Jammin'

It has been a bumper crop for all the fruit this year and we thought it was about time we made some jam.  The abundance of damsons made the fruit an easy choice. Picking damsons can be labour intensive so we opted for the 'olive picking' style.  Place a sheet on the ground and then shake the tree.

Before long we had a tub full of damsons; I would say in the region of 15 Kg.  This was just from a couple of the trees, there is so much fruit left on there still.

Next stage was to wash the fruit and put it in the biggest saucepan we had and start to mash it up using a potato masher as we heated it up.  This gets the stones free from the fruit and leaves a pulpy mess.

Next job is to remove the stones and skin from the pulp.  To do this we placed a large colander over a mixing bowl and poured some of the pulp into the colander.  Using a wooden spatula we stirred until we were left with skin and stones.

Although this mixture would produce a jam we wanted didn't want cloudy jam so we passed it through a nylon mesh to filter out any pulp that had got through the colander.  Meanwhile the dishwasher was washing the jam jars to make sure they were sterile.

The juice from here was put into the jam pan. We had about 10 pints (almost 6 litres) of juice which we then heated up on the stove.  As it heated up we began to add the jam sugar, the first 3 Kg didn't sweeten the juice much so we added more and kept tasting until we got the right sweetness.  Once it was sweet enough we went for the 'rolling boil', it's important to get the temperature high enough to form jam.  Now it was time to place a plate in the fridge and the jars into the oven to dry them; 120 C is enough to do this in a fan oven.

The colour was amazing as you can see in the picture.  Every so often we kept tasting and adding a little sugar then testing a teaspoon full on the cold plate.  Once we got a set on the cold plate I made the call 'We have Jam'.  Time to act quickly (if you take too long the jam can become like a hard jelly) now and get the jars from the oven.  Using a jam funnel (thanks Sheila) we topped up the hot jars with jam and screwed the lids on. You have to do it hot as this will form the vacuum that pulls the lid down.  

The end result was 15 one pound jars of damson jam.  However my hands were bright red 

and the kitchen looked like Sweeny Todd had been at work!

BBQ Pulled Beef

I made this for a family BBQ as a low fat option. It was really tasty and froze well so it could be defrosted and reheated.

Served here in a lettuce taco with a baked potato and a tomato, red pepper and red onion salad.

Ingredients

1kg of beef brisket (trip all visible fat)
400g carton of passata
1 large onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 tsp of chili flakes
1 tbs of sweetener
1 tsp of mustard powder
50mls of dark soy sauce
1 tbs of smoked paprika
2 tbs of white wine vinegar
Fry light spray

Method

Peel and chop the onion and garlic cloves and fry them in a heavy based pressure cooker. Once the onion and garlic are soft then brown the sides of the beef in the pan. Take the beef from the pan and de-glaze using a cup of water.  Place all the other ingredients in the pan and stir before putting the beef back in the pan.  

Cook under pressure for 90 minutes. If using a slow cooker it will be overnight.  If using a heavy pan it will take about 5 hours but you will need to keep topping up the sauce with water to stop it boiling dry.

Once cooked, take the beef from the pan and shred it using 2 forks. Then replace the meat back in the sauce and season as required. Add water to the sauce if you need to thin it out or use some tomato puree if you need to thicken the sauce.

Serve in a bun or as above in lettuce leaves.

Virtually fat free Lasagne

This is really low in fat and packed with vegetables that help to speed up weight loss.
Ingredients (Serves 4)
500g of minced beef (5% fat content)
1 large onion
2 cloves of garlic
2 sticks of celery
2 carrots
1 tin of chopped tomatoes
2 stock cubes
Italian mixed herbs
Tomato puree
Lasagne sheets
1 egg
200g fat free greek yoghurt
Salt and pepper to season

Method
Dice the carrots, onion and celery and finely chop the cloves of garlic then fry them off in a large pan using fry light spray. Add the minced beef, the stock cubes and herbs and cook until the mince has browned. Deglaze the pan with a small amount of water and then add the tin of tomatoes. Cook for about a hour (this can be reduced to 30 minutes in a pressure cooker) until the mince is nice and tender. Thicken with the tomato puree and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Using an oven dish start to build the lasagne by layering the lasagne sheets then the meat ragu. I normally end up with 3 layers of each and then top with a final layer of lasagne sheets.

