Before I go on with the next bread idea …

… a quick reminder of what there is to choose from for your summer gathering!

Whether it's a Mezze, a Thali, a Get together, a party or a “Do” - call it what you will – what's better than sharing plates!

It can be whatever you want it to be, to suit the taste of your friends and family from antipasti, fish and seafood, cold meats, slaw and relish – not to mention the bread, you can mix and match.

You can add Homity Pie, a Three Cheese Tart and a Gallimaufry.

All you need to do is decide on a menu which can be planned ahead - and to be organised with your prep and cooking.

I've given you the ideas and you don't have to stick to them – they are just ideas, albeit tried and tested – now it's over to you.

Enjoy your (Bank) Holiday weekend – here in the UK at least!

Now back to the bread …

The extra mile – the ice cream!

I always seem to plan my menus with ideas for desserts first!

There's nothing that will serve you better than a home-made ice cream and all my recipes are of the “no-churn” variety. I use the standard vanilla ice-cream base recipe to begin :

Vanilla ice cream

Prep – 5 minutes

Total time – 5 minutes

plus freezing at least 6-8 hours

or until firm

Gives you 1.6 litres of ice cream is equal

to 18 scoops

1 x 397g tin sweetened condensed milk

1 x 600ml double cream

2tsp vanilla bean paste

Put the condensed milk, cream and vanilla into a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric hand whisk until the mixture is quite thick and stiff, then decant into smallish containers.

To serve – remove from the freezer and allow to soften.

Serve with the cake, drizzle and a scoop of ice cream – a great idea for Mother's Day!

The real thing – the menu continued

The table is booked for breakfast on Monday morning and the plan is normally that afterwards the boys go their way and we girls have a wander whilst it's not busy – just like old times!

Fast forward to dinner, Monday evening :

Monday evening dinner

it should really be called M&S Plant Kitchen dinner!

No Beef Steak Pies

Mushroom Pies

Yet more roasties!

Plant Kitchen Sweet Potato Fries

Steamed veggies – cauliflower, broccoli and carrots

Roasted Rhubarb

Fresh cherries

Plant Kitchen Churros with a cinnamon

sprinkle and a chocolate dip

Tuesday morning breakfast/brunch

Croque Monsieur – minus the ham and using

Extra Mature Cheddar Cheese

… and breathe!

What happened next ...

When the dress rehearsal became the real thing!

In April I wrote about a friend's birthday gift – delivering dinner to her. At the time I speculated about the time when we'd be able to cook for our family and friends again and “do you remember how … the birthday menu is a dress rehearsal”.

Here's the real thing.

The kids (big kids) are coming to visit – staying two nights – yippee and hurray!

Then the light began to dawn – other than planning and cooking the birthday menu I hadn't cooked and entertained guests for the best part of 18 months – gulp.

Get a grip – stick to what you know and plan a menu, from beginning to end and then make a list – or three.

I'm taking my own advice and keeping it simple – they arrive on a Sunday, not quite sure of an eta – I'm thinking early afternoon so I'll be providing an evening meal. We generally have breakfast out too so I booked a table for Monday morning.

Here goes :

Sunday's menu

Roast potatoes

Pizza

Chicken Kiev and “No Chicken Kiev”

Avocado

Beetroot Relish

Roast corn on the cob

Home-made coleslaw

Tomatoes

Lettuce and cucumber

Sweet baby peppers

Warm pitta breads

Fresh strawberries

Vanilla Swedish Glacé

At this point I should explain that my Dil, Cheryl (Dil = Daughter in law) is lactose intolerant and vegetarian.

The menu continued ...

New Year in July – the bread ideas

Where to begin!

You can make your own or buy if you haven't got the time – there are so many quality breads now that it's difficult to choose.

