This was Hubby's birthday cake. It is an altered and adjusted version of the dark chocolate cake I grew up with, and it came out wonderfully. I was experimenting with making candied orange peel, so the peels themselves and the syrup from making them were used. Two additional oranges were slaughtered in the making of this cake, both semi-blood oranges. This is also one of the most elaborate cake decorations I've tried, and I was quite pleased with it. Ingredients: For the cake: 1/2 c butter 1/2 + 2 tbsp sunflower seed oil 6 tbsp cacao powder 1 1/4- 1 1/2 c orange juice 2 c flour 1 tsp baking soda 2 c sugar 1 tsp cinnamon 1/2 c sour milk (milk + 1 tsp vinegar) 2 eggs 2 tsp dried orange peel For the frosting: 1/3 c soft butter 1/3 c cream cheese 1/4 c powdered sugar 1/2 c (or more) cacao powder 1 tsp cinnamon 1/4 tsp cloves 1/2 tsp Aloha Chilli Spiced Cacao 1/2 c orange syrup (or orange juice and increase the amount of powdered sugar to taste) 1/4 c milk 1 Tbsp orange zest Slices of candied orange peel (optional) 1) Melt butter in a small saucepan with oil, cacao and orange juice. 2) Mix dry ingredients, then gradually add milk, vanilla and eggs. Stir in the chocolate mix. 3) Prepare two cake pans and pour the batter into them. Bake 25-30 minutes at 165°C. 4) Cream together the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Gradually beat in the other ingredients, taste testing regularly and adjusting accordingly. If necessary, add a little more orange juice, or some milk for creaminess. Adjust spicing to taste too! 5) Allow both halves of the cake to cool thoroughly before frosting. Sprinkle with orange zest and candied orange slices. Optionally, boil a few orange slices in a syrup until the water cooks off and they begin to caramelise, and arrange on top or the cake. Rich and sweet, both the chocolate and orange came through. This cake was very tasty, and I am glad I already had started on the candied orange peel as the syrup really added to the frosting, and the candied pieces themselves really added to the cake. It was Little Bit's first time trying chocolate cake, and he was a bit disappointed originally that I was offering him this instead of a rice cake (the only other cake he's ever had). He was quickly converted though! Happy Birthday Hubby!

As for many people, Macaroni and Cheese is a comfort food. I've grown up with it and don't usually mess with it too much. I do like adding different vegetables to it though, cutting down on the carbs and cheese with a little bit of extra green. Spinach and broccoli are particular favourites. Making it the other day though, I realised that I was out of white cooking wine for the roux. I had already planned on adding pumpkin and apple to the mix, so decided to go all out and make the roux using apple sauce. Unfortunately I also was low on cheese (no points for advance planning and preparation!) so it was under-cheesed, but aside from that, the seasonal twist worked really well! Ingredients: 1kg spiralli pasta 2-3 c pumpkin, chopped 1 onion, chopped 3 apples, chopped 2 tbsp butter For the roux: 3 tbsp butter 3 tbsp flour 1 1/2 - 2 c milk 1 1/2 c apple sauce 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar 3ish c cheese, grated 1 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp Aloha Spiced Cacao 1 1/2 tsp Pul Biber 1/2tsp sumac 2 tsp dried orange peel Pepper to taste 1) Boil the pasta until almost al dente. Place pumpkin, onion, apple and butter in a baking dish and roast at 180°C while prepping the rest of the ingredients. Check and stir occasionally. 2) In a saucepan, melt butter. Stir in flour to make a paste. Add milk gradually, stirring well after each addition (adding it too fast will lead to a lumpy sauce). 3) When all the milk has been incorporated, add the apple sauce and start incorporating the cheese bit by bit. Add the vinegar (even a splash more if necessary to get a smooth sauce) and the spices. 4) When all the cheese is melted, taste test, then mix the pasta, veg and sauce together in a casserole dish. Bake at 180°C for 35 - 45 minutes, until browned and crisped on top to your liking. I love this variation on macaroni and cheese. It could do with a little improvement next time though. I needed more cheese, and although it looked like I had masses of veg when I put it in to roast, I think it could do with more. I would aim for equal parts pasta and veg next time. We had it meatless this time, but it could work really well with some little bits of bacon. Otherwise, though, I was delighted with the texture of the sauce and the flavours of the dish as a whole. The boys loved it too, which is always important!

