All That I'm Eating

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

Five Minute Salmon Noodles

By 14 Comments

I blinked and it is the end of January! I can’t believe this is my first post of 2021. But these five minute salmon noodles are quite an apt recipe for now. I’ve been working from home and the appeal of toast and sandwiches has worn pretty thin. However, I don’t want to be making a time consuming lunch each day. So I started to think about food I could make in a few minutes; a few basic recipes which will add variety to my working week and be a doddle to make.

I used some sweet chilli hot smoked salmon for these noodles. It was reduced and I used it for two lunches (the other of which I’ll tell you about below). A handful of fresh vegetables, dried noodles and a soy dressing made from store cupboard ingredients are all you need for a delicious lunch in minutes. read more

Oat and Raisin Cookies

By 23 Comments

Oat and Raisin Cookies close up

I had such a craving for some proper oat and raisin cookies. Ones which are crispy on the outside and gooey in the middle and about the same size as my face. I’ve tried several recipes in the past and they’ve tended to be not quite what I’m after in my perfect cookie. Until now. If you’re after a healthy cookie I wouldn’t read on any further.

ingredients

You will need (for 10 cookies):

  • 225g unsalted butter, softened
  • 200g light brown sugar
  • 50g caster sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 190g plain flour
  • 1 tbsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 240g rolled oats
  • 140g raisins

Method

I made these in a food mixer but you can make them with an electric hand whisk, or by hand if you prefer. read more

Store Cupboard Shortbread

By 16 Comments

Shortbread in tin

I often find that I buy nuts or seeds to make something particular and I get left with a few grams of them here and there. That’s where my store cupboard shortbread comes in. This year I am attempting to use up ingredients in my cupboards and I thought I would start by using the last few dregs of cocoa powder and some leftover hazelnuts; I am so glad I did.

Ingredients

Makes 12 pieces of shortbread:

  • 175g plain flour
  • 1 tbsp cocoa powder
  • 50g caster sugar
  • 150g butter, softened
  • 50g chopped nuts, chocolate or seeds

Method

Grease a loose bottomed tart tin, mine was 20cm. Preheat an oven to 160C.

Add all of the ingredients to a bowl or food mixer and beat together until you get a ball of dough. read more

Creamy Lentil Pasta Bake

By 22 Comments

Creamy Lentil Pasta Bake with cheese topping

You know those small pasta shapes you can buy which are ideal for minestrone? Well, it turns out they make a really good pasta bake. I found this out by accident when making my creamy lentil pasta bake and looked in the cupboard to find only teeny tiny bows to hand. This is a seriously tasty and very filling vegetarian pasta bake which is crammed full of veg with a little added double cream for a touch of weeknight luxury.

Ingredients

You will need (for two plus leftovers):

  • 180g pasta
  • 250g cooked puy lentils
  • Handful grated cheese, cheddar or Parmesan both work well

For the creamy tomato sauce

  • 1 small onion, finely chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 1 pepper, finely chopped
  • Olive oil for cooking
  • 600g tomato passata
  • 1 tbsp sundried tomato paste
  • 3 nuggets frozen chopped spinach (you could use fresh that has been wilted and chopped)
  • 150ml double cream
  • Salt and pepper

Method

Start by making the sauce. Get a saucepan onto a medium heat and add the onion with a glug of olive oil. Fry gently for 10 minutes. read more

Lemon and Coconut Flapjacks

By 14 Comments

Lemon and Coconut Flapjacks

When I cut into a lemon I can’t help but give it a good sniff. It’s the same with lime and grapefruit. There’s something about that citrus smell that I just can’t wait to inhale; especially if it’s a drizzly day. I also love tropical flavours at this time of year: coconut, passion fruit, mango, you name it! Combining a bit of citrus and a bit of tropical was the idea here so I set about baking some lemon and coconut flapjacks.

ingredients

You will need (for 12 flapjacks):

  • 125g butter
  • 125g soft brown sugar
  • 3 tbsp golden syrup
  • 225g oats
  • 25g desiccated coconut
  • Zest 1 lemon
  • Juice 1 lemon
  • 4-6 tbsp icing sugar (I used unrefined)

method

Preheat an oven to 180C and grease a baking dish well, the one I used was 20cm x 20cm.