Here are a couple of “make your own” ideas – roti flatbreads are always a hit. You may also know roti as chapati – it's a favourite with me because it's unleavened unlike, for example, naan which contains yeast. I'd much rather eat a curry or chilli with bread than rice which is probably why my mention of it was at the end of my ideas list!

Back to the roti - the recipe I always use comes from Mildred's cookery book, ever so slightly tweaked at the end.

Here's their recipe :

Garlic Roti

20g unsalted butter

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped (or paste)

½ tsp dried chilli flakes (or a pinch of powder)

200g self raising flour (plus extra for dusting)

50g wholemeal self raising flour

80-100ml water

vegetable oil

Warm the butter in a small saucepan over a low heat, add the garlic and chilli and cook, stirring, for a minute until the garlic begins to release its flavour but not coloured. Tip into a mixing bowl with the flours and gradually add the water, using a wooden spoon, until you have a moist (not sticky) dough. Knead the dough for a few minutes until smooth and then cover with a clean damp cloth and leave to rise for 30 minutes until nearly doubled in size.

Divide into 8 pieces and form into balls. Dust with a little flour and then roll into thin circles of about 5mm (¼ inch) thick. Use a heavy based frying pan - add a drop of vegetable oil to grease. Cook the rotis on a medium heat – one at a time for 2-3 minutes each side until puffed up and brown. Serve immediately or cover with a clean tea towel and reheat in a low oven when needed.

I made them ahead and then reheated before serving and my only addition was to finish them off with a brush of melted butter and a sprinkle of garlic salt.

Then there's pide ...

New Year in July – Dish 2

This is, after all a celebration and calls for top notch food.

You might not think of chilli as “top notch” - what makes this chilli special, nay posh, is it uses diced steak and slow cooks it. The only remaining task is to add the red kidney beans and any garnishes. A word of warning – just in case you've forgotten – do not slow cook the kidney beans.

Dish 2 - Posh Chilli

Serves 4

500g diced steak

A glug of rapeseed oil

1 medium onion, finely chopped

2 cloves of roasted garlic paste or 2 cloves crushed

tsp = teaspoon

half tsp ground cumin

half tsp ground coriander

half tsp ground cinnamon

quarter to half tsp chilli powder (to taste, depends how much of a kick you like – I used a quarter tsp)

500g jar of passata

60ml sweet chilli sauce

390g can of red kidney beans, rinsed

optional extras :

150g small dice or sliced chorizo

sweet baby peppers, de-seeded and

finely sliced

Now for the method and the extras …

New Year in July!

If we can have Christmas Dinner in June then why not New Year in July! If you don't like either idea but want to celebrate, just not in the traditional way, then you might like the following ideas.

I realise I'm tempting fate when I mention that the weather could be warm in July – though even in warm weather we still like hot food.

There are three different dishes coming up – lamb, beef and chicken/veggie and they have one thing in common – they are all cooked in the slow cooker. You can make these dishes when you have time and freeze. All that then remains is to choose your sides.

Lets get this show on the road :

There's a recipe Aromatic Lamb Shank Stew in Nigella Bites which serves whole shanks and includes lentils, served with couscous – this is my version.

Dish 1 - Lamb Stew

4 tbsp rapeseed or vegetable oil

6 lamb shanks

2 onions, finely chopped

4 tsps garlic paste

sprinkle of salt

1 tbsp turmeric

1 tsp ground ginger

¼ tsp dried chilli flakes

2 tsps cinnamon

¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg

black pepper

3 tbsps honey

1 tbsp soy sauce

3 tbsp Marsala

boiling water to cover

Using the oil, brown the shanks and place in your slow cooker. Fry the onion and garlic paste until soft, sprinkling with salt. Stir in the turmeric, ginger, chilli, cinnamon and nutmeg and season with pepper. Add the honey, soy and Marsala. Tip the mixture over the shanks and cover with boiling water. Leave for as long as you like. 4 to 6 hours. Remove the shanks and strip off the meat – add the meat back to the gravy in the slow cooker.

