Creamy Chicken With Fresh Peaches

It’s peach season in Western Australia and these beauties are from the Perth Hills, near where I live.

Don’t be tempted to put the peaches into the sauce for longer, they are just warmed through or they go to mush!

If you want make this ahead of time cook up to the stage of the cream thickening and then turn the heat off.

Once you are ready to eat, bring up to a gently simmer, add an extra 100mls cream, simmer gently until heated through and then continue as below.

Serves 4-6.

Ingredients

40g butter

40mls olive oil

6 chicken thighs, bone in skin on

1 brown onion, finely diced

4 garlic cloves, sliced

400mls cream

300mls chicken stock or water

3-4 large peaches, skinned, stoned and diced

1-2 tablespoons freshly chopped parsley

Method

In a large frying pan with a lid, heat the butter and oil over a medium to high heat.

Season the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper.

Once the fat is hot, add the chicken, skin side down. Cook for 4-5 minutes until the skin is crisp.

Turn the chicken and again cook for 4-5 minutes.

Remove the chicken and set aside. Drain most of the fat out of the pan, leave a couple of teaspoons worth in the pan.

Heat the pan over a medium heat and add the onion, cook until soft, scraping the dark bits off the bottom of the pan as you go.

Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.

Return the chicken to the pan, turn a few times in the onion mixture.

Turn the chicken skin side up.

Pour in the cream and stock, bring to a gently simmer, cover and simmer for 30minutes.

Check that the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has thickened. If the sauce is still a little runny, remove the lid and simmer uncovered.

Stir in the peaches, just heat them a little, sprinkle over the parsley and serve.

Rhubarb Fool

Simple, delicious and gluten free!

I don’t add a huge amount sugar as I love the zing of the rhubarb, taste as you go along and add more sugar if you need it.

Serves 8.

Ingredients

600g fresh rhubarb, cut into 1cm pieces

60g caster sugar

50mls water

275mls cream

Method

In a pan, with a tight fitting lid, combine the rhubarb, sugar and water.

Bring the pan up to the boil and reduce the heat to low, cook covered for 15 minutes until the rhubarb has fallen apart.

Set aside to cool.

Whip the cream until forming stiff peaks, fold in the rhubarb gently and spoon into serving dishes, ramekins or small glasses work well.

Pop into the fridge for 1 hour before serving.

Creamy Chicken Chilli

This is a really handy way of making chicken chilli, great over rice and great as a dip with nachos.

I like to serve this chilli in individual bowls if it’s for dipping or a large oven proof dish if it’s a main meal.

Serves 8.

Ingredients

30mls olive oil

2 onions, finely diced

6 garlic cloves, finely sliced

3 jalapeño chillies, deseeded and diced

4 large chicken breasts, cut to 1cm dice

300mls cream

300mls sour cream

Juice and zest of 2 limes

salt and pepper

large bunch of coriander

150g fresh mozzarella, drained

Method

In a large deep frying pan, heat the oil and add the onions, cook until translucent.

Add the garlic and jalapeños and cook for two minutes.

Add the diced chicken and seal quickly without burning the onions.

Stir in the cream, sour cream and the juice and zest of the two limes.

Season well and bring up to a simmer. preheat the oven to 200 degrees Centigrade.

Simmer for twenty minutes until the chicken is thourghly cooked.

Take an oven proof dish and spoon the chicken mixture in, sprinkle over the fresh mozzarella and bake for 25-30 minutes until the cheese is golden.

Chocolate Crepe Pudding

Leftover crepes never tasted so good!

This recipe uses one quantity of my gluten free buckwheat crepe recipe however you can use regular crepes if you prefer. You need around 24 crepes.

As great as this is for a pudding, the boys took wedges in to school for recess the following day and swear its better cold!

Serves 8.

Ingredients

200g milk chocolate

340ml cream

200mls full cream milk

40g butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 quantity gluten free buckwheat crepe recipe, makes 20-24

Method

Grease an oven proof dish that the flat crepes fit snugly into.

Gently warm the chocolate and butter in the microwave, once melted, add the cream, milk and vanilla.

Pour a thin layer of chocolate sauce into the prepared dish, top with a crepe add a little sauce and add another crepe.

