Tomato Ketchup - an easy recipe

As usual at this time of year, we have a glut of tomatoes and whilst I make sauces and chutneys, I decided to have a go at a tomato ketchup, especially as the premium brands are so expensive these days.

This recipe is easy....

Ingredients:

• 1.5Kg of whole ripe tomatoes
• 1/2 tsp of celery salt
• 1/2 tbsp of salt
• 125gms of sugar (granulated)
• 1 tsp of paprika
• pinch of cayenne pepper
• 150ml of white wine vinegar

After washing the tomatoes, chop them and put in a pan. Slowly simmer the tomatoes, stirring occasionally. (no need to skin or deseed the tomatoes)

When soft and pulped, pass through a fine sieve and discard the skins, seeds and what little cores are left. Put the pulp into a fresh pan together with the remaining ingredients and bring to the boil then simmer, stirring occasionally. You need to aim to get the pulp to thicken up which can take a while.

When done, pour into suitable containers that are hot and sterilised and seal straight away. I use wide necked sauce bottles that have been saved.

The result is a really good ketchup! If you find it too runny, then empty the sauce into a pan and reduce further and repeat the bottling process.

Catalina Salad Dressing

If my memory serves me right, this dressing used to be made my Kraft and my mother used to buy it in Safeway - many years ago. This recipe is quite close to it - at least from what I remember!! It is both sweet and tangy.

Ingredients:

• 660ml of tomato ketchup

• 74ml of sugar

• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

• 4-1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 teaspoon ground mustard

• 1/8 teaspoon paprika

• Dash ground turmeric

• Dash cayenne pepper

• 125ml of canola oil

Place the first ten ingredients in a blender. While processing, gradually add oil in a steady stream.

Redcurrant & Mint Jelly

The redcurrants are now over but I did manage to save mine from hungry birds using netting. Out new bush seems to be growing well. I used a garden mint from our garden but unsure of the variety.

This recipe combines mint and redcurrant and is delicious.

Ingredients:

• 500g of redcurrants
• sprig of mint
• 500g of sugar
• juice of half a lemon (15-20ml)
• 10 mint leaves finely chopped
• 500ml of water

After you have washed the redcurrants and mint, put the currants, sprig of mint and water into a suitable pan and boil. 

Simmer and press the fruit in the pan to help the fruit to break up.

Cool and then strain the mix through a muslin bag over a bowl overnight but do not squeeze the bag.

Put the strained liquid, sugar and lemon juice into a pan and gentle cook until all the sugar has been dissolved.

Rapid boil the mixture for approx. 15 mins until the mixture reaches the setting point (104-105 degC). I use a thermometer but a cold plate test can also be used.

Remove from the heat, remove sprigs of mint and stir in the chopped mint.

Pour into sterilised jars and seal.

This jelly is, obviously, great with lamb! The Mint is subtle. If you like more or a mint flavour, add more sprigs whilst boiling.Enjoy!

 

BBQ Lamb - Chimichurri style

This recipe was given to me by a friend - Jan of Not Just Canapes - https://uk.linkedin.com/in/jan-ghosh-5760b236

I will say no more than it is fabulous and VERY moreish.

Ingredients:

• 1.5kg of Lamb shoulder - de-boned and cut into large pieces
• 20g flat leaf parsley, leaves and stalks
• 30g mint, leaves and stalks
• 30g coriander, leaves and stalks
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled
• 15g fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
• 3 chillies, seeded
• ½ tsp salt
• 50ml lemon juice
• 60ml soy sauce
• 120ml sunflower oil
• 3 tbsp honey
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 4 tbsp water 

Just whizz all these ingredients together (except the lamb!!) and use some to marinade the lamb and heat the rest as a sauce. 

Marinate the lamb for an hour or so and then cook the pieces on the BBQ to your preferred level of cooking. Serve with the sauce (warmed or not) and devour!

