Things I've been creating and munching:

This was an unusual breakfast for me one morning. Black coffee, like always, but with raw smoked salmon on little delicious cocktail blinis.  

This was lunch out with one of my best friends. We went to a French restaurant and I had a fantastic fish soup whilst she had a savory buckwheat crepe.

This came with my soup, it was really tasty.

This was the best bit of the meal. I had orange zest on my crepe, it was SO GOOD, I almost wept.

Roast chicken with peppers, a cherry tomato and spinach salad, peppered green beans and red onion and mustard potatoes.

Nachos - chicken, mixed peppers and sweetcorn, two kinds of cheese, cool and chilli Doritos, salsa and sour cream. 

Vegetable soup!

Chocolate chip muffins, chocolate chip and fudge muffins and white chocolate and raspberry muffins. 

Prep for a pork stew!

This is an unclear photo, but I made a roast dinner with chicken, stuffing, mash, peas and corn on the cob.

Cous cous with roast chicken, cherry tomatoes and peas.

Pork stew with a potato topping - before it went in the oven!

Pork stew with a potato topping - after it came out the oven!

More nachos! This time with mushrooms.

And homemade chips. :)

A brief break, and a quick update.

I haven't posted on here in a couple months, but I feel I should probably start again. I have terrible focus and I get so keen on an idea (like my food blog) and then quickly forget and move on to the next idea. This is partly down to the fact that it's quite difficult to get followers on here and I'm too impatient. I really feel like I have the busy brain of a bumble bee sometimes!
I think I'll make an effort to update it at least once a week with what I've been making or eating during the past 7 days and then if I remember/feel the desire to post more often, I will do that too.

I am living in Glasgow now and studying Professional Cookery at college, which is smashing. I cook all day in class and then come home full of ideas and spend most evenings cooking up treats for the boys. I've started making soup whenever there's enough veg left over, and I've also started making things like homemade chips, fruit crumbles and now I've learnt how to make pasta, I'm going to start getting creative with that! 

I have a lot of pictures and things to upload now, so please enjoy, comment and give me your ideas and thoughts. 

Peace and love. 

Easy-peasy Lamb stew!

This was quite a success. I shared some with my friend Connor and then kept the rest to have again with Kieran at the weekend.
I was cooking at my cousins as I was house sitting for her that week, and to my despair I realised she had no salt, pepper or seasonings. So I made it as simply as I could, which means this is a handy recipe for anyone who isn't that skilled in the kitchen.

Ingredients:
- diced leg of lamb (enough for about 3-4 people)
- one onion
- several cloves of garlic
- two sachets of mint lamb gravy
- roughly chopped carrots (say one per person)
- dwarf beans
- whole mushrooms
- potatoes for mash

I lightly fried the lamb, garlic, onions and mushrooms to soften them up and then made up the gravy to pour on top. I then prepared the veg, threw it in the pot with the lamb and left it to simmer away for an hour. It was delicious served with a big pile of mashed tatties! :)

To store, wait until its cooled down and then put it in a sealed box in the fridge and eat within a couple days. Only reheat once.

Stewing ideas.

I forget to blog here a lot not because I don't often cook but rather because I cook so often, I don't have the patience or the energy sometimes (after working or travelling to see people) to write up all the things on here. This is something I do really, really want to get better at though.

For tonight's dinner, I'm going to be making a "wild lamb stew". The idea for a lamb stew was already... stewing away (oh ho ho) in my brain when I picked up a pack of beautiful looking mushrooms in Morrison's and decided that it was going to have to be a go-ahead for this week. I've invited a couple pals round for it and naturally, I'm going to make extra to give Kieran when he comes to visit at the weekend!

I have a confession to make.

I am beginning to realize that I cannot stick to plans, especially ones involving being strict with food. By nature I'm too impulsive and I tend to make decisions based on how I'm feeling at the time or what kind of mood I'm in rather than what I may have set out for myself. For example, if I'm having a good day, I would be completely on board with it but if I was having a bad day or feeling particularly demotivated, I just didn't care. I also lose interest in things quickly and change my mind a lot, which doesn't help. So, my diet lasted technically about five days but officially two weeks.

However, I have still learnt things from it. It has changed my mindset a little bit which is positive. When planning out meals, I am better at choosing things that are lighter, healthier and more natural and I've stopped eating as much bread. I've been feeling a bit better than I was before too.

Detox Diet Day Five. (Okay!)

