Definitely a light bite! Leek, Bacon and Cheese Crustless Quiche

 

 

Much as I (unfortunately) like pastry, it doesn't like me. In fact I am not sure it likes anybody to be honest, but I always saw it as a necessary evil to encase something really rather nice. Until now, that is. It was when I caught myself staring at a colleague who is far more restrained than me when it comes to eating healthier eating something resembling the custardy centre of a quiche that I thought that maybe making a quiche without the tart would be completely feasible. And so it is, and below is the proof.

 

Now I know that my colleague's 'quiche' is made using cottage cheese which is quite simply the work of the devil, not really my bag. I see myself as settling for half and I like it better, so if I am losing the pastry, I am keeping the cream. I just ensure that the cream is packed with lots of lovely things so that the custardy filling goes a lot, lot further. A mooch around Morrisons, (or indeed a mooch around the price checker) revealed the staple ingredients for this recipe: cream, bacon, cheddar and leeks that were either 'I'm cheaper' or very reasonably priced, so I am working on the idea that this is not only good for me, but good for my purse too. Coupled with the fact that I served this with a vibrant salad, also bought from Market Street at Morrisons, meant that this is really a light bite, good enough to be presented to friends and family for an alfresco summer lunch, or else cut into wedges and put into a lunch box with some of the aforementioned salad and taken to work, ready to be eaten at lunch time. And what's more, Finn - the fussiest of eaters - enjoyed it immensely. Though he did leave the salad...

 

I know that what I am proposing isn't ground breaking - I know that if I googled for long enough I would find someone had done this already and called it an omelette or something, but what I will say is that it is a great way of using staple ingredients which don't break the bank. And it's impressive but simple. And it goes well with a cold glass of wine, so what are you waiting for?

 

Leek, Bacon and Cheddar Crustless Quiche

 

Ingredients:

 

two leeks, washed and finely sliced

150g bacon sliced (or you could use lardons)

three eggs

300ml double cream

50g grated cheddar (or to taste)

chopped parsley (optional - I like my quiches flecked with green)

salt and pepper to taste.

 

Method:

 

Preheat the oven to 180c. Grease and line an 8/9 inch spring form pan or suitable baking pan.

 

 

 

Fry off the bacon and the leeks until the bacon has rendered its fat and becoming crisp and the leeks are becoming translucent.

 

Pour the mixture into a bowl.

 

 

 

Add the cream and whisk in the three eggs, then grate in the cheese.

 

Season to taste. Start off carefully for the bacon might be salty.

 

Add the herbs if using and mix well.

 

 

 

Pour into the pan and shake to ensure even coverage of custard and mixture.

 

 

 

Put into the preheated oven and cook for about 25 - 30 minutes until the custard has set and the top is becoming brown.

 

Remove from the oven and allow the quiche to cool a little before running a knife around the sides of the pan and removing it.

 

Serve barely warm or at room temperature with some salad and a sense of virtuous well being.

 

 

This post is an entry for the #MorrisonsMum (or #MorrisonsDad) Summer Recipe eBook Challenge sponsored by Morrisons, which has recently cut prices on over a thousand every day products. Find out more here price checker tool. I am submitting this recipe for the light summer family meals category.

For Connoisseurs - Bacon, Leek and Sweetcorn Pie

 

 

The cynics amongst us might think that themed weeks are a little 'meh' and spend the time wondering what the point is of making a week out of something when let's be honest, a day would be quite enough. However, I am not a cynic and some things are worth a week of extoling their virtues, so most definitely I would say that a week devoted to bacon is a wonderful thing. This week is 'Bacon Connoisseurs Week' which is a week to raise awareness of the brilliance and versatility of bacon as an ingredient, from the crispy streaky that you put on a slice of doorstop white bread for the ultimate bacon butty, to the bacon joint, simmered to create the most wonderful stock and even more wonderful soup. It's hearty, honest, unpretentious food and despite the keenness of the health lobby to point out how we should be careful about the amount of processed meat, sausages, etc. we eat, I still fervently believe that a little bit of what you fancy does you good. Bacon does you good. Is there anything more instantly gratifying than the smell of bacon cooking? I don't think so.  

 

And if we are to be more conscious about just what we consume, then all the more reason to be selective in what we actually buy. A little bit of bacon goes a long way and the purchase of a quality bacon such as something endorsed by the Red Tractor label really makes the difference to the finished dish and a difference to the welfare of livestock in this country. Food for thought, literally.

