Banana bread

Tea and banana bread!

Perogi

I'm going to have a go at making some eastern european foods- Under Tat's guidance and information that is is all "delicious, except the pickled cabbage". So, I have decided to have a go at making these (With some gluten free and lacto free substitutions, of course). These sound like turkish pancakes but a bit easier to make.

Sauerkraut, Potato & Cheese Pierogi

Makes roughly 4 dozen pierogi

You can substitute two cups of leftover mashed potatoes for the mashed potatoes in this recipe.

Pierogi dough:3 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra as needed
1 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1/4 cup sour cream
3/4 cup water

Pierogi filling:
1 pound potatoes (I prefer red-skinned, but russet or yukon golds are fine)
2 tablespoons sour cream
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup drained sauerkraut
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

To serve:3 tablespoons butter
1 small yellow onion, sliced thinly

To make the dough, whisk together the flour and salt in the bowl of a standing mixer (or regular mixing bowl). Whisk together the egg, sour cream, and water until combined, and then pour over the flour. Stir together the liquids and the flour with a wooden spoon or spatula until a shaggy dough is formed.

Knead the dough the mixer on low speed with the dough hook attachment until the dough is very smooth and soft, about 5 minutes. Alternatively, knead by hand against the counter for 8 minutes. If the dough seems very sticky after a few minutes of kneading, add a tablespoon of flour at a time until it starts coming together into a smooth ball. Cover and set aside to rest on the counter while you make the filling.

To make the filling, scrub the potatoes clean and place them in a 2- or 4-quart sauce pan. Cover with an inch or two of water and set over high heat. When the water comes to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the potatoes are tender when pierced by a fork, 6 to 10 minutes depending on the size of your potatoes.

Transfer the potatoes to a mixing bowl with a slotted spoon. Remove the peels if desired (I like to leave them on!). Mash the potatoes into large chunks with a potato masher or a dinner fork. Add the sour cream and salt, and continue mashing until the potatoes are smooth. Add the sauerkraut and cheese, and stir to combine. Taste and add more salt if needed.

Shape the filling into 1" balls (roughly the diameter of a quarter) and arrange them on a dinner plate. Pre-shaping the filling makes it easier and quicker to shape the pierogi.

Line a baking sheet with parchment and sprinkle generously with flour. Set this near your workspace.

Divide the pierogi dough in half, working with one half at a time and keeping the other half covered. Sprinkle your work surface with flour and roll out the pierogi dough to 1/8" thick. Stop occasionally to lift the dough and make sure it's not sticking to the work surface; use more flour as needed. If the dough shrinks back as you roll, let it sit for 5 minutes and then roll again.

Use a 3" biscuit cutter or drinking glass to cut the dough into rounds. Gather the scraps and set them aside.

To shape the pierogi, hold one of the rounds of dough in the palm of your hand and set a ball of filling in the middle. Fold the round in half, pinching it closed at the top and then working your way along the sides to form a half-moon shape. Make sure the edges of the dough are completely sealed. Set the pierogi on the floured baking sheet.

Continue to shape pierogi with the remaining rounds of dough. Lay them close together on the baking sheet, but don't let them touch. Roll out the second half of the dough, and cut and shape the pierogi as described. When finished, roll the scrapes and continue to make as many pierogi as you can. You should end up with roughly 4 dozen pierogi.

→ Recipe Tip! No matter what, I always seem to end up with either a few leftover balls of filling or an extra bit of dough. C'est la vie! The balls are delicious eaten as a snack, even cold from the fridge. The scraps of dough can be rolled out, sliced into spaghetti-thin strips, and then boiled just like pasta for an afternoon snack.

At this point, the pierogi can be boiled and served right away or frozen. To freeze, place the sheet pan of pierogi in the freezer and freeze until solid. Transfer the frozen pierogi to a freezer container and freeze for up to three months. Pierogi can be cooked straight from the freezer.

When ready to cook the pierogi, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until the onions are translucent, very soft, and beginning to brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Push the onions to the edges of the pan where they will stay warm and continue to caramelize.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Salt generously. Working in batches, add 10 or so pierogi to the boiling water and stir to make sure they don't stick to the bottom. Cook the pierogi until all the pierogi have floated to the surface and then 1 to 2 minutes longer to make sure the filling gets hot — 8 to 10 minutes total.

