MAPEL SYRUP PANCAKES WITH CARAMELISED PEARS AND CANDID WALNUTS

Simple and easy for a go slow family Sunday breakfast, this is our home grown pears canned in syrup caramelised and served on top of home made buttermilk maple pancakes and for that finishing touch pear syrup candid walnuts.  Drizzle over extra pear or mapel syrup for that extra Sunday specialness. 

Prep Time: 10 minutes / Resting Time: 30 minutes / Cooking Time: 15 minutes 

Ingredients

(Makes 6-8 pancakes)

1 cup self raising flour

1 egg beaten 

300ml buttermilk

(Make your own recipe below)

50ml double cream

50ml maple syrup

1 vanilla pod seeds scraped out

Tiny pinch of sea salt

Oil for cooking

1 tin canned pears in syrup

1 handful chopped walnuts

I help mum preserve some of our home grown pears for use over winter, all we did was peel and poach the pears in half sugar and half water syrup, then in to hot sterilised mason or kilner jars and in to the larder for storing.

Preserved Pears Home Grown and Made

In a large bowl place the flour and salt add the buttermilk and beaten egg and whisk until you have a smooth batter then add the vanilla and leave to rest for half an hour if you can.  

Heat a skillet to a medium high heat and place the pears in the pan along with 50ml of the cans syrup, bubble away and caramel use the pears, remove from the pan and throw in the walnuts and toss in the reduced pear syrup glaze and turn out on to a plate and reserve to one side.

Now to make your pancakes, heat your skillet medium high and brush over a little oil or if your skillet is as seasoned as my mums you won't need to, pour a ladle of your pancake batter in to the center of your pan and leave to cook for a minute or so until you have lots of air bubbles in the batter this is when your pancake is ready to be turned, not before!  

Flip you pancake and cook for another minute or so and turn out on to a warm plate and cover with a tea towel while you cook the rest of the batch. Serve topped with your caramelised pears and candid walnuts and enjoy family style with extra maple and pear syrups. 

To make Buttermilk

Add two tablespoons of lemon juice or white wine vinegar to 500ml of milk and leave to one side for quarter of an hour, Ta-daaaaa quick and easy buttermilk, you can make this with a culture too over night.

AWESOME MINTY DOG BISCUITS

I love making my two dogs some treats every week, that's because every afternoon they want a snack around about an hour before their dinner time and they often come up and place toys on my lap or as lottie the Great Dane does she just places her chin on my shoulder as she knows that will get her a treat !!!  😃... 

These are really quick and easy to make and the recipe has been created with the dogs approval !!! That really means I have learnt from the disaster batches that they would not eat, like the peppermint breath biscuit, a definite  no go!  

Prep Time 5 minutes / Cooking Time 15 minutes

Ingredients

(Makes approx 40)

1 cup peanut butter

2 cups  oat bran

1 cup rolled oats

1 cup potato flour

1cup water

2 eggs beaten

1/4 cup fresh chopped mint

Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and bring to a firm dough ball, you can add more water or oat bran if you need to stiffen or loosen the mix.

Roll out the dough to around half an inch thick and cut out your cookies, bake in a pre heated oven at 180 degreesC / 350 degrees F for 10-15 minutes, remove and leave to cool, then treat your pets with your fabulous home made cookies. 

CHICKEN LIVER PAFAIT FRENCH

Awesome this rich chicken liver pate is my mums French recipe and is super easy and quick to make and tastes awesome! 

Prep time 15 minutes / Cooking time 15 minutes

Ingredients 

(Serves 4)

500g organic chicken livers

1 tbsp olive oil

1 onion finely chopped

1 clove garlic finely chopped

2 sprigs fresh thyme

100ml brandy

200ml double cream

Himalayan sea salt 

Fresh black pepper

Bring a large skillet to a medium heat, add the olive oil and onions, gently soften for 5 minutes, add the garlic and chicken livers and cook for around 7 minutes until the centre of the chicken livers are still just a little pink, remove the chicken livers and leave to one side, now add the brandy to the pan and de glaze the pan on a high heat for one minute reducing the brandy slightly.

