Devilled pork chops - Recommended Recipe!

Devilled pork chops - serves 4, preparation 5 mins, cooking 25-30 mins

Ingredients
4 lean pork chops or steaks
2 tsp English mustard
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
3 tbsp tomato sauce

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/Gas 4.  Place the pork chops or steaks in a roasting tin.  Mix the mustard, Worcestershire sauce and tomato sauce together and brush most of over the meat.
2. Roast in the oven for 25-30 mins until cooked through, turning and brushing with the remaining sauce after 15 mins.
3. Remove from the oven and serve with mashed potatoes, roasted peppers or potato wedges.  

We grilled the pork steaks rather than cooking them in the oven - this just makes the the sauce a bit "burnt" on the edges and we think adds to the flavour :)

Source - Morrisons instore magazine.

Chicken with creamy bacon penne - Recommended Recipe!

Chicken with creamy bacon penne - serves 2, easy, not suitable for home freezing.

Ingredients
1 tbsp olive oil
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
100g/4oz smoked lardons (chopped bacon)
4 tbsp dry white wine
100g/4oz frozen petit pois
5 tbsp double cream
220g packet cooked penne (e.g. Dolmio Express)

Method

1. Heat the oil in a deep non-stick frying pan, then add the chicken breasts and scatter round the lardons.  Leave to cook over a high heat for 4 minutes while you gather the other ingredients together.
2. Turn the chicken over in the pan, give the lardons a stir, then pour in the wine and let it bubble over a high heat until it has virtually evaporated.  Now add the petit pois, the cream and penne, season, then stirwell.  Cover the pan and cook for 4 minutes more until the chicken is cooked all the way through.  Serve straight away.

Per serving - 639 kcalories, protein 48g, carbohydrate 24g, fat 38g, saturated fat 17g, fibre 3g, added sugar none, salt 1.86g.

Source - Tesco instore magazine.

Easiest Tea Bread Recipe - Ever!

Here's the recipe for yesterday's Silent Sunday photograph...

Tea Bread - serves 6-8, depending on how thick you like your slices!

1 mug of cold tea (no milk)
225g mixed dried fruit - sultanas, raisins, currants, mixed peel - any combination of!
225g self raising flour
125g caster sugar
1 large egg, beaten
2 tbsp orange maramalade

1. Place the fruit in a small bowl and pour the tea over the top.  Soak overnight or until the fruit swells (I soaked the fruit for about 4 hours and that was OK).
2. Grease a 675g loaf tin and preheat the oven to Gas 4.
3. Combine the rest of the ingredients in a bowl; then pour in the fruit and any left over tea.  Stir thoroughly.
4. Pour into the loaf tin and bake for about 1 hour and 10 mins... check after 1 hour and then every 5 minutes until the top is nicely browned and a skewer when inserted comes out clean.
5. Allow to cool slightly before removing from the tin.
6. Job done!

This is really easy to make and the preparation is quick too - so long as you have planned ahead with the "fruit-soaking"!  It also keeps really well and is actually better after about 2 days of storage so don't eat it all really quickly (or double up and bake 2 loaves).  You can see from the photo that it's quite a moist cake as it's full of fruit.

You can serve it sliced on it's own or with butter... after about 1 week (if it lasts that long!) it also makes great bread and butter pudding.

As a variation to the recipe, I also use different teas.  The recipe calls for normal English tea, but I have used fruit teas, Earl Grey, Assam teas, etc... just to give a slight twist to the flavour!

It's enjoyed by all in my family and a good cake to have in "stock" for unexpected visitors.  It's low in fat and a great way to get some fruit into your little one's tums!

The recipe is adapted from a Nigella Lawson recipe - have a look at the other great recipes on her site here.

