Jammie goodness

I've always been curious about making jam but have heard so many different things about it from "Oh it's really easy!!" to "Aghhhhh it's so hard! I overcooked it and made toffee!!!" so I've always been a bit dubious about having a go. Add to that I have very expensive pans that my bf bought for me last Christmas so don't exactly want to go ruining them!

So when I saw a recipe which meant you could make jam in the microwave I just had to give it a go!!!

Raspberry Jam (made in the microwave!)

(original recipe can be found here Easy Microwave Jam)

Ingredients

500g raspberries

juice of 1 lemon

1lb jam sugar (this already has pectin in it, the stuff that makes it set, so there's no need to add any extra!)

(yes this recipe's measurements are totally weird.... sorry!)

Method

1. Place a small saucer in the freezer (all will, hopefully, become clear later). Wash the raspberries and place them in a LARGE microwaveable bowl along with the lemon juice. (I used a large plastic one I bought from Asda for like £2 or something ridiculous like that).

2. Microwave on max for 4-5mins until the fruit is soft.

3. Stir in the sugar and microwave for a further 20mins stirring every 5mins or so.

4. Drop a small amount on to the cold saucer and check for the setting point. (It should wrinkle and be firm, however with this method will be more liquid than normal.)

5. Add 5 mins more cooking if necessary and test again.

6. Leave to stand for 5mins and then spoon into hot sterilised jars, seal and label.

The original recipe said that this would fill 2 normal jam jars however I think I could've done with 3 as I have some left over!!

To sterilise the jars many people just wash them in hot soapy water and then place them in the oven to get hot (WARNING!!! Put them in when the oven is COLD otherwise you will probably end up with cracked jars!).

If you have no idea where to get jam jars or anything like that then I suggest having a google for a cookshop near you (not likely to be able to get these in your local supermarket). If that fails then there are some links below where you can get stuff from. :)

Jam Jars (they only come in packs of 12 but that means you can make jam as presents! Or just keep them as spares if you're clumsy like me.)

Twist off lids

Waxed Circles (you'll need these unless you want to have moudly jam! Yum!)

Labels (any old label will do but I thought these were cute.)

N.B. I only just tried this recipe so I'm not sure if it works as my jam is setting as I type this!

Baking!

I love baking and recently I've been a little obsessed with it. I blame The Great British Bake Off for that!! (For those of you who didn't watch it it was a tv programme all about baking. I was in heaven for those 6 weeks it was on!)

So that pretty much inspired me to have a massive baking day last weekend and these are the results!!! :D

Cheese Scones

(original recipe can be found here BBC Good Food)*

Ingredients

500ml plain flour

3tsp baking powder

large pinch of salt

250ml grated cheddar cheese

3tsp sunflower/vegetable oil

125ml milk

1 egg

(it's weirdly measured in ml but I just measured everything in my measuring jug and it turned out fine!)

Method

1. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a large mixing bowl. Add the cheese and mix this together.

2. Mix together the oil, milk and egg in a jug and add this to the dry mixture.

3. Mix everything together until it forms a dough. (If it's too dry add a little more milk, don't worry if you think it's too wet and sticky at the moment.)

4. Dust your worktop surface with flour and roughly press out the scone mixture using your hand until it's about 0.5cm thick. (Don't use a rolling pin as this will pop any air bubbles that are in the mixture.)

5. Fold this in half and press out until it's 0.5cm thick again. Then cut this out using a round cutter (a perfectly round one will help your scones to rise better, however I don't have one. Don't wiggle the cutter either!! That will also prevent your scones from rising properly)

6. Place them on to a greased baking tray (I like to put grease proof paper on mine as well but this isn't necessary). Bake in a preheated oven (180°C) for 15 minutes.

Basic Scones

(not sure where my Dad got this recipe from...)

Ingredients

350g self-raising flour , plus more for dusting

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

85g butter , cut into cubes

3 tbsp caster sugar

175ml milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

squeeze lemon juice

Method

1. Heat oven to 220C/fan 200C/gas 7. Tip the flour into a large bowl with the salt and baking powder, then mix. Add the butter, then rub in with your fingers until the mix looks like fine crumbs. Stir in the sugar.

2. Put the milk into a jug and heat in the microwave for about 30 secs until warm, but not hot. Add the vanilla and lemon juice, then set aside for a moment. Put a baking sheet in the oven.

3. Make a well in the dry mix, then add the liquid and combine it quickly with a cutlery knife - it will seem pretty wet at first. Scatter some flour onto the work surface and tip the dough out. Dredge the dough and your hands with a little more flour, then fold the dough over 2-3 times until it's a little smoother. Pat into a round about 4cm deep.

4. Take a 5cm cutter (smooth-edged cutters tend to cut more cleanly, giving a better rise) and dip it into some flour. Plunge into the dough, then repeat until you have four scones. By this point you'll probably need to press what's left of the dough back into a round to cut out another four. Brush the tops with beaten egg, then carefully place onto the hot baking tray.

5. Bake for 10 mins until risen and golden on the top. Eat just warm or cold on the day of baking, generously topped with jam and clotted cream.

This recipe worked reasonably well just don't use too much lemon juice otherwise it will make the milk curdle!! (I found out the hard way.)