Beat the egg and then add the yoghurt and mix with some salt and pepper. Pour this over the lasagne to form the topping. Bake in the oven at 180C for about 40 minutes. Serve withsalad. The lasagne can be reheated if any is left over and it makesa great lunch to take to work.

Chicken and Butternut Squash Risotto

This was so tasty and so easy to make.

Ingredients (Serves 4)
1 Butternut Squash
400g of Chicken chopped into chunks (I used 2 large chicken breasts)
1 Red Pepper
1 Onion
3 Cloves of Garlic
2 Chicken stock cubes
200g of Risotto Rice (I used Aborio rice)
Fry light
2 tsp of Dried Italian herbs
Salt and Pepper to season.
Parmesan Cheese for dressing
Method
Chop the Butternut Squash in half, remove the seeds with a metal spoon, spinkle over salt and pepper then place on a baking tray in the oven at 180C for 30 minutes to roast it.
While the Squash is roasting chop the onion, red pepper and garlic.
After 30 minutes take the Squash from the oven and scoop the roasted flesh in chunks from the skin and put to one side.
In a heavy pan, fry the Onion, Red Pepper and Garlic in Fry Light for a couple of minutes. Meanwhile, chop the chicken into 3cm chunks or so.  Add the herbs and cook for a further minute before adding the Chicken to seal it.
As this is happening boil the kettle with about a litre of water in it (you may need more or less).
Add the Rice to the pan and stir for 2 minutes just to toast the rice slightly.  Crumble the stock cubes into the pan and add about 500ml of water. Add the roasted Squash and cook for about 20 minutes but keep checking the pan every couple of minutes to see if it is drying out. 

Add more water as necessary to give a nice sticky consistancy. 
Test the Rice after 20 minutes to see if it is cooked, keep cooking until you get the rice just how you like it.
Finally add Salt and Pepper and serve with grated Parmesan Cheese 

Rhubarb and Custard Muffins

Rhubarb and Custard muffins (makes 12 small muffins)

This is me experimenting in the kitchen attempting to make a low syn, fat free muffin. Each muffin comes in at about half a syn if being used as a healthy extra B or 2 syns if not a healthy B

Ingredients

   250g Fat Free Vanilla Yoghurt

1 Stick of Rhubarb

3 eggs

140 rolled oats (3 muffins = 1 HE B)

30g sweetener (plus extra to dust rhubarb)

2 tsp. baking powder (1 Syn per 12 muffins)

  1 tsp Vanilla extract

Method

1.     Preheat oven to 200C and prepare a muffin tin by lining them with paper liners or spraying the muffin tin with fry light.

2.     Add all ingredients except for Rhubarb to a blender or food processor and process on high until oats are broken down and batter is smooth and creamy.

3.     Peel the rhubarb and chop into 1cm cubes then dust with sweetener (put 24 pieces aside) and fold into the batter.

4.     Pour batter into prepared muffin tin, filling each cavity until it is about ¾ full. Add 2 pieces of rhubarb to the top of each muffin.

5.     Bake for 15-20 minutes, until the tops of your muffins are just turning golden brown and set. Use a toothpick to test by inserting into the middle and seeing if it comes out clean. Allow muffins to cool in tin for 20 minutes before removing. Store in an air-tight container for up to a week.

Chicken and Chorizo stew

This is a Spanish dish that tastes fantastic, you can add chili flakes if you like the heat or just savour the smokey paprika flavours without the chili. For all you using slimming world it is just 3 syns per portion.

