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British Style Baked Beans

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British style beans you say? What does that mean? Well from what I can tell American baked beans tend to be a lot sweeter and the sauce tends to start with some sort of meat product. Predominantly pork product as I can tell.

British style beans tend to be a thinner tomato based sauce. They can have carrots, onion or celery in them. They are definitely less sweet then the American version but still have a little molasses or brown sugar in them. The recipe I based mine off of had both.

Ingredients

  • 1 can black eyed peas
  • 1 can Navy beans
  • 1 small can tomato sauce
  • 1 cup vegetable stock
  • 1 shallot, diced
  • 1 jalapeno, diced
  • 2 garlic cloves, diced
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 3 tbsp tomato paste
  • 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 3 tbsp Worcester sauce.
  • 2 tbsp sugar
  • 2 tbsp honey
  • 1 tsp cornstarch
  • 1 tbsp oil
  • Salt/pepper

Directions

  1. In a medium size pot place oil and cook on medium heat till it moves in the pan like water. Place shallot and jalapeno and cook till the shallot gets translucent.
  2. Add the garlic and cook another 3 minutes. Add vegetable stock and tomato sauce. Add the cornstarch and stir to combine. Add tomato paste and stir to combine. It will thicken your sauce.
  3. Add your beans and the rest of your ingredients one at a time.
  4. Cook for roughly 15 minutes until the sauce thickens.
  5. Serve with barbeque or just on toast.

Strawberry Olive Oil Cake

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So I know this recipe is not like traditional olive oil cake recipes I looked at, but I’m still gonna call it olive oil cake because that was the inspiration for the recipe. Instead of milk I used olive oil and the result is a rich delicious cake with the bright flavor of strawberry. You will not be able to stop eating. It will call to you like the ocean calls to moana.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
  • 1/3 cup olive oil
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 cup sliced strawberries
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/4 tsp salt

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a square 8×8 cake pan and line it with parchment paper.
  2. In the bowl of your mixer with the whisk attachment cream together your sugar and butter until it’s fluffy.
  3. Add your egg and vanilla and whisk to combine.
  4. Add all your dry ingredients and whisk to combine. It will be slightly dry.
  5. Slowly whisk in your oil until you get a well combined hydrated batter. You may need more oil or you may need less. It will be a slightly thick consistency.
  6. Fold in your strawberries until well distributed.
  7. Place in your prepared tin and bake for 40 minutes. It will still look soft but will firm up as it sits.
  8. Top with powdered sugar and serve to happy people.

Mediterranean Tuna Salad

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Ingredients

  • 2 cups salad mix of your choice
  • 6-7 cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
  • 1/3 cup feta cheese
  • 1/4 cup sliced kalamata olives
  • 1 mini cucumber, diced
  • 1 can tuna
  • 1/2 red onion, sliced
  • 1 tsp fresh basil, ripped
  • 1/4 tsp dried oregano
  • 2 tsp olive oil
  • salt/pepper to taste
  • balsamic vinaigrette to dress (I used store bought but you can make your own)

Directions

  1. In a small bowl dress the tuna in the olive oil, oregano, salt and pepper.
  2. In a larger bowl place your salad mix.
  3. Then one at a time place your ingredients in whatever way you want across the top of the greens. (I like to do it in quadrants because it takes a nice picture. You can sprinkle and layer however you like.)
  4. Dress with the balsamic dressing and enjoy.

I always feel kind of silly giving instructions on how to put a salad together because you could throw the ingredients at the bowl from across the room and it would still be good. Creamy feta, bright tomatoes, briny olives and crisp fresh greens make this salad a delicious addition to the table any way you decide to serve it up.

Vegetable Cobbler

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The vegetable dish you definitely didn’t know you were waiting for, but definitely can’t live without now. This delicious savory tray bake is a use what you have in the fridge and pantry type of recipe. I’ll tell you what I used and the changes I might’ve made, but use what you’ve got. It’ll be delicious and filling either way.

Ingredients

For the scones

  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 tbsp sugar
  • 4 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 2/3 cup milk
  • 3 tbsp butter
  • 1/3 cup cheddar cheese
  • 1 tbsp. rosemary, chopped
  • egg wash: 1 egg plus 1 tbsp water

For the vegetable mixture

  • 1 can Navy beans
  • 1 can diced tomatoes
  • 1 cup beef stock
  • 2 Roma tomatoes, diced
  • 1 zucchini squash, diced
  • 1/2 onion, diced
  • 2 tbsp. Olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 tsp. Garlic powder
  • 1 tsp. Onion powder
  • Salt/pepper

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  2. In a medium size pot on medium high heat put olive oil and diced onion. Cook till onion is slightly colored. It’ll take about 5 minutes.
  3. Add garlic and cook another 3 minutes. Add Roma tomatoes and cook about 3 minutes. You just want to release some of the moisture in the tomatoes but not really cook them very hard.
  4. Add beans, stock, can of tomatoes, zucchini and dry spices and cook about 5 minutes.
  5. Place your vegetable mixture in a 13×9 glass casserole dish.
  6. Combine all your scone ingredients in a medium size mixing bowl and mix until it becomes a slightly dry dough.
  7. Lightly flour your work surface and turn out your dough. Knead gently until it comes together.
  8. Cut into about 10 small scones and place on top of your vegetable mixture.
  9. Egg wash all your scones so the tops will brown nicely.
  10. Bake for 15 minutes.

