Spicy Stir Fried Beef

This is a fairly quick uncomplicated meal. I have used beef but chicken or other meat of your choice could be used. It's also good for using up left overs. Served with rice of course would be the obvious accompaniment but I love it with baked potatoes. What ever you eat it with it is quick and that is always such a bonus. You can of course up the chilli if you like it really hot. The recipe for me is spicy enough. Just nicely tongue tingling. You can also use fresh ginger chilli garlic etc but it's great sometimes just to lift the little jars out of the cupboard and measure out what you need isn't it?

Serves two generously

Ingredients

450g (1lb) thick sirloin steak, cut into thin strips
10ml (2tsp) sunflower oil
1/2 onion, finely chopped

Marinade

10ml (2tsp) sesame oil/wok oil or any vegetable oil if you don't have these
Juice from 1 lime
1 teaspoon chilli flakes
2tbsp brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon garlic granules or 2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 teaspoon ground cumin
30ml (2tbsp) soy sauce
200ml (7fl oz)  coconut milk
150g (5oz) peanut butter (About two large tablespoons)



Boiled rice, noodles or baked potatoes and salad  to serve

Method

Place all the marinade igredients into a plastic bag and squish around until well mixed.
Place the beef strips into the bag with the marinade and squish around some more.
Do this for an hour before cooking at room temperature  or for a couple of days in the fridge

Heat a the oil in a frying pan
Finely slice the onion and gently fry for about five minutes until it is soft and translucent
Turn up the heat and add the contents of the bag stirring to keep it moving in the pan.
Fry for about five to ten minutes or longer if you like as long as you don't want the beef rare.

Serve with your chosen accompaniment.

If I have peppers or mushrooms etc  needing used up I often add them to the pan as well.

Chocolate Orange Cake

I was finishing off  Sally's Lemon Butter Cake when it occurred to me, if it tasted so good and had such a lovely texture, it might make a rather nice chocolate cake. Then the next wave of an idea hit me. Why not orange as well? Nothing for it. I grabbed my wooden spoon so to speak and off I went. I love messing around and experimenting in the kitchen but things don't always work out. I tell myself it's a learning curve. I didn't need to worry this time. The marriage of chocolate and orange was sheer ambrosia. The texture of the cake was light but moist. Intensely chocolatey. Perfect. I know I know, self praise is no recommendation but my resident eating machine agreed completely and as he is my fiercest critic who was I to argue. I hope you'll try it. I think you'll find it worth the short time it takes to throw this cake together.

Chocolate Orange Cake


Ingredients

250g /9 oz Butter or Margarine

250g /9oz Dark brown sugar

200g /7oz S.R Flour plus 1 teaspoon of baking powder or plain flour with 2 teaspoons of baking powder (sifted)

50 g / 2oz cocoa powder

3 Eggs (beaten)

2 large tablespoons marmalade

Rind of two oranges and juice of one

Icing

2-3 tablespoons orange juice
2oz icing sugar

A few squares of chocolate melted with a little oil or butter (optional)



Method....

Pre Heat your oven to 180.C/160.C Fan/400.F/Gas 6

Grease and line a shallow baking tray 24 cms x 33 cms/ 13 inches x 9 1/2 inches.

Leave an over hang lengthwise of your lining paper so the cake can be removed from the tin easily.

Melt butter and marmalade in microwave on 50% power or in a large saucepan on the hob.


Stir in sugar, then the flour and cocoa powder, add the eggs, orange zest and juice from the oranges (reserving about three tablespoons of juice for drizzle icing.) stirring well. A whisk is good.

Pour into your prepared tin and bake for approx 20 - 30 minutes until the cake is springy to touch.


Leave in the tin until cold before removing


Sieve the icing sugar and mix with the juice giving a fairly runny icing.
Drizzle over the cake

Melt the chocolate and oil if using and drizzle over.

Cut into squares/fingers

Thank you Sally for setting of this chain of events. x

 

Sally's Lemon Butter Cake

I am sorry my  friends. I have not been blogging recently but family life was calling. I was on holiday then I had to attend a family wedding a distance away. None of these were hardships of course. Now I am back to catch up.
Sally a great friend and fellow Blogger drew my attention to this recipe on her Blog. It is perfect. Simple to make and tastes just wonderful. Now grab a baking tray and off you go. Trust me you won't regret it

Ingredients

250g Butter

250g Soft brown sugar

250g S.R Flour or plain flour with a teaspoon of baking powder (sifted)

3 Eggs (beaten)

1 Lemon

Caster Sugar for paste approx 50 gms/2 oz

Method....

Pre Heat your oven to 200.C/180.C Fan/400.F/Gas 6

Grease an line a shallow  baking tray 24 cms x 33 cms/ 13 inches x 9 1/2 inches.

Leave an over hang lengthwise of your lining paper so the cake can be removed from the tin easily.

Melt butter in microwave on 50% power or in a large saucepan on the hob.

Stir in sugar, then the flour, add the eggs and the zest from the lemon. (Keep the juice from lemon for later)

Pour into your prepared tin and bake for approx 20 - 30 minutes.until the cake is golden on top and springy to touch

 Mix juice from lemon with enough caster sugar to form a paste,.

Spread on cake while still hot from oven. A silicon pastry brush is helpful for this

Using the liner overhang lift from the baking tin and leave to cool on a cooling rack. 


My Notes


I used an orange and a lemon. I used all the rind but tipped about 2/3rds of the juice into the cake mix using the rest for the sugar glaze.


Limes would be nice too.


