Home Made Tomato Ketchup

If you have some surplus tomatoes then this is delicious.

Ingredients

1kg of ripe tomatoes (roughly chopped)

1 carrot (chopped)

1 small onion (chopped)

1 celery stick (chopped)

Pinch of ground cloves

1 bay leaf

2 mace blades

150ml red wine vinegar

60g light soft brown sugar

Method

1. Put all the ingredients except the sugar in a heavy-based pan. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove the lid and cook for another 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

2. Discard the mace and bay leaf. Puree the mixture and then rub through a nylon sieve back into the rinsed-out pan.

3. Stir in the sugar, bring back to the boil and boil for 5 minutes, stirring all the time, until the mixture has the thickness of thick cream.

4. Pour into warm, steralized jars with vinegar-proof lids but first cover with a waxed disc, then seal up and cool.

The ketchup can be kept in a dark, cool place for about 3 months. Once opened it should be kept in the fridge and be used within 2 weeks. Shake before use.

Huevos Rancheros

I do like the occasional cooked breakfast, especially if I feel I need a bit of a kick to get me going. This is a delicious Mexican dish that can be eaten at any time. It's just that I've had it for breakfast and it was lovely.

Ingredients

1 tbsp olive oil

1 onion (chopped)

1 green pepper (deseeded and sliced)

1 garlic clove (sliced)

½ tsp crushed chilli flakes

2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes

salt and black pepper

6 eggs

100g feta cheese or Greek-style cheese (crumbled)

Method

1. Heat a wide, heavy-based pan over a medium heat. Add the olive oil and, once hot, gently fry the onion with a pinch of salt until softened and translucent. Add the green pepper, cover with a lid and gently fry for further five minutes, or until soft.

2. Once the pepper is softened, add the garlic. Cook for two minutes, then sprinkle in the chilli flakes and add the chopped tomatoes. Season with a little salt and pepper and cook over a medium-low heat for 10-15 minutes, or until the sauce is rich and flavoursome. Taste and adjust the seasoning as necessary.

3. Make six wells in the tomato mixture and break an egg into each. Cover the pan and cook gently over a low heat for 3-4 minutes, or until the whites are set (cook for a further 2-3 minutes if you like your yolks set).

4. Sprinkle with cheese and serve. 

This dish goes well with flatbreads like pitta bread or Naans.

Lemon Barley Water

We're lucky enough to have a herb and spice stall on Norwich market that sells all sorts of things that are normally quite hard to come by. Vanilla pods, dried peaches, just about every nut you can think of...and big bags of barley at a very cheap price. I bought some a few years ago and since then I've made this on a pretty regular basis.

Ingredients

2 unwaxed lemons

50g caster sugar

125g pearl barley

1.2 litres boiling water

Method

1. Finely grate the zest of the lemons and place in a large bowl with the sugar. 

2. Thoroughly rinse the barley and add to the bowl with the boiling water. Stir well and leave to cool.

3. Squeeze the juice from the lemons into the cooled barley water. Strain through a sieve into a jug and chill in the fridge.

4. Serve with ice and maybe some sprigs of mint.

Turnip 'Risotto' (serves 4 as main course)

I've often thought that the turnip gets a bit a raw deal. This dish comes from Simple Italian Cooking by Mario Batali and turns this neglected vegetable into the star of the show.

Ingredients

500ml vegetable stock

90ml olive oil

1 medium red onion (finely diced)

700g turnips (peeled and diced into 4-5mm pieces)

30g unsalted butter

20g Parmesan (grated)

Small handful of parsley leaves

Seasoning

Method

1. Heat the stock to a simmer and keep hot. Warm the olive oil in a heavy-bottomed frying pan. Toss in the onion and heat for about 10 minutes.

2. Add the turnips and cook for 2 minutes.

3. Ladle in some of the stock and cook until absorbed, stirring occasionally. Continue until the stock added (about 10-15 minutes).

4. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in the butter and Parmesan. 

5. Remove from heat, scatter with chopped parsley leaves and serve.

God's Kitchels

This is a recipe that goes back to the 14th century and has it's origins in Suffolk (although there is an equivalent in Coventry called God Cakes). It's a very simple recipe and was traditionally made by children for their parents either at Easter or the New Year. They are triangles of puff pastry with a mincemeat filling. The corners are supposed to represent the Holy Trinity.

 

It's a good way to use up any spare mincemeat you have.

