It’s Sausage Roll time again!

I’m not sure why but I only seem to make these at Christmastime when what I should be doing is making them CONSTANTLY and eating nothing but them right throughout the year. They are that good! I’ve made several batches as they have been requested and I find it best to make a larger amount in one go because any that I don’t cook and eat straight away can be frozen until I need them.

Try these, even if it’s only to get the smell of them cooking wafting throughout the house!

The quantities make approximately 100 sausage rolls. Now that may seem like a huge amount but in fact it’s not. I cut mine in to individual rolls about half an inch wide because they cook better and are easier to eat. But believe me it is very possible to eat ten of these in one go and not even notice.

Prep time – 30 minutes
Cooking time – 30 Mins

Ingredients -

1 large Golden onion
450g  good quality Sausage Meat
Large pinch of ground coriander
2 teaspoons of fennel seeds slightly ground/crushed in a pestle and mortar)
6 large fresh sage leaves
75g of white breadcrumbs (I used mine frozen straight from the freezer)
2 eggs
1kg of shop bought Puff Pastry (believe me this is fine but make your own if you feel the need)
Salt & Pepper
Several large pinches of Sesame & Poppy seeds for sprinkling

Let’s Begin -

Heat the oven to 200c

Place the onion, sausage meat, coriander, fennel seeds, sage leaves, breadcrumbs, 1 egg and some salt and pepper in to the large bowl of a food processor and whiz it up until it is all combined. If you do not have this piece of equipment then chop the onion and sage leaves in to very small pieces and combine with the rest of the ingredients in a large bowl and mix it all together with your hands. Really get stuck in there!

Set to one side.

Roll out your pastry on a floured surface. If it comes in 500g blocks roll out one at a time.

Each 500g of pasty should be rolled in to a piece that is approximately 24 inches long and 7 inches wide. Then cut this length in half right down the middle.

We’re now ready to begin assembling our Sausage Rolls.

Split the Sausage Meat mixture in to four portions and place one portion right down the middle of the pastry. Favour one edge slightly as you’ll be wrapping it up in a moment.

Pull one side of the pastry up and over the sausage meat and push together with the pastry on the other side of the meat mixture.

Seal it all in with a fork.

Give the pastry a wash with the other egg.

And sprinkle a mixture of Sesame and Poppy seeds all over the egg so that it sticks to the pastry.

Cut each length of sausage filled pastry in to approx twenty five pieces.

At this point if you want to freeze the Sausage Rolls then place them uncooked on to a tray and freeze them. When they are frozen you can transfer them in to a bag as a tray takes up quite a bit of space in the freezer. Defrost for an hour or so before cooking.

If you do not wish to freeze them but bake them immediately then place them on to a lined baking tray and cook for between twenty and twenty five mins, turning once, until they are a shade beyond golden brown.

These Sausage Rolls are a bit of a hit in my family and I’m really fond of them myself. Personally I have made batches for my myself for this evening, Christmas Eve supper and New year’s Eve to take to a friends. I’m also about to have several more with a cup of tea. So if you see a human sized Sausage Roll wandering the streets in January that would be me. I’ve simply eaten too many!

I love you and thank you so much for reading today. Back next time with scenes from my Christmas Home and Table.

Cherry x

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Hello!

Guess what?

Mincemeat is one of the easiest things to make on this planet. There are quite a few ingredients but basically they all go in to a big bowl, sit there for a bit, and then get put in to a jar. OK, there’s a teeny bit more to it than that but not much more.

These quantities will make almost three kilo’s of mincemeat. Which is a nice amount as you can fill some mince pies and also give a jar or two away.

Equipment -

• x6 500g (or equivalent) preserving jars – basically this means a jar that can be sealed in an airtight fashion so that the mincemeat will keep. Le Parfait, Mason and Kilner jars are all now readily available.

• A large bowl

• Tongs

Ingredients  -

• 150g glace cherries – chopped in to small pieces

• 100g pecans – chopped in to small pieces

• 100g hazelnuts – chopped in to small pieces

• 3 lemons – zest and juice

• 2 oranges – zest and juice

• 450g bramley apples (or other cookers)  -  peeled, cored and chopped in to small pieces

• 220g shredded suet ( I used beef, if you’re veggie used vegetable suet)

• 350g raisins

• 12 medjool dates  – chopped in to small pieces

• 220g sultanas

• 220g currants

• 350g dark muscovado sugar

• 220g mixed candied peel

• 5 tsp mixed spice

• 2 tsp ground cinnamon

• 2 large pinches of freshly grated nutmeg

• 4 tbsp brandy

• 4tbsp amaretto

Put all of the ingredients in to a large bowl.

Stir well (whilst watching your seventeen month old son try his hardest to get in to the fridge)

At one point I got really stuck in and used my hands to stir the lot together. The aroma at this point will be making your mouth water.

Pat down in the bowl, cover, and set aside overnight.

The next day empty the bowl in to a large saucepan and heat very gently on a low heat.
Stirring often.
Don’t let the mixture stick to the bottom of the pan or burn in any way. This process is only to gently melt the suet.

It’s a beautiful looking recipe. And it fills the house with the smell that only comes at this time of year.