Orzo and zucchini soup

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Are your cupboards looking a little bare? Mine were too. Going to the store right now is filling me with anxiety and dread so I was definitely pulling myself up by my culinary bootstraps and surviving the day with this one.

A little pasta and a green vegetable can go a long way. If you don’t have orzo rice is a good substitute.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups orzo
  • 2 cups chicken broth
  • 1/3 cup frozen onion
  • 1/4 cup frozen peas
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 1 zucchini, diced
  • 1/2 tsp onion powder
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/2 tsp tarragon
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • Salt/pepper

Directions

  1. Place butter in a medium size pot and melt on medium heat. Then add your frozen veggies and garlic and cook till the garlic colors which should take about 3-5 minutes.
  2. While that’s cooking in a smaller pot place 2 cups of orzo and enough water to cover it plus about an inch. Should come out to roughly 3 cups. This has to cook for about 11 minutes.
  3. After you get your orzo on add zucchini and all the spices to the vegetable pot and cook for about 3 minutes then add chicken stock. You want the zucchini to still have a little crunch to it so you don’t want to cook it to long before you add the stock.
  4. When your orzo is done cooking add it to the vegetable pot. salt and pepper to taste.

You won’t end up with a lot of broth in this soup. Up the chicken stock to 4 cups if you want a thinner soup.

Struggle Bus Soup

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This recipe has two names. Struggle Bus Soup and mean green machine. It’s definitely a raid the crisper drawer for anything green and the back of the pantry cupboard for those packs of ramen you’ve been holding onto for a rainy day type of recipe.

Also parsley isn’t just for decorating every 90’s restaurant plate. Put it in your soups! Put it in your pesto! It’s delicious.

Ingredients

  • 2 chicken ramen packets
  • 4 cups water
  • 1/4 cup frozen peas
  • 1/4 cup frozen onion
  • 1/2 head of broccoli, cut into florets
  • 2 carrots, cut into matchsticks
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1/4 cup parsley, chopped
  • 1 chicken bouillon cube
  • 1/2 tsp tarragon
  • 1/4 tsp onion powder
  • 1/4 tsp garlic powder
  • 2 tsp butter
  • Salt/pepper

Directions

  1. In a medium size pot over medium heat put butter and garlic and heat till butter is melted.
  2. Add frozen veggies to the pot and cook for 3-5 minutes cooking off some of the moisture.
  3. Add carrots and broccoli and cook for 3 minutes.
  4. Add garlic powder, onion powder, seasoning packets from ramen and tarragon. Cook for 3 minutes to heat the spices. (Helps bring out the delicious salt flavor from the ramen packets.)
  5. Add water and bouillon cube and stir to mix spices and veggies together. Cook for about 5 minutes.
  6. Add noodles and parsley and cook till noodles are your desired doneness. About 3-5 minutes.
  7. Salt and pepper to taste.

Yorkshire Puddings

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I figured out what’s been missing from every roast dinner I’ve ever had. It’s Yorkshire puddings! Yet again I found a reason to love British food culture. These delicious morsels are a baked pudding with a batter consisting of eggs, flour, salt and either milk or water. They are baked in a muffin tins with either oil or the drippings from your roast heated in the tin to help with the rising of a batter that has no raising agent in it. You can also bake them in a square baking dish and create one large pudding instead of individual ones.

Ingredients

  • 4 eggs
  • 1 cup flour
  • 3/4 cup water
  • 1 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup oil

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. In a muffin tin divide half a cup of oil in between all sections. If using a baking dish just pour all the oil in. Heat the oil in the baking dish or muffin tin for about 10 minutes or until it starts smoking.
  2. While the oil is heating you want to make your batter. You can just chuck all the ingredients into one bowl and whisk until well combined. You don’t want any lumps in your batter.
  3. When the oil is ready pull your pan out of the oven and quickly put the batter in the tin. It will quickly react to the heat from your oil. That’s helping the eggs in the batter raise your little puddings.
  4. Bake for 15 minutes until golden brown and well risen. Serve with whatever delicious roast you’ve put together.

