12 Days of Cookmas: Homemade Mincemeat

Sorry I've been a bit AWOL lately - I started a new job and got quite ill in quick succession so haven't been able to blog for a little while. Still, I am back now and the nest 12 days shall be called the 12 Days of Cookmas! (Too cheesey??) For the next 12 days I'll be sharing 12 new Christmassy recipes with you. Up first is my recipe for Mincemeat - it's one I came up with by taking all my favourite bits from other mincemeat recipes and putting them together. This recipe uses butter instead of suet, so is totally suitable for vegetarians and is packed full of lovely festive flavours, making it great to use in your own cooking, or to jar up and give away as a lovely gift. 

Ingredients:

175g currants

175g raisins

175g sultanas

100g dried cranberries

75g dried apricots, snipped into small pieces (or buy the packets of ready-chopped apricots)

50g stem ginger (about 3 balls), chopped into small pieces

1 small cooking apple, peeled, cored and diced

125g unsalted butter, diced

50g whole almonds, roughly chopped

225g light muscovado sugar

½tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp mixed spice

finely grated rind and juice of one lemon

200ml sherry (you can use brandy or rum if you prefer)

3-4 sterilised jam jars 

Method:

1. Place all the ingredients, except the alcohol, into a large saucepan. Heat gently until the butter melts then simmer gently for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

2. Remove from the heat and allow to cool completely, then stir in the alcohol.

3. Spoon the mincemeat into sterilised jars, seal and store in a cool place. This mincemeat will keep for 6 months in sealed jars - if it lasts that long! 

How to sterilise jam jars:

Heat oven to 140C. Wash the jars and lids in hot soapy water and rinse well. Place the wet rinsed jars and lids on a baking sheet and place in the oven until completely dry. Leave to cool then fill. 

Bonfire Feast: Sticky Stem Ginger Cake with Salted Caramel Frosting

This is the final recipe in my Bonfire Feast series and its quite the showstopper. The word I would use to describe this cake is wicked! Rich, dark and spicy ginger cake is topped with an indulgent, sweet/bitter salted caramel butter cream frosting making the perfect centerpiece for a Bonfire Feast!

Ingredients:

For the cake:

230g self raising flour

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tbsp ground ginger

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground mixed spice

110g unsalted butter, diced

110g black treacle

110g golden syrup

110g light brown sugar

280ml milk

50g (abour 3 chunks) drained stem ginger, chopped into small pieces

1 large egg

For the frosting:

125g light brown sugar

75ml double cream

70g butter, softened

1tsp sea salt

Method:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180°C, grease and line a 2lb loaf tin.

2. Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and all the spices into a large bowl, mix together and rub in the diced butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Stir in the chopped stem ginger

3. In a saucepan melt together the treacle and golden syrup, then leave to cool slightly. Meanwhile in another saucepan heat the sugar and the milk over a low heat, stirring occasionally. Once the sugar has dissolved, remove from the heat and leave to cool.

4. Using a balloon whisk, whisk the milk mixture into the flour mixture, then whisk in the treacle mixture, followed by the egg. Mix really well, and once everything is thoroughly blended you will have a very thin, almost liquid batter.

5. Pour the mixture into the tin and place in the middle of the oven. Bake for 45 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely in the tin - the cake will shrink slightly as it cools. 

6. While the cake is cooling make the salted caramel. Do this by heating the sugar, cream and salt over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Leave to bubble for a couple of minutes then remove from the heat and leave to cool completely. Once the cake is totally cool, beat the butter until smooth and fluffy, then beat in the salted caramel. You will have a very thick butter cream frosting. 

7. Smooth the frosting over the top of the cake and sprinkle with whatever you fancy to decorate. I've used ground macadamia nuts, but a further sprinkling of coarse sea salt, some ginger pieces or even grated chocolate would work well too.

You can eat this cake on the day of making, but it is so so much better if you wrap before you frost it in greaseproof paper and leave for a couple of days before spreading with frosting and tucking in. 

Bonfire Feast: Slightly Spicy Wholemeal Vegetable Pasties

These pasties were my first foray into crimping, and there is definitely a technique to it! I don't think I'm quite there yet, but I will say that I found crimping a really therapeutic thing to do - like with baking bread, there is a nice process involved in making these pasties and I hope you enjoy baking them as much as I do! 

 The pastry in these pasties is a little old school in that it uses suet as well as butter, but the result is a lovely crisp yet crumbly pastry, which is wrapped around a filling of vegetables flavoured with curry paste. This recipe is easily adaptable so you can add whatever veggies you want, or you could even chuck some cooked chicken or beef in there too! You end up with a slightly spicy pasty, great for warming you up on a chilly autumn evening, and even better to munch on during a firework display.

