Probably a higher calorie and nutrient content than any of her food too.
Slopalong #3 She doesn't understand beans
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Ok, so I have finally caught up with this thread. It kicked off at the same time as I started a new job, so I have been BUSY. Also I quite like my grub and dislike waste, so have been a bit reluctant to make something I know I won't eat.
However, I've been inspired (not really, but you know what I mean) by the festive recipes, and I think I'm up for the white chocolate and brandy butter ice cream.
At first glance it doesn't look like any ice cream/ gelato recipe I've made before, and my teef are starting to crumble just contemplating all that sugar, but how badly wrong can you go with these ingredients? I shall tackle it tomorrow and report back with the answer.
However, I've been inspired (not really, but you know what I mean) by the festive recipes, and I think I'm up for the white chocolate and brandy butter ice cream.
At first glance it doesn't look like any ice cream/ gelato recipe I've made before, and my teef are starting to crumble just contemplating all that sugar, but how badly wrong can you go with these ingredients? I shall tackle it tomorrow and report back with the answer.
It’s a Jack Monroe one, I already had a pineapple at home
I'm about to launch into Stollen Ice cream. Wish me luck!
White chocolate and brandy butter ice cream
Part 1
Results to follow in part two!
Part 1
White chocolate - £1.65
Double cream - £1.35
Brandy butter - 58p (total cost £2.25, but you only need a quarter of the tub)
Milk - free
Sugar - free
Total cost: £3.58, if you don't include the milk and sugar that I already had, or 3/4s of the brandy butter)
Double cream - £1.35
Brandy butter - 58p (total cost £2.25, but you only need a quarter of the tub)
Milk - free
Sugar - free
Total cost: £3.58, if you don't include the milk and sugar that I already had, or 3/4s of the brandy butter)
First of all, she tells you to melt the brandy butter in the microwave for 30 seconds. No indication of power level. I put it in at 900w and have to rescue it after 20 seconds.
Then, you have to chop (or bash) the chocolate into small pieces. This is where the first dilemma arises. Does she mean pulverise into a dust (like you would if you were making a ganache) or is the aim to create chips that will stay solid in the finished product? I assume the latter, so I give the chocolate a good seeing-to with my big mezzaluna.
Now we have to combine the milk, cream, sugar and chocolate, and 'stir through'. That's far too casual a direction; what you really need to do here is stir until the sugar is dissolved. However, I'm going to pretend I don't know that, and just give it a cursory stir.
Now we add the brandy butter 'quickly to stop the cream splitting'. I'm puzzled by this, since the risk of splitting can't be high since she's told you to let the butter cool first, and in any case, I'm not sure why speed would be of the essence. What I suspect she is referring to is the fact that the butter has split; well, yes, that's a fairly unavoidable consequence of melting it. It doesn't look very appealing though...
Now it goes into the ice cream maker. I ignore the nonsense about 30 minutes clockwise and 30 minutes anticlockwise, and put it on for 60 minutes. A couple of minutes in, the chocolate pieces are building up ominously on the paddle - perhaps I should have pulverized them after all.
After only about 30 minutes churning, the ice cream maker gives out a kind of sighing sound I've never heard before, and the paddle stops. I race over, and see that it is pretty much done, so I scoop it into a plastic tub, and into the freezer to firm up.
Then, you have to chop (or bash) the chocolate into small pieces. This is where the first dilemma arises. Does she mean pulverise into a dust (like you would if you were making a ganache) or is the aim to create chips that will stay solid in the finished product? I assume the latter, so I give the chocolate a good seeing-to with my big mezzaluna.
Now we have to combine the milk, cream, sugar and chocolate, and 'stir through'. That's far too casual a direction; what you really need to do here is stir until the sugar is dissolved. However, I'm going to pretend I don't know that, and just give it a cursory stir.
Now we add the brandy butter 'quickly to stop the cream splitting'. I'm puzzled by this, since the risk of splitting can't be high since she's told you to let the butter cool first, and in any case, I'm not sure why speed would be of the essence. What I suspect she is referring to is the fact that the butter has split; well, yes, that's a fairly unavoidable consequence of melting it. It doesn't look very appealing though...