Ingredients

225g puff pastry

110g mincemeat

1 egg white (beaten)

2 tsp rum or brandy (optional)

Caster sugar

Method

1. Pre-heat oven to 220°C.

2. Thinly roll out the pastry thinly on a lightly floured surface.

3. Cut into 10cm squares, cut each square in half on the diagonal to produce two triangles.

4. Mix the mincemeat with the rum or brandy (if used).

5. Place a spoonful of mincemeat on one half of the triangles.

6. Cover each with another triangle, moisten the edges with a little water and pressing firmly down to seal.

7. Brush with the beaten egg white, cut three small slits in each with a very sharp knife and sprinkle with caster sugar.

8. Place on a greased baking sheet.

9. Bake for 15 minutes or until well risen and golden.

10. Cool on a wire rack and eat as fresh as possible.

Eve's Pudding (serves 4)

There was a time when my daughter was continually bringing friends for tea. Many of them requested this pudding and I remember making this many times for groups of enthusiastic kids. Serve with custard or cream.

Ingredients

For the filling

500g cooking apples

1 tbsp of lemon juice

2 tbsp of water

20g butter

2 tbsp caster sugar

For the topping

75g butter

100g caster sugar

100g self-raising flour

2 eggs (lightly beaten)

1 tbsp boiling water

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180C.

2. Peel, core and chop the apples

3. Add the apples, lemon juice and water to saucepan. Stir and cook briskly for 5 minutes until apples are soft.

4. Add butter, caster sugar and stir.

5. Transfer to a gratin dish (900ml capacity one) and leave to cool.

6. For the topping, cream together butter and caster sugar.

7. Fold in the flour and egg in alternate spoonfuls. Be careful just to fold in rather than stirring.

8. Add spoonful of boiling water to the mix.

9. Spoon the mixture over the apples. Cook in over for about 30-35 minutes.

White Bean and Tomato Soup (Serves 4)

This is a delicious soup and very easy (and cheap) to make. Some grated Parmesan cheese and posh bread just rounds it off nicely.

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil

1 onion (sliced)

1 garlic clove (crushed

800g tinned chopped tomatoes

2x420g tins cannellini beans

1 tbsp tomato puree

600ml vegetable stock

15g fresh basil leaves (torn into bits)

1 tsp caster sugar

Method

1. Heat the oil in a large pan. Fry the onions and garlic for about 8-10 minutes.

2. Stir in the tomatoes, puree and stock. Stir and simmer for 10 minutes.

3. Add the cannellini beans and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the basil and sugar. Add seasoning to taste.

Guinness Chocolate Brownies (makes 24)

A Jack Monroe recipe. It's bloody delicious.

Ingredients

250ml Guinness

200g dark chocolate (broken into bits)

100g milk chocolate (broken into bits)

200g butter

300g sugar

3 eggs

150g flour

Method

1. Put the over on at 180C and line a small roasting tray with baking paper.

2. Pour the Guinness into a small saucepan over a low/medium heat. Put a mixing bowl on top (to act as a bain marie) and put in the dark chocolate and the butter. Occasionally stir until melted and mixed.

3. Meanwhile, beat together the eggs and sugar and beat until combined. Gradually add the flour and beat in before adding the next batch.

4. Gradually add the chocolate/butter mix. Do this in small batches and make sure all is mixed up before adding more.

5. The Guinness should have reduced to about 125ml by now. If not then allow it is slowly boil for a while longer. Don't worry if this is not exact. Round about 125ml is good enough.

6. Pour the whole lot into the roasting tray. It will look pretty runny but that's okay.

7. Put on the middle tray of the oven and cook for 40 minutes. Do not open the over door at all during this time.

8. Take out of the oven and leave to cool for at least an hour. The cooking process is still going on.

9. Slice into 24 bits and leave to cool completely.

Welsh Cakes

We had a holiday in Wales this year. When we got back home I tried a few Welsh recipes. Welsh cakes are delicious warm by themselves or with butter.

