Recipe: Mince pie cupcakes with Lindt

I'm well and truly emerged in the Christmas spirit now so decided to bake up a storm in the kitchen. Enter Mince Pie Cupcakes with Lindt chocolate teddy bear toppers* because we all need a little bit more indulgence in the festive period. I had a feeling these would spectacularly fail or be positively amazing! Thank god it was the latter. The recipe is adapted from my new favourite baking book Lola's Forever.

Makes 6 muffins or 10 smaller cupcakes

Ingredients:
140g self raising flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp of ground nutmeg
150g soft baking spread
75g soft light brown sugar
75g soft dark brown sugar
3 eggs
175g mince meat

Cream cheese icing:
60g butter
1 tsp of vanilla flavouring
1/2 ground cinnamon
175g icing sugar
400g cheese cheese

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.

2. Shift the flour, baking powder and spices into a bowl before setting aside.

3. Put the butter and sugars into a bowl and beat the mixture until it is light and fluffy.

4. Continue mixing and add the eggs one at a time. Add the mincemeat and mix until fully combined.

5. Slowly add the shifted dry ingredients and mix until fully combined.

6. Divide the mixture between the muffin cases - filling them 3/4 full.

7. Bake in the pre-heated for around 20-25 minutes. Make sure you keep an eye on them. pop a sewer in them to see if they're baked, it should come out completely clean if they're ready.

Cream cheese icing:

1. Beat the butter until smooth then add the cinnamon and vanilla.

2. Shift in the icing sugar and then add the cream cheese and beat until it's smooth and glossy. be careful not to overmix!

3. Decorate the cupcakes once cooled and add a little teddy bear on top. Then tuck in!

Eat alongside plenty of chocolate. The Lindt chocolate reindeer* and Father Christmas* went down a treat. What's Christmas without a little indulgence?

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Recipe: Christmas sticky toffee pudding

A few weeks ago Whitworths invited me along to a baking master class hosting by the first GBBO winner Ed Kimber. We were given a the chance to make his alternative Christmas pudding - a rich sticky toffee pudding. I'm not a fan of traditional Christmas pudding so this is perfect. It's really quick and simple to make - you can even make it the day before!

Ingredients:
225g Whitworths dates
100ml rum
200ml water
175g light brown sugar
3 tbsp of honey
200g self raising flour
1 tsp of mixed spice
75g unsalted butter
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp of vanilla extract
1 1/2 tsp of baking powder
1/4 tsp of freshly grated nutmeg
50g Whitworths apricots, roughly chopped
50g Whitworths sultanas
50g of Whitworths crystallised ginger, roughly chopped

For the sauce:
50g unsalted butter
A pinch of sea salt
100g dark brown sugar
A splash of rum
100ml double cream

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees (160 degrees if fan) and lightly grease ten dariole moulds.

2. For the butterscotch sauce, place the butter, sugar and salt into a medium saucepan and cook over a medium heat until melted and smooth.

3. Allow to bubble away for few minutes before adding the cream, stirring to make a smooth sauce. Set aside whilst you make the puddings.

4.  To make the puddings, place the dates, water and rum in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer and cook until a thick date paste has formed. Scrap the paste into a bowl and set aside for a moment.

5. Place the butter, sugar, vanilla and honey into a large bowl and use an electric mixer to beat until smooth and creamy.

6. Add the eggs one at a time beating until combined before adding the next one.

7. In another bowl, mix together the flour, spice and baking powder.

8. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and beat on a slow speed until they just combine.

9. Add the date puree and the dried fruit and mix until smooth and combined.

10. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared moulds and place onto a parchment lined baking tray. Bake in a preheated oven for around 20 minutes or until the pudding springs back to touch. Remove from the oven and turn onto plates immediately.

11. Serve the pudding whilst hot with lashings of caramel sauce.

Tweet me if you decide to make them - I fully recommend it!

