Nigella's fully loaded potato skins

Makes 20 stuffed potato skins

INGREDIENTS

• 10 baking potatoes
• 225g strong cheddar or red leicester
• 250ml sour cream
• 4 spring onions
• 1 teaspoon Maldon salt or
  ½ teaspoon table salt or to taste 

• good grinding of black pepper

• 1 x 15ml tablespoon worcestershire sauce
• 10 rashers American-style or thin-cut streaky bacon
• oil for frying

1. The day (or up to 2 days) before you load them, preheat your oven to 200C/180C fan/400F/gas 6 and bake the potatoes (pricking them first) for about 1½ hours, or until the skins are crisp and the insides fluffy. As soon as you can bear to tackle the hot potatoes, cut them in half lengthways and scoop the insides into a bowl.
2. Put the husk-like skins of the potatoes on a tray and, when cool, cover until you are ready to fill them. Let the potato cool in the bowl, and then cover until needed.
3. When you are ready to fill the potatoes, preheat your oven to 200C/180C fan/400F/gas 6. Grate the cheese, and add 200g of it to the cold potato along with the sour cream. Chop the spring onions and add to the potato, with the salt, pepper and worcestershire sauce.
4. Spoon the potato filling into the potato skins, and lay each half on a baking tray so they fit snugly together. Sprinkle over the remaining cheese, giving each potato skin a light covering, and cook for 20-30 minutes until golden.
5. Fry (or grill) the bacon rashers in oil until crispy, then crumble them and sprinkle half a rasher’s worth over each potato skin to make them fully loaded.

MAKE AHEAD TIP Fill the potato skins, as directed, and sprinkle with the cheese and crispy bacon (or add the crispy bacon after cooking if preferred). Cover loosely and keep in the fridge for up to 2 days. Cook as directed.

FREEZE AHEAD TIP Fill the potato skins as above, wrap in clingfilm and freeze for up to 1 week. To cook, lay the frozen potato skins on a baking sheet and cover loosely with foil. Cook in the oven for 35-40 minutes, removing the foil after the first 15 minutes.

Daddys vegetable patties

• A cube of frozen spinach
• 1 small turnip
• 2 small potatoes skin on
• 1 grated carrot
• half grated fennel
• some olive oil
• 2 tblsp plain flour (or more until right consistency)
  

Boil everything together in as little water as possible, until the vegetables are soft.
Drain and mash the vegetables.
Add a bit of olive oil, and enough flour to make sticky dough. Mix with a fork.
Leave to stand and cool.
Make into burger size patties
Place on greased baking tray
Cook in a preheated oven at 200C for 10-15 minutes

Recipe was called Daddys when I found it online so I thought it was amusing to leave the name as my hubby hates anything vegetably. First time I made them with parsnip instead of turnip and no fennel and should have added more flour as it was a bit soggy but delicious nevertheless...

Chocy chip biccies

• 1 cup (225g, 8oz) sugar
• 2 cups (300g, 10oz) plain flour (sifted)
• 1 cup of butter (200g, 7oz) melted
• 1tsp vanilla extract
• 1tsp of baking powder
• A pinch of salt
• 1 egg
• Smashed Chocolate bar or chocolate chips
  

Method

1. Add the sugar and melted butter in a bowl and mix together - a wooden spoon is fine, no need for a whisk.
2. Sift the flour, baking powder, vanilla and salt together and add to the sugar and butter mixture. Add the chocolate chips at this stage if you're making chocolate chip cookies.
3. Mix together using your hand. Once you get a dough texture, add the egg and knead using your hand again.
4. Spread some butter onto a baking tray. Take some of the dough, roll into ball then flatten a little. Nate likes to help with this bit -he takes a handfull, rolls it into a ballish then pops it in his mouth... Keep them on the small side as they spread out during baking. Also, don't keep biscuits close to each other otherwise they will get stuck together.
5. Place in the oven and bake on a low heat 180ish. They're ready when the edges are a bit golden 10 minutes ish.

Ali's Peanut butter cookies

Four large (tablespoons) sugar. Brown gives a richer flavour.
Four large (tablespoons) fat. Butter, again, will give a richer flavour. Add to sugar and cream them together.
Add small(dessert spoon) peanut butter
Add seven large (tablespoons) self raising flour. Mix to dough. If too sticky add flour if too dry add water (or orange juice) if feeling luxurious add chop chips at this stage
Place walnut sized balls on greasproof paper or silicone sheets and flatten into rounds
Dip hands in flour to stop it sticking too much
Bake for 10-14 minutes at 180

if stuck together seperate with a knife then leave on tray for 5 mins then transfer to rack to cool

EAT!

