Rachel Allen - Home Cooking

Contents

Home cooking is not about recreating fancy restaurant meals although that is obviously great fun too its more a way of life. Its about food that anyone can achieve for friends and family, and taking great pleasure in the preparation as much as in the sharing, and of course the eating! The value of cooking at home goes beyond merely having control over your ingredients (though this is profoundly important for health, wellbeing, and your wallet), its also about gathering your loved ones together to share and enjoy the most fundamental part of life; its about teaching your children how to appreciate a home-cooked meal and showing them how much fun cooking can be; its about slowing down the busy pace of your life when you can, but also knowing that when there isnt much time you can still put a loving meal on the table, made by you.

Home cooking is also about the joy of learning old skills and kitchen crafts such as making home-made sweets. Its about feeling proud as a parent when making by hand your childs very first foods. Its about the wonderful kitchen smells and sounds and flavours that you just cant get any other way.

In this book, youll not only find recipes for many occasions from breakfasts to dinners, youll also find trusted kitchen tips, such as home freezing, which not only saves time, but money too. Youll also find hints on menu planning and how to encourage healthy eating habits.

I hope you and your loved ones enjoy every meal together, that you eat well, that you take a moment to appreciate one anothers company around the table, and above all, have fun cooking at home!

p.s. The oven temperatures in this book are for a conventional oven, but if I am using a fan oven, then I usually reduce the temperature by 10 per cent.

Homemade yoghurt

MAKES ABOUT 425ML (15FL OZ)
VEGETARIAN

Making your own yoghurt is very satisfying as well as being a good way to encourage children to eat it, as they can add their own flavours. It is crucial to use sugar-free yoghurt for the recipe to work. It is also important that the milk and yoghurt mixture stays in a warm, draught-free place like an airing cupboard or beside an Aga or radiator. Pouring into a flask will also help if you have one. Remember to keep 1 teaspoon of the yoghurt back to make the next batch!

1 litre (1 pints) whole milk

25g (1oz) skimmed milk powder

1 tsp natural probiotic yoghurt

Pour the milk into a large, heavy-based or cast-iron saucepan on a gentle heat. As the milk is beginning to warm up, add the milk powder, stirring to dissolve. Heat the milk until it reads 90C (194F) on a cooking thermometer (if judging by eye, the milk will be sweet smelling and just coming to the boil steaming heavily and frothing around the edges).

Remove from the heat and leave to stand for about 15 minutes to cool until it reads 40C (104F) on the thermometer (or the milk has stopped steaming and feels just tepid when you dip your finger in and leave it there for a few seconds).

Stir in the yoghurt and cover with a double layer of foil. Wrap with a tea towel and leave in a warm place (or in a flask) until the mixture thickens, which will take 45 hours. Remove the towel, transfer to a bowl, cover and place in the fridge to cool overnight.

Variations

Apple and sweet geranium yoghurt: Cook 600g (1lb) (about 2) peeled, cored and roughly chopped cooking apples with 50g (2oz) caster or granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon of water and 2 sweet geranium (or mint) leaves for 68 minutes until soft. Leave to cool completely and remove the leaves before stirring into the set yoghurt.

Raspberry yoghurt: Make a and stir into or drizzle over the yoghurt to serve.

Orange curd yoghurt: Ripple a spoonful of through the yoghurt.

Natural yoghurt with fresh fruits: Serve the yoghurt with one of the .

Natural yoghurt with poached fruits: Serve the yoghurt with some poached fruits () or chop them up and stir them into the yoghurt.

Porridge

SERVES 2
VEGETARIAN

My dad always used to make us eat porridge before going to school, and now I appreciate why. Oats are a great slow-release carbohydrate and so porridge makes a good, hearty breakfast. It can be slightly sinful, depending on what you serve it with, but if you choose healthy toppings its a lot more healthy and nutritious than many breakfast cereals.

100g (3oz) porridge oats

Pinch of salt (optional)

225ml (8fl oz) milk (optional)

Place the oats in a medium saucepan, add a pinch of salt (if you wish) and pour over 500ml (18fl oz) water, or a mixture of water and milk.

Cook on a lowmedium heat, stirring regularly, for 710 minutes or until the oats are tender and the porridge creamy and thick. (Feel free to add more liquid if you prefer a thinner consistency.)

Serve in warm bowls and make more interesting with one of the tasty additions suggested below.

Additions

* Sweeten with soft brown sugar, honey or maple or golden syrup.

* Add a dash of cream or milk, or drizzle over a little natural yoghurt.

* Try adding dried fruit such as raisins, sultanas, apricots or prunes before cooking the oats.

* Top your porridge with your favourite nuts or seeds for a crunchier texture.

* Try flavouring your porridge with added ground cinnamon, cardamom or nutmeg, either during or after cooking.

* For a serious weekend brunch for grown-ups, you could even go so far as to add a splash of whiskey and cream over your porridge now is pure indulgence.

Rachels tip

If using pinhead oatmeal, it needs to be soaked overnight in water and then cooked as above, but it may take about 20 minutes.

Crunchy granola

MAKES ABOUT 1.5KG (3LB 5OZ)
VEGETARIAN

A bowl of granola, bursting with different textures and flavours, is a fantastic way to start the day. Serve it either with milk or natural yoghurt and feel free to mix and match the ingredients; you could use rye or barley flakes instead of some of the oat flakes, for instance, or add chocolate chips or dried cranberries. Whatever takes your fancy.

125g (4oz) butter

150ml (5fl oz) honey

1 tsp vanilla extract

500g (1lb 2oz) rolled oats

50g (2oz) pecan nuts, roughly chopped

150g (5oz) hazelnuts, roughly chopped

75g (3oz) pumpkin seeds

75g (3oz) sunflower seeds

50g (2oz) golden linseeds

100g (3oz) desiccated coconut

300g (11oz) mixed dried fruit, such as dates, figs, apricots, raisins or sultanas, the larger fruit chopped

Preheat the oven to 170C (325F), Gas mark 3.

Place the butter, honey and vanilla extract in a small saucepan on a low heat and gently melt together. Mix the oats, nuts, seeds and desiccated coconut together in a large bowl. Pour over the melted butter and honey mixture and stir really well to ensure all the dry ingredients are evenly coated.

Divide the mixture between two large baking trays and spread in an even layer. Bake in the oven for 2025 minutes, tossing every 5 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from the oven and leave to cool on the trays, stirring every now and then. (If you transfer it into a deep bowl at this stage, while it is still warm, it will go soggy.)