Transfer the pierogi to the pan with the onions. Turn the heat to medium-high. Cook the pierogi without moving until they are golden and crispy on the bottoms, 2 to 3 minutes. If you're cooking more batches, transfer the pierogi to a serving dish. Once all the pierogi have been boiled and crisped, scrape the onions over the pierogi and gently stir to coat the pierogi with butter and onions. Serve immediately while hot.

Per serving, based on 10 servings. (% daily value)

Calories

338

Fat

14.7 g (22.7%)

Saturated

8.9 g (44.6%)

Trans

0.1 g

Carbs

38.9 g (13%)

Fiber

2.6 g (10.5%)

Sugars

1.6 g

Protein

12.5 g (24.9%)

Cholesterol

59.7 mg (19.9%)

Sodium

567.3 mg (23.6%)

Baking gluten free, lactose free, egg free, Vegan cakes with Jenny

Jenny has given me a baking lesson- in cakes I can actually eat! :D
I'm super excited about these and I'll be experimenting with making more- the texture is pretty dense... think malt loaf- but if you want all the cake action and none of the reaction then they're a pretty damn good start!
(Obviously, if they're for a real vegan, leave off the harribo sweets) Jen's top tip is to leave them in the oven until the oven has cooled as otherwise they're "gooey" in the middle which would probably be disconcerting.

I had a lovely time at Jen's eating turkish delight and giving her half my house (I've finally accepted that I'm moving house and realised that I have too much clutter- So, This week I will be getting rid of the unused, unuseful and ill-fitting items from my home. I'll still have more junk than anyone else I know but it might all fit in one van. That's the end objective anyway!)

More baking lessons please!
I will pay you in dresses and craft books!
:D

I had an awesome day and a good catch up which I needed! It's always nice to be able to spend proper time with my friends and family.

Baking please! Lemon and blueberry brownies

15 Times Lemon And Blueberry Were Relationship Goals http://www.buzzfeed.com/emmymax/15-times-lemon-blueberry-proved-they-had-a-bette-25wf8

Here's What You Need:

• Brownies:
• 3/4 cup flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 eggs
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest (approx. 1 lemon)
• Icing:
• 3/4 cup blueberries
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• Topping:
• Chopped Pistachios
• Coarse sea salt

Here's What You Do:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F degrees. Line a 8x8" pan with parchment paper and non stick spray. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, thyme, salt, and butter until just mixed.
3. In a small bowl, combine eggs, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Whisk thoroughly to combine.
4. Add egg mixture to flour mixture. Mix until just combined. 
5. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 20 minutes (if you have a dark pan like me), or 23-25 minutes if using a lighter colored pan, until edges are light brown.
6. Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan.
7. In a small bowl, mix lemon juice and powdered sugar to form thick glaze. Spread over cooled brownies.
8. In small saucepan, combine blueberries and lemon juice. Allow to cook on medium heat for 5 minutes or until blueberries have released a significant amount of juice. 
9. Remove pan from heat and allow to cool.
10. Half mixture, and transfer half to a small bowl. Set aside other half for another use.
11. Mix in powdered sugar to make a runny glaze.
12. Cut brownies and drizzle blueberries over the top. Use as much or as little as you want.
13. Chop pistachios and sprinkle on top with sea salt to your liking.

New snacks- Condensed milk turkish delight... and how to make it..

I didn't even know you could make turkish delight with condensed milk before today! When I saw this in budgens I couldn't leave without buying it.

I did offer it round at work and no-one else really seemed very impressed with it, but I think it's pretty damn good!

I really like turkish delight- especially the rose flavoured one and I can now add that I very much the like condensed milk version too, although it's really not as sweet as you'd have expected it to be!

Maybe I'll try and make some:

http://www.goodtoknow.co.uk/recipes/294150/Rose-Turkish-Delight

Dinosaur biscuits

Today was Glen's Birthday (And he's only 37.. he had been telling everyone his was 38 so he got a whole year back as a birthday present!) His Wife made us Dinosaur biscuits- which in itself is amazing.

And she put buttercream on top.

I don't really know what it's never occurred to me to do that before, but from now on home made biscuits should only have butter cream icing. Just what we needed as a Thursday sugary pick-me-up. 

Spiralizer dinner

Tina got me a spiraliser for my Birthday to encourage me to eat more veggies- it makes spaghetti from root vegetables and courgettes and seems to be the latest diet fad.
For Christmas she got me the cook book.