Ingredients

225g self raising flour

110g butter (diced)

85g caster sugar

Handful of sultanas

1 egg (beaten)

Milk, if needed

Method

1. Rub the flour and butter together until they resemble breadcrumbs.

2. Add the sugar, sultanas and egg and mix together to form a ball of dough. If it's too dry then add a little milk.

3. Roll the dough out to a thickness of about 5mm.

4. Cut into rounds with a 7.5-10mm cutter.

5. Rub a griddle with some butter. If you don't have a griddle then a heavy-bottomed frying pan does the trick. Heat the griddle/frying pan

6. Cook the rounds a few at a time 2-3 minutes on each side until golden brown.

7. Remove from the griddle/frying pan and dust with caster sugar.

Date and Toffee Pudding (serves 6)

One of the Two Fat Ladies, Clarissa Dickson Wright, was a big fan of puddings and once said that she had never met a man who said 'no' to a pudding. If it's this particular pudding then I wouldn't say no either. The calorie count must be pretty high but it is delicious.

Ingredients

175g dates (chopped)

125g maragarine

150g demerara sugar

1 tsp vanilla essence

1 egg

125g self-raising flour

125g wholemeal flour

1 tsp baking powder

For the toffee sauce

75g margarine

150g soft brown sugar

2 tbsps whipped cream

Method

1. Pour 1/2 pint of water over the dates and leave to stand for about an hour.

2. Cream together the margarine and sugar, then add the egg and vanilla and beat well.

3. Add the two flours and the baking powder. This will make a rather stiff mixture.

4. Add the dates and water and mix well. It now looks like a thin batter.

5. Pour into a greased dish and bake at 180C for 45 minutes.

6. Make the sauce by melting the margarine with the sugar. Add the whipped cream, stir well and do not boil. Pour the sauce over the pudding and return to the oven for 15 minutes.

Carrot, Cumin and Kidney Bean Burgers (makes 4)

I love Jack Monroe's recipes. This is the recipe that kicked off her life as a food writer/blogger. It's tasty, easy to make, very nutritious and very cheap.

 

It's best to make this a few hours in advance so that you can put the mixture in the fridge. This makes the mixture firmer and easier to roll and fry.

Ingredients

1 x 400g tin of kidney beans

1 onion (finely chopped)

1 large carrot (grated)

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tbsp vegetable oil, plus 2 tablespoons to fry the burgers

1 heaped tsp flour, plus more to shape the burgers

Method

1. Drain the kidney beans and rinse. Put into a saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 10 minutes to soften.

2. Put the onion, carrot and cumin into a frying pan. Add the splash of oil and cook on a low heat to soften. When the kidney beans have softened, drain well and add to the frying pan. Remove from the heat and mash together until it looks smooth. Stir in the flour to stiffen.

3. Heat the remaining oil in the frying pan on a medium heat. With floured hands, take a quarter of the burger mixture and roll it into a ball. Make three more balls with the remaining mixture. Place one in the oil and flatten gently with a fork to make the burger shape. 

4. Cook for a few minutes on one side before turning. When cooked and slightly crisp on both sides, remove from the pan and serve.

If you have some fresh coriander then chop some up and add at stage 2.

Norfolk Vinegar Cake

This is a local recipe for a simple fruit cake. There are no eggs as traditionally it was made when hens were not laying. It keeps for about a week and improves in flavour all the time.

Ingredients

225g butter (softened)

450g flour

225g sugar

225g raisins 

225g sultanas

250ml milk

2 tbsps wine or cider vinegar

1 tsp of bicarbonate of soda mixed with 1 tbsp of milk

Method

1. Rub the butter and flour together so that it resembles breadcrumbs.

2. Then mix in the sugar and the fruit.

3. Put the milk in a large bowl and add the vinegar. Pour in the bicarbonate/milk mixture carefully and mix together.

4. Pour into a greased 23cm (9 inch) cake tin,

5. Bake for 30 minutes at 180C. Reduce the heat to 150C and bake for another 1 1/4 hours. Cover the top of the cake with foil if it starts to darken.

Apple, Oat and Pecan Bars (makes 12)

I've read Michael Pollan's Food Rules: An Eater's Manual. At it's core are three simple rules: eat natural food, not too much and mostly plants. Outside of that there are lots of other guidelines for eating well without being too faddy or obsessive. One of them was that if you have to eat snacks between meals then it's probably best to have ones that you've made yourself. This is one of my favourites.

Ingredients

2 eating apples (cored, roughly chopped but not peeled)

150g butter (softened)

150g soft brown sugar

50g porridge oats

2 eggs

200g self-raising flour

50g pecans (plus 12 for topping)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease the sides of a Swiss roll tin (23 x 30cm) with butter and line the base with baking paper.

2. Place the apples in a food processor and briefly pulse until in small bits (or just cut into very small bits with a knife/herb chopper).

