We were about halfway through this meal when the OH turned to me and said, “This is the best dinner we’ve ever cooked”. High praise indeed. Although I once baked a whole cabbage and anything would be an improvement on that. Chicken enchiladas always remind me of my University days. My friend Kathryn and I would convince ourselves we could definitely eat four people’s worth of enchiladas. We’d cook it all up and be full after just half of the available enchiladas, look at each other and say, “Next time, we’ll just cook half ok?”. We never learnt. I haven’t made enchiladas since then and I thought it was high time I made some proper ones.
Five Dipping Sauce recipes that are perfect for Summer
The living is easy in summer. Gorgeous fresh produce, long days, and fantastically easy recipes. Create some wonderful dishes that will accompany you while you’re out and about or that you can simply enjoy while sitting at home.
The easiest way to produce some seriously delicious snacks, that are creative and simple to prepare, is to investigate the world of dips. From mayonnaise to sour cream, from pulses to avocados; dips can be healthy, tasty and fun to eat. Here are five ideas to start you on your way – enjoy!
Grapefruit, Lime and Basil Agua Fresca
I’ve toyed with the idea of making an agua fresca for a little while. What with the focus on Brazil and South America at the moment with the Olympics I have seen a few frescas popping up on menus. But I wondered, is it worth the effort, isn’t it just easier to squeeze a bit of fruit then water it down? Well yes, but it turns out it’s just not the same. And the (what might seem an unnecessary step but take my word for it it’s definitely needed) sieving does save you from any surprise seeds making into your final beverage. I had a couple of grapefruits loitering round in my fruit bowl and thought it was now or never. So, welcome to my Grapefruit, Lime and Basil Agua Fresca.
Pulled Duck Ramen with Gressingham Duck
I really like duck; usually in a pancake with plenty of spring onion, cucumber and hoisin sauce. If it’s on a menu in a restaurant I will normally order it because I love the flavour. Gressingham (the remarkable duck people) got in touch to see if I’d like to come up with a recipe with some of their duck and I thought it was a great opportunity to have a go at cooking something I enjoy eating but don’t cook that often. Ramen is something that I find both cleansing and filling and love that you can add whatever you like to it. This pulled duck ramen is a great way to use leftover duck and is really quick and easy to make.
Sweetcorn Chowder
Ingredients
You will need (for two bowls of soup):
| 1 medium onion, finely chopped | £ 0.10 |
| 100g smoked bacon lardons | £ 0.65 |
| Large knob of butter | £ 0.15 |
| 2 large potatoes, peeled and chopped | £ 0.50 |
| 250ml vegetable stock | £ 0.10 |
| 400ml milk | £ 0.35 |
| 1 cob sweetcorn, kernels removed | £ 0.25 |
| Small handful chives, chopped | £ 0.25 |
| 1 bay leaf | £ 0.05 |
| Salt and pepper | £ 0.02 |
| Total | £ 2.42 |
Method
Melt the butter in a large saucepan and fry the bacon and onion together until the onion is soft and the bacon turning brown at the edges.
Add the potatoes, bay leaf, stock, milk and salt and pepper and simmer until the potatoes are almost soft, around 10 minutes. Add the sweetcorn and simmer for a further 5 minutes.Check the seasoning, remove the bay leaf and stir in the chives before serving in warmed bowls.
This soup has chunky bits, soft bits, crunchy bits and a full flavoured liquid bit. It’s got sweet, smoky, savoury, salty and soupy. Earthy, fresh, homely and new. What I’m trying to say is that as a bowl of food goes it’s got it all. Not only that but it’s inexpensive too. What more do you need? I think I could eat this for lunch every day and never tire of it. And that’s pretty much what I do as long as the cobs keep coming. Happy days.