Now it goes into the ice cream maker. I ignore the nonsense about 30 minutes clockwise and 30 minutes anticlockwise, and put it on for 60 minutes. A couple of minutes in, the chocolate pieces are building up ominously on the paddle - perhaps I should have pulverized them after all.
After only about 30 minutes churning, the ice cream maker gives out a kind of sighing sound I've never heard before, and the paddle stops. I race over, and see that it is pretty much done, so I scoop it into a plastic tub, and into the freezer to firm up.
Results to follow in part two!
Stollen Ice Cream
First of all, Jack can't spell panettone, so there's that. 1 N, 2 Ts, Jack, like cuntt.
I separated my yolks from my whites (although lazily, so there is a bit of white left). They looked sad in my big mixing bowl.
I then had to beat until "creamy", which is not something I've ever heard used to describe egg yolks. Fluffy, yes; creamy, no.
I whisked them until they were well-whisked, what can I say? I was then instructed to add the sugar and beat until well-combined.
Is this what she meant when she was talking about creamy? I beat this a lot with an electric whisk, but as you can see from the bowl and the spatula, this is still grainy. I didn't try it because it's raw egg and sugar, but I don't imagine that texturally, it would be pleasant.
Jack then tells me to add the cream; not incrementally, or anything, but just add it so I slop it in.
Then comes the whisking, which took forever. I used an electric whisk and it felt like universes were born in the time it took to whisk to soft peaks.
I now was instructed to add the panettone. I'm not sure Jack has ever eaten panettone. The reason I say this is because she suggests thinly slicing it and then cutting it into pieces, and as anyone who has eaten panettone knows, this just produces panettone dust and is, in essence, impossible. I resorted to just breaking it with my fingers like an animal.
At this point, I chucked it in an old Carte D'or tub (fancy), and went out to watch my daughter in her choir concert, hoping the ice cream would freeze while we were out.
I still don't know when to add the salt because Jack never told me to.
I have sent £50 to Refuge, who run the National Domestic Abuse Helpline.
These are Jack's ingredients:
Here are mine:
Jack says that stollen and panettone are interchangeable, so I am using some panettone leftover from my office Christmas coffee morning on Friday - £2.50
Bag of sugar - £2.39 (I needed sugar anyway, so this wasn't an annoying purchase, but still)
Cream - £1.35
Eggs - £1.50
Pinch of salt - free (although watch this space)
£7.74 outlay. Probably could have been less if the Morrisons near me had anything other than Silver Spoon sugar, and I'd got cheaper eggs.
Here are mine:
Jack says that stollen and panettone are interchangeable, so I am using some panettone leftover from my office Christmas coffee morning on Friday - £2.50
Bag of sugar - £2.39 (I needed sugar anyway, so this wasn't an annoying purchase, but still)
Cream - £1.35
Eggs - £1.50
Pinch of salt - free (although watch this space)
£7.74 outlay. Probably could have been less if the Morrisons near me had anything other than Silver Spoon sugar, and I'd got cheaper eggs.
First of all, Jack can't spell panettone, so there's that. 1 N, 2 Ts, Jack, like cuntt.
I separated my yolks from my whites (although lazily, so there is a bit of white left). They looked sad in my big mixing bowl.
I then had to beat until "creamy", which is not something I've ever heard used to describe egg yolks. Fluffy, yes; creamy, no.
I whisked them until they were well-whisked, what can I say? I was then instructed to add the sugar and beat until well-combined.
Is this what she meant when she was talking about creamy? I beat this a lot with an electric whisk, but as you can see from the bowl and the spatula, this is still grainy. I didn't try it because it's raw egg and sugar, but I don't imagine that texturally, it would be pleasant.
Jack then tells me to add the cream; not incrementally, or anything, but just add it so I slop it in.
Then comes the whisking, which took forever. I used an electric whisk and it felt like universes were born in the time it took to whisk to soft peaks.
I now was instructed to add the panettone. I'm not sure Jack has ever eaten panettone. The reason I say this is because she suggests thinly slicing it and then cutting it into pieces, and as anyone who has eaten panettone knows, this just produces panettone dust and is, in essence, impossible. I resorted to just breaking it with my fingers like an animal.