Ingredients (serves 2)
250g of chicken chopped into chunks (could be breast or boned thigh meat)
50g of Chorizo sausage (this contains 6 syns)
1 can of chopped tomatoes
Tomato puree
2 tsps of smoked paprika (on offer in Aldi at 49p at the minute)
1 large onion (chopped)
1 red pepper (chopped)
2 cloves of garlic (chopped)
100g of green beans
1 tsp of dried chili flakes (optional)
Salt
2 tsp of sweetener

Method
Thinly slice the chorizo and dry fry it in a heavy saucepan for 2 minutes each side until the paprika oil runs from the sausage.

As you can see you don't need much.  Add the onion, garlic and red pepper to the pan and cook in the paprika oil for a couple of minutes. Add the smoked paprika (and chili flakes if using them) and cook for a further minute before adding the chicken. Brown the chicken and deglaze the pan with about 50ml of water before adding the tomatoes and sweetener.  Simmer for 15 minutes then add the green beans and cook for a further 30 minutes. Keep stirring regularly and add water if the sauce becomes too thick.
Finally thicken the sauce with tomato puree is necessary and season with salt to your taste.

Serve with baby roast potatoes or with a green salad.

Beef moussaka slimming world style

A low fat take on the classic Greek dish.

Ingredients: Serves 4
2 Aubergines
500g of lean minced beef
1 carrot
2 sticks of celery
1 large onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 tablespoon of mixed herbs
2 teaspoons of cinnamon
2 teaspoons of mixed spice
2 teaspoons of sweetener
1 beef stock cube
Fry light
1 can of chopped tomatoes
Tomato puree
300g of fat free natutal yoghurt
2 free range eggs
Salt and pepper

Method:
Chop the onion, garlic, celery and carrot then fry in a heavy pan using fry light. Fry until the onions are soft. Add the herbs and spices and cook for a further 2 minutes, stir well to stop anything sticking. Then add the mince and stir until the mince is brown. Sprinkle in the stock cube and deglaze using about 100ml of water. Add the tomatoes and sweetener then simmer for about a hour. Cooking time can be reduced by using a pressure cooker.

While the meat is cooking slice the aubergines and dry fry the slices for about 2 minutes each side. Put these slices to one side for later.

Keep an eye on the meat as it cooks adding a little water as necessary, taste the sauce and season with salt and pepper. Use the tomato puree to thicken the sauce, testing the meat to make sure it is cooked properly. Preheat the oven to 190C

In a suitable oven dish start to assemble the moussaka by putting a layer of meat and sauce then a layer of aubergine. Add another layer of meat and sauce then top with slices of aubergine. In a bowl beat the 2 eggs and pour in the yoghurt then mix well adding salt and pepper. Pour the mixture over the aubergines and place the dish on an oven tray. Cook for 50 minutes in the centre of the oven.

Serve with a side salad.

Pork, spinach and ricotta cannelloni

This dish is great as it uses 500g of lean pork mince and will produce up to 6 helpings.  It can also be reheated in a microwave or frozen for later use.

Ingredients:
500g of lean pork mince (aim for 5% Fat)
1 box of cannelloni tubes
200g of frozen chopped spinach
100g of ricotta cheese (this has 7 syns)
2 cartons of passata
2 tablespoons of dried basil
2 tablespoons of sweetener
Salt and pepper.
Parmesan cheese for garnish
Method
Defrost the spinach and mix in a large bowl with the pork mince and ricotta, season the mixture with salt and pepper.  Now comes the messy bit......stuff the canneloni tubes with the mixture and place them in a large, shallow oven dish.  You may need 2 dishes as the mixture should stuff about 20 tubes.  Try and get the pack the tubes quite close together.
Pour over the passata until it just covers the tubes then sprinkle on the dried basil, sweetener and season with salt and pepper.

Cook in the oven for about 50 minutes at 190C. If in doubt check one of the centre tubes to see if it is cooked.

Serve with a green salad and garnish with grated parmesan.  Each serving will be one and a half syns plus any salad dressing that you use.

