All That I'm Eating

Recipe ideas for budget meals, everyday cooking and a little indulgence. Travel inspiration and restaurant reviews too.

My Favourite Recipes To Use Up Leftovers

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At the end of the year and the beginning of the next I like to have a big clear out of my fridge, freezer and cupboards. For two reasons. First, and I think this is true for many people in December, there’s plenty of leftovers. Second, I like to take stock of what I have ready for the next year. These are the dishes I cook which I come back to again and again: my favourite recipes for using up leftovers.

Dried Fruit and Nuts

There always seems to be a packet or two of nuts, fruits and seeds in the cupboard. Half used in a cake or something. A great way to use up lots of dried fruit and nuts is to make some granola. Whatever combination of leftovers you have, just stick to the proportions in my recipe and voila! read more

Mince Pie Crumble Bars

By 20 Comments

Mince Pie Crumble Bars, out of the oven

In my perfect world, a mince pie would be 70% pastry, 30% mincemeat. It’s not that I don’t like mincemeat I just don’t like too much of it. That’s where my mince pie crumble bars come in. A thick layer of buttery shortbread, a spiced mincemeat middle and further crumbly shortbread on the top. Let’s be honest, it’s mostly biscuit with a hint of Christmas. Perfect.

Ingredients

You will need (for 12 mince pie crumble bars):

  • 300g softened butter
  • 100g sugar
  • 400g plain flour
  • 1 small jar mincemeat

Method

Grease and line a baking tray or dish. The one I used was approximately 20cm x 30cm. Preheat an oven to 170C. read more

Christmas Meal Plan

By 12 Comments

At Christmas there are four things that I like to do: eat, go for walks, play games and watch festive television shows. I do like to plan ahead and this year is no different with my Christmas meal plan. With a plan in place there’s no last minute rush to the shops for those forgotten ingredients and no blank looks when someone says “What’s for dinner?”. With a little bit of careful planning, some batch cooking and a few shortcuts I am looking forward to a relaxed festive break. read more

Mince Pie Fruit Loaf

By 18 Comments

Mince Pie Fruit Loaf Baked

I love a mince pie, but they have to be just right. I want the pastry to mince filling ratio to be almost 50:50; too much filling and you can forget it. Preferably my mince pies will be warm and covered in (clotted, ideally) cream. However, I can’t possibly eat that every single day and I still need my mince pie fix. This is how my Mince Pie Fruit Loaf came about; designed to have all the fruity spiciness from a mince pie but without the pastry and cream. Don’t worry, there’s still plenty of butter for spreading!

Ingredients

You will need for one loaf:

  • 30g dried cranberries
  • 125g raisins or sultanas
  • 60g dried figs, chopped
  • 300ml strong Lady Grey tea
  • 425g strong white bread flour
  • 7g fast action yeast
  • 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp nutmeg, grated
  • 1/2 tsp mixed spice
  • 30g caster sugar
  • Zest 1 orange
  • 60g butter, melted
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 150ml milk, plus extra for brushing

Method

Stir the cranberries, raisins and figs together with the tea then leave to stand for an hour or so. Drain well and put to one side.

I used a mixer for this recipe but you could easily make it by hand with a bowl and a wooden spoon.

Add the flour, yeast, spices, sugar and orange zest to a mixing bowl and stir lightly to mix it all together.

Whisk the melted butter, milk and egg together in a small bowl. While the mixer is on a low speed slowly pour in the milk mixture. Once it’s all been added increase the speed slightly and tip in the drained fruit.

Knead the bread in the mixer for five minutes or so. Cover the bowl and leave the bread in a warm place for 50 minutes or until doubled in size.

Lightly flour a standard sized loaf tin. Knock back the dough lightly then shape it to fit the loaf tin and pop it into the tin. Cover again and leave in a warm place for another 30 minutes.

Preheat an oven to 190C. Brush the top of the bread with a little milk then bake in the oven for 30-35 minutes and the top is golden brown.

