Great British Chefs' - Blog

How to buy sustainable cod

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 17:07:42 +0100

You can get a crisis of conscience eating seafood nowadays.

Our love of cod and chips may be responsible for causing the extinction of entire species. Cod has been overfished to dangerous levels but it is possible to buy cod and not worry about its future. Armed with the information in this infographic you’ll be able to enjoy cod with a clear conscience in future!

Infographic courtesy of Great British Chefs

To celebrate a second day of sunshine, an elegant lunch @gbchefs...

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 14:05:07 +0100

To celebrate a second day of sunshine, an elegant lunch @gbchefs was required. Top of the list was @nathanoutlaw Mackerel, tomato & samphire salad. #foodporn #salad #healthy recipes #sunshine #dinnerrecipes #alfresco

#Veggie dish of the day @gbchefs HQ, spinach & ricotta...

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 13:54:15 +0100

#Veggie dish of the day @gbchefs HQ, spinach & ricotta tortellini cradled with Parmesan shaving! #foodporn #vegetarian #therewillbefood #alfrescodining #lunch

Going. Going. Going. Gone. Lunch @GBChefs was Beef Wellington...

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 15:11:57 +0100

Going. Going. Going. Gone. Lunch @GBChefs was Beef Wellington served with roasted veg. #GreatBritishBeefWeek

Creating a cooking party for your kids

Thu, 04 Apr 2013 15:41:00 +0100

If the weather’s wet and cold outside and you’re looking for a fun way to entertain your children, why not throw a cooking party? Karen’s held many in the past and has great tips and themes to base your party on.

I am an expert on creating cooking parties for children; every sleep-over or birthday party for my daughter was linked to some sort of cooking party, and they were always immense fun as well as being creative in a culinary sense! From Midnight Feasts (usually served at about 10pm!) to Picnics in the garden, I have embraced the party side of cookery soul with children, and have the “massive clean-up t-shirt” to prove it! Children LOVE to be involved with creating and cooking food, and what better opportunity than a birthday party or just a wet Sunday plays session indoors.

So, how do you create a cookery party for your children? Planning is essential of course; you need to know what type of food you are serving based on the theme, how they can become involved safely (given that you may have lots of children to entertain) as well as planning the “cooking party” area and space. I will list some cooking party ideas below, and give suggestions about how to host them, but for now, let’s go with my themed party for this article, a Teddy Bear’s Picnic or Tea Party.

The first thing is the invitations, if this is a party for a special occasion or a sleep-over; if it is just for your children, then invitations are STILL a lovely idea! Get the kids involved in designing and making the invitations, and then accompany them when they “post” them through the letterboxes (or by mail). Plan where the party is going to take place – you may need two areas, the cooking area and possibly the party area, such as the living or dining room. For a Teddy Bear’s Picnic or Tea Party, gather all your kid’s teddies and soft toys together and set them up in the party area, with a tablecloth of course, and any other props to make it seem fun, such as a miniature tea set, rug, cushions and a picnic hamper; in the summer, this can be set up outside in the garden or even the local park.

The food: For a Teddy Bear’s Picnic or Tea Party, the cookery party can be making the sandwiches for the event; the cakes and biscuits can be made beforehand, and then all of the children can make an assortment of sandwiches with different fillings. Arrange ham, cheese, egg mayonnaise, tuna salad, tomatoes, lettuce, onions, pickle, mayonnaise, sliced bread, bread rolls and the butter or spread on the table and give each child an apron (you can buy disposable plastic aprons at party suppliers) along with a small spreading knife (not sharp) and a mat. Get them to make the sandwiches and then arrange them on a plate, or wrap them up as if going on a picnic. If the children are over five years old, they can also grate the cheese, slice the tomatoes and peel the eggs for the egg mayonnaise. Once the sandwiches are made, make some “tea”, which can be squash or fruit juice and get them to pour it into a teapot or a flask.

It’s now time to party, allow the children to set the food out with the teddy bears, and let them sit amongst the stuffed animals on the floor (on cushions) or rugs if outside. Provide lots of napkins and put some appropriate music on!

The idea of the Teddy Bear’s Picnic or Tea Party is simple and may not involve any “cooking” as such, but it’s ideal for little children, and they will love making sandwiches, or even icing pre-made cakes before the party commences. Other ideas for cookery parties, all tried and tested by me and many children are:

Pizza Parties

Make the pizza dough with the children and then allow them to “design” their own pizzas by adding toppings that are on the table such as: grated cheese, ham, olives, onions, tomato sauce, tomatoes, pineapple chunks, salami, mixed herbs etc. Make sure you have enough pizza baking stones or trays and enough room in the oven to cook at least four pizzas at a time or more.

Burger or BBQ Parties

Get the kids to make their own burgers – have minced beef and seasonings at the ready; get them to make their own burger patties, and then with supervision, cook them. Have assorted bread buns, cheese, bacon, salad leaves tomatoes, relishes, mayonnaise, ketchup and mustard available on the table so they can “build” their own burger!

Cupcake Parties

A sure way to have lots of fun, and makes a great cooking party for the little ones as well as older girls, for a “girly” party. Have lots of different cake cases, cake stands (those cardboard ones are ideal), sprinkles, sweets, icing bags and such like ready for decorating the cakes. Let them work in pairs to weigh the ingredients and mix the cake mixture before you bake the cakes for them.

Midnight Feast Parties

Anything goes here, but I used to let my daughter and her friends make cocoa (hot chocolate) with supervision, as well as sandwiches, stuff on toast and salads to take up to the bedroom for a special midnight feast! I used to let them pack it all up on containers and give them a tablecloth for the floor and lots of napkins.

Ice Cream Sundae Parties

Easy to organise and totally fun! Suitable for all ages, even adults! Have tubs of various ice cream flavours on the table, with sauces (these can be made with the children), squirty cream, mixed fruit, nuts, chocolate flakes, cones, wafers, sprinkles and other sweet treats for the children to make their own ice cream sundae, or even a banana split! Don’t forget to have lots of bowls handy for their masterpieces, and napkins!

Pancake Parties

Great fun and easy too! Allow them to make the batter, older children can make the pancakes with close supervision, and then allow them to add their own ingredients such as classic lemon, sugar, jam, honey, golden syrup and Nutella. Savoury pancakes can also be made too.

Pasta Parties

Just as it says on the box, a party which involves cooking pasta; sauces can be prepared and made, and fresh pasta can also be attempted, with a pasta machine, or just a rolling pin! Great for older children, and especially if they make ravioli and other types of stuffed pasta.

Baking Parties

Great for simple biscuit and cookie recipes, and also perfect for little ones. Rolled and drop biscuits and cookie recipes are best. Allow the kids to take some of their baking home with them in little cellophane bags or boxes, and don’t forget to let them go wild with the decorating!

Creating a cookery party with children is all about creativity and imagination – most types of food can be cooked in a part type atmosphere, even down to breakfast parties, soup and bread parties! The main tip is to plan ahead and know who many children are attending. Have plenty of bowls, pans, trays, aprons and warm soapy water for dirty little hands to be washed in! Props can be used, like my featured Teddy Bear’s Picnic and Tea Party and the usual suspects such as balloons, goodie bags to take away (maybe with the recipes and some fun ingredients inside), individual party boxes (for cold food), place mats etc.

