Tag Archives | Leftovers

The Fastest Cheesecake in the West

By on October 17, 2011 in Food

Yes, there is such thing as an emergency cheesecake, sometimes cheesecake is the only thing that will do.  Such it was on Saturday night – we wanted cheesecake and we wanted it fast.  You can use anything you have to flavour or decorate it; grated lemon or orange rind, grated chocolate, tinned fruit, fresh fruit, ginger, even a little peppermint then decorate it with After Eights.

If you don’t have a mini-chopper, biscuits can be crumbed by putting them in a sealed plastic bag and assaulting them with a rolling pin. You could write the name of your least favourite politician on the bag before you start thumping it.  You get everything here – recipes, therapy…

This is how I made it using things I had in the cupboard.

THE FASTEST CHEESECAKE IN THE WEST

Utensils:
1 x 7” flan dish
1 x mini chopper
1 x electric whisk
1 x medium saucepan

Ingredients:
3oz / 90g butter
4oz / 120g digestive or ginger biscuits – reduced to breadcrumbs in the mini chopper
8oz / 240g cream cheese
¼ pint / 150ml double cream – whipped
1 egg white – whisked to soft peaks
2oz icing sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Something nice to put on the top.  I had nothing so I used a bit of raspberry sauce although jam or cranberry would have worked as well

Method:
Melt the butter in a saucepan
Add the pulverised biscuits and blend well
Grease the flan dish and press the crumb mixture firmly into the bottom
Place in the fridge to chill
Fold the icing sugar gently into the egg whites
Fold the cream gently into that, then
Fold the cream cheese and vanilla extract gently into that
Spoon the cheese mixture onto the flan base
Decorate the top if you have anything
Return to the fridge until needed

Total time from fridge to gaping maw – 15 minutes

Comments { 4 }

Joy of Soup

By on October 10, 2011 in Food

Red Winter Soup

One of the lovely things about the darker nights and colder weather is that home-made soup is on the menu more often.

Tonight we had Red Winter Soup which packed full of Vitamin C to help ward off colds.

In our local Co-op this morning I found four tins of Chestnut Puree in the bargain bucket for only 34p each so I bought them all for future use in Chestnut and Bacon Soup

Pea and Ham Soup

With root vegetables becoming seasonally cheaper, lovely lentil and vegetable soups can be recycled for days.
Make a huge pot and on Day 1 cook some chops or chicken pieces in it.  On Day 2 add some sausages and on Day 3 eat it on its own with good bread and a chunk of decent cheese.

Raid your local butcher or delicatessen and ask them for ham bones for hearty Pea and Ham Soup.

There are still patches of new nettles out there

And of course, let us not forget that Halloween is coming up.  Don’t just carve pumpkins, scoop out the flesh and use it for Pumpkin Soup.

And the beauty is that most soup can be made from Storecupboard Ingredients!   Put Soup into the ‘Search’ box for more souper recipes.

Comments { 9 }

A delicious Sausage Stew

By on September 22, 2011 in Food

This is a recipe for a delicious, nutritious, easy and cheap sausage stew which is just the job for warming you up on a chilly day.  This recipe serves 6 easily and uses storecupboard ingredients.  If, as in my case, there are only 2 or 3 of you, eat the stew with the sausages on day one, then eat the rest the next day either on its own with bread and cheese or add some lamb chops, chicken legs or bits of black pudding.

SAUSAGE STEW

Utensils:
1 x large saucepan or casserole dish suitable for the hob
1 x chopping board
1 x vegetable peeler

Ingredients:
a little oil
8 good sausages
1 medium onion – chopped
1 small swede or half a big one – peeled & cubed
3 medium parsnips – peeled & cubed
3 medium carrots – chopped into chunks
2 medium potatoes – chopped into chunks (I leave the skins on)
1 can of chopped tomatoes
1 pint of stock – I made half beef and half chicken
1 heaped tablespoon of tomato puree
1 tablespoon mixed herbs
1 flat tablespoon paprika
1 tin of baked beans
seasoning to taste

Method:
Heat the oil in a saucepan
Add the sausages and cooked until nicely browned
Add the onions and soften a little, adding a bit more oil if necessary
Add all the other ingredients except the baked beans
Cook on a low heat until the vegetables have softened, stirring occasionally (probably about ½ hour to 40 minutes)
Add the baked beans and cook for a further five minutes
Serve in big bowls

Comments { 8 }

Fish Cakes and Apple Crumble

By on September 9, 2011 in Food

Dinner last night was a pleasing combination of two old favourites.

Fish Cakes using up some leftover mashed potato and

Apple Crumble with my first gift of autumn apples

Although how such skinny boys can eat a cooked breakfast, have a two course lunch, a snack mid-afternoon and then a two course dinner is beyond me.  All height and feet I expect.