Remove from the oven and leave to cool a little before removing from the tin and cooling on a wire rack.

This fruit loaf is wonderful in two ways. Firstly, take a slice when it’s cooling down after baking and just watch the butter melt into the bread. The photo above shows my very lumpy butter, that’s how I like it so it forms pools across the slice as it melts. Secondly, serve it toasted for breakfast, again with a good scraping of butter. The fruit, spices and orange are so festive and it keeps so well you can enjoy it for days.

No Alcohol Pomegranate Mojito

By 11 Comments

bashing the lime and mint together for mojitos

When it comes to adult soft drinks there are some good options but I don’t like any that are overly sickly and sweet. Fruit juices can be good but they are a little dull; I’m after something which is a bit snazzy. A drink where there has been a little effort put in. My no alcohol pomegranate mojito is so easy to make and packed full of flavour, the pinks and greens are so lovely together and using tonic rather than lemonade gives this mojito a nice bitterness. I made these recently for two guests that came round as I knew both of them wouldn’t be drinking and they went down a treat. You can’t go wrong with mint and lime together as far as I’m concerned.

Ingredients

You will need (per glass):

  • 2 quarters cut from a lime
  • 2 small sprigs fresh mint
  • Pomegranate juice
  • Tonic water

Method

Start by putting the lime and mint together in a glass and bashing them together with the end of a wooden spoon. You can use a muddler if you have one. Squeeze the lime juice out and bruise the mint well to let all the flavours mingle.

Pour the pomegranate juice in until the glass is about two thirds full then top up with tonic water.

If you have any pomegranate seeds or ice to add in they would be great additions.

Pomegranate has such a rich fruity flavour that works really well with the slightly bitter tonic to lift the drink up. The sharp lime and aromatic mint are classic mojito ingredients and you could of course add a little rum if you wanted to. Soda water would be worth a try instead of the tonic too. I like to add a little mint leaf or lime wedge to the side of the glass so it looks a bit more special. I can see several more of these being mixed up soon!

Marshmallow Rice Krispie Yule Log

By 17 Comments

Marshmallow Rice Krispie Yule Log - finished

I tried making a traditional Yule Log a few years ago. It was somewhat stressful. Apart from the fact that my butter is never warm enough and I always lose patience and mix it up anyway and deal with the consequential sponge that turns up the whole process is fraught with danger. The rolling up, unrolling, spreading of cream, re-rolling and hoping for no cracking then furiously patching it up with ganache, chocolate flying all over the place. It’s all a bit much for me; I’d rather be sipping a G&T and relaxing rather than cleaning ganache off of the kitchen tiles. That’s how my Marshmallow Rice Krispie Yule Log came about. It’s easy to make and you can fashion it into any shape that you like; the more dexterous amongst you may wish to attempt an actual reindeer.

Ingredients

You will need (to serve 6-8 people with a nice thick slice):

For the icing

  • 250g dark chocolate, broken into small pieces
  • 250ml double cream

For the filling

  • 50g butter
  • 300g marshmallows
  • 125g rice krispies (you can get some gluten free ones to use if liked)
  • 40g honeycomb pieces

Method

Start by making the ganache for the icing. Heat the cream until just hot then stir in the chocolate. Keep stirring until the chocolate has completely melted and you have a smooth mixture. Leave to cool and then refrigerate the ganache.

In a large pan melt the butter and marshmallows together over a low heat, stirring all the time. Keep stirring until there are no lumps of marshmallow then remove from the heat and stir through the rice krispies and honeycomb.

Leave to cool a little before turning out the mixture onto some greaseproof paper.

Once on the greaseproof paper oil your hands lightly and form the mix into a log shape. Or other festive shape of your choice.

Remove the ganache from the fridge. You have two choices here; either you can pipe the ganache onto the log or you can spread it on with a palette knife. I opted for the former but my star nozzle wasn’t big enough so I ended up smoothing it all over with a palette knife anyway!