Rice Krispie Treats

(original recipe Rice Krispie Website)*

Ingredients

3 tbsp butter

100g mini marshmallows

500g rice krispies

Method

1. Melt the butter and marshmallows together in a pan on a low heat.

2. Mix in the rice krispies (if it's too marshmallowy just add more rice krispies until you're happy).

3. Put into a disposable foil baking tray (I find these best so you don't have to worry about scratching it when you're hacking away with a knife try to cut it up) add any decoration you want (marshmallows, sprinkles, chocolate) and then place into the fridge until its set.

4. Cut up into squares and eat!

*N.B. Incase you're wondering I've credited these recipes as they aren't ones I've made up. All the other recipes I've posted so far have been my own creation :)

Herbs and Spices!

These are some mixtures that will be popping up in my recipes quite a bit as they're pretty much in everything I make!! Get some jars (I use old coffee ones) and make these! All you need to do is mix them together and then you can make so many different dishes and it's SO much cheaper than buying the stuff from the supermarkets! I suggest going to your local market to buy the herbs and spices :)

Other than my Dad I have no idea where these recipes originally came from...sorry!

Fajita spice mix

Ingredients

3tbsp cornflower

2tbsp chilli powder

1tbsp salt

1tbsp paprika

1tbsp sugar

2 1/2tsp crushed chicken stock cube (I just crushed a few at the beginning and went from there)

1 1/2tsp onion powder (or dried flakes if you can't get powder)

1/2tsp garlic powder (or flakes/chips whatever is available!)

1/2tsp cayenne pepper

1/2tsp cumin

Method

Put this into an air tight jar then repeat until the jar is full! (Or as full as you think you will need it to be) Now you never have to buy packets of fajita mix again!! If, like me, you really like the BBQ fajita mix just add some BBQ sauce while you're cooking the meat and vegetables.

Italian Seasoning

Ingredients

3tbsp dried basil

3tbsp dried thyme

2tbsp dried marjoram

2tbsp dried oregano

1tbsp dried sage

1tbsp dried garlic flakes (or powder)

1tbsp dried rosemary

Method

Again put these into an air tight jar until it is full. A tsp of this mixture can replace the dried herbs in any of my previous recipes! However if I run out of this and can't make any more up I do resort back to my mixed herbs and dried basil.

Lasagne!!

Oh yes!! Remember that bolognese sauce recipe I posted a bit ago? Well here's something else that you can use it in!

**EDIT**

Please don't be put off by how long this recipe is!!! It's really not difficult! :)

Lasagne (serves 3-4)

Ingredients

Bolognese Sauce

250g lean beef mince

1 large onion

2 cloves garlic

1 tin chopped tomatoes

1/2tsp dried mixed herbs

1/2tsp dried basil

1tbsp tomato puree

1 beef stock cube

salt and black pepper

Béchamel Sauce

50g butter

30g plain flour

450ml milk

salt and black pepper

Fresh/dried lasagne sheets (doesn't matter which but I tend to use dried)

Cheese! (whichever you like the most!)

A medium/large casserole dish to bake it in!

Method

Preheat the over to 220°C

Bolognese sauce (incase you can't remember/be bothered looking at the other recipe)

1. Dry fry the mince until it's cooked.

2. Add the chopped onion and fry until it is soft, then add the garlic.

3. Pour in the chopped tomatoes and add the herbs, basil, tomato puree and stock cube (and a little water if it's too thick).

4. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.

Béchamel Sauce

1. Melt the butter in a pan on a low heat.

2. Once melted add the flour and stir this to form a roux. (It should look glossy and I'll post a pic in here when I have one...)

3. Pour in the milk and bring the heat up a little.

4. Whisk the sauce until it thickens sufficiently. (Whisking disperses any lumps easier than stirring.)

5. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.

Assembly

1. Add a thin layer of the bolognese sauce to the bottom of the dish you're using.

2. Now add a layer of pasta sheets.

3. More bolognese sauce but this time add some béchamel before the pasta.

4. Repeat step 3! (Until you have no more sauce left...)

5. On the last layer don't put pasta on top of the béchamel. Instead sprinkle a little cheese over it (I've found it can go oily if you use a lot of cheese so be careful of this) and put it in the oven.

6. Leave it to bake for about half an hour and then serve!

Veggies!

Roasted Mediterranean Vegetables (serves 2..unless you're me)

Ingredients

1 large red onion

2 peppers

6-8 cherry tomatoes

2 cloves of garlic

oil

dried mixed herbs

Method

1. Chop the onions and the peppers roughly. (I normally chop the onion into 8ths and break it up and chop the peppers into rough bite size pieces)

2. Crush the garlic cloves and roughly chop.

3. Chuck all of this into a roasting dish along with the washed cherry tomatoes.

4. Drizzle some oil over (or spray some oil if you liked my last post!) and sprinkle over about 1tsp of the mixed herbs.

5. Make sure all the veg is evenly covered in the herbs and garlic.

6. Roast in a preheated oven (250°C) for about 40mins or until everything is cooked.

7. Serve and eat!

Optional

You can pretty much do the same thing with any vegetable you like. It's nice with courgettes in too!