You can use lamb rum, lamb leg or whatever is to hand....

Thai Style Pork Spare Ribs

Rib Stock:

• 10 meaty ribs (or so) - cut individually
• 1 stalk of lemongrass - chopped finely
• 4 kaffir lime leaves
• 3 10mm slices of galangal root
• 2 litres of water

Simmer in this stock mixture for 1 hour. Once done, discard the stock.

Rib Marinade:

• 1 stalk of lemongrass
• 1 small handful of coriander stalks & leaves
• 2 large gloves of garlic
• 1/2 tsp of black peppercorns
• 1/2 tsp of tumeric powder
• 1/2 cup of light soy sauce
• 2 tbsp of fish sauce
• 2 tbsp of Kecap Manis (Dark sweet soy sauce)

Blitz the mixture with a hand blender. When the ribs are taken out of the stock, arrange in a dish and pur over the marinade. Leave for 30 mins to an hour. I tend to go back and turn the ribs every 10 mins or so

Dipping Sauce:

• 3 tbsp of fish sauce
• 3 tbsp of fresh lime juice
• 25g of palm sugar
• 1 red birdseye chilli - chopped
• 2 tsp of toasted rice - search on this blog on how to make this
• 2 tbsp of coriander leaves - chopped

Combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and make sure the sugar is dissolved in the mix. Serve with the ribs as a dipping sauce.

Oven roasting - 200degC for about 10 mins - do not over cook as this will spoil them.

Caesar Salad Dressing

I had to make this when I didn’t realise we had none in the fridge!!

Servings:  enough for about 8 salads

Total Time: 12 Minutes

Ingredients:

1 small garlic cloves, minced

1 small anchovy

2 tbs freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 tsp Dijon mustard

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

Pinch of salt and freshly gound pepper

In a bowl, whisk together the garlic, anchovy, lemon juice, Dijon mustard and Worcestershire sauce.

Add the mayonnaise, parmesan, salt and pepper and whisk until well combined. Season to taste.

Superb Onion Gravy

This is one of those sauces that is a must when you are eating comfort food such as bangers and mash. No fancy bangers – just good quality pork ones and use Mozart variety potatoes for a lovely mash - don't forget plenty of butter!!

Ingredients (enough for 2 people)

• 50gms of butter (slightly salted)
• 1 large onion thinly sliced
• ½ tbps of plain flour
• 50ml of red wine (I use Cote du Rhone)
• 200ml of good beef stock
• ½ tsp of Worcestershire sauce
• ½ tsp of Colemans english mustard
• Salt & Pepper to taste (careful with the salt)

Melt butter in a pan and then cook onions until soft. Reduce heat and cover. Cook until unions are brown which is about half an hour or so.

Stir in the flour can cook for a few minutes – stirring.

Add all of the other ingredients (except salt & pepper) and simmer for about 20 mins – stirring occasionally.

When done, season to taste.

Red Onion Relish

This is a perfect accompaniment to my Foie Gras Burgers! You will have to wait for that recipe!

Ingredients:

• 4 Medium Onions (red) – finely sliced
• 50 gms of butter
• 3 tbsp of brown sugar
• 2 tbsp of vinegar
• 1 tbsp of balsamic vinegar

Cook the onions in the butter over a low heat for about 15 minutes until soft.

Add the remaining ingredients and cook until the liquid is syrupy. Cool and then strore in the fridge until required.

Lobster Thermidor (sauce)

I have had a few varieties of sauce that is served as Thermidor, whether it be for Crab or Lobster. Some of them are great and some are so so. This one I would put into the great category  I like it because it it doesn't use any cheese. Feel free to experimnet with a little Parmesan or Old Winchester.

