Lemon Croissant Pudding

Tags

Chocolate, Easily Doubled, hot pud, lemon, Party Food

My favourite Easter show recipe. Again this is a seasonal recipe I don’t get out to play except in the time around Easter or I would just make this all the time. Yes, making your own lemon curd sounds like a faff but it really isn’t. However you could skip that bit and use a jar if you want, or just use this lemon curd recipe and skip the pudding!
As a variation you can nestle mini eggs into the pudding when it comes out of the oven and let the insides soften in the heat while the outsides stay crisp – yum

Ingredients
Lemon Curd
2 lemons
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
70g (2 ½ oz) caster sugar
25g (1 oz) chilled butter, cut into pieces

Croissant pudding
1 lemon
2 eggs
175ml (6 fl oz) single cream
70g (2 ½ oz) caster sugar
85g (3 oz) white chocolate
225g (8 oz) croissants (cut into ½” pieces and toasted)
Icing sugar

Method
1. Preheat oven to gas mark 4 or 180c / 350F

2. To toast croissant pieces. Arrange on baking sheet and bake for 10 – 12 minutes or until crisp and golden. Cool.

3. For lemon curd …
Finely zest lemons and measure 1 tbsp zest .
Juice lemons with Juicer to measure 60 ml. Whisk eggs, yolk, sugar, butter and lemon juice and zest in heatproof bowl.
Microwave on HIGH for 1 minute; whisk. Microwave on HIGH for further 2 minutes, whisking after every 30 seconds or until slightly thickened.
Cover with cling film; refrigerate until ready to use.

For pudding …
4. Zest lemon and measure 2 tsp. Juice lemon and measure 2 tbsp and set aside.
Whisk cream, eggs, sugar, lemon zest and juice together.

5. Add toasted croissant pieces to bowl and gently stir to coat (croissant pieces will absorb milk mixture).
Place half of the croissant mixture into the round covered baker.
Grate white chocolate over croissants .Spoon lemon curd over chocolate. Top with remaining croissant mixture.

6. Bake for 30 – 35 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven; cool for 8 minutes. Sprinkle with icing sugar and serve.

Something Special – Lamb Kleftiko

Tags

easily halved, happy food, Lamb, Slow Cook

This recipe was made for me when visiting my lovely friend and fellow Pampered Cheffer Charlie. I’ve made it several times, and love serving it just as she did, with a Greek salad pictured behind.
This will serve 4-6 depending on the size of your appetites!

1.5kg lamb joint – Leg or shoulder (having made this twice I’d recommend one with a bone in it)
2-3 potatoes
8 shallots* or small onions
7-9 garlic cloves
50ml extra virgin olive oil
10ml runny honey
2tbsp fresh rosemary
1tbsp fresh lemon thyme
1tsp dried oregano
1 bay leaf
1 lemon
250ml boiling water
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Preheat the oven to 150°C. Place the lamb in to the Deep Covered Baker (no need to brown)
Peel the potatoes & chop into roasting sized pieces, peel the shallots but leave them whole.
Add the potatoes and onions to the dish and, all but one of the garlic cloves. Crush the remaining clove of garlic using the Garlic Press, set to one side.
Whisk together the olive oil & honey, drizzle over the lamb.
Chop rosemary & lemon thyme using the Food Chopper.
Zest the lemon & juice using the Citrus Press.
Sprinkle the lemon zest, crushed garlic, all herbs, lemon juice over the meat. Add the boiling water.
Place the lid on top of the Deep Covered Baker & place into the preheated oven for 6 hours. DO NOT OPEN for 6 hours!
Remove from oven, drain off the liquid into a smallish saucepan skimming off most of the fat and oil, replace lid to the baker & allow the meat to rest
Meanwhile reduce liquid over a high heat until it thickens into a rich sauce
Serve with veg of your choice or even a Greek salad ….

Charlie has also made this with a smaller joint (about half the size), half all the ingredients but NOT the water. It took around 4 hours to cook. I have made it with
bigger lamb joints too but you have to watch the size with your deep covered baker. You can ask your butcher to cut the bone down so you’ve got a bit you can pop
underneath if you think it’s going to be too long!
*with shallots if you get the small round ones you can leave them whole, long shallots or small onions need to be cut at least in half if not quarters!

Caramel Pecan Ring

Tags

Apples, feeds 8, hot pud, Nuts, Party Food

 

Another of my show recipes. I frequently do this recipe at coffee morning / brunch shows but it’s equally delicious as a partner to a savoury recipe at a station show. I love this, the crisp apples and the caramel top and the crunchy nut base are all delicious.

