Edible Place Names For The Christmas Table

Home make & bake - these biscuits can be iced with your guest's names  and look great on the Christmas dining table . To personalise your table settings make these biscuits add names or initials or characters and put in each place setting. An added bonus - you can nibble them with your coffee after lunch. If you have kids they'll enjoy helping, too.


You need: 200g/7oz butter, 175ml/6fl oz golden syrup, 170g /6oz sugar, 1- 2tsp ground cinnamon, 1- 2tsp ground cloves, 1- 2tsp ground ginger, grated zest 1 orange, 2 eggs, 510g/1lb 2oz flour, 3tsp baking powder, icing sugar and warm water to decorate.


Preheat oven to 200° C /400° F/ Gas 6. Place butter,syrup,sugar and orange zest into heavy saucepan. Bring to boil briefly and allow to cool. Beat eggs (one at time) with whisk into cooled mixture. 
Sift flour and baking powder into large bowl. Add the sugar mixture from pan to the flour a little at a time. make to a dough. 
Wrap in cling film and place in fridge overnight. 
Remove from fridge - roll out dough to 3mm /1/8" thick. Cut into shapes. Place onto greased baking tray and cook for 5 - 8 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on cooling tray.
Mix icing sugar with a small amount of warm water to make icing. Put into icing bag and use to put names or funny faces or guest's initials on each biscuit. 
Enjoy :) 


 extract from The Christmas Book  (available from Dorling Kindersley Books

Christmas Shortbread Cookies - Make & Bake

Christmas Shortbread Cookies - don't expect them to last until Christmas!


To make approximately 24 smaller cookie shapes you need;
125g/4oz caster sugar
250g/8oz butter
350g/12oz sifted plain flour
pinch salt


Beat sugar & butter together in mixing bowl. Sift in flour & salt and work together to form stiff dough. Turn out onto floured surface. Knead lightly until smooth. Don't over handle. Chill dough for 10 to 15 minutes in the fridge.

Roll out the chilled dough onto a floured surface. Cut into shapes with pastry cutters. Place on greased baking sheets and cook Gas 4 /180⁰C/350⁰F for 10 to 15 minutes until golden in colour. Lift very gently onto cooling racks.

Make icing- Mix 60g/20z icing sugar in small bowl with a little drop of warm water until you get the correct consistency. Dribble icing over the biscuits and sprinkle with hundreds and thousands or silver balls or little pieces of angelica/ sweets


These make gorgeous presents or tree hanging decorations. Wrap in cellophane (from florists supplies) or I make a small box out of heavy card and cover with paper and cling film. You can even add the recipe as a little tag! You probably need to make more as lots will get eaten in the process! Enjoy - Jane :)

St Andrews Day - Traditional Scottish Recipe

30th November is the celebration of the feast of St Andrew throughout the world. St Andrew patron saint of Scotland, legend has it, was crucified on an X shaped cross - the Scottish heraldic term being a 'saltire', which can be seen on the Scottish flag.


Why not join in the World Wide Ceilidh online for a bit of fun? Or create a traditional Scottish dish - Cullen Skink? source:www.scotland.org


What you need: 1tbsp vegetable oil , 1 leek (chopped) 1l. fish stock, 200g. peeled potatoes (cubed), 300g smoked haddock fillet, 1 bay leaf, pepper, 2tbsp whipping cream, chopped chives. large stock pan, slotted spoon, liquidiser

1. Warm the oil in a pan, add the chopped leek, cover and gently cook for a few minutes until soft.
2. Add the stock, bay leaf, potato and haddock. Season lightly with black pepper.
3. Bring to the boil and simmer for 15 minutes.
4. Remove the haddock from the pan with a slotted spoon. When the fish is cool enough to handle, remove any skin and bones, then flake the haddock back into the pan.
5. Blend a ladle full of the soup in a liquidizer and return to the pan.
6. Stir in the double cream and simmer for another 2 or 3 minutes.
7. Add more black pepper if necessary, then sprinkle with the chopped chives and serve.

Serve with crusty bread. Have an enjoyable St Andrews Day on Tuesday! 

Jane :)

Chicken Bake Recipe - Really Easy And Tasty Family Supper Dish

Chicken Bake 

This is a lovely supper or dinner recipe that all the family will love. It's easy to make and is really tasty. Great as an alternative to takeaway as it's cheap, and can be made using kitchen cupboard ingredients. The breadcrumbs can be dried ones from a tub or use up old bread leftovers. If you use a blender or coffee grinder on your left over bread and then freeze for when it's needed - this gives a better taste than dried ones, too. You can create this as  a gluten free dish by using Kallo organic stock cubes and gluten free bread (suitable for coeliacs) made into breadcrumbs.