In a food processor place the rested chicken livers along with their resting juices and using a spatula all the de glazed pan brandy sauce.  Blitz until smooth, then pour in half the double cream a generous pinch of salt and pepper, blitz to combine and taste, adjust the seasoning and creaminess to your taste, you want the consistency to be soft like whipped cream as the pate will firm up once stored in the fridge.

Want to go to the next level, melt some butter and place the pate in your serving dishes leaving a one inch head space from the top, place a pretty sprig of thyme or a sage leaf on top and pour over the butter completely covering the pate.

This is two fold, first it seals the pate from air exposure and discolouration and even better the pate comes complete with its own butter for the Melba toast! 

BEST EVER VINDALOO CURRY SPICE POWDER

I love to cook and in our family home Sunday's are very special, they are a totally family day where we all go down the farm and feed the animals and then get back home, change in to our Sunday best Pyjamas and get Sunday Lunch under way.  At the moment Sunday Lunches are Indian themed where  we are eating our way around India.

Vindaloo Curry Spice

It is always best to grind your own dry spices when cooking Indian food it really does make a difference  and it really is very easy and quick to do.

Ingredients

This is my families tiffin spice tin, we have two that hold all the spices we use regularly and that makes it much easier to make your curry spice as everything is to hand.

1 tsp black peppercorns

1 tsp cumin seeds 

1 clove

1 inch piece cinnamon stick

1.5 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp turmeric

15 cardamom pods seeds only

2 tbsp Kashmiri powder

Place all the ingredients in a old coffee grinder or pestle and mortar and grind, these are now ready to use, I like to marinate my ingredients for at least 12 hours, the next stage is below.

To Marinate your main ingredients, vegetables, lamb, beef or chicken this is the next stage.

1 onion 

6 cloves garlic

1 inch whole fresh ginger

2 tbsp tamarind pulp

5 tbsp white wine vinegar

Place all in ingredients in to a food processor and blitz, add the above ground curry spices and blitz again until all incorporated, mix and coat your main meal ingredients and leave in the fridge to marinate for at least 2 hours but 12-24 is brilliant if you can.

To cook your curry pan fry some chopped onion in ghee, add your marinated curry ingredients along with 200ml water, a couple of tomatoes and a fresh green chilli and gently simmer until cooked, serve with rice and breads.

AWESOME SLAW

Gorgeous fresh garden slaw, this I make with glorious egg mayo from my chickens who live in the garden and whatever greens and root veg are also ready from the garden.  I help my family grow all our own vegetables which is a great feeling of self sufficient shopping.

Ingredients

The Slaw

1 handful spinach

1 handful Nero kale

1 handful curly kale

1 sweetheart cabbage finely sliced

2 carrots juillenned 

1 large onion finely sliced

1 portion mayonnaise 

The Mayonnaise 

1 egg yolk

1 tsp mustard Dijon 

1 tsp white wine vinegar

300ml olive oil

Sea salt

White pepper

To make the mayonnaise, this should only take a couple of minutes, place the egg yolk, white wine vinegar in a deep jug and start to whisk in the olive oil one drop at a time until you have thicker consistency then you can add the oil at a much faster rate, once all the oil is mixed in season with the salt, pepper and mustard to taste.

Take your slaw vegetables and place in a large bowl and fold in the mayonnaise, that's all it takes! 

My lovely broody chicken 🐓

BUTTERMILK MAPLE SYRUP PANCAKES

These are awesome buttermilk pancakes!  I am practicing for Christmas Morning tomorrow when I will be making these for my family, light fluffy and drenched in true maple syrup.

Prep time 5 minutes / Cooking time 3 minutes each

Ingredients 

(Serves 6)

350g self raising flour

1/2 tsp sea salt

3 tbsp caster sugar

1 tsp bicarbonate soda 

300ml butter milk

300ml whole milk

2 eggs beaten

85g butter melted

1 bottle pure maple syrup warmed 

50g butter and glut olive oil for cooking the pancakes

Place the flour in a large bowl, mix in the sea salt, bicarbonate of soda and caster sugar, add the beaten eggs, melted butter, milk and buttermilk to a separate jug, whisk together, pour into the dry ingredients and whisk and until smooth.

Heat a skillet medium hot, add a little of the butter and olive oil, pour a ladle of your batter on to the skillet and leave the pancake to cook on one side until lots of little air bubbles have formed, only then flip the pancake and cook for a further minute, remove and repeat.  Keep your pancakes warm by wrapping them in a tea towel, serve with warm maple syrup and enjoy. 

