Incredible Creme Egg Brownies

These are filthy! So so naughty, soft, gooey, cakey and delicious! Make them! NOW!

Ingredients

3 medium eggs

275g caster sugar

185g dark chocolate

185g unsalted butter

85g plain flour

40g cocoa powder

6 cadbury creme eggs

(makes 12 brownies)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180C fan.

2. Break the chocolate into small pieces and cut the butter into small chunks, add both to a microwavable bowl, and melt together in 30 second blasts, stirring in between each one. Set aside to cool a little.

3. In a large mixing bowl with an electric hand whisk, whisk together the eggs and sugar until pale and doubled in volume, this will take around 10 minutes.

4. Pour in the melted chocolate and butter and whisk through.

5. Fold through the flour and cocoa powder until just combined.

Holly's hints- use a flat spatula or large metal spoon and use a gentle folding motion, fold until just combined only to avoid knocking all the air you have whisked into the eggs. 

6. Pour into a rectangular tin, approx 25x20cm in size, with a sheet of greased baking paper at the bottom.

7. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, cut the creme eggs in half. This is much easier said than done but just do your best! I found it easiest to use a sharp serrated knife and start at the side of the egg where the two halves are joined, not top to bottom or vice versa.

8. Remove the brownie from the oven and evenly spaced, gently press in the creme egg halves, fondant side up.

9. Return to the oven for a further 10 minutes to finish cooking the brownie and melt in the creme eggs. 

10. Leave to cool completely in the tin before cutting into 12 portions. 

11. Die and go to creme egg heaven.

Super Versatile Chewy Cookies Recipe

I made this recipe twice, once with smarties, and once with chocolate chips, but you could add pretty much anything! Its really versatile, and they are gorgeous and chewy!

Ingredients
100g softened butter or margerine
100g light brown soft sugar
1 tbsp golden syrup
150g self raising flour
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
50-60g your chosen ingredients, here's a few ideas to try...

• 50g dark chocolate chips and the zest of 1/2 an orange
• 30g chopped macadamia nuts and 30g white chocolate chips
• Replace the golden syrup with the same amount of honey and add a crushed crunchie bar
• 30g fudge pieces 30g milk chocolate chips
• 30g chopped pistachios and 30g dried cranberries
• 30g white chocolate chips and 30g dried cranberries

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 170C fan.

2. Beat or whisk together the butter, sugar, syrup and vanilla extract until light and fluffy.

3. Add the flour and stir until combined. 

4. Add in your chosen ingredients and mix until well distributed.
Holly's Hints- If you want some of the added ingredients to be visible on the top of your cookies after they are baked, keep some back at this stage then press them gently into the top of the balls once they are on the baking trays later.

5. With your hands, roll the mixture into little balls, about ping pong ball sized, and spread out well on two greased baking trays. it should make around 12-15 cookies.

6. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes until very pale golden. They will look a little puffed up and not completely cooked at this stage but do not be tempted to leave them or they will loose their chewy goodness. They will flatten a little and continue to cook on the tray after you have removed them from the oven. 

7. Leave to cool a little on the tray for 10 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.

8. Chow down!!!

Butternut, Bacon and Sage Risotto

Risotto is one of my favourites, and this is one that is a regular feature on my menu! Risotto needs a fair bit of TLC to get it right, but it is well worth it!

Ingredients
400g arborio rice
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 butternut squash, peeled, seeds removed and cut into bite sized pieces
12 fresh sage leaves
12 slices smoked, streaky bacon
20g butter
2 tbsp of olive oil
100g parmesan cheese
2litres hot vegetable stock
1 large glass (or mini bottle) dry white wine
pinch salt and pepper for seasoning

(serves 4)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 220C fan.
2. Place the butternut squash, 1 tbsp olive oil and a little salt and pepper in a large pyrex dish or baking tray. Bake in te oven for 15 minutes.
3. Gently fry the onion until soft and lightly browned.
4. Add the garlic and fry for 2 minutes more.
5. Add the rice to the pan and stir for a few minutes. Risotto rice has a thick shell, this dry heat creates tiny cracks in the shell that allows it to absorb the liquid later, so it's important that you don't skip this stage!
6. Pour in the wine and stir until absorbed.

5. Begin to add the vegetable stock 1 ladle full at a time. Give it a good stir with each addition, you really want to massage all of the starch out of the rice to make your risotto nice and creamy.

6. Once the squash has had it's first 15 minutes in the oven, remove it, sprinkle over the sage leaves, and lay the bacon over the top, then return to the oven for a further 30-40 minutes, until the bacon is crisp. All the time adding more stock as the last ladle full has been absorbed.

7. Once the bacon and squash are cooked, and the rice has absorbed all of the stock and is now tender, remove the bacon and squash from the oven, remove half of the squash and place it in a bowl, then return the rest of the squash and the bacon to the oven on a low temperature to keep warm. Using a potato masher, mash the squash in the bowl to a puree.

8. Add the parmesan cheese and butter to the risotto and stir through to melt. This will add extra creaminess. Then stir through the squash puree.