What you need: a bunch of spring onions (chopped), 4 cloves of garlic, small red onion, 500g chicken breasts (in finger sized pieces), mixed herbs, salt & pepper, olive oil, vegetable or chicken stock cube and 7floz /190ml hot water, 2tsp ginger, brown breadcrumbs, Large rectangular casserole dish.

Pre- heat oven to 350°F/ 176°C / Gas Mark 4.

Peel and chop red onion into small cube sized pieces.Peel and chop garlic cloves. Fry red onions in olive oil add garlic and cook until onions are softened and browned. Add to casserole dish. Fry meat until cooked and add to dish. Season, sprinkle over ginger and chopped spring onions. Make up stock with cube added to water, mix well and pour over chicken and onions. Put into oven. Bake for 15 mins - remove from oven using oven gloves. Turn up oven to 425°F/ 218°C / Gas Mark 7. Sprinkle breadcrumbs over the food, drizzle with olive oil and return to oven for 10 mins to crispen. 

Serve warm with steamed vegetables or you could even try adding pasta to the dish to make a one pot supper.

Enjoy  :)

Come Dine With Me In Style

I love watching the TV program 'Come Dine With Me' - the voice over chap Dave Lamb is absolutely hilarious. He manages to reduce everything that occurs into quippy one liners, always tongue in cheek and sometimes very scathing but always extremely amusing.
Sometimes the foods is a bit hit and miss and the diners hover between being obnoxious or completely dim-witted. It’s curious how a table of five strangers turn up to dine and hope to build a brilliant relationship over a mediocre meal. The theme of the programme is that four or five people invite guests in turn to their home to sample a taste of their culinary expertise. After each evening during the week the other diners score the host or hostess on the event.
The score reflects upon the entertainment value, the food, how it’s presented and how welcoming the host was. This is always very amusing as everyone gets to slate the host or hostess and ridicule their menu choices and completed dishes. Bearing in mind most of the guests are by now well imbibed, the comments are always much different to what was said during the actual show in front of the other diners. As I say, hilarious.
It started getting me thinking though, what would my guests score me on for my evenings entertaining, if pushed to do so? Well I’m always careful to cook something that I’ve cooked before and ask before hand for any allergies or dislikes. I hate being stressed in the kitchen and so would always cook something that I liked doing and that wouldn’t require me being tied to the cooker all night. After all entertaining isn’t about you being a chef it’s about enjoying your guests and the food.
I tend to go for a starter that can be pre-prepared and isn’t time sensitive (guests aren’t always on time) like soup with home baked breads or stuffed mushrooms. That way you can meet and greet, settle your guests and then pop out for the starter at a convenient time.
Dessert is also a good choice to have prepped up earlier – dishes such as fruit brulee, good old fashioned tipsy trifle or tarte tatin can easily be cooked and left until after the main course is finished.
 I always think that little touches like sparkling cutlery and glassware (use steam from the kettle on glasses and polish with a glass cloth) create a lovely ambience. Flower arrangements, although simple also add a touch of elegance.
Last Christmas I designed little place card holders from small gift bags in gold with an angel name card sticking out of the top. I just found an ethereal angel picture on the web, printed onto card and then added each diners name by hand in gothic fonts. The bags were then filled with a scroll with information on the guests name and what it meant and a few famous people of that name, some after dinner mints and a small gift. This went done really well and proved to be very entertaining.
My top tips for anyone attempting a Come dine With Me would be; create a simple tried and tested menu, use the correct catering equipment and pay attention to the finishing touches like crockery, linen and flowers. But above all else – enjoy! 
You can find any equipment you need on this brilliant website here.

Bonfire Night Food New ways - with bangers and spuds

I think we can all remember those lovely Autumn Bonfire Nights of our childhood. A great big roaring fire,which gave you glowing cheeks from standing so close. The smell of gunpowder and fireworks, wellington boots and mittens. And remember, remember on the 5th of November hot jacket potatoes, sausages in a bun and warm tinned soup, lovely?

Things have changed - the fireworks now resemble rocket launched missiles and the bonfire is banned due to health and safety. But it's still a great time to gather together family for an autumn food feast. Don't ban the sausages and tatties but serve them up in a way that's sure to be a hit with all of the family (even awkward Uncle Angus).

