I wanted to bake us a special treat today as we will be watching our church's bi-annual General Conference and I usually like to make it with a special treat.  I had seen a photo on Pinterest for some Baked Glazed Strawberry Donuts that looked absolutely Divine.

I have to say that I am a bit miffed about this huge colossal waste of time and ingredients.  I've been blogging for about 15 years and food blogging for about 10 + in one form or another.  In all that time I have endeavored to be totally honest and transparent with my readers.  What you see here is real.  I don't doctor up my photos or present anything to you that isn't 100% doable and that doesn't work. I don't show you fake stuff mascarading as something I baked myself. Its all stuff I do myself, in my own kitchen, and whilst I am willing to allow for people's inexperience in the kitchen, or differences in taste, I like to think that if you use one of my recipes you will be pleased with the results.  I guess I just hate being disappointed, cheated or lied to.  I cook lots of things that you just don't see because it  didn't work for one reason or another,  or I wasn't happy with the results.  Maybe I am wrong, but I wish that people would just be honest.  I hate going to blogs and seeing pimped out, highly coloured, artificial photos.  I can think of one in particular that does that, not naming any names, and I used to really enjoy visiting it until it became nothing more than a traveloque filled with highly edited and artificially coloured photos.

Todd picked all of our pears last weekend and I have been rushing to try to get them all used up.  I did give a bag of them away to a friend, so that was good.  We have one pear tree, a Conference Pear Tree and it always bears a lot of fruit (Its self-propagating)



Conference pears are a European variety of pear that are good for eating, but are also very good for cooking with because they hold their shape well. They are not too sweet, and can seem somewhat hard when it comes to eating them out of hand.  I don't mind that, but Todd likes his pears to be soft.


Today I used some of them to make a delicious tea bread.  Now by tea bread I don't mean a bread that is made with tea.  I mean a bread that is meant to be enjoyed with a cup of tea, or that you might see served at a "Tea."


They are served cut into thin slices and buttered or not, as you prefer.  My boss's husband down South, loved my Banana bread and often wanted it toasted and buttered for breakfast.  Simply put, tea breads make good eating no matter when and no matter how.


This one is stogged full of grated pear, which helps to keep it moist.  In fact there is no other liquid required in the recipe with the exception of some oil and some egg.


  It also uses a mix of plain and whole wheat flours.  I have also used toasted cobnuts, which is a very autumnal and historic nut here in the UK, but you can use Hazelnuts which will also work fine.


Bake for 65 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean and the top springs back when lightly touched.  Let sit in the loaf tin on a wire rack for ten minutes.  Remove from the tin and cool completely.  Store in an airtight container or tightly wrapped.


Tea breads are lovely breads, falling within the Quick Bread category, meaning there is no yeast used in their leavening.  There is no proofing or rising required prior to baking them.  They are usually very quick, easy and always delicious.  At least I think they are! 


 All about Cobnuts

Nuts are an ancient, natural and nutritious food which have been grown in Britain since time immemorial. During the Tudor period their cultivation on a properly managed basis was evident and formed the foundation upon which the Victorians planted a large number of cob nut orchards, called plats, resulting in some 7000 acres being grown by the turn of the century.

The predominant nut grown was the Kentish cobnut, a type of cultivated hazelnut, bred in 1830 by a Mr Lambert of Goudhurst in Kent. The Kentish cobnut is a larger nut than a hazelnut and has a different and distinctive flavour of its own.

 A Kentish cobnut is a type of hazelnut, just as a Bramley is a type of apple. Unlike most other nuts, cobnuts are sold fresh, not partially dried. They are usually in season from the end of August through to October, but stored nuts may be available from selected outlets through to Christmas.

In the photo above you can see a fresh cobnut on the left and a older seasoned/dried cobnut on the right. Each has a very distinct texture and flavour.  The fresh green ones are very crunchy and have an almost vegetable-like, fresh flavour, which makes them great for using in things like salads. You can also roast them.

At the beginning of the season the husks are green and the kernels particularly juicy. Nuts harvested later on are ripe, have brown shells and husks, and the full flavour has developed. If you would like to know more about them or buy some you can find out more at Potash Farm.

What I think:  They are not overly sweet, with a pudding like consistency.  Served chilled they weren't too bad.  I think children would love these and they would be great for that child you have a hard time getting out of bed on school  mornings.  They could grab one of these on their way out the door and eat them while on their way to school.   My favourite was the Apple & Cinnamon.

Although there are no added refined sugars, there is still an amber amount of other sources of sugar in these (carbs), so if you are a diabetic, you might want to proceed with caution.


Quaker Porridge to Go Squares are a delicious soft and chewy square containing the same amount of oats as a 27g sachet of Oat So Simple. Choose between Golden Syrup and Strawberry Raspberry Cranberry for a 100% wholegrain breakfast that is also a source of fibre and calcium for a mighty start to the day ahead.  Try warming them in the microwavable packaging for  10 seconds (cut open the end first) when the mornings start to get a bit colder.