This sauce was supposedly created in France to celebrate a play called Thermidor.....and the word comes from Greek, meaning heat. Well there you have it, enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 large shallot, finely chopped
• 200ml of fish stock
• 200ml of white wine (dry and good quality)
• 300ml of bechemal sauce
• 100ml of Double cream
• 1 tsp of Dijon Mustard
• 1 tsp of English mustard powder
• 50g of butter (chilled and diced)
• Salt
• Pinch of cayenne pepper

In a saucepan add the white wine, stock and shallot and boil and reduce until about 1/3rd left. Add the bechemal and and cook over a low heat for about 15-20 mins stirring every now and then. Pour in the cream and simmer for 5 mins. Mix the English mustard with a little water and then add both mustards to the sauce and cook for a couple of minutes. Now take off the heat and whisk in to the sauce bit by bit.Taste and season with salt and cayenne. I have been advised that you can add a little brandy at the end of the cooking - I have not tried it but is sounds like a good idea!

What you now do is your choice! But I would be tempted next time to try this with some grilled fresh mussels - done in a sort of gratin!

My sister has pestered me to put this up on the blog - I hope you enjoy and if you need me to come over and do some tasting, let me know!

Sticky Toffee Apple pudding with Caramel Sauce

This recipe is based on James Martin's recipe from Saturday Kitchen but with a few tweeks!

It falls into 3 parts: Cake or Pudding, Caramel Sauce and Sharp apple sauce.

Ingredients (serves 6/8):

• 140gms of butter (softened)
• 300gms of sharp eating apples
• 50ml water
• 30gms caster sugar
• 175gms of dark brown sugar
• 3 tbsp of golden syrup
• 2 free range eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 200gms self raising flour
• 1 tsp of bicarbonate of soda
• 1 apple for decoration - cored and sliced in thin wedges
• (optional 2 tbsp of calvados - I used brandy as I had no calvados!)

Caramel Sauce:

• 70gms of dark brown sugar
• 50gms of granulated sugar
• 120gms of butter
• 120gms of golden syrup
• 100ml of double cream or milk depending on thickness required
• few drops of vanilla extract
• 2 tsps of lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 190C/375F/Gas 5. Grease/flour 23cm spring-form tin. Melt 25g of the butter in a saucepan and add the apples, water and sugar. Cook over a gentle heat until steam appears from the saucepan, then cover with a lid and cook for 3-4 minutes, or until thick and fluffy. Remove the lid and beat the mixture to remove any lumps. Add the calvados and beat until well combined. Beat 90g of the butter and the soft brown sugar in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Add the golden syrup, eggs and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Fold the self-raising flour into the cake mixture.

Meanwhile, add the bicarbonate of soda to the apple puree and mix well, then stir this quickly into the cake mixture. Pour into the cake tin and gently tap the sides of the tin to evenly disperse the mixture.

Melt the remaining 25g butter in a saucepan. Arrange the sliced apple over the top of the cake in a circle, and brush with the melted butter. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over the cake. Place in the oven and cook for 40-45 minutes, and allow to cool slightly before turning out.

For the calvados caramel sauce, place the sugar and butter into a small saucepan and cook until melted and well combined. Pour in the double cream and calvados. Simmer gently for three to five minutes, or until the mixture thickens slightly. Add the lemon juice to the sauce. This makes the sauce a little less sweet but still rich.

To serve, cut the cake into slices and put a spoonful of ice cream on top. Finish by drizzling over some of the sauce and adding some sharp apple puree. (see note below)

Thermomix instructions:

I have only done the apples and the caramel sauce in the thermomix but will update when I have sussed out the cake mix!

Caramel Sauce - put the butter, sugars and syrup into the TM bowl and cook for 5 mins 80deg/speed 1.5. Add the milk and vanilla. Cook for 3 minutes 100deg/speed 2

If you want to cook the apples, core,peel and roughly chop apples. Put into TM bowl with the water and cook for 10mins/90deg/speed1/reverse blade. At this point you can either puree for the sauce (20 secs speed 8) or lightly chop for the cake 5 secs speed 4 - until you get approx 7mm pieces of apple etc.

