A nice gift idea...

I saw these at the Spirit of Christmas fair in London and liked them so much I made and gave them as several gifts.

Buy some vintage jars and fill them with layers of all the dry ingredients for your favourite cake or cookie. Then attach a gift card with the recipe attached. The one I used is written below:

Ingredients

• 175g plain flour , plus extra for dusting
• ½ tsp baking powder
• 85g porridge oats
• 175g  caster sugar
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 140g butter , chopped (you will need to add this)
• 70g dried raisins
• 1 egg , beaten (you will need to add this)

1. Tip the flour, baking powder, oats, sugar and cinnamon into a bowl, then mix well with your hands. Add the butter, then rub it into the mixture until it has disappeared.
2. Stir in the blueberries and pecans, add the egg, then mix well with a cutlery knife or wooden spoon until it all comes together in a big ball.
3. Spoon teaspoon sized dollops, evenly spread onto a baking sheet
4. Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/ gas 4. Bake for 14 mins golden, leave on the trays to harden, then cool completely on a wire rack before tucking in.

Job done! Lovely and great value gift. :)

My first attempt at Cranberry Sauce (adapted from Nigella)

Can't actually believe I haven't tried to make this before, and can't believe that anyone buys the ready made stuff now I know how easy it is to make!

It makes a really great addition to Christmas hamper presents as well.

I used Nigella's recipe below as my guide, but had to work out the measurements as I had bought 3 small crates of cranberries so I had to work it on percentages, but it seemed to work fine. I also didn't have any Cherry Brandy so I just used regular brandy in its place. Preserving really is one of the most therapeutic and satisfying pass times and cranberries are the most beautiful festive colour too, I imagine even more so if you have picked the fruit yourself, that is my challenge for next year.... Anyway here is the recipe and the photos below:

Ingredients

• 
• 

• 1 x 340g pack fresh cranberries
• 200g caster sugar
• 45ml cherry brandy
• 75ml water

Method

Serves: 8-10

1. Put everything into a pan and let it bubble away until the berries start to pop,stirring every now and again with a wooden spoon. This will take about 10minutes.
2. The one thing you should bear in mind, though, is that the pectin-rich nature of the fruit means it solidifies enormously on cooling, so although it will be cooked when the berries have burst, it will still look runnier than you think cranberry sauce should.
3. At this stage, give the sauce a final, vicious, whipping stir to help crush the berries into the liquid, and taste – making sure not to burn your mouth – to check whether it needs more sugar; if you find it too sweet, which is unlikely,just spritz in some lemon juice. Transfer to a bowl to cool.
4. If you cook this sauce way in advance, it will jellify a lot so thrash it through with a fork before serving.

MAKE AHEAD TIP:
Make the sauce up to 1 week ahead. Cover and keep in the fridge. Stir well before serving.
FREEZE AHEAD TIP:
Make and freeze for up to 1 month. Thaw overnight at room temperature. Stir well before serving.

Butternut Squash & Goat’s Cheese Lasagne (adapted from Nigella Christmas recipe)

I was looking through my cook books for something festive and tasty to cook for my girls the other day, as there were going to be 7 of us for a festive meal later that week, when I came across Nigella's Pumpkin & Goats Cheese Lasagne in her Nigella Christmas Book.

I exchange the pumpkin for a butternut squash as I couldn't get a pumpkin and I knew they were part of the same family. Other than that - I split the recipe in half as her original version was to serve 12. I would really recommend this recipe and would definitely cook it again. The rich cheese was perfectly complemented by the freshness of the squash and all my girls loved it too.

Serves 12-15

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE PUMPKIN FILLING

• 2 x 15ml tablespoons olive oil
• 30g unsalted butter
• 8 sage leaves
• 2 onions, peeled and finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• 2.2kg pumpkin, peeled, deseeded and cut into 3cm rough cubes (this is about half a decent-sized pumpkin – a proper eating one, not the Hallowe’en kind. When prepared, it yields just under 2 kilos)
• 75ml vermouth or white wine
• 60ml water
• 1 x 400g can chopped tomatoes
• salt and pepper

FOR THE TOMATO SAUCE

• 1 x 700g (700ml) bottle passata
• 500ml water
• 2 x 15ml tablespoons sugar
• 2 x 15ml tablespoons Maldon salt or 1 x 15ml tablespoon table salt
• good grinding of pepper

FOR THE CHEESE LAYER

• 450g soft fresh goat’s cheese
• 500g ricotta cheese
• 3 large organic eggs
• good grating of fresh nutmeg

TO ASSEMBLE

• 2 x 300g packets fresh lasagne sheets, 600g total
• 2 balls mozzarella
• 125g pine nuts toasted in a hot
  dry pan
• salt and pepper

NOTE
I use a soft goat’s cheese log, sold
as Chevrissime blanc, that has
no skin and a texture more like that
of a goat’s curd cheese.