Ingredients
175 g pecans or walnuts
1/2 a cup light soft brown sugar
25 g plain flour
1 egg
½ tsp vanilla extract
2 packets (240g each) fresh ready to bake dough for 6 croissants
1 large Granny Smiths apple
3-4 tablespoons caramel or toffee flavoured dessert sauce or maple syrup.

1. Preheat oven to 190?C/ Gas 5. Finely chop pecans using Food Chopper. In Classic Batter Bowl, combine pecans and sugar;  mix well with Small Mix ‘N Scraper. Set aside 40g of pecan mixture. Add flour to remaining pecan mixture; mix well. Add egg
and vanilla; mix until well blended. Set filling aside.

2. Unroll dough and separate into 12 triangles. Arrange in a circle on Medium Round Stone with wide ends of triangles overlapping in the centre and pointed ends towards the outside (there should be about 13cm opening in centre of Stone). Gently
press edges where they meet to seal. Spoon pecan filling evenly onto widest end of each dough triangle.

3. Cut apple in half using Utility Knife, remove core using Cooks Corer. Place apple halves on Cutting Board, cut sides down.  Use Crinkle Cutter to cut each apple half cross-wise into 5 mm slices (or you could use the simple slicer on setting 3). Arrange apple slices over filling in a circular pattern.

4. Sprinkle reserved pecan mixture evenly over apples. Bring outside points of dough triangles up over filling and tuck under wide ends in the centre (filling should not be completely covered). Place Baking Stone in Classic and Rectangle Rack.

5. Bake 22-25 minutes, or until deep golden brown. Drizzle with dessert sauce. Cut into portions using Pizza Cutter. Serve warm using Mini-Serving Spatula.

Oven Risotto

Tags

Bacon, Lazy, Quick, Tomatoes

I know risotto isn’t top of most people’s simple, after work dinners, but trust me, this one is brilliant. You can sling it together in about 6 minutes, using frozen diced onion and then it’s on the table 20 mins later. No stirring, no slaving over a hot stove, just lovely rich warm yummy risotto.

Ingredients
250g pack smoked bacon lardons
1 onion, chopped
25g butter
300g risotto rice*
half a glass of white wine (optional)
150g pack cherry tomatoes, halved
700ml hot chicken stock (from a cube is fine)
50g parmesan, grated

Method

1. Preheat oven to  200C/fan 180C/gas 6.

2. Heat the Everyday RockCrok on the hob, then add the bacon pieces and start to fry them off until they start to colour.

3. Move the to the side and add the butter, allowing it to melt before adding the diced onion and cooking together for 5 mins until the onions are soft and translucent.

4. Add the rice and stir through until the grains are coated in the butter and bacon fat. Add the wine and stir in.

5.  Finally, stir in the tomatoes with the stock. Stick the lid on and bung it in the oven for 18 minutes. The stock should be absorbed and the rice cooked through.

6. Stir most of the grated parmesan in the while the risotto is in the RockCrok but save a little for adding at the table.

Enjoy!

*Most risotto rice you’ll find in the UK is Arborio, which is ok. If you can get Carnaroli risotto rice it’s very much lovelier and worth the effort to find.

Bobotie

Tags

Curry, eggs, Garlic, mince

 

One of those recipes I frequently forget about. Brilliant when you have a pack of mince in the fridge and are bored of bolognese, cottage pie and meatballs. Lightly sweetly spiced with an egg topping,  bobotie is the national dish of South Africa.

Ingredients
500g lean beef mince
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp medium curry powder
3 tbsp mango chutney
50g Sultanas
350ml semi-skimmed milk
2 slices wholemeal bread, crusts removed
3 large eggs

Method
1. Preheat oven to 180c/ fan 160c / gas 4.

2. Spritz the stir fry skillet with oil and start to brown the beef, after 2-3 minutes add the onion and continue to fry for another 5 minutes until the beef has
browned lightly and the onion has started to soften.

3. Add the curry powder and the garlic. Fry for a couple of minutes until the spices are cooked, then remove the pan from the heat. Stir in the sultanas
and the mango chutney

4. Tear the bread into small pieces and place in a bowl. Pour 200ml of the milk over the bread and allow the milk to soak in for a minute.
Stir the bread into the beef mixture

4. Spoon the beef and bread mixture into a shallow oven proof dish or the square baker and press down with a spoon.

5. Beat the eggs lightly with the remaining milk and a little seasoning. Pour the egg mix over the beef and place in the oven for 30-40 minutes until the top is golden
brown and the beef piping hot through. Serve with a side salad.

