Mini cinnamon rolls

A lovely treat, best eaten while still warm and very fresh.

Makes: 8

Takes: 15 minutes plus 15 minutes cooking time

Ingredients

4 oz (110g) self-raising flour plus a little extra for rolling

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 tsp butter or margarine

zest of 1/2 lemon

4 tbsp milk

1/2 oz (15g) soft brown sugar

3/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tbsp golden syrup

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 220oC/200oC (fan oven)/Gas Mark 7 and line a baking sheet with non-stick baking parchment.
2. Sieve the flour and baking pwder into a large mixing bowl. Rub in 1 tablespoon of the butter with your fingertips.
3. Finely grate the lemon zest and stir into the flour. Gradually mix in the milk to form a soft dough - you may not need all of the milk. Gently knead the dough until smooth.
4. Flour your work surface and a rolling pin. Roll out the dough to a rectangle 18 x 14 cm (7 x 5 1/2 inches).
5. Spread the dough with butter, leaving a 1 cm (1/2 inch) border clear along one long side. Mix together the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over the buttered dough.
6. Brush the border with water and roll the dough from the opposite long side up to the moistened border, pressing it gently to seal. Cut into 8 slices with a very sharp knife.
7. Arrange the slices onto the prepared baking sheet, leaving space between each one. Bake for 12-15 minutes until light golden brown.
8. As soon as the rolls have come out of the oven, warm the syrup until thin and runny (this only takes a few seconds in the microwave). Spoon a little syrup over each bun.

These are a bit fiddly to make, but worth the effort. The rolls can be frozen without the syrup so one option is to increase the quantities and freeze for a future occasion.

Rice pudding

Real comfort food :-) This recipe gives a lovely nutmeggy caramelised skin on top (which you can always remove if you must...)

Makes: 4 servings

Takes: 5 minutes plus 2 hours cooking time

Ingredients

4 oz pudding rice

1 pint milk

1 3/4 oz caster sugar

1 oz butter

ground nutmeg

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 160oC/150oC (fan oven)/Gas Mark 3 and grease a 2-pint pie dish.
2. Put the rice, milk and sugar into the pie dish and stir well. Dot the top with butter and bake for 1 hour.
3. Stir with a fork, sprinkle with nutmeg and return to the oven for a further hour.

Banana bread

Very easy and absolutely delicious - ideal for lunchboxes, picnics, afternoon tea, evening snacks, breakfast, midnight feasts...

Makes: 12 slices

Takes: 10 minutes plus 1 hour cooking time

Ingredients

4 very ripe bananas

2 3/4 oz butter or margarine

7 oz brown sugar

1 egg

1 tbsp vanilla essence

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

pinch of salt

8 oz plain flour

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180oC (fan oven) and grease and line a 2lb loaf tin.
2. Mash the bananas to a pulp with the butter (softened if necessary). Mix in the sugar, the egg (beaten), and the vanilla essence.
3. Sift in the bicarbonate of soda, salt and flour and mix everything together thoroughly. Pour into the prepared tin.
4. Bake for about an hour, until a skewer inserted into the middle of the loaf comes out clean. If the top starts to look too brown before the centre is cooked, cover loosely with some foil.
5. Cool in the tin for 10 minutes then turn out onto a wire cooling rack. It's easier to remove the lining paper after the loaf has cooled down. Allow to cool completely before slicing.

Freezes well, either as a complete loaf or as individual slices. Pop a frozen slice into a packed lunch and it will have defrosted by lunchtime!

Pancakes

This is the pancake recipe that works best of all those I've tried :-)

Makes: 12-14 pancakes
Takes: 10 minutes + 10 minutes cooking time

Ingredients

4 oz plain flour
a pinch of salt
2 large or 3 small eggs
7 fl oz milk
3 fl oz water
2 tbsp butter

Method

1. Sift the flour and salt into a large bowl then make a well in the centre. Break the eggs into the well and mix the milk and water together in a jug.
2. Start to whisk the eggs, gradually incorporating the flour. Add the milk and water gradually at the same time. Once all the flour has been mixed in and all the milk and water added, whisk well till the batter has the consistency of thin cream.
3. The batter doesn't need to stand but you can cover it and put it aside now if you wish, while you eat your main course for example. Just stir well before using.
4. When ready to cook the pancakes, melt the butter in a non-stick frying pan and pour into the batter, stirring well. Use a spatula to gently scrape as much of the butter out of the pan as possible.
5. Get the pan really hot then lower the heat to medium. Spoon in a ladleful of batter and tilt the pan to coat the base evenly and thinly. It should be ready when the top has dried out and the bottom is golden - you can turn or flip it to lightly brown the other side too if you wish.
6. If you want to keep the finished pancakes warm while you cook the rest of the batch, put a plate over a pan of simmering water and cover with foil. Add each pancake to the plate as it is cooked. (In our family we eat them as they're ready, taking it in turns!)