The lamb is ready to serve when you are, fridge until required. You can cook ahead and freeze if that's more convenient, it just gets better!

I serve this “stew” with the biggest pan of roasties I can. There's loads of spicy gravy and roast potatoes somehow fit. New potatoes would work well, just not as crunchy.

If you like the idea of a spicy roast “main” then this is for you, it's worth every second of prep and it's not complicated.

Then there's the posh chilli ...

The Christmas Dinner that never was …

 … because it was cancelled!

How about Christmas Dinner in June – don't you think it has a certain sparkle?!

It may not be what you'd call a traditional Christmas Dinner but who cares - it's about being together and giving everyone food they love to eat, so what if it includes Yorkshire Puddings.

The “roast route” it shall be. If your gang love a roast then what better way to celebrate being together again – that wonderful familiar feeling – everyone trying to get a word in or finish a sentence – oh how we've missed it.

Hmm, note to self – did I buy crackers for last December and didn't use them? Here's hoping I can remember where they are!

Do you have Christmas “crockery” that's used for the festive season?

Have a look :

Here's another thought – do you have a tiny Christmas Tree decoration – if yes it would make a perfect table centre.

If you don't have Christmas crockery or a tiny Christmas Tree decoration and fancy pushing the boat out, check out Amazon.co.uk christmas crockery uk. Believe it or not, they have both!

Most of us can cook a roast in our sleep. However, this roast requires special attention. I realise the chances of you being able to source a turkey at this time of year are about as likely as hens with teeth. All is not lost – roast a large chicken – easily obtainable and what's more you'll always get more “meat” from a large chicken than a small turkey.

Interested – then lets begin …

Hurray for hugs and celebrations!

In “The Birthday Menu Choice” I said that the birthday menu was a dress rehearsal for the time when I'd be able to cook for our family and friends again – I'd forgotten how!

It doesn't matter what you cook – it's being with your loved ones that matters but you'll still want to eat and you'll want it to be delicious and effortless.

Whatever you choose to serve think about yourself too – don't stress – use your time between now and then to create your celebration. If you plan ahead not only will everything work superbly but most importantly you'll be right where you should be – smack in the middle with everyone else and not doing a very good impression of a piece of chewed string - or a wet lettuce if you prefer.

If we've learnt anything in the last while it's that life is too short ...

Here are a couple of ideas – make a “to do” list and “a daily planner” to spread the work, preparing bits and pieces each day and freezing if you can. It definitely takes the pressure off. If you want to look at examples of both check out The “to do” list and The Daily Planner on the Meal Planning label.

Enjoy the planning – take into account the likes and dislikes of your guests. A quick question for you to consider - do you want your menu to be posh or practical?

To explain myself and using dessert as an example - by posh I mean make your signature, standout pud which may take a while. This year my standout pud was the Biscoff and Salted Caramel Cheesecake – completely unexpected! It is generous and serves 10, so seconds too! If you'd like to have a look check out the Cheesecake label for the recipe and a photo guide too.

By practical I don't mean less yummy and delicious, merely that if you have time issues then make a pud like the Banana Cake, the Miso Caramel Sauce and the Sweet White Miso ice cream. All three elements can be made ahead and popped in the freezer. Add a huge bowl of fresh strawberries to complete the picture.

Coming up – a few ideas for your celebration mains!

The doorstep treat verdict …

Just before the verdict, here's a copy of the delivery note :

The Birthday Menu - delivery note!

Cream Cheese & Cashew Nut Paté

with soda bread

The bread was made this morning – it's meant

to be dense and hopefully you'll enjoy with the

paté – any leftovers are very good toasted -

with loads of butter of course!

Cheese, Potato and Onion pie

I've lightly baked the pastry lid – pre-heat oven

on 180fan/200c/Gas 6 to warm – cover the pie

with foil – it'll need 20 minutes, then remove the foil

for a final 5 minutes

with coleslaw

Flourless Chocolate Cake

if you prefer soft, warm and squidgy cake then

microwave for 20 seconds

with Raspberry Coulis and clotted cream

The verdict is in!

