From: Jamie Oliver

• 250g organic plain flour, plus extra for dusting
• 50g icing sugar, sifted
• 125g good-quality cold butter, cut into small cubes
• zest of 1/2 lemon
• 1 large free-range or organic egg, beaten
• a splash of milk

This pastry is perfect for making apple and other sweet pies. Even if you’ve never made pastry before, as long as you stick to the correct measurements for the ingredients and you follow the method exactly, you’ll be laughing. The one place where you can experiment is with flavouring. If you don’t fancy using lemon zest, try another dry ingredient like orange zest instead. Or a pinch of cinnamon, nutmeg or cocoa powder. Vanilla seeds are great too. Just remember to be subtle and don’t go overboard with any of these flavours!

Try to be confident and bring the pastry together as quickly as you can – don’t knead it too much or the heat from your hands will melt the butter. A good tip is to hold your hands under cold running water beforehand to make them as cold as possible. That way you’ll end up with a delicate, flaky pastry every time.

Sieve the flour from a height on to a clean work surface and sieve the icing sugar over the top. Using your hands, work the cubes of butter into the flour and sugar by rubbing your thumbs against your fingers until you end up with a fine, crumbly mixture. This is the point where you can spike the mixture with interesting flavours, so mix in your lemon zest.

Add the eggs and milk to the mixture and gently work it together till you have a ball of dough. Flour it lightly. Don’t work the pastry too much at this stage or it will become elastic and chewy, not crumbly and short. Flour your work surface and place the dough on top. Pat it into a flat round, flour it lightly, wrap it in clingfilm and put it into the fridge to rest for at least half an hour.

• 3 onions
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 4 peeled & chopped apples
• 1 shredded red cabbage
• 100 g soft brown sugar
• 100ml red wine vinegar
• cloves, cinnamon, salt, peeper

1) Slice onions and sweat in olive oil in a large pan until soft.

2) Add the chopped apples and red cabbage and season with salt, pepper, ground cloves and cinnamon

3) Stir and cover pan with a lid. Turn the heat down and add some water to the pan. Stew for 1 hour, or until the cabbage is tender. Check every now & again, adding some water if the pan looks like it’s getting dry.

4) Remove lid and add the sugar and vinegar. Cook for a further 10 mins until the liquid has evaporated.

5) Season to taste and serve.

Found this recipe in Cooking for Geeks and it’s a candidate for the most annoying recipe ever. I think it’s trying to make the point that it’s easy to get too focused on quantities when baking.

Sure, they’re useful for passing on recipes, but when you get right down to the nitty gritty they’re a bit ridiculous.

A Mean Chocolate Chip Cookie

Preheat oven to 354.17°F / 178.98°C, or as close as you can get.

In a medium bowl, sift or thoroughly whisk together:

• 2.04 cups (245g) flour
• 0.79 teaspoons (3.81g) salt
• 0.79 teaspoons (3.63g) baking soda

Set dry ingredients aside. In another bowl, using a hand or stand mixer, cream until incorporated and smooth:

• 6.44 tablespoons (87.9g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
• 2.1896 tablespoons (29.9g) unsalted butter, cold
• 4.2504 tablespoons (58g) unsalted butter, melted
• 0.84 cups (169g) light brown sugar
• 0.10 cups (20g) dark brown sugar
• 0.54 cups (109g) white sugar

Add and mix until all ingredients are combined:

• 1.33 (46g) eggs
• 0.33 (8g) egg yolk
• 1.46 teaspoons (6.08g) vanilla extract
• 0.17 tablespoons (2.51g) water
• 0.25 tablespoons (3.84g) milk 1.53 cups
• (257g) semi-sweet chocolate chips

Add dry ingredients and blend until fully incorporated. Cover and chill dough in the refrigerator for 25 minutes.

Place parchment paper on one-third of cookie sheet, drop dough by rounded tablespoons onto sheet. Some cookies will be on parchment, others off.

Cook for 13.04 minutes.

