Cooking the Books!

Ok so I'm not actually 'cooking the books' (in either sense of the phrase!) but I've decided once and for all (having tried to come up with several ideas in the past and failed!) to really start using my cookbooks to cook from rather than just reading them! True, with reading comes a lot of knowledge and inspiration but it's also nice to actually cook the recipes as the author intended. It's far too easy to read them, drool over them then pop them on the shelves and over time forget about the recipes you were absolutely going to try! Trust me – I am the worst culprit for it! In fact I am quite often frustrated when I decide to randomly pick out a book to look at again and then am reminded of it's delicious recipes and beautiful photography and prose that I had completely forgotten about!

Dom over at Belleau Kitchen hosts Random Recipes which is a fantastic monthly bloggers challenge where you randomly pick a book every month (depending on his theme) then pick a random recipe from it, which I love and try and take part in when I can (if you haven't seen it have a look here for this month's challenge). This is a little similar except I get to pick my books and the recipes that appeal (big difference!). The similarity between the two is more to use your cookbooks to cook from! Therefore starting now, every month I will select 2 books to try and hope to make at least 4 recipes from each book. At the end of the month I'll post my reviews. That simple.

If you have the same books that I select please feel free to cook along with me and let me know how you get on. If you feel like doing a review I would love for you to add your link, however that's totally optional – it's not a challenge after all, just more a resolution for me really to use my wonderful library of books!

So there you have it, I am finally going to really start Cooking the Books! Up first for the month of January I have picked one of my new Christmas additions, Full of Flavour: Create....how to think like a chef by Maria Elia and Jamie's 30 Minute Meals by Jamie Oliver – a good one for this time of year I think!

Remember if you have one or both of these books please feel free to join in and make an effort to cook from them this month! Happy Cooking!

Prawn Cocktail Trio

I love condiments and dipping sauces, and I love dipping juicy, plump prawns into a delicious sauce therefore Prawn Cocktail, for me, is an absolute favourite. So when I was trying to come up with a starter for our New Years Eve Party I decided to do Prawn (or Shrimp) Cocktail – except since it was New Year's Eve, I decided to go all out and do a Prawn Cocktail Trio!

You see for me (and everyone in the UK), Prawn Cocktail is served with a creamy Marie Rose Sauce which is a combination of Mayonnaise and Tomato Ketchup and is rich and absolutely delicious. But then I discovered the American style of Prawn Cocktail which misses out the Mayonnaise and instead uses some Chilli Sauce and Horseradish – how can you not love that!?! And then, I recently was given a Mexican Cookbook which featured a Mexican style Coctel and I had to try that! So the trio was created and I have to say, it was the best way to enjoy Prawn Cocktail!

The quantities are small since it was for a starter – each cocktail was pretty much bite size, which worked really well with the meal, however you can easily double the recipe for a more substantial sized portion. These made enough for 10 people with some of the sauces left over. I also cut the prawns up rather than serving whole prawns as you usually would, but again that was just due to the fact these were bite sized. If you prefer keep the prawns whole.

Turkey Noodle Soup

Turkey Noodle Soup (or chicken for that matter) although an American institution, was a new concept for me until I moved to Canada and my husband requested it once after I had made stock from a roast. In our home, growing up we always had pureed soups which I loved and still love and constantly make, but for him this was his favourite soup – especially when feeling under the weather. I immediately understood why – especially when it is made with a good stock that you have made yourself.  

Sweet Heat # 4

Christmas is over and New Year is over which means it's back to the reality of January! Boring? Maybe, but perhaps not since it's also time for a new Sweet Heat Challenge! That's right – the start of a new month (and year) means it's time to get those chillies out and come up with a spicy dish to enjoy and awaken your senses after the crazy festive period.

I am delighted that this month's Sweet Heat is being hosted by the lovely Michelle over at Food, Football and a Baby so head on over to find out what this month's theme is – it's definitely a good one with plenty of options. Can you handle the heat?

