Builders Breakfast Pasta

One day I came home from work to find the sorry looking remains of a fry up in the fridge.  Leftover, uncooked sausages, black pudding, bacon, tomatoes and mushrooms were scattered haphazardly across the shelves, whilst a sheepish looking Steve sat on the sofa.

"I got hungry".

The problem was, we didn't have enough leftover bits and pieces for two complete grill ups (always a grill up when I'm cooking it) and I didn't want to waste anything.

That's when it hit me.  Builders Breakfast Pasta - a pasta sauce made out of all the fry up ingredients.  We were both rather sceptical about it, but thought we should at least give it a go for dinner the following evening.

This is the surprisingly delicious result of that experiment.

So, for a pasta dish fit to grace the hallowed tables of any honest corner cafe frequented by builders, students, emergency service workers at the end of their shift and anyone in need of a strong hangover fix, you will need (for 2-3 people):

The leftovers from a fry up the previous day (or just get some sausages (about 3), 2-3 rashers of unsmoked streaky bacon, a handful of (about 6 medium) button mushrooms, some slices of black pudding and a couple of peeled tomatoes, all chopped into bite size pieces)
1 tin of tinned chopped tomatoes
125g dried pasta (I used penne as it is what I had to hand)
1 tablespoon dried or frozen basil, or a couple of shredded leaves of fresh basil
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon tomato puree (optional)
1 teaspoon garlic oil OR
1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 crushed clove of garlic
Tabasco (it is me, after all)

Heat the garlic oil or the vegetable oil in a pan and add the crushed garlic clove to the oil if you are using it.

Add choppped sausage, bacon and black pudding to the pan and fry until lightly browned
Add the mushrooms to the pan and fry for 3-5 minutes

Add the chopped tomato and the tin of chopped tomatoes to the pan and stir to form a sauce

Add the herbs, sugar and tomato puree to the pan, bring to the boil and reduce to a simmer.  Check the seasoning and add salt and pepper as required.  Cover and leave to simmer while you cook the pasta

Put the penne in a pan of lightly salted boiling water and cook according to the packet instructions

Drain, reserving a half ladle of the starchy cooking water.  Add the water to the pasta sauce and stir through until the sauce becomes a bit more glossy. 

Pour the drained pasta into the sauce and stir it all together then leave to simmer for 2 more minutes.

Serve - tabasco optional (and in my case, essential)!

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Upside Down Pear Cake

Does anyone know when Great British Bake-off is due to start again?  Anyone?  I'm getting withdrawal symptoms.  I miss that marquee, the benches, the flour coated foreheads as the pressure rises and the rain pounds down outside.  Anyone would think I had actually been there! 

I was at home, on the sofa with a cup of tea late at night watching a re-run of one of the earlier episodes when I got hit by an enormous craving for cake.  It is one of the hazards of watching a baking show but normally I can ignore that craving.  This one just got worse and worse until I could finally stand it no longer and had to have cake and soon.

I had all the ingredients for a simple sponge, but decided to up it slightly by going for that 80's classic, an upside down cake.  Normally upside down cake is made with pineapple but at 11pm at night, I wasn't about to nip out to the 24 hour Asda on the other side of town when I had some beautifully ripe pears just sat there.

The other lure of this cake is how quickly it is ready, which was one of the vital requirements.  It was less than an hour from turning the oven on to heat up until I was sat on the sofa scarfing down 1... (ok 2)... slices.  This is a lovely little tea time cake and the sticky glaze which is hard and crunchy in places and beautifully treacly in others, is the perfect finishing touch. 

For the cake
200g self-raising flour
10g baking powder (for some extra oomph)
Pinch of salk
115g unsalted butter, softened
130g granulated sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs, separated
120ml milk (whole or semi-skimmed)

For the topping
Couple of ripe pears, peeled, cored and sliced evenly
60g melted butter
70g dark brown muscovado sugar

Pre-heat the oven to 180C and grease your baking pan

Melt the butter in the bottom of a heavy pan over a low heat. Add the brown sugar and stir until it is dissolved. Pour into the base of your baking pan and swirl to coat the bottom; remove from heat, and cool. Arrange the cut pears in a pattern over the brown-sugar mixture, making sure that the base is completely covered and set aside.

Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.  Cream the sugar and butter until light and fluffy then add the vanilla and beat it to combine, followed by the egg yolks one at a time, again beating to combine them.  Gradually add the flour mixture and the milk to the creamed butter and sugar until you have a light batter that is just combined. 

