Lime Drizzle Cake

Lime Drizzle Cake  

 

6 oz butter

5 oz sugar

3 large eggs

8oz S R flour + I tsp baking powder

3 tbs milk  ( or coconut milk)

Juice and zest from 2 large or 3 small limes         

Oven gas 5

Cream the butter and sugar together with 1tbs milk till smooth and fluffy. I used a food processor. Add the eggs and the other 2 tbs milk and blend till thoroughly mixed.

Add the flour, baking powder, all the zest and the juice of half a lime, blend for a short time or mix gently by hand. Don’t over mix at this stage.

Put the mix into a buttered baking tin size 8x 10 in and bake for 25min. Stick a skewer into the centre of the cake, if it comes out sticky give the cake another 5 min then test again.

Mix the lime juice  with 3 heaped dessert spoons of sugar and pour over the cake in the tin while still warm.

Red Cabbage Cole Slaw

400g red cabbage
1 medium carrot
1 apple peeled and cored
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
5 spring onions chopped

For the dressing
2 heaped dessert spoons of mayonnaise and 1 of natural yogurt or sour cream
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 dessert spoon cider vinegar.
mix together.

Grate the cabbage and carrot in a food processor, add the salt and sugar and massage for 1 minute to soften. It also mellows the raw taste.
Grate apple and mix with the cabbage and carrot.
Add the dressing and mix well.
Garnish with the chopped spring onions.
Cover and refrigerate for at least 1/2 hour before serving.

If you like onion add a finely chopped red onion as well.

Elderflower 'Champagne'

12 freshly picked heads of elderflower, remove the flowers with a fork
3 unwaxed organic lemons, zest and juice
550g golden granulated sugar dissolved in 1 litre of hot water, leave to cool.
2 litres of cold water
Container I used a bowl scalded first with boiling water. It came from an old Kenwood chef

Combine everything in the bowl and stir. Cover with a plate and leave for 2 days
If there are no bubbles forming after this time this may mean that the natural yeasts on the elderflowers are not cooperating in which case add 1/2 tsp dried bakers yeast. leave for another few days then strain and bottle put the tops on to keep fruit flies out.


TIP To wake up the dried yeast add it to a glass of hand warm water in which you have dissolved a teaspoon of  sugar. When it foams up it is ready to add to the brew.

I use Grolsch bottles as they are strong. Ordinary glass bottles are reputed to explode!!
 I have used plastic fruit juice bottles. You can tell when the pressure is building as the bottom of the plastic bottle domes out. The pressure can be released a bit by unscrewing the lid. I prefer not to use plastic in case the bottles were meant for single use and start leaching chemicals.

It should be ready to drink after about 3 weeks. You can leave it for longer but it will get drier. After that put it somewhere cool. It keeps for months.

Serve over ice with a slice of lemon ro use it in a cocktail. Cheers!

Sri Lankan Mutton Rolls

Thank you to Shanthee for sharing this lovely recipe. These mutton rolls are delicious. The different textures of crispy crumb. soft pancake and luscious sauce work so well together. The filling is fragrant from the spices. The heat of the chillies is tempered by the pancake.

INGREDIENTS

Filling
1kg mutton cut into small pieces (leg of mutton or lamb) or for a vegetarrian version use mixed vegetables instead of the meat. or use tuna or a firm white fish.
5 red onions peeled and chopped
2 potatoes peeled and cubed
chopped curry leaves
1 head of garlic and a finger sized piece of root ginger pounded to a paste
in a pestle and mortar
2 tsp fenugreek seeds
1 tsp mustard seeds


Spice powder see  photo below contains red chillies, coriander, fennel seeds, cumin, mathe (fenugreek), black pepper and tumeric. Shanthee used 4 heaped teaspoonfuls or add to taste.
A close alternative would be Sri Lankan spice mix from Seasoned Pioneers here
2-3 tsp coconut milk .
salt

for the pancake mix beat togther
500g flour
1 egg
milk, water 1/2 pint approx
salt

cooking oil and breadcrumbs.

Fry the onions in a wok. Add the curry leaves, fenugreek seeds and mustard seeds. Add the meat and some salt, cover and cook till the colour of the meat changes then add  the curry powder and leave to cook for 15 mins. Give the curry a good stir till all the curry powder is mixed in well with curry and cook for a further 15 mins before adding the potato. Cover and cook then add the coconut milk and cook till the curry becomes dry and  the potatoes are just done and retain their shape.

The filling should not be too wet. Leave to cool before filling the pancakes.
(To make a slacker sauce to serve with rice add more coconut milk.)

  Make the pancakes and place some filling in a line from left to right. Pick up the left and right sides of the pancake and bring them together till they overlap a little.

Starting at the front, tuck the sides of the pancake in then turn over about 2/3 away from you and roll the rest of the way. The pancake should be made thick enough so that it holds the mixture without breaking.

dip in beaten egg and breadcrumbs and fry in some oil in the wok

the finished rolls.

Traybake Fruit Cake

Traybake Fruit Cake

12 oz mixed dried fruit soaked overnight in I mug tea plus 2 tbs Madeira wine and 2 tsp mixed spice.
6oz white SR flour and 2 oz wholemeal flour
4oz butter
3oz muscavado sugar  (or 2oz if you like it a bit less sweet)
3 eggs beaten
10 pecans broken into pieces


Melt the butter and sugar together and when cool add soaked fruit and surplus liquid. Mix and add the beaten eggs and then the flour and pecans and mix well.
Put into a traybake tin 10x8in.
Bake at gas 3 for 45 min.

To soak the fruit you could use tea, fruit juice, sherry, port etc  instead of Madeira wine