Lancashire Food

Bean Drinking Coffee tasting experience

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Sun, 20 May 2012 19:24:00 +0000

Today has been a busy day, so a caffeine kick has been welcome, A great local coffee bar has been running a tasting experience so we dropped by to check out the action.

Bean Drinking is run by the lovely Tom and his wife Zoe and is a great venue for a snack or coffee, they are great at supporting the local community and are often the venue for a variety of events such as cake clubs or knit and knatter groups.

If you are ever in the area please pay them a call, support your local barista !

Yogurt Lemon Drizzle for World Baking day

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Sun, 20 May 2012 17:48:00 +0000

Well its World Baking Day , the idea being that you bake something, take a photo of it somewhere unusual and then tweet it using the #caking ! Well you all know me, anything for a bit of fun and also anything that involves baking is right up my street.

So this weekends bake of Lemon Drizzle Cake is my contribution, a deliciously light but moist cake with a good lemon flavour which features yogurt as an unusual twist on the norm.

Lemon Drizzle in the Greenhouse with tomato

Ingredients

175g softened butter or quality vegetable margarine
175g caster sugar
Zest and juice of 2 lemons - unwaxed
120g natural yogurt
2 large eggs - free range
175g self raising flour
3 tbsp granulated sugar
2 tbsp icing sugar
1/2 tbsp elderflower cordial

Method

Cream your butter and caster sugar until light and fluffy
Oil spray a loose bottomed case tin and base line
Preheat your oven to 180C
Add the lemon zest and yogurt and eggs to the sugar / butter mixture
Mix well
Add the Flour and mix again, then spoon into your tin
Bake for 30-35 minutes until well risen and golden and cooked when tested with a cocktail stick
Now allow to cool slighty and then remove from tin
Meanwhile simmer the lemon juice and granulated sugar in a small pan until the sugar has dissolved and the volume reduced to a syrup
Using a cocktail stick prick all over the top of your cake and then pour on the syrup
Now cool fully
Once fully cooled, mix the icing sugar and elderflower cordial to make a runny paste, drizzle all over the top of your cake.

Fantastic Food Show 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Sun, 20 May 2012 16:52:00 +0000

Phew , I am back from a busy visit to this years Fantastic Food Show at Ewood Park, Blackburn. This increasingly popular event features some fabulous local producers and retailers from the North West of England.

More Artisan stall - delicious real bread

Its also a great opportunity for a food blogger like myself to catch up with with my favourite local producers and put faces to twitter names, also It is great to see more and more people becoming interested in where there food comes from and how it is produced.

Leagrams Cheese , yes that's the legendary Bob Kitchen !

Here are a few piccies of what I bought and the general ambiance of the day, I am also caught on camera hobnobbing with Matthew Fort and Tom Parker Bowles. I also purchased some Bobs Bangers, loads more bread from More Artisan and some Black Pudding.

The elusive foodie Phil !

Tom Parker Bowles, myself and Matthew Fort

Nigel Howarth demonstrating his BBQ technique

Leagram Organic Cheese

The fabulous "Fourcaccia" from More Artisan

Fabulous local produce

Chocolate assortment from The Chocolate Cafe

Wholemeal Rhubarb Yogurt cake

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Sun, 13 May 2012 06:44:00 +0000

Rhubarb that great standby ingredient from the garden for deserts and cakes, this easy recipe is not too sweet and can be enjoyed both as a cake or a dessert if serve with custard or cream.

Ingredients

3 large sticks of rhubarb, finely chopped into small cubes
1/4 cup softened butter or pure vegetable margarine
1 1/2 cups soft brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla paste
Good pinch of ground cardamon
1 cup wholemeal flour
1 cup plain white flour
pinch of sea salt
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 cup plain live yogurt

Method

Preheat your oven to 180c
Oil a shallow tin approx 9 by 12 inches
Cream your butter and sugar
Add your egg and vanilla and incorporate well
Now add your flours and bicarb and salt
Lastly add your yogurt, mix well and then stir in your rhubarb
Tip into your prepared tin and level, it is quite a stiff mixture
Bake until golden and cooked through when tested with a cocktail stick
Cool in the tin, will store for a few days but this is quite a moist cake so best eaten soon.