 

So, to celebrate Bacon Connoisseurs Week, I have recreated a dish by Fay Ripley, who is the ambassador of 'Bacon Connoisseurs Week' Her recipe for bacon, leek and sweetcorn pie uses dry cured gammon steaks to flavour and intensify the filling and the addition of leek, sweetcorn and cream cheese produces an unctuous and satisfying pie which even Finn liked! And Finn, as you may know, is hard to please.

 

I hope that you are inspired to look at good quality, dry cured bacon as a basis for a myriad of dishes that could feed yourself and your family ethically but economically. Here's the recipe:

 

Bacon, Leek and Sweetcorn Pie, adapted from the recipe by Fay Ripley

 

Serves Lola, Finn, Mum and Dad

 

My adaptations in red

 

Ingredients:

2 dry cured smoked bacon or gammon steaks (about 200g each in weight), cut into cubes (You could also use lardons, or pancetta)

15ml (1tbsp) Oil

2 leeks, washed, halved and sliced

200g low fat/light cream cheese

325g can of sweetcorn, drained (alternatively use 260g of frozen sweetcorn)

500g ready made puff pastry (I actually used six sheets of filo pastry - Lola and Finn are fans of the texture of filo)

Milk and egg, whisked, for glaze (or melted butter if you decide to use filo)

Black pepper – to taste

 

Method:

Preheat the oven to Gas Mark 7, 200˚C, 400˚F.

 

Heat the oil in a large pan.  Add the bacon and leeks and cook until the bacon has changed colour and the leeks are beginning to soften.

 

Add the cream cheese and combine together well.  Heat through and allow to thicken slightly for about 2-3 minutes.  Taste and check for seasoning - you shouldn't need salt because of the saltiness of the bacon. Add the black pepper and sweetcorn then place in a large 1 litre/2 pint pie dish.

Roll out the pastry to a size that will roughly cover the dish – decorate the edge with a pattern (a good effect is to use the edge of a small round glass) and if you wish cut out shapes to decorate the top of the pie.  Brush pastry with the milk and egg glaze. (If you decide to use filo, use some melted butter to brush over each layer of filo - I used six layers in total. I seasoned the top with salt and black pepper)

Place in the preheated oven for about 25-30 minutes until the pastry is golden brown and well risen.

 

Serve with vegetables and enjoy!

 

 

D'you want fries with that? A random recipe for a tasty burger

 

 

I am not a big film fan to be honest; I'd rather do the ironing. But, some things stick in my mind and Jules' "Ummmmmm, this is a tasty burger..." exclamation from Pulp Fiction is one of those sticky kinda things which sprang to my mind when eating this particular burger, 'cos a tasty burger is certainly what it was. I don't often make my own, for as a family we don't really do the burger thing (and we should - Lola and Finn loved the little 'bespoke burgers' I made for them) but a homemade burger is something to savour and far, far superior than anything you are going to get from (insert any fast food chain name here) or indeed your nearest stable, if some supermarket 'ecomomy' brands are anything to go by.

 

 

 

Anyway, I wouldn't have been thinking about burgers in any shape or form if it hadn't been for the latest random recipe challenge hosted by Dom at Belleau Kitchen which was to randomly select a recipe from those cuttings and notes, etc. that you take from magazines, or the back of packets or pick up on the way out of the supermarket and file in a Rennie Mackintosh styled biscuit tin, if you're me.

 

 

 

Now, I have two books of cuttings and what not, plus the aforementioned biscuit tin, and as my books are A4 and contain numerous recipes on each page (one summer several years ago I spent a week folding cuttings and sticking them on to the pages of these spiral bound books which such attention to folding that an origami master would be proud of the end result) and so I decided that the biscuit tin was the place to get a single recipe that was truly random.

 

 

 

And, I closed my eyes and picked out this one - a recipe card from 'Booths' (a north west supermarket in case you aren't familiar with their brilliance) for homemade burgers. Fabulous. I even had all the ingredients. So, I set to work, and what you have below is the result of my endeavours:

 

Homemade Burgers with Bacon and Cheese, adapted from the Booths Supermarket Recipe

 

Serves Lola, Finn, Mum and Dad

 

My adaptations in red

 

Ingredients

 

454g lean mince

1 medium onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, crushed

2tbsp olive oil

1tbsp parsley, chopped

1 egg, beaten

25g ready made breadcrumbs (I had panko breadcrumbs left from another recipe. I used them).