I started making my own apple pectin last year, and have used it a couple of times for jellies (like my Lemon and Ginger Chilli Jelly). Apple pectin is entirely naturally occurring in apples, and in the presence of sugar, it helps gel things. I wondered if it would be possible to use pectin instead of gelatine in other things, like Panna Cotta. I do like panna cotta and like playing around with flavours for it occasionally (like my lemon-topped one, or my savoury lemongrass and coconut one!). I was a little worried that the pectin would both flavour and colour the panna cotta as it is a pink colour. As for the flavour, I decided to run with it and pair it with applesauce. The idea has been bouncing around for a little while and I finally decided to try it. Recipe Cook time: 20-30 minutes + chill time 4 hours to overnight -- Portions: 4 -- Difficulty: Easy Ingredients: 2c cream 2 c apple pectin 3 tbsp brown sugar 1 c apple sauce 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp allspice 1) Pour cream and pectin into a saucepan and heat slowly. Stir in sugar. Bring to a slow simmer and cook for about 15 minutes. 2) Mix the cinnamon and allspice into the applesauce and spoon it into the bottom of 4 or 5 glasses. Gently pour the cream mixture over the top of the apple sauce and chill overnight in the fridge. This worked. Ish. Better than I had feared but not as well as I had hoped. I initially started with 1 c pectin, but while the cream did thicken, it didn't gel. I poured it all (apple sauce included as I couldn't seem to get just the cream) back into a saucepan, and added the third tablespoon of sugar and another cup of pectin. I cooked it again and chilled it again. This time it worked! The cream was the right consistency for panna cotta, and absolutely delicious, with little bits of apple and lots of spice caught in it. The only problem was that the cream was a solid layer on top of a layer of juice. I don't know if it was from the apple sauce or from the pectin, or a little of each, but as soon as we started eating the panna cotta, the juice seeped up and mixed with the cream, and it was all a liquidy mess. Next time, I think I need to reduce both the apple sauce and the pectin a bit further to prevent that. It was still tasty though! So very tasty! Science experiment successful though. Pectin works to gel things other than jellies, as a replacement for gelatine. With some caveats! The other issue with using homemade pectin, scientifically speaking, is that it is not going to be a uniform strength. What took 2 cups of pectin this time might take 1 1/2 or 3 next time, there is no real way to know... I guess I will just have to play that one by ear. Luckily, that is how most of my cooking happens, so I'm ok with that. Also, it didn't turn pink, but was a little coloured by the spices. I will have to try this one again, with reduced ingredients, to see how it goes then. Served in little glasses, I think this could work quite nicely as a party food!

As mentioned in Day 48 of The Challenge This is very definitely a comfort food. It is super simple but you just have to have the patience to stir for about 45 minutes. I like mine sweet, but not super sweet. Feel free to add more sugar though if you feel it needs it for you. It is also very easy to vary the flavouring depending on what you are in the mood for by changing what goes into the pudding. At its core, it is short grain rice, milk and a little sugar. I almost always add raisins too. Beyond that, you can add brown sugar, jam, spices or apple sauce. The possibilities are endless! Toppings like toasted slivered almonds add a contrasting texture. As with the flavours, toppings are up to you. Ingredients: 1 tbsp butter 1 c short grain rice 1/2 c raisin 4 - 4 1/2 c milk 1/2 - 1 c sugar 1/4 tsp cloves 1/4 tsp fresh nutmeg 1 - 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon 1) Melt the butter in a saucepan and add the rice. Stir briefly then allow the rice to go transparent in the butter. 2) Once the grains are transparent, add the other ingredients and stir. It will take about 45 minutes for the rice to absorb all the liquid and to thicken to a pudding. Serve it up and add any toppings you want! I grew up having this only after trips to see my German grandparents when we would pick up the special rice for Milchreis. It was and is a once in a blue moon dessert, but I love it!

