Orange Panna Cotta

Panna cotta (from Italian cooked cream) is an Italian dessert made by simmering together cream, milk and sugar, mixing this with gelatin, and letting it cool until set. I’m not sure where the family got this recipe from but it has become a firm favourite with friends and family and, of course, it is gluten free.

We especially like it in the winter served with oranges soaked in Cointreau, and shortbread wafers or in the summer, the vanilla one, with raspberries or strawberries and home-made macaroon fingers. It is lowish in fat (if low-fat yoghurt is used), but have not tried it with half fat cream or crème fraiche, as it is not an everyday pudding and a little cream every now and again is always good

Serves 6 people

Ingredients:
½pint/284ml Double cream
75ml/2½oz Caster sugar
1 tsp Vanilla paste
2 Leaves of gelatine (soaked in cold water)
350g/12½oz Plain yoghurt (can be Greek or low-fat)
Zest of 1 large orange
Require:
1 glass bowl

1. Put the gelatine leaves to soak in a bowl of cold water.

2. Put the vanilla paste into a saucepan with the cream, sugar and orange zest – bring gently to the boil.

3. Turn off the heat, squeeze the water from the gelatine leaves and add to the cream mixture, whisk until dissolved.

4. Put the yoghurt into a large bowl and slowly pour the cream mixture on top and whisk together until well combined.

5. Pour into your chosen bowl and allow to chill for 3-4 hours or overnight.

NB This mixture will fill 6 ramekins or small bowls. If they are to be turned out line with cling-film.

Fresh fruit can be served with this and other flavours used such as rose water, (a few drops of pink colouring can be added if required), lemon or whatever your choice is.

Enjoy!

Filed under: Gluten Free, Puddings, Vegetarian, coeliac diet, coeliac recipes, gelatin, gluten free, gluten free food, gluten free meals, gluten free recipes, italian, orange, panna cotta, Piedmont, what is gluten, wheat free diet, wheat free foods, wheat free recipes

Satay Chicken

Having purchased a lot of different Asian sauces and spices at the weekend, I decided it was about time to try something new and found this amazing recipe for Satay Chicken.

Satay or sate, is a dish of marinated, skewered and grilled meat, served with a sauce. It usually consists of diced or sliced chicken, goat, mutton, beef, pork, fish, other meats, or tofu; the more authentic version uses skewers made from coconut palm fronds.

Satay originated in Java, Indonesia where it has now become a national dish. It is also popular in many other Southeast Asian countries, such as: Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Thailand as well as in the Netherlands, as Indonesia is a former Dutch colony.

‘Satay sauce’, often referred to as peanut sauce, is widely used in Indonesian cuisine, Thai cuisine, Malaysian cuisine, and Chinese cuisine (under different names). It is also used in some European cuisine. Initially the sauce was meant as a sauce for Satay when being grilled, as well as for dipping.

This recipe from ‘Yeo’s’ is easily adaptable to being done on skewers or in the pan, as I tried.

Ingredients:
400g Chicken, Beef or other meat or tofu
3 tbsp Satay Sauce
2 tbsp Light Soy Sauce
1 tsp Pure Seasame Oil
2 tsp Malaysian Curry Powder
3 tbsp White Sugar
1 tbsp Lemon Juice
1 Small Onion and Garlic Clove, chopped

1. Mix the ingredients above in a bowl and marinate the meat or tofu for around 1 hour.

2. If you are cooking in the marinade, then cook it through in the pan, on a medium heat, so that the sauce does not burn, until it is thoroughly cooked.

3. If you are cooking on skewers, grill them until cooked.

Serve with rice and/or stir fried vegetables and warmed Satay sauce for dipping.

Enjoy!

Filed under: Curry, Mains, Sauces, Vegetarian, Curry, curry recipe, garlic, lemon juice, malaysian curry powder, onion, satay chicken, sesame oil, soy sauce, sugar

West Country Creams

I am not sure where this recipe came from but my Mum has been making these for over 30 years before teaching me. All I know is that the whole family absolutely love it, and we all have done since we were very small, and friends equally so. It is any easy dessert that looks as if it has taken some time to make.

