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Challenge Update: The last 10 days have been busy with a wedding, and friends we haven't seen in a while, a move up to the mountains and back down. Some days have involved leftover dinner with a more interesting dessert, like Spiced Rice Pudding (I was in the mood for creamy stodgy goodness!), others had more interesting lunches, with Carrot and Sage Soup or Tomato Tart, while for others dinner was the star, with Miso Fried Rice, Shrimp and Veggie Stir Fry, Lemon and Garlic Chicken over Polenta, or a Catherine Wheel toad-in-the-hole with stuffed squash, and Roasted Veg with Baked Savoury Pancakes. A couple nights we ate out or were cooked for by others. I also made Green Tomato Chutney to save the last of our home grown tomatoes from the first frost.

As mentioned in Day 54 of The Challenge I planted a bunch of tomatoes this year by putting sliced tomato under a thin layer of earth. I ended up with 19 tomato plants on my little balcony. Because of how late they sprouted, we only had a few ripe tomatoes from them. The rest were growing nicely but didn't get the chance to ripen. With the first frost predicted, we harvested them and my dad's remaining green tomatoes and turned them into chutney to avoid having them go to waste. I had never tried this before but was quite pleased with how it came out! Ingredients: 2.5 - 3 kg of unripe tomatoes 3 cooking apples, cored and chopped 3 onions, chopped 1 1/2 c raisins 1 c red wine vinegar 1 1/2 c white cooking wine 1 1/2 - 2 c brown sugar 2 tsp ground ginger 2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg 2 tsp ground cinnamon 1 tbsp chilli flakes ( I used pul biber, Turkish red chilies) 1) Stew the tomatoes, apples and onions in a little water until they disintegrate. Add raisins, sugar and vinegar, then the spices and cook over a low heat. Place a saucer in the freezer. 2) Stir occasionally to prevent the chutney from sticking. As it thickens you'll need to stir more consistently. Taste test to check for sugar and spicing, and feel free to tweak to your taste! 3) Drop some of the hot chutney on the saucer from the freezer. If after a minute if starts to solidify and the top wrinkles and pulls tight, it should gel nicely once cool. If not, then boil it a bit longer or add sugar (or both). 4) To sterilize jars: boil clean jars and their lids for at least 15 minutes. Fill them with the boiling chutney immediately on removing them from the boiling water (canning tongs make this so much easier and makes it less likely that you'll burn yourself, but you can do it with a spoon or a spatula and a dish cloth). Fill to just below the rim, wipe the grooves clean and screw the lid on tight. As the jars and contents cool, the centre of the lid should be sucked down and the jars will be sealed properly. Place the jars upside down on a clean cloth. Label when cool. (The part about putting them upside down is from my German Oma, I don't know what's behind it but it works.) This chutney was a little on the sweet side, which I hadn't expected. There was a slight bitterness to the after taste when it was hot that I tried to compensate for. It is not overly sweet and still has the sour, spiced chutney notes, no more bitterness. It is very tasty, especially with the baked pancakes! I highly recommend this if you have green tomatoes you don't want to spoil!