Comments { 13 }

Chicken Fritters

By on September 8, 2011 in Food

Tonight I needed to cook dinner, I really couldn’t be bothered and I had next to nothing in the cupboard.
But I did have half a cooked chicken and some dry goods.

I thunk and thunk and wondered what the outcome would be of making a crispy batter and shallow frying the chicken.
This is what I did and jolly nice it was too with a nice spicy aftertaste.
This serves 4 as usual.

CHICKEN FRITTERS

Dinner from bugger all

Utensils:
1 x medium mixing bowl
1 x whisk
1 x large frying pan
1 x fish slice
1 x slotted spoon
Kitchen roll / paper towel

Ingredients:
4 small chicken breasts or the equivalent cooked chicken
If using raw chicken – ¼ pint chicken stock
4oz self raising flour
½ teaspoon parsley
¼ teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon garam masala
¼ teaspoon chili powder
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon onion powder
¼ pint milk
vegetable oil for shallow frying

Method:
If using raw chicken, poach lightly in the chicken stock until cooked through and drain
Cut the chicken into chunks or strips
Put all the dry ingredients together into the bowl and blend well
Gradually whisk in the milk until it forms a thick paste
Put the chicken into the paste
Heat the oil in the frying pan until it is very hot
Fish the chicken bits out of the batter with a slotted spoon
Fry quickly in batches in the hot oil turning until the chicken is golden brown on both sides
Drain on the kitchen paper and blot to get rid of any excess oil
Serve immediately

Comments { 4 }

White Fish cooked with Humous

By on June 18, 2011 in Food

It’s all fish with me at the moment.  This recipe is really quick and tasty and full of chickpea goodness.  You can use any firm, white fish – I used Whiting because it was on special offer in Waitrose and I happened to have half a tub of humous leftover from yesterday’s lunch.  I’m afraid we had troughed it down before I remembered I should have photographed it.  Next time.

WHITE FISH WITH HUMMOUS

Utensils:
1 x frying pan

Ingredients:
1 good knob of butter (approx 2oz / 60g)
White fish fillets
Humous
Lemon Juice
1 tablespoon of fresh chopped parsley (1/2 tablespoon of dried)
Cream
Salt & Pepper

Method:
Melt the butter in the frying pan over a medium heat
Place the fish fillets in the pan
Sprinkle the fish fillets liberally with lemon juice
Sprinkle over the parsley
Give each fillet a good twist of salt and pepper
Smear 1 generous tablespoon of humous over each fillet
Cook the fish over a medium heat, turning occasionally
When the fish is cooked through add a couple of tablespoons of cream to the pan
Cook for a further 3 or 4 minutes until the sauce has thickened
Put the fish onto warmed plates, spoon the sauce over and serve with new potatoes and crisp vegetables

Comments { 2 }

Paella

By on May 24, 2011 in Food

As soon as the air warms up I start craving Paella.  The great thing about this sort of dish is that you can chuck in anything you have to hand – cod, haddock, salmon, trout, prawns, mussels, crayfish – whatever’s in the fridge or on special offer in the shops.  I could eat this every day.

PAELLA

Utensils:
1 x large frying pan or paella pan if you have one
1 x measuring jug
possibly a slotted spoon

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 good knob butter
½lb / 240g chicken (cooked or raw)
½ onion – sliced finely
4 garlic cloves – sliced finely
½ red pepper – diced
½ green pepper – diced
½lb / 240g rice
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon paprika
⅓ pint / 175ml white wine
¼ pint / 150ml boiling water
¾ pint / 450ml stock (preferably fish, if not, chicken)
½lb salmon or some firm white fish
½lb / 240g prawns
2oz / 60g peas
Salt and pepper to season

Method:
Heat oil and butter in a large pan
Cook the chicken until tender, remove using a slotted spoon, leaving the butter in the pan
(If you are using cooked chicken add this later and go straight to the onions and garlic)
Add the onion and garlic to the pan and cook until soft
Stir in the peppers and rice and cook for 2 minutes.
Stir in the herbs, spices, wine and boiling water
Simmer until all the liquid has been absorbed
Add the chicken and half the stock
Then add the fish and peas and season to taste
Add the rest of the stock and simmer until all the liquid has been absorbed.

Comments { 2 }

Orange Ice Cream

By on March 2, 2011 in Food

I seem to have ended up with a glut of oranges, I can’t quite remember why, and I needed something to do with them.  Now, this is going to sound a bit crap but, despite being very fond of oranges and their products, I absolutely hate peeling them.  I hate the bits of pith up my nails and the fact that they make my fingers sore and I don’t like the sticky, sickly smell that only occurs when someone else is peeling them.  What makes a human being think it’s ok to eat an orange on the London Underground for example?

There was a 30-second flash of sunshine yesterday, so I decided to make ice-cream.  The recipe I use calls for four egg yolks, which leaves four egg whites with which to make meringues.  Hurrah!  I have an ice cream maker which does all the churning for me.  If you don’t have one, you need to semi-freeze the ice cream, take it out, whip it again, then return it to the freezer.

