basesixty

Author: Katrina G

  • Scotch Pancakes – Alternative

    Makes 10 pancakes

    You will need:

    • 200g plain flour
    • 1 tbsp baking powder
    • pinch of salt
    • 1 tbsp caster sugar
    • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
    • 1 large egg
    • 300ml milk
    • vegetable oil, to fry

    Add the dry ingredients to a mixing bowl. Beat the egg and milk into the mixture with a handheld or electric whisk. Heat a non-stick frying pan over a medium heat and add some oil.

    Spoon in a small ladleful of batter to make a pancake about 10cm across. Fry for about 1 min until the edges of the pancake are firm and bubbles have started to appear on the surface. Turn over and fry for another 30 secs till golden on both sides. Serve with your favourite toppings.

    TIP: The other scotch pancake recipe is better than this one, although still very good. This is for when you have only plain flour!

    Original recipe: BBC Good Food

  • Baked Gateaux Piment

    Makes 12 balls.

    You will need:

    • 125g yellow split peas, soaked overnight
    • 1 large or 2 small spring onions, finely sliced
    • 1-2 green chilies, minced
    • Handful of chopped fresh parsley (or coriander)
    • 1 teaspoon dried cumin
    • ½ teaspoon sea salt
    • If required, a paste made from 2 tablespoons gram flour + 1 tablespoon water
    • Olive oil

    Drain and rinse the split peas well, then blitz in a food processor until broken down, still leaving some texture. Add the onions, chilli, parsley, cumin and salt. Blitz again very briefly.

    Turn out into a bowl. Press the mixture into a small ball in your hand. If it doesn’t stick together easily, then make a paste from the gram flour and water and stir into the mix till well incorporated.

    Using your fingers and the palm of your hands, gather the mix into 12 equal sized balls. Place on a plate and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes to firm up.

    Pre-heat oven to 200C (fan).

    Place the gateaux on a lined baking sheet and brush with olive oil. Bake in the oven for 18 minutes until crispy and browned, turning over half way.

    Serve warm or cold, ideally with a flavourful dip such as a vegan chive mayo, hummus or coconut raita.

    Original recipe: Ceri Jones

  • Fried Falafel

    Serves 2/3

    You will need:

    • 250g chickpeas from a can
    • 1 medium onion, finely chopped
    • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
    • 2 tsp ground coriander
    • 2 tsp ground cumin
    • 2 tsp paprika (optional)
    • small pack flat-leaf parsley, chopped
    • 2 rounded tbsp plain/gram flour
    • 2 tbsp vegetable oil

    Cook the onion in a frying pan until soft.

    Add the garlic, ground spices and parsley to a food processor and pulse until it looks like a consistent powder.

    Add the chickpeas to the food processor and pulse further until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

    At this stage, the onions should be soft. Add the onions and the flour to the food processor and pulse until it is all mixed together.

    Tip the mixture out onto some greaseproof paper and roll into a long sausage about 3-4cm in diameter. Sprinkle the mixture with a bit of paprika and cumin if desired and put in the fridge to chill for at least 30 minutes.

    When ready to cook the falafel, slice the sausage into individual falafel around 2cm thick. In a large pan, heat the oil and fry the falafels on each side for 2-3 mins or until golden (you may need to do this in batches).

    Serve with flatbread and salad.

    • Lettuce
    • Sliced cucumber
    • Grated carrot
    • Sliced spring onion
    • Sliced peppers

    TIP: Paprika is not essential, but makes a nice change

    TIP: You can cook the mixture without chilling first, but it does work better when chilled.

    Original recipe: BBC Good Food

  • Masoor Dal

    Serves 2

    You will need:

    • For the dal
    • 250g red lentils
    • 2 tbsp ghee or oil
    • 1-2 dried red chillis
    • 1 small onion, finely chopped
    • 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
    • 1 tsp salt
    • 1 tsp ground turmeric
    • 600 ml warm water
    • For the tempering
    • 2 tbsp ghee or oil
    • 2 dried red chillis
    • 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
    • 1/2 tsp nigella seeds
    • 1 garlic clove, cut into slivers
    • 4 fresh curry leaves

    Wash the lentils in cold running water, then place in a bowl and soak for 30 minutes in fresh cold water. (If you do not have time to soak the lentils, then just wash them before adding to the pan – red lentils cook quickly and so do not need long soaking.)

    In a heavy based pan that has a lid, heat 2 tbsp of oil or ghee over a medium-high heat. Add the dried red chillis to the pan, followed by the minced onion and garlic. Cook, stirring, until they just start to colour.

