Chewy Ginger Nuts

I bought a tin of dark treacle ages ago when I had a craving for Jamaican ginger cake and then it just sat sadly at the back of my cupboard, unused.

But then I was spending a Sunday trawling through my recipe books for inspiration and I found a killer recipe for chewy ginger biscuits. I made a few subs to get my treacle in there and they came out PERFECTLY. Really soft but with crisp edges. Sweet but dark. Ridiculously flavourful. Hella delicious.

I love a crackle-top cookie!

Bake and enjoy! They are perfect for a little snack, but I am also picturing a dessert featuring them slightly warmed, with vanilla ice-cream on top and then drizzled with chopped nuts/honey and thinking that would be INCREDIBLE.

Marzipan In Blankets

Let's start a Christmas bake countdown!

If you have any Europeans in your life (especially of the German or Scandi persuasion) they will be all over this. It’s basically gingerbread wrapped around a big old chunk of marzipan.

As all good German Christmas cookie recipes go, this makes about a million little morsels and you won’t be disappointed. The spice mix is the one I return to again and again, you will recognise it from my spiced cupcake recipe. It's versatile, warming and deeply flavoured and one of my favourite ingredients in my pantry!

Spiced Chocolate Orange Polenta Cake

Are we ready for some more chocolate after the indulgences of Easter?

I am always looking for a way to use interesting or unusual ingredients. You don’t see polenta around too much, but I really like using it in baking. It is kind of coarse and I like the very subtle crunch that it gives to baked goods. I am a fan.

Now, real talk, I poured the batter for this into a cake tin that was way too small and it never would have cooked. So I removed some of the batter for cupcakes, and ended up with a smaller cake than was intended and 6 delicious cupcakes. Still delicious.

This is a good cake. AND it's gluten free! You will enjoy.

Orange and Ginger "Raw-eos"

Well, I had a box of medjool dates left over from my last “raw” cooking kick, so I thought I’d try something that I’ve been thinking about for a little while. While these don’t taste anything like Oreos, they look a bit like them and they’re kind of delicious in their own way. I’m a sugar addict, I’m not going to go all “clean” on you guys and say how these taste even better than the real thing. They don’t, BUT they’re actually pretty damn delicious, and sweetly flavourful.

The biscuit-y bit is actually really similar to those Nakd bars – the only one I like (choc orange). I think the little addition of bits of ginger chocolate gives it a real pop and works well with the orange. I’m a fan.

Raw cooking is something which I’m just dipping my toes into, and adjusting to my own tastes. Feel free to play around with the flavours, or just leave the ginger choc/zest out entirely. The other great thing about these is that you don’t need the filling, you could easily roll them a bit thicker (like an inch) and just eat them as-is. Versatile and yummy!

Parkin

Just in time for Bonfire Night..

And this time I’m going local! Parkin is a traditional North-East of England cake, made with oats and treacle. Thus, it is a sweet, moist and sticky cake. And the sweet, spiced flavours are just perfect for autumn.

I didn’t know about this cake until I took a chance on it as dessert in one of my favourite restaurants. 

My mum and I were really impressed by the syrup-y sweet, dense oaty cake, which was served with banana icecream (a revelation – a complete perfect partnership!). I knew as the cold weather rolled around once again, I wanted to try my own version.

And it went down a treat! Unfortunately, I couldn’t find any treacle, but if you can, substitute 100g of the golden syrup for 100g of treacle.

Ginger and Coconut Oatmeal Cookies

I have been on a bit of an oaty cookie kick at the minute, and these are unusual in texture and flavour, but I really like them. The honey makes them a little bit floppy, but I really like the texture that it gives. The oats and coconut also give a nice firming quality.

You could add some orange or lemon to this, but I didn’t want to go overboard with flavours on the first attempt. As they are, they are delicately spiced, sweet and delicious.

Makes about 18 cookies, but next time I think I would make them a little smaller.