RECIPE BY MEGHAN HOURIHAN

This rich, slow cooked stew from The Fabulous Baker Brothers contains wholesome beans and tasty duck and French sausages

Ingredients
Serves 6-8

• Glug of olive oil
• 4 duck legs, sliced between the drumstick and thigh
• 8 Toulouse sausages
• 2 red onions, cut into wedges
• 3 rashers pancetta, diced
• 1 whole bulb garlic, sliced in half horizontally
• Small bunch of thyme
• 3 x 400g cans chopped tomatoes
• 1 tsp sherry vinegar
• 1 red chilli
• 500ml good chicken stock
• 2 x 400g cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 baguette, ripped into pieces

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4. Put a flameproof oven dish or deep, sturdy tray on the hob and heat it up with a glug of olive oil. Season the duck with salt and pepper and add it to the oil with the sausages. Seal everything over a high heat until brown on every side. Take the meat out and let it rest to one side.
2. Don’t wash the dish, all those lovely crispy bits are gold. Throw in the red onions, the diced rashers of pancetta and the garlic, cut side down. Season with salt and pepper then pick in some thyme. Give it a stir. Then in with the tomatoes, the sherry vinegar and the chilli; score down the side of the chilli to let out fragrance but not too much heat.
3. Then add the chicken stock, stir and add the cannellini beans. Nestle the meat back into the beans and tomatoes. Wrap in kitchen foil – shiny side down to reflect the heat – and into the oven for 1 hour.
4. After the hour, rip up some baguette and sprinkle it on top – it will soak up the fat from the meat. Put the cassoulet back into the oven without the foil for another 30 minutes. Serve with a green salad.

• 1 cup dried yellow split peas
• 5 cups water (plus 1/2 cup more later)
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 3 -5 garlic cloves
• 3/4 teaspoon cumin seed
• 3/4 teaspoon mustard seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt (or more to taste)
• black pepper
• crushed red pepper flakes

Read more: http://www.food.com/recipe/yellow-split-pea-dal-64224#ixzz1jdxQ74RV

This Jamie Oliver recipe from Jamie At Home has become a staple. It’s a brilliant dish which uses a cheap cut of pork to create a large, delicious pot of goulash with which you can either feed a lot of people all at once, or freeze in portions to pull out all through the winter.

Ingredients

• 2kg pork shoulder off the bone, in one piece, skin off, fat left on
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• olive oil
• 2 red onions, peeled and finely sliced
• 2 fresh red chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
• 2 generously heaped tablespoons mild smoked paprika, plus a little extra for serving
• 2 teaspoons ground caraway seeds
• a small bunch of fresh marjoram or oregano, leaves picked
• 5 peppers (use a mixture of colours)
• 1 x 280g jar of grilled peppers, drained, peeled and chopped
• 1 x 400g tin of good-quality plum tomatoes
• 4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 400g basmati or long-grain rice, washed
• 1 x 142ml pot of soured cream
• zest of 1 lemon
• a small bunch of fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped

Method

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas 4. Get yourself a deep, ovenproof stew pot with a lid that will fit your meat and other ingredients in snugly, and heat it on the hob. Score the fat on the pork in a criss-cross pattern all the way through to the meat, then season generously with salt and pepper. Pour a good glug of olive oil into the pot and then add the pork, fat side down. Cook for about 15 minutes on a medium heat, to render out the fat, then remove the pork from the pot and put it to one side.

Add the onions, chilli, paprika, caraway seeds, marjoram or oregano and a good pinch of salt and pepper to the pot. Turn the heat down and gently cook the onions for 10 minutes, then add the sliced peppers, the grilled peppers and the tomatoes. Put the pork back into the pot, give everything a little shake, then pour in enough water to just cover the meat. Add the vinegar – this will give it a nice little twang. Bring to the boil, put the lid on top, then place in the preheated oven for 3 hours.

You’ll know when the meat is cooked as it will be tender and sticky, and it will break up easily when pulled apart with two forks. If it’s not quite there yet, put the pot back into the oven and just be patient for a little longer!

When the meat is nearly ready, cook the rice in salted, boiling water for 10 minutes until it’s just undercooked, then drain in a colander, reserving some of the cooking water and pouring it back into the pan. Place the colander over the pan on a low heat and put a lid on. Leave to steam dry and cook through for 10 minutes – this will make the rice lovely and fluffy.

Stir the sour cream, lemon zest and most of the parsley together in a little bowl. When the meat is done, take the pot out of the oven and taste the goulash. You’re after a balance of sweetness from the peppers and spiciness from the caraway seeds. Tear or break the meat up and serve the goulash in a big dish or bowl, with a bowl of your steaming rice and your flavoured soured cream. Sprinkle with the rest of the chopped parsley and tuck in!

From jamieoliver.com

Just blitz all this lot up in a food processor, really. Taste it, and then add more water, oil, lemon or salt or whatever you think it needs.