    Add the soaked lentils to the pan, then the salt and ground turmeric. Add 600 ml of warm water to the lentils and bring to the boil. When the surface of the water is bubbling, cover the pan, lower the heat and simmer gently for 30 minutes. Stir occasionally to ensure the dal is not sticking to the base of the pan. Once the dal is cooked, place the lid back on the pan and keep warm while preparing the tempering.

    In a small frying pan, heat the remaining 2 tbsp of oil or ghee over a high heat. Working very quickly so the tempering does not burn, add the dried red chillis, cumin seeds, nigella seeds, garlic slivers and finally the curry leaves. Cook for a few seconds, the pour the tempering oil and spices over the warm dal in the pan. Next, take a spoonful of the dal and place it in the frying pan to absorb any remaining oil – take care whilst doing this as the oil may splutter – then tip the spoonful of dal from the frying pan back into the main dal pan.

    Serve immediately, ladling the dal into separate serving bowls.

    TIP: The recipe has been amended from the original to reduce the serving size. Simply double the lentils and water to take it back to the original recipe for 4 servings.

    TIP: The tempering is essential for the flavours of the dal.

    TIP: This is best served with bread and a vegetable side.

    Original Recipe: Asma Khan – Asma’s Indian Kitchen

  • Toad-in-the-hole

    Serves 4

    You will need:

    • For the batter
    • 100g plain flour
    • 2 eggs
    • 150ml semi-skimmed milk
    • For the toad
    • 8 sausages (roughly 2 per person)
    • 1 onion, finely sliced
    • 1 tbsp vegetable oil

    Preheat oven to gas 7, 220°C, fan 200°C.

    First make the batter. Put the flour in a bowl, add the eggs and slowly mix in the milk then beat until smooth.
    Put the sausages in an ovenproof baking dish, scatter over the sliced onion and drizzle over the oil. Roast for 15 mins.

    Remove the dish from the oven, pour the batter over and around the sausages then return to the oven and cook for a further 35 mins or until the sausages are cooked through and the batter is golden on top.

    Serve the toad in the hole with gravy and vegetables.

    TIP: The batter recipe also works for Yorkshire Puddings

    Original recipe: Tesco Food

  • Pull Apart Cheesy Pesto Bread

    Makes 2 servings

    You will need:

    • 250 g strong bread flour , plus more for dusting
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    • 1 teaspoon yeast
    • 150 ml warm water
    • 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil, plus a tiny bit for greasing
    • 150 g pesto
    • 30g shredded cheddar cheese
    • 30g shredded mozzarella cheese

    Combine the flour, salt, and yeast together, then form a well in the centre. Add the water and 1 teaspoon of the olive oil and stir until the mixture holds together.

    Turn onto a floured surface and knead for 7-10 minutes.

    Put the dough into a bowl greased with olive oil, cover with cling film, and allow to rise in a warm place for 1 hour.

    Knead the dough again for another minute or so, then form the mixture into 18 even-sized balls.

    Coat each dough ball in a generous helping of pesto.

    Place the dough balls into a large cake tin, cover and rise for another hour.

    Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C.)

    Cover the dough balls with the cheddar and mozzarella.

    Bake for 20-25 minutes.

    Enjoy!

    Original recipe: Tasty

  • Garlic, Mushroom and Quorn Pies

    Makes 2 pies.

    You will need:

    • calorie controlled cooking spray
    • 1 leek, sliced
    • 150 g (5½ oz) chestnut mushrooms, sliced
    • 2 garlic cloves, chopped finely
    • 2 tsp fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
    • 200 g (7 oz) quorn chicken style pieces
    • 75 g (2¾ oz) frozen petit pois
    • 60 g (2 oz) low fat soft cheese with garlic and herbs
    • 100 ml (3½ fl oz) skimmed milk
    • 2 x 45 g (1½ oz) filo sheets, measuring 50 x 24 cm (20 x 9½ inches), and defrosted if frozen
    • salt and freshly ground black pepper

    Preheat the oven to Gas Mark 6/200ºC/fan oven 180ºC. Heat a medium size, non stick saucepan and spray with the cooking spray. Add the leek, mushrooms and garlic and cook for 2 minutes, stirring regularly. Stir in the thyme, Quorn and peas. Cook, stirring, for another 3 minutes.

    Add the soft cheese and milk, season, and cook for a minute until hot. Spoon the mixture into two 250ml (9fl oz) pie dishes.

