French Toast and Strawberries

This is barely even a recipe really, but it was so good for my breakfast this morning that I had to post about it. It was even better as we could eat it in the garden. We're off to France tomorrow for week, so hopefully there will be lots of posts to come!

French Toast

Per person
2 slices of bread (white works best, and something like a bloomer is good)
1 egg, lightly whisked
Handful of strawberries, hulled and chopped
1 dessert spoon caster sugar
Sprinkling of cinnamon

Add the sugar to the strawberries and leave to macerate.

Soak the bread in the egg, making sure both sides get eggy. Meanwhile heat a frying pan and add a little butter and oil. Fry the bread until golden brown on both sides.

Sprinkle with a little cinnamon, and then put the strawberries on top. Yum!

Baked Cheesecake

I have been threatening to make cheesecake for about a year, but something else always seemed to come along and take my attention. It’s definitely something that needs a crowd, or R and I would be the size of a house. However, I did manage to find a slightly lower-fat version, and on this evidence it doesn’t affect the taste.

Baked Cheesecake

This is based on a recipe from BBC Good Food, but I have changed some of the quantities a bit.

140g digestive biscuits
40g butter
600g Philadelphia Light
175g caster sugar
3 eggs
3 tbsp cornflour
75ml sour cream or crème fraiche (about half a small tub)
Vanilla pod
1 tsp vanilla essence
Grated rind of 1 lemon
A small squeeze of lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 180C and line a 20cm loose-bottomed/springform tin with baking parchment (if your tin is non-stick I reckon you don’t need to line it, but I don’t want to be held responsible if you can’t get it out!)

Get out all of the stress of London commuting by bashing the biscuits to crumbs (or perhaps that is just me).

Melt the butter and mix with the biscuit crumbs, then press into the base of the tin and bake for 10 minutes. Once removed from the oven turn the temperature up to 240C.

Meanwhile whisk the Philadelphia with an electric handwhisk on low speed (or the old fashioned way) until creamy. Then add the sugar in large spoonfuls, whisking between each. Add the cornflour, and then the eggs one at a time. Only beat enough to combine the ingredients, try not to overwhisk. Then add the lemon zest and juice, vanilla extract and the seeds from the pod, and finally the sour cream. The mixture will be quite runny.

Pour the creamy mixture into the tin, and tap lightly to get rid of any bubbles. Bake at the high temperature for 10 minutes, at which point it was just brown around the edges. Then turn the oven temperature down to 110C, leaving the oven door open for the first few minutes, and bake for another 25 minutes. I found it was still very wobbly in the centre after this, and so it had another 20 minutes in the oven. Then turn the oven off and leave for a few hours to cool (or overnight, which is what I did). Wrap in foil and put in the fridge until about an hour before you want to serve it.

We had this with raspberry coulis (put a punnet of raspberries in a saucepan with a tiny bit of water over a very low heat. When the juice has started to run add a tablespoon of icing or caster sugar and cook until the raspberries have broken down. Sieve to get rid of the seeds if desired).

The original recipe said it served 8, but 5 of us with small seconds only ate half, so I reckon it could go a very long way!

Chicken Kebabs

The barbeque has been sadly under-used this summer. I think every time it has been sunny I have been in hospital, or generally not feeling like eating. We therefore decided to ignore the slightly dodgy weather forecast for last night and light the barbeque. It turned out to be a good decision, as it was a lovely evening.

Chicken kebabs, potato salad and green salad, followed by brownies and strawberries - right up there with my favourite meals, and pretty low effort too.

Chicken Kebabs

This was a bit of an experiment, as I haven't made this marinade before. I will definitely be making it again though.

Serves 4

4 chicken breasts cut into fairly similar sized cubes
4 tbsp natural yoghurt
Juice of 1/2 a lemon
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp ground cumin
2 peppers, cut into squares

Put all of the ingredients apart from the chicken and peppers in a bowl and mix well. Then add the chicken and leave for at least an hour.

Put the chicken onto skewers, alternating with pieces of pepper (don't forget to soak the skewers if they are wooden).

Barbeque or grill, turning regularly, until the chicken is cooked and the outsides are starting to char.