Serves 8 people

Ingredients:
1 lb (450g) Raspberries
½ pint (275ml) Double Cream
½ pint (275ml) Plain Yoghurt – can be Greek or half-fat
Demerara or Muscavado Sugar
Ratafias to garnish

Use 8 ramekins or small glass dishes. It can also can be made in a large glass dish – it looks quite exotic.

1. Divide the raspberries between the dishes.

2. Put the cream into a dish and whip it until it comes to soft peaks – beware do NOT over-whip

3. Fold in the yoghurt, the mixture will thicken.

4. Spoon the mixture over the raspberries but leave a little space at the top of the dish.

5. Sprinkle the sugar over the top of the cream to cover it.

6. Chill the puddings for at least 8 hours, preferably overnight.

7. The sugar will melt to form a coat over the cream.

8. Serve with Ratafia biscuits.

I love raspberries for this dish best of all but any fruit will do even a mixture of one, two or three together.

Enjoy!

Filed under: Cakes & Biscuits, Gluten Free, Puddings, Vegetarian, coeliac diet, coeliac recipes, demerara, gluten free, gluten free food, gluten free meals, gluten free recipes, muscavado, raspberries, ratafia, west country creams, what is gluten, wheat free diet, wheat free foods, wheat free recipes

Baked Nectarines with Crushed Ratafia

This recipe came about when my mum found it in a magazine for baked peaches. The only trouble was that you had to skin the peaches (too much trouble!) and it used a Bakewell Tart mixture – so was totally useless for her gluten free diet. She looked it up as my younger brother had eaten it at a friend’s house and raved about it. A bit of thought later, she decided that she could cheat and came up with this recipe below, and this is even easier than having to make a Bakewell mixture. We all now prefer this recipe as the filling is lighter allowing us all to eat more than the allotted two!!

Ingredients:
1 Nectarine per person
Gluten free Ratafia or Amoretti biscuits – M&S do good ones!
Cream/Crème Fraiche
Clear Honey

1. Use at least 1 nectarine per person

2. Cut the nectarines in half and remove the stone.

3. Put them in an oven proof dish, cut side up.

4. Crush Ratafia or Amoretti biscuits into a bowl. Use 2 biscuits per nectarine.

5. Add enough Cream/Crème Fraiche to the crushed biscuits to make a thick paste.

6. Pile the paste on top of the nectarines, filling the hole where the stone was.

7. Then drizzle 2 teaspoons of Clear Honey over nectarines.

8. Put in oven for 15-20 mins @ 180°C until Nectarines are fairly soft, but not mushy.

9. Serve with extra cream or ice cream.

N.B. Peaches can be used instead of Nectarines.

Enjoy!

Filed under: Cakes & Biscuits, Gluten Free, Puddings, Vegetarian, amoretti, bakewell tart, coeliac diet, coeliac recipes, gluten free, gluten free food, gluten free meals, gluten free recipes, honey, nectarines, ratafia, what is gluten, wheat free diet, wheat free foods, wheat free recipes

Limoncello Syllabub with Crushed Ratafias

I don’t know where I found this recipe but it is a very nice light pudding. The alcohol can be left out to no real detriment to the taste, but you will need 2 lemons if you do not use it. It can be made very quickly if guests turn up unexpectedly. Since making it a few times now, it has become a summer family favourite.

Bring a taste of Italy to your table with this delicious gluten free pud!

(Printable Recipe)

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:
75ml Limoncello
2 Lemons
500ml Double Cream
100g Unrefined Caster Sugar
12 Ratafia biscuits

1 Mix the the Limoncello, most of the zest from 2 lemons and the juice of one to two lemons (whatever your preference) together.

2 Pour the cream into a large bowl and softly whip with the sugar. It’s important not to over-whip the cream, so whisk it until it just starts to thicken.

3 Then drizzle in the lemon mixture and whisk again.

4 Divide between 4-6 small glasses and refrigerate for at least an hour.

5 Just before serving, put six biscuits in a plastic bag. Crush with a rolling pin and sprinkle them over each dessert with a little lemon zest.

