Pork chops with Corn on the cob and Potato and Swede mash.

This is an amazing dinner for the whole family. My favorite family dinner. Hope you enjoy making it!!  : -D
 I cooked it on the George Foreman but if you haven't got one just use a grill.
Serves 4

Ingredients:

4 pork chops
4 medium sized potatoes
1/2 a swede
4 corn on the cobs


Method:

1. Peel and quarter the potatoes and swede and put into a saucepan which has got water and a dash of salt into it. Put onto boil for 20 minutes. 

2. Boil the corn on the cob for 8 minutes.

3. Meanwhile preheat the George Foreman and season the pork chops on both sides with salt and pepper. ( make sure you rub the seasoning in)

4. Put the pork chops on the George Foreman for around 10 - 12 minutes.

5. Drain the water from the saucepan and mash up the potatoes and swede to make the mash.

6. Serve up!

Enjoy :-D

Cheese and Bacon Plaits

I adore this snack, it is so simple and quick to make. These Cheese and bacon plaits are really good for party food. They are best served warm out of the oven! Have fun :-D

Ingredients:

Dijon mustard - only a little for brushing
1 pack of grated cheese.
1 pack of bacon
Ready roll puff pastry

Method:

1. Pre- heat the oven to 200C.

2.. Roll out the puff pastry until roughly 30- 40 cm in length and width.

3. Brush the pastry lightly with Dijon mustard and sprinkle on the grated cheese.

4. Lay the bacon  horizontally onto the pastry about 3-4 cm apart.

5. Cut so there is one piece of bacon per slice.

6. Trim the ends of the pastry and pick up a slice and twist one hand clockwise and one had anti-clockwise so it makes a twirl. Carry on with the rest of the slices.

7. Bake for 10-20 mins.

Peanut butter and Milk Chocolate Slices

I love this snack! Any one who loves peanut butter and chocolate will too!! Hope you enjoy this! I got this recipe from The Cake Mistress and added my own few tweaks to it.

Ingredients

Base

200g of plain biscuits
90g  of unsalted butter melted.

Filling

50g of Demerara sugar
200g of icing sugar
50g unsalted butter
200g smooth peanut butter

Topping

300g milk chocolate
2tbsp unsalted butter

Method

1. Take a 23cm circular baking tin and cover with baking paper.

2. With a food processor blitz together the  biscuits and melted butter until it sticks together, put into the tin and smooth out with your fingers until evenly spread.

3. Next in the food processor mix together the Demerara sugar, icing sugar, butter and peanut butter until combined, spread onto the top of the base until evenly spread.

4. Melt the chocolate and butter and keep stirring while you do this, then pour the chocolate over the top of the filling and the base. Put in the fridge until the chocolate is set.

5. Cut up into squares and serve.

Chocolate Chunk Brownies

Brilliantly melt in the mouth, perfect to eat when cut up and still warm absolutely brilliant. Brownies are rustic and delicious. I got this recipe and added a twist,  from a cookery book written by Zoe Berkeley.

Ingredients:

Half a bar of milk chocolate bashed up into chunks.
200 g melted butter
65 g coco powder
3 large eggs
1 tea spoon vanilla extract
200 g caster sugar


Method

1. Pre- heat the oven to 180 C and put some grease proof paper in a shallow baking tin approximately 20 cm wide. Mix the melted butter in with the cocoa powder and set aside to cool for 10 mins.

2. Whisk the eggs in with the sugar and vanilla extract and then add and beat in the cocoa mixture. Then gently fold in the flour and the crushed chocolate. bake for 35 mins, the mixture should be sticky.

3. Leave in the tin to cool for 10 mins and then lift out of the tin by the edges of the grease proof paper. Cut into 12 pieces and serve with pink glitter.

White Home made Bread

This is great for people who haven't really made bread before. This tastes great and is just brilliant. Paul Hollywood is a master baker and this is his recipe.

Ingredients:

2 sachets of yeast
500 g white bread flour
40 g soft butter
2 tbs salt
300 ml tepid water (body temp)
1/4 cup of milk

Method:

1.  Pre -heat the oven to 220C and put the flour into a large mixing bowl and add the butter. Add the yeast at one side and the salt at the other side of the bowl. Stir to combine.

2. Add half the water and turn with your fingers until all the flour is gone from the bowl, add more water if needed and make into a soft dough, not sticky or soggy.

3. Spread some flour lightly on a work surface and turn out the dough to knead with the backs of your hands, and keep turning the dough and making sure you don't knock to much air out of it.

4. Grease a bread tin and  put the bread into the tin and cover with cling film to prove in a warm place for an hour or until doubled in size. Take out of the tin and knead again. Then put it back in the warm place for a further hour.

5. Sprinkle some flour onto the top of the bread and rub in lightly then score lines across the top of the bread  to create a diamond pattern and put in the oven to bake for about 30 minutes until the loaf has a crusty, crispy ,golden brown top.

6. To check that the bread is cooked tap the base it should sound hollow. Put on a wire cooling rack to cool.

Apple Puffs

An easy dessert to make, filled with apple deliciousness! I have put some cinnamon in to the apples for extra hint of spice.

 Ingredients 

Ready roll pastry

4 granny smith apples peeled , cored and cut into 8-9 pieces per apple

A shake of cinnamon

1 egg

Brown sugar

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Put the cut apples into a medium sized pot and put on the heat, keep stirring every minute or so to stop the  apples burning and sticking on the bottom of the pan.

2. Once the apples are getting softer and you can almost break them up with the wooden spoon add a shake of cinnamon. Stir into the apples and carry on stirring every minute or so.

3. When the apples are soft take off the heat and place onto a small cooking rack.

4. Roll out the pastry and when the apples are only just warm, with a wooden spoon, put a strip of apple in the middle of the pastry, use all of the apples!

5. Break the egg into a cup and beat to make the egg wash. Then put a bit of egg wash on either side of the pastry. Take the left side and put it over to the right side.

6. Put slits diagonally onto the top of the pastry and put the rest of the egg wash on the top with a big sprinkle of brown sugar.

7. Bake for 20- 25 mins until golden brown.

8. Serve with ice cream or cream.

Choc-chip Shortbread Biscuits

This tasty snack is quick and easy to make, the finished product is so delicious it will make you want more.
Hope you enjoy making these sweet treats!

Ingredients

225g plain flour
225g unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
100g caster sugar
125g chocolate chips

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 150C.

2. Measure out the flour and the baking powder then sieve into a bowl.

3. In a separate bowl cream together the butter and caster sugar until fluffy.

4. Slowly bit by bit add the flour and baking powder mixture into the buttery mix and stir. This is because it's easier to mix in, if you add the dry mix in bit by bit. Then add in the best bit the chocolate chips! Mix in until evenly spread throughout the shortbread mix.

5. With a tablespoon or a small wooden spoon, scoop out walnut sized balls and place them on a baking tray. Bake for 15-20 mins until light golden brown.

6. Take the shortbreads off the baking tray with a spatula or a pallet knife and place on to a cooling rack. While they are still warm ,sprinkle a little bit of caster sugar on the top to add a bit more sweetness!

Done, I love doing these as a nice snack, happy baking! :-D