Serve as desired - with sugar and lemon juice, jam, honey, golden syrup, maple syrup, chocolate spread, chocolate sauce, ice cream, fruit compote.... The possibilities are endless!

Apple and sultana muffins

Delicious as muffins or cupcakes :-)

Makes: 12 muffins or 24 cupcakes.
Takes: 15 minutes + 15 minutes cooking time

Ingredients

2 3/4 oz (75g) butter or margarine
3 1/2 oz (100g) caster sugar
1 egg
2 tsp vanilla essence
200g jar apple sauce
1 large dessert apple
1 3/4 oz (50g) sultanas
7 oz (200g) self-raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 170oC (fan oven)/190oC/Gas Mark 5 and line muffin or cupcake tins with paper cases.
2. Cream together the butter and sugar in a large bowl then mix in the egg and the vanilla essence. Stir in the apple sauce and mix thoroughly.
3. Peel and core the apple and dice finely. Add to the mixture with the sultanas and stir well.
4. Sift together the flour, baking powder and cinnamon into a separate bowl then tip into the apple mixture and quickly stir till just combined.
5. Spoon into the paper cases and bake for 12-15 minutes, until risen, golden-brown and firm to the touch. Cool on a wire rack.

The cakes keep well in a tin for a few days, or can be frozen.

Carrot cake muffins

One word - YUM! With or without the cream cheese frosting, these are so delicious :-)

Makes: 12 muffins or 24 cupcakes

Takes: 10 minutes + 20-25 minutes cooking time

Ingredients

9oz (250g) plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 egg

3 1/2 fl oz (100 ml) water

1 tbsp runny honey

3 1/2 oz (100g) soft brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla essence

10 1/2 oz (300g) peeled, topped and tailed carrots

4 tbsp corn oil (I use light olive oil)

For the icing (optional)

1 3/4 oz (50g) light cream cheese

3 1/2 oz (100g) icing sugar

1/2 tsp orange or lemon juice

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180oC (fan oven)/190oC/Gas Mark 5 and line muffin tins or cupcake tins with paper cases.
2. Sift together the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, salt and cinnamon into a bowl.
3. In a separate, large, bowl, beat the egg then mix in the water, honey, sugar and vanilla. Grate the carrot and stir into the mixture.
4. Add the oil to the carrot mixture and stir well. Tip the dry ingredients into the bowl and quickly mix to just combine. (The mixture should still be lumpy and don't worry about occasional streaks of flour.)
5. Spoon into the paper cases and bake for 20-25 minutes, until firm and springy. Cool in a wire rack.
6. If icing, allow the cakes to cool completely first. Mix the cheese, icing sugar and juice together thoroughly and spread a little over the top of each muffin.

They will keep well in a tin for a few days, or can be frozen without the icing.

Pesto chicken

I use my nut-free pesto for this but you can of course use the usual kind, bought or homemade.

Makes: 2 servings

Takes: 20 minutes

Ingredients

2 boneless chicken breasts, skin on

2 tbsp pesto

salt and pepper

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp milk

Method

1. 
   
   Loosen the skin of the chicken with your fingers, making sure it stays attached along one side. Spread 1/2 tablespoon pesto over each chicken breast, pull the skin back over to cover, then season.
2. 
   
   Heat the oil in a frying pan over a high heat then place the chicken into the pan skin side down. Fry for about 3 minutes until the skin is crisp.
3. 
   
   Turn the chicken over, reduce the heat, then cover the pan and cook for about 10 minutes until cooked through. Remove from the pan and keep warm.
4. 
   
   Add the other tablespoon of pesto to the pan with the milk, mix with the juices and heat till bubbling. Season to taste. Serve the chicken with the pesto sauce poured over.

Notes: Great served with new potatoes roasted with sprigs of rosemary, and with a green vegetable such as spinach, green beans or broccoli.

You could get away with using a bit less oil if you have a good non-stick pan, but you do need to use a little to get the skin to crisp.