When the mixture has been heated all the way through and the suet has melted, coating all the ingredients, keep it warm while  getting your jars ready.

Wash them in very hot soapy water, rinsing them thoroughly.

Then put them in to a hot oven for a few minutes.

Lift them carefully out of the oven……

..and while still warm fill the jars with the mincemeat.

Close the jars (see note on the types of jar to use) and allow to cool in a cool dark place.

OK, a few notes on all of this to demystify it all.

• This mincemeat will keep well for about a year if the jar is airtight, thoroughly steralised before hand, and left in a cool dark place. But I’ll be using all of mine this Christmas.
• If you don’t like some of the ingredients then feel free to swap them around a bit. But if you play too much, add loads more nuts or fruit etc, you’ll find that the result is either too dry or far too soggy. This recipe is really lovely, not too sweet, bit tangy, and rich even after only one day of sitting around. So I would urge you to give it a go.
• Stir Up Sunday was yesterday. But if you were busy or missed it then please don’t worry. This mincemeat is fabulous for making at the last minute. As I said Louise and I left our bowl overnight, heated it up as per my recipe and then made some mince pies out of a portion of it before putting the rest in to jars. The mincemeat was gorgeous and several other people who were at my house for lunch yesterday loved it. So even if you make it a week or the night before Christmas you’ll be OK.
• If you only have time in the evening for these kinds of kitchen shenanigans then do the first step one evening and heat it and put in to jars the next. It’ll keep.

It is so foggy here right now. The fog arrived yesterday morning,went away and then returned just as folk were leaving our house yesterday evening. This morning it’s white as far as I can see, like snow!

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Have a great start to the week. I love you and thank you so much for reading.

Cherry x

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• Mix up your English style pancake batter in a large bowl
• Using a ladle or a large spoon, pour some of the batter mix onto a pre-heated frying pan with a knob of butter on a high heat.
• Fry the pancake on both sides for 2-3 minutes until both sides have browned slightly.

• Make as may as you can eat and serve with a generous helping of lemon & sugar.

Cherry
x

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• Mix up your English style pancake batter in a large bowl and set to one side.
• Grill 6 slices of free range smoked bacon until it is crispy then cut it up into small pieces.

• Thinly slice some brie cheese.
• Using a ladle or a large spoon, pour some of the batter mix onto a pre-heated frying pan with a knob of butter on a high heat.
• Fry the pancake on both sides for 2-3 minutes until both sides have browned slightly.

• Transfer the pancake to a plate and while it is still hot, add some of the chopped bacon and sliced brie to one side of the pancake, then gently roll all the ingredients together to create a wrapped – up feast of yumminess.
• Serve immediately with a huge mug of builders tea.

Love
Cherry
x
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It’s also nice to hold hands. We held hands the other night while we watched telly. Well, I watched telly (Grey’s Anatomy) and Robert was trying to surf on the laptop one handed.

But today’s post isn’t about Robert or past boyfriends or children. It’s not even about family.

It’s about girlfriends. You know the ones, those saucy  minxes who know everything about you and only have to see the glint in your eye to know that you are planning on doing something outrageous. The ones who understand that although you love your children with every fibre of your being when you hold your post-pregnancy crinkly tummy in your hands you can’t help but be a little bit sad.

They are the ones who don’t mind that plans have to change because you’re trying to hold it all together. In fact they pull out all the stops to help. Coming over and taking a baby out of your arms so that you can fill a bath and finally use the nectar that your husband bought you as a gift many moons ago.

They are the ones who love you as you grow apart and then back together again as your lives take you on different paths.

They are the ones who don’t have time for anything other than love in their hearts because they are too busy living a big life.

They are the ones who would respond like they had just been given a red Cartier box when all you have done is made them a tiny cupcake gift stack.

This idea is so perfect because you could make gifts for up to ten girlfriends while making only one batch of cupcakes. It’s the best sort of idea for any busy girl – simple, fun and just a little bit beautiful.

What you will need for the Cup Cupcakes -
6oz butter (softened)
6oz caster sugar
8oz self raising flour
3 medium sized free range eggs
1 tsp baking powder

Mix the butter and the sugar together in a large bowl- ideally in a food mixer but this can also mixed by hand
Beat the eggs in a separate bowl and add them to the mixing bowl
Then, sift in the flour and the baking powder
Beat the mixture together until smooth and creamy
Separate the cake cases and distribute them evenly onto a baking tray(s), allowing at least 1 inch of space between each cupcake case – they tend to expand in the oven!
Fill the cases with the mixture leaving at least half an inch of empty case. This is important as it helps with the icing that you’ll do later.
Bake in the oven (190c) for around 20 minutes or until slightly golden on top and they are not wet in the middle
Once removed from the oven, allow to cool completely on a wire rack before you start the process of icing them

OK, so you’ve got the cake part finished. The icing part is important as this is what will give your cupcake gift a ‘professional’ finish. I love all things homemade but I want the quality of what I create to be a good as possible. I want to learn as many new skills as I can because then I can take more pride in what I do. This icing technique is one of those times where you can really show off.