Ingredients:

For the pastry:

140g wholemeal plain flour

140g plain white flour

85g butter, diced

85g shredded vegetable suet

75ml milk

For the filling:

2 medium sized white potatoes, peeled and cut into small chunks

1 sweet potato, peeled and cut into small chunks

1 red onion, diced

2 carrots, peeled and diced

half a head of broccoli, cut into small florets

a handful of frozen peas

3tbsp curry paste (I used a korma paste)

1 egg, beaten

- These vegetables are just a suggestion, but you can chuck in whatever you've got lying around. You can also use whichever curry paste you prefer - 

Makes 6 pasties

Method:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200°C, grease a baking tray.

2. To make the pastry place all the ingredients except the milk into a food processor and blitz until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Slowly add the milk a little at a time until the pastry comes together (If you don't have a food processor, rub the flours together with the butter and suet until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs and add the milk until the pastry comes together), turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until soft. Wrap in clingfilm and chill while you make the filling.

3. Heat a pan of salted water and add the potato and sweet potato. Boil for 8 minutes until almost cooked, then add the carrots, broccoli and peas. Cook for a further 5 minutes until all the vegetables are soft, then drain.

4. Whilst your vegetables are boiling, heat a tablespoon of oil in a pan and cook the red onion until soft. Add the curry paste and cook for a further minute or so then add the drained vegetables with a splash of water and cook for another couple of minutes, until all the veggies are coated and your kitchen smells awesome. Remove from the heat and leave to cool.

5. Next roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface, to about a ½ cm thickness. Place a cereal bowl rim side down on the pasty and cut around it using a knife. This will leave you with a large circle of pastry. Place this circle on a baking tray and place about 2 spoonfuls of vegetable mixture in the centre of the circle. Brush around the edges with milk and fold over to make a parcel, now crimp around the pastry to seal in the mixture - the easiest way to do this is to pinch and fold your way around the semi-circle. 

6. Repeat this for the remaining pasties, then place on the baking tray and brush liberally with the beaten egg. Place in the centre of the oven and cook for 25-30 minutes, until the pasties are golden brown. 

The pasties can be eaten straight away, or left to cool and reheated to piping hot in the oven. Great for keeping your hands (and your belly!) warm while you stand outside enjoying the fireworks.

Bonfire Feast: Magic Stars Mini Cupcakes

I love Bonfire Night, its one of my favourite nights of the year. Not only am I a sucker for twinkly fireworks, but I love the story of the Gunpowder Plot. I remember being taught about it in first school and it totally captured my imagination. This week I've got some Bonfire Night themed recipes for you, whether you're having your own display at home (I am tonight, I've got the sparklers ready!), going out with friends, or just enjoying a cosy night in.

To kick off this mini-series I've got these seriously cute Magic Stars Mini Cupcakes. Perfect for little hands, these cute cakes are topped with chocolate ganache and a sprinkling of popping candy - they're very quick to make too, so you can spend more time building that bonfire!

Ingredients:

1 egg
Margarine or butter
Caster sugar
Self-rasing flour
Cocoa powder

For the chocolate ganche topping:
75ml double cream
50g dark chocolate

To decorate:
Magic Stars
Popping Candy

Makes 20 mini cupcakes

Method:

1. Pre-heat oven to 180°C, line a mini cupcake tin.

2. Weigh the egg in its shell. Make a not of the measurement and weigh your margarine, sugar and flour to the same amount. Cream together the sugar and margarine until light and fluffy and beat in the egg, adding a tablespoon of cocoa powder. Once the egg and cocoa are fully incorporated fold in the flour.

3. Place teaspoonfuls of mixture into the cupcake tin and bake for 15-17 minutes, until the cakes are risen and  springy to touch. Remove from the oven, place on a wire rack and leave to cool.

4. Whilst the cakes are cooling make the chocolate ganache. Place the cream into a saucepan and heat until just before boiling. Break the chocolate into small pieces and place in a bowl. Add the hot cream to the chocolate and stir until all the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth and glossy. Leave to cool and thicken.

5. Once the cakes have cooled, spread a little of the ganache over the top, add some magic stars and popping candy and enjoy!

Quick side-note: If you are using popping candy, don't add it to the cakes until just before you eat them. If not it goes all melty and funny on top of the cakes - it is still edible in its melty state, but the cakes aren't the prettiest! 

Midweek Treats: Cherry Bakewell Cake

Today I'm launching a new series on this blog called Midweek Treats. Every Wednesday I'll be sharing with you a quick and simple recipe, perfect to cheer up the midweek slump and easy enough to not be a faff on a school night! To kick off this series meet the Cherry Bakewell Cake (or Cherry Cakewell, if you will...). A lovely light cake, rich with almonds and finished with cherry jam and glacé icing - just like the classic tart but with none of the fuss and all of the taste! The thing I love about this most is it's an all in one mix - bung all the ingredients in a bowl, give 'em a mix and bake - one bowl to wash up, one tasty cake to eat at the end, yum!