Piadina - Italian Flatbread

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Sun, 13 May 2012 06:07:00 +0000

I love nothing better than making my own bread, not that its always totally successful, this is one recipe however that does not disappoint. Piadina from the "Romagna" region of Italy is a doddle to make and makes a great accompaniment to dips, olives, soup, proscuttio, etc. They are served in Italy filled with sweet and savoury fillings, the original street food. This recipe features mixed herbs, but if you are going for a sweet filling then miss this out.

Ingredients

180g strong white bread flour
100ml ish warm water ( you might need a bit more depends on your flour)
1 tsp sea salt
1tsp mixed herbs
1tbsp olive oil, plus more for oiling

Method

Sieve your flour, herbs and salt into bowl
Mix your water and oil in a jug and pour into your flour mix
Bring together into a dough ball
Knead for about 5 minutes on a floured or oiled surface
Allow to rest for about 20 minutes (may be longer) covered with a tea towel in an oiled bowl
Cut into 4 pieces and shape / roll into rounds about the size of your largest frying pan
Oil and preheat your frying pan
Cook each round for approx 2 -3 minutes on each side, until you have some nice golden spots
Then turn and cook the other side
Serve hot or cold

Potato and lovage soup

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Tue, 08 May 2012 07:20:00 +0000

Well its May and its unseasonably cold, after a morning in the garden I decided to make this quick and easy soup. I had noticed that one of my lovage plants was in lush fresh leafy growth so a recipe that would use this bounty was in order. Lovage is a herb which grows easily in my Lancashire garden and seems to enjoy having a moist position, its flavour is a yeasty celery , its seeds are used in southern european cuisine. The soup was whipped up very quickly.

Ingredients

Potatoes - peeled, chopped into small cubes
Onion, peeled finely chopped
Lovage leaves - go carefully its quite strong in flavour, finely shredded
Vegetable stock
Butter / Oil

Method

Heat your oil / butter in large saucepan
Gently fry your onion for 2 minutes
Now add your chopped potatoes
Stir and allow to sweat for a few minutes
Add the shredded lovage leave and the vegetable stock to just cover
Bring to boil and simmer until the vegetables are cooked
Taste for seasoning , add if required and either serve as it is or partially blended if you like a thicker soup.
Garnish with a whole lovage leaf

Fruity Mocha vegan cake

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Mon, 07 May 2012 14:51:00 +0000

Our household is the proud new owner of 3 new chickens to add to the existing flock of hens we already have. The old girls are still laying but their production is dropping off that why we have added to our flock.So this case is ideal if you don't have any eggs in or your hens are on a go slow. This recipe like my earlier vinegar cake recipe uses flavoured vinegar to give lift to the cake and to replace the eggs. Its also low fat as well as the recipe has a very small quantity of oil in it.

Like all vinegar cakes I have the feeling that the cake will improve with a couple of days wrapped in foil. The cake smelt delicious whilst baking pleasantly scenting the house, the original recipe used raspberry preserve and vinegar, however I substituted homemade strawberry jam and homemade strawberry vinegar as thats what I had, I also used instant coffee to enhance the the cocoa in the cake.

Ingredients

3 cups plain flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 cup cocoa
1/4 cup sunflower oil
1 tsp vanilla paste
2tsp strawberry vinegar mixed with 1/4 cup water
3/4 cup strong instant coffee
3/4 cup strawberry jam

Method

Sieve the flour, cocoa, sugar and bicarb into a large bowl
Preheat your oven to about 180c, if fan about 160c
Grease and base line a loose bottom cake tin
Mix all the wet ingredients with the dry , work quickly and ensure everything is well mixed
Your batter will be fairly stiff, dollop into your prepared tin and level
Bake for approx 45 minutes until tested cooked with a skewer
Allow to cool in tin
Wrap and store for a couple of days before eating
Delicious served alone or if you are not vegan yoghurt or creme fraiche.

English Country Garden Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Wed, 02 May 2012 20:39:00 +0000

The theme for this session of the South Lancashire Clandestine Cake club was "English Country Garden" a suitable theme despite the unseasonal weather. Our venue was Suzanna's at Little Scotland, Blackrod a country house restaurant. We were lucky to have a gorgeous selection of cakes on the evening ranging from a Lemon and poppy seed cake to apple and elderflower.