If you like, serve each with a ratafia biscuit.

N.B. Check the biscuits are gluten free.

Enjoy!

Filed under: Cakes & Biscuits, Puddings, Vegetarian, italy, lemons, limoncello, ratafia, sugar

Curried Sweet Potato Wedges

Having bought the sweet potatoes today, to go with some steak from our local farm shop, I decided to do something new with them. A normal family favourite is to cook them in the oven and sprinkle some paprika over them for the last five minutes. This particular recipe is based on Mary Moh’s Curried Sweet Potato Chips. As soon as I saw them, I knew I had to give them a go. I have to agree with Mary, the aroma was really good and the taste was fabulous!

(Printable Recipe)

Ingredients:
2-3 Sweet Potatoes, peeled and cut into wedges
1 tsp Sugar
1 tsp Garam Masala or Curry Powder
1 tsp Light Soy Sauce
1 tbsp Coconut Powder
1 tsp Oil

1 Mix the seasoning in a bowl and add the sweet potato wedges, coating them all over.

2 Spread them on a baking tray and bake at 200C for about 30 minutes, or until cooked.

Enjoy!

Filed under: Curry, Mains, Vegetarian, curried sweet potato wedges, sweet potato, wedges

Minced Marmalade

This is just a different way of cutting up the Seville Oranges that were used in the first recipe.

Instead of slicing the orange skins put them through a coarse mincer and then continue to cook in the same way. It just gives a different texture to the finished product which some people might prefer.

Enjoy!

Filed under: Gluten Free, Preserve, Vegetarian, coeliac diet, coeliac recipes, gluten free, gluten free food, gluten free meals, gluten free recipes, marmalade, minced marmalade, orange, orange marmalade, seville, what is gluten, wheat free diet, wheat free foods, wheat free recipes

Black Beer Mustard

I really wanted to make something slightly different than a normal Sunday roast, so decided to have a go at James Martin’s Côte de Boeuf with Watercress and Black Beer Mustard (recipe to come).

Having written down all the ingredients I didn’t have, I went shopping for the rest. I decided to go and see what ingredients I could get in James Martin’s own shop ‘Cadogan & James’, especially as some of them I had never bought before and didn’t know where I could get them.

I did ok, picking up the allspice berries, black mustard seeds and some more ‘posh’ red wine vinegar (as I didnt have enough) from his shop but he didnt have any white mustard seeds. After asking about whether they had any out back or what I could use instead, the very helpful staff, told me that James might be in the shop at closing time, so I could come and ask what to use as an alternative. We came back five minutes before closing but was told he had been held up so wouldnt be there in time. Not letting this deter me, we ventured to Waitrose and eventually found yellow mustard seeds, so I decided to buy them and use them instead.

I have no idea if using the yellow seeds rather than the white ones, made a huge difference but I will say that it made a great accompaniment to go with the beef and I’m going to have lots more with some steak later in the week. It was exactly what I was after, rather than the normal roast beef and gravy!

(Printable Recipe)

Makes approx. 425g/15oz

Ingredients:
25g/1oz White/Yellow Mustard Seeds
110g/4oz Black Mustard Seeds
75g/3oz Light Soft Brown Sugar
1 tsp Allspice Berries
1 tsp Paprika
½ tsp Turmeric
2 tsp Sea Salt
1 tsp Crushed Black Peppercorns
175ml/6fl oz Red Wine Vinegar
40ml/1½fl oz Balsamic Vinegar
3 tbsp Runny Honey
110ml/4fl oz Black Sheep Ale

1 Put all the dry ingredients into a processor or blender and blend until the seeds are roughly crushed.

2 Transfer to a bowl and stir in the two vinegars, honey and ale.

3 Cover the mustard with cling film and place in the fridge for 2 hours.

If you want to keep the mustard longer, put into sterilised jars and store in a cool, dark place.

The mustard should then keep for 3-6 months.

Enjoy!

