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When I posted my home made mayo recipes a while back, a friend asked me for a ketchup recipe. It's been a little while coming, for which I am sorry, but here it is. Or rather, here they are, as I am posting a couple of options below. When first asked about a ketchup recipe, having only made it a couple of times before I took a look around other recipes and let the ideas percolate for a while (and got busy with work and potty training a toddler, among other things)... and then didn't get back to it right away. Yesterday was a very rainy day though, so I decided it was a good time to have something simmering away on the stove all afternoon (well, several somethings. We made yogurt, apple pectin, salted caramel ice cream, goat's cheese and burger buns too.) When checking different methods a while back, there was a debate on whether to use tomato passata and paste or chopped tomatoes (from a tin or fresh), so I decided to do both yesterday and see how they came out and which I liked best. I also used dried vs fresh garlic and onions in the two recipes. I therefore made two basic variants, and then tweaked, separated out portions and tried further variants through the afternoon. In the evening, having been informed by my Guinea pigs that the only way to truly test ketchup was with a burger and some fries, I made burgers with fresh buns and my sister brought down her fryer to make chips. Long story short, we tried four different ketchup variations yesterday, detailed below. We all liked all of them (and all ate a bit too much). So here they are. Ketchup One: Sharp and Bright Ingredients: 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil 800g tin of chopped tomatoes 1 onion, minced 4 small cloves garlic, crushed 1 tbsp dried oregano 2 1/2 tbsp sugar 3 tbsp red wine vinegar Salt and pepper to taste 1) Heat oil in a saucepan. Sweat the onions and garlic until soft, then add the oregano and cook for another minute. 2) Add other ingredients and cook for about 2 hours, stirring regularly, until thickened. Blitz until smooth and taste test, adjusting as necessary. Ketchup Two: Deep and Rich Ingredients: 3 c tomato passata 1 tbsp olive oil 1 tbsp dried onion 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder 2 1/2 tbsp sugar 3 tbsp red wine vinegar 1 tbsp dried oregano Salt and pepper to taste 1) Heat oil in a saucepan. Briefly fry the dried garlic, onion and oregano then add the passata, vinegar and sugar. 2) Bring to a low simmer and cook for about 2 hours, stirring regularly, until thickened and reduced to desired consistency. Taste test, adjusting accordingly. Ketchup Three: Sharp and Rich Ingredients: 3 c tomato passata 1 tbsp olive oil 1 tbsp dried onion 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder 2 1/2 tbsp sugar 3 tbsp red wine vinegar 1 1/2 tbsp apple cider vinegar 1 tbsp dried oregano Salt and pepper to taste 1) Heat oil in a saucepan. Briefly fry the dried garlic, onion and oregano then add the passata, vinegar and sugar. 2) Bring to a low simmer and cook for about 2 hours, stirring regularly, until thickened and reduced to desired consistency. Taste test, adjusting accordingly. Ketchup Four: Deep with a bite Ingredients: 3 c tomato passata 1 tbsp olive oil 1 tbsp dried onion 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder 2 1/2 tbsp sugar 3 tbsp red wine vinegar 1 tbsp dried oregano 1 tsp (or more) tandoori powder/paprika Salt and pepper to taste 1) Heat oil in a saucepan. Briefly fry the dried garlic, onion, oregano and tandoori, then add the passata, vinegar and sugar. 2) Bring to a low simmer and cook for about 2 hours, stirring regularly, until thickened and reduced to desired consistency. Taste test, adjusting accordingly. We enjoyed all four Ketchups enormously. Hubby declares he never wants to buy ketchup again. The four different ketchups all had great flavour, and all of them actually tasted like tomatoes. This was very easy to make, but it did require time spent in or near the kitchen to stir regularly. My favourites were probably One and Three. I made all of them using white sugar. Given that I was already comparing the effect of fresher ingredients vs passata and dried garlic and onions, a further variable I thought would muddy the waters, but I would like to try it with brown sugar at some point as well. I also intend on trying other tweaks, like different herbs or spices, different base vegetables, and tweaking the quantity of garlic etc. I'll keep you posted! And in the mean time, don't hesitate if you have questions, suggestions or ideas! NB: This ketchup is entirely natural. Sugar and vinegar are both to a certain extent preservatives, but not really in these quantities, so be aware that this won't keep as long in the fridge as commercial ketchup. I will see how mine does and let you know!

