Garden week of 22nd August

Fought long and hard but dragged the triffids back into order last weekend and everything a little more orderly this weekend. Started digging up the potatoes, excellent fun planting them in tubs because digging them up is like a lucky dip. Did amazingly well and the two red pots produced around 50 potatoes and the first white pot another 30! Planted 6 tubs of Maris Pipers for Xmas, so hopefully home grown sprouts and roast potatoes on Xmas Day. Bought winter curly kale, savoy cabbage and spring cabbage plants as well to give some extra choices on the big day. Sadly the end of the broccolis so dug them out and replaced them with the winter kale. Next week time to take the squash in hand!

Picked: Cabbage, broccoli, courgettes, mangetout, beans, potatoes

First signs of: cucumber, squash, tomatoes (still green), sweetcorn heads, chillis and peppers

Carrot Cake. Lush.

Compiled from different recipes (as usual!!) with a bit of my own tinkering too. Main credit goes to Monsieur Rankin. And Becky Boo.

• 250g unsalted butter
• 4 eggs
• 375g soft brown sugar
• grated rind 2 oranges
• 450g carrots grated
• Juice of 1 orange
• 250g plain flour
• 1tsp vanilla extract
• 150g chopped pecans
• 2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1 tsp mixed spice
• 1 tsp salt
• About 150g mixed raisins and sultanas (just kinda threw some in!!)

FOR TOPPING

• 225g philidelphia (other brands are available)
• 65g butter
• 400g icing sugar
• 1tsp vanilla essence

Preheat oven to 180C or gas 4

Grease 9 inch cake tin

Beat butter, sugar and orange rind.

Slowly add the eggs beating well

Fold in carrot, pecans and fruit

Add vanilla extract and orange juice

Fold in sift flour, mixed spice, salt and bicarb

Bake for 45 - 60 minutes

NB I had too much mixture left so experimented and made some carrot cake muffins!!

For topping, beat the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add the icing sugar and vanilla essence. Lavish over cake indulgently and enjoy. Yum yum.

Bread and Butter Pudding

It's a recipe from Jamie Oliver with my usual meddling

• 100g unsalted butter
• large pinch of grated nutmeg
• large pinch of cinnamon
• zest of one large orange
• 16 slices Warburtons Raisin bread
• 9 large eggs
• 140g caster sugar
• 500ml whole milk (I did use 250ml semi skimmed and 250ml Elmlea 55% less fat cream here)
• 565ml double cream
• 1 vanilla pod (or I used 2tsp vanilla extract)
• 4 tbsp fine cut marmalade
• Whiskey

Preheat oven to 180 degrees.

Make a flavoured butter by mixing the butter, cinnamon, nutmeg and orange zest. Use some of it to butter a largish shallow ovenproof dish (I used one of my smaller lasagne dishes).

Butter the bread using the flavoured butter, then cut each slice in half diagonally, place these in the buttered dish and drizzled whiskey over the top.

Separate the eggs, keep 9 yolks and 1 white (freeze the other 8 egg whites and use them at a later date, good for meringues). Which together the 9 yolks and one white with the caster sugar.

Gently heat the milk and cream and add the vanilla pod (don't boil the milk, just heat it slowly). Pour this warm mix into the eggs and mix together. Remove the vanilla pod and pour the mix over the bread and leave to soak for 20 mins.

Put the dish in a roasting tin and pour boiling water in to cover it up to halfway up the side of the dish. Cook in oven for 45 mins until the custard is set.

After 45 mins warm the marmalade in a saucepan or microwave, remove the dish from the oven and brush the marmalade over the top of the bread. Put the pudding back in the oven for 5-10 mins to glaze. Allow to cool and firm up slightly before serving.

Stilton and Courgette Carbonara

Yes, I know, its courgettes again, but in my defence I have a lot of them, makes you inventive!

• 1 pk cooking bacon
• 1 leek (sliced thinly)
• 2 cloves garlic (minced)
• 12 assorted mushrooms (I used normal and chestnut, chunky chopped)
• 4 medium sized courgettes (sliced lengthways once then chopped so half moons)
• 1 tbsp fresh thyme
• 1 tub ricotta cheese
• 1 tub low fat creme fraiche
• 2 tbsp double cream
• 200g stilton (crumbled)

Saute the leek and garlic in a pan. Add the bacon.

Once bacon cooked add the mushrooms and courgettes and thyme.

Saute for around 5 mins until soft.

Then add ricotta, creme fraiche and cream and put on a low heat until bubbling. If sauce too thick add a little water.

Finally add stilton and stir.

Boil pasta and then add to pan and mix well.

5 a day chocolate brownies aka the ones with the courgettes

From a recipe adapted from Ottolenghi cookbook (with my own special addition!)

• 100g pecan nuts (bashed)
• 200g unsalted butter
• 280g plain butter
• 300g dark chocolate (Green and Blacks cooking chocolate is ace)
• 2 eggs
• 230g caster sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 100g chocolate chips (or I used a Green and Black's chocolate bar bashed up)
• 40g mini marshmallows (I used Dr. Oetker Mini mini marshmallows and they dissolved)
• 300g grated courgette (honest, I'm not kidding, makes the brownies healthy and moist!)
• Tub Betty Crocker Fudge Icing

Brush a baking tin with melted butter (swiss roll tin) and preheat oven to 170 degrees.

