Pork and Leek Burgers

Inspiration comes from many places, as my hero Nigella once said, but I did not think that I would be cooking something after picking up a recipe card in my local Morrisons. In fact, what surprises me more is that one of the very necessary ingredients on this recipe card is not even sold in store and I had to traipse up to Tescos (a 100 minute round trip) in order to find it. Seriously, not diverting business to rival chains has to be rule one of writing recipe cards.

I have a bit of a history with leek, not a great one really. When I was six my mum made macaroni cheese with bacon and leeks which I hated and then accused her, in front of many people, of trying to poison me. Since then leek has not exactly been high on my list of eating priorities.

Since I started cooking regularly my opinion has begun to change on the subject of leek, especially since it is a major flavour in my quick soup stock. However, these burgers have a lot of leek in them as well as apple and stuffing (in the place of breadcrumbs). Sounds interesting enough to try right?

Ingredients (serves 4):

• 450g lean minced pork
• 1 tbsp rapeseed oil
• 2 leeks, thinly sliced
• 1 Bramley apple, peeled and grated
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 85g pack sage & onion stuffing mix
• 4 burger buns

Fry the leeks in the oil for 5-8 minutes so that they have begun to brown and then transfer to a mixing bowl. To this add the pork, apple, egg and stuffing mix and mix with your hands until well combined then leave to stand for 15 minutes.

Form this into 4 large patties and then grill for 6-8 minutes per side or, if you are using a dual-press grill, for 11 minutes in total. Serve this on the bun with some salad.

Adapted from a Morrisons recipe card

Verdict: I think my mum said it best when she described this as a ‘Sunday roast burger’. It was delicious because the leeks provided a subtler flavour than expected but also, more importantly, kept the burger from becoming too dry. Then there was the subtle sweetness from the apple and that delicious roast dinner flavour from Paxo stuffing. It was even delicious reheated the next day so this is definitely a keeper.

Calorie Count: 343 per serving

Courgette Pissaladière

It has been a while since I tried my hand at making pizza. Just like recipes with enoki mushrooms it appears that these recipes tend to be very popular readers and, since I love pizza, I am more than happy to oblige. Then again this is not a traditional pizza.

The reason that I made this is because I wanted suggestions for dinner and was given “French” as something to work with. If the works of Julia Child is anything to go by a large amount of French cooking involves either cream or poultry I thought this would be a bit of an ask… but then I found this.

Pissaladière is a French-style from Provence where the typical topping appears to be a purée of onion, garlic and anchovies which is then topped off with olives. Sounds delicious… and I have no idea why I didn’t make it. Either way, courgettes are lovely so here is today’s recipe.

Ingredients (serves 4)

• 250g plain flour
• 1½ tsp fast-action dried yeast
• 1 egg, beaten
• 3 tbsps olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 onion, finely sliced
• 500g courgettes, sliced
• 8 tsps grated parmesan

Put the yeast and flour into a mixing bowl and mix together, make a well in the centre and add 1 tbsp olive oil, 75ml lukewarm water and the egg. Mix this together to form dough then turn out onto a floured surface and knead until you form smooth dough. Roll this dough out to a 30cmx30cm square on an oiled baking sheet.

Fry the garlic in a non-stick pan with 1 tbsp oil for 2-3 minutes then spread over the base with a pastry brush. Then fry the onion with the rest of the oil until the onions have nicely softened and then spread these over the base. Layer the courgettes over the base and then loosely cover with clingfilm for 20 minutes.

Set the oven to 190^oC and bake for 25 minutes. Cut into quarters, sprinkle over the cheese then serve.

Adapted from here

Verdict: This really felt more like a tart than a pizza but I really did love the pastry. The pastry was a cinch to make and I would probably use it if I ever felt inclined to make a quiche. Since the main topping is courgette I felt that it could be a little bland but because of the heavy influence of parmesan cheese and fried garlic it was anything but.

I have already talked it over with the guinea pigs and I think that this will be repeated sometime in the future. I am thinking either going down the traditional route or making one with roasted red peppers and other niceties.