I used my Spicy Courgette Cake recipe as the cake base for this cake , the recipe is available on the link to an earlier posting and then decorated as a country vegetable garden. I was mostly inspired by the great Fiona Cairns, the royal wedding cake maker.

I covered the courgette cake with vanilla butter cream on the top and sides, I then used cut up "matchmaker" style chocolate sticks in orange to create a rustic fence round the garden. I then cut out to vegetable beds from chocolate regal ice and surrounded these with chocolate vermicelli.

I then created vegetables using a combination of ready coloured and home coloured fondant icing and then shaped to create the different vegetables, I also used a sweet I located on my local market as a berry bush and spaghetti to create canes for a climbing vegetable. All in all the decorating took about and hour and a half a lot longer than I normally take to decorate a cake, I enjoyed the decorating and was particularly happy to feature vegetables as this is something I enjoy growing as well.

The decorated cake was very popular at cake club and with my work colleagues who enjoyed the leftovers.

Foxholes at Runshaw College

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Wed, 02 May 2012 19:53:00 +0000

Our local college has a training restaurant which I first visited probably about 10 years ago. A repeat visit was in order so many months ago I booked a place on one of their themed evenings where the students plan an evening of food and entertainment normally to raise money for charity. The training restaurant has is open a couple of days a week for lunch and dinner, so you have to book well ahead as the food is very inexpensive for the standard.

So "Flavours of Eastern Europe" was our theme, intrigued we arrived to a complimentary welcome cocktail (choice of alcoholic / non alcoholic), the building is a fairly utilitarian but the students have made an effort to make it more welcoming and attractive. We waited to be seated in a busy lounge area, after a pretty short wait we were seated and asked to choose from the menu , which had 3 starters , 3 mains and 3 desserts all with a suitably eastern european theme. The table was attractively decorated with fresh flowers and themed napkins and a nice touch was a bottle of tap water, we also had some lovely fresh bread delivered.

Our starters arrived after a pretty short wait to be delivered by a pretty nervous young waitress, I had chosen roll mops of pickled herring which was served with brown bread and butter and cucumber. This arrived attractively presented on a white platter each curl of herring sat on a flower of cucumber, the herring was stuffed with sweet spicy onions, delicious and healthy too. Mr B had the borsch, fairly chunky in texture, well flavoured and served with a dollop of sour cream on top.

On to the mains, we had both chosen the goulash, this arrived served in a dinky little saucepan with rice and rosti , we also had a dish of wonderful steamed cabbage and grilled to tomatoes to accompany. The food was tasty and well flavoured, the odd piece of beef could have been a little more tender but all in all pretty good.

On to the desserts, I had chosen Polish Honey cake , which was a moist little tower of cake topped with a cream swirl and accompanied with a fruit jelly terrine and a vanilla sauce. Mr B's dessert was a coffee mousse topped with a crisp caramel swirl, the mousse was worthy of a fine dining restaurant.

Once we had finished our meal, we were delivered 3 samples of eastern european beers to match against one of three descriptions, we got all ours correct after some deliberation and won a bottle of one of the beers.

We had a delightful evening and look forward to returning in the future. Apologies for no photos had camera problems.

Baba ganoush - Aubergine puree

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 06:02:00 +0000

After securing a bargain of 2 large shiny glossy aubergines for £1 on my recent visit to the shops, I decided to give baba ganoush a whirl. The only problem being that I don't have any tahini in the store cupboard. So baba ganoush without tahini it is.

Baba ganoush originates from the near east, Turkey and Bulgaria and essentially is a roasted aubergine puree, enriched olive oil, garlic and lemon juice. Deliciously simple, its ideal served with crudites or bread sticks alongside drinks or as part of a mezze.

