Banana & Date Smoothie

This smoothie is rather thick and yummy, and can be enjoyed as a breakfast on its own, or maybe as an afternoon snack. It is both filling and full of energy, so should keep you going for a little while. And it is easy to make as well!

2 bananas
5 dates
3 tablespoons soya yoghurt
a pinch of ground cardamom
a pinch of ground cinnamon

Peel the bananas, take the pips out of the dates, and add all ingredients to a food processor or smoothie maker. Whizz until you have a smooth mixture. Pour into a glass, and enjoy!

Baked beans with balsamic vinegar

Being a big fan of baked beans, I often make my own. They are just as nice as bought ones, but because I make them myself, they are more varied, as I make a different variant each time. I use different types of beans, and I add different things to the tomato sauce. Some times I use tinned beans, and some times I boil dried beans. Dried beans are usually cheaper, but there are times when I’m too lazy to sort them out with soaking and boiling. And then I use tinned beans.

Makes 5 servings

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 onion

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon dried mixed herbs

1 teaspoon dried basil

2 teaspoons dried thyme

1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

800g tinned tomatoes

250g borlotti beans

If using tinned beans, drain them.

If using dried beans, soak and boil them according to instructions on the packet.

Very very finely chop your onion. Warm the oil in a large thick bottomed saucepan, and add the onion. Sweat the onion until it is soft. Add the salt and dried herbs, and stir well until the herbs are evenly distributed. Add the balsamic vinegar, and stir well again.

Chop the tinned tomatoes, and add to the onions. Simmer for about 30 minutes. Add the beans, and simmer for a further 5 minutes. 

Baked Beans in (lots of) Tomato Sauce

I’ve always like baked beans, but recently I’ve eaten quite a lot of them. After reading the list of ingredients on a tin I realised there’s a bit more sugar and salt than I would ideally like to consume, and so I decided to make my own. The recipe I've given here makes a massive portion, so that you can freeze some of it in handy sized portions for easy use at a later date.

Makes about 10 servings

300g dried haricot beans, OR 600g ready boiled/tinned ones

1 ½ tablespoons olive oil

1 large onion

1 teaspoon salt

3 x 400g tinned tomatoes

140g tomato puree

10 large basil leaves

½ tablespoon honey

⅛ teaspoon smoked paprika powder

⅛ teaspoon ground cayenne pepper

Prepare the beans according to the instructions on the packet. Normally this means a 12 hour soaking plus 1 ½ hours boiling time. You can soak the beans overnight, plus during daytime before you are ready to boil them. A slightly longer soaking does not hurt them; it instead makes them a little bit softer.

While you boil the beans, make the tomato sauce.

Start off by very finely chop the onion. I whizzed mine in my magimix, to get the onion completely mashed. This makes for a smoother sauce. Warm the olive oil in a large saucepan, and add the onion to it. Add a teaspoon of salt, and sweat the onion for about 5 minutes.

Pour the tinned tomatoes into your magimix and whizz until you have a smooth mixture. Pour this onto the sweated onion. Alternatively, if you don’t have a magimix; pour the tomato liquid onto the onion and finely chop the tomatoes and then add them too. Add the tomato puree, stir well, and cover. Leave to simmer for about 30 minutes.

Add the beans once they are cooked and drained.

Finely chop the basil leaves, and add to the sauce along with the honey, paprika powder and cayenne pepper. I’ve suggested some amounts here, but you should taste while adding and find amounts that suit your taste buds. You might like your beans sweeter than I do, or maybe spicier.

Leave the beans to cool down, then place portion-size amounts in small containers, label them, and freeze until you want to eat them.

Sweetcorn Fritters

I was going to make pancakes, but then I realised that I really fancied something savoury instead. Having already laid out the ingredients for pancakes, and feeling very lazy, I decided to just modify my selection rather than think of something completely different. I found some tinned sweetcorn, and so savoury fritters it was.

I had these for my dinner, with steamed vegetables and a sweet thai chilli dipping sauce. But I think they would also work very well as part of a Full English Breakfast; with scrambled eggs, baked beans and fried mushrooms. Yum.