Beat the reserved egg whites until they are just starting to get stiff peaks and then fold them gently into the batter.  Pour the batter over the pears and caramel, being careful not to dislodge the pears.  Bake until a skewer comes out clean (about 30-40 minutes).

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Htamin sa pi bi la

Htamin sa pi bi la?  This is the traditional greeting of Burma and translates appropriately as 'Have you eaten?'

Burma is on my bucket list of places to visit.  I've heard so much about it from my grandmother's stories about her childhood growing up there; I am desperate to see it for myself one day.  It is only recently that this has really become a possibility although there are still areas of Burma which are off limits to tourists.

In the meantime, I can eat Burmese food.  Strangely enough, my grandmother never made us traditional food when we visited her although she has still managed to influence our tastebuds!  My mum loves ngapi (prawn paste) on toast and will start drooling at the mention of balachaung, although the smell will make you choke a bit, especially if you are not used to it, and both my mum and myself will happily munch cold curry on toast or in a sandwich for breakfast. Grandma used to show up at our home with carrier bags filled with sweet smelling ripe mango's which my sister would quite happily work her way through in a single sitting and my grandmother herself has an incredibly sweet tooth, fuelled by her love of malaing lohn, the Burmese version of gulab jamun.  I even have a longyi that I never get a chance to wear, and the sepia picture of my grandmother in her traditional wedding dress, hair in a top knot pony tail and draping down her shoulder to her waist, studded with orchids and other flowers, is one of my favourite family photos.

I have never cooked Burmese food before though, and despite the fact that I have never been, I thought it was about time I learned the cuisine of my (grand) motherland.

All the women in my family have this cook book by Naomi Duguid - it's so good that when my cousin asked my grandmother to write a cookery book for her of all the recipes she had growing up, she just bought her a copy of this instead!

I love this book - it is utterly beautiful inside and manages to somehow capture a land that for me is shrouded in romance and mystery.  The photography is breathtaking and it focuses on the culture of the country, the hospitality of the people and the role food plays in everyday life.  It does not dwell on Burma's tumultuous political history. 

As I was leafing through it, I came across one particular recipe that I really wanted to try; a simple prawn curry with fried rice and crispy shallots.

The flavours are undoubtedly Asian in origin, but not as pronounced as those of Thailand or China - there is an Indian influence which gives Burmese food its own unique characteristics.  I found it to be subtle, delicate and lightly balanced.  The dishes rely heavily on shallots, tomato's and (not surprisingly) rice, as well as a variety of meats and seafood.  It takes quite a bit of preparation, but it is worth it!

This meal is a feast and makes a fabulous alternative to a Saturday night take away curry; I highly recommend it!

Fried Shallots and Shallot Oil

1 cup peanut oil
2 cups thinly sliced shallots

Using a heavy wok, heat the oil until it sizzles lightly.  Test the temperature with one slice of shallot; when it rises to the surface of the oil you can add the rest carefully and lower the heat to medium.  Stir gently and frequently and when the shallots turn golden (about 10 -15 minutes) carefully remove from the oil with a slotted spoon or a spider and leave to drain on kitchen paper.  As they cool they will crisp up.  Set the oil to one side for cooking with for the rice and the curry

Fried Rice

2 to three tablespoons of the shallot oil from above
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 cup sliced shallots
4-5 cups cooked and cooled jasmine rice
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup green peas (frozen is fine)
fried shallots
lime wedges

Cook the jasmine rice according to the packet instructions, drain and leave to cool

Heat the shallot oil in a heavy wok then add the turmeric and the shallots and stir fry until the shallots are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.

Raise the heat to high and add the jasmine rice, salt and peas.  Stir fry, pressing the rice against the side of the wok to sear it.  Continue cooking until the rice is hot by which time the peas will have cooked through.  Add the fried shallots, stir and serve with the curry, topping with lime wedges.

Prawn Curry

200g peeled prawns
1/2 cup finely diced shallots
1/2 teaspoon crushed garlic
2 tablespoons shallot oil
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 tin chopped tomatoes
3/4 cup water
2 teaspoons fish sauce
1 green birdseye chilli, finely chopped and de-seeded if you want less heat
1/2 teaspoon salt
coriander leaves and lime to dress

Pound the garlic and shallots to a paste in a pestle and mortar

Heat the oil in the wok over a medium high heat.  Add the turmeric and stir, then add the shallots and garlic paste, lower the heat to medium and cook, stirring frequently until soft and translucent.  Add the tomatoes and cook for about 5 minutes at a medium boil stirring occasionally until the tomatoes are softened and any excess oil has risen to the surface.