Ingredients

2 large aubergines
Extra virgin olive oil
garlic (to taste)
Lemon juice
Sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Method

Puncture your aubergines, before roasting in a medium oven until softened and collasped
Allow to cool fully, then scrape out the aubergine flesh from the skin. Place the flesh in your food processor
Add your peeled garlic cloves, 2 tbsps olive oil, 1 tbsp lemon juice to the aubergine flesh
Blend until smooth and season to taste
Serve with your choice of dippers

Barlotto with wild greens and bacon

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 19:06:00 +0000

Barlotto is the english equivalent of risotto, using pearl barley instead of risotto rice and the perfect foil for wild greens.Our wild greens were collected from the local hedgerows, a delicious easy recipe.

Ingredients

1 large shallot finely chopped
Bacon lardons / pancetta
Pearl barley
Chicken stock - keep hot on the hob
Wild greens ( nettles and wild garlic)
Parmesan to finish
Salt and pepper
Oil olive / sunflower oil

Method

Soften your shallot in a little oil in a large frying pan
Add your bacon lardons and fry until lightly golden
Now add a good handful of pearl barley per person
Stir so the barley is coated with the juices in the pan
Add some of the hot chicken stock to the pan and simmer, gently stirring until absorbed
Keep adding stock and stirring until the the pearl barley is soft and the barlotto is not too runny.
Taste and season
Serve finished with parmesan cheese

Chocolate & whiskey bundt cake

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 06:18:00 +0000

Last weekend I had a marathon baking session, to create some 'thank you' cakes for the care staff at my late Father in laws care home as way of a token of thanks. Amongst other cakes was this dark delight, with a more adult flavour. Dark and foreboding this is definately a cake I will be making again, drizzled with white chocoloate the contrast with the almost black cake is great. I am sure you could substitute other alcohol for the whiskey, maybe amaretto, rum or coffee liquer and it would work as well.

Ingredients

1 cup of cocoa , plus a couple of spoons for dusting your tin
1 1/2 cups of freshly brewed coffee
1/2 cup alcohol of your choice
1 cup of butter
2 cups of caster sugar
2 cups of plain flour
1 1/4 tsps of bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp of salt
2 eggs - free range
1 tsp vanilla

Method

Use will need a 10" bundt tin or a round cake tin of a similar size
Preheat the oven to 160c
Oil spray your tin and then dust with cocoa powder
Combine the coffee, alcohol, butter and cup of cocoa in a saucepan, over a low heat melt and combine the ingredients
Take of the heat and add the sugar, stirring until dissolved
Allow to cool slighty
Now mix all the flour, bicarb and salt in a seperate bowl.
Whisk the eggs and vanilla together in a jug, then whisk into the cooled cocoa mix
Now whisk in the dry ingredients, until throughly mixed
Pour into your prepared tin
Bake in the oven for 40-50 mins, until tested cooked with a cocktail stick
Cool in the tin for a couple of hours before removing from tin
Once cooled drizzle with melted chocolate to decorate or sprinkle with icing sugar
The cake keeps well and the moisture level and flavour improves.

The Hedgerow Handbook by Adele Nozedar

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 19:53:00 +0000

I decided recently to treat myself to a couple of new books, (another one of my addictions), I love a beautiful book and have quite an extensive library of cooking, baking and food related volumes. I also have over the years amassed quite a collection of gardening, flora and fauna books too.

I have always been interested in wild food and foraging and my latest purchase,a beautifully illustrated book from Adele Nozedar is no exception, a Wales based author with a fascination for all things mystic, herbs, plants and the seen and unseen worlds.

The book features an illustrated section for all the most commonly found hedgerow forage edibles, each plant is stunningly illustrated to ease identification and some lovely anecdotes and stories are shared, along with simple home remedies. Each plant has several recipes suggested for it, some more unusual than your run of the mill foraging book. This book would be a great addition to your rucksack when out for a walk and equally at home on your cook book shelf in your kitchen.

The book is an absolute joy and I can't wait to try some of the recipes in the book with some great local sustainable ingredients.

Baked Bean Chilli - frugal food for all the family

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 18:15:00 +0000

Its been a pretty bad weekend in our household , so I have turned to trusty beef mince for this weekends recipe and the store cupboard. I normally have some mince stashed in the freezer for an economical supper dish which I am sure would be popular with the whole family in your household. Its appeal is that it features the humble baked bean, for the vegeterians just substitute the mince for more vegetables such as courgettes and celery.