At this point, I chucked it in an old Carte D'or tub (fancy), and went out to watch my daughter in her choir concert, hoping the ice cream would freeze while we were out.
I still don't know when to add the salt because Jack never told me to.
Visual appeal: It's just lumpy ice cream, isn't it?
Texture: Not actually as gritty as I anticipated. I also don't understand what she expected the panettone to be other than wet? It's just wet bread bits but cold. Maybe stollen works better because it's denser to begin with, I don't know. I know other people have done mince pie ice cream well etc. so I suppose the theory is there, but the outcome is poor.
Taste: It's very eggy. Not so much so that you can't eat it, but enough that you're aware of the egg taste, and to start wondering about freezing temperatures and food poisoning. I had a quick peruse of some other ice cream recipes (the one I use has condensed milk and cream, no egg) because I have a suspicion that you're supposed to temper and cook egg-based ice creams. This vanilla one from the BBC did as I would expect: the egg yolks are tempered and then cooked into a custard. Likewise this one. There are also 3 egg yolks to almost-double the liquid in the BBC one in comparison to Jack's. This might be why the egg is so strong.
It's also SO sweet. Referring to that BBC one, it's the same amount of sugar for half the liquid, plus then the dried fruit etc. It probably didn't help that I necked a large glass of red wine with it, but I'm already reaching for the Gaviscon. Frauen over a certain age, avoid it.
Just a bit much. It's not the worst thing she's invented (omg looking at you, stretchy hummus) but it's really not great, either. If the inhabitants of Owl Towers all succumb to food poisoning this week, you know who to blame.
Overall: 2 - Terrible. Also, when do I add the salt, Jack?
Texture: Not actually as gritty as I anticipated. I also don't understand what she expected the panettone to be other than wet? It's just wet bread bits but cold. Maybe stollen works better because it's denser to begin with, I don't know. I know other people have done mince pie ice cream well etc. so I suppose the theory is there, but the outcome is poor.
Taste: It's very eggy. Not so much so that you can't eat it, but enough that you're aware of the egg taste, and to start wondering about freezing temperatures and food poisoning. I had a quick peruse of some other ice cream recipes (the one I use has condensed milk and cream, no egg) because I have a suspicion that you're supposed to temper and cook egg-based ice creams. This vanilla one from the BBC did as I would expect: the egg yolks are tempered and then cooked into a custard. Likewise this one. There are also 3 egg yolks to almost-double the liquid in the BBC one in comparison to Jack's. This might be why the egg is so strong.
It's also SO sweet. Referring to that BBC one, it's the same amount of sugar for half the liquid, plus then the dried fruit etc. It probably didn't help that I necked a large glass of red wine with it, but I'm already reaching for the Gaviscon. Frauen over a certain age, avoid it.
Just a bit much. It's not the worst thing she's invented (omg looking at you, stretchy hummus) but it's really not great, either. If the inhabitants of Owl Towers all succumb to food poisoning this week, you know who to blame.
Overall: 2 - Terrible. Also, when do I add the salt, Jack?
I have sent £50 to Refuge, who run the National Domestic Abuse Helpline.
White chocolate and brandy butter ice cream
Part 2: The Verdict
For context, that's a small bowl and a teaspoon. I didn't think I was going to want to eat this by the bucketload.
It was.....ok. The texture of the ice cream itself was better than I thought it would be, although it didn't have the creaminess of a custard -based ice cream. The white chocolate was a complete waste of time and money - you can't taste delicate flavours at low temperatures, so it was just an unpleasant sensation of claggy fat in the mouth. I couldn't really taste the brandy butter - maybe the faintest aftertaste, but I don't think I'd have picked up on it if I didn't know it was in there.
Results
Ingredients - not very many, and mostly easy to find. I'm not going to mark her down for the fact that my local Morrison's inexplicably didn't have ordinary white chocolate. Brandy butter is a bit niche, but it was supposed to be a 'using up' recipe, so fair enough. Overall: a respectable 3.