Looking into fenugreek a while back, I came across a description of it comparing fenugreek's taste to that of maple and the fact that fenugreek is sometimes used as a maple substitute. That gave me an idea. What about if I used fenugreek in something that often has maple syrup added to it, like pancakes. The idea niggled for a while until I finally tried it. The pancakes worked really well. They were missing a little richness to the maple flavour, but with butter or yogurt they were really tasty! Less sweet obviously, than adding maple syrup to a dish, and the flavour was more delicate, but very tasty. Ingredients: 1 1/2 c flour 2 1/2 tsp baking powder 1 tsp fenugreek powder 3 tbsp sugar 3 tbsp melted butter 2 eggs 3/4c milk 1) Combine dry ingredients, then gradually add wet ingredients. Add an additional splash of milk if necessary for the batter to be just thin enough to pour. 2) Melt butter in a skillet then cook the pancakes in two-tablespoon-dollops (or bigger if you want) over medium heat until bubbles appear and pop on the surface and it goes from shiny to matte, then flip. Serve hot with butter, jam, syrup or fruits. Or anything else you fancy. I really enjoyed these. They had a definite maple flavour but without added sugar. I enjoyed mine plain with butter, which gave them an extra richness that brought out the maple flavour. These are definitely coming back out! The only aspect I wasn't delighted with was the texture. They were a little heavier than usual, and I don't know if fenugreek requires a little additional liquid or rising agent, or if there was a mix-up somewhere. To be tried again I guess, and I will see. If you try them, let me know what you think!

I had heard of but never had Jerusalem artichokes (and had never even heard the French name for them, topinambours) until very recently when one of my neighbours gave me some. One of his colleagues had planted them and then had more than he knew what to do with. Historically, they were the survival food of France during rationing during WWII. Reading up on it, it turns out that it is the tuber of a relative of the sunflower and not related to artichokes at all. They are also not from Jerusalem but originally introduced to the Old World from the New in the 17th Century. The English name comes from a corruption of the Italian sunflower, "girasole". The French name, also a little strange, comes from the name of a Brazilian tribe who were part of an exposition in France at the same time as the introduction of the vegetable. They were also called "poires de terre", that is earth pears, in French early on, interesting as potatoes are earth apples. To look at they resemble ginger, and the bag I got of them was covered, unsurprisingly, in dirt. They are starchy and quite bland, but with an interesting tingle to their taste. We tried experimenting with them. This recipe, as conceived by Hubby and I together and carried out by Hubby, worked very well and was very tasty. The soup we made with the rest of them, a cream of Topinambours soup, needs a little work. It was good but... Ingredients: 4 Jerusalem artichokes, sliced 6-8 potatoes, sliced 1 onion, sliced 1 leek, sliced 1 c milk 1 c cream 2 - 3 tbsp breadcrumbs 100g cheese, grated (we used L'Etivaz) 2 tbsp chives Salt and pepper 1) Combine all veggie ingredients and chives with salt and pepper to taste, roughly layered in an oven proof dish. Pour the milk and cream over them to about the midline of the dish. Place on the hob and simmer gently for 10-15 minutes until the veg is beginning to cook. 2) Sprinkle cheese and breadcrumbs over the top, and grind extra pepper over it all. Bake eat 180°C for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. This was very tasty and it would be worth getting Jerusalem artichokes again if only for this! I need to work on the soup recipe a little, and also want to explore the Topinambours properties and possibilities further. If anyone has suggestions, let me know! It was sweet and creamy and savoury and rich all at once, with just that little extra tingle which sets aside the Jerusalem artichoke from the potato. A good comfort food, and a very nice variant on a regular gratin.