Calorie Count: 393 per serving

Orzo and Meatballs

So, what have I been doing I hear no one ask? As a prospective science teacher I have been focusing a lot on the craft of teaching by maintaining my computer game blog, been watching an unhealthy amount of television and cooking EVERY night.

Thanks to the last item on the list I have been able to amass a large number of recipes which I can now post on here, that’s right I didn’t stop thinking about you guys, so tonight I will be posting one of the more recent dinners that went down a storm: A different take on spaghetti and meatballs.

So… what is orzo? Orzo is strange, in a good way. When you look at the cooked version it looks like dry banana-flavoured rice pudding… and it tastes like pasta. Basically, it’s pasta in the shape of rice. Either way, I have been looking forward to finding and cooking orzo since I started this blog over a year ago.

The fact that I could only find this in my local Asda rather than the nearest Co-operative, Morrisons, Waitrose, M&S, Tesco, Lidl or Sainsbury’s goes to prove how wrong this Daily Mail opinion piece was (as a regular shopper at 4-5 different supermarkets I have no idea what this article says about me… oh yes I’m addicted to food shopping).

Since I have no photos of this meal (as well as others) I would like to thank Merchant Gourmet for producing the orzo for today’s meal. Shameless product placement? Maybe. A hope for free food? …maybe. A delicious ingredient? God yes!

Ingredients (serves 4):

• 2 cups cooked orzo (that’s 1 cup dried)
• 1/3 cup plain dry breadcrumbs
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 450g minced lamb
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2 large egg whites
• 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil
• 2 cups jarred Napolina basil and tomato sauce
• 3/4 cup low fat feta cheese, crumbled

Preheat the oven to 190^oC and cook the orzo according to the package instructions then, drain, cover and keep warm.

Combine the breadcrumbs, oregano, black pepper, garlic, lamb, and cinnamon with your hands in a bowl then add the egg whites. Mix this until everything is well combined and then form these into 12 meatballs.

Heat the oil in an ovenproof pan and fry the meatballs for 8 minutes so that they are browned all over. When this is finished remove the meatballs from the pan and wipe it clean. Then reintroduce the meatballs to the pan, pour over the sauce, scatter the cheese and then stick in the oven for 12 minutes. Serve with the orzo.

Adapted from here

Verdict: I have never been to Greece… but I would like to one day… when it’s winter because I burn in under 15 minutes. However, a reputable Greece-visiting source did mention the kitchen smelt like a Greek restaurant when they entered the room.

Calorie Count: 451 per serving

Day 300: Treacle Cookies

When I am nervous about a job interview I have the strange need to bake. This trait is something I apparently share with the character of Izzie Stevens from Grey’s Anatomy… always great to know that you are not alone when it comes to certain odd behaviours. It was a beautifully sunny day when I made these. So much so that I sat outside with a large glass of Pepsi Max as these were baking in the oven.

Since molasses are not that readily available in the UK it was a lot easier to use black treacle… which is exactly what I chose to do.

Ingredients (makes 32):

• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 6 tbsps butter
• 1/4 cup black treacle
• 1 large egg
• 1 ¾ cup plain flour
• ¼ cup wholemeal flour
• 2 tsps bicarbonate of soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves

Spread the applesauce along the base of a sieve and leave for 10 minutes to remove some of the moisture. Spoon this into a large bowl with the butter and 1 cup of sugar and then beat with an electric whisk for 3 minutes on a medium setting. Add the treacle and the egg to this and beat until it’s well mixed.

In a separate bowl add the flours with the cloves, cinnamon, ginger, salt and bicarbonate of soda and then whisk them together. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ones whilst beating them until everything is well mixed. Pour this onto a large sheet of Clingfilm and roll the dough into a sausage shape then stick in the freezer for 30-40 minutes.

Pre-heat the oven to 190 degrees Celsius.

Add the rest of the sugar to a plate. Cut the dough into 32 pieces and roll these in the sugar and place them on a greased baking sheet and bake them for 10 minutes. Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes afterwards and then cool on a wire rack.