Hot Broccoli Dip

Tags

Broccoli, Cheese, Peppers

Another favourite show recipe. At shows I serve this with tortilla chips or slices of toasted baguette, but if you’re making it at home you could serve it as a sauce for gammon, or with lardons through it with pasta or a jacket potato.

Ingredients
350g broccoli florets, finely chopped.
1 small onion, finely chopped.
1 red pepper, deseeded and finely chopped.
55g fresh grated parmesan cheese.
2 cloves garlic, crushed.
225g grated cheddar cheese.
8tbsp half fat crème fraiche.
8tbsp reduced-fat mayonnaise.
Freshly ground black pepper.

Method
1. Preheat oven to 190ºC/375ºF/Gas 5.

2. Put the broccoli, onion, red pepper, garlic, cheddar, creme fraiche and mayonnaise in a bowl. Add 4tbsp of the parmesan and reserve the rest.

3. Mix well then transfer to an oven dish, and put in the preheated oven for 25 mins until hot through and going golden brown on top.

4. Sprinkle remaining parmesan cheese over the top and dig in.

National Strawberry Day – Strawberry Cheesecake Bombe

Tags

Easily Doubled, easily halved, feeds 8, lemon, Shortbread, strawberries, White Chocolate

 

This Official Pampered Chef recipe is utterly amazing, it was served at a recent Director’s Team Meeting and is one of my new Summer Station Show recipes! If you were doing dinner for friends, you could do this in some of the prep bowls to make individual bombes. Gorgeous! If you were planning to double the recipe use the large batter bowl, if you need to half it, if you really must, then I’d go down the route of individual portions, you’ll need a 250ml prep bowl style dish per person.  Please make sure it’s freezer safe!

The Pampered Chef ®
Strawberry Cheesecake Bombe
Recipe

75 g shortbread petticoat tails, broken into pieces
400 g fresh large strawberries, divided
1 teaspoon icing sugar
300 g full fat soft cheese, softened
1 unwaxed lemon
30 g butter, melted
150 g white chocolate chips

Line Small Batter Bowl with cling film; place in freezer for at least 20 minutes (see chef’s Corner).

Chop shortbread into fine crumbs using Food Chopper; set aside in Stainless 2-Litre Mixing Bowl. Remove stems from 6 strawberries (about 125 g) using Core & More; cut in half using Utility Knife. Set aside remaining strawberries for decoration. Coarsely chop halved strawberries using Food Chopper. Place in (500-ml) Prep Bowl; add icing sugar and mix gently using Small Mix ‘N Scraper®; set aside.

Place soft cheese in Classic Batter Bowl. Zest lemon using Microplane® Zester to measure 1 teaspoon and add to soft cheese; mix well using clean Small Mix ‘N Scraper® (set aside remaining lemon flesh for another use).

Add melted butter to biscuit crumbs in mixing bowl; mix well using Mini Mix ‘N Scraper®. Set aside.

Microwave chocolate chips in second (500-ml) Prep Bowl, uncovered, on HIGH 30 seconds; stir using a clean and dry Mini Mix ‘N Scraper®. Microwave additional 20 – 30 seconds, stirring every 10 seconds or until almost melted. (Be careful not to overheat or chocolate will become grainy and unusable.) Stir melted chocolate into soft cheese mixture; mix until well combined.

Remove batter bowl from freezer. To layer bombe, pour strawberry mixture into bottom of batter bowl. Sprinkle biscuit crumbs evenly over strawberries, gently smooth surface with a spoon. Spoon soft cheese mixture over biscuit crumbs; spread evenly, gently pressing to remove air bubbles. Return to freezer for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, cut reserved strawberries in half lengthwise with Utility Knife.

To serve, carefully invert Small Batter Bowl over serving plate to release bombe. Gently remove cling film. Surround with reserved strawberries. Serve immediately (do not refreeze).
Yield: Serves 6 – 8

Per serving: Nutrition information per serving (serving 8): Energy 1473kJ/355kcal, Protein 3.7g, Carbohydrate 20.4g, Sugars 20g, Fat 29.3g, Saturated fat 18.3g, Fibre 0.7g, Salt 0.5g

Cook’s Tip: Line the Small Batter Bowl with the type of cling film suitable for freezer use and check that you have enough space to fit the bowl in the freezer. Freezing the bowl in advance is essential for this recipe.
Digestive biscuits can be substituted for shortbread biscuits, if desired.
300 g fresh raspberries can be substituted for strawberries. In step 2, use 150 g whole, unchopped raspberries for the bombe and the remainder for decoration.

© 2015 The Pampered Chef used under license.