Decorate as you see fit with swirls and patterns and all sorts then refrigerate until you serve it.

I think it definitely needs a dark chocolate ganache rather than milk chocolate; it would be a bit too sweet otherwise. The honeycomb adds a lovely bit of crunch and caramel flavour; as there aren’t many pieces I think it harks back to hiding the pennies in Christmas puddings. Who knows who the lucky recipient will be! The rice krispie mix is so malleable that if you’re not happy with your shape you can poke and prod it around until you’re completely satisfied. If you wanted to adult-ify it a bit then adding a little booze to the ganache or some of those kirsch soaked cherries (well drained) to the marshmallow mix would certainly be worth a try. This marshmallow yule log is my hassle-free festive centrepiece; I challenge you to stop at just one slice.

Ultimate Hot Chocolate Gifts

By 11 Comments

Assembling the hot chocolate gifts in jars

I love a good hot chocolate; not too sweet, not too bitter but full of chocolate flavour and I have been working on perfecting my recipe for the ultimate hot chocolate. This recipe is too good not to share, and what nicer way to share it than making some (ever so pretty) make-your-own hot chocolate gifts. You need only four ingredients, a few empty jars, some string, paper and your very neatest handwriting. A word of warning: make sure you make enough to keep one for yourself.

Below are the amounts to make enough mixture for one person so double, triple, quadruple and all sorts depending on who you are making for.

You will need (per person):

  • 1 tsp sugar – use golden caster sugar for a lovely caramely flavour
  • 2 tsp cocoa powder
  • 2 tsp malted milk drink (Horlicks or similar)
  • 2 tsp dark chocolate, chopped

Make up the jars however you like along with instructions for how much milk to add. For each person to make an average mug you need to add 150ml milk and the hot chocolate mix to a saucepan. Whisk and gently heat it all through until smooth and warm.

The jar below contains enough mixture for two people so I gave it to my parents to enjoy in a moment of calm before Christmas.

I love giving something homemade as a gift and this one requires absolutely no artistic skills whatsoever. Fine by me, I am somewhat lacking in the dexterous department. For something to go with the hot chocolate you could try making some of the pretzel christmas trees. They take barely any time to make either so these are ideal as last minute gift ideas. With this hot chocolate mix I can safely stop looking to improve on my recipe; this is my absolute ultimate hot chocolate so I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Cranberry and Pistachio Chocolate Truffles

By 5 Comments

Cranberry and Pistachio Chocolate Truffles

I can find it hard to know what to give people for gifts. When I’m not sure I normally cook or make something for them instead; it’s personal and I quite enjoy doing it. This is the other recipe that I developed for Kenwood (see crumble here) and I think they look a bit like Brussels sprouts if you stand far enough away (and squint). My recipe for Cranberry and Pistachio Chocolate Truffles is really simple and I find I usually have these ingredients in the cupboard at this time of year.

Ingredients

You will need (to make at least 12-15 truffles):

  • 150g good quality dark chocolate (70%)
  • 150ml double cream
  • 25g dried cranberries, roughly chopped
  • 75g shelled pistachios

Method

Break the chocolate into pieces and add to the bowl of your mixer.

Heat the cream in a pan until almost boiling.

Turn the mixer on to a low speed then pour the hot cream over the chocolate. Turn the mixer speed up a litter for a few seconds to thoroughly mix in all the chocolate. If you need to, scrape down the sides of the bowl to make sure all the chocolate melts.

When it looks well combined, add the chopped cranberries then give it all one final mix before pouring into a bowl and putting in the fridge to set.

Blend the pistachios in a food processor to a fine crumb.

When the truffle mixture has set (at least 30 minutes in the fridge) spoon out the mix into portions then roll into a ball with your hands. Roll each truffle in the crumbled pistachios.

