This Elderflower, Apple, and Mint Fizz is the easiest of all our summertime drink recipes. No special equipment needed and only takes a couple of minutes to make. So, it’s a great standby if friends turn up unexpectedly and need a quick cooling drink.
This Coconut and Pineapple Cooler works in a similar way to our Creamy Mango Milkshake. The sharpness of the Pineapple and lime is offset with the richness of the coconut milk and sweetness of the syrup.
Drinking Chilled Watermelon Lemonade brings back memories of sitting back in the sun, eating chilled watermelon slices.
As with most of these cooler recipes the base can be made in advance and finished later. We are adding soda water and stock syrup to the watermelon juice to add sweetness and fizz. If that’s not to your liking, try using a good quality lemonade to mix with the watermelon juice.
And don’t forget to look up our home page on Easy Summertime Coolers for more summertime drinks.
soda water
stock syrup
Peel the watermelon keeping some long strips of peel to use as a glass stirrer. Cut the flesh into pieces and pop into the blender. Don’t worry about the seeds as we can remove them later. If you don’t have a jug blender, the stick version will work fine. Puree the fruit in the blender using the pulse control. Don’t over blend the fruit at full speed or the seeds will be crushed and make the juice bitter.
Pass the juice though the fine sieve into a Pyrex bowl. The best way to do this is to rub the juices through the sieve using the back of a small ladle. You will be surprised how well this works, leaving only the seeds and some watermelon fibre behind.
The watermelon juice can be kept in the fridge for up to three days or frozen.
Take a mixing jug and add 1 part of stock syrup to two parts of watermelon juice. Mix in 1-part chilled soda water and stir together, i.e., 100ml syrup, 200ml watermelon juice, 100ml soda water.
Add some ice cubes to a tall glass and drop in a couple of slices of orange and lemon. Tear of chop two or three leaves of mint, add them to the glass and fill the glass with the cooler. Decorate with some fruit and a stick of watermelon peel then serve.
Enjoy Life !
John.
Hi, my name is John Webber, award winning chef and tutor, now retired to the west coast of Scotland. Welcome to our blog focusing on food, cooking, and countryside. My aim is to pass on my years of skills and knowledge together with an appreciation of the countryside.
Join us to experience the beauty of the west coast, cook some great food and be at ease in the kitchen.
If you enjoyed your visit with us, please subscribe up to our newsletter to receive regular updates of what’s new and upcoming at The Westcoaster. Subscribe Here
©John Webber. 2023
This Easy Creamy Mango Milkshake is a guaranteed hit with the kids, and who doesn’t like a milkshake?
This easy Lemon Barley Water is a British classic and a must for any outdoor event. This is not difficult to make but takes a little time to infuse and chill. Make it the day before to let it get as cold as possible before use. Once you have tasted the real thing, you will never go back to shop-bought cordial again.
This Easy, Family Citrus Peach Cooler takes just a few minutes to make using ingredients you may already have in the house. Making the base ahead of time speeds up the process of serving everybody and keeps everything as cold as possible.
Using tinned peaches makes the whole recipe quite simple. But if you have fresh peaches you need to use its np problem. Wash the fruit and remove the stones, then chop them up a little. follow the recipe for the blending adding in a tablespoon of Stock Syrup for each peach. One the fruit is blended pass the puree through a fine sieve to remove any traces of skin.
And don’t forget to look up our home page on Easy Summertime Coolers for more ideas for summertime drinks.
Open the tin of peach slices and tip the whole contents into the blender. Add the lemon and lime juice and blend to a smooth sauce. If the sauce has any stubborn lumps pass the sauce though a fine sieve. This should make about 400ml of base.
Store the sauce on a sealed jar in the fridge, (it should keep about four days) or freeze in large ice cubes ready for use when needed.
To serve the cooler, mix equal quantities of the peach base with lemonade and fresh orange juice. Add some thin slices of lime and lemon, add a handful of ice, and stir well.
Serve as cold as possible garnished with fruit slices, mint, and strawberries.
Try the recipe with other tinned fruits like pears or apricots.
Enjoy Life!
John.
Hi, my name is John Webber, award winning chef and tutor, now retired to the west coast of Scotland. Welcome to our blog focusing on food, cooking, and countryside. My aim is to pass on my years of skills and knowledge together with an appreciation of the countryside.