What I think: I heated in the microwave for ten seconds, and I didn't find them overly soft, but they were chewy.  I thought they tasted better as you chewed them than when you first took a bite.  A great impetus to chew them longer and eat them slower, which is not an entirely bad thing.  They were quite tasty.  The Golden Syrup was good, but my favourite was the Strawberry, Raspberry and Cranberry one.

With amber ratings in fat, sugars and salt.

Quaker Oats to Go is available in retailers nationwide.
RRP Porridge to Go Duo Pack - 2 X 55g @ £1.39
RRP Porridge to Go Single pack - 1 X 55g @£0.75
RRP Fruit & Oat Squeeze 200g pouch @ £1.39

Note - I was sent these products for free, but was not required to write a positive review in return.  Any opinions are my own.

Back in the 1960's and 70's, perhaps even the 1980's the provincial newspaper back home (called The Chronical Herald) used to run recipe contests every year.   Once the winners had been picked they would publish an insert to the paper containing all of the recipes that had been sent in, along with the prize winners in each category, etc.   My mom used to collect the inserts, and I used to copy out recipes that I thought looked delicious into my binder!  (No surprise there!)



A wonderfully crisp and buttery cheese and sesame crust, almost like a savoury shortbread, is topped with chopped onion and fresh fish fillets. I use Cod because that is our favourite fish, but I would think, however, that any mild flavoured fish would work well.

The cod gets sprinkled with more chopped onion and some chopped cucumber along with seasoned fine bread crumbs.  You bake it for about 20 minutes in a hot oven . . .


Then you take it out and cover it with a cheese custard sauce, which is made from sour cream, an egg, grated cheese and a packet of dry mushroom soup mix.  Just pour this on top and back into the oven it goes for a further 25 minutes.


The end result is really tasty   . . . each mouthful bringing you  the delicious flavours of that cheesy sesame shortbread crust, the onion and cucumber, that moist flakey fish, and the rich custard topping.


I hope you will try this despite how it looks. I know it isn't very visually appealing, but this is one case where you don't want to judge the book by its cover!


This was a first prize winning recipe I have adapted from a recipe contest run by the Chronical Herald back home in the 1970's. Its delicious!


For the base:
201g plain flour (1 1/2 cups)
1/2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt (divided)
3/4 tsp black pepper (divided)
60g  of grated strong cheddar cheese (1/2 cup)
80g sesame seed (1/2 cup)
120g of cold butter (1/2 cup)

For the filling:
1 small onion, peeled and chopped
1 pound fish fillets (I use Cod or haddoc)
1/3 of an English cucumber, peeled, deseeded and chopped
2 TBS fine dry bread crumbs
2 TBS olive oil

For the topping:
1 large free range egg
120g dairy sour cream (1 cup
1 packet of dry mushroom soup mix (single serving size)
60g grated strong cheddar cheese (1/2 cup)


Preheat the oven to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6.  Have ready a 12 by 8 inch baking dish.  Set aside for the time being.


Sift the flour, baking powder, 1/2 tsp of the salt, and 1/2 tsp of the pepper into a bowl.  Cut the butter into cubes and drop into the flour mixture.  Rub the butter in with your finger tips until the mixture resembles dry bread crumbs.  Stir in the sesame seed and grated cheese.  Press this mixture into the bottom of the baking dish.  Sprinkle over half of the chopped onion.  Top with the fish fillets.  Sprinkle the remaining onion along with the cucumber over top and season the fish and cucumber with half of the remaining salt and pepper.   Stir together the crumbs and olive oil and season with the remainder of the salt and pepper.  Sprinkle this over the fish.  Bake in the heated oven for 15 to 20 minutes.


Whisk together the egg, sour cream, mushroom soup mix and cheddar cheese.  Remove the casserole dish from the oven and spread this topping over top.  Return to the oven and bake for an additional 25 minutes.  Serve hot.


All these years later I can't help thinking that instead of the chopped cucumber, you could use chopped blanched broccoli or green beans.  The cucumber really doesn't add much in the way of flavour. In fact it has no flavour at all.  Other than to update it, I would not change a thing!  Bon Appetit!

As you know I am a pasta lover, the Toddster not so much, but one good thing about pasta is that you can often adjust the amounts that you are cooking to just feed one or two.  That is what I did today.  I had and enjoyed my single serving of this delicious pasta dish and Todd enjoyed a meat pie and mash.    I rather feel like I got the better end of the deal, but to each his own.


This is a really quick and easy sauce to make.  Simple ingredients cleverly put together . . .


Fresh tomatoes, peeled and chopped.  Peeling fresh tomatoes is very simple to do.  Just cut an X into the bottoms with a sharp knife and immerse into a pot of boiling water for about 60 seconds or so.  The edges of the cut skin should just be starting to curl.  Remove, dip in cold water and then the peels should just slip off with little or no effort.


Black olives  . . .  I like the dry cured ones with herbs.  They have a lot of flavour.  You can use whichever you prefer however.  Garlic, shallots, a bit of white wine and cream . . .  and you have one of the most delicious sauces.  I love, LOVE this.


