Rainbow cupcakes

Broccoli & cheese soup

It's not so sunny here in Scotland today, so a warming soup was called for. We all ate this for lunch today, with my eldest wolfing it down! Quick & easy to make too.

2 tablespoons butter

1 small onion, finely diced

1 stalk celery, finely diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

 4  heads brocolli cut into very small pieces (you want them to fit on a spoon)

500ml chicken stock

500ml milk

65g flour

100g grated cheddar cheese

Salt and white pepper

Melt butter in a pot over medium heat, add onions and celery plus a pinch of salt and pepper and cook until soft. Add garlic, cook for another minute. Add broccoli, cook for one minute, then add the chicken stock and cover. Allow the broth to come to a boil, and cook until the broccoli is soft.

Whisk together flour and milk until combined. Add this mixture to the pot, stirring gently. The soup will thicken  and once it's thick and creamy looking, add the grated cheddar. Salt and pepper to taste, serve with toast.

Pull apart Pizza Bites

I made these when I had friends over yesterday evening - and they went down very well! Easy to make too. You can make your own pizza dough, or buy a mx that you add water to, or Asda do ready rolled, ready to use pizza dough.

Pizza dough, rolled & split into 14 circles.
14 chucky cubes of mozzerella
14 slices of pepperoni
Olive oil
Parmesan, grated
Italian herbs

In the middle of each pizza dough circle, place a cube of mozzerella & 1 slice of pepperoni, then bring teh sides up to enclose the filling in a ball. place in a cake tin, with the join underneath. Place each ball nestle/squashed a little to the next one. Drizzle olive oil over the top, and sprinkle parmesan & herbs. Bake in the oven at about 190 for 20 minutes. Serve whilst warm, and dip into a tomato based sauce.

Layered vodka jelly shots

These were just for fun, when I had soem friends round for drinks. I replaced 1/3 of the cold water for vodka in each layer. Let each layer completely set before adding the next. I used a blackcurrent jelly on the bottom, lemon in the middle and raspberry on top.

Twix biscuits

These turned out quite messy but very tasty! It just a mix-up of recipes and ideas to fit with what I had in the cupboards. To make the Dulce De Leche, I boiled a tin of condensed milk in a pan of water for about 3 hours. You MUST ensure the water completly covers the can, or it will explode. I kept at least an inch of water above the can. Let it cool to room temperature before opening the can.

It's best to keep these in the fridge, as the caramel turns quite gloopy when at room temp.

200g digestive biscuits
75g butter
1 tin condensed milk made into Dulce De Leche
100g chocolate

Mix the crushed digestive with the welted butter, then push in a muffin tin, to make 12 bases for the biscuits. Put in the fridge to set. After half an hour, place a dollop of dulce de leche into each one, then put into the freezer for 2 hours. Melt the chocolate, and drizzle or pour over the top of each biscuit. Back into the fridge to set the chocolate, then they are ready to eat!

Cheats Cookies & Cream Fudge

This an easy & simple way to make soft fudge that tastes great (and amazingly sweet). I used Oreo cookies, as they seemed teh best type to go with, but you can use whichever you like. It took about 10 minutes to make and 2 hours to set. Simple!

1 tin of condensed milk
500g white chocolate
1 packet of Oreos, crushed/broken

Heat the milk & white chocolate on a low heat until it is all melted & combined. Add the crushed biscuits, and stir through. Pour into a tray lined with baking paper. Put in the fridge for 2 hours minimum, until its firmly set. Cut into chunks & enjoy!

Chicken in a garlic sauce

I found this recipe on this blog here and decided to try it out. I added mushrooms, as I wanted more vegetables. It was really tasty, my 11 year old loved it as much as I did. I served it with rice and it made a filling & satisfying meal. Its so easy to do and uses mostly storecupboard ingredients.

Ingredients (serves 2/3)

3 Chicken Breast, boneless, skinless and cubed
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Tbsp Butter
½ Large  Onion, chopped
3 Cloves Garlic, chopped
1 Bay Leaf
60ml Sherry
500ml Chicken Stock
A pinch of Paprika
Sea Salt
Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Method
In a large skillet over high heat, add 1 Tbsp of Olive oil and butter. When the butter has melted, brown the chicken in two batches. Remove and set aside.

