Stuff yer bake

I first had this meal cooked for me when I was in Cumbria and I knew I had to do it again. This is no ordinary couscous recipe, it’s spicy, sweet and full of flavour and texture. The list of ingredients is quite comprehensive but each ingredient adds its own dimension to the rich and full flavour and the spices can of course be used again. The recipe is from the Guardian newspaper’s column “The New Vegetarian” by Yotam Ottolenghi, give it a go.

I made some shortbread and chutney for people to have at Christmas this year. I had had a go at making shortbread before, but it didn’t really turn out quite as expected. I found a Jamie Oliver recipe, which he claimed was the best shortbread recipe in the world. Even though I didn’t quite buy his bold statement, I do like his easy to follow recipes and thought that I couldn’t go far wrong. This was a basic shortbread recipe which I tinkered with slightly (I can never leave things alone) to give it more of a festive edge.

Ingredients:

• 250g plain flour
• 250g unsalted butter
• 125g semolina or cornflour
• 125g golden caster sugar
• Finely grated zest of two oranges
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• Seeds from 1/2 vanilla pod (put the pod into a bag of caster sugar to flavour it after use or use in vanilla ice cream)
• More caster sugar and flour for dusting
• 8 inch square tin, greased

Simply cream the butter, sugar and orange zest together until light and fluffy, then sift in the flour and cornflour. Mix together lightly and then bring the mixture together with your hands and pat into a ball. Roll the mixture on a floured surface until it is the right size for the tin and press into the tin. Prick the top all over with a fork and cook at 150 deg centigrade for 50 minutes until slightly golden brown on top.

While the shortbread is cooking mix together a couple of tablespoons of caster sugar with the cinnamon and vanilla seeds. Once the shortbread is cooked sprinkle this over the top (it will give off the most amazing aroma). When the shortbread has cooled a little, cut into squares.

I really love trifle but I hate the ones with jelly in them. I’m probably being a bit snobby but I think jelly is a bit tacky and I also don’t really like the texture. This recipe is really quick and easy, which is a must for around Christmas when you have run out of time or can’t face any more slaving over hob.

Ingredients

• 1 box of Trifle sponges
• 500ml ready made custard (get the best stuff you can or make you own if you like)
• 250g Mascarpone cheese ( I found a reduced fat one which made me feel less gluttonous)
• Ground cinnamon
• 280ml Whipping cream
• Frozen berries 300g (anything you like)
• Brandy
• Juice and zest of 1 orange
• 4 tblsp Golden caster sugar

First cut the trifle sponges in half and use them to line the bottom of the trifle bowl. Put a splosh of brandy (it is really up to you how much you want to add) into a bowl and add half the juice of the orange and the zest. Pour this over the trifle sponge base and leave to soak in. Put the berries into a saucepan with the caster sugar and heat until the berries have melted and the sugar has dissolved. Leave to cool and then pour over the trifle sponge base. Take the custard and add the mascarpone cheese and a couple of tsp of cinnamon, whisking together until combined. Pour this over the top of the fruit and let the trifle set in the fridge for a while. Whip the cream until soft peaks and use to decorate the top of the trifle. Serves 6-8

I was a bit stressed when I realised that my blog had gone toe up, mainly because I had no idea how to fix it and also because I had nothing backed up (silly!!) so may have lost all my stuff. It is, thankfully, now well on the road to recovery and I have a back log of things to talk about and some yummy pics but in the meantime I will ease my stress with a hot whiskey, which will frankly cure just about anything (I generally prescribe one or two a night for a cold).

Simply squeeze the juice of half a lemon into your favourite mug, add a heaped teaspoon of honey, scatter in as many cloves as you like, a cinnamon stick and fill nearly to the top with hot water before adding a generous slug of whiskey (the more generous the better).

There, all better