For teenagers, Chilli and Wraps parties are hugely successful, and can be supervised with a minimum of involvement too – just leave them with the recipe, the ingredients and a basic set of safety rules.

I hope this has inspired you to host some cookery parties with your kids; they are fun as well as educational and entertaining. I have to get back to my Teddy Bear’s Picnic Party now……before the bears scoff all the cakes and sarnies!

For more fun kids recipes for cookery parties visit Great British Chefs Collection.

Birthday Cakes Do's and Don’ts

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 12:34:50 +0100

Are you considering making your child a birthday cake? If you are feeling nervous about this great undertaking, don’t panic! With three kids Antonia has made more than 20 birthday cakes and has some tricks and cheats to help you.

Don’t panic if what you make doesn’t match up to the picture in the recipe book. Kids don’t need the cake to be perfect. Your child’s imagination will ensure that they see the cake as just what they wanted, even if it looks wonky to you.

Do cheat! There are lots of short cuts to help you create a stunning birthday cake. I belong to a number of baking forums and communities and I used to be surprised how many of the great bakers I know were unashamed to start with a box of cake mix. So, if you are worried about getting the cake to rise, starting with a couple of boxes of cake mix can give you a guaranteed great basis for your birthday cake. Making the cake yourself is easier than you think though: I have a basic recipe for plain sponge on Family Friendly Working that I use time and time again.

A few ‘dos and don’ts’ for if you decide to bake your own:

Do look out for silicon cake moulds: they make it super-easy to turn out the cake and come in all sorts of fabulous colours, shapes and sizes now.

Don’t overfill the cake tins: about 2/3rds full is plenty, and burnt cake is a pain to scrape off your oven!

Don’t open the oven while baking the cake as this will allow the air bubbles that will make your cake lovely and light to deflate while the cake is still too runny.

Do have a skewer or thin knife ready to test the cake when the timer rings: I test while the cake is still on the oven shelf. If the cake mix sticks to the skewer I put the cake in for another 5 minutes.

Tip! Once your cake has cooled, pop it in the freezer for an hour or so. This makes it easier to cut into shapes, and to ice without getting crumbs everywhere.

Do accessorise! Once your cake has baked and cooled, you’ll need to get creative. I’m sure your child has given you lots of ideas for the cake: I’ve made farms, castles, trains and a giant cupcake for birthdays. Spend a little time at the shop looking at which foods might help you create the effect you need. Chocolate biscuits make great wheels, chocolate fingers can be used for train tracks. I’ve used inverted ice-cream cones as the basis of towers for a castle. Buy some tubes of writing icing for highlights, and small sweets for decorations. I’ve used liquorice for the fireman’s hose for a cake for K! Do plan in advance for this part. If you can’t see what you need in the shop, look online: there are hundreds of cake decorations available nowadays.

Do know when to get help! I’m not afraid to try most things: I’ve created a Spiderman cake for J, and a Fireman Sam fire engine for K. However it is fine to admit that you can’t do it all yourself. The Spiderman cake involved a plain round cake with white icing. I used writing icing to add a black web with around 15 small plastic Spiderman figures on top and around the edge. The farm cake used plastic farm animals to similar effect. And you can get all sorts of photos transferred on to icing ‘cake toppers’, allowing you to really personalise a cake for your child.

My final tip is to always aim for ‘simple and effective’ rather than complicated! D and K’s birthdays are 2 days apart, so this year I looked for some inspiration on Pinterest and I’ve made plain round sponges for both. Each has a border of chocolate fingers, and K’s is topped with Smarties, while D has decorated her own with flowers. I even used readymade buttercream this time for speed. I’m really pleased with the results.

Inspired? You’ll find easy cakes to make with your children over on Great British Chefs kids recipe collection.

Pace Eggs, Hot Cross Buns and Traditional Easter Baking

Thu, 28 Mar 2013 15:06:51 +0000

Easter’s the first Spring Bank Holiday of the year and the long weekend is an excellent opportunity to get cooking. Karen has some wonderful Easter cooking and baking recipes to share, as well as the history behind them.

(Because Easter is so much more than just chocolate!)

I am a follower of culinary fashion, insofar as I love embracing new food trends and exciting ingredients, but, I am also an ardent keeper of British traditions and customs – both the well-known as well as the more unusual and forgotten feasts and festivals. High days and holidays are a time to be with family, not work, and the erosion of some of our “bank holidays” during the Easter period is extremely sad, as we will never “get them back” the longer they are allowed to be marginalised by commerce. However, I am pleased to say that as a nation we are starting to cook and bake more at home, with special holidays being the highlight of the home cook’s repertoire……and with that in mind; I would love to share some wonderful Easter cooking and baking recipes with you, as well as the history behind them.

Hot Cross Buns: Sold all year around now in some supermarkets, which I think is a shame, but a wonderfully spiced and fruited bun with an interesting history. The mark of the cross on baked goods going back to pre-Medieval times, it was a visible sign that the bread was “blessed” and had the power to ward off evil spirits, as well as stopping it becoming stale so quickly.

The first buns with crosses that were attributed to the festival of Easter came along a little later, as Kate Colquhoun states in her excellent book ”Taste: The Story Of Britain Through Its Cooking“……….“In honour of Eastre, goddess of spring and the dawn, [Anglo-Saxon] bread dough could be studded with dried fruits and baked into small loaves that, as Christianity spread, began to be marked with a cross by monks: the earliest form of hot-cross bun”. It can be said that these were the earliest examples of what we know to be Hot Cross Buns today, and from the late 1600′s onwards the custom grew that special spices buns known as “Good Friday Buns” were to be marked with a cross and were to be eaten for breakfast on Good Friday.

I have an old family recipe for Hot Cross Buns, and I remember both my grandmother and mum making dozens of them in the week preceding Good Friday and Easter weekend. On Good Friday, we had Hot Cross Buns for breakfast served with fresh butter, boiled eggs, home-made bread and a big pot of tea, with freshly picked daffodils on the table in an old china jug. Meat wasn’t eaten on Good Friday and a large family Fish Pie was always served with a cheesy potato topping, filled with smoked and fresh fish, salmon and prawns.

My latest recipe invention for Easter are “Hot Cross Buffins” – using my family recipe for the buns, but baking them in a Muffin tray for smaller more “brioche” like buns, perfect for the Easter tea-time table. I see it as merging tradition with a modern day recipe for Easter muffins, and I have had requests to make many more of these “Hot Cross Buffins” already! (If using my recipe for Hot Cross Buns above, just cut the proved dough into twelve pieces, put each piece onto a greased muffin tin, prove a second time and bake for 20 minutes in a hot oven)

Pace Eggs: Another family tradition and “recipe” – Mum taught me how to make Pace Eggs when I was little; onion skins, leaves, flower petals and even beetroot juice was used to make patterned eggs, and then mum used to “butter” the boiled eggs to give them a shine; she would then pile them all up in an old (large) egg coddler in the middle of the table. I remember sitting at the old kitchen table, wrapping onion skins around fresh eggs, and then tying them with string, before hard boiling them.

Then, there was the excitement of “unwrapping” them, and seeing the marbled patterns emerge! The name Pace is thought to derive from the French word for Easter, Pâques……and in some parts of Britain – mainly Lancashire in the North West, these eggs are rolled down a hill, the winner being the owner of the egg which goes the furthest and has the least cracks or breaks in it.