    Scrunch up each sheet of filo pastry and then place on top of the pies to fit the dishes. Spray the top of the pies with the cooking spray, place on a baking sheet, and bake for 25-30 minutes until golden.

    TIP: Use puff pastry to line the pie tin and top the pies if you want a nicer pie

    TIP: You may want to increase the sauce level for these pies. To do that, increase the cheese and milk a little to taste.

    Original Recipe: RTE Lifestyle

  • Flatbread

    Makes around 10

    You will need:

    • 300g plain flour
    • ½ tsp salt
    • 4 tbsps olive oil
    • 200ml hot water

    Mix the flour and salt in a large bowl and make a well in the centre.

    Put the oil in the well and then pour in the hot water. Stir the mixture with a spoon until it is cool enough to bring together with your hands. Leave the mixture to stand for between 10 minutes to half an hour.

    Divide the dough into 10 balls (roughly 50g each). Without using flour to dust, roll the balls out as thin as you can – you should be able to see your hand through them.

    Heat a non-stick frying pan on a medium-high heat. Cook each flatbread in the pan for about 30 seconds on each side.

    TIP: You can flavour the flatbread with seeds (e.g. nigella seeds or poppy seeds). To do this, add a teaspoon or 2 of seeds into the flour before any liquid is added to ensure even dispersion.

    TIP: Make sure you use a non-stick pan. This is essential, else you will burn the pan, and the bread, and it will take forever to clean.

    Original Recipe: Nadiya Hussain – Instagram Stories

  • Oat Hazelnut Cookies

    Makes 9 cookies

    You will need:

    50g butter, plus a little for greasing
    2 tbsp maple syrup
    1 dessert apple, unpeeled and coarsely grated (you need 85g)
    1 tsp cinnamon
    50g raisins
    50g porridge oats
    50g spelt flour
    40g unblanched hazelnuts, cut into chunky slices
    1 egg

    Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4 and lightly grease a non-stick baking tray (or line a normal baking tray with baking parchment). Tip the butter and syrup into a small non-stick pan and melt together, then add the apple and cook, stirring, over a medium heat until it softens, about 6-7 mins. Stir in the cinnamon and raisins.

    Mix the oats, spelt flour, and hazelnuts in a bowl, pour in the apple mixture, then add the egg and beat everything together really well.

    Spoon onto the baking tray, well spaced apart to make 9 mounds, then gently press into discs. Bake for 18-20 mins until golden, then cool on a wire rack. Will keep for 3 days in an airtight container or 6 weeks in the freezer.

    TIP: As this isn’t classic baking, the ingredients do not need to be exact. Just note that if the grated apple is over 85g, then you may need a little flour to make sure that the mixture isn’t too wet to set.

    TIP: Be careful to not overcook these, the dried fruit can burn very quickly.

    Original recipe: BBC Good Food

  • Baked Tofu and Green Beans

    Serves 2/3

    You will need:

    • 1 block of extra-firm tofu, drained and patted dry
    • Oil or cooking spray
    • 2 tbsps reduced-sodium soy sauce or tamari
    • 3 cloves garlic grated
    • 1 tbsp honey
    • 1 tbsp grated peeled fresh ginger
    • 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
    • 300g green beans, trimmed (a good handful of beans for each person)
    • 2 tbsps olive oil
    • 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
    • Salt
    • Freshly ground black pepper
    • 1 medium spring onion, thinly sliced
    • 1/4 tsp sesame seeds

    Line a plate with paper towels, and place the tofu on top. Cover with more paper towels and place a heavy item on top, pressing down on the tofu. Set aside for 10 to 30 minutes. Meanwhile, arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat to 180°C. Lightly oil a baking sheet or coat with cooking spray. Whisk the soy sauce or tamari, garlic, honey, ginger, and sesame oil together in a large bowl; set aside.

    Cut the tofu into triangles about 1-1.5cm thick and place in a single layer on one half of the prepared baking sheet. Drizzle with the soy sauce mixture. Bake until golden-brown on the bottom, 12 to 13 minutes.

    Flip the tofu. Place the green beans in a single layer on the other half of the baking sheet. Drizzle with the olive oil and sprinkle with the red pepper flakes; season with salt and pepper.

    Return to the oven and bake until the tofu is golden-brown on the second side, 10 to 12 minutes more. Sprinkle with the spring onions and sesame seeds and serve immediately.

    TIP: Be careful to not overcook the tofu. It can go from ‘uncooked’ to ‘dry’ in a very short length of time.

    TIP: Can be served alongside egg fried rice. This will make the meal serve more people.

    Original recipe: The Kitchn