3. Pour apples into a bowl. Add the sugar and butter and cream together until well mixed. Add rest of the ingredients and mix well.

4. Tip the mixture into the tin and place the pecans put aside on top in an even grid.

5. Bake for 25-30 minutes until risen and golden. Remove from oven to leave to cool completely.

6. When cool, cut into 12 bars (each with a pecan on top) and remove from tin.

Scottish Shortbread

A couple of years ago I was flipping through the cookbooks in my local Oxfam shop when I came across this.

It was only 49p so obviously it joined my ever-growing shelf of cookbooks. This is the first recipe I made from it.

Ingredients

50g caster sugar

125g unsalted butter (softened)

150g plain flour

25g fine semolina

Caster sugar for dusting

Method

1. Cream together the butter and sugar until pale, light and fluffy.

2. Stir in the flour and semolina using a fork. 

3. Press the mixture into an 18cm sandwich tin. Smooth the surface and then prick the surface with a fork. Sprinkle with caster sugar.

4. Bake at 160C for about an hour. It should be pale but just starting to colour. 

5. Cool in the tin and then cut into 8 wedges. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool.

Fat Apple Rascals (makes about 12-15)

I'm a big fan of regional recipes and I'll be posting plenty of them during this period. When I first came across them they were called Yorkshire Tea Biscuits. They are very simple to make and seem to me to taste a bit like an apple scone. Apparently they have been made since Elizabethan times so making them also helps keep a heritage recipe alive.

Ingredients

225g self-raising flour

110g butter (finely chopped)

30g soft brown sugar

100g cooking apples (peeled, cored and cut into small pieces)

50g sultanas

3 tsp milk

3 tbsp demerara sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon

Method

1. Rub together the flour and butter until it resembles breadcrumbs. Add the soft brown sugar, apples, sultanas and milk and mix well.

2. Bring the dough together with your hands and knead gently. Squash into a flat disc, wrap in cling film and squash a bit more. Chill in the fridge for about 30 minutes.

3. Preheat the oven to 180C and line two baking trays with non-stick baking paper.

4. Lightly flour a work surface and roll out the dough as thinly as the apple pieces will allow (about 5-10mm). Cut into squares using a sharp knife and carefully put them on the trays about 3cm apart.

5. Mix the demerara sugar with the cinnamon and sprinkle generously over every square. Bake for about 20 minutes. Set aside to cool on the baking trays.

Date Slices (makes 16 slices)

I'm a big fan of date slices. I usually have it when we go out for tea and cake somewhere. I've managed to convince myself that it's also healthier than the other cake options. Here's the recipe that I use at home.

Ingredients

375g pitted dates

Grated zest of 1 lemon

200g self-raising wholemeal flour

150g butter (diced)

90g light muscovado sugar

150g porridge oats

Method

1. Place the dates in a saucepan with 200ml of water and the lemon zest. Bring to the boil and allow to bubble, uncovered, for 8-10 minutes until soft and thick. Set aside.

2. Mix together the flour, butter and sugar until you get a breadcrumb consistency and then stir in the oats.

3. Tip half of the flour mixture into a buttered tin (28cm x 18cm is ideal) and press down with a wooden spoon. Spread the date mixture all over and then sprinkle the remaining flour mixture.

4. Bake at 200 C for 20-25 minutes until golden on top. Cut into slices. Only remove from the tin when cold.

Kolace (Sweet Buns)

A few years ago I went on a camping trip to the Czech Republic with a group of teenagers from Norwich and Luton. We were the guests of a local group for young people and we stayed at a campsite near Brno, the second city of the Czech Republic. It was an excellent holiday and our hosts did well to cater for a group of English people that included both vegetarians and vegans.

During my time there I wanted to find out more about Czech cooking. It's not the most exciting cuisine in the world but since I got back I have made these delicious buns.

Ingredients

250ml of milk

80g caster sugar

2 sachets of dry yeast

500g sifted flour

50g butter, melted but cooled

2 egg yolks, whisked

1 egg for glazing, whisked

Jar of jam (plum jam is usually used)

Method

1. Warm 100ml of the milk in a pan. Add a tablespoon of the caster sugar and add to yeast. Whisk, cover and leave for about 10 minutes.

2. Sift the flour into a bowl, add the butter, egg yolks and the remaining milk, caster sugar and the yeast liquid. Mix together with a wooden spoon for 5 minutes. Dust with flour, cover with a damp tea towel and leave to prove for 2 hours.