So for dinner I made sweet potato and quorn fillet bake. It was a bit of an experiment. It ended up as more of a stew because the Quorn didn't take in the liquid like the chicken would have done but it was still delicious!
That said, next time I'd try it with harissa paste to make it more exotic... and less liquid.

Halloween Awesomeness from Buzzfeed

Here are seven easy, super-fun Halloween treats that literally anyone can make. (Even your kid, if you have one.)

1. Dip Nutter Butters in candy melts for an insanely cute three-ingredient dessert.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Here’s what you’ll need to make the mummies.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

You can use white chocolate instead of the candy melts (but candy melts just *set* better than white chocolate). You could also use a different narrow cookie (like Milanos) instead of the Nutter Butters.

Dip the Nutter Butters in the melted candy melts, then top with two candy eyes for ~instant personality~.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Get the full how-to here.

2. Frost a brownie with an easy chocolate glaze and then decorate with white icing to make a spiderweb.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Here’s what you’ll need to make the brownie look like a spiderweb.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Bake your favorite brownie recipe or use a mix. Either way, make sure it’s in a round cake pan.

Microwave the chocolate chips and cream for about 1 minute, then whisk until you have a ~smooth and glossy glaze~. Then, spread that over the top of the brownie.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

To make the white icing, whisk the powdered sugar and 1/4 cup of the heavy cream. Scrape this into a zip-top bag and twist it to make a little bundle.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Next, cut a tiny hole in the tip of the bag. Make a spiral design starting in the middle of the brownie and going all the way to the edge. Then, drag a toothpick from the center of the spiral to the outside it look like a spiderweb. BOOM. Magic.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Get the full how-to here.

3. Frost sugar cookies with green frosting and top with candy eyeballs to make Monster Sugar Cookies.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Tint white frosting to your favorite shade of green and then spread it on the sugar cookies. Top with candy eyeballs!

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Get the full how-to here.

4. Transform a chocolate–cream cheese dip into a graveyard scene with Oreo “dirt” and Milano cookie “gravestones.”

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Here’s what you’ll need to make the dip.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

To make the dip, melt the chocolate and then mix it with the cream cheese and powdered sugar (plus a pinch of salt and some vanilla, if you want).

Lauren Zaser / BuzzFeed

the-secret-ingredient-is-a-toothpick

 

Smooth the dip in a bowl and then top it with crushed Oreos to make the dirt. Then, write on the Milanos with black frosting to make the gravestones. Sink them into the dip and scatter candy corn pumpkins and gummy worms all around.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Get the full how-to here.

5. Make a batch of orange-tinted Rice Krispie Treats and shape them into pumpkins.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Here’s what you’ll need to make the pumpkins.

Lauren Zaser / BuzzFeed

*Plus yellow and red food coloring.

Stir Rice Krispies into melted marshmallows that you’ve tinted orange with food coloring. Then, mold them into pumpkins and stick a small piece of green Twizzler in the top to make a stem.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Get the full how-to here.

6. Frost a cake with yellow, orange, and white frosting to make it look like candy corn.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Here’s what you’ll need to make the cake.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Use your favorite vanilla frosting and chocolate cake recipes or go for store-bought. The only essential is farm-fresh candy corn. JK, lol.

Tint one bowl of the frosting yellow and one orange with the food coloring, until they look like the colors of the candy corn. If you want to get it exact, use a real live candy corn to gauge the colors.

Lauren Zaser / BuzzFeed

Lauren Zaser / BuzzFeed

 

Start by frosting the bottom layer yellow. Then, put the second layer on top and frost it white, but leave the sides bare so that you can frost it orange.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Don’t worry too much about getting it perfect. The smudgy look is what you are going for.

Then, decorate the top with as many candy corns as your heart desires. We did a simple border, but you could cover the entire top or just leave it plain.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Get the full how-to here.

7. Make little no-bake cookie tombstones with melted chocolate, peanut butter, and oats.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Here’s what you’ll need to make the tombstones.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Melt the chocolate chips and then mix with the oats, cocoa powder, and peanut butter. Make tombstone shapes and then write on them with the white frosting.

Lauren Zaser / Alice Mongkongllite / BuzzFeed

Get the full how-to here.

Have a BOO-tiful Halloween!