Apple Crumble Cake

Whilst on holiday recently I did a lot of baking; most of the cakes I baked were very nice but quite standard "nothing special" cakes (e.g. carrot cake, chocolate brownie) but this apple crumble cake was a bit different and very delicious so thought I would blog it. I found the recipe on the Waitrose website (here) but changed the method as I couldn't be bothered to do some of the things it suggested and the cake was lovely anyway.

Kashmiri Paneer Masala

I have recently discovered Maunika Gowardhan's Indian food website, and found this kashmiri paneer masala recipe there. I modified it since I didn't have all the spices in my cupboard, and it was lovely. So much so that I was pretty gutted there were no leftovers. We cooked this without salt or chilli and gave it to my daughter who couldn't get enough of it! In Maunika's recipe the paneer is first pan fried before being removed and added later. I didn't bother to do this as my paneer was quite firm and it held up well in the sauce.

Gluten Free Peach Polenta Cake

I made this cake for a gluten-intolerant friend of mine who came round for dinner one Sunday. The cake is actually best served warm on the day of cooking as it can go a bit dry upon cooling. You can always reheat the cake in the microwave if eating later; I froze the leftovers and popped it into the microwave on defrost to warm it up.

Baked Tofu and Mushrooms

This dish is a very tasty and unusual way of cooking tofu. The tofu is marinaded in a garlic, lemon, soy sauce and tomato paste marinade, and so is best made the night before cooking. It is very full of flavour and if you want to tone it down a bit use less garlic and/or less soy sauce. You can eat this with pretty much any carb of your choice; I had it with mash potato this time but in the past I have had it with rice or noodles, and I am sure you could also eat it with pasta. 

I am not a big fan of cooking with tofu because although it is very versatile and you can do some really interesting things with it, I find the prep can be a bit of a pain if you don't want it to fall apart when stirred into anything. To prepare tofu properly you should press it to remove excess liquid before dry frying it. I frequently don't bother to press it; if you dry fry it for long enough and make sure you press the tofu lightly when frying, you should remove enough of the liquid and give the tofu some stability. Note: if you dry fry it, make sure you use a non-stick pan or you will be very sad. I speak from experience.

Balsamic Caramelised Leek and Onion Quiche

Summer is here and that means quiche season in my house! This is a very straightforward caramelised onion  and leek quiche. A trick a friend once showed me for pastry is to line the bottom with polenta (cornmeal), as this really improves the crust. It's not critical, however, so if you want to omit it that's fine. This is lovely hot or cold, though I generally prefer quiche when it has been cooled.

Roasted Garlic and Smoked Paprika Houmous

I haven't made my own houmous in years, but decided to make some on a bit of a whim recently. Wow had I forgotten how much better it tastes home made! I used roasted garlic in this but if you can't be bothered, just grate fresh garlic directly into the houmous before blending.

Goats Cheese and Basil Bread Sticks

These bread sticks are super tasty and very easy to make. I made mini bread sticks for my daughter to eat, so I have no idea how many full sized bread sticks this would make, but I would guess around 12.