Recipe - not too bad. 30 seconds was too long to microwave the brandy butter, and she should have specified stirring long enough to dissolve the sugar, and what size to chop the chocolate. Also, it didn't need anything like an hour to churn. But overall, pretty easy to follow. Another 3.
Visual appeal - Better when finished than during the process. 3 again.
Texture - badly let down by the claggy chocolate chunks. 2.
Taste - in itself, not terrible. Nondescript sweetness. But since neither of the named ingredients were really discernable, I can't give it more than a 2.
Overall - it's edible, maybe even mildly pleasant. But it's a waste of the two main ingredients. You could make a custard -based vanilla ice cream for about the same price if you didn't use the white chocolate and brandy butter and spent the money on eggs and a vanilla pod instead, and it would be so much nicer. Or you could have chucked in some brandy-soaked raisins to accentuate the brandy flavour. I will eat it again, but I'll probably drown it in espresso, affogato-style, which isn't the greatest of compliments. 2.5
Someone enjoyed it, apparently. But he's basically a dustbin with whiskers, so I wouldn't place too much credence on his verdict.
I will be making a donation to the local food bank next time I'm in town (quaintly, it doesn't accept money donations except by cheque! I looked at another local alternative, but it was Trussell Trust so.....no.)
Part 2: The Verdict
For context, that's a small bowl and a teaspoon. I didn't think I was going to want to eat this by the bucketload.
It was.....ok. The texture of the ice cream itself was better than I thought it would be, although it didn't have the creaminess of a custard -based ice cream. The white chocolate was a complete waste of time and money - you can't taste delicate flavours at low temperatures, so it was just an unpleasant sensation of claggy fat in the mouth. I couldn't really taste the brandy butter - maybe the faintest aftertaste, but I don't think I'd have picked up on it if I didn't know it was in there.
Results
Ingredients - not very many, and mostly easy to find. I'm not going to mark her down for the fact that my local Morrison's inexplicably didn't have ordinary white chocolate. Brandy butter is a bit niche, but it was supposed to be a 'using up' recipe, so fair enough. Overall: a respectable 3.
Recipe - not too bad. 30 seconds was too long to microwave the brandy butter, and she should have specified stirring long enough to dissolve the sugar, and what size to chop the chocolate. Also, it didn't need anything like an hour to churn. But overall, pretty easy to follow. Another 3.
Visual appeal - Better when finished than during the process. 3 again.
Texture - badly let down by the claggy chocolate chunks. 2.
Taste - in itself, not terrible. Nondescript sweetness. But since neither of the named ingredients were really discernable, I can't give it more than a 2.
Overall - it's edible, maybe even mildly pleasant. But it's a waste of the two main ingredients. You could make a custard -based vanilla ice cream for about the same price if you didn't use the white chocolate and brandy butter and spent the money on eggs and a vanilla pod instead, and it would be so much nicer. Or you could have chucked in some brandy-soaked raisins to accentuate the brandy flavour. I will eat it again, but I'll probably drown it in espresso, affogato-style, which isn't the greatest of compliments. 2.5
Someone enjoyed it, apparently. But he's basically a dustbin with whiskers, so I wouldn't place too much credence on his verdict.
I will be making a donation to the local food bank next time I'm in town (quaintly, it doesn't accept money donations except by cheque! I looked at another local alternative, but it was Trussell Trust so.....no.)
Yes, absolutely. I have never seen a custard - based ice cream made like this. Normally you would whisk the eggs and sugar together (no need to whisk the yolks separately first), heat the cream/ milk, then pour it on to the eggs, return to the pan and cook, stirring, over a low heat until you have a custard. The way she's done it, those eggs are raw. Really hope there is no food poisoning in the Owl household this week, though as you must all be accustomed to eating raw mice and shrews I expect your constitutions will be resilient.
Update: I am reducing my score for the ice cream to 1 because Mr Owl and I are both suffering from a heartburn that he described as "on a par with the fires of hell."
Hi sloppers
Nothing in these threads has convinced me to have a go at my own slop-along but I did put a tenners worth of Xmas treats in the local food bank collection at Tesco today so that’s my contribution sorted. I hope poorly owls feel better soon.