Continue until all of the crepes are used and pour all of the remaining sauce over the crepes.

Allow to sit for an hour.

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Centigrade.

Pop the pudding into the oven and bake for 25-35 mins.

Serve with a little vanilla ice cream!

Urid Dhal With Cinnamon And Cloves

This is a variation on my black dhal recipe.

We all seem to have head colds at the moment so I wanted to add some spicy warmth to the dhal using cinnamon and cloves, it worked really well, soothing and calming!

This makes a BIG pot of dhal but I freeze leftovers for another night, defrost fully, heat gently, you might need to add a little water or cream to loosen it up again.

Serves 12-14.

Ingredients

50g ghee

3 cloves garlic

60g ginger, peeled

5 large tomatoes

1 red onion, peeled and quartered

400g urid dhal

2 large dried chillies

4 x 5cm cinnamon sticks

8 cloves

750mls water

600mls cream

200g tomato paste

Method

Preheat the oven to 150degrees Centigrade.

In a processor, process the garlic, ginger, tomatoes and onion with a little water until lump free.

In a large oven proof pan with lid, heat the ghee.

Add the processed paste to the pan and cook gently until it has thickened, this can take 30-40 mins, it should darken in colour too.

Add the dhal, chillies, cinnamon stick and cloves, mix well.

Pour in the water, cream and tomato paste, again, stir well.

Pop in the oven and bake for three and a half to four hours, stirring occasionally.

You may need to add a little water if it is thickening up too quickly.

Season with salt towards the end of the cooking time.

Mango Chicken

I adore Indian food but to persuade the boys to eat it in their early years involved a jar of mango chutney on the table!

I seem to always have a jar or two lurking at the back of the fridge still, usually half eaten, so, this recipe evolved to use up the leftovers.

I know it might sound a bit, or possibly very, odd but this works, the chutney breaks through the creamy ness of the sauce and the boys happily eat mountains of chicken served with rice.

The chutney I buy does have a little kick to it, if yours doesn’t or you love chilli add a deseeded red chilli to the onions.

Serves 8.

Ingredients

2-4 tablespoons olive oil

1.6kg diced chicken, around 2-3cm

2 large onions, sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

200g mango chutney

500mls cream

300mls milk

salt and peppers

A large bunch of coriander, roots removed, leaves picked and stems chopped

Method

In a large frying pan, heat the oil over medium heat.

Season the chicken, in a bowl, with salt and pepper.

Add the onions to the pan and cook until soft, once soft, add the garlic and cook for a minute or two until fragrant. Set aside.

Turn the heat under the frying pan to high. Add the chicken to the frying pan and cook, stirring frequently until sealed.

Return the onions and garlic to the pan.

Pour in the chutney, cream and milk, stir well, bring up to the boil and then lower the heat to a gentle simmer.

Simmer, gently, uncovered for 25-30 mins until the chicken is cooked cooked through and the sauce thickened. if it thickens too quickly add a splash do milk.

Stir in the majority of coriander and then sprinkle with a few leaves over the top and serve.

Smoked Fish Chowder with Sweetcorn and Potato

I know that chicken noodle soup is renowned for its curative powers around the world, but, I think this soup is up there too, comfort and nutrients in a soothing bowl of chowder!

I was brought up with this soup being made with smoked haddock, now, I use a smoked cod that my fishmonger has, the fillets are a similar size to haddock, I just need to take the skin off.

Now the cheat for making the best stock for this soup……. Use fresh corn, remove the kernels and set aside, pop the cobs and the onion outer skin into your soup pan, top with water, bring to the boil and simmer covered for 30mins, drain and set the stock aside. This stock only needs a little seasoning to make it delicious and I love the no waste factor, once I’ve boiled the cobs, I cool them down and then they go out to the chooks for a good pecking!

Serves 6-8.

Ingredients

500g smoked  cod or similar, cut into 2-3cm pieces

600 g fresh sweetcorn, about 4 ears

1 onion, finely diced

60g butter

500g potatoes, peeled and diced, 1cm

700mls stock, sweet corn or vegetable

300mls cream

500mls milk

salt and pepper

Method

In a large pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until soft.

Add the potatoes to the pan and cook for 2 mins, stirring frequently.