3. When the dough is doubled in size, use a tablespoon to cut out large pieces and place on floured surface. Roll each into a ball of about 4-5cm diameter. Pat down flat each ball to a thickness of about 2cm. Make a deep indent in each one with a finger knuckle.

4. Use a teaspoon to put the jam in the indents. Glaze each kolace with beaten egg.

5. Bake at 180C for about 20-25 minutes until golden. Leave to cool and serve.

There are other toppings including poppy seeds and curd cheese. I've haven't got around to doing these yet.

Luxury Nut Roast (Serves 4-5)

This is a staple dish in my household right throughout autumn and winter and is always used on Christmas Day as the vegetarians outnumber the ominivores. It's a rich and filling nut roast and is very easy to make.

Ingredients

250g mixed nuts
100g onion (finely chopped)

1 tin chopped tomatoes (drained)

100g cheddar cheese (grated)

1 egg, beaten

1 tbsp dried mixed herbs

1 tsp Marmite mixed with 1 tsp of boiling water

1 tsp lemon juice

Method

1. Put the nuts in a dry frying pan over a moderate heat. Toast gently until golden and fragrant. Put aside to cool.

2. Preheat the over to 180C. Generously grease a 2lb loaf tin.

3. Put nuts in a food processor and whizz until thoroughly ground.

4. Put the ground nuts in a large bowl and then add all the remaining ingerdients. Mix very thoroughly.

5. Scoop the mixture into the loaf tin and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until firm and golden. Cool slightly and then turn out.

Suffolk Rusks

A few years ago I was part of the team that helped with the redevelopment of the excellent Museum of East Anglia Life in Stowmarket, Suffolk. One of the old exhibits was a reconstruction of a Victorian kitchen with all of the paraphernalia associated with cooking in that period. Amongst the displays was this recipe for Suffolk Rusks. I noted it down and converted the measurements and some of the instructions. I have never met anybody else who has baked, or even heard of, Suffolk Rusks. It would be good to keep this East Anglian dish alive.

Ingredients

1lb/0.5kg plain flour
3 eggs
2oz/60g caster sugar
1.5 tsp active dry yeast
2oz/60g butter
1/4 pint milk

Method

1. Mix the yeast, flour and sugar together.

2. Melt the butter and add to the milk 

3. Gradually add to the flour mixture

4. Beat the eggs and add to the flour mixture

5. Stir until you have a smooth dough

6. Prove for about 1.5 hours (To prove add a little olive oil to a bowl and put the dough inside. Now drape a damp tea-towel over the bowl and leave in a warm place

7. Knead and break up into small rolls

8. Place on a tray with baking paper and bake in a hot oven (about 200-220 celcius) for about 10 minutes.

Optional 9. Cut each roll in half and briefly return to the oven to crisp.

Elderberry and Blackberry Drink

In the run-up to Christmas last year I watched a TV programme called (I think) "The Twelve Drinks of Christmas" with Alexander Armstrong and Giles Coren. It was a bit dull, unless you find the sight and sound of two posh blokes pontificating about wines and liqueurs exciting. However, they did feature one non-alcoholic drink which I thought sounded nice. I have to watch the right bit a few times on BBC IPlayer to get the right ingredients and here it is...

Ingredients

1/2 cup of elderflower cordial

Juice of one lime

1 litre of soda water

Handful of blackberries

Handful of mint leaves (bruised)

Method

1. Put all the ingredients in the order above in a large glass jug.

2. Serve with ice.

Raspberry Buns

This was a staple of my wife's grandmothers baking. It was the first thing I ate when I was introduced to the wider family of my wife. They are very simple to make and keep for several days. Apologies for the rather odd measurements and instructions. I had to convert the imperial used by Rachel's grandmother into metric and I had to copy down her hand-written (and very faded) recipe.

Ingredients

225g plain flour

170g margarine

110g sugar

1 level tsp. of baking powder

1 egg (beaten)

Raspberry Jam

Method

1. Rub together the margarine and flour until it resembles breadcrumbs.

2. Add the sugar and baking powder.

3. Mix with the beaten egg until it becomes a dough ball.

4. Roll out to about 1.5cm thick and cut out circles with a large cookie cutter.

5. Make a well in the centre of each circle of dough with a finger knuckle and put in some raspberry jam.

6. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 200 degrees.

7. Leave to cool on a wire rack.