Add the water and fish sauce, bring back to a medium boil and add the prawns.  Cook until the prawns turn pink then add the chopped chilli and salt, stir briefly, check and adjust the seasoning if required and serve over the fried rice, garnished with coriander leaves and lime.

Now I just need to travel to Burma to taste food like this on the banks of the great Irrawaddy river...

The Spicery

He who controls the spice controls the Universe.

Do you ever have the feeling that you want to experiment a bit more in the kitchen but you just don't want to invest in big pots of all those herbs and spices that you will never use again?  Or that you really want to try and cook world food a bit more but don't have the first blue clue where to start?

Let me introduce you to a little company that I've mentioned before and that I happen to worship.

I got my first package from The Spicery about 3 years ago - my mum bought my sister and I a year's subscription to their World Kitchen package as a Christmas present and I loved it so much I begged her to renew it the next year.

Basically, in the first week of every month one of these little paprika red boxes lands on your doorstep.

You have no idea what will be inside but you know it will be exciting.

You open it up and are hit by the scent of rich spices and exotic herbs, some of which you have never heard of before.

Accompanying this little spice treasure trove are recipe cards.  A main course and a dessert to be exact, each one complimenting the season and each other (although you can of course mix and match).

These little cards have led me by the nose and mouth all over the world, from the giddying heights of the Asian mountains to the brilliant blue of the Caribbean islands, from the heat of Ethiopia to the chill of Hungary.  Through these cards I have cooked shish kebabs, jambalaya, browndown chicken, moussaka, peach cobbler, pasteis de nata, dan dan noodles, doro wat, piri piri chicken (better than nando's), urfta kofte kebabs, chocolate and cherry pots, kulfi, baklava and so much more; in short recipes and dishes I may never have come across and that have completely broadened my cooking horizons, skills, knowledge and understanding of spices.  Many of them I have cooked time and time again and invested in the spices in my own store cupboard.

They are also awesome recipes for when you have guests over (they make you look like a cooking genius).

So how does it work?

It's really quite simple - you just purchase a World Kitchen subscription (from £19.95 for three months) and renew as often as you want.  You can also just order specific spice boxes and there is the Friday Night Curry subscription box which includes the cards and spices for a curry and side dishes.  There are also vegetarian specific boxes.  They deliver world wide (except Australia) and you don't even need to go and collect the box if you are out - they fit through the letterbox.

All you need to do is decide what you want to cook and get the main ingredients together, which are always simple and easy to find in a supermarket.  All the recipes are designed to be workable for even the most inexperienced cook and make enough for 4 people in each kit - great for families, leftovers or even freezing and defrosting at a later date.  This would be an awesome gift for a student as well who is learning how to cook and for people who want to be a little more adventurous at dinner time.  They even do spice blend personalised wedding favours!

I also got a little extra in my kit as well each month- a spice blend, some mulling spices, salad herbs, moroccan mint tea blend (my favourite) or hot chocolate chilli powder.  These have found their way into all sorts of dishes as rubs and marinades over the years.  The spices are best used within 2 weeks of the box arriving but in all honesty I have used them much later and still found the dishes to be amazing.

I've not actually renewed this year as after two years and 24 boxes I was starting to get repeat cards through the post so thought I should give them a year or so to expand their recipes some more - they are still a really young company and as each recipe gets tested over 10 times before it lands on your doorstep it's no surprise I have caught up!

As presents go this is a gift that really does keep on giving as it broadens your food horizons and your kitchen skills.  Plus which the food is always good, and that motto, who wouldn't want to control the universe through flavour and scent?!

What other reasons could you possibly need?

If You're Fond Of Sand Dunes And Salty Air...

You're sure to fall in love with old Cape...Prawn?

Whoever thinks that food needs to look pretty in order to taste good has never tasted this. 

Smokey, salty, slightly spicey corn chowder with flecks of crisp bacon scattered across the top and plump juicy prawns floating in its depths.   I could say it tastes like a windswept beach covered in olive green seaweed and silvery grey driftwood but frankly that sounds a bit grainy and bitty, like when you get sand in your sandwich at a picnic, not to mention ridiculous and pretentious.  So I won't mention that.

I will however say that this is a hearty, warming meal, perfect for the slight change to more autumnal weather that we are currently experiencing.

If however you are still unconvinced and want to check out someone whose photography is much better than mine, you can see the original recipe here.  Bev is just a lot better with her camera, lighting manipulation and artistically arranged shots than I am - I was much more focused on getting it to the table and in our bellies.