Adapted from here

Verdict: The house smelt of treacle for a long long time. I also may have eaten a lot of these cookies by myself since they were so damned addictive… it’s just a pity that they were not able to get me the job.

Calorie Count: 88 per cookie

Day 293: Flaxmeal Cinnamon Muffins

I have always had an interest in trying to bake using more unconventional means. I mean this is the blog that attempted to make macaroons using ground popcorn and chocolate muffins with diet coke.  A few months ago I made some rather tasty biscotti; the after-effect being that there was a nearly full bag of golden linseed left at the back of the cupboard’s baking ingredient shelf.

After an attempt to re-organise this cupboard the bag of linseed was unearthed and since it went off within a month I felt that it needed to be used up within the next week. Therefore, I did a general search for linseed (or flax as it is also called) and came up with today’s muffin recipe.

Ingredients (makes 10):

• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1/4 cup + 2 tbsps rapeseed oil
• 1/4 cup applesauce
• 2 tbsps water
• 1 tbsp vanilla essence
• 1 cup ground golden linseed
• 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 2 tbsps cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp salt

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.

In a medium-large bowl beat together the oil, eggs, applesauce, water and vanilla. Set this aside. In a small bowl mix together the ground linseed with the bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Slowly stir these dry ingredients into the wet ones and then set aside.

Spoon these into 10 muffin cases in equal amounts and then bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes so they feel set to the touch. Leave these to cool on a wire rack before serving.

Adapted from here

Verdict: Cards on the table time… these muffins were awful. They somehow tasted hollow… probably due to the complete lack of sweetness. They also tasted a lot of the bicarbonate of soda. To be honest only half of the muffins were eaten with the rest being dumped in the bin.

Ah well, there’s always next time.

Calorie Count: 189 per muffin

Day 279: Orange Chicken

Deep-frying. I swear whoever invented it is either a true genius or the Devil himself. Possibly both.

As you walk down any major shopping street you are highly unlikely to be able to walk from one end to the other without the smell of deep-fried food from filling your nostils. Whether it be McDonald’s chips or the chicken from KFC (oh how I miss thee) it can vary between utterly revolting and truly enticing. That does not even begin to cover fish and chips which are one of my many weaknesses.

The inclusion of a deep-fried recipe in what is meant to be a low-fat recipe blog could be considered a tad outlandish but when you realise how much oil you actually pour back into the bottle it is not as bad as you would first think… as long as you give the food a good deal of blotting before allowing it to be consumed.

Ingredients (serves 3):

• 450g chicken breast, chopped into bite sized pieces
• 1/2 egg, beaten
• 1/4 cup and 1/2 tbsp cornflour
• 1/8 cup flour
• 1/2 tbsp ginger, minced
• 1/2 tsp garlic, minced
• 1/4 tsp chilli flakes
• 1/8 cup spring onions, chopped
• 1/2 tbsp rice wine
• 1/8 cup and 1 1/2 tbsp water
• 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce
• 5 tbsps sugar
• 5 tbsps rice wine vinegar
• zest of 1 orange

To make the sauce mix together 3/4 tbsp of water, soy sauce, sugar, rice wine vinegar and orange. Set this aside. Mix together the beaten egg, 1/4 cup cornflour and flour together. Mix in the chicken so that it is well coated with the batter mix.

Fill a wok with 8 cups oil and heat until a dried corn kernal pops. Add the chicken and cook them for 4 minutes. Remove the chicken from the wok with a slotted spoon and set aside. Pour the oil out of the wok back into the bottle and then wipe it clean. Pat the chicken with kitchen paper to get rid as much of the oil as you can. Mix the remaining cornflour with the remaining water and set adise.

Add the sesame oil to the wok and cook the garlic, ginger, chilli flakes and spring onions. Add the pre-made orange sauce and bring to a boil. Add the chicken to this as well as the dissolved cornflour. Cook until the chicken is heated through and then serve.