EASY PEASY MAYONNAISE

This is so simple and easy to make and only takes a couple of minutes, no fancy equipment needed and you know what's in your mayonnaise, for me it's great organic egg yolks from my home raised chickens and virgin cold pressed olive oil from a farm in old family farm in Italy.

Equipment :  Large bowl and a whisk / Cooking Time : 2 minutes 

Ingredients

(Makes 200g)

1 egg yolk

300ml olive oil or nut oil

1/2 tsp sea salt

1 tsp mustard

1/2 tsp white wine vinegar

I used Olive oil in this recipe as its my dad's favourite, but it is a strong flavour and my mum likes a lighter nut or grape seed oil flavour.

First place the egg yolk in your bowl with the white wine vinegar add start to add the olive oil really really slowly and whisk in, if you add too much oil the yolk will go runny and you will not get mayonnaise, if this dose happen you can save the Mayo by adding one or two more yolks and then continue as before.  Once you have incorporated half the oil and the mayo is emulsifing you can then add the rest of the oil much faster, season with salt and mustard, I like Dijon mustard or whole grain sometimes.  

Think of your mayonnaise as a blank canvas that you can now flavour with anything, my favourites are lemon and fresh grated garlic, capers gherkins and dill, chipotle chilli and smoked paprika and lemon, amoung a few.  Have fun and get inventive with your favourite flavours.

This will keep for about a week in a air tight container in your fridge.

MEET MY GOATS

How fabulous is this, I finally have my two pet goats, I have been asking for goats for the last couple of years but there was a concern of escapees and mischievous fun, and as we don't live on my farm mum and dad were not convinced it would work out well.  Well recently I was super brave and as a surprise mum and dad got me two Boer Goats called Tullah and Jack, I am so thrilled to have them and they are great.

.

I am teaching my goats to walk on a lead so I can take them for a walk around the farm and for handling them as they will need brushing and feet trimming so it is important they are friendly.

This was arrival day and I went with mum and dad to pick up Tullah and Jack and take them back to the farm where they spent two days in a holding pen so that the other sheep would get used to them being there and just in case they had any germs!  

That is Tullah she is the mischievous one !!!

SPICY CHICKEN SOFT TACOS

I just love making soft tacos for a family dinner, everyone gets to stuff their taco to their own design and there is always lots of noise until they start the face stuffing lip smacking enjoyment of eating them and that is why I love food and my family

Prep time: 15 minutes / Flat bread Proving time: 1 hr / Cooking time: 10 minutes

Ingredients

(Serves 4)

Marinade For The Chicken

4 chicken breasts sliced

1 tsp cumin

1/4 tsp paprika

1 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

3 tbsp fresh coriander

1 lime juiced

2 tbsp coconut oil for cooking the chicken

1 red pepper sliced

1 green pepper sliced

1 onion finely sliced

2 tbsp coriander

12 flour or corn flat breads, recipe below to make your own.

Place all the ingredients except the coconut oil in a bowl and combine, leave in the fridge to marinate for half an hour.  Meanwhile make the guck olé and salsa accompaniments.

Place the mashed avocado in a bowl and mix in half of the spring onions, red pepper, jalapeno, garlic, and lime juice along with one tbsp of the coriander, mix well, taste and adjust seasoning if required.

Next for the salsa place the tomatoes in a bowl and add the rest of all the ingredients, spring onion, garlic, red pepper, salt, coriander and lime, mix to combine and adjust seasoning if needed.

To cook the chicken heat a skillet nice and hot, add the coconut oil and sear the chicken for around 5-7 minutes until just cooked add the peppers, onions and a dash of water mix to combine and cook for a further minute until the water has thickened to make a little sauce from all the gorgeous flavours in the pan, serve in the skillet on the table family style with all the accompaniments and enjoy the hustle and bustle of a great family moment in time.