Serve accompanied with the usual trimmings, rice, tacos, tortillas, salad or a jacket spud or even chips, sour cream and guacoamole are also options.

Ingredients

Minced beef
Onion - chopped finely
Red pepper - deseeded and sliced
Can of tomatoes - chopped
Tomato puree
pinch of sugar
Beef stock
Chilli spice mix - I use Fox's Herbs and Spices
Can of baked beans
Clove of garlic - peeled and crushed
Splash of worcestershire sauce

Method

Soften the onion and garlic in a little oil in a large pan
Soften the red pepper in the same manner
Now add the mince to the pan and cook until coloured
Add the chilli spice mix to taste
Add the tomato puree, pinch of sugar and worcestershire sauce
Now add the can of tomatoes and the beef stock, careful not to add too much liquid
Simmer until the sauce starts to reduce and the meat is cooked
Add the baked beans and continue to simmer to thicken the sauce further
Serve accompanied by rice

Rhubarb, tonka bean and yoghurt fool

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 18:55:00 +0000

I have been intrigued for several weeks with the Tonka bean after coming across them on the Steenbergs website. Originally originating from the Orinoco area of South American the tonka bean is a member of the pea family, the tonka bean is used in food and cosmetics. Its flavours and fragrance is a mix of vanilla, cloves, cinnamon and bitter almonds, it also has pagan and mystical associations. I plan to experiment with the tonka bean more as the season progresses.

I have choosen to use the tonka bean in a simple fruit fool layer using seasonal rhubarb from the garden. I have utilised Rhubarb compote from my earlier post but with the addition of a grating of tonka bean, this is then topped with crushed digestive biscuits ( you could use amaretti, shortbread or ginger nuts) and the a layer of yoghurt with a grating of the bean on top. If you want a more decadent finish you could use cream or custard of you wish.

I am entering this post in to the #oneingredient cooking challenge hosted by Working London Mummy.

Chicken with Leeks, wild garlic and creamy mustard sauce

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 18:48:00 +0000

I really enjoy foraging and seasonal food, spring has really sprung in Lancashire and in the countryside the wild garlic (ramsoms) is rampaging in the damp shady areas and hedgerow bottoms in the countryside. Wild garlic is a great wild food but is highly seasonal and available for only about a month to 6 weeks so cook with it while you can. I love using the juicy leaves and flowers in cooking and salads to impart a mild spicy garlic flavour. So that I am sure of supply I grow a couple of clumps in the garden , that way I can ensure that its not polluted with weedkiller, car fumes or dog pee.

Ingredients

chicken breast fillets
Leeks - cleaned for grit and chopped into rings
Wild garlic leaves - handful
Grain mustard - about a tablespoon per 2 chicken breasts
Double cream
White wine
Chicken stock powder
Honey
Black pepper - freshly ground
Rosemary - finely chopped

Method

Preheat your oven to 180c
I used a heavy cast iron casserole dish, you could use a ceramic dish and a frying pan.
Using a tiny amount of olive oil or butter, softened your leeks and wild garlic and rosemary
Now gently colour your chicken breasts without burning the leek mixture
Once golden , add your mustard, honey and chicken stock powder, stir and then add enough wine to come up to the chicken breasts
Add cream until the chicken breasts are just covered, add some black pepper
Bring to a gently simmer and stir to ensure all mixed
Cover the dish with the lid or foil
Place in the oven for approx 30 mins until your chicken breasts and the sauce slightly reduced.
Serve with seasonal vegetables, I used crushed potatoes, but rice or orzo pasta would be nice.

Rhubarb victoria sponge cake

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Sun, 25 Mar 2012 08:04:00 +0000

For the spring meeting of the South Lancashire clandestine cake club I decided that I wanted to make a cake that was seasonal and celebrated the emerging new life that is all around at this time of year. So I choose to use the every faithful victoria sponge but create a rhubarb compote to fill it from the early season rhubarb that is growing like topsy in the garden right now. For a great victoria sponge check out my earlier post which you can find here.

To make the rhubarb compote I finely diced one large stick of rhubarb and cooked it gently in pan with 1tbsp of soft brown sugar and a similar quantity of fruit juice or water, remove from heat as soon as the rhubarb is cooked.

