Davina’s cheesy apple savoury scones

A few years ago the television presenter Davina McCall - best known for Big Brother - decided to give up sugar. I was vaguely aware that she had written a cookery book and I am trying to cut down on sugar so had a look on Amazon - and discovered she has written loads of books!

I liked the sound of her book Sugar Free in a Hurry as I don’t have a lot of time to cook these days - between a full time job and parenting a toddler and trying to keep the house in order too (which my husband helps with, but I am the only one who cooks).

 I made these apple and cheese scones from the book, which were really easy to throw together - and fun for my daughter to help make too!

Follow this link to see the recipe.

Personally I couldn’t taste the apple and would add a lot more if I made this again, though would have to experiment with the consistency of the dough to make sure it wasn’t too wet. I also used extra nature cheddar and even then think it could have used a bit more. The scones turned out well though and I would definitely make some sort of savoury scones again using this recipe as a basis and maybe playing around a bit with the different flavours. If you have a really good recipe for savoury scones let me know in the comments!

Winter Warmer recipe - Cheesy Sausage, Broccoli and Quinoa Bake

I wanted to share this dish I made recently from a recipe by the Chunky Chef as it’s a perfect winter warmer and easy to make.

The quantities can be easily scaled up or down - prepare some quinoa according to the pack instructions (rinsing then simmering on the hob). When cool, fluff with a fork.

Fry some sausages in a pan and at the same time, briefly steam some broccoli (I did this in the microwave). 

You also need a cheese sauce which you can either make from scratch or use a packet mix.

Mix the sausages, broccoli and quinoa into a large greased ovenproof dish and pour over the cheese sauce. Sprinkle the top with breadcrumbs and grated cheese and bake in the oven until brown on top.

The quinoa is a nice change as I don’t eat it very often but it works really well in this recipe. The cheese sauce is what brings it all together and while I made it with regular pork sausages, I am tempted to try this again with chicken sausage!

Nigella Lawson's Croque Monsieur Bake

If you like a toasted cheese sandwich then you will love this croque monsieur bake by Nigella Lawson. It takes a bit more time but not much more effort and makes a great brunch or lunch. One advantage over toasted sandwiches is you don’t have to make them one or two at a time (limited by space in your grill or toasted sandwich maker) – you can make a large portion in an oven-proof dish. Nigella’s recipe says it serves 4-6 but I did this for two people one lunchtime recently.

 

The method is simple – spread your sliced bread with mustard if you like, or for those with more sensitive palates or who dislike mustard you could use butter or marg. Put some sliced cheese and ham into each sandwich – you could also be a bit more adventurous with your fillings if you like, but I stuck with ham and cheese.
 

 

Put the sandwiches into an oven-proof dish – don’t be afraid to really squish them in.

 

Beat eggs, salt and milk and pour over the sandwiches in the oven-proof dish. Cover with clingfilm and refrigerate overnight for the bread to get really moist.

 

 

When you’re ready to cook, preheat the oven to 200C, remove the clingfilm and sprinkle with grated cheese and Worcestershire sauce. Bake in the oven for 25 minutes and serve.

 

You don’t get the same crispy effect as you would with a toasted sandwich – these have a texture more like French toast or ‘eggy bread’ – but the oozy cheesiness is lovely.

 

 

Puff Pastry Cheese, Bacon and Spring Onion Tart

This is an easy meal idea that is great for an informal dinner with friends, as it can be assembled before your guests arrive and then can go in the oven 20 minutes before you want to eat. You can play around with the toppings as well to use whatever you fancy - it's a good way of using up odds and ends in the fridge as well.

Simply take a piece of ready-made puff pastry - around 200g per person should be plenty, and I made each person their own - and roll out on a lightly floured surface into either a circle or square shape (or something in between!). Place onto a lightly oiled baking sheet.

Chop a few rashers of bacon and fry along with some chopped spring onions. When cooked, remove from pan and allow to cool.

Spread the pastry base with garlic and herb-flavoured soft cheese then scatter over the bacon and spring onion. Grate some cheese - Cheddar works well - and sprinkle over the tart. I also added some crumbled blue cheese.

Bake in a pre-heated oven at 180C for 20 minutes or until the pastry has risen and is golden. Serve with a green salad.

I'm sending this to Cook Blog Share, hosted this week by Easy Peasy Foodie.

Cheesy Broccoli Soup

I've made broccoli and stilton soup before but not used Cheddar in it. I decided to try another recipe from 'America's Most Wanted Recipes' - I went through a bit of a phase of using this book a few months back - and like many of the recipes in this book, it called for velveeta cheese. You can't get this in the UK and after reading a description online I decided that Cheddar was relatively close in flavour and texture.