Breakfast: One slice of toast, a banana and coffee.
Lunch: Egg mayo sandwich with lettuce and a glass of apple and raspberry juice.
Snack: A cup of carrot and ginger homemade soup and 3 gluten free oatcakes.
Dinner: Beans on toast with BBQ sauce.

I haven't done excellently today. The beans on toast wasn't very good but I didn't have any other food in and seeing as I haven't eaten a lot over all, I guess it's not too bad. I also had a couple meatballs and a taste of a chocolate truffle tart the Head Chef made. Amazing. But I'm not counting them as they were only a couple bites each!

Some of the tasty meals I've had this week.

Cheesy pasta with mixed vegetables.

(carrots, broccoli, green beans, sweetcorn and peas if I remember correctly!).

This was before I started my diet and made a nice wee lunch for Kieran and myself. I only had a little cheese on mine of course. I think this would be a great dish to give kids and was super easy to make because the veg was frozen. I might post the recipe later on.

Lamb kebabs with grilled mushrooms and a leafy salad. This took me ten minutes and was super cheap because I am a wizard at getting good food in the reduced section. 

Venison and mushroom salad.

I didn't make this myself, though I did come up with the idea. One of the chef's at my work made it for my lunch and it was delicious! Flash fried venison and mushrooms tossed with a mixed leaf salad and dressing.   

Baked cod with vegetable "chili" and broccoli.

I baked the cod in the oven with lemon juice, coriander and pepper. The "chili" isn't a real chili but I don't know what else to call it. It had mushrooms, mixed beans and sweetcorn with a splash of Worcestershire sauce in with the tinned tomatoes. I found it didn't have enough flavour though so next time I think I need to play about with more herbs and perhaps some spices.

Scrambled eggs on toast with mushrooms for Kieran

French toast with mushrooms for myself.

I love French toast so this made a nice treat and is allowed in my diet!

Seasoned pork chops with carrot and swede mash, corn on the cob, broccoli and salad.

I will admit I never made the mashed carrots and swede myself but it was still delicious and is a perfect example of the kind of meals I can have whilst on my diet. (Meat and lots of veg.)

Detox Diet (Days One-Four)

This is copied and pasted from my Tumblr. :)

Day One (Not successful!): 

Breakfast: Toast with coffee.
Lunch: Homemade veg and bacon soup with toast.
Tea: Chicken and veg pie, with mash and beans.
Snacks: Chocolate, chips, 1/2 chocolate twist, 2 chocolate caramel digestives.

The snacks alone are terrible but the dinner wasn’t very good either because it was basically all the things I told myself I wanted to cut out (pastry, potato, tinned food) but I hadn’t been shopping and I didn’t want to starve. The snacks were just munchied stupidity.

~

Day Two (Getting Better!)

Breakfast: Toast, an orange and coffee.
Break: Courgette and potato soup and 3 gluten free oatcakes.
Lunch: Venison and mushroom salad.
Tea: Baked cod with veg chilli and broccoli.
Supper: Banana scone with golden syrup, a banana and coffee.

Today was much better. The banana scone was a treat for myself because I was struggling at work today to not eat everything in sight. This was a terrible time of the month for me to start this diet (sorry gents, but it was). I drank cup after cup of hot water with lemon which is delicious and very good for you and I highly suggest if you fancy a change. 

I was really, really tired today hence the coffee with supper. I wasn’t sure if it was the lack of coffee during the day, the four hours sleep or the long shift at work.

~

Day Three (Great!)

Brunch: French toast with mushrooms and coffee.
Dinner: Pork chops, mashed carrots and swede, corn on the cob, broccoli and salad leaves.
Dessert: Peach and pear Alpro Soya yoghurt with a chopped banana and grated lemon zest. 

I haven’t eaten as much because I got up later. I also had a cup or two of hot water and lemon. 

~

Day Four (Alright!)

Lunch: Southern Fried chicken goujons with BBQ sauce and chips. 
Tea: Mashed up egg in a cup with salad leaves. 
Dessert: Peach and pear Alpro Soya yoghurt with chopped banana and lemon zest with a mango and passion fruit smoothie.

I was had a hungover tummy today so we went to the Netherinn bar in Dundee for food. I ate the chicken first so I was quite full and didn't need to eat too many of the chips.

I can feel the difference to my tummy already and I feel more healthy and this is good.

The Detox Diet.

