Recipes tagged with: confidentcook

These small yeast pancakes take a little while to make but are worth the effort. Delicious served with sour cream, smoked salmon, lumpfish roe or caviar and chopped hard boiled eggs. Ooh...we know how to live!

This is just one of the best vegetarian scotch eggs you will ever eat!  Quite a claim I know but I created this recipe when I ran my own vegetarian restaurant in the 80's.  It has stood the test of time and still gets lots of oohs and ahhs when you put them on the table. Worth making lots because its a little bit of a fiddle to do just a few. Promise that they will all get eaten!

These gluten free brownies are rich and nutty with a delicious fudgy centre.  Buckwheat flour is available from most supermarkets. You can buy ready roasted hazelnuts or toast your own in the pre-heated oven, on a baking tray for 15 minutes.

Italian Spinach and Ricotta stuffed pancakes served covered and baked with a Béchamel sauce. Make individual portions or a family size dish to bake in the oven. You will need one quantity of pancake batter.  Use the batter recipe for Buckwheat pancakes or from Crepes Suzettes.

The pretty pink, freckled, French apricots, when they arrive in the early summer are the best for making this jam. Make sure that they are not over ripe and that they are still slightly firm to the touch (not hard and not squashy). The addition of one or two of the kernels also gives a disitinctive almond like flavour to the jam, if you fancy cracking a couple of the stones and putting them in. This recipe will make about 5 x 1lb jars.

12 hot cross buns for Easter. The dough can be made the night before and the first rise allowed to take place in the fridge, but check that it has doubled in size before knocking back and kneading.  Serve warm from the oven with butter.

A note about yeast - Active dried yeast and fresh yeast both need to be dissolved in liquid and activated with a little sugar before using. Quick action or instant yeast can be added directly to the dry ingredients without dissolving. Quantity wise using fresh yeast means doubling the quantity of active dried yeast. For quick action/instant yeast follow the manufacturers directions although as a guide half the amount of active dried yeast will be required.

These biscuits are easy to make. Just a little fiddly to put together. Perfect for your Valentine!

Long, slow cooking is the secret for a good lemon curd. Use a double boiler or a heatproof bowl over a pan of hot water. Take your time! This recipe makes about 800g which should just about fill two standard size jam jars.
Make sure that used jars are spotlessly clean and sterilise by warming in the oven.
The curd should keep in a cool place in perfect condition for about three months.

Keeley Bennett kindly gave us this mango chutney recipe which is so easy to make. You can use slightly under ripe mangoes and experiment with different spices. Cardamom pods or seeds (either green or black) will add a unique and aromatic fragrance. Whole black peppercorns will add some heat. This recipe will make about 3 good size jam jars.

A classic choux pastry ring, named after the famous French Paris to Brest cycle race and created by Chef Pierre Giffard in 1910. Traditionally one large wheel shape choux ring is filled with a praline mousseline although I prefer making individual choux rings. If you prefer a less buttery and quicker to make filling, just add the blitzed praline to whipped double cream and use this to fill the pastries. The praline can be made with either almonds or hazelnuts.

Crispy and light vegetarian, choux pastry fritters suitable as a starter, light supper or as nibbles with drinks. They take a little time to make but are well worth the effort.

This thick quince paste or Membrillo as it is called in Spain, is traditionally eaten with Manchego cheese but great on any cheeseboard. It's a bit of a labour of love as it needs to be stirred constantly towards the end of the cooking and does take a bit of time. The rich deep red colour develops as it gets thicker and thicker. Quantities will vary depending on how many quinces you have. Don't try to cook too large a batch in one go!

A delicious vegetarian pie which can be served with a dill flavoured béchamel sauce. Use shortcrust pastry or make a quick puff pastry topped pie (buy ready rolled puff pastry) Cook the cabbage filling, place in a dish and top with a puff pastry lid.  Creme fraiche can be added to the pie filling for a creamier finish.