¼tsp cayenne pepper

½ tsp thyme, chopped

4 rashers of streaky bacon (I used back bacon)

1 beef tomato, sliced (Didn't use - replaced it with a dollop of tomato and chilli chutney or tomato ketchup for Lola and Finn)

50g cheese (I used cheese slices for Lola and Finn. I treated myself to a bit of Gruyere)

3 or 4 burger buns

Our additions: some thinly sliced onion and for me, a bit of watercress.

 

Instructions:

 

 

 

In a frying pan, gently cook the onion in the olive oil until soft but not coloured, add the garlic and transfer to a mixing bowl and leave to cool.

 

 

 

Once cooled, add the mince, parsley, thyme, cayenne pepper, breadcrumbs, the beaten egg and season generously with salt and milled pepper and really mix all the ingredients well.

 

Then, divide the mixture into three balls or four smaller balls if you want smaller burgers, ( I did. I made little burgers for Lola and Finn and made little buns to put them on. Cute!) then pat to form a burger shape and refrigerate for 30 minutes to help hold the shape when cooking.

 

 

 

Cook the burger on your BBQ or grill for about 10 minutes turning every so often. (I just put mine in the frying pan. I was going to get the griddle pan out but, I'll be honest, I couldn't be bothered with it).

 

Place the bacon on the BBQ or grill and cook until crisp and place onto the burger.

Finally, divide your choice of cheese between the burgers and serve on toasted burger buns, once the cheese has melted slightly, with sliced tomato (or relish) and fresh salad

 

 

 

Add chips! Or fries! And enjoy!

 

A meal designed for the depths of Winter - Braised Chicken with Onion and Bacon

 

 

Much as I like to try all kinds of different recipes and experience foods of different cultures, there is something soothing about the familiar and seeing as it is so cold outside just now, the idea of unpretentious, comforting food really appeals. You know the stuff I mean, simple ingredients, cooked with a bit of care and (if you're me) accompanied by mashed potato. I had this recipe in mind for a while, it having first caught my attention when the weather was rather warmer and it just wasn't the right time. The time is most definitely now.

 

I remember watching 'Great British Menu', the first series, heavily pregnant with Lola (though this isn't a crucial detail as it happens, unless she just made me more hungry than usual) and I remember this chef competing to cook for the Queen. The name? Bryn Williams. He associated himself with a place I know extremely well and am very fond of (North Wales) and because of that connection he stuck in my mind. It was therefore inevitable (and my being a bit of a cookbook magpie) that as soon as he released a cookbook that I would just have to buy it. I had no other option. And, so I did. And what a good move it was, because it contains the recipes I love - honest, simple, mouthwatering, and like touchstones linking you back to the food of your childhood, or your home. It resonated with me.

 

I have cooked several recipes from this book with success, and this is the latest. I wanted to take familiar ingredients (and at that, ingredients which weren't too pricey) and create something to warm your bones, and the recipe for braised chicken with bacon and onion fitted the bill.

 

Organic or free range chicken is pricey; it's true. That is why when we have chicken I usually buy thighs which allow me to buy good quality chicken (that tastes of chicken) at a price that I can afford. Unfortunately, some of us here are not keen on bones and at least with the braising of this recipe it is easy enough to take the meat from the bones if you want to. It doesn't look as pretty, but there you go.

 

This is a recipe for legs, so plenty of wonderful tasting meat for a reasonable cost. Then there is the red wine, but, you know, you put in what you need and you slosh some into a glass. Cook's perks, if you ask me.

 

So, if you're cold, and want something to warm you up a little, here is one recipe you could try:

 

Braised Chicken Legs with Bacon and Onion, taken from 'Bryn's Kitchen' by Bryn Williams.

 

My adaptions in red

 

Serves Lola, Finn, Mum and Dad plus one other

 

Ingredients

 

4 large chicken leg portions, cut in half with the thigh and drumstick separate

A pinch of  salt and pepper

3 tbsp vegetable oil, plus extra for seasoning

16 Baby onions, peeled ( I didn't have any so used shallots)

50 g  smoked bacon,cubed, or lardons

100 g small button mushrooms (I used chestnut mushrooms, quartered)

2 sprigs of thyme

250 ml red wine

750 ml chicken Stock

 

Preheat the oven to 160ºC/325ºF/gas mark 3.

