Creamy Fusilli with Smoked Haddock and Prawns

This is a great recipe for either summer or winter – very easy to make and thoroughly flavoursome. The quantities given make either 4 huge platefuls or 6 smaller platefuls if you were going to eat it after a starter, or have some accompanying dish like a salad. It also keeps for a couple of days if you wanted to make it and then eat leftovers afterwards. As always with most recipes you can adapt it to suit your preferences, it’s designed to be made with fusilli but I made it on this occasion with a mixture of remaining pastas I had in the cupboard!

Ingredients

375g smoked haddock fillet

450ml milk

25g butter

25g flour

125g mascarpone cheese

125g prawns

1tbsp lime juice (I normally use 2 squeezed limes)

1tbsp chopped parsley

Salt and freshly ground pepper

1 500g bag of fusilli

Instructions

Place the haddock flesh-side down into a large saucepan and pour over the milk. Bring it slowly to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 5-6 minutes until tender. You can test if the fish is ready by taking a small sharp knife and just gently a part of the skin off the fish whilst it is in the pan – the skin should come away easily. Remove the fish and flake it into a bowl, removing skin and bones as you go. Set the milk aside.

Melt the butter and stir in the flour, creating a smooth paste. Cook for one minute, stirring occasionally. Gradually stir in the milk and cook for 1-2 minutes until thickened and smooth – if you’re me, it can take a bit longer than 1-2 minutes!! Stir in the mascarpone until it melts into the sauce, then add the prawns, lime juice, half the parsley, and the flaked haddock. Season to taste.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta per the instructions on the packet. Drain the pasta, then combine it with the fish mixture. Transfer either to a warmed serving dish or warmed plates and sprinkle with the remaining parsley. 

By Lindsey 

Product Review - Quickasteam Bags

Product: Quickasteam

Price: £1.00, standard and large

Available from: Amazon 

Initial Reaction: Easy to use, Instructions good

Pros:                                     

• No washing up
• Fast cooking times

Cons:                                    

• Retains moisture from cooking – unless food drained properly, a bit soggy
• I found trying to cook vegetables until they were completely soft impossible as they just burnt (This isn't a problem with my electric steamer and therefore I wouldn’t want to use the bags for cooking vegetables for baby weaning)
• Smelly microwave after cooking fish

Value for money? Yes

Overall Reaction: Tasty vegetables and moist fish.  After my first couple of attempts, by snipping off the corner of the bag after cooking, I could drain the excess moisture.

I found the speed of cooking vegetables extremely useful for a busy family.  I often rely on frozen veg on nights with after school activities, but found the bags invaluable for healthy, fast meals.  The fish was cooked to perfection and meant I didn’t feel like I was missing out when the rest of the family had fish and chips from the shop, despite my diet!

The standard bags were a little on the small side for a family but would be fine for a single portion.

These bags will become a staple in my shopping trolley!

By Karen 

The Winner of the Masterchef at Home Book is...

Jill Merritt 

Well done! 

Red Nose Day Recipes

Red Nose Day is fast approaching (18^th March) and to celebrate, Seriously Good sauces, the range developed by Gordon Ramsay to raise money for Comic Relief, has created two mouth-watering recipes to enjoy with family and friends.

Ideal to serve at ‘Come Dine With Me’ style fundraising dinners on Red Nose Day, the recipes will appeal to youngsters and discerning foodies alike. And with at least 10p from every jar of Seriously Good contributing to the Red Nose Day 2011 total you’ll have kicked off your fundraising as soon as you pop a jar into your shopping trolley.

Family Fun: The Monster Red Nose Pizza

For a monster amount of family fun, try your hand at the ‘monster Red Nose pizza’, a  tasty and fun recipe modelled on the new range of monster Noses for Red Nose Day 2011.

This simple-to-make treat features Seriously Good Cherry Tomato & Balsamic sauce with fresh vegetables and mozzarella, and is sure to get the seal of approval from your little monsters.

 Monster Red Nose Pizza Recipe

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 12 minutes

Makes: 4 mini pizzas (or 2 large pizzas)

Ingredients

·         4 readymade mini pizza bases

·         1 jar Seriously Good Cherry Tomato & Balsamic sauce

·         1 tbsp olive oil

·         6 tomatoes, thinly sliced

·         2 yellow peppers, deseeded

·         2 x 125g mozzarella, sliced

·         250g cheddar slices or grated cheddar

·         8 pitted black olives

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 240°C (or 220°C for fan assisted oven) or Gas Mark 7
2. Brush each pizza base with a little olive oil
3. Spread each base with sliced tomato. Reserve 8 slices of mozzarella for the eyes, tear up the rest and scatter over the tomatoes. Cover with the cheddar slices or grated cheddar
4. Spread thinly with Seriously Good Cherry Tomato & Balsamic sauce to cover the cheese
5. Slice off the top third of the pepper (about 3cm wide) and cut out triangles for the teeth. Slice the remaining pepper and place across the centre for the mouth, then arrange the teeth
6. Decorate each pizza with 2 slices of mozzarella and an olive on top to make the eyes
7. Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes until golden brown and the edges are crisp

Foodie Friends: Butter Chicken and Red Nose Chapatti

For a more ‘grown up’ themed Red Nose Day celebration, try the authentic Butter Chicken and Red Nose Chapatti recipe.

