wholemeal), 1/2 tbsp baking powder, 1 tsp salt, 8 tbsp olive oil and 8 tbsp water. Stir together to make a dough. Marilou would leave this to stand for an hour, but I often don't and it still works well.

Roll dough out and line a lightly oiled quiche dish (or two). It's quite a soft dough, and quite elastic, so if it stretches and tears it doesn't matter - just patch it up and it'll be fine. Fold edges over rather than cutting them, tearing off bits that are too long.

At this point Marilou would blind-bake the pastry, but I never do - my quiches have a soft but not soggy bottom and I've never had any complaints!

Fill the pastry case with ingredients. I use chopped bacon or ham, sliced tomato and grated cheese.

In a large jug whisk up 3 eggs, then top up with milk to the 450 ml level (this may vary depending on the size of the quiche dish you're using - I use a 23 cm shallow Pyrex one, and a small one too. Add herbs, pepper and a little salt and mix in. Pour carefully into the pastry cases over the fillings.

Cook at 170 C for 45 mins to 1 hour, until the top is tinged with brown. Leave to cool for 20 mins or so before serving.

Lemon Yogurt Cupcakes

Lots of mini cupcakes

I had some plain yogurt in the fridge that was past its use-by date, so searched for a cupcake recipe to use it up.

I found this one here and adapted it a little. First you whisk together melted butter, sugar and an egg, then yogurt, a little milk and some lemon zest. (The original recipe had lemon juice and lemon extract too, but I decided to keep the lemon volume turned down for today.)

Beat in flour/baking powder/pinch of salt until just smooth, then fill cake cases. Cook at 180 C for 22 - 25 mins until they spring back slightly when touched.

I topped them with a little dob of icing, just because they were a bit pale and uninteresting to look at.

They sort of taste like lemon cheesecake, and the sponge is denser than the usual cupcake sponge - both I suppose due to the yogurt. Pretty tasty!

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
1/2 cup caster sugar
110 g unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 egg
1/2 cup plain yogurt (about 190 g)
1 tsp lemon zest
3 tbsp milk

Jam Roly Poly

Jam Roly Poly is one of those old-fashioned desserts that I imagine was popular when food was scarce. Traditionally it was made with suet and steamed, but this is a non-suet version, a bit like slightly spongy jam tart.

It's a fairly plain dessert, but my children get very excited when I make it, and they love it with custard.

First you make a soft dough by rubbing butter into flour, adding a little sugar and stirring in milk. Knead lightly until smooth.

Roll it out to a 20 x 30 cm rectangle, then spread jam over, lengthways. (Don't add too much jam or it might leak out when cooking.)

Roll in the longer sides to meet in the middle. Where the two rolls meet, brush a little water and press lightly together. Put on a baking sheet and cook for 15-20 mins at 180 C. Leave to cool for 10 mins or so, then cut into slices.

Serve with custard or ice cream.

Ingredients:
1 cup plain flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
60 g butter, soft
2-3 tsp sugar
1/3 cup milk (add gradually as you might not need it all)
2 tbsp apricot jam
2 tbsp raspberry or fruits of the forest jam
custard or ice cream to serve