Sift 500g of Royal Icing in to a mixer bowl.
Add three tablespoons of lemon juice and your chosen food colour and mix slowly together using the paddle attachment
As the icing begins to come together add a tablespoon of water one at a time until the icing runs SLOWLY from the paddle when held aloft. It has to run slowly and still be thick in its consistency or it will run off the top of the cakes so add the water gingerly and wait until it has all been mixed together before adding any more.
Pour the icing onto the top of the cake until it becomes level with the top of the cake case.
Allow to dry and then tie together

Two cupcakes.
Beautifully, nay professionally, iced.
Given in love.

Have a wonderful day. I love you and am very much enjoying hearing from you here, on Facebook, Twitter & email. You guys rock and are lovely.

Cherry x

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I’m not one for wishing my life away so I’ll make sure that there are lots and lots of good and cosy things coming your way here on my website this week. That way we’ll have a great week together and enjoy every minute.

I’ve also got a free gift for you. Today you can download my Bonfire Night Sausage Flags.

Simply print them out on to stiff paper or thin card, cut out the flag shapes, fold them in half & glue them around a cocktail stick.

Then stick them in every sausage you can find and serve them out of a bowl on Bonfire Night.

It’s fun as a host or hostess to go around and personally serve your guests. And this way makes it easy.

The kids will be sure to love them too!

I made my sausages taste even better by frying them very gently in a dash of balsamic Vinegar & Worcestershire Sauce. If you do it slowly enough it gives the sausages a really beautiful tasting glaze to them and also makes them look charred but not taste burnt.

A little secret tip for you on a Monday.

You’ll also find that the flags are back to front on the reverse. I like them like that. It makes a simple thing a little more interesting.

Robert the Husband and I got out in to the Paddock on Saturday. We didn’t get as much done as we’d hoped as the rain came down and nearly washed us away. But we finally got the Gazebo packed up and put away for the Winter and I cleared the Sunflowers. I left them up for much longer than I should have done as they serve as natural bird feeders.

The birds come along, sit on the flower and eat all the seeds.

But the seeds have now all gone so the plants need to come up as they look horrid standing there devoid of all life.

I strapped Anaïs on to my front and although it made the job take a little longer than it may have done it was more fun.

She is starting to teethe and although no teeth are coming through just yet she does create a lot of dribble. The front of my top was soaked, soaked let me tell you, when we’d finished. But in that ‘new mummy’ way I kind of like it and wear my dribble drenched clothes as a badge of honour. My greatest achievement.

Anaïs seems to be achieving a rather fetching ‘having my picture taken’ face!

That’s my girl.

Work it baby, work it, own it!

Welcome to November, says Ned.

Let’s enter this month with glorious abandon and embrace everything it throws at us. You never know, it may the best November we’ve ever had!

Download my Free Bonfire Night Sausage Flags here!

I love you.
Cherry x

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Cupcake towers are nothing new particularly but they are fast becoming a classic in cake baking and this is why I chose to opt for this design for my Baby Shower cake. The reason they work so well in a social situation is because you have none of the fuss of having to cut a cake to serve it and folk can also take them home with them if you have plenty left over.

You can also make them in any size, colour or design that you want to. Which means you can decorate your cakes to match the room in which they’ll be displayed. You’ll see that this is exactly what I did with mine. I was very sad and made them to match the Union Jack picture that will very shortly be coming to this website as a how-to!

I also used a clear plastic (plexiglass) cake stand. I feel that this is an investment that is very worthwhile. You’ll have it for ages and ages and they are so neutral that they can be used for any occasion, season or event. They don’t have to be left undecorated as I did with mine for the Shower they can be covered to match the theme of your event.

But enough of all that for the moment, let’s get started on how to make the little fellas…….

Click here for our cooking and baking weight conversion chart

The quantities given for the ingredients in the red box will make approximately 20 cup cakes.

Pre-heat the oven to 190c

• Mix the butter and the sugar together in a large bowl- ideally in a food mixer but this can also mixed by hand
• Beat the eggs in a separate bowl and add them to the mixing bowl
• Then, sift in the flour and the baking powder
• Beat the mixture together until smooth and creamy
• Separate the cake cases and distribute them evenly onto a baking tray(s), allowing at least 1 inch of space between each cupcake case – they tend to expand in the oven!
• Bake in the oven for around 20 minutes or until slightly golden on top and they are not wet in the middle
• Once removed from the oven, allow to cool completely on a wire rack before you start the process of icing them

For the butter icing…

• In a large bowl mix together the softened butter, icing sugar and food colouring until it looks fluffy
• When the mixture is fully blended (so there are no lumps of butter left – BLEUGH!!), start spooning the butter icing into a piping bag with a large nozzle
• Using a large nozzle on the piping bag not only prevents the icing from clogging the nozzle hole as the mixture is pretty thick, but it also creates the classic butter cream swirl that is beautiful and an absolute classic in cupcake-ville!
• Pipe away until your hearts content, we figured the more icing there was on top our cakes, the scrummier they would taste.
• With this type of icing it doesn’t have to be left to dry, so you can serve your beautiful cupcakes immediately.

As these cakes were for a baby shower we decorated them with some tiny ‘Baby Love’ flags. I made these using Adobe Illustrator and printed them out on to card.

They were then stuck around the top of a cocktail stick and placed in to the cake.