Lime and Ginger Chicken Stir Fry

I have to admit, I’ve never really made a stir fry before. I am just not a big fan of noodles, in general. But of course, noodles are my boyfriend’s favourite thing ever. I have combined a regular stir fry with another recipe I love for lime and ginger chicken, and it turned out deliciously. The flavours are complimentary, and it is packed full of my favourite veggies! Note, I did not add beansprouts because they are totally pointless and gross, but feel free to mix and match with the vegetables of your choice. Mushrooms, sugar snap peas, baby corn.. all solid options.

If you have a wok, this is the time to break it out. I do not have one, so a non-stick pan has been drafted in instead. Improvisation is a big part of how I cook. Don’t have the exact utensil/ingredient? Improvise and you never know, it might turn out better than the original! If not, eh, lesson learned. There’s a fairly laissez-faire attitude which predominates in my kitchen.

Chana Masala

How I wish there was smell-o-vision around..

Recipe taken from a beautifully presented blog: ekant cook curry.

Well, I found WiFi! Day one in Dubai and there has been a lot of skyscraper admiring and pool lounging. This is a 'here's one I made earler' post. And I'm posting it because a similar item was a part of today's breakfast buffet. Yes, curry for breakfast. Yes, I ate some. It was eye-wateringly beautiful. I will have more tomorrow morning.

This was originally supposed to be just chickpeas, as I fancied a little veggie dinner. But my boyfriend came back from the gym and requested some protein for his “guns” so I had to oblige with a little meat.

I love curry in all flavours, meats and sizes. And I bow down to the chickpea. Those two loves combined in this extremely tasty meal which had a depth of flavour and a hint of hot spice. And unsurprisingly, it was even nicer the next day, as the flavours developed.

Gingerbread and White Chocolate Bars

Another addition to my afternoon-tea tray of delight. Found this recipe online somewhere, and it is fantastic. You know those delicious little hard biscuits you get in IKEA at Christmastime (pepparkakar)? Imagine the flavour of those, but in a dense chewy cake-bar with white choc chips sprinkled in. I’ll give you a second to wipe up the drool from the keyboard.

..

Anyway, these are great. The only sticking point in the recipe may be using the shortening. I used lard (ooh, delish) and it was a little hard to work with straight from the fridge, next time I might leave it a bit to become room temperature enabling me to blend/cream it more effectively.

These are so packed with flavour and spice, like a delicious fruit cake without any of the gross dried fruit. 

Chocolate instead!

My number one cooking rule is: fruit has no place in desserts. Exception that proves the rule: banoffee. Blowing minds, all up in here.

Delicious Vindaloo

First off, don’t be put off by the name. This is as spicy as you want to make it. And the underlying flavour has depth and spice enough to compensate for if you prefer it slightly milder. As a general rule, 2 chillis = gentle underlying spice, 4 chillis = pretty spicy, and 6 may make your mouth cry but is also very tasty. 

Yes, some of the ingredients sound a little alien, but the spice aisle of your local supermarket will have most, and your local Asian foodstore will have the rest. They are infinitely reuseable so definitely worth picking them all up.

Heads up, it requires slight preparation and marinating, but once you’ve prepared it, cooking the next day is easy as pie. You might be panicking that there is no discernible sauce-ifying element. And you’d be right to notice- there isn’t. But it works anyway. Go with it. The chicken should be juicy enough on its own.

Baked Cheesecake, Christmas-style

A little slice of dairy-deliciousness

I have a confession to make.. I don’t really like cheesecake. I don’t like cream, I don’t like cheese, I hate cream cheese.

Until. I decided to keep the Christmas spirit going, by making this festive version of a baked cheesecake. Instead of digestive biscuits only, the base is mainly ginger cookies. I used IKEA’s Christmas cookies: pepparkakor. They are delicious. I have never baked a cheesecake before, and this is testament to how fool-proof this recipe is. This fool NAILED IT.