The chicken stayed lovely and tender, which we struggle with on the barbeque. Let's hope the weather holds long enough for this to be repeated!

The Prince Albert, Battersea

We were given fifteen minutes notice last night that the power was being cut off to our flat so that emergency works could be undertaken. It didn’t take us long to decide this was the perfect excuse to eat out!

Geronimo Inns seem to have been on a spending spree this summer, and we were pleased to see that the Prince Albert was one of the pubs that they have taken over. This pub is in a great position, right by the park, but it has always been rather ropey, and we have only ever been there when we could sit in the courtyard-type garden.

It now has a very similar look to the other Geronimo pubs, with a mixture of tables and chairs, and some stools at the oval shaped bar. They have only been open for three weeks, and there were some teething problems, starting with R’s disappointment that there was only one bitter on tap, and it wasn’t the promised local Wandle.

The menu follows a fairly typical formula, with nothing earth shattering on there, but plenty of solid sounding choices, and a daily specials board too.

We shared a salad from the specials board to start with, smoked duck, poached egg and green beans. This was a huge portion of duck, which was deliciously smokey, and contrasted well with the soft egg yolk and lightly dressed salad. A very good start.

We then encountered our second irritation. Some time after ordering we were told that our table was needed back in just over an hour. I don’t mind this if there is fair warning, but this was a bit annoying. The manager did try to smooth things over with a free round of drinks though. The long wait in between our starters and mains was therefore unexpected, as they wanted us to move on.

My lemon sole was delicious, although the tartar sauce that came with it was a little overpowering for the delicate fish. It would also have been nice to get some warning that nothing came with this dish – it was literally just the fish!

R’s lamb leg steak with mint hollandaise also looked good. I make mint hollandaise at home, and this was very different. Too vinegary for my taste, but R seemed to like it.

We decided against pudding, and anyway our time was up on the table.

I think we will be going back here again, and I hope that they manage to sort out the issues that they have had in the first few weeks. We had a chat with the manager as we paid the bill, and he said they hadn’t realised how many drinkers they would get who had been playing some form of sport in the park.

Greensmiths, Lower Marsh

Greensmiths seems to be a new sort of concept, or maybe an old one done particularly well. Either way I was pleased to see that there was a source of Ginger Pig meat that is pretty much on my way home from work. My bank manager may not feel the same way however.

The people behind Greensmiths have got a few companies that already have a reputation for quality, and housed them all under the same roof. You can therefore get bread from The Old Post Office Bakery, fruit and veg from Solstice or coffee from Caffe Antica, as well as meat from Ginger Pig. There are also lots of deli items.

I spent a happy half an hour or so browsing before leaving with sausages (gluten-free – yay), great natural yoghurt, special offer strawberries and Montezuma white chocolate buttons (my guilty pleasure).

Their takeaway lunch-type items looked good too, such as quiche with salad, and I think you can eat in as well. The scotch eggs looked worth a try!

Definitely worth a visit if you are in the area, and it is open until 8 pm.

Nigella's Chocolate Macaroons

I came home from work last night quite late and generally fed up, and R was not home yet from drinks after work. More time on the computer or TV didn’t really appeal, and we have people coming for supper this evening, so I thought that I would get 5Live on the radio and do some cooking.

As I opened the fridge I realised that there were a whole lot of raspberries that we bought in the farmers market at the weekend which were starting to look a bit soft. It looked like there was enough for a jar of jam, so I decided to give it a go. I have never made jam before, although I have helped my mother on occasion. I therefore am not quite sure why 8.30 on a Tuesday night was the time to try it, but there we go.

Raspberry Jam

I weighed the raspberries, and then put them in a non-stick pan (for ease of washing up) over a low heat, until they had softened slightly and there was some liquid in the pan. I then added the same weight of caster sugar and stirred to combine. It was then brought up to the boil and simmered until a drop on a frozen saucer wrinkled when pushed (probably took between 10 and 15 minutes, but I wasn’t paying much attention). Then I poured it into a jar, and by some miracle there was the perfect amount for one jar. I think I might have to make scones now!