I am one of many, many people in the world who are unlucky enough to have a food intolerance and mine is dairy. Recently, no matter how much I try to cut out dairy products from my diet, I've been still finding myself feeling unwell and bloated and it's very uncomfortable. So, in a bid to make myself a bit healthier and to give myself a bit of a challenge, I've created a diet for myself to detox my system and so far, after a couple initial slip ups, it's going quite well!

The diet was firstly based on the Paleolithic Diet, which follows the idea of eating similar to that of a caveman (or woman!) and only eating meats, fruits, vegetables, berries and nuts and not eating anything "man-made" such as pasta, pastry, bread or dairy products. Potatoes are not allowed either as they didn't exist in Britain back in the cavemen days. However, to fit my lifestyle, I'm allowing bread into my diet but on a limited basis  and only wholegrain or seeded. As I can't drink milk I need to be sure I'm getting calcium from somewhere so I'm also allowing soya milk, soya yoghurts and have made the switch to soya spread to go on my bread as well.  There is some flexibility allowed which I will decide as I go along because life is unpredictable and I don't know what situations or restaurants I'm going to find myself in in the coming weeks. 

I plan on doing this for at least four weeks to see if there's any improvement in my health. I'm currently on day five and so far, it's been successful! I've been keeping a food diary which I'll start uploading every day on here. I have a few days to catch up on, so watch this space!

added note: I should also mention that coffee is not being cut out as I am a demon in the morning if I don't have my cuppa! But I am trying to limit it to just one a day and replace it with more nutritional things such as water and green tea.

It's been a while since I've posted! But I'm back!

I've recently started a new diet (I shall post about this in a minute!) and it's inspired me to come back to my beloved food blog to share my recent ideas, photos and recipe plans.

I've also applied to a Professional Cookery course at college after the summer. I'm still waiting to hear back from them and I'm really worried I won't get in due to lack of experience in a proper kitchen but I'm glad I've finally gotten my finger out and applied!

Sweet Chili Prawns and Rice!

Prawns and mixed vegetables with rice and sweet chili salad dressing. 
This is a very easy dish to make and, provided you buy good ingredients, is very healthy as well. The prawns we used were already cooked but we've decided when we make this again to pop the prawns in the microwave with the baby corn to firm them up. We had ours with sushi and sugar snap peas on the side (as you can see in the picture!) but that is of course optional. The sweet chili dressing we used is one we found in Tesco. Your favourite brand of sweet chili sauce is perfectly fine to use as well, but we found the dressing wasn't as tangy and worked better, so try to get your hands on some! Serves two.
 
Ingredients:
- 1 packet of cooked prawns
- 150g white long grain rice
- 4-6 spring onions, chopped.
- 1/2 a carrot, grated.
- 1/2 an onion, diced.
- baby corn, chopped
- 1/2 a tsp each of black pepper, chopped dried chilies, parsley and thyme
- a pinch of salt
- juice from half a lemon
- Sweet chili salad dressing


Step One
Put the rice and the diced onion into a pan and following the instructions on the packet, boil until ready to be drained and served. 


Step Two
In a tub (make sure it has a secure lid!) put the prawns, the spring onion and the carrot, along with the lemon juice and the seasonings and give it a good shake to ensure they're mixed and coated. 


Step Three
Cook the baby corn in a microwavable dish (following the instructions on the pack!).
Once the rice is ready, plate up and serve with a sweet chili salad dressing or sauce. 

Apple Sauce with Cinnamon

How to make a delicious and simple apple sauce spiced with cinnamon. 
Very similar to my cranberry sauce with just a bit more preparation. 


Ingredients
- 6 Golden Delicious apples (peeled, cored and diced)
- 1 cup of water
- half a cup of brown sugar
- 2 tbsp of cinnamon 


Step One
Put the apples into a pot at a medium heat and add the water and the cinnamon.
While it's simmering away, add the sugar gradually with plenty stirring and tasting.
Cook for about 15 minutes.

I like to take a potato masher to it just a little so it's a little mushy but still has some nice lumps of apple in it for texture. 

To store: wait until it has cooled right down and then put in an air tight box in the fridge.

Christmas Cranberry Sauce!

How to make an easy cranberry sauce with some Christmas spice.
Cranberry sauce is a must on the dinner table in winter, and here's the recipe for what I made my family this year. Of course you can have it any time of the year but I think the allspice makes it particularly Christmassy.
This has got to be one of the easiest things you could try to make so don't worry about any hassle!