To make the vanilla buttercream , mix 250g of icing sugar, 125g of softened butter and a good drizzle of vanilla paste in a mixer until softened and well blended, check that the buttercream isn't grainy.

Assemble the cake using the cooled compote and some of the buttercream as filling, top the cake with the rest of the buttercream and decorate to your taste.

Our venue for the event was the lovely Thyme Deli in Horwich, a lovely cafe deli run by the wonderful Amanda that is funkly decorated in a vintage style, which serves great local food and sells a fabulous range of foods, bakeware and kitchenalia. Pay them a visit if you are in the area you won't be disappointed.

If you are interested in joining the fun at a local clandestine cake club visit the website for more details.

Courgette & bacon risotto

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 08:18:00 +0000

I love italian food, it is the only other cuisine than English that I would happily eat every day. Due to often experiencing gluts of courgettes my blog features quite a large numbers of curcubit recipes, this is another. Another one of my vices is creamy sauces and this is a recipe were you get that creamy mouth feel without the addition of large volumes of double cream. I have used creme fraiche to reduce the fat level even further.

Ingredients

cubed pancetta or streaky bacon
courgette - cubed
small onion - finely chopped
clove of garlic- crushed or finely chopped
175g risotto rice
chicken stock
white wine
thyme
creme fraiche
parmesan - finely grated
olive oil

Method

Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan
fry the onion, garlic and bacon for about 3 minutes
add your courgette to the pan and stir
now add the risotto rice to the pan, sprinkle with thyme
add some of your chicken stock and wine, simmer and keep stirring
keep adding stock / wine until the rice is soft but is al dente
add creme fraiche to taste
serve topped with grated parmesan

Easter Treats from Hotel Chocolat

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 19:00:00 +0000

The easter bunny has been both literally and metaphorically to our household, we have recently seen the arrival of a baby bunny thats appeared in the garden and the post man has delivered my treat from Hotel Chocolat. Wow ,I have never seen an egg like it and we have chickens !

Isn't it cute , the little smiley faces, the fried eggs and the little chocolate bunnies and chicks, but wait there is more the egg itself is wrapped like the golden egg from the golden goose and its an extra thick 40% cocoa solid chocolate egg.

Ordering from Hotel Chocolat is easy and they have a range of gifts for all, and everything is always packaged beautifully.

The "You crack me up" extra thick egg is a fun upbeat egg which makes you smile whatever your age, your egg is delivered in a useful pretty mini hat box which contains the heavy weight extra thick egg, wrapped in gold foil, inside contains praline fried eggs, white chocolate eggy soldiers, solid chocolate bunnies, chirpy chicks which have a hint of sea salt and smiley faces which contain crunchy praline and chocolate brownie filling.

This egg would make a great gift for a young family to be shared by all or alternatively I am sure any friend would appreciate this fun easter gift.

I have been fortunate to be provided my egg by Hotel Chocolat for review purposes.

Chocolate courgette spelt cake

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 06:45:00 +0000

Regular readers of my blog will note that I feature more than my fair share of courgette recipes, I like a nice courgette cake recipe, that unassuming vegetable that adds moisture to your cake recipe and cake is a great way of using up a glut when they are in season. This recipe using spelt (one of my favourite flours) and agave nectar to give a more healthy cake, the result is a nutty chocolate cake, not overly sweet.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups spelt flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
4 tbsp cocoa powder
2 eggs
3/4 cup agave nectar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 1/2 cups grate courgette

Method

Preheat oven to 180c
Oil and line a 2lb loaf tin
Sift all the dry ingrients into a bowl
Add all the well ingredients and mix well
Pour your batter into your prepared tin
Bake for approx 45 mins until well risen and tested as cooked with a skewer
Cool on a wire rack
Cake is better after being kept a couple of days wrapped in a tin.

Food Photography

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 11:52:00 +0000

Extra Virgin Cold Pressed Rapeseed Oil on a spoon.