Join us to experience the beauty of the west coast, cook some great food and be at ease in the kitchen.
If you enjoyed your visit with us, please subscribe up to our newsletter to receive regular updates of what’s new and upcoming at The Westcoaster. Subscribe Here
©John Webber. 2023
Rillettes are a type of coarse French potted meat. The meats are cooked long and slow then broken down, almost like pulled pork. Don’t expect a nice smooth pateˊ this is a meat eaters paradise. Served with toasted sourdough bread and ideal taken on a picnic.
These Buttermilk Bread Rolls will really impress your dinner party guests. They go well with most starters that don’t require crispy rolls served alongside.
This Easy Spiced Carrot and Walnut Cake is one of my favourite cakes. Great for making in advance as the flavour develops over a couple of days. The cake also becomes moister as the sugar in the cake absorbs moisture from the air. I sometimes make two at once and freeze one for later use.
It seems odd to many people that carrots find their way into desserts and baking. In fact, carrots were used in the Middle Ages as a source of sweetness. Recipes for carrot-based puddings can be found both in European and Asian cooking. Today the main examples remaining been Carrot cake, Christmas pudding and Indian Gajar Halva.
Conventional oven175˚c/340˚f
Fan oven 160˚c/325˚f
Make sure all your ingredients are at room temperature. Take your eggs out of the fridge well in advance to warm up. Then line a 20cm (8in) springform cake tin with baking parchment.
Tip. – Lightly greasing the baking tin before lining will help keep the paper in place. And make life a lot easier.
You can make this cake by hand, but an electric whisk will take all the hard work out of the mixing.
Wash the carrots then top, tail, and peel them. Grate the carrots using the coarse plate of a box grater until you have 325g.
Sift the flour raising agents, salt, and spices into a bowl and mix well.
If you can’t find ground cardamom, break down cardamom pods and pass then through a fine sieve. The best way of doing this is an electric spice, aka coffee mill.
Pick eight perfect walnut nut halves and put to one side for the decoration. Once you have done that, roughly chop the remaining nuts.
When all that’s done, turn on the oven to pre heat ready to receive the cake.
Put the eggs, orange zest and sugar into the medium bowl and whisk until well mixed, about two minutes. Slowly add the oil to the eggs whisking all the time. When all the oil has been added you should have a thick-ish batter.
Most recipes of this type simply mix the sugar and oil together in one go. I think this works better. Its more work, but the fat binds with the egg better if worked in slowly.
Put the whisk to one side then sieve the flour/spice mix over the egg batter. Fold the flour into the batter using a spatula. Make sure you get right to the bottom of the bowl to incorporate all the flour.
Fold the chopped walnuts and grated and carrots and mix well.
Pour in the cake mixture and bake in a preheated oven. Cook for 1 hour 15 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. I prefer to use a conventional oven but a fan oven is fine. You may need to protect the top of the cake with tinfoil if the fan is very strong.
If you have a probe thermometer the core temperature should be between 93˚c (just cooked) and 98˚c (nearing over done).
Remove the cake from the oven and let cool in the tin, before removing.
Traditionally the cake is usually finished with a soft butter cream icing which should be kept in the fridge. I prefer to finish the cake with an orange water icing and serve mascarpone cream dusted with walnut dust alongside the cake.
By using the water icing the cake can be kept in a box at room temperature which is the best way to serve it. Keeping the cake in the fridge will dry it out and spoil the texture.
Sieve the icing sugar into a bowl. Gradually add the orange juice and mix until you have a thick batter.
Spread onto the cake with the back of a spoon and set the walnut halves into the wet icing. Let the icing dry uncovered for at least half an hour before storing.
If the mascarpone is quite wet, drain in a sieve for 15 minutes to remove any excess liquid. Be careful the keep the cheese as cold as possible.
Add the icing sugar to the cheese and beat until the cheese becomes quite soft.
Add the vanilla to the Mascarpone then stir in the cream.
Take a whisk and beat the mix until it holds a peak for a second then falls back. Take care not to over beat the t mixture or it may curdle. When you serve the cream give it one or two more beats of the whisk before use.
.
Yes, the uniced cake freezes well. Fully defrost the cake before use and let the top dry before adding the water ice. The recipe multiplies up easily. So, bake a few at a time and freeze what you don’t need at once. That way you will be saving both energy and effort!!