Combining Seriously Good’s brand new Butter Chicken sauce with fresh chicken and traditional Indian spices, this delicious recipe will impress even the fussiest food-critics in your circle of friends.

Butter Chicken and Red Nose Chapatti

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cook time: 45 minutes

Serves 6

Ingredients

·         12 chicken thigh fillets

·         2 tbsp oil

·         2 cloves garlic, sliced

·         5cm fresh root ginger, finely grated

·         2 cloves

·         5 cardamom, crushed

·         1 tsp mustard seeds

·         6 plum tomatoes, diced

·         6 curry leaves, crushed

·         2 jars Seriously Good Butter Chicken sauce

·         400ml tin half fat coconut milk

·         100g spinach leaves

For the Red Nose Chapattis

·         1 pack( 215g) of 6 chapattis

·         8 tbsp tomato puree

·         1 -2 tsp mild curry paste

Instructions

1. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large non-stick frying pan. Brown the chicken in batches for 2-3 minutes each side and transfer to a large roasting tray.

2. Heat the rest of the oil in the frying pan, add the garlic, ginger and spices and fry for 2-3 minutes until fragrant. Add the tomatoes and cook for 3-4 minutes until softened.

3. Preheat the oven to 160 °C fan, 180 °C, gas mark 4. Pour the Seriously Good Butter Chicken sauce, tomatoes, curry leaves, coconut milk and spinach into the roasting tin with the chicken. Stir well to coat. Cover in foil and bake for 20 minutes until cooked though.

4. Meanwhile, mix the tomato puree with curry paste and thin with a 1 tsp of water. Using a small round biscuit cutter (or a wine glass), cut several rounds of chapattis. Spread with tomato paste and place on a roasting tray. Bake for 6-8 minutes until crisp.

5. Serve the curry on steamed basmati rice with green beans and Red Nose chapattis

Don’t forget to show your support for Comic Relief by purchasing the new monster Red Noses. The range includes Honkus, Chucklechomp and Captain Conk the ‘red, hairy but not very scary’ little monsters of 2011. Pick up a little monster (or three!) at Sainsbury’s, Oxfam or at www.rednoseday.com/shop. 

You've been framed

By Sharon 


For the past month, I've been working on a project for the house.

I have a big blank wall that has been waiting to be filled with pictures.

For years. 



You know what it's like, you have a gazillion digital pictures on your computer and keep meaning to print them out and frame them.

But you never do. 

Before you know it, another year has passed. A thousand pictures later, you're back to square one looking at them, but not doing anything with them.

Then there is that fear lurking in the back of your mind. What if one day your computer just died? 

All those memories were gone. In an instant.

Wah!

We've done the sensible thing and invested in some whizzy bang back up thingy, but what if that went kaput?

Double wah!

This year I decided enough is enough.

So the conclusion is: Must. Print. Them. Out.

It was actually the fabulous people at Photobox who got me motivated.

After submitting a picture of the children taken from a recent photoshoot, they sent me a complimentary canvas. It was beautiful. Thanks guys.

The quality was fantastic and I would highly recommend them, plus starting at a affordable £22.99 for a canvas print (excluding postage) you could treat yourself or loved ones without breaking the bank.

Receiving the picture made me think 'cripes, the kids will be at uni before I get this wall completed.'

Now, anyone who knows me, knows I'm a little bit artsy and a little bit crafty. And as we're still in the midst of an economic crisis, I'm trying to think up fabulous ideas on a limited budget.

Along with lovely shiny frames I already have, I've been buying up old frames and giving them a new lease of life.

It's dead simple and the result looks marvellous.


All I've done is repainted the frame using a tester pot and covered the mount with some cool wrapping paper. 


These were originally gold with a white mount. Now they are a lot more interesting to look at.

Easy peasy.

You can do it too. All you need to do is buy some frames - pick up good quality (but affordable) ones from car boot sales, charity shops, gumtree, freecycle, and eBay.

Take out the picture and you're ready to go.

Everyone has tester pots lying around. So make use of them.

Nice wrapping paper doesn't have to cost the earth. Places like Paperchase, Scribbler, and independent shops all do nice individual sheets of paper. Or just trot to the supermarket and pick some up from there.