In a small saucepan melt together the butter, brown sugar and golden syrup on a low heat. Stir often to ensure everything gets well combined.

Stir the oats, coconut and lemon zest together in a large bowl.

Once the butter, sugar and syrup have melted pour them into the oats and mix everything together well to ensure that the butter mix has coated everything.

Tip the oats into the baking dish and flatten the top with the back of a spoon.

Bake for 20 minutes.

Remove the flapjacks from the oven and mark into portions while they are still hot. Leave to cool for at least 20 minutes before removing and leaving to cool on a wire rack.

To make the icing squeeze the lemon juice into a bowl. Sift in three tbsp icing sugar to start with and see how thick the icing gets. Keep adding more icing sugar until the icing becomes thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.

Drizzle, splat or dunk the flapjacks in the icing to decorate.

Now when you come to ice the flapjacks don’t be alarmed that the icing dribbles down in between the oats. That tangy lemon hit will settle somewhere inside and be delicious when you come to eat it. By using unrefined icing sugar the icing will come out a pale brown/yellow colour but if you use refined icing sugar it will come out white. I really like using chunky whole oats for flapjacks as I think it gives a great texture and mixed with coconut the overall texture of these is slightly chewy at the edges and soft in the middle. Just how I like them.

Salami and Mozzarella Open Ciabatta

By 13 Comments

Ciabatta with salami, mozzarella and tomatoes

Sometimes there’s nothing better than a sandwich. It could be a properly crusty, thickly sliced loaf filled with simple cheese and chutney, a bagel filled with pastrami, gherkins and mustard or some thin rye bread topped with smoked fish and herbs. I don’t think I could ever tire of something that you can just grab and eat with your hands. My salami and mozzarella open ciabatta is just the thing for a simple, no fuss, full of flavour dinner. Don’t tell anyone but I could have eaten all four pieces to myself.

ingredients

You will need (for two big sandwiches or four smaller ones):

  • 1 ciabatta loaf
  • Handful cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 1-2 tbsp olive oil for cooking and extra virgin olive oil
  • Balsamic vinegar
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 garlic clove, peeled and sliced in half
  • 1 ball mozzarella, torn into small pieces
  • 8 slices salami

method

Start by baking the ciabatta according to packet instructions. Leave to cool before slicing in half lengthways and opening the ciabatta up, then slice it in half again so you end up with four equal sized pieces.

Turn the oven to 220C and put the tomatoes in a single layer in a baking dish. Drizzle over the olive oil and balsamic vinegar, add the vinegar to suit your taste, and then season.

Bake for 20 minutes or until the tomatoes are starting to brown at the edges.

Preheat a grill to medium.

Rub the garlic clove, cut side down, over each open face of the ciabatta. Drizzle some extra virgin olive oil over the ciabatta and then place under the grill for a few minutes until lightly toasted.

Remove the ciabatta and then load each slice up with the tomatoes, salami and mozzarella. Put back under the grill until the salami has crisped up a little but be careful not to let the ciabatta catch.

Unintentionally this reminded me of a pizza and actually, considering how easy it is to make I would definitely try it again instead of a pizza! I love this combination of flavours; sharp and sweet tomatoes, creamy mozzarella and punchy salami. There are so many variations of this that you could make. One I would really like to try would be some leftover griddled aubergine, goat’s cheese and pesto. Or maybe one with figs, blue cheese and honey. Or maybe…

Three Cheese and Cauliflower Macaroni

By 9 Comments

three cheese and cauliflower macaroni

I often make macaroni cheese, or some variation of it. I like to play around with adding vegetables, different cheeses or flavours in the sauce. This three cheese and cauliflower macaroni cheese is one of the most delicious I’ve made. The combination of Emmental (for sweetness and stringiness), Cheddar (for bite and cheesiness) and Parmesan (for savouriness) means you get the best of all the cheeses! And don’t worry, there’s a cauliflower in there too; to add a little vegetable healthiness amongst all that indulgence.