“...we had some of your bread yesterday … it was yummy! Looking forward to the feast tonight! Thank you again for such a thoughtful present.

Thank you again for the dinner. Every part of it was amazing, so tasty and moreish I doubt I'll eat for a very long time. The paté is gorgeous! The slaw was the best I've had … great mayo! The pie cooked perfectly and we all kept tucking in for more. The dessert was divine – with the addition of the clotted cream which is my favourite, thank you so much.

The next evening … we finished the chocolate cake tonight – it's the gift that keeps on giving! Yummy! X”

Phew – and breathe!

Which brings me to the whole point of this exercise … and the comment I made at the beginning :

Remember the days when we had a social life and family and friends came to visit? I hardly dare say this but, if all goes accordingly to plan, may be we'll be able to cook for our family and friends again – do you remember how? I'm not sure I do so the birthday menu is a dress rehearsal!

In the overall scheme of things it doesn't matter what you cook – it's being with your nearest and dearest that matters but you'll still want to eat and you'll want it to be delicious and effortless – which is why I've illustrated how you can do that. When I chose the menu options it was tailored entirely around my friend's favourite dishes. I now realise that the only element that required attention, other than placing on the table, was the pie – all you need to do is set your timer!

Whatever you choose to serve think about yourself too – don't stress – use your time between now then to create your favourite food. If you plan ahead not only will everything work superbly you'll be right where you should be – smack in the middle with everyone else and not doing a very good impression of a piece of chewed string - or a wet lettuce if you prefer.

If we've learnt anything in the last year it's life is too short ...

Coming up – a cream tea but not as you know it!

The birthday menu choice

“Wow, this all looks amazing! I have read and read and read them again and Menu 2 keeps jumping out at me! Please can I opt for that – it's such a wonderful idea!”

Menu 2 it is – it will be an absolute pleasure!

I sent the original email and the menus well in advance, a month ahead - deliberately, it gives me time to consider and plan my order of work and then cooking. I make no apology for it sounding like a military operation – that's because I am totally out of practice!

Remember the days when we had a social life and family and friends came to visit? I hardly dare say this but, if all goes accordingly to plan, may be we'll be able to cook for our family and friends again – do you remember how? I'm not sure I do so the birthday menu is a dress rehearsal!

Here's Menu 2 with my notes on each course :

Menu 2

Cream Cheese & Cashew Nut Paté

with soda bread

the paté should be as fresh as possible

so made the day before delivery, leaving only

the garnish of freshly cut chives to sprinkle

on the day

the soda bread is home-made and should be

baked on the day of delivery – looks like I'll be

up early!

Cheese, Potato and Onion pie

with coleslaw (using home-made mayo)

the pie has several elements :

baked jacket potatoes

finely diced onions, sautéed in butter

and rapeseed oil with Dijon mustard

grated cheeses – Mature Cheddar, Red

Leicester and Gruyere

each element can be prepped ahead

flaky pastry lid – pastry made ahead and

frozen

the coleslaw has a simple base, finely

shredded white cabbage, fine julienned carrots

and finely sliced spring onions – prep ahead,

bag separately, then fridge

the home-made mayo is the magical

ingredient and can be made the day before

delivery ready to incorporate and add final

seasonings, then box

Flourless Chocolate Cake

with Raspberry Coulis

dessert is easy – the cake benefits from being

made ahead, portioned and frozen

and the coulis can be frozen too

Me and my big mouth! Suddenly I'm alarmed at the thought of pulling this together - what began with “treats” has now morphed into a three course supper!

Next up … the “to do” list

I've decided …

to carry on where I left off, sort of!