I made this using three fresh corn cobs and cut the kernels off using a knife run down the cob but honestly? Just use a big tin of Green Giant or frozen.  I really don't think it will make much difference.

I also didn't serve this with any bread (I forgot) but I would recommend some fresh baked to mop up the remainder of the chowder, preferably warm from the oven with slightly melted butter over spread over the top (I'm not saying bake your own - that's ridiculous,  I'm saying get some from the bakery and warm it in a low oven.  Much less hassle!)

So without further ado, here is the recipe (for 2 people):

3 strips of un-smoked streaky bacon, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 large packets of raw King Prawns
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
3 tablespoons smoked paprika
1 tablespoon chipotle paste (this adds a rich smokey flavour with a hint of heat - quite important.  Steve  found mine in the Tex-mex section of Morrison's although a friend has made her own which is simply amazing - I couldn't stop eating it on tortilla chips).
3 ears fresh corn, kernels removed (or 1 large tin of sweetcorn / 3 fistfuls of frozen)
2 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup single cream (you can get away with low fat)
Pepper

Heat a medium-sized pot over medium heat.
Add the bacon and cook until crispy.
Remove bacon from the pan and set aside on a paper towel to drain.
Drain all but 1Tbs. bacon fat, if you have that much in the pot.

Raise the heat to medium-high.
Add the prawns to the pot and sear on one side for 2 minutes.
Flip and sear 30 more seconds. Remove prawns from the pot and set aside.
Drain off any excess water

If you need to add a little oil (or bacon fat) to the pot, do so.
Add the onions to the pot and sauté 5 minutes.
Add the garlic, paprika, chipotle paste and a pinch of pepper.  Don't add salt - the bacon and chicken stock are salty already. Sauté another minute.

Add the corn kernels to the pot and toss to combine, saute another minute
Add the stock and cream to the pot. Stir to combine. Keep on a low simmer for 15 minutes. Check for seasoning

Blend half of the soup until it is creamy (either in the pot or remove half and blend separately).  Recombine and stir.

Add the prawns to the chowder and heat for a couple of minutes to warm up the prawns.

Serve with the bacon sprinkled over the top.

Slurp and pretend you live in a lighthouse somewhere in New England.  Flashbacks to Pete's Dragon anyone? 

Jambalaya

Jambalaya, that smokey, spicey rich dish that tastes of the deep south, a dish that evokes thoughts of warm Louisiana nights down by the bayou as the lighting bugs flit or heady jazz floating through the streets of New Orleans.  Every family will have their own version and their own secret ingredients that go into it.

Remember to rhyme the 'Jam' with 'Tom' if you want to pronounce it right!

I must admit, I romanticise this dish having never been to the deep south of America (and it being on my bucket list of places to visit).  For now, to indulge my fantasy, when I dream of Mardi Gras and Haitian magic, I will put my own spin on this classic Creole meal, aided by The Spicery.

If I was being true to the origins of this dish I would flavour it with alligator and turtle meat, however these ingredients are a little difficult to find in Kent!  There are a few rules that you must follow though.

You always start with the holy trinity - onion, celery and pepper.  You also need a white meat, chicken thighs are my favourite, and good smoked sausage; chorizo or andouille.  Finally (although I left them out of this version as I was feeding a pregnant lady) you want good shellfish, normally prawns or mussels, and finally, rice.  Beyond that, the sky is really your limit.

This version has been taste tested by us a number of times and it is really good.   If you are craving the heat and spice that only the deep south can provide, I recommend this.  

Jambalaya with Hot Sauce

1 medium onion - chopped
2 sticks celery - finely chopped
2 bell peppers - deseeded and chopped
3 cloves garlic - finely chopped
1 tin chopped tomato
3 chicken thighs, skin removed and chopped into chunks
1 large, good quality chorizo sausage, chopped
3 good quality smoked sausages, chopped
1 packet raw prawns
300g long grain rice
2 tsp Cajun seasoning
2 tsp chilli flakes
2 tsp Cholula hot sauce
2 tsp sweet smoked paprika
1/2 tsp ground bay
2 tsp parsley
2 tsp chives
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp basil

For the hot sauce

You don't need to make this, you can use shop bought but I just love the smokey rich hot flavour that this adds and end up sloshing it all over my jambalaya.  I would serve it separate in a jug and allow people to help themselves though as the heat levels can be a bit surprising!