I designed them so that there was a mirrored version of ‘Baby Love’ on the back of the flag so they looked great from every angle. Who knows, perhaps these trims and things will be available in a web store near here rather soon!

The tower of cupcakes was then placed on the table and surrounded by vintage and mismatched tea plates. That way my guests could take a cake, place it on a suitably sized plate and wander off to find someone nice to chat to.

Many of them came and found me on the sofa, huffing and puffing and guzzling Pomegranate juice. We all had nice chats as long as they agreed to help me with the cushion formation behind me!

The basics needed for this project  to be a success are a large piping nozzle and a cake stand of some sort. The rest of the beauty and creativity is entirely up to you and I’m more than confident that your cupcake towers will be utterly beautiful!

See you tomorrow for another entertaining idea!

Lots of love,
Cherry
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It’s Pancake Day / Shrove Tuesday here in the UK which means it’s the last day before Lent. Here in our office Jodie is giving up chocolate and Cathy is giving up bread. I’ve already given up my entire being to incubate the Meatballs so I’ve been let off the hook this year. But now is the time to use up all your eggs, fat and sugar that are hiding in your kitchen cupboards to make way for a more abstained forty days……….or so the theory goes.

For these pancakes I have used my American style pancake mix.

ALSO – here is a link to a weight conversion chart.

Banana and Chocolate Hazelnut

• Mix up your American style pancake batter.
• We pre-heated our non-stick frying pan and cooked these particular pancakes over a medium/low heat, lowering a ladle full of batter in to the pan
• Wait until you can see that the underside is cooking well before flipping as it may split and the batter on top will run everywhere ruining the pancake shape
• Each pancake should only need 3-4  minutes on each side and I’m always flipping mine over several times to check on them until they are done and cooked just the way I like them

• Place your first pancake onto a plate and spread liberally with some hazelnut chocolate spread (we used Nutella)
• Slice some banana pieces and place them onto the chocolate spread.

Continue with this process until you have a satisfying stack of super sweet chocolate and banana pancakes and then top with a sprinkle of chopped hazelnuts.

I’ve had several batches of pancakes lately. The most recent being on Valentine’s Day morning before Robert the Husband and I headed out for the day. Radio 4 was on in the background, my current read was on my lap and I also enjoyed a steaming mug of builders tea. I’m not really into tea right now and I still couldn’t wish coffee further (a miracle as my middle name is Grande Skinny Latte) but on Sunday I really wanted a nice cup of tea.

I only drank half of it but it still did the trick for my pregnant body. I now fully understand where my Nana and folk of her generation were coming from when they said that the war was won on cups of tea.

Absolutely!
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Cherry x

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Chocolate pie, is there anything better? Creamy chocolate pie that is rich enough to melt in your mouth but not so much so that it makes you feel sick. I think we’ve managed this balance with this pie recipe. Making a pie for someone you love and adore on Valentine’s Day is a highly appropriate way to celebrate how you feel for someone other than a partner. By this I mean that you can demonstrate your adoration to parents, grandparents and friends with a chocolate pie such as this one and not end up having an awkward moment.

Awkward moments. Tough aren’t they?

Sometimes, when I’m being HIGHLY INAPPROPRIATE and I know that Jodie, my sister with whom I work, is having a stressful day I give her an ‘inappropriate work hug’. This can be described as a simple hug but not one that you’d find occurring in many workplaces across the land. Jodie knows what I’m doing – being naughty because I think it’s funny – and remains still until my hug giving has come to an end. I, on the other hand, find it HILARIOUS and have to remind myself constantly that others may not. Jodie being one of them.

Anyone wanna come work here?

‘Inappropriate work hugs’ come with the package.

Anyway, on with the pie!

For the pie base

• Start by crushing your biscuits into crumbs. The easiest way to do this is to whizz them for a few moments in a food mixer but you could put the biscuits into a sandwich bag, seal it, and then bash the contents with a rolling pin.

• Add the finely ground biscuits to a mixing bowl.

• Gently heat the butter in a pan over a low heat and then add it to the mixing bowl along with the sugar.
• Stir all the ingredients together so the butter absorbs into the digestive and sugar mix.

• Use your fingers or rubber spatula to press the digestive mix firmly into the pie dish.
• Put the pie dish into the oven and bake for 10 minutes.
• Remove pie base from the oven and allow to cool completely.

For the filling

• Crush the hazelnuts into very finely ground pieces using either a pestle and mortar or a food blender and set to one side.
• In a large bowl beat the whipping cream until it has formed soft peaks. (You may want to use a food mixer for this as it may take a while to whip by hand)
• Set the whipped cream to one side.
• Melt the chocolate and nutella on a low heat in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of boiling water.
• In a separate mixing bowl combine the cream cheese, milk and sugar and beat until smooth (once again, for ease it is advisable to use a food mixer for this part)
• Add the melted chocolate, whipped cream and hazelnuts to the cream cheese mix and fold all the ingredients together.

• Pour the mixture over the pie base and smooth over with a pallet knife.
• Cover the pie with cling film and refrigerate overnight.

Take it out of the fridge the next day and it will be a dream to cut. As you can see.

I had to give Jodie a slice to apologise for another ’Inappropriate work hug’ the previous day.

See?

A chocolate pie such as this one will also work as an apology. MULTI TALENTED!