I love my morning porridge, and the Baked Porridge we've been having recently has been very tasty, but once in a while it's nice to switch it up. I don't tend to buy breakfast cereals because the sugar content is through the roof, and instead decided to make my own granola. It's been ages since I last did it, but I am rather pleased with how this came out. Little Bit and I were snacking on it dry when it came out of the oven, and it's been a hit for breakfast in yogurt. The clumps are quite small, but if you want them bigger, just add more of the molasses. Ingredients: 2 c oats 1/2 c almonds, finely chopped 1/3 c walnuts, finely chopped 3 tbsp chia seeds 1/2 c hazelnuts, finely chopped 1/4 c pine nuts, chopped 3/4 - 1 c tahini 1/4 c raisin molasses 1) Mix all ingredients together on a baking tray. Bake at 170°C for 30-45 minutes until toasted and golden brown. Allow to cool and then serve with milk, yogurt or plain. The raisin molasses hadn't been the plan, but I picked it up in the Turkish grocery story strapped to the tahini as though they belong together, so when I put the tahini in, I figured that the raisin molasses might as well follow. It is not too sweet and has a relatively light flavour. I quite enjoy the combo and think it came out well in this, but the granola could work well with honey instead. I plan on playing around a little with different combinations over the next few months for different granolas, so stay tuned!

before New Year, but for Science, it was necessary to make a control batch of these using the more traditional

As mentioned in Day 18 of The Challenge As it was plum season, we somehow managed to buy several kilos of plums in a very short time period. In addition to eating them plain, they made their way into a variety of dishes. The plum jam was one batch, then the next day, starting with plums, apples and ginger in one pot, I split the jam and the chutney into 2 separate batches after passing it through the food mill. Play around with the sugar and spicing. I like my jam more fruity and less sweet. The compromise there though is that then it may be a little runnier, but I'll take it. If you like your jam sweeter or more gelled, add more sugar. Boiling for longer will also firm up the jam a little. Just be careful you don't boil it too long! One batch of marmalade I made a few years ago ended up a bit caramelised as the door bell rang just before it was ready. Plum Jam Ingredients: 2 kg of plums, halved and pitted 750g sugar 2 tbsp dried orange peel 1 cinnamon stick 2 tsp ground cloves 2 c water 1) Place plums in a heavy bottomed pan. Add water and bring to a simmer. Stir in other ingredients. Put a saucer in the freezer. 2) Stir occasionally to prevent the jam from sticking. As it thickens you'll need to stir more consistently. 3) Taste test to check for sugar and spicing. I go light on sugar, you might want to use more. 4) Drop some of the hot jam 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). 5) To sterilize jars: boil clean jars and their lids for at least 15 minutes. Fill them with the boiling jam 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. ) Plum and Apple Jam: Ingredients: 1 kg of plums 3 apples 1 large knob of ginger, peeled and minced or cut into julienne strips 4 cloves (2 tsp of ground cinnamon or 1 cinnamon stick. I didn't as I wanted this jam sufficiently different from the plum jam I had made the day before, but it works both ways) 500 g brown sugar 1) Place plums and apples in a heavy bottomed pan. Add water and bring to a simmer. Put a saucer in the freezer. 2) Stir occasionally to prevent the jam from sticking. As it thickens you'll need to stir more consistently. 3) Once the apples are soft, strain the jam through a food mill or push through a strainer. You can then either keep the skins and the pulp, as I did, or toss it and have jelly instead. Personally, I like the bits. 4) Stir in other ingredients and simmer for 10 minutes. Taste test to check for sugar and spicing (I tend to go easy on the sugar, so you might want to use more.) 5) Drop some of the hot jam 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). 6) To sterilize jars: boil clean jars and their lids for at least 15 minutes. Fill them with the boiling jam 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.) Plum and Apple Chutney: Ingredients: 1 kg of plums 3 apples 1 large knob of ginger, peeled and minced or cut into julienne strips 2 red onions, minced 2 red chillies 1/2 c apple cider vinegar 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar 1 c brown sugar 1) Place plums and apples in a heavy bottomed pan. Add water and bring to a simmer. Put a saucer in the freezer. 2) Stir occasionally to prevent the jam from sticking. As it thickens you'll need to stir more consistently. 3) Once the apples are soft, strain the jam through a food mill or push through a strainer. Add the pulp and the peels to the strained fruit. 4) Stir in other ingredients and simmer for 10 minutes. Taste test to check for sugar and spicing. 5) 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). 6) 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.) In my experience, these keep for several years if properly sealed. These batches all came out very well. My husband swore that each successive one was the best I'd ever made and then declared that he couldn't choose a winner. We always have far too much jam as I can't resist buying home-made jam at farmstalls, and I make some every year, but it is like money in the bank. With jam in the cupboard, breakfasts are safe for a while to come! Jam is so tasty stirred into porridge, spread on bread, waffles, pancakes or used in cooking... I'm also enjoying taking advantage of fruits in season as the appear.

