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!

Elderflower Cordial

As a child, elderflower cordial always seemed like a very grown-up drink – though we drank it with soda water or tap water. My family always loved foraging in the hedgerows to make a variety of home-made wines, which until I was much older I was not allowed to drink! It was always great fun to collect the elderflowers and always picked more than was needed just to get the best ones for the cordial. It is really refreshing on a hot sunny day and tastes great!

Ingredients:
20/25 Sprays of elderflower heads – picked on a fine day when the fragrance is intense and not near a road
Zest of 1 orange and 1 lemon – both unwaxed
Lemon juice
Sugar – unrefined will give a darker cordial.

1. Snip the flower heads from the main stems and place in a large bowl.

2. Pour boiling water over them – just enough to cover and press them well down.

3. Cover and steep until cold or overnight.

4. Strain the liquid through muslin and squeeze all the liquid out.

5. Measure the liquid and put in a pan and for every 500ml (18fl oz) add 350g (12oz) of sugar and up to 50ml (2flozs) lemon juice.

6. Taste to make sure your cordial is neither too sharp nor too sweet by adjusting the lemon juice.

7. Heat gently to dissolve the sugar stirring occasionally and then bring to the boil, just to thicken the syrup – about 2 minutes at the most but every batch seems to be different.

8. Strain again through muslin to remove any scum and pour into clean sterilised bottles.

9. Seal with screw caps, or corks, and keep in the fridge. I like to use the mini wine bottles that are dark green.

10. Serve diluted with chilled fizzy or soda water.

The cordial can be used to flavour home-made ice-cream, mousses etc.

NB this recipe can be doubled, trebled, however much you want to make.

Enjoy!

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!

Chocolate Yule Log (Gluten Free)

As it is christmas time, I thought that I would re-blog about our Chocolate Roulade recipe that is perfect as a Chocolate Yule Log recipe too.

Dont forget that if you are using the recipe for a Yule Log, either fill with a liqueur or chocolate cream, cover in chocolate ganache, mark with a fork, stick on fake robin, and enjoy!

And it is Gluten Free too.

Chocolate Roulade (Gluten Free)

Having missed out on my post for Chocolate Week due to feeling unwell and then having a busy couple of weeks at work, I decided to make my mum’s chocolate roulade recipe as a pudding after my Coq au Vin dish last weekend.

My first ever post, 2 months ago, was my mum’s Meringue Roulade recipe and it has been a very popular post since then. This is a delicious alternative that was just as fun to make, especially as it was filled with fresh raspberries straight from the garden so late on in October. I cant remember the first time I had it, so as usual I asked my mum where it came from…

My children don’t like Christmas cake so I used to make a chocolate Yule-log. When I was diagnosed with Coeliac disease I had to find an alternative recipe that didn’t have flour in it. This chocolate roulade recipe was just the idea, but it makes a wonderful gooey pudding too, as you can see from the recipe. If using the recipe for a Yule-log, either fill with a liqueur or chocolate cream, cover in chocolate ganache, mark with a fork, stick on fake robin, and enjoy.

This is a chocolate mousse mixture, baked like a soft meringue and rolled up with cream. Prepare in advance by baking the roulade the day before. Then fill and roll up several hours before serving.

(Printable Recipe)

Serves 8

Ingredients:
6ozs Plain Chocolate
5 Large Eggs
6ozs Caster Sugar
2 Tablespoons Hot Water (see recipe)
A little Icing Sugar
Cream and fruit for filling

Swiss roll tin approx. 13½” x 9″ brushed with oil, lined with non-stick paper cut to fit width of tin but long enough to overlap the two ends. Lightly Oil Paper

Oven 180ºC, 350ºF, 160ºC Fan Oven, Gas Mark 4

1 Break chocolate into a bowl over a saucepan of hot water – leave until soft.

2 Separate eggs; put yolks into a large bowl, add sugar & using a whisk beat until pale in colour and thickened.

3 When chocolate has melted remove from heat & stir in 2tbls of hot water from the pan beneath, leave to cool a little.

4 Using a slow whisk incorporate the chocolate into the egg mixture.

5 In a clean bowl, whisk egg whites until stiff. Using a large spoon mix 1 spoonful into the chocolate mixture to loosen it.

6 Then carefully, gently & evenly fold in the rest of the egg whites.

7 Pour mixture into the tin & spread evenly, paying particular attention to the corners.

8 Bake in the centre of oven for 15 – 20 mins, should be firm to touch.

9 Remove from heat and while hot cover, first with a sheet of greaseproof paper and then a tea-towel and leave undisturbed until quite cold

10 Turn out onto a sheet of greaseproof paper that has been dusted with icing sugar. Peel away the baking paper, whip cream and spread over, sprinkle with desired fruit.