Rolling the truffles is really therapeutic but you will get chocolately hands so don’t say I didn’t warn you! I hope you enjoyed watching the film that goes with making these. Using the mixer for this means the truffles cool down a bit quicker so if you’re in a trifle of a truffle rush and need some quick it can help speed it up. The dark chocolate is so good with the sweet, sharp cranberries and the crumbled pistachios aren’t just for looks, they give a great flavour and crunch too.

Thank you to Kenwood for my Chef Sense Mixer and for the days filming. All opinions and words are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that support me.

Cranberry and Clementine Crumble

By 9 Comments

Cranberry and Clementine Crumble

I love cranberries and really try to make the most of them when they are around; they are almost fool proof when it comes to making jams and jellies as they are so full of pectin. This Cranberry and Clementine Crumble is a great way to use cranberries in a different way over the festive period and the addition of Cointreau adds a little something extra. I was asked to come up with a couple of wintry recipes as part of a project with Kenwood. I used one of the new Kenwood Chef Sense machines to test the recipe out at home and then I spent a day filming the recipes! I hope you enjoy it!

Ingredients

You will need (to serve 4):

  • 250g cranberries
  • 1 large orange, juice only
  • Splash Cointreau
  • 100g sugar (caster or granulated)
  • 100ml water
  • 75g butter, cubed
  • 175g plain flour
  • 50g caster sugar

Method

Put the cranberries, orange juice, Cointreau, sugar and water in a pan on a medium heat and leave to warm up until just simmering. Keep on a low to medium heat and wait until all the cranberries have burst. You want the mixture to have thickened but so you still have plenty of juice.

Add the butter, flour and sugar to a mixer and turn on to a low speed. Leave for a minute or so until you have a breadcrumb texture, you can turn it off sooner if you prefer to have some chunkier bits of crumble.

Put the fruit into a dish then top with the crumble. Place in a preheated oven at 180C for 30-40 minutes or until nicely browned.

I really enjoyed cooking this recipe as it smells so good when it’s all mixed together in the pan and when it’s cooking in the oven. Making the crumble in the mixer saves time as well as keeping my fingernails clean; imagine if I’d just painted them particularly festively and then got crumble all over them, it doesn’t bear thinking about. The combination of tart fruit, faint alcohol and orange is really good with the crunchy, sweet crumble top and when it leaks out over the top it’s such a nice colour. Serve with double cream, clotted cream or brandy butter.

Thank you to Kenwood for my Chef Sense Mixer and for the days filming. All opinions and words are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that support me.

Boozy Hot Chocolate with Nutmeg Marshmallows

By 12 Comments

homemade marshmallows on top of hot chocolate

Marshmallows have always scared me a little; I thought they were terribly complicated to make and completely not worth the time. As it turns out they take nowhere near as much time or effort as I anticipated and they are so much better than any marshmallow I have had before. So to end my series of festive posts this makes a great winter evening drink. Add a little rum for the adults and a little extra milk for the children, a marshmallow in the mug and even better if you have some forks and an open fire to toast the rest.
If you don’t fancy adding any alcohol then leave it out, or you could give these peanut butter hot chocolates a try instead!

Ingredients

You will need (for two hot chocolates):

  • 60g 70% dark chocolate
  • 50ml rum, whisky or Cointreau
  • 225ml whole milk

 
You will need (for plenty of nutmeg marshmallows):
 

  • 1 tbsp icing sugar
  • 1 tbsp cornflour
  • Vegetable oil
  • 8 sheets of gelatine
  • 2 egg whites
  • 450g unrefined caster sugar
  • Nutmeg

Method

Sift the icing sugar and cornflour together. Rub a tin lightly with the vegetable oil then dust with the cornflour sugar mix.

Put the caster sugar in a pan with 200ml water and bring to the boil. Boil until it reaches 127C on a sugar thermometer.

While you wait for the sugar to boil put the gelatine sheets into 150ml water. read more

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