Blackcurrant Muffins

With less sugar content than traditional cupcakes, these American style muffins are delicious and couldn't be easier to make.  They are entirely free of eggs and dairy too!

Made with sunflower oil instead of vegetable fat, all you do is weigh out your dry ingredients into one bowl, combine your liquid ones in a measuring jug, then mix the whole lot together and throw in some blackcurrants and, hey presto, beautiful fresh fruit muffins!

Thanks to a couple of productive bushes in my garden, I always have plenty of blackcurrants in my freezer.  Raspberries, diced strawberries or blueberries would do just as well, fresh or frozen. 

Ingredients      Makes about 12

250g plain flour
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp fine sea salt
50g golden castor sugar
3 fl.oz sunflower oil
9 fl oz soya milk
1 tsp natural vanilla extract
(e.g. Nielsen-Massey Madagascan)
120g fresh or frozen blackcurrants

Topping:
25g golden castor sugar
1 tsp mixed spice

Method

First prepare your muffin tin.

If you have paper cases for muffins, place in the tin. Otherwise, grease the muffin tin well.

Pre-heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/Gas Mark 6.

Sift the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar together into a large mixing bowl.

Measure the soya milk and sunflower oil in a measuring jug. Whisk together with a fork and stir in the vanilla essence.

Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ones and combine well but don't overbeat the mixture if you want super light cakes.   I generally use a fork to incorporate everything and press out any lumps!

Carefully fold in the blackcurrants.

Using a spoon, divide the mixture into the 12 muffin cases or tin.   

Mix the sugar and mixed spice in a small bowl or empty margarine container box.

Using a teaspoon or the corner of the container as a pourer, sprinkle over the top of the muffins.

Bake in the oven for about 25 minutes until well-risen, springy and golden.

If using paper cases, transfer the muffins immediately to a wire rack to cool. If not, leave in the tin for about 5 minutes before turning out.

Roasted Pepper Rolls

Eating pastry may not be everybody's idea of healthy living but these delicious Roasted Pepper Rolls are packed full of fresh vegetables and, unlike sausage rolls, contain no meat, dairy or animal fat.

When you eat as much fresh produce as I do, most of which is organic and freshly picked from my garden, having the occasional pastry treat is not such a bad thing in my book!   Eaten together with a generous plateful of salad,  these Italian style "sausage" rolls make a wonderful lunch and always seem to go down well with everyone I know!

The combination of red, yellow and green peppers looks really attractive too. You could also substitute an aubergine for a couple of the peppers, cooked the same way just cut into 1cm cubes before baking.

Whilst I always make my own shortcrust pastry, I do buy puff pastry as long as it's dairy and animal free, such as Jus-Rol pastry. 

Ingredients                Makes about 12

4 peppers, any colour
3 red onions
3 tbsp olive oil
500g Jus-Rol Puff pastry
Salt and Pepper


Method

Preheat the oven to 220C/200C fan/Gas Mark 7.

Cut the peppers in half and remove the seeds.  Cut into pieces and spread out on a very large baking sheet (or 2 smaller ones) 

Peel the onions and cut each one into about 8 wedges. Place on the tray with the peppers and drizzle with olive oil.

Bake for about 20 minutes until soft but not brown.

When the cooked vegetables have cooled down a little, transfer to a chopping board, season with salt and pepper and chop finely.

Roll the pastry out fairly thin on a lightly floured surface to form an oblong shape.  Cut in half lengthways.

Spoon the chopped vegetables equally along each strip, slightly off centre. Then, using a knife or your fingers, pile into a rounded sausage shape.

Fold the pastry edge nearest to you over the top of the vegetables.  Brush the other edge with a little cold water and roll the sausage away from you to overlap and seal the pastry.

With the sealed edge underneath, cut diagonally into 5 or 6 individual rolls.  Make 2 or 3 diagonal cuts on the top of each roll either with scissors or a knife and place on a baking sheet.

Brush the top of each roll with water then bake in the oven for about 20 minutes until well-risen and golden.

Delicious served hot straight from the oven. 

Store the pepper rolls in the fridge and, if possible, reheat slightly before serving.

Almond Tuiles

These little almond biscuits are as light as a feather and are the perfect accompaniment to a simple fruit dessert such as poached pears or plums, raspberry or blackcurrant coulis and icecream or a compote of summer fruits.   They look fabulous and are really fun to make and very quick too.