Lower the heat and add the remaining oil. Mix in the onion and garlic. Sauté until the mixture becomes translucent.

Then turn the heat back on high and toss in the chicken, bay leaf and give it a quick stir. Add the sherry and bring it to a boil, then mix in the chicken stock. Bring the mixture to a boil again and reduce to a simmer. Cook the chicken for about 4 to 5 minutes until the sauce has thicken and season with sea salt and pepper. Remove from the heat and sprinkle some paprika and serve immediately. Serve with rice.

Honey Soy pork chops

I got some tasty looking pork chops today, and went searching for a glaze to make them even tastier. I found this one here and decied to make it, seeing as I had all the ingredients in my store cupboard. I only managed to marinate them for a few hours instead of overnight. I poured the remaining sauce left in the frying pan over the noodles & broccoli - I would definitely recommend this!

4 pork chops
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp ginger
1 tbsp garlic
1 tsp pepper

Combine all the ingredients and pour over the chops. Marinade for as long as possible, preferably overnight. Turn the chops once or twice. Heat some oil in a frying pan, and fry the chops for about 8 minutes each side, turning occasionally. Tip all the left over marinade into the pan too, it will thicken up & turn sticky. Serve with noodles & vegetables.

Graze?

Has anyone tried Graze nibble boxes? I am waiting for my first bow, which comes completely free of charge, on Thursday. Looking forward to seeing what nibbles come my way! If you would like a free box, use this code   F3FVD6 and sign up at www.graze.com
I will report back on Thursday with what delights (or disgusts?) I find in my box!

Banoffee Pie

My daughter requested a banoffee pie instead of a cake for her birthday. I'd never made one before! It was very easy to do, but it was also very sweet! Too sweet for me I think. The kids loved it though.

Ingredients

Base:

• 100g (3½oz) butter, melted
• 250g (9oz) digestive biscuits

Filling:

• 100g (3½oz) butter
• 100g (3½oz) dark brown soft sugar
• 397g can Carnation Condensed Milk

Topping:

• 4 small bananas
• 300ml carton double cream, lightly whipped
• grated chocolate

You will also need:

• 20cm (8”) loose-bottomed cake tin, greased

Method

1. To make the base, process the biscuits until crushed. Stir in the melted butter. Press the mixture into the base and 4cm (1½") up the sides of the tin. Chill the base while you make the filling.
2. To make the filling: place the butter and sugar into a non-stick saucepan over a low heat, stirring until the butter melts and the sugar dissolves. Add the condensed milk and bring gently to the boil, stirring continuously. When the caramel has started to boil, remove from the heat and pour over the biscuit base. Cool, and then leave to chill for about 1 hour, until firm.
3. To serve, remove the pie from the tin and place on a serving plate. Slice the bananas, fold half of them into the softly whipped cream and spoon over the caramel base. Decorate with the remaining bananas and finish with the grated chocolate.

Chicken & Red lentil Curry

This was a tasty & quick curry to make. Maybe too spicy for children, but it was just fine for my cant-handle-too-spicy palate.

ngredients

• 2 tbsp  Sunflower Oil
• 2  onions, finely sliced
• 2  cloves garlic, crushed
• 2 tbsp  Curry Powder
• 1 tsp  Whole Cumin
• 1 pack  Mini Chicken Fillets
• 500ml hot  Chicken Stock
• 175g  dried red lentils
• 6 tbsp  Plain Yogurt
• 50g  Cashews, unsalted, to garnish

Method

1. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large pan and add the onion. Cook for 8-10 minutes over a gentle heat, stirring occasionally, until softened. Stir in the garlic and spices, and cook for 1-2 minutes more.
2. Add the remaining oil and the chicken, and cook for 2-3 minutes each side until coated in the spice mixture. Stir in the stock and lentils, bring to the boil then cover and simmer for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally until the lentils are tender and the chicken is thoroughly cooked.
3. Stir in the  yogurt and cover, then simmer for a further 5 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, heat a small non-stick frying pan and toast the cashew nuts for 2-3 minutes, stirring regularly until they are golden brown in colour.
5. Spoon the curry into individual bowls with basmati rice, and top with the toasted cashew nuts.