• 400g drained tinned chick peas
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled
• 3 tbsp tahini (sesame seed paste)
• 50ml lemon juice
• 50ml water
• 1 tsp Sichuan pepper blitzed with fresh corriander leaves

About Sichuan pepper (or Szechuan pepper)

Sichuan pepper (or Szechuan pepper) is the outer pod of the tiny fruit of a number of species in the genus Zanthoxylum (most commonly Z. piperitum, Z. simulans, and Z. schinifolium), widely grown and consumed in Asia as a spice. Despite the name, it is not related to black pepper or to chili peppers. It is widely used in the cuisine of Sichuan, China, from which it takes its name, as well as Tibetan, Bhutanese, Nepalese, Japanese, Konkani, and Toba Batak cuisines, among others.

Whisk all this lot together to create a smooth batter which drops off the whisk in just the right way.

You can save the rest of the batter in the fridge and pancakes for breakfast tomorrow too.

150g self raising flour
100g plain flour
pinch of salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
25g sugar
2 eggs
275ml milk
50g melted butter

By John Barrowman from the BBC’s Taste of My Life

This is an easy recipe that gives perfect results every time. Be sure to use overripe bananas and the right sized tin.

preparation time Less than 30 mins
cooking time 30 mins to 1 hour
Makes 1 loaf

Ingredients

• 285g/10oz plain flour
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• ½ tsp salt
• 110g/4oz butter, plus extra for greasing
• 225g/8oz caster sugar
• 2 free-range eggs
• 4 ripe bananas, mashed
• 85ml/3fl oz buttermilk (or normal milk mixed with 1½ tsp lemon juice or vinegar)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• Grease a 20cm x 12.5cm/8in x 5in loaf tin and pour the cake mixture into the tin.
• Transfer to the oven and bake for about an hour, or until well-risen and golden-brown.
• Remove from the oven and cool in the tin for a few minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely before serving.

We were lucky enough to get as a present… one of these Waitrose Delia’s classic Christmas cake boxes. It’s all you need to make one of the best fruitcakes on the planet.

“This is my original Classic Christmas Cake that has been made by thousands of people over the last 40 years and it really has been an absolute winner with everyone. We have simplified it by making it all-in-one, so all you need to remember is to remove the butter from the fridge the night before, it really does need to be very, very soft.” Delia Smith

It’s so quick and easy. All the ingredients apart from french orange & lemon zests, 5 eggs and butter.

The box contains these ingredients which are packaged and weighed perfectly.

• Fruit mix with brandy (currants, sultanas, raisins, brandy, candied mixed peel, chopped glacé cherries, palm oil)
• soft dark brown sugar
• wheat flour
• chopped almonds
• black treacle
• mixed spice with nutmeg
• Candied mixed peel contains citrus peel (orange peel, lemon peel)
• wheat glucose-fructose syrup
• sugar
• preservative sulphur dioxide
• Chopped glacé cherries contains cherries
• wheat glucose-fructose syrup
• colour anthocyanins
• preservative sulphur dioxide

All you have to do is this…

Before you begin:
You will need a 20 cm round cake tin, greased and lined with a double thickness of baking parchment, or Bake-O-Glide (trademark), and a spot of oil. To see how to line a cake tin with baking parchment please go to http://waitrose.com videos. Tie a band of brown paper (or a double thickness of newspaper will do) round the outside of the tin with string for extra protection.

Preheat the oven to 140C, gas mark 1.

Now all you do is sift the flour, salt and spices into a very large roomy mixing bowl then add the sugar, eggs and the soft butter and either whisk or beat with a wooden spoon until everything is light, pale and fluffy.

Now gradually fold in the pre-soaked fruit mixture, chopped nuts and treacle and finallythe grated lemon and orange zests.

Next, using a large kitchen spoon, transfer the cake mixture into the prepared tin, spread it out evenly with the back of the spoon and, if you don’t intend to decorate the cake with marzipan and icing, lightly drop the blanched almonds in circles over the surface.

Finally cover the top of the cake with a double layer of baking parchment with a 50p-size hole in the centre (this gives extra protection during the long slow cooking). Bake the cake on the lowest shelf of the oven for 4 hours until it feels springyin the centre when lightly touched. Sometimes it can take 30–45 minutes longer than this, but in any case don’t look for 4 hours.

Cool the cake for 30 minutes in the tin, then remove it to a wire rack to finish cooling. When it’s cold, feed it by making small holes in the top and bottom with a cocktail stick and spooning in a couple of tablespoons of Armagnac or brandy,then wrap it in double baking parchment secured with an elastic band and either wrap again in foil or store in an airtight tin. You can now feed it at odd intervals until you need to ice or eat it