Yes, he’s a dad. We let them sneak on occasionally just to make the place look purty. .
Bean dip
A ‘dip’ recipe but makes a nice thick and clingy spread, so, it can be put on rice cakes, toast or used as sandwich filling.
1 tin of pinto beans
2 tbsp lime juice
1 tomato [skinned and seeded]
1 minced garlic clove
bit of ground cumin
handful [or less] parsley
spring onion
seasoning optional!
whizz all up in a blender or food processor
Another muffin recipe for you! The original recipe is in cups but I have done my best to give weight conversions but they might be a little iffy. I freeze these and they are a staple picnic food.
Makes 12 regular or 24 mini muffins
200g broccoli (1 small – med head)
1 1/2 cups plain yoghurt (360 ml)
1/4 cup oil (olive or corn or your choice)
1 large egg
50g cheese (I use a bit more than 50g – prob nearly double the qty)
2 cups self-raising flour (225g)
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup skimmed milk if required. (50 ml)
Preheat oven to 200 C or 190 for fan ovens. Put rack just below middle of oven.
Cook broccoli (boiled or steamed until tender).
Mix yoghurt, oil & egg well together. Ad broccoli and roughly crumble in blue cheese. Put mixture in food processor and pulse in short bursts until no large pieces of broccoli left. Try not to puree the broccoli but just chop it finely. (I do it all by hand. I chop the broccoli finely on a chopping board and mix everything by hand, Works equally well!)
Put flour & salt in a big bowl and mix together with a fork. Pour in the liquid mixture and begin to fold together. If you think the mixture looks too dry add the extra milk and fold JUST enough to combine. (The key is not to over-mix it – it should look pretty lumpy and unappetizing!)
Spray muffin tins with non-stick spray. Using two spoons divide the mixture evenly between the pans.
Bake for 12/15 minutes or until golden-brown and centres spring back when pressed. Let the muffins cool in the pans for 2-3 minutes before tipping out.
A yummy adult version or for older kids is to use a creamy blue cheese instead of cheddar.
Fibernie, it would seem, is rather in love with her silicone muffin mould…
You need
250g fine polenta
100g self raising flour
1tsp baking powder
50g melted butter
1 large egg
150ml milk
450ml buttermilk (I just use ordinary milk with a lemon squeezed in)
1 large tin sweetcorn (drained)
salt and pepper (optional)
Mix all the dry ingredients, then mix the wet ones together and stir into flour/polenta/baking powder. Add the corn at the end.
Bake in muffin tins at 160c for about 25-30mins until golden brown on top.
Results from my first try – they came out really well, a dense, yellowy bread – they’re tasty, but probably best as an accompaniment to something. For adults, they’re probably great bbq food. They’d be nice with soup too. Little people could dip in and enjoy! They’re best warm but could be frozen then heated in the microwave.
In fairness, the person who sent me this email does seem to recognise how bizarre this is but she does a lot of entertaining so therefore has a need for a canape maker, unlike most inhabitants of the known world. But wait, BLW fans! What could be yet another £20 wasted at Lakeland Limited is suddenly a must-have…
Whomovedmychocolate says:
“I just bought a Lakeland canape maker – it’s like a sandwich toaster but it makes little walnut shaped pastry shells (yeah I know, posh or what!?)
But I discovered you can put small lumps of bread dough in it and make little round bread shells which you can fill with cream cheese and salmon etc for babies) and they are just the perfect size for grabbing.
They are also pretty cool for transporting because you can make up the shells using two of them, put them in a pot and take them with you (although you get the same amount of mess out as home – but hey, hopefully it’s on someone else’s floor so you don’t have to clear up).
It’s one of these.”
And it can make 120 in one hour… lolol…
Rice Cakes
Ingredients
150g/5¼oz cooked Thai fragrant rice
1 free-range egg, beaten
2 spring onions, finely chopped
½ red pepper, finely chopped
drizzle soy sauce
1-2 tbsp olive oil
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 220C/425F/Gas 7.
2. Place the cooked rice into a large bowl. Stir in the beaten egg along with the spring onions, pepper and soy sauce.
3. Heat the oil in a small to medium non-stick frying pan. Spoon the rice mixture into the pan and press down. Fry for about two minutes. Transfer the pan to the oven and cook for a further 10-12 minutes.
4. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly. Turn the cake out and cut into wedges to serve.
Although lovely the next time I would add more ingredients (maybe garlic, some herbs or veggies or ginger) to give it some more taste, but definitely a good base recipe, oh and for those of us who don’t have every chefs implement known to man, I cooked it in a frying pan and transfered it to an oven proof dish.