*Fresh Tomato, Garlic & Olive Spaghetti*


Quick, simple and delicious.  What more could you want?  Bon Appetit!

 I love skillet type of meals . . .  one dish affairs that you can cook and bake all in one skillet.     This Aubergine (Eggplant) Parmesan is a real favourite of ours.  It's a meatless dish . . .  just the aubergines, cheese and a delicious sauce in this one.  It is also a bit lower in calories also as there is no breading and frying involved. The fact that there is no breading also makes it gluten free for those of you who are into that sort of thing.

130g of grated  four cheese mix (1 cup)


 Heat the olive oil in a saucepan.   Add the garlic.  Saute for several minutes until very fragrant.  Add all of the herbs, spices and salt.  Cook for a further minute then stir in the tomatoes, stock, vinegar, and sugar.   Bring to a boil, then reduce to a very low simmer.  Cover and allow to simmer for 35 to 40 minutes.


Preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 5.  Wipe the aubergine with a damp cloth and trim both ends off.  Cut into 1/2 inch slices.   Have ready a very large baking tray (or two smaller ones)  Drizzle the aubergine on both sides with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place in a single layer on the baking tray (s).  Roast in the heated oven for 30 minutes, flipping them over after fifteen minutes.  Remove them from the oven and increase the oven temperature to 200*C/400*F/ gas mark 6.
 

Spoon one fourth of the tomato sauce on the bottom of a medium sized oven safe skillet.  Layer on half of the aubergine slices.   Spread with another fourth of the sauce and sprinkle with 1/3 the cheese.  Top with another fourth of the sauce.  Top with the remaining aubergine slices, then the remainder of the sauce and the cheese.   Bake in the preheated oven on a centre rack for 35 to 40 minutes until the cheese is golden brown and the sauce is bubbly.


If desired serve with additional cheese, and plenty of crusty bread.

This is a recipe that I clipped from a magazine a very long time ago and had wanted to make, but had never done so because it called for a tin of Ranch Style Beans, and that wasn't something you could get over here in the UK.  There's plenty of beans in tomato sauce . . . a multitude of brands, but that's the only baked beans you find here.  There are also lots of different types of tinned cooked beans, plain in water, but no such thing as Ranch Beans.

Note:  You can make this ahead up to the baking point.  Cover and chill in the refrigerator.  IN this case cook the spaghetti until only al dente.  Bring to room temperature before baking.


I thought this was really delicious and I was really happy that I had taken the time to find a recipe so that I could make my own ranch style beans, which goes to prove that you should never let a little obstacle as not being able to get a certain ingredient prevent you from trying something.  Where there is a will, there is always a way!  Bon Appetit!

One of my favourite things about being a food blogger, aside from the cooking and eating aspect of it, is the opportuities I am afforded every now and again to test and try out innovative products.  I was contacted by AO a couple of weeks ago and asked if I would like to review an appliance for them.  I was really torn between the microwave (in a previous post) and the Nutri Ninja Smoothie maker.  I needed a new microwave, but I also really wanted a smoothie maker!  I couldn't choose between the two items and asked them to choose for me, and was really pleased and surprised when they told me that I could review both items!

You start by adding fresh fruits or vegetables to the Ninja cup, along with  any leafy greens or herbs, seeds, powders, nut butters, juice, yogurts,  and ice or frozen ingredients, taking care not to go above the clearly marked maxium line on the Ninja cup.



I came with an in-depth owners guide and an inspiration guide with 30+ recipes to get your started on your smoothie  journey!


The "to-go" lids make it very easy to carry your smoothie with you as you go about your morning duties, sit at the computer, etc.


I prefer to drink mine from a glass, but that is just me.  The cups, lids, blade are dishwasher safe  as well, which is another plus.  Another thing I really like is the compact size which means that it is easy to store and doesn't take up a lot of storage space in our kitchen.

You can also use it to prepare frozen cocktails and frappes, iced coffees, crushed ice, etc.  It is a very powerful machine and comes with a 1 year manufacturer's warranty.

To find out more details do check out the AO site.  Delivery can be as soon as tomorrow and a finance plan is also available.

Many thanks to AO for sending me the Nutri Ninja Smoothie Maker.  I think that this is a quality machine and something which we are going to be getting a lot of use out of over these next months.  What a fab, delicious, quick and easy to way to get in some of your five a day!  I love it!

If you want to check out me using it in real time, make sure you take a peek at my You Tube Review of this brilliant machine!  I had so much fun doing it.  What you actually see is about my 10th attempt at doing the video!  I never knew it would be so hard, but I learned a lot about what you can and can't do when making a video!  I need to get a stand to hold my phone so that I can do them totally hands free in the future!  Try not to laugh too much!  Todd says its great, but he's my biggest fan! 👍

Disclaimer - Although we were sent the Nutri Ninja smoothie maker free of charge for review purposes we were not required to write a positive review. Any and all opinions are our own and honest.