6^th January is the first birthday on my list, the Wednesday as the lockdown is introduced. My

friend Phyl lives locally and I hadn't got much time – hokey pokey I thought! I'd given her Rocky Road for Christmas which was very well received so it made sense to stick to the theme – I had to work fast – fortunately it's not complicated and I reminded myself when I went on a rummage that I had these small, neat trays which would be perfect.

Here's the tray :

Here's the tray full of hokey pokey :

Here's it is, bagged, with a bow too :

I delivered the gift on Tuesday, phew, that was close.

I received a lovely email from Phyl - “Thank you so much for the hokey pokey it is delicious. I had a fab day x”

It might not seem like anything huge in the birthday gift department – it was meant to make my friend smile and to let her know I'd thought about her birthday. Job done I think!

Where possible within the constraints I'll continue to make stuff for gifts if they can be delivered safely.

I've decided too that there will now be a “treat for the week” included in my menu ideas … up next

Birthday Dessert step by step photo guide – Part II

Add the raspberries

then the ice cream

have a look at a side view – it shows the almond cake

soaked in the juice from the raspberries

Ta dah – decorated with the crushed Amaretti

biscuits

Needless to say it was well received – and the reason I made enough for two – it's like having two slices of birthday cake.

The verdict … five stars and both servings demolished – not on the same day!

Birthday dessert – step by step photo guide – Part I

the Financier – cubed

the Amaretti biscuit

Amaretti biscuit crushed to a rubble

cubed cake in glass dish drizzled with juice

Part II on its way …

Birthday Dessert – Hints and tips

Note to self - I've learnt from experience that I'll always serve a dessert like this twice so I'll make sure I've sufficient ingredients to do just that.

I defrosted 250g of frozen raspberries and I didn't add any sugar, I wanted the pure, sharp raspberry juice.

The box of strawberry ice cream would certainly give me two scoops – tick.

A glass serving dish to serve – another tick.

I crushed 4 Amaretti biscuits in a “Bacofoil SafeLoc” bag – they each weigh 25g approximately and measure 4.5cms/1¾”. Bacofoil SafeLoc bags are really strong bags suitable for food and the freezer – yet another tick.

A financier weighs 25g and I used two cakes for each portion. Cut in half lengthways and then cut into small cubes – you'll get 12 small cubes per financier – 1cm x 2cm/½”x¾” . Place in the bottom of your glass dish. Drizzle the raspberry juice over the cake. You can do this ahead, cling film and fridge.

When you're ready to serve add half of the raspberries on top of the cake. Add one scoop of ice cream and then decorate with the crushed Amaretti biscuits.

Almond and raspberry are a match made in heaven. You have almond in the Financier and of course your Amaretti biscuits. Sharp raspberries and creamy home-made strawberry ice cream topped off with a crunch of the biscuits. What's not to love.

I didn't have to make a trip to shop for the dessert, it was in my freezer and my pantry.

I buy my financiers in bulk – Maison Jacquemart Les Petits Financiers – aka French Almond Cakes from Alma Trading Limited 24x25g cakes £11.99.

You can buy smaller quantities Bonne Maman have bags of 7 x 175g, normally £2. Available in Waitrose.

You could of course make your own but for me it's a really great product that has many uses and a long shelf life so perfect for the pantry.

A step by step Birthday dessert photo guide is up next!

Birthday Cake or Birthday Dessert?

We don't really do birthday cake in our house – I mentioned in the Dorset Apple Cake aka Comfort Cake series that we don't like light and fluffy.

It was H's birthday and he gets to decide his menu. Strangely he asked for salad … albeit my version of salad but that's another story. When I asked him about dessert he said I'd like one of yours please.

“One of mine” means an invention, which sounds too grand. Fruit is a particular favourite, especially soft fruit like raspberries and he also likes cake, biscuits and ice cream, obviously not all at the same time … or so I thought.

It's time for a treasure hunt!