Salsa

I’ve been a little off cooking this last month. A sort of winter blues followed by a boringly long cold spell – which is still going on – and my abstinence from booze. Add to that a troublesome root canal job that drains my pocket and you will understand why I’m a little brassed off! Still I’m soldiering on and I feel like conjuring up a few tasty morsels! Maybe spring can be seen around the corner.

I enjoyed a piece of very fresh sea bass the other day and it was served up with some lovely tomato salsa. I’m not sure I recreated it correctly but it certainly made the right impression, so here goes.

Ingredients (Serve 4 as garnish):

• 4 ripe tomatoes
• 1 red pepper
• 1 red onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 ½ Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
• Fresh Basil (optional)
• 10 Cheery tomatoes
• Salt & Freshly ground Pepper

Cut the tomatoes in half and deseed and the same with the red pepper. Sprinkle with oil and place on a tray and heat in a 160deg C oven for about 30 mins until soft and cooked. Chop the red onion and fry in oil with the garlic until soft and clear (medium heat). Remove the tomatoes and pepper from the oven, chop and add to the frying pan. Add the balsamic vinegar salt and pepper and stir well. Turn down the heat and the cherry tomatoes which have been halved. Gently fry until the cherry tomatoes are just beginning to soften. At this point you can add a few chopped basil leaves and stir in. Leave to one side and serve with say Sea Bass and Parmentier potatoes.

Venison and Smoked Pancetta Meatballs with Curly Kale and Parsnip Mash and Red Onion Gravy

One site I love is The British Larder.

On Friday I cooked this recipe and it went down a storm :-

http://www.britishlarder.co.uk/venison-and-smoked-pancetta-meatballs-with-curly-kale-and-parsnip-mash-red-onion-gravy/

The pancetta must be thick enough so it does not break apart. The meatballs can be prepared in advance and put in the oven when you want to serve up. Enjoy!

Beurre Blanc (Nantais) Sauce - Revised!

Or should it be called Beurre Nantais? (by virtue it has cream in it as a stabilising influence)

After a lot of trial and effort, I have now perfected this recipe – and it works perfectly!

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup of dry white wine
• ¼ Cup of white wine vinegar
• 2 Tbsp finely chopped shallots
• 2 Tbsp of cream
• 8oz of Unsalted (or slightly) butter – cubed
• Salt to taste.

Add the shallots, wine and vinegar to a pan and simmer until reduced until you get about 15% of the liquid left.

Stir in the cream and reduce a little – this is what stops the sauce separating! Now whisk in about 1oz of the cubed butter and when mixed, do another 1oz. Repeat until completely infused and you have a creamy sauce. Season the sauce with salt to taste. This sauce whould not separate and can be prepared in advance of that fish meal you promise your guests!

Chicken Breast with Beetroot Sauce - Farewell Floyd!

As a tribute to Keith Floyd, I thought I would dust off a copy of ‘Floyd on France’ that I had on the shelf. Like a lot of people, Keith managed to get me to raise my level of cooking back then. Maybe, even subliminally, I really love a glass of wine or 2 whilst cooking in the kitchen….. This dish was my first real dinner party dish that made people raise their eyebrows – it looks different but tastes great. (I have copied the reciped exactly as in the book)

The inspiration for this has come about from 'A Slice of Cherry Pie' blog and 'Back to the Chopping Board' blog.

Ingredients:

• 4 Small Chicken breasts – boned and skinned
• Salt & Pepper
• Butter
• 1 shallot – finely chopped
• 1 glass of dry white wine
• 1 medium beetroot – cooked and pureed with its own weight in butter
• 150ml (5fl.oz) double cream
• Fresh Chervil and julienne strips of cooked beetroot to garnish

Season the chicken and sauté gently in butter for about 4 minutes on each side. Keep warm and covered.