Accompaniments 

1 large tub sour cream

1 avocado mashed

4 tomatoes roughly chopped

2 spring onions chopped

1/2 red pepper finely chopped

2 cloves garlic grated

1 jalapeno diced

1 lime juiced

2 pinches sea salt

3 tbsp fresh chopped coriander 

Speedy Flat Breads

(Makes 8-10)

500g 00 flour

50g olive oil 

10g sea salt

15g dried yeast (optional)

320g water

Place all the ingredients in a large bowl and combine to form a ball of dough, turn out on to a slightly floured work top and knead for seven minutes until smooth and springy, leave covered in a bowl at room temperature for at least one hour.  Divide in to 8-10 equal balls and roll out to approx 6" circles.  

Heat a non stick frying pan hot and cook each flat bread for around a minute on each side, wrap up in a warm tea towel to keep warm until serving.

AWESOME JALAPEÑO AND LIME GUACAMOLE

This is awesome, a zesty lime and jalapeno guacamole which goes great with corn chips, nachos, tacos and salads, super good for you and brilliantly tasty this is a winner dinner all round.

Ingredients

1 large ripe avocado

1 fresh jalapeno diced

1 tomato de seeded chopped

1/4 red pepper diced

1 handful chopped coriander 

1 spring onion chopped

1/2 lime zested and juiced

Sea salt

Black pepper

Really simple to make, mash the avocado n a bowl and add the rest of the chopped and diced ingredients, mix well and adjust the seasoning to your taste by adding more or less lime juice, sea salt and pepper.   If you want a more fiery guacamole then ramp up the chillies.  Enjoy.

MEXICAN SPICY CORN ON THE COB

Inspired by my following of Tilly Ramsey.  Fabulous zesty spicy juicy corn on the cob, this is one of the best ways to eat this, I watched Tilly Ramsay make this in LA and thought it looked brilliant and super tasty and it is.  I am extra pleased as I helped grow this corn myself in our family vegetable garden.

Prep Time 5 minutes / Cooking Time 45 mins

Ingredients

(Makes 6)

6 corn on the cobs

200g butter

2 tsp sea salt

2 tsp ground black pepper

1 tsp red chilli flakes

1 small bunch chopped coriander

Bring a deep pan of water to a simmer add a pinch of salt and the corn on the cobs, simmer until tender around 45 mins, mean while place all the other ingredients on a large chopping board as a ready in action station.  Drain the corn and leave to dry steam for a couple of minutes, then roll each corn first in the salt, the pepper, then chilli, then a good turning in the butter and lastly roll across the coriander and place on your serving platter.

These are super tasty on their own but go even better as part of Mexican feast with fajitas, flat breads, guacamole, sour cream and re fried beans.

AWESOME SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS

This is a awesome dinner, gorgeous San Marzano DOP (proof the tomatoes are from San Marzano Italy) tomatoes slowly cooked with softened onions, garlic and fresh oregano from the garden and a splash of red wine served with the best meatballs ever!

Prep Time 15 minutes / Cooking Time Hands on 7 minutes / 1 hour Hands off

Ingredients

(Serves 4-6)

Fantastic Marinara Sauce

1 pack spaghetti 250g-500g

(depending on your appetite) ! 

4 tins San Marzano DOP tomatoes

2 large onions finely chopped

6 cloves garlic finely chopped

1 tbsp olive or coconut oil

1 tbsp butter

200ml red wine

1 tbsp oregano

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp black and white pepper

1/2 tsp sugar (optional)

The Best Ever Meatballs 

1kg minced pork

500g minced lamb

70g dried breadcrumbs 

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp black and white pepper

1 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp thyme

50ml water or wine

50g greater Parmesan 

1/4 tsp sugar

First in a deep pan melt the butter and oil and gently soften the onions for ten minutes, add the garlic and cook for a further five minutes, remove from the pan, reduce the heat while you make the meatballs.  Place all the meatballs ingredients in a large bowl and mix together well, form in to golf ball size balls and seal all sides in the pan, add more oil if needed, remove the meatballs and cover leaving to one side, then add the red wine to de-glaze the pan and add back the onion mix along with all the tomatoes, oregano and seasonings, gently simmer for 45 minutes, then tip in the rested meat balls with any juices and leave on a gently simmer while you cook your spaghetti.

For the spaghetti bring a large pan of water to a rolling boil, season with salt, add the pasta and simmer for ten minutes, drain and toss in the sauce and serve.