Virtually fat free quiche

These quiches are very tasty and almost fat free.
Ingredients:
8 slices of ham
6 free range eggs
1 red pepper
A bunch of spring onions
A few closed cup mushrooms
Fat free cottage cheese.

Preheat the oven to 190C and line small flan or pie foils with a slice of ham (you could y
use a muffin tray). Chop the spring onions and sprinkle them into the lined foils. Chop the red pepper into small cubes and add with a spoon full of cottage cheese. Beat the egges in a bowl and season with plenty of black pepper and salt. Pour the egg mixture into each quiche to about 2/3 full and place thinly sliced mushroom on top of the mixture.

Bake in the oven for about 30 minutes until the egg mixture is set, then take out and cool.

The veggie garden is coming on.

A few weeks ago I posted the pictures of a cold looking garden with some empty raised beds.  Well we planted some peas and some seed potatoes in one bed and onion sets in the other.

 I used twigs that had been cut from the hedge for the pea sticks, they seem to be working ok.  A few of the plants have been eaten by the pigeons so I have replaced them with seeds.

The potatoes are coming along nicely as well, these should produce 'new potatoes' in a month or so.  I also have some of the seed potatoes in the fridge so I can use them later in the year for roasting potatoes at Christmas.

As well as the onion sets we have some chili, courgette, french bean, runner bean and, of course, some tomato plants in the greenhouse.

The rest of the garden is looking ok and we've had lots of blossom on the fruit trees so we are hoping for a good year.  Can't wait to cook with stuff we have grown ourselves.

Courgette and Tomato Pasta

Here is a simple dish for those weekday suppers when you are pushed for time.  It could be made into a pasta bake if you prefer and any leftovers make ideal lunch when heated up in the microwave.

Ingredients:
2 courgettes
200g of button mushrooms (other mushrooms can be used if chopped)
400g tin of tomatoes or pasata
1 large onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 red chilli
Pinch of italian herbs
1 tbsp of sweetner
200g of dried pasta
Salt and pepper to taste
30g of low fat cheese (if desired)

Method
Cook the pasta in salted water until just soft and then drain into a colander and rinse with cold water.  Make sure the cooked pasta doesn't stick together as it cools by using your fingers to separate it.
Chop the onion, garlic and chilli then fry using Fry Light until soft.  Chop the stalks off the mushrooms and then add the mushrooms and the herbs.  Cook for about 3 minutes then chop the courgettes and add to the pan. Add the tomatoes to the pan and the sweetner then cook for around 30 minutes until the courgettes have softened.  Use salt and pepper to season then add the cold pasta to the sauce and warm through. (At this point you could pour the pasta and sauce into an oven proof dish, gtrate the cheese over it and cook for 20 minutes if you prefer a pasta bake)

Serve on a plate and grate the chese over the top.

Moroccan Beef (slimming world style)

As part of the healthy eating and losing weight (almost 5 stones in 7 months) I have been taking recipes and making them fit with the Slimming World guide.  Last night it was Moroccan beef.
Ingredients: (serves 4)
400g can of chopped tomatoes
2 medium onions
2 large carrots
500g of lean minced beef (5% fat if you can get it....Sainsbury do a good one)
400g can of chick peas
2 cloves of garlic
Fry Light
2 tablespoons of turmeric
2 tablespoons of cinnamon
1 tablespoon of cumin seeds (or ground cumin)
2 tablesppons of paprika
1 red chilli (leave the seeds in and add more if you like it spicy...you can always add tabasco at the end if needed)
1 beef stock cube
Tomato puree
1 tablespoon of sweetner
Salt and pepper
Method:
Chop the onions, garlic and chilli then fry in Fry light for a couple of minutes. Add all the spices and cook the spices out for 5 minutes but keep stirring to help stop it sticking.  De-glaze the pan with about a quarter of a pint of water then add the mince and stock cube and cook until all the mince changes colour. Chop the carrots and add to the pan before adding the tin of tomatoes and the sweetner.