It is also traditional to give one of these eggs to each person who visits your home throughout the Easter period – what a wonderful alternative to the commercially over packaged chocolate eggs.

Simnel Cake: The Simnel Cake is well known as the classic cake for Easter, but in fact it is a Mothering Sunday cake, originally baked by young girls in “service” to take home to their mother’s on “Refreshment Sunday”, which is another name for Mothering Sunday. The cake is a rich fruit cake with a layer of marzipan running through then middle, as well as a marzipan topping; eleven marzipan balls adorn the cake, to represent the twelve apostles, minus Judas of course.

It was the Victorians who started to decorate the cake with the “apostle marzipan balls”, prior to that, the cake was decorated with fresh and crystallised spring flowers, such as violets and primroses. Any cake baked for Easter can be decorated with flowers, as well as the ubiquitous chocolate cake, made and decorated with lots of mini eggs, chocolate flake “nests” and sprinkles!

Fairy cakes (cupcakes) are perfect for an Easter tea time treat, and my recipe for Little Easter Egg and Daisy Cakesare easy to make, plus the children can help decorate them, as well as make them.

Spring Lamb: Lamb, or spring lamb, is a popular choice for most families who eat meat, as well as ham and sometimes turkey. Lamb is particularly good at this time of year as it has a sweet “grassy” flavour and is very tender. It’s (lamb) usually roasted and served with traditional accompaniments such as roast potatoes, seasonal vegetables, gravy and mint sauce, but, why not be a little adventurous this year and go Middle Eastern with Persian Lamb, served with spiced cauliflower and saffron rice? As well as lamb, another Easter tradition is to bake a ham, with plenty of leftovers for sandwiches, salads and pies. My sister and mum, who are vegetarians, usually make a Cheese and Spinach Pie for their Easter centrepiece, and it always appeals to the carnivores in my family, as it’s so good!

I am cooking a fabulous Sarah Raven recipe this Easter, Ham in Hay with Parsley Sauce.

Chocolate! I couldn’t end without mentioning chocolate! And Easter Eggs of course.

I have made my own Easter eggs in the past, but whilst perusing the web, I discovered some amazing recipes for home-made eggs here: Chocolate Easter Eggs; Chocolate Eggs, Chocolate Krispie Chick,Chocolate Button Eggs and Chocolate Lolly Pops. Don’t forget, Easter Sunday is the day that Easter Bunny leaves the eggs, and maybe if the weather is better, you can have an Easter Egg Hunt in the garden or nearby park! Happy Easter, and I hope you have enjoyed my recipe ideas.

What are you baking this Easter? Are you inspired by Karen’s traditional recipes? Fancy making your own Hot Cross Buns? Will you and your family try some more chocolately delights? There’s plenty in our Easter Recipe Collection at Great British Chefs

Making Eight Day Easter Bread

Wed, 27 Mar 2013 15:07:08 +0000

Monica had fun learning how to make Choereg. This ”eight day bread”, is a sweet, egg-enriched braided bread that is eaten across the countries of the former Ottoman empire and in Greece and Armenia has specific associations with Easter.

Last January my mother introduced me to her friend, Nimo, an Assyrian woman who’s managed that rare thing in America: to migrate to the States without losing her cultural food tradition. My Mum’s been raving to me about Nimo for years, often sending me photos and scribbles from their cooking sessions, making such things as tabbouleh, lentil dumplings, Turkish bread, and stuffed aubergine. Given my propensity for Middle Eastern cuisine, it was no wonder why I “had to meet this woman”.

Assyria is an ancient territory that dissolved in the mid-seventh century and is now part of several nations including northern Iraq, part of southeast Turkey and northeast Syria. Though Nimo now lives in Chicago, her roots are firmly in her heritage, and this especially applies to her cooking. Nimo bakes from her tradition, using the recipes that her grandmother taught her how to make, rarely measuring anything and often not knowing the English words to describe them, which made follow-up research a tad challenging, but also hugely educational.

One such dish that Nimo taught us is what she called “eight day bread”, a sweet, egg-enriched braided bread that is eaten across the countries of the former Ottoman empire and in Greece and Armenia has specific associations with Easter. In Armenia it’s called “choereg” and in Greece it’s called ”tsoureki” or “lampropsomo”, derived from the Greek words for “Easter” and “bread” and refers to the light Christians believe is given by Christ’s resurrection.

There are many varieties of these festive breads, but what gives it its distinctive flavour and aroma is mahleb, an aromatic spice made from the seeds of a type of cherry. When ground to a powder, mahleb produces a flavour that’s much like a combination of bitter almond and cherry. The spice has several associations with Easter, not only in Greece, but also in Cyprus where it’s a used in a special Easter cheese-filled pastry called flaouna.

I’m still trying to navigate the landscape of Nimo’s food stories. Her food crosses several cultural landscapes and her methods are not recipes, but simple truths about cooking ingrained in her brain by tradition and repetition. The worktop must be clean. The ingredients must be good. The cooking must be done with care and respect. And the food must be enjoyed slowly and mindfully.

As to “eight day bread”, “Choereg”, “Tsoureki”, or whatever you wish to call it, I enjoy it best sliced and toasted with butter, during Easter time, or any time of the year.

Choereg (Armenian Easter Bread)

Ingredients:

6 cups flour
1 cup butter, melted
1 cup milk, warmed
1/2 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 1/4 teaspoons yeast
1/2 teaspoon mahleb, ground seeds
1 egg yolk
sesame seeds sliced almond, for topping (optional)

Directions:

Dissolve yeast in warm milk, then add the sugar and melted butter.
Beat the eggs and add to the milk mixture, along with salt and ground mahleb.
Add flour gradually, one cup at a time until dough comes away from sides of bowl. Knead 10 minutes until soft, shiny and no longer sticky.
Place dough in oiled bowl. Turn the dough ball in the bowl to coat the outside with oil. Cover the bowl and put in a warm place to rise until doubled.
Divide the dough into two or three balls. Divide each ball into three and roll out with your hands to three long ropes.
Pinch all three ends together and braid loosely. Pinch ends and tuck under.
Cover and allow to rise again until doubled.
Preheat the oven to 400 F / 200 C. Brush the braids with beaten egg and sprinkle with sesame seeds or sliced almonds.
Bake for 20 minutes or until nicely golden brown all over.

What are you baking this Easter? Are you inspired to try making bread or your own Hot Cross Buns? Will you and your family try some more chocolately delights? There’s plenty in our Easter Recipe Collection at Great British Chefs

Tarte au Citron

Sun, 24 Mar 2013 16:38:00 +0000

A fresh, light and creamy treat that will be a great Easter afternoon tea - especially if you’re looking for a break from all of that chocolate. Madeleine shares her recipe for mini Tarte au Citron.

This is my favourite dessert. I have eaten it for my birthday almost every year of my whole life. So fresh, light and creamy.

Since quitting sugar I’ve become very experimental with dessert, making treats that taste amazing without the sugar! Stevia has been my new best friend. Stevia is a great natural sweetener that is 200 to 300 times sweeter than sugar (so please be very sparing with it). Stevia has been used for centuries by the Guarani Indians of South America. Not only is it a sugar free sweetener but is also acts as an anti-fungal, anti-inflammatory and antibiotic agent.

I have used desiccated coconut in the base which gives it more sweetness and a slightly tropical feel to the dish. This is the perfect Easter afternoon treat to serve after lunch. It goes really well with some fresh raspberries and cream.