Let your imagination take you

Chocolate Spice Cake

I have been having a fiddle around. That is to say I was looking for a rich moist chocolate loaf cake without too much faffing around in the making. I finally managed to tick the boxes. It's densely chocolatey,very moist and keeps really well and most importantly it is easy and quick to make. The spice is optional and of course you can use any sweet spice of your choice. It just gives a little tingle in the background which I like. You do need the large pan I mention as it is quite a big mixture but is easily divided into smaller pans if you do not have the larger size. It was suggested to me it would be rather nice with custard. I haven't tried that option but I will soon.

Chocolate Spice Cake

225 gms/8oz butter
300gms/11oz dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons maple or ordinary syrup
2 beaten eggs
100 gms /4oz dark choc
175 gms /6oz SR flour (or the same weight in plain/all purpose flour + 1 teaspoon baking powder)
25gms/1 oz cocoa powder
250mls milk
1 tablespoon allspice optional

Method

Warm the milk slightly in a large saucepan
Add everything else except the flour cocoa spice and eggs.
Melt together stirring as you go.
When cool beat in the eggs then sift in the flour, cocoa and allspice if using and mix in gently but thoroughly
Pour into a greased lined loaf tin

Bake at 180.C/160.C Fan/325.F/Gas3 for 30 minutes then turn down your oven to160.C/140.C Fan/ 125.F/Gas2 for 15-30 minutes or until skewer comes out clean
Leave to cool completely in the tin before turning out.

You need a large loaf tin 23.5 x 13.3 x 7 cms. 9 1/4"x 5 1/4"/ 2 3/4"
or you can use a regular 2lb loaf tin and a 1lb loaf tin or make a few cupcakes

It gets better as it sits for a day or two. The allspice gives just a hint of spice but you can leave it out and just have choccie cake.

It will crack on top and sink slightly so don't worry.

It is a very moist cake and keeps really well.

Little Chicken Pies

Or to give them their correct title

Mini Torte Poulete-cheddar.

Another lovely recipe from Gloria's Blog. I have made a few recipes from Gloria and they have all been excellent. This is no exception. It is quick and simple and presents beautifully. Tastes divine. This got a big thumbs up from hubby so it must be good. I made my own pastry. That is I made Delia's quick flaky pastry
I have made flaky pastry from scratch. It's a great thing to do when you are at home and can pop back and forwards to do all the rolling but it is not quick. This is so very quick and is light as a feather.



Pre heat the oven to 180/C/355.F/Gas 4

Ingredients (4 servings)

350 gms chicken breast in strips

1 packet ready made puff pastry

100 gms. cheddar cheese

1 celery stalk

3 carrots

1 onion chopped

2 tablespoon of chives chopped

25o mls. cream

30 gms. butter

1 egg

salt and pepper

Method

Cut the chicken into strips. Grate the cheddar. Chop the chives and carrots.
Peel the onions and slice them and the celery.

In a frying pan/skillet, melt the butter over a medium heat.
Fry the chopped vegetables and chicken strips for 10 minutes, stirring often.

Remove from heat and add cream, cheddar, chives, salt and pepper and mix.

Roll out the dough. Cut into 4 rounds with a diameter slightly larger than the ramekins.
Divide chicken mixture between the 4 ramekins.
Brush the edges of the ramekins with beaten egg (reserve the remainder).
Lay the dough rounds on top and press the edges to make them adhere.
Refrigerate 30 minutes (an essential step for the dough to rise during baking).

Brush the dough with remaining beaten egg.
Bake 20 minutes in the oven until the pastry is golden. Serve hot.

Thank you Gloria x

Dishwasher Pre Wash

Just To Make You Smile

Cullen Skink

Isn't this the most wonderful title?One of Scotland's national treasures. It is somewhere between a fish soup and a stew. Called 'Skink' locally. Whatever, it is a meal in a bowl and a very good one too. I could push the boat out and tell you you need Finnan Haddies to make it but I wouldn't be so cruel. Any smoked white fish will do. I used a mix of white and smoked cod. You do need the smoked fish to give the special flavour though. It is a perfect winter warmer or a good dish on a wet summer day here. Keep left over mashed potato to make this. It's a good use up.



Serves 4

Ingredients.

750 mls / 1.6 pints full fat milk or a mix of milk and cream if you are feeling decadent
A small handful of chopped parsley (reserving the stalks)
1 bay leaf
12 black peppercorns
450 gms /1lb Smoked haddock fillets or any firm white smoked fish or a mix of smoked and plain fish. Whatever you have or whatever you fancy.
5ogms/ 2oz butter
1 medium onion chopped
2 scallions finely chopped
200gms/8 oz buttered mashed potato
Salt and Pepper

Garnish

Chopped parsley and four poached eggs.

Method

Pour the milk into a saucepan large enough to accommodate the fish.
Add in the bay leaf, peppercorns, parsley stalks and fish.
Bring to the boil and simmer for five minutes.
Remove from the heat and allow to infuse for five minutes or more.

Remove the fish, strain the poaching liquid and reserve.
Flake the poached fish removing any skin and bones.

While the fish is poaching heat the butter in another saucepan and fry the onion until soft but not brown.

Then stir in the strained poaching liquid, then the mashed potatoes until you have a thick creamy consistency.

Add the chopped parsley leaves, chopped scallions and the flaked fish and simmer for another 4-5 minutes
Season well with black pepper and salt if needed.
Pour into serving bowls and garnish with chopped parsley and a poached egg.

Poached Eggs

You can of course poach the eggs in a saucepan of boiling water. A short cut is to put boiling water and a little vinegar into a microwavable dish. Make sure the water is enough to cover the eggs well. Microwave for a minute to make sure the water is good and hot. Swirl the water and drop in the egg and microwave for 30-40 seconds per egg. They will not cook a great deal after removal but will keep hot.