ingredients

You will need (for two generous portions):

  • 150g macaroni
  • 1 small cauliflower, chopped into small florets
  • 25g unsalted butter
  • 25g plain flour
  • 300ml milk
  • 2 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 75g strong Cheddar cheese, grated
  • 75g Emmental cheese, grated
  • 30g Parmesan, grated
  • Salt and pepper
  • Handful breadcrumbs
  • Sprig fresh rosemary

method

Bring a pan of salted water to the boil, add the macaroni and cook according to packet instructions. Add the cauliflower to a steamer over the macaroni for the last 3-4 minutes of cooking. Drain them both well and put to one side.

To make the cheese sauce melt the butter in a small saucepan on a medium heat and then add the flour. Cook for a minute or two then gradually whisk in the milk. Keep whisking to ensure there are no lumps.

Continue whisking the sauce until it bubbles and becomes thick. Remove from the heat, stir through most of the cheese, the mustard and a little salt and pepper.

Mix the macaroni, cauliflower and cheese sauce together then tip into a baking dish. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top and then sprinkle over the breadcrumbs. Pop the rosemary sprig on top.

Bake in a preheated oven at 180C for 25-30 minutes, or until golden on top.

You might be thinking that the rosemary is a bit pointless just stuck on top of the macaroni cheese like that. Well, it’s actually deliberate. When the dish comes out of the oven you want to remove all the leaves from the rosemary and leave them on top. Then, when you serve it up everyone gets a bit of roasted rosemary which has such a great flavour. This three cheese and cauliflower macaroni is such a comfort food dish for me; cheese, pasta, cauliflower and woody rosemary are all so good together.

Cauliflower and Sundried Tomato Pasta

By 15 Comments

ingredients for cauliflower pasta

I always think cauliflower is at its very best when served with cheese. As much as I think this is still true I have been really enjoying roasting and frying it lately and this cauliflower and sundried tomato pasta is my current favourite way to eat cauliflower. Cheap to make, vegan, delicious and so fast to cook; we’re talking 15 minutes from fridge to table. If only all weeknight cooking could be like this!

Ingredients

You will need (for four servings):

  • 300g pasta £0.30
  • 1 small romanesco (or other) cauliflower, chopped into small florets £1.50
  • 6 sundried tomatoes, finely chopped £0.30
  • 2 small garlic cloves, crushed £0.10
  • 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil £0.15
  • Pinch saffron £0.50
  • Salt and pepper £0.02

Total £2.87

Method

You’ll need a pan full of boiling water with a steamer to go on top. It’s no problem if you don’t have a steamer; you’ll just need an extra pan of boiling water for the cauliflower.

Bring the water to a boil, add a little salt then stir in the pasta. Put the steamer over the water then add the cauliflower to the steamer and put the lid on. Leave the cauliflower to steam for 4 minutes.

Meanwhile get a small frying pan on a medium heat and the olive oil and garlic. Leave the garlic to warm up and infuse the oil for a minute or two before adding the sundried tomatoes and saffron.

Remove the cauliflower from the steamer and add this to the pan with the tomatoes. Fry everything together for a few minutes then add a ladleful of the boiling pasta water. Break the cauliflower up with a wooden spoon as it cooks.

By now the pasta should be cooked, test it to make sure, then drain it.

Stir around two thirds of the cauliflower mix through the pasta and serve up; use the remaining third to sprinkle over the pasta at the end.

Adding the saffron really does add a fantastic flavour and colour to the dish but you could leave it out if you wanted to. Any cauliflower would work for this but I think the green romanesco is so lovely to cook with. If you fancied grating over a little Parmesan I think that would be a delicious addition. I might try adding some toasted pine nuts or finely chopped chilli next time. When I was in Italy last year we made a dish similar to this which used courgettes rather than cauliflower so I’ll definitely be trying that in future too!

