Fast-track Pukka Parent Tukka?

The visit of the parents looms and so the search for the perfect and practicable parent-proof lunch begins.  Not too easy, not too hard, not too expensive and not too time consuming... Do want to spend some time with them after all, especially seeing as they've come all this way and brought fresh supplies of toilet roll and pasta.  A few googles for inspiration later and Cottage Pie topped with Parsnip and Potato mash has it... served with a cheeky side of broccoli (so they know you can locate, cook and eat things with vitamins in, as well as execute that culinary delight the pot noodle to perfection).  So if you need to pull something out the bag, try this little belter!

Just out of the oven...

Parsnippy Mashtastic Cottage Pie (serves 4)
(Make sure you have a decent sized ovenproof dish!)


300g minced beef
3 rashers good smoky bacon, chopped
1 Large onion, chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled and diced
2 medium parsnips, peeled and chopped into chunks
300ml beef stock
1 tin plum tomatoes
1 bay leaf
1 level tsp Dried mixed herbs 
A glass of red wine (optional)
A splash Worcestershire Sauce
3 or 4 large Potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
Large knob of butter
Splash of milk
Salt and Pepper
50g grated cheddar cheese
1 tbsp plain flour
Splash of olive oil


1) Preheat your oven to 200°C/Gas Mark 5.  Put the Parsnips and Potatoes in a large sauce pan cover with cold, salted water and put on a medium heat.  When it comes to a simmer, cook for 15-20 miutes, or until they are both tender when prodded with a fork.
2) Meanwhile in another large saucepan fry the chopped bacon for a couple of minutes on a high heat until it starts to take on a little colour, then add the beef mince and brown for 3-4 minutes.  Once nearly all the mince has changed colour, add the chopped onion and carrot and sweat down for a further 5 minutes, until all the mince has browned, the bacon has taken on some colour and the veg has started to soften.
3) Add the plain flour, mixed herbs and bay leaf and stir it through.  The mixture should seem quite dry at this point.  When all the flour has dissolved, add the tomatoes and break them up with your spoon.  (At this stage make sure the the pan is on a medium heat.) Add the beef stock, and wine and stir.  Then cover with a lid (or a piece of greaseproof or foil if you're without a lid) and simmer for 20 minutes.  Then remove the lid and simmer for a further 5 minutes until the mince mix is thick and saucy. Add a splash of Worcester sauce at this point.
4) At this stage the potatoes/parsnips should be done, so drain them in a colander and then return to the saucepan and let them steam off for a few minutes (this lets them dry off and makes the mash have a better consistency).  Then crush them with a masher (or potato ricer if you're posh) and when they are all floury, add the butter.  Stir this through and then add the milk, as much as you need until its a spreadable consistency.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.
5) At this point your mince should be ready. Taste and season if necessary.  Then remove the bay leaf, and spoon the mince into an ovenproof dish.  Give it a little shake so it is even and level in the dish.  Then cover with the mash, level it with a spatula and prod a little cross in the centre to let steam escape as it cooks in the oven. If you're feeling cheffy put a few patterns in the mash with your fork too.  Then sprinkle with the grated cheese and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown on top.

Serve up with some greens: a few cheeky florets of broccoli, fine green beans, or peas work really well.  And don't forget to crack out the Bisto for a generous helping of gravy!

Plated and ready for parent appraisal!

But this hearty fayre wouldn't be complete without an equally hearty pudding... And so Blueberry Crumble Cake with some scrumptious ice cream satisfies the student sweet tooth as effectively as it does placate the parents' consternation at the state of your room... or overdraft!  Google it, this recipe is awesome and great to make with housies too!

Nom nom and away! :)

Blowtorch brilliance, brûlée, and the odd naked lemon - not the average Saturday night in...

What better Christmas gift could there be than that longed-for Daddy of the kitchen gadgets - the blowtorch.  This magnificent beast of the kitchen makes for, not only an exciting cooking experience (gas lighter fuel can be prove to be quite disobedient it seems), but also is the key to one of my favourite desserts - the elusive Creme Brûlée.  Fortunately given that I am not the only one to enjoy it, a dear friend did not complain too much on receiving said blowtorch in December and since then we have awaited a convenient moment to put our flaming tool to the test.  Such an opportunity presented itself last weekend with favourable results indeed!  Aha - victory! No curdling of the custard, a successful bake and then the moment of truth, with flame in hand and sugar a-sprinkled the caramelised golden top developed before our eyes... and here's the proof!

Basic Brûlée served with Lemony Biscuit curls and Pomegranate jewels.