I have always loved both candied and chocolate-covered orange peel, but never tried making it. It was a treat whose makings were shrouded in mystery, and justly so, as something so delectable couldn't be within the realm of mere mortal cooks, but must be kept by master pastry chefs. And then a couple of weeks ago I saw a post on Instagram by Aleks @garlicrosemaryandsalt about trying to make it for the first time. Given that I already save a lot of our orange peel to dry for use as an ingredient in a few very select dishes (ahem almost everything I make), I thought I would give it a try too, and they worked beautifully. Some I sugared, some I covered in chocolate and some I left plain. Ingredients: Orange peel (I think I had about 3 oranges' worth, you can use more or less) cut into strips - I left the pith on but might trim it a little next time. Sugar - I used around 1/2 c for the syrup, and about 2 tbsp for the candying - use more if you like yours sweeter 100 g Chocolate - I used 64% cacao dark chocolate. Milk could be an interesting choice too 2 -3 tbsp milk 1) Place the (clean) orange peel in a saucepan with enough water to cover it and add sugar. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer for about an hour to an hour and a half until the orange peel begins to go almost translucent. 2) Remove and drain, spreading out on a baking sheet to dry overnight, turning occasionally. 3) Place the ones you want to candy in a jar with the sugar, seal and shake, coating them evenly. 4) For the chocolate-coated peels, place chocolate in a heat-proof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir regularly as the chocolate begins to melt. Add the milk as necessary to get the chocolate to melt smoothly. Dip strips of orange peel into the chocolate and lay on a baking tray covered with wax paper to dry. Place in fridge for an hour or so if necessary. All three methods are delicious. The ones I boiled but didn't coat remain acidic and tart, but without the bitterness and the edge taken off them. The sugared ones are candy, the chocolate ones melt together, the chocolate and orange melding seamlessly into a beautiful duo. Next time I might try a little spicing - some Aloha Spiced Cacao, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, salt or chilli flakes in the chocolate or sprinkled over the top. For a first try though I wanted to leave them simple, and I am glad I did. The candied ones, in addition to being excellent snack food, topped my Orange Chocolate Cake beautifully too! Book Pairing: When I made these, I was listening to Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov. I was right at the start of the book where, despite knowing vaguely what was going to happen, reinforced by some foreshadowing, I was still early enough in that it was possible to just enjoy the beauty of Nabokov's writing without being fully disgusted with the main character and the story as I was through the rest of the book. It is wonderfully written, but I can't for the life of me work out why it is something one should ever read! As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Paella is a recent addition to my repertoire. It has a reputation for being complicated, but I was recently shown an easy recipe by my sister. One of the beauties of it is its versatility (and the colours). It is not, as many think, a seafood dish with rice, but rather a rice dish, which can accommodate almost any taste or diet. This is quick and easy, but learning to make it also represented one of the things I cherish most about cooking, the sharing and exchange of ideas, knowledge and creativity, followed by a shared meal and lots of laughter. We used jasmine rice for this and it worked really well. Traditionally, one would use short grain Spanish rice, often marketed as paella rice. Don't use arborio rice though as we aren't looking for the glutinous texture of risotto but rather for the grains to stay separate. Ingredients: 2 tbsp olive oil 1 leek 1 onion 2 chorizo sausages 3 c of rice 4 1/2 c. chicken stock 2 1/2 tsp turmeric powder 10 strands of saffron, re-hydrated 1 c peas 400g shrimp Juice of one lemon 1) Heat the oil in a deep pan and add the onion and leek. Stir until they are translucent. Add the chorizo and allow it to render. 2) Pour rice in and coat it in the oils, stirring until it is translucent. Add spices, then stock. 3) Bring to a simmer. Stir occasionally, allowing the rice to absorb the liquid. Don't stir too much or too often though. As stated we don't want glutinous rice, and stirring will do that. Also, some crisping on the bottom is nice. :) 4) Add the peas, and then the shrimp. Allow to cook 5 more minutes, until shrimp are just opaque. Squirt with lemon juice, serve hot and enjoy! This paella pairs well with red wine too :) I really enjoyed cooking this and sharing it. The paella has a lovely deep flavour, a very well rounded profile. It is moist and yet has body. And bonus, it is quick, easy and has few dishes! It stands up well without seafood, with more seafood, with pork or chicken, or vegetarian. More vegetables like broccoli or spinach work well. It also reheats well if need be for packed lunches or simply enjoyed as left-overs.

We did a bunch of these with traditional fillings and then trialled something new with our last few crêpes The traditional ones were tasty, but the new ones had an added spark. They were somewhere between savoury and sweet, or savoury with a twist of sweet.

As mentioned in Day 77 of The Challenge These were experimental, and came out very well. I wanted bread to go with our lunch. But we were out of bread, so I was going to make baking powder biscuits. But I was out of butter, so I decided to make corn muffins, but then realised that I had used the last of the eggs and milk already. So I made corn muffins with what I had - Apple sauce and apple juice instead of the eggs and milk. They were a bit sweeter than normal, and a little moister, but they worked! Ingredients: 1 c flour 1 c cornmeal 2 1/2 tsp baking powder 1/4 c sugar 2 eggs 1/4 c sunflower oil 3/4 c apple juice 3/4 c apple sauce 1) Mix together the dry ingredients. Gradually add the wet ingredients, mixing well to prevent lumps. 2) Spoon into muffin cups or into a prepared cake tin. 3) Bake at 200°C for 25-30 minutes. These worked very well? They are certainly more sweet than savoury, and worked best with just butter, no jam or chutney really did justice or had its own justice done on these muffins, but they were tasty never-the-less. In future, I might use a little less apple sauce, and probably cut the sugar a little. Definitely worth a try for a bit of variety though!