Ingredients: 
- roughly 4 cups of cranberries (fresh or frozen!)
- 2 cups of brown sugar
- 1 cup of water
- 3 tbsp of allspice


Step One
Pour the cranberries into a pot at a medium heat and add the water and the allspice. While it's simmering away, add the sugar gradually.
You can add anything you wish into it at this point, for example: chopped pecans, orange zest, raisins or currents. Cook for about 20 minutes (or until the cranberries have burst) and keep tasting to make sure it doesn't need extra sugar or spice.


To store: wait until it has cooled right down and then put in an air tight box in the fridge.

Roasted Sweet Potato and Crab Salad.

A healthy crab salad with roasted sweet potato, crunchy salad leaves, spring onion and sweetcorn. 
This is one of my favourite inventions so far and I am very proud of it. It's very healthy to eat and so easy to make. The meat is from the legs and the claws of the crab, and was bought in a small tub from Morrison's Supermarket and came already cooked. The sweet potato works best if it's roasted for only a short amount of time and doesn't develop too much of a 'skin' on the outside. This recipe contains two servings.

Ingredients:
- tub of pre-cooked crab meat
- 2 large sweet potato (peeled and chopped into roughly 1cm cubes)
- 1 bag of mixed crunchy salad
- four spring onions
- half a cup of sweetcorn
- the juice of half a lemon
- parsley, rosemary, pepper & salt


Step One
Preheat your oven to 200 and prepare a baking tray with some foil.
Blanch the sweet potato in a pan of boiling water for five minutes so it's slightly soft but not thoroughly cooked.
Put on baking tray and sprinkle with rosemary and pepper and a drizzle of oil.
Shake the tray to coat the sweet potato and then cook in the oven for around 20 minutes.
Keep an eye on it to make sure the edges don't burn too much.

Step Two
While your sweet potato is cooking, chop up the spring onion and put it in a bowl.
Add the crab meat and the lemon juice and season with a little pepper, parsley and just a touch of salt.
Also, cook the sweetcorn.


Step Three
When the sweet potato is cooked, dish out onto two plates. Top with a handful or two of the salad and sweetcorn, and then follow with an even share of the crab meat.
Enjoy!

Garlic Potato Salad

New potatoes tossed with garlic, parsley, spring onion and mayonnaise. 
A lovely side dish to accompany a variety of meals.

Ingredients:
- 1 bag of new potatoes
- 3-4 cloves of garlic
- 4 spring onions 
- dried or fresh parsley
- pepper to season 
- lemon juice (optional)
 
Step One
Wash and boil a handful of new potatoes. (Roughly 5 per serving).

Step Two
Chop up the spring onion and garlic.
Put in a bowl with a few spoonfuls of mayonnaise, the parsley and some pepper.

Step Three 
Once the potatoes have cooked, drain them and mix into the rest of the ingredients with a little lemon juice if you chose to have it. Serve.

Delicious especially with my Chili Baked Salmon recipe.
To store; refrigerate and use within two days.

Chili Baked Salmon with Roasted Red Peppers

Fillet of Salmon baked with chili peppers, garlic, spring onion and seasonings and served with roasted red pepper.
This is a very easy and very healthy dish to make. I love salmon and this is one of my favourite ways to cook it. 
Feeds two people.

Ingredients:
- 2 fillets of salmon 
- 2 small red chili peppers 
- A bulb of garlic 
- 4 spring onions 
- 1 lemon 
- 1 red pepper 
- 1tsp parsley 
- salt & pepper

Step One
Turn your oven on to around 200° and prepare a baking dish with tin foil and put an extra sheet aside to put on top later.

Step Two
Remove the head of the chili peppers and dice, and do the same with the garlic.
Remove the head of the spring onion, and then chopping off the ends, slice down the middle into two or three strips.
Place the salmon on the baking tray and surround with the chili, garlic and spring onion.
Sprinkle with a couple pinches of parsley, some pepper and a little salt.
Rub this mixture into the fish a little bit, and then cut the lemon in half and squeeze some juice on top.
Cover with the remaining tin foil and put in the oven for 40 minutes.

Step Three
Slice your pepper into strips and put on the baking tray, with a little oil drizzled on top, about half way through cooking and cook for about 20-25 minutes. Keep an eye on it so they don’t burn.

Step Four
Ideally serve this with the spring onion and chili still on top, along with some crunchy salad and my own recipe Garlic Potato Salad. 

Optional: Slice the remaining half lemon into quarters and serve on the plate beside the fish. 