Beetroot, Horseradish and Salmon Sandwiches

By 14 Comments

Chioggia beetroot, aka candy beetroot

Just look at those Chioggia beetroot. Aren’t they beautiful? Not only do these beetroot, also known as candy beetroot, look brilliant their vibrant stripes can’t fail to cheer you up even on the gloomiest of days. These beetroot, horseradish and salmon sandwiches came about because I love the combination of earthy, sweet beetroot and fiery horseradish with smoked foods. That, and I fancied something for lunch that wasn’t just toast! Another great thing about this variety of beetroot is that you don’t need to clean the entire kitchen after peeling them; they have hardly any of the staining power of their deep purple cousin.

Ingredients

You will need (for four very generous open sandwiches):

  • Baguette, rye bread, crusty rolls or whatever bread you fancy; sliced or halved as needed to make it have an open face
  • 800g Chioggia beetroot (any other beetroot would be fine too)
  • 1 tbsp rapeseed oil
  • 2 tbsp hot horseradish sauce
  • Salt and pepper
  • Smoked salmon
  • Squeeze of lemon

Method

Start by peeling the beetroot. Chop them up into chunks and then place in a roasting dish. Drizzle over the rapeseed oil, add some salt and pepper and mix it together well to ensure all the beetroot is coated in oil and seasoning.

Roast in the oven at 180C for 40 minutes or until the beetroot are soft when tested with a knife.

Blend the beetroot in a processor until it’s in small chunks (or chunkier or smoother depending on how you like it) then stir through the horseradish.

Get your bread ready, maybe toast it, cut the crusts off, whatever you fancy then top with the beetroot and horseradish mix. Top each sandwich with some smoked salmon then drizzle over a little lemon juice and some extra black pepper.

I think these open sandwiches have a little bit of everything. Sweet beetroot, punchy horseradish, crusty bread, silky smoked salmon and sharp lemon. You could also use smoked ham or smoked cheese instead of the salmon if you like. This was such a great lunch and one that I think would lend itself well to taking to work; you can just add the toppings when you’re ready to eat! That beetroot and horseradish mixture would be great added to mashed potatoes too.

Upside Down Lime Cake

By 14 Comments

upside down lime cake sliced and served

Citrus in January is obligatory as far as I’m concerned. Whether its limes, lemons, grapefruits, blood oranges or, if you’re lucky, bergamot lemons there’s always got to be something citrussy in the kitchen. That sharp hit of acidic, fresh taste is just what I need on these cold, grey days and if that lifting flavour can be added to a cake then it’s all the better. This Upside Down Lime Cake was born out of necessity; my need to be greedy and a need to use up all the limes I had in my fruit bowl.

Ingredients

You will need:

  • 100ml golden syrup
  • 1 lime, finely sliced
  • 100g unsalted butter, softened
  • 100g caster sugar
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 100g self raising flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • Zest 1 lime

Method

Start by greasing a 20cm cake tin. Don’t use a springform cake tin otherwise the golden syrup will leak out!

Pour the golden syrup into the tin and then put the lime slices on top.

Preheat an oven to 180C.

Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Properly softened butter is the key to this.

Slowly add the eggs to the butter and sugar beating well after each addition.

Fold the flour, baking powder and lime zest into the mix then pour everything into the prepared cake tin.

Bake for 25-30 minutes until the cake is baked through. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin for 15-20 minutes then turn the cake out upside down onto a plate.

I was amazed how much the limes had shrunk after I turned the cake out; all that flavour had seeped into the syrup and sponge. The flavour of lime is so distinctive, I think it’s one of my favourite tastes, and this cake distracted me completely from the drizzle outside. The limes themselves are a real treat to chew on after the sponge has been eaten; so sharp, sticky and intense. Also, I don’t think I’m biased in saying this is an excellent cake, the OH described it as, “The best cake ever”.

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