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Cooking, Recipe and Food Blog

Homemade Ketchup

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We have been so used to buying ketchup in the supermarket. There are a lot of products that taste well, but wouldn’t it be great to make your own? Use this recipe as a guide, but feel free to adjust it to your taste. Add more chili for spicier ketchup or more sugar for a sweeter version.

Ingredients:

1 large red onion, peeled and roughly chopped

1 stick of celery, trimmed and roughly chopped

olive oil

a thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped

2 cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced

½ of a fresh red chili, seeded and finely chopped

a handful of fresh basil, leaves picked, stalks chopped

1 tablespoon coriander seeds

2 cloves

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

sea salt

500g amazing cherry or plum tomatoes, halved plus 500g tinned plum tomatoes, chopped or  1kg yellow, orange or green tomatoes, chopped

200 ml red wine vinegar

70g brown sugar

Remove the tomato skins by submerging the tomatoes in boiling water for 1 minute and then plunge them in a bowl of ice water. This will make the skins slide off easily. After peeling, cut them in half and spoon out the seeds. Place them in a sieve and mash them a little with a fork to drain excess water. Save the juice. You can use it for cooking or drink it as juice later on.

In a pot, place the tomatoes and other ingredients.  Cook it for 15 minutes or until it becomes thick, stir occasionally. Once it is cooked, strain and remove solid parts. Let it cool before bottling.

*Make sure you sterilize your bottles/jars in the dishwasher or by boiling them in water for 5 minutes.

Photo Courtesy Of: chatirygirl

Fish Stock

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Fish Stock

A basic requirement for many fish-based recipes, this stock is based on a classic recipe, and is very easy to make – it can be used fresh, you could chill it for a day (make sure you bring it to the boil before use), or freeze it for up to six months, so you can make sure you always have enough for whatever you want to cook.

To Make 1.4 Litres
900g Fish Heads, Bones and Tails, without any Gills.
1.2l Water
500ml Dry White Wine
1 Onion, thinly sliced
1 Leek, halved, rinsed and chopped
1 Carrot, peeled and sliced
6 Fresh Flat-Leaf Parsley Sprigs
1 Bay Leaf
4 Black Peppercorns, lightly crushed

1.       Put the Fish trimmings, Water and Wine into a large, heavy-based Saucepan over a medium to high heat, and slowly bring to the boil, skimming the grey foam off the top.

2.       When the foam stops being produced, reduce the heat to a very low one, and add the Onion, Leek, Carrot, Parsley, Bay leaf and Peppercorns, before leaving the stock to simmer for thirty minutes, skimming the surface to remove any scum if required.

3.       Strain the stock, and discard the solid ingredients.

The stock can be either used straight away, or chilled for a minimum of a day before putting in the fridge – just make sure to bring it to the boil before using in any recipes.

Photo courtesy of: Simps

Kitchen First Aid

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Kitchens are dangerous places. Knives, Oil and Water are more obvious dangers, but don’t forget that you’ve got water and electric very close together in most kitchens (look at your kettle!).

This shouldn’t put you off of cooking with children, or at all yourself, but you do need to be prepared in case of accidents and emergencies.

ambulance

Cuts

Simple precautions can help protect yourself against cuts. Pay proper attention, use decent quality knives which are kept sharp (a sharp knife will cut smoothly, whereas a blunter knife will rip and tear more, making it more likely to slip and cut), and have a thick, heavy duty chopping board – I’d recommend using a Wooden one, as these are less likely to slip.

A first aid kit of anti-septic wipes, plus various sized blue plasters will be needed. These plasters are very good for this purpose – they’ll show up if you drop them in anything.

Burns

All burns should be treated in a similar way. If the skin has not broken, run it under the cold water tap for 15 minutes. After this, apply an aloe-based salve – I have an aloe vera plant in my kitchen. It’s very easy to look after, and very useful, and smells beautiful.
Any severe burns should mean an immediate trip to the hospital – for example, if you’ve accidentally leant on a hot hob-plate, or tried to remove a wire draw from an oven.

Electocution

This is one of the most dangerous incidents that could happen in your kitchen. Most homes have a washing machine, fridge, kettle, microwave, and sink in their kitchen, as well as a large amount of power points.

It’s very dangerous because if you haven’t paid proper attention, you too could become a victim whilst going to help the original sufferer.