Paprika Chicken, Bacon and Cheese Parcels

Chicken breasts stuffed with applewood cheese, wrapped in bacon and seasoned with paprika and pepper. 
This is a more simple and cheaper version of the first recipe I posted on here (see here). Applewood cheese is seasoned itself with paprika, which is why I kept it a recurring theme for the chicken. Takes about 15 minutes to prepare at the most and I served it with chips and mixed green veg, though you could always use mash. This serves two people.

Ingredients:
- two chicken breasts
- 4 rashers of bacon
- some applewood cheese
- paprika and pepper to season

Step One
Preheat your oven to 200°. 
Slice a big pocket into your chicken breasts and place as many slices of the cheese that you can into them.
Sprinkle a little seasoning on it, fold the flap over and season the outside a little as well.

Step Two
Wrap the bacon around the breasts. Not too tight that things start spilling out but tight enough that they are secure and then season top and bottom.

Step Three
Get an oven tray and place a sheet of tinfoil on it. Drizzle a tiny bit of oil to stop the chicken sticking with some more seasoning and then place the chicken on the tray.
Put another bit of foil on top and fold the corners so it makes a wee case around the chicken. Cook in the oven for about 40 minutes.

Delicious Shepherds Pie

Lamb mince with peas, carrots and mashed potato in a lamb gravy.
This is one of my favourite meals to cook, and is great for when company is round or on a winter night. Feeds around 2-4 people.


Ingredients
- lamb mince (around 500g)
- lamb gravy
- 4-5 chopped carrots
- 1 diced onion
- a couple handful of peas 
- potatoes (about 8)
- mixed herbs, rosemary and pepper to season.


Step One
Peel and chop the potatoes and put into a pan with water and a little salt to boil.
Keep an eye on them while you cook the lamb and drain when ready to make into mash.
Also put your oven on to around 200°.

Step Two 
Begin to lightly fry the onion in a little oil until soft.
Add the minced lamb, rosemary, herbs and pepper and cook for about 10 minutes, or until all the mince is nice and brown.
Keep stirring so it cooks evenly.

Step Three
Once the lamb is cooked, add about 500ml of lamb gravy at your desired thickness.
Also add the peas and the carrots and allow to simmer for about 20-30 minutes.

Step Four
While the lamb is cooking away, make your potato into mash.
For Shepherd’s Pie, lumpy mash is sometimes preferred, but always add plenty butter!

Step Five
Spoon the lamb mixture into an oven proof dish, making sure it’s only three-quarters full at the most. Then gently spoon the mash on top.
To make it crunchy, you could sprinkle with breadcrumbs or to make it even tastier, top with some cheese.
Cook in the oven for about 20-30 minutes, keeping an eye on it.

Step Six
Serve this in a bowl or in a plate, and enjoy!

Back To Basics: How To Make A Tomato Sauce For Pasta

Tomato and herb sauce for pasta.
How to make an easy and delicious tomato sauce for pasta for two people, or one person with leftovers.

Ingredients:
- 1 tin of chopped tomatoes 
- 1 onion 
- couple teaspoons of your favourite of salsa (for flavour) 
- mixed herbs and pepper to season

A few options you can add:
- sliced chicken breasts
- strips of bacon 
- two cloves of crushed garlic whilst adding the onions
- half mushrooms 
- chopped peppers 
- sweetcorn 
- anything else you can think of!

Step One
Boil a few handfuls of pasta in a pot with water until soft.
Drain, and mix in a small knob of butter to keep it soft. Leave to one side.

Step Two
Dice the onion, and anything extra you’re wanting to add (for example chicken, peppers or mushrooms) and pop in a pot or a frying pan with a little oil.*

Step Three
Once everything is cooked in the pan (roughly about 5-10 minutes), add the chopped tomatoes, salsa, mixed herbs and pepper. (And any sweetcorn or frozen veg).
Stir frequently and taste to see if you need more seasoning or even more salsa.
Cook at a simmer for about 10-15 minutes.

Step Four
Toss into your pasta and serve with a little cheese sprinkled on top, or some garlic bread on the side.

Remember! 
* Things like chicken and peppers take longer to cook than things like onions or mushrooms. So always cook your chicken thoroughly first, to ensure you don’t get food poisoning, and your peppers as well - unless you want them crunchy!
* If you’re planning on keeping some for the next day, ensure the dish has cooled down for no less than an hour before you refrigerate it to be safe.

Bacon and Sausage Pasta

Pork sausages and bacon pieces in a tomato sauce.
This is delicious, filling and not too expensive to make. This feeds 3-4 people, or 1-2 with leftovers for the next day.