Then I needed a pudding for supper tonight. I have had my eye on Nigella’s chocolate macaroons for a while now, as they are gluten-free and look yummy. This therefore seemed the moment to try them. I haven’t changed anything, although next time I might make a half batch, because good as they are this makes a lot.

Nigella’s Chocolate Macaroons

2 egg whites
200g ground almonds
30g cocoa powder
175g icing sugar

Preheat the oven to 200C, and line a baking sheet. I just bought a Bake-o-Glide type sheet, and it was brilliant for these.

Then just stir all of the ingredients together. I would recommend a large bowl for this. It looked for ages like there wasn’t going to be enough egg white for all of the dry ingredients, but if you persevere then you end up with a very sticky chocolatey dough.

Have a bowl of cold water close by, and then wet your hands before rolling into walnut sized balls. The water really does help, and making neat balls was much easier than I expected. Put on the baking sheet. I found that they didn’t really spread much, so you can put them quite close together. Then bake for 11 minutes, before removing from the oven and cooling on a rack.

I then found you need to hide them from your husband, so that there are enough left for supper!

Le Pot Lyonnais

This is our local. It’s even closer to our flat than Tom Ilic, also on Queenstown Road, and is the spot we head to when we want a quick drink, or there is nothing inspiring in the fridge and we want a cheap and cheerful meal out.

The manager and an ever-changing retinue of staff are all French, and sometimes their English is pretty shocking. It normally adds to the charm though, and combined with the French menu gives us our own little corner of France in Battersea.

We tend to eat from the bar menu in these circumstances, although we have eaten in the restaurant in the past. Last Thursday the monsoon appeared to have reached London, and so R and I ran from our respective buses and dived in dripping. Comfort food was definitely the order of the day, so after our customary shared charcuterie plate to start I went for the moules frites and R for the burger.

Unfortunately the service was not on song, and the starter arrived with our mains. I therefore can’t tell you what it was like as we decided not to have it. However, it has been good in the past. My moules were perfect. Piping hot, nice fleshy moules that weren’t too big, and a well flavoured sauce. The frites were also hot and crisp, and not too greasy. At £10 I think this is a serious bargain. R was also pleased with his burger. Cooked how he had asked, with a well-flavoured red pepper relish and accompanied with salad and a tiny pot of coleslaw as well as more frites, he went silent for some time!
So, the service may be patchy, but the food is spot on. This set us back £25 including two beers and service, so it is great value, and we will certainly be back.

Homemade Granola

I am making much more from scratch at the moment, so that I know exactly what is in everything. Searching for a granola that I could eat, unsuccessfully, meant that this was the next on my list.

The recipe makes quite a lot, so you might want to halve it if you are the only one who eats granola in your household. It also really needs to be made on a day when you are pottering about in the house anyway, as it needs regular turning whilst in the oven. It makes the whole house smell great though!

The recipe is adapted from one on Gluten-Free Girl, who in turn adapted it from Orangette (both worth a visit).

3 cups of oats (I used Jumbo)
½ cup chopped walnuts (substitute any kind of nuts you like, or a mixture)
½ cup sunflower seeds
½ cup plain flour (I used Doves gluten-free)
¾ tbsp cinnamon
1 tsp mixed spice
1 tsp ground ginger
¾ cup maple syrup
½ cup cranberry juice
1 tbsp vanilla
2 tsp sunflower oil
1 cup raisins (or other dried fruit – I think dried cranberries would be good)

Turn on the oven to 120C, and oil a baking sheet. A non-stick one probably makes your life easier, but is not compulsory.

Combine the oats, nuts, seeds and flour and stir well until everything is coated in flour. Add the cinnamon, spice and ginger and mix again.

In a jug whisk together the maple syrup, juice, vanilla and oil until combined. Pour over the dry ingredients and then stir carefully to combine. Mine looked like there was not going to be enough of the wet ingredients, but keep going as eventually it all looked wet.

Put the mixture onto the baking sheet and press down with the back of a wooden spoon, or the back of your hand! Bake for about 2 hours, turning it every 15 minutes or so, making sure that any large pieces are broken up. It should be dry rather than sticky when it is done.

Leave to cool, then add the raisins and put in an airtight container.

I have been enjoying this with fresh fruit and plain yogurt, and I swear I have been walking to work quicker so that I can get to my breakfast sooner!