9. If necessary, add a little more water to the risotto to perfect the consistency. The Italians call the perfect risotto consistency all'onda, which means 'with waves'. So when you stir your risotto it should leave a small break then collapse under its own weight,  filling the gap like a wave lapping. Remove the remaining squash and bacon from the oven.

10. Plate up your risotto rice first, chunks of squash second, then a strip of 3 bacon slices on top.

Enjoy!

Spanish Chicken Tray Bake

This is a super easy, healthy, and tasty one pot, perfect for a mid week meal. The inspiration came from the Hairy Dieters book but I made a few adaptations to suit my own preferences.

Ingredients
1 red onion, cut into 8 wedges
2 large (regular jacket potato sized) sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into bite sized pieces
6 garlic cloves, crushed a little
100g chorizo slices
1 green pepper, cut into bite sized pieces
1 red pepper, cut into bite sized pieces
4 tomatoes, quartered
5 chicken legs
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp chilli powder
Salt and Pepper for seasoning

(Makes enough for 2 greedy people's evening meals and 1 smaller serving for lunch the next day- reheat thoroughly! You could always add a little more or less veg and chicken legs to fill more or fewer mouths if you wished.)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200C fan.
2. Put the potatoes, onion, garlic, tomatoes and a pinch of salt and pepper in a large baking tray or pyrex dish. Bake for 20 minutes.
3. Add the chorizo to the dish and stir it through the veg, place the chicken legs on top. Sprinkle the paprika, oregano and chilli powder, plus a pinch more salt and pepper, over the chicken legs and rub into the skin. Return to the oven for a further 20 minutes.
4. Remove the dish from the oven, carefully tilt it to one side and use a large spoon to pour the juices in the bottom of the dish back over the chicken legs to baste them. Add the peppers to the tray and return to the oven for the final 20 minutes. 
5. Serve on large, deep plates, veg first, chicken legs on top. Getting stuck in to the chicken with your fingers is advised! Get the napkins at the ready!

Home made authentic Italian pizzas

Italian food is my absolute favourite, and pizza is no exception... But I like it done right! A real wood fired pizza oven is obviously on the wanted list but until then I have invested in a pizza stone. It makes such a difference as you can get it super hot, which cooks the base from the bottom up, it also absorbs moisture, producing an authentic thin crispy crust. I have tried several different pizza dough recipes in the past, but iv settled on this one as my favourite, it's easy to work with and has a lovely flavour. 

Dough Ingredients

600 ml luke warm water 

1kg '00' flour (this is really finely ground)

7g packet fast action yeast

6 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil

1.5 tablespoons salt

2 teaspoons sugar

(Makes 4-6 pizzas, could easily be halved)

Method

1. Mix the yeast into the luke warm water.

2. In a very large bowl (or on a worktop if you're not afraid of the mess!), pile up the flour, salt and sugar. Make a dip in the top like a volcano and add the olive oil. Then bit by bit, pour the water and yeast into the crater and stir it in, bringing in more and more of the the flour as you go, until it all comes together. 

3. Flour a work surface and your hands, bring the dough together into a ball, then knead it for 15 minutes on the work surface, until smooth and elastic.

Kneading the dough activates the gluten in the flour, which gives the dough it's elasticity. You will find that at the beginning of kneading, the dough rips very easily... 

But when it's ready it will stretch much further...

Holly's Hints... Everyone kneads differently, but it's just about stretching and massaging the dough. I tend to use the heel of my hand to push forward on the ball of dough to stretch it, I then use my fingers to fold it back on itself before starting again...

4. Form your dough into a ball, grease the mixing bowl with a little more olive oil and return the dough ball to the bowl. Cover with cling film and leave to rise in a warm place (an airing cupboard or by a radiatior is ideal) for at least an hour, but anything up to 6 hours is fine. 

5. Whilst the dough is rising prepare your toppings. Firstly you need to prepare the tomato sauce by blending a tin of tomatoes, either in a food processor or a hand blender will do. The best tomatoes for the job are grown in a town called 'San Marzano'  close to mount Vesuvius. The hot and sunny conditions and volcanic soil make delicious tomatoes with a really intense flavour. They can be quite difficult to get your hands on in the UK but Morrisons do them in their M signature range. They cost around £1.50 a tin but the flavour really is in a different league to a regular tin of tomatoes, and definately worth splashing out on! Also 1 tin will be enough for 4 large pizzas. Then you just need to decide on your toppings. The most popular and traditional toppings in Italy are 'Margherita', which is a simple tomato base, mozarella and fresh basil leaves, also 'Marinara', which is a tomato base, thinly sliced garlic, and a sprinkling of dried oregano, both finished off with a drizzle of olive oil. You could of course add anything you wish! 

When you're ready to go...

6. Put the pizza stone in your oven and preheat to it's hottest temperature (usually around 220-250C).

7. Meanwhile, remove the dough from the bowl and return to a floured work surface. Give it a few good punches and a bit more of a knead, this gets rid of any large air pockets and is called 'knocking back'. Then let it rest for 5 minutes of so to relax the gluten again and make it easy to roll out without it wanting to spring back.