As mentioned in Day 45 of The Challenge This is a recipe I haven't made in a long time, and it is always slightly different. It is a little involved, with multiple steps and three different parts that then need to be assembled, but it is tasty and warming. It is easily varied by putting different twists on the flavouring or tweaking the sauce or the filling. This time we did a tomato and lentil filling and a spinach cream sauce. I then sprinkled it with breadcrumbs and cheese before baking it. The flavourings were warm spices rather than herbs or sharp. It came out beautifully balanced and tasty - a big favourite especially with Little Bit. Ingredients: For the Crêpes: 1 c flour 2 eggs 1 - 1 1/4 c milk For the filling: 1 onion, chopped 1 tbsp olive oil 200g tin of tomatoes 1/2 c tomato passata 3/4 c green lentils 1 c celery, chopped 1 tsp cinnamon 1/4 tsp cloves 1/2 tsp allspice 1 tsp garam masala 3/4 c red cooking wine For the cream sauce: 2 tbsp butter 2tbsp flour 1 1/2 c milk 1/2 c spinach 1 tsp grated nutmeg 2 tbsp breadcrumbs 2 -3 tbsp grated parmesan salt and pepper to taste 1) Mix the ingredients for the crêpe batter. Add liquids to the flour slowly, beating thoroughly to avoid lumps. 2) Grease a crêpe pan, and pour 2 tbsp of batter into the pan. Tilt the pan to spread it and allow the first side to cook. When it lifts cleanly and easily, flip the crêpe. Cook for a further couple of minutes and then remove. Repeat until the batter is all cooked. Adjust the batter after the first one by adding a little milk if it seems to thick to spread out thinly. 3) Meanwhile, heat oil in a saucepan and sauté the onion until translucent. Add the other ingredients and simmer until lentils are tender. 4) In another sauce pan, melt butter. Stir in the flour and then gradually add milk, stirring to avoid lumping. Add in the spinach and nutmeg and cook until it is the right consistency. Again, add milk as needed if it is too thick. Salt and pepper to taste. 5) Grease an oven proof dish. Carefully place 2-3 tbsp of filling along the centre line of each crêpe then roll it up. Line up the crêpes in the oven proof dish until there is no more space. Add any extra filling at the feet of the crêpe rolls to fill the dish. 6) Spoon sauce over the crêpes and sprinkle breadcrumbs and cheese over the top. Grind pepper over the whole, and bake 25-30 minutes at 180°C. Serve hot. Hot filling and comfort foody while being healthy and not too heavy. Perfect for a rainy autumnal evening!

As Mentioned in Day 42 of The Challenge We made baking powder biscuits ( sort of non-sweet scones, very tasty if not strongly flavoured despite the unflattering name) for our Pork Shoulder Roast, and then decided to have the rest for dessert with a blueberry and port sauce and a chocolate sauce. It was very tasty, with the sauce melting the dollop of crème fraiche over the top, although possible not strictly speaking necessary after the pork roast. A beautiful way altogether of celebrating our last night of holiday before going back to work. Ingredients: For the biscuits: 2c flour 4 tbsp butter 2/3 c milk 2 tsp baking powder For the Blueberry Port Sauce: 2 c blueberries 2 tbsp sugar 1 tsp cinnamon 1/4 c ruby port 1) Mix the flour and baking powder together and then cut the butter into the flour in small pieces. Rub the butter into the flour with fingertips until it forms a crumby dough. 2) Add milk and mix it into a light, soft dough, then knead briefly until smooth. 3) Roll the dough out to 1-1.5 cm thick on a floured surface. Cut with a floured cutter or glass into rounds and place these on a greased baking sheet, leaving a little room for the biscuits to expand. Bake 12-15 minutes at 230°C, until golden brown on top and risen. 4) To make the blueberry and port sauce, place berries in a saucepan with 1/4 c water. bring to a simmer, and cook gently for 10 minutes or so. Add the sugar, cinnamon and port and stir, cooking until the desired consistency is reached. Taste test and adjust sugar or spicing. 6) Serve the biscuits hot with the sauce drizzled over and a dollop of crème fraiche. Decadent but quick and easy, this was beautiful for a lazy evening.

Challenge Update: Before leaving I had some pumpkin and some chanterelles to use up, so we had a Chanterelle and Pumpkin Risotto. We got back from holiday on day 38 with plenty of new ideas and inspiration. It was already chestnut season when we got there so I got the itch and had to make some Chestnut Soup when we got back. We had a couple of breakfast for dinner days (because we are so good at adulting), like Apple Cinnamon Pancakes and Savoury French Toast using our Nettle Pesto Bloomer loaf. With the weather definitely turning colder (there is fresh snow on the peaks around us) we opted for some warm flavoured, thicker soups for lunches, like Pea Soup and Borscht. Throughout the week we had some old favourites, like Lentil Filled Crêpes with a Spinach Sauce, and some experimental recipes, some quick easy meals, like the Vegetable Tagine, and some more involved ones like Pumpkin Pasta with Nettle Pesto, and a few left-over nights. There was one nice Pork Shoulder Roast with cider and apples, and a Pasta al Olio al Aglio with fresh Basil. The baking powder biscuits that we made to soak up pork juices turned into dessert with a Blueberry Port Sauce. Overall it was a well-balanced week, and delightful to get back to the kitchen after a week in restaurants with the accompanying menu fatigue.