Nothing in these threads has convinced me to have a go at my own slop-along but I did put a tenners worth of Xmas treats in the local food bank collection at Tesco today so that’s my contribution sorted. I hope poorly owls feel better soon.
Hi guys
my £10 Xmas dwp payment came in, so I chose Little Sprouts, in Stockton On Tees, partly for the name and also coz I think Stockton is quite deprived
my £10 Xmas dwp payment came in, so I chose Little Sprouts, in Stockton On Tees, partly for the name and also coz I think Stockton is quite deprived
In lieu of actually *creating* a slop because I'm a coward, I popped some lovely non-slop into the food bank donation box yesterday, including some posh biscuits because it's bloody well Christmas.
Ho ho ho!
Ho ho ho!
I thought I’d make the courgette and cheese bread as it’s from the shiny and new book.
Here's the recipe from Grifty Kitchen, I know nowt about baking but can spot two huge errors
It's ones we've seen before in these threads, how in the duck can she make the same mistakes over and over again?
There's 5 full Grifty Kitchen recipes from the Google books preview, if anyone else wants to try something hot off the presses
An ideal use for past-their-best bananas, these pancakes are delicious on their own, drenched in syrup, with a little chocolate, or topped with frozen, fresh or tinned fruit. I've tested this recipe over the years with various plant-based milks and can confirm it works well with oat, soya, coconut, almond, cashew, hazelnut, hemp and rice milk, if dairy milk isn't your kind of thing. It also works with tinned coconut milk and UHT milk if you find yourself in need of pancakes in a post-apocalyptic wasteland. I guess I like to prepare snacks for all eventualities.
SERVES 2-4
2 bananas, including peel
2 tbsp oil
100ml milk or plant-based equivalent
100g self-raising flour
Finely slice your bananas and pop them into a mixing bowl, along with 1 tablespoon of the oil and your milk. Mash with a fork or masher to a smooth pulp, beating well with the tines (prongs) of the fork to knock out any lumps. Very finely slice the banana peel and add that too. If you have a small bullet blender, mini chopper or food processor you may wish to put the banana flesh and peel in and whizz it up to smooth, if the idea of eating banana peel is one you need to smuggle past your household, for example!
Add your flour and beat well to combine to a thick smooth batten
Heat the remaining oil in a frying pan and dollop the batter in 2 tablespoons at a time. Fry for a few minutes on each side until golden and crisp at the edges, carefully turning over halfway through. Repeat until all of the batter is used, then serve immediately.
TO KEEP: Leftovers will keep, covered, in the fridge for 2 days, or the freezer for 3 months. Warm through completely to serve.
SERVES 2-4
2 bananas, including peel
2 tbsp oil
100ml milk or plant-based equivalent
100g self-raising flour
Finely slice your bananas and pop them into a mixing bowl, along with 1 tablespoon of the oil and your milk. Mash with a fork or masher to a smooth pulp, beating well with the tines (prongs) of the fork to knock out any lumps. Very finely slice the banana peel and add that too. If you have a small bullet blender, mini chopper or food processor you may wish to put the banana flesh and peel in and whizz it up to smooth, if the idea of eating banana peel is one you need to smuggle past your household, for example!
Add your flour and beat well to combine to a thick smooth batten
Heat the remaining oil in a frying pan and dollop the batter in 2 tablespoons at a time. Fry for a few minutes on each side until golden and crisp at the edges, carefully turning over halfway through. Repeat until all of the batter is used, then serve immediately.
TO KEEP: Leftovers will keep, covered, in the fridge for 2 days, or the freezer for 3 months. Warm through completely to serve.
This is one of my son's favourite breakfasts; it feels super luxurious but it's really cheap and simple! If you can't spare the milk you can make it with all water instead, just stir it well to release the creamy starches from the oats and it'll be absolutely grand. If bacon isn't your thing, salted peanuts or other nuts make for a fine equivalent.