The Cadogan Arms, Chelsea

Ever since the Cadogan Arms closed we have been waiting to see what it would be reopened as. Rumours began that it had been taken over by the Martin brothers, who run the busy Botanist at Sloane Square, among others. These rumours turned out to be true, and since they are doing an introductory 50% off food at the moment if you book through Toptable or on their website, we decided to check it out.

When we arrived shortly after 7.30 pm it was pretty quiet in the bar, and very quiet in the restaurant, which made us a bit nervous. However, it proceeded to fill up, and was nicely buzzing by 8.30 pm. Plenty of people were heading up to use the pool tables upstairs, as well as some big tables arriving for dinner. I am on a hugely complicated diet at the moment, and was a bit worried about finding something I could eat. Luckily the waitress was really helpful about what was in the sauces, and removing elements of some dishes, and everything arrived as it had been ordered. R on the other hand was really struggling to decide as so many things looked good.

I started with a half pint of prawns, with mayonnaise. These would be difficult to get wrong, but were good plump specimens, with nice mayo. It would have been nice to be given a finger bowl and an extra napkin though! R’s mushroom tart with pecorino and truffle oil smelt amazing, and I was very sorry not to be able to try it.

I then had a veal chop with olive oil mash and spinach, and a very rich red wine sauce. The veal was beautifully cooked and tender, and I am definitely going to try and recreate the mash at home. R had trout fillets with broad bean and pea risotto. The trout was soft and flakey, with the delicate flavour being allowed to shine. Both dishes were very well executed.

We then couldn’t resist sharing the Valrhona chocolate mouse, with white chocolate and cardamom foam. There was no visual evidence of the foam, but the flavour contrasted well with the richness of the chocolate. This was served in a large wine glass, which made it rather difficult to eat, and even harder to share, but that would be my only complaint.

In all we had a very good meal, which particularly with 50% off the food was good value. There wasn’t anything very innovative or different on the menu, but what we had was great.

Raspberry Muffins

I can't eat gluten, among other things, at the moment due to a complicated diet. This is why I am struggling with breakfasts. Raspberries were very reduced in the supermarket, but they were getting pretty soft and needed to be used quickly, so I was looking for a muffin recipe, and hopefully a low (-ish) fat one. This one doesn't have any butter, and less sugar than many.

Raspberry oat muffins

200g Doves gluten-free plain flour
40g rolled oats
100g caster sugar
1tsp cinnamon
6tsp baking powder
150ml low fat natural yogurt
2 eggs
2 tbsp vegetable oil
6 tbsp semi skimmed milk
225g fresh raspberries

1. Mix flour (which can be substituted with regular plain flour), oats, sugar, cinnamon, and baking powder.
2. Lightly beat together the eggs, yogurt, vegetable oil and milk.
3. Stir into the flour mixture along with the raspberries (don't overmix)
4. Spoon into 12 muffin cases and bake at 200 degrees for 20 mins

These turned out pretty light, which is difficult with gluten-free flour, and the raspberries sing through. Easy to take to work tomorrow for my early start too!

I made the rest of the raspberries into coulis, by blitzing in the Magimix with a little sugar. This can go with yoghurt and homemade granola (recipe to follow) and be another breakfast. Who needs toast!

Banana bread

I've been in need of different breakfasts recently, and unusually for me fancied some banana bread, which it occurred to me would do the trick. It is also easy to take a slice into work if I have to go in early. This is adapted from a recipe on the BBC website.

40g blackcurrents
75g sultanas
110g butter, softened
110g caster sugar
2 large eggs
large ripe bananas
225g Doves gluten-free plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1kg loaf tin, lined with parchment paper

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
2. Cream the butter and sugar together until pale, light and soft. Add the eggs, one by one, and beat well between each addition.
3. Mash the bananas and add to the creamed mixture. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together and fold carefully into the banana mixture. Very gently, stir in the blackcurrents and sultanas, so that they are evenly distributed through the mixture.
4. Pour the mixture into the loaf tin and bake in the oven for about 1½ hours until golden on top and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
5. Remove the loaf from the tin and cool on a wire rack.