 

Ingredients         Makes 18

70g Pure sunflower dairy free margarine
50g golden castor sugar
45g plain flour
45g flaked almonds




Method

Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan/Gas Mark 4.

Place the margarine and sugar in a bowl and blend together with a hand-whisk or a wooden spoon until light and creamy.

Using a knife or spatula, fold in the sifted flour and flaked almonds until well blended.

With a teaspoon, place small blobs of the mixture, spacing them well apart, on two greased baking trays.  I usually put 9 blobs on each tray.

Then carefully flatten the mixture with a fork to make a rough circle shape.

Bake in the oven for about 9 -10 minutes until the biscuits have turned a pale golden colour in the middle and brown at the edges.

As soon as they come out of the oven,  take a palette knife and carefully run it underneath the biscuit and lift onto a rolling pin.   Gently press the biscuit into a curved shape taking care as the biscuits are very brittle!

Leave for a few moments to harden then transfer to a cooling rack.

Stored in an airtight tin, they will keep crisp and fresh for a few days  (if they last that long!)  

Red Bean Bulghur Pilaf

Bulghur Wheat is probably best known as the main ingredient of tabbouleh, the popular summer salad.  In this recipe it's served hot and cooked with onion, garlic, kidney beans and tomatoes and mildly spiced with chilli.

As it's name suggests, bulghur wheat comes from whole wheat grain that has been hulled, par-boiled and roasted.  It's a useful substitute for mince in a bolognese sauce or vegetable casserole as it readily absorbs flavours as well as cooking liquid (and even has the appearance and texture of mince!).

In this quick and easy recipe, the bulghur wheat soaks up all the juicy goodness from the tomatoes and vegetable stock to produce a moist and wholesome supper dish. 


Ingredients                     Serves 4

1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 red pepper, deseeded and diced
175g bulghur wheat
1 x 400g red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 x 400g tin chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp sun dried tomato paste
1 Kallo organic stock cube dissolved in 600ml hot water
1/4 tsp chilli powder (or more to taste)
1 tbsp olive oil
freshly ground salt and pepper

Heat the olive oil in a large saute pan or casserole and fry the onion over a medium heat for about 5 minutes until soft but not brown.  Add the garlic and red pepper and stir well. Cook for about five minutes until the peppers are beginning to soften.

Add the bulghur wheat and give it a good stir round, then add the chilli powder, chopped tomatoes, sundried tomato paste and hot vegetable stock. 

Cover with a lid and simmer gently for about 20 minutes until the liquid has been absorbed and the bulghur wheat tastes cooked.

Stir in the drained kidney beans and season with salt and pepper.

Leave for a few minutes for the beans to heat through, then serve with salad or a green vegetable.

Pissaladière

This is a classic French Provencal dish that never fails to please and impress! Whenever I've made one of these for a workshop or party,  someone has always asked me for the recipe!

As it's name suggests, a pissaladière is similar to an Italian pizza but with no cheese in sight!  It's traditionally filled with onions, tomatoes and herbs with a lattice of anchovy fillets and black olives on top. The filling can be cooked on a bread base or on a pre-cooked shortcrust pastry base, like I've done here, which has a much lighter texture.  What's good about this recipe is that it tastes fabulous cold so it's ideal for a party as you can make it well in advance and keep it in the fridge till needed.

The pastry is entirely dairy free and made with Trex vegetable fat and Pure margarine. I usually use white flour as it makes the tart lighter though I do use wholemeal flour to dust my work surface before rolling it out.  I usually make the pissaladiere in a round flan tin but it looks just as good in a large square or oblong tin.

Ingredients        Serves 6 - 8

Pastry:
180g plain flour
60g Trex vegetable fat
30g Pure sunflower margarine
pinch of salt
1 level tsp cinnamon
About 3 tbsp cold water

Filling:
5 large onions (about 900g)
3 cloves garlic
5 tbsp olive oil
400g tin of tomatoes
1 tbsp sundried tomato paste
3 or 4 fresh sprigs of thyme and oregano
About 15 black olives
Small jar/tin of anchovy fillets in olive oil
freshly ground black pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/Gas Mark 5. 

Place a baking sheet on the middle shelf.

To make the pastry, sift the flour and cinnamon into a large mixing bowl and add a pinch of salt.  Place the vegetable fat and margarine in the bowl and chop into small pieces with a knife. Using your fingers, rub the fat into the flour until it becomes crumbly and resembles breadcrumbs.  