METHOD

1. To make the pumpkin filling: heat the oil and butter in a shallow casserole and fry the sage leaves over a gentle heat for about 2 minutes. Add the chopped onion and minced garlic to the pan and fry very gently for another 10 minutes or so. Add the pumpkin pieces, turn well in the oniony oil and, after about 5 minutes, add the vermouth (or wine), the water and chopped tomatoes. Simmer, covered, for an hour, stirring occasionally so the pumpkin cooks evenly. Taste for seasoning – I tend to add quite a bit of salt here – and leave to cool.
2. For the tomato sauce: simply pour the passata and water into a large jug or bowl, and stir in the sugar, salt and pepper, whisking it all together.
3. To make up the cheese layer: in a separate bowl beat the goat’s cheese and ricotta with the eggs, nutmeg, and salt and pepper to taste. Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/400F/gas 6, slipping in a baking sheet as you do.
4. To assemble the lasagne, begin by putting 500ml of the cold tomato sauce in the bottom of a roasting tin (measuring approx 36cm x 26cm x 6cm). Then layer with a third of the lasagne sheets, overlapping them well (Italians do it with the tin horizontal but the pasta vertical, if that makes sense, but I don’t know that it truly matters). Leave the rest of the tomato sauce aside for the time being.
5. Layer a third of the pumpkin filling over the lasagne, and dollop on a third of the cheese mixture, coaxing with a rubber spatula. It won’t cover completely; think more of spreading blobs about. Then start again with a layer of lasagne, followed by pumpkin, then the cheese. Repeat once more – lasagne, pumpkin, and the last of the cheese mixture. Pour the remaining cold tomato sauce over, letting it sink down and be absorbed in the layers. Slice and chop the mozzarella balls and dot over the top.
6. Cook in the oven, on the baking sheet, for 1 hour. Once cooked, take out of the oven and let it stand for 15-30 minutes to make cutting and serving easier. (I love this when it’s been standing  for an hour or so, too.) As you cut and slice, you will notice a shallow tomatoey cheesy pool at the bottom of the tin; bread dunked into this is gorgeous.
7. Sprinkle the toasted pine nuts over the lasagne, and cut into squares to serve.

MAKE AHEAD TIP Up to 2 days ahead, make the pumpkin filling, leave to cool and keep, covered, in the fridge. Make the cheese layer and keep, covered, in the fridge. When ready to use, assemble the lasagne and cook as directed.

FREEZE AHEAD TIP Cook, cool and freeze the cooked pumpkin for up to 1 week. Thaw overnight in the fridge. When ready to use, assemble the lasagne and cook as directed.

THIS REALLY IS A BEAST TO CHOP UP!

I JUST LOVE THE COLOUR OF SQUASHES

I ADDED SOME FRESH TOMATOES TO THE TOP FOR EXTRA JUICINESS

Pumpkin Soup (based on Valentine Warner's recipe - with a couple of adaptions)

We had a Halloween evening round my friend Anna's a couple of weeks ago and after the pumpkin competition there was a pumpkin left over which I was allowed to take home. I had seen this Valentine Warner recipe for Pumpkin Soup a week or so before on Saturday Kitchen and had been meaning to try it since. Made a couple of changes to the original recipe - but it was/is so yummy!

Here's how I did it:

Ingredients

• 1 x 4kg/8lb 13oz pumpkin
• 125g/4oz butter
• 2 medium onions, peeled, finely chopped
• 1 cinnamon stick (or ground cinnamon)
• freshly grated nutmeg (or ground nutmeg)
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1.7 litres/3 pints chicken stock (vegetarians may substitute vegetable stock) - adapt this depending on how big your pumpkin is, I used an average tupperware container or pre made chicken stock, but did add an extra bit of boiling water and a vegetable stock cube later on. 
• 3 tablespoons sherry (or port or wine - whatever you have handy)
  
  
  organic vegetable stock cube
  
  
  good splash of milk (optional)

Preparation method

1. Cut the top off the pumpkin and set aside. Scoop out the seeds and fibres from the middle, save seeds (as there are so many things you can do with them, not least grow more pumpkins!) 
2. Peel then dice the whole of the pumpkin.
3. Melt the butter in a large pan with a lid over a low heat and add the onions. Cook the onions gently for 10-15 minutes, until they are softened and golden-brown.
4. Add the pumpkin flesh, the cinnamon and nutmeg, and season, to taste, with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Increase the heat to medium and cover with the lid. Cook for 40-45 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent the base from burning, until the pumpkin is cooked through.
5. Add the stock and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly. Transfer the soup to a food processor in batches and blend until smooth or use electric hand blender, I did this and found it easier as it meant I didn't have to remove from the pan, nice and easy.
6. Return the soup to the pan (if you did choose to remove it) and bring to a low simmer and cook for a further half an hour. 
7. Add sherry (or port or wine) and about another 100 to 200ml of boiling water and an organic vegetable stock cube. I did this second part after taste testing and deciding to change the recipe to suit a little bit as a result. It's so easy to cook without testing but if you do you will really learn what flavours you like and what seasoning you like and in my opinion become a better cook as a result - so give it a go! 
8. Serve and enjoy! - (this soup also works very well reheated). Also if you want to bulk it up a little add some milk to give it a really lovely creamy texture. 
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

Italian cookery course (Birthday present from my Mummy)

It's taken me ages to post these pictures. My Mum got me a fabulous birthday gift this year of going to a local cookery school (Inspired Gourmet) and doing an Italian cookery course. 

The evening consisted of cooking a three course, pretty elaborate, meal from scratch, learning lots of new skills along the way and then sitting in their lovely dining area to tuck in.

For Starters we did: Scallops wrapped in bacon and basil

For Mains we did: Pork fillet topped with balsamic onions and fennel gratin  

For Desert we did: Peppered Strawberries with Italian Vanilla Custard

We had so much fun as you can see from the photos below. Inspired Gourmet do all sorts of different courses and I would definitely go back to do another course, given the opportunity. I thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience, as did Mum...