Makes 12 fritters

100g soya flour

1/8 teaspoon xanthan gum

¼ teaspoon baking powder

⅛ teaspoon turmeric

1 ½ teaspoon oregano

100g tinned sweetcorn

40g leeks

30g red romano pepper

50ml double cream

150ml whole milk

2 teaspoons garlic infused olive oil

2 eggs

1 mild chilli

a pinch of salt

oil for frying

Mix the flour, xanthan gum, baking powder and turmeric, and sift these into a large bowl. Add the oregano and stir. Add the sweetcorn, finely slice the leek and pepper, and add these to the mixture as well. Mix the cream, milk, oil and eggs in a separate jug, and pour them into the mixture. Finely chop the chilli and add to the mixture, and finally add a pinch of salt.

The mixture should now be a gooey batter. Add oil to your frying pan and warm it up. Use a tablespoon to add little dollops of batter and fry them on medium to low heat. As when you make small pancakes, turn them over after a few minutes, to fry the other side once they look like the bottom side is done. Do a few at a time, as many as your frying pan will allow. 

Oat Cakes with Tomatoes & Olives

These oatcakes have the sort of taste that goes well with a rustic look, which is just as well, because I usually decide I need oatcakes late at night, and at that point I am not normally in the mood for making anything too dainty. They’re brilliant for snacking on, and also for breakfast with some cheese and dip.

Makes 20 oat cakes

200g oats

a pinch each of ground sea salt, ground black pepper and ground dried chilli

20g sun-dried tomatoes

15g olives

3 tablespoons butter

150ml water

Pre-heat your oven to 200^oC.

Measure the oats and place them in a bowl. Add the spices, finely chop the tomatoes and olives, and add these to the oats. Melt the butter and add to the oats. Finally add the water until the mixture becomes a workable dough. You may not need all the water.

Shape the dough into oatcakes, using a spoon to drop the dough on a greased baking tray, and flattening them with a spatula. They should be about 0.5cm thick to ensure that they bake evenly.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until the cakes have turned golden in colour.

Pancake Day

I know Pancake Day is really a day to clear out your cupboards and eat old leftovers before lent starts, but I don’t think there’s anything wrong with a bit of a treat on Pancake Day. And pancakes shouldn’t be reserved just for this one day every year; they can be a breakfast treat on a weekend or birthday, or an afternoon snack if friends are coming over. There is no end to the possibilities for occasions or flavours. They can be fat ones or thin ones, small ones or large ones, with fillings or without….. And the list goes on. I’ve given some examples here, all using the same base that I’ve just added different flavours to.

Serves 2 people as breakfast

Pancake Base

100g flour (I’ve used Doves farm gluten free white bread flour)

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 medium egg

100 ml whole milk

1 tablespoon melted butter

Sift the flour and baking powder into a large bowl. (If you are adding any other dry ingredients such as sugar or spices, add these now.)

Add the egg and milk, and whisk carefully. Make sure you whisk carefully and not for too long, as this can give the pancakes a more rubbery texture.

Add your flavours and mix into the batter. Leave the batter to rest for about 20 minutes. This gives the pancakes a better consistency and gives the flavours a chance to blend together and develop. But if you are in a hurry there’s nothing stopping you from frying them straight away.

Melt the butter and add to the base just before frying.

Heat a frying pan to medium heat. Add a knob of butter, or if you’ve got a non stick pan you won’t need this. Pour a little batter onto the frying pan, and cook for a couple of minutes on each side. Keep an eye on the temperature to make sure they don’t get burned.

 

American Style Jammy Pancakes

 

Jammy pancakes are great for those afternoons when you just need a little encouragement to get that great project started…

1 tablespoon cottage cheese

1 tablespoon strawberry jam

icing sugar and fresh strawberries for serving (optional)

American Style Banana and Raisin Pancakes

This recipe gives deliciously lumpy pancakes; they’re fantastic to share with good friends over a cup of steaming tea.

1 teaspoon ground cardamom

1 ripe banana

2 tablespoons seedless raisins

maple syrup, banana and raisins for serving (optional)

Cinnamon and Honey Pancakes

This makes quite a runny batter and thin pancakes, if you want them to be thick American style, use less milk. The warming cinnamon and sumptuous honey makes them a great comfort food on a rainy Sunday morning.

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 teaspoons honey (runny honey is easier to work with, but use one that you think tastes great)

maple syrup or runny honey for serving (optional)