8. Divide the dough into 4-6 balls which can be rolled out one by one as you are ready for them. Begin by pressing the dough into a disk with your hands then roll out further, either with a floured rolling pin, or if you're really brave get you're pizza spinning skills on the go! Spinning pizza bases is a hard one to explain without demonstrating. You basically need to stretch the disk of dough by passing it back and forth between floured hands with a sort of stroking action, then when your ready, flick your wrist to send the pizza spinning into the air before catching it again! Give it a go! Just remember to keep your fingers together so as not to create any holes.

9. Once the oven and pizza stone are hot enough, very carefully remove the stone from the oven and place it on it's stand. Sprinkle a little polenta, semolina or flour on the stone to stop any sticking, then taking great care not to touch the stone, lay your base on it, it will start cooking underneath immediately! 

10. Working quickly, spread the base with your tomato sauce and add your choice of toppings before returning to the oven. Keep an eye on your creation as it will cook very quickly, in approximately 5 minutes. 

11. Serve your pizza and repeat until you have used up all the dough and fed your hungry crowd! 

Enjoy! :D

Kedgeree

Kedgeree began life in India as 'khichari', a rice and lentil dish, sometimes served with boiled eggs or fried fish. Over the years however it has been adopted by us Brits and is now seen as a traditional English breakfast dish. Personally however, I prefer it as a brunch/lunch. There's still something a bit odd to me about smelling spices and fish cooking too early in the morning! 

Serves 4

Ingredients 

-400g mixed fish pieces, smoked haddock is traditional, but it's also delicious with salmon and cod too, a fish pie pack is perfect.

-300ml milk 

-4 large eggs 

-1 onion

-1 tbsp vegetable oil

-2 bay leaves

-Small bunch fresh coriander (approx 10g), roughly chopped

-Small bunch fresh parsley (approx 10g), roughly chopped

-1 tbsp curry powder

-1 tsp ground coriander 

-1 tsp ground turmeric

-300g rice, washed

-800ml water

-1 lemon, quartered to serve

Method

1. Roughly chop the onion and add to a large saucepan with the vegetable oil. Fry on a medium heat, to soften but not brown.

2. Once the onions are soft, add the curry powder, ground coriander and turmeric and fry until fragrant, approx 1 minute. 

3. Add the rice to the pan and cover with the 800ml water. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer for approximately 15 minutes, or until the water has been absorbed and the rice is cooked.

4. Meanwhile, put the fish, bay leaves and milk in a frying pan and cover with a lid, bring to a gentle simmer and poach for 10 minutes.

5. Whilst the rice and fish are cooking, also soft boil the eggs; put them in a small saucepan, cover with cold water, bring to a boil and boil for 3-4 minutes.

6. Peel and quarter the eggs, then add to the rice pan along with the fish and chopped fresh herbs. 

7. Serve with a wedge of lemon.

Ginger Biscuits

I'm a sucker for a biscuit, but in the past havn't had the best luck with making my own. This weekend however I gave ginger biscuits a whirl, they were so easy and taste delicious! Have a go! But be warned... They are very more-ish!! 

Makes 20-30 biscuits 

Ingredients

110g margarine, plus extra for greasing

110g caster sugar 

110g golden syrup

225g self raising flour

3 tsp ground ginger 

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180C fan.

2. In a small pan over a low heat, melt together the butter, sugar and golden syrup. Leave to cool until cool enough to touch.

3. Mix together the flour and ground ginger in a bowl, then stir in the molten butter, sugar and syrup to make a dough.

4. With your hands, roll the dough into approx 20-30 balls the size of 50p coins or 2/3 the size of a ping pong ball. Place with plenty of space around them on 2 greased baking trays.

5. Bake for 10 minutes until golden brown. Leave to cool and firm up slightly on the trays, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely... And get the kettle on!

Baked egg and spinach pots

This is a great weekend lunch recipe- something a bit different but still simple, and really tasty! We (my boyfriend Jim and I) often try to scope out a new lunch time recipe for Sundays, and this one was this weeks. 

Serves 2

Ingredients

160g bag of spinach

8 cherry tomatoes, quartered 

50g Parmesan cheese, grated

20g butter, melted

Pinch salt and pepper 

4 medium eggs 

1 large French bread stick/ baguette 

Approx 20 large basil leaves and good quality extra virgin olive oil, OR, basil infused olive oil 

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180 fan.

2. Boil the kettle and pour it over the spinach in a colander to wilt it down, squeeze out excess water by pressing down with the back of a spoon.

3. Transfer the spinach into a mixing bowl, stir through the butter, Parmesan, tomatoes and salt and pepper.

4. Divide the spinach mixture between 4 ramekins and press down in the middle to form a little well.

5. Crack an egg into the middle and bake for 10 minutes or until the egg whites are just set. 

6. Meanwhile, slice the bread on the diagonal and lightly grill to toast. Take bunches of approx 5 basil leaves at a time and rub them onto the bread, then drizzle with the olive oil. OR just drizzle with basil infused olive oil. 

7. Dig in and spread the goods onto your toasts! Enjoy!