Yes, use the recipe below, using butter instead of cream gives us a stiffer icing. Add the zest to the butter with the sugar. Then fold in the cheese and whisk well.
65g unsalted butter, softened
Good dash vanilla extract
125g mascarpone cheese
250g/8¾oz icing sugar
Finely grated zest of ½ an orange
No, pecan nuts are a good alternative. Try sultanas soaked overnight in a drop of rum in place of the nuts, or just leave them out.
Want more ideas with carrots? look up http://britishcarrots.co.uk/
Enjoy Life !
John.
Hi, my name is John Webber, award winning chef and tutor, now retired to the west coast of Scotland. Welcome to our blog focusing on food, cooking, and countryside. My aim is to pass on my years of skills and knowledge together with an appreciation of the countryside.
Join us to experience the beauty of the west coast, cook some great food and be at ease in the kitchen.
If you enjoyed your visit with us, please subscribe up to our newsletter to receive regular updates of what’s new and upcoming at The Westcoaster. Subscribe Here
©John Webber. 2023
Home-Made Sausages are one of the most flexible foods we have available to us. Whether it’s a comforting plate of bangers and mash, fending off the cold weather. A quick buttered sausage roll as a snack or the compulsory BBQ sausage, it’s a year round go to treat.
These Chocolate Brownies never fail to please and rarely are there any leftovers. They are easy to make for a great dessert. Or afternoon treat.
This Beautifully light Helston Pudding originates from the village of Helston in Cornwall. And is credited to George Perry-Smith, a pioneer of British cooking in the 60s. It’s easy to make comfort food which makes a light alternative to Christmas Pudding. I have put in a couple of minor changes to make it even more Christmassy, and served it with an orange brandy sauce.
If you are fed up with shop-bought puddings. Or have left it too late to make your own, this is a great substitute. For more great Christmas ideas, look up our:-
Classic Chestnut stuffing.
And our Cranberry and Whisky Mince Pies.
Chop the apricots down to the same size as the sultanas. Pop the apricots, sultanas and currants into a bowl and sprinkle with the Drambuie. Tightly cling film the bowl and leave to stand overnight.
Using the upturned pudding basil cut a circle of greaseproof paper at least 4cm large than the bowl all round. Rub some soft butter all around the inside of the pudding basin and on the paper lid.
Take the stem ginger and cut into very thin strips. Sprinkle the strips around the base of the basin, adding the golden syrup on top.
Sieve the flour into a mixing bowl then add the rice flour, bicarbonate of soda, salt, sugar, mixed spice, and breadcrumbs, mixing well together. Mix in the soaked fruit, and any remaining juices.
Grate the orange zest into the mix and add the suet and fold in. forming a well in the middle.
Start working milk to the dry mix, using enough to form a soft dropping consistency.
This can be judged by lifting the spatula and letting the mixture drop off. –
When the mix steadily drops off the spatula it abought right.
Should the mix sit hesitating on the spatula its too dry, add a little more milk. If it quickly flows off its too soft, add a little more breadcrumbs.
Once you are happy with the consistency spoon the mix into the prepared basin and tap the basil lightly on the worktop to remove any air pockets.
You may have noticed that the basin has a raised rim around the top. The purpose of this rim is to help us secure the lid to the bowl. If you’re using a plastic basin all you need to do is pop the greaseproof paper on the top, then snap on the lid. I always tightly cling film the whole think before cooking as insurance against the lid coming off.
This is a simple job, but cane be tricky the first time you try it. Read right though this before giving it a go. A spare pair of hands can make things much easier.
Place the buttered greaseproof on top of the bowl butter side down. Now this is the tricky bit. Set the cloth onto the top of the basin and take the string. Tie the cloth on to the basin by wrapping the string around the basin just below the raised rim of the basin. Wrap the string around twice then tie it off. The string needs to be reasonable tight but don’t overdo it or it will simply slide down the tapered sides of the bowl.
You will have the four corners of the cloth lying down on the table. Take hold of two opposing corners and bring them up over the bowl. Pull up against the bowl and knot the two corners together tightly. Doing this will force the string up against the raised rim of the basin tightening everything up. Repeat this with the two remaining corners, leaving you with a perfectly covered pudding with four rabbit ears.
If you have correctly completed this, well done. You should be able to lift the filled basin by the cloth ears with ease.