Tarte au Citron (makes 10 tarts)

Base

6 tbsp of coconut oil or butter

300 g of almond meal

150 g of desiccated coconut

A pinch of Stevia

A pinch of salt

2 egg whites

Filling

2 egg yolks and 4 eggs

3 lemons

2 tbsp of coconut oil

2 tbsp of almond meal

A large pinch of Stevia

Method

Set the oven to 180 C

Base: Melt the coconut oil in a pan on a low heat, take it off the heat and add in the almond meal, desiccated coconut, stevia and salt and mix this together.

Crack two eggs and add in the egg whites (leave the yolks for the filling.) Stir well until the mixture forms a slightly gooey texture, press the mixture in small tart molds, ½ a cm thick, to make crust shapes.

Place in the oven to cook for 15 minutes.

When the base is done pour in the filling into each one. Then bake for 15-20 minutes until the edges get crispy.

Allow the tarts to cool for ten minutes before you dig in.

Inspired? What willl you be baking this Easter? There’s plenty of ideass in our Easter Recipe Collection at Great British Chefs.

tikichris: Great British Chefs – Cooking with Kids –...

Sun, 24 Mar 2013 12:51:16 +0000

tikichris:

Great British Chefs – Cooking with Kids – Infographic

Here’s a sneak peek at our Cooking with Kids Survey Infographic - full results coming your way on Tuesday 27th March.

A Cure for all! Bacon Connoisseurs Week

Mon, 18 Mar 2013 16:42:49 +0000

Bacon – an essential part of the Full English Breakfast and the delicious filling in a bacon butty, a meat so delicious and enticing that when Karen became a vegetarian for a couple of years; it was one of the hardest foods to resist! She now explores a week dedicated to this cured delicacy and staple.

I eventually gave up vegetarianism and pledged only to eat meat with provenance, but, I do remember that I could have happily eaten a bacon sarnie in a flash during my enforced meat-free period. And, I am glad to report for all of you bacon lovers out there, we in the UK have a Bacon Connoisseurs Week, a week dedicated to this cured delicacy and a time to promote British pork as well as explore new recipes.

The seventh annual Bacon Connoisseurs’ Week takes place from the 18th to the 24th March 2013. The week has been established to communicate to consumers that “Not all Bacon is the same”. It also aims to highlight our rich heritage of bacon curing and how many different varieties of premium bacon are available. Under the theme “Great Bacon Revolution” there will be lots of activity during the week to promote the availability and range of quality bacon such as that produced under the Red Tractor logo.

One of the first activities is the hotly contested competition for producers of bacon to compete to see who is best. The Great Bacon Revolution Awards 2013 results are out, and for those of you who are interested, you can see the results here: The Great Bacon Revolution Awards 2013 Results.

In the supermarket section, it was nice to see Cranswick Gourmet Bacon in the finalists (Morrison’s Old Fashioned Cure British Back Bacon); with their bacon that uses an Old English recipe. This style has been used for over 100 years, and is cured with juniper, cloves, muscavado sugar and a hint of black pepper, which gives this bacon has a very distinctive flavour.

In the Butcher’s finalists list, there are bacon cures with smoked cherry wood, beetroot and black pepper as well as Traditional Dry Cured Back Bacon from Cheerbrook Quality Farm Food which is made from loin of Free Range Pork, rubbed with traditional dry salts, then gently massaged and turned for 10 days before slicing and serving. Food Service finalists also boast innovative bacon with an Oak Smoked Dry Cure, Maple Cured and a Wiltshire Cured Back Bacon flavoured with Sweet Chilli, thus proving that bacon can be exciting as well as tasty and versatile.

There are many styles of bacon, and American bacon is very different to our own home-grown British bacon, which also comes under the same banner as Irish and Canadian bacon. American style bacon has a higher ratio of fat to meat, and comes from the belly (or side) of the pig – it’s nearer to what we call “streaky” bacon in the UK. British and Irish Bacon, plus the style of bacon that Americans call “Canadian Bacon” is quite lean and comes from the loin of the pig, and has a higher meat to fat ratio. The only other difference is the slice and rasher debate – we call individual pieces of bacon “rashers” in the UK, and the Americans call them “slices”.

I am a bit if a bacon fiend, I love bacon for breakfast as well as for tea, lunch and supper too. One of my favourite meals is an “All Day Breakfast” which comprises bacon, eggs, sausage, black pudding, tomatoes and a slice of naughty fried bread. I have a slightly healthier Baked Full English Breakfast Recipe, which is just as delicious, but as the title suggests, the whole meal is baked rather than fried, so you have all the taste but not as many calories. And, you cannot beat a good old-fashioned bacon butty, (Bacon Sandwich) which is suitable for any time of the day, or night! Another bacon favourite is an old family recipe for My Grandma’s Traditional Yorkshire Pudding Recipe (for Breakfast), which is Yorkshire pudding batter with bacon, sausages and tomatoes in it, similar to Toad in the Hole.

However you like your bacon, Bacon Connoisseurs Week is a great way to embrace our own home-grown piggy produce, along with Red Tractor farmers, producers and lots of celebrities, such as Faye Ripley. Red Tractor bacon is bacon with quality and provenance, and I am a big supporter of them, as critical step of the food supply chain is independently inspected to ensure food is produced to quality standards by assured farmers, growers and producers in the UK, from farm to pack.

The Red Tractor logo is basically a guarantee of quality and origin, and with the recent horsemeat scandal, we need this guarantee more now than ever.

Before I go, I thought you might like to see a few Bacon Facts, as shared on the Bacon Connoisseurs Week website:

Interesting Bacon Facts:

According to a survey of 2000 Brits by UK Food Network, Bacon takes the number one spot in Britain’s Top 100 Foods, closely followed by chocolate and steak

The Bacon sandwich remains the most popular out‐of‐home snack with 324million servings in the 12 months to September 2012, an increase of 2.9% (year‐on‐year)

Bacon – more than any other protein – is at the top of the consumers’ shopping list. Seven out of ten bacon shoppers have made the decision to buy even before they enter the store

The reason that bacon has been such an important food for so many years is simply because ‘cured’ or ‘preserved’ bacon provided many of our ancestors with their only source of meat during the long and often harsh winters

The country’s earliest traditional breakfast of bacon and eggs dates back to 1560

British Bacon is part of our national heritage; there are records of the Romans salting sides of bacon as early as 200BC and Julius Caesar brought his own bacon with him when he landed in ancient Britain in 55BC

To bring home the bacon – there are several possible origins to this saying. One goes back almost a thousand years to the Essex village of Dunmow where, it is said, in AD1111 a noble woman offered a prize of a side of bacon, known locally as a flitch, to any man from anywhere in England who could honestly say that he had had complete marital harmony for the preceding year and a day. In over 500 years there were only eight winners. An alternative explanation comes from the ancient sport of catching a greased pig at country fairs. The winner kept the pig and ‘brought home the bacon’

This Bacon Connoisseurs’ week, I am going to investigate new cuts and cures of bacon, as well as develop some new recipes, and enjoy bacon! What will you do? I hope that you will be able to enjoy of our excellent British bacon, and serve bacon for tea, lunch and supper as well as breakfast. You can find more recipes on the Bacon Connoisseurs’ week website, as well as a handy recipe booklet that you can download here: Bacon Recipes & Recipe Booklet. Bon Appetite!