Cx

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I’m adding this recipe so late in the day as they really are simple to rustle up, if you have the time, and look utterly darling on the table. It’s really cool to have recipes and ideas such as this up your sleeve, so to speak, as if you really love to make guests feel welcome and go OTT at this time of year these cupcakes will act as an accessory and help you in this and are great with a cup of tea if you’re sick of mince pies.

Here is a weight conversion chart

Pre-heat oven to 200c

• Start by measuring out the sugar and the butter and blend either in a food mixer or by hand in a large bowl until smooth and creamy
• Add the eggs, vanilla and milk and then sift in the flour
• Mix together until blended
• Start arranging your silver cake cases on a baking tray, leaving around and inch between each case as the mixture will grow and start to spread out in the cases when baking, (you will probably need two good sized baking trays for the whole batch but if you have just one tray, you will need to bake the cakes in two batches.)
• Using a teaspoon, spoon the cake mixture into the cake cases filling each one until it is around a third full
• Place the tray into the oven and bake for around 15-20mins until the cakes are a light golden brown or are not wet and middle
• Allow the cakes to cool completely once removed from the oven before you start to ice them
• I always use a lot of icing, probably more than I need to, as I like my icing to be good and thick as I find this way it settles on the cakes better
• Mix the icing sugar and a couple of drops of the baby blue food colouring together with a small amount of water until you have mixed the icing to your required thickness
• Spread the icing evenly over the top of the cakes so it settles flat and in line with the rim of the cake cases

Tip: If the cakes have risen too much in the middle when being baked and do not have a flat top, you can always use a sharp knife and cut the tip of the cake off. This will allow the icing to settle flat giving your cupcakes that shop bought look.

• Whilst the icing is still wet, decorate the tops of your cakes with the snow flake decorations, this will allow the decorations to set inside the icing as it dries
• Place the cakes on a tray in put them in the fridge to set for around 30 minutes until the icing is firm to the touch
• Serve on a pretty cake stand to friends and family

Have a great day

Cherry x

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I have a GREAT recipe for one of the best ways to baste your Turkey this year if you like a juicy moist golden Turkey on the table during Christmas lunch.

Here is a weight conversion chart

• Take the softened butter, garlic and thyme (leaves only)

• Cream in a food mixer or use a wooden spoon to cream together

• Make a small incision at the top of the breast with a sharp knife.

• Use this opening to gently but firmly begin to pull the skin away from the flesh

• When the top layer of skin has been gently prised away from the flesh of the turkey, grab yourself a nice handful of the thyme & butter mixture and begin to push the mixture further on down under the skin and on to the flesh

• Just like Jo-Jo’s doing here
• Please don’t write in to say that Jodie is wearing red nail polish while doing this. I know this. We both wear it an awful lot and I have always cooked with it on.

• When you’ve covered the breast meat underneath the skin rub the remaining mixture on to the outside of the legs
• Don’t worry too much about spreading the buttery really evenly. When it melts under the heat of the oven it will run and drip exactly where you want it

• And once the Turkey has finished cooking you’ll be left with a glorious golden delight such as this one. Sealing the butter mixture in between the flesh and the skin ensures that a lot of the moisture in the breast meat is locked in and the bird is basted from the inside out.
• To retain more moisture pop a small orange or satsuma, un-peeled, into the cavity and leave there while it’s cooking.

If you use this basting recipe you can be sure to have a wonderfully moist tasting turkey on Christmas morning.

Enjoy!

Cherry x

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These great tasting mini Yorkshire puds and even yummier mini trifles are superb as they sit neatly on a side plate and wont fall out of your friends hand and down the front of their pristine new Christmas outfit. Unless of course they are not great with hand/mouth co-ordination, but you can’t be responsible for everyone!

Click here for a weight conversion chart!

For the Mini Yorkshire Puds -

• Slice the roast beef slices in to thin slices length-ways
• Pop them them on a plate and set to one side
• Bake the puds in the oven on a baking tray. The ‘quick bake’ ones (available in the freezer sections of most supermarkets) usually only take around 4-5 minutes
• Remove the puds from the baking tray and place onto a serving plate/platter

• Start adding the strips of beef to the middle of the puds until they are all full

• Using a teaspoon, spoon a small amount (about the size of a penny) of the horseradish into each of the puds

• These puds are best served warm but they are just as yummy when cooled down

For the Mini Trifles -

• Place the silicone jelly cases onto large tray (the reason I used silicone cases for the trifles is because paper cases are not strong enough to hold all the ingredients, plus silicone cases are re-usable)
• Mix up the jelly / jello in hot water, as per the instructions on the packet, until the cubes of jelly / jello have dissolved
• Pour the jelly / jello liquid into the silicone cake-cases until about one third full

• Distribute the cases onto a large tray and put them into the fridge.
• Allow the jelly / jello to set, this usually takes around 2-3 hours

• Once the jelly / jello has set , spoon out approximately one tablespoon of the Swiss roll and place it on top of the jelly/jello

• Drizzle one teaspoon of festive sherry over the top of the Swiss roll
• Let it soak in to the sponge for a moment or two

• Pour the custard into the cake case covering the Swiss roll and jello but do not fill it to the top
• Whisk the whipping cream in the mixer until light and fluffy

• I then put the whipping cream into a piping bag and piped the cream onto the custard to ensure the top was totally covered in cream, but you could just spoon the cream on if you don’t have a piping bag

Tip: You may be tempted to use squirty canned cream  for this, but DON’T! The canned cream goes runny and limp after about five minutes and this will not look good on your party table.