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Recipe: Roasted Vegetable Chicken Tikka Masala

I'm trying very hard to get my eating habits back into a good place recently. I'm following a simple, healthy eating plan during the week which helps me to indulge over the weekend. I find 80:20 is the key  - I've lost 6lbs in just under a month. As a result I'm cooking Slimming World dinners during the week. A little while ago I was invited along to see the new launches of Slimming World products in Iceland. I'm already a huge fan of the range so was pretty excited to see they've introduced two new sauces to help make things a little easier in the evening. A chunky tomato and tikka masala - both which can be adapted to make so many different dishes. This recipe taken from a booklet available in the Iceland stores was a surefire hit and one I'm going to make time and time again. I've slightly adapted it to pop in my favourite veggies.

Serves 4

Ingredients:
2 pots of Slimming World Spicy Tikka Masala Sauce, cooked according to packet instructions*
1 courgette, cut into chunks
1 onion, sliced thinly*
1 yellow pepper, deseeded and cut into strips*
1 red pepper, deseeded and cut into strips*
1 bag of ready cut butternut squash and sweet potato
1 can of butter beans
1 pack of cherry tomatoes*
200g of baby spinach*
Frylight
Brown rice to serve

Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 220 degrees/ Fan 200 degrees/Gas mark 7.

2. Start cooking the brown rice.

3. Spray a large roasting tin with frylight and scatter the prepared vegetables. Season to taste, toss well and pop in the oven. Roast for about 20 minutes, remembering to turn halfway through.

4. Meanwhile, tip the cook tikka masala sauce into a large saucepan, add the butter beans and heat through over a medium heat.

5. Add the cooked roasted vegetables and spinach to the mixture in the pan, simmer until the spinach is wilted. Add some water if you want a thinner sauce.

6. Serve with brown rice and tuck in!

As always I would love to know if you decide to rustle it up. Drop me a tweet to let me know!

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Recipe: Halloween themed cocktails with Funkin

Ready made fruit mixer connoisseurs Funkin offered to send me a selection of their products to help celebrate Halloween. I didn't need to be asked twice! They've put together special party packs to help make it easier for you to enjoy your bash rather than spending all night rustling up the drinks.

My personal favourite was the Murder A Midori-to so I thought I'd share the recipe. It's so quick and simple to make meaning it'll be perfect to pop in a punch bowl for your guests to help yourself.

Ingredients:
50ml Midori
100ml Funkin Mojito cocktail mixer
Mint leaves to garnish

Method:
1. Fill the glass with cubed ice.

2. Add all the listed ingredients and stir well.

3. Add the mint garnish and voila!

There are plenty more recipes on the website. The mixers aren't just for spooky occasions!

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Recipe: Spanish inspired sausage casserole

Bonfire night is coming up soon. The evening conjures up images of snuggly scarfs, sizzling hotdogs,  warm fires, spicy chilli con carne, fizzling sparklers and tasty sausage casseroles. Sausage experts Heck sent me a little hamper of their range and challenged me to put together a recipe. The great thing is the sausages are gluten free so no one has to miss out!

The Smokey Paprika Chicken Chipolatas immediately caught my attention so I decided to rustle together a sausage casserole with a Spanish twist. As I'm loosely following Slimming World again too - well trying too! - it's free on the plan and packed with lots of vegetable goodness.

Ingredients:
2 cans of tinned tomatos
1 can of chickpeas
1 pack of Smokey Paprika Chicken Chipolatas*
2 courgettes
1 pack of mushrooms
Chilli powder to your taste
2 red onions
2 red peppers
Frylight

Feeds 4 with leftovers!

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees if using a fan oven. Chop the peppers, courgettes, mushrooms and red onions and place in a large casserole dish sprayed with frylight. Season to taste. Fry them for 5-6 minutes.

2. Place the sausages under the grill and cooked for 15 minutes, turning frequently.

3. Chop the mushrooms and place in the casserole dish with the other vegetables. Pour in both cans of chopped tomatoes. Season with the chilli powder to your taste. Add some extra paprika too if you fancy it! Cook for around 5-6 minutes.

