Chicken Carcass Stock Soup

I always boil up my chicken carcass to make a lovely stock which can be used for soup or in place of a stock cube.

This is my simple soup recipe

1 pint stock
1 pint water
1 tsp dried herbs
1 small onion finely diced
1 large carrot small dice
4 tbsp of orange lentils
1 medium potato small dice
any bits of chicken you have

Put the first 6 ingredients into a pan and bring to the boil, then simmer until the carrot is nearly cooked add in the potato and continue until this is so it will mash against the side of the pan with the back of a spoon, then add in the chicken to heat through.

I prefer this re-heated the next day so the potatoes and lentils seem to meld into the stock making a thicker base.

Leeks can be used instead of onions, and other bits of leftover veggies could quite easily be added at the end if wanted.

CARROT & PUMPKIN SOUP

I had a couple of small pumkins/squashes left in my veg rack which were the size of cricket balls.

so I made up a batch of this soup.

500g tub of hm chicken stock
2 leeks finely diced
small onion finely diced, (used a serving spoon of the precooked)
3 carrots small dice
the said pumpkin small dice
3 tennis ball size potatoes small dice.

sweat off the leeks in a glug of oil, add in the onions, carrots and pumpkin then add the stock plus the same again of water times 2.

let this all come to the boil then add 2 handsful of orange lentils and the potatoes, bring back to the boil, then turn down to a simmer until the carrots are soft,

Blitz with a whizz stick or similar and serve with pinch fresh ground black pepper and hm chunky bread.

This amount has made 6 x 2 ladel portions. It is a thick soup so can always be watered down further to stretch.

AMISH SUGAR COOKIES

1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup butter
1 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
4 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla

Beat first four ingredients well, then add eggs.
Mix well.

Add dry ingredients and vanilla.
Drop small ball of dough on lightly greased cookie sheet.
Sprinkle with sugar.
Flatten dough with bottom of a glass.
Bake 375 degrees for 10 - 12 minutes.

Makes about 5 dozen cookies.

BANANA FLAPJACK

125g butter or marg
3 tbsp sunflower oil
125g demerara sugar
2 tbsp maple syrup
1 or 2 very ripe bananas
200g porridge

Melt butter, oil, sugar, syrup over a low heat.
Mash your bananas with a fork and add to the pan.
Add the oats and stir well.
Put the mixture in a tin and press down evenly.
Bake for about 20 mins 180C/350F/gas 4.
Let it cool for 10 mins then cut into about 12 flapjacks."

BAILEYS FUDGE

375 g condensed milk
3 1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/3 cup Baileys Irish Cream

Directions

Line a 12x6 bar pan or slice pan with baking paper.
Heat the condensed milk carefully.
Melt the chocolate in a microwave 30 second bursts, stirring after each burst so it doesn't burn. Add to the condensed milk and then mix in Baileys.
Pour into your lined bar pan and set--leave to cool at room temp or if very warm were you live pop into the fridge to set.

COURGETTE TEABREAD

pre-heat oven to 180c/350f/gas 4
grease a 2lb loaf tin and bottom line with greaseproof paper - make it so it comes up the narrow edges so you can use it to lift it out or line muffin tins with papers

1 large egg
125ml sunflower oil
175g courgettes -trimmed and grated (on large holes)
150g wholewheat flour -i used ordinary
1/2tsp baking powder
1tsp bicarb
1tsp ground cinnamon
175g soft dark brown sugar
75g sultanas
3oz walnuts chopped

tip courgettes and all dry ingredients into a large bowl and mix well
whisk egg into the oil and pour into dry goods
mix to a thick batter and pour in tin
put in oven for about 1 hr or until a skewer comes out clean..cool in tin for 10 mins before turning out to cool

Can be made into mini muffins and they took about 15 mins a batch and if you let them stand for a few seconds in the tin they firm up and are easier to remove

LEMON & POPPY SEED MUFFINS

330g SR flour
150g sugar
1.5 tablespoon poppy seeds
1 teaspoon baking powder
250ml milk75g margarine
125ml lemon juice (bottled stuff)
1 egg