Add the water a little at a time and, using the knife again, mix together to form a soft dough.   (Alternatively, make your pastry in a food processor if you like)

Bring the pastry dough together with your hands and place on a clean, lightly floured work surface.   Roll out the pastry to about 1/4" thick and transfer to a greased 23 - 25 cm (9 -10") flan tin.  (The best way to do this is to roll the pastry loosely round a rolling pin and then lift it onto the prepared tin)

Ease the pastry into position and make sure no air is trapped underneath.  Gently strengthen the sides with any excess pastry to avoid it shrinking down when baked.  Either cover and leave in the fridge until needed or use straightaway.

Prick the base of the flan all over with a fork, place a piece of foil or greaseproof paper on top and fill with baking beans, dried soya beans or rice to stop the pastry base from puffing up whilst baking.

Place in the oven on the pre-heated baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes, then remove the beans ands foil and place the flan base back uncovered in the oven for 5 more minutes or till completely cooked through but not brown.

Meanwhile, make the filling. Peel and thinly slice the onions. (Done in moments in a food processor and without shedding a tear!)

Peel and finely chop the garlic.  Place the olive oil in a large heavy-based pan (I use a 28cm Le Creuset casserole with a lid) and cook the onions and garlic over a low heat for about 40 minutes until they become soft, stirring occasionally. Don't rush this process. The onions need gentle cooking so they stew slowly rather than fry in the olive oil.

Meanwhile, place the tinned tomatoes in a small saucepan with the sundried tomato puree, thyme and oregano. 

Cook the mixture over a medium to high heat stirring frequently until thick and well reduced. 

Stir the tomato mixture into the cooked onions and season with freshly ground pepper and a little salt.  (anchovies are already salty so don't overdo the seasoning.)

Fill the pre-baked pastry base with the cooked tomato and onion mixture.  Drain the anchovy fillets (reserving the oil for another day e.g. for making a homemade tomato sauce)  Using scissors, cut the thickest anchovies in half lengthways and place in a lattice pattern over the filing. Dot the middle of the squares with the olives and drizzle a little olive oil over the top. 

Bake in the oven for 25 - 30 minutes at 200C/Gas Mark 5.

Serve the pissaladière straightaway, if you wish, though I think it tastes better at room temperature.  Delicious with salad, as a main course or starter.

Butternut Squash Soup

I'm a great fan of butternut squash and even started growing my own in the garden last year.  With the intense colour of sunshine,  it brightens up any plate whether served in slices and sauteed in olive oil, stuffed and baked in the oven or diced in a risotto.  For sheer intensity of flavour, dazzling colour and minimal preparation, you can't beat a lovely roasted butternut squash soup.

This recipe is simplicity itself. The squash, onion and garlic are all baked in the oven with olive oil and thyme before being pureed in a food processor and diluted with some vegetable stock. The result is a truly delicious soup with a soft luscious texture and superb natural sweetness!   And did I mention the colour?

Ingredients                   Serves 4

I medium butternut squash (approx 1 kg/2lbs)
1 large onion
5 cloves garlic
8 - 10 sprigs of fresh thyme
3 tbsp olive oil
1 vegetable stock cube dissolved in 300ml boiling water
fresh parsley to garnish
salt and pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/Gas Mark 6.
 
Cut the squash lengthways and remove the seeds and any stringy bits but leave the skin on.  Cut into chunks and arrange in a single layer with the cut side upwards in a large baking dish.
Leaving the skin on the onion and garlic too, cut the onion into quarters and together with the garlic cloves, place in between the squash.

(Five garlic cloves may sound rather a lot but, when it's baked slowly in the oven, garlic becomes soft and gooey and mild in flavour)

Drizzle the olive oil over the vegetables and place the thyme sprigs on top. Season with salt and pepper. 

Cover the dish with foil and bake for an hour or so until the vegetables are tender.  Test for softness with a sharp knife and, if the squash still feels hard, give it another 15 to 30 minutes.

Remove the foil and leave for a few minutes until cool enough to handle or until you are ready to make the soup.

Using a spoon, scrape the squash from the skin and place in a food processor.

Discard the outer layers of the onion and remove the sprigs of thyme.  Squeeze the garlic cloves between your fingers and add the soft garlic puree to the processor with the cooked onion wedges.

Blend until smooth and then transfer the pureed vegetable mixture to a large pan.   Gradually add 300ml hot stock or enough to make a smooth soup.  If it's too thick, just add some water.

Reheat the soup gently, check the seasoning, then ladle into bowls.  Garnish with a little chopped fresh parsley.