Cooking recipe books

When I first read this recipe I thought it would be yummy. Unfortunately, the gorgonzola cheese is very strong and the double cream I used is very fatty, so the quiche tasted of gorgonzola a bit too much and I got nauseated before I managed to finish my slice. My partner however had his whole portion without complaining... I also think I should have caramelised the leek more as the end result was a bit 'wet'. From ' CookSmart Vegetarian ', a Octopus Publishing Group publication. Serves: 6 persons. Ingredients: For the quiche base : 250g plain flour pinch of salt pinch of cayenne pepper 75g butter, cubed 25g cheddar cheese, grated 6-8 tbsp cold water For the filling : 50g butter 1 tbsp vegetable oil 250g leek 150ml double cream 150ml milk 3 tbsp chopped parsley 2 eggs 125g gorgonzola cheese, small cubes 75g hazelnuts, lightly toasted salt and pepper to taste Equipment: 23 cm pie dish. Method: Make the quiche base : Mix the...

Another healthy and very yummy recipe.  From ' CookSmart Vegetarian ', a Octopus Publishing Group publication. Serves: 4 persons. Ingredients: 3 tbsp vegetable oil 1 large onion, chopped 2 small carrots, finely sliced 3 garlic cloves, crushed 1 red bell pepper, cubed 2 bay leaves 2 tbsp paprika 3 tbsp tomato paste 400ml coconut milk/cream (1 can) 400g chopped tomatoes (1 can) 400g red kidney beans, cooked 100g cashews, toasted bunch of coriander, chopped salt and pepper to taste Method: Fry the onion and carrots in the oil for 3 min.  Add the garlic, pepper and bay leaves and fry for another 5 min, until the vegetables have browned. Add the paprika, tomato paste, coconut milk/cream, chopped tomatoes and beans. Add a bit of water if necessary. Let it cook in low heat for 12 min until the vegetables are cooked through. Add the cashews, coriander, salt and pepper to taste. Let the warm up in the low heat for 2 min. Serve with ...

Jam diaries #6: Redcurrant Nextdoor , a neighbourhood online hub, can be very annoying when neighbours decide to use it for marketing purposes or to voice their anguish during covid lockdown as if it was their personal diary.  For the first time in a year, it has actually been very useful. A neighbour advertised he had a surplus of black and redcurrants and was offering them for free to anyone interested in collecting them.  Well... not being one to refuse free food, I quickly had a look in Lynda Brown's ' The preserving book ' and discovered blackcurrants can be used for jam making and redcurrants for jelly making.  They can be eaten raw but I find that they are not as sweet as the other berries and the blackcurrants can be very tart so I prefer not to. I wasn't quick enough for the blackcurrants but I got 1kg of redcurrants so it was immediately decided that redcurrant jelly it was! According to Lynda Brown, redcurrant jelly is the best jam of all and i...

We've done this recipe before and it never disappoints! From ' CookSmart Vegetarian ', a Octopus Publishing Group publication. Serves: 4 persons. Ingredients: 70g butter 1 large onion, chopped 2 chilies, fresh or dry, chopped (the recipe called for removing the seeds, but where's the fun in that?) 500g squash, cubed (I like to use butternut squash) 400g risotto rice 1 liter vegetable stock 3 tbsp chopped sage 75g parmesan cheese, grated salt and pepper to taste Method: Fry the onion in the butter for 5 min. Don't brown it. Add the chilies and fry for a further minute. Add the squash and cook for 5 min. Add the rice and let it fry until it's shiny. Add the stock a bit at a time until the rice is cooked, about 20 min. Remove from the heat. Add the sage, parmesan and salt and pepper to taste and let it rest for a few minutes. Serve.

I was quite looking forward to these herb cakes but I must confess I was a little disappointed. They are ok but not as amazing as I thought they would be. The yogurt dip is definitely necessary as it adds the interest that the herb cakes lack.  A healthy snack but takes too long to chop all ingredients to be worth cooking them again. The recipe comes from  ' CookSmart Vegetarian ', a Octopus Publishing Group publication. Serves: 3 persons (starter) or 2 persons (main). Ingredients: For the herb cakes : 1 mozzarella ball 1 garlic clove, crushed 100g cooked and mashed potato 1 egg basil bunch, finely chopped parsley bunch, finely chopped chives bunch, finely chopped salt and pepper to taste For the yogurt dip : 200g greek yogurt 1 shallot, finely chopped 1 garlic clove, finely chopped bunch of mint, finely chopped Method: Mix well all the ingredients for the herb cakes. The mixture was too wet and I wasn't going to be able to make ...