If you’re using the drippings from your roast then after the roast is cooked you want to put it on a cutting board to rest. I tend to tent mine with aluminium foil. You then want to dish up your veggies into whatever serving bowl you’ve got. You want to make sure after you pull your roast out you put the temperature of your oven up to 450.

You can make the batter up to an hour ahead of time so that you’re ready when he roast is out to put the puddings in.

Baked Scotch Eggs

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A scotch egg is a British dish that consists of a soft boiled egg wrapped in sausage and covered in a herbed bread crumbs coating. Its then either baked or fried till the coating is crisp. I baked mine because home frying is a skill the eludes me.

Ingredients

  • 1 pound pork sausage
  • 4 soft boiled eggs
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp onion powder
  • 1 tbsp fennel seed
  • Salt/pepper
  • 2 tbsp basil, chopped
  • 2 tbsp parsley, chopped
  • 1 cup panko bread crumbs
  • 1 egg, beaten

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. Place sausage, onion and garlic powder, salt and pepper and half your chopped herbs in bowl and combine well.
  3. In two smaller bowls put the beaten egg in one and in the other put your bread crumbs and herb mixture.
  4. Divide your sausage mixture into four equal parts. Flatten each sausage portion into a 4 inch circle.
  5. Place an egg in the center of the sausage party and wrap the egg entirely. Make sure no egg shows through. Do all four eggs like this.
  6. Dip each egg into the beaten egg bowl and let the excess drip off. Then roll in the panko and herb mixture.
  7. Place each egg on the baking sheet a couple inches from each other. Bake for 35-40 minutes until golden brown. Flip half way through to get even browning.

Greek orzo chicken salad

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It’s the perfect dinner for those nights where you want something light and easy. It’s bright and tangy and delicious.

Ingredients

  • 1 pound chicken breast
  • 2 cups orzo
  • 1/2 cup feta cheese
  • 1/2 red onion, diced
  • 1/4 cup kalamata olives
  • 1 cucumber, diced
  • 1/2 cup spinach, chopped
  • 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
  • 2 tbsp. Basil, chopped
  • 1/3 cup olive oil
  • Lemon juice of 1 lemon
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced

Directions

  1. Cut your chicken breast into 1/2 inch to inch pieces. Cook on medium high heat with salt and pepper until browned.
  2. While chicken is cooking cook orzo according to package instructions. 9-12 minutes is the normal cooking time.
  3. When orzo is done stir spinach and basil into warm pasta so that it wilts slightly.
  4. Add your chicken, cheese, olives and veggies to a bowl.
  5. Add your orzo to the bowl and mix well to combine.
  6. In a separate smaller bowl ads oil, lemon juice and garlic. Whisk well to combine.
  7. Add dressing to salad bowl and mix to combine.

You can always add more feta if you like more cheese. More olives if you want more tang. More onion if you want more punch. It’s kind of a recipeless recipe.

Faux Gregg’s Steak Bake

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Puff pastry cases filled with savory meat and vegetables are the thing of beautiful dreams. The way warm herby gravy coats the inside of the pastry case and combines with the abundance of butter in the crust and holds onto your perfectly cooked meat and veg filling allowing you the perfect bite every time. It’s glorious.

There is a bakery chain in the UK that I had never heard of till about five or so years ago called Gregg’s. They do a range of savory hand pies in roughly the shape of a pop tart and they look amazing. Unfortunately I would have to travel many miles and a whole ass ocean to get one. So I made one at home.

Ingredients

  • Puff Pastry
  • Thinly sliced steak, diced
  • 1 cup beef stock
  • 1 tsp. rosemary
  • 1 yellow onion, diced
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp onion powder
  • cornstarch slurry: 2 tsp cornstarch and 2 tbsp water
  • salt/pepper
  • 2 tsp. worcestershire sauce
  • egg wash: 1 egg and 1 tsp of water
  • 1 tbsp neutral oil

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 395 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. Put oil in a pan on medium high heat until it shimmers in the pan. Sizzle your steak in the pan until it gets deeply browned.
  3. Add onions and cook until they start to color which will take about 5 minutes.
  4. Add onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add beef stock, cornstarch slurry and rosemary and cook until gravy reduces by about half. Salt and pepper to taste.
  5. Roll out your puff pastry into a big enough square that you can cut at least 8 rectangles. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
  6. Lay two pastry rectangles on each sheet and spoon your filling into the center of the square. Leave room on the sides of the pastry.
  7. Using a pastry brush egg wash around the edges of the rectangle. This will help seal your pockets together. Top each with your other pastry rectangles. Using a fork crimp the sides of your pastry. Then egg wash the top.
  8. Score the tops of each pocket once to give them steam some place to escape. Not a hole big enough for your gravy to escape when you eat it though. That would be awful!
  9. Cook for 20 minutes until pastry is golden brown and flaky.
  10. Serve with chips(french fries) or roasted veggies like I did in the picture.