Add the sweetcorn, stock, cream and milk.

Bring gently up to the boil and simmer for 10mins.

Add the fish and simmer for 5-7 mins. Season with salt and pepper

Quick and Easy Risotto

Possibly the easiest risotto on the planet!

Made easier by using up whatever leftovers you have lying around and if you happen to have a jar of caramelised onions in the fridge, recipe in the blog, then use those to save on cooking up the onions, even easier!

For the stock I tend to use the pan juices and add water to them or a good powdered vegetable stock, there is no need to use up your home made stock from the bones of your roast.

To make this vegetarian, use leftover roast vegetables and think about adding some asparagus and peas at the same time as the roast veggies.

Leftovers freeze well in individual portion boxes in the freezer.

Serves 6.

Ingredients

100g butter or olive oil

2 large onions, diced

2 garlic cloves, sliced finely

300g mushrooms, sliced

240g arborio rice

700mls stock

120mls dry sherry or white wine

600g leftover ham, chicken, turkey, pork, roast vegetables

160g Parmesan, grated

40g chives

120mls cream

salt and pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Centigrade.

In a large oven proof pan or casserole, melt the butter over a medium heat and add the onions and garlic, cook until falling apart and caramelised.

Add the mushrooms and cook for 2 mins.

Add the rice and cook for 1 min, stirring thought the buttery onions and mushrooms.

Pour in the stock and sherry and place in the oven.

Bake for 20mins, remove and stir in the meat or roast veggies, cream,  half the cheese and two thirds of the chives, return to the oven for 5 mins.

Remove and serve sprinkled with the remaining cheese and chives.

Rich and Creamy Baked Ricotta with Thyme

Now, I know this doesn’t look too tempting! However, it is delicious and reminds me of nursery style comfort food.

A great way to use up leftover egg yolks, mine are from making my meringues, recipe in the blog, this can be made a day ahead and sits quite happily in the fridge in the loaf tin with some plastic wrap over it. Serve at room temperature.

Serves 4-6, lovely with a salad and garlicky potatoes, recipe is in the blog too.

Ingredients

10g butter, melted

500g fresh traditional ricotta

2 eggs

4 egg yolks

100mls whipping cream

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, chopped

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

200g Parmesan cheese, finely grated

salt and pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 150 degrees Centigrade.

Grease a 1litre loaf tin with melted butter.

In a large bowl, whisk the ricotta, eggs and yolk.

Add the cream, thyme, nutmeg, cheese and seasoning and stir well with a spoon.

Pour into the prpared loaf tin.

Fill a roasting pan with water until one third full, place the loaf tin in the centre, ensure the water comes half way up the sides, add a little more if needed.

Place carefully in the oven and bake for 45-50mins until set and a little coloured on top.

Set aside and allow to cool to room temperature before slicing or popping into the fridge for the following day.

Lemon and Ginger Pie

This tastes delicious and is really easy to make.

The slice of pie in the picture is from a HUGE pie I made, 30cm diameter. That pie served 16-18! It is quite rich so thinner slices are the way to go, you can always come back for more!

I use gluten free ginger biscuits, if you don’t need to use them just use regular ginger snaps.

This recipe makes a 22.5cm diameter pie in a loose bottomed tin, that should serve 8-10.

Ingredients

155g packet gluten free ginger biscuits

75g butter, melted

150mls whipping cream

395g tin sweetened condensed milk

90mls fresh lemon juice

rind of 1 lemon, finely grated

Method

Crush the biscuits in a plastic bag, I like to whack them with the rolling pin, very satisfying!

Pour the biscuit crumbs into a bowl, add the butter and mix very well.

Line the tin base with the biscuit mix, push well down using the back of a spoon.

In a large bowl  whip the cream until forming stiff peaks.

Now fold in the condensed milk, it will look very runny!

Add the lemon juice and rind, fold in gently, it will thicken.

Pour the lemon cream on to the biscuit base.

Chill for at least 6 hours, overnight is even better.

To serve, remove the tin side.

Gently slide off the base onto your serving plate or to be honest, I quite often leave the base in place and just apologise for the metal being visible! All will be forgiven once your diners have had a taste of this!