AWESOME CHEESECAKE

MARSCAPONE RASPBERRY AND BLACK CURRENT SHORTBREAD CHEESECAKE

This is so rich and creamy a spoonful of gorgeousness every time.  I made this for my dad and he wanted a old fashioned all butter short bread biscuit base not the traditional digestive and butter base. The marscapone cream cheese filling really is divine and the fresh fruits can be any, these fruits are what was ready to eat from my garden.

Prep Time 15 minutes / Cooking Time 10-15 minutes / Fridge setting time 1 hour

Ingredients

(Serves 4)

227g plain flour

135g butter diced

114g caster sugar

500g marscapone

4 tbsp icing sugar

5 ml vanilla extract

1 jar seedless raspberry jam

250g fresh fruit 

First to make the shortbread base, in a large bowl place the flour and butter rub together with your finger tips until you have a fine breadcrumb texture mix in the sugar and pour into you greased baking tin, gently push down the mixture, not to much.  Bake in the oven 180 degrees for 10-15 minutes until a very slight colour change.  Leave to cool while you make the cheesecake filling.

Mix the marscapone with the icing sugar and pour onto the shortbread base, pop in the fridge to set for at least half an hour, then spread over the raspberry jam and finish with a sprinkling of your fresh fruit berries, pop back in the fridge and you awesome cheesecake is ready when you are, enjoy 😃

DECADENT CHOCOLATE SABAYON

This is really child's play😆. Very simple to make and is one of the most richest chocolate puddings that my dad says is best eaten in the middle of the night when no one else is around!  That's probably because dad gets it all over his face! 

Prep Time 5 minutes / Cooking Time 10 minutes

Ingredients

(Serves 4)

150ml water

150g caster sugar

4 egg yolks

50g 70% + cocoa powder

Grated zest 1 orange

Put the sugar and water in a saucepan and dissolve on a low heat, bring up to a simmer and immediately take off the heat and transfer to a bowl to cool, this is your sugar syrup.

Bring a saucepan half filled with water to a simmer and place a bowl that fits snuggly in the top of the pan, whisk the egg yolks into your sugar syrup and pour into the bowl, keep whisking for 8 minutes until you have light ribbons, remove from the heat and whisk until you have thick ribbons.

Next seive in the cocoa powder and gently whisk until it is fully incorporated, stir in the orange zest and  pour into your serving glasses, you can serve this immediately or pop in the fridge for later.

Dads favourite part is of course licking the bowl and whisk and he makes me laugh because there is always a spot left on his nose 😃

RASPBERRY TRIFLE FOR FATHERS DAY

The Best Ever raspberry trifle for my fabulous Daddy on Fathers Day, this is one of my dads most favourite puddings, actually he has a lot of favourites!  A good old fashioned trifle made the old fashioned way where each layer is made from scratch, this adds so much more depth of flavour and makes this trifle truly amazing.

Prep / Cooking Time 1 hr

Ingredients 

(Serves 6-8)

The sponge base

250g sugar

8 egg yolks

250g self raising flour 

60g melted butter

For The Jelly

1 kg fresh raspberries

250g water

250g sugar

10 gelatine leaves

The Custard

1 ltr double cream

100 ml Madeira or Bristol Cream

120g sugar

200g egg yolks

10 gelatine leaves

Chantilly Cream

500ml double cream

50g icing sugar

Hundreds and thousands 

I love my clear communication this is my I am thinking about it face and I had not made up my mind if I was ready to help mum with the whisking, I do like to be an executive Chef and not always hands on, however as this is for Father's Day I decided that I would help.

The Sponge

First make the sponge base, pre heat your oven to 180 degrees C / 350 F, place the egg yolks and sugar in your mixing bowl and whisk for 12 minutes until light and fluffy, gently fold in the flour and the the melted butter.  Pour into a large lined rectangle shallow baking tin about one inch thick and pop in the oven for 8 minutes, once cooked remove and place on a cooling rack if there is any left over cake batter repeat.  Once cooled trim the sponge to snuggly fit your mould or trifle bowl.