Adapted from here

Verdict: This was absolutely gorgeous. I actually made double the sauce that I was meant to since I figured I could afford the extra calories. I always a make it a rule to double the amount of sauce for chinese-style food as it is always great to mop it up with some extra rice. I loved the chicken as well, it went so well with the orange sauce that my boyfriend (who hates chicken) yummed this dish down as quickly as I did.

I only wish my local takeaway offered this as it would be something I would order regularly. Otherwise, it’s a bit of a hassle to cook with the oul.

Calorie Count: 360 per serving

Day 275: Meatloaf

When I get an idea into my mind about cooking something it takes a lot for me to be able to stop thinking about it until I have tried to make it. It happened when I made gumbo, char siu pork and enchiladas so this really is the latest in a long line of recipes. I don’t think it help that meatloaf plays a fairly large role in the opening scenes of the only Simpsons episodes that I ever committed to memory (I did this in case of boredom) and for whatever reason I started to think about it again.

I have had meatloaf a number of times before so I know what to expect. For this I picked a recipe that I was sure would not be much hassle. It took a while to find one that would fit into the only loaf tin we had… I swear that if chefs had their way everyone would own like 12 of the bastards.

Ingredients (makes 4 servings):

• 1/3 cup spring onions, chopped
• 3 tbsps dry breadcrumbs
• 2 tsps minced garlic
• 1/8 teaspoon  salt
• 1/2 tsp mustard seed
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 tsp chilli flakes
• 450g lean beef mince
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 6 tbsps ketchup

Preheat the oven to 210C.

Combine the spring onions, salt, pepper, chilli flakes, beef mince, egg, garlic, mustard and breadcrumbs in a large bowl with 1/4 cup of ketchup. Mix everything together with your hands and then fit the mixture into a 9×4 inch loaf tin that has been previously coated with low-calorie oil spray.

Bake this for 20 minutes and then brush the top with the rest of the ketchup. Bake for a further 7-10 minutes. Turn out of the tin and then slice into eight pieces and serve.

Adapted from here

Verdict: Aside from how it looked (and the less said of that the better) it tasted better than expected. The main problem I had was it being I served with polenta and salad meaning that everything was a bit dry. The slices make for a tasty sandwich the next day though… if only I knew of a way to combat the lack of cohesion. It kinda fell apart when I started to slice it so was not the best meatloaf I have ever had in that respect. Also, since this is trying to be low-fat, it was nowhere near as juicy as what I have had previously.

Still, with a decent selection of food accompanying it this meatloaf makes for a quick, easy and tasty weekday meal.

Calorie Count: 267 per serving

Day 267: Burger Rolls

My attempt of doing one form of baking per week is well underway. During the weekend I made a poppy seed cake found in Rachel Allen’s cook book  but this called for a lot of Betty Crocker vanilla flavoured buttercream icing and of course has no place in the blog. However, as I write this I will admit that I am currently eating a spoon of icing… what?

This weeks baking is my attempt to make my own burger buns to go with yesterday’s recipe. It’s one of those things where I just wondered how difficult it could be. I mean you get these in every fast good joint having been made in bulk. Granted it will be unlikely that I would be able to replicate the buns in McDonalds but then again why would I?

Ingredients (makes 12):

• 1 cup semi-skimmed milk
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup butter
• 4 1/2 cups plain flour
• 7g instant yeast
• 2 tbsps sugar
• 1 1/2 tsps salt
• 1 egg, beaten
• 2 tbsp sesame seeds

Heat the milk, butter and water together in a small saucepan over a low flame and continuously stir until the butter has completely melted. Take off the heat and set aside.

Mix 1 3/4 cups of the flour in a large mixing bowl with the yeast, sugar and salt. Mix in the milk followed by the beaten egg after which you beat in the remaining flour 1/2 cup at a time. When this has made a good dough turn out onto a floured surface and knead for about 8 minutes. Divide the dough into 12 equal sized pieces, roll into slightly flattened spheres and allow to rise on a greased baking sheet in a warm place for 35 minutes.

Bake the rolls for 12 minutes at 200 degrees celsius after giving them a light dusting of sesame seeds.

