Roast Chicken With Maple Syrup and Mustard

When I made this recently I stupidly left all of the chicken on the dinner table without saving some for myself, my three boys and a friend ate the lot so it must be good!

Serves 4-6 depending on sides and appetites!

Ingredients

2.4kg chicken, cut into 10pieces or chicken pieces, skin on and bone in

2 tablespoons maple syrup

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

Salt and pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Centigrade.

Combine the syrup, mustard, salt and pepper and then pour onto the chicken, covering it completely.

Place the chicken pieces, skin side up on the roasting tin.

Bake for 50-60 minutes, basting regularly until cooked through and crispy.

Sausage and Apple Casserole

Yet more comfort food here!

Apples and good pork sausages are a match made in heaven! I tend to use nice fat pork sausages, I get 10 to a kilo and sweet red eating apples as that’s what tends to be in the fruit bowl.

Serves 4-6.

Ingredients

20mls oil

2 red onions, finely sliced

1 kg pork sausages

4 sweet apples, peeled, cored and cut into wedges

500mls chicken stock

3 teaspoons Dijon mustard

Method

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Centigrade.

In a large oven proof pan, heat the oil over a medium heat and cook the sausages for 5 minutes until the skins have some colour.

Remove the sausages, set aside, add the onion to the pan and cook until soft, around 10 minutes.

Set the onions aside with the sausages and add the apple to the pan, fry over a high heat until they have coloured a little.

Return the onion to the pan, stir through the apples, top with the sausages.

Spread the mustard over each sausage.

Pour the stock into the pan, cover and bake for 30 minutes.

Uncover the pan and return to the oven, bake for a further 25-30 minutes until the sausages are golden.

Cheese and Mustard Puffs

These are wonderful!

Delicate crispness on the outside and a slight goo to the inside, think Yorkshire pudding crossed with a cheese scone! Lovely with a bowl of soup but to be honest they are perfect straight out of the oven.

Gluten free and mere mouthfuls, possibly a little too easy to eat but that’s ok, you can make the batter and keep it for a couple of days in the fridge to use at a later date.

Dont be tempted to use pre grated cheese as the stuff that’s added to it to stop it sticking hampers the puffs rising.

Makes 30-36.

Ingredients

2 eggs

150mls sunflower oil

350mls milk

350g tapioca or arrowroot flour

140g Cheddar cheese, grated

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard, gluten free

1 teaspoon salt

a pinch of cayenne powder

Method

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Centigrade.

Grease two small patty/fairy cake trays to give you 30-36 puffs.

In a food processor, process all of the ingredients.

Pour the batter into the prepared tins, fill to around two thirds.

Bake for 15-18mins, keep an eye on them, they like to burn.

Remove when pale gold, remove from the tin and allow to cool a little on a wire rack.

Serve warm.

Baked Cherry Tomatoes

My youngest son has a very productive veggie patch this year and has kept us in tomatoes for months now.

This is one of my favourite ways to serve them that isn’t a cold salad! You can cook these on a barbecue, ideally the flat plate on a low heat.

Serves 4-6.

Ingredients

450-500g cherry tomatoes on the vine

2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar

1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

5 teaspoons olive oil

2 teaspoons fresh chopped French tarragon

salt and pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Centigrade.

Line a baking tray with baking parchment.

Lay the tomatoes on the prepared tray.

In a bowl, combine the vinegar, mustard, oil and salt.

Pour the dressing over the tomatoes and then sprinkle over the tarragon.

Pop the tomatoes in the oven for 10 minutes until the tomatoes are hot and beginning to change colour.

Carefully lift the tomatoes, still on their vines, onto a serving plate and give them a good grind of pepper. Serve while still hot.

Honey Mustard Roast Chicken

Simple and effective, this is a dead easy way to roast a chicken!

I always roast two chooks now as we seem to get through the meat quickly in salads, risotto and sandwiches. It also means I have two sets of bones to make stock, the stock from this recipe goes beautifully with a simple carrot soup as the honey still adds a sweetness in the stock.

It may sound like a bit of a pain covering the chooks with soaked baking parchment but this stops the meat sticking to the sides of the roasting tin and foil . This roast is quick to go from golden to black due to the honey so keep an eye on it once the foil and paper come off!

If you are gluten free, double check your mustard ingredients, just in case!

The recipe is for two chickens but halves easily.

Ingredients

2 x 2.2kg chickens, washed and dried with paper towel

100ml runny honey

120ml Dijon mustard

salt and pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Centigrade.

Combine the honey, mustard, salt and pepper in a bowl.

Place the chickens in your roasting tin and brush with the honey marinade. Set aside the leftover marinade for later.

Season the chicken with salt and pepper.

Take a large piece of baking parchment, big enough to cover the chickens and tuck down the sides of the tin, crunch it up under running water.

Place the parchment over the chickens, tucking in the sides.

Cover with tin foil and seal.

Pop the chicken in the oven and roast for 2 hours.

Remove the foil and paper, brush the chicken again with the honey mix and pop back in the oven for 20mins.

Repeat the basting and again roast until the skin is darkening, around 10 mins.

Allow to rest before carving.

Naked Beef Burger stuffed with Brie and Jalapeño

I love a good burger and now that a bun or roll isn’t on the menu I feel I need to jazz my burgers up a little bit, enter the naked stuffed burger!

At this time of year we are lucky enough to have a large piece of Brie usually hiding in the fridge for quick and lazy meals, nothing beats gooey cheese and gluten free crackers with apple slices in my opinion!

When it’s getting towards the end of its shelf life this is a great way to use up a little bit of leftover cheese,  including the rind.

Serves 6

Ingredients

2 tablespoons oil

2 large onions

700g minced beef

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

salt and pepper to season

sliced jalapeños, around 4-6 slices per burger

6 slices of Brie

3 avocados, diced

6 tomatoes, deseeded and diced

1 lime cut into 6 wedges

Method

Heat a large frying pan with the oil in it.

Over a medium heat cook the onion in the pan until softened, set aside and don’t wash the pan as it will be reused.

In a large bowl combine the minced beef, mustard, salt and pepper. Roll into 12 balls.

Flatten 6 balls and place a slice of Brie and a few slices of jalapeño chilli on top.

Take the remaining balls and flatten until slightly larger than the previous balls, place them over the bases and squeeze around the edges to seal.

Heat the large frying pan again over a high heat and cook the burgers until slightly charred on both sides.

Return the onions to the pan to warm through.

Serve the burger, topped with onion, tomato and avocado with a slice of lime on the side.

Fresh Dill Mayonnaise

Fresh mayonnaise is so quick to make and a great way of using up any leftover egg yolks.

This dill mayo is lovely with fish, shellfish and even a humble baked potato.

To maintain it as gluten free, ensure the mustard is gluten free and use wine or cider vinegar.

Ingredients

2 egg yolks

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

1 cup sunflower oil

salt and pepper to taste

2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

Method

Place the yolks, mustard and vinegar  in a bowl.

Whisk lightly to combine.

Slowly pour the oil in, whisking all the time, the mayo will begin to thicken as you add the oil.

Once combined stir in the fresh dill.