Steam for 1 ½ to 2 hours. If you don’t have a steamer or need to keep the hob as clear as possible a slow cooker does a great job. In theory it shouldn’t work, but today slow cookers are not that slow! Modern units run too hot be a true slow cooker. Which I think is because of food safety concerns. A bit of a nuisance if you want a nice slow cooked joint. But the upside is they can become a useful double boiler for slower-cooked foods.
When the pudding is almost ready its time to make the sauce (see below). The easiest and best way to keep the sauce hot ready to serve is to pour it into a warmed thermos flask. This works well as long as its not the one you keep your curry in! the best part is that it will allow you to do the washing up before you sit down for your meal.
Its best to have the pudding cooked ready for starting your meal. Its easy to keep the pudding warm ready to serve just turn down the heat to a bear simmer.
When ready to serve, remove the cloth (this can be washed and re-used) and paper lid. Run the point of a knife around the rim of the pudding pushing the sides in as you do so. Take a warm plate where the well of the plate is a little larger than the pudding. Invert the plate onto the basin then turn the pate and pudding over in one rapid movement. If the pudding has not dropped onto the plate give it a little shake to persuade the pudding to leave the bowl. Lift off the bowl and you’re ready to go.
Serve with orange brandy sauce, or clotted cream ice cream, or Both!
Pour the cream into a saucepan and pop onto a low heat. Separate the egg yolks into a bowl, keeping the whites for later meringues. Freeze the white if you’re not going to use then within a week or so. Have the second Pyrex bowl hand with the sieve sitting on top ready to receive the sauce.
Take a small whisk and beat the sugar into the yolks until they have become pale and creamy, (3-4 mins.) If you are using Drambuie reduce the sugar to 3tbps or the sauce will be too sweet
Pour the hot cream onto the yolks whisking as you pour. Return the mix to the pan and return the pan to a medium heat. Abandon the whisk and take a heatproof spatula to stir the pan. Keep the sauce moving all the time, using the flat bottom of the spatula to lift the sauce from the base of the pan.
Keep steadily cooking the sauce until it coats the back of a spoon. If you have a probe thermometer aim for a temperature of 82ºc. As soon as you think the sauce is ready pour it into the bowl through the sieve. Don’t hesitate. If the sauce become too hot it will separate like scrambled egg. If its not ready, just return it to the pan and cook it a little more. If you are looking at creamy scrambled egg a quick bash with a hand blender will smooth things out. The sauce will be a bit insipid, hopefully they will all be too drunk to notice………
Yes, you can cook the pudding in a saucepan. Make sure there is plenty of room around the pudding and very importantly on top. Place an old plate upturned in the bottom of the pan and set the pudding on the plate. This prevents the pudding been in direct contact with the hot metal of the pan. Pour boiling water into the pan halfway up the basin. Pop the lid onto the pan and cook on a low simmer. Checking the water level from time to time.
Tip An old kitchen trick is to put a few small pebbles into the pan around the pudding.
As the water simmers the pebbles make a noise in the pan. If the water becomes dangerously low, they stop moving and the noise stops. This gives you an audible warning of the pan boiling dry.
Easy– take some fresh white bread and remove the crusts. Bread the bread down into suitable pieces and pop them into a food processor. Chop for a couple of minutes and he-presto you have breadcrumbs.
TIP Look out for discounted bread in the shops and turn it into breadcrumbs. Fill zip seal plastic bags with the crumbs and freeze them. In that way you always have breadcrumbs for your puddings, bread sauce or stuffing’s.
And don’t forget to check out the essential 12 Tips for a Successful Christmas Dinner
Enjoy Life ! and have a great Christmas.
John.
Hi, my name is John Webber, award winning chef and tutor, now retired to the west coast of Scotland. Welcome to our blog focusing on food, cooking, and countryside. My aim is to pass on my years of skills and knowledge together with an appreciation of the countryside.
Join us to experience the beauty of the west coast, cook some great food and be at ease in the kitchen.
If you enjoyed your visit with us, please subscribe up to our newsletter to receive regular updates of what’s new and upcoming at The Westcoaster. Subscribe Here
©John Webber. 2023
Learn how to make the best Basil Pesto. Simple tips and tricks to get the best from this classic sauce.
Make your own Fresh Tomato Pasta Sauce, it’s easy! Enjoy the flavor of italy at home in less than 45 minutes.