The Jelly

I was very happy with my whisking work, then on to making the jelly and this I got mum to do as it is made with Hot sugar syrup, first place the gelatine leaves in a bowl of cold water, then place the sugar and water in a pan and bring to a rolling simmer, add the raspberries, reserving enough to stand up on you sponge base filling your mound or trifle bowl.  Simmer gently for 10 minutes then pass through a seive back into the pan and back onto the heat, add the gelatine leaves and whisk in, transfer to a cold bowl and leave to start setting, when it is only just pourable pour over the raspberries on the sponge base and pop in the fridge to set.

The Custard

This is my face now I've done enough manual labour!  I helped to whisk the egg yolks and sugar until light and fluffy, then mum took over and heated the cream to a almost simmer, meanwhile place the gelatine leaves in a bowl of cold water,  pour the hot cream over the whisked eggs stirring all the time, then return the custard to the pan add the Madeira or Bristol Cream and gently simmer for a couple of minutes, pass through a seive into a cold bowl and leave to start setting, when it is only just still pourable pour over the jelly layer and pop in the fridge to set while you make the chantilly cream.

I got mum to put the cream in the mixer bowl and I turned on the whisk, we added the icing sugar and whisked until thick, place in a piping bag and pop in the fridge to firm up.  Once the custard has set pipe on the cream and my favourite bit sprinkle over the hundreds and thousands and enjoy.

OSCAR'S BIG KID'S RASPBERRY BLANCMANGE

This is sooooooo good I had to separate mum and dad from both trying to lick the bowl clean !  I love watching James Martin and this is his recipe.  This is so far removed from that 1970's packet blancmange, or so my dad tells me, how would I know I am only 14 yrs old 😆

Cooking Time 10 minutes

 

Ingredients

(Makes 6-8)

5 gelatine leaves

750g raspberries 

100g icing sugar

1 heaped tbsp corn flour

1 tsp vanilla paste

250ml full fat milk

250ml double cream

First I got mum to soak the gelatine leaves in cold water, then I got to use the kitchen blender and pushed the blitz button and blitzed most of the raspberries, (reserving a few for decoration) with two tbsp of icing sugar.  

Next I got mum to place the remaining icing sugar and the corn flour in a saucpan and to add a drizzle of the milk and I then helped to whisk this to a smooth paste, we added the rest of the milk and placed the saucepan on the stove and brought up to a gentle simmer with mum stirring all the time for a minute or so then we took the pan off the heat.

Meanwhile I got mum to pour the cream in to a large jug and add the blitzed raspberries along with the vanilla bean paste, I stirred this in and Mum then poured in the hot thickened milk and we stirred it all together.

Next we poured the blancmange into dads super sized serving dishes which are more like a party size and I decorated the top with one raspberry, a oregano leaf and a orange flower because I can 😃

Place in the fridge to set for at least one hour, this is a painful time for dad, waiting ! 

I love to smell and touch my ingredients, and for a hour or so there was a raspberry smudge on my nose that none of us knew was there!  I am a big fan of Tilley Ramsay and Junior Master Chef so watch my space, I have told my mum that I am going to be a better chef than her and mum is very pleased about that, we will be working on and reading recipes together, I am in charge though, and I am looking forward to cooking some classic French dishes, mum says she is up for the challenge, mum loves to be a rustic cook 😜 

GRILLED CHEESE AND CHOCOLATE SANDWICH

 While I was staying in the USA I thought I would get trendy and cook what all the other teenagers are cooking and this is really hot and trending at the moment and I know why it is AWESOME ! The hot warm comforting chocolate spread melted with the gooey oozey cheddar cheese cuddled between two butter toasted pillows is just om nom nom nom.

Ingredients

(Serves 1)

Two crusty slices of bread

1 small stick of butter

2 tbsp of nutella chocolate spread

2 slices of cheddar cheese

Pre heat a griddle pan to medium hot, you want your grilled sandwich to sizzle gently so that the cheese gets time to melt, this is really important as you will want cheese pull !  

Butter the bread and this is important, Crust to Crust is a must!  Then turn the bread over and spread the nutella on the other side and top with the cheese, place the other slice of buttered bread on top butter side up then place on your griddle and cook for 1-2 minutes on each side until you have a lovely golden brown crust, cut in half on the bias and serve immediately.  I served mine to grandad and he said it was awesome 😃

My grandad enjoying my American grilled sandwich.