 

Season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper.

 

 

 

 Heat a heavy flameproof casserole over a medium heat. Pour in the vegetable oil and, once it is hot, seal the chicken pieces by turning them over once or twice in the casserole, until golden brown all over. Remove from the casserole and set aside.

 

 

 

Reduce the heat, add the baby onions and cook, stirring gently, for 4–6 minutes, until they start to colour.

 

 

 

Add the bacon, mushrooms and thyme, and cook for a further 5 minutes. Add the red wine, allow it to bubble, and reduce the liquid by half.

 

 

 

Reintroduce the chicken to the dish and pour over some of the chicken stock to cover three-quarters of the way up – some of the skin should stay clear of the liquid to brown.

 

Place in the oven for 40 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through. Test the pieces with a skewer – the juices will run clear when the chicken is cooked.

 

 

 

If the sauce seems a little thin, remove the chicken and set it aside. Bring the sauce to the boil and let it reduce until it has a thicker consistency. (I did need to do this - I reduced it for about 10 minutes) Check for seasoning. Then pop the chicken back in the sauce to keep warm.

 

 

 

To serve, place each drumstick and thigh piece on a plate and surround with the sauce. And, if you're me, a mountain of mashed potato! Then dig in!

One pot cooking and making peas ap - pea - ling (groan!!) - Chicken and Peas

 

 

Here I am once again with a one pot wonder. I know that I should maybe blog about something that uses more pans, but chez Lola and Finn the emphasis at the moment is just having something good to eat without too much fuss. Finn starting school this week seems to have made life even more fraught between the hours of 4 and 7pm. I am not sure where the time goes at this point in the day. What I do know is that I blink and it is gone.

 

Finn, first day of school,  and with big sis Lola, who already seems to be monitoring his every move. Today he was sat next to Olivia, apparently. Not sure Lola rates Olivia very much...

 

So, it is for the reason of simplicity that I am blogging Tessa Kiros' recipe, chicken and peas, from her beautiful book 'Piri Piri Starfish'. If you own a Tessa Kiros book, you will know that they are works of art, with idiosyncratic messages, vibrant images of life and food and an all round sense of happiness. I would love to look at them even if I didn't like to cook. The fact that I do like to cook makes them all the better. 

 

Anyway, the matching of chicken and chorizo happens here again most pleasingly and the addition of peas gives a freshness and vibrancy in terms of taste and in colour. Lola and Finn ate most of this, though Finn being Finn skirted his way around most of the peas. He ate some peas though and this can only be seen as a rip roaring success, seeing as he seems averse to eating anything 'green'.

 

Chicken and Peas, adapted from 'Piri Piri Starfish' by Tessa Kiros

 

Serves Lola, Finn, Mum and Dad very well!

 

Ingredients:

 

5 tbsp olive oil

1 onion, chopped

1 celery stalk, chopped (which I left out)

1 carrot, peeled and chopped

2 bay leaves

100g chorizo, chopped (I upped this from the 30g in the original recipe)

60g smoked bacon lardons

2 tbsp chopped parsley

4 chicken breasts (You could joint a chicken as suggested in the original recipe)

250ml white wine

3 tbsp chopped tomatoes

600g frozen peas

 

Method:

 

 

 

Heat the olive oil and add the onion, celery (if using), carrot and bay leaves, and saute until the onion is golden.

 

 

 

Add the chorizo and bacon and saute until the chorizo releases its oil and the bacon renders its fat.

 

 

 

Add the chicken and parsley and saute until the chicken is golden. Keep everything moving so that nothing sticks to the bottom of the pan.

 

Season with salt and pepper at this point.

 

 

 

Add the wine and let it bubble up a little before adding the tomato.

 

Cover and simmer for about thirty minutes.

 

 

 

Take the lid off and add the peas, increase the heat and cook for another ten minutes or so until the peas are tender but still green.

 

There will be some residual liquid in the dish which is fine, as the peas will soak some of that up as you take it off the heat and leave it a little until you are ready to serve.

 

 

 

I served this with some orzo pasta, at the request of Lola and Finn who quite like the fact that it looks like 'big rice'. Personally, I'd be having this with potatoes, but that's because potatoes are possibly the greatest carb ever to grace the earth...