Boil the shallot in the wine until almost reduced to nothing. Now stir in the beetroot butter into the remaining wine and shallot until melted. Add the cream until you have a smooth consistency and a bright purple sauce. Remove from the heat and keep warm.

There should be a little juice from the chicken that has been resting: pour thid into the sauce. Then slice each breast into thin scallops and reconstruct into its original shape. Pour a little sauce on to each plate, lay the chicken on top of the sauce and decorate with strips of beetroot and chervil.

Oh, by the way - don't serve it with dauphinoise potatoes - just too much! I think crushed new potatoes would be much better.

Decent Jus for Lamb etc

I have another go at making a decent jus for a rack of Lamb last night (less strong than the red wine sauce) Basing the sauce on the principles that I used on a Beetroot sauce (A Keith Floyd marvel and I’’ll post after this!)

Mrs H was a happy and I must admit that I thought it was pretty good – considering that most of the time I am a little disappointed with my meat sauces, unless there is a fluke on the evening. One day I will have the time to boil up a load of veal bones!

Ingredients:

• 1 shallot – finely chopped
• 1 clove of garlic – finely chopped
• 200ml of red wine
• 500ml of decent lamb or beef stock
• Fresh salt and pepper
• 1 tsp of redcurrant jelly
• 1 knob of slightly salted butter

In a frying pan, fry the shallots and garlic in the red wine until almost reduced to nothing (but still liquid) Then add the stock and butter and simmer again and reduce by a half. Remove from the heat and strain the mixture into a clean pan. Taste then season with salt and pepper and reduce further until the required consistency is achieved. If I have been searing the lam or beef in a pan, I will add the misture to the pan to deglaze the pan of the tasty bits! Any juices from the meat from resting or from the oven can be mixed in as well. Serve in a small boat or around the meat.

Tuna with Garlic, Chilli, Lime and Ginger Salsa

A quick meal to enjoy! Who needs fast food when you have this!

Ingredients:

• 2 medium sized Tuna Steak
• 1 clove of garlic - crushed
• 1 thumb sized piece of ginger – finely chopped
• 1 red chilli – to taste – finely chopped
• Juice of one lime
• 1 teaspoon of sugar
• Splosh of olive oil

Mix the garlic, chilli, ginger, lime, oil and sugar in a bowl and leave to one side.

Sear the Tuna in a hot pan (I use vegetable oil) until cooked to your taste. My preference is to have the centre of the steak just pink. However don’t over cook it as the fish is spoilt when over cooked.

Serve with you choice of side dish and sprinkle the salsa over the steak. I served mine with a ‘nutty’ rice – I’ll post this shortly.

Red Wine Sauce with Balsamic Vinegar

Ingredients (serves 2):

• 2 Tbsps Balsamic Vinegar
  
• 80ml Red Wine
  
• 100ml good beef stock
  
• 4 shallots
  
• ½ tbsp Paprika
  
• ½ tsp Thyme
  
• Butter
• Sea Salt & Fresh crushed pepper

Peel and quarter the shallots and gently fry in some butter. Add the balsamic vinegar and boil for a moment. Add the remaining ingredients and simmer until reduced and slightly thick - I also add the juices from the resting meat to give the sauce a fuller flavour. Serve liberally over a fillet steak! This sauce is quick to make and tastes good.

Beurre Blanc Sauce

I'll leave this recipe here but my revised sauce is better! : Sauce MkII

This will be required for the Smoked Haddock & Bubble recipe.

This is a useful and great tasting sauce for fish etc.

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp of White wine vinegar
  
• 1 tbsp of White wine
  
• 2 finely chopped shallots
  
• 1 tbsp of double cream
  
• 6 oz of butter (slightly salted)
  

Add the shallots, white wine and vinegar to a pan, bring to the boil and reduce. Then add the cream and reduce a little more. Dice the butter and then add to the pan and whisk the mixture by hand until even. Strain the sauce to remove the shallots and season with a little salt and pepper.