GRILLED CHEESE PIZZA SANDWICH WITH PARMESAN CRUST

My mum loves a grilled cheese sandwich and a traditional wood fired San manzano margarita pizza so I thought I could combine the two.  It was a great success, gooey oozey melted cheese with tomato and basil infused sauce sandwiched between butter crispy Parmesan crusty bread which my dad actual pinched the other half of the sandwich!

Ingredients

(Serves 1)

Two slices crusty bread

1/2 stick butter

2 lrg tomato

6 fresh basil leaves torn

Sea salt

Black pepper

3 slices Swiss cheese or mozzarella 

50g grated Parmesan 

First I made the tomato sauce, you could use salsa instead but I wanted a more authentic pizza flavour in my sandwich, skin the tomato and deseed the tomato, roughly chop and place in a sauce pan, simmer until thick and pulpy, you can add a drop of water or olive oil if needed but their shoul be enough juice in the tonato, season withe some salt and pepper and four of the basil leaves, leave to one side to cool.

Butter the two slices of bread from crust to crust as this is a must!  Turn over and spread half the tomato sauce on one slice top with the cheese and then the rest of the tomato sauce, place the slice of bread on top butter side up.  

Now if I was at home I would of got mum to fire up the wood fired pizza oven and cooked this sandwich in there for a even more better combination of pizza flavour but as I am holiday in the states I have cooked this the on a griddle.  

Heat your griddle medium hot and place you sandwich on the griddle, you want to brown the sandwich slow so that the cheese is fully melted in the middle so you get the cheese pull when you take your fist bite.  After approx 2 minutes turn the sandwich and cook for another two minutes, I like to take the griddle off the heat one the sandwich is fully browned off and turn it once more and leave to rest for another minute or so just to ensure that gooey cheese centre.  This sandwich also goes great with a bowl,of homemade creamy tomato soup.

CRAB OSCAR by OSCAR STATE SIDE

I was most impressed to find a dish with my name all over it 😃, so I felt I should I should at least cook it (well give mum her instructions on how to cook it) while I am in the states.  I really enjoyed going and buying the ingredients in Publix especially the fresh Alaskan Brown King Crab because they were ginormous !  

Ingredients

(Serves 4)

1 lb Alaskan King Crab

4 8oz fillet steaks centre cut

Olive oil

4 egg yolks

1 lb melted clarified butter

1 tbsp lemon juice

1/4 tsp paprika

Sea salt

Black pepper

How cool are these Alaskan King Crab legs!  This is only a quarter of the crab, I reckon the whole crab might have been almost as big as me !😝. The legs very spiny and sharp so I let mum pick all the meat out of the legs for me.

 

Pre heat your oven to 390 F / 180 C, bring a deep pan of water to a simmer and place the crab legs in, they are already cooked but this is to re heat them and will make it easier to remove the meat, simmer for five minutes then remove and leave to cool slightly before picking the crab meat out.  Meanwhile heat your griddle medium hot heat, season the steaks with sea salt, black pepper and rub with olive oil and sear each side until sealed and coloured then pop in the oven for five minutes for rare or eight minutes for medium, leave to rest on the side for 7-10 minutes, next turn on the broiler/grill to high.

Meanwhile put two cups of water in a double boiler or a saucepan that a glass bowl will nest in the top, and not touch the water, bring up to a simmer, place the egg yolks in the bowl off the water and whisk until they a pale fluffy yellow consistency.  To clarify the butter melt and leave to settle for a few minutes all the impurities will sink to the bottom, pour off the good stuff.  Place the bowl over the simmering water and whisking all the time slowly drizzle the butter in, this will thicken the sauce and will only take 3-4 minutes to make, take off the heat and add season with the salt, pepper, lemon juice and paprika.

Now to assemble the Crab Oscar.

Place your steak on a baking tray and top with a pile of the crab meat, generously spoon over the hollandaise sauce and place under the grill for 2-3 minutes to set the sauce and add a little colour and depth of flavour, you can use a blow torch instead, but mum says I am not allowed to handle one of these yet!  Enjoy.

OSCAR's AWESOME CHICKEN JALAPEÑO CHEESE AND BACON TRIPLE STACKER BURGER

This is my awesome chicken cheese jalapeno stacker burger loaded with sweet cure bacon, lemon mayo and crispy lettuce that I was inspired by my stay in the US where everything is bigger and better!  This actual feed my mum, dad and nan it was that awesome!  