Inspired? You’ll find many tasty bacon recipes in Great British Chefs collection.

Chocolate and Guinness Mousse

Sat, 16 Mar 2013 18:23:48 +0000

What better way is there to celebrate St Patrick’s Day than by dressing in green and drinking a pint of the black stuff? Well, how about eating it instead? Victoria shares a delicious chocolate and mousse recipe, which even if you’re not a fan of Ireland’s famous stout, you’re sure you’ll be tempted.

A Pint of the Black Stuff for St Patrick’s Day

In the spirit of full disclosure, I have to admit that I can’t think of many drinks I’d rather drink less than a pint of Guinness. A cup of Rooibos tea, possibly… I find Guinness ferrous to the point of bloody, which is almost certainly why it makes such a happy marriage with beef in a succulent slice of pie. For my money, Guinness is at its best when slugged into a stew or baked into a cake and it sings beautifully when paired with chocolate too.

If you haven’t yet tried a damply dark and decadent chocolate and Guinness cake, I can’t help but wonder what you’ve been doing with your time. Make it and eat it, and I promise you’ll not regret it – even if you’re not much of a fan of black Irish stout.

I often make chocolate and Guinness cake, but this year, after a steaming bowl of Irish stew, instead of raising a pint of Guinness to St Patrick, I’m planning on raising a glass of chocolate and Guinness mousse. It’s deliciously moreish and the Guinness adds an extra depth and darkness that elevates this simple pud to something a bit more special. For extra fun, I added an extra swirl of Guinness just before pouring it into the glasses, to give it that just “waiting to stand” look you get when you pour a pint. I tried to beg, borrow or… er … buy some half pint glasses, but unfortunately I couldn’t get my hands on any in time, so had to make do with Duralex. If you have more luck, these are even more fun when served in half pint glasses, or even a full pint for the most gluttonous gourmand in your life.

Chocolate and Guinness Mousse

Makes 4 half pints

4 large eggs, separated

120g dark chocolate

70ml Guinness

1 – 2 tbsp. golden syrup (depending on how sweet you like it)

60g unsalted butter

2 leaves of gelatine, soaked in water

A pinch of salt

300ml double/whipping cream

A generous splash of vanilla extract (optional)

Icing sugar to taste.

Melt the chocolate and butter together in a heatproof bowl over a pan of barely simmering water. Remove from the heat and whisk in the squeezed out gelatine until fully melted, before adding the Guinness and golden syrup, followed by the egg yolks. In a separate and spotlessly clean bowl, whisk the egg whites and salt together to the soft peak stage. Vigorously beat one spoonful of the whites into the chocolate mixture to slacken it slightly, before folding the remaining whites into the mixture with a large metal spoon. Pour the mousse into your glasses, making sure you leave enough room at the top for the creamy “head”. Pop the glasses in the fridge overnight to set.

Once the mousse has set, whisk the cream, add a splash of vanilla and sift over some icing sugar and whisk again. Taste for sweetness, adjusting if necessary. Use a palette knife to smooth the cream over the top of the chocolate and Guinness mousse before popping them back in the fridge until ready to serve.

Which recipes would you suggest for a St Patrick’s Day dessert? Let us know here or over on Great British Chefs Facebook Page.

Hot Cross Buns

Thu, 14 Mar 2013 12:51:11 +0000

At this time of year it’s easy to pop into a supermarket to buy Hot Cross Buns - in fact most major supermarkets start stocking them from February. However, this year, why not try making your own Hot Cross Buns? Rachel shares a delicious recipe to put your bread and bun making skills into practice.

Whilst hot cross buns are typically made for Easter, they actually pre-date the Christian celebration - the Saxons ate something similar to celebrate the goddess Eostre, the origin of the word Easter.

Get into the mood for Easter by baking up a batch of hot, spiced buns, and enjoy then with butter and jam at tea time!

P.S. I have a confession to make. I was cooking up some lovely Spiced Plum Compote while the buns were baking. And rather than boil up some apricot jam, it was just too easy to glaze the buns with… Well, I should have thought about the photos. I hope you’ll forgive the pink buns…

Hot Cross Buns

Makes 15

Ingredients

300ml milk

50g butter, cubed

500g strong bread flour

1 teaspoon salt

75g caster sugar

7g sachet fast-action or easy-blend yeast

Zest of 1 orange

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon mixed spice

1 egg, beaten

75g sultanas

50g mixed peel

75g plain flour, plus extra for dusting

3 tablespoons ‘no bits’ apricot jam

Method

Bring the milk to the boil, then remove from the heat and add the butter. Leave to cool until it reaches blood temperature, and a finger dipped in feels the same temperature as the liquid.

Put the flour, salt, sugar, yeast, zest and spices into a bowl and mix together. Make a well in the centre. Pour in the warm milk and butter mixture, then add the beaten egg. Using a wooden spoon or dough scraper, mix well and bring the mixture together until you have a sticky dough.

Tip on to a lightly floured surface and knead for 5 minutes until smooth and elastic. Put the dough in a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with oiled cling film and leave to rise in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size.

With the dough still in the bowl, tip in the sultanas and mixed peel. Knead into the dough, making sure everything is well distributed.

Divide the dough into 15 even pieces (about 75g per piece). Roll each piece into a smooth ball on a lightly floured work surface. Arrange the buns on two baking trays lined with parchment, leaving enough space for the dough to expand. Cover lightly with more oiled cling film or a clean tea towel, and prove for 1 hour more.

Heat oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Mix the flour with about 5 tablespoons of water to make the paste for the cross, just adding enough for a thick paste. Spoon into a piping bag and cut a small hole. Pipe a cross on each bun. Bake for 13-17 minutes until golden brown.

Over a low heat, dissolve the apricot jam with a splash of water in a small pan. Brush the jam over the top of the warm buns and leave to cool.

Are you inspired to try making your own Hot Cross Buns? If you’re looking ideas for leftover or stale Hot Cross Buns, try this Hot Cross Bun Bread & Butter Pudding. Otherwise there’s plenty more Easter ideas in our Easter Recipe Collection at Great British Chefs.

Guinness and Brown Bread Ice Cream for St. Patrick's Day

Wed, 13 Mar 2013 12:12:52 +0000

There are fewer beverages more associated with the Irish than Guinness and St. Patrick’s Day presents a sound excuse for exploring this famous stout in all of its guises, both as a beverage and as an ingredient in cooking. Monica shares how it can be used to create a delicious ice cream

Last year I discovered that Guinness is an excellent addition to mushrooms on toast. This year, I’ve discovered that Guinness is equally adaptable to sweet recipes, too.

I found my inspiration in The Icecreamists: Vice Creams, Ice Cream Recipes & Other Guilty Pleasures by Matt O’Connor and his recipe for Brown Bread and Irish Stout Ice Cream. I’d never heard of “brown bread ice cream” before but it seems to be a “thing” in Ireland and Britain. It goes back to 18th-century Victorian times and has been a popular flavour in England and Ireland ever since. The premise is this: take ice cream, mix in crunchy caramelised bits of bread crumbs and devour it with gusto. Sounds good, right? And this version is a particular tribute to the Irish, made with brown Irish soda bread and our beloved Guinness.