• Finally, sprinkle with chocolate sprinkles and rainbow pearl decorations and pop them back into the fridge for another hour or two.

Serve with a teaspoon and watch your guests enjoy them!

Have a great day!

Cherry x

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It’s the eternal question? Do we have Turkey for Thanksgiving/Christmas or something else? Some folks, my Dad for instance, would never let us hear the end of it if we served anything other than Turkey on Christmas Day.

A fictional conversation now takes place…

“Do you remember when you served that other thing on Christmas Day, Chel?”

“What OTHER THING, Dad?”

“You know, the thing that wasn’t Turkey”

“Goose?”

“Is that what it was??? I had the shock of my life. Never before had I had a Christmas without a Turkey and to be honest Chel, it troubled me a little”

“There, there, you’re talking in your sleep again. Toddle off back to the armchair like a good Dada and I’ll get your tartan blanket. Is that dribble?”

Others are not as bothered. They’ll try Duck, Goose, Ham or Beef. So the recipe I’m featuring here today is either an alternative to Turkey or a dish that you can serve on another day such as Boxing Day or New Years Day. It’s still festive, still allows you to carve at the table and is still tasty and mightily filling.

This sized joint will certainly feed eight adults. You will find a weight conversion chart here if needed

• Place your joint in to a snugly fitting pan

• Pour two litres of Cider in to the pan

• Then add the rest of the simmering ingredients
• Bring the pan to the boil
• Lower the heat and allow to simmer with the lid on for 2 hours
• Turn the joint upside down after one hour
• Keep cider topped up during this process keeping as much of the joint immersed in water as possible

• After 2 hours simmering, with the lid on, remove the joint from the pan and place on to a chopping board or suitable surface
• Remove the string if it has any
• Taking a sharp knife slice off the layer of fat
• Discard both the fat and the cooking liquid

• Score the top of the joint diagonally making pretty  diamond shapes that remind you of Kanye West’s sweaters
• Drizzle olive oil over it and rub this in to the joint
• In a pestle and mortar grind up the rub ingredients (see red ingredients box) and smear them all over the top and ends of the joint
• Place the joint in the oven for twenty minutes at 200c

Serve with roasted veg….

Mashed potato with heaps of black pepper…

..and a table adorned with berries, lights, candles, wine and those you love ….don’t put actual people on the table as humans are not commonly used as table decoration.

I placed a cosy blanket on the back of each chair to try and induce a sense of being in a ski lodge. Don’t ask me why but these little touches are the things that guests LOVE. The blankets are all inexpensive fleecy numbers and make hard backed chairs a darn site more comfortable.

I can’t explain the ski lodge thing further I’m afraid except for the fact that my Mum and I were having a convo yesterday while watching Deck the Halls on Sky Movies. We were saying how much we’d love to spend Christmas at the Ahwahnee and dreaming of how lovely it would be. Here’s my mini version of what I think it would be like. And all I had to do was pop to Ikea for some blankets!

Yay!

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Cherry’s British Boston Baked Beans Recipe

In the UK the 5th of November  is celebrated as Guy Fawkes Night and if you are having some peeps over for a bonfire and some fireworks this weekend then I have the recipe for you. It’s hearty and guaranteed to warm the cockles. This is also a recipe that we’ve created specifically for LARGE BOOMING gatherings. So often I bang a chili in to the oven on such occasions but this is just as good and another dish to add to the repertoire.

We needed the perfect dish that we could serve with some nice crusty bread and steamed rice and this dish is perfect for that. Please bear in mind that the quantities I have given will produce 2 large pots (5 lt. pots – I told you it was a lot!) of my British Boston Baked Beans. You can of course half the quantities if you like but if you do decide to make the full amount you will be happy to know that these beanie babies freeze beautifully and are even better having been heated up.

You can find a useful weight conversion chart here.

For the beans…

If the packets of your dried beans tell you to soak all your dried beans in large pan overnight then you must do this.

• The next morning….  drain the beans and distribute them equally between two large pans
• Add 1 litre of water to each of the pans ensuring the beans are totally immersed in the water. Add more water to cover if necessary
• Peel your onion and cut it in half
• Add  half of the peeled onion to each pan along with 1/4 teaspoon of salt
• Put the pans on a high heat and allow them to reach boiling point and then let them boil for a further 5 minutes
• After 5 minutes turn the heat down to a medium/low heat and part cover each pan with the lid
• Allow both pots of beans to gently simmer for 2 hours until the beans are tender

Note: the beans should always be immersed under water so add more water throughout the simmering process if necessary

After 2 hours….

• Drain both pans of beans
• Remove and discard the onion pieces.

For the British Boston mix…

• Use a large mixing bowl to combine the cinnamon, apple cider vinegar, barbecue sauce, brown sugar, maple syrup, Dijon mustard and salt and pepper.
• Stir until blended.
• Finely chop the Romano peppers and add them to the bowl.