4.  Pop in the chickpeas and cook for around three minutes.

5. Chop the sausages up and place in the dish before popping the oven. Cook for around 20 minutes until bubbling.

6. Serve with rosemary roasted potato cubes.

I'd love to know if you make this, drop me a tweet!

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Recipe: Chorizo, Black Pudding and Fried Egg Salad

I was contacted by Florette Salad to see if I wanted to put together recipe. There's lots of salad recipes on their website! I said yes and racked my brains to come up with a hearty dish that wouldn't leave me feeling peckish an hour later. I got the inspiration for this recipe from a delicious salad I had while I was in Scotland. I tweaked it a little and came up with this tasty recipe.

Ingredients:
Handful of Florette crispy leaves*
Some chunky chorizo
1 fried egg
4 slices of black pudding
Frylight

1. Pop the black pudding and chrozio in a frying pan laced with frylight oil. Fry for a couple of minutes until the fried egg is ready.

2. Lace another frying pan with frylight and crack an egg. Once it's suitably cooked, start arranging an handful of salad leaves on a place.

3. Scatter the chorizo and black pudding over the leaves before popping the fried egg on top. Season with salt and pepper if you wish.

Let me know if you make it! It's something nice and quick to make for lunch when you have lots of things to do. Like watching Netflix...

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Recipe: Roast Chicken Wraps with Harissa Roasted Veg, Feta and A Mint and Yogurt Dip

I'm always after quick, filling and healthy lunches - especially now I'm at home a lot. It's all so tempting to pick at rubbish food throughout the day. Luckily Alex Hollywood has put together a delicious lunch time recipe with Mission Deli Wraps. I made a slight few tweaks as it's what I already had in the house.

Serves: 2-3 - depending how hungry you are!

Ingredients:
Leftover roasted chicken
Selection of roughly 200g of roasted vegetables. I used a leek, mushrooms, an onion and a courgette.
1/2 pack of feta cheese
1 tsp of Harissa paste
I tbsp of olive oil
Some rocket leaves
Half a lemon
Salt/pepper
175ml of plain Greek yogurt
1 tsp of mint sauce
2-4 Mission Deli Mediterranean Herb Wraps*

Method:
1. Whisk the Harissa paste, olive oil and lemon juice in a bowl before coating the vegetables in the sauce. Make sure you season well.

2. Once the vegetables are roasted, spoon a small mixture into the middle of the wrap.

3. Next pop the roast chicken on top and a small handful of rocket leaves. Then crumble the feta before wrapping.

4. Mix the yogurt and mint sauce together, season to taste and use as a dip on the side.

I'd love to know if you decide to make this - make sure you drop me a tweet!

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Recipe: Cranberry and White Chocolate Blondies

A little while ago I attended a Whitworths baking class with GBBO finalist Holly Bell. It really was such a lovely afternoon and so much fun rolling my sleeves up and baking some goodies. I really don't bake enough recently and had forgotten how much I loved it. They very kindly sent us some ingredients for some recipes including their famous products. I have to say I was very impressed, I'm not usually much of a dried fruit fan as I find it quite dry. But the fruit was juicy and extremely tasty. You can definitely tell the difference!

First up to try were the Cranberry and White Chocolate Blondies. These wasn't the most photogenic bake I've created but they were one of the tastiest! They are best enjoyed warm from the oven so you can appreciate the gooey white chocolate and juicy cranberries.

As always please do let me know if you attempt these and tweet my your attempts!

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Recipe: Pulled Pork Burrito Bowl

I was contacted by ASDA and asked to make up my own recipe to take part in the Pork Belly challenge. I eagerly accepted and decided to make my own version of a burrito bowl. This is a dish which I have when I'm feeling on a bit of a health kick. It feels indulgent but is full of veggies. It's really up to you what you pop in, the world is your oyster! The pork belly tasted delicious in it!