As mentioned in Day 41 of The Challenge Vegetables stewed with prunes and warm (rather than hot) spices served over couscous. What better for a rainy autumn afternoon? Especially not knowing how well the friend coming to lunch tolerates spice... Ingredients: 3 red onions, chopped 2 tomatoes , diced 3 carrots, chopped Half a head of garlic, sliced 6 celery sticks, chopped 400g chickpeas 400ml vegetable broth 1/2 c tomato passata 100 g prunes, pitted and chopped (or apricots could work) 1 cinnamon stick 1/2 tsp ground cumin 2 tsp tandoori powder (I like the light heat and the warmth of this spice, but you can use paprika if you'd rather) 1 tsp of Aloha Spiced Cacao (or cocoa powder) 3 tsp urfa biber or chilli flakes Salt and pepper to taste 1) Put a heavy oven proof dish in the oven without its lid, and heat to 180°C. 2) Chop your veg and add to the preheated dish. Add spices and stock, replace in the oven and allow to cook 1 - 1 1/4 hours until vegetables are almost tender (I like the carrots and celery to have a little bite left) and flavours have blended. Taste test and serve over couscous. Super simple, tasty and easily adapted to different veg, chicken or different levels of spice. It diffuses a lovely smell through the house, and on a cold afternoon warms you from the inside.

As mentioned in Day 42 of The Challenge I love chestnuts and always have. They are a marker of the season. I used to only get them at Christmas markets in little paper cones, roasted and so hot that you burn your fingers trying to peel them. And then I discovered that you could buy them and roast them at home, and even cook with them. It isn't quite chestnut season yet, although it was last week in the southern part of the country and it got me hankering for some chestnuts. This is a soup that I first tried out of my Taste of Portugal cookbook by Edite Viera, and then at a friends' place for a St Martin's Day dinner, and I loved it. The recipe from my cookbook I found at once too bland and starchy though, so I have played around since, and was very happy with today's soup! Ingredients: 1 Tbsp olive oil 1 red onion, chopped 1 white onion, chopped 2 carrots, chopped 1 celery stick, chopped Half a head of garlic, chopped 750g chestnuts (as they aren't quite in season yet, I used frozen ones) 1 tsp thyme 1 c chicken stock 2 c milk 1/2 c lemon juice 1 tsp urfa biber per bowl chives for sprinkling Salt and pepper to taste 1) Sauté onions briefly in oil in a soup pot. Add other veg and sauté for a few minutes more, allowing the veg to char a little. 2) Add a small amount of water (approximately 1/2c) and add the chestnuts. I allowed them to cook like this in the water until it had cooked off then, waited a few minutes before adding more liquid. This allowed the chestnuts to roast a little, releasing a delicious flavour reminiscent of cold hands and paper cones in Christmas markets. 3) Add thyme and salt and pepper, stir then add the stock and milk. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 30 minutes. 4) When the vegetables and chestnuts are tender, blend until smooth and velvety. Add the lemon juice and dish into bowls, garnishing with chives and urfa. This soup is silky smooth and velvety. It had just the right starch and sweetness, balanced by the deeper notes of the garlic and urfa and rounded out by the veg and the lemon juice. It is filling, so if you plan on serving this as a starter, ladle up small portions or people won't be hungry for the next course! Perfect as a lunch though. It pairs well with crispy bacon crumbled over the top or with bread on the side, but works perfectly well without either.