Call for Emergency Medical help. Don’t touch the person until the power is shut off – not just at the mains. Look for the circuit breaker or fuse box and completely remove the current. If you cannot do this, completely dry your hands, and using something non-metallic (i.e., a wooden chopping board, stick, rope, brush, etc.) get the person away from the source of electricity.
From now on, treat the person as you would any other casulty.
There’s many other in-depth articles about how to make your kitchen a safer place, as well as the position of food in fridges to make sure that there’s no contamination or food poisoning.

Portions

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A lot of recipies I have in my books mention specific quantities, however, over time, you’ll get to know what you’d prefer, and what fills you up – especially if a meal is listed at 4 people and there’s only 3 of you. For this, there’s a very easy way to work out a sensbile portion size:

Use your hand

A handful is one portion, and for each meal, you should aim for 1 portion of meat, and two portions of vegetables – one handful of which is carbohydrates (potato, bread, pasta, rice, root vegetables etc.).

Handful of Tomatoes

So a meal of Chilli Con Carne can be…

– a handful of mince meat
– a handful of carrots, onion, beans, tomato
– a handful of pasta
– herbs to taste

It may look small, but that’s a proper portion size. Your body adapts to the amount of food it’s getting in, so you just have to give it a bit of time, and you’ll be able to function properly off of small meals. You’ll lose a bit of weight as well, but if you make sure you have lean meat, plus not too many processed foods (tinned food, frozen ready meals), you’ll become much fitter and healthier in a very short period of time.

For any of you going to the Gym as well, you’ll notice a big different if you eat properly. Five or Six small meals a day (like the one mentioned above) will help your metabolism run smoother, and more efficiently – any Personal Trainer or Gym instructor worth their salt will also ask to have a look at the diet you have, and help improve it.

My Favorite Baking Shoes

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I’ve just prepared two loaves of bread. Because my heavy-duty mixer is off being repaired, I did it the old-fashioned way- by hand, kneading for half an hour, blasting Nirvana on the kitchen speakers to get my mind off the burning in my arms. My hands are sore, my back is aching- yet my legs and feet are surprisingly fine. Why? Because of these shoes:

These are the crocs Women’s Tully Clog (in “Mushroom/Dahlia” style) and they’re all I ever wear nowadays on baking days. No laces to tie, no clasps to do or undo, they slip on so easily I’m hardly aware of them- and, most importantly, soft, soft, soft.

I used to favor open-toed shoes, until I spilled one too many hot liquids on my feet. These are close-toed, but with little holes to ensure your feet stay cool in them. Plus, they’re much prettier, imho, than the regular “clown-y” looking Crocs. I’ll even admit that I’ve worn these out of the house a few times- to run to the grocery, or to grab an after-dinner Haagen-Dazs with the husband. The subdued color of this style means they don’t draw too much attention to themselves.

Do you wear special shoes for baking or cooking?

Guide to Storing Your Bread

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bread-slices

I don’t mean your cash (does anyone call it bread anymore, or am I dating myself?) – I mean, of course, your bread. I’ve been doing some experimental bread baking lately- despite being on a “low carb diet”- ha! – and the result is that I’ve had more wholewheat loaves and rolls of brioche than I know what to do with. Which brought me to researching on the best ways to store bread- and I share them with you here:

Rule #1: If at all possible, freeze it.
That’s right, baked bread is best stored in the freezer. You must wrap it properly, in cling wrap then a freezer bag or freezer-friendly container. This way, your bread will retain moisture, be free of mold, and most importantly, retain its flavor for as long as several weeks.

Rule #2: If you can’t freeze it, use a breadbox.
By “breadbox” I mean any clean, dry, ventilated container- you don’t have to run out and busy an expensive container emblazoned with the word “bread” on it- kept away from hot spots or appliances like your refrigerator or radiator. This is your best choice if, say, you want to have that bread you bought today for breakfast and maybe a sandwich snack tomorrow. It should last from a few days to several days this way, but really after 3-4 days you should be thinking about transferring it to the freezer anyway.

Rule #3: Don’t store it in the refrigerator.
Resist the urge to store your bread in the regular food compartments of your fridge. It may prevent mold from forming, but it’s also the quickest way to get your bread stale.

I like to store my sliced bread in the freezer, ready to go directly into the toaster or toaster oven.