2 chipotle chillis
1 birdseye chilli
2 tablespoons tomato puree
2 tsp white wine vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
100 ml water

Cooking wise, it's pretty simple.

In a large, heavy bottomed pan heat 2 tablespoons of oil and gently fry the onions, celery, garlic and peppers until they are soft.

Add the chicken, sausage, chorizo, cajun seasoning, chilli flakes, hot sauce and paprika and mix well together, letting the meats slowly brown and allowing the chorizo to release its oils, then add the tin of tomatoes.

Add the rice, bay, parsley, chives, thyme and basil and enough water to cover the jambalaya half way up (you may need to top this up as the rice cooks and the water absorbs).  Bring to the boil and keep an eye on it, stirring occasionally to stop the rice from sticking to the bottom of the pan and adding more seasoning and spices if required.

For the hot sauce, soak the chipotles in a mug of boiling water for about 10 minutes, then put the softened chillis and the birdseye chilli (minus the seeds and stem), tomato puree, vinegar, salt and water into a blender and blend until smooth.

When the rice is cooked you are ready to serve!  We like this with salad, fresh baked bread and a scattering of chopped spring onions on the top for crunch!  This is a fantastic meal to serve if you have people coming over for dinner as it is relatively quick and you can just stick the lid on and let it cook on its own without worrying about it.

Just go easy on the chilli if you aren't sure about tolerance levels!

Grab your friends, make some Sazerac's and stick some Dixieland on.  Laissez les bons temps rouler.

Bread and Butter Pudding

I'm not sure what's come over me recently.  I've been actively looking at leftovers and trying to work out what to do with them - I'm never that inventive or creative in the kitchen!   

Before you say anything, I KNOW that bread and butter pudding is hardly inventive but that's not the point.  I was more chuffed with the fact that I actually looked at some nearly-stale bread and thought, B&B Pud, perfect rather than my usual go-to of 'better turn the cat TV on (ie. feed the birds)!

B&B Pud reminds me of being little, it was such a warming, comforting, nursery supper type of dessert and no two versions were ever the same depending on what Mum had lying around the kitchen.  The smell for me is reminiscent of nights curled up on the sofa near the fire, watching a film with the cats by your feet and a giant mug of tea on standby.    Why on earth I decided I needed to make a batch in mid-August is a bit of a mystery but I was glad I did.

Apparently it doesn't invoke such heartwarming memories for a lot of people; during the 1990's this pudding had almost become extinct due to its association with really bad school dinners.

Trust me - this version is nothing like those sloppy, cold, chewy bowls of pale yellow mush you got at school.

I've had it with brioche, croissants, ginger jam instead of butter, fruit jam, chocolate chips, pieces of red berries, white bread, brown bread, cinnamon milk, fruit peel, the options are pretty much endless, all are delicious and all are easy and follow the same basic pattern.

All you need as a staple are bread, butter (obviously), milk, sugar and eggs.  After that, just experiment!  After all, it was originally invented as a way to use up leftovers and has been made in British kitchens ever since the 1720's (as apparently that was when the earliest known recipe for it was discovered).

This is British puddings at their most traditional.

Did you know that apparently the earliest versions were called 'Whitepot' and used bone-marrow instead of butter and could also be made with rice instead of bread, meaning that Bread and Butter Pudding and Rice Pudding share a common ancestry!

This version needs about 8 slices of stale-ish bread, buttered on one side and cut into triangles.  You arrange half in a greased baking dish, butter side up and then scatter the layer with sultanas (or chocolate chips) and then another layer on top using the remaining half of the bread.

In a pan you gently heat 350ml of whole milk and 50ml of double cream (if you are using it, otherwise just 400ml of milk) with 2 tsp's of cinammon, 1 tsp of nutmeg and 1tsp of vanilla (powder, extract, liquid, pod, all will work).  Warm the mix until gently heated but not boiling.

Crack 2 eggs into a bowl and add 20 grams granulated sugar and whisk together then add the egg mix to the milk mix and whisk to form a light custard.  Pour the custard over the bread, soaking as much as possible.

Sprinkle nutmeg and demerara sugar over the top and add some extra butter to any pointy bits sticking out to make them extra crisp. 

Bake in a pre-heated oven at 180C for 30-40 minutes until the custard is squidgy and the bread browned.  You may just want to sit near the oven and sniff during this stage as the smells that permeate out are simply divine. 

Serve hot with more warm custard (you cannot have too much custard with this dessert.  I don't think it is possible).  Add some jam as well maybe? 

It is pure comfort in a bowl.