Unusually, as broccoli soup is often vegetarian, and based on pretty much just broccoli and vegetable stock, this soup uses canned chicken soup as a base! It did taste really nice and though not as low calorie as the broccoli soup I would normally make it was very filling and would make a good lunch at this time of year - something you could take to work as well as enjoy at home.

To serve 4, you need:
4 cups water
2 cups potato, peeled and diced
1 chicken stock cube
I cup onion, peeled and diced
1 head broccoli, chopped
400ml can cream of chicken soup
300g Cheddar, grated

Heat the water, potato, stock cube, onion and broccoli in a large pan until the vegetables are tender. Stir in the soup and Cheddar and heat through, stirring occasionally, until the cheese has melted.

Sonoran Chicken Pasta

 

The Sonoran is a desert in Arizona and this pasta dish is described in 'America's Most Wanted Recipes' as 'dressed in a spicy Southwestern cheese sauce'. As usual I did my own take on it, leaving out ingredients I don't like (jalapeno peppers and black beans) which probably changed the recipe a fair bit, and I couldn't get hold of the American velveeta cheese in the ingredients list, but I really liked the way this turned out - it tasted really good!

 

So for the version that I did, to serve 2 you need:

2 tbsp. butter or marg

1/2 onion, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed

2 tbsp. plain flour

250ml chicken stock

pinch of salt

100ml milk

dash of Tabasco sauce

1/2 cup grated Cheddar

1/4 cup grated Parmesan

1/2 cup tomato salsa

1/4 cup sour cream

2 chicken breasts

 

Penne pasta to serve

 

Cook the pasta in a pan of boiling salted water until tender. Open out the chicken breasts so they are butterflied and either fry using a little Fry Light or oil, or grill or oven cook depending on your preference, until the chicken is cooked through.

 

Meanwhile melt the butter in a large saucepan and fry the onion and garlic. Stir in the flour to make a roux and gradually stir in the chicken stock until you have a smooth sauce. Season, add the milk, Tabasco and cheeses and heat until the cheese has melted and the sauce has thickened.

 

Add the salsa and sour cream and stir until blended.



 

Drain the cooked pasta and stir into the sauce, and top with the chicken to serve.

Cheesy Broccoli Bites

I found this recipe for broccoli bites in a book called America's Most Wanted Recipes, which aims to recreate dishes from popular US restaurant chains. This one comes from Bennigan;'s, which I've never heard of, despite having visited 21 US states over the years.

This is broccoli, but not as you know it! I guess this is one way to get people to eat their vegetables... it's mixed with bacon, cheese, onion, rolled in breadcrumbs and fried! So it's really not very healthy, but it is still broccoli I guess... and it tastes amazing! I made these to go with pasta and they worked really well; the recipe suggests to serve them with a honey mustard dressing.

The recipe said to use  Monterey Jack and Colby cheese, neither of which I could get hold of, so I used cheddar. It also called for a 16 ounce box of frozen chopped broccoli, thawed and drained. You can of course get frozen broccoli here but I wanted to use fresh so I cooked it in a pan of boiling water then chopped it up. So this is what I did:

To serve 4, you need;
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup cheddar, grated

 

 

1 head broccoli, cooked and chopped
5 tbsp. bacon bits or pancetta
1 tbsp. finely diced onion
2 tbsp. plain flour
about 100g breadcrumbs
oil for frying

Mix the cheddar, broccoli, bacon, onion and flour in a bowl and refrigerate for an hour. Heat an inch of oil in a large frying pan. Meanwhile form the broccoli mixture into balls, roll in the beaten egg and then the breadcrumbs and fry each one in the hot oil. Drain on kitchen paper and serve hot.

Santa Fe Chicken

After a few road trips around the US I bought a cookery book called 'America's Most Wanted Recipes' - it contains copycat recipes based on dishes served at some of the biggest restaurant chains across the US.

I hadn't used the book in a while so a couple of weeks ago went through and picked out several recipes to try. This one, called Santa Fe Chicken, is apparently based on something served at Applebee's, a restaurant chain I've heard of but never actually been to. Still it sounded like a nice recipe I wanted to try!

It's one of those recipes where exact quantities aren't required and you play it by ear, at least I did.

First butterfly a chicken breast to open it out flat and cut a thick slice of cheese - one per chicken breast. The recipe said to use Monterey Jack cheese but I couldn't find that in the supermarket. I think this would be nice with any kind of cheese but the internet tells me Monterey Jack is a mild white cheese and that Cheddar is a close cousin.

Wrap the flattened chicken breast around each piece of cheese and secure with a cocktail stick.

Mix breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, salt, cumin and pepper. Dip the chicken in a shallow bowl of melted butter and then roll in the breadcrumb mixture.