Mix dry ingredients in a bowl

Using a stick blender blend mik juice marge and egg until smooth then stir into dry ingredients

Put into muffin cases

Bake gas 6 for 20mins or until golden

ICED BUNS

TAKEN FROM THE BACK OF MORRISONS WHITE BREAD FLOUR

560g (1IB 4oz) white bread flour
10g (1/2oz) Milk powder
60g (2 and half oz) Caster sugar
5g (quarter of a oz) salt
50g (2oz) butter or marge
25g (1oz) beaten egg (i used 1 egg tho)
275ml (10fl oz) warm water
6g Dried yeast
225g (8oz) icing sugar 1 and half teaspoon water for the icing

1. sieve the flour into a bowl and rub in the butter. Form a well in the middle and add all the other ingredients into the well
2. On a floured surface kneed for 10minutes. Mix together.
3. Plae the dough into a large bowl, cover and leave for about an hour to rise (the dough should have doubled in size)
4. Divide into 16 cigar shapes. Place the shapes onto a greased baking tray and cover again for 30 minutes, at room temperature, or untill the dough has risen again.
5. Bake for 10-12 minutes at gas mark 7, 220oc, 425 of.
6. When the buns have cooled make upthe incing sugar and spread evenly across the top of the buns

FRUIT FLAPJACKS

7oz demerara sugar
8oz marg
2tablespoons golden syrup (I use generous ones)
6oz muesli
4oz rolled oats
large handfull apricots, chopped
Large handfull raisins
two small handfulls nuts, chopped, I use brazils and pecans

Pre heat oven to 160c, grease a 12x9in roasting tray

In a large pan melt the marg, syrup and sugar, then stir in everything else.

Mix well and turn out onto roasting tray, press flat with back of spoon.

Bake fo about 25-35mins till golden brown, remove from the oven and leave to cool for 10mins before marking into small squares.

Leave in the tin to finish cooling before cutting up.

LEOMON & POPPY SEED MUFFINS

CHOCOLATE BISCUIT CAKE

1/2 lb. (~ 1/2 a normal sized packet) digestive biscuits
1/4 lb. (~ 100g) butter or marg.
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsps golden syrup
3 tbsps cocoa

1. Put the biscuits in a plastic bag and smash them up with a rolling pin, or anything else you can lay your hands on, until they are pretty much crumbs but with the odd lump here and there.
2. Melt the butter, sugar and syrup together untill all the sugar has dissolved.
3. Remove from the heat, add the cocoa and beat until the mixture goes shiny.
4. Add the crushed biscuits and then spread the mixture out onto a greased and/or lined baking tray and smooth the mixture with the back of a wooden spoon until (fairly) even.

(The mixture at this stage is almost as good as the resulting biscuits, so try not to eat it all.)

Chill until set

LEMON CURD CAKE

100g margerine
75g caster sugar
2 eggs
175g self raising flour
1/2 - 3/4 jar of lemon curd

Preheat oven to 200c.

Grease and line a 2lb loaf tin.

Place all ingredients in a bowl and mix together for about 5 mins.
Pour in to tin and level top.
Bake for about 40 mins until browned.

BOUNTY BITES

200g condensed milk
100g dessicated coconut
8oz (approx) icing sugar
8oz (dark) chocolate

1. Mix condensed milk & coconut.
2. Add enough icing sugar to make a stiff dough.
3. Form into ball shapes & place on a baking tray.
4. Leave in fridge, preferrably overnight, to firm.
5. Melt chocolate & dip coconut mixture into it to cover.
6. Leave to allow chocolate to harden.

CARROT CAKE

I made this the other day, we were given a big bunch of carrots and we also hadn't any cake left in the tin.

CARROT CAKE

8oz s/r flour,
1/2 tsp ground mixed spice,
5oz soft dark brown sugar,
5 oz carrots, grated,
2 eggs,
1/4 pt corn or sunflower oil,
2 tbsp milk.

