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Sweet Potato and Apple Bake

1½ hrs

serves 4-6

3 X 225g / 8oz sweet potatoes
4 X 75g / 3oz firm eating apples
75g / 3oz light muscavado sugar
½ tsp. salt
1½ tsp. ground mixed spice
40g / 1½oz butter, plus extra for greasing
4 tbsp. water

Preheat oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4 and butter ovenproof dish. Cook sweet potatoes in boiling salted water until tender. Drain and leave to cool, peel and cut into 5mm/¼in slices. Peel and cut the apples into 5mm/¼in slices and place alternate slices of apple and potato in rows in the buttered dish.

Sprinkle each layer with a little salt, sugar and mixed spice. Dot with butter, sprinkle over 4 tbsp. water and cover with lid. Bake for 20 mins., remove the covering and bake for 10 mins.

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Creamed Nectarines in Brandy Snap Cases

1½ hrs

serves 4

10 nectarines
175g / 6oz caster sugar
175ml / 6 fl.oz double cream

FOR THE BRANDY SNAPS
90g / 3½oz butter
75g / 3oz sugar

120ml / 4 fl.oz golden syrup
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
75g / 3oz plain flour, sifted
½ tsp. ground ginger
fresh mint, nectarine slices, strawberries

Preheat oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6. Immerse nectarines in boiling water for 20 seconds, transfer to pan of cold water. Peel skins, stone them and roughly chop. Place in bowl and add half of the sugar (75g / 3oz), cover and chill for 1 hour.

Meanwhile, make the brandy snaps:   Gently melt butter, sugar and syrup until sugar has dissolved; add lemon juice.   Beat in the flour and ginger until smooth; chill in the fridge.  Lightly grease a baking sheet, place teaspoons of the mixture on the sheet, leaving enough room so each spoonful can spread to the size of a saucer.  Cook for about 5 mins. until golden. Remove and allow to cool on the sheet for 2 mins.  Using a palette knife, ease the brandy snaps from the sheet and place them on top of oranges or upturned small bowls to shape them into baskets. Remove the nectarines from fridge, drain off the liquid and purée in blender. Sweeten with remainder of sugar. Whip the cream until it forms soft peaks, then fold in the nectarine purée; chill. (At this stage you can add a little liqueur to taste.)

Place the baskets on serving plates and fill with the cream, decorate with mint, nectarine slices and strawberries.

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Filet Steak Royale

½ hour

serves 4

4 X 175g / 6oz filet steaks
4 tbsp. olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
175g / 6oz button mushrooms, sliced
200ml / 7 fl.oz white wine
150ml / 5 fl.oz double cream
2 tsp. French mustard
2 tbsp. fresh tarragon, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
salt and pepper
tarragon sprigs as optional garnish

Flatten steaks with fist or meat mallet. Heat 2 tbsp. oil in heavy-based pan and fry steaks, turning regularly according to taste (rare: 4mins., medium: 6 mins., well-done: 8 mins.).  Meanwhile, heat oil in another pan and sauté onion for 3 mins. Add mushrooms and cook for further 2 mins.

Add white wine and simmer for 5 mins. Stir in cream, mustard, tarragon, garlic and seasoning and heat gently to warm through. Serve steaks on a bed of mushroom sauce, garnished with tarragon sprigs, if liked.

See also Steak Diane

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Pesto and Cheese Stuffed Vegetables

1½ hrs

serves 4

4 onions
vegetable stock in 850ml / 1½ pint water
3 red peppers
2 cloves garlic, sliced
a little olive oil
400g / 14oz tomatoes, chopped
250g / 9oz cooked spinach, chopped
3 tbsp. pesto sauce
4 tbsp. vegetable stock powder (Knorr)
3 tbsp. pine nuts
black pepper
125g / 4oz mozzarella cheese, grated
sprinkle of parmesan cheese

Peel onions and cook in stock for 15 mins. Scoop out centre of each onion with teaspoon to leave a sturdy shell and reserve.   Halve 2 red peppers lengthways and remove seeds. cook them for 8 mins. in the stock. Slice other pepper thinly and fry it in the olive oil with chopped onion centres and garlic cloves until tender. Add tomatoes, spinach, pesto sauce, 4 tbsp. vegetable stock powder and pine nuts which have been lightly toasted under a grill. Cook the mixture over a moderate heat until it starts to thicken. Season well with black pepper. fill the onions and peppers with the mixture, top with the cheese. Bake for 30 mins. at 200C/400F/Gas Mark 6