Served up as a chicken melt. About a year ago, I made some of my own vinegars. After leaving them to age for a while to allow the flavours to develop, I started trying to think of ways to use them. I've used a number of them in different things (I used my apple and rosehip vinegar in my Black Pudding and Pumpkin Pie, and I used some of my lemon vinegar in the Creamy Lemon Pasta for example). An idea I had a while back was to use the rosehip vinegar in a homemade mayo and then to use that mayo as the flavour base for a chicken salad. It took a while but I finally got around to it. And I'm glad I did, too. It was nice to make my own mayo again after a bit of a hiatus since making my other ones. You could use apple cider vinegar instead of the rosehip vinegar for an easy swap. Recipe Cook Time: approx. 1 hour -- Portions: 4-6 -- Cooking Level: Easy Ingredients: for the mayo: 1 egg yolk 3/4 c rapeseed oil 3 tbsp rosehip vinegar 1 tsp mustard (preferably whole grain) pinch of sumac salt to taste For the chicken salad: 2 c shredded leftover roast chicken 2 celery sticks, diced 2 1/2- 3 tbsp rosehip mayo 3-4 tbsp yoghurt 1 tsp mustard 1 spring onion, dicced 1/2c raisins For the melts: butter, toast, grated cheese to top, urfa biber 1) Place the egg yolk in a small bowl and beat with a whisk. Then, very gradually, whisk in the oil, a few drops at a time to begin with. You can go a bit faster once it begins to emulsify. As it thickens, add the vinegar. Once all the oil is incorporated, stir in the mustard (I used some of my homemade wholegrain mustard) and the salt and sumac. Set aside. 2) In a large bowl, place the shredded chicken, then mix in the other ingredients. For the Chicken melts: Butter a cast iron skillet, then arrange pieces of toast on the bottom. Spoon chicken salad on top, sprinkle with grated cheese and urfa biber. Bake at 180°C until the cheese is melted and beginning to brown, 10-15 minutes. I was really pleased with these. They made a relatively quick and very easy dinner to assemble. Trying to juggle Little Bit and Littler Bit's schedules, I made the mayo and the chicken salad ahead of time, then the melts were extremely quick and easy when we got home. The flavour of the rosehip vinegar worked in the mayo, but was less pronounced than I would have liked it, and even less so in the chicken salad. As a whole though, the flavours were delightfully balanced. The mayo, yoghurt and cheese do produce a rather rich meal, but in my defence, temperatures outside were decidedly negative and we had been out rolling in the snow. Swaps and substitutions: If need be, it would work equally well with leftover turkey. Use apple cider vinegar instead of the homemade one, or in a pinch, use a pre-made mayo. Skip the raisins and toast to make it keto-friendly, or use gluten-free toast for a gluten-free meal. Instead of Urfa Biber, use your favourite tandoori or paprika to sprinkle over the top. Leftover cabbage in the fridge? Slice some thinly and use that instead of the celery. Book Pairing: While mixing the mayo, I was listening to Adam Kay's This is Going to Hurt, all about his time in the NHS. Having worked in the NHS just after he left, it did bring back some memories, some good, some bad. Nurses had it easier than junior doctors at that point, so my experiences were quite different, but many experiences resonated, from idiots in A&E, especially on a Friday night (looking at you Glasgow), to the unavoidable, or even worse, the avoidable deaths. It was entertainingly written for the most part, and I did enjoy it, but it was bittersweet. I do definitely recommend it if you feel you don't understand why nurses and doctors have been striking in UK.