• Cut the uncooked smoked gammon into smallish sized cubes,  removing any fat from the cut, and add to the bowl
• Then add the crushed (or finely chopped) garlic and stir well until all the ingredients are blended together
• Divide the boiled beans into two separate pans or oven proof dishes – they must be able to fit into the oven and have a lid (I used one large oven proof pan and a one dutch oven)

• Divide the British Boston mix equally in two and then pour over each pan of beans
• Stir gently but thoroughly to ensure all the beans are covered in the mixture
• Pour one litre of fresh water into each of the pans and once again stir gently
• Peel and half the other onion and add the two halves to each of the pans
• Put both pans, with the lids on, into a hot oven – 220c – and cook for 1 hour.
• After one hour remove from the oven and stir well making sure there is still liquid in the pans and they have not dried out.
• Add more water if absolutely necessary but don’t dilute! On the other hand don’t let them dry out. Pesky beans.

At this point the beans will be cooked but to get the most out of all the flavours you have added to the pan it is advisable to let them cook slooowwly for a further three hours in a warm oven – 150c.

Serve immediately …..
or warmed up a little later …..
or even freeze them and eat them another time once defrosted.

They taste great with crusty bread, rice or cornbread.

If you are heading out tonight then have fun. Remember to put your pets inside as they can get scared by the big bangs and don’t pick up a firework after it has gone off as it may still be hot.

Hmmmmm, at least there was one of us paying attention during Blue Peter as a kid! Do you remember those adverts they used to play on the tele around this time. That poor girl who picked up a firework, screamed, and then had to show her hand to the camera!

Jeez, I was scarred for life over that one.

Cx

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Tapenade Recipe

If I could describe my favourite times in the kitchen it’s when I attempt to make something that I had always thought of as too difficult or I had avoided in some way and it actually turns out OK. I prefer this experience much more than when I’m making something that I’ve made a million times before and I can just phone it in. Now the funny thing is that more often than not the ‘thing’ that I have always wanted to have a go at but have been too chicken to try is very, very easy. And I end up, when the ‘thing’ is completed, saying out loud and usually to myself “Was that it? Jeez, if I’d have known we’d have been eating that seven days a week instead of Bangers & Mash!!”

Tapenade I wanted to conquer for two reasons -

1. I like eating it.
2. It is brill (did I just type that word) for serving when you have guests over and seeing as Christmas is approaching it’s a good one to have under your belt. It’s tasty and fast and I only know this because I can now make it and make it gooooodd. It’s so good that I’ve only just about stopped short of spreading it all over Robert the Husband and that’s because he didn’t want to go to work smelling of olives, garlic and capers. I told him to be thankful that my recipe didn’t include anchovies.

Here’s how you make it using the ingredients found in the red info box to the right of this article. You’ll find a weight conversion chart here!

• Place all of the ingredients in a processor and whiz for a few seconds until it has been blended but NOT pureed.
• Serve with biscuits, crackers and bread sticks.
• This amount will fill approximately two small serving bowls, one for each end of the table or two corners of the room.

Told ya!

HOW SMUG AM I??????

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For many of you with children this will be the last day of the half term so we thought we would share a really great but simple recipe with you that you can make with the help of the kids; however, these little ghostly treats are also a winner with the adults as Robert the Husband will tell you *scoff scoff*

• Useful Weight Conversions
• Pre-heat oven to 190c

For the apple sauce -

• Start by peeling your apples and cutting them into smallish pieces. I used Bramley but use a cooking apple that has a certain crisp sweetness if you can find one.
• Add the cinnamon, nutmeg, sugar and water and place on the heat.
• Let the apples simmer for around 8 minutes until the sugar has dissolved and the apples are soft.
• Remove from the heat and set to one side.

For the pastry -

• Add the flour, salt and butter to a large mixing bowl and with your fingertips crumble the ingredients together until the mixture resembles a breadcrumb like mixture.
• Add the water and knead the mixture together until it forms your pastry ball.

• On a lightly floured surface roll the pastry out until it is about 2-3mm thick

• Take the ghost cookie cutter and start cutting out your shapes

• Using a small spoon, spoon the cooked apple onto one of the ghost shapes. Try spread the apple across as much of the pastry as possible without over filling as when the parcels go into the oven the sauce will start seeping out if they are too full

• Place another ghost pastry piece on top, pinching the sides of the ghost parcel to secure the apple sauce inside.

• When all the ghost pastry shapes are cut and the fillings are in, place onto a non-stick baking tray and brush the ghosts with whisked egg white.
• Bake in the oven for 15 minutes.

Caution! The contents of these yummy little parcels will be VERY hot when removed from the oven so make sure they are good and cool if serving to children.

I decorated mine with some piped black icing just to add to the fun of it all but you could leave yours au ‘natural.

Try and gives these a go because they really are quite delicious. Yum!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN everyone and if you are trick or treating this holiday, have fun.

I’m back on Monday with my brand new calender download, brand new monthly newsletter and a full rundown of what’s going to be happening in the month of November.

Christmas is fast approaching and it’s time to get ready,ready,ready!!

Lots of love and have a fabulous weekend.

Cherry, xo

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Well, I can officially say that it’s started.