Pork Steaks Cassoulish

Tags

Beans, Lazy, pork

This is something I’ve been cooking up varieties of for a couple of years now, I don’t think it’s the same dish twice! Kind of like a cassoulet, it’s called cassoul-ish in our house. Perfect for cold winter’s evenings and even better in our new RockCrok I hope you love it too.

Ingredients
3 tbsp olive oil
4 pork loin steaks
1 large onion, sliced
1 tin ratatouille
1 tin tomatoes
1 tin butter beans, drained

Method
1. Preheat oven to 180oc / Gas 6

2. Brown pork steaks on both sides in the olive oil over a medium heat then remove them from the pan.

3. Add the onion, sliced, then allow to brown.

4. Transfer onion and pork to an oven proof dish with a lid in required then add in the ratatouille, tomatoes and butter beans.

5. Place in the oven for 45 minutes.

Remove and serve!

Raspberry and Oatmeal Muffins

Tags

Breakfast, happy food, Kids In Kitchen, muffins, rainy day recipes, Raspberries

A huge hat tip to my sister in law who made a version of these muffins for us when we were visiting for my nephew’s birthday recently. A delicious late breakfast treat with a cup of coffee. I love raspberries and I love oatmeal so these are perfect in my eyes.

Ingredients
1 cup oatmeal
1½ cups milk
2 cups plain flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
heaped ½ cup soft brown sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
¼ cup honey
60 g unsalted butter, melted
1¼ cups (150g) raspberries

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 190c / 170c fan / gas 5 and line 12 cup muffin tin with paper cases

2. Place the milk and oatmeal in a bowl and leave to soak for 5 minutes. In a large bowl, sieve the flour, sugar and baking powder, then make a central well
in the flour mix

3. Mix the egg, the honey and butter together in a bowl, then pour into the well in the centre of the flour, along with the oatmeal and milk.
Stir quickly until just combined, before folding in the raspberries. It’s better to be slightly lumpy than overmixed

4. Dollop the batter into the muffin cases, then bake for 20-25 minutes until golden, and gives a clean cake tester when poked. Leave for 5 mins or so before
transferring to a wire cooling rack.

5. Best eaten warm, although sometimes I think that’s just an excuse 😉

Chinese New Year – Gong Bao Ji Ding

Tags

Asian, Chicken, Chinese, Easily Doubled, happy food, Peanuts

Gong Bao Ji Ding (Sichuan Chicken)
Chicken with peanuts and chillies

In my early teens my dad was bought his first wok by his very good friend Bill. Now it’s a bit of a tradition that when we are all home he will spend all day grating, mincing, dicing and slicing and putting on an amazing Chinese buffet spread. This is my favourite of those dishes. Thank you Daddy!
The recipe originally comes from a 2003 Sainsbury’s cook book called Cooking of China by Ken Hom.

Ingredients
500g chicken breast cut into 1cm cubes
1 egg white
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cornflour
300ml oil (groundnut or vegetable)
2 dried chillies, halved lengthways
125g roasted peanuts (or 300g peanuts if weighed in the shell – known as monkey nuts)
1 tbsp crushed garlic
1 tbsp finely grated ginger
2 tbsp finely chopped spring onions
2 tbsp rice wine or dry sherry*
2 tbsp dark soy sauce*
2 tsp sugar*
2 tsp chilli bean sauce*
2 tsp cider vinegar*
1 tsp cornflour
1 tsp sesame oil
chopped spring onions to garnish
Boiled rice to serve

*these ingredients can be measured together into a small prep bowl as they are added at the same time.

Method
1. Mix the egg white with the cornflour and salt, then coat the chicken in the mix. Place the chicken in the fridge and chill for 20 mins.

2. Heat the groundnut or vegetable oil in the skillet to a high heat, then add the chicken, stirring well. Remove the skillet from the heat and allow the chicken to cook for 3 mins in the oil.

3. Stand a sieve over a heat proof jug or bowl, the drain the chicken into the sieve. Wipe out the skillet with kitchen paper, then return 1 1/2 tbsp of the oil to the skillet and return to the heat.

4. Quickly add the chillies and the peanuts and stir fry for 30 seconds (this WILL go for the back of your throat!) until the peanuts are toasted and the chillies are blackened.
Add the chilli, garlic and spring onions for a further 30 seconds. Then return the chicken to the pan and stir fry for one minute. Add the rice wine mixture and cook for 2 more minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.

5. Stir the last teaspoon of cornflour into a tablespoon of cold water and then add to the pan. Allow the sauce to thicken, then add the sesame oil and stir through.
Serve in bowls on a bed of fluffy rice with a scattering of spring onions.