Ingredients 

(Serves 1-3)

3 x 168g chicken breasts bashed flat

A dash of olive oil

3 slices cheddar cheese

6 rashers sweet cure bacon

1/2 iceberg lettuce finely sliced

1 fresh jalapeno sliced

1-3 buns toasted

1 skewer for structural support!

To Make Your Own Mayo

1 egg yolk

175ml olive oil

1/4 lemon juiced

Salt and pepper

Place the egg yolks in a large jug and very slowly start to drizzle in the olive oil, you need to keep whisking all the time and don't speed up the pouring if the oil until the egg yolks have started the o thicken, then you can add the oil quicker, once you have your mayo add the lemon guide and season to taste.  This will keep in the fridge for a week, if it lasts that long.

To cook the bashed out flat chicken toss in the olive oil and sear on a hot griddle pan turning half way through when almost cooked turn the heat down and place a cheese slice on each breast and leave to melt, meanwhile cook the bacon rashers under the grill until crispy.  Toast your bun and now your ready to assemble my awesome stacker.

Place the bottom bun on your serving plate, add a tbsp of mayo and spread over the bun, place a cheese topped chicken breast on the bun, more mayo, fresh jalapenos, handful of iceberg lettuce and two rashers of bacon, now do it again and then again and finish off with more mayo and the top of the bun, pin the monster burger together with the skewer to keep from toppling over and enjoy, if you want to share then toast two more buns and divide the stacker between the buns.

AWESOME SMORES

How cool are these, after watching Tilly Ramsay on cbbc making these smoors I wanted to Oscar them so I made some chunky chocolate chip cookies, dipped some in a chocolate and heavy cream ganache, then I loaded a cookie with marshmallow fluff, topped that with one of the chocolate coated cookies then topped that cookie with more marshmallow and finished aff with another chocolate chip cookie, you so gotta get messy while eating these ! 

Ingredients 

The Cookie Dough

2 cups of brown sugar 

1 cup of butter

1 tsp vanilla paste

2 eggs beaten

3 cups all purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 cup of chocolate chip

The Filling

1 tub marshmallow fluff

1 cup chocolate chips

1 cup heavy cream

Pre-heat your oven to 350F / 170C in a large bowl beat the sugar and butter together, add the vanilla and eggs and beat until smooth, add the flour, baking soda and chocolate chips and fold in until you have a smooth batter.

Dollop tablespoon size's of the cookie batter on a baking tray lined with baking paper leaving a space for the cookies to expand.  Bake for 10 - 14 minutes until light golden brown, remove from the baking tray and place on a wire tray to cool.

The Chocolate Ganache 

1 cup of chocolate chips

1 cup of heavy cream

Place both ingredients in a saucepan on a low heat, once the chocolate has melted stir until you have a glossy smooth sauce.  Dip some of your cookies in the ganache and place on a baking sheet, pop in the fridge for 30 minutes to set.

Assembling The Smores

This is great messy fun!  Take a cookie top with a heaped teaspoon of marshmallow, then top with a chocolate covered cookie, top this with another teaspoon of marshmallow and finish off with another chocolate chip cookie and enjoy.

MY GORGEOUS PIG PINKY

Meet my gorgeous Gloucestershire Old Spot pig Pinky, she is an amazing pig, who loves big hugs and cuddles, loves to stick her whole head under muddy water and wallow in the sun.  

 

Love this pig 💚

HAPPY CHICKENS NEW GRASS TURFED RUN

Spring is in the air and I wanted to surprise my new cream leg bar chickens by grass turfing their indoor outdoor and outdoor woodland run.  They were really confused to what had happened to their run but it did not take them too long to work out that they can still scratch around and look for all the hidden meal worms I had sprinkled in the run.

Indoor Outdoor Fox Proof Run

Outdoor Woodland Run

Turfing has an extra benefit as I sprinkled organic diatamecous earth on the ground before getting dad to lay the turf, this is a great natural way to keep parasites under control and the chickens safe and healthly and the turf acts as a fresh clean new layer of earth in effect freshing up the runs.

Here I even grass turfed their dust bath hut as they don't use it for dusting themselves in they like to stand on top of the roof!

Happy hens means happy eggs