Ingredients:
- 8 pork sausages 
- 6 rashers of bacon 
- 1 tin of chopped tomatoes 
- 1-2 handfuls of frozen sweetcorn 
- 1-2 handfulls of frozen peas 
- 3 teaspoons of salsa 
- pepper, salt and seasonings 
- enough pasta for around 3-4 people

Step One
Put the pasta in the pan with some water to boil until soft. Keep an eye on this while you cook so you don’t over-do it. 

Step Two
Cut each of the sausages into four chunks (I actually use scissors for this!), and lightly fry them for the designated amount of time of the packet. Usually about 10 minutes or so.

Step Three
Cut the bacon into small squares and when the sausages look almost ready, put them in the pan. Keep an eye on them so they don’t stick to the bottom and cook evenly.

Step Four
Pour the chopped tomatoes onto the meat in the pan, add the salsa, sweetcorn, peas, the pepper/salt, and some seasonings - and mix. I used ‘Italian Garlic’ which worked well.
Cook this in a low simmer for about 10-15 minutes.
Drain the pasta and serve with this on top.
You can always add some mushrooms or even some mixed peppers to this. Be creative!

Lauren's Own Vegetarian Burgers.

Sweet Potato, mixed beans and spinach vegetarian burgers.
This is a recipe I am very proud of because although it is similar to existing veggie burgers, I didn’t look online or in any books for any tips. I tried, tasted and tested this one all by myself - thinking up the ingredients that would work well, the spices to put in and also how to make it. 
I’d like to add, your spices don’t have to exactly match mine - but those listed are the one’s I tried and enjoyed.


Ingredients:
- 750g of sweet potato 
- one can of mixed beans (found in most supermarkets. Check the ingredients; mine was from the Co-operative and included: green beans, red kidney beans, blackeye beans, sweetcorn, haricot beans, borlotti beans, red pepper and chick peas. Yours doesn’t have to be exactly the same although most brands are quite similar.)
- couple handfuls of spinach 
- couple handfuls of sweetcorn (if not included in the can of mixed beans) 
- 4 cloves of garlic 
- 1 tsp of thyme 
- 1 tsp of basil 
- 1 tsp of oregano 
- 1&1/2 tsp of crushed chillies (or two-three freshly chopped chillies) 
- sprinkles of cinnamon & ginger 
- pepper & salt

Step One 
Chop the sweet potato and put it in a pan with water and a little salt and boil until soft enough to mash with a dollop of butter.

Step Two 
Drain the water from the can of beans, and then empty the beans into a mixing bowl. Crush the garlic into it and then add all the spices with a little pepper and salt. 
Mash a few times with a potato masher, just to soften the mixture but don’t go over board because you still want the texture of the beans in the finished result!

Step Three 
Add the mashed sweet potato and a couple handfuls of fresh spinach (tear the spinach into bits with your hands first), and mix everything together really well.

Step Four
Now, get a smooth chopping board, or a clean and dry counter top, and sprinkle lots of flour down. Then scooping the mixture with your hands into round balls, coat them in the flour (and I mean really coat them) until they’re soft and managable. Then gently press down on the ball to make a burger shape, and continue to coat with flour, smoothing out the edges. 
Wrap each burger in cling film and chill in the fridge for at least an hour, if not longer.

Step Five 
Once taken out of the fridge, if you need to sprinkle a bit more flour on, do so.
Then gently fry them in a little oil at quite a high heat and pay special attention to them so they don’t fall apart or get stuck to the pan.
Delicious served on a bun. with a thin slice of cheese and some fried onions, and some summery salad on the side.


*I'm planning on working on better methods for the coating instead of just plain flour, but this was delicious as it was. 

Real Mac n' Cheese!

How to make an extra cheesy cheese sauce with pasta.

This has a recipe for how to make proper cheese sauce from scratch, which is so simple and much tastier than a shop bought substitute, and is one of my favourite things to make. It’s such yummy comfort food.  Feel free to throw some extra things in, for example: lightly fried bacon and/or peas! This serves around 4 people.

Ingredients:

- One block of cheese

- 1/2 - 1 cup of milk

- Couple spoonfuls of plain flour

- A knob of Butter

- Macaroni pasta

Step One

Put your pasta in the pan to boil. My mum always said to estimate a couple handfuls per person so that's what I usually do.

Step Two

Put a large knob of butter in a pan on a lowish heat and wait until it melts, but don’t let it begin to boil.