Adapted from here

Thin Cooking Tip: I thought it was time to share some of these every now and then to try and help make cooking just that bit simpler. Before kneading dough I like to coat my hands with a dash of groundnut oil. It prevents the dough from sticking to you hands and (since it is flavourless) it will not alter the taste. If you have a nut allergy then it is better to use either canola or vegetable oil.

Verdict: I won’t be too ashamed to admit that after making these in the morning there was only half of the batch remaining by dinner. In a way the texture and flavour made this more of a roll-bagel hybrid and worked very well with burgers but also with more general sandwiches. If you have some decent ham it goes great with one of these when they are warm and fresh from the oven.

Calorie Count: 215 per roll

Day 256: Custard Tartlets

When we went out shopping to gather ingredients for cake I came across some premade tartlet cases. I joked about buying these and filling them up with something gorgeous only to see my mum’s arm flash in front of my face in order to reach out to get a pack. The threat alone of these pastry cases festering in the back of the cupboard next to hot cross buns that have been there for 3 weeks (we really need to clear our cupboards more often).

So I settled on a recipe for Chinese egg tarts that I found on my favourite recipe database. This recipe, however, had a serious problem; they taste very eggy. I know it’s one those ‘well duh’ moments but I once had some of these in London Chinatown and know that the boyfriend would not like them as it tastes like if someone combined a boiled egg with pastry. So I made an alteration to make sure that they would go from eggy to custardy.

Ingredients (makes 16):

• 16 premade all butter tarlet shells
• 1 egg white
• 3 egg yolks
• 2 tbsps sugar
• 2 tbsps milk
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 160 degrees celsius.

Whisk the egg white until it’s watery, just before it begins to foam. Brush the insides of the pastry cases with the egg whites with a pastry brush and arrange on a baking sheet. Bake these for 5 minutes. While these cook whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, vanilla extract and milk enough until they are not foaming. Allow this to sit for 5 minutes and then pour the mixture into the cases. Bake for a further 8-10 minutes and allow to set before eating.

Adapted from here

Verdict: The moment there were 2 of these left on the table mum immediately piped up asking for me to make them again… I did two days later with a pinch of cinnamon and they tasted great. Needless to say these are (excuse the pun) a real cakewalk to make and very VERY moreish. Thank god you can have two or three without feeling pangs of guilt.

Calorie Count: 39 per tartlet

Day 253: Spicy Rice Balls

It’s been a long time since I last dived into the world of making dim sum. I managed to milk that slightly since I turned a recipe for two things into four. This time there is no pastry or wrappers to make which cuts down the amount of preparation effort immensely.

The only real time waster with this recipe is the soaking of the rice, which I had to do some research on beforehand. As I was wondering through Morrisons looking for shortgrain rice I actually was unable to find anything with such a label. I was also unable to uncover the prescence of either sweet or sticky rice so instead opted for pudding rice. According to my favourite site for substitution suggestions it was a good call.

Ingredients (makes 16):

• 1/2 cup short-grain rice (I used pudding rice)
• 1/2 pound pork mince
• 1 egg
• 2 tbsps soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 5 spring onions, finely chopped
• 1 tbsp ginger, grated
• 1 red chilli, deseeded and minced

Soak the rice in 2 cups of water and set aside. While this soaks mix together the pork, chilli, soy sauce, sugar, ginger and spring onions in a bowl and then keep in the fridge until the rice is ready.

Drain the rice and then spread on a plate. Form 16 balls with the pork mixture and roll these in the rice to coat. Line a steamer with baking parchment so that there is roughly an inch separating the edge of the paper and the steamer.Put the rice balls on the parchment in the steamer and steam them for 15-20 minutes.

Adapted from here

Verdict: The opinions conveyed by the members of the website I originally got this recipe from either were very much in favour of these rice or balls or very much against them. We loved them. They were good fun to make and were nice and firm to the bite. The spice was not overwhelming but still had a nice warming quality. A good and simple dim sum recipe.

Calorie Count: 59 per ball