Inspired by Food Photographer Tim Clinch, my take on one of his classic images

Danish Cinnamon Swirl Bundt Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Sun, 11 Mar 2012 19:23:00 +0000

This weeks post continues the odyssey of the bundt tin, after a busy couple of days I finally got round to baking. The recipe includes sour cream which helps to create a moist tender crumb, I did however get a bit worried that this cake might stick in the tin despite spraying with a vegetable oil spray but I managed to get the cake out with a sharp inversion. The resultant cake is tasty and has a lovely cinnamon swirl.

Ingredients

3/4 cup vegetable margarine
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
3 eggs - free range
1 tsp vanilla paste
1 cup sour cream
2 1/2 cups plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bicarb
2 tbsp ground cinnamon
1/2 cup demerara sugar

Method

Pre heat your oven to 180c
Oil your bundt tin
Mix the ground cinnamon and demerara sugar together in a separate bowl
Cream your margarine and granulated sugar
Now add all the other ingredients and mix well in your mixer
Now pour half of the mixture in your prepared tin
Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar on top
Now top off with the rest of the mixture and level.
Bake for approx 45-60 minutes until golden and fully baked when tested with a skewer
Cool in tin and then tip out until a wire rack

Spicy Torus Cake aka Spicy Bundt Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 06:30:00 +0000

I have secumbed to the trend sweeping through the baking nation , I have purchased a bundt or kugelhopf tin ! According to Mr B the correct geometrical term for this shape is a torus so that is what this cake has now been christened. Given that most recipes are from the US of A and thats where I have taken my inspiration from, this recipe is in cups, now I know that some bakers detest american cups but personally I love them, you just have to commit and buy a good set to get good results.

I love spiced cakes, my favourite spice being cinnamon, this recipe features both cinnamon and cloves, the warm comforting aroma that rises from the oven when baking is delightful and it scents the whole kitchen.

Ingredients

1 cup vegetable margarine
2 cups of caster sugar
3 eggs - free range
3 cups plain flour
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp ground cloves
3/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup buttermilk ( if you can't get it milk acidified with lemon juice)
Icing sugar to spinkle

Method

Preheat your oven to 180c
Grease / oil your tin
Cream your margarine and sugar until light and fluffy, use a mixer if you have one.
Add your eggs , don't worry about the curdled look
Add the flour, cinnamon, cloves, salt and bicarb, sift as you go.
Mix well and pour into your prepared tin.
Smooth top
Bake for 50-55 mins until tested as cooked
Cool in tin for 10 mins and then turn out to cool fully on wire rack.
Dust with icing sugar to serve.

Parkers Arms - Newton in Bowland

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 11:11:00 +0000

For many months I have followed Stosi Madi of The Parkers Arms on twitter, a passionate advocate of local food. Today finally saw our first visit to the fine establishment nestled in the nook of the rolling moorland countryside of the stunning Forest of Bowland. Just 10 minutes drive from Clitheroe but a world away, this is pub/restaurant with rooms and is everything a country pub should be, warm, welcoming with fabulous local food, lovingly prepared. On pulling up on the carpark what first strikes you is the silence, well lack of intrusive noise anyhow, all we could hear were sheep bleeting and birds singing.

We were warmly and genuinely welcomed by front of house AJ , the fire already lit in the grate and the bar warm and cosy. We had booked but where given a choice of tables and chose to sit in the window so we could watch the panorama of the glorious hillside outside.

Mr B ordered from a fine selection of local ales from Bowland Brewery - "Sawley Tempted" as I was driving I choose one of their soft drinks, I note they had a fine selection of mawsons traditional drinks to refresh any passing traveller, this being on the scenic route to the Ribblehead viaduct.

Whilst we perused the menu and the daily defined specials we chatted with the lovely friendly staff, the whole menu is focused on local seasonal produce, beautifully prepared to emphasise its best points and is just the right length, enough choice but not too much that you get bamboozled or doubt on the freshness of the produce.

Our choices made and we were pleased to be joined by other diners as the establishment started to fill up for lunch. Our first hints of the delights in store was the arrival of our first appetiser - crunchy roasted potato skins with tomato relish, delicious crunchy skins sprinkled with sea salt and served with a sweet smooth tomato puree, sweetened by being roasted. Delicious.