You could even use fabric or wallpaper samples for a contrast.

The plan is to continue to 'upcycle' some more frames, print out our pictures, and finally mount them all at the same time.

It's going to take a while, but I'll show you the results when I've finished.

Blueberry Muffins

The toddler's absolute favourite thing to eat are blueberries. I'm not so keen but add them to muffins and I'm happy!

Ingredients:

• 140g caster sugar
• 250g self raising flour
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 85g butter (melted)
• 2 eggs
• 200ml milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 150g blueberries

Method:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200c
2. Combine the caster sugar, flour and bicarbonate of soda in a large bowl
3. In another bowl mix the melted (and cooled) butter, eggs, milk and vanilla extract
4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and add the blueberries. Fold the mixture very lightly just until the ingredients are combined
5. Spoon the mixture into muffin cases and bake for 15 minutes

Makes approx 12 muffins

From Emma

Becks Banana Bread

I've mentioned my banana bread quite a few times on my blog now, and it is definitely a regular feature at home, so I thought I'd share the super simple recipe. It's so easy to remember, you just have to think - 2, 2, 4, 6, 8!

Ingredients

2 eggs

2 ripe bananas, mashed

4oz butter

6oz caster sugar

8oz self raising flour

(optional: a few handfuls of sultanas and/or chopped walnuts)

Method

1.  Preheat your oven to 180 degrees
2. Mash bananas and set aside
3. Cream together butter and sugar
4. Beat the eggs into butter and sugar mixture
5. Mix in the flour - I don't sift it, but you could if you wanted to
6. Mix in the bananas and any optional ingredients
7. Pour into a greased and floured 2lb loaf tin. Or I've found that loaf liners not only make the finished product look much prettier, but it saves on greasing the tin and also helps to keep the loaf fresher.
8. Baked in your preheated oven for 40 minutes
9. Then turn the temperature down to 150 degrees and continue to bake for a further 30 minutes
10. Turn out onto a wire rack and allow to cool before devouring!

We particularly enjoy it with a light spreading of butter :)

By Rebecca 

Fairtrade Fortnight Spotlight - Green & Black

Indulgent chocolate treats with a fairtrade background are what London's chocolate makers Green & Black's are most famous for. Since 1991 the small team of chocolate lovers is making and selling premium organic chocolate, using the finest organically grown cocoa beans from Belize and the Dominican Republic.

Being a member of the Kraft Foods Inc since February 2010 has helped Green & Black’s to become an established international chocolate brand that doesn't compromise when it comes to taste and the ethical sourcing of their products. Because both factors equally matter to the chocolate makers, Green & Blacks are happy to pay that little bit extra to for all their ingredients and you can be sure that you can taste the distinct flavour when you are enjoying the indulgent products of Green & Black's product range. 

No matter if ice cream, chocolate bars, biscuits or bittersweet chocolate drinks – Green & Black's are passionate about chocolate and about making sure that their suppliers are paid the price they deserve for their high quality products. This way Green & Black's are not only giving economic security to the farmers and their families but they do also provide a chance for better education in development countries.

Not all of Green & Black’s products are Fairtrade certified yet, but it is the company's aim to ensure that all their suppliers are receiving a fair price for their products in order to improve lives in local communities.

Fairtrade Fortnight Spotlight - Divine Chocolate

If you are a true chocolate fan you might have heard about Divine already. If you haven't, it's time that you are being introduced them because Divine is a chocolate company that made history: In 1998 they launched the first ever Fairtrade chocolate bar onto the UK market and laid the foundation for a completely new way of enjoying chocolate – with an easy conscience.

Over the last couple of years, Divine has developed into one of the most known chocolate companies in the United Kingdom and has expanded their range by various chocolate products. Today, you can buy Divine chocolate bars, powders for hot beverages and lovely hampers for a great variety of occassions. All products are made from high-quality cocoa beans that are sold to Divine by Kuapa Kokoo (= good cocoa growers), a Ghanian co-operative of cocoa farmers that does not only own shares of Divine but that does also empower farmers to develop an environmentally friendly cultivation of cocoa and that does help to increase women's participation in the business's activities.

Kuapa Kokoo's motto is pa pa paa and means “the best of the best” in their local language Twi. If you have a look at the impact that the co-operation with Divine has had for Ghanian cocoa farmers, you know that you are helping to make their life that little bit better whenever you are enjoying one of Divine's chocolate bars. You haven't tried Divine yet? Let me tell you: you are missing out. Their chocolate isn't called Divine for nothing. 

Food Review – Coleman’s Season and Shake

I am a big fan of one pan cooking and love to use Chicken. However I find chicken breast can go too dry and I have an awkward other half that won’t eat chicken on the bone.  When I was asked if I wanted to try the new Coleman’s Season and Shake I thought this could be the answer.