SERVES 2
100g porridge oats
300ml milk, or your fave equivalent
300ml water
1/2 x 415g tin of pears, plus the juice
50g cooking bacon or other bacon
1 tbsp oil or fat
1 tbsp sugar (optional)
a pinch of ground cinnamon (optional)
Measure the porridge oats into a small saucepan and add the milk and water Strain your pears, reserving the juice or syrup from the tin, and pour this into the porridge pan. Place on a high heat on the smallest hob ring for a few minutes until it comes to the boil, then reduce the heat right down to a simmer for 10-12 minutes, stirring intermittently to prevent the oats catching and burning on the bottom of the pan.
Dice the pears and roughly chop your bacon, then toss both into a frying pan, along with the oil, and also the sugar and cinnamon, if using. Place on a high heat on a large hob ring to sear and caramelize, which should take 4-5 minutes.
Serve the porridge hot with the pears and bacon (or nuts!) scattered on top.
TO KEEP: Leftovers can be stored in the fridge and used within 2 days, but they will thicken a considerable amount due to the starches in the oats, so thin any leftover mixture well before refrigerating. Warm through in the microwave or on the hob and serve piping hot.
SERVES 2
100g porridge oats
300ml milk, or your fave equivalent
300ml water
1/2 x 415g tin of pears, plus the juice
50g cooking bacon or other bacon
1 tbsp oil or fat
1 tbsp sugar (optional)
a pinch of ground cinnamon (optional)
Measure the porridge oats into a small saucepan and add the milk and water Strain your pears, reserving the juice or syrup from the tin, and pour this into the porridge pan. Place on a high heat on the smallest hob ring for a few minutes until it comes to the boil, then reduce the heat right down to a simmer for 10-12 minutes, stirring intermittently to prevent the oats catching and burning on the bottom of the pan.
Dice the pears and roughly chop your bacon, then toss both into a frying pan, along with the oil, and also the sugar and cinnamon, if using. Place on a high heat on a large hob ring to sear and caramelize, which should take 4-5 minutes.
Serve the porridge hot with the pears and bacon (or nuts!) scattered on top.
TO KEEP: Leftovers can be stored in the fridge and used within 2 days, but they will thicken a considerable amount due to the starches in the oats, so thin any leftover mixture well before refrigerating. Warm through in the microwave or on the hob and serve piping hot.
Firstly, a confession. This recipe is a twist on an Italian classic, pappa al pomodoro, which is essentially a bread-crust and tomato soup, with olive oil, salt and pepper, and sometimes garlic and basil or rosemary — depending on whose recipe you consider to be sacred. This version eschews the traditional, using dried stuffing crumbs to replace the bread and herbs. But Stuffing Crumb and Tomato Puree Soup didn't seem like a particularly appetizing recipe name, so I translated it into Italian as a nod to the original.
MAKES ENOUGH FOR 3 LITTLE MUGS, OR 1 GENEROUS PORTION
1/2 small onion
1 tbsp cooking oil
black pepper, to taste
2 medium-sized tomatoes
1 vegetable stock cube
2 tbsp sage and onion stuffing
300-400ml water
30g or 2 tbsp tomato puree
1 tsp light-coloured vinegar, white wine or cider are best but distilled malt vinegar will also work
1 tsp sugar or sweetener of choice
First peel and finely slice your onion and set to one side for a moment.
Measure the oil into a heavy-bottomed saucepan, preferably a non- stick one, and warm it for a moment on a medium heat before adding the onion. Season with a little black pepper and cook for 3—4 minutes, until starting to soften.
Quarter your tomatoes and add those too — when feeling meticulous I confess I cut them into eight apiece, but this may be a step too far for some people.
Crumble over the stock cube, add the stuffing and a splash of the waten Stir well, then add the tomato puree and stir again to incorporate it. Slowly add the remaining water and a scant teaspoon each of vinegar and sugar.
Bring to a simmer, then turn down the heat and continue to cook for around 20 minutes, until the stuffing has swollen and the soup is glossy and thick.
Taste it and adjust the seasoning to your liking before serving.
TO KEEP: This will keep in the fridge for 3 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months. You may wish to add a splash more liquid if freezing, as I find some dishes go a bit 'thick' in the freezer, so I tend to loosen them a little before storing. Defrost thoroughly and reheat to piping hot throughout to serve.
