Mini pecan and chocolate pies

I must confess that I used to be quite snobby about pecan pie. It was only when I was requested to make one a couple of years ago that I even tasted one. And fell in love. These mini pies are originally from a recipe from a magzine cutting which is now covered in splaters and rather sticky. I have adapted the original recipe from Hannah Miles slightly and they are great favourites with everyone. They are nice little gifts to take to dinner parties or a night in with the girls and some bubbles. If you don't like pecans, macadamia nuts work well, or indeed any other nut. These tarts dissappear surprisingly quickly.

You'll need:
two 12 hole muffin tin, well greased with butter
a 6 cm cutter

For the pastry:
110g plain flour, plus a little for dusting
60g butter
2 and a half tbsp soft brown sugar
1 egg yolk

For the filling:
100g pecans
24 pecan halves to top the tarts
75g golden caster sugar
75g soft dark brown sugar
a small bag of plain chocolate chips
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
40g butter3 tbsp golden syrup
1 egg and 1 egg yolk, beaten together

Start by making the pastry. Sift the flour into a mixing bowl and rub in the butter with your fingers. Add the brown sugar and egg yolk and mix together to form a soft dough. Add a little cold water if it is too dry. Wrap the dough in cling film and pop it in the fridge for an hour. Preheat the oven to 180 degress c for fan assisted ovens.

To make the filling, finiley chop or blitz your pecans in a food processor. Gently heat both sugars, cinnamon, vanilla, butter and syrup until the sugar has dissolved. Let this cool for 10 minutes then beat in the egg and egg yolk. Put this to one side.

Get your dough out of the fridge and lightly flour a clean surface. Roll out your pastry to about 3mm thick. Cut out 24 rounds and press one into each hole of the muffin tins.

Fill each case with 3 or 4 chocolate chips and some chopped pecans. Pour some syrup over the top of each tart making sure to keep about a third back for glazing at the end. Top each pie with a pecan half.

Bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes until the filling is set. Take the pies out of the tin whilst still warm. Be careful here as the pastry will be very fragile. Put them onto a wire rack, heat the reserved syrup and brush over the pies. Serve them warm or cold on their own or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Just heaven.

Easy peasy pasta

My boyfriend and I love pasta and get through quite a lot in the winter months. The following recipe is a staple, with a few variations. Instead of the creme fraiche I sometimes use mascapone or philidelphia. In this case add a splash of stock to loosen the sauce. You can also add shreds of chicken, perfect if you have leftovers. You can make some pesto or buy a jar and add this to the sauce, just adapt the seasoning and quantities of creme fraiche.

You'll need the following for 2 people
75g-100g of pasta per person
1 onion, chopped
1-2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
10 button mushrooms, sliced
10 cherry tomatoes, cut in half
a handful of pine nuts, toasted (be careful not to burn them)
a pack of pancetta, cooked until crispy or 6 slices of streaky bacon (if using bacon, cook it until crispy them break up and add to the sauce).
parmesan
fresh basil
olive oil
pepper
salt (I don't usually add any as the pancetta and cheese are enough).

Boil the water and cook according to instructions.
Meanwhile, in a pan fry off the onions and garlic in some olive oil. When lightly brown, add the mushrooms and lightly brown them. Add the tomatoes and creme fraiche/mascapone (and pesto if using). Turn the heat down. Season with pepper and add the toasted pinenuts and crispy pancetta.
Drain your pasta when cooked, but don't get rid of all the juices, and add straight to your sauce. Tear in the fresh basil. Serve immediately with plenty of grated parmesan.

Mary Berry's brownies

These are to die for. Gooey and chocolate heaven. Don't over bake. Cardinal sin. Makes about 20, enough for 1 person and a tub of ice cream.

You will need:
100g of chocolate chips. I used 50g of white choc and 50g of plain choc
75g cocoa powder
100g self-raising flour
375g golden caster sugar
275g butter, softened
4 large eggs

Grease and line and tray bake or roasting tin and preheat the oven to 160 degress C.

Put all the ingredients into a large mixing bowl and mix together. Don't over mix as this will affect the texture of the brownies.

Spread evenly into the tin and bake for 35-45 minutes. Check them after 30 minutes by putting a sharp knife or skewer into the middle. If it comes out almost clean, they are ready. You can cook them slightly longer but I prefer a gooey centre. Cover loosely with foil if browning too much. Leave to cool completely in the tin. Cut into squares or rectangles and store in a tin. Best served warm with vanilla ice cream and a sprinkle of icing sugar.

Vegetarian stew that gets the carnivores salivating

Last weekend I had a dear friend to stay and her new boyfriend. Before they came I checked if  Boyfriend had any food likes or dislikes. Turned out he was a vegetarian. Ok. I like a challenge. Having almost all meat eating friends and family I don't normally cater for veggies. At least not knowingly. 

So, cue recipe books being flung open and tossed aside. After some searching I decided a big bowl of stew would be nice...hmmm venison..yum. Oops. Focus.

I then thought a chickpea tagine would be a good call as it includes lots of delicious warm spices and flavours - harissa, paprika, mint - and so I went with that.This is a recipe I found on BBC, slightly adapted for my own tastes. You can add any other spices (or take away), such as ginger, if you like. It also called for apricots instead of the prunes which I used instead.

To serve 4 hungry people. We had ours with bread but you can make up some couscous if you prefer.

1 butternut squash, peeled, de-seeded and chopped into 2-3cm chunks

2 courgettes, top and tailed, cut into bite sized chunks

1 white onion, sliced

2 or 3 garlic cloves,crushed

1 red pepper, de-seeded, chopped into chunks

12 prunes

500ml passata

400g can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed

1 tsp of harissa paste (make up your own or buy a jar, recipe below)

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp honey

a good glug of olive oil

fresh mint

greek yoghurt to serve

For the harissa paste (makes enough for another time. Keep in a jar in the fridge for up to 2 weeks).

One juice of a lime

1 tsp of cayenne pepper

2 tsp of ground cumin

1 1/2  tsp of tomato paste

Olive oil

Mix together and taste. Season to taste

Oven to 160 degrees centigrade for fan assisted, about 180 for non-fan.

You will need:

A chopping board

Sharp knife

Large oven proof dish with a lid.

Pre-heat your oven. Cut up all the butternut squash, courgettes, onion, pepper and put into to dish with the chickpeas and prunes.

 In a pan over a medium heat the oil and gently fry off the garlic before adding the harissa, cumin and paprika. Gently heat until the aromas warm through. Be careful not to burn the spices or this will give your food a nasty bitter taste. Add the honey and passatta and bring to the boil. 

Pour over the vegetables. Put the lid on and put in the oven for two to three hours. Stir a couple of times during cooking to make sure the flavours get into every corner! Season with plenty of pepper and salt.

To serve, roughly chop some mint and stir into the yoghurt. Spoon out generous portions of the tagine with the minty yoghurt on the side. Drizzle with a little more oil and honey.