The ice cream base is a basic custard, kicked up with cinnamon and nutmeg (a LOT of nutmeg, which I love). For the brown soda bread, I use the recipe in Bread: River Cottage Handbook No. 3 which includes dark treacle for a sweet, molassesy kick – basically perfect for this ice cream (you could also try Bryan Webb’s soda bread recipe available on Great British Chefs).

The recipe only calls for 50ml of Guinness, which leaves plenty left over for drinking, but also makes me think a little extra Guinness in the ice cream wouldn’t hurt, particularly with all the strong spices. Regardless, the final result is a total win. Caramelised bread crumbs in ice cream – or in anything for that matter – might be my new favourite thing.

Guinness and Brown Bread Ice Cream

Adapted from The Icecreamists.

Ingredients

250 ml (1 cup) full-fat milk
½ teaspoon allspice
½ teaspoon nutmeg
125 ml (1/2 cup) double cream
2 egg yolks
88 g (1/2 cup) dark brown (muscovado) sugar
20 g (1/3 cup) brown Irish soda bread (or other brown bread)
50 ml (1/4 cup) Guinness or other stout
30 g (1/2 cup) brown Irish soda bread
30 g (1/4 cup) dark brown (muscovado) sugar

Instructions

Pour the milk, spices and cream into a large saucepan and heat gently, stirring occasionally, until the mixture begins to steam but not boil.
Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks in a heatproof bowl until smooth. Add the sugar and whisk until slightly fluffy. Gradually pour the hot milk into the egg mixture while whisking continuously to prevent the eggs scrambling. Return the mixture to the saucepan and place over a low heat, stirring frequently until the custard thinly coats the back of a wooden spoon. Do not allow to boil.
Add the crumbled soda bread and mix with a stick blender, then pour the mixture back into the bowl and set aside for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until cooled to room temperature. For more rapid chilling, half-fill a sink with cold water and ice and place the bowl in it for 20 minutes. Never put the hot mixture straight into the fridge.
Once cooled, boil the stout until it is reduced by about half and add to the custard. Cover the mixture and refrigerate, ideally overnight but at least for 6 hours, until thoroughly chilled (at least 4°C/40°F). Pour the chilled mixture into an ice cream machine and churn according to the manufacturer’s instructions (you can also make this without an ice cream maker).
Meanwhile, prepare the caramelised crumbs. Combine the crumbled soda bread and sugar and spread over a shallow baking tray lined with parchment paper. Place under a medium-hot grill, stirring frequently, until the breadcrumbs are softly caramelised. Allow to cool a little.
Fold most of the toasted bread mixture into the ice cream, then use a spoon or spatula to scrape the ice cream into a freezer-proof container with a lid. Freeze until it reaches the correct scooping texture (at least 2 hours).
Decorate each portion with a few of the remaining caramelised bread crumbs before serving.

Pistachio, Cranberry and Chocolate Gluten Free Cookies

Fri, 08 Mar 2013 14:03:35 +0000

Do you know anyone with a food intolerance? With more and more people having conditions where they have to watch what they eat, Kathryn, wanted to experience what it was like to give up gluten. She met mixed reactions from friends, but on a positive note, it’s led her to create some delicious coeliac recipes including these colourful cookies

It has never once crossed my mind that having zero food intolerances or allergies is something I should be grateful for. I am reluctant and embarrassed to admit that. I know one person with Coeliac disease, one of my best friends. It struck me recently that I know next to nothing about her condition. What I do know is the trauma she went through before she was diagnosed, a common reality it appears, and often the result of lack of awareness, knowledge and respect for food intolerances and allergies.

I wanted to get to know this condition better - to understand what it is like to be diagnosed with a condition which forces you to reshape your life around the food that you eat. In my mind the only way to understand it, is to live it, and so have eliminated gluten from my diet entirely for five weeks, sharing and blogging my experiences and recipes in that time.

My decision to give up gluten has been met with mixed reactions. Reactions which could very simply be divided into two camps. There are the people and friends who are genuinely interested, and supportive - we like them! I have been getting to know some really amazing people who are doing amazing gluten free things. The ‘others’ (as I am going to call them!), the reaction that continues to surprise me the most, is that of sheer bewilderment and confusion.

This I can understand to a degree, I am as much of a gluten junkie as the next bread, pizza and pasta addict, and life without all of the above can seem glum (for the record, I am coming to learn that it is not). What I don’t understand is the confusion over why on earth I would want to learn how to cook gluten free recipes for my blog, or eat a gluten free diet. To quote my most recent confrontation, ‘Cooking for a Coeliac is a pain in the ….!’ You get my drift.

This infuriates me. Gluten free food has a stigma of being hugely inferior. In certain cases, yes, there are considerable differences in taste and flavour- bread for example. But there is so much more to a diet than bread and all of its other gluten heavy partners in crime. I am genuinely shocked by the animosity and disdain I have encountered for gluten free food. I can’t help but feel it is unfounded and small minded.

Gluten free food is far from some kind of life sentence, nor, I dare say, is it worthy of the abuse it seems to generate. Gluten free is by no means a universal translation for tasteless. Having to think laterally about the food that I eat has opened up a whole new exciting world of people, products, ingredients and recipes. I disagree totally with the perception that gluten free is inferior.

Throughout this gluten free five weeks I wanted to create recipes for Coeliacs which celebrate the fact that they are gluten free, leaving nothing to be desired in terms of flavour and fun. I began to think about Mother’s day, and how it would be nice to create a recipe which could double up as a gift for all Mum’s.

Since setting out on this project, I have come to realise how often I feel singled out, always having to enquire and request specifics in terms of gluten. Not always pleasant. I suspect it would be a real treat to eat in, or out, without having to ask a million questions. If your Mum or wife is gluten intolerant, I imagine treating her with a gluten free foodie gift will make her feel very special indeed!

Pistachio, Cranberry and Chocolate Gluten Free Cookies

Makes 16 cookies

200g unsalted butter

200g light brown sugar

2 eggs

1 heaped tsp of vanilla bean paste

1 tsp baking powder

450g of brown rice flour

100g dried cranberries, 50g left whole, 50g chopped roughly

100g dark chocolate, chopped roughly

30g of poppy seeds

50g of pistachio nuts, chopped roughly

Method:

Line and baking tray with greaseproof paper and set aside. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Using a free standing mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy.

Add the eggs, one at a time, followed by the vanilla bean paste. Now add your flour and baking powder, in two batches.

With the second batch, add 70g of the chocolate, 20g of the poppy seeds, 50g whole dried cranberries and 30g of chopped pistachios and mix together well. Set the remaining toppings aside.

For each cookie estimate about 1 heaped tablespoon of mix. Use the back of your spoon to flatten down to about 1cm thickness, aiming for a general round shape.

Now sprinkle on a little of each topping and give the cookies one final gentle press with your fingers to make sure the toppings stick. Bake in the oven for about 15-20 minutes. Keep an eye on them around the 15 minute mark as they change colour and darken very quickly.

Allow the cookies to rest on the tray for about 5 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack, or your mouth!

Inspired? There are more delicious gluten free recipes on Great British Chefs

10 Top Ways to use Marmalade

Thu, 07 Mar 2013 21:44:48 +0000

Although it’s National Mamalade Week, this zesty preserve isn’t just for toast. Tolani shares her top ten tasty tips for taking marmalade away from the breakfast table and making into a star of other meals.