Create a dish of hot and sticky sweet and sour sausages. Preheat oven to 190 deg.C / 375 deg. F/ Gas 5. Place some really meaty sausages into roasting tin with a drizzle of oil all over and cook for 15 - 20 mins. Meanwhile mix honey, wholegrain mustard, pinch of mixed spices and small chunks of pineapple together in bowl. Once sausages are light brown pour over honey and mustard mixture. Cook for a further 10-15 minutes until brown and sticky. Remove and leave to cool. Serve with crusty bread wedges.

And here's a new take on jacket potatoes.

Bake 1 to 2 potatoes per person in the oven for approximately 1.5 hours. Make sure they are cooked and really soft - check by inserting knife. Take out of oven leave to cool and then cut open. Fry off the bacon bits in a pan until crispy. Mix soft cream cheese with herbs, crispy bacon bits and  spring onions in a bowl. Scoop out potato innards and mix with the cream cheese mixture. Spoon back into each 'shell' place on plate and garnish with chopped chives - delicious.

Enjoy your Bonfire Night celebrations. All the catering equipment you need for these any many other autumn recipes can be found here.

Stick Blenders SALE 10% OFF Ideal For Soups And Sauces

Great News just noticed these stick blenders are all on sale with 10% off BUT it's only until Sunday 24th October. See here.

Stick Blenders are great for creating soups, curries and sauces - all brilliant autumnal warming foods. Many Asian Restaurants and Take Away's use these professional blenders. They are great for making light work of any sauce based dishes, liquidising or making purees.

The BBC recently ran an article; surprisingly up to a third of Britons regularly throw away food, which could, with some imagination be used up for creating tasty dishes. See the article here. 

Fruit or vegetables that are over ripe can be turned into relishes, soups and bases for casseroles. A Stick blender will make this process easy and quick for even the busiest of people. Use the lovely autumn fruits and vegetables that are around at the moment to make some lovely pureed accompaniments to your main dishes or create some homemade soups - smooth and comforting - even the kids will like it!

Keep cooking - Jane :)

Microwave Cooking For Autumn

It’s official – Autumn has arrived not only with the passing of the equinox on the 23^rd September but also with leaves starting to fall and the mornings becoming cold and dark.

It’s my favourite time of the year, perhaps it’s because I’m a September baby. I just love the way nature seems to take over and show it’s truly colourful side from burnished leaves to frosty trees. Oranges, reds and browns predominate and the air has a fresh bite to it. My thoughts turn to long walks through crispy fallen leaves, sitting by the fire and Autumn celebrations.

We can start to look forward to warming comfort food to feed the soul and mind. Chilli and jacket potatoes on bonfire night, pumpkin soup for Halloween and beef and ale casserole for those colder darker nights; all prepared freshly and quickly in my combination microwave. Roast dinners around the dining table with family and friends epitomise the autumnal months for me.

With darker nights after work I always feel the need to cook nutritious meals without being in the kitchen for hours on end. Sometimes I prepare meals the night before and then we can just reheat and serve – making sure I make the most of the shorter nights. My microwave becomes invaluable at this time of year, especially when I cheat and use my version of fast food – defrosted from my homemade supply in the deep freeze.

Eating out gives more opportunities for enjoying some great seasonal food with menus being enriched with warming dishes using the best of our harvest festival vegetables. The catering industry can benefit greatly from using microwave ovens, too, at this time of year. Tasks can be simplified and completed by less qualified staff freeing up the chef to devise new and inviting dishes for the menu. With cooking taking less time and less energy, the kitchen can provide substantial heart warming menus in a short time with a professional finish to more guests.

Cater For have everything you need for making all your autumnal dishes come to life. Their wide range of commercial microwave ovens and combination ovens are ideal for catering outlets such as restaurants, canteens, care homes and cafes. They are increasingly popular with discerning domestic goddesses, too. All the items you need for this recipe are available here.

So this Autumn don’t take your microwave for granted – be inspired, be inventive and why not try out this recipe for starters? source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/citrusandhoneysponge_84015/ 

Things you’ll need:

1 lemon and 1 orange, 110g/4oz caster sugar, 110g/4oz self raising flour, 125g/4½oz soft butter plus extra to grease, 1 free-range egg, 2 tbsp honey plus 1 tbsp extra.

Microwave Oven, small oven proof bowl, grater/ zester, Food Processor,  and clingfilm

How to make it:

Remove zest from orange and lemon and place with sugar, flour, butter, egg and honey into a food processor and blend until a smooth sponge batter is formed. Peel orange and lemon and then slice flesh.

Grease a small oven proof bowl with butter and brush with the extra honey. Line the bowl with the orange and lemon slices.

Pour the sponge batter into the lined bowl and cover with cling film.

Place the bowl in a microwave and cook on full power for five minutes, or until the sponge is cooked through. Enjoy J

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