Random bits and pieces – bringing you up to speed!

I said I'd let you know what Susie thought about the “Lemon Meringue and Ice twice” - well it made her giggle so that's one tick – she then took a photograph, another tick and finally nothing left in the dish, oh and by the way the photograph is for her Birthday Memory Box.

This morning's weather forecast is awful – decidedly soggy and my run is cancelled. Never let it be said that I waste any time. Normally I leave the house at 7am – it's now 9.15am and there are two tea loaves in the oven – I must have known - I soaked the fruit yesterday. There's a chicken in the slow cooker and the prawns are defrosting for the rendang curry that's for supper tonight.

Do I need to get out more? May be but I'll be glad I had something to show for my messed up morning!

Did a class this week and thought you'd be interested to know that I made a batch of the Piquant Pinwheels and froze them ahead of the game. I demonstrated making them from scratch and whilst doing so I popped the frozen pinwheels in a pre-heated oven 180fan/200c/Gas 6 for 10 minutes. It's my experience that my students enjoy sampling an appetiser with their glass of wine so I like to feed them as soon as possible! Another tip – when you bake the frozen pinwheels place them upside down on the tray – worked a treat and I served them with honey roasted beetroot, cold, on the side. For lovers of hot and cold side by side yes please.

My favourite sentence from the comments book was “Lovely way of learning to cook – watch Marion doing the work – then eat the end results.”

Most people love chocolate based desserts and so - with half a thought towards Easter and chocolate treats - what follows is the first of a few ideas.

Lunch after the rugby – on the day

Take your puff pastry sheet out of the fridge 30 minutes before required to allow it to warm up – by doing this the pastry won't tear.

You will also need 1 egg, beaten.

Using a slotted spoon remove the steak from the slow cooker and set aside in your pie dish. Drizzle 3 to 4 ladles of the gravy over the steak - you should find that it is a good consistency for a pie filling. In my opinion you then need extra gravy for the table and here it becomes a matter of how you like your gravy. My aim is to add a covering on the steak and then thicken the remainder ready to serve in a jug at the table.

If you wish to thicken your remaining gravy then slake 2 tsps of cornflour with water, bring your gravy to the boil, reduce to a simmer and add the cornflour gradually – stirring continuously, you'll achieve the thickness you prefer. Technical term of the day “slake” - the mixing of a thickening agent i.e. cornflour (or arrowroot) with water. You can leave your thickened gravy in the slow cooker until you're ready to re-heat and transfer to your serving jug later. Keep it cool and covered.

Now for the mushrooms :

250g (1 punnet) of chestnut mushrooms, trimmed

and quartered

drop of rapeseed oil and knob of unsalted butter

salt and black pepper

glug of dry sherry or red wine

Adding dry sherry or dry red wine to mushrooms brings out the flavour – you don't need to drown them in alcohol. For guidance - in my kitchen a glug is approximately 25ml.

Heat the oil and butter in a frying pan and add the mushrooms, season. Fry the mushrooms on a medium heat for 2 minutes and then add the dry sherry or red wine. Cook for a further 2 minutes allowing the sherry or wine to reduce. Add the mushrooms to the slow cooked steak and gravy. Your filling is now complete and ready for its pastry lid.

Pre-heat your oven 180fan/200c/Gas 6.

Unroll your pastry and cut to size of pie dish. Brush the edges with beaten egg and “glue” to the top of the filling. Egg wash the top of the pie and bake for 30 minutes until puffed and golden.

Here's what the pie filling looks like :

and the finished product!

Definitely up there on the easy list.

Suggestions for what to serve with the pie :

Do you love cauliflower cheese but half the family or friends love one but not the other? Here's my answer – whilst your pie and potatoes are cooking steam a whole cauliflower and serve it just as is. This is where your efforts are rewarded making the Alfredo sauce yesterday - warm it through and serve in individual jugs if you want to be cheffy or a large jug otherwise – everyone is happy!

If you want an endorsement which I appreciate you may think is biased - all I can say is that my husband “H” is honest – good or bad. Our friends liked it post rugby and the following evening I gave H and Susie Q a choice for supper – they both chose the pie - H would never opt to eat the same meal two days running – I think my case rests as the legal eagles say!

Lunch after the rugby … or

...what to do the day before you've friends arriving to watch sport of your choice (in my case it's rugby) – and you're serving lunch afterwards – you don't want to be working in the kitchen and miss all the fun – my answer - steak and mushroom pie.