We used a straightforward BBC Food recipe for the brûlée itself and found a further recipe for the Lemony biscuits that accompanied it.  A recipe that used the zest of FIVE lemons! What madness is this?! What is one supposed to do with FIVE naked lemons? It's a jolly good job that Pancake day was but a few hours away and so each lemon could fully realise its potential in batter-based bliss!

At last the long-awaited white chocolate and cranberry combo - last minute valentines anyone?

I concede, it is no longer January and this recipe is long overdue... but perhaps it is just in time to solve the desperate dash to create something decadent and steeped in allure this valentines afternoon?  Or instead to tumble headfirst into an unhealthy relationship with legendary knights in shining armour, Ben and Jerry, and an accompaniment of Bridget Jones... Either way this White chocolate and Cranberry shortbread recipe is delightful, so get up to your elbows in flour and enjoy!  I've adapted it from one I found on an Australian baking site - good old Aussies!

White Chocolate and Cranberry Shortbread (makes at least 24)

• 250g butter, at room temperature
• 125g icing sugar
• 2 tsps vanilla essence
• 300g plain flour
• 75g  Dried Cranberries, coarsely chopped
• 100g white chocolate, finely chopped
• 
  
• • (If you fancy it add the zest of half an orange too, in my head this sounds awesome!)
• • 1. 
       
• • 1. 1) Preheat oven to 160°C/Gas mark 3. Line 2 baking trays with non-stick baking paper. Beat the butter, icing sugar and vanilla in a bowl until very pale and creamy (this will take elbow grease).
• • 1. 
       
• 2) Stir in the flour, craisins and chocolate (and orange zest). (This part takes a generous amount of elbow grease). Once the flour has started to combine with the butter mix and break into little lumps of dough get your hands involved and squeeze and turns the dough to bring it together.
• 
  
• 3) Take tablespoonfuls of the dough and rolls into balls using your hands. Place, about 5cm apart, on the trays. Use a fork to flatten slightly. If you have time place in the fridge for 15 minutes to chill, but this isn't crucial so you can just bake them straight away.
• 
  
• 4) Bake, swapping trays halfway through cooking, for 15-18 minutes or until slightly golden. Leave them out on the trays for about 5 minutes to cool and then lay them onto a transferring to a cooling rack. Wait until they are completely cooled and have hardened up and put then into an air tight container to store (they will keep for about a week).  
• 
  
• You can tuck in as soon as they have cooled and they will be delicious, but these shortbread seem to be at their best about two days after baking... Nom!

Bitten off more than you can chew? Hmm just a tad, we are stuffed!

End of exam celebration food definitely should be a tad more flamboyant than the average student dinner.  So in an effort to reward and impress some dear friends I concocted a somewhat ambitious menu for a quiet Wednesday evening... Dissertation put to one side and after a little deliberation, not to mention slight disappoint with the (until now) trusty co-op up the road I settled for this little ensemble: Lemon, Rosemary  and Garlic baked Chicken thighs, with sticky roasted carrots, savoy cabbage with bacon and parsnip seasoning and a decadent creamy mashed potato.  Then to follow, assuming that the pudding stomach can be located in the midst of all that gorgeousness - pancakes with homemade blueberry 'jam'.

Plated and looking yumtastic!

Using a flavoured butter worked really well with this chicken dish to ensure that the flavours penetrated deeply and but remained aromatic too.  The sweetness of the roasted carrots really enhanced and balanced with the other elements of the dish, the saltiness of the bacon and cabbage mix and the creamy mash and garlicky chicken.

The pre-oven ensemble.

The real crowning glory and surprise of this meal though has to be the impromptu decision to attempt a cheats blueberry jam.  Taking less than 10 mins and done alongside the pancakes it glams them up a treat and looks divine too with that rich, deep purpley sheen.  Here's a how to, if you fancy it!

Cheeky cheat's Blueberry Jam


100g Fresh Blueberries, washed
2 tbsp Runny Honey
Zest of half a lemon
Juice of half a lemon


1) Heat the blueberries in a saucepan on a moderate heat until their colour seems to darken. Then add the lemon zest and honey and stir gently.  (*Tip - A silicone spatula works really well for this as it sticks less than wooden spoons).  Maintain the heat and as soon as it starts to bubble add the lemon juice and continue stirring gently.
2) Let it boil for about 2-3mins until about half the fruit has burst and it has reduced by half, then turn off the heat and leave to stand on the hob.  As it cools it thickens up so don't be concerned if it still seems a little on the thin side.

After a couple of minutes it's ready to pour over pancakes, to pump up a vanilla cheesecake, or if you let it cool completely to spread on to freshly buttered toast. Nom!