To see Nate and I making these go here

2010-09-28 - making peanut butter cookies

2010-09-28 - making peanut butter cookies

Vanilla Whoopie

Tasty sweet cake buns with a marshmallow buttercream filling and iced topping.

Preparation time: 30 Minutes Cooking time: 30 Minutes

Nutrition per serving: 227 cals, 11g fat, of which 6g saturated fat, 22g added sugar,

* 200g of unsalted butter
* 1 large egg
* 150g caster sugar
* 125g soured cream
* 75ml milk
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* ¾ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
* 275g plain flour
* 200g icing sugar
* Sugar balls, or sprinkles, to decorate
* 100g mini or regular white marshmallows

Method

1. Line a large baking tray with nonstick baking paper and preheat the oven to 180°C, fan 160°C, gas 4.
2. Melt 75g of the butter and set aside. Using an electric hand mixer, whisk the egg until light and fluffy. Beat in the sugar, a third at a time, until thick and glossy.
3. Beat in the melted butter, soured cream, 25ml of milk and the vanilla. Sift the bicarbonate of soda and flour into the bowl and beat until smooth. Using a wide piping nozzle or spoon, pipe or spoon the mixture on to the tray in small walnut-sized balls, 3-4cm apart. You'll need to bake in batches.
4. Bake for 13-14 minutes until almost evenly golden on top. Leave to cool for a few minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack and bake the remaining mixture.
5. For the cream, heat the marshmallows and milk in a saucepan over a low heat, stirring until smooth, then cool. Beat 125g of butter until creamy and soft then gradually beat into the marshmallow until smooth.
6. Sandwich two whoopie cakes together with the marshmallow cream.
7. For the icing, mix the icing sugar with 2-3 tablespoons of cold water. Spread a little on each whoopie. Decorate with mimosa balls and leave to set.

Note: can be made up to 2 days ahead or can be frozen (unfilled). Once filled and iced the buns will keep for up to 6 hours.

Recipe by Dan Lepard

Honey and Hazelnut Cake

Preparation time less than 30 mins
Cooking time 30 mins to 1 hour

225g/8oz honey
6 eggs, separated
110g/4oz plain flour, sifted
110g/4oz ground hazelnuts
100ml/3½ fl oz milk
Method

1. Grease a cake tin and preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
2. Leaving the honey in the jar, place in a pan of hot water so it stays runny.
3. Place the egg yolks into a large bowl. Pour over the honey and beat.
4. Gradually add the sifted flour and ground hazelnuts.
5. Bind the mixture with the milk.
6. Beat the egg whites until stiff and fold into the mixture. Pour into the buttered tin. Bake for 40 minutes.
7. When cold turn out.

Bobotie

This mildly spicy meat dish with an egg custard topping, was declared the national dish of South Africa in 1954. It’s sure to become a family favourite.

Preparation time : 10 minutes
Cooking time : 40 minutes to 50 minutes
Total time : 50 minutes to 1 hour

Serves: 6
Ingredients

500g pack Waitrose Aberdeen Angus Extra Lean Ground Beef
1 large onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp medium curry powder
3 tbsp mango chutney
50g Waitrose Orange River Sultanas
350ml semi-skimmed milk
2 slices wholemeal bread, crusts removed
3 large eggs
Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. Heat a large non-stick frying pan and fry the beef over a medium heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring all the time. Add the onion and cook for a further 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onion starts to soften and the beef is lightly browned.
2. Add the garlic and curry powder and fry for 1-2 minutes to allow the spices to cook. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the mango chutney and sultanas.
3. Pour about 200ml of the milk into a small bowl. Tear the bread into small pieces and add to the milk. Leave to soften for a minute then stir into the beef mixture.
4. Tip the mixture into either 6 individual shallow ovenproof dishes, or a 2-litre shallow, ovenproof dish. Press down well with the back of a spoon.
5. Mix the remaining milk with the eggs and a little seasoning, and beat lightly. Pour over the beef and place in the oven for 30-40 minutes until the mixture is piping hot and the top golden brown. Serve with a light salad of chopped cucumber, cherry tomatoes and sweetcorn.

Cook's tips

There are many variations of this dish. For example you could add chopped dried apricots or apricot jam instead of chutney. If making in advance, follow steps 1 and 2, then add the soaked bread, and egg and milk mixture just before cooking.