Leftovers Pie

For dinner tonight I made a pie with the Christmas leftovers. And very nice it was too.

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Serves 6

1 leek (or a medium onion)
1 large carrot
1 tin sweetcorn
About 300g leftover meat (I used a mixture of goose and ham as that's what I had left over)
1 tub mushrooms
1 tbsp olive oil
1 glass wine (what ever you have open)
1 large mug stock (from a cube if you want)
1 tbsp cornflour
1 sheet pre-rolled puff pastry

1. Preheat the oven to gas mark 7
2. Slice the leek and dice the carrots and the mushrooms
3. In a large heavy bottomed pan saute the leeks, carrots and sweetcorn in the olive oil over a low heat
4. Add the meat and the mushrooms and stir regularly until the mushrooms are cooked. If you have any stuffing left you could add this too.
5. Add the wine and the stock. Simmer until the liquid has reduced by half.
6. Put the cornflour in a mug of water and add a couple of tablespoons of water. Stir this well
7. Stir the cornflour mix into the pan. Keep stirring until the sauce thickens
8. Put the pie filling into a large oven proof dish (a lasagna dish is perfect)
9. Cover the pie filling with the puff pastry sheet
10. Put the pie in the oven for 20 mins
11. Serve with mashed potatoes and veg

Johnson Beharry VC

Perhaps once in a generation there comes a man whose story is so extraordinary that people who hear it find it hard to comprehend.

I've just been rereading "Barefoot Soilder" the autobiography of Lance Corporal Johnston Beharry, the first living recipient of the Victoria Cross in over 40 years. He is just such a man.

For those of you who don't know the Victoria Cross is the highest military award in Britain and it is only awarded for extreme valour. Only 13 have been awarded since the end of the Second World War, the majority of the posthumously

What makes Beharry's story so extraordinary is the simple down to earth way in which it is told. He speaks of his actions in the theatre of war as if he did only what he had to do, only what anyone would have done. And yet there is nothing simple or ordinary about his actions. I find it hard to believe that there are many 'anyone's out there who would have acted as he did.

It is a truly amazing story. I highly recommend it.

'Barefoot Soldier' on Amazon

Beef in Oyster Sauce

This is another in the series of quick and easy recipes I've been writing down for my husband to cook when I'm away with work. The quantity below feeds the two of us and our little girl.

8oz steak
4 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
1/2 cabbage
1 tsp chilli flakes (or to taste)
Oil for frying

Hammer the steak flat (I find the best way to do this is to put it in a plastic bag and batter it with a rolling pin) and then cut it into bite-size strips.

Put the strips into a bowl with 3 tablespoons of the oyster sauce, the soy sauce and the sugar. Give everything a good stir so that the steak is evenly coated and leave it to marinade while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

Shred the cabbage and give it a good wash. I find that a white cabbage is best for this dish but any cabbage will do. The recipe which was the inspiration for this one used Bok Choi but most of the time that's too expensive for me to use when cabbage works so well.

Add the oil to a wok and turn the heat up as high as it will go. Because you are going to be using such high heat you need an oil with a high burning point. Groundnut oil or sunflower oil work best. Avoid olive oil or butter as they will burn.

When the oil is smoking hot add the beef. Keep it moving in the pan until it is cooked through. Remove the beef to a plate for a minute and put the wok back on the heat. Add the shredded cabbage and the chilli flakes. Toss these until the cakage starts to wilt at the edges the add the remaining oyster sauce. When the sauce is well mixed in return the beef to the pan for a couple of tosses. Make sure everything is piping hot.

Serve immediately with some rice. We like Vee Tee Jasmine rice. One pot serves us all and it only takes 2 minutes in the microwave making this a very fast meal. I can get it to the table in less than 15 minutes which is great at the end of a busy day.

Lotte's new scarf

Every year my Mum and I go to the knitting and stitching fair at Alexandra Palace. This year's was last weekend. At every show I buy myself some wool and some needles and knit myself a 'show scarf'. This year instead of knitting a scarf for myself I knit one for my little girl (She's 20 months old). I used the remnants to knit a matching scarf for her favourite teddy.

The finished articles look like this:

They were knitted using two balls of Sirdar Funky Fur Magic wool on five millimeter needles.

For the child's scarf cast on 30 stitches and knit in garter stitch until it's the length required. In this case I knitted 15 stripes with a couple of additional rows on either end.

For Lotte's scarf I cast on 10 stitches and also knit in garter stitch. Basically I just kept on going until it was long enough to tie around her neck.

The only took a couple of evenings to knit and I found the wool easy to knit with. I'm not sure that I'd like to work a more complicated pattern with it though as it was hard to count how many stitches you had on the needles due to the fur sticking out everywhere.

Easy Tandoori Style Chicken

Alan has asked me to write down some easy recipes that he can make while I'm away during the week. So here's the first.

2 skinless chicken breasts
1 tablespoon of lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/2 medium onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 inch of ginger (optional)
2 tablespoons yogurt
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon paprika

This is a double marinaded chicken dish. The first marinade is the lemon juice and salt. Sprinkle the salt liberally on both sides of the chicken breast. Then place it in an oven proof dish and sprinkle the lemon juice over it. Then put this to one side while you work on the second marinade.


The base of the second marinade is grated onion. Since I can't face the idea of grating onion I put it, the garlic and the ginger in a chopper (or a blender) and let it do all the work. Then add it and the rest of the ingredients to a bowl and give it a good stir. Once they are well combined spread the marinade on both sides of the chicken breasts and return them to their oven proof dish. This should be covered in cling film and put in the fridge for at least an hour, over night works better.