11 Roll up using the sugared paper to help, it may crack but push it together and sprinkle with more icing sugar. Chill for several hours before serving.

Enjoy!

Blackberry Vanilla Cupcakes

Having already made lots of delicious things with all the blackberries I had foraged a few weeks before, I wanted to make something completely different and outside of my ‘comfort zone’, so I started searching for food blogs using blackberries in other ways.

I then stumbled across Donal Skehans excellent blog The Good Mood Food Blog and some of the delicious things he was making with blackerries over in Ireland.

I first noticed his Blackberry Coulis recipe which is very similar to my own Blackberry Compote one and then saw the superb cupcakes he had made using his coulis. Having never made any cakes in my adult life, this was the challenge I wanted and so I set about getting the few ingredients I didnt have in my cupboard or fridge, before having a go at making them and doing his recipe proud! As Donal quotes, ‘This recipe makes delicious, light and moist cupcakes with a fruity taste’.

What I discovered, like so many other recipes I try, it wasnt overly complicated to do, you just needed to follow the instructions step by step.

So I started by making his Blackberry Coulis, so that it was then ready for me to use in the cupcake mixture later on. Once I had sieved it and let it cool, I started on my baking adventure, thinking I was going to get flour and eggs everywhere and dreading the washing up after. Suprisingly, for the time I spent in the kitchen, I only used 3 bowls and a saucepan and hardly made a mess at all!

Again, not having any ink in my printer (I must remember to buy some) I brought my laptop into the kitchen so I could follow Donal’s recipe. It was a total clash of technology and cuisine going on in my small kitchen, epecially when I got my LED beeping electronic scales out too!

I got everything ready to bake, with my girlfriend on hand in the living room watching ‘Come Dine With Me’ (being the normal master home baker), just incase I messed anything up.

All I can say is that they were great fun to make! Everything was so easy, and after spending all that time in the kitchen making them, all I wanted to do was eat one.

I made sure the cakes properly cooled before spooning on the frosting, and then put them aside to set. Once I was happy that they were ready to eat, I had my first one and it was totally delicious! My girlfriend was very impressed at my baking, so I continued into the evening, using the rest of the cake mixture to make a dozen more, so that I could freeze some and have them on other occasions, especially as I have some of the coulis left too.

If anyone wants to have a go and making some fruity cupcakes, then I suggest you have a go at these as the are fantastic!
 
 

Blackberry Coulis

Makes about 150ml/¼ pint

250g Blackberries
50g Golden caster sugar
½ tsp Vanilla extract

1 Put the blackberries and sugar into a small pan with 100ml/31⁄2fl oz water. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 5 mins until the fruit is soft. Stir in the vanilla, remove and cool a little.

2 Tip the contents of the pan into a blender or food processor, and whizz to a purée, then strain through a sieve, rubbing it through with the back of a ladle or spoon.

Serve warm or chilled.

The coulis will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.
 
 

For the main recipe:

Blackberry Vanilla Cupcakes

(Recipe adapted from Donal Skehan)

Makes 24 cupcakes

For the cupcakes:
1 cup Flour
2 tsp Baking powder
1 tsp Salt
6 tbsp Unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup Sugar
2 Eggs
1 tsp Vanilla extract
1/2 cup Milk
1/2 cup Blackberry coulis (made earlier)

For the frosting:
8 oz Cream cheese, at room temperature
3 cups Powdered sugar, sifted
2 tbsp Blackberry coulis
Blackberries for decoration

Preheat the oven to 180C.

1 Line a cupcake pan with paper liners.

2 In a small mixing bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

3 In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugars on medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Add in the eggs one at a time, scraping down the bowl between additions.

4 In another bowl or liquid measuring cup, whisk together the milk and blackberry coulis. Add half of the dry ingredients to the bowl of the mixer and mix on low speed until just combined. Mix in the blackberry coulis/milk mixture. Mix in the remaining dry ingredients on low speed just until incorporated. Do not over-mix.

5 Divide the batter evenly between the prepared paper liners.

6 Bake for 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan 10-15 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and allow to cool completely.

To make the frosting, combine the cream cheese, powdered sugar and blackberry coulis in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until smooth and well blended. Frost cooled cupcakes as desired and garnish with fresh blackberries.