Next a tasting plate of local ( and when I say local I mean local a mile or so up the road) Dunsop bridge trout with horseradish and homemade country bread, the trout has been treated gently and was beautifully tender , the creamed horseradish just spiky enough to cut any oiliness from the fish. Then the puffy fluffy lancashire cheese souffles arrived, soft, yeilding and cheesy ( in the best way), also featuring local eggs again from the chickens at a local farm.

Next my Black pudding, egg, crispy potatoes and homemade chutney were delivered, perfectly roasted black pudding was complimented with a dippy egg and homemade chutney, a delight for the taste buds, the crispy potatoes perfectly complimented with the herb oil drizzle. My dining partner had selected the Spiced venison loin, pickled damsons and homemade bread, I snuck a little taster of the venison which was tender and well balanced with the pickled local damsons.

By this stage we were getting a little full, AJ told to relax our mains would be with us soon, after a suitable polite pause( so grateful) ( whilst watching the other delights emerging from the kitchen) our mains were delivered, Hot-water crust pork and rabbit pasty, roasted roots, kale and thrice cooked chunky chips for my dining partner and Sole, sea vegetables, saute potatoes and lemon butter sauce for me.

WOW , all the food was beautifully presented and the portions exactly the right size, my sole was tender , cooked on the bone just how I like it , the sauce buttery lemon but not over powering , matched well by the sea vegetables which provided a nice salty edge to the dish, the potatoes were equally delicious and well matched to the rest of the plate. The cute pasty was packed with filling, moist and juicy all encased in a golden pastry crust, the chips triple cooked were a revelation and very much lived up to the recommendation of AJ, but I am sure the alternative of creamy mash would be just a good. The little dish of roasted roots and kale was great accompaniment to the pasty which needed the robust "roast dinner" flavours to meet the challenge of standing up to the slighty gamey pasty.

By this stage we were full, Mr B even leaving a couple of the chips, however the dessert menu looked equally scrumptious all made on the premises including the elusive local "wet nelly" !

All in all this lunch is up there with my best dining experiences and we will definately be visiting again, the food is very reasonably priced for the quality and the fact that this is real Lancashire Food and the word local really means local , I can only recommend you visit yourself very soon for stunning food and the stunning landscape.

I'd like to apologise for the lack of photos too, the food was so good it disappeared to quickly to get many snaps. They are open Tuesday to Sunday and have a special very seasonal very local special menu on weekdays that is sourced from within either 10 or 20 miles of the pub and they serve a traditional Sunday lunch on Sunday's. I'd also to point out that the Parkers Arms did not ask me to write a feature on my blog and that I paid for my lunch. Stosi did know I was visiting as I had booked a table, at the time of my visit lots of other diners were also enjoying the same food and ambiance.

Marmalade cake for National Marmalade Week

noreply@blogger.com (Linzi_Barrow) — Sun, 26 Feb 2012 12:36:00 +0000

In honour of the first "National Marmalade Week" , this weekends bake is a Marmalade cake using my homemade marmalade. I made the marmalade a few weeks ago using lovely seasonal seville oranges purchased at my local Booths supermarket, it was a devil to set on this occasion but I got there in the end. My cake is based on the classic sponge recipe with the addition of marmalade to give it an extra orangey zing, in the past I have also used ginger marmalade in a similar recipe for a ginger variant. Make sure that you incorporate plenty of air when creaming your fat and sugar so you don't end up with a dense cake.

Marmalade is such a versatile ingredient to have in your store cupboard as you can use it as it is, on toast, in cakes and desserts and in savoury marinades and roasts.

Give Paddington Bear a shout as I am sure he would love this cake.

Ingredients

175g Margarine or butter
175g caster sugar
175g self raising flour
3 eggs - free range please
75g marmalade
Grated orange zest

Method

Preheat your oven to 160c fan / 180c normal
Grease you cake tin, I used a loose bottomed one about 9 inches across or a 2 lb loaf tin
Cream you fat and sugar until fluffy
Ad your marmalade and orange zest, mix and then carefully add your eggs, you may need an addition of flour to stop the mixture curdling.
Add the rest of the flour and mix well
Spoon into your prepared tin, level
Bake for approx 30 -35 mins in your preheated oven until well risen and golden on top.