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1. Brown Rice Moong Dal Khichadi	2. Green Peas Curry	3. Kerala Style Kumquat Pickle	4. Chicken 65	5. Palak Paneer
6. Baakar Bhaji/Pumpkin Subji	7. Paneer Jalfrezi	8. Spicy Steamed rice cakes	9. Mirchi ka salan/curried chiles	10. Chicken Biryani and Raita
11. Aloo Tikki Chaat	12. Tandoori Chicken	13. BBQ chicken biriyani	14. Sweet and Spicy Fruit Kebabs	15. Pani Puri/ Gol Gappa
16. Chicken Lollipops	17. Aamvada	18. Tru daali Daal	19. CilantroCorn Upma	20. AlooBath
21. Dry Chilli Chicken	22. Daal wada	23. Daal Paatra	24. Plantain (Raw Banana) Curry	25. Red Sorrel Leaves Chutney
26. Hari Daal ke Kebab	27. Fiery Lamb & Spinach Curry	28. Spiced Green Beans	29. Laal Maans	30. Molagai Podi
31. Baingan Bharta-Eggplant Curry	32. Paneer Steak with Roasted Pepp	33. Nasi Lemak with Prawn Sambal

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Bubble & Squeak Cakes with Fried Eggs

First of all.....Happy New Year! I hope you all had a wonderful time saying goodbye to 2011 and welcoming in 2012.

I decided to start off the New Year with a recipe that is a perfect way to use up some leftovers from Christmas, although I realise at this point in time the leftovers are probably long gone! Unfortunately though with everything going on for us with Christmas, Wee One's 2nd Birthday and then hosting a New Years Eve party(!) today was the first chance I got to post it and it's definitely too good a recipe not to include so keep it in mind for next time you have a roast! (Or alternatively buy the ingredients to make this specifically as it is that good!)

Bubble and Squeak is traditionally made using Mashed Potatoes and Cabbage but my version uses finely sliced leftover Brussel Sprouts, which are close enough! Even better is the fact that at Christmas time I make my Brussel Sprouts with bacon and pine nuts which make these even better!

These crispy and golden potato cakes topped with a fried egg make a perfect post-Christmas brunch idea and are so good you will want leftovers just so you can make these up!

Makes 4 cakes so will serve 2-4 depending on how hungry you are!

Leftover Mashed Potatoes – you need roughly 340g/ 12oz

Leftover Brussel Sprouts (with bacon & toasted pine nuts) – a good handful is enough
Salt & pepper
Plain flour – enough just for dusting the cakes
Knob of butter
Drizzle of olive oil
4 large eggs
Tabasco sauce to serve (optional)

Put the mashed potatoes into a bowl and just loosen up a bit with a fork. Chop up the brussel sprouts – it's up to you how finely you want them cut, then add to the bowl with the mashed potatoes. Add the bacon and pine nuts if you have it then season with a good pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper. Mix everything well together then sprinkle the flour on a large plate. Divide the mixture into 4 then put a little flour on your hands and shape the mixture into cakes. Gently coat them in the flour dusting off any excess then set to one side while you repeat with the rest of the mixture.

Heat the butter and oil in a frying pan until hot and sizzling. Carefully put cakes into the hot pan and leave to cook for roughly 4 minutes per side – you just want them to be golden brown and crisp on the outside, and warmed all of the way side. Carefully flip the cakes over and leave to cook on the other side until golden brown.

While the Bubble and Squeak Cakes are frying heat a little extra oil in another frying pan then once hot crack in the eggs. You can either fry them to your liking or if you prefer baste them (by letting them finish cooking in steam). As soon as they are ready put the Bubble and Squeak Cakes on a plate then top with the eggs. Sprinkle over some Maldon sea salt (or similar) then serve at once with some Tabasco sauce if you like things spicy! The perfect way to use up some leftover vegetables and treat yourself to a delicious breakfast!