Mince pie milkshake

Not sure how my friend Tim Ward came up with this milkshake. Perhaps it was a rouse to get rid of the post Christmas mince pie glut. Or maybe he was making a shake and thought 'why not, it's Christmas'.

Either way, blending milk with mince pies creates a delicious festive drink. And it's a great way to use up Christmas left overs. (I don't think it would work with sprouts though).

The addition of brandy and/or rum also makes a winter drinks party cocktail to rival eggnog.

How I made it*

1. Use one mince pie and half a pint of full fat milk per person. 
2. Liquidise to form a shake. 

Variations

1. Add a shot of brandy or rum.
2. Swap double cream with milk and then freeze to create mince pie ice cream.
3. Swap Christmas pud with mince pie to create a Christmas pudding milk shake. 

Marmite and peanut butter on toast

For anyone wondering if Marmite with peanut butter on toast works: it does.

Since my good friend James told me about this I keep encountering people (particularly children) who like it for breakfast or as a snack. In fact its become relatively mainstream - there's a Facebook page dedicated to it (okay, only two likes) and Googling it gives 100,000 results.

I guess it makes sense if you think about: we eat salted peanuts so the Marmite in this instance brings a yeasty saltiness to the marriage.

How I made it

1. Butter toast
2. Spread with peanut butter
3. Spread with Marmite (careful not to get peanutty crumbs in the jar please)

Variations

• The obvious one would be to swap the Marmite with jam. But this is even less of a curiosity
• I have heard that Nutella and peanut butter work well (of course they would - chocolate and peanuts is a classic combo)

Christmas salad

 

I met a girl in a pub on a works leaving do who told me about this dish. Her mother made it for her and the family every Christmas - it signalled the start of the festive season.

Years later she still eats it. And I can see why - it's a cracking, if a little odd, salad. I suspect its origins are vaguely Russian or Polish.

So forgive me for not remembering your name, leaving do woman whoever you are, but you deserve the credit for this concoction. The flavours and textures work brilliantly - sweet peas and apples, vinegary gherkins, soft potatoes and carrots, sharp lemon juice all bound together in a rich mayonnaise.

We salute you leaving do woman.

How I made it

1. In a large pan boil three medium chopped carrots and two large potatoes until soft but still holding their shape. Minutes before they're ready, add a good handful of frozen peas to the pan. Drain and leave to cool in cold water
2. Boil two large eggs for six and a half minutes. If you're extremely clever (tight) like me, you can save gas by boiling the eggs with the potatoes and carrots
3. Dice one apple and four gherkins. Mix with the drained potatoes, peas and carrots in a middle class (eg Conran Shop) salad bowl
4. Stir in four tablespoons of mayonnaise (cookery writers always say 'good quality mayonnaise' but to be honest Helmans will do the job) and the juice of one lemon
5. Peel the cooled eggs and arrange neatly on top of the salad
6. Season well (this one comes alive with lots of pepper and salt)

Variations

• Sprinkle the salad with chopped dill or parsley
• Add anchovies on top of the eggs

Gherkins and anchovies on toast

 

Little is known about the origins of this concoction. It came from a friend in Brighton, passed on to her by a friend.

The dominant flavour comes, of course, from the anchovies. I am fond of these salty little creatures - melted into pasta or meat dishes they add a depth of umami flavour. But straight out of a jar (or tin) their hairy, slippery texture and over-ripe fishy taste does nothing for my palate. I've never really liked them on pizza or in a nicoise.

And whilst I love a good gherkin me, the flavour from these vinegary green mini cucumbers gets lost in the fishy pungency of the anchovy.

Maybe if I chopped up the anchovies and/or melted them into a paste this would work?

How I made it

1. Toast bread
2. Butter toast (or drizzle with the oil from the anchovies)
3. Slice and put gherkins on top of the toast
4. Top with anchovies (I used ones in olive oil from a jar)

Variations

1. Melt the anchovies in a pan before spreading onto hot buttered toast with the gherkins on top
2. Use boquerones - authentic Spanish marinated anchovy fillets which aren't hairy (bony) and have a softer, more delicate flavour

Shreddies with butter

A filthy little snack this, taught to me by my big sister, Anna.

I have fond memories of rushing into the kitchen when I got home from school, grabbing a handful of Shreddies and using them as mini spades to scoop up big soft dollops of creamy butter.

The French apparently do something similar with Weetabix.

Variations

• Add a scoop of jam, chocolate spread or Marmite. (Try not to get into the butter dish though as your mum will be well annoyed.)

  

Raisin omelette

 

Hang-over cures. For some it's a greasy fry-up. Others prefer just the caffeine sugar hit from a Coke. But mine has always been the raisin omelette.
 
Okay, I'll admit: I will add dried fruit to anything given half a chance. It's hereditary; the desire for those shrivelled sweet morsels runs through my veins like prune juice. My father could oft be found in the kitchen in the middle of the night spooning juice soaked prunes from the fridge - a necessity stemming from  generations of constipated ancestors.
 
But if you think about it, the pairing of egg with miniature fruits isn't really that odd. The stars of bread and butter pudding are not the bread or the butter but the egg and the raisin. Aren't blueberry pancakes a more substantial version of my omelette? Even the French have their own egg and petit fruit dish, flaugnarde: a baked dessert with fruit (anything from plums to prunes) arranged in a buttered dish and covered with a thick flan-like batter – a bit like cherry clafoutis.

How I made it

1. Add a good handful of raisins or sultanas to two beaten eggs.  
2. Heat some butter in a frying pan till it's sizzling.
3. Add the egg and raisin mix, cutting it quickly with a spatula a few times. 
4. Turn off the heat just before it sets.
5. Fold and serve.

Variations

1. Serve with sugar.   
2. Swap raisins for other dried fruits like chopped apricots or prunes.
3. Add some cinnamon to the egg mix.   

Pasta with cheesy baked beans and brown sauce

A sort of modern day, greasy spoon interpretation of the Italian peasant supper Pasta e Fagioli (literally translated as pasta and beans), this dish took me rather by surprise.

Those offended by the humble baked bean or 'the brown' (often un-affectionately known as 'bum gravy' or 'devil's violation' by those disgusted by its vinegary fruitiness and unappealing colour), will not like this. I on the other hand enjoyed the marriage of sweet, spicy bean juice with silky smooth penne and cheese.

This quick and simple supper - made with store cupboard and fridge essentials - has been duly added to the curious concoctions hall of fame. Thank you Marie Campho.

How I made it

1. Boil the pasta. I used penne
2. Heat the baked beans
3. Grate a decent amount of cheddar cheese
4. Mix the pasta with the beans, half of the cheese and a generous glug of brown sauce
5. I'm not sure if this is in the original recipe but I added a bit of starchy water from the pasta to thicken it. I saw it done on Nigella once
6. Serve on a plate. I used one from Ikea
7. Add the remaining cheese. Season to suit your palate

Variations

• Swap gruyere instead of cheddar
• Add cooked, chopped up sausages
• Put the pasta mix in a dish, sprinkle with cheese and bake in the oven until golden