Photo by Robert Walster

I can always remember marmalade being an essential ingredient in my house growing up. It was my mums’ favourite spread and she was adamant that it became ours too, which had her spreading dollops onto our toast or into our porridge bowls right before school. So it was with great sorrow this year that I read it no longer ranks amongst the nation’s favourites, owing its decline to modern spreads such as Marmite, peanut butter or hazelnut chocolate spread; Paddington bear would surely not be pleased.

A fad I say, as no other holds as much history or confidence of variations, practically any ingredient can be made into marmalade; onions, citrus fruits, prunes, cherries, apricots, pears, the list is just endless and the best truly is homemade which allows as much creative license as you could imagine.

With Marmalade Week (2nd – 9th March), we wanted to bring you our Top 10 tips on how to include marmalade into your much loved recipes during the festivities, not only to take it out of the breakfast arena but to prove its yummy goodness and reign as champion.

1. Hot Turkey and caramelised `onion tart

Why not try this quick and easy recipe by Adam Gray, which uses onion marmalade? You can swap the turkey if you want for another meat or simply leave it out all together

2. In omelettes:

Add a twist by including a spoonful of orange marmalade and bit of zest from an orange into your mixture

3. Marmalade and Whisky punch

To serve four friends: start by mixing 2 large spoonful’s of orange marmalade, the juice of two small lemons and four glasses of gin into a shaker. Shake well and serve into glasses, finish with a squeeze of an orange rind.

4. Yorkshire tea brack with marmalade, chocolate and caramel

Or how about this fantastic dessert by Frances Atkins that’s sure to leave your guests smiling.

5. Marmalade Tofu:

As a glaze over tofu, combine 3 ½ table spoons of marmalade with ½ a table spoon each of chilli flakes, black pepper, ginger and fresh lemon juice with a dash of soy sauce. Spread liberally over your pieces of tofu and bake at 400 degrees Celsius for 30 minutes, flipping them halfway so that they cook evenly.

6. As a glaze:

Derbyshire Marmalade Tea Loaf by Claire Sutton

I recommend carrot or banana cake, just pop half a cup of marmalade into the microwave first for optimum results. You can also add three tablespoons to a loaf mixture to jazz up a much loved bread recipe.

Marmalade Glazed Gammon

For meats, try this recipe for a spicy chilli sauce. The recipe can be substituted with any meat cut so use it as much as you like. Mix together half a cup of sweet orange marmalade a spoon of chilli sauce with 25ml of orange juice and a dash of chilli flakes for extra spice. Pour over your selected meat and place into the oven for approximately 50 minutes. Once ready serve with a side of your choice for a sticky yet yummy meal.

8. Jaffa Cakes

Everyone loves a Jaffa cake, and with Marcus Wareing’s flavoursome recipe you can create your own unlimited batch involving a touch of marmalade garnish and ground almonds in the mix.

8. In savoury soups like Butternut squash

Butternut Squash collection

Before bringing the pieces of squash to boil, first bake in a marinade of butter, marmalade, cinnamon and nutmeg for 10 minutes to truly bring some extra taste to this winter warmer.

9. In a breakfast smoothie:

Put a spoon of marmalade, a banana, ice and some almond milk into a food processor and blend until smooth for a tasty yet healthy start to the day.

10. One dish wonder

Bring to boil a pot of rice and season with ground almonds and 2 equal tablespoons of ginger, garlic and black pepper with salt to taste. 10 minutes before the rice has cooked, add a spoon of marmalade with a spoon of lemon zest. Add a serving of king prawns, peas and sweet corn and leave till the prawns are cooked.

And lastly one more for good luck, a recipe from Vivien Lloyd on how to make your own homemade marmalade:

Photo by Robert Walster

Have you ever tried making your own marmalade and what are your tips? Let us know which other recipes you have used marmalade in?

Amaretto Sour Cocktail Cupcakes (gluten free)

Thu, 07 Mar 2013 20:59:48 +0000

Looking for a slightly naughty but nice treat for Mother’s Day? Look no further than Victoria’s playful cupcakes. They look traditional but with their touch of Amaretto, will let you give your mum a decadent cocktail in cake form!

Traditionally, before Easter nicked it, Mothering Sunday was celebrated with Simnel cake, but my mother is not traditional by nature, so you can keep your marzipan and fruitcake for another day. She deserves something a bit more fun and frivolous.

My Mum is a glamorous but self-effacing blonde, who hates shopping but loves shoes and has a penchant for navy strength gin. She goes tap dancing, plays the violin and loves botanical drawing. She is the mother of four daughters, gets impassioned about politics, loves dancing with her grandchildren and has loud fits of giggles at least twice a day. In the ‘60s, she worked in town planning at County Hall by day and stomped the Kings Road by night in the latest Biba, before rocking out to The Rolling Stones. She is warm and daft, beautiful but approachable, generous, clever and fidgety. She looks years younger than her age, gets excited by new ideas, but would be happier holidaying in Cornwall than any of the world’s most exotic places.

Most of all, my mum is a lot of fun - she throws her head back when she laughs, lets us borrow her clothes and will offer you the entire contents of her fridge if you visit. I have inherited that trait, along with her fear of under-catering, which is why you will rarely leave either her home or mine, hungry or sober.

With this in mind, I wanted to create a fun and slightly naughty cake for her that is also deceptively unassuming to look at. Pretty, yes, but not old fashioned, and delicate without being in the least bit fussy. I looked to the drinks cabinet for inspiration and dusted off a bottle of Amaretto, before rooting out a bag of sour cherries from the back of the cupboard. Amaretto Sour cocktail cupcakes, I decided, will make a very Happy Mother’s Day indeed!

Amaretto Sour Cocktail Cupcakes (gluten free)

I made these cakes gluten-free, as my mum, like so many of the people closest to me, is a gluten dodger. If your mother can eat wheat, you can substitute the rice flour with plain wheat flour if you wish.

Preheat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan)/350°F (325°F fan)/Gas Mark 4 and line a 12 hole muffin tray with cupcake cases.

For the cakes

100g/4oz soft, unsalted butter

100g/4oz caster sugar

2 large eggs

50g/2oz ground almonds

50g/2oz rice flour

1 tsp. baking powder

The zest of 2 lemons

1 packet of dried sour cherries, soaked in 2 tbsp. Amaretto for 20 minutes.

For the icing

75g/3oz soft, unsalted butter

25g/1oz full fat Philadelphia

150g/6oz icing sugar

A generous splash of Amaretto

Natural glacé cherries to top, if you like.

Squeeze out the excess Amaretto from the cherries and reserve until later. Place the butter, sugar, eggs, almonds, rice flour and baking powder in a large mixing bowl and whisk with an electric hand whisk for a couple of minutes until light and fluffy. Whisk in the Amaretto from soaking the cherries to slightly slacken the mixture, before folding in the cherries and lemon zest. Spoon the mixture into the cupcake cases, two thirds full, and bake for 20 minutes, or until an inserted skewer comes out clean. Leave to cool completely on a wire rack.

To make the icing, simply beat the butter and cream cheese together until soft and sift over half of the icing sugar. Whisk together until fully combined, before sifting over the second half of the icing sugar and whisking in. Add the Amaretto and whisk in and taste, whisking in more booze if needed for flavour.

Use a palette knife to smooth the icing over the tops of each cake before topping each one with a cherry.