H's birthday dessert came from my pantry and my freezer so I've decided to share it with you - I think you might find it useful.

My treasure hunt worked, it's amazing what you find when you look.

In my freezer I had the last box of home-made strawberry ice cream. Not a bad place to begin. I had frozen raspberries too – frozen raspberries vary considerably so you may need to shop around but if you can get decent quality with whole fruit, perfect. At the moment you can just about get the tail end of the season.

Now for the pantry.

Another of my pantry secrets … I have a bag of financiers – a must have standby. These individually wrapped treasures are sweet almond cakes, very handy to have around.

My other “go-to” stand-by stash is a bag of Amaretti biscuits.

Now I have an idea – this is like “Lego” only building with food!

Here's how it went

Silence is always a good sign, followed by a “wow” - then Dil said “would it be allowed – can I drink the sauce – it's too good to leave?” backed up swiftly by everyone else! It may not be etiquette but, “my house, my rules” - yes, of course!

I first used the Marsala sauce with Another idea … for a starter, supper or dinner party and Surf and Turf continued in December 2018. I used frozen scallops (200g) and frozen cooked king prawns (250g) both from Waitrose. The scallops were smaller than average (Queen scallops) and so were perfect for my dish.

Defrost both in separate covered boxes in the fridge. My only task before we left to go out for breakfast!

Note to self – add the Marsala sauce to your “Recipe Reservoir” - it's excellent!

Here's a photo of the dish and the pastry fork – the dish measures 19cmsx11.5cmsx3.5cms (7¼x4½x1¼”)

Here's Rose – after her shower and relaxing!

Four clean dishes and forks, main course next, but not until 7.30ish.

Another milestone birthday!

Have you ever noticed how milestone birthdays and big celebrations always seem to come in the same year. Whilst my recent birthday was not a biggie the next one was - H's eldest Son's 50^th and so we decided to push the boat out. They were coming to stay for a couple of days so a good opportunity for the four of us to celebrate.

What follows gives ideas for a slightly different way of celebrating and the emphasis is on the word “day”.

I know that the fashion seems to be big “secret” parties for family and friends people haven't seen for decades - it's whatever floats your own boat. Here's an understated, different approach.

I planned the food I wanted to serve and did as much prep as I could before they arrived.

The day began with breakfast out at Bill's. If you're not familiar, check out bills-website.co.uk for their menu and locations. What I like about this establishment is nothing appears to be a problem. Our Dil (daughter-in-law) is lactose intolerant – on arrival we were asked immediately for any dietary requirements and very quickly Dil was given a complete menu – the same as ours but obviously modified to suit – one big fat tick!

A delicious breakfast had by all, the guys went home to pick up Rose our dog and headed out for a walk – it was a beautiful day and you could have been forgiven for thinking it was Spring and not the middle of February! You will not be surprised to discover that we girls went off for a spot of retail therapy – it would be rude not to take the opportunity.

Fast forward, a great walk and successful shopping trip then a relaxing afternoon with the guys watching “petrol-head” stuff of their choice and we girls catching up big style.

I served an aperitif of choice at 5pm but no nibbles. I decided that I'd serve a starter that was easy to eat but above all quick and easy to cook. Scallops, sealed quickly on both sides on a high heat using a glug of rapeseed oil and a knob of butter with salt and pepper, then set aside on a baking tray in a warm oven whilst I repeated the exercise with king prawns and asparagus tips that I'd blanched – and added both to the baking tray.

Next, add 100g of good chicken stock to the juices in the pan to de-glaze – it should sizzle, then add 3 tbsp of Marsala followed by 30g of unsalted butter and stir for 1-2 minutes, until it thickens. Serve in practical sized dishes that have sides and make sure your servings are equal but not too big, garnish with a generous drizzle of the Marsala sauce. I served the starter with pastry forks – sounds odd but they are the perfect size to spear the scallops, prawns and asparagus.

Would you like to know how it went?