Posted on

Mushrooms Stuffed with Cashews Halloumi and Mint

I’ve been reading through Sabrina Ghayour’s new book, Feasts which is just delectable. I want to cook and eat everything in it! It so happened that I had Portobello mushrooms and halloumi in the fridge and was leafing though her book and made a few substitutions and changes for the sake of instant gratification!

4 large Portobello mushrooms, wiped clean

50g butter, softened

120g halloumi, grated

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tsp fresh red chilli, minced

3 tblsp cashew nuts, roughly chopped

small bunch of mint and coriander, finely chopped

drizzle of oil as needed.

 

Preheat the oven to 200c. Place the mushrooms in a roasting tin, gills up.

Place remaining ingredients in a bowl and mash together well to combine with a drizzle of oil. Divide among the mushrooms, pressing the filling into each with a fork.

Bake for 30 minutes until brown and bubbling and serve with salad.

Posted on

Hasselback Potatoes with garlic and parmesan

 

I love this way of cooking potatoes. It makes them look fancy. I therefore, feel a little fancy! They are dead easy and tasty and persuade even my non-spud-eating seven year old to eat potatoes which makes it an achievement in itself.

First, preheat your oven to 200c and get your roasting tin ready. It’s almost a non recipe in that you take potatoes (one to two or whatever is required per person) You need to slice them very thinly now, but not all the way through, so each potato sits on a large dessert spoon while you slice, thereby preventing this happening.

Now place them carefully in the tin and drizzle with a little oil and a sprinkling of salt and pepper and roast for 40 minutes. Near the end of this time, melt a little butter (couple of tablespoons, depending on how many spuds you are roasting) with a clove or two of crushed garlic. You can add some chopped fresh herbs at this point if you like too, such as oregano, thyme or rosemary.

Take the tin out and carefully brush the melted butter over the potatoes. You can finish with a grating of parmesan too if it takes your fancy.

Pop back in the oven and finish off roasting for 15-20 minutes, depending on the size of the potatoes. The outsides will be all crispy, the insides tender and the herbs garlic and salt add lovely flavour and crunch.

 

Posted on

Simple Sausage and Bean Casserole

The weather eh? So much for any hope of a sunny reprieve. In the autumn and winter I get the best use out of my slow cooker. Truth be told, I get use out of it all year round, but it really comes into its own when the weather is cold and rainy and we are busy at after school activities or out and about. It’s good to know that the slow cooker is home alone, doing its thing! Needless to say, it’s in use here these days.
Not surprisingly, the kids tire of it after a while, but this recipe is one of their favourites. I like to produce it on the days I’m working or post swimming lessons to quell the hangry outbursts (and that’s just me.)
I use a 6 litre slow cooker. It has high/low setting and a timer. When the time is up, it switches to a keep warm setting. There is no wrong way to follow this recipe. I’ve popped this on before the school run and it’s been perfect to eat even at six that evening. It’s most forgiving.
Simple Sausage and Bean Casserole
Serves 4 (with leftover beans, unless you are a member of my savage family)
8 sausages, decent size! (I love the M&S Italian Sausages – high meat content and quality product and I’ve used Tesco finest smoked garlic and basil which give a nice flavour to the dish but any decent meaty varieties will do)
1 onion diced
2 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons dried oregano or a small bunch of thyme
2 peppers, one yellow and one red, chopped
2 tins of chopped tomatoes
2 tins of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed (you can also use butter beans to great effect too)
1 tablespoon tomato puree
splash of red wine, optional
salt and pepper to season
Brown the sausages in a frying pan. This is for colour and appearance – they will look much more pleasant. While the sausages are browning, mix all the remaining ingredients in the slow cooker. When coloured, but not necessarily cooked through, add the sausages, gently nestling them in the bean mix.
Turn on low for 8 hours. I like to serve this one with either some toasted sourdough with garlic butter (yum!) or a baked potato or just some greens (revolt! say the children)
Alternatively, you can make this in a heavy lidded casserole if like me today you left it far too late and still wanted to eat it for dinner. I preheated the oven to 160C. I browned the sausages and set aside. I added the garlic peppers and diced onion to the pot and let them soften for a bit, then added in thyme, beans, puree, tomatoes and brought to a gentle simmer. Tuck the browned sausages in and pop on the lid and let it do its thing in the oven for an hour.
Posted on

Coconut Cashew Granola

The kids are back and the mornings are more rushed and we all have to be more organised. This naturally leads to a little more planning in advance for breakfasts and less options and choice (doesn’t it just sound like fun?!) I like to have some things on standby that I actually like to eat on weekday mornings so that I don’t fall into the rushed piece of soggy toast trap that leaves me starving by 10am. Most mornings this is porridge, but granola makes for a nice treat before the mornings get too chilly. Lots of the shop bought granolas, as you know, are full of sugar and really belong more on your dessert plate than in your breakfast bowl. On the other hand who really wants to chow down on cardboard and pretend to like it? Not me, life is too short. If I’m doing that, I’ll moan about it or I’d rather not bother at all. This strikes a balance somewhere between the two. Full of goodness with seeds, nuts and oats and quinoa flakes and a little sweetness delivered by the maple syrup while the egg white lets the clusters form without the need for a motherload of sugar. I have resisted adding any dried fruit to this one, but feel free to add your own combination if you like. I like to eat it with some greek yoghurt and fresh fruit.

 

Coconut and Cashew Granola – Makes enough to fill 1 mason jar of about 1 litre volume

150g oats

50g quinoa flakes

pinch maldon sea salt

2 egg whites

60mls maple syrup

zest 1 orange

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ginger

1 tsp coconut oil

25g linseeds

25g flaxseeds

50g pecans

50g cashew nuts

50g coconut flakes

Melt the coconut oil and the maple syrup together with the spices in the microwave – try 30 second bursts  -it should not take very long. You just want to loosen up the syrup and melt the oil. Whisk it to combine. Preheat the oven to 150c and line a baking sheet with parchment. Mix the oats, quinoa flakes, seeds and nuts in a bowl. Mix in the oil/syrup well to coat. Whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form and then fold the egg whites into the mix until fully combined.

Spread on to the baking sheet and bake for 35-40 minutes or until golden. Check halfway through cooking – you may want to stir to prevent it over clumping and to allow it to bake evenly, but you want some crunchy clusters to remain. Remove and allow to cool completely before storing in an airtight jar for up to two weeks.