This pie can be adapted to suit your own requirements – add onion, omit the mushrooms, add garlic - whatever floats your boat.

The beauty of this recipe is that by slow cooking the pie base ahead the flavours are enhanced as with a curry or a chilli.

The day before – prep your pie filling

Steak & Mushroom Pie

1kg lean braising or stewing steak – as good

a quality as you can afford cut into good size

chunks

salt and black pepper

glug of rapeseed oil

250g passata

2 x beef stock pots

Puff pastry sheet for the pie lid – for tomorrow

In a large frying pan heat the rapeseed oil and seal and season the steak in batches and set aside in your slow cooker. Don't put too much steak in the pan – you'll end up with grey unappetising steak that you've stewed! Add the stock pots to your frying pan and melt, then add the passata and mix well. Add 150 ml boiling water to loosen a little. Tip the gravy into your slow cooker with the steak. At this point you need to check the liquid level – you may need to add a drop more boiling water – your steak should be just covered.

Slow cook for 4 hours.

Turn off your slow cooker and leave it covered in a cool place. Overnight is brilliant. In readiness for tomorrow you'll need a pie dish 23x23cms – suitable for four generous portions.

Whilst you're at it and referring to my theory of cooking as much ahead as possible without any hassle – can I remind you of my meal planning stuff – and suggest you bake some potatoes – how many depends on how many you're serving. Perfect though to peel and cube the cooked potatoes and sauté tomorrow whilst your pie is cooking – meal ready in 30 minutes! In any event baked potatoes never go to waste.

I realise that this may seem completely out of whack but can I suggest you make an Alfredo sauce too – double the recipe would be good - all will be revealed. Leave it in the saucepan when cooked – cool, cover and fridge.

See you tomorrow!

A little savoury treat

Here's my latest contribution for you – it can be whatever you'd like it to be – an appetiser - a starter – or larger as part of a supper :

Piquant Pinwheels

125g diced chorizo

40g grated Parmesan

40g grated Gruyere

100g grated mature Cheddar

1 medium onion, finely diced

2 tbsp chopped flat leaf parsley or

1 tbsp dried

black pepper

1 tsp Dijon mustard

1 puff pastry sheet

1 egg, beaten

Before you begin take your pastry out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature.

You'll also need a large baking tray – 32x23 cms approximately.

Pre-heat oven 180fan/200c/Gas 6.

Fry the chorizo gently in a medium frying pan so that it surrenders its delicious oil and begins to crisp. Remove the chorizo and set aside in a bowl, then add the onion and fry gently for 2/3 minutes and add to the chorizo. At this stage I would suggest that you put both the chorizo and onion through a sieve to remove any excess oil – this is to avoid a soggy bottom! Reserve the oil. Leave to cool.

Add the mustard to the chorizo and onion and mix, then the cheeses and parsley add a twist or three of black pepper. I wouldn't add any salt since there's plenty in the cheeses and the chorizo.

On a chopping board with a damp j cloth underneath to stop it slipping, uroll your pastry lengthways and keep it on its paper. Spread your chorizo/cheese mixture over the pastry sheet leaving 3cm on the edge furthest away from you – egg wash that edge. Now for the brave bit. Using the paper roll into a large “sausage” using the egg washed edge to glue it into place. Egg wash the “sausage” and trim each end.

Cut the “sausage” in half and then again until you have 12 portions. When you're cutting do not use a “sawing” motion cut straight through – otherwise you'll tear the pastry.

Place each pastry on its side on the baking sheet so you can see the filling and the pinwheel shape. Egg wash and/or use the reserved oil to glaze, then bake for 20 minutes. Check after 15.

Here's a photo or two :

                                      

Smells yummy – hope you enjoy!

Back to reality

Why does food that's healthy and good for us look so unattractive and insipid – it's no wonder we're not impressed. It doesn't help that it's a miserable time of year.

Did you know you can buy turkey breast mince? How positively virtuous is that I hear you cry – not!

Here's my offering :

Not only cheap but cheerful too!

