I think this is the earliest I have ever managed to cook a Christmas cake. Last night, after work I made this one and the only reason I attempted it was because I knew it was going to be quick and easy. Sometimes, I start making things like this only to find it has taken much longer than I thought, it becomes late, I become over tired and well basically I wish I’d gone to M&S! So my friends, I bring you probably the easiest Christmas cake ever and
probably one of the yummiest.

You will need

1 x deep 20cm greased and lined cake tin

175g butter , chopped
200g dark muscovado sugar
750g luxury mixed dried fruits (one that includes mixed peel and glacé cherries)
finely grated zest and juice of 1 orange
finely grated zest of 1 lemon
100ml/3½ fl oz cherry brandy or brandy plus 4tbsp more
85g macadamia nuts
3 large eggs , lightly beaten
85g ground almonds
200g plain flour
½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground mixed spice
1 tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground allspice

How to make your cake

1.Put the butter, sugar, fruit, zests, juice and 100ml/3½fl oz brandy in a large pan. Bring slowly to the boil, stirring until the butter has melted. Reduce the heat and bubble for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

2.Remove the pan from the heat and leave to cool for 30 minutes.

3.Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 150C/gas 2/ fan 130C and line the cake tin. Toast the nuts in a dry frying pan, tossing them until evenly browned, or in the oven for 8-10 minutes – keep an eye on them as they burn easily. When they are cool, chop roughly. Stir the eggs, nuts and ground almonds into the fruit mixture and mix well. Sift the flour, baking powder and spices into the pan. Stir in gently, until there are no traces of flour left.

4.Spoon the mixture into the tin and smooth it down evenly – you will find this is easiest with the back of a metal spoon which has been dipped into boiling water.

5.Bake for 45 minutes, then turn down the heat to 140C/gas 1/ fan120C and cook for a further 1-1¼ hours (about a further 1¾ hours if you have a gas oven) until the cake is dark golden in appearance and firm to the touch. Cover the top of the cake with foil if it starts to darken too much. To check the cake is done, insert a fine skewer into the centre – if it comes out clean, the cake is cooked.

6.Make holes all over the warm cake with a fine skewer and spoon the extra 4tbsp brandy over the holes until it has all soaked in. Leave the cake to cool in the tin. When it’s cold, remove it from the tin, peel off the lining paper, then wrap first in baking parchment and then in foil. The cake will keep in a cupboard for up to three months or you can freeze it for six months.

This recipe originates from a lady called Mary Cadogan.

Even though I cook for a living, I rarely have all the correct ingredients in the fridge to make what I want. Last Sunday I had it in my head to bake a savoury tart for the week, so I pulled everything out of the fridge including a wrinkly old courgette, peppers that needed trimming and eating up quick and a small pot of creme fraiche approaching its sale by date.For this recipe I haven’t given exact quantities for some of the filling because this is freestyle cooking, it doesn’t need to be precise 😉 The result of using up all these leftovers was something pretty spectacular. Everyone that tasted the tart loved it , its packed to the hilt with veg but has a lovely light texture. It works just as well warm or cold and is a great way to make your lunch box more exciting.

What you will need

Line a 10″ metal flan tin (tin is always best for pastry) with shortcrust pastry ( making sure it’s not too thick)

olive oil or rapeseed oil for frying

1 onion chopped

Chorizo chopped into small chunks

1 red pepper deseeded and chopped

1 yellow pepper deseeded and chopped

Handful of mushrooms chopped

1 courgette chopped

2 cloves of garlic crushed

4 eggs beaten

small pot of creme fraiche of cream

grated cheese

fajita seasoning

salt/pepper

How to make your Tart

1. Preheat the oven to 180ºc/350ºf/Gas 4

2. Place the lined tart tin on a baking sheet.Using a fork prick the base of your lined flan tin all over then place in the oven for 15 mins, remove from the oven and brush the inside of it all over with some of the beaten egg and pop back in the oven to set for a further 5 mins. This will stop the pastry going soggy once you have added the filling.

3. Start by frying the onion in some oil until it starts to soften, then add all the other vegetable ingredients including the garlic. Fry for approx 10 mins, so that the chorizo oils cover the vegetables and impart its flavour.

4. In a bowl whisk the egg and creme fraiche or cream together.

5.Sprinkle a little of the grated cheese on the bottom of the tart case and then cover with the vegetable mix, season with salt and pepper. Pour over the egg mixture and sprinkle grated cheese over the top and finally a light sprinkling of fajita mix. Place in the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes.

Its the second of July, its raining, misty and cold. I’m in the laundry room staring into the freezer seeing what I can cook for dinner. I spot a price reduced pack of stewing beef £1.42 for 1½lbs of westcountry beef (I love a bargain) I’m thinking casserole, maybe a bit boring and then inspiration comes to me in the form of a lonely can of fosters sitting amongst the paint brushes. I go into the kitchen, defrost the meat and start the dinner with enthusiasm, I know just what is needed.

What you will need

1½ good stewing beef cut into chunks

2 tablespoons of plain flour seasoned with salt, pepper and mixed herbs.

olive or rapeseed oil

1 large onion sliced

1 can of lager, beer or ale

4 carrots cut into bite sized chunks

1 beef stock cube

2 bay leaves

I added some mushrooms. I would have also added celery if it was in the fridge!

some white bread thickly sliced

knobs of butter

How to make your Beefy Beer and Bread

1. Heat the oil in a frying pan

2. Toss the cubed beef into the seasoned flour. Once the oil is hot brown the pieces of meat, when nicely browned on all sides pour in just over 3/4 of the can of beer, this will deglaze the pan. Pour meat and beer into a casserole dish or a slow cooker.