If you DO NOT like preparing for Christmas in advance in order to save time, money and have a GREAT DEAL OF FUN ALONG THE WAY then this is not the website for you, I’m afraid. It’s important to me to avoid wastage wherever I can and over the next few weeks and months if I’m doing anything towards my prep for the most wonderful time of the year I will share it with you. This includes showing you my Christmas craft and gifts projects as soon as possible to give you guys, all very busy people I know, a chance to have a go at some of them if you feel the urge.

But as a green and gentle segue in to the beautiful and freaky world of organization let me show you my parsley.

I have a plethora of parsley (not something I get to say very often) and it was beginning to flop. Parsley is a wonderful ingredient in stuffing. The type of stuffing that goes very well in a free range organic turkey around the 25th of December.

I cut it all out of my potted herb garden which sits outside the back door. I washed it, picked off any crawlies and blotted it dry with a tea-towel. It was then divided in to two small re-sealable freezer bags and sent off to be frozen until it is needed once again.

The parsley I planted all those months ago at the start of the summer will now continue to serve me well right through until the end of the year.

Nice one.

Let me state once again that before long the Christmas floodgates are going to open around here. We’re still going all out for Halloween, Apple Week and everything in- between but in amongst all of THAT cosiness will be my own personal Christmas prep.

YAY!!

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Spicy Pork, Tofu & Coriander/Cilantro Rice Recipe

Please click here for weight conversion chart

I remember reading about how Nigella Lawson would go to a restaurant, try a dish and then take the menu home so that she could recreate it herself. I’m not sure if this was true but if it was then in true Nigella style I came home from holiday with the taste of a dish still in my mouth and tried to recreate it in my own kitchen. When we first arrived in Las Vegas, having been awake for twenty four hours we went to a place called Chopstix in the Bellagio hotel for a bite to eat before we crashed. I had a stupid dish of chicken and rice. Literally, chicken breast (dry) and rice (white). Robert the Husband however had Spicy Pork and Tofu. THANK YOU VERY MUCH!!!!

There he was delving in to what looked like an oasis in a dessert to me while I just sat and stared at my chicken breast (dry) and rice (white). I vowed to make his dish as soon as we returned home. And I did. And it was good.

So here it is.

Serves two large portions / four small portions

• Heat the oil in a wok or a large frying pan until it is very hot
• Add the pork mince, garlic and chili and stir fry mixing all those flavors together. This should only take three to four minutes
• Add the tofu (chopped in to bite sized pieces), oyster sauce and fish sauce and stir fry for another three minutes
• Remove from the heat and throw in two handfuls of the coriander/cilantro. Stir in well.
• Dish up in to bowls or plates and sprinkle the remaining coriander/cilantro onto the tops of the portions along with a sprinkling of peanuts
• Serve immediately

I recently tripled the quantities of ingredients and made this dish as a side for a bar-b-q we had at the house.

Every grain of rice was cleared from that plate…….and not by me!

Do try it!!

See you later on for another dish that we tucked in to this past Sunday. It may be the start of something new.

http://www.cherrymenlove.com/gardening_flowers/2010/04/as-the-sun-shines-on-our-faces-we-go-to-work.html

I think that the timing of Pancake Day is perfect. It follows hard on the heels of Valentines Day and sets in motion another year of celebrations. It comes at a time when all remnants of Christmas are well and truly gone and the air smells and tastes just that bit sweeter. Is Spring on it’s way perhaps?

In my experience making Pancakes can be scary for people. Mixing up a lumpless batter, frying them and then having to toss them can lead folk to think that they are a little bothersome and Pancake Day (Shrove Tuesday) can come and go without so much as an egg being broken. I’m here to tell you that Pancakes are just about the easiest thing to make and once you start getting creative with the fillings you’ll be impressing people not only on Pancake Day but every time you have guests for breakfast, lunch & supper too!

This makes 6 medium pancakes and you can find a weight conversion chart here!

• Sift the flour and salt into a mixing bowl
• Add the whisked egg.
• Little by little add the milk, whisking the mixture together and therefore removing any lumps.

By the time all the milk has been added you’ll have a runny batter. If you can still see lumps use your whisking skills to remove them. There is enough milk in this recipe to be able to do this.

And that, my friends, is it!

Grease your previously heated frying pan using a small amount of the butter for each pancake and add a ladle of the batter for each pancake. Keep an eye on the underside to prevent one side from burning and then flip or, if you’re brave, toss the pancake to turn it. Personally, my cast iron Le Creuset frying pans are far too heavy for those types of shenanigans and I don’t want to break my wrist or my toe when I drop the pan on my foot!

As you can see, this time I added frozen summer fruits to my pancakes but you may also want to try –
Ice cream and dusted cinnamon sugar
Streaky bacon and scrambled eggs for breakfast
Wilted Garlic Spinach & warmed Ricotta cheese
Blueberries & Maple Syrup or, for something really rich and tasty,
Fried chorizo & red pepper and grated Gruyere

Pancake combinations are endless and you’ll be bound to find your own. Create a signature pancake this year and pull it out the hat/fridge when you are in a hurry or you simply want to show off. Feeling flat as a pancake in the kitchen will begin to take on a whole new meaning!
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