Whether we are at home in our fancy kitchen or in the motorhome at the side of the road in Europe we still like to eat well.
Opening a can of beans to heat up for dinner was never going to be an option for me, all be it some of the recipes were a little trickier to make in the motorhome, lack of space, equipment and knowing that we had to use the gas sparingly at times, all had to using your imagination. And if we are at a house sit I would make some of the recipes and freeze them use at a later date.
So here are some of the delicious recipes I hope you enjoy them.
Butternut squash soup ( Dairy free)
Ingredients:
– 3Ib Peeled butternut squash
– 1 Large Onion
– 2 Medium Carrots
– 1 Red pepper
– 4 Tbsp Clear Honey
– 2in Piece root ginger (optional)
– 2 1/2 Pints vegetable stock
– Freshly ground Salt & Pepper
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6.
2. Put the chopped squash into a large freezer bag with the onion, carrots and red pepper. Add half the oil and salt and pepper and toss everything together until the vegetables are evenly coated. Tip into a large roasting tin and pop in oven.
3. Roast in the oven for 40–45 minutes, or until they start to turn a light brown. Drizzle over the honey, if using, 5 minutes before the end of cooking.
4. Place in a large saucepan over a medium heat, add the remaining oil and when hot add the ginger and fry for a minute. Pour in the stock and bring to the boil, then stir in the roasted vegetables and add salt and pepper.
5. Remove the saucepan from the heat and, using a hand blender, blend the mixture until smooth. Return to the heat to warm through and serve hot with crusty bread.
Cycling flapjacks
Ingredients
- 125g butter or margarine
- 100g dark brown soft sugar
- 4 tbsp golden syrup
- 250g rolled jumbo oats
- 40g dried fruit or nuts
Method
- Preheat the oven to 180ºC / Gas Mark 4 / 350ºF.
- In a saucepan over low heat, combine the butter, brown sugar and golden syrup.
- Cook, stirring occasionally until butter and sugar have melted. Stir in the oats, dried fruit and nuts of your choice
- Bake for about 30 minutes or until golden in colour
- Remove from oven cut into squares then leave to cool before removing from tin.
- Will store in a tin for about a week
These flapjacks are great at providing quick, easy energy during a long bike ride or delicious with a cup of tea.
Italian Capricciosa salad (Insalata capricciosa)
This is a classic Italian salad that contains crispy salad leaves with cubed bell peppers, celery, ham and cheese and everything is dressed with a creamy mayo-yogurt dressing. Legend has it that this salad was designed in medieval times to please even the pickiest of noble ladies (the name capricciosa means picky lady).
Ingredients (serves 1-2)
• 2 handfuls of lettuce
• 50 g celery
• 50 g bell peppers
• 25 g cheese
• 25 g ham
• 3 tablespoons yogurt
• 2 tablespoons mayo
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• salt and pepper to taste
Method
Put the salad leaves in the serving bowl. Dice the celery and bell peppers into small cubes. Then cube the ham and cheese placing them on top of the salad. In a small bowl, mix the yogurt, mayo, lemon juice. Add salt and pepper to taste. Pour the dressing on just before serving. I think this freshly home-made version is the best.
Earl Grey Tea loaf
- 175g raisins 175g sultanas
- 300m hot Earl Grey tea
- 275g self raising flour
- 225g/8oz light muscovado sugar
- 1 large egg, beaten
- butter, for greasing, plus extra to serve
Method
- Put the currants and sultanas in a bowl and pour over the hot tea. Stir, cover and leave to soak overnight for the liquid to absorb.
- Preheat the oven to 150C/130C Fan/Gas 3½. Grease a 900g/2lb loaf tin and line with non-stick baking paper.
- Add the flour, sugar and egg to the bowl of soaked fruit (if there is a little excess liquid this is fine) and mix thoroughly.
- Spoon into the prepared tin and level the top. Bake for 1¾ hours, or until the cake is risen and just firm to the touch, but check it after 1¼ hours to see how it is doing. Leave to cool in the tin for about 10 minutes.
- Turn out the cake and remove the paper. To serve, cut into slices and spread with butter
I like this recipe because the dried fruit that has been soaked overnight in Earl the Grey tea is nice a plump and full of flavour. After that it’s a quick stir-together job and a couple of hours later, Voila , the perfect tea loaf. A fruity tea also makes a great alternative to Earl grey.
Chicken Marengo Serves 4
Ingredients
1 tbsp olive oil
300g mushrooms, halved
4 chicken legs or breast with the skin removed
500g of either homemade or shop bought passata
Herbs and garlic (optional)
1 chicken stock cube
100g pitted black kalamata olive
chopped parsley, to serve (optional)
Method
- Heat the oil in a large casserole dish and stir-fry the mushrooms until they start to soften. Add the chicken legs and cook briefly on each side to brown them a little.
- Pour in the passata, crumble in the stock cube and stir in the olives. Season with black pepper – you shouldn’t need salt. Cover and simmer for 40 mins until the chicken is tender. Sprinkle with parsley and serve with pasta and a salad, or mash and green veg.
Damson Jam
Ingredients
- 2.75kg damsons
- 2.25kg jam sugar
Method
- Place a saucer or small plate in the freezer and sterilise your jars and lids.
- To sterilise jars and lids, wash them in hot soapy water, rinse well, then dry in a low oven and leave to cool. Alternatively, use the hottest cycle in a recently cleaned dishwasher
- Depending on size of jars you should roughly have enough Jam for 2-3 jars
- You can either Stone the damsons before by slicing with a knife or remove after
- Put the damsons in a preserving pan or large saucepan with 300ml of water and simmer for 10-15 minutes until soft.
- Stir in the jam sugar and cook over a low heat, stirring frequently, until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to a rapid boil and boil for about 15 minutes, then take off the heat.
- To test for the setting point, spoon a little jam the chilled saucer, then freeze for 2 minutes. Push your finger through it. If it wrinkles and isn’t runny, it’s ready. If it doesn’t wrinkle, return to the heat and boil for 2-3 minutes more, then re-test. Repeat the test until ready.
- Take off the heat and cool for 15 minutes. Meanwhile remove as many of the stones as you can with a teaspoon
- Give the Jam a good stir then ladle into warm sterilised jars. Cover immediately with waxed discs and lids, label and date. The Jam should keep in a cool dry place for months,
When we arrive in the Dordogne we are lucky to find a Damson tree just along the road from where we are house sitting. Normally in season during the months of August and September they can be eaten off the tree when they are fully ripe and sweet. Damsons are fantastic in jams but can also be used in sauces to accompany sweet and savoury dishes.