3. Add a little more oil to your now empty frying pan and gently fry the onioins till they start to go soft and colour a little. Turn off the heat and tip the onions into the casserole dish.

4. Next add the carrots, mushrooms bay leaf and any other veg you would like into the casserole. Crumble in the stock cube. Stir well and place the lid on and cook for 2½ hours at 150ºc/300ºf/ gas mark 2 or alternatively place in the slow cooker, which is what I did and left it on all day on low till ready to do the topping.

5. When the meat is cooked and tender,cut the crusts off the bread and lay on top of the casserole slightly over lapping them. Pour the rest of the beer over the bread and then dot the bread with plenty of butter. Put into a hot oven with the lid off and crisp the bread for about 20 mins.

Serve with freshly steamed green veg and maybe a pint of beer?!

This also re-heats really well. I think you’re going to love this recipe, I can’t wait to make it again, even Maisie my 12 yr old appreciated its flavour!

I often get asked for a good brownie recipe and I’m always a little stuck as to which one to recommend. Brownies for me need to be super quick to make, extremely chocolatey, have a slighty crispy outside and a chewy, gooey middle. I love putting pecans in mine, but I know this is a no go area for some people, so the alternative is to add some milk chocolate chopped up or dried sour cherries where the nuts should be! This recipe is a combination of two recipes that I usually make …hopefully you will give this one a go and let me know if its to your liking or maybe you have a better one to share?

You will need to make your Bohemian Brownies

110g (4ozs) butter

110g ( 4ozs) plain chocolate

110g (4ozs) caster sugar

110g (4ozs) soft brown sugar

2 beaten eggs

85g (3ozs) plain flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

25g (1oz) cocoa powder

1 tsp vanilla essence

110g (4ozs) chopped pecans or milk chocolate or dried sour cherries

How to make your Bohemian Brownies

1. Preheat oven to 180°c/350°f/gas mark 4

2. Grease and line a shallow oblong tin18x28cm (7×11 inches).

3. Break the plain chocolate into pices and put in a heatproof bowl along with the cubed butter. Melt together in the microwave or over a simmering pan of water. If using the microwave, take care not to over heat and stir after a minute to check how its doing.

4. Add all the other ingredients to the melted chocolate/ butter mixture and stir well. Pour into your greased tin and spread out evenly. Place in the middle of the oven for 30 minutes.

5. Let the mixture cool in the tin for10minutes, it will sink a little. Then cut into squares and cool them on a wire rack. Store in a air tight tin.

I have just made this for dinner and we liked it so much I thought you might like it too! I needed a quick dinner tonight and these are the ingredients I had in the fridge. It’s pretty basic but one of those dishes that is tasty and filling and you can cook it up in a matter of minutes.

What you will need for your pasta dish (serves 4)

1 red onion chopped

Olive/ rapeseed oil

2 gloves of garlic

Chorizo cut into bite size chunks

1 red pepper chopped

1 medium courgette chopped into chunks

6 mushrooms chopped into chunks

1 medium tin chopped tomatoes

Salt / pepper / chilli flakes

2 tablespoons mascarpone (or cream cheese)

Pasta, I used spirals but use whatever you like and cook as much as you need in plenty of salted boiling water

How to make your pasta dish

1. Put a pan of salted water on to boil ready for the pasta. Pasta usually takes around 10 mins ( check the oacket for cooking times) so when your frying the main bulk of the veg you can put the pasta onto cook.

2. Heat a splash of olive/rapeseed oil in a frying pan and add your chopped onion, fry on a medium heat until soft add the crushed garlic, chorizo, courgettes, mushrooms and red pepper. Fry for 5- 10 mins until the vegetables are coated in the chorizo oils and are a little coloured.

3. Add the tin of tomatoes and cook until the sauce starts to thicken, add salt pepper and chilli flakes if you like them. Pour in 1 tablespoon of the pasta cooking water ( this gives the sauce a nice gloss) finally add the mascarpone and stir, check your seasoning and take off heat.

4. Drain the pasta and serve. You can garnish with some basil, we also like to sprinkle some grated cheese on top.

This is a good start to making your own pasta sauces, so much better for you than the jars. Putting lots of fresh veg in gives you a healthy meal and by adding things like garlic, chilli and chorizo you get some great flavours. Have fun experimenting.

An easy Elderflower Cordial recipe is now up on my blog. The elderflowers need to be picked soon as they are already well in bloom. Goes well with champagne, just saying!

Today one of my dearest childhood friends arrived at my house with her truck, bundled Slinky and I inside and drove us to the beach. We sat with a rug over our laps, winter coats on our backs, beers in our hands and ate warm homemade pasties straight out of her aga. The dogs went off looking for families that were more generous with their picnics and we fought off seaguls swooping down to take a bite. In less than ideal conditions for June, we laugh at our madness and talk about our families, how we miss them and our inability to make their struggles easier. Once our hands had turned blue we headed home and on the journey back my friend stops in the country lanes so that I can hang out of the window and collect elderflower heads from the hedgerows. Once home I do what I always do when life gets a bit much, I get to work making something that will bring smiles to faces, including mine 🙂

There are many recipes for elderflower cordial, this one is my favourite. I make this every year, it’s easy, it lasts all year if stored carefully and when the sun eventually comes out, it has to be one of the most refreshing drinks you can make.

What you will need

20 elderflower heads ( best picked in sunshine!)

2 ½ pints (1.4 litres) boiling water

4lbs (1.8kg) white sugar

2½ oz (70g) citric acid (available from the chemist)

2 lemons sliced

How to make Elderflower cordial

Place all the above ingredients in a large bowl cover and leave for five days, stirring morning and evening.

Strain through muslin or a tea towel and pour into sterilised bottles ( I usually use screw top wine bottles).

Store in a cool dark place. Once a bottle is opened store in the fridge.