As mentioned in Day 40 of The Challenge This was an experiment. We have made the bloomer before, but as it requires you to roll out the dough into a rectangle the roll it up into a loaf, we decided to try it with nettle pesto spread on it. With black sesame seeds sprinkled on top it was a tasty snack but might need some tweaking. Certainly an idea to pursue though. Ingredients: 6 c flour 15 g cake of yeast 1 tsp sugar 1 1/5 -2 c lukewarm water 1/2 c pesto/nettle pesto 2 tsp salt water 2 tsp black sesame seeds 1) Dissolve yeast and sugar in the lukewarm water. Place flour in a bowl and make a well in it. Pour in the yeast and water mixture and gradually incorporate the flour into it. 2) Knead the dough for about 10 minutes to form a smooth elastic but heavy dough. Leave to rise covered with oiled cling film in a warm place for 4-5hours or until doubled in size. 3) Knock back and then knead for 5 minutes then leave to rise for 2 hours again, until doubled in size again. 4) Knead briefly, then roll out into a rectangular sheet about 1/2 cm thick. spread pesto on it up to 3 cm from the edge, then roll into a loaf. Preheat the oven to 230°C. 5) Leave to rise again for a half hour, and then seal the edges. Brush the top of the loaf with salt water and sprinkle the sesame seeds over the top. Cut slashes into the top of the loaf. 6) Bake the loaf on an oiled baking tray for 25 minutes then lower the temperature to 200°C and bake for a further 20 minutes. This was tasty, and an interesting idea, but the nettle pesto had too strong a flavour for the bread. It was better once the bread had cooled and the pesto's flavour had mellowed. The bread itself is tasty, but the pesto spread idea needs tweaking. Maybe a regular basil pesto, or a red pesto? PS: We used some of this loaf to make a savoury pesto bloomer French toast for dinner with kale and onion salad and some cheese and it worked surprisingly well. I do recommend trying this. This was the first time I've made a savoury French toast, but I will do so again! We had it with various condiments, both sweet and savoury, ranging from maple syrup and rhubarb jam to BBQ sauce and mustard, and they all worked delightfully well. If you try the bloomer, I do recommend trying out the French toast as well!

As mentioned in Day 39 of The Challenge We haven't had this one in a while, but the local farmer we frequent had beets again so with autumn cool coming on, this was the perfect choice. Ingredients: 4 large beets, chopped 3 carrots, chopped 2 onions, chopped 3 potatoes, chopped 1 tbsp olive oil 1 litre of beef stock 1 c apple cider vinegar 2 tsp thyme salt and pepper to taste 1-2 tsp sour cream per serving 1) Heat oil in a large soup pot and sauté onions until translucent. Add carrots, potatoes and beets. Stir allowing them to sauté for about 5 minutes. 2) Pour in broth and cider, just to a little over the level of the vegetables and add seasoning. 3) Simmer until the root vegetables are tender, then blend to desired smoothness. i like it almost fully blended, but it is also good chunky. 4) Taste test and adjust vinegar or seasoning. Serve hot with a dollop of sour cream. Not too heavy, but warming and autumnal, with a rich colour and rich flavour highlighted by a vinegary tang, I love borscht.

As mentioned in Day 38 of The Challenge This can be vegetarian, as this was, or with ham and bacon, but either way it's tasty and satisfying, while also being easy and quick to assemble. Ingredients: 2 c peas 1 tbsp olive oil 2 onions, chopped 4 potatoes, chopped 2 carrots chopped. 2 tbsp lemon Salt and pepper to taste 1) Sauté onions in oil in a saucepan. Add potatoes and carrots and sauté for a minute longer, then add the peas and enough water to cover the veg. 2) Bring to a simmer and cook until the potatoes and carrots are tender. Blitz to desired smoothness. 3) Serve into bowls and drizzle the lemon juice over the top and season as desired. Simple and satisfying especially served with crusty bread and some cheese.