Basil Lime and Lemonade
Ingredients
You will need (for a jug of basil lemonade):
- Small handful basil leaves
- 3 tbsp sugar
- 750ml sparkling water
- 125ml freshly squeezed lime and lemon juice (I used three limes and one lemon)
- Ice to serve
Method
Put the basil and sugar into a jug and bash it together with a rolling pin or muddler until the basil is well bruised and it smells lovely. Add the lime and lemon juice and stir it all together until the sugar is dissolved. Add some ice to the jug and top up with the sparkling water. Give everything one final mix then pour into glasses and serve.Trust me on the basil for this, it gives the drink a really interesting flavour; sort of floral and quite earthy. I made this quite strong as I prefer a mouth puckering, not too sweet lemonade but you could add more or less sugar and juice to suit your taste. I have made this with flat water but I do think that the sparkling is slightly better. It’s really refreshing and ideal for a warm evening but I will definitely make it later on in the year as a citrus pick-me-up.
White Chocolate and Blackcurrant Blondies
Ingredients
You will need (to make nine blondies):- 200g caster sugar
- 3 eggs
- 200g butter, melted
- 150g plain flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 200g white chocolate buttons or chips
- 100g blackcurrants, tops and tails removed
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Method
Preheat an oven to 180C. Grease a 20cm square baking tin then line it with baking paper.
Beat the sugar, eggs and vanilla extract together until light and fluffy then beat in the melted butter. Add the butter a little at a time.
Sieve the flour and baking powder together then tip this into the egg mixture and fold it in lighlty.
Gently fold in the chocolate buttons and blackcurrants and bake for 30-35 minutes or until lightly golden brown but still gooey in the middle.
As it has been so warm recently it did feel a bit odd baking and eating these in the sunshine but they were so good. The soft, squidgy, cakey blondie mix I was really pleased with. The added white chocolate chips, some of which got caramelised in the oven, gave some texture and were a real treat. I loved using the blackcurrants in this as they gave such a distinctive flavour and wonderful colour and turned almost jam like. Next time you get your cake craving I very much recommend you try these.
Broad Bean and Feta Smash with Cucumber, Lettuce and Dill Salad
Ingredients
You will need (for two):
- Large handful broad beans, podded
- 100g feta, cubed
- Extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small garlic clove, crushed
- Salt and pepper
- Small handful mint leaves, finely chopped
- 1 ciabatta
- 1 small cucumber, sliced
- 1 lettuce, shredded
- Small handful dill, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tsp white wine vinegar
- 1/2 tsp sugar
- Salt and pepper
Method
Start by adding the broad beans to a pan of lightly salted boiling water and cooking them for 3-4 minutes. Drain the beans and rinse under cold water before peeling off the grey skins on the outside.
Put the broad beans into a bowl with the feta, a drizzle of olive oil, the garlic, salt, pepper and mint. Mash it all together so it is slightly combined but still chunky. Put to one side.
Bake the ciabatta according to packet instructions then cut into slices.
Put the cucumber and lettuce into a serving bowl.
Elderflower and Blackcurrant Gin and Tonic
Ingredients
You will need (per drink):
Lime Macerated Cherries with Caramelised Brioche
Ingredients
You will need (for two):
- 300g cherries, de-stoned
- 1 tbsp caster sugar
- Juice 1 lime
- 2 slices brioche
- Butter
- Demerara sugar
Method
I quite like de-stoning cherries. I find it a therapeutic thing to do and once you get into the swing of things it takes no time at all. I have to admit that my fingers were stained for days afterwards which is not something I’ve ever encountered with cherries before. Put the de-stoned cherries into a bowl with the caster sugar and lime juice and then leave to macerate overnight. Remove the cherries from the fridge an hour or so before you want to eat them so that they are at room temperature. Lightly toast the brioche and then spread generously with butter. Sprinkle over a little demerara sugar and then put under a grill so that the sugar lightly caramelises. Remove from the grill and top with the cherries.For an impromptu dessert I was pretty pleased with this. The cherries create their own sweet and sour juice which soaks into the sweet bread. It’s crunchy at the edges and gooey in the middle. The lime freshens everything up and the cherries were a lovely shade of deep crimson which looked great on top of the sugar topped bread. Perhaps it was because these were free cherries, maybe it was because I had to work for them but there was something a bit more special about this sweet treat than normal.