Serves 2
Takes around 40 minutes

Burrito:
ASDA Butcher's Selection Sweet BBQ Crispy Pork Belly
1 pack of microwavable brown rice
1 can of kidney beans
1 small can of sweetcorn
4 tablespoons of 0% fat Greek yogurt
1 avocado
2 teaspoons of paprika

Salsa:
Half a lime
15 cherry tomatoes, diced
A small handful of fresh coriander
1 small green chilli

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees (slightly lower if you have a non-fan assisted oven).

2. Chop the coriander and chilli before mixing together with the diced tomatoes and lime juice to make the salsa.

3. Pop the pork belly in the oven for around 25-30 minutes. Keep an eye on it as it does cook fast! It says 45 minutes on the packet but this was too long for my oven.

3. Once the pork belly has been in the oven for 25 minutes, take it out and sprinkle the sachet of toffee crumble on top. Cook for a further 2 minutes before taking it out of the oven. Let it rest for around 3-4 minutes before shredding.

4. Drain the kidney beans and pop in a saucepan on a medium heat with the paprika. After 2/3 minutes add the sweetcorn and carry on stirring for 3 more minutes. Peal and chop the avocado.

5. Pop the rice in the microwave for the allocated time.

6. Serve between two bowls before tucking in.

I'd love to know if you rustle this up. Just tweet me and let me know!

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Recipe: Scones

Whenever I'm pushed for time and fancy baking up a storm, I always opt for some scones. They're so simple to make and cook so quickly that they're in your mouth before you have the chance to say 'clotted cream and jam please!' This is my go-to recipe adapted slightly from Good Food.

Ingredients:
350g of self raising flour
150g of sultanas
1/4 tsp of salt
1 tsp of baking powder
85g of stork baking spread
4 tbsp of caster sugar
150g of half fat natural yogurt
4 tbsp of semi-skimmed milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg beaten with 1 tbsp of milk to glaze

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees and line a piece of greaseproof paper with butter before placing in a baking tray.

2. Mix the flour, salt, butter and baking powder in a big bowl with a wooden spoon. Then stir in the sugar and make a well in the middle of the mixture.

3. Warm the yogurt, milk and vanilla extract in a the microwave for a minute. Don't worry if the mixture looks a little lumpy, this is normal! Pour the mixture into the bowl and mix in with the dry ingredients. Pour the sultanas in at this stage too.

4. Take the dough out on to a flour dusted surface and fold it over a few times. Roll the dough out to about 4cm thick and cut out your scones. Continue until you have used all the dough.

5. Beat the egg with the milk and glaze the scones before popping in the oven.

6. Leave them in for 10 minutes until they are golden brown and risen. Leave to cool on a wire rack before tucking in with lots of jam and clotted cream if you have some in the fridge. Strawberry is my favourite!

As always make sure you tweet me if you happen to give these a go, I'd love to see how yours turn out. Happy baking!

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Recipe: Carrot Cake

The recipe was loosely taken from BBC Good Food.

I can take or leave chocolate, crisps or sweets but cake? Cake I can eat all day, every day. Hence why I try not to bake it so I don't eat it all but last week I decided that I rather missed baking and whipped this up as a birthday treat for my boyfriend's dad. I was so pleased how it turned out!

Ingredients:
300ml of sunflower oil
4 eggs
280g of soft light brown sugar
170g of self-rasing flour
170g of wholemeal flour
4 teaspoons of cinnamon
1 teaspoon of nutmeg
2 teaspoons of bicarbonate soda
280g of coarsely grated carrots
100g of chopped walnuts

For the icing:
Make it easy for yourself and buy the Betty Crocker ready made cream cheese icing. It's like heaven in a tub. You'll need two tubs and some walnuts to decorate.

Method:
Heat the oven to 180 degrees and generously grease three shallow cake tins with butter.