Silent Sunday 8th July 2012

Patak's Fusion Indian Stir Fry Punjabi 5 Spice Review

We were sent a packet of the new Punjabi 5 Spice Indian Stir Fry sauce from Patak's... now I love LOVE curry - anything from a mild Korma to a spicy Balti (not quite managed a Vindaloo, but hubby has not been beaten yet!) I love the different flavours and spices that each curry brings.

The sauce does not need to be kept in the fridge so you can stock up and keep them handy as a quick-fix tea when you cannot decide what to have!  I love a homemade curry made from scratch but sometimes I don't have the time or energy (or cash to run to the Indian takeaway!) to make a decent curry but this stir fry sauce made an exceptionally good curry.  It's spice strength is described as medium, which is just the right level for a great tasting curry.  Anything too hot just burns but with the Punjabi 5 Spice you can taste the spices and enjoy the flavours. My neighbour popped in for a quick chat whilst I was cooking the curry and said, "it smells like a professional curry"!

You only have to add the chicken (or other meat, i.e. lamb) and vegetables - I used red onion and green and yellow peppers, but you could use any vegetables you have in the fridge that need using up!  We enjoyed the curry with rice but it would be equally as good with potatoes, naan bread or wrapped up in a big chapati!

There was just enough sauce, not too much and not too dry - there's nothing worse than chicken and veg swimming in a sea of sauce!

 

From start to finish, it took 15 minutes including the preparation of chopping and slicing so a really quick and easy meal to make.  By doubling up the sauce and ingredients, this would also make a great get-together meal for a family weekend as it's so easy to make, it leaves you with more time to catch up with your friends and family!  A great big serving pot of curry and a help-yourself bowl of rice goes down a treat when my family all get together!

Pop over to Patak's Curry Club Facebook page and say "hello"... keep up to date with new products and the odd freebie!

Cookie Monster Cupcakes!

These are one of my favourite types of children's cupcake to make... they are really quite simple but look very effective and will be loved by both children and adults (of the Sesame Street era anyway!).

Start by making a basic cupcake mix to make approx. 12 cupcakes - bake for the correct time and leave to cool.  I cool my cakes by placing on a wire cooling rack and cover with a clean, damp tea towel.  Wet the towel and throughly ring out the water so it does not drip at all - I find cooling this way keep the cakes moist and they don't go "crispy" on the top (if they do, don't worry as you are covering with buttercream anyway).

When the cakes are completely cool, spread with a generous amount of buttercream, recipe below...

I use a palette knife to spread with as I find it easier.  Try to shape the buttercream into a rounded-dome if you can but it doesn't need to be perfect as the coconut topping is quite forgiving and finishes off the shape.

Next, top with dyed coconut.  This looks quite technical but, again, is really easy!  Get yourself a good-quality sandwich/food bag and tip in a handful of dessicated coconut.  Add a couple of drops of required food colouring, twist or hold very tightly closed and shake!  You can add more colouring if required, but remember the "Golden Rule".... you can always add more colour or flavour but you can't take it away!

Place the dyed coconut into a wide shallow bowl and carefully dip the buttercream-covered cupcakes into the coconut.  To fill in any gaps, just sprinkle the coconut on top and press lightly.

Then, just add the finishing touches - cut mini choc chip cookies in half and put into place for the mouth and white chocolate buttons with black "writing icing" dots for eyes.  You can also use sugarpaste for the eyes but the chocolate buttons are much easier in my opinion and look just as effective.

And that's it.... a perfect display of cool monster cakes for any party!  Ideal at Hallowe'en but also for any time of the year when there are monsters around!

Buttercream
200g of icing sugar, sifted
100g soft margarine or butter (I generally use Stork for making both cakes & buttercream)
A couple of drops of flavouring (vanilla usually, but whatever flavouring takes your fancy)
1 tsp or so of milk, if required.

1. Mix everything together until light and fluffy - you may need a bit of milk (only a bit!) if the buttercream is quite stiff.  I use a electric hand whisk but this can be done by hand although it will take longer.
2. Cover and store in the fridge until needed.
3. That's it!