MAKES ENOUGH FOR 3 LITTLE MUGS, OR 1 GENEROUS PORTION
1/2 small onion
1 tbsp cooking oil
black pepper, to taste
2 medium-sized tomatoes
1 vegetable stock cube
2 tbsp sage and onion stuffing
300-400ml water
30g or 2 tbsp tomato puree
1 tsp light-coloured vinegar, white wine or cider are best but distilled malt vinegar will also work
1 tsp sugar or sweetener of choice
First peel and finely slice your onion and set to one side for a moment.
Measure the oil into a heavy-bottomed saucepan, preferably a non- stick one, and warm it for a moment on a medium heat before adding the onion. Season with a little black pepper and cook for 3—4 minutes, until starting to soften.
Quarter your tomatoes and add those too — when feeling meticulous I confess I cut them into eight apiece, but this may be a step too far for some people.
Crumble over the stock cube, add the stuffing and a splash of the waten Stir well, then add the tomato puree and stir again to incorporate it. Slowly add the remaining water and a scant teaspoon each of vinegar and sugar.
Bring to a simmer, then turn down the heat and continue to cook for around 20 minutes, until the stuffing has swollen and the soup is glossy and thick.
Taste it and adjust the seasoning to your liking before serving.
TO KEEP: This will keep in the fridge for 3 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months. You may wish to add a splash more liquid if freezing, as I find some dishes go a bit 'thick' in the freezer, so I tend to loosen them a little before storing. Defrost thoroughly and reheat to piping hot throughout to serve.
I use a combination of grated root vegetables and vegetable peelings for these, the ratio varying depending on how much of the latter I have to hand. You can use any mixture of potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, parsnips and beetroot - although some of those are naturally grubbier than the others, so proceed with caution! Courgette makes a jolly accompaniment as well - a good variety of colours makes these really rather gorgeous to look at.
SERVES 4
400g mixed root vegetables and peels
1 large onion
1 egg
3 tbsp flour
70g cheese, grated
salt and black pepper, to taste
oil, for frying
First, make sure your peels are clean - if they're a bit mucky, bring a pan of water to a vigorous boil, salt it very generously, and drop them in for a minute or two to blanch and loosen the soil. Drain and spread onto a clean, flat tea towel, and rub dry vigorously to remove any stubbom bits. Plunge straight into a bowl of cold water to stop them from cooking any further - you don't want them to be too far gone in comparison to your veg, else the fritters will cook unevenly.
Finely slice your peels, and grate the veg. Then peel and finely chop the onion and place it with the veg and peels into a large mixing bowl.
Crack in the egg and mix well, then add the flour and cheese and mix well to combine. If it needs a hand sticking together, add a tablespoon of cold water and mix again.
Heat a little oil in a frying pan, and add a tablespoon of the fritter mixture. Flatten with the back of a spoon - the thinner they are, the faster they will cook and the crisper they will be. Fry on each side until golden and crisp. Remove from the pan and keep warm.
Repeat until all the fritter mixture has been used. To keep each batch warm as you cook the rest, put them in the oven, heated to the lowest temperature.
I serve these for breakfast with sausages and a poached or fried egg, as a sneaky pile of vegetables and vitamins to start the day, hidden in a tasty Jackson Pollock-esque hot and crispy disguise.
TO KEEP: These freeze brilliantly and can be kept for up to 3 months - you can freeze either the fritter mixture or the cooked fritters. Allow to defrost completely in the fridge for a few hours before cooking or heating through to serve.
SERVES 4
400g mixed root vegetables and peels
1 large onion
1 egg
3 tbsp flour
70g cheese, grated
salt and black pepper, to taste
oil, for frying
First, make sure your peels are clean - if they're a bit mucky, bring a pan of water to a vigorous boil, salt it very generously, and drop them in for a minute or two to blanch and loosen the soil. Drain and spread onto a clean, flat tea towel, and rub dry vigorously to remove any stubbom bits. Plunge straight into a bowl of cold water to stop them from cooking any further - you don't want them to be too far gone in comparison to your veg, else the fritters will cook unevenly.