180C - 40 mins, oblong tin, just mix all ingredients together, then bake!

Topping - 2oz butter, softened,8oz icing sugar

GINGERBREAD MUFFINS

9oz / 250g plain flour (ap)
1½ tsp /7.5ml baking powder
½ tsp / 2.5ml bicarb of soda
½ tsp / 2.5ml salt
1 tsp / 5ml each of ground ginger and cinnamon
1 egg
4-6oz / 110-170g soft brown sugar
3floz / 90ml vegetable oil
2-4 tbsp / 30-60ml black treacle
6floz / 180ml milk
4oz / 110g cinnamon chips (like choc chips) (optional)

Prepare muffin tins.
Preheat oven to 375-400°F / 190-200°C

In a large bowl sift together first 5 ingredients.
Stir in cinnamon chips.
In a second bowl beat egg, stir in sugar, oil and treacle, stir well until blended.
Add milk and stir briskly until well mixed.
Pour wet into dry and stir to combine.
Batter will be thinner than normal muffin batter.
Spoon into tins.
Bake approx 25 minutes until tops feel firm.

Can also be baked in 2 x lb loaf tins.

BUTTERSCOTCH TART

8" Pastry Case baked Blind allow to cool
4oz Block Marg
4oz Demerara Sugar
1oz Plain Flour
2 floz Milk

Mix sugar & flour
Melt marg and milk, bring to boil.
Add in flour & sugar mix, stir until thickens
Cool slightly, and then pour into cooled pastry case.
Leave to set
Serve with either custard or whipped cream

BANANA CAKE

4oz Margarine
4oz Castor Sugar
2 Eggs
8oz SR Flour
2-3 Mashed Bananas
2 tbsp Milk
1 tsp Bicarb Soda


Oven 350-375°F / 180-190°C/ Gas 4-5

Cream Marg & Sugar.
Add Eggs, Bananas & Milk
Fold in Flour

Mix Well
Pour into a lined 2lb Loaf Tin

Bake 40 - 45 mins

NOTE

Bananas can be frozen if not wanted straight away and then used for this cake.

National Baking Week

This week is National Baking Week so following the common thread I will be baking this week.

I will be making:

Banana Cake
Sponge to be iced
Gingerbread Cake
Fruit Loaf

plus any other goodies I think of along the way.

MANGO CHUTNEY

Recipe taken from Jams, Preserves & Chutneys by Marguerite Patten

12oz onions finely chopped
1½lb mango (weight stoned and peeled - usually 2)
1lb cooking apples (weight peeled and cored)
2tsp pickling spices
½ pint white wine vinegar
1 orange
1¼lb sugar

Put onions into pan
Cut approx 2/3 of mango and all apples into small dice, add to onions.
Cut remaining mango into larger dice and set aside.
Tie spices in muslin and add to pan with the vinegar
Simmer gently until onions and fruit are getting soft.
Grate zest of orange finely, halve and squeeze juice; add both zest and juice to pan, along with remaining mango.
Cook for 5 mins
Add sugar and stir over low heat until dissolved, the boil steadily until consistencey of a soft jam.
Remove spices.
Allow to cool for approx 10 mins then stir to evenly distribute fruit pieces.
Spoon into hot jars and seal down.

MINCEMEAT

This is the recipe I have used to make the mincemeat this year.

Makes 6lb

1lb cooking apples, peeled, cored and finely chopped
8oz shredded suet
2lb dried mixed fruit
12oz soft dark brown sugar
grated rind and juice 1 orange
grated rind and juice 1 lemon
2 tbsp lemon juie
2 tsp mixed spice
½ tsp ground cinnamon
half a nutmeg grated
6 tbsp brandy

Mix all ingredients apart from brandy together in a bowl, and leavecovered with a cloth for 12 -18 hours.
Mix through then place in a very low oven 120°C/225°F/gas ¼ for 3 hours.
Allow to become completely cold then stir in brandy, spoon into clean dry jars and seal.