Serves 4

500g turkey breast mince

1 medium onion, finely chopped

glug of rapeseed oil

2 chicken stock pots

1 tsp garlic paste or 1 garlic stock pot

2 tbsp tomato paste

2 dessertspoons small chunk Branston

glug of Worcestershire Sauce

salt and black pepper

250g passata

2 large jacket potatoes, baked, peeled

if you wish, sliced thinly

50g each of Mature Cheddar and Red Leicester cheese

grated and mixed together

Pre-heat oven 180fan/200c/Gas 6.

You have options – if you are using a frying pan that is suitable to transfer to the oven then you need go no further. If not then I'd use one of my now famous foil trays – 23x23 cms approximately.

Heat the rapeseed oil gently in a medium frying pan. Add the turkey mince ensuring that you break it up – fry for 2/3 minutes to seal properly and then turn it, repeat. Add salt and black pepper.

Add the onion and garlic and fry for 2/3 minutes, stirring to combine.

Add the tomato paste and the chicken stock pots, followed by the Worcestershire Sauce, stirring to combine. Add the Branston, stir well and simmer for 5 minutes, finally add the passata mix well and heat through. Leave, covered until you're ready to roll.

If you're using a hob to oven frying pan then arrange the sliced potato over the base and then sprinkle with cheese. Cook for 30 minutes.

If you are using a foil tray then transfer the base and finish as above.

A small tip – you could decant into small foil “takeaway” type trays (with lids) and then freeze in portions if you don't need the whole batch.

The turkey breast mince is 2% fat and costs £2 for 250g packs or £3.50 for 500g packs.

My taste testers gave this a definite thumbs up!

Here's what it looks like :

More still …

There's a story here and I'll try to keep it short.

45 years ago I moved to London and began working in Mayfair and made a friend that I still have – we still spend time together even though we don't work in the same postcode any more.

Each Friday – in those days – was pay day and one of our perks was that we received Luncheon Vouchers too. We went out for lunch to the same place each week to celebrate – a great Italian Restaurant in Shepherd Market. It was not a posh place - it was family run and always busy. We chose different dishes for our main but one thing was set in stone – dessert. Each week we'd order and the waitress would call into the kitchen “Lemon Meringue and ice twice!”

It's my friend's birthday on 28^th February – I would never divulge a lady's age but to commemorate all sorts of stuff – nostalgia, friendship and the best lemon meringue I've ever tasted.

Happy Birthday Susie Q – this is for you :

Lemon Meringue and ice

Two chocolate dipped kisses

Spoonful of good quality lemon curd

A scoop of vanilla ice cream

I'll let you know what she thinks!

There's more to come …

… before we finish with sweet stuff for a while I promised there was more to come with the meringues.

The kisses can stay exactly as they are – perfect sized sweet little explosions – or, they can be added to fresh fruit and ice cream – be part of a “mess” like trifle – crumbled over the salted caramel ice cream. I have nothing against shop bought meringues at all but I will say there's a world of difference when you make your own.

If you've got the egg whites in the freezer it's half the battle for me since I don't need to faff about separating eggs. Just in case you weren't aware you can buy liquid egg whites in a carton – check out the chilled aisle for “Two Chicks free range liquid egg white” - 500g.

Whatever you decide to do it's great having your own stock of meringues.

Here's my next suggestion – dip them in melted chocolate.

150g plain chocolate – at least

50% cocoa solids

Melt the chocolate in a glass bowl over simmering water – remember the golden rule – don't let the bowl come into contact with the water.

When your chocolate has melted set it down next to your kisses :

I'd suggest you wear gloves – very gently dip the kiss into the melted chocolate – twist slightly from right to left to ensure that the kiss is coated. Lift it out of the chocolate and wait until the excess chocolate has dropped. Set aside on a tray lined with baking parchment or kitchen roll.

Here's the dipped kiss :

Lest you should think I'm wasteful – any melted chocolate left can be turned into chocolate discs – perfect to serve with your meringues and fruit and ice cream – snap in half for a chocolate decoration. Arm yourself with a sheet of baking parchment - using a dessert spoon of melted chocolate allow it to fall onto the parchment and then use the bowl of the spoon to work into a circle. There are no rules about size, thickness of chocolate or anything else – unleash your inner Jackson Pollock!

For guidance I dipped 18 kisses and had enough leftover chocolate for 8 discs – like I said it will vary – your meringues may be a different size to mine and thickness of chocolate is a personal preference.

Let the dipped kisses and discs set – NOT in the fridge – as cool a place as possible would be perfect, you can then transfer to a tightly fitting tin or a ziplok bag.

More still …