As mentioned in Day 21 of The Challenge Growing up, my dad made jambalaya a lot. I have never been to the South of the US, never been to New Orelans or had true creole food, but jambalaya is a comfort food for me, a childhood flavour. I have no idea how close mine approximates a true jambalaya, call it a faux jambalaya if you want, but it is tasty and filling, with few dishes and a warming flavour hitting all the right notes. It can be meaty or fishy or both, always with a bunch of vegetables. I cheated for this one and used the last of my homemade Thai red curry paste as it needed using. Ingredients: 1 spicy sausage, sliced (I used Turkish Suçuk) 2 pieces of chicken per person 2 tbsp olive oil 4 prawns per person, shelled and veined 6 medium onions, roughly chopped 2 heads of garlic, chopped 3 tbsp Thai red curry paste 2 red peppers, chopped 3 celery stalks, chopped 1 courgette, chopped a dozen okra, chopped Hot peppers - as many or as few as you like depending on taste and which ones you have. I used 5 or 6 little ones of medium heat 2 cups of rice (we used a wild rice mix for this) 1 cup red cooking wine 4 cups broth 2 stalks fresh thyme 2 stalks fresh oregano 2 tsp cayenne pepper (or sometimes I substitute tandoori powder as it has a different heat and a warmth to it) 1 tsp cumin salt and pepper to taste. 1) Brown the chicken pieces and sausage in the oil in a heavy bottomed pan. Grind pepper over it while it cooks, add salt if you are going to, and add cayenne and cumin. Set aside. 2) Cook onions and garlic in the oil and sausage fats. When they change colour, add the curry paste and stir for a few minutes. Add the rest of the vegetables and allow them to start to soften slightly. 3) Add the cooking wine and cook further before adding the rice. (This allows the acid in the wine to react with the okra so they don't turn slimy). Stir until the rice turns translucent and add the broth. Stir the chicken and sausage back in, allowing them to cook alongside the rice, absorbing all the flavours now bubbling away. 4) Cook approximately 20 minutes until the rice is cooked and the liquid almost entirely absorbed. Tuck the shrimp into the rice 5 minutes before you are ready to serve and cook until they are just opaque. 5) Serve it hot, on its own, with mustard or hot sauce. Jambalaya is one of those dishes which never comes out the same way twice for me. The general lines of the dish are there, but the exact flavouring and final product depend on what meat and/or seafood I am in the mood for, what veg I have at home and what the sniff test around my spice cupboard reveals which might be of interest.... Play around with it, use whatever veg or meat you want, and tweak the spicing to suit you. Have fun!

Späztle is another traditional Swiss and German food that I grew up with. In this case though, I cooked them in another traditional dish, Käsespätzle, where they are mixed with