Crunchy seeded salmon with sweetcorn salsa

Here is a lovely, nutritious idea to give salmon some extra flavour and crunch, alongside a gorgeously refreshing sweetcorn salsa.  A perfect dish for when the sun reappears.  You could make little versions of the salmon for kids to nibble on too!  The whole dish takes about 15 minutes to prepare plus approximately 20 minutes for the salmon to bake.

Ingredients (serves 4)

For the seeded salmon

4 salmon fillets , skinned

40g plain flour

1 egg

1 tsp soy sauce

150g sesame seeds

50g sunflower seeds , roughly chopped (or put in food processor)

25g fresh brown breadcrumbs

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees / gas mark 6.

Line a baking tray with parchment paper. Beat the egg with the soy sauce. Mix the seeds and breadcrumbs together (or blend together in a food processor to avoid chopping the sunflower seeds).  Dip the salmon pieces in the flour, followed by the egg, then roll in the seeds and crumbs before placing on the baking tray.  Cook the salmon for approximately 20 minutes, until it is light pink and flaky inside and the coating is golden.

(Recipe from www.ocado.com)

For the sweetcorn salsa

2 tins of sweetcorn

1 fresh red chilli, finely chopped

2 tomatoes, chopped

A little red onion, finely chopped

1/2 clove garlic, crushed

1 tbsp soy sauce

Juice of 1 lemon

Big glug of olive oil

Handful of mint, roughly chopped

Mix all the ingredients together and that’s it!

Spiced apple chutney

Here is a straightforward chutney recipe full of lovely gentle spice flavour.  It is my first go at chutney (courtesy of www.bbc.co.uk/food) and is very easy.  I love having it in the fridge to add to cheese (especially cheddar, cheshire or stilton) or anything I decide it will go with e.g. a pasty/quiche/a picnic.  And if I ate meat I would recommend it alongside meat of course!

Allow about 20 mins preparation plus approx 1.5 - 2 hours to occasionally stir it until it is ready.  Don’t be tempted to add extra raisons/sultanas as they plump up when cooking.  This recipe makes 4-6 jars of chutney and you can re-use old olive/jam jars (see below recipe for simple sterilising instructions).  Your friends will love you if you give them a jar!

For further preserves recipes that make excellent edible gifts (or just for you) try this sweet chilli jam recipe http://katielovescooking.wordpress.com/2012/07/03/easy-sweet-chilli-jam-recipe-plus-rocky-roads-good-to-make-with-kids-9/ or this mega quick marmalade recipe http://katielovescooking.wordpress.com/2013/01/25/easy-quick-delicious-marmalade/.

Ingredients for spiced apple chutney

225g/8oz onions, chopped

900g/2lb apples, cored and chopped

110g/4oz sultanas, raisins or chopped dates

15g/½oz ground coriander

15g/½oz paprika

15g/½oz mixed spice or a good pinch of ground cloves

15g/½oz salt

340g/12oz granulated sugar

425ml/¾ pints malt vinegar

Put all the ingredients into a big saucepan. Slowly bring to the boil until the sugar has dissolved.  Gently simmer for 1½-2 hours, stirring from time to time to stop the chutney sticking to the pan.  When it is very thick and you can draw a wooden spoon across the base of the pan so that it leaves a channel behind it that does not immediately fill with liquid, the chutney is ready.

Turn into sterilised jars, seal and cool.

To sterilise jars: ‘Wash them well in hot, soapy water, rinse well with hot, clean water and dry with a clean cloth. Then put the jars in an oven preheated to 140c/Gas Mk 1/275F for 10 minutes. Put the contents into the warm jars’ (from www.nigella.com).

Chocolate chip cookie-dough berry crumble in a rush!

I was first introduced to red fruit and chocolate when eating a Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, and boy do they go together.  This is a cheat’s dessert as it only contains two ingredients and you buy the cookie dough pre-made, so it is great if you only have a few minutes to prepare (plus 25 mins baking time).  And it tastes seriously good!  Eat it with some ice cream, cream or custard.  The recipe is from GoodFood 101 one-pot dishes, which I am using a lot at the moment…

Ingredients (serves 4)

350g bag mixed frozen berries (cheaply available at supermarkets – Sainsbury’s is £1.25)

350g pack fresh chocolate chip cookie dough (usually in the butter/margarine aisle)

Preheat the oven to 220 degrees/gas mark 7.  Tip the frozen fruit in to a shallow baking dish and tear pieces of the cookie dough over the top.  Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden.  Serve with ice cream, cream or custard.

Quorn and cashew nut stir fry

With two demanding little children to look after I am relying more and more on quick, one-pot recipes, so here is one for you!  This satisfying stir-fry took me 25 mins (but would take less time if you chop the veg smaller), is full of healthiness and goes nicely with some noodles or rice.  It reminded me how much I like the texture of quorn and the flavour of toasted cashew nuts.  Use any ready-made stir-fry sauce such as black bean, Thai sweet chilli or hoisin.  Or the always reliable soy sauce.  And feel free to vary the veg – mushrooms, onions, carrots and asparagus (in season!) would be just as delicious.

Now the weather is sunny and warm I am working on some ideas for picnics, so watch this space for future recipes!