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Egg, Potato and Okra Curry

40 mins.

serves 4

3 tbsp. oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, crushed
½ tsp. chilli powder
1 tsp. ground coriander
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. ground turmeric
1 tsp. paprika
4 tomatoes, quartered
454g / 1lb new potatoes, blanched, halved
12 okra, trimmed
300ml / ½ pint vegetable stock
4 hard-boiled eggs, shelled and halved
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil gently and fry the onion and garlic until they are translucent and softened. Stir in the spices and cook for 1 min. Add the tomatoes, potatoes, okra and vegetable stock and cook until vegetables are tender. Add hard-boiled eggs and season to taste with salt and pepper

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Mango and Ginger Meringue Pie

1½ hrs

serves 6

200 g / 7 oz shortcrust pastry
grated rind of 1 and juice of 2 lemons
25 g / 1 oz cornflour
225 g / 8 oz caster sugar
15 g / ½ oz butter
2 eggs, separated
300ml / ½ pint boiling water
½ mango, peeled and sliced
2 tsp. preserved stem ginger, finely chopped

Roll out pastry on a lightly floured board and line a 20cm / 8in flan case. Prick the pastry with a fork and bake blind for 20 mins. at 200C/400F/Gas 6.  Mix the lemon juice with the cornflour and stir in the boiling water. Simmer for 2 mins. then beat in half the sugar, the butter and the lemon rind.   Beat in the egg yolks.  Add the mango and ginger, then pour into the flan case. Whisk the egg whites until very stiff and standing in peaks. Whisk in the remaining sugar a little at a time. Pile the meringue over the lemon mixture and fork up into peaks.   Bake at 150C/300F/Gas 2 for 40 mins.

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Buttermilk Pancakes

Quick

serves 2-3

100g / 4oz plain flour
2 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. bicarbonate of soda
1 tbsp. caster sugar
½ tsp. salt
2 eggs, separated
250ml / 8 fl.oz buttermilk
25g / 1oz butter, melted

Sift the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, sugar and salt into a bowl. Mix together the eggs yolks, buttermilk and melted butter and whisk into flour mixture until the batter is thick and smooth (don’t over-beat). Whisk the egg whites until stiff, carefully fold into the batter.

Heat a large frying pan (preferably non-stick) and brush lightly with melted butter. Drop large spoonfuls (about 50ml / 2 oz) of batter into the pan. When bubbles appear on the surface, flip over and cook until browned. Serve with one of the following toppings

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Apple, Pecan and Maple Syrup Topping

15 min.

serves 4

2 large eating apples
25g / 1oz butter
250ml / 8fl.oz maple syrup
100g / 4oz pecans

Peel, core and quarter the apples, then slice each quarter into 4 pieces.  Heat the butter in a large frying pan and cook the apple slices until coloured and softened.  Meanwhile, heat the maple syrup with the pecans for 3-4 mins. until thickened.

Place 4 apple slices on a buttermilk pancake and cover with a spoonful of maple syrup. Top with a second pancake, 4 more apple slices and a large spoonful of maple syrup. Repeat with remaining ingredients to make 3 more stacks of pancakes. Serve at once

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225g / 8oz fresh or frozen blueberries
50g / 2oz demerara sugar
50ml / 2 fl.oz water
2 tsp. cornflour
1 tsp. ground cinnamon

Place blueberries in a pan with sugar and water and simmer gently until the blueberries have softened—this takes about 2 mins. for fresh and 5 mins. for frozen.  Blend cornflour with 1 tbsp. water to form a smooth paste and stir into the blueberry sauce with teaspoon of cinnamon. Bring to the boil and simmer until thickened. serve hot or cold with buttermilk pancakes.

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Key Lime Pie

1 hour

serves 6

4 eggs
1 can sweetened condensed milk
½ cup lime juice (Key Limes if possible)
6 tbsp. sugar
½ tsp. cream of tartar
1 baked 9" pie shell

Preheat oven to 250F. Beat 4 egg yolks, add condensed milk and lime juice, beat until thick, pour into baked pie shell.  For topping beat 4 egg whites, blend in sugar and cream of tartar. Beat until mixture is stiff and forms peaks. Bake in moderate oven until egg whites are golden brown.

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