Whisk together the oil and beaten eggs in a bowl and leave to one side. Add the sugar, flours, spices and bicarbonate soda into a large mixing bowl. Make sure you mix together thoroughly with a wooden spoon.

Finally add the remaining grated carrots, walnuts and egg mixture to the dry ingredients and give it a good stir.

Divide the mixture equally between the three cake tins and pop in the oven. Mine cooked with 30 minutes but always keep an eye on it as it depends on your oven. Sometimes it can take up to an hour.

Once the cakes have cooled, slice off the top - quickly scoff them so the evidence disappears - and smear on the icing before placing them on top of each other. Decorate with the walnuts however you wish.

Admire your handy work and tuck in to a big slice in front of the telly.

Like always, please do tweet me if you happen to make this! Happy Baking!

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Recipe - Caribbean Inspired Shepherd's Pie

I have a soft spot for Caribbean food, add some jerk paste into anything and it becomes 100 times better in my opinion. I had the idea of making a Caribbean inspired Shepherd's Pie after having a few sweet potatoes and some jerk paste hanging around. This recipe is a mixture from The Telegraph and Levi Roots. I really just made it up as I went along but it came out amazingly well. It's definitely something i'd make again as it's perfect for a cold winters night. It's really good for you too as it uses lean turkey mince and sweat potato - who says healthy has to be boring?

Serves 4 - 6 depending on how many vegetable sides and how hungry you are! 

Ingredients:

500g of lean turkey breast mince
2 large sweet potatoes
1 chopped red pepper
1 finely diced onion
1 can of chopped tomatoes
Up to 4 teaspoons of jerk paste depending on how you like your spice
Vegetables of your choice to serve - I had spinach and green beans

001. Peel the potatoes and chop into small pieces and boil for around 25-30 minutes until they're soft.

002. Pop the mince, onion and pepper into a large wok and cook for around 20 minutes until the mince is cooked throughout. Add the jerk paste and stir thoroughly.

003. Add the chopped tomatoes and simmer for about 10 minutes.

004. Once the potatoes are cooked, drain the water and mash them until they're nice and smooth. Pop the mince mixture in the bottom of a rectangular deep dish and layer with the mash on top. Fluff up the top of the mash with a fork.

005. Pop into the oven for about 10-15 until you're happy with the crispy top. It won't go too crispy, just a word of warning! 

006. Cut into equal slices and serve with the veg! 

Please do let me know if you try it out as i'd love to see some pictures! 

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Recipe - Feta, Chicken and Spinach Pasta

Serves 4
It works out around 9 Weightwatcher Propoints

This makes a great mid-week meal as it's simple to make and takes around 25 minutes. You don't want to be slaving around in the kitchen when you come home from work after all. The men in my life complained this wasn't enough so i'd suggest you pop some garlic bread in for them if they're not following Weightwatchers!

Ingredients:
160g Wholewheat pasta
120g of low fat feta cheese
Fry lite
200g baby spinach
250g of baby plum tomatoes
4 chicken breasts
2 crushed garlic cloves or two tsp of easy garlic

001. Pop the pasta in a large saucepan filled with boiling water and cook according to the instructions on the packet. Remember to keep stirring so it doesn't stick to the pan.

002. Chop the chicken into bite size chunks and fry in a wok sprayed with fry lite. Cook for around 20-25 minutes.

003. At around the 10 minute mark, chop the tomatoes in half and chuck in the wok and carry on stirring. Eventually the tomatoes will disintegrate and form a sauce. Pop in the garlic and give it a good stir.

004. About 3 minutes before the chicken is cooked, put in the spinach and stir until it's wilted. Once it's wilted pop in 3/4 of the feta cheese.

005. Drain the pasta and mix the rest of the ingredients and serve equally into four bowls. Sprinkle the remaining feta evenly over the pasta.

Once again do tweet me and let me know if you've made it. I loved seeing Elinor's version of this Spanish-style chicken dish!

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