Ingredients for quorn and cashew nut stir fry (serves 4)

70g cashew nuts

Vegetable oil

300g quorn pieces

Chopped broccoli florets

Chopped cauliflower florets

1 red pepper, chopped

Ready-made sauce, to taste

First, toast the cashew nuts by dry frying them in a non-stick pan for a few minutes until browned (keep a close eye so they don’t burn and turn bitter).  Tip them out and put them aside.  Put some oil in the pan and fry the quorn for approx 5 mins.  Add the cauliflower, then after a few minutes add the broccoli and pepper.  Finally add the sauce and cashew nuts and fry for a further 2 minutes.  Add salt and pepper if you wish.  Serve with noodles or rice.

For another stir-fry idea click here: http://katielovescooking.wordpress.com/2012/11/18/oriental-stir-fried-veg-with-marinated-halloumi-10-mins-prep15-mins-cooking-plus-1-hour-to-marinate/

Red onion, olive and cheese tart (20 mins prep/15 mins cooking)

I love ready-rolled puff pastry because it is so simple to use and create something impressive with.  This tart consists of caramelised red onions with black olives and cheese (either feta or goats cheese) and is scrumptious.  My carnivorous boyfriend added some chopped chorizo to his share.  Last night we ate it alongside a green salad and tonight we’ll have it with some peas and broad beans.  As well as for dinner, I was thinking that the tart would make great party food chopped up in to small squares and piled on to a plate!  Plus any leftover caramelised onion mixture could be kept in the fridge and used to accompany meat and cheese.

Create your own tart using pretty much any combination of already cooked veg/already cooked sausages/cheese (manchego cheese also works well).

For an alternative antipasti tart recipe click here: http://katielovescooking.wordpress.com/2012/08/15/summer-antipasti-tart-10-mins-prep20-mins-cooking/

Ingredients (serves 4-6 as a main)

Olive oil

3 red onions, roughly chopped

2 tbsp soft light brown sugar/light muscovado sugar

2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

375g ready-rolled puff pastry

100g feta or goats cheese, crumbled

175g pitted black olives, chopped in half

Heat oven to 220 degrees/gas mark 7. Heat the oil in a frying pan, then gently fry the onions for about 10-15 mins until golden and soft. Add the sugar and balsamic vinegar, then cook for a further 5 mins until the juices are reduced and syrupy.

Unroll the puff pastry onto a baking tray. Score a line a finger-width in from the edge all the way around, then cover the middle with the onion mix. Scatter the cheese and olives over. Season and drizzle the olive oil over the topping.

Bake for 15 mins or until the pastry is risen and golden and the base is crisp.

Recipe from www.bbcgoodfood.com

Spring bird feed to make with kids

Okay, so this is not for human consumption. But it is food and makes a great kids activity, especially if you need to use leftover scraps! Once it is finished they get to watch the birds peck away at it outside.

You can either fill old yoghurt pots with the bird feed and leave it to set or push it in to the cracks of a fir cone. The ‘recipe’ is from a great book called My First Nature Book that is full of activity ideas and is available very cheaply second hand on Amazon http://www.amazon.co.uk/My-First-Nature-Book/dp/0863183999/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1365863290&sr=1-2&keywords=my+first+nature+book+dorling+kindersley.

Ingredients

6og cooking fat (I used lard)
If using a yoghurt pot – birdseeds for rolling (you can get mixed seeds cheaply from supermarkets)

125g of any of these kitchen scraps:

Porridge oats
Birdseeds
Brown breadcrumbs
Leftover cooked vegetables
Cooked rice
Grated cheese

1. Mix the scraps together in a bowl .

2. Melt the lard then pour it in to the bowl with the scraps (my child was able to do this once the lard had cooled a little).  Stir everything together.

3. If using a yoghurt pot, spoon the mixture in so it is squashed down and then push a Y shaped twig in the middle and leave to set.  Once set pull the bird feed out of the yoghurt pot by the twig (cutting around the edge of the pot first with a knife if this helps), roll it in some birdseed and hang it by the twig using string. Or, if using a fir cone, push the mixture in to the cracks then hang by the top using string.

Vietnamese salmon noodle soup

I made this soup yesterday for my boyfriend and his parents and they loved it.  I don’t think they were just being polite as they had seconds!  It’s ready in 25 minutes and only requires one pan so less washing up.  It would work nicely with trout too.  We ate it with some bread to mop up the broth, and some broccoli roast with sesame oil and sesame seeds. Delicious!  Serves 4 and is from www.bbcgoodfood.com

Ingredients

1 litre veg or chicken stock (e.g. Oxo)

2 tsp Thai red curry paste

100g noodles (any type should work)

150g sliced mushrooms

125g baby corn, chopped

2 skinless salmon fillets or 3 skinless trout fillets, chopped in to bite size chunks

Juice 2 limes

1 tbsp soy sauce

Pinch brown sugar

Small bunch coriander, chopped

Pour the stock into a large pan, bring to the boil, then stir in the curry paste. Add the noodles and cook for 3 minutes short of the required time (some noodles only take 3 mins in which case you can put the mushrooms, corn and fish in at the same time).  Tip in the mushrooms and corn and cook for 2 mins more.  Add the salmon/trout to the pan and cook for 3 mins or until cooked through. Remove from the heat and stir in the lime juice, soy sauce and a pinch of sugar. Ladle into 4 bowls and sprinkle over the coriander just before you serve.