 

 

Bake in the oven at 180C for 30 minutes until the chicken is cooked through.

 

Serve with a cheese sauce and top with chopped red and green peppers - though I left these out as my husband and I don't like them!

 

Leon Poached Egg Pots

I love the breakfast egg pots at Leon. Have you come across Leon before? They are largely based around London with branches at airports as well as a couple of other cities and their motto is 'naturally fast food'. I first went to a Leon at Heathrow airport but now there are several around where I work.

I still remember how good the egg pot was that I had at the airport three years ago - it was simple but a combination I hadn't come across before, with a poached egg, cheese sauce and chopped ham served in a little pot. I decided to make it for my husband and me for brunch last weekend and found this recipe on Lovefood, written by Leon founder Henry Dimbleby.

I didn't follow the recipe that closely as I didn't have any truffle oil to put in the cheese sauce and to poach the eggs I cheated and used 'poachies' - little bags that you crack the eggs into and put them in a pan of boiling water. I have an egg poaching pan, and a microwave egg poacher that I use sometimes at work, and have tried various ways to poach eggs and have found these to be the best by far, so I recommend them if you have trouble getting perfectly poached eggs!

So all I did was whip up a quick cheese sauce from a roux of flour and butter and then milk and melted cheese, poach the eggs and fry some chorizo. I served them in ramekins with the egg on the bottom, some salt and pepper, then the cheese then the chorizo on top - I can't begin to tell you how good these are!

Salmon with Mustard and Gruyere Herb Crust

I love salmon and often when I'm planning my week's meals, I put down salmon for one night - it tastes so good I don't really need to do anything, and can quickly cook a piece of salmon and some vegetables for a delicious dinner.

Sometimes though it's nice to do something a bit different. I found this recipe in my BBC Saturday Kitchen Cookbook; it's also available on the BBC website.

You make a crust from breadcrumbs, cheese and herb, and press it on top of the salmon. I didn't bother with the part where you chill it in the fridge and instead mixed it and pressed it straight onto the fish.

The fish is baked in a mixture of fish stock and wine which keeps it light and gives it a lovely flavour. I didn't bother roasting the tomatoes as I don't like them, but didn't think the dish lacked anything for it.

Goat's Cheese Monte Cristos

When I was at university, my friend Dan made the best late-night post-pub cheese toasties - I've had my own Breville sandwich toaster for several years (the same brand that my parents had when I was a kid, a long time ago) and there is definitely something comforting, if a little greasy, about a toasted cheese sandwich.

I usually add a slice of ham and maybe a smear of mustard to mine, but that's as fancy as it goes. I was looking through a recipe book I have reviewed before called Breakfast for Dinner looking for weekend lunch recipes and came across Monte Cristos - which are effectively cheese toasties but posher.

Apparently this particular recipe originated in the US - it uses turkey and goat's cheese, with hot red pepper jelly for sweetness and spice, though as I didn't have any and didn't want to make it from scratch, I used cranberry jelly instead. You don't need a dedicated sandwich toaster - you make this in a skillet or frying pan, brushing the bread with egg to make an almost eggy-bread texture.

To serve 4, you need:
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/4 tsp salt
8 slices bread
100g spreadable goat's cheese
1/4 cup hot red pepper jelly - I used cranberry jelly
8 slices roast turkey
2 tbsp. butter

Spread 2 tbsp. goat's cheese onto a slice of bread, then 1 tbsp. jelly. Top with a slice of turkey and another piece of bread to make a sandwich.

Whisk the eggs, milk and salt in a jug and brush over the top of the sandwich.

Melt the butter in the frying pan and place the sandwich in the pan, egg side down. Brush the other side of the sandwich with egg mixture. Cook for 3-4 minutes then turn and cook on the other side, then keep warm wrapped in foil while you repeat with the rest of the sandwiches.

Sweet Potato Mac and Cheese

I love macaroni cheese and after eating a fairly disappointing one at the Caballo Lounge in Epsom, I decided to make my own. I had a magazine cutting from You magazine (the only thing I like about the Mail on Sunday!) which is from a Nigella Lawson recipe. It can also be found in the book Simply Nigella and you can read the recipe here.

Nigella says this is the best macaroni cheese she's ever eaten and while I might not quite go that far (the way they do it in America is brilliant if calorific), it really is very good- and a bit more healthy than it might be with the addition of some veg.

It uses a combination of feta cheese and Cheddar and the sweet potato gives the dish a lovely colour as well.

This is really easy to make, delicious and the leftovers are good on the second day. Something I will definitely be making again!

I'm sharing this with Meat Free Mondays, hosted by Jacqueline at Tinned Tomatoes.