Ingredients:

200g margarine

200g caster sugar 

100g ground almonds

100g self raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp almond extract

4 eggs

A pinch of salt

Filling:

About 4 tablespoons cherry jam (I used Berries and Cherries Conserve from Bonne Maman)
If you can't get hold of cherry jam, raspberry will work well too

Topping:

200g Icing sugar 

4-6 tablespoons lemon juice (or water works just fine too)

Some flaked almonds, to decorate

Method:

1. Pre heat the oven to 170 . Grease and line 2 large sandwich cake tins.

2. Measure all the ingredients into a big roomy bowl and beat until well combined and smooth. This is best done with an electric mixer if you have one, if not you're going to get a great arm workout!

3. Divide the mixture between the tins and smooth over the top. Place in the oven and bake for about 30 minutes. DO NOT open the door until the cake has been baking for at least 25 minutes. The cake will be done when it's risen and golden brown on top.

4. Remove the cakes from the oven and leave to cool on a wire rack (if you've got one, if not you can turn the cakes onto a plate to cool). Whilst still warm spread one of the cakes with jam. 

5. Whilst the cakes are cooling make the icing buy sifting the icing sugar into a bowl and adding the lemon juice or water a spoonful at a time, beating until all is incorporated and you've got a thick glossy icing. When the cakes nearly cool place the other cake on top of the jammy one - top side down so you've for a nice smooth surface to spread the icing. Spread the icing on top, letting it drip down the sides, scatter with almonds and enjoy!

This cake can be made (and eaten) in under an hour. It keeps well in an airtight box so you can have a treat to take to work for the rest of the week - or be safe in the knowledge that when you get home from a long day, cake will be waiting!

Variations:

Using butter instead of margarine will create an even richer tasting cake

You could add some chopped glacé cherries to the mixture - fold about 50g of cherries through after all the ingredients have been combined

This cake can be decorated however you want - toasted flaked almonds give a more traditional look, but you could scatter with chopped cherries, chocolate chunks or sprinkles, it's up to you! 

White Chocolate, Cranberry & Macadamia Nut Cookies

I'm debating whether to just leave his recipe here like it hasn't been nearly a year since my last post, or if I should explain myself. It's been a tough year with a lot of changes but I don't think I'll go into it on this blog (if you would like an explanation, you'll find one here). Anyway, nothing about my relationship with cooking has changed - I still bloody love it! So I'd like to welcome you back with a recipe for American-styleee cookies packed with white chocolate chips, lovely lovely cranberries and indulgent macadamia nuts (quick side note - macadamia nuts are pretty pricey right now so you can leave them out if you don't want to use them, but investing in a bag now will see you through til Christmas). These are lovely and crisp on the outside, chewy in the middle, and the cinnamon gives them a brilliant cosy-jumpers-by-the-fireplace autumn flavour.

Ingredients:

100g margarine (I like to use stork when I bake, but any kind of margarine or butter will do)

1 egg

50g light muscavado sugar

90g caster sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

175g plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp cinnamon

50g macadamia nuts, roughly chopped

50g dried cranberries

75g white chocolate chips (or chunks, or chopped chocolate)

Makes 22 cookies

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 170°C, line two large baking trays.

2. Place the margarine, egg, both sugars and vanilla extract into a bowl and beat until thick and creamy. 

2. Add the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, cranberries and 2/3 of the macadamia nuts and chocolate chips. Mix until everything is combined.

 

3. Place spoonfuls of mixture spaced well apart on the tray - these will spread! Flatten the balls slightly with the back of a wet spoon and press the reserved macadamia's and chocolate chips into the tops of the cookies. Bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes, until pale and golden.

4. Leave the cookies on the tray for a few minutes to harden, then transfer to a wire rack to cool. I think these are best eaten while still a little bit warm and gooey inside. 

Working with Cellardoor Magazine

So I've been a little quiet this week - I did have two recipes baked and ready to share with you but I lost all the pictures! I have literally no idea what I've managed to do, but in trying to get ahead and transfer all the images to my computer I somehow wiped my camera and now I'm left with no pictures! I'm so sad about it, there's something about losing pictures which is just so upsetting but its okay, because I've got some exciting news to share with you today instead - I'm working with Cellardoor Magazine as their food blogger!

This is a really exciting opportunity and means that every week they'll be sharing one of my recipes on their blog. They are a little different to what I post here - a lot less cakey things and a lot more main meals and savoury options. All the dishes are really tasty and I'm loving having an outlet for all the cooking I don't think would fit in on here. 

Head on over and check out Cellardoor's blog - its a lovely mix of interviews, music and style, I've spent many an afternoon scrolling through their lovely posts!

If you'd like to see the recipes specifically then you'll find them here:

Roast Pumpkin Soup

Ginger Spiced Toffee Apple Pie

Creamy Chicken One Pot Pasta

Follow Cellardoor to make sure you don't miss out on a recipe. You can subscribe to the mailing list on the blog, like them on Facebook and follow on Twitter. I'm so excited about this project I'd love for you to be a part of it with me! 

As long as I have no more technical difficulties I'll be back to posting recipes next week :)