Also remember, you could use lemons for a lovely tangy alternative.  Or indeed mangoes.

ORANGE ICE CREAM

Utensils:
1 x lemon squeezer or juice extractor
1 x medium bowl
1 x grater with a fine-grating side
1 x electric mixer or a wooden spoon and a firm hand
1 x small saucepan
1 x medium saucepan
1 x heatproof bowl to go on the top of it
1 x freezerproof container with a lid

Ingredients:
4 large oranges
4 egg yolks
4oz / 120g castor sugar
½ pint / 10floz / 300ml single cream
¼ pint /  5floz / 150ml double cream – lightly whipped
2oz dark chocolate drops or grated chocolate (optional)

Method:
Squeeze every drop of juice out of the oranges and put to one side
Finely grate the zest of the oranges
Put the grated zest into a heat proof bowl with the egg yolks and sugar
Beat thoroughly until slightly lighter in colour
Heat the single cream in the small saucepan until almost boiling
Stir the single cream into the egg yolk and orange zest
Place this bowl of a medium pan of simmering water
Stir until thickened, then remove from the heat
Add the orange juice, stir well, then set aside in the fridge to cool
When cold, fold the whipped double cream into the mixture
If you have an ice cream maker, put the mixture in it with the chocolate drops and let it do its work
If you don’t, pour the mixture into the freezer-proof container & put the lid on
Place in the freezer until it resembles slush
Take it out and beat it again – add the chocolate if you’re using it
Return it to the freezer with the lid on again and leave until frozen.

Remember that with home-made ice cream, you need to take it out of the freezer at least 20 minutes before you intend to use it or you will need a pneumatic drill to get it out of the tub.

Comments { 8 }

Bread Pudding

By on February 28, 2011 in Food

Bread Pudding has been around since the 11th century and is an excellent way of using up stale bread.  Nowadays, shop bought bread doesn’t go stale in the same way as home-made bread, because of the preservatives, but crusts or loaf ends sometimes get left behind, so you can use those.  I had a bag of white rolls which Boy the Elder brought back from Scout camp.  We ate a couple, but we’re not really white bread people, so they went into the bowl with some seeded, wholemeal crusts which were on the turn.

I made this yesterday evening and we had it hot for pudding with cream and then we all had a slice, cold, for breakfast.  And very nourishing it was too; bread, milk, eggs, dried fruit and not too much sugar – that’ll stick ‘em to the ground.

BREAD PUDDING

Utensils:
1 x large mixing bowl
1 x grater
1 x pair of freshly washed hands
1 x oven-proof dish, about 8×10” – buttered
Foil

Ingredients:
8oz / 240g bread
10oz / 300g dried fruit (I used raisins)
2 teaspoons mixed spice (pumpkin spice for the Colonies…)
½ pint / 300ml milk
1 large egg (or 2 bantam eggs)
3oz / 90g dark brown sugar
the grated zest of 1 orange OR lemon
3oz / 90g butter – melted
2 tablespoons demerara sugar*
a little nutmeg to taste

Method:
Pre-heat the oven to 160 / 3 / 325
Tear the bread into pieces and place in the large bowl with all the other ingredients except the butter and demerara sugar
Leave to soak for 20 minutes
Mash it all up together with your hands, squeezing and squelching until it’s well mixed
Add the melted butter and stir in well
Pour the mixture into the ovenproof dish
Sprinkle with the demerara sugar and a little nutmeg
Bake for 1 ½ hours, covering with foil for the last half hour to stop it browning too much
Cut into squares and serve hot or cold

* If you haven’t got Demerara sugar, mix 1 tablespoon of white and 1 tablespoon of dark brown sugar together

Comments { 12 }

Baked Apples stuffed with Mincemeat

By on February 7, 2011 in Food, Seasonal Fun

Like me, I bet you have at least half a jar of mincemeat left over from Christmas.  Now’s the time to use it up.  Baked apples are a wonderfully comforting pudding and can be served with fresh cream, crème fraiche, custard made with custard powder or Creme Anglaise (made from scratch).  This recipe is dead easy and quick to make.

BAKED APPLES STUFFED WITH MINCEMEAT

Utensils:
1 x ovenproof dish
1 x apple corer or sharp knife

Ingredients:
1oz / 30g butter
4 cooking apples
4 Tablespoons of mincemeat
2 tablespoons of honey or golden syrup

Method:
Preheat the oven to 180 / 360 / 4
Grease the dish with a little butter
Remove the cores from the apples
Place the apples in the dish
Fill the centre of the apples with the mincemeat
Dribble the honey or syrup over the apples
Put a little blob of butter onto each one
Put a couple of tablespoons of water into the dish
Bake for about 45 minutes or until the apple is nice and soft
Serve

Comments { 6 }