macaroons, two orange date cookies and a freshly baked ginger snap Days 7 and 8 are cookies which are traditional

As mentioned in Day 39 of The Challenge Pancakes are an easy classic. For whatever reason we decided to have pancakes and bacon for dinner, but to give it a veneer of respectability we made the apple cinnamon pancakes. Ingredients: 1 1/2 c flour 2 1/2 tsp baking powder 3 tbsp sugar 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon 3 tbsp melted butter 2 eggs 3/4 - 1 c milk 1 apple, grated 1) Mix dry ingredients together in a bowl, then add wet ingredients one by one, mixing after each addition. 2) Melt butter in a heavy bottomed skillet, and drop a large spoonful of batter into the skillet. Wait until the bubbles have come to the top of each pancake and popped, then flip them. When the second side is golden brown, serve up. We had ours with bacon and maple syrup, quark and cinnamon sugar, and a fresh cheese on the side. I've never tried this before, and was happy with how they turned out. I highly recommend trying these, both with the apple and with the cheese, but step up the amount of apple. It was more prominent in the batter than in the cooked pancakes. It made a tasty, very adult dinner.

I love requests for the blog! This recipe is at the request of one of my cousins who was introducing his girlfriend to Cottage Pie for the first time. (Following a question recently: Cottage pie is made with beef, shepherd's pie with lamb. I like making it with pork too, which I guess is Swineherd's pie? Not sure what a chicken based one would be. Anyone?) No garlic in this one I am afraid as (shock, horror) I was out of garlic. Gasp! Normally I would have included about half a head. I use different veg every time. It depends on what is in on sale and what is in the fridge. Mushrooms and celery are also good, although not included in this particular one. I hadn't made a cottage pie in ages, and I don't think Little Bit had ever had it but it was a hit! Rich, moist and packed with flavour with a layer of creamy mash and melted cheese on top, it was perfect for a chilly March afternoon just above freezing with snow still on the ground. Ingredients: 1 tbsp olive oil 1 onion, finely chopped 3 carrots, chopped 1/2 - 3/4 c chopped celeriac 1 leek, chopped 500 g (ish) of ground beef 1 /2 tsp baking soda 1 c (ish) of tomato passata 1/2 - 1 c red cooking wine 1 tsp thyme 1 tsp cumin 1 tsp rosemary 1/2 tsp sumac 1/2 tsp Aloha Spiced Cacao 2 c - or more, my layer was a little scanty - mashed potatoes (given my eternal supplies of whey these days I mixed mine up with whey and butter, but normally I use milk.) 100g/ 1/2 - 1 c cheese, diced (I used raclette aux herbes) Salt and pepper to taste 1) Sprinkle the baking soda over the beef, mix it up well and leave it to sit while you start on other bits. The chemical reactions involved leave you with tenderer, juicier meat and without the puddle of grease. 2) Heat oil in a cast iron skillet (or a heavy frying pan). Sauté onions (and garlic if using) for a couple of minutes until just starting to soften then add in the carrot and celeriac. Allow these to cook for a few minutes, allowing some of the veg to brown a little. 3) Add the meat and mix thoroughly. Continue cooking until the meat has begun browning, then add the other ingredients except the mashed potato. Cook for about 5 more minutes, then taste test. 4) If you've cooked the meat mix in an iron skillet, then simply layer the potatoes over the top of the meat mix and scatter the diced cheese over the top. Place in a preheated oven at 200°C for 25-30 minutes, until the cheese is melty and bubbling and the meat juices have bubbled up. I had not had cottage pie in the longest time and am so happy that I had a request for this! This recipe, like many others, never comes out the same way twice, and I feel that this batch was particularly good. As with other favourite dishes, it's a good fridge clearer dish, where almost any veg in the fridge can go in to make this more interesting and bulk it out. Book Pairing: When I made this I was listening to Aldous Huxley's Crome Yellow (and took a trip out to see cows with Little Bit while it was in the oven). I really enjoyed the book, but it was not what I was expecting. Unlike the only other book of his that I have read, it was not futuristic and not a dystopia, just a little sad, a tale of unrequited love, (and strange characters) in a 1920s British manor house for the summer.