For ages, I only made cakes from box mixes (bless you, Betty Crocker). Only since moving to England (and if I'm honest really only since the GBBO premiered in 2010) have I started doing from-scratch cakes.  Here is essentially the basic recipe that every school kid learns -- at base 100g each of butter, sugar, eggs, and self-rising flour, and a tsp ( Read more... )

So this is my version of the Ikea meatballs.  I am using frozen vegan meatballs (Birds Eye Green Cuisine are pretty damn good) because we're mostly vegetarian (you could also use Ikea's own frozen balls), but this recipe would also work if you made your own meatballs from scratch.  If you do that, include nutmeg and allspice and rosemary and red ( Read more... )

This is actually Nigella Lawson's recipe, with only minor variations.  Really gorgeous -- dense and rich without being stodgy.  As she says, it's like if lemon curd were a cake.

Ingredients
200g soft unsalted butter
200g caster sugar
200g ground almonds
100g fine polenta (or cornmeal)
1½ teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
zest of 2 ( Read more... )

Ingredients ( Read more... )

This is my special salsa -- especially good on fish tacos.  Can also substitute very ripe mango for avocado ( Read more... )

Another recipe I want to keep somewhere safe ( Read more... )

I used to have a recipe and I lost it, so every year I sort of mock it up from memory and other folks' recipes.  This year I'm writing it down so I don't have to waste time hunting.

Christmas pudding

Mix together in a large container (I use my lobster pot)

500g of mixed dried fruit (90g raisins, 90g sultanas, 270g currants and 50g candied citrus peel ( Read more... )

Ingredients

1 red onion ( Read more... )

This is my entirely non-authentic version, but sweet jeezus it was delicious!

Put bone and leftover fat and bits from a sirloin roast beef (it's what I had, leftover from skipdiver's birthday dinner), an onion, a big carrot, couple of celery stocks, bay leaf (fresh off my tree), clove of garlic, two sticks of lemongrass, salt into a big pot with a ton of ( Read more... )

Putting this here where I can find it again.

SNICKERDOODLES

Cream together:
1 cup butter
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup white sugar

Add and mix well:
1 egg
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
½ teaspoon salt
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon vanilla

Roll in balls and dip in cinnamon sugar (no sugar on the bottom or it will burn) and bake at 400F (200C ( Read more... )