Season and Shake comes with a seasoning and bag to bake it all in. You just add your chicken, veg and seasoning give it a shake and bag it in the bag, simple.

And it really was that simple! We tried the Mediterranean chicken and it was really nice. The chicken comes out perfect nice and moist and with plenty of flavour. The veg is cooked just right.

Even better no dish to wash up afterwards as it’s all in the bag!!

Coleman’s Season and Shakes comes in 3 favours Mediterranean, Rustic and Paprika.

They are available at Tesco’s, ASDA, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons and cost £1.49.  

Fairtrade Fortnight Spotlight – Alara Muesli

Alara has been certified organic by the Soil Association since 1988 and with JAAC since 1998 (the first cereal producer in the world to do so in both cases), is the only Fair Trade certified cereal manufacturer in the world and the first to certify with the Coeliac Society!

And is that wasn’t enough the Muesli is really good.

Alara make a large range of Muesli including Maca’s Secret Muesli which is made for Adults only!!

I was sent a sample of Fair Trade Muesli with Honey and Cinnamon and it is delicious. Packed full of raisins, banana, pineapple and brazil nuts it’s a great start to the day.  It doesn’t just taste good but it’s doing the world good by being Fairtrade!

Alara make a large selection of Gluten Free Muesli, ideal for those with Coeliac Disease.

Alara can be found online and at Waitrose, Morrisons, ASDA and local health food shops.  

Fairtrade Fortnight Spotlight - Goodness Direct

Goodness Direct is an online store that sell products that are healthy, fresh, eco and organic and what a lovely range they have.

They sell everything from shampoo to coffee and lots of great products in between.

As it is currently Fairtrade Fortnight, Goodness Direct sent me a selection of the Fairtade products they sell and what a selection they sent.

They obviously took notice of two of my three C’s, chocolate and coffee!

Goodness direct sent me:-

Divine Chocolate 45g 94p - £1 – I had 3 different flavours, Milk Chocolate, Orange and White and they were all divine! (sorry). 

 Divine is the only Fairtrade chocolate company which is 45% owned by the farmers. While Fairtrade ensures farmers receive a better deal for their cocoa and additional income to invest in their community, company ownership gives farmers a share of Divine’s profits and a stronger voice in the cocoa industry

Green & Black's Organic Maya Gold Chocolate 35g 94p – This is actually my favourite chocolate, I do buy it quite regularly. It has a good dark edge to it and the orange and spices are balanced just right.

Green & Black’s started out with humble origins back in 1991 in a small office on Portobello Road, however the company has gone from strength to strength, and has become a widely recognised, leading brand in the chocolate market. The Green and Black’s name itself tells us about the company’s founding principles, ‘Green’ representing their organic credentials, and ‘Black’, the rich dark colour of the chocolate

Percol Fairtrade Colombia Coffee 227g £3.02 – Really nice coffee, perfect for a afternoon pick me up!

When Food Brands Group launched Percol in 1987, this collection of superior coffees soon wowed British coffee lovers and aficionados alike. Their enthusiasm was quickly made evident by an avalanche of awards. From the outset, Percol was dedicated to ethical trading and environmental sustainability, while refusing to compromise on quality or taste.

Cafe Direct Earl Grey Tea, 50 bags £2.89 – Makes a great cup of tea. Smells and tastes lovely.

The collapse of the International Coffee Agreement in 1989 sent market prices plunging, putting the lives of millions of smallholder farmers around the world in jeopardy.

In response, three coffee growing communities - in Peru, Costa Rica and Mexico - each shipped a single container of coffee, loaned on trust, to the UK. The beans were roasted and sold through church halls, charity shops and at local events.

Cafédirect was born

Equal Exchange Organic Fairtrade Raw Cane Sugar 500g £1.95 – Tastes like sugar!

This organic raw cane sugar is grown by farmers of the Asociacion Agricola Canera del Sur, Iturbe in Paraguay. The small-scale farmers of this democratic association also grow cotton and soybeans and tend livestock.

Traidcraft Chocolate Chunk Cookies 44g 60p – Good cookies, just the right amount of chocolate chunks.

Traidcraft is the UK’s leading fair trade organisation. Our mission is to fight poverty through trade, practising and promoting approaches to trade that help poor people in developing countries transform their lives

Clipper Decaffeinated Coffee 227g £4.20 – I try not to drink caffeine after 3pm as it keeps my up all night so this was ideal for me. Tastes fantastic!

 Clipper’s philosophy is to buy high quality coffees from the developing world where organic growing methods are combined with good standards of social and economic welfare for farmers and their families. Together this approach ensures the protection of the land, the people that live and work on it and the wildlife, sustaining a balanced fertile environment.

Everything I received tasted great, was of really high quality and even better will ensure that lives and lively hoods are protected.