Step Three

Slowly add a couple spoonfuls of flour. You don’t want to add too much, so take your time, add one and stir for a while, then add another. You’re aiming for a paste like consistency and nothing too much thicker. If you find you’ve added too much, just add a little more butter.

Step Four

Take it off the heat now to add the milk.
In the same way that you added the flour, keep adding a little at a time and stirring it in properly to ensure you have the right consistency.
Most recipe books call for it to be runny, but thick enough to coat the back of your spoon - however, I find that once you’ve added the cheese, you’ll need to add more milk anyway. So don’t worry if your mixture is a bit runny, just make sure it’s well mixed.

Step Five

Put it back on a low heat.
Grate all your cheese (I like my mac n’ cheese as cheesy as hell, but don’t forget to leave some to sprinkle on top when serving).
Add in a handful, mix in, then add another and mix and continue until it’s a nice smooth mixture - add a little milk if you find it’s too thick. 

Sprinkle with a little black pepper or mixed herbs if you like, and if you’ve prepared anything like bacon or peas, now is the time to chuck them in.

Step Six

Pour your cheesy mixture into your (drained) pasta and mix up. 

Serve by itself, or with perhaps chips, and I always like to add a little extra sprinkle of cheese on top to melt while I eat.

To make your macaroni cheese crunchy - put in an oven-proof dish, sprinkle with extra cheese and seasoning’s, and then some breadcrumbs. Grill for about 5 minutes, but keep an eye on it so it doesn't burn!

Vegetarian Mushroom & Mixed Bean Chili

Chopped mushrooms and mixed beans in a chili style tomato sauce.
The tin of mixed beans I bought for this came in a chili sauce. If your beans just come in water, drain before adding to the dish and instead of a half can of chopped tomatoes, you'll need a whole one. You'll also need to add cumin, garlic and a chopped onion in Step Two.
You can make this un-vegetarian by adding chopped sausage and squares of bacon instead of the mushrooms.
This recipe will serve 3-4, and it’s very filling.

Ingredients:
- 1 can of mixed beans in a chili sauce
- 1 half can of chopped tomatoes
- 2 red peppers 
- 8-10 button mushrooms 
- 1 cup of sweetcorn 
- a couple handfuls of baby spinach 
- potatoes for mash.

Step One
Chop the potatoes and put into a pan of boiling water and cook whilst you prepare everything else or until soft and ready for mashing.
Step Two
Chop the peppers into slices and the mushrooms into quarters or even halves.
(I find, as this is meant to be vegetarian, that cutting the mushrooms into large bits instead of thin slices makes up for chunks of meat or mince.) 
Gently fry the mushrooms and peppers until soft, and season with a little black pepper.
Step Three
Add the mixed beans and chopped tomatoes to the pan with your vegetables and simmer for 10-15 minutes.
Add the sweetcorn and spinach, sprinkle some mixed herbs and pepper in, and leave to cook for further 5-10 minutes.
Step Four 
Whilst this is all bubbling away, you can drain the potatoes and make up your mash. By the time this is prepared, the chili should also be ready. Pile onto plates and enjoy. 

Cheap & Cheerful Chicken Pasta!

Chicken pieces, vegetables and pasta in mayonnaise.
This little creation of mine is hardly original but an absolute treat. It's cheap to buy, healthy and it can be eaten for lunch, snacks and even makes a tasty tea. The best bit is, if you make a big pot of it, you can keep it for up to two days in the fridge. So have it for dinner one night, and then lunch at work the next day. 
It’s actually something I took to a festival to tide me over the three days and is very adaptable ingredients-wise. Below is the two methods I’ve made. Both are very similar, and both are very tasty. This recipe contains around 3-4 servings.

Ingredients:
- 2 packets of cooked chicken pieces (1x plain & 1x barbecued)
- 8-10 button mushrooms
- 2 cups of sweetcorn
- Half a cup of light mayonnaise
- 2 cups of wholemeal pasta
- 2 spring onions (optional)
- Seasonings (mixed herbs & pepper)


Step One
Put the pasta into a pan with a tiny bit of salt, and lightly boil while you prepare everything else.


Step Two
In a large bowl, separate the pieces of chicken into smaller bits and prepare the spring onion and the mushrooms by cutting them into slices. ~


Step Three
Gently fry the mushrooms. I like to season the mushrooms with the herbs and pepper at this point, but that's just personal preference. Cook your sweetcorn in a microwave at the same time.