When you are ready to cook the chicken preheat the oven to 200C (Gas Mark 8). Place the chicken at the top of the oven and leave for 20 minutes. At the end of this time take the chicken out and check that it's cooked right through. If not pop it back in the oven for another 5 minutes just to be sure.

I like to serve it with rice and a salad.


This method of marinating will work equally well with other cuts of chicken or with lamb chops or steaks. It's important that there is no skin between the marinade and the meat so make sure that you pick skinless chicken. If you use lamb chops then you could also cook them under the grill.

Plum ketchup

One of the (dis)advantages of Mum and Dad's new house is the fact that the garden used to be an orchard and this summer they've produced a quantity of fruit that, even with Mum, Claire and I going at full speed, we've not been able to process fast enough. Mum's been palming them off to anyone and everyone who would take them of her hands...

So I found myself with a very large quantity of plums a few weeks ago. And since my husband doesn't like them I couldn't stew them and freeze them for use later as Mum has been. Last summer I tried Delia's plum ketchup recipe and it was a big hit and since each batch uses 8lb of plums it could the perfect way of dealing with a glut.

Plum ketchup is an old English recipe from the days when we rule the world in sauce making. It's a deep glossy savoury fruit sauce and though slightly unusual we've found that it works really well where you'd use Branston pickle or occasionally even brown sauce. It's been a real hit and several people have asked me if I was going to be making it again this year. Delia's recipe can be found here: Victoria Plum or Damson Ketchup. Or if you prefer the book it can be found here: Delia's Complete Cookery Course - Classic Edition: Vol 1-3 in 1v




It looks like this years is going to be at least as good as last years. And it gives me even greater satisfaction knowing that it's made using 16lbs of my Mum's plums. (And also knowing that I've got a bunch of christmas presents sorted already!)

In Our Time - first in an occasional series on podcasts

I expect that this will be the first in an occasional series on the podcasts I listen to regularly. I keep talking to people about what podcasts they listen to and it'd be great to have a place to send them for links etc.

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So perhaps my favourite podcast at the moment is In Our Time hosted by Sir Melvyn Bragg.

In Our Time is a programme from Radio 4's conversation strand. It is a weekly discussion programme who's web page claims that it's about the history of ideas. It covers the widest range of topics imaginable.

The format is pretty simple every week Melvyn sits down with a group of three academics and they discuss their specialist subjects for three quarters of an hour. Sir Melvyn acts as an intelligent lay person. Steering the conversation, asking for more information or for an idea to be explained more clearly. What makes it so great is the range of subjects that are covered and the quality of the experts who are called in to discuss that subject. Just this season they have covered the history of Antarctica, the Central Asian scientist and historian al-Biruni, the English King Athelstan and the evolution and characteristics of the Neanderthals. And that in the space of just 4 shows. And in each case those discussing the subject were articulate, easy to listen to and yet obviously extremely knowledgeable.

The shows that I've particularly enjoyed in the past have had topics as wide ranging as number theory, Arthurian literature, the infant brain and roman satire.

I don't know of any show of it's kind being broadcast any where else in the world and I can't think of another radio station in the world that would broadcast it. Just this one show confirms my love of Radio 4 and I would highly recommend it to anyone.

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The show can be accessed via it's website. Unfortunately only the most recent episode is available as a podcast. But the whole back catalogue is streamable. There are so many interesting topics. Don't blame me if it keeps you occupied for a good long while...

Oat and Maple Cookies

I've been making these cookies for a few months and they are a big favourite. The only downside to them is that they disappear almost as soon as they've been made.

As with the last post a picture will follow...


Makes 24

7oz butter
4 tbsp light brown sugar
4 tbsp maple syrup
8oz porridge oats
2 oz self raising flour

1. Pre heat the oven gas mark six
   
2. Cream the butter and the sugar together until the butter goes pale
3. Mix in the maple syrup
4. Add the oats and the flour and mix well
5. Put balls of the mixture onto a well greased baking tray (I use baking parchment so I know they won't stick) and flatten them out a bit with a fork (unlike other cookies these ones won't spread out as they cook so they need to be flattened and they are going to come out of the oven more or less the same size as they went in)
6. Put them in the oven for 15 mins or until the oats on the outside are starting to turn golden
7. Allow to cool a bit before you eat them
8. If you have any left over they should keep for a week in an air tight container
   

Mini Cheesecake Recipe

I'm not sure what I'm going to actually put in this blog but for now I've got a couple of recipes that I need to put in a safe place. They may even be of use to someone other than me!

This recipe is my adaption of one in Annabel Karmel's "New Complete Baby and Toddler Meal Planner". They're a very grown up dessert to have come from a children's cookbook and I'm going to make them next time I do a buffet.




Makes 12
8 digestive biscuits
75g butter
250g marscapone cheese
1/2 jar lime curd (lemon curd works too)
Juice of half a lime (Or a lemon)
125ml double cream
12 raspberries (optional)

You also need a mince pie tin and 12 paper cases

1. Crush the digestive biscuits to a fine crumb (I put them in a bag and bash them with a rolling pin)
2. Melt the butter (30 seconds in the microwave does the trick) and mix it into the biscuit crumbs.
3. Put the paper cases into the mince pie tin and divide the crumbs evenly between them. Press down firmly with the back of a spoon.
4. Put the cheesecake bases into the fridge to chill
5. Put the marscapone, lime curd and the lime juice into a bowl and mix thoroughly
6. Whisk the cream to the soft peak stage and then fold the cream into the cheese mixture
7. Divide the mixture evenly between the cheesecakes and top each one with a raspberry
8. Leave the cheesecakes in the fridge for at least an hour to set. Overnight works best.