Finely slice your peels, and grate the veg. Then peel and finely chop the onion and place it with the veg and peels into a large mixing bowl.
Crack in the egg and mix well, then add the flour and cheese and mix well to combine. If it needs a hand sticking together, add a tablespoon of cold water and mix again.
Heat a little oil in a frying pan, and add a tablespoon of the fritter mixture. Flatten with the back of a spoon - the thinner they are, the faster they will cook and the crisper they will be. Fry on each side until golden and crisp. Remove from the pan and keep warm.
Repeat until all the fritter mixture has been used. To keep each batch warm as you cook the rest, put them in the oven, heated to the lowest temperature.
I serve these for breakfast with sausages and a poached or fried egg, as a sneaky pile of vegetables and vitamins to start the day, hidden in a tasty Jackson Pollock-esque hot and crispy disguise.
TO KEEP: These freeze brilliantly and can be kept for up to 3 months - you can freeze either the fritter mixture or the cooked fritters. Allow to defrost completely in the fridge for a few hours before cooking or heating through to serve.
This recipe is just a handful of simple store-cupboard ingredients, but it really is so much more than the sum of its parts. Super easy to throw together, and deliciously comforting. If you don't have cannellini beans to hand, any pale-coloured beans will do: try white kidney beans, chickpeas, butter beans, pinto beans, haricot beans, or even standard cheap baked beans with the tomato sauce rinsed off at a pinch.
SERVES 2
1 x 400g tin of cannellini beans
2 chicken stock cubes
1 tbsp lemon juice
plenty of black pepper
Open the tin of cannellini beans and tip the entire contents, including the liquid, into a medium saucepan. Crumble in the stock cube, then fill the tin halfway with cold water and add that too. Add the lemon juice and plenty of black pepper.
Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer for 20 minutes, until the beans are very soft.
Decant the contents of the pan into a blender and blend to smooth - or if you prefer a chunky soup, blend half of it and leave half as it is.
Return the blended soup to the pan and simmer for a further 10 minutes to thicken, then serve with more lemon juice and pepper to taste.
TO KEEP: Leftovers will keep in an airtight jar or container in the fridge for up to 3 days, or in the freezer for 6 months. Defrost in the fridge overnight and reheat to piping hot to serve.
SERVES 2
1 x 400g tin of cannellini beans
2 chicken stock cubes
1 tbsp lemon juice
plenty of black pepper
Open the tin of cannellini beans and tip the entire contents, including the liquid, into a medium saucepan. Crumble in the stock cube, then fill the tin halfway with cold water and add that too. Add the lemon juice and plenty of black pepper.
Bring to the boil, then reduce to a simmer for 20 minutes, until the beans are very soft.
Decant the contents of the pan into a blender and blend to smooth - or if you prefer a chunky soup, blend half of it and leave half as it is.
Return the blended soup to the pan and simmer for a further 10 minutes to thicken, then serve with more lemon juice and pepper to taste.
TO KEEP: Leftovers will keep in an airtight jar or container in the fridge for up to 3 days, or in the freezer for 6 months. Defrost in the fridge overnight and reheat to piping hot to serve.
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I’ll do the pangratatto al pomodoro, please and thank you.
My mugs are mainly regular sized, but we’ll see how it goes.
My mugs are mainly regular sized, but we’ll see how it goes.
Thank yous dear heart
Just noticed these recipes seem like typically stingy portions
More errors too, the banana peel pancakes lists "2 bananas, including peel", slice and mash but then slice and add the peel. It doesn't say to peel them first
I can't really understand why you would want or need to eat the peels, she never explains why that's a good thing?
For the courgette and cheese soda bread I'm sure she's deliberately avoided saying "make a well (a kind of hole)"
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I am going to try the chicken and cannellini soup. It sounds like a waste of ingredients, but I’m game.
Mmm lunch today kids is… blended un-rinsed (what a twist!) beans. Sure whole family will be thrilled and clapping for joy.
Mmm lunch today kids is… blended un-rinsed (what a twist!) beans. Sure whole family will be thrilled and clapping for joy.
*Waves from Billingham *