Filed under: Mains, Sauces, Vegetarian, beer, black beer mustard, cadogan & james, cote de boeuf, james martin, mustard

Floyd’s Tomato Sauce

I thought it was about time to try something from ‘Floyd’s Food’ so I decided to cook up something I would never normally choose, in this case “Chicken Breast with Langoustines” (recipe to come) and one of the ingredients was a coffee cup of his own “Tomato Sauce”. So I found the recipe and set about cooking this sauce that reminded me of a very fragrant mediterranean pasta sauce. I’m going to make this again to use with other dishes in future!

(Printable Recipe)

Ingredients:
14 oz/400g Tin Tomatoes
2 Cloves Garlic, chopped
1 Onion, finely chopped
1 tsp fresh or dried Basil
1 tbsp chopped Parsley
1 tbsp White Sugar
1 tbsp Olive Oil
Black Pepper

1 Fry the onions and garlic in the olive oil until soft.

2 When soft, add all the other ingredients and cook over a low heat for 15 minutes.

3 Then liquidize the lot. This sauce can be served either hot or cold.

Enjoy!

Filed under: Gluten Free, Sauces, Vegetarian, basil, coeliac diet, coeliac recipes, floyd's tomato sauce, garlic, gluten free, gluten free food, gluten free meals, gluten free recipes, keith floyd, olive oil, tomato sauce, what is gluten, wheat free diet, wheat free foods, wheat free recipes

Orange Marmalade

I seem to remember that from the end of January to the beginning of February our kitchen was filled the fragrant smell of Seville oranges cooking. I think my mother and grandmother made enough to last almost the whole year! Sometimes I mince the fruit and then use exactly the same method. I also use an organic granulated sugar and that can cause scum (which can be scraped off) but I prefer that to the preserving sugars that have added pectin. It was my treat, as a child, to have the crust off the loaf spread liberally with butter and then a dollop of warm marmalade on top – it is still good but not quite the same with gluten-free bread!

Everyone has their own method of making marmalade. Some people slice the fruit before cooking it and others like me cook the fruit first. This is the method I have always used.

(Printable Recipe)

Ingredients:
2lbs (900g) Organic Seville Oranges
1 Unwaxed Lemon
4lbs (1.8g) Organic Granulated Sugar
4 pints (2.25lt) Water
Require:
Preserving pan, muslin, sieve, small bowl, string, jam-jars, lids and labels

1 Put 2 or 3 saucers in the fridge. These will be used to test for setting

2 Wash and rinse the jam-jars and heat in the oven

3 Cut the oranges and the lemon in half and squeeze out the juice, placing the pips in a square of muslin laid over a sieve over a bowl.

4 Put the cut fruit in the preserving pan with the juice and the water.

5 Tie up the pips in the muslin with the string and tie onto the handle of the preserving pan, so that it sits in the juice/water. Bring to the boil and then simmer for about 1½/2 hours until the fruit is soft.

6 Allow to cool a little and then slice the fruit into quarters and then into thin slices.

7 Return the fruit to the pan with the juice/water and add the sugar. Stir it over a low heat until all the sugar is melted.

8 Increase the heat so that the mixture comes to a fast boil and then boil for 15 minutes.

9 Check to see if the mixture has set by spooning a little of the mixture onto the cold saucer.

10 Allow to cool a little, and then push the mixture with your finger, if it has a skin that crinkles it is set. If not put the mixture back on the heat and boil for another 5 minutes. This can be done again until the marmalade has set.

11 Remove the pan from the heat and if there is some scum around the edge of the pan spoon it away.

12 Leave the marmalade to settle for about 15 minutes and then pour into clean warm jars (I use a soup ladle but be careful as the mixture will be hot). Cover the jars with a clean teacloth until cold.

13 When the marmalade is cold put on the lids and label.

NB: Instead of slicing the oranges I sometimes mince them which gives a very different marmalade. I also like my marmalade less set than some bought marmalades – that is up to you.

Enjoy!

Filed under: Gluten Free, Preserve, Vegetarian, coeliac diet, coeliac recipes, gluten free, gluten free food, gluten free meals, gluten free recipes, marmalade, orange, orange marmalade, seville, what is gluten, wheat free diet, wheat free foods, wheat free recipes