I added the chick peas and cooked in a pressure cooker for 30 minutes but if you are doing it in a pan then cook for about a hour before adding the chick peas.  Keep adding small amounts of water if it looks dry and occaisionally stir the mixture. Taste the sauce and meat to make sure it is tender, adding salt and pepper as required.  Finally thicken with tomato puree if needed and serve with cous cous or any other carbohydrate you prefer.  A nice side salad will finish this tasty dish off.  

Sad news

Last weekend our two hens, Gloria and Speckles, were taken by a fox. It was just after dusk when I went out to shut them into their coop and I was too late!

A couple of days later we visited a breeder near Frodsham and came home with these 3.

We have Ruby, the Columbian Blacktail, Pearl is the Light Sussex Utility and Betty the Daisybelle. This is them on their first outing into the garden.

Oh I almost forgot someone.......Finn! He is a 4 year old Bedlington who was rescued from Ireland.

Here he is with Sam, he's been a bit of a handful but Nila is keeping him on the straight and narrow for now.  More blogging tomorrow as the garden is beginning to take shape.

Snow days

Last week we had the first real snow fall of the winter. It looked fresh and clean but very cold.

Here is the view from across the locks.

And finally, Sam is taking no chances with this weather!

Spanish Night (Tapas)

Tonight we had Tapas for dinner, I have been cutting down on fat and this is a very low fat meal.  It is completely syn free if using the slimming world program.
We had Patatas Brava, meatballs with a garlic aioli.
Ingredients (serves 2)
Carton of tomato passata
Red onion
3 cloves of garlic
200g 5% fat pork mince
Chili flakes (leave this out if you don't like it too spicy)
300g of potatoes
Frylite spray
Lemon juice
150g of fat free greek yoghurt (the set type is best like 'Total')
Salt
Black pepper
Sweetner
Dried dill (not essential)
Smoked paprika (this makes the tomato sauce lovely) or normal paprika

Make the meatballs by mixing the pork in a bowl with a pinch of chili flakes, a pinch of salt and pepper.  Roll the mince into 8 small balls and place them in the fridge for 1 hour.
Prepare the aioli by placing the yoghurt, 1 clove of garlic (chopped or crushed), a teaspoon of lemon juice and 3/4 teaspoon of dried dill into a mini blender and mixing, start slowly then speed up until fully mixed (you can do it using a fork if you don't have a blender). Put this in the fridge to let the flavour infuse.
Chop the onion and 2 cloves of garlic finely and add them to a hot saucepan containing several squirts of Frylite. Add the smoked paprika and cook gently for 2 minutes, stirring so as not to burn them.  Put the carton of passata into the pan and simmer until the sauce thickens. Add 1/2 a teaspoon of sweetner (this takes away the bitterness) and use salt and pepper to taste.
Preheat the oven to 200C
Wash the potatoes and cut them into cubes of about 1 and a half inches (I leave the skin on, peel if you want).  Boil them in a pan for 5 minutes, take them out and dry them using kitchen roll.
Spray a baking tray with frylite and the place the potatoes on the tray.  Spray the potatoes and sprinkle salt over them.  Cook them in the oven for about 25 minutes until golden brown. You can take out half way way through and turn and spray again if you like.
Heat a heavy saucepan on the hob and spray with frylite. Add the meatballs to the pan and turn them until they are brown (sealed) all over.  

Now add half of the sauce and cook with the lid on the pan if you have one for about 15 minutes, keep stirring to stop the meatballs from sticking.
Serve the meatballs in a small dish and the potatoes with the remaining half of the tomato sauce topped with the aioli.

Bathroom is finished!

When I say finished I mean it's ready to be decorated. It has been a long haul trying to get it all to fit in. The shower tray has been in and out a couple of times and the stud wall rebuilt as the shower enclosure wouldn't fit. Anyway this is how it looked before.

And now.

Here is the troublesome shower enclosure.

As you can see there is still decoration required but, we now have a fully functioning bathroom. More to come over the next week as the finishing touches are done.