Inspired? There’s a whole collection of Mother’s Day recipes over on Great British Chefs.

Great British Chefs have partnered with their friends at...

Tue, 05 Mar 2013 16:50:34 +0000

Great British Chefs have partnered with their friends at SABATIER, to offer this Cast Iron Roaster and set of Sabatier knives worth £150 in time for Easter.

To be in with a chance of winning this incredible prize, simply answer the following question:

Which two digits should you use when skinning a duck breast?

Head over to GBC to enter now:
http://www.greatbritishchefs.com/com…ter-march-2013

About the prize:
The cast iron absorbs heat evenly and spreads it gently for excellent heat retention whilst cooking.
The sturdy roasting dish is compatible with all heat sources, including gas, electric, induction and ceramic top hobs. Its even oven safe to 250 degrees centigrade

Butchery Classes at The Ginger Pig

Tue, 05 Mar 2013 14:53:00 +0000

Ever fancied becoming a butcher? Chris recently went on a Butchery class at The Ginger Pig. He learnt how to make his own sausages and came away knowing what sorts of ingredients to seek or avoid when buying them in the future.

It was a collective present for my 40th from a small group of friends. A really great present too! I had received a gift voucher for a butchery class at the Ginger Pig. Having now attended one of the Pig’s classes, I am happy to recommend just such a consideration for any self respecting carnivore you might be shopping for. In fact, I just went in on the purchase of another Ginger Pig voucher with the same group of friends for another birthday boy among us.

With two decades in the business and five butcher shops throughout London selling rare breed meat reared across more than 3,000 acres of the North York Moors, The Ginger Pig is one of the best known and most highly respected bands of butchers in all of Britain. Offering classes that allow the public behind the counter and the chopping block demonstrates confidence and a refreshing nothing-to-hide approach to promoting the quality of their products.

The Ginger Pig offers four types of classes: pork, lamb, beef and sausage making. I was stuck at first deciding which class to take but opted for the sausage making. I reckoned it would be the most practical for my purposes, and I was right. I walked away from the class with hands-on knowledge about how sausages are made along with plenty of my own self-made sausages for the freezer. I’m pretty sure I could replicate what we did during the session, and I’m more than certain I know what sort of ingredients to seek and avoid when buying sausages.

The sausages I made (two types: traditional English and garlicky Italian) during the class consisted of pork shoulder that was chopped, minced and seasoned by myself and a small group of fellow classmates (there were maybe around ten of us). The ones I took home were all stuffed into their casings and bunched together by me alone. Like so many of life’s nicest treats, the process behind making sausages is really basic, but getting them just right takes a lot of trial and error. My sausages were variant in size and a little wonky looking, but they cooked up well and tasted gorgeous. I left the class with more than enough for a few subsequent brekkies and lunches, a couple of dinners with guests and even some to share with my next door neighbours.

The class was taught by two butchers, Perry and Borut, at Ginger Pig’s Marylebone outlet on Moxon Street. As I understand it, the Moxon Street shop is the only venue for the classes which are all taught by Perry and Borut. Between them, Perry and Borut have more than 35 years of experience as butchers. They were both incredibly patient and accessible and seemed to really love what they do. There was even a bit of witty banter between the two that added to the informal fun of the class. After class, our instructors mingled with us while we dined on sausage and mash (what else?) accompanied by wine and followed by bread pudding.

With the recent horsemeat scandal in the news and more generally the reality of how removed most of us are from the actual source of much of the food we eat, learning about and making something … anything … edible with knowledgeable professionals who truly care about their trade was a meaningful gift and a remarkable way to spend a few hours. Getting to make and eat (and share) my very own sausages was delicious!

Find out more about The Ginger Pig’s butchery classes at learnbutchery.co.uk.

Who Ate All The Pies?

Tue, 05 Mar 2013 13:13:58 +0000

Why do we love pies? Few things are a comforting a hot pie with flaky or crumbly pastry and a piping hot filling. As it’s British Pie Week, Victoria pays homage to the humble pie - or in fact not so humble pie.

Few things in life cannot be improved by the addition of pastry. Buttery, flaky and crisp on the outside, with a hint of delicious goo from where it’s slurped up a bit juice from the filling, a really good pie can stun a whole table into silence.

I’ve got no beef with a lemon meringue or apple pie - in fact I think they’re wonderful - but for my money, the best pies are always meat pies. Oozing with savoury gravy and served with a generous dollop of mash, a meat pie is comfort food at its best.

When I was a child, I’d always go for good old-fashioned steak and kidney, even though I thought kidneys were revolting. I recognised, even then, that the kidney brought something extra to the flavour table and gave the gravy a special depth that couldn’t come from steak alone. I relished in the sense of danger that not quite knowing what was on the end of my fork could bring - like Russian roulette in pie form. Who says you shouldn’t play with your food?

Nowadays, I’m still a big fan of steak and kidney (and I’ll eat the kidney without so much as a wince in sight) or any other steak-based pie. It would be hard to go far wrong with steak and Guinness, steak and ale or steak in red wine, but (wo)man can’t live on steak alone.

This chicken, bacon and mushroom pie ticks all the right boxes for me. Intense savoury, meaty flavour, enough sauce for the mash to soak up and that perfect combination of crispy pastry on the outside, with a little bit of gravy-soaked goodness on the inside. I love a puff top, but flaky or short would work well too. You shouldn’t be scared to make your own puff pastry every now and then - it really is so much easier than everyone tries to make out. But, on days when you have better things to do, shop bought is almost as good as homemade, just make sure you pick up a pack that say “all butter”.

Chicken, bacon and mushroom pie

Serves 4-6

8 chicken thighs, skin on and bones in.

2 onions, chopped

3-4 cloves of garlic, crushed

6 rashers of smoked back bacon

250g (or thereabouts) of chestnut mushrooms

2 tbsp. plain flour

A handful of fresh thyme, leaves picked

A couple of bay leaves

A glass of white wine

1 pint of fresh chicken stock

Half a pint of whole milk

Salt and pepper

500g all butter puff pastry

Egg wash

Preheat the oven to 190°C (170°C fan)

Place the chicken thighs on a roasting tray and generously season with salt and pepper. Roast for 25 – 30 minutes.

In the meantime, fry the onion, garlic, mushrooms, thyme and bacon in a little oil until soft and golden. Add the flour and stir vigorously for a minute or so to cook through. Add the wine and continue to stir to prevent lumps forming. Add the stock, milk and bay leaves and leave to simmer. Take the skin off the cooked chicken and remove the meat from the bones. Chop it roughly and add the chicken to the bacon and mushroom mixture. Season and leave to reduce to a thick sauce. Pour the meat into your pie dish and leave to cool.

Preheat the oven to 220°C (200°C fan)

On a floured surface, roll out the pastry and slice off a long strip as wide as the rim of the pie dish. Use a little of the egg wash to stick the strip to the edge of the pie dish. Brush the strip with more egg, then lift the rest of the pastry over the pie filling. Pinch the edges with your fingers and trim with a sharp knife. Brush with egg wash to glaze and bake for 30 mins or until the pastry is risen and deep golden brown. Serve with buttery mash and steamed greens or broccoli.

Inspired? We have a whole collection of pie recipes on Great British Chefs for you to enjoy.

What’s your favourite pie filling? Cherry, steak, or four and twenty blackbirds? Let us know here or over on Great British Chefs Facebook page.