Put a pan of water on the hob to boil. Put butter and chocolate in a heatproof glass dish and balance on top of pan of water so water is heating bowl gently, stir from time to time. Keep pan on a low simmer and allow butter and chocolate to melt but not get too hot. Once melted remove bowl from pan.

In large bowl whisk together sugar, eggs and vanilla just until they are combined, then add melted chocolate mix and flour and mix. Finally add all other ingredients nuts, marshmallows, chocolate pieces and courgette (I promise you can't taste the courgette, it dissolves completely and makes the brownies stay really moist) and mix well.

Empty mixture out into tray, bake on centre shelf of oven for about 25mins (don't be afraid to cook for longer), brownie is ready when you put a knife in centre and pull out and some mix is on the knife but it looks a little cooked and not raw. Take out of oven and allow to cool (will keep cooking).

Once cooled spread icing on top (if required), then cut into pieces (I usually do around 18 pieces) and don't tell people they have courgettes in until they have eaten them, then watch their faces!!

Cheese and Asparagus Strudel

Adapted from a recipe from Silver Palate cookbook

Makes 2 strudels, each gives around 10 pieces, if you don't need this much strudel, either halve the receipe to just make one, or freeze one when its on its baking sheet prior to cooking. As always optional ingredients in italics.

• a bunch of asaparagus (cut into 1/2 inch pieces)
• 2 medium sized leeks (sliced thinly)
• 150g gruyere cheese (grated)
• 200g cheddar or double gloucester (grated)
• 3 normal sized courgettes (diced)
• 2 eggs
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh mint
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
• 2 tbsp chopped chives
• 2 tbsp chopped oregano
• salt, pepper, paprika and cayenne pepper
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 packets ready rolled puff pastry
• Milk for sticking and glazing

Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees.

Put a spoon of butter in a chefs or saute pan, saute the leeks gently then add the asparagus and courgette, cook until soft.

Add all ingredients to bowl (except the puff pastry and milk) and season to taste with salt, pepper, paprika and cayenne pepper. Mix ingredients well with hands (messy but fun!).

Butter a baking sheet.

Flour a work surface and get puff pastry out of packet, lay on surface and gently roll out so that the piece is around 50cm wide by 30cm long. Place half of mixture on pastry and spread out so it is 2cm from each side and the bottom edge, but it is 10cm from top edge. Paint milk along all the edges. Roll the pastry over approximately 2 or three times to make a large sausage shape about 10cm long and 50cm wide. Very carefully (its very delicate and may need two of you) lift the pastry onto the baking sheet, and if it will not fit on the sheet properly make a horseshoe shape. Paint top with milk.

Repeat above instructions for second packet of pastry.

Cook in oven for 30-40mins until golden brown on top.

Charlie's summer garden minestrone

• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 3 onions
• 3 leeks
• 3 cloves garlic
• 500g cooking bacon
• 1 packet fine/green beans (1/2 inch pieces)
• 4-5 courgettes (diced)
• small bunch assorted kale and broccoli leaves (chopped)
• 10-12 mange tout (1 cm pieces)
• 2 large potatoes (diced)
• 1 full celery (sliced)
• 6 carrots (cubed)
• 4pt vegetable stock
• 250g small pasta
• 3 tins chopped tomatoes
• 4tbsp tomato puree
• 4tbsp fresh basil
• 4tbsp cutting celery
• celery salt and pepper

Adapted from a recipe from my cooking oracle, my mum, who I think got it from my Uncle.

Ingredients in italics optional.

Warning, I make a LOT of soup, lots left over to freeze :) But you need a really big pan!

Fry chopped up bacon together with onions, leek and garlic.

Add beans, courgettes, leaves, mange tout, potatoes, celery, carrots. Sweat off for 10mins.

Add tomatoes, puree, herbs, seasoning and stock.

Add pasta and cook for as long as possible, serve with crusty ciabatta and parmesan.

Spicy Lentil Soup

• 3 small onions
• 300g cooking bacon
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 sweet potatoes or 2 potatoes
• 500g red lentils
• 250g green continental lentils
• 1 tin chopped tomatoes
• 3 pints vegetable stock
• celery salt
• black pepper
• cayenne pepper and chilli

Chop up onions and begin to slowly saute in pan. Add garlic (minced or through crusher) and chop up bacon and fry all through until cooked.

Peel and chop up potatoes and add to pan, keep stirring.

Add both types of lentils, tin of tomatoes and vegetable stock.

Season with celery salt, pepper and cayenne pepper and chilli to taste.

Garden week of 14th August

Came back from 2 weeks away and the garden has grown even more! Looks amazing, lots of produce but needs taking into hand a little which is the jobs list for the weekend. Tomatoes have grown so much have collapsed their canes and the squash is getting everywhere! Thanks to Mr & Mrs C, Mum & A. Heather for all their help!

Picked the monster cabbage before I left and the outside leaves alone produced 2 x 1 gallon bags of chopped leaves. The main body produced 3 bags!

Pickings whilst away: Courgettes, broccoli, kale, mange tout

First signs of: Beans!! Red Strawberries, big tomatoes, potatoes

Slugs have eaten: Lettuce, Pak Choi