She’s been on a quest, ladies and gentlemen, and now she’s back. Presenting Rowan’s cereal bars…
“After my appeal many moons ago for cereal bars I found this recipe, very
sticky, very gooey, and it has fruit, carbs, protein and calcium in it,
so sometimes this is all Munch has for lunch!
Makes about 9 or 10
75g oats
65g sugar (white is fine, brown adds a nice caramelly flavour) 40g raisins or mixed raisins/sultanas/dried cranberries 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 large mashed banana
30ml skim milk
1 egg white
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Mix first 6 ingredients together. Separately beat together wet
ingredients, pour over dry ingredients and mix well.
Pour into lined tin and bake for 25-30 mins at GM4, 175C.
Leave to cool and then cut into bars.
Keep in airtight tin for 2 or 3 days max.”
She’s been on a quest, ladies and gentlemen, and now she’s back. Presenting Rowan’s cereal bars…
“After my appeal many moons ago for cereal bars I found this recipe, very
sticky, very gooey, and it has fruit, carbs, protein and calcium in it,
so sometimes this is all Munch has for lunch!
Makes about 9 or 10
75g oats
65g sugar (white is fine, brown adds a nice caramelly flavour) 40g raisins or mixed raisins/sultanas/dried cranberries 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 large mashed banana
30ml skim milk
1 egg white
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Mix first 6 ingredients together. Separately beat together wet
ingredients, pour over dry ingredients and mix well.
Pour into lined tin and bake for 25-30 mins at GM4, 175C.
Leave to cool and then cut into bars.
Keep in airtight tin for 2 or 3 days max.”
She’s on a mission to healthify the world, this woman…
“Fab and Healthy Banana cake
4 oz self raising wholemeal flour
half tsp mixed spice
2 oz butter
3 oz raisins
8 oz banana
1 egg, beaten
Preheat oven to 180 / gm 4.
Mix flour and spice, rub in butter and stir in raisins. In a separate bowl, mash the banana and egg. Stir into the flour mixture and put into a well-greased tin (fills a small loaf tin I think or I usually double up the quantities and put it in an 8″ circular cake tin). Turn oven down to GM 3 / 160 C and cook on the middle shelf for 1 hour or until cooked.
I usually cover it with a mixture of philadelphia cream cheese and fruit spread (about 2 parts cream cheese to one part fruit spread / jam). I blend them together in the liquidiser. However it is good just by itself as well.”
She’s on a mission to healthify the world, this woman…
“Fab and Healthy Banana cake
4 oz self raising wholemeal flour
half tsp mixed spice
2 oz butter
3 oz raisins
8 oz banana
1 egg, beaten
Preheat oven to 180 / gm 4.
Mix flour and spice, rub in butter and stir in raisins. In a separate bowl, mash the banana and egg. Stir into the flour mixture and put into a well-greased tin (fills a small loaf tin I think or I usually double up the quantities and put it in an 8″ circular cake tin). Turn oven down to GM 3 / 160 C and cook on the middle shelf for 1 hour or until cooked.
I usually cover it with a mixture of philadelphia cream cheese and fruit spread (about 2 parts cream cheese to one part fruit spread / jam). I blend them together in the liquidiser. However it is good just by itself as well.”
It’s muffins at dawn between Franny and Kami…
“I do healthy muffins too, both my two (3yo and 8mo) love ’em…
Basic recipe
– 2 cups plain flour with 2 tsp baking powder [1 cup plain flour, 1 cup
wholemeal flour if you like] – or self raising flour, perhaps with a little baking
powder
– 1 cup oats (whole or oatmeal)
– 1 cup milk
– 1/4 cup butter [mild olive oil]
– 1/4-1/2 cup sugar [honey]
– 2 eggs
With a spoon or blender, mix the wet stuff, then add the dry stuff (I sift
the flour in with a sieve) and mix again. Bake for 20-25 min (test at 20).
Makes 12 big muffins.
The recipe can be halved to make 12 small ‘cupcakes’. On it’s own, the recipe isn’t very sweet, so I always add loads (4+) of big overripe bananas, roughly mashed or blended – also makes a yummy banana bread in a loaf tin (around 45 min). I also replace a little milk with creme fraiche for banana bread. The bananas make the texture nice and moist, like a pudding. Then do what you want with fruit, e.g. blueberries, apples, chopped dates, grated carrot, ground nuts, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla – anything you can think of!
The other day I replaced some of the olive oil with peanut butter, but not for babies obviously. I think the honey is OK for babies because it is baked at a high enough temperature to kill any bacteria (but just use sugar if you’d rather. Sugar in the form of fructose, so lower GI, is available at Sainsburys).”
PS This post was amended because there was perhaps the teensiest error re the baking powder, see below for comments.