Step Four
Once the mushrooms and pasta are thoroughly cooked, chuck them into the bowl with the chicken, add the sweetcorn and spring onion, sprinkle some more pepper and herbs on if you wish and spoon some mayonnaise on. Mix everything together, adding a little more mayo as you go, until you feel it’s at the right consistency. I like it to be ‘greasy’ with the mayo, to hold it all together, but not have to much excess, although of course you can do differently.

Serve in a bowl, on a plate, with salad or without and enjoy. If you’ve made extra, put it in a tupperware box and store in the fridge for up to two days and is delicious hot or cold! 

Mummy Morton's Scottish Stovies

A mash up of sausages, onion and potato.
This is a traditional Scottish dish with a twist! I have an intolerance to beef so my mum always made us stovies this way, rather than with corned beef. This recipe will feed two hungry people! 

Ingredients 
- 1 large onion 
- 8 regular pork sausages
- white potatoes (say 4-5 small potatoes per person, depending how peckish you are!)

Step One 
Chop up the uncooked sausages, peel and chop the potatoes and dice the onion.

Fill a large pan with water, just enough to cover the food and throw it all in.

Step Two 
Heat, until simmering, and allow to cook for about half an hour, forty minutes - or until the potatoes are very soft.

Step Three 
Drain and return to pan (off the heat). Add some pepper, and mixed herbs if you fancy, a dash of milk and some butter to sweeten. Mash carefully with a fork so you don’t destroy the sausages and don’t mind too much if the mash is a bit lumpy. It’s a messy dish. 

Pile onto plates and serve.  

PO-TA-TO!

I love mashed potato and I’d happily eat it with most meals. After making A LOT of mash in the past few years, I’ve discovered the most obvious and easy secret to making it super delicious.


DOUBLE YOUR BUTTER.


It's that simple.
Personally, I don't want mash that squishes around my mouth like cream because there's too much milk added. Or dry because you don't have enough butter. It sounds so basic, but the best way to make it is with just a wee splash of milk, a little pepper & maybe some mixed herbs, and loads of butter. And I mean, loads. Butter is what makes it sweet, delicious and soft in the mouth.


You can also make your mash more flavorsome with added vegetables (sweetcorn, peas, carrots, spring onion) or with cheese on top!


If you're looking for ways to make mashed potato healthier, try a butter that is low in fat or a margarine that is free of trans-fats.

Brie and spinach stuffed chicken with mushrooms in a tomato sauce.

Chicken breasts stuffed with brie and spinach, under a tomato and basil sauce with chopped mushrooms & sweetcorn, and served with mashed potatoes.

This is a terrific and filling meal, and is easier to make than it sounds. I usually make it 1 chicken breast = two rashers of bacon. This recipe will feed two people. 

 Ingredients 

- 2 chicken breasts
- 4 rashers of bacon
- triangle of brie
- tin of chopped tomatoes or plain tomato sauce
- a couple handfuls of baby spinach (washed)
- couple handfuls of mushrooms (chopped)
- couple handfuls of sweetcorn
- couple tsp basil for seasoning
- 6 white potatoes. (for mash)

Step One

Slice a pocket into each chicken breast, lay open on the chopping board and sprinkle a pinch of your seasonings onto the meat. 
Stuff with the spinach leaves and small squares of brie - try and get as much in as possible!
Tightly wrap the chicken in two slices of bacon, positioned well so the pocket is sealed.

Step Two

Get a baking tray or a glass dish, put some tin foil down and a tiny drizzle of oil to stop the chicken sticking. 
Sprinkle some pepper, some mixed herbs and some cinnamon down. 
Then place the chicken breasts on the tray and sprinkle the top with each of these with the same seasonings.
Pop in the oven for 35-40 minutes at 200C

Step Three 

Put the potatoes on to boil at the same time as you put the chicken in the oven.
By the time you’ve boiled the potatoes and made them into mash, the chicken should be done.

Step Four

While the potatoes are boiling, chop a couple handles of mushrooms and lightly fry them in a little oil until soft.
Pour your chopped tomatoes or tomato sauce into the pan with a couple handfuls of sweetcorn.
While this heats up, add about two-three teaspoons of salsa, and the same of basil and a little pepper.
Leave to simmer while you prepare the mash.

Step Five

Take the chicken out the